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diff --git a/43195-0.txt b/43195-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..0fe365b --- /dev/null +++ b/43195-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,38589 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 43195 *** + +Transcriber's note: A few typographical errors have been corrected: they +are listed at the end of the text. + + * * * * * + + +In this text [gh] represents the Middle English letter "yogh", which +appears similar to the numeral 3. [=a] signifies "a macron", and so forth. + + * * * * * + + +CHAUCERIAN + +AND OTHER PIECES + +_EDITED, FROM NUMEROUS MANUSCRIPTS_ + +BY THE REV. + +WALTER W. SKEAT, LITT.D., D.C.L., LL.D., PH.D. +ELRINGTON AND BOSWORTH PROFESSOR OF ANGLO-SAXON +AND FELLOW OF CHRIST'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE + + + +BEING A SUPPLEMENT TO THE +COMPLETE WORKS OF GEOFFREY CHAUCER +(OXFORD, IN SIX VOLUMES, 1894) + + * * * + * * * * + + 'And yit ye shul han better loos, + Right in dispyt of alle your foos, + Than worthy is; and that anoon.' + _Hous of Fame, 1667-9._ + +Oxford + +AT THE CLARENDON PRESS + +M DCCC XCVII + + * * * * * + +Oxford + +PRINTED AT THE CLARENDON PRESS +BY HORACE HART, M.A., +PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY + + * * * * * + +CONTENTS. + + INTRODUCTION.--§ 1. Works appended to those of Chaucer in various + editions. § 2. Thynne's collection in 1532. _A Praise of Women._ + _The Lamentation of Mary Magdalen._ _The Remedy of Love._ § 3. Other + non-Chaucerian pieces. _The Craft of Lovers._ _A Balade._ _The Ten + Commandments of Love._ _The Nine Ladies Worthy._ _Virelai._ _The + Judgement of Paris._ _A Balade pleasaunte._ _Another Balade._ _The + Court of Love._ § 4. Additions by Speght. _Chaucer's Dream._ _Eight + Goodly Questions._ § 5. Editions and MSS. consulted. § 6. + Authorities for the pieces here printed. § 7. I. THE TESTAMENT OF + LOVE. § 8. The acrostic found in it. Name of the author. § 9. Fate + of Thomas Usk. § 10. Idea of the work. § 11. The author's + plagiarisms from Chaucer. § 12. How he stole a passage from The + House of Fame. § 13. Borrowings from Troilus and Piers Plowman. + § 14. The author's inaccuracies. § 15. The title; and the meaning + of Margaret. § 16. Plan of the work. § 17. Outline of Book I. § 18. + Outline of Book II. § 19. Outline of Book III. § 20. II. THE + PLOWMANS TALE. § 21. Never supposed to be Chaucer's. § 22. Written + by the author of The Ploughmans Crede. § 23. III. JACK UPLAND. § 24. + Date, A.D. 1402. § 25. Traces of two texts. § 26. Not originally + written in alliterative verse. § 27. IV. THE PRAISE OF PEACE. By John + Gower. § 28. The Trentham MS. § 29. Date, A.D. 1399. § 30. V. THE + LETTER OF CUPID. By Thomas Hoccleve. § 31. VI. TWO BALADES. By Thomas + Hoccleve. § 32. VII. A MORAL BALADE. By Henry Scogan. Date, about + 1407. § 33. The supper at the Vintry. § 34. VIII. THE COMPLAINT OF + THE BLACK KNIGHT. By John Lydgate. § 35. His quotations from Chaucer's + version of the Romaunt of the Rose. Date, about 1402. § 36. IX. THE + FLOUR OF CURTESYE. By John Lydgate. Date, about 1401. § 37. X. A BALADE + IN COMMENDATION OF OUR LADY. By John Lydgate. § 38. A new stanza and + a new MS. § 39. XI. TO MY SOVERAIN LADY. By John Lydgate. § 40. XII. + BALLAD OF GOOD COUNSEL. By John Lydgate. § 41. XIII. BEWARE OF + DOUBLENESS. By John Lydgate. § 42. XIV. A BALADE: WARNING MEN, &c. + By John Lydgate. § 43. XV. THREE SAYINGS. By John Lydgate. § 44. XVI. + LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCY. By Sir Richard Ros. Date, about 1460. + § 45. Apparently in the Leicestershire dialect. § 46. Alan Chartier. + § 47. Thynne's text and the MSS. § 48. XVII. THE TESTAMENT OF CRESSEID. + By Robert Henryson. Date, about 1460. § 49. XVIII. THE CUCKOO AND THE + NIGHTINGALE. Probably by Sir Thomas Clanvowe. § 50. The queen at + Woodstock; about A.D. 1403. § 51. Clanvowe's excessive use of the + final _-e_. § 52. His partiality for 'headless' lines. § 53. Milton's + Sonnet to the Nightingale. § 54. XIX. ENVOY TO ALISON. Not by Clanvowe. + § 55. XX. THE FLOWER AND THE LEAF. By the authoress of The Assembly + of Ladies. § 56. The former is the earlier poem. Neither of them is + by Chaucer. § 57. Variations from Chaucer's usages. § 58. Examination + of the Rimes. § 59. Change in pronunciation. § 60. Gower on the + Flower and the Leaf. § 61. XXI. THE ASSEMBLY OF LADIES. By the + authoress of The Flower and the Leaf. § 62. Ordering of a medieval + household. § 63. XXII. A GOODLY BALADE. By John Lydgate. Imperfect. + § 64. XXIII. GO FORTH, KING. By John Lydgate. § 65. _Duodecim + Abusiones._ § 66. XXIV. THE COURT OF LOVE. First printed in 1561. + § 67. Tyrwhitt's plan for a Glossary to the Canterbury Tales. § 68. + Moxon's edition of Chaucer; establishing an erroneous canon of + Chaucer's Works. § 69. How to draw up such a canon correctly. § 70. + The Court of Love discussed. § 71. The Trinity MS. and the language. + § 72. Artificiality of the archaisms affected. § 73. Examination of + the Rimes. § 74. Comparison with Chaucerian English. § 75. The + Courts of Love. § 76. Pieces numbered XXV-XXIX. § 77. Twelve + authors (at least) distinguished in the present volume. § 78. + There are probably four more. § 79. Improvements in the present PAGE + edition ix + + I. THOMAS USK: THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE. + BOOK I: PROLOGUE AND CHAPTERS I-X 1 + BOOK II: CHAPTERS I-XIV 46 + BOOK III: CHAPTERS I-IX 101 + + II. THE PLOWMANS TALE 147 + + III. JACK UPLAND 191 + + IV. JOHN GOWER: THE PRAISE OF PEACE 205 + + V. THOMAS HOCCLEVE: THE LETTER OF CUPID 217 + + VI. THE SAME: TO THE KINGES MOST NOBLE GRACE 233 + TO THE LORDES AND KNIGHTES OF THE GARTER 234 + + VII. HENRY SCOGAN: A MORAL BALADE 237 + + VIII. JOHN LYDGATE: THE COMPLAINT OF THE BLACK KNIGHT; OR, + THE COMPLAINT OF A LOVERES LYFE 245 + + IX. THE SAME: THE FLOUR OF CURTESYE 266 + + X. THE SAME: A BALADE; IN COMMENDATION OF OUR LADY 275 + + XI. THE SAME: TO MY SOVERAIN LADY 281 + + XII. THE SAME: BALLAD OF GOOD COUNSEL 285 + + XIII. THE SAME: BEWARE OF DOUBLENESS 291 + + XIV. THE SAME: A BALADE: WARNING MEN TO BEWARE OF DECEITFUL WOMEN 295 + + XV. THE SAME: THREE SAYINGS 297 + + XVI. SIR RICHARD ROS: LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCY 299 + + XVII. ROBERT HENRYSON: THE TESTAMENT OF CRESSEID 327 + + XVIII. THE CUCKOO AND THE NIGHTINGALE; OR, THE BOOK OF CUPID, + GOD OF LOVE. (By Clanvowe) 347 + + XIX. AN ENVOY TO ALISON 359 + + XX. THE FLOWER AND THE LEAF (By a Lady) 361 + + XXI. THE ASSEMBLY OF LADIES (By the same) 380 + + XXII. A GOODLY BALADE. (By John Lydgate) 405 + + XXIII. GO FORTH, KING. (By John Lydgate) 408 + + XXIV. THE COURT OF LOVE 409 + + XXV. A VIRELAI 448 + + XXVI. PROSPERITY. (By John Walton) 449 + + XXVII. LEAULTE VAULT RICHESSE 449 + + XXVIII. SAYINGS PRINTED BY CAXTON 450 + + XXIX. BALADE IN PRAISE OF CHAUCER 450 + + NOTES TO THE FOREGOING PIECES 451 + + GLOSSARIAL INDEX 555 + + INDEX OF NAMES 603 + + INDEX TO SOME SUBJECTS EXPLAINED IN THE NOTES 607 + + * * * * * + + +ERRATA AND ADDENDA + +P. 26, l. 45. _For_ conuersion _read_ conversion. + +P. 32, l. 38. Mr. Bradley suggests that _maistresse_ is a misprint of +Thynne's for _maistres secrè_, i.e. master's secret; alluding to John of +Northampton. + +P. 33, l. 75. _For_ may it be sayd in that thinge 'this man thou demest, +_read_ may it be sayd, 'in that thinge this man thou demest, + +P. 50, l. 28. _For_ in sacke, sowed with wolle _perhaps read_ in sacke +sowed, with wolle. + +P. 52, ll. 107, 109. Mr. Bradley suggests that 'Caynes' and 'Cayn' are +Thynne's misprints for 'Cames' and 'Cam'; where _Cam_ (misread as _Cain_) +means _Ham_, for which the Vulgate has _Cham_. + +P. 153, l. 187. _Insert a hyphen in_ gold-mastling. + +P. 163, l. 520. _For_ punishments _read_ punishëments. (_See_ note.) + +P. 180, l. 1050. _For_ [ful] _read_ [not]. (_See_ note.) + +P. 186, l. 1231. End the line with a semicolon. + +P. 192, l. 36. _Insert a mark of interrogation after_ speketh of. + +P. 206, l. 27. _For_ request [the] _read_ requestë. (_See_ note.) + +P. 213, l. 294. _For_ men _perhaps read_ pees. (_See_ note.) + +P. 215, l. 363. _For_ debated _read_ delated. (_See_ note.) + +P. 237; footnotes, l. 1. _For_ 1542 _read_ 1532. + +P. 256, l. 371. _For_ tha _read_ that. + +P. 458; note to l. 117. See also P. Pl. B. xiii. 277, 292. + +P. 458; note to l. 53. For fuller details, see the Introduction. + +P. 473; note to l. 155. Chaucer's Astrolabe was not written till 1391, +after Usk's death. + +P. 475; note to Ch. XI. l. 11. On the subject of Grace, see Bk. iii. ch. 8. + +P. 478; note to l. 47. _For_ taken from _read_ compare. + + * * * * * + +INTRODUCTION + +§ 1. The following pieces are selected, as being the most important, from +among the very numerous ones which have been appended to Chaucer's works in +various editions. + +I use the word 'appended' advisedly. It is not true that these works were +all attributed to Chaucer in the black-letter editions. The Praise of Peace +was marked as Gower's in Thynne's first edition of 1532. Another piece in +that edition is attributed to Scogan. The Letter of Cupid is expressly +dated 1402, though Chaucer died in 1400. The Flower of Curtesye contains +the words 'Chaucer is dede'; and The Testament of Cresseid contains a +remark which, in modern English, would run thus--'Who knows if all that +Chaucer wrote is true?' + +Those who, through ignorance or negligence, regard Thynne's edition of +Chaucer as containing 'Works attributed to Chaucer' make a great mistake; +and even if the mistake be excused on the ground that it has been very +generally and very frequently made, this does not lessen its magnitude. The +title of Thynne's book is very instructive, and really runs thus:--'The +Workes of Geffray Chaucer newly printed, with dyuers workes which were +neuer in print before, &c.' This is strictly and literally true; for it +contains such works of Chaucer's as had previously been printed by Caxton, +Wynkyn de Worde, and Julian Notary (see vol. i. p. 28), together with +'dyuers workes [_of various authors_] which were neuer in print before.' +Which is the simple solution of the whole matter, as far as this edition is +concerned. The same remarks apply to the second edition in 1542, and the +third, printed about 1550. But Stowe, in 1561, altered the title so as to +give it a new meaning. The title-page of his edition runs thus:--'The +Woorkes of Geffrey Chaucer, newly printed with diuers Addicions which were +neuer in printe before.' Here the authorship of Chaucer was, _for the first +time_, practically claimed for the whole of Thynne's volume. At the same +time, Stowe did not really mean what he seems to say, for it was he who +first added the words--'made by Ihon lidgate'--to the title of 'The Flower +of Curtesie,' and who first assigned a title (ascribing the poem to _dan +Ihon lidgat_) to the poem beginning 'Consider wel'; see no. 40 (vol. i. p. +33). + +§ 2. It is clear that Thynne's intention was to print a collection of +poems, including all he could find of Chaucer and anything else of a +similar character that he could lay his hands on[1]. In other words, the +collection was, from the beginning, a collection of the Works of Chaucer +_and other writers_; and this fact was in no way modified by the adoption +by Stowe and Speght of misleading titles that actually assigned to Chaucer +all the poems in the volume! See further, as to this subject, in the +discussion of The Court of Love below. + +The number of pieces appended, at various times, to Chaucer's Works are so +numerous that I have been obliged to restrict myself to giving a selection +of them only. + +Of the non-Chaucerian pieces printed by Thynne in 1532, I have included all +but three. The rejected pieces are those numbered 18, 21, and 22 in the +list given at p. 32 of vol. i. They are all poor and uninteresting, but I +add a few words of description. + +18. _A Praise of Women._ Noticed in vol. i. p. 37. Though decisively +rejected by Tyrwhitt, and excluded from Moxon's reprint, it was revived +(for no good reason) by Bell, and consequently appeared in the Aldine +edition, which was founded on Bell's. It enumerates the merits of +womankind, and condemns the slanders of men concerning them. We ought to +worship all women out of reverence for the Queen of heaven, and we shall do +well to pray to Our Lady to bring us to the heaven in which she and all +good women will be found. Thynne is not the sole authority for this poem, +as it occurs also (in a Scottish dress) in the Bannatyne MS., fol. 275. The +whole of this MS. (written in 1568) was printed for the Hunterian Club in +1873-9; see p. 799 of that edition. + +21. _The Lamentation of Mary Magdalen._ Noticed in vol. i. p. 37. This +lugubrious piece was probably the wail of a nun, who had no book but a +Vulgate version of the Bible, from which all her quotations are taken. It +bears no resemblance to any work by Chaucer, nor to any of the pieces in +the present volume. It consists of 102 seven-line stanzas. The metre +resembles Lydgate's, but the final _-e_ is hardly ever used. Bell's text is +not taken from Thynne, but from some later and inferior reprint of it. For +this poem, Thynne's first edition is the sole authority. + +22. _The Remedy of Love._ Noticed in vol. i. p. 38. It appears that the +'remedy of love' is to be found in a consideration of the wicked ways of +women. Twelve whole stanzas are taken up with a metrical translation of one +of the chapters in the book of Proverbs. The author refers us to 'the fifth +chapter,' but he is wrong. He means chapter vii, verses 6-27. He also +quotes from Ecclesiasticus, ix. 9, and xxv. 25. + +Nos. 28, 29, 30 (vol. i. p. 32) are not found in Thynne, but were first +printed by Stowe. I give them below, at p. 297. The first two stanzas are +Lydgate's; and probably the third is his also. It is no great matter. + +No. 41 (vol. i. p. 33) was also first printed by Stowe. To save words, I +have printed it below, at p. 450, from the original MS. + +§ 3. I now consider the non-Chaucerian pieces in Part II. of Stowe's +Edition (see vol. i. p. 33). Of these, nos. 45, 50, 56, and 59 are here +reprinted. + +Nos. 46, 47, 48, 49, 51, 52, 53, 54, and 55 were all taken by Stowe from +MS. Trin. R. 3. 19. Perhaps they are sufficiently noticed in vol. i. p. 41, +as they present few points of interest. However, I enumerate them, adding a +few remarks. + +No. 46. _The Craft of Lovers._ In 23 seven-line stanzas; 161 lines. Besides +the copy in the Trin. MS., there are copies (almost duplicates) in MSS. +Addit. 34360, fol. 73, back (p. 142), and Harl. 2251, fol. 53 (now called +52). Dated 1448 in the Trin. MS., but 1459 in the other two. The first line +ought to run:--'To moralise, who list these ballets sewe'; but it is clear +that some one added the words 'A similitude' in the margin, and that this +remark was afterwards incorporated in the text. Hence the first line, in +the latter MSS., stands:--'To moralise a similitude who list these balettis +sewe'; which is more than enough for a line of five accents. After two +introductory stanzas, the poem becomes a dialogue, in alternate stanzas, +between a wooer, named _Cupido_, and a lass, named _Diana_[2]; the result +of which is successful. This may be compared with La Belle Dame sans Merci, +and with the Nut-brown Maid. The twenty-third stanza forms the author's +_Conclusio_, which is followed by an Envoy in the Addit. MS., and in the +Harl. MS. only. The same MSS. _seem_ to superadd two more stanzas; but they +really belong to another piece. + +No. 47. Taken by Stowe from MS. Trin. R. 3. 19, fol. 156, back. _A Balade._ +In 4 seven-line stanzas; 28 lines. Begins--'Of their nature they greatly +them delite'; i.e. Women are by nature hypocrites; they like kissing live +images rather than shrines. So I advise young men to take warning: 'Beware +alwaye, the blind eateth many [a] flye'; a line which is quoted from +Lydgate's ballad printed at p. 295. The author then prays God to keep the +fly out of his dish; and ends by congratulating himself on being anonymous, +because women would else blame him. + +No. 48. _The Ten Commandments of Love_; from Trin. MS., fol. 109. Also in +MS. Fairfax 16. Begins:--'Certes, ferre extendeth yet my reason.' In 14 +stanzas of seven-lines; the last two form the Envoy. After two introductory +stanzas, the author gives the ladies their ten commandments. They are, it +appears, to exhibit Faith, Entencion, Discrecion, Patience, Secretnesse, +Prudence, Perseverance, Pity, Measure [Moderation], and Mercy. In the +Envoy, the author says, truly enough, that he is devoid of cunning, +experience, manner of enditing, reason, and eloquence; and that he is 'a +man unknown.' + +No. 49. _The Nine Ladies Worthy._ In 9 seven-line stanzas, one stanza for +each lady. Begins: 'Profulgent in preciousnes, O Sinope the quene.' Only +remarkable for the curious selection made. The Nine Ladies are: (1) Sinope, +daughter of Marsepia, queen of the Amazons; see Orosius, Hist. i. 10; (2) +Hippolyta, the Amazon, wife of Theseus; (3) Deipyle, daughter of Adrastus, +wife of Tydeus; (4) Teuta, queen of the Illyrians; see note to C. T., F +1453 (vol. v. p. 398); (5) Penthesilea the Amazon, slain by Achilles before +Troy; (6) queen Tomyris, who slew Cyrus in battle, B.C. 529; (7) Lampeto +the Amazon, sister of Marsepia, and aunt of Sinope; (8) Semiramis of +Babylon; (9) Menalippe or Melanippe, sister of Antiope, queen of the +Amazons, taken captive by Hercules, according to Justinus, ii. 4. 23. Most +of these queens are mentioned by Orosius, i. 10, ii. 1, ii. 4; see also +Higden's Polychronicon, bk. ii. chapters 9, 21, 24, and bk. iii. c. 7. From +the Trin. MS., fol. 113, back. + +[No. 50. _Virelai._ Printed below, at p. 448.] + +No. 51. _A Ballade._ Begins:--'In the season of Feuerere when it was full +colde.' In 7 seven-line stanzas. In praise of the daisy. Very poor. From +the Trin. MS., fol. 160. + +No. 52. _A Ballade._ Begins--'O Mercifull and o merciable.' In 12 +seven-line stanzas. The Trin. MS. has 13 stanzas; but Stowe omitted the +tenth, because it coincides with st. 19 of the Craft of Lovers. It is made +up of scraps from other poems. Stanzas 1-4 form part of a poem on the fall +of man, from Lydgate's _Court of Sapience_ (see vol. i. p. 57). In st. 8 +occurs the assonance of _hote_ (hot) and _stroke_; and in st. 9, that of +_cureth_ and _renueth_. From the Trin. MS., fol. 161. + +No. 53. _The Judgement of Paris._ In 4 seven-line stanzas; the first is +allotted to Pallas, who tells Paris to take the apple, and give it to the +fairest of the three goddesses. After this, he is addressed in succession +by Juno, Venus, and Minerva (as she is now called). Then the poem ends. +Trin. MS., fol. 161, back. + +No. 54. _A Balade pleasaunte._ Begins--'I haue a Ladie where so she bee.' +In 7 seven-line stanzas. Meant to be facetious; e.g. 'Her skin is smothe as +any oxes tong.' The author says that when he was fifteen years old, he saw +the wedding of queen Jane; and that was so long ago that there cannot be +many such alive. As Joan of Navarre was married to Henry IV in 1403, he was +born in 1388, and would have been sixty-two in 1450. It is an imitation of +Lydgate's poem entitled A Satirical Description of his Lady; see Minor +Poems, ed. Halliwell, p. 199. Trin. MS., fol. 205. + +No. 55. _Another Balade._ Begins--'O mossie Quince, hangyng by your +stalke.' In 4 seven-line stanzas, of which Stowe omits the second. A +scurrilous performance. Trin. MS., fol. 205, back. + +[No. 56. A Ballad by Lydgate; printed below, at p. 295.] + +No. 58 is a Balade in 9 seven-line stanzas, of no merit, on the theme of +the impossibility of restoring a woman's chastity. + +No. 59. _The Court of Love._ Printed below, at p. 409. + +No. 60 is a genuine poem; and no. 61 is Lydgate's Story of Thebes. And here +Stowe's performance ceases. + +§ 4. The subsequent additions made by Speght are discussed in vol. i. pp. +43-46. Of these, The Flower and the Leaf, Jack Upland, and Hoccleve's poem +to Henry V, are here reprinted; and Chaucer's ABC is genuine. He also +reprinted the Sayings at p. 450. The pieces not reprinted here are +Chaucer's Dream and Eight Goodly Questions. + +_Chaucer's Dream_ is a false title, assigned to it by Speght; its proper +name is _The Isle of Ladies_. Begins--'Whan Flora, the quene of +pleasaunce.' The MS. at Longleat is said to have been written about 1550. A +second MS. has been acquired by the British Museum, named MS. Addit. 10303; +this is also in a hand of the sixteenth century, and presents frequent +variations in the text. It is very accessible, in the texts by Moxon, Bell, +and Morris; but how Tyrwhitt ever came to dream that it could be genuine, +must remain a mystery. I originally hoped to include this poem in the +present selection, but its inordinate length compelled me to abandon my +intention. In a prologue of seventy lines, the author truthfully states, at +l. 60, that he is 'a slepy[3] writer.' There are many assonances, such as +_undertakes_, _scapes_ (337); _named_, _attained_ (597); _tender_, +_remember_ (1115, 1415); _rome_, _towne_ (1567). Note also such rimes as +_destroied_, _conclude_ (735); _queen_, _kneen_, pl. of _knee_ (1779); +_nine_, _greene_ (1861); _vertuous_, _use_ (1889). Some rimes exhibit the +Northern dialect; as _paines_, _straines_, pr. s., 909; _wawe_, +_overthrawe_, pp., 1153; _servand_, _livand_, pres. pt., 1629; _greene_, +_eene_ (pl. of _e_, eye), 1719; _hand_, _avisand_, pres. pt., 1883; &c. Yet +the writer is not particular; if he wants a rime to _wroth_, he uses the +Southern form _goth_, 785; but if he wants a rime to _rose_, he uses the +Northern form _gose_ (goes), 1287, 1523. But before any critic can +associate this poem with Chaucer, he has first to prove that it was written +before 1450. Moreover, it belongs to the cycle of metrical romances, being +connected (as Tyrwhitt says) with the _Eliduc_ of Marie de France; and, +perhaps, with her _Lanval_. + +To the _Isle of Ladies_ Speght appended two other poems, of which the +former contains a single stanza of 6 lines, and the latter is a ballad in 3 +seven-line stanzas. + +No. 66. _Eight Goodly Questions_; in Bell's Chaucer, iv. 421. In 9 +seven-line stanzas. First printed in 1542. There are at least two +manuscript copies; one in the Trinity MS., marked R. 3. 15; and another in +the Bannatyne MS., printed at p. 123 of the print of the Bannatyne MS., +issued by the Hunterian Club in 1873. In l. 19, the latter MS. corrects +_tree_ to _coffour_, the Scottish form of _cofre_. It is merely expanded +from the first seven lines of a poem by Ausonius, printed in Walker's +_Corpus Poetarum Latinorum_, with the title Eorundem Septem Sapientum +Sententiae. This English version is quite in Lydgate's style. + +§ 5. EDITIONS AND MSS. CONSULTED. + +I have repeatedly explained that there were but four black-letter editions +of Collected Works before Speght's; and these I call Thynne's first edition +(1532), Thynne's second edition (1542), the undated edition (about 1550, +which I call 1550 for brevity), and Stowe's edition (1561) respectively. I +shall denote these editions below by the symbols 'Th.,' ed. 1542, ed. 1550, +and 'S.' respectively. Of these editions, the first is the best; the second +is derived from the first; the third is derived from the second; and the +fourth from the third[4]. In every case it is useless to consult a later +edition when an earlier one can be found. + +The following is the list of the pieces which depend on the editions +_only_, or for which the editions have been collated. I always cite the +earliest; that the later ones _also_ contain the piece in question must, +once for all, be understood. + +Caxton.--XXVIII. No. VII. was also collated with a print by Caxton. + +Wynkyn de Worde.--XXIII. + +Wynkyn de Worde.--VIII. + +Chepman and Miller (1508).--VIII. + +Th.--I. IX. XI. XXII. Also collated for IV. V. VII. VIII. X. XII. XVI. +XVII. XVIII. XIX. XXI. XXIII. + +Thynne had access to excellent MSS., and is always worth consulting. + +Ed. 1542.--II. XXVIII. Collated for VI. + +An early printed edition of Jack Upland.--III. + +S. (1561).--XV. Collated for XIII. XIV. XXIV. XXV. XXIX. + +A printed edition of the Testament of Cresseid (1593).--XVII. + +Speght (1598).--XX. Collated for III. + +The following twenty MSS. have been collated or consulted. + +Trentham MS.--IV. (See Introduction.) + +Fairfax 16.-V. VIII. XIII. XVI. XVIII. XIX. (See vol. i. p. 51.) + +Bodley 638.--V. VIII. XVIII. (See vol. i. p. 53.) + +Tanner 346.--V. VIII. XVIII. XIX. (See vol. i. p. 54.) + +Ashmole 59.--VII. X. XIII. (See vol. i. p. 53.) + +Arch. Selden B. 24.--V. VIII. XVIII. XXVI. XXVII. (See vol. i. p. 54.) + +Digby 181.--V. VIII. (See vol. i. p. 54.) + +Camb. Univ. Lib. Ff. 1. 6.--V. XII. XVI. XVIII. (See vol. i. p. 55.) + +Pepys 2006.--VIII. (See vol. i. p. 55.) + +Trin. Coll. R. 3. 19.--XIV. XVI. XXI. XXIV. XXV. XXIX. (See vol. i. p. 56.) + +Trin. Coll. R. 3. 20.--V. (One of Shirley's MSS.) + +Trin. Coll. O. 9. 38.--XIV. + +Addit. 16165, B. M.--XIII. (See vol. i. p. 56.) + +Addit. 34360, B. M.--XXI. + +Harl. 372, B. M.--XVI. (See vol. i. p. 58.) + +Harl. 2251, B. M.--VII. XII. XIV. (See vol. i. p. 57.) + +Harl. 7578, B. M.--XIII. (See vol. i. p. 58.) + +Sloane 1212, B. M.--X. (A fair copy.) + +Phillipps 8151.--VI. (See Hoccleve's Poems, ed. Furnivall, p. 1.) + +Ashburnham 133.--V. (See the same, p. xxvii.) + +§ 6. Conversely, I here give the authorities from which each piece is +derived. For further comments on some of them, see the separate +introductions to each piece below. + +I. _The Testament of Love_ (prose).--Th. (Thynne, 1532). + +II. _The Plowmans Tale_ (1380 lines).--Th. (Thynne, 1542). + +III. _Jack Upland_ (prose).--Early edition, Caius College library; Speght +(1598). + +IV. _Praise of Peace_ (385 lines).--Th. (1532); Trentham MS. + +V. _Letter of Cupid_ (476 lines).--Th. (1532); Fairfax, Bodley, Tanner, +Selden, Ashburnham, Digby MSS.; Trin. Coll. R. 3. 20; Camb. Ff. 1. 6; also +in the Bannatyne MS. + +VI. _To the King's Grace_ (64).--Th. (1542); Phillipps 8151. + +VII. _A Moral Balade_ (189).--Th. (1532); Caxton; Ashmole 59, Harl. 2251. +(I also find a reference to Harl. 367, fol. 85, back.) + +VIII. _Complaint of the Black Knight_ (681).--Th. (1532); Fairfax, Bodley, +Tanner, Digby, Selden, Pepys; Addit. 16165. Also printed, separately, by +Wynkyn de Worde (n. d.); and at Edinburgh, by Chepman and Miller, in 1508. + +IX. _The Flour of Curtesye_ (270).--Th. (1532). + +X. _In Commendation of our Lady_ (140).--Th.; Ashmole 59; Sloane 1212. + +XI. _To my Soverain Lady_ (112).--Th. + +XII. _Ballad of Good Counsel_ (133).--Th.; Camb. Ff. 1. 6; Harl. 2251. + +XIII. _Beware of Doubleness_ (104).--Stowe (1561); Fairfax 16, Ashmole 59, +Harl. 7578, Addit. 16165. + +XIV. _A Balade: Warning Men_ (49).--Stowe (1561); Harl. 2251, fol. 149, +back; Trin. R. 3. 19; Trin. O. 9. 38. + +XV. _Three Sayings_ (21).--Stowe (1561). + +XVI. _La Belle Dame sans Mercy_ (856).--Th.; Fairfax, Harl. 372; Camb. Ff. +1. 6; Trin. R. 3. 19, fol. 98. + +XVII. _Testament of Cresseid_ (616).--Th.; Edinburgh edition (1593). + +XVIII. _The Cuckoo and the Nightingale_ (290).--Th.; Fairfax, Bodley, +Tanner, Selden; Camb. Ff. 1. 6. + +XIX. _Envoy to Alison_ (27).--Th.; Fairfax, Tanner. + +XX. _The Flower and the Leaf_ (595).--Speght (1598). + +XXI. _The Assembly of Ladies_ (756).--Th.; Addit. 34360; Trin. R. 3. 19. + +XXII. _A goodly Balade_ (71).--Th. + +XXIII. _Go forth, King_ (14).--Wynkyn de Worde; Th. + +XXIV. _The Court of Love_ (1442).--Stowe (1561); Trin. R. 3. 19. + +XXV. _Virelai_ (20).--Stowe (1561); Trin. R. 3. 19. + +XXVI. _Prosperity_ (8); XXVII. _Loyalty_ (7).--Selden MS. + +XXVIII. _Sayings_ (14).--Caxton; reprinted, Th. (1542). + +XXIX. _In Praise of Chaucer_ (7).--Stowe (1561); Trin. R. 3. 19. + + * * * * * + +§ 7. I. THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE; BY THOMAS USK. + +Of this piece no MS. copy has been discovered. The only authority is +Thynne's edition of 1532, whence all later editions have been copied more +or less incorrectly. The reprints will be found to grow steadily worse, so +that the first edition is the only one worth consulting. + +The present edition is printed from a transcript of Thynne (1532), made by +myself; the proof-sheets being carefully read with the original. In making +the transcript, I have altered the symbol _u_ to _v_, when used as a +consonant; and (in the few places where it occurs) the consonantal _i_ to +_j_. I have also substituted _i_ for _y_ when the vowel is short, chiefly +in the case of the suffix _-yng_ or _-ynge_, here printed _-ing_ or +_-inge_. In nearly all other cases, the original spellings are given in the +footnotes. Thynne's chief errors of printing occur in places where he has +persistently altered the spelling of the MS. to suit the spelling in +fashion in the days of Henry VIII. His chief alterations are as follows. He +prints _ea_ for open _ee_, written _ee_ or _e_ at the beginning of the +fifteenth century; thus, he has _ease_ for _ese_, and _please_ for _plese_. +He most perversely adds a useless final _e_ to the words _howe_, _nowe_, +and some others; and he commits the anachronism of printing _father_, +_mother_, _together_, _wether_, _gather_, in place of _fader_, _moder_, +_togeder_, _weder_, _gader_; whereas the termination in these words +invariably appears as _-der_ till shortly before 1500. Further, he prints +_catche_ for _cacche_, _perfection_ for _perfeccion_, and the like; and in +several other ways has much impaired the spelling of his original. Many of +these things I have attempted to set right; and the scholar who compares +the text with the footnotes will easily see why each alteration has been +made, if he happens to be at all conversant with MSS. written in the +fourteenth century. + +I believe that this piece is almost unparalleled as regards the shameful +corruption of its text. It cannot be supposed that Thynne or any one else +ever read it over with the view of seeing whether the result presented any +sense. Originally written in an obscure style, every form of carelessness +seems to have been employed in order to render it more obscure than before. +In a great number of places, it is easy to restore the sense by the +insertion of such necessary words as _of_, or _but_, or _by_. In other +places, non-existent words can be replaced by real ones; or some correction +can be made that is more or less obvious. I have marked all inserted words +by placing them within square brackets, as, e.g., _am_ in l. 46 on p. 6. +Corrections of readings are marked by the use of a dagger (+); thus 'I +wot +wel' in l. 78 on p. 7 is my emendation of Thynne's phrase 'I wol wel,' +which is duly recorded in the footnote. But some sentences remain in which +the sense is not obvious; and one is almost tempted to think that the +author did not clearly know what he intended to say. That he was remarkable +for a high degree of inaccuracy will appear presently. + +A strange misprint occurs in Book III. ch. 4, ll. 30, 31 (p. 117), where +nearly two whole lines occur twice over; but the worst confusion is due to +an extraordinary dislocation of the text in Book III. (c. iv. l. 56--c. ix. +l. 46), as recently discovered by the sagacity of Mr. H. Bradley, and +explained more fully below. + +I have also, for the first time, revised the punctuation, which in Thynne +is only denoted by frequent sloping strokes and full stops, which are not +always inserted in the right places. And I have broken up the chapters into +convenient paragraphs. + +§ 8. A very curious point about this piece is the fact which I was the +first to observe, viz. that the initial letters of the various chapters +were certainly intended to form an acrostic. Unfortunately, Thynne did not +perceive this design, and has certainly begun some of the chapters either +with the wrong letter or at a wrong place. The sense shews that the first +letter of Book I. ch. viii. should be E, not O (see the note); and, with +this correction, the initial letters of the First Book yield the +words--MARGARETE OF. + +In Book II, Thynne begins Chapters XI and XII at wrong places, viz. with +the word 'Certayn' (p. 86, l. 133), and the word 'Trewly' (p. 89, l. 82). +He thus produces the words--VIRTW HAVE MCTRCI. It is obvious that the last +word ought to be MERCI, which can be obtained by beginning Chapter XI with +the word 'Every,' which suits the sense quite as well. + +For the chapters of Book III, we are again dependent on Thynne. If we +accept his arrangement as it stands, the letters yielded are--ON THSKNVI; +and the three books combined give us the sentence:--MARGARETE OF VIRTW, +HAVE MERCI ON THSKNVI. Here 'Margarete of virtw' means 'Margaret endued +with divine virtue'; and the author appeals either to the Grace of God, or +to the Church. The last word ought to give us the author's name; but in +that case the letters require rearrangement before the riddle can be read +with certainty. + +After advancing so far towards the solution of the mystery, I was here +landed in a difficulty which I was unable to solve. But Mr. H. Bradley, by +a happy inspiration, hit upon the idea that the text might have suffered +dislocation; and was soon in a position to prove that no less than six +leaves of the MS. must have been out of place, to the great detriment of +the sense and confusion of the argument. He very happily restored the right +order, and most obligingly communicated to me the result. I at once +cancelled the latter part of the treatise (from p. 113 to the end), and +reprinted this portion in the right order, according to the sense. With +this correction, the unmeaning THSKNVI is resolved into the two words THIN +USK, i.e. 'thine Usk'; a result the more remarkable because Mr. Bradley had +_previously_ hit upon Usk as being the probable author. For the +autobiographical details exactly coincide, in every particular, with all +that is known of the career of Thomas Usk, according to Walsingham, the +Rolls of Parliament, and the continuation of Higden's Polychronicon by John +Malverne (ed. Lumby, vol. ix. pp. 45-6, 134, 150, 169); cf. Lingard, ed. +1874, iii. 163-7. + +The date of the composition of this piece can now be determined without +much error. Usk was executed on March 4, 1388, and we find him referring to +past events that happened towards the end of 1384 or later. The most likely +date is about 1387. I here append an exact account of the order of the text +_as it appears in Thynne_; every break in the text being denoted, in the +present volume, by a dark asterisk. + +Thynne's text is in a correct order from p. 1 to p. 118, l. 56:--any +mouable tyme there (Th. fol. 354, col. 2, l. 11)[5]. + +(1) Next comes, in Thynne, the passage beginning at p. 135, l. 94:--Fole, +haue I not seyd--and ending at p. 143, l. 46:--syth god is the greatest +loue and the (Th. fol. 356, back, col. 1, l. 5). + +(2) Next, in Thynne, the passage beginning at p. 131, l. 97:--ne ought to +loke thynges with resonnyng--and ending at p. 132, l. 161, at the end of a +chapter (Th. fol. 356, back, col. 2, last line). + +(3) Next, in Thynne, the passage beginning at p. 124, l. 8:--Now trewly, +lady--and ending at p. 128, at the end of the chapter (Th. fol. 357, last +line). + +(4) Next, in Thynne, the passage beginning at p. 132, new chapter:--Uery +trouth (quod she)--and ending at p. 135, l. 94:--that shal bringe out frute +that (Th. fol. 358, back, col. 1, l. 25). + +(5) Next, in Thynne, the passage beginning at p. 118, l. 56:--is nothyng +preterit ne passed--and ending at p. 124, l. 7:--euer to onbyde (Th. fol. +360, col. 1, l. 24). + +(6) Next, in Thynne, the passage beginning at p. 128, new chapter:--Nowe, +lady (quod I) that tree to set--and ending at p. 131, l. 97:--vse ye (Th. +fol. 360, back, col. 2, l. 9). + +(7) Lastly, the text reverts to the true order, at p. 143, l. 46, with the +words:--greatest wisdom (Th. fol. 360, back, col. 2, l. 9. as before). See +The Athenæum, no. 3615, Feb. 6, 1897. + +It is not difficult to account for this somewhat confusing dislocation. It +is clear that the original MS. was written on quires of the usual size, +containing 8 folios apiece. The first 10 quires, which we may call _a_, +_b_, _c_, _d_, _e_, _f_, _g_, _h_, _i_, and _k_, were in the right order. +The rest of the MS. occupied quire _l_ (of 8 folios), and quire _m_ (of +only 2); the last page being blank. The seventh folio of _l_ was torn up +the back, so that the two leaves parted company; and the same happened to +both the folios in quire _m_, leaving six leaves loose. What then happened +was this:--first of all, folios _l__1--_l__4, were reversed and turned +inside out; then came the former halves of _m__1, and _m__2, and the latter +half of _l__7; next _l__5 and _l__6 (undetached), with the former half of +_l__7 thrust in the middle; so that the order in this extraordinary quire +was as follows: _l__4, _l__3, _l__2, _l__1, all inside out, half of _m__1, +half of _m__2, the latter half of _l__7, _l__5, _l__6, and the former half +of _l__7, followed by the six undetached leaves. The last quire simply +consisted of _l__8 (entire), followed by the latter halves of _m__2 and +_m__1, which were kept in the right order by the fact that the last page +was blank. + +It has thus become possible for us to make some progress towards the right +understanding of the work, which has hitherto been much misunderstood. +Warton (Hist. E. Poetry, 1840, ii. 218) dismisses it in two lines:--'It is +a lover's parody of Boethius's book De Consolatione mentioned above'; +whereas the author was not a lover at all, except in a spiritual sense. +Even the fuller account in Morley's English Writers (1890), v. 261, is not +wholly correct. The statement is there made, that 'it professes to be +written, and probably was written, by a prisoner in danger of his life'; +but the prison[6] may have been _at first_ metaphorical, as he could hardly +have written the whole work in two or three months. In Book iii. ch. 9, ll. +131, 132, he prays that 'God's hand, which has scourged him in mercy, may +hereafter mercifully keep and defend him in good plight.' The whole tone of +the treatise shews that he is writing to justify himself, and thinks that +he has succeeded. But a stern doom was close at hand. + +§ 9. The truth is that the attempts of Godwin and others to make the +autobiographical statements of the author fit into the life of Chaucer, +have quite led the critics out of the right track. That the author was +_not_ Chaucer is perfectly obvious to every one who reads the passage in +the lower half of p. 140 with moderate attention; for the author there +refers to Chaucer as Love's 'noble philosophical poet in English,' who +wrote a treatise of Love's servant Troilus, and who 'passeth all other +makers in wit and in good reason of sentence'; praise which, however true +it may be of Chaucer, the writer was certainly not entitled to claim for +himself. The sole point in which the circumstances of the author agree with +those of Chaucer is this--that they were both born in London; which is, +obviously, too slight a coincidence to build upon. Now that we know the +author's name to have been Thomas Usk, the matter assumes quite another +complexion. Usk was much inclined, in his early days, to a belief in +Lollard opinions; but when he found that persistence in such belief was +likely to lead to trouble and danger, he deemed it prudent to recant as +completely as he could[7], and contemplates his consequent security with +some complacency. + +In just the same way, it appears that he had changed sides in politics. We +first find him in the position of confidential clerk to John of +Northampton, mayor of London in 1381-2 and 1382-3. In July, 1384, Usk was +arrested and imprisoned in order to induce him to reveal certain secrets +implicating Northampton. This he consented to do, and accused Northampton +before the king at Reading, on the 18th of August. Northampton strenuously +denied the charges against him, but was condemned as guilty, and sent to +Corfe castle[8]. After this, Usk joined the party of Sir Nicholas Brembre, +mayor of London in 1383-4, 1384-5, and 1385-6, and Collector of Customs in +1381-3, when Chaucer was Comptroller of the same. Brembre had been active +in procuring the condemnation of Northampton, and was, at the close of +1386, one of the few personal adherents who remained faithful to the king. +In 1387, Richard was busily devising means for the overthrow of the duke of +Gloucester's regency, Brembre and Usk being on the king's side; but his +attempts were unsuccessful, and, in November of the same year, the duke of +Gloucester and his partisans, who were called the 'appellants,' became +masters of the situation; they accused the king's councillors of treason, +and imprisoned or banished their opponents. On Feb. 3, 1388, the appellants +produced their charges against their victims, Brembre and Usk being among +the number. Both were condemned and executed, Brembre on Feb. 20, and Usk +on the 4th of March. Usk's offence was that he had been appointed +sub-sheriff of Middlesex by Brembre's influence[9], with a view to the +arrest of the duke of Gloucester and others of his party. His defence was +that all that he had done was by the king's orders, a defence on which he +doubtless relied. Unfortunately for him, it was an aggravation of his +crime. It was declared that he ought to have known that the king was not at +the time his own master, but was acting according to the counsel of false +advisers; and this sealed his fate. He was sentenced to be drawn, hung, and +beheaded, and that his head should be set up over Newgate. The sentence was +barbarously carried out; he was hung but immediately cut down, and clumsily +beheaded by nearly thirty strokes of a sword. 'Post triginta mucronis ictus +fere decapitatus semper usque ad mortem nunquam fatebatur se deliquisse +contra Johannem Northampton, sed erant omnia vera quae de eo praedicaverat +coram rege in quodam consilio habito apud Radyngum anno elapso.'--Higden, +App. 169. John of Malverne speaks as if he had some personal recollection +of Usk, of whom he says--'Satagebat namque astu et arte illorum amicitiam +sibi attrahere quos procul dubio ante capitales hostes sibi fuisse +cognovit,'--Ib. p. 45. + +We can now readily understand that Usk's praise of Chaucer must have been +more embarrassing than acceptable; and perhaps it was not altogether +without design that the poet, in his House of Fame, took occasion to let +the world know how he devoted his leisure time to other than political +subjects. + +§ 10. Some of the events of his life are alluded to by Usk in the present +treatise. He justifies his betrayal of Northampton (p. 26, ll. 53-103, p. +28, ll. 116-201), and is grateful for the king's pardon (p. 60, ll. 120-4). +He refers to his first imprisonment (p. 60, l. 104), and tells us that he +offered wager of battle against all who disputed his statements (p. 60, l, +116; p. 31, l. 10); but no one accepted the wager. + +He further tells us how he endeavoured to make his peace with the Church. +Taking his cue from the parable of the merchantman seeking goodly pearls +(p. 16, l. 84), he likens the visible Church of Christ to the pearl of +great price (p. 145, l. 103; p. 94, l. 121), and piteously implores her +mercy (p. 8, l. 135); and the whole tone of the piece shews his confidence +that he is reasonably safe (p. 144, l. 120). He sees clearly that lollardy +is unacceptable, and indulges in the usual spiteful fling against the +cockle (_lolia_) which the Lollards were reproached with sowing (p. 48, l. +93). He had once been a heretic (p. 99, l. 29), and in danger of 'never +returning' to the true Church (p. 99, l. 38); but he secured his safety by +a full submission (p. 105, l. 133). + +At the same time, there is much about the piece that is vague, shifty, and +unsatisfactory. He is too full of excuses, and too plausible; in a word, +too selfish. Hence he has no real message for others, but only wishes to +display his skill, which he does by help of the most barefaced and +deliberate plagiarism. It was not from the Consolatio Philosophiae of +Boethius, but from the English translation of that work by Chaucer, that he +really drew his materials; and he often takes occasion to lift lines or +ideas from the poem of Troilus whenever he can find any that come in handy. +In one place he turns a long passage from the House of Fame into very +inferior prose. There are one or two passages that remind us of the Legend +of Good Women (i. pr. 100, ii. 3. 38, iii. 7. 38); but they are remarkably +few. But he keeps a copy of Chaucer's Boethius always open before him, and +takes from it passage after passage, usually with many alterations, +abbreviations, expansions, and other disfigurements; but sometimes without +any alteration at all. A few examples will suffice, as a large number of +parallel passages are duly pointed out in the Notes. + +§ 11. In Chaucer's Boethius (bk. i. pr. 3. 10), when Philosophy, the +heavenly visitant, comes to comfort the writer, her first words are:--'_O +my norry_, sholde I forsaken thee now?' In the Testament (p. 10, l. 37), +Heavenly Love commences her consolations with the same exclamation:--'_O my +nory_, wenest thou that my maner be, to foryete my frendes or my +servaunts?' The Latin text--'An te, _alumne_, desererem?'--does not suggest +this remarkable mode of address. + +This, however, is a mere beginning; it is not till further on that +plagiarisms begin to be frequent. At first, as at p. 37, the author copies +the sense rather than the words; but he gradually begins to copy words and +phrases also. Thus, at p. 43, l. 38, his '_chayres_ of domes' comes from +Chaucer's 'heye _chayres_' in bk. i. met. 5. 27; and then, in the next +line, we find '_vertue, shynende naturelly ... is hid_ under cloude,' where +Chaucer has '_vertu_, cler-_shyninge naturelly is hid_ in derke +derknesses'; bk. i. met. 5. 28. At p. 44, l. 66, we have: '_Whan nature +brought thee forth_, come thou not _naked out of thy moders wombe_? Thou +haddest no richesse'; where Chaucer has: '_Whan_ that _nature broughte thee +forth out of thy moder wombe_, I receyved thee _naked_, and nedy of alle +thinges'; bk. ii. pr. 2. 10. Just a few lines below (ll. 71-76) we have the +sense, but not the words, of the neighbouring passage in Chaucer (ll. +23-25). Further literal imitations are pointed out in the Notes to l. 85 in +the same chapter, and elsewhere. See, for example, the Notes to Book ii. +ch. iv. 4, 14, 20, 61; ch. v. 15, 57, 65, 67, 79; ch. vi. 11, 30, 74, 117, +123, 129, 132, 143; ch. vii. 8, 14, 20, 23, 30, 39, 50, 74, 95, 98, 105, +109, 114, 117, 130, 135, 139, 148; &c. + +Those who require conviction on this point may take such an example as +this. + +'O! a noble thing and clere is power, that is not founden mighty to kepe +himselfe'; (p. 70, l. 20). + +'O! a noble thing and a cleer thing is power, that is nat founden mighty to +kepen it-self'; Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 5. 5-7. + +The Latin text is: 'O praeclara potentia quae nec ad conseruationem quidem +sui satis efficax inuenitur.' I see no reason for supposing that the author +anywhere troubled himself to consult the Latin original. Indeed, it is +possible to correct errors in the text by help of Chaucer's version; see +the last note on p. 461. + +§ 12. We get the clearest idea of the author's method by observing his +treatment of the House of Fame, 269-359. It is worth while to quote the +whole passage:-- + + 'Lo! how a woman doth amis + _To love_ him that unknowen is!... 270 + Hit _is not_ al _gold_ that glareth;... + Ther _may be under_ goodliheed + Kevered _many_ a shrewed _vyce_; 275 + _Therefore_ be _no wight_ so nyce, + To take a love only for _chere_, + For _speche_, or for frendly manere; + For this shal every woman finde + That som _man_, of his pure kinde, 280 + Wol _shewen outward_ the faireste + _Til he have_ caught that what him leste; + And _thanne wol_ he _causes finde_, + And swere how that she is unkinde, + _Or fals_, or prevy, or double was ... 285 + Therfor I wol seye a proverbe, + That "he that fully knoweth th'erbe 290 + May saufly leye hit to his yë" ... + Allas! is every man thus trewe, + That every yere wolde have a newe, ... + As thus: of _oon_ he wolde _have fame_, 305 + In magnifying of his name; + Another _for frendship_, seith he; + And yet ther shal the _thri de_ be, + That shal be taken _for delyt_ ... + _Allas, that ever_ hadde routhe 332 + _Any woman_ on any man! + Now see I wel, and telle can, + We wrecched _women conne_ non art ... 335 + How sore that _ye men_ conne _grone_, + Anoon, as we have yow receyved, + Certeinly we _ben deceyved_;... 340 + For through you is my name _lorn_, + And alle my actes _red and songe_ + Over al this land on every tonge. 348 + O wikke _Fame_!... + Eek, thogh I mighte _duren ever_, + _That_ I _have doon, rekever_ I _never_ ... 354 + And that I shal thus juged be-- + "Lo, right as she hath doon, now she + Wol do eftsones, hardily."' 359 + +If the reader will now turn to p. 54, l. 45, and continue down to l. 81 on +the next page, he will find the whole of this passage turned into prose, +with numerous cunning alterations and a few insertions, yet including all +such words as are printed above in italics! That is, he will find all +except the proverb in ll. 290, 291; but this also is not far off; for it +occurs over the leaf, on p. 56, at l. 115, and again at p. 22, ll. 44-45! +Surely, this is nothing but book-making, and the art of it does not seem to +be difficult. + +§ 13. The author expressly acknowledges his admiration of Troilus (p. 140, +l. 292); and it is easy to see his indebtedness to that poem. He copies +Chaucer's curious mistake as to Styx being a pit (p. 3, l. 80, and the +note). He adopts the words _let-game_ (p. 18, l. 124) and _wiver_ (p. 129, +l. 27). He quotes a whole line from Troilus at p. 27, l. 78 (see note); and +spoils another one at p. 34, ch. viii. l. 5, a third at p. 80, l. 116, and +a fourth at p. 128, ch. vii. l. 2. We can see whence he took his allusion +to 'playing raket,' and to the dock and nettle, at p. 13, ll. 166, 167; and +the phrase to 'pype with an yvè-lefe' at p. 134, l. 50. + +It is further observable that he had read a later text of Piers Plowman +with some care, but he seems to quote it from memory, as at p. 18, l. 153, +and p. 24, l. 118. A few other passages in which he seems to have taken +ideas from this popular and remarkable poem are pointed out in the Notes. +It is probable that he thence adopted the words _legistres_ and _skleren_; +for which see the Glossary, and consult the Notes for the references which +are there given. + +§ 14. The author is frequently guilty of gross inaccuracies. He seems to +confuse Cain with Ham (p. 52, ll. 107, 109), but _Cayn_, says Mr. Bradley, +may be Thynne's misprint for _Cam_, i.e. Ham. He certainly confuses +Perdiccas with Arrhidæus (p. 52, l. 116). He speaks of the _eighth_ year, +instead of the _seventh_, as being a sabbatical year, and actually declares +that the ordinary week contains _seven_ working-days (p. 24, ll. 102-104)! +He tells us that Sunday begins 'at the first hour after noon (!) on +Saturday' (p. 82, l. 163). Hence it is not to be wondered at that some of +his arguments and illustrations are quite unintelligible. + +§ 15. The title of the work, viz. THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE, readily reminds us +of the passage in Gower already quoted in vol. iii. p. xliii., in which the +goddess Venus proposes that Chaucer should write 'his testament of love,' +in order 'to sette an ende of alle his werke.' I have already explained +that the real reference in this passage is to the Legend of Good Women; but +I am not prepared, at present, to discuss the connection between the +expression in Gower and the treatise by Usk. The fact that our author +adopted the above title may have led to the notion that Chaucer wrote the +treatise here discussed; but it is quite clear that he had nothing to do +with it. + +Professor Morley well says that 'the writer of this piece uses the word +Testament in the old Scriptural sense of a witnessing, and means by Love +the Divine Love, the Christian spirit encouraging and directing the wish +for the grace of God, called Margaret, the pearl beyond all price.' To +which, however, it is highly essential to add that Margaret is not used in +the sense of 'grace' alone, but is also employed, in several passages, to +signify 'the visible Church of Christ.' The author is, in fact, careful to +warn us of the varying, the almost Protean sense of the word at p. 145, +where he tells us that 'Margarite, a woman [i.e. properly a woman's name], +betokeneth _grace_, _lerning_, or _wisdom of god_, or els _holy church_.' +His object seems to have been to extend the meaning of the word so as to +give him greater scope for ingenuity in varying his modes of reference to +it. He has certainly succeeded in adding to the obscurity of his subject. +That by 'holy church' he meant the visible Church of Christ of his own +time, appears from the remarkable assertion that it is 'deedly,' i.e. +mortal (p. 94, l. 121). Such an epithet is inapplicable to the Church in +its spiritual character. It may also be observed that, however much the +sense implied by Margarite may vary, it never takes the meaning which we +should most readily assign to it; i.e. it never means a live woman, nor +represents even an imaginary object of natural human affection. The nearest +approach to such an ideal is at p. 94, l. 114, where we are told that the +jewel which he hopes to attain is as precious a pearl as a woman is by +nature. + +§ 16. It hardly seems worth while to give a detailed analysis of the whole +piece. An analysis of the First Book (which is, on the whole, the best) is +given by Professor Morley; and the hints which I have already given as to +the character and situation of the author will enable the reader to regard +the treatise from a right point of view. But it is proper to observe that +the author himself tells us how he came to divide the work into three +books[10], and what are the ideas on which each book is founded. Each of +the three books has an introductory chapter. That to the First Book I have +called a Prologue; and perhaps it would have been strictly correct to have +called the first chapters of the other books by the same name. In the +introductory chapter to the Third Book, p. 101, he declares that the First +Book is descriptive of Error, or Deviation (which the editions print as +Demacion!); the Second, of Grace; and the Third, of Joy. In other words, +the First Book is particularly devoted to recounting the errors of his +youth, especially how he was led by others into a conspiracy against the +state and into deviation from orthodoxy. In the Prologue, he excuses +himself for writing in English, and announces the title of the work. He +then assures us that he is merely going to gather up the crumbs that have +fallen from the table, and to glean handfuls of corn which Boethius has +dropped. 'A sly servant in his own help is often much commended'; and this +being understood, he proceeds to help himself accordingly, as has already +been explained. + +§ 17. BOOK I: CH. I. In Chapter I, he describes his misery, and hopes that +the dice will turn, and implores the help of Margaret, here used +(apparently) to typify the grace of God. He represents himself as being in +prison, in imitation of Boethius; but I suspect that, _in the present +passage_, the prison was metaphorical. (He had been imprisoned in 1384, and +in 1387 was imprisoned again; but that is another matter.) + +CH. II. Heavenly Love suddenly appears to him, as Philosophy appeared to +Boethius, and is ready to console and reclaim him. She is aware of his +losses, and he tries to vindicate his constancy of character. + +CH. III. He describes how he once wandered through the woods at the close +of autumn, and was attacked by some animals who had suddenly turned wild. +To save himself, he embarks on board a ship; but the reader is disappointed +to find that the adventure is wholly unreal; the ship is the ship of +Travail, peopled by Sight, Lust, Thought, and Will. He is driven on an +island, where he catches a glimpse of Love, and finds a Margaret, a pearl +of price. He appeals to Love to comfort him. + +CH. IV. Love first reproves and then consoles him. She enquires further +into his complaints. + +CH. V. She advises him to contemn such as have spoken against him. He +complains that he has served seven years for Rachel, and prays for comfort +in his eighth year. She exhorts him to perseverance. + +CH. VI. He here goes into several details as to his previous conduct. The +authorities threatened to keep him in prison, unless he would reveal a +certain secret or plot. He was afraid that the peace of his native place, +London, would suffer; and to procure its peace, he 'declared certain +points.' Being charged upon oath to reveal certain secret dealings, he at +once did so; for which he incurred much odium. + +CH. VII. To prove that he had only spoken the truth, he offered wager of +battle; and was justified by the fact that no one accepted it. He had not +perjured himself, because his oath in the law-court was superior to his +former oath of secrecy. He only meant truth, but was sadly slandered. It is +absurd to be 'a stinking martyr' in a false cause. + +CH. VIII. Love tells him he has greatly erred, and must expect much +correction. Earthly fame should be despised, whilst he looks for the fame +that comes after death. + +CH. IX. Love vindicates the greatness of God and the goodness of His +providence. + +CH. X. The author complains of his hard fortune; he has lost his goods and +has been deprived of his office. Love explains that adversity teaches +salutary lessons, and that the true riches may still be his own. + +§ 18. BOOK II. In the first chapter (or Prologue) of the Second Book, he +again discusses the object of his work. In Chapter II, Love sings him a +Latin song, introducing complaints against the clergy such as frequently +occur in Piers the Plowman. In Chapter III, we find a discourse on +womankind, largely borrowed from Chaucer's House of Fame. The next eight +chapters are chiefly devoted to a discussion of the way by which the +repentant sinner may come to 'the knot' of Heavenly bliss; and it is here, +in particular, that a large portion of Chaucer's Boethius is freely +imitated or copied. The last three chapters recount the excellences of +Margaret, which in many passages refers rather to the visible Church than +to divine Grace. + +§ 19. BOOK III. The first chapter is again introductory, explaining why the +number of Books is three. 'The Margaret in virtue is likened to Philosophy, +with her three kinds.' It is remarkable that this Third Book, which is +dedicated to Joy, is the dullest of the three, being largely taken up with +the questions of predestination and free will, with more borrowings from +Chaucer's Boethius. In Chapter V, Love explains how continuance in good +will produces the fruit of Grace; and, in Chapters VI and VII, shews how +such grace is to be attained. Chapter IX recurs to the subject of +predestination; after which the work comes to a formal conclusion, with +excuses for its various imperfections. + +§ 20. II. THE PLOWMANS TALE. + +This piece does not appear in Thynne's first edition of 1532, but occurs, +for the first time, in the second edition of 1542, where it is added at the +end of the Canterbury Tales, after the Parson's Tale. In the next (undated) +edition, probably printed about 1550, it is placed _before_ the Parson's +Tale, as if it were really Chaucer's, and the same arrangement occurs in +the fourth edition, that of 1561, by John Stowe. It is worth mentioning +that some booksellers put forward a fable as to the true date of the +undated edition being 1539, in order to enhance the value of their copies; +but the pretence is obviously false, as is shewn by collation[11]; besides +which, it is not likely that the Plowman's Tale would have been _at first_ +inserted before the Parson's Tale, _then_ placed after it, and then _again_ +placed before it. It is best to separate the first four editions by nearly +equal intervals, their dates being, respectively, 1532, 1542, about 1550, +and 1561. + +Comparison of the black-letter editions shews that the first is the best; +and the later ones, being mere reprints, grow gradually worse. Hence, in +this case, the edition of 1542 is the sole authority, and the readings of +the inferior copies may be safely neglected. It is remarkable that Mr. T. +Wright, in his edition of this poem printed in his Political Poems and +Songs, i. 304, should have founded his text upon a reprint of Speght in +1687, when he might have taken as his authority a text more than 140 years +older. The result is, naturally, that his text is much worse than was at +all necessary. + +According to Speght, there was once a MS. copy of this piece in Stowe's +library, but no one knows what became of it. According to Todd, in his +Illustrations of Gower and Chaucer, p. xxxix, there was once a black-letter +edition of it, entitled 'The Plouuman's tale compylled by syr Geffray +Chaucer knyght.' Todd says: 'It is of the duodecimo size, in the black +letter, without date, and imprinted at London in Paules churche-yarde at +the sygne of the Hyll, by Wyllyam Hyll. I have compared with the poem as +printed by Urry forty or fifty lines, and I found almost as many variations +between them[12]. The colophon of this book is, _Thus endeth the boke of +Chaunterburye Tales_. This rarity belongs to the Rev. Mr. Conybeare, the +present Professor of the Saxon language in the University of Oxford.' This +edition can no longer be traced. Hazlitt mentions a black-letter edition of +this piece, printed separately by Thomas Godfray (about 1535), on twenty +leaves; of which only one copy is known, viz. that at Britwell. There is +also a late print of it in the Bodleian Library, dated 1606. + +§ 21. It is needless to discuss the possibility that Chaucer wrote this +Tale, as it is absent from all the MSS.; and it does not appear that the +ascription of it to him was taken seriously. It is obvious, from the +introductory Prologue (p. 147), that the author never intended his work to +be taken for Chaucer's; he purposely chooses a different metre from any +that occurs in the Canterbury Tales, and he introduces his Ploughman as +coming under the Host's notice quite suddenly, so that the Host is +constrained to ask him--'what man art thou?' The whole manner of the Tale +is conspicuously and intentionally different from that of Chaucer; and +almost the only expression which at all resembles Chaucer occurs in ll. 51, +52:-- + + 'I pray you that no man me reproche + Whyl that I am my tale telling.' + +Chaucer himself, before reciting his Tale of Melibeus, said much the same +thing:-- + + 'And let me tellen al my tale, I preye.' + +I do not know why Mr. Wright, when reprinting this piece, omitted the +Prologue. It is a pity that half of the sixth stanza is missing. + +§ 22. At l. 1065 we meet with a most important statement:-- + + 'Of freres I have told before + In a making of a Crede.' + +It is generally agreed that the author here claims to have previously +written the well-known piece entitled Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, which I +edited for the Early English Text Society in 1867. I then took occasion to +compare the language of these two pieces (which I shall shortly call the +Crede and the Tale), and I found ample confirmation, from internal +evidence, that the claim is certainly true. There are many similarities of +expression, some of which I here lay before the reader. + + FROM THE CREDE. FROM THE TALE. + + Curteis Crist (1, 140). curteys Christ (482). + + cutted cote (434). cutted clothes (929). + + y can noh[gh]t my Crede (8). Suche that conne nat hir Crede + (413). + + At marketts and myracles, we Market-beters, and medling make + medleth us nevere (107). (871). + + For we buldeth a burw[gh], a brod And builde als brode as a citè + and a large (118). (743). + + portreid and peint (121). I-paynted and portred (135). + peynt and portred (192). + + y sey coveitise catel to fongen To catche catell as covytous (385; + (146). cf. 856). + + Of double worstede y-dy[gh]t (228). With double worsted well y-dight + (1002). + + Than ther lefte in Lucifer, er he As lowe as Lucifer such shall fall + were lowe fallen (374). (124). + + opon the plow hongen (421). honged at the plow (1042). + + povere in gost God him-self The pore in spirit gan Christ + blisseth (521). blesse (915). + + ben maysters icalled, That the Maysters be called defended he tho + gentill Jesus ... purly defended (1115). + (574). + + to brenne the bodye in a bale of Thou shalt be brent in balefull + fijr (667). fyre (1234). + + Thei shulden nou[gh]t after the They nolde nat demen after the + face ... demen (670). face (714). + + Thei schulden delven and diggen Threshing and dyking fro town to + and dongen the erthe, town, + + And mene mong-corn bred to her With sory mete, and not half y-now + mete fongen (785). (1043). + + He mi[gh]te no maistre ben kald, Maysters be called defended he tho + for Crist that defended (838). (1115). + +The Crede is written in alliterative verse; and it will be observed that +alliteration is employed in the Tale very freely. Another peculiarity in +the Tale may here be noticed, viz. the use of the same rime, _fall_ or +_befall_, throughout Part I, with the exception of ll. 205-228. Indeed, in +the first line of Part II, the author apologizes for being unable to find +any more rimes for _fall_, and proceeds to rime upon _amend_ throughout +that Part. In Part III, he begins to rime upon _grace_ in the first two +stanzas, but soon abandons it for the sake of freedom; however, at l. 1276, +he recurs to _grace_, and continues to rime upon it till the end. It is +clear that the author possessed considerable facility of expression. We can +date these pieces approximately without much error. The proceedings against +Walter Brute, expressly alluded to in the Crede, l. 657, lasted from Oct. +15, 1391, to Oct. 6, 1393, when he submitted himself to the bishop of +Hereford. We may well date the Crede about 1394, and the Tale (which +probably soon followed it, as the author repeats some of his expressions) +about 1395[13]. + +Both these pieces are written in a spirited style, and are of considerable +interest for the light which they throw upon many of the corrupt practices +of the monks, friars, and clergy. The Crede is directed against the friars +in particular, and reflects many of the opinions of Wyclif, as will easily +appear by comparing it with Wyclif's works. See, in particular, his Fifty +Heresies and Errors of Friars (Works, ed. Arnold, iii. 366). It would have +been easy to crowd the Notes with quotations from Wyclif; but it is +sufficient to point out so obvious a source. I have not observed any +passage in which the author copies the exact language of Langland. The +dialect seems to be some form of Midland, and is somewhat archaic; many of +the verbal forms are of some value to the philologist. Taken altogether, it +is a piece of considerable interest and merit. Ten Brink alludes to it as +'that transparent, half-prophetic allegory of the Quarrel between the +Griffin and the Pelican'; and adds--'The Griffin was the representative of +the prelates and the monks, the Pelican that of real Christianity in +Wyclif's sense. At a loss for arguments, the Griffin calls in at last all +the birds of prey in order to destroy its rival. The Phoenix, however, +comes to the help of the Pelican, and terribly destroys the robber-brood.' + +Tyrwhitt observed, with great acuteness, that Spenser's allusion, in the +Epilogue to his Shepheards Calender, to 'the Pilgrim that the Ploughman +playde awhyle,' may well refer to the author of the Plowman's Tale rather +than to Langland[14]. Cf. p. 147, l. 12. It was natural that Spenser should +mention him along with Chaucer, because their productions were bound up +together in the same volume; a volume which was, to Spenser, a +treasure-house of archaic words. + +The discussion on points of religion between the Griffin and the Pelican +clearly suggested to Dryden his discussion between the Hind and the +Panther. His choice of quadrupeds in place of birds is certainly no +improvement. + +§ 23. III. JACK UPLAND. + +Of this piece, no MS. copy is known. It is usually said to have been first +printed by Speght, in his second edition of Chaucer's Works in 1602; but I +have been so fortunate as to find a better and earlier text in the library +of Caius College, Cambridge, to which my attention was drawn by a note in +Hazlitt's Bibliographer's Handbook. This copy, here taken as the basis of +my text, and collated with Speght, is a small book consisting of only 16 +leaves. The title-page contains the following words, within a square +border. ¶ Jack vp Lande | Compyled by the | famous Geoffrey | Chaucer. | +Ezechielis. xiii. | ¶ Wo be vnto you that | dishonour me to me (_sic_) peo +| ple for an handful of bar | lye & for a pece of bread. | Cum priuilegio | +Regali. + +At the end of the treatise is the colophon: ¶ Prynted for Ihon Gough. Cum +Priuilegio Regali. + +Hazlitt conjectures that it was printed about 1540. I think we may safely +date it in 1536; for it is bound up in a volume with several other tracts, +and it so happens that the tract next following it is by Myles Coverdale, +and is dated 1536, being printed in just the very same type and style. We +can also tell that it must have been printed after 1535, because the verse +from Ezekiel xiii, as quoted on the title-page (see above), exactly +corresponds with Coverdale's version of the Bible, the first edition of +which appeared in that year. + +The text of Jack Upland, in the Caius College copy, has the following +heading, in small type:--'¶ These b[=e] the lewed questions of Freres rytes +and obseruaunces the whych they chargen more than Goddes lawe, and therfore +men shulden not gyue hem what so they beggen, tyll they hadden answered and +clerely assoyled these questions.' + +As this copy is, on the whole, considerably superior to Speght's both as +regards sense and spelling, I have not given his inferior readings and +errors. In a very few places, Speght furnishes some obvious corrections; +and in such instances his readings are noted. + +§ 24. A very convenient reprint of Speght's text is given in Wright's +edition of Political Poems and Songs (Record Series), vol. ii. p. 16. In +the same volume, p. 39, is printed a reply to Jack Upland's questions by a +friar who facetiously calls himself Friar Daw Topias, though it appears +(from a note printed at p. 114) that his real name was John Walsingham. Nor +is this all; for Friar Daw's reply is further accompanied by Jack Upland's +rejoinder, printed, for convenience, below Friar Daw's text. It is most +likely, as Mr. Wright concludes, that all three pieces may be dated in the +same year. It was necessary that Friar Daw (who gave himself this name in +order to indicate that he is a comparatively unlearned man, yet easily able +to refute his audacious questioner) should produce his reply at once; and +we may be sure that Jack's rejoinder was not long delayed. Fortunately, the +date can be determined with sufficient exactness; for Jack's rejoinder +contains the allusion: 'and the kyng by his juges trwe [sholde] execute his +lawe, as he _did now late_, whan he hangid you traytours,' p. 86. This +clearly refers to June, 1402[15], when eight Franciscan friars were hanged +at Tyburn for being concerned in a plot against the life of Henry IV. We +may, accordingly, safely refer all three pieces to the year 1402; shortly +after Chaucer's death. + +§ 25. It is also tolerably clear that there must have been two texts of +'Jack Upland,' an earlier and a later one. The earlier one, of which we +have no copy, can easily be traced by help of Friar Daw's reply, as he +quotes all that is material point by point. It only extended as far as the +54th question in the present edition (p. 199); after which followed two +more questions which do not here reappear. The later copy also contains a +few questions, not far from the beginning, which Friar Daw ignores. It is +clear that we only possess a later, and, on the whole, a fuller copy. One +of the omitted questions relates to transubstantiation; and, as any +discussion of it was extremely likely, at that date, to be ended by burning +the disputant at the stake, it was certainly prudent to suppress it. Not +perceiving this point, Mr. Wright too hastily concluded that our copy of +Jack Upland is extremely corrupt, a conclusion quite unwarranted; inasmuch +as Friar Daw, in spite of his affectation of alliterative verse, quotes his +adversary's questions with reasonable correctness. On this unsound theory +Mr. Wright has built up another, still less warranted, viz. that the +original copy of Jack Upland must have been written in alliterative verse; +for no other reason than because Friar Daw's reply is so written. It is +obvious that alliteration is conspicuously absent, except in the case of +the four lines (424-7), which are introduced, by way of flourish, at the +end. My own belief is that our copy of Jack Upland is a second edition, +i.e. an amended and extended copy, which has been reasonably well +preserved. It is more correct than the Plowmans Tale, and very much more +correct than the Testament of Love. + +§ 26. Mr. Wright further imagines that Jack Upland's rejoinder to Friar +Daw's reply, which he prints from 'a contemporary MS. in the Bodleian +Library at Oxford, MS. Digby 41,' was also originally in alliterative +verse. This supposition is almost as gratuitous as the former; for, +although there are very frequent traces of alliteration as an occasional +embellishment, it is otherwise written in ordinary prose. The mere chopping +up of prose into bits of not very equal length, as in Mr. Wright's print, +does not produce verse of any kind. Friar Daw's verses are bad enough, as +he did not understand his model (obviously the Ploughman's Crede), but he +usually succeeds in making a kind of jingle, with pauses, for the most +part, in the right place. But there is no verse discoverable in Jack +Upland; he preferred straightforward prose, for reasons that are perfectly +obvious. + +For further remarks, I beg leave to refer the reader to Mr. Wright's +Introduction, pp. xii-xxiv, where he will find an excellent summary of the +arguments adduced on both sides. There is a slight notice of Jack Upland in +Morley's English Writers, vi. 234. + +§ 27. IV. JOHN GOWER: THE PRAISE OF PEACE. + +In Morley's English Writers, iv. 157, this poem is entitled 'De Pacis +Commendatione,' on MS. authority (see p. 216). Mr. E. B. Nicholson, who has +made a special study of Gower's poems, suggested 'The Praise of Peace,' +which I have gladly adopted. I am much obliged to Mr. Nicholson for his +assistance in various ways; and, in particular, for the generous loan of +his own transcript of this poem. + +§ 28. In Todd's Illustrations of Gower and Chaucer, p. 95, is a notice of a +MS. 'in the present Marquis of Stafford's library at Trentham,' which had +been previously described in Warton's Hist. of E. Poetry as being 'in Lord +Gower's library.' Mr. Wright alludes to it as 'a contemporary MS. in the +possession of his grace the duke of Sutherland.' It may be called 'the +Trentham MS.' 'The Praise of Peace' was printed from it by Mr. Wright, in +his Political Poems and Songs, ii. 4-15; and I have followed his text, +which I denote by 'T.' At the same time, I have collated it with the text +of Thynne's edition of 1532, which is a very good one. The differences are +slight. + +Warton describes the MS. as 'a thin oblong MS. on vellum, containing some +of Gower's poems in Latin, French, and English. By an entry in the first +leaf, in the handwriting and under the signature of Thomas lord Fairfax, +Cromwell's general, an antiquarian, and a lover and collector of curious +manuscripts, it appears that this book was presented by the poet Gower, +about 1400[16], to Henry IV; and that it was given by lord Fairfax to his +friend and kinsman Sir Thomas Gower, knight and baronet, in the year 1656.' +He goes on to say that Fairfax had it from Charles Gedde, Esq., of St. +Andrews; and that it was at one time in the possession of King Henry VII, +while earl of Richmond, who wrote in it his own name in the form +'Rychemond.' + +The MS. contains (1) The Praise of Peace, _preceded by_ the seven Latin +lines (386-392), which I have relegated to the end of the poem, as in +Thynne. The title is given in the colophon (p. 216); after which follow the +twelve Latin lines (393-404), printed on the same page. (2) Some +complimentary verses in Latin, also addressed to Henry IV, printed in +Wright's Political Poems, ii. 1-3. (3) Fifty Balades in French, which have +been printed by Stengel (Warton prints _four_ of them), with the +colophon--'Expliciunt carmina Joh[=i]s Gower que Gallice composita +_Balades_ dicuntur.' (4) Two short Latin poems in elegiacs; see Warton. (5) +A French poem on the Dignity or Excellence of Marriage. (6) Seventeen Latin +hexameters. (7) Gower's Latin verses on his blindness, beginning-- + + 'Henrici quarti primus regni fuit annus, + Quo michi defecit visus ad acta mea,' &c. + +See Todd and Warton for more minute particulars. + +§ 29. The poem itself may safely be dated in the end of 1399, for reasons +given in the note to l. 393. It is of some interest, as being Gower's last +poem in English, and the spirit of it is excellent, though it contains no +very striking lines. We have not much of Gower's work in the form of +seven-line stanzas. The Confessio Amantis contains only twelve such +stanzas; iii. 349-352. I draw attention to the earliest known reference (l. +295) to the game of 'tenetz'; the enumeration of the nine worthies (ll. +281-3); and the reference to a story about Constantine which, in the +Confessio Amantis, is related at considerable length (l. 339). + +We may compare with this poem the stanzas in praise of peace in Hoccleve's +De Regimine Principum, quoted in Morley's English Writers (1890), vol. vi. +pp. 131-2. + +§ 30. V. THOMAS HOCCLEVE: THE LETTER OF CUPID. + +This poem needs little discussion. It is known to be Hoccleve's; see Dr. +Furnivall's edition of Hoccleve's Minor Poems, E. E. T. S., 1892, p. 72. As +explained in the notes, it is rather closely imitated from the French poem +entitled L'Epistre au Dieu d'Amours, written by Christine de Pisan. At the +end of her poem, Christine gives the date of its composition, viz. 1399; +and Hoccleve, in like manner, gives the date of his poem as 1402. The poem +consists of sixty-eight stanzas, of which not more than eighteen are wholly +independent of the original. The chief original passages are ll. 176-189, +316-329, and 374-434. + +The poem is entirely occupied with a defence of women, such as a woman +might well make. It takes the form of a reproof, addressed by Cupid to all +male lovers; and is directed, in particular, against the sarcasms of Jean +de Meun (l. 281) in the celebrated Roman de la Rose. + +Of this poem there are several MS. copies; see footnotes at p. 217. The +best is probably the Ashburnham MS., but it has not yet been printed. I +chiefly follow MS. Fairfax 16, which Dr. Furnivall has taken as the basis +of his text. + +There is also a poor and late copy in the Bannatyne MS., at fol. 269; see +the print of it for the Hunterian Club, 1879; p. 783. + +§ 31. VI. THE SAME: TWO BALADES. + +These two Balades, also by Hoccleve, were composed at the same time. The +former is addressed to King Henry V, and the latter to the Knights of the +Garter. They are very closely connected with a much longer poem of 512 +lines, which was addressed to Sir John Oldcastle in August, 1415; and must +have been written at about that date. It was natural enough that, whilst +addressing his appeal to Oldcastle to renounce his heresies, the poet +should briefly address the king on the same subject at the same time. I +think we may safely date this piece, like the other, in August, 1415. + +The remarkable likeness between the two pieces appears most in the +references to Justinian and to Constantine. In fact, the reference to +Justinian in l. 3 of the former of the Balades here printed would be +unintelligible but for the full explanation which the companion poem +affords. I have quoted, in the note to l. 3, the Latin note which is +written in the margin of st. 24 of the address to Oldcastle; and I quote +here the stanza itself:-- + + 'The Cristen emperour Justinian, + As it is writen, who-so list it see, + Made a lawe deffending every man, + Of what condicion or what degree + That he were of, nat sholde hardy be + For to despute of the feith openly; + And ther-upon sundry peynes sette he, + That peril sholde eschuëd be therby.' + Minor Poems, ed. Furnivall, p. 14. + +Compare with this the fourth stanza of Balade I. + +We may regret that Hoccleve's desire to make an example of heretics was so +soon fulfilled. Only three years later, in Dec. 1418, Sir John Oldcastle +was captured in Wales, brought up to London, and publicly burnt. + +My text follows the sole good MS. (Phillipps 8151); which I have collated +with the earliest printed text, that of 1542. There is, indeed, another MS. +copy of the poem in the library of Trinity College, Cambridge (R. 3. 15); +but it is only a late copy made from the printed book. + +§ 32. VII. HENRY SCOGAN: A MORAL BALADE. + +The heading to this poem is from MS. Ashmole 59; it is, unfortunately, +somewhat obscure. It is, of course, not contemporaneous with the poem, but +was added, by way of note, by John Shirley, when transcribing it. In fact, +the third son of Henry IV was not created duke of Bedford till 1415, after +the accession of Henry V; whereas Henry V is here referred to as being +still 'my lord the Prince.' Hence the poem was written in the reign of +Henry IV (1399-1413); but we can easily come much nearer than this to the +true date. We may note, first of all, that Chaucer is referred to as being +dead (l. 65); so that the date is after 1400. Again, the poem does not +appear to have been recited by the author; it was _sent_, in the author's +handwriting, to the assembled guests (l. 3). Further, Scogan says that he +was 'called' the 'fader,' i.e. tutor, of the young princes (l. 2); and that +he sent the letter to them out of fervent regard for their welfare, in +order to warn them (l. 35). He regrets that sudden age has come upon him +(l. 10), and wishes to impart to them the lessons which the approach of old +age suggests. All this points to a time when Scogan was getting past his +regular work as tutor, though he still retained the title; which suggests a +rather late date. We find, however, from the Inquisitiones post Mortem +(iii. 315), that Henry Scogan died in 1407, and I have seen it noted (I +forget where) that he only attained the age of forty-six. This shews that +he was only relatively old, owing, probably, to infirm health; and we may +safely date the poem in 1406 or 1407, the latter being the more likely. In +1407, the ages of the young princes were nineteen, eighteen, seventeen, and +sixteen respectively, and it is not likely that Scogan had been their tutor +for more than twelve years at most. This provisional date of 1407 +sufficiently satisfies all the conditions. + +The four sons of Henry IV were Henry, prince of Wales, born at Monmouth in +1388; Thomas, born in 1389, and created duke of Clarence in 1412; John, +born in 1390, created duke of Bedford in 1415; and Humphrey, born in 1391, +created duke of Gloucester in 1414. + +§ 33. The expression _at a souper of feorthe merchande_ is difficult, and I +can only guess at the sense. _Feorthe_ is Shirley's spelling of _ferthe_, +i.e. fourth. _Merchande_ is probably equivalent to O.F. _marchandie_ or +_marchandise_. Godefroy gives an example of the latter in the sense of +'merchant's company.' I suppose that _feorthe merchande_ means 'fourth +meeting of merchants,' or the fourth of the four quarterly meetings of a +guild. Toulmin Smith, in his English Gilds, p. 32, says that quarterly +meetings for business were common; though some guilds met only once, twice, +or thrice in the course of a year. + +The Vintry is described by Stow in his Survey of London (ed. Thoms, p. 90): +'Then next over against St. Martin's church, is a large house built of +stone and timber, with vaults for the stowage of wines, and is called the +Vintry.... In this house Henry Picard [lord mayor in 1356-7] feasted four +kings in one day.' + +I need not repeat here what I have already said about Scogan in vol. i. p. +83. + +I may add to the note about Lewis John (vol. i. p. 84), that he was a +person of some note. In 1423 (Feb. 8), 'Ludowicus Johan, armiger, +constitutus est seneschall et receptor generalis ducatus Cornub.': see +Ordinances of the Privy Council, iii. 24. He is further mentioned in the +same, ii. 334, 342. + +Chaucer's Balade on Gentilesse, quoted in full in ll. 105-125, is in +seven-line stanzas; and is thus distinguished from the rest of the poem, +which is written in eight-line stanzas. It may be noted that Scogan's rimes +are extremely correct, if we compare them with Chaucer's as a standard. + +Of this piece there are two early printed copies, one by Caxton, and one by +Thynne (1532); and two MSS., Ashmole 59 and Harl. 2251. It is remarkable +that the printed copies are better than the MSS. as regards readings. + +§ 34. VIII. THE COMPLAINT OF THE BLACK KNIGHT. + +Such is the title in Thynne's edition (1532). In MS. F. (Fairfax 16), it is +entitled--'Complaynte of a Loveres Lyfe'; and there is a printed edition +with the title--'The Complaynte of a Louers Lyfe. Imprynted at London in +the flete strete at the sygne of the Sonne, by Wynkyn de Worde'; no date, +4to. on twelve leaves. In MS. S. (Arch. Selden, B. 24), there is an +erroneous colophon--'Here endith the Maying and disporte of Chaucere'; +which gives the wrong title, and assigns it to the wrong author. In +accordance with the last MS., it was printed, with the erroneous +title--'Here begynnys the mayng or disport of chaucer'--in a volume +'Imprentit in the south gait of Edinburgh be Walter chepman and Androw +myllar the fourth day of ap_er_ile the yhere of god . M.CCCCC. and viii +yheris' [1508]; and this scarce copy was reprinted as piece no. 8 in The +Knightly Tale of Golagrus and Gawane, &c., as reprinted by Laing in 1827. + +But the fullest title is that in MS. Ad. (Addit. 16165), written out by +John Shirley, who says: 'And here filowyng begynnethe a Right lusty amorous +balade, made in wyse of a complaynt of a Right worshipfull_e_ Knyght that +truly euer serued his lady, enduryng grete disese by fals envye and +malebouche; made by Lydegate' (fol. 190, back). Some of the pages have the +heading, 'The compleynte of a Knight made by Lidegate[17].' + +This attribution of the poem to Lydgate, by so good a judge as Shirley, +renders the authorship certain; and the ascription is fully confirmed by +strong internal evidence. Much of it is in Lydgate's best manner, and his +imitation of Chaucer is, in places, very close; while, at the same time, it +is easy to point out non-Chaucerian rimes, such as _whyte_, _brighte_, 2; +_pitously_, _malady_ (Ch. _maladyë_), 137; _felyngly_, _malady_, 188; +_mente_, _diligent_, 246; _grace_, _alas_, 529; _seyn_, _payn_ (Ch. +_peynë_), 568; _diurnal_, _fal_, (Ch. _falle_), 590; _payn_, _agayn_, 650; +_queen_ (Ch. _quene_), _seen_, 674. Besides which, there are two mere +assonances in two consecutive stanzas, viz. _forjuged_, _excused_, 274; and +_wreke_, _clepe_, 284. The occurrence of this pair of assonances is quite +enough to settle the question. If we apply a more delicate test, we may +observe that, in ll. 218-220, the word _s[=o]re_ (with long _o_) rimes with +_tore_, in which the _o_ was originally short; on this point, see vol. vi. +p. xxxii. + +As to this poem, Ten Brink well remarks: 'His talent was fairly qualified +for a popular form of the 'Complaint'--a sort of long monologue, interwoven +with allegory and mythology, and introduced by a charming picture of +nature. His _Complaint of the Black Knight_, which contains reminiscences +from the Romance of the Rose, the Book of the Duchesse, and the Parlement +of Foules, was long considered a production of Chaucer's, and is still +frequently included in editions of his works--although with reservations. +The critic, however, will not be deceived by the excellent descriptive +passages of this poem, but will easily detect the characteristic marks of +the imitator in the management of verse and rhyme, and especially in the +diffusiveness of the story and the monotony even of the most important +parts.' + +§ 35. Lydgate's reminiscences of Chaucer are often interesting. In +particular, we should observe the passages suggested by the Roman de la +Rose in ll. 36-112; for we are at once reminded of Chaucer's _own version_ +of it, as preserved in Fragment A of the Romaunt. After noticing that he +uses _costey_ (36) for the F. _costoiant_, where Chaucer has _costeying_ +(134); and _attempre_ (57) where Chaucer has _attempre_ (131), though one +French text has _atrempee_, it is startling to find him reproducing (80) +Chaucer's very phrase _And softe as veluët_ (R. R. 1420), where the French +original has nothing corresponding either to _soft_ or to _velvet_! This +clearly shews that Lydgate was acquainted with Fragment A of the English +version, and believed that version to be Chaucer's; for otherwise he would +hardly have cared to imitate it at all. + +The date of this poem is discussed in the Introduction to Schick's edition +of the Temple of Glas, by the same author; pp. c, cxii. He dates it in +Lydgate's early period, or about A.D. 1402. + +The text is based upon Thynne's edition, which is quite as good as the +MSS., though the spellings are often too late in form. The late excellent +edition by E. Krausser (Halle, 1896) reached me after my text was printed. +His text (from MS. F.) has much the same readings, and is accompanied by a +full Introduction and eleven pages of useful notes. + +§ 36. IX. THE FLOUR OF CURTESYE. + +This piece has no author's name prefixed to it in the first three editions; +but in the fourth edition by Stowe, printed in 1561, the title is: 'The +Floure of Curtesie, made by Iohn lidgate.' Probably Stowe had seen it +attributed to him in some MS., and made a note of it; but I know of no MS. +copy now extant. + +Few poems bear Lydgate's impress more clearly; there can be no doubt as to +its authorship. Schick refers it to Lydgate's early period, and dates it +about 1400-1402; see his edition of the Temple of Glas, p. cxii. As it was +written after Chaucer's death (see l. 236), and probably when that sad loss +was still recent, we cannot be far wrong if we date it about 1401; and the +Black Knight, a somewhat more ambitious effort, about 1402. + +The 'Flour of Curtesye' is intended as a portrait of one whom the poet +honours as the best of womankind. The character is evidently founded on +that of Alcestis as described in the Prologue to the Legend of Good Women; +and throughout the piece we are frequently reminded of Chaucer; especially +of the Legend, the Complaint of Mars, and the Parliament of Foules. + +The Envoy presents a very early example of the four-line stanza, similar to +that employed in Gray's famous Elegy. + +§ 37. X. A BALADE IN COMMENDATION OF OUR LADY. + +This piece is attributed to 'Lidegate of Bury' in the Ashmole MS. no. 59; +and the ascription is obviously correct. It abounds with evident marks of +his peculiar style of metre; for which see Schick's Introduction to the +Temple of Glas, p. lvi. We note in it a few reminiscences of Chaucer, as +pointed out in the Notes; in particular, it was probably suggested by +Chaucer's A B C, which furnished hints for ll. 27, 60, and 129. It is +perhaps worth while to add that we have thus an independent testimony for +the genuineness of that poem. + +As an illustration of Lydgate's verse, I may notice the additional syllable +after the cæsura, which too often clogs his lines. Thus in l. 8 we must +group the syllables thus:-- + +Wherefór : now pláynly : I wól : my stýlë : dréssë. Similarly, we find +_lícour_ in l. 13, _pítè_ (18), _líving_ (24), _bémës_ (25), _gínning_ +(31), _mércy_ (33), _gárden_ (36), &c., all occupying places where a +monosyllable would have been more acceptable. + +The poem is strongly marked by alliteration, shewing that the poet (usually +in a hurry) took more than usual pains with it. In the seventh stanza +(43-49) this tendency is unmistakably apparent. + +It is hardly possible to assign a date to a poem of this character. I can +only guess it to belong to the middle period of his career; say, the reign +of Henry V. We have not yet obtained sufficient data for the arrangement of +Lydgate's poems. + +§ 38. Lines 121-127 are here printed for the first time. In the old +editions, l. 120 is succeeded by l. 128, with the result that _Sion_ (120) +would not rime with _set afere_ (129); but the scribe of the Ashmole MS. +was equal to the emergency, for he altered l. 129 so as to make it end with +_fuyrless thou sette vppon_, which is mere nonsense. Thynne has _fyrelesse +fyre set on_, which is just a little better. + +This addition of seven lines was due to my fortunate discovery of a new +MS.; for which I was indebted to the excellent MS. 'Index of First Lines' +in the British Museum. This told me that a poem (hitherto unrecognised) +existed in MS. Sloane 1212, of which the first line is 'A thousand +stories,' &c. On examining the MS., it turned out to be a copy, on paper, +of Hoccleve's De Regimine Principum, with four leaves of vellum at the +beginning, and two more at the end, covered with writing of an older +character. The two vellum leaves at the end were then transposed, but have +since been set right, at my suggestion. They contain a few lines of the +conclusion of some other piece, followed by the unique _complete_ copy of +the present Balade. This copy turned out to be much the best, and restored +several of the readings. Indeed, the Ashmole MS. is very imperfect, having +in it a lacuna of eight stanzas (ll. 64-119). I am thus able to give quite +a presentable text. + +The correction that most interested me was one in l. 134, where the Ashmole +MS. and Thynne have _probatyf piscyne_. On June 5, 1896, I read a paper at +the Philological Society, in which (among other things) I pointed out that +the right reading must certainly be _probatik_. The very next day I found +the Sloane MS.; and behold, its reading was _probatyk_! It is not often +that a 'conjectural emendation' is confirmed, on unimpeachable authority, +within twenty-four hours. + +Another remarkable correction is that of _dyamaunt_ for _dyametre_ in l. +87. It was all very well to compare Our Lady to a diamond; but to call her +a _diameter_ (as in all the editions) is a little too bad. Again, in l. 121 +(now first printed) we have the remarkable expression _punical pome_ for a +pomegranate, which is worthy of notice; and in l. 123 we find a new word, +_agnelet_, which is not to be found in the New English Dictionary. + +All the printed editions print the next piece as if it _formed a part_ of +the present one; but they have absolutely no point in common beyond the +fact of having a common authorship. + +§ 39. XI. TO MY SOVERAIN LADY. + +In all the old editions, this piece forms part of the preceding, though it +is obviously distinct from it, when attention is once drawn to the fact. +Instead of being addressed, like no. X, to the Virgin, it is addressed to a +lady whose name the poet wishes to commend (l. 7); and from whom he is +parted (51); whereas two lovers ought to be together, if they wish to live +'well merry' (64). Her goodly fresh face is a merry mirror (73); and he has +chosen her as his Valentine (111). + +It is evidently a conventional complimentary poem, written to please some +lady of rank or of high renown (93), one, in fact, who is 'of women chief +princesse' (70). It is prettily expressed, and does Lydgate some credit, +being a favourable specimen of his more playful style; I wish we had more +of the same kind. L. 68--'Let him go love, and see wher [_whether_] it be +game'--is excellent. + +I shall here submit to the reader a pure guess, for what it is worth. My +impression is that this piece, being a complimentary Valentine, was +suggested by queen Katherine's visit to England; the lover whose passion is +here described being no other than king Henry V, who was parted from his +queen for a week. The pair arrived at Dover on Feb. 2, 1421, and Henry went +on to London, arriving on Feb. 14; the queen did not arrive till Feb. 21, +just in time for her coronation on Feb. 23. + +This hypothesis satisfies several conditions. It explains why the lover's +_English_ is not good enough to praise the lady; why so many French lines +are quoted; the significant allusion to the lily, i.e. the lily of France, +in l. 16; the lover's consolation found in English roundels (40); the +expression 'cheef princesse' in l. 70; and the very remarkable exclamation +of _Salve, regina_, in l. 83, which doubtless made Thynne imagine that the +poem was addressed to the Virgin Mary. The expression 'for your departing' +in l. 105 does not necessarily mean 'on account of your departure from me'; +it is equally in accordance with Middle-English usage to suppose that it +means 'on account of your separation from me'; see _Depart_ and _Departing_ +in the New English Dictionary. + +It is well known that Lydgate provided the necessary poetry for the entry +of Henry VI into London in Feb. 1432. + +Some resemblances to Chaucer are pointed out in the Notes. The most +interesting circumstance about this poem is that the author quotes, at the +end of his third stanza, the first line of 'Merciles Beautè'; this is a +strong point in favour of the attribution of that poem to his master. + +This piece is distinguished from the preceding by the difference of its +subject; by the difference in the character of the metre (there is here no +alliteration); and, most significant of all, by its absence from MS. +Ashmole 59 and MS. Sloane 1212, both of which contain the preceding piece. +The two poems may have been brought together, in the MS. which Thynne +followed, by the accident of being written about the same time. + +§ 40. XII. BALLAD OF GOOD COUNSEL. + +The title of this piece in Stowe's edition stands as follows: 'A balade of +good counseile, translated out of Latin verses into Englishe, by dan Iohn +lidgat cleped the monke of Buri.' What were the Latin verses here referred +to, I have no means of ascertaining. + +This Ballad is eminently characteristic of Lydgate's style, and by no means +the worst of its kind. When he once gets hold of a refrain that pleases +him, he canters merrily along till he has absolutely no more to say. I +think he must have enjoyed writing it, and that he wrote it to please +himself. + +He transgresses one of Chaucer's canons in ll. 79-82; where he rimes +_hardy_ with _foly_ and _flatery_. The two latter words are, in Chaucer, +_foly-ë_ and _flatery-ë_, and never rime with a word like _hardy_, which +has no final _-e_. + +Lydgate is very fond of what may be called _catalogues_; he begins by +enumerating every kind of possibility. You may be rich, or strong, or +prudent, &c.; or fair (22) or ugly (24); you may have a wife (29), or you +may not (36); you may be fat (43), or you may be lean (46); or staid (57), +or holy (64); your dress may be presentable (71), or poor (72), or middling +(73); you may speak much (78) or little (80); and so on; for it is hard to +come to an end. At l. 106, he begins all over again with womankind; and the +conclusion is, that you should govern your tongue, and never listen to +slander. + +Thynne's text is not very good; the MSS. are somewhat better. He makes the +odd mistake of printing _Holynesse beautie_ for _Eleynes beaute_ (115); but +Helen had not much to do with holiness. Two of the stanzas (71-7 and +106-112) are now printed for the first time, as they occur in the MSS. +only. Indeed, MS. H. (Harl. 2251) is the sole authority for the former of +these two stanzas. + +§ 41. XIII. BEWARE OF DOUBLENESS. + +This is a favourable example of Lydgate's better style; and is written with +unusual smoothness, owing to the shortness of the lines. It was first +printed in 1561. There is a better copy in the Fairfax MS., which has been +taken as the basis of the text. The copy in MS. Ashmole 59 is very poor. +The title--'Balade made by Lydgate'--occurs in MS. Addit. 16165. Stowe, +being unacquainted with the phrase _ambes as_ (l. 78), though it occurs in +Chaucer, turned _ambes_ into _lombes_, after which he wrongly inserted a +comma; and _lombes_ appears, accordingly, in all former editions, with a +comma after it. What sense readers have hitherto made of this line, I am at +a loss to conjecture. + +§ 42. XIV. A BALADE: WARNING MEN, ETC. + +First printed by Stowe in 1561, from the MS. in Trinity College Library, +marked R. 3. 19, which I have used in preference to the printed edition. + +There is another, and more complete copy in the same library, marked O. 9. +38, which has contributed some excellent corrections. Moreover, it gives a +better arrangement of stanzas three and four, which the old editions +transpose. More than this, it contains a unique stanza (36-42), which has +not been printed before. + +The poem also occurs in Shirley's MS. Harl. 2251, which contains a large +number of poems by Lydgate; and is there followed by another poem of seven +stanzas, attributed to Lydgate. That the present poem is Lydgate's, cannot +well be doubted; it belongs to the same class of his poems as no. XII +above. I find it attributed to him in the reprint of 'Chaucer's Poems' by +Chalmers, in 1810. + +The substitution of the contracted and idiomatic form _et_ for the later +form _eteth_ is a great improvement. It is due to MS. O. 9. 38, where the +scribe first wrote _ette_, but was afterwards so weak as to 'correct' it to +_etyth_. But this 'correction' just ruins the refrain. _Et_ was no doubt +becoming archaic towards the middle of the fifteenth century. + +Two variations upon the last stanza occur in the Bannatyne MS., fol. 258, +back; see the print by the Hunterian Club, 1879, pp. 754, 755. + +§ 43. XV. THREE SAYINGS. + +First printed by Stowe; I know of no MS. copy. The first two Sayings are +attributed to Lydgate; so we may as well credit him with the third. The +second expresses the same statements as the first, but varies somewhat in +form; both are founded upon a Latin line which occurs in MS. Fairfax 16 +(fol. 196) and in MS. Harl. 7578 (fol. 20), and runs as follows:--'Quatuor +infatuant, honor, etas, femina, uinum.' + +Note that these Three Sayings constitute the _only_ addition made by Stowe +to Thynne in 'Part I' of Stowe's edition. See nos. 28, 29, 30 in vol. i. p. +32. Stowe introduced them _in order to fill a blank half-column_ between +nos. 27 and 31. + +§ 44. XVI. LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCY. + +First printed in Thynne's Chaucer (1532). Tyrwhitt first pointed out that +it could not possibly be his, seeing that Alan Chartier's poem with the +same name, whence the English version was made, could not have been written +in Chaucer's lifetime. Chartier was born in 1386, and was only fourteen +years old at the time of Chaucer's death. Tyrwhitt further stated that the +author's name, Sir Richard Ros, was plainly given in MS. Harl. 372, fol. +61, where the poem has this title:--'La Belle Dame Sanz Mercy. Translatid +out of Frenche by Sir Richard Ros.' I have not been able to find the date +of the French original, as there is no modern edition of Chartier's poems; +but it can hardly have been written before 1410, when the poet was only +twenty-four years old; and the date of the translation must be later still. +But we are not wholly left to conjecture in this matter. A short notice of +Sir Richard Ros appeared in Englische Studien, X. 206, written by H. +Gröhler, who refers us to his dissertation 'Ueber Richard Ros' +mittelenglische übersetzung des gedichtes von Alain Chartier La Belle Dame +sans Mercy,' published at Breslau in 1886; of which Dr. Gröhler has most +obligingly sent me a copy, whence several of my Notes have been derived. He +tells us, in this article, that his dissertation was founded on the copy of +the poem in MS. Harl. 372, which (in 1886) he believed to be unique; +whereas he had since been informed that there are three other MSS., viz. +Camb. Ff. 1. 6, Trin. Coll. Camb. R. 3. 19, and Fairfax 16; and further, +that the Trinity MS. agrees with the Harleian as to misarrangement of the +subject-matter[18]. He also proposed to give a new edition of the poem in +Englische Studien, but I am unable to find it; and Dr. Kölbing courteously +informs me that it never appeared. + +Dr. Gröhler further tells us, that Mr. Joseph Hall, of Manchester, had sent +him some account, extracted from the county history of Leicestershire by +Nichols, of the family of Roos or Ros, who were lords of Hamlake and +Belvoir in that county. According to Nichols, the Sir Richard Ros who was +presumably the poet, was the second son of Sir Thomas Ros; and Sir Thomas +was the second son of Sir W. Ros, who married Margaret, daughter of Sir +John Arundel. If this be right, we gain the further information that Sir +Richard was born in 1429[19], and is known to have been alive in 1450, when +he was twenty-one years old. + +The dates suit very well, as they suggest that the English poem was +written, probably, between 1450 and 1460, or at the beginning of the second +half of the fifteenth century; which sufficiently agrees with the language +employed and with the probable age of the MSS. The date assigned in the New +English Dictionary, s.v. _Currish_, is 1460; which cannot be far wrong. It +can hardly be much later. + +§ 45. The above notice also suggests that, as Sir Richard Ros was of a +Leicestershire family, the dialect of the piece may, originally at least, +have been North Leicestershire. Belvoir is situate in the N.E. corner of +Leicestershire, not far from Grantham in Lincolnshire, and at no great +distance from the birthplace of Robert of Brunne. It is well known that +Robert of Brunne wrote in a variety of the Midland dialect which coincides, +to a remarkable extent, with the form of the language which has become the +standard literary English. Now it is easily seen that La Belle Dame has the +same peculiarity, and I venture to think that, on this account, it is worth +special attention. If we want to see a specimen of what the Midland +literary dialect was like in the middle of the fifteenth century, it is +here that we may find it. Many of the stanzas are, in fact, remarkably +modern, both in grammar and expression; we have only to alter the spelling, +and there is nothing left to explain. Take for example the last stanza on +p. 301 (ll. 77-84):-- + + 'In this great thought, sore troubled in my mind, + Alone thus rode I all the morrow-tide, + Till, at the last, it happèd me to find + The place wherein I cast me to abide + + When that I had no further for to ride. + And as I went my lodging to purvey, + Right soon I heard, but little me beside, + In a gardén, where minstrels gan to play.' + +A large number of stanzas readily lend themselves to similar treatment; and +this is quite enough to dissociate the poem from Chaucer. The great +difficulty about modernising Chaucer is, as every one knows, his use of the +final _-e_ as a distinct syllable; but we may search a whole page of La +Belle Dame without finding anything of the kind. When Sir Richard's words +have an extra syllable, it is due to the suffix _-es_ or the suffix _-ed_; +and even these are not remarkably numerous; we do not arrive at _cloth-ës_, +a plural in _-es_, before l. 22; and, in the course of the first four +stanzas, all the words in _-ed_ are _awak-ed_, _nak-ed_, _vex-ed_, +_tourn-ed_, and _bold-ed_, none of which would be surprising to a student +of Elizabethan poetry. That there was something of a Northern element in +Sir Richard's language appears from the rime of _long-es_ with _song-es_, +in ll. 53-55; where _longes_ is the third person singular of the present +tense; but modern English has _belongs_, with the same suffix! Again, he +constantly uses the Northern possessive pronoun _their_; but modern English +does the same! + +§ 46. Another remarkable point about the poem is the perfect smoothness and +regularity of the metre in a large number of lines, even as judged by a +modern standard. The first line--'Half in a dream, not fully well +awaked'--might, from a metrical point of view, have been written yesterday. +It is a pity that the poem is somewhat dull, owing to its needless +prolixity; but this is not a little due to Alan Chartier. Sir Richard has +only eight stanzas of his own, four at the beginning, and four at the end; +and it is remarkable that these are in the seven-line stanza, while the +rest of the stanzas have eight lines, like their French original, of which +I here give the first stanza, from the Paris edition of 1617, p. 502. (See +l. 29 of the English version.) + + 'N'agueres cheuauchant pensoye, + Comme homme triste et douloreux, + Au dueil où il faut que ie soye + Le plus dolant des amoureux; + Puisque par son dart rigoureux + La mort me tolli ma Maistresse, + Et me laissa seul langoureux + En la conduicte de tristesse.' + +I have cited in the Notes a few passages of the original text which help to +explain the translation. + +§ 47. The text in Thynne is a good one, and it seemed convenient to make it +the basis of the edition; but it has been carefully controlled by collation +with MS. Ff. 1. 6, which is, in some respects, the best MS. I am not sure +that Thynne always followed his MS.; he may have collated some other one, +as he professes in some cases to have done. MS. Ff. 1. 6, the Trinity MS., +and Thynne's principal MS. form one group, which we may call A; whilst the +Fairfax and Harleian MSS. form a second group, which we may call B: and of +these, group A is the better. The MSS. in group B sadly transpose the +subject-matter, and give the poem in the following order; viz. lines 1-428, +669-716, 525-572, 477-524, 621-668, 573-620, 429-476, 717-856. The cause of +this dislocation is simple enough. It means that the B-group MSS. were +copied from one in which three leaves, each containing six stanzas, were +misarranged. The three leaves were placed one within the other, to form a +sheet, and were written upon. Then the outer pair of these leaves was +turned inside out, whilst the second and third pair changed places. This +can easily be verified by making a little book of six leaves and numbering +each page with the numbers 429-452, 453-476, 477-500, 501-524, &c. (i.e. +with 24 lines on a page, ending with 716), and then misarranging the leaves +in the manner indicated. + +The copy in MS. Harl. 372 was printed, just as it stands, by Dr. Furnivall, +in his volume entitled Political, Religious, and Love Poems, published for +the E. E. T. S. in 1866; at p. 52. The text is there, accordingly, +misarranged as above stated. + +There is another MS. copy, as has been said above, in MS. Trin. Coll. Camb. +R. 3. 19; but I have not collated it. It seems to be closely related to MS. +Ff., and to present no additional information. Not only do the MSS. of the +A-group contain the text in the right order, but they frequently give the +better readings. Thus, in l. 47, we have the odd line--'My _pen_ coud never +have knowlege what it ment'; as given in MS. Ff., the Trinity MS., and +Thynne. The word _pen_ is altered to _eyen_ in MSS. H. and F.; +nevertheless, it is perfectly right, for the French original has _plume_; +see the Note on the line. Other examples are given in the Notes. + +In l. 174, MS. Ff. alone has the right reading, _apert_. I had made up my +mind that this was the right reading even before consulting that MS., +because the old reading--'One wyse nor other, prevy nor _perte_'--is so +extremely harsh. There is no sense in using the clipped form of the word +when the true _and usual_ form will scan so much better. See C. T., F 531, +Ho. Fame, 717. The Trinity MS. gets out of the difficulty by a material +alteration of the line, so that it there becomes--'In any wyse, nether +preuy nor perte.' + +§ 48. XVII. THE TESTAMENT OF CRESSEID. + +I do not suppose this was ever supposed to be Chaucer's even by Thynne. +Line 64--'Quha wait gif all that Chaucer wrait was trew?'--must have +settled the question from the first. No doubt Thynne added it simply as a +pendant to Troilus, and he must have had a copy before him in the Northern +dialect, which he modified as well as he could. Nevertheless, he gives us +_can_ for the Southern _gan_ in l. 6, _wrate_ for _wrote_ in l. 64, and has +many similar Northern forms. + +The poem was printed at Edinburgh in 1593 with the author's name. The title +is as follows--¶ THE TESTAMENT OF CRESSEID, Compylit be M. Robert +Henrysone, Sculemai-ster in Dunfermeling. IMPRENTIT AT EDIN = burgh be +Henrie Charteris. MD. XCIII. The text is in 4to, ten leaves, black-letter. +Only one copy has been preserved, which is now in the British Museum; but +it was reprinted page for page in the volume presented by Mr. Chalmers to +the Bannatyne Club in 1824. The present edition is from this reprint, with +very few modifications, such as _sh_ for _sch_, and final _-y_ for final +_-ie_ in immaterial cases. All other modifications are accounted for in the +footnotes below. No early MS. copy is known; there was once a copy in the +Asloan MS., but the leaves containing it are lost. + +Thynne's print must have been a good deal altered from the original, to +make it more intelligible. It is odd to find him altering _quhisling_ (20) +to _whiskyng_, and _ringand_ (144) to _tynkyng_. I note all Thynne's +variations that are of any interest. He must have been much puzzled by +_aneuch in_ (which he seems to have regarded as one word and as a past +participle) before he turned it into _enewed_ (110). But in some cases +Thynne gives us real help, as I will now point out. + +In l. 48, E. (the Edinburgh edition) has--'Quhill Esperus reioisit him +agane'; where _Esperus_ gives no good sense. But Thynne prints _esperous_, +which at once suggests _esperans_ (hope), as opposed to _wanhope_ in the +preceding line. + +In l. 155, E. has _frosnit_, which Laing interprets 'frozen,' as if the pp. +of _freeze_ could have both a strong and weak pp. suffix at the same +moment! But Thynne has _frounsed_, evidently put for _fronsit_, as used +elsewhere by Henryson in The Fable of the Paddock and the Mous, l. +43:--'The Mous beheld unto her _fronsit_ face.' A printer's error of _sn_ +for _ns_ is not surprising. + +In ll. 164, 178, 260, E. has _gyis_ or _gyse_; but Thynne has preserved the +true Chaucerian word _gyte_, which the printer evidently did not +understand. It is true that in l. 164 he turned it into _gate_; but when he +found it recur, he let it alone. + +In l. 205, E. has _upricht_ (!); which Thynne corrects. + +In l. 290, Th. has _iniure_ for _iniurie_, and I think he is right, though +I have let _injurie_ stand; _iniure_ is Chaucer's form (Troil. iii. 1018), +and it suits the scansion better. + +In l. 382, Thynne corrects _Unto_ to _To_; and in l. 386, has _Beuer_ for +_bawar_. In l. 441, he has _syder_ for _ceder_. In l. 501, he has _plyte_ +for _plye_, where a letter may have dropped out in E.; but see the note (p. +525). In l. 590, his reading _tokenyng_ suggests that _takning_ (as in E.) +should be _takining_ or _takinning_; the line will then scan. The +contracted form _taikning_ occurs, however, in l. 232, where the word is +less emphatic. + +Note further, that in l. 216 the original must have had _Philogoney_ (see +the Note). This appears in the astonishing forms _Philologie_ (E.), and +_Philologee_ (Th.). Laing prints _Phlegonie_, which will neither scan nor +rime, without any hint that he is departing from his exemplar. All his +corrections are made silently, so that one cannot tell where they occur +without reference to the original. + +For further information concerning Robert Henryson, schoolmaster of +Dunfermline, see the preface to David Laing's edition of The Poems and +Fables of Robert Henryson, Edinburgh, 1865; and Morley's English Writers, +1890, vol. vi. p. 250. He is supposed to have been born about 1425, and to +have died about 1500. On Sept. 10, 1462, the Venerable Master Robert +Henrysone, Licentiate in Arts and Bachelor in Decrees, was incorporated or +admitted a member of the newly founded university of Glasgow; and he is +known to have been a notary public. Perhaps The Testament of Cresseid was +written about 1460. It is a rather mature performance, and is his best +piece. Perhaps it is the best piece in the present volume. + +§ 49. XVIII. THE CUCKOO AND THE NIGHTINGALE. + +Of this piece there are several MSS., which fall into two main classes: +(A)--Ff. (Ff. 1. 6, in the Camb. Univ. Library); T. (Tanner 346); Th. (MS. +used by Thynne, closely allied to T.); and (B)--F. (Fairfax 16), and B. +(Bodley 638), which are closely allied. There is also S. (Selden, B. 24) +imperfect, which has readings of its own[20]. Of these groups, A is the +better, and MS. Ff. is, in some respects, the most important. Nevertheless, +MS. Ff. has never been collated hitherto, so that I am able to give a +somewhat improved text. For example, in all former editions lines 12 and 13 +are transposed. In l. 180, the reading _haire_ (as in Bell and Morris) is +somewhat comic (see the Note). In l. 203, MS. Ff. restores the true reading +_hit_, i.e. hitteth. Bell, by some accident, omits the stanza in which this +word occurs. In vol. i. p. 39, I took occasion to complain of the riming of +_now_ with _rescow-e_ in ll. 228-9, according to Bell. The right reading, +however, is not _now_, but _avow-e_, which rimes well enough. MS. Selden +has _allowe_, which Morris follows, though it is clearly inferior and is +unsupported. On the other hand, MS. Selden correctly, and alone, has _leve_ +in l. 237; but the confusion between _e_ and _o_ is endless, so that the +false reading _loue_ creates no surprise. + +This poem is very interesting, and has deservedly been a favourite one. It +is therefore a great pleasure to me to have found the author's name. This +is given at the end of the poem in MS. Ff. (the best MS., but hitherto +neglected), where we find, in firm distinct letters, in the same +handwriting as the poem itself, the remark--EXPLICIT CLANVOWE. Remembering +that the true title of the poem is 'The Book of Cupid, God of Love[21],' I +applied to Dr. Furnivall, asking him if he had met with the name. He at +once referred me to his preface to Hoccleve's Works, p. x, where Sir John +Clanvowe and Thomas Hoccleve are both mentioned in the same document (about +A.D. 1385). But Sir John Clanvowe died in 1391, and therefore could not +have imitated the title of Hoccleve's poem, which was not written till +1402. Our poet was probably Sir Thomas Clanvowe, concerning whom several +particulars are known, and who must have been a well-known personage at the +courts of Richard II and Henry IV. We learn from Wylie's Hist. of Henry IV, +vol. iii. p. 261, that he was one of twenty-five knights who accompanied +John Beaufort (son of John of Gaunt) to Barbary in 1390. This Sir Thomas +favoured the opinions of the Lollards, but was nevertheless a friend of +'Prince Hal,' at the time when the prince was still friendly to +freethinkers. He seems to have accompanied the prince in the mountains of +Wales; see Wylie, as above, iii. 333. In 1401, he is mentioned as being one +of 'vi Chivalers' in the list of esquires who were summoned to a council by +king Henry IV; see the Acts of the Privy Council, ed. Nicolas, temp. Henry +IV, p. 162. (It may be noted that Sir John Clanvowe was a witness, in 1385, +to the will of the widow of the Black Prince; see Testamenta Vetusta, ed. +Nicolas.) + +§ 50. It now becomes easy to explain the reference to the queen at +Woodstock, which has never yet been accounted for. The poem begins with the +words--'_The God of Love!_ Ah benedicite,' quoted from Chaucer, the title +of the poem being 'The Book of Cupid, _God of Love_,' as has been said; and +this title was imitated from Hoccleve's poem of 1402. But there was no +queen of England after Henry's accession till Feb. 7, 1403, when the king +married Joan of Navarre; and it was she who held as a part of her dower the +manor and park of Woodstock; see Wylie, as above, ii. 284. Hence the +following hypothesis will suit the facts--namely, that the poem, imitating +Chaucer's manner, and having a title imitated from Hoccleve's poem of 1402, +was written by Sir Thomas Clanvowe, who held Lollard opinions[22] and was a +friend (at one time) of Henry of Monmouth. And it was addressed to Joan of +Navarre, Henry's stepmother, queen of England from 1403 to 1413, who held +as a part of her dower the manor of Woodstock. If so, we should expect it +to have been written before April, 1410, when Thomas Badby, the Lollard, +was executed in the presence of the prince of Wales. Further, as it was +probably written early rather than late in this period, I should be +inclined to date it in 1403; possibly in May, as it relates so much to the +time of spring. + +I may add that the Clanvowes were a Herefordshire family, from the +neighbourhood of Wigmore. The only remarkable non-Chaucerian word in the +poem is the verb _greden_, to cry out (A.S. _gr[=æ]dan_); a word found in +many dialects, and used by Layamon, Robert of Gloucester, Langland, and +Hoccleve. + +The poem is written in a light and pleasing style, which Wordsworth has +fairly reproduced. The final _-e_ is suppressed in _assay-e_ (l. 52). The +non-Chaucerian rimes are few, viz. _gren-e_ and _sen-e_ as riming with +_been_ (61-5), shewing that Clanvowe cut down those dissyllables to _green_ +and _seen_. And further, the forms _ron_ and _mon_ are employed, in order +to rime with _upon_ (81-5); whereas Chaucer only has the form _man_; whilst +of _ran_ I remember no example at the end of a line[23]. + +§ 51. But there is one point about Clanvowe's verse which renders it, for +the fifteenth century, quite unique. In imitating Chaucer's use of the +final _-e_, he employs this suffix with unprecedented freedom, and rather +avoids than seeks elision. This gives quite a distinctive character to his +versification, and is very noticeable when attention has once been drawn to +it. If, for example, we compare it with the Parliament of Foules, which it +most resembles in general character, we find the following results. If, in +the Cuckoo and Nightingale, we observe the first 21 lines, we shall find +(even if we omit the example of _hy-e_ in l. 4, and all the examples of +final _-e_ at the end of a line) the following clear examples of its +use:--_low-e_, _lyk-e_, _hard-e_, _sek-e_, _hol-e_ (twice), _mak-e_, +_hav-e_, _wys-e_, _proud-e_, _grev-e_, _trew-e_, _hert-e_, i.e. 13 +examples, besides the 5 examples of final _-en_ in _mak-en_, _bind-en_, +_unbind-en_, _bound-en_, _destroy-en_. But in the first 21 lines of the +Parliament of Foules there are only 2 examples of the final _-e_ in the +middle of a line, viz. _lust-e_ (15) and _long-e_ (21), whilst of the final +_-en_ there is none. The difference between 18 and 2 must strike even the +most inexperienced reader, when it is once brought under his notice. +However, it is an extreme case. + +Yet again, if the _last_ 21 lines in the Cuckoo be compared with ll. +659-679 of the Parliament (being the _last_ 21 lines, if we dismiss the +roundel and the stanza that follows it), we find in the former 7 examples +of final _-e_ and 2 of _-en_, or 9 in all, whilst in Chaucer there are 7 of +final _-e_, and 1 of _-en_, or 8 in all; and this also happens to be an +extreme case in the other direction, owing to the occurrence in the former +poem of the words _egle_, _maple_, and _chambre_, which I have not taken +into account. + +This suggests that, to make sure, we must compare much longer passages. In +the whole of the Cuckoo, I make about 120 such cases of final _-e_, and 23 +such cases of final _-en_, or 143 in all. In 290 lines of the Parliament of +Foules, I make about 68 and 19 such cases respectively; or about 87 in all. +Now the difference between 143 and 87 is surely very marked. + +The cause of this result is obvious, viz. that Chaucer makes a more +frequent use of elision. In the first 21 lines of the Parl. of Foules, we +find elisions of _men'_, _sor'_, _wak'_, _oft'_ (twice), _red'_ (twice), +_spek'_, _fast'_, _radd'_; i.e. 10 examples; added to which, Chaucer has +_joy(e)_, _love_, _knowe_, _usage_, _boke_, at the cæsura, and suppresses +the _e_ in _write_ (written). But in ll. 1-21, Clanvowe has (in addition to +_love_, _make_, _lowe_, _make_ (twice), _gladde_ at the cæsura) only 3 +examples of true elision, viz. _fressh'_, _tell'_, and _mak'_ (15). + +And further, we seldom find _two_ examples of the use of the final _-e_ in +the _same_ line in Chaucer. I do not observe any instance, in the Parl. of +Foules, till we arrive at l. 94:--'Took rest that mad-_e_ me to slep-_e_ +faste.' But in Clanvowe they are fairly common. Examples are: Of sek-_e_ +folk ful hol-_e_ (7); For every trew-_e_ gentil hert-_e_ free (21); That +any hert-_e_ shuld-_e_ slepy be (44); I went-_e_ forth alon-_e_ bold-e-ly +(59); They coud-_e_ that servyc-_e_ al by rote (71); and the like. In l. +73, we have even _three_ examples in _one_ line; Some song-_e_ loud-_e_, as +they hadd-_e_ playned. From all of which it appears that the critics who +have assigned the Cuckoo to Chaucer have taken no pains whatever to check +their opinion by any sort of analysis. They have trusted to their own mere +opinion, without looking the facts in the face. + +§ 52. I will point out yet one more very striking difference. We know that +Chaucer sometimes employs headless lines, such as: Twénty bókes át his +béddes héed. But he does so sparingly, especially in his Minor Poems. But +in the Cuckoo, they are not uncommon; see, e.g. lines 16, 50, 72, 100, 116, +118, 146, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 161, 166, 205, 232, 242, 252, +261, 265, 268. It is true that, in Morris's edition, lines 72, 146, 153, +161, and 205 are slightly altered; but in no case can I find that the +alteration is authorised. And even then, this does not get rid of the _five +consecutive_ examples in ll. 154-158, which cannot be explained away. Once +more, I repeat, the critics have failed to use their powers of observation. + +I think the poem may still be admired, even if it be allowed that Clanvowe +wrote it some three years after Chaucer's death. + +§ 53. At any rate, it was admired by so good a judge of poetry as John +Milton, who of course possessed a copy of it in the volume which was so +pleasantly called 'The Works of Chaucer.' That his famous sonnet 'To the +Nightingale' owed something to Clanvowe, I cannot doubt. 'Thou with fresh +hope the lover's heart dost fill' is, in part, the older poet's theme; see +ll. 1-30, 149-155, 191-192. Even his first line reminds one of ll. 77, 288. +If Milton writes of May, so does Clanvowe; see ll. 20, 23, 34, 55, 70, 230, +235, 242; note especially l. 230. But the real point of contact is in the +lines-- + + 'Thy liquid notes that close the eye of day, + First heard before the shallow cuckoo's bill, + Portend success in love ... + Now timely sing, ere the rude bird of hate + Foretell my hopeless doom in some grove nigh; + As thou from year to year hast sung too late + For my relief, yet hadst no reason why: + Whether the Muse or Love call thee his mate, + Both them I serve, and of their train am I.' + +With which compare:-- + + 'That it were good to here the nightingale + Rather than the lewde cukkow singe': (49). + 'A litel hast thou been to longe henne; + For here hath been the lew[e]de cukkow, + And songen songes rather than hast thou': (102). + 'Ye, quod she, and be thou not amayed, + Though thou have herd the cukkow er than me. + For, if I live, it shal amended be + The nexte May, if I be not affrayed': (232). + 'And I wol singe oon of my songes newe + For love of thee, as loude as I may crye': (247). + 'For in this worlde is noon so good servyse + To every wight that gentil is of kinde': (149). + +§ 54. XIX. ENVOY TO ALISON. + +This piece has always hitherto been printed _without any title_, and is +made to follow The Cuckoo and the Nightingale, as if there were some sort +of connection between them. This is probably because it happens to follow +that poem in the Fairfax and Tanner MSS., and probably did so in the MS. +used by Thynne, which has a striking resemblance to the Tanner MS. However, +the poem is entirely absent from the Cambridge, Selden, and Bodley MSS., +proving that there is no connection with the preceding poem, from which it +differs very widely in style, in language, and in metre. + +I call it an Envoy to Alison. For first, it is an Envoy[24], as it refers +to the author's 'lewd book,' which it recommends to a lady. What the book +is, no one can say; but it may safely be conjectured that it was of no +great value. And secondly, the lady's name was Alison, as shewn by the +acrostic in lines 22-27; and the author has recourse to almost ludicrous +efforts, in order to secure the first four letters of the name. + +Briefly, it is a very poor piece; and my chief object in reprinting it is +to shew how unworthy it is of Clanvowe, not to mention Chaucer. We have no +right even to assign it to Lydgate. And its date may be later than 1450. + +§ 55. XX. THE FLOWER AND THE LEAF. + +This piece many 'critics' would assign to Chaucer, merely because they like +it. This may be sentiment, but it is not criticism; and, after all, a +desire to arrive at the truth should be of more weight with us than +indulgence in ignorant credulity. + +It is of some consequence to learn, first of all, that it is hardly +possible to separate this piece from the next. The authoress of one was the +authoress of the other. That The Assembly of Ladies is longer and duller, +and has not held its own in popular estimation, is no sound argument to the +contrary; for it is only partially true. Between the first eleven stanzas +of the Assembly and the first eleven stanzas of the present poem, there is +a strong general resemblance, and not much to choose. Other stanzas of the +Assembly that are well up to the standard of the Flower will be found in +lines 456-490, 511-539. The reason of the general inferiority of the +Assembly lies chiefly in the choice of the subject; it was meant to +interest some medieval household, but it gave small scope for retaining the +reader's attention, and must be held to be a failure. + +The links connecting these poems are so numerous that I must begin by +asking the reader to let me denote The Flower and the Leaf by the letter F +(= Flower), and The Assembly of Ladies by the letter A (= Assembly). + +The first point is that (with the sole exception of the Nutbrown Maid) no +English poems exist, as far as I remember, written previously to 1500, and +purporting to be written by a woman. In the case of F. and A., this is +assumed throughout. When the author of F. salutes a certain fair lady, the +lady replies--'_My doughter, gramercy_'; 462. And again she says, '_My fair +doughter_'; 467, 500, 547. The author of A. says she was one of five +ladies; 5-7, 407. Again, she was a woman; 18. The author of A. and some +other ladies salute Lady Countenance, who in reply says 'fair sisters'; +370. Again, she and others salute a lady-chamberlain, who replies by +calling them 'sisters'; 450; &c. + +The poem A. is supposed to be an account of a dream, told by the authoress +to a gentleman; with the exception of this gentleman, all the characters of +the poem are _ladies_; and hence its title. The poem F. is not quite so +exclusive, but it comes very near it; all the principal characters are +ladies, and the chief personages are queens, viz. the queen of the Leaf and +the queen of the Flower. The 'world of ladies' in l. 137 take precedence of +the Nine Worthies, who were merely men. A recognition of this fact makes +the whole poem much clearer. + +But the most characteristic thing is the continual reference to colours, +dresses, ornaments, and decorations. In F., we have descriptions of, or +references to, white surcoats, velvet, seams, emeralds, purfils, colours, +sleeves, trains, pearls, diamonds, a fret of gold, chaplets of leaves, +chaplets of woodbine, chaplets of _agnus-castus_, a crown of gold, +thundering trumpets, the treasury of Prester John, white cloaks, chaplets +of oak, banners of Tartary-silk, more pearls, collars, escutcheons, +kings-of-arms, cloaks of white cloth, crowns set with pearls, rubies, +sapphires, and diamonds. Then there is a company all clad in one suit (or +livery); heralds and poursuivants, more chaplets and escutcheons, men in +armour with cloth of gold and horse-trappings, with bosses on their bridles +and peitrels--it is surely needless to go on, though we have only arrived +at l. 246. + +In A., we have much the same sort of thing all over again, though it does +not set in before l. 83. Then we meet with blue colours, an embroidered +gown, and a purfil with a device. After a respite, we begin again at l. +206--'Her gown was blue'; and the lady wore a French motto. Diligence tells +the authoress that she looks well in her new blue gown (259). At l. 305, +there is another blue gown, furred with gray, with a motto on the sleeve; +and there are plenty more mottoes to follow. At l. 451 we come to a paved +floor, and walls made of beryl and crystal, engraved with stories; next, a +well-apparelled chair or throne, on five stages, wrought of 'cassidony,' +with four pommels of gold, and set with sapphires; a cloth of estate, +wrought with the needle (486); cloth of gold (521); a blue gown, with +sleeves wrought tabard-wise, of which the collar and the _vent_ (slit in +front of the neck) are described as being like ermine; it was couched with +great pearls, powdered with diamonds, and had sleeves and purfils; then we +come to rubies, enamel, a great balas-ruby, and more of the same kind. +Again, it is useless to go further. Surely these descriptions of seams, and +collars, and sleeves, are due to a woman. + +The likeness comes out remarkably in two parallel stanzas. One of them is +from F. 148, and the other from A. 526. + + 'As grete perles, round and orient, + Diamondes fyne and rubies rede, + And many another stoon, of which I want + The names now; and everich on her hede + A riche fret of gold, which, without drede, + Was ful of statly riche stones set; + And every lady had a chapelet,' &c. + + 'After a sort the coller and the vent, + Lyk as ermyne is mad in purfeling; + With grete perles, ful fyne and orient, + They were couched, al after oon worching, + With dyamonds in stede of powdering; + The sleves and purfilles of assyse; + They were y-mad [ful] lyke, in every wyse.' + +I wonder which the reader prefers; for myself, I have really no choice. + +For I do not see how to choose between such lines as these following:-- + + And on I put my gere and myn array; F. 26. + That ye wold help me on with myn aray; A. 241. + _or_, So than I dressed me in myn aray; A. 253. + As grete perles, round and orient; F. 148. + With grete perles, ful fyne and orient; A. 528. + And forth they yede togider, twain and twain; F. 295. + See how they come togider, twain and twain; A. 350. + So long, alas! and, if that it you plese + To go with me, I shal do yow the ese; F. 391. + And see, what I can do you for to plese, + I am redy, that may be to your ese; A. 447. + I thank you now, in my most humble wyse; F. 567. + We thanked her in our most humble wyse; A. 729. + +Besides these striking coincidences in whole lines, there are a large +number of phrases and endings of lines that are common to the two poems; +such as--_the springing of the day_, F. 25, A. 218; _Which, as me thought_, +F. 36, A. 50; _wel y-wrought_, F. 49, A. 165; _by mesure_, F. 58, A. 81; _I +you ensure_, F. 60, 287, A. 52, 199; _in this wyse_, F. 98, A. 589; _I sat +me doun_, F. 118, A. 77; _oon and oon_, F. 144, A. 368, 543, 710; _by and +by_, F. 59, 146, A. 87; _withouten fail_, F. 369, A. 567, 646; _herself +aloon_, F. 458, A. 84; _ful demure_, F. 459, A. 82; _to put in wryting_, F. +589, A. 664; and others that are printed out in the Notes. + +Very characteristic of female authorship is the remark that the ladies vied +with each other as to which looked the best; a remark which occurs in +_both_ poems; see F. 188, A. 384. + +A construction common to both poems is the use of _very_ with an adjective, +a construction used by Lydgate, but not by Chaucer; examples are _very +rede_, F. 35; _very good_, F. 10, 315; _very round_, A. 479. + +It is tedious to enumerate how much these poems have in common. They open +in a similar way, F. with the description of a grove, A. with the +description of a garden with a maze. In the eighth stanza of F., we come to +'a herber that benched was'; and in the seventh stanza of A. we come to a +similar 'herber, mad with benches'; both from The Legend of Good Women. + +In F., the authoress has a waking vision of 'a world of ladies' (137); in +A. she sees in a dream the 'assembly of ladies.' In both, she sees an +abundance of dresses, and gems, and bright colours. Both introduce several +scraps of French. In both, the authoress has interviews with allegorical or +visionary personages, who address her either as daughter or sister. I have +little doubt that the careful reader will discover more points of +resemblance for himself. + +§ 56. The chief appreciable difference between the two poems is that F. was +probably written considerably earlier than A. This appears from the more +frequent use of the final _-e_, which the authoress occasionally uses as an +archaic embellishment, though she frequently forgets all about it for many +stanzas together. In the former poem (F.) there seem to be about 50 +examples, whilst in the latter (A.) there are hardly 10[25]. In almost +every case, it is correctly used, owing, no doubt, to tradition or to a +perusal of older poetry. The most important cases are the abundant ones in +which a final _e_ is omitted where Chaucer would inevitably have inserted +it. For example, such a line as F. 195--From the same grove, where the +ladyes come out--would become, in Chaucer--From the sam-ë grov-ë wher the +ladyes come out--giving at least twelve syllables in the line. The examples +of the omission of final _-e_, where such omission makes a difference to +the scansion, are not very numerous, because many such come before a vowel +(where they might be elided) or at the cæsura (where they might be +tolerated). Still we may note such a case as _green_ in l. 109 where +Chaucer would have written _gren-e_, giving _a fresh gren-ë laurer-tree_, +to the ruin of the scansion. Similar offences against Chaucer's usage are +_herd_ for _herd-e_, 128 (cf. 191); _spek'_ for _spek-e_, 140; _al_ for +_all-e_, plural, 165; _sight_ for _sight-e_, 174; _lyf_ for _lyv-e_, 182; +_sam'_ for _sam-e_, 195; _the tenth_ for _the tenth-e_, 203; _gret_ for +_gret-e_, plural, 214, 225; _red_ for _red-e_, 242; _the worst_ for _the +worst-e_, 255; _yed'_ for _yed-e_, 295, 301; _fast_ for _fast-e_, 304; +_rejoice_ for _rejoy-se_, 313; _noise_ for _nois-e_, 353; _sonn'_ for +_son-ne_, 355, 408; _hir fresh_ for _hir fres-she_, 357; _laft_ for +_laft-e_, pt. t., 364; _their greet_ for _hir gret-e_, 377; _sick_ for +_sek-e_, 410; _about_ for _about-e_, 411; _to soup_ for _to soup-e_, 417; +_without_ for _without-e_, 423, 549; _the hool_ for _the hol-e_, 437; _to +know_ for _to know-e_, 453; _past_ for _pass-ede_ or _past-e_, 465; _My +fair_ for _My fair-e_, vocative, 467, 500; _to tel_ for _to tell-e_, 495; +_nin(e)_ for _nyn-e_, 502; _imagin(e)_ for _imagin-en_, 525; _they last_ +for _they last-e_, 562; _thy rud(e)_ for _thy rud-e_, 595. Those who +believe that The Flower and the Leaf was written by Chaucer will have to +explain away every one of these cases; and when they have done so, there is +more to be said. + +§ 57. For it is well known that such a word as _sweetly_ (96) was +trisyllabic, as _swet-e-ly_, in Chaucer; C. T., A 221. Similarly, our +authoress has _trewly_ for _trew-e-ly_[26], 130; _richly_ for _rich-e-ly_, +169; _woodbind_ for _wod-e-bind-e_, 485. Similar is _ointments_ for +_oin-e-ments_, 409. And, moreover, our authoress differs from Chaucer as to +other points of grammar. Thus she has _Forshronk_ as a strong pp., 358, +which ought to be _forshronk-en_ or _forshronk-e_. Still more marked is her +use of _rood_ as the _plural_ of the past tense, 449, 454, where Chaucer +has _rid-en_; and her use of _began_ as a plural, 385, where Chaucer has +_bigonn-e_. Can these things be explained away also? If so, there is more +to be said. + +§ 58. All the above examples have been made out, without so much as looking +at the rimes. But the rimes are much harder to explain away, where they +differ from Chaucer's. Here are a few specimens. + +_Pas-se_ rimes with _was_, 27; so it must have been cut down to _pas_! +Similarly, _hew-e_ has become _hew_; for it rimes with _grew_, sing., 32. +_Sight-e_ has become _sight_, to rime with _wight_, 37. _Brought_ should +rather be _brought-e_, but it rimes with _wrought_, 48. Similar +difficulties occur in _peyn_ (for _peyn-e_), r. w. _seyn_ (62); _syd'_ for +_syd-e_, r. w. _espy'd_ for _espy-ed_, 72; _eet_, r. w. _sweet_ for +_swet-e_, 90; _not'_ for _not-e_, r. w. _sot_, 99; _busily_, r. w. _aspy'_ +for _aspy-e_, 106; _trewly_, r. w. _armony'_ for _armony-e_, 130; _orient_ +(_oriant_?), r. w. _want_ for _want-e_, 148; _person_ for _person-e_, r. w. +_everichon_, 167. It is tedious to go on; let the critic finish the list, +if he knows how to do it. If not, let him be humble. For there is more to +come. + +§ 59. Besides the grammar, there is yet the pronunciation to be considered; +and here comes in the greatest difficulty of all. For, in ll. 86-89, we +have the unusual rime of _tree_ and _be_ with _pretily_. This so staggered +Dr. Morris, that he was induced to print the last word as _pretile_; which +raises the difficulty without explaining it. For the explanation, the +reader should consult the excellent dissertation by Dr. Curtis on The +Romance of Clariodus (Halle, 1894), p. 56, § 187. He remarks that a rime of +this character gives evidence of the transition of M.E. long close _e_ to +(Italian) long _i_ [as in the change from A.S. _m[=e]_ to mod. E. _me_], +and adds: 'this change became general in the fifteenth century, but had +begun in some dialects at an earlier date.' Its occurrence in the present +poem is a strong indication that it is later than the year 1400, and +effectually disposes of any supposed connection with Midland poems of the +fourteenth century. + +Both poems are remarkably free from classical allusions and from references +to such medieval authors as are freely quoted by Chaucer. There is nothing +to shew that the authoress was acquainted with Latin, though she knew +French, especially the French of songs and mottoes. + +The Flower and the Leaf is chiefly famous for having been versified by +Dryden. The version is a free one, in a manner all his own, and is finer +than the original, which can hardly be said of his 'versions' of Palamon +and Arcite and The Cock and the Fox. It is doubtless from this version that +many critics have formed exaggerated ideas of the poem's value; otherwise, +it is difficult to understand for what reasons it was considered worthy of +so great a master as Geoffrey Chaucer. + +§ 60. It will be seen, from the Notes, that the authoress was well +acquainted with the Prologue to The Legend of Good Women; and it can hardly +be questioned that she took the main idea of the poem from that source, +especially ll. 188-194 of the later text. At the same time she was well +acquainted with Gower's lines on the same subject, in the Conf. Amantis, +iii. 357, 358; see vol. iii. pp. xlii, 297. Gower has:-- + + 'Me thoughte I sigh to-fore myn hede + Cupide with his bowe bent, + And like unto a parlement + Which were ordeined for the nones, + With him cam al the world atones[27] + Of gentil folk, that whylom were + Lovers; I sigh hem alle there ... + Her hedes kempt, and therupon + Garlondes, nought of o colour, + Some of the Lefe, some of the Flour,[28] + And some of grete perles were.[29] ... + So loude that on every syde + It thoughte as al the heven cryde[30] + In such accorde and suche a soun + Of bombard and of clarioun ... + So glad a noise for to here. + The grene Leef is overthrowe[31] ... + Despuiled is the somer fare,' &c. (p. 371). + +§ 61. XXI. THE ASSEMBLY OF LADIES. + +This has already been discussed, in some measure, in considering the +preceding poem. Both pieces were written by the same authoress; but the +former is the more sprightly and probably the earlier. With the exception +of the unusual rime of _tree_ with _pretily_ (discussed above), nearly all +the peculiarities of the preceding poem occur here also. The Chaucerian +final _-e_ appears now and then, as in _commaund-e_ (probably plural), 203; +_red-e_, 215; _countenanc-e_, 295; _pen-ne_ [or else _seyd-e_], 307; +_chayr-e_, 476; _tak-e_, 565; _trouth-e_, 647; _liv-e_, 672; _sem-e_ (pr. +s. subj.), 696. But it is usually dropped, as in _The fresh_ for _The +fres-she_, 2; &c. In l. 11, Thynne prints _fantasyse_ for _fantasyes_; for +it obviously rimes with _gyse_ (monosyllabic); cf. 533-535. _Hew-e_ and +_new-e_ are cut down to _hew_ and _new_, to rime with _knew_, 67. _Bold_ +rimes with _told_, clipped form of _told-e_, 94; and so on. So, again, +_trewly_ appears in place of Chaucer's _trew-e-ly_, 488. It is needless to +pursue the subject. + +The description of the maze and the arbour, in ll. 29-70, is good. Another +pleasing passage is that contained in ll. 449-497; and the description of a +lady's dress in ll. 519-539. As for the lady herself-- + + 'It was a world to loke on her visage.' + +There is a most characteristic touch of a female writer in lines 253-254:-- + + 'So than I dressed me in myn aray, + And asked her, _whether it were wel or no?_' + +To attribute such a question as 'how will my dress do' to a male writer is +a little too dramatic for a mere narrative poem. + +The two MSS. have now been collated for the first time and afford some +important corrections, of which l. 61 presents remarkable instances. MS. +Addit. 34360 is of some value. + +§ 62. A considerable part of The Assembly of Ladies that is now of little +interest may have been much appreciated at the time, as having reference to +the ordering of a large medieval household, with its chambers, parlours, +bay-windows, and galleries, carefully kept in good order by the various +officers and servants; such as Perseverance the usher, Countenance the +porter, Discretion the chief purveyor, Acquaintance the harbinger, Largesse +the steward, Bel-cheer the marshal of the hall, Remembrance the +chamberlain, and the rest. The authoress must have been perfectly familiar +with spectacles and pageants and all the amusements of the court; but she +was too humble to aspire to wear a motto. + + 'And for my "word," I have non; this is trew. + It is ynough that my clothing be blew + As here-before I had commaundement; + And so to do I am right wel content'; A. 312. + +We must not forget that the period of the Wars of the Roses, especially +from 1455 to 1471, was one during which the composition of these poems was +hardly possible. It is obviously very difficult to assign a date to them; +perhaps they may be referred to the last quarter of the fifteenth century. +We must not put them too late, because The Assembly exists in MSS. that +seem to be as old as that period. + +§ 63. XXII. A GOODLY BALADE. + +For this poem there is but one authority, viz. Thynne's edition of 1532. He +calls it 'A goodly balade of Chaucer'; but it is manifestly Lydgate's. +Moreover, it is really a triple Balade, with an Envoy, on the model of +Chaucer's Fortune and Compleynt of Venus; only it has seven-line stanzas +instead of stanzas of eight lines. An inspection of Thynne's volume shews +that it was inserted to fill a gap, viz. a blank page at the back of the +concluding lines of The Legend of Good Women, so that the translation of +Boethius might commence on a new leaf. + +It is obvious that the third stanza of the second Balade was missing in +Thynne's MS. He did not leave it out for lack of space; for there is plenty +of room on his page. + +That it is not Chaucer's appears from the first Balade, where the use of +the monosyllables _shal_ and _smal_ in ll. 8 and 10 necessitates the use of +the clipped forms _al_ for _al-le_, _cal_ for _cal-le_, _apal_ for +_apal-le_, and _befal_ for _befal-le_. Moreover, the whole style of it +suggests Lydgate, and does not suggest Chaucer. + +The sixth stanza probably began with the letter _D_; in which case, the +initial letters of the stanzas give us _M_, _M_, _M_; _D_, _D_, _D_; _J_, +_C_, _Q_. And, as it was evidently addressed to a lady named _Margaret_ +(see the Notes), we seem to see here _Margaret, Dame Jacques_. The name of +_Robert Jacques_ occurs in the Writs of Parliament; Bardsley's English +Surnames, 2nd ed., p. 565. Of course this is a guess which it is easy to +deride; but it is very difficult to account otherwise for the introduction +of the letters _J_, _C_, _Q_ in the third Balade; yet it was evidently +intentional, for much force was employed to achieve the result. To make the +first stanza begin with _J_, recourse is had to French; and the other two +stanzas both begin with inverted clauses. + +§ 64. XXIII. GO FORTH, KING. + +I give this from Thynne's first edition; but add the Latin lines from the +copy printed in Schick's edition of The Temple of Glas, at p. 68. His text +is from that printed by Wynken de Worde about 1498, collated with the +second and third prints from the same press at somewhat later dates, and a +still later copy printed by Berthelet. + +The only difference between Thynne's text and that given by Schick is that +Wynken de Worde printed _ar_ in the last line where Thynne has printed +_be_. Schick also notes that 'the Chaucer-Prints of 1561 and 1598 omit +_thou_' in l. 9; and I find that it is also omitted in the third edition +(undated, about 1550). But it occurs in the edition of 1532, all the same; +shewing that the later reprints cannot always be relied upon. + +I have already said (vol. i. p. 40)--'Surely it must be Lydgate's.' For it +exhibits his love for 'catalogues,' and presents his peculiarities of +metre. Dr. Schick agrees with this ascription, and points out that its +appearance in the four prints above-mentioned, in all of which it is +annexed to Lydgate's Temple of Glas, tends to strengthen my supposition. I +think this may be taken as removing all doubt on the subject. + +§ 65. I beg leave to quote here Schick's excellent remarks upon the poem +itself. + +'There are similar pieces to these _Duodecim Abusiones_ in earlier English +literature (see ten Brink, _Geschichte der englischen Literatur_, i. 268, +and note).[32] The "twelf unþ[=e]awas" existed also in Old-English; a +homily on them is printed in Morris, _Old Eng. Homilies_, pp. 101-119[33]. +It is based on the Latin Homily "De octo viciis et de duodecim abusivis +huius saeculi," attributed to St. Cyprian or St. Patrick; see Dietrich in +Niedner's _Zeitschrift für historische Theologie_, 1855, p. 518; Wanley's +_Catalogus_, passim (cf. the Index _sub voce_ Patrick). In the +Middle-English period we meet again with more or less of these "Abusions"; +see Morris, _Old Eng. Miscellany_, p. 185 (11 Abusions); Furnivall, _Early +Eng. Poems_, Berlin, 1862 (Phil. Soc.), p. 161; "Five Evil Things," Wright +and Halliwell, _Reliquiae Antiquae_, i. 316, and ii. 14.' + +§ 66. XXIV. THE COURT OF LOVE. + +This piece was first printed by Stowe in 1561. Stowe happened to have +access to a MS. which was really a miscellaneous collection of +Middle-English pieces of various dates; and he proceeded to print them as +being 'certaine workes of Geffray Chauser,' without paying any regard to +their contents or style. In vol. i. pp. 33, 34, I give a list of his +additions, numbered 42-60[34]. By good fortune, the very MS. in question is +now in Trinity College Library, marked R. 3. 19. We can thus tell that he +was indebted to it for the pieces numbered 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 53, 54, +55, 56, and 59. These eleven pieces are all alike remarkable for being +non-Chaucerian; indeed, no. 56 is certainly Lydgate's. But it has so +happened that no. 59, or The Court of Love, being the best of these pieces, +was on that account 'attributed' to Chaucer, whilst the others were +unhesitatingly rejected. And it happened on this wise. + +§ 67. After Tyrwhitt had edited the Canterbury Tales afresh, it occurred to +him to compile a Glossary. He rightly reasoned that the Glossary would be +strengthened and made more correct if he included in it all the harder +words found in the _whole_ of Chaucer's Works, instead of limiting the +vocabulary to words which occur in the Canterbury Tales only. For this +purpose, he proceeded to draw up a List of what he conceived to be +Chaucer's _genuine_ works; and we must remember that the only process open +to him was to consider all the old editions, and _reject_ such as he +conceived to be spurious. Hence his List is not really a list of genuine +works, but one made by striking out from all previous lists the works which +he _knew_ to be spurious. A moment's reflection will show that this is a +very different thing. + +Considering that he had only his own acumen to guide him, and had no access +to linguistic or grammatical tests, still less to tests derived from an +examination of rimes or phonology, it is wonderful how well he did his +work. In the matter of rejection, he did not make a single mistake. His +first revision was made by considering only the pieces numbered 1-41, in +the _first_ part of Stowe's print (see vol. i. pp. 31-33); and he struck +out the following, on the express ground that they were _known to have been +written by other authors_; viz. nos. 4, 11, 13, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 33, and +40[35]. + +Then he went over the list again, and struck out, on internal evidence, +nos. 15, 18, 21, 22, and 32[36]. + +Truly, here was a noble beginning! The only non-Chaucerian pieces which he +failed to reject explicitly, among nos. 1-41, were the following, viz. 6 (A +Goodly Balade of Chaucer), 17 (The Complaint of the Black Knight), 20 (The +Testament of Love), 31 (The Cuckoo and the Nightingale), 38 (Go forth, +King), and 41 (A Balade in Praise of Chaucer). Of course he rejected the +last of these, but it was not worth his while to say so; and, in the same +way, he tacitly rejected or ignored nos. 6, 30, and 38. Hence it was that +nos. 6, 30, 38, and 41 did not appear in Moxon's Chaucer, and even no. 32 +was carefully excluded. In his final list, out of nos. 1-41, Tyrwhitt +actually got rid of all but nos. 17, 20, and 31 (The Black Knight, The +Testament of Love, and The Cuckoo). + +As to the remaining articles, he accepted, among the longer pieces, nos. +59, 62, and 63, i.e. The Court of Love, Chaucer's Dream, and The Flower and +the Leaf; to which he added nos. 42, 43, and 60 (as to which there is no +doubt), and also the Virelai (no. 50), on the slippery ground that it _is_ +a virelai (which, strictly speaking, it is not). + +§ 68. One result of his investigations was that an edition of Chaucer was +published by Moxon (my copy is dated 1855), in which all the poems were +included which Tyrwhitt accepted, followed by Tyrwhitt's Account of the +Works of Chaucer. + +Owing to the popularity of this edition, many scholars accepted the poems +contained in it as being certainly genuine; but it is obvious that this was +a very risky thing to do, in the absence of external evidence; especially +when it is remembered that Tyrwhitt merely wanted to illustrate his +glossary to the Canterbury Tales by adding words from other texts. The idea +of drawing up a canon by the process of striking out from luxuriant lists +the names of pieces that are obviously spurious, is one that should never +have found acceptance. + +§ 69. There is only one correct method of drawing up a canon of genuine +works, viz. that adopted by Mr. Henry Bradshaw, formerly our Cambridge +University Librarian. It is simple enough, viz. to take a clean sheet of +paper, and enter upon it, first of all, the names of all the pieces that +are admittedly genuine; and then to see if it can fairly be augmented by +adding such pieces as have reasonable evidence in their favour. In making a +list of this character, The Court of Love has no claim to be considered at +all, as I fully proved about twenty years ago[37]; and there is an end of +the matter. The MS. copy is in a hand of the sixteenth century[38], and +there is no internal evidence to suggest an earlier date. + +§ 70. Our task is to determine what it really is, and what can be made of +it as it stands. We learn from the author that he was 'a clerk of +Cambridge' (913), which we may readily accept. Beyond this, there is +nothing but internal evidence; but of this there is much. That our 'clerk' +had read Ovid and Maximian appears from the Notes; he even seems to have +imbibed something of 'the new learning,' as he makes up the names +Philo-genet and Philo-bone by help of a Greek adjective[39]. Dr. Schick has +made it clear that he was well acquainted with Lydgate's Temple of Glas, +which he imitates freely; see Schick's edition of that poem, p. cxxix. Mr. +J. T. T. Brown, in his criticism on 'The Authorship of the Kingis Quair,' +Glasgow, 1896, draws many parallels between The Court of Love and The +Kingis Quair, and concludes that The Kingis Quair was indebted to The Court +of Love; but it is tolerably certain that the indebtedness was in the other +direction. For, in The Kingis Quair, some knowledge of the true use of +Chaucer's final _-e_ is still exhibited, even in a Northern poem, whilst in +The Court of Love, it is almost altogether dead, though the poem is in the +Midland dialect. I shall presently shew that our clerk, whilst very nearly +ignoring the final _-e_, occasionally employs the final _-en_; but this he +does in a way which clearly shews that he did not understand when to use it +aright, a fact which is highly significant. + +I am much indebted to my friend Professor Hales for pointing out another +very cogent argument. He draws attention to the numerous instances in which +the author of The Court of Love fails to end a stanza with a stop. There is +no stop, for example, at the end of ll. 14, 567, 672, 693, 700, 763, 826, +1064, 1288; and only a slight pause at the end of ll. 28, 49, 70, 84, 189, +231, 259, 280, 371, 406, 427, &c. In Chaucer's Parlement of Foules, on the +other hand, there is but one stanza without a stop at the end, viz. at l. +280; and but one with a slight pause, viz. at l. 154. The difference +between these results is very marked, and would convince any mathematician. +I should like to add that the same test disposes of the claims of The +Flower and the Leaf to be considered as Chaucer's; it has no stop at the +end of ll. 7, 70, 154, 161, 196, 231, 280, 308, 392, 476, and has mere +commas at the end of ll. 28, 49, 56, 98, 119, 224, 259, 329, 336, &c. In +the Assembly of Ladies this departure from Chaucer's usage has been nearly +abandoned, which is one reason why that piece is in a less lively style. + +§ 71. The sole MS. copy of The Court of Love belongs to the sixteenth +century, and there is nothing to shew that the poem itself was of earlier +date. Indeed, the language of it is remarkably like that of the former half +of that century. If it be compared with Sackville's famous 'Induction,' the +metrical form of the stanzas is much the same; there is the same smoothness +of rhythm and frequent modernness of form, quite different from the halting +lines of Lydgate and Hawes. This raises a suggestion that the author may +have learnt his metre from Scottish authors, such as Henryson and Dunbar; +and it is surprising to find him employing such words as _celsitude_ and +_pulcritude_, and even riming them together, precisely as Dunbar did (ll. +611-613, and the note). One wonders where he learnt to use such words, if +not from Scottish authors. Curiously enough, a single instance of the use +of a Northern inflexion occurs in the phrase _me thynkes_, 874. And I admit +the certainty that he consulted The Kingis Quair. + +I have no space to discuss the matter at length; so shall content myself +with saying that the impression produced upon me is that we have here the +work of one of the heralds of the Elizabethan poetry, of the class to which +belonged Nicholas Grimoald, Thomas Sackville, Lord Surrey, Lord Vaux, and +Sir Francis Bryan. There must have been much fairly good poetry in the time +of Henry VIII that is lost to us. Tottell's Miscellany clearly shews this, +as it is a mere selection of short pieces, which very nearly perished; but +for this fortunate relic, we should not have known much about Wyat and +Surrey. Sackville, when at Cambridge, acquired some distinction for Latin +and English verse, but we possess none of it. However, Sackville was not +the author of The Court of Love, seeing that it was published in a +'Chaucer' collection in 1561, long before his death. + +The fact that our clerk was well acquainted with so many pieces by Chaucer, +such as The Knight's Tale, the Complaint of Pity, The Legend of Good Women, +Troilus, and Anelida, besides giving us reminiscences of The Letter of +Cupid, and (perhaps) of The Cuckoo and Nightingale, raises the suspicion +that he had access to Thynne's edition of 1532; and it is quite possible +that this very book inspired him for his effort. This suspicion becomes +almost a certainty if it be true that ll. 495-496 are borrowed from Rom. +Rose, 2819-20; see note at p. 545. I can find no reason for dating the poem +earlier than that year. + +§ 72. However this may be, the chief point to notice is that his archaisms +are affectations and not natural. He frequently dispenses with them +altogether for whole stanzas at a time. When they occur, they are such as +he found in Chaucer abundantly; I refer to such phrases as _I-wis_ or +_y-wis_; _as blyve_; the use of _ich_ for _I_ (661); _besy cure_ (36); _gan +me dresse_ (113; cf. C. T., G 1271); _by the feith I shall to god_ (131; +cf. Troil. iii. 1649); and many more. He rarely uses the prefix _i-_ or +_y-_ with the pp.; we find _y-born_ (976), _y-formed_ (1176), _y-heried_ +(592), _y-sped_ (977), all in Chaucer; besides these, I only note _y-fed_ +(975), _y-ravisshed_ (153), _y-stope_ (281), the last being used in the +sense of Chaucer's _stope_. The most remarkable point is the almost total +absence of the final _-e_; I only observe _His len-ë body_ (1257); _to +serv-e_ (909); _to dred-e_ (603); and _in thilk-ë place_ (642); the last of +which is a phrase (cf. R. R. 660). On the other hand, whilst thus +abstaining from the use of the final _-e_, he makes large use of the longer +and less usual suffix _-en_, which he employs with much skill to heighten +the archaic effect. Thus we find the past participles _holden_, 62; +_growen_, 182; _yoven_ or _yeven_, 742; _shapen_, 816, 1354; _blowen_, +1240; the gerunds _writen_, 35; _dressen_, 179; _byden_, 321; _semen_, 607; +_seken_, 838; _worshippen_, 1165, and a few others; the infinitives +_maken_, 81; _byden_, 189; _quyten_, 327, &c., this being the commonest +use; the present plurals _wailen_, 256; _foten_, 586; _speden_, 945, &c.; +with the same form for the first person, as in _wailen_, 1113; _bleden_, +1153; and for the second person, as in _waxen_, 958; _slepen_, 999. +Occasionally, this suffix is varied to _-yn_ or _-in_, as in _exilyn_, v., +336; _serchyn_, v., 950; _spakyn_, pt. pl., 624; _approchyn_, pr. pl., +1212. This may be the scribe's doing, and is consistent with East Anglian +spelling. + +But the artificial character of these endings is startlingly revealed when +we find _-en_ added in an impossible position, shewing that its true +grammatical use was quite dead. Yet we find such examples. A serious error +(hardly the scribe's) occurs in l. 347: 'Wheder that she me _helden_ lefe +or loth.' _Hold_ being a strong verb, the pt. t. is _held_; we could +however justify the use of _held-e_, by supposing it to be the subjunctive +mood, which suits the sense; but _held-en_ (with _-en_) is the _plural_ +form, while _she_ is singular; and really this use of _-e_ in the +subjunctive must have been long dead. In l. 684, we have a case that is +even worse, viz. _I kepen in no wyse_; here the use of _-en_ saves a +hiatus, but the concord is false, like the Latin _ego seruamus_. In l. 928, +the same thing recurs, though the scribe has altered _greven_ into +_growen_[40]; for this present tense is supposed to agree with _I_! A very +clear case occurs in l. 725: _For if by me this mater springen out_; where +the use of _-en_, again meant to save a hiatus, is excruciatingly wrong; +for _mater_ is singular! This cannot be the fault of the scribe. Other +examples of false grammar are: _thou serven_, 290; _thou sene_, 499. But +the climax is attained in l. 526, where we meet with _thay kepten ben_, +where the _-en_ is required for the metre. _Kepten_, as a _past +participle_, is quite unique; let us drop a veil over this sad lapse, and +say no more about it[41]. + +We may, however, fairly notice the constant use of the Northern forms +_their_ and _thaim_ or _theim_, where Chaucer has _hir_ and _hem_. The use +of _their_ and _them_ (not _thaim_) was well established by the year 1500 +in literary English, as, e.g., in Hawes and Skelton. Caxton uses all four +forms, _hem_ and _them_, _her_ and _their_. + +§ 73. I add a few notes, suggested by an examination of the rimes employed. + +The final _-e_ is not used at the end of a line. This is easily seen, if +carefully looked into. Thus _lette_ (1284) stands for _let_, for it rimes +with _y-set_; _grace_ and _trespace_ rime with _was_, 163; _kene_ rimes +with _bene_, misspelling of _been_, 252; _redde_, put for _red_, rimes with +_spred_, 302; _yerde_, put for _yerd_, rimes with _aferd_, 363; _ende_ +rimes with _frend_ and _fend_, 530; and so on throughout[42]. The following +assonances occur: _here_, _grene_, 253; _kepe_, _flete_, 309; and the +following rimes are imperfect: _plaint_, _talent_, _consent_, 716; _frend_, +_mynd_, 1056; _nonne_ (for _non_), _boun_, 1149; _like_ (_i_ long), _stike_ +(_i_ short), 673; and perhaps _hold_, _shuld_[43], 408; _hard_, _ferd_, +151. _Hard_ is repeated, 149, 151; 1275, 1277. A curious rime is that of +_length_ with _thynketh_, 1059; read _thenk'th_, and it is good enough. +Noteworthy are these: _thryse_ (for Chaucer's _thry-ës_), _wyse_, 537; +_hens_ (for Chaucer's _henn-ës_), _eloquence_, 935; _desire_, _here_, 961, +1301; _eke_, _like_, 561; _tretesse_ (for Chaucer's _tretys_), +_worthinesse_, 28; _write_, _aright_, 13; _sey_ (I saw), _way_, 692. In one +place, he has _discryve_, 778, to rime with _lyve_; and in another _discry_ +(miswritten _discryve_, 97), to rime with _high_. As in Chaucer, he +sometimes has _dy_, to die, riming with _remedy_, 340, and elsewhere _dey_, +to rime with _pray_, 582; and again _fire_, _fyr_, riming with _hyre_, 883, +or with _desire_, 1285, and at another time the Kentish form _fere_ +(borrowed from Chaucer), with the same sense, r. w. _y-fere_, 622. The most +curious forms are those for 'eye.' When it rimes with _degree_, 132, _see_, +768, we seem to have the Northern form _ee_ or _e_; but elsewhere it rimes +with _besily_, 299, _pretily_, 419, _wounderly_, 695, _dispitously_, 1139, +or with _I_, 282; and the plural _yen_ (= _y'n_) rimes with _lyne_, 135. +The sounds represented by _[=e]_ and _y_ obviously afford permissible +rimes; that the sounds were not identical appears from ll. 1051-1055, which +end with _me_, _remedy_, _be_, _dy_, _company_ consecutively. + +§ 74. Perhaps an easier way for enabling a learner to recognise the +peculiarities of The Court of Love, and the difference of its language from +Chaucer, is to translate some lines of it into Chaucerian English. The +effect upon the metre is startling. + + So thanne I went-ë by straunge and fer-rë contrees; 57. + Alceste it was that kept-ë there her sojour; 105. + To whom obeyd-ën the ladies god-ë nynten-ë; 108. + And yong-ë men fel-ë cam-ë forth with lusty pace; 110. + O bright-ë Regina, who mad-ë thee so fair? 141. + And mercy ask-ë for al my gret-ë trespas; 166. + This eight-ë-ten-ë yeer have kept yourself at large; 184. + In me did never worch-ë trew-ë-ly, yit I; 212. + And ther I sey the fres-shë quene of Cartáge; 231. + A! new-ë com-ën folk, abyde, and woot ye why; 271. + Than gan I me present-ë tofor-ë the king; 274. + That thou be trew-ë from henn-es-forth, to thy might; 289. + And nam-ë-ly haw-ë-thorn brought-ën both-ë page and grom-ë; 1433. + +Very many more such examples may be given. Or take the following; Chaucer +has (L. G. W. 476):-- + + For Love ne wól nat countrepleted be. + +And this is how it reappears in C. L. 429:-- + + For Love wil not be counterpleted, indede! + +Here the melody of the line is completely spoilt. + +In the present state of our knowledge of the history of the English +language, any notion of attributing The Court of Love to Chaucer is worse +than untenable; for it is wholly disgraceful. Everything points to a very +late date, and tends to exclude it, not only from the fourteenth, but even +from the fifteenth century. + +At the same time, it will readily be granted that the poem abounds with +Chaucerian words and phrases to an extent that almost surpasses even the +poems of Lydgate. The versification is smooth, and the poem, as a whole, is +pleasing. I have nothing to say against it, when considered on its own +merits. + +§ 75. Space fails me to discuss the somewhat vexed question of the Courts +of Love, of which some have denied the existence. However, there seems to +be good evidence to shew that they arose in Provence, and were due to the +extravagances of the troubadours. They were travesties of the courts of +law, with a lady of rank for a judge, and minstrels for advocates; and they +discussed subtle questions relating to affairs of love, usually between +troubadours and ladies. The discussions were conducted with much +seriousness, and doubtless often served to give much amusement to many idle +people. Not unfrequently they led to tragedies, as is easily understood +when we notice that the first of one set of thirty-one Laws of Love runs as +follows:--'Marriage cannot be pleaded as an excuse for refusing to love.' +The reader who requires further information is referred to 'The Troubadours +and Courts of Love,' by J. F. Rowbotham, M.A., London, Swan Sonnenschein +and Co., 1895. + +It is perhaps necessary to observe that the said Courts have very little to +do with the present poem, which treats of a Court of Cupid in the +Chaucerian sense (Leg. Good Women, 352). Even the statutes of the Court are +largely imitated from Lydgate. + +§ 76. PIECES NUMBERED XXV-XXIX. + +XXV. VIRELAY. This piece, from the Trinity MS., belongs to the end of the +fifteenth century, and contains no example of the final _-e_ as +constituting a syllable. Chaucer would have used _sore_ (l. 2), _more_ (l. +12), _trouth_ (l. 13), as dissyllables; and he would not have rimed _pleyn_ +and _disdayn_ with _compleyn_ and _absteyn_, as the two latter require a +final _-e_. The rime of _finde_ with _ende_ is extraordinary. + +The title 'Virelai' is given to this piece in Moxon's Chaucer, and is, +strictly speaking, incorrect; in the MS. and in Stowe's edition, it has no +title at all! Tyrwhitt cautiously spoke of it as being 'perhaps by +Chaucer'; and says that 'it comes nearer to the description of a _Virelay_, +than anything else of his that has been preserved.' This is not the case; +see note to Anelida, 256; vol. i. p. 536. Tyrwhitt quotes from +Cotgrave--'_Virelay_, a round, freemen's song,' and adds--'There is a +particular description of a _Virlai_, in the _Jardin de plaisance_, fol. +xii, where it makes the _decima sexta species Rhetorice Gallicane_.' For +further remarks, see p. 554. + +XXVI. PROSPERITY: BY JOHN WALTON. 'To Mr. [Mark] Liddell belongs the honour +of the discovery of John Walton as the author of the little poem on fol. +119 [of MS. Arch. Seld. B. 24]. The lines occur as part of the Prologue +(ll. 83-90) to Walton's translation of Boethius' _De Consolatione_.'--J. T. +T. Brown, _The Authorship of the Kingis Quair_, Glasgow, 1896; p. 71. See +the account of Walton in Warton's Hist. E. Poetry, sect. xx. The original +date of the stanza was, accordingly, 1410; but we here find it in a late +Scottish dress. The ascription of it to 'Chaucer,' in the MS., is an +obvious error; it was written ten years after his death. + +XXVII. LEAULTE VAULT RICHESSE. This piece, like the former, has no title in +the MS.; but the words _Leaulte vault Richesse_ (Loyalty deserves riches) +occur at the end of it. If the original was in a Midland dialect, it must +belong to the latter part of the fifteenth century. Even in these eight +lines we find a contradiction to Chaucer's usage; for he always uses +_lent_, pp., as a monosyllable, and _rent-e_ as a dissyllable. It is +further remarkable that he never uses _content_ as an adjective; it first +appears in Rom. Rose, 5628. + +XXVIII. SAYINGS. I give these sayings as printed by Caxton; see vol. i. p. +46, where I note that Caxton did not ascribe them to Chaucer. They are not +at all in his style. + +In MS. Ashmole 59, fol. 78, I find a similar prophecy:-- + + _Prophecia merlini doctoris perfecti._ + + Whane lordes wol leefe theire olde lawes, + And preestis been varyinge in theire sawes, + And leccherie is holden solace, + And oppressyou_n_ for truwe p_ur_chace; + And whan the moon is on dauid stall, + And the kynge passe Arthures hall, + Than[44] is [the] lande of Albyon + Nexst to his confusyoun. + +It is extremely interesting to observe the ascription of these lines to +_Merlin_; see King Lear, iii. 2. 95. + +XXIX. BALADE. This poor stanza, with its long-drawn lines, appears in Stowe +at the end of 'Chaucer's Works.' In the Trinity MS., it occurs at the end +of a copy of The Parlement of Foules. + +§ 77. An examination of the pieces contained in the present volume leads us +to a somewhat remarkable result, viz. that we readily distinguish in them +the handiwork of _at least_ twelve different authors, of whom no two are +much alike, whilst every one of them can be distinguished from Chaucer. + +These are: (1) the author of The Testament of Love, who writes in a prose +style all his own; (2) the author of The Plowmans Tale and Plowmans Crede, +with his strong powers of invective and love of alliteration, whose style +could never have been mistaken for Chaucer's in any age[45]; (3) the author +of Jack Upland, with his direct and searching questions; (4) John Gower, +with his scrupulous regularity of grammatical usages; (5) Thomas Hoccleve, +who too often accents a dissyllable on the latter syllable when it should +be accented on the former; (6) Henry Scogan, whose lines are lacking in +interest and originality; (7) John Lydgate[46], who allows his verse too +many licences, so that it cannot always be scanned at the first trial; (8) +Sir Richard Ros, who writes in English of a quite modern cast, using +_their_ and _them_ as in modern English, and wholly discarding the use of +final _-e_ as an inflexion; (9) Robert Henryson, who writes smoothly enough +and with a fine vein of invention, but employs the Northern dialect; (10) +Sir Thomas Clanvowe, who employs the final _-e_ much more frequently than +Chaucer or even Gower; (11) the authoress of The Flower and the Leaf and +The Assembly of Ladies, to whom the final _-e_ was an archaism, very +convenient for metrical embellishment; and (12) the author of The Court of +Love, who, while discarding the use of the final _-e_, was glad to use the +final _-en_ to save a hiatus or to gain a syllable, and did not hesitate to +employ it where it was grammatically wrong to do so. + +§ 78. If the reader were to suppose that this exhausts the list, he would +be mistaken; for it is quite easy to add at least one known name, and to +suggest three others. For the piece numbered XXVI, on p. 449, has been +identified as the work of John Walton, who wrote a verse translation of +Boethius in the year 1410; whilst it is extremely unlikely that no. XXVII, +written in Lowland Scottish, was due to Henryson, the only writer in that +dialect who has been mentioned above. This gives a total of _fourteen_ +authors already; and I believe that we require yet two more before the +Virelai and the Sayings printed by Caxton (nos. XXV and XXVIII) can be +satisfactorily accounted for. As for no. XIX--the Envoy to Alison--it _may_ +be Lydgate's, but, on the other hand, it may not. And as for no. XXIX, it +is of no consequence. + +Moreover, it must be remembered that I here only refer to the selected +pieces printed in the present volume. If we go further afield, we soon find +several more authors, all distinct from those above-mentioned, from each +other, and from Chaucer. I will just instance the author of the Isle of +Ladies, the authoress (presumably) of The Lamentation of Mary Magdalen, the +author of The Craft of Lovers, the 'man unknown' who wrote The Ten +Commandments of Love, and the author of the clumsy lines dignified by the +title of The Nine Ladies Worthy. It is quite certain that _not less_ than +twenty authors are represented in the mass of heterogeneous material which +appears under Chaucer's name in a compilation such as that which is printed +in the first volume of Chalmers' British Poets; which, precisely on that +very account, is useful enough in its own peculiar way. + +§ 79. I believe it may be said of nearly every piece in the volume, that it +now appears in an improved form. In several cases, I have collated MSS. +that have not previously been examined, and have found them to be the best. +The Notes are nearly all new; very few have been taken from Bell's Chaucer. +Several are due to Schick's useful notes to The Temple of Glas; and some to +Krausser's edition of The Black Knight, and to Gröhler's edition of La +Belle Dame, both of which reached me after my own notes were all in type. I +have added a Glossary of the harder words; for others, see the Glossary +already printed in vol. vi. + +In extenuation of faults, I may plead that I have found it much more +difficult to deal with such heterogenous material as is comprised in the +present volume than with pieces all written by the same author. The style, +the grammar, the mode of scansion, the dialect, and even the pronunciation +are constantly shifting, instead of being reasonably consistent, as in the +genuine works of Chaucer. Any one who will take the pains to observe these +points, to compile a sufficient number of notes upon difficult passages, +and to prepare a somewhat full glossary, may thus practically convince +himself, as I have done, that not a single piece in the present volume +ought ever to have been 'attributed' to Chaucer. That any of them should +have been so attributed--and some of them never were--has been the result +of negligence, superficiality, and incapacity, such as (it may be hoped) we +have seen the last of. + +I wish once more to acknowledge my obligations to Mr. E. B. Nicholson, for +the loan of his transcript of The Praise of Peace; to Mr. Bradley, for his +discovery of the authorship of The Testament of Love and for other +assistance as regards the same; to Dr. E. Krausser, for his edition of The +Complaint of the Black Knight; to Dr. Gröhler, for his dissertation on La +Belle Dame sans Mercy; and to Professor Hales for his kind help as to some +difficult points, and particularly with regard to The Court of Love. + + * * * * * + + +THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE. + + PROLOGUE. + + Many men there ben that, with eeres openly sprad, so + moche swalowen the deliciousnesse of jestes and of ryme, + by queynt knitting coloures, that of the goodnesse or of the + badnesse of the sentence take they litel hede or els non. + + Soothly, dul wit and a thoughtful soule so sore have myned 5 + and graffed in my spirites, that suche craft of endyting wol not + ben of myn acqueyntaunce. And, for rude wordes and boystous + percen the herte of the herer to the in[ne]rest point, and planten + there the sentence of thinges, so that with litel helpe it is able + to springe; this book, that nothing hath of the greet flode of 10 + wit ne of semelich colours, is dolven with rude wordes and + boystous, and so drawe togider, to maken the cacchers therof + ben the more redy to hente sentence. + + Some men there ben that peynten with colours riche, and + some with vers, as with red inke, and some with coles and 15 + chalke; and yet is there good matere to the leude people of + thilke chalky purtreyture, as hem thinketh for the tyme; and + afterward the sight of the better colours yeven to hem more + joye for the first leudnesse. So, sothly, this leude clowdy occupacion + is not to prayse but by the leude; for comunly leude 20 + leudnesse commendeth. Eke it shal yeve sight, that other + precious thinges shal be the more in reverence. In Latin + and French hath many soverayne wittes had greet delyt to + endyte, and have many noble thinges fulfild; but certes, there + ben some that speken their poysye-mater in Frenche, of whiche 25 + speche the Frenche men have as good a fantasye as we have + in hering of Frenche mennes English. And many termes there + ben in English, [of] whiche unneth we Englishmen connen declare + the knowleginge. How shulde than a Frenche man born suche + termes conne jumpere in his mater, but as the jay chatereth 30 + English? Right so, trewly, the understanding of Englishmen + wol not strecche to the privy termes in Frenche, what-so-ever we + bosten of straunge langage. Let than clerkes endyten in Latin, + for they have the propertee of science, and the knowinge in that + facultee; and let Frenchmen in their Frenche also endyten their 35 + queynt termes, for it is kyndely to their mouthes; and let us + shewe our fantasyes in suche wordes as we lerneden of our dames + tonge. + + And although this book be litel thank-worthy for the leudnesse + in travaile, yet suche wrytinges excyten men to thilke thinges that 40 + ben necessarie; for every man therby may, as by a perpetual + mirrour, seen the vyces or vertues of other, in whiche thing + lightly may be conceyved to eschewe perils, and necessaries to + cacche, after as aventures have fallen to other people or persons. + + Certes, [perfeccion is] the soveraynest thing of desyre, and 45 + moste +creatures resonable have, or els shulde have, ful appetyte + to their perfeccion; unresonable beestes mowen not, sith reson + hath in hem no werking. Than resonable that wol not is comparisoned + to unresonable, and made lyke hem. For-sothe, the + most soverayne and fynal perfeccion of man is in knowing of 50 + a sothe, withouten any entent disceyvable, and in love of oon + very god that is inchaungeable; that is, to knowe and love his + creatour. + + ¶ Now, principally, the mene to bringe in knowleging and + loving his creatour is the consideracion of thinges made by the 55 + creatour, wherthrough, by thilke thinges that ben made understonding + here to our wittes, arn the unsene privitees of god + made to us sightful and knowing, in our contemplacion and + understonding. These thinges than, forsoth, moche bringen us + to the ful knowleginge [of] sothe, and to the parfit love of the 60 + maker of hevenly thinges. Lo, David sayth, 'thou hast delyted + me in makinge,' as who sayth, to have delyt in the tune, how god + hath lent me in consideracion of thy makinge. + + Wherof Aristotle, in the boke _de Animalibus_, saith to naturel + philosophers: 'it is a greet lyking in love of knowinge their 65 + creatour; and also in knowinge of causes in kyndely thinges.' + Considred, forsoth, the formes of kyndly thinges and the shap, + a greet kindely love me shulde have to the werkman that + hem made. The crafte of a werkman is shewed in the werke. + Herfore, truly, the philosophers, with a lyvely studie, many 70 + noble thinges right precious and worthy to memory writen; + and by a greet swetande travayle to us leften of causes [of] the + propertees in natures of thinges. To whiche (therfore) philosophers + it was more joy, more lykinge, more herty lust, in + kyndely vertues and maters of reson, the perfeccion by busy 75 + study to knowe, than to have had al the tresour, al the richesse, + al the vainglory that the passed emperours, princes, or kinges + hadden. Therfore the names of hem, in the boke of perpetual + memory, in vertue and pees arn writen; and in the contrarye, that + is to sayne, in Styx, the foule pitte of helle, arn thilke pressed 80 + that suche goodnesse hated. And bycause this book shal be of + love, and the pryme causes of steringe in that doinge, with passions + and diseses for wantinge of desyre, I wil that this book be cleped + THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE. + + But now, thou reder, who is thilke that wil not in scorne 85 + laughe, to here a dwarfe, or els halfe a man, say he wil rende + out the swerde of Hercules handes, and also he shuld sette + Hercules Gades a myle yet ferther; and over that, he had + power of strengthe to pulle up the spere, that Alisander the + noble might never wagge? And that, passing al thinge, to ben 90 + mayster of Fraunce by might, there-as the noble gracious Edward + the thirde, for al his greet prowesse in victories, ne might al yet + conquere? + + Certes, I wot wel, ther shal be mad more scorne and jape + of me, that I, so unworthily clothed al-togider in the cloudy cloude 95 + of unconninge, wil putten me in prees to speke of love, or els + of the causes in that matter, sithen al the grettest clerkes han + had ynough to don, and (as who sayth) +gadered up clene toforn + hem, and with their sharpe sythes of conning al mowen, and + mad therof grete rekes and noble, ful of al plentees, to fede me 100 + and many another. Envye, forsothe, commendeth nought his + reson that he hath in hayne, be it never so trusty. And al-though + these noble repers, as good workmen and worthy their hyre, + han al drawe and bounde up in the sheves, and mad many + shockes, yet have I ensample to gadere the smale crommes, 105 + and fullen my walet of tho that fallen from the borde among + the smale houndes, notwithstandinge the travayle of the + almoigner, that hath drawe up in the cloth al the remissailes, + as trenchours, and the relief, to bere to the almesse. + + Yet also have I leve of the noble husbande Boëce, al-though 110 + I be a straunger of conninge, to come after his doctrine, and + these grete workmen, and glene my handfuls of the shedinge + after their handes; and, if me faile ought of my ful, to encrese + my porcion with that I shal drawe by privitees out of the shocke. + A slye servaunt in his owne helpe is often moche commended; 115 + knowing of trouth in causes of thinges was more hardyer in the + first sechers (and so sayth Aristotle), and lighter in us that han + folowed after. For their passing +studies han fresshed our wittes, + and our understandinge han excyted, in consideracion of trouth, + by sharpnesse of their resons. Utterly these thinges be no 120 + dremes ne japes, to throwe to hogges; it is lyflich mete for + children of trouthe; and as they me betiden, whan I pilgrimaged + out of my kith in winter; whan the +weder out of mesure was + boystous, and the wylde wind Boreas, as his kind asketh, with + dryinge coldes maked the wawes of the occian-see so to aryse 125 + unkyndely over the commune bankes, that it was in poynte to + spille al the erthe. + + THUS ENDETH THE PROLOGUE; AND HERE-AFTER FOLOWETH THE + FIRST BOOK OF THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE. + +2. delyciousnesse; (_and elsewhere_, y _is often replaced by_ i). 