“A Sompnoure was ther with us in that place,
      That hadde a fire-red cherubinnes face,
      For sausefleme he was, with eyen narwe,
      As hote he was, and likerous as a sparwe,
      With scalled browes blake, and pilled berd: 
      Of his visage children were sore aferd. 
      Ther n’as quicksilver, litarge, ne brimston,
      Boras, ceruse, ne oile of tartre non,
      Ne oinement that wolde clense or bite,
      That him might helpen of his whelkes white,
      Ne of the knobbes sitting on his chekes. 
      Wel loved he garlike, onions, and lekes,
      And for to drinke strong win as rede as blood. 
      Than wolde he speke, and crie as he were wood. 
      And whan that he wel dronken had the win,
      Than wold he speken no word but Latin. 
      A fewe termes coude he, two or three,
      That he had lerned out of som decree;
      No wonder is, he heard it all the day.—­
        In danger hadde he at his owen gise
      The yonge girles of the diocise,
      And knew hir conseil, and was of hir rede. 
      A gerlond hadde he sette upon his hede
      As gret as it were for an alestake: 
      A bokeler hadde he made him of a cake. 
      With him ther rode a gentil Pardonere—­
      That hadde a vois as smale as hath a gote.”

It would be a curious speculation (at least for those who think that the characters of men never change, though manners, opinions, and institutions may) to know what has become of this character of the Sompnoure in the present day; whether or not it has any technical representative in existing professions; into what channels and conduits it has withdrawn itself, where it lurks unseen in cunning obscurity, or else shews its face boldly, pampered into all the insolence of office, in some other shape, as it is deterred or encouraged by circumstances. Chaucer’s characters modernised, upon this principle of historic derivation, would be an useful addition to our knowledge of human nature.  But who is there to undertake it?

The descriptions of the equipage, and accoutrements of the two kings of Thrace and Inde, in the Knight’s Tale, are as striking and grand, as the others are lively and natural: 

      “Ther maist thou se coming with Palamon
      Licurge himself, the grete king of Trace: 
      Blake was his berd, and manly was his face,
      The cercles of his eyen in his hed
      They gloweden betwixen yelwe and red,
      And like a griffon loked he about,
      With kemped heres on his browes stout;
      His limmes gret, his braunes hard and stronge,
      His shouldres brode, his armes round and longe
      And as the guise was in his contree,
      Ful highe upon a char of gold stood he,
      With foure white bolles in the trais. 
      Instede of cote-armure on his harnais,
      With nayles yelwe,