"Ah! little did her mincing,
Or his long prayers bestead;
She had no more hung on her
Than a tassel and a thread.
"Down she threw the mantle,
With terror and dismay,
And with a face of scarlet
To her chamber hied away.
"Sir Cradock called his lady,
And bade her to come near:
'Come win this mantle, lady,
And do me credit here:
"'Come win this mantle, lady,
For now it shall be thine,
If thou hast never done amiss,
Since first I made thee mine.'
"The lady, gently blushing,
With modest grace came on;
And now to try the wondrous charm
Courageously is gone.
"When she had ta'en the mantle,
And put it on her back,
About the hem it seemed
To wrinkle and to crack.
"'Lie still,' she cried, 'O mantle!
And shame me not for naught;
I'll freely own whate'er amiss
Or blameful I have wrought.
"'Once I kissed Sir Cradock
Beneath the greenwood tree;
Once I kissed Sir Cradock's mouth,
Before he married me.'
"When she had thus her shriven,
And her worst fault had told,
The mantle soon became her,
Right comely as it should.
"Most rich and fair of color,
Like gold it glittering shone,
And much the knights in Arthur's court
Admired her every one."