4. none. +5. Sothely. wytte. 8. inrest poynte. 10. spring. boke. great floode. 12. +catchers. 13. hent. 18. afterwarde. 19. leudenesse. 20. comenly. 21. +leudenesse. 23. gret delyte. + +24. fulfylde. 27. englysshe. 28. englysshe; _supply_ of. englyssh-. 29. +Howe. borne. 31. englyssh. englyssh-. 32. stretche. 34. propertie. 35. +facultie. lette. 39. boke. thanke worthy. 42. sene. 44. catche. 45. _I +supply_ perfeccion is; _to make sense_. soueraynst. 46. creature (_sic_). +reasonable. 47, 50. perfection. 47. sythe reason. 48. reasonable. 51. one. +54. Nowe. meane. 56. be (_for_ by). 57. arne. + +60. _I supply_ of. parfyte. 61. haste. 62. delyte (_this sentence is +corrupt_). 64. saythe. 65. great. 66, 67. thyng_es_ co_n_sydred. Forsoth +(_sic_). 68. great. me (_sic_); _for_ men. 72. great. _Supply_ of. 73. +propertyes. 75. matters of reason. perfection. 76. treasour. 79. peace. 80. +stixe. 81. boke. 83. dyseases. boke. 85. nowe. 87. set. 89. pul. 92. great. +94. wote. made. 95. vnworthely. + +98. gathered. toforne. 100. made. great. plentyes. 102. reason. hayn +(_sic_). 102. -thoughe. 103. hyer. 104. made. 105. gader. 106. fullyn. +amonge. 108. remyssayles. 109. relyef. 112. great. 113. encrease. 114. +priuytyes. 116. knoweyng. 118. study (_sic_). 120. reasons. 121. lyfelyche +meate. 122. betiden (_sic_); _past tense_. 123. wether. measure. 124. wynde +Borias. kynde. 125. dryenge. 127. spyl. (_rubric_) boke. + + CHAPTER I. + + Alas! Fortune! alas! I that som-tyme in delicious houres + was wont to enjoye blisful stoundes, am now drive by + unhappy hevinesse to bewaile my sondry yvels in tene! + + Trewly, I leve, in myn herte is writte, of perdurable letters, al the + entencions of lamentacion that now ben y-nempned! For any 5 + maner disese outward, in sobbing maner, sheweth sorowful yexinge + from within. Thus from my comfort I ginne to spille, sith she + that shulde me solace is fer fro my presence. Certes, her + absence is to me an helle; my sterving deth thus in wo it myneth, + that endeles care is throughout myne herte clenched; blisse of 10 + my joye, that ofte me murthed, is turned in-to galle, to thinke on + thing that may not, at my wil, in armes me hente! Mirth is + chaunged in-to tene, whan swink is there continually that reste was + wont to sojourne and have dwelling-place. Thus witless, thoughtful, + sightles lokinge, I endure my penaunce in this derke prison, 15 + +caitived fro frendshippe and acquaintaunce, and forsaken of al + that any +word dare speke. Straunge hath by waye of intrucioun + mad his home, there me shulde be, if reson were herd as he + shulde. Never-the-later yet hertly, lady precious Margarit, have + mynde on thy servaunt; and thinke on his disese, how lightles he 20 + liveth, sithe the bemes brennende in love of thyn eyen are so + bewent, that worldes and cloudes atwene us twey wol nat suffre + my thoughtes of hem to be enlumined! Thinke that oon vertue + of a Margarite precious is, amonges many other, the sorouful to + comforte; yet +whyles that, me sorouful to comforte, is my lust 25 + to have nought els at this tyme, d[r]ede ne deth ne no maner + traveyle hath no power, myn herte so moche to fade, as shulde + to here of a twinkling in your disese! Ah! god forbede that; + but yet let me deye, let me sterve withouten any mesure of + penaunce, rather than myn hertely thinking comfort in ought 30 + were disesed! What may my service avayle, in absence of her + that my service shulde accepte? Is this nat endeles sorowe to + thinke? Yes, yes, god wot; myn herte breketh nigh a-sonder. + How shulde the ground, without kyndly noriture, bringen forth + any frutes? How shulde a ship, withouten a sterne, in the grete see 35 + be governed? How shulde I, withouten my blisse, my herte, my + desyre, my joye, my goodnesse, endure in this contrarious prison, + that thinke every hour in the day an hundred winter? Wel may + now Eve sayn to me, 'Adam, in sorowe fallen from welth, driven + art thou out of paradise, with swete thy sustenaunce to beswinke!' 40 + Depe in this pyninge pitte with wo I ligge y-stocked, + with chaynes linked of care and of tene. It is so hye from thens + I lye and the commune erth, there ne is cable in no lande maked, + that might strecche to me, to drawe me in-to blisse; ne steyers + to steye on is none; so that, without recover, endeles here to 45 + endure, I wot wel, I [am] purveyed. O, where art thou now, + frendship, that som-tyme, with laughande chere, madest bothe + face and countenaunce to me-wardes? Truely, now art thou + went out of towne. But ever, me thinketh, he wereth his olde + clothes, and that the soule in the whiche the lyfe of frendship was 50 + in, is drawen out from his other spirites. Now than, farewel, + frendship! and farewel, felawes! Me thinketh, ye al han taken + your leve; no force of you al at ones. But, lady of love, ye wote + what I mene; yet thinke on thy servaunt that for thy love + spilleth; al thinges have I forsake to folowen thyn hestes; 55 + rewarde me with a thought, though ye do naught els. Remembraunce + of love lyth so sore under my brest, that other thought + cometh not in my mynde but gladnesse, to thinke on your goodnesse + and your mery chere; +ferdnes and sorowe, to thinke on your + wreche and your daunger; from whiche Christ me save! My 60 + greet joye it is to have in meditacion the bountees, the vertues, + the nobley in you printed; sorowe and helle comen at ones, to + suppose that I be +weyved. Thus with care, sorowe, and tene + am I shapt, myn ende with dethe to make. Now, good goodly, + thinke on this. O wrecched foole that I am, fallen in-to so lowe, 65 + the hete of my brenning tene hath me al defased. How shulde + ye, lady, sette prise on so foule fylthe? My conninge is thinne, + my wit is exiled; lyke to a foole naturel am I comparisoned. + Trewly, lady, but your mercy the more were, I wot wel al my + labour were in ydel; your mercy than passeth right. God graunt 70 + that proposicion to be verifyed in me; so that, by truste of good + hope, I mowe come to the haven of ese. And sith it is impossible, + the colours of your qualitees to chaunge: and forsothe I + wot wel, wem ne spot may not abyde there so noble vertue + haboundeth, so that the defasing to you is verily [un]imaginable, 75 + as countenaunce of goodnesse with encresinge vertue is so in you + knit, to abyde by necessary maner: yet, if the revers mighte falle + (which is ayenst kynde), I +wot wel myn herte ne shulde therfore + naught flitte, by the leste poynt of gemetrye; so sadly is it + +souded, that away from your service in love may he not departe. 80 + O love, whan shal I ben plesed? O charitee, whan shal I ben + esed? O good goodly, whan shal the dyce turne? O ful of + vertue, do the chaunce of comfort upwarde to falle! O love, + whan wolt thou thinke on thy servaunt? I can no more but here, + out-cast of al welfare, abyde the day of my dethe, or els to see the 85 + sight that might al my wellinge sorowes voyde, and of the flode + make an ebbe. These diseses mowen wel, by duresse of sorowe, + make my lyfe to unbodye, and so for to dye; but certes ye, lady, + in a ful perfeccion of love ben so knit with my soule, that deth + may not thilke knotte unbynde ne departe; so that ye and my 90 + soule togider +in endeles blisse shulde dwelle; and there shal + my soule at the ful ben esed, that he may have your presence, to + shewe th'entent of his desyres. Ah, dere god! that shal be a + greet joye! Now, erthely goddesse, take regarde of thy servant, + though I be feble; for thou art wont to prayse them better that 95 + wolde conne serve in love, al be he ful mener than kinges or + princes that wol not have that vertue in mynde. + + Now, precious Margaryte, that with thy noble vertue hast + drawen me in-to love first, me weninge therof to have blisse, + [ther]-as galle and aloes are so moche spronge, that savour of 100 + swetnesse may I not ataste. Alas! that your benigne eyen, in + whiche that mercy semeth to have al his noriture, nil by no + waye tourne the clerenesse of mercy to me-wardes! Alas! that + your brennande vertues, shyning amonges al folk, and enlumininge + al other people by habundaunce of encresing, sheweth to me 105 + but smoke and no light! These thinges to thinke in myn herte + maketh every day weping in myn eyen to renne. These liggen + on my backe so sore, that importable burthen me semeth on my + backe to be charged; it maketh me backwarde to meve, whan + my steppes by comune course even-forth pretende. These 110 + thinges also, on right syde and lift, have me so envolved with + care, that wanhope of helpe is throughout me ronne; trewly, + +I leve, that graceles is my fortune, whiche that ever sheweth it + me-wardes by a cloudy disese, al redy to make stormes of tene; + and the blisful syde halt stil awayward, and wol it not suffre to 115 + me-wardes to turne; no force, yet wol I not ben conquered. + + O, alas! that your nobley, so moche among al other creatures + commended by +flowinge streme +of al maner vertues, but + ther ben wonderful, I not whiche that let the flood to come + in-to my soule; wherefore, purely mated with sorowe thorough-sought, 120 + my-selfe I crye on your goodnesse to have pitè on this + caytif, that in the in[ne]rest degree of sorowe and disese is left, + and, without your goodly wil, from any helpe and recovery. + These sorowes may I not sustene, but-if my sorowe shulde be + told and to you-wardes shewed; although moche space is bitwene 125 + us twayne, yet me thinketh that by suche +joleyvinge wordes my + disese ginneth ebbe. Trewly, me thinketh that the sowne of my + lamentacious weping is right now flowe in-to your presence, and + there cryeth after mercy and grace, to which thing (me semeth) + thee list non answere to yeve, but with a deynous chere ye 130 + commaunden it to avoide; but god forbid that any word shuld of + you springe, to have so litel routh! Pardè, pitè and mercy in + every Margarite is closed by kynde amonges many other vertues, + by qualitees of comfort; but comfort is to me right naught worth, + withouten mercy and pitè of you alone; whiche thinges hastely 135 + god me graunt for his mercy! + +CH. I. 2. enioy. 3. sondrye. 5. nowe. 6. disease outwarde. 7. comforte. 8. +ferre. 9. hell. dethe. 10. endelesse. 12. hent. 13. swynke. 14. dwellynge-. +wytlesse. 15. syghtlesse. prisone. 16. caytisned (_for_ caytifued). 17. +wode (!); _for_ worde; _read_ word. 18. made. reason. herde. 20. disease. +21. beames. 22. _For_ be-went, Th. _has_ be-we_n_t. 23. one. 25. wyl of; +_apparently an error for_ whyles (_which I adopt_). luste. 26. dede (_for_ +drede). 27. myne. 28. twynckelynge. disease. 29. lette (_twice_). dey. +measure. 30. myne. comforte. 31. diseased. maye. aueyle. 32. endlesse. + +33. wote; myne hert breaketh. 34. howe. grou_n_de. forthe. 35. howe. +shippe. great. 36. Howe. 39. nowe. sayne. 40. arte. weate. 44. stretche. +45. stey. endlesse. 46. wotte. _I supply_ am. spurveyde. arte. nowe. 47. +frenshyppe (_sic_). 48. nowe arte. 49. weareth. 51. Nowe. 53. leaue. 57. +lythe. 59. frendes (_sic_); _for_ ferdnes: _cf._ p. 9, l. 9. 60. Christe. +61. great. bounties. 62. hel. 63. veyned (_sic_); _for_ weyued. 64. shapte. +Nowe. 65. wretched. 66. heate. 68. wytte. + +69. wote. 72. ease. sythe. 73. qualyties. 74. wote. wemme ne spotte maye. +75. _Read_ unimaginable. 77. knytte. fal. 78. wol wel (_for_ wot wel). 80. +sonded; _read_ souded. maye. 81. pleased. charyte. 82. eased. 83. comforte. +fal. 85. out caste. daye. se. 86. flodde. 87. diseases. 89. perfectyon. +knytte. dethe. 91. togyther is endelesse in blysse(!). dwel. 92. eased. 93. +thentent. 94. great. Nowe. 95. arte wonte. 98. Nowe. haste. 100. _I supply_ +ther. 104. folke. + +105. encreasing. 110. forthe. 112, 113. trewly and leue; _read_ trewly I +leve. 113. gracelesse. 114. disease. 115. halte. 117. (_The sentence +beginning_ O, alas _seems hopelessly corrupt; there are pause-marks after_ +vertues _and_ wonderful.) 118. folowynge; _read_ flowinge. by; _read_ of. +119. flode. 122. caytife. inrest. disease. lefte. 124. maye. 125. tolde. +126. ioleynynge (_sic_). 127. disease. 128. nowe. 130. the lyst none. 131. +worde. 134. qualites of comforte. worthe. + + CHAPTER II. + + Rehersinge these thinges and many other, without tyme + or moment of rest, me semed, for anguisshe of disese, that + al-togider I was ravisshed, I can not telle how; but hoolly all my + passions and felinges weren lost, as it semed, for the tyme; and + sodainly a maner of drede lighte in me al at ones; nought suche 5 + fere as folk have of an enemy, that were mighty and wolde hem + greve or don hem disese. For, I trowe, this is wel knowe to many + persones, that otherwhyle, if a man be in his soveraignes presence, + a maner of ferdnesse crepeth in his herte, not for harme, but of + goodly subjeccion; namely, as men reden that aungels ben aferde 10 + of our saviour in heven. And pardè, there ne is, ne may no + passion of disese be; but it is to mene, that angels ben adradde, + not by +ferdnes of drede, sithen they ben perfitly blissed, [but] + as [by] affeccion of wonderfulnesse and by service of obedience. + Suche ferde also han these lovers in presence of their loves, and 15 + subjectes aforn their soveraynes. Right so with ferdnesse myn + herte was caught. And I sodainly astonied, there entred in-to + the place there I was logged a lady, the semeliest and most + goodly to my sight that ever to-forn apered to any creature; and + trewly, in the blustringe of her looke, she yave gladnesse and 20 + comfort sodaynly to al my wittes; and right so she doth to + every wight that cometh in her presence. And for she was so + goodly, as me thought, myn herte began somdele to be enbolded, + and wexte a litel hardy to speke; but yet, with a quakinge + voyce, as I durste, I salued her, and enquired what she was; 25 + and why she, so worthy to sight, dayned to entre in-to so foule + a dongeon, and namely a prison, without leve of my kepers. + For certes, al-though the vertue of dedes of mercy strecchen to + visiten the poore prisoners, and hem, after that facultees ben had, + to comforte, me semed that I was so fer fallen in-to miserye and 30 + wrecched hid caytifnesse, that me shulde no precious thing + neighe; and also, that for my sorowe every wight shulde ben + hevy, and wisshe my recovery. But whan this lady had somdele + apperceyved, as wel by my wordes as by my chere, what thought + besied me within, with a good womanly countenance she sayde 35 + these wordes:-- + + 'O my nory, wenest thou that my maner be, to foryete my + frendes or my servauntes? Nay,' quod she, 'it is my ful entente + to visyte and comforte al my frendshippes and allyes, as wel in + tyme of perturbacion as of moost propertee of blisse; in me shal 40 + unkyndnesse never be founden: and also, sithen I have so fewe + especial trewe now in these dayes. Wherefore I may wel at more + leysar come to hem that me deserven; and if my cominge may + in any thinge avayle, wete wel, I wol come often.' + + 'Now, good lady,' quod I, 'that art so fayre on to loke, 45 + reyninge hony by thy wordes, blisse of paradys arn thy lokinges, + joye and comfort are thy movinges. What is thy name? How + is it that in you is so mokel werkinge vertues enpight, as me + semeth, and in none other creature that ever saw I with myne + eyen?' 50 + + 'My disciple,' quod she, 'me wondreth of thy wordes and on + thee, that for a litel disese hast foryeten my name. Wost thou + not wel that I am LOVE, that first thee brought to thy service?' + + 'O good lady,' quod I, 'is this worship to thee or to thyn + excellence, for to come in-to so foule a place? Pardè, somtyme, 55 + tho I was in prosperitè and with forayne goodes envolved, I had + mokil to done to drawe thee to myn hostel; and yet many + werninges thou madest er thou liste fully to graunte, thyn home + to make at my dwelling-place; and now thou comest goodly by + thyn owne vyse, to comforte me with wordes; and so there-thorough 60 + I ginne remembre on passed gladnesse. Trewly, lady, + I ne wot whether I shal say welcome or non, sithen thy coming + wol as moche do me tene and sorowe, as gladnesse and mirthe. + See why: for that me comforteth to thinke on passed gladnesse, + that me anoyeth efte to be in doinge. Thus thy cominge bothe 65 + gladdeth and teneth, and that is cause of moche sorowe. Lo, lady, + how than I am comforted by your comminge'; and with that + I gan in teeres to distille, and tenderly wepe. + + 'Now, certes,' quod Love, 'I see wel, and that me over-thinketh, + that wit in thee fayleth, and [thou] art in pointe 70 + to dote.' + + 'Trewly,' quod I, 'that have ye maked, and that ever wol + I rue.' + + 'Wottest thou not wel,' quod she, 'that every shepherde ought + by reson to seke his sperkelande sheep, that arn ronne in-to 75 + wildernesse among busshes and perils, and hem to their pasture + ayen-bringe, and take on hem privy besy cure of keping? And + though the unconninge sheep scattred wolde ben lost, renning to + wildernesse, and to desertes drawe, or els wolden putte hem-selfe + to the swalowinge wolfe, yet shal the shepherde, by businesse and 80 + travayle, so putte him forth, that he shal not lete hem be lost by + no waye. A good shepherde putteth rather his lyf to ben lost for + his sheep. But for thou shalt not wene me being of werse + condicion, trewly, for everich of my folke, and for al tho that to + me-ward be knit in any condicion, I wol rather dye than suffre 85 + hem through errour to ben spilte. For me liste, and it me lyketh, + of al myne a shepherdesse to be cleped. Wost thou not wel, + I fayled never wight, but he me refused and wolde negligently go + with unkyndenesse? And yet, pardè, have I many such holpe + and releved, and they have ofte me begyled; but ever, at the ende, 90 + it discendeth in their owne nekkes. Hast thou not rad how kinde + I was to Paris, Priamus sone of Troy? How Jason me falsed, + for al his false behest? How Cesars +swink, I lefte it for no tene + til he was troned in my blisse for his service? What!' quod she, + 'most of al, maked I not a loveday bytwene god and mankynde, 95 + and chees a mayde to be nompere, to putte the quarel at ende? + Lo! how I have travayled to have thank on al sydes, and yet list + me not to reste, and I might fynde on +whom I shulde werche. + But trewly, myn owne disciple, bycause I have thee founde, at al + assayes, in thy wil to be redy myn hestes to have folowed, and 100 + hast ben trewe to that Margarite-perle that ones I thee shewed; + and she alwaye, ayenward, hath mad but daungerous chere; + I am come, in propre person, to putte thee out of errours, and + make thee gladde by wayes of reson; so that sorow ne disese shal + no more hereafter thee amaistry. Wherthrough I hope thou 105 + shalt lightly come to the grace, that thou longe hast desyred, of + thilke jewel. Hast thou not herd many ensamples, how I have + comforted and releved the scholers of my lore? Who hath + worthyed kinges in the felde? Who hath honoured ladyes in + boure by a perpetuel mirrour of their tr[o]uthe in my service? 110 + Who hath caused worthy folk to voyde vyce and shame? Who + hath holde cytees and realmes in prosperitè? If thee liste clepe + ayen thyn olde remembraunce, thou coudest every point of this + declare in especial; and say that I, thy maistresse, have be cause, + causing these thinges and many mo other.' 115 + + 'Now, y-wis, madame,' quod I, 'al these thinges I knowe wel + my-selfe, and that thyn excellence passeth the understanding of + us beestes; and that no mannes wit erthely may comprehende thy + vertues.' + + 'Wel than,' quod she, 'for I see thee in disese and sorowe, 120 + I wot wel thou art oon of my nories; I may not suffre thee so to + make sorowe, thyn owne selfe to shende. But I my-selfe come + to be thy fere, thyn hevy charge to make to seme the lesse. For wo + is him that is alone; and to the sorye, to ben moned by a sorouful + wight, it is greet gladnesse. Right so, with my sicke frendes I am 125 + sicke; and with sorie I can not els but sorowe make, til whan + I have hem releved in suche wyse, that gladnesse, in a maner of + counterpaysing, shal restore as mokil in joye as the passed hevinesse + biforn did in tene. And also,' quod she, 'whan any of my + servauntes ben alone in solitary place, I have yet ever besied me 130 + to be with hem, in comfort of their hertes, and taught hem to + make songes of playnte and of blisse, and to endyten letters of + rethorike in queynt understondinges, and to bethinke hem in what + wyse they might best their ladies in good service plese; and + also to lerne maner in countenaunce, in wordes, and in bering, 135 + and to ben meke and lowly to every wight, his name and fame to + encrese; and to yeve gret yeftes and large, that his renomè may + springen. But thee therof have I excused; for thy losse and thy + grete costages, wherthrough thou art nedy, arn nothing to me + unknowen; but I hope to god somtyme it shal ben amended, as 140 + thus I sayd. In norture have I taught al myne; and in curtesye + made hem expert, their ladies hertes to winne; and if any wolde + [b]en deynous or proude, or be envious or of wrecches acqueyntaunce, + hasteliche have I suche voyded out of my scole. For + al vyces trewly I hate; vertues and worthinesse in al my power 145 + I avaunce.' + + 'Ah! worthy creature,' quod I, 'and by juste cause the name + of goddesse dignely ye mowe bere! In thee lyth the grace + thorough whiche any creature in this worlde hath any goodnesse. + Trewly, al maner of blisse and preciousnesse in vertue out of 150 + thee springen and wellen, as brokes and rivers proceden from + their springes. And lyke as al waters by kynde drawen to the see, + so al kyndely thinges thresten, by ful appetyte of desyre, to drawe + after thy steppes, and to thy presence aproche as to their kyndely + perfeccion. How dare than beestes in this worlde aught forfete 155 + ayenst thy devyne purveyaunce? Also, lady, ye knowen al the + privy thoughtes; in hertes no counsayl may ben hid from your + knowing. Wherfore I wot wel, lady, that ye knowe your-selfe that + I in my conscience am and have ben willinge to your service, al + coude I never do as I shulde; yet, forsothe, fayned I never to 160 + love otherwyse than was in myn herte; and if I coude have made + chere to one and y-thought another, as many other doon alday + afore myn eyen, I trowe it wolde not me have vayled.' + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'haddest thou so don, I wolde not now + have thee here visited.' 165 + + 'Ye wete wel, lady, eke,' quod I, 'that I have not played raket, + "nettil in, docke out," and with the wethercocke waved; and + trewly, there ye me sette, by acorde of my conscience I wolde + not flye, til ye and reson, by apert strength, maden myn herte to + tourne.' 170 + + 'In good fayth,' quod she, 'I have knowe thee ever of tho + condicions; and sithen thou woldest (in as moch as in thee was) + a made me privy of thy counsayl and juge of thy conscience + (though I forsook it in tho dayes til I saw better my tyme), wolde + never god that I shuld now fayle; but ever I wol be redy 175 + witnessing thy sothe, in what place that ever I shal, ayenst al tho + that wol the contrary susteyne. And for as moche as to me is + naught unknowen ne hid of thy privy herte, but al hast thou tho + thinges mad to me open at the ful, that hath caused my cominge + in-to this prison, to voyde the webbes of thyne eyen, to make thee 180 + clerely to see the errours thou hast ben in. And bycause that + men ben of dyvers condicions, some adradde to saye a sothe, and + some for a sothe anon redy to fighte, and also that I may not my-selfe + ben in place to withsaye thilke men that of thee speken + otherwyse than the sothe, I wol and I charge thee, in vertue of 185 + obedience that thou to me owest, to wryten my wordes and sette + hem in wrytinges, that they mowe, as my witnessinge, ben + noted among the people. For bookes written neyther dreden ne + shamen, ne stryve conne; but only shewen the entente of the + wryter, and yeve remembraunce to the herer; and if any wol in 190 + thy presence saye any-thing to tho wryters, loke boldely; truste on + Mars to answere at the ful. For certes, I shal him enfourme of + al the trouthe in thy love, with thy conscience; so that of his + helpe thou shalt not varye at thy nede. I trowe the strongest and + the beste that may be founde wol not transverse thy wordes; 195 + wherof than woldest thou drede?' + +CH. II. 2. disease. 3. tel howe. holy. 4. loste. 5. light. 6. feare. folke. +7. done. disease. 9. ferdenesse. 10. subiection. 11. maye. 12. disease. +meane. 13. frendes; _read_ ferdnes; _see_ l. 16. perfytely. _I supply_ but +_and_ by. 14. affection. 16. aforne. ferdenesse. 18. lodged. moste. 19. +to-forne. 21. comforte sodaynely. dothe. 23. myne. beganne. 27. prisone. +leaue. 28. al-thoughe. stretchen. 29. faculties. 30. ferre. 31. wretched +hyd. thynge. 33. heauy. + +37. wenyst. foryet. 38. naye. 39. frenshippes. alyes. 40. propertye. 42. +nowe. 42, 43. maye. 45. Nowe. 46. honny. paradise. 47. comforte. howe. 49. +sawe. 52. the. disease haste. Woste. 53. the. 54. worshyppe. the. thyne. +57. the. 58. graunt thyne. 59. nowe. 60. thyne. 61. thoroughe. 62. wotte. +none. 64. se. 67. howe. 69. Nowe. se. + +70. wytte in the. _I supply_ thou. arte. 74. shepeherde. 75. shepe. arne. +76. amonge. 78. tho. shepe. loste. 79. put. 80. shepeherde. 81. put. +forthe. let. loste. 82. shepeherde. lyfe. loste. 83. shepe. shalte. 85. +mewarde. 86. throughe. 91. Haste. radde howe. 92. so_n_ne. 93. _For_ false +_read_ faire. howe Sesars sonke (_sic_); _corrupt_. 95. louedaye. 96. +chese. put. 97. howe. thanke. 98. rest. home; _read_ whom. 99. the. 101. +haste. the. 102. ayenwarde. made. 103. put the. 104. the. reason. disease. + +105. the. 106. shalte. haste. 107. Haste. herde. howe. 111. folke. 112. +cyties. the. cleape. 113. poynte. 116. Nowe. 118. wytte. 120. se the in +disease. 121. wote. arte one. maye. the. 123. thyne. 125. great. 129. +byforne. 131. comforte. 134. please. 135. bearyng. 137. encrease. maye. +138. the. 139. great. wherthroughe. arte. arne no-thinge. + +141. thus as I; _om._ as. 143. endeynous; _read_ ben deynous. wretches. +144. schole. 148. beare. the lythe. 151. the. 155. perfection. Howe. 157. +counsayle maye. hydde. 158. wote. 162. doone aldaye. 164. done. nowe. 165. +the. 166. playde. 169. reason. aperte. 171. faythe. the. 172. the. 173. +counsayle. 174. forsoke. 175. nowe. + +178. hert. 179. made. 180. the. 181. se. 183. anone. fyght. maye. 184. +withsay. the. 185. the. 188. amonge. 189. onely. 191. -thynge. 194. shalte. +195. maye. transuers. + + CHAPTER III. + + Gretly was I tho gladded of these wordes, and (as who + saith) wexen somdel light in herte; both for the auctoritè + of witnesse, and also for sikernesse of helpe of the forsayd + beheste, and sayd:-- + + 'Trewly, lady, now am I wel gladded through comfort of 5 + your wordes. Be it now lykinge unto your nobley to shewe + whiche folk diffame your servauntes, sithe your service ought + above al other thinges to ben commended.' + + 'Yet,' quod she, 'I see wel thy soule is not al out of the + amased cloude. Thee were better to here thing that thee might 10 + lighte out of thyn hevy charge and after knowing of thyn owne + helpe, than to stirre swete wordes and such resons to here; + for in a thoughtful soule (and namely suche oon as thou art) + wol not yet suche thinges sinken. Come of, therfore, and let + me seen thy hevy charge, that I may the lightlier for thy comfort 15 + purveye.' + + 'Now, certes, lady,' quod I, 'the moste comfort I might have + were utterly to wete me be sure in herte of that Margaryte I + serve; and so I thinke to don with al mightes, whyle my lyfe + dureth.' 20 + + 'Than,' quod she, 'mayst thou therafter, in suche wyse that + misplesaunce ne entre?' + + 'In good fayth,' quod I, 'there shal no misplesaunce be + caused through trespace on my syde.' + + 'And I do thee to weten,' quod she, 'I sette never yet person 25 + to serve in no place (but-if he caused the contrary in defautes + and trespaces) that he ne spedde of his service.' + + 'Myn owne erthly lady,' quod I tho, 'and yet remembre to + your worthinesse how long sithen, by many revolving of yeres, + in tyme whan Octobre his leve ginneth take and Novembre 30 + sheweth him to sight, whan bernes ben ful of goodes as is the + nutte on every halke; and than good lond-tillers ginne shape + for the erthe with greet travayle, to bringe forth more corn to + mannes sustenaunce, ayenst the nexte yeres folowing. In suche + tyme of plentee he that hath an home and is wyse, list not to 35 + wander mervayles to seche, but he be constrayned or excited. + Oft the lothe thing is doon, by excitacion of other mannes + opinion, whiche wolden fayne have myn abydinge. [Tho gan I] + take in herte of luste to travayle and see the wynding of the erthe + in that tyme of winter. By woodes that large stretes wern in, 40 + by smale pathes that swyn and hogges hadden made, as lanes + with ladels their maste to seche, I walked thinkinge alone + a wonder greet whyle; and the grete beestes that the woode + haunten and adorneth al maner forestes, and heerdes gonne to + wilde. Than, er I was war, I neyghed to a see-banke; and for 45 + ferde of the beestes "shipcraft" I cryde. For, lady, I trowe ye + wete wel your-selfe, nothing is werse than the beestes that + shulden ben tame, if they cacche her wildenesse, and ginne ayen + waxe ramage. Thus forsothe was I a-ferd, and to shippe me + hyed. 50 + + Than were there y-nowe to lacche myn handes, and drawe me + to shippe, of whiche many I knew wel the names. Sight was + the first, Lust was another, Thought was the thirde; and Wil eke + was there a mayster; these broughten me within-borde of this + shippe of Traveyle. So whan the sayl was sprad, and this ship 55 + gan to move, the wind and water gan for to ryse, and overthwartly + to turne the welken. The wawes semeden as they kiste togider; + but often under colour of kissinge is mokel old hate prively + closed and kept. The storm so straungely and in a devouring + maner gan so faste us assayle, that I supposed the date of my 60 + deth shulde have mad there his ginning. Now up, now downe, + now under the wawe and now aboven was my ship a greet + whyle. And so by mokel duresse of +weders and of stormes, + and with greet avowing [of] pilgrimages, I was driven to an yle, + where utterly I wende first to have be rescowed; but trewly, +at 65 + the first ginning, it semed me so perillous the haven to cacche, + that but thorow grace I had ben comforted, of lyfe I was ful + dispayred. Trewly, lady, if ye remembre a-right of al maner + thinges, your-selfe cam hastely to sene us see-driven, and to + weten what we weren. But first ye were deynous of chere, after 70 + whiche ye gonne better a-lighte; and ever, as me thought, ye + lived in greet drede of disese; it semed so by your chere. + And whan I was certifyed of your name, the lenger I loked in + you, the more I you goodly dradde; and ever myn herte on you + opened the more; and so in a litel tyme my ship was out of 75 + mynde. But, lady, as ye me ladde, I was war bothe of beestes + and of fisshes, a greet nombre thronging togider; among whiche + a muskel, in a blewe shel, had enclosed a Margaryte-perle, the + moste precious and best that ever to-forn cam in my sight. + And ye tolden your-selfe, that ilke jewel in his kinde was so 80 + good and so vertuous, that her better shulde I never finde, al + sought I ther-after to the worldes ende. And with that I held + my pees a greet whyle; and ever sithen I have me bethought on + the man that sought the precious Margarytes; and whan he had + founden oon to his lyking, he solde al his good to bye that jewel. 85 + Y-wis, thought I, (and yet so I thinke), now have I founden the + jewel that myn herte desyreth; wherto shulde I seche further? + Trewly, now wol I stinte, and on this Margaryte I sette me for + ever: now than also, sithen I wiste wel it was your wil that + I shulde so suche a service me take; and so to desyre that thing, 90 + of whiche I never have blisse. There liveth non but he hath + disese; your might than that brought me to suche service, that to + me is cause of sorowe and of joye. I wonder of your worde that + ye sayn, "to bringen men in-to joye"; and, pardè, ye wete wel + that defaut ne trespace may not resonably ben put to me-wardes, 95 + as fer as my conscience knoweth. + + But of my disese me list now a whyle to speke, and to enforme + you in what maner of blisse ye have me thronge. For truly + I wene, that al gladnesse, al joye, and al mirthe is beshet under + locke, and the keye throwe in suche place that it may not be 100 + founde. My brenning wo hath altred al my hewe. Whan + I shulde slepe, I walowe and I thinke, and me disporte. Thus + combred, I seme that al folk had me mased. Also, lady myne, + desyre hath longe dured, some speking to have; or els at the lest + have ben enmoysed with sight; and for wantinge of these thinges 105 + my mouth wolde, and he durst, pleyne right sore, sithen yvels + for my goodnesse arn manyfolde to me yolden. I wonder, lady, + trewly, save evermore your reverence, how ye mowe, for shame, + suche thinges suffre on your servaunt to be so multiplied. + Wherfore, kneling with a lowe herte, I pray you to rue on this 110 + caytif, that of nothing now may serve. Good lady, if ye liste, + now your help to me shewe, that am of your privyest servantes + at al assayes in this tyme, and under your winges of proteccion. + No help to me-wardes is shapen; how shal than straungers in + any wyse after socour loke, whan I, that am so privy, yet of helpe 115 + I do fayle? Further may I not, but thus in this prison abyde; + what bondes and chaynes me holden, lady, ye see wel your-selfe. + A renyant forjuged hath not halfe the care. But thus, syghing + and sobbing, I wayle here alone; and nere it for comfort of your + presence, right here wolde I sterve. And yet a litel am I gladded, 120 + that so goodly suche grace and non hap have I hent, graciously + to fynde the precious Margarite, that (al other left) men shulde + bye, if they shulde therfore selle al her substaunce. Wo is me, + that so many let-games and purpose-brekers ben maked wayters, + suche prisoners as I am to overloke and to hinder; and, for 125 + suche lettours, it is hard any suche jewel to winne. Is this, lady, + an honour to thy deitee? Me thinketh, by right, suche people + shulde have no maistrye, ne ben overlokers over none of thy + servauntes. Trewly, were it leful unto you, to al the goddes + wolde I playne, that ye rule your devyne purveyaunce amonges 130 + your servantes nothing as ye shulde. Also, lady, my moeble is + insuffysaunt to countervayle the price of this jewel, or els to + make th'eschange. Eke no wight is worthy suche perles to were + but kinges or princes or els their peres. This jewel, for vertue, + wold adorne and make fayre al a realme; the nobley of vertue is 135 + so moche, that her goodnesse overal is commended. Who is it + that wolde not wayle, but he might suche richesse have at his + wil? The vertue therof out of this prison may me deliver, and + naught els. And if I be not ther-thorow holpen, I see my-selfe + withouten recovery. Although I might hence voyde, yet wolde 140 + I not; I wolde abyde the day that destenee hath me ordeyned, + whiche I suppose is without amendement; so sore is my herte + bounden, that I may thinken non other. Thus strayte, lady, + hath sir Daunger laced me in stockes, I leve it be not your wil; + and for I see you taken so litel hede, as me thinketh, and wol 145 + not maken by your might the vertue in mercy of the Margaryte + on me for to strecche, so as ye mowe wel in case that you liste, + my blisse and my mirthe arn feld; sicknesse and sorowe ben + alwaye redy. The cope of tene is wounde aboute al my body, + that stonding is me best; unneth may I ligge for pure misesy 150 + sorowe. And yet al this is litel ynough to be the ernest-silver in + forwarde of this bargayne; for treble-folde so mokel muste I suffer + er tyme come of myn ese. For he is worthy no welthe, that may + no wo suffer. And certes, I am hevy to thinke on these thinges; + but who shal yeve me water ynough to drinke, lest myn eyen 155 + drye, for renning stremes of teres? Who shal waylen with me + myn owne happy hevinesse? Who shal counsaile me now in + my lyking tene, and in my goodly harse? I not. For ever the + more I brenne, the more I coveyte; the more that I sorow, the + more thrist I in gladnesse. Who shal than yeve me a contrarious 160 + drink, to stanche the thurste of my blisful bitternesse? Lo, thus + I brenne and I drenche; I shiver and I swete. To this reversed + yvel was never yet ordeyned salve; forsoth al +leches ben unconning, + save the Margaryte alone, any suche remedye to purveye.' + +CH. III. 1. gladed; _see_ l. 5. 2. somdele. 5. nowe. comforte. 6. nowe. 7. +folke. 9. se. 10. the (_twice_). 11. light. 13. one. arte. + +15. sene. comforte. 16. puruey. 17. Nowe. comforte. 21. mayste. 25. the. +set. 29. howe. 30. leaue. 32. londe-. 33. great. forthe. corne. 35. +plentie. lyste. 37. doone. 38. _I supply_ Tho gan I. 39. se. 40. werne. 41. +swyne. 43. great. great. 44. gone; _read_ gonne. 45. ware. 46. shypcrafte. +48. catche. 49. a-ferde. 51. lache. + +52. many; _read_ meynee. knewe. 55. sayle. shyppe. 56. wynde. 58. olde. 59. +kepte. storme. 61. made. 61, 62. nowe. 62. shyppe. 62, 64. great. 63. +wethers; _read_ weders. 64. _I supply_ of. 65. as; _read_ at. 66. catche. +67. thorowe. 69. came. 71. a-lyght. 72. great. disease. 75. shyppe. 76. +lad. ware. 77. great. amonge. 79. to-forne came. 82. helde. 83. peace. +great. 85. one. 86. nowe. 87. myne. + +88. nowe. 89. Nowe. 91. none. 92. disease. 94. sayne. 95. reasonably. 96. +ferre. 97. disease. 103. folke. 106. mouthe. 107. arne. 108. howe. 111. +caytife. 112. nowe. helpe. 113. protection. 114. helpe. howe. 115. socoure. +116. maye. 117. se. 119. comforte. 120. gladed. 121. none. hente. 122. +lefte. 123. sel. + +126. harde. 127. deytie. 133. weare. 139. ther-thorowe. se. 141. daye. +destenye. 143. maye. none. 145. se. 147. stretche. 148. arne. 150. miseasy. +151. ynoughe. 153. ease. maye. 156. teares. 157. myne. nowe. 158. harse +(_sic_); _for_ harme? + +161. drinke. 162. sweate. 163. lyches (for leches). 164. puruey. + + CHAPTER IV. + + And with these wordes I brast out to wepe, that every teere + of myne eyen, for greetnesse semed they boren out the bal of + my sight, and that al the water had ben out-ronne. Than thought + me that Love gan a litel to hevye for miscomfort of my chere; + and gan soberly and in esy maner speke, wel avysinge what 5 + she sayd. Comenly the wyse speken esily and softe for many + skilles. Oon is, their wordes are the better bileved; and also, in + esy spekinge, avysement men may cacche, what to putte forth + and what to holden in. And also, the auctoritè of esy wordes is + the more; and eke, they yeven the more understandinge to other 10 + intencion of the mater. Right so this lady esely and in a softe + maner gan say these wordes. + + ¶ 'Mervayle,' quod she, 'greet it is, that by no maner of semblaunt, + as fer as I can espye, thou list not to have any recour; + but ever thou playnest and sorowest, and wayes of remedye, for 15 + folisshe wilfulnesse, thee list not to seche. But enquyre of thy + next frendes, that is, thyne inwit and me that have ben thy + maystresse, and the recour and fyne of thy disese; [f]or of disese is + gladnesse and joy, with a ful +vessel so helded, that it quencheth + the felinge of the firste tenes. But thou that were wont not only 20 + these thinges remembre in thyne herte, but also fooles therof to + enfourmen, in adnullinge of their errours and distroying of their + derke opinions, and in comfort of their sere thoughtes; now canst + thou not ben comfort of thyn owne soule, in thinking of these + thinges. O where hast thou be so longe commensal, that hast so 25 + mikel eeten of the potages of foryetfulnesse, and dronken so of + ignorance, that the olde souking[es] whiche thou haddest of me + arn amaystred and lorn fro al maner of knowing? O, this is + a worthy person to helpe other, that can not counsayle him-selfe!' + And with these wordes, for pure and stronge shame, I wox al 30 + reed. + + And she than, seing me so astonyed by dyvers stoundes, + sodainly (which thing kynde hateth) gan deliciously me comforte + with sugred wordes, putting me in ful hope that I shulde the + Margarite getten, if I folowed her hestes; and gan with a fayre 35 + clothe to wypen the teres that hingen on my chekes; and than + sayd I in this wyse. + + 'Now, wel of wysdom and of al welthe, withouten thee may + nothing ben lerned; thou berest the keyes of al privy thinges. + In vayne travayle men to cacche any stedship, but-if ye, lady, 40 + first the locke unshet. Ye, lady, lerne us the wayes and the + by-pathes to heven. Ye, lady, maken al the hevenly bodyes + goodly and benignely to don her cours, that governen us beestes + here on erthe. Ye armen your servauntes ayenst al debates with + imperciable harneys; ye setten in her hertes insuperable blood of 45 + hardinesse; ye leden hem to the parfit good. Yet al thing + desyreth ye werne no man of helpe, that +wol don your + lore. Graunt me now a litel of your grace, al my sorowes + to cese.' + + 'Myne owne servaunt,' quod she, 'trewly thou sittest nye 50 + myne herte; and thy badde chere gan sorily me greve. But + amonge thy playning wordes, me thought, thou allegest thinges to + be letting of thyne helpinge and thy grace to hinder; wherthrough, + me thinketh, that wanhope is crope thorough thyn hert. God + forbid that nyse unthrifty thought shulde come in thy mynde, 55 + thy wittes to trouble; sithen every thing in coming is contingent. + Wherfore make no more thy proposicion by an impossible. + But now, I praye thee reherse me ayen tho thinges that + thy mistrust causen; and thilke thinges I thinke by reson to + distroyen, and putte ful hope in thyn herte. What understondest 60 + thou there,' quod she, 'by that thou saydest, "many let-games + are thyn overlokers?" And also by "that thy moeble is insuffysaunt"? + I not what thou therof menest.' + + 'Trewly,' quod I, 'by the first I say, that janglers evermore + arn spekinge rather of yvel than of good; for every age of man 65 + rather enclyneth to wickednesse, than any goodnesse to avaunce. + Also false wordes springen so wyde, by the stering of false lying + tonges, that fame als swiftely flyeth to her eres and sayth many + wicked tales; and as soone shal falsenesse ben leved as tr[o]uthe, + for al his gret sothnesse. 70 + + 'Now by that other,' quod I, 'me thinketh thilke jewel so + precious, that to no suche wrecche as I am wolde vertue therof + extende; and also I am to feble in worldly joyes, any suche + jewel to countrevayle. For suche people that worldly joyes han + at her wil ben sette at the highest degree, and most in reverence 75 + ben accepted. For false wening maketh felicitè therin to be + supposed; but suche caytives as I am evermore ben hindred.' + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'take good hede, and I shal by reson to + thee shewen, that al these thinges mowe nat lette thy purpos + by the leest point that any wight coude pricke. 80 + +CH. IV. 2. great-. 4. heauy. 5. easy. 6. easyly. 7. One. 8. easy speakynge. +catche. put forthe. 9. easy. 11. ladye easely. 13. great. 14. ferre. 16. +the lyste. 17. inwytte. 18. disease (_twice_). 19. nessel; _misprint for_ +uessel. 20. wonte. onely. 22. distroyeng. 23. comforte. seare. 24. +comforte. 25. haste. 27. soukyng. 28. arne. + +30. woxe. 33. thynge. 36. teares. 38. Nowe. wysedom. the. 39. bearest. 40. +catche. 43. done her course. 45. blode. 46. leaden. parfyte. thynge. 47. +wern. wele; _read_ wol. done. 48. nowe. 49. cease. 53. wherthroughe. 58. +nowe. the. 59. reason. 60. put. 61. lette-games. 63. meanest. 65. arne. + +67. steeryng. lyeng. 68. eares. 72. wretche. 78. reason. 79. the. let. +purpose. + + CHAPTER V. + + Remembrest nat,' quod she, 'ensample is oon of the + strongest maner[es], as for to preve a mannes purpos? + Than if I now, by ensample, enduce thee to any proposicion, is + it nat preved by strength?' + + 'Yes, forsothe,' quod I. 5 + + 'Wel,' quod she, 'raddest thou never how Paris of Troye and + Heleyne loved togider, and yet had they not entrecomuned of + speche? Also Acrisius shette Dane his doughter in a tour, for + suertee that no wight shulde of her have no maistry in my + service; and yet Jupiter by signes, without any speche, had 10 + al his purpose ayenst her fathers wil. And many suche mo have + ben knitte in trouthe, and yet spake they never togider; for + that is a thing enclosed under secretnesse of privytè, why twey + persons entremellen hertes after a sight. The power in knowing, + of such thinges +to preven, shal nat al utterly be yeven to you 15 + beestes; for many thinges, in suche precious maters, ben + reserved to jugement of devyne purveyaunce; for among lyving + people, by mannes consideracion, moun they nat be determined. + Wherfore I saye, al the envy, al the janglinge, that wel ny [al] + people upon my servauntes maken +ofte, is rather cause of esployte 20 + than of any hindringe.' + + 'Why, than,' quod I, 'suffre ye such wrong; and moun, whan + ye list, lightly al such yvels abate? Me semeth, to you it is + a greet unworship.' + + 'O,' quod she, 'hold now thy pees. I have founden to many 25 + that han ben to me unkynde, that trewly I wol suffre every wight + in that wyse to have disese; and who that continueth to the ende + wel and trewly, hem wol I helpen, and as for oon of myne in-to + blisse [don] to wende. As [in] marcial doing in Grece, who + was y-crowned? By god, nat the strongest; but he that rathest 30 + com and lengest abood and continued in the journey, and spared + nat to traveyle as long as the play leste. But thilke person, that + profred him now to my service, [and] therin is a while, and anon + voideth and [is] redy to another; and so now oon he thinketh + and now another; and in-to water entreth and anon respireth: 35 + such oon list me nat in-to perfit blisse of my service bringe. + A tree ofte set in dyvers places wol nat by kynde endure to bringe + forth frutes. Loke now, I pray thee, how myne olde servauntes + of tyme passed continued in her service, and folowe thou after + their steppes; and than might thou not fayle, in case thou worche 40 + in this wyse.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'it is nothing lich, this world, to tyme + passed; eke this countrè hath oon maner, and another countrè + hath another. And so may nat a man alway putte to his eye the + salve that he heled with his hele. For this is sothe: betwixe 45 + two thinges liche, ofte dyversitè is required.' + + 'Now,' quod she, 'that is sothe; dyversitè of nation, dyversitè of + lawe, as was maked by many resons; for that dyversitè cometh in + by the contrarious malice of wicked people, that han envyous hertes + ayenst other. But trewly, my lawe to my servauntes ever hath 50 + ben in general, whiche may nat fayle. For right as mannes +lawe + that is ordained by many determinacions, may nat be knowe for + good or badde, til assay of the people han proved it and [founden] + to what ende it draweth; and than it sheweth the necessitè + therof, or els the impossibilitè: right so the lawe of my servauntes 55 + so wel hath ben proved in general, that hitherto hath it not fayled. + + Wiste thou not wel that al the lawe of kynde is my lawe, and + by god ordayned and stablisshed to dure by kynde resoun? + Wherfore al lawe by mannes witte purveyed ought to be underput + to lawe of kynde, whiche yet hath be commune to every kyndely 60 + creature; that my statutes and my lawe that ben kyndely arn + general to al peoples. Olde doinges and by many turninges of + yeres used, and with the peoples maner proved, mowen nat so + lightly ben defased; but newe doinges, contrariauntes suche olde, + ofte causen diseses and breken many purposes. Yet saye I nat 65 + therfore that ayen newe mischeef men shulde nat ordaynen + a newe remedye; but alwaye looke it contrary not the olde no + ferther than the malice streccheth. Than foloweth it, the olde + doinges in love han ben universal, as for most exployte[s] forth + used; wherfore I wol not yet that of my lawes nothing be adnulled. 70 + But thanne to thy purpos: suche jangelers and lokers, and + wayters of games, if thee thinke in aught they mowe dere, yet + love wel alwaye, and sette hem at naught; and let thy port ben + lowe in every wightes presence, and redy in thyne herte to + maynteyne that thou hast begonne; and a litel thee fayne with 75 + mekenesse in wordes; and thus with sleyght shalt thou surmount + and dequace the yvel in their hertes. And wysdom yet is to seme + flye otherwhyle, there a man wol fighte. Thus with suche thinges + the tonges of yvel shal ben stilled; els fully to graunte thy ful + meninge, for-sothe ever was and ever it shal be, that myn enemyes 80 + ben aferde to truste to any fightinge. And therfore have thou no + cowardes herte in my service, no more than somtyme thou + haddest in the contrarye. For if thou drede suche jangleres, thy + viage to make, understand wel, that he that dredeth any rayn, to + sowe his cornes, he shal have than [bare] bernes. Also he that 85 + is aferd of his clothes, let him daunce naked! Who nothing + undertaketh, and namely in my service, nothing acheveth. After + grete stormes the +weder is often mery and smothe. After + moche clatering, there is mokil rowning. Thus, after jangling + wordes, cometh "huissht! pees! and be stille!"' 90 + + 'O good lady!' quod I than, 'see now how, seven yere passed + and more, have I graffed and +grobbed a vyne; and with al the + wayes that I coude I sought to a fed me of the grape; but frute + have I non founde. Also I have this seven yere served Laban, to + a wedded Rachel his doughter; but blere-eyed Lya is brought to 95 + my bedde, which alway engendreth my tene, and is ful of children + in tribulacion and in care. And although the clippinges and + kissinges of Rachel shulde seme to me swete, yet is she so + barayne that gladnesse ne joye by no way wol springe; so that + I may wepe with Rachel. I may not ben counsayled with solace, 100 + sithen issue of myn hertely desyre is fayled. Now than I pray that + to me [come] sone fredom and grace in this eight[eth] yere; this + eighteth mowe to me bothe be kinrest and masseday, after the + seven werkedays of travayle, to folowe the Christen lawe; and, + what ever ye do els, that thilke Margaryte be holden so, lady, in 105 + your privy chambre, that she in this case to none other person be + committed.' + + 'Loke than,' quod she, 'thou persever in my service, in whiche + I have thee grounded; that thilke scorn in thyn enemyes mowe + this on thy person be not sothed: "lo! this man began to edefye, 110 + but, for his foundement is bad, to the ende may he it not bringe." + For mekenesse in countenaunce, with a manly hert in dedes and + in longe continuaunce, is the conisance of my livery to al my + retinue delivered. What wenest thou, that me list avaunce suche + persons as loven the first sittinges at feestes, the highest stoles 115 + in churches and in hal, loutinges of peoples in markettes and fayres; + unstedfaste to byde in one place any whyle togider; wening his + owne wit more excellent than other; scorning al maner devyse + but his own? Nay, nay, god wot, these shul nothing parten of + my blisse. Truly, my maner here-toforn hath ben [to] worship[pe] 120 + with my blisse lyons in the felde and lambes in chambre; + egles at assaute and maydens in halle; foxes in counsayle, stil[le] + in their dedes; and their proteccioun is graunted, redy to ben + a bridge; and their baner is arered, like wolves in the felde. + Thus, by these wayes, shul men ben avaunced; ensample of 125 + David, that from keping of shepe was drawen up in-to the order + of kingly governaunce; and Jupiter, from a bole, to ben Europes + fere; and Julius Cesar, from the lowest degrè in Rome, to be + mayster of al erthly princes; and Eneas from hel, to be king of + the countrè there Rome is now stonding. And so to thee I say; 130 + thy grace, by bering ther-after, may sette thee in suche plight, + that no jangling may greve the leest tucke of thy hemmes; that + [suche] are their +jangles, is nought to counte at a cresse in thy + disavauntage. + +CH. V. 1. one. 2. maner; _read_ maneres. purpose. 3. nowe. the. 4. proued. +6. howe. 9. suertie. 15. so; _read_ to. 17. lyueng. + +19. _I supply_ al. 20. efte; _read_ ofte. 24. great. 25. holde nowe thy +peace. 27. disease. 29. one. _I supply_ don. _I supply_ in. 31. come. +abode. 32. lest. 33. nowe. _I supply_ and. 34. _I supply_ is. nowe one. 35. +nowe. 36. one. p_er_fyte. 38. nowe. the howe. 42. worlde. 43. one. 44. +alwaye put. 45. healed. 47. Nowe. 48. reasons. 51. lawes; _read_ lawe. 52. +determinati[=o]s. 53. _I supply_ founden. + +58. reasoun. 59. purueyde. vnderputte. 61. arne. 65. diseases. breaken. 66. +mischefe. 68. stretcheth. 69. exployte forthe. 70. nothynge. 71. purpose. +72. the. 73. lette. porte. 75. the. 77. wysdome. 78. fyght. 79. graunt. 80. +meanynge. 84. vnderstande. rayne. 85. _I supply_ bare. 86. aferde. 88. +great. wether; _read_ weder. 90. huysshte. peace. styl. 91. se nowe howe. + +92. groubed. 94. none. 101. Nowe. 102. _I supply_ come. 103. kynrest +(_sic_). 109. skorne. 110. this; _read_ thus? 120. toforne. 121. worship; +_read_ worshippe (_verb_). 122. styl. 123. protection. + +130. nowe. the. 131. set the. 132. lest. 133. ianghes; _read_ jangles. + + CHAPTER VI. + + Ever,' quod she, 'hath the people in this worlde desyred + to have had greet name in worthinesse, and hated foule + to bere any [en]fame; and that is oon of the objeccions thou + alegest to be ayen thyne hertely desyre.' + + 'Ye, forsothe,' quod I; 'and that, so comenly, the people wol 5 + lye, and bringe aboute suche enfame.' + + 'Now,' quod she, 'if men with lesinges putte on thee enfame, + wenest thy-selfe therby ben enpeyred? That wening is wrong; + see why; for as moche as they lyen, thy meryte encreseth, and + make[th] thee ben more worthy, to hem that knowen of the soth; 10 + by what thing thou art apeyred, that in so mokil thou art encresed + of thy beloved frendes. And sothly, a wounde of thy frende [is] to + thee lasse harm, ye, sir, and better than a fals kissing in disceyvable + glosing of thyne enemy; above that than, to be wel with thy + frende maketh [voyd] suche enfame. _Ergo_, thou art encresed 15 + and not apeyred.' + + 'Lady,' quod I, 'somtyme yet, if a man be in disese, th'estimacion + of the envyous people ne loketh nothing to desertes of men, + ne to the merytes of their doinges, but only to the aventure of + fortune; and therafter they yeven their sentence. And some 20 + loken the voluntary wil in his herte, and therafter telleth his + jugement; not taking hede to reson ne to the qualitè of the + doing; as thus. If a man be riche and fulfild with worldly + welfulnesse, some commenden it, and sayn it is so lent by juste + cause; and he that hath adversitè, they sayn he is weked; and 25 + hath deserved thilke anoy. The contrarye of these thinges some + men holden also; and sayn that to the riche prosperitè is purvayed + in-to his confusion; and upon this mater many autoritès + of many and greet-witted clerkes they alegen. And some men + sayn, though al good estimacion forsake folk that han adversitè, 30 + yet is it meryte and encrees of his blisse; so that these purposes + am so wonderful in understanding, that trewly, for myn adversitè + now, I not how the sentence of the indifferent people wil jugen + my fame.' + + 'Therfore,' quod she, 'if any wight shulde yeve a trewe sentence 35 + on suche maters, the cause of the disese maist thou see + wel. Understand ther-upon after what ende it draweth, that is to + sayne, good or badde; so ought it to have his fame +by goodnesse + or enfame by badnesse. For [of] every resonable person, and + namely of a wyse man, his wit ought not, without reson to-forn 40 + herd, sodainly in a mater to juge. After the sawes of the wyse, + "thou shalt not juge ne deme toforn thou knowe."' + + 'Lady,' quod I, 'ye remembre wel, that in moste laude and + praysing of certayne seyntes in holy churche, is to rehersen their + conuersion from badde in-to good; and that is so rehersed, as 45 + by a perpetual mirrour of remembraunce, in worshippinge of + tho sayntes, and good ensample to other misdoers in amendement. + How turned the Romayne Zedeoreys fro the Romaynes, + to be with Hanibal ayenst his kynde nacion; and afterwardes, + him seming the Romayns to be at the next degrè of confusion, 50 + turned to his olde alyes; by whose witte after was Hanibal + discomfited. Wherfore, to enfourme you, lady, the maner-why + I mene, see now. In my youth I was drawe to ben assentaunt + and (in my mightes) helping to certain conjuracions and other + grete maters of ruling of citizins; and thilke thinges ben my 55 + drawers in; and ex[c]itours to tho maters wern so paynted and + coloured that (at the prime face) me semed them noble and + glorious to al the people. I than, wening mikel meryte have + deserved in furthering and mayntenaunce of tho thinges, besyed + and laboured, with al my diligence, in werkinge of thilke maters 60 + to the ende. And trewly, lady, to telle you the sothe, me rought + litel of any hate of the mighty senatours in thilke citè, ne of + comunes malice; for two skilles. Oon was, I had comfort to ben + in suche plyte, that bothe profit were to me and to my frendes. + Another was, for commen profit in cominaltee is not but pees and 65 + tranquilitè, with just governaunce, proceden from thilke profit; + sithen, by counsayle of myne inwitte, me thought the firste painted + thinges malice and yvel meninge, withouten any good avayling to + any people, and of tyrannye purposed. And so, for pure sorowe, + and of my medlinge and badde infame that I was in ronne, tho 70 + [the] teres [that] lasshed out of myne eyen were thus awaye + wasshe, than the under-hidde malice and the rancour of purposing + envye, forncast and imagined in distruccion of mokil people, + shewed so openly, that, had I ben blind, with myne hondes al the + circumstaunce I might wel have feled. 75 + + Now than tho persones that suche thinges have cast to redresse, + for wrathe of my first medlinge, shopen me to dwelle in this pynande + prison, til Lachases my threed no lenger wolde twyne. And + ever I was sought, if me liste to have grace of my lyfe and + frenesse of that prison, I shulde openly confesse how pees might 80 + ben enduced to enden al the firste rancours. It was fully + supposed my knowing to be ful in tho maters. Than, lady, + I thought that every man that, by any waye of right, rightfully + don, may helpe any comune +wele to ben saved; whiche thing to + kepe above al thinges I am holde to mayntayne, and namely in 85 + distroying of a wrong; al shulde I therthrough enpeche myn + owne fere, if he were gilty and to do misdeed assentaunt. And + mayster ne frend may nought avayle to the soule of him that + in falsnesse deyeth; and also that I nere desyred wrathe of the + people ne indignacion of the worthy, for nothinge that ever I 90 + wrought or did, in any doing my-selfe els, but in the mayntenaunce + of these foresayd errours and in hydinge of the privitees therof. + And that al the peoples hertes, holdinge on the errours syde, + weren blinde and of elde so ferforth begyled, that debat and + stryf they maynteyned, and in distruccion on that other syde; 95 + by whiche cause the pees, that moste in comunaltee shulde be + desyred, was in poynte to be broken and adnulled. Also the citee + of London, that is to me so dere and swete, in whiche I was forth + growen; (and more kyndely love have I to that place than to any + other in erthe, as every kyndely creature hath ful appetyte to that 100 + place of his kyndly engendrure, and to wilne reste and pees + in that stede to abyde); thilke pees shulde thus there have ben + broken, and of al wyse it is commended and desyred. For knowe + thing it is, al men that desyren to comen to the perfit pees + everlasting must the pees by god commended bothe mayntayne and 105 + kepe. This pees by angels voyce was confirmed, our god entringe + in this worlde. This, as for his Testament, he lefte to al his + frendes, whanne he retourned to the place from whence he cam; + this his apostel amonesteth to holden, without whiche man perfitly + may have non insight. Also this god, by his coming, made not 110 + pees alone betwene hevenly and erthly bodyes, but also amonge + us on erthe so he pees confirmed, that in one heed of love oon + body we shulde perfourme. Also I remembre me wel how the + name of Athenes was rather after the god of pees than of batayle, + shewinge that pees moste is necessarie to comunaltees and citees. 115 + I than, so styred by al these wayes toforn nempned, declared + certayne poyntes in this wyse. Firste, that thilke persones + that hadden me drawen to their purposes, and me not weting the + privy entent of their meninge, drawen also the feeble-witted + people, that have non insight of gubernatif prudence, to clamure 120 + and to crye on maters that they styred; and under poyntes for + comune avauntage they enbolded the passif to take in the + actives doinge; and also styred innocentes of conning to crye + after thinges, whiche (quod they) may not stande but we ben + executours of tho maters, and auctoritè of execucion by comen 125 + eleccion to us be delivered. And that muste entre by strength of + your mayntenaunce. For we out of suche degree put, oppression + of these olde hindrers shal agayn surmounten, and putten you in + such subjeccion, that in endelesse wo ye shul complayne. + + The governementes (quod they) of your citè, lefte in the handes 130 + of torcencious citezins, shal bringe in pestilence and distruccion + to you, good men; and therfore let us have the comune administracion + to abate suche yvels. Also (quod they) it is worthy + the good to commende, and the gilty desertes to chastice. There + ben citezens many, for-ferde of execucion that shal be doon; for 135 + extorcions by hem committed ben evermore ayenst these purposes + and al other good mevinges. Never-the-latter, lady, trewly the + meninge under these wordes was, fully to have apeched the + mighty senatoures, whiche hadden hevy herte for the misgovernaunce + that they seen. And so, lady, whan it fel that free 140 + eleccion [was mad], by greet clamour of moche people, [that] for + greet disese of misgovernaunce so fervently stoden in her eleccion + that they hem submitted to every maner +fate rather than have + suffred the maner and the rule of the hated governours; + notwithstandinge that in the contrary helden moche comune meyny, 145 + that have no consideracion but only to voluntary lustes withouten + reson. But than thilke governour so forsaken, fayninge to-forn + his undoinge for misrule in his tyme, shoop to have letted thilke + eleccion, and have made a newe, him-selfe to have ben chosen; + and under that, mokil rore [to] have arered. These thinges, lady, 150 + knowen among the princes, and made open to the people, + draweth in amendement, that every degree shal ben ordayned to + stande there-as he shulde; and that of errours coming herafter + men may lightly to-forn-hand purvaye remedye; in this wyse pees + and rest to be furthered and holde. Of the whiche thinges, lady, 155 + thilke persones broughten in answere to-forn their moste soverayne + juge, not coarted by payninge dures, openly knowlegeden, and + asked therof grace; so that apertly it preveth my wordes ben + sothe, without forginge of lesinges. + + But now it greveth me to remembre these dyvers sentences, in 160 + janglinge of these shepy people; certes, me thinketh, they oughten + to maken joye that a sothe may be knowe. For my trouthe and + my conscience ben witnesse to me bothe, that this (knowinge + sothe) have I sayd, for no harme ne malice of tho persones, but + only for trouthe of my sacrament in my ligeaunce, by whiche 165 + I was charged on my kinges behalfe. But see ye not now, lady, + how the felonous thoughtes of this people and covins of wicked + men conspyren ayen my sothfast trouth! See ye not every wight + that to these erroneous opinions were assentaunt, and helpes to + the noyse, and knewen al these thinges better than I my-selven, 170 + apparaylen to fynden newe frendes, and clepen me fals, and + studyen how they mowen in her mouthes werse plyte nempne? + O god, what may this be, that thilke folk whiche that in tyme of + my mayntenaunce, and whan my might avayled to strecche to + the forsayd maters, tho me commended, and yave me name of 175 + trouth, in so manyfolde maners that it was nyghe in every + wightes eere, there-as any of thilke people weren; and on the + other syde, thilke company somtyme passed, yevinge me name + of badde loos: now bothe tho peoples turned the good in-to + badde, and badde in-to good? Whiche thing is wonder, that 180 + they knowing me saying but sothe, arn now tempted to reply her + olde praysinges; and knowen me wel in al doinges to ben trewe, + and sayn openly that I false have sayd many thinges! And they + aleged nothing me to ben false or untrewe, save thilke mater + knowleged by the parties hem-selfe; and god wot, other mater 185 + is non. Ye also, lady, knowe these thinges for trewe; I avaunte + not in praysing of my-selfe; therby shulde I lese the precious + secrè of my conscience. But ye see wel that false opinion of the + people for my trouthe, in telling out of false conspyred maters; + and after the jugement of these clerkes, I shulde not hyde the 190 + sothe of no maner person, mayster ne other. Wherfore I wolde + not drede, were it put in the consideracion of trewe and of wyse. + And for comers hereafter shullen fully, out of denwere, al the + sothe knowe of these thinges in acte, but as they wern, I have + put it in scripture, in perpetuel remembraunce of true meninge. 195 + For trewly, lady, me semeth that I ought to bere the name of + trouthe, that for the love of rightwysnesse have thus me +submitted. + But now than the false fame, which that (clerkes sayn) + flyeth as faste as doth the fame of trouthe, shal so wyde sprede + til it be brought to the jewel that I of mene; and so shal I ben 200 + hindred, withouten any mesure of trouthe.' + +CH. VI. 2. great. beare. 3. _read_ enfame; _see l. 6_. one. obiections. 7. +Nowe. leasynges put on the. 8. wronge. 9. se. encreaseth. 10. the. 11. arte +encreased. 12. _I supply_ is. 13. the. harme. false. 15. _I supply_ voyd. +arte. 17. disease. 22. reason. 23. fulfylde. 24. sayne. lente. 25. sayne. +weaked; _read_ wikked? 26. anoye. + +27. sayne. 29. great. 30. forsaken; _read_ forsake. 31. encrease. 32. arne. +33. nowe. howe. 36. disease. se. 37. vnderstande. 38. fame or by goodnesse +enfame; _read_ fame by goodnesse or enfame. 39. _Supply_ of. reasonable. +40. wytte. reason to-forne. 41. herde. 42. toforne. 45. conuercion. 48. +Howe. zedeoreys _or_ [gh]edeoreys. 53. meane se nowe. 55. great. 56. +exitours. werne. 61. tel. + +63. One. comforte. 64. profyte. 65. profyte. comynaltie. peace. 66. +profyte. 68. meanynge. 71. _I supply_ the _and_ that. 72. rancoure. 73. +fornecaste. distruction. 74. blynde. 76. Nowe. caste. 77. dwel. 78. threde. +80. howe peace. 81. endused. 84. done. maye. helpe (_repeated after_ +comen); _read_ wele. thynge. 86. distroyeng. 87. misdede. 88. frende maye. +94. -forthe. debate. 95. stryfe. distruction. 96. peace. comunaltie. 97. +cytie. 98. forthe. + +101-6. peace (_five times_). 104. thynge. perfyte. 107. left. 108. came. +109. perfytely. 110. none. 111-2. peace (_twice_). 112. one (_twice_). 113. +howe. 114-5. peace (_twice_). 115. comunalties and cytes. 116. toforne. +119. meanynge. feoble. 120. none. gubernatyfe. 122. passyfe. 126. election. +128. agayne. 129. subiection. 131. distruction. 135. doone. + +138. meanynge. 139. heauy. 141. election. _Supply_ was mad. great +(_twice_). _Supply_ that. 142. disease. election. 143. face; _read_ fate. +146. onely. 147. reason. to-forne. 148. shope. 149. electyon. 151. amonge. +154. to forne hande. peace. 156. to forne. 158. apertely. 159. leasynges. +160. nowe. 162. maye. 164. sayde. 165. onely. leigeaunce. 166. se. nowe. +168. Se. 171. cleapen. false. + +172. howe. 173. maye. folke. 174. stretch. 179. Nowe. 181. knowyuge +(_sic_). sayng. arne nowe. 183. sayne. 184. nothynge. 185. wote. 186. none. +188. se. 194. werne. 195. meanynge. 196. beare. 197. submytten (!). 198. +nowe. sayne. 199. dothe. 200. meane. 201. measure. + + CHAPTER VII. + + Than gan Love sadly me beholde, and sayd in a changed + voyce, lower than she had spoken in any tyme: 'Fayn + wolde I,' quod she, 'that thou were holpen; but hast thou sayd + any-thing whiche thou might not proven?' + + 'Pardè,' quod I, 'the persones, every thing as I have sayd, han 5 + knowleged hem-selfe.' + + 'Ye,' quod she, 'but what if they hadden nayed? How + woldest thou have maynteyned it?' + + 'Sothely,' quod I, 'it is wel wist, bothe amonges the greetest + and other of the realme, that I profered my body so largely in-to 10 + provinge of tho thinges, that Mars shulde have juged the ende; + but, for sothnesse of my wordes, they durste not to thilke juge + truste.' + + 'Now, certes,' quod she, 'above al fames in this worlde, the + name of marcial doinges most plesen to ladyes of my lore; but 15 + sithen thou were redy, and thyne adversaryes in thy presence + refused thilke doing; thy fame ought to be so born as if in dede + it had take to the ende. And therfore every wight that any + droppe of reson hath, and hereth of thee infame for these thinges, + hath this answere to saye: "trewly thou saydest; for thyne 20 + adversaryes thy wordes affirmed." And if thou haddest lyed, yet + are they discomfited, the prise leved on thy syde; so that fame + shal holde down infame; he shal bringe [it in] upon none + halfe. What greveth thee thyne enemye[s] to sayn their owne + shame, as thus: "we arn discomfited, and yet our quarel is 25 + trewe?" Shal not the loos of thy frendes ayenward dequace thilke + enfame, and saye they graunted a sothe without a stroke or fighting? + Many men in batayle ben discomfited and overcome in + a rightful quarel, that is goddes privy jugement in heven; but + yet, although the party be yolden, he may with wordes saye his 30 + quarel is trewe, and to yelde him, in the contrarye, for drede of + dethe he is compelled; and he that graunteth and no stroke hath + feled, he may not crepe away in this wyse by none excusacion. + Indifferent folk wil say: "ye, who is trewe, who is fals, him-selfe + knowlegeth tho thinges." Thus in every syde fame sheweth to 35 + thee good and no badde.' + + 'But yet,' quod I, 'some wil say, I ne shulde, for no dethe, + have discovered my maistresse; and so by unkyndnesse they + wol knette infame, to pursue me aboute. Thus enemyes of wil, + in manyfolde maner, wol seche privy serpentynes queintyses, to 40 + quenche and distroye, by venim of many besinesses, the light of + tr[o]uthe; to make hertes to murmure ayenst my persone, to have + me in hayne withouten any cause.' + + 'Now,' quod she, 'here me a fewe wordes, and thou shalt fully + ben answered, I trowe. Me thinketh (quod she) right now, by 45 + thy wordes, that sacrament of swering, that is to say, charging by + othe, was oon of the causes to make thee discover the malicious + imaginacions tofore nempned. Every ooth, by knittinge of copulation, + muste have these lawes, that is, trewe jugement and rightwysenesse; + in whiche thinge if any of these lacke, the ooth is 50 + y-tourned in-to the name of perjury. Than to make a trewe + serment, most nedes these thinges folowe. For ofte tymes, a man + to saye sothe, but jugement and justice folowe, he is forsworn; + ensample of Herodes, for holdinge of his serment was [he] + dampned. 55 + + Also, to saye tr[o]uthe rightfulliche (but in jugement) otherwhile + is forboden, by that al sothes be nat to sayne. Therfore in + jugement, in tr[o]uthe, and rightwisenesse, is every creature + bounden, up payne of perjury, ful knowing to make, tho[ugh] it + were of his owne persone, for drede of sinne; after that worde, 60 + "better is it to dey than live false." And, al wolde perverted people + fals report make in unkyndnesse, in that entent thy [en]fame to + reyse, whan light of tr[o]uthe in these maters is forth sprongen + and openly publisshed among commens, than shal nat suche + derke enfame dare appere, for pure shame of his falsnesse. As some 65 + men ther ben that their owne enfame can none otherwyse voide + or els excuse, but +by hindringe of other mennes fame; which + that by non other cause clepen other men false, but for [that] + with their owne falsnesse mowen they nat ben avaunsed; or els + by false sklaund[r]inge wordes other men shenden, their owne 70 + trewe sklaunder to make seme the lasse. For if such men wolden + their eyen of their conscience revolven, [they] shulden seen the + same sentence they legen on other springe out of their sydes, with + so many braunches, it were impossible to nombre. To whiche + therefore may it be sayd in that thinge, "this man thou demest, 75 + therein thy-selfe thou condempnest." + + But (quod she) understand nat by these wordes, that thou + wene me saye thee to be worthy sclaunder, for any mater tofore + written; truely I wolde witnesse the contrary; but I saye that + the bemes of sclaundring wordes may not be don awaye til the 80 + daye of dome. For how shulde it nat yet, amonges so greet + plentee of people, ben many shrewes, sithen whan no mo but + eight persons in Noes shippe were closed, yet oon was a shrewe + and skorned his father? These thinges (quod she) I trowe, shewen + that fals fame is nat to drede, ne of wyse persons to accepte, and 85 + namely nat of thy Margarite, whose wysdom here-after I thinke to + declare; wherfore I wot wel suche thing shal nat her asterte; + than of unkyndnesse thyn ooth hath thee excused at the fulle. + But now, if thou woldest nat greve, me list a fewe thinges to + shewe.' 90 + + 'Say on,' quod I, 'what ye wol; I trowe ye mene but trouthe + and my profit in tyme cominge.' + + 'Trewly,' quod she, 'that is sothe, so thou con wel kepe these + wordes, and in the in[ne]rest secrè chambre of thyne herte so + faste hem close that they never flitte; than shalt thou fynde hem 95 + avayling. Loke now what people hast thou served; whiche of + hem al in tyme of thyne exile ever thee refresshed, by the valewe + of the leste coyned plate that walketh in money? Who was sory, + or made any rewth for thy disese? If they hadden getten their + purpose, of thy misaventure sette they nat an hawe. Lo, whan 100 + thou were emprisonned, how faste they hyed in helpe of thy + deliveraunce! I wene of thy dethe they yeve but lyte. They + loked after no-thing but after their owne lustes. And if thou liste + say the sothe, al that meyny that in this +brige thee broughten, + lokeden rather after thyne helpes than thee to have releved. 105 + + Owen nat yet some of hem money for his commens? Paydest + nat thou for some of her dispences, til they were tourned out of + Selande? Who yave thee ever ought for any rydinge thou madest? + Yet, pardè, some of hem token money for thy chambre, and + putte tho pens in his purse, unwetinge of the renter. 110 + + Lo for which a company thou medlest, that neither thee ne + them-selfe mighten helpe of unkyndnesse; now they bere the + name that thou supposest of hem for to have. What might thou + more have don than thou diddest, but-if thou woldest in a fals + quarel have been a stinkinge martyr? I wene thou fleddest, as 115 + longe as thou might, their privitè to counsayle; which thing thou + hele[de]st lenger than thou shuldest. And thilke that ought thee + money no penny wolde paye; they wende thy returne hadde ben + an impossible. How might thou better have hem proved, but thus + in thy nedy diseses? Now hast thou ensaumple for whom thou 120 + shalt meddle; trewly, this lore is worth many goodes.' + +CH. VII. 2. Fayne. 3. haste. 4. -thynge. 7. Yea. Howe. 9. wyste. amongest. +greatest. 14. Nowe. 15. moste pleasen. 17. borne. 19. reason. the. 22. +leaued. 23. _Supply_ it in. 24. the. enemye (_sic_). sayne. 25. arne. 30. +partie. 33. maye. + +34. folke. false. 36. the. 44. Nowe. shalte. 45. answerde. nowe. 46. +swearyng. 47. one. the. 48. othe. copulation. 50. othe. 53. forsworne. 54. +_Supply_ he. 61. false. 62. reporte. 63. forthe. 67. be; _for_ by. 68. +cleapen. _Supply_ that. 70. sklaundynge. shendyn. + +72. _I supply_ they. sene. 73. legen [_for_ aleggen]. 75. maye. 77. +vndersta_n_de. 78. the. 80. beames. done. 81. howe. great. 82. plentie. 83. +one. 85. false. 86. wysedom. 87. wotte. thynge. 88. thyne othe. the. 89. +nowe. 91. meane. 92. profyte. 94. inrest. 95. shalte. 96. nowe. haste. 97. +the. 98. sorye. 99. disease. 101. howe. 103. -thynge. 104. brigge; _read_ +brige. 104, 105. the. + +108. the. 109. pardye. 111. the. 112. now. beare. 114. done. false. 117. +helest; _read_ heledest. the. 119. Howe. 120. diseases. Nowe haste. 121. +shalte. worthe. + + CHAPTER VIII. + + +Eft gan Love to +steren me [with] these wordes: 'thinke + on my speche; for trewly here-after it wol do thee lykinge; + and how-so-ever thou see Fortune shape her wheele to tourne, + this meditacion [shal] by no waye revolve. For certes, Fortune + sheweth her fayrest, whan she thinketh to begyle. And as me 5 + thought, here-toforn thou saydest, thy loos in love, for thy + rightwysenesse ought to be raysed, shulde be a-lowed in tyme cominge. + Thou might in love so thee have, that loos and fame shul so ben + raysed, that to thy frendes comfort, and sorowe to thyne enemys, + endlesse shul endure. 10 + + But if thou were the oon sheep, amonges the hundred, were lost + in deserte and out of the way hadde erred, and now to the flocke + art restoored, the shepherd hath in thee no joye and thou ayen + to the forrest tourne. But that right as the sorowe and anguisshe + was greet in tyme of thyne out-waye goinge, right so 15 + joye and gladnesse shal be doubled to sene thee converted; and + nat as Lothes wyf ayen-lokinge, but [in] hool counsayle with the + shepe folowinge, and with them grasse and herbes gadre. Never-the-later + (quod she) I saye nat these thinges for no wantrust that + I have in supposinge of thee otherwyse than I shulde. For 20 + trewly, I wot wel that now thou art set in suche a purpose, out of + whiche thee liste nat to parte. But I saye it for many men there + been, that to knowinge of other mennes doinges setten al their + cure, and lightly desyren the badde to clatter rather than the + good, and have no wil their owne maner to amende. They also 25 + hate of olde rancours lightly haven; and there that suche thing + abydeth, sodaynly in their mouthes procedeth the habundaunce + of the herte, and wordes as stones out-throwe. Wherfore my + counsayl is ever-more openly and apertly, in what place thou sitte, + counterplete th'errours and meninges in as fer as thou hem 30 + wistest false, and leve for no wight to make hem be knowe in + every bodyes ere; and be alway pacient and use Jacobes wordes, + what-so-ever men of thee clappen: "I shal sustayne my ladyes + wrathe which I have deserved, so longe as my Margarite hath + rightwysed my cause." And certes (quod she) I witnesse my-selfe, 35 + if thou, thus converted, sorowest in good meninge in thyne herte, + [and] wolt from al vanitè parfitly departe, in consolacioun of al + good plesaunce of that Margaryte, whiche that thou desyrest after + wil of thyn herte, in a maner of a +moders pitè, [she] shul fully + accepte thee in-to grace. For right as thou rentest clothes in 40 + open sighte, so openly to sowe hem at his worshippe withouten + reprofe [is] commended. Also, right as thou were ensample of + moche-folde errour, right so thou must be ensample of manyfolde + correccioun; so good savour to forgoing +of errour causeth diligent + love, with many playted praisinges to folowe; and than shal al 45 + the firste errours make the folowinge worshippes to seme hugely + encresed. Blacke and white, set togider, every for other more + semeth; and so doth every thinges contrary in kynde. But + infame, that goth alwaye tofore, and praysinge worship by any + cause folowinge after, maketh to ryse the ilke honour in double 50 + of welth; and that quencheth the spotte of the first enfame. Why + wenest, I saye, these thinges in hindringe of thy name? Nay, + nay, god wot, but for pure encresing worship, thy rightwysenesse to + commende, and thy trouthe to seme the more. Wost nat wel + thy-selfe, that thou in fourme of making +passest nat Adam that eet 55 + of the apple? Thou +passest nat the stedfastnesse of Noe, that + eetinge of the grape becom dronke. Thou passest nat the + chastitè of Lothe, that lay by his doughter; eke the nobley of + Abraham, whom god reproved by his pryde; also Davides + mekenesse, whiche for a woman made Urye be slawe. What? 60 + also Hector of Troye, in whom no defaute might be founde, yet + is he reproved that he ne hadde with manhode nat suffred the + warre begonne, ne Paris to have went in-to Grece, by whom gan + al the sorowe. For trewly, him lacketh no venim of privè + consenting, whiche that openly leveth a wrong to withsaye. 65 + + Lo eke an olde proverbe amonges many other: "He that is + stille semeth as he graunted." + + Now by these ensamples thou might fully understonde, that + these thinges ben writte to your lerning, and in rightwysenesse of + tho persones, as thus: To every wight his defaute committed 70 + made goodnesse afterwardes don be the more in reverence and in + open shewing; for ensample, is it nat songe in holy churche, + "Lo, how necessary was Adams synne!" David the king gat + Salomon the king of her that was Uryes wyf. Truly, for reprofe + is non of these thinges writte. Right so, tho I reherce thy 75 + before-dede, I repreve thee never the more; ne for no villany of + thee are they rehersed, but for worshippe, so thou continewe wel + here-after: and for profit of thy-selfe I rede thou on hem thinke.' + + Than sayde I right thus: 'Lady of unitè and accorde, envy + and wrathe lurken there thou comest in place; ye weten wel 80 + your-selve, and so don many other, that whyle I administred the + office of commen doinge, as in rulinge of the stablisshmentes + amonges the people, I defouled never my conscience for no + maner dede; but ever, by witte and by counsayle of the wysest, + the maters weren drawen to their right endes. And thus trewly 85 + for you, lady, I have desyred suche cure; and certes, in your + service was I nat ydel, as fer as suche doinge of my cure + streccheth.' + + 'That is a thing,' quod she, 'that may drawe many hertes of + noble, and voice of commune in-to glory; and fame is nat but 90 + wrecched and fickle. Alas! that mankynde coveyteth in so leude + a wyse to be rewarded of any good dede, sithe glorie of fame, in + this worlde, is nat but hindringe of glorie in tyme comminge! + And certes (quod she) yet at the hardest suche fame, in-to heven, + is nat the erthe but a centre to the cercle of heven? A pricke is 95 + wonder litel in respect of al the cercle; and yet, in al this pricke, + may no name be born, in maner of peersing, for many obstacles, + as waters, and wildernesse, and straunge langages. And nat only + names of men ben stilled and holden out of knowleginge by these + obstacles, but also citees and realmes of prosperitè ben letted to 100 + be knowe, and their reson hindred; so that they mowe nat ben + parfitly in mennes propre understandinge. How shulde than the + name of a singuler Londenoys passe the glorious name of London, + whiche by many it is commended, and by many it is lacked, and + in many mo places in erthe nat knowen than knowen? For in 105 + many countrees litel is London in knowing or in spech; and yet + among oon maner of people may nat such fame in goodnes + come; for as many as praysen, commenly as many lacken. Fy + than on such maner fame! Slepe, and suffre him that knoweth + previtè of hertes to dele suche fame in thilke place there nothing 110 + ayenst a sothe shal neither speke ne dare apere, by attourney + ne by other maner. How many greet-named, and many greet + in worthinesse losed, han be tofore this tyme, that now out + of memorie are slidden, and clenely forgeten, for defaute of + wrytinges! And yet scriptures for greet elde so ben defased, that 115 + no perpetualtè may in hem ben juged. But if thou wolt make + comparisoun to ever, what joye mayst thou have in erthly name? + It is a fayr lykenesse, a pees or oon grayn of whete, to a thousand + shippes ful of corne charged! What nombre is betwene the + oon and th'other? And yet mowe bothe they be nombred, and 120 + ende in rekening have. But trewly, al that may be nombred is + nothing to recken, as to thilke that may nat be nombred. For + +of the thinges ended is mad comparison; as, oon litel, another + greet; but in thinges to have an ende, and another no ende, + suche comparisoun may nat be founden. Wherfore in heven to 125 + ben losed with god hath non ende, but endlesse endureth; and + thou canst nothing don aright, but thou desyre the rumour therof + be heled and in every wightes ere; and that dureth but a pricke + in respecte of the other. And so thou sekest reward of folkes + smale wordes, and of vayne praysinges. Trewly, therin thou 130 + lesest the guerdon of vertue; and lesest the grettest valour of + conscience, and uphap thy renomè everlasting. Therfore boldely + renomè of fame of the erthe shulde be hated, and fame after deth + shulde be desyred of werkes of vertue. [Trewly, vertue] asketh + guerdoning, and the soule causeth al vertue. Than the soule, 135 + delivered out of prison of erthe, is most worthy suche guerdon + among to have in the everlastinge fame; and nat the body, that + causeth al mannes yvels. + +CH. VIII. 1. Ofte; _read_ Eft. sterne; _read_ steren. _I supply_ with. 2. +the. 3. howe. se. 4. meditation. _I supply_ shal. 6. toforne. 8. the. 9. +co_m_forte. 11. one shepe. 12. loste. nowe. 13. arte. shepeherd. the. 15. +great. 16. the. + +17. wyfe. _I supply_ in. hoole. 20. the. 21. wotte. nowe. arte sette. 22. +the. 23. bene. 26. thynge. 28. stones _repeated in_ Th. 29. counsayle. +apertely. 30. therrours. meanynges. ferre. 31. wystyst. leaue. 32. eare. +33. menne. the. 36. meanynge. 37. _I supply_ and. wolte. parfytely. 37. +consolatyoun. 38. pleasaunce. 39. hert. mothers; _read_ moders. _I supply_ +she. 40. the. 42. _I supply_ is. 44. correctioun. al; _read_ of. _After_ +errour _I omit_ distroyeng (_gloss upon_ forgoing). 47. encreased. sette. +48. dothe. 49. gothe. worshippe. + +52. wenyste. Naye nay god wotte. 53. encreasyng. 55-7. passeth (_twice_); +passyst (_third time_). ete. 57. eatynge. become. 61. whome. 63. begon. +ganne. 65. leaueth. wronge. withsay. 68. Nowe. 71. done. 72. song. 73. +howe. gate. 74. wyfe. 75. none. 76-7. the (_twice_). 78. profyte. 81. done. +87. ferre. 88. stretcheth. + +91. wretched. 96. respecte. 97. borne. 98. onely. 101. reason. 102. +parfitely. Howe. 107. one. 108. Fye. 110. nothynge. 112. Howe. great +(_twice_). 113. nowe. 115. great. 116. maye. wolte. 118. fayre. one grayne +of wheate. thousande. 120. one. thother. 121-2. maye. 123. ofte; _read_ of +the. made. one. 124. great. + +126. none. 127. canste nothynge done. rumoure. 128. healed; _read_ deled? +eare. 129. rewarde. 131. valoure. consyence. 134. _Supply_ Trewly, vertue. +136. prisone. guerdone. + + CHAPTER IX. + + Of twey thinges art thou answered, as me thinketh (quod + Love); and if any thing be in doute in thy soule, shewe + it forth, thyn ignoraunce to clere, and leve it for no shame.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'there is no body in this worlde, that aught + coude saye by reson ayenst any of your skilles, as I leve; and by 5 + my witte now fele I wel, that yvel-spekers or berers of enfame + may litel greve or lette my purpos, but rather by suche thinge my + quarel to be forthered.' + + 'Ye,' quod she,'and it is proved also, that the ilke jewel in + my kepinge shal nat there-thorow be stered, of the lest moment 10 + that might be imagined.' + + 'That is soth,' quod I. + + 'Wel,' quod she, 'than +leveth there, to declare that thy + insuffisance is no maner letting, as thus: for that she is so worthy, + thou shuldest not clymbe so highe; for thy moebles and thyn 15 + estate arn voyded, thou thinkest [thee] fallen in suche miserie, + that gladnesse of thy pursute wol nat on thee discende.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'that is sothe; right suche thought is in myn + herte; for commenly it is spoken, and for an olde proverbe it is + leged: "He that heweth to hye, with chippes he may lese 20 + his sight." Wherfore I have ben about, in al that ever I might, + to studye wayes of remedye by one syde or by another.' + + 'Now,' quod she, 'god forbede +that thou seke any other + doinges but suche as I have lerned thee in our restinge-whyles, + and suche herbes as ben planted in oure gardins. Thou shalt 25 + wel understande that above man is but oon god alone.' + + 'How,' quod I, 'han men to-forn this tyme trusted in writtes + and chauntements, and in helpes of spirites that dwellen in the + ayre, and therby they han getten their desyres, where-as first, for + al his manly power, he daunced behynde?' 30 + + 'O,' quod she, 'fy on suche maters! For trewly, that is + sacrilege; and that shal have no sort with any of my servauntes; + in myne eyen shal suche thing nat be loked after. How often is + it commaunded by these passed wyse, that "to one god shal men + serve, and not to goddes?" And who that liste to have myne 35 + helpes, shal aske none helpe of foule spirites. Alas! is nat man + maked semblable to god? Wost thou nat wel, that al vertue of + lyvelich werkinge, by goddes purveyaunce, is underput to resonable + creature in erthe? Is nat every thing, a this halfe god, mad + buxom to mannes contemplation, understandinge in heven and 40 + in erthe and in helle? Hath not man beinge with stones, soule of + wexing with trees and herbes? Hath he nat soule of felinge, with + beestes, fisshes, and foules? And he hath soule of reson and + understanding with aungels; so that in him is knit al maner + of lyvinges by a resonable proporcioun. Also man is mad of 45 + al the foure elementes. Al universitee is rekened in him alone; + he hath, under god, principalitè above al thinges. Now is his + soule here, now a thousand myle hence; now fer, now nygh; + now hye, now lowe; as fer in a moment as in mountenaunce of + ten winter; and al this is in mannes governaunce and disposicion. 50 + Than sheweth it that men ben liche unto goddes, and children of + moost heyght. But now, sithen al thinges [arn] underput to the + wil of resonable creatures, god forbede any man to winne that + lordship, and aske helpe of any-thing lower than him-selfe; and than, + namely, of foule thinges innominable. Now than, why shuldest 55 + thou wene to love to highe, sithen nothing is thee above but god + alone? Trewly, I wot wel that thilke jewel is in a maner even in + lyne of degree there thou art thy-selfe, and nought above, save + thus: aungel upon angel, man upon man, and devil upon devil + han a maner of soveraigntee; and that shal cese at the daye 60 + of dome. And so I say: though thou be put to serve the + ilke jewel duringe thy lyfe, yet is that no servage of + underputtinge, but a maner of travayling plesaunce, to conquere and + gette that thou hast not. I sette now the hardest: in my service + now thou deydest, for sorowe of wantinge in thy desyres; trewly, 65 + al hevenly bodyes with one voyce shul come and make melody in + thy cominge, and saye--"Welcome, our fere, and worthy to entre + into Jupiters joye! For thou with might hast overcome deth; + thou woldest never flitte out of thy service; and we al shul + now praye to the goddes, rowe by rowe, to make thilk Margarite, 70 + that no routh had in this persone, but unkyndely without comfort + let thee deye, shal besette her-selfe in suche wyse, that in erthe, + for parte of vengeaunce, shal she no joye have in loves service; + and whan she is deed, than shal her soule ben brought up in-to + thy presence; and whider thou wilt chese, thilke soule shal ben 75 + committed." Or els, after thy deth, anon al the foresayd hevenly + bodyes, by one accorde, shal +benimen from thilke perle al the + vertues that firste her were taken; for she hath hem forfeyted + by that on thee, my servaunt, in thy lyve, she wolde not suffre + to worche al vertues, withdrawen by might of the hygh bodyes. 80 + Why than shuldest thou wene so any more? And if thee liste + to loke upon the lawe of kynde, and with order whiche to me + was ordayned, sothely, non age, non overtourninge tyme but + +hiderto had no tyme ne power to chaunge the wedding, ne + the knotte to unbynde of two hertes [that] thorow oon assent, in 85 + my presence, +togider accorden to enduren til deth hem departe. + What? trowest thou, every ideot wot the meninge and the privy + entent of these thinges? They wene, forsothe, that suche accord + may not be, but the rose of maydenhede be plucked. Do way, + do way; they knowe nothing of this. For consent of two hertes 90 + alone maketh the fasteninge of the knotte; neither lawe of kynde + ne mannes lawe determineth neither the age ne the qualitè of + persones, but only accord bitwene thilke twaye. And trewly, + after tyme that suche accord, by their consent in hert, is enseled, + and put in my tresorye amonges my privy thinges, than ginneth 95 + the name of spousayle; and although they breken forward bothe, + yet suche mater enseled is kept in remembrance for ever. And + see now that spouses have the name anon after accord, though + the rose be not take. The aungel bad Joseph take Marye his + spouse, and to Egypte wende. Lo! she was cleped "spouse," 100 + and yet, toforn ne after, neither of hem bothe mente no flesshly + lust knowe. Wherfore the wordes of trouthe acorden that my + servauntes shulden forsake bothe +fader and moder, and be adherand + to his spouse; and they two in unitè of one flesshe + shulden accorde. And this wyse, two that wern firste in a litel 105 + maner discordaunt, hygher that oon and lower that other, ben + mad evenliche in gree to stonde. But now to enfourme thee + that ye ben liche to goddes, these clerkes sayn, and in determinacion + shewen, that "three thinges haven [by] the names + of goddes ben cleped; that is to sayn: man, divel, and images"; 110 + but yet is there but oon god, of whom al goodnesse, al grace, and + al vertue cometh; and he +is loving and trewe, and everlasting, + and pryme cause of al being thinges. But men ben goddes + lovinge and trewe, but not everlasting; and that is by adopcioun + of the everlastinge god. Divels ben goddes, stirringe by 115 + a maner of lyving; but neither ben they trewe ne everlastinge; + and their name of godliheed th[e]y han by usurpacion, as the + prophete sayth: "Al goddes of gentyles (that is to say, paynims) + are divels." But images ben goddes by nuncupacion; and they + ben neither livinge ne trewe, ne everlastinge. After these wordes 120 + they clepen "goddes" images wrought with mennes handes. + But now [art thou a] resonable creature, that by adopcion alone + art to the grete god everlastinge, and therby thou art "god" + cleped: let thy +faders maners so entre thy wittes that thou might + folowe, in-as-moche as longeth to thee, thy +faders worship, so 125 + that in nothinge thy kynde from his wil declyne, ne from his + nobley perverte. In this wyse if thou werche, thou art above + al other thinges save god alone; and so say no more "thyn herte + to serve in to hye a place." + +CH. IX. 1. arte. 2. thynge. 3. thyne. leaue. 5. reason. 6. nowe. bearers. +7. purpose. 9. Yea. 10. -thorowe. steered. 13. leneth; _read_ leueth. 15. +thyne. 16. arne. _I supply_ thee. 17. the. 18. myne hert. + +20. maye. 23. Nowe. are; _read_ that. 24. the. 25. shalte. 26. one. 27. +Howe. to forne. 31. fye. 38. vnderputte. 39. thynge. made. 40. buxome. 41. +manne. 43. reason. 44. knytte. 45. lyuenges. reasonable. made. 47. Nowe. +48. nowe. nowe ferre nowe. thousande. 49. nowe (_twice_). ferre. momente. +50. tenne. disposytion. 52. nowe. _I supply_ arn. vnderputte. 53. +reasonable. 54. lordshippe. thynge. + +56. nothynge. the. 57. wote. euyn. 58. arte. 59. manne (_twice_). 60. +soueraygntie. cease. 61. thoughe putte. 64. haste. 64-5. nowe. 68. haste. +dethe. 70. nowe pray. 71. _For_ in _read_ on? comforte. 72. lette the. 75. +wylte. 76. dethe anone. 77. beno_m_men; _read_ benimen. 79. the. 81. the. +83. none (_twice_). 84. hytherto. 85. _Supply_ that. thorowe one. 86. +togyther. dethe. 87. ydeot wotte. 88. accorde. 89. waye (_twice_). 90. +consente. + +93. onely. 93-4. accorde. 94. ensealed. 96. breaken forwarde. 97. ensealed. +kepte. 98. se nowe. accorde. 99. bade. 101. toforne. 102. luste. 103. +father and mother; _rather_, fader and moder. adherande. 105. werne. 106. +one. 107. made. nowe. the. 108. sayne. 109. thre. _I supply_ by. 110. +cleaped. 111. one. 112. his; _read_ is. 116. lyueng. 117. thy; _read_ they. +118. saythe. 121. cleapen. 122. nowe. _I supply_ art thou a. reasonable. +123. arte (_twice_). great. 124. lette. 124-5. fathers; _read_ faders. 125. +the. worshyppe. + +127. arte. + + CHAPTER X. + + Fully have I now declared thyn estate to be good, so thou + folow therafter, and that the +objeccion first +by thee + aleged, in worthinesse of thy Margaryte, shal not thee lette, as + it shal forther thee, and encrese thee. It is now to declare, the + last objeccion in nothing may greve.' 5 + + 'Yes, certes,' quod I, 'bothe greve and lette muste it nedes; + the contrarye may not ben proved; and see now why. Whyle + I was glorious in worldly welfulnesse, and had suche goodes in + welth as maken men riche, tho was I drawe in-to companyes + that loos, prise, and name yeven. Tho louteden blasours; tho 10 + curreyden glosours; tho welcomeden flatterers; tho worshipped + thilke that now deynen nat to loke. Every wight, in such erthly + wele habundant, is holde noble, precious, benigne, and wyse to + do what he shal, in any degree that men him sette; al-be-it that + the sothe be in the contrarye of al tho thinges. But he that can 15 + never so wel him behave, and hath vertue habundaunt in manyfolde + maners, and be nat welthed with suche erthly goodes, is holde + for a foole, and sayd, his wit is but sotted. Lo! how fals for + aver is holde trewe! Lo! how trewe is cleped fals for wanting + of goodes! Also, lady, dignitees of office maken men mikel 20 + comended, as thus: "he is so good, were he out, his pere shulde + men not fynde." Trewly, I trowe of some suche that are so + praysed, were they out ones, another shulde make him so be + knowe, he shulde of no wyse no more ben loked after: but only + fooles, wel I wot, desyren suche newe thinges. Wherfore I wonder 25 + that thilke governour, out of whom alone the causes proceden + that governen al thinges, whiche that hath ordeyned this world + in workes of the kyndely bodyes so be governed, not with + unstedfast or happyous thing, but with rules of reson, whiche + shewen the course of certayne thinges: why suffreth he suche 30 + slydinge chaunges, that misturnen suche noble thinges as ben we + men, that arn a fayr parcel of the erthe, and holden the upperest + degree, under god, of benigne thinges, as ye sayden right now + your-selfe; shulde never man have ben set in so worthy a place + but-if his degrè were ordayned noble. Alas! thou that knittest 35 + the purveyaunce of al thinges, why lokest thou not to amenden + these defautes? I see shrewes that han wicked maners sitten in + chayres of domes, lambes to punisshen, there wolves shulden ben + punisshed. Lo! vertue, shynende naturelly, for povertee lurketh, + and is hid under cloude; but the moone false, forsworn (as 40 + I knowe my-selfe) for aver and yeftes, hath usurped to shyne by + day-light, with peynture of other mens praysinges; and trewly, + thilke forged light fouly shulde fade, were the trouth away of + colours feyned. Thus is night turned in-to day, and day in-to + night; winter in-to sommer, and sommer in-to winter; not in 45 + dede, but in misclepinge of foliche people.' + + 'Now,' quod she, 'what wenest thou of these thinges? How + felest thou in thyn hert, by what governaunce that this cometh + aboute?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'that wot I never; but-if it be that Fortune 50 + hath graunt from above, to lede the ende of man as her lyketh.' + + 'Ah! now I see,' quod she, 'th'entent of thy mening! Lo, + bycause thy worldly goodes ben fulliche dispent, thou beraft out + of dignitè of office, in whiche thou madest the +gaderinge of thilke + goodes, and yet diddest in that office by counsaile of wyse [before 55 + that] any thing were ended; and true were unto hem whos profit + thou shuldest loke; and seest now many that in thilke hervest + made of thee mokel, and now, for glosing of other, deyneth thee + nought to forther, but enhaunsen false shrewes by witnessinge of + trouthe! These thinges greveth thyn herte, to sene thy-selfe thus 60 + abated; and than, frayltè of mankynde ne setteth but litel by the + lesers of suche richesse, have he never so moche vertue; and so + thou wenest of thy jewel to renne in dispyt, and not ben accepted + in-to grace. Al this shal thee nothing hinder. Now (quod she) + first thou wost wel, thou lostest nothing that ever mightest thou 65 + chalenge for thyn owne. Whan nature brought thee forth, come + thou not naked out of thy +moders wombe? Thou haddest no + richesse; and whan thou shalt entre in-to the ende of every + flesshly body, what shalt thou have with thee than? So, every + richesse thou hast in tyme of thy livinge, nis but lent; thou 70 + might therin chalenge no propertee. And see now; every thing + that is a mannes own, he may do therwith what him lyketh, to + yeve or to kepe; bul richesse thou playnest from thee lost; if thy + might had strecched so ferforth, fayn thou woldest have hem kept, + multiplyed with mo other; and so, ayenst thy wil, ben they departed 75 + from thee; wherfore they were never thyn. And if thou laudest + and joyest any wight, for he is stuffed with suche maner richesse, + thou art in that beleve begyled; for thou wenest thilke joye to be + selinesse or els ese; and he that hath lost suche happes to ben + unsely.' 80 + + 'Ye, forsoth,' quod I. + + 'Wel,' quod she, 'than wol I prove that unsely in that wise is + to preise; and so the tother is, the contrary, to be lacked.' + + 'How so?' quod I. + + 'For Unsely,' quod she, 'begyleth nat, but sheweth th'entent 85 + of her working. _Et e contra_: Selinesse begyleth. For in prosperitè + she maketh a jape in blyndnesse; that is, she wyndeth him to + make sorowe whan she withdraweth. Wolt thou nat (quod she) + preise him better that sheweth to thee his herte, tho[ugh] it be + with bytande wordes and dispitous, than him that gloseth and 90 + thinketh in +his absence to do thee many harmes?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'the oon is to commende; and the other to + lacke and dispice.' + + 'A! ha!' quod she, 'right so Ese, while +she lasteth, gloseth + and flatereth; and lightly voydeth whan she most plesauntly 95 + sheweth; and ever, in hir absence, she is aboute to do thee tene + and sorowe in herte. But Unsely, al-be-it with bytande chere, + sheweth what she is, and so doth not that other; wherfore + Unsely doth not begyle. Selinesse disceyveth; Unsely put away + doute. That oon maketh men blynde; that other openeth their 100 + eyen in shewinge of wrecchidnesse. The oon is ful of drede to + lese that is not his owne; that other is sobre, and maketh men + discharged of mokel hevinesse in burthen. The oon draweth + a man from very good; the other haleth him to vertue by the + hookes of thoughtes. And wenist thou nat that thy disese hath 105 + don thee mokel more to winne than ever yet thou lostest, and + more than ever the contrary made thee winne? Is nat a greet + good, to thy thinking, for to knowe the hertes of thy sothfast + frendes? Pardè, they ben proved to the ful, and the trewe have + discevered fro the false. Trewly, at the goinge of the ilke brotel 110 + joye, ther yede no more away than the ilke that was nat thyn + proper. He was never from that lightly departed; thyn owne + good therfore leveth it stille with thee. Now good (quod she); + for how moche woldest thou somtyme have bought this verry + knowing of thy frendes from the flatteringe flyes that thee glosed, 115 + whan thou thought thy-selfe sely? But thou that playnest of losse + in richesse, hast founden the most dere-worthy thing; that thou + clepest unsely hath made thee moche thing to winnen. And + also, for conclusioun of al, he is frende that now leveth nat his + herte from thyne helpes. And if that Margarite denyeth now nat 120 + to suffre her vertues shyne to thee-wardes with spredinge bemes, + as far or farther than if thou were sely in worldly joye, trewly, + I saye nat els but she is somdel to blame.' + + 'Ah! pees,' quod I, 'and speke no more of this; myn herte + breketh, now thou touchest any suche wordes!' 125 + + 'A! wel!' quod she, 'thanne let us singen; thou herest no + more of these thinges at this tyme.' + + THUS ENDETH THE FIRSTE BOOK OF THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE; + AND HERAFTER FOLOWETH THE SECONDE. + +CH. X. 1. nowe. 2. abiection; _read_ objeccion. be; _read_ by. the. 3. the. +4. the. encrease the. nowe. 5. obiection. 6. let. 7. maye. se nowe. 12. +nowe. 14. set. 15. can ne never; _omit_ ne. 18. wytte. false. 19. auer +(_sic_); _for_ aueir (_avoir_). howe. cleaped. false. 24. onely. 25. wotte. +new. 26. whome. 27. worlde. + +29. reason. 32. arne a fayre parsel. 33. nowe. 37. se. 39. pouertie. 40. +hydde. forsworne. 44. daye (_twice_). 46. miscleapynge. 50. wotte. 52. nowe +I se. thentent. meanyng. 53. berafte. 54. gatherynge. 55. _I supply_ before +that. 56. whose profyte. 57. nowe. 58. the (_twice_). nowe. 63. dispyte. +64. the. Nowe. 65. woste. + +66. the forthe. 67. mothers; _read_ moders. 69. the. 70. haste. lente. 71. +propertie. se nowe. 72. owne. 73. the. 74. stretched. fayne. 76. the. 78. +arte. 79. ease. loste. 84. Howe. 85. thentent. 88. Wolte. 89. the. 91. +their; _read_ his. the. 92. one. 94. ease. he; _read_ she. 99. dothe. +awaye. 100-1. one (_twice_). 101. wretchydnesse. + +103. one. 105. disease. 106. done the. 107. the. great. 109. Pardy. 111. +awaye. 111-2. thyne. 113. leaueth. the. Nowe. 114. howe. 115. the. 117. +thynge. 118. cleapest. the. thynge. 119. nowe leaueth. 120. hert. nowe. +121. the. spreadynge beames. 122. farre. 123. somdele. 124. peace. myne. +125. breaketh nowe. 126. lette. + + BOOK II. + + CHAPTER I. + + Very welth may not be founden in al this worlde; and that + is wel sene. Lo! how in my mooste comfort, as I wende + and moost supposed to have had ful answere of my contrary + thoughtes, sodaynly it was vanisshed. And al the workes of man + faren in the same wyse; whan folk wenen best her entent for to 5 + have and willes to perfourme, anon chaunging of the lift syde to + the right halve tourneth it so clene in-to another kynde, that never + shal it come to the first plyte in doinge. + + O this wonderful steering so soone otherwysed out of knowinge! + But for my purpos was at the beginninge, and so dureth yet, if god 10 + of his grace tyme wol me graunt, I thinke to perfourme this + worke, as I have begonne, in love; after as my thinne wit, with + inspiracion of him that hildeth al grace, wol suffre. Grevously, + god wot, have I suffred a greet throwe that the Romayne + emperour, which in unitè of love shulde acorde, and every with 15 + other * * * * in cause of other to avaunce; and namely, sithe + this empyre [nedeth] to be corrected of so many sectes in heresie + of faith, of service, o[f] rule in loves religion. Trewly, al were + it but to shende erroneous opinions, I may it no lenger suffre. + For many men there ben that sayn love to be in gravel and sande, 20 + that with see ebbinge and flowinge woweth, as riches that sodaynly + vanissheth. And some sayn that love shulde be in windy blastes, + that stoundmele turneth as a phane, and glorie of renomè, which + after lustes of the varyaunt people is areysed or stilled. + + Many also wenen that in the sonne and the moone and other 25 + sterres love shulde ben founden; for among al other planettes + moste soveraynly they shynen, as dignitees in reverence of estates + rather than good han and occupyen. Ful many also there ben + that in okes and in huge postes supposen love to ben grounded, + as in strength and in might, whiche mowen not helpen their owne 30 + wrecchidnesse, whan they ginne to falle. But [of] suche diversitè + of sectes, ayenst the rightful beleve of love, these errours ben forth + spredde, that loves servantes in trewe rule and stedfast fayth in + no place daren apere. Thus irrecuperable joy is went, and anoy + endless is entred. For no man aright reproveth suche errours, 35 + but [men] confirmen their wordes, and sayn, that badde is noble + good, and goodnesse is badde; to which folk the prophete biddeth + wo without ende. + + Also manye tonges of greet false techinges in gylinge maner, + principally in my tymes, not only with wordes but also with armes, 40 + loves servauntes and professe in his religion of trewe rule pursewen, + to confounden and to distroyen. And for as moche as holy +faders, + that of our Christen fayth aproved and strengthed to the Jewes, as + to men resonable and of divinitè lerned, proved thilke fayth with + resones, and with auctoritès of the olde testament and of the newe, 45 + her pertinacie to distroy: but to paynims, that for beestes and + houndes were holde, to putte hem out of their errour, was +miracle + of god shewed. These thinges were figured by cominge of th'angel + to the shepherdes, and by the sterre to paynims kinges; as who + sayth: angel resonable to resonable creature, and sterre of miracle 50 + to people bestial not lerned, wern sent to enforme. But I, lovers + clerk, in al my conning and with al my mightes, trewly I have no + suche grace in vertue of miracles, ne for no discomfit falsheedes + suffyseth not auctoritès alone; sithen that suche [arn] heretikes + and maintaynours of falsitès. Wherfore I wot wel, sithen that 55 + they ben men, and reson is approved in hem, the clowde of errour + hath her reson beyond probable resons, whiche that cacchende + wit rightfully may not with-sitte. By my travaylinge studie I have + ordeyned hem, +whiche that auctoritè, misglosed by mannes + reson, to graunt shal ben enduced. 60 + + Now ginneth my penne to quake, to thinken on the sentences + of the envyous people, whiche alway ben redy, both ryder and + goer, to scorne and to jape this leude book; and me, for rancour + and hate in their hertes, they shullen so dispyse, that although + my book be leude, yet shal it ben more leude holden, and by 65 + wicked wordes in many maner apayred. Certes, me thinketh, + [of] the sowne of their badde speche right now is ful bothe myne + eeres. O good precious Margaryte, myne herte shulde wepe if + I wiste ye token hede of suche maner speche; but trewly, I wot + wel, in that your wysdom shal not asterte. For of god, maker of 70 + kynde, witnesse I took, that for none envy ne yvel have I drawe + this mater togider; but only for goodnesse to maintayn, and + errours in falsetees to distroy. Wherfore (as I sayd) with reson + I thinke, thilke forsayd errours to distroye and dequace. + + These resons and suche other, if they enduce men, in loves 75 + service, trewe to beleve of parfit blisse, yet to ful faithe in + credence of deserte fully mowe they nat suffyse; sithen 'faith hath + no merite of mede, whan mannes reson sheweth experience in + doing.' For utterly no reson the parfit blisse of love by no waye + may make to be comprehended. Lo! what is a parcel of lovers 80 + joye? Parfit science, in good service, of their desyre to comprehende + in bodily doinge the lykinge of the soule; not as by + a glasse to have contemplacion of tyme cominge, but thilke first + imagined and thought after face to face in beholding. What + herte, what reson, what understandinge can make his heven to be 85 + feled and knowe, without assaye in doinge? Certes, noon. Sithen + thanne of love cometh suche fruite in blisse, and love in him-selfe + is the most among other vertues, as clerkes sayn; the seed of + suche springinge in al places, in al countreys, in al worldes shulde + ben sowe. 90 + + But o! welawaye! thilke seed is forsake, and +mowe not ben + suffred, the lond-tillers to sette a-werke, without medlinge of + cockle; badde wedes whiche somtyme stonken +han caught the + name of love among idiotes and badde-meninge people. Never-the-later, + yet how-so-it-be that men clepe thilke +thing preciousest 95 + in kynde, with many eke-names, that other thinges that the soule + yeven the ilke noble name, it sheweth wel that in a maner men + have a greet lykinge in worshippinge of thilke name. Wherfore + this worke have I writte; and to thee, tytled of Loves name, + I have it avowed in a maner of sacrifyse; that, where-ever it be 100 + rad, it mowe in merite, by the excellence of thilke name, the + more wexe in authoritè and worshippe of takinge in hede; and to + what entent it was ordayned, the inseëres mowen ben moved. + Every thing to whom is owande occasion don as for his ende, + Aristotle supposeth that the actes of every thinge ben in a maner 105 + his final cause. A final cause is noblerer, or els even as noble, + as thilke thing that is finally to thilke ende; wherfore accion of + thinge everlasting is demed to be eternal, and not temporal; + sithen it is his final cause. Right so the actes of my boke 'Love,' + and love is noble; wherfore, though my book be leude, the cause 110 + with which I am stered, and for whom I ought it doon, noble + forsothe ben bothe. But bycause that in conninge I am yong, + and can yet but crepe, this leude A. b. c. have I set in-to lerning; + for I can not passen the telling of three as yet. And if god + wil, in shorte tyme, I shal amende this leudnesse in joininge 115 + syllables; whiche thing, for dulnesse of witte, I may not in three + letters declare. For trewly I saye, the goodnesse of my Margaryte-perle + wolde yeve mater in endyting to many clerkes; certes, her + mercy is more to me swetter than any livinges; wherfore my + lippes mowen not suffyse, in speking of her ful laude and worshippe 120 + as they shulde. But who is that [wolde be wyse] in + knowing of the orders of heven, and putteth his resones in the + erthe? I forsothe may not, with blere eyen, the shyning sonne of + vertue in bright whele of this Margaryte beholde; therfore as yet + I may her not discryve in vertue as I wolde. In tyme cominge, 125 + in another tretyse, thorow goddes grace, this sonne in clerenesse + of vertue to be-knowe, and how she enlumineth al this day, + I thinke to declare. + +CH. I. 2. howe. comforte. 3. hadde. 5. folke. 6. anone. 10. purpose. 12. +wytte. 14. wotte. great. 16. _(Something seems to be lost here)._ 17. _I +supply_ nedeth. 18. o; _read_ of. 19. erronyous. maye. 20. menne. sayne. +26. amonge. + +31. wretchydnesse. fal. _I supply_ of. 32. forthe. 33. stedfaste faythe. +34. darne. 35. endlesse. 36. _I supply_ men. 37. folke. 39. great. 40. +onely. 42. fathers; _read_ faders. 44. faythe. 47. put. miracles; _read_ +miracle. 48. thangel. 50. saythe. 51. werne. 53. discomfyte. 54. _I supply_ +arn. 55. wotte. 56. reason. erroure. 57. reason. bewonde (_sic_). catchende +wytte. 59. with; _read_ whiche. 60. reason. 61. Nowe. 62. alwaye. 63. +booke. rancoure. 64. althoughe. 65. booke. + +67. _I supply_ of. nowe. 69. wotte. 70. wysdome 71. toke. 73. reason. 75. +reasons. 76. parfyte. 78-9. reason (_twice_). 79. parfyte. 80. maye. +persel. 81. parfyte. 85. reason. 86. none. 88. amonge. sayne. 88-91. sede. +91. mowen; _read_ mowe. 92. londe-tyllers. set. 93. hath; _read_ han. 94. +meanynge. 95. howe. menne cleape. kynge (_sic_); _read_ thing. 98. great. +99. the. 101. radde. + +104. thynge. done. 107. thynge. 110. boke. 111. done (_sic_). 112. yonge. +113. canne. sette. 114. thre. 116. thynge. maye. thre. 121. that in knowyng +(_sic_); _supply_ wolde be wyse _before_ in knowing. 125. maye. 126. +thorowe. 127. howe. + + CHAPTER II. + + In this mene whyle this comfortable lady gan singe a wonder + mater of endytinge in Latin; but trewly, the noble colours in + rethorik wyse knitte were so craftely, that my conning wol not + strecche to remembre; but the sentence, I trowe, somdel have + I in mynde. Certes, they were wonder swete of sowne, and they 5 + were touched al in lamentacion wyse, and by no werbles of + myrthe. Lo! thus gan she singe in Latin, as I may constrewe it + in our Englisshe tonge. + + 'Alas! that these hevenly bodyes their light and course shewen, + as nature yave hem in commaundement at the ginning of the first 10 + age; but these thinges in free choice of reson han non + understondinge. But man that ought to passe al thing of doinge, of + right course in kynde, over-whelmed sothnesse by wrongful tytle, + and hath drawen the sterre of envye to gon by his syde, that the + clips of me, that shulde be his shynande sonne, so ofte is seye, 15 + that it wened thilke errour, thorow hem come in, shulde ben myn + owne defaute. Trewly, therfore, I have me withdrawe, and mad + my dwellinge out of lande in an yle by my-selfe, in the occian + closed; and yet sayn there many, they have me harberowed; but, + god wot, they faylen. These thinges me greven to thinke, and 20 + namely on passed gladnesse, that in this worlde was wont me + disporte of highe and lowe; and now it is fayled; they that + wolden maystries me have in thilke stoundes. In heven on + highe, above Saturnes sphere, in sesonable tyme were they + lodged; but now come queynte counsailours that in no house 25 + wol suffre me sojourne, wherof is pitè; and yet sayn some that + they me have in celler with wyne shed; in gernere, there corn is + layd covered with whete; in sacke, sowed with wolle; in purse, + with money faste knit; among pannes mouled in a +whicche; + in presse, among clothes layd, with riche pelure arayed; in stable, 30 + among hors and other beestes, as hogges, sheep, and neet; and + in many other wyse. But thou, maker of light (in winking of + thyn eye the sonne is queynt), wost right wel that I in trewe name + was never thus herberowed. + + Somtyme, toforn the sonne in the seventh partie was smiten, 35 + I bar both crosse and mytre, to yeve it where I wolde. With me + the pope wente a-fote; and I tho was worshipped of al holy + church. Kinges baden me their crownes holden. The law was + set as it shuld; tofore the juge, as wel the poore durste shewe + his greef as the riche, for al his money. I defended tho taylages, 40 + and was redy for the poore to paye. I made grete feestes in my + tyme, and noble songes, and maryed damoselles of gentil feture, + withouten golde or other richesse. Poore clerkes, for witte of + schole, I sette in churches, and made suche persones to preche; + and tho was service in holy churche honest and devout, in 45 + plesaunce bothe of god and of the people. But now the leude + for symonye is avaunced, and shendeth al holy churche. Now is + steward, for his achates; now +is courtiour, for his debates; now + is eschetour, for his wronges; now is losel, for his songes, + personer; and [hath his] provendre alone, with whiche manye 50 + thrifty shulde encrese. And yet is this shrewe behynde; free + herte is forsake; and losengeour is take. Lo! it acordeth; for + suche there ben that voluntarie lustes haunten in courte with + ribaudye, that til midnight and more wol playe and wake, but in + the churche at matins he is behynde, for yvel disposicion of his 55 + stomake; therfore he shulde ete bene-breed (and so did his + syre) his estate ther-with to strengthen. His auter is broke, and + lowe lyth, in poynte to gon to the erthe; but his hors muste ben + esy and hye, to bere him over grete waters. His chalice poore, + but he hath riche cuppes. No towayle but a shete, there god 60 + shal ben handled; and on his mete-borde there shal ben bord-clothes + and towelles many payre. At masse serveth but a clergion; + fyve squiers in hal. Poore chaunsel, open holes in every + syde; beddes of silke, with tapites going al aboute his chambre. + Poore masse-book and leud chapelayn, and broken surplice with 65 + many an hole; good houndes and many, to hunte after hart and + hare, to fede in their feestes. Of poore men have they greet + care; for they ever crave and nothing offren, they wolden have + hem dolven! But among legistres there dar I not come; my + doinge[s], they sayn, maken hem nedy. They ne wolde for 70 + nothing have me in town; for than were tort and +force nought + worth an hawe about, and plesen no men, but thilk grevous and + torcious ben in might and in doing. These thinges to-forn-sayd + mowe wel, if men liste, ryme; trewly, they acorde nothing. And + for-as-moch as al thinges by me shulden of right ben governed, 75 + I am sory to see that governaunce fayleth, as thus: to sene smale + and lowe governe the hye and bodies above. Certes, that + policye is naught; it is forbode by them that of governaunce + treten and enformen. And right as beestly wit shulde ben + subject to reson, so erthly power in it-selfe, the lower shulde ben 80 + subject to the hygher. What is worth thy body, but it be + governed with thy soule? Right so litel or naught is worth + erthely power, but if reignatif prudence in heedes governe the + smale; to whiche heedes the smale owen to obey and suffre in + their governaunce. But soverainnesse ayenward shulde thinke in 85 + this wyse: "I am servaunt of these creatures to me delivered, + not lord, but defendour; not mayster, but enfourmer; not + possessour, but in possession; and to hem liche a tree in whiche + sparowes shullen stelen, her birdes to norisshe and forth bringe, + under suretee ayenst al raveynous foules and beestes, and not to 90 + be tyraunt them-selfe." And than the smale, in reste and quiete, + by the heedes wel disposed, owen for their soveraynes helth and + prosperitè to pray, and in other doinges in maintenaunce therof + performe, withouten other administracion in rule of any maner + governaunce. And they wit have in hem, and grace to come to 95 + suche thinges, yet shulde they cese til their heedes them cleped, + although profit and plesaunce shulde folowe. But trewly, other + governaunce ne other medlinge ought they not to clayme, ne + the heedes on hem to putte. Trewly, amonges cosinage dar + I not come, but-if richesse be my mene; sothly, she and other 100 + bodily goodes maketh nigh cosinage, ther never propinquitè ne + alyaunce in lyve was ne shulde have be, nere it for her medling + maners; wherfore kindly am I not ther leged. Povert of + kinred is behynde; richesse suffreth him to passe; truly he saith, + he com never of Japhetes childre. Whereof I am sory that 105 + Japhetes children, for povert, in no linage ben rekened, and + Caynes children, for riches, be maked Japhetes heires. Alas! this + is a wonder chaunge bitwene tho two Noës children, sithen that + of Japhetes ofspring comeden knightes, and of Cayn discended + the lyne of servage to his brothers childre. Lo! how gentillesse 110 + and servage, as cosins, bothe discended out of two brethern of + one body! Wherfore I saye in sothnesse, that gentilesse in + kinrede +maketh not gentil linage in succession, without desert + of a mans own selfe. Where is now the lyne of Alisaundre the + noble, or els of Hector of Troye? Who is discended of right 115 + bloode of lyne fro king Artour? Pardè, sir Perdicas, whom that + Alisandre made to ben his heire in Grece, was of no kinges + bloode; his dame was a tombestere. Of what kinred ben the + gentiles in our dayes? I trow therfore, if any good be in gentilesse, + it is only that it semeth a maner of necessitè be input to 120 + gentilmen, that they shulden not varyen fro the vertues of their + auncestres. Certes, al maner linage of men ben evenliche in + birth; for oon +fader, maker of al goodnes, enformed hem al, + and al mortal folk of one sede arn greyned. Wherto avaunt men + of her linage, in cosinage or in +elde-faders? Loke now the ginning, 125 + and to god, maker of mans person; there is no clerk ne no + worthy in gentilesse; and he that norissheth his +corage with + vyces and unresonable lustes, and leveth the kynde course, to + whiche ende him brought forth his birthe, trewly, he is ungentil, + and among +cherles may ben nempned. And therfore, he that 130 + wol ben gentil, he mot daunten his flesshe fro vyces that causen + ungentilnesse, and leve also reignes of wicked lustes, and drawe + to him vertue, that in al places gentilnesse gentilmen maketh. + And so speke I, in feminine gendre in general, of tho persones, + at the reverence of one whom every wight honoureth; for her 135 + bountee and her noblesse y-made her to god so dere, that his + moder she became; and she me hath had so greet in worship, + that I nil for nothing in open declare, that in any thinge ayenst her + secte may so wene. For al vertue and al worthinesse of plesaunce + in hem haboundeth. And although I wolde any-thing speke, 140 + trewly I can not; I may fynde in yvel of hem no maner mater.' + +CH. II. 1. meane. ganne. 4. stretche. somdele. 7. ganne. + +11. none. 12. thynge. 15. sey; _read_ seye _or_ seyen. 16. thorowe. 17. +made. 19. sayne. 20. wote. 21. wonte. 23. nowe. 24. seasonable. 26. sayne. +27. corne. 28. layde. 29. knytte. amonge (_twice_). wyche; _read_ whicche. +30. layde. 31. amonge horse. shepe. nete. 33. woste. 36. bare. 37. went. +40. grefe. 41. pay. great. 44. preache. + +45. deuoute. 46. nowe. 47. Nowe. 48. stewarde. nowe. it; _read_ is. nowe. +49. eschetoure. nowe. 50. _I supply_ hath his. 51. encrease. 56. eate +beane-. 58. lythe. gone. horse. 59. easy. beare. great. 61. meate-. borde-. +65. boke. leude chapelayne. 66. harte. 67. great. 68. nothynge. 69. amonge. +dare. 70. sayne. 71. forthe; _read_ force. 72. worthe. pleasen. 73. +to-forne-. 74. nothynge. 76. sorye. se. 78. polesye. 79. treaten. wytte. + +80. subiecte. reason. 82. worthe. 83. reignatyfe. 85. ayenwarde. 87. lorde. +88. possessoure. 89. forth bring. 90. suretie. 96. cease. 97. profyte. +pleasaunce. 99. put. dare. 100. meane. 109. comeden (_sic_); _read_ comen? +110. howe. 111. bretherne. 113. maken; _read_ maketh. deserte. 114. nowe. + +118. tombystere. 123. one. father; _read_ fader. 124. folke. arne. 125. +-fathers; _read_ -faders. 126. clerke. 127. corare; _read_ corage. 128. +leaueth. 129. forthe. 130. amonge. clerkes (!); _read_ cherles. 131. mote. +132. leaue. 136. bountie. 137. great. 139. maye. + + CHAPTER III. + + Right with these wordes she stinte of that lamentable + melodye; and I gan with a lyvely herte to praye, if that + it were lyking unto her noble grace, she wolde her deyne to + declare me the mater that firste was begonne, in which she lefte + and stinte to speke beforn she gan to singe. 5 + + 'O,' quod she, 'this is no newe thing to me, to sene you men + desyren after mater, whiche your-selfe caused to voyde.' + + 'Ah, good lady,' quod I, 'in whom victorie of strength is proved + above al other thing, after the jugement of Esdram, whos lordship + al lignes: who is, that right as emperour hem commaundeth, 10 + whether thilke ben not women, in whos lyknesse to me ye aperen? + For right as man halt the principaltè of al thing under his beinge, + in the masculyne gender; and no mo genders ben there + but masculyn and femenyne; al the remenaunt ben no gendres but + of grace, in facultee of grammer: right so, in the femenyne, the 15 + women holden the upperest degree of al thinges under thilke + gendre conteyned. Who bringeth forth kinges, whiche that ben + lordes of see and of erthe; and al peoples of women ben born. + They norisshe hem that graffen vynes; they maken men comfort + in their gladde cheres. Her sorowe is deth to mannes herte. 20 + Without women, the being of men were impossible. They conne + with their swetnesse the crewel herte ravisshe, and make it meke, + buxom, and benigne, without violence mevinge. In beautee + of their eyen, or els of other maner fetures, is al mens desyres; + ye, more than in golde, precious stones, either any richesse. 25 + And in this degree, lady, your-selfe many hertes of men have + so bounden, that parfit blisse in womankynde to ben men wenen, + and in nothinge els. Also, lady, the goodnesse, the vertue of + women, by propertè of discrecion, is so wel knowen, by litelnesse + of malice, that desyre to a good asker by no waye conne they 30 + warne. And ye thanne, that wol not passe the kynde werchinge + of your sectes by general discrecion, I wot wel, ye wol so enclyne + to my prayere, that grace of my requeste shal fully ben graunted.' + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'thus for the more parte fareth al mankynde, + to praye and to crye after womans grace, and fayne many fantasyes 35 + to make hertes enclyne to your desyres. And whan these + sely women, for freeltè of their kynde, beleven your wordes, and + wenen al be gospel the promise of your behestes, than graunt[en] + they to you their hertes, and fulfillen your lustes, wherthrough + their libertè in maystreship that they toforn had is thralled; and 40 + so maked soverayn and to be prayed, that first was servaunt, + and voice of prayer used. Anon as filled is your lust, many of you + be so trewe, that litel hede take ye of suche kyndnesse; but + with traysoun anon ye thinke hem begyle, and let light of that + thing whiche firste ye maked to you wonders dere; so what 45 + thing to women it is to loven any wight er she him wel knowe, + and have him proved in many halfe! For every glittring thing + is nat gold; and under colour of fayre speche many vices may + be hid and conseled. Therfore I rede no wight to trust on you + to rathe; mens chere and her speche right gyleful is ful ofte. 50 + Wherfore without good assay, it is nat worth on many +of you + to truste. Trewly, it is right kyndely to every man that thinketh + women betraye, and shewen outward al goodnesse, til he have + his wil performed. Lo! the bird is begyled with the mery voice + of the foulers whistel. Whan a woman is closed in your nette, 55 + than wol ye causes fynden, and bere unkyndenesse her +on + hande, or falsetè upon her putte, your owne malicious trayson + with suche thinge to excuse. Lo! than han women non other + wreche in vengeaunce, but +blobere and wepe til hem list stint, + and sorily her mishap complayne; and is put in-to wening that 60 + al men ben so untrewe. How often have men chaunged her + loves in a litel whyle, or els, for fayling their wil, in their + places hem set! For fren[d]ship shal be oon, and fame with another + him list for to have, and a thirde for delyt; or els were he lost + bothe in packe and in clothes! Is this fair? Nay, god wot. 65 + I may nat telle, by thousande partes, the wronges in trechery + of suche false people; for make they never so good a bond, + al sette ye at a myte whan your hert tourneth. And they that + wenen for sorowe of you deye, the pitè of your false herte is flowe + out of towne. Alas! therfore, that ever any woman wolde take 70 + any wight in her grace, til she knowe, at the ful, on whom she + might at al assayes truste! Women con no more craft in queynt + knowinge, to understande the false disceyvable conjectementes + of mannes begylinges. Lo! how it fareth; though ye men + gronen and cryen, certes, it is but disceyt; and that preveth wel 75 + by th'endes in your werkinge. How many women have ben + lorn, and with shame foule shent by long-lastinge tyme, whiche + thorow mennes gyle have ben disceyved? Ever their fame shal + dure, and their dedes [ben] rad and songe in many londes; that + they han don, recoveren shal they never; but alway ben demed 80 + lightly, in suche plyte a-yen shulde they falle. Of whiche slaunders + and tenes ye false men and wicked ben the verey causes; on you + by right ought these shames and these reproves al hoolly discende. + Thus arn ye al nighe untrewe; for al your fayre speche, your + herte is ful fickel. What cause han ye women to dispyse? Better 85 + fruite than they ben, ne swetter spyces to your behove, mowe ye + not fynde, as far as worldly bodyes strecchen. Loke to their + forminge, at the making of their persones by god in joye of + paradyce! For goodnesse, of mans propre body were they + maked, after the sawes of the bible, rehersing goddes wordes in 90 + this wyse: "It is good to mankynde that we make to him an + helper." Lo! in paradyse, for your helpe, was this tree graffed, + out of whiche al linage of man discendeth. If a man be noble + frute, of noble frute it is sprongen; the blisse of paradyse, to + mennes sory hertes, yet in this tree abydeth. O! noble helpes 95 + ben these trees, and gentil jewel to ben worshipped of every + good creature! He that hem anoyeth doth his owne shame; it is + a comfortable perle ayenst al tenes. Every company is mirthed + by their present being. Trewly, I wiste never vertue, but a woman + were therof the rote. What is heven the worse though Sarazins 100 + on it lyen? Is your fayth untrewe, though +renegates maken + theron lesinges? If the fyr doth any wight brenne, blame his + owne wit that put him-selfe so far in the hete. Is not fyr gentillest + and most comfortable element amonges al other? Fyr + is cheef werker in fortheringe sustenaunce to mankynde. Shal 105 + fyr ben blamed for it brende a foole naturelly, by his own stulty + witte in steringe? Ah! wicked folkes! For your propre malice + and shreudnesse of your-selfe, ye blame and dispyse the precious[es]t + thing of your kynde, and whiche thinges among other + moste ye desyren! Trewly, Nero and his children ben shrewes, 110 + that dispysen so their dames. The wickednesse and gyling of + men, in disclaundring of thilke that most hath hem glad[d]ed + and plesed, were impossible to wryte or to nempne. Never-the-later + yet I say, he that knoweth a way may it lightly passe; eke + an herbe proved may safely to smertande sores ben layd. So 115 + I say, in him that is proved is nothing suche yvels to gesse. + But these thinges have I rehersed, to warne you women al at + ones, that to lightly, without good assaye, ye assenten not to + mannes speche. The sonne in the day-light is to knowen from + the moone that shyneth in the night. Now to thee thy-selfe 120 + (quod she) as I have ofte sayd, I knowe wel thyne herte; thou + art noon of al the tofore-nempned people. For I knowe wel the + continuaunce of thy service, that never sithen I sette thee + a-werke, might thy Margaryte for plesaunce, frendship, ne fayrhede + of none other, be in poynte moved from thyne herte; wherfore 125 + in-to myne housholde hastely I wol that thou entre, and al the + parfit privitè of my werking, make it be knowe in thy understonding, + as oon of my privy familiers. Thou desyrest (quod she) + fayn to here of tho thinges there I lefte?' + + 'Ye, forsothe,' quod I, 'that were to me a greet blisse.' 130 + + 'Now,' quod she, 'for thou shalt not wene that womans condicions + for fayre speche suche thing belongeth:-- + +CH. III. 2. ganne. 5. beforne. 6. thynge. menne. 9. thynge. whose. + +10. lignes (_sic_). 11. whose lykenesse. 12. halte. 15. facultie. 17. +forthe. 18. borne. 19. comforte. 20. dethe. 23. buxome. beautie. 27. +parfyte. 32. wotte. 38. graunt. 40. toforne. + +48. golde. 51. worthe. on; _read_ of. 53. -warde. 54. birde. 56. beare. +vnha_n_de; _read_ on hande. 58. none. 59. bloder; _read_ blobere. 61. Howe. +63. sette. frenship (_sic_). one. 64. lyste. delyte. 65. faire. 66. maye. +tel. 67. bo_n_de. 69. dey. 72. trust. crafte. 74. howe. 76. thendes. Howe. +77. lorne. longe-. 78. thorowe. 79. _I supply_ ben. radde. 80. done. 81. +fal. 83. holy. + +84. arne. 87. farre. stretchen. 97. dothe. 99. wyst. 101. faythe. thoughe +rennogates. 102. leasynges. fyre (_four times_) 103. wytte. farre. heate. +104, 112. moste. 104. element comfortable; _read_ comfortable element. 105. +chefe. 108. precioust. 109. amonge. 112-3. gladed and pleased. 115. layde. +120. Nowe. the. + +122. arte none. 123. set the. 124. frendeshyp. fayrehede. 127. parfyte. +128. one. 129. fayne. 130. great. 131. Nowe. + + CHAPTER IV. + + Thou shalt,' quod she, 'understonde first among al other + thinges, that al the cure of my service to me in the parfit + blisse in doing is desyred in every mannes herte, be he never + so moche a wrecche; but every man travayleth by dyvers studye, + and seke[th] thilke blisse by dyvers wayes. But al the endes 5 + are knit in selinesse of desyre in the parfit blisse, that is suche + joye, whan men it have gotten, there +leveth no thing more to + ben coveyted. But how that desyre of suche perfeccion in + my service be kindely set in lovers hertes, yet her erroneous + opinions misturne it by falsenesse of wening. And although 10 + mannes understanding be misturned, to knowe whiche shuld ben + the way unto my person, and whither it abydeth; yet wote they + there is a love in every wight, [whiche] weneth by that thing that + he coveyteth most, he shulde come to thilke love; and that + is parfit blisse of my servauntes; but than fulle blisse may not 15 + be, and there lacke any thing of that blisse in any syde. Eke it + foloweth than, that he that must have ful blisse lacke no blisse in + love on no syde.' + + 'Therfore, lady,' quod I tho, 'thilke blisse I have desyred, + and +soghte toforn this my-selfe, by wayes of riches, of dignitè, 20 + of power, and of renomè, wening me in tho +thinges had ben + thilke blisse; but ayenst the heer it turneth. Whan I supposed + beste thilke blisse have +getten, and come to the ful purpose + of your service, sodaynly was I hindred, and throwen so fer + abacke, that me thinketh an inpossible to come there I lefte.' 25 + + 'I +wot wel,' quod she; 'and therfore hast thou fayled; for + thou wentest not by the hye way. A litel misgoing in the ginning + causeth mikil errour in the ende; wherfore of thilke blisse thou + fayledest, for having of richesse; ne non of the other thinges thou + nempnedest mowen nat make suche parfit blisse in love as I shal 30 + shewe. Therfore they be nat worthy to thilke blisse; and yet + somwhat must ben cause and way to thilke blisse. _Ergo_, there is + som suche thing, and som way, but it is litel in usage and that + is nat openly y-knowe. But what felest in thyne hert of the + service, in whiche by me thou art entred? Wenest aught thy-selfe 35 + yet be in the hye way to my blisse? I shal so shewe it to + thee, thou shalt not conne saye the contrary.' + + 'Good lady,' quod I, 'altho I suppose it in my herte, yet + wolde I here thyn wordes, how ye menen in this mater.' + + Quod she, 'that I shal, with my good wil. Thilke blisse 40 + desyred, som-del ye knowen, altho it be nat parfitly. For kyndly + entencion ledeth you therto, but in three maner livinges is al suche + wayes shewed. Every wight in this world, to have this blisse, oon + of thilke three wayes of lyves must procede; whiche, after opinions + of grete clerkes, are by names cleped bestiallich, resonablich, [and 45 + manlich. Resonablich] is vertuous. Manlich is worldlich. Bestialliche + is lustes and delytable, nothing restrayned by bridel of reson. + Al that joyeth and yeveth gladnesse to the hert, and it be ayenst + reson, is lykened to bestial living, which thing foloweth lustes and + delytes; wherfore in suche thinge may nat that precious blisse, 50 + that is maister of al vertues, abyde. Your +faders toforn you have + cleped such lusty livinges after the flessh "passions of desyre," + which are innominable tofore god and man both. Than, after + determinacion of suche wyse, we accorden that suche passions of + desyre shul nat be nempned, but holden for absolute from al other 55 + livinges and provinges; and so +leveth in t[w]o livinges, manlich + and resonable, to declare the maters begonne. But to make thee + fully have understanding in manlich livinges, whiche is holden + worldlich in these thinges, so that ignorance be mad no letter, + I wol (quod she) nempne these forsayd wayes +by names and 60 + conclusions. First riches, dignitè, renomè, and power shul in + this worke be cleped bodily goodes; for in hem hath ben, a gret + throw, mannes trust of selinesse in love: as in riches, suffisance + to have maintayned that was begonne by worldly catel; in dignitè, + honour and reverence of hem that wern underput by maistry 65 + therby to obeye. In renomè, glorie of peoples praising, after + lustes in their hert, without hede-taking to qualitè and maner of + doing; and in power, by trouth of lordships mayntenaunce, thing + to procede forth in doing. In al whiche thinges a longe tyme + mannes coveytise in commune hath ben greetly grounded, to come 70 + to the blisse of my service; but trewly, they were begyled, and for + the principal muste nedes fayle, and in helping mowe nat availe. + See why. For holdest him not poore that is nedy?' + + 'Yes, pardè,' quod I. + + 'And him for dishonored, that moche folk deyne nat to 75 + reverence?' + + 'That is soth,' quod I. + + 'And what him, that his mightes faylen and mowe nat helpen?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'me semeth, of al men he shulde be holden + a wrecche.' 80 + + 'And wenest nat,' quod she, 'that he that is litel in renomè, + but rather is out of the praysinges of mo men than a fewe, be nat + in shame?' + + 'For soth,' quod I, 'it is shame and villany, to him that + coveyteth renomè, that more folk nat prayse in name than preise.' 85 + + 'Soth,' quod she, 'thou sayst soth; but al these thinges are + folowed of suche maner doinge, and wenden in riches suffisaunce, + in power might, in dignitè worship, and in renomè glorie; wherfore + they discended in-to disceyvable wening, and in that service disceit + is folowed. And thus, in general, thou and al suche other that so 90 + worchen, faylen of my blisse that ye long han desyred. Wherfore + truly, in lyfe of reson is the hye way to this blisse; as I thinke + more openly to declare herafter. Never-the-later yet, in a litel to + comforte thy herte, in shewing of what waye thou art entred + *selfe, and that thy Margarite may knowe thee set in the hye way, 95 + I wol enforme thee in this wyse. Thou hast fayled of thy first + purpos, bicause thou wentest wronge and leftest the hye way on + thy right syde, as thus: thou lokedest on worldly living, and that + thing thee begyled; and lightly therfore, as a litel assay, thou + songedest; but whan I turned thy purpos, and shewed thee 100 + a part of the hye waye, tho thou abode therin, and no deth ne + ferdnesse of non enemy might thee out of thilk way reve; but + ever oon in thyn herte, to come to the ilke blisse, whan thou + were arested and firste tyme enprisoned, thou were loth to + chaunge thy way, for in thy hert thou wendest to have ben there 105 + thou shuldest. And for I had routhe to sene thee miscaried, + and wiste wel thyn ablenesse my service to forther and encrese, + I com my-selfe, without other mene, to visit thy person in comfort + of thy hert. And perdy, in my comming thou were greetly + glad[d]ed; after whiche tyme no disese, no care, no tene, might 110 + move me out of thy hert. And yet am I glad and greetly enpited, + how continually thou haddest me in mynde, with good avysement + of thy conscience, whan thy king and his princes by huge wordes + and grete loked after variaunce in thy speche; and ever thou + were redy for my sake, in plesaunce of the Margarite-perle and 115 + many mo other, thy body to oblige in-to Marces doing, if any + contraried thy sawes. Stedfast way maketh stedfast hert, with + good hope in the ende. Trewly, I wol that thou it wel knowe; + for I see thee so set, and not chaunginge herte haddest in my + service; and I made thou haddest grace of thy kinge, in 120 + foryevenesse of mikel misdede. To the gracious king art thou mikel + holden, of whos grace and goodnesse somtyme hereafter I thinke + thee enforme, whan I shew the ground where-as moral vertue + groweth. Who brought thee to werke? Who brought this grace + aboute? Who made thy hert hardy? Trewly, it was I. For 125 + haddest thou of me fayled, than of this purpos had[dest thou] + never taken [hede] in this wyse. And therfore I say, thou might + wel truste to come to thy blisse, sithen thy ginninge hath ben hard, + but ever graciously after thy hertes desyr hath proceded. Silver + fyned with many hetes men knowen for trew; and safely men 130 + may trust to the alay in werkinge. This +disese hath proved what + way hence-forward thou thinkest to holde.' + + 'Now, in good fayth, lady,' quod I tho, 'I am now in; me + semeth, it is the hye way and the right.' + + 'Ye, forsothe,' quod she, 'and now I wol disprove thy first 135 + wayes, by whiche many men wenen to gette thilke blisse. But + for-as-moche as every herte that hath caught ful love, is tyed with + queynt knittinges, thou shalt understande that love and thilke + foresayd blisse toforn declared in this[e] provinges, shal hote the + knot in the hert.' 140 + + 'Wel,' quod I, 'this inpossession I wol wel understande.' + + 'Now also,' quod she, 'for the knotte in the herte muste ben + from one to an-other, and I knowe thy desyr, I wol thou understande + these maters to ben sayd of thy-selfe, in disproving of thy + first service, and in strengthinge of thilke that thou hast 145 + undertake to thy Margaryte-perle.' + + 'A goddes halfe,' quod I, 'right wel I fele that al this case is + possible and trewe; and therfore I +admitte it altogither.' + + '+Understand wel,' quod she, 'these termes, and loke no + contradiccion thou graunt.' 150 + + 'If god wol,' quod I, 'of al these thinges wol I not fayle; and + if I graunt contradiccion, I shulde graunte an impossible; and + that were a foul inconvenience; for whiche thinges, lady, y-wis, + herafter I thinke me to kepe.' + +CH. IV. 1. shalte. amonge. 2. parfyte. 4. wretche. 5. seke; _read_ seketh. +6. p_ar_fyte. 7. lyueth; _read_ leveth. thynge. 8. howe. perfection. 9. +erronyous. 13. _I supply_ whiche. 14. moste. 15. parfyte. maye. 16. thynge. +20. sothe; _read_ soghte. toforne. + +21. thrages (_sic_); _read_ thinges. 22. heere. 23. get; _read_ getten. 26. +wol; _read_ wot. 30. p_ar_fite. 33. some (_twice_). 37. the. shalte. con. +39. howe ye meanen. 41. so_m_e deale. 42. entention. thre. lyuenges. 43. +one. 44. thre. 45. great. cleaped. _I supply_ and manlich. Resonablich. 47. +nothynge. 47-9. reason (_twice_). 49. lyueng. thynge. 50. maye. 51. +fathers. toforne. 52. lyuenges. 54. determination. 56. lyuenges (_twice_). +lyueth; _read_ leveth. to; _read_ two. + +57. the. 58. lyuenges. 59. made. 60. be; _read_ by. 62. cleaped. 64. begon. +65. werne. 66. obey. 70. greatly. 73. Se. 75. folke. 80. wretch. 89. +disceite. 92. reason. 94. arte. + +95-6. the (_twice_). 97-100. purpose. 98. lyueng. 99. the. 100-2. the. 101. +parte. dethe. 103. one. 106. the. 107. wyst. thyne. encrease. 108. come. +mean. _For_ person _read_ prison? comforte. 109. greatly gladed. 110. +disease. 111. gladde. greatly. 112. howe. 114. great. 115. peerle. 119. se +the. 121. arte. 122. whose. 123. the. grounde. 124. the. 126. purpose. had; +_read_ haddest thou. _I supply_ hede. 128. harde. 129. desyre. 130. heates. + +131. diseases (_sic_). waye. -forwarde. 133-142. Nowe (_four times_). 139. +toforne. 143. desyre. 145. stre_n_ghthynge. haste. 148. admytted; _read_ +admytte it. 149. Vnderstanden (_sic_). 149-152. contradyction (_twice_). +153. foule. ladye. + + CHAPTER V. + + 'Wel,' quod she, 'thou knowest that every thing is a cause, + wherthrough any thing hath being that is cleped "caused." + Than, if richesse +causeth knot in herte, thilke richesse +is cause + of thilke precious thinge being. But after the sentence of + Aristotle, every cause is more in dignitè than his thinge caused; 5 + wherthrough it foloweth richesse to ben more in dignitè than + thilke knot. But richesses arn kyndely naughty, badde, and + nedy; and thilke knotte is thing kyndely good, most praysed + and desyred. _Ergo_, thing naughty, badde, and nedy in kyndely + understandinge is more worthy than thing kyndely good, most 10 + desyred and praysed! The consequence is fals; nedes, the + antecedent mot ben of the same condicion. But that richesses + ben bad, naughty, and nedy, that wol I prove; wherfore they + mowe cause no suche thing that is so glorious and good. The + more richesse thou hast, the more nede hast thou of helpe hem 15 + to kepe. _Ergo_, thou nedest in richesse, whiche nede thou + shuldest not have, if thou hem wantest. Than muste richesse + ben nedy, that in their having maken thee nedy to helpes, in + suretee thy richesse to kepen; wherthrough foloweth, richesse to + ben nedy. Everything causinge yvels is badde and naughty; but 20 + richesse in one causen misese, in another they mowen not evenly + strecchen al about. Wherof cometh plee, debat, thefte, begylinges, + but richesse to winne; whiche thinges ben badde, and by richesse + arn caused. _Ergo_, thilke richesse[s] ben badde; whiche badnesse + and nede ben knit in-to richesse by a maner of kyndely propertee; 25 + and every cause and caused accorden; so that it foloweth, thilke + richesse[s] to have the same accordaunce with badnesse and nede, + that their cause asketh. Also, every thing hath his being by his + cause; than, if the cause be distroyed, the being of caused is + vanisshed. And, so, if richesse[s] causen love, and richesse[s] 30 + weren distroyed, the love shulde vanisshe; but thilke knotte, and + it be trewe, may not vanisshe, for no going of richesse. _Ergo_, + richesse is no cause of the knot. And many men, as I sayd, + setten the cause of the knotte in richesse; thilke knitten the + richesse, and nothing the yvel; thilke persons, what-ever they 35 + ben, wenen that riches is most worthy to be had; and that make + they the cause; and so wene they thilke riches be better than the + person. Commenly, suche asken rather after the quantitè than + after the qualitè; and suche wenen, as wel by hem-selfe as by + other, that conjunccion of his lyfe and of his soule is no more 40 + precious, but in as mikel as he hath of richesse. Alas! how may + he holden suche thinges precious or noble, that neither han lyf ne + soule, ne ordinaunce of werchinge limmes! Suche richesse[s] + ben more worthy whan they ben in +gadering; in departing, + ginneth his love of other mennes praysing. And avarice +gadering 45 + maketh be hated, and nedy to many out-helpes; and whan leveth + the possession of such goodes, and they ginne vanissh, than + entreth sorowe and tene in their hertes. O! badde and strayte + ben thilke, that at their departinge maketh men teneful and sory, + and in the +gadering of hem make men nedy! Moche folk at 50 + ones mowen not togider moche therof have. A good gest gladdeth + his hoste and al his meyny; but he is a badde gest that maketh + his hoste nedy and to be aferd of his gestes going.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'me wondreth therfore that the comune + opinion is thus: "He is worth no more than that he hath in 55 + catel."' + + 'O!' quod she, 'loke thou be not of that opinion; for if gold or + money, or other maner of riches shynen in thy sight, whos is that? + Nat thyn. And tho[ugh] they have a litel beautee, they be nothing + in comparison of our kynde; and therfore, ye shulde nat sette 60 + your worthinesse in thing lower than your-selfe. For the riches, + the fairnesse, the worthinesse of thilke goodes, if ther be any + suche preciousnesse in hem, are nat thyne; thou madest hem + so never; from other they come to thee, and to other they shul + from thee. Wherfore enbracest thou other wightes good, as 65 + tho[ugh] they were thyn? Kynde hath drawe hem by hem-selfe. + It is sothe, the goodes of the erth ben ordayned in your fode + and norisshinge; but if thou wolt holde thee apayd with that + suffyseth to thy kynde, thou shalt nat be in daunger of no suche + riches; to kynde suffyseth litel thing, who that taketh hede. 70 + And if thou wolt algates with superfluitè of riches be a-throted, + thou shalt hastelich be anoyed, or els yvel at ese. And fairnesse + of feldes ne of habitacions, ne multitude of meynè, may nat be + rekened as riches that are thyn owne. For if they be badde, it is + greet sclaunder and villany to the occupyer; and if they be good 75 + or faire, the mater of the workman that hem made is to prayse. + How shulde other-wyse bountee be compted for thyne? Thilke + goodnesse and fairnesse be proper to tho thinges hem-selfe; than, + if they be nat thyne, sorow nat whan they wende, ne glad thee + nat in pompe and in pride whan thou hem hast. For their 80 + bountee and their beautees cometh out of their owne kynde, and + nat of thyne owne person. As faire ben they in their not having + as whan thou hast hem. They be nat faire for thou hast hem; + but thou hast geten hem for the fairnesse of them-selfe. And + there the vaylance of men is demed in richesse outforth, wenen 85 + me[n] to have no proper good in them-selfe, but seche it in + straunge thinges. Trewly, the condicion of good wening is to + thee mistourned, to wene, your noblesse be not in your-selfe, but + in the goodes and beautee of other thinges. Pardy, the beestes + that han but feling soules, have suffisaunce in their owne selfe; 90 + and ye, that ben lyke to god, seken encrese of suffisaunce from so + excellent a kynde of so lowe thinges; ye do greet wrong to him + that you made lordes over al erthly thinges; and ye putte your + worthinesse under the nombre of the fete of lower thinges and + foule. Whan ye juge thilke riches to be your worthinesse, than 95 + putte ye your-selfe, by estimacion, under thilke foule thinges; + and than leve ye the knowing of your-selfe; so be ye viler than + any dombe beest; that cometh of shrewde vice. Right so thilke + persons that loven non yvel for dereworthinesse of the persone, + but for straunge goodes, and saith, the adornement in the knot 100 + lyth in such thing; his errour is perilous and shrewd, and he + wryeth moche venim with moche welth; and that knot may + nat be good whan he hath it getten. + + Certes, thus hath riches with flickering sight anoyed many; + and often, whan there is a throw-out shrewe, he coyneth al the 105 + gold, al the precious stones that mowen be founden, to have in + his bandon; he weneth no wight be worthy to have suche thinges + but he alone. How many hast thou knowe, now in late tyme, + that in their richesse supposed suffisance have folowed, and now + it is al fayled!' 110 + + 'Ye, lady,' quod I, 'that is for mis medling; and otherwyse + governed [they] thilke richesse than they shulde.' + + 'Ye,' quod she tho, 'had not the flood greetly areysed, and + throwe to-hemward both gravel and sand, he had mad no medlinge. + And right as see yeveth flood, so draweth see ebbe, and 115 + pulleth ayen under wawe al the firste out-throwe, but-if good pyles + of noble governaunce in love, in wel-meninge maner, ben sadly + grounded; +the whiche holde thilke gravel as for a tyme, that + ayen lightly mowe not it turne; and if the pyles ben trewe, the + gravel and sand wol abyde. And certes, ful warning in love shalt 120 + thou never thorow hem get ne cover, that lightly with an ebbe, er + thou be ware, it [ne] wol ayen meve. In richesse many men + have had tenes and diseses, whiche they shulde not have had, if + therof they had fayled. Thorow whiche, now declared, partly it is + shewed, that for richesse shulde the knotte in herte neither ben 125 + caused in one ne in other; trewly, knotte may ben knit, and + I trowe more stedfast, in love, though richesse fayled; and els, + in richesse is the knotte, and not in herte. And than suche + a knotte is fals; whan the see ebbeth and withdraweth the + gravel, that such richesse voydeth, thilke knotte wol unknitte. 130 + Wherfore no trust, no way, no cause, no parfit being is in + richesse, of no suche knotte. Therfore another way muste we + have. + +CH. V. 1. thynge. 2. -throughe. 3. causen; _read_ causeth. arne; _read_ is. +7. arne. 8, 9. thynge (_twice_). moste. + +10. thynge. moste. 11. false. 12. mote. 15. haste. 18. the. 19. suretie. +21. misease. 22. stretchen. debate. 24. arne. richesse; _read_ richesses. +25. propertie. 27-30. richesse; _read_ richesses (_thrice_). 35. nothynge. +40. coniunction. 41. howe maye. 42. lyfe. 43. richesse; _read_ richesses. +44-5. gatheryng. + +50. gatheryng. folke. 53. aferde. 55. worthe. 57. golde. 58. whose. 59. +beautie. 60. set. 64-5. the (_twice_). 68. wolte. the apayde. 72. ease. 73. +maye. 75. great. 76. workeman. 77. Howe. bountie. 79. the. 81. bountie. +beautes. 83-4. haste (_thrice_). + +86. me; _read_ men. 87. co_n_dytion. 88. the. 89. beautie. 91. encrease. +92. great. 93-6. put (_twice_). 101. shreude. 102. maye. 105. throwe out. +106. golde. 108. Howe. haste. 108-9. nowe. 111. misse medlyng. 112. +_Supply_ they. 113. floode greatly. 114. hemwarde. sande. made. 115. +floode. 116. out throw. 117. meanynge. 118. to; _read_ the. 120. sande. +121. shalte. thorowe. + +122. beware. _I supply_ ne. 123. diseases. 124. Thorowe. nowe. partely. +126. maye. knytte. 129. false. 131. parfyte. + + CHAPTER VI. + + Honour in dignitè is wened to yeven a ful knot.' + 'Ye, certes,' quod I, 'and of that opinion ben many; + for they sayn, dignitè, with honour and reverence, causen hertes + to encheynen, and so abled to be knit togither, for the excellence + in soverayntè of such degrees.' 5 + + 'Now,' quod she, 'if dignitè, honour, and reverence causen + thilke knotte in herte, this knot is good and profitable. For + every cause of a cause is cause of thing caused. Than thus: + good thinges and profitable ben by dignitè, honour, and reverence + caused. _Ergo_, they accorden; and dignites ben good with 10 + reverences and honour. But contraries mowen not accorden. + Wherfore, by reson, there shulde no dignitee, no reverence, non + honour acorde with shrewes. But that is fals; they have ben + cause to shrewes in many shreudnes; for with hem they accorden. + _Ergo_, from beginning to argue ayenward til it come to the laste 15 + conclusion, they are not cause of the knot. Lo, al day at eye arn + shrewes not in reverence, in honour, and in dignitè? Yes, forsothe, + rather than the good. Than foloweth it that shrewes + rather than good shul ben cause of this knot. But of this [the] + contrarie of al lovers is bileved, and for a sothe openly determined 20 + to holde.' + + 'Now,' quod I, 'fayn wolde I here, how suche dignitees acorden + with shrewes.' + + 'O,' quod she, 'that wol I shewe in manifolde wyse. Ye wene + (quod she) that dignites of office here in your citè is as the 25 + sonne; it shyneth bright withouten any cloude; [of] whiche thing, + whan they comen in the handes of malicious tirauntes, there + cometh moche harm, and more grevaunce therof than of the + wilde fyre, though it brende al a strete. Certes, in dignitè of + office, the werkes of the occupyer shewen the malice and the 30 + badnesse in the person; with shrewes they maken manyfolde + harmes, and moche people shamen. How often han rancours, + for malice of the governour, shulde ben mainteyned? Hath not + than suche dignitees caused debat, rumours, and yvels? Yes, + god wot, by suche thinges have ben trusted to make mens understanding 35 + enclyne to many queynte thinges. Thou wottest wel + what I mene.' + + 'Ye,' quod I, 'therfore, as dignitè suche thing in tene y-wrought, + so ayenward, the substaunce in dignitè chaunged, relyed to bring + ayen good plyte in doing.' 40 + + 'Do way, do way,' quod she; 'if it so betyde, but that is + selde, that suche dignitè is betake in a good mannes governaunce, + what thing is to recken in the dignitees goodnesse? Pardè, the + bountee and goodnesse is hers that usen it in good governaunce; + and therfore cometh it that honour and reverence shulde ben 45 + don to dignitè bycause of encresinge vertue in the occupyer, + and not to the ruler bycause of soverayntee in dignitè. Sithen + dignitè may no vertue cause, who is worthy worship for suche + goodnesse? Not dignitè, but person, that maketh goodnesse in + dignitè to shyne.' 50 + + 'This is wonder thing,' quod I; 'for me thinketh, as the person + in dignitè is worthy honour for goodnesse, so, tho[ugh] a person + for badnesse ma[u]gree hath deserved, yet the dignitè leneth to + be commended.' + + 'Let be,' quod she, 'thou errest right foule; dignitè with 55 + badnesse is helper to performe the felonous doing. Pardy, were + it kyndly good, or any propertè of kyndly vertue [that men] + hadden in hem-selfe, shrewes shulde hem never have; with hem + shulde they never accorde. Water and fyr, that ben contrarious, + mowen nat togider ben assembled; kynde wol nat suffre suche 60 + contraries to joyne. And sithen at eye, by experience in doing, + we seen that shrewes have hem more often than good men, siker + mayst thou be, that kyndly good in suche thing is nat appropred. + Pardy, were they kyndly good, as wel oon as other shulden + evenlich in vertue of governaunce ben worthe; but oon fayleth in 65 + goodnesse, another doth the contrary; and so it sheweth, kyndly + goodnesse in dignitè nat be grounded. And this same reson + (quod she) may be mad, in general, on al the bodily goodes; + for they comen ofte to throw-out shrewes. After this, he is + strong that hath might to have grete burthens, and he is light 70 + and swifte, that hath soveraintè in ronning to passe other; right + so he is a shrewe, on whom shreude thinges and badde han most + werchinge. And right as philosophy maketh philosophers, and + my service maketh lovers, right so, if dignites weren good or + vertuous, they shulde maken shrewes good, and turne her malice, 75 + and make hem be vertuous. But that they do nat, as it is + proved, but causen rancour and debat. _Ergo_, they be nat good, + but utterly badde. Had Nero never ben Emperour, shulde + never his dame have be slayn, to maken open the privitè of his + engendrure. Herodes, for his dignitè, slew many children. The 80 + dignitè of king John wolde have distroyed al England. Therfore + mokel wysdom and goodnesse both, nedeth in a person, the + malice in dignitè slyly to brydel, and with a good bitte of arest + to withdrawe, in case it wolde praunce otherwyse than it shulde. + Trewly, ye yeve to dignites wrongful names in your cleping. 85 + They shulde hete, nat dignitè, but moustre of badnesse and + mayntenour of shrewes. Pardy, shyne the sonne never so bright, + and it bringe forth no hete, ne sesonably the herbes out-bringe of + the erthe, but suffre frostes and cold, and the erthe barayne to + ligge by tyme of his compas in circute about, ye wolde wonder, 90 + and dispreyse that sonne! If the mone be at ful, and sheweth + no light, but derke and dimme to your sight appereth, and make + distruccion of the waters, wol ye nat suppose it be under cloude + or in clips, and that som prevy thing, unknowen to your wittes, + is cause of suche contrarious doinge? Than, if clerkes, that han 95 + ful insight and knowing of suche impedimentes, enforme you of + the sothe, very idiottes ye ben, but-if ye yeven credence to thilk + clerkes wordes. And yet it doth me tene, to sene many wrecches + rejoycen in such maner planettes. Trewly, litel con[ne] they on + philosophy, or els on my lore, that any desyr haven suche 100 + lightinge planettes in that wyse any more to shewe.' + + 'Good lady,' quod I, 'tel me how ye mene in these thinges.' + + 'Lo,' quod she, 'the dignites of your citè, sonne and mone, + nothing in kynde shew their shyning as they shulde. For the + sonne made no brenning hete in love, but freesed envye in 105 + mennes hertes, for feblenesse of shyning hete; and the moone + was about, under an olde cloude, the livinges by waters to + distroye.' + + 'Lady,' quod I, 'it is supposed they had shyned as they + shulde.' 110 + + 'Ye,' quod she, 'but now it is proved at the ful, their beautè in + kyndly shyning fayled; wherfore dignitè of him-selven hath no + beautee in fayrnesse, ne dryveth nat awaye vices, but encreseth; + and so be they no cause of the knotte. Now see, in good trouth; + holde ye nat such sonnes worthy of no reverence, and dignites 115 + worthy of no worship, that maketh men to do the more harmes?' + + 'I not,' quod I. + + 'No?' quod she; 'and thou see a wyse good man, for his + goodnesse and wysnesse wolt thou nat do him worship? Therof + he is worthy.' 120 + + 'That is good skil,' quod I; 'it is dewe to suche, both reverence + and worship to have.' + + 'Than,' quod she, 'a shrewe, for his shreudnesse, altho he be + put forth toforn other for ferde, yet is he worthy, for shrewdnesse, + to be unworshipped; of reverence no part is he worthy to have, 125 + [that] to contrarious doing belongeth: and that is good skil. + For, right as he besmyteth the dignites, thilke same thing ayenward + him smyteth, or els shulde smyte. And over this thou wost + wel (quod she) that fyr in every place heteth where it be, and + water maketh wete. Why? For kyndely werking is so y-put in 130 + hem, to do suche thinges; for every kyndely in werking sheweth + his kynde. But though a wight had ben mayre of your city + many winter togider, and come in a straunge place there he were + not knowen, he shulde for his dignitè have no reverence. Than + neither worshippe ne reverence is kyndely propre in no dignitè, 135 + sithen they shulden don their kynde in suche doinge, if any were. + And if reverence ne worshippe kyndely be not set in dignitees, + and they more therein ben shewed than goodnesse, for that in + dignitè is shewed, but it proveth that goodnesse kyndely in hem + is not grounded. I-wis, neither worshippe, ne reverence, ne 140 + goodnesse in dignitè don non office of kynde; for they have non + suche propertee in nature of doinge but by false opinion of the + people. Lo! how somtyme thilke that in your city wern in + dignitè noble, if thou liste hem nempne, they ben now overturned + bothe in worship, in name, and in reverence; wherfore 145 + such dignites have no kyndly werching of worshippe and of + reverence. He that hath no worthinesse on it-selfe, now it ryseth + and now it vanissheth, after the variaunt opinion in false hertes + of unstable people. Wherfore, if thou desyre the knotte of this + jewel, or els if thou woldest suppose she shulde sette the knotte 150 + on thee for suche maner dignitè, than thou wenest beautee or + goodnesse of thilke somwhat encreseth the goodnesse or vertue in + the body. But dignite[es] of hemself ben not good, ne yeven + reverence ne worshippe by their owne kynde. How shulde they + than yeve to any other a thing, that by no waye mowe they have 155 + hem-selfe? It is sene in dignitè of the emperour and of many + mo other, that they mowe not of hem-selve kepe their worshippe + ne their reverence; that, in a litel whyle, it is now up and now + downe, by unstedfaste hertes of the people. What bountee mowe + they yeve that, with cloude, lightly leveth his shyninge? Certes, 160 + to the occupyer is mokel appeyred, sithen suche doinge doth + villanye to him that may it not mayntayne. Wherfore thilke way + to the knotte is croked; and if any desyre to come to the knot, + he must leve this way on his lefte syde, or els shal he never come + there. 165 + +CH. VI. 3. sayne. 4. knytte. 6. Nowe. 12. reason. none. 13. false. 15. +ayenwarde. 16. arne. 19. _Supply_ the. + +22. Nowe. fayne. howe. 26. _I supply_ of. thynge. 28. harme. 32. Howe. 34. +debate. 35. wote. 37. meane. 39. ayenwarde. 44. bountie. 45. honoure. 46. +done. encreasynge. 47. soverayntie. 53. magre. 57. _Supply_ that. men _and_ +it. 59. fire. + +61. ioyn. 62. sene. menne. 63. mayste. 64-5. one (_twice_). 66. dothe. 68. +made. 69. throwe out. 70. great burthyns. 77. debate. 80. slewe. 81. +Engla_n_de. 82. wysedom. 88. bring forthe. heate. 89. colde. 91. son. 93. +distruction. 94. some. + +98. wretches. 99. con; _read_ conne. 100. desyre. 102. howe. mean. 107. +lyuenges. 111. nowe. 113. beautie. encreaseth. 114. Nowe se. 118. se. 119. +wysenesse wolte. 124. forthe toforne. 125. parte. 126. _I supply_ that. +127. ayenwarde. 128. woste. 129. fyre. heateth. 132. cytie. + +141. done none. none. 142. propertie. 143. howe. cytie werne. 144. nowe. +147. _For_ He _read_ That thing? 147-8. nowe (_twice_). 151. the. beautie. +152. encreaseth. 153. dignite; _read_ dignitees. 154. howe. 155. thynge. +158. that that; _read_ that. nowe (_twice_). 159. bountie. 160. leaueth. +161. dothe. 162. maye. waye. 164. leaue. waye. + + CHAPTER VII. + + Avayleth aught (quod she) power of might in mayntenaunce + of [men, to maken hem] worthy to come to this + knot?' + + 'Parde,' quod I, 'ye; for hertes ben ravisshed from suche + maner thinges.' 5 + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'though a fooles herte is with thing + ravisshed, yet therfore is no general cause of the powers, ne of + a siker parfit herte to be loked after. Was not Nero the moste + shrewe oon of thilke that men rede, and yet had he power to + make senatours justices, and princes of many landes? Was not 10 + that greet power?' + + 'Yes, certes,' quod I. + + 'Wel,' quod she, 'yet might he not helpe him-selfe out of + disese, whan he gan falle. How many ensamples canst thou + remembre of kinges grete and noble, and huge power +helden, and 15 + yet they might not kepe hem-selve from wrecchednesse? How + wrecched was king Henry Curtmantil er he deyde? He had not + so moche as to cover with his membres; and yet was he oon + of the grettest kinges of al the Normandes ofspring, and moste + possession had. O! a noble thing and clere is power, that is not 20 + founden mighty to kepe him-selfe! Now, trewly, a greet fole is + he, that for suche thing wolde sette the knotte in thyne herte! + Also power of rëalmes, is not thilke grettest power amonges the + worldly powers reckened? And if suche powers han wrecchednesse + in hem-selfe, it foloweth other powers of febler condicion to 25 + ben wrecched; and than, that wrecchednesse shulde be cause of + suche a knotte! But every wight that hath reson wot wel that + wrecchednesse by no way may ben cause of none suche knotte; + wherfore suche power is no cause. That powers have wrecchednesse + in hem-selfe, may right lightly ben preved. If power lacke on 30 + any syde, on that syde is no power; but no power is wrecchednesse: + for al-be-it so the power of emperours or kinges, or els + of their rëalmes (which is the power of the prince) strecchen + wyde and brode, yet besydes is ther mokel folk of whiche he + hath no commaundement ne lordshippe; and there-as lacketh his 35 + power, his nonpower entreth, where-under springeth that maketh + hem wrecches. No power is wrecchednesse and nothing els; + but in this maner hath kinges more porcion of wrecchednesse + than of power. Trewly, suche powers ben unmighty; for ever + they ben in drede how thilke power from lesing may be keped 40 + of sorow; so drede sorily prikkes ever in their hertes: litel + is that power whiche careth and ferdeth it-selfe to mayntayne. + Unmighty is that wrecchednesse whiche is entred by the ferdful + weninge of the wrecche him-selfe; and knot y-maked by wrecchednesse + is betwene wrecches; and wrecches al thing bewaylen; 45 + wherfore the knot shulde be bewayled; and there is no suche + parfit blisse that we supposed at the ginning! _Ergo_, power in + nothing shulde cause suche knottes. Wrecchednesse is a kyndely + propertee in suche power, as by way of drede, whiche they mowe + nat eschewe, ne by no way live in sikernesse. For thou wost wel 50 + (quod she) he is nought mighty that wolde don that he may not + don ne perfourme.' + + 'Therfore,' quod I, 'these kinges and lordes that han suffisaunce + at the ful of men and other thinges, mowen wel ben + holden mighty; their comaundementes ben don; it is nevermore 55 + denyed.' + + 'Foole,' quod she, 'or he wot him-selfe mighty, or wot it + not; for he is nought mighty that is blynde of his might and wot + it not.' + + 'That is sothe,' quod I. 60 + + 'Than if he wot it, he must nedes ben a-drad to lesen it. He + that wot of his might is in doute that he mote nedes lese; and so + ledeth him drede to ben unmighty. And if he recche not to lese, + litel is that worth that of the lesing reson reccheth nothing; and + if it were mighty in power or in strength, the lesing shulde ben 65 + withset; and whan it cometh to the lesing, he may it not withsitte. + _Ergo_, thilke might is leude and naughty. Such mightes + arn y-lyke to postes and pillers that upright stonden, and greet + might han to bere many charges; and if they croke on any syde, + litel thing maketh hem overthrowe.' 70 + + 'This is a good ensample,' quod I, 'to pillers and postes that + I have seen overthrowed my-selfe; and hadden they ben underput + with any helpes, they had not so lightly falle.' + + 'Than holdest thou him mighty that hath many men armed + and many servauntes; and ever he is adrad of hem in his herte; 75 + and, for he gasteth hem, somtyme he mot the more fere have. + Comenly, he that other agasteth, other in him ayenward werchen + the same; and thus warnisshed mot he be, and of warnisshe the + hour drede. Litel is that might and right leude, who-so taketh + hede.' 80 + + 'Than semeth it,' quod I, 'that suche famulers aboute kinges + and grete lordes shulde greet might have. Although a sypher in + augrim have no might in significacion of it-selve, yet he yeveth + power in significacion to other; and these clepe I the helpes to + a poste to kepe him from falling.' 85 + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'thilke skilles ben leude. Why? But-if + the shorers be wel grounded, the helpes shulden slyden and suffre + the charge to falle; her might litel avayleth.' + + 'And so me thinketh,' quod I, 'that a poste alone, stonding + upright upon a basse, may lenger in greet burthen endure than 90 + croken pilers for al their helpes, and her ground be not siker.' + + 'That is sothe,' quod she; 'for as, [if] the blynde in bering of + the lame ginne stomble, bothe shulde falle, right so suche pillers, + so envyroned with helpes, in falling of the grounde fayleth + +altogider. How ofte than suche famulers, in their moste pryde 95 + of prosperitè, ben sodainly overthrowen! Thou hast knowe + many in a moment so ferre overthrowe, that cover might they + never. Whan the hevinesse of suche fayling cometh by case of + fortune, they mowe it not eschue; and might and power, if ther + were any, shulde of strength such thinges voyde and weyve; and 100 + so it is not. Lo, than! whiche thing is this power, that, tho men + han it, they ben agast; and in no tyme of ful having be they + siker! And if they wold weyve drede, as they mow not, litel is + in worthines. Fye therfore on so naughty thing, any knot to + cause! Lo! in adversitè, thilk ben his foes that glosed and 105 + semed frendes in welth; thus arn his familiers his foes and his + enemyes; and nothing is werse, ne more mighty for to anoy than + is a familier enemy; and these thinges may they not weyve; so + trewly their might is not worth a cresse. And over al thinge, he + that may not withdrawe the brydel of his flesshly lustes and his 110 + wrecched complayntes (now think on thy-selfe) trewly he is not + mighty; I can seen no way that lyth to the knotte. Thilke + people than, that setten their hertes upon suche mightes and + powers, often ben begyled. Pardè, he is not mighty that may do + any thing, that another may doon him the selve, and that men 115 + have as greet power over him as he over other. A justice that + demeth men ayenward hath ben often demed. Buserus slew his + gestes, and he was slayn of Hercules his geste. Hugest betraysshed + many men, and of Collo was he betrayed. He that with + swerde smyteth, with swerde shal be smitten.' 120 + + Than gan I to studyen a whyle on these thinges, and made + a countenaunce with my hande in maner to ben huisht. + + 'Now let seen,' quod she, 'me thinketh somwhat there is + within thy soule, that troubleth thy understanding; saye on what + it is.' 125 + + Quod I tho, 'me thinketh that, although a man by power have + suche might over me, as I have over another, that disproveth no + might in my person; but yet may I have power and might + never-the-later.' + + 'See now,' quod she, 'thyne owne leudenesse. He is mighty 130 + that may without wrecchednesse; and he is unmighty that may it + not withsitte; but than he, that might over thee, and he wol, + putte on thee wrecchednesse, thou might it not withsitte. _Ergo_, + thou seest thy-selfe what foloweth! But now (quod she) woldest + thou not skorne, and thou see a flye han power to don harm to 135 + an-other flye, and thilke have no might ne ayenturning him-selfe + to defende?' + + 'Yes, certes,' quod I. + + 'Who is a frayler thing,' quod she, 'than the fleshly body of + a man, over whiche have oftentyme flyes, and yet lasse thing than 140 + a flye, mokel might in grevaunce and anoying, withouten any + withsittinge, for al thilke mannes mightes? And sithen thou + seest thyne flesshly body in kyndely power fayle, how shulde than + the accident of a thinge ben in more suretè of beinge than + substancial? Wherfore, thilke thinges that we clepe power is but 145 + accident to the flesshly body; and so they may not have that + suretee in might, whiche wanteth in the substancial body. Why + there is no way to the knotte, [for him] that loketh aright after + the hye way, as he shulde. + +CH. VII. 2. _I supply_ men, to maken hem. 8. parfyte. 