Thus is the proude millere wel ybete, And hath ylost the gryndynge of the whete, And payed for the soper everideel Of Aleyn and of John, that bette hym weel. His wyf is swyved, and his doghter als. Low, swich it is a millere to be fals! And therefore this proverbe is seyd ful sooth, "Hym thar nat wene wel that yvil dooth."

Thus is the proude millere wel ybete,
And hath ylost the gryndynge of the whete,
And payed for the soper everideel
Of Aleyn and of John, that bette hym weel.
His wyf is swyved, and his doghter als.
Low, swich it is a millere to be fals!
And therefore this proverbe is seyd ful sooth,
"Hym thar nat wene wel that yvil dooth."

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Reeve’s Tale. The reckoning comes for the thieving miller who steals from his customers. His punishment includes a beating by John and Alan, his wife screwed and his daughter screwed. This is how it is when a miller is false, says the Reeve, still smarting at how The Miller’s Tale slandered carpenters.

Geoffrey Chaucer Quotes