9. one. 11. great. +14. disease. fal. Howe. canste. 15. great. holden; _read_ helden. 16. +wretchydnesse. Howe wretched. 18. one. 19. greatest. 20. thynge. 21. Nowe. +great. 23. greatest. 24. wretchydnesse (_several times_); wretched +(_several times_). 27. reason wote. 33. stretchen. + +34. folke. 40. howe. 41. prickes. 47. parfyte. 49. propertie. 50. woste. +51-5. done (_thrice_). 57-62. wotte (_four times_). 61. a dradde. 63. +leadeth. retche. 64. worthe. reason retcheth. 68. arne. great. 69. beare. +70. thynge. + +72. sene. 73. fal. 75. adradde. 76. mote. feare. 77. ayenwarde. 78. mote. +82. great (_twice_). Althoughe. 88. fal. 90. graet (_sic_). 91. grou_n_de. +92. _Supply_ if. bearyng. 93. fal. 95. al togyther. howe. 96. haste. 108. +enemye. + +109. worthe. 110. maye. 111. wretched. nowe thynke. 112. sene. waye. lythe. +115. maye doone. 116. great. 117. ayenwarde. slewe. 118. slayne. 122. +huyshte. 123. Nowe. sene. 130. Se nowe. 131. maye. wretchydnesse. 132. the. +133. put. the wretchydnesse. 134. nowe. 135. se. done harme. 141. anoyeng. +143. howe. + +147. suretie. 148. waye. _Supply_ for him. 149. waye. + + CHAPTER VIII. + + Verily it is proved that richesse, dignitè, and power ben not + trewe way to the knotte, but as rathe by suche thinges the + knotte to be unbounde; wherfore on these thinges I rede no + wight truste to gette any good knotte. But what shul we saye of + renomè in the peoples mouthes? Shulde that ben any cause? 5 + What supposest thou in thyn herte?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'yes, I trowe; for your slye resons I dare not + safely it saye.' + + 'Than,' quod she, 'wol I preve that shrewes as rathe shul ben + in the knotte as the good; and that were ayenst kynde.' 10 + + 'Fayn,' quod I, 'wolde I that here; me thinketh wonder how + renomè shuld as wel knitte a shrewe as a good person; renomè + in every degree hath avaunced; yet wist I never the contrarye. + Shulde than renomè accorde with a shrewe? It may not sinke in + my stomake til I here more.' 15 + + 'Now,' quod she, 'have I not sayd alwayes, that shrewes shul + not have the knotte?' + + 'What nedeth,' quod I, 'to reherse that any more? I wot wel + every wight, by kyndely reson, shrewes in knitting wol eschewe.' + + 'Than,' quod she, 'the good ought thilke knotte to have.' 20 + + 'How els?' quod I. + + 'It were greet harm,' quod she, 'that the good were weyved + and put out of espoire of the knotte, if he it desyred.' + + 'O,' quod I, 'alas! On suche thing to thinke, I wene that + heven wepeth to see suche wronges here ben suffred on erthe; the 25 + good ought it to have, and no wight els.' + + 'The goodnesse,' quod she, 'of a person may not ben knowe + outforth but by renomè of the knowers; wherfore he must be + renomed of goodnesse, to come to the knot.' + + 'So must it be,' quod I, 'or els al lost that we carpen.' 30 + + 'Sothly,' quod she, 'that were greet harm, but-if a good man + might have his desyres in service of thilke knot, and a shrewe to + be +weyved, and they ben not knowen in general but by lacking + and praysing, and in renomè; and so by the consequence it + foloweth, a shrewe to ben praysed and knit; and a good to be 35 + forsake and unknit.' + + 'Ah,' quod I tho, 'have ye, lady, ben here abouten; yet wolde + I see, by grace of our argumentes better declared, how good and + bad do acorden by lacking and praysing; me thinketh it ayenst + kynde.' 40 + + 'Nay,' quod she, 'and that shalt thou see as yerne; these + elementes han contrarious qualitees in kynde, by whiche they + mowe not acorde no more than good and badde; and in [some] + qualitees they acorde, so that contraries by qualitè acorden by + qualitè. Is not erthe drye; and water, that is next and bitwene 45 + th'erthe, is wete? Drye and wete ben contrarie, and mowen not + acorde, and yet this discordaunce is bounde to acorde by cloudes; + for bothe elementes ben colde. Right so the eyre, that is next + the water, is wete; and eke it is hot. This eyre by his hete + contrarieth water that is cold; but thilke contrarioustè is oned +by 50 + moysture; for bothe be they moyst. Also the fyr, that is next + the +eyre and it encloseth al about, is drye, wherthrough it + contrarieth +eyre, that is wete; and in hete they acorde; for + bothe they ben hote. Thus by these acordaunces discordantes + ben joyned, and in a maner of acordaunce they acorden by 55 + conneccion, that is, knitting togither; of that accorde cometh + a maner of melodye that is right noble. Right so good and bad + arn contrarie in doinges, by lacking and praysing; good is bothe + lacked and praysed of some; and badde is bothe lacked and + praysed of some; wherfore their contrarioustee acorde bothe by 60 + lacking and praysing. Than foloweth it, though good be never + so mokel praysed, [it] oweth more to ben knit than the badde; + or els bad, for the renomè that he hath, must be taken as wel as + the good; and that oweth not.' + + 'No, forsothe,' quod I. 65 + + 'Wel,' quod she, 'than is renomè no way to the knot. Lo, + foole,' quod she, 'how clerkes wryten of suche glorie of renomè:--"O + glorie, glorie, thou art non other thing to thousandes of folke + but a greet sweller of eeres!" Many oon hath had ful greet renomè + by false opinion of variaunt people. And what is fouler than 70 + folk wrongfully to ben praysed, or by malice of the people giltlesse + lacked? Nedes shame foloweth therof to hem that with wrong + prayseth, and also to the desertes praysed; and vilanye and + reproof of him that disclaundreth. + + Good child (quod she) what echeth suche renomè to the 75 + conscience of a wyse man, that loketh and mesureth his goodnesse, + not by slevelesse wordes of the people, but by sothfastnesse + of conscience? By god, nothing. And if it be fayr, a mans name + be eched by moche folkes praysing, and fouler thing that mo folk + not praysen? I sayd to thee a litel here-beforn, that no folk in 80 + straunge countreyes nought praysen; suche renomè may not + comen to their eeres, bycause of unknowing and other obstacles, + as I sayde: wherfore more folk not praysen, and that is right foul + to him that renomè desyreth, to wete, lesse folk praisen than + renomè enhaunce. I trowe, the thank of a people is naught 85 + worth in remembraunce to take; ne it procedeth of no wyse + jugement; never is it stedfast pardurable. It is veyne and fleing; + with winde wasteth and encreseth. Trewly, suche glorie ought to + be hated. If gentillesse be a cleer thing, renomè and glorie to + enhaunce, as in reckening of thy linage, than is gentilesse of thy 90 + kinne; for-why it semeth that gentilesse of thy kinne is but + praysing and renomè that come of thyne auncestres desertes: + and if so be that praysing and renomè of their desertes make + their clere gentillesse, than mote they nedes ben gentil for their + gentil dedes, and not thou; for of thy-selfe cometh not such 95 + maner gentilesse, praysinge of thy desertes. Than gentillesse of + thyne auncesters, that forayne is to thee, maketh thee not gentil, + but ungentil and reproved, and-if thou continuest not their + gentilesse. And therfore a wyse man ones sayde: "Better is it + thy kinne to ben by thee gentyled, than thou to glorifye of thy 100 + kinnes gentilesse, and hast no desert therof thy-selfe." + + How passinge is the beautee of flesshly bodyes, more flittinge + than movable floures of sommer! And if thyne eyen weren as good + as the lynx, that may seen thorow many stone walles, bothe fayre + and foule, in their entrayles, of no maner hewe shulde apere to 105 + thy sight; that were a foule sight. Than is fayrnesse by feblesse + of eyen, but of no kynde; wherfore thilke shulde be no way to + the knot; whan thilke is went, the knotte wendeth after. Lo, + now, at al proves, none of al these thinges mowe parfitly ben in + understanding, to ben way to the during blisse of the knotte. 110 + But now, to conclusion of these maters, herkeneth these wordes. + Very sommer is knowe from the winter: in shorter cours draweth + the dayes of Decembre than in the moneth of June; the springes + of Maye faden and +falowen in Octobre. These thinges ben not + unbounden from their olde kynde; they have not lost her werke 115 + of their propre estat. Men, of voluntarious wil, withsitte that + hevens governeth. Other thinges suffren thinges paciently to + werche; man, in what estat he be, yet wolde he ben chaunged. + Thus by queynt thinges blisse is desyred; and the fruit that + cometh of these springes nis but anguis and bitter; al-though it 120 + be a whyle swete, it may not be with-holde; hastely they departe; + thus al-day fayleth thinges that fooles wende. Right thus hast + thou fayled in thy first wening. He that thinketh to sayle, and drawe + after the course of the sterre _de polo antartico_, shal he never + come northward to the contrarye sterre of _polus articus_; of whiche 125 + thinges if thou take kepe, thy first out-waye-going "prison" and + "exile" may be cleped. The ground falsed underneth, and so + hast thou fayled. No wight, I wene, blameth him that stinteth + in misgoing, and secheth redy way of his blisse. Now me + thinketh (quod she) that it suffyseth in my shewing; the wayes 130 + by dignetè, richesse, renomè, and power, if thou loke clerely, arn + no wayes to the knotte.' + +CH. VIII. 2. waye. 11. Fayne. howe. 14. maye. 16. Nowe. 18. wotte. 19. +reason. 21. Howe. 22. great harme. 25. se. + +31. great harme. 33. veyned; _read_ weyued. 38. se. howe. 41. se. 42. +qualyties. 43. _I supply_ some. 46. therthe. 49. hotte. 50. colde. +co_n_trariousty. my; _read_ by. 51. fyre. 52. erthe; _read_ eyre (_twice_). +56. connection. 58. arne. 60. contraryoustie. 62. _I supply_ it. 66. waye. +67. howe. + +68. arte none. thynge. 69. great. one. great. 71. folke. 74. reprofe. 75. +chylde. 76. measureth. 78. fayre. 79. folke. 80. the. beforne. folke. 83. +folke. foule. 84. folke. 85. thanke. 86. worthe. 88. encreaseth. 89. clear +thynge. 97-100. the (_thrice_). 101. haste. deserte. 102. Howe. beautie. +104. maye sene thorowe. + +106. fayrenesse. 109-111. nowe (_twice_). 110. waye. 111. nowe. 114. +folowen; _read_ falowen. 115. loste. 116. estate. 119. fruite. 121. maye. +122. al-daye. haste. 125. northwarde. 127. grounde. 129. Nowe. 132. ways. + + CHAPTER IX. + + 'Every argument, lady,' quod I tho, 'that ye han maked in + these fore-nempned maters, me thinketh hem in my ful + witte conceyved; shal I no more, if god wil, in the contrarye be + begyled. But fayn wolde I, and it were your wil, blisse of the + knotte to me were declared. I might fele the better how my 5 + herte might assente, to pursue the ende in service, as he hath + begonne.' + + 'O,' quod she, 'there is a melodye in heven, whiche clerkes + clepen "armony"; but that is not in brekinge of voice, but it is + a maner swete thing of kyndely werching, that causeth joye[s] 10 + out of nombre to recken, and that is joyned by reson and by + wysdome in a quantitè of proporcion of knitting. God made al + thing in reson and in witte of proporcion of melody, we mowe not + suffyse to shewe. It is written by grete clerkes and wyse, that, + in erthly thinges, lightly by studye and by travayle the knowinge 15 + may be getten; but of suche hevenly melody, mokel travayle wol + bringe out in knowing right litel. Swetenesse of this paradyse + hath you ravisshed; it semeth ye slepten, rested from al other + diseses; so kyndely is your herte therein y-grounded. Blisse of + two hertes, in ful love knitte, may not aright ben imagined; ever 20 + is their contemplacion, in ful of thoughty studye to plesaunce, + mater in bringinge comfort everiche to other. And therfore, of + erthly thinges, mokel mater lightly cometh in your lerning. + Knowledge of understonding, that is nigh after eye, but not so + nigh the covetyse of knittinge in your hertes. More soverain 25 + desyr hath every wight in litel heringe of hevenly conninge than + of mokel material purposes in erthe. Right so it is in propertee + of my servauntes, that they ben more affiched in steringe of litel + thinge in his desyr than of mokel other mater lasse in his + conscience. This blisse is a maner of sowne delicious in 30 + a queynte voice touched, and no dinne of notes; there is non + impression of breking labour. I can it not otherwyse nempne, + for wantinge of privy wordes, but paradyse terrestre ful of delicious + melody, withouten travayle in sown, perpetual service in ful joye + coveyted to endure. Only kynde maketh hertes in understonding 35 + so to slepe, that otherwyse may it nat be nempned, ne in other + maner names for lyking swetnesse can I nat it declare; al sugre + and hony, al minstralsy and melody ben but soot and galle in + comparison, by no maner proporcion to reken, in respect of this + blisful joye. This armony, this melody, this perdurable joye may 40 + nat be in doinge but betwene hevens and elementes, or twey + kyndly hertes ful knit in trouth of naturel understonding, withouten + weninge and disceit; as hevens and planettes, whiche thinges + continually, for kyndly accordaunces, foryeteth al contrarious + mevinges, that in-to passive diseses may sowne; evermore it 45 + thirsteth after more werking. These thinges in proporcion be + so wel joyned, that it undoth al thing whiche in-to badnesse by any + way may be accompted.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'this is a thing precious and noble. Alas! + that falsnesse ever, or wantrust shulde ever be maynteyned, this 50 + joye to voyde. Alas! that ever any wrecche shulde, thorow wrath + or envy, janglinge dare make, to shove this melody so farre + a-backe, that openly dar it nat ben used; trewly, wrecches ben + fulfilled with envy and wrathe, and no wight els. Flebring + and tales in suche wrecches dare appere openly in every wightes 55 + eere, with ful mouth so charged, [with] mokel malice moved + many innocentes to shende; god wolde their soule therwith were + strangled! Lo! trouth in this blisse is hid, and over-al under + covert him hydeth; he dar not come a-place, for waytinge of + shrewes. Commenly, badnesse goodnesse amaistreth; with my-selfe 60 + and my soule this joye wolde I bye, if the goodnesse were + as moche as the nobley in melody.' + + 'O,' quod she, 'what goodnesse may be acompted more in + this material worlde? Truly, non; that shalt thou understonde. + Is nat every thing good that is contrariant and distroying yvel?' 65 + + 'How els?' quod I. + + 'Envy, wrathe, and falsnesse ben general,' quod she; 'and + that wot every man being in his right mynde; the knotte, the + whiche we have in this blisse, is contrariaunt and distroyeth such + maner yvels. _Ergo_, it is good. What hath caused any wight 70 + to don any good dede? Fynd me any good, but-if this knotte + be the cheef cause. Nedes mot it be good, that causeth so + many good dedes. Every cause is more and worthier than thing + caused; and in that mores possession al thinges lesse ben + compted. As the king is more than his people, and hath in 75 + possession al his rëalme after, right so the knot is more than + al other goodes; thou might recken al thinges lasse; and that + to him longeth, oweth in-to his mores cause of worship and of + wil +to turne; it is els rebel and out of his mores defending to + voyde. Right so of every goodnesse; in-to the knotte and 80 + in-to the cause of his worship [it] oweth to tourne. And trewly, + every thing that hath being profitably is good, but nothing hath + to ben more profitably than this knot; kinges it mayntayneth, + and hem, their powers to mayntayne. It maketh misse to ben + amended with good governaunce in doing. It closeth hertes 85 + so togider, that rancour is out-thresten. Who that it lengest + kepeth, lengest is glad[d]ed.' + + 'I trowe,' quod I, 'heretykes and misse-mening people hence-forward + wol maintayne this knotte; for therthorough shul they + ben maintayned, and utterly wol turne and leve their olde yvel 90 + understanding, and knitte this goodnesse, and profer so ferre + in service, that name of servauntes might they have. Their + jangles shal cese; me thinketh hem lacketh mater now to alege.' + + 'Certes,' quod Love, 'if they, of good wil thus turned, as thou + sayst, wolen trewly perfourme, yet shul they be abled party 95 + of this blisse to have; and they wol not, yet shul my servauntes + the werre wel susteyne in myn helpe of maintenaunce to the ende. + And they, for their good travayle, shullen in reward so ben meded, + that endelesse joye body and soule +to-gider in this shullen + abyden. There is ever accion of blisse withouten possible 100 + corrupcion; there is accion perpetuel in werke without travayle; + there is everlasting passife, withouten any of labour; continuel + plyte, without cesinge coveyted to endure. No tonge may telle, + ne herte may thinke the leest point of this blisse.' + + 'God bring me thider!' quod I than. 105 + + 'Continueth wel,' quod she, 'to the ende, and thou might not + fayle than; for though thou spede not here, yet shal the passion + of thy martred lyfe ben written, and rad toforn the grete Jupiter, + that god is of routhe, an high in the holownesse of heven, there + he sit in his trone; and ever thou shalt forward ben holden 110 + amonge al these hevins for a knight, that mightest with no + penaunce ben discomfited. He is a very martyr that, livingly + goinge, is gnawen to the bones.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'these ben good wordes of comfort; a litel + myne herte is rejoyced in a mery wyse.' 115 + + 'Ye,' quod she; 'and he that is in heven felith more joye, + than whan he firste herde therof speke.' + + 'So it is,' quod I; 'but wist I the sothe, that after disese + comfort wolde folowe with blisse, so as ye have often declared, + I wolde wel suffre this passion with the better chere. But my 120 + thoughtful sorowe is endelesse, to thinke how I am cast out + of a welfare; and yet dayneth not this yvel non herte, non hede, + to meward throwe: which thinges wolde greetly me by wayes + of comfort disporte, to weten in my-selfe a litel with other me[n] + ben y-moved; and my sorowes peysen not in her balaunce the 125 + weyght of a peese. Slinges of her daunger so hevily peysen, + they drawe my causes so hye, that in her eyen they semen but + light and right litel.' + + 'O! for,' quod she, 'heven with skyes that foule cloudes + maken and darke +weders, with gret tempestes and huge, 130 + maketh the mery dayes with softe shyning sonnes. Also the + yere with-draweth floures and beautee of herbes and of erth; + the same +yere maketh springes and jolitè in Vere so to renovel + with peinted coloures, that erthe semeth as gay as heven. Sees + that blasteth and with wawes throweth shippes, of whiche the 135 + living creatures for greet peril for hem dreden; right so, the + same sees maketh smothe waters and golden sayling, and comforteth + hem with noble haven that firste were so ferde. Hast + thou not (quod she) lerned in thy youth, that Jupiter hath in + his warderobe bothe garmentes of joye and of sorowe? What 140 + wost thou how soone he wol turne of the garment of care, + and clothe thee in blisse? Pardè, it is not ferre fro thee. Lo, + an olde proverbe aleged by many wyse:--"Whan bale is greetest, + than is bote a nye-bore." Wherof wilt thou dismaye? Hope + wel and serve wel; and that shal thee save, with thy good bileve.' 145 + + 'Ye, ye,' quod I; 'yet see I not by reson how this blisse + is coming; I wot it is contingent; it may falle on other.' + + 'O,' quod she, 'I have mokel to done to clere thyne understanding, + and voyde these errours out of thy mynde. I wol + prove it by reson, thy wo may not alway enduren. Every thing 150 + kyndely (quod she) is governed and ruled by the hevenly bodyes, + whiche haven ful werchinge here on erthe; and after course + of these bodyes, al course of your doinges here ben governed + and ruled by kynde. + + Thou wost wel, by cours of planettes al your dayes proceden; 155 + and to everich of singuler houres be enterchaunged stondmele + about, by submitted worching naturally to suffre; of whiche + changes cometh these transitory tymes that maketh revolving of + your yeres thus stondmele; every hath ful might of worchinge, + til al seven han had her course about. Of which worchinges and 160 + possession of houres the dayes of the weke have take her names, + after denominacion in these seven planettes. Lo, your Sonday + ginneth at the first hour after noon on the Saturday, in whiche + hour is than the Sonne in ful might of worching; of whom Sonday + taketh his name. Next him foloweth Venus, and after 165 + Mercurius, and than the Moone; so than Saturnus, after whom + Jovis; and than Mars; and ayen than the Sonne; and so forth + +by .xxiiii. houres togider; in whiche hour ginning in the seconde + day stant the Moone, as maister for that tyme to rule; of whom + Monday taketh his name; and this course foloweth of al other 170 + dayes generally in doing. This course of nature of these bodyes + chaunging stinten at a certain terme, limitted by their first kynde; + and of hem al governementes in this elemented worlde proceden, + as in springes, constellacions, engendrures, and al that folowen + kynde and reson; wherfore [in] the course that foloweth, sorowe 175 + and joy kyndely moten entrechangen their tymes; so that + alway oon wele, as alway oon wo, may not endure. Thus seest + thou appertly, thy sorowe in-to wele mot ben chaunged; wherfore + in suche case to better syde evermore enclyne thou shuldest. + Trewly, next the ende of sorowe anon entreth joy; by maner 180 + of necessitè it wol ne may non other betyde; and so thy conti[n]gence + is disproved; if thou holde this opinion any more, thy + wit is right leude. Wherfore, in ful conclusion of al this, thilke + Margaryte thou desyrest hath ben to thee dere in thy herte, and + for her hast thou suffred many thoughtful diseses; herafter shal 185 + [she] be cause of mokel mirth and joye; and loke how glad canst + thou ben, and cese al thy passed hevinesse with manifolde + joyes. And than wol I as blythly here thee speken thy mirthes + in joye, as I now have y-herd thy sorowes and thy complayntes. + And if I mowe in aught thy joye encrese, by my trouthe, on 190 + my syde shal nat be leved for no maner traveyle, that I with + al my mightes right blythly wol helpe, and ever ben redy you + bothe to plese.' And than thanked I that lady with al goodly + maner that I worthily coude; and trewly I was greetly rejoysed + in myne herte of her fayre behestes; and profered me to be 195 + slawe, in al that she me wolde ordeyne, while my lyf lested. + +CH. IX. 4. fayne. 5. howe. + +10. ioye; _read_ joyes. 11-3. reason. 14. great. 19. diseases. hertes; +_read_ herte. 22. comforte. 24-5. nyghe (_twice_). 25. soueraine desyre. +27. propertie. 29. desyre. 31. none. 32. breakynge laboure. canne. 35. +Onely. 38. soote. 39. respecte. + +45. diseases. 51. wretch. thorowe. 53. dare. 53-5. wretches. 56. eare. _I +supply_ with. 57. innocte_n_es; _misprint for_ innoce_n_tes. 59. dare. 65. +distroyeng. 66. Howe. 71. Fynde. 72. chefe. mote. 73. thynge. 79. do; +_read_ to, _as in_ l. 81. 81. _Supply_ it. + +88. meanynge. 89. forwarde. 90. leaue. 93. cease. nowe. 99. togyther. +100-1. action (_twice_). 103. ceasynge. tel. 104. hert. 108. radde toforne. +great. 110. sytte. forwarde. 114. comforte. 118. disease comforte. + +121. howe. 122. none (_twice_). 123. mewarde. greatly. 124. comforte. me; +_read_ men? 130. wethers; _read_ weders. 132. beautie. 133. yeres; _read_ +yere. 136. great. 141. howe. 142. the. 143. greatest. 144. wylte. 145. the. +146. se. reason howe. 147. wote. fal. 150. reason. + +162. denomination. 168. be; _for_ by. 169. stante. 172. certayne. 175. +_Supply_ in. 177. on (_for_ oon; _twice_). 178. mote. 181. contygence. 184. +the. 185. diseases. 186. _Supply_ she. howe. canste. 187. cease. 188. the. +189. ioy. nowe. yherde. 190. encrease. 191. leaued. + +194. worthely. greatly. 195. hert. 196. lyfe. + + CHAPTER X. + + 'Me thinketh,' quod I, 'that ye have right wel declared, + that way to the knot shuld not ben in none of these + disprovinge thinges; and now, order of our purpos this asketh, + that ye shulde me shewe if any way be +thider, and whiche + thilke way shulde ben; so that openly may be seye the verry 5 + hye way in ful confusioun of these other thinges.' + + 'Thou shalt,' quod she, 'understande that [of] one of three + lyves (as I first sayd) every creature of mankynde is sprongen, + and so forth procedeth. These lyves ben thorow names departed + in three maner of kyndes, as bestialliche, manliche, and resonabliche; 10 + of whiche two ben used by flesshely body, and the thirde + by his soule. "Bestial" among resonables is forboden in every + lawe and every secte, bothe in Cristen and other; for every + wight dispyseth hem that liveth by lustes and delytes, as him + that is thral and bounden servaunt to thinges right foule; suche 15 + ben compted werse than men; he shal nat in their degree ben + rekened, ne for suche one alowed. Heritykes, sayn they, chosen + lyf bestial, that voluptuously liven; so that (as I first sayde to + thee) in manly and resonable livinges our mater was to declare; + but [by] "manly" lyfe, in living after flesshe, or els flesshly wayes 20 + to chese, may nat blisse in this knotte be conquered, as by reson + it is proved. Wherfore by "resonable" lyfe he must nedes it + have, sithe a way is to this knotte, but nat by the firste tway lyves; + wherfore nedes mot it ben to the thirde; and for to live in flesshe, + but nat after flessh, is more resonablich than manliche rekened 25 + by clerkes. Therfore how this way cometh in, I wol it blythely + declare. + + See now (quod she) that these bodily goodes of manliche + livinges yelden +sorowfulle stoundes and smertande houres. Who-so + +wol remembre him to their endes, in their worchinges they 30 + ben thoughtful and sorie. Right as a bee that hath had his hony, + anon at his flight beginneth to stinge; so thilke bodily goodes at + the laste mote awaye, and than stinge they at her goinge, wherthrough + entreth and clene voydeth al blisse of this knot.' + + 'Forsothe,' quod I, 'me thinketh I am wel served, in shewing 35 + of these wordes. Although I hadde litel in respect among other + grete and worthy, yet had I a fair parcel, as me thought, for the + tyme, in forthering of my sustenaunce; whiche while it dured, + I thought me havinge mokel hony to myne estat. I had richesse + suffisauntly to weyve nede; I had dignitè to be reverenced in 40 + worship. Power me thought that I had to kepe fro myne enemyes, + and me semed to shyne in glorie of renomè as manhood asketh + in mene; for no wight in myne administracion coude non yvels + ne trechery by sothe cause on me putte. Lady, your-selve + weten wel, that of tho confederacies maked by my soverains 45 + I nas but a servaunt, and yet mokel mene folk wol fully ayenst + reson thilke maters maynteyne, in whiche mayntenaunce [they] + glorien them-selfe; and, as often ye haven sayd, therof ought + nothing in yvel to be layd to me-wardes, sithen as repentaunt + I am tourned, and no more I thinke, neither tho thinges ne 50 + none suche other to sustene, but utterly distroye, without medlinge + maner, in al my mightes. How am I now cast out of al + swetnesse of blisse, and mischevously [is] stongen my passed + joy! Soroufully muste I bewayle, and live as a wrecche. + + Every of tho joyes is tourned in-to his contrary. For richesse, 55 + now have I povertè; for dignitè, now am I emprisoned; in + stede of power, wrecchednesse I suffre; and for glorie of renomè, + I am now dispysed and foulich hated. Thus hath farn Fortune, + that sodaynly am I overthrowen, and out of al welth dispoyled. + Trewly, me thinketh this way in entree is right hard; god graunt 60 + me better grace er it be al passed; the other way, lady, me + thought right swete.' + + 'Now, certes,' quod Love, 'me list for to chyde. What ayleth + thy darke dulnesse? Wol it nat in clerenesse ben sharped? + Have I nat by many resons to thee shewed, suche bodily goodes 65 + faylen to yeve blisse, their might so ferforth wol nat strecche? + Shame (quod she) it is to say, thou lyest in thy wordes. Thou + ne hast wist but right fewe that these bodily goodes had al atones; + commenly they dwellen nat togider. He that plentè hath in riches, + of his kinne is ashamed; another of linage right noble and wel 70 + knowe, but povert him handleth; he were lever unknowe. + Another hath these, but renomè of peoples praysing may he nat + have; overal he is hated and defamed of thinges right foule. + Another is fair and semely, but dignitè him fayleth; and he that + hath dignitè is croked or lame, or els misshapen and foully dispysed. 75 + Thus partable these goodes dwellen commenly; in one + houshold ben they but silde. Lo! how wrecched is your truste + on thing that wol nat accorde! Me thinketh, thou clepest thilke + plyte thou were in "selinesse of fortune"; and thou sayest, for + that the selinesse is departed, thou art a wrecch. Than foloweth 80 + this upon thy wordes; every soule resonable of man may nat dye; + and if deth endeth selinesse and maketh wrecches, as nedes of + fortune maketh it an ende. Than soules, after deth of the body, + in wrecchednesse shulde liven. But we knowe many that han + geten the blisse of heven after their deth. How than may this 85 + lyf maken men blisful, that whan it passeth it yeveth no wrecchednesse, + and many tymes blisse, if in this lyfe he con live as he + shulde? And wolt thou acompt with Fortune, that now at [t]he + first she hath don thee tene and sorowe? If thou loke to the + maner of al glad thinges and sorouful, thou mayst nat nay it, that 90 + yet, and namely now, thou standest in noble plyte in a good + ginning, with good forth-going herafter. And if thou wene to be + a wrecch, for such welth is passed, why than art thou nat wel + fortunate, for badde thinges and anguis wrecchednesse ben passed? + Art thou now come first in-to the hostry of this lyfe, or els the 95 + both of this worlde? Art thou now a sodayn gest in-to this + wrecched exile? Wenest there be any thing in this erthe stable? + Is nat thy first arest passed, that brought thee in mortal sorowe? + Ben these nat mortal thinges agon with ignorance of beestial wit, + and hast receyved reson in knowing of vertue? What comfort is 100 + in thy herte, the knowinge sikerly in my service [to] be grounded? + And wost thou nat wel, as I said, that deth maketh ende of al + fortune? What than? Standest thou in noble plyte, litel hede + or recking to take, if thou let fortune passe dy[i]ng, or els that + she fly whan her list, now by thy lyve? Pardy, a man hath 105 + nothing so leef as his lyf; and for to holde that, he doth al his + cure and diligent traveyle. Than, say I, thou art blisful and + fortunat sely, if thou knowe thy goodes that thou hast yet + +beleved, whiche nothing may doute that they ne ben more worthy + than thy lyf?' 110 + + 'What is that?' quod I. + + 'Good contemplacion,' quod she, 'of wel-doing in vertue in tyme + coming, bothe in plesaunce of me and of thy Margarit-peerle. + Hastely thyn hert in ful blisse with her shal be esed. Therfore dismay + thee nat; Fortune, in hate grevously ayenst thy bodily person, 115 + ne yet to gret tempest hath she nat sent to thee, sithen the holding + cables and ankers of thy lyfe holden by knitting so faste, that + thou discomforte thee nought of tyme that is now, ne dispayre + thee not of tyme to come, but yeven thee comfort in hope of + weldoing, and of getting agayn the double of thy lesing, with 120 + encresing love of thy Margarite-perle therto! For this, hiderto, + thou hast had al her ful daunger; and so thou might amende al + that is misse and al defautes that somtyme thou diddest; and + that now, in al thy tyme, to that ilke Margaryte in ful service of + my lore thyne herte hath continued; wherfore she ought moche 125 + the rather enclyne fro her daungerous sete. These thinges ben + yet knit by the holding anker in thy lyve, and holden mote they; + to god I pray, al these thinges at ful ben perfourmed. For whyle + this anker holdeth, I hope thou shalt safely escape; and [in a] + whyle thy trewe-mening service aboute bringe, in dispyte of al 130 + false meners that thee of-newe haten; for [in] this trewe service + thou art now entred.' + + 'Certayn,' quod I, 'among thinges I asked a question, whiche + was the way to the knot. Trewly, lady, how-so it be I tempt you + with questions and answers, in speking of my first service, I am 135 + now in ful purpos in the pricke of the herte, that thilke service + was an enprisonment, and alway bad and naughty, in no maner + to be desyred; ne that, in getting of the knot, may it nothing + aveyle. A wyse gentil herte loketh after vertue, and none other + bodily joyes alone. And bycause toforn this in tho wayes I was 140 + set, I wot wel my-selfe I have erred, and of the blisse fayled; and + so out of my way hugely have I ronne.' + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'that is sothe; and there thou hast miswent, + eschewe the path from hens-forward, I rede. Wonder + I trewly why the mortal folk of this worlde seche these ways 145 + outforth; and it is preved in your-selfe. Lo, how ye ben confounded + with errour and folly! The knowing of very cause and way is + goodnesse and vertue. Is there any thing to thee more precious + than thy-selfe? Thou shalt have in thy power that thou woldest + never lese, and that in no way may be taken fro thee; and thilke 150 + thing is that is cause of this knot. And if deth mowe it nat reve + more than an erthly creature, thilke thing than abydeth with thy-selfe + soule. And so, our conclusion to make, suche a knot, thus + getten, abydeth with this thinge and with the soule, as long as + they laste. A soule dyeth never; vertu and goodnesse evermore 155 + with the soule endureth; and this knot is parfit blisse. Than + this soule in this blisse endlesse shal enduren. Thus shul hertes + of a trewe knot ben esed: thus shul their soules ben plesed: thus + perpetually in joye shul they singe.' + + 'In good trouth,' quod I, 'here is a good beginning; yeve us 160 + more of this way.' + + Quod she, 'I said to thee nat longe sithen, that resonable lyf + was oon of three thinges; and it was proved to the soule. + +CH. X. 3. nowe. purpose. 4. thyther. 5. maye be sey. 6. waye. 7. _I supply_ +of. 7-10. thre (_twice_). 9. thorowe. 13. christen. 17. sayne. 18. lyfe. +19. the. lyueng_es_. 20. _Supply_ by. lyueng. 21. reason. 24. mote. 26. +howe. waye. 28. Se nowe. 29. lyuenges. soroufully; _read_ sorowfulle. 30. +wele; _read_ wol. + +31. hadde. 32. anone. 36. respecte amonge. 37. great. faire. 39. estate. +42. manhode. 43. meane. -tion. 46. meane folke. 47. reason. _I supply_ +they. 48. sayde. 49. nothynge. layde. 52. Howe. nowe caste. 53. _Supply_ +is. 54. wretche. 56. nowe (_thrice_). 57. wretchednesse. 58. nowe. 60. +entre. harde. 61. ladye. 63. Nowe. 65. reasons. the. 66. ferforthe. +stretche. + +74. faire. 75. fouly. 77. sylde. howe reetched (!). 80. arte a wretch. 82. +dethe. wretches. 83. dethe. 84-6. wretchednesse. 85. dethe. Howe. 86. lyfe. +88. wolte. now. he; _read_ the. 89. done the. 91. nowe. 93. wretch. 94. +wretchednesse. 95-6. nowe (_twice_). 96. sodayne. 97. wretched. thynge. 98. +the (_sic_). 100. reason. co_m_forte. 101. hert. _I supply_ to. 102. woste. + +104. rcekyng. dyng (_sic_). 106. lefe. lyfe. 109. beloued; _read_ beleued. +nothynge. 112. conte_m_plation. 114. eased. 115-9. the (_five times_). 119. +comforte. 120. agayne. encreasynge. 129. shalte. _Supply_ in a. 130. +meanyng. 131. meaners. the. _Supply_ in. 132. arte nowe. 133. Certayn +_begins with a large capital_ C, _on fol._ 306, verso. amonge. 134. howe. +136. nowe. purpose. 136-9. hert. + +140. toforne. 141. sette. wote. 142. ron. 144. pathe. -forwarde. 145. +folke. 146. howe. 148. thynge. the. 150. the. 151. dethe. 152. thynge. 155. +last. 156. p_ar_fite. 158. eased. pleased. 162. the. lyfe. 163. one. thre. + + CHAPTER XI. + + Every soule of reson hath two thinges of stering lyf, oon in + vertue, and another in the bodily workinge; and whan the + soule is the maister over the body, than is a man maister of him-selfe. + And a man, to be a maister over him-selfe, liveth in vertu and + in goodnesse, and as reson of vertue techeth. So the soule and the 5 + body, worching vertue togider, liven resonable lyf, whiche clerkes + clepen "felicitè in living"; and therein is the hye way to this knot. + These olde philosophers, that hadden no knowing of divine grace, + of kyndly reson alone, wenden that of pure nature, withouten any + helpe of grace, me might have y-shoned th'other livinges. 10 + Resonably have I lived; and for I thinke herafter, if god wol, + and I have space, thilke grace after my leude knowing declare, + I leve it as at this tyme. But, as I said, he that out-forth loketh + after the wayes of this knot, [his] conning with whiche he shulde + knowe the way in-forth, slepeth for the tyme. Wherfore he that 15 + wol this way knowe, must leve the loking after false wayes out-forth, + and open the eyen of his conscience, and unclose his herte. + Seest nat, he that hath trust in the bodily lyfe is so besy bodily + woundes to anointe, in keping from smert (for al-out may they nat + be heled), that of woundes in his true understanding he taketh no 20 + hede; the knowing evenforth slepeth so harde: but anon, as in + knowing awake, than ginneth the prevy medicynes, for heling of + his trewe intent, inwardes lightly +helen conscience, if it be wel + handled. Than must nedes these wayes come out of the soule + by stering lyfe of the body; and els may no man come to parfit 25 + blisse of this knotte. And thus, by this waye, he shal come to the + knotte, and to the parfit selinesse that he wende have had in + bodily goodes outforth.' + + 'Ye,' quod I, 'shal he have both knot, riches, power, dignitè, + and renomè in this maner way?' 30 + + 'Ye,' quod she, 'that shal I shewe thee. Is he nat riche that + hath suffisaunce, and hath the power that no man may amaistrien? + Is nat greet dignitè to have worship and reverence? And hath + he nat glorie of renomè, whos name perpetual is during, and out + of nombre in comparacion?' 35 + + 'These be thinges that men wenen to getten outforth,' quod I. + + 'Ye,' quod she; 'they that loken after a thing that nought is + therof, in al ne in partie, longe mowe they gapen after!' + + 'That is sothe,' quod I. + + 'Therfore,' quod she, 'they that sechen gold in grene trees, and 40 + wene to gader precious stones among vynes, and layn her nettes + in mountains to fisshe, and thinken to hunte in depe sees after + hart and hynd, and sechen in erth thilke thinges that surmounteth + heven, what may I of hem say, but folisshe ignoraunce misledeth + wandring wrecches by uncouth wayes that shulden be forleten, 45 + and maketh hem blynde fro the right pathe of trewe way that + shulde ben used? Therfore, in general, errour in mankynde + departeth thilke goodes by mis-seching, whiche he shulde have + hole, and he sought by reson. Thus goth he begyled of that he + sought; in his hode men have blowe a jape.' 50 + + 'Now,' quod I, 'if a man be vertuous, and al in vertue liveth, + how hath he al these thinges?' + + 'That shal I proven,' quod she. 'What power hath any man + to lette another of living in vertue? For prisonment, or any + other disese, [if] he take it paciently, discomfiteth he nat; the 55 + tyrant over his soule no power may have. Than hath that man, + so tourmented, suche power, that he nil be discomfit; ne overcome + may he nat ben, sithen pacience in his soule overcometh, + and +is nat overcomen. Suche thing that may nat be a-maistred, + he hath nede to nothing; for he hath suffisaunce y-now, to helpe 60 + him-selfe. And thilke thing that thus hath power and suffisance, + and no tyrant may it reve, and hath dignitè to sette at nought al + thinges, here it is a greet dignitè, that deth may a-maistry. Wherfore + thilke power [with] suffisaunce, so enclosed with dignitè, by + al reson renomè must have. This is thilke riches with suffisaunce 65 + ye sholde loke after; this is thilke worshipful dignitè ye shulde + coveyte; this is thilke power of might, in whiche ye shulde truste; + this is the ilke renomè of glorie that endlesse endureth; and al + nis but substaunce in vertuous lyving.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'al this is sothe; and so I see wel that vertue 70 + with ful gripe encloseth al these thinges. Wherfore in sothe + I may saye, by my trouth, vertue of my Margarite brought me + first in-to your service, to have knitting with that jewel, nat sodain + longinges ne folkes smale wordes, but only our conversacion + togider; and than I, seinge th'entent of her trewe mening with 75 + florisshing vertue of pacience, that she used nothing in yvel, to + quyte the wicked lesinges that false tonges ofte in her have laid, + I have seye it my-selfe, goodly foryevenesse hath spronge out of + her herte. Unitè and accord, above al other thinges, she + desyreth in a good meke maner; and suffereth many wicked 80 + tales. + + Trewly, lady, to you it were a gret worship, that suche thinges + by due chastisment were amended.' + + 'Ye,' quod she, 'I have thee excused; al suche thinges as yet + mowe nat be redressed; thy Margarites vertue I commende wel 85 + the more, that paciently suche anoyes suffreth. David king was + meke, and suffred mokel hate and many yvel speches; no despyt + ne shame that his enemys him deden might nat move pacience + out of his herte, but ever in one plyte mercy he used. Wherfore + god him-selfe took reward to the thinges; and theron suche 90 + punisshment let falle. Trewly, by reson, it ought be ensample of + drede to al maner peoples mirth. A man vengeable in wrath no + governance in punisshment ought to have. Plato had a cause his + servant to +scourge, and yet cleped he his neibour to performe the + doinge; him-selfe wolde nat, lest wrath had him a-maistred; and 95 + so might he have layd on to moche: evermore grounded vertue + sheweth th'entent fro within. And trewly, I wot wel, for her goodnesse + and vertue, thou hast desyred my service to her plesance + wel the more; and thy-selfe therto fully hast profered.' + + 'Good lady,' quod I, 'is vertue the hye way to this knot that 100 + long we have y-handled?' + + 'Ye, forsoth,' quod she, 'and without vertue, goodly this knot + may nat be goten.' + + 'Ah! now I see,' quod I, 'how vertu in me fayleth; and I, as + a seer tree, without burjoning or frute, alwaye welke; and 105 + so I stonde in dispeyre of this noble knot; for vertue in me + hath no maner workinge. A! wyde-where aboute have I + traveyled!' + + 'Pees,' quod she, 'of thy first way; thy traveyle is in ydel; + and, as touchinge the seconde way, I see wel thy meninge. Thou 110 + woldest conclude me, if thou coudest, bycause I brought thee + to service; and every of my servantes I helpe to come to this + blisse, as I sayd here-beforn. And thou saydest thy-selfe, thou + mightest nat be holpen as thou wenest, bycause that vertue in + thee fayleth; and this blisse parfitly without vertue may nat be 115 + goten; thou wenest of these wordes contradiccion to folowe. + Pardè, at the hardest, I have no servant but he be vertuous in + dede and thought. I brought thee in my service, yet art thou + nat my servant; but I say, thou might so werche in vertue herafter, + that than shalt thou be my servant, and as for my servant 120 + acompted. For habit maketh no monk; ne weringe of gilte + spurres maketh no knight. Never-the-later, in confort of thyne + herte, yet wol I otherwyse answere.' + + 'Certes, lady,' quod I tho, 'so ye muste nedes; or els I had + nigh caught suche a +cardiacle for sorowe, I wot it wel, I shulde 125 + it never have recovered. And therfore now I praye [thee] to + enforme me in this; or els I holde me without recovery. I may + nat long endure til this lesson be lerned, and of this mischeef the + remedy knowen.' + + 'Now,' quod she, 'be nat wroth; for there is no man on-lyve 130 + that may come to a precious thing longe coveited, but he somtyme + suffre teneful diseses: and wenest thy-selfe to ben unliche to al + other? That may nat ben. And with the more sorowe that + a thing is getten, the more he hath joye the ilke thing afterwardes + to kepe; as it fareth by children in scole, that for lerninge arn 135 + beten, whan their lesson they foryetten. Commenly, after a good + disciplyning with a yerde, they kepe right wel doctrine of their + scole.' + +CH. XI. 1. euery (_with small_ e). reason. lyfe. one. 6. lyfe. 7. lyueng. +9. reason. + +10. thother lyuenges. 13. leaue. 14. _I supply_ his. 16. leaue. 19. anoynt. +20. healed. 22. healyng. 23. healeth; _read_ helen. 25. maye. p_ar_fite. +27. p_ar_fyte. 30. waye. 31. the. 33. great. 34. whose. 35. co_m_paration. +37. thynge. 40. golde. 41. amonge. layne. 42. hunt. 43. hynde. 45. +wretches. + +48. mysse. 49. reason. 51. Nowe. 52. howe. 54. let. lyueng. 55. _I supply_ +if. 56. maye. 59. as; _read_ is. 60. ynowe. 63. great. 64. _I supply_ with. +67. coueyt. 69. lyueng. 70. se. 74. onely. co_n_versation. 75. thentent. +76. nothynge. 77. leasynges. layde. 78. sey. 79. hert. accorde. 82. Trewly +(_with large capital_ T). + +84. the. 87. dispite. 89. Werfore. 90. toke rewarde. 91. fal. reason. 94. +scoure (!); _read_ scourge. 96. layde. 97. thentent. wotte. 99. haste. 100. +waye. 104. nowe I se. howe. 105. tre. 109. Peace. 110. se. meanyng. 111. +the. 112. one. 113. beforne. 114. wenyst. 115. the. maye. 116. +co_n_tradiction. 118. the. arte. + +121. habyte. monke. wearynge. 122. conforte. 125. nyghe. cordiacle; _read_ +cardiacle. wotte. 126. nowe. _I supply_ thee. 127. recouerye. 128. +mischefe. 130. Nowe. wrothe. 131. maye. 132. diseases. wenyst. 133. maye. +134. thynge. 135. schole. arne. 136. beaten. 138. schole. + + CHAPTER XII. + + Right with these wordes, on this lady I threw up myne eyen, + to see her countenaunce and her chere; and she, aperceyving + this fantasye in myne herte, gan her semblaunt goodly on me + caste, and sayde in this wyse. + + 'It is wel knowe, bothe to reson and experience in doinge, 5 + every active worcheth on his passive; and whan they ben togider, + "active" and "passive" ben y-cleped by these philosophers. If + fyr be in place chafinge thing able to be chafed or hete[d], and + thilke thinges ben set in suche a distaunce that the oon may + werche, the other shal suffre. Thilke Margarite thou desyrest is 10 + ful of vertue, and able to be active in goodnesse: but every herbe + sheweth his vertue outforth from within. The sonne yeveth light, + that thinges may be seye. Every fyr heteth thilke thing that it + +neigheth, and it be able to be hete[d]. Vertue of this Margarite + outforth +wercheth; and nothing is more able to suffre worching, 15 + or worke cacche of the actife, but passife of the same actife; and + no passife, to vertues of this Margaryte, but thee, in al my Donet + can I fynde! So that her vertue muste nedes on thee werche; + in what place ever thou be, within distaunce of her worthinesse, + as her very passife thou art closed. But vertue may thee nothing 20 + profyte, but thy desyr be perfourmed, and al thy sorowes cesed. + _Ergo_, through werchinge of her vertue thou shalt esely ben + holpen, and driven out of al care, and welcome to this longe by + thee desyred!' + + 'Lady,' quod I, 'this is a good lesson in ginning of my joye; 25 + but wete ye wel forsothe, though I suppose she have moche + vertue, I wolde my spousaile were proved, and than may I live + out of doute, and rejoice me greetly, in thinking of tho vertues + so shewed.' + + 'I herde thee saye,' quod she, 'at my beginning, whan I receyved 30 + thee firste for to serve, that thy jewel, thilke Margaryte thou + desyrest, was closed in a muskle with a blewe shel.' + + 'Ye, forsothe,' quod I; 'so I sayd; and so it is.' + + 'Wel,' quod she, 'every-thing kyndly sheweth it-selfe; this + jewel, closed in a blewe shel, [by] excellence of coloures sheweth 35 + vertue from within; and so every wight shulde rather loke to the + propre vertue of thinges than to his forayne goodes. If a thing + be engendred of good mater, comenly and for the more part, it + foloweth, after the congelement, vertue of the first mater (and + it be not corrupt with vyces) to procede with encrees of good 40 + vertues; eke right so it fareth of badde. Trewly, greet excellence + in vertue of linage, for the more part, discendeth by kynde to + the succession in vertues to folowe. Wherfore I saye, the +colour + of every Margarit sheweth from within the fynesse in vertue. + Kyndely heven, whan mery +weder is a-lofte, apereth in mannes 45 + eye of coloure in blewe, stedfastnesse in pees betokening within + and without. Margaryte is engendred by hevenly dewe, and + sheweth in it-selfe, by fynenesse of colour, whether the engendrure + were maked on morowe or on eve; thus sayth kynde of this + perle. This precious Margaryte that thou servest, sheweth it-selfe 50 + discended, by nobley of vertue, from this hevenlich dewe, norisshed + and congeled in mekenesse, that +moder is of al vertues; and, by + werkes that men seen withouten, the significacion of the coloures + ben shewed, mercy and pitee in the herte, with pees to al other; + and al this is y-closed in a muskle, who-so redily these vertues 55 + loken. Al thing that hath soule is reduced in-to good by mene thinges, + as thus: In-to god man is reduced by soules resonable; and so + forth beestes, or bodyes that mowe not moven, after place ben + reduced in-to manne by beestes +mene that moven from place to + place. So that thilke bodyes that han felinge soules, and move 60 + not from places, holden the lowest degree of soulinge thinges in + felinge; and suche ben reduced in-to man by menes. So it + foloweth, the muskle, as +moder of al vertues, halt the place of + mekenesse, to his lowest degree discendeth downe of heven, and + there, by a maner of virgine engendrure, arn these Margarytes 65 + engendred, and afterward congeled. Made not mekenesse so + lowe the hye heven, to enclose and cacche out therof so noble + a dewe, that after congelement, a Margaryte, with endelesse vertue + and everlasting joy, was with ful vessel of grace yeven to every + creature, that goodly wolde it receyve?' 70 + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'these thinges ben right noble; I have er this + herd these same sawes.' + + 'Than,' quod she, 'thou wost wel these thinges ben sothe?' + + 'Ye, forsothe,' quod I, 'at the ful.' + + 'Now,' quod she, 'that this Margaryte is ful of vertue, it is wel 75 + proved; wherfore som grace, som mercy, among other vertues, + I wot right wel, on thee shal discende?' + + 'Ye,' quod I; 'yet wolde I have better declared, vertues in this + Margarite kyndely to ben grounded.' + + 'That shal I shew thee,' quod she, 'and thou woldest it lerne.' 80 + + 'Lerne?' quod I, 'what nedeth suche wordes? Wete ye nat + wel, lady, your-selfe, that al my cure, al my diligence, and al my + might, have turned by your counsayle, in plesaunce of that perle? + Al my thought and al my studye, with your helpe, desyreth, in + worshippe [of] thilke jewel, to encrese al my travayle and al my 85 + besinesse in your service, this Margaryte to gladde in some halve. + Me were lever her honour, her plesaunce, and her good chere + thorow me for to be mayntayned and kept, and I of suche thinge + in her lykinge to be cause, than al the welthe of bodily goodes ye + coude recken. And wolde never god but I putte my-selfe in 90 + greet jeopardy of al that I +welde, (that is now no more but + my lyf alone), rather than I shulde suffre thilke jewel in any + pointe ben blemisshed; as ferre as I may suffre, and with my + mightes strecche.' + + 'Suche thing,' quod she, 'may mokel further thy grace, and 95 + thee in my service avaunce. But now (quod Love) wilt thou + graunte me thilke Margaryte to ben good?' + + 'O! good +god,' quod I, 'why tempte ye me and tene with + suche maner speche? I wolde graunt that, though I shulde anon + dye; and, by my trouthe, fighte in the quarel, if any wight wolde 100 + countreplede.' + + 'It is so moche the lighter,' quod Love, 'to prove our entent.' + + 'Ye,' quod I; 'but yet wolde I here how ye wolde prove that + she were good by resonable skil, that it mowe not ben denyed. + For although I knowe, and so doth many other, manifold goodnesse 105 + and vertue in this Margaryte ben printed, yet some men + there ben that no goodnesse speken; and, wher-ever your wordes + ben herd and your resons ben shewed, suche yvel spekers, lady, + by auctoritè of your excellence, shullen be stopped and ashamed! + And more, they that han non aquayntaunce in her persone, yet 110 + mowe they knowe her vertues, and ben the more enfourmed in + what wyse they mowe sette their hertes, whan hem liste in-to your + service any entree make. For trewly al this to beginne, I wot + wel my-selfe that thilke jewel is so precious perle, as a womanly + woman in her kynde; in whom of goodnesse, of vertue, and also 115 + of answeringe shappe of limmes, and fetures so wel in al pointes + acording, nothing fayleth. I leve that kynde her made with greet + studye; for kynde in her person nothing hath foryet[en], and that + is wel sene. In every good wightes herte she hath grace of + commending and of vertuous praysing. Alas! that ever kynde 120 + made her deedly! Save only in that, I wot wel, that Nature, + in fourminge of her, in no-thinge hath erred.' + +CH. XII. 1. threwe. 2. se. 5. Reason. 7. ycleaped. 8. fyre. thynge. hete; +_read_ heted. 9. sette. one. 12. outforthe. 13. sey. fyre. 14. neighed; +_read_ neigheth. hete; _read_ heted. + +15. wrethe (!); _read_ wercheth. nothynge. 16. catche. 17-8. the (_twice_). +20. arte. the. 21. desyre. ceased. 22. shalte easely. 24. the. 26. thoughe. +27. maye. 28. greatly. 30. the say. 31. the. 35. _Supply_ by. 38. parte. +40. encrease. 41. great. 42. parte. 43. colours; _read_ colour. 45. wether; +_read_ weder. 46. peace. 48. coloure. + +52, 63. mother; _read_ moder. 53. sene. signification. 54. pytie. 56. +meane. 58. forthe. 59. meue; _misprint for_ mene. mouyn. 62. meanes. 63. +halte. 65. arne. 66. afterwarde. 67. catche. 72. herde. 73. woste. 75. +Nowe. 76. some (_twice_). amonge. 77. wotte. 77, 80. the (_twice_). 85. _I +supply_ of. encrease. 87. leauer. pleasaunce. + +88. thorowe. kepte. 90. put. 91. great ieoperdye. wolde; _read_ welde. +nowe. lyfe. 94. stretche. 95. maye. 96. the. nowe. wylte. 98. good good; +_read_ good god. 99. thoughe. anone. 100. fyght. 103. howe. 104. +reasonable. 105. dothe. 108. herde. reasons. 110. none. 113. entre. wote. +115. whome. 117. nothynge. great. 118. foryet. 121. onely. + + CHAPTER XIII. + + 'Certes,' quod Love, 'thou hast wel begonne; and I aske + thee this question: Is not, in general, every-thing good?' + + 'I not,' quod I. + + 'No?' quod she; '+saw not god everything that he made, and + weren right good?' 5 + + 'Than is wonder,' quod I, 'how yvel thinges comen a-place, + sithen that al thinges weren right good.' + + 'Thus,' quod she, 'I wol declare. Everiche qualitè and every + accion, and every thing that hath any maner of beinge, it is of + god; and god it made, of whom is al goodnesse and al being. 10 + Of him is no badnesse. Badde to be, is naught; good to be, + is somwhat; and therfore good and being is oon in + understanding.' + + 'How may this be?' quod I. 'For often han shrewes me + assailed, and mokel badnesse therin have I founden; and so me 15 + semeth bad to be somwhat in kynde.' + + 'Thou shalt,' quod she, 'understande that suche maner badnesse, + whiche is used to purifye wrong-doers, is somwhat; and god it + made, and being [it] hath; and that is good. Other badnesse no + being hath utterly; it is in the negative of somwhat, and that is 20 + naught and nothing being. The parties essential of being arn + sayd in double wyse, as that it is; and these parties ben founde + in every creature. For al thing, a this halfe the first being, is + being through participacion, taking partie of being; so that [in] + every creature is difference bitwene being of him through whom 25 + it is, and his own being. Right as every good is a maner of + being, so is it good thorow being; for it is naught other to be. + And every thing, though it be good, is not of him-selfe good; + but it is good by that it is ordinable to the greet goodnesse. + This dualitè, after clerkes +determinison, is founden in every 30 + creature, be it never so single of onhed.' + + 'Ye,' quod I; 'but there-as it is y-sayd that god +saw every-thing + of his making, and [they] were right good (as your-selfe + sayd to me not longe tyme sithen), I aske whether every creature + is y-sayd "good" through goodnesse unfourmed eyther els fourmed; 35 + and afterward, if it be accept utterly good?' + + 'I shal say thee,' quod she. 'These grete passed clerkes han + devyded good in-to good being alone, and that is nothing but + +god, for nothing is good in that wyse but god: also, in good by + participacion, and that is y-cleped "good" for far fet and 40 + representative of +godly goodnesse. And after this maner manyfold + good is sayd, that is to saye, good in kynde, and good in gendre, + and good of grace, and good of joy. Of good in kynde Austen + sayth, "al that ben, ben good." But peraunter thou woldest + wete, whether of hem-selfe it be good, or els of anothers goodnesse: 45 + for naturel goodnesse of every substaunce is nothing els than his + substancial being, which is y-cleped "goodnesse" after comparison + that he hath to his first goodnesse, so as it is inductatife by menes + in-to the first goodnesse. Boece sheweth this thing at the ful, that + this name "good" is, in general, name in kynde, as it is comparisoned 50 + generally to his principal ende, which is god, knotte of + al goodnesse. Every creature cryeth "god us made"; and so + they han ful apeted to thilke god by affeccion such as to hem + longeth; and in this wyse al thinges ben good of the gret god, + which is good alone.' 55 + + 'This wonder thing,' quod I, 'how ye have by many resons + proved my first way to be errour and misgoing, and cause[d] of + badnesse and feble meninge in the grounde ye aleged to be roted. + Whence is it that suche badnesse hath springes, sithen al thinges + thus in general ben good, and badnesse hath no being, as ye have 60 + declared? I wene, if al things ben good, I might than with the + first way in that good have ended, and so by goodnesse have comen + to blisse in your service desyred.' + + 'Al thing,' quod she, 'is good by being in participacion out of + the firste goodnesse, whiche goodnesse is corrupt by badnesse 65 + and badde-mening maners. God hath [ordeyned] in good thinges, + that they ben good by being, and not in yvel; for there is absence + of rightful love. For badnesse is nothing but only yvel wil of the + user, and through giltes of the doer; wherfore, at the ginninge of + the worlde, every thing by him-selfe was good; and in universal 70 + they weren right good. An eye or a hand is fayrer and betterer + in a body set, in his kyndely place, than from the body dissevered. + Every thing in his kyndly place, being kyndly, good doth werche; + and, out of that place voyded, it dissolveth and is defouled him-selve. + Our noble god, in gliterande wyse, by armony this world 75 + ordeyned, as in purtreytures storied with colours medled, in + whiche blacke and other derke colours commenden the golden + and the asured paynture; every put in kyndely place, oon, besyde + another, more for other glitereth. Right so litel fayr maketh + right fayr more glorious; and right so, of goodnesse, and of other 80 + thinges in vertue. Wherfore other badde and not so good perles + as this Margaryte that we han of this matier, yeven by the ayre + litel goodnesse and litel vertue, [maken] right mokel goodnesse + and vertue in thy Margaryte to ben proved, in shyning wyse to be + founde and shewed. How shulde ever goodnesse of pees have 85 + ben knowe, but-if unpees somtyme reigne, and mokel yvel +wrathe? + How shulde mercy ben proved, and no trespas were, by due + justification, to be punisshed? Therfore grace and goodnesse of + a wight is founde; the sorouful hertes in good meninge to endure, + ben comforted; unitè and acord bitwene hertes knit in joye to 90 + abyde. What? wenest thou I rejoyce or els accompte him among + my servauntes that pleseth Pallas in undoinge of Mercurye, al-be-it + that to Pallas he be knit by tytle of lawe, not according to + resonable conscience, and Mercurie in doinge have grace to ben + suffered; or els him that +weyveth the moone for fayrenesse of 95 + the eve-sterre? Lo! otherwhyle by nightes, light of the moone + greetly comforteth in derke thoughtes and blynde. Understanding + of love yeveth greet gladnesse. Who-so list not byleve, whan + a sothe tale is shewed, a dewe and a deblys his name is entred. + Wyse folk and worthy in gentillesse, bothe of vertue and of 100 + livinge, yeven ful credence in sothnesse of love with a good herte, + there-as good evidence or experience in doinge sheweth not the + contrarie. Thus mightest thou have ful preef in thy Margarytes + goodnesse, by commendement of other jewels badnesse and + yvelnesse in doing. Stoundemele diseses yeveth several houres 105 + in joye.' + + 'Now, by my trouthe,' quod I, 'this is wel declared, that my + Margaryte is good; for sithen other ben good, and she passeth + manye other in goodnesse and vertue; wherthrough, by maner + necessarie, she muste be good. And goodnesse of this Margaryte 110 + is nothing els but vertue; wherfore she is vertuous; and if there + fayled any vertue in any syde, there were lacke of vertue. Badde + nothing els is, ne may be, but lacke and want of good and goodnesse; + and so shulde she have that same lacke, that is to saye, + badde; and that may not be. For she is good; and that is good, 115 + me thinketh, al good; and so, by consequence, me semeth, vertuous, + and no lacke of vertue to have. But the sonne is not knowe but + he shyne; ne vertuous herbes, but they have her kynde werchinge; + ne vertue, but it strecche in goodnesse or profyt to another, is no + vertue. Than, by al wayes of reson, sithen mercy and pitee ben 120 + moste commended among other vertues, and they might never ben + shewed, [unto] refresshement of helpe and of comfort, but now + at my moste nede; and that is the kynde werkinge of these + vertues; trewly, I wene, I shal not varye from these helpes. Fyr, + and-if he yeve non hete, for fyre is not demed. The sonne, but 125 + he shyne, for sonne is not accompted. Water, but it wete, the + name shal ben chaunged. Vertue, but it werche, of goodnesse + doth it fayle; and in-to his contrarie the name shal ben reversed. + And these ben impossible; wherfore the contradictorie, that is + necessarye, nedes muste I leve.' 130 + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'in thy person and out of thy mouthe these + wordes lyen wel to ben said, and in thyne understanding to be + leved, as in entent of this Margaryte alone. And here now my + speche in conclusion of these wordes. + +CH. XIII. 1. haste. 2, 4. thynge. 4. saue; _read_ saw. 5. werne. 6. howe. +9. action. 12. one. 14. Howe. 18. wronge. 19. _I supply_ it. 21. arne. 24. +_I supply_ in. and of; _I omit_ and. 27. thorowe. 29. great. determission +(!); _read_ determinison. 32. ysayde. saue; _read_ saw. 33. _I supply_ +they. + +35. ysayde. 36. afterwarde. accepte. 37. the. great. 39. good; _read_ god. +40. farre fette. 41. goodly; _read_ godly. manyfolde. 44. saythe. 47. +ycleaped. 48. meanes. 53. affection. 56. howe. reasons. 57. waye. cause; +_read_ caused. 59. baddesse (!). 65. corrupte. 66. meanynge. _I supply_ +ordeyned. 68. nothynge. onely. 71. werne. hande. + +72. sette. disceuered. 73. dothe. 75. worlde. 78. putte. one. 79. lytle +fayre. 80. fayre. 83. _Supply_ maken. 85. Howe. peace. 86. vnpeace. wrothe; +_read_ wrathe. 87. Howe. trespeace (!). 89. meanynge. 90. acorde. knytte. +91. amonge. 92. pleaseth. 93. knytte. 94. reasonable. 95. weneth; _read_ +weyveth. 97. greatly. 98. great. lyste. 99. adewe. 100. folke. 101. hert. +103. prefe. 105. diseases. 107. Nowe. + +109. wherthroughe. 111. no thynge. 113. wante. 115. maye. 119. stretche. +profyte. 120. reason. pytie. 121. amonge. 122. _Supply_ unto. comforte. +nowe. 124. Fyre. 125. none heate. 128. dothe. 133. nowe. + + CHAPTER XIV. + + In these thinges,' quod she, 'that me list now to shewe + openly, shal be founde the mater of thy sicknesse, and + what shal ben the medicyn that may be thy sorowes lisse and + comfort, as wel thee as al other that amisse have erred and out of + the way walked, so that any drope of good wil in amendement 5 + [may] ben dwelled in their hertes. Proverbes of Salomon openly + techeth, how somtyme an innocent walkid by the way in + blyndnesse of a derke night; whom mette a woman (if it be leefly to + saye) as a strumpet arayed, redily purveyed in turninge of + thoughtes with veyne janglinges, and of rest inpacient, by 10 + dissimulacion of my termes, saying in this wyse: "Com, and be we + dronken of our swete pappes; use we coveitous collinges." And + thus drawen was this innocent, as an oxe to the larder.' + + 'Lady,' quod I, 'to me this is a queynte thing to understande; + I praye you, of this parable declare me the entent.' 15 + + 'This innocent,' quod she, 'is a scoler lerninge of my lore, in + seching of my blisse, in whiche thinge the day of his thought + turning enclyneth in-to eve; and the sonne, of very light faylinge, + maketh derke night in his conninge. Thus in derknesse of many + doutes he walketh, and for blyndenesse of understandinge, he ne 20 + wot in what waye he is in; forsothe, suche oon may lightly ben + begyled. To whom cam love fayned, not clothed of my livery, + but [of] unlefful lusty habit, with softe speche and mery; and + with fayre honyed wordes heretykes and mis-meninge people + skleren and wimplen their errours. Austen witnesseth of an 25 + heretyk, that in his first beginninge he was a man right expert + in resons and swete in his wordes; and the werkes miscorden. + Thus fareth fayned love in her firste werchinges. Thou knowest + these thinges for trewe; thou hast hem proved by experience + somtyme, in doing to thyne owne person; in whiche thing thou hast 30 + founde mater of mokel disese. Was not fayned love redily + purveyed, thy wittes to cacche and tourne thy good thoughtes? + Trewly, she hath wounded the conscience of many with florisshinge + of mokel jangling wordes; and good worthe thanked I it for + no glose. I am glad of my prudence thou hast so manly her 35 + +weyved. To me art thou moche holden, that in thy kynde + course of good mening I returne thy mynde. I trowe, ne had + I shewed thee thy Margaryte, thou haddest never returned. Of + first in good parfit joye was ever fayned love impacient, as the + water of Siloë, whiche evermore floweth with stilnesse and privy 40 + noyse til it come nighe the brinke, and than ginneth it so out of + mesure to bolne, with novelleries of chaunging stormes, that in + course of every renning it is in pointe to spille al his circuit of + +bankes. Thus fayned love prively, at the fullest of his flowinge, + [ginneth] newe stormes [of] debat to arayse. And al-be-it that 45 + Mercurius [servants] often with hole understandinge knowen + suche perillous maters, yet Veneriens so lusty ben and so leude + in their wittes, that in suche thinges right litel or naught don + they fele; and wryten and cryen to their felawes: "here is blisse, + here is joye"; and thus in-to one same errour mokel folk they 50 + drawen. "Come," they sayen, "and be we dronken of our + pappes"; that ben fallas and lying glose, of whiche mowe they not + souke milke of helthe, but deedly venim and poyson, corrupcion + of sorowe. Milke of fallas is venim of disceyt; milke of lying glose + is venim of corrupcion. Lo! what thing cometh out of these 55 + pappes! "Use we coveited collinges"; desyre we and meddle we false + wordes with sote, and sote with false! Trewly, this is the sorinesse + of fayned love; nedes, of these surfettes sicknesse muste + folowe. Thus, as an oxe, to thy langoring deth were thou drawen; + the sote of the smoke hath thee al defased. Ever the deper thou 60 + somtyme wadest, the soner thou it founde; if it had thee killed, + it had be litel wonder. But on that other syde, my trewe + servaunt[s] not faynen ne disceyve conne; sothly, their doinge + is open; my foundement endureth, be the burthen never so + greet; ever in one it lasteth. It yeveth lyf and blisful goodnesse 65 + in the laste endes, though the ginninges ben sharpe. Thus of + two contraries, contrarye ben the effectes. And so thilke + Margaryte thou servest shal seen thee, by her service out of + perillous tribulacion delivered, bycause of her service in-to newe + disese fallen, by hope of amendement in the laste ende, with joye 70 + to be gladded. Wherfore, of kynde pure, her mercy with grace + of good helpe shal she graunte; and els I shal her so strayne, + that with pitè shal she ben amaystred. Remembre in thyne + herte how horribly somtyme to thyne Margaryte thou trespasest, + and in a grete wyse ayenst her thou forfeytest! Clepe ayen thy 75 + mynde, and know thyne owne giltes. What goodnesse, what + bountee, with mokel folowing pitè founde thou in that tyme? + Were thou not goodly accepted in-to grace? By my pluckinge + was she to foryevenesse enclyned. And after, I her styred to + drawe thee to house; and yet wendest thou utterly for ever 80 + have ben refused. But wel thou wost, sithen that I in suche + sharpe disese might so greetly avayle, what thinkest in thy wit? + How fer may my wit strecche? And thou lache not on thy syde, + I wol make the knotte. Certes, in thy good bering I wol acorde + with the psauter: "I have founde David in my service true, and 85 + with holy oyle of pees and of rest, longe by him desyred, utterly + he shal be anoynted." Truste wel to me, and I wol thee not + fayle. The +leving of the first way with good herte of continuance + that I see in thee grounded, this purpose to parfourme, draweth + me by maner of constrayning, that nedes muste I ben thyne helper. 90 + Although mirthe a whyle be taried, it shal come at suche seson, + that thy thought shal ben joyed. And wolde never god, sithen + thyne herte to my resons arn assented, and openly hast confessed + thyne amisse-going, and now cryest after mercy, but-if mercy + folowed; thy blisse shal ben redy, y-wis; thou ne wost how sone. 95 + Now be a good child, I rede. The kynde of vertues, in thy + Margaryte rehersed, by strength of me in thy person shul werche. + Comfort thee in this; for thou mayst not miscary.' And these + wordes sayd, she streyght her on length, and rested a whyle. + + ¶ THUS ENDETH THE SECONDE BOOK, AND HERE AFTER FOLOWETH + THE THIRDE BOOK. + +CH. XIV. 1. nowe. 4. the. 6. _Supply_ may. 7. teacheth. howe. + +8. lefely. 11. sayeng. Come. 14. thynge. 16. scholer. 17. daye. 21. wote. +one. 22. whome came. 23. _Supply_ of. unleful lustye habyte. 24. misse-. +26. heretyke. experte. 27. resones. 29. haste. 32. catche. 35. gladde. 36. +veyned; _read_ weyved. arte. 37. meanyng. 38. the. 39. parfyte. 42. +measure. 43. spyl. 44. cankes (!); _read_ bankes. + +45. _I supply_ ginneth _and_ of. debate. 46. _I supply_ servants. 51. +sayne. 52-4. lyeng. 54. disceyte. 55. thynge. 58. must. 60. the. 61. the. +63. seruaunt. 65. great. lyfe. 68. sene the. 70, 82. disease. 72. graunt. +74. howe. 75. great. 76. knowe. 77. bountie. 80. the. + +82. greatly. 83. howe ferre maye my wytte stretche. 86. peace. 87. the. 88. +leanyng (!). 89. se. the. 93. reasones arne. haste. 94. nowe. 96. chylde. +98. Comforte the. 99. sayde. COLOPHON. booke. boke. + + BOOK III. + + CHAPTER I. + + Of nombre, sayn these clerkes, that it is naturel somme of + discrete thinges, as in tellinge oon, two, three, and so forth; + but among al nombres, three is determined for moste certayn. + Wherfore in nombre certayn this werk of my besy leudenesse + I thinke to ende and parfourme. Ensample by this worlde, in 5 + three tymes is devyded; of whiche the first is cleped +Deviacion, + that is to say, going out of trewe way; and al that tho dyeden, in + helle were they punisshed for a man[ne]s sinne, til grace and mercy + fette hem thence, and there ended the firste tyme. The seconde + tyme lasteth from the comming of merciable grace until the ende 10 + of transitorie tyme, in whiche is shewed the true way in fordoinge + of the badde; and that is y-cleped tyme of Grace. And that + thing is not yeven by desert of yeldinge oon benefyt for another, + but only through goodnesse of the yever of grace in thilke tyme. + Who-so can wel understande is shapen to be saved in souled 15 + blisse. The thirde tyme shal ginne whan transitorie thinges of + worldes han mad their ende; and that shal ben in Joye, glorie, and + rest, both body and soule, that wel han deserved in the tyme of + Grace. And thus in that heven +togider shul they dwelle perpetuelly, + without any imaginatyfe yvel in any halve. These 20 + tymes are figured by tho three dayes that our god was closed + in erthe; and in the thirde aroos, shewing our resurreccion to + joye and blisse of tho that it deserven, by his merciable grace. + So this leude book, in three maters, accordaunt to tho tymes, + lightly by a good inseër may ben understonde; as in the firste, 25 + Errour of misse-goinge is shewed, with sorowful pyne punisshed, + +that cryed after mercy. In the seconde, is Grace in good waye + proved, whiche is faylinge without desert, thilke first misse + amendinge, in correccion of tho erroures, and even way to bringe, + with comfort of welfare in-to amendement wexinge. And in the 30 + thirde, Joye and blisse graunted to him that wel can deserve it, + and hath savour of understandinge in the tyme of grace. Thus + in Joye, of my thirde boke, shal the mater be til it ende. + + But special cause I have in my herte to make this proces + of a Margarit-perle, that is so precious a gemme +whyt, clere and 35 + litel, of whiche stones or jewel[les] the tonges of us Englissh + people tourneth the right names, and clepeth hem 'Margery-perles'; + thus varieth our speche from many other langages. For + trewly Latin, Frenche, and many mo other langages clepeth hem, + Margery-perles, [by] the name 'Margarites,' or 'Margarite-perles'; 40 + wherfore in that denominacion I wol me acorde to other mens + tonges, in that name-cleping. These clerkes that treten of kyndes, + and studien out the propertee there of thinges, sayn: the Margarite + is a litel whyt perle, throughout holowe and rounde and + vertuous; and on the see-sydes, in the more Britayne, in 45 + muskle-shelles, of the hevenly dewe, the best ben engendred; in whiche + by experience ben founde three fayre vertues. Oon is, it yeveth + comfort to the feling spirites in bodily persones of reson. Another + is good; it is profitable helthe ayenst passions of sorie mens hertes. + And the thirde, it is nedeful and noble in staunching of bloode, 50 + there els to moche wolde out renne. To whiche perle and vertues + me list to lyken at this tyme Philosophie, with her three speces, + that is, natural, and moral, and resonable; of whiche thinges + hereth what sayn these grete clerkes. Philosophie is knowing of + devynly and manly thinges joyned with studie of good living; 55 + and this stant in two thinges, that is, conninge and opinion. + Conninge is whan a thing by certayn reson is conceyved. But + wrecches and fooles and leude men, many wil conceyve a thing + and mayntayne it as for sothe, though reson be in the contrarye; + wherfore conninge is a straunger. Opinion is whyl a thing is in 60 + non-certayn, and hid from mens very knowleging, and by no parfit + reson fully declared, as thus: if the sonne be so mokel as men + wenen, or els if it be more than the erthe. For in sothnesse the + certayn quantitè of that planet is unknowen to erthly dwellers; and + yet by opinion of some men it is holden for more than midle-erth. 65 + + The first spece of philosophie is naturel; whiche in kyndely + thinges +treteth, and sheweth causes of heven, and strength of + kyndely course; as by arsmetrike, geometry, musike, and by + astronomye techeth wayes and cours of hevens, of planetes, and + of sterres aboute heven and erthe, and other elementes. 70 + + The seconde spece is moral, whiche, in order, of living maners + techeth; and by reson proveth vertues of soule moste worthy in + our living; whiche ben prudence, justice, temperaunce, and + strength. Prudence is goodly wisdom in knowing of thinges. + Strength voideth al adversitees aliche even. Temperaunce distroyeth 75 + beestial living with esy bering. And Justice rightfully + jugeth; and juging departeth to every wight that is his owne. + + The thirde spece turneth in-to reson of understanding; al + thinges to be sayd soth and discussed; and that in two thinges is + devyded. Oon is art, another is rethorike; in whiche two al 80 + lawes of mans reson ben grounded or els maintayned. + + And for this book is of LOVE, and therafter bereth his name, + and philosophie and lawe muste here-to acorden by their clergial + discripcions, as: philosophie for love of wisdom is declared, lawe + for mainteynaunce of pees is holden: and these with love must 85 + nedes acorden; therfore of hem in this place have I touched. + Ordre of homly thinges and honest maner of livinge in vertue, + with rightful jugement in causes and profitable administracion in + comminaltees of realmes and citees, by evenhed profitably to + raigne, nat by singuler avauntage ne by privè envy, ne by soleyn 90 + purpos in covetise of worship or of goodes, ben disposed in open + rule shewed, by love, philosophy, and lawe, and yet love, toforn + al other. Wherfore as sustern in unitè they accorden, and oon + ende, that is, pees and rest, they causen norisshinge; and in the + joye maynteynen to endure. 95 + + Now than, as I have declared: my book acordeth with discripcion + of three thinges; and the Margarit in vertue is lykened + to Philosophy, with her three speces. In whiche maters ever + twey ben acordaunt with bodily reson, and the thirde with the + soule. But in conclusion of my boke and of this Margarite-perle 100 + in knittinge togider, Lawe by three sondrye maners shal be lykened; + that is to saye, lawe, right, and custome, whiche I wol declare. + Al that is lawe cometh of goddes ordinaunce, by kyndly worching; + and thilke thinges ordayned by mannes wittes arn y-cleped right, + which is ordayned by many maners and in constitucion written. 105 + But custome is a thing that is accepted for right or for lawe, + there-as lawe and right faylen; and there is no difference, whether + it come of scripture or of reson. Wherfore it sheweth, that lawe + is kyndly governaunce; right cometh out of mannes probable + reson; and custome is of commen usage by length of tyme 110 + used; and custome nat writte is usage; and if it be writte, + constitucion it is y-written and y-cleped. But lawe of kynde is + commen to every nation, as conjunccion of man and woman in + love, succession of children in heritance, restitucion of thing + by strength taken or lent; and this lawe among al other halt 115 + the soveraynest gree in worship; whiche lawe began at the + beginning of resonable creature; it varied yet never for no + chaunging of tyme. Cause, forsothe, in ordayning of lawe was to + constrayne mens hardinesse in-to pees, and withdrawing his yvel + wil, and turning malice in-to goodnesse; and that innocence 120 + sikerly, withouten teneful anoye, among shrewes safely might + inhabite by proteccion of safe-conducte, so that the shrewes, harm + for harme, by brydle of ferdnesse shulden restrayne. But forsothe, + in kyndely lawe, nothing is commended but such as goddes + wil hath confirmed, ne nothing denyed but contrarioustee of 125 + goddes wil in heven. Eke than al lawes, or custome, or els + constitucion by usage or wryting, that contraryen lawe of kynde, + utterly ben repugnaunt and adversarie to our goddes wil of heven. + Trewly, lawe of kynde for goddes own lusty wil is verily to + mayntayne; under whiche lawe (and unworthy) bothe professe 130 + and reguler arn obediencer and bounden to this Margarite-perle + as by knotte of loves statutes and stablisshment in kynde, whiche + that goodly may not be withsetten. Lo! under this bonde am + I constrayned to abyde; and man, under living lawe ruled, by that + lawe oweth, after desertes, to ben rewarded by payne or by mede, 135 + but-if mercy weyve the payne. So than +by part resonfully may + be seye, that mercy bothe right and lawe passeth. Th' entent + of al these maters is the lest clere understanding, to weten, at + th'ende of this thirde boke; ful knowing, thorow goddes grace, + I thinke to make neverthelater. Yet if these thinges han a good 140 + and a +sleigh inseër, whiche that can souke hony of the harde + stone, oyle of the drye rocke, [he] may lightly fele nobley of mater + in my leude imaginacion closed. But for my book shal be of + joye (as I sayd), and I [am] so fer set fro thilke place fro whens + gladnesse shulde come; my corde is to short to lete my boket 145 + ought cacche of that water; and fewe men be abouten my corde + to eche, and many in ful purpos ben redy it shorter to make, and + to enclose th' entrè, that my boket of joye nothing shulde cacche, + but empty returne, my careful sorowes to encrese: (and if I dye + for payne, that were gladnesse at their hertes): good lord, send 150 + me water in-to the cop of these mountayns, and I shal drinke + therof, my thurstes to stanche, and sey, these be comfortable + welles; in-to helth of goodnesse of my saviour am I holpen. And + yet I saye more, the house of joye to me is nat opened. How + dare my sorouful goost than in any mater of gladnesse thinken to 155 + trete? For ever sobbinges and complayntes be redy refrete in + his meditacions, as werbles in manifolde stoundes comming about + I not than. And therfore, what maner of joye coude [I] endyte? + But yet at dore shal I knocke, if the key of David wolde the locke + unshitte, and he bringe me in, whiche that childrens tonges both 160 + openeth and closeth; whos spirit where he +wol wercheth, + departing goodly as him lyketh. + + Now to goddes laude and reverence, profit of the reders, + amendement of maners of the herers, encresing of worship among + Loves servauntes, releving of my herte in-to grace of my jewel, 165 + and fren[d]ship [in] plesance of this perle, I am stered in this + making, and for nothing els; and if any good thing to mennes + lyking in this scripture be founde, thanketh the maister of grace, + whiche that of that good and al other is authour and principal + doer. And if any thing be insufficient or els mislyking, +wyte 170 + that the leudnesse of myne unable conning: for body in disese + anoyeth the understanding in soule. A disesely habitacion + letteth the wittes [in] many thinges, and namely in sorowe. The + custome never-the-later of Love, +by long tyme of service, in + termes I thinke to pursue, whiche ben lyvely to yeve understanding 175 + in other thinges. But now, to enforme thee of this + Margarites goodnesse, I may her not halfe preyse. Wherfore, nat + she for my boke, but this book for her, is worthy to be commended, + tho my book be leude; right as thinges nat for places, but places + for thinges, ought to be desyred and praysed. 180 + +BOOK III: CH. I. 1. sayne. 2. one. thre. 3. amonge. thre. 3, 4. certayne. +4. werke. 6. thre. Demacion; _read_ Deuiacion. 8. hel. + +13. thynge. deserte. one benefyte. 14. onely. 16. gyn. 17. made. 19. +togyther. dwel. 21. thre. 22. arose. resurrection. 24. boke. thre. 25. +maye. 26. erroure. 27. is (!); _read_ that. 28. deserte. 29. correction. +waye. 30. comforte. 31. canne. 34. hert. processe. 35. peerle. with; _read_ +whyt (_see_ l. 44). 36. iewel; _read_ iewelles. 39. cleapeth. 40. _Supply_ +by. 42. treaten. 43. propertie. sayne. 44. whyte. 47. One. 48. comforte. +reason. + +51. ren. 52. thre. 54. sayn. great. 56. stante. 57. certayne. 58. wretches. +60. whyle. 61. -certayne. hydde. 62. parfyte reason. 64. certayne. 67. +treten; _read_ treteth. 69. course. 73. lyueng. 74. wysdome. 76. lyueng. +easy bearyng. 78. reason. 80. one. arte. 81. reason. 82. booke. beareth. +84. wisdome. 85. peace. + +88. administration. 89. co_m_mynalties. cytes. 91. purpose. 93. susterne. +one. 94. peace. 96. Nowe. boke. discription. 97-8. thre. 99. reason. 100. +peerle. 101. thre. 105. co_n_stitution. 110. reason. 112. co_n_stitutyon. +113. co_n_iunction. 114. restitution. 115. halte. 117. reasonable. 119. +peace. 121. amonge. 122. harme for harme. + +123. ferdenesse. 124. nothynge. 125. contraryoustie. 130. law. 131. arne. +133. maye. 134. lyueng. 135. payn. 136. be; _read_ by. parte reasonfully. +137. sey. thentent. 139. thende. thorowe. 141. sleight; _read_ sleigh. 142. +_I insert_ he. 143. ymagination. boke. 144. _Supply_ am. ferre. 145. let. +146-8. catch. 147. purpose. 148. thentre. 150. lorde sende. 152. sta_n_ch. +157. meditatio_n_s. 158. _I supply_ I. + +160. vnshyt. bring. 161. whose spirite. wel; _read_ wol. 163. Nowe. +profite. 165. hert. 166. frenship. _I supply_ in. peerle. 170. with; _read_ +wyte. 172. habitation. 173. _I supply_ in. 174. be; _read_ by. 176. nowe. +enform the. 178-9. boke (_thrice_). + + CHAPTER II. + + 'Now,' quod Love, 'trewly thy wordes I have wel understonde. + Certes, me thinketh hem right good; and me + wondreth why thou so lightly passest in the lawe.' + + 'Sothly,' quod I, 'my wit is leude, and I am right blynd, and + that mater depe. How shulde I than have waded? Lightly 5 + might I have drenched, and spilte ther my-selfe.' + + 'Ye,' quod she, 'I shal helpe thee to swimme. For right as + lawe punissheth brekers of preceptes and the contrary-doers of the + written constitucions, right so ayenward lawe rewardeth and + yeveth mede to hem that lawe strengthen. By one lawe this 10 + rebel is punisshed and this innocent is meded; the shrewe is + enprisoned and this rightful is corowned. The same lawe that + joyneth by wedlocke without forsaking, the same lawe yeveth + lybel of departicion bycause of devorse both demed and + declared.' 15 + + 'Ye, ye,' quod I, 'I fynde in no lawe to mede and rewarde in + goodnes the gilty of desertes.' + + 'Fole,' quod she, 'gilty, converted in your lawe, mikel merit + deserveth. Also Pauly[n] of Rome was crowned, that by him the + maynteyners of Pompeus weren knowen and distroyed; and yet 20 + toforn was this Paulyn cheef of Pompeus counsaile. This lawe + in Rome hath yet his name of mesuring, in mede, the bewraying of + the conspiracy, ordayned by tho senatours the deth. Julius Cesar + is acompted in-to Catons rightwisnesse; for ever in trouth + florissheth his name among the knowers of reson. Perdicas was 25 + crowned in the heritage of Alexander the grete, for tellinge of + a prevy hate that king Porrus to Alexander hadde. Wherfore + every wight, by reson of lawe, after his rightwysenesse apertely + his mede may chalenge; and so thou, that maynteynest lawe of + kynde, and therfore disese hast suffred in the lawe, reward is 30 + worthy to be rewarded and ordayned, and +apertly thy mede + might thou chalenge.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'this have I wel lerned; and ever hens-forward + I shal drawe me therafter, in oonhed of wil to abyde, this + lawe bothe maynteyne and kepe; and so hope I best entre in-to 35 + your grace, wel deservinge in-to worship of a wight, without + nedeful compulsion, [that] ought medefully to be rewarded.' + + 'Truly,' quod Love, 'that is sothe; and tho[ugh], by constitucion, + good service in-to profit and avantage strecche, utterly + many men it demen to have more desert of mede than good wil 40 + nat compelled.' + + 'See now,' quod I, 'how +many men holden of this the contrary. + And what is good service? Of you wolde I here this + question declared.' + + 'I shal say thee,' quod she, 'in a fewe wordes:--resonable 45 + workinges in plesaunce and profit of thy soverayne.' + + 'How shulde I this performe?' quod I. + + 'Right wel,' quod she; 'and here me now a litel. It is hardely + (quod she) to understande, that right as mater by due overchaunginges + foloweth his perfeccion and his forme, right so every 50 + man, by rightful werkinges, ought to folowe the lefful desyres in + his herte, and see toforn to what ende he deserveth. For many + tymes he that loketh nat after th'endes, but utterly therof is + unknowen, befalleth often many yvels to done, wherthrough, er he + be war, shamefully he is confounded; th'ende[s] therof neden to 55 + be before loked. To every desirer of suche foresight in good + service, three thinges specially nedeth to be rulers in his workes. + First, that he do good; next, that he do [it] by eleccion in his + owne herte; and the thirde, that he do godly, withouten any + surquedry in thoughtes. That your werkes shulden be good, in 60 + service or in any other actes, authoritès many may be aleged; + neverthelater, by reson thus may it be shewed. Al your werkes + be cleped seconde, and moven in vertue of the firste wercher, + whiche in good workes wrought you to procede; and right so + your werkes moven in-to vertue of the laste ende: and right in 65 + the first workinge were nat, no man shulde in the seconde werche. + Right so, but ye feled to what ende, and seen their goodnes + closed, ye shulde no more +recche what ye wrought; but the + ginning gan with good, and there shal it cese in the laste ende, if + it be wel considred. Wherfore the middle, if other-wayes it drawe 70 + than accordant to the endes, there stinteth the course of good, + and another maner course entreth; and so it is a partie by him-selve; + and every part [that] be nat accordant to his al, is foul and + ought to be eschewed. Wherfore every thing that is wrought + and be nat good, is nat accordant to th'endes of his al hole; it is 75 + foul, and ought to be withdrawe. Thus the persons that neither + don good ne harm shamen foule their making. Wherfore, without + working of good actes in good service, may no man ben accepted. + Truely, the ilke that han might to do good and doon it nat, the + crowne of worship shal be take from hem, and with shame shul 80 + they be anulled; and so, to make oon werke acordant with his + endes, every good servaunt, by reson of consequence, muste do + good nedes. Certes, it suffiseth nat alone to do good, but goodly + withal folowe; the thanke of goodnesse els in nought he + deserveth. For right as al your being come from the greetest 85 + good, in whom al goodnesse is closed, right so your endes ben + directe to the same good. Aristotel determineth that ende and + good ben one, and convertible in understanding; and he that in + wil doth awey good, and he that loketh nat to th'ende, loketh nat + to good; but he that doth good and doth nat goodly, [and] 90 + draweth away the direction of th'ende nat goodly, must nedes + be badde. Lo! badde is nothing els but absence or negative + of good, as derkenesse is absence or negative of light. Than he + that dooth [not] goodly, directeth thilke good in-to th'ende of + badde; so muste thing nat good folowe: eke badnesse to suche 95 + folke ofte foloweth. Thus contrariaunt workers of th'ende + that is good ben worthy the contrary of th'ende that is good + to have.' + + 'How,' quod I, 'may any good dede be doon, but-if goodly it + helpe?' 100 + + 'Yes,' quod Love, 'the devil doth many good dedes, but + goodly he leveth be-hynde; for +ever badly and in disceyvable + wyse he worketh; wherfore the contrary of th'ende him foloweth. + And do he never so many good dedes, bicause goodly is away, + his goodnes is nat rekened. Lo! than, tho[ugh] a man do good, 105 + but he do goodly, th'ende in goodnesse wol nat folowe; and thus + in good service both good dede and goodly doon musten joyne + togider, and that it be doon with free choise in herte; and els + deserveth he nat the merit in goodnes: that wol I prove. For + if thou do any-thing good by chaunce or by happe, in what thing 110 + art thou therof worthy to be commended? For nothing, by reson + of that, turneth in-to thy praysing ne lacking. Lo! thilke thing + doon by hap, by thy wil is nat caused; and therby shulde I + thanke or lacke deserve? And sithen that fayleth, th'ende which + that wel shulde rewarde, must ned[e]s faile. Clerkes sayn, no man 115 + but willinge is blessed; a good dede that he hath doon is nat + doon of free choice willing; without whiche blissednesse may nat + folowe. _Ergo_, neither thanke of goodnesse ne service [is] in that + [that] is contrary of the good ende. So than, to good service + longeth good dede goodly don, thorow free choice in herte.' 120 + + 'Truely,' quod I, 'this have I wel understande.' + + 'Wel,' quod she, 'every thing thus doon sufficiently by lawe, + that is cleped justice, [may] after-reward clayme. For lawe and + justice was ordayned in this wyse, suche desertes in goodnesse, + after quantitè in doinge, by mede to rewarde; and of necessitè of 125 + suche justice, that is to say, rightwysenesse, was free choice in + deserving of wel or of yvel graunted to resonable creatures. + Every man hath free arbitrement to chose, good or yvel to + performe.' + + 'Now,' quod I tho, 'if I by my good wil deserve this Margarit-perle, 130 + and am nat therto compelled, and have free choice to do + what me lyketh; she is than holden, as me thinketh, to rewarde + th'entent of my good wil.' + + 'Goddes forbode els,' quod Love; 'no wight meneth otherwyse, + I trowe; free wil of good herte after-mede deserveth.' 135 + + 'Hath every man,' quod I, 'free choice by necessary maner of + wil in every of his doinges that him lyketh, by goddes proper + purvyaunce? I wolde see that wel declared to my leude understanding; + for "necessary" and "necessitè" ben wordes of mokel + entencion, closing (as to saye) so mote it be nedes, and otherwyse 140 + may it nat betyde.' + + 'This shalt thou lerne,' quod she, 'so thou take hede in my + speche. If it were nat in mannes owne libertè of free wil to do + good or bad, but to the one teyed by bonde of goddes preordinaunce, + than, do he never so wel, it were by nedeful compulcion 145 + of thilk bonde, and nat by free choice, wherby nothing he + desyreth: and do he never so yvel, it were nat man for to wyte, + but onlich to him that suche thing ordayned him to done. + Wherfore he ne ought for bad[de] be punisshed, ne for no good + dede be rewarded; but of necessitè of rightwisnesse was therfore 150 + free choice of arbitrement put in mans proper disposicion. Truely, + if it were otherwyse, it contraried goddes charitè, that badnesse + and goodnesse rewardeth after desert of payne or of mede.' + + 'Me thinketh this wonder,' quod I; 'for god by necessitè + forwot al thinges coming, and so mote it nedes be; and thilke 155 + thinges that ben don +by our free choice comen nothing of necessitè + but only +by wil. How may this stonde +togider? And so + me thinketh truely, that free choice fully repugneth goddes + forweting. Trewly, lady, me semeth, they mowe nat stande + +togider.' 160 + +CH. II. 1. Nowe. 4. blynde. 5. howe. 7. Yea. the. swym. 9. constitutions. +aye_n_warde. + +17. gyltie. 18. gyltie. merite. 19. Pauly (_for_ Paulyn; _first time_). 21. +toforne. chefe. 25. amonge. 25-8. reason. 26. great. 30. disease. rewarde. +31. apartly (_for_ ap_er_tly). 34. onehed. 37. _I supply_ that. 38. +constitution. 39. profite. stretch. 42. Se. howe may. 45. the. 46. profite. +47. Howe. 48. nowe. 50. perfection. + +51. leful. 52. hert. se. 55. ware. 57. thre. 58. _I supply_ it. electyon. +59. hert. 62. reason. maye. 68. recth (_for_ retch); _read_ recche. 69. +cease. 73. p_ar_te. _I supply_ that. 73-5. foule. 77. harme. 79. done. 81. +one. 82. reason. 85. greatest. + +90. _I supply_ and. 92. bad. negatyfe (_first time_). 94. _I supply_ not. +99. done. 101. dothe. 102. even; _read_ ever. 105. tho. 107-8. done +(_twice_). 108. hert. 109. merite. 111. reason. 113. done. shulde I; _put +for_ shuldest thou. 115. neds (_sic_). 116-7. done (_twice_). 118. _I +supply_ is _and_ that. 120. thorowe fre. hert. 122. done. 123. _I supply_ +may. rewarde claym. + +130. Nowe. 134. meaneth. 135. hert. 136. fre. 138. se. 140. ente_n_tion. +142. lern. 143-6. fre (_twice_). 148. onelych. 149. bad. 151. fre. 151. +disposition. 153. payn. 155. forwote. 156. be; _for_ by. fre. 157. onely +be; _for_ by. Howe. 157-60. togyther; _read_ togider. 158. fre. + + CHAPTER III. + + Than gan Love nighe me nere, and with a noble countenance + of visage and limmes, dressed her nigh my + sitting-place. + + 'Take forth,' quod she, 'thy pen, and redily wryte these + wordes. For if god wol, I shal hem so enforme to thee, that thy 5 + leudnesse which I have understande in that mater shal openly be + clered, and thy sight in ful loking therin amended. First, if thou + thinke that goddes prescience repugne libertè of arbitrement, it is + impossible that they shulde accorde in onheed of sothe to + understonding.' 10 + + 'Ye,' quod I, 'forsothe; so I it conceyve.' + + 'Wel,' quod she, 'if thilke impossible were away, the repugnaunce + that semeth to be therin were utterly removed.' + + 'Shewe me the absence of that impossibilitè,' quod I. + + 'So,' quod she, 'I shal. Now I suppose that they mowe 15 + stande togider: prescience of god, whom foloweth necessitè of + thinges comming, and libertè of arbitrement, thorow whiche thou + belevest many thinges to be without necessitè.' + + 'Bothe these proporcions be sothe,' quod I, 'and wel mowe + stande togider; wherfore this case as possible I admit.' 20 + + 'Truely,' quod she, 'and this case is impossible.' + + 'How so?' quod I. + + 'For herof,' quod she, 'foloweth and wexeth another + impossible.' + + 'Prove me that,' quod I. 25 + + 'That I shal,' quod she; 'for somthing is comming without + necessitè, and god wot that toforn; for al thing comming he + before wot, and that he beforn wot of necessitè is comming, as + he beforn wot be the case by necessary maner; or els, thorow + necessitè, is somthing to be without necessitè; and wheder, to 30 + every wight that hath good understanding, is seen these thinges + to be repugnaunt: prescience of god, whiche that foloweth necessitè, + and libertè of arbitrement, fro whiche is removed necessitè? + For truely, it is necessary that god have forweting of thing withouten + any necessitè cominge.' 35 + + 'Ye,' quod I; 'but yet remeve ye nat away fro myne understanding + the necessitè folowing goddes be foreweting, as thus. God + beforn wot me in service of love to be bounden to this Margarite-perle, + and therfore by necessitè thus to love am I bounde; and + if I had nat loved, thorow necessitè had I ben kept from al 40 + love-dedes.' + + 'Certes,' quod Love, 'bicause this mater is good and necessary + to declare, I thinke here-in wel to abyde, and not lightly to passe. + Thou shalt not (quod she) say al-only, "god beforn wot me to be + a lover or no lover," but thus: "god beforn wot me to be a lover 45 + without necessitè." And so foloweth, whether thou love or not love, + every of hem is and shal be. But now thou seest the impossibilitè + of the case, and the possibilitè of thilke that thou wendest + had been impossible; wherfore the repugnaunce is adnulled.' + + 'Ye,' quod I; 'and yet do ye not awaye the strength of necessitè, 50 + whan it is said, th[r]ough necessitè it is me in love to + abyde, or not to love without necessitè for god beforn wot it. + This maner of necessitè forsothe semeth to some men in-to coaccion, + that is to sayne, constrayning, or else prohibicion, that is, + defendinge; wherfore necessitè is me to love of wil. I understande 55 + me to be constrayned by some privy strength to the wil + of lovinge; and if [I] no[t] love, to be defended from the wil of + lovinge: and so thorow necessitè me semeth to love, for I love; + or els not to love, if I not love; wherthrough neither thank ne + maugrè in tho thinges may I deserve.' 60 + + 'Now,' quod she, 'thou shalt wel understande, that often we + sayn thing thorow necessitè to be, that by no strength to be + neither is coarted ne constrayned; and through necessitè not + to be, that with no defendinge is removed. For we sayn it is + thorow necessitè god to be immortal, nought deedliche; and it 65 + is necessitè, god to be rightful; but not that any strength of + violent maner constrayneth him to be immortal, or defendeth him + to be unrightful; for nothing may make him dedly or unrightful. + Right so, if I say, thorow necessitè is thee to be a lover or els + noon; only thorow wil, as god beforn wete. It is nat to understonde 70 + that any thing defendeth or forbit thee thy wil, whiche shal + nat be; or els constrayneth it to be, whiche shal be. That same + thing, forsoth, god before wot, whiche he beforn seeth. Any + thing commende of only wil, that wil neyther is constrayned + ne defended thorow any other thing. And so thorow libertè of 75 + arbitrement it is do, that is don of wil. And trewly, my good + child, if these thinges be wel understonde, I wene that non + inconvenient shalt thou fynde betwene goddes forweting and + libertè of arbitrement; wherfore I wot wel they may stande + togider. Also farthermore, who that understanding of prescience 80 + properlich considreth, thorow the same wyse that any-thing be + afore wist is said, for to be comming it is pronounced; there is + nothing toforn wist but thing comming; foreweting is but of + trouth[e]; dout[e] may nat be wist; wherfore, whan I sey that god + toforn wot any-thing, thorow necessitè is thilke thing to be comming; 85 + al is oon if I sey, it shal be. But this necessitè neither + constrayneth ne defendeth any-thing to be or nat to be. Therfore sothly, + if love is put to be, it is said of necessitè to be; or els, for it + is put nat to be, it is affirmed nat to be of necessitè; nat for that + necessitè constrayneth or defendeth love to be or nat to be. For 90 + whan I say, if love shal be, of necessitè it shal be, here foloweth + necessitè the thing toforn put; it is as moch to say as if it were thus + pronounced--"that thing shal be." Noon other thing signifyeth + this necessitè but only thus: that shal be, may nat togider be + and nat be. Evenlich also it is soth, love was, and is, and shal 95 + be, nat of necessitè; and nede is to have be al that was; and + nedeful is to be al that is; and comming, to al that shal be. + And it is nat the same to saye, love to be passed, and love + passed to be passed; or love present to be present, and love to + be present; or els love to be comminge, and love comminge to be 100 + comming. Dyversitè in setting of wordes maketh dyversitè in + understandinge; altho[ugh] in the same sentence they accorden + of significacion; right as it is nat al oon, love swete to be swete, + and love to be swete. For moch love is bitter and sorouful, er + hertes ben esed; and yet it glad[d]eth thilke sorouful herte on 105 + suche love to thinke.' + + 'Forsothe,' quod I, 'outherwhile I have had mokel blisse in + herte of love that stoundmele hath me sorily anoyed. And + certes, lady, for I see my-self thus knit with this Margarite-perle + as by bonde of your service and of no libertè of wil, my herte wil 110 + now nat acorde this service to love. I can demin in my-selfe + non otherwise but thorow necessitè am I constrayned in this + service to abyde. But alas! than, if I thorow nedeful compulsioun + maugre me be with-holde, litel thank for al my greet traveil have + I than deserved.' 115 + + 'Now,' quod this lady, 'I saye as I sayde: me lyketh this + mater to declare at the ful, and why: for many men have had + dyvers fantasyes and resons, both on one syde therof and in the + other. Of whiche right sone, I trowe, if thou wolt understonde, + thou shalt conne yeve the sentence to the partie more probable 120 + by reson, and in soth knowing, by that I have of this mater + maked an ende.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'of these thinges longe have I had greet lust + to be lerned; for yet, I wene, goddes wil and his prescience + acordeth with my service in lovinge of this precious Margarite-perle. 125 + After whom ever, in my herte, with thursting desyre wete, + I do brenne; unwasting, I langour and fade; and the day of my + desteny in dethe or in joye I +onbyde; but yet in th'ende I am + comforted +by my supposaile, in blisse and in joye to determine + after my desyres.' 130 + + 'That thing,' quoth Love, 'hastely to thee neigh, god graunt + of his grace and mercy! And this shal be my prayer, til thou be + lykende in herte at thyne owne wil. But now to enforme thee in + this mater (quod this lady) thou wost where I lefte; that was: + love to be swete, and love swete to be swete, is not al oon for to 135 + say. For a tree is nat alway by necessitè white. Somtyme, er it + were white, it might have be nat white; and after tyme it is + white, it may be nat white. But a white tree evermore nedeful + is to be white; for neither toforn ne after it was white, might it + be togider white and nat white. Also love, by necessitè, is nat 140 + present as now in thee; for er it were present, it might have be + that it shulde now nat have be; and yet it may be that it shal nat + be present; but thy love present whiche to her, Margarite, thee + hath bounde, nedeful is to be present. Trewly, som doing of + accion, nat by necessitè, is comminge fer toforn it be; it may be 145 + that it shal nat be comminge. Thing forsoth comming nedeful is + to be comming; for it may nat be that comming shal nat be + comming. And right as I have sayd of present and of future + tymes, the same sentence in sothnesse is of the preterit, that is + to say, tyme passed. For thing passed must nedes be passed; and 150 + er it were, it might have nat be; wherfore it shulde nat have + passed. Right so, whan love comming is said of love that is to + come, nedeful is to be that is said; for thing comming never is nat + comminge. And so, ofte, the same thing we sayn of the same; as + whan we sayn "every man is a man," or "every lover is a lover," 155 + so muste it be nedes. In no waye may he be man and no man togider. + And if it be nat by necessitè, that is to say nedeful, al thing + comming to be comming, than somthing comming is nat comminge, + and that is impossible. Right as these termes "nedeful," + "necessitè," and "necessary" betoken and signify thing nedes 160 + to be, and it may nat otherwyse be, right [so] +this terme "impossible" + signifyeth, that [a] thing is nat and by no way may it be. + Than, thorow pert necessitè, al thing comming is comming; but + that is by necessitè foloweth, with nothing to be constrayned. + Lo! whan that "comming" is said of thinge, nat alway thing 165 + thorow necessitè is, altho[ugh] it be comming. For if I say, + "to-morowe love is comming in this Margarites herte," nat therfore + thorow necessitè shal the ilke love be; yet it may be that it shal + nat be, altho[ugh] it were comming. Neverthelater, somtyme it + is soth that somthing be of necessitè, that is sayd "to come"; as 170 + if I say, to-morowe +be comminge the rysinge of the sonne. If + therfore with necessitè I pronounce comming of thing to come, in + this maner love to-morne comminge in thyne Margarite to thee-ward, + by necessitè is comminge; or els the rysing of the sonne + to-morne comminge, through necessitè is comminge. Love sothely, 175 + whiche may nat be of necessitè alone folowinge, thorow necessitè + comming it is mad certayn. For "futur" of future is said; that is to + sayn, "comming" of comminge is said; as, if to-morowe comming + is thorow necessitè, comminge it is. Arysing of the sonne, thorow + two necessitès in comming, it is to understande; that oon is 180 + to-for[e]going necessitè, whiche maketh thing to be; therfore it shal + be, for nedeful is that it be. Another is folowing necessitè, whiche + nothing constrayneth to be, and so by necessitè it is to come; why? + for it is to come. Now than, whan we sayn that god beforn wot + thing comming, nedeful [it] is to be comming; yet therfore make 185 + we nat in certayn evermore, thing to be thorow necessitè comminge. + Sothly, thing comming may nat be nat comming by no + way; for it is the same sentence of understanding as if we say + thus: if god beforn wot any-thing, nedeful is that to be comming. + But yet therfore foloweth nat the prescience of God, thing thorow 190 + necessitè to be comming: for al-tho[ugh] god toforn wot al + thinges comming, yet nat therfore he beforn wot every thing + comming thorow necessitè. Some thinges he beforn wot comming + of free wil out of resonable creature.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'these termes "nede" and "necessitè" have 195 + a queint maner of understanding; they wolden dullen many + mennes wittes.' + + 'Therfore,' quod she, 'I wol hem openly declare, and more + clerely than I have toforn, er I departe hen[ne]s. + +CH. III. 1. nygh. 5. the. 6. vndersta_n_d. 8. lyberte of arbetry of +arbitrement; _omit_ arbetry of. 15. Nowe. 17. thorowe. 22. Howe. 29. +beforne. maner than (_omit_ than). thorowe. 30. whed_er_to. + +38. beforne wote. 40. thorowe. kepte. 44. shalte. onely. 44-5. beforne wote +(_twice_). 47. nowe. 51. though; _read_ through. 52. beforne wote. 53. +coaction. 57. _Supply_ I; _for_ no _read_ not; _see_ l. 59. 58. thorowe. +59. thanke. 60. maye. 61. Nowe. shalte. 62. sayne. thorowe. 63. throughe. +64. sayne. 65. thorowe. 67. violente. 69. thorowe. the. 70. none. onely +thorowe. beforne. 71. the. + +73-4. thynge. 74. co_m_mende; _for_ comminge. onely. 75. thorowe (_twice_). +76. done. 77. childe. vndersto_n_d. 81. thorowe. 84. trouth. dout. 85. +wote. thorowe. 86. if it shal be; _omit_ if. 92. toforne. 93. None. 94. +onely. 102. altho. 103. signification. one. 105. eased. hert. 108. hert. + +109. se. peerle. 110. hert. 111. nowe. 112. thorowe. 113. thorowe. 114. +thanke. great. 116. Nowe. 118. reasons. 120. shalte con. 121. reason. 123. +great luste. 126. hert. weete. 128. vnbyde (!). 129. be; _for_ by. 133. +nowe. the. 135. one. 138. maye. 141. nowe. the. 142. nowe. maye. 143. the. +144. some. + +145. action. ferre. 154. thynge. 155. sayne. 161. _I supply_ so. these +termes; _read_ this terme. 162. _I supply_ a. 163-6. thorowe. (_twice_). +166. altho. 167. hert. 169. altho. 171. by; _read_ be. 173. the warde. 176. +thorowe. 177. made certayne. 179. thorowe. 180. one. 181. to forgoing. + +184. Nowe. 185. _I supply_ it. 186. certayne. thynge. thorowe. 187. maye. +190. thorowe. 191. wote. 193. thorowe. 200. hense; _read_ hennes. + + CHAPTER IV. + + Here of this mater,' quod she, 'thou shalt understande + that, right as it is nat nedeful, god to wilne that he wil, + no more in many thinges is nat nedeful, a man to wilne that + he wol. And ever, right as nedeful is to be, what that god wol, + right so to be it is nedeful that man wol in tho thinges, whiche 5 + that god hath put in-to mannes subjeccion of willinge; as, if + a man wol love, that he love; and if he ne wol love, that he love + nat; and of suche other thinges in mannes disposicion. For-why, + now than that god wol may nat be, whan he wol the wil of man + thorow no necessitè to be constrayned or els defended for to 10 + wilne, and he wol th'effect to folowe the wil; than is it nedeful, + wil of man to be free, and also to be that he wol. In this maner + it is soth, that thorow necessitè is mannes werke in loving, that + he wol do altho[ugh] he wol it nat with necessitè.' + + Quod I than, 'how stant it in love of thilke wil, sithen men 15 + loven willing of free choice in herte? Wherfore, if it be thorow + necessitè, I praye you, lady, of an answere this question to + assoyle.' + + 'I wol,' quod she, 'answere thee blyvely. Right as men wil + not thorow necessitè, right so is not love of wil thorow necessitè; 20 + ne thorow necessitè wrought thilke same wil. For if he wolde + it not with good wil, it shulde nat have been wrought; although + that he doth, it is nedeful to be doon. But if a man do sinne, it + is nothing els but to +wilne that he shulde nat; right so sinne + of wil is not to be [in] maner necessary don, no more than wil is 25 + necessarye. Never-the-later, this is sothe; if a man wol sinne, + it is necessarye him to sinne, but th[r]ough thilke necessitè nothing + is constrayned ne defended in the wil; right so thilke thing that + free-wil wol and may, and not may not wilne; and nedeful is + that to wilne he may not wilne. But thilke to wilne nedeful is; for 30 + impossible to him it is oon thing and the same to wilne and not to + wilne. The werke, forsothe, of wil, to whom it is yeve that it be that + he hath in wil, and that he wol not, voluntarie +or spontanye it is; + for by spontanye wil it is do, that is to saye, with good wil not + constrayned: than by wil not constrayned it is constrayned to 35 + be; and that is it may not +togider be. If this necessitè maketh + libertè of wil, whiche that, aforn they weren, they might have ben + eschewed and shonned: god than, whiche that knoweth al + tr[o]uthe, and nothing but tr[o]uthe, al these thinges, as they + arn spontanye or necessarie, +seeth; and as he seeth, so they 40 + ben. And so with these thinges wel considred, it is open at the + ful, that without al maner repugnaunce god beforn wot al maner + thinges [that] ben don by free wil, whiche, aforn they weren, + [it] might have ben [that] never they shulde be. And yet ben + they thorow a maner necessitè from free wil +discended. 45 + + Hereby may (quod she) lightly ben knowe that not al thinges to + be, is of necessitè, though god have hem in his prescience. For + som thinges to be, is of libertè of wil. And to make thee to have + ful knowinge of goddes beforn-weting, here me (quod she) what + I shal say.' 50 + + 'Blythly, lady,' quod I, 'me list this mater entyrely to + understande.' + + 'Thou shalt,' quod she, 'understande that in heven is goddes + beinge; although he be over al by power, yet there is abydinge of + devyne persone; in whiche heven is everlastinge presence, withouten 55 + any movable tyme. There * is nothing preterit ne passed, + there is nothing future ne comming; but al thinges togider in that + place ben present everlasting, without any meving. Wherfore, to + god, al thing is as now; and though a thing be nat, in kyndly + nature of thinges, as yet, and if it shulde be herafter, yet evermore 60 + we shul saye, god it maketh be tyme present, and now; for no + future ne preterit in him may be founde. Wherfore his weting and + his before-weting is al oon in understanding. Than, if weting + and before-weting of god putteth in necessitè to al thinges whiche + he wot or before-wot; ne thing, after eternitè or els after any 65 + tyme, he wol or doth of libertè, but al of necessitè: whiche thing + if thou wene it be ayenst reson, [than is] nat thorow necessitè to + be or nat to be, al thing that god wot or before-wot to be or nat + to be; and yet nothing defendeth any-thing to be wist or to be + before-wist of him in our willes or our doinges to be don, or els 70 + comminge to be for free arbitrement. Whan thou hast these + declaracions wel understande, than shalt thou fynde it resonable + at prove, and that many thinges be nat thorow necessitè but + thorow libertè of wil, save necessitè of free wil, as I tofore said, + and, as me thinketh, al utterly declared.' 75 + + 'Me thinketh, lady,' quod I, 'so I shulde you nat displese, and + evermore your reverence to kepe, that these thinges contraryen in + any understanding; for ye sayn, somtyme is thorow libertè of + wil, and also thorow necessitè. Of this have I yet no savour, + without better declaracion.' 80 + + 'What wonder,' quod she, 'is there in these thinges, sithen al + day thou shalt see at thyne eye, in many thinges receyven in hem-selfe + revers, thorow dyvers resons, as thus:--I pray thee (quod + she) which thinges ben more revers than "comen" and "gon"? + For if I bidde thee "come to me," and thou come, after, whan 85 + I bidde thee "go," and thou go, thou reversest fro thy first + comming.' + + 'That is soth,' quod I. + + 'And yet,' quod she, 'in thy first alone, by dyvers reson, was + ful reversinge to understande.' 90 + + 'As how?' quod I. + + 'That shal I shewe thee,' quod she, 'by ensample of thinges + that have kyndly moving. Is there any-thing that meveth more + kyndly than doth the hevens eye, whiche I clepe the sonne?' + + 'Sothly,' quod I, 'me semeth it is most kyndly to move.' 95 + + 'Thou sayest soth,' quod she. 'Than, if thou loke to the + sonne, in what parte he be under heven, evermore he +hyeth him + in moving fro thilke place, and +hyeth meving toward the ilke + same place; to thilke place from whiche he goth he +hyeth + comminge; and without any ceesinge to that place he neigheth 100 + from whiche he is chaunged and withdrawe. But now in these + thinges, after dyversitè of reson, revers in one thinge may be seye + without repugnaunce. Wherfore in the same wyse, without any + repugnaunce, by my resons tofore maked, al is oon to beleve, + somthing to be thorow necessitè comminge for it is comming, and 105 + yet with no necessitè constrayned to be comming, but with + necessitè that cometh out of free wil, as I have sayd.' + + Tho liste me a litel to speke, and gan stinte my penne of my + wryting, and sayde in this wyse. + + 'Trewly, lady, as me thinketh, I can allege authoritees grete, 110 + that contrarien your sayinges. Job saith of mannes person, + "thou hast put his terme, whiche thou might not passe." Than + saye I that no man may shorte ne lengthe the day ordayned of + his +dying, altho[ugh] somtyme to us it semeth som man to do + a thing of free wil, wherthorow his deeth he henteth.' 115 + + 'Nay, forsothe,' quod she, 'it is nothing ayenst my saying; for + god is not begyled, ne he seeth nothing wheder it shal come of + libertè or els of necessitè; yet it is said to be ordayned at god + immovable, whiche at man, or it be don, may be chaunged. + Suche thing is also that Poule the apostel saith of hem that tofore 120 + wern purposed to be sayntes, as thus: "whiche that god before + wiste and hath predestined conformes of images of his +sone, that + he shulde ben the firste begeten, that is to saye, here amonges + many brethren; and whom he hath predestined, hem he hath + cleped; and whom he hath cleped, hem he hath justifyed; and 125 + whom he hath justifyed, hem he hath magnifyed." This purpos, + after whiche they ben cleped sayntes or holy in the everlasting + present, wher is neither tyme passed ne tyme comminge, but ever + it is only present, and now as mokel a moment as sevin thousand + winter; and so ayenward withouten any meving is nothing lich 130 + temporel presence for thinge that there is ever present. Yet + amonges you men, er it be in your presence, it is movable thorow + libertè of arbitrement. And right as in the everlasting present + no maner thing was ne shal be, but only _is_; and now here, in + your temporel tyme, somthing was, and is, and shal be, but 135 + movinge stoundes; and in this is no maner repugnaunce: right + so, in the everlasting presence, nothing may be chaunged; and, + in your temporel tyme, otherwhyle it is proved movable by libertè + of wil or it be do, withouten any inconvenience therof to folowe. + In your temporel tyme is no suche presence as in the tother; for 140 + your present is don whan passed and to come ginnen entre; + whiche tymes here amonges you everich esily foloweth other. + But the presence everlasting dureth in oonhed, withouten any + imaginable chaunging, and ever is present and now. Trewly, the + course of the planettes and overwhelminges of the sonne in dayes 145 + and nightes, with a newe ginning of his circute after it is ended, + that is to sayn, oon yeer to folowe another: these maken your + transitory tymes with chaunginge of lyves and mutacion of people, + but right as your temporel presence coveiteth every place, and al + thinges in every of your tymes be contayned, and as now both 150 + seye and wist to goddes very knowinge.' + + 'Than,' quod I, 'me wondreth why Poule spak these wordes + by voice of significacion in tyme passed, that god his sayntes + before-wist hath predestined, hath cleped, hath justifyed, and + hath magnifyed. Me thinketh, he shulde have sayd tho wordes 155 + in tyme present; and that had ben more accordaunt to the + everlasting present than to have spoke in preterit voice of passed + understanding.' + + 'O,' quod Love, 'by these wordes I see wel thou hast litel + understanding of the everlasting presence, or els of my before 160 + spoken wordes; for never a thing of tho thou hast nempned was + tofore other or after other; but al at ones evenlich at the god + ben, and al togider in the everlasting present be now to understanding. + This eternal presence, as I sayd, hath inclose togider + in one al tymes, in which close and one al thinges that ben in 165 + dyvers tymes and in dyvers places temporel, [and] without posterioritè + or prioritè ben closed ther in perpetual now, and maked + to dwelle in present sight. But there thou sayest that Poule shulde + have spoke thilke forsaid sentence +by tyme present, and that + most shulde have ben acordaunt to the everlasting presence, 170 + why gabbest thou +in thy wordes? Sothly, I say, Poule moved + the wordes by significacion of tyme passed, to shewe fully that + thilk wordes were nat put for temporel significacion; for al [at] thilk + tyme [of] thilke sentence were nat temporallich born, whiche that + Poule pronounced god have tofore knowe, and have cleped, than 175 + magnifyed. Wherthorow it may wel be knowe that Poule used tho + wordes of passed significacion, for nede and lacke of a worde + in mannes bodily speche betokeninge the everlasting presence. + And therfore, [in] worde moste semeliche in lykenesse to everlasting + presence, he took his sentence; for thinges that here-beforn 180 + ben passed utterly be immovable, y-lyke to the everlasting + presence. As thilke that ben there never mowe not ben present, + so thinges of tyme passed ne mowe in no wyse not ben passed; + but al thinges in your temporal presence, that passen in a litel + while, shullen ben not present. So than in that, it is more 185 + similitude to the everlasting presence, significacion of tyme passed + than of tyme temporal present, and so more in accordaunce. In + this maner what thing, of these that ben don thorow free arbitrement, + or els as necessary, holy writ pronounceth, after eternitè he + speketh; in whiche presence is everlasting sothe and nothing but 190 + sothe immovable; nat after tyme, in whiche naught alway ben + your willes and your actes. And right as, while they be nat, it is + nat nedeful hem to be, so ofte it is nat nedeful that somtyme + they shulde be.' + + 'As how?' quod I; 'for yet I must be lerned by some 195 + ensample.' + + 'Of love,' quod she, 'wol I now ensample make, sithen I knowe + the heed-knotte in that yelke. Lo! somtyme thou wrytest no + art, ne art than in no wil to wryte. And right as while thou + wrytest nat or els wolt nat wryte, it is nat nedeful thee to wryte 200 + or els wilne to wryte. And for to make thee knowe utterly that + thinges ben otherwise in the everlastinge presence than in + temporal tyme, see now, my good child: for somthing is in the + everlastinge presence, than in temporal tyme it was nat; in + +eterne tyme, in eterne presence shal it nat be. Than no reson 205 + defendeth, that somthing ne may be in tyme temporal moving, + that in eterne is immovable. Forsothe, it is no more contrary + ne revers for to be movable in tyme temporel, and [im]movable + in eternitè, than nat to be in any tyme and to be alway in + eternitè; and to have be or els to come in tyme temporel, and 210 + nat have be ne nought comming to be in eternitè. Yet never-the-later, + I say nat somthing to be never in tyme temporel, that + ever is [in] eternitè; but al-only in som tyme nat to be. For + I saye nat thy love to-morne in no tyme to be, but to-day alone + I deny it to be; and yet, never-the-later, it is alway in eternitè.' 215 + + 'A! so,' quod I, 'it semeth to me, that comming thing or els + passed here in your temporal tyme to be, in eternitè ever now + and present oweth nat to be demed; and yet foloweth nat thilke + thing, that was or els shal be, in no maner ther to ben passed + or els comming; than utterly shul we deny for there without 220 + ceesing it is, in his present maner.' + + 'O,' quod she, 'myne owne disciple, now ginnest thou [be] + able to have the name of my servaunt! Thy wit is clered; away + is now errour of cloude in unconning; away is blyndnesse of + love; away is thoughtful study of medling maners. Hastely 225 + shalt thou entre in-to the joye of me, that am thyn owne + maistres! Thou hast (quod she), in a fewe wordes, wel and + clerely concluded mokel of my mater. And right as there is + no revers ne contrarioustee in tho thinges, right so, withouten + any repugnaunce, it is sayd somthing to be movable in tyme 230 + temporel, +afore it be, that in eternitè dwelleth immovable, nat + afore it be or after that it is, but without cessing; for right + naught is there after tyme; that same is there everlastinge that + temporalliche somtyme nis; and toforn it be, it may not be, as + I have sayd.' 235 + + 'Now sothly,' quod I, 'this have I wel understande; so that + now me thinketh, that prescience of god and free arbitrement + withouten any repugnaunce acorden; and that maketh the + strength of eternitè, whiche encloseth by presence during al + tymes, and al thinges that ben, han ben, and shul ben in any 240 + tyme. I wolde now (quod I) a litel understande, sithen that + [god] al thing thus beforn wot, whether thilke wetinge be of tho + thinges, or els thilke thinges ben to ben of goddes weting, and so + of god nothing is; and if every thing be thorow goddes weting, and + therof take his being, than shulde god be maker and auctour 245 + of badde werkes, and so he shulde not rightfully punisshe yvel + doinges of mankynde.' + + Quod Love, 'I shal telle thee, this lesson to lerne. Myne + owne trewe servaunt, the noble philosophical poete in Englissh, + whiche evermore him besieth and travayleth right sore my name 250 + to encrese (wherfore al that willen me good owe to do him + worship and reverence bothe; trewly, his better ne his pere in + scole of my rules coude I never fynde)--he (quod she), in a tretis + that he made of my servant Troilus, hath this mater touched, and + at the ful this question assoyled. Certaynly, his noble sayinges 255 + can I not amende; in goodnes of gentil manliche speche, without + any maner of nycetè of +storiers imaginacion, in witte and in + good reson of sentence he passeth al other makers. In the boke of + Troilus, the answere to thy question mayst thou lerne. Never-the-later, + yet may lightly thyne understandinge somdel ben lerned, 260 + if thou have knowing of these to-fornsaid thinges; with that thou + have understanding of two the laste chapiters of this seconde + boke, that is to say, good to be somthing, and bad to wante al + maner being. For badde is nothing els but absence of good; + and [as] that god in good maketh that good dedes ben good, 265 + in yvel he maketh that they ben but naught, that they ben bad; + for to nothing is badnesse to be [lykned].' + + 'I have,' quod I tho, 'ynough knowing therin; me nedeth of + other thinges to here, that is to saye, how I shal come to my + blisse so long desyred.' 270 + +CH. IV. 1. shalte. 6. subiection. 8. disposition. 9. nowe. 10. thorowe. 11. +theffecte. folow. 12. fre. 13. thorowe. 14. altho. 15. howe stante. + +16. thorowe. 19. the. 20-1. thorowe (_thrice_). 23. dothe. doone. 24. wyl; +_read_ wilne; _see_ l. 30. 25. _I supply_ in. done. 28. thynge. 29. frewyl. +maye. 30. maye. 30-1. _Some words repeated here._ 31. one. 32. whome. 33. +of; _read_ or. 36. togyther; _read_ togider. 37. libertie. aforne. 39. +truthe (_twice_). 40. arne. syght; _read_ seeth. 42. beforne. 43. _I +supply_ that. fre. aforne. 44. _I supply_ it _and_ that. 45. frewyl +discendeth (!). 46. maye. 48. libertie. the. 49. beforne. + +53. shalte. * _A break here in_ Th. 59. nowe. thynge. 61. nowe. 63. one. +66. dothe. 67. reason. _I supply_ than is. thorowe. 69. thynge. 70. done. +71. haste. 72. declarations. 73-4. thorowe (_twice_). 76. displease. 78. +sayne. 78-9. thorowe. 80. declaration. 82. shalte se. 83. reasons. the. 84. +gone. 85-6. thee (_twice_). + +89. reasone. 91. howe. 92. the. 97. heigheth; _read_ hyeth. 98. higheth; +_read_ hyeth. towarde. 99. gothe. heigheth; _read_ hyeth. 100. ceasynge. +101. nowe. 102. reason. sey. 104. reasons. one. 105. thorowe. 108. list. +stynt. 109. sayd. 110. gret. 111. sayenges. 112. putte. 113. length. 114. +doyng; _read_ dying. some. 115. thynge. -thorowe. dethe. 116. Naye. sayeng. +119. done. 120. saithe. toforne werne. 122. wyst. sonne; _read_ sone. + +124. brethern. 126. purpose. 129. onely. nowe. thousande. 130. ayenwarde. +132. thorowe. 134. onely. nowe. 141. done. 142. easely. 143. onehed. 144. +nowe. 147. one yere. 148. mutation. 150. nowe. 151. sey. 152. spake. 153. +signification. 155. sayde. 159. se. + +163, 167. nowe. 166. _I supply_ and. 167. therin; _read_ ther in. 168. +dwel. 169. be; _read_ by. 171. to; _read_ in. 172-3. signification +(_twice_). 173. _I supply_ at. 174. were nat thilke sentence; _transpose, +and insert_ of. borne. 176. Wherthorowe. know. 177. signification. 178. +spech. 179. _I supply_ in; _and omit_ is _after_ worde. 180. toke. 181. +beforne. 186. signification. 188. thynge. done thorowe fre. 189. writte. +197. nowe. + +199. arte (_twice_). 200. the. 201. the. 203. se nowe. childe. somthynge. +205. eternite; _read_ eterne. reason. 208. movable (!). 210. and have to +be. 213. _I supply_ in. al onely. somtyme. 215. deny ne it; _omit_ ne. +alwaye. 217. nowe. 219. thynge. thereto; _read_ ther to. 221. ceasyng. 222. +nowe. _I supply_ be. 223. witte. 224. nowe. awaye. 226. shalte. 227. haste. +229. contrarioustie. 231. and for; _read_ afore. + +234. toforne. maye. 236. Nowe. 237. nowe. fre. 241. nowe. 242. _I supply_ +god. beforne. 244. nothynge. thorowe. 248. tel the. 251. encrease. 253. +schole. treatise. 255. sayenges. 256. gentyl manlyche. 257. nycite. +starieres (!). 258. reason. 259. mayste. 260. somdele. 263. want. 265. _I +supply_ as. 267. _I supply_ lykned. 269. howe. + + CHAPTER V. + + 'In this mater toforn declared,' quod Love, 'I have wel + shewed, that every man hath free arbitrement of thinges in + his power, to do or undo what him lyketh. Out of this grounde + muste come the spire, that by processe of tyme shal in greetnesse + sprede, to have braunches and blosmes of waxing frute in grace, 5 + of whiche the taste and the savour is endelesse blisse, in joye + ever to onbyde.'* + + 'Now, trewly, lady, I have my grounde wel understonde; + but what thing is thilke spire that in-to a tree shulde wexe? + Expowne me that thing, what ye therof mene.' 10 + + 'That shal I,' quod she, 'blithly, and take good hede to the + wordes, I thee rede. Continuaunce in thy good service, by longe + processe of tyme in ful hope abyding, without any chaunge to + wilne in thyne herte, this is the spire. Whiche, if it be wel kept + and governed, shal so hugely springe, til the fruit of grace is 15 + plentuously out-sprongen. For although thy wil be good, yet + may not therfore thilk blisse desyred hastely on thee discenden; + it must abyde his sesonable tyme. And so, by processe of + growing, with thy good traveyle, it shal in-to more and more wexe, + til it be found so mighty, that windes of yvel speche, ne scornes 20 + of envy, make nat the traveyle overthrowe; ne frostes of mistrust, + ne hayles of jelousy right litel might have, in harming of suche + springes. Every yonge setling lightly with smale stormes is + apeyred; but whan it is woxen somdel in gretnesse, than han + grete blastes and +weders but litel might, any disadvantage to 25 + them for to werche.' + + 'Myne owne soverayne lady,' quod I, 'and welth of myne + herte, and it were lyking un-to your noble grace therthrough nat + to be displesed, I suppose ye erren, now ye maken jelousy, envy, + and distourbour to hem that ben your servauntes. I have lerned 30 + ofte, to-forn this tyme, that in every lovers herte greet plentee of + jelousyes greves ben sowe, wherfore (me thinketh) ye ne ought + in no maner accompte thilke thing among these other welked + wivers and venomous serpentes, as envy, mistrust, and yvel + speche.' 35 + + 'O fole,' quod she, 'mistrust with foly, with yvel wil medled, + engendreth that welked padde! Truely, if they were distroyed, + jelousy undon were for ever; and yet some maner of jelousy, + I wot wel, is ever redy in al the hertes of my trewe servauntes, as + thus: to be jelous over him-selfe, lest he be cause of his own 40 + disese. This jelousy in ful thought ever shulde be kept, for + ferdnesse to lese his love by miskeping, thorow his owne doing in + leudnesse, or els thus: lest she, that thou servest so fervently, is + beset there her better lyketh, that of al thy good service she + compteth nat a cresse. These jelousies in herte for acceptable 45 + qualitees ben demed; these oughten every trewe lover, by kyndly + [maner], evermore haven in his mynde, til fully the grace and + blisse of my service be on him discended at wil. And he that + than jelousy caccheth, or els by wening of his owne folisshe + wilfulnesse mistrusteth, truely with fantasy of venim he is foule 50 + begyled. Yvel wil hath grounded thilke mater of sorowe in his + leude soule, and yet nat-for-than to every wight shulde me nat + truste, ne every wight fully misbeleve; the mene of these thinges + +oweth to be used. Sothly, withouten causeful evidence mistrust + in jelousy shulde nat be wened in no wyse person commenly; 55 + suche leude wickednesse shulde me nat fynde. He that is wyse + and with yvel wil nat be acomered, can abyde wel his tyme, til + grace and blisse of his service folowing have him so mokel esed, + as his abydinge toforehande hath him disesed.' + + 'Certes, lady,' quod I tho, 'of nothing me wondreth, sithen 60 + thilke blisse so precious is and kyndly good, and wel is and worthy + in kynde whan it is medled with love and reson, as ye toforn + have declared. Why, anon as hye oon is spronge, why springeth + nat the tother? And anon as the oon cometh, why receyveth nat + the other? For every thing that is out of his kyndly place, by ful 65 + appetyt ever cometh thiderward kyndely to drawe; and his kyndly + being ther-to him constrayneth. And the kyndly stede of this + blisse is in suche wil medled to +onbyde, and nedes in that it + shulde have his kyndly being. Wherfore me thinketh, anon as that + wil to be shewed and kid him profreth, thilke blisse shulde him 70 + hye, thilk wil to receyve; or els kynde[s] of goodnesse worchen + nat in hem as they shulde. Lo, be the sonne never so fer, ever + it hath his kynde werching in erthe. Greet weight on hye on-lofte + caried stinteth never til it come to +his resting-place. Waters + to the see-ward ever ben they drawing. Thing that is light 75 + blythly wil nat sinke, but ever ascendeth and upward draweth. + Thus kynde in every thing his kyndly cours and his beinge-place + sheweth. Wherfore +by kynde, on this good wil, anon as it were + spronge, this blisse shulde thereon discende; her kynde[s] wolde, + they dwelleden togider; and so have ye sayd your-selfe.' 80 + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'thyne herte sitteth wonder sore, this blisse + for to have; thyne herte is sore agreved that it tarieth so longe; + and if thou durstest, as me thinketh by thyne wordes, this blisse + woldest thou blame. But yet I saye, thilke blisse is kyndly good, + and his kyndely place [is] in that wil to +onbyde. Never-the-later, 85 + their comming togider, after kyndes ordinaunce, nat sodaynly + may betyde; it muste abyde tyme, as kynde yeveth him leve. + For if a man, as this wil medled gonne him shewe, and thilke + blisse in haste folowed, so lightly comminge shulde lightly cause + going. Longe tyme of thursting causeth drink to be the more 90 + delicious whan it is atasted.' + + 'How is it,' quod I than, 'that so many blisses see I al day at + myne eye, in the firste moment of a sight, with suche wil accorde? + Ye, and yet other-whyle with wil assenteth, singulerly by him-selfe; + there reson fayleth, traveyle was non; service had no tyme. This 95 + is a queynt maner thing, how suche doing cometh aboute.' + + 'O,' quod she, 'that is thus. The erthe kyndely, after sesons + and tymes of the yere, bringeth forth innumerable herbes and + trees, bothe profitable and other; but suche as men might leve + (though they nought in norisshinge to mannes kynde serven, or 100 + els suche as tournen sone unto mennes confusion, in case that + therof they ataste), comen forth out of the erthe by their owne + kynde, withouten any mannes cure or any businesse in traveyle. + And the ilke herbes that to mennes lyvelode necessarily serven, + without whiche goodly in this lyfe creatures mowen nat enduren, 105 + and most ben +norisshinge to mankynde, without greet traveyle, + greet tilthe, and longe abydinge-tyme, comen nat out of the erthe, + and [y]it with sede toforn ordayned, suche herbes to make springe + and forth growe. Right so the parfit blisse, that we have in meninge + of during-tyme to abyde, may nat come so lightly, but with greet 110 + traveyle and right besy tilth; and yet good seed to be sowe; for + ofte the croppe fayleth of badde seede, be it never so wel traveyled. + And thilke blisse thou spoke of so lightly in comming, trewly, is + nat necessary ne abydinge; and but it the better be stamped, + and the venomous jeuse out-wrongen, it is lykely to enpoysonen 115 + al tho that therof tasten. Certes, right bitter ben the herbes that + shewen first [in] the yere of her own kynde. Wel the more is the + harvest that yeldeth many graynes, tho longe and sore it hath ben + traveyled. What woldest thou demen if a man wold yeve three + quarters of nobles of golde? That were a precious gift?' 120 + + 'Ye, certes,' quod I. + + 'And what,' quod she, 'three quarters ful of perles?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'that were a riche gift.' + + 'And what,' quod she, 'of as mokel azure?' + + Quod I, 'a precious gift at ful.' 125 + + 'Were not,' quod she, 'a noble gift of al these atones?' + + 'In good faith,' quod I, 'for wanting of Englissh naming of + so noble a worde, I can not, for preciousnesse, yeve it a name.' + + 'Rightfully,' quod she, 'hast thou demed; and yet love, knit + in vertue, passeth al the gold in this erthe. Good wil, accordant 130 + to reson, with no maner propertè may be countrevayled. Al the + azure in the worlde is nat to accompte in respect of reson. Love + that with good wil and reson accordeth, with non erthly riches + may nat ben amended. This yeft hast thou yeven, I know it + my-selfe, and thy Margarite thilke gift hath receyved; in whiche 135 + thinge to rewarde she hath her-selfe bounde. But thy gift, as + I said, by no maner riches may be amended; wherfore, with + thinge that may nat be amended, thou shalt of thy Margarites + rightwisenesse be rewarded. Right suffred yet never but every + good dede somtyme to be yolde. Al wolde thy Margarite with 140 + no rewarde thee quyte, right, that never-more dyeth, thy mede in + merit wol purvey. Certes, such sodayn blisse as thou first + nempnest, right wil hem rewarde as thee wel is worthy; and + though at thyn eye it semeth, the reward the desert to passe, + right can after sende suche bitternesse, evenly it to rewarde. So 145 + that sodayn blisse, by al wayes of reson, in gret goodnesse may + not ben acompted; but blisse long, both long it abydeth, and + endlesse it wol laste. See why thy wil is endelesse. For if thou + lovedest ever, thy wil is ever ther t'abyde and neveremore to + chaunge; evenhed of rewarde must ben don by right; than muste 150 + nedes thy grace and this blisse [ben] endelesse in joye to +onbyde. + Evenliche disese asketh evenliche joye, whiche hastely thou shalt + have.' + + 'A!' quod I, 'it suffyseth not than alone good wil, be it never + so wel with reson medled, but-if it be in good service longe 155 + travayled. And so through service shul men come to the joye; + and this, me thinketh, shulde be the wexing tree, of which ye first + meved.* + +CH. V. 2. fre. 4. greatnesse. 6. ioy. * _A break here in_ Th. 8. Nowe. 10. +meane. 12. the. 15. fruite. 16. al thoughe. 17. the. 24. somdele. 25. +great. wethers; _read_ weders. 28. hert. 29. displeased. nowe. 31. +to-forne. hert great plentie. 33. thynge. + +38. vndone. 41. disease. 42. thorowe. 47. _I supply_ maner. 49. catcheth. +50. venyme. 53. trust. meane. 54. owen; _read_ oweth. 58. eased. 59. +diseased. 62. reason. 63. one. sprong. 64. anone. one. 66. appetite. +thiderwarde. 68. vnbyde; _read_ onbyde. 70. kydde. 71. kynde; _read_ +kyndes. 72. ferre. + +73. great. 74. this; _read_ his. 75. see warde. 77. course. 78. be; _read_ +by. 79. kynde; _read_ kyndes. 80. sayde. 81-2. hert. 85. _I supply_ is. +vnbyde; _read_ onbyde. 87. maye. leaue. 90. drinke. 92. Howe. se. daye. 95. +reason. none. 96. thynge howe. 97. seasons. 98. forthe. 99. leaue. 100. +they were nought; _omit_ were. 101. soone. 102. forthe. 106. norisshen; +_read_ norisshinge. 106-7. great (_twice_). 108. it; _read_ yit; _see_ l. +111. seede toforne. spring. + +109. forthe. parfyte. meanynge. 110. great. 111. seede. 117. _I supply_ in. +119-122. thre (_twice_). 122. peerles. 123-6. gifte (_thrice_). 129. haste. +knytte. 130. golde. 131. reason. 132. respecte. 132-3. reason (_twice_). +136. gifte. 141. the. 142. sodayne. 143. the. 144. rewarde. + +146. sodayne. reason. 148. last. Se. 149. tabyde. 151. _I supply_ ben. ioy. +vnbyde (!). 152. ioy. 157. tre. * _A break here in_ Th. + + CHAPTER VI. + + Now, lady,' quod I, 'that tree to sette, fayn wolde I lerne.' + + 'So thou shalt,' quod she, 'er thou depart hence. The + first thing, thou muste sette thy werke on grounde siker and good, + accordaunt to thy springes. For if thou desyre grapes, thou + goest not to the hasel; ne, for to fecchen roses, thou sekest not 5 + on okes; and if thou shalt have hony-soukels, thou levest the + frute of the soure docke. Wherfore, if thou desyre this blisse in + parfit joye, thou must sette thy purpos there vertue foloweth, and + not to loke after the bodily goodes; as I sayd whan thou were + wryting in thy seconde boke. And for thou hast set thy-selfe in 10 + so noble a place, and utterly lowed in thyn herte the misgoing of + thy first purpos, this +setling is the esier to springe, and the more + lighter thy soule in grace to be lissed. And trewly thy desyr, + that is to say, thy wil algates mot ben stedfast in this mater without + any chaunginge; for if it be stedfast, no man may it voyde.' 15 + + 'Yes, pardè,' quod I, 'my wil may ben turned by frendes, and + disese of manace and thretning in lesinge of my lyfe and of my + limmes, and in many other wyse that now cometh not to mynde. + And also it mot ofte ben out of thought; for no remembraunce + may holde oon thing continuelly in herte, be it never so lusty 20 + desyred.' + + 'Now see,' quod she, 'thou thy wil shal folowe, thy free wil to + be grounded continuelly to abyde. It is thy free wil, that thou + lovest and hast loved, and yet shal loven this Margaryte-perle; + and in thy wil thou thinkest to holde it. Than is thy wil knit 25 + in love, not to chaunge for no newe lust besyde; this wil techeth + thyn herte from al maner varying. But than, although thou be + thretened in dethe or els in otherwyse, yet is it in thyn arbitrement + to chose, thy love to voyde or els to holde; and thilke + arbitrement is in a maner a jugement bytwene desyr and thy 30 + herte. And if thou deme to love thy good wil fayleth, than art + thou worthy no blisse that good wil shulde deserve; and if thou + chose continuaunce in thy good service, than thy good wil + abydeth; nedes, blisse folowing of thy good wil must come by + strength of thilke jugement; for thy first wil, that taught thyn 35 + herte to abyde, and halt it from th'eschaunge, with thy reson + is accorded. Trewly, this maner of wil thus shal abyde; impossible + it were to turne, if thy herte be trewe; and if every + man diligently the meninges of his wil consider, he shal wel + understande that good wil, knit with reson, but in a false herte 40 + never is voyded; for power and might of keping this good wil is + thorow libertè of arbitrement in herte, but good wil to kepe + may not fayle. Eke than if it fayle, it sheweth it-selfe that good + wil in keping is not there. And thus false wil, that putteth out + the good, anon constrayneth the herte to accorde in lovinge of 45 + thy good wil; and this accordaunce bitwene false wil and thyn + herte, in falsitè ben lykened +togider. Yet a litel wol I say + thee in good wil, thy good willes to rayse and strengthe. Tak + hede to me (quod she) how thy willes thou shalt understande. + Right as ye han in your body dyvers membres, and fyve sondrye 50 + wittes, everiche apart to his owne doing, whiche thinges as + instrumentes ye usen; as, your handes apart to handle; feet, + to go; tonge, to speke; eye, to see: right so the soule hath + in him certayne steringes and strengthes, whiche he useth as + instrumentes to his certayne doinges. Reson is in the soule, 55 + which he useth, thinges to knowe and to prove; and wil, whiche + he useth to wilne; and yet is neyther wil ne reson al the soule; + but everich of hem is a thing by him-selfe in the soule. And + right as everich hath thus singuler instrumentes by hemselfe, + they han as wel dyvers aptes and dyvers maner usinges; and 60 + thilke aptes mowen in wil ben cleped affeccions. Affeccion is + an instrument of willinge in his apetytes. Wherfore mokel folk + sayn, if a resonable creatures soule any thing fervently wilneth, + affectuously he wilneth; and thus may wil, by terme of equivocas, + in three wayes ben understande. Oon is instrument of willing; 65 + another is affection of this instrument; and the third is use, that + setteth it a-werke. Instrument of willing is thilke strength of the + soule, which that constrayneth to wilne, right as reson is instrument + of resons, which ye usen whan ye loken. Affeccion of this + instrument is a thing, by whiche ye be drawe desyrously any-thing 70 + to wilne in coveitous maner, al be it for the tyme out + of your mynde; as, if it come in your thought thilke thing to + remembre, anon ye ben willing thilke to done or els to have. + And thus is instrument wil; and affeccion is wil also, to wilne + thing as I said; as, for to wilne helth, whan wil nothing theron 75 + thinketh; for anon as it cometh to memorie, it is in wil. And so + is affeccion to wilne slepe, whan it is out of mynde; but anon + as it is remembred, wil wilneth slepe, whan his tyme cometh of + the doinge. For affeccion of wil never accordeth to sicknesse, + ne alway to wake. Right so, in a true lovers affeccion of willing, 80 + instrument is to wilne tr[o]uthe in his service; and this affeccion + alway abydeth, although he be sleping or thretned, or els not + theron thinking; but anon as it cometh to mynde, anon he is + stedfast in that wil to abyde. Use of this instrument forsothe + is another thing by himselfe; and that have ye not but whan 85 + ye be doing in willed thing, by affect or instrument of wil + purposed or desyred; and this maner of usage in my service + wysely nedeth to be ruled from wayters with envy closed, from + spekers ful of jangeling wordes, from proude folk and hautayn, + that lambes and innocentes bothe scornen and dispysen. Thus 90 + in doing varieth the actes of willinge everich from other, and yet + ben they cleped "wil," and the name of wil utterly owen they to + have; as instrument of wil is wil, whan ye turne in-to purpos of + any thing to don, be it to sitte or to stande, or any such thing + els. This instrument may ben had, although affect and usage be 95 + left out of doing; right as ye have sight and reson, and yet alway + use ye* +nat to loke, [ne] thinges with resonning to prove; and so + is instrument of wil, wil; and yet varyeth he from effect and + using bothe. Affeccion of wil also for wil is cleped, but it varyeth + from instrument in this maner wyse, by that nameliche, whan it 100 + cometh in-to mynde, anon-right it is in willinge desyred, and the + negatif therof with willing nil not acorde; this is closed in herte, + though usage and instrument slepe. This slepeth whan instrument + and us[e] waken; and of suche maner affeccion, trewly, + some man hath more and some man lesse. Certes, trewe lovers 105 + wenen ever therof to litel to have. False lovers in litel wenen + have right mokel. Lo, instrument of wil in false and trewe + bothe, evenliche is proporcioned; but affeccion is more in some + places than in some, bycause of the goodnesse that foloweth, and + that I thinke hereafter to declare. Use of this instrument is wil, 110 + but it taketh his name whan wilned thing is in doing; but utterly + grace to cacche in thy blisse +desyreth to ben rewarded. Thou + most have than affeccion of wil at the ful, and use whan his + tyme asketh wysely to ben governed. Sothly, my disciple, + without fervent affeccion of wil may no man ben saved. This 115 + affeccion of good service in good love may not ben grounded, + without fervent desyr to the thing in wil coveited. But he that + never reccheth to have or not to have, affeccion of wil in that + hath no resting-place. Why? For whan thing cometh to mynde, + and it be not taken in hede to comin or not come, therfore in 120 + that place affeccion fayleth; and, for thilke affeccion is so litel, + thorow whiche in goodnesse he shulde come to his grace, the + litelnesse wil it not suffre to avayle by no way in-to his helpes. + Certes, grace and reson thilke affeccion foloweth. This affeccion, + with reson knit, dureth in everiche trewe herte, and evermore 125 + is encresing; no ferdnesse, no strength may it remove, whyle + tr[o]uthe in herte abydeth. Sothly, whan falsheed ginneth entre, + tr[o]uthe draweth away grace and joye bothe; but than thilke + falsheed, that trouth[e] hath thus voyded, hath unknit the bond + of understanding reson bytwene wil and the herte. And who-so 130 + that bond undoth, and unknitteth wil to be in other purpose + than to the first accorde, knitteth him with contrarye of reson; + and that is unreson. Lo, than, wil and unreson bringeth a man + from the blisse of grace; whiche thing, of pure kynde, every man + ought to shonne and to eschewe, and to the knot of wil and reson 135 + confirme. + + Me thinketh,' quod she, 'by thy studient lokes, thou wenest in + these wordes me to contrarien from other sayinges here-toforn + in other place, as whan thou were somtyme in affeccion of wil to + thinges that now han brought thee in disese, which I have thee 140 + consayled to voyde, and thyn herte discover; and there I made + thy wil to ben chaunged, whiche now thou wenest I argue to + with[h]olde and to kepe! Shortly I say, the revers in these + wordes may not ben founde; for though dronkennesse be forboden, + men shul not alway ben drinklesse. I trowe right, for 145 + thou thy wil out of reson shulde not tourne, thy wil in one reson + shulde not +onbyde. I say, thy wil in thy first purpos with + unreson was closed; constrewe forth of the remenant what thee + good lyketh. Trewly, that wil and reson shulde be knit togider, + was free wil of reson; after tyme thyne herte is assentaunt to them 150 + bothe, thou might not chaunge. But if thou from rule of reson + varye, in whiche variaunce to come to thilke blisse desyred, + contrariously thou werchest; and nothing may knowe wil and reson + but love alone. Than if thou voide love, than +weyvest [thou] + the bond that knitteth; and so nedes, or els right lightly, that 155 + other gon a-sondre; wherfore thou seest apertly that love holdeth + this knot, and amaystreth hem to be bounde. These thinges, as + a ring in circuit of wrethe, ben knit in thy soule without departing.' + + 'A! let be! let be!' quod I; 'it nedeth not of this no + rehersayle to make; my soule is yet in parfit blisse, in thinking of 160 + that knotte!'* + +CH. VI. 1. Nowe. set fayne. 3. set. 5. fetchen. 6. leauest. 8. parfite ioy. +set. purpose. 10. booke. haste. 12. purpose. setteles; _read_ setling. 13. +desyre. 14. mote. 15-16. maye (_twice_). 17. disease. 18. nowe. 19. mote. +20. one. + +32. Nowe se. 22, 23. frewyl (_twice_). 24. haste. 26. teacheth. 27. +varyeng. 30. desyre. 31. arte. 36. halte. 38. hert. 40. reason. 42. +thorowe. hert. 45. anone. 47. togyther. 48. the. strength. Take. 49. howe. +51-2. aparte (_twice_). 52. fete. 53. se. 55. Reason. 57. reason. + +61. affections. Affection. 62. folke. 65. thre. One. 68. reason. 69. +Affection. 74. affection. 75. thynge. 77-81. affection (_four times_). 86. +affecte. 93. purpose. 94. syt. + +97. * _A break here in_ Th. ne ought; _read_ nat. _I supply_ ne. 98. +effecte. 99. Affection. 100. name lyche. 102. negatyfe. 103. thoughe. 104. +vs. 104-8. affection (_twice_). 112. catche. desyred; _read_ desyreth. 113. +muste. affection (_often_). 117. desyre. 118. retcheth. 120. comyn. 124-5. +reason (_twice_). 125. knytte. 126. encreasyng. maye. 128. ioy. both. 129. +bonde. 130-2. reason. 131. bonde vndothe. + +133. unreason (_twice_). 135. reason. 138. sayenges. toforne. 139. +affection. 140. nowe. the. disease. the. 146. reason (_twice_). 147. +vnbyde; _read_ onbyde. purpose. 148. unreason. remenante. the. 150. fre. +149-151. reason (_thrice_). 154. weuest; _read_ weyvest thou. 155. bonde. +156. gone. 158. ringe. 160. parfyte. * _A break here in_ Th. + + CHAPTER VII. + + 'Very trouth,' quod she, 'hast thou now conceyved of these + thinges in thyne herte; hastely shalt thou be able very + joye and parfit blisse to receyve; and now, I wot wel, thou + desyrest to knowe the maner of braunches that out of the tree + shulde springe.' 5 + + 'Therof, lady,' quod I, 'hertely I you pray; for than leve + I +wel, that right sone after I shal ataste of the frute that I so + long have desyred.' + + 'Thou hast herd,' quod she, 'in what wyse this tree toforn this + have I declared, as in grounde and in stocke of wexing. First, 10 + the ground shulde be thy free wil, ful in thyne herte; and the + stocke (as I sayde) shulde be continuaunce in good service by + long tyme in traveyle, til it were in greetnesse right wel woxen. + And whan this tree suche greetnesse hath caught as I have + rehersed, the braunches than, that the frute shulde forth-bringe, 15 + speche must they be nedes, in voice of prayer in complayning + wyse used.' + + 'Out! alas!' quod I tho, 'he is soroufully wounded that + hydeth his speche, and spareth his complayntes to make! What + shal I speke the care? But payne, even lyk to helle, sore hath 20 + me assayled, and so ferforth in payne me thronge, that I leve my + tree is seer, and never shal it frute forth bringe! Certes, he is + greetly esed, that dare his prevy mone discover to a true felowe, + that conning hath and might, wherthrough his pleint in any thinge + may ben amended. And mokel more is he joyed, that with herte 25 + of hardinesse dare complayne to his lady what cares that he + suffreth, by hope of mercy with grace to be avaunced. Truely + I saye for me, sithe I cam this Margarit to serve, durst I never me + discover of no maner disese; and wel the later hath myn herte + hardyed suche thinges to done, for the grete bountees and worthy 30 + refresshmentes that she of her grace goodly, without any desert on + my halve, ofte hath me rekened. And nere her goodnesse the + more with grace and with mercy medled, which passen al desertes, + traveyls, and servinges that I in any degre might endite, I wolde + wene I shulde be without recover, in getting of this blisse for 35 + ever! Thus have I stilled my disese; thus have I covered my + care; that I brenne in sorouful anoy, as gledes and coles wasten + a fyr under deed asshen. Wel the hoter is the fyr that with + asshen it is overleyn. Right longe this wo have I suffred.' + + 'Lo,' quod Love, 'how thou farest! Me thinketh, the palasy-yvel 40 + hath acomered thy wittes; as faste as thou hyest forward, + anon sodaynly backward thou movest! Shal nat yet al thy + leudnesse out of thy braynes? Dul ben thy skilful understandinges; + thy wil hath thy wit so amaistred. Wost thou nat wel (quod she) + but every tree, in his sesonable tyme of burjoninge, shewe his 45 + blomes fro within, in signe of what frute shulde out of him + springe, els the frute for that yere men halt delivered, be the + ground never so good? And though the stocke be mighty at + the ful, and the braunches seer, and no burjons shewe, farwel the + gardiner! He may pype with an yvè-lefe; his frute is fayled. 50 + Wherfore thy braunches must burjonen in presence of thy lady, if + thou desyre any frute of thy ladies grace. But beware of thy lyfe, + that thou no wode lay use, as in asking of thinges that strecchen + in-to shame! For than might thou nat spede, by no maner way + that I can espy. Vertue wol nat suffre villany out of him-selfe to 55 + springe. Thy wordes may nat be queynt, ne of subtel maner + understandinge. Freel-witted people supposen in suche poesies + to be begyled; in open understandinge must every word be used. + "Voice without clere understanding of sentence," saith Aristotel, + "right nought printeth in herte." Thy wordes than to abyde in 60 + herte, and clene in ful sentence of trewe mening, platly must + thou shewe; and ever be obedient, her hestes and her wils to + performe; and be thou set in suche a wit, to wete by a loke + ever-more what she meneth. And he that list nat to speke, but + stilly his disese suffer, what wonder is it, tho[ugh] he come never 65 + to his blisse? Who that traveyleth unwist, and coveyteth thing + unknowe, unweting he shal be quyted, and with unknowe thing + rewarded.' + + 'Good lady,' quod I than, 'it hath ofte be sene, that +weders + and stormes so hugely have falle in burjoning-tyme, and by perte 70 + duresse han beten of the springes so clene, wherthrough the frute + of thilke yere hath fayled. It is a greet grace, whan burjons han + good +weders, their frutes forth to bringe. Alas! than, after + suche stormes, how hard is it to avoyde, til efte wedring and + yeres han maked her circute cours al about, er any frute be able 75 + to be tasted! He is shent for shame, that foule is rebuked of his + speche. He that is in fyre brenning sore smarteth for disese; + him thinketh ful long er the water come, that shulde the fyr + quenche. While men gon after a leche, the body is buryed. + Lo! how semely this frute wexeth! Me thinketh, that of tho 80 + frutes may no man ataste, for pure bitternesse in savour. In this + wyse bothe frute and the tree wasten away togider, though mokel + besy occupacion have be spent, to bringe it so ferforth that it + was able to springe. A lyte speche hath maked that al this labour + is in ydel.' 85 + + 'I not,' quod she, 'wherof it serveth, thy question to assoyle. + Me thinketh thee now duller in wittes than whan I with thee first + mette. Although a man be leude, commenly for a fole he is nat + demed but-if he no good wol lerne. Sottes and foles lete lightly + out of mynde the good that men techeth hem. I sayd therfore, 90 + thy stocke must be stronge, and in greetnesse wel herted: the + tree is ful feble that at the firste dent falleth. And although frute + fayleth oon yere or two, yet shal suche a seson come oon tyme or + other, that shal bringe out frute that [is parfit]. *Fole, have I not + seyd toforn this, as tyme hurteth, right so ayenward tyme heleth 95 + and rewardeth; and a tree oft fayled is holde more in deyntee + whan it frute forth bringeth. A marchaunt that for ones lesinge + in the see no more to aventure thinketh, he shal never with + aventure come to richesse. So ofte must men on the oke smyte, + til the happy dent have entred, whiche with the okes owne swaye 100 + maketh it to come al at ones. So ofte falleth the lethy water on + the harde rocke, til it have thorow persed it. The even draught + of the wyr-drawer maketh the wyr to ben even and supple-werchinge; + and if he stinted in his draught, the wyr breketh + a-sonder. Every tree wel springeth, whan it is wel grounded and 105 + not often removed.' + + 'What shal this frute be,' quod I, 'now it ginneth rype?' + + 'Grace,' quod she, 'in parfit joy to endure; and therwith thou + begon[ne].' + + 'Grace?' quod I; 'me thinketh, I shulde have a reward for my 110 + longe travayle?' + + 'I shal telle thee,' quod she; 'retribucion of thy good willes + to have of thy Margarite-perle, it bereth not the name of mede, + but only of good grace; and that cometh not of thy desert, but + of thy Margarytes goodnesse and vertue alone.' 115 + + Quod I, 'shulde al my longe travayle have no reward but thorow + grace? And som-tyme your-selven sayd, rightwisnesse evenliche + rewardeth, to quyte oon benefit for another.' + + 'That is sothe,' quod Love, 'ever as I sayde, as to him that + doth good, which to done he were neyther holden ne yet 120 + constrayned.' + + 'That is sothe,' quod I. + + 'Trewly,' quod she, 'al that ever thou doest to thyne Margaryte-perle, + of wil, of love, and of reson thou owest to done it; it is + nothing els but yelding of thy dette in quytinge of thy grace, which 125 + she thee lente whan ye first mette.' + + 'I wene,' quod I, 'right litel grace to me she delivered. + Certes, it was harde grace; it hath nyghe me astrangled.' + + 'That it was good grace, I wot wel thou wilt it graunte, er + thou departe hence. If any man yeve to another wight, to whom 130 + that he ought not, and whiche that of him-selfe nothing may + have, a garnement or a cote, though he were the cote or els + thilke clothing, it is not to putte to him that was naked the cause + of his clothinge, but only to him that was yever of the garnement. + Wherfore I saye, thou that were naked of love, and of thy-selfe 135 + non have mightest, it is not to putte to thyne owne persone, + sithen thy love cam thorow thy Margaryte-perle. _Ergo_, she was + yever of the love, although thou it use; and there lente she thee + grace, thy service to beginne. She is worthy the thank of this + grace, for she was the yever. Al the thoughtes, besy doinges, 140 + and plesaunce in thy might and in thy wordes that thou canst + devyse, ben but right litel in quytinge of thy dette; had she not + ben, suche thing hadde not ben studyed. So al these maters + kyndly drawen hom-ward to this Margaryte-perle, for from thence + were they borowed; al is hoolly her to wyte, the love that thou 145 + havest; and thus quytest thou thy dette, in that thou stedfastly + servest. And kepe wel that love, I thee rede, that of her thou + hast borowed, and use it in her service thy dette to quyte; and + than art thou able right sone to have grace; wherfore after mede + in none halve mayst thou loke. Thus thy ginning and ending is 150 + but grace aloon; and in thy good deserving thy dette thou + aquytest; without grace is nothing worth, what-so-ever thou + werche. Thanke thy Margaryte of her grete grace that +hiderto + thee hath gyded, and praye her of continuaunce forth in thy + werkes herafter; and that, for no mishappe, thy grace overthwartly 155 + tourne. Grace, glorie, and joye is coming thorow good + folkes desertes; and by getting of grace, therin shullen ende. + And what is more glorie or more joye than wysdom and love + in parfit charitè, whiche god hath graunted to al tho that wel + +conne deserve?' And with that this lady al at ones sterte in-to 160 + my herte: 'here wol I onbyde,' quod she, 'for ever, and never + wol I gon hence; and I wol kepe thee from medlinge while me + liste here onbyde; thyne entermeting maners in-to stedfastnesse + shullen be chaunged.' + +CH. VII. 1. nowe. 2. hert. 3. parfyte. nowe. 5. spring. + +7. wol; _read_ wel. soone. atast. 9. herde. tre. 11. grounde. frewyl. hert. +13. greatnesse. 14. gretnesse. 20. lyke. hel. 22. tre. bring. 23. greatly +eased. 28. came. 29. disease. 30. great bounties. 36. disease. 37. bren. +38. fyre (_twice_). 40. howe. 41. forwarde. 42. backwarde. + +47. spring. halte. 48. grounde. 53. wodelay. stretchen. 56. spring. 58. +worde. 60-1. hert (_twice_). 64. meaneth. 65. disease. 69. wethers; _read_ +weders. 70. fal. 71. beaten. 72. great. 73. wethers; _read_ weders. forthe. +74. howe harde. 77. disease. 78. fyre. 79. gone. 80. howe. + +81. maye. sauoure. 83. occupation. spente. ferforthe. 84. spring. 87. the +nowe. 89. fooles lette. 90. teacheth. 91. greatnesse. 93. one (_twice_). +season. 94. _I supply_ is parfit. * _A break here in_ Th. 95. healeth. 96. +deyntie. 97. forthe. 102. thorowe. 103-4. wyre (_thrice_). 104. breaketh. +105. tre. 107. nowe. 108. parfyte. 109. begon; _read_ begonne. 110. +rewarde. 112. tel the. 113. beareth. 114. onely. deserte. 116. rewarde. +thorowe. + +118. one benefyte. 120. dothe. 124. _catchword_ it is; _misprinted_ yet is +_on the next page_. 126. the lent. 127. lytle. 129. graunt. 131. nothynge +maye. 132. weare. 133. put; _read_ putte. 134. onely. 136. put. 137. came +thorowe. 138. althoughe. lent. the. 139. thanke. 141. canste. 144. +homewarde. 145. holy. 147. the. 149. arte. 151. alone. 152. worthe. + +153. great. hytherto; _read_ hiderto. 154. the. forthe. 156. thorowe. 158. +wysdome. 159. parfyte. 160. canne; _read_ conne. 161. hert. + + CHAPTER VIII. + + Soberliche tho threw I up myn eyen, and hugely tho was + I astonyed of this sodayne adventure; and fayn wolde I have + lerned, how vertues shulden ben knowen; in whiche thinges, + I hope to god, here-after she shal me enfourmen; and namely, + sithen her restinge-place is now so nygh at my wil; and anon al 5 + these thinges that this lady said, I remembred me by my-selfe, and + revolved the +lynes of myne understondinge wittes. Tho found + I fully al these maters parfitly there written, how mis-rule by + fayned love bothe realmes and citees hath governed a greet + throwe; how lightly me might the fautes espye; how rules in love 10 + shulde ben used; how somtyme with fayned love foule I was + begyled; how I shulde love have knowe; and how I shal in love + with my service procede. Also furthermore I found, of perdurable + letters wonderly there graven, these maters whiche I shal nempne. + Certes, non age ne other thing in erthe may the leest sillable of 15 + this in no poynte deface, but clerely as the sonne in myne + understandinge soule they shynen. This may never out of my mynde, + how I may not my love kepe, but thorow willinge in herte; wilne + to love may I not, but I lovinge have. Love have I non, but + thorow grace of this Margarite-perle. It is no maner doute, that 20 + wil wol not love but for it is lovinge, as wil wol not rightfully but + for it is rightful it-selve. Also wil is not lovinge for he wol love; + but he wol love for he is lovinge; it is al oon to +wilne to be + lovinge, and lovinges in possession to have. Right so wil wol not + love, for of love hath he no partie. And yet I denye not lovinge 25 + wil [may] wilne more love to have, whiche that he hath not whan + he wolde more than he hath; but I saye, he may no love wilne + if he no love have, through which thilke love he shuld wilne. But + to have this loving wil may no man of him-selfe, but only through + grace toforn-going; right so may no man it kepe, but by grace 30 + folowinge. Consider now every man aright, and let seen if that + any wight of him-selfe mowe this loving wel gete, and he therof + first nothing have; for if it shulde of him-selfe springe, either it + muste be willing or not willing. Willing by him-selfe may he it not + have, sithen him fayleth the mater that shulde it forth bringe. 35 + The mater him fayleth; why? He may therof have no knowing + til whan grace put it in his herte. Thus willing by him-selfe may + he it not have; and not willing, may he it not have. Pardè, + every conseyt of every resonable creature otherwyse wil [wol] not + graunte; wil in affirmatif with not willing by no way mowe acorde. 40 + And although this loving wol come in myn herte by freenesse of + arbitrement, as in this booke fully is shewed, yet owe I not therfore + as moche alowe my free wil as grace of that Margaryte to me + lened. For neyther might I, without grace to-forn going and + afterward folowing, thilke grace gete ne kepe; and lese shal I it 45 + never but-if free wil it make, as in willinge otherwyse than grace + hath me graunted. For right as whan any person taketh willing + to be sobre, and throweth that away, willing to be dronke; or els + taketh wil of drinking out of mesure; whiche thing, anon as it is + don, maketh (thorow his owne gilte by free wil) that [he] leseth 50 + his grace. In whiche thing therfore upon the nobley of grace + I mote trusten, and my besy cure sette thilke grace to kepe, that + my free wil, otherwyse than by reson it shulde werche, cause not + my grace to voyde: for thus must I bothe loke to free wil and to + grace. For right as naturel usage in engendring of children may 55 + not ben without +fader, ne also but with the +moder, for neyther + +fader ne +moder in begetting may it lacke; right so grace and + free wil accorden, and withoute hem bothe may not lovinge wil in + no partie ben getten. But yet is not free wil in gettinge of that + thing so mokel thank-worthy as is grace, ne in the kepinge therof 60 + so moche thank deserveth; and yet in gettinge and keping bothe + don they accorde. Trewly, often-tyme grace free wil helpeth, in + fordoinge of contrarye thinges, that to willinge love not accorden, + and +strengtheth wil adversitees to withsitte; wherfore +al-togider + to grace oweth to ben accepted, that my willing deserveth. Free 65 + wil to lovinge in this wyse is accorded. I remembre me wel how + al this book (who-so hede taketh) considereth [how] al thinges to + werchinges of mankynde evenly accordeth, as in turning of this + worde 'love' in-to trouthe or els rightwisnesse, whether that it + lyke. For what thing that falleth to man in helping of free 70 + arbitrement, thilke rightwisnesse to take or els to kepe, thorow + whiche a man shal be saved (of whiche thing al this book mencion + hath maked), in every poynte therof grace oweth to be thanked. + Wherfore I saye, every wight havinge this rightwisnesse rightful + is; and yet therfore I fele not in my conscience, that to al 75 + rightful is behoten the blisse everlastinge, but to hem that ben + rightful withouten any unrightfulnesse. Some man after some degree + may rightfully ben accompted as chaste men in living, and yet ben + they janglers and ful of envy pressed; to hem shal this blisse + never ben delivered. For right as very blisse is without al maner 80 + nede, right so to no man shal it be yeven but to the rightful, voyde + from al maner unrightfulnesse founde; so no man to her blisse + shal ben folowed, but he be rightful, and with unrightfulnesse not + bounde, and in that degree fully be knowe. This rightfulnesse, + in as moche as in him-selfe is, of none yvel is it cause; and of al 85 + maner goodnesse, trewly, it is +moder. This helpeth the spirit + to withsitte the leude lustes of flesshly lykinge. This strengtheth + and maintayneth the lawe of kynde; and if that otherwhyle me + weneth harm of this precious thing to folowe, therthorough is [it] + nothing the cause; of somwhat els cometh it aboute, who-so 90 + taketh hede. By rightfulnesse forsothe wern many holy sayntes + good savour in swetenesse to god almighty; but that to some + folkes they weren savour of dethe, in-to deedly ende, that com + not of the sayntes rightwisnesse, but of other wicked mennes + badnesse hath proceded. Trewly, the ilke wil, whiche that the 95 + Lady of Love me lerned 'affeccion of wil' to nempne, which is + in willing of profitable thinges, yvel is it not, but whan to flesshly + lustes it consenteth ayenst reson of soule. But that this thing + more clerely be understande, it is for to knowe, whence and how + thilke wil is so vicious, and so redy yvel dedes to perfourme. 100 + Grace at the ginninge ordeyned thilke wil in goodnesse ever to + have endured, and never to badnesse have assented. Men shulde + not byleve, that god thilke wil maked to be vicious [in] our firste + +faders, as Adam and Eve; for vicious appetytes, and vicious wil + to suche appetytes consentinge, ben not on thing in kynde; other 105 + thing is don for the other. And how this wil first in-to man first + assented, I holde it profitable to shewe; but if the first condicion + of resonable creature wol be considred and apertly loked, lightly + the cause of suche wil may be shewed. Intencion of god was, + that rightfully and blissed shulde resonable nature ben maked, 110 + himselfe for to kepe; but neyther blisful ne rightful might it not + be, withouten wil in them bothe. Wil of rightfulnesse is thilke + same rightfulnesse, as here-to-forn is shewed; but wil of blisse + is not thilke blisse, for every man hath not thilke blisse, in whom + the wil therof is abydinge. In this blisse, after every 115 + understandinge, is suffisaunce of covenable comoditees without any + maner nede, whether it be blisse of aungels or els thilke that + grace first in paradise suffred Adam to have. For al-though + angels blisse be more than Adams was in paradyse, yet may it not + be +denyed, that Adam in paradyse ne had suffisaunce of blisse; 120 + for right as greet herte is without al maner of coldenesse, and yet + may another herte more hete have; right so nothing defended + Adam in paradyse to ben blessed, without al maner nede. + Al-though aungels blisse be moche more, forsothe, it foloweth + not [that], lasse than another to have, therfore him nedeth; but 125 + for to wante a thing whiche that behoveth to ben had, that may + 'nede' ben cleped; and that was not in Adam at the first + ginning. God and the Margaryte weten what I mene. Forsothe, + where-as is nede, there is wrecchednesse. +God without cause + to-forngoing made not resonable creature wrecched; for him to 130 + understande and love had he firste maked. God made therfore + man blissed without al maner indigence; +togider and at ones + took resonable creature blisse, and wil of blissednesse, and wil + of rightfulnesse, whiche is rightfulnesse it-selve, and libertee of + arbitrement, that is, free wil, with whiche thilke rightfulnesse may 135 + he kepe and lese. So and in that wyse [god] ordayned thilke + two, that wil (whiche that "instrument" is cleped, as here-toforn + mencion is maked) shulde use thilke rightfulnesse, by teching of + his soule to good maner of governaunce, in thought and in wordes; + and that it shulde use the blisse in obedient maner, withouten 140 + any incommoditè. Blisse, forsothe, in-to mannes profit, and + rightwisnesse in-to his worship god delivered at ones; but rightfulnesse + so was yeven that man might it lese, whiche if he not lost + had, but continuelly [might] have it kept, he shulde have deserved + the avauncement in-to the felowshippe of angels, in whiche thing 145 + if he that loste, never by him-selfe forward shulde he it mowe + ayenward recovere; and as wel the blisse that he was in, as + aungels blisse that to-him-wardes was coming, shulde be nome at + ones, and he deprived of hem bothe. And thus fil man un-to + lykenesse of unresonable bestes; and with hem to corrupcion and 150 + unlusty apetytes was he under-throwen. But yet wil of blisse + dwelleth, that by indigence of goodes, whiche that he loste + through greet wrecchednesse, by right shulde he ben punisshed. + And thus, for he weyved rightfulnesse, lost hath he his blisse; but + fayle of his desyr in his owne comoditè may he not; and +where 155 + comodites to his resonable nature whiche he hath lost may he not + have, to false lustes, whiche ben bestial appetytes, he is turned. + Folye of unconning hath him begyled, in wening that thilke ben + the comoditees that owen to ben desyred. This affeccion of wil + by libertè of arbitrement is enduced to wilne thus thing that 160 + he shulde not; and so is wil not maked yvel but unrightful, by + absence of rightfulnesse, whiche thing by reson ever shulde he + have. And freenesse of arbitrement may he not wilne, whan he it + not haveth; for while he it had, thilke halp it not to kepe; so + that without grace may it not ben recovered. Wil of commoditè, 165 + in-as-moche as unrightful it is maked by willinge of yvel lustes, willing + of goodnesse may he not wilne; for wil of instrument to affeccion + of wil is thralled, sithen that other thing may it not wilne; + for wil of instrument to affeccion desyreth, and yet ben bothe they + 'wil' cleped. For that instrument wol, through affeccion it wilneth; 170 + and affeccion desyreth thilke thing wherto instrument him ledeth. + And so free wil to unlusty affeccion ful servaunt is maked, for + unrightfulnesse may he not releve; and without rightfulnesse ful + fredom may it never have. For kyndly libertee of arbitrement + without it, veyne and ydel is, forsothe. Wherfore yet I say, (as 175 + often have I sayd the same), whan instrument of wil lost hath + rightfulnesse, in no maner but by grace may he ayen retourne + rightfulnesse to wilne. For sithen nothing but rightfulnesse alone + shulde he wilne, what that ever he wilneth without rightfulnesse, + unrightfully he it wilneth. These than unrightful appetytes and 180 + unthrifty lustes whiche the +flesh desyreth, in as mokel as they ben + in kynde, ben they nat bad; but they ben unrightful and badde for + they ben in resonable creature, where-as they being, in no waye + shulde ben suffred. In unresonable beestes neyther ben they yvel + ne unrightful; for there is their kynde being. 185 + +CH. VIII. 1. threwe. 2. fayne. 3. howe. 5. nowe. nyghe. 7. lyues (!). +founde. 8. parfytely. howe. mysse-. 9. cyties. great. 10-12. howe (_five +times_). 13. founde. 15. none. thynge. maye. 17. maye. 18. howe. maye. +thorowe. 19. maye. none. 20. thorowe. + +23. one. wil; _read_ wilne. 26. _I supply_ may. 27. maye. 29. onely. 30. +toforne. maye. 31. nowe. sene. 32. get. 33. nothynge. spring. 35. forthe +bring. 36. maye. 39. reasonable. _I supply_ wol. 40. graunt. affyrmatife. +41. hert. frenesse. 43. frewyl (_throughout_). 44. leaned. 45. afterwarde. +get; _read_ gete. 50. done. thorowe. _I supply_ he. 52. set. 53. reason. +55. maye. 56-7. father (_twice_); _read_ fader. mother (_twice_); _read_ +moder. + +57-8. maye. 60. thankeworthy. 61. thanke. 62. done. 64. strength; _read_ +strengtheth; _see_ l. 87. al togyther. 66. howe. 67. booke. _Supply_ how. +71. thorowe. 72. booke. 78. maye. 86. mother; _read_ moder. 89. harme. +_Supply_ it. 90. nothynge. 91. werne. 93. come; _read_ com. + +96. affectyon. 98. reason. thynge. 99. vndersta_n_d. howe. 100. redye. 103. +vycious. _I insert_ in; Our (_sic_). 104. father; _read_ faders. 106. done. +howe. 108-110. reasonable (_twice_). 113. -forne. 119, 122. maye. 120. +denyded (!). 121. great. 122. heate. nothynge. 124. thoughe. 125. _I +supply_ that. 126. thynge. maye. 128. meane. 129. wretchydnesse. good; +_read_ God. 130. reasonable. wretched. + +132. togyther. 133. toke reasonable. 134. lybertie. 135. fre. 136. _I +supply_ god. 137. cleaped. toforne. 138. teachyng. 141. profyte. 143. not +loste had not; _I omit second_ not. 144. _I supply_ might. kepte. 146. +forwarde. 147. ayenwarde. 150. vnreasonable. 153. great wretchydnesse. 154. +loste. 155. desyre. were; _read_ where. 156. reasonable. loste. 159. +affection. 162. reason. 163. frenesse. 164. halpe. + +167-170. affection (_thrice_). 172. frewyl. affection. 173. maye. 174. +fredome. libertie. 176. loste. 181. flyes (!); _read_ flesh. 184. +vnreasonable. + + CHAPTER IX. + + Knowen may it wel ben now of these thinges toforn + declared, that man hath not alway thilke rightfulnesse + which by dutè of right evermore haven he shulde, and by no way + by him-selfe may he it gete ne kepe; and after he it hath, if he it + lese, recover shal he it never without especial grace. Wherfore 5 + the comune sentence of the people in opinion, that every thing + after destenee is ruled, false and wicked is to beleve. For though + predestinacion be as wel of good as of badde, sithen that it is + sayd, god +hath destenees made, whiche he never ne wrought; but, + for he suffreth hem to be maked, as that he hardeth, whan he 10 + naught missayth, or +let in-to temptacion, whan he not delivereth: + wherfore it is non inconvenient if in that maner be sayd, god toforn + have destenyed bothe badde and her badde werkes, whan + hem ne their yvel dedes [he] neyther amendeth ne therto hem + grace +leneth. But specialliche, predestinacion of goodnesse 15 + alone is sayd by these grete clerkes; for in him god doth that + they ben, and that in goodnesse they werchen. But the negatif + herof in badnesse is holden, as the Lady of Love hath me lerned, + who-so aright in this booke loketh. And utterly it is to weten, + that predestinacion properly in god may not ben demed, no more 20 + than beforn-weting. For in the chapitre of goddes beforn-weting, + as Love me rehersed, al these maters apertly may ben founden. + Al thinges to god ben now +togider and in presence duringe. + Trewly, presence and predestinacion in nothing disacorden; + wherfore, as I was lerned how goddes before-weting and free 25 + choice of wil mowe stonden +togider, me thinketh the same reson + me ledeth, that destenye and free wil accorden, so that neyther of + hem bothe to other in nothing contrarieth. And resonabliche + may it not ben demed, as often as any thing falleth [thorow] free + wil werching (as if a man another man wrongfully anoyeth, wherfore 30 + he him sleeth), that it be constrayned to that ende, as mokel + folk cryeth and sayth: 'Lo, as it was destenyed of god toforn + knowe, so it is thorow necessitè falle, and otherwyse might it not + betyde.' Trewly, neyther he that the wrong wrought, ne he that + him-selfe venged, none of thilke thinges thorow necessitè wrought; 35 + for if that [oon] with free wil there had it not willed, neyther had + [he] wrought that he perfourmed; and so utterly grace, that free + wil in goodnesse bringeth and kepeth, and fro badnesse it tourneth, + in al thinge moste thank deserveth. This grace maketh + sentence in vertue to abyde, wherfore in body and in soule, in ful 40 + plentee of conninge, after their good deserving in the everlastinge + joye, after the day of dome shul they endelesse dwelle; and they + shul ben lerned in that kingdom with so mokel affect of love and + of grace, that the leste joye shal of the gretest in glorie rejoice + and ben gladded, as if he the same joye had. What wonder, 45 + sith god is the gretest love and the *gretest wisdom? In hem + shal he be, and they in god. Now than, whan al false folk be + ashamed, which wenen al bestialtè and erthly thing be sweter and + better to the body than hevenly is to the soule; this is the grace + and the frute that I long have desyred; it doth me good the 50 + savour to smelle. + + Crist, now to thee I crye of mercy and of grace; and graunt, + of thy goodnes, to every maner reder ful understanding in this + leude pamflet to have; and let no man wene other cause in + this werke than is verily the soth. For envy is ever redy, al 55 + innocentes to shende; wherfore I wolde that good speche envy + evermore hinder. + + But no man wene this werke be sufficiently maked; for goddes + werke passeth man[ne]s; no man[ne]s wit to parfit werke may by no + way purvay th'ende. How shuld I than, so leude, aught wene of 60 + perfeccion any ende to gete? Never-the-later, grace, glorie, and + laude I yelde and putte with worshipful reverences to the sothfast + god, in three with unitè closed, whiche that the hevy langour of + my sicknesse hath turned in-to mirthe of helth to recover. For + right as I was sorowed thorow the gloton cloud of manifolde 65 + sickly sorow, so mirth [of] ayencoming helth hath me glad[d]ed + and gretly comforted. I beseche and pray therfore, and I crye + on goddes gret pitè and on his mokel mercy, that this[e] present + scorges of my flessh mow maken medecyne and lechecraft of + my inner man[ne]s helth; so that my passed trespas and tenes 70 + through weping of myn eyen ben wasshe, and I, voyded from + al maner disese, and no more to wepe herafter, y-now be kept + thorow goddes grace; so that goddes hand, whiche that merciably + me hath scorged, herafter in good plite from thence merciably me + kepe and defende. 75 + + In this boke be many privy thinges wimpled and folde; unneth + shul leude men the plites unwinde. Wherfore I pray to the holy + gost, he lene of his oyntmentes, mennes wittes to clere; and, for + goddes love, no man wonder why or how this question come to + my mynde. For my greet lusty desyr was of this lady to ben 80 + enfourmed, my leudenesse to amende. Certes, I knowe not + other mennes wittes, what I shulde aske, or in answere what + I shulde saye; I am so leude my-selfe, that mokel more lerninge + yet me behoveth. I have mad therfore as I coude, but not + sufficiently as I wolde, and as mater yave me sentence; for my 85 + dul wit is hindred by +stepmoder of foryeting and with cloude + of unconning, that stoppeth the light of my Margarite-perle, + wherfore it may not shyne on me as it shulde. I desyre not + only a good reder, but also I coveite and pray a good book-amender, + in correccion of wordes and of sentence; and only this 90 + mede I coveite for my travayle, that every inseër and herer of + this leude fantasye devoute horisons and prayers to god the greet + juge yelden; and prayen for me in that wyse, that in his dome + my sinnes mowe ben relesed and foryeven. He that prayeth for + other for him-selfe travayleth. 95 + + Also I praye, that every man parfitly mowe knowe thorow what + intencion of herte this tretys have I drawe. How was it, that + sightful manna in deserte to children of Israel was spirituel + mete? Bodily also it was, for mennes bodies it +norisshed; + and yet, never-the-later, Crist it signifyed. Right so a jewel 100 + betokeneth a gemme, and that is a stoon vertuous or els a perle. + Margarite, a woman, betokeneth grace, lerning, or wisdom of + god, or els holy church. If breed, thorow vertue, is mad holy + flesshe, what is that our god sayth? 'It is the spirit that yeveth + lyf; the flesshe, of nothing it profiteth.' Flesshe is flesshly 105 + understandinge; flessh without grace and love naught is worth. + 'The letter sleeth; the spirit yeveth lyfelich understanding.' + Charitè is love; and love is charitè. + God graunt us al[le] therin to be frended! + And thus THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE is ended. 110 + +CH. IX. 1. nowe. toforne. 4. get. 7. destenye. thoughe. 9. sayde. god +hadnest (!); _read_ god hath destenees. 11. missaythe. ledde; _read_ let = +ledeth. 12. none. toforne. 14. _I supply_ he. 15. leueth. + +16. sayde. great. dothe. 17. negatyfe. 21. beforne (_twice_). 22. apertely +maye. 23. nowe to-gyther. 24. nothynge. 25. howe. 26. togyther. reason. 27. +leadeth. frewyl. 28. reasonablyche. 29. demyd. _I supply_ thorow. frewyl. +32. folke. toforne know. 33. thorowe. fal. 34. wronge. 35. thorowe. 36-7. +_I supply_ oon _and_ he. 39. thanke. 41. plentie. 42. ioy. dwel. 43. +kyngdome. affecte. 44-6. greatest (_twice_). * _A break here in_ Th. 47. +folke. 48. swetter. 50. dothe. 51. smel. + +52. Christ. the. 59. mans; _read_ mannes (_twice_). 61. get. 62. put. 63. +thre. 66. _I supply_ of. 68. this; _read_ thise. 69. medecyn. lechcraft. +70. mans. 72. I now; _for_ y-now. 73. thorowe. ha_n_de. 80. great. desyre. +84. made. 86. wytte. -mother; _read_ moder. + +89. onely. booke. 90. correction. onely. 92. great. 94. released. 96. +thorowe. 97. treatyse. Howe. 99. meate. norissheth; _read_ norisshed. 100. +Christ. 101. stone. 103. thorowe. made. 104. saythe. spyrite. 105. lyfe. +109. al; _read_ allë. + + * * * * * + +II. THE PLOWMANS TALE. + + HERE BEGINNETH THE PLOWMANS PROLOGUE. + + The Plowman plucked up his plow, + Whan midsommer mone was comen in, + And sayd, 'his beestes shuld ete y-now, + And lig in the grasse, up to the chin; + They ben feble, both oxe and cow, 5 + Of hem nis left but boon and skin.' + He shook of share, and cultre of-drow, + And hong his harneys on a pin. + + He took his tabard and his staf eke, + And on his heed he set his hat; 10 + And sayde, he wolde saynt Thomas seke, + On pilgrimage he goth forth plat. + In scrippe he bar both breed and lekes, + He was forswonke and all forswat; + Men might have seen through both his chekes, 15 + And every wang-toth and where it sat. + + Our hoste beheld wel all about, + And saw this man was sunne y-brent; + He knew well by his senged snout, + And by his clothes that were to-rent, 20 + He was a man wont to walke about, + He nas nat alway in cloystre y-pent; + He coud not religiousliche lout, + And therfore was he fully shent. + + Our host him axed, 'what man art thou?' 25 + 'Sir,' quod he, 'I am an hyne; + For I am wont to go to the plow, + And erne my mete yer that I dyne. + To swete and swinke I make avow, + My wyf and children therwith to fynd, 30 + And servë god, and I wist how; + But we lewd men ben full[y] blynd. + + For clerkes saye, we shullen be fayn + For hir lyvelod [to] swete and swinke, + And they right nought us give agayn, 35 + Neyther to ete ne yet to drinke. + They mowe by lawë, as they sayn, + Us curse and dampne to hell[e] brinke; + Thus they putten us to payn, + With candles queynt and belles clinke. 40 + + They make us thralles at hir lust, + And sayn, we mowe nat els be saved; + They have the corn and we the dust, + Who speketh ther-agayn, they say he raved.' + + 'What, man,' quod our host, 'canst thou preche? 45 + Come neer, and tell us some holy thing.' + 'Sir,' quod he, 'I herde ones teche + A prest in pulpit a good preching.' + 'Say on,' quod our host, 'I thee beseche.' + 'Sir, I am redy at your bidding. 50 + I pray you that no man me reproche + Whyl that I am my tale telling. + + THUS ENDETH THE PROLOGUE, AND HERE FOLOWETH THE FIRST + PART OF THE TALE. + + PART I. + + A sternë stryf is stered newe + In many stedes in a stounde, + Of sondry sedes that ben sewe; 55 + It semeth that som ben unsounde. + For some be gretë growen +on grounde, + Some ben souple, simple and small; + Whether of hem is falser founde, + The falser, foul mote him befall! 60 + + That oon syde is, that I of tell, + Popes, cardinals, and prelates, + Parsons, monkes, and freres fell, + Priours, abbottes of grete estates; + Of heven and hell they kepe the yates, 65 + And Peters successours they ben all; + This is demed by oldë dates; + But falshed, foul mote it befall! + + The other syde ben poore and pale, + And people put [al] out of prees; 70 + And semë caytifs sore a-cale, + And ever in oon without encrees, + +I-cleped lollers and londlees; + Who toteth on hem, they been untall. + They ben arayed all for the pees; 75 + But falshed, foul mote it befall! + + Many a countrey have I sought, + To know the falser of these two; + But ever my travail was for nought, + All so fer as I have go. 80 + But as I wandred in a wro, + In a wode besyde a wall, + Two foules saw I sitte tho; + The falser, foul mote him befall! + + That oon did plede on the Popes syde, 85 + A Griffon of a grim stature. + A Pellicane withouten pryde + To these lollers layde his lure; + He mused his matter in mesure, + To counsayl Christ ever gan he call. 90 + The Griffon shewed as sharp as fyre, + But falshed, foul mote it befall! + + The Pellican began to preche + Both of mercy and of mekeness; + And sayd, that "Christ so gan us teche, 95 + And meke and merciable gan bless. + The Evangely bereth witness + A lamb, he lykneth Christ over-all, + In tokening that he mekest was, + Sith pryde was out of heven fall. 100 + + And so shulde every Christned be; + Preestes, Peters successours, + Beth lowlich and of low degree, + And usen none erthly honours, + Neyther crown, ne curious cove[r]tours, 105 + Ne +pelure, ne other proudë pall; + Ne nought to cofren up greet tresours; + For falshed, foul mote it befall! + + Preest[e]s shuld for no cattel plede, + But chasten hem in charitè; 110 + Ne to no batail shuld men lede + For inhaunsing of hir own degree; + Nat wilnë sittings in hy see, + Ne soverayntè in hous ne hall; + All worldly worship defye and flee; 115 + For who willeth highnes, foul shal fall! + + Alas! who may such sayntes call + That wilneth welde erthly honour? + As lowe as Lucifer such shal fall, + In baleful blacknesse y-builde hir bour; 120 + That eggeth the people to errour, + And maketh hem to hem [be] thrall; + To Christ I hold suche oon traytour, + As lowe as Lucifer such shal fall. + + That willeth to be kinges peres, 125 + And hygher than the emperour; + Some that were but pore freres + Now wollen waxe a warryour. + God is nat hir governour, + That holdeth no man his +peragall; 130 + Whyl covetyse is hir counsaylour, + All such falshed mot nedë fall. + + That hye on horse willeth ryde + In glitterand golde of grete aray, + I-paynted and portred all in pryde; 135 + No commun knight may go so gay. + Chaunge of clothing every day, + With golden girdles grete and small; + As boystous as is bere at bay; + All such falshed mot nedë fall. 140 + + With prydë +punysheth the pore, + And somë they sustayn with sale; + Of holy churche maketh an hore, + And filleth hir wombe with wyne and ale; + With money filleth many a male, 145 + And chaffren churches when they fall, + And telleth the people a lewed tale; + Such falsë faytours, foul hem fall! + + With chaunge of many maner metes, + With song and solace sitting long, 150 + And filleth hir wombë, and fast fretes, + And from the metë to the gong; + And after mete with harp and song, + And ech man mot hem lordes call; + And hotë spyces ever among; 155 + Such falsë faytours, foul hem fall! + + And myters mo than oon or two, + I-perled as the quenes heed; + A staf of golde, and +perrey, lo! + As hevy as it were mad of leed; 160 + With cloth of gold both newe and reed, + With glitterand +gown as grene as gall, + By dome will dampnë men to deed; + All suche faytours, foul hem fall! + + And Christes people proudly curse 165 + With brode bokes, and braying bell; + To putte pennyes in hir purse + They woll sell both heven and hell; + And in hir sentence, and thou wilt dwell, + They willen gesse in hir gay hall; 170 + And though the soth thou of hem tell, + In greet cursinge shalt thou fall. + + That is blessed, that they blesse, + And cursed, that they cursë woll; + And thus the people they oppresse, 175 + And have their lordshippes at full; + And many be marchauntes of woll, + And to purse penyes woll come thrall; + The porë people they all to-pull, + Such falsë faytours, foul hem fall! 180 + + Lordes motë to hem loute, + Obeysaunt to hir brode blessing; + They ryden with hir royall route + On a courser, as it were a king; + With saddle of golde glitt[e]ring 185 + With curious harneys quayntly crallit, + Styroppes gaye of gold-mastling; + All suche falshed, foul befall it! + + Christes ministers +cleped they been, + And rulen all in robberye; 190 + But Antichrist they serven clene, + Attyred all in tyrannye; + Witnesse of Johns prophecye, + That Antichrist is hir admirall, + Tiffelers attyred in trecherye; 195 + All suche faytours, foul hem fall! + + Who sayth, that some of hem may sinne, + He shal be +demed to be deed; + Some of hem woll gladly winne + All ayenst that which god forbed; 200 + "All-holyest" they clepen hir heed, + That of hir rulë is regall; + Alas! that ever they eten breed; + For all such falshed woll foul fall. + + Hir heed loveth all honour, 205 + And to be worshipped in worde and dede; + Kinges mot to hem knele and coure; + To the apostles, that Christ forbede; + To popes hestes such taketh more hede + Than to kepe Christes commaundëment; 210 + Of gold and silver mot ben hir wede, + They holdeth him hole omnipotent. + + He ordayneth by his ordinaunce + To parish-preestes a powére; + To another a greter avaunce, 215 + A greter poynt to his mystere; + But for he is hyghest in erth here, + To him reserveth he many a poynt; + But to Christ, that hath no pere, + Reserveth he neither opin ne joynt. 220 + + So semeth he above[n] all, + And Christ aboven him nothing; + Whan he sitteth in his stall, + Dampneth and saveth as him think. + Such pryde tofore god doth stink; 225 + An angell bad John to him nat knele, + But only to god do his bowing; + Such willers of worship must evil fele. + + They ne clepen Christ but _sanctus deus_, + And clepen her heed _Sanctissimus_; 230 + They that such a sect[ë] sewis, + I trowe, they taken hem amisse. + In erth[ë] here they have hir blisse, + Hir hye master is Belial; + +Christ his people from hem wisse! 235 + For all such falsë will foul fall! + + They mowë both[ë] binde and lose, + And all is for hir holy lyf; + To save or dampne they mowë chose, + Betwene hem now [ther] is gret stryf. 240 + Many a man is killed with knyf, + To wete which of hem have lordship shall; + For such, Christ suffred woundes fyve; + For all such falshed will foul fall. + + Christ sayd: _Qui gladio percutit_ 245 + With swerdë shall [he surely] dye; + He bad his preestes pees and grith, + And bad hem not drede for to dye; + And bad them be both simple and slye, + And carkë not for no cattall, 250 + And +truste on god that sitteth on hye; + For all [such] falsë shull foul fall. + + These wollen makë men to swere + Ayenst Christes commaundëment; + And Christes membres all to-tere 255 + On rode as he wer newe y-rent. + Suche lawes they make by commun assent, + Ech on it choweth as a ball; + Thus the pore be fully shent, + But ever falshed foule it +fall! 260 + + They usen [never] no symonye, + But sellen churches and prioryes; + Ne [yet] they usen no envye, + But cursen all hem contraryes; + And hyreth men by dayes and yeres 265 + With strength to holde hem in hir stall; + And culleth all hir adversaryes; + Therefor, falshed! foul thou fall! + + With purse they purchase personage, + With purse they paynen hem to plede; 270 + And men of warrë they woll wage, + To bringe hir enemyes to the dede. + And lordes lyves they woll lede, + And moche take, and give but small; + But he it so get, from it shall shede, 275 + And make such falsë right foul fal! + + They halowe nothing but for hyre, + Churchë, font, ne vestëment; + And make[n] orders in every shyre, + But preestes paye for the parchement; 280 + Of ryatours they taken rent, + Therwith they smere the shepes skall; + For many churches ben oft suspent; + All such falshed, yet foul it fall! + + Some liveth nat in lecherye, 285 + But haunten wenches, widdowes, and wyves, + And punisheth the pore for putrye; + Them-selfe it useth all their lyves. + And but a man to them [him] shryves, + To heven comë never he shall; 290 + He shal be cursed as be captyves, + To hell they sayn that he shall fall. + + There was more mercy in Maximien, + And in Nero, that never was good, + Than [there] is now in some of +hem 295 + Whan he hath on his furred hood. + They folowe Christ that shedde his blood + To heven, as bucket in-to the wall; + Suche wreches ben worse than wood; + And all such faytours, foule hem fall! 300 + + They give hir almesse to the riche, + To maynteynours, and to men of lawe; + For to lordes they woll be liche, + An harlottes sone nat worth an hawe! + Sothfastnessë suche han slawe, 305 + They kembe hir crokets with cristall; + And drede of god they have down drawe; + All suche faytours, foul hem fall! + + They maken parsons for the penny, + And canons of hir cardinals; 310 + Unnethes amongest hem all any + That he ne hath glosed the gospell fals! + For Christ made never no cathedrals, + Ne with him was no cardinall + Wyth a reed hatte as usen mynstrals; 315 + But falshed, foul mote it befall! + + +Hir tything, and hir offring both, + They cle[y]meth it by possessio[u]n; + Thérof nill they none forgo, + But robben men as [by] raunsoun. 320 + The tything of _Turpe lucrum_ + With these maisters is meynall; + Tything of bribry and larson + Will makë falshed full foul fall! + + They taken to fermë hir sompnours 325 + To harme the people what they may; + To pardoners and false faytours + Sell hir seles, I dar well say; + And all to holden greet array, + To multiply hem more metall, 330 + They drede full litell domes day + Whan all such [falsë] shall foul fall. + + Suche harlottes shull men disclaunder + For they shullen make hir gree, + And ben as proude as Alexaunder, 335 + And sayn to the pore, "wo be ye!" + By yere ech preest shall paye his fee + To encrese his lemmans call; + Suche herdes shull well yvell thee, + And all such falsë shull foul fall! 340 + + And if a man be falsly famed, + And woldë make purgacioun, + Than woll the officers be agramed, + And assigne him fro town to town; + So nede he must[e] paye raunsoun 345 + Though he be clene as is cristall, + And than have an absolutioun; + But all such falsë shull foul fall! + + Though he be gilty of the dede, + And that he [yet] may money pay, 350 + All the whyle his purse woll blede + He may use it fro day to day! + These bishoppes officers goon full gay, + And this game they usen over-all; + The pore to pill is all +hir pray; 355 + All such falsë shull foul fall! + + Alas! god ordayned never such lawe, + Ne no such craft of covetyse; + He forbad it, by his sawe, + Such governours mowen of god agryse; 360 + For all his rules +ben rightwyse. + These newe poyntes ben pure papall, + And goddes lawë they dispyse; + And all such faytours shul foul fall! + + They sayn that Peter had the key 365 + Of hevin and hell, to have and hold; + I trowe Peter took no money + For no sinnes that he sold! + Such successours ben to bold, + In winning all their wit they wrall; 370 + Hir conscience is waxen cold; + And all such faytours, foule hem fall! + + Peter was never so great a fole + To leve his key with such a lorell, + Or to take such cursed such a tole 375 + He was advysed nothing well. + I trowe, they have the key of hell; + +Hir maister is of that place marshall; + For there they dressen hem to dwell, + And with fals Lucifer there to fall. 380 + + They ben as proude as Lucifer, + As angry, and as envious; + From good fayth they ben full fer, + In covetyse they ben curious; + To catche catell as covytous 385 + As hound, that for hunger woll yall; + Ungoodly, and ungracious; + And nedely, such falshed shal foul fall! + + The pope, and he were Peters heyr, + Me think, he erreth in this cas, 390 + Whan choyse of bishoppes is in dispeyr, + To chosen hem in dyvers place; + A lord shall write to him for grace, + For his clerke +pray anon he shall; + So shall he spede[n] his purchas; 395 + And all such falsë, foule hem fall! + + Though he +conne no more good, + A lordes prayer shal be sped; + Though he be wild of will or wood, + Nat understanding what men han red, 400 + A boster, and (that god forbede!) + As good a bishop +as my hors Ball, + Suche a pope is foule be-sted, + And at [the] lastë woll foul fall! + + He maketh bishops for erthly thank, 405 + And nothing for Christes sake; + Such that ben ful fatte and rank, + To soulë hele non hede they take. + Al is well don what ever they make, + For they shal answere at +ones for all; 410 + For worldes thank, such worch and wake, + And all such falsë shall foul fall! + + Suche that +connë nat hir Crede + With prayer shull be mad prelates; + Nother +conne the gospell rede, 415 + Such shull now welde hye estates. + The hye goodes frendship hem makes, + They toteth on hir somme totall; + Such bere the keyes of hell-yates, + And all such falsë shall foul fall. 420 + + They forsake, for Christes love, + Traveyl, hunger, thurst, and cold; + For they ben ordred ever all above + Out of youthe til they ben old. + By the dore they go nat in-to the fold, 425 + To helpe +hir sheep they nought travall; + Hyred men all suche I holde, + And all such falsë, foule hem fall! + + For Christ hir king they woll forsake, + And knowe him nought for his povert; 430 + For Christes lovë they woll wake, + And drink pyment [and] ale apart. + Of god they seme nothing a-ferd; + As lusty liveth, as Lamuall, + And dryve hir sheep into desert; 435 + All such faytours shull foul fall! + + Christ hath twelve apostels here; + Now say they, ther may be but oon, + That may nat erre in no manere; + Who leveth nat this, ben lost echoon! 440 + Peter erred, so dide nat John; + Why is he cleped the principall? + Christ cleped him Peter, but himself the stoon; + All falsë faytours, foule hem fall! + + Why cursen they the croysery, 445 + Christes Christen crëatures? + For bytwene hem is now envy + To be enhaunsed in honours. + And Christen livers, with hir labours, + For they leve on no man mortall, 450 + +Ben do to dethe with dishonours; + And all such falsë, foule hem fall! + + What knoweth a tillour at the plow + The popes name, and what he hat? + His crede suffyseth him y-now, 455 + And knoweth a cardinall by his hat. + Rough is the pore, unrightly lat, + That knoweth Christ his god royall; + Such maters be nat worth a gnat; + But such false faytours, foule hem fall! 460 + + A king shall knele and kisse his sho; + Christ suffred a sinfull kisse his feet. + Me thinketh, he holdeth him hye y-now, + So Lucifer did, that hye +seet. + Such oon, me thinketh, him-self foryet, 465 + Either to the trouth he was nat call; + Christ, that suffred woundes wet, + Shall makë such falshed foul fall! + + They layeth out hir largë nettes + For to take silver and gold, 470 + Fillen coffers, and sackes fettes, + There-as they soules cacche shold. + Hir servaunts be to +hem unhold, + But they can doublin +hir rentall + To bigge hem castels, and bigge hem hold; 475 + And all such falsë, foule hem fall! + + HERE ENDETH THE FIRST PART OF THIS TALE, AND HERAFTER + FOLOWETH THE SECONDE PART. + + PART II. + + To accorde with this wordë "fal" + No more English can I find; + Shewe another now I shall, + For I have moche to say behind, 480 + How preestes han the people pynd, + As curteys Christ hath me [y-]kend, + And put this matter in my mind + To make this maner men amend. + + Shortly to shende hem, and shewe now 485 + How wrongfully they worche and walke; + O hye god, nothing they tell, ne how, + But in goddes word, +tell many a balke. + In hernes holde hem and in halke, + And prechin of tythes and offrend, 490 + And untruely of the gospell talke; + For his mercy, god it amend! + + What is Antichrist to say + But evin Christes adversáry? + Such hath now ben many a day 495 + To Christes bidding full contráry, + That from the trouthë clenë vary; + Out of the wayë they ben wend; + And Christes people untruely cary; + God, for his pitè, it amend! 500 + + That liven contráry to Christes lyf, + In hye pride agaynst mekenesse; + Agaynst suffraunce they usen stryf, + And angre ayenst sobrenesse; + Agaynst wisdom, wilfulnesse; 505 + To Christes tales litell tend; + Agaynst mesúre, outragiousnesse; + But whan god woll, it may amend! + + Lordly lyf ayenst lowlinesse, + And demin all without mercy; 510 + And covetyse ayenst largesse, + Agaynst trewth[e], trechery; + And agaynst almesse, envy; + Agaynst Christ they comprehend. + For chastitè, they maynteyn lechery; 515 + God, for his gracë, this amend! + + Ayenst penaunce they use delytes, + Ayenst suffraunce, strong defence; + Ayenst god they use yvel rightes, + Agaynst pitè, punishments; 520 + Open yvell ayenst continence; + Hir wicked winning wors dispend; + Sobrenesse they sette in-to dispence; + But god, for his goodnesse, it amend! + + Why cleymen they hoolly his powére, 525 + And wranglen ayenst all his hestes? + His living folowen they nothing here, + But liven wors than witles beestes. + Of fish and flesh they loven feestes, + As lordes, they ben brode y-kend; 530 + Of goddes pore they haten gestes; + God, for his mercy, this amend! + + With +Dives such shall have hir doom + That sayn that they be Christes frendes, + And do nothing as they shuld doon; 535 + All such ben falser than ben fendes. + On the people they ley such bendes, + As god is in erthe, they han offend; + Sucour for suchë Christ now sende us. + And, for his mercy, this amend! 540 + + A token of Antichrist they be, + His careckes ben now wyde y-know; + Receyved to preche shall no man be + Without[ë] token of him, I trow. + Ech Christen preest to prechen ow, 545 + From god abovë they ben send. + Goddes word to all folk for to show, + Sinfull man for to amend. + + Christ sente the pore for to preche; + The royall riche he did nat so; 550 + Now dar no pore the people teche, + For Antichrist is over-all hir fo. + Among the people he mot go; + He hath bidden, all such suspend; + Some hath he hent, and thinketh yet mo; 555 + But all this god may well amend. + + All tho that han the world forsake, + And liven lo[w]ly, as god bad, + In-to hir prison shullen be take, + Betin and bounden, and forth lad. 560 + Herof I rede no man be drad; + Christ sayd, his [servaunts] shulde be shend; + Ech man ought herof be glad; + For god ful well it woll amend. + + They take on hem royáll powére, 565 + And saye, they havë swerdes two, + Oon curse to hell, oon slee men here; + For at his taking Christ had no mo, + Yet Peter had [that] oon of tho. + But Christ to Peter smyte gan defend, 570 + And in-to the sheth bad putte it tho; + And all such mischeves god amend! + + Christ bad Peter kepe his sheep, + And with his swerde forbad him smyte; + Swerd is no tole with sheep to kepe 575 + But to shep[h]erdes that sheep woll byte. + Me thinketh, suche shep[h]erdes ben to wyte + Ayen hir sheep with swerd that contend; + They dryve hir sheep with greet dispyte; + But al this god may well amend. 580 + + So successours to Peter be they nought + Whom [that] Christ madë cheef pastour; + A swerd no shep[h]erde usen ought + But he wold slee as a bochour. + For who-so were Peters successour 585 + Shuld bere his sheep till his bak bend, + And shadowe hem from every shour; + And all this god may wel amend. + + Successours to Peter ben these + In that that Peter Christ forsook, 590 + That had lever the love of god [to] lese + Than a shep[h]erde had to lese his hook. + He culleth the sheep as doth the cook; + Of hem [they] taken the woll untrend, + And falsely glose the gospell-book; 595 + God, for his mercy, +hem amend! + + After Christ had take Peter the kay, + Christ sayd, he mustë dye for man; + That Peter to Christ gan withsay; + Christ bad him, 'go behind, Sathan!' 600 + Such counsaylours many of these men han + For worldes wele, god to offend; + Peters successours they ben for-than, + But all such god may well amend. + + For Sathan is to say no more 605 + But he that contrary to Christ is; + In this they lernë Peters lore, + They sewen him whan he did mis; + They folowe Peter forsothe in this, + In al that Christ wolde +him reprende, 610 + Nat in that that longeth to hevin blis; + God for his mercy hem amend! + + Some of the apostels they sewen in cas, + Of ought that I can understonde, + Him that betrayed Christ, Judas, 615 + That bar the purse in every londe; + And al that he might sette on honde, + He hidde and stal, and [gan] mispend; + His rule these traytours han in honde; + Almighty god [now] hem amend! 620 + + And at last his lord gan tray + Cursedly, through his covetyse; + So wolde these trayen him for money, + And they wisten in what wyse! + They be seker of the selfe ensyse; 625 + From all sothnesse they ben frend; + And covetyse chaungen with queyntyse; + Almighty god all suche amend! + + Were Christ on erthë here eft-soon, + These wolde dampnë him to dye; 630 + All his hestes they han fordon, + And sayn, his sawes ben heresy; + Ayenst his +maundëments they cry, + And dampne all his to be [y-]brend; + For it lyketh nat hem, such losengery; 635 + God almighty hem amend! + + These han more might in England here + Than hath the king and all his lawe, + They han purchased hem such powére + To taken hem whom [they] list nat knawe; 640 + And say, that heresy is hir sawe, + And so to prison woll hem send; + It was nat so by elder dawe, + God, for his mercy, it amend! + + The kinges lawe wol no man deme 645 + Angerliche, withouten answere; + But, if any man these misqueme, + He shal be baited as a bere; + And yet wel wors they woll him tere, + And in prisón woll hem [be] pend 650 + In gyves, and in other gere; + Whan god woll, it may [a]mend. + + The king taxeth nat his men + But by assent of the comminaltè; + But these, ech yere, woll raunsom hem 655 + Maysterfully, more than doth he; + Hir seles, by yerë, better be + Than is the kinges in extend; + Hir officers han gretter fee; + But this mischeef [may] god amend! 660 + + For who-so woll prove a testament + Thát is natt all worth ten pound, + He shall paye for the parchëment + The third part of the money all round. + Thus the people is raunsound, 665 + They say, such part to hem shulde apend; + There as they grypen, it goth to ground; + God, for his mercy, it amend! + + A simple fornicacioun, + Twenty shillings he shall pay; 670 + And than have an absolucioun, + And al the yere usen it forth he may! + Thus they letten hem go a-stray, + They recke nat though the soul be brend; + These kepin yvell Peters key, 675 + And all such shep[h]erdes god amend! + + Wonder is, that the parliament + And all the lordes of this lond + Here-to taken so litell entent + To helpe the people out of hir hond; 680 + For they ben harder in +hir bond, + Wors bete[n] and [more] bitter brend + Than to the king is understond; + God him helpe this to amend! + + What bisshoppes, what religio[u]ns 685 + Han in this lande as moch lay-fee, + Lordshippes, and possessio[u]ns + More than the lordes, it semeth me! + That maketh hem lese charitè, + They mowë nat to god attend; 690 + In erthe they have so high degree, + God, for his mercy, it amend! + + The emperour yaf the pope somtyme + So hyghe lordship him about, + That, at [the] laste, the sely kyme, 695 + The proudë popë putte him out! + So of this realme is in dout, + But lordes be ware and +hem defend; + For now these folk be wonder stout, + The king and lordes now this amend! 700 + + THUS ENDETH THE SECONDE PART OF THIS TALE, AND HERAFTER + FOLOWETH THE THIRDE. + + PART III. + + Moyses lawe forbood it tho, + That preestes shuld no lordshippes welde, + Christes gospel biddeth also + Thát they shuld no lordship helde; + Ne Christes apostels were never so bold 705 + No such lordshippes to +hem enbrace; + But smeren hir sheep and kepe hir fold; + God amende hem for his grace! + + For they ne ben but countrefet, + Men may knowe hem by hir fruit; 710 + Hir gretnesse maketh hem god foryet, + And take his mekenesse in dispyt. + And they were pore and had but lyte, + They nolde nat demen after the face, + But norishe hir sheep, and hem nat byte; 715 + God amende hem for his grace!" + + GRIFON. "What canst thou preche ayenst chanons + Thát men clepen seculere?" + PELICAN. "They ben curates of many towns, + On erthë they have greet powére. 720 + They han greet prebendes and dere, + Some two or three, and some [han] mo, + A personage to ben a playing-fere, + And yet they serve the king also; + + And let to fermë all that fare 725 + To whom that woll most give therfore; + Some woll spende, and some woll spare, + And some woll laye it up in store. + A cure of soule[s] they care nat for, + Só they mowë money take; 730 + Whether hir soules be wonne or lore, + Hir profits they woll nat forsake. + + They have a gedering procuratour + That can the pore people enplede, + And robben hem as a ravinour, 735 + And to his lord the money lede; + And cacche of quicke and eke of dede, + And richen him and his lord eke, + And to robbe the pore can give good rede + Of olde and yonge, of hole and seke. 740 + + Therwith they purchase hem lay-fee + In londë, there hem lyketh best, + And builde +als brode as a citè + Both in the est, and eke in the west. + To purchase thus they ben ful prest, 745 + But on the pore they woll nought spend, + Ne no good give to goddes gest, + Ne sende him some that all hath send. + + By hir service such woll live, + And trusse that other in-to tresour; 750 + Though all hir parish dye unshrive, + They woll nat give a rosë-flour. + Hir lyf shuld be as a mirrour + Bothe to lered and to leude also, + And teche the people hir leel labour; 755 + Such mister men ben all misgo. + + Some of hem ben hardë nigges, + And some of hem ben proude and gay; + Some spende hir good upon [hir] gigges, + And finden hem of greet aray. 760 + Alas! what think these men to say + That thus dispenden goddis good? + At the dredfull domes day + Such wrecches shul be worse than wood. + + Some hir churc[h]es never ne sye, 765 + Ne never o peny thider ne sende; + Though the pore parishens for hunger dye, + O peny on hem wil they nat spende. + Have they receivinge of the rent, + They reck never of the remënant; 770 + Alas! the devill hath clene hem blent! + Suche oon is Sathanas sojournant. + + And usen horedom and harlotry, + Covetysë, pompe, and pride, + Slouthë, wrathe, and eke envy, 775 + And sewen sinne by every syde. + Alas! where thinkë such t'abyde? + How woll they accomptes yeld? + From hy god they mow hem nat hyde, + Such willers wit is nat worth a neld. 780 + + They ben so roted in richesse, + That Christes povert is foryete, + Served with so many messe, + Hem thinketh that manna is no mete. + All is good that they mow get, 785 + They wenë to live evermore; + But, whan god at dome is set, + Such tresour is a feble store. + + Unneth mot they matins say, + For counting and for court-holding; 790 + And yet he jangleth as a jay, + And understont him-self nothing. + He woll serve bothe erl and king + For his fynding and his fee, + And hyde his tything and his offring; 795 + This is a feble charitè. + + Other they ben proude, or coveytous, + Or they ben harde, or [els] hungry, + Or they ben liberall or lecherous, + Or els medlers with marchandry; 800 + Or maynteyners of men with maistry, + Or stewardes, countours, or pledours, + And serve god in hypocrisy; + Such preestes ben Christes fals traytours! + + They ben false, they ben vengeable, 805 + And begylen men in Christes name; + They ben unstedfast and unstable; + To tray hir lord, hem thinketh no shame. + To servë god they ben full lame, + Goddes theves, and falsly stele; 810 + And falsly goddes word defame; + In winning is hir worldes wele. + + Antichrist these serven all; + I pray thee, who may say [me] nay? + With Antichrist such [folk] shull fall, 815 + They folowen him in dede and fay; + They servin him in riche array, + To servë Christ such falsly fayn; + Why, at the dredful domes day, + Shull they not folowe him to payn? 820 + + That knowen hem-self, that they don ill + Ayenst Christes commaundëment, + And amende hem never ne will, + But serve Sathan by one assent. + Who sayth [the] sothe, he shal be shent, 825 + Or speketh ayenst hir fals living; + Who-so well liveth shal be brent, + For such ben gretter than the king! + + Pope, bishoppes, and cardinals, + Chanons, persons, and vicaire, 830 + In goddes service, I trow, ben fals, + That sacramentës sellen here. + And ben as proude as Lucifere; + Ech man loke whether that I ly! + Who-so speketh ayenst hir powére, 835 + It shall be holden heresy. + + Loke how many orders take + Only of Christ, for his servyce, + That the worldes goodes forsake? + Who-so taketh orders +on other wyse, 840 + I trow, that they shall sore agryse! + For all the glose that they conne, + All sewen not this [same] assyse; + In yvell tyme they thus bigonne. + + Loke how many among hem all 845 + Holden not this hyë way! + With Antichrist they shullen fall, + For they wolden god betray. + God amende hem, that best may! + For many men they maken shende; 850 + They weten well, the sothe I say, + Bút the divell hath foule hem blend. + + Some [up]on hir churches dwell, + Apparailled porely, proude of port; + The seven sacraments they don sell, 855 + In cattel-cacching is hir comfort. + Of ech mattér they wollen mell, + And don hem wrong is hir disport; + To afray the people they ben fell, + And holde hem lower then doth the lord. 860 + + For the tythinge of a ducke, + Or of an apple, or an ay, + They make men swere upon a boke; + Thus they foulen Christes fay. + Such beren yvell heven-kay, 865 + They mowen assoyl, they mowë shryve; + With mennes wyves strongly play, + With trewë tillers sturte and stryve + + At the wrestling, and at the wake; + And chefe chauntours at the nale; 870 + Market-beters, and medling make, + Hoppen and houten with heve and hale. + At fayrë freshe, and at wynë stale, + Dyne and drinke, and make debat; + The seven sacraments set at sale; 875 + How kepe such the kayes of heven-gat? + + Mennes wyves they wollen holde; + And though that they ben right sory, + To speke they shull not be so bolde + For sompning to the consistory; 880 + And make hem say [with] mouth "I ly," + Though they it sawë with hir y; + His lemman holden openly, + No man so hardy to axë why! + + He wol have tythinge and offringe, 885 + Maugrè who-so-ever it gruche; + And twyës on the day woll singe; + Goddes prestes nere none suche! + He mot on hunting with dogge and bic[c]he, + And blowen his horn, and cryën "hey!" 890 + And sorcery usen as a wicche; + Such kepen yvell Peters key. + + Yet they mot have som stocke or stoon + Gayly paynted, and proudly dight, + To maken men [to] +leven upon, 895 + And say, that it is full of might; + About such, men sette up greet light, + Other such stockes shull stand therby + As darkë as it were midnight, + For it may make no ma[i]stry. 900 + + That lewed people see it mow, + Thou, Mary, worchest wonder thinges; + About that, that men offren to now, + Hongen broches, ouches, and ringes; + The preest purchaseth the offringes, 905 + But he nill offre to none image; + Wo is the soule that he for singes, + That precheth for suche a pilgrimage! + + To men and women that ben pore, + That ben [in] Christes own lykenesse, 910 + Men shullen offre at hir dore + That suffren honger and distresse; + And to suche imáges offre lesse, + That mow not felë thurst ne cold; + The pore in spirit gan Christ blesse, 915 + Therfore offreth to feble and old. + + Buckelers brode, and swerdes longe, + +Baudriks, with baselardes kene, + Such toles about hir necke they honge; + With Antichrist such preestes been; 920 + Upon hir dedes it is well sene + Whom they serven, whom they hono[u]ren; + Antichristes they ben clene, + And goddes goodes fa[l]sly deuouren. + + Of scarlet and grene gay[ë] gownes, 925 + That mot be shapë for the newe, + To clippen and kissen counten in townes + The damoseles that to the daunce sewe; + Cutted clothes to sewe hir hewe, + With longë pykes on hir shoon; 930 + Our goddes gospell is not trewe, + Eyther they serven the divell or noon! + + Now ben prestes pokes so wyde, + Men must enlarge the vestëment; + The holy gospell they don hyde, 935 + For they contrarien in rayment. + Such preestes of Lucifer ben sent, + Lyk conquerours they ben arayd, + Proude pendaunts at hir ars y-pent, + Falsly the truthe they han betrayd. 940 + + Shryft-silver suchë wollen aske is, + And woll men crepë to the crouche; + None of the sacraments, save askes, + Without[ë] mede shall no man touche. + On hir bishop their warant vouche, 945 + That is lawe of the decrè; + With mede and money thus they mouche, + And +this, they sayn, is charitè! + + In the middes of hir masse + They nill have no man but for hyre, 950 + And, full shortly, let forth passe; + Such shull men finde[n] in ech shyre + That personages for profite desyre, + To live in lykinge and in lustes; + I dar not sayn, _sans ose ieo dyre_, 955 + That such ben Antichristes preestes. + + Or they yef the bishops why, + Or they mot ben in his servyce, + And holden forth hir harlotry; + Such prelats ben of feble empryse. 960 + Of goddes grame such men agryse, + For such mattérs that taken mede; + How they excuse hem, and in what wyse, + Me thinketh, they ought greetly drede. + + They sayn, that it to no man longeth 965 + To reprove +hem, though they erre; + But falsely goddes good they fongeth, + And therwith maynteyn wo and werre. + Hir dedes shuld be as bright as sterre, + Hir living, lewed mannes light; 970 + They say, the popë may not erre, + Nede must that passë mannes might. + + Though a prest ly with his lemman al night, + And tellen his felowe, and he him, + He goth to massë anon-right, 975 + And sayeth, he singeth out of sinne! + His bryde abydeth him at his inne, + And dighteth his dyner the mene whyle; + He singeth his masse for he wolde winne, + And so he weneth god begyle! 980 + + Hem thinketh long till they be met; + And that they usen forth all the yere; + Among the folk when he is set, + He holdeth no man half his pere; + Of the bishop he hath powére 985 + To soyle men, or els they ben lore; + His absolucion may make +hem skere; + And wo is the soul that he singeth for!" + + The Griffon began for to threte, + And sayd, "of monkes canst thou ought?" 990 + The Pellican sayd, "they ben full grete, + And in this world moch wo hath wrought. + Saynt Benet, that hir order brought, + Ne made hem never on such manere; + I trowe, it cam never in his thought 995 + That they shulde use so greet powér[e]; + + That a man shulde a monk lord cal, + Ne serve on kneës, as a king. + He is as proud as prince in pall + In mete, and drink, and [in] all thing; 1000 + Some weren myter and ring, + With double worsted well y-dight, + With royall mete and riche drink, + And rydeth on courser as a knight. + + With hauke[s] and with houndes eke, 1005 + With broches or ouches on his hode, + Some say no masse in all a weke, + Of deyntees is hir moste fode. + With lordshippes and with bondmen + This is a royall religioun; 1010 + Saynt Benet made never none of hem + To have lordship of man ne town. + + Now they ben queynte and curious, + With fyn cloth cladde, and served clene, + Proude, angry, and envyous, 1015 + Malyce is mochë that they mene. + In cacching crafty and covetous, + Lordly liven in greet lyking; + This living is not religious + According to Benet in his living. 1020 + + They ben clerkes, hir courtes they oversee, + Hir pore tenaunts fully they flyte; + The hyer that a man amerced be, + The gladlyer they woll it wryte. + This is fer from Christes povertè, 1025 + For all with covetyse they endyte; + On the pore they have no pitè, + Ne never hem cherish, but ever hem byte. + + And comunly suche ben comen + Of pore people, and of hem begete, 1030 + That this perfeccion han y-nomen; + Hir +faders ryde not but on hir fete, + And travaylen sore for that they ete, + In povert liveth, yonge and old; + Hir +faders suffreth drought and wete, 1035 + Many hongry meles, thurst, and cold. + + All this the monkes han forsake + For Christes love and saynt Benet; + To pryde and esë have hem take; + This religio[u]n is yvell beset. 1040 + Had they ben out of religioun, + They must have honged at the plow, + Threshing and dyking fro town to town + With sory mete, and not half y-now. + + Therfore they han this all forsake, 1045 + And taken to riches, pryde, and ese; + Full fewe for god woll monkes hem make, + Litell is suche order for to prayse! + Saynt Benet ordayned it not so, + But bad hem be [ful] cherelich; 1050 + In churlich maner live and go, + Boystous in erth, and not lordlych. + + They disclaunder saynt Benet, + Therfore they have his holy curse; + Saynt Benet with hem never met 1055 + But-if they thought to robbe his purse! + I can no more herof [now] tell, + But they ben lykë tho before, + And clenë serve the divell of hell, + And ben his tresour and his store. 1060 + + And all suche other counterfaytours, + Chanons, canons, and such disgysed, + Ben goddes enemies and traytours, + His true religion han foul dispysed. + Of freres I have told before 1065 + In a making of a 'Crede,' + And yet I coud tell worse and more, + But men wold werien it to rede! + + As goddes goodnes no man tell might, + Wryte ne speke, ne think in thought, 1070 + So, hir falshed and hir unright + May no man tell, that ever god wrought." + The Gryffon sayd, "thou canst no good, + Thou cam never of no gentill kind; + Other, I trow, thou waxest wood, 1075 + Or els thou hast [y-]lost thy mynd. + + Shuld holy churchë have no heed? + Who shuld be her governayl? + Who shuld her rule, who shuld her reed, + Who shuld her forthren, who shuld avayl? 1080 + Ech man shall live by his travayl; + Who best doth, shall have moste mede; + With strength if men the churche assayl, + With strength men must defende her nede. + + And the pope were purely pore, 1085 + Nedy, and nothing ne had, + He shuld be driven from dore to dore; + The wicked of him nold not be drad. + Of such an heed men wold be sad, + And sinfully liven as hem +list; 1090 + With strength, amendes +shuld be made, + With wepen, wolves from sheep be +wist. + + If the pope and prelats wold + So begge and bidde, bowe, and borowe, + Holy churche shuld stand full cold, 1095 + Hir servaunts sitte and soupë sorowe! + And they were noughty, foule, and horowe, + To worship god men woldë wlate; + Bothe on even and on morowe + Such harlotry men woldë hate. 1100 + + Therfore men of holy churche + Shuld ben honest in all thing, + Worshipfully goddes workes werche, + So semeth it, to serve Christ hir king + In honest and in clene clothing; 1105 + With vessels of golde and clothes riche, + To god honestly to make offring; + To his lordship non is liche." + + The Pellican caste an houge cry, + And sayd, "alas! why sayest thou so? 1110 + Christ is our heed that sitteth on hy, + Heddes ne ought we have no mo. + We ben his membres both also, + And +fader he taught us to cal him als; + Maysters be called defended he tho; 1115 + All other maysters ben wicked and fals, + + That taketh maystry in his name, + Gostly, and for erthly good; + Kinges and lordes shuld lordship han, + And rule the people with myldë mode. 1120 + Christ, for us that shedde his blood, + Bad his preestes no maystership have, + Ne carkë nat for cloth ne fode; + From every mischef he will hem save. + + Hir riche clothing shal be rightwysnesse, 1125 + Hir tresour, trewë lyf shal be; + Charitè shal be hir richesse, + Hir lordship shal be unitè; + Hope in god, hir honestè; + Hir vessell, clenë conscience; 1130 + Pore in spirit, and humilitè, + Shal be holy churches defence." + + "What," sayd the Griffon, "may thee greve + That other folkes faren wele? + What hast thou to donë with hir +leve? 1135 + Thy falsheed ech man may fele. + For thou canst no catell gete, + But livest in londe, as a lorell, + With glosing gettest thou thy mete; + So fareth the devell that wonneth in hell. 1140 + + He wold that ech man ther shuld dwell, + For he liveth in clene envy; + So with the tales that thou doest tell + Thou woldest other people distry, + With your glose, and your heresy, 1145 + For ye can live no better lyf, + But clenë in hypocrisy, + And bringest thee in wo and stryf. + + And therwith have [ye] not to done, + For ye ne have[n] here no cure; 1150 + Ye serve the divell, +not god ne man, + And he shall payë you your hyre. + For ye woll farë well at feestes, + And warm [be] clothed for the colde, + Therfore ye glose goddes hestes, 1155 + And begyle the people, yonge and olde. + + And all the seven sacraments + Ye speke ayenst, as ye were sly, + Ayenst tythings with your entents, + And on our lordes body falsly ly. 1160 + All this ye don to live in ese, + As who sayeth, ther ben non suche; + And sayn, the pope is not worth a pese, + To make the people ayen him gruche. + + And this commeth in by fendes, 1165 + To bringe the Christen in distaunce; + For they wold that no man were frendes; + Leve thy chattring, with mischaunce! + If thou live well, what wilt thou more? + Let other men live as hem list; 1170 + Spende in good, or kepe in store; + Other mennes conscience never thou nist. + + Ye han no cure to answere for; + What meddell ye, that han not to don? + Let men live as they han don yore, 1175 + For thou shalt answere for no +mon." + The Pellican sayd, "Sir, nay, [nay], + I dispysed not the pope, + Ne no sacrament, soth to say; + But speke in charitè and good hope. 1180 + + But I dispyse hir hyë pryde, + Hir richesse, that shuld be pore in spryt; + Hir wickednesse is knowe so wyde, + They servë god in fals habyt; + And turnen mekenesse into pryde, 1185 + And lowlinesse into hy degrè, + And goddes wordes turne and hyde; + And that am I moved by charitè + + To lettë men to livë so + With all my conning and al my might, 1190 + And to warne men of hir wo + And to tell hem trouth and right. + The sacraments be soulë-hele + If they ben used in good use; + Ayenst that speke I never a del, 1195 + For then were I nothing wyse. + + But they that use hem in mis manére, + Or sette hem up to any sale, + I trow, they shall abye hem dere; + This is my reson, this is my tale. 1200 + Who-so taketh hem unrightfulliche + Ayenst the ten commaundëments, + Or by glosë wrechedliche + Selleth any of the sacraments, + + I trow, they do the devell homage 1205 + In that they weten they do wrong; + And therto, I dar well wage, + They serven Satan for al her song. + To tythen and offren is hoolsom lyf, + So it be don in dew manére; 1210 + A man to houselin and to shryve, + Wedding, and all the other in-fere, + + So it be nother sold ne bought, + Ne take ne give for covetyse; + And it be so taken, it is nought; 1215 + Who selleth hem so, may sore agryse. + On our Lordes body I do not ly, + I say soth, thorow trewë rede, + His flesh and blood, through his mystry, + Is there, in the forme of brede. 1220 + + How it is there, it nedeth not stryve, + Whether it be subget or accident, + But as Christ was, when he was on-lyve, + So is he there, verament. + If pope or cardinall live good lyve, 1225 + As Christ commaunded in his gospell, + +Ayenës that woll I not stryve; + But, me thinketh, they live not well. + + For if the pope lived as god bede, + Pryde and hyghnesse he shuld dispyse, 1230 + Richesse, covetyse, and crowne on hede, + Mekenesse and povert he shulde use." + The Gryffon sayd, he shulde abye-- + "Thou shal[t] be brent in balefull fyre; + And all thy secte I shall distrye, 1235 + Ye shal be hanged by the swyre! + + Ye shullen be hanged and to-drawe. + Who giveth you levë for to preche, + Or speke +agaynës goddes lawe, + And the people thus falsly teche? 1240 + Thou shalt be cursed with boke and bell, + And dissevered from holy churche, + And clene y-dampned into hell, + Otherwyse but ye woll worche!" + + The Pellican sayd, "that I ne drede; 1245 + Your cursinge is of litell value; + Of god I hope to have my mede, + For it is falshed that ye shewe. + For ye ben out of charitè + And wilneth vengeaunce, as did Nero; 1250 + To suffren I woll redy be; + I drede not that thou canst do. + + Christ bad ones suffre for his love, + And so he taught all his servaunts; + And but thou amend for his sake above, 1255 + I drede not all thy mayntenaunce. + For if I drede the worldes hate, + Me thinketh, I were litell to prayse; + I drede nothing your hye estat, + Ne I drede not your disese. 1260 + + Wolde ye turne and leve your pryde, + Your hyë port, and your richesse, + Your cursing shuld not go so wyde; + God bring you into rightwysnesse! + For I drede not your tyranny, 1265 + For nothing that ye can doon; + To suffre I am all redy, + Siker, I recke never how soon!" + + The Griffon grinned as he were wood, + And loked lovely as an owle! 1270 + And swor, by cockes hertë blood, + He wolde him terë, every doule! + "Holy churche thou disclaundrest foule! + For thy resons I woll thee all to-race; + And make thy flesh to rote and moule; 1275 + Losell, thou shalt have hardë grace!" + + The Griffon flew forth on his way; + The Pellican did sitte and weep; + And to him-selfë he gan say, + "God wolde that any of Christes sheep 1280 + Had herd, and y-takë kepe + Eche a word that here sayd was, + And wolde it wryte and well it kepe! + God wolde it were all, for his grace!" + + PLOWMAN. I answerde, and sayd I wolde, 1285 + If for my travayl any wold pay. + PELICAN. He sayd, "yes; these that god han sold; + For they han [greet] store of money!" + PLOWMAN. I sayd, "tell me, and thou may, + Why tellest thou mennës trespace?" 1290 + PELICAN. He said, "to amende hem, in good fay, + If god woll give me any grace. + + For Christ him-selfe is lykned to me, + That for his people dyed on rode; + As fare I, right so fareth he, 1295 + He fedeth his birdes with his blode. + But these don yvell +ayenës good, + And ben his foon under frendes face; + I tolde hem how hir living stood; + God amende hem, for his grace!" 1300 + + PLOWMAN. "What ayleth the Griffon, tell [me] why, + That he holdeth on that other syde?" + PELLICAN. "For they two ben [of kind], lykly, + And with [lyk] kindes robben wyde. + The foul betokeneth [evill] pryde, 1305 + As Lucifer, that hygh +flowe was; + And sith he did him in evell hyde, + For he agilted goddes grace. + + As bird [that] flyeth up in the ayr, + And liveth by birdes that ben meke, 1310 + So these be flowe up in dispayr, + And shenden sely soules eke. + The soules that ben in sinnes seke, + He culleth hem; knele therfore, alas! + For brybry goddes forbode breke, 1315 + God amende it, for his grace! + + The hinder part is a lyoun, + A robber and a ravinere, + That robbeth the people in erth a-down, + And in erth holdeth non his pere; 1320 + So fareth this foul, both fer and nere; + With temporel strength they people chase, + As a lyon proud in erthë here; + God amende hem for hys grace!" + + He flew forth with his winges twayn, 1325 + All drouping, dased, and dull. + But soone the Griffon cam agayn, + Of his foules the erth was full; + The Pellican he had cast to pull. + So greet a nombre never seen ther was; 1330 + What maner of foules, tellen I woll, + If god woll give me of his grace. + + With the Griffon comen foules fele, + Ravins, rokes, crowes, and pye, + Gray foules, agadred wele, 1335 + Y-gurd, above they woldë hye. + Gledes and bosardes weren hem by; + Whyt molles and puttockes token hir place; + And lapwinges, that wel conneth ly, + This felowship han for-gerd hir grace. 1340 + + Longe the Pellican was out, + But at [the] laste he cometh agayn; + And brought with him the Phenix stout. + The Griffon wolde have flowe full fayn; + His foules, that flewen as thycke as rayn, 1345 + The Phenix tho began hem chace; + To fly from him it was in vayn, + For he did vengeaunce and no grace. + + He slew hem down without mercy, + Ther astartë neyther free ne thrall; 1350 + On him they cast a rufull cry + When the Griffon down was fall. + He beet hem not, but slew hem all; + Whither he hem drove, no man may trace; + Under the erthe, me thought, they yall; 1355 + Alas! they had a feble grace! + + The Pellican then axed right, + "For my wryting if I have blame, + Who woll for me fight of flight? + Who shall sheldë me from shame? 1360 + He that had a mayd to dame, + The lamb that slayn [for sinners] was, + Shall sheldë me from gostly blame; + For erthly harm is goddes grace. + + Therfore I praye every man, 1365 + Of my wryting have me excused." + This wryting wryteth the Pellican, + That thus these people hath dispysed; + For I am, fresh, fully advysed, + I nill not maynteyn his manace. 1370 + For the devell is +oft disguysed, + To bringe a man to yvell grace. + + Wyteth the Pellican, and not me, + For herof I nil not avowe, + In hy ne in low, ne in no degrè, 1375 + But as a fable take it ye mowe. + To holy churche I will me bowe; + Ech man to amende him, Christ send space! + And for my wryting me alowe + He that is almighty, for his grace.' 1380 + + FINIS. + +_From_ Thynne (ed. 1542). _I give rejected spellings._ + +1. Ploweman; plowe. 3. eate ynowe. 4. lyge; chynne. 5. cowe. 6. bone; +skynne. 7. shoke; -drowe. 8. honge; pynne. 9. toke; tabarde; staffe. 12. +pylgremage; platte. 13. bare. 14. forswatte. 15. sene. 17. behelde wele. +18. sawe. 19. knewe; snoute. 23. coulde; loute. + +27. plowe. 28. meate. 29. auowe. 30. wyfe; fynde. 31. howe. 32. leude; +bene; full (_read_ fully; _see_ l. 24); blynde. 33. fayne. 34. her; +_supply_ to; swet. 35. agayne. 36. eate. 37. The (_for_ They; 1550, They); +sayne. 38. hell. 39. payne. 41. her. 42. sayne. 43. corne. 44. speaketh. +45. preache. 46. nere; thynge. 47. ons (1550, ones); teache. 48. +preachynge. 49. Saye; the. 51. praye; noman. 52. Whyle; tellynge. COLOPHON: +fyrst parte. + +53. stryfe. 55. bene. 57. great; vngrounde (!). 58. souble (_error for_ +souple). 60. foule. 61. one. 63. freers. 64. great. 65. heuyn. 68. foule +mought. 70. _Supply_ al; prease. 71. caytyffes. 72. one; encrease. 73. +I-clepeth (!); londlese. 74. bene. 75. peace. 76. foule. 78. knowe. 79. +trauayle. 80. ferre. 82. wodde. 83. sawe. + +85. one. 86. grymme. 89. measure. 90. counsayle. 91. sharpe. 92. foule. 93. +preache. 94. mekenesse. 95. teache. 96. blesse. 97. beareth wytnesse. 98. +lambe; lykeneth. 99. tokenynge. 103. lowlyche; lowe. 105. crowne; couetours +(_read_ covertours). 106. pylloure (_for_ pelure). 107. great treasours. +108. foule. 109. Preests shulde. 111. bateyle shulde. 112. her owne. 113. +syttynges; hye. 114. souerayntie; house. 115. worshippe. 116. Who so +(_omit_ so); foule shall. + +117. suche. 118. erthlye. 119. suche shall. 120. y-buylden her boure. 122. +them to hem; _supply_ be. 123. holde; one. 124. suche one shall (_om._ +one). 125. peeres. 127. poore freers. 128. Nowe. 129. her. 130. noman; +permagall. 131. Whyle; her. 132. suche; mote. 134. glytterande; great +araye. 136. co_m_men; maye; gaye. 137. daye. 138. great. 139. baye. 140. +suche; mote. 141. punyshed (!); _see_ l. 143. 142. sustayne. 144. her. 147. +leude. 148. Suche; foule them befall (_see_ ll. 156, 164). + +149. meates. 150. songe; syttynge longe. 151. her. 152. meate; gonge. 153. +meate; harpe; songe. 154. eche; mote. 155. amonge. 156. Suche; foule. 157. +one. 159. staffe; pyrrey; _read_ perrey. 160. made; lead. 161. golde; +redde. 162. glytterande; golde (_repeated from_ l. 161; _read_ gown). 164. +foule. 167. her. 168. hel. 169. her. 170. her gaye. 172. great. 179. poore. +180. Suche; foule. + +182, 3. her. 184. kynge. 185. glyttryng (1550, glytteryng). 187. golde. +188. foule. 189. clepen (!); bene. 194. Antichriste; her. 196. foule. 198. +done (_but_ 1550, dome; _read_ demed). 200. whiche. 201, 202. her. 204. +suche; foule. 205. Her. 207. mote. 208. forbede (= forb[=e]d). 209. suche. +211. mote; her. + +215, 216. greater. 224. thynke. 225. Suche; stynke. 227. bowynge. 228. must +nede euyll; _I omit_ nede. 231. suche; sect sewys. 233. her. 234. Her. 235. +Chrystes (!); _read_ Christ his. 236. suche; foule. 238. her; lyfe. 240. +_Supply_ ther; great stryfe. 241. a knyfe (_om._ a). 243. suche. 244. +suche; foule. + +246. _Supply_ he surely. 247. peace. 248. bade. 251. trusteth (!). 252. +_Supply_ such; foule. 256. roode. 257. co_m_men. 258. Echeon. 259. poore. +260. befall; _read_ fall. 261. _Supply_ never. 263. _Supply_ yet. 266. her. +267. her. 268. foule; falle. 272. her. 276. suche; foule. + +282. shyppes (!); 1550, shepes. 283. ofte. 284. suche; foule. 287. poore. +289. _Supply_ him. 292. sayne. 295. _Supply_ there; nowe; them. 296. hoode. +297. blode. 298. buckette; (wall = well). 299. wode. 300. suche. 301. her. +302. _Omit_ to? 304. sonne; worthe. 306. her crokettes; christall. 307. +downe. 308. foule. + +310. her. 315. Redde; vsyn. 316. falsshed foule. 317. Their (_read_ Hir); +her. 318. clemeth; _see_ l. 525. 320. _Supply_ by; raunsome. 324, 332, 340. +foule. 324. to fall (_omit_ to). 325. her. 328. her seales; dare. 329. +great. 332. suche; _supply_ false. 334. her. 336. sayne; poore. 337. eche +preeste. 338. encrease. 339. heerdes; the. 340. suche. + +341. falsely. 344. towne (_twice_). 345. raunsome. 346. christall. 348. +suche. 348, 356, 364. foule. 349. gyltie. 350. _Supply_ yet; maye. 352. +maye. 353. gone. 355. poore; theyr (_read_ hir). 356. suche. 357. suche. +358. suche crafte. 359. forbade. 360. Suche. 361. is (_read_ ben). 363. +dispyce. 364. suche. 365. sayne. 366. heuyn; holde. 367. toke. 368. solde. +369. Suche; bolde. 370. wytte. 371. colde. 372. suche. + +374. leaue. 375. suche (_twice_). 378. Theyr (_for_ Hir). 380. false +Lucifere. 381. Lucifarre. 383. faythe; farre. 386. hou_n_de; hungre. 387. +vngratious. 388. suche. 388, 396, 404. foule. 389. heyre. 390. thynke; +case. 391. dispeyre. 393. lorde. 394. anone pray. 395. purchase. 396. +suche. 397. can (_read_ conne). 398. spedde. 399. wylde. 400. redde. 401. +leude boster (_om._ leude). 402. byshoppe; is (_read_ as); horse. 403. be +stedde. 404. _Supply_ the; last. + +405. byshoppes. 407. Suche; ranke. 408. heale none. 409. done. 410. one +fors (!); _misprint_. 411. thanke suche. 412. suche. 412, 420, 436. foule. +413. canne; _read_ conne; her. 414. made. 415. canne. 416. Suche; nowe. +418. her. 419. Suche. 420. suche. 422. Traueyle hungre; colde. 424. olde. +425. folde. 426. theyr (_for_ hir); shepe. 428. suche. 429. her. 430. +pouerte. 432. drynke; pyement; _supply_ and; aparte. 433. a ferde. 434. as +dyd (_om._ dyd). 435. dryuen her shepe; deserte. 436. suche. + +437. xij. 438. Nowe; there; one. 440. echone. 443. stone. 447. nowe. 449. +her. 450. leuyn. 451. But (_read_ Ben). 452. suche. 453. plowe. 454. hate +(!). 455. to hym (_om._ to); ynowe. 456. hatte. 457. poore; latte. 459. +Suche; gnatte. 460. suche. 461. showe. 462. to kysse (_om._ to); fete. 463. +ynowe. 464. sette; _read_ seet (= sat). 465. Suche one; hym selfe foryete. +466. _For_ call _read_ tall (?); _cf. l._ 74. 467. wete. 468. suche; foule. + +469. her. 470. golde. 472. catche sholde. 473. Her seruauntes; them (_read_ +hem); vnholde. 474. theyr (_for_ hir). 475. holde. 476. suche. 478. fynde. +479. nowe. 480. saye behynde. 481. Howe; pynde. 482. kende; _see_ l. 530. +483. putte; mynde. 484. amende. 485. nowe. 486. Howe. 487. howe. 488. +worde; telleth (_see_ l. 487). 490. offrende. 492. amende. + +493. saye. 495. Suche hathe nowe. 497. varry. 498. wende. 500. pytie; +amende. 501. lyfe. 503. sufferaunce; stryfe. 505. wysedome. 506. tende. +507. measure. 508. maye amende. 509. lyfe. 514. comprehende. 515. +maynteyne. 516. amende. 517. delyghtes. 518. stronge. 519. vsen. 520. +Agaynste pytie punishementes. 522. Her; worse dispende. 524. amende. + +525. holy. 528. worse; wytlesse. 529. fyshe; fleshe. 530. ykende. 531. +poore. 532. amende. 533. Dyuers (_read_ Dives); suche; her dome. 534. +sayne. 535. shulde done. 536. suche. 537. suche. 538. offende. 539. nowe. +540. amende. 542. nowe; yknowe. 544. trowe. 545. Eche; owe (!). 546. sende. +547. worde; folke; showe. 548. amende. 549. poore. 551. Nowe dare; poore. +552. her foe. 553. Amonge; mote. 554. suche suspende. 555. hente. 556. +amende. + +557. worlde. 558. loly; badde. 559. her. 560. forthe ladde. 561. dradde. +562. _Supply_ servaunts; shende. 563. Eche; gladde. 564, 572, 580, 588. +amende. 567. One; one. 569. _Supply_ that; one. 570. defende. 571. badde. +572. suche. 573. badde; shepe. 574. forbade. 575. Swerde; shepe. 576. +shepe. 578. her shepe; swerde; contende. 579. her shepe; great. 582. +_Supply_ that; chefe pastoure. 583. swerde. 584. bochoure. 586. Shulde; +shepe; backe bende. 587. shoure. + +590. forsoke. 591. _Supply_ to (_as in_ l. 592). 592. hoke. 593. shepe; +dothe; coke. 594. _Supply_ they; vntrende. 595. -boke. 596. them amende. +600. badde; behynde. 601. Suche. 602. offende. 604. suche; amende. 606. +_Read_ contrar. 608. mysse. 610. Peter (_read_ him); reprehende. 611. But +nat (_om._ But); heuyn blysse. 612. amende. 613. case. 616. bare. 618. +stale; _supply_ gan; myspende. 620. _Supply_ now; amende. + +622. hys false (_om._ false). 626. frende = fremd. 628. amende. 629. efte +sone. 631. fordone. 632. sayne. 633. And ayenst (_omit_ And); +commaundementes (_read_ maundements); crye. 634. brende. 635. suche. 636. +amende. 637. Englande. 638. kynge. 639. suche. 640. _Supply_ they (_or_ +hem); lyste. 641. her. 642. prysone; sende. 644. amende. 648. bayghted. +649. worse. 650. prysone; _supply_ be; pende. 652. maye mende. + +654. assente. 655. eche. 657. Her seales. 658. extende. 660. mischefe; +_supply_ may; amende. 662. worthe tenne pounde. 664. thyrde parte; rounde. +665. raunsounde. 666. saye suche parte; apende. 667. gothe; grounde. 668. +amende. 669. fornycatioun. 670. shyllynges; paye. 671. absolution. 672. +forthe; maye. 674. soule; brende. 676. suche; amende. 678. londe. 680. her +honde. 681. theyr (_for_ hir); bonde. 682. Worse beate; _supply_ more; +brende. 683. vnderstande. 684. amende. + +685. _Read_ religiouns. 686. moche laye. 690. attende. 691. hyghe. 692. +amende. 694. aboute. 695. _Supply_ the. 697. doute. 698. them defende. 699. +nowe; folke; stoute. 700. kynge; nowe; amende. 701. forbode. 702. shulde. +704. shulde; lordshyppe. 705. bolde. 706. suche lordeshyppes; them (_for_ +hem). 707. her shepe; her folde. + +709. countrefete. 710. her fruite. 711. Her; foryete. 712. dispyte. 713. +poore. 715. her shepe. 720-1. great. 722. thre; _supply_ han. 723. playeng. +724. kynge. 725. lette. 729. soule; fore. 731. her. 732. Her profytes. 734. +poore. 736. lorde. 737. catche. 738. lorde. 739. poore. 740. syke (_for_ +seke); _see l._ 1313. + +743. also (_read_ als). 746. poore; spende. 748. sende. 749. her; suche. +750. treasour. 751. her paryshe. 752. -floure. 753. Her lyfe shulde. 755. +her lele. 756. Suche. 759. her; _supply_ hir. 760. great. 761. thynke. 763. +dredefull. 764. Suche wretches. 765. her. 767. poore; hungre. 769. rente. +770. recke. 772. one. + +773. horedome. 777. suche tabyde. 778. Howe; yelde. 779. hye; mowe. 780. +Suche; wytte; nelde. 782. foryet. 785. mowe gete. 787. sette. 788. Suche +treasour. 789. mote; saye. 790. holdynge. 791. iaye. 792. selfe nothynge. +793. erle; kynge. 795. tythynge; offrynge. 798. _Supply_ els. 804. false. + +808. her lorde. 811. falsely; worde. 812. her. 814. the; _supply_ me. 815. +suche; _supply_ folk. 818. suche falsely fayne. 819. dredeful. 820. payne. +821. selfe; done. 825. _Supply_ the. 826. her false. 828. suche. 830. +_Read_ vikere. 831. trowe; false. 834. Eche; lye. 835. _Read_ Who speke +ayeinës; her. + +837. howe. 838. Onely; Christe. 840. or (_read_ on). 841. trowe. 843. +_Supply_ same. 845. howe; amonge. 846. waye. 848. betraye. 849. maye. 851. +saye. 852. blende. 853. on (_read_ upon); her. 854. poorely; porte. 855. +sacramentes; done. 856. catchynge; her comforte. 857. eche. 858. done; +wronge; her dysporte. 859. afraye. 860. lorde. 862. aye. 863. sweare. 865. +Suche bearen; heauen. 866. assoyle. 868. true (_better_ trewë). + +869. wrestlynge. 871. Markette beaters; medlynge. 874. debate. 875. +sacramentes; sayle (!). 876. Howe; suche; gate. 879. speake. 880. +sompnynge. 881. saye; _supply_ with; lye. 882. her eye. 887. twyse; daye he +(_om._ he). 889. mote. 890. horne. 891. wytche. 892. Suchen. 893. mote; +some; stone. 895. _Supply_ to; lyuen. 896. saye. 897. Aboute suche; great. +898. suche; stande. 900. maye. + +901. That it leude people se mowe. 902. Mary thou (_om._ thou). 903. +Aboute; nowe. 909. poore. 910. _Supply_ in; owne. 911. her. 914. mowe; +colde. 915. poore; sprete; Christe. 916. olde. 917. sweardes. 918. Baudryke +(_read_ Baudriks). 919. Suche; her. 920. suche; bene. 921. her. 922. Whome +(_twice_). 923. bene. 925. gay. 926. mote. 929. her. 930. her shone. 932. +none. + +933. Nowe. 934. That men (_om._ That). 935. done. 937. Suche. 938. Lyke. +arayde. 939. The proude (_om._ The); pendauntes; her. 940. Falsely; +betrayde. 941. Shryfte-. 943. sacramentes. 945. her byshoppe. 948. thus +(_read_ this); sayne. 949. her. 952. Suche; eche. 953. profyte. 955. dare; +sayne. 956. suche. 957. byshoppes. 958. mote. 959. her. 960. Suche +prelates. 961. suche. 962. suche. 963. Howe. 964. greatly. + +965. sayne. 966. them (_for_ hem). 967. goddes goodesse (!). 968. +maynteyne. 969. Her; shulde. 970. Her lyuynge leude. 971. saye; maye. 972. +muste. 973. lye. 975. anone. 978. meane. 981. longe; mette. 983. Amonge; +folke; sette. 984. halfe. 985. byshoppe. 987. absolution maye; them (_for_ +hem). 988. soule; fore. 993. her. 994. suche. 995. came. 996. great. + +997. monke lorde. 998. kynge. 999. proude. 1000. meate; drynke; _supply_ +in. 1001. wearen; rynge. 1003. meate; drynke. 1004. on a (_om._ a). 1007. +saye. 1008. deynties; her; foode. 1010. religion. 1012. lordshyppe; towne. +1013. Nowe. 1014. fyne clothe. 1016. meane. 1017. catchynge. 1018. great +lykynge. 1019. lyuynge. 1020. Accordynge; Benette; lyuynge. 1021. her; +ouerse. 1022. Her poore tenaunce. 1023. hyre (1550, hyer). 1025. farre. +1027. poore. 1028. cheryshe. + +1029. co_m_menly. 1030. poore. 1031. perfection. 1032. Her fathers ryden; +her. 1034. olde. 1035. Her fathers. 1036. colde. 1037. And all (_om._ And). +1038. Benette. 1039. ease. 1040. besette. 1042. plowe. 1043. Threshynge; +dykynge; towne; towne. 1044. halfe ynowe. 1046. ease. 1050. badde; _supply_ +ful; cherelyche. 1051. churlyche. 1052. earth. 1053. Benette. 1055. mette. +1057. _Supply_ now. 1060. treasoure. + +1062. suche. 1064. foule. 1065. tolde. 1066. makynge. 1067. coulde. 1068. +wolde. 1069. goodnesse. 1070. speake; thynke. 1071. her (_twice_). 1074. +came; kynde. 1075. trowe. 1076. lost; mynde. 1077-80. shulde. 1078. +gouernayle. 1080. auayle. 1081. Eche; trauayle. 1083. assayle. 1085. poore. +1086. nothynge; hadde. 1087. shulde. 1088. nolde; dradde. 1089. wolde; +sadde. 1090. lust (_read_ list). 1091. such (_read_ shuld). 1092. shepe; +wust (_read_ wist). + +1093. prelates wolde. 1095. shulde stande; colde. 1096. Her seruauntes. +1098. worshyppe. 1100. Suche. 1102. Shulde; thynge. 1104. her kynge. 1105. +clothynge. 1107. offrynge. 1108. lordshypppe (!) none. 1109. crye. 1111. +hye. 1114. father. 1115. to be (_om._ to). 1116. _Read_ wikke? 1118. +Goostly; earthly. 1119. shulde; hane. 1121. blode. 1122. Badde. 1124. +myschefe. + +1125-30. Her. 1125. clothynge. 1126. treasoure; lyfe. 1128. lordshyppe. +1131. Poore; spirite. 1133. the. 1135. haste; lyue (_read_ leve). 1136. +eche. 1139. glosynge. 1141. wolde; eche; there shulde. 1142. enuye. 1146. +lyfe. 1148. the; stryfe. 1149. _Supply_ ye. 1151. neyther (_read_ not). +1154. warme; _supply_ be. + +1157. sacramentes. 1158. speake; slye. 1159. tythynges offringes w_i_t_h_ +(_omit_ offringes); ente_n_tes. 1160. lye. 1161. done; ease. 1162. there; +none. 1163. sayne; pease. 1167. wolde. 1168. Leaue; chattrynge. 1173. fore. +1174. done. 1175. done. 1176. shalte; man. 1177. _Supply_ nay. 1179. +sacramente. 1180. speake. 1181-3. her. 1182. shulde; poore; spirite. 1184. +false habyte. 1186. hye. + +1190. connynge. 1191. her. 1193. sacramentes. 1195. speake; dele. 1196. +nothynge. 1197. vsen; mysse. 1199. trowe. 1200. reason. 1202. +co_m_maundementes. 1204. sacramentes. 1205. trowe. 1206. wronge. 1207. +dare. 1208. songe. 1209. holsome lyfe. 1210. done; dewe. 1212. Weddynge. +1213. solde. 1216. maye. 1217. lye. 1218. saye; thorowe. 1219. fleshe; +blode; mystrye. + +1221. Howe. 1222. subgette. 1227. Ayenst. 1230. shulde. 1232. pouerte. +1235. dystrye. 1238. leaue; preache. 1239. speake agaynst. 1240. falsely +teache. 1245. sayde. 1248. falshede. + +1253. badde. 1254. seruauntes. 1255. amende. 1259. nothynge; estate. 1260. +dysease. 1261. leaue. 1262. porte. 1263. cursynge shulde. 1264. brynge. +1266. nothynge; done. 1268. howe soone. 1269. wode. 1271. swore; bloode. +1274. reasons; the. 1275. fleshe. 1276. shalte. 1277. flewe; waye. 1278. +wepe. 1279. saye. 1280. shepe. 1281. herde. 1282. worde. 1283. wrytte. + +1286. trauayle; any man wolde (_om._ man). 1287. solde. 1288. _Supply_ +greet. 1293. lykened. 1297. done; ayenst gode. 1298. fone. 1299. howe her +lyuynge stode. 1301. _Supply_ me. 1303. _Supply_ Pellican (_wrongly +prefixed to_ l. 1305); _supply_ of kind. 1304. _Supply_ lyk. 1305. foule; +_supply_ evill. 1306. flewe (_read_ flowe; _see_ l. 1311). 1309. byrde; +_supply_ that; ayre. 1311. into (_read_ in); dyspayre. + +1317. parte. 1319. earth a downe. 1320. none. 1321. foule; ferre. 1322. And +wyth (_om._ And). 1323. proude; earth. 1325. (Pellican _is written above +this line_); flewe; twayne. 1326. droupynge. 1327. came agayne. 1328. +earth. 1338. great; sene there. 1336. Igurde. 1338. Whyte; her. 1339. lye. +1340. for gerde her. 1342. _Supply_ the. 1343. stoute. 1344. fayne. 1345. +rayne. 1345. flye; vayne. + +1349. slewe; downe. 1350. There. 1352. downe. 1353. bete; slewe. 1358. +wrytynge. 1361. mayde. 1362. And the lambe (_om._ And); _supply_ for +sinners. 1364. erthely harme. 1366-7. wrytynge. 1369. freshe. 1370. +maynteyne. 1371. often (_read_ oft). 1375. hye; lowe. 1378. Eche; sende. +1379. wrytynge. + + * * * * * + +III. JACK UPLAND. + + I, Jack Uplande, make my mone to very god and to all + true belevinge in Christ, that Antichrist and his disciples, by + colour of holines, walken and deceiven Christes church by many + fals figures, wherethrough, by Antichrist and his, many vertues + been transposed to vices. 5 + + But the fellest folk that ever Antichrist found been last + brought into the church, and in a wonder wyse; for they been of + divers sectes of Antichrist, sowen of divers countrees and + kinredes. And all men knowen wel, that they ben not obedient + to bishoppes, ne lege men to kinges; neither they tillen ne 10 + sowen, weden, ne repen woode, corn, ne gras, neither nothing + that man shuld helpe but only hem-selves, hir lyves to sustein. + And these men han all maner power of god, as they sayen, + in heaven and in earth, to sell heaven and hell to whom that + hem lyketh; and these wrecches wete never where to been 15 + hemselves. + + And therfore, frere, if thine order and rules ben grounded on + goddes law, tell thou me, Jack Upland, that I aske of thee; and + if thou be or thinkest to be on Christes syde, kepe thy pacience. + + Saynt Paul techeth, that al our dedes shuld be don in charitè, 20 + and els it is nought worth, but displesing to god and harm to + oure owne soules. And for because freres chalengen to be + gretest clerkes of the church, and next folowinge Christ in + livinge, men shulde, for charitè, axe hem some questions, and + pray hem to grounde their answers in reson and in holy writ; for 25 + els their answere wolde nought be worth, be it florished never so + faire; and, as me think, men might skilfully axe thus of a frere. + + 1. Frere, how many orders be in erthe, and which is the + perfitest order? Of what order art thou? Who made thyn + order? What is thy rule? Is there ony perfiter rule than Christ 30 + himselfe made? If Christes rule be moost perfit, why rulest + thou thee not therafter? Without more, why shall a frere be + more punished if he breke the rule that his patron made, than if + he breke the hestes that god himself made? + + 2. Approveth Christ ony more religions than oon, that saynt 35 + James speketh of? If he approveth no more, why hast thou left + his rule, and taken another? Why is a frere apostata, that leveth + his order and taketh another secte; sith there is but oon religion + of Christ? + + 3. Why be ye wedded faster to your habits than a man is to his 40 + wyfe? For a man may leve his wyf for a yere or two, as many + men do; and if +ye leve your habit a quarter of a yere, ye shuld + be holden apostatas. + + 4. Maketh youre habit you men of religion, or no? If it + do, than, ever as it wereth, your religion wereth; and, after that 45 + the habit is better, is you[r] religion better. And whan ye liggen + it besyde you, than lig ye youre religion besyde you, and ben + apostatas. Why by ye you so precious clothes, sith no man + seketh such but for vaine glorie, as saynt Gregory saith? + + 5. What betokeneth youre grete hood, your scaplerye, youre 50 + knotted girdel, and youre wyde cope? + + 6. Why use ye al oon colour, more then other Christen men + do? What betokeneth that ye been clothed all in one maner + clothinge? + + 7. If ye saye it betokeneth love and charitè, certes, than ye be 55 + ofte ypocrites, whan ony of you hateth other, and in that, that ye + wollen be said holy by youre clothinge. + + 8. Why may not a frere were clothing of an-other secte of + freres, sith holines stondeth not in the clothes? + + 9. Why holde ye silence in one howse more than in another; 60 + sith men ought over-al to speke the good and leve the evell? + + 10. Why ete you flesh in one house more than in another, + if youre rule and youre order be perfit, and the patron that + made it? + + 11. Why gette ye your dispensacions, to have it more esy? 65 + Certes, either it semeth that ye be unperfit; or he, that made it + so hard that ye may not holde it. And siker, if ye holde not the + rule of youre patrons, ye be not than hir freres; and so ye lye + upon youre-selves! + + 12. Why make ye you as dede men whan ye be professed; 70 + and yet ye be not dede, but more quicke beggars than ye were + before? And it semeth evell a deed man to go aboute and + begge. + + 13. Why will ye not suffer youre novices here your councels in + youre chapter-house, er that they been professed; if youre councels 75 + been trew, and after god[d]es lawe? + + 14. Why make ye you so costly houses to dwell in; sith Christ + did not so, and dede men shuld have but graves, as falleth to + dede men? And yet ye have more gorgeous buildinges than + many lordes of Englonde. For ye maye wenden through the 80 + realme, and ech night, wel nigh, ligge in youre owne courtes; + and so mow but right few lordes do. + + 15. Why hyre ye to ferme youre limitors, gevinge therfore + eche yeer a certain rente; and will not suffer oon in an-others + limitacion, right as ye were your-selves lordes of contreys? 85 + + 16. Why be ye not under youre bisshops visitacions, and liege + men to oure kinge? + + 17. Why axe ye no letters of bretherhedes of other mens + prayers, as ye desyre that other men shulde aske letters of you? + + 18. If youre letters be good, why graunte ye them not generally 90 + to al maner men, for the more charitè? + + 19. Mow ye make ony man more perfit brother for your + prayers, than god hath by oure beleve, by our baptyme and his + owne graunte? If ye mowe, certes, than ye be above god. + + 20. Why make ye men beleve that your golden trentall songe 95 + of you, to take therfore ten shillinges, or at the leest fyve + shillinges, will bringe soules out of helle, or out of purgatorye? + If this be sooth, certes, ye might bring all soules out of payne. + And that wolle ye nought; and than ye be out of charitè. + + 21. Why make ye men beleve, that he that is buried in youre 100 + habit shall never come in hell; and ye wite not of youre-selfe, + whether ye shall to hell, or no? And if this were sooth, ye + shulde selle youre high houses, to make many habites, for to save + many mens soules. + + 22. Why stele ye mens children for to make hem of youre 105 + secte; sith that theft is agaynst goddes heste; and sithe youre + secte is not perfit? Ye know not whether the rule that ye binde + him to, be best for him or worst! + + 23. Why undernime ye not your brethren, for their trespas + after the lawe of the gospell; sith that underneminge is the best 110 + that may be? But ye put them in prison ofte, whan they do after + goddes lawe; and, by saynt Austines rule, if ony did amisse and + wolde not amende him, ye should put him from you. + + 24. Why covete ye shrifte, and burying of other mens parishens, + and non other sacrament that falleth to Christen folke? 115 + + 25. Why busie ye not to here shrifte of poore folke, as well + as of riche lordes and ladyes; sith they mowe have more plentee + of shrifte-fathers than poore folk may? + + 26. Why saye ye not the gospel in houses of bedred men; as + ye do in riche mens, that mowe go to churche and here the 120 + gospell? + + 27. Why covette +ye not to burye poore folk among you; sith + that they ben moost holy, as ye sayn that ye ben for youre + povertee? + + 28. Why will ye not be at hir diriges, as ye been at riche mens; 125 + sith god prayseth hem more than he doth riche men? + + 29. What is thy prayer worth; sith thou wilt take therefore? + For of all chapmen ye nede to be moost wyse; for drede of + symonye. + + 30. What cause hast thou that thou wilt not preche the 130 + gospell, as god sayeth that thou shuldest; sith it is the best + lore, and also oure beleve? + + 31. Why be ye evell apayed that secular prestes shulde preche + the gospel; sith god him-selfe hath boden hem? + + 32. Why hate ye the gospell to be preched; sith ye be so 135 + moche holde thereto? For ye winne more by yere with + _In principio_, than with all the rules that ever youre patrons made. + And, in this, minstrels been better than ye. For they contraryen + not to the mirthes that they maken; but ye contraryen the gospell + bothe in worde and dede. 140 + + 33. Frere, whan thou receivest a peny for to say a masse, + whether sellest thou goddes body for that peny, or thy prayer, + or els thy travail? If thou sayest thou wolt not travaile for to + saye the masse but for the peny, +than certes, if this be soth, than + thou lovest to littel mede for thy soule. And if thou sellest 145 + goddes body, other thy prayer, than it is very symony; and art + become a chapman worse than Judas, that solde it for thirty + pens. + + 34. Why wrytest thou hir names in thy tables, that yeveth thee + moneye; sith god knoweth all thing? For it semeth, by thy 150 + wryting, that god wolde not rewarde him but thou wryte him in + thy tables; god wolde els forgetten it. + + 35. Why berest thou god in honde, and sclaundrest him that he + begged for his mete; sith he was lord over all? For than hadde + he ben unwyse to have begged, and no nede therto. 155 + + 36. Frere, after what law rulest thou thee? Wher findest thou + in goddes law that thou shuldest thus begge? + + 37. What maner men nedeth for to begge? + + Of whom oweth suche men to begge? + + Why beggest thou so for thy brethren? 160 + + If thou sayest, for they have nede; than thou doest it for the + more perfeccion, or els for the leest, or els for the mene. If it be + the moost perfeccion of all, than shulde al thy brethren do so; + and than no man neded to begge but for him-selfe, for so shuld no + man begge but him neded. And if it be the leest perfeccion, why 165 + lovest thou than other men more than thy-selfe? For so thou art + not well in charitè; sith thou shuldest seke the more perfeccion + after thy power, livinge thy-selfe moost after god; and thus, leving + that imperfeccion, thou shuldest not so begge for hem. And if + it is a good mene thus to begge as thou doest, than shuld no man 170 + do so but they ben in this good mene; and yet such a mene, + graunted to you, may never be grounded in goddes lawe; for + than both lered and lewed that ben in mene degrè of this worlde + shuld go aboute and begge as ye do. And if all suche shuld do + so, certes, wel nigh al the world shuld go aboute and begge as 175 + ye do: and so shulde there be ten beggers agaynst oon yever. + + 38. Why procurest thou men to yeve thee hir almes, and sayest + it is so meedful; and thou wilt not thy-selfe winne thee that + mede? + + 39. Why wilt thou not begge for poore bedred men, that ben 180 + poorer than ony of youre secte, that liggen, and mow not go + aboute to helpe themselves; sith we be all brethren in god, and + that bretherhed passeth ony other that ye or ony man coude + make? And where moost nede were, there were moost perfeccion; + either els ye holde hem not youre pure brethren, or worse. But 185 + than ye be imperfite in your begginge. + + 40. Why make ye you so many maisters among you; sith it + is agaynst the techinge of Christ and his apostels? + + 41. Whos ben all your riche courtes that ye han, and all your + riche jewels; sith ye sayen that ye han nought, in proper ne in 190 + comune? If ye sayn they ben the popes, why +geder ye then, of + poore men and of lordes, so much out of the kinges honde to make + your pope riche? And sith ye sayen that it is greet perfeccion to + have nought, in proper ne in comune, why be ye so fast aboute to + make the pope (that is your +fader) riche, and putte on him 195 + imperfeccion? Sithen ye sayn that your goodes ben all his, and he + shulde by reson be the moost perfit man, it semeth openlich that + ye ben cursed children, so to sclaunder your +fader, and make + him imperfit. And if ye sayn that tho goodes be yours, then do + ye ayenst youre rule; and if it be not ayenst your rule, than might 200 + ye have both plough and cart, and labour as other good men don, + and not so begge to by losengery, and ydell, as ye don. And if ye + say that it is more perfeccion to begge than to travaill or worch + with youre hand, why preche ye not openly, and teche all men to + do so, sith it is the best and moost perfit lyf to helpe of her 205 + soules, as ye make children to begge that might have been riche + heyres? + + 42. Why make ye not your festes to poore men, and yeveth + hem yeftes, as ye don to the riche; sith poore men han more + nede than the riche? 210 + + 43. What betokeneth that ye go tweyne and tweyne +togeder? + If ye be out of charitè, ye accorden not in soule. + + 44. Why begge ye, and take salaries therto, more than other + prestes; sith he that moost taketh, most charge he hath? + + 45. Why holde ye not saynt Fraunces rule and his testament; 215 + sith Fraunces saith, that god shewed him this living and this + rule? And certes, if it were goddes will, the pope might not + fordo it; or els Fraunces was a lyar, that sayde on this wyse. + And but this testament that he made accorde with goddes will, + els erred he as a lyar that were out of charitè; and as the law 220 + sayeth, he is accursed that letteth the rightfull last will of a deed + man lacke. And this testament is the last will of Fraunces that + is a deed man; it seemeth therefore that all his freres ben + cursed. + + 46. Why wil ye not touche no coined money with the crosse, 225 + ne with the kinges heed, as ye don other jewels both of golde and + silver? Certes, if ye despyse the crosse or the kinges heed, than + ye be worthy to be despysed of god and the kinge. And sith ye + will receyve money in your hertes and not with youre handes, it + seemeth that ye holde more holinesse in your hondes than in your 230 + hertes; and than be ye false to god. + + 47. Why have ye exempt you fro our kinges lawes and visitinge + of our bishoppes more than other Christen men that liven in this + realme, if ye be not gilty of traitory to our realme, or trespassers + to oure bishoppes? But ye will have the kinges lawes for trespas 235 + don to you; and ye wil have power of other bishops more than + other prestes; and also have leave to prison youre brethren as + lordes in youre courtes, more than other folkes han that ben the + kinges lege men. + + 48. Why shal some secte of you freres paye eche yere a certaine 240 + to hir generall provinciall or minister, or els to hir soverains, + but-if he stele a certain number of children, as some men sayn? And + certes, if this be soth, than be ye constrayned, upon certaine + payne, to do thefte, agaynst goddes commaundement, + _non furtum facies_. 245 + + 49. Why be ye so hardy, to graunte, by letters of fraternitè, to + men and women, that they shall have part and merit of all your + good dedes; and ye witen never whether god be apayed with + youre dedes because of youre sinne? Also ye witen never whether + that man or woman be in state to be saved or damned; than shall 250 + he have no merit in heven for his owne dedes, ne for none other + mans. And all were it so, that he shuld have part of youre good + dedes; yet shulde he have no more than god would geve him, + after that he were worthy; and so much shall eche man have of + goddes yefte, withoute youre limitacion. But if ye will saye that 255 + ye ben goddes felowes, and that he may not do without youre + assent, than be ye blasphemers to god. + + 50. What betokeneth that ye have ordeined, that when such + oon as ye have mad youre brother or sister, and hath a letter of + your sele, that letter +mot be brought in youre holy chapter and 260 + there be red; or els ye will not praye for him? But and ye willen + not praye specially for all other that weren not mad youre brethren + or sistren, than were ye not in right charitè; for that ought to be + commune, and namely in goostly thinges. + + 51. Frere, what charitè is this--to overcharge the people by 265 + mighty begginge, under colour of prechinge or praying or masses + singing? Sith holy writ biddeth not thus, but even the contrary; + for al such goostly dedes shulde be don freely, as god yeveth hem + freely. + + 52. Frere, what charitè is this--to begyle children or they 270 + commen to discrecion, and binde hem to youre orders, that been + not grounded in goddes lawe, against hir frendes wil? Sithen by + this foly ben many apostatas, both in will and dede, and many + ben apostatas in hir will during all hir lyfe, that wolde gladly be + discharged if they wist how; and so, many ben apostatas that 275 + shulden in other states have ben trewe men. + + 53. Frere, what charitè is this--to make so mony freres in + every countrey, to the charge of the people? Sith persounes + and vicares alone, ye, secular prestes alone, ye, monkes and + chanons alone, with bishops above hem, were y-nough to the 280 + church, to do prestes office. And to adde mo than y-nough is + a foul errour, and greet charge to the people; and this is openly + against goddes will, that ordeined all thinges to be don in weight, + nomber, and mesure. And Christ himself was apayed with twelve + apostles and a few disciples, to preche and do prestes office to all 285 + the hole world; than was it better don than it is now at this tyme + by a thousand deel. And right so as foure fingers with a thumbe + in a mannes hande, helpeth a man to worche, and double nomber + of fingers in one hond shuld lette him more; and the more + nomber that there were, passing the mesure of goddes ordinaunce, 290 + the more were a man letted to worke: right so, as it semeth, it is + of these newe orders that ben added to the church, without grounde + of holy writ and goddes ordinaunce. + + 54. Frere, what charitè is this--to lye to the people, and saye + that ye folowe Christ in povertè more than other men don? 295 + And yet, in curious and costly howsinge, and fyne and precious + clothing, and delicious and lykinge fedinge, and in tresoure and + jewels and riche ornamentes, freres passen lordes and other riche + worldly men; and soonest they shuld bringe hir cause aboute, + be it never so costly, though goddes lawe be put abacke. 300 + + 55. Frere, what charitè is this--to +gader up the bokes of holy + writ and putte hem in tresory, and so emprisoune hem from + secular prestes and curates; and by this cautel lette hem to + preche the gospell freely to the people without worldly mede; and + also to defame good prestes of heresy, and lyen on hem openly, 305 + for to lette hem to shew goddes lawe, by the holy gospell, to the + Christen people? + + 56. Frere, what charitè is this--to fayn so much holines in + your bodily clothing, that ye clepe your habit, that many blinde + foles desyren to dye therin more than in an-other? And also, 310 + that a frere that leveth his habit (late founden of men), may not + be assoiled till he take it again, but is an apostata, as ye sayn, + and cursed of god and man both? The frere beleveth treuth and + pacience, chastitè, mekenesse, and sobrietè; yet for the more + part of his lyfe he may soone be assoiled of his prior; and if he 315 + bringe hoom to his house much good by yere, be it never so + falsly begged and pilled of the poore and nedy people in courtes + aboute, he shal be hold[en] a noble frere! O lord, whether this + be charitè! + + 57. Frere, what charitè is this--to prese upon a riche man, 320 + and to entyce him to be buried among you from his parish-church, + and to suche riche men geve letters of fraternitè confirmed + by youre generall sele, and therby to bere him in honde that he + shall have part of all your masses, matins, prechinges, fastinges, + wakinges, and all other good dedes don by your brethren of youre 325 + order (both whyles he liveth and after that he is deed), and yet + ye witen never whether youre dedes be acceptable to god, ne + whether that man that hath that letter be able by good living to + receive ony part of youre dedes? And yet a poore man, that ye + wite wel or supposen in certain to have no good of, ye ne geve 330 + no such letters, though he be a better man to god than suche + a riche man; nevertheles, this poore man doth not recche therof. + For, as men supposen, suche letters and many other that freres + behesten to men, be full of false deceites of freres, out of reson + and god[d]es lawe and Christen mens faith. 335 + + 58. Frere, what charitè is this--to be confessoures of lordes + and ladyes, and to other mighty men, and not amend hem in hir + living; but rather, as it semeth, to be the bolder to pille hir poore + tenauntes and to live in lechery, and there to dwelle in your office + of confessour, for winning of worldly goodes, and to be holden grete 340 + by colour of suche goostly offices? This seemeth rather pryde + of freres than charitè of god. + + 59. Frere, what charitè is this--to sayn that who-so liveth + after youre order, liveth most parfitly, and next foloweth the + state of aposteles in povertè and penaunce; and yet the wysest 345 + and gretest clerkes of you wende, or sende, or procure to the + court of Rome to be mad cardinales or bishoppes or the popes + chapelayns, and to be assoiled of the vowe of povertè and + obedience to your ministers; in the which, as ye sayn, standeth + moost perfeccion and merite of youre orders? And thus ye faren 350 + as Pharisees, that sayen oon, and do another to the contrarye. + + 60. Why name ye more the patron of youre order in youre + _Confiteor_, whan ye beginne masse, than other saintes, as apostels, + or marters, that holy churche holde[th] more glorious than hem, + and clepe hem youre patrons and youre avowries? 355 + + 61. Frere, whet[h]er was saint Fraunces, in making of his rule that + he sette thyne order in, a fole and lyar, or els wyse and trew? If + ye sayn that he was not a fole but wyse; ne a lyar, but trew; why + shewe ye the contrary by youre doing, whan by youre suggestion to + the pope ye said that Fraunces rule was mad so hard that ye might 360 + not live to holde it without declaracion and dispensacion of the + pope? And so, by youre dede, ye lete your patron a fole, that made + a rule so hard that no man may wel kepe [it]; and eke youre + dede proveth him a lyar, where he sayeth in his rule, that he took + and lerned it of the holy gooste. For how might ye, for shame, 365 + praye the pope to undo that the holy goost biddeth, as whan ye + prayed him to dispense with the hardnesse of your order? + + 62. Frere, which of the foure orders of freres is best, to a man + that knoweth not which is the beste, but wolde fain enter into the + beste and none other? If thou sayest that thyn is the best, than 370 + sayest thou that noon of the other is as good as thyn; and in this + eche frere in the three other orders wolle say that thou lyest; for + in the selve maner eche other frere woll say that his order is + beste. And thus to eche of the foure orders ben the other three + contrary in this poynte; in the which if ony say sooth, that is oon 375 + aloon; for there may but oon be the beste of foure. So foloweth + it, that if ech of these orders answered to this question as thou + doest, three were false and but oon trew; and yet no man shulde + wite who that were. And thus it semeth, that the moost part of + freres ben or shulde be lyars in this poynt, and they shulde 380 + answere therto. If +ye say that an-other ordre of the freres is + better than thyn or as good; why toke ye not rather therto as to + the better, whan thou mightest have chosen at the beginning? + And eke, why shuldest thou be an apostata, to leve thyn order + and take thee to that that is better? And so, why goest thou not 385 + from thyn order into that? + + 63. Frere, is there ony perfiter rule of religion than Christ, + goddes sone, gave in his gospell to his brethren, or than that + religion that saynt James in his epistle maketh mencion of? If + +ye saye 'yes,' than puttest thou on Christ, that is wysdom of 390 + god the +fader, uncunning, unpower, or evil will. For eyther + than he coude not make his rule so good as an-other did his, + (and so he hadde be uncunning, that he might not make his rule + so good as another man might, and so were he unmighty and not + god); or he wolde not make his rule so perfit as an-other did his 395 + (and so had he ben evill-willed, namely to himselfe!) For if he + might, and coude, and wold[e] have mad a rule perfit without + defaute, and did not, he was not goddes sone almighty. For if + ony other rule be perfiter than Christes, than must Christes rule + lacke of that perfeccion by as much as the other were more 400 + perfiter; and so were defaute, and Christ had failed in makinge + of his rule. But to putte ony defaute or failinge in god, is + blasphemy. If thou saye that Christes rule and that religion + that saynt James maketh mencion of, is the perfitest; why holdest + thou not than thilke rule without more? And why clepest thou 405 + thee rather of saynt Frances or saynt Dominiks rule or religion or + order, than of Christes rule or Christes order? + + 64. Frere, canst thou assigne ony defaute in Christes rule of + the gospell, with the whiche he taught al men sikerly to be saved, + if they kepte it to hir endinge? If thou saye it was to hard, 410 + than sayest thou that Christ lyed; for he saide of his rule: 'My + yoke is softe, and my burthen light.' If thou saye Christes rule + was to light, that may be assigned for no defaute, for the better + may it be kept. If thou sayst that there is no defaute in Christes + rule of the gospell, sith Christ him-selfe saith it is light and esy: 415 + what nede was it to patrons of freres to adde more therto, and so + to make an harder religion, to save freres, than was the religion + that Christes apostels and his disciples helden and weren saved + by; but-if they wolden that her freres saten above the apostels + in heven, for the harder religion that they kepen here? And so 420 + wolde they sitten in heven above Christ himselfe for the moo and + strait observaunces; than so shulde they be better than Christ + himselfe, with misc[h]aunce! + + Go now forth, and frayne youre clerkes, + And grounde you in goddes lawe, and geve Jack answere. 425 + And whan ye han assoiled me that I have said, sadly in treuth, + I shall soill thee of thyn order, and save thee to heven! + + If freres cunne not or mow not excuse hem of these questions + asked of hem, it semeth that they be horrible gilty against god + and hir even-Christen; for which gyltes and defautes it were 430 + worthy that the order that they calle hir order were for-don. And + it is wonder that men susteyne hem or suffer hem live in suche + maner. For holy writ biddeth that thou do well to the meke, + and geve not to the wicked, but forbid to geve hem breed, lest + they be mad thereby mightier through you. Finis. 435 + + ¶ Prynted for Jhon Gough. + Cum Priuilegio Regali. + +_From_ C. (= printed copy in Caius Coll. library, Cambridge); _I give here +rejected spellings; readings marked_ Sp. _are from_ Speght. + +3. walkyn. deceauen. 5, 6, 7. bene (_for_ been; _very often_). 6. folke. +founde. 9. kynreddes. 11. grasse, nether nething (_sic_). 12. onely. her +lyfes. 13. had; Sp. han. 15. hym (_for_ hem). wreches. 16. -selfes. 18. +the. 20. teacheth. don. 21. not; Sp. nought. dyspleasynge. harme. 22. +because (Sp. that). 23. greatest. + +25. reason. write. 26. not; Sp. nought. 28. earthe. 29. thyne. 31. perfyte. +32. the. 33. break. 34. breake. 35. one. 36. speaketh. mor; Sp. more. lef; +Sp. left. 37. leaueth. 38. one. 39. Christe. 40. abytes; Sp. habits. 41. +leaue. wyfe. yeare. 42. you; _read_ ye. leaue. abyte; Sp. habit. yeare. 44. +abyte; Sp. habit. 45. weareth (_twice_). 46. the abbyte; Sp. your habit. +48. apostatase; Sp. apostataes. by; Sp. buy. 50. greate hoode. 51. coape. +52. one coloure. 53. bene. 57. sayde. clotynge (!). 58. maye. weare +clothynge. + +60. Sp. _om._ in _before_ another. 61. speake. leaue. 62. eate. 65. easy. +66. ether; Sp. either. vnperfyte. 67. harde. seker; Sp. siker. 68. her. 69. +selfes. 70. ye you; Sp. _om._ ye (!). 70, 71. deade (_twice_). beggers; Sp. +beggars. ye; Sp. you. 72. deade. 74. heare. 75. eare; Sp. ere. Sp. haue ben +(C. _om._ haue). 78. Sp. falleth it to. 78, 79. deade (_twice_). 79. +gorgeous buyldi_n_ges; Sp. courts. 80. maye; Sp. now (_error for_ mow). 81. +welnygh; Sp. will (!). 83. here; Sp. heire (_read_ hyre). geuynge. 84. +yeare. certayne. one. 91. Sp. of men. 92. perfyte. Sp. brether (!). 93. +baptyme; Sp. baptisme. + +96. Sp. _om._ the. least. 97. oute. 98, 102. south; Sp. sooth. 101. abyte; +Sp. habit. 103. abytes. 105. steale. 107. wether; Sp. whether. 109. +vndermyne (_for_ vndernyme); Sp. vnderneme. 111. maye. presonne; Sp. +prison. 112. Sp. Augustines. dyd; Sp. doe. 114. buryenge. 115. none. 116. +heare; Sp. heare to. 117. plentie. 118. folke maye. 120. heare. 122. _Both_ +you. folke amonge. 123. sayne. 124. pouertye. 125. her. bene. 126. Sp. +other (_for_ riche). 128. Sp. _om._ of. 130. wylte. preache. + +133. payed; Sp. apaid. preache. 134. gosgel (!). Sp. bodden. hym; Sp. hem. +135. preached. 136. yeare. 139. myrtes; Sp. mirths. 142. Sp. thy; C. _om._ +(_before_ prayer). 144. Sp. that certes (_error for_ than certes); C. & +certes. 149. her. the. 150. thynge. 151. Sp. writest; Sp. _om._ him. 152. +Sp. forgotten (!). 153. bearest. 154. meate. 156. the. 159. C. Of; Sp. For. +162. perfection (_but_ perfeccion _in l._ 163). least. meane (_often_). +165. least. 166. arte. + +167. charytye. sithe. 168. leauynge. 169. Sp. them (_for_ hem). 170. +doeste. 173. learned and lewd; Sp. lerid and leaud. 174. Sp. _om._ suche. +176. one. 177. the here. 178. C. medefull; Sp. needful. the. 182. +themselfes. 183. coulde. 185. hym; Sp. them (_read_ hem). C. or; Sp. but. +187. amonge. 188. teachynge. 189. Whose. rych. 190. yewels; Sp. iewels. +improper ne; Sp. ne in proper ne in. 191. cumune; Sp. common. sayne. +gether; Sp. gather. 192. Sp. _om._ of. 193. great. 194. in p_ro_per ne +comune; Sp. in proper be (!) in common. 195. father rych. put. 197. reason. +perfite. 198. father. 199. imperfyte. sayne. Sp. the (_for_ tho). + +201. carte. done. 202. lesyngery; Sp. losengery. done. 204. preach. teach. +205. perfyte lyfe. 206. be; Sp. bin. 208. feastes. 209. done. rych. 211. +together. 212. charitie. 214. Sp. _om. 2nd_ he. 220. C. as; Sp. is (!) +charytie. 221. Sp. accursed; C. cursede. C. _om._ last. dead. 222. Sp. +_om._ lacke. least; Sp. last. 223. dead. C. _om._ therefore. 226. hedde. +done. 227. heade. 229. receaue. 229, 231. hartes (_twice_). 231. Sp. _om._ +ye. 232. exempte. 234. gyltye. traytery. trespasers. 235. Sp. your (_for_ +oure). Sp. the trespasse (_for_ trespas). 236. done. + +240. eche yeare; Sp. ech a yere. 241. her (_twice_). 242. steale. certayne. +sayne. 247. merite. 248. whyther; Sp. whether. payde; Sp. apayed. 249. +weten; Sp. witten. 251. meryte. heauen. 252. man (_for_ mans, s _having +dropped out_); Sp. mans. 253. ye (_for_ he); Sp. he. 256. folowes; Sp. +fellowes. maye. 258. tokeneth; Sp. betokeneth. 259. one. made. 260. seale. +mought (_read_ mot). 261. redde; Sp. rad. Sp. And but. 262. Sp. _om. 1st_ +not. specyally; Sp. especially. made. 264. co_m_mne (!). goostely; Sp. +ghostly. 266. myghtie. coloure. preachynge. prayeng. 267. write. 268. done +frely. 269. frely. 271. him; Sp. hem. + +272. her. 273-275. apostatase; Sp. apostataes. 278. personnes. 280. him; +Sp. them. 282. foule. greate. 283. done. 284. measure. payd; Sp. apaied. +285. preache. 286. Sp. whole. Sp. _om. 2nd_ it. 287. deal; Sp. dele. 289. +let. Sp. and so the (_om._ so). 290. measure. 293. wryte. 295. pouertye. +done. 297. treasoure. 298. rych. 299. wordly; Sp. worldly. bring her. 300. +costely. abake; Sp. abacke. 301. gather (_read_ gader). 302. wryte. put. +emprysonne. 303. let. him; Sp. hem. 304. preache. frely. wordely; Sp. +worldly. + +306. let. 308. fayn. 309. bodely. 309, 311. abyte; Sp. habit. 311. leaueth. +311, 315. maye. 312. Sp. _om._ an. sayne. 315. parte. 316. home. by yeare; +Sp. by the yeare. 317. courtes &; Sp. countries (_perhaps better_). 318. C. +Sp. hold (_for_ holden). 320. _Both_ prease. 323. seale. beare. 324. parte. +preachynges. 325. done. 326. dead. 329. receaue. 330. certaine. 331. no; +Sp. to (!). 332. rych. reche; Sp. retch. 334. behesten; Sp. behoten. +reason; Sp. all reason. 337. laydes (_for_ ladyes). her. 338. pyl her. 339. +dwel. 340. greate. + +341. coloure. 344. mooste perfytely. 345. wyseste. 346. greatest clarkes. +347. made. 348. chappelaynes. povertye. 351. one. 354. hol (_for_ holy); +Sp. holy. holde; Sp. hold (_read_ holdeth). them. 357. set. 358. sayne. +359. shew. 360. C. that Fraunces rule was made so harde; Sp. that your rule +that Francis made was so hard. C. might; Sp. mow. 363. harde. maye. +_Supply_ it. 364. toke. 365. learned. 366. Sp. _om._ to. C. byddeth; Sp. +bit. Sp. when; C. _om._ 369. fayne. 370. thyne. 371. none. thyne. 372, 374. +thre. 373. C. selfe; Sp. self same. 375. one. + +376. alone. one. 378. thre. one. 381. _Both_ you; _read_ ye. 382. thine. +384. apostate; Sp. apostata. leaue. 385. the. 388. sonne. 390. _Both_ you; +_read_ ye. wysdome. 391. father vncunyng. Sp. _om._ eyther. 392, 397. +coulde (_twice_). 393. Sp. had he. 395. perfyte. 397. made. perfyte. 398. +defate; Sp. default. sonne. 401. weren. 402. put. 404. C. that saynt; Sp. +which saint. the perfytest; Sp. perfectest. 405. Sp. _om._ than. 406. the +(_read_ thee). 408. Sp. any default or (!) assigne. 409. sekerly; Sp. +sikerly. 410. her. harde. + +415. easye. 416. mor; Sp. more. 418. that; Sp. of (!). 420, 421. heauen +(_twice_). 421. Christe. 424. fraye_n_ (_for_ frayne); Sp. fraine. 425. C. +ye in; Sp. ye you in (_read_ you in). 426. sayde. _Read_--And whan ye han +soiled that I saide, sadly in treuthe. 427. soyll the. thyne. order; Sp. +orders. the; Sp. thee. heauen. 428. C. cunne; Sp. kun. 430. her. 431. her. +fordone. 432. hem lyue; Sp. hir live. 433. wryte. 434. bread leste. 435. +made. Sp. _om._ Finis. + + * * * * * + +IV. JOHN GOWER + +UNTO THE WORTHY AND NOBLE KINGE HENRY THE FOURTH. + + O noble worthy king, Henry the ferthe, + In whom the gladde fortune is befalle + The people to governe here upon erthe, + God hath thee chose, in comfort of us alle; + The worship of this land, which was doun falle, 5 + Now stant upright, through grace of thy goodnesse, + Which every man is holde for to blesse. + + The highe god, of his justyce alone, + The right which longeth to thy regalye + Declared hath to stande in thy persone; 10 + And more than god may no man justifye. + Thy title is knowe upon thyn auncestrye; + The londes folk hath eek thy right affermed; + So stant thy regne, of god and man confermed. + + Ther is no man may saye in other wyse 15 + That god him-self ne hath the right declared; + Wherof the land is boun to thy servyse, + Which for defaute of helpe hath longe cared. + But now ther is no mannes herte spared + To love and serve, and worche thy plesaunce; 20 + And al this is through goddes purveyaunce. + + In alle thing which is of god begonne + Ther foloweth grace, if it be wel governed; + Thus tellen they whiche olde bokes conne, + Wherof, my lord, I wot wel thou art lerned. 25 + Aske of thy god; so shalt thou nat be werned + Of no request [the] whiche is resonable; + For god unto the goode is favorable. + + King Salomon, which hadde at his askinge + Of god, what thing him was levest to crave, 30 + He chees wysdom unto the governinge + Of goddes folk, the whiche he wolde save; + And as he chees, it fil him for to have; + For through his wit, whyl that his regne laste, + He gat him pees and reste, unto the laste. 35 + + But Alisaundre, as telleth his historie, + Unto the god besoughte in other weye, + Of al the worlde to winne the victorie, + So that under his swerde it might[e] obeye; + In werre he hadde al that he wolde preye. 40 + The mighty god behight[e] him that behest; + The world he wan, and hadde it of conquest. + + But though it fil at thilke tyme so, + That Alisaundre his asking hath acheved, + This sinful world was al[le] payën tho; 45 + Was noon whiche hath the highe god beleved; + No wonder was, though thilke world was greved. + Though a tyraunt his purpos mighte winne, + Al was vengeaunce, and infortune of sinne. + + But now the faith of Crist is come a-place 50 + Among the princes in this erthe here, + It sit hem wel to do pitè and grace, + But yet it mot be tempred in manere. + For as they fynden cause in the matere + Upon the poynt, what afterward betyde, 55 + The lawe of right shal nat be layd a-syde. + + So may a king of werre the viage + Ordayne and take, as he therto is holde, + To clayme and aske his rightful heritage + In alle places wher it is with-holde. 60 + But other-wyse, if god him-selve wolde + Afferme love and pees bitween the kinges, + Pees is the beste, above alle erthly thinges. + + Good is t'eschewe werre, and nathelees + A king may make werre upon his right; 65 + For of bataile the fynal ende is pees; + Thus stant the lawe, that a worthy knight + Upon his trouthe may go to the fight. + But-if so were that he mighte chese, + Betre is the pees of which may no man lese. 70 + + To stere pees oughte every man on-lyve, + First, for to sette his liege lord in reste, + And eek these othre men, that they ne stryve; + For so this land may standen atte beste. + What king that wolde be the worthieste, 75 + The more he mighte our deedly werre cese, + The more he shulde his worthinesse encrese. + + Pees is the cheef of al the worldes welthe, + And to the heven it ledeth eek the way; + Pees is of soule and lyfe the mannes helthe 80 + Of pestilence, and doth the werre away. + My liege lord, tak hede of that I say, + If werre may be left, tak pees on honde, + Which may nat be withoute goddes sonde. + + With pees stant every crëature in reste, 85 + Withoute pees ther may no lyf be glad; + Above al other good, pees is the beste; + Pees hath him-self, whan werre is al bestad; + The pees is sauf, the werre is ever adrad. + Pees is of al[le] charitè the keye, 90 + Whiche hath the lyf and soule for to weye. + + My liege lord, if that thee list to seche + The sothe ensamples, what the werre hath wrought, + Thou shalt wel here, of wyse mennes speche, + That deedly werre tourneth in-to nought. 95 + For if these olde bokes be wel sought, + Ther might thou see what thing the werre hath do + Bothe of conquest and conquerour also. + + For vayne honóur, or for the worldes good, + They that whylom the stronge werres made, 100 + Wher be they now? Bethink wel, in thy mood, + The day is goon, the night is derke and fade; + Hir crueltè, which made hem thanne glade, + They sorowen now, and yet have naught the more; + The blood is shad, which no man may restore. 105 + + The werre is moder of the wronges alle; + It sleeth the preest in holy chirche at masse, + Forlyth the mayde, and doth her flour to falle. + The werre maketh the grete citee lasse, + And doth the lawe his reules overpasse. 110 + Ther is nothing, wherof mescheef may growe + Whiche is not caused of the werre, I trowe. + + The werre bringth in póverte at his heles, + Wherof the comun people is sore greved; + The werre hath set his cart on thilke wheles 115 + Wher that fortune may not be beleved. + For whan men wene best to have acheved, + Ful ofte it is al newe to beginne; + The werre hath nothing siker, thogh he winne. + + For-thy, my worthy prince, in Cristes halve, 120 + As for a part whos fayth thou hast to gyde, + Ley to this olde sore a newe salve, + And do the werre away, what-so betyde. + Purchace pees, and sette it by thy syde, + And suffre nat thy people be devoured; 125 + So shal thy name ever after stande honóured! + + If any man be now, or ever was + Ayein the pees thy prevy counsaylour, + Let god be of thy counsayl in this cas, + And put away the cruel werreyour. 130 + For god, whiche is of man the creatour, + He wolde not men slowe his crëature + Withoute cause of deedly forfayture. + + Wher nedeth most, behoveth most to loke; + My lord, how so thy werres be withoute, 135 + Of tyme passed who that hede toke, + Good were at home to see right wel aboute; + For evermore the worste is for to doute. + But, if thou mightest parfit pees attayne, + Ther shulde be no cause for to playne. 140 + + Aboute a king, good counsayl is to preyse + Above al othre thinges most vailable; + But yet a king within him-self shal peyse + And seen the thinges that be resonable. + And ther-upon he shal his wittes stable 145 + Among the men to sette pees in evene, + For love of him whiche is the king of hevene. + + A! wel is him that shedde never blood + But-if it were in cause of rightwysnesse! + For if a king the peril understood 150 + What is to slee the people, thanne, I gesse, + The deedly werres and the hevinesse + Wher-of the pees distourbed is ful ofte, + Shulde at som tyme cesse and wexe softe. + + O king! fulfilled of grace and of knighthode, 155 + Remembre upon this poynt, for Cristes sake; + If pees be profred unto thy manhode, + Thyn honour sauf, let it nat be forsake! + Though thou the werres darst wel undertake, + After resoun yet temper thy corage; 160 + For lyk to pees ther is non avauntage. + + My worthy lord, thenk wel, how-so befalle + Of thilke lore, as holy bokes sayn; + Crist is the heed, and we be membres alle, + As wel the subject as the soverayn. 165 + So sit it wel, that charitè be playn, + Whiche unto god him-selve most accordeth, + So as the lore of Cristes word recordeth. + + In th'olde lawe, or Crist him-self was bore, + Among the ten comaundëments, I rede, 170 + How that manslaughter shulde be forbore; + Such was the wil, that tyme, of the godhede. + But afterward, whan Crist took his manhede, + Pees was the firste thing he leet do crye + Ayenst the worldes rancour and envye. 175 + + And, or Crist wente out of this erthe here, + And stigh to heven, he made his testament, + Wher he bequath to his disciples there + And yaf his pees, which is the foundement + Of charitè, withouten whos assent 180 + The worldes pees may never wel be tryed, + Ne lovë kept, ne lawë justifyed. + + The Jewes with the payens hadden werre, + But they among hem-self stode ever in pees; + Why shulde than our pees stonde out of herre, 185 + Which Crist hath chose unto his owne encrees? + For Crist is more than was Moÿses; + And Crist hath set the parfit of the lawe, + The whiche shulde in no wyse be withdrawe. + + To yeve us pees was causë why Crist dyde, 190 + Withoute pees may nothing stonde avayled; + But now a man may see on every syde + How Cristes fayth is every day assayled, + With the payens distroyed, and so batayled + That, for defaute of helpe and of defence, 195 + Unneth hath Crist his dewe reverence. + + The righte fayth to kepe of holy chirche + The firste poynt is named of knighthode; + And every man is holde for to wirche + Upon the poynt that stant to his manhode. 200 + But now, alas! the fame is spred so brode + That every man this thing [alday] complayneth; + And yet is ther no man that help ordayneth. + + The worldes cause is wayted over-al; + Ther be the werres redy, to the fulle; 205 + But Cristes owne cause in special, + Ther ben the swerdes and the speres dulle. + And with the sentence of the popes bulle + As for to doon the folk payën obeye, + The chirche is tourned al another weye. 210 + + It is wonder, above any mannes wit, + Withoute werre how Cristes fayth was wonne; + And we that been upon this erthë yit + Ne kepe it nat as it was first begonne. + To every crëature under the sonne 215 + Crist bad him-self, how that we shulde preche, + And to the folke his evangely teche. + + More light it is to kepe than to make; + But that we founden mad to-fore the hond + We kepe nat, but lete it lightly slake; 220 + The pees of Crist hath al to-broke his bond. + We reste our-self, and suffren every lond + To slee eche other as thing undefended; + So stant the werre, and pees is nat amended. + + But though the heed of holy chirche above 225 + Ne do nat al his hole businesse + Among the men to sette pees and love, + These kinges oughten, of hir rightwysnesse, + Hir owne cause among hem-self redresse. + Thogh Peters ship, as now, hath lost his stere, 230 + It lyth in hem that barge for to stere. + + If holy chirche after the dewetè + Of Cristes word ne be nat al avysed + To make pees, accord, and unitè + Among the kinges that be now devysed, 235 + Yet, natheles, the lawë stant assysed + Of mannes wit, to be so resonable + Withoute that to stande hem-selve stable. + + Of holy chirche we ben children alle, + And every child is holde for to bowe 240 + Unto the moder, how that ever it falle, + Or elles he mot reson disalowe. + And, for that cause, a knight shal first avowe + The right of holy chirche to defende, + That no man shal the privilege offende. 245 + + Thus were it good to setten al in evene + The worldes princes and the prelats bothe, + For love of him whiche is the king of hevene; + And if men shulde algate wexen wrothe, + The Sarazins, whiche unto Crist ben lothe, 250 + Let men be armed ayenst hem to fighte, + So may the knight his dede of armes righte. + + Upon three poynts stant Cristes pees oppressed; + First, holy chirche is in her-self devyded; + Which oughte, of reson, first to be redressed; 255 + But yet so high a cause is nat decyded. + And thus, whan humble pacience is pryded, + The remenaunt, which that they shulde reule, + No wonder is, though it stande out of reule. + + Of that the heed is syk, the limmes aken; 260 + These regnes, that to Cristes pees belongen, + For worldes good, these deedly werres maken, + Which helpelees, as in balaunce, hongen. + The heed above hem hath nat underfongen + To sette pees, but every man sleeth other; 265 + And in this wyse hath charitè no brother. + + The two defautes bringen in the thridde + Of miscreants, that seen how we debate; + Between the two, they fallen in a-midde + Wher now al-day they fynde an open gate. 270 + Lo! thus the deedly werre stant al-gate. + But ever I hopë of king Henries grace, + That he it is which shal the pees embrace. + + My worthy noble prince, and king anoynt, + Whom god hath, of his grace, so preserved, 275 + Behold and see the world upon this poynt, + As for thy part, that Cristes pees be served. + So shal thy highe mede be reserved + To him, whiche al shal quyten atte laste; + For this lyf herë may no whyle laste. 280 + + See Alisandre, Hector, and Julius, + See Machabeus, David, and Josuë, + See Charlemayne, Godfray, and Arthus + Fulfild of werre and of mortalitee! + Hir fame abit, but al is vanitee; 285 + For deth, whiche hath the werres under fote, + Hath mad an ende, of which ther is no bote. + + So may a man the sothe wite and knowe, + That pees is good for every king to have; + The fortune of the werre is ever unknowe, 290 + But wher pees is, ther ben the marches save. + That now is up, to-morwe is under grave. + The mighty god hath alle grace in honde; + Withouten him, men may nat longe stonde. + + Of the tenetz to winne or lese a chace 295 + May no lyf wite, or that the bal be ronne; + Al stant in god, what thing men shal purchace: + Th'ende is in him, or that it be begonne; + Men sayn, the wolle, whan it is wel sponne, + Doth that the cloth is strong and profitable, 300 + And elles it may never be durable. + + The worldes chaunces upon aventure + Ben ever set; but thilke chaunce of pees + Is so behovely to the crëature + That it above al other is peerlees. 305 + But it may nat +be gete, nathelees, + Among the men to lasten any whyle, + But wher the herte is playn, withoute gyle. + + The pees is as it were a sacrament + To-fore the god, and shal with wordes playne 310 + Withouten any double entendëment + Be treted; for the trouthe can nat feyne. + But if the men within hem-self be vayne, + The substaunce of the pees may nat be trewe, + But every day it chaungeth upon newe. 315 + + But who that is of charitè parfyte, + He voydeth alle sleightes fer aweye, + And set his word upon the same plyte + Wher that his herte hath founde a siker weye; + And thus, whan conscience is trewly weye, 320 + And that the pees be handled with the wyse, + It shal abyde and stande, in alle wyse. + + Th'apostel sayth, ther may no lyf be good + Whiche is nat grounded upon charitè; + For charitè ne shedde never blood. 325 + So hath the werre, as ther, no propertè; + For thilke vertue which is sayd 'pitè' + With charitè so ferforth is acquaynted + That in her may no fals sembla[u]nt be paynted. + + Cassodore, whos wryting is authorysed 330 + Sayth: 'wher that pitè regneth, ther is grace'; + Through which the pees hath al his welthe assysed, + So that of werre he dredeth no manace. + Wher pitè dwelleth, in the same place + Ther may no deedly crueltè sojourne 335 + Wherof that mercy shulde his wey[e] tourne. + + To see what pitè, forth with mercy, doth, + The cronique is at Rome, in thilke empyre + Of Constantyn, which is a tale soth, + Whan him was lever his owne deth desyre 340 + Than do the yonge children to martyre. + Of crueltee he lefte the quarele; + Pitè he wroughte, and pitè was his hele. + + For thilke mannes pitè which he dede + God was pitous, and made him hool at al; 345 + Silvester cam, and in the same stede + Yaf him baptyme first in special, + Which dide away the sinne original, + And al his lepre it hath so purifyed, + That his pitè for ever is magnifyed. 350 + + Pitè was cause why this emperour + Was hool in body and in soule bothe; + And Rome also was set in thilke honour + Of Cristes fayth, so that the leve, of lothe + Whiche hadden be with Crist tofore wrothe, 355 + Receyved werë unto Cristes lore. + Thus shal pitè be praysed evermore. + + My worthy liege lord, Henry by name, + Which Engëlond hast to governe and righte, + Men oughten wel thy pitè to proclame, 360 + Which openliche, in al the worldes sighte, + Is shewed, with the helpe of god almighte, + To yeve us pees, which long hath be debated, + Wherof thy prys shal never be abated. + + My lord, in whom hath ever yet be founde 365 + Pitè, withoute spotte of violence, + Keep thilke pees alway, withinne bounde, + Which god hath planted in thy conscience. + So shal the cronique of thy pacience + Among the saynts be take in-to memórie 370 + To the loënge of perdurable glorie. + + And to thyn erthely prys, so as I can, + Whiche every man is holde to commende, + I Gower, which am al thy liege man, + This lettre unto thyn excellence I sende, 375 + As I, whiche ever unto my lyves ende + Wol praye for the stat of thy persone, + In worshipe of thy sceptre and of thy trone. + + Nat only to my king of pees I wryte, + But to these othre princes Cristen alle, 380 + That eche of hem his owne herte endyte + And cese the werre, or more mescheef falle. + Set eek the rightful pope upon his stalle; + Keep charitè, and draw pitè to honde, + Maynteyne lawe; and so the pees shal stonde. 385 + + EXPLICIT CARMEN DE PACIS COMMENDACIONE, QUOD AD LAUDEM + ET MEMORIAM SERENISSIMI PRINCIPIS DOMINI REGIS HENRICI + QUARTI, SUUS HUMILIS ORATOR JOHANNES GOWER COMPOSUIT. + + Electus Christi, pie rex Henrice, fuisti, + Qui bene venisti, cum propria regna petisti; + Tu mala vicisti -que bonis bona restituisti, + Et populo tristi nova gaudia contribuisti. + + Est mihi spes lata, quod adhuc per te renovata 390 + Succedent fata veteri probitate beata; + Est tibi nam grata gratia sponte data. + + Henrici quarti primus regni fuit annus + Quo mihi defecit visus ad acta mea. + Omnia tempus habent, finem natura ministrat, 395 + Quem virtute sua frangere nemo potest. + Ultra posse nihil, quamvis mihi velle remansit, + Amplius ut scribam non mihi posse manet. + Dum potui, scripsi, sed nunc quia curua senectus + Turbauit sensus, scripta relinquo scolis. 400 + Scribat qui veniet post me discretior alter, + Ammodo namque manus et mea penna silent. + Hoc tamen in fine verborum queso meorum, + Prospera quod statuat regna futura deus. + + ¶ _Explicit._ + +_From_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1532.); _corrected by_ T. (Trentham MS.) _I give +the rejected spellings of_ Th. (Thynne), _except where they are corrected +by the_ MS. + +1. T. worthi noble. 3. T. _om._ here. 4. _Both_ the. T. chose; Th. chosen. +9. T. regalie; Th. regaly. 11. T. iustifie; Th. iustify. 12. T. ancestrie; +Th. auncestry. 17. T. boun; Th. bounde. 20. T. wirche. + +26. T. Axe; Th. Aske. 27. T. reqwest; Th. request. (_Perhaps read_--Of no +request the whiche is resonable.) 29. T. axinge; Th. askyng. 30. Th. _om._ +to. 31. T. ches; Th. chase. Th. _om._ the. 33. T. ches; Th. chase. 35. T. +gat; Th. gate. T. pes; Th. peace. _So_ T.; Th. in-to his last. 36. T. +histoire; Th. storie. 39. T. might; Th. myght. 41. _Both_ behight. T. +beheste. 42. Th. _om._ he. _Both_ had. T. conqweste. 44. T. axinge. T. +achieued; Th. atcheued. 45. _Both_ al. T. paiene; Th. paynem. 46. T. +belieued. 47. T. grieued. 48. T. mihte; Th. might. 50. T. feith; Th. +faithe. 53. T. mot; Th. must. 54. Th. _om._ as. + +56. T. leid; Th. layde. 57. T. viage: Th. voyage. 59. T. axe. 61. T. silve; +Th. selfe. 62, 63. T. pes; Th. peace. 70. T. Betre; Th. Better. 71. _Both_ +peace. T. euery man; Th. eueriche. T. alyue. 74. Th. lande; T. world. 76. +T. cesse; Th. cease. 77. T. encresse; Th. encrease. 78. T. chief; Th. +chefe. 79, 81, 82. T. weie, aweie, seie. 83. _Both_ lefte. + +90. _Both_ al. 92. _Both_ the. 93. T. that; Th. what. 96. T. soght; Th. +ysought. 97. _Both_ se. 98. T. conqueste. 101. T. bethenk. 102. _Both_ +gone. 103. _Both_ Her. 108. T. _om._ doth; Th. dothe. 110. _Both_ dothe. T. +reules; Th. rules. 111. T. meschef; Th. myschefe. 113. T. bringth; Th. +bringeth. 114. T. comon; Th. co_m_men. 121. T. to; Th. be. + +129. T. Lete; Th. Lette. 130. Th. crewel warryour. 132. Th. slough. 136. T. +than; Th. that. 137. _Both_ se. 146. T. euene; Th. euyn. 147. T. heuene; +Th. heuyn. 148. T. Ha. 153. Th. _om._ the. 155. Th. _om. 2nd_ of. + +160. T. reson; Th. reason. 162. T. thenke; Th. thynke. 165. T. the subiit; +Th. be subiecte. 169. T. er. 173. T. aftirwards; Th. afterwarde. 174. T. +let; Th. lette. 176. T. er. 177. Th. styghed. 183. T. paiens; Th. paynyms. +185. Th. erre (!). 192. T. sen; Th. se. 194. Th. paynems. T. destruied. + +200. Th. that; T. which. 201. T. helas; T. sprad. 202. _I supply_ alday. +203. Th. that; T. which. 209. T. do; Th. done. T. paien; Th. payne (_for_ +payen). 211. T. to wonder; Th. wonder. _For_ any _read_ a? 216. Th. _om._ +how. 217. T. euangile. 219. _Both_ made. Th. _om._ the. 222. Th. selfe; T. +selue. 227. T. men; Th. people. + +231. Th. the (_for_ that). 232. Th. dewte; T. duete. 238. T. hem-selue; Th. +him-selfe. 242. Th. must. 246. T. _om._ good. T. euene; Th. euyn. 248. T. +heuene; Th. heuyn. 253. _Both_ thre. 254. Th. _om._ is. 256. _Both_ highe. +260. T. sick; Th. sicke. 263. Th. helplesse; T. heliples. + +269. _Both_ Betwene. 274. T. enoignt. 276. _Both_ Beholde; se. 278. Th. +deserved (!). 280. _Both_ lyfe. 281. T. Ector. 282. T. Machabeu. 283. T. +Godefroi Arthus. 287. _Both_ made. 288. T. mai; Th. many (!). 289. T. man +(_for_ king). 291. Th. is (_for_ ben). 292. T. _om._ up. 295. T. tenetz; +Th. tennes. 296, 298. T. er (_for_ or). + +305. Th. is (_for_ it). Th. _om._ is. T. piereles; Th. peerles. 306. _Both_ +begete; _read_ be gete. 316. T. perfit. 318. T. plit. 321. Th. these (_for_ +the pees). Th. ben. 326. T. proprite. 329. _Both_ semblant. 330. T. +Cassodre. _Both_ writinge. T. auctorized. 331. Th. _om._ ther. + +336. T. wei; Th. way. 337. _Both_ se. 342. T. crualte; Th. creweltie. 347. +T. baptisme. 359. Th. England. 370. T. seintz; Th. sayntes. T. memoire; Th. +memory. 371. T. loenge; Th. legende (!). T. gloire; Th. glory. + +378. Th. _om. 2nd_ of. _Both_ throne. 382. T. sese (_for_ cese); Th. se +(!). T. er (_for_ or). T. meschiefe; Th. myschefe. 383. _Both_ Sette. 384. +T. draugh. 385. T. Maintene; Th. Maynteyn. 399. Th. curua; T. torua. + + * * * * * + +V. THOMAS HOCCLEVE. + +THE LETTER OF CUPID. + +LITERA CUPIDINIS, DEI AMORIS, DIRECTA SUBDITIS SUIS AMATORIBUS. + + Cupido, unto whos comaundëment + The gentil kinrede of goddes on hy + And people infernal been obedient, + And mortel folk al serven besily, + The goddesse sonë Cithera soothly, 5 + To alle tho that to our deitee + Ben sugets, hertly greting sende we! + + In general, we wolë that ye knowe + That ladies of honour and reverence, + And other gentil women, haven sowe 10 + Such seed of compleynt in our audience + Of men that doon hem outrage and offence, + That it our eres greveth for to here; + So pitous is th'effect of this matere. + + Passing al londes, on the litel yle 15 + That cleped is Albion they most compleyne; + They seyn, that there is croppe and rote of gyle. + So conne tho men dissimulen and feyne + With stonding dropes in hir eyen tweyne, + When that hir hertes feleth no distresse, 20 + To blinden women with hir doublenesse. + + Hir wordes spoken ben so syghingly, + With so pitousë chere and contenaunce, + That every wight that meneth trewely + Demeth that they in herte have such grevaunce; 25 + They seyn so importáble is hir penaunce + That, but hir lady lust to shewe hem grace, + They right anoon +mot sterven in the place. + + 'A, lady myn!' they seyn, 'I yow ensure, + As doth me grace, and I shal ever be, 30 + Whyl that my lyf may lasten and endure, + To yow as humble and lowe in ech degree + As possible is, and kepe al thing secree + Right as your-selven liste that I do; + And elles moot myn herte breste a-two.' 35 + + Ful hard it is to knowe a mannes herte; + For outward may no man the trouthe deme; + When word out of his mouthe may noon asterte + But it by reson any wight shuld queme, + So is it seyd of herte, as hit wolde seme. 40 + O feythful woman, ful of innocence, + Thou art deceyved by fals apparence! + + By proces women, meved of pitee, + Wening that al thing were as thise men sey, + They graunte hem grace of hir benignitee 45 + For that men shulde nat for hir sake dey; + And with good herte sette hem in the wey + Of blisful lovë--kepe it if they conne; + Thus other-whylë women beth y-wonne. + + And whan this man the pot hath by the stele, 50 + And fully is in his possessioun, + With that woman he kepeth not to dele, + After if he may fynden in the toun + Any woman, his blinde affeccioun + On to bestowë; evel mote he preve! 55 + A man, for al his othes, is hard to leve! + + And, for that every fals man hath a make, + (As un-to every wight is light to knowe), + Whan this traitour this woman hath forsake, + He faste him spedeth un-to his felowe; 60 + Til he be there, his herte is on a lowe; + His fals deceyt ne may him not suffyse, + But of his treson telleth al the wyse. + + Is this a fair avaunt? is this honour, + A man him-self accuse thus, and diffame? 65 + Now is it good, confesse him a traitour, + And bringe a woman to a sclandrous name, + And telle how he her body hath do shame? + No worship may he thus to him conquere, + But greet esclaundre un-to him and here! 70 + + To herë? Nay, yet was it no repreef; + For al for vertu was it that she wroughte; + But he that brewed hath al this mischeef, + That spak so faire, and falsly inward thoughte, + His be the sclaundre, as it by reson oughte, 75 + And un-to her a thank perpetuel, + That in a nede helpe can so wel! + + Althogh of men, through sleyght and sotiltee, + A sely, simple, and innocent woman + Betrayed is, no wonder, sith the citee 80 + Of Troye--as that the storie telle can-- + Betrayed was, through the disceyt of man, + And set on fyre, and al doun over-throwe, + And finally destroyed, as men knowe. + + Betrayen men not citees grete, and kinges? 85 + What wight is that can shape remedye + Ageynes thise falsly purpósed thinges? + Who can the craft such craftes to espye + But man, whos wit ay redy is t'aplye + To thing that souneth in-to hy falshede? 90 + Women, beth ware of mennes sleight, I rede! + + And furthermore han thise men in usage + That, where as they not lykly been to spede, + Suche as they been with a double visage + They prócuren, for to pursewe hir nede; 95 + He prayeth him in his causë to procede, + And largely guerdoneth he his travayle; + Smal witen wommen how men hem assayle! + + Another wrecche un-to his felowe seyth: + 'Thou fisshest faire! She that thee hath fyred 100 + Is fals and inconstaunt, and hath no feyth. + She for the rode of folke is so desyred + And, as an hors, fro day to day is hyred + That, when thou twinnest fro hir companye, + Another comth, and blered is thyn eyë! 105 + + 'Now prikke on fastë, and ryd thy journey + Whyl thou art there; for she, behind thy bak, + So liberal is, she wol no wight with-sey, + But smertly of another take a snak; + For thus thise wommen faren, al the pak! 110 + Who-so hem trusteth, hanged mote he be! + Ay they desyren chaunge and noveltee!' + + Wher-of procedeth this but of envye? + For he him-selve her ne winne may, + He speketh her repreef and vileinye, 115 + As mannes blabbing tonge is wont alway. + Thus dyvers men ful often make assay + For to distourben folk in sondry wyse, + For they may not acheven hir empryse. + + Ful many a man eek wolde, for no good, 120 + (That hath in love his tyme spent and used) + Men wiste, his lady his axing withstood, + And that he were of her pleynly refused, + Or wast and veyn were al that he had mused; + Wherfore he can no better remedye 125 + But on his lady shapeth him to lye: + + 'Every womman,' he seyth, 'is light to gete; + Can noon sey "nay," if she be wel y-soght. + Who-so may leyser han, with her to trete, + Of his purpós ne shal he faile noght, 130 + But he on madding be so depe y-broght + That he shende al with open hoomlinesse; + That loven wommen nat, as that I gesse!' + + To sclaundre wommen thus, what may profyte + To gentils namely, that hem armen sholde, 135 + And in defence of wommen hem delyte + As that the ordre of gentilesse wolde? + If that a man list gentil to be holde, + He moot flee al that ther-to is contrarie; + A sclaundring tonge is his grete adversarie. 140 + + A foul vice is of tonge to be light; + For who-so michel clappeth, gabbeth ofte. + The tonge of man so swift is and so wight + That, whan it is areysed up-on lofte, + Resoun it seweth so slowly and softe, 145 + That it him never over-take may: + Lord! so thise men ben trusty in assay! + + Al-be-it that man fynde oo woman nyce, + Inconstant, rechelees, or variable, + Deynouse or proud, fulfilled of malyce, 150 + Withouten feyth or love, and deceyvable, + Sly, queynt, and fals, in al unthrift coupable, + Wikked and feers, and ful of crueltee. + It foloweth nat that swiche al wommen be. + + Whan that the high god aungels formed had, 155 + Among hem alle whether ther werë noon + That founden was malicious and bad? + Yis! al men woot that ther was many oon + That, for hir pryde, fil from heven anoon. + Shul men therfore alle aungels proude name? 160 + Nay! he that that susteneth is to blame. + + Of twelve apostels oon a traitour was; + The remënant yit godë were and trewe. + Than, if it happe men fyndë, per cas, + Oo womman fals, swich good is for t'eschewe, 165 + And deme nat that they ben alle untrewe. + I see wel mennes owne falsenesse + Hem causeth wommen for to trusten lesse. + + O! every man oghte have an herte tendre + Unto womman, and deme her honurable, 170 + Whether his shap be outher thikke or slendre, + Or be he bad or good; this is no fable. + Every man woot, that wit hath resonable, + That of a womman he descended is: + Than is it shame, of her to speke amis. 175 + + A wikked tree good fruit may noon forth bring, + For swich the fruit is, as that is the tree. + Tak hede of whom thou took thy biginning; + Lat thy moder be mirour unto thee. + Honoure her, if thou wolt honoured be! 180 + Dispyse thou her nat, in no manere, + Lest that ther-by thy wikkednesse appere! + + An old provérbë seyd is in English: + Men seyn, 'that brid or foul is dishonest, + What that he be, and holden ful churlish, 185 + That useth to defoule his owne nest.' + Men, to sey wel of wommen it is best, + And nat for to despyse hem ne deprave, + If that they wole hir honour kepe and save. + + Thise ladies eek compleynen hem on clerkes 190 + That they han maad bokës of hir diffame, + In which they lakken wommen and hir werkes + And speken of hem greet repreef and shame, + And causëlees yive hem a wikked name. + Thus they despysed been on every syde, 195 + And sclaundred, and bilowen on ful wyde. + + The sory bokes maken mencioun + How they betrayden, in especial, + Adam, David, Sampsoun, and Salamoun, + And many oon mo; who may rehersen al 200 + The treson that they havë doon, and shal? + The world hir malice may not comprehende; + As that thise clerkes seyn, it hath non ende. + + Ovyde, in his boke called 'Remedye + Of Lovë,' greet repreef of wommen wryteth; 205 + Wherin, I trowe, he dide greet folye, + And every wight that in such cas delyteth. + A clerkes custom is, whan he endyteth + Of wommen, be it prose, or ryme, or vers, + Sey they ben wikke, al knowe he the revers. 210 + + And that book scolers lerne in hir childhede, + For they of wommen be war sholde in age, + And for to love hem ever been in drede, + Sin to deceyve is set al hir corage. + They seyn, peril to caste is avantage, 215 + And namely, suche as men han in be wrapped; + For many a man by woman hath mishapped. + + No charge is, what-so that thise clerkes seyn; + Of al hir wrong wryting I do no cure; + Al hir travayle and labour is in veyn. 220 + For, betwex me and my lady Nature, + Shal nat be suffred, whyl the world may dure, + Thise clerkes, by hir cruel tyrannye, + Thus upon wommen kythen hir maistrye. + + Whylom ful many of hem were in my cheyne 225 + Y-tyed, and now, what for unweldy age + And for unlust, may not to love atteyne, + And seyn, that love is but verray dotage. + Thus, for that they hem-self lakken corage, + They folk excyten, by hir wikked sawes, 230 + For to rebelle agayn me and my lawes. + + But, maugre hem that blamen wommen most, + Suche is the force of myn impressioun, + That sodeinly I felle can hir bost + And al hir wrong imaginacioun. 235 + It shal not been in hir eleccioun + The foulest slutte of al a toun refuse, + If that me list, for al that they can muse; + + But her in herte as brenningly desyre + As thogh she were a duchesse or a quene; 240 + So can I folkes hertes sette on fyre, + And (as me list) hem sende joye or tene. + They that to wommen been y-whet so kene + My sharpe persing strokes, how they smyte, + Shul fele and knowe; and how they kerve and byte. 245 + + Perdee, this grete clerk, this sotil Ovyde + And many another han deceyved be + Of wommen, as it knowen is ful wyde; + Wot no man more; and that is greet deyntee, + So excellent a clerk as that was he, 250 + And other mo that coude so wel preche + Betrapped were, for aught they coude teche. + + And trusteth wel, that it is no mervayle; + For wommen knewen pleynly hir entente. + They wiste how sotilly they coude assayle 255 + Hem, and what falshood they in herte mente; + And thise clerkes they in hir daunger hente. + With oo venym another was distroyed; + And thus thise clerkes often were anoyed. + + Thise ladies ne thise gentils, nevertheles, 260 + Were noon of tho that wroughten in this wyse; + But swiche filthes as were vertules + They quitten thus thise olde clerkes wyse. + To clerkes forthy lesse may suffyse + Than to deprave wommen generally; 265 + For worship shul they gete noon therby. + + If that thise men, that lovers hem pretende, + To wommen weren feythful, gode, and trewe, + And dredde hem to deceyven or offende, + Wommen to love hem wolde nat eschewe. 270 + But every day hath man an herte newe; + It upon oon abyde can no whyle. + What fors is it, swich a wight to begyle? + + Men beren eek thise wommen upon honde + That lightly, and withouten any peyne, 275 + They wonne been; they can no wight withstonde + That his disese list to hem compleyne. + They been so freel, they mowe hem nat refreyne; + But who-so lyketh may hem lightly have; + So been hir hertes esy in to grave. 280 + + To maister Iohn de Meun, as I suppose, + Than it was a lewd occupacioun + In making of the Romance of the Rose; + So many a sly imaginacioun + And perils for to rollen up and doun, 285 + So long proces, so many a sly cautele + For to deceyve a sely damosele! + + Nat can I seen, ne my wit comprehende + That art and peyne and sotiltee sholde fayle + For to conquére, and sone make an ende, 290 + Whan man a feble place shal assayle; + And sone also to venquisshe a batayle + Of which no wight dar maken resistence, + Ne herte hath noon to stonden at defence. + + Than moot it folwen of necessitee, 295 + Sin art asketh so greet engyn and peyne + A womman to disceyve, what she be, + Of constauncë they been not so bareyne + As that somme of thise sotil clerkes feyne; + But they ben as that wommen oghten be, 300 + Sad, constant, and fulfilled of pitee. + + How frendly was Medea to Jasoun + In the conquéring of the flees of gold! + How falsly quitte he her affeccioun + By whom victórie he gat, as he hath wold! 305 + How may this man, for shame, be so bold + To falsen her, that from his dethe and shame + Him kepte, and gat him so gret prys and name? + + Of Troye also the traitour Eneas, + The feythles wrecche, how hath he him forswore 310 + To Dido, that queen of Cartágë was, + That him releved of his smertes sore! + What gentilesse might she han doon more + Than she with herte unfeyned to him kidde? + And what mischeef to her ther-of betidde! 315 + + In my Legende of Martres men may fynde + (Who-so that lyketh therin for to rede) + That ooth noon ne behest may no man bynde; + Of reprevable shame han they no drede. + In mannes herte trouthe hath no stede; 320 + The soil is noght, ther may no trouthe growe! + To womman namely it is nat unknowe. + + Clerkes seyn also: 'ther is no malyce + Unto wommannes crabbed wikkednesse!' + O woman! How shalt thou thy-self chevyce, 325 + Sin men of thee so muchel harm witnesse? + No fors! Do forth! Takë no hevinesse! + Kepë thyn ownë, what men clappe or crake; + And somme of hem shul smerte, I undertake! + + Malyce of wommen, what is it to drede? 330 + They slee no men, distroyen no citees; + They not oppressen folk ne overlede, + Betraye empyres, remes, ne duchees, + Ne men bereve hir landes ne hir mees, + Empoyson folk, ne houses sette on fyre, 335 + Ne false contractes maken for non hyre! + + Trust, perfit love, and entere charitee, + Fervent wil, and entalented corage + To thewes gode, as it sit wel to be, + Han wommen ay, of custome and usage; 340 + And wel they can a mannes ire aswage + With softe wordes discreet and benigne; + What they be inward, sheweth outward signe. + + Wommannes herte un-to no crueltee + Enclyned is, but they ben charitable, 345 + Pitous, devout, fulle of humilitee, + Shamfaste, debonaire, and amiable, + Dredful, and of hir wordes mesurable: + What womman thise hath not, peraventure, + Ne folweth nat the wey of her nature. 350 + + Men seyn: 'our firste moder, natheles, + Made al man-kynde lese his libertee, + And naked it of joye, douteles; + For goddes hestes disobeyed she, + Whan she presumed tasten of a tree, 355 + Which god forbad that she nat ete of sholde; + And, nad the devel been, namore she wolde.' + + Th' envýous swelling that the feend, our fo, + Had unto man in herte, for his welthe, + Sente a serpent, and made her for to go 360 + To disceyve Eve; and thus was mannes helthe + Beraft him by the fende, right in a stelthe, + The womman noght knowing of the deceyt; + God wot, ful fer was it from her conceyt. + + Wherfore I sey, this godë womman Eve 365 + Our fader Adam ne deceyved noght. + Ther may no man for a deceyt it preve + Proprely, but-if that she, in her thoght, + Had it compassed first, er it was wroght; + And, for swich was nat her impressioun, 370 + Men calle it may no déceyt, by resoun. + + No wight deceyveth but he it purpóse; + The feend this déceyt caste, and nothing she. + Than is it wrong to demen or suppose + That she sholde of this harm the cause be. 375 + Wyteth the feend, and his be the maugree; + And for excused have her innocence, + Sauf only that she brak obedience. + + And touching this, ful fewe men ther been, + Unnethes any, dar I saufly seye-- 380 + Fro day to day, as that men mow wel seen, + But that the hest of god they disobeye. + Have this in mynde, sires, I yow preye; + If that ye be discreet and resonable, + Ye wol her holde the more excusable. 385 + + And wher men seyn, 'in man is stedfastnesse, + And woman is of her corage unstable,' + Who may of Adam bere swich witnesse? + Telleth me this:--was he nat chaungeable? + They bothe weren in a caas semblable, 390 + Sauf willingly the feend deceyved Eve, + And so did she nat Adam, by your leve. + + Yet was this sinne happy to mankynde, + The feend deceyved was, for al his sleight; + For aught he coude him in his sleightes wynde, 395 + God, to discharge mankynde of the weight + Of his trespas, cam doun from hevenes height, + And flesh and blood he took of a virgyne, + And suffred deeth, him to deliver of pyne. + + And god, to whom ther may nothing hid be, 400 + If he in woman knowe had such malyce + As men of hem recorde in generaltee, + Of our lady, of lyf reparatryce, + Nolde han be born; but, for that she of vyce + Was voyde, and of al vertu (wel he wiste) 405 + Endowed, of her to be bore him liste. + + Her heped vertu hath swich excellence + That al to lene is mannes facultee + To déclare it, and therfor in suspence + Her duë preysing put mot nedes be. 410 + But this we witen verrayly, that she, + Next god, the best frend is that to man longeth; + The key of mercy by her girdil hongeth. + + And of mercy hath every man swich nede + That, cessing that, farwel the joye of man! 415 + Of her power now taketh right good hede; + She mercy may, wol, and purchace can. + Displese her nat, honoureth that womman, + And other wommen alle, for her sake! + And, but ye do, your sorowe shal awake. 420 + + Thou precious gemme, O martir Margarete, + Of thy blood draddest noon effusioun! + Thy martirdom ne may I nat foryete; + Thou, constant womman in thy passioun, + Overcoom the feendes temptacioun; 425 + And many a wight converted thy doctryne + Unto the feith of god, holy virgyne! + + But understondeth, I commende hir noght + By enchesoun of hir virginitee; + Trusteth right wel, it cam not in my thoght; 430 + For ever I werrey ayein chastitee, + And ever shal; but this, lo! meveth me, + Her loving herte and constant to her lay + Dryve out of rémembrauncë I ne may. + + In any boke also wher can ye fynde, 435 + That of the werkes or the dethe or lyf + Of Jesu speketh, or maketh any mynde, + That womman him forsook, for wo or stryf? + Wher was ther any wight so ententyf + Abouten him as wommen? Pardee, noon! 440 + Th'apostels him forsoken, everichoon. + + Womman forsook him noght; for al the feyth + Of holy chirche in womman lefte only. + This is no lees, for holy writ thus seyth; + Loke, and ye shal so fynde it, hardely. 445 + And therfore it may preved be therby, + That in womman regneth stable constaunce + And in men is the chaunge and variaunce! + + Now holdeth this for ferme and for no lye, + That this trewe and just commendacioun 450 + Of wommen is nat told for flaterye, + Ne to cause hem pryde or elacioun, + But only, lo! for this entencioun, + To yeve hem corage of perseveraunce + In vertu, and hir honour to enhaunce. 455 + + The more vertu, the lasse is the pryde; + Vertu so digne is, and so noble in kynde + That vyce and she wol not in-fere abyde. + She putteth vyce clene out of her mynde, + She fleeth from him, she leveth him behynde. 460 + O womman, that of vertu art hostesse, + Greet is thyn honour and thy worthinesse! + + Than wol we thus concluden and diffyne: + We yow comaunde, our ministres, echoon + That redy been to our hestes enclyne, 465 + That of thise false men, our rebel foon, + Ye do punisshëment, and that anoon! + Voide hem our court and banish hem for ever + So that ther-inne they ne come never. + + Fulfilled be it, cessing al delay; 470 + Look that ther be non excusacioun. + Writen in th'ayr, the lusty month of May, + In our paleys (wher many a millioun + Of loveres trewe han habitacioun) + The yere of grace joyful and jocounde 475 + A thousand and foure hundred and secounde. + +EXPLICIT LITERA CUPIDINIS, DEI AMORIS, DIRECTA SUIS SUBDITIS AMATORIBUS. + +From F (Fairfax); various readings from B (Bodley 638); T (Tanner 346); S +(Arch. Selden B. 24); A (Ashburnham MS.); Tr. (Trin. Coll. Cam. R. 3. 20). +_Also in_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1532); D (Digby 181); Ff (Camb. Univ. Library, +Ff. 1. 6); _and in the_ Bannatyne MS. 2. F. goddis an. 3. F. pepill. F. +ben. 4. A. folk; F. folke. F. besely; A. bisyly. 5. F. Th. Of the; S. _om._ +Of. S. Cithera; F. Sythera. S. sothly; F. oonly. 6. A. Tr. alle; F. al. 7. +F. sugetes. 8. A. wole; F. wol. 10. F. wymen. A. han I-sowe. 11. F. Suche. +12. A. doon; F. do. 13. F. oure. 14. F. pitouse; effecte. 15. A. And +passyng_e_ alle londes on this yle. 17. A. seyn; F. seye. 18. A. +dissimulen; F. dyssimule. 19. A. Tr. S. Th. in; F. on. F. her. + +20. A. herte. 20-22. F. her. 23. A. And with so pitous. S. Tr. pitouse a. +24. A. trewely; F. truly. 25. F. hert. A. han swich. 26. A. seyn; F. sey. +F. her. 27. F. her. Tr. list. F. schew. 28. F. anoone. F. _om._ mot; S. Tr. +most; Th. must (_but read_ mot); cf. l. 35. 29. A. seyn; F. sey. F. yowe; +Th. you. 31. F. While. F. lyfe. A. lasten; F. last. 33. F. Th. thing as; +A.S. _om._ as. 34. F. youre. F. self; S. seluen. Th. lyste; F. lyst; A. +lykith. 35. A. moot myn herte; F. myn hert mote. A. breste; F. brest. 36. +F. herd. Th. knowe a mannes; F. know a manys. A. herte; F. hert. 37. F. +outwarde. 38. S. word; F. worde. F. non astert. 39. _So_ S. Tr.; A. sholde +any wight by reson; F. Th. by reson semed euery wight to queme. 40. F. +seyde; Th. sayd. F. hert; Th. herte. 41. F. _om._ of. 42. F. arte. F. be; +Th. by. 43. F. processe. A. Tr. S. wom_m_en meeued of; F. moveth oft woman. +44. S. that; _rest om._ 46. F. her. 47. F. hert set. 48. F. blesful. A.S. +they; F. ye. 49. F. And thus; A.S. Tr. _om._ And. + +50. A.S. pot; Th. pan; F. penne. 52. A. he keepith; F. kepeth he. S. not; +A. nat; F. no more. 53. A. fynden; F. fynde. F. tovne. 55. A. On to; F. +Vnto. 56. A. hard; F. herde. A.S. leue; F. beleue. 59. Th. traytour; F. +traytoure. 60. A. faste him speedith; F. fast spedeth him. 61. Th. herte; +F. hert. 62. A.S. Tr. ne; F. _om._ 64. F. faire avaunte. 65. F. silfe. 66. +S. A. Tr. Now; F. _om._ S. A. him; F. Th. himselfe. A.S. a; F. _om._ 67. +A.S. a (2); F. _om._ 68. F. tel; hir; hathe. 69. F. worshippe. 70. A. +greet; F. grete. S. a sclander; T. Th. disclaunder. 71. F. hir; reprefe. +72. A. Tr. it; _rest om._ F. wroght. 73. F. myschefe. 74. F. spake; thoght. +75. F. be; Th. by. F. oght. 76. S. a thank; Tr. hye thank; F. thank. 77. D. +Th. A. nede; F. rede. 78. Th. through; F. thorgh. + +81. A. that; _rest om._ F. tel. 82. Th. through; F. thorgh. 83. A.S. Tr. +Th. al; F. _om._ F. dovne. 84. F. fynaly. 85. A. Tr. Betrayen; B. S. T. +Betray; F. Betraied. 86. F. is yt that; S. A. Tr. _om._ yt. 87. A. Ageynes; +F. Ayens. F. falsely. 88. F. crafte suche. 89. F. wytte; A. Tr. wil. A. Tr. +ay reedy is; S. redy ay is; F. is euer redy. A. tapplie; Th. taply; F. to +aplye. 90. A. hy; S. Tr. hie; F. _om._ 93. T. A. Tr. as; F. _om._ F. ben. +94. B. A. Tr. Th. they; F. _om._ 95. Th. pursewe; F. pursw. 98. A. Smal +witen; F. Lytell wote; Tr. Litel knowe. 99. F. wrechch; Th. wretche. 101. +F. inconstant; feythe. 105. F. cometh. 106. F. fast (_read_ faste). F. ride +(_read_ ryd). 107. F. While. Th. behynd; F. behinde. F. bake. 109. A. snak; +F. snake; Th. smacke. 110. F. thes; pake. 111. Th. mote; F. mot. + +114. F. selfe hyr. 115. F. hir reprefe; vileyny. 116. F. tong. 118. F. +folke. 120. F. eke. 124. F. wer. A. D. Th. had; F. hath. 126. F. shapith. +129. F. han leyser; D. T. Th. leisur haue; A. Tr. leiser han. 130. F. +purpose. 131. Th. madnesse. 132. F. homelynesse. 133. F. wy_m_men. 134. F. +sclaunder women. 135. F. Too. 139. A. Al moot he flee. 140. Th. tonge; F. +tong. 141. F. foule. A. vice; Th. vyce; F. thing. 143. A. Tr. Th. S. man; +F. men. + +147. Th. ben; Tr. been; F. beth. A. at (_for_ in). A. Th. assay; F. asay. +148. F. hyt. F. o; Th. one. 149. F. varriable. 150. S. and (_for_ or). S. +proud; F. proude. 152. F. vnthrift; Th. vntrust. 154. F. swich; D. Th. +suche. 155. D. god the hie. 156. A. all_e_; F. al. A. whether; F. wheither. +A. was (_for_ were). 160. F. al. 161. F. _om. 2nd_ that. 163. Tr. goode; F. +good. 164. F. caas. 165. Th. good is; F. is good. 166. F. al. 167. Th. owne +falsenesse; F. oone falsnesse. 169. F. oght. 171. F. wheither. 172. F. +badde. 173. F. witte. 175. F. hir. + +176. F. tre gode frute. 177. F. swiche; A. swich. 178. F. Take. 179. F. +Merour; Th. myrrour. 180. F. Honure; honured. 181. A. nat hir. 183. F. +seyde; Th. sayd. 184. F. foule. 185. F. chirlyssh; Th. churlysshe. 187. F. +wymen; Th. women. 188. D. B. T. A. Tr. for to despyse; F. to displesen. +189. F. wol. 191. F. made. 192. A. they lakken; Th. they dispyse; F. +dispisen they. Th. women and her; F. wo_m_mans; A. wo_m_menes. 193. F. +grete reprefe. 194. F. yiven; D. yeve; Th. yeue. 195. F. ben. 198. Th. D. +especial; F. special. 203. F. theys; noon. 205. F. grete reprefe. 206. F. +grete. 207. F. case. + +208. F. custome. 209. F. women. D. B. A. Th. _om. 1st_ or. 210. F. Seye; +Th. Say. 211. F. boke. 212. F. women. 213. F. louen; S. D. Tr. Th. loue. +215. A. They (_glossed_ s. libri). F. perylle; Th. p_er_el. F. cast. 216. +F. B. wrappes (!) 217. D. S. Th. women. F. B. myshappes (!) 218. S. Th. is; +F. _om._ A. that; _rest om._ 222. A.S. T. nat; D. Th. not; F. noon. F. +while. 223. F. tyranie. 224. F. wy_m_men. 225. D. Th. many; F. mony. F. +wer. 226. Th. Tyed; A. Tyd. 228. F. werray; S. veray; D. verry; Th. very. +229. F. selfe; D. silf. 230. F. folke. 232. F. mawgre; Th. maugre. 233. F. +_om._ the. 234. F. sodenly; Th. sodainly. 236. F. ben; Th. be. F. +ellecciou_n_. 237. F. tovne; A. town. + +239. Th. her; F. hir. Th. herte; F. hert. F. brenyngly. 241. F. hertys set. +242. F. Ioy. 243. F. ben. 244. Th. sharpe; F. sharp. 248. F. women. 249. S. +Wote; A. Wat; F. Th. What (!). F. grete; Th. great. 252. F. aght; Th. +aught. 253. Th. it; F. ys (!) F. mervaylle; Th. meruayle. 254. F. women +knywen; entent. 255. F. sotyly. 256. F. falshode; Th. falsheed. F. hert +ment; Th. herte mente. 257. F. this clerkys. F. hent; Th. hente. 261. F. +wroghten; Th. wrought. F. wysse; Th. wyse. 262. S. fillok_es_ (_for_ +filthes). F. weren; Th. were. 263. F. wisse; Th. wyse. 263, 264. F. +clerkis. 264. A. Th. To; F. D. The (!). 266. F. worshippe; Th. worshyp. +268. F. women. F. good. 269. F. dreden; Th. dredde. + +270. F. Women. 271. F. hert. 273. A. swich oon for to. 274. F. eke this +women. 276. F. ben. 280. F. ben; hertys; craue (!). 281. F. I (!); _for_ +To. Th. Moone. 282. F. lewde. 286. F. longe processe. F. slye; Th. slygh. +287. F. damesele; Th. damosel. 288. F. wytte. 289. F. peyn; Th. payne. T. +Th. schulde; F. holde (!). 291. F. assaylle; Th. assayle. 292. F. bataylle; +Th. batayle. 293. F. whiche. 294. F. hert; Th. herte. 295. F. yt moot +folowen; A. moot it folwen. 296. F. grete. 297. F. dysceve. 298. F. +constance; ben. 299. F. clerkys. 301. F. pite. + +302. F. frendely; Th. frendly. 303. F. flee (!); golde. 304. F. quyt; hir. +305. F. gate; wolde. 306. F. bolde. 307. F. hir. 308. F. kept; grete. 310. +F. wrechch; Th. wretche; A. man. 314. F. That (_for_ Than). F. hert; Th. +herte. 315. F. mischefe; hir. 316. Th. natures (_for_ Martres). 318. F. +oothe in no; A. ooth noon ne; S. T. Th. othe ne. 320. A. Th. herte; F. +hert. A. In herte of man conceites trewe arn dede. 324. A. wommannes; Th. +D. womans; F. a womans. Th. wicked crabbydnesse. 326. F. the; harme. 327. +F. No fors; A. Yee strab (_or_ scrab). Th. Beth ware women of her +fykelnesse. F. take; S. and take. 329. F. smert; Th. smerte. 331. F. sle. +332. F. folke. + +335. F. Empoysone folkys; set. 337. F. perfyte. 338. D. B. Th. A. +entalented; F. entenlented. 339. F. Be; Th. Al; _rest_ To. F. sytt. 340. F. +women. 342. A. softe; F. Th. soft. 343. F. outwarde. 344. A. Wommannes; F. +Th. Womans. 346. F. Pitouse devoute ful. 348. F. _om._ and. 350. F. hir. +351. F. oure; Th. our. A. firste; F. Th. first. 353. F. Ioy; Th. ioye. 356. +A. nat; F. ne. 357. F. nade; Th. ne had; A. nad. F. she ne wolde. 358. F. +The enviouse; Tr. Thenvyous. F. suellyng. F. fend. 359. Th. herte; F. D. +hert. 359. F. Sent; hir. 361. F. deceyve; Th. disceyue. 363. F. woman. 364. +F. Gode wote; hir. + +365. F. good; Tr. goode. F. woman. 369. F. er; A. Th. or. 370. F. hir. 373. +F. cast. 374. F. wronge. 375. F. harme. A. of th_a_t gilt. 376. F. fende; +mawgre. 377. F. hir. 378. F. oonly. F. breeke; D. Th. brake. 379. F. that; +Th. this. F. ben. 381. A. D. mowe; T. mow; Th. may; F. now. 385. A. Th. +holde; F. hold. 386. F. Th. where; B. whan. 388. F. swiche. 391. A. F. +feende; Tr. worme. 392. F. dide; Th. dyd. 394. F. feende. 395. F. sleythes; +Th. sleyghtes; A. sleightes. + +397. F. trespase; Th. trespace. F. the hevenes; A. Tr. S. Th. _om._ the. +398. F. tooke. 401. F. suche. 403. F. Yf (_for_ Of). F. lyfe. 405. F. +woyde; Th. voyde. 406. F. hir. 408. F. leene; Th. leane; S. low; A. weyke. +410. Th. dewe. F. moot. 411. A. we witen; _rest_ I sey. F. verraly. 412. F. +men (_for_ man). 413. F. mercye; hir girdille. 414. F. mercye. 415. F. +farewel; Ioy. 417. F. mercye. 418. F. honureth; Th. honoureth. 419. A. Tr. +alle; F. al. 423. F. martirdome. Th. Thou louer trewe. thou mayden +mansuete. 425. F. feendis. 427. _From_ A; F. B. _omit_ (!). + +430. A. nat; Tr. not; _rest_ neuer. 431. F. _om._ I. 433. F. hert; hir. +434. F. of my; Th. _om._ my. 435-448. _Precedes_ 421-434 _in_ Th. 435. F. +where. 436. F. werkis; lyfe. 438. F. wommen (_read_ womman, _as in_ l. +442). F. stryfe. 439. F. ententyfe. 441. _So_ Th.; F. B. forsoken hym. 442. +F. forsooke. 443. F. left oonly. 444. Tr. holy wryt thus; F. thus holy +wryt. 445. F. Lok. 446. _So_ A.; F. B. I may wel preve herby. 447, 448. F. +constance, variance. 450. F. trew; Th. trewe. 451. A. is nat told for; F. +tolde I nat for; Th. tel I for no. 453. F. oonly loo. 455. F. honure; Th. +honour. Th. auaunce. 458. A.S. she; _rest_ he. + +459, 460. A.S. She; _rest_ He. S. hir; F. hi (!); _rest_ his. 461. F. +wertu. 462. F. Gret; honor. 464. F. oure; echon. 465. F. oure. 466. F. D. +_om._ false. F. reble; Th. rebel. 469. A. ynne; F. in. F. more neuer; A. +_om._ more. 471. S. Tr. that; _rest om._ 472. F. the ayer; A. their; Tr. +theyre. F. moneth. 473. F. oure; where; milion. 474. F. louers trwe. 475. +F. Iocunde. + +COLOPHON. D. T. amatoribus; F. _om._ B. _has_--The lettre of Cupide, god of +love, directed to his suggestys louers. + + * * * * * + +VI. TO THE KINGES MOST NOBLE GRACE; AND TO THE LORDES AND KNIGHTES OF THE +GARTER. + +CESTES BALADES ENSUYANTES FEURENT FAITES AU TRES NOBLE ROY HENRY LE QUINT +(QUE DIEU PARDOINT!) ET AU TRES HONOURABLE CONPAIGNIE DU JARTER. + + I. + + To you, welle of honour and worthinesse, + Our Cristen king, the heir and successour + Un-to Justinians devout tendrenesse + In the feith of Jesu, our redemptour; + And to you, lordes of the Garter, 'flour 5 + Of chevalrye,' as men you clepe and calle; + The lord of vertu and of grace auctour + Graunte the fruit of your loos never appalle! + + O lige lord, that han eek the lyknesse + Of Constantyn, th'ensaumple and the mirour 10 + To princes alle, in love and buxumnesse + To holy chirche, O verray sustenour + And piler of our feith, and werreyour + Ageyn the heresyës bitter galle, + Do forth, do forth, continue your socour! 15 + Hold up Cristes baner; lat it nat falle! + + This yle, or this, had been but hethenesse, + Nad been of your feith the force and vigour! + And yit, this day, the feendes fikilnesse + Weneth fully to cacche a tyme and hour 20 + To have on us, your liges, a sharp shour, + And to his servitude us knitte and thralle. + But ay we truste in you, our prótectour; + On your constaunce we awayten alle. + + Commandeth that no wight have hardinesse, 25 + O worthy king, our Cristen emperour, + Of the feith to despute more or lesse + Openly among people, wher errour + Springeth al day and engendreth rumour. + Maketh swich lawe, and for aught may befalle, 30 + Observe it wel; ther-to be ye dettour. + Doth so, and god in glorie shal you stalle. + + II. + + Ye lordes eek, shyninge in noble fame, + To whiche appropred is the maintenaunce + Of Cristes cause; in honour of his name 35 + Shove on, and putte his foos to the outrance! + God wolde so; so wolde eek your ligeaunce; + To tho two prikketh you your duëtee. + Who-so nat kepeth this double observaunce + Of merit and honour naked is he! 40 + + Your style seith that ye ben foos to shame; + Now kythe of your feith the perséveraunce, + In which an heep of us arn halte and lame. + Our Cristen king of England and of Fraunce, + And ye, my lordes, with your alliaunce, 45 + And other feithful people that ther be + (Truste I to god) shul quenche al this nuisaunce + And this land sette in hy prosperitee. + + Conquest of hy prowesse is for to tame + The wilde woodnesse of this mescreaunce; 50 + Right to the rote repe ye that same! + Slepe nat this, but, for goddes plesaunce + And his modres, and in signifiaunce + That ye ben of seint Georges liveree, + Doth him servyce and knightly obeisaunce; 55 + For Cristes cause is his, wel knowen ye! + + Stif stande in that, and ye shul greve and grame + The fo to pees, the norice of distaunce; + That now is ernest, torne it into game; + Dampnáble fro feith werë variaunce! 60 + Lord lige, and lordes, have in rémembraunce, + Lord of al is the blessed Trinitee, + Of whos vertu the mighty habundaunce + You herte and strengthe in feithful unitee! Amen. + + _Cest tout._ + +_From_ P. (Phillipps 8151); _also in_ Ed. (ed. 1542). 1. Ed. honour; P. +honur. 2. P. Our right cristen; Ed. _om._ right. Ed. the heire; P. _om._ +the. 6. P. ch_iua_lrie; Ed. cheualry. 8. P. nat; Ed. neuer. 10. Ed. _om._ +the. 11. P. loue and; Ed. humble. 14. P. bittir; Ed. bytter. 15. P. foorth; +Ed. forthe (_twice_). 16. P. Ed. Holde. + +19. P. fikilnesse; Ed. crabbydnesse. 20. P. Weeneth; Ed. Weneth. 22. P. +seruiture; Ed. seruytude. 25. P. Commandith; Ed. Co_m_maundeth. 26. Ed. O; +P. Our. Ed. our; P. and. 27. Ed. dispute. 28. P. where; Ed. Her. 29. P. +Spryngith; engendrith. 30. P. Makith. P. aght; Ed. ought. 31. P. been; Ed. +be. 32. P. Dooth. 33. P. Yee. 34. P. approped (!). 38. Ed. duite. 39. P. +keepith; Ed. kepeth. 40. P. nakid; Ed. naked. 41. Ed. _om._ that. P. yee +been. 43. P. arn; Ed. be. 44. P. Engeland and; Ed. England and of. 45. P. +yee. 46. P. othir. 47. P. qwenche. P. nusance; Ed. noysaunce (_read_ +nuisance). + +49. P. Conqueste; Ed. Conquest. 50. Ed. myscreaunce. 51. P. roote rype; Ed. +rote repe. P. yee. 52. P. Sleepe; Ed. Slepe. 54. P. yee been. 55. P. Dooth. +56, 57. P. yee. 57. P. shuln; Ed. shal. P. greeue. 58. Ed. the; P. and. 59. +Ed. tourne. 60. Ed. Nowe kythe of your beleue the constaunce. 62. P. +blissid; Ed. blysfull. + + * * * * * + +VII. A MORAL BALADE. + +BY HENRY SCOGAN, SQUYER. + + HERE FOLOWETH NEXT A MORAL BALADE, TO MY LORD THE PRINCE, TO MY LORD OF + CLARENCE, TO MY LORD OF BEDFORD, AND TO MY LORD OF GLOUCESTRE, BY HENRY + SCOGAN; AT A SOUPER OF FEORTHE MERCHANDE IN THE VYNTRE IN LONDON, AT + THE HOUS OF LOWYS JOHAN. + + My noble sones, and eek my lordes dere, + I, your fader called, unworthily, + Sende un-to you this litel tretys here + Writen with myn owne hand full rudëly; + Although it be that I not reverently 5 + Have writen to your estats, yet I you praye, + Myn unconning taketh benignëly + For goddes sake, and herken what I seye. + + I complayn sore, whan I remembre me + The sodeyn age that is upon me falle; 10 + More I complayn my mispent juventè + The whiche is impossible ayein to calle. + But certainly, the most complaynte of alle + Is for to thinke, that I have been so nyce + That I ne wolde no virtue to me calle 15 + In al my youthe, but vyces ay cheryce. + + Of whiche I aske mercy of thee, lord, + That art almighty god in majestè, + Beseking thee, to make so even accord + Betwix thee and my soule, that vanitè 20 + Of worldly lust, ne blynd prosperitè + Have no lordship over my flesshe so frele. + Thou lord of reste and parfit unitè, + Put fro me vyce, and keep my soules hele. + + And yeve me might, whyl I have lyf and space, 25 + Me to conforme fully to thy plesaunce; + Shewe upon me th'abundaunce of thy grace, + In gode werkes graunt me perséveraunce. + Of al my youthe forget the ignoraunce; + Yeve me good wil, to serve thee ay to queme; 30 + Set al my lyf after thyn ordinaunce, + And able me to mercy, or thou deme! + + My lordes dere, why I this complaint wryte + To you, alle whom I love entierly, + Is for to warne you, as I can endyte, 35 + That tyme y-lost in youthe folily + Greveth a wight goostly and bodily, + I mene hem that to lust and vyce entende. + Wherfore, I pray you, lordes, specially, + Your youthe in vertue shapeth to dispende. 40 + + Planteth the rote of youthe in suche a wyse + That in vertue your growing be alway; + Loke ay, goodnesse be in your exercyse, + That shal you mighty make, at eche assay, + The feend for to withstonde at eche affray. 45 + Passeth wysly this perilous pilgrimage, + Thinke on this word, and werke it every day; + That shal you yeve a parfit floured age. + + Taketh also hede, how that these noble clerkes + Write in hir bokes of gret sapience, 50 + Saying, that fayth is deed withouten werkes; + So is estat withoute intelligence + Of vertue; and therfore, with diligence, + Shapeth of vertue so to plante the rote, + That ye therof have ful experience, 55 + To worship of your lyfe and soules bote. + + Taketh also hede, that lordship ne estat, + Withoute vertue, may not longe endure; + Thinketh eek how vyce and vertue at debat + Have been, and shal, whyles the world may dure; 60 + And ay the vicious, by aventure, + Is overthrowe; and thinketh evermore + That god is lord of vertue and figure + Of al goodnesse; and therfore folowe his lore. + + My mayster Chaucer, god his soulë have! 65 + That in his langage was so curious, + He sayde, the fader whiche is deed and grave, + Biquath nothing his vertue with his hous + Unto his sone; therfore laborious + Ought ye to be, beseching god, of grace, 70 + To yeve you might for to be vertuous, + Through which ye might have part of his fayr place. + + Here may ye see that vertuous noblesse + Cometh not to you by way of auncestrye, + But it cometh thorugh leefful besinesse 75 + Of honest lyfe, and not by slogardrye. + Wherfore in youthe I rede you edefye + The hous of vertue in so wys manere + That in your age it may you kepe and gye + Fro the tempest of worldly wawes here. 80 + + Thinketh how, betwixë vertue and estat + There is a parfit blessed mariage; + Vertue is cause of pees, vyce of debat + In mannes soule; for which, with ful corage, + Cherissheth vertue, vyces to outrage: 85 + Dryveth hem away; let hem have no wonning + In your soules; leseth not the heritage + Which god hath yeve to vertuous living. + + Taketh hede also, how men of povre degree + Through vertue have be set in greet honour, 90 + And ever have lived in greet prosperitee + Through cherisshing of vertuous labour. + Thinketh also, how many a governour + Called to estat, hath oft be set ful lowe + Through misusing of right, and for errour, 95 + Therfore I counsaile you, vertue to knowe. + + Thus 'by your eldres may ye nothing clayme,' + As that my mayster Chaucer sayth expresse, + 'But temporel thing, that man may hurte and mayme'; + Than is god stocke of vertuous noblesse; 100 + And sith that he is lord of blessednesse, + And made us alle, and for us alle deyde, + Folowe his vertue with ful besinesse, + And of this thing herke how my mayster seyde:-- + + _The firste stok, fader of gentilesse,_ 105 + _What man that claymeth gentil for to be_ + _Must folowe his trace, and alle his wittes dresse_ + _Vertu to sewe, and vyces for to flee._ + _For unto vertu longeth dignitee,_ + _And noght the revers, saufly dar I deme,_ 110 + _Al were he mytre, croune, or diademe._ + + _This firste stok was ful of rightwisnesse,_ + _Trewe of his word, sobre, pitous, and free,_ + _Clene of his goste, and loved besinesse_ + _Ageinst the vyce of slouthe, in honestee;_ 115 + _And, but his heir love vertu, as dide he,_ + _He is noght gentil, though he riche seme,_ + _Al were he mytre, croune, or diademe._ + + _Vyce may wel be heir to old richesse;_ + _But ther may no man, as men may wel see,_ 120 + _Bequethe his heir his vertuous noblesse;_ + _That is appropred unto no degree,_ + _But to the firste fader in magestee_ + _That maketh him his heir, that can him queme,_ + _Al were he mytre, croune, or diademe._ 125 + + Lo here, this noble poete of Bretayne + How hyely he, in vertuous sentence, + The losse in youthe of vertue can complayne; + Wherfore I pray you, dooth your diligence, + For your estats and goddes reverence, 130 + T'enprintë vertue fully in your mynde, + That, whan ye come in your juges presence, + Ye be not set as vertules behynde. + + Ye lordes have a maner now-a-dayes, + Though oon shewe you a vertuous matere, 135 + Your fervent youthe is of so false alayes + That of that art ye have no joy to here. + But, as a ship that is withouten stere + Dryveth up and doun, withouten governaunce, + Wening that calm wol lastë, yeer by yere, 140 + Right so fare ye, for very ignoraunce. + + For very shamë, knowe ye nat, by réson + That, after an ebbe, ther cometh a flood ful rage? + In the same wyse, whan youth passeth his séson, + Cometh croked and unweldy palled age; 145 + Sone after comen kalends of dotage; + And if your youth no vertue have provyded, + Al men wol saye, fy on your vassalage! + Thus hath your slouth fro worship you devyded. + + Boëce the clerk, as men may rede and see, 150 + Saith, in his Boke of Consolacioun, + What man desyreth +have of vyne or tree + Plentee of fruit, in the ryping sesoun, + Must ay eschewe to doon oppressioun + Unto the rote, whyle it is yong and grene; 155 + Ye may wel see, by this conclusioun, + That youthë vertulees doth mochel tene. + + Seeth, there-ayenst, how vertuous noblesse + Roted in youthe, with good perséveraunce, + Dryveth away al vyce and wrecchednesse, 160 + As slogardrye, ryote and distaunce! + Seeth eek how vertue causeth suffisaunce, + And suffisaunce exyleth coveityse! + And who hath vertue hath al abundaunce + Of wele, as fer as reson can devyse. 165 + + Taketh hede of Tullius Hostilius, + That cam fro povertee to hy degree; + Through vertue redeth eek of Julius + The conquerour, how povre a man was he; + Yet, through his vertue and humanitee, 170 + Of many a countree had he governaunce. + Thus vertue bringeth unto greet degree + Eche wight that list to do him entendaunce. + + Rede, here-ayenst, of Nero vertulees; + Taketh hede also of proude Balthasar; 175 + They hated vertue, equitee, and pees. + Loke how Antiochus fil fro his char, + That he his skin and bones al to-tar! + Loke what meschauncë they had for hir vyces! + Who-so that wol not by these signes be war, 180 + I dar wel say, infortunat or nyce is. + + I can no more; but here-by may ye see + How vertue causeth parfit sikernesse, + And vyces doon exyle prosperitee; + The best is, ech to chesen, as I gesse. 185 + Doth as you list, I me excuse expresse; + I wolde be sory, if that ye mischese. + God you conferme in vertuous noblesse, + So that through negligence ye nothing lese! + + _Explicit_. + +_From_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1542); _collated with_ A. (Ashmole 59), _and_ Cx. +(Caxton); _readings also given from_ H. (Harl. 2251). + +TITLE; _from_ A. (_which has_ folowethe nexst); Cx. _has_ Here next +foloweth a tretyse, whiche John Skogan sente vnto the lordes and gentilmen +of the kynges hows, exortyng them to lose no tyme in theyr yougthe, but to +vse vertues; Th. _has_ Scogan vnto the lordes and gentylmen of the kynges +house. + +1. Th. A. sonnes. 2. Th. A. vnworthely. 3. Th. lytel treatyse; A. balade +folowing. 4. Th. with; A. H. of. 5. Th. H. Although; Cx. And though; A. +Yitte howe. 6. Th. A. estates. A. yet; H. Th. Cx. _om._ 8. Cx. herkne +(_better_). 9. Th. me sore; A. H. _om._ me. 10. A. H. falle; Th. fal. 11. +Th. But more; A. H. Cx. _om._ But. Th. iuuentute. 12. Th. ayen for; A. +ageine. A. H. calle; Th. cal. + +13. Th. H. certainly; A. comvnely. Th. A. moste. A. H. alle; Th. al. 14. A. +H. for; Th. _om._ A. beon; Th. be. 15. A. H. no; Th. _om._ A. vertue; Th. +vertues. A. calle; Th. cal. 16. A. ay; Th. aye. 17. A. thee; Th. the. Th. +lorde. 18. Th. H. god; A. lorde. 20. Th. Betwyxe; A. Bytwene. 21. A. H. Of; +Th. Cx. _om._ Th. blynde. 22. A. so freel; Th. H. to frele. 23. Th. lorde; +perfyte. 24. A. H. Cx. soules; Th. soule. 25. Th. whyle; lyfe. 26. A. H. +confourme; Th. confyrme (!). 27. A. H. vpon; Th. to. 28. Th. And in; A. H. +_om._ And. 30. A. thee; Th. the. 31. Th. lyfe. A. H. thy governaunce. 34. +A. alle whome; Cx. whom that; Th. whom. Th. moste entyrely; Cx. A. +entierly. 36. A. eloste; Th. loste; H. Cx. lost. 37. A. H. goostely and +bodely; Th. Cx. bodily and gostly. 38. Th. meane. 39. A. I prey you lordes; +Th. lordes I pray you. A. tendrely. 41. Cx. _transposes_ 41-80 _and_ +81-125. A. Plantethe; Th. Cx. Plante. + +43. A. ay; Th. alway. 45. Cx. The frende (!) for to withsto_n_de; A. For to +withstonde the feonde; Th. The fende to withstande. 46. Th. peryllous; H. +perilous. 47. H. Th. Cx. werke; A. vse. 48. Th. parfyte. 50. Th. Writen; A. +Wrote. Th. her. Th. great; H. grete; A. noble. 52. _So_ A.; Th. And right +so is estate with negligence. 57. A. Then kepe also that. 58. Cx. A. +Withoute; Th. Without. 59. Cx. vice; A. H. Th. vices. 60. A. whiles; Th. +while. Th. worlde. 61. A. H. ay; Th. Cx. euer. 63. Th. lorde of al; H. A. +lord of. 67. Th. sayd that the; A. saide that the; H. Cx. _om._ that. Th. +father; A. H. fader. 68. H. A. Beqwath; Th. Byqueth. Th. house. 69. _So_ A. +Cx.; Th. children and therefore laborouse. 70. H. Th. Ought; A. Aught; Cx. +Owe. Th. _om._ to. Th. besekyng; A. beseching. 72. Th. haue; A. H. gete. +Th. p_ar_te. A. feyre; Th. H. _om._ + +74. A. Comþe. 75. A. thorugh; Cx. thurgh; Th. by. A. leofful; Th. leful; H. +leeful. 77. Th. you ye; A. H. _om._ ye. 78. Th. house. A. soo wyse; Th. H. +suche a. 79. Th. _om._ it. 80. H. A. worldly; Th. worldes. 81. Th. howe +betwyxe; A. howe bytwene. 82. Th. parfyte. 84. H. A. for whiche with full; +Th. the whiche be ful of. 85. Th. than vertue; A. _om._ than. 86. A. Cx. +_om. 1st_ hem. 87. A. leese; H. lesith. 89. Th. howe. A. poure; Th. poore. +90, 91. Th. great. 92. Th. H. Through; A. By. 94. Th. H. Called; A. Calde. +A. offt; H. Th. Cx. _om._ 95. A. for; Th. H. Cx. of. 96. Th. And therfore; +_rest om._ And. 97. A. By auncetrye thus; Th. H. Thus by your auncestres; +Cx. Thus by your eldres. 99. Th. men (_for_ man). 100. Cx. Than god is. +101. Th. sythe; lorde. Th. blyssednesse; A. blessednesse. 102. A. That +(_for_ And). A. H. alle; Th. al (1). Cx. alle; Th. al (2). _For_ us alle A. +_has_ mankynde that. + +103. _So_ A.; Th. H. Foloweth hym in vertue. 105-125. Chaucer's poem of +_Gentilesse_ is here quoted; see vol. i. p. 392. 127. A. Howe hyely he; Th. +Howe lightly. 128. A. lesse (!); Th. losse. A. H. in; Th. on. 129. A. +Wherfore; Th. And therefore. A. doothe; Th. with (!). 130. A. estates; Th. +profyte. 131. A. Tenprynte; Th. Tempereth (!). A. H. vertue fully; Th. +fully vertue. 132. Cx. in; A. H. in-to; Th. to. 133. A. H. sette as +vertulesse; Th. vertulesse than. 134. H. Cx. Ye; A. For yee; Th. Many. Th. +A. nowe. 135. Cx. H. you; Th. hem. A. Thaughe one of you here of a gode +matere. + +136. Cx. H. Your feruent; Th. Her feruent; A. Your vnsure. 137. Th. arte. +Cx. H. ye; Th. they. A. That of suche artes you liste not to. 138. Cx. A. +withouten; Th. without a. 139. A. withouten; Th. without. 140. Th. calme. +A. wol laste you; Th. wolde last. Th. yere by yere. 141. Cx. A. H. ye; Th. +they. 142. Cx. A. H. ye; Th. they. 143. A. Cx. _om._ ful. 144. A. Right +euen so whane. 145. A. Comthe. 146. A. Soone; Th. And sone. Th. comen the; +Cx. come; A. comthe. 147. Th. if that; Cx. A. H. _om._ that. Cx. A. your; +Th. her. A. H. no vertue haue; Cx. no vertue hath; Th. haue no vertue. 148. +Th. fye. Cx. A. your; Th. her. 149. A. H. your; Th. her. Cx. H. you; Th. +hem. A. _has_ Thus hathe youre youthe and slouthe you al misgyded. 152. Cx. +A. H. to haue; Th. _om._ (_read_ haue). 153. A. Plenty of; Cx. Plentyuous; +Th. Plentous. Th. fruite. A. H. Cx. the; Th. _om._ A. H. Cx. riping; Th. +reapyng. 154. A. H. Cx. ay; Th. euer. A. doon; Th. do. 156. A. H. Cx. Yee +may; Th. Thus may ye. A. H. wele see; Cx. see; Th. se wel. A. H. this; Th. +that. A. Cx. conclusioun; Th. inclusyon (!). 157. A. youthe; Th. youth. A. +Th. vertulesse. Th. moche; Cx. ofte muche; A. ay michil (_read_ mochel). +158. Th. Nowe seeth; A. H. Cx. _om._ Nowe. Th. howe; A. that. 159. A. +youthe; Th. youth. + +160. A. Cx. vyce; H. vice; Th. vyces. 161. A. Al (_for_ As). A. al ryote; +H. Cx. Th. _om._ al. 162. Th. eke howe. 163. _So_ A. Cx.; H. _om._; Th. +_has_ Seeth eke howe vertue voydeth al vyce (!). 164. Th. H. Cx. whoso; A. +_om._ so. 165. Th. ferre; A. far. Th. reason. 167. A. came frome pouertee; +Th. fro pouert came. Th. hygh; A. hye. 168. Th. eke. 169. Th. howe poore. +170. A. H. Cx. humanite; Th. his humylite. 171. Th. _om._ a. 172. A. unto +gret; Cx. to hye; Th. a man to great. 173. A. Cx. list; Th. H. lust. Th. +entendaunce; _rest_ attendaunce. 174. Th. nowe of; A. H. Cx. _om._ nowe. +177. Th. And loke; _rest om._ And. Th. howe; chare. 178. Th. tare. 179. A. +meschaunces. 180. Th. H. Cx. _om._ that. Th. ware. 181. A. Th. infortunate. +A. H. Cx. or; Th. and. 182. Th. no more nowe say; Cx. no more say; H. no +more; A. more (!). Th. herby; se. 183. A. Th. Howe. A. Th. perfyte. 184. A. +done exyle; Th. H. exylen al; Cx. exyles al. 185. Th. eche man to; Cx. man +to; A. dethe to (dethe _is put for_ eche). A. cheesen; Th. chose. + +186. Th. A. Dothe. 187. A. Cx. wil (_for_ wolde). Th. right sorie; A. H. +Cx. _om._ right. 188. A. you conferme; Th. confyrme you. 189. A. no thing; +Cx. H. nothing; Th. not it. COLOPHON. Cx. Thus endeth the traytye wiche +John Skogan sent to the lordes and estates of the kynges hous. + + * * * * * + +VIII. JOHN LYDGATE. + +THE COMPLAINT OF THE BLACK KNIGHT; OR, THE COMPLAINT OF A LOVERES LYFE. + + In May, whan Flora, the fresshe lusty quene, + The soile hath clad in grene, rede, and whyte, + And Phebus gan to shede his stremes shene + Amid the Bole, with al the bemes brighte, + And Lucifer, to chace awey the night, 5 + Ayen the morowe our orizont hath take + To bidde lovers out of hir sleepe awake, + + And hertes hevy for to recomforte + From dreriheed of hevy nightes sorowe, + Nature bad hem ryse, and hem disporte, 10 + Ayen the goodly, gladde, greye morowe; + And Hope also, with seint Johan to borowe, + Bad, in dispyt of daunger and dispeyre, + For to take the hoolsom lusty eyre: + + And with a sigh I gan for to abreyde 15 + Out of my slombre, and sodainly up sterte + As he, alas! that nigh for sorowe deyde, + My sekenes sat ay so nigh my herte. + But, for to finde socour of my smerte, + Or at the leste som réles of my peyne, 20 + That me so sore halt in every veyne, + + I roos anon, and thoghte I wolde goon + Into the wode, to here the briddes singe, + Whan that the misty vapour was agoon + And clere and faire was the morowning; 25 + The dewe also, lyk silver in shyning + Upon the leves, as any baume swete, + Til fyry Tytan, with his persaunt hete, + + Had dryed up the lusty licour newe + Upon the herbes in the grene mede, 30 + And that the floures, of many dyvers hewe, + Upon hir stalkes gonne for to sprede + And for to splaye[n] out hir leves on-brede + Agayn the sonne, gold-burned in his spere, + That doun to hem caste his bemes clere. 35 + + And by a river forth I gan costey + Of water clere as berel or cristal + Til at the laste I found a litel wey + Toward a park, enclosed with a wal + In compas rounde, and by a gate smal 40 + Who-so that wolde frely mighte goon + Into this park, walled with grene stoon. + + And in I wente, to here the briddes song, + Whiche on the braunches, bothe in playn and vale, + So loude songe, that al the wode rong 45 + Lyke as it shulde shiver in peces smale; + And, as me thoughte, that the nightingale + With so gret mighte her voys gan out-wreste + Right as her herte for love wolde breste. + + The soil was playn, smothe, and wonder softe 50 + Al oversprad with tapites that Nature + Had mad her-selve, celured eek alofte + With bowes grene, the floures for to cure, + That in hir beautè they may longe endure + From al assaut of Phebus fervent fere, 55 + Whiche in his spere so hote shoon and clere. + + The eyre attempre, and the smothe wind + Of Zepherus, among the blossomes whyte, + So hoolsom was and norisshing by kind, + That smale buddes, and rounde blomes lyte 60 + In maner gonnen of her brethe delyte + To yeve us hope that hir fruit shal take, + Ayens autumpne, redy for to shake. + + I saw ther Daphne, closed under rinde, + Grene laurer, and the hoolsom pyne; 65 + The myrre also, that wepeth ever of kinde; + The cedres hye, upright as a lyne; + The philbert eek, that lowe doth enclyne + Her bowes grene to the erthe adoun + Unto her knight, y-called Demophoun. 70 + + Ther saw I eek the fresshe hawëthorn + In whyte motlè, that so swote doth smelle, + Ash, firre, and ook, with many a yong acorn, + And many a tree--mo than I can telle; + And, me beforn, I saw a litel welle, 75 + That had his cours, as I gan beholde, + Under an hille, with quikke stremes colde. + + The gravel gold, the water pure as glas, + The bankes rounde, the welle envyroning; + And softe as veluët the yonge gras 80 + That therupon lustily cam springing; + The sute of trees aboute compassing + Hir shadowe caste, closing the welle rounde, + And al the herbes growing on the grounde. + + The water was so hoolsom and vertuous 85 + Through might of herbes growing there besyde, + Not lyk the welle, wher-as Narcisus + Y-slayn was, through vengeaunce of Cupyde, + Where so covertly he didë hyde + The grayn of cruel dethe upon ech brinke, 90 + That deeth mot folowe, who that ever drinke; + + Ne lyk the pittë of the Pegacè + Under Pernaso, where poetës slepte; + Nor lyk the welle of pure chastitè + Which that Dyane with her nymphes kepte, 95 + Whan she naked into the water lepte, + That slow Acteon with his houndes felle + Only for he cam so nigh the welle! + + Bút this welle, that I here reherce, + So hoolsom was, that it wolde aswage 100 + Bollen hertes, and the venim perce + Of pensifheed, with al the cruel rage, + And evermore refresshe the visage + Of hem that were in any werinesse + Of greet labour, or fallen in distresse. 105 + + And I, that had, through daunger and disdayne, + So drye a thrust, thoughte I wolde assaye + To taste a draughte of this welle, or twayne, + My bitter langour if it mighte alaye; + And on the banke anon adoun I lay, 110 + And with myn heed unto the welle I raughte, + And of the water drank I a good draughte; + + Wherof, me thought, I was refresshed wele + Of the brenning that sat so nigh my herte, + That verily anon I gan to fele 115 + An huge part relesed of my smerte; + And therwithallë anon up I sterte, + And thoughte I wolde walke, and see more + Forth in the parke, and in the holtes hore. + + And through a laundë as I yede a-pace 120 + And gan aboute faste to beholde, + I found anon a délitable place + That was beset with treës yonge and olde, + Whose names here for me shal not be tolde; + Amidde of whiche stood an herber grene, 125 + That benched was, with colours newe and clene. + + Thís herber was ful of floures inde, + In-to the whiche as I beholde gan, + Betwix an hulfere and a wodëbinde, + As I was war, I saw wher lay a man 130 + In blakke and whyte colour, pale and wan, + And wonder deedly also of his hewe, + Of hurtes grene and fresshe woundes newe. + + And overmore distrayned with sekenesse, + Besyde al this, he was, ful grevously; 135 + For upon him he had an hoot accesse, + That day by day him shook ful pitously; + So that, for constreynt of his malady + And hertly wo, thus lying al alone, + It was a deeth for to here him grone. 140 + + Wherof astonied, my foot I gan withdrawe, + Greetly wondring what it mighte be + That he so lay, and hadde no felawe, + Ne that I coude no wight with him see; + Wherof I hadde routhe, and eek pitè, 145 + And gan anon, so softely as I coude, + Among the busshes me prively to shroude; + + If that I mighte in any wyse espye + What was the cause of his deedly wo, + Or why that he so pitously gan crye 150 + On his fortune, and on his ure also; + With al my might I layde an ere to, + Every word to marke, what he seyde, + Out of his swough among as he abrayde. + + But first, if I shulde make mencioun 155 + Of his persone, and plainly him discryve, + He was in sothe, without excepcioun, + To speke of manhode, oon the best on-lyve; + Ther may no man ayen the trouthe stryve. + For of his tyme, and of his age also 160 + He proved was, ther men shulde have ado, + + For oon the beste there, of brede and lengthe + So wel y-mad by good proporcioun, + If he had be in his deliver strengthe; + But thought and seknesse were occasioun 165 + That he thus lay, in lamentacioun, + Gruffe on the grounde, in place desolat, + Sole by him-self, awhaped and amat. + + And, for me semeth that it is sitting + His wordes al to putte in remembraunce, 170 + To me, that herdë al his complayning + And al the groundë of his woful chaunce, + If ther-withal I may you do plesaunce, + I wol to you, so as I can, anon, + Lyk as he sayde, reherce hem everichon. 175 + + But who shal helpe me now to complayne? + Or who shal now my style gye or lede? + O Niobè, let now thy teres rayne + In-to my penne; and helpe eek in this nede, + Thou woful Mirre, that felest my herte blede 180 + Of pitous wo, and myn hand eek quake + Whan that I wryte, for this mannes sake! + + For unto wo accordeth complayning + And doleful cherë unto hevinesse; + To sorowe also, syghing and weping, 185 + And pitous mourning, unto drerinesse; + And whoso that shal wryten of distresse + In party nedeth to knowe felingly + Cause and rote of al such malady. + + But I, alas! that am of witte but dulle, 190 + And have no knowing of such matere, + For to discryve and wryten at the fulle + The woful complaynt, which that ye shal here, + But even-lyk as doth a skrivenere + That can no more what that he shal wryte, 195 + But as his maister besyde doth endyte; + + Right so fare I, that of no sentement + Saye right naught, as in conclusioun, + But as I herde, whan I was present, + This man complayne with a pitous soun; 200 + For even-lyk, without addicioun + Or disencrees, either more or lesse, + For to reherce anon I wol me dresse. + + And if that any now be in this place + That fele in love brenning or fervence, 205 + Or hindred werë to his lady grace + With false tonges, that with pestilence + Slee trewe men that never did offence + In word nor dede, ne in hir entent-- + If any suche be here now present, 210 + + Let him of routhe lay to audience, + With doleful chere and sobre countenaunce, + To here this man, by ful high sentence, + His mortal wo and his gret perturbaunce + Cómplayning, now lying in a traunce, 215 + With lokes upcaste, and with ruful chere, + Th' effect of whiche was as ye shal here.-- + + COMPLEYNT. + + The thought oppressed with inward sighes sore, + The painful lyf, the body languisshing, + The woful gost, the herte rent and tore, 220 + The pitous chere, pale in compleyning, + The deedly face, lyk ashes in shyning, + The salte teres that fro myn eyën falle, + Parcel declare grounde of my peynes alle: + + Whos herte is grounde to blede in hevinesse; 225 + The thought, resceyt of wo and of complaynt; + The brest is cheste of dole and drerinesse; + The body eek so feble and so faynt; + With hote and colde myn acces is so meynt, + That now I chiver for defaute of hete, 230 + And, hoot as gleed, now sodainly I swete. + + Now hoot as fyr, now cold as asshes dede, + Now hoot fro cold, now cold fro hete agayn; + Now cold as ys, now as coles rede + For hete I brenne; and thus, betwixe twayne, 235 + I possed am, and al forcast in payne; + So that my hete plainly, as I fele, + Of grevous cold is causë, every-deel. + + This is the cold of inward high disdayne, + Cold of dispyt, and cold of cruel hate; 240 + This is the cold that doth his besy payne + Ayeines trouthe to fighte and to debate. + This is the cold that wolde the fyr abate + Of trewe mening; alas! the harde whyle! + This is the cold that wolde me begyle. 245 + + For ever the better that in trouthe I mente + With al my mighte faythfully to serve, + With herte and al for to be diligent, + The lesse thank, alas! I can deserve! + Thus for my trouthe Daunger doth me sterve. 250 + For oon that shulde my deeth, of mercy, lette + Hath mad despyt newe his swerd to whette + + Ayeines me, and his arowes to fyle + To take vengeaunce of wilful crueltè; + And tonges false, through hir sleightly wyle, 255 + Han gonne a werre that wil not stinted be; + And fals Envye, Wrathe, and Enmitè, + Have conspired, ayeines al right and lawe, + Of hir malyce, that Trouthe shal be slawe. + + And Male-Bouche gan first the tale telle, 260 + To slaundre Trouthe, of indignacioun; + And Fals-Report so loude rong the belle, + That Misbeleve and Fals-Suspeccioun, + Have Trouthe brought to his dampnacioun, + So that, alas! wrongfully he dyeth, 265 + And Falsnes now his placë occupyeth, + + And entred is in-to Trouthes lond, + And hath therof the ful possessioun. + O rightful god, that first the trouthe fond, + How may thou suffre such oppressioun, 270 + That Falshood shulde have jurisdiccioun + In Trouthes right, to slee him giltëlees? + In his fraunchyse he may not live in pees. + + Falsly accused, and of his foon forjuged, + Without answere, whyl he was absent, 275 + He dampned was, and may not ben excused, + For Crueltè sat in jugëment + Of hastinesse, withoute avysëment, + And bad Disdayn do execute anon + His jugëment, in presence of his foon. 280 + + Attourney noon ne may admitted been + T'ëxcuse Trouthë, ne a word to speke; + To fayth or ooth the juge list not seen, + There is no gayn, but he wil be wreke. + O lord of trouthe, to thee I calle and clepe; 285 + How may thou see, thus in thy presence, + Withoute mercy, murdred innocence? + + Now god, that art of trouthe soverain + And seëst how I lye for trouthe bounde, + So sore knit in loves fyry chain 290 + Even at the deth, through-girt with many a wounde + That lykly are never for to sounde, + And for my trouthe am dampned to the deeth, + And not abyde, but drawe along the breeth: + + Consider and see, in thyn eternal right, 295 + How that myn herte professed whylom was + For to be trewe with al my fulle might + Only to oon, the whiche now, alas! + Of voluntè, withoute any trespas, + Myn accusours hath taken unto grace, 300 + And cherissheth hem, my deth for to purchace. + + What meneth this? what is this wonder ure + Of purveyauncë, if I shal it calle, + Of god of love, that false hem so assure, + And trewe, alas! doun of the whele ben falle? 305 + And yet in sothe, this is the worst of alle, + That Falshed wrongfully of Trouthe hath name, + And Trouthe ayenward of Falshed bereth the blame. + + This blinde chaunce, this stormy aventure, + In lovë hath most his experience; 310 + For who that doth with trouthe most his cure + Shal for his mede finde most offence, + That serveth love with al his diligence; + For who can faynë, under lowliheed, + Ne fayleth not to finde grace and speed. 315 + + For I loved oon, ful longë sith agoon, + With al my herte, body, and ful might, + And, to be deed, my herte can not goon + From his hest, but holde that he hath hight; + Though I be banisshed out of her sight, 320 + And by her mouth dampned that I shal deye, + +To my behest yet I wil ever obeye. + + For ever, sithë that the world began, + Who-so list lokë, and in storie rede, + He shal ay finde that the trewe man 325 + Was put abakke, wher-as the falshede + Y-furthered was; for Love taketh non hede + To slee the trewe, and hath of hem no charge, + Wher-as the false goth freely at hir large. + + I take recorde of Palamides, 330 + The trewe man, the noble worthy knight, + That ever loved, and of his payn no relees; + Notwithstonding his manhood and his might + Love unto him did ful greet unright; + For ay the bet he did in chevalrye, 335 + The more he was hindred by envye. + + And ay the bet he did in every place + Through his knighthood and his besy payne, + The ferther was he from his lady grace, + For to her mercy mighte he never attayne; 340 + And to his deth he coude it not refrayne + For no daungere, but ay obey and serve + As he best coude, plainly, til he sterve. + + What was the fyne also of Hercules, + For al his conquest and his worthinesse, 345 + That was of strengthe alone pereles? + For, lyk as bokes of him list expresse, + He sette pillers, through his hy prowesse, + Away at Gades, for to signifye + That no man mighte him passe in chevalrye. 350 + + The whiche pillers ben ferre beyonde Inde + Beset of golde, for a remembraunce; + And, for al that, was he set behinde + With hem that Love liste febly avaunce; + For [he] him sette last upon a daunce, 355 + Ageynes whom helpe may no stryf; + For al his trouthe, yit he loste his lyf. + + Phebus also, for al his persaunt light, + Whan that he wente here in erthe lowe, + Unto the herte with fresh Venus sight 360 + Y-wounded was, through Cupydes bowe, + And yet his lady liste him not to knowe. + Though for her love his herte didë blede, + She leet him go, and took of him no hede. + + What shal I saye of yonge Piramus? 365 + Of trew Tristram, for al his hye renoun? + Of Achilles, or of Antonius? + Of Arcite eke, or of him Palemoun? + What was the endë of hir passioun + But, after sorowe, deeth, and than hir grave? 370 + Lo, here the guerdon that these lovers have! + + But false Jason, with his doublenesse, + That was untrewe at Colkos to Medee, + And Theseus, rote of unkindënesse, + And with these two eek the false Enee; 375 + Lo! thus the falsë, ay in oon degrè, + Had in love hir lust and al hir wille; + And, save falshood, ther was non other skille. + + Of Thebes eek the false [knight] Arcyte, + And Demophon +also, for [al] his slouthe, 380 + They had hir lust and al that might delyte + For al hir falshode and hir greet untrouthe. + Thus ever Love (alas! and that is routhe!) + His false leges forthereth what he may, + And sleeth the trewe ungoodly, day by day. 385 + + For trewe Adon was slayn with the bore + Amid the forest, in the grene shade; + For Venus love he feltë al the sore. + But Vulcanus with her no mercy made; + The foule chorl had many nightes glade, 390 + Wher Mars, her worthy knight, her trewe man, + To finde mercy, comfort noon he can. + + Also the yonge fresshe Ipomenes + So lusty free [was], as of his corage, + That for to serve with al his herte he chees 395 + Athalans, so fair of hir visage; + But Love, alas! quitte him so his wage + With cruel daunger plainly, at the laste, + That, with the dethe, guerdonles he paste. + + Lo! here the fyne of loveres servyse! 400 + Lo! how that Love can his servaunts quyte! + Lo! how he can his faythful men despyse, + To slee the trewe, and false to respyte! + Lo! how he doth the swerd of sorowe byte + In hertes, suche as most his lust obeye, 405 + To save the false, and do the trewe deye! + + For fayth nor ooth, word, ne assuraunce, + Trewe mening, awayte, or besinesse, + Stille port, ne faythful attendaunce, + Manhood, ne might, in armes worthinesse, 410 + Pursute of worship, nor no hy prowesse, + In straunge lande ryding, ne travayle, + Ful lyte or nought in lovë doth avayle. + + Peril of dethe, nother in see ne lande, + Hunger ne thurst, sorowe ne sekenesse, 415 + Ne grete empryses for to take on hande, + Sheding of blode, ne manful hardinesse, + Ne ofte woundinge at sautes by distresse, + Nor +juparting of lyf, nor deeth also-- + Al is for nought, Love taketh no hede therto! 420 + + But lesings, with hir false flaterye, + Through hir falshede, and with hir doublenesse, + With tales newe and many fayned lye, + By fals semblaunt and counterfet humblesse, + Under colour depeynt with stedfastnesse, 425 + With fraude covered under a pitous face + Accepte been now rathest unto grace, + + And can hem-selve now best magnifye + With fayned port and fals presumpcioun; + They haunce hir cause with fals surquedrye 430 + Under meninge of double entencioun, + To thenken oon in hir opinioun + And saye another; to sette hemselve alofte + And hinder trouthe, as it is seyn ful ofte. + + The whiche thing I bye now al to dere, 435 + Thanked be Venus and the god Cupyde! + As it is sene by myn oppressed chere, + And by his arowes that stiken in my syde, + That, sauf the deth, I nothing abyde + Fro day to day; alas, the harde whyle! 440 + Whan ever his dart that him list to fyle, + + My woful herte for to ryve a-two + For faute of mercy, and lak of pitè + Of her that causeth al my payne and wo + And list not ones, of grace, for to see 445 + Unto my trouthe through her crueltee; + And, most of alle, yit I me complayne, + That she hath joy to laughen at my peyne! + + And wilfully hath [she] my deeth y-sworn + Al giltëlees, and wot no cause why 450 + Save for the trouthe that I have had aforn + To her alone to serve faithfully! + O god of lovë! unto thee I cry, + And to thy blinde double deitee + Of this gret wrongë I compleyne me, 455 + + And to thy stormy wilful variaunce + Y-meynt with chaunge and greet unstablenesse; + Now up, now doun, so renning is thy chaunce, + That thee to truste may be no sikernesse. + I wyte it nothing but thy doublenesse; 460 + And who that is an archer and is +blent + Marketh nothing, but sheteth as he +went. + + And for that he hath no discrecioun, + Withoute avys he let his arowe go; + For lakke of sight, and also of resoun, 465 + In his shetinge, it happeth ofte so, + To hurte his frend rather than his fo; + So doth this god, [and] with his sharpe floon + The trewe sleeth, and let the false goon. + + And of his wounding this is the worst of alle, 470 + Whan he hurteth, he doth so cruel wreche + And maketh the seke for to crye and calle + Unto his fo, for to been his leche; + And hard it is, for a man to seche, + Upon the point of dethe in jupardye, 475 + Unto his fo, to finde remedye! + + Thus fareth it now even by me, + That to my fo, that yaf myn herte a wounde, + Mote aske grace, mercy, and pitè, + And namëly, ther wher non may be founde! 480 + For now my sore my leche wil confounde, + And god of kinde so hath set myn ure, + My lyves fo to have my wounde in cure! + + Alas! the whyle now that I was born! + Or that I ever saw the brighte sonne! 485 + For now I see, that ful longe aforn, + Or I was born, my desteny was sponne + By Parcas sustren, to slee me, if they conne; + For they my deth shopen or my sherte + Only for trouthe! I may it not asterte. 490 + + The mighty goddesse also of Nature + That under god hath the governaunce + Of worldly thinges committed to her cure, + Disposed hath, through her wys purveyaunce, + To yeve my lady so moche suffisaunce 495 + Of al vertues, and therwithal purvyde + To murdre trouthe, hath take Daunger to gyde. + + For bountè, beautè, shappe, and semeliheed, + Prudence, wit, passingly fairnesse, + Benigne port, glad chere with lowliheed, 500 + Of womanheed right plenteous largesse, + Nature did in her fully empresse, + Whan she her wroughte; and alther-last Disdayne, + To hinder trouthe, she made her chamberlayne; + + Whan Mistrust also, and Fals-Suspeccioun, 505 + With Misbeleve, she made for to be + Cheef of counsayl to this conclusioun, + For to exyle Routhe, and eek Pitè, + Out of her court to make Mercy flee, + So that Dispyt now holdeth forth her reyne, 510 + Through hasty bileve of tales that men feyne. + + And thus I am, for my trouthe, alas! + Murdred and slayn with wordes sharpe and kene, + Giltlees, god wot, of al maner trespas, + And lye and blede upon this colde grene. 515 + Now mercy, swete! mercy, my lyves quene! + And to your grace of mercy yet I preye, + In your servyse that your man may deye! + + But if so be that I shal deye algate, + And that I shal non other mercy have, 520 + Yet of my dethe let this be the date + That by your wille I was brought to my grave; + Or hastily, if that you list me save, + My sharpe woundes, that ake so and blede, + Of mercy, charme, and also of womanhede. 525 + + For other charme, playnly, is ther non + But only mercy, to helpe in this case; + For though my woundes blede ever in oon, + My lyf, my deeth, standeth in youre grace; + And though my gilt be nothing, alas! 530 + I aske mercy in al my beste entente, + Redy to dye, if that ye assente. + + For ther-ayeines shal I never stryve + In worde ne werke; playnly, I ne may; + For lever I have than to be alyve 535 + To dye soothly, and it be her to pay; + Ye, though it be this eche same day + Or whan that ever her liste to devyse; + Suffyceth me to dye in your servyse. + + And god, that knowest the thought of every wight 540 + Right as it is, in +al thing thou mayst see, + Yet, ere I dye, with all my fulle might + Lowly I pray, to graunte[n] unto me + That ye, goodly, fayre, fresshe, and free, + Which slee me only for defaute of routhe, 545 + Or that I dye, ye may knowe my trouthe. + + For that, in sothe, suffyseth unto me, + And she it knowe in every circumstaunce; + And after, I am wel apayd that she + If that hir list, of dethe to do vengeaunce 550 + Untó me, that am under her legeaunce; + It sit me not her doom to disobeye, + But, at her luste, wilfully to deye. + + Withoute grucching or rebellioun + In wille or worde, hoolly I assent, 555 + Or any maner contradiccioun, + Fully to be at her commaundëment; + And, if I dyë, in my testament + My herte I sende, and my spirit also, + What-so-ever she list, with hem to do. 560 + + And alder-last unto her womanhede + And to her mercy me I recommaunde, + That lye now here, betwixe hope and drede, + Abyding playnly what she list commaunde. + For utterly, (this nis no demaunde), 565 + Welcome to me, whyl me lasteth breeth, + Right at her choise, wher it be lyf or deeth! + + In this matere more what mighte I seyn, + Sith in her hande and in her wille is al, + Both lyf and deeth, my joy and al my payn? 570 + And fynally, my heste holde I shal, + Til my spirit, by desteny fatal, + Whan that her liste, fro my body wende; + Have here my trouthe, and thus I make an ende!' + + And with that worde he gan syke as sore 575 + Lyk as his herte ryve wolde atwayne, + And held his pees, and spak a word no more. + But, for to see his wo and mortal payne, + The teres gonne fro myn eyen rayne + Ful pitously, for very inward routhe 580 + That I him saw so languisshing for trouthe. + + And al this whyle my-self I kepte cloos + Among the bowes, and my-self gan hyde, + Til, at the laste, the woful man aroos, + And to a logge wente ther besyde, 585 + Where, al the May, his custome was t'abyde, + Sole, to complaynen of his paynes kene, + Fro yeer to yere, under the bowes grene. + + And for bicause that it drow to the night + And that the sonne his ark diurnál 590 + Y-passed was, so that his persaunt light, + His brighte bemes and his stremes al + Were in the wawes of the water fal, + Under the bordure of our ocëan, + His char of golde his cours so swiftly ran: 595 + + And whyl the twylight and the rowes rede + Of Phebus light were dëaurat a lyte, + A penne I took, and gan me faste spede + The woful playntë of this man to wryte + Word by wordë, as he did endyte; 600 + Lyk as I herde, and coude him tho reporte, + I have here set, your hertes to disporte. + + If ought be mis, layeth the wyte on me, + For I am worthy for to bere the blame + If any thing [here] misreported be, 605 + To make this dytè for to seme lame + Through myn unconning; but, to sayn the same, + Lyk as this man his complaynt did expresse, + I aske mercy and forgivënesse. + + And, as I wroot, me thoughte I saw a-ferre, 610 + Fer in the weste, lustely appere + Esperus, the goodly brighte sterre, + So glad, so fair, so persaunt eek of chere, + I mene Venus, with her bemes clere, + That, hevy hertes only to releve, 615 + Is wont, of custom, for to shewe at eve. + + And I, as faste, fel doun on my knee + And even thus to her gan I to preye:-- + 'O lady Venus! so faire upon to see, + Let not this man for his trouthe deye, 620 + For that joy thou haddest whan thou leye + With Mars thy knight, whan Vulcanus you fond, + And with a chayne invisible you bond + + Togider, bothe twayne, in the same whyle + That al the court above celestial 625 + At youre shame gan for to laughe and smyle! + A! fairë lady! welwilly founde at al, + Comfort to careful, O goddesse immortal! + Be helping now, and do thy diligence + To let the stremes of thyn influence 630 + + Descende doun, in forthering of the trouthe, + Namely, of hem that lye in sorowe bounde; + Shew now thy might, and on hir wo have routhe + Er fals Daunger slee hem and confounde. + And specially, let thy might be founde 635 + For to socourë, what-so that thou may, + The trewe man that in the herber lay, + + And alle trewe forther, for his sake, + O gladde sterre, O lady Venus myne! + And cause his lady him to grace take. 640 + Her herte of stele to mercy so enclyne, + Er that thy bemes go up, to declyne, + And er that thou now go fro us adoun, + Fór that love thou haddest to Adoun!' + + And whan that she was gon unto her reste, 645 + I roos anon, and hoom to bedde wente, + For verily, me thoughte it for the beste; + Prayinge thus, in al my best entente, + That alle trewe, that be with Daunger shente, + With mercy may, in reles of hir payn, 650 + Recured be, er May come eft agayn. + + And for that I ne may no lenger wake, + Farewel, ye lovers alle, that be trewe! + Praying to god; and thus my leve I take, + That, er the sonne to-morowe be risen newe, 655 + And er he have ayein his rosen hewe, + That eche of you may have suche a grace, + His owne lady in armes to embrace. + + I mene thus, that, in al honestee, + Withoute more, ye may togider speke 660 + What so ye listë, at good libertee, + That eche may to other hir herte breke, + On Jelousyë only to be wreke, + That hath so longe, of malice and envye, + Werreyed Trouthe with his tirannye. 665 + + LENVOY. + + Princesse, plese it your benignitee + This litel dytè for to have in mynde! + Of womanhedë also for to see + Your trewe man may youre mercy finde; + And Pitè eek, that long hath be behinde, 670 + Let him ayein be próvoked to grace; + For, by my trouthe, it is ayeines kinde, + Fals Daunger for to occupye his place! + + Go, litel quayre, unto my lyves queen, + And my very hertes soverayne; 675 + And be right glad; for she shal thee seen; + Suche is thy grace! But I, alas! in payne + Am left behinde, and not to whom to playne. + For Mercy, Routhe, Grace, and eek Pitè + Exyled be, that I may not attayne 680 + Recure to finde of myn adversitè. + + _Explicit._ + +_From_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1532); _collated with_ F. (Fairfax 16); B. (Bodley +638, _imperfect_); T. (Tanner 346); D. (Digby 181); S. (Arch. Selden B. +24); _I have also consulted_ Ad. (Addit. 16165); _and_ P. (Pepys 2006). 2. +Th. reed; F. D. rede. 4. S. his (_for 2nd_ the). 5. Th. away; F. awey. 6. +Th. D. orizont; F. T. S. orisont. 7. Th. bidde al; MSS. _om._ al. F. T. +_om._ lovers. 10. Th. bade. F. T. D. S. _om. 2nd_ hem. 11. D. gladde; +_rest_ glad. _All_ grey (_or_ gray). 13. Th. Bade; MSS. Bad. _All_ dispyte +(dispite). 14. S. go take (_rest om._ go). 15. Th. syghe. 16. F. out stert. +18. Th. sicknesse; MSS. sekenes. F. S. sat; _rest_ sate. Th. aye. Th. nye. + +20. F. atte; T. at; _rest_ at the. S. sum; _rest_ some, su_m_me. P. reles; +D. relece; T. relese; F. relesse; Th. release. 21. F. halt; Th. halte. 22. +T. S. roos; _rest_ rose. Th. thought. 23. Th. wodde; S. wod; _rest_ wode. +Th. byrdes. 24. Th. T. D. vapoure; F. S. vapour. F. D. agoon; T. Th. agone. +25. F. morownyng; T. morownynge; Th. moronyng. 26. Th. lyke; F. lykyng (!); +_rest_ like; _read_ lyk. 27. Th. leaues. 32. F. the (_for_ hir). 33. Th. D. +splaye; F. T. S. splay; _read_ splayen. F. S. on; _rest_ in. 34. Th. T. +Agayne; F. Ageyn; D. Ayen. S. gold; _rest_ golde. 35. Th. T. downe; F. +dovn; D. down; S. doun. 36. Th. forthe. 37. F. berel; S. beriall; Th. +byrel; T. byrell; D. birele. 39. D. S. Toward; F. Tovard; Th. T. Towarde. +40. Th. compace; MSS. compas. 41. T. myghte; S. m_ich_ty (!); _rest_ might. +Th. gone; F. goon. 42. S. park; _rest_ parke. 43. T. wente; _rest_ went. +Th. byrdes; _rest_ briddes. S. song; _rest_ songe. 44. Th. branches; F. T. +D. braunches. Th. and (_correctly_); _rest omit_. 45. Th. sange; S. sang; +P. song; F. T. D. songe. Th. woode. S. P. rong; _rest_ ronge. 47. T. +thoughte; Th. F. D. thought. + +48. T. myghte; _rest_ might. T. D. wraste; S. brest; Th. F. wrest. 49. T. +breste; D. braste; Th. F. brest; S. to-brest. 51. F. T. P. tapites; Th. D. +tapettes. 52. Th. F. T. -selfe (_better_ selve). F. celured; D. coloured; +S. silu_er_ed; Th. T. couered. 54. Th. beautie. F. T. may not (_for_ may). +55. S. assaut; _rest_ assaute. 56. Th. sphere; hotte. Th. F. T. D. shone +(_read_ shoon). 57, 59. S. wynd, kynd; _rest_ wynde, kynde. 58. S. P. +among; _rest_ amonge. T. blossomes; D. blossoms; Th. blosomes; F. blosmes. +59. _All_ holsom (holsum). Th. F. T. D. and so; S. _om._ so. 60. F. T. +blomes; S. blomys; Th. blosmes; D. blossoms. 61. _All_ gan, can; _see_ l. +579. 62. S. that; _rest om._ F. their; T. theire; Th. D. there; S. thai; +_read_ hir. 63. F. D. Ayens; Th. Ayenst; T. Agayne. 64. T. S. saw; Th. F. +D. sawe (!). F. ther; _rest_ the; _cf._ l. 71. S. Daphin; _rest_ Daphene; +_read_ Daphne. 65. Th. holsome; _rest_ holsom (-sum). 68. F. phibert; Th. +T. filberte; D. filberde; S. filbard. Th. F. dothe. 69. Th. S. adoun; +_rest_ doun. 70. F. I-called; _rest_ called. 71. Th. T. D. sawe. P. +hawethorn; _rest_ hawthorn, hawthorne, hauthorne. 72. S. motle; F. motele; +_rest_ motley. (_Read_ swoot?). Th. dothe smel. 73. _All_ Asshe; _read_ +Ash. _All_ oke; _read_ ook. S. [gh]ong; T. fressh (!); _rest_ yonge. S. +accorne; _rest_ acorne. + +74. Th. tel. 75. S. beforn; D. before; _rest_ beforne. Th. sawe; wel. 76. +T. cours; S. courss; _rest_ course. 77. Th. hyl; quicke streames. 78. S. P. +gold; D. colde; _rest_ golde. 78, 80. F. glas, gras; Th. glasse, grasse. +79. wel. 80. Ad. velowet. 81. Th. T. D. lustely (T. lustily) came (cam) +springyng; F. lustely gan syng (!); S. lustily gan spryng. 83. Th. F. wel; +T. D. welle. 85. _From this point I silently correct obvious errors in +spelling of_ Th. _by collation with the_ MSS. Th. holsome. S. and; _rest_ +and so. 86. Th. Thorowe. S. there; _rest omit_. 87, 92, 94. _I read_ lyk +_for_ lyke. 87. F. T. D. Narcius (!). 89. T. dyde; _rest_ dyd, did. 90. S. +cruell; _rest omit_. 95. Th. that; _rest_ as. F. T. P. his; _rest_ her. +101. S. perce; D. perce; Th. peerce; F. T. perysh (!) 103. Th. ouermore +(!). + +107. Th. F. thrust; T. thurste; P. D. thurst. 110. S. adoun; Th. F. P. +downe; _rest_ down, doun. 113-126. S. _omits_. 122. Th. delectable. 127. D. +ynde; T. Iende; F. cende (?); Th. gende; S. of Inde. 138. S. constreynt; +_rest_ constraynyng. + +147. Th. priuely me; _rest_ me priuely. (_Read_ busshes prively me +shroude?). 151. Th. _om. 2nd_ his. 154. _For_ among _perhaps read_ anon. +159. S. the; _rest omit_. 162. Th. therto; _rest_ there. 168. F. P. awaped. +175. D. hem; S. thame; _rest om._ + +179. Th. _om._ this. 181. _So all._ 184. F. delful; T. delefull; S. +dulefull; D. doilfull. 187. S. quhoso; _rest_ who. S. writen; _rest_ write +(wryte). 191. D. no knowyng haue; _rest_ haue no knowyng. 192. S. writen; +_rest_ write (wryte). 198. F. S. as; _rest om._ 202. Th. disencrease; F. +disencrese; T. disencrece; D. disencrees. 205. S. louyng. 206. F. hindered; +S. hind_er_it; _rest_ hindred. + +212. F. T. deleful; S. dulfull; D. wofull. 214. S. grete; _rest om._ 216. +S. with full; _rest omit_ (_I omit_ full). COMPLEYNT; _in_ F. _only_. 225. +D. grownded. 227. F. S. dule; D. dooll. 230. Th. T. chyuer; F. shyuer; D. +chevir; S. chill. 233. T. D. fro; S. from; Th. F. for (_twice_). 234. Th. +T. D. yse; F. Ise; S. Iss. 239. S. distress. 241. _So_ D. P.; S. doth his +besyness; Th. euer doth his besy payne; F. eu_er_e doth besy peyn; T. euur +doth his bysy hate (_sic_). 242. T. Agaynes; F. D. Ayens; Th. Ayenst; S. +A[gh]eynis. S. and to; _rest om._ to. 243. Th. _om._ wolde. + +245. T. wolde; S. wold; Th. D. wol; F. will. 247. T. myghte; Th. F. might. +248. S. for; _rest om._ 251, 252. T. D. lette, whette; Th. F. let, whet. +_All_ despite. 253. S. A[gh]eynes; T. Agaynes; F. D. Ayens; Th. Agaynst. +257. P. of wrath. 258. S. a[gh]eynes; T. agaynes; F. D. ayens; Th. agaynst. +260, 262. Th. tel, bel; _rest_ telle, belle. S. rong; F. T. D. ronge; Th. +range. 267, 269. S. lond, fond; _rest_ londe, fonde. 271. Th. D. falshode; +F. S. falshed; T. falsehede. 276. Th. D. be; _rest_ ben. + +277. S. sat; _rest_ sate, satte. 281. F. non ne may; _rest_ may non. 283. +D. oth; S. soth; _rest_ othe. 285. Th. F. T. P. clepe; D. speke; S. cleke +(!). 297. T. D. full_e_; Th. F. ful. 298. Th. S. one; _rest_ oon. 299. F. +more (_for_ any). 303. Th. cal. 305. Th. fal. 306. Th. al. 307. _All_ the +name; _I omit_ the. 308. _All_ the blame; _read_ ber'the. + +314, 315. D. lowlyheed, speed; _rest_ -hede, spede. 322. _All_ Vn-to; +_read_ To. 323. F. sithe; S. sithen; _rest_ sith. 332. _Perhaps omit_ his. +D. payn; T. peyn; _rest_ payne (peyne). 337. S. bet; F. bette; _rest_ +better. 338. Th. F. _om. 2nd_ his. 339. T. lady; F. ladye; _rest_ ladyes. +346. D. perelees; F. T. S. P. pereles; Th. peerles. + +347. T. liste of hym; S. can of him. 349. F. Gades; S. Gadis; _rest_ +Gaddes. 351. Th. P. _om._ ben. 352. S. Y-sett; D. Sette. 355. _I supply_ +he. 357. S. [gh]it; _rest omit_. 360. S. fresch; _rest omit_. 363. T. dide; +_rest_ did. 368. S. eke; _rest omit_. 374. F. Tereus (_for_ Theseus). 378. +F. falshed; S. falshede. 379. _I supply_ knight. 380. _All_ eke; _read_ +also. _I supply_ al. + +382. S. and thair (_for_ and hir); _rest omit_ thair (= hir). 384. Th. +lieges. 386. _So all._ 391. S. worthi kny_ch_t & hir trew; _rest omit_ +worthi _and_ trew. _I follow_ S.; _but omit_ and. 393. F. T. Ipomones; Th. +Ypomedes; S. P. Ypomenes; D. Ipomeus. 394. _I supply_ was. 400. F. lovers; +T. louys; _rest_ loues. 403. S. trewe; _rest_ trewe men. 405. Th. moost. +407. D. S. oth; _rest_ othe. 409. F. P. S. port; _rest_ porte. 411. S. no; +_rest omit_. 413. Th. lytel; P. litill; D. litle; _rest_ lyte. + +414. F. nother; _rest_ nor. 415. Th. syknesse; F. sekenesse. 419. D. +Iupardy; _rest_ in partynge (_for_ iupartynge); _read_ juparting; cf. l. +475. 421. F. fals (_error for_ false); _rest omit_. 426. S. double (_for_ +pitous). 429. S. falss; _rest om._ 435. Th. F. P. bye; D. bie; T. bey; S. +by. 437. Th. T. S. sene; F. seen; P. D. seyn. 438. Th. sticken; P. D. +stekyn. 439. S. P. the; _rest om._ 447. S. [gh]it; _rest om._ + +449. _I supply_ she. S. ysuorn; _rest om._ y-. 451. Th. _om._ have. 453. T. +D. S. aboue (_for_ of love); _see_ l. 454. 461. S. blend (_read_ blent); +_rest_ blynde (blinde). 462. S. as he wend (_read_ went); Th. by wende (!); +_rest_ by wenynge (!). 464. F. T. avise; D. avice; S. aviss; Th. aduyse. +467. S. P. frend; _rest_ frende. 468. B. _begins here_. _I supply_ and. +469. T. lette; F. leteth; Th. letteth; B. D. letith; S. lattith. 471. B. F. +S. he doth; Th. T. doth to. 475. Th. ieopardye; S. Iup_ar_tye; F. partie +(!); B. D. T. Iupardye; P. Iupard. + +488. Th. systerne. 489. S. haue schapen (_for_ shopen). 494. F. hath; Th. +haue. 501. F. B. plentevous. Th. largnesse. 508. Th. trouthe; S. treuth; +_rest_ routhe; _see_ l. 679. 514. Th. Gyltlesse; F. Giltles; P. Gylteles. + +523. F. B. P. ye (_for_ you). 530. F. B. S. gilt; _rest_ gylte (gilte). +533. S. a[gh]eynes; T. agaynes; F. B. D. ayens; Th. agaynst. 536. S. [gh]ow +to pay; _rest_ her to pay. 537. Th. _om._ eche. 538. T. D. liste; _rest_ +list. 541. _All_ euery; _read_ al. 543. _All_ graunte (graunt); _read_ +graunten. 545. Th. onely sle me; MSS. slee me only. 547. S. vnto; _rest +om._ 548. S. If (_for_ And). 549. S. apaid; _rest_ payd (paid). 550. _For_ +to _read_ shal? 551. F. P. legeaunce; Th. D. ligeaunce; T. lygeaunce. + +553. T. D. luste; Th. F. B. lust. S. Quherso hir list to do me lyue or +deye. 555. S. hoolly; Th. holy. 560. Th. T. D. lyste; F. S. P. list. 561. +S. vnto; _rest_ to. 566. S. quhill þ_a_t me. 568. Th. mater. 571. F. B. P. +hest. 573. T. liste; _rest_ list (lust). 575. T. sike; S. to sike; Th. D. +sygh; F. B. sile (!). 577. Th. no worde. 581. Th. long wisshing (!). Th. S. +for; F. B. D. P. for his; T. for her. 583. S. P. gan; _rest_ gonne (gunne). + +587. S. compleynen; _rest_ complayne. 598. T. faste; _rest_ fast. 605. _I +supply_ here. 606. Th. dytte. 611. T. D. weste; _rest_ west. 617. T. D. +faste; _rest_ fast. S. D. F. doun; Th. adowne; D. T. Adoun. 622. T. you; +_rest om._ + +626. S. for to; _rest om._ 627. MSS. welwilly; Th. wyl I (!). 636. Th. +socouer (_misprint_). 645. S. vnto; _rest_ to. 647. S. verily; Th. T. D. +wery (!); B. very wery (!); F. werry wery (!); P. very. 650. F. B. reles; +T. D. relese; Th. release; S. relesche. 656. Th. T. S. P. _om._ his. + +659. Th. _om._ that. 663. Th. ialousyes; D. Ielosies; _rest_ Ielosye. 664. +T. B. P. of; _rest_ of his. 665. S. Werreyed; D. Werried; _rest_ Werred. +666. MSS. Princes; Th. Pryncesse. Th. pleaseth; F. pleseth; P. plesith +(_read_ plese). Th. it to your; _rest om._ to. 667. S. P. for; _rest om._ +669. Th. D. _om._ trewe. 673. S. for; _rest om._ + + * * * * * + +IX. THE FLOUR OF CURTESYE. + + In Fevrier, whan the frosty mone + Was horned, ful of Phebus fyry light, + And that she gan to reyse her stremes sone, + Saint Valentyne! upon thy blisful night + Of duëtee, whan glad is every wight, 5 + And foules chese (to voyde hir olde sorowe) + Everich his make, upon the nexte morowe; + + The same tyme, I herde a larke singe + Ful lustely, agayn the morowe gray-- + 'Awake, ye lovers, out of your slombringe, 10 + This gladde morowe, in al the haste ye may; + Some óbservaunce doth unto this day, + Your choise ayen of herte to renewe + In cónfirming, for ever to be trewe! + + And ye that be, of chesing, at your large, 15 + This lusty day, by custome of nature, + Take upon you the blisful holy charge + To serve lovë, whyl your lyf may dure, + With herte, body, and al your besy cure, + For evermore, as Venus and Cipryde 20 + For you disposeth, and the god Cupyde. + + For joye owe we playnly to obeye + Unto this lordes mighty ordinaunce, + And, mercilesse, rather for to deye + Than ever in you be founden variaunce; 25 + And, though your lyf be medled with grevaunce, + And, at your herte, closed be your wounde, + Beth alway one, ther-as ye are bounde!' + + Thát whan I had herd, and listed longe, + With devout herte, the lusty melodye 30 + Of this hevenly comfortable songe + So ágreable, as by harmonye, + I roos anon, and faste gan me hye + Toward a grove, and the way [gan] take + Foules to sene, everich chese his make. 35 + + And yet I was ful thursty in languisshing; + Myn ague was so fervent in his hete, + Whan Aurora, for drery complayning, + Can distille her cristal teres wete + Upon the soile, with silver dewe so swete; 40 + For she [ne] durste, for shame, not apere + Under the light of Phebus bemes clere. + + And so, for anguisshe of my paynes kene, + And for constraynte of my sighes sore, + I sette me doun under a laurer grene 45 + Ful pitously; and alway more and more, + As I beheld into the holtes hore, + I gan complayne myn inward deedly smerte, + That ay so sore +crampisshed myn herte. + + And whyl that I, in my drery payne, 50 + Sat, and beheld aboute on every tree + The foules sitten, alway twayne and twayne, + Than thoughte I thus: 'alas! what may this be, + That every foul hath his libertee + Frely to chesen after his desyre 55 + Everich his make thus, fro yeer to yere? + + The sely wrenne, the titmose also, + The litel redbrest, have free eleccioun + To flyen y-ferë and +togider go + Wher-as hem liste, abouten enviroun, 60 + As they of kynde have inclinacoun, + And as Nature, emperesse and gyde, + Of every thing, liste to provyde; + + But man aloon, alas! the harde stounde! + Ful cruelly, by kyndes ordinaunce, 65 + Constrayned is, and by statut bounde, + And debarred from alle such plesaunce. + What meneth this? What is this purveyaunce + Of god above, agayn al right of kynde, + Withoute cause, so narowe man to bynde?' 70 + + Thus may I [soothly] seen, and playne, alas! + My woful houre and my disaventure, + That dolefully stonde in the same cas + So fer behyndë, from al helth and cure. + My wounde abydeth lyk a sursanure; 75 + For me Fortune so felly list dispose, + My harm is hid, that I dar not disclose. + + For I my herte have set in suche a place + Wher I am never lykly for to spede; + So fer I am hindred from her grace 80 + That, save daunger, I have non other mede. + And thus, alas! I not who shal me rede + Ne for myn helpe shape remedye, + For Male-bouche, and for false Envye: + + The whiche twayne ay stondeth in my wey 85 + Maliciously; and Fals Suspeccioun + Is very causë also that I dey, + Ginning and rote of my distruccioun; + So that I fele, [as] in conclusioun, + With hir traynes that they wol me shende, 90 + Of my labour that deth mot make an ende! + + Yet, or I dye, with herte, wil, and thought + To god of lovë this avowe I make, + (As I best can, how dere that it be bought, + Wher-so it be, that I slepe or wake, 95 + Whyl Boreas doth the leves shake) + As I have hight, playnly, til I sterve, + For wele or wo, that I shal [ay] her serve. + + And, for her sake, now this holy tyme, + Saint Valentyne! somwhat shal I wryte 100 + Al-though so be that I can not ryme, + Nor curiously by no crafte endyte, + Yet lever I have, that she putte the wyte + In unconning than in negligence, + What-ever I sayë of her excellence. 105 + + What-ever I saye, it is of duëtee, + In sothfastnesse and no presumpcioun; + This I ensure to you that shal it see, + That it is al under correccioun; + What I reherce in commendacioun 110 + Of herë that I shal to you, as blyve, + So as I can, her vertues here discryve.-- + + ¶ Right by example as the somer-sonne + Passeth the sterre with his bemes shene, + And Lucifer among the skyës donne 115 + A-morowe sheweth to voyde nightes tene, + So verily, withouten any wene, + My lady passeth (who-so taketh hede) + Al tho alyve, to speke of womanhede. + + And as the ruby hath the soveraintè 120 + Of riche stones and the regalyë; + And [as] the rose, of swetnesse and beautè, + Of fresshe floures, withouten any lyë; + Right so, in sothe, with her goodly yë, + She passeth al in bountee and fairnesse, 125 + Of maner ekë, and of gentilnesse. + + For she is bothe the fairest and the beste, + To reken al in very sothfastnesse; + For every vertue is in her at reste; + And furthermore, to speke of stedfastnesse, 130 + She is the rotë; and of seemlinesse + The very mirrour; and of governaunce + To al example, withouten variaunce. + + Of port benigne, and wonder glad of chere, + Having evermore her trewe advertence 135 + Alway to reson; so that her desyre + Is brydeled ay by witte and providence; + Thereto, of wittë and of hy prudence + She is the wellë, ay devoide of pryde, + That unto vertue her-selven is the gyde! 140 + + And over this, in her daliaunce + Lowly she is, discret, wyse, [and secree], + And goodly gladde by attemperaunce, + That every wight, of high and low degree, + Are gladde in herte with her for to be; 145 + Só that, shortly, if I shal not lye, + She named is 'The Flour of Curtesye.' + + And there, to speke of femininitee, + The leste mannish in comparisoun, + Goodly abasshed, having ay pitee 150 + Of hem that been in tribulacioun; + For she aloon is consolacioun + To al that arn in mischeef and in nede, + To comforte hem, of her womanhede. + + And ay in vertue is her besy charge, 155 + Sadde and demure, and but of wordes fewe; + Dredful also of tonges that ben large, + Eschewing ay hem that listen to hewe + Above hir heed, hir wordes for to shewe, + Dishonestly to speke of any wight; 160 + She deedly hateth of hem to have a sight. + + The herte of whom so honest is and clene, + And her entent so faithful and entere + That she ne may, for al the world, sustene + To suffre her eres any word to here, 165 + Of frend nor fo, neither fer ne nere, + Amis resowning, that hinder shulde his name; + And if she do, she wexeth reed for shame. + + So trewëly in mening she is set, + Without chaunging or any doublenesse; 170 + For bountee and beautee ar togider knet + In her personë, under faithfulnesse; + For void she is of newëfangelnesse; + In herte ay oon, for ever to perséver + Ther she is set, and never to dissever. 175 + + I am to rude her vertues everichoon + Cunningly [for] to discryve and wryte; + For wel ye wot, colour[es] have I noon + Lyk her discrecioun craftely t'endyte; + For what I sayë, al it is to lyte. 180 + Whérfor to you thus I me excuse, + That I aqueynted am not with no muse! + + By rethoryke my style to governe, + In her preyse and commendacioun, + I am to blind, so hyly to discerne, 185 + Of her goodnesse to make discripcioun, + Save thus I sayë, in conclusioun, + If that I shal shortly [her] commende, + In her is naught that Nature can amende. + + For good she is, lyk to Policene, 190 + And, in fairnesse, to the quene Helayne; + Stedfast of herte, as was Dorigene, + And wyfly trouthë, if I shal not fayne: + In constaunce eke and faith, she may attayne + To Cleopatre; and therto as +secree 195 + As was of Troye the whyte Antigone; + + As Hester meke; lyk Judith of prudence; + Kynde as Alceste or Marcia Catoun; + And to Grisilde lyk in pacience, + And Ariadne, of discrecioun; 200 + And to Lucrece, that was of Rome toun, + She may be lykned, as for honestè; + And, for her faith, unto Penelope. + + To faire Phyllis and to Hipsiphilee, + For innocencë and for womanhede; 205 + For seemlinessë, unto Canacee; + And over this, to speke of goodlihede, + She passeth alle that I can of rede; + For worde and dede, that she naught ne falle, + Acorde in vertue, and her werkes alle. 210 + + For though that Dydo, with [her] witte sage, + Was in her tyme stedfast to Enee, + Of hastinesse yet she did outrage; + And so for Jason did also Medee. + But my lady is so avisee 215 + That, bountee and beautee bothe in her demeyne, + She maketh bountee alway soverayne. + + This is to mene, bountee goth afore, + Lad by prudence, and hath the soveraintee; + And beautee folweth, ruled by her lore, 220 + That she +n'offendë her in no degree; + So that, in one, this goodly fresshe free + Surmounting al, withouten any were, + Is good and fair, in oon persone y-fere. + + And though that I, for very ignoraunce, 225 + Ne may discryve her vertues by and by, + Yet on this day, for a rémembraunce, + Only supported under her mercy, + With quaking hondë, I shal ful humbly + To her hynesse, my rudenes for to quyte, 230 + A litel balade here bineth endyte, + + Ever as I can suppryse in my herte, + Alway with fere, betwixe drede and shame, + Lest out of lose any word asterte + In this metre, to make it seme lame; 235 + Chaucer is deed, that hadde suche a name + Of fair making, that [was], withoute wene, + Fairest in our tonge, as the laurer grene. + + We may assaye for to counterfete + His gaye style, but it wil not be; 240 + The welle is drye, with the licour swete, + Bothe of Clio and of Caliopè; + And first of al, I wol excuse me + To her, that is [the] ground of goodlihede; + And thus I saye until hir womanhede:-- 245 + + BALADE SIMPLE. + + ¶ 'With al my mightë, and my beste entente, + With al the faith that mighty god of kynde + Me yaf, sith he me soule and knowing sente, + I chese, and to this bonde ever I me bynde, + To love you best, whyl I have lyf and mynde':-- 250 + Thus herde I foules in the dawëninge + Upon the day of saint Valentyne singe. + + 'Yet chese I, at the ginning, in this entente, + To love you, though I no mercy fynde; + And if you liste I dyed, I wolde assente, 255 + As ever twinne I quik out of this lynde! + Suffyseth me to seen your fetheres ynde':-- + Thus herde I foules in the morweninge + Upon the day of saint Valentyne singe. + + 'And over this, myn hertes lust to-bente, 260 + In honour only of the wodëbynde, + Hoolly I yeve, never to repente + In joye or wo, wher-so that I wynde + Tofore Cupyde, with his eyën blynde':-- + The foules alle, whan Tytan did springe, 265 + With dévout herte, me thoughte I herde singe! + + LENVOY. + + ¶ Princesse of beautee, to you I represente + This simple dytè, rude as in makinge, + Of herte and wil faithful in myn entente, + Lyk as, this day, [the] foules herde I singe. 270 + + HERE ENDETH THE FLOUR OF CURTESYE. + +_From_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1532). TITLE: Th. The Floure of Curtesy; (ed. 1561 +_adds_--made by Ihon Lidgate). _I note here the rejected spellings._ 1. +Feverier. 2. firy. 3. streames. 5. dutie. 6. her. 7. Eueryche; next. 9. +agayne. 11. glad. 12. dothe. 15. chosyng. 18. whyle; lyfe. 20. Cipride. 22. +obey. + +26. lyfe. 26. closet. 27. there. 29. herde. 30. deuoute. 32. ermonye. 33. +rose. 34. Towarde; _supply_ gan. 35. eueryche chose. 39. distyl; (_read_ +distille); chrystal teeres. 41. _Supply_ ne. 42. beames. 45. set; downe. +47. behelde. 48. inwarde. 49. aye; crampessh at (_read_ crampisshed). 50. +whyle. 51. Sate; behelde; tre. 52. sytte (_read_ sitten). 53. thought. 54. +foule. 55. chose (_read_ chesen). 56. Eueryche; yere to yere. + +57. tytemose. 58. election. 59. togyther (_read_ togider). 60. Where as; +lyst aboute envyron. 61. inclynacion. 62. empresse (_read_ emperesse). 63. +lyst. 64. alone. 66. statute. 67. al suche. 69. agayne. 70. Without. 71. +_Supply_ soothly; sene. 73. doulfully; caas. 74. ferre. 75. lyke. 76. +lyste. 77. harme; dare. 79. lykely. 80. ferre. 81. none. 83. myne. 85. aye. +86. false suspection. 88. distruction. 89. _Supply_ as; conclusyon. + +91. dethe mote. 94. howe. 95. Where so. 96. Whyle; dothe; leaues. 98. wel; +_supply_ ay. 99. nowe. 103. put. 106. say; dute (_read_ duetee). 107. +presumpcion. 108. se. 109. correction. 110. co_m_mendacion. 111. her +(_read_ here). 114. beames. 115. amonge. 122. _Supply_ as; swetenesse. 123. +without. 124. eye. + +125. bountie; fayrenesse. 128. reken (_read_ reknen?). 131. semelynesse. +136. reason. 137. aye. 138. hye. 139. aye. 142. discrete and wyse (_read_ +discret wyse; _and supply_ secree _for the rime_). 144. lowe. 145. glad. +147. Floure. 148. femynyte (!). 149. mannyshe; comparison. 150. aye pyte. +151. ben; trybulacion. 152. alone; -cion. 153. arne; mischefe. 155. aye. +157. Dredeful. 158. aye. 159. her (_twice_.) + +164. worlde. 165. eeres; worde. 166. frende; foe; ferre. 167. Amysse. 169. +trewly; is in sette (_om._ in). 171. bountie; beautie are togyther knette. +173. voyde; newfanglenesse (_or read_ voide _and_ newfangelnesse). 174. aye +one. 175. There; sette. 176. euerychone. 177. _Supply_ for. 178. colour; +none. 179. Lyke; to endyte. 180. say. 181. Wherfore. 184. co_m_mendacion. +185. blynde; hylye. 186. discrypcion. 187. say; conclusyon. 188. _Supply_ +her. 190. lyke. 191. fayrenesse. + +193. wyfely. 194. faythe. 195. setrone (!); _read_ secree (_see note_). +197. lyke. 198. Alcest. 199. lyke. 202. lykened. 203. faythe. 206. +semelynesse; Canace. 208. al. 209, 210. fal, al. 211. _Supply_ her. 216. +bountie; beautie. 217. bountie. 218. meane bountie gothe. 220. beautie +foloweth. 221. ne fende (!); degre. 222. fre. 224. fayre; one. + +228. Onely. 230. rudenesse. 233. feare; betwyxt. 234. Leste; worde. 236. +had. 237. fayre; _supply_ was; without. 239. assay. 240. gay. 241. lycoure. +242. Clye (!). 244. _Supply_ the; grounde. 245. say. 246. might; best +entent. 247. faythe. 248. yaue; sent. 250. whyle; lyfe. 251. daunynge. 252, +259. saynte Valentyne (? _om._ saynte). 253. begynnyng (_read_ ginning); +entent. 255. assent. 256. quicke; lyne (_misprint_). 257. sene; fethers. + +258. mornynge (_for_ morweninge). 260. myne; luste. 261. onely; wodde +bynde. 262. Holy. 263. where so. 265. al. 266. deuoute hert; thought. 267. +Lenvoye. beautie; represent. 269. entent. 270. Lyke; _supply_ the. +COLOPHON: Floure; Curtesy. + + * * * * * + +X. A BALADE; IN COMMENDATION OF OUR LADY. + +(A DEVOUTE BALADE BY LIDEGATE OF BURY, MADE AT THE REVERENCE OF OURE LADY, +QWENE OF MERCY.--A.) + + A thousand stories coude I mo reherce + Of olde poetes, touching this matere, + How that Cupyde the hertes gan so perce + Of his servauntes, setting hem on fere; + Lo, here the fyn of th'errour and the were! 5 + Lo, here of love the guerdon and grevaunce + That ever with wo his servaunts doth avaunce! + + Wherfor now playnly I wol my style dresse + Of one to speke, at nede that wol nat fayle; + Alas! for dole, I ne can ne may expresse 10 + Her passing pryse, and that is no mervayle. + O wind of grace, now blow into my sayle! + O aureat licour of Cleo, for to wryte + My penne enspyre, of that I wolde endyte! + + Alas! unworthy I am and unable 15 + To love suche oon, al women surmounting, + To be benigne to me, and merciable, + That is of pitè the welle and eek the spring! + Wherfor of her, in laude and in praysing, + So as I can, supported by her grace, 20 + Right thus I say, kneling tofore her face:-- + + O sterre of sterres, with thy stremes clere, + Sterre of the see, to shipmen light and gyde, + O lusty living, most plesaunt to apere, + Whos brighte bemes the cloudes may not hyde; 25 + O way of lyf to hem that go or ryde, + Haven from tempest, surest up to ryve, + On me have mercy, for thy joyes fyve! + + O rightful rule, O rote of holinesse, + And lightsom lyne of pitè for to playne, 30 + Original ginning of grace and al goodnesse, + Clenest conduit of vertue soverayne, + Moder of mercy, our trouble to restrayne, + Chambre and closet clenest of chastitè, + And named herberwe of the deitè! 35 + + O hoolsom garden, al voyde of wedes wikke, + Cristallin welle, of clennesse clere consigned, + Fructif olyve, of foyles faire and thikke, + And redolent cedre, most dereworthly digned, + Remembre on sinners unto thee assigned 40 + Er wikked fendes hir wrathe upon hem wreche; + Lanterne of light, thou be hir lyves leche! + + Paradyse of plesaunce, gladsom to al good, + Benigne braunchelet of the pyne-tree, + Vyneyerd vermayle, refressher of our food, 45 + Licour ayein languor, palled that may not be, + Blisful bawme-blossom, byding in bountè, + Thy mantel of mercy on our mischef sprede, + And er wo wake, wrappe us under thy wede! + + O rody rosier, flouring withouten spyne, 50 + Fountayne filthles, as beryl currant clere, + Som drope of graceful dewe to us propyne; + Light withoute nebule, shyning in thy spere, + Medecyne to mischeves, pucelle withouten pere, + Flame doun to doleful light of thyn influence 55 + On thy servauntes, for thy magnificence! + + Of al Christen protectrice and tutele, + Retour of exyled, put in prescripcioun + To hem that erre in the pathe of hir sequele; + To wery wandred tent and pavilioun, 60 + The feynte to fresshe, and the pausacioun; + Unto unresty bothe reste and remedye, + Fruteful to al tho that in her affye. + + To hem that rennen thou art itinerárie, + O blisful bravie to knightes of thy werre; 65 + To wery werkmen thou art diourn denárie, + Mede unto mariners that have sayled ferre; + Laureat crowne, streming as a sterre + To hem that putte hem in palestre for thy sake, + Cours of her conquest, thou whyte as any lake! 70 + + Thou mirthe of martyrs, sweter than citole, + Of confessours also richest donatyf, + Unto virgynes eternal lauriole, + Afore al women having prerogatyf; + Moder and mayde, bothe widowe and wyf, 75 + Of al the worlde is noon but thou alone! + Now, sith thou may, be socour to my mone! + + O trusty turtle, trewest of al trewe, + O curteyse columbe, replete of al mekenesse, + O nightingale with thy notes newe, 80 + O popinjay, plumed with al clennesse, + O laverok of love, singing with swetnesse, + Phebus, awayting til in thy brest he lighte + Under thy winge at domesday us dighte! + + O ruby, rubifyed in the passioun 85 + Al of thy sone, among have us in minde, + O stedfast dyamaunt of duracioun, + That fewe feres that tyme might thou finde, + For noon to him was founden half so kinde! + O hardy herte, O loving crëature, 90 + What was it but love that made thee so endure? + + Semely saphyre, depe loupe, and blewe ewage, + Stable as the loupe, ewage of pitè, + This is to say, the fresshest of visage, + Thou lovest hem unchaunged that serven thee. 95 + And if offence or wrything in hem be, + Thou art ay redy upon hir wo to rewe, + And hem receyvest with herte ful trewe. + + O goodly gladded, whan that Gabriel + With joy thee grette that may not be nombred! 100 + Or half the blisse who coude wryte or tel + Whan the holy goost to thee was obumbred, + Wherthrough fendes were utterly encombred? + O wemlees mayde, embelisshed in his birthe, + That man and aungel therof hadden mirthe! 105 + + Lo, here the blossom and the budde of glorie, + Of which the prophet spak so longe aforn; + Lo, here the same that was in memórie + Of Isaie, so longe or she was born; + Lo, here of David the delicious corn; 110 + Lo, here the ground that list [him] to onbelde, + Becoming man, our raunsom for to yelde! + + O glorious vyole, O vytre inviolat! + O fyry Tytan, persing with thy bemes, + Whos vertuous brightnes was in thy brest vibrat, 115 + That al the world embelisshed with his lemes! + Conservatrice of kingdomes and remes; + Of Isaies sede O swete Sunamyte, + Mesure my mourning, myn owne Margaryte! + + O sovereignest, sought out of Sion, 120 + O punical pome ayens al pestilence; + And aureat urne, in whom was bouk and boon + The agnelet, that faught for our offence + Ayens the serpent with so high defence + That lyk a lyoun in victorie he was founde; 125 + To him commende us, of mercy most habounde! + + O precious perle, withouten any pere, + Cockle with gold dew from above berayned, + Thou busshe unbrent, fyrles set a-fere, + Flambing with fervence, not with hete payned; 130 + Thou during daysye, with no +weder stayned; + Flees undefouled of gentil Gedeon, + And fructifying yerd thou of Aaron. + + Thou misty arke, probatik piscyne, + Laughing Aurora, and of pees olyve; 135 + Columpne and base, up bering from abyme; + Why nere I conning, thee for to discryve? + Chosen of Joseph, whom he took to wyve, + Unknowing him, childing by greet mirácle, + And of our manhode trewe tabernacle! 140 + +_From_ Th.; _collated with_ A. (Ashmole 59); _and_ Sl. (Sloane 1212). 1. A. +I kouþe to you. 2. A. clerkis (_for_ poetes); the (_for_ this). 3. A. cane +mens hertes presse (!). 4. Th. hem; A. þeire hertes. Th. in fere; A. a +fuyre. 5. A. With ful daunger payeþe his subgettes hyre. Sl. weere; Th. +fere. 7. Th. Sl. euer; A. aye. Sl. A. his ... doth; Th. her ... do. 8. Th. +nowe; A. _om._ Sl. redresse. 10. A. Ellas I ne can ne may not ful expresse. +11. Th. Sl. and that; A. the whiche. 12. Th. wynde. Sl. into; Th. unto. A. +þou blowe nowe to my. 13. Th. auryate; A. aureate. A. _om._ of. 14. A. +tenspyre of whiche I thenk to wryte. Sl. wold; Th. wol. 15. A. But sith I +am sonworthy (!). 16. Sl. on; Th. A. one. 17. A. To; Th. Sl. But she. + +18. A. Whiche of pytee is welle. 19. Th. Sl. of; A. to. 20. Th. Sl. can; A. +am. 22. A. O souereine sterre. 24. Sl. lemand (_for_ living). Sl. most; Th. +A. moste. 25. Th. Whose bright beames. Th. Sl. may; A. cane. 26. A. lyff; +Th. Sl. lyfe. 27. A. frome; Th. Sl. after. 29. Sl. rote; Th. A. bote. 31. +A. gynnyng of grace and; Th. Sl. begynning of grace and al. 32. A. +Clennest; Th. And clenest. Th. Sl. _ins._ most _bef._ sovereyne. 33. A. +Moder; Th. Mother. 34. A. al cloose closette; Th. Sl. and closet clennest. +35. Th. herbrough; Sl. herberwe. A. The hyest herber (!) of al the. 36. A. +holsome; Th. Sl. closed. A. _om._ al. 37. A. Welle cristallyne. A. Sl. +clennesse; Th. clerenesse. 38. A. Fructyff; Th. Fructyfyed. Th. fayre; A. +so feyre. 39. A. _om._ And. A. _om._ most. 40. A _om._ on. Sl. pecchours +(_for_ sinners). A. unto; Th. Sl. that to the be. 41. Th. Sl. Or wikked; A. +Er foule. A. on hem þeire wrathe. Sl. upon; Th. on. 42. Th. _om._ be. 43. +A. Thou Paradys plesante, gladnesse of goode. 44. A. And benigne braunche. +45. A. Vyneyerde vermayle; Th. Sl. Vynarie enuermayled. Sl. food; Th. A. +bote. + +46. Th. ayen al langour; A. geyne langoure. A. palde that; Th. Sl. that +palled. 47. Sl. Blisful bawme; A. Thou blessed; Th. Blysful blomy. 48. Sl. +misericord on our myschef. Th. on our myserie; A. vppon vs spilt thou. 49. +Th. awake. A. wake and wrappe vs ay vnder. 50. A. O rede roos raylling +withouten. Th. without. 51. Th. al fylthlesse; A. _om._ al. A. currant as +beryle. Th. byrel. 52. Th. Sl. of thy; _I omit_ thy. A. Grace of thy dewe +til vs thou do propyne. 53. Th. O light; Sl. Thou lyght. A. Thou louely +light, shynynge in bright spere. 54. A. missers; Th. mischeues; Sl. +myscheuows. A. withouten; Th. without. 55. Th. Flambe; A. Dryve. Sl. to; +Th. A. the. A. _om._ doleful. 56. A. On; Th. Sl. Rem_em_bring. 58. Sl. +Retour; Th. Returne; A. Recure. A. Sl. in; Th. in the. 59. A. To therroures +of the pathe sequele. 60. A. For (_for_ To). Sl. wandrid; Th. forwandred; +A. wandering. 61. _So_ A. Th. To faynte and to fresshe the. 62. A. To wery +wightes ful reste. 63. Th. tho that; A. that hem. A. _omits_ ll. 64-119. +64. Th. arte. 66. Sl. thou art; Th. she is. Th. diourne. 68. Th. Laureate. +69. Th. put; palastre. 71. Sl. Thow; Th. O. Th. myrthe; swetter; sytole. +72. Sl. _om._ also. Th. donatyfe. + +74. Th. -tyfe. 75. Th. Mother; wyfe. 76. Sl. In all this. Sl. noon; Th. +none. 78. Sl. trewest; Th. truefastest. 81. Sl. plumed; Th. pured. 82. Sl. +larke. 83. Sl. in; Th. on. 83, 84. lyght, dyght. 85. passyon. 86. Sl. +All_e_; Th. _om._ Th. sonne. Sl. among haue us; Th. vs haue amonge. 87. Sl. +dyamaunt; Th. dyametre. 88. Sl. that; Th. any. 89. halfe. 91. the. 92. Th. +saphre (_sic_); Sl. saffyr. 95. _So_ Sl. Th. unchaunged hem. 96. Sl. +writhyng; Th. varyeng. 97. arte; her. 98. hert; _see note_. 99. gladed. +100. the. 102. goste; the. 103. Sl. vtterly; Th. bytterly. 104. wemlesse. +Th. in; Sl. with. + +106. blosme. 107. Th. prophete; Sl. prophetys. Sl. spak so long aforn; Th. +so longe spake beforne. 109, 110. borne, corne. 111. Th. of lyfe in to +bilde; Sl. that list to onbelde. 113. Sl. o vitre; Th. and vyte. Th. +inuyolate. 115. Th. _om._ thy; vibrate. 116. Sl. his; Th. the. 117. Sl. +kyngdamys; Th. kynges dukes. Sl. remys; Th. realmes. 118. Sl. o; Th. _om._ +120. A. souereine. Th. A. sought; Sl. sowth. Th. out of; Sl. of out; A. fer +oute. 121-127. _In_ Sl. _only_. 121. Sl. alle. 122. Sl. auryat; book and +born (!); _see note_. 125. Sl. victory. 126. Sl. moost. 127. Sl. ony. 128. +Th. golde dewe; A. glorie. 129. A. Sl. Thou; Th. Dewe (!). Sl. ferlett (!) +set affere; A. fuyrles thou sette vppon; Th. fyrelesse fyre set on. 130. +Sl. peyned; A. empeyred (!). 131. Sl. Th. _om._ Thou. A. with; Th. that. +Th. A. wether. A. disteyned. 132. Th. Fleece. A. gentyle; Th. gentylest. +133. Th. Sl. _insert_ fayrest _after_ fructifyeng (_sic_). A. yerde thowe; +Th. Sl. the yerde. + +134. A. Thowe; Sl. Th. The. Sl. mysti; Th. A. mighty. Sl. probatyk; Th. +probatyfe; A. the probatyf. 135. A. Aurora; Th. aurore. A. tholyve; Sl. Th. +olyue. 136. A. Pillor from base beryng from abysme. 137. A. Why nad I +langage. Sl. the for; A. hir for; Th. here. 138. Th. toke. A. Chosen of +god, whome Joseph gaf (!) to wyve. 139. Th. Sl. childyng; A. bare Cryste. +Th. Sl. _om._ greet. 140. Th. And of our manly figure the; Sl. And of oure +mar (!) figure; A. And of Ihesus manhode truwe. + + * * * * * + +XI. TO MY SOVERAIN LADY. + + I have non English convenient and digne + Myn hertes hele, lady, thee with t'honoure, + Ivorie clene; therfore I wol resigne + In-to thyn hand, til thou list socoure + To help my making bothe florisshe and floure; 5 + Than shulde I shewe, in love how I brende, + In songes making, thy name to commende. + + For if I coude before thyn excellence + Singen in love, I wolde, what I fele, + And ever standen, lady, in thy presence, 10 + To shewe in open how I love you wele; + And sith, although your herte be mad of stele, + To you, withoute any disseveraunce, + _J'ay en vous toute ma fiaunce_. + + Wher might I love ever better besette 15 + Than in this lilie, lyking to beholde? + The lace of love, the bond so wel thou knette, + That I may see thee or myn herte colde, + And or I passe out of my dayes olde, + Tofore singing evermore utterly-- 20 + 'Your eyën two wol slee me sodainly.' + + For love I langour, blissed be such seknesse, + Sith it is for you, my hertely suffisaunce; + I can not elles saye, in my distresse, + So fair oon hath myn herte in governaunce; 25 + And after that I +ginne on esperaunce + With feble entune, though it thyn herte perce, + Yet for thy sake this lettre I do reherce. + + God wot, on musike I can not, but I gesse, + (Alas! why so?) that I might say or singe, 30 + So love I you, myn own soverain maistresse, + And ever shal, withouten départinge. + Mirrour of beautè, for you out shuld I ringe, + In rémembraunce eke of your eyen clere, + Thus fer from you, my soverain lady dere! 35 + + So wolde god your love wold me slo, + Sith, for your sake, I singe day by day; + Herte, why nilt thou [never] breke a-two, + Sith with my lady dwellen I ne may? + Thus many a roundel and many a virelay 40 + In fresshe Englisshe, whan I me layser finde, + I do recorde, on you to have minde! + + Now, lady myn! sith I you love and drede, + And you unchaunged finde, in o degree, + Whos grace ne may flye fro your womanhede, 45 + Disdayneth not for to remembre on me! + Myn herte bledeth, for I may nat you see; + And sith ye wot my mening désirous, + _Pleurez pur moi, si vous plaist amorous!_ + + What marveyle is, though I in payne be? 50 + I am departed from you, my soveraine; + Fortune, alas! _dont vient la destenee_, + That in no wyse I can ne may attayne + To see the beautè of your eyën twayne. + Wherfore I say, for tristesse doth me grame, 55 + _Tant me fait mal departir de ma dame!_ + + Why nere my wisshing brought to suche esploit + That I might say, for joye of your presence, + '_Ore a man cuer ce quil veuilloit,_ + _Ore a man cuer_ the highest excellence 60 + That ever had wight;' and sith myn advertence + Is in you, reweth on my paynes smerte, + I am so sore wounded to the herte. + + To live wel mery, two lovers were y-fere, + So may I say withouten any blame; 65 + If any man [per cas] to wilde were, + I coude him [sonë] teche to be tame; + Let him go love, and see wher it be game! + For I am brydled unto sobernesse + For her, that is of women cheef princesse. 70 + + But ever, whan thought shulde my herte embrace, + Than unto me is beste remedye, + Whan I loke on your goodly fresshe face; + So mery a mirrour coude I never espye; + And, if I coude, I wolde it magnifye. 75 + For never non was [here] so faire y-founde, + To reken hem al, and also Rosamounde. + + And fynally, with mouthe and wil present + Of double eye, withoute repentaunce, + Myn herte I yeve you, lady, in this entent, 80 + That ye shal hoolly therof have governaunce; + Taking my leve with hertes obeysaunce, + '_Salve, regina!_' singing laste of al, + To be our helpe, whan we to thee cal! + + Al our lovë is but ydelnesse 85 + Save your aloon; who might therto attayne? + Who-so wol have a name of gentillesse, + I counsayle him in love that he not fayne. + Thou swete lady! refut in every payne, + Whos [pitous] mercy most to me avayleth 90 + To gye by grace, whan that fortune fayleth. + + Nought may be told, withouten any fable, + Your high renome, your womanly beautè; + Your governaunce, to al worship able, + Putteth every herte in ese in his degree. 95 + O violet, _O flour desiree_, + Sith I am for you so amorous, + _Estreynez moy_, [lady,] _de cuer joyous_! + + With fervent herte my brest hath broste on fyre; + _L'ardant espoir que mon cuer poynt, est mort,_ 100 + _D'avoir l'amour de celle que je desyre_, + I mene you, swete, most plesaunt of port, + _Et je sai bien que ceo n'est pas mon tort_ + That for you singe, so as I may, for mone + For your departing; alone I live, alone. 105 + + Though I mighte, I wolde non other chese; + In your servyce, I wolde be founden sad; + Therfore I love no labour that ye lese, + Whan, in longing, sorest ye be stad; + Loke up, ye lovers [alle], and be right glad 110 + Ayeines sëynt Valentynes day, + For I have chose that never forsake I may! + + _Explicit._ + +_From_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1532); _I note rejected spellings_. 1. none +englysshe. 2. heale; the; to honour. 3. cleane. 4. thyne hande; socoure. 5. +helpe; flour. 6. howe. 8. thyne. 11. howe. 12. made. 13. withouten; +disceueraunce. 14. tout. 15. Where; beset. 17. bonde; knyt. 18. se the; +myne. 22. sicknesse. 23. Sythe. 24. els say. 25. fayre one; myne. 26. +begynne; _read_ ginne. + +27. thyne. 28. letter. 30. wote. 31. owne; maistres. 32. without. 35. +ferre. 36. wolde (_twice_). 37. Sythe. 38. nylte; _I supply_ never; breake. +39. Sythe; dwel. 43. Nowe; myne sithe. 44. euer fynde (_om._ euer). 45. +Whose. 47. Myne; se. 48. sithe; wotte; meanyng. 49. Plures; moy. 52. +destenie. 53. canne. 54. se. 55. dothe. 56. male. 58. ioye. 61. sithe myne. + +66. _Short line; I insert_ per cas. 67. _Short line; I insert_ sone. for +to; _I omit_ for. 68. Lette; se where. 70. chefe. 71. my hert shuld. 72. +best remedy. 74. espy. 76. none; _I insert_ here. 79. without. 81. holy. +82. leaue. 84. the. 86. your loue alone; _om._ loue. 89. refute. 90. Whose; +_I insert_ pitous. 92. tolde. 95. ease. 96. floure. + +97. Sythe; amerous. 98. Estreynes; _I insert_ lady _to fill out the line_. +99. brost. 102. meane; porte. 103. say. 106. myght; none. 107. sadde. 109. +stadde. 110. _I supply_ alle; gladde. 111. Ayenst saynt. 112. chese (_read_ +chose). + + * * * * * + +XII. BALLAD OF GOOD COUNSEL. + + Consider wel, with every circumstaunce, + Of what estat so-ever that thou be-- + Riche, strong, or mighty of puissaunce, + Prudent or wyse, discrete or avisee, + The doom of folke in soth thou mayst nat flee; 5 + What-ever that thou do, trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + For in thy port or in thyn apparayle + If thou be clad or honestly be-seyn, + Anon the people, of malice, wol nat fayle, 10 + Without advyce or reson, for to sayn + That thyn array is mad and wrought in vayn; + What! suffre hem spekë!--and trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + Thou wilt to kinges be equipolent, 15 + With gretë lordes even and peregal; + And, if thou be to-torn and al to-rent, + Than wol they say, and jangle over-al, + Thou art a slogard, that never thryvë shal; + Yet suffre hem spekë!--and trust right wel this, 20 + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + If thou be fayr, excelling of beautee, + Than wol they say, that thou art amorous; + If thou be foul and ugly on to see, + They wol afferme that thou art vicious, 25 + The peple of langage is so dispitous; + Suffre hem spekë, and trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + And if it fallë that thou take a wyf, + [Than] they wol falsly say, in hir entent, 30 + That thou art lykly ever to live in stryf, + Voyd of al rest, without alegëment; + Wyves be maistres, this is hir jugëment; + Yet suffre hem spekë--and trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. 35 + + And if it so be that, of parfitnesse, + Thou hast avowed to live in chastitee, + Thán wol folk of thy persone expresse + Say thou art impotent t'engendre in thy degree; + And thus, whether thou be chast or deslavee, 40 + Suffre hem spekë--and trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wel alway deme amis. + + And if that thou be fat or corpulent, + Than wol they say that thou art a glotoun, + A devourour, or ellës vinolent; 45 + If thou be lene or megre of fassioun, + Cal thee a nigard, in hir opinioun; + Yet suffre hem spekë--and trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + If thou be richë, som wol yeve thee laud, 50 + And say, it cometh of prudent governaunce; + And som wol sayen, that it cometh of fraud, + Outher by sleight, or by fals chevisaunce; + To say the worst, folk have so gret plesaunce; + Yet suffre hem sayë--and trust right wel this, 55 + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + If thou be sad or sobre of countenaunce, + Men wol say--thou thinkest som tresoun; + And if [that] thou be glad of daliaunce, + Men wol deme it dissolucioun, 60 + And calle thy fair speche, adulacioun; + Yet let hem spekë--and trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + Who that is holy by perfeccioun, + Men, of malyce, wol calle him ipocryte; 65 + And who is mery, of clene entencioun, + Men say, in ryot he doth him delyte; + Som mourne in blak; som laughe in clothes whyte; + What! suffre them spekë--and trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. 70 + + Honest array, men deme, +is pompe and pryde, + And who goth poore, men calle him a wastour; + And who goth [mene], men marke him on every syde, + And saye that he is a spye or a gylour; + Who wasteth, men seyn [that] he hath tresour; 75 + Wherfore conclude, and trust [right] wel this, + A wikked tonge wil alway deme amis. + + Who speketh mochë, men calle him prudent; + And who debateth, men say, he is hardy; + And who saith litel with gret sentiment, 80 + Som men yet wol edwyte him of foly; + Trouth is put down, and up goth flatery; + And who list plainly know the cause of this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + For though a man were al-so pacient 85 + As was David, through his humilitee, + Or with Salamon in wysdom as prudent, + Or in knighthode egal with Josuë, + Or manly proved as Judas Machabee, + Yet, for al that--trust right wel this, 90 + A wicked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + And though a man hadde the high prowesse + Of worthy Hector, Troyes champioun, + The love of Troilus or the kindenesse, + Or of Cesar the famous high renoun, 95 + With Alisaundres dominacioun, + Yet, for al that--trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + And though a man of high or low degree + Of Tullius hadde the sugred eloquence, 100 + Or of Senek the greet moralitee, + Or of Catoun the foresight or prudence, + Conquest of Charles, Arthurs magnificence, + Yet, for al that--trust right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. 105 + + Touching of women the parfit innocence, + Thogh they had of Hestre the mekenes, + Or of Griseldes [the] humble pacience, + Or of Judith the proved stablenes, + Or Policenes virginal clennes, 110 + Yit dar I say and truste right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + The wyfly trouthë of Penelope, + Though they it hadde in hir possessioun, + Eleynes beautè, the kindnes of Medee, 115 + The love unfeyned of Marcia Catoun, + Or of Alcest the trewe affeccioun, + Yit dar I say and truste right wel this, + A wikked tonge wol alway deme amis. + + Than sith it is, that no man may eschewe 120 + The swerde of tonge, but it wol kerve and byte, + Ful hard it is, a man for to remewe + Out of hir daunger, so they hem delyte + To hindre or slaundre, and also to bakbyte; + For [this] hir study fynally it is 125 + And hir plesaunce, alwey to deme amis. + + Most noble princes, cherisshers of vertue, + Remembreth you of high discrecioun, + The first vertue, most plesing to Jesu, + (By the wryting and sentence of Catoun), 130 + Is a good tonge, in his opinioun; + Chastyse the révers, and of wysdom do this, + Withdraw your hering from al that deme amis. + +_From_ Th. (Thynne's edition, 1532); _collated with_ Ff. (MS. Ff. 1. 6, +Camb. Univ. Library). _Another copy in_ H. (Harl. 2251). 1. H. with; Ff. +wiht; Th. _om._ 2. Ff. H. estat; Th. estate. Th. _om._ that. 3. Th. +stronge. 4. Ff. avisee; H. avice; Th. besy. 5. Th. Ff. dome; H. doome. Th. +sothe. H. mayst; Th. Ff. may. Th. Ff. flye; H. flee. 6. H. that; _rest om._ +Ff. H. do; Th. doste. Th. _om._ right. 7. H. Ff. deme; Th. say. 8. Ff. +port; Th. porte. Th. thyne. 9. _All_ cladde. Ff. H. or; Th. and. Ff. +beseyn; Th. be sayne. 10. Ff. Anon; Th. Anone (_and so in other places I +correct the spelling by the_ MSS.). 12. _All_ made. 13. Th. H. _om._ right. +14. Ff. H. deme; Th. say. 15. Ff. H. wylt; Th. wolde. Ff. H. equipolent; +Th. equiuolent. 16. Ff. H. grete; Th. great. 17. Ff. to-torn; Th. H. torn. +19. Ff. H. Thou; Th. That thou. 20. Th. H. _om._ right. 21. Ff. H. deme; +Th. say. + +22-35. _So in_ H.; Th. Ff. _transpose_ ll. 21-28 _and_ 29-35. Th. fayre +and; Ff. H. _om._ and. H. excellyng; Ff. Th. excellent. 23. Ff. H. Than; +Th. Yet. _All_ amerous. 24. _All_ foule. 26. Ff. H. peple of; Th. peoples. +27. _So_ Ff.; Th. H. Suffre al their speche and truste (H. deme) wel this. +28. Ff. H. deme; Th. say. 29. Ff. And yif hit falle; Th. If it befal. 30. +_Insert_ Than; _see_ l. 23. 31. Ff. Thou art euer lykkely to lyue in +stryve. 32. Ff. alleggement. 33. Ff. H. be maistres; Th. hem maystren. 34. +_So_ Ff.; Th. suffren their speche; _om._ right. 35. Ff. H. deme; Th. say. +36. H. And if; Ff. And yif; Th. If. H. it; Th. Ff. _om._ Th. that thou; Ff. +H. _om._ thou. 37. Ff. H. Thou hast; Th. Haue. 39. Ff. H. Say; Th. That. +Th. tengendre; Ff. to gendre. 40. Ff. Th. chaste. Ff. dyslave (_better_ +deslavee); Th. delauie. 41. Th. H. _om._ right. 42. Ff. H. deme; Th. say. +43. Th. _om._ And. 44. Th. H. _om._ that. 45. Th. H. deuourer; Ff. devowrer +(_better_ devourour). 46. Ff. H. lene or megre; Th. megre or leane. 47. Ff. +H. her; Th. H. their. 48. Th. H. _om._ right. 49. Ff. H. deme; Th. say. + +50. _All_ the. Th. laude; Ff. H. lawde. 52. Ff. Th. say; H. sayne. H. that; +Th. Ff. _om._ 53. Ff. Outher; Th. H. Or. 55. Th. What; Ff. H. Yit. Ff. Th. +say. Th. H. _om._ right. 56. Ff. H. deme; Th. say. 57. _All_ sadde. 58. Ff. +tresone; Th. H. treason. 59. _I supply_ that. 60. Ff. it is; Th. H. _om._ +is. 61. Th. Callyng; Ff. H. And calle. Th. _om._ thy. 62. Th. H. _om._ +right. 63. Ff. H. deme; Th. say. 64. Ff. H. Who; Th. And who. 65. Th. him +an; Ff. H. _om._ an. 66. Th. who that; Ff. H. _om._ that. 69. Ff. speke; +Th. say. Th. H. _om._ right. 70. Ff. H. deme; Th. say. 71-77. _In_ H. +_only_. 71. H. in; _read_ is. 72. H. vastour. 73. _I insert_ mene; _see +note_. 75. H. wastith; _I insert_ that. 76. H. coclude(!); H. _om._ right. + +78. Ff. H. men calle him; Th. is holden. 79. Th. And who; Ff. H. Who that. +Th. H. say that; Ff. _om._ that. 80. Th. who that; Ff. H. _om._ that. 81. +Th. men yet; Ff. folke. Ff. H. edwyte; Th. wyte. 82. Ff. H. vp; Th. nowe. +83. H. who; Ff. ho (= who); Th. who that. Ff. H. cause; Th. trouth. 84. +_So_ H. Ff.; Th. It is a wicked tonge th_a_t alway saythe amys. 85. Ff. +also; Th. H. as. 86. Th. _om._ his. 87. H. wisdom; Th. wisedome; Ff. +wysdome. 88. Ff. to; Th. H. with. 91. _So_ Ff. H.; Th. Some wycked tonge of +hym wol say amys. 92. Ff. _om._ a. _All_ had. Ff. H. _om._ high. 94. Ff. H. +kyndenes; Th. kyndnesse. 96. Th. Wyth al; Ff. H. _om._ al. 98. _So_ Ff.; +Th. Some wycked tonge of hym wol say amys. 99. Ff. H. And; Th. Or. 101. H. +Senek; Ff. Senec; Th. Seneca. Th. great; Ff. H. _om._ 102. Ff. or prudence; +Th. H. and prouidence. 103. Th. The conquest; Ff. _om._ The. Ff. Arthurs; +Th. H. Arturs. 105. _See note to_ 96. + +106-112. _Not in_ Thynne; _from_ Ff. H. 106. H. of; Ff. to. 108. Ff. +grecildes; H. Gresieldis; _I supply_ the. 110. H. Polycenes; Ff. Penilops. +113. H. wyfly; Th. wyfely; Ff. wylfull_e_ (!). Th. H. trouth; Ff. trowth; +_read_ trouthe. 114. Th. had; Ff. H. hadde. Th. her; Ff. thaire; H. theyr. +115. H. Eleynes; Ff. Eleyons; Th. Holynesse (_for_ Heleynes). Th. +kyndenesse; Ff. kyndnes. 116. Ff. H. loue; Th. lyfe (!). Th. Mertia; Ff. H. +Marcia. Th. Caton; Ff. H. and catou_n_. 117. Ff. H. Alcestys (_om._ the). +119. _So_ Ff.; Th. A wycked tonge wol say of her amys. 120. Ff. suyth; H. +sith; Th. sythen. H. it is; Ff. it; Th. it is so (_om._ that). 121. Ff. +wyll (= wol); H. wil; Th. _om._ 122. Ff. H. _om._ for. 123. H. hir; Ff. ar; +Th. theyr. Ff. so them hem delyte; Th. him for to aquyte. 124. Ff. Tho +(_for_ To) hindre sclau_n_der, and also to bacbyte; Th. Wo to the tonges +that hem so delyte. 125. Ff. For thayre study fynaly it ys; Th. To hynder +or sclaunder, and set theyr study in this (cf. l. 124). 126. Th. And theyr +pleasaunces to do and say amis; H. And theyr plesaunce alwey to deme amys; +Ff. _has (as usual)_ A wicked tonge wol alway deme amis. 127. Ff. +princesse; Th. princes. 129. Th. and most; Ff. H. _om._ and. Ff. plesing; +Th. pleasyng. + +132. H. revers; Th. reuerse; Ff. reu_er_ce. H. wisdom; Th. Ff. wysdome. +133. H. Voydeth (_for_ Withdraw). Ff. deme; Th. saine. + + * * * * * + +XIII. BEWARE OF DOUBLENESS. + + (BALADE MADE BY LYDGATE.) + + This world is ful of variaunce + In every thing, who taketh hede, + That faith and trust, and al constaunce, + Exyled ben, this is no drede; + And, save only in womanhede, 5 + I can [nat] see no sikernesse; + But for al that, yet, as I rede, + Be-war alway of doublenesse. + + Also these fresshe somer-floures + Whyte and rede, blewe and grene, 10 + Ben sodainly, with winter-shoures, + Mad feinte and fade, withoute wene; + That trust is non, as ye may seen, + In no-thing, nor no stedfastnesse, + Except in women, thus I mene; 15 + Yet ay be-war of doublenesse. + + The croked mone, this is no tale, + Som whyle is shene and bright of hewe, + And after that ful derk and pale, + And every moneth chaungeth newe; 20 + That, who the verray sothe knewe, + Al thing is bilt on brotelnesse, + Save that these women ay be trewe; + Yet ay be-war of doublenesse. + + The lusty fresshe somers day, 25 + And Phebus with his bemes clere, + Towardes night, they drawe away, + And no lenger liste appere; + That, in this present lyf now here + Nothing abit in his fairnesse, 30 + Save women ay be founde intere + And devoid of doublenesse. + + The see eke, with his sterne wawes, + Ech day floweth newe again, + And, by concours of his lawes, 35 + The ebbe foloweth, in certain; + After gret drought ther comth a rain, + That farewel here al stabelnesse, + Save that women be hole and plain; + Yet ay be-war of doublenesse. 40 + + Fortunes wheel goth round aboute + A thousand tymes, day and night: + Whos cours standeth ever in doute + For to transmew; she is so light. + For which adverteth in your sight 45 + Th'untrust of worldly fikelnesse, + Save women, which of kindly right + Ne have no tache of doublenesse. + + What man may the wind restraine + Or holde a snake by the tail, 50 + Or a sliper eel constraine + That it nil voide, withouten fail; + Or who can dryve so a nail + To make sure new-fangelnesse, + Save women, that can gye hir sail 55 + To rowe hir boot with doublenesse. + + At every haven they can aryve + Wher-as they wote is good passage; + Of innocence, they can not stryve + With wawes nor no rokkes rage; 60 + So happy is hir lodemanage, + With nelde and stoon hir cours to dresse, + That Salamon was not so sage + To find in hem no doublenesse. + + Therfor who-so hem accuse 65 + Of any double entencioun, + To speke, rowne, other to muse, + To pinche at hir condicioun; + Al is but fals collusioun, + I dar right wel the sothe expresse; 70 + They have no better proteccioun + But shroude hem under doublenesse. + + So wel fortúned is hir chaunce + The dys to turnen up-so-doun, + With sys and sink they can avaunce, 75 + And than, by revolucioun, + They sette a fel conclusioun + Of ambes as, in sothfastnesse; + Though clerkes make mencioun + Hir kind is fret with doublenesse. 80 + + Sampsoun had experience + That women were ful trewe founde, + Whan Dalida, of innocence, + With sheres gan his heer to rounde; + To speke also of Rosamounde 85 + And Cleopatras feithfulnesse, + The stories plainly wil confounde + Men that apeche hir doublenesse. + + Sengle thing ne is not preised, + Nor oo-fold is of no renoun; 90 + In balaunce whan they be peised, + For lakke of weght they be bore doun; + And for this cause of just resoun, + These women alle, of rightwisnesse, + Of chois and free eleccioun 95 + Most love eschaunge and doublenesse. + + LENVOY. + + O ye women, which been enclyned, + By influence of your nature, + To been as pure as gold y-fyned + In your trouth for to endure, 100 + Arm your-self in strong armure + Lest men assaile your sikernesse: + Set on your brest, your-self t'assure, + A mighty sheld of doublenesse. + +1. _From_ F. (Fairfax 16); _collated with_ Ed. (ed. 1561). _Also in_ A. +(Ashmole 59), _in which it is much altered; other copies in_ Ha. (Harl. +7578), _and_ Ad. (Addit. 16165). 2. F. whoo. 6. _I supply_ nat. 9. F. A. +these; Ed. that. 12. F. feynt; Ha. Ed. feinte. 13. F. Ed. sene. 18. F. A. +Ad. is shene; Ed. ishene. 21. F. A. who so; Ha. Ad. Ed. who. 23. Ad. these; +_rest om._ + +28. Ha. Ad. no; F. Ed. non. 29. F. So; _rest_ That. 30. F. abytte; Ed. +abieth; Ad. abydeth. 32. _In the margin of_ F. Ad.--Per Antifrasim. 36. F. +Ad. Ha. foloweth; Ed. _repeats_ floweth _from_ l. 34. A. Soone affter that +comthe thebbe certeyne. 38. F. Ha. farewel al her; Ed. Ad. farewel here al. +48. F. Ad. Ha. haue; Ed. hath. F. tachche; Ed. teche. 51. F. slepur; Ha. +sleper; Ed. Ad. slipper. 52. A. nyl; Ad. nil; Ha. wol; F. wil; Ed. will. +53. A. dryve so depe a. 54. Ed. suere. 55, 56. Ad. hir; Ha. F. her; Ed. +their. + +61. F. happe; Ha. Ed. happy. F. her (= hir); Ed. their. 62. F. nelde; Ed. +Ha. nedle. F. Ha. her; Ed. their. 64. F. Ha. hem; Ed. them. 65. F. Wherfor; +Ed. Ha. Ad. Therefore. MSS. hem; Ed. them. 67. Ed. rowme (!). 68. F. hyr; +Ad. hir; Ha. her; Ed. their. 69. A. Ad. nys (_for_ is). 71. Ed. better; F. +bette; Ha. Ad. bet. 72. MSS. hem; Ed. them. 73. Ad. Ed. their. 74. F. Ed. +turne; Ad. Ha. turnen. 78. F. Ambes ase; Ad. Ha. aumbes as; Ed. lombes, as +(!) 82. F. weren; Ed. A. were. MSS. founde; Ed. ifound. 84. A. heres; Ad. +here; Ed. heere; F. hede. 87. F. Ad. Ed. The; A. Hir. 88. MSS. hir, her; +Ed. their. 90. F. oo folde; A. oone folde; Ed. ofolde. + +92. F. A. Ad. weght; Ha. wight; Ed. waighte. A. borne. 96. A. Ad. Haue +stuffed hem with doublenesse. 97. A. that (_for_ which). 100. A. In alle +youre touches for. Ad. trouthe for tendure. 101. _For_ Arm _read_ Armeth? +102. Ha. assaye. 103. F. A. Ad. tassure; Ed. Ha. to assure. 104. F. Ed. +shelde; A. sheelde. + + * * * * * + +XIV. A BALADE: WARNING MEN TO BEWARE OF DECEITFUL WOMEN. + + Loke wel aboute, ye that lovers be; + Lat nat your lustes lede you to dotage; + Be nat enamoured on al thing that ye see. + Sampson the fort, and Salamon the sage + Deceived were, for al hir gret corage; 5 + Men deme hit is right as they see at y; + Bewar therfore; the blinde et many a fly. + + I mene, in women, for al hir cheres queinte, + Trust nat to moche; hir trouthë is but geson; + The fairest outward ful wel can they peinte, 10 + Hir stedfastnes endureth but a seson; + For they feyn frendlines and worchen treson. + And for they be chaungeáble naturally, + Bewar therfore; the blinde et many a fly. + + Though al the world do his besy cure 15 + To make women stonde in stablenes, + Hit may nat be, hit is agayn nature; + The world is do whan they lak doublenes; + For they can laughe and love nat; this is expres. + To trust in hem, hit is but fantasy; 20 + Bewar therfore; the blind et many a fly. + + What wight on-lyve trusteth in hir cheres + Shal haue at last his guerdon and his mede; + They can shave nerer then rasóurs or sheres; + Al is nat gold that shyneth! Men, take hede; 25 + Hir galle is hid under a sugred wede. + Hit is ful hard hir fantasy t'aspy; + Bewar therfore; the blinde et many a fly. + + Women, of kinde, have condicions three; + The first is, that they be fulle of deceit; 30 + To spinne also hit is hir propertee; + And women have a wonderful conceit, + They wepen ofte, and al is but a sleight, + And whan they list, the tere is in the y; + Bewar therfore; the blinde et many a fly. 35 + + What thing than eyr is lighter and meveable? + The light, men say, that passeth in a throw; + Al if the light be nat so variable + As is the wind that every wey [can] blow; + And yet, of reson, som men deme and trow 40 + Women be lightest of hir company; + Bewar therfore; the blind et many a fly. + + In short to say, though al the erth so wan + Were parchëmyn smothe, whyte and scribable, + And the gret see, cleped the occian, 45 + Were torned in inke, blakker then is sable, + Ech stik a penne, ech man a scriveyn able, + They coud nat wryte wommannes traitory; + Bewar therfore; the blinde et many a fly. + +_From_ Trin. (Trin. Coll. Cam. R. 3. 19), _printed in_ Ed. (ed. 1561); T. +(Trin. Coll. O. 9. 38); H. (Harl. 2251). 1. Trin. welle. T. abowte; Trin. +about. 2. Trin. leede. 3. Trin. se. 4. T. H. Salamon; Trin. Salomon. 5. T. +her_e_ (_read_ hir); Trin. H. theyr (_and elsewhere_). 6. _So_ T.; Trin. H. +hit right that they se with. T. eye; Trin. ey; H. ye; (_read_ y). 7. T. +ette, _alt. to_ ettyth; Trin. H. eteth (_read_ et, _and so elsewhere_). 8. +H. T. in; Trin. of. Trin. wemen; queynt. 9. Trin. H. hem nat (T. _om._ +hem). Trin. trowth; geason (T. geson). 10. T. full_e_; Trin. H. _om._ Trin. +peynt. 12. Trin. feyne. 13. T. be; Trin. ar; H. are. Trin. chaungeabylle. +15-28. _So_ T. H.; Trin. _transposes_ 15-21 _and_ 22-28. 16. Trin. wemen +stond; stabylnes. 17. T. H. may; Trin. wolle. 18. Trin. doubylnes. 19. +Trin. lawgh; expresse. H. _om._ nat. 20. H. T. in; Trin. on. Trin. theym. + +22. T. yn; Trin. on. Trin. cherys. 24. T. They; Trin. For wemen. 25. Trin. +shynyth. 26. Trin. sugryd. 27. T. harde; Trin. H. queynt. Trin. to aspy. +29. T. _has the note_: Fallere flere nere tria sunt hec in muliere. Trin. +thre. 30. T. that; Trin. H. _om._ 31. T. hyt; Trin. _om._ T. properte; +Trin. p_ro_purte. 32. H. haue; T. hath; Trin. _om._ Trin. conseyte. 33. +Trin. H. For they; T. _om._ For. T. wepyth (_read_ wepen); Trin. wepe. T. +H. but; Trin. _om._ H. a sleight; T. deceyt; Trin. asteyte; Ed. a sleite. +34. Trin. teere; ey. 36-42. _In_ T. _only_. 37. T. passyth. 38. T. All yff; +waryabylle. 39. T. wynde; ys blow (_alt. to_ blowth; _read_ can blow). 40. +T. yut; summen. 41. T. ther (_for_ hir). 43. T. schorte; Trin. sothe. Trin. +erthe; wanne. 44. Trin. parchemyne; scrybabylle. 45. T. H. that clepyd is; +Trin. that callyd ys (_read_ cleped). H. _om._ the. Trin. occiane. 46. T. +yn; Trin. into; H. to. T. H. is; Trin. _om._ 47. T. H. Eche; Trin. Euery. +Trin. yche; abylle. H. scryven; T. Trin. scriuener. 48. T. They cowde not; +Trin. Nat cowde then (!). T. wymmenys; Trin. womans; H. wommans. T. +treytorye; Trin. H. trechery. + + * * * * * + +XV. THREE SAYINGS. + + (A). A SAYING OF DAN JOHN. + + Ther beth four thinges that maketh a man a fool, + Hónour first putteth him in outrage, + And alder-next solitarie and sool; + The second is unweldy croked age; + Women also bring men in dotage; 5 + And mighty wyne, in many dyvers wyse, + Distempreth folk which [that] ben holden wyse. + + (B). YET OF THE SAME. + + Ther beth four thinges causing gret folye, + Honour first, and [than] unweldy age; + Women and wyne, I dar eek specifye, + Make wyse men [to] fallen in dotage; + Wherfore, by counseil of philosophers sage, 5 + In gret honour, lerne this of me, + With thyn estat have [eek] humilitee. + + (C). BALADE DE BON CONSAIL. + + If it befalle, that god thee list visyte + With any tourment or adversitee, + Thank first the lord; and [than], thyself to quyte, + Upon suffrauncë and humilitee + Found thou thy quarrel, what-ever that it be; 5 + Mak thy defence (and thou shall have no losse) + The rémembraunce of Crist and of his crosse. + +A. _From_ Stowe (ed. 1561). 1. bethe foure; foole. 3. soole. 7. Distempren +(!); folke whiche; _supply_ that; bene. + +B. _From the same._ 1. bene (_read_ beth, _as above_) foure. 2. _I supply_ +than; vnwildy. 3. dare eke specify. 4. _I supply_ to. 6. learne. 7. thine +estate; _I supply_ eek. + +C. _From the same._ 1. befall; the. 2. aduersite. 3. Thanke; lorde; _I +supply_ than; selfe. 4. humilite. 5. Founde; quarel. 6. Make. + + * * * * * + +XVI. LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCY. + +TRANSLATED OUT OF FRENCH BY SIR RICHARD ROS. + + Half in a dreme, not fully wel awaked, + The golden sleep me wrapped under his wing; + Yet nat for-thy I roos, and wel nigh naked, + Al sodaynly my-selve rémembring + Of a matér, leving al other thing 5 + Which I shold do, with-outen more delay, + For hem to whom I durst nat disobey. + + My charge was this, to translate by and by, + (Al thing forgive), as part of my penaunce, + A book called Belle Dame sans Mercy 10 + Which mayster Aleyn made of rémembraunce, + Cheef secretarie with the king of Fraunce. + And ther-upon a whyle I stood musing, + And in my-self gretly imagening + + What wyse I shuld performe the sayd processe, 15 + Considering by good avysement + Myn unconning and my gret simplenesse, + And ayenward the strait commaundement + Which that I had; and thus, in myn entent, + I was vexed and tourned up and doun; 20 + And yet at last, as in conclusioun, + + I cast my clothes on, and went my way, + This foresayd charge having in rémembraunce, + Til I cam to a lusty green valey + Ful of floures, to see, a gret plesaunce; 25 + And so bolded, with their benygn suffraunce + That rede this book, touching this sayd matere, + Thus I began, if it plese you to here. + + Nat long ago, ryding an esy paas, + I fel in thought, of joy ful desperate 30 + With greet disese and payne, so that I was + Of al lovers the most unfortunate, + Sith by his dart most cruel, ful of hate, + The deeth hath take my lady and maistresse, + And left me sole, thus discomfit and mate, 35 + Sore languisshing, and in way of distresse. + + Than sayd I thus, 'it falleth me to cesse + Eyther to ryme or ditees for to make, + And I, surely, to make a ful promesse + To laugh no more, but wepe in clothes blake. 40 + My joyful tyme, alas! now is it slake, + For in my-self I fele no maner ese; + Let it be written, such fortune I take, + Which neither me, nor non other doth plese. + + If it were so, my wil or myn entent 45 + Constrayned were a joyful thing to wryte, + Myn pen coud never have knowlege what it ment; + To speke therof my tonge hath no delyte. + And with my mouth if I laugh moche or lyte, + Myn eyen shold make a countenaunce untrewe; 50 + My hert also wold have therof despyte, + The weping teres have so large issewe. + + These seke lovers, I leve that to hem longes, + Which lede their lyf in hope of alegeaunce, + That is to say, to make balades and songes, 55 + Every of hem, as they fele their grevaunce. + For she that was my joy and my plesaunce, + Whos soule I pray god of his mercy save, + She hath my wil, myn hertes ordinaunce, + Which lyeth here, within this tombe y-grave. 60 + + Fro this tyme forth, tyme is to hold my pees; + It werieth me this mater for to trete; + Let other lovers put hem-self in prees; + Their seson is, my tyme is now forgete. + Fortune by strength the forcer hath unshet 65 + Wherin was sperd al my worldly richesse, + And al the goodes which that I have gete + In my best tyme of youthe and lustinesse. + + Love hath me kept under his governaunce; + If I misdid, god graunt me forgifnesse! 70 + If I did wel, yet felte I no plesaunce; + It caused neither joy nor hevinesse. + For whan she dyed, that was my good maistresse, + Al my welfare than made the same purchas; + The deeth hath set my boundes, of witnes, 75 + Which for no-thing myn hert shal never pas.' + + In this gret thought, sore troubled in my mynde, + Aloon thus rood I al the morow-tyde, + Til at the last it happed me to fynde + The place wherin I cast me to abyde 80 + Whan that I had no further for to ryde. + And as I went my logging to purvey, + Right sone I herde, but litel me besyde, + In a gardeyn, wher minstrels gan to play. + + With that anon I went me bakker-more; 85 + My-self and I, me thought, we were y-now; + But twayn that were my frendes here-before + Had me espyed, and yet I wot nat how. + They come for me; awayward I me drow, + Somwhat by force, somwhat by their request, 90 + That in no wyse I coud my-self rescow, + But nede I must come in, and see the feest. + + At my coming, the ladies everichoon + Bad me welcome, god wot, right gentilly, + And made me chere, everich by oon and oon, 95 + A gret del better than I was worthy; + And, of their grace, shewed me gret curtesy + With good disport, bicause I shuld nat mourne. + That day I bood stille in their company, + Which was to me a gracious sojourne. 100 + + The bordes were spred in right litel space; + The ladies sat, ech as hem semed best. + Were non that did servyce within that place + But chosen men, right of the goodliest: + And som ther were, peravénture most fresshest, 105 + That sawe their juges, sitting ful demure, + Without semblaunt either to most or lest, + Notwithstanding they had hem under cure. + + Among al other, oon I gan espy + Which in gret thought ful often com and went 110 + As man that had ben ravished utterly, + In his langage nat gretly diligent; + His countenaunce he kept with greet tourment, + But his desyr fer passed his resoun; + For ever his eye went after his entent 115 + Ful many a tyme, whan it was no sesoun. + + To make good chere, right sore him-self he payned, + And outwardly he fayned greet gladnesse; + To singe also by force he was constrayned + For no plesaunce, but very shamfastnesse; 120 + For the complaynt of his most hevinesse + Com to his voice alwey without request, + Lyk as the sowne of birdes doth expresse + Whan they sing loude, in frith or in forest. + + Other ther were, that served in the hal, 125 + But non lyk him, as after myn advyse; + For he was pale, and somwhat lene with-al; + His speche also trembled in fereful wyse; + And ever aloon, but when he did servyse. + Al blak he ware, and no devyce but playn. 130 + Me thought by him, as my wit coud suffyse, + His hert was no-thing in his own demeyn. + + To feste hem al he did his diligence, + And wel he couth, right as it semed me. + But evermore, whan he was in presence, 135 + His chere was don; it wold non other be. + His scole-maister had suche auctoritè + That, al the whyle he bood stille in the place, + Speke coude he nat, but upon her beautè + He loked stil, with right a pitous face. 140 + + With that, his heed he tourned at the last + For to behold the ladies everichon; + But ever in oon he set his ey stedfast + On her, the which his thought was most upon. + And of his eyen the shot I knew anon 145 + Which federed was with right humble requestes. + Than to my-self I sayd, 'By god aloon, + Suche oon was I, or that I saw these gestes.' + + Out of the prees he went ful esely + To make stable his hevy countenaunce; 150 + And, wit ye wel, he syghed tenderly + For his sorowes and woful remembraunce. + Than in him-self he made his ordinaunce, + And forth-withal com to bringe in the mes; + But, for to juge his most ruful semblaunce, 155 + God wot, it was a pitous entremes! + + After diner, anon they hem avaunced + To daunce about, these folkes everichoon; + And forth-withal this hevy lover daunced + Somtyme with twayn, and somtyme but with oon. 160 + Unto hem al his chere was after oon, + Now here, now there, as fel by aventure; + But ever among, he drew to her aloon + Which he most dredde of living creature. + + To myn advyse, good was his purveyaunce 165 + Whan he her chase to his maistresse aloon, + If that her hert were set to his plesaunce + As moche as was her beauteous persone. + For who that ever set his trust upon + The réport of the eyen, withouten more, 170 + He might be deed and graven under stoon + Or ever he shulde his hertes ese restore. + + In her fayled nothing, as I coud gesse, + O wyse nor other, prevy nor apert; + A garnison she was of al goodnesse 175 + To make a frounter for a lovers hert; + Right yong and fresshe, a woman ful covert; + Assured wel her port and eke her chere, + Wel at her ese, withouten wo or smert, + Al underneth the standard of Daungere. 180 + + To see the feest, it weried me ful sore; + For hevy joy doth sore the hert travayle. + Out of the prees I me withdrew therfore, + And set me down aloon, behynd a trayle + Ful of leves, to see, a greet mervayle, 185 + With grene withies y-bounden wonderly; + The leves were so thik, withouten fayle, + That thorough-out might no man me espy. + + To this lady he com ful curteisly + Whan he thought tyme to daunce with her a trace; 190 + Sith in an herber made ful pleasauntly + They rested hem, fro thens but litel space. + Nigh hem were none, a certayn of compace, + But only they, as fer as I coud see; + And save the trayle, ther I had chose my place, 195 + Ther was no more betwix hem tweyne and me. + + I herd the lover syghing wonder sore; + For ay the neer, the sorer it him sought. + His inward payne he coud not kepe in store, + Nor for to speke, so hardy was he nought. 200 + His leche was neer, the gretter was his thought; + He mused sore, to conquere his desyre; + For no man may to more penaunce be brought + Than, in his hete, to bringe him to the fyre. + + The hert began to swel within his chest, 205 + So sore strayned for anguish and for payne + That al to peces almost it to-brest, + Whan bothe at ones so sore it did constrayne; + Desyr was bold, but shame it gan refrayne; + That oon was large, the other was ful cloos; 210 + No litel charge was layd on him, certayn, + To kepe suche werre, and have so many foos. + + Ful often-tymes to speke him-self he peyned, + But shamfastnesse and drede sayd ever 'nay'; + Yet at the last so sore he was constrayned, 215 + Whan he ful long had put it in delay, + To his lady right thus than gan he say + With dredful voice, weping, half in a rage:-- + 'For me was purveyd an unhappy day + Whan I first had a sight of your visage! 220 + + I suffre payne, god wot, ful hoot brenning, + To cause my deeth, al for my trew servyse; + And I see wel, ye rekke therof nothing, + Nor take no hede of it, in no kins wyse. + But whan I speke after my best avyse, 225 + Ye set it nought, but make ther-of a game; + And though I sewe so greet an entrepryse, + It peyreth not your worship nor your fame. + + Alas! what shulde be to you prejudyce + If that a man do love you faithfully 230 + To your worship, eschewing every vyce? + So am I yours, and wil be verily; + I chalenge nought of right, and reson why, + For I am hool submit to your servyse; + Right as ye liste it be, right so wil I, 235 + To bynde my-self, where I was in fraunchyse! + + Though it be so, that I can nat deserve + To have your grace, but alway live in drede, + Yet suffre me you for to love and serve + Without maugrè of your most goodlihede; 240 + Both faith and trouth I give your womanhede, + And my servyse, withoute ayein-calling. + Love hath me bounde, withouten wage or mede, + To be your man, and leve al other thing.' + + Whan this lady had herd al this langage, 245 + She yaf answere ful softe and demurely, + Without chaunging of colour or corage, + No-thing in haste, but mesurabelly:-- + 'Me thinketh, sir, your thought is greet foly! + Purpose ye not your labour for to cese? 250 + For thinketh not, whyl that ye live and I, + In this matére to set your hert in pees!' + + _Lamant._ 'Ther may non make the pees, but only ye, + Which ar the ground and cause of al this werre; + For with your eyen the letters written be, 255 + By which I am defyed and put a-fer. + Your plesaunt look, my verray lode-sterre, + Was made heraud of thilk same défyaunce + Which utterly behight me to forbarre + My faithful trust and al myn affyaunce.' 260 + + _La Dame._ 'To live in wo he hath gret fantasy + And of his hert also hath slipper holde, + That, only for beholding of an y, + Can nat abyde in pees, as reson wolde! + Other or me if ye list to beholde, 265 + Our eyen are made to loke; why shuld we spare? + I take no kepe, neither of yong nor olde; + Who feleth smert, I counsayle him be ware!' + + _Lam._ 'If it be so, oon hurte another sore, + In his defaut that feleth the grevaunce, 270 + Of very right a man may do no more; + Yet reson wolde it were in remembraunce. + And, sith Fortune not only, by her chaunce, + Hath caused me to suffre al this payn, + But your beautè, with al the circumstaunce, 275 + Why list ye have me in so greet disdayn?' + + _La D._ 'To your persone ne have I no disdayn, + Nor ever had, trewly! ne nought wil have, + Nor right gret love, nor hatred, in certayn; + Nor your counsayl to know, so god me save! 280 + If such beleve be in your mynde y-grave + That litel thing may do you greet plesaunce, + You to begyle, or make you for to rave, + I wil nat cause no suche encomberaunce!' + + _Lam._ 'What ever it be that me hath thus purchased, 285 + Wening hath nat disceyved me, certayn, + But fervent love so sore hath me y-chased + That I, unware, am casten in your chayne; + And sith so is, as Fortune list ordayne, + Al my welfare is in your handes falle, 290 + In eschewing of more mischévous payn; + Who sonest dyeth, his care is leest of alle.' + + _La D._ 'This sicknesse is right esy to endure, + But fewe people it causeth for to dy; + But what they mene, I know it very sure, 295 + Of more comfort to draw the remedy. + Such be there now, playning ful pitously, + That fele, god wot, nat alther-grettest payne; + And if so be, love hurt so grevously, + Lesse harm it were, oon sorowful, than twayne!' 300 + + _Lam._ 'Alas, madame! if that it might you plese, + Moche better were, by way of gentilnesse, + Of one sory, to make twayn wel at ese, + Than him to stroy that liveth in distresse! + For my desyr is neither more nor lesse 305 + But my servyce to do, for your plesaunce, + In eschewing al maner doublenesse, + To make two joyes in stede of oo grevaunce!' + + _La D._ 'Of love I seke neither plesaunce nor ese, + Nor greet desyr, nor right gret affyaunce; 310 + Though ye be seke, it doth me nothing plese; + Also, I take no hede to your plesaunce. + Chese who-so wil, their hertes to avaunce, + Free am I now, and free wil I endure; + To be ruled by mannes governaunce 315 + For erthely good, nay! that I you ensure!' + + _Lam._ 'Love, which that joy and sorowe doth departe, + Hath set the ladies out of al servage, + And largëly doth graunt hem, for their parte, + Lordship and rule of every maner age. 320 + The poor servaunt nought hath of avauntage + But what he may get only of purchace; + And he that ones to love doth his homage, + Ful often tyme dere bought is the rechace.' + + _La D._ 'Ladies be nat so simple, thus I mene, 325 + So dul of wit, so sotted of foly, + That, for wordes which sayd ben of the splene, + In fayre langage, paynted ful plesauntly, + Which ye and mo holde scoles of dayly, + To make hem of gret wonders to suppose; 330 + But sone they can away their hedes wrye, + And to fair speche lightly their eres close.' + + _Lam._ 'Ther is no man that jangleth busily, + And set his hert and al his mynd therfore, + That by resoun may playne so pitously 335 + As he that hath moche hevinesse in store. + Whos heed is hool, and sayth that it is sore, + His fayned chere is hard to kepe in mewe; + But thought, which is unfayned evermore, + The wordes preveth, as the workes sewe. 340 + + _La D._ 'Love is subtel, and hath a greet awayt, + Sharp in worching, in gabbing greet plesaunce, + And can him venge of suche as by disceyt + Wold fele and knowe his secret governaunce; + And maketh hem to obey his ordinaunce 345 + By chereful wayes, as in hem is supposed; + But whan they fallen in-to repentaunce, + Than, in a rage, their counsail is disclosed.' + + _Lam._ 'Sith for-as-moche as god and eke nature + Hath +love avaunced to so hye degrè, 350 + Moch sharper is the point, this am I sure, + Yet greveth more the faute, wher-ever it be. + Who hath no cold, of hete hath no deyntè, + The toon for the tother asked is expresse; + And of plesaunce knoweth non the certeyntè 355 + But it be wonne with thought and hevinesse.' + + _La D._ 'As for plesaunce, it is nat alway oon; + That you is swete, I thinke it bitter payne. + Ye may nat me constrayne, nor yet right non, + After your lust, to love that is but vayne. 360 + To chalenge love by right was never seyn, + But herte assent, before bond and promyse; + For strength nor force may not atteyne, certayn, + A wil that stant enfeffed in fraunchyse!' + + _Lam._ 'Right fayr lady, god mote I never plese, 365 + If I seke other right, as in this case, + But for to shewe you playnly my disese + And your mercy to abyde, and eke your grace. + If I purpose your honour to deface, + Or ever did, god and fortune me shende! 370 + And that I never rightwysly purchace + Oon only joy, unto my lyves ende!' + + _La D._ 'Ye and other, that swere suche othes faste, + And so condempne and cursen to and fro, + Ful sikerly, ye wene your othes laste 375 + No lenger than the wordes ben ago! + And god, and eke his sayntes, laughe also. + In such swering ther is no stedfastnesse, + And these wrecches, that have ful trust therto, + After, they wepe and waylen in distresse.' 380 + + _Lam._ 'He hath no corage of a man, trewly, + That secheth plesaunce, worship to despyse; + Nor to be called forth is not worthy + The erthe to touch the ayre in no-kins wyse. + A trusty hert, a mouth without feyntyse, 385 + These ben the strength of every man of name; + And who that layth his faith for litel pryse, + He leseth bothe his worship and his fame.' + + _La D._ 'A currish herte, a mouth that is curteys, + Ful wel ye wot, they be not according; 390 + Yet feyned chere right sone may hem apeyse + Where of malyce is set al their worching; + Ful fals semblant they bere and trew mening; + Their name, their fame, their tonges be but fayned; + Worship in hem is put in forgetting, 395 + Nought repented, nor in no wyse complayned.' + + _Lam._ 'Who thinketh il, no good may him befal; + God, of his grace, graunt ech man his desert! + But, for his love, among your thoughtes al, + As think upon my woful sorowes smert; 400 + For of my payne, wheder your tender hert + Of swete pitè be not therwith agreved, + And if your grace to me were discovert, + Than, by your mene, sone shulde I be releved.' + + _La D._ 'A lightsom herte, a folly of plesaunce 405 + Are moch better, the lesse whyl they abyde; + They make you thinke, and bring you in a traunce; + But that seknesse wil sone be remedyed. + Respite your thought, and put al this asyde; + Ful good disportes werieth men al-day; 410 + To help nor hurt, my wil is not aplyed; + Who troweth me not, I lete it passe away.' + + _Lam._ 'Who hath a brid, a faucon, or a hound, + That foloweth him, for love, in every place, + He cherissheth him, and kepeth him ful sound; 415 + Out of his sight he wil not him enchace. + And I, that set my wittes, in this cace, + On you alone, withouten any chaunge, + Am put under, moch ferther out of grace, + And lesse set by, than other that be straunge.' 420 + + _La D._ 'Though I make chere to every man aboute + For my worship, and of myn own fraunchyse, + To you I nil do so, withouten doute, + In eschewing al maner prejudyse. + For wit ye wel, love is so litel wyse, 425 + And in beleve so lightly wil be brought, + That he taketh al at his own devyse, + Of thing, god wot, that serveth him of nought.' + + _Lam._ 'If I, by love and by my trew servyse, + Lese the good chere that straungers have alway, 430 + Wherof shuld serve my trouth in any wise + Lesse than to hem that come and go al-day, + Which holde of you nothing, that is no nay? + Also in you is lost, to my seming, + Al curtesy, which of resoun wold say 435 + That love for love were lawful deserving.' + + _La D._ 'Curtesy is alyed wonder nere + To Worship, which him loveth tenderly; + And he wil nat be bounde, for no prayere, + Nor for no gift, I say you verily, 440 + But his good chere depart ful largely + Where him lyketh, as his conceit wil fal; + Guerdon constrayned, a gift don thankfully, + These twayn may not accord, ne never shal.' + + _Lam._ 'As for guerdon, I seke non in this cace; 445 + For that desert, to me it is to hy; + Wherfore I ask your pardon and your grace, + Sith me behoveth deeth, or your mercy. + To give the good where it wanteth, trewly, + That were resoun and a curteys maner; 450 + And to your own moch better were worthy + Than to straungers, to shewe hem lovely chere.' + + _La D._ 'What cal ye good? Fayn wolde I that I wist! + That pleseth oon, another smerteth sore; + But of his own to large is he that list 455 + Give moche, and lese al his good fame therfore. + Oon shulde nat make a graunt, litel ne more, + But the request were right wel according; + If worship be not kept and set before, + Al that is left is but a litel thing.' 460 + + _Lam._ 'In-to this world was never formed non, + Nor under heven crëature y-bore, + Nor never shal, save only your persone, + To whom your worship toucheth half so sore, + But me, which have no seson, lesse ne more, 465 + Of youth ne age, but still in your service; + I have non eyen, no wit, nor mouth in store, + But al be given to the same office.' + + _La D._ 'A ful gret charge hath he, withouten fayle, + That his worship kepeth in sikernesse; 470 + But in daunger he setteth his travayle + That feffeth it with others businesse. + To him that longeth honour and noblesse, + Upon non other shulde nat he awayte; + For of his own so moche hath he the lesse 475 + That of other moch folweth the conceyt.' + + _Lam._ 'Your eyen hath set the print which that I fele + Within my hert, that, where-so-ever I go, + If I do thing that sowneth unto wele, + Nedes must it come from you, and fro no mo. 480 + Fortune wil thus, that I, for wele or wo, + My lyf endure, your mercy abyding; + And very right wil that I thinke also + Of your worship, above al other thing.' + + _La D._ 'To your worship see wel, for that is nede, 485 + That ye spend nat your seson al in vayne; + As touching myn, I rede you take no hede, + By your foly to put your-self in payne. + To overcome is good, and to restrayne + An hert which is disceyved folily. 490 + For worse it is to breke than bowe, certayn, + And better bowe than fal to sodaynly!' + + _Lam._ 'Now, fair lady, think, sith it first began + That love hath set myn hert under his cure, + I never might, ne truly I ne can 495 + Non other serve, whyle I shal here endure; + In most free wyse therof I make you sure, + Which may not be withdrawe; this is no nay. + I must abyde al maner aventure; + For I may not put to, nor take away.' 500 + + _La D._ 'I holde it for no gift, in sothfastnesse, + That oon offreth, where that it is forsake; + For suche gift is abandoning expresse + That with worship ayein may not be take. + He hath an hert ful fel that list to make 505 + A gift lightly, that put is in refuse; + But he is wyse that such conceyt wil slake, + So that him nede never to study ne muse.' + + _Lam._ 'He shuld nat muse, that hath his service spent + On her which is a lady honourable; 510 + And if I spende my tyme to that entent, + Yet at the leest I am not reprevable + Of feyled hert; to thinke I am unable, + Or me mistook whan I made this request, + By which love hath, of entreprise notable, 515 + So many hertes gotten by conquest.' + + _La D._ 'If that ye list do after my counsayl, + Secheth fairer, and of more higher fame, + Whiche in servyce of love wil you prevayl + After your thought, according to the same. 520 + He hurteth both his worship and his name + That folily for twayne him-self wil trouble; + And he also leseth his after-game + That surely can not sette his poyntes double.' + + _Lam._ 'This your counsayl, by ought that I can see, 525 + Is better sayd than don, to myn advyse; + Though I beleve it not, forgive it me, + Myn herte is suche, so hool without feyntyse, + That it ne may give credence, in no wyse, + To thing which is not sowning unto trouthe; 530 + Other counsayl, it ar but fantasyes, + Save of your grace to shewe pitè and routhe.' + + _La D._ 'I holde him wyse that worketh folily + And, whan him list, can leve and part therfro; + But in conning he is to lerne, trewly, 535 + That wolde him-self conduite, and can not so. + And he that wil not after counsayl do, + His sute he putteth in desesperaunce; + And al the good, which that shulde falle him to, + Is left as deed, clene out of rémembraunce.' 540 + + _Lam._ 'Yet wil I sewe this mater faithfully + Whyls I may live, what-ever be my chaunce; + And if it hap that in my trouthe I dy, + That deeth shal not do me no displesaunce. + But whan that I, by your ful hard suffraunce, 545 + Shal dy so trew, and with so greet a payne, + Yet shal it do me moche the lesse grevaunce + Than for to live a fals lover, certayne.' + + _La D._ 'Of me get ye right nought, this is no fable, + I nil to you be neither hard nor strayt; 550 + And right wil not, nor maner customable, + To think ye shulde be sure of my conceyt. + Who secheth sorowe, his be the receyt! + Other counsayl can I not fele nor see, + Nor for to lerne I cast not to awayte; 555 + Who wil therto, let him assay, for me!' + + _Lam._ 'Ones must it be assayd, that is no nay, + With such as be of reputacioun, + And of trew love the right devoir to pay + Of free hertes, geten by due raunsoun; 560 + For free wil holdeth this opinioun, + That it is greet duresse and discomfort + To kepe a herte in so strayt a prisoun, + That hath but oon body for his disport.' + + _La D._ 'I know so many cases mervaylous 565 + That I must nede, of resoun, think certayn, + That such entree is wonder perilous, + And yet wel more, the coming bak agayn. + Good or worship therof is seldom seyn; + Wherefore I wil not make no suche aray 570 + As for to fynde a plesaunce but barayn, + Whan it shal cost so dere, the first assay.' + + _Lam._ 'Ye have no cause to doute of this matere, + Nor you to meve with no such fantasyes + To put me ferre al-out, as a straungere; 575 + For your goodnesse can think and wel avyse, + That I have made a prefe in every wyse + By which my trouth sheweth open evidence; + My long abyding and my trew servyse + May wel be knowen by playn experience.' 580 + + _La D._ 'Of very right he may be called trew, + And so must he be take in every place, + That can deserve, and let as he ne knew, + And kepe the good, if he it may purchace. + For who that prayeth or sueth in any case, 585 + Right wel ye wot, in that no trouth is preved; + Suche hath ther ben, and are, that geten grace, + And lese it sone, whan they it have acheved.' + + _Lam._ 'If trouth me cause, by vertue soverayne, + To shew good love, and alway fynd contráry, 590 + And cherish that which sleeth me with the payne, + This is to me a lovely adversary! + Whan that pitè, which long a-slepe doth tary, + Hath set the fyne of al myn hevinesse, + Yet her comfort, to me most necessary, 595 + Shuld set my wil more sure in stablenesse.' + + _La D._ 'The woful wight, what may he thinke or say? + The contrary of al joy and gladnesse. + A sick body, his thought is al away + From hem that fele no sorowe nor siknesse. 600 + Thus hurtes ben of dyvers businesse + Which love hath put to right gret hinderaunce, + And trouthe also put in forgetfulnesse + Whan they so sore begin to sighe askaunce.' + + _Lam._ 'Now god defend but he be havëlesse 605 + Of al worship or good that may befal, + That to the werst tourneth, by his lewdnesse, + A gift of grace, or any-thing at al + That his lady vouchsauf upon him cal, + Or cherish him in honourable wyse! 610 + In that defaut what-ever he be that fal + Deserveth more than deth to suffre twyse!' + + _La D._ 'There is no juge y-set of such trespace + By which of right oon may recovered be; + Oon curseth fast, another doth manace, 615 + Yet dyeth non, as ferre as I can see, + But kepe their cours alway, in oon degrè, + And evermore their labour doth encrese + To bring ladyes, by their gret soteltè, + For others gilte, in sorowe and disese!' 620 + + _Lam._ 'Al-be-it so oon do so greet offence, + And be not deed, nor put to no juÿse, + Right wel I wot, him gayneth no defence, + But he must ende in ful mischévous wyse, + And al that ever is good wil him dispyse. 625 + For falshed is so ful of cursednesse + That high worship shal never have enterpryse + Where it reigneth and hath the wilfulnesse.' + + _La D._ 'Of that have they no greet fere now-a-days, + Suche as wil say, and maynteyne it ther-to, 630 + That stedfast trouthe is nothing for to prays + In hem that kepe it long for wele or wo. + Their busy hertes passen to and fro, + They be so wel reclaymed to the lure, + So wel lerned hem to withholde also, 635 + And al to chaunge, whan love shuld best endure.' + + _Lam._ 'Whan oon hath set his herte in stable wyse + In suche a place as is both good and trewe, + He shuld not flit, but do forth his servyse + Alway, withouten chaunge of any newe. 640 + As sone as love beginneth to remewe, + Al plesaunce goth anon, in litel space; + For my party, al that shal I eschewe, + Whyls that the soule abydeth in his place.' + + _La D._ 'To love trewly ther-as ye ought of right, 645 + Ye may not be mistaken, doutëlesse; + But ye be foul deceyved in your sight + By lightly understanding, as I gesse. + Yet may ye wel repele your businesse + And to resoun somwhat have attendaunce, 650 + Moch better than to byde, by fol simplesse, + The feble socour of desesperaunce.' + + _Lam._ 'Resoun, counsayl, wisdom, and good avyse + Ben under love arested everichoon, + To which I can accorde in every wyse; 655 + For they be not rebel, but stille as stoon; + Their wil and myn be medled al in oon, + And therwith bounden with so strong a cheyne + That, as in hem, departing shal be noon, + But pitè breke the mighty bond atwayne.' 660 + + _La D._ 'Who loveth not himself, what-ever he be + In love, he stant forgete in every place; + And of your wo if ye have no pitè, + Others pitè bileve not to purchace; + But beth fully assured in this case, 665 + I am alway under oon ordinaunce, + To have better; trusteth not after grace, + And al that leveth tak to your plesaunce!' + + _Lam._ 'I have my hope so sure and so stedfast + That suche a lady shulde nat fail pitè; 670 + But now, alas! it is shit up so fast, + That Daunger sheweth on me his crueltè. + And if she see the vertue fayle in me + Of trew servyce, then she to fayle also + No wonder were; but this is the suretè, 675 + I must suffre, which way that ever it go.' + + _La D._ 'Leve this purpos, I rede you for the best; + For lenger that ye kepe it thus in vayn, + The lesse ye gete, as of your hertes rest, + And to rejoice it shal ye never attayn. 680 + Whan ye abyde good hope, to make you fayn, + Ye shal be founde asotted in dotage; + And in the ende, ye shal know for certayn, + That hope shal pay the wrecches for their wage!' + + _Lam._ 'Ye say as falleth most for your plesaunce, 685 + And your power is greet; al this I see; + But hope shal never out of my rémembraunce, + By whiche I felt so greet adversitè. + For whan nature hath set in you plentè + Of al goodnesse, by vertue and by grace, 690 + He never assembled hem, as semeth me, + To put Pitè out of his dwelling-place.' + + _La D._ 'Pitè of right ought to be resonable, + And to no wight of greet disavantage; + There-as is nede, it shuld be profitable, 695 + And to the pitous shewing no damage. + If a lady wil do so greet out-rage + To shewe pitè, and cause her own debate, + Of such pitè cometh dispitous rage, + And of the love also right deedly hate.' 700 + + _Lam._ 'To comforte hem that live al comfortlesse, + That is no harm, but worship to your name; + But ye, that bere an herte of such duresse, + And a fair body formed to the same, + If I durst say, ye winne al this defame 705 + By Crueltè, which sitteth you ful il, + But-if Pitè, which may al this attame, + In your high herte may rest and tary stil.' + + _La D._ 'What-ever he be that sayth he loveth me, + And peraventure, I leve that it be so, 710 + Ought he be wroth, or shulde I blamed be, + Though I did noght as he wolde have me do? + If I medled with suche or other mo, + It might be called pitè manerlesse; + And, afterward if I shulde live in wo, 715 + Than to repent it were to late, I gesse.' + + _Lam._ 'O marble herte, and yet more hard, pardè, + Which mercy may nat perce, for no labour, + More strong to bowe than is a mighty tree, + What vayleth you to shewe so greet rigour? 720 + Plese it you more to see me dy this hour + Before your eyen, for your disport and play, + Than for to shewe som comfort or socour + To respite deth, that chaseth me alway!' + + _La D._ 'Of your disese ye may have allegeaunce; 725 + And as for myn, I lete it over-shake. + Also, ye shal not dye for my plesaunce, + Nor for your hele I can no surety make. + I nil nat hate myn hert for others sake; + Wepe they, laugh they, or sing, this I waraunt, 730 + For this mater so wel to undertake + That non of you shal make therof avaunt!' + + _Lam._ 'I can no skil of song; by god aloon, + I have more cause to wepe in your presence; + And wel I wot, avauntour am I noon, 735 + For certainly, I love better silence. + Oon shuld nat love by his hertes credence + But he were sure to kepe it secretly; + For avauntour is of no reverence + Whan that his tonge is his most enemy.' 740 + + _La D._ 'Male-bouche in courte hath greet commaundement; + Ech man studieth to say the worst he may. + These fals lovers, in this tyme now present, + They serve to boste, to jangle as a jay. + The most secret wil wel that some men say 745 + How he mistrusted is on some partyes; + Wherfore to ladies what men speke or pray, + It shuld not be bileved in no wyse.' + + _Lam._ 'Of good and il shal be, and is alway; + The world is such; the erth it is not playn. 750 + They that be good, the preve sheweth every day, + And otherwyse, gret villany, certayn. + Is it resoun, though oon his tonge distayne + With cursed speche, to do him-self a shame, + That such refuse shuld wrongfully remayne 755 + Upon the good, renommed in their fame?' + + _La D._ 'Suche as be nought, whan they here tydings newe, + That ech trespas shal lightly have pardoun, + They that purposen to be good and trewe-- + Wel set by noble disposicioun 760 + To continue in good condicioun-- + They are the first that fallen in damage, + And ful freely their hertes abandoun + To litel faith, with softe and fayr langage.' + + _Lam._ 'Now knowe I wel, of very certayntè, 765 + Though oon do trewly, yet shal he be shent, + Sith al maner of justice and pitè + Is banisshed out of a ladyes entent. + I can nat see but al is at oo stent, + The good and il, the vyce and eek vertue! 770 + Suche as be good shal have the punishment + For the trespas of hem that been untrewe!' + + _La D._ 'I have no power you to do grevaunce, + Nor to punisshe non other creature; + But, to eschewe the more encomberaunce, 775 + To kepe us from you al, I holde it sure. + Fals semblaunce hath a visage ful demure, + Lightly to cacche the ladies in a-wayt; + Wherefore we must, if that we wil endure, + Make right good watch; lo! this is my conceyt.' 780 + + _Lam._ 'Sith that of grace oo goodly word aloon + May not be had, but alway kept in store, + I pele to god, for he may here my moon, + Of the duresse, which greveth me so sore. + And of pitè I pleyn me further-more, 785 + Which he forgat, in al his ordinaunce, + Or els my lyf to have ended before, + Which he so sone put out of rémembraunce.' + + _La D._ 'My hert, nor I, have don you no forfeyt, + By which ye shulde complayne in any kynde. 790 + There hurteth you nothing but your conceyt; + Be juge your-self; for so ye shal it fynde. + Ones for alway let this sinke in your mynde-- + That ye desire shal never rejoysed be! + Ye noy me sore, in wasting al this wynde; 795 + For I have sayd y-nough, as semeth me.' + + VERBA AUCTORIS. + + This woful man roos up in al his payne, + And so parted, with weping countenaunce; + His woful hert almost to-brast in twayne, + Ful lyke to dye, forth walking in a traunce, 800 + And sayd, 'Now, deeth, com forth! thy-self avaunce, + Or that myn hert forgete his propertè; + And make shorter al this woful penaunce + Of my pore lyfe, ful of adversitè!' + + Fro thens he went, but whider wist I nought, 805 + Nor to what part he drow, in sothfastnesse; + But he no more was in his ladies thought, + For to the daunce anon she gan her dresse. + And afterward, oon tolde me thus expresse, + He rente his heer, for anguissh and for payne, 810 + And in him-self took so gret hevinesse + That he was deed, within a day or twayne. + + LENVOY. + + Ye trew lovers, this I beseche you al, + Such +avantours, flee hem in every wyse, + And as people defamed ye hem cal; 815 + For they, trewly, do you gret prejudyse. + Refus hath mad for al such flateryes + His castelles strong, stuffed with ordinaunce, + For they have had long tyme, by their offyce, + The hool countrè of Love in obeysaunce. 820 + + And ye, ladyes, or what estat ye be, + In whom Worship hath chose his dwelling-place, + For goddes love, do no such crueltè, + Namely, to hem that have deserved grace. + Nor in no wyse ne folowe not the trace 825 + Of her, that here is named rightwisly, + Which by resoun, me semeth, in this case + May be called LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCY. + + VERBA TRANSLATORIS. + + Go, litel book! god sende thee good passage! + Chese wel thy way; be simple of manere; 830 + Loke thy clothing be lyke thy pilgrimage, + And specially, let this be thy prayere + Un-to hem al that thee wil rede or here, + Wher thou art wrong, after their help to cal + Thee to correcte in any part or al. 835 + + Pray hem also, with thyn humble servyce, + Thy boldënesse to pardon in this case; + For els thou art not able, in no wyse, + To make thy-self appere in any place. + And furthermore, beseche hem, of their grace, 840 + By their favour and supportacioun, + To take in gree this rude translacioun, + + The which, god wot, standeth ful destitute + Of eloquence, of metre, and of coloures, + Wild as a beest, naked, without refute, 845 + Upon a playne to byde al maner shoures. + I can no more, but aske of hem socoures + At whos request thou mad were in this wyse, + Commaunding me with body and servyse. + + Right thus I make an ende of this processe, 850 + Beseching him that al hath in balaunce + That no trew man be vexed, causëlesse, + As this man was, which is of rémembraunce; + And al that doon their faythful observaunce, + And in their trouth purpose hem to endure, 855 + I pray god sende hem better aventure. + + _Explicit._ + +_From_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1532); _collated with_ F. (Fairfax 16); and H. +(Harl. 372). _Also in_ Ff. (Camb. Univ. Lib. Ff. 1. 6). _Bad spellings of_ +Th. _are corrected by the_ MSS. TITLE. Th. H. La ... mercy; F. Balade de la +Bele Dame sanz mercy. H. _adds_--Translatid ... Ros. 1. Th. F. Halfe; H. +Half. 2. F. H. Ff. wrapt. 3. _All_ rose. 4. Th. Ff. -selfe; H. F. self. 5. +F. matere; H. matier. Th. leuynge. 6. Th. must; F. sholde; H. shold. 7. H. +to whom; F. the which; Th. whiche. Th. F. dysobey; H. sey nay. 9. Th. +thynge. Ff. part; _rest_ parte. 10. Th. F. boke; H. book. Th. La bel; F. la +bele; H. _om._ La. H. F. sanz; Th. sauns. 11. Th. Whiche. 12. Th. +secratairie; F. secretare; H. secretarie. 13. H. ther-; Th. F. her-. Th. F. +stode; H. stood. 14. Th. greatly ymagenynge. 15. Th. shulde; F. H. sholde; +Ff. shuld. Th. the; F. H. this. 16. Ff. avysement; _rest_ adv. 17. F. H. +Ff. Myn; Th. My. F. H. Ff. symplesse. + +18. Th. -warde; strayte. 19. Th. myne. 20. Th. downe. 21. Th. conclusyon. +24. H. in-to. H. green; Th. F. grene. 25. Th. se; great. 26. F. H. Ff. +bolded; Th. boldly. F. benyng; Th. benygne; H. benyngne. 27. F. H. Ff. +That; Th. Whiche. Th. F. boke; H. booke. H. F. the; Th. Ff. this. Th. _om._ +seid. 28. F. H. begynne. Th. please. (_From this point I silently correct +the spelling of_ Th.) 33. Th. Ff. by; F. H. with. 35. Ff. soleyne (_for_ +sole thus); _perhaps better_. 41. F. H. Ff. is; Th. doth. 42. F. felde. Th. +maner of ease. 43. F. H. I; Th. as I. 44. F. H. Ff. nor doth noon other. +46. F. H. Ff. Were constreyned. 47. H. Myn eyen; F. Myn eyn; Th. My penne; +Ff. My pen. Ff. neu_er_ haue knolege; H. haue knowlege (!); Th. neuer +knowe; F. haue no knowlych. + +49. F. H. Ff. And; Th. Tho. Th. _om._ if. 53. F. H. Ff. seke; Th. sicke. +54. Th. Ff. theyr; H. F. her (_often_). 55. F. H. balade or. 60. F. H. Ff. +lyth with hir vndir hir tumbe in graue (Ff. I-graue). 65. Th. Ff. by; F. H. +with. F. hath the forser vnschete. 66. Th. sperde; Ff. spred; F. sprad; H. +spradde (!). 73. Th. H. _om._ good. 74. Th. _om._ Al. H. made than. 75. F. +Ff. set; H. sette; Th. shette. F. H. Ff. boundes; Th. bondes. 77. F. H. +thoughtes. Th. _om._ my. 79. F. I (_for_ it). 80. H. I purposid me to bide. + +81. H. forth to. 83. F. H. Ff. but; Th. a. 84. F. H. gardeyn; Th. garden. +88. F. _om._ yet I; H. _om._ yet. 89. F. H. come; Th. came. 90. Th. her; F. +H. Ff. their. 92. F. H. nede; Th. nedes. 95. H. F. Ff. eueryche by one and +one; Th. euery one by one. 103. _So_ Ff.; H. F. Were none that serued in +that place (!); Th. Ther were no deedly seruaunts in the place. 105. Ff. +_per_aunt_er_. H. _om._ most. 106. Th. _om._ sitting. 110. F. com; H. come; +Th. came. 111. H. F. man; Th. one; Ff. on. + +115. Th. F. Ff. went; H. yode. 116. Th. F. Ff. Ful; H. At. 117. Th. _om._ +good _and_ right. 122. F. H. Come; Th. Came. 124. F. H. _om. 2nd_ in. 133. +F. H. feste; Th. feest. 134. Th. coude; _rest_ couth. F. H. _om._ it. 138. +Th. H. bode. 143. F. eey; H. yee; Th. eye. Th. F. Ff. stedfast; H. faste. +144. Th. _om._ the. + +145. F. H. And; Th. For. Th. Ff. shot; H. sight; F. seght. 146. H. fedired; +F. fedred; Ff. federid; Th. fereful. 148. Th. I, or that; F. ther that; H. +I that there. Th. iestes. 151. F. H. tendirly; Th. wonderly. 154. F. H. +come; Th. came. 155. F. H. _om._ most. F. H. ruful; Ff. rewfull; Th. woful. +F. H. Ff. semblaunce; Th. penaunce. 158. F. H. these; Th. the. 159. F. H. +louer; Th. man he. 160. Th. _om._ but. 166. _All_ chase. 168. F. H. +beautevous. 169. F. H. that; Th. so. F. H. set; Th. setteth. H. trist. 170. +Th. the (_rightly_); H. there; F. Ff. their. 171. F. vndir a. 173. F. H. +as; Th. that. 174. F. Ff. O; H. On; Th. One. F. H. vice. (!). H. ner (_for +1st_ nor). Th. Ff. nor; H. or; F. ne. Ff. apert; Th. H. perte;F. pert. 175. +Th. garyson. Th. goodlynesse. 176. _All_ frounter. + +178. F. H. Ff. her; Th. of (_twice_). 180. Th. standerde; F. standarte; H. +standart. 183. Th. -drawe; H. -drewh. 184. Th. Ff. alone; F. H. _om._ 186. +F. withes; H. Ff. wythyes; Th. wrethes. 188. H. Ff. thorughe; Th. through; +F. thorgh. Th. no man might. 189. Th. this; H. his. F. H. come; Th. came. +191. Th. Set (_for_ Sith). H. herbier. 192. H. them. Th. but a. 193. Th. of +a certayne. 195. Th. _om._ And. 196. _So_ F. H.; Th. bytwene hem two. 201. +Th. more; H. Ff. neer. 204. Ff. hete; Th. heate; F. H. hert. + +209. Th. Ff. gan; F. H. can. 210. F. H. The toon. 213-220. F. _omits_. 224. +F. H. Ff. kyns; Th. kynde. 225. H. Ff. avise; Th. aduyse. 226. Th. it at; +F. H. _om._ at. 227. H. enterprise. 228. F. H. It; Th. Yet. 229. Th. it be; +F. H. _om._ it. 231. Th. Ff. eschewynge; F. H. escusyng. 234. F. H. to; Th. +vnto. 235. _All_ ye. Th. Ff. right; F. even; H. euyn. 237. H. _om._ that. +238. Th. alway; F. H. ay to. 239. F. H. _om._ for. 240. Th. Withouten; F. +Without. + +241. H. gif; F. geve. 242. F. H. ayein; Th. any (!). 243. F. withouten; H. +withoughtyn; Th. withoute. 248. F. Ff. mesurabely; Th. H. mesurably. 249. +Th. Ff. your thought is; F. H. ye do ful. 251. Th. thynketh; F. H. think +ye. Th. whyles; H. whil that; Ff. whils that. 252. F. matere; H. matier; +Th. mater. 258. F. Ff. dyffiaunce. 259. F. H. Ff. to forbarre; Th. for to +barre. 262. Th. _om._ hath. 263 Th. eye; F. eeye; H. yee; (_read_ y). 265. +F. if that ye lyst to beholde; H. Ff. if ye liste to biholde; Th. if ye +list ye may beholde. 267. H. nor; Th. F. Ff. ne. + +273. Th. _om._ not. Th. her; F. H. Ff. his. 275. F. H. Ff. But; Th. By (!). +278. H. _om._ trewly. Th. Ff. nought; F. H. neuer. 281. F. beleue; H. +bileue; Th. loue (!). 282. _So_ Ff.; H. F. _om._ greet (Th. you +dyspleasaunce!). 284. _So_ F. Th.; H. encombrance. 290. F. I-falle; H. +y-falle; Ff. falle; Th. fal. 297. Th. F. Ff. now; H. nought. 302. Th. it +were; F. H. _om._ it. 303. F. sorow; H. sorwe; Th. Ff. sory. 304. F. H. +stroye; Th. destroye. 308. F. H. oo; Th. one. + +309. Th. Ff. nor; F. H. ne. 310. F. H. grete desire nor; Th. haue therin +no. Th. _om._ right. 311. F. H. seke; Th. sicke. 312. Th. of; F. H. Ff. to. +313. F. H. their; Th. her. 317. Th. that ioy; F. H. _om._ that. 318. F. H. +_om._ al. 319. F. H. their; Th. her. 320. Th. maner of age. 322. Th. by; F. +H. Ff. of. Th. purchesse; F. H. purchace. 324. Th. tymes. F. _om._ the. H. +dere his richesse bought has. Ff. rechace; _rest_ richesse. 326. Th. in +(_for 2nd_ of). 327. F. ben; Th. be; H. are. 329. H. scoolys holden dieuly. +330. F. H. of; Th. al. 331. F. H. their hedes away. 334. F. set; Ff. sette; +Th. H. setteth. 337. F. H. _om._ that. 340. Th. shewe; F. sue; H. Ff. sewe. + +341. Th. Ff. awayte; F. H. abayte. 342. F. worching; H. worsching; Th. +workyng. 344. F. H. know and fele. 346. F. H. him; Th. Ff. hem. 347. F. H. +when that; Th. _om._ that. 348. F. H. their; Th. her. 350. _All_ avaunced +loue. 351. Th. sharpe. F. H. this; Th. thus. 352. F. H. It; Th. Ff. Yet. +354. F. ton; H. toon; Th. one. F. H. the tother; Th. that other. 355. Th. +_om._ the. Th. certeyne (!). 356. F. wonne; H. wonnen; Th. one (!). F. H. +with; Th. in. 358. F. H. is; Th. thi_n_ke. 363. F. nor; H. ner; Th. and. +Th. _om._ certayn. 364. F. H. stant; Th. standeth. F. enfeoffed. 366. Th. +_om._ as. 371. F. H. rightwysly; Th. vnryghtfully (!). + +384. Th. Ff. ayre; F. eir; H. heire. 386. Th. Thus be. F. H. Ff. man of; +Th. maner. 387. F. layth; Th. layeth; H. latith. 388. H. losith. 389. F. +Ff. currisch; H. kurressh; Th. cursed. 391. Th. F. right; H. ful. 392. F. +H. their; Th. her. F. worchyng; H. werchyng; Th. workynge. 393. Th. and; F. +H. a. F. Th. Ff. semyng; H. menyng. 394. F. H. Their; Th. Her (_thrice_). +Th. _om._ be. Th. but; F. H. not. 400. H. sorowe. 401. Th. wheder; Ff. +whedre; F. H. wher. 403. F. H. Ff. if; Th. of. 404. F. Ff. Then; H. Thanne; +Th. That. + +408. Th. sicknesse. 410. Th. disporte. Th. me. 411. Th. Ff. nor; F. H. ne. +412. F. H. Ff. it; Th. hem. 413. Th. Ff. byrde; F. bride; H. bridde. 415. +H. _om. 2nd_ him. 416. F. H. _om. 2nd_ him. 419. Th. farther. 420. F. H. +sett lesse. 422. F. H. Ff. of; Th. for. 424. F. H. of all; Th. Ff. _om._ +of. 425. Th. wote; F. H. wytt. 429-716. _Misarranged in_ F. H.; Th. Ff. +_follow the right order_. 429. (Th.) = 669 (F. H.). F. _om. 2nd_ by. 431. +F. There-of. F. H. shulde; Th. shal. 432. Th. him that cometh and goth. +433. Th. holdeth. 434. Th. as to; F. H. Ff. _om._ as. 435. F. H. wolde; Th. +Ff. wyl. 436. Th. desyringe (!). + +438. Th. To; F. H. With. F. H. best and tendyrly; Th. Ff. _om._ best and. +440. F. H. _om._ no. F. H. Ff. yift; Th. gyftes. 442. F. Wheryn hym. 443. +F. H. Ff. constreynte. 444. F. H. Ff. may not; Th. ca_n_ neuer. F. H. ne; +Th. Ff. nor. 445. H. seche; F. beseche. 446. F. H. _om._ it. 450. Th. a +curtyse; Ff. a corteys; F. H. curteysy. 456. Th. _om._ al. 460. H. loste +(_for_ left). 461. F. H. Ff. neuer formed (fourmed); Th. founded neuer. +467. Th. no (_for_ non). F. eeyn; H. yeen. 468. H. That ne alle ar. + +472. F. feoffeth. 474. Th. be (_for_ he). 475. F. H. _om._ his. 477-524. +_Follows_ 572 _in_ F. H. 477 (Th.) = 525 (F. H.). 478. Th. Ff. so; H. sum; +F. some. 479. H. sowndith. 481. H. Ff. thus; Th. this. 486. F. _om._ ye. H. +F. your sesoun spende not. 488. H. Ff. foly; Th. folly. 489. Th. H. herte. +H. F. folyly; Th. follyly. 492. H. F. And; Th. _om._ Th. to fal. 493. H. +Th. faire. 494. H. Ff. had (_for_ hath). H. F. your; Th. Ff. his. 495. F. +H. I neuer; Th. Ff. It neuer. 496. F. H. whiles. 500. H. F. not; Ff. +nought; Th. neyther. + +501. Th. gyfte; H. yifte. 502. Th. _om._ that. 503. Th. a gifte; H. F. Ff. +_om._ a. 505. H. F. _om._ an. H. hurte ful fele (!). 506. H. F. Ff. in; Th. +to. 508. H. F. neuer; Th. neyther. 509. H. F. Who; Th. Ff. He. 512. F. +_om._ the. Th. reproveable. 513. F. H. feyled; Th. fayned. 514. Th. I +mystoke; H. F. Ff. me mystoke. 515. F. entrepris. 516. H. F. goten. 517. H. +Th. liste. 518. F. H. Secheth; Th. Seche a. 519. Th. preuayle. 523. H. +hosithe (_for_ leseth). 525-572. _Follows_ 716 _in_ F. H. 528. H. hoole; +Th. hole. 529. H. F. it; Th. I. H. F. _om._ ne. 530. H. soundyng. 531. H. +F. it ar; Th. I se be. Th. Ff. fantasise; F. fantasyse; H. fantaisise. + +533. H. F. Ff. folily; Th. no foly (!). 534. H. Th. parte. 536. F. condyte. +538. Th. Ff. sute; H. F. suerte. H. F. in; Th. in to. 539. Th. _om._ which. +H. F. _om._ that. 540. H. F. Ff. left as; Th. lost and. F. dethe (!). 542. +H. Ff. Whils; Th. Whyles. Th. _om._ may. 544. Th. Than; H. F. Ff. That. H. +not; Th. F. _om._ 545. Ff. full; _rest om._ Th. H. harde. 546. H. triew; +Th. true. H. grete; Th. great. F. Ff. _om._ a. 547. F. H. _om._ the; _read_ +mochel less? 550. H. F. nyl; Th. wyl. H. Th. harde. 551. Th. no man (_for_ +nor maner). 555. Th. cast me not. 556. H. F. ther-to; Th. therof. 558. H. +F. beth. 559. H. trewe; Th. true. Ff. devoyr; H. duetes; F. dewtis; Th. +honour. 560. Th. gotten. H. F. due; Th. dewe. 562. H. grete; Th. great. H. +Th. -forte. 564. H. F. oo; Ff. on; Th. one. H. Th. -porte. + +565. Ff. H. cases; _rest_ causes. 566. H. F. Which; Th. Ff. That. 567. H. +F. Ff. entre; Th. auenture (!). 570. Th. Where I ne wyl make suche. 571. +Th. but a; H. F. _om._ a. 573-620. _Follows_ 668 _in_ H. F. 573. F. matere; +Th. mater. 574. Th. fantasyse; F. fantasise; H. fantesye. 576. F. Ff. +avyse; Th. H. aduyse. 577. H. Ff. prefe; F. p_re_ue; Th. prise. 578. H. +trouthe; Th. truthe. 579. H. Th. trewe. 581. H. Th. trewe. 583. H. Ff. +deserue; Th. discerne (!). H. Th. knewe. 585. H. Ff. sueth; F. seweth; Th. +swereth. 587. Th. geten; H. F. getith. 588. H. F. Ff. it haue; Th. haue it. +590. Th. H. shewe; fynde. 593. H. F. a slepe; Th. on slepe. 595. Th. H. +comforte. 596. Ff. Shuld; H. F. Shulde; Th. Shal. + +599. Th. sycke; H. F. seke. F. _om._ his. H. F. Ff. al awaye; Th. alway. +600. H. Ff. fele; Th. felen. H. sorwe; F. Ff. sorowe; Th. sore. 602. Th. +_om._ right. Th. hindraunce. 604. H. Ff. so; Th. ful; F. _om._ 605. H. Th. +defende. H. F. haueles; Th. harmlesse (!). 607. Th. _om._ the. 608. Th. +gyfte; H. yifte. 609. Th. Ff. vouchesafe; H. vouchith sauf. 610. H. F. +cherissh; Th. Ff. cherissheth. 611. H. Th. defaute. 613. H. F. of; Th. on. +H. Th. suche. 614. H. one; F. [=o]n; Th. loue. 615. H. Th. One. 616. H. Th. +none. 617. H. Th. her; _see_ 618. Th. course; H. corse. Th. H. one; F. a. +618. H. F. euere newe; Th. Ff. euermore. Ff. their; Th. theyr; H. there; F. +thair. 619. Th. Ff. their great; H. F. _om._ great. H. F. subtilite; Th. +subtelte; Ff. sotelte. 621-668. _Follows_ 524 _in_ F. H. 621. F. oone; H. +on; Th. one. Th. dothe; great. 622. H. F. Ff. be; Th. is. H. F. Ff. Iuyse; +Th. iustyse. 625. _So_ H. F. Ff.; Th. And al euer sayd god wyl. 626. Th. +_om._ so. + +627. Ff. highe; H. F. her; Th. his. H. F. shal; Th. Ff. may. 629. Th. +great; F. H. _om._ Th. dayse; H. daies. 631. H. preys; Th. prayse. 632. F. +H. Ff. for; Th. in. 633. Th. F. Theyr; H. There. 637. Th. one; H. on; Ff. +won. 638. H. Ff. which (_for_ as). 643. _So_ F. H.; Th. As for my partie +that. 644. Th. Whyle; H. F. Ff. Whils that. 645. F. H. ye; Th. it. 647. Th. +H. foule. H. F. deceyued; Th. disceyued. 648. H. F. lightly; Th. light. +649. H. F. this; Th. Ff. your. 650. H. Ff. sumwhat haue; Th. haue some. +651. _All_ Moche. H. sonner; F. sunner; Th. Ff. better. Th. to abide. Ff. +fole; _rest_ foly. Th. simplenes; _rest_ simplesse. 653. F. Ff. avyse; Th. +H. aduyse. 656. Th. as a; H. F. Ff. _om._ a. + +657. H. There. Th. H. one; Ff. won. 659. Th. Ff. as (_rightly_); H. F. is. +Th. H. none. 660. Th. H. bonde. 661. H. Ff. Who loueth; F. Who love; Th. Ye +loue. H. F. hym-; Th. your-. H. F. he be; Th. ye be. 662. _So_ H. F. Ff.; +Th. That in loue stande. 664. Th. bileue ye; _rest om._ ye. 665. H. F. +beth; Th. be. Th. as in; _rest om._ as. 666. Th. alway; H. F. alwaies. Th. +one; Ff. on; H. an. 667. F. H. trusteth; Th. trust. 668. Th. H. take. +669-716. _Follows_ 428 _in_ F. H. 670. Th. lacke; H. F. Ff. faile. 673. H. +faileth. 674. F. H. Ff. then she to; Th. thoughe she do. 675. Th. my; F. H. +Ff. the. H. surtee; F. seurte. 677. H. purpos; Th. pupose. 678. Th. For the +lenger ye. H. F. Ff. thus; Th. is. 680. H. F. Ff. ye; Th. you. 684. Th. +_om._ That. H. ther; Th. her. 686. Th. great. + +688. F. H. Ff. felt; Th. fele. Th. great. 691. H. F. semeth; Th. semed. +694. H. F. of; Th. do no. 696. F. damage; H. da_m_mage; Th. Ff. domage. +697. H. F. _om._ wil. 699. H. dispetous. 700. Th. suche; H. F. Ff. the. +702. Th. H. harme. H. F. Ff. worship; Th. co_m_forte. 703. H. F. Ff. bere +an; Th. haue a. Th. H. suche. 704. H. F. Ff. _om._ And. _All_ fayre. H. F. +Ff. body; Th. lady (!). H. formed to; F. Ff. y-formed to; Th. I must +affirme (!). 710. H. F. Ff. that; Th. wel. 712. H. noght; Th. not. 714. H. +F. Ff. manerles; Th. mercylesse. 717. _Here_ H. F. _agree with_ Th. +_again_. Ff. marbre. Th. H. harde. + +720. H. F. Ff. vaileth; Th. auayleth. Th. great. 721. H. F. Please; Th. +Pleaseth. Th. H. dye. 722. Th. H. dysporte. 723. H. F. Ff. or; Th. and. +724. Th. H. dethe. H. F. that; Th. whiche. 725. Th. H. disease. 726. H. F. +Ff. shake; Th. slake. 728. Th. heale. 729. H. F. Ff. nyl; Th. wyl. H. F. +Ff. hate myn herte; Th. hurte my selfe. 730. Th. they I; H. F. Ff. this I. +731. H. F. wel to: Th. wyl I. 732. H. F. you; Th. hem. 733. H. noo; Th. +nat. H. F. Ff. song; Th. loue. Th. alone. 735. H. F. Ff. I; Th. ye. Th. H. +wote. Th. none. 737. Th. One; H. On. 739. Th. H. a vauntour; _cf._ l. 735. +741. Th. great. 744. H. F. Ff. to boste; Th. best. 745. H. wil wele; F. Ff. +wille wel; Th. ywis. H. F. Ff. that; Th. yet. 746. H. F. on; Th. in. F. Th. +p_ar_tyse; Ff. partyes; H. party. 747. H. F. Ff. what; Th. whan so. Th. say +(_for_ pray). 748. H. F. shal; Ff. schuld; Th. shulde. + +750. Th. H. suche. Th. Ff. erth; H. F. dethe. H. F. Ff. it is not; Th. is +not al. 751. H. F. preve; Th. profe. 752. Th. great villony. 753. F. Ff. Is +it; Th. H. It is. Th. H. one. 755. H. F. refuse. 756. Th. renomed; H. +renommeed. F. H. her (_for_ their). 757. Th. here; H. herde. 758. Th. H. +eche. 759. H. purposen; F. porposyn; Th. pursuen. 760. _So_ H. F. Ff.; Th. +Wyl not set by none il d. 761. Th. in euery; H. F. _om._ euery. 763. Ff. +thair; F. ther; H. theym; Th. the. F. H. _om._ hertes. 764. Th. faithe. Th. +Ff. softe and fayre; H. faire and softe. 766. F. H. Though; Th. Ff. If. +_All_ one. 768. H. banshid. 769. H. F. oo; Th. one. 770. Th. the (_for 1st_ +and); H. F. and. Ff. eke; _rest_ eke the. 771. H. Ff. shal; Th. such. 772. +H. F. ben; Ff. beth; Th. lyue. 777. F. H. Ff. visage; Th. face (!). 778. H. +F. Ff. the; Th. these. Th. H. Ff. a wayte. + +779. F. H. Ff. yf that we wil; Th. if we wyl here. 780. Th. H. co_n_ceyte. +781. F. H. oo; Th. a. Th. worde. H. F. Ff. allone; Th. nat one. 782. F. H. +not; Th. nowe. Th. kepte. 783. H. F. Ff. pele; Th. appele. _All_ mone +(_read_ moon). 785. H. Ff. pleyne me; F. pleyn me; Th. complayne. 786. Th. +H. forgate. 787. H. elles. 788. Ff. H. F. he so sone put; Th. so sone am +put. 789. Th. H. forfeyte. 791. _So_ H. F. Ff.; Th. Nothing hurteth you but +your owne conceyte. 792. H. shal ye. 793. H. F. Ones for; Th. Thus. 794. +_So_ H. Ff.; _so_ F. (_with_ the _for_ ye); Th. That your desyre shal neuer +recouered be. 796. Th. ynoughe. TITLE; _in_ H. 797. Th. rose; H. rosse. H. +F. al in; Th. Ff. in al. 798. Ff. partyd; _rest_ departed. 799. Th. +to-brast; H. F. Ff. it brest. 800. H. forth walkyng; Th. Ff. walkynge +forth. 801. Th. _om._ Now. 803. Th. Ff. shorter; H. shorte; F. short. 805. +H. Ff. whider; Th. whither. 806. F. party. F. Ff. drow; H. drowh; Th. +drewe. + +809. Th. Ff. thus; H. it; F. _om._ 811. Th. great. TITLE; _in_ Th. 813. H. +F. Ff. Ye; Th. The. F. trew; H. trewe; Th. true. Th. thus; H. Ff. this. +814. Ff. aventours; _rest_ aventures (_see note_). Th. flie; H. F. fle. +816. Th. great. 817. Th. _omits this line; from_ H. F. Ff. H. F. made. H. +F. Ff. flaterise. 821. Th. H. estate; Ff. astate. 822. H. F. Ff. In; Th. +Of. 824. Ff. haue; F. hath; H. _om._ Th. _omits the line_. 825. H. folwe ye +not; F. folowe ye not; Ff. folowe not; Th. foule not. _After_ 828, F. +_has_--Explicit la bele dame sanz mercy; H. F. Verba translatoris. 829. Th. +H. Ff. the. 833. H. F. _om._ al. _All_ the. 834. Th. hir (_for_ their). +835. Th. H. The. + +837. Th. cace; H. caas. 838. H. elles. 840, 841. Th. her (_for_ their). +843. Th. H. wote. 844. Th. _om._ and. 845. H. F. Wilde; Th. Ff. Lyke. 846. +Ff. tabyde; Th. to abyde. 847. H. axe. 848. Th. Ff. were made; F. was made; +H. made was. 850. H. F. Ff. processe; Th. prosses. 852. Th. H. trewe. 854. +Th. done her; Ff. do thair; H. dothe here; F. doth thair. 855. Th. her +(_for_ their). _After_ 856; Th. Explicit; H. Amen. + + * * * * * + +XVII. + +THE TESTAMENT OF CRESSEID. + + Ane dooly sesoun to ane cairfull dyte + Suld correspond, and be equivalent. + Richt sa it wes quhen I began to wryte + This tragedy; the wedder richt fervent, + Quhen Aries, in middis of the Lent, 5 + Shouris of haill can fra the north discend; + That scantly fra the cauld I micht defend. + + Yit nevertheles, within myn orature + I stude, quhen Tytan had his bemis bricht + Withdrawin doun and sylit under cure; 10 + And fair Venus, the bewty of the nicht, + Uprais, and set unto the west full richt + Hir goldin face, in oppositioun + Of god Phebus direct discending doun. + + Throwout the glas hir bemis brast sa fair 15 + That I micht see, on every syde me by, + The northin wind had purifyit the air, + And shed the misty cloudis fra the sky. + The froist freisit, the blastis bitterly + Fra pole Artyk come quhisling loud and shill, 20 + And causit me remuf aganis my will. + + For I traistit that Venus, luifis quene, + To quhom sum-tyme I hecht obedience, + My faidit hart of luf sho wald mak grene; + And therupon, with humbil reverence, 25 + I thocht to pray hir hy magnificence; + But for greit cald as than I lattit was, + And in my chalmer to the fyr can pas. + + Thocht luf be hait, yit in ane man of age + It kendillis nocht sa sone as in youthheid, 30 + Of quhom the blude is flowing in ane rage; + And in the auld the curage +douf and deid, + Of quhilk the fyr outward is best remeid, + To help be phisik quhair that nature failit; + I am expert, for baith I have assailit. 35 + + I mend the fyr, and beikit me about, + Than tuik ane drink my spreitis to comfort, + And armit me weill fra the cauld thairout. + To cut the winter-nicht, and mak it short, + I tuik ane quair, and left all uther sport, 40 + Writtin be worthy Chaucer glorious, + Of fair Cresseid and lusty Troilus. + + And thair I fand, efter that Diomeid + Ressavit had that lady bricht of hew, + How Troilus neir out of wit abraid, 45 + And weipit soir, with visage paill of hew; + For quhilk wanhope his teiris can renew, + Quhill +esperans rejoisit him agane: + Thus quhyl in joy he levit, quhyl in pane. + + Of hir behest he had greit comforting, 50 + Traisting to Troy that sho suld mak retour, + Quhilk he desyrit maist of eirdly thing, + For-quhy sho was his only paramour. + Bot quhen he saw passit baith day and hour + Of hir gaincome, than sorrow can oppres 55 + His woful hart in cair and hevines. + + Of his distres me neidis nocht reheirs, + For worthy Chaucer, in the samin buik, + In guidly termis and in joly veirs + Compylit hes his cairis, quha will luik. 60 + To brek my sleip ane uther quair I tuik, + In quilk I fand the fatall desteny + Of fair Cresseid, that endit wretchitly. + + Quha wait gif all that Chauceir wrait was trew? + Nor I wait nocht gif this narratioun 65 + Be authoreist, or fenyeit of the new + Be sum poeit, throw his inventioun, + Maid to report the lamentatioun + And woful end of this lusty Cresseid, + And quhat distres sho thoillit, and quhat deid. 70 + + Quhen Diomed had all his appetyt, + And mair, fulfillit of this fair lady, + Upon ane uther he set his haill delyt, + And send to hir ane lybel of répudy, + And hir excludit fra his company. 75 + Than desolait sho walkit up and doun, + And, sum men sayis, into the court commoun. + + O fair Cresseid! the flour and _A-per-se_ + Of Troy and Grece, how was thou fortunait, + To change in filth all thy feminitee, 80 + And be with fleshly lust sa maculait, + And go amang the Greikis air and lait + Sa giglot-lyk, takand thy foull plesance! + I have pity thee suld fall sic mischance! + + Yit nevertheles, quhat-ever men deme or say 85 + In scornful langage of thy brukilnes, + I sall excuse, als far-furth as I may, + Thy womanheid, thy wisdom, and fairnes, + The quilk Fortoun hes put to sic distres + As hir pleisit, and na-thing throw the gilt 90 + Of thee, throw wikkit langage to be spilt. + + This fair lady, in this wys destitut + Of all comfort and consolatioun, + Richt prively, but fellowship, on fut + Disgysit passit far out of the toun 95 + Ane myle or twa, unto ane mansioun + Beildit full gay, quhair hir father Calchas, + Quhilk than amang the Greikis dwelland was. + + Quhan he hir saw, the caus he can inquyr + Of hir cuming; sho said, syching full soir, 100 + 'Fra Diomeid had gottin his desyr + He wox wery, and wald of me no moir!' + Quod Calchas, 'Douchter, weip thow not thairfoir; + Peraventure all cummis for the best; + Welcum to me; thow art full deir ane gest.' 105 + + This auld Calchas, efter the law was tho, + Wes keeper of the tempill, as ane preist, + In quhilk Venus and hir son Cupido + War honourit; and his chalmer was thaim neist; + To quhilk Cresseid, with baill aneuch in breist, 110 + Usit to pas, hir prayeris for to say; + Quhill at the last, upon ane solempne day, + + As custom was, the pepill far and neir, + Befoir the none, unto the tempill went + With sacrifys devoit in thair maneir. 115 + But still Cresseid, hevy in hir intent, + In-to the kirk wald not hir-self present, + For giving of the pepil ony deming + Of hir expuls fra Diomeid the king: + + But past into ane secreit orature 120 + Quhair sho micht weip hir wofull desteny. + Behind hir bak sho cloisit fast the dure, + And on hir knëis bair fell down in hy. + Upon Venus and Cupid angerly + Sho cryit out, and said on this same wys, 125 + 'Allas! that ever I maid yow sacrifys! + + Ye gave me anis ane devyn responsaill + That I suld be the flour of luif in Troy; + Now am I maid an unworthy outwaill, + And all in cair translatit is my joy. 130 + Quha sall me gyde? quha sall me now convoy, + Sen I fra Diomeid and nobill Troilus + Am clene excludit, as abject odious? + + O fals Cupide, is nane to wyte bot thow + And thy mother, of luf the blind goddes! 135 + Ye causit me alwayis understand and trow + The seid of luf was sawin in my face, + And ay grew grene throw your supply and grace. + But now, allas! that seid with froist is slane, + And I fra luifferis left, and all forlane!' 140 + + Quhen this was said, doun in ane extasy, + Ravishit in spreit, intill ane dream sho fell; + And, be apperance, hard, quhair sho did ly, + Cupid the king ringand ane silver bell, + Quhilk men micht heir fra hevin unto hell; 145 + At quhais sound befoir Cupide appeiris + The sevin planetis, discending fra thair spheiris, + + Quhilk hes powèr of all thing generábill + To reull and steir, be thair greit influence, + Wedder and wind and coursis variábill. 150 + And first of all Saturn gave his sentence, + Quhilk gave to Cupid litill reverence, + But as ane busteous churl, on his maneir, + Com crabbitly, with auster luik and cheir. + + His face fronsit, his lyr was lyk the leid 155 + His teith chatterit and cheverit with the chin + His ene drowpit, how, sonkin in his heid + Out of his nois the meldrop fast can rin + With lippis bla, and cheikis leine and thin + The yse-shoklis that fra his hair doun hang 160 + Was wonder greit, and as ane speir als lang. + + Atour his belt his lyart lokkis lay + Felterit unfair, ourfret with froistis hoir; + His garmound and his +gyte full gay of gray; + His widderit weid fra him the wind out woir. 165 + Ane busteous bow within his hand he boir; + Under his gyrdil ane flash of felloun flanis + Fedderit with yse, and heidit with hail-stanis. + + Than Juppiter richt fair and amiábill, + God of the starnis in the firmament, 170 + And nureis to all thing[is] generábill, + Fra his father Saturn far different, + With burely face, and browis bricht and brent; + Upon his heid ane garland wonder gay + Of flouris fair, as it had been in May. 175 + + His voice was cleir, as cristal wer his ene; + As goldin wyr sa glitterand was his hair; + His garmound and his gyte full gay of grene, + With goldin listis gilt on every gair; + Ane burely brand about his middill bair. 180 + In his right hand he had ane groundin speir, + Of his father the wraith fra us to weir. + + Nixt efter him com Mars, the god of ire, + Of stryf, debait, and all dissensioun; + To chyde and fecht, als feirs as ony fyr; 185 + In hard harnes, hewmound and habirgeoun, + And on his hanche ane rousty fell fachioun: + And in his hand he had ane rousty sword, + Wrything his face with mony angry word. + + Shaikand his sword, befoir Cupide he com 190 + With reid visage and grisly glowrand ene; + And at his mouth ane bullar stude of fome, + Lyk to ane bair quhetting his tuskis kene + Richt tuilyour-lyk, but temperance in tene; + Ane horn he blew, with mony bosteous brag, 195 + Quhilk all this warld with weir hes maid to wag. + + Than fair Phebus, lanterne and lamp of licht + Of man and beist, baith frute and flourishing, + Tender nuréis, and banisher of nicht, + And of the warld causing, be his moving 200 + And influence, lyf in all eirdly thing; + Without comfort of quhom, of force to nocht + Must all ga dy, that in this warld is wrocht. + + As king royáll he raid upon his chair, + The quhilk Phaeton gydit sum-tyme unricht; 205 + The brichtnes of his face, quhen it was bair, + Nane micht behald for peirsing of his sicht. + This goldin cart with fyry bemes bricht + Four yokkit steidis, full different of hew, + But bait or tyring throw the spheiris drew. 210 + + The first was soyr, with mane als reid as rois, + Callit Eöy, in-to the orient; + The secund steid to name hecht Ethiös, + Quhytly and paill, and sum-deill ascendent; + The thrid Peros, richt hait and richt fervent; 215 + The feird was blak, callit +Philegoney, + Quhilk rollis Phebus down in-to the sey. + + Venus was thair present, that goddes gay, + Hir sonnis querrel for to defend, and mak + Hir awin complaint, cled in ane nyce array, 220 + The ane half grene, the uther half sabill-blak; + Quhyte hair as gold, kemmit and shed abak; + But in hir face semit greit variance, + Quhyles perfit treuth, and quhylës inconstance. + + Under smyling sho was dissimulait, 225 + Provocative with blenkis amorous; + And suddanly changit and alterait, + Angry as ony serpent venemous, + Richt pungitive with wordis odious. + Thus variant sho was, quha list tak keip, 230 + With ane eye lauch, and with the uther weip:-- + + In taikning that all fleshly paramour, + Quhilk Venus hes in reull and governance, + Is sum-tyme sweit, sum-tyme bitter and sour, + Richt unstabill, and full of variance, 235 + Mingit with cairfull joy, and fals plesance; + Now hait, now cauld; now blyth, now full of wo; + Now grene as leif, now widderit and ago. + + With buik in hand than com Mercurius, + Richt eloquent and full of rethory; 240 + With pólite termis and delicious; + With pen and ink to réport all redy; + Setting sangis, and singand merily. + His hude was reid, heklit atour his croun, + Lyk to ane poeit of the auld fassoun. 245 + + Boxis he bair with fine electuairis, + And sugerit syropis for digestioun; + Spycis belangand to the pothecairis, + With mony hailsum sweit confectioun; + Doctour in phisik, cled in scarlot goun, 250 + And furrit weill, as sic ane aucht to be, + Honest and gude, and not ane word coud le. + + Nixt efter him com lady Cynthia, + The last of all, and swiftest in hir spheir, + Of colour blak, buskit with hornis twa, 255 + And in the nicht sho listis best appeir; + Haw as the leid, of colour na-thing cleir. + For all hir licht sho borrowis at hir brothir + Titan; for of hir-self sho hes nane uther. + + Hir gyte was gray, and full of spottis blak; 260 + And on hir breist ane churl paintit ful evin, + Beirand ane bunch of thornis on his bak, + Quhilk for his thift micht clim na nar the hevin. + Thus quhen they gadderit war, thir goddis sevin, + Mercurius they cheisit with ane assent 265 + To be foir-speikar in the parliament. + + Quha had ben thair, and lyking for to heir + His facound toung and termis exquisyte, + Of rhetorik the praktik he micht leir, + In breif sermone ane pregnant sentence wryte. 270 + Befoir Cupide vailing his cap a lyte, + Speiris the caus of that vocacioun; + And he anon shew his intencioun. + + 'Lo!' quod Cupide, 'quha will blaspheme the name + Of his awin god, outhir in word or deid, 275 + To all goddis he dois baith lak and shame, + And suld have bitter panis to his meid. + I say this by yonder wretchit Cresseid, + The quhilk throw me was sum-tyme flour of lufe, + Me and my mother starkly can reprufe. 280 + + Saying, of hir greit infelicitè + I was the caus; and my mother Venus, + Ane blind goddes hir cald, that micht not see, + With slander and defame injurious. + Thus hir leving unclene and lecherous 285 + Sho wald returne on me and [on] my mother, + To quhom I shew my grace abone all uther. + + And sen ye ar all sevin deificait, + Participant of dévyn sapience, + This greit injúry don to our hy estait 290 + Me-think with pane we suld mak recompence; + Was never to goddis don sic violence. + As weill for yow as for myself I say; + Thairfoir ga help to révenge, I yow pray.' + + Mercurius to Cupid gave answeir, 295 + And said, 'Shir king, my counsall is that ye + Refer yow to the hyest planeit heir, + And tak to him the lawest of degrè, + The pane of Cresseid for to modify; + As god Saturn, with him tak Cynthia.' 300 + 'I am content,' quod he, 'to tak thay twa.' + + Than thus proceidit Saturn and the Mone, + Quhen thay the mater rypely had degest; + For the dispyt to Cupid sho had done, + And to Venus oppin and manifest, 305 + In all hir lyf with pane to be opprest + And torment sair, with seiknes incurábill, + And to all lovers be abominábill. + + This dulefull sentence Saturn tuik on hand, + And passit doun quhair cairfull Cresseid lay; 310 + And on hir heid he laid ane frosty wand, + Than lawfully on this wyse can he say; + 'Thy greit fairnes, and al thy bewty gay, + Thy wantoun blude, and eik thy goldin hair, + Heir I exclude fra thee for evermair. 315 + + I change thy mirth into melancholy, + Quhilk is the mother of all pensivenes; + Thy moisture and thy heit in cald and dry; + Thyne insolence, thy play and wantones + To greit diseis: thy pomp and thy riches 320 + In mortall neid; and greit penuritie + Thow suffer sall, and as ane beggar die.' + + O cruel Saturn, fraward and angry, + Hard is thy dome, and to malicious! + On fair Cresseid quhy hes thow na mercy, 325 + Quhilk was sa sweit, gentill, and amorous? + Withdraw thy sentence, and be gracious + As thow was never; so shawis thow thy deid, + Ane wraikfull sentence gevin on fair Cresseid. + + Than Cynthia, quhen Saturn past away, 330 + Out of hir sait discendit down belyve, + And red ane bill on Cresseid quhair sho lay, + Contening this sentence diffinityve:-- + 'Fra heil of body I thee now depryve, + And to thy seiknes sal be na recure, 335 + But in dolóur thy dayis to indure. + + Thy cristall ene minglit with blude I mak, + Thy voice sa cleir unplesand, hoir, and hace; + Thy lusty lyre ourspred with spottis blak, + And lumpis haw appeirand in thy face. 340 + Quhair thow cummis, ilk man sall flee the place; + Thus sall thou go begging fra hous to hous, + With cop and clapper, lyk ane lazarous.' + + This dooly dream, this ugly visioun + Brocht to ane end, Cresseid fra it awoik, 345 + And all that court and convocatioun + Vanischit away. Than rais sho up and tuik + Ane poleist glas, and hir shaddow coud luik; + And quhen sho saw hir face sa déformait, + Gif sho in hart was wa aneuch, god wait! 350 + + Weiping full sair, 'Lo! quhat it is,' quod she, + 'With fraward langage for to mufe and steir + Our crabbit goddis, and sa is sene on me! + My blaspheming now have I bocht full deir; + All eirdly joy and mirth I set areir. 355 + Allas, this day! Allas, this wofull tyde, + Quhen I began with my goddis to chyde!' + + Be this was said, ane child com fra the hall + To warn Cresseid the supper was redy; + First knokkit at the dure, and syne coud call-- 360 + 'Madame, your father biddis you cum in hy; + He has mervell sa lang on grouf ye ly, + And sayis, "Your prayërs been to lang sum-deill; + The goddis wait all your intent full weill."' + + Quod sho, 'Fair child, ga to my father deir, 365 + And pray him cum to speik with me anon.' + And sa he did, and said, 'Douchter, quhat cheir?' + 'Allas!' quod she, 'father, my mirth is gon!' + 'How sa?' quod he; and sho can all expone, + As I have tauld, the vengeance and the wrak, 370 + For hir trespas, Cupide on hir coud tak. + + He luikit on hir ugly lipper face, + The quhilk befor was quhyte as lilly-flour; + Wringand his handis, oftymes he said, Allas! + That he had levit to see that wofull hour! 375 + For he knew weill that thair was na succour + To hir seiknes; and that dowblit his pane; + Thus was thair cair aneuch betwix tham twane. + + Quhen thay togidder murnit had full lang, + Quod Cresseid, 'Father, I wald not be kend; 380 + Thairfoir in secreit wyse ye let me gang + To yon hospítall at the tounis end; + And thidder sum meit, for cheritie, me send + To leif upon; for all mirth in this eird + Is fra me gane; sik is my wikkit weird.' 385 + + Than in ane mantill and ane bevar hat, + With cop and clapper, wonder prively, + He opnit ane secreit yet, and out thairat + Convoyit hir, that na man suld espy, + Unto ane village half ane myle thairby; 390 + Deliverit hir in at the spittail-hous, + And dayly sent hir part of his almous. + + Sum knew hir weill, and sum had na knawlege + Of hir, becaus sho was sa déformait + With bylis blak, ourspred in hir visage, 395 + And hir fair colour faidit and alterait. + Yit thay presumit, for hir hy regrait + And still murning, sho was of nobill kin; + With better will thairfoir they tuik hir in. + + The day passit, and Phebus went to rest, 400 + The cloudis blak ourquhelmit all the sky; + God wait gif Cresseid was ane sorrowful gest, + Seeing that uncouth fair and herbery. + But meit or drink sho dressit hir to ly + In ane dark corner of the hous allone; 405 + And on this wyse, weiping, sho maid hir mone. + + THE COMPLAINT OF CRESSEID. + + 'O sop of sorrow sonken into cair! + O caytive Cresseid! now and ever-mair + Gane is thy joy and all thy mirth in eird; + Of all blyithnes now art thow blaiknit bair; 410 + Thair is na salve may saif thee of thy sair! + Fell is thy fortoun, wikkit is thy weird; + Thy blis is baneist, and thy baill on breird! + Under the eirth god gif I gravin wer, + Quhar nane of Grece nor yit of Troy micht heird! 415 + + Quhair is thy chalmer, wantounly besene + With burely bed, and bankouris browderit bene, + Spycis and wynis to thy collatioun; + The cowpis all of gold and silver shene, + The swete meitis servit in plaittis clene, 420 + With saipheron sals of ane gude sessoun; + Thy gay garmentis, with mony gudely goun, + Thy plesand lawn pinnit with goldin prene? + All is areir thy greit royáll renoun! + + Quhair is thy garding, with thir greissis gay 425 + And fresshe flouris, quhilk the quene Floray + Had paintit plesandly in every pane, + Quhair thou was wont full merily in May + To walk, and tak the dew be it was day, + And heir the merle and mavis mony ane; 430 + With ladyis fair in carrolling to gane, + And see the royal rinkis in thair array + In garmentis gay, garnischit on every grane? + + Thy greit triumphand fame and hy honour, + Quhair thou was callit of eirdly wichtis flour, 435 + All is decayit; thy weird is welterit so, + Thy hy estait is turnit in darknes dour! + This lipper ludge tak for thy burelie bour, + And for thy bed tak now ane bunch of stro. + For waillit wyne and meitis thou had tho, 440 + Tak mowlit breid, peirry, and syder sour; + But cop and clapper, now is all ago. + + My cleir voice and my courtly carrolling, + Quhair I was wont with ladyis for to sing, + Is rawk as ruik, full hiddeous, hoir, and hace; 445 + My plesand port all utheris precelling, + Of lustines I was held maist conding; + Now is deformit the figour of my face; + To luik on it na leid now lyking hes. + Sowpit in syte, I say with sair siching-- 450 + Lugeit amang the lipper-leid--"Alas!" + + O ladyis fair of Troy and Grece, attend + My misery, quhilk nane may comprehend, + My frivoll fortoun, my infelicitie, + My greit mischief, quhilk na man can amend. 455 + Be war in tyme, approchis neir the end, + And in your mynd ane mirrour mak of me. + As I am now, peradventure that ye, + For all your micht, may cum to that same end, + Or ellis war, gif ony war may be. 460 + + Nocht is your fairnes bot ane faiding flour, + Nocht is your famous laud and hy honour + Bot wind inflat in uther mennis eiris; + Your roising reid to rotting sall retour. + Exempill mak of me in your memour, 465 + Quhilk of sic thingis wofull witnes beiris. + All welth in eird away as wind it weiris; + Be war thairfoir; approchis neir the hour; + Fortoun is fikkil, quhen sho beginnis and steiris.'-- + + Thus chydand with her drery desteny, 470 + Weiping, sho woik the nicht fra end to end, + But all in vane; hir dule, hir cairfull cry + Micht nocht remeid, nor yit hir murning mend. + Ane lipper-lady rais, and till hir wend, + And said, 'Quhy spurnis thou aganis the wall, 475 + To sla thyself, and mend na-thing at all? + + Sen that thy weiping dowbillis bot thy wo, + I counsall thee mak vertew of ane neid, + To leir to clap thy clapper to and fro, + And +live efter the law of lipper-leid.' 480 + Thair was na buit, bot forth with thame sho yeid + Fra place to place, quhill cauld and hounger sair + Compellit hir to be ane rank beggair. + + That samin tyme, of Troy the garnisoun, + Quhilk had to chiftane worthy Troilus, 485 + Throw jeopardy of weir had strikkin doun + Knichtis of Grece in number mervellous. + With greit triúmph and laud victorious + Agane to Troy richt royally thay raid + The way quhair Cresseid with the lipper baid. 490 + + Seing that company cum, all with ane stevin + They gaif ane cry, and shuik coppis gude speid; + Said, 'Worthy lordis, for goddis lufe of hevin, + To us lipper part of your almous-deid.' + Than to thair cry nobill Troilus tuik heid; 495 + Having pity, neir by the place can pas + Quhair Cresseid sat, nat witting quhat sho was. + + Than upon him sho kest up baith her ene, + And with ane blenk it com in-to his thocht + That he sum-tyme hir face befoir had sene; 500 + But sho was in sic ply he knew hir nocht. + Yit than hir luik in-to his mind it brocht + The sweit visage and amorous blenking + Of fair Cresseid, sumtyme his awin darling. + + Na wonder was, suppois in mynd that he 505 + Tuik hir figure sa sone, and lo! now, quhy; + The idole of ane thing in cace may be + Sa deip imprentit in the fantasy, + That it deludis the wittis outwardly, + And sa appeiris in forme and lyke estait 510 + Within the mynd as it was figurait. + + Ane spark of lufe than till his hart coud spring, + And kendlit all his body in ane fyre; + With hait fevir ane sweit and trimbilling + Him tuik, quhill he was redy to expyre; 515 + To beir his sheild his breist began to tyre; + Within ane whyle he changit mony hew, + And nevertheles not ane ane-uther knew. + + For knichtly pity and memoriall + Of fair Cresseid, ane girdill can he tak, 520 + Ane purs of gold and mony gay jowáll, + And in the skirt of Cresseid doun can swak; + Than raid away, and not ane word he spak, + Pensive in hart, quhill he com to the toun, + And for greit cair oft-syis almaist fell doun. 525 + + The lipper-folk to Cresseid than can draw, + To see the equall distribucioun + Of the almous; but quhan the gold they saw, + Ilk ane to uther prevely can roun, + And said, 'Yon lord hes mair affectioun, 530 + However it be, unto yon lazarous + Than to us all; we knaw be his almous.' + + 'Quhat lord is yon?' quod sho, 'have ye na feill, + Hes don to us so greit humanitie?' + 'Yes,' quod a lipper-man, 'I knaw him weill; 535 + Shir Troilus it is, gentill and free.' + Quhen Cresseid understude that it was he, + Stiffer than steill thair stert ane bitter stound + Throwout hir hart, and fell doun to the ground. + + Quhen sho, ourcom with syching sair and sad, 540 + With mony cairfull cry and cald--'Ochane! + Now is my breist with stormy stoundis stad, + Wrappit in wo, ane wretch full will of wane'; + Than swounit sho oft or sho coud refrane, + And ever in hir swouning cryit sho thus: 545 + 'O fals Cresseid, and trew knicht Troilus! + + Thy luf, thy lawtee, and thy gentilnes + I countit small in my prosperitie; + Sa elevait I was in wantones, + And clam upon the fickill quheill sa hie; 550 + All faith and lufe, I promissit to thee, + Was in the self fickill and frivolous; + O fals Cresseid, and trew knicht Troilus! + + For lufe of me thou keipt gude countinence, + Honest and chaist in conversatioun; 555 + Of all wemen protectour and defence + Thou was, and helpit thair opinioun. + My mynd, in fleshly foull affectioun, + Was inclynit to lustis lecherous; + Fy! fals Cresseid! O, trew knicht Troilus! 560 + + Lovers, be war, and tak gude heid about + Quhom that ye lufe, for quhom ye suffer paine; + I lat yow wit, thair is richt few thairout + Quhom ye may traist, to have trew lufe againe; + Preif quhen ye will, your labour is in vaine. 565 + Thairfoir I reid ye tak thame as ye find; + For they ar sad as widdercock in wind. + + Becaus I knaw the greit unstabilnes + Brukkil as glas, into my-self I say, + Traisting in uther als greit unfaithfulnes, 570 + Als unconstant, and als untrew of fay. + Thocht sum be trew, I wait richt few ar thay. + Quha findis treuth, lat him his lady ruse; + Nane but my-self, as now, I will accuse.' + + Quhen this was said, with paper sho sat doun, 575 + And on this maneir maid hir TESTAMENT:-- + 'Heir I beteich my corps and carioun + With wormis and with taidis to be rent; + My cop and clapper, and myne ornament, + And all my gold, the lipper-folk sall have, 580 + Quhen I am deid, to bury me in grave. + + This royall ring, set with this ruby reid, + Quhilk Troilus in drowry to me send, + To him agane I leif it quhan I am deid, + To mak my cairfull deid unto him kend. 585 + Thus I conclude shortly, and mak ane end. + My spreit I leif to Diane, quhair sho dwellis, + To walk with hir in waist woddis and wellis. + + O Diomeid! thow hes baith broche and belt + Quhilk Troilus gave me in takinning 590 + Of his trew lufe!'--And with that word sho swelt. + And sone ane lipper-man tuik of the ring, + Syne buryit hir withoutin tarying. + To Troilus furthwith the ring he bair, + And of Cresseid the deith he can declair. 595 + + Quhen he had hard hir greit infirmitè, + Hir legacy and lamentatioun, + And how sho endit in sik povertè, + He swelt for wo, and fell doun in ane swoun; + For greit sorrow his hart to birst was boun. 600 + Syching full sadly, said, 'I can no moir; + Sho was untrew, and wo is me thairfoir!' + + Sum said, he maid ane tomb of merbell gray, + And wrait hir name and superscriptioun, + And laid it on hir grave, quhair that sho lay, 605 + In goldin letteris, conteining this ressoun:-- + 'Lo! fair ladyis, Cresseid of Troyis toun, + Sumtyme countit the flour of womanheid, + Under this stane, late lipper, lyis deid!' + + Now, worthy wemen, in this ballet short, 610 + Made for your worship and instructioun, + Of cheritè I monish and exhort, + Ming not your luf with fals deceptioun. + Beir in your mynd this short conclusioun + Of fair Cresseid, as I have said befoir; 615 + Sen sho is deid, I speik of hir no moir. + +_From_ E. (Edinburgh edition, 1593); _collated with_ Th. (Thynne, ed. +1532). 1. E. Ane; Th. A (_often_). E. doolie; Th. doly. E. to; Th. tyl. 4. +E. tragedie (_I substitute_ -y _for_ -ie). 6. E. Schouris (_I substitute_ +Sh- _for_ Sch-). 7. Th. my[gh]t me defende. 8. E. oratur; Th. orature. 10. +Th. scyled. 16. _Both_ se. 17. Th. northern. 18. Th. shedde his. 19. Th. +frost. 20. E. Artick; Th. Artike. Th. whiskyng. 21. E. remufe; Th. remoue. + +24. Th. faded. 28. Th. chambre. _Both_ fyre. 29. E. lufe; Th. loue. 30. E. +youtheid; Th. youthheed. 32. E. doif; Th. dull; _read_ douf. 34. E. +phisike. 36. E. mend; Th. made. _Both_ fyre. Th. beaked. 37. E. ane; Th. I. +40. Th. queare. 42. E. worthy; Th. lusty. 43. Th. founde. 45. Th. of his +wytte abrede. 46. Th. wepte. 48. Th. esperous; E. Esperus. 49. E. quhyle. +Th. and while (_for 2nd_ quhyl). 51. E. suld; Th. wolde. 52. Th. of al +erthly. + +55. E. ganecome; Th. gayncome. Th. in (_for_ than). 58. Th. in that same. +63. Th. which ended. 66. Th. authorysed or forged. 67. Th. Of some; by +(_for_ throw). 70. Th. she was in or she deyde. 71. _Both_ appetyte. 73. +Th. sette was al his delyte. 74. Th. _om._ of. 77. Th. As (_for_ And); in +the courte as co_m_mune. 78. Th. Creseyde. _Both_ floure. 79. Th. were. 80. +E. feminitie. 82. Th. early (_for_ air). 84. Th. the; E. thow. + +86. E. scornefull. E. brukkilnes; Th. brutelnesse. 88. E. wisdome. 91. E. +wickit. 92. E. in; Th. on. _Both_ wyse destitute. 94. E. but; Th. without. +Th. or refute; E. on fute. 95. E. Disagysit; Th. Dissheuelde. Th. passed +out. 99. E. inquyre; Th. enquyre. 101. _Both_ desyre. 108. E. sone; Th. +sonne. 109. E. hir; Th. his. Th. chambre. E. thame; Th. _om._ 110. E. +aneuch in; Th. enewed. 113. _Both_ custome. 115. _Both_ sacrifice. Th. +deuout. + +117. Th. churche. 118. E. givin; Th. gyueng. E. pepill; Th. people. 120. +Th. oratore. 122. Th. closed; dore. 124. _Both_ Cupide. 125. Th. _om._ +same. _Both_ wyse. 126. E. Allace; Th. Alas. _Both_ sacrifice. 127. E. +devine; Th. diuyne. 132. E. Sen; Th. Sithe. 135. E. lufe; Th. loue. E. the; +Th. that. 136. Th. vnderstande alway. 137. E. lufe; Th. loue. 138. Th. +souple grace. 139. E. allace; Th. alas. Th. frost. 140. Th. louers; -layne. +143. Th. herde. 144. _Both_ Cupide. E. ringand; Th. tynkyng. 145. Th. +in-to. 147. Th. speres. + +150. Th. course. 151. _Both_ Saturne. 152. _Both_ Cupide. 153. Th. +boystous. E. on; Th. in. 154. _Both_ Come. E. crabitlie; Th. crabbedly. Th. +austryne. 155. E. frosnit (_for_ fronsit); Th. frounsed. E. lyre; Th. lere. +_Both_ lyke. 156. Th. sheuered. 157. Th. drouped hole. 158. E. of; Th. at. +Th. myldrop. 159. Th. blo. 160. E. ic-eschoklis; Th. yse-yckels. 162. E. +Atouir; Th. Attour. 163. E. ovirfret; Th. ouerfret; _read_ ourfret. 164. +Th. garment. E. gyis; Th. gate; _see_ l. 178. 165. Th. wyddred; wore. 166. +Th. boustous; bor[e]. 167. E. gyrdill. Th. a fasshe(!); flayns. 168. Th. +holstayns (!). 170. Th. sterres. 171. Th. norice; thinge. 172. _Both_ +Saturne. 173. Th. burly. 174. Th. wonders. 175. E. bene; Th. ben. + +177. E. wyre; Th. wyer. Th. glyttryng. 178. Th. garment. E. gyis; Th. gyte. +180. Th. A burly; myddle he beare. 182. Th. wrathe. E. weir; Th. bere. 183. +E. come; Th. came. 184. E. strife; Th. stryfe. 185. _Both_ fyre. 186. Th. +hewmo_n_de. 187. Th. fauchoun. 190. Th. Shakyng his brande. _Both_ come. +191. Th. glowyng. 192. E. bullar; Th. blubber. 193. Th. boore. 194. E. +tuilyeour; Th. tulsure (!). _Both_ lyke. 195. _Both_ horne; Th. _om._ he. +Th. boustous. 196. E. weir; Th. warre. 199. Th. norice. 201. _Both_ lyfe. +Th. erthly. 203. Th. _om._ all. Th. that al this worlde hath. 204. Th. a +chare. 205. Th. Phiton somtyme gyded. E. upricht (!); Th. unright. + +210. Th. speres. 211. Th. sorde (_for_ soyr). 212. _Both_ Eoye. 213. Th. +Ethose. 215. Th. Perose; and eke. 216. E. Philologie; Th. Philologee. 218. +E. _om._ gay. 219. Th. _om._ for. 222. Th. kembet. 224. Th. While parfite. +E. perfyte. 227. E. suddanely; Th. sodaynly. 228. E. vennemous; Th. +venomous. 232. Th. tokenyng. 237. E. blyith; Th. blyth. 238. Th. wyddred. + +239. _Both_ come. 242. E. reddie; Th. redy. 244. E. atouir; Th. attour. +245. _Both_ Lyke. 250. E. phisick. Th. cledde in a scarlet. 252. E. culd +lie; Th. couth lye. 253. _Both_ come. 254. Th. spere. 256. Th. tapere. 258. +E. hir (1); Th. the. 260. E. gyse; Th. gyte. 261. E. churle; Th. chorle. +262. E. bunche; Th. busshe. 263. Th. theft; no ner. 264. Th. gadred were +the. 267. E. bene. 269. E. rhetorick; Th. rethorike. E. prettick; Th. +practyke. + +273. E. anone. E. schew; Th. shewde. 276. E. lak; Th. losse. 278. E. yone; +Th. yonder. Th. wretche Creseyde. 280. E. starklie; Th. she stately. 281. +E. -tie. 283. Th. She called a blynde goddes and myght. 286. E. returne; +Th. retorte. E. on; Th. in. _I supply 2nd_ on. 287. E. schew; Th. shewde +(_as in_ l. 273). Th. aboue. 289. E. devyne; Th. diuyne. 290. E. iniurie; +Th. iniure. _Both_ done. 290. E. hie; Th. hye. 292. _Both_ goddes done. +295. _Both_ Cupide. 299. E. modifie; Th. modifye. 300. _Both_ Saturne. + +303, 309, 323, 330. _Both_ Saturne. 304. _Both_ Cupide. E. scho; Th. that +she. 305. Th. open. 306. _Both_ lyfe. 308. E. abhominabill; Th. +abhominable. 309. Th. doleful. 318. E. in; Th. into. 319. E. and; Th. and +thy. 321. E. In; Th. Into. E. penuritie; Th. -te. 322. Th. shalte. Th. dye. +324. E. malitious. 325. E. On; Th. Of. 328. Th. sheweth through. 329. Th. +_om._ fair. 331. Th. seate. + +334. E. heit; Th. heale. 336. Th. endure. 338. Th. vnplesaunt heer. 339. +Th. lere. E. ouirspred; Th. ouerspred. 342. E. This; Th. Thus. 343. Th. +cuppe. _Both_ lyke. 344. _Both_ dreame. E. uglye. 347. Th. rose she. 348. +Th. polysshed. E. culd; Th. couth. 349. E. face; Th. visage. 350. Th. were +wo, I ne wyte god wate. 352. Th. _om._ for. E. mufe; Th. moue. 353. E. +craibit; Th. crabbed. 355. Th. erthly. 356. E. Allace; Th. Alas. 357. E. +for to; Th. _om._ for. 358. E. come; Th. came. 359. _Both_ warne. Th. +Creseyde. E. reddy; Th. redy. 360. E. syne culd; Th. efte couth. 362. E. +merwel; Th. marueyle. 363. E. prayers bene; Th. bedes bethe. + +365. _Both_ chylde. 366. _Both_ anone. 368. _Both_ gone. 370. E. wraik; Th. +wrake. 371. E. culd. 372. E. uglye. Th. lepers. 374. Th. _om._ he. 378. Th. +ynow. E. thame; Th. he_m_. 380. Th. Creseyde. 382. Th. To yon; E. Unto +yone. 383. Th. charite. 384. Th. lyue; erthe. 385. Th. werthe(!). 386. E. +Than; Th. Whan(!). Th. Beuer; E. bawar. 387. Th. cuppe. 388. Th. secrete +gate. 389. Th. Conueyed. 390. Th. There to. 393. E. knawledge. 395. E. +ovirspred; Th. ouerspred. + +397. E. hie; Th. hye. 399. Th. there (_for_ thairfoir). 401. E. +ovirquhelmit; Th. ouerheled. 402. E. was; Th. were. 403. Th. fare. 405, +406. _Perhaps read_ alane, mane. 408. E. cative; Th. caytife. E. for now; +Th. _om._ for. 409. Th. erthe. 410. Th. blake and bare. 411. Th. helpe +(_for_ saif thee of). 412. Th. werthe (!). 413. Th. bale vnberd (!). 414. +Th. Vnder the great god. 415. Th. men (_for_ nane). Th. herd. 416. Th. +chambre. 417. Th. burly; bankers brouded. 418. Th. wyne. 419. Th. cuppes. +420. Th. plates. 421. Th. sauery sauce. 423. Th. pene (!). 424. Th. arere. + +425. Th. thy greces. 430. E. mawis. 432. Th. renkes. E. array; Th. ray. Th. +_omits_ ll. 433-437. 434, 437. E. hie. 438. Th. leper loge. E. burelie; Th. +goodly. 439. E. bunche; Th. bonch. 441. E. peirrie; Th. pirate. E. ceder; +Th. syder. 442. Th. cuppe. 443. E. _om._ my. 444. Th. _om. this line_. 445. +Th. ranke as roke, ful hidous heer. Th. _om._ ll. 446, 447. 448. Th. +Deformed is. 449. Th. no pleople (_sic_) hath lykyng (!). 450. Th. Solped +in syght. 451. E. Ludgeit; Th. Lyeng. Th. leper folke. E. allace; Th. alas. +453. Th. _omits_. 454. Th. freyle fortune. + +455. Th. war therfore; your ende. 456. Th. _places after_ l. 460. 459. E. +that; Th. the. 460. Th. worse, if any worse. 464. Th. rosyng. 465. Th. +memore. 468. Th. your hour. 469. Th. _omits_. 471. Th. woke. 472. Th. dole. +473. Th. remedy ne. 474. Th. rose. 477. E. Sen; Th. Sithe. E. _om._ that. +Th. but doubleth. 479. E. To leir; Th. Go lerne. 480. E. leir; Th. lerne; +_read_ live. Th. lepers lede. 486. Th. warre. + +488. _Both_ tryumphe; laude. 489. Th. rode. 490. E. baid; Th. stode. 491. +E. thai come; Th. come; _read_ cum. 492. Th. shoke cuppes. 493. Th. _om._ +Said. 495. Th. her (_for_ thair). 496. Th. pyte; E. pietie. 499. _Both_ +come. 501. E. plye; Th. plyte. 502. E. it; Th. he. 504. E. awin; Th. owne. +508. Th. enprynted. 512. E. culd; Th. couth. 514. E. fewir; Th. feuer. Th. +in swette. _Both_ trimbling. 515. E. reddie. 516. Th. brest. 517. Th. many +a hewe. + +519. Th. pyte; E. pietie. 520. Th. gan. 521. Th. many a gay iewel. 522. E. +swak; Th. shake. 523. E. _om._ he. 524. E. come; Th. came. 525. E. -syis; +Th. -syth. 526. E. can; Th. couth. 527. _Both_ se. 529. E. prewelie; Th. +priuely. 530. Th. yon; E. yone. 534. Th. That dothe. E. humanitie; Th. -te. +536. Th. _ins._ a knight _after_ is. 540. E. ovircome; Th. ouerco_m_e. 541. +Th. colde atone (!). 542. Th. brest. 543. Th. _om._ ane; Th. one (_for_ +wane). 544. Th. Than fel in swoun ful ofte. E. culd; Th. wolde. Th. fone +(!); _for_ refrane. 547. E. lufe; Th. loue. Th. laude and al thy. 549. Th. +So effated (_or_ essated). + +551. Th. promytted. 552. Th. thy selfe; furious (!). 554. Th. countenaunce +(_om._ gude). 557. Th. were. 558. E. in; Th. on. 562. E. Quhome; Th. Whom. +E. quhome; Th. whan. 563. Th. thrughout. 565. Th. Proue. 569. Th. Brittel; +unto. 570. Th. great brutelnesse. 572. Th. Though. 576. Th. maner. 577. E. +beteiche; Th. bequeth. Th. corse. 578. Th. toodes. 579. Th. cuppe my. 580. +E. the; Th. these. + +583. E. drowrie; Th. dowry (!). 587. Th. spirite. 590. E. takning; Th. +tokenyng; _read_ takinning. 593. E. withouttin. 596. E. infirmitie; Th. +-te. 598. E. povertie; Th. -te. 600. Th. _om._ greit. 605. Th. where as +she. 607. Th. Troy the toun. 612. E. cheritie; Th. charyte. 613. E. lufe; +Th. loue. 614. E. schort; Th. sore (!). 616. E. Sen; Th. Sithe. + + * * * * * + +XVIII. + +THE CUCKOO AND THE NIGHTINGALE; + +OR + +THE BOOK OF CUPID, GOD OF LOVE. + + The god of love, a! _benedicite!_ + How mighty and how greet a lord is he! + For he can make of lowe hertes hye, + And of hye lowe, and lyke for to dye, + And harde hertes he can maken free. 5 + + And he can make, within a litel stounde + Of seke folk ful hole, fresshe and sounde, + And of [the] hole, he can make seke; + And he can binden and unbinden eke + What he wol have bounden or unbounde. 10 + + To telle his might my wit may not suffyse; + For he may do al that he wol devyse. + For he can make of wyse folk ful nyce, + And [eke] in lyther folk distroyen vyce; + And proude hertes he can make agryse. 15 + + Shortly, al that ever he wol he may; + Ageines him ther dar no wight sey nay. + For he can gladde and greve whom him lyketh; + And, who that he wol, he laugheth or he syketh; + And most his might he sheweth ever in May. 20 + + For every trewe gentil herte free + That with him is, or thinketh for to be, + Ageines May now shal have som steringe + Other to joye, or elles to morninge, + In no sesoun so greet, as thinketh me. 25 + + For whan they mowe here the briddes singe, + And see the floures and the leves springe, + That bringeth into hertes rémembraunce + A maner ese, medled with grevaunce, + And lusty thoughtes fulle of greet longinge. 30 + + And of that longing cometh hevinesse, + And therof groweth ofte greet seknesse, + And al for lak of that that they desyre; + And thus in May ben hertes sette on fyre, + So that they brennen forth in greet distresse. 35 + + I speke this of feling, trewely; + For, althogh I be old and unlusty, + Yet have I felt of that seknesse, in May, + Bothe hoot and cold, an acces every day, + How sore, y-wis, ther wot no wight but I. 40 + + I am so shaken with the fevers whyte, + Of al this May yet slepte I but a lyte; + And also it naught lyketh unto me, + That any herte shulde slepy be + In whom that Love his fyry dart wol smyte. 45 + + But as I lay this other night wakinge, + I thoghte how lovers had a tokeninge, + And among hem it was a comune tale, + That it were good to here the nightingale + Rather than the lewde cukkow singe. 50 + + And then I thoghte, anon as it was day, + I wolde go som whider to assay + If that I might a nightingalë here; + For yet had I non herd of al this yere, + And hit was tho the thridde night of May. 55 + + And than, anon as I the day espyde, + No lenger wolde I in my bedde abyde, + But unto a wode, that was faste by, + I wente forth alone, boldely, + And held my way doun by a broke-syde, 60 + + Til I com to a launde of whyte and grene; + So fair oon had I never in[ne] been; + The ground was grene, y-poudred with daisye, + The floures and the gras y-lyke hye, + Al grene and whyte; was nothing elles sene. 65 + + Ther sat I doun among the faire floures; + And saw the briddes trippe out of her boures + Ther-as they had hem rested al the night. + They were so joyful of the dayes light + That they +begonne of May to don hir houres! 70 + + They coude that servyce al by rote; + Ther was many a lovely straunge note; + Some songe loudë, as they hadde pleyned, + And some in other maner vois y-feyned, + And some al out, with al the fulle throte. 75 + + They proyned hem, and made[n] hem right gay, + And daunseden, and lepten on the spray, + And evermore two and two in-fere; + Right so as they had chosen hem to-yere + In Feverere, on seint Valentynes day. 80 + + And eke the river, that I sat upon, + It made suche a noise, as it ron, + Accordaunt with the briddes armonye, + Me thoughte, it was the best[e] melodye + That mighte been y-herd of any mon. 85 + + And for delyt ther-of, I wot never how, + I fel in suche a slomber and a swow, + Not al a-slepe, ne fully wakinge; + And in that swow me thoughte I herde singe + That sory brid, the lew[e]de cukkow. 90 + + And that was on a tree right fast[e] by; + But who was than evel apayd but I? + 'Now god,' quod I, 'that dyëd on the crois + Yeve sorow on thee, and on thy lewde vois! + For litel joye have I now of thy cry.' 95 + + And as I with the cukkow thus gan chyde, + I herde, in the nexte bush besyde, + A Nightingalë so lustily singe + That with her clere vois she made ringe + Through-out al the grene wode wyde. 100 + + 'A! goode Nightingale!' quod I thenne, + 'A litel hast thou been to longe henne; + For here hath been the lew[e]de Cukkow, + And songen songes rather than hast thou; + I pray to god that evel fyr him brenne!' 105 + + But now I wol you telle a wonder thing: + As longë as I lay in that swowning, + Me thoughte, I wiste what the briddes ment, + And what they seyde, and what was her entent, + And of her speche I hadde good knowing. 110 + + And than herde I the Nightingale say, + 'Now, gode Cukkow! go som-where away, + And let us that can singen dwellen here; + For every wight escheweth thee to here, + Thy songes be so elenge, in good fay!' 115 + + 'What?' quod he, 'what may thee eylen now? + It thinketh me, I singe as wel as thou, + For my song is bothe trewe and playn; + Al-though I can not crakel so in vayn + As thou dost in thy throte, I wot never how. 120 + + And every wight may understande me; + But, Nightingale, so may they not do thee; + For thou hast many a nyce queinte cry. + I have herd thee seyn, "_ocy! ocy!_" + How mighte I knowe what that shulde be?' 125 + + 'A fole!' quod she, 'wost thou not what it is? + Whan that I say "_ocy! ocy!_" y-wis, + Than mene I that I wolde, wonder fayn, + That alle they were shamfully y-slayn + That menen aught ayeines love amis. 130 + + And also I wolde alle tho were dede + That thenke not in love hir lyf to lede; + For who that wol the god of love not serve, + I dar wel say, is worthy for to sterve; + And for that skil "_ocy! ocy!_" I grede.' 135 + + 'Ey!' quod the Cukkow, 'this is a queint lawe, + That every wight shal love or be to-drawe! + But I forsake al suchë companye. + For myn entent is neither for to dye, + Ne, whyl I live, in loves yok to drawe. 140 + + For lovers ben the folk that been on-lyve + That most disesë han, and most unthryve, + And, most enduren sorow, wo, and care; + And, at the laste, failen of welfare; + What nedeth hit ayeines trouth to stryve?' 145 + + 'What?' quod she, 'thou art out of thy minde! + How might thou in thy cherles herte finde + To speke of loves servaunts in this wyse? + For in this worlde is noon so good servyse + To every wight that gentil is of kinde. 150 + + For ther-of, trewly, cometh al goodnesse, + Al honóur, and [eke] al gentilnesse, + Worship, esë, and al hertes lust, + Parfit joye, and ful assured trust, + Jolitee, plesauncë, and freshnesse, 155 + + Lowliheed, and trewe companye, + Seemliheed, largesse, and curtesye, + Drede of shame for to doon amis; + For he that trewly Loves servaunt is + Were lother to be shamed than to dye. 160 + + And that this is sooth, al that I seye, + In that beleve I wol bothe live and deye, + And Cukkow, so rede I thou do, y-wis.' + 'Ye, than,' quod he, 'god let me never have blis + If ever I to that counseyl obeye! 165 + + Nightingale, thou spekest wonder fayre, + But, for al that, the sooth is the contrayre; + For loving is, in yonge folk, but rage, + And in olde folk hit is a greet dotage; + Who most hit useth, most he shal apeyre. 170 + + For therof comth disese and hevinesse, + Sorowe and care, and mony a greet seknesse, + Dispyt, debat, [and] anger, and envye, + Repreef and shame, untrust and jelousye, + Pryde and mischeef, povértee, and woodnesse. 175 + + What! Loving is an office of dispayr, + And oo thing is ther-in that is not fayr; + For who that geteth of love a litel blis, + But-if he be alway therwith, y-wis, + He may ful sone of age have his heyr. 180 + + And, Nightingale, therfor hold thee ny; + For, leve me wel, for al thy queynte cry, + If thou be fer or longe fro thy make, + Thou shalt be as other that been forsake, + And than[ne] thou shalt hoten as do I!' 185 + + 'Fy!' quod she, 'on thy namë and on thee! + The god of love ne let thee never y-thee! + For thou art wors a thousand-fold than wood. + For many on is ful worthy and ful good, + That had be naught, ne hadde love y-be! 190 + + For Love his servaunts ever-more amendeth, + And from al evel taches hem defendeth, + And maketh hem to brenne right as fyr + In trouthë and in worshipful desyr, + And, whom him liketh, joye y-nough hem sendeth.' 195 + + 'Thou Nightingale,' he seyde, 'hold thee stille; + For Love hath no resoun but his wille; + For ofte sithe untrewe folk he eseth, + And trewe folk so bitterly displeseth + That, for defaute of grace, he let hem spille. 200 + + With such a lorde wol I never be; + For he is blind alwey, and may not see; + And whom he hit he not, or whom he fayleth; + And in his court ful selden trouthe avayleth; + Só dyvérs and so wilfúl is he.' 205 + + Than took I of the Nightingale kepe, + She caste a sigh out of her herte depe, + And seyde, 'Alas! that ever I was bore! + I can, for tene, say not oon word more;' + And right with that she brast out for to wepe. 210 + + 'Alas!' quod she, 'my herte wol to-breke + To heren thus this false brid to speke + Of love, and of his worshipful servyse; + Now, god of love, thou help me in som wyse + That I may on this Cukkow been awreke!' 215 + + Me thoughte than, that I sterte up anon, + And to the broke I ran, and gat a stoon, + And at the Cukkow hertely I caste; + And he, for drede, fley away ful faste; + And glad was I when that he was a-goon. 220 + + And evermore the Cukkow, as he fley, + He seyde, 'Farewel! farewel, papinjay!' + As though he hadde scorned, thoughte me; + But ay I hunted him fro tree to tree + Til he was fer al out of sighte awey. 225 + + And thanne com the Nightingale to me, + And seyde, 'Frend, forsothe I thanke thee + That thou hast lyked me thus to rescowe; + And oon avow to Love I wol avowe, + That al this May I wol thy singer be.' 230 + + I thanked her, and was right wel apayed; + 'Ye,' quod she, 'and be thou not amayed, + Though thou have herd the Cukkow er than me. + For, if I live, it shal amended be + The nexte May, if I be not affrayed. 235 + + And oon thing I wol rede thee also; + Ne leve thou not the Cukkow, loves fo; + For al that he hath seyd is strong lesinge.' + 'Nay,' quod I, 'therto shal no thing me bringe + Fro love; and yet he doth me mochel wo.' 240 + + 'Ye, use thou,' quod she, 'this medicyne; + Every day this May, or that thou dyne, + Go loke upon the fresshe dayësyë. + And though thou be for wo in poynt to dye, + That shal ful gretly lissen thee of thy pyne. 245 + + And loke alwey that thou be good and trewe, + And I wol singe oon of my songes newe, + For love of thee, as loude as I may crye;' + And than[ne] she began this song ful hye-- + 'I shrewe al hem that been of love untrewe!' 250 + + And whan she hadde songe hit to the ende, + 'Nów farewel,' quod she, 'for I mot wende; + And god of love, that can right wel and may, + As mochel joye sende thee this day + As ever yet he any lover sende!' 255 + + Thus took the Nightingale her leve of me. + I pray to god, he alway with her be, + And joye of love he sende her evermore; + And shilde us fro the Cukkow and his lore; + For ther is noon so fals a brid as he. 260 + + Forth she fley, the gentil Nightingale, + To al the briddes that were in that dale, + And gat hem alle into a place in-fere, + And +hem besoughte that they woldë here + Her disese; and thus began her tale:-- 265 + + 'Ye witen wel, it is not fro yow hid + How the Cukkow and I faste have chid + Ever sithen it was dayes light; + I pray yow alle, that ye do me right + Of that foule, false, unkinde brid.' 270 + + Than spak oo brid for alle, by oon assent, + 'This mater asketh good avysement; + For we ben fewe briddes here in-fere. + And sooth it is, the Cukkow is not here; + And therefor we wol have a parlement. 275 + + And therat shal the Egle be our lord, + And other peres that ben of record, + And the Cukkow shal be after sent. + And ther shal be yeven the jugement, + Or elles we shal make som accord. 280 + + And this shal be, withouten any nay, + The morow of seynt Valentynes day, + Under a maple that is fayr and grene, + Before the chambre-window of the quene + At Wodestok, upon the grene lay.' 285 + + She thanked hem, and than her leve took, + And fley into an hawthorn by the brook, + And ther she sat, and song upon that tree, + 'Terme of [my] lyf, Love hath with-holde me,' + So loude, that I with that song awook. 290 + + EXPLICIT CLANVOWE. + +_From_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1532); _collated with_ F. (Fairfax 16); B. (Bodley +638); S. (Arch. Selden, B. 24); T. (Tanner 346); _also in_ Ff. (Camb. Univ. +Ff. 1. 6). TITLE: Th. Of the C. and the N.; F. B. The boke of Cupide, god +of loue. 1. Th. ah; F. a; S. a. a. 2. Th. Howe; gret; lorde. 4. Th. of his; +Ff. S. of hye; F. B. high hertis. 6. F. B. S. Ff. And he; Th. _om._ And. 7. +Th. folke; _om._ ful. 8. _I supply_ the. S. hole folke. 9. S. And he; _rest +om._ And. Th. F. B. bynde; _read_ binden. 10. Th. T. That; F. B. Ff. What; +S. Quhom. 11. Th. tel; wytte. 12, 13. Th. T. _transpose these lines_. 12. +Th. Ff. wol; _rest_ can. 13. Th. folke. 14. _I supply_ eke. Th. T. _om._ in +(S. _has_ in-to). F. lyther; S. lidd_er_; Th. Ff. lythy; T. leþi. Th. +folke. Th. T. to distroyen; _rest om._ to. + +17. Ff. T. Ageynes; S. Ageynest; Th. Agaynst; F. B. Ayenst. Th. Ff. T. +_om._ ther. 18. Th. glad; _rest_ glade. 19. Th. loweth. S. _has 2nd_ he; +_rest omit_. F. B. don hym laugh or siketh. 20. Th. T. shedeth. 21. Th. +fre. 22. F. B. _om._ for. 23. S. Ff. A[gh]eynes; F. B. Ayenst; Th. T. +Agayne. Th. nowe. 24. F. B. Other; S. Outhir; Th. T. Ff. Or. Th. ioy. F. B. +S. T. ellis; Th. els. Th. T. Ff. some mournyng; _rest om._ some. 25. F. B. +grette; Ff. S. grete; Th. moche. 26. F. then; _rest_ whan (when). Th. may; +T. mai; F. B. S. mow; Ff. mowe. Th. byrdes; S. foulis; _rest_ briddes. 27. +Th. leaues. 28. Th. T. her (_for_ hertes). 29. Th. T. ease; S. ess; F. B. +case (!). Ff. y-medled. 30. Th. ful; Ff. fulle. Th. great. 32. Th. great +sicknesse. 33. S. all; _rest om._ Th. lacke. 35. Th. forthe; great. 36. S. +trewely; Th. trewly. 37. F. B. S. For althogh; Th. T. If(!). Th. olde. 38. +Th. T. I haue; _rest_ haue I. Th. felte; sicknesse. Th. Ff. through; _rest_ +in. 39. _All_ hote. Th. F. B. colde. Th. T. and (!); _for_ an. Th. axes; F. +B. acces. 40. Th. Howe; wote. + +42. Th. T. _om._ yet; (Ff. _has_ ne.) Th. T. slepe; Ff. S. slepte; F. B. +slept. 43. S. naught likith vnto me; Th. T. Ff. is not lyke to me; F. B. is +vnlike for to be. 45. Th. darte. 47. Th. howe. 48. Th. amonge. 50. Th. +cuckowe. 51. Th. thought. 52. T. Ff. whider; S. quhid_er_; F. B. whedir; +Th. where. 54. Th. none herde. F. B. T. this; Ff. the; Th. S. that. 55. S. +thridde; T. thridd; Th. F. B. thirde. 56. S. than; _rest om._ Th. aspyde. +58. Ff. to; Th. T. vnto; F. B. into; S. in. Th. wodde; F. B. wode. 59. Th. +T. went; F. B. wente. Th. forthe. Th. boldely; Ff. T. boldly; _rest_ +priuely. 60. Th. helde. F. B. S. my; Th. Ff. the; T. me the. Th. downe. 61. +F. B. come; S. cam; Th. T. came (_read_ com). 62. _All_ in; _read_ inne. S. +_has_ in y-ben. 63, 64. B. _transposes_. 64. F. B. gras; S. greses; Th. +greues; T. Ff. grenes. S. ylike; F. B. al I-like; Th. T. Ff. lyke. 65. Th. +els. + +66. Th. sate; downe. 67. Th. sawe; birdes. Th. trippe; T. trip; S. flee; F. +B. crepe. 68. Th. T. Ff. _om._ had. S. thame rested; _rest_ rested hem. 70. +Th. T. _om._ That. _All_ began; _read_ begonne. Ff. to don hir; Th. T. for +to done. F. B. of Mayes ben her houres (!); S. on mayes vss thair houres. +72. S. lusty (_for_ lovely). S. straunge; _rest om._ 73. Ff. lowe. T. hade; +_rest_ had. S. compleyned. 74. Th. voice yfayned. 75. Ff. S. all (2); _rest +om._ Th. Ff. T. the ful; S. full_e_; F. B. a lowde. 76. F. B. pruned. _All_ +made; _read_ maden. 80. Th. Feuerere; T. Feuir[gh]ere; _rest_ Marche (!). +_All_ upon; _read_ on. 81. S. eke; _rest om._ 83. Th. T. with; _rest_ to. +T. Ff. briddes; S. birdis; Th. byrdes; F. B. foules. S. T. Ff. armonye; Th. +armony; F. B. ermonye. 84. Th. thought. _All_ best (!). 85. Th. myght; +yherde. 86. _All_ delyte. S. therof; _rest om._ Th. wotte; F. B. note; S. +wote; T. wot. F. B. ner (_for_ never). Th. howe. 87. Th. swowe; Ff. swough; +S. slowe (!); B. slow (!). 88. F. B. S. on slepe. 89. Th. swowe; thought. +90. F. B. Ff. That; _rest_ the. F. B. Ff. bridde; S. T. brid; Th. byrde. +Th. Cuckowe. + +91. _All_ fast. 92. Th. yuel apayde. 93. Th. Nowe. F. B. vpon (_for_ on). +94. Th. the. 95. Th. nowe. 96. Th. cuckowe. Th. T. thus gan; Ff. now gan; +S. gan to; F. B. gan. 97. Th. B. busshe; Ff. T. bussh; F. busshes (!); S. +beugh. F. B. me beside. 100. Th. T. Ff. _om._ out. Ff. the greues of the +wode (_better_). 101. Th. Ah. Ff. S. thenne; T. thanne; _rest_ then. 102. +Th. haste. Ff. S. T. henne; _rest_ hen. 103. F. B. lewde; S. lewed; T. Ff. +loude (!). (_The line runs badly._) 104. F. B. _om._ hast. 105. Th. T. +_om._ that. Th. yuel fyre. Th. S. her; _rest_ him. Th. bren; _rest_ brenne. +106. Th. nowe; tel. 107. Th. laye. (_The line runs badly; read_ longë _or_ +swowening.) 108. Th. thought; wyst. Th. T. what; _rest_ al that. 109. Th. +sayd. 110. T. hade; _rest_ had. 111. Th. _om._ And. Th. T. there (_for_ +than). 112. Th. Nowe good. 113. Th. lette. 114. Th. the. + +116. F. B. she (_for_ he). Th. the. 118. Th. songe; playne. 119. Th. T. And +though; _rest_ Al-though. Th. crakel; T. crakil; S. crekill; Ff. crake; F. +B. breke hit (!). Th. vayne. 120. Th. doest; S. dois; _rest_ dost. Th. Ff. +S. neuer; T. not; F. B. ner. 122. Th. done; T. S. Ff. do; F. B. _om._ Th. +the. 123. Th. haste. Th. T. Ff. nyce queynt(e); S. queynt feyned; F. B. +queint. 124. F. B. S. herd the; T. the herd; Th. the herde. Th. sayne; T. +seyn; F. B. seye; S. sing. 125. Th. Howe. F. B. Who myghte wete what; S. +Bot quho my_ch_t vnderstand quhat. 126. Th. Ah; Ff. T. A; _rest_ O. Th. +foole; woste. Th. T. Ff. it; _rest_ that. 128. Th. meane; fayne. 129. Ff. +all_e_; S. all; _rest_ al. Th. T. Ff. they; _rest_ tho. Th. yslayne. 130. +Th. meanen. S. a[gh]eines; F. B. ayen; T. again; Th. agayne. 131. F. B. al +tho were dede; Th. T. Ff. that al tho had the dede. S. And al they I wold +also were dede. 132. Th. thynke; T. think; S. thinkith; Ff. thenke; F. B. +thenk. F. B. S. Ff. her lyue in loue. 133. Th. S. who so; _rest om._ so. +Th. T. Ff. _place_ not _after_ wol. 134. Th. T. F. B. Ff. he is; S. _om._ +he. Th. Ff. T. _om._ for. 136. Th. Eye; cuckowe. F. B. _insert_ ywis +_before_ this. 137. Th. T. Ff. That euery wight shal loue or be to-drawe; +F. B. That eyther I shal love or elles be slawe. 139. Th. myne. F. B. +neyther; S. nouthir; Th. T. Ff. not. 140. Th. T. Ff. Ne neuer; _rest om._ +neuer. Th. T. on; _rest_ in. + +141. Th. S. ben; Ff. T. bene; F. B. lyven (_for_ been). 142. Th. moste +(_twice_); disease. 143. Th. moste. F. B. S. enduren; Th. Ff. T. endure. +144. _So_ F. B. (_with_ of her _for_ of); Th. T. Ff. And leste felen of +welfare; S. And ald_er_last have felyng of welefare. 145. S. a[gh]eynes; +Th. B. ayenst; F. T. ayens. 146. S. Quhat brid q_uo_d. Th. arte. 147. Th. +T. Ff. might thou; F. maist thou; B. S. maistow. Th. Ff. churlnesse; T. +clerenes (!); F. B. cherles hert; S. cherlish hert. 148. Th. seruauntes. +149. Th. none. 152. S. Honestee estate and all gentilness; Th. T. F. Ff. Al +honour and al gentylnesse; B. Al honour and al gentillesse. 153. Th. ease. +154. Th. Parfyte. F. B. ensured. 155. S. and eke. 156, 157. _All but the +first words transposed in_ Th. T. 158. F. B. S. and for; Th. T. Ff. _om._ +and. Th. done. 160. Th. T. Ff. _om. 1st_ to. 161. F. B. Ff. _om._ this. F. +B. S. al; Th. T. Ff. _om._ 162. Th. T. _om._ bothe. 163. F. B. S. rede I; +Th. T. Ff. I rede. Th. that thou. 164. Th. T. Ff. _om._ Ye. F. B. she; +_rest_ he. Th. T. _om._ god. 165. Th. T. vnto; F. B. Ff. S. to. F. B. thy +(_for_ that). + +167. F. B. the sothe; S. full sooth. Th. T. Ff. is the sothe contrayre. +168. F. B. S. Ff. loving; Th. T. loue. Th. folke. 169. Th. folke; F. B. Ff. +_om._ F. B. hit is; Th. T. _om._ Th. great. 170. Th. moste (_twice_). F. B. +he; S. it; Th. T. Ff. _om._ 171. F. mony an; B. mony a; Th. T. S. Ff. +disease and. 172. Th. So sorowe; _rest om._ So. Th. many a gret. F. B. +_om._ greet. 173. Th. Dispyte debate. _I supply_ and. 174. F. Repreve and; +B. Repreff and; S. Repref and; Th. T. Deprauyng. 175. Th. T. B. Ff. _om. +1st_ and. Th. mischefe. S. pou_er_tee; Ff. pouerte; _rest_ pouert. 176. Th. +T. Ff. _om._ What. Th. dispayre. 177. B. T. oo; S. o; F. oon; Th. one. Th. +fayre. 178. Th. getteth; S. get (_better_). Th. blysse. 179. F. B. _om._ +if. F. B. S. Ff. therby. 180. Th. heyre; T. eyre; S. aire; F. B. crie (!); +Ff. heiere. 181. F. B. therfor Nyghtyngale. Th. therefore holde the nye. +182. Th. Ff. T. S. queynt; F. B. loude. 183. Th. T. Ff. ferre. F. of (_for_ +or). 184. Th. T. S. ben; F. B. be (_read_ been). 185. Th. Ff. than; F. B. +T. then (_read_ thanne); S. _om._ F. B. shalt thou. 186. Th. the. 188. Th. +T. worse. Th. folde. 189. Th. one; Ff. on; F. B. _om._ S. ar; _rest_ is. +190. T. hade (_twice_); _rest_ had. + +191. Th. T. Ff. _put_ evermore _after_ For. Th. seruauntes; F. B. seruant. +192. Ff. T. euel; S. euell; Th. yuel; F. B. _om._ F. tachches; S. stachis +(!). F. B. him. 193. F. B. him. F. B. as eny; T. right as a; Ff. right as; +Th. right in a. S. be brynnyng as a. Th. fyre. 195. Th. whan; T. when; Ff. +whanne (_for_ whom). F. B. Ff. him; S. he; Th. T. hem. Th. ioy. 196. F. B. +Ye (_for_ Thou). Th. sayd. T. F. B. S. Ff. hold the; Th. be. Th. styl. 197. +F. B. S. Ff. his; Th. T. it is. Th. wyl. 198. F. B. Ff. sithe; Th. T. tyme; +S. tymes. Th. folke; easeth. 199. Th. folke. Th. T. Ff. he displeaseth; +_rest om._ he. 200. F. B. And (_for_ That). Th. corage; _rest_ grace. Th. +spyl. 201-205. _From_ F. B. Ff. S.; Th. T. _omit_. 201. Ff. will_e_; F. +wolde; B. wull; S. wole. 202. F. B. blynde; S. blynd. S. alweye; F. B. Ff. +_om._ 203. Ff. And whom he hit he not, or whom he failith (_best_); F. B. +And whan he lyeth he not, ne whan he fayleth; S. Quhom he hurtith he note, +ne quhom he helith (!). 204. _So_ Ff.; F. B. In; S. Into. Ff. S. his; F. B. +this. F. B. selde. 205. F. B. dyuerse. 206. Th. toke. 207. Th. T. Howe she; +F. B. S. _om._ Howe. Th. T. Ff. _om._ herte. 208. Th. sayd. 209. Th. not +say one; T. nou[gh]t sey oo. 210. Th. that worde; _rest om._ worde. F. B. +on (_for_ out). Th. _om._ for. 212. Th. leude; Ff. false; _rest_ fals. T. +B. brid; Ff. bridde; Th. byrde; S. bird. F. B. Ff. to; _rest om._ 214. Th. +helpe; some. 215. Th. cuckowe ben. + +216. S. thocht; _rest_ thought (_read_ thoughte). F. B. S. that I; T. Ff. +I; Th. he. 217-219. Th. T. _omit_. 217. S. gat; F. B. gatte. 218. S. +hardily; F. B. Ff. hertly. 219. Ff. flye[gh]; F. flyed; B. flye; S. gan +flee (_read_ fley, _as in_ 221). 220. Th. _om._ when. Th. agon; T. S. +agone; Ff. goon; F. gone; B. gon. 221. F. B. fley; Th. flaye; Ff. S. flay; +T. flai. 222. Th. T. _om._ He. Th. sayd. Th. popyngaye; F. B. papyngay; S. +papaIay; Ff. papeiay. 223. T. hade; _rest_ had. F. B. Ff. thoght me; S. as +thocht me (_read_ thoughte me); Th. me alone (_to rime with_ 217). 224, +225. Th. T. _omit_. 225. F. B. Ff. sight away. 226. Th. S. than; F. B. T. +then; Ff. thanne. F. B. T. S. come; Th. Ff. came. 227. F. B. seyde; Th. +sayd. Th. the. 228. Th. haste. F. B. thus; S. for; Th. T. Ff. _om._ T. +rescow; _rest_ rescowe. 229. Th. one. Ff. I wol avowe; F. B. I avowe; Th. +T. make I nowe. S. And ry_ch_t anon to loue I wole allowe. 231. Th. apayde; +T. apaied. 232. F. B. Ff. S. amayed; Th. T. dismayde. 233. Th. herde. F. B. +er; Th. T. Ff. erst. 235. Ff. nexte; _rest_ next. Th. affrayde; T. +affraied. 236. Th. one. 237. S. leue; _rest_ loue (!). Th. cuckowe ne his; +F. B. S. _om._ ne his. 238. Th. stronge leasyng. 239. F. B. S. Ff. there +(_for_ therto). T. man (_for_ thing). 240. F. B. S. Fro; Th. T. Ff. For +(!). _So_ Ff. F. B. S.; Th. T. and it hath do me moche (T. myche) wo. + +241. F. B. Yee; S. Ya. S. thou schalt vss. Th. T. Ff. _om._ thou. 242. Ff. +F. B. er; _rest_ or. Th. T. Ff. _om._ that. 243. F. B. S. fressh flour; Ff. +Th. T. _om._ flour. S. dayeseye. 245. Th. greatly. B. lisse; F. Ff. lyssen; +Th. T. S. lessen. S. _om._ thee. 246--_end_. _Lost in_ S. 247. Th. one. Ff. +my; _rest_ the. 248. Th. the. 249. Th. T. Ff. than; F. B. then (_read_ +thanne). Th. songe. 250. F. B. Ff. hem al. Th. ben; T. bene. 251. Ff. +hadde; T. hade; _rest_ had. 252. Th. Nowe. F. most; B. must; Th. Ff. mote; +T. mot. 254. Ff. mochel; F. B. mekil; T. mykil; Th. moche. Th. the. 255. +_So_ F. B. Ff.; Th. T. As any yet louer he euer sende. 256. Th. T. Ff. +taketh; F. B. toke. Th. leaue. 257. Th. T. Ff. _om._ he. 259. Th. cuckowe. +260. Ff. noon; F. B. non; Th. T. not. T. Ff. brid; F. B. bridde; Th. byrde. +261. F. B. fley; T. fleigh; Ff. fle[gh]t; Th. flewe. 262. Th. byrdes; +_rest_ briddes. B. the vale; F. the wale; Th. T. Ff. that dale. 263. Th. T. +gate; F. B. gat. 264. _All put_ hem _after_ besoughte. Ff. bysought; _rest_ +besoughten (!). 265. Th. T. disease. + +266. Ff. Ye wyten; F. B. Ye knowe; Th. T. The cuckowe (!). F. B. fro yow +hidde; Th. T. for to hyde (!). 267. F. B. How that; _rest om._ that. Th. T. +Ff. fast; F. B. _om._ Th. chyde; T. chide; F. B. Ff. chidde. 268. Th. Ff. +daye; _rest_ dayes. 269. Th. Ff. praye; _rest_ pray (prey). Ff. all_e_; +_rest_ al. 270. Th. bride; T. Ff. brid; F. B. bridde. 271. Th. o; _rest_ +oon. T. all; _rest_ al. Th. one; T. oon; F. B. _om._ 273. Th. _om._ fewe. +Th. byrdes. 274. _All_ soth. Th. cuckowe. 276. T. Ff. lord; _rest_ lorde. +277. T. Ff. record; _rest_ recorde. 278. Th. cuckowe. 279. Ff. Th. T. _om._ +And. Th. There. Th. T. yeue; F. yeuen; B. yeuyn; Ff. youe. 280. F. B. make +summe; Th. T. fynally make. 281. Th. without; _rest_ withouten. Th. T. Ff. +_om._ any. 282. F. B. of; Th. T. Ff. after. 283 Th. T. Ff. a; F. B. the. +Th. fayre. 284. Th. wyndowe. 285. Th. wodestocke; F. B. wodestok. 286. F. +B. thanketh. Th. leaue toke. 287. F. B. fleye; Th. T. _om._ Th. T. Ff. an; +F. B. a. Th. hauthorne; T. hauthorn. _All_ broke. 288. _All_ sate. T. Ff. +song; _rest_ songe. Th. T. that; F. B. the; Ff. a. 289. _I supply_ my. Th. +T. Ff. lyfe; F. B. lyve. _After_ 290, Ff. _has_ Explicit Clanvowe. + + * * * * * + +XIX. ENVOY TO ALISON. + + O lewde book, with thy foole rudenesse, + Sith thou hast neither beautee n'eloquence, + Who hath thee caused, or yeve thee hardinesse + For to appere in my ladyes presence? + I am ful siker, thou knowest her benivolence 5 + Ful ágreable to alle hir obeyinge; + For of al goode she is the best livinge. + + Allas! that thou ne haddest worthinesse + To shewe to her som plesaunt sentence, + Sith that she hath, thorough her gentilesse, 10 + Accepted thee servant to her digne reverence! + O, me repenteth that I n'had science + And leyser als, to make thee more florisshinge; + For of al goode she is the best livinge. + + Beseche her mekely, with al lowlinesse, 15 + Though I be fer from her [as] in absence, + To thenke on my trouth to her and stedfastnesse, + And to abregge of my sorwe the violence, + Which caused is wherof knoweth your sapience; + She lyke among to notifye me her lykinge; 20 + For of al goode she is the best livinge. + + LENVOY. + + Aurore of gladnesse, and day of lustinesse, + Lucerne a-night, with hevenly influence + Illumined, rote of beautee and goodnesse, + Suspiries which I effunde in silence, 25 + Of grace I beseche, alegge let your wrytinge, + Now of al goode sith ye be best livinge. + + _Explicit._ + +_From_ F. (Fairfax 16); _collated with_ T. (Tanner 346); _and_ Th. (Thynne, +ed. 1532). 1. F. boke; T. Th. booke. Th. foule. 2. _All_ beaute. 3. _All_ +the (_twice_). 5. _So all._ 6. Th. abeyeng (!). 7. F. T. goode; Th. good. +Th. best; F. T. beste. 9. _All_ so_m_me, some. Th. plesaunt; F. plesant. +10. T. thurugh; F. thorgh; Th. through. 11. _All_ the. 12. _All_ ne +(_before_ had). 13. _So all_ (_with_ the _for_ thee). 14. Th. good. Th. +best; F. T. beste. 16. _I supply_ as. 17. T. Th. trouth; F. trouthe. 18. F. +abregge; Th. abrege; T. abrigge. T. sorow; F. sorwes; Th. sorowes. 20. +_All_ amonge. T. Th. notifye; F. notefye. 21. T. Th. al; F. alle. F. T. +goode; Th. good. + +Th. Lenuoye; T. The Lenuoye; F. _om._ 24. Th. T. Illumyned; F. Enlumyned. +F. Rote (_with capital_). _All_ beaute. F. and of; Th. T. _om._ of. 25. F. +Suspiries; Th. Suspires. 26. T. beseke. Th. alege. 27. F. goode; Th. T. +good. _After_ 27: Th. Explicit; F. T. _om._ + + * * * * * + +XX. THE FLOWER AND THE LEAF. + + When that Phebus his chaire of gold so hy + Had whirled up the sterry sky aloft, + And in the Bole was entred certainly; + Whan shoures swete of rain discended +soft, + Causing the ground, felë tymes and oft, 5 + Up for to give many an hoolsom air, + And every plain was [eek y-]clothed fair + + With newe grene, and maketh smalë floures + To springen here and there in feld and mede; + So very good and hoolsom be the shoures 10 + That it reneweth, that was old and deede + In winter-tyme; and out of every seede + Springeth the herbë, so that every wight + Of this sesoun wexeth [ful] glad and light. + + And I, só glad of the seson swete, 15 + Was happed thus upon a certain night; + As I lay in my bed, sleep ful unmete + Was unto me; but, why that I ne might + Rest, I ne wist; for there nas erthly wight, + As I suppose, had more hertës ese 20 + Than I, for I n'ad siknesse nor disese. + + Wherfore I mervail gretly of my-selve, + That I so long withouten sleepë lay; + And up I roos, three houres after twelve, + About the [very] springing of the day, 25 + And on I put my gere and myn array; + And to a plesaunt grovë I gan passe, + Long or the brightë sonne uprisen was, + + In which were okës grete, streight as a lyne, + Under the which the gras, so fresh of hew, 30 + Was newly spronge; and an eight foot or nyne + Every tree wel fro his felawe grew, + With braunches brode, laden with leves new, + That sprongen out ayein the sonnë shene, + Som very rede, and som a glad light grene; 35 + + Which, as me thought, was right a plesaunt sight. + And eek the briddes song[ës] for to here + Would have rejoised any erthly wight. + And I, that couth not yet, in no manere, + Here the nightingale of al the yere, 40 + Ful busily herkned, with herte and ere, + If I her voice perceive coud any-where. + + And at the last, a path of litel brede + I found, that gretly had not used be, + For it forgrowen was with gras and weede, 45 + That wel unneth a wight [ther] might it see. + Thought I, this path som whider goth, pardè, + And so I folowèd, til it me brought + To right a plesaunt herber, wel y-wrought, + + That benched was, and [al] with turves new 50 + Freshly turved, wherof the grenë gras + So small, so thik, so short, so fresh of hew, + That most lyk to grene +wol, wot I, it was. + The hegge also, that yede [as] in compas + And closed in al the grene herbere, 55 + With sicamour was set and eglantere, + + Writhen in-fere so wel and cunningly + That every braunch and leef grew by mesure, + Plain as a bord, of on height, by and by, + [That] I sy never thing, I you ensure, 60 + So wel [y-]don; for he that took the cure + It [for] to make, I trow, did al his peyn + To make it passe al tho that men have seyn. + + And shapen was this herber, roof and al, + As [is] a prety parlour, and also 65 + The hegge as thik as [is] a castle-wal, + That, who that list without to stond or go, + Though he wold al-day pryen to and fro, + He shuld not see if there were any wight + Within or no; but oon within wel might 70 + + Perceive al tho that yeden there-without + In the feld, that was on every syde + Covered with corn and gras, that, out of dout, + Though oon wold seeken al the world wyde, + So rich a feld [ne] coud not be espyed 75 + [Up]on no cost, as of the quantitee, + For of al good thing ther was [greet] plentee. + + And I, that al this plesaunt sight [than] sy, + Thought sodainly I felt so sweet an air + [Come] of the eglantere, that certainly, 80 + Ther is no hert, I deme, in such despair, + Ne with [no] thoughtës froward and contrair + So overlaid, but it shuld soone have bote, + If it had onës felt this savour sote. + + And as I stood and cast asyde myn y, 85 + I was ware of the fairest medle-tree + That ever yet in al my lyf I sy, + As full of blossomës as it might be. + Therin a goldfinch leping pretily + Fro bough to bough, and, as him list, he eet 90 + Here and there, of buddes and floures sweet. + + And to the herber-sydë was joining + This fairë tree, of which I have you told; + And, at the last, the brid began to sing, + Whan he had eten what he etë wold, 95 + So passing sweetly, that, by manifold, + It was more plesaunt than I coud devyse; + And whan his song was ended in this wyse, + + The nightingale with so mery a note + Answéred him, that al the wodë rong 100 + So sodainly, that, as it were a sot, + I stood astonied; so was I with the song + Through ravishèd, that, [un]til late and long + Ne wist I in what place I was, ne where; + And +ay, me thought, she song even by myn ere. 105 + + Wherfore about I waited busily + On every syde, if I her mightë see; + And, at the last, I gan ful wel aspy + Wher she sat in a fresh green laurer-tree + On the further syde, even right by me, 110 + That gave so passing a delicious smel + According to the eglantere ful wel. + + Wherof I had so inly greet plesyr + That, as me thought, I surely ravished was + Into Paradyse, where my desyr 115 + Was for to be, and no ferther [to] passe + As for that day, and on the sotë gras + I sat me doun; for, as for myn entent, + The birdës song was more convenient, + + And more plesaunt to me, by many fold, 120 + Than mete or drink, or any other thing; + Thereto the herber was so fresh and cold, + The hoolsom savours eek so comforting + That, as I demed, sith the beginning + Of the world, was never seen, or than, 125 + So plesaunt a ground of non erthly man. + + And as I sat, the briddës herkning thus, + Me thought that I herd voices sodainly, + The most sweetest and most delicious + That ever any wight, I trow trewly, 130 + Herde in +his lyf, for [that] the armony + And sweet accord was in so good musyk, + Thát the voice to angels most was lyk. + + At the last, out of a grove even by, THE LEAF. + That was right goodly and plesaunt to sight, 135 + I sy where there cam singing lustily + A world of ladies; but to tell aright + Their greet beautè, it lyth not in my might, + Ne their array; nevertheless, I shal + Tell you a part, though I speke not of al. 140 + + +In surcotes whyte, of veluet wel sitting, + They were [y-]clad; and the semes echoon, + As it were a maner garnishing, + Was set with emeraudës, oon and oon, + By and by; but many a richë stoon 145 + Was set [up-]on the purfils, out of dout, + Of colors, sleves, and trainës round about; + + As gret[e] perlës, round and orient, + Diamondës fyne and rubies rede, + And many another stoon, of which I +want 150 + The namës now; and everich on her hede + A richë fret of gold, which, without drede, + Was ful of statly richë stonës set; + And every lady had a chapëlet + + On her hede, of [leves] fresh and grene, 155 + So wel [y-]wrought, and so mervéilously, + Thát it was a noble sight to sene; + Some of laurer, and some ful plesauntly + Had chapëlets of woodbind, and sadly + Some of _agnus-castus_ ware also 160 + Chápëlets fresh; but there were many tho + + That daunced and eek song ful soberly; + But al they yede in maner of compas. + But oon ther yede in-mid the company + Sole by her-self; but al folowed the pace 165 + [Which] that she kept, whos hevenly-figured face + So plesaunt was, and her wel-shape persòn, + That of beautè she past hem everichon. + + And more richly beseen, by manifold, + She was also, in every maner thing; 170 + On her heed, ful plesaunt to behold, + A crowne of gold, rich for any king; + A braunch of _agnus-castus_ eek bering + In her hand; and, to my sight, trewly, + She lady was of [al] the company. 175 + + And she began a roundel lustily, + That _Sus le foyl de vert moy_ men call, + _Seen, et mon joly cuer endormi_; + And than the company answéred all + With voice[s] swete entuned and so small, 180 + That me thought it the sweetest melody + That ever I herdë in my lyf, soothly. + + And thus they came[n], dauncing and singing, + Into the middes of the mede echone, + Before the herber, where I was sitting, 185 + And, god wot, me thought I was wel bigon; + For than I might avyse hem, on by on, + Who fairest was, who coud best dance or sing, + Or who most womanly was in al thing. + + They had not daunced but a litel throw 190 + When that I herd, not fer of, sodainly + So greet a noise of thundring trumpës blow, + As though it shuld have départed the sky; + And, after that, within a whyle I sy + From the same grove, where the ladyes come out, 195 + Of men of armës coming such a rout + + As al the men on erth had been assembled + In that place, wel horsed for the nones, + Stering so fast, that al the erth[ë] trembled; + But for to speke of riches and [of] stones, 200 + And men and hors, I trow, the largë wones + Of Prester John, ne al his tresory + Might not unneth have bought the tenth party! + + Of their array who-so list herë more, + I shal reherse, so as I can, a lyte. 205 + Out of the grove, that I spak of before, + I sy come first, al in their clokes whyte, + A company, that ware, for their delyt, + Chapëlets fresh of okës cereal + Newly spronge, and trumpets they were al. 210 + + On every trumpe hanging a brood banere + Of fyn tartarium, were ful richly bete; + Every trumpet his lordës armës +bere; + About their nekkës, with gret perlës set, + Colers brode; for cost they would not lete, 215 + As it would seme; for their scochones echoon + Were set about with many a precious stoon. + + Their hors-harneys was al whyte also; + And after hem next, in on company, + Cámë kingës of armës, and no mo, 220 + In clokës of whyte cloth of gold, richly; + Chapelets of greene on their hedes on hy, + The crownës that they on their scochones bere + Were set with perlë, ruby, and saphere, + + And eek gret diamondës many on; 225 + But al their hors-harneys and other gere + Was in a sute àccording, everichon, + As ye have herd the foresayd trumpets were; + And, by seeming, they were nothing to lere; + And their gyding they did so manerly. 230 + And after hem cam a greet company + + Of heraudës and pursevauntës eke + Arrayed in clothës of whyt veluët; + And hardily, they were nothing to seke + How they [up]on hem shuld the harneys set; 235 + And every man had on a chapëlet; + Scóchones and eke hors-harneys, indede, + They had in sute of hem that before hem yede. + + Next after hem, came in armour bright, + Al save their hedes, seemely knightës nyne; 240 + And every clasp and nail, as to my sight, + Of their harneys, were of red gold fyne; + With cloth of gold, and furred with ermyne + Were the trappurës of their stedës strong, + Wyde and large, that to the ground did hong; 245 + + And every bosse of brydel and peitrel + That they had, was worth, as I would wene, + A thousand pound; and on their hedës, wel + Dressed, were crownës [al] of laurer grene, + The best [y-]mad that ever I had seen; 250 + And every knight had after him ryding + Three henshmen, [up]on him awaiting; + + Of whiche +the first, upon a short tronchoun, + His lordës helme[t] bar, so richly dight, + That the worst was worth[y] the raunsoun 255 + Of a[ny] king; the second a sheld bright + Bar at his nekke; the thridde bar upright + A mighty spere, ful sharpe [y-]ground and kene; + And every child ware, of leves grene, + + A fresh chapelet upon his heres bright; 260 + And clokes whyte, of fyn veluet they ware; + Their stedës trapped and [a]rayed right + Without[en] difference, as their lordës were. + And after hem, on many a fresh co[u]rsere, + There came of armed knightës such a rout 265 + That they besprad the largë feld about. + + And al they ware[n], after their degrees, + Chapëlets new, made of laurer grene, + Some of oke, and some of other trees; + Some in their handës berë boughës shene, 270 + Some of laurer, and some of okës kene, + Some of hawthorn, and some of woodbind, + And many mo, which I had not in mind. + + And so they came, their hors freshly stering + With bloody sownës of hir trompës loud; 275 + Ther sy I many an uncouth disgysing + In the array of these knightës proud; + And at the last, as evenly as they coud, + They took their places in-middes of the mede, + And every knight turned his horse[s] hede 280 + + To his felawe, and lightly laid a spere + In the [a]rest, and so justës began + On every part about[en], here and there; + Som brak his spere, som drew down hors and man; + About the feld astray the stedës ran; 285 + And, to behold their rule and governaunce, + I you ensure, it was a greet plesaunce. + + And so the justës last an houre and more; + But tho that crowned were in laurer grene + Wan the pryse; their dintës were so sore 290 + That ther was non ayenst hem might sustene; + And [than] the justing al was left of clene; + And fro their hors the +nine alight anon; + And so did al the remnant everichon. + + And forth they yede togider, twain and twain, 295 + That to behold, it was a worldly sight, + Toward the ladies on the grenë plain, + That song and daunced, as I sayd now right. + The ladies, as soone as they goodly might, + They breke[n] of both the song and dance, 300 + And yede to mete hem, with ful glad semblance. + + And every lady took, ful womanly, + Bý the hond a knight, and forth they yede + Unto a fair laurer that stood fast by, + With levës lade, the boughës of gret brede; 305 + And to my dome, there never was, indede, + [A] man that had seen half so fair a tree; + For underneth it there might wel have be + + An hundred persons, at their own plesaunce, + Shadowed fro the hete of Phebus bright 310 + So that they shuld have felt no [greet] grevaunce + Of rain, ne hail, that hem hurt[ë] might. + The savour eek rejoice would any wight + That had be sick or melancolious, + It was so very good and vertuous. 315 + + And with gret reverence they +enclyned low + [Un]to the tree, so sote and fair of hew; + And after that, within a litel throw, + +Bigonne they to sing and daunce of-new; + Some song of love, some playning of untrew, 320 + Environing the tree that stood upright; + And ever yede a lady and a knight. + + And at the last I cast myn eye asyde, THE FLOWER. + And was ware of a lusty company + That came, roming out of the feld wyde, 325 + Hond in hond, a knight and a lady; + The ladies alle in surcotes, that richly + Purfyled were with many a riche stoon; + And every knight of greene ware mantles on, + + Embrouded wel, so as the surcotes were, 330 + And everich had a chapelet on her hede; + Which did right wel upon the shyning here, + Made of goodly floures, whyte and rede. + The knightës eke, that they in hond lede, + In sute of hem, ware chapelets everichon; 335 + And hem before went minstrels many on, + + As harpës, pypës, lutës, and sautry, + Al in greene; and on their hedës bare + Of dyvers flourës, mad ful craftily, + Al in a sute, goodly chapelets they ware; 340 + And so, dauncing, into the mede they fare, + In-mid the which they found a tuft that was + Al oversprad with flourës in compas. + + Where[un]to they enclyned everichon + With greet reverence, and that ful humblely; 345 + And, at the last[ë], there began anon + A lady for to sing right womanly + A bargaret in praising the daisy; + For, as me thought, among her notës swete, + She sayd, '_Si doucë est la Margarete_.' 350 + + Thén they al answéred her infere, + So passingly wel, and so plesauntly, + Thát it was a blisful noise to here. + But I not [how], it happed sodainly, + As, about noon, the sonne so fervently 355 + Wex hoot, that [al] the prety tender floures + Had lost the beautè of hir fresh coloures, + + For-shronk with hete; the ladies eek to-brent, + That they ne wist where they hem might bestow. + The knightës swelt, for lak of shade ny shent; 360 + And after that, within a litel throw, + The wind began so sturdily to blow, + That down goth al the flourës everichon + So that in al the mede there laft not on, + + Save suche as socoured were, among the leves, 365 + Fro every storme, that might hem assail, + Growing under hegges and thikke greves; + And after that, there came a storm of hail + And rain in-fere, so that, withouten fail, + The ladies ne the knightës n'ade o threed 370 + Drye [up]on hem, so dropping was hir weed. + + And when the storm was clene passed away, + Tho [clad] in whyte, that stood under the tree, + They felt[ë] nothing of the grete affray, + That they in greene without had in y-be. 375 + To hem they yedë for routh and pitè, + Hem to comfort after their greet disese; + So fain they were the helpless for to ese. + + Then was I ware how oon of hem in grene + Had on a crown[ë], rich and wel sitting; 380 + Wherfore I demed wel she was a quene, + And tho in greene on her were awaiting. + The ladies then in whyte that were coming + Toward[ës] hem, and the knightës in-fere + Began to comfort hem and make hem chere. 385 + + The quene in whyte, that was of grete beautè, + Took by the hond the queen that was in grene, + And said, 'Suster, I have right greet pitè + Of your annoy, and of the troublous tene + Wherein ye and your company have been 390 + So long, alas! and, if that it you plese + To go with me, I shal do you the ese + + In al the pleisir that I can or may.' + Wherof the tother, humbly as she might, + Thanked her; for in right ill aray 395 + She was, with storm and hete, I you behight. + And every lady then, anon-right, + That were in whyte, oon of hem took in grene + By the hond; which when the knightes had seen, + + In lyke wyse, ech of hem took a knight 400 + Clad in grene, and forth with hem they fare + [Un]to an heggë, where they, anon-right, + To make their justës, [lo!] they would not spare + Boughës to hew down, and eek treës square, + Wherewith they made hem stately fyres grete 405 + To dry their clothës that were wringing wete. + + And after that, of herbës that there grew, + They made, for blisters of the sonne brenning, + Very good and hoolsom ointments new, + Where that they yede, the sick fast anointing; 410 + And after that, they yede about gadring + Plesaunt saladës, which they made hem ete, + For to refresh their greet unkindly hete. + + The lady of the Leef then gan to pray + Her of the Flour, (for so to my seeming 415 + They should[ë] be, as by their [quaint] array), + To soupe with her; and eek, for any thing, + That she should with her al her people bring. + And she ayein, in right goodly manere, + Thanketh her of her most freendly chere, 420 + + Saying plainly, that she would obey + With al her hert al her commaundëment, + And then anon, without lenger delay, + The lady of the Leef hath oon y-sent + For a palfray, [as] after her intent, 425 + Arayed wel and fair in harneys of gold, + For nothing lakked, that to him long shold. + + And after that, to al her company + She made to purvey hors and every thing + That they needed; and then, ful lustily, 430 + Even by the herber where I was sitting, + They passed al, so plesantly singing, + That it would have comfórted any wight; + But then I sy a passing wonder sight:-- + + For then the nightingale, that al the day 435 + Had in the laurer sete, and did her might + The hool servyse to sing longing to May, + Al sodainly [be]gan to take her flight; + And to the lady of the Leef forthright + She flew, and set her on her hond softly, 440 + Which was a thing I marveled of gretly. + + The goldfinch eek, that fro the medle-tree + Was fled, for hete, into the bushes cold, + Unto the lady of the Flour gan flee, + And on her hond he set him, as he wold, 445 + And plesantly his wingës gan to fold; + And for to sing they pained hem both as sore + As they had do of al the day before. + + And so these ladies rood forth a gret pace, + And al the rout of knightës eek in-fere; 450 + And I, that had seen al this wonder case, + Thought [that] I would assay, in some manere, + To know fully the trouth of this matere, + And what they were that rood so plesantly. + And, when they were the herber passed by, 455 + + I drest me forth, and happed to mete anon + Right a fair lady, I you ensure; + And she cam ryding by herself aloon, + Al in whyte, with semblance ful demure. + I salued her, and bad good aventure 460 + +Might her befall, as I coud most humbly; + And she answered, 'My doughter, gramercy!' + + 'Madam,' quod I, 'if that I durst enquere + Of you, I wold fain, of that company, + Wit what they be that past by this herbere?' 465 + And she ayein answéred right freendly: + 'My fair daughter, al tho that passed hereby + In whyte clothing, be servants everichoon + Unto the Leef, and I my-self am oon. + + See ye not her that crowned is,' quod she, 470 + 'Al in whyte?' 'Madamë,' quod I, 'yis!' + 'That is Diane, goddesse of chastitè; + And, for bicause that she a maiden is, + In her hond the braunch she bereth, this + That _agnus-castus_ men call properly; 475 + And alle the ladies in her company + + Which ye see of that herb[ë] chaplets were, + Be such as han kept +ay hir maidenhede; + And al they that of laurer chaplets bere + Be such as hardy were and +wan, indede, 480 + Victorious name which never may be dede. + And al they were so worthy of hir hond, + [As] in hir tyme, that non might hem withstond. + + And tho that werë chapelets on hir hede + Of fresh woodbind, be such as never were 485 + To love untrew in word, [ne] thought, ne dede, + But ay stedfast; ne for plesaunce, ne fere, + Though that they shuld hir hertës al to-tere, + Would never flit, but ever were stedfast, + Til that their lyves there asunder brast.' 490 + + 'Now, fair madam,' quod I, 'yet I would pray + Your ladiship, if that it might be, + That I might know[ë], by some maner way, + Sith that it hath [y-]lyked your beautè, + The trouth of these ladies for to tel me; 495 + What that these knightës be, in rich armour; + And what tho be in grene, and were the flour; + + And why that some did reverence to the tree, + And some unto the plot of flourës fair?' + 'With right good wil, my fair doughter,' quod she, 500 + 'Sith your desyr is good and debonair. + Tho nine, crownèd, be very exemplair + Of all honour longing to chivalry, + And those, certain, be called the Nine Worthy, + + Which ye may see [here] ryding al before, 505 + That in hir tyme did many a noble dede, + And, for their worthines, ful oft have bore + The crowne of laurer-leves on their hede, + As ye may in your old[ë] bokes rede; + And how that he, that was a conquerour, 510 + Had by laurer alway his most honour. + + And tho that bere boughës in their hond + Of the precious laurer so notáble, + Be such as were, I wol ye understond, + Noble knightës of the Round[ë] Table, 515 + And eek the Douseperes honourable; + Which they bere in signe of victory, + +As witness of their dedes mightily. + + Eek there be knightës olde of the Garter, + That in hir tyme did right worthily; 520 + And the honour they did to the laurer + Is, for by [it] they have their laud hoolly, + Their triumph eek, and martial glory; + Which unto hem is more parfyt richesse + Than any wight imagine can or gesse. 525 + + For oon leef given of that noble tree + To any wight that hath don worthily, + And it be doon so as it ought to be, + Is more honour then any thing erthly. + Witnesse of Rome that founder was, truly, 530 + Of all knighthood and dedës marvelous; + Record I take of Titus Livius. + + And as for her that crowned is in greene, + It is Flora, of these flourës goddesse; + And al that here on her awaiting been, 535 + It are such [folk] that loved idlenes, + And not delyte [had] of no busines + But for to hunt and hauke, and pley in medes, + And many other such [lyk] idle dedes. + + And for the greet delyt and [the] plesaunce 540 + They have [un]to the flour, so reverently + They unto it do such [gret] obeisaunce, + As ye may see.' 'Now, fair madame,' quod I, + 'If I durst ask what is the cause and why + That knightës have the signe of [al] honour 545 + Rather by the Leef than by the Flour?' + + 'Sothly, doughter,' quod she, 'this is the trouth: + For knightës ever should be persévering, + To seeke honour without feintyse or slouth, + Fro wele to better, in al maner thing; 550 + In signe of which, with Levës ay lasting + They be rewarded after their degree, + Whos lusty grene may not appeired be, + + But ay keping hir beautè fresh and greene; + For there nis storm [non] that may hem deface, 555 + Hail nor snow, wind nor frostës kene; + Wherfore they have this propertè and grace. + And for the Flour within a litel space + Wol be [y-]lost, so simple of nature + They be, that they no grevance may endure, 560 + + And every storm wil blow hem sone away, + Ne they last not but [as] for a sesoun, + That +is the cause, the very trouth to say, + That they may not, by no way of resoun, + Be put to no such occupacioun.' 565 + 'Madame,' quod I, 'with al my hool servyse + I thank you now, in my most humble wyse. + + For now I am acértainèd throughly + Of every thing I désired to know.' + 'I am right glad that I have said, sothly, 570 + Ought to your pleysir, if ye wil me trow,' + Quod she ayein, 'but to whom do ye ow + Your servyce? and which wil ye honour, + Tel me, I pray, this yeer, the Leef or Flour?' + + 'Madame,' quod I, 'though I [be] leest worthy, 575 + Unto the Leef I ow myn observaunce.' + 'That is,' quod she, 'right wel don, certainly, + And I pray god to honour you avaunce, + And kepe you fro the wikked rémembraunce + Of Male-Bouche, and al his crueltè; 580 + And alle that good and wel-condicioned be. + + For here may I no lenger now abyde, + I must folowe the gret[ë] company + That ye may see yonder before you ryde.' + And forth[right], as I couth, most humblely, 585 + I took my leve of her as she gan hy + After hem, as fast as ever she might; + And I drow hoomward, for it was nigh night; + + And put al that I had seen in wryting, + Under support of hem that lust it rede. 590 + O litel book, thou art so unconning, + How darst thou put thy-self in prees for drede? + It is wonder that thou wexest not rede, + Sith that thou wost ful lyte who shal behold + Thy rude langage, ful boistously unfold. 595 + + _Explicit._ + +_From_ Speght's edition (1598); _I note rejected readings_. 1. hie. 3. +Boole. 4. sweet; raine; oft (!). 6. wholesome aire. 7. plaine was clothed +faire. 8. new greene. small flours. 9. field and in mede. 10. wholsome. 11. +renueth. 13. hearbe. 14. season; _I supply_ ful. 15. season. 16. certaine. +17. sleepe. 19. earthly. 20. hearts ease. 21. Then; nad sicknesse; disease. + +22. meruaile greatly; selfe. 24. rose; twelfe. 25. _I supply_ very. 26. +geare; mine. 27. pleasaunt. 28. bright. 29. great. 30. grasse. 31. sprong. +32. well; fellow. 33. lade. 34. ayen. 35. Some; red; some. 36. song (_read_ +songes); fort (_sic_). 38. earthly. 40. Heare; all. 41. Full; herkened; +hart and with eare. 43. litle breade. 44. greatly. 45. grasse. 46. well; _I +supply_ ther. 47. some. 48. followed till. 49. pleasaunt; well. 50. _I +supply_ al; turfes. 52. thicke. 53. lyke vnto (_read_ to); wel (!; _read_ +wol). + +54. _I supply_ as. 55. (_Perhaps imperfect_); all; green. 56. eglatere; +_see_ l. 80. 57. Wrethen. 58. branch; leafe. 59. an (_better_ on). 60. _I +supply_ That; see. 61. done; tooke. 62. _I supply_ for; all; peine. 63. +all; seyne. 64. roofe. 65. _I supply_ is. 66. thicke; _I supply_ is; wall. +68. would all. 69. should. 70. one; well. 71. all. 72. field. 73. corne; +grasse; doubt. 74. one would seeke all. 75. field; _I supply_ ne; espide. +76. On; coast; quantity. 77. all; _I supply_ greet; plenty. 78. all; +pleasannt sight sie. 79. aire. 80. _I supply_ Come; eglentere. 81. heart; +dispaire. 82. with thoughts; contraire. 83. should. 84. soote. + +85. mine eie. 87. all; life; sie. 88. blosomes. 89. leaping pretile. 91. +buds. 95. eaten; eat. 97. pleasaunt then. 98. when. 99. merry. 100. all; +wood. 101. sote. 103. Thorow; till. 104. I ne wist (_better_ Ne wist I). +105. ayen (!). 106. I waited about. 107. might. 108. full well. 109. greene +laurey (_error for_ laurer); _see_ l. 158. 111. smell. 112. eglentere full +well. 113. great pleasure. 115. desire. 116. _I supply_ to. + +117. grasse. 118. downe; mine. 119. birds. 120. pleasaunt. 121. meat; +drinke. 123. wholsome; eke. 126. pleasaunt; none earthly. 127. birds +harkening. 128. heard. 131. Heard; their (_error for_ his); _I supply_ +that. 132. musike. 133. like. 135. pleasant. 136. sie; came. 138. great +beauty; lieth. 139. shall. 140. speake; all. 141. The (!; _read_ In); wele. +142. were clad; echone. 144. Emerauds one and one. 145. rich. 146. on; +purfiles. + +148. great pearles. 149. Diamonds; red. 150. stone; went (_for_ want). 151. +head. 152. rich; dread. 153. stately rich. 155. head; _I supply_ leves. +156. wele wrought; meruelously. 158. pleasantly. 160. were; _read_ ware, +_as in_ 335. 161. of tho (_om._ of). 162. eke. 163. all; compace. 164. one. +165. Soole; selfe; all followed. 166. _I supply_ Which; whose heauenly. +167. pleasaunt; wele. 168. beauty; -one. 169. beseene. 171. head; +pleasaunt. 172. goldë (?). 173. eke bearing. 175. _I supply_ al. 176. +roundell lustely. 177. Suse; foyle. 178. Seen (_sic_); en dormy, _before +which we should perhaps supply_ est. + +180. voice sweet. 182. heard. 183. came. 186. bigone. 187. one by one. 189. +all. 190. little. 191. heard. 192. great; thundering trumps. 193. skie. +194. sie. 196. comming. 197. all. 198. wele. 199. all; earth. 200. speake; +_I supply_ of. 201. horse. 202. Pretir (!); all. 204. their (_read_ hir?); +heare. 205. rehearse. 206. spake. 207. sie; all; their (_read_ hir?). 208. +were: _read_ ware (_as in_ 329); delite. 209. seriall (_for_ cereal). 210. +sprong; all. + +211. broad. 212. fine; richely. 213. lords; here (_read_ bere); _see_ 223. +214. (_and often_): their (_for_ hir). neckes; great pearles. 216. echone. +217. stone. 218. horse; all. 219. them (_for_ hem); one. 220. kings. 222. +heads; hye. 223. crowns. 224. pearle. 225. eke great Diamonds; one. 226. +all; horse; geare. 227. euerichone. 228. heard. 230. there guiding. 231. +great. 232. herauds; purseuaunts. 233. white. 235. on; should. 237. horse. +238. him (_for 2nd_ hem). 240. heads; knights. 241. claspe; naile. 242. +their (_for_ hir?); _so in_ 214, 216, 218, 222, 223, 230 (there), 240; &c. + +244. their (_for_ hir?); _so in_ 248, &c. 246. boose (!); bridle; paitrell. +248. heads well. 249. _I supply_ al. 250. made; sene. 252. on. 253. whiche +euery on a. 254. lords helme bare. 255. worth. 256. a (_read_ any); shield. +257. Bare; neck; thred bare. 258. spheare (!); ground. 260. haires. 261. +fine. were; _read_ ware (_as in_ 259). 262. steeds; raied. 263. Without; +lords. 265. knights. 266. field. 267. were; _read_ waren. 270. honds bare. +272. hauthorne. + +274. horses. 276. sie; disguising. 277. knights. 279. their (_for_ hir? +_see_ 275); _so in_ 286, &c. 280. horse. 281. fellow; speare. 282. rest. +283. about. 284. Some brake; some. 285. field; steeds. 287. great +pleasaunce. 290. dints. 291. none. 292. _I supply_ than; all. 293. horse. +ninth; _read_ nine. 296. worldly (_perhaps read_ worthy). 297. green. 300. +brake; they (_error for_ the). 301. meet; full. 302. tooke. 304. faire. +305. great. + +307. _I supply_ A; halfe; faire. 308. underneath. 309. their (_for_ hir?); +plesance. 310. heat. 311. should; _I supply_ greet. 312. raine; haile; +hurt. 313. eke. 314. sicke; melancolius. 316. enclining; _read_ enclyned; +_see_ 344. 317. To; soot; faire. 318. little. 319. They began to. 323. +mine. 325. field. 327. all; richely. 328. rich. 330. well. 331. hed. 332. +well. 333. red. 334. knights; led. 335. euerichone. 336. before hem; one. +338. heads. 339. made full craftely. + +344. Whereto. 345. great; humbly. 346. last. 348. daisie. 350. douset & la. +351. all. 352. well; pleasauntly. 354. _I supply_ how. 355. noone. 356. +Waxe whote; _I supply_ al. 357. beauty. 358. Forshronke; heat; eke. 360. +knights; lack; nie. 361. little. 363. down goeth all; euerichone. 364. all; +one. 365. succoured. 366. assaile. 367. thicke. 368. storme; haile. 369. +raine in feare; faile. 370. knights. 371. on them so; her. + +372. cleane. 373. _I supply_ clad. 374. felt; great. 376. them (_for_ hem). +377. Them (_for_ Hem); great disease. 378. faine; helplesse; ease. 379. +one. 380. crown; well. 384. Toward them; knights. 386. Queen; great beauty. +387. Tooke. 388. great pity. 390. bene. 391. please. 392. shall; ease. 393. +all; pleasure. 396. heat. 398. one; them. 399. knights; sene. 400. them. +402. To. 403. iusts; _supply_ lo. 404. downe; eke. + +405. great. 406. weat. 407. hearbs. 409. wholsome. 410. annointing. 411. +gadering. 412. Pleasaunt; eat. 413. great; heat. 414. leafe; began (_for_ +gan). 415. floure. 416. should; _I supply_ quaint. 417. eke. 418. all. 419. +ayen. 420. friendly cheare. 421. obay. 422. all; hart all. 424. Leafe; one. +425. _I supply_ al. 426. well; faire. 427. lacked; should. 428. all. 429. +horse. 432. all; pleasantly. 434. sie. 435. all. 437. whol seruice. + +438. gan. 439. leafe. 441. greatly. 442. eke; medill. 443. heat. 444. +Flower; fle. 445. hir. 446. pleasantly; wings. 448. all. 449. rode; great. +450. knights. 451. sene all. 452. _I supply_ that. 454. rode; pleasantly. +457. faire. 458. come; hir selfe alone. 459. All. 460. saluted (_read_ +salued); bad her good (_omit_ her). 461. Must (_read_ Might). 464. faine. +465. arbere. 466. ayen; friendly. 467. faire; all. 468. euerichone. 469. +Leafe; selfe; one. + +471. All; yes (_read_ yis). 472. goddes; chastity. 476. all. 477. hearb. +478. kepte; alway (_read_ ay); her. 479. beare. 480. manly (_read_ wan). +482. all; ther (_read_ hir). 483. _I supply_ As; none. 484. weare; ther +(_read_ hir). 486. untrue; _I supply_ ne. 487. aye; pleasance. 488. their +harts all. 490. Till; their (_read_ hir?). 491. faire. 493. know. 494. +liked. 495. tell. 496. knights. 497. weare. 499. faire. 500. will; doghter. +501. youre desire; debonaire. + +502. exemplaire. 504. certaine. 505. _I supply_ here. 507. their (_read_ +hir? _see_ 506); _so in_ 512, &c. 508. leaues. 509. old bookes. 512. beare. +bowes; _see_ 270. 514. woll. 515. knights; round. 516. eke; douseperis. +517. beare. 518. It is (_but read_ As). 519. Eke; knights old. 522. _I +supply_ it; wholly. 523. eke; marshall (!). 524. them; riches. 526. one +leafe. 527, 528. done. 529. earthly. 530. Witnes. 531. deeds. + +535. all; beene. 536. _I supply_ folk. 537. delite of; busines. 539. _I +supply_ lyk. 540. great delite; _I supply_ the; pleasaunce. 541. to; and so +(_omit_ and). 542. _I supply_ gret. 543. faire. 544. aske. 545. knights; _I +supply_ al. 546. leafe; floure. 548. knights. 550. all. 551. leaues aye. +552. their; _read_ hir? 553. Whose; green May may (_sic_). 554. aye; their +beauty. 555. storme; _I supply_ non. 556. Haile; frosts. 557. propertie. +558. floure; little. 559. Woll; lost. 560. greeuance. 561. storme will; +them. 562. _I supply_ as; season. 563. That if their (_read_ That is the). +564. reason. 565. occupacion. + +566. all mine whole. 567. thanke. 571. pleasure; will. 572. ayen; whome +doe; owe. 573. woll. 574. Tell; yeere; leafe or the flour. 575. I least. +576. leafe; owe mine. 577. well done. 580. male bouch; all; crueltie. 581. +all. 583. follow; great. 585. forth as; humbly. 586. tooke; hie. 587. them. +588. homeward. 589. all. 590. them; it to rede (_omit_ to). 591. little +booke. 594. shall. 595. full. + + * * * * * + +XXI. THE ASSEMBLY OF LADIES. + + In Septembre, at the falling of the leef, + The fressh sesoun was al-togider doon, + And of the corn was gadered in the sheef; + In a gardyn, about twayn after noon, + Ther were ladyes walking, as was her wone, 5 + Foure in nombre, as to my mynd doth falle, + And I the fifte, the simplest of hem alle. + + Of gentilwomen fayre ther were also, + Disporting hem, everiche after her gyse, + In crosse-aleys walking, by two and two, 10 + And some alone, after her fantasyes. + Thus occupyed we were in dyvers wyse; + And yet, in trouthe, we were not al alone; + Ther were knightës and squyers many one. + + 'Wherof I served?' oon of hem asked me; 15 + I sayde ayein, as it fel in my thought, + 'To walke about the mase, in certayntè, + As a woman that [of] nothing rought.' + He asked me ayein--'whom that I sought, + And of my colour why I was so pale?' 20 + 'Forsothe,' quod I, 'and therby lyth a tale.' + + 'That must me wite,' quod he, 'and that anon; + Tel on, let see, and make no tarying.' + 'Abyd,' quod I, 'ye been a hasty oon, + I let you wite it is no litel thing. 25 + But, for bicause ye have a greet longing + In your desyr, this proces for to here, + I shal you tel the playn of this matere.-- + + It happed thus, that, in an after-noon, + My felawship and I, by oon assent, 30 + Whan al our other besinesse was doon, + To passe our tyme, into this mase we went, + And toke our wayes, eche after our entent; + Some went inward, and +wend they had gon out, + Some stode amid, and loked al about. 35 + + And, sooth to say, some were ful fer behind, + And right anon as ferforth as the best; + Other ther were, so mased in her mind, + Al wayes were good for hem, bothe eest and west. + Thus went they forth, and had but litel rest; 40 + And some, her corage did hem sore assayle, + For very wrath, they did step over the rayle! + + And as they sought hem-self thus to and fro, + I gat myself a litel avauntage; + Al for-weried, I might no further go, 45 + Though I had won right greet, for my viage. + So com I forth into a strait passage, + Which brought me to an herber fair and grene, + Mad with benches, ful craftily and clene, + + That, as me thought, ther might no crëature 50 + Devyse a better, by dew proporcioun; + Safe it was closed wel, I you ensure, + With masonry of compas enviroun, + Ful secretly, with stayres going doun + Inmiddes the place, with turning wheel, certayn; 55 + And upon that, a pot of marjolain; + + With margarettes growing in ordinaunce, + To shewe hemself, as folk went to and fro, + That to beholde it was a greet plesaunce, + And how they were acompanyed with mo 60 + Ne-m'oublie-mies and sovenez also; + The povre pensees were not disloged there; + No, no! god wot, her place was every-where! + + The flore beneth was paved faire and smothe + With stones square, of many dyvers hew, 65 + So wel joynëd that, for to say the sothe, + Al semed oon (who that non other knew); + And underneth, the stremës new and new, + As silver bright, springing in suche a wyse + That, whence it cam, ye coude it not devyse. 70 + + A litel whyle thus was I al alone, + Beholding wel this délectable place; + My felawship were coming everichone, + So must me nedes abyde, as for a space. + Rememb[e]ring of many dyvers cace 75 + Of tyme passed, musing with sighes depe, + I set me doun, and ther I fel a-slepe. + + And, as I slept, me thought ther com to me + A gentilwoman, metely of stature; + Of greet worship she semed for to be, 80 + Atyred wel, not high, but by mesure; + Her countenaunce ful sad and ful demure; + Her colours blewe, al that she had upon; + Ther com no mo [there] but herself aloon. + + Her gown was wel embrouded, certainly, 85 + With sovenez, after her own devyse; + On her purfyl her word [was] by and by + _Bien et loyalment_, as I coud devyse. + Than prayde I her, in every maner wyse + That of her name I might have remembraunce; 90 + She sayd, she called was Perséveraunce. + + So furthermore to speke than was I bold, + Where she dwelled, I prayed her for to say; + And she again ful curteysly me told, + "My dwelling is, and hath ben many a day 95 + With a lady."--"What lady, I you pray?" + "Of greet estate, thus warne I you," quod she; + "What cal ye her?"--"Her name is Loyaltè." + + "In what offyce stand ye, or in what degrè?" + Quod I to her, "that wolde I wit right fayn." 100 + "I am," quod she, "unworthy though I be, + Of her chambre her ussher, in certayn; + This rod I bere, as for a token playn, + Lyke as ye know the rule in such servyce + Pertayning is unto the same offyce. 105 + + She charged me, by her commaundëment, + To warn you and your felawes everichon, + That ye shuld come there as she is present, + For a counsayl, which shal be now anon, + Or seven dayës be comen and gon. 110 + And furthermore, she bad that I shuld say + Excuse there might be non, nor [no] delay. + + Another thing was nigh forget behind + Whiche in no wyse I wolde but ye it knew; + Remembre wel, and bere it in your mind, 115 + Al your felawes and ye must come in blew, + Every liche able your maters for to sew; + With more, which I pray you thinke upon, + Your wordës on your slevës everichon. + + And be not ye abasshed in no wyse, 120 + As many been in suche an high presence; + Mak your request as ye can best devyse, + And she gladly wol yeve you audience. + There is no greef, ne no maner offence, + Wherin ye fele that your herte is displesed, 125 + But with her help right sone ye shul be esed." + + "I am right glad," quod I, "ye tel me this, + But there is non of us that knoweth the way." + "As of your way," quod she, "ye shul not mis, + Ye shul have oon to gyde you, day by day, 130 + Of my felawes (I can no better say) + Suche oon as shal tel you the way ful right; + And Diligence this gentilwoman hight. + + A woman of right famous governaunce, + And wel cherisshed, I tel you in certayn; 135 + Her felawship shal do you greet plesaunce. + Her port is suche, her maners trewe and playn; + She with glad chere wol do her besy payn + To bring you there; now farwel, I have don." + "Abyde," sayd I, "ye may not go so sone." 140 + + "Why so?" quod she, "and I have fer to go + To yeve warning in many dyvers place + To your felawes, and so to other mo; + And wel ye wot, I have but litel space." + "Now yet," quod I, "ye must tel me this cace, 145 + If we shal any man unto us cal?" + "Not oon," quod she, "may come among you al." + + "Not oon," quod I, "ey! _benedicite!_ + What have they don? I pray you tel me that!" + "Now, by my lyf, I trow but wel," quod she; 150 + "But ever I can bileve there is somwhat, + And, for to say you trouth, more can I nat; + In questiouns I may nothing be large, + I medle no further than is my charge." + + "Than thus," quod I, "do me to understand, 155 + What place is there this lady is dwelling?" + "Forsothe," quod she, "and oon sought al this land, + Fairer is noon, though it were for a king + Devysed wel, and that in every thing. + The toures hy ful plesaunt shul ye find, 160 + With fanes fressh, turning with every wind. + + The chambres and parlours both of oo sort, + With bay-windowes, goodly as may be thought, + As for daunsing and other wyse disport; + The galeryes right wonder wel y-wrought, 165 + That I wel wot, if ye were thider brought, + And took good hede therof in every wyse, + Ye wold it thinke a very paradyse." + + "What hight this place?" quod I; "now say me that." + "Plesaunt Regard," quod she, "to tel you playn." 170 + "Of verray trouth," quod I, "and, wot ye what, + It may right wel be called so, certayn; + But furthermore, this wold I wit ful fayn, + What shulde I do as sone as I come there, + And after whom that I may best enquere?" 175 + + "A gentilwoman, a porter at the yate + There shal ye find; her name is Countenaunce; + If +it so hap ye come erly or late, + Of her were good to have som acquaintaunce. + She can tel how ye shal you best avaunce, 180 + And how to come to her ladyes presence; + To her wordës I rede you yeve credence. + + Now it is tyme that I depart you fro; + For, in good sooth, I have gret businesse." + "I wot right wel," quod I, "that it is so; 185 + And I thank you of your gret gentilnesse. + Your comfort hath yeven me suche hardinesse + That now I shal be bold, withouten fayl, + To do after your ávyse and counsayl." + + Thus parted she, and I lefte al aloon; 190 + With that I saw, as I beheld asyde, + A woman come, a verray goodly oon; + And forth withal, as I had her aspyed, + Me thought anon, [that] it shuld be the gyde; + And of her name anon I did enquere. 195 + Ful womanly she yave me this answere. + + "I am," quod she, "a simple crëature + Sent from the court; my name is Diligence. + As sone as I might come, I you ensure, + I taried not, after I had licence; 200 + And now that I am come to your presence, + Look, what servyce that I can do or may, + Commaundë me; I can no further say." + + I thanked her, and prayed her to come nere, + Because I wold see how she were arayed; 205 + Her gown was blew, dressed in good manere + With her devyse, her word also, that sayd + _Tant que je puis_; and I was wel apayd; + For than wist I, withouten any more, + It was ful trew, that I had herd before. 210 + + "Though we took now before a litel space, + It were ful good," quod she, "as I coud gesse." + "How fer," quod I, "have we unto that place?" + "A dayes journey," quod she, "but litel lesse; + Wherfore I redë that we onward dresse; 215 + For, I suppose, our felawship is past, + And for nothing I wold that we were last." + + Than parted we, at springing of the day, + And forth we wente [a] soft and esy pace, + Til, at the last, we were on our journey 220 + So fer onward, that we might see the place. + "Now let us rest," quod I, "a litel space, + And say we, as devoutly as we can, + A _pater-noster_ for saint Julian." + + "With al my herte, I assent with good wil; 225 + Much better shul we spede, whan we have don." + Than taried we, and sayd it every del. + And whan the day was fer gon after noon, + We saw a place, and thider cam we sone, + Which rounde about was closed with a wal, 230 + Seming to me ful lyke an hospital. + + Ther found I oon, had brought al myn aray, + A gentilwoman of myn aquaintaunce. + "I have mervayl," quod I, "what maner way + Ye had knowlege of al this ordenaunce." 235 + "Yis, yis," quod she, "I herd Perséveraunce, + How she warned your felawes everichon, + And what aray that ye shulde have upon." + + "Now, for my love," quod I, "this I you pray, + Sith ye have take upon you al the payn, 240 + That ye wold helpe me on with myn aray; + For wit ye wel, I wold be gon ful fayn." + "Al this prayer nedeth not, certayn;" + Quod she agayn; "com of, and hy you sone, + And ye shal see how wel it shal be doon." 245 + + "But this I dout me greetly, wot ye what, + That my felawes ben passed by and gon." + "I warant you," quod she, "that ar they nat; + For here they shul assemble everichon. + Notwithstanding, I counsail you anon; 250 + Mak you redy, and tary ye no more, + It is no harm, though ye be there afore." + + So than I dressed me in myn aray, + And asked her, whether it were wel or no? + "It is right wel," quod she, "unto my pay; 255 + Ye nede not care to what place ever ye go." + And whyl that she and I debated so, + Cam Diligence, and saw me al in blew: + "Sister," quod she, "right wel brouk ye your new!" + + Than went we forth, and met at aventure 260 + A yong woman, an officer seming: + "What is your name," quod I, "good crëature?" + "Discrecioun," quod she, "without lesing." + "And where," quod I, "is your most abyding?" + "I have," quod she, "this office of purchace, 265 + Cheef purveyour, that longeth to this place." + + "Fair love," quod I, "in al your ordenaunce, + What is her name that is the herbegere?" + "For sothe," quod she, "her name is Acquaintaunce, + A woman of right gracious manere." 270 + Than thus quod I, "What straungers have ye here?" + "But few," quod she, "of high degree ne low; + Ye be the first, as ferforth as I know." + + Thus with talës we cam streight to the yate; + This yong woman departed was and gon; 275 + Cam Diligence, and knokked fast therat; + "Who is without?" quod Countenaunce anon. + "Trewly," quod I, "fair sister, here is oon!" + "Which oon?" quod she, and therwithal she lough; + "I, Diligence! ye know me wel ynough." 280 + + Than opened she the yate, and in we go; + With wordës fair she sayd ful gentilly, + "Ye are welcome, ywis! are ye no mo?" + "Nat oon," quod she, "save this woman and I." + "Now than," quod she, "I pray yow hertely, 285 + Tak my chambre, as for a whyl, to rest + Til your felawës come, I holde it best." + + I thanked her, and forth we gon echon + Til her chambre, without[en] wordës mo. + Cam Diligence, and took her leve anon; 290 + "Wher-ever you list," quod I, "now may ye go; + And I thank you right hertely also + Of your labour, for which god do you meed; + I can no more, but Jesu be your speed!" + + Than Countenauncë asked me anon, 295 + "Your felawship, where ben they now?" quod she. + "For sothe," quod I, "they be coming echon; + But in certayn, I know nat wher they be, + Without I may hem at this window see. + Here wil I stande, awaytinge ever among, 300 + For, wel I wot, they wil nat now be long." + + Thus as I stood musing ful busily, + I thought to take good hede of her aray, + Her gown was blew, this wot I verely, + Of good fasoun, and furred wel with gray; 305 + Upon her sleve her word (this is no nay), + Which sayd thus, as my pennë can endyte, + _A moi que je voy_, writen with lettres whyte. + + Than forth withal she cam streight unto me, + "Your word," quod she, "fayn wold I that I knew." 310 + "Forsothe," quod I, "ye shal wel knowe and see, + And for my word, I have non; this is trew. + It is ynough that my clothing be blew, + As here-before I had commaundëment; + And so to do I am right wel content. 315 + + But tel me this, I pray you hertely, + The steward here, say me, what is her name?" + "She hight Largesse, I say you suërly; + A fair lady, and of right noble fame. + Whan ye her see, ye wil report the same. 320 + And under her, to bid you welcome al, + There is Belchere, the marshal of the hall. + + Now al this whyle that ye here tary stil, + Your own maters ye may wel have in mind. + But tel me this, have ye brought any bil?" 325 + "Ye, ye," quod I, "or els I were behind. + Where is there oon, tel me, that I may find + To whom that I may shewe my matters playn?" + "Surely," quod she, "unto the chamberlayn." + + "The chamberlayn?" quod I, "[now] say ye trew?" 330 + "Ye, verely," sayd she, "by myne advyse; + Be nat aferd; unto her lowly sew." + "It shal be don," quod I, "as ye devyse; + But ye must knowe her name in any wyse?" + "Trewly," quod she, "to tell you in substaunce, 335 + Without fayning, her name is Remembraunce. + + The secretary yit may not be forget; + For she may do right moche in every thing. + Wherfore I rede, whan ye have with her met, + Your mater hool tel her, without fayning; 340 + Ye shal her finde ful good and ful loving." + "Tel me her name," quod I, "of gentilnesse." + "By my good sooth," quod she, "Avysënesse." + + "That name," quod I, "for her is passing good; + For every bil and cedule she must see; 345 + Now good," quod I, "com, stand there-as I stood; + My felawes be coming; yonder they be." + "Is it [a] jape, or say ye sooth?" quod she. + "In jape? nay, nay; I say you for certain; + See how they come togider, twain and twain!" 350 + + "Ye say ful sooth," quod she, "that is no nay; + I see coming a goodly company." + "They been such folk," quod I, "I dar wel say, + That list to love; thinke it ful verily. + And, for my love, I pray you faithfully, 355 + At any tyme, whan they upon you cal, + That ye wol be good frend unto hem al." + + "Of my frendship," quod she, "they shal nat mis, + And for their ese, to put therto my payn." + "God yelde it you!" quod I; "but tel me this, 360 + How shal we know who is the chamberlayn?" + "That shal ye wel know by her word, certayn." + "What is her word? Sister, I pray you say." + "_Plus ne purroy_; thus wryteth she alway." + + Thus as we stood togider, she and I, 365 + Even at the yate my felawes were echon. + So met I hem, as me thought was goodly, + And bad hem welcome al, by on and on. + Than forth cam [lady] Countenaunce anon; + "Ful hertely, fair sisters al," quod she, 370 + "Ye be right welcome into this countree. + + I counsail you to take a litel rest + In my chambre, if it be your plesaunce. + Whan ye be there, me thinketh for the best + That I go in, and cal Perséveraunce, 375 + Because she is oon of your aquaintaunce; + And she also wil tel you every thing + How ye shal be ruled of your coming." + + My felawes al and I, by oon avyse, + Were wel agreed to do lyke as she sayd. 380 + Than we began to dresse us in our gyse, + That folk shuld see we were nat unpurvayd; + And good wageours among us there we layd, + Which of us was atyred goodliest, + And of us al which shuld be praysed best. 385 + + The porter cam, and brought Perséveraunce; + She welcomed us in ful curteys manere: + "Think ye nat long," quod she, "your attendaunce; + I wil go speke unto the herbergere, + That she may purvey for your logging here. 390 + Than wil I go unto the chamberlayn + To speke for you, and come anon agayn." + + And whan [that] she departed was and gon, + We saw folkës coming without the wal, + So greet people, that nombre coud we non; 395 + Ladyes they were and gentilwomen al, + Clothed in blew, echon her word withal; + But for to knowe her word or her devyse, + They cam so thikke, that I might in no wyse. + + With that anon cam in Perséveraunce, 400 + And where I stood, she cam streight [un]to me. + "Ye been," quod she, "of myne olde acquaintaunce; + You to enquere, the bolder wolde I be; + What word they bere, eche after her degree, + I pray you, tel it me in secret wyse; 405 + And I shal kepe it close, on warantyse." + + "We been," quod I, "fyve ladies al in-fere, + And gentilwomen foure in company; + Whan they begin to open hir matere, + Than shal ye knowe hir wordës by and by; 410 + But as for me, I have non verely, + And so I told Countenaunce here-before; + Al myne aray is blew; what nedeth more?" + + "Now than," quod she, "I wol go in agayn, + That ye may have knowlege, what ye shuld do." 415 + "In sooth," quod I, "if ye wold take the payn, + Ye did right moch for us, if ye did so. + The rather sped, the soner may we go. + Gret cost alway ther is in tarying; + And long to sewe, it is a wery thing." 420 + + Than parted she, and cam again anon; + "Ye must," quod she, "come to the chamberlayn." + "We been," quod I, "now redy everichon + To folowe you whan-ever ye list, certayn. + We have non eloquence, to tel you playn; 425 + Beseching you we may be so excused, + Our trew mening, that it be not refused." + + Than went we forth, after Perséveraunce, + To see the prees; it was a wonder cace; + There for to passe it was greet comb[e]raunce, 430 + The people stood so thikke in every place. + "Now stand ye stil," quod she, "a litel space; + And for your ese somwhat I shal assay, + If I can make you any better way." + + And forth she goth among hem everichon, 435 + Making a way, that we might thorugh pas + More at our ese; and whan she had so don, + She beckned us to come where-as she was; + So after her we folowed, more and las. + She brought us streight unto the chamberlayn; 440 + There left she us, and than she went agayn. + + We salued her, as reson wolde it so, + Ful humb[el]ly beseching her goodnesse, + In our maters that we had for to do + That she wold be good lady and maistresse. 445 + "Ye be welcome," quod she, "in sothfastnesse, + And see, what I can do you for to plese, + I am redy, that may be to your ese." + + We folowed her unto the chambre-dore, + "Sisters," quod she, "come ye in after me." 450 + But wite ye wel, there was a paved flore, + The goodliest that any wight might see; + And furthermore, about than loked we + On eche corner, and upon every wal, + The which was mad of berel and cristal; 455 + + Wherein was graven of stories many oon; + First how Phyllis, of womanly pitè, + Deyd pitously, for love of Demophoon. + Nexte after was the story of Tisbee, + How she slew her-self under a tree. 460 + Yet saw I more, how in right pitous cas + For Antony was slayn Cleopatras. + + That other syde was, how Hawes the shene + Untrewly was disceyved in her bayn. + There was also Annelida the quene, 465 + Upon Arcyte how sore she did complayn. + Al these stories were graved there, certayn; + And many mo than I reherce you here; + It were to long to tel you al in-fere. + + And, bicause the wallës shone so bright, 470 + With fyne umple they were al over-sprad, + To that intent, folk shuld nat hurte hir sight; + And thorugh it the stories might be rad. + Than furthermore I went, as I was lad; + And there I saw, without[en] any fayl, 475 + A chayrë set, with ful riche aparayl. + + And fyve stages it was set fro the ground, + Of cassidony ful curiously wrought; + With four pomelles of golde, and very round, + Set with saphyrs, as good as coud be thought; 480 + That, wot ye what, if it were thorugh sought, + As I suppose, fro this countrey til Inde, + Another suche it were right fer to finde! + + For, wite ye wel, I was right nere that, + So as I durst, beholding by and by; 485 + Above ther was a riche cloth of estate, + Wrought with the nedle ful straungëly, + Her word thereon; and thus it said trewly, + _A endurer_, to tel you in wordës few, + With grete letters, the better I hem knew. 490 + + Thus as we stode, a dore opened anon; + A gentilwoman, semely of stature, + Beringe a mace, cam out, her-selfe aloon; + Sothly, me thought, a goodly crëature! + She spak nothing to lowde, I you ensure, 495 + Nor hastily, but with goodly warning: + "Mak room," quod she, "my lady is coming!" + + With that anon I saw Perséveraunce, + How she held up the tapet in her hand. + I saw also, in right good ordinaunce, 500 + This greet lady within the tapet stand, + Coming outward, I wol ye understand; + And after her a noble company, + I coud nat tel the nombre sikerly. + + Of their namës I wold nothing enquere 505 + Further than suche as we wold sewe unto, + Sauf oo lady, which was the chauncellere, + Attemperaunce; sothly her name was so. + For us nedeth with her have moch to do + In our maters, and alway more and more. 510 + And, so forth, to tel you furthermore, + + Of this lady her beautè to discryve, + My conning is to simple, verely; + For never yet, the dayës of my lyve, + So inly fair I have non seen, trewly. 515 + In her estate, assured utterly, + There wanted naught, I dare you wel assure, + That longed to a goodly crëature. + + And furthermore, to speke of her aray, + I shal you tel the maner of her gown; 520 + Of clothe of gold ful riche, it is no nay; + The colour blew, of a right good fasoun; + In tabard-wyse the slevës hanging doun; + And what purfyl there was, and in what wyse, + So as I can, I shal it you devyse. 525 + + After a sort the coller and the vent, + Lyk as ermyne is mad in purfeling; + With grete perlës, ful fyne and orient, + They were couchèd, al after oon worching, + With dyamonds in stede of powdering; 530 + The slevës and purfilles of assyse; + They were [y-]mad [ful] lyke, in every wyse. + + Aboute her nekke a sort of fair rubyes, + In whyte floures of right fyne enamayl; + Upon her heed, set in the freshest wyse, 535 + A cercle with gret balays of entayl; + That, in ernest to speke, withouten fayl, + For yonge and olde, and every maner age, + It was a world to loke on her visage. + + Thus coming forth, to sit in her estat, 540 + In her presence we kneled down echon, + Presentinge up our billes, and, wot ye what, + Ful humb[el]ly she took hem, by on and on; + When we had don, than cam they al anon, + And did the same, eche after her manere, 545 + Knelinge at ones, and rysinge al in-fere. + + Whan this was don, and she set in her place, + The chamberlayn she did unto her cal; + And she, goodly coming til her a-pace, + Of her entent knowing nothing at al, 550 + "Voyd bak the prees," quod she, "up to the wal; + Mak larger roum, but look ye do not tary, + And tak these billës to the secretary." + + The chamberlayn did her commaundëment, + And cam agayn, as she was bid to do; 555 + The secretary there being present, + The billës were delivered her also, + Not only ours, but many other mo. + Than the lady, with good advyce, agayn + Anon withal called her chamberlayn. 560 + + "We wol," quod she, "the first thing that ye do, + The secretary, make her come anon + With her billës; and thus we wil also, + In our presence she rede hem everichon, + That we may takë good advyce theron 565 + Of the ladyes, that been of our counsayl; + Look this be don, withouten any fayl." + + The chamberlayn, whan she wiste her entent, + Anon she did the secretary cal: + "Let your billës," quod she, "be here present, 570 + My lady it wil." "Madame," quod she, "I shal." + "And in presence she wil ye rede hem al." + "With good wil; I am redy," quod she, + "At her plesure, whan she commaundeth me." + + And upon that was mad an ordinaunce, 575 + They that cam first, hir billës shuld be red. + Ful gentelly than sayd Perséveraunce, + "Resoun it wold that they were sonest sped." + Anon withal, upon a tapet spred, + The secretary layde hem doun echon; 580 + Our billës first she redde hem on by on. + + The first lady, bering in her devyse + _Sans que jamais_, thus wroot she in her bil; + Complayning sore and in ful pitous wyse + Of promesse mad with faithful hert and wil 585 + And so broken, ayenst al maner skil, + Without desert alwayes on her party; + In this mater desyring remedy. + + Her next felawës word was in this wyse, + _Une sans chaungier_; and thus she did complayn, 590 + Though she had been guerdoned for her servyce, + Yet nothing lyke as she that took the payn; + Wherfore she coude in no wyse her restrayn, + But in this cas sewe until her presence, + As reson woldë, to have recompence. 595 + + So furthermore, to speke of other twayn, + Oon of hem wroot, after her fantasy, + _Oncques puis lever_; and, for to tel you plain, + Her complaynt was ful pitous, verely, + For, as she sayd, ther was gret reson why; 600 + And, as I can remembre this matere, + I shal you tel the proces, al in-fere. + + Her bil was mad, complayninge in her gyse, + That of her joy, her comfort and gladnesse + Was no suretee; for in no maner wyse 605 + She fond therin no point of stablenesse, + Now il, now wel, out of al sikernesse; + Ful humbelly desyringe, of her grace, + Som remedy to shewe her in this cace. + + Her felawe made her bil, and thus she sayd, 610 + In playning wyse; there-as she loved best, + Whether she were wroth or wel apayd + She might nat see, whan [that] she wold faynest; + And wroth she was, in very ernest; + To tel her word, as ferforth as I wot, 615 + _Entierment vostre_, right thus she wroot. + + And upon that she made a greet request + With herte and wil, and al that might be don + As until her that might redresse it best; + For in her mind thus might she finde it sone, 620 + The remedy of that, which was her boon; + Rehersing [that] that she had sayd before, + Beseching her it might be so no more. + + And in lyk wyse as they had don before, + The gentilwomen of our company 625 + Put up hir billës; and, for to tel you more, + Oon of hem wroot _cest sanz dire_, verily; + And her matere hool to specify, + With-in her bil she put it in wryting; + And what it sayd, ye shal have knowleching. 630 + + It sayd, god wot, and that ful pitously, + Lyke as she was disposed in her hert, + No misfortune that she took grevously; + Al oon to her it was, the joy and smert, + Somtyme no thank for al her good desert. 635 + Other comfort she wanted non coming, + And so used, it greved her nothing. + + Desyringe her, and lowly béseching, + That she for her wold seke a better way, + As she that had ben, al her dayes living, 640 + Stedfast and trew, and so wil be alway. + Of her felawe somwhat I shal you say, + Whos bil was red next after forth, withal; + And what it ment rehersen you I shal. + + _En dieu est_, she wroot in her devyse; 645 + And thus she sayd, withouten any fayl, + Her trouthë might be taken in no wyse + Lyke as she thought, wherfore she had mervayl; + For trouth somtyme was wont to take avayl + In every matere; but al that is ago; 650 + The more pitè, that it is suffred so. + + Moch more there was, wherof she shuld complayn, + But she thought it to greet encomb[e]raunce + So moch to wryte; and therfore, in certayn, + In god and her she put her affiaunce 655 + As in her worde is mad a remembraunce; + Beseching her that she wolde, in this cace, + Shewe unto her the favour of her grace. + + The third, she wroot, rehersing her grevaunce, + Ye! wot ye what, a pitous thing to here; 660 + For, as me thought, she felt gret displesaunce, + Oon might right wel perceyve it by her chere, + And no wonder; it sat her passing nere. + Yet loth she was to put it in wryting, + But nede wol have his cours in every thing. 665 + + _Soyes en sure_, this was her word, certayn, + And thus she wroot, but in a litel space; + There she lovëd, her labour was in vayn, + For he was set al in another place; + Ful humblely desyring, in that cace, 670 + Som good comfort, her sorow to appese, + That she might livë more at hertes ese. + + The fourth surely, me thought, she liked wele, + As in her porte and in her behaving; + And _Bien moneste_, as fer as I coud fele, 675 + That was her word, til her wel belonging. + Wherfore to her she prayed, above al thing, + Ful hertely (to say you in substaunce) + That she wold sende her good continuaunce. + + "Ye have rehersed me these billës al, 680 + But now, let see somwhat of your entent." + "It may so hap, paraventure, ye shal. + Now I pray you, whyle I am here present, + Ye shal, pardè, have knowlege, what I ment. + But thus I say in trouthe, and make no fable, 685 + The case itself is inly lamentable. + + And wel I wot, that ye wol think the same, + Lyke as I say, whan ye have herd my bil." + "Now good, tel on, I hate you, by saynt Jame!" + "Abyde a whyle; it is nat yet my wil. 690 + Yet must ye wite, by reson and by skil, + Sith ye know al that hath be don before:--" + And thus it sayd, without[en] wordes more. + + "Nothing so leef as deth to come to me + For fynal ende of my sorowes and payn; 695 + What shulde I more desyre, as semë ye? + And ye knewe al aforn it for certayn, + I wot ye wolde; and, for to tel you playn, + Without her help that hath al thing in cure + I can nat think that I may longe endure. 700 + + As for my trouthe, it hath be proved wele, + To say the sothe, I can [you] say no more, + Of ful long tyme, and suffred every dele + In pacience, and kepe it al in store; + Of her goodnesse besechinge her therfore 705 + That I might have my thank in suche [a] wyse + As my desert deserveth of justyse." + + Whan these billës were rad everichon, + This lady took a good advysement; + And hem to answere, ech by on and on, 710 + She thought it was to moche in her entent; + Wherfore she yaf hem in commaundëment, + In her presence to come, bothe oon and al, + To yeve hem there her answer general. + + What did she than, suppose ye verely? 715 + She spak herself, and sayd in this manere, + "We have wel seen your billës by and by, + And some of hem ful pitous for to here. + We wol therfore ye knowe al this in-fere, + Within short tyme our court of parliment 720 + Here shal be holde, in our palays present; + + And in al this wherin ye find you greved, + Ther shal ye finde an open remedy + In suche [a] wyse, as ye shul be releved + Of al that ye reherce here, thoroughly. 725 + As for the date, ye shul know verily, + That ye may have a space in your coming; + For Diligence shal it tel you by wryting." + + We thanked her in our most humble wyse, + Our felauship, echon by oon assent, 730 + Submitting us lowly til her servyse. + For, as we thought, we had our travayl spent + In suche [a] wyse as we helde us content. + Than eche of us took other by the sleve, + And forth withal, as we shuld take our leve. 735 + + Al sodainly the water sprang anon + In my visage, and therwithal I wook:-- + "Where am I now?" thought I; "al this is gon;" + And al amased, up I gan to look. + With that, anon I went and made this book, 740 + Thus simplely rehersing the substaunce, + Bicause it shuld not out of remembraunce.'-- + + 'Now verily, your dreem is passing good, + And worthy to be had in rémembraunce; + For, though I stande here as longe as I stood, 745 + It shuld to me be non encomb[e]raunce; + I took therin so inly greet plesaunce. + But tel me now, what ye the book do cal? + For I must wite.' 'With right good wil ye shal: + + As for this book, to say you very right, 750 + And of the name to tel the certeyntè, + L'ASSEMBLÈ DE DAMES, thus it hight; + How think ye?' 'That the name is good, pardè!' + 'Now go, farwel! for they cal after me, + My felawes al, and I must after sone; 755 + Rede wel my dreem; for now my tale is doon.' + + HERE ENDETH THE BOOK OF ASSEMBLE DE DAMYS. + +_From_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1532); _compared with_ A. (Addit. 34360); _and_ T. +(Trin. R. 3. 19). TITLE. Th. The assemble of ladies; T. the Boke callyd +Assemble de Damys. 1. A. leef; Th. lefe. 2. Th. ceason. 3. Th. corne; +gathered. A. in; Th. T. _om._ A. sheef; Th. shefe. 4. Th. gardyne aboute +twayne; noone. 6. Th. mynde dothe fal. 7. Th. fyfthe; A. T. fift. A. T. +_om._ the. Th. al. 13. Th. T. al; A. _om._ 16. Th. sayd ayen; A. seyde +ageyne. 17. Th. aboute. 18. _I supply_ of. 19. Th. ayen; A. ageyn. 21. Th. +lythe. [_Henceforward unmarked readings are from_ Thynne.] + +22. _All_ me. A. wite; Th. T. wete. anone. 23. se; taryeng. 24. Abyde; ben. +25. A. wite; Th. T. wete. 26. great. 27. desyre; processe. 28. playne. 29. +noone. 30. one. 31. A. oure; Th. T. _om._ T. A. besynes was; Th. besynesses +were doone. 34. _All_ went (_twice_); _read_ wend (= weened). 35. A. +amyddis; Th. T. in the myd. aboute. 36. sothe. A. T. fer; Th. ferre. +behynde. 37. ferforthe; beste. 38. mynde. 40. forthe. 41. A. so (_for_ +sore). 42. wrathe. A. stept (_for_ did step). 43. A. thus; T. Th. _om._ +-selfe. 44. gate. 46. great. 47. came; A. com. forthe; strayte. 48. fayre. +49. _All_ Made. T. craftyly; A. Th. crafty. 51. T. dew; Th. dewe; A. _om._ + +53. masonrye. A. T. compas; Th. compace. 54. T. steyers. 55. whele. 56. +potte. A. Margoleyne; Th. Margelayne; T. Margelayn. 58. -selfe; folke. 59. +great. 60. howe. 61. A. Ne moubliemies; Th. Ne momblysnesse; T. Ne +momblynes. A. souenez; T. souenes; Th.souenesse. 62. _All_ penses. 63. A. +No no; Th. T. Ne (!). wote. 64. A. beneth; Th. T. and benche (!). Th. +smoth. 65. hewe. 67. one. A. who; Th. T. _om._ none; knewe. 68. streames +newe and newe. 70. came. 71. A. thus; Th. T. _om._ 74. muste. T. nedys; Th. +nedest; A. nede. A. as; Th. T. _om._ 76. A. musyng; Th. T. _om._ 77. downe. +78. A. com; Th. came. 80. Th. great. 82. sadde. A. ful (2); Th. T. _om._ + +84. A. com; Th.came. _I supply_ there. 85. gowne. A. embrowded; T. +enbrowdyd; Th. enbraudred. 86. A. souenez; Th. T. stones. 87. A. On; Th. T. +In. A. the; Th. T. her. _All_ worde; _read_ word was. 88. A. _Bien +loielment_ as I cowde me deuyse. 89. A. eu_er_y; T. many (_om._ in); Th. +any. 91. _All_ was called. 92. A. than; Th. T. _om._ bolde. 94. agayne; +curtesly; tolde. 95. be. 97. great. 99. stande. 100. A. wit; Th. T. wete. +A. ful; Th. T. right. 102. hussher (A. T. vssher); certayne. 103. rodde; +beare; playne. 104. knowe. 105. A. P_er_teyneng; Th. T. Apertaynyng. A. +vnto; Th. T. to. 107. warne; -one. 108. shulde. 109. counsayle; nowe anone. +110. gone. 111. shulde. 112. _I supply_ no. + +113. A. nygh; Th. T. not(!). behynde. 114. knewe. 115. beare. 116. muste; +blewe. 119. T. wordys; sleuys. 120. _So_ A.; Th. T. be not abasshed in no +maner wyse. 122. Make. 124. grefe. 125. displeased. 126. helpe. A. shul; +Th. T. shal. eased. 127. T. (_heading_): Diligence Guyde. 129. A. shul; Th. +T. shal. 130. A. shul; Th. T. shal. A. one (= oon); Th. T. _om._ 132. one; +waye. 135. A. I sey yow for. 136. great. 137. porte; playne. 139. A. T. +farewele now have I. 140. A. quod (_for_ sayd.). 141. ferre. 144. wote. + +145. Nowe; A. _om._ 147. one. Th. amonges; A. T. among. 148. A. Nat one +quod I ey; Th. Not one than sayd I eygh; T. Not oon then sayd I O. 149. A. +they; Th. T. I. done. 150. Th. Nowe; lyfe. 152. trouthe. T. A. nat; Th. +not. 153. questyons. Th. be to large; A. _om._ to. 154. A. medle; Th. +meddle. A. is (_in later hand_); Th. T. _om_, 155. vnderstande. 157. one; +lande. 158. none. 160. hye. A. shul; Th. shal. fynde. 161. A. fanes; Th. +phanes; T. vanes. wynde. 162. A. _om._ and. A. parlours; Th. parlers; T. +parlors. A. both; Th. T. _om._ A. oo; Th. T. a. sorte. 164. disporte. 166. +wote. 167. A. toke; Th. T. take. 168. Th. wol; A. T. wold. 169. A. this; +Th. T. the. nowe. 170. regarde; playne. 171. A. verray; T. v_er_rey; Th. +verey. wote. 172. A. _om._ right. 173. A. T. ful; Th. right. + +174. T. shulde I; Th. I shulde; A. shal I. 175. A. that; Th. T. _om._ 176. +A. at; Th. T. of. 177. fynde. 178. Th. T. ye (_for_ it); A. _om._ (_but_ it +_seems required_). 180. _So_ A.; Th. T. you tel howe ye shal you. 181. +howe. Th. her; A. T. this. 182. A. T. yow; Th. ye. gyue. 183. Th. _om._ +that. T. depart; Th. parte; A. part. 184. A. T. soth; Th. faythe. great. +185. wote. 186. thanke; great. 187. comforte. A. suche; Th. T. _om._ 188. +nowe; bolde; fayle. 189. A. auise; Th. aduyce. Th. and good; A. T. _om._ +good. 198. courte. 201. nowe. 202. A. that; Th. T. _om._ 205. wolde se +howe. A. were; Th. T. was. arayde. + +207. worde; sayde. 208. apayde. 209. A. For; Th. T. And. 210. trewe; herde. +211. nowe. 212. coude. 213. Howe farre. A. that; Th. T. the. 215. A. +onward; Th. T. outwarde. 217. _So_ A.; Th. T. wolde not we were the last. +218. A. parted; Th. T. departed. Th. T. at the; A. _om._ the. 219. _I +supply_ a. T. and an esy. 221. far. A. onward; Th. T. outwarde. se. 222. +Nowe. 225. A. myn hert quod she I gre me wele (_better?_). 226. A. shul; +Th. shal. 227. A. dele; T. dell_e_; Th. dyl. 228. A. was fer gon; Th. T. +was past farre. 229. sawe; came. 230. aboute. 232. fou_n_de I one. 233. +myne. 234. meruayle. 236. A. Yis yis; Th. Yes yes. herde. + +237. T. A. your; Th. her. -one. 238. A. that; Th. T. _om._ A. shal. 239. +Nowe. 240. A. this (_for_ the). 241. wolde; myne. 242. wolde; gone. A. ful; +Th. T. ryght. fayne. 243. certayne. 244. agayne come; hye. 245. se. A. how +wele; Th. T. anone. done. 246. doute; greatly wote. 247. T. byn; A. bien; +Th. be. gone. 248. A. waraunt; Th. T. warne. 249. A. T. shul; Th. shal. +-one. 250. counsayle; anone. 251. A. ye (_twice_); Th. T. you (_twice_). +252. harme thoughe. A. afore; Th. T. before. 257. A. while; Th. whyles. +258. Came; sawe; blewe. 259. _All_ broke (_for_ brouk). _Before_ 260: Th. +T. Discrecyon purvyour. 260. wente. 261. yonge; semynge. 263. Dyscrecyon; +lesynge. 264. abydynge. 266. Chefe. + +_Before_ 267: Th. T. Acquayntaunce herbyger. 267. Fayre. 268. A. herbegyer; +Th. T. herbygere. 272. fewe; hyghe degre; lowe. 273. knowe. _Before_ 274: +Th. Countenaunce porter. 274. came. 275. yonge. 276. Came; therate. 277. +anone. 278. Truely; fayre; one. 279. Whiche one; loughe. 280. knowe; +ynoughe. 281. T. yate; A. Th. gate. 282. fayre. 284. one. 285. Nowe. 286. +Take. A. as; Th. T. _om._ whyle. 288. A. gon; Th. go. A. eche on; Th. T. +euerychone. 289. _All_ without (!). 290. Came; toke; leaue onone. 291. A. +yow; Th. T. ye. nowe. 292. thanke. 293. laboure; whiche; mede. 294. spede. +295. anone. 296. A. now; Th. T. _om._ 297. A. eche one; Th. T. euerychone. + +298. _So_ A; Th. T. But where they are I knowe no certaynte. 299. wyndowe +se. 300. amonge. 301. A. now; Th. _om._ 302. stode musynge. 304. gowne; +blewe; wote. 305. facyon. 306. worde. 307. A. The whiche. 308. A. _O_ +(_for_ _A_). A. lettres; Th. letters. 309. A. Than ferforth as she com. +came. A. vnto; Th. to. 310. T. worde; Th. wordes; A. _om._ (_see_ 312). +fayne. 311. se. 312. worde; none; trewe. 313. ynoughe; blewe. _Above_ 316: +Th. Largesse stewarde; T. Belchere Marchall. 318. T. sewerly; Th. surely. +319. fayre. A. right of nobil. 320. se; reporte. 322. A. Bealchiere; T. +Belchere; Th. Belchier. A. the (1); Th. T. _om._ 323. Th. Nowe. 324. A. +matiers. mynde. 326. A. or; Th. T. and. behynde. 327. one; fynde. + +328. playne. 329, 330. Chamberlayne. _Above_ 330: Th. T. Remembraunce +chamberlayne. 330. _I supply_ now. trewe. 332. aferde. A. aferd but lowly +til hir. Th. sewe; T. sew; A. shewe. 333. done. 334. A. me (_for_ ye). 335. +T. A. tell_e_; Th. shewe. 336. A. T. Without; Th. Withoute_n_. _Above_ 337: +T. Auysen[e]s. 337. A. yit may nat; Th. T. she may not yet be. 338. A. may +do; Th. T. doth. thynge. 339. A. T. met; Th. ymet. 340. matere hole; +faynynge. 341. louynge. 342. A. gentillesse. 343. sothe. 344. A. name; Th. +T. _om._ 345. se. 346. Nowe; come stande; stode. 348. _I supply_ a. sothe. +349. A. it (_for_ you). certayne. 350. Se; twayne (_twice_). 351. sothe. A. +it (_for_ that). 352. se comynge. 353. ben suche folke. A. I dare wele; T. +I dar_e_; Th. dare I. 354. A. ful; Th. T. _om._ 356. A. T. yow; Th. me (!). +357. frende. T. vnto; A. Th. to. + +358. frenshyp; mysse. 359. ease; payne. 360. A. telle me; Th. T. take you. +361. Howe. A. whiche (_for_ who). chamberlayne. 362. worde certaine. 363. +worde. A. T. suster. 365. stode. 366. echone. 368. one (_twice_). 369. A. +forth com; Th. T. came forth. _I supply_ lady. 370. fayre. 372. counsayle. +374. Th. thynketh; Th. A. thynke it. 376. A. oon; Th. T. _om._ 377. thinge. +378. Howe; cominge. 379. one. A. Avise; Th. T. aduyse. 380. sayde. 381. T. +wyse (_for_ gyse). 382. folke. A. se; Th. T. say. vnpurueyde. 383. A. +wageours; Th. T. wagers. amonge; layde. 384. most goodlest (_read_ +goodliest); _see_ 452. 385. whiche shulde. A. And whiche of vs al preysed +shuld be best. 386. came. 387. A. ful; T. Th. _om._ A. T. curteys; Th. +curtyse. 388. Thinke. Th. T. of your; A. _om._ of. + +389. A. herbergier; Th. herbigere. 390. A. may; Th. T. _om._ lodginge. 391. +chamberlayne. 392. anone agayne. 393. _I supply_ that. 394. sawe; comynge. +395. great; coude; none. 397. echone; worde. 398. worde. 399. Th. T. I ne; +A. we (_om._ ne). 400. anone came. 401. stode; came. _All_ to. 404. worde. +405. A. pray yow; Th. T. you pray. secrete. 407. A. quod I fyve ladies; Th. +fyue ladyes quod I. 409, 410. her. 412. tolde. 413. blewe. 414. A. in; Th. +T. _om._ 415. shulde. 416. soth; wolde; payne. 417. moche. T. wold (_for +2nd_ did). 418. A. ye (_for_ we). 419. Great; tarienge. 420. longe. A. sue. +thynge. + +421. came agayne anone. 422. -layne. 423. A. T. We bien quod I now redy; +Th. We be nowe redy quod I. -one. 424. A. yow (_for_ ye). certayne. 425. +playne. 426. Besechynge. 427. trewe meanynge. 428. wente. 429. se. 430. +great combraunce (_read_ comberaunce). 431. stode. 432. Nowe stande. 433. +ease. A. shal I. 435. amonge; -one. 436. T. thorow; Th. thorugh; A. thurgh. +passe. 437. ease; done. 438. T. beckenyd; Th. beckende. A. there (_for_ +where). 440. -layne. 441. lefte. 442. T. salutyd. reason. 443. Th. great; +T. gret; A. _om._ (_after_ her). 444. A. matiers. 445. wolde. 447. se; A. +so. please. 448. ease. 451. A. wite; Th. wete; T. wote. 452. se. + +453. aboute. 454. A. eche a corn_er_. 455. A. The; Th. T. _om._ made. A. +berel; Th. Burel; T. byralle. 456. one. 457. howe. 458. A. Deyd; Th. Dyed. +Demophone. 459. Th. Tysbe; A. T. Thesbe. 460. slowe; -selfe. 461. sawe; +howe. Th. T. a right; A. _om._ a. 462. slayne. 463. Th. T. was Hawes the +shene; A. was how Enclusene (? _error for_ Melusine). 464. A. Vntriewly +was; Th. T. Ful vntrewly. bayne. 466. howe; complayne. 467. certayne. 469. +longe. 470. shone (= shoon). 471. Th. A. vmple; T. vmpylle. 472. folke +shulde. 473. Th. through; A. thurgh (= thorugh; _see_ 436). 475. sawe. +_All_ without. fayle. 476. aparayle. 477. grounde. 479. rounde. 480. coude. +481. wote. T. thorow; A. thurgh (= thorugh); Th. through (_see_ 473). 482. +A. til; Th. T. to. 483. farre. + +484. A. wite; Th. wete; T. wot. 487. T. nedylle. 488. worde. 489. A. +_endurer_; Th. T. _endure_. _All_ you. 490. great; knewe. 491. anone. 493. +came; alone. 494. Sothely. 495. spake nothynge. 496. A. T. hastily; Th. +hastely. warnynge. 497. A. roome; Th. T. rome. comynge. 498. sawe. 499. +helde; hande. 500. sawe. A. goode; Th. T. goodly. 501. great; stande. 502. +-stande. 504. coude. 505. (_above_): T. Attemperaunce chaunclere. wolde. +506. wolde. T. sew; A. sue. 507. A. Sauf oo; Th. Saue a. 508. sothely. 509. +moche. 510. A. matiers. alwaye. 511. forthe. 513. connynge. 514. A. dayes +of al my. + +515. fayre. A. none sene; Th. sene none; T. noon seen. 517. A. you; Th. T. +_om._ 519-532. _Missing in_ A. 520. gowne. 522. coloure blewe. T. good; Th. +goodly. facyoun. 523. Th. taberde; T. taberd. T. dou_n_; Th. adowne. 526. +sorte; vente (T. vent). 527. T. ermyn; Th. Armyne. made; purfelynge. 528. +Th. great; T. gret. 529. one worchynge. 530. Th. diamondes; T. dyamond_es_. +powderynge. 531. T. purfyllys; Th. purfel (!). 532. _Both_ made lyke (!). +533. sorte. 534. enamayle. 535. A. fresshest; Th. T. fayrest. 536. A. with; +Th. T. of. great; entayle. 537. A. withouten; Th. T. without. fayle. 539. +worlde. A. T. loke; Th. loken. 540. comynge forthe; estate. 541. downe. A. +eche on; Th. T. euerychone. 542. A. T. vp; Th. _om._ wote. 543. toke; one +and one. + +544. done; came; anone. 547. A. Whan; Th. T. And wha_n_. done. 548. -layne. +549. A. til; T. to; Th. vnto. 551. Voyde backe; preace. 552. Make. A. +larger; Th. T. large. roume; loke. 553. take; secretarye. 554. -layne. 555. +came agayne. 556. -tarye. 558. onely. 559. agayne. 560. -layne. 562. Th. +secretarye ye do make come; A. T. secretary make hir come. 565. maye. A. +avise; T. auyse. 566. counsayle. 567. Loke; done; fayle. 568. A. The +chambrelayn whan she wist; Th. T. Whan the chamberlayne wyste of. 569. +-tarye. 571. A. _om._ it. 572. A. ye rede hem al; T. yow there cal (!); Th. +ye hem cal (!). 573. A. gode. + +576. came. Th. shuld; A. T. to. T. red; A. Th. redde. 578. Rayson. A. T. +wold that; Th. wyl. spedde. 579. spredde. 580. -tarie; downe echone. 581. +T. rad. T. theym (= hem); Th. A. _om._ one by one. 582. bearyng. 583. A. T. +in; Th. on. 585. made. 587. deserte; partye. 588. A. matier. Th. T. a +remedy; A. _om._ a. 589. A. next felawes word; Th. T. next folowing her +word. 590. A. Une; Th. T. Vng. T. saunz chaunger. co_m_playne. 592. toke; +payne. 593. restrayne. 594. case. 595. reason. 596. twayne. 597. wrote. +598. A. Oncques; Th. Vncques; T. Vnques. playne. 599. A. grevous (_for_ +pitous). 600. great reason. 601. A. And; Th. T. _om._ 602. processe. 603. +made. 604. comforte. 605. Th. surete; A. suerte; T. seurte. + +606. A. fonde; Th. T. sayd (!). 607. Nowe; wele. 608. Th. humbly; A. humble +(!); _read_ humbelly. her high grace; A. _om._ high. 609. A. Som remedy to +chewe (!) in; Th. T. Soone to shewe her remedy in. 610. sayde. 611. +playnynge. 612. wrothe. wele apayde. 613. se; wolde. _I supply_ that. 614. +wrothe. 615. worde; wote. 616. wrote. 617. great. 618. done. 620. mynde. A. +thus; Th. T. there. 621. whiche; boone. 622. Rehersynge. _I supply_ that. +623. Besechynge. 624. lyke; done. 626. A. vp; Th. T. _om._ 627. One; wrote. +628. hole. A. Of hir compleynt also the cause why; T. _om. this line_. 629. +writinge. 630. A. knowlachyng; Th. T. knowynge. 631. wote. 632. herte. 633. +toke. 634. one. A. til. A. it; Th. T. _om._ smerte. 635. thanke; deserte. + +636. comforte. A. wayted; Th. T. wanted. comynge. 637. -thynge. 638. +besechynge. 639. A. T. for her wold; Th. wolde for her. 640. A. al; Th. T. +_om._ lyuynge. 641. trewe. A. so; Th. T. _om._ 642. saye. 643. nexte. A. +after; Th. T. _om._ forthe. 645. _diu_; wrote. 646. A. any; Th. T. _om._ +fayle. 647. T. takyn; Th. A. take. 648. meruaile. 649. auayle. 652. shulde. +653. great. _All_ encombraunce. 654. moche. 655. Th. T. al her; A. _om._ +al. 656. made. 659. wrote. 660. thinge. 661. felte great. 662. A. _om._ +right. 663. sate; passynge. 664. lothe; wrytynge. 665. A. his; T. a; Th. +_om._ thinge. + +666. A. _Se iour_ (for _Soyes_). worde certayne. 667. wrote. A. but; Th. T. +_om._ 668. vayne. 670. Th. T. humbly; A. humble (!); _see_ 607. desyrynge. +671. comforte; sorowe. 672. ease. 675. Th. _moneste_; T. A. _monest_. +farre; coude. 676. worde. 678. T. tell (_for_ say). 679. wolde. 681. lete +se. 683. Nowe. 684. A. T. parde have knowlache; Th. haue knowlege parde. +686. selfe. 687. wote. A. that; Th. T. _om._ thinke. 688. herde. 689. Nowe. +_All_ hate (= hote). 691. A. wite; Th. T. wete. reason. 692. A. knowe al +that hath be done afore; Th. T. haue knowlege of that was done before. 693. +A. it; Th. T. it is (_om._ is). _All_ without. A. any (_for_ wordes). 694. +Nothynge. A. lief; T. leef; Th. lefe. dethe. 695. payne. + +697. aforne; certayne. 698. wote. 699. helpe; thinge. 700. thinke. T. I; +Th. A. it. 702. _I supply_ you. 703. longe. 706. thanke _I supply_ a. 707. +deserte. A. des_er_vith; Th. T. serueth. 708. -one. 709. A. This lady; Th. +T. The ladyes. toke. 710. A. ech; Th. T. _om._ 712. A. yaf; Th. T. yaue. T. +in; Th. A. _om._ 713. one. 714. A. hem there hir answere; Th. T. hem her +answere in. 716. spake; -selfe. 717. sene. 718. A. T. ful; Th. _om._ 720. +shorte; courte. 721. A. T. paleys. 722. fynde. 724. _I supply_ a. A. shul; +Th. T. shal. 725. T. thoroughly; Th. throughly; A. triewly. 726. shal +(_see_ 724); knowe. 728. _So_ Th.; A. shal bryng it yow bi; T. shall hyt +yow tell by. + +729. moste. 730. eche one by one. 732. A. vs (_for 1st_ we). trauayle. 733. +_I supply_ a. 734. toke. 735. forthe; shulde. 736. sprange anone. 737. +woke. 738. nowe; gone. 739. A. Al amased vp; Th. T. Al mased and vp (_read_ +And al amased up). loke. 740. boke. 741. _All_ simply. 742. shulde. Th. T. +be out; A. out (_om._ be). 743. Nowe; dreame. 745. stode. 746. shulde; +none. _All_ encombraunce. 747. toke; great. 748. nowe; boke. 749. A. wite; +Th. T. wete. 750. boke. 751. _So_ A.; Th. T. Of the name to tel you in +certaynte (T. certayn). 752. A. La semble; T. Lassembyll. 753. Howe thynke. +A. the; Th. T. _om._ 754. Nowe. 756. dreme; done. COLOPHON: _in_ T. _only_. + + * * * * * + +XXII. A GOODLY BALADE. + + ¶ Moder of norture, best beloved of al, + And fresshest flour, to whom good thrift god sende. + Your child, if it list you me so to cal, + Al be I unable my-self so to pretende, + To your discrecioun I recommende 5 + Myn herte and al, with every circumstaunce, + Al hoolly to be under your governaunce. + + Most desyre I, and have, and ever shal + Thing, whiche might your hertës ese amende; + Have me excused, my power is but smal; 10 + Natheles, of right ye ought[e] to commende + My good[e] will, which fayn wolde entende + To do you service; for al my suffisaunce + Is hoolly to be under your governaunce. + + _Meulx un_: in herte, which never shal apal, 15 + Ay fresshe and newe, and right glad to dispende + My tyme in your servyce, what-so befal, + Beseching your excéllence to defende + My simplenesse, if ignoraunce offende + In any wyse; sith that myn affiaunce 20 + Is hoolly to be under your governaunce. + + ¶ Daisy of light! very ground of comfort! + The sonnes doughter ye hight, as I rede; + For when he westreth, farwel your disport! + By your nature anon, right for pure drede 25 + Of the rude night, that with his boystous wede + Of derkness shadoweth our emispere, + Than closen ye, my lyves lady dere! + + Dawing the day to his kinde resort, + Phebus your fader, with his stremes rede, 30 + Adorneth the morow, cónsuming the sort + Of misty cloudës, that wolde overlede + Trewe humble hertës with hir mistihede, + Nere comfort a-dayes, whan eyën clere + Disclose and sprede my lyves lady dere. 35 + + [_A stanza lost; lines 36-42._] + + ¶ _Je vouldray_:--but [the] gret[e] god disposeth + And maketh casuel by his providence + Such thing as mannës frelë wit purposeth; 45 + Al for the best, if that our conscience + Nat grucche it, but in humble pacience + It receyve; for god saith, without[e] fable, + A faithful hertë ever is acceptáble. + + Cautels who useth gladly, gloseth; 50 + To eschewe suche it is right high prudence; + What ye said[e] onës, [now] myn herte opposeth, + "That my wryting japës, in your absence, + Plesed you moche bet than my presence!" + Yet can I more, ye be nat excusáble; 55 + A faithful hertë ever is acceptáble. + + Quaketh my penne; my spirit supposeth + That in my wryting ye finde wol som offence; + Myn herte welkeneth thus sone, anon it +roseth; + Now hot, now cold, and eft in [al] fervence; 60 + That mis is, is caused of negligence + And not of malice; therfor beth merciable; + A faithful hertë ever is acceptáble. + + LENVOY. + + ¶ Forth, complaynt! forth, lakking eloquence, + Forth, litel lettre, of endyting lame! 65 + I have besought my ladies sapience + Of thy behalfe, to accept in game + Thyn inabilitee; do thou the same! + Abyd! have more yet; _Je serve Jonesse_. + Now forth; I close thee, in holy Venus name; 70 + Thee shal unclose my hertes governeresse. + + _Finis._ + +_From_ Th. (Thynne's ed. 1532). TITLE. A goodly balade of Chaucer. _I note +here rejected spellings._ 3. childe; lust. 4. selfe. 5. discrecion; +recomende. 7. holy. 9. ease. 10. small. 11. Nathelesse; ought. 12. good; +whiche fayne. 14. holy. 17. befall. 20. sythe. 21. holy; ben. + +22. grounde; comforte. 24. disporte. 27. derkenesse. 29. resorte. 30. And +Phebus (_I omit_ And); father. 31. morowe; sorte. 32. wolden. 34. comforte. +43. great (_read_ the grete). 45. Suche; mans (_read_ mannes); witte. 47. +grutche. 48. _Read_ Receyve it (?); saythe withoute. 52. sayd; _I supply_ +now. 53. _Read_ wryting of iapes (?). 54. Pleased; better (_read_ bet). 58. +_Omit_ wol (?); some. 59. ryseth (!); _read_ roseth. 60. Nowe hotte, nowe +colde; efte; _I supply_ al. + +61. mysse. 62. therfore bethe. 64. _Headed_ Lenuoye. Forthe; forthe +lackyng. 65. Forthe. 68. inabylite. 69. Iouesse. 70. Nowe; the. 71. The. + + * * * * * + +XXIII. GO FORTH, KING. + + Rex sine sapiencia: Episcopus sine doctrina. + Dominus sine consilio: Mulier sine castitate. + Miles sine probitate: Iudex sine Iusticia. + Diues sine elemosina: Populus sine lege. + Senex sine religione: Seruus sine timore. + Pauper superbus: Adolescens sine obediencia. + + Go forth, king, rule thee by sapience; + Bishop, be able to minister doctryne; + Lord, to trew consayl yeve audience; + Womanheed, to chastitè ever enclyne; + Knight, let thy dedes worship determyne; 5 + Be rightwis, jugë, in saving thy name; + Rich, do almesse, lest thou lese blis with shame. + + People, obey your king and the lawe; + Age, be thou ruled by good religioun; + Trew servant, be dredful, and keep thee under awe, 10 + And thou, povre, fy on presumpcioun; + Inobedience to youth is utter distruccioun; + Remembre you how god hath set you, lo! + And do your part, as ye be ordained to. + +_From_ Th. (Thynne, ed. 1532); _I give rejected spellings_. 1. forthe; the. +2. Bishoppe. 3. Lorde; trewe counsayle. 4. Womanhede. 5. lette. 6. rightous +(_read_ rightwis); iuge. 7. blysse. 9. relygion. 10. Trewe; dredeful; kepe. +11. poore; presumption. 12. distruction. 13. howe. 14. parte. + + * * * * * + +XXIV. THE COURT OF LOVE. + + With timerous hert and trembling hand of drede, + Of cunning naked, bare of eloquence, + Unto the flour of port in womanhede + I write, as he that non intelligence + Of metres hath, ne floures of sentence; 5 + Sauf that me list my writing to convey, + In that I can to please her hygh nobley. + + The blosmes fresshe of Tullius garden soote + Present thaim not, my mater for to borne: + Poemes of Virgil taken here no rote, 10 + Ne crafte of Galfrid may not here sojorne: + Why nam I cunning? O well may I morne, + For lak of science that I can-not write + Unto the princes of my life a-right + + No termes digne unto her excellence, 15 + So is she sprong of noble stirpe and high: + A world of honour and of reverence + There is in her, this wil I testifie. + Calliope, thou sister wise and sly, + And thou, Minerva, guyde me with thy grace, 20 + That langage rude my mater not deface. + + Thy suger-dropes swete of Elicon + Distill in me, thou gentle Muse, I pray; + And thee, Melpomene, I calle anon, + Of ignoraunce the mist to chace away; 25 + And give me grace so for to write and sey, + That she, my lady, of her worthinesse, + Accepte in gree this litel short tretesse, + + That is entitled thus, 'THE COURT OF LOVE.' + And ye that ben metriciens me excuse, 30 + I you besech, for Venus sake above; + For what I mene in this ye need not muse: + And if so be my lady it refuse + For lak of ornat speche, I wold be wo, + That I presume to her to writen so. 35 + + But myn entent and all my besy cure + Is for to write this tretesse, as I can, + Unto my lady, stable, true, and sure, + Feithfull and kind, sith first that she began + Me to accept in service as her man: 40 + To her be all the plesure of this boke, + That, whan her like, she may it rede and loke. + + When I was yong, at eighteen yere of age, + Lusty and light, desirous of pleasaunce, + Approching on full sadde and ripe corage, 45 + Love arted me to do myn observaunce + To his astate, and doon him obeysaunce, + Commaunding me the Court of Love to see, + A lite beside the mount of Citharee, + + There Citherea goddesse was and quene 50 + Honoured highly for her majestee; + And eke her sone, the mighty god, I wene, + Cupid the blind, that for his dignitee + A thousand lovers worship on their knee; + There was I bid, on pain of death, t'apere, 55 + By Mercury, the winged messengere. + + So than I went by straunge and fer contrees, + Enquiring ay what costes +to it drew, + The Court of Love: and thiderward, as bees, + At last I sey the peple gan pursue: 60 + Anon, me thought, som wight was there that knew + Where that the court was holden, ferre or ny, + And after thaim ful fast I gan me hy. + + Anone as I theim overtook, I said, + 'Hail, frendes! whider purpose ye to wend?' 65 + 'Forsooth,' quod oon that answered lich a maid, + 'To Loves Court now go we, gentill frend.' + 'Where is that place,' quod I, 'my felowe hend?' + 'At Citheron, sir,' seid he, 'without dowte, + The King of Love, and all his noble rowte, 70 + + Dwelling within a castell ryally.' + So than apace I jorned forth among, + And as he seid, so fond I there truly. + For I beheld the towres high and strong, + And high pinácles, large of hight and long, 75 + With plate of gold bespred on every side, + And presious stones, the stone-werk for to hide. + + No saphir ind, no rubè riche of price, + There lakked than, nor emeraud so grene, + Baleis Turkeis, ne thing to my devise, 80 + That may the castell maken for to shene: + All was as bright as sterres in winter been; + And Phebus shoon, to make his pees agayn, + For trespas doon to high estates tweyn, + + Venus and Mars, the god and goddesse clere, 85 + Whan he theim found in armes cheined fast: + Venus was then full sad of herte and chere. + But Phebus bemes, streight as is the mast, + Upon the castell ginneth he to cast, + To plese the lady, princesse of that place, 90 + In signe he loketh aftir Loves grace. + + For there nis god in heven or helle, y-wis, + But he hath ben right soget unto Love: + Jove, Pluto, or what-so-ever he is, + Ne creature in erth, or yet above; 95 + Of thise the révers may no wight approve. + But furthermore, the castell to descry, + Yet saw I never non so large and high. + + For unto heven it streccheth, I suppose, + Within and out depeynted wonderly, 100 + With many a thousand daisy, rede as rose, + And white also, this saw I verily: + But what tho daises might do signify, + Can I not tell, sauf that the quenes flour + Alceste it was that kept there her sojour; 105 + + Which under Venus lady was and quene, + And Admete king and soverain of that place, + To whom obeyed the ladies gode ninetene, + With many a thowsand other, bright of face. + And yong men fele came forth with lusty pace, 110 + And aged eke, their homage to dispose; + But what thay were, I coud not well disclose. + + Yet ner and ner furth in I gan me dresse + Into an halle of noble apparaile, + With arras spred and cloth of gold, I gesse, 115 + And other silk of esier availe: + Under the cloth of their estate, saunz faile, + The king and quene ther sat, as I beheld: + It passed joye of Helisee the feld. + + There saintes have their comming and resort, 120 + To seen the king so ryally beseyn, + In purple clad, and eke the quene in sort: + And on their hedes saw I crownes tweyn, + With stones fret, so that it was no payn, + Withouten mete and drink, to stand and see 125 + The kinges honour and the ryaltee. + + And for to trete of states with the king, + That been of councell chief, and with the quene, + The king had Daunger ner to him standing, + The Quene of Love, Disdain, and that was seen: 130 + For by the feith I shall to god, I wene, + Was never straunger [non] in her degree + Than was the quene in casting of her ee. + + And as I stood perceiving her apart, + And eke the bemes shyning of her yen, 135 + Me thought thay were shapen lich a dart, + Sherp and persing, smale, and streight as lyne. + And all her here, it shoon as gold so fyne, + Dishevel, crisp, down hinging at her bak + A yarde in length: and soothly than I spak:-- 140 + + 'O bright Regina, who made thee so fair? + Who made thy colour vermelet and white? + Where woneth that god? how fer above the eyr? + Greet was his craft, and greet was his delyt. + Now marvel I nothing that ye do hight 145 + The Quene of Love, and occupy the place + Of Citharee: now, sweet lady, thy grace.' + + In mewet spak I, so that nought astert, + By no condicion, word that might be herd; + B[ut] in myn inward thought I gan advert, 150 + And oft I seid, 'My wit is dulle and hard:' + For with her bewtee, thus, god wot, I ferd + As doth the man y-ravisshed with sight, + When I beheld her cristall yen so bright, + + No respect having what was best to doon; 155 + Till right anon, beholding here and there, + I spied a frend of myne, and that full soon, + A gentilwoman, was the chamberer + Unto the quene, that hote, as ye shall here, + Philobone, that lovëd all her life: 160 + Whan she me sey, she led me furth as blyfe; + + And me demaunded how and in what wise + I thider com, and what myne erand was? + 'To seen the court,' quod I, 'and all the guyse; + And eke to sue for pardon and for grace, 165 + And mercy ask for all my greet trespace, + That I non erst com to the Court of Love: + Foryeve me this, ye goddes all above!' + + 'That is well seid,' quod Philobone, 'in-dede: + But were ye not assomoned to apere 170 + By Mercury? For that is all my drede.' + 'Yes, gentil fair,' quod I, 'now am I here; + Ye, yit what tho, though that be true, my dere?' + 'Of your free will ye shuld have come unsent: + For ye did not, I deme ye will be shent. 175 + + For ye that reign in youth and lustinesse, + Pampired with ese, and +jolif in your age, + Your dewtee is, as fer as I can gesse, + To Loves Court to dressen your viage, + As sone as Nature maketh you so sage, 180 + That ye may know a woman from a swan, + Or whan your foot is growen half a span. + + But sith that ye, by wilful necligence, + This eighteen yere have kept yourself at large, + The gretter is your trespace and offence, 185 + And in your nek ye moot bere all the charge: + For better were ye ben withouten barge, + Amiddë see, in tempest and in rain, + Than byden here, receiving woo and pain, + + That ordeined is for such as thaim absent 190 + Fro Loves Court by yeres long and fele. + I ley my lyf ye shall full soon repent; + For Love will reyve your colour, lust, and hele: + Eke ye must bait on many an hevy mele: + No force, y-wis, I stired you long agoon 195 + To draw to court,' quod litell Philobon. + + 'Ye shall well see how rough and angry face + The King of Love will shew, when ye him see; + By myn advyse kneel down and ask him grace, + Eschewing perell and adversitee; 200 + For well I wot it wol non other be, + Comfort is non, ne counsel to your ese; + Why will ye than the King of Love displese?' + + 'O mercy, god,' quod ich, 'I me repent, + Caitif and wrecche in hert, in wille, and thought! 205 + And aftir this shall be myne hole entent + To serve and plese, how dere that love be bought: + Yit, sith I have myn own penaunce y-sought, + With humble spirit shall I it receive, + Though that the King of Love my life bereyve. 210 + + And though that fervent loves qualitè + In me did never worch truly, yit I + With all obeisaunce and humilitè, + And benign hert, shall serve him til I dye: + And he that Lord of +might is, grete and highe, 215 + Right as him list me chastice and correct, + And punish me, with trespace thus enfect.' + + Thise wordes seid, she caught me by the lap, + And led me furth intill a temple round, + Large and wyde: and, as my blessed hap 220 + And good avénture was, right sone I found + A tabernacle reised from the ground, + Where Venus sat, and Cupid by her syde; + Yet half for drede I gan my visage hyde. + + And eft again I loked and beheld, 225 + Seeing full sundry peple in the place, + And mister folk, and som that might not weld + Their limmes well, me thought a wonder cas; + The temple shoon with windows all of glas, + Bright as the day, with many a fair image; 230 + And there I sey the fresh quene of Cartage, + + Dido, that brent her bewtee for the love + Of fals Eneas; and the weymenting + Of hir, Anelida, true as turtill-dove, + To Arcite fals: and there was in peinting 235 + Of many a prince, and many a doughty king, + Whose marterdom was shewed about the walles; + And how that fele for love had suffered falles. + + But sore I was abasshed and astonied + Of all tho folk that there were in that tyde; 240 + And than I asked where thay had [y-]woned: + 'In dyvers courtes,' quod she, 'here besyde.' + In sondry clothing, mantil-wyse full wyde, + They were arrayed, and did their sacrifice + Unto the god and goddesse in their guyse. 245 + + '+Lo! yonder folk,' quod she, 'that knele in blew, + They were the colour ay, and ever shall, + In sign they were, and ever will be trew + Withouten chaunge: and sothly, yonder all + That ben in blak, with morning cry and call 250 + Unto the goddes, for their loves been + Som fer, som dede, som all to sherpe and kene.' + + 'Ye, than,' quod I, 'what doon thise prestes here, + Nonnes and hermits, freres, and all thoo + That sit in white, in russet, and in grene?' 255 + 'For-soth,' quod she, 'they wailen of their wo.' + 'O mercy, lord! may thay so come and go + Freely to court, and have such libertee?' + 'Ye, men of ech condicion and degree, + + And women eke: for truly, there is non 260 + Excepcion mad, ne never was ne may: + This court is ope and free for everichon, + The King of Love he will nat say thaim nay: + He taketh all, in poore or riche array, + That meekly sewe unto his excellence 265 + With all their herte and all their reverence.' + + And, walking thus about with Philobone, + I sey where cam a messenger in hy + Streight from the king, which let commaund anon, + Through-out the court to make an ho and cry: 270 + 'A! new-come folk, abyde! and wot ye why? + The kinges lust is for to seen you soon: + Com ner, let see! his will mot need be doon.' + + Than gan I me present to-fore the king, + Trembling for fere, with visage pale of hew, 275 + And many a lover with me was kneling, + Abasshed sore, till unto tyme thay knew + The sentence yeve of his entent full trew: + And at the last the king hath me behold + With stern visage, and seid, 'What doth this old, 280 + + Thus fer y-stope in yeres, come so late + Unto the court?' 'For-soth, my liege,' quod I, + 'An hundred tyme I have ben at the gate + Afore this tyme, yit coud I never espy + Of myn acqueyntaunce any with mine y; 285 + And shamefastnes away me gan to chace; + But now I me submit unto your grace.' + + 'Well! all is perdoned, with condicion + That thou be trew from hensforth to thy might, + And serven Love in thyn entencion: 290 + Swere this, and than, as fer as it is right, + Thou shalt have grace here in my quenes sight.' + 'Yis, by the feith I ow your crown, I swere, + Though Deth therfore me thirlith with his spere!' + + And whan the king had seen us everichoon, 295 + He let commaunde an officer in hy + To take our feith, and shew us, oon by oon, + The statuts of the court full besily. + Anon the book was leid before their y, + To rede and see what thing we must observe 300 + In Loves Court, till that we dye and sterve. + + And, for that I was lettred, there I red + The statuts hole of Loves Court and hall: + The _first_ statut that on the boke was spred, + Was, To be true in thought and dedes all 305 + Unto the King of Love, the Lord ryall; + And to the Quene, as feithful and as kind, + As I coud think with herte, and will and mind. + + The _secund_ statut, Secretly to kepe + Councell of love, nat blowing every-where 310 + All that I know, and let it sink +or flete; + It may not sown in every wightes ere: + Exyling slaunder ay for dred and fere, + And to my lady, which I love and serve, + Be true and kind, her grace for to deserve. 315 + + The _thrid_ statut was clerely write also, + Withouten chaunge to live and dye the same, + Non other love to take, for wele ne wo, + For brind delyt, for ernest nor for game: + Without repent, for laughing or for grame, 320 + To byden still in full perseveraunce: + Al this was hole the kinges ordinaunce. + + The _fourth_ statut, To purchace ever to here, + And stiren folk to love, and beten fyr + On Venus awter, here about and there, 325 + And preche to thaim of love and hot desyr, + And tell how love will quyten well their hire: + This must be kept; and loth me to displese: + If love be wroth, passe forby is an ese. + + The _fifth_ statut, Not to be daungerous, 330 + If that a thought wold reyve me of my slepe: + Nor of a sight to be over squeymous; + And so, verily, this statut was to kepe, + To turne and walowe in my bed and wepe, + When that my lady, of her crueltè, 335 + Wold from her herte exylen all pitè. + + The _sixt_ statut, it was for me to use, + Alone to wander, voide of company, + And on my ladys bewtee for to muse, + And to think [it] no force to live or dye; 340 + And eft again to think the remedy, + How to her grace I might anon attain, + And tell my wo unto my souverain. + + The _seventh_ statut was, To be pacient, + Whether my lady joyfull were or wroth; 345 + For wordes glad or hevy, diligent, + Wheder that she me helden lefe or loth: + And hereupon I put was to myn oth, + Her for to serve, and lowly to obey, + Shewing my chere, ye, twenty sith a-day. 350 + + The _eighth_ statut, to my rememb[e]raunce, + Was, To speke, and pray my lady dere, + With hourly labour and gret attendaunce, + Me for to love with all her herte entere, + And me desyre, and make me joyfull chere, 355 + Right as she is, surmounting every faire, + Of bewtie well, and gentill debonaire. + + The _ninth_ statut, with lettres writ of gold, + This was the sentence, How that I and all + Shuld ever dred to be to over-bold 360 + Her to displese; and truly, so I shall; + But ben content for thing[es] that may falle, + And meekly take her chastisement and yerd, + And to offende her ever ben aferd. + + The _tenth_ statut was, Egally discern 365 + By-twene thy lady and thyn abilitee, + And think, thy-self art never like to yern, + By right, her mercy, nor of equitee, + But of her grace and womanly pitee: + For though thy-self be noble in thy strene, 370 + A thowsand-fold more nobill is thy quene, + + Thy lyves lady, and thy souverayn, + That hath thyn herte all hole in governaunce. + Thou mayst no wyse hit taken to disdayn, + To put thee humbly at her ordinaunce, 375 + And give her free the rein of her plesaunce; + For libertee is thing that women loke, + And truly, els the mater is a-croke. + + The _eleventh_ statut, Thy signes for to +con + With y and finger, and with smyles soft, 380 + And low to cough, and alway for to shon, + For dred of spyes, for to winken oft: + But secretly to bring a sigh a-loft, + And eke beware of over-moch resort; + For that, paraventure, spilleth al thy sport. 385 + + The _twelfth_ statut remember to observe: + For al the pain thow hast for love and wo, + All is to lite her mercy to deserve, + Thow must then think, where-ever thou ryde or go; + And mortall woundes suffer thow also, 390 + All for her sake, and thinke it well beset + Upon thy love, for it may be no bet. + + The _thirteenth_ statut, Whylom is to thinke, + What thing may best thy lady lyke and plese, + And in thyn hertes botom let it sinke: 395 + Som thing devise, and take [it] for thyn ese, + And send it her, that may her herte +apese: + Some hert, or ring, or lettre, or device, + Or precious stone; but spare not for no price. + + The _fourteenth_ statut eke thou shalt assay 400 + Fermly to kepe the most part of thy lyfe: + Wish that thy lady in thyne armes lay, + And nightly dreme, thow hast thy hertes wyfe + Swetely in armes, straining her as blyfe: + And whan thou seest it is but fantasy, 405 + See that thow sing not over merily, + + For to moche joye hath oft a wofull end. + It longith eke, this statut for to hold, + To deme thy lady evermore thy frend, + And think thyself in no wyse a cocold. 410 + In every thing she doth but as she shold: + Construe the best, beleve no tales newe, + For many a lie is told, that semeth full trewe. + + But think that she, so bounteous and fair, + Coud not be fals: imagine this algate; 415 + And think that tonges wikke wold her appair, + Slaundering her name and worshipfull estat, + And lovers true to setten at debat: + And though thow seest a faut right at thyne y, + Excuse it blyve, and glose it pretily. 420 + + The _fifteenth_ statut, Use to swere and stare, + And counterfet a lesing hardely, + To save thy ladys honour every-where, + And put thyself to fight [for her] boldly: + Sey she is good, virtuous, and gostly, 425 + Clere of entent, and herte, and thought and wille; + And argue not, for reson ne for skille, + + Agayn thy ladys plesir ne entent, + For love wil not be countrepleted, indede: + Sey as she seith, than shalt thou not be shent, 430 + The crow is whyte; ye, truly, so I rede: + And ay what thing that she thee will forbede, + Eschew all that, and give her sovereintee, + Her appetyt folow in all degree. + + The _sixteenth_ statut, kepe it if thow may:-- 435 + Seven sith at night thy lady for to plese, + And seven at midnight, seven at morow-day; + And drink a cawdell erly for thyn ese. + Do this, and kepe thyn hede from all disese, + And win the garland here of lovers all, 440 + That ever come in court, or ever shall. + + Ful few, think I, this statut hold and kepe; + But truly, this my reson giveth me fele, + That som lovers shuld rather fall aslepe, + Than take on hand to plese so oft and wele. 445 + There lay non oth to this statut a-dele, + But kepe who might, as gave him his corage: + Now get this garland, lusty folk of age. + + Now win who may, ye lusty folk of youth, + This garland fresh, of floures rede and whyte, 450 + Purpill and blewe, and colours +ful uncouth, + And I shal croune him king of all delyt! + In al the court there was not, to my sight, + A lover trew, that he ne was adred, + When he expresse hath herd the statut red. 455 + + The _seventeenth_ statut, Whan age approchith on, + And lust is leid, and all the fire is queint, + As freshly than thou shalt begin to fon, + And dote in love, and all her image paint + In rémembraunce, til thou begin to faint, 460 + +As in the first seson thyn hert began: + And her desire, though thou ne may ne can + + Perform thy living actuell, and lust; + Regester this in thy rememb[e]raunce: + Eke when thou mayst not kepe thy thing from rust, 465 + +Yit speke and talk of plesaunt daliaunce; + For that shall make thyn hert rejoise and daunce. + And when thou mayst no more the game assay, + The statut +bit thee pray for hem that may. + + The _eighteenth_ statut, hoolly to commend, 470 + To plese thy lady, is, That thou eschewe + With sluttishness thy-self for to offend; + Be jolif, fresh, and fete, with thinges newe, + Courtly with maner, this is all thy due, + Gentill of port, and loving clenlinesse; 475 + This is the thing that lyketh thy maistresse. + + And not to wander lich a dulled ass, + Ragged and torn, disgysed in array, + Ribaud in speche, or out of mesure pass, + Thy bound exceding; think on this alway: 480 + For women +been of tender hertes ay, + And lightly set their plesire in a place; + Whan they misthink, they lightly let it passe. + + The _nineteenth_ statut, Mete and drink forgete: + Ech other day, see that thou fast for love, 485 + For in the court they live withouten mete, + Sauf such as cometh from Venus all above; + They take non heed, in pain of greet reprove, + Of mete and drink, for that is all in vain; + Only they live by sight of their soverain. 490 + + The _twentieth_ statut, last of everichoon, + Enroll it in thyn hertes privitee; + To wring and wail, to turn, and sigh and grone, + When that thy lady absent is from thee; + And eke renew the wordes [all] that she 495 + Bitween you twain hath seid, and all the chere + That thee hath mad thy lyves lady dere. + + And see thyn herte in quiet ne in rest + Sojorn, to tyme thou seen thy lady eft; + But wher she won by south, or est, or west, 500 + With all thy force, now see it be not left: + Be diligent, till tyme thy lyfe be reft, + In that thou mayst, thy lady for to see; + This statut was of old antiquitee. + + An officer of high auctoritee, 505 + Cleped Rigour, made us swere anon: + He nas corrupt with parcialitee, + Favour, prayer, ne gold that cherely shoon; + 'Ye shall,' quod he, 'now sweren here echoon, + Yong and old, to kepe, in that +ye may, 510 + The statuts truly, all, aftir this day.' + + O god, thought I, hard is to make this oth! + But to my pouer shall I thaim observe; + In all this world nas mater half so loth, + To swere for all; for though my body sterve, 515 + I have no might the hole for to reserve. + But herkin now the cace how it befell: + After my oth was mad, the trouth to tell, + + I turned leves, loking on this boke, + Where other statuts were of women shene; 520 + And right furthwith Rigour on me gan loke + Full angrily, and seid unto the quene + I traitour was, and charged me let been: + 'There may no man,' quod he, 'the statut[s] know, + That long to woman, by degree ne low. 525 + + In secret wyse thay kepten been full close, + They sowne echon to libertie, my frend; + Plesaunt thay be, and to their own purpose; + There wot no wight of thaim, but god and fend, + Ne naught shall wit, unto the worldes end. 530 + The quene hath yeve me charge, in pain to dye, + Never to rede ne seen thaim with myn ye. + + For men shall not so nere of councell ben, + With womanhode, ne knowen of her gyse, + Ne what they think, ne of their wit th'engyn; 535 + I me report to Salamon the wyse, + And mighty Sampson, which begyled thryes + With Dalida was: he wot that, in a throw, + There may no man statut of women knowe. + + For it paravénture may right so befall, 540 + That they be bound by nature to disceive, + And spinne, and wepe, and sugre strewe on gall, + The hert of man to ravissh and to reyve, + And whet their tong as sharp as swerd or gleyve: + It may betyde, this is their ordinaunce; 545 + So must they lowly doon the observaunce, + + And kepe the statut yeven thaim of kind, + Or such as love hath yeve hem in their lyfe. + Men may not wete why turneth every wind, + Nor waxen wyse, nor ben inquisityf 550 + To know secret of maid, widow, or wyfe; + For they their statutes have to thaim reserved, + And never man to know thaim hath deserved. + + Now dress you furth, the god of Love you gyde!' + Quod Rigour than, 'and seek the temple bright 555 + Of Cither[e]a, goddess here besyde; + Beseche her, by [the] influence and might + Of al her vertue, you to teche a-right, + How for to serve your ladies, and to plese, + Ye that ben sped, and set your hert in ese. 560 + + And ye that ben unpurveyed, +pray her eke + Comfort you soon with grace and destinee, + That ye may set your hert there ye may lyke, + In suche a place, that it to love may be + Honour and worship, and felicitee 565 + To you for ay. Now goth, by one assent.' + 'Graunt mercy, sir!' quod we, and furth we went + + Devoutly, soft and esy pace, to see + Venus the goddes image, all of gold: + And there we founde a thousand on their knee, 570 + Sum freshe and feire, som dedely to behold, + In sondry mantils new, and som were old, + Som painted were with flames rede as fire, + Outward to shew their inward hoot desire: + + With dolefull chere, full fele in their complaint 575 + Cried 'Lady Venus, rewe upon our sore! + Receive our billes, with teres all bedreint; + We may not wepe, there is no more in store; + But wo and pain us frettith more and more: + Thou +blisful planet, lovers sterre so shene, 580 + Have rowth on us, that sigh and carefull been; + + And ponish, Lady, grevously, we pray, + The false untrew with counterfet plesaunce, + That made their oth, be trew to live or dey, + With chere assured, and with countenaunce; 585 + And falsly now thay foten loves daunce, + Barein of rewth, untrue of that they seid, + Now that their lust and plesire is alleyd.' + + Yet eft again, a thousand milion, + Rejoysing, love, leding their life in blis: 590 + They seid:--'Venus, redresse of all division, + Goddes eterne, thy name +y-heried is! + By loves bond is knit all thing, y-wis, + Best unto best, the erth to water wan, + Bird unto bird, and woman unto man; 595 + + This is the lyfe of joye that we ben in, + Resembling lyfe of hevenly paradyse; + Love is exyler ay of vice and sin; + Love maketh hertes lusty to devyse; + Honour and grace have thay, in every wyse, 600 + That been to loves law obedient; + Love makith folk benigne and diligent; + + Ay stering theim to drede[n] vice and shame: + In their degree it maketh thaim honorable; + And swete it is of love [to] bere the name, 605 + So that his love be feithfull, true, and stable: + Love prunith him, to semen amiable; + Love hath no faut, there it is exercysed, + But sole with theim that have all love dispised. + + Honour to thee, celestiall and clere 610 + Goddes of love, and to thy celsitude, + That yevest us light so fer down from thy spere, + Persing our hertes with thy pulcritude! + Comparison non of similitude + May to thy grace be mad in no degree, 615 + That hast us set with love in unitee. + + Gret cause have we to praise thy name and thee, + For [that] through thee we live in joye and blisse. + Blessed be thou, most souverain to see! + Thy holy court of gladness may not misse: 620 + A thousand sith we may rejoise in this, + That we ben thyn with harte and all y-fere, + Enflamed with thy grace, and hevinly fere.' + + Musing of tho that spakin in this wyse, + I me bethought in my rememb[e]raunce 625 + Myne orison right goodly to devyse, + And plesauntly, with hartes obeisaunce, + Beseech the goddes voiden my grevaunce; + For I loved eke, sauf that I wist nat where; + Yet down I set, and seid as ye shall here. 630 + + 'Fairest of all that ever were or be! + +Lucerne and light to pensif crëature! + Myn hole affiaunce, and my lady free, + My goddes bright, my fortune and my ure, + I yeve and yeld my hart to thee full sure, 635 + Humbly beseching, lady, of thy grace + Me to bestowe into som blessed place. + + And here I vow me feithfull, true, and kind, + Without offence of mutabilitee, + Humbly to serve, whyl I have wit and mind, 640 + Myn hole affiaunce, and my lady free! + In thilkë place, there ye me sign to be: + And, sith this thing of newe is yeve me, ay + To love and serve, needly must I obey. + + Be merciable with thy fire of grace, 645 + And fix myne hert there bewtie is and routh, + For hote I love, determine in no place, + Sauf only this, by god and by my trouth, + Trowbled I was with slomber, slepe, and slouth + This other night, and in a visioun 650 + I sey a woman romen up and down, + + Of mene stature, and seemly to behold, + Lusty and fresh, demure of countynaunce, + Yong and wel shap, with here [that] shoon as gold, + With yen as cristall, farced with plesaunce; 655 + And she gan stir myne harte a lite to daunce; + But sodenly she vanissh gan right there: + Thus I may sey, I love and wot not where. + + For what she is, ne her dwelling I not, + And yet I fele that love distraineth me: 660 + Might ich her know, that wold I fain, god wot, + Serve and obey with all benignitee. + And if that other be my destinee, + So that no wyse I shall her never see, + Than graunt me her that best may lyken me, 665 + + With glad rejoyse to live in parfit hele, + Devoide of wrath, repent, or variaunce; + And able me to do that may be wele + Unto my lady, with hertes by plesaunce: + And, mighty goddes! through thy purviaunce 670 + My wit, my thought, my lust and love so gyde, + That to thyne honour I may me provyde + + To set myne herte in place there I may lyke, + And gladly serve with all affeccioun. + Gret is the pain which at myn hert doth stik. 675 + Till I be sped by thyn eleccioun: + Help, lady goddes! that possessioun + I might of her have, that in all my lyfe + I clepen shall my quene and hertes wife. + + And in the Court of Love to dwell for ay 680 + My wille it is, and don thee sacrifice: + Daily with Diane eke to fight and fray, + And holden werre, as might well me suffice: + That goddes chaste I kepen in no wyse + To serve; a fig for all her chastitee! 685 + Her lawe is for religiositee.' + + And thus gan finish preyer, lawde, and preise, + Which that I yove to Venus on my knee, + And in myne hert to ponder and to peise, + I gave anon hir image fressh bewtie; 690 + 'Heil to that figure sweet! and heil to thee, + Cupide,' quod I, and rose and yede my way; + And in the temple as I yede I sey + + A shryne sormownting all in stones riche, + Of which the force was plesaunce to myn y, 695 + With diamant or saphire; never liche + I have non seyn, ne wrought so wonderly. + So whan I met with Philobone, in hy + I gan demaund, 'Who[s] is this sepulture?' + 'Forsoth,' quod she, 'a tender creature 700 + + Is shryned there, and Pitè is her name. + She saw an egle wreke him on a fly, + And pluk his wing, and eke him, in his game, + And tender herte of that hath made her dy: + Eke she wold wepe, and morn right pitously 705 + To seen a lover suffre gret destresse. + In all the court nas non that, as I gesse, + + That coude a lover +half so well availe, + Ne of his wo the torment or the rage + +Aslaken, for he was sure, withouten faile, 710 + That of his grief she coud the hete aswage. + In sted of Pitè, spedeth hot corage + The maters all of court, now she is dede; + I me report in this to womanhede. + + For weile and wepe, and crye, and speke, and pray,-- 715 + Women wold not have pitè on thy plaint; + Ne by that mene to ese thyn hart convey, + But thee receiven for their own talent: + And sey, that Pitè causith thee, in consent + Of rewth, to take thy service and thy pain 720 + In that thow mayst, to plese thy souverain. + + But this is councell, keep it secretly;' + Quod she, 'I nold, for all the world abowt, + The Quene of Love it wist; and wit ye why? + For if by me this matter springen out, 725 + In court no lenger shuld I, owt of dowt, + Dwellen, but shame in all my life endry: + Now kepe it close,' quod she, 'this hardely. + + Well, all is well! Now shall ye seen,' she seid, + 'The feirest lady under son that is: 730 + Come on with me, demene you liche a maid, + With shamefast dred, for ye shall spede, y-wis, + With her that is the mir[th] and joy and blis: + But sumwhat straunge and sad of her demene + She is, be ware your countenaunce be sene, 735 + + Nor over light, ne recheless, ne to bold, + Ne malapert, ne rinning with your tong; + For she will you abeisen and behold, + And you demaund, why ye were hens so long + Out of this court, without resort among: 740 + And Rosiall her name is hote aright, + Whose harte +as yet [is] yeven to no wight. + + And ye also ben, as I understond, + With love but light avaunced, by your word; + Might ye, by hap, your fredom maken bond, 745 + And fall in grace with her, and wele accord, + Well might ye thank the god of Love and lord; + For she that ye sawe in your dreme appere, + To love suche one, what are +ye than the nere? + + Yit wot ye what? as my rememb[e]raunce 750 + Me yevith now, ye fayn, where that ye sey + That ye with love had never acqueintaunce, + Sauf in your dreme right late this other day: + Why, yis, parde! my life, that durst I lay, + That ye were caught upon an heth, when I 755 + Saw you complain, and sigh full pitously; + + Within an erber, and a garden fair + With floures growe, and herbes vertuous, + Of which the savour swete was and the eyr, + There were your-self full hoot and amorous: 760 + Y-wis, ye ben to nice and daungerous; + A! wold ye now repent, and love som new?'-- + 'Nay, by my trouth,' I seid, 'I never knew + + The goodly wight, whos I shall be for ay: + Guyde me the lord that love hath made and me.' 765 + But furth we went in-till a chambre gay, + There was Rosiall, womanly to see, + Whose stremes sotell-persing of her ee + Myn hart gan thrill for bewtie in the stound: + 'Alas,' quod I, 'who hath me yeve this wound?' 770 + + And than I dred to speke, till at the last + I gret the lady reverently and wele, + Whan that my sigh was gon and over-past; + And down on knees full humbly gan I knele, + Beseching her my fervent wo to kele, 775 + For there I took full purpose in my mind, + Unto her grace my painfull hart to bind. + + For if I shall all fully her discryve, + Her hede was round, by compace of nature, + Her here as gold,--she passed all on-lyve,-- 780 + And lily forhede had this crëature, + With lovelich browes, flawe, of colour pure, + Bytwene the which was mene disseveraunce + From every brow, to shewe[n] a distaunce. + + Her nose directed streight, and even as lyne, 785 + With fourm and shap therto convenient, + In which the goddes milk-whyt path doth shine; + And eke her yen ben bright and orient + As is the smaragde, unto my juggement, + Or yet thise sterres hevenly, smale and bright; 790 + Her visage is of lovely rede and whyte. + + Her mouth is short, and shit in litell space, + Flaming somdele, not over-rede, I mene, + With pregnant lippes, and thik to kiss, percas; + (For lippes thin, not fat, but ever lene, 795 + They serve of naught, they be not worth a bene; + For if the basse ben full, there is delyt, + Maximian truly thus doth he wryte.) + + But to my purpose:--I sey, whyte as snow + Ben all her teeth, and in order thay stond 800 + Of oon stature; and eke hir breth, I trow, + Surmounteth alle odours that ever I fond + In sweetnes; and her body, face, and hond + Ben sharply slender, so that from the hede + Unto the fote, all is but womanhede. 805 + + I hold my pees of other thinges hid:-- + Here shall my soul, and not my tong, bewray:-- + But how she was arrayed, if ye me bid, + That shall I well discover you and say: + A bend of gold and silk, full fressh and gay; 810 + With here in tresse[s], browdered full well, + Right smothly kept, and shyning every-del. + + About her nek a flour of fressh devyse + With rubies set, that lusty were to sene; + And she in gown was, light and somer-wyse, 815 + Shapen full wele, the colour was of grene, + With aureat seint about her sydes clene, + With dyvers stones, precious and riche:-- + Thus was she rayed, yet saugh I never her liche. + + For if that Jove had [but] this lady seyn, 820 + Tho Calixto ne [yet] Alcmenia, + Thay never hadden in his armes leyn; + Ne he had loved the faire Europa; + Ye, ne yet Dane ne Antiopa! + For al their bewtie stood in Rosiall; 825 + She semed lich a thing celestiall + + In bowntè, favor, port, and semliness, + Plesaunt of figure, mirrour of delyt, + Gracious to sene, and rote of gentilness, + With angel visage, lusty rede and white: 830 + There was not lak, sauf daunger had a lite + This goodly fressh in rule and governaunce; + And somdel straunge she was, for her plesaunce. + + And truly sone I took my leve and went, + Whan she had me enquyred what I was; 835 + For more and more impressen gan the dent + Of Loves dart, whyl I beheld her face; + And eft again I com to seken grace, + And up I put my bill, with sentence clere + That folwith aftir; rede and ye shall here. 840 + + 'O ye [the] fressh, of [all] bewtie the rote, + That nature hath fourmed so wele and made + Princesse and Quene! and ye that may do bote + Of all my langour with your wordes glad! + Ye wounded me, ye made me wo-bestad; 845 + Of grace redress my mortall +grief, as ye + Of all myne +harm the verrey causer be. + + Now am I caught, and unwar sodenly, + With persant stremes of your yën clere, + Subject to ben, and serven you meekly, 850 + And all your man, y-wis, my lady dere, + Abiding grace, of which I you requere, + That merciles ye cause me not to sterve; + But guerdon me, liche as I may deserve. + + For, by my troth, the dayes of my breth 855 + I am and will be youre in wille and hert, + Pacient and meek, for you to suffre deth + If it require; now rewe upon my smert; + And this I swere, I never shall out-stert + From Loves Court for none adversitee, 860 + So ye wold rewe on my distresse and me. + + My destinee, +my fate, and ure I bliss, + That have me set to ben obedient + Only to you, the flour of all, y-wis: + I trust to Venus never to repent; 865 + For ever redy, glad, and diligent + Ye shall me finde in service to your grace, + Till deth my lyfe out of my body race. + + Humble unto your excellence so digne, + Enforcing ay my wittes and delyt 870 + To serve and plese with glad herte and benigne, + And ben as Troilus, [old] Troyes knight, + Or Antony for Cleopatre bright, + And never you me thinkes to reney: + This shall I kepe unto myne ending-day. 875 + + Enprent my speche in your memorial + Sadly, my princess, salve of all my sore! + And think that, for I wold becomen thrall, + And ben your own, as I have seyd before, + Ye must of pity cherissh more and more 880 + Your man, and tender aftir his desert, + And yive him corage for to ben expert. + + For where that oon hath set his herte on fire, + And findeth nether refut ne plesaunce, + Ne word of comfort, deth will quyte his hire. 885 + Allas! that there is none allegeaunce + Of all their wo! allas, the gret grevaunce + To love unloved! But ye, my Lady dere, + In other wyse may govern this matere.' + + 'Truly, gramercy, frend, of your good will, 890 + And of your profer in your humble wyse! + But for your service, take and kepe it still. + And where ye say, I ought you well cheryse, + And of your gref the remedy devyse, + I know not why: I nam acqueinted well 895 + With you, ne wot not sothly where ye dwell.' + + 'In art of love +I wryte, and songes make, + That may be song in honour of the King + And Quene of Love; and than I undertake, + He that is sad shall than full mery sing. 900 + And daunger[o]us not ben in every thing + Beseche I you, but seen my will and rede, + And let your aunswer put me out of drede.' + + 'What is your name? reherse it here, I pray, + Of whens and where, of what condicion 905 + That ye ben of? Let see, com of and say! + Fain wold I know your disposicion:-- + Ye have put on your old entencion; + But what ye mene to servë me I noot, + Sauf that ye say ye love me wonder hoot.' 910 + + 'My name? alas, my hert, why [make it straunge?] + Philogenet I cald am fer and nere, + Of Cambrige clerk, that never think to chaunge + Fro you that with your hevenly stremes clere + Ravissh myne herte and gost and all in-fere: 915 + This is the first, I write my bill for grace, + Me think, I see som mercy in your face. + + And what I mene, by god that al hath wrought, + My bill, that maketh finall mencion, + That ye ben, lady, in myne inward thought 920 + Of all myne hert without offencion, + That I best love, and have, sith I begon + To draw to court. Lo, than! what might I say? + I yeld me here, [lo!] unto your nobley. + + And if that I offend, or wilfully 925 + By pompe of hart your precept disobey, + Or doon again your will unskillfully, + Or greven you, for ernest or for play, + Correct ye me right sharply than, I pray, + As it is sene unto your womanhede, 930 + And rewe on me, or ellis I nam but dede.' + + 'Nay, god forbede to feffe you so with grace, + And for a worde of sugred eloquence, + To have compassion in so litell space! + Than were it tyme that som of us were hens! 935 + Ye shall not find in me suche insolence. + Ay? what is this? may ye not suffer sight? + How may ye loke upon the candill-light, + + That clere[r] is and hotter than myn y? + And yet ye seid, the bemes perse and frete:-- 940 + How shall ye than the candel-[l]ight endry? + For wel wot ye, that hath the sharper hete. + And there ye bid me you correct and bete, + If ye offend,--nay, that may not be doon: + There come but few that speden here so soon. 945 + + Withdraw your y, withdraw from presens eke: + Hurt not yourself, through foly, with a loke; + I wold be sory so to make you seke: + A woman shuld be ware eke whom she toke: + Ye beth a clark:--go serchen [in] my boke, 950 + If any women ben so light to win: + Nay, byde a whyl, though ye were all my kin. + + So soon ye may not win myne harte, in trouth + The gyse of court will seen your stedfastness, + And as ye don, to have upon you rewth. 955 + Your own desert, and lowly gentilness, + That will reward you joy for heviness; + And though ye waxen pale, and grene and dede, + Ye must it use a while, withouten drede, + + And it accept, and grucchen in no wyse; 960 + But where as ye me hastily desyre + To been to love, me think, ye be not wyse. + Cese of your language! cese, I you requyre! + For he that hath this twenty yere ben here + May not obtayn; than marveile I that ye 965 + Be now so bold, of love to trete with me.' + + 'Ah! mercy, hart, my lady and my love, + My rightwyse princesse and my lyves guyde! + Now may I playn to Venus all above, + That rewthles ye me +give these woundes wyde! 970 + What have I don? why may it not betyde, + That for my trouth I may received be? + Alas! your daunger and your crueltè! + + In wofull hour I got was, welaway! + In wofull hour [y-]fostred and y-fed, 975 + In wofull hour y-born, that I ne may + My supplicacion swetely have y-sped! + The frosty grave and cold must be my bedde, + Without ye list your grace and mercy shewe, + Deth with his axe so faste on me doth hewe. 980 + + So greet disese and in so litell whyle, + So litell joy, that felte I never yet; + And at my wo Fortune ginneth to smyle, + That never erst I felt so harde a fit: + Confounded ben my spirits and my wit, 985 + Till that my lady take me to her cure, + Which I love best of erthely crëature. + + But that I lyke, that may I not com by; + Of that I playn, that have I habondaunce; + Sorrow and thought, thay sit me wounder ny; 990 + Me is withhold that might be my plesaunce: + Yet turne again, my worldly suffisaunce! + O lady bright! and save your feithfull true, + And, er I die, yet on[e]s upon me rewe.' + + With that I fell in sounde, and dede as stone, 995 + With colour slain, and wan as assh[es] pale; + And by the hand she caught me up anon, + 'Aryse,' quod she, 'what? have ye dronken dwale? + Why slepen ye? it is no nightertale.' + 'Now mercy, swete,' quod I, y-wis affrayed: 1000 + 'What thing,' quod she, 'hath mad you so dismayed? + + Now wot I well that ye a lover be, + Your hewe is witnesse in this thing,' she seid: + 'If ye were secret, [ye] might know,' quod she, + 'Curteise and kind, all this shuld be allayed: 1005 + And now, myn herte! all that I have misseid, + I shall amend, and set your harte in ese.' + 'That word it is,' quod I, 'that doth me plese.' + + 'But this I charge, that ye the statuts kepe, + And breke thaim not for sloth nor ignoraunce.' 1010 + With that she gan to smyle and laughen depe. + 'Y-wis,' quod I, 'I will do your plesaunce; + The sixteenth statut doth me grete grevaunce, + But ye must that relesse or modifie.' + 'I graunt,' quod she, 'and so I will truly.' 1015 + + And softly than her colour gan appeare, + As rose so rede, through-out her visage all, + Wherefore me think it is according here, + That she of right be cleped Rosiall. + Thus have I won, with wordes grate and small, 1020 + Some goodly word of hir that I love best, + And trust she shall yit set myne harte in rest. + + . . . . . . + + 'Goth on,' she seid to Philobone, 'and take + This man with you, and lede him all abowt + Within the court, and shew him, for my sake, 1025 + What lovers dwell withinne, and all the rowte + Of officers; for he is, out of dowte, + A straunger yit:'--'Come on,' quod Philobone, + 'Philogenet, with me now must ye gon.' + + And stalking soft with esy pace, I saw 1030 + About the king [ther] stonden environ, + Attendaunce, Diligence, and their felaw + Fortherer, Esperaunce, and many oon; + Dred-to-offend there stood, and not aloon; + For there was eke the cruell adversair, 1035 + The lovers fo, that cleped is Dispair, + + Which unto me spak angrely and fell, + And said, my lady me deceiven shall: + 'Trowest thow,' quod she, 'that all that she did tell, + Is true? Nay, nay, but under hony gall! 1040 + Thy birth and +hers, [they] be nothing egall: + Cast of thyn hart, for all her wordes whyte, + For in good faith she lovith thee but a lyte. + + And eek remember, thyn habilite + May not compare with hir, this well thow wot.' 1045 + Ye, than cam Hope and said, 'My frend, let be! + Beleve him not: Dispair, he ginneth dote.' + 'Alas,' quod I, 'here is both cold and hot: + The tone me biddeth love, the toder nay; + Thus wot I not what me is best to say. 1050 + + But well wot I, my lady graunted me, + Truly to be my woundes remedy; + Her gentilness may not infected be + With dobleness, thus trust I till I dy.' + So cast I void Dispaires company, 1055 + And taken Hope to councell and to frend. + 'Ye, kepe that wele,' quod Philobone, 'in mind.' + + And there besyde, within a bay-window, + Stood oon in grene, full large of brede and length, + His berd as blak as fethers of the crow; 1060 + His name was Lust, of wounder might and strength; + And with Delyt to argue there he thenkth, + For this was all his [hool] opinion, + That love was sin! and so he hath begon + + To reson fast, and legge auctoritè: 1065 + 'Nay,' quod Delyt, 'love is a vertue clere, + And from the soule his progress holdeth he: + Blind appetyt of lust doth often stere, + And that is sin: for reson lakketh there, + For thow [dost] think thy neighbours wyfe to win: 1070 + Yit think it well that love may not be sin; + + For god and seint, they love right verely, + Void of all sin and vice: this knowe I wele, + Affeccion of flessh is sin, truly; + But verray love is vertue, as I fele, 1075 + For love may not thy freil desire akele: + For [verray] love is love withouten sin.' + 'Now stint,' quoth Lust, 'thow spekest not worth a pin.' + + And there I left thaim in their arguing, + Roming ferther in the castell wyde, 1080 + And in a corner Lier stood talking + Of lesings fast, with Flatery there besyde; + He seid that women were attire of pryde, + And men were founde of nature variaunt, + And coud be false, and shewen beau semblaunt. 1085 + + Than Flatery bespake and seid, y-wis: + 'See, so she goth on patens faire and fete, + Hit doth right wele: what prety man is this + That rometh here? Now truly, drink ne mete + Nede I not have; myne hart for joye doth bete 1090 + Him to behold, so is he goodly fressh: + It semeth for love his harte is tender nessh.' + + This is the court of lusty folk and glad, + And wel becometh their habit and array: + O why be som so sorry and so sad, 1095 + Complaining thus in blak and whyte and gray? + Freres they ben, and monkes, in good fay: + Alas, for rewth! greet dole it is to seen, + To see thaim thus bewaile and sory been. + + See how they cry and wring their handes whyte, 1100 + For they so sone went to religion! + And eke the nonnes, with vaile and wimple plight, + There thought that they ben in confusion: + 'Alas,' thay sayn, 'we fayn perfeccion, + In clothes wide, and lak our libertè; 1105 + But all the sin mote on our frendes be. + + For, Venus wot, we wold as fayn as ye, + That ben attired here and wel besene, + Desiren man, and love in our degree, + Ferme and feithfull, right as wold the quene: 1110 + Our frendes wikke, in tender youth and grene, + Ayenst our will made us religious; + That is the cause we morne and wailen thus.' + + Than seid the monks and freres in the tyde, + 'Wel may we curse our abbeys and our place, 1115 + Our statuts sharp, to sing in copes wyde, + Chastly to kepe us out of loves grace, + And never to fele comfort ne solace; + Yet suffre we the hete of loves fire, + And after than other haply we desire. 1120 + + O Fortune cursed, why now and wherefore + Hast thow,' they seid, 'beraft us libertè, + Sith nature yave us instrument in store, + And appetyt to love and lovers be? + Why mot we suffer suche adversitè, 1125 + Diane to serve, and Venus to refuse? + Ful often sith this matier doth us muse. + + We serve and honour, sore ayenst our will, + Of chastitè the goddes and the quene; + Us leffer were with Venus byden still, 1130 + And have reward for love, and soget been + Unto thise women courtly, fressh, and shene. + Fortune, we curse thy whele of variaunce! + There we were wele, thou revest our plesaunce.' + + Thus leve I thaim, with voice of pleint and care, 1135 + In raging wo crying ful pitously; + And as I yede, full naked and full bare + Some I behold, looking dispitously, + On povertè that dedely cast their y; + And 'Welaway!' they cried, and were not fain, 1140 + For they ne might their glad desire attain. + + For lak of richesse worldely and of +gode, + They banne and curse, and wepe, and sein, 'Alas, + That poverte hath us hent that whylom stode + At hartis ese, and free and in good case! 1145 + But now we dar not shew our-self in place, + Ne us embolde to duelle in company, + There-as our hart wold love right faithfully.' + + And yet againward shryked every nonne, + The prang of love so straineth thaim to cry: 1150 + 'Now wo the tyme,' quod thay, 'that we be boun! + This hateful ordre nyse will don us dy! + We sigh and sobbe, and bleden inwardly, + Freting our-self with thought and hard complaint, + That ney for love we waxen wode and faint.' 1155 + + And as I stood beholding here and there, + I was war of a sort full languisshing, + Savage and wild of loking and of chere, + Their mantels and their clothës ay tering; + And oft thay were of nature complaining, 1160 + For they their members lakked, fote and hand, + With visage wry and blind, I understand. + + They lakked shap, and beautie to preferre + Theim-self in love: and seid, that god and kind + Hath forged thaim to worshippen the sterre, 1165 + Venus the bright, and leften all behind + His other werkes clene and out of mind: + 'For other have their full shape and bewtee, + And we,' quod they, 'ben in deformitè.' + + And nye to thaim there was a company, 1170 + That have the susters waried and misseid; + I mene, the three of fatall destinè, + That be our +werdes; and sone, in a brayd, + Out gan they cry as they had been affrayd, + 'We curse,' quod thay, 'that ever hath nature 1175 + Y-formed us, this wofull lyfe t'endure!' + + And there he was contrite, and gan repent, + Confessing hole the wound that Citherè + Hath with the dart of hot desire him sent, + And how that he to love must subjet be: 1180 + Than held he all his skornes vanitè, + And seid, that lovers lede a blisful lyfe, + Yong men and old, and widow, maid and wyfe. + + 'Bereve +me, goddesse,' quod he, '[of] thy might, + My skornes all and skoffes, that I have 1185 + No power forth, to mokken any wight, + That in thy service dwell: for I did rave: + This know I well right now, so god me save, + And I shal be the chief post of thy feith, + And love uphold, the révers who-so seith.' 1190 + + Dissemble stood not fer from him in trouth, + With party mantill, party hood and hose; + And said, he had upon his lady rowth, + And thus he wound him in, and gan to glose + Of his entent full doble, I suppose: 1195 + And al the world, he seid, he loved it wele; + But ay, me thoughte, he loved her nere a dele. + + Eek Shamefastness was there, as I took hede, + That blusshed rede, and durst nat ben a-knowe + She lover was, for thereof had she drede; 1200 + She stood and hing her visage down alowe; + But suche a sight it was to sene, I trow, + +As of these roses rody on their stalk: + There cowd no wight her spy to speke or talk + + In loves art, so gan she to abasshe, 1205 + Ne durst not utter all her privitè: + Many a stripe and many a grevous lasshe + She gave to thaim that wolden loveres be, + And hindered sore the simpill comonaltè, + That in no wyse durst grace and mercy crave; 1210 + For were not she, they need but ask and have; + + Where if they now approchin for to speke, + Than Shamefastness returnith thaim again: + Thay think, if +we our secret councell breke, + Our ladies will have scorn on us, certain, 1215 + And [per]aventure thinken greet disdain: + Thus Shamefastness may bringin in Dispeir, + Whan she is dede, the toder will be heir. + + Com forth, Avaunter! now I ring thy bell! + I spyed him sone; to god I make a-vowe, 1220 + He loked blak as fendes doth in hell:-- + 'The first,' quod he, 'that ever [I] did +wowe, + Within a word she com, I wot not how, + So that in armes was my lady free; + And so hath ben a thousand mo than she. 1225 + + In Englond, Bretain, Spain, and Pycardie, + Arteys, and Fraunce, and up in hy Holand, + In Burgoyne, Naples, and [in] Italy, + Naverne, and Grece, and up in hethen land, + Was never woman yit that wold withstand 1230 + To ben at myn commaundement, whan I wold: + I lakked neither silver, coin, ne gold. + + And there I met with this estate and that; + And here I broched her, and here, I trow: + Lo! there goth oon of myne; and wot ye what? 1235 + Yon fressh attired have I leyd full low; + And such oon yonder eke right well I know: + I kept the statut whan we lay y-fere; + And yet yon same hath made me right good chere.' + + Thus hath Avaunter blowen every-where 1240 + Al that he knowith, and more, a thousand-fold; + His auncetrye of kin was to Lière, + For firste he makith promise for to hold + His ladies councell, and it not unfold; + Wherfore, the secret when he doth unshit, 1245 + Than lyeth he, that all the world may wit. + + For falsing so his promise and behest, + I wounder sore he hath such fantasie; + He lakketh wit, I trowe, or is a best, + That can no bet him-self with reson gy. 1250 + By myn advice, Love shal be contrarie + To his availe, and him eke dishonoure, + So that in court he shall no more sojoure. + + 'Take hede,' quod she, this litell Philobone, + 'Where Envy rokketh in the corner yond, 1255 + And sitteth dirk; and ye shall see anone + His lenë bodie, fading face and hond; + Him-self he fretteth, as I understond; + Witnesse of Ovid Methamorphosose; + The lovers fo he is, I wil not glose. 1260 + + For where a lover thinketh him promote, + Envy will grucch, repyning at his wele; + Hit swelleth sore about his hartes rote, + That in no wyse he can not live in hele; + And if the feithfull to his lady stele, 1265 + Envy will noise and ring it round aboute, + And sey moche worse than don is, out of dowte.' + + And Prevy Thought, rejoysing of him-self, + Stood not fer thens in habit mervelous; + 'Yon is,' thought [I], 'som spirit or some elf, 1270 + His sotill image is so curious: + How is,' quod I, 'that he is shaded thus + With yonder cloth, I not of what colour?' + And nere I went, and gan to lere and pore, + + And frayned him [a] question full hard. 1275 + 'What is,' quod I, 'the thing thou lovest best? + Or what is boot unto thy paines hard? + Me think, thow livest here in grete unrest; + Thow wandrest ay from south to est and west, + And est to north; as fer as I can see, 1280 + There is no place in court may holden thee. + + Whom folowest thow? where is thy harte y-set? + But my demaunde asoile, I thee require.' + 'Me thought,' quod he, 'no crëature may let + +Me to ben here, and where-as I desire: 1285 + For where-as absence hath don out the fire, + My mery thought it kindleth yet again, + That bodily, me think, with my souverain + + I stand and speke, and laugh, and kisse, and halse, + So that my thought comforteth me full oft: 1290 + I think, god wot, though all the world be false, + I will be trewe; I think also how soft + My lady is in speche, and this on-loft + Bringeth myn hart +to joye and [greet] gladnesse; + This prevey thought alayeth myne hevinesse. 1295 + + And what I thinke, or where to be, no man + In all this erth can tell, y-wis, but I: + And eke there nis no swallow swift, ne swan + So wight of wing, ne half [so] yern can fly; + For I can been, and that right sodenly, 1300 + In heven, in helle, in paradise, and here, + And with my lady, whan I will desire. + + I am of councell ferre and wyde, I wot, + With lord and lady, and their previtè + I wot it all; but be it cold or hot, 1305 + They shall not speke without licence of me, + I mene, in suche as sesonable be; + For first the thing is thought within the hert, + Ere any word out from the mouth astert.' + + And with that word Thought bad farewell and yede: 1310 + Eke furth went I to seen the courtes gyse: + And at the dore cam in, so god me spede, + +Twey courteours of age and of assyse + Liche high, and brode, and, as I me advyse, + The Golden Love, and Leden Love thay hight: 1315 + The ton was sad, the toder glad and light. + + [_Some stanzas lost._] + + 'Yis! draw your hart, with all your force and might, + To lustiness, and been as ye have seid; + And think that I no drop of favour hight, + Ne never had to your desire obeyd, 1320 + Till sodenly, me thought, me was affrayed, + To seen you wax so dede of countenaunce; + And Pitè bad me don you some plasaunce. + + Out of her shryne she roos from deth to lyve, + And in myne ere full prevely she spak, 1325 + "Doth not your servaunt hens away to dryve, + Rosiall," quod she; and than myn harte [it] brak, + For tender +reuth: and where I found moch lak + In your persoune, +than I my-self bethought, + And seid, "This is the man myne harte hath sought."' 1330 + + 'Gramercy, Pitè! might I +but suffice + To yeve the lawde unto thy shryne of gold, + God wot, I wold; for sith that +thou did rise + From deth to lyve for me, I am behold + To +thanken you a thousand tymes told, 1335 + And eke my lady Rosiall the shene, + Which hath in comfort set myn harte, I wene. + + And here I make myn protestacion, + And depely swere, as [to] myn power, to been + Feithfull, devoid of variacion, 1340 + And her forbere in anger or in tene, + And serviceable to my worldes quene, + With al my reson and intelligence, + To don her honour high and reverence.' + + I had not spoke so sone the word, but she, 1345 + My souverain, did thank me hartily, + And seid, 'Abyde, ye shall dwell still with me + Till seson come of May; for than, truly, + The King of Love and all his company + Shall hold his fest full ryally and well:' 1350 + And there I bode till that the seson fell. + + . . . . . . + + On May-day, whan the lark began to ryse, + To matens went the lusty nightingale + Within a temple shapen hawthorn-wise; + He might not slepe in all the nightertale, 1355 + But '_Domine labia_,' gan he crye and gale, + 'My lippes open, Lord of Love, I crye, + And let my mouth thy preising now bewrye.' + + The eagle sang '_Venite_, bodies all, + And let us joye to love that is our helth.' 1360 + And to the deske anon they gan to fall, + And who come late, he pressed in by stelth: + Than seid the fawcon, our own hartis welth, + '_Domine, Dominus noster_, I wot, + Ye be the god that don us bren thus hot.' 1365 + + '_Celi enarrant_,' said the popingay, + 'Your might is told in heven and firmament.' + And than came in the goldfinch fresh and gay, + And said this psalm with hertly glad intent, + '_Domini est terra_; this Laten intent, 1370 + The god of Love hath erth in governaunce:' + And than the wren gan skippen and to daunce. + + '_Jube, Domine_, Lord of Love, I pray + Commaund me well this lesson for to rede; + This legend is of all that wolden dey 1375 + Marters for love; god yive the sowles spede! + And to thee, Venus, +sing we, out of drede, + By influence of all thy vertue grete, + Beseching thee to kepe us in our hete.' + + The second lesson robin redebrest sang, 1380 + 'Hail to the god and goddess of our lay!' + And to the lectorn +amorously he sprang:-- + 'Hail,' quod [he] eke, 'O fresh seson of May, + Our moneth glad that singen on the spray! + Hail to the floures, rede, and whyte, and blewe, 1385 + Which by their vertue make our lustes newe!' + + The thrid lesson the turtill-dove took up, + And therat lough the mavis [as] in scorn: + He said, 'O god, as mot I dyne or sup, + This folissh dove will give us all an horn! 1390 + There been right here a thousand better born, + To rede this lesson, which, as well as he, + And eke as hot, can love in all degree.' + + The turtill-dove said, 'Welcom, welcom, May, + Gladsom and light to loveres that ben trewe! 1395 + I thank thee, Lord of Love, that doth purvey + For me to rede this lesson all of dewe; + For, in gode sooth, of corage I +pursue + To serve my make till deth us must depart:' + And than '_Tu autem_' sang he all apart. 1400 + + '_Te deum amoris_' sang the thrustell-cok: + Tuball him-self, the first musician, + With key of armony coude not unlok + So swete [a] tewne as that the thrustill can: + 'The Lord of Love we praisen,' quod he than, 1405 + 'And so don all the fowles, grete and lyte; + Honour we May, in fals lovers dispyte.' + + '_Dominus regnavit_,' seid the pecok there, + 'The Lord of Love, that mighty prince, y-wis, + He hath received her[e] and every-where: 1410 + Now _Jubilate_ +sing:'--'What meneth this?' + Seid than the linet; 'welcom, Lord of blisse!' + Out-stert the owl with '_Benedicite_, + What meneth al this mery fare?' quod he. + + '_Laudate_,' sang the lark with voice full shrill; 1415 + And eke the kite, '_O admirabile_; + This quere will throgh myne eris pers and thrill; + But what? welcom this May seson,' quod he; + 'And honour to the Lord of Love mot be, + That hath this feest so solemn and so high:' 1420 + '_Amen_,' seid all; and so seid eke the pye. + + And furth the cokkow gan procede anon, + With '_Benedictus_' thanking god in hast, + That in this May wold visite thaim echon, + And gladden thaim all whyl the fest shall last: 1425 + And therewithall a-loughter out he brast, + 'I thank it god that I shuld end the song, + And all the service which hath been so long.' + + Thus sang thay all the service of the fest, + And that was don right erly, to my dome; 1430 + And furth goth all the Court, both most and lest, + To feche the floures fressh, and braunche and blome; + And namly, hawthorn brought both page and grome. + With fressh garlandës, partie blewe and whyte, + And thaim rejoysen in their greet delyt. 1435 + + Eke eche at other threw the floures bright, + The prymerose, the violet, the gold; + So than, as I beheld the ryall sight, + My lady gan me sodenly behold, + And with a trew-love, plited many-fold, 1440 + She smoot me through the [very] hert as blyve; + And Venus yet I thanke I am alyve. + +_From_ MS. Trin. R. 3. 19, fol. 128; _collated with the print of the same +in_ (S.) Stowe's _edition_ (1561). _I note some rejected readings of the_ +MS. 1. tym_er_os; tremlyng. 3. poort. 4. none. 9. matere. 10. Poemys; +Virgile. 11. Galfride. 15. termys. 17. honoure. 18. wille; S. wil. 19, 20, +23. thowe. 24. the; anone. 25. miste. + +28. litill. 29. courte. 30. bene. 31. beseche. 32. whate; nede. 34. woo. +35. soo. 36. myne. 39. kynde. 41. pleasure. 48. courte. 49. mounte. 51. +maiestie. 52. sonne. 53. Cupyde; blynde; dignyte. 54. theire kne. 55. +bidde; S. bid. in (_read_ on). to pere (_read_ tapere). 56. Marcury. 57. +be; S. by. ferre. 58. whate; that it drewe (_read_ to it drew). 59. courte. +60. se (_read_ sey). 61. knewe. 62. courte; nye. 63. full_e_ faste; hie. + +64. overtoke; seide. 65. Haile; wende. 66. Forsothe; one; mayde. 67. courte +nowe goo. 71. withynne. 74. behelde. 76. bespredde. 77. stone; S. stones. +werke. 79. thanne; emerawde. 80. Bales turkes. 82. bene. 83. shone; pease. +84. trespace; tweyne. 86. founde; faste. 87. harte. 88. maste. 89. gynith; +S. ginneth. 90. please. 94. whate. 97. discrive; S. descrie. 98. sawe; +none. 100. Withynne; oute. + +102. sawe; verely. 103. whate; deyses; signifie. 104. floure. 105. yit; S. +it. kepte; soioure. 108. obeide. 111, 117. theire. 112. whate; cowde. 113. +nere (_twice_). 116. silke. 119. Helise. 121. beseen. 123. theire; sawe; +twayn. 124. frett; payne. 125. drynke. 126. ryaltie; S. rialtee. 128. bene. +129. nere. 130. disdeyne. 132. _I supply_ non. 133. ye; S. eye. 134. stode. +136. shapyn liche; darte. 137. Sherpe. 138. shone. + +139. Disshivill crispe downe. 140. southly; spake. 141. the; faire. 143. +weneth (S. w[=o]neth). howe; eyre. 144. Grete; crafte; grete; delite. 146. +occupie. 147. Cithare; nowe swete. 148. spake. 149. worde; harde. 150. +myne; aduerte. 151. witte; harde. 152. bewtie; ferde. 154. Whenne. 155. +whate. 157. sone. 162. howe; whate. 163. come; whate. 164. sene; Courte. +166. aske; grete. 167. none; come; courte. 171. Mercurius (_see_ l. 56). +172. gentill feire; nowe. 173. whate thowe; S. what tho (i.e. then). 174. +youre fre wille. 175. dide; wille. + +176. reigne. 177. ease. ioylof; S. ialous (_read_ iolif). 178. Youre +dewtie; ferre; canne. 179. courte; youre. 181. knowe. 182. whanne youre +fote; spanne. 183. be (_for_ by); wilfull. 184. kepte youre. 185. youre +(_often_). 186. motte. 188. S. Amidde the sea. rayne. 189. That(!); S. +Then. payne. 190. suche; absente. 191. courte. 192. sone. 193. wille; youre +coloure. 194. most bayte. 195. agoone. 196. drawe; Courte. 197. se howe +rowhe (S. rough). 198. shewe; se. 199. myne; knele downe; aske. 201. welle; +wolle none. 202. Comforte; none; councell; youre ease. 203. wille; thanne. +204. Iche. 207. please howe. 208. myne owen. 209. sprite. + +211. the; S. that. 212. worche. 214. benigne harte. 215. myghtes (_read_ +might is). 216. lyste; correcte. 217. punyssh; enfecte. 221. gode; founde. +222. grounde. 223. cupide. 225. behild; S. behelde. 226. Seyng. 227. folke; +wild (S. welde). 228. Theire; wele; case. 229. shone; wyndowes; glasse. +230. feire. 231. fressh. 232. bewtie. 235. penytyng (!). 237. aboute. 238. +howe; feale. 239. stonyed; S. astonied. 240. thoo folke. 241. hade. 244, +245. theire. 246. To (!); _read_ Lo; folke; blewe. 247. coloure. + +248. signe. 249. southly. 250. calle. 251. bene. 252. ferre; sherpe. 253. +whate done. 254. hermytes. 256. theire woo. 257. goo 258. Frely; suche +libertie. 259. eche. 260. none. 261. made. 262. courte; fre; euerichone. +263. wille. 264. arraye. 265. mekely. 266. theire harte. 267. aboute. 268. +se; come; high (S. hie). 269. co_m_maunde. 270. -oute; courte; crye. 271. +newe; wote; whye. 272. luste; youe sone. 273. Come nere; se; wille mote +nede; done. 275. Tremelyng (S. Trembling); hewe. 277. unto the tyme (_om._ +the); knewe. 278. yove (S. yeue); trewe. 279. laste. 280. sterne; whate. +281. ferre. 282. courte. + +284. coude; espye. 285. myne; eny; myne ye. 286. gane. 287. nowe; submytte. +289. thowe; trewe. 290. seruen(!); thyne. 291. thanne. 292. Thowe shalte. +293. owe youre crowne. 295. sene; euerychone. 296. hie. 297. oure; shewe; +one by one. 298. statutis; courte. 299. boke; leide; her (S. their); ye. +300. se whate; most. 301. courte. 302. redde. 303. statutis; courte; halle. +304. firste statute. 307. kynde. 308. coude thynke; harte; wille; mynde. +309. secunde statute secretely. 311. knowe; and (_read_ or). 312. sowne. +315. kynde. 316. thridde statute. 317. _om._ the (_supplied in_ S.). 318. +None; woo. + +319. brynde delite. 320. Withoute. 323. statute. 324. folke; fire. 325. +aboute. 326. hote desire. 327. howe. 328. kepte; displease. 329. ease. 330. +statute. 332. squymouse. 333. veryeuly (S. verely); statute. 335. crueltie. +336. harte exilyn. 337. statute. 339. bewtie. 340. thinke; _I supply_ it. +341. thynke. 342. Howe. 343. woo. 344. statute. 347. helden (_sic_). 348. +othe. 350. And shewing (_om._ And). 351. statute. 353. hourely laboure; +grete attendaunce (S. entte_n_daunce). 354. harte entier. + +356. fire; S. faire. 357. debonayre. 358. statute. 361. displease. 363. +mekely; yerde. 365. statute; discerne. 367. thynke; arte; yerne. 373. thyne +harte. 374. disdayne. 375. the. 376. yf (S. giue); reyne. 377. libertie. +378. ellis. 379. statute. knowe (_read_ con). 380. Ie (_for_ y). 381. lowe; +kowigh (_for_ cough). 382. ofte. 383. bring vp (_om._ vp). 384. moche +resorte. 385. sporte. 386. statute. 387. payne; haste. 389. thou _or_ thon +(S. the_n_); thynke; goo. 392. bette. + +393. statute. 394. Whate; please. 395. thyne hartes. 396. think; _I supply_ +it; thyne ease. 397. sent (_read_ send); harte pease (_read_ herte apese). +398. letre; devise. 400. statute; shalte. 401. Formely; parte. 402. Wisshe. +403. thy nyghtes hart_es_ wife (_om._ nyghtes). 405. whanne. 406. merely. +408. statute. 409. frende. 410. thynke. 411. shuld. 412. beste. 413. semyth +(S. semth). 414. thinke; fayre. 415. Cowde. 416. thinke; wykked (_read_ +wikke); appaier. 417. Sklaunderyng; estate. 418. debate. 419. fawte; thyne +ye. 421. statute. 422. counterfete. 423. honoure; -whare. 424. _I supply_ +for her; boldely. 425. gode; gostely. 426. harte. + +428. Agayne; plesire. 429. wille. 430. shalte thowe. 431. crowe. 432. +whate; the wille forbidde. 433. Eschewe; souerentie. 434. Hir appetide +felawe (_sic_; S. appetite folowe). 435. statute. 436. please. 437. morowe. +438. drynke; thyne ease. 439. thyne; dyssease. 440. wynne; alle. 441. +courte; shalle. 442. fewe thynke; statute. 443. reason. 445. please; ofte. +446. none othe; statute. 448. Nowe; garlant; folke. 449. (_From this point, +I cease to give minute corrections of spelling, such as are given above._) +451. fel (_read_ ful). 452. delite. 455. hard; statute redde. 458. fonne. +460. In the remembraunce (I _omit_ the). 461. And (_read_ As). + +466. It (_read_ Yit). 468. gam; S. game. 469. bidde (_read_ bit). 470. +holy. 471. please. 476. mastresse. 481. but(!); _read_ been. 483. the (_for +1st_ they; S. thei). 490. be (_for_ by). MS. savioure(!); S. soueraine. +492. hartes. 495. MS. revowe; S. renewe; _I supply_ all. 497. made. 499. +sene(!). 500. wonne; S. won. be (_for_ by). + +508. cherely (S. clerely); shone. 510. they (_read_ ye). 517. herkyn. 518. +othe; made. 519. loues (!); S. leaues. 523. bene. 524. statute (_read_ +statuts; _see_ 520). 525. hie. 526. kepten ben. 527. ecchone. 528. owen. +531. youe; S. yeue. 534. guyse. 535. thengene. + +541. be (_for_ by). 542. sugre. 543. hart. 547. youen; S. yeuen. 548. Or; +S. Of. yove; S. yeue. 551. widue; S. widowe. 552. Or (!); S. For. 554. +guyde. 556. Cithera. 557. _I supply_ the; enfluence. 559. ladis (S. +ladies); please. 560. hart; ease. 561. prayer (_for_ pray her). 563. hart. +565. filicite. 574. hote. 575. feele; S. fele. + +579. woo. 580. blessedfull; S. blissedful. 581. bene. 582. ponysshe. 583. +counterfete. 584. dye; S. deie. 587. Baron (_read_ Barein); S. Barain. 588. +alleide. 590. blisse. 592. eternel (_read_ eterne); I-hired (_read_ +y-heried). 594. wanne. 595. woman vnto woman (!); S. woman unto man. 599, +613. hartes. 605. _I supply_ to. 608. faute; excercised. 611. celcitude. +614. Compersion; S. Comparison. 615. made. + +618. _I supply_ that. 626. godely. 628. Beseche. 632. Lucorne; S. Liquor +(!). 634. vse (!); S. vre. 635. harte. 637. blissed; S. blessed. 643. yove +(S. yeue); to me (S. me aie, _which seems better_). 644. and nedely most +(_om._ and). 648. be (_for 1st_ by). 650. vision. 651. se (_read_ sey). +654. _I supply_ that; shone. 655. fercid. + +663. by; S. be. 669. hartes hie. 671. guyde. 673. harte. 674. affeccion. +675. hart; styke. 679. hart_es_. 682. for to (_om._ for). 684. in kepen +(!); S. I kepen. 687. preice. 689. harte; peice. + +695. ye. 697. wounderly. 698. hie. 699. Who; _read_ Whos. 704. harte. 705. +piteously; S. pitously. 708. haue (!); _read_ half. 710. Asslike_n_ (_read_ +Aslaken); S. Asken (!). 711. gryfe; S. grief. 714. womanhode (!). 717. +meane; ease. 718. owen. 721. please. 724. witte. 725. spryngen (_sic_). +726. dowte. 729. sene. 730. sonne. + +731. demeane. 732. spede; S. speke (_a needless alteration_). 733. MS. mir +and ioye and blisse; S. mirrour ioye and blisse. 738. abeisen. 740. +withouten. 742. is (_read_ as); _supply_ is; youen (S. yeuon). 745. be; S. +by. 747. think; S. thanke. 749. the (= þe, _error for_ ye); S. thei (!). +751. fayne. 755. opon. 756. piteously; S. pitously. 757. faier. 758. +vertuse (_sic_). 759. heire (!). 760. ote (!); S. hote. 764. godely; whoes. + +768. ye (_read_ ee). 769. harte. 770. you (!); S. yeue. 772. grete. 776. +toke. 777. harte. 781. lylly. 782. loueliessh (!); S. liuelishe. flawe +(_for_ flave). 794. prengnaunte. 800. stand. 801. one. 802. oders (!); S. +odours; found. 803. switnesse; S. swetenesse. + +806. pease; hidde. 807. bewry; S. bewraie. 808. bidde. 811. her intresse +(_read_ here in tresses). 812. kepte (_perhaps for_ kempt). 820. _I supply_ +but. 821. _I supply_ yet. MS. alcenia (!). 823. eurosa (!). 825. stode. +828. delite. 832. godely. 834. toke. 840. folowith. 841. _I supply_ the +_and_ all. 843. I (!); S. ye. + +846. give (!); _read_ grief. 847. harte (!); _read_ harm. 850. mekely. 852. +require (!). 856. harte. 857. meke. 862. and me (S. me); _read_ my. 868. +rase. 870. delite. 871. please; harte. 872. _I supply_ old. 874. thynkes +(_sic_). 876. Eprent (_for_ E_n_prent). 878. becom_m_en. 879. owyn; S. +owne. 880. most. 882. yf (= yif); S. giue. + +883. one; harte. 884. refute. 886. allegaunce (!). 890. gode wille. 893. +cheryssh. 894. gref. 896. southly. 897. and (!); _read_ I. 902. sene +(_sic_). 908. vppon; _read_ on. 909. nete (_error for_ note = noot). 910. +hete (_error for_ hote = hoot). 911. hart why (_rest of line blank; I +supply_ make it straunge). 914. For (!); S. Fro. 915. harte. 918. goddes +(S. gods); _read_ god. + +921. harte. 922. beganne. 924. _I supply_ lo; nobly (S. nobleye). 927. done +(_sic_). 928. growen (_sic_); S. greuen. 939. clere; hatter (S. hotter); +ye. 944, 945. done, sone. 946. ye. 948. syke; _read_ seke. 950. serchynne; +_read_ serchen in. 951. wynne. 952. abide (_read_ byde); thowe; kynne. 954. +guyse. 955. rewth. 956. owen; lawly. 958. thowe. 959. most. + +963. Cease (_twice_). 965. optayne. 968. rightwose (!). 970. ye may gise +(_or_ gife) this wounder wide (_no sense_). 973. Alas thanne youre (_om._ +thanne); crueltie. 974. gote. 975. fostered and Ifedde. 977. Ispedde. 984. +arst. 985. spritis. 993. sauf. 994. ar (_for_ er). + +998. Aryse anon quod (_om._ anon). 999. nytirtale. 1001. made. 1004. _I +supply_ ye. 1006. myne harte. 1007. harte; ease. 1008. please. 1009. +steutes (!); _error for_ statuts. 1014. most. 1018. thynke that it (_I +omit_ that). 1021. godely. 1023. phelobone. 1027. officers him shewe for +(_om._ him shewe). 1030. easy pase. 1031. _I supply_ ther. + +1032. felowe. 1033. asperaunce. 1034. stode. 1035. adu_er_sary (!). 1036. +displesire (!); _for_ Despair (_see_ l. 1047). 1038. dysseyuene (!); _error +for_ dysseyuen. 1039. Throwest (!); S. Trowest. 1041. his (!); _read_ hers; +_I supply_ they. 1043. gode; louith. 1048. hote. 1054. dye. 1059. Stode +one. 1062. thynketh; S. thinkth. 1063. _I supply_ hool. 1064. synne; +begonne. 1065. reason. 1066. delite. + +1068. appityde (!); stirre (S. stere). 1069. synne; reason. 1070. _I +supply_ dost; do wyn (_read_ to win). 1071. synne. 1072. verely. 1073. +synne; vise. 1074. synne. 1076. For verray loue may not thy freyle desire +akkele (_too long_). 1077. _I supply_ verray; synne. 1078. pynne. 1081. +stode. 1083. woman (!). 1085. beawe. 1089. her; S. here. 1091. godely. +1094. abite. 1097. gode. 1098. sene. 1099. bene. + +1106. synne. 1108. hire (!); S. here. 1114. monke; _read_ monks. 1115. +course (S. curse); abbes. 1120. aftir than other happly. 1122. libartie. +1124. appetide (!). 1127. matiers (!). 1134. revist. 1136. woo; petiously. +1138. beholde (_perhaps read_ beheld); dispiteously. 1139. ye. + +1142. gold (!); _read_ gode _or_ good. 1145. eas; gode. 1146. _Not in the_ +MS.; _supplied by_ Stowe. 1150. prange (_and so in_ S.). 1151. woo; boune. +1152. dye. 1156. stode. 1157. ware. 1159. mantaylles. 1161. there; S. +their. 1168. shappe; bewtie. 1173. wordes (!). 1176. to endure. 1177. +_Sic._ 1179. sent; _perhaps read_ shent. + +1182. blissed full (!). 1183. widue. 1184. my (_read_ me); _I supply_ of. +1186. forth (S. for). 1187. ded (_for_ did). 1189. Chife. 1192. hode. 1198. +toke. 1199. blasshed (_for_ blusshed); darst (_for_ durst). 1203. And (!); +_read_ As. 1205. harte (!); _for_ art. 1206. previte. 1208. gaven (!). +1209. co_mo_naltie. 1211. nede. 1214. thay (_read_ we); secrites (!). 1215. +ladys; certen. 1216. _I supply_ per-. 1217, 1218. bryngyn; dispeire; heire. + +1222. firste; _I supply_ I; ded vowe. 1228. _I supply_ in. 1229. lond. +1230. withstond. 1233. the (!); S. this. 1235. goith one; wotte; whate. +1236. Yonne. 1237. one. 1242. kynne; lier. 1244. ladys. 1245. vnshitte. +1246. That leith; S. Than lieth; witte. 1248. fantasie. 1250. canne; bette; +reason guy. 1251. Be (_for_ By). 1253. soiorne (!); S. soioure. 1255. +rokketh (_perhaps read_ rouketh); Cornor (!). + +1259. methamorphosees; S. Methamorphosose. 1260. foo; gloose. 1263. hartes. +1269. Stode; ferre; abite. 1270. Yonne; _I supply_ I; sprite. 1271. +corious; S. curious. 1275. _I supply_ a. 1277. bote. 1280. ferre; canne. +1285. Nowe; _read_ Me. 1287. kyndelith. 1288. bodely. 1294. from (!); +_read_ to; _I supply_ greet. + +1299. _I supply_ so. 1302. laday (!); S. lady. 1305. hoote or cold. 1306. +withouten. 1307, 1308. harte, astarte. 1311. sene; cortis guyse. 1313. +Twenty (!); _read_ Twey. 1316. The tone. 1320. vnto; _read_ to. 1322. sene. +1323. pleasaunce. 1324. shyne (S. shrine); rose. 1325. eke (!); S. eare. +1327. _I supply_ it; blak (_for_ brak). 1328. reiche (_read_ reuth). 1329. +and I me; _read_ than I myself. + +1331. not (!); _read_ but. 1333. she (_sic_); _read_ thou. 1335. taken (!); +S. thanken. 1339. _I supply_ to. 1341. heree (!); _for_ her. 1343. reason. +1348, 1351. season. 1358. bewreye; S. bewrye. 1362. preced. 1363. oure +owen. 1365. brenne; hote. + +1366. Cely enarant. 1369. thus (!; S. this); hartily. 1375. dye. 1376. yf +(_for_ yive). 1377. signe (!). 1382. amoryly (!); sprong. 1383. _I supply_ +he. 1384. _Sic._ 1386. maketh; _read_ make. 1387. toke. 1388. _I supply_ +as. 1389. mut; dyene; suppe. 1390. gife. 1398. south; purpose (!); _read_ +pursue. 1399. most. 1400. tue (!). 1403. on-lok. 1404. _I supply_ a. + +1406. light; _read_ lyte. 1411. sang (!); _read_ sing. 1412. lynette. 1416. +ki[gh]t; S. kight. 1417. throwe. 1418. season. 1420. solempne. 1425. lest. +1431. goith. 1432. bleme (!). 1434. garlantis. 1435. reioyson; theire grete +delite. 1441. smote; thrugh; _I supply_ very; harte. + + * * * * * + +XXV. VIRELAI. + + Alone walking, In thought pleyning, + And sore sighing, All desolate, + Me remembring Of my living, + My deth wishing Bothe erly and late. + + Infortunate Is so my fate 5 + That, wote ye what? Out of mesure + My lyf I hate Thus desperate; + In pore estate Do I endure. + + Of other cure Am I nat sure, + Thus to endure Is hard, certain; 10 + Such is my ure, I yow ensure; + What creature May have more pain? + + My trouth so pleyn Is take in veyn, + And gret disdeyn In remembraunce; + Yet I full feyn Wold me compleyn 15 + Me to absteyn From this penaunce. + + But in substaunce Noon allegeaunce + Of my grevaunce Can I nat finde; + Right so my chaunce With displesaunce + Doth me avaunce; And thus an ende. 20 + + _Explicit._ + +_From_ Trin. (Trin. Coll. Cam. R. 3. 19); _collated with_ S. (Stowe's ed. +1561). 4. S. death. Trin. wyssyng; S. wishyng. S. early. 5. Trin. soo; S. +so. 6. Trin. whate Oute. S. measure. 7. Trin. lyfe; S. life. 8. Trin. In +suche pore (I _omit_ suche). S. Doe. 9. S. not. 12. S. Maie. 13. S. truthe; +plain; vain. 14. S. greate disdain. 15. Trin. feyne; S. faine. S. Would. +Trin. co_m_pleyne; S. co_m_plaine. 16. Trin. absteyne; S. abstaine. 17. S. +None. 18. S. not. 20. S. Doeth. + + * * * * * + +XXVI. PROSPERITY. + + Richt as povert causith sobirnes, + And febilnes enforcith contenence, + Richt so prosperitee and gret riches + The moder is of vice and negligence; + And powere also causith insolence; 5 + And honour oftsiss chaungith gude thewis; + Thare is no more perilous pestilence + Than hie estate geven unto schrewis. + Quod Chaucere. + +XXVI. _From_ MS. Arch. Seld. B. 24, fol. 119; _I give rejected spellings_. +3. Ry_ch_t; grete. 7. p_er_ilouss. + + * * * * * + +XXVII. LEAULTE VAULT RICHESSE. + + This warldly joy is only fantasy, + Of quhich non erdly wicht can be content; + Quho most has wit, lest suld in it affy, + Quho taistis it most, most sall him repent; + Quhat valis all this richess and this rent, 5 + Sen no man wat quho sall his tresour have? + Presume nocht gevin that god has don but lent, + Within schort tyme the quhiche he thinkis to crave. + + _Leaulte vault richesse._ + +XXVII. _From_ MS. Arch. Seld. B. 24, fol. 138; _I give rejected spellings_. +1. Ioy; onely. 3. leste. 6. wate. 7. done. 9. richess. + + * * * * * + +XXVIII. SAYINGS PRINTED BY CAXTON. + + 1. Whan feyth failleth in prestes sawes, + And lordes hestes ar holden for lawes, + And robbery is holden purchas, + And lechery is holden solas, + Than shal the lond of Albyon 5 + Be brought to grete confusioun. + + 2. Hit falleth for every gentilman + To saye the best that he can + In [every] mannes absence, + And the soth in his presence. 10 + + 3. Hit cometh by kynde of gentil blode + To cast away al hevines, + And gadre to-gidre wordes good; + The werk of wisdom berith witnes. + + _Et sic est finis._ + +XXVIII. _From_ Caxton's print of Chaucer's Anelida, &c.; see vol. i. p. 46. +Also in ed. 1542, in later spelling. + +7. Cx. euery. 9. _I supply_ every. 12. Cx. heuynes. 14. Cx. wisedom. + + * * * * * + +XXIX. BALADE IN PRAISE OF CHAUCER. + + Master Geffray Chauser, that now lyth in grave, + The nobyll rethoricien, and poet of Gret Bretayne, + That worthy was the lawrer of poetry have + For thys hys labour, and the palme attayne; + Whych furst made to dystyll and reyne 5 + The gold dew-dropys of speche and eloquence + In-to Englyssh tong, thorow hys excellence. + + _Explicit._ + +XXIX. _From_ MS. Trin. R. 3. 19, fol. 25; _also in_ Stowe (ed. 1561). 1. +MS. Chaus_er_s; Stowe, Chauser. 2. Rethoricion (!). 6. elloquence. + + * * * * * + + +NOTES. + +§ I. THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE. + +The text is from Thynne's first edition (1532); the later reprints are of +inferior value. No MS. of this piece is known. Rejected spellings are given +at the bottom of each page. Conjectural emendations are marked by a +prefixed obelus (+). In many places, words or letters are supplied, within +square brackets, to complete or improve the sense. For further discussion +of this piece, see the Introduction. + +BOOK I. + +PROLOGUE. 1. The initial letters of the chapters in Book I. form the words +MARGARETE OF. See the Introduction. + +3. _by queynt knitting coloures_, by curious fine phrases, that 'knit' or +join the words or verses together. For _colours_ = fine phrases, cf. Ch., +HF. 859; C. T., E 16, F 726. + +7. _for_, because, seeing that; _boystous_, rough, plain, unadorned; cf. l. +12. The Glossary in vol. vi should be compared for further illustration of +the more difficult words. + +19. _for the first leudnesse_, on account of the former lack of skill. + +21. _yeve sight_, enable men to see clearly. + +30. _conne jumpere suche termes_, know how to jumble such terms together. +_Jumpere_ should rather be spelt _jumpre_; cf. _jompre_ in the Gloss. to +Chaucer. For such words, see the Glossary appended to the present volume. + +_but as_, except as the jay chatters English; i.e. without understanding +it; cf. Ch. Prol. 642. + +43. _necessaries to cacche_, to lay hold of necessary ideas. Throughout +this treatise, we frequently find the verb placed _after_ the substantive +which it governs, or relegated to the end of the clause or sentence. This +absurd affectation often greatly obscures the sense. + +45. The insertion of the words _perfeccion is_ is absolutely necessary to +the sense; cf. ll. 47, 50. For the general argument, cf. Ch. Boeth. iii. +proses 10 and 11, where 'perfection' is represented by _suffisaunce_, as, +e.g., in iii. pr. 11. l. 18. + +50. Aristotle's Metaphysics begins with the words: [Greek: pantes anthrôpoi +tou eidenai oregontai phusei], all men by nature are actuated by the desire +of knowledge. The reference to this passage is explicitly given in the +Romans of Partenay, ll. 78-87; and it was doubtless a much worn quotation. +And see l. 64 below. + +58. _sightful and knowing_, visible and capable of being known. + +61. _David_. The whole of this sentence is so hopelessly corrupt that I can +but give it up. Possibly there is a reference to Ps. cxxxix. 14. _me in +makinge_ may be put for 'in makinge me.' _Tune_ is probably a misprint for +_time_; _lent_ may be an error for _sent_; but the whole is hopelessly +wrong. + +64. Apparently derived from Aristotle, De Animalibus, bk. i. c. 5. The +general sense is that created things like to know both their creator and +the causes of natural things akin to them ([Greek: oikeia]). + +67. _Considred_; i.e. the forms of natural things and their creation being +considered, men should have a great natural love to the Workman that made +them. + +68. _me_ is frequently written for _men_, the unemphatic form of _man_, in +the impersonal sense of 'one' or 'people'; thus, in King Horn, ed. Morris, +366, 'ne recche i what _me_ telle' means 'I care not what people may say.' +Strict grammar requires the form _him_ for _hem_ in l. 69, as _me_ is +properly singular; but the use of _hem_ is natural enough in this passage, +as _me_ really signifies created beings in general. Cf. _me_ in ch. i. l. +18 below. + +80. _Styx_ is not 'a pit,' but a river. The error is Chaucer's; cf. 'Stix, +the put of helle,' in Troil. iv. 1540. Observe the expression--'Stygiamque +paludem'; Vergil, Aen. vi. 323. + +86. I. e. 'rend the sword out of the hands of Hercules, and set Hercules' +pillars at Gades a mile further onward.' For the latter allusion, see Ch. +vol. ii. p. lv; it may have been taken from Guido delle Colonne. And see +Poem VIII (below), l. 349. _Gades_, now Cadiz. + +89. _the spere_, the spear. There seems to be some confusion here. It was +King Arthur who drew the magic sword out of the stone, after 150 knights +had failed in the attempt: see Merlin, ed. Wheatley (E. E. T. S.), pp. +100-3. Alexander's task was to untie the Gordian knot. + +90. _And that_; 'and who says that, surpassing all wonders, he will be +master of France by might, whereas even King Edward III could not conquer +all of it.' An interesting allusion. + +96. _unconninge_, ignorance. There is an unpublished treatise called 'The +Cloud of Unknowing'; but it is probably not here alluded to. + +98. _gadered_, gathered. Thynne almost invariably commits the anachronism +of spelling the words _gader_, _fader_, _moder_, _togider_, and the like, +with _th_; and I have usually set him right, marking such corrections with +a prefixed obelus (+). Cf. _weder_ in l. 123 below. + +100. _rekes_, ricks. The idea is from Chaucer, L. G. W. 73-4. + +101, 102. _his reson_, the reason of him. _hayne_, hatred. + +110. _Boëce_, Boethius. No doubt the author simply consulted Chaucer's +translation. See the Introduction. + +115. _slye_, cunning; evidently alluding to the parable of the unjust +steward. + +117. _Aristotle_. The allusion appears to be to the Nicomachean Ethics, bk. +i. c. 7: [Greek: doxeie d' an pantos einai proagagein, ... pantos gar +prostheinai to elleipon]. + +122. _betiden_, happened to me; the _i_ is short. This sudden transition to +the mention of the author's pilgrimage suggests that a portion of the +Prologue is missing here. + +CHAP. I. 1. Copied from Ch. Boeth. bk. i. met. 1. ll. 1, 2. + +12. _thing_ seems to mean 'person'; the person that cannot now embrace me +when I wish for comfort. + +15. _prison_; probably not a material prison. The author, in imitation of +Boethius, imagines himself to be imprisoned. At p. 144, l. 132, he is 'in +good plite,' i.e. well off. Cf. note to ch. iii. 116. + +16. _caitived_, kept as a captive; the correction of _caytisned_ (with s +for _s_) to _caytifued_ (better spelt _caitived_) is obvious, and is given +in the New E. Dict., s.v. _Caitive_. + +17, 18. _Straunge_, a strange one, some stranger; _me_, one, really meaning +'myself'; _he shulde_, it ought to be. + +21, 22. _bewent_, turned aside; see New E. Dict., s.v. _Bewend_. The +reading _bewet_, i.e. profusely wetted, occurs (by misprinting) in later +editions, and is adopted in the New E. Dict, s.v. _Bewet_. It is obviously +wrong. + +23. _of hem_, by them; these words, in the construction, follow +_enlumined_. The very frequent inversion of phrases in this piece tends +greatly to obscure the sense of it. + +24. _Margarite precious_, a precious pearl. Gems were formerly credited +with 'virtues'; thus Philip de Thaun, in his Bestiary (ed. Wright, l. +1503), says of the pearl-- + +'A mult choses pot valier, ki cestes peres pot aveir,' &c., or, in Wright's +translation: 'For him who can have this stone, it will be of force against +many things; there will never be any infirmity, except death, from which a +person will not come to health, who will drink it with dew, if he has true +faith.' See l. 133 below. + +28. _twinkling in your disese_, a small matter tending to your discomfort. +Here _disese_ = dis-ease, want of ease. Cf. l. 31 below. + +42. 'It is so high,' &c. The implied subject to which _it_ refers is +_paradise_, where the author's _Eve_ is supposed to be. Hence the sense +is:--'paradise is so far away from the place where I am lying and from the +common earth, that no cable (let down from it) can reach me.' + +59. _ferdnes_ is obviously the right word, though misprinted _frendes_. It +signifies 'fear,' and occurs again in ch. ii. ll. 9, 16; besides, it is +again misprinted as _frendes_ in the same chapter, l. 13. + +63. _weyved_ is an obvious correction for _veyned_; see the Glossary. + +70. _mercy passeth right_, your mercy exceeds your justice. This was a +proverbial phrase, or, as it is called in the next clause, a 'proposition.' + +79. _flitte_, stir, be moved; 'not even the least bit.' + +80. _souded_ (misprinted _sonded_ by Thynne), fixed; cf. Ch. C.T., B 1769. +From O.F. _souder_, Lat. _solidare_. + +83. _do_, cause; 'cause the lucky throw of comfort to fall upward'; +alluding to dice-play. + +96. _wolde conne_, would like to be able to. + +99, 100. _me weninge_, when I was expecting. _ther-as_, whereas. + +116. _no force_, it does not matter; no matter for that. + +117-20. Evidently corrupt, even when we read _flowing_ for _folowing_, and +_of al_ for _by al_. Perhaps _ther_ in l. 119 should be _they_; giving the +sense:--'but they (thy virtues) are wonderful, I know not which (of them it +is) that prevents the flood,' &c. Even so, a clause is lacking after +_vertues_ in l. 118. + +126. Thynne has _ioleynynge_ for _ioleyuynge_, i.e. _joleyving_, cheering, +making joyous. The word is riot given in Stratmann or in Mätzner, but +Godefroy has the corresponding O.F. verb _joliver_, to caress. + +CHAP. II. 18. _a lady_; this is evidently copied from Boethius; see Ch. +Boeth. bk. i. pr. 1. l. 3. The visitor to the prison of Boethius was named +Philosophy; the visitor in the present case is Love, personified as a +female; see l. 53 below. + +20. _blustringe_, glance. But the word is not known in this sense, and +there is evidently some mistake here. I have no doubt that the right word +is _blushinge_; for the M.E. _blusshen_ was often used in the sense of 'to +cast a glance, give a look, glance with the eye'; as duly noted in the New +E. Dict, s.v. _Blush_. The word was probably written _bluschinge_ in +Thynne's MS., with a _c_ exactly (as often) like a _t_. If he misread it as +_blusthinge_, he may easily have altered it to _blustringe_. + +32. _neighe_, approach; governing _me_. + +37. _O my nory_, O my pupil! Copied from Ch. Boeth. bk. i. pr. 3. l. 10; +cf. the same, bk. iii. pr. 11. l. 160. In l. 51 below, we have _my +disciple_. + +60. _by thyn owne vyse_, by thine own resolve; i.e. of thine own accord; +see _Advice_ in the New E. Dict. § 6. _Vyse_ is put for _avyse_, the +syllable _a_ being dropped. Halliwell notes that _vice_, with the sense of +'advice,' is still in use. + +64. 'Because it comforts me to think on past gladness, it (also) vexes me +again to be doing so.' Clumsily expressed; and borrowed from Ch. Boeth. bk. +ii. pr. 4. ll. 4-7. + +74-84. From Matt. xviii. 12; Luke, xv. 4; John, x. 11. + +92. Love was kind to Paris, because he succeeded in gaining Helen. Jason +was false to Love, because he deserted Hypsipyle and Medea. It is probable +that _false_ is misprinted for _faire_ in l. 93; otherwise there is no +contrast, as is implied by _for_. + +93. _Sesars sonke_ (_sic_) should probably be _Cesars swink_, i.e. Caesar's +toil. I adopt this reading to make sense; but it is not at all clear why +Caesar should have been selected as the type of a successful lover. + +95. _loveday_, a day of reconciliation; see note to Ch. C. T., A 258. + +96. 'And chose a maid to be umpire between God and man'; alluding to the +Virgin Mary. + +114-5. _cause, causing_, the primary cause, originating these things and +many others besides. See note to Troil. iv. 829. + +123-4. _wo is him_; Lat. ve soli, Eccl. iv. 10; quoted in Troil. i. 694. + +125. Cf. 'weep with them that weep'; Rom. xii. 15. + +138. Here the author bemoans his losses and heavy expenses. + +143. For _wolde endeynous_ I here read _wolde ben deynous_, i.e. would be +disdainful; see _Deynous_ in the Gloss. to Chaucer. The New E. Dict. adopts +the reading _wolde [be] endeynous_, with the same sense; but no other +example of the adj. _endeynous_ is known, and it is an awkward formation. +However, there are five examples of the verb _endeign_, meaning 'to be +indignant'; see Wyclif, Gen. xviii. 30; Ex. xxxii. 22; Is. lvii. 6; Job, +xxxii. 2; Wisd. xii. 27. + +166. Copied from Troil. iv. 460-1:-- + + 'But canstow playen raket, to and fro, + Netle in, dokke out, now this, now that, Pandare?' + +See the note on the latter line. + +_Wethercocke_ is a late spelling; the proper M.E. spelling is _wedercokke_, +from a nom. _wedercok_, which appears in the poem Against Women Unconstant, +l. 12. + +173. _a_, an unemphatic form of _have_; 'thou wouldest have made me.' + +180. _voyde_, do away with. _webbes_; the _web_, also called _the pin and +web_, or _the web and pin_, is a disease of the eyes, now known as +cataract. See Nares, s.v. _Pin_; Florio's Ital. Dict., s.v. _Cateratta_; +the New E. Dict., s.v. _Cataract_; King Lear, iii. 4. 122; Winter's Tale, +i. 2. 291. + +191, 192. _truste on Mars_, trust to Mars, i.e. be ready with wager of +battle; alluding to the common practice of appealing to arms when a +speaker's truthfulness was called in question. See ch. vii. 10 below (p. +31). + +CHAP. III. 14. _Come of_, lit. come off; but it is remarkable that this +phrase is used in M.E. where we should now say rather 'come on!' See note +to Troil. ii. 1738. + +21. _mayst thou_, canst thou do (or act)? + +25-7. 'I never yet set any one to serve anywhere who did not succeed in his +service.' + +32. 'the nut in every nook.' Perhaps _on_ should be _in_. + +37-8. There is some corruption here. I insert _Tho gan I_ to help out the +sense, but it remains partially obscure. Perhaps the sense is:--'Often one +does what one does not wish to do, being stirred to do so by the opinion of +others, who wanted me to stay at home; whereupon I suddenly began to wish +to travel.' He would rather have stayed at home; but when he found that +others wanted him to do so, he perversely began to wish to travel. + +39. _the wynding of the erthe_; an obscure expression; perhaps 'the +envelopment of the earth in snow.' + +40. 'I walked through woods in which were broad ways, and (then) by small +paths which the swine had made, being lanes with by-paths for seeking +(there) their beech-mast.' + +42. _ladels_, by-paths (?). No other example of the word appears. I guess +it to be a diminutive of M.E. _lade_, a path, road, which occurs in the +Ormulum; see Stratmann. Perhaps it is a mere misprint for _lades_. + +44, 45. _gonne to wilde_, began to grow wild; cf. _ginne ayen waxe ramage_, +in l. 48, with the like sense. I know of no other example of the verb _to +wilde_. + +52. _shippe_, ship; not, however, a real ship, but an allegorical one named +Travail, i.e. Danger; see ll. 55, 75 below. _many_ is here used in place of +_meynee_, referring to the ship's company; some of whom had the allegorical +names of Sight, Lust, Thought, and Will. The 'ship' is a common symbol of +this present life, in which we are surrounded by perils; compare the +parable of 'the wagging boat' in P. Plowm. C. xi. 32, and the long note to +that line. + +58. _old hate_; probably borrowed from Ch. Pers. Tale, I 562; see the note. + +64. _avowing_, vowing; because persons in peril used to vow to perform +pilgrimages. + +75. _my ship was out of mynde_, i.e. I forgot all about my previous danger. + +84. _the man_, the merchant-man in Matt. xiii. 45. + +105. _enmoysed_, comforted. _Enmoise_ or _emmoise_ is a variant of M.E. +_amese_, _ameise_, from O.F. _amaiser_, _amaisier_, to pacify, appease, +render gentle (Godefroy); answering to the Low Lat. type _*ad-mitiare_ from +_mitis_, gentle. See _Amese_ in the New E. Dict. No other example of the +form _enmoyse_ is known. + +111. _of nothing now may serve_, is now of no use (to you). + +116. _prison_; the author has forgotten all about his adventure in the +ship, and is now back in prison, as in ch. i. + +118. _renyant forjuged_, a denier (of his guilt) who has been wrongfully +condemned. + +121. _suche grace and non hap_, such favour and no mere luck. + +124. _let-games_; probably from Troil. iii. 527; spoilers of sport or +happiness. _wayters_, watchers, watch-men, guards. + +131. _nothing as ye shulde_, not at all as you ought to do. + +148. _feld_, felled, put down, done away with. + +153-4. _For he ... suffer_, a perfect alliterative line; imitated from P. +Plowm. C. xxi. 212:--'For wot no wight what wele is, that never wo +suffrede.' Clearly quoted from memory; cf. notes to bk. ii. ch. 9. 178, and +ch. 13. 86. + +157. _happy hevinesse_, fortunate grief; a parallel expression to _lyking +tene_, i.e. pleasing vexation, in l. 158. These contradictory phrases were +much affected by way of rhetorical flourish. For a long passage of this +character, cf. Rom. Rose, 4703-50. + +158. _harse_ is almost certainly a misprint for _harme_; then _goodly_ +_harme_ means much the same as _lyking tene_ (see note above). So, in Rom. +Rose, 4710, 4733, 4743, we find mention of 'a sweet peril,' 'a joyous +pain,' and 'a sweet hell.' + +CHAP. IV. 2. _semed they boren_, they seemed to bore; _boren_ being in the +infin. mood. + +18. For _or_ read _for_, to make sense; _for of disese_, for out of such +distress come gladness and joy, so poured out by means of a full vessel, +that such gladness quenches the feeling of former sorrows. Here _gladnesse +and joy_ is spoken of as being all one thing, governing the singular verb +_is_, and being alluded to as _it_. + +25. _commensal_, table-companion; from F. _commensal_, given in Cotgrave. +See the New E. Dict. + +27. _soukinges_, suckings, draughts of milk; cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. i. pr. 2. +l. 4. + +36. _clothe_, cloth. This circumstance is copied from Ch. Boeth. bk. i. pr. +2. l. 19. + +42. This reference to Love, as controlling the universe, is borrowed from +Boeth. bk. ii. met. 8. + +47. Read _werne_ (refuse) and _wol_ (will); 'yet all things desire that you +should refuse help to no one who is willing to do as you direct him.' + +56. _every thing in coming_, every future thing. _contingent_, of uncertain +occurrence; the earliest known quotation for this use of the word in +English. + +61-2. _many let-games_; repeated from above, ch. iii. ll. 124-8. _thy +moeble_; from the same, ll. 131-2. + +64. _by the first_, with reference to your first question; so also _by that +other_, with reference to your second question, in l. 71. + +CHAP. V. 8. Acrisius shut his daughter Danaë up in a tower, to keep her +safe; nevertheless she became the mother of Perseus, who afterwards killed +Acrisius accidentally. + +14. _entremellen_, intermingle hearts after merely seeing each other. + +16. _beestes_, animals, beings; not used contemptuously; equivalent to +_living people_ in ll. 17, 18. + +20. _esployte_, success, achievement; see _Exploit_ in the New E. Dict. + +29. Supply _don_; 'and I will cause him to come to bliss, as being one of +my own servants.' + +35. _and in-to water_, and jumps into the water and immediately comes up to +breathe; like an unsuccessful diver. + +37. _A tree_, &c.; a common illustration; cf. Troil. i. 964. + +43. _this countrè_; a common saying; cf. Troil. ii. 28 (and note), 42. And +see l. 47 below. + +45. 'the salve that he healed his heel with.' From HF. 290. + +71. _jangelers_; referring to l. 19 above. _lokers_; referring to +_overlokers_; in ch. iii. l. 128. + +72. _wayters_; referring to ch. iii. l. 128. + +77. 'It is sometimes wise to feign flight.' Cf. P. Plowman, C. xxii. 103. + +85. _cornes_, grains of corn. I supply _bare_, i.e. empty. + +86-7. _Who_, &c.; a proverb; from Troil. v. 784. + +87-8. _After grete stormes_; see note to P. Plowman, C. xxi. 454. + +92. _grobbed_, grubbed; i.e. dug about. Cf. Isaiah, v. 2. + +95. _a_, have (as before). _Lya_, Leah; Lat. _Lia_, in Gen. xxix. 17 +(Vulgate). + +103. _eighteth_, eighth; an extraordinary perversion of the notion of the +sabbatical year. So below, in l. 104, we are informed that the number of +workdays is _seven_; and that, in Christian countries, the day of rest is +the eighth day in the week! _kinrest_, rest for the _kin_ or people; a +general day of rest. I know of no other example of this somewhat clumsy +compound. + +110. _sothed_, verified; referring to Luke, xiv. 29. + +113. _conisance_, badge. Badges for retainers were very common at this +date. See Notes to Richard the Redeless, ii. 2. + +117-9. Copied from P. Plowman, C. vii. 24, 25:-- + + 'Lauhynge al aloude, for lewede men sholde + _Wene_ that ich were _witty_, and _wyser than anothere_; + _Scorner_ and unskilful to hem that _skil_ shewed.' + +As these lines are not found in the earlier versions, it follows that the +author was acquainted with the _latest_ version. + +124. _a bridge_; i.e. to serve by way of retreat for such as trust them. +_wolves_, destroyers; here meant as a complimentary epithet. + +127. This idea, of Jupiter's promotion, from being a bull, to being the +mate of Europa, is extremely odd; still more so is that of the promotion of +Aeneas from being in hell (l. 129). Cf. _Europe_ in Troil. iii. 722. + +128. _lowest degrè_; not true, as Caesar's father was praetor, and his aunt +married Marius. But cf. C. T., B 3862. + +CHAP. VI. 3. _enfame_, infamy, obloquy; from Lat. _infamia_. Godefroy gives +_enfamer_, to dishonour. The word only occurs in the present treatise; see +ll. 6, 7, 15. + +12. From Prov. xxvii. 6: 'Meliora sunt vulnera diligentis quam fraudulenta +oscula odientis.' + +17. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 6. ll. 5-13. + +23. Cf. the same; bk. iv. pr. 7. ll. 34-42. + +27. Cf. the same; bk. ii. pr. 5. ll. 121, 122. + +30. Cf. the same; bk. iv. pr. 6. ll. 184-191. + +48. _Zedeoreys_ (or _[gh]edeoreys_). I can find nothing resembling this +strange name, nor any trace of its owner's dealings with Hannibal. + +53. The (possibly imaginary) autobiographical details here supplied have +been strangely handled for the purpose of insertion into the life of +Chaucer, with which they have nothing to do. See Morris's Chaucer, vol. i. +p. 32 (Aldine edition). The author tells us very little, except that +tumults took place in London, of which he was a native, and that he had +knowledge of some secret which he was pressed to betray, and did so in +order to serve his own purposes. + +77-8. From Chaucer, Troil. v. 6, 7:-- + + --'shal dwelle in pyne + Til Lachesis his threed no lenger twyne.' + +107. Referring to John, xiv. 27. + +114. _Athenes_; Athene was the goddess who maintained the authority of law +and order, and in this sense was 'a god of peace.' But she was certainly +also a goddess of battles. + +139. _mighty senatoures_. It has been conjectured that the reference is to +John of Gaunt. In the Annals of England, under the date 1384, it is noted +that 'John of Northampton, a vehement partisan of the duke, is tried and +sentenced to imprisonment and forfeiture. An attempt is also made to put +the duke on his trial.' John of Northampton had been mayor of London in +1382, when there was a dispute between the court and the citizens regarding +his election; perhaps the words _comen eleccion_ (common election), in l. +125 above, may refer to this trouble; so also _free eleccion_ in l. 140. In +l. 143 we must read _fate_, not _face_; the confusion between _c_ and _t_ +is endless. Perhaps _governours_ in l. 144 should be _governour_, as in l. +147. Note that the author seems to condemn the disturbers of the peace. + +157. _coarted by payninge dures_, constrained by painful duress (or +torture). + +165. _sacrament_, my oath of allegiance. Note that the author takes credit +for giving evidence _against_ the riotous people; for which the populace +condemned him as a liar (l. 171). + +178. _passed_, surpassed (every one), in giving me an infamous character. + +181. _reply_, i.e. to subvert, entirely alter, recall; lit. to fold or bend +back. + +189. Here the author says, more plainly, that he became unpopular for +revealing a conspiracy. + +193. _out of denwere_, out of doubt, without doubt. Such is clearly the +sense; but the word _denwere_ is rejected from the New E. Dict., as it is +not otherwise known, and its form is suspicious. It is also omitted in +Webster and in the Century Dictionary. Bailey has '_denwere_, doubt,' taken +from Speght's Chaucer, and derived from this very passage. Hence Chatterton +obtained the word, which he was glad to employ. It occurs, for instance, in +his poem of Goddwyn, ed. Skeat, vol. ii. p. 100:-- + + --'No _denwere_ in my breast I of them feel.' + +The right phrase is simply _out of were_; cf. 'withoute were' in the Book +of the Duchess, 1295. I think the letters _den_ may have been prefixed +accidentally. The line, as printed in Thynne, stands thus: 'denwere al the +sothe knowe of these thinges.' I suggest that _den_ is an error for _don_, +and the word _don_ ought to come at the _end_ of the line (after _thinges_) +instead of at the beginning. This would give the readings 'out of were' and +'these thinges don in acte'; both of which are improvements. + +194. _but as_, only as, exactly as. + +198. _clerkes_, i.e. Chaucer, HF. 350; Vergil, Aen. iv. 174. + +200. _of mene_, make mention of. Cf. 'hit is a schep[h]erde _that I of +mene_'; Ancient Metrical Tales, ed. Hartshorne, p. 74. + +CHAP. VII. 10. _profered_, offered wager of battle; hence the mention of +_Mars_ in l. 11. Cf. note to ch. ii. 191 above, p. 455. + +23. _he_, i.e. thine adversary shall bring dishonour upon you in no way. + +34. _Indifferent_, impartial. _who_, whoever. + +38. _discovered_, betrayed; so that the author admits that he betrayed his +mistress. + +46. _that sacrament_, that the oath to which you swore, viz. when you were +charged upon your oath to tell the truth. That is, his oath in the court of +justice made him break his private oath. + +49. _trewe_ is certainly an error for _trewthe_; the statement is copied +from Jer. iv. 2:--' Et iurabis ... in veritate, et in iudicio, et in +justitia.' So in l. 58 below, we have: 'in jugement, _in trouthe_, and +rightwisenesse'; and in l. 53--'for a man to say truth, unless judgement +and righteousness accompany it, he is forsworn.' + +54. _serment_, oath; as in l. 52: referring to Matt. xiv. 7. + +56. 'Moreover, it is sometimes forbidden to say truth rightfully--except in +a trial--because all truths are not to be disclosed.' + +60. _that worde_: 'melius mori quam male vivere'; for which see P. Plowman, +C. xviii. 40. Somewhat altered from Tobit, iii. 6:--'expedit mihi mori +magis quam vivere.' + +61, 62. _al_, although, _enfame_, dishonour; as in vi. 3 (see note, p. +458). + +63. _whan_, yet when. + +73. _legen_, short for _alegen_; 'allege against others.' + +75. Here misprinted; _read_:--'may it be sayd, "in that thinge this man +thou demest,"' &c. From Rom. ii. 1; 'in quo enim iudicas alterum, teipsum +condemnas.' + +83. _shrewe_, wicked man, i.e. Ham; Gen. ix. 22. + +101. _emprisonned_; so in Thynne; better, _emprisouned_. + +104. _brige_, contention, struggle, trouble; see note to Ch. C. T., B 2872. + +105. _after thyne helpes_, for your aid; i.e. to receive assistance from +you. + +108. _Selande_, Zealand, Zeeland. The port of Middleburg, in the isle of +Walcheren, was familiar to the English; cf. note to C. T., Prol. 277. The +reference must be to some companions of the author who had fled to Zealand +to be out of the way of prosecution. _rydinge_, expedition on horseback, +journey. + +109, 110. _for thy chambre_, to pay the rent of your room. _renter_, +landlord; 'unknown to the landlord.' + +112. _helpe of unkyndnesse_, relieve from unkind treatment. + +115-6. _fleddest_, didst avoid. _privitè to counsayle_, knowledge of a +secret. + +120-1. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 8. ll. 31-3. + +CHAP. VIII. 1. _Eft_, again. Thynne prints _Ofte_, which does not give the +sense required. Fortunately, we know that the first letter _must_ be E, in +order that the initial letters of the Prologue and chapters I. to VIII. may +give the word MARGARETE. The reading _Ofte_ would turn this into MARGARETO. + +4, 5. From Ch. Troil. iv. 3; Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 8. ll. 19-21. + +13. _and thou_, if thou. Cf. Matt. xviii. 12. + +27. _in their mouthes_, into their mouths; Matt. xii. 34. + +31. _leve for no wight_, cease not on any one's account. + +32. _use Jacobs wordes_. The allusion seems to be to the conciliatory +conduct of Jacob towards Esau; Gen. xxxiii. 8, 10, 11. Similarly the author +is to be patient, and to say--'I will endure my lady's wrath, which I have +deserved,' &c. + +41. _sowe hem_, to sew them together again. _at his worshippe_, in honour +of him; but I can find no antecedent to _his_. Perhaps for _his_ we should +read _her_. + +44. The text has _forgoing al errour distroyeng causeth_; but _distroyeng_ +(which may have been a gloss upon _forgoing_) is superfluous, and _al_ +should be _of_. But _forgoing_ means rather 'abandonment.' + +55. _passest_, surpassest. + +59. _by_, with reference to. + +61. Hector, according to Guido delle Colonne, gave counsel against going to +war with the Greeks, but was overborne by Paris. See the alliterative +Destruction of Troy, ed. Panton and Donaldson (E. E. T. S.), Book VI; or +Lydgate's Siege of Troye, ch. xii. + +65. _leveth_, neglects to oppose what is wrong. + +66. The modern proverb is: 'silence gives consent.' Ray gives, as the Latin +equivalent, 'qui tacet consentire videtur (inquiunt iuris consulti).' This +is the exact form which is here translated. + +73. Alluding to the canticle 'Exultet' sung upon Easter Eve, in the Sarum +Missal:--'O certe necessarium Ade peccatum.' See note to P. Plowman, C. +viii. 126 (or B. v. 491). + +80. _lurken_, creep into lurking-holes, slink away. + +95. _centre_, central point; from Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 7. ll. 18-20. The +whole passage (ll. 94-105) is imitated from the same 'prose' of Boethius. + +103. _London_ is substituted for 'Rome' in Chaucer's Boethius. Chaucer +has--'may thanne the glorie of a singuler Romaine strecchen thider as the +fame of the name of Rome may nat climben or passen?' See the last note. + +112-6. From Ch. Boethius, bk. ii. pr. 7. 58-62. + +116-25. From the same, ll. 65-79. Thus, in l. 123, the word _ofte_ (in +Thynne) is a misprint for _of the_; for Chaucer has--'For of thinges that +han ende may be maked comparisoun.' The whole passage shews that the author +consulted Chaucer's translation of Boethius rather than the Latin text. + +127. _and thou canst nothing don aright_; literally from Chaucer: 'Ye men, +certes, _ne conne don nothing aright_'; Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 7. 79. _but thou +desyre the rumour therof be heled and in every wightes ere_; corresponds to +Chaucer's--'but-yif it be for the audience of the people and for ydel +rumours'; Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 7. 80. Hence _heled_ (lit. hidden) is quite +inadmissible; the right reading is probably _deled_, i.e. dealt round. + +134. The words supplied are necessary; they dropped out owing to the +repetition of _vertue_. + +135-6. Again copied from Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 7. 106: 'the sowle ... +unbounden fro the prison of the erthe.' + +CHAP. IX. 13. _than leveth there_, then it remains. + +15. _for thy moebles_, because thy goods. + +20. This proverb is given by Hazlitt in the form-- + + 'Who-so heweth over-high, + The chips will fall in his eye.' + +Cf. 'one looketh high as one that feareth no chips'; Lyly's Euphues, ed. +Arber, p. 467. And see IX. 158 (p. 270). + +34. From Chaucer, Boeth. bk. i. pr. 4. 186. The saying is attributed to +Pythagoras; see the passage in Chaucer, and the note upon it. + +39. _a this halfe god_, on this side of God, i.e. here below; a strange +expression. So again in bk. ii. ch. 13. 23. + +46. _the foure elementes_, earth, air, fire, and water; see notes to Ch. C. +T., A 420, 1247, G 1460. _Al universitee_, the whole universe; hence man +was called the microcosm, or the universe in little; see Coriolanus, ii. 1. +68. + +64. _I sette now_, I will now suppose the most difficult case; suppose that +thou shouldst die in my service. + +71. _in this persone_; read _on this persone_; or else, perhaps, _in this +prisoune_. + +86. _til deth hem departe_; according to the phrase 'till death us depart' +in the Marriage Service, now ingeniously altered to 'till death us _do +part_.' + +96. 'and although they both break the agreement.' + +98, 99. _accord_, betrothal. _the rose_, i.e. of virginity; as in the +Romance of the Rose, when interpreted. + +99, 100. _Marye his spouse_. But the Vulgate has; 'Surge, et accipe puerum +et _matrem eius_'; Matt. ii. 13. The author must have been thinking of +Matt. i. 18: 'Cum esset _desponsata_ mater eius Maria Ioseph.' + +113. _al being thinges_, all things that exist. + +118. _prophete_; David, in Ps. xcvi. 5: (xcv. 5 in the Vulgate): 'omnes dii +gentium daemonia.' + +129. This refers back to ch. iv. 71-2, ch. ix. 14, 20, 56. + +CHAP. X. 5. _last objeccion_; i.e. his poverty, see ch. iii. 131, iv. 73, +ix. 14. + +12-8. Imitated from Ch. Boeth. bk. i. pr. 4. 200-17. + +18. _sayd_, i.e. it is said of him. + +19. _aver_, property, wealth; 'lo! how the false man, for the sake of his +wealth, is accounted true!' + +20. _dignitees_; cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 6. + +21. _were he out_, if he were not in office; cf. l. 23. + +26-37. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. i. met. 5. 22-39. Thus, _slydinge chaunges_ in l. +31 answers to Chaucer's _slydinge fortune_ (l. 24); and _that arn a fayr +parcel of the erthe_, in l. 32, to _a fayr party of so grete a werk_ (l. +38); and yet again, _thou that knittest_, in l. 35, to _what so ever thou +be that knittest_ (l. 36). + +37-40. From Ch. Boeth. bk. i. met 5. 27-30. + +64-7. From the same; bk. ii. pr. 2. 7-12. + +71-6. From the same; bk. ii. pr. 2. 23-5. + +76-80. Cf. the argument in the same; bk. iii. pr. 3. + +85-120. From Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 8. For literal imitations, compare _the +other haleth him to vertue by the hookes of thoughtes_ (l. 104-5) with +Chaucer's 'the contrarious Fortune ... haleth hem ayein as with an hooke' +(l. 21); and _Is nat a greet good ... for to knowe the hertes of thy +sothfast frendes_ (ll. 107-9) with Chaucer's 'wenest thou thanne that thou +oughtest to leten this a litel thing, that this ... Fortune hath discovered +to thee the thoughtes of thy trewe frendes' (l. 22). Also ll. 114-6 with +Chaucer (ll. 28-31). + +126. _let us singen_; in imitation of the Metres in Boethius, which break +the prose part of the treatise at frequent intervals. Cf. 'and bigan anon +to singen right thus'; Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 9. 149. + +BOOK II. + +CHAP. I. The initials of the fourteen Chapters in this Book give the words: +VIRTW HAVE MERCI. Thynne has not preserved the right division, but makes +_fifteen_ chapters, giving the words: VIRTW HAVE MCTRCI. I have set this +right, by making Chap. XI begin with 'Every.' Thynne makes Chapter XI begin +with 'Certayn,' p. 86, l. 133, and another Chapter begin with 'Trewly,' p. +89, l. 82. This cannot be right, because the latter word, 'Trewly,' belongs +to the last clause of a sentence; and the Chapter thus beginning would have +the unusually small number of 57 lines. + +1. Chapter I really forms a Prologue to the Second Book, interrupting our +progress. At the end of Book I we are told that Love is about to sing, but +her song begins with Chap. II. Hence this first Chapter must be regarded as +a digression, in which the author reviews what has gone before (ll. 10-3), +and anticipates what is to come (l. 61). + +9. _steering_, government (of God), _otherwysed_, changed, varied; an +extraordinary form. + +12, 13. _after as_, according as. _hildeth_, outpours. + +14-8. There is clearly much corruption in this unintelligible and imperfect +sentence. The reference to 'the Roman emperor' is mysterious. + +21. _woweth_; so in Thynne, but probably an error for _waweth_, i.e. move, +shift; see _wa[gh]ien_ in Stratmann. + +23. _phane_, vane; cf. 'chaunging as a vane'; Ch. C. T., E 996. + +34. _irrecuperable_, irrecoverable; _irrecuperabilis_ is used by Tertullian +(Lewis and Short). + +40. _armes_; this refers, possibly, to the struggle between the pope and +anti-pope, after the year 1378. + +51-2. _lovers clerk_, clerk of lovers; but perhaps an error for _Loves +clerk_; cf. Troil. iii. 41. + +62-3. _ryder and goer_, rider on horseback and walker on foot. + +77. Translated from 'Fides non habet meritum ubi humana ratio praebet +experimentum'; as quoted in P. Plowman, C. xii. 160. This is slightly +altered from a saying of St. Gregory (xl. Homil. in Evangelium, lib. ii. +homil. 26)--'nec fides humana habet meritum cui humana ratio praebet +experimentum.' See note to P. Plowman (as above). + +83. _as by a glasse_, as in a mirror; 1 Cor. xiii. 12. + +93. _cockle_, tares. This seems to refer to the Lollards, as puns upon the +words _Lollard_ and _lolia_ were very rife at this period. If so, the +author had ceased to approve of Lollard notions. In l. 94, _love_ seems to +mean Christian charity, in its highest sense; hence it is called, in l. 95, +the most precious thing in nature. + +96, 97. The passage seems corrupt, and I cannot quite see what is meant. +Perhaps read: 'with many eke-names, [and] that [to] other thinges that the +soule [seketh after, men] yeven the ilke noble name.' The comma after +_kynde_ in l. 96 represents a down-stroke (equivalent to a comma) in +Thynne; but it is not wanted. + +99. _to thee_, i.e. to the 'Margaret of virtue' whose name appears as an +acrostic at the head of the Chapters in Book I. and Chapters I-V of Book +II; moreover, we find at last that Margaret signifies Holy Church, to which +the treatise is accordingly dedicated. _tytled of Loves name_, entitled the +Testament of Love. + +103. _inseëres_, lookers into it, readers. + +104. _Every thing_; with respect to everything to which appertains a cause +which is wrought with a view to its accomplishment, Aristotle supposes that +the doing of everything is, in a manner, its final cause. 'Final cause' is +a technical term, explained in the New E. Dict. as 'a term introduced into +philosophical language by the schoolmen as a translation of Aristotle's +fourth cause, [Greek: to hou heneka] or [Greek: telos], the end or purpose +for which a thing is done, viewed as the cause of the act; especially as +applied in Natural Theology to the design, purpose, or end of the +arrangements of the universe.' The phrase 'the end in view' comes near to +expressing it, and will serve to explain 'A final cause' in the next +clause. + +107. _is finally to thilke ende_, is done with a view to that result. + +109. After _so_, understand 'is it with regard to.' + +110. _the cause_, the cause whereby I am directed, and that for which I +ought to write it, are both alike noble. + +113. _this leude_, &c.; I have set about learning this alphabet; for I +cannot, as yet, go beyond counting up to three. + +115. _in joininge_, &c.; by proceeding to the joining together of +syllables. + +124. _in bright whele_, in (its) bright circuit. Chaucer has _wheel_ in the +sense of orbit; HF. 1450. + +126. _another tretyse_. As to this proposed treatise nothing is known. +Perhaps it never was written. + +CHAP. II. 2. _in Latin_. This suggests that the present chapter may be +adapted from some Latin original; especially as the author only gives the +_sentence_ or general drift of it. But the remark may mean nothing, and the +tone of the chapter is wholly medieval. + +24. _Saturnes sphere_, Saturn's orbit; the supposed outer boundary of the +spheres of the seven planets. + +27. _me have_, possess me (i.e. love), since Love is the speaker; i.e. they +think they can procure men's love by heaping up wealth. + +28. Perhaps place the comma after _sowed_ (sewn), not after _sakke_. + +29. _pannes_, better spelt _panes_; see _pane_ in Stratmann. From O.F. +_pan_, _panne_, Lat. _pannus_, a cloth, garment, robe. _mouled_, become +mouldy; the very form from which the mod. E. _mould-y_ has been evolved; +see _muwlen_ in Stratmann, and _mouldy_ in my Etym. Dict. (Supplement). +_whicche_, chest, from A.S. _hwæcca_; see P. Plowm. A. iv. 102, where some +copies have _huche_, a hutch, a word of French origin. Thus _pannes mouled +in a whicche_ signifies garments that have become mouldy in a chest. See +note to C. T., C 734. + +30. _presse_, a clothes-press; observe the context. + +35. _seventh_; perhaps an error for _thirde_; cf. 'percussa est tertia pars +solis'; Rev. viii. 12. He is referring to the primitive days of the Church, +when 'the pope went afoot.' + +40. _defended_, forbade (opposed) those taxations. See _Taylage_ in Ch. +Glossary. + +42. _maryed_, caused to be married; cf. P. Plowman, B. vii. 29. + +47. _symonye_, simony; cf. note to P. Plowman, C. iii. 63. + +48. Observe the rimes: _achates, debates_; _wronges, songes_. + +49. _for his wronges_, on account of the wrongs which he commits. +_personer_, better _parsoner_ or _parcener_, participant, sharer; i.e. the +steward, courtier, escheator, and idle minstrel, all get something. See +_parcener_ in Stratmann. + +50. 'And each one gets his prebend (or share) all for himself, with which +many thrifty people ought to profit.' + +51. _behynde_, behindhand; even these wicked people are neglected, in +comparison with the _losengeour_, or flatterer. + +52. Note the rimes, _forsake, take_. _it acordeth_, it agrees, it is all +consistent; see note to l. 74 below. + +55. _at matins_; cf. P. Plowm. C. i. 125, viii. 27. + +56. _bene-breed_, bean-bread; cf. P. Plowm. C. ix. 327. + +57, 58. Cf. P. Plowman, C. vi. 160-5. + +60. _shete_, a sheet, instead of a napkin to cover the bread; _god_ refers +to the eucharist. + +62. _a clergion_, a chorister-boy; see Ch. C. T., B 1693, and the note. + +65. _broken_, torn; as in P. Plowm. B. v. 108, ix. 91. + +66. _good houndes_; cf. P. Plowm. C. vi. 161-5. + +69. _dolven_, buried; 'because they (the poor) always crave an alms, and +never make an offering, they (the priests) would like to see them dead and +buried.' + +69. _legistres_, lawyers; 'legistres of bothe the lawes,' P. Plowm. B. vii. +14. + +71. 'For then wrong and force would not be worth a haw anywhere.' Before +_plesen_ something seems lost; perhaps read--'and [thou canst] plesen,' +i.e. and you can please no one, unless those oppressive and wrong-doing +lawyers are in power and full action.' + +74. _ryme_, rime. The reference is not to actual jingle of rime, but to a +proverb then current. In a poem by Lydgate in MS. Harl. 2251 (fol. 26), +beginning--'Alle thynge in kynde desirith thynge i-like,' the refrain to +every stanza runs thus:--'It may wele ryme, but it accordith nought'; see +his Minor Poems, ed. Halliwell, p. 55. The sense is that unlike things may +be brought together, like riming words, but they will not on that account +agree. So here: such things may seem, to all appearance, congruous, but +they are really inconsistent. Cf. note to l. 52 above. + +79. _beestly wit_, animal intelligence. + +99. _cosinage_, those who are my relatives. + +104. _behynde_, behindhand, in the rear. _passe_, to surpass, be prominent. + +109. _comeden_ is false grammar for _comen_, came; perhaps it is a +misprint. The reference is to Gen. ix. 27: 'God shall enlarge Japheth ... +and Canaan shall be his servant.' The author has turned _Canaan_ into +_Cayn_, and has further confused Canaan with his father Ham! + +112. _gentilesse_; cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 6. 31-4; C. T., D 1109. + +116. _Perdicas_, Perdiccas, son of Orontes, a famous general under +Alexander the Great. This king, on his death-bed, is said to have taken the +royal signet-ring from his finger and to have given it to Perdiccas. After +Alexander's death, Perdiccas held the chief authority under the new king +Arrhidaeus; and it was really Arrhidaeus (not Perdiccas) who was the son of +a _tombestere_, or female dancer, and of Philip of Macedonia; so that he +was Alexander's half brother. The dancer's name was Philinna, of Larissa. +In the Romance of Alexander, the dying king bequeaths to Perdiccas the +kingdom of Greece; cf. note to bk. iii. c. ii. l. 25. Hence the confusion. + +122. Copied from Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. met. 6:--'Al the linage of men that +ben in erthe ben of semblable birthe. On allone is fader of thinges.... Why +noisen ye or bosten of your eldres? For yif thou loke your biginninge, and +god your auctor and maker,' &c. + +135. _one_; i.e. the Virgin Mary. + +139. After _secte_, supply _I_:--'that, in any respect, I may so hold an +opinion against her sex.' _Secte_ is properly 'suite'; but here means +_sex_; cf. l. 134. + +140. _in hem_, in them, i.e. in women. And so in l. 141. + +CHAP. III. 8. _victorie of strength_; because, according to the first book +of Esdras, iv. 14, 15, women are the strongest of all things. + +9. _Esdram_, accus. of Esdras, with reference to the first book of Esdras, +called 'liber Esdrae tertius' in the Vulgate. + +9, 10. _whos lordship al lignes_. Something is lost here; _lordship_ comes +at the end of a line; perhaps the insertion of _passeth_ will give some +sort of sense; _whos lordship [passeth] al lignes_, whose lordship +surpasses all lines. But _lignes_ is probably a corrupt reading. + +10. _who is_, i.e. who is it that? The Vulgate has: 'Quis est ergo qui +dominatur eorum? Nonne mulieres genuerunt regem,' &c. But the A. V. has: +'Who is it then that ruleth them, or hath the lordship over them? Are they +not women? Women have borne the king,' &c. This translates a text in which +_mulieres_ has been repeated. + +17-21. From 1 Esdras, iv. 15-7: 'Women have borne the king and all the +people that bear rule by sea and land. Even of them came they: and they +nourished them up that planted the vineyards, from whence the wine cometh. +These also make garments [Lat. _stolas_] for men; these bring glory unto +men; and without women cannot men be.' + +21-5. Adapted from 1 Esdras, iv. 18, 19. + +30. 'That by no way can they refuse his desire to one that asks well.' + +32. _of your sectes_, of your followers, of those of your sex. Cf. chap. 2. +139 above, and the note. + +38. _wenen_, imagine that your promises are all gospel-truth; cf. Legend of +Good Women, 326 (earlier version). + +41. _so maked_; 'and that (i.e. the male sex) is so made sovereign and to +be entreated, that was previously servant and used the voice of prayer.' +Men begin by entreating, and women then surrender their sovereignty. + +43. _trewe_; used ironically; i.e. untrue. + +45, 46. _what thing to women it is_, what a thing it is for women. Ll. +45-58 are borrowed, sometimes word for word, from Ch. HF. 269-85. See note +to l. 70 below, and the Introduction, § 11. + +47. 'All that glisters is not gold'; see Ch. C. T., G 962, and the note. +But it is here copied from Ch. HF. 272. + +55. _whistel_, pipe. Cf. note to P. Plowm. B. xv. 467. + +60. _is put_, i.e. she (each one of them) is led to suppose. + +63, 64. Copied from Ch. HF. 305-10. + +67. _they_, i.e. women; cf. l. 58. So also in l. 68. + +68. _ye_, i.e. ye men; so also _you_ in l. 69. + +70-81. Expanded from Ch. HF. 332-59; observe how some phrases are +preserved. + +91. 'Faciamus ei adiutorium simile sibi'; Gen. ii. 18. + +92. _this tree_, i.e. Eve, womankind. So in l. 96. + +100. 'What is heaven the worse, though Saracens lie concerning it?' + +111. _dames_, mothers; cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. met. 6. 1-9. + +114. _way_, path; _it lightly passe_, easily go along it. + +115. This proverb is copied from Ch. HF. 290-1; just as the proverb in l. +47 is from the same, l. 272. Compare p. 22, ll. 44-5. + +131-2. Obscure; and apparently imperfect. + +CHAP. IV. 2. Either _my_ or _to me_ should be struck out. + +4-8. From Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 2. 3-8. 14-6. From the same, 8-12. + +20-1. _by wayes of riches_; cf. _richesses_ in Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 2. +20; so also _dignite_ answers to _digne_ of _reverence_ in the same, l. 21; +_power_ occurs in the same, l. 24; and _renomè_ answers to _renoun_ in l. +26. + +21. _wening me_, seeing that I supposed. + +22. _turneth_; 'it goes against the hair.' We now say--'against the grain.' + +45. The words between square brackets must be supplied. + +55. _holden for absolute_, considered as free, separate, or detached; as in +Ch. Boeth. bk. v. pr. 6. 169. + +56. _leveth in_, there remain in, i.e. remain for consideration, remain to +be considered. When 'bestial' living is set aside, 'manly' and 'resonable' +are left. + +61. _riches_, &c.; from Boethius. See _riches_ discussed in Ch. Boeth. bk. +ii. pr. 5; _dignitè_, in pr. 6; _renomè_, or fame, in pr. 7; and _power_, +along with _dignitè_, in pr. 6. + +99. _as a litel assay_, as if for a short trial, for a while. + +100. _songedest_, didst dream; from F. _songer_. I know of no other example +of this verb in English. However, Langland has _songewarie_, interpretation +of dreams, P. Plowman, C. x. 302. + +113. _thy king_; presumably, Richard II; cf. l. 120. + +116. _to oblige_, to subject thy body to deeds of arms, to offer to fight +judicially; as already said above; cf. bk. i. c. 7. 10. + +138. 'Love and the bliss already spoken of above (cf. 'the parfit blisse of +love,' bk. ii. c. 1. 79) shall be called "the knot" in the heart.' This +definition of "the knot," viz. as being the perfect bliss or full fruition +of love, should be noted; because, in later chapters, the author +continually uses the phrase "the knot," without explaining what he means by +it. It answers to 'sovereyn blisfulnesse' in Chaucer's Boethius. + +141. _inpossession_ is all one word, but is clearly an error. The right +word is certainly _imposition_. The Lat. _impositio_ was a grammatical +term, used by Varro, signifying the _imposing_ of a name, or the +application of a name to an object; and the same sense of O.F. _imposition_ +appears in a quotation given by Godefroy. It is just the word required. +When Love declares that she shall give the name of "the knot" to the +perfect bliss of love, the author replies, 'I shall well understand the +application of this name,' i.e. what you mean by it; cf. l. 149. + +147. _A goddes halfe_, lit. on the side of God; with much the same sense as +in God's name; see Ch. C. T., D 50. + +CHAP. V. 3. _richesse_ is singular; it was probably Thynne who put the +following verbs into plural forms. + +5. _Aristotle_. Perhaps the reference is to the Nicomachean Ethics, i. 1. + +15-20. The argument is from Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 5. 84, 122. + +57, 58. From Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 5. 45-7. + +65. Cf. 'Why embracest thou straunge goodes as they weren thyne?' Ch. +Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 5. 50. + +67-77. From Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 5. 52-69. + +79-110. From the same; ll. 71-80; 88-133. + +CHAP. VI. Suggested by Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 6. + +11-4. From the same, 57, 58; 54-7; 62-4. + +25. _dignites ... is as the sonne_; the verb _is_ agrees with the latter +substantive _sonne_. + +26-9. From the same as above, 4-6; the author substitutes _wilde fyre_ for +Chaucer's _flaumbe of Ethna_. + +30. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 6. 75-8. + +38. Perhaps read _dignitè in suche thing tene y-wrought_; 'as dignity in +such a case wrought harm, so, on the contrary, the substance in dignity, +being changed, rallied (so as) to bring in again a good condition in its +effect.' Obscure. 'Dignities' are further discussed in Boeth. bk. iii. pr. +4. + +74-7. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 4. 64-70. + +78. _Nero_. The name was evidently suggested by the mention of Nero +immediately after the end of Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 4 (viz. in met. 4); but +the story of Nero killing his mother is from an earlier passage in +Boethius, viz. bk. ii. met. 6. + +81. _king John_. By asserting his 'dignity' as king against prince Arthur, +he brought about a war in which the greater part of the French possessions +of the crown were lost. + +82. _nedeth in a person_, are necessary for a man. + +99. _such maner planettes_, planets such as those; referring to the sun and +moon mentioned just above; ll. 87, 91. The sun and moon were then accounted +as being among the seven planets. + +100-1. 'That have any desire for such (ill) shining planets to appear any +more in that way.' + +117-8. _I not_, I do not know. _and thou see_, if thou shouldst see. Cf. +Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 4. 22-7. + +123-8. From Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 4. 31-9. + +127. _besmyteth_, contaminates, defiles. Note that the author is here +reproducing Chaucer's _bispotten and defoulen_ (pr. 4. 38). The word is +noted in Stratmann, because the A.S. _besm[=i]tan_, in this sense, occurs +in Mark, vii. 15. The form _besmitten_ is commoner, four examples of it +being given in the New E. Dict., s.v. _besmit_. The verb _besmite_ has +escaped recognition there, because the present passage has not been noted. +So also, in the next line, _smyteth_ has a like sense. _Smitted_ occurs in +Troilus, v. 1545. + +129. _fyr_, fire; from Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 4. 47. + +132-4. From the same; ll. 48-53. + +138. The sentence is incomplete and gives no sense; probably a clause has +dropped out after the word _goodnesse_. I cannot set it right. + +143-5. Imitated from Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 4. 55-7. + +153-6. Suggested by the same; ll. 64-70. + +164. Cf. 'leve hem in [_or_ on] thy lift hand'; P. Plowman, C. viii. 225. + +CHAP. VII. Suggested by Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 5. + +8. _Nero_; from the same, bk. iii. met. 4. 4, 5. + +14. _ensamples_; answers to _ensaumples_ in the same, bk. iii. pr. 5. 4. + +17. _Henry Curtmantil_, Henry II. 'Henry short mantell, or Henry the +seconde'; Fabyan, ed. Ellis, p. 260. 'In his fifty-fifth year he thus +miserably expired, and his son Geoffrey of Lincoln with difficulty found +any one to attend to his funeral; the attendants had all fled away with +everything valuable that they could lay their hands on'; Miss Yonge, Cameos +from English History (1869); p. 180. + +20. Copied _without material alteration_ from Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 5. +5-7. + +23. _power of rëalmes_; from the same, l. 7. + +30-9. Copied, in part literally, from Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 5. 8-17. + +39-42. From the same; ll. 20-5. + +50-2. Cf. 'Holdest thou thanne thilke man be mighty, that thou seest that +he wolde don that he may nat don?' the same; ll. 23-5. + +72. _overthrowen_ would be better grammar. + +74-8. From the same prose, ll. 25-9. + +78. _warnisshed_, guarded. _warnishe,_ guard; _the hour of warnishe_, the +time of his being guarded. + +81. _famulers_, household servants; borrowed from Chaucer's _familieres_ in +the same prose, l. 29. + +82. _sypher_, cipher in arithmetic. Though in itself it signifies nothing, +yet appended to a preceding figure it gives that figure a tenfold value. +Cf. Richard the Redeless, iv. 53-4:-- + + 'Than satte summe as siphre doth in awgrym + That noteth a place, and no-thing availeth.' + +92. _the blynde_; alluding to a common fable. + +95-6. From Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 5. 32-4. + +98-9; 101-3. From the same; ll. 41-6. + +105-8. From the same, ll. 48-51. + +109-12. From Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. met. 5. + +114-6. Here the author suddenly dashes off to another book of Boethius; see +bk. ii. pr. 6. 44-5. + +117. _Buserus_; Chaucer has _Busirides_ in his text of Boethius, bk. ii. +pr. 6. 47 (whose text our author here follows); but _Busirus_ in the Monkes +Tale, B 3293. The true name is _Busiris_, of which _Busiridis_ is the +genitive case. Chaucer evolved the form _Busirides_ out of the accusative +_Busiridem_ in Boethius. See note in vol. ii. p. 433. + +118. _Hugest_; substituted for the example of Regulus in Boethius. Hugest +is probably an error for Hengest, i.e. Hengist. The story of his slaughter +of the Britons at Stonehenge by a shameful treachery is famous; he +certainly 'betrayed many men.' See Fabyan, ed. Ellis, p. 66; Rob. of +Gloucester, l. 2651 (ed. Hearne, p. 124). The story of his death is not +inconsistent with the text. Rob. of Gloucester, at l. 2957 (ed. Hearne, p. +140) tells how he was suddenly seized, in a battle, by Eldol, earl of +Gloucester, who cried out for help; many came to his assistance, and +Hengist was taken alive. Shortly afterwards, at the instance of Eldad, +bishop of Gloucester, Eldol led him out of the town of Corneboru, and smote +his head off. Eldad's verdict was:-- + + 'Also doth by this mon that so moche wo ath y-do, + So mony child y-mad faderles, dighteth him al-so.' + +The name of his betrayer or capturer is given as _Collo_ in our text; but +proper names take so many forms that it is not much to go by. Thus, the +very name which is given as _Eldol_ in one MS. of Robert of Gloucester (l. +2679) appears as _Cadel_ in another. Fabyan calls him _Edolf_ (p. 66), and +makes him Earl of Chester. Layamon (ed. Madden, ii. 268) calls him +_Aldolf_. + +120. 'Omnes enim, qui acceperint gladium, gladio peribunt'; Matt. xxvi. 52. + +122. _huisht_, hushed, silent; cf. _hust_ in Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. met. 5. 16. + +130-2. Cf. the same, bk. iv. pr. 2. 31-4. + +132. 'But then, as for him who could make you wretched, if he wished it, +thou canst not resist it.' The sentence appears to be incomplete. + +135. _flye_, fly; substituted for Chaucer's _mous_; see his Boeth. bk. ii. +pr. 6. 22-4. + +139-42. From the same, ll. 25-9. + +148-9. _Why there_, i.e. 'wherefore (viz. by help of these things) there is +no way,' &c. Cf. 'Now is it no doute thanne that thise weyes ne ben a maner +misledinges to blisfulnesse'; Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 8. 1-2. + +CHAP. VIII. 5. _renomè_, renown; answering to _glori_ and _renoun_ in Ch. +Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 6. 1, 6. But there is not much imitation of Chaucer in +the former part of this chapter. + +37. _abouten_, round about; i.e. you have proved a contradiction. + +39. _acorden_, agree; _by lacking_, with respect to blame and praise. + +42. _elementes_, the four elements. Sir T. Elyot's Castel of Helthe (1539) +presents the usual strange medieval notions on medicine. He begins by +saying that we must consider the things natural, the things not natural, +and the things against nature. The things natural are seven, viz. elements, +complexions, humours, members, powers, operations, and spirits. 'The +Elementes be those originall thynges vnmyxt and vncompounde, of whose +temperance and myxture all other thynges, hauynge corporalle substance, be +compacte: Of them be foure, that is to saye, Erthe, Water, Ayre, and Fyre. + +ERTHE is the moost grosse and ponderouse element, and of her proper nature +is _colde_ and _drye_. + +WATER is more subtyll and lyght thanne erthe, but in respect of Ayre and +Fyre, it is grosse and heuye, and of hir proper Nature is _colde_ and +_moyste_. + +AYRE is more lyghte and subtylle than the other two, and beinge not altered +with any exteriour cause, is properly _hotte_ and _moyste_. + +FYRE is absolutely lyght and clere, and is the clarifier of other +elementes, if they be vyciate or out of their naturall temperaunce, and is +properly _hotte_ and _drye_.' Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. met. 9. 13-7. + +50. _oned_, united; see the last note. + +52. _erthe_ (see the footnote) is an obvious error for _eyre_; so also in +l. 53. But the whole of the argument is ridiculous. + +68-9. Copied from Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 6. 3-4. From the Andromache of +Euripides, l. 319; see the note in vol. ii. p. 439. + +69-71. From Chaucer, as above, ll. 5-9. + +75-81. From the same, ll. 9-17. + +82. _obstacles_; they are enumerated in bk. i. c. 8. l. 98 (p. 37). + +85-7; 89-97. From Chaucer, bk. iii. pr. 6. ll. 21-34. + +99. I do not know the source of this saying. Cf. C.T., D 1109-12. + +102-7. From Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 8. 26-35. + +104-5. _fayre and foule_, handsome and ugly men; _hewe_, beauty. + +107-10. _thilke--knotte_; equivalent to 'they ne ben nat weyes ne pathes +that bringen men to blisfulnesse'; Ch., as above, ll. 42-3. + +122. Cf. 'But alday fayleth thing that fooles wenden'; certainly the right +reading of Troil. i. 217; see note on the line; vol. ii. p. 463. + +124. _the sterre_, the star of the Southern pole; so in the next line, the +Northern pole-star. + +126. _out-waye-going_, going out of the way, error of conduct; which may be +called, as it were, 'imprisonment,' or 'banishment.' It is called +_Deviacion_ in bk. iii. ch. i. 6, which see. + +127. _falsed_, proved false, gave way. + +130. Cf. 'It suffyseth that I have shewed hiderto the forme of false +welefulness'; Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 9. 1. With line 131, cf. the same, +ll. 5-7. + +CHAP. IX. 1-5. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 9. 9-11. + +9. The 'harmony' or music of the spheres; see Troil. v. 1812-3; Parl. +Foules, 59-63, and the note in vol. i. p. 507. + +37-8. _sugre ... soot_; cf. 'sucre be or soot,' Troil. iii. 1194; and 'in +her hony galle'; C. T., B 3537. + +54. _Flebring_; omitted in the New E. Dict., as being a false form; there +is no such word. Mr. Bradley suggests _flekring_ or _flekering_, which is +probable enough. The M.E. _flekeren_, also spelt _flikeren_, meant not only +to flutter, but to be in doubt, to vacillate, and even to caress. We may +take it to mean 'light speech' or 'gossip.' + +65. 'Good and yvel ben two contraries'; Ch. Boeth. bk. iv. pr. 2. 10. + +74. _in that mores_, in the possession of that greater thing. + +77-8. Cf. l. 81 below. Hence the sense is: 'and that thing which belongs to +it (i.e. to the knot) ought to incline to its superior cause out of honour +and good-will.' But it is clumsy enough; and even to get this sense (which +seems to have been that intended) we must alter _mores_ to _more_. The form +was probably miswritten _mores_ here owing to the occurrence of _mores_ +just above (l. 74) and just below (l. 79). It proceeds thus:--'otherwise, +it is rebellious, and ought to be rejected from protection by its +superior.' + +116. From Troil. iii. 1656-9. + +129-38. Perhaps the finest passage in the treatise, but not very original. +Cf. P. Plowman, C. xxi. 456-7; Ch. Boeth. bk. iv. met. 6. 20-3. + +133. Cf. 'ones a yere al thinges renovelen'; Ch. C. T., I 1027. + +134. Cf. 'To be gayer than the heven'; Book of the Duch. 407. + +139. Imitated from Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 2. 54-5; but with the +substitution of 'garmentes' for 'tonnes.' + +143. _proverbe_, proverb. 'When bale is hext (highest), then bote is next'; +Proverbs of Hending; see notes to Gamelyn, ll. 32, 631, in vol. v. pp. 478, +486. For _hext_ our author substitutes _a nyebore_, i.e. a neighbour, nigh +at hand. + +151. The truth of astrology is here assumed. + +155-70. I suspect that this account of the days of the week (though no +doubt familiar in those days to many) was really copied from Chaucer's +Treatise on the Astrolabe, part ii. sect. 12 (vol. iii. p. 197). For it +contains a remarkable blunder. The word _noon_ in l. 163 should, of course, +be _midnight_; but, as Chaucer omits to say when the first planetary hour +of the day occurs, the author was left to himself in regard to this point. +Few people understand _why_ the day after Sunday must needs be Monday; yet +it is very simple. The principle is given in the footnote to vol. iii. p. +197 (cf. vol. v. p. 86), but may here be stated a little more plainly. The +earth being taken as the centre of the planetary system, the planets are +arranged in the order of the radii of their orbits. The nearest planet is +the Moon, then Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. These +were arranged by the astrologers in the _reverse_ order; viz. Saturn, +Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon; after which the rotation began +over again, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, &c.; as before. If we now divide Sunday +into twenty-four hours, and assign the _first_ of these to the Sun, the +_second_ to Venus (next in rotation), the _third_ to Mercury, and so on, +the _eighth_ hour will again fall to the Sun, and so will the _fifteenth_ +and the _twenty-second_. Consequently, the _twenty-third_ (like the +_second_) belongs to Venus, the _twenty-fourth_ to Mercury, and the +_twenty-fifth_ to the Moon. But the twenty-fifth hour is the first hour of +the new day, which is therefore the day of the Moon. And so throughout. + +Since the twenty-second hour belongs to the Sun, and the twenty-fifth to +the Moon, the planetary interval from day to day is really obtained by +pitching upon every _third_ planet in the series, i.e. by skipping two. +Hence the order of ruling planets for each day (which rule depends upon the +assignment of the _first_ hour) is obviously--the Sun, the Moon, Mars, +Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn; or, in Anglo-Saxon terminology, the Sun, +the Moon, T[=i]w, W[=o]den, Thunor (Thur), Frige, and Sætern (Sæter). + +178. Cf. 'here wo into wele wende mote atte laste'; P. Plowman, C. xxi. +210. See notes to ch. 13. 86 below, and bk. i. 3. 153. + +180. Cf. Troil. iv. 836, and the note (vol. ii. p. 490). + +196. _slawe_, slain; the usual expression; cf. Compl. of Mars, 186; Compl. +unto Pitè, 112. + +CHAP. X. 1-6. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 9. 1-4; pr. 10. 1-4. + +7. _three lyves_; as mentioned above, bk. ii. ch. 4. 44-6. + +18. _firste sayde_; viz. in bk. ii. ch. 4. 56. + +28-34. Borrowed from Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. met. 7. + +37. _a fair parcel_. Similarly, Boethius recites his former good fortune; +bk. ii. pr. 3. 20-43. + +45. He insists that he was only a servant of conspirators; he would have +nothing to do with the plot (l. 50); yet he repented of it (l. 49); and it +is clear that he betrayed it (bk. i. ch. 6. l. 189). + +58. _farn_, for _faren_, fared. _Fortune_; cf. the complaints of Boethius, +bk. i. met. 1. 19; pr. 4. 8; bk. ii. met. 1. + +68-71. From Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 4. 57-61. + +81-3. From the same; bk. ii. pr. 4. 122; pr. 3. 61. + +84-7. From the same; pr. 4. 127-32. + +88-105. From the same; pr. 3. 48-63. + +96. _both_, booth; Chaucer has _tabernacle_; pr. 3. 56. + +105-10; 115-20. From the same; bk. ii. pr. 4. 33-42. + +126-9. From the same; ll. 43-7. + +133. Here begins a new chapter in Thynne; with a large capital C. See note +to book ii. ch. i. + +148-50. From Ch. Boeth. bk. ii. pr. 4. 97-101. + +155. 'The soules of men ne mowe nat deyen in no wyse'; the same, ll. 122-3. + +163. _oon of three_; see ch. 10. 10 above (p. 83). + +CHAP. XI. 11-3. Not in character; the author forgets that Love is supposed +to be the speaker, and speaks in his own person. + +40-8. From Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. met. 8. 3-7, 16-8; pr. ix. 12-16, 66-70; +somewhat varied. + +56. _over his soule_; cf. 'but only upon his body'; the same, bk. ii. pr. +6. 31. + +56-69. The general idea corresponds with the same, bk. iii. pr. 9. I +observe no verbal resemblance. + +82. Thynne begins a new chapter here, with a large capital T. See note to +bk. ii. ch. i. + +93. _Plato_. This story is told of Socrates, and is given in the note to C. +T., I 670, in vol. v. p. 466; from Seneca, De Ira, lib. i. c. 15. + +111. _conclude_ seems here to mean 'include,' as in C. T., G 429. + +121. _habit ... monk_; 'Cucullus non facit monachum'; a common medieval +proverb; see Rom. Rose, 6192, and the note. + +125. _cordiacle_ is Thynne's misprint for _cardiacle_; cf. 'That I almost +have caught a cardiacle'; C.T., C 313. + +CHAP. XII. 8. _in place_, i.e. present; _chafinge_, warming. + +14. _neigheth_, approaches; _and it ... be_, if it can be. + +17. _Donet_, primer, elementary book of instruction; named from _Donatus_, +the grammarian; see note to P. Plowman, C. vii. 215. + +32. _muskle_; referring to bk. i. ch. 3. 78. + +35. _excellence of coloures_, its (outward) blue colour. Blue was the +emblem of constancy and truth; see note to C. T., F 644 (vol. v. p. 386). +For _coloures_ we should rather read _colour_; the same error occurs in l. +43 below (see footnote). + +45. 'When pleasant weather is above.' + +46. 'Betokening steadfastness (continuance) in peace'; cf. note to l. 35 +above. + +47. The following is Pliny's account of the Pearl, as translated by +Holland; bk. ix. c. 35. + +'This shell-fish which is the mother of Pearle, differs not much in the +manner of breeding and generation from the Oysters; for when the season of +the yeare requireth that they should engender, they seeme to yawne and +gape, and so do open wide; and then (by report) they conceive a certaine +moist dew as seed, wherewith they swell and grow big; ... and the fruit of +these shell-fishes are the Pear[l]es, better or worse, great or small, +according to the qualitie and quantitie of the dew which they receiued. For +if the dew were pure and cleare which went into them, then are the Pearles +white, faire, and Orient: but if grosse and troubled, the Pearles likewise +are dimme, foule, and duskish; ... according as the morning is faire, so +are they cleere; but otherwise, if it were misty and cloudy, they also will +be thicke and muddy in colour.' + +50. The sense of _Margaryte_ in _this_ passage is the visible church of +Christ, as the context shews. In book iii. ch. 9. 160, the author tells us +that it signifies 'grace, lerning, or wisdom of god, or els _holy church_.' + +52. _mekenesse_, humility; cf. l. 63. The church is descended from Christ, +who is the heavenly dew. + +56. _reduced in-to good_, connected with good; _mene_, intermediate. + +58. _beestes_, living things that cannot move; the very word used by +Chaucer, Boeth. bk. v. pr. 5. 20; compare the passage. + +64. There is something wrong; either _discendeth_ should be _discended_, or +we should understand _and_ before _to_; and perhaps _downe_ should be +_dewe_; cf. l. 68. The reference seems to be to the Incarnation. + +68. Here the Protean word _Margaryte_ means 'the wisdom of god,' judging by +the context; see note to l. 50 above. + +78. This does not mean 'I would have explained it better,' but 'I should +like to have it better explained.' + +86. _Margaryte_ here means the visible church, as before (l. 50); to the +end of the chapter. + +91. _welde_, possess; and all that he now possesses is his life. + +108. _yvel spekers_; this seems to allude to the Lollards, who ought (he +says) to be 'stopped and ashamed.' + +114. This shews that Margarete does not mean a woman; for it is declared to +be as precious as a woman, to whom it is likened. + +121. _deedly_, mortal. Hence Margarete does not mean the church in general, +but the visible church at the time of writing, the church militant. + +CHAP. XIII. 11. 'To be evil, is to be nothing.' The general argument +follows Ch. Boeth. bk. iv. pr. 2. 143-94, and pr. 4. + +23. _a this halfe_, on this side of, under; cf. note to bk. i. ch. 9. 39. + +30. _determinison_, determination; a correct form. Cf. _venison_ from Lat. +acc. _uenationem_. Accordingly, the O.F. forms were _determinaison_, +_-eson_, _-oison_, as given by Godefroy. He supplies the example: +'Definicio, difinicion ou _determineson_,' from an old glossary. Hence +_determination_ is here used in the sense of 'definition,' as is obvious +from the context. Thynne prints _determission_, which makes nonsense; and +there is no such word. The present passage is entered in the New E. Dict. +under _determission_, with the suggestion that it is an error; it might +have been better to enter it under _determinison_ (or _-eson_); but it is +always difficult to know how to deal with these mistakes of printers and +editors. + +33. _your-selfe sayd_; referring to l. 4 above. + +35. _y-sayd good_, called 'good.' + +40. _participacion_; from Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 10. 110. + +43. _Austen_, St. Augustin; and so Pope, Essay on Man, i. 294:--'One truth +is clear, Whatever is, is right.' + +49. _Boece_, Boethius; whom the author here mentions just once more; see +his former allusion in bk. i. prologue, 110. The reference is to bk. iii. +pr. 10. 153-84. + +53. _apeted to_, sought after, longed for, desired. _Apete_ is a correct +form, as it represents an O.F. _*apeter_; but the usual O.F. form is +_appeter_ (Littré, s.v. _appéter_), from Lat. _appetere_. See New E. Dict., +s.v. _Appete_, where a quotation is given from Chaucer, L. G. W. 1582. But +the right reading in that line is surely _appetyteth_, as _appeteth_ will +not scan; unless we strongly accent the initial _As_. See vol. ii. p. 137, +l. 1582 and footnote, and the note to the line, at p. 328. + +56. _This_ stands for _This is_, as usual; see notes to C. T., A 1091, E +56. + +71. _betterer_, better; not necessarily a misprint. The form _bettyrer_ +occurs in the Catholicon Anglicum. + +72. _his kyndely place_, its natural position; cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. iii. pr. +11. 100-2. + +77. _blacke_; cf. Troil. i. 642. + +82. _yeven by the ayre_, endowed by the air with little goodness and +virtue; because the dew that produced the pearl fell through the air; see +note to ch. xii. 47 above. Hence _matier_ is material, viz. the dew. + +86. _unpees_, war. The general argument, with the contrast of colours above +mentioned, occurs in P. Plowman, C. xxi. 209-21; cf. also ll. 144-66. Of +these lines, ll. 210 and 212 have already been explicitly cited above: see +notes to bk. i. ch. 3. 153, and to bk. ii. ch. 9. 178. + +92. _Pallas_; we should have expected 'Minerva'; however, _Pallas_ occurs +five times in Troilus. + +94. _and Mercurie_, if Mercury; but it is obscure. + +99. _a dewe and a deblys_. Under _Adieu_, in the New E. Dict., we find: +'_fig._ an expression of regret at the loss or departure of anything; or a +mere exclamatory recognition of its disappearance; = away, no longer, no +more, all is over with. _c._ 1400 _Test. Love_ ii. (1560) 292/1. Adewe and +adewe blis.' + +Something has gone wrong here; the edition of 1561 (not 1560) has, at fol. +306, back (not 292) the reading 'a dewe and a deblis'; as in the text. The +same reading occurs in all the earlier black-letter editions and in +Chalmers; there being no other authority except Thynne. I do not understand +the passage; the apparent sense is: 'his name is given _a dieu_ and to +devils'; i.e. (I suppose) is renounced. _Deblis_ for 'devils' is a possible +form; at any rate, we find _deblet_, _deblerie_, for _devilet_ and +_diablerie_; see New E. Dict., under _Dablet_ and _Deblerie_. + +115-6. 'That which is good, seems to me to be wholly good.' This is +extremely significant. 'The church is good, and therefore wholly good,' is +evidently intended. In other words, it needs no reform; the Lollards should +let it alone. In ch. 14. 24, he plainly speaks of 'heretics,' and of the +errors of 'mismeninge people.' + +130. _leve_, believe. L. 120 shews that he hopes for mercy and pity; we may +safely conclude that he had been a Lollard once. Cf. ch. 14. 2-4. + +CHAP. XIV. 6. _Proverbes_. He refers to Prov. vii. 7-22: 'Considero +uecordem iuuenem, qui ... graditur in obscuro, in noctis tenebris; et ecce +occurrit illi mulier ornatu meretricio, praeparata ad capiendas animas, +garrula et uaga, quietis impatiens ... dicens ... ueni, inebriemur +uberibus, et fruamur cupitis amplexibus ... statim eam sequitur quasi bos +ductus ad uictimam.' + +25. _skleren and wimplen_, veil and cover over. He probably found the word +_skleire_, a veil, in P. Plowman, C. ix. 5 (cf. also B. vi. 7, A. vii. 7), +as that is the only known example of the substantive. The verb occurs here +only. Other spellings of _skleire_, sb., in the MSS., are _sklayre_, +_scleyre_, _slaire_, _skleir_, _sleire_, _sleyre_. Cf. Du. _sluier_, G. +_Schleier_. + +29. _by experience_; i.e. the author had himself been inclined to 'heresy'; +he was even in danger of 'never returning' (l. 38). + +36. _weyved_, rejected; he had rejected temptations to Lollardry. + +38. _shewed thee thy Margarite_; meaning (I suppose) shewn thee the +excellence of the church as it is. + +40. _Siloë_, Siloam. It is a wonder where the author found this description +of the waters of the pool of Siloam; but I much suspect that it arose from +a gross misunderstanding of Isaiah, viii. 6, 7, thus:--'the waters of +Shiloah that go softly ... shall come up over all his channels, and go over +all his banks.' In the Vulgate: 'aquas Siloë, quae uadunt cum silentio ... +ascendet super omnes riuos eius, et fluet super uniuersas ripas eius.' +Hence _cankes_ in l. 44 is certainly an error for _bankes_; the initial _c_ +was caught from the preceding _circuit_. + +46. After _Mercurius_ supply _servaunts_ or _children_. The children or +servants of Mercury mean the clerks or writers. The expression is taken +from Ch. C. T., D 697:-- + + 'The children of Mercurie and of Venus + Ben in hir wirking ful contrarious.' + +47. _Veneriens_, followers of Venus; taken from Ch. C. T., D 609. + +52. _that ben fallas_; that is to say, deceptions. See _Fallace_ in the New +E. Dict. + +60. _sote of the smoke_, soot of the smoke of the fire prepared for the +sacrificed ox; 'bos ductus ad uictimam'; Prov. vii. 22. + +61. _it founde_, didst find it; referring, apparently, to _thy langoring +deth_. + +67-8. _thilke Margaryte_, the church; by serving which he was to be +delivered from danger, by means of his amendment. + +70. _disese_, misery, discomfort; because he had to do penance. + +74. He had formerly sinned against the church. + +80. 'And yet thou didst expect to have been rejected for ever.' + +83. _lache_, loosen (it); from O.F. _lascher_, to loosen, relax. Or it may +mean 'turn cowardly.' + +85. 'Inueni Dauid seruum meum; oleo sancto meo unxi eum'; Ps. lxxxix. 20 +(lxxxviii. 21, Vulgate). + +93. _openly_; hence the author had publicly recanted. + +BOOK III. + +CHAP. I. This chapter is really a Prologue to the Third Book. + +2. _discrete_, separate; _tellinge_, counting. + +3. _Three_ was considered a perfect number; see below. + +6. Time was divided into three ages; first, the age of Error, before the +coming of Christ; all that died then went to hell, whence some were rescued +by Christ when He descended thither. The second, the age of Grace, from the +time of Christ's coming till His second advent. The third, the age of Joy, +enduring for ever in heaven. + +_Deviacion_; Thynne prints _Demacion_, an obvious error for _Deuiacion_ +(_m_ for _ui_); in l. 26, it is replaced by _Errour of misgoinge_, which +has the same sense, and in bk. ii. ch. 8. 126, it is called +_out-waye-going_. The New E. Dict. has no quotation for _deviation_ older +than 1603; but here we find it. + +25. I. e. Book I treats of Error or Deviation; Book II, of Grace; and Book +III, of Joy. + +28. _whiche is faylinge without desert_, which is failure without merit; +these words are out of place here, and perhaps belong to the preceding +clause (after _shewed_ in l. 26). _thilke_, &c.; amending that first fault. + +29. Perhaps for _and_ read _an_; it refers to guidance into the right path. + +37. He says that the English alter the name _Margarite-perle_ into +_Margery-perle_, whereas Latin, French, and many other languages keep the +true form. Cf. Lat. _margarita_, O.F. _marguerite_, _margarete_, Gk. +[Greek: margaritês], Pers. _marw[=a]r[=i]d_, Arab. _marj[=a]n_; all from +Skt. _manjar[=i]_, a pearl. + +45. _the more Britayne_, greater Britain (England and Scotland), as +distinguished from lesser Britain (Brittany); see note to bk. ii. ch. 12. +47 above. Pliny says (tr. by Holland, bk. ix. c. 35):--'In Brittaine it is +certain that some [pearls] do grow; but they be small, dim of colour, and +nothing orient.' + +56. _conninge_, certain knowledge; _opinion_, uncertain knowledge, +supposition; as he proceeds to say. + +62. We thus learn that it was at this date an open question, whether the +sun was bigger than the earth; there were some who imagined it to be so. + +68. He here mentions the _quadrivium_, or group of four of the seven +sciences, viz. arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy; see note to P. +Plowman, C. xii. 98. + +73. These are the four cardinal virtues, Prudence, Justice, Temperance, and +Fortitude; see note to P. Plowman, C. i. 131. + +79. Why 'two things' are mentioned, is not clear. It was usual to introduce +here the _trivium_, or second group of the seven arts (see note to l. 68); +which contained logic, grammar, and rhetoric. For the two former he has +substituted 'art,' the general term. + +99. _twey_, two; viz. _natural_ and _reasonable_; cf. l. 53. The third is +_moral_. Hence we have the following scheme. + + { _natural_: the quadrivium. + { relating to the body { + Philosophy { { _reasonable_: the trivium. + { + { relating to the soul: _moral_: the cardinal virtues. + + { law: _natural_. + { + { right: _reasonable_. + Law { + { { written: _constitution_. + { custom { + { unwritten: _usage_. + +122. I. e. 'so that harm, (as punishment) for harm, should restrain +evil-doers by the bridle of fear.' + +125. _contrarioustee of_, that which is contrary to. + +130. _and unworthy_, even if they be unworthy. + +_professe and reguler_; the 'professed' were such as, after a year of +probation, had been received into a monastic order; the 'regular' were such +as were bound by the three monastic vows of poverty, chastity, and +obedience. + +131. _obediencer_, bound by obedience; used adjectivally; cf. Low Lat. +_obedientiarius_. + +134. Thus the author was himself bound by monastic vows, and was one of the +'regular' clergy. + +146-7. _abouten_, about (me), near at hand. _eche_, to increase, lengthen. + +156. _refrete_, refrain, burden of a song; O.F. _refrait_, _refret_ +(Godefroy). 'Sobs are a ready (ever-present) refrain in its meditations'; +where _his_ (its) refers to _goost_, or spirit, in l. 155. + +157-8. _comming about I not than_, recurring I know not when. For _than_ +read _whan_, to make sense. + +160. _he_, Christ; referring to Matt. xxi. 16. + +161. _whos spirit_; 'Spiritus ubi uult spirat'; John, iii. 8; 'Spiritus, +diuidens singulis prout uult'; 1 Cor. xii. 11. + +170. _wyte that_, lay the blame for that upon. Such is the right idiom; cf. +'Wyte it the ale of Southwerk, I yow preye'; Ch. C. T., A 3140. Thynne +prints _with_ for _wite_ or _wyte_, making nonsense of the passage. + +CHAP. II. 14. _lybel of departicion_, bill (or writ) of separation; taken +from _libellum repudii_ in Matt. v. 31, which Wyclif translates by 'a libel +of forsakyng.' + +16. 'I find, in no law, (provision for) recompensing and rewarding in a +bounteous way, those who are guilty, according to their deserts.' + +19. _Paulyn_, Paulinus. But there is some mistake. Perhaps he refers to L. +Aemilius Paulus, brother of M. Aemilius Lepidus the Triumvir. This Paulus +was once a determined enemy of Caesar, but was won over to his side by a +large bribe. + +21-3. I cannot explain or understand this clause; something seems to be +omitted, to which it refers. + +23. Julius Caesar was accounted as following Cato in justice. The statement +is obscure. + +25. Perdiccas, according to the romances, succeeded Alexander the Great; +see note to Bk. ii. c. 2. 116. I do not find the anecdote referring to +Porus. It is not improbable that the author was thinking of Philip the +physician, who revealed to Alexander 'a privy hate' entertained against +that monarch by Parmenion; see the Wars of Alexander, ed. Skeat, 2559-83. + +49. _right as mater_. Cf. 'sicut ad formam de forma procedere materiam +notum est'; an often quoted passage in Guido delle Colonne's Historia +Troiae; see note to Legend of Good Women, 1582 (vol. iii. p. 329). + +65. _and right_, if right-doing were not in the original working. + +82. _muste do good nedes_, must necessarily do good. + +87. _ende_, object. The reference seems to be to Aristotle, Nicomachean +Ethics, bk. i. c. 1, c. 2, or c. 5. + +90. _goodly_, with a good motive. In l. 99, it simply means 'a good +motive.' + +112. _praysing ne lacking_, praise nor blame. + +115. The Latin would be _nemo inuite beatus_; but I do not know where to +find it. + +128. _free arbitrement_, Lat. liberum arbitrium; introduced in order to +lead up to a discussion of free will, necessity, and providence; as in +Boeth. bk. v. + +140. _closing_, including, implying. + +154-60. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. v. pr. 3. 1-18. + +CHAP. III. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. v. pr. 3 and pr. 4. + +26. Cf. the same, pr. iii. 29, and the context. + +58. _for I love_, i.e. because (or since) I love. + +74. _commende_, coming; probably the original MS. had _command_, the +Northern form. We have a similar form _lykende_, in l. 133 below. In ll. +82, 83, the usual form _comming_ appears. + +82-3. In many places, _comming_ is used nearly with the sense of 'future'; +cf. ll. 177-8. + +126. Here again we have the usual ridiculous contradictions; the sense +is--'being wet, I burn; without wasting, I fade.' Cf. Rom. Rose, Eng. +version, 4703-50. + +128. Thynne has (here and in ch. 6. 147, p. 132) _vnbyde_, an obvious error +for _onbyde_, i.e. abide, remain; see ch. 7. 161, 163. + +131. 'God grant (that) that thing may soon draw nigh to thee.' _Neigh_ is +here a verb, as in Bk. ii. ch. 12. 14. + +164. _that_, that which; _with nothing_, yet not so as to be constrained by +anything else. + +171. _rysinge of the sonne_, rising of the sun; this example is borrowed +from Ch. Boeth. bk. v. pr. 6. 103, 165. + +CHAP. IV. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. v. pr. 6. 157-89. + +29. _and nedeful is_, 'and it is necessary that, in order to desire (a +thing), he may also _not_ desire (it)'; otherwise, he does not make any +choice. + +30-1. The words 'But thilke ... the same to wilne' are _repeated_ in +Thynne's edition, to the destruction of the sense. + +59. _as now_, present; cf. Boeth. bk. v. pr. 6. 28-32. + +96-9. A clear case of reasoning in a circle. + +112. 'Constituisti terminos eius, qui praeteriri non poterunt'; Job, xiv. +5. + +121-6. See Rom. viii. 29, 30. _conformes_; the Vulgate has: 'Nam quos +praesciuit, et praedestinauit _conformes_ fieri imaginis Filii sui.' + +129. Cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. v. pr. 6. 35, 71-8. + +140. Cf. the same, 12-9, 28-33, &c. + +152. Referring to ll. 121-6 above. + +165. _close and one_, are closed and united; here _close_ and _one_ seem to +be verbs. + +169. _by_, with reference to. + +198-9. _no art_, in no way (?); but surely an error for _nat_, as _wrytest +nat_ is repeated in l. 200. + +206. _defendeth_, 'forbids something to be movable,' &c. + +220. Too obscure to deserve the encomium for perspicuity which follows in +ll. 222-5. + +232. _for right_, &c.; 'for nothing at all exists there (i.e. in eternity) +after the manner of that which is temporal.' + +243. _ben to ben_, are to come because of God's knowledge. + +249. _philosophical poete_; Chaucer, because he translated The Consolation +of Philosophy, and introduced passages from it into his poem of Troilus, +notably in Book iv. 963-6, 974-1078. In l. 254, Troilus is expressly +mentioned. Most likely, the allusion is to Bk. iv. 974-1078; although this +deals rather with predestination than with the origin of evil. + +257. _storiers_, gen. pl. of _storier_, a teller of a story; cf. O.F. +_historieur_, an historian (Godefroy). Thynne prints _starieres_; which +gives no sense. + +262. _two the laste_, the last two; chapters 13 and 14; but chapter 14 has +little to do with the subject. + +CHAP. V. 4. 'Or as an ook comth of a litel spyr'; Troil. ii. 1335. + +33-7. The word _welked_ occurs twice in Chaucer, C. T., C 738, D 277; and +_wiver_ once, Troil. iii. 1010. + +57. _with yvel ... acomered_, desires not to be encumbered with evil. + +63. 'Why, as soon as one has sprung up on high, does not the other spring +up also?' Here 'one' and 'the other' seem to refer to 'will' and 'bliss'; +cf. ll. 16, 17, 70, 71. + +73-6. Cf. HF. 737-46; Boeth. bk. iii. pr. 11. 98-101. + +CHAP. VI. 4-7. Imitated from Ch. Boeth. bk. i. met. 6. 5-11. + +10. _seconde boke_; cf. Book ii. ch. 11. 51-69, 102. + +12. _setling_; misprinted _setteles_; but see _setling_ in ch. 5. l. 23. + +17. He here contemplates the possibility of yielding to persecution and +threats. + +50-1. The _five wits_ are the five senses; P. Plowman, C. ii. 15, and the +note. + +60. _aptes_, natural tendencies; used here only; see New E. Dict. + +64. _terme of equivocas_, terms of like signification; _terme_ being an +error for _termes_. Answering to Lat. _uerba aequiuoca_, words of like +signification; Isidore, Orig. ii. 26 (Lewis and Short). _Equivocas_ is +formed by adding the Eng. pl. _-s_ to the Lat. neuter plural (New E. +Dict.). + +Cf. the passage in P. Plowman, where _Liberum-arbitrium_ recites his names; +C. xvii. 201. The first name, 'instrument of willing,' corresponds to +_animus_: '_dum uult, animus est_'; but the rest vary. + +68. _reson_. Compare the same passage: '_dum iudicat, racio est_.' + +73. Compare the same: '_dum recolit, memoria est_.' + +77. _affeccion_: a disposition to wish for sleep. + +90. _that lambes_, who scorn and despise lambs. + +104. Thynne has _vs_, which is a not uncommon spelling of 'use.' I merely +print 'us[e]' because _us_ looks so unintelligible. In l. 103, the word is +_usage_; in l. 110, we have _use_. + +140. _thinges_; viz. riches, honour, and power; discussed in Book ii. +chapters 5-7. + +147. _onbyde_, misprinted _unbyde_; see note above, to ch. 3. 128. + +CHAP. VII. 11. The idea of this Tree is copied from P. Plowman, C. xix. +4-14. Thus in l. 11, the ground in which the tree grows is said to be 'ful +in thyne herte'; and in P. Plowman, the tree grows in _cor-hominis_, the +heart of man. In P. Plowman, the tree is called True-love, the blossoms are +Benign-Speech (cf. l. 16), and the fruits are deeds of Charity. See note to +l. 69 below. + +38. Cf. 'As, wry the gleed, and hotter is the fyr'; Legend of Good Women, +735. + +50. _pype_; see Troil. v. 1433; C. T., A 1838 (and note). + +53. _no wode lay use_, sing no mad song. + +59. _Aristotel_. The reference appears to be to Aristotle, De +Interpretatione ([Greek: peri hermêneias]), ch. 1. _Voice_ seems to mean 'a +word unrelated to a sentence,' i.e. not related to something else as +forming part of a sentence. + +69. So in P. Plowman, C. xix. 29, the tree is attacked by three wicked +winds; especially 'in flouryng-tyme,' l. 35. + +97. _A marchaunt_; so in Chaucer, C. T., G 945-50. + +99. _So ofte_; from Ch. Troil. ii. 1380-3; note the epithet _happy_, the +use of the sb. _sweigh_ or _swaye_, and the phrase _come al at ones_, in +both passages. + +101. Cf. 'Gutta cauat lapidem'; Ovid, Ex Ponto, iv. 10. 5. + +_lethy_, weak; see Prompt. Parv., and Gloss. to P. Plowman. + +117-121. Compare Bk. iii. ch. 2. 122-9. + +123. 'Quod debuimus facere, fecimus'; Luke, xvii. 10. + +145. _al is_, it is all to be accounted to her wholly. _To wyte_ usually +has a bad sense; as implying blame. + +160. _this lady_; i.e. Heavenly Love suddenly took up its place in his +heart. This is rather inartistic; no wonder that the author was much +astonished at such a proceeding (ch. 8. 2 below). This of course puts an +end to the dialogue, but in Thynne's misarranged print the lady speaks to +him again, as if it were _out of his heart_! + +CHAP. VIII. 7. _lynes_, written lines of writing, which he imagines to be +imprinted on his understanding; see ll. 8, 13, 14 below. + +10. _me might_, one might; _me_ for _men_ = _man_, as often. + +21. _but for_, except because; so in l. 22. _wol_, desires. + +42. _owe I not alowe_, I ought not to applaud. + +46. _it make_, cause it (to be so); as in Troil. ii. 959. + +91. 'Quia Christi bonus odor sumus Deo, in iis qui salui fiunt; ... aliis +quidem odor mortis in mortem'; 2 Cor. ii. 15-6. + +120. _ne had_, had; disregarding _ne_, which is inserted after the word +_denyed_. + +123. _without ... nede_, without any kind of necessity. + +125. _him nedeth_, something is lacking to him. + +146. _forward_, thenceforward, afterwards. + +155-6. _in his owne comodité_, in what is suitable for him; _comodites_, +desires that are suitable. The examples of the word in this passage are +older than any given, s.v. _Commodity_, in the New E. Dict. Cf. ll. 159, +165. + +CHAP. IX. 7. _destenee_, destiny; cf. Ch. Boeth. bk. iv. pr. 6. 39, 44. + +12. _non inconvenient_, convenient; i.e. befitting. + +21. _chapitre_, chapter; viz. ch. 3 of Book iii. + +46. Here Thynne's text returns to the right order. + +52. The author now concludes his work with a prayer and a short +recommendation of his book to the reader. Ll. 58-61 speak of its +imperfections; ll. 61-6 tell us that the effort of writing it has done him +good. In ll. 67-75 he anticipates future freedom from anxiety, and +continuance 'in good plight.' He was then evidently unaware that his death +was near at hand. + +86. 'My dull wit is hindred by the stepmother named Forgetfulness.' A +curious expression. + +92. _horisons_, put for _orisons_, prayers. + +98. _sightful_, visible; an obvious allusion to the eucharist (l. 100). +Similarly, a gem denotes a pearl, or 'margaret'; and Margaret (a woman's +name) denotes grace, learning, or wisdom of God, or else holy church. + +104. From John, vi. 63. + +107. From 2 Cor. iii. 6. + +109, 110. Printed as prose in Thynne; but two riming verses seem to be +intended. If so, _al-le_ is dissyllabic. + +§ II. THE PLOWMAN'S TALE. + +Numerous references are given to Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, ed. Skeat +(E.E.T.S.); a poem by the same author. See the Introduction. + +9. _tabard_; a ploughman's loose frock; as in Ch. C. T., A 541. + +11. _saynt Thomas_; i.e. his shrine at Canterbury. + +30. _therwith to fynd_, to provide for thereby. + +40. _queynt_, quenched; because, in the solemn form of excommunication used +in the Romish church, a bell was tolled, the book of offices for the +purpose was used, and three candles were extinguished. See Nares, s.v. +_Bell, Book, and Candle_. Cf. ll. 165, 1241. + +44. Four lines are here lost, the stanza being incomplete. We might supply +them thus:-- + + They have the loof and we the crust, + They eten more than kinde hath craved; + They been ungentle and unjust, + With sinners shullen such be graved. + +53. _stryf_, strife. The struggle was between the secular and regular +clergy on the one hand, and the Lollards on the other; see ll. 61-76. Each +side accused the other of falseness, and the author hopes that the falser +of them may suffer shame. He evidently sides with the Lollards; but, not +caring to decide so weighty a question for himself, he contrives that the +dispute shall be carried on by two birds, the Griffin and the Pelican. + +55. _sedes_, seeds. The Lollards were accused of sowing tares (_lolia_). +The author hints that seeds were sown by _both_ of the contending parties. + +57. _some_; referring rather to the sowers than to the seeds. In any case, +it refers to the two parties. + +58. _souple_; the text has _souble_, which is an obvious error. The O.F. +_souple_ means 'humble,' which is the sense here intended. + +71. _a-cale_, chilled, frozen; cf. note to P. Plowman, C. xxi. 439; and see +the New E. Dict. + +72. _ever in oon_, always in the same condition, without increasing in +wealth. + +73. _I-cleped_, called; the old text has _Iclepeth_, but some editions make +this obvious correction. _lollers_, idle fellows; see the note to P. +Plowman, C. x. 213. + +74. 'Whoever looks on them (sees that) they are the reverse of tall.' Cf. +'a _tall_ fellow,' and 'a _tall_ man of his hands' in Shakespeare. + +81. _wro_, nook; see _wr[=a]_ in Stratmann. + +86. _Griffon_, griffin; a fabulous monster with the head and wings of an +eagle, and the hinder parts of a lion; with probable reference to the +Vulture. 'In that contre ben many _griffounes_ ... thei han the body upward +as an egle, and benethe as a lyoun.... But o griffoun is more strong thanne +.viij. lyouns'; Mandeville's Travels; ch. xxvi. See l. 1317 below. + +87. 'A Pelican laid his lure to (attracted to him) these lollers.' The +Pelican was supposed to feed its young with blood which it drew from its +own breast by wounding it, and was early considered as the type of +Christian love or Charity, or of Christ himself; see l. 1293. See the +illustration at p. 172 of Legends of the Holy Rood, ed. Morris. Hence it is +here supposed to plead on behalf of meekness, in the long passages +contained in ll. 95-716, 719-988, 991-1072, 1110-32, 1177-232, 1245-68. The +Pelican is responsible for the greater part of the poem, as the author +distinctly says in l. 1373. Anything that is amiss, we are told, must be +put down to the Pelican; the author is irresponsible, as it is only a +fable. + +106. _pelure_, costly fur; also spelt _pellour_; but _pylloure_ (as in the +old text) is a bad spelling. See Gloss. to P. Plowman. + +111. _batail_, battle. It was notorious that William Spenser, bishop of +Norwich, used to lead military expeditions. Thus he led one such expedition +into Flanders, in 1382. Cf. l. 128. + +129. 'God is not the master of them that consider no man equal to them.' + +130. _peragall_, equal; spelt 'p_er_agal' or 'p_ar_agal' in Rich. the +Redeless, i. 71. The old text has _permagall_, where the _m_ is clearly for +_in_; the spelling _peringall_ being intended. Godefroy has O.F. _parivel_, +also _parigal_, _paregal_, _perigal_, _paringal_ [with intrusive _n_], +'adj. et s., tout à fait ègal, tout à fait semblable.' From Lat. +_peraequalis_. + +135. 'Painted and adorned with colours.' Cf. 'peynt and portred'; P. Pl. +Crede, 192; 'portreid and paynt,' 121. + +139. _boystous_, rough. The O.F. _boistous_ meant 'lame' (F. _boiteux_); +but Godefroy shews, in his Supplement, that it was also applied to a very +rough road (as being likely to lame one); hence, generally, rough, and +finally, rude, noisy, as in the E. _boisterous_; a word of which the +etymology has not yet been fully accounted for, but may be thus explained. + +159. _perrey_, precious stones, jewellery; see _Perree_ in the Glossary +(vol. vi). The old text has _pyrrey_. + +162. _gown_, an obvious correction; old text, _gold_, repeated from l. 161. +For 'grene gownes,' see l. 925 below. + +178. This line seems to be corrupt. + +186. _crallit_, curled, twisted; cf. _crulle_ in Chaucer; see New E. Dict. + +187. _gold-mastling_ is a compound word, and should have been printed with +a hyphen. It means the same as _latoun_, unless _latoun_ was an imitation +of an older and richer alloy. Thus, in Wright's A.S. Vocabularies, we find: +'_Auricalcum_, goldmæslinc,' col. 334, 10; '_Auricalcum_, goldmestling,' +col. 550, 34; '_Auricalcum_, _Anglice_ latoun,' col. 567, 5. As to +_latoun_, see note in vol. v. p. 270. Cf. A.S. _mæstling_, G. _Messing_; +words of uncertain origin. + +193-4. Cf. 1 John, iv. 3. _admirall_, prince, chief. + +198. _demed_; an easy correction; old text, _done_, which will not scan. + +201. _All-holyest_, i.e. _Sanctissimus_ (l. 230); a title given to the head +of a religious order. + +208. 'The very thing which Christ forbad to the apostles.' + +212. 'They regard him (the pope) as wholly omnipotent.' + +213-6. _He_, the Pope. _another_, (apparently) a head of a religious order, +an abbot or prior. _mystere_, ministry, office. + +220. 'He reserves nothing at all'; _opin_, open, a thing that is free; +_joint_, a thing that is connected. + +226. _An angell_; see Rev. xxii. 9. + +235. Read _Christ his_; 'Christ keep his people from them'; the printer +evidently regarded _Christ his_ as a form of the genitive case. The proper +sense of _wisse_ is guide, or direct. + +242. _which of hem_, which of the two popes. The rival popes were Boniface +IX, elected Nov. 2, 1389, and Benedict XIII, elected Sept. 28, 1394. +Clement VIII, predecessor of the latter, died Sept. 16, 1394. + +245. 'Omnes enim, qui acceperint gladium, gladio peribunt'; Matt. xxvi. 52. + +255. Swearing was a dismembering of Christ; see note to C. T., C 474 (vol. +v. p. 275). + +264. 'But curse all that oppose them.' + +275. 'But he, who so acquires it, shall part from it.' + +281. _rent_, income, profit; the method of doing this is explained in The +Freres Tale, D 1371-4. + +282. 'They anoint the sheep's sore'; as a shepherd does with tar; see +_Tar-box_ in Halliwell; and cf. l. 707. + +298. _Maximien_; Galerius Valerius Maximianus, usually called Galerius; +emperor of Rome, 305-11; a cruel persecutor of the Christians. + +297. 'They follow Christ (who went upward) to heaven, just as a bucket +(that goes downward) into a well.' Said ironically; their ascent towards +heaven is in a downward direction; cf. l. 402. _wall_ for 'well' is rare, +but not unexampled; cf. _walle-stream_, well-stream, in Layamon, vol. i. p. +121, and see _walle_ in Stratmann. + +305. 'The truth has (often) slain such men.' + +306. 'They comb their "crockets" with a crystal comb.' A _crocket_ was a +curl or roll of hair, as formerly worn; see the New E. Dict. There is a +lost romance entitled 'King Adelstane with gilden kroket'; see footnote to +Havelok, ed. Skeat, p. vi. Sir F. Madden remarks that 'the term _crocket_ +points out the period [i.e. the earliest possible date] of the poem's +composition, since the fashion of wearing those large rolls of hair so +called, only arose at the latter end of the reign of Henry III.' + +321. Cf. 'turpis lucri'; Tit. i. 7, 11; 1 Pet. v. 2. + +322. _meynall_, perhaps better spelt _meyneall_. It is the adj. formed from +M.E. _meynee_, a household, and is the same word as mod. E. _menial_. +Wyclif uses _meyneal_ to translate Lat. _domesticam_ in Rom. xvi. 5. The +sense here is--the exaction of tithes is, with these masters, a household +business, a part of their usual domestic arrangements. + +325. Lit. 'They betake to farm to their sumners,' i.e. they farm out to +their sumners the power of harming people as much as they can; they let +their sumners make exactions. The method of doing this is fully exposed in +Chaucer's Freres Tale. Cf. ll. 328, 725. + +333. 'Such rascals are sure to slander men, in order to induce them to win +their favour'; i.e. by compounding. + +338. _call_, caul or head-dress, richly ornamented, and therefore +expensive; see note to C. T., D 1018 (vol. v. p. 318). + +375. 'Or, to commit such a tool (instrument) to such cursed men.' + +402. 'As good a bishop as is my horse Ball.' Said ironically; 'no better a +bishop than,' &c. Ball was, and still is, a very common name for a horse. + +406. _nothing_, not at all, not a whit. + +410. Old text, _one fors_, with _s_ attached to the wrong word. + +417-8. _goodes_, property. _somme totall_, sum total of wealth. + +421, 431. _for Christes love_, for love of Christ. The words _forsake_ in +l. 421, and _wake_ in l. 431, are used ironically. + +434. _Lamuall_, Lemuel; who was a king; Prov. xxxi. 1. + +443. _the stoon_, the rock; Matt. xvi. 18; cf. 1 Cor. x. 4. + +445. _croysery_, crusade, as in Rob. of Glouc. 9938. No serious crusade was +intended at this time; however, the author affirms that the rival popes +discouraged the idea; for each wanted men to fight for him. + +464. _hye seet_, sat aloft; the form _seet_ occurs in Ch. C. T., A 2075. + +471. _fettes_, fetch; observe the use of this Northern plural. + +473. 'Their servants are unfaithful [or unserviceable] to them unless they +can double their rental.' + +477. The author can find no more rimes to rime with _fall_, so he proceeds +to 'shew' or propose another word, viz. _amend_. + +487. 'They tell men nothing, nor (explain) how; yet, in God's word, they +tell of (or count) many a slip, or omission,' i.e. find errors in the +Scriptures. See _Balk_ in the New E. Dict. + +490. _offrend_; O.F. _offrende_; cf. '_Offrande_, an offering'; Cotgrave. + +520. Read _punishëments_, as in the old edition; it is a word of four +syllables; from O.F. _punissement_ (Godefroy), which often appears in verse +as a word of four syllables. + +531. 'They hate guests of the poor,' i.e. hate to entertain them; cf. l. +747. + +542. _careckes_, characters, signs, marks; see the New E. Dict. + +567. 'One, to curse to hell; the other, to slay men here (on earth)'; cf. +Luke, xxii. 38. + +575. 'A sword is no implement to guard sheep with, except for shepherds +that would devour the sheep.' In later English, at any rate, a +_sheep-biter_ meant a thief (Halliwell). Cf. l. 583. + +594. _untrend_, unrolled; not rolled up, but freshly pulled off. + +605. _Sathan_, Satan; Heb. _s[=a]t[=a]n_, adversary, opponent. + +610. Read _reprende_; cf. _comprende_ in Chaucer. + +625. _ensyse_, variant of _assyse_, fashion, sort; 'they are, surely, of +the same sort.' See _Assize_, sect. 8, in the New E. Dict. Bailey gives: +'_Ensise_, quality, stamp; _Old word_'; with reference, doubtless, to this +very line. Cf. _assyse_, fashion, manner, in l. 843 below. + +626. _frend_, evidently put for _fremde_, strange, foreign, averse; which +was difficult to pronounce. + +633. Read _maundements_, i.e. commandments (trisyllabic). The form +_commaundementes_ is too long for the line. See _mandement_ in Stratmann +and in Chaucer. + +642. _to prison_. Evidently written before 1401, when Lollards were +frequently sent to the stake for heresy. Cf. l. 650; and see note to l. +827. + +645. 'The king's law will judge no man angrily, without allowing the +accused to answer.' + +661. _testament_, a will; the friars had much to do with the making of +wills. + +681. 'For they (the people) are faster in their bonds, worse beaten, and +more bitterly burnt than is known to the king.' For the word _brent_, see +note to l. 827. + +693. _The emperour_; Constantine, according to a legend which the Lollards +loved to repeat; see the full note to P. Plowman, C. xviii. 220. + +695. _sely kyme_, innocent (or silly) wretch. _Kyme_ answers to an A.S. +_*c[=y]ma_ = _*k[=u]m-ja_, lit. 'one who laments,' from the verb found in +O.H.G. _k[=u]mjan_, to lament, _ch[=u]-mo_, a lament; cf. Gk. [Greek: +goos], wailing; Skt. _gu_, to sound. See O.H.G. _c[=u]m_, _c[=u]mjan_ in +Schade; and the Idg. root _gu_, in Fick. + +723. 'A title of dignity, to be as a play-mate to them'; a curious +expression. Godefroy gives O.F. '_personage_, s.m., dignité, bénéfice +ecclésiastique; en particulier personnat, dignité ecclésiastique qui +donnait quelque prééminence au _chanoine_ qui en était revêtu dans le +chapitre auquel il appartenait.' Cotgrave has: '_Personat_, a place, or +title of honour, enjoyed by a beneficed person, without any manner of +jurisdiction, in the church.' + +724. Possibly copied from P. Plowman, B. prol. 92:--'Somme serven the king, +and his silver tellen.' These ecclesiastics often busied themselves in the +law-courts, to their great profit. Cf. l. 790. + +725. 'And let out to farm all that business.' + +743. _builde_; so in P. Pl. Crede, 118: 'For we buldeth a burwgh, a brod +and a large.' Cf. Wyclif's Works, ed. Arnold, iii. 380. + +748. 'Nor (will they) send anything to Him who hath given them everything.' + +759. _gigges_, concubines; see Stratmann. Roquefort has: '_Gigues_, fille +gaie, vive.' Cf. _giglot_ in Shakespeare. (Initial _g_ is here sounded as +_j_.) + +760. 'And provide them with fine clothes.' + +773. Here all the 'seven sins' are mentioned except gluttony. + +780. 'The wisdom of such willers is not worth a needle.' + +791. _jay_; so also in Chaucer, C. T., A 642. + +801. _maynteyners_, abettors of wrongdoers; see note to P. Plowman, B. iii. +90. + +827. _brent_, burnt; still more strongly put in l. 1234. That heretics were +sometimes burnt before 1401, is certain from Wyclif's Sermons, ed. Arnold, +vol. i. pp. x, 205, as compared with p. 354. There is a case given in +Bracton of a man who was burnt as early as in the reign of Henry III. See +the whole subject discussed in my edition of P. Plowman (E. E. T. S.), in +the Pref. to B-text, p. v, Pref. to C-text, pp. xi-xiv, and the note to B. +xv. 81, where Langland has 'ledeth me to brennynge.' Observe that the king +is here spoken of as not presuming to burn heretics. + +855. The seven sacraments of the Romish church; cf. l. 875. + +856. Compare--'And also y sey coveitise _catel to fongen_'; P. Pl. Crede, +146. + +857. 'They want to meddle in everything, and to perform matters amiss is +their amusement.' + +868. _sturte_, variant of _sterte_, start up; _stryve_, struggle. + +870. _at the nale_ = _at then ale_, at the ale-house; cf. note to P. +Plowman, C. i. 43. + +871. Cf. 'At marketts and miracles we medleth us nevere'; P. Pl. Crede, +107. + +872. 'They dance and hoot with the cry of "heave and hale."' _Heave_ is +here to use exertion; cf. Troil. ii. 1289; and _hale_ is to haul or pull. +_Heave and hale_, or _heave and hoe_, was a cry used for men to pull all +together; hence _with heve and hale_ just corresponds to the modern 'with +might and main.' Cotgrave has (s.v. _Cor_) the phrase: '_À cor et à cry_, +by proclamation; also, by might and maine, with heave and hoe, eagerly, +vehemently, seriously.' + +878. _they_, i.e. the husbands; _sory_, aggrieved. + +880. _For_, for fear of being summoned. + +893. _stocke_, i.e. some image of a saint. An image of a favourite saint +was honoured with many candles burning before it; whilst other saints were +left in the dark, because they could work no miracles. The most favourite +image was that of Mary; see l. 902, and cf. P. Pl. Crede, 79. + +915. 'And alle povere in gost god himself blisseth'; P. Pl. Crede, 521. + +918. _Baudriks_, belts; _baselardes_, short swords, sometimes curved. See +note to P. Plowman, C. iv. 461. + +927. _counten ... of gownes_, they think much (_counten_) of scarlet and +green gowns, that must be made in the latest fashion, in order to embrace +and kiss the damsels. An awkward sentence. + +929. _sewe_, sue, suit, lit. follow; unless it be for _schewe_, i.e. shew. + +930. _pykes_, peaks. Long-peaked shoes were much in fashion; cf. note to P. +Plowman, C. xxiii. 219. + +941. 'Such men will ask them (i.e. those that confess to them) for money +for shriving them.' _is_ = _es_, them; a curious form of the plural pronoun +of the third person; see _es_ in Stratmann. + +942. 'And they desire men to creep to the cross.' 'Creeping to the cross' +was an old ceremony of penance, most practised on Good Friday; see note to +P. Plowman, C. xxi. 475. + +943. _askes_, ashes; alluding to the sacrament of penance. For all other +sacraments (as baptism, confirmation, holy orders, the eucharist, +matrimony, and extreme unction) men had to pay. + +955. _sans ... dyre_, without (saying) 'if I may say so.' That is, _ose je +dyre_, (dare I say it) is an apologetic phrase for introducing an +unpalatable remark. + +957. 'Either they give the bishops (some reason) why.' + +961. _agryse_, dread, here used in an imperative sense; 'let such men dread +God's anger.' Cf. ll. 964, 1216. + +979. _for he_, because he would fain earn something. + +993. _Benet_, Benedict; cf. Ch. C. T., A 173, and note. + +1002. Cf. 'Of double worstede y-dight'; P. Pl. Crede, 228. + +1035. Compare--'And his syre a soutere' (cobbler); P. Pl. Crede, 752. + +1042-4. _honged_, hung upon, followed after. Cf. 'opon the plow hongen,' P. +Pl. Crede, 421. And compare also the same, 784-8. + +1050. The line is imperfect. I have supplied _but_, but the right word is +_not_. For _cherelich_ means 'expensive' or 'prodigal,' from O.F. _cher_, +dear. This we know from the occurrence of the same rare form as an adverb +in P. Pl. Crede, 582; where the sense is--'but to maintain his chamber as +expensively (_chereliche_) as a chieftain.' See _cherely_ in the New E. +Dict. The parallel phrase _not lordlych_ occurs in l. 1052. + +1066. _Crede_, i.e. Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, written shortly before by +the same author, and describing at length the four orders of friars. + +1089. _sad_, sated, tired. The more usual old sense was 'staid.' + +1097. 'If they were poor, filthy, and dirty.' + +1102. _honest_, honourable, worthy of respect; cf. l. 1105. + +1115. _Maysters_, masters; Matt. xxiii. 10. Cf. P. Pl. Crede, 574-6, 838; +and C. T., D 2185, and the note (vol. v. p. 340). + +1135. Read _leve_, not _lyve_; _with hir leve_, with what is permitted to +them. For _leve_ (leave), see l. 1238. + +1153. _For ye woll_, because you wish to. + +1166. _distaunce_, disagreement, strife; see Mätzner. + +1174. 'Why do ye meddle, who have nothing to do with it?' + +1189. _lette_, to prevent men from living in that way. + +1193. _soule-hele_, salvation for the soul. + +1200. Pronounce _this is_ as _this_. + +1212. _Wedding_, matrimony; considered as a sacrament. + +1222. 'subject or accident'; cf. note to C. T., C 539. + +1231. The line should end with a semicolon. + +1244. 'Unless ye will act otherwise.' + +1271. _cockes_, euphemistic for _goddes_. + +1272. _doule_, small feather, down-feather. I derive it from O.F. _doulle_, +variant of _douille_, soft, something soft, from Lat. _ductilis_. Hence it +meant something downy, and, in particular, the 'down-feather' of a bird. +This is clearly the sense in Shakespeare also, where Ariel uses the +expression--'one _dowle_ that's in my plume'; Temp. iii. 3. 65; i.e. one +down-feather (small feather) that is in my plumage. Dr. Schmidt is in doubt +whether _plume_ here means 'plumage,' but the stage-direction expressly +says that 'Ariel enters like a harpy, and claps his _wings_ upon the +table.' It is very interesting to see how well this passage illustrates +Shakespeare. See Mr. Wright's note for other passages where _dowl_ means +'soft down.' Of course, the words _dowl_ and _down_ are in no way +connected. See my note in Phil. Soc. Trans. 1888-90, p. 3. + +1280. _God wolde_, i.e. oh! that it might be God's will. Cf. _would God_, +Numb. xi. 29; Deut. xxviii. 67; 2 Kings, v. 3; Rich. II, iv. 1. 117. + +1293. Christ was likened to the pelican; see note to l. 87. + +1305. _The foul_, the former or _bird_-like part of the griffin; see note +to l. 86, and cf. l. 1317. + +1315. 'Because bribery may break God's prohibition.' + +1317. Referring to the form of the griffin; see notes to ll. 86, 1305. + +1336. _Y-gurd_, lit. girt; hence, prepared, ready. + +1339. _ly_, lie, i.e. deceive; because the lapwing tries to delude those +who search for its nest. + +1340. _for-gerd_, destroyed, utterly done away with; from M.E. _for-garen_. + +1343. _the Phenix_. The Phoenix is here supposed, as being an unique bird, +to be the king or master of all birds, and to execute vengeance on +evil-doers. + +1359. The sense of _of_ is here uncertain. Perhaps _of flight_ means 'as +regards my flight,' and so 'to protect my flight.' + +1361. This line is somewhat 'set back,' as in the original. But there seems +to be no reason for it. + +1362. The original has: 'And the lambe that slayn was'; imperfect. + +1367. Here the author speaks for himself, and excuses the Pelican's +language. + +§ III. JACK UPLAND. + +To this piece, which is an attack upon the friars, a reply was made by one +of them (probably a Dominican, see notes to ll. 100, 130), which is printed +at length in Wright's Political Poems and Songs (Record Series), vol. ii. +pp. 39-114; together with a rejoinder by Jack Upland, printed on the same +pages. The friar's reply is often cited in the Notes below, where the +number refers to the page of the above-named volume. See further in the +Introduction. + +1. _Jack Uplande_, Jack the Countryman, a nickname for one who is supposed +to have had but little education; cf. the _Plowman's_ Tale. + +6. _fellest folk_, the wickedest people; referring to the friars. + +7. The friar's reply copies several of these expressions: thus we +find--'_On wounder wise_, seith Jak, freres, ye ben growun'; p. 42. + +8. '_sowen_ in youre sectes of _Anticristis_ hondes'; p. 42. + +9. _not obedient_; 'unboxom _to bishopis_, not _lege men to kynges_'; p. +42. The friar asserts that they _do_ obey the bishops; but carefully +adds--'although not so fer forth as seculer preestes'; p. 44. + +11. '_wede, corn, ne gras_, wil ye not hewen'; p. 42; repeated on p. 44. +The friar retorts that they are not expected to cleanse ditches, like a +Jack Upland; p. 44. We thus learn that _woode_ in l. 11 is almost certainly +an error for _weede_. + +15. _where to been_, where they will (hereafter) go to. + +21. See 1 Cor. xiii. 1-3. + +27. _skilfully_, reasonably; _skill_ often has the sense of reason. + +28. The friar evades the question as to the number of orders, and replies +that he is of Christ's order; pp. 59-61. + +35. Reply: St. James makes mention of two kinds of life, the active and the +contemplative; we belong to the latter; pp. 63-6. + +37. _apostata_, apostate; a term applied to a friar who left his order (see +l. 42) _after_ his year of probation had been completed, or else (see l. +42) after a probation of three months. See ll. 273-5, and 310-2 below; and +the note to P. Plowman, C. ii. 98 (B. i. 104). The question here put was +not answered. + +40-1. Reply: it is shocking to speak of men leaving their wives like this; +we are not wedded to our habit any more than a priest is to his tonsure; p. +67. + +44. Reply: no. We are only punished for leaving off our habits because it +implies forsaking of our rule. Our habits are not sendal, nor satin nor +golden; pp. 67-8. + +50. Reply: what, Jack, does your tippet mean? My wide cope signifies +charity. My hood, patience in adversity. The scapulary denotes obedience to +our superiors. As for the knotted girdle, ask the Franciscans; pp. 68-71. + +52. Reply: Why do most of the Lollards wear gray clothes? p. 71. + +58. No reply to this question. + +60. Reply: see Eccles. iii. 7; Prov. xxv. 28; p. 71. + +62. Reply: a question rather for monks than friars. Why do you not put your +dining-table in your cow-house? p. 72. + +65. Reply: perhaps some of us go to Rome for dispensations, but most of us +have need to stay at home, to keep watch over Lollards; p. 73. + +70. Reply: you have forgotten the text, 2 Cor. vi. 9; p. 74. + +74. Reply: Christ, at His transfiguration, had only three witnesses from +among His apostles. And He chose only twelve apostles, out of His many +followers; and see Prov. xii. 15; p. 75. + +77. Reply: a man is better than a beast; yet even for your beasts you make +cattle-sheds and stables. Our houses are often poor ones. Did you ever see +any that resembled the Tower, or Windsor Castle, or Woodstock? Your lies +are shameless; pp. 77-8. I note here Jack Upland's rejoinder; he says that +he does not object to the friars having houses, but he objects to the +needless grandeur of them; for it does not follow that a man who drinks a +quart of wine must therefore proceed to drink a gallon; p. 76. + +83. Reply: you say that we let the whole realm to farm. Why, it is not ours +at all! It belongs to the king. We have no more estate in the country than +you have in heaven; pp. 78-9. The incompleteness of this reply is amazing. + +86. The original reading must have been different here. The friar puts the +question thus: Why do you pay no tribute to the king, whereas Christ paid +tribute to the emperor? Reply: Christ did not pay it as a debt, but only to +perform the law in meekness. The Jewish priests did not pay taxes like the +commons. Priests may pay if they are willing, but not friars; pp. 79, 80. + +90. Reply: we are glad to have the prayers of the poor, if their letters of +fraternity are genuine; but we do not desire _your_ paternosters; p. 80. + +92. Reply: we do not make men more perfect than their baptism makes them; +p. 81. + +95. Reply: the golden trental, 'that now is purchasid of preestis out of +freris hondis,' delivers no soul, except as it is deserved; p. 81. See note +to Ch. C. T., D 1717 (vol. v. p. 331). + +100. Reply: you are quite mistaken. Perhaps some Carmelite told you this, +or some Franciscan. The Austin friars and the Dominicans do not say so; p. +82. + +105. Reply: if you accuse us of stealing children, Christ practically did +the same, by enticing disciples to follow him. See Matt. xix. 21; Luke, +xiv. 33; John, xv. 19. To win souls is no robbery; pp. 83-4. + +109. _undernime_, reprove. Reply: according to you, not even the king +should maintain any discipline. The pope has a prison; and so has the +bishop of Canterbury, and the bishop of London. But you do not like +prisons, for you often experience them; pp. 85-6. + +114. Reply: burial is _not_ a sacrament, as you say. You contradict +yourself; p. 86. + +116. Reply: if, as you say, we never shrive the poor, why are +parish-priests so angry with us for doing so? p. 87. Cf. note to P. +Plowman, C. xiii. 21. Questions 26, 27, and 28 are passed over. + +127. Reply: we do right to live of the gospel; see 1 Cor. ix. 14; Luke, x. +7; Rom. xv. 26. + +130. Reply: God knows how much good the preaching of the friars has +wrought; p. 89. The Dominicans especially were proud of their preaching. + +133. The friar here remarks that the Wycliffites are heretics, and ought to +be burnt; p. 90. The same remark is all the answer made to question 32. + +141. Reply: the friars do not _sell_ the mass; they only freely give it to +those who freely give to them. Even if we did sell it, surely the +parish-priests receive money for the same; this is not simony; pp. 93-5. +See note to Ch. C. T., D 1749; vol. v. p. 333. + +149. Reply: we write down the names only to help our _own_ memories; for +special prayers are very profitable for souls; pp. 99, 100. See note to Ch. +C. T., D 1741; vol. v. p. 332. + +153. _berest god in honde_, accusest Christ. Reply: Christ was lord of all +spiritually; but, as a man, he was needy. David says of Him, 'I am poor and +needy, yet the Lord thinketh upon me'; Ps. xl. 17. I refer you to Matt. +viii. 20; pp. 95-8. + +156. No special answer is given to questions 36-9. + +187. Reply: you expect your servant to call you 'master.' It is not the +being called 'master,' but ambition, that Christ forbids; pp. 100-1. Cf. +note to Ch. C. T., D 2185; vol. v. p. 340. + +189. The reply is singular, to the effect that pope John XXIV wrote against +this matter, and the friars Minors (Franciscans) against him. 'Examyne her +actis, and loke who hath the beter; and knowe noon other ordre this +perfitnesse approveth'; p. 101. + +208. There is no reply to question 42. + +211. Reply; going two and two together is a scriptural custom. Barnabas and +Paul did so. So did Paul and Timothy. Besides, there were _two_ tables in +the law, _two_ cherubim in the temple, and _two_ in the tabernacle. It was +not good for Adam to be _alone_; pp. 101-3. Cf. note to P. Plowman, C. xi. +8; and to Chaucer, C. T., C 1740. + +213. There seems to be no reply to questions 44-8. + +246. As regards question 49, the friar replies to ll. 249-51, saying that, +according to this, no one could pray for any one; for we cannot tell his +future destiny; p. 103. Cf. note to Ch. C. T., D 2126; vol. v. p. 339. + +258. Questions 50 and 51 do not seem to be noticed. Question 52 is partly +answered in the reply to question 22. See l. 105. + +277. Reply: you admit (l. 283) that God made _all things_ according to +weight, number, and measure. But a friar is _something_; ergo, God made +friars according to weight, &c. Why are priests so numerous? As to a man's +hand (l. 287), the number of fingers is fixed, and an extra finger is +monstrous. But neither God nor holy church have fixed the number of priests +or friars. 'Many hondis togider maken light werk'; pp. 105-6. Cf. note to +P. Plowman, C. xxiii. 270. + +At this point the friar introduces a subject not discussed in the copy of +Jack Upland here printed, viz. the subject of transubstantiation. He says +that Jack accuses the friars of saying that the bread is not Christ's body, +but mere roundness and whiteness, and accident without subject; and Wyclif +is adduced as saying that it remains material bread, and only Christ's body +in a figurative sense; pp. 106-10. The rest of the friar's reply (which +goes but little further) is inapplicable to our text, so that the latter +part of the treatise, ll. 294-end, is left unanswered. Perhaps sections +54-64 were, at first, a somewhat later addition. + +296. This has been partly said before; see l. 77 above. + +310. It was thought that to die in a friar's habit increased a man's chance +of salvation; see l. 100 above. + +320. Cf. note to P. Plowman, C. xiii. 21. See l. 246 above. + +336. Cf. P. Plowman, C. xxiii. 323-72. + +368. This enquiry takes up a large portion of the Ploughman's Crede. The +jealousy of one order against the other was very remarkable. See note to l. +100 above. + +399. See James, i. 27; cf. l. 36 above. + +411. See Matt. xi. 30. Wyclif has--'For my yok is _softe_, and my charge +light.' + +421. The Franciscans claimed that St. Francis sat in heaven above the +Seraphim, upon the throne from which Lucifer fell; see note to P. Plowman, +C. ii. 105 (B. i. 105). + +424-7. Evidently intended for four alliterative lines, but the third is too +long; read--'And whan ye han soiled that I saide,' &c. Again, the first is +too short; read--'Go, _frere_, now forth,' &c. + +430. _even-Christen_, fellow-Christian; see Gloss. to P. Plowman. + +433. 'Benefac humili, et non dederis impio: prohibe panes illi dari, ne in +ipsis potentior te sit'; Ecclus. xii. 6. + +§ IV. GOWER: THE PRAISE OF PEACE. + +This piece has no English title except that printed at p. 205; for the +Latin title, see p. 216. See the Introduction. + +12, 13. Henry founded his title on conquest, hereditary right, and +election. The first of these is referred to in ll. 9, 10; the second, in l. +12; and the third, in l. 13. See note in vol. i. p. 564, to XIX. 23. + +17. _boun_, ready; better than the reading _bounde_. + +21. I note here an unimportant variation. For _this is_, the MS. has _is +this_. + +27. I find that there is no need to insert _the_. Read _requeste_, in three +syllables, as it really had a final _e_, being a feminine substantive. Cf. +'Et lor _requestë_ refaison'; Rom. Rose, 4767. _Requeste_ is trisyllabic in +Troil. iv. 57; L. Good Wom. 448. + +36. According to the romance of Alexander, the god Serapis, appearing in a +dream, told him that his great deeds would be remembered for ever. Before +this, Alexander had told his men that he hoped to conquer all the +earth--'with the graunt of my god.' See Wars of Alexander, ed. Skeat, ll. +990, 1095. + +57. This obviously refers to Bolingbroke's invasion, when he came, as he +said, to claim his inheritance; cf. l. 65. + +81. _Of pestilence_, out of pestilence, to free him from pestilence. + +86. _lyf_, person, man; lit. 'living soul.' Common in P. Plowman. + +174, 179. Matt. v. 9; John, xiv. 27. + +185. _out of herre_, out of (off) the hinge; like mod. E. 'out of joint.' A +favourite phrase of Gower's; see his Conf. Amant. ii. 139; iii. 43, 52, +203, 211. + +197. Knights were expected to defend the faith; see note to P. Plowman, C. +ix. 26. Cf. ll. 243-5. + +202. I supply _alday_ (i.e. continually) to complete the line. + +204. _wayted_, watched, carefully guarded; in contrast to l. 207. + +211. For _any_ perhaps read _a_; the line runs badly. + +218. 'It is easier to keep a thing than acquire it.' + +236. _assysed_, appointed; as in Conf. Amant. i. 181; iii. 228. + +251. 'Let men be armed to fight against the Saracens.' + +253. Three points; stated in ll. 254, 261-2, and 268; i.e. the church is +divided; Christian nations are at variance; and the heathen threaten us. + +281-3. These are the nine worthies; of whom three were heathen (281), three +Jewish (282), and three Christian (283); as noted in Reliquiæ Antiquæ, i. +287. Sometimes they varied; thus Shakespeare introduces Hercules and Pompey +among the number; L. L. L. v. 2. 538. _Machabeus_, Judas Maccabeus. +_Godfray_, Godfrey of Bouillon. _Arthus_, King Arthur. + +294. For _men_, MS. T. has _pes_ = _pees_; which perhaps is better. + +295. For _tennes_, as in Thynne, the Trentham MS. has the older spelling +_tenetz_, which gives the etymology of 'tennis.' _Tenetz_ is the imperative +plural of the verb _tenir_, and must have been a cry frequently used in the +_jeu de paume_; probably it was used to call attention, like the modern +'play!' This is the earliest passage in which the word occurs. 'No one can +tell whether he will win or lose a "chace" at tennis, till the ball has run +its course.' _Chace_ is a term 'applied to the second impact on the floor +(or in a gallery) of a ball which the opponent has failed or declined to +return; the value of which is determined by the nearness of the spot of +impact to the end wall. If the opponent, on both sides being changed, can +"better" this stroke (i.e. cause his ball to rebound nearer the wall) he +wins and scores it; if not, it is scored by the first player; until it is +so decided, the "chace" is a stroke in abeyance'; New E. Dict. + +306. _be gete_, begotten, be obtained; _begete_ gives no sense. + +323. _lyf_, life; not as in l. 86. See 1 Cor. xiii. 1. + +330. _Cassodore_, Cassiodorus. Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus, born about A.D. +468, was a statesman and author; his chief work being his _Variarum +Epistolarum Libri XII_, which is six times quoted in Chaucer's Tale of +Melibeus. Gower, in his Conf. Amantis, iii. 191, quotes this very passage +again; thus-- + + 'Cassiodore in his aprise telleth, + The regne is sauf, where pitè dwelleth.' + +I find: 'Pietas est quae regit et celos'; Cass. _Var._ xi. 40. + +332. _assysed_, fixed, set; cf. l. 236. Unless it means assessed, rated; a +sense which is also found in Gower, viz. in his Conf. Amant. i. 5; see the +New E. Dict. The passage is a little obscure. + +336. 'On account of which mercy should turn aside.' + +339. _Constantyn_, Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from A.D. 306 to +337. Eusebius wrote a life of him in four books, which is rather a +panegyric than a biography. The story here told is hardly consistent with +the facts, as Constantine caused the death of his own son Crispus and of +young Licinius; as to which Gibbon (c. xviii) remarks that 'the courtly +bishop, who has celebrated in an elaborate work the virtues and pieties of +his hero, observes a prudent silence on the subject of these tragic +events.' In his Conf. Amantis, iii. 192, Gower again says:-- + + 'Thus saide whylom Constantyn:-- + What emperour that is enclyn + To pitè for to be servaunt, + Of al the worldes remenaunt + He is worthy to ben a lord.' + +But the particular story about the 'yonge children' to which Gower here +alludes is given at length in the Conf. Amantis, bk. ii. vol. i. pp. +266-77. Very briefly, it comes to this. Constantine, while still a heathen, +was afflicted with leprosy. The physicians said he could only be healed by +bathing in the blood of young children. On due reflection, he preferred to +retain his leprosy; whereupon, he was directed in a vision to apply to pope +Silvester, who converted him and baptised him; and he was cured of his +leprosy when immersed in the baptismal font. The whole city followed the +emperor's example, and was converted to Christianity. This explains ll. +354-5:--'so that the dear ones, (converted) from being the hateful ones who +had formerly been at enmity with Christ,' &c. + +363. For _debated_, MS. T. has _deleated_, for _delated_, i.e. deferred; +see _Dilate_ in the New E. Dict. + +380. 'these other Christian princes'; viz. in particular, Charles VI, king +of France, and Robert III, king of Scotland. + +393. These interesting lines tell us that blindness befell the poet in the +first year of Henry IV (Sept. 30, 1399--Sept. 29, 1400); and we gather that +the present poem was meant to be his last. As a matter of fact, he wrote a +still later couplet in the following words:-- + + 'Henrici regis annus fuit ille secundus + Scribere dum cesso, sum quia cecus ego.' + +These lines occur in MSS. of his Vox Clamantis; see Morley, Eng. Writers, +iv. 157. Notwithstanding his infirmity, Gower survived till the autumn of +1408; and was interred, as is well known, in the church of St. Mary +Overies--now St. Saviour's--in Southwark, towards the rebuilding of which +he had liberally contributed. + +It appears that negotiations for peace, both with Scotland and France, were +being prosecuted in the latter part of 1399; see Wylie, History of Henry +IV, i. 82, 86. It is also probable that Gower must have written the 'Praise +of Peace' before the death of Richard II in Feb. 1400, as he makes no +allusion to that event, nor to the dangerous conspiracy against Henry's +life in the early part of January. For these reasons, we may safely date +the poem in the end of the year 1399. + +§ V. THOMAS HOCCLEVE: THE LETTER OF CUPID. + +This poem is imitated, rather than translated, from the French poem +entitled L'Epistre au Dieu d'Amours, written by Christine de Pisan in May, +1399; printed in Oeuvres Poétiques de Christine de Pisan, publiées par +Maurice Roy, ii. 1-27; Société des Anciens Textes Français, 1891. Hoccleve +even rearranges some of the material; and Dr. Furnivall has printed all the +lines of the original of which the English poet has made use, in the Notes +to his edition of Hoccleve's Works, published for the Early English Text +Society, in 1892. It thus appears that the lines of Christine's poem are to +be taken in the following order: 1-116, 537-54, 126-30, 531-4, 131-96, +721-5, 259-520, 321-5, 271-4, 387-460, 643-77, 608-23, 559-75, 759-800. The +following stanzas, on the other hand, are wholly Hoccleve's own: 71-7, +92-8, 127-33, 141-7, 162-8, 176-89, 267-73, 316-29, 379-434. The last set +extends to 56 lines. + +Cupid, god of Love, is supposed to write a letter to all lovers, who are +his subjects, reproving men for their slander and ill-treatment of women, +and defending women against all that is alleged against them. In fact, it +is a reply, by Christine de Pisan, to the numerous severe things that Jean +de Meun had said about women in the famous Roman de la Rose. He is +expressly mentioned by name in l. 281. + +I here quote, as a specimen, the first 7 lines of the original, answering +to Hoccleve's first stanza-- + + 'Cupido, roy par la grace de lui, + Dieu des amans, sans aide de nullui, + Regnant en l'air du ciel tres reluisant, + Filz de Venus la deesse poissant, + Sire d'amours et de tous ses obgiez, + A tous vos vrais loiaulx servans subgiez, + Salut, Amour, Familiarite!' + +5. 'Son of the goddess Cithera,' i.e. Venus. Cithera is an alternative +spelling of Citherea, occurring in the Cambridge and Petworth MSS. of the +Cant. Tales, A 2215. For the construction, see note to Ch. C. T., F 209. + +16. _Albion_. Of course Hoccleve has adapted the poem for English readers. +The original has:--'Sur tous païs se complaignent de _France_.' + +28. I read _mot_ for the sake of the grammar and scansion; the MSS. have +_most_, bad spelling for _most-e_, the past tense. But _moot_ occurs, +correctly, as the emphatic form of _mot_, in l. 35. Cf. l. 410. + +30. _As doth_, pray, do; a common idiom; see note to C. T., E 7. + +37. _man_, i.e. 'human being'; used generally, and including women. + +38. 'When no word can proceed out of his mouth but such as may reasonably +please any one, it apparently comes from the heart.' + +50. 'Has the pot by the handle'; i.e. holds it securely. + +54. Note the accentuation: 'Aný womán.' This accentuation of words on the +latter syllable in rather unlikely cases, is a marked peculiarity of +Hoccleve's verse. Cf. _womán_ in l. 79, _journéy_ in l. 106; _axíng_ in l. +122, _purpós_ in l. 130. Cf. _wommán_ in l. 170 with _wómman_ in l. 174. + +71. _To here?_ to her? Dr. Furnivall notes that Hoccleve frequently makes +_here_ dissyllabic, when it represents the personal pronoun. Cf. l. 70; and +see his Preface, p. xli. The reading 'To hir name yet was yt no reprefe,' +given in Dr. Furnivall's edition from one MS. only, affords no sense, and +will not scan, as _name_ is properly dissyllabic. + +90. _souneth in-to_, tends to; cf. note to C. T., B 3157. + +95. 'They procure such assistants as have a double face.' The accentuation +of _prócuren_ on the _o_ was at this time common; we even find the form +_proker_ (see Stratmann). + +120-2. _wolde ... Men wiste_, would like men to know. + +131. 'Unless he be so far advanced in madness as to spoil all with open +coarseness; for _that_, as I suppose, women do not like.' + +145. 'Reason follows it so slowly and leisurely.' + +184. _dishonest_, unworthy of honour, blameworthy. Ray gives the +proverb--'it's an ill bird that bewrays its own nest'; and compares the +Greek--[Greek: ton oikoi thêsauron diaballein]. + +192. _lakken_, blame, find fault with; as in Chaucer. + +196. _bilowen_, lied against; pp. of _bil[=e]o[gh]en_, A.S. _bil[=e]ogan_. + +204. Alluding to Ovid's _Remedium Amoris_. Cf. Ch. C. T., D 688-710. + +215. 'They say, it is profitable to consider peril.' + +225. Rather close to the original French:-- + + 'Et aucuns sont qui iadis en mes las + Furent tenus, mais il sont d'amer las, + Ou par vieillece ou deffaulte de cuer, + Si ne veulent plus amer a nul fuer, + Et convenant m'ont de tous poins nyé, + Moy et mon fait guerpy et renié, + Comme mauvais serviteurs et rebelles.' + +257. _hente_, caught; _in hir daunger_, under their control, within their +power. + +258. It was thought that one poison would expel another; see P. Plowman, C. +xxi. 156-8, and the notes. + +272. 'It cannot long abide upon one object.' + +281. Jean de Meun, author of the latter and more satirical part of the +famous Roman de la Rose; see vol. i. + +298. 'They are not so void of constancy.' Read _cónstauncè_. + +302. See Ch. Legend of Good Women, 1580. + +305. _wold_, desired; pp. of _willen_; see note to C. T., B 2615. + +309. See Ch. Legend of Good Women, 924. + +316-29. These two stanzas are wholly original. Hoccleve, remembering that +the examples of Medea and Dido both occur in Chaucer's Legend of Good +Women, here takes occasion to make an express reference to that work, which +he here calls 'my Legende of Martres.' _My_ refers to Cupid; _Legend_, to +Chaucer's title; and _Martres_, to the Latin titles to some of the Legends. +Thus the Legend of Hypsipyle and Medea is entitled--'Incipit Legenda +Ysiphile et Medee, _Martirum_.' Instead of _Martres_, Thynne has the +ridiculous reading _Natures_, which the editions carefully retain. + +357. 'And, had it not been for the devil,' &c. + +360. _her_, the serpent. There was a legend that the serpent had the face +of a beautiful virgin. See Ch. C. T., B 360, and note; P. Plowman, B. +xviii. 335, and note. + +379-434. These eight stanzas are all Hoccleve's own. + +393. _happy to_, fortunate for; because it brought about Christ's +incarnation. The allusion is to the oft-quoted sentence--'O _felix culpa_, +O necessarium peccatum Ade,' from the Sarum missal. See note to P. Plowman, +C. viii. 126. Cf. l. 396. + +421. The day of St. Margaret, Virgin and Martyr, was July 20, in the Latin +Church. See the edition of Seinte Marherete, by O. Cockayne, E. E. T. S., +1866. + +428. _I_, i.e. Cupid. This stanza is spoken by Cupid, in his own character; +cf. l. 431. In l. 464, he assumes the royal style of _we_. It is, moreover, +obvious that this stanza would hardly have been approved of by Christine. + +473-6. Imitated from the closing lines of Christine's poem:-- + + 'Donné en l'air, en nostre grant palais, + Le jour de May la solempnée feste + Ou les amans nous font mainte requeste, + L'An de grace Mil trois cens quate vins + Et dix et neuf, present dieux et divins,' &c. + +It thus appears that 'the lusty month of May,' in l. 472, is merely copied +from the French; but, to the fortunate circumstance that Christine gives +the exact date of her poem as 1399, we owe the fact that Hoccleve likewise +gives the exact date of his poem as being 1402. + +§ VI. THOMAS HOCCLEVE: TO THE KING; AND TO THE KNIGHTS OF THE GARTER. + +These two Balades, each of 32 lines, are written in a highly artificial +metre; for, in each case, the four stanzas of which each consists shew the +same rimes throughout. The riming syllables in Balade 1 are _-esse_, +_-our_, and _-alle_; and in Balade 2, are _-ame_, _-aunce_, and _-ee_. A +similar example of metrical arrangement occurs in Chaucer's Balade to +Rosemounde. + +2. _king_, Henry V, as we see from the French title. + +3. _Justinian_; emperor of Constantinople, A.D. 527-65, whose fame rests +upon the justly celebrated Justinian Code of laws. The reference, +fortunately, is explained by Hoccleve himself, in a longer Balade +concerning Sir John Oldcastel, printed in _Anglia_, v. 23; and again in +Hoccleve's Poems, ed. Furnivall, p. 8. Hoccleve is praising Justinian's +orthodoxy, to which (as he tells us) Henry V was heir; and the exact +reference is to the following clause in one of Justinian's laws, which is +quoted in full in the margin of the Balade above mentioned; see _Anglia_, +v. 28; or Poems, ed. Furnivall, p. 14. 'Nemo clericus vel militaris, vel +cuiuslibet alterius conditionis _de fide Christiana_ publice turbis +coadunatis et audientibus tractare conetur,' &c. So that Justinian's +'devout tenderness in the faith' was exhibited by repressing religious +discussion; cf. l. 27. See Gibbon's Roman Empire, ch. 44. + +5. _the Garter_. The noble Order of the Garter was founded by Edward III on +St. George's day, Apr. 23, 1349; cf. l. 54. + +10. _Constantyn_. He now proceeds to liken Henry V to Constantine the +Great, who was a great supporter of the church; see note above, to Poem no. +IV, l. 339. Cf. _Anglia_, v. 29; or Poems, ed. Furnivall, p. 15; st. 28. + +15. _do forth_, proceed, continue to do as you have done in the past. Not a +common expression; see _forth_ in Mätzner. + +18. Very characteristic of Hoccleve; the accents required by the verse are +thrown upon the weak words _your_ and _the_. But perhaps _your_ is +emphatic. Cf. _fullý_ in l. 20, _á sharp_, 21. + +30. Hoccleve is clearly urging the King to repress Lollardry. + +37. 'God would have it so; and your allegiance would also have it so.' This +is explained in a sidenote in the margin: 'quia Rex illam iustissimam +partem tenet.' That is, the lords ought to put down heresy, because their +master the king was against it. + +41. _Your style_, your motto; the famous 'Honi soit qui mal y pense.' Hence +_shame_ here means scandal; but _foos to shame_ is an awkward expression in +this connexion. + +47. _nuisaunce_, annoyance; referring to heresy; cf. l. 50. + +52. _Slepë nat this_, be not sleepy about this; a rare construction. + +58. _norice of distaunce_, nurse of debate or strife. + +60. 'Variation from the faith would be a damnable thing.' + +64. The remark--_Cest tout_--instead of the usual word _explicit_, occurs +at the end of several poems by Hoccleve; see his Poems, ed. Furnivall, pp. +8, 24, 47, 51, 57, 58, 61, 62, 64, &c. + +§ VII. HENRY SCOGAN: A MORAL BALADE. + +For remarks upon the heading of this poem, see the Introduction. + +3. _Sende_; that is, he did not come and recite the poem himself. + +8. This reminds us of the Knight's appeal: 'Now late us ryde, _and herkneth +what I seye_'; C. T., A 855. + +30. _to queme_, according to your pleasure. _Queme_ is here a substantive; +see Stratmann. Cf. _to pay_ in Chaucer. + +49. _Tak'th_ is monosyllabic, as in l. 57. So also _Think'th_, in l. 59. + +51. From James, ii. 17. + +56. 'To the honour of your life and the benefit of your soul.' + +65. The exclamation shews that Chaucer was then dead. + +67. The quotation is inexact; cf. ll. 120, 121 below. The reference is to +the Wyf of Bathes Tale, D 1121:-- + + 'Yet may they [our eldres] nat biquethe us, for no-thing, + To noon of us hir virtuous living.' + +81. Read _Think'th_; so also _Dryv'th_ in l. 86; _Tak'th_ in l. 89. + +97. Here the quotation, again from the Wyf of Bathes Tale (D 1131), is very +close:-- + + 'For of our eldres may we no-thing clayme + But temporel thing, that man may hurte and mayme.' + +100. 'Therefore God is the source of virtuous nobleness.' This depends on a +passage in Boethius, bk. iii. met. 6. l. 2; see notes to poem XIV, in vol. +i. pp. 553-5. + +105. See this poem of Chaucer's in vol. i. p. 392. + +143. _ful rage_, very fierce. But I know of no other example of _rage_ as +an adjective. + +146. _kalends_, the beginning; as in Troil. v. 1634. + +150. The passage in Boethius is in Book i. met. 6. 11-15. Cf. Ch. vol. ii. +p. 19. + + 'Nec quaeras auida manu Vernos stringere palmites, + Vuis si libeat frui: Autumno potius sua + Bacchus munera contulit.' + +166. From Chaucer, Wyf of Bathes Tale, D 1165:-- + + 'Thenketh how noble, as seith Valerius, + Was thilke Tullius Hostilius, + That out of povert roos to heigh noblesse.' + +And Chaucer found it in Valerius Maximus, iii. 4; see vol. v. p. 320. + +168. From Chaucer, Monkes Tale, B 3862. But it may be doubted if Caesar's +alleged poverty is an historical fact. Cf. p. 24, l. 128 (above). + +174. Read the story of Nero in the Monkes Tale, B 3653; that of Balthasar +(Belshazzar) in the same, B 3373; and that of Antiochus in the same, B +3765. Compare the lines in B 3800-1:-- + + 'For he so sore fil out of his char + That it his limes and his skin to-tar.' + +187. 'I should be sorry, if ye choose amiss.' + +§ VIII. JOHN LYDGATE; COMPLAINT OF THE BLACK KNIGHT. + +There are some excellent notes relative to this poem in Schick's edition of +Lydgate's _Temple of Glas_ (E. E. T. S.); I refer to them below as 'Schick, +T. G.' + +4. _Bole_, Bull. The sun entered Taurus, in the fifteenth century, just +before the middle of April. Hence the phrase _Amid the Bole_ refers, not to +the first degree of the sign, but (literally) to the _middle_ of it. The +reference must be to May 1, when the sun had just passed a little beyond +the middle (or 15th degree) of Taurus. + +Even here we trace the influence of Chaucer's translation of the Romaunt of +the Rose; for which see notes to ll. 36, 74 below. Chaucer reiterates the +mention of _May_, R. R. 49, 51, 55, 74, 86; and ll. 1 and 2 of the present +poem answer to R. R. 53-56:-- + + 'For ther is neither busk ne hay + _In May_, that it nil shrouded been, + And it with newe leves wreen.' + +12. _with seint Johan_, with St. John for their security or protection; +probably suggested by The Compleynt of Mars, l. 9, which opens in a similar +strain; cf. note to C. T., F 596; vol. v. p. 385. + +15, 16. Compare Rom. Rose (Chaucer's version), ll. 94-5. + +21. _halt_, holds, constrains; the present tense. + +22, 23. Compare Rom. Rose (Chaucer's version), ll. 100-1. + +28. Lydgate is fond of calling the sun _Tytan_; Chaucer has the name only +once; in Troil. iii. 1464. Lydgate is here thinking of the passage in the +Knightes Tale, A 1493-6, about _fyry Phebus_. Note that he is fond of the +word _persaunt_; see ll. 358, 591, 613; cf. Schick, note to T. G. 328. + +33. It is odd that no MS. has the form _splayen_; yet the final _n_ is +required for the metre, or, at any rate, to save an hiatus. + +36. Lydgate here copies l. 134 of the English Romaunt of the Rose--'The +river-syde costeying'--and is a witness to the genuineness of Fragment A of +that poem; as appears more clearly below; see note to l. 75. The whole +passage seems founded upon the Romaunt; for this walk by the river brings +him to a _park_ (a _garden_ in the Romaunt) enclosed by a wall that had a +small gate in it. It is further obvious that l. 42 is borrowed from l. 122 +of the Parliament of Foules--'Right of a park walled with grene stoon.' I +may remark here that I have seen a wall constructed of red sandstone so +entirely covered with a very minute kind of vegetable growth as to present +to the eye a bright green surface. + +40. _gate smal_; usually called a _wiket_ in similar poems; see Rom. Rose, +528, and Schick, note to T. G. 39. + +43-49. This stanza answers to Rom. Rose, ll. 105-8, 78-9. + +52. _celúred_, canopied, over-arched (New E. Dict.). + +53-6. Cf. Rom. Rose, 1398-1400. + +57. _attempre_, temperate; observe that this word occurs in the Rom. Rose, +l. 131 (only three lines above the line quoted in the note to l. 36), where +the F. text has _atrempee_. + +62. _take_, take effect, take hold, become set; an early example of this +curious intransitive use of the verb. + +63. 'Ready for (men) to shake off the fruit.' + +64. _Daphne_. Cf. Troil. iii. 726:--'O Phebus, thenk whan Dane hirselven +shette _Under the bark, and laurer wex_ for drede.' And cf. C. T., A 2062; +and Schick, note to T. G. 115. + +66. _myrre_; see Troil. iv. 1138-9. + +67. Cf. the mention of laurel, pine, and cedar in Rom. Rose, 1313-4. + +68. The resemblance of _philbert_ (Philibert's nut) to Phyllis is +accidental, but it was then believed that the connexion was real; merely +because Vergil has 'Phyllis amat corylos'; Ecl. vii. 63. Thus Gower has +(Conf. Amant. ii. 30):-- + + 'And, after Phillis, _philiberd_ + This tree was called in the yerd'-- + +and he gives the story of Phyllis and Demophon, saying that Phyllis hanged +herself on a nut-tree. See the Legend of Good Women, 2557. Pliny alludes to +'the almond-tree whereon ladie Phyllis hanged herselfe'; Nat. Hist. xvi. 26 +(in Holland's translation). See further in Schick, note to T. G. 86. + +71. _hawethorn_; often mentioned in poems of this period; see Schick, note +to T. G. 505. Cf. XX. 272, p. 369; XXIV. 1433, p. 447. + +74, 75. The list of trees was evidently suggested by the Rom. Rose; see +Chaucer's translation, 1379-86. Hence the next thing mentioned is a _well_; +see the same, ll. 1409-11, 109-30. Note that the water was _cold_, as in R. +R. 116; _under a hill_, as in R. R. 114; and ran over _gravel_, as in R. R. +127, 1556. And then note the same, 1417-20:-- + + 'About the _brinkes_ of thise welles, + And by the stremes over-al elles + _Sprang up the gras_, as thikke y-set + _And softe as any veluët_.' + +It is remarkable that the French original merely has 'Poignoit l'erbe +freschete et drue,' without any mention of _softe_ or of _veluët_. It thus +becomes clear that Lydgate is actually quoting _Chaucer's version_. + +81. The reading seems to be _lustily cam springing_; it would be a great +improvement to transpose the words, and read _cam lustily springing_. Cf. +'Abouten it is gras springing'; R. R. 1563. + +82. Cf. 'That shadwed was with braunches grene'; R. R. 1511. + +87. _Narcisus_, Narcissus; introduced as a matter of course, because he is +here mentioned in the Romaunt; see R. R. 1468--'Here starf the faire +Narcisus.' + +88. _Cupyde_; cf. R. R. 1523--'Wel couthe Love him wreke tho.' And see the +same, 1601-29. + +89. Cf. R. R. 1617--'Hath sowen there of love the seed.' + +92. _pitte_, i.e. well of Helicon, most likely; which Chaucer mixed up with +the Castalian spring on Parnassus; see note to Anelida, 15. And cf. _the +Pegasee_ in C. T., F 207; and 'I sleep never on the mount of Pernaso,' F +721. + +95. _Dyane_, Diana; see C. T., A 2065-6. + +97. _his houndes_, his _own_ dogs; not _her_, as in several MSS. For see C. +T., A 2067--'his houndes have him caught.' + +102. _pensifheed_, pensiveness; common in Lydgate; see Schick, note to T. +G. 2. + +103. Cf. 'To drinke and fresshe him wel withalle'; R. R. 1513. + +107-12. Suggested by R. R. 1507-16; especially 1515-6. + +127. 'Of gras and _floures, inde_ and pers'; R. R. 67. And compare l. 126 +with R. R. 68. + +129. _hulfere_, holly; Icel. _hulfr_, dogwood. Spelt _hulwur_, _huluyr_ in +the Prompt. Parv. 'The holly is still called in Norfolk _hulver_, and in +Suffolk _hulva_'; Way. Cotgrave has:--'_Houx_, the holly, holme, or +hulver-tree.' Also '_Petit houx_, kneehulver, butchers broom.' + +131. MS. P. has _of colour_; which suggests the reading--'In blakke and +whyte, of colour pale and wan'; but this, though a better line, cannot +stand, as it makes the words _also of his hewe_ in l. 132 superfluous; +indeed l. 132 then becomes unmeaning. + +136. _accesse_, feverish attack; see Schick, note to T. G. 358. + +151. _ure_, destiny; O.F. _eur_, Lat. _augurium_; cf. F. _mal-heur._ See l. +302 below, and Barbour's Bruce, i. 312. + +154. _among_; so in all the copies; _among as_, whilst. + +161. _ado_, to do; put for _at do_; a Northern idiom. + +168. _awhaped_, stupefied: see Gloss. in vol. vi. _amat_, dismayed. Cf. +Schick, note to T. G. 401. + +169. _sitting_, suitable; cf. R. R. 986. + +172. _grounde_ (dissyllabic) improves the line; but _ground_ is the correct +form. + +176. Here the Ashmole MS. inserts 'La compleynt du Chiualier'; but wrongly. +For see l. 218. + +178. _Niobe_; mentioned in Troil. i. 699. So _woful Myrre_, Troil. iv. +1139. + +227. _cheste_, receptacle; '_cheste_ of every care'; Troil. v. 1368. + +229. Cf. Troil. i. 420; also Rom. Rose, 4746-50. + +233. _fro_, from being, after being. + +250. _Daunger_; see Schick, note to T. G. 156. + +253. Cf. 'his arwes ... fyle'; Parl. Foules, 212. + +260. _Male-Bouche_, Evil Tongue; cf. R. R. 7357, &c.; where Fragment C has +'Wikkid-Tonge,' the F. original has _Male Bouche_. Cf. IX. 84 (p. 269). See +Schick, note to T. G. 153. + +274-6. _forjuged_ and _excused_ only give an assonance, not a rime. + +291. _through-girt ... wounde_; from C. T., A 1010. + +303. _purveyaunce_, providence; a reminiscence of the argument in Troil. +iv. 961, &c. + +304. _god_; for _the god_; but the article is unnecessary; see Schick, note +to T. G. 132. + +305. 'And true men have fallen off the wheel'; i.e. the wheel of Fortune; +cf. Troil. iv. 6. + +330. _Palamides_, Palamedes. There were two different heroes of this name. +One was the son of Nauplius, king of Euboea, who lost his life before Troy, +by the artifices of Ulysses. It is said that Ulysses, envious of his fame, +forged a letter to him purporting to come from Priam, and then accused him +of treachery; whereupon he was condemned to be stoned to death. But the +reference is rather to a much later hero, the unsuccessful lover of La bele +Isoude. He was defeated by the celebrated knight Sir Tristram, who made him +promise to resign his pretensions to the lady; a promise which he did not +keep. See Sir T. Malory, Morte Arthure, bk. viii. c. 10, &c. + +344. _Hercules_. See the Monkes Tale, B 3285. + +349. _Gades_, Cadiz; where, according to Guido, Hercules set up some +columns or pillars, to shew that he had come to the end of the world. There +is an extraordinary confusion as to the locality and maker of these +pillars. Lydgate here follows the account in the Alexander romances, viz. +that Alexander set up a pillar of marble in the furthest end of India (l. +351); on which was inscribed--'Ego Alexander Philippi Macedonis post obitum +Darii usque ad hunc locum expugnando viriliter militaui'; see Alexander and +Dindimus, ed. Skeat, p. 42. Lydgate has confused the two accounts. + +354. Copied from Troil. i. 518:--'Of hem that Love list febly for to +avaunce'; which is preceded by 'he may goon in the daunce'; see the next +line. + +358. _Phebus_. Cf. 'Whan Phebus dwelled here in this erthe adoun'; C. T., H +1. Lydgate is not, however, referring to the story in the Manciples Tale, +but rather to the hopeless love of Phoebus for the daughter of Admetus; for +which see Troil. i. 659-65. Cf. Schick, note to T. G. 112. + +365. _Piramus_. See Legend of Good Women, 724; and Schick, note to T. G. +80. + +366. _Tristram_. See notes to Parl. Foules, 288, and to Rosamounde, 20; and +to Temple of Glas, ed. Schick, l. 77. + +367. Achilles fell in love with Polyxena, a daughter of Priam, according to +Guido; see note to Book of the Duch. 1070; and Schick, note to T. G. 94. +_Antonius_, Antony; see Legend of Good Women, 588. + +368. See the Knightes Tale; but it is a little extraordinary that Lydgate +should instance Palamon here. + +372. _Jason_; see Legend of Good Women, 1580. For _Theseus_, see the same, +1945; and for _Enee_ (Aeneas), the same, 924. + +379. An interesting allusion, as the story of the false Arcite was of +Chaucer's invention; see his Anelida. + +380. _Demophon_; already mentioned above, l. 70. + +386. _Adon_, Adonis; see Troil. iii. 721; C. T., A 2224. + +390. _chorl_, churl; Vulcan; cf. C. T., A 2222, and Compl. of Mars. + +393. _Ipomenes_, Hippomenes, the conqueror of Atalanta in the foot-race; +and therefore _not_ 'guerdonles.' He is thinking of Meleager, the +unsuccessful lover of the _other_ Atalanta, her of Calydon. Chaucer seems +likewise to have confused these stories; see note to Parl. Foules, 286; and +cf. C. T., A 2070-2. + +412. Cf. Book Duch. 1024, and my note; and Schick, note to T. G. 169. + +419. The correction is obvious. The scribes read _iupartyng_ as _inpartyng_ +and then made it into two words. Cf. l. 475. Chaucer has _juparten_, Troil. +iv. 1566. + +458. 'So variable is thy chance'; cf. C. T., B 125, and the note. + +461. _blent_, blinded. Evidently the right reading, for which MS. S. has +_blend_. This was turned into _blynde_, destroying the rime. + +462. _went_, weeneth, weens, supposes, guesses; he shoots by guess. +Evidently the right word, for which MS. S. has _wend_. But it was easily +misunderstood, and most MSS. have _by wenynge_, which preserves the sense, +but destroys the rime. Cf. _let_ = lets, in l. 464. + +480. This line resembles l. 229 of the Temple of Glas. + +484. For references to similar lines, see Schick, note to T. G. 60. + +488. _Parcas_, Parcae, the Fates; the form is copied from Troil. v. 3. +Lines 486-9 are reminiscences of Troil. iii. 734 and C. T., A 1566. + +491. Nature is the deputy of God; see P. F. 379, and note; C. T., C 20. + +512. With the following stanzas compare Chaucer's Complaint to his Lady, +and An Amorous Complaint. + +525. 'Out of your mercy and womanliness, charm my sharp wounds.' + +554. A stock line of Lydgate's; it occurs twice in the Temple of Glas, ll. +424, 879. + +574. Here the Knight's Complaint ends. + +590. 'Parfourned hath the sonne his ark diurne'; C. T., E 1795. + +596. Cf. 'among yon rowes rede'; Compl. Mars, 2. + +597. _deaurat_, gilded, of a golden colour; see _Deaurate_ in the New E. +Dict. + +612. _Esperus_, Hesperus, the evening-star, the planet Venus. See note to +Boeth. bk. i. m. 5. 9. + +621. Cf. C. T., A 2383, 2389; and Temple of Glas, 126-8. + +627. 'Venus I mene, the _wel-willy_ planete'; Troil. iii. 1257. Cf. +_gude-willy_ in Burns. + +644. 'For thilke love thou haddest to Adoun'; C. T., A 2224. + +647. MS. B. has _for very wery_, meaning 'because I was very weary,' which +is a possible expression; see Schick, note to T. G. 632; but _verily_ seems +better, as otherwise the line is cumbersome. + +663. _Jelousye_; cf. Parl. Foules, 252. + +§ IX. JOHN LYDGATE: THE FLOUR OF CURTESYE. + +I know of no MS. copy of this piece. + +4. Valentine's day is Feb. 14; cf. Parl. Foules, 309-11. + +8. _larke_; cf. the song of the bird in Compl. Mars, 13-21. + +20. _Cipryde_, really the same as Venus, but here distinguished; see Parl. +Foules, 277. + +38. Apparently accented as 'Aúrorà'; Ch. has Auróra, L. G. W. 774. + +49. _crampessh at_ must be _crampisshed_, i.e. constrained painfully, +tortured; see note to Anelida, 171 (vol. i. p. 535). + +62. Imitated from Parl. Foules, 379-89. + +75. _sursanure_; a wound healed outwardly only; cf. note to C. T., F 1113. + +84. _Male-bouche_, Evil Tongue, Slander; from the Roman de la Rose. See +VIII. 260 above. + +96. _Boreas_, only mentioned by Ch. in his Boethius, bk. i. m. 5. 17, m. 3. +8. + +113. _somer-sonne_; imitated from the Book of the Duch. 821-4. + +125. 'To speke of bountè or of gentilles,' &c.; T. G. 287. + +140. 'To alle hir werkes virtu is hir gyde'; C. T., B 164. + +158. Alluding to the proverb--'He that hews above his head, the chips fall +in his eye'; which is a warning to men who attack their betters. See I. i. +9. 20, and the note (p. 462). + +190-3. _Policene_, Polyxena; cf. note to VIII. 367. _Helayne_, Helen. +_Dorigene_; see Frankleyns Tale, F 815. + +195. _Cleopatre_; see the first legend in the Legend of Good Women. +_secree_, secret, able to keep secrets; a praiseworthy attribute; cf. Parl. +of Foules, 395; and Lydgate's Temple of Glas, 294-5:-- + + 'and mirrour eke was she + Of _secrenes_, of trouth, of faythfulnes.' + +It is obvious that the extraordinary word _setrone_ (see the footnote) +arose from a desire on the part of the scribe to secure a rime for the name +in the next line, which he must have imagined to be _An-ti-góne_, in +_three_ syllables, with a mute final _e_! This turned _secree_ into +_secrone_, which Thynne probably misread as _setrone_, since _c_ and _t_ +are alike in many MSS. But there are no such words as _secrone_ or +_setrone_; and _secree_ must be restored, because _An-ti-go-ne_ is a word +of four syllables. We know whence Lydgate obtained his 'white Antigone'; it +was from Troilus, ii. 887, where we find 'fresshe Antigone the whyte.' +Antigone was Criseyde's niece, and was so 'secree' that Pandarus considered +her to be the most fitting person to accompany Criseyde when she visited +Troilus (Troil. ii. 1563), and again when she came to visit Pandarus +himself (iii. 597). + +197. _Hester_, Esther; see Book Duch. 987; but especially Legend of Good +Women, 250: 'Ester, lay thou thy _mekenesse_ al adoun.' _Judith_; cf. Cant. +Tales, B 939, 2289, 3761, E 1366. + +198. _Alceste_, Alcestis; see L. G. W. 432, 511, 518. _Marcia Catoun_, +Martia, daughter of Cato of Utica; see note to L. G. W. 252 (vol. iii. p. +298). + +199. _Grisilde_; the Griselda of the Clerkes Tale. Again mentioned by +Lydgate in the Temple of Glas, 75, 405, and elsewhere; see Schick's note to +T.G. l. 75. + +200, 201. _Ariadne_; see L. G. W. 268, 2078, &c. _Lucrece_, Lucretia; see +the same, 1680; especially l. 1691:--'this Lucresse, that starf _at Rome +toun_.' + +203. _Penelope_; see note to L. G. W. 252. + +204. _Phyllis_, _Hipsiphilee_; both in L. G. W.; 2394, 1368. + +206. _Canacee_; may be either the Canace mentioned in L. G. W. 265, or the +heroine of the Squieres Tale; probably the latter. See Schick, note to l. +137 of the Temple of Glas. + +209. _naught_, not. _falle_, stoop, droop; hence, fail. + +211-3. Dido slew herself; see L. G. W. 1351. + +214. _Medee_, Medea; see L. G. W. 1580. But Chaucer does not there relate +how Medea committed any 'outrage.' However, he refers to her murder of her +children in the Cant. Tales, B 72. + +216. 'That, while goodness and beauty are both under her dominion, she +makes goodness have always the upper hand.' See l. 218. + +221. Read _n'offende_, offend not. Probably the MS. had _nofende_, which +Thynne turned into _ne fende_. + +229. It is remarkable how often Lydgate describes his hand as 'quaking'; +see Schick's note to the Temple of Glas, 947. Chaucer's hand quaked but +once; Troil. iv. 14. Cf. note to XXII. 57 (p. 539). + +232. _suppryse_, undertake, endeavour to do. _Suppryse_ is from O.F. +_sousprendre_, for which Godefroy gives the occasional sense +'entreprendre.' + +234. _lose_, praise; _out of lose_, out of praise, discreditable. + +236. Perhaps this means that Chaucer's decease was a very recent event. +Schick proposes to date this piece between 1400 and 1402. + +242. Chaucer invokes Clio at the beginning of Troilus, bk. ii. (l. 8); and +Calliope at the beginning of bk. iii. (l. 45). + +251. Cf. Compl. Mars, 13, 14. The metre almost seems to require an accent +on the second syllable of _Valentyn_, with suppressed final _e_; but a much +more pleasing line, though less regular, can be made by distributing the +pauses artificially thus: Upón . the dáy of . saint Válen . týne . sínge. +The word _saint_ is altogether unemphatic; cf. ll. 4, 100. + +257. _fetheres ynde_, blue feathers; possibly with a reference to blue as +being the colour of constancy. Cf. _floures inde_; VIII. 127. + +261. The woodbine is an emblem of constancy, as it clings to its support; +cf. XX. 485-7. + +§ X. IN COMMENDATION OF OUR LADY. + +4, 5. In l. 4, _fere_ is the Kentish form of 'fire.' In l. 5, Thynne again +prints _fere_, but MS. A. has _hyre_ (not a rime), and MS. Sl. has _were_, +which means 'doubt,' and is the right word. + +7. For _her_, we must read _his_, as in l. 4. The reference is to Love or +Cupid; see VIII. 354, and the note. + +12. Cf. 'O wind, O wind, the weder ginneth clere,' &c.; Troil. ii. 2. +Observe that Chaucer invokes _Cleo_ (Clio) in his next stanza. + +22. We may compare this invocation with Chaucer's ABC, and his introduction +to the Second Nonnes Tale; but there is not much resemblance. Observe the +free use of alliteration throughout ll. 22-141. + +24. 'O pleasant ever-living one' seems to be meant; but it is very obscure. +Notice that the excellent Sloane MS. has _O lusty lemand_ (= _leming_), O +pleasant shining one. Perhaps we should read _leming_ for _living_; cf. l. +25. + +27. Cf. 'Haven of refut'; ABC, 14. _up to ryve_, to arrive at; see _rive_ +in Halliwell. + +28. The five joys of the Virgin are occasionally alluded to. See the poem +on this subject in An Old Eng. Miscellany, ed. Morris, p. 87. The five joys +were (1) at the Annunciation; (2) when she bore Christ; (3) when Christ +rose from the dead; (4) when she saw Him ascend into heaven; (5) at her own +Assumption into heaven. + +30. 'And cheering course, for one to complain to for pity.' Very obscure. + +52. _propyne_, give to drink; a usage found in the Vulgate version of Jer. +xxv. 15: 'Sume calicem ... et _propinabis_ de illo cunctis gentibus.' + +56. Cf. _magnificence_ in Ch. Sec. Nonnes Tale, G 50. + +58. _put in prescripcioun_, i.e. prescribed, recommended. + +60. Cf. 'I flee for socour to thy tente'; ABC, 41. + +64. _itinerárie_, a description of the way. + +65. _bravie_, prize, especially in an athletic contest; Lat. _brauium_, Gk. +[Greek: brabeion], in 1 Cor. ix. 24. See note to C. T., D 75. + +66. _diourn denárie_, daily pay, as of a penny a day; referring to Matt. +xx. 2: 'Conventione autem facta cum operariis ex _denario diurno_.' + +68. _Laureat crowne_, crown of laurel. + +69. _palestre_, a wrestling-match; cf. Troil. v. 304. + +70. _lake_, fine white linen cloth; as in C. T., B 2048. + +71. _citole_, harp; as in C. T., A 1959. + +78. 'The wedded turtel, with her herte trewe'; Parl. Foules, 355. + +83. _Phebus_; here used, in an extraordinary manner, of the Holy Spirit, as +being the spirit of wisdom; perhaps suggested by the mention of the +_columbe_ (or dove) in l. 79. + +87. Here Thynne prints _dyametre_, but the Sloane MS. corrects him. + +88. _Fewe feres_, few companions; i.e. few equals. + +92, 93. _loupe_; cf. F. _loupe_, an excrescence, fleshy kernel, knot in +wood, lens, knob. It was also a term in jewellery. Littré has: 'pierre +précieuse que la nature n'a pas achevée. Loupe de saphir, loupe de rubis, +certaines parties imparfaites et grossières qui se trouvent quelquefois +dans ces pierres.' Hence it is not a very happy epithet, but Lydgate must +have meant it in a good sense, as expressing the densest portion of a +jewel; hence his 'stable (i.e. firm) as the loupe.' Similarly he explains +_ewage_ as being 'fresshest of visage,' i.e. clearest in appearance. +_Ewage_ was a term applied to a jacinth of the colour of sea-water; see New +E. Dict. and P. Plowman, B. ii. 14; but it is here described as _blue_, and +must therefore refer to a stone of the colour of water in a lake. + +98. Read _hértè_ for the scansion; but it is a bad line. It runs:--And hém +. recéyvest . wíth . hértè . ful tréwe. + +99. _gladded_, gladdened; referring to the Annunciation. + +102. _obumbred_, spread like a shadow; 'uirtus Altissimi _obumbrabit_ +tibi'; Luke, i. 35. This explains _to thee_, which answers to _tibi_. + +106. This stanza refers to Christ rather than to Mary; see l. 112. But Mary +is referred to as the _ground_ on which He built (l. 111). + +107. Cf. Isaiah, xi. 1; Jerem. xxiii. 5. + +110. _corn_, grain; 'suscitabo Dauid germen iustum'; Jer. xxiii. 5. Cf. 'ex +semine Dauid uenit Christus; John, vii. 42. + +111. _ground_; the ground upon which it pleased Him to build. Referring to +Mary. + +113. _vytre_, glass; Lat. _uitreum_. The Virgin was often likened to glass; +sun-rays pass through it, and leave it pure. + +114. _Tytan_, sun; curiously applied. Christ seems to be meant; see l. 116. +But _thy_ in l. 115 again refers to Mary. Hence, in l. 114 (as in 116) we +should read _his_ for _thy_. + +118. _Sunamyte_, Shunammite; Lat. _Sunamitis_, 2 Kings, iv. 25. She was an +emblem of the Virgin, because her son was raised from the dead. + +119. _Mesure_, moderate, assuage. _Margaryte_, pearl; as an epithet of the +Virgin. + +121. _punical pome_, pomegranate; Pliny has _Punicum malum_ in this sense; +Nat. Hist. xiii. 19. + +122. _bouk and boon_, body and bone; see _Bouk_ in the New E. Dict. + +123. _agnelet_, little lamb; not in the New E. Dict., because this stanza +is now first printed. + +126. _habounde_, abundant; of this adj. the New E. Dict, gives two +examples. + +128. _Cockle_, shell; referring to the shell in which the pearl was +supposed to be generated by dew. See note to I. ii. 12. 47, p. 475. + +129. 'O bush unbrent'; C. T., B 1658; see the note, _fyrles_, set on fire +without any fire (i.e. without visible cause). + +132. Referring to Gideon's fleece; Judges, vi. 39. + +133. Referring to Aaron's rod that budded; Heb. ix. 4. + +134. _misty_, mystic; cf. 'mysty, _misticus_,' in Prompt. Parv. + +_arke_, ark; the ark of the covenant. + +_probatik_; certainly the right reading (as in MS. Sl.), instead of +_probatyf_ or _probatyfe_, as in A. and Thynne. The reference is to the +O.F. phrase _piscine probatique_, which Godefroy explains as being a +cistern of water, near Solomon's temple, in which the sheep were washed +before being sacrificed. The phrase was borrowed immediately from the +Vulgate version of John v. 2: 'Est autem Ierosolymis _probatica piscina_, +quae cognominatur hebraice Bethsaida'; i.e. the reference is to the +well-known pool of Bethesda. The Greek has: [Greek: epi têi probatikêi +kolumbêthra]. The etymology is obvious, from Gk. [Greek: probaton], a +sheep. We may translate the phrase by 'sheep-cleansing pool.' Cotgrave +explains it very well; he has: '_piscine probatique_, a pond for the +washing of the sheep that were, by the Law, to be sacrificed.' + +135. _Aurora_, dawn; mentioned in Ch. L. G. W. 774. Cf. 'al the orient +_laugheth_'; C. T., A 1494. And cf. 'Th'olyve of pees'; Parl. Foules, 181. + +136. 'Column, with its base, which bears up (or supports) out of the +abysmal depth.' + +137. 'Why could I not be skilful?' + +140. I make up this line as best I can; the readings are all bad. + +Note that, at this point, the MS. copies come to an end, and so does the +alliteration. Poem no. XI is joined on to no. X in Thynne without any +break, but is obviously a different piece, addressed to an earthly +mistress. + +§ XI. TO MY SOVERAIN LADY. + +1. Imitated from C. T., B 778: 'I ne have noon English digne,' &c. Cf. l. +41. And see the Introduction. + +8. 'For if I could sing what I feel in love, I would (gladly do so).' + +14. 'I have all my trust in thee.' The scansion is got by grouping the +syllables thus: J'áy . en vóus . tóute . má . fiáunce. It is a line of the +Lydgate type, in which the first syllable in the normal line, and the first +syllable after the cæsura, are alike dropped. + +17. _thou knette_, mayst thou knit; the subj. or optative mood. + +21. This quotation is most interesting, being taken from the first line in +'Merciless Beauty'; Ch. Minor Poems; no. XI. Cf. l. 54. + +23. _it is_; pronounced either as _it's_ or _'t is_. The latter sounds +better. + +26. The substitution of _ginne_ for _beginne_ much improves the line. + +_on esperaunce_, in hope. + +44. _in o degree_, (being) always in one state. + +49. 'Weep for me, if a lover pleases you.' + +56. 'So much it grieves to be away from my lady.' + +59. 'Now my heart has what it wished for.' + +64. _were_, should be, ought to be (subjunctive). + +68. _go love_, go and love, learn to love. _wher_, whether. + +77. _and also_, including. The 'fair' Rosamond is mentioned in P. Plowman, +B. xii. 48; which shews that her name was proverbial. + +98. 'Embrace me closely with a joyful heart.' + +100. 'The ardent hope that pricks my heart, is dead; the hope--to gain the +love of her whom I desire.' + +103. 'And I know well that it is not my fault; (the fault of me) who sing +for you, as I may, by way of lament at your departure.' O.F. _sai_, I know, +is a correct form. + +107. _sad_, fixed, resolute, firm, constant. + +§ XII. BALLAD OF GOOD COUNSEL. + +7. Cf. Prov. xvii. 20: 'He that hath a perverse tongue falleth into +mischief.' + +15. _equipolent_, equal in power; used by Hoccleve (New E. Dict.). + +16. _peregal_, the same as _paregal_, fully equal; Troil. v. 840. + +22. I follow the order of stanzas in MS. H. (Harl. 2251), which is more +complete than any other copy, as it alone contains ll. 71-7. Th. and Ff. +transpose this stanza and the next one. + +23. _amorous_ is evidently used as a term of disparagement, i.e. 'wanton.' + +33. _this is_; pronounced as _this_, as often elsewhere. + +40. _deslavee_, loose, unchaste; see Gloss. to Chaucer. + +45. Accent _dévourour_ on the first syllable. + +60. _dissolucioun_, dissolute behaviour. + +71-7. In Harl. 2251 only. In l. 71, read _is_; the MS. has _in_. + +73. The missing word is obviously _mene_, i.e. middling; missed because the +similar word _men_ happened to follow it. + +78. _prudent_ seems here to be used in a bad sense; cf. mod. E. 'knowing.' + +86. In the course of ll. 86-103, Lydgate contrives to mention all the Nine +Worthies except Godfrey of Bouillon; i.e. he mentions David, Joshua, Judas +Maccabaeus, Hector, Julius Caesar, Alexander, Charles (Charlemagne), and +King Arthur. His other examples are Solomon, Troilus, Tullius Cicero, +Seneca, and Cato; all well known. + +96. Thynne has--'With _al_ Alisaundres.' The word _al_ is needless, and +probably due to repeating the first syllable of _Alisaundre_. + +107. We now come to examples of famous women. _Hestre_ is Esther, and +_Griseldes_, the Grisildis of Chaucer's Clerkes Tale. Others are Judith (in +the Apocrypha), Polyxena, Penelope, Helen, Medea, Marcia the daughter of +Marcus Cato Uticensis (see note to Legend of Good Women, 252), and +Alcestis. They are all taken from Chaucer; Esther, Polyxena, Penelope, +Helen, 'Marcia Catoun,' are all mentioned in the 'Balade' in Legend of Good +Women, Prologue, B-text, 249-69; and Alcestis is the heroine of the same +Prologue. The Legend contains the story of Medea at length; and Judith is +celebrated in the Monkes Tale. See the similar list in IX. 190-210. + +110. For _Policenes_, Ff. has _Penilops_ (!); but Penelope is mentioned in +l. 113. _Policenes_ is right; see IX. 190. + +115. For _Eleynes_, the printed editions have the astonishing reading +_Holynesse_, a strange perversion of _Heleynes_. + +121. _kerve_, cut; suggested by Chaucer's use of _forkerveth_ in the +Manciple's Tale, H 340. This _is_ tolerably certain, as in l. 129 he again +refers to the same Tale, H 332-4. + +130. Chaucer does not mention Cato; he merely says--'Thus lerne children +whan that they ben yonge.' Both Chaucer and Lydgate had no doubt been +taught some of the sayings of Dionysius Cato in their youth; for see Troil. +iii. 293-4. This particular precept occurs in the third distich in Cato's +first book; i.e. almost at the very beginning. See note to C. T., H 332 +(vol. v. p. 443). + +§ XIII. BEWARE OF DOUBLENESS. + +This piece is gently ironical throughout, as, for example, in ll. 15, 23, +31, 39, 47, &c. + +30. _abit_, abideth, abides, remains, is constant. + +32 (footnote). The remark in the margin--'Per antifrasim'--simply means +that the text is ironical. + +48. _tache_, defect; this is Shakespeare's _touch_, in the same sense; +Troilus and Cressida, iii. 3. 175. + +51. _sliper_, slippery; A.S. _slipor_; as in XVI. 262. Cf. HF. 2154, and +the note. + +55. 'Who can (so) guide their sail as to row their boat with craft.' Not +clearly put. Is there a reference to Wade's boat? Cf. C. T., E 1424, and +the note. The irony seems here to be dropped, as in ll. 71, 79. + +75. _sys and sink_, six and five, a winning throw at hazard; see C. T., B +124, and the note. _avaunce_, get profit, make gain. + +77, 78. Here _sette_ seems to mean 'lay a stake upon,' in the game of +hazard; when, if the player throws double aces (_ambes as_), he loses; see +the note on C. T., B 124 as above; and see _Ambs-Ace_ in the New E. Dict. +It is amusing to find that Stowe so wholly misunderstood the text as to +print _lombes, as_ (see footnote on p. 293); for _lombes_ means 'lambs'! + +83. _innocence_ is, I suppose, to be taken ironically; but the constancy of +Rosamond and Cleopatra is appealed to as being real. For the ballad of +'Fair Rosamond,' see Percy's Reliques of Ancient Poetry. + + 'Her chiefest foes did plaine confesse + She was a glorious wight.' + +89, 90. _sengle_, single. _oo-fold_, one-fold, as distinct from _double_. +See the whimsical praise of 'double' things in Hood's Miss Kilmansegg, in +the section entitled 'Her Honeymoon.' + +§ XIV. A BALADE: WARNING MEN, ETC. + +6. _see at y_, see by the outward appearance; cf. C. T., G 964, 1059. This +Balade resembles no. XIII. Cf. l. 4 with XIII. 63, 81. + +7. _et_, eateth, eats. This contracted form evidently best suits the +scansion. The copy in MS. T. had originally _ette_, mis-spelt for _et_, +with _ettyth_ written above it, shewing that the old form _et_ was +obsolescent. _Et_ (eateth) occurs in P. Plowman, C. vii. 431; and again, in +the same, B. xv. 175, the MSS. have _eet_, _eteth_, _ette_, with the same +sense. 'The blind eat many flies' is given in Hazlitt's Collection of +Proverbs. Skelton has it, Works, ed. Dyce, i. 213; and Hazlitt gives four +more references. + +9. _geson_, scarce, rare, seldom found; see note to P. Plowman, B. xiii. +270. + +19. Remember to pronounce _this is_ (_this's_) as _this_. + +25. A common proverb; see note to C. T., G 962. + +26. 'But ay fortune hath in hir hony galle'; C. T., B 3537. + +29. The proverbial line quoted in T. is here referred to, viz. 'Fallere, +flere, nere, tria sunt hec in muliere.' In the margin of the Corpus MS. of +the C. T., opposite D 402, is written--'Fallere, flere, nere, dedit Deus in +muliere.' See that passage in the Wife's Preamble. + +33. _sleight_; pronounced (_sleit_), riming with _bait_; shewing that the +_gh_ was by this time a negligible quantity. + +36. The reference is to the proverb quoted in the note to C. T., B 2297 +(vol. v. p. 208):-- + + 'Vento quid leuius? fulgur; quid fulgure? flamma. + Flamma quid? mulier. Quid muliere? nichil.' + +Hence _light_ in l. 37 should be _leit_, as it means 'lightning'; which +explains 'passeth in a throw,' i.e. passes away instantly. We also see that +Lydgate's original varied, and must have run thus:-- + + 'Aëre quid leuius? fulgur; quid fulgure? uentus. + Vento quid? mulier. Quid muliere? nichil.' + +43. Curiously imitated in the modern song for children:-- + + 'If all the world were paper, And all the sea were ink, + And all the trees were bread and cheese, What _should_ we do for drink?' + + The Baby's Bouquet, p. 26. + +§ XV. THREE SAYINGS. + +(A). 2. _Honour_, i.e. advancement. The Lat. proverb is--'Honores mutant +mores'; on which Ray remarks--'As poverty depresseth and debaseth a man's +mind, so great place and estate advance and enlarge it, but many times +corrupt and puff it up.' _outrage_, extravagant self-importance. + +§ XVI. LA BELLE DAME. + +1-28. The first four stanzas are original; so also are the four at the end. +These stanzas have seven lines; the rest have eight. + +10. Read _called_ as _call'd_; _Bell-e_ and _Dam-e_ are dissyllabic. + +11. _Aleyn_; i.e. Alain Chartier, a French poet and prose writer, born in +1386, who died in 1458. He lived at the court of Charles VI and Charles +VII, to whom he acted as secretary. Besides La Belle Dame sans Merci, he +wrote several poems; in one of these, called Le Livre de Quatre Dames, four +ladies bewail the loss of their lovers in the battle of Agincourt. He also +wrote some prose pieces, chiefly satirical; his _Curial_, directed against +the vices of the court, was translated by Caxton. Caxton's translation was +printed by him in 1484, and reprinted by the Early English Text Society in +1888. The best edition of Chartier's works is that by A. Duchesne (Paris, +1617); a new edition is much wanted. + +45. I here quote the original of this stanza, as it settles the right +reading of l. 47, where some MSS. have _eyen_ or _eyn_ for _pen_. + + 'Qui vouldroit mon vouloir contraindre + A ioyeuses choses escrire, + _Ma plume_ n'y sçauroit attaindre, + Non feroit ma langue à les dire. + Ie n'ay bouche qui puisse rire + Que les yeulx ne la desmentissent: + Car le cueur l'en vouldroit desdire + Par les lermes qui des yeulx issent.' + +53. The original French is clearer:-- + + 'Je laisse aux amoureulx malades, + Qui ont espoir d'allegement, + Faire chansons, ditz, et ballades.' + +65, 66. _forcer_, casket; _unshet_, opened; _sperd_, fastened, locked up. + +103 (footnote). _deedly_, inanimate, dull, sleepy; an unusual use of the +word. Only in Thynne, who seems to be wrong. + +105, 106. _som_, i.e. some male guests. _their juges_, (apparently) the +ladies who ruled them, whom they wooed; cf. l. 137. _demure_, serious, +grave; an early example of the word; cf. XX. 459, XXI. 82. + +105. _most fresshest_, who had most newly arrived; 'Tels y ot qui à l'heure +vinrent.' + +137. _scole-maister_, i.e. his mistress who ruled him; cf. _her_ in l. 139. + +145. The right reading is _shot_, as in Thynne and MS. Ff., which are +usually better authorities than MSS. F. and H. The original has:-- + + 'I'apperceu le _trait_ de ses yeulx + Tout empenné d'humbles requestes.' + +154, 156. _mes_, dish or course of meats. _entremes_, ill-spelt _entremass_ +in Barbour's Bruce, xvi. 457; on which my note is: 'it is the O.F. +_entremes_, now spelt _entremets_, [to mark its connection with F. +_mettre_; but] _mets_, O.F. _mes_, is the Lat. _missum_ [accusative of +_missus_], a dish as _sent in_ or served at table (Brachet). An _entremes_ +is a delicacy or side-dish (lit. a between-dish)'; and I added a reference +to the present passage. It is here used ironically. + +166. _chase_, chose; apparently, a Northern form. + +174. _apert_, as in MS. Ff., is obviously right; _pert_, as still in use, +is due to the loss of the former syllable. _prevy nor apert_, neither +secretly nor openly, i.e. in no way; just as in Ch. C. T., F 531. + +176. _frounter_; answering here, not to O.F. _frontier_, forehead, but to +O.F. _frontiere_, front rank of an army, line of battle; whence the phrase +_faire frontiere a_, to make an attack upon (Godefroy). So here, the lady's +beauty was exactly calculated to make an attack upon a lover's heart. Sir +R. Ros has 'a frounter _for_'; he should rather have written 'a frounter +_on_.' The original has:--'Pour faire au cueur d'amant _frontiere_'; also +_garnison_ in the preceding line. + +182. 'Car ioye triste cueur traueille.' Sir R. Ros actually takes _triste_ +with _ioye_ instead of with _cueur_. There are several other instances in +which he does not seem to have understood his original. See below. + +184. _trayle_, trellis-work, or lattice-work, intertwined with pliant +thick-leaved branches; Godefroy has O.F. '_treille_, _traille_, treillis, +treillage'; cf. l. 195. The original has:--'Si m'assis dessoubz une +treille.' A note explains _dessoubz_ as _derriere_. + +198. _neer_, nearer; as in l. 201. _sought_, attacked (him). + +230. 'Et se par honneur et sans blasme Ie suis vostre.' That is, if I am +yours, with honour _to myself_. But the translator transfers the _worship_, +i.e. the honour, to the lady. + +259. 'Which promised utterly to deprive me of my trust.' + +265. _Other or me_, me or some one else. But the French is:--'Se moy ou +autre vous regarde,' if I or some one else look at you; which is quite a +different thing. + +269-72. Obscure, and perhaps wrong; the original is:-- + + 'S'aucun blesse autruy d'auenture + Par coulpe de celuy qui blesse, + Quoi qu'il n'en peult mais par droicture, + Si en a il dueil et tristesse.' + +282-3. + + 'Que peu de chose peult trop plaire + Et vous vous voulez deceuoir.' + +300. 'It were less harm for one to be sad than two.' + +303. Read _sory_: 'D'ung _dolent_ faire deux joyeulx.' + +324. _rechace_, chasing it back, which gives small sense; and the reading +_richesse_ is worse, and will not rime. The French has _rachatz_ = mod. F. +_rachat_, redemption, ransom; which has been misunderstood. + +340. 'Preuue ses parolles par oeuure.' + +348. _their_ is an error for _his_ (Love's), due to the translator. 'Lors +il [Amour] descouure sa fierté.' + +351. + + 'Tant plus aspre en est la poincture, + Et plus desplaisant le deffault.' + +357. _oon_, one; i.e. the same. MS. Ff. has _wone_, a very early example of +the prefixed sound of _w_, as in modern English. See Zupitza's notes to Guy +of Warwick. + +393. Something is wrong. The French is:--'La mesure faulx semblant porte'; +meaning (I suppose) moderation has a false appearance. + +400. _As think_, i.e. pray think; see _As_ in the Gloss. in vol. vi. + +443. 'A constrained reward, and a gift offered by way of thanks, cannot +agree'; i.e. are quite different. + +449. _wanteth_, is wanting, is lacking. + +468. 'Qui soit donné à autre office.' + +469. 'D'assez grant charge se cheuit,' he gets rid of a great +responsibility. The translator gives the contrary sense. + +506. 'D'en donner à qui les reffuse.' + +509. That _He_, not _Who_, should begin the line, is certain by comparison +with the French:--'_Il_ ne doit pas cuider muser.' + +514. _me mistook_, that I mistook myself, that I made a mistake. + +519, 520. _prevayl you_, benefit you; _after_, according to. + +523-4. _after-game_, return-match, a second game played by one who has lost +the first. I believe l. 524 to mean 'who cannot thoroughly afford to double +his stakes.' To _set_ often means to stake. The French is:-- + + 'Et celuy pert le ieu d'attente + Qui ne scet faire son point double.' + +531. _it ar_, they are. This use of _ar_ with _it_ is due to the pl. sb. +_fantasyes_ (i.e. vain fancies) immediately following; _other counsayl_ is +equivalent to 'as for any other counsel,' which implies that there are more +alternatives than one. + +536. 'Who would like to conduct himself,' i.e. to regulate his conduct. +'Qui la veult conduire et ne peult.' + +538. Read _sute_: 'Desespoir le met de sa _suite_.' + +555. 'Ne de l'aprendre n'ay-ie cure.' + +559. 'Et le deuoir d'amours payer Qui franc cueur a, prisé et droit.' + +566. _That_ is a mere conjunction; the reading _Which_ alters the sense, +and gives a false meaning. + +583. _let_, makes as though he knew not; French, 'scet celler.' + +594, 595. _Hath set_; 'Mettroit en mes maulx fin et terme.' Line 595 should +begin with _Then_ rather than _Yet_, as there is no contrast. + +605. 'De tous soit celuy deguerpiz.' + +608. _or anything at al_, &c.; 'et le bien fait De sa Dame qui l'a reffait +Et ramené de mort a vie'; i.e. and the kindness of his Lady, who has new +made him, and brought him back from death to life. The English follows some +different reading, and is obscurely expressed. + +614. 'A qui l'en puisse recourir'; to whom he could have recourse. But +_recourir_ has been read as _recovrir_, giving no good sense. + +627. The reading _high_ is right; 'Que iamais _hault_ honneur ne chiet.' + +634. _reclaymed_, taught to come back; a term in falconry; French, 'bien +reclamez.' Opposed to _hem to withholde_, i.e. to keep themselves from +coming back. + +635. + + 'Et si bien aprins qu'ils retiennent + A changer dés qu'ils ont clamez.' + +651. _fol_, foolish; F. text, 'fol plaisir.' + +667. _To have better_, to get a better lover. But the sense is wrongly +given. In the French, this clause goes with what follows:--'D'auoir mieulx +ne vous affiez,' i.e. expect to get nothing better. + +667. _to have better_, to get a better lover. + +668. 'Et prenez en gré le reffus.' + +673. The original shews that _she_ really refers to _Pity_, denoted by _it_ +in l. 671, not to the Lady herself. + +680. 'Et iamais á bout n'en vendrez.' + +706. _By_; French, _De_; hence _By_ should be _Of_. Read _defame of +cruelty_, an ill name for cruelty. The mistake is the translator's. + +741. _Male-bouche_, Slander; a name probably taken from the Rom. de la +Rose, 2847; called _Wikked-Tonge_ in the English version, 3027. + +750. _playn_, (all equally) flat. 'La terre n'est pas toute unie.' + +757. _be nought_, are naughty, are wicked; as in K. Lear, ii. 4. 136. + +788. 'Que si tost mis en obli a.' + +814. _avantours_, boasters; see l. 735. F. text, 'venteus'; cf. '_Vanteux_, +vaunting'; Cotgrave. + +817. _Refus_, i.e. Denial; personified. 'Reffuz a ses chasteaulx bastiz.' + +829. The last four stanzas are original. Note the change from the 8-line to +the 7-line stanza. + +§ XVII. THE TESTAMENT OF CRESSEID. + +This sequel to Chaucer's 'Troilus,' written by Robert Henryson of +Dunfermline, is in the Northern dialect of the Scottish Lowlands. Thynne +has not made any special attempt to alter the wording of this piece, but he +frequently modifies the spelling; printing _so_ instead of _sa_ (l. 3), +_whan_ for _quhen_ (l. 3), _right_ for _richt_ (l. 4), and so on. I follow +the Edinburgh edition of 1593. See further in the Introduction. + +1. _Ane_, a; altered by Thynne to _a_, throughout. + +_dooly_ (Th. _doly_), doleful, sad; from the sb. _dool_, sorrow. + +4-6. Here _fervent_ seems to mean 'stormy' or 'severe,' as it obviously +does not mean hot. _Discend_ is used transitively; _can discend_ means +'caused to descend.' This is an earlier example than that from Caxton in +the New Eng. Dictionary. _Aries_ clearly means the influence of Aries, and +implies that the sun was in that sign, which it entered (at that date) +about the 12th of March; see vol. iii. p. 188 (footnote). _Lent_ is +'spring'; and the Old Germanic method is here followed, which divided each +of the seasons into three months. In this view, the spring-months were +March, April, and May, called, respectively, foreward Lent, midward Lent, +and afterward Lent; see A Student's Pastime, p. 190. Hence the phrase in +_middis of the Lent_ does not mean precisely in the middle of the spring, +but refers to the month of April; indeed, the sun passed out of Aries into +Taurus on the 11th of the month. The date indicated is, accordingly, the +_first week in April_, when the sun was still in Aries, and showers of +hail, with a stormy north wind, were quite seasonable. + +10. _sylit under cure_, covered up, (as if) under his care. The verb _to +syle_ is precisely the mod. E. _ceil_; which see in the New E. Dict. + +12. _unto_, i.e. over against. The planet Venus, rising in the east, set +her face over against the west, where the sun had set. + +20. _shill_, shrill. _Shille_ occurs as a variant of _schrille_ in C. T., B +4585; see _schil_ in Stratmann. + +32. _douf_ (spelt _doif_ in the old edition) is the Northern form of +'deaf,' answering to the Icel. _daufr_; thus a nut without a kernel is +called in the South 'a deaf nut,' but in Scotland 'a douf nit'; see +Jamieson. For _deaf_ in the senses of 'dull' and 'unproductive,' see the +New E. Dict. + +39. _cut_, curtail; illustrated from Lydgate in the New E. Dict. + +42. Read _lusty_, to avoid the repetition of _worthy_; cf. l. 41. It should +have been stated, in the footnotes, that the readings are: E. worthy; Th. +lusty. + +43. Referring to Troil. bk. v. In l. 92, we are told how Diomede led +Criseyde away. Note particularly that, in l. 45, Henryson quotes Chaucer +rather closely. Cf. 'For which wel neigh out of my wit I breyde'; Troil. v. +1262. And cf. ll. 47-9 with--'Betwixen hope and drede his herte lay'; +Troil. v. 1207. + +48. _Quhill_, till. The reading _Esperus_ in E. is comic enough. Even +Thynne has misread _esperans_, and has turned it into _esperous_. There can +be little doubt that _esperans_ here means 'hope,' as it is opposed to +_wanhope_ in the line above. The word was known to Henryson, as we find, in +st. 8 of his Garment of Gude Ladyis: 'Hir slevis suld be of _esperance_, To +keip hir _fra dispair_.' Cf. l. 49. + +50. _behest_, promise; because she had promised to return to Troy within +ten days; Troil. iv. 1595. + +65. _this narratioun_, i.e. the sequel of the story, which he is about to +tell. He does not tell us whence he derived it, but intimates that it is a +fiction; I suppose he invented it himself. + +74. _lybel of répudy_, Lat. 'libellum repudii,' as in Matt. xix. 7. + +77. 'And, as some say, into the common court'; i.e. she became a courtesan. + +78. _A-per-se_, i.e. the first letter of the alphabet, standing alone. A +letter that was also a word in itself, as _A_, or _I_, or _O_, was called +'per se,' because it could stand alone. Of these, the _A-per-se_ was a type +of excellence. One of Dunbar's Poems (ed. Small, i. 276) begins:--'London, +thou art of townes _A-per-se_.' + +79. _fortunait_, the sport of fortune; oddly used, as it implies that she +was 'an unfortunate.' Cf. l. 89. + +94. _but_, without; and Thynne actually prints _without_ in place of it. + +97. _quhair_, where her father Calchas (was). He was living among the +Greeks; Troil. i. 80, 87. + +106. In the medieval legend, Calchas was not a priest of Venus, but of +Apollo, as Chaucer notes; see Troil. i. 66-70. So also in Lydgate, Siege of +Troy, bk. ii. c. 17. Henryson probably altered this intentionally, because +it enabled him to represent Criseyde as reproaching her father's god; see +ll. 124, 134. + +129. _outwaill_, outcast; one who is chosen out and rejected; from the verb +_wail_, _ wale_, to choose. There seems to be no other example of the word, +though Jamieson gives '_outwailins_, leavings, things of little value.' + +140. _forlane_ can hardly mean 'left alone.' If so, it would be a word +invented for the occasion, and improperly formed from _lane_, which is +itself a docked form of _alane_. In all other passages _forlane_ or +_forlain_ is the pp. of _forliggen_; and the sense of 'defiled' is quite +applicable. And further, it rimes with _slane_, which means 'slain.' + +143. 'And, as it seemed, she heard, where she lay,' &c. + +147. The seven planets; which, in the order of the magnitude of their +orbits, are Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, Venus, Mercury, and the Moon. +And to this order the author carefully adheres throughout ll. 151-263. + +155. _fronsit_, wrinkled; _frounse_ is the mod. E. _flounce_, which +formerly meant 'a pleat'; see _frounce_, _frouncen_ in Stratmann, and the +Gloss. to Chaucer. Misprinted _frosnit_ in E. + +'His complexion was like lead.' Lead was Saturn's metal; see C. T., G 828, +and the note. + +164. That _gyte_ is the correct reading, is obvious from ll. 178, 260, +where Thynne has preserved it. It is a Chaucerian word; see the Glossary in +vol. vi. It seems to mean 'mantle.' The Edinburgh printer altered it to +_gyis_, which is too general a term, at least in l. 260. + +182. 'To ward off from us the wrath of his father (Saturn).' + +198. Compare Ch. C. T., F 1031--'god and governour Of every plaunte, herbe, +tree, and flour.' + +205. Alluding to Phaethon's misguidance of the chariot of the sun; 'And +that his faders cart amis he dryve'; Troil. v. 665. Laing prints _unricht_; +but omits to say that E. has _upricht_. + +211. _soyr_, sorrel-coloured, reddish-brown; see _Sorrel_ in my Etym. Dict. + +212-6. The names of the four horses are curiously corrupted from the names +given in Ovid, Met. ii. 153, viz. Eöus, Æthon, Pyröeis, and Phlegon. As +_Eous_ means 'belonging to the dawn,' we may consider the words _into the +Orient_, i.e. in the East, as explanatory of the name _Eoy_; 'called Eoy, +(which signifies) in the East.' As to the name of the last horse, it was +obviously meant to take the form _Philegoney_, in order to rime with _sey_ +(sea), and I have therefore restored this form. The two authorities, E. and +Th., give it in the amazing form _Philologie_ (_Philologee_), which can +only mean 'philology'! + +231. _lauch_ and _weip_ are infinitives, but appear to be meant for past +tenses. If so, the former should be _leuch_; _weip_ may answer to the +strong pt. t. _weep_ in Chaucer (A.S. _w[=e]op_). + +246. He seems to be thinking of Chaucer's Doctor of Phisyk; cf. Ch. Prol. A +425-6, 439. + +254. 'The last of all (in order), and swiftest in her orbit.' + +256. Thynne has _tapere_ = to appear; this passage is curiously cited, in +Richardson's Dictionary, in illustration of the sb. _taper_! + +261. _churl_, man; this is Chaucer's _cherl_, in Troil. i. 1024. See the +note to that line. + +263. _na nar_, no nearer; the moon's orbit, being the least, was the most +remote from the outer heaven that enclosed the _primum mobile_. + +273. _shew_, shewed; but it is false grammar, for the verb to _shew_ (or +_show_) was weak. Formed by analogy with _blew_, _grew_, _knew_; cf. _rew_, +_mew_, _sew_, old strong preterites of _row_, _mow_, and _sow_. + +290. As Henryson usually refrains from the addition of a syllable at the +cæsura, we should probably read _injure_, not _injury_; see Troil. iii. +1018. + +297, 298. _hyest_, i.e. Saturn; _lawest_ (lowest), i.e. Cynthia. + +299. _modify_, determine, specify; not here used in the modern sense. + +318. Heat and moisture characterised the _sanguine_ temperament (see vol. +v. p. 33); coldness and dryness characterised the melancholy temperament +(see P. Plowman, B-text, p. xix). Cf. l. 316. + +343. 'With cup and clapper, like a leper.' It was usual for lepers to carry +a cup (for their own use), and a clapper or clap-dish, which was used in +order to give warning of their approach, and also as a receptacle for alms, +to prevent actual contact; cf. l. 479 below. Compare the following:-- + + 'Coppe and claper he bare ... + As he a mesel [_leper_] were.'--Sir Tristrem, 3173. + + 'Than beg her bread with dish and clap' (referring to Criseyde). + + Turbervile's Poems: The Lover in utter dispaire. + +See further under _Clapper_ in the New Eng. Dict. + +_lazarous_ is formed as an adj. in _-ous_ from the sb. _lazar_, a leper; +see l. 531. + +350. _wa_, woful; 'God knows if she was woful enough.' + +382. The accent on the second syllable of _hospital_ was not uncommon; +hence its frequent contraction to _spittal_ or _spittel-house_; for which +see l. 391 below. + +386. Read _bevar_ or _bever_ (Th. has _beuer_); the reading _bawar_ in E. +gives no sense. I see no connection with Lowl. Sc. _bevar_, 'one who is +worn out with age,' according to Jamieson, who merely guesses at the sense, +as being perhaps allied to _bavard_, which he also explains as 'worn out'; +although, if from the F. _bavard_, it rather means talkative, babbling, or +idle. I believe that _bevar hat_ simply means 'beaver hat,' formerly used +by women as well as by men. Even Dickens alludes to 'farmer's wives in +beaver bonnets,' in Martin Chuzzlewit, ch. 5. No doubt a beaver hat was, +when new, an expensive luxury, as worn by Chaucer's 'Merchant' (Prol. l. +272); but they wore well and long, and were doubtless gladly used by +beggars when cast off by their original owners. + +407. The metre, in ll. 407-69, is borrowed from Chaucer's Anelida. + +410. _blaiknit_, is not a derivative of M.E. _blak_, black, but of M.E. +_bl[=a]k_, _bleik_, bleak, pallid, cheerless. It is here used in the sense +of 'rendered cheerless'; and _bair_ means 'bare' or 'barren.' See +_bl[=a]kien_ in Stratmann. + +413. 'Thy bale is in the growth,' or is sprouting. See _Braird_, the first +shoots of corn or grass, in the New E. Dict., where two more examples of +this phrase are cited from Henryson. + +417. 'With goodly bed, and convenient embroidered bench-covers.' _Burelie_ +(mod. E. _burly_, prov. E. _bowerly_) answers to an A.S. form +_b[=u]r-l[=i]c_, i.e. suitable for a lady's bower. This explains why it was +appropriately used as an epithet for a bed. Cf. 'Quhair ane _burely_ bed +was wrocht in that wane'; Rauf Coilyear, 264. Hence 'a burly knight' was +one suitable for a lady's bower, and therefore handsome, strong, +well-grown, large; and by a degradation of meaning, huge, corpulent. The +changes in sense are curious and instructive. In the New E. Dict., the +etymology is not given. For _bene_, see _bain_ in the New E. Dict.; and for +_bankouris_, see _banker_. + +421. _saipheroun sals_, saffron sauce. _Saffron_ and _salt_ were often used +together in medieval cookery; see Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery Books, ed. +Austin (E. E. T. S.). The Glossary to that book gives the spellings +_safroun_, _saferon_, _saferoun_, and _sapheron_. + +423. This is a very early mention of _lawn_. It is also mentioned in st. 10 +of Lydgate's 'London Lickpeny.' + +429. _walk_, wake. The history of this spelling is not quite clear; but the +_l_ was, in any case, mute; another spelling is _wauk_. I suspect that it +originated in the misunderstanding of a symbol. The scribe, who wished to +write _wakk_, used a symbol resembling _lk_, where the _l_ was _really_ the +first _k_, indicated by its down-stroke only. For example, the word _rokke_ +was (apparently) written _rolke_. See my article on Ghost-words; Phil. Soc. +Trans. 1885, p. 369. + +_tak the dew_, gather May-dew. The old custom of bathing the face with +fresh dew on the 1st of May is referred to in Brand's Popular Antiquities. +He gives an example as late as 1791. See Pepys' Diary, May 28, 1667, May +11, 1669; where we find that _any_ day in May was then considered suitable +for this health-giving operation. + +433. I take _on every grane_ to mean 'in every particular'; cf. 'a _grain_ +of sense.' We may also note the Fr. _teindre en graine_, to dye in grain, +to dye of a fast colour; and we occasionally find _grain_ in the sense of +'tint.' Godefroy cites 'ung couvertoer d'une _graigne_ vermeille'; and 'une +manche vermeille, ne sçay se c'est _graine_ ou autre taincture.' _Grane_ +also means 'groan,' and 'groin,' and 'fork of a tree'; but none of these +senses suit. + +438. 'Take this leper-lodge in place of thy stately bower.' + +450. In l. 407, we have _sop of sorrow_, i.e. sop, or sup, of sorrow. So +here _sowpit in syte_, sopped, or drenched, in sorrow; an expression which +Jamieson illustrates from Holland's Houlate, i. 4, and Douglas's Vergil, +prologue to Book viii, l. 5. + +463. This expression is imitated from Chaucer's Boethius, bk. iii. pr. 6. +3--'O glorie, glorie, thou art nothing elles but a greet sweller of eres!' +See note to I. ii. 8. 68 (p. 472). + +480. _leir_ (Th. _lerne_); surely miscopied from l. 479. Read _live_. + +490. _lipper_ seems to be used collectively; so also in l. 494. + +492. _shuik coppis_, shook their cups; it implies that they waved them +aloft, to attract attention. They also used their clappers. + +501. _ply_, plight. I know of no other example of _ply_ in this sense; but +_ply_ (usually, a fold) and _plight_ (incorrect spelling of M.E. _plyte_) +are closely related; the former represents Lat. _plicitum_, the latter, +Lat. _plicita_; from _plicare_, to fold (whence E. _ply_, verb, to bend). + +541. 'With many a sorrowful cry and cold _or_ sad (cry of) O hone!' Here +_cald_ = sad; and _Ochane_ is the Irish and Scotch cry of _O hone!_ or _Och +hone!_ See _O hone_ in the Century Dict., s.v. _O_. + +543. _will of wane_, lit. wild of weening, at a loss what to do. See Gloss. +to Barbour's Bruce, s.v. _Will_. + +550. 'And climbed so high upon the fickle wheel' (of Fortune). Cf. Troil. +iv. 6, 11. + +567. 'For they (women) are as constant as a weathercock in the wind.' Cf. +'_unsad_ ... and chaunging as a vane'; Ch. C. T., E 995. + +588. _wellis_, streams, rills; as in Book Duch. 160. + +589. _broche and belt_; Criseyde gave Diomede the brooch she had received +from Troilus; see Troil. v. 1661, 1669, 1688. The _belt_ is Henryson's +addition. + +600. 'His heart was ready to burst.' + +§ XVIII. THE CUCKOO AND THE NIGHTINGALE. + +In this piece, the final _-e_ is much used as forming a distinct syllable; +indeed, more freely than in Chaucer. + +1, 2. Quoted from the Knightes Tale, A 1785-6. + +4. The word _of_ is inserted in Th., Ff. and S., and seems to be right; but +as _hy-e_ should be two syllables, perhaps the words _And of_ were rapidly +pronounced, in the time of a single syllable. Or omit _And_. + +11-5. The lines of this stanza are wrongly arranged in Thynne, and in every +printed edition except the present one; i.e. the lines 12 and 13 are +transposed. But as the rime-formula is _aabba_, it is easy to see that +_suffyse_, _devyse_, _agryse_ rime together on the one hand, and _nyce_, +_vyce_, on the other. The pronunciation _suffice_ is comparatively modern; +in Chaucer, the suffix _-yse_ was pronounced with a voiced _s_, i.e. as +_z_. Note the rimes _devyse_, _suffyse_ in the Book of the Duch. 901-2; +_suffyse_, _wyse_, _devyse_, in the C. T., B 3648-9; &c. The MSS. Ff., F., +and B. all give the right arrangement. + +18. _whom him lyketh_, him whom it pleases him (to gladden or sadden). + +20, 23. _May_; cf. Troil. ii. 50-63; Rom. Rose, 51-2, 74-6, 85-6; Legend of +Good Women, 108; C. T., A 1500-2. + +36. _of feling_, from experience. _Spek-e_ is dissyllabic. + +39. _hoot_, hot, i.e. hopeful; _cold_, full of despair; _acces_, feverish +attack, as in Troil. ii. 1315, 1543, 1578. + +41. _fevers whyte_, feverish attacks (of love) that turn men pale; the same +as _blaunche fevere_ in Troil. i. 916; see note to that line. + +48. _a comune tale_, a common saying. As a fact, one would expect to hear +the cuckoo first. Prof. Newton, in his Dict. of Birds, says of the cuckoo, +that it 'crosses the Mediterranean from its winter-quarters in Africa at +the end of March or beginning of April. Its arrival is at once proclaimed +by the peculiar ... cry of the cock.' Of the nightingale he says--'if the +appearance of truth is to be regarded, it is dangerous to introduce a +nightingale as singing in England before the 15th of April or after the +15th of June.' + +As the change of style makes a difference of 12 days, this 15th of April +corresponds to the 3rd of April in the time of Chaucer. It is remarkable +that Hazlitt, in his Proverbs, p. 305, gives the following:--'On the third +of April, comes in the cuckoo and the nightingale'; which may once have +been correct as regards the latter. Hazlitt also says that, in Sussex, the +14th of April is supposed to be 'first cuckoo-day'; whereas it would better +apply to the nightingale. And again, another proverb says (p. 380)--'The +nightingale and the cuckoo sing both in one month.' It is clear that, +whatever the facts may be, our ancestors had a notion that these birds +arrived nearly at the same time, and attached some importance, by way of +augury, to the possibility of hearing the nightingale first. They must +frequently have been disappointed. See Milton's sonnet, as quoted in the +Introduction. + +54. _of_, during; exactly as in l. 42. + +62. Read _inne_, the adverbial form; for the sake of the grammar and +scansion. See _Inne_ in the Gloss. in vol. vi. p. 135. _been_ gives a false +rime to _gren-e_ and _sen-e_; shewing that _grene_ and _sene_ are here +monosyllabic (really _green_ and _seen_), instead of being dissyllabic, as +in Chaucer. _Sene_ is the adj., meaning visible, not the pp., which then +took the form _seyn_. + +70. For _began_, which is singular, substitute the pl. form _begonne_. _to +don hir houres_, to sing their matins, &c.; referring to the canonical +hours of church-service. Bell has the reading _to don honoures_, for which +there is no early authority. Morris unluckily adopts the meaningless +reading found in MSS. F. and B. + +71. 'They knew that service all by rote,' i.e. by heart. Bell actually +explains _rote_ as a hurdy-gurdy; as to which see _Rote_ (in senses 2 and +3) in the Gloss. in vol. vi. p. 218. + +80. _Feverere_ seems to have been pronounced _Fev'rer'_. Surely it must be +right. Yet all the MSS. (except T.) actually have _Marche_ (written _Mars_ +in Ff.), followed by _upon_, not _on_. Even Th. and T. have _upon_, not +_on_; but it ruins the scansion, unless we adopt the reading _March_. It +looks as if the author really _did_ write _Marche_! + +82, 85. _ron_, _mon_, for _ran_, _man_, are peculiar. As such forms occur +in Myrc and Audelay (both Shropshire authors) and in Robert of Gloucester, +they are perfectly consistent with the supposition that they are due to +Clanvowe's connection with Herefordshire. + +87. _swow_, swoon; cf. Book Duch. 215. + +90. As _brid_ is a monosyllable (cf. ll. 212, 260, 270, 271), it is +necessary to make _lew-ed-e_ a trisyllable; as also in l. 103. But it +becomes _lew'de_ in ll. 50, 94. Chaucer has _lew-ëd_, P. F. 616, &c. + +105. _him_; the cuckoo is male, but the nightingale, by way of contrast, is +supposed to be female. + +118. _playn_, simple, having simple notes; cf. 'the plain-song cuckoo,' +Mids. Nt. Dr. iii. 1. 134. + +119. _crakel_, 'trill or quaver in singing; used in contempt'; New E. Dict. + +124. _I_ seems to be strongly accented. It is a pity that there is no +authority for inserting _For_ before it. Otherwise, read _I hav-ë_. + +In Old French, _oci oci_, represented the cry of the nightingale; Godefroy +gives examples from Raoul de Houdenc, Froissart, and Deschamps. Moreover, +_oci_ was also the imperative of the O.F. verb _ocire_, to kill; with which +it is here intentionally confused. Accordingly, the nightingale retorts +that _oci_ means 'kill! kill!' with reference to the enemies of love. + +135. _grede_, exclaim, cry out. Not used by Chaucer, though found in most +dialects of Middle-English. Clanvowe may have heard it in Herefordshire, as +it occurs in Langland, Layamon, Robert of Gloucester, and in the Coventry +Mysteries, and must have been known in the west. But it was once a very +common word. From A.S. _gr[=æ]dan_. + +137. _to-drawe_, drawn asunder; cf. Havelok, 2001; Will. of Palerne, 1564. + +140. _yok_, yoke; cf. Ch. C. T., E 113, 1285. + +142. _unthryve_, become unsuccessful, meet with ill luck. A very rare word; +but it also occurs in the Cursor Mundi (Fairfax MS.), l. 9450, where it is +said of Adam that 'his wyf made him _to unthryve_.' + +146. The first syllable of the line is deficient. Accent _What_ strongly. +Cf. 153-8 below. + +151. The sentiment that love teaches all goodness, is common at this time; +see Schick's note to Lydgate's Temple of Glas, l. 450. + +152. The true reading is doubtful. + +153-8. Here the author produces a considerable metrical effect, by +beginning all of these lines with a strong accent. There are three such +consecutive lines in the Wyf of Bathes Tale, D 869-71. Cf. ll. 161, 232, +242, 252, 261, 265, 268, 270, 278. + +180. Bell and Morris read _haire_, without authority, and Bell explains it +by 'he may full soon have the _hair_ (!) which belongs to age, _scil._, +grey hair, said to be produced by anxiety.' But the M.E. form of 'hair' is +_heer_, which will not give a true rime; and the word _heyr_ represents the +mod. E. _heir_. As the _h_ was not sounded, it is also written _eir_ (as in +MS. T.) and _air_ (as in MS. S.). The sense is--'For he who gets a little +bliss of love may very soon find that his heir has come of age, unless he +is always devoted to it.' This is a mild joke, signifying that he will soon +find himself insecure, like one whose heir or successor has come of age, +and whose inheritance is threatened. On the other hand, 'to have one's hair +of age' is wholly without sense. Compare the next note. + +185. 'And then you shall be called as _I_ am.' I. e. your loved one will +forsake you, and you will be called a cuckold. This remark is founded on +the fact that the O.F. _coucou_ or _cocu_ had the double sense of cuckoo +and cuckold. See _cocu_ in Littré. This explains l. 186. + +201-5. Bell, by an oversight, omits this stanza. + +203. This reading (from the best MS., viz. Ff.) is much the best. The sense +is--'And whom he hits he knows not, or whom he misses'; because he is +blind. + +216-25. All the early printed editions crush these two stanzas into one, by +omitting ll. 217-9, and 224-5, and altering _thoughte me_ (l. 223) to _me +aloon_. This is much inferior to the text. + +237. _leve_, believe; yet all the authorities but S. have the reading +_loue_! Cf. l. 238. + +243. _dayesye_, daisy. Cf. Legend of Good Women, 182-7, 201-2, 211. + +266. _Ye witen_ is the right reading; turned into _ye knowe_ in F. and B. +The old printed editions actually read _The cuckowe_! + +267. A syllable seems lacking after _I_; such lines are common in Lydgate. +The reading _y-chid_ would render the line complete; or we may read +_hav-ë_, as perhaps in l. 124. + +275. An obvious allusion to Chaucer's Parlement of Foules, in which he +gives 'the royal egle' the first place (l. 330). + +284. _The quene_; queen Joan of Navarre, second wife of Henry IV, who +received the manor of Woodstock as part of her dower. + +285. _lay_, lea; not a common word in M.E. poetry, though occurring in P. +Plowman. The parliament of birds required a large open space. + +289. _Terme_: during the whole term of my life; cf. C. T., G 1479. + +§ XIX. ENVOY TO ALISON. + +1. _lewde book_, unlearned book. It is not known to what book this refers. +It has nothing to do with the preceding poem. My guess, in vol. i. p. 40, +that this piece might be Hoccleve's, is quite untenable. His pieces are all +known, and the metrical form is of later date. See the next note. + +11. Too long; perhaps _servant_ should be struck out. So in l. 13 we could +spare the word _als_. But ll. 17, 18, 19, 20, are all of an unconscionable +length. + +22-7. I believe I was the first to detect the obvious acrostic on the name +of Alison; see vol. i. p. 40. The sense of ll. 25-6 (which are forced and +poor) is--'I beseech (you) of your grace, let your writing (in reply) +alleviate the sighs which I pour out in silence.' + +§ XX. THE FLOWER AND THE LEAF. + +I give numerous references below to 'A. L.', i.e. the Assembly of Ladies, +printed at p. 380. The two poems have much in common. + +1-2. Imitated from C. T., F 671; see note in vol. v. p. 386. + +3. _Bole_, Bull, Taurus. The sun then entered Taurus about the middle of +April; hence the allusion to April showers in l. 4. Compare the opening +lines of Chaucer's Prologue. But we learn, from l. 437, that it was already +May. Hence the sun had really run half its course in Taurus. _certeinly_; +used at the end of the line, as in A. L. 85. + +10. _very good_; this adverbial use of _very_ is noticeable; cf. ll. 35, +315, 409, and A. L. 479. I believe Chaucer never uses _very_ to qualify an +adjective. It occurs, however, in Lydgate. + +20. Cf. '_more_ at _hertes ese_'; A. L. 672. + +25. Cf. 'at _springing of the day_'; A. L. 218. + +26. Cf. 'That ye wold help me _on_ with _myn aray_'; A. L. 241. + +27-8. This rime of _passe_ with _was_ occurs again below (114-6); and in A. +L. 436-8. + +30. Chaucer has _hew-ë_, _new-ë_; but here _hew_, _new_ rime with the pt. +t. _grew_. So, in A. L. 65-8, _hew_, _new_ rime with the pt. t. _knew_. + +31-2. Copied from the Book of the Duch. 419-20:-- + + 'And every tree stood by him-selve + Fro other wel ten foot or twelve.' + +35. 'The young leaves of the oak, when they first burst from the bud, are +of a red, cinereous colour'; Bell. + +37. Cf. 'this proces _for to here_'; A. L. 27. And again, 'pitous _for to +here_; A. L. 718. + +39-42. This seems to be a direct allusion to the Cuckoo and the +Nightingale, ll. 52-4:-- + + 'I wolde go som whider to assay + If that I might _a nightingale here_; + For yet had I non _herd of al this yere_.' + +43-5. From the Book of the Duch. 398-401:-- + + 'Doun by a floury grene wente + _Ful thikke of gras_, ful softe and swete,... + _And litel used_, it semed thus.' + +Cf. A. L. 47; 'into a strait passage,' and the context. + +47. _parde_; a petty oath (being in French), such as a female writer might +use; so in A. L. 753. + +49, 50. For the _herber_ and _benches_, see A. L. 48-9; also L. G. W. +203-4. For the phrase _wel y-wrought_, see A. L. 165. + +53. Bell and Morris read _wool_, which is obviously right; but neither of +them mention the fact that _both_ Speght's editions have _wel_; and there +is no other authority! Clearly, Speght's MS. had _wol_, which he misread as +_wel_. + +56. _eglantere_, eglantine, sweet-briar. Entered under _eglatere_ in the +New E. Dict., though the earlier quotations, in 1387 and 1459, have +_eglentere_. I find no authority for the form _eglatere_ except Speght's +misprint in this line, which he corrects in l. 80 below. Tennyson's +_eglatere_ (Dirge, 23) is clearly borrowed from this very line. + +58. _by mesure_; a tag which reappears in A. L. 81. + +59. _by and by_; another tag, for which see A. L. 87, 717. + +60. _I you ensure_; yet another tag; see l. 457, and A. L. 52, 199, 495, +517. + +62. The final _e_ in _peyn-e_ is suppressed; so in A. L. 359, 416. + +68. Cf. 'And as they sought hem-self thus _to and fro_'; A. L. 43. + +75. Here _espyed_ rimes with _syde_, _wyde_; in A. L. 193, it rimes with +_asyde_ and _gyde_. + +89. The _goldfinch_ is afterwards opposed to the _nightingale_. Hence he +replaces the _cuckoo_ in the poem of the Cuckoo and Nightingale. Just as +the Cuckoo and Nightingale represent the faithless and the constant, so the +goldfinch and the nightingale are attached, respectively, to the bright +Flower and the long-lasting Leaf. This is explicitly said below; see ll. +439, 444. + +98. _in this wyse_; appears also at the end of a line in A. L. 589; cf. _in +her gyse_, A. L. 603; _in ful pitous wyse_, A. L. 584; _in no maner wyse_, +A. L. 605. + +99, 100. These lines correspond to the Cuckoo and Nightingale, 98-100. + +113. _inly greet_, extremely great; cf. _inly fair_, A. L. 515. + +115. 'Ye wold it _thinke a_ very _paradyse_'; A. L. 168. + +118. Better _I set me doun_, as in A. L. 77. + +121. 'Withouten sleep, withouten mete or drinke'; L. G. W. 177 (note the +context). + +134. Here begins the description of the adherents of the Leaf, extending to +l. 322, including the Nine Worthies, ll. 239-94. The reader must carefully +bear in mind that the followers of the Leaf are clad in _white_ (not in +green, as we should now expect), though the nine Worthies are crowned with +green laurel, and all the company gather under a huge Laurel-tree (l. 304). +On the other hand the followers of the Flower, shortly described in ll. +323-50, are clad in _green_, though wearing chaplets of white and red +flowers; for green was formerly an emblem of _inconstancy_. + +137. Cf. '_to_ say you _very right_'; A. L. 750. + +144. _oon and oon_, every one of them. This phrase is rare in Chaucer; it +seems only to occur once, in C. T., A 679; but see A. L. 368, 543, 710. + +146. _purfil_ occurs in A. L. 87, in the same line with _by and by_; and in +A. L. 522-4, we find _colour_, _sleves_, and _purfyl_ close together. + +148. Cf. 'With _grete perles_, ful fyne _and orient_'; A. L. 528. For +_diamonds_, see A. L. 530. + +150. Borrowed from Chaucer, Parl. Foules, 287: 'of whiche the name I +wante.' Hence _wante_, i.e. lack, is the right reading. The rime is +imperfect. + +155. The missing word is not _branches_, as suggested by Sir H. Nicolas, +nor _floures_, as suggested by Morris, but _leves_; as the company of _the +Leaf_ is being described; cf. l. 259. The epithets _fresh and grene_ are +very suitable. The leaves were of laurel, woodbine, and _agnus-castus_. + +160. For _were_ read _ware_; see ll. 267, 329, 335, 340; the sense is +_wore_. Chaucer's form is _wered_, as the verb was originally weak; Gower +and Lydgate also use the form _wered_. The present is perhaps one of the +earliest examples of the strong form of this preterite. + +_agnus-castus_; 'from Gk. [Greek: agnos], the name of the tree, confused +with [Greek: agnos], chaste, whence the second word Lat. _castus_, chaste. +A tree, species of Vitex (_V. Agnus Castus_), once believed to be a +preservative of chastity, called also Chaste-tree and Abraham's Balm'; New +E. Dict. The same Dict. quotes from Trevisa: 'The herbe agnus-castus is +alwaye grene, and the flowre therof is namly callyd Agnus Castus, for wyth +smelle and vse it makyth men chaste as a lombe.' + +163. For _But_ Morris reads _And_, which is simpler. + +164. _oon_, one. She was the goddess Diana (see l. 472), or the Lady of the +Leaf. + +171. Cf. 'That to beholde it was a greet plesaunce'; A. L. 59. + +172. Cf. 'though it were _for a king_'; A. L. 158. + +177-8. Speght has _Suse le foyle de vert moy_ in l. 177, and _Seen et mon +joly cuer en dormy_ in l. 178. I see little good in guessing what it ought +to be; so I leave it alone, merely correcting _Suse_ and _foyle_ to _Sus_ +and _foyl_; as the O.F. _foil_ was masculine. + +Bell alters _de vert_ to _devers_, and for _Seen_ puts _Son_; and supplies +_est_ after _cuer_; but it all gives no sense when it is done. We should +have to read _Sus le foyl devers moy sied, et mon joli cuer est endormi_; +sit down upon the foliage before me, and my merry heart has gone to sleep. +Which can hardly be right. The Assembly of Ladies has the same peculiarity, +of presenting unintelligible scraps of French to the bewildered reader. + +180. _smal_, high, treble; chiefly valuable for explaining the same word in +Chaucer's Balade to Rosemounde. + +188-9. A parallel passage occurs in A. L. 384-5. + +201. _the large wones_, the spacious dwellings; cf. Ch. C. T., D 2105. + +202. Speght has _Pretir_, an obvious error for _Prester_. The authoress may +easily have obtained her knowledge of Prester John from a MS. of +Mandeville's Travels; see cap. 27 of that work. And see Yule's edition of +Marco Polo. He was, according to Mandeville, one of the greatest potentates +of Asia, next to the Great Khan. + +209. _cereal_; borrowed from Chaucer:--'A _coroune_ of a grene _ook +cerial_'; C. T., A 2290. And Chaucer took it from Boccaccio; see note in +vol. v. p. 87. + +210. _trumpets_, i.e. trumpeters; as several times in Shakespeare. Cf. l. +213. + +212. _tartarium_, thin silk from Tartary. Fully explained in my note to P. +Plowman, C. xvii. 299 (B. xv. 163), and in the Glossary to the same. +_bete_, lit. beaten; hence, adorned with beaten gold; see note to C. T., A +978 (vol. v. p. 64). _were_, (all of which) were; hence the plural. + +213. Read _bere_, as in l. 223; A.S. _b[=æ]ron_, pt. t. pl. + +220. _kinges of armes_, kings-at-arms; who presided over colleges of +heralds. Sir David Lyndsay was Lord Lion king-at-arms. + +224. Cf. '_Set with saphyrs_'; A. L. 480. + +233. _vel-u-et_ is trisyllabic; as in The Black Knight, 80. + +234. 'And certainly, they had nothing to learn as to how they should place +the armour upon them.' + +238. _in sute_, in their master's livery. + +240. The celebrated Nine Worthies; see notes to IV. 281, XII. 86. + +243. Cf. '_and furred_ wel _with gray_'; A. L. 305. + +252. _henshmen_, youths mounted on horseback, who attended their lords. See +numerous quotations for this word in A Student's Pastime, §§ 264, 272, +415-8. Each of them is called _a child_, l. 259. + +253. For _every on_, it is absolutely necessary to read _the first upon_; +for the sense. Each of the nine worthies had three henchmen; of these +three, the first bore his helmet, the second his shield, and the third his +spear. + +257. Bell and Morris alter _nekke_ to _bakke_; but wrongly. The shields +were carried by help of a strap which passed round the _neck_ and over the +shoulders; called in Old French a _guige_. The convenience of this +arrangement is obvious. See note to C. T., A 2504 (vol. v. p. 88). + +272. In Lydgate's Temple of Glas, 508, we are told that hawthorn-leaves do +not fade; see ll. 551-3 below. + +274. Read _hors_, not _horses_; _hors_ is the true plural; see l. 293. + +275. Cf. '_trompes_, that ... blowen _blody sounes_'; C. T., A 2511-2. + +286-7. 'That _to beholde it was a greet plesaunce_'; A. L. 59. And +again--'_I you ensure_'; A. L. 52. + +289. I. e. the Nine Worthies; see ll. 240, 249. + +293. The reading _ninth_ (as in Speght) is an absurd error for _nine_; yet +no one has hitherto corrected it. How could the ninth man alight from +_their horses_? The 'remnant' were the twenty-seven henchmen and the other +knights. + +295. Cf. 'See how they come _togider, twain and twain_'; A. L. 350. + +302. Cf. '_Ful womanly_ she gave me,' &c.; A. L. 196. + +305. 'Laden with leaves, with boughs of great breadth.' + +323. Here begins the description of the company of the Flower. They were +clad in _green_. + +330. Cf. 'Her gown was _wel embrouded_'; A. L. 85. + +348. _bargaret_, a pastoral; a rustic song and dance; O.F. _bergerete_, +from _berger_, a shepherd. Godefroy notes that they were in special vogue +at Easter. + +350. We have here the refrain of a popular French pastoral. Warton suggests +it may have been Froissart's; but the refrain of Froissart's Ballade de la +Marguerite happens to be different: 'Sur toutes flours j'aime la +margherite'; see Spec. of O. French, ed. Toynbee, p. 302. In fact, Warton +proceeds to remark, that 'it was common in France to give the title of +Marguerites to studied panegyrics and flowery compositions of every kind.' +It is quite impossible to say if a special compliment is intended; most +likely, the authoress thought of nothing of the kind. She again mentions +_margarettes_ in A. L. 57. + +351. _in-fere_, together; very common at the end of a line, as in ll. 384, +450; A. L. 407, 469, 546, 602, 719. + +369. _withouten fail_; this tag recurs in A. L. 567, 646, in the form +_withouten any fail_; and, unaltered, in A. L. 188, 537. + +373. Those in white, the party of the Leaf. + +379. _oon_, one of those in green; this was queen Flora; see l. 534. + +403. Bell thinks this corrupt. I think it means, that, before engaging with +them in jousts in a friendly manner, they procured some logs of wood and +thoroughly dried them. Hence _To make hir justës_ = in order to joust with +them afterwards. + +410. 'Quickly anointing the sick, wherever they went.' + +417. _for any thing_, in any case, whatever might happen; cf. C. T., A 276, +and the note (vol. v. p. 30). + +427. 'For nothing was lacking that ought to belong to him.' + +450. Here the story ends, and the telling of the moral begins. + +457. The meeting with a 'fair lady' was convenient, as she wanted +information. In the Assembly of Ladies, this simple device is resorted to +repeatedly; see ll. 79, 191, 260, 400. + +459. We find _ful demure_ at the end of A. L. 82. + +462, 467. _My doughter_; this assumes that the author was a female; so in +ll. 500, 547; and in A. L. throughout. + +475. Referring to l. 173; so l. 477 refers to l. 160; l. 479, to l. 158. + +493. _some maner way_, some kind of way; cf. _what maner way_, A. L. 234. + +502. Refers to ll. 240, 249. With l. 510, cf. C. T., A 1027. + +512. Speght prints _bowes_ for _boughes_; but the meaning is certain, as +the reference is to ll. 270-1. Bows are not made of laurel; yet Dryden fell +into the trap, and actually wrote as follows:-- + + 'Who bear the bows were knights in Arthur's reign; + Twelve they, and twelve the peers of Charlemagne; + For bows the strength of brawny arms imply, + Emblems of valour and of victory.' + +This is probably the only instance, even in poetry, of knights being armed +with bows and arrows. + +515. For the knights of Arthur's round table, see Malory's Morte Arthure. + +516. _Douseperes_; _les douze pers_, the twelve peers of Charlemagne, +including Roland, Oliver, Ogier the Dane, Otuel, Ferumbras, the traitor +Ganelon, and others. The names vary. + +520. _in hir tyme_, formerly, in their day; shewing that the institution of +the Knights of the Garter on April 23, 1349, by Edward III, was anything +but a recent event. + +530. I. e. 'Witness _him_ of Rome, who was the founder of knighthood.' +Alluding to Julius Cæsar, to whom was decreed by the senate the right of +wearing a laurel-crown; Dryden mentions him by name. + +550. Cf. '_De mieulx en mieulx_'; Temple of Glas, 310. + +551-6. Apparently imitated from The Temple of Glas, 503-16. + +567. Cf. 'We _thanked_ her _in our most humble wyse_'; A. L. 729. + +580. _Male-Bouche_, Slander; borrowed from the Rom. de la Rose. See note +above, to VIII. 260. + +589. Cf. 'to _put_ it _in wryting_'; A. L. 664; 'she _put_ it _in +wryting_'; A. L. 629. + +590. I. e. in the hope that it will be patronised. + +591. Cf. 'As for this _book_'; A. L. (last stanza). + +592. 'How darest thou thrust thyself among the throng?' i.e. enter into +contest. Cf. 'In suych materys to _putte mysylff in prees_'; Lydgate, +Secrees of Philosophers, ed. Steele, l. 555. + +§ XXI. THE ASSEMBLY OF LADIES. + +For numerous references to this poem, see Notes to the preceding poem. + +Though apparently written by the authoress of the Flower and the Leaf, it +is of later date, and much less use is made of the final e. That the author +was a woman, is asserted in ll. 7, 18, 259, 284, 370, 379-85, 407, 450, +625. + +17. _the mase_. They amused themselves by trying to find a way into a maze, +similar to that at Hampton Court. Cf. l. 32. + +29. Ll. 1-28 are introductory. The story of the dream now begins, but is +likewise preceded by an introduction, down to l. 77. + +34. The word _went_ is repeated; the second time, it is an error for +_wend_, weened. 'Some went (really) inwards, and imagined that they had +gone outwards.' Which shews that the maze was well constructed. So, in l. +36, those who thought they were far behind, found themselves as far forward +as the best of them. + +42. That is, they cheated the deviser of the maze, by stepping over the +rail put to strengthen the hedge. That was because they lost their temper. + +44. The authoress got ahead of the rest; although sorely tired, she had +gained a great advantage, and found the last narrow passage which led +straight to the arbour in the centre. This was provided with benches +(doubtless of turf, Flower and Leaf, l. 51) and well enclosed, having stone +walls and a paved floor with a fountain in the middle of it. + +54. There were stairs leading downwards, with a 'turning-wheel.' I do not +think that turning-wheel here means a turn-stile, or what was formerly +called a turn-pike. It simply means that the stair-case was of spiral form. +Jamieson tells us that, in Lowland Scotch, the term _turn-pike_ was applied +(1) to the winding stair of a castle, and (2) to any set of stairs of +spiral form; and quotes from Arnot to shew that a spiral stair-case was +called a _turnpike stair_, whereas a straight one was called a _scale +stair_. The pot of marjoram may have been placed on a support rising from +the newel. + +It may be noted that arbours, which varied greatly in size and +construction, were often set upon a small 'mount' or mound; in which case +it would be easy to make a small spiral stair-case in the centre. In the +present case, it could hardly have been very large, as it occupied a space +in the centre of a maze. For further illustration, see A History of +Gardening in England, by the Hon. Alicia Amherst, pp. 33, 52, 78, 116, 118, +314. + +60. 'And how they (the daisies) were accompanied with other flowers +besides, viz. forget-me-nots and remember-mes; and the poor pansies were +not ousted from the place.' + +61. _Ne-m'oublie-mies_; from O.F. _ne m'oublie-mie_, a forget-me-not. +Littré, s.v. _ne m'oubliez pas_, quotes, from Charles d'Orléans, 'Des +fleurs de _ne m'oubliez mie_'; and again, from a later source, 'Un diamant +taillé en fleur de _ne m'oblie mie_.' The recovery of this true reading (by +the help of MS. A.) is very interesting; as all the editions, who follow +Thynne, are hopelessly wrong. Thynne, misreading the word, printed _Ne +momblysnesse_; whence arose the following extraordinary entry in Bailey's +Dictionary:--'_Momblishness_, talk, muttering; Old Word.' This ghost-word +is carefully preserved in the Century Dictionary in the +form:--'_Momblishness_, muttering talk; Bailey (1731).' + +_sovenez_ doubtless corresponds to the name _remember-me_, given in +Yorkshire and Scotland to the _Veronica chamædrys_, more commonly called +the germander speedwell, and in some counties forget-me-not. But we should +rather, in this passage, take forget-me-not (above) to refer, as is most +usual, to the _Myosotis_; as Littré also explains it. Here Thynne was once +more at a loss, and printed the word as _souenesse_, which was 'improved' +by Stowe into _sonenesse_. Hence another ghost-word, recorded by Bailey in +the entry:--'_Sonenesse_, noise.' Cf. l. 86. + +62. _pensees_, pansies; alluding, of course, to the _Viola tricolor_. The +spelling is correct, as it represents the O.F. _pensee_, thought; and it +seems to have been named, as Littré remarks, in a similar way to the +forget-me-not, and (I may add) to the remember-me. + +68. _stremes_, jets of water; there was a little fountain in the middle. + +73. The authoress had to wait till the other ladies also arrived in the +centre of the maze. Cf. note to l. 736. + +82. _sad_, settled, staid. _demure_, sober; lit. mature. + +83. _blewe_, blue; which was the colour of constancy; see note to C. T., F +644 (vol. v. p. 386). For the lady's name was Perseverance. It is +convenient to enumerate here the officers who are mentioned. They are: +Perseveraunce, usher (91); Diligence (133, 198, 728); Countenance, porter +(177, 277, 295); Discretion, purveyour (263); Acquaintance, herbergeour +(269); Largesse, steward (318); Belchere, marshall (322); Remembrance, +chamberlain (336); Avyseness, or Advisedness, secretary (343); and +Attemperance, chancellor (508). The chief Lady is Loyalty (98), dwelling in +the mansion of Pleasant Regard (170). + +87. Here _word_ means 'motto.' I here collect the French mottoes mentioned, +viz. Bien et loyalement (88); Tant que je puis (208); A moi que je voy +(308); Plus ne purroy (364); A endurer (489). Afterwards, four ladies are +introduced, with the mottoes Sans que jamais (583); Une sanz chaungier +(590); Oncques puis lever (598); and Entierment vostre (616). These ladies +afterwards present petitions, on which were written, respectively, the +phrases Cest sanz dire (627); En dieu est (645); Soyez en sure (666); and +Bien moneste (675). The words, or mottoes, were embroidered on the sleeves +of the ladies (119). See Lydgate's Temple of Glas, 308-10. + +224. They said a pater-noster for the benefit of St. Julian, because he was +the patron-saint of wayfarers. 'Of this saynt Julyen somme saye that this +is he that pylgryms and wey-faryng men calle and requyre for good +herberowe, by-cause our lord was lodgyd in his hows'; Caxton's Golden +Legend. The story occurs in the Gesta Romanorum, c. xviii., and in the +Aurea Legenda. The following extract from an old translation of Boccaccio, +Decam. Day 2. Nov. 2, explains the point of the allusion. 'Nevertheless, at +all times, when I am thus in journey, in the morning before I depart my +chamber, I say a _pater-noster_ and an _Ave-Maria_ for the souls of the +father and mother of St. Julian; and after that, I pray God and St. Julian +to send me a good lodging at night'; &c. Dunlop, in his Hist. of Fiction, +discussing this Novella, says: 'This saint was originally a knight, and, as +was prophecied to him by a stag, he had the singular hap to kill his father +and mother by mistake. As an atonement for his carelessness, he afterwards +founded a sumptuous hospital for the accommodation of travellers, who, in +return for their entertainment, were required to _repeat pater-nosters_ for +the souls of his unfortunate parents.' + +241. Because she was to change her dress, and put on blue; see ll. 258-9, +313-4, 413. + +457. The reference is to the Legend of Good Women, which contains the story +of Phyllis, Thisbe, and 'Cleopataras.' Cf. l. 465. + +463. _Hawes_, probably the same name as _Havise_, which occurs in the old +story of Fulke Fitzwarine. But it is remarkable that MS. A. has the +reading:--'That other sydë was, how Enclusene'; and this looks like an +error for _Melusene_, variant of _Melusine_. This would agree with the next +line, which means 'was untruly deceived in her bath.' The story of Melusine +is given in the Romance of Partenay. She was a fairy who married Raymound, +son of the Earl of Forest, on the understanding that he was never to watch +what she did on a Saturday. This he at last attempts to do, and discovers, +through a hole in the door, that she was _in a bath_, and that her lower +half was changed into a serpent. He tries to keep the knowledge of the +secret, but one day, in a fit of anger, calls her a serpent. She reproaches +him, and vanishes from his sight. See the Romans of Partenay, ed. Skeat +(E.E.T.S.). + +465. From Chaucer's poem of Anelida and the false Arcite; vol. i. p. 365; +for her Complaint, see the same, p. 373. + +471. _umple_ (MS. T. _vmpylle_), smooth gauze; from O.F. _omple_, smooth, +used as an epithet of cloth, satin, or other stuff (Godefroy). Here +evidently applied to something of a very thin texture, as gauze; see l. +473. + +477. _stages_, steps. The chair or throne was set on a platform accessible +by five steps, which were made of _cassidony_. Cotgrave explains O.F. +_cassidonie_ as meaning not only chalcedony, but also a kind of marble; and +this latter sense may be here intended. + +488. _Her word_, her motto; _her_ must refer to the great lady (l. 501) to +whom the throne belonged. + +499. _tapet_, a hanging cloth (Halliwell); here a portion of the hangings +that could be lifted up, to give entrance. + +526. _After a sort_, of one kind, alike. _vent_, slit in front of a gown. +'_Vente_, the opening at the neck of the tunic or gown, as worn by both +sexes during the Norman period, and which was closed by a brooch'; Gloss. +to Fairholt's Costume in England. O.F. _fente_, a slit, cleft; from Lat. +_findere_. The collar and slit were alike bordered with ermine, covered +with large pearls, and sprinkled with diamonds. Cf. also: 'Wyth armynes +powdred bordred at the vent'; Hawes, Pastime of Pleasure, ed. Wright, p. +80. + +536. _balays_, a balas-ruby; 'a delicate rose-red variety of the spinel +ruby'; New. E. Dict. _of entail_, lit. 'of cutting,' i.e. carefully cut; +the usual phrase; see New E. Dict. + +539. _a world_, worth a world; cf. _a world_ (great quantity) of ladies; +Flower and the Leaf, 137. + +576-8. Alluding to the proverb: 'first come, first served'; cf. C. T., D +389, and the note (vol. v. p. 301). + +581. We find that the 'bills' are petitions made by the four ladies +regarding their ill success in love-affairs. + +592. I. e. yet not so much as she ought to have been, as she had all the +trouble; _she_ refers to the lady herself. + +598. _Oncques_, ever; Lat. _unquam_. 'I can ever rise' seems at first sight +to be meant; but _ne_ must be understood; the true sense is, 'I can never +rise'; i.e. never succeed. See the context, ll. 605-9. + +645. 'I trust in God'; see l. 655. + +675. 'Admonish well'; from O.F. _monester_, to admonish, warn. + +680. Here, and in l. 689, the speaker is the lady of the castle. In l. 682 +(as in l. 690), the speaker appears to be the fourth lady; it is none too +clear. + +689. _I hate you_, I command you. _Hate_ should rather be written _hote_; +perhaps it was confused with the related pt. t. _hatte_, was called. The +reference to Saint James of Compostella is noteworthy. + +693. _it_, i.e. the bill, or petition; it takes the form of a Complaint. + +697-8. _And_, if. _ye wolde_, i.e. _ye wolde seme_, (see l. 696), ye would +think so. _Seem_ is still common in Devonshire in the sense of think or +suppose; usually pronounced _zim_. + +699. _her_ refers to the lady of the castle; at least, it would appear so +from l. 705. Else, it refers to Fortune. + +736. _the water_, water thrown in her face by one of her companions, who +had by this time entered the arbour. + +752. A headless line; accent the first syllable. + +754-5. The Flower and the Leaf has a similar ending (ll. 582-3). + +§ XXII. A GOODLY BALADE. + +Obviously Lydgate's. See the Introduction. + +1. _Moder of norture_, model of good breeding. The poem is evidently +addressed to a lady named Margaret. + +2. _flour_, daisy (for Margaret); see ll. 22, 23. + +4. _Al be I_, although I am; common in Lydgate. + +9. _Thing_, i.e. anything, everything, whatever thing. + +15. _Mieulx un_, one (is) better; evidently cited from a motto or device. +The meaning seems to be: it is better to have but _one_ lover, and you have +found one in a heart that will never shrink. In the Temple of Glas, 310, +Lydgate uses the motto _de mieulx en mieulx_. + +22-3. 'Daisy (born) of light; you are called the daughter of the sun.' +Alluding to the name _day's eye_, which was also applied by Lydgate to the +sun; see note in vol. iii. p. 291 (l. 43). Imitated from Legend of Good +Women, 60-4. + +29. 'When the day dawns, (repairing) to its natural place (in the east), +then your father Phoebus adorns the morrow.' + +34. 'Were it not for the comfort in the day-time, when (the sun's) clear +eyes make the daisy unclose.' Awkward and involved; cf. Legend of Good +Women, 48-50, 64-5. + +43. _Je vouldray_, I should like; purposely left incomplete. + +44. _casuel_, uncertain; see New E. Dict. + +48-9. _god saith_; implying that it is in the Bible. I do not find the +words; cf. Prov. xxi. 3; 1 Pet. ii. 20. + +50. _Cautels_, artifices, deceits; a word not used by Chaucer, but found in +Lydgate; see New E. Dict. + +57. _Quaketh my penne_, my pen quakes; an expression used once by Chaucer, +Troil. iv. 13, but pounced upon by Lydgate, who employs it repeatedly. See +more than twenty examples in Schick's note to the Temple of Glas, 947. Cf. +IX. 229. + +59. Read _roseth_, grows rosy, grows red, as opposed to _welkeneth_, +withers, fades. We find the pp. _rosed_ twice in Shakespeare; 'a maid yet +_rosed over_,' Henry V, v. 2. 423; and 'thy _rosed_ lips'; Titus And. ii. +4. 24. The emendation seems a safe one, for it restores the sense as well +as the rime. + +_welkeneth_ should probably be _welketh_; I find no other example of the +verb _welkenen_, though _welwen_ occurs in a like sense; and _welketh_ +suits the rhythm. + +60. _eft_, once again hot. These sudden transitions from cold to heat are +common; see Temple of Glas, 356:--'For thoughe I brenne with _feruence_ and +with hete.' + +64. Lydgate is always deploring his lack of eloquence; cf. notes to Temple +of Glas, ed. Schick, ll. 1393, 1400. + +69. I can find no such word as _jouesse_, so I alter it to _jonesse_, i.e. +youth. For the spelling _jonesce_ in the 14th century, see Littré, s.v. +_jeunesse_. The expression _have more yet_ implies that the phrase or motto +_je serve jonesse_ is added as a postscript, and that there was some +special point in it; but the application of it is now lost to us. Cf. +'Princes _of youthe_, and flour of gentilesse,' Temple of Glas, 970. + +§ XXIII. GO FORTH, KING. + +This poem really consists of twelve precepts, intended to redress twelve +abuses. The twelve abuses are given by the Latin lines above, which should +be compared throughout. The whole poem is thus easily understood. + +The accent is on the first syllable of the line in most of the lines. In l. +3, the word _Lord_ stands alone in the first foot. The lines are somewhat +unsteady, quite in Lydgate's usual manner. In l. 6, _jug-e_ is probably +dissyllabic. See further in the Introduction. + +§ XXIV. THE COURT OF LOVE. + +This late piece abounds with imitations of Lydgate, especially of his +Temple of Glas; many of the resemblances are pointed out in Schick's +edition of that poem, which I refer to by the contraction 'T. G.' + +1. Cf. 'With quaking hert[e] of myn inward drede'; T. G. 978. + +'Another feature characteristic of Lydgate is his self-deprec[i]atory +vein'; T. G., Introd. p. cxl. We have here an instance of an imitation of +it. + +6. Cf. 'Save that he wol conveyen his matere'; C. T., E 55. + +8. He refers to Cicero's flowers of rhetoric. He may have found the name in +Chaucer, P. F. 31. But he probably took the whole idea from a line of +Lydgate's:--'Of rethoriques _Tullius_ fond the _floures_': Minor Poems, p. +87. + +9. _borne_, burnish, adorn; it rimes (as here) with _sojorne_ in Troil. i. +327. + +11. _Galfrid_, Geoffrey de Vinsauf; his 'craft' refers to his treatise on +the art of poetry, entitled 'Nova Poetria'; see note to C. T., B 4537 (vol. +v. p. 257). [I once thought (see vol. i. p. 43) that _Galfrid_ here means +Chaucer himself, as he also is twice called _Galfrid_ in Lydgate's +Troy-book. But I find that Dr. Schick thinks otherwise, and the use of the +word _craft_ is on his side. At the same time, this renders it impossible +for Chaucer to have written 'The Court of Love'; _his_ opinion of his +namesake was the reverse of reverential.] With ll. 4-11 compare the opening +lines of Benedict Burgh's Poem in Praise of Lydgate, pr. at p. xxxi of +Steele's edition of Lydgate's Secrees of Philosophers. + +19. _Calliope_; twice mentioned by Chaucer; also by Lydgate, T. G. 1303. +Lydgate's Troy-book opens with an invocation to Mars, followed by one to +Calliope:--'Helpe me also, o thou Callyope'; and only four lines above +there is a mention of 'Helicon the welle' (see l. 22 below). + +22. _Elicon_, mount Helicon in Boeotia, sacred to Apollo and the Muses; +confused by Chaucer and his followers with the fountain Hippocrene; see +note in vol. i. p. 531. Hence Lydgate's expression 'Helicon the welle' in +the last note and in T. G. 706, and the reference in the text to its +_dropes_. + +_suger-dropes_; Lydgate was fond of sugar; he has 'soote _sugred_ armonye,' +Minor Poems, p. 182; and '_sugrid_ melody,' ib., p. 11. Also '_sugred_ +eloquence'; XII. 200 (p. 288); with which cf. l. 933 below. I have observed +several other examples. + +24. _Melpomene_; the muse who presided over tragedy. + +28. Cf. 'This simpil tretis for to take _in gre_'; T. G. 1387. 'Taketh _at +gre_ the rudness of my style'; Lydgate, Secrees of Philosophers, 21. + +30. _metriciens_, skilful in metre, poets; a word which has a remarkably +late air about it. Richardson gives an example of it from Hall's Chronicle. + +36. Compare the following, from T. G. 1379-81. + + 'I purpos here to maken and to write + A litil tretise, and a processe make + In pris of women, oonli for hir sake.' + +40. _man_, servant, one who does her homage; cf. Chaucer, C. T., I 772; La +Belle Dame, 244; T. G. 742. + +42. Cf. 'So that here-after my ladi may it _loke_'; T. G. 1392. + +45. Cf. 'Ther was enclosed _rype and sad corage_'; C. T., E 220. + +49, 50. Here the mountain of Cithæron, in Boeotia, is confused with the +island of Cythera, sacred to Venus, whence her name Cytherea was derived. +The mistake arose, of course, from the similarity of the names, and occurs +(as said in vol. v. p. 78, note to A 1936), in the Roman de la Rose, where +we find:-- + + 'Citeron est une montaigne ... + Venus, qui les dames espire, + Fist là son principal manoir'; ll. 15865-71. + +Hence Chaucer makes the same confusion, but in a different way. Chaucer +preserves the right name of the mountain, in the form _Citheroun_, which he +rimes with _mencioun_ (A 1936) and with _Adoun_ (A 2223); but here we have +the form _Citharee_, riming with _see_. For all this, the scribe corrects +it to _Citheron_ in l. 69, where he has no rime to deal with. + +56. Cf. 'the _winged_ god, Mercurie'; C. T., A 1385. + +58. The MS. has _costes that it drewe_; Bell alters this to _had to it +drew_, under the impression that _drew_ is the pp. of _draw_! So again, in +l. 78, he alters _saphir ind_, which is correct, to _saphir of Inde_; and +in general, alters the text at will without the least hint that he has done +so. + +78. _ind_, blue; as in The Black Knight, 127. + +80. _Baleis Turkeis_ (MS. _Bales turkes_). _Baleis_ is a better spelling, +answering to F. _balais_ in Littré. It also occurs as _balai_ in O.F.; and +the word was probably suggested by the mention of it in Rom. de la Rose, +20125:--'Que saphirs, rubis, ne _balai_.' Hence also the mention of it in +the King's Quhair, st. 46, which see; and in the Assembly of Ladies, 536. +_Turkeis_ is the A. F. equivalent of O.F. _Turkois_, i.e. Turkish, as in C. +T., A 2895, on which see the note (vol. v. p. 93). + +81. _shene_, a misspelling of _shine_, intimating that the author has +confused the adj. _shene_ with the verb; or rather, that the poem was +written at a time when the word _shine_ could be used as riming to _been_; +since we find similar examples in lines 561, 768. So also we find _pretily_ +riming with _be_ in The Flower and the Leaf, 89. The pt. t. _shoon_ occurs +in l. 83. + +82. Cf. 'As doon the sterres in the frosty night'; C. T., A 268. And again: +'_bryght As sterrys in_ the _wyntyr_ nyght'; Lydgate, Compleint following +T. G., l. 548. + +86. Cf. Compl. of Mars, 78-84, 104-5; C. T., A 2388 (and note); and T. G. +126-8. + +88. Cf. 'Long as _a mast_,' &c.; C. T., A 3264. + +92. Cf. Troil. iii. 8-21: '_In hevene and helle_,' &c.; from Boccaccio; see +note (vol. ii. p. 475). + +105. _Alceste_; evidently borrowed from Ch., Legend of Good Women, 224, +293-9, 432; cf. T. G. 70-4. _The quenes flour Alceste_ = the flower of +queen Alcestis; a common idiom; see note to C. T., F 209 (vol. v. p. 376). + +107. _Admete_, Admetus; see Troil. i. 664, and the note; T. G. 72. + +108. _ninetene_; copied from the Legend of Good Women, 283; just as the +next line is from the same, 285-9. This is the more remarkable, because +Chaucer never finished the poem, but mentions ten ladies only, in nine +Legends. Cf. 'the book of _the nynetene Ladies_'; C. T., I 1086. Hawes also +refers to Chaucer's 'tragidyes ... of the xix. ladyes'; Pastime of +Pleasure, ed. Wright, p. 53. + +115. 'So fair was noon in alle Arras'; R. R. 1234. + +116. _of esier availe_, of less value; see _Avail_ in the New E. Dict. + +117. _saunz faile_; thrice in Ch.; HF. 188, 429; C. T., B 501. + +119. _Helisee_, Elysium; '_the feld_ ... That hight _Elysos_'; Troil. iv. +789. + +120. _saintes_, saints, martyrs for love; cf. V. 316, above (p. 227), and +the note. Cf. T. G. 414. + +129. 'The king had Danger standing near him, and the queen had Disdain, who +were chief of the council, to treat of affairs of state'; Bell. + +138. Cf. T. G. 271, and the note, shewing how common gold hair is in +Lydgate. + +139, 140. 'Bihinde _her bak, a yerde long_'; C. T., A 1050. + +148. _In mewet_, in an inaudible voice, to myself; like mod. F. _à la +muette_ (Littré). + +167. _non erst_; false grammar for _non er_, no sooner; 'no soonest' is +nonsense. We find, however, the phrases _not erst_ and _never erst_ +elsewhere; see New E. Dict., s.v. _Erst_, § B. 4. + +170. This is the earliest quotation given in the New E. Dict., s.v. +_Assummon_; and the next is from the poet Daniel. + +177. Chaucer has the compound _for-pampred_; Former Age, 5. I read _jolif_, +joyful, to make sense; the MS. has the absurd word _ioylof_ (_sic_); and +Stowe has _ialous_, jealous, which is quite out of place here. + +181. 'An allusion to the monkish story of the man who brought up a youth +ignorant of women, and who, when he first saw them, told him they were +geese. The story is in the _Promptuarium Exemplorum_. It was adopted by +Boccaccio, from whom it was taken by Lafontaine, liv. iii. conte 1. See +_Latin Stories_, edited by Mr. [T.] Wright.'--Bell. + +194. From C. T., B 466: '_On many a_ sory _meel_ now _may she bayte_.' + +202. Cf. '_Comfort is noon_'; Chaucer's A B C, 17. + +207. _how_, however. Cf. 'that _boghten love_ so _dere_'; Legend of Good +Women, 258. + +229. See the Book of the Duchess, 323-34, where the painted glass windows +contain subjects from the Romance of the Rose and others. The story of Dido +is common enough; but the reference to Chaucer's Anelida and the false +Arcite, is remarkable, especially as it occurs also in XXI. 465 above (p. +395). 'The turtel trewe' is from the Parl. Foules, 577. See the parallel +passage in T. G. 44-142, where Lydgate's _first_ example is that of _Dido_, +while at the same time he mentions Palamon, Emilie, and Canacee, all from +Chaucer. + +246. _blew_, blue, the colour of constancy; see l. 248. + +250. 'And why that ye ben clothed thus _in blak_?' C. T., A 911. + +255. _grene_ only gives an assonance with _here_, not a rime. Green was the +colour of inconstancy, and was sometimes used _for despyt_, to use +Chaucer's phrase; see note to C. T., F 644 (vol. v. p. 386). White may +refer to the White Friars or Carmelites, and russet to the hermits; cf. P. +Plowman, C. prol. 3, C. xi. 1. + +270. _an ho_, a proclamation commanding silence; see C. T., 2533. Quite +distinct from _hue_ (and cry), with which Bell confuses it. A hue and cry +was only raised against fleeing criminals. + +280. Clearly suggested by the God of Love's stern question in the Legend of +Good Women, 315:--'What dostow heer So nigh myn owne flour, so boldely?' At +the same time the phrase _fer y-stope in yeres_ is from Chaucer's _somdel +stape in age_, C. T., B 4011, on which see the note (vol. v. p. 248). See +the next note. + +288. Similarly the God of Love pardoned Chaucer (L. G. W. 450), but upon a +condition (ib. 548). + +290. _serven_, false grammar for _serve_. + +302. Here follow the twenty statutes; ll. 302-504. They are evidently +expanded from the similar set of injunctions given by Venus to the Knight +in The Temple of Glas, ll. 1152-213; as clearly shewn by Schick in his +Introduction, p. cxxxi. The similarity extends to the first, second, third, +fifth, sixth, seventh, ninth, tenth, twelfth, fourteenth and eighteenth +statutes, which resemble passages found in the Temple of Glas, ll. +1152-213, or elsewhere in the same poem. It is also possible that the +author, or Lydgate, or both of them, kept an eye upon Ovid's Art of Love. +See also Rom. Rose (Eng. version), 2355-950, which is much to the point. + +305. This is also the first injunction in T. G. 1152-3, and is immediately +followed by the second, which enjoins _secrecy_. The reader should compare +the passages for himself. + +311. MS. _synk and flete_; which must of course be corrected to 'sink _or_ +flete,' as in Anelida, 182; C. T., A 2397. + +317. '_Withoute chaunge_ in parti or in al'; T. G. 1155. + +319. The MS. has _brynde_, and Stowe has _brinde_; so I let the reading +stand. Morris has _blynde_, and Bell _blind_; neither of them has a note as +to the change made. Perhaps _brind_ = _brend_ = burnt, in the sense of +'inflamed by passion'; or it may be an error for _brim_ = _breme_, furious, +applied especially to the desire of the boar for the sow. The sense +intended is clear enough; we should now write 'base.' + +324-5. From C. T., A 2252-3:-- + + 'And on thyn [_Venus'_] _auter_, wher I ryde or go, + I wol don sacrifice, and _fyres bete_.' + +329. _passe forby_, to pass by, i.e. to get out of his way; cf. C. T., B +1759, C 668. _an ese_, a relief, a way of escape. There is no difficulty, +but all the editions have altered it to _passe, for thereby_, which will +not scan. + +330. _daungerous_, grudging, reluctant; see C. T., D 514. + +332. _of a sight_, of what one may see. _squeymous_ (MS. _squymouse_, Stowe +_squmous_), squeamish, particular; see note to C. T., A 3337 (vol. v. p. +102). It is added that when the lady, on her part, was cruel, it was the +lover's duty to toss about in bed and weep; cf. T. G. 12:--'The longe nyght +_walowing_ to and fro.' 'To _walwe and wepe_'; Troil. i. 699. And see Rom. +Rose (Eng. version), 2553-62. + +338. Cf. 'Him to complein, that he walk [_read_ welk = walked] so sole'; T. +G. 552. And cf. Book Duch. 449; Black Knight, 143; Rom. Rose, 2391-6, +2517-9. + +340. Cf. 'as though he roughte nought Of life ne deth'; T. G. 939-40. + +344. 'Abide awhile,' T. G. 1203; '_patiently_ t'endure'; T. G. 1267. + +347. _helden_, false grammar for _held_. The metre shews that it was +intentional. + +349. 'Fulli _to obeye_,' T. G. 1151; cf. 1145-50. + +360-4. Cf. T. G. 1012-25; especially 'And when I trespas, goodli me +correcte'; and 'neuyr yow offende.' And Ovid, Art. Amat. lib. ii. 199-202. + +367. _yern_, earn; so _yearne_ in Spenser, F. Q. vi. 1. 40; A.S. +_geearnian_. + +368-9. 'Of _grace and pitè_, and nought of rightwisnes'; T. G. 979. + +378. _a-croke_ (MS. _a croke_), awry; see _Acrook_ in the New E. Dict. + +379-81. In l. 381, the MS. has _shon_ (shun) distinctly; yet Morris prints +_shoue_, and Stowe _showe_, destroying the sense. All have _knowe_ in l. +379, but it should rather be _con_, which gives a perfect rime; for _con_ +represents A.S. _cunnan_, to know, and is frequently spelt _cun_; see _Con_ +in the New E. Dict. This statute refers to 'the comfort of Sweet-Looking'; +see Rom. Rose, 2893-922; Gower, C. A., iii. 26-7. + +390. See T. G. 170-1, 1014. + +397. 'Yeve hir giftes, and get hir grace'; Rom. Rose, 2699. 'Auro +conciliatur amor'; Ovid, Art. Amat. lib. ii. 278. + +403. Cf. Rom. Rose, 2568-85. + +412. 'And for no tales thin herte not remue'; T. G. 1182. Cf. C. T., A +3163-4; F 1483-5; and XII. 113-9 above (p. 289). + +429. 'For love ne wol nat countrepleted be'; Legend of Good Women, 476. +'Quisquis erit cui favet illa, fave'; Ovid, Art. Amat. lib. i. 146. + +431. '_Whyt_ was this _crowe_'; C. T., H 133; cf. note to C. T., D 232. + +456. Compare the Merchant's Tale; C. T., E 1245. + +469. Cf. T. G. 1168-70: 'All trwe louers to relese of her payne,' &c. + +475. 'Ai fressh and wel besein'; T. G. 1167. Cf. Rom. Rose, 2279-84. +'Munditiae placeant,' &c.; Ovid, Art. Amat. lib. i. 513. + +484. 'Who loveth trewe hath no fatnesse'; Rom. Rose, 2686; 'Arguat et +macies animum'; Ovid, Art. Amat. lib. i. 733. + +491-504. Cf. Rom. Rose, 2419-39, 2817-20. In particular, ll. 496-7 seem to +be actually copied from Rom. Rose, 2819-20: 'or of hir _chere That to thee +made thy lady dere_.' This raises the suspicion that the Court of Love was +written after 1532. + +499. _thou seen_ would be in Latin _tu videatis_; another example of false +grammar. + +523. _let been_, to let (them) be, to leave off. + +526. _kepten been_ (MS. _bene_); so in all the copies; but _kepten_ is the +pt. t. plural, as if we should say in Latin _seruauerunt sunt_. Unless, +indeed, the _-en_ is meant for the pp. suffix of a strong verb, as if we +should make a Latin form _seruatiti_. The scansion shews that this false +grammar came from the author. + +529. 'Except God and the devil.' + +536-7. Solomon and Samson; the usual stock examples. But probably in this +case borrowed from Lydgate's Balade, XIV. 4 (p. 295), which is certainly +quoted thrice again below. + +542. This line is made up from Lydgate's Balade, XIV. 29-33, and 26; so +again l. 544 resembles the same, l. 24. And Lydgate merely versifies the +medieval proverb: 'Fallere,' &c.; see note to XIV. 29; p. 516. + +547. _of kind_, by nature; as in XIV. 29 (p. 296). + +550. 'An housbond shal _nat been inquisitif_'; C. T., A 3163. + +556. _Citherea_ is right; see l. 50; MS. and Stowe have _Cithera_. + +560. 'You that are provided already with a lady.'--Bell. Cf. l. 561. + +561-3. _eke_, _lyke_, a permissible rime, at a time when _e_ had gained the +mod. E. sound. See note to l. 81 above. + +570. See T. G. 143-6. With l. 577, cf. T. G. 50. + +580. The reading _blisful_ is certain; it is from T. G. 328:--'O _blisful_ +sterre, persant and ful of light.' The author uses _persant_ below, in l. +849. + +582. See the second of the interpolated stanzas in T. G., p. 21, ll. 6, +7:-- + + 'Withoute desert; wherefore that ye vouche + To _ponysshe_ hem dewely for here male-bouche.' + +586. _loves daunce_; see references in the Glossary to vol. vi., s.v. +_Daunce_. + +589. In T. G. 144, the lovers are only many a thousand; in the Kingis +Quair, st. 78, they are 'mony a' million; here they are a thousand million. +Such is evolution. + +591. '_redresse_ is elegantly put for _redresser_';--Bell. Then let the +credit of it be Lydgate's; cf. '_Redresse_ of sorow, O Citheria'; T. G. +701. + +592. Bell prints _yheried_, which is obviously right; but he does not say +that both the MS. and Stowe have _I hired_; see Troil. ii. 973, iii. 7, +1804. + +593. _loves bond_; founded on Boethius, lib. ii. met. 8, but doubtless +taken from Troil. iii. 1766; see note in vol. ii. p. 483. + +598, 603. 'Make him teschwe euere synne and vice'; T. G. 450. + +611-3. _Celsitude_ and _pulcritude_ are words that savour of the revival of +learning. Such words are common in Dunbar, who uses both of them. For +_celsitude_, see Dunbar, ed. Small, p. 271, 76, and p. 325, 25; for +_pulcritude_, see the same, p. 271, 74; p. 274, 2; p. 279, 5. He even rimes +them together; p. 271. Hawes also uses _pulchritude_; Pastime of Pleasure, +ed. Wright, pp. 5, 18. + +614. Cf. '_Comparisoun may noon y-maked be_'; Legend of Good Women, 122. + +623. _fere_, fire (not fear); as in Troil. iii. 978. + +628. _Beseech_, to beseech; note the anachronism in using the French infin. +_void-en_ with a suffix, and the Eng. _beseech_ with none at all. + +634. _ure_, destiny; from O.F. _eur_, Lat. _augurium_. A word that first +appeared in Northern English; it occurs at least eight times in Barbour's +Bruce. And in the Kingis Quair, st. 10, we have the whole phrase--'my +fortúne and ure.' It is also used by Lydgate; see VIII. 151, 302, 482 (pp. +250, 254, 260). + +641. An exact repetition of l. 633 above. + +642. Here, for a wonder, is an example of the final _e_; the author took +the whole phrase 'In thilk-ë place' from some previous author; cf. 'In +thilke places' (_sic_); Rom. Rose, 660 (Thynne). _sign_, assign. + +648. 'Bi god and be my trouthe'; T. G. 1011. + +683. '_And holden werre_ alwey with chastitee'; C. T., A 2236. + +684. _I kepen_; false grammar; equivalent to Lat. _ego curamus_. + +688. _yove_, gave; but in l. 690 the form is _gave_. I suspect that in l. +690, _gave_ should be _gan_, and that _image_ (for _images_) is to be taken +as a genitive case; then the sense is--'And I began anon to ponder and +weigh in my heart her image's fresh beauty.' + +701. The idea is due to Chaucer's Compleynt to Pity; cf. l. 1324. + +702. Cf. 'Him deyneth nat to _wreke him on a flye_'; Legend of Good Women, +381. + +703. _eke him_, him also; but perhaps read _ete him_. + +704. Cf. 'and tendre herte'; C. T., A 150. + +725. _springen_; false grammar, as it is a plural form. + +727. _endry_, suffer, endure; so again in l. 941. This ridiculous hybrid is +rightly excluded from the New E. Dict., which gives, however, several +similar formations. It was coined by prefixing the F. prefix _en-_, with an +intensive force, to M.E. _drien_, variant of _dreogen_, to endure (A.S. +_dr[=e]ogan_), Lowl. Sc. _dree_. No other author uses it. + +732. _spede_, succeed; Stowe's alteration to _speke_ is unnecessary. + +749. 'How are you the nearer for loving,' &c. + +751. _fayn_, put for _feyn_, i.e. feign, tell an untruth. + +755. _heth_, heath. Here, and in l. 757, the author refers to two occasions +when he was in great danger of falling in love; but he does not go into +details. + +768. Here we must read _ee_ (eye) for the rime; in other cases it appears +as _eye_, _ye_, _y_, riming with words in _-y_. This points to a somewhat +late date; see note to l. 81 above. As for _stremes_, it is Lydgate's word +for glances of the eye; see T. G. 263, 582. And Lydgate had it from +Chaucer, who mostly uses it of sunbeams, but twice applies it to the beams +from the eyes of Criseyde; Troil. i. 305, iii. 129. + +782. _flawe_, generally explained as representing Lat. _flauus_, yellowish, +or the O.F. _flave_, with the same sense. Her hair was gold, so her +eyebrows may have been of a similar colour. I suspect that _flawe_ was a +Northern form; cf. _braw_, as a Northern variant of _brave_. + +783. _mene disseverance_, a moderate distance; evidently meant with +reference to Criseyde, whose one demerit was that her eye-brows joined each +other; Troil. v. 813. + +787. _milk-whyt path_, the galaxy, or milky way; but surely this is quite a +unique application of it, viz. to the prominent ridge of Rosial's nose. + +789. _smaragde_, emerald. The eyes of Beatrice are called _smeraldi_; +Dante, Purg. xxxi. 116. Juliet's nurse said that an eagle's eye was not so +green as that of Paris; Romeo, iii. 5. 222. Eyes in Chaucer are usually 'as +gray as glas'; the O.F. _vair_, an epithet for eyes, meant grayish-blue. + +797. _basse_, kiss, buss; see _Bass_ in the New E. Dict. _ben_ is yet +another instance of a false concord; read _be_, as _basse_ is singular. See +next note. + +798. Cornelius Maximianus Gallus, a poet of the sixth century, wrote six +elegies which have come down to us. The quotation referred to occurs in the +first Elegy (ll. 97-8), which is also quoted by Chaucer; see note to C. T., +C 727 (vol. v. p. 287). The lines are:-- + + 'Flammea dilexi, modicumque tumentia labra, + Quae mihi gustanti basia plena darent.' + +Hence the epithet _Flaming_ in l. 793. + +810. _bend_, a band, sash; see New E. Dict., s.v. _Bend_ (2), sb., 1. a. + +811. 'With hair in tresses'; like Criseyde's; see Troil. v. 810. + +813. Cf. the Assembly of Ladies, 533-4 (p. 397):-- + + '_Aboute her nekke_ a sort of faire _rubyes_ + In whyte _floures_ of right fyne enamayl.' + +See also the Kingis Quair, st. 48. + +815-6. See my note to Ch. Minor Poems, XXI. 20 (vol. i. p. 566). + +821. _Calixto_, Callisto; called _Calixte_ in Parl. Foules, 286. The story +is in Ovid, Met. ii. 409, _Alcmenia_, Alcmene, mother of Hercules; see +Ovid, Met. ix. 281; cf. Troil. iii. 1428; T. G. 123. + +823. _Europa_, the story is in Ovid, Met. ii. 858. See Legend of Good +Women, 113, and the note; T. G. 118. + +824. _Dane_, Danae, mother of Perseus; see Ovid, Met. iv. 610. In Chaucer, +C. T., A 2062, _Dane_ means Daphne. _Antiopa_, mother of Amphion and +Zethus; it may be noted that Jupiter's intrigues with Europa, Antiopa, +Alcmene, and Danae, are all mentioned together in Ovid, Met. vi. 103-13. It +follows that our author had read Ovid. + +831. '_There is no lak, saue_ onli of pitè'; T. G. 749. + +841. The word _the_ was probably written like _ye_, giving, apparently, the +reading _ye ye_; then one of these was dropped. The long passage in ll. +841-903 may be compared with the pleadings of the lover in La Belle Dame +sans Merci (p. 307, above); with T. G. 970-1039; and with the Kingis Quair, +st. 99. Note the expression 'of beaute rote,' T. G. 972; and '_Princes_ of +youthe,' T. G. 970 (two lines above); see l. 843. + +849. _persant_, piercing; common in Lydgate; T. G. 328, 756, 1341; Black +Knight, 28, 358, 591, 613. Cf. 'And _with_ the _stremes of your percyng_ +light'; Kingis Quair, 103. + +852-3. Cf. T. G. 1038-9; Kingis Quair, st. 103, l. 7. + +858. 'Of verrey routhe upon my peynes rewe'; T. G. 1001. + +865. 'To love him best ne shal I _never repente_'; The Compleynt of Venus, +56, 64, 72. See note to l. 875. + +872-3. Referring to Ch. Troilus, and Legend of Good Women, 580. 'To ben as +trewe as was Antonyus To Cleopatre'; T. G. 778. + +874. _thinkes_; observe this Northern form. + +875. 'And therfore, certes, _to myn ending-day_'; The Compleynt of Venus, +55. See note to l. 865. + +882. _expert_, experienced; 'expert in love,' Troil. ii. 1367. + +891. 'With al my hert I thanke yow _of youre profre_'; T. G. 1060. + +897. Read _I_; this the scribe must have mistaken for the contraction for +'and.' + +901. 'And I beseech you not to be disdainful.' + +902. _seen my wil_, to see what I wish; but surely _wil_ is an error for +_bill_, petition; see l. 916. Then _rede_ means 'read it.' + +906. _com of_, be quick; see Troil. ii. 1738, 1742, 1750; and the numerous +examples in Schick's note to T. G. 1272. + +911. Stowe, like the MS., ends the line with _why_. Bell supplied _makes +thou straunge_. + +913. _Cambrige_; this form is not found till after 1400. Chaucer has +_Cant-e-brigg-e_ (C. T., A 3921) in four syllables, which appears as +_Cambrugge_ in the late Lansdowne MS., after 1420. See Skeat, A Student's +Pastime, pp. 397-8. + +922. _and have_, i.e. and have loved. On this construction, see Schick's +note to T. G. 1275. + +925-7. _I ... doon_; more false grammar; equivalent to Lat. _ego faciamus_. + +929. 'And, whan I trespace, goodli _me correcte_'; T. G. 1018. + +931-52. Compare the answers of the lady in La Belle Dame sans Merci (p. +309, &c.). + +988-9. Cf. Parl. Foules, 90-1; Compl. to his Lady, 47-9. + +998. _dwale_, an opiate, a sleeping-draught; made from the _dwale_ or +'deadly nightshade' (_Atropa belladonna_). It occurs once in Chaucer; C. +T., A 4161. See my note to P. Plowman, C. xxiii. 379. + +1000. _y-wis afrayed_, (being) certainly frightened. The use of _y-wis_ in +such a position is most unusual. + +1016-7. 'Right as the fressh[e] rodi rose nwe Of hir coloure to wexin she +bigan'; T. G. 1042-3. + +1023. Something is lost here. There is no gap in the MS.; but there was +probably one in the MS. from which it was copied. I think six stanzas are +lost; see the Introduction. + +1032-3. 'And their fellow-furtherer,' i.e. fellow-helper. + +1034. _Dred_ is one of the personifications from the Roman de la Rose; see +Rom. Rose, 3958; so in T. G. 631. + +1040. 'Gall under honey'; see l. 542 above. Cf. T. G. 192. + +1042. 'Lay aside your confidence (courage), for all her white (flattering) +words'; cf. Troil. iii. 901. + +1045. _thow wot_, false grammar for _thou wost_. + +1049. _The ton_ = _thet on_, the one; _the toder_ = _thet oder_, the other. +_Oder_ is a remarkable form; see Halliwell. So also _brodur_, in Le Bon +Florence of Rome, ed. Ritson, 931. + +1053-4. 'Hir kind is fret with doublenesse'; XIII. 80 (p. 293). + +1055. 'So I cast about to get rid of Despair's company'; hence _taken_, in +l. 1056, is in the infin. mood. + +1058. _bay-window_; cf. Assembly of Ladies, 163. The earliest known +quotation for _bay-window_ is dated 1428, in a prosaic document. + +1060. 'As any ravenes _fether_ it shoon _for-blak_'; spoken of hair; C. T., +A 2144. + +1065. 'Ther needeth non _auctoritee allegge_'; C. T., A 3000. + +1072. Cf. Troil. ii. 855-61. + +1083. _were_, wear; altered by Bell to _ware_, which is a form of the past +tense. + +1087. _she_ seems to be spoken casually of some woman in the company; and +_prety man_, in l. 1088, is used in a similar way. + +_goth on patens_, walks in pattens. A very early example of the word +_paten_. It occurs in Palsgrave (1530). _fete_, neat, smart; used by +Lydgate; see _Feat_ in the New E. Dict. + +1095. Here the author comes back again to the Temple of Glas, 143-246, +which see; and cf. The Kingis Quair, stanzas 79-93. + +1096. _black_, Dominican friars; _white_, Carmelites; _gray_, Franciscans. + +1100. From T. G. 196-206; for the nuns, see T. G. 207-8. + +1104. '_In wide_ copis _perfeccion to feine_'; T. G. 204. See l. 1116. + +1106. 'That _on hir freendis al the_ wite they leide'; T. G. 208. + +1116. '_In wide copis_ perfeccion to feine'; T. G. 204. + +1134. '_Ther thou were weel_, fro thennes artow weyved'; C. T., B 308. + +1136. Cf. 'With sobbing teris, and with ful pitous soune'; T. G. 197. + +1139. Cf. 'And other eke, that for _pouertè_'; T. G. 159. + +1150. _prang_, pang (MS. _prange_; and so in Stowe); altered to _pang_ by +Bell and Morris. '_Pronge_, Erumpna' [aerumna]; Prompt. Parv. '_Throwe_ +[throe], _womannys pronge_, Erumpna'; the same. '_Prange_, oppression, or +constraint'; Hexham's Dutch Dict. Cf. Gothic: 'in allamma _ana-pragganai_,' +we were troubled on every side, 2 Cor. vii. 5; where _gg_ is written for +_ng_, as in Greek. The mod. E. _pang_ seems to have been made out of it, +perhaps by confusion with _pank_, to pant. + +1160, 1164. 'And pitousli _on god and kynde pleyne_'; T. G. 224. But the +context requires the reading _god of kind_, i.e. God of nature. In l. 1166, +_leften_ must be meant for a pp.; if so, it is erroneously formed, just +like _kepten_ above; see note to l. 526. + +1173. _werdes_, Fates; obviously the right reading; yet the MS., Stowe, and +Morris have _wordes_, and Bell alters the line. The confusion between _e_ +and _o_ at this time is endless. See _Werdes_, _Wierdes_ in the Gloss. to +Chaucer. + +1177. _he_, another of the company; cf. _she_ in l. 1087. Both Morris and +Bell alter the text. Bell reminds us that the character here described is +that of Shakespeare's Benedict. But it is obviously copied from Troilus! +see Troil. i. 904-38. + +1189. The word _post_ is from Troil. i. 1000: 'That thou shalt be the beste +_post_, I leve, Of al his lay.' + +1198. _Shamefastness_, Bashfulness; borrowed from _Honte_ in the Rom. de la +Rose, 2821; called _Shame_ in the E. version, 3034. Hence the reference to +_roses_ in l. 1203, though it comes in naturally enough. + +1211. _were not she_, if it had not been for her. + +1213. _returnith_, turns them back again; used transitively. + +1218. 'When Bashfulness is dead, Despair will be heir' (will succeed in her +place). Too bold lovers would be dismissed. + +1219. _Avaunter_, Boaster; as in Troil. iii. 308-14. The line sounds like +an echo of 'Have at thee, Jason! now thyn horn is blowe!' Legend of Good +Women, 1383. + +1222. _wowe_, woo; evidently the right reading; so in Morris. Cf. The +Letter of Cupid, V. 274-80 (p. 226). + +1238. _statut_, i.e. the sixteenth statute (l. 435). + +1242. '_Avauntour_ and _a lyere_, al is on'; Troil. iii. 309. + +1253. _sojoure_, sojourn, dwell, used quite wrongly; for O.F. _sojur_ +(originally _sojorn_) is a sb. only, like mod. F. _séjour_. The O.F. verb +was _sojorner_, _sojourner_, whence M.E. _sojornen_, _sojournen_, correctly +used by Chaucer. The sb. _sojour_ occurs in Rom. Rose, 4282, 5150. The +mistake is so bad that even the scribe has here written _soiorne_; but, +unluckily, this destroys the rime. + +1255. 'Envy is admirably represented as rocking himself to and fro with +vexation, as he sits, dark, in a corner.'--Bell. For all this, I suspect +the right word is _rouketh_, i.e. cowers, as in C. T., A 1308. _Rokken_ is +properly transitive, as in C. T., A 4157. + +1257. For the description of Envy, see Rom. Rose, 247. But the author (in +l. 1259) refers us to Ovid, Met. ii. 775-82, q. v. + +1259. _Methamorphosose_; this terrible word is meant for _Metamorphoseos_, +the form used by Chaucer, C. T., B 93. But the true ending is _-e[=o]n_, +gen. pl. The scribe has altered the suffix to _-ees_, thus carelessly +destroying the rime. + +1268. _Prevy Thought_ is taken from _Doux-Pensers_ in the Rom. de la Rose, +2633, called _Swete-Thought_ in the E. Version, 2799; see the passage. + +1288. Cf. 'Hir person he shal afore him sette'; R. R. 2808. + +1290. Cf. 'This comfort wol I that thou take'; R. R. 2821. + +1295. Cf. 'Awey his anger for to dryve'; R. R. 2800. + +1315. Schick refers us, for this fiction, to the Rom. Rose, 939-82, where +Cupid has two sets of arrows, one set of _gold_, and the other set _black_. +Gower, Conf. Amantis (ed. Pauli, i. 336), says that Cupid shot Phoebus with +a dart of _gold_, but Daphne with a dart of _lead_. In the Kingis Quair, +stanzas 94-5, Cupid has _three_ arrows, one of _gold_, one of _silver_, and +one of _steel_. But the fact is, that our author, like Gower, simply +followed Ovid, Met. i. 470-1. Let Dryden explain it:-- + + 'One shaft is pointed with refulgent gold + To bribe the love, and make the lover bold; + One blunt, and tipped with lead, whose base allay + Provokes disdain, and drives desire away.' + +1317. There is here a gap in the story. The speaker is Rosial, and she is +addressing Philogenet, expressing herself favourably. + +1319-20. _hight_, promised. _had_, would have. + +1324. _she_, i.e. Pity, as in l. 701. + +1328. MS. _tender reich_; Stowe, _tenderiche_; which must be wrong; read +_tender reuth_. Confusion between _ch_ and _th_ is common. _where I found_, +where I (formerly) found much lack. + +1332. For Pity's golden shrine, see l. 694. + +1353. This notion of making the birds sing matins and lauds is hinted at in +the Cuckoo and Nightingale--'That they begonne of May _to don hir houres_'; +l. 70. It is obviously varied from Chaucer's Parl. Foules, where all the +birds sing a roundel before departing. Next, we find the idea expanded by +Lydgate, in the poem called Devotions of the Fowls; Minor Poems, ed. +Halliwell, p. 78; the singers are the popinjay, the pelican, the +nightingale, the lark, and the dove. All these reappear here, except the +pelican. A chorus of birds, including the mavis, merle, lark, and +nightingale, is introduced at the close of Dunbar's Thistle and Rose. The +present passage was probably suggested by Lydgate's poem, but is conceived +in a lighter vein. + +The Latin quotations are easily followed by comparing them with The Prymer, +or Lay Folks' Prayer-Book, ed. Littlehales (E. E. T. S.). They all appear +in this 'common medieval Prayer-book'; and, in particular, in the Matins +and Lauds of the Hours of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Matins end at l. +1407. The Matins contain:--the opening, the _Venite_, a Hymn, three Psalms, +an Antiphon, Versicles and Responses, three Lessons (each with Versicles +and Responses), and the _Te Deum_. The Lauds contain:--the opening, eight +Psalms (the _Benedicite_ considered as one), Antiphon, Chapter, Hymn, the +_Benedictus_; &c. I point out the correspondences below. + +1354. Observe that the nightingale sings _in a hawthorn_ in the Cuckoo and +Nightingale, 287 (p. 358). + +1356. _Domine, labia mea aperies_, Lord, open thou my lips; 'the opening' +of Matins. + +1358. _bewrye_, a variant of _bewreye_, to bewray; used by Dunbar. + +1359. _Venite, exultemus_, Ps. xcv (Vulgate, xciv); still in use. + +1362. 'The unhappy chorister who comes late skulks in behind the desks and +stalls.'--Bell. + +1364. _Domine, Dominus noster_, Ps. viii. The 'first psalm.' + +1366. _Celi enarrant_, Ps. xix (Vulgate, xviii). The 'second psalm.' + +1370. _Domini est terra_, Ps. xxiv (Vulgate, xxiii). The 'third psalm.' +_this Laten intent_, this Latin signifies; _intent_ is the contracted form +of _intendeth_; by analogy with _went_ for _wendeth_. + +1372. A queer reminiscence of Troil. iii. 690:--'There was no more to +_skippen nor to_ traunce.' + +1373. _Jube, Domine, benedicere_, 'Lord, comaunde us to blesse'; versicle +preceding the first lesson; which explains l. 1374. + +1375. Cf. 'Legende of Martres'; Letter of Cupid, 316 (p. 227); and the +note. + +1380. Here follows the second lesson. The _lectorn_ is the mod. E. lectern, +which supports the book from which the lessons are read. + +1384. 'The glad month of us who sing.' Cf. 'lepten _on the spray_'; Cuckoo +and Nightingale, 77 (p. 350). + +1387. Here follows the third lesson, read by the dove. + +1390. This looks like an allusion to the endless joke upon cuckolds, who +are said, in our dramatists, to 'wear the horn'; which the offender is said +'to give.' If so, it is surely a very early allusion. Here _give an horn_ = +to scorn, mock. + +1400. _Tu autem, domine, miserere nobis_, 'thou, lord, have merci of us,' +said at the conclusion of each lesson; to which all responded _Deo +gratias_, 'thanke we god!' See The Prymer, p. 5. + +1401. _Te deum amoris_; substituted for _Te deum laudamus_, which is still +in use; which concludes the matins. + +1402. _Tuball_, who was supposed to have been 'the first musician.' As to +this error, see note in vol. i. p. 492 (l. 1162). + +1408. _Dominus regnavit_, Ps. xciii (Vulgate, xcii); the 'first psalm' at +Lauds. + +1411. _Jubilate deo_, Ps. c (Vulgate, xcix); the 'second psalm.' The third +and fourth psalms are not mentioned. + +1413. _Benedicite, omnia opera_; still in use in our morning service; +counted as the 'fifth psalm.' + +1415. _Laudate dominum_, Ps. cxlviii; the 'sixth psalm.' The seventh and +eighth are passed over. + +1416. _O admirabile_; the anthem. The E. version is:--'O thou wonderful +chaunge! the makere of mankynde, takynge a bodi with a soule of a maide +vouchide sauf be bore [_born_]; and so, forth-goynge man, with-outen seed, +yaf to us his godhede'; Prymer, p. 12. The 'chapter' and hymn are omitted. + +1422. _Benedictus Dominus Deus Israel_; still in use in our morning +service. This is the last extract from 'the hours.' + +1434. 'She gadereth floures, _party_ whyte and rede To make a sotil +_garland_'; C. T., A 1053. + +1436. This is exactly like 'the battle of the flowers,' as seen in Italy. + +1437. _the gold_, the marigold; see C. T., A 1929. + +1440. _trew-love_; a name for herb paris (_Paris quadrifolia_). But as the +'true-love' is described as being _plited_, i.e. folded, it must rather be +supposed to mean a true lover's knot or love-knot, which was simply a bow +of ribbon given as a token of affection, and frequently worn by the lover +afterwards. The bestowal of this token nearly made an end of him. + +§ XXV. VIRELAI. + +Not a true virelay, as the ending _-ing_ does not reappear in the second +stanza; for a correct example, see note to Anelida and Arcite, 256 (vol. i. +p. 536). But it is of the nature of a virelay, inasmuch as the rime _-ate_, +which concludes the first stanza, reappears in the second; and similarly, +the ending _-ure_, which concludes the second stanza, reappears in the +third; and so on, with the rime-endings _-ain_ and _-aunce_. Compare the +poem by Lord Rivers, in the same metre, alluded to in vol. i. p. 42. + +11. _ure_, destiny; as above, sect. XXIV. 634 (and note, p. 546). + +20. The pronunciation of _ende_ as _ind_ is not uncommon in East Anglia, +and may have been intended. + +§ XXVI. PROSPERITY. + +From John Walton's translation of Boethius, A.D. 1410. See the +Introduction. + +§ XXVII. LEAULTE VAULT RICHESSE. + +From the same MS. as the last. + +7. _don but lent_, lit. 'done but lent,' i.e. merely lent (you). For this +idiom, see note to Ch. C. T., B 171 (vol. v. p. 145). + +§ XXVIII. SAYINGS. + +5. Cf. Shak. King Lear, iii. 2. 91; see the Introduction. + +§ XXIX. BALADE. + +This Balade, printed by Stowe, seems like a poor imitation of the style of +Lydgate. + + * * * * * + + +GLOSSARIAL INDEX. + +References to I. (The Testament of Love) are to the Book, Chapter, and +Line; thus 'I. ii. 1. 7' = Testament of Love, bk. ii. ch. 1. l. 7. +References containing '_pr._' refer to the prologue to the same. In all +other cases, the references are to the piece and to the line: thus 'V. 50' += Letter of Cupid, l. 50. + +A, _v._ have, I. i. 2. 173; _ger._ I. i. 5. 93. + +A DEBLYS, (_perhaps_) to the devil, as if devoted to the devil, I. ii. 13. +99. See the note. + +A DEWE, (_perhaps for_ à dieu), I. ii. 13. 99. See the note. + +A THIS HALFE, on this side, below, I. i. 9. 39. + +A. B. C., _s._ alphabet, I. ii. 1. 113. + +ABACKE, _adv._ backward, III. 300; Abakke, VIII. 326. + +ABBEYS, _s. pl._ abbeys, XXIV. 1115. + +ABEISEN, _v._ (_for_ Abasen), abase, put down, reprove, XXIV. 738. + +ABIT, _pr. s._ abides, IV. 284; XIII. 30. + +ABLE, _imp. s._ enable, VII. 32; Abled, _pp._ I. ii. 9. 95; fitted, I. ii. +6. 4. + +ABODE, _2 pt. s._ didst abide, I. ii. 4. 101; Abood, _pt. s._ remained, I. +i. 5. 31. + +ABOUTEN, _adv._ all about, all round, I. ii. 8. 37. + +ABREGGE, _ger._ to abridge, shorten, XIX. 18. + +ABREYDE, _ger._ to start up, awake, VIII. 15; Abraid, _pt. s._ started, +went suddenly, XVII. 45; Abrayde, awoke, VIII. 154. + +ABYDINGE, _s._ waiting, delay, I. i. 3. 38. + +ABYE, _v._ pay for (it), II. 1233; pay for, II. 1199. + +ABYME, _s._ the abyss, X. 136. + +A-CALE, _pp. as adj._ frozen, afflicted with the cold, II. 71. + +ACCEPT, _pp._ accepted (as), I. ii. 13. 36; Accepte, _as adj. pl._ +accepted, VIII. 427. + +ACCES, _s._ feverish attack, VIII. 229; XVIII. 39; Accesse, VIII. 136. + +ACCIDENT, _s._ accidental quality, I. ii. 7. 144; accident, II. 1222. + +ACCOMPTE, _1 pr. s._ account, I. ii. 13. 91; _pp._ I. ii. 9. 48. + +ACCOMPTES, _s. pl._ accounts, II. 778. + +ACCORD, _s._ agreement, XVIII. 280. + +ACCORDAUNCE, _s._ agreement, I. ii. 5. 27. + +ACCORDAUNT, _adj._ agreeing, XVIII. 83. + +ACCORDE, _ger._ to agree, to rime, II. 477; _pr. s._ suits, VIII. 183; _2 +pr. pl._ agree, III. 212; _pr. pl._ I. ii. 5. 26; _pres. pt._ XX. 112. See +ACORDE. + +ACERTAINED, _pp._ made sure, informed, XX. 568. + +ACHATES, _s. pl._ purchases, I. ii. 2. 48. + +ACOMERED, _pp._ encumbered, I. iii. 5. 57; troubled, I. iii. 7. 41. + +ACOMPT, _v._ reckon, I. ii. 10. 88. + +ACORDAUNCES, _s. pl._ agreements, I. ii. 8. 54. + +ACORDE, _ger._ to agree, I. ii. 8. 47; _pr. s._ I. ii. 2. 52; _pr. pl._ IX. +210; _a. nothing_, in no wise agree, I. ii. 2. 74. + +ACORN, _s._ acorn, VIII. 73. + +A-CROKE, _adv._ amiss, XXIV. 378. + +A-DAYES, _adv._ by day-time, XXII. 34. + +ADHERAND, _pres. pt._ cleaving, I. i. 9. 103. + +ADMIRALL, _s._ prince, chief, II. 194. + +ADNULLED, _pp._ annulled, I. iii. 3. 49. + +ADNULLINGE, _s._ annulling, I. i. 4. 22. + +ADO, to do, VIII. 161. + +A-DOWN, _adv._ down here, II. 1319. + +A-DRAD, _pp._ afraid, I. ii 7. 61; IV. 89; filled with fear, I. i. 2. 12, +182. + +ADULACIOUN, _s._ flattery, XII. 61. + +ADVERSAIR, _s._ adversary, XXIV. 1035. + +ADVERTENCE, _s._ attention, XI. 61. + +ADVERTETH, _imp. pl._ heed, note, XIII. 45. + +A-FERD, _pp._ afraid, II. 433; Aferde, I. i. 2. 10. + +A-FERE, on fire, X. 129. + +A-FERRE, _adv._ afar, VIII. 610. + +AFFECT, _s._ desire, I. iii. 9. 43. + +AFFECTUOUSLY, _adv._ with desire, I. iii. 6. 64. + +AFFERMED, _pp._ affirmed, IV. 13. + +AFFICHED, _pp._ fixed, set, I. ii. 9. 28. + +AFFIRMATIF, _s._ the affirmative, I. iii. 8. 40. + +AFFRAY, _s._ conflict, trouble, XX. 374. + +AFFRAYED, _pp._ frightened away, XVIII. 235; frightened, XXIV. 1000. + +AFFY, _v._ trust, XXVII. 3; Affye, _pr. pl._ X. 63. + +AFORN, _adv._ previously, VIII. 451; X. 107. + +AFRAY, _ger._ to frighten, II. 859. + +AFTER, _adv._ afterwards, XVI. 380; After as, according as, I. i. _pr._ 44. + +AFTER, _prep._ for, I. ii. 3. 35; i.e. to get, I. ii. 14. 94; After oon, +i.e. always alike, XVI. 161. + +AFTER-GAME, _s._ second game, return-match, XVI. 523. + +AFTER-REWARD, _s._ following reward, I. iii. 2. 123. + +AGADRED, _pp._ gathered together, II. 1335. + +AGASTETH, _pr. s._ frightens greatly, I. ii. 7. 77. + +AGILTED, _pt. s._ sinned against, II. 1308. + +AGNELET, _s._ little lamb, X. 123. + +AGNUS-CASTUS (see the note, p. 531), XX. 160. + +AGOON, _pp._ gone away, VIII. 24; Ago, XVII. 238. + +AGRAMED, _pp._ angered, II. 343. + +AGRYSE, _v._ feel terror, II. 360, 841, 1216; XVIII. 15; _pr. pl. subj._ +let them fear, II. 961. + +AGUE, _s._ feverish attack, IX. 37. + +AIR, _adv._ early, XVII. 82. + +AKELE, _v._ cool, XXIV. 1076. + +AKEN, _pr. pl._ ache, IV. 260; Ake, VIII. 524. + +A-KNOWE, _pp._ perceived, recognised, XXIV. 1199. + +AL, _conj._ although, I. i. 7. 61. + +ALAY, _s._ alloy, I. ii. 4. 131; Alayes, _pl._ VII. 136. + +ALAYE, _v._ allay, VIII. 109. + +ALDAY, _adv._ continually, I. i. 2. 162; IV. 270. + +ALDER-LAST, _adv._ last of all, VIII. 561. + +ALDERNEXT, _adj._ next of all, XV. _a._ 3. + +ALE, _s._ ale, II. 432. + +ALEGEAUNCE, _s._ alleviation, XVI. 54. + +ALEGED, _pp._ alleged, adduced, I. ii. 9. 143. + +ALEGEMENT, _s._ alleviation, XII. 32. + +ALEGGE, _v._ alleviate (me), XIX. 26. + +ALGATE, _adv._ in any case, IV. 249; VIII. 519; always, IV. 271. + +ALGATES, _adv._ in all ways, I. iii. 6. 14; at any rate, I. ii. 5. 71. + +A-LIGHTE, _v._ be glad, be cheerful, I. i. 3. 71. + +ALLEGEAUNCE, _s._ alleviation, relief, XVI. 725; XXIV. 886; XXV. 17. + +ALL-HOLYEST, _adj._ holiest of all, II. 201. + +ALMESSE, _s._ alms, II. 301; XXIII. 7; Almous, (his) pittance, XVII. 392. + +ALMOIGNER, _s._ almoner, I. i. _pr._ 108. + +ALOES, _s._ aloes, I. i. 1. 100. + +AL-ONLY, _adv._ only, I. iii. 3. 44. + +A-LOUGHTER, a-laughing, XXIV. 1426. + +AL-OUT, _adv._ altogether outside, XVI. 575. + +ALOWE, _pr. s. subj._ may (He) approve, II. 1379; Alowed, _pp._ approved +of, I. i. 8. 7. + +ALS, _adv._ as, XVII. 161, 571; Al-so, as, XII. 85. + +ALTERAIT, _pp._ altered, XVII. 227. + +ALTHER-GRETTEST, _adj._ greatest of all, very great, XVI. 298. + +ALTHER-LAST, _adv._ last of all, VIII. 503. + +A-MAISTRY, _v._ conquer, I. ii. 11. 63; rule, I. i. 2. 105; Amaistrien, +_v._ subdue, I. ii. 11. 32; _pr. s._ masters, overpowers, I. ii. 9. 60; +compels, I. iii. 6. 157; _pp._ conquered, got by mastery, I. ii. 11. 59; +overcome, I. i. 4. 28. + +AMAT, _pp._ cast down, VIII. 168. + +AMAYED, _pp._ dismayed, XVIII. 232. + +AMBES AS, double aces, XIII. 78. See note, p. 515. + +AMENDES, _s. pl._ amends, retribution, II. 1090. + +AMERCED, _pp._ fined, II. 1023. + +AMISSE-GOING, _s._ trespass, I. ii. 14. 94. + +AMONESTETH, _pr. s._ admonishes, I. i. 6. 109. + +AMONG, _adv._ meanwhile, VIII. 154; X. 86; XXI. 300. + +AND, _conj._ if, I. i. 8. 13. + +ANE, a, XVII. 1. + +ANEUCH, _adj._ enough, XVII. 110, 350. + +ANGUIS, _adj._ distressful, I. ii. 8. 120; I. ii. 10. 94. See N. E. D. + +A-NIGHT, by night, XIX. 23. + +ANIS, _adv._ once, XVII. 127. + +ANKERS, _s. pl._ anchors, I. ii. 10. 117. + +ANON-RIGHT, _adv._ immediately, XX. 397, 402. + +ANOY, _s._ vexation, I. ii. 1. 34; Annoy, discomfort, XX. 389. + +ANOYNT, _pp._ anointed, IV. 274. + +ANTECEDENT, _s._ antecedent statement, premiss, I. ii. 5. 12. + +ANULLED, _pp._ annulled, I. iii. 2. 81. + +A-PACE, _adv._ quickly, VIII. 120. + +APAL, _v._ be appalled, faint, XXII. 15. + +APART, _adv._ apart, XXIV. 1400. + +APAYED, _pp._ pleased, satisfied, III. 133, 248; Apayd, XXI. 208; _wel a._, +well pleased, XVIII. 231; _evel a._, ill pleased, XVIII. 92. + +APAYRED, _pp._ depreciated, I. ii. 1. 66. + +APECHE, _pr. pl._ impeach, XIII. 88; Apeched, _pp._ I. i. 9. 138. + +APEND, _v._ belong, II. 666. + +A-PER-SE, A by itself, the chief letter, prime thing, XVII. 78. + +APERT, _adj._ open; _prevy nor apert_, secret nor open, in no respect, XVI. +174. + +APERTLY, _adv._ openly, I. iii. 8. 108; without concealment, I. i. 8. 29; +Apertely, I. iii. 2. 28. + +APETED, _pp._ sought after, I. ii. 13. 53. See the note, p. 476. + +APEYRE, _v._ suffer evil, be harmed, XVIII. 170; Apeyred, _pp._ injured, I. +iii. 5. 24; defamed, I. i. 6. 11. + +APEYSE, _v._ appease, XVI. 391. + +A-PLACE, into its right place, IV. 50. + +APOSTATA, _s._ apostate, III. 37, 312; Apostatas, _pl._ III. 43. + +APPAIR, _v._ blame, harm, XXIV. 416. + +APPALLE, _pr. s. subj._ fade, VI. 8. + +APPARAILE, _s._ ornamentation, XXIV. 114. + +APPARAYLEN, _pr. pl._ attempt, I. i. 6. 171. + +APPEIRED, _pp._ impaired, XX. 553; harmed (i.e. much harm is done), I. ii. +6. 161. + +APPERCEYVED,_ pp._ perceived, I. i. 2. 34. + +APPERTLY, _adv._ openly, evidently, I. ii. 9. 178. + +APPROPRED, _pp._ appropriated, reserved, I. ii. 6. 63; assigned, VI. 34. + +APTES, _s. pl._ natural tendencies, I. iii. 6. 60. (Unique.) + +AQUYTEST, _pr. s._ payest, I. iii. 7. 152. + +AR, _pr. pl._ are; It ar, they are, XVI. 531. + +ARAYSE, _ger._ to raise, I. ii. 14. 45. + +ARBITREMENT, _s._ choice, I. iii. 2. 128; I. iii. 3. 76. + +AREIR, _adv._ behindhand, XVII. 423. + +ARERED, _pp._ set up, I. i. 5. 124. + +AREST, _s._ spear-rest, XX. 282. 'With spere in thyn _arest_ alway'; Rom. +Rose, 7561. + +AREST, _s._ stopping, arresting, I. ii. 6. 83; arrest, I. ii. 10. 98. + +AREYSED, _pp._ raised up, I. ii. 5. 113; raised, V. 144. + +ARK, _s._ arc, course, VIII. 590. + +ARKE, _s._ ark, X. 134. + +ARMONY, _s._ harmony, I. ii. 9. 9; I. ii. 13. 75; XXIV. 1403. + +ARMURE, _s._ armour, XIII. 101. + +ARN, _pr. pl._ are, VI. 43; IX. 153. + +ARRAS, _s._ cloth of Arras, XXIV. 115. + +ARSMETRIKE, _s._ arithmetic, I. iii. 1. 68. + +ARTED, _pl. s._ provoked, XXIV. 46. + +ARTYK, _adj._ northern, XVII. 20. + +AS, _with imp._, pray, V. 30; As than, at that time, just then, XVII. 27. + +AS, _s. pl._ aces, XIII. 78. + +ASH, _s._ ash-tree, VIII. 73. + +ASKAUNCE, _adv._ askance, aside, XVI. 604. + +ASKER, _s._ one who asks, I. ii. 3. 30. + +ASKES, _s. pl._ ashes (i.e. penance), II. 943. + +ASKETH, _pr. s._ requires, I. i. _pr._ 124; I. ii. 5. 28. + +ASLAKEN, _v._ assuage, XXIV. 710. + +ASOTTED, _pp._ besotted, XVI. 682. + +ASSAY, _s._ trial, I. i. 5. 53; V. 147; attempt, XVI. 572; Assayes, _pl._ +trials, I. ii. 3. 72. + +ASSEMBLED, _pt. s._ brought (them) together, XVI. 691. + +ASSENTAUNT, _pres. pt._ assenting, I. i. 6. 53, 87; I. iii. 6. 150. + +ASSHEN, _s. pl._ ashes, I. iii. 7. 38. + +ASSOMONED, _pp._ summoned, XXIV. 170. + +ASSOYLE, _ger._ to explain, I. iii. 4. 18; Asoile, _v._ answer, XXIV. 1283; +_pp._ explained, I. iii. 4. 255; absolved, III. 312. + +ASSYSE, _s._ way, fashion, II. 843; size, XXIV. 1313; _of a._, of a like +size, suitable to each other, XXI. 531. + +ASSYSED, _pp._ fixed, set; _or perhaps_, assessed, rated, IV. 332; +regulated, IV. 236. + +ASTARTE, _pt. s._ escaped, II. 1350. + +ASTATE, _s._ estate, rank, XXIV. 47. + +ASTERTE, _v._ escape, I. i. 7. 87; V. 38; VIII. 490; start aside, give way, +I. ii. 1. 70; _pr. s. subj._ escape, IX. 234; _pt. s._ escaped, XXIV. 148. + +ASTONIED, _pp._ astonished, I. i. 2. 17; XX. 102. + +ASTRANGLED, _pp._ strangled, I. iii. 7. 128. + +ASTRAY, _adv._ astray, II. 673; XX. 285. + +ASTRONOMYE, _s._ astronomy, I. iii. 1. 69. + +ASURED, _pp._ rendered blue, blue, I. ii. 13. 78. + +AT, _prep._ from, XVII. 258. + +ATASTE, _v._ taste, I. i. 1. 101; I. iii. 7. 7; Atasted, _pp._ I. iii. 5. +91. + +A-THROTED, _pp._ throttled, strangled, I. ii. 5. 71. (Unique.) + +ATOUR, _prep._ beyond, XVII. 162. + +ATTAME, _v._ subdue (lit. tame), XVI. 707. See _Atame_ in N. E. D. + +ATTEMPERAUNCE, _s._ Moderation, XXI. 507. + +ATTEMPRE, _adj._ temperate, VIII. 57. + +ATTOURNEY, _s._ attorney, I. i. 8. 111; VIII. 281. + +ATTYRED, _pp._ attired, II. 192. + +AUCTORITÈ, _s._ authority, I. i. 4. 9; XVI. 137. + +AUCTOUR, _s._ author, I. iii. 4. 245. + +AUGRIM, _s._ arithmetic, I. ii. 7. 83. + +AULD, _adj._ old, XVII. 32. + +AUNCESTRYE, _s._ ancestry, IV. 12; Auncetrye, XXIV. 1242. + +AUREAT, _adj._ golden, X. 13; XXIV. 817. + +AURORE, _s._ dawn, XIX. 22. + +AUTER, _s._ altar, I. ii. 2. 57. + +AUTHORYSED, _pp._ considered as authoritative, IV. 330; Authoreist, _pp._ +authorised, XVII. 66. + +AUTHOUR, _s._ author, I. iii. 1. 169. + +AUTUMPNE, _s._ autumn, VIII. 63. + +AVAILE, _s._ value; _esier a._, less value, _or_, easier to obtain, XXIV. +116. + +AVANTOURS, _s. pl._ boasters, XVI. 814. See note, p. 520. + +AVAUNCE, _s._ advancement, II. 215. + +AVAUNCE, _v._ promote, VIII. 354; X. 7; succeed, XIII. 75; _imp. s. refl._ +advance, come forward, approach, XVI. 801; _pt. pl. refl._ advanced, came +forward, XVI. 157; _pp._ promoted, I. i. 7. 69. + +AVAUNCEMENT, _s._ promotion, I. iii. 8. 145. + +AVAUNT, _s._ boast, V. 64; XVI. 732. + +AVAUNTE, _1 pr. s._ boast, I. i. 6. 186; _pr. pl._ boast, I. ii. 2. 124. + +AVAUNTOUR, _s._ boaster, XVI. 735, 739; Avaunter, Boaster, XXIV. 1219. + +AVAYL, _s._ prevalence, XXI. 649. + +AVAYL, _v._ be of use, II. 1080; _pp._ made valid, IV. 191; _pres. pt._ +useful, I. i. 7. 96. + +AVENTURE, _s._ fortune, XVI. 499; luck, XVI. 856. + +AVER, _s._ wealth, I. i. 10. 19. A. F. _aveir_, F. _avoir_. + +AVISEE, _adj._ prudent, IX. 215; XII. 4. + +AVOIDE, _ger._ to depart, I. i. 1. 131. + +AVOW, _s._ vow, II. 29; XVIII. 229; Avowe, IX. 93. + +AVOWE, _v._ vow, IV. 243; XVIII. 229; own, acknowledge (it), II. 1374. + +AVOWING, _s._ vowing, I. i. 3. 64. + +AVOWRIES, _s. pl._ protectors, III. 355. + +AVYSE, _s._ advice, XVI. 225; XXI. 189; consideration, VIII. 464. + +AVYSEMENT, _s._ consideration, VIII. 278; XVIII. 272. + +AVYSENESSE, _s._ Advisedness, XXI. 343. + +AVYSINGE, _pres. pt._ considering, I. i. 4. 5. + +AWAYT, _s._ lying in wait, watching an opportunity, XVI. 341; attendance, +VIII. 408; ambush, snare, XVI. 778. + +AWAYTE, _v._ wait, XVI. 474; _ger._ to wait for, try, XVI. 555. + +AWAYWARD, _adv._ away, I. i. 1. 115; aside, XVI. 89. + +A-WERKE, at work, I. ii. 3. 124; I. iii. 6. 67. + +A-WHAPED, _pp._ amazed, VIII. 168. + +AWIN, _adj._ own, XVII. 275. + +AWREKE, _pp._ avenged, XVIII. 215. + +AWTER, _s._ alter, XXIV. 325. + +AXE, _v._ ask, III. 24. + +AXING, _s._ asking, request, V. 122. + +AY, _s._ egg, II. 862. + +AYEIN, _adv._ back again, XVI. 504. + +AYEN-BRINGE, _v._ bring back, I. i. 2. 77. + +AYENCOMING, _pres. pt._ returning, I. iii. 9. 66. + +AYENËS, _prep._ in return for, II. 1297; Ayens, ready for, VIII. 63. + +AYEN-LOOKING, _pres. pt._ looking back, I. i. 8. 17. + +AYENST, _prep._ against, II. 826. + +AYENTURNING, _s._ power of turning again, I. ii. 7. 136. + +AYENWARD, _adv._ back again, I. ii. 6. 15; in return, I. i. 2. 102; on the +contrary, on the other hand, I. iii. 4. 130; XVI. 18. + +AYRE, _s._ air, XVI. 384. + +AZURE, _s._ azure, i.e. _lapis lazuli_, I. iii. 5. 124, 132. + + + +BADDE, _adj._ bad, evil, I. ii. 13. 11. + +BADDE-MENINGE, _adj._ ill-intentioned, I. ii. 1. 94; I. ii. 13. 16. + +BAID, _pt. s._ abode, XVII. 490. + +BAILL, _s._ bale, sorrow, XVII. 110; harm, XVII. 413. + +BAIR, _s._ boar, XVII. 193. + +BAIR, _adj._ bare, XVII. 180, 206. + +BAIT, _s._ food (for horses), XVII. 210. + +BAIT, _v._ feed, XXIV. 194 (see note, p. 543); Baited, _pp._ baited, II. +648. + +BAKBYTE, _ger._ to backbite, XII. 124. + +BAKKER-MORE, _adv._ further back, XVI. 85. + +BAL, _s._ ball, IV. 296; eye-ball, I. i. 4. 2. + +BALAUNCE, _s._ balance, IV. 263; the balance, XIII. 91; _in b._, in His +sway, XVI. 851. + +BALAYS, _s._ balas-ruby, XXI. 536; Baleis, XXIV. 80. + +BALE, _s._ evil, I. ii. 9. 143. + +BALEFULL, _adj._ evil, II. 120, 1234. + +BALKE, _s._ balk, check, difficulty, II. 488. + +BALL, _s._ a horse's name, II. 402. + +BALLET, _s._ ballad, poem, XVII. 610. + +BANDON, _s._ disposal, I. ii. 5. 107. + +BANERE, _s._ banner, XX. 211. + +BANKES, _s. pl._ banks, I. ii. 14. 44. See note to l. 40, p. 478. + +BANKOURIS, _s. pl._ benches, soft seats, XVII. 417. + +BANNE, _pr. pl._ swear, XXIV. 1143. + +BAPTYME, _s._ baptism, III. 93. + +BAR, _pt. s._ bore, carried, XX. 254, 257. + +BAREYNE, _adj._ barren, void, V. 298. + +BARGARET, _s._ a pastoral song, XX. 348. See note, p. 533. + +BARGE, _s._ boat, XXIV. 187; ship, IV. 231. + +BASELARDES, _s. pl._ short swords, II. 918. + +BASSE, _s._ base, I. ii. 7. 90. + +BASSE, _s._ kiss, buss, XXIV. 797. + +BATAYLED, _pp._ assaulted, IV. 194. + +BAUDRIKS, _s. pl._ belts, II. 918. + +BAUME, _s._ balm, VIII. 27. + +BAWME-BLOSSOM, _s._ balm-blossom, X. 47. + +BAY, _s._ bay; _at bay_, II. 139. + +BAYN, _s._ bath, XXI. 464. + +BAY-WINDOW, _s._ window with a bay or recess, XXIV. 1058; _pl._ XXI. 163. + +BE, _adv._ by the time that, when, XVII. 358. + +BEAU, _adj._ fair, XXIV. 1085. + +BEDE, _pt. s._ bade, II. 1229. + +BEDRED, _adj._ bedridden, III. 119. + +BEDREINT, _pp._ drenched, wetted, XXIV. 577. + +BEESTLY, _adj._ animal, I. ii. 2. 79. + +BEET, _pt. s._ beat, II. 1353. + +BEFORE-WETING, _s._ foreknowledge, I. iii. 4. 63; Beforn-, I. iii. 4. 49. + +BEFORE-WIST, _pp._ foreknown, I. iii. 4. 154. + +BEGETEN, _pp._ begotten, I. iii. 4. 123; Begete, II. 1030. + +BEGGAIR, _s._ beggar, XVII. 483. + +BEGONNE, _pt. pl._ began, XVIII. 70; _pp._ IV. 22. + +BEHAVE, _v._ behave (himself), I. i. 10. 16. + +BEHEST, _s._ promise, I. i. 2. 93; _pl._ I. ii. 3. 38. + +BEHESTEN, _pr. pl._ promise, III. 334. + +BEHIGHT, _1 pr. s._ promise, assure, XX. 396; _pt. s._ promised, IV. 41; +(apparently) commanded, XVI. 259. + +BEHOLD, _pp._ beheld, XXIV. 279. + +BEHOTEN, _pp._ promised, I. iii. 8. 76. + +BEHOVE, _s._ behoof, I. ii. 3. 86. + +BEHOVELY, _adj._ fit, suitable, IV. 304. + +BEIKIT, _1 pt. s._ warmed, XVII. 36. + +BEILDIT, _pp._ built, XVII. 97. + +BEING, _s._ existence, I. ii. 5. 29. + +BEINGE-PLACE, _s._ home, I. iii. 5. 77. + +BE-KNOWE, _ger._ to acknowledge, I. ii. 1. 127. + +BELCHERE, _s._ Good Cheer, XXI. 322. + +BELEVE, _s._ belief, XVI. 426; XVIII. 162. + +BELEVED, _pp._ left, I. ii. 10. 109. + +BELIVE, _adv._ at once, XVII. 331. + +BELLE, _s._ bell, VIII. 262; _gen._ II. 40. + +BENCHED, _pp._ provided with benches, VIII. 126; XX. 50. + +BENCHES, _s. pl._ benches, or banks of turf, XXI. 49. + +BEND, _s._ band, girdle, XXIV. 810; Bendes, _pl._ bonds, II. 537. + +BENE, _adv._ excellently, XVII. 417. + +BENE, _s._ bean, XXIV. 796. + +BENE-BREED, _s._ bean-bread, I. ii. 2. 56. + +BENIMEN, _v._ take away, I. i. 9. 77. + +BEQUATH, _pt. s._ bequeathed, IV. 178. + +BERAFT, _pp._ bereft, I. i. 10. 53; V. 362. + +BERAYNED, _pp._ rained upon, X. 128. + +BERE, _s._ bear, II. 139, 648. + +BERE HIM IN HONDE, make him believe, III. 323; _pt. pl._ bore, carried, XX. +213, 223; Berest in honde, _2 pr. s._ accusest, III. 153; Beren on honde, +accuse falsely, V. 274. + +BEREL, _s._ beryl, VIII. 37; XXI. 455. + +BERNES, _s. pl._ barns, I. i. 3. 31. + +BESEEN, _pp._ adorned, XX. 169; Besene, arrayed, XVII. 416. + +BESETTE, _v._ bestow, place, I. i. 9. 72; XI. 15; _pp._ bestowed, XXIV. +391; used, II. 1040; set up, VIII. 352. + +BE-SEYN, _pp._ adorned, XII. 9; XXIV. 121. + +BESHET, _pp._ shut up, I. i. 3. 99. + +BESMYTETH, _pr. s._ defiles, I. ii. 6. 127. See the note, p. 469. + +BESPRAD, _pt. pl._ spread over, XXIV. 266. + +BESTAD, _pp._ hardly beset, IV. 88; Be-sted, _pp._ bestead, circumstanced, +II. 403. + +BESTIAL, _adj._ bestial, I. ii. 4. 4; I. ii. 10. 12. + +BESTIALLICH, _adj._ bestial, I. ii. 4. 45. + +BESTIALTÈ. _s._ fleshliness, I. iii. 9. 48. + +BESWINKE, _ger._ to toil for, I. i. 1. 40. + +BET, _adv._ better, VIII. 337; XXII. 54. + +BETAKE, _pp._ committed (to), I. ii. 6. 42. + +BETE, _pp._ adorned with beaten gold, XX. 212. + +BETEICH, _1 pr. s._ bequeath, XVII. 577. + +BETEN, _v._ kindle, XXIV. 324. + +BETIDEN (= betidden), _pt. pl._ happened (to), I. i. _pr._ 122. + +BETOKENETH, _pr. s._ means, III. 50. + +BETRAPPED, _pp._ entrapped, V. 252. + +BETRAYDEN, _pt. pl._ betrayed, V. 198. + +BETRAYSSHED, _pt. s._ betrayed, I. ii. 7. 118. + +BETTERER, _adj._ better, I. ii. 13. 71. + +BEVAR, _adj._ made of beaver, XVII. 386. + +BEWENT, _pp._ turned aside, I. i. 1. 21. + +BEWRYE, _v._ disclose, utter, XXIV. 1358. + +BICCHE, _s._ bitch, II. 889. + +BIGGE, _ger._ to build, II. 473. + +BIGON, _pp._ beset; _wel b._, well placed, well situate, in a good position +or case, XX. 186. See _Bego_ in the New E. Dict. + +BIL, _s._ petition, XXI. 325; Billes, _pl._ XXI. 352. + +BILEVED, _pp._ believed, I. ii. 6. 20. + +BILOWEN, _pp._ lied against, belied, V. 196. + +BIQUATH, _pt. s._ bequeathed, VII. 68. + +BIT, _pr. s._ bids, XXIV. 469. + +BITTE, _s._ bit, I. ii. 6. 83. + +BLA, _adj._ livid, XVII. 159. Icel. _blár_. + +BLABBING, _pres. pt._ prattling, V. 116. + +BLAIKNIT, _pp._ lit. made bleak, deprived, XVII. 410. + +BLASOURS, _s._ proclaimers, trumpeters, I. i. 10. 10. + +BLEMISSHED, _pp._ injured, I. ii. 12. 93. + +BLEND, _pp._ blinded, II. 852. + +BLENK, _s._ glance, look, XVII. 499. + +BLENKING, _s._ look, XVII. 503. + +BLENT, _pp._ blinded, II. 771; VIII. 461 (see note, p. 508). + +BLERE, _adj._ blear, dim, I. ii. 1. 123. + +BLERED, _pp._ bleared, dimmed, V. 105. + +BLISS, _1 pr. s._ bless, XXIV. 862. + +BLOBERE, _v._ to blubber, to sob, I. ii. 3. 59. + +BLUSTRINGE (_probably for_ bluschinge), _s._ brightness, I. i. 2. 20. See +note, p. 454. + +BLYFE; _as bl._, as quickly as possible, XXIV. 161; heartily, XXIV. 404; as +soon as possible, IX. 111; XXIV. 1441. + +BLYVELY, _adv._ soon, I. iii. 4. 19. + +BOCHOUR, _s._ butcher, II. 584. + +BODE, _1 pt. s._ remained, XXIV. 1351. + +BODEN, _pp._ bidden, III. 134. + +BOISTOUSLY, _adv._ rudely, XX. 595. + +BOKET, _s._ bucket, I. iii. 1. 145. + +BOLDED, _pp._ emboldened, XVI. 26. + +BOLE, _s._ bull, I. i. 5. 127; XX. 3; Taurus, VIII. 4. + +BOLLEN, _pp._ swollen, overcharged, VIII. 101. + +BOLNE, _ger._ to swell, I. ii. 14. 42. + +BOND, _s._ bond, II. 681. + +BOND, _pt. s._ bound, VIII. 623. + +BONDMEN, _s. pl._ serfs, II. 1009. + +BOOD, _1 pt. s._ abode, XVI. 99. + +BOON, _s._ boon, petition, XXI. 621. + +BOOT, _s._ boat, XIII. 56. + +BORDES, _s. pl._ tables, XVI. 101. + +BORDURE, _s._ border, rim, VIII. 594. + +BORE, _s._ boar, VIII. 386. + +BOREN, _v._ bore, I. i. 4. 2. + +BORNE, _ger._ to burnish, ornament, adorn, XXIV. 9. + +BOROWE, _s._ pledge; _to b._, as a security, VIII. 12. + +BOSARDES, _s. pl._ buzzards, II. 1337. + +BOSSE, _s._ stud, boss, XX. 246. + +BOST, _s._ boast, V. 234. + +BOSTEOUS, _adj._ noisy, XVII. 195. + +BOSTER, _s._ boaster, II. 401. + +BOTE, _s._ good, benefit, VII. 56; help, XX. 83. + +BOTH, _s._ booth, tabernacle, I. ii. 10. 95. + +BOUK, _s._ body; _bouk and boon_, body and bone, X. 122. See New E. D. + +BOUN, _adj._ ready, IV. 17; XVII. 600. + +BOUR, _s._ bower, II. 120. + +BOWE, _v._ bend, give way, XVI. 491, 492. + +BOWES, _s. pl._ boughs, VIII. 53, 583. + +BOYSTOUS, _adj._ rough, boisterous, I. i. _pr._ 7; II. 139; rough, poor, +lowly, II. 1052; rude, XXII. 26. + +BRAK, _pt. s._ brake, V. 378. + +BRAST, _pt. s._ burst, XVIII. 210; _1 pt. s._ I. i. 4. 1; _pt. pl._ XX. +490; penetrated, XVII. 15. + +BRAUNCHELET, _s._ small branch, X. 44. + +BRAUNCHES, _s. pl._ branches, I. iii. 7. 4. + +BRAVIE, _s._ prize of running, X. 65. See note. + +BRAYD, _s._ moment, XXIV. 1173. + +BRAYING, _pres. pt._ clanging, II. 166. + +BREDE, _s._ breadth, VIII. 162; XX. 43. + +BREIRD, _s._ lit. blade (of grass, &c.); _on br._, in growth, on the +increase, XVII. 413. + +BREIST, _s._ breast, XVII. 110. + +BRENNE, _pr. s. subj._ burn, XVIII. 105; _pr. pl._ XVIII. 35; Brende, _1 +pt. s._ burnt, XI. 6; _pt. s. subj._ should burn, I. ii. 6. 29; Brent, _pt. +s._ burnt, XXIV. 232; Brent, _pp._ II. 1234; Brend, _pp._ II. 674; _pres. +pt._ burning, I. i. 3. 101; Brennende, I. i. 1. 21; Brennande, I. i. 1. +104. + +BRENNINGLY, _adv._ hotly, V. 239. + +BRENT, _adj._ high, smooth, XVII. 173. + +BRETHERHEDES, _s. pl._ brotherhoods, III. 88. + +BRID, _s._ bird, XVIII. 260, 270; Briddes, _pl._ VIII. 43; XVIII. 262. + +BRIGE, _s._ contention, trouble, I. i. 7. 104. See note, p. 460. + +BRIND, _adj._ hot (lit. burnt), XXIV. 319. See note, p. 544. + +BRINKE, _s._ brink, edge, margin, I. ii. 14. 41; VIII. 90. + +BROCHED, _pt. s._ violated, XXIV. 1234. + +BROCHES, _s._ brooches, II. 904. + +BROKE, _s. dat._ brook, XVIII. 217; -syde, brook-side, XVIII. 60. + +BROKEN, _pp._ torn, I. ii. 2. 65. + +BROSTE, _pp._ burst, XI. 99. See BRAST. + +BROTEL, _adj._ brittle, frail, I. i. 10. 110. + +BROTELNESSE, _s._ frailty, XIII. 22. + +BROUK, _2 pr. pl._ use, make use of, enjoy, XXI. 259. + +BROWDERED, _pp._ braided, XXIV. 811; ornamented, XVII. 417. + +BRUKILNES, _s._ frailty, XVII. 86. + +BRUKKIL, _adj._ brittle, XVII. 569. + +BRYDEL, _ger._ to restrain, I. ii. 6. 83. + +BUCKELERS, _s. pl._ bucklers, II. 917. + +BUCKET, _s._ bucket, II. 298. See note. + +BUIT, _s._ advantage, profit, help, XVII. 481. See BOTE. + +BULLAR, _s._ bubble, XVII. 192. + +BULLE, _s._ bull, IV. 208. + +BURELY, _adj._ fit for a lady's bower, XVII. 417; handsome, XVII. 173; +large, XVII. 180. See p. 524. + +BURJONEN, _v._ bud, I. iii. 7. 51. + +BURJONING, _s._ budding, bud, I. ii. 11. 105; I. iii. 7. 45. + +BURJONING-TYME, _s._ time of budding, I. iii. 7. 70. + +BURJONS, _s. pl._ buds, I. iii. 7. 49. + +BUSKIT, _pp._ adorned, XVII. 255. + +BUSTEOUS, _adj._ boisterous, rough, XVII. 153; huge, XVII. 166. See +BOYSTOUS. + +BUT, _prep._ without, I. iii. 4. 135; XVII. 94, 194; except, I. iii. 6. 40. + +BUT-IF, _conj._ unless, I. i. 1. 124; I. ii. 7. 86. + +BUXOM, _adj._ obedient, hence, subject, I. i. 9. 40. + +BUXUMNESSE, _s._ obedience, VI. 11. + +BY, _prep._ with reference to, XVII. 278; By that, for the reason that, I. +i. 7. 57. + +BY AND BY, in due order, IX. 226; XX. 59, 145. + +BYE, _v._ buy, I. i. 3. 123; _1 pr. s._ VIII. 435. + +BYLIS, _s. pl._ boils, tumours, XVII. 395. + +BY-PATHES, _s. pl._ by-ways, I. i. 4. 42. + +BYTE, _v._ bite, devour, II. 576; Bytande, _pres. pt._ biting, bitter, I. +i. 10. 90. + + + +CABLES, _s. pl._ cables, I. ii. 10. 117. + +CACCHENDE, _pres. pt._ catching, comprehensive, I. ii. 1. 57. + +CACCHING, _s._ getting money, II. 1017. + +CACE, _s._ case; _in c._, perchance, XVII. 507. + +CAIRFUL, _adj._ full of care, mournful, XVII. 1, 310. + +CAITIF, _adj._ wretched, XXIV. 205. + +CAITIVED, Caytifved, _pp._ imprisoned, kept as a captive, I. i. 1. 16. + +CALD, _adj._ cold, XVII. 541. + +CALL, _s._ caul, head-dress, II. 338. + +CALL, _adj._ (_prob. error for_ Tall), II. 466. See UNTALL. + +CALM, _s._ calm, VII. 140. + +CAN, _1 pr. s._ know, possess, XVI. 733; _can pas_, did pass, went, XVII. +28; _can discend_, caused to descend, XVII. 6; Canst, _pr. s._ knowest, II. +1073. + +CAPTYVES, _s. pl._ wretches, captives, II. 291. + +CARDIACLE, _s._ a disease of the heart, pain in the heart, I. ii. 11. 125. + +CARDINALL, _s._ cardinal, II. 314, 456. + +CARE, _s._ misery, I. i. 3. 118. + +CARECKES, _s. pl._ characters, marks, II. 542. + +CARKË, _v._ be anxious, II. 250, 1123. + +CARPEN, _1 pr. pl._ talk about, discuss, I. ii. 8. 30. + +CASSIDONY, _s._ chalcedony, XXI. 478. See note. + +CAST ME, _1 pt. s._ designed, intended, XVI. 80. + +CASUEL, _adj._ subject to chance, XXII. 44. + +CATEL, _s._ wealth, I. ii. 5. 56; Catell, II. 385; Cattal, II. 250. + +CATHEDRALS, _s. pl._ cathedrals, II. 313. + +CATTEL-CACCHING, _s._ getting money, II. 856. + +CAULD, _s._ cold, XVII. 7. + +CAUSEFUL, _adj._ circumstantial, weighty, I. iii. 5. 54. + +CAUTEL, _s._ trick, III. 303; Cautele, V. 286; _pl._ deceits, XXII. 50. + +CAWDELL, _s._ a warm gruel, mixed with wine or ale, and sweetened or +spiced, given chiefly to sick people, XXIV. 438. See _Caudle_ in the N. E. +D. + +CAYTIF, _s._ captive, wretch, I. i. 1. 122; _pl._ II. 71. + +CAYTIFNESSE, _s._ captivity, wretchedness, I. i. 2. 31. + +CAYTIVE, _adj._ wretched, XVII. 408. + +CEDRE, _s._ cedar, X. 39; _pl._ VIII. 67. + +CEDULE, _s._ schedule, writing, XXI. 345. + +CELLER, _s._ cellar, I. ii. 2. 27. + +CELSITUDE, _s._ highness, XXIV. 611. + +CELURED, _pp._ ceiled, canopied, VIII. 52. + +CERCLE, _s._ circle, XXI. 536. + +CEREAL, _adj._; _c. okes_, holm-oaks, XX. 209. See note. + +CESSE, _ger._ to cease, XVI. 37; Cessing that, when that ceases, V. 415. + +CHACE, _s._ chase (at tennis), IV. 295. See note. + +CHAFED, _pp._ heated, warmed, I. ii. 12. 8; Chafinge, _pr. pt._ I. ii. 12. +8. + +CHAFFREN, _pr. pl._ bargain for, II. 146. + +CHAIR, _s._ chariot, car, XVII. 204; XX. 1. + +CHALENGE, _v._ claim, I. i. 10. 66; _1 pr. s._ claim, XVI. 233; _pr. pl._ +III. 22. + +CHALMER, _s._ chamber, XVII. 28, 416. + +CHAMBERER, _s._ lady of the chamber, XXIV. 158. + +CHANONS, _s. pl._ canons, II. 717, 1062; III. 280. + +CHAPELAYNS, _s. pl._ chaplains, III. 348. + +CHAPELET, _s._ chaplet, XX. 154, 236; Chapelets, _pl._ XX. 159, 161, 209, +222. + +CHAPITRE, _s._ chapter, I. iii. 9. 21. + +CHAPMAN, _s._ trader, III. 147; Chapmen, _pl._ III. 128. + +CHAPTER-HOUSE, _s._ chapter-house, III. 75. + +CHAR, _s._ chariot, VII. 177; VIII. 595. + +CHARGE, _s._ responsibility, VIII. 328; XVI. 469; burden, I. i. 3. 15; +blame, XXIV. 186; _pl._ burdens, I. ii. 7. 69. + +CHASE, _pr. pl._ chase, persecute, II. 1322. + +CHASE, _pt. s._ chose, XVI. 166. + +CHAUNCELLERE, _s._ chancellor, XXI. 507. + +CHAUNSEL, _s._ chancel, I. ii. 2. 63. + +CHAUNTEMENTS, _s. pl._ enchantments, I. i. 9. 28. + +CHAUNTOURS, _s._ singers, II. 870. + +CHAYRE, _s._ throne, XXI. 476. + +CHEES; see CHESE. + +CHERE, _s._ demeanour, XXIV. 575; good cheer, XVI. 95; _pl._ looks, XIV. 8. + +CHERELICH, _adj._ prodigal, II. 1050. Read _not cherelich_; see note, p. +491. + +CHERYCE, _v._ cherish, VII. 16; Cheryse, XXIV. 893. + +CHESE, _ger._ to choose, I. ii. 10. 21; Chesen, _ger._ VII. 185; _1 pr. s._ +IX. 249; _imp. s._ _3 p._ let him choose, XVI. 313; Chees, _pt. s._ chose, +IV. 31; VIII. 395; Cheisit, _pt. pl._ chose, XVII. 265. + +CHESING, _s._ choice, IX. 15. + +CHESTE, _s._ chest, VIII. 227. + +CHEVERIT, _pt. pl._ shivered, shook, XVII. 156. See CHIVER. + +CHEVISAUNCE, _s._ usury, dealing for profit, XII. 53. + +CHEVYCE, _v._ preserve, V. 325. + +CHID, _pp._ chid (pp. of _chide_), XVIII. 267. + +CHILDING, _pres. pt._ bearing a child, X. 139. + +CHIPPES, _s. pl._ chips, I. i. 9. 20. + +CHIVER, _1 pr. s._ shiver, VIII. 230. + +CHORL, _s._ churl, VIII. 390. + +CHOSE, _pp._ chosen, IV. 4. + +CHOWETH, _pr. s._ chews, II. 258. + +CHRISTNED, _pp._ christened (person), II. 101. + +CHURLICH, _adj._ churlish, poor, II. 1051. + +CIRCUTE, _s._ circuit; _c. cours_, complete course, I. iii. 7. 75. + +CITOLE, _s._ zedoary, X. 71. + +CLADDE, _pp. pl._ clothed, II. 1014. + +CLAM, _pt. s._ climbed, XVII. 550. + +CLAMURE, _ger._ to clamour, I. i. 6. 120. + +CLAPPE, _pr. pl._ prate, V. 328; Clappen, I. i. 8. 33; Clappeth, _pr. s._ +prates, V. 142. + +CLAPPER, _s._ clap-dish, as carried by lepers, XVII. 343, 387. + +CLATTER, _ger._ to proclaim, applaud, I. i. 8. 24. + +CLERGION, _s._ chorister-boy, I. ii. 2. 62. + +CLEPE, _1 pr. s._ cry, VIII. 285; _pr. pl._ call, name, VI. 6; _pr. pl._ +II. 201; _imp. s._ call, I. ii. 14. 75; _pt. pl._ called, I. ii. 2. 96; +_pp._ I. iii. 4. 154; V. 16. + +CLIM, _v._ climb, XVII. 263. + +CLINKE, _s._ clink, sound, II. 40. + +CLIPPINGES, _s. pl._ embraces, I. i. 5. 97. + +CLIPS, _s._ eclipse, I. ii. 2. 15; I. ii. 6. 94. + +CLOKES, _s. pl._ cloaks, XX. 207. + +CLOSE, _pr. pl._ are included, come together, I. iii. 4. 165; _pp._ +enclosed, I. i. 1. 133; XXI. 52. + +COACCION, _s._ compulsion, I. iii. 3. 53. + +COARTED, _pp._ constrained, I. i. 6. 157; compelled, I. iii. 3. 63. + +COCKES, _s._ (_for_ Goddes), II. 1271. + +COCKLE, _s._ darnel, I. ii. 1. 93. + +COCKLE, _s._ shell, X. 128. + +COCOLD, _s._ cuckold, XXIV. 410. + +COFREN, _ger._ to put in a chest, II. 107. + +COKKOW, _s._ cuckoo, XXIV. 1422. + +COLERS, _s. pl._ collars, XX. 215. + +COLES, _s. pl._ coals, i.e. charcoal, I. i. _pr._ 15. + +COLLATIOUN, _s._ banquet, XVII. 418. + +COLLINGES, _s. pl._ embracings, I. ii. 14. 12. + +COLOUR, _s._ pretence, III. 3, 341; VIII. 425. + +COLUMBE, _s._ dove, X. 79. + +COLUMPNE, _s._ column, X. 136. + +COM OF, be quick! XXI. 244; Come of, come on, I. i. 3. 14. + +COMBERAUNCE, _s._ trouble, XXI. 430. + +COMBRED, _pp._ encumbered, burdened, I. i. 3. 103. + +COMFORTABLE, _adj._ comforting, I. ii. 2. 1. + +COMINALTEE, _s._ a community, I. i. 6. 65. + +COMMENDE, _pres. pt._ coming, I. iii. 3. 74. + +COMMENS, _s._ commons, rations of food, I. i. 7. 106. + +COMMENS, _s. pl._ the commons, I. i, 7. 64. + +COMMENSAL, _adj._ partaking of a common repast, feeding with others, I. i. +4. 25. + +COMMINALTÈ, _s._ commons, II. 654; _pl._ communities, I. iii. 1. 89. + +COMMING, _pres. pt. as adj._ future, sure to happen, I. iii. 3. 26; I. iii. +3. 82. + +COMODITÈ, _s._ advantage, I. iii. 8. 155. + +COMONALTÈ, _s._ commonalty, XXIV. 1209. + +COMPARACION, _s._ comparison, I. ii. 11. 35. + +COMPARISONED, _pp._ compared, I. i. _pr._ 49; I. i. 1. 68; I. ii. 13. 50. + +COMPAS, _s._ circuit, XX. 54; _a certain of c._, within a certain distance +round, XVI. 193; _of compas_, in a circle, XXI. 53. + +COMPASSED, _pp._ contrived, V. 369. + +COMPTETH, _pr. s._ accounts, I. iii. 5. 45; Compted, _pp._ accounted, I. +ii. 10. 16; counted, I. ii. 5. 77. + +COMPULCION, _s._ compulsion, I. iii. 2. 145. + +COMUNE WELE, commonwealth, I. i. 6. 84. + +CON, _ger._ to observe, note, XXIV. 379. + +CONCEIT, _s._ liking, fancy, XVI. 442; Conceyt, XVI. 476; imagination, V. +364; XVI. 791. + +CONCLUDE, _v._ include, I. ii. 11. 111. See note, p. 475. + +CONCLUSIOUN, _s._ result, XIII. 77. + +CONCOURS, _s._ due course, XIII. 35. + +CONDING, _adj._ excellent, XVII. 446. + +CONDUIT, _s._ conduit, X. 32. + +CONDUITE, _v._ conduct, demean, XVI. 536. + +CONFESSOURES, _s. pl._ confessors, III. 336. + +CONFITEOR, _s._ confession, III. 353. + +CONFORMES, _adj. pl._ similar, shewing conformity (with), like (to), I. +iii. 4. 122. + +CONFOUNDE, _v._ confuse, trouble, VIII. 481. + +CONGELED, _pp._ congealed, I. ii. 12. 52. + +CONGELEMENT, _s._ congealment, I. ii. 12. 39. + +CONISAUNCE, _s._ cognisance, badge, I. i. 5. 113. + +CONJECTEMENTS, _s._ devices, I. ii. 3. 73. + +CONJUNCCION, _s._ conjunction, I. iii. 1. 113; conjoining, I. ii. 5. 40. + +CONJURACIONS, _s. pl._ conspiracies, I. i. 6. 54. + +CONNE, _v._ know how (to), I. i. 1. 96; I. iii. 3. 120; be able, I. ii. 4. +37; _pr. pl._ know, II. 413, 842; IV. 24; can, V. 18; may, I. iii. 7. 160. + +CONNECCION, _s._ connexion, I. ii. 8. 56. + +CONNING, _s._ skill, I. i. _pr._ 99. + +CONSERVATRICE, _s._ preserver. X. 117. + +CONSIGNED, _pp._ dedicated, X. 37. + +CONSISTORY, _s._ consistory-court, II. 880. + +CONSTAUNCE, _s._ constancy, XIII. 3. + +CONSTREWE, _v._ construe, translate, I. ii. 2. 7; _imp. s._ I. iii. 6. 148. + +CONTENENCE, _s._ continence, XXVI. 2. + +CONTINGENCE, _s._ contingence, conditional state, I. ii. 9. 181. + +CONTINGENT, _adj._ contingent, I. i. 4. 56; conditional, I. ii. 9. 147. + +CONTRADICCION, _s._ a contradiction, I. ii. 11. 116. + +CONTRADICTORIE, _s._ opposite, I. ii. 13. 129. + +CONTRARIAUNT, _adj._ opposing, I. iii. 2. 96; Contrariant, I. ii. 9. 65; +Contrariauntes, _pl._ contravening, I. i. 5. 64. + +CONTRARIEN, _pr. pl._ contradict (it), II. 936; _pt. s. subj._ should +contradict, I. ii. 4. 117; would oppose, I. iii. 2. 152. + +CONTRARIES, _s. pl._ contrary things, I. ii. 6. 11. + +CONTRARIOUS, _adj._ contrary, I. ii. 6. 95. + +CONTRARIOUSTÈ, _s._ contrariety, I. ii. 8. 50; contradiction, I. iii. 4. +229; opposition, I. iii. 1. 125. + +CONTRARY-DOERS, _s. pl._ trespassers, I. iii. 2. 8. + +CONVENIENT, _adj._ fitting, suitable, XI. 1; XX. 119; XXIV. 786. + +COP, _s._ cup, XVII. 343, 387. + +COP, _s._ top, I. iii. 1. 151. + +COPE, _s._ cope, cape, III. 51; I. i. 3. 149; _pl._ XXIV. 116. + +CORNES, _s. pl._ grains of corn, I. i. 5. 85. + +COROWNED, _pp._ crowned, I. iii. 2. 12. + +COSINAGE, _s._ relationship, I. ii. 2. 101; relatives, I. ii. 2. 99. + +COST, _s._ side, XX. 76; _pl._ coasts, regions, XXIV. 58. + +COSTAGES, _s. pl._ expenses, I. i. 2. 139. + +COSTEY, _v._ coast along, VIII. 36. + +COTE, _s._ coat, I. iii. 7. 132. + +COUCHED, _pp._ set, XXI. 529. + +COUDE, _pt. pl._ knew, XVIII. 71. + +COUNTEN, _pr. pl._ (they) count, expect, II. 927. + +COUNTENAUNCE, _s._ sign, I. ii. 7. 122; semblance, XVI. 50. + +COUNTERFAYTOURS, _s. pl._ counterfeit dealers, II. 1061. + +COUNTERPAYSING, _s._ an equivalent, I. i. 2. 128. + +COUNTERPLETE, _v._ plead against, contradict, I. i. 8. 30; _v._ plead +against me, I. ii. 12. 101; _pp._ pleaded against, XXIV. 429. + +COUNTERVAYLE, _ger._ to equal, I. i. 3. 132; _pp._ balanced, I. iii. 5. +131. + +COUNTOURS, _s._ accountants, II. 802. + +COUPABLE, _adj._ culpable, V. 152. + +COURE, _v._ cower, cringe, II. 207. + +COURSER, _s._ horse, II. 1004. + +COURTEOURS, _s._ courtiers, XXIV. 1313. + +COURTES, _s. pl._ court-houses, III. 81. + +COURT-HOLDING, _s._ holding of courts, II. 790. + +COUTH, _pt. s._ knew how, XVI. 134. + +COVENABLE, _adj._ suitable, I. iii. 8. 116. + +COVER, _v._ recover (themselves), I. ii. 7. 97; obtain, I. ii. 5. 121. + +COVERT, _adj._ secretive, sly, very prudent, XVI. 177. + +COVERTOURS, _s._ coverings, II. 105. + +COVINS, _s. pl._ complots, I. i. 6. 167. + +COWPIS, _s. pl._ cups, flagons, XVII. 419. + +CRABBED, _adj._ crabbed, perverse, V. 324; Crabbit, cross, XVII. 353. + +CRABBITLY, _adv._ crabbedly, morosely, XVII. 154. + +CRAKE, _pr. pl._ boast, V. 328. + +CRAKEL, _v._ quaver, XVIII. 119. See note. + +CRALLIT, _pp._ curled, twisted, II. 186. + +CRAMPISSHED, _pt. s._ oppressed, constrained, pained, IX. 49. + +CRAVE, _ger._ to ask for again, XXVII. 8. + +CREDE, _s._ Creed, II. 413, 1066. + +CREPË, _v._ creep, II. 942. + +CRESSE, _s._ blade of a cress, I. i. 5. 133; I. ii. 7. 109; I. iii. 5. 45. + +CROKE, _pr. pl._ go crooked, bend in, I. ii. 7. 69. + +CROKED, _adj._ crooked, indirect, I. ii. 6. 163; curved, XIII. 17. + +CROKEN, _adj._ crooked, I. ii. 7. 91. + +CROKETS, _s. pl._ rolls of hair, II. 306. See note. + +CROMMES, _s. pl._ crumbs, I. i. _pr._ 105. + +CRONIQUE, _s._ chronicle, story, IV. 338, 369. + +CROPE, _pp._ crept, I. i. 4. 54. + +CROPPE, _s._ shoot, sprout, top, V. 17. + +CROSSE, _s._ cross, the cross marked on a piece of money, III. 225. + +CROSSE-ALEYS, _s. pl._ cross-alleys, XXI. 10. + +CROUCHE, _s._ cross, II. 942. + +CROWES, _s. pl._ crows, II. 1334. + +CROYSERY, _s._ crusade, II. 445. + +CUKKOW, _s._ cuckoo, XVIII. 50. + +CULLETH, _pr. s._ kills, II. 593, 1314; _pr. pl._ II. 267. + +CULTRE, _s._ coulter, II. 7. + +CURE, _s._ care, XVI. 494; XXIV. 986; guard, XVII. 10; diligence, VIII. +311; attention, I. iii. 8. 52; cure (of souls), II. 1173; responsibility, +XX. 61. + +CURIOUS, _adj._ curious, anxious, II. 384; nice, II. 1013; choice, VII. 66. + +CURRANT, _s._ current, _or adj._ running, X. 51. + +CURREYDEN, _pt. pl._ curried favour, I. i. 10. 11. + +CURRISH, _adj._ like a cur, XVI. 389. + +CURTEYS, _adj._ gentle, II. 482. + +CUSTOME, _s._ custom, I. iii. 1. 106. + +CUT, _ger._ curtail, XVII. 39; _pp._ cut short, II. 929. + + + +DAME, _s._ mother, I. ii. 2. 117; II. 1361; Dames tonge, mother-tongue, I. +i. _pr._ 37. + +DAMOSELLES, _s. pl._ damsels, I. ii. 2. 42; girls, II. 928. + +DAMPNÁBLE, _adj._ damnable, VI. 60. + +DAMPNE, _v._ condemn, II. 630; _pr. s._ II. 224; _pp._ damned, I. i. 7. 55; +condemned, VIII. 276. + +DASED, _pp._ dazed, II. 1326. + +DAUNGER, _s._ control, V. 257. + +DAUNGEROUS, _adj._ disdainful, XXIV. 901; cross, XXIV. 330; difficult to +please, XXIV. 761; forbidding, I. i. 2. 102. + +DAUNTEN, _v._ subdue, I. ii. 2. 131. + +DAWE, _s. pl. dat._ days; _by elder dawe_, in olden times, II. 643. A.S. +_dagum_. + +DAWENINGE, _s._ dawning, IX. 251. + +DAWING, _pres. pt._ dawning, XXII. 29. + +DAYESYE, _s._ daisy, XVIII. 243. + +DAYNETH, _pr. s._ deigns, I. ii. 9. 122. + +DEAURAT, _pp._ gilded, made of a golden colour, VIII. 597. + +DEBAT, _s._ strife, VII. 59; uneasiness, XVI. 698; _pl._ I. ii. 2. 48; +combats, I. i. 4. 44. + +DEBATED, _pp._ striven about, IV. 363. But read _delated_, i.e. deferred; +the Trentham MS. has _deleated_, meant for _delated_. + +DEBONAIR, _adj._ courteous, XX. 501; gentle, V. 347. + +DEED, _adj._ dead, II. 198. + +DEEDLY, _adj._ mortal, I. ii. 12. 121; Deedliche, I. iii. 3. 65; Dedly, I. +iii. 3. 68. + +DEETH, _s._ death, VIII. 140. + +DEFAME, _ger._ to accuse falsely, III. 305. + +DEFASED, _pp._ defaced, I. i. 8. 115; made cheerless, I. i. 1. 66. + +DEFAUT, _s._ default, trespass, I. i. 3. 95; XVI. 270 (obscure); XVI. 611; +Defaute, fault, I. ii. 2. 17; III. 398; _pl._ IV. 267. + +DEFENCE, _s._ power to defend, X. 124. + +DEFEND, _v._ forbid, II. 570; _pt. s._ forbade, I. iii. 8. 122; II. 1115; +_pp._ forbidden, I. iii. 3. 57. + +DEFENDINGE, _s._ forbidding, I. iii. 3. 55. + +DEFORMAIT, _adj._ deformed, ugly, XVII. 349. + +DEFOULE, _ger._ to defile, V. 186; _1 pt. s._ defiled, I. i. 8. 83; _pp._ +I. ii. 13. 74. + +DEGEST, _pp._ digested, considered, XVII. 303. + +DEID, _s._ death, XVII. 70, 585. + +DEID, _s._ deed, doing, XVII. 328. + +DEIFICAIT, _pp._ accounted as gods, XVII. 288. + +DEL, _s._ portion; _every del_, every bit, XXI. 227. + +DELATED; see DEBATED. + +DÉLECTABLE, _adj._ delightful, XXI. 72. + +DÉLITABLE, _adj._ delightful, VIII. 122. + +DELIVER, _adj._ nimble, VIII. 164. + +DELIVERAUNCE, _s._ deliverance, I. i. 7. 102. + +DELYTABLE, _adj._ delightful, I. ii. 4. 47. + +DELYTE, _v._ delight, VIII. 61, 381. + +DEME, _v._ judge, XII. 7; _2 pr. s. subj._ VII. 32; _pr. s._ condemns, I. +ii. 7. 117; _pp._ judged, adjudged to be true, approved, II. 67; condemned, +II. 198. + +DEMENE, _s._ demeanour, XXIV. 734. + +DEMEYNE, _s._ control, IX. 216; XVI. 132. + +DEMIN, _v._ deem, suppose, I. iii. 3. 111; _pr. pl._ (?), II. 510. See +DEME. + +DEMING, _s._ suspicion, XVII. 118. + +DEMURE, _adj._ sedate, IX. 156; XVI. 106; XX. 459; XXI. 82; XXIV. 653. + +DEMURELY, _adv._ sedately, XVI. 246. + +DENARIE, _s._ pay, wages, X. 66. + +DENOMINACION, _s._ naming, I. ii. 9. 162. + +DENT, _s._ stroke, blow, dint, I. iii. 7. 92, 100; XXIV. 836. + +DENWERE, _s._ doubt, I. i. 6. 193. A false form; see note, p. 459. + +DEPARTE, _v._ separate, XVI. 317; sever, I. i. 1. 90; part, XXIV. 1399; +impart, XVI. 440; _pr. s. subj._ part, I. i. 9. 86; _pp._ divided, I. ii. +10. 9; parted, XI. 51; rent, XX. 193. + +DEPARTICION, _s._ divorce, I. iii. 2. 14. + +DEPARTING, _s._ separation, I. iii. 6. 158; XVI. 659; distributing, I. ii. +5. 44. + +DEPEYNT, _pp._ painted, VIII. 425; Depeynted, XXIV. 100. + +DEQUACE, _v._ suppress, I. i. 5. 77; put down, I. i. 7. 26; _ger._ to +repress, I. ii. 1. 74. + +DERE, _v._ do harm, I. i. 5. 72. + +DEREWORTHINESSE, _s._ fondness (for), I. ii. 5. 99. + +DEREWORTHLY, _adv._ preciously, X. 39. + +DERE-WORTHY, _adj._ precious, I. i. 10. 117. + +DESCRY, _ger._ to describe, XXIV. 97. + +DESESPERAUNCE, _s._ despair, desperation, XVI. 538, 652. + +DESLAVEE, _adj._ unchaste, inordinate in conduct, XII. 40. + +DESTENYED, _pp._ predestined, I. iii. 9. 13. + +DESYROUSLY, _adv._ eagerly, I. iii. 6. 70. + +DETERMINACIONS, _s. pl._ ordinances, settlements, I. i. 5. 52. + +DETERMINE, _adj._ fixed, XXIV. 647. + +DETERMINE, _ger._ to end, I. iii. 3. 129; _pp._ settled, fixed, I. ii. 6. +20. + +DETERMINISON, _s._ determination, definition, I. ii. 13. 30. + +DETTOUR, _s._ debtor, VI. 31. + +DEVIACION, _s._ deviation, going astray, I. iii. 1. 6. + +DEVOIR, _s._ duty, XVI. 559. (F. text, _devoir_.) + +DEVOIT, _adj._ devout, XVII. 115. + +DEVYN, _adj._ divine, XVII. 127. + +DEVYNLY, _adj._ divine-like, I. iii. 1. 55. + +DEVYSE, _s._ device, XXI. 207. + +DEVYSE, _v._ relate, XX. 97; XXI. 525. + +DEW, _adj._ due, XXI. 51. + +DEW-DROPYS, _s. pl._ dewdrops, XXIX. 6. + +DEWE, _s._ due; _of dewe_, duly, XXIV. 1397. + +DEWETÈ, _s._ duty, due course, IV. 232. + +DEYDEST, _2 pt. s._ didst die, were to die, I. i. 9. 65; _pt. s._ died, +VII. 102. + +DEYNE, _v. refl._ deign, I. ii. 3. 3. + +DEYNOUS, _adj._ disdainful, I. i. 1. 130; I. i. 2. 143 (see note); I. i. 3. +70; Deynouse, _fem._ V. 150. + +DEYNTEES, _s._ dainties, II. 1008. + +DIAMANT, _s._ diamond, XXIV. 696. + +DIFFAME, _pr. pl._ defame, I. i. 3. 7. + +DIFFYNE, _v._ define, V. 463. + +DIGHTETH, _pr. s._ gets ready, II. 978; _pr. s. subj._ may (He) arrange +_or_ place, X. 84; _pp._ ornamented, II. 894; XX. 254. + +DIGNE, _adj._ worthy, V. 457; XIX. 11. + +DIGNED, _pp._ honoured, X. 39. + +DINNE, _s._ din, noise, I. ii. 9. 31. + +DIOURN, _adj._ daily, X. 66. + +DIRIGES, _s. pl._ dirges, burials, III. 125. + +DIRK, _adv._ in the dark, XXIV. 1256. + +DISALOWE, _v._ disapprove of, dispraise, IV. 242. + +DISAVENTURE, _s._ ill fortune, IX. 72. + +DISCEYVABLE, _adj._ deceitful, I. ii. 4. 89. + +DISCIPLYNING, _s._ correction, I. ii. 11. 137. + +DISCLAUNDER, _v._ slander, II. 333; _pr. pl._ II. 1053; _pr. s._ speaks +slander, I. ii. 8. 74. + +DISCLAUNDRING, _s._ slandering, I. ii. 3. 112. + +DISCOMFIT, _adj._ discomfited, sad, XVI. 35. + +DISCOMFITETH, _pr. s._ discomforts himself, grieves, I. ii. 11. 55; _pp._ +discomforted, I. ii. 11. 57. + +DISCORDAUNCE, _s._ disagreement, I. ii. 8. 47. + +DISCORDAUNT, _adj._ discordant, I. i. 9. 106; Discordantes, _s. pl._ things +discordant, I. ii. 8. 54. + +DISCOVERT, _pp._ discovered, made known, XVI. 403. + +DISCRETE, _adj._ separate, I. iii. 1. 2. + +DISCRYVE, _v._ describe, VIII. 156; IX. 112; XXIV. 778; _ger._ XXI. 512. + +DISENCREES, _s._ decrease, VIII. 202. + +DISESE, _s._ misery, woe, XVIII. 265; XX. 377; annoyance, I. i. 1. 20, 28; +anger, II. 1260. + +DISESED, _pp._ made wretched, I. i. 1. 31. + +DISESELY, _adj._ uncomfortable, I. iii. 1. 172. + +DISHEVEL, _adj._ dishevelled, XXIV. 139. + +DISHONEST, _adj._ shameful, V. 184. + +DISLOGED, _pp._ banished, XXI. 62. + +DISMAYE, _v._ feel dismay, I. ii. 9. 144. + +DISPENCE, _s._ expence, II. 523; _pl._ I. i. 7. 107. + +DISPENDE, _ger._ to spend, VII. 40; XXII. 16; _pr. pl._ II. 762; Dispent, +_pp._ spent, I. i. 10. 53. + +DISPENSE, _ger._ to dispense, III. 367. + +DISPITOUS, _adj._ contemptuous, I. i. 10. 90; spiteful, XII. 26. + +DISPLESAUNCE, _s._ displeasure, XVI. 544; XXI. 661; XXV. 19. + +DISPORT, _s._ amusement, XVI. 98; _pl._ XVI. 410. + +DISPORTE, _ger._ to amuse, interest, VIII. 602; _v. refl._ be merry, VIII. +10; _1 pr. s. refl._ throw myself about, tumble and toss, I. i. 3. 102. + +DISPREYSE, _v._ blame, I. ii. 6. 91. + +DISPYT, _s._ contempt, II. 712; VIII. 240. + +DISSEVER, _v._ part, depart, IX. 175; _pp._ separated, II. 1242. + +DISSEVERAUNCE, _s._ separation, XI. 13; XXIV. 783. + +DISSIMULACION, _s._ (_ill used for_ simulation), imitation, I. ii. 14. 10. + +DISSIMULAIT, _adj._ full of dissimulation, XVII. 225. + +DISSIMULEN, _v._ dissimulate, V. 18. + +DISSOLUCIOUN, _s._ dissolute conduct, XII. 60. + +DISTAUNCE, _s._ strife, VI. 58; VII. 161; disagreement, II. 1166. + +DISTEMPRETH, _pr. s._ intoxicates, XV. _a._ 7. + +DISTOURBOUR, _s._ disturbance, I. iii. 5. 30. + +DISTRAINETH, _pr. s._ constrains, XXIV. 660; _pp._ afflicted, VIII. 134. + +DISTRUCCIOUN, _s._ destruction, IX. 88. + +DISTRYE, _v._ destroy, II. 1235. (In II. 1144, perhaps _distry_ should be +_discry_, i.e. describe.) + +DIURNAL, _adj._ daily, VIII. 590. + +DO, _imp. s._ cause, I. i. 1. 83; _pp._ done, IV. 97; come to an end, XIV. +18; Do way, do (it) away, put (it) aside, abandon (the idea), I. i. 9. 89. + +DOCKE, _s._ dock (plant), I. i. 2. 167; I. iii. 6. 7. + +DOCTRINE, _s._ learning, I. ii. 11. 136. + +DOLE, _s._ sorrow, woe, X. 10; XXIV. 1098. + +DOLEFUL, _adj._ sad (ones), X. 55. + +DOLVEN, _pp._ buried, I. ii. 2. 69; wrought, I. i. _pr._ 11. + +DOMBE, _adj._ dumb, I. ii. 5. 98. + +DOME, _s._ judgement, XX. 306; _gen._ II. 331. + +DOMESDAY, _s._ doom's-day, X. 84. + +DON, _pp._ done; _d. but lent_, only lent, XXVII. 7. + +DONATYF, _s._ gift, reward, X. 72. + +DONET, _s._ primer, I. ii. 12. 17. See note, p. 475. + +DONNE, _adj. pl._ dun, dark, IX. 115. + +DOOLY, _adj._ mournful, XVII. 1, 344. + +DOON, _error for_ Do, _1 pr. s. subj._ do, act, XXIV. 927. + +DOTAGE, _s._ folly, XV. _a._ 5, XV. _b._ 4. + +DOTE, _ger._ to be a fool, I. i. 2. 71; _v._ XXIV. 1047. + +DOTH, _imp. pl._ cause, make, XXIV. 1326. + +DOUBLENESSE, _s._ duplicity, XIII. 8. + +DOUCEPERES, _s. pl._ the twelve peers (of Charlemagne), XX. 516. + +DOUF (_old text_ doif), benumbed (lit. deaf), XVII. 32. See note. + +DOULE, _s._ down-feather, II. 1272. See note. + +DOUR, _adj._ stern, severe, oppressive, XVII. 437. + +DOUT, _s._ fear, II. 697. + +DOUTE, _ger._ to be feared, IV. 138; _1 pr. s. refl._ fear, XXI. 246. + +DRADDE, _1 pt. s._ dreaded; feared, I. i. 3. 74; Drad, _pp._ frightened, +II. 561; afraid, II. 1088. + +DRAUGHT, _s._ draught, drawing, I. iii. 7. 102. + +DREDE, _s._ dread; _withoute d._, without doubt, XX. 152. + +DREDE, _ger._ to fear, V. 330. + +DREDFUL, _adj._ timid, V. 348; XVI. 218; fearful, IX. 157; fearful (to +offend), XXIII. 10. + +DRENCHE, _1 pr. s._ am drowned, I. i. 3. 162. + +DRERIHEED, _s._ dreariness, VIII. 9. + +DRESSE, _v. refl._ advance, XXIV. 113; address myself, VIII. 203; _ger._ to +direct, XXIV. 179; Dresse, XIII. 62; _pr. pl. refl._ direct themselves, II. +379; _1 pr. pl. subj._ direct our way, go forward, XXI. 215; Dress you, +_imp. pl. (as s.)_, direct yourself, go, XXIV. 554; Drest, _1 pt. s. refl._ +advanced, XX. 456; Dressed, _pt. s. refl._ advanced, I. iii. 3. 2. + +DRIVE, _pp._ driven, I. i. 1. 2. + +DROPPING, _pres. pt._ dripping, XX. 371. + +DROW, _pt. s._ withdrew, XVI. 806. + +DROWPIT, _pt. pl._ drooped, XVII. 157. + +DROWRY, _s._ love-token, XVII. 583. + +DUALITÈ, _s._ duality, doubleness, I. ii. 13. 30. + +DUCHEES, _s. pl._ duchies, V. 333. + +DUËTEE, _s._ duty, VI. 38; IX. 5, 106. + +DULEFUL, _adj._ grievous, XVII. 309. + +DULLEN, _v._ render dull, I. iii. 3. 196. + +DURACIOUN, _s._ duration, endurance, X. 87. + +DURESSE, _s._ hardness, XVI. 703; force, I. iii. 7. 71; constraint, I. i. +6. 157; stress, I. i. 1. 87; cruelty, XVI. 784. + +DURETH, _pr. s._ lasts, I. i. 3. 20. + +DURING, _adj._ enduring, X. 131. + +DWALE, _s._ a sleeping draught made from the deadly nightshade, XXIV. 998. + +DYAMAUNT, _s._ diamond, X. 87. + +DYKING, _pres. pt._ ditching, II. 1043. + +DYS, _s. pl._ dice, XIII. 74. + +DYTÈ, _s._ ditty, song, poem, VIII. 606; IX. 268; XVII. 1. + + + +EBBE, _s._ ebb, VII. 143; XIII. 36. + +ECHE, _ger._ to increase, I. iii. 1. 147; Eched, _pp._ I. ii. 8. 79. + +EDEFYE, _ger._ to build, I. i. 5. 110; _v._ VII. 77. + +EDWYTE, _v._ accuse, reproach, XII. 18. + +EE, _s._ eye, XXIV. 768. See EYE. + +EET, _pt. s._ ate, I. i. 8. 55; XX. 90; Eten, _pp._ eaten, XX. 95. + +EFFUNDE, _1 pr. s._ pour out, XIX. 25. + +EFTER, _conj._ according as, XVII. 106. + +EGALL, _adj._ equal, XXIV. 1041. + +EGALLY, _adv._ equally, impartially, XXIV. 365. + +EGLANTERE, _s._ sweet-briar, XX. 56, 80. See the note, p. 520. + +EIGHTETH, _adj._ eighth, I. i. 5. 103. + +EIRD, _s._ earth. XVII. 384. + +EIRDLY, _adj._ earthly, XVII. 52, 355. + +EKE-NAMES, _s. pl._ nicknames, I. ii. 1. 96. + +ELDE, _s._ old age, I. i. 6. 94; I. i. 8. 115. + +ELDE-FADERS, _s. pl._ ancestors, I. ii. 2. 125. + +ELECCIOUN, _s._ choice, V. 236. + +ELECTUAIRIS, _s. pl._ electuaries, XVII. 246. + +ELEMENTES, _s. pl._ elements, I. ii. 9. 41. + +ELENGE, _adj._ mournful, miserable, XVIII. 115. + +EMBELISSHED, _pp._ honoured, dignified, X. 104. + +EMBROUDED, _pp._ embroidered, XXI. 85. + +EMERAUD, _adj._ emerald, XXIV. 79; _s. pl._ XX. 144. + +EMISPERE, _s._ hemisphere, XXII. 27. + +EMPRYSE, _s._ enterprise, II. 960; design, V. 119; _pl._ VIII. 416. + +ENAMAYL, _s._ enamel, XXI. 534. + +ENBOLDED, _pp._ emboldened, I. i. 2. 23. + +ENCHACE, _v._ chase, XVI. 416. + +ENCHESOUN, _s._ reason, V. 429. + +ENCHEYNEN, _ger._ to link together, _or_, to be linked together, I. ii. 6. +4. + +ENCOMBERAUNCE, _s._ encumbrance, trouble, XVI. 284, 775; XXI. 746. + +ENCOMBRED, _pp._ encumbered, hindered, defeated, X. 103. + +ENCREES, _s._ increase, II. 72. + +ENDRY, _v._ suffer, endure, XXIV. 727, 941. See note, p. 547. + +ENDUCED, _pp._ induced, I. ii. 1. 60. + +ENDYTE, _v._ indite, VIII. 196; IX. 231; _pr. pl._ indict, II. 1026. + +ENDYTING, _s._ composition, inditing, XXII. 65. + +ENE, _s. pl._ eyes, XVII. 157. + +ENFAME, _s._ disgrace, I. i. 8. 51; reproach, I. i. 6. 6. + +ENFECT, _pp._ infected, stained, XXIV. 217. + +ENFEFFED, _pp._ invested (with), possessed (of), XVI. 364. + +ENFORME, _ger._ to inform, I. ii. 11. 127; to give information, I. ii. 1. +51; _pr. pl._ instruct, I. ii. 2. 79. + +ENFOURMER, _s._ instructor, I. ii. 2. 87. + +ENGENDRURE, _s._ conception, I. ii. 6. 80; nativity, I. i. 6. 101; _pl._ I. +ii. 9. 174. + +ENGYN, _s._ device, XXIV. 535; ingenuity, V. 296. + +ENHAUNCE, _ger._ to exalt, V. 455; _pr. pl._ increase, I. ii. 8. 85; _pp._ +advanced, II. 448. + +ENLUMINETH, _pr. s._ illumines, I. ii. I. 127; _pp._ I. i. 1. 23. + +ENMOYSED, _pp._ cheered, comforted, I. i. 3. 105. See note, p. 456. + +ENPECHE, _v._ impeach, accuse, I. i. 6. 86. + +ENPEYRED, _pp._ injured, I. i. 6. 8. + +ENPIGHT, _pp._ infixed, I. i. 2. 48. + +ENPITED, _pp._ filled with pity, I. ii. 4. 111. (The sole known example of +the word.) + +ENPLEDE, _v._ plead against, II. 734. + +ENPOYSONEN, _ger._ to poison, I. iii. 5. 115. + +ENPRENT, _imp. s._ imprint, XXIV. 876. + +ENPRISONED, _pp._ imprisoned, I. ii. 4. 104. + +ENSAMPLE, _s._ example, I. i. 5. 1. + +ENSELED, _pp._ sealed, I. i. 9. 94. + +ENSURE, _1 pr. s._ assure, XX. 60, 287; XXI. 52. + +ENSYSE, _s._ kind, sort, II. 625. + +ENTALENTED, _pp._ excited, V. 338. See N.E.D. + +ENTAYL, _s._ cutting; _of e._, with excellent cutting, XXI. 536. + +ENTENCION, _s._ intention, design, I. ii. 4. 42; V. 553; XXIV. 908; +signification, I. iii. 2. 140; VIII. 431. + +ENTENDAUNCE, _s._ service, VII. 173. + +ENTENDE, _v._ intend, XXII. 12. + +ENTENT, _s._ intent, desire, XVI. 768; XXIV. 206; _pl._ II. 1159. + +ENTENTYF, _adj._ attentive, V. 439. + +ENTERCHAUNGED, _pp._ interchanged, I. ii. 9. 156. + +ENTERE, _adj._ entire, XXIV. 354; true, IX. 163. + +ENTERMETING, _pres. pt._ intermeddling, I. iii. 7. 163. + +ENTRECHANGEN, _v._ interchange, I. ii. 9. 176. + +ENTRECOMUNED, _pp._ had communication, I. i. 5. 7. + +ENTREMELLEN, _pr. pl._ intermingle, I. i. 5. 14. + +ENTREMES, _s._ course between two more substantial ones, XVI. 156. See +note. + +ENTREPRISE, _s._ enterprise, XVI. 515. + +ENTUNE, _s._ tune, tone, XI. 27. + +ENTUNED, _pp._ kept in tune, XX. 180. + +ENVIROUN, _adv._ all round, XXI. 53; Environ, XXIV. 1031. + +ENVOLVED, _pp._ enwrapped, I. i. 1. 111. + +ENVYRONED, _pp._ surrounded, I. ii. 7. 94; Envyroning, _pres. pt._ +encircling, VIII. 79. + +EQUIPOLENT, _adj._ equal in power, XII. 15. + +EQUIVOCAS, _s. pl._ words of like meaning, I. iii. 6. 64. See note, p. 482. + +ER, _adv._ sooner, XVIII. 233. + +ERBER, _s._ arbour, XXIV. 757. + +ERDLY, _adj._ earthly, XXVII. 2. + +ERMYNE, _s._ ermine, XX. 243. + +ERNEST-SILVER, _s._ earnest money, I. i. 3. 151. + +ERST, _adv._ soonest; _non erst_ (error for _non er_), no sooner, XXIV. +167. + +ESCHAUNGE, _s._ change, XIII. 96. + +ESCHETOUR, _s._ an escheator, I. ii. 2. 49. + +ESCHEWING, _s._ avoidance, avoiding, XVI. 291, 307. + +ESCLAUNDRE, _s._ scandal, V. 70. + +ESPERAUNCE, _s._ Hope, XXIV. 1033; Esperans, XVII. 48; _on e._, in hope, +XI. 26. + +ESPERUS, Hesperus, the evening-star, VIII. 612. + +ESPLOIT, _s._ result, success, XI. 57; Esployte, I. i. 5. 20. + +ESPOIRE, _s._ hope, I. ii. 8. 23. + +ESTATE, _s._ state, XXI. 486; _pl._ VII. 6. + +ET, _pr. s._ (_short for_ eteth), eats, XIV. 7, 14. + +ETERNE, _adj._ eternal, I. iii. 4. 205. + +EVANGELY, _s._ gospel, II. 97; IV. 217. + +EVEN, _adv._ close; _e. by_, close by, XX. 134. + +EVEN-CHRISTEN, _s._ fellow-Christian, III. 430. + +EVENFORTH, _adv._ continually, I. ii. 11. 21; forwards, I. i. 1. 110. + +EVENHED, _s._ equality, I. iii. 1. 89; I. iii. 5. 150. + +EVENLICH, _adv._ equally, I. iii. 4. 62; similarly, I. iii. 3. 95. + +EVENLICHE, _adj._ equal, I. ii. 2. 122; I. iii. 5. 152. + +EVEN-LYK, _adv._ exactly so, VIII. 201; exactly, VIII. 194. + +EVER, _adv. as s._ eternity, I. i. 8. 117. + +EVER IN OON, _adv._ continually, VIII. 528. + +EVERICH, _adj._ each one, XX. 151. + +EVERICHON, _pron._ every one, XX. 168. + +EVE-STERRE, _s._ evening-star, I. ii. 13. 96. + +EWAGE, _s._ a precious stone having the colour of sea-water, X. 92, 93. See +note. + +EXCITATION, _s._ instigation, I. i. 3. 37. + +EXCITOURS, _s. pl._ exhorters, instigators, I. i. 6. 56. + +EXCUSACION, _s._ excuse, I. i. 7. 33; V. 471. + +EXEMPLAIR, _s._ exemplar, XX. 502. + +EXEMPT, _pp._ exempted, III. 232. + +EXPERT, _adj._ experienced, XXIV. 882. + +EXPLOYTES, _s. pl._ successes, successful results, I. i. 5. 69. + +EXPONE, _v._ recount, XVII. 369; Expowne, _imp. s._ expound, I. iii. 5. +10. + +EXPULS, _s._ expulsion, repulse, XVII. 119. + +EXTEND, _s._ extent, II. 658. + +EYE, _s._ eye; _at e._, visibly, I. ii. 6. 16; Eyen, _pl_. XVI. 266. See +EE. + +EYLEN, _v._ ail, XVIII. 116. + +EYRE, _s._ air, I. ii. 8. 48; VIII. 14; Eyr, XIV. 36. + + + +FACHIOUN, _s._ falchion, curved sword, XVII. 187. + +FACOUND, _adj._ eloquent, XVII. 268. + +FACULTEES, _s. pl._ facilities, opportunities, I. i. 2. 29. + +FADE, _adj._ dull, sombre, IV. 102. + +FADE, _ger._ to cause to wither, I. i. 1. 27; Faidit, _pp._ XVII. 24. + +FAIN, _adj._ glad, XX. 378. + +FAIR, _s._ fare, XVII. 403. + +FALLAS, _s._ deceit, I. ii. 14. 52, 54. + +FALLE, _v._ happen, I. i. 1. 77; XVI. 539; _pr. s._ is suitable, III. 78. + +FALOWEN, _pr. pl._ fade, I. ii. 8. 114. + +FALSEN, _ger._ to deceive, V. 307; _pt. s._ gave way, failed, I. ii. 8. +127; was false to, I. i. 2. 92. + +FALSETÈ, _s._ falsehood, I. ii. 3. 57; _pl._ I. ii. 1. 73. + +FALSHEED, _s._ falsehood, I. iii. 6. 127. + +FAMED, _pp._ defamed, II. 341. + +FAMILIER, _adj._ familiar, (once) friendly, I. ii. 7. 108. + +FAMULERS, _s. pl._ familiar friends, I. ii. 7. 81. + +FAND, _1 pt. s._ found, XVII. 43. + +FANES, _s. pl._ vanes, weather-cocks, XXI. 161. + +FANTASY, _s._ fancy, XXI. 597; XXVII. 1; folly, XIV. 20; pleasure, I. i. +_pr._ 26; _pl._ XXI. 11. + +FARCED, _pp._ stuffed, filled, XXIV. 655. + +FARE, _pr. pl._ go, XX. 341; fare, II. 1134; Farn, _pp._ fared, I. ii. 10. +58. + +FASOUN, _s._ make, XXI. 305, 522; Fassioun, habit, XII. 46. + +FAUCON, _s._ falcon, XVI. 413. + +FAUTE, _s._ lack, VIII. 443; Faut, fault, XXIV. 608. + +FAY, _s._ faith, XVII. 571; XVIII. 115. + +FAYN, _2 pr. pl._ feign, make a pretence, XXIV. 751. + +FAYRHEDE, _s._ beauty, I. ii. 3. 124. + +FAYTOURS, _s._ deceivers, II. 148, 327. + +FECHT, _ger._ to fight, XVII. 185. + +FEDERED, _pp._ feathered, XVI. 146; Fedderit, XVII. 168. + +FEFFE, _ger._ to endow, XXIV. 932; _pr. s._ XVI. 472. + +FEILL, _s._ experience, knowledge, XVII. 533. + +FEIRD, _adj._ fourth, XVII. 216. + +FEL, _adj._ cruel, wicked, XVI. 505; evil, XIII. 77. + +FELAUSHIP, _s._ company, XXI. 730. + +FELAWES, _s. pl._ companions, XXI. 247. + +FELD, _pp._ overthrown (lit. felled), I. i. 3. 148. + +FELE, _adj._ many, XX. 5; XXIV. 110, 191. + +FELED, _pp._ felt, perceived, I. ii. 1. 86. + +FELL, _adj._ cruel, II. 859; terrible, XVII. 187; Fellest, worst, III. 6. + +FELLE, _v._ overturn, V. 234. + +FELLOUN, _adj._ destructive, XVII. 167. + +FELLY, _adv._ cruelly, IX. 76. + +FELONOUS, _adj._ evil, I. i. 6. 167; wicked, I. ii. 6. 56. + +FELTERIT, _pp._ entangled, XVII. 163. + +FEMININITEE, _s._ womanhood, IX. 148. + +FEMINITEE (_for_ Femininitee), _s._ womanliness, XVII. 80. + +FEND, _s._ the fiend, XXIV. 529; _pl._ II. 1165. + +FENYEIT, _pp._ feigned, XVII. 66. + +FEORTHE, _adj._ fourth, VII. (_title_). + +FER, _adv._ far, XXI. 141. + +FERD, 1. _pt. s._ fared, was, XXIV. 152. + +FERDE, _s._ fear, I. i. 2. 15. + +FERDE, _adj. pl._ afraid, I. ii. 9. 138. + +FERDETH, _pr. s._ feels fear, I. ii. 7. 42. + +FERDFUL, _adj._ timid, I. ii. 7. 43. + +FERDNESSE, _s._ fear, terror, I. i. 1. 9; I. i. 1. 59; I. i. 2. 13; I. ii. +4. 102; I. iii. 1. 123; I. iii. 6. 126. + +FERE, _s._ companion, comrade, I. i. 2. 123; I. i. 5. 128; Feres, _pl._ X. +88. + +FERE, _s._ fire, VIII. 55; _on f._, on fire, X. 4. + +FERFORTH, _adv._ far onward, I. ii. 10. 66; XXI. 37; far, XXI. 273. + +FERME, TO, to farm, on hire, II. 325, 725; III. 83. + +FERVENCE, _s._ ardour, VIII. 205; X. 130; XXII. 60. + +FERVENT, _adj._ severe, XVII. 4. + +FETE, _adj._ neat, XXIV. 473. + +FETTES, _pr. pl._ fetch, II. 471; Fet, _pp._ I. ii. 13. 40. + +FEVERS WHYTE, _s. pl._ attacks of lovelonging, XVIII. 41. See note. + +FEYNTYSE, _s._ feigning, deceit, XVI. 385. + +FIG; _a fig for_, XXIV. 685. + +FIGURAIT, _pp._ figured, imaged, XVII. 511. + +FIKILNESSE, _s._ fickleness, VI. 19. + +FIL, _pt. s._ came to pass, IV. 43. + +FILTHES, _s. pl._ low women, V. 262. + +FIRRE, _s._ fir, VIII. 73. + +FIT, _s._ bout, XXIV. 984. + +FLAMBING, _pres. pt._ flaming, X. 130. + +FLAMING, _adj._ flame-coloured, XXIV. 793. See note to l. 798. + +FLANIS, _s. pl._ arrows, XVII. 167. + +FLASH, _s._ sheaf, quiver (?), XVII. 167. + +FLAWE, _adj._ yellowish (?), XXIV. 782. See note. + +FLEBRING, _s._ gossip (?), I. ii. 9. 54. Or is it an error for _fabling_? + +FLEES, _s._ fleece, V. 303; X. 132. + +FLETE, _v._ float, XXIV. 311. + +FLEY, _pt. s._ flew, XVIII. 219, 221. + +FLICKERING, _adj._ wavering, I. ii. 5. 104. + +FLITTE, _v._ stir, I. i. 1. 79; move, I. i. 9. 69; change, XVI. 639; +remove, XX. 489; _pr. pl._ go away, I. i. 7. 95; Flittinge, _pres. pt._ +volatile, fading, I. ii. 8. 102. + +FLOON, _s. pl._ arrows, VIII. 468. See FLANIS. + +FLORISHED, _pp._ garnished, III. 26. + +FLORISSHINGE, _s._ adornment, florid use, I. ii. 14. 33. + +FLOUR, _s._ flower, chief, XXIV. 3; chastity, IV. 108. + +FLOURED, _pp._ full of flower, VII. 48. + +FLOWE, _pp._ flown, II. 1306, 1311, 1344; come, I. i. 1. 128; gone, I. ii. +3. 69. + +FLYTE, _pr. pl._ chide, scold, II. 1022. + +FOIR-SPEIKAR, _s._ first speaker, XVII. 266. + +FOL, _adj._ foolish, XVI. 651. + +FOLDE, _pp._ enfolded, I. iii. 9. 76. + +FOLE, _s._ fool, II. 373; _voc._ XVIII. 126. + +FON, _v._ to be foolish, act foolishly, dote, XXIV. 458. + +FOND, _pt. s._ found, VIII. 622. + +FONGETH, _pr. pl._ take, II. 967. + +FOOLE, _adj._ foolish, XIX. 1. + +FOON, _s. pl._ foes, V. 466; VIII. 280. + +FOR, _prep._ on account of, I. i. 3. 156; for fear of, II. 880; XVII. 118, +207. + +FOR, _conj._ because, I. iii. 8. 22; III. 161. + +FORAYNE, _adj._ foreign, alien, I. i. 2. 56; I. ii. 8. 97. + +FOR-BARRE, _v._ bar up, repress, XVI. 259. + +FORBED; see FORBIT. + +FORBERE, _v._ forbear, XXIV. 1341. + +FORBIT, _pr. s._ forbids, I. iii. 3. 71; Forbood, _pt. s._ forbade, II. +701; Forbed, II. 200; Forbode, _pp._ forbidden, I. ii. 2. 78; Forboden, +_pp._ I. i. 7. 57. + +FORBODE, _s._ prohibition, II. 1315. + +FORBY, _adv._ by; _passe forby_, to pass by, to take no notice, XXIV. 329. + +FORCAST, _pp._ cast away, VIII. 236. + +FORCE; _of f._, of necessity, XVII. 202; _no f._, it is no matter, I. i. 1. +53. + +FORCER, _s._ casket, shrine, XVI. 65. + +FORDO, _v._ annul, III. 218; For-don, _pp._ destroyed, III. 431. + +FORDOINGE, _s._ annulling, I. iii. 8. 63; destruction, I. iii. 1. 11. + +FORE-NEMPNED, _pp._ aforenamed, I. ii. 9. 2. + +FORFAYTURE, _s._ trespass, IV. 133. + +FOR-FERDE, _pp. pl._ extremely afraid, I. i. 6. 135. + +FORFEYT, _s._ injury, XVI. 789. + +FORFEYTEST, _2 pr. s._ offendest, I. ii. 14. 75. + +FORGED, _pp._ made, XXIV. 1165. + +FOR-GERD, _pp._ ruined, destroyed, II. 1340. See Stratmann. + +FORGETE, _pp._ forgotten, XVI. 662. + +FORGO, _v._ forgo, II. 319. + +FORGOING, _s._ giving up, I. i. 8. 44. + +FORGROWEN, _pp._ overgrown, XX. 45. + +FORJUGED, _pp._ condemned, I. i. 3. 118; VIII. 274. + +FORLANE, _pp._ lit. for-lain, deflowered, XVII. 140. + +FORLETEN, _pp._ forsaken, I. ii. 11. 45. + +FORLYTH, _pr. s._ lies with, IV. 108. + +FORNCAST, _pp._ forecast, I. i. 6. 73. + +FOR-QUHY, _adv._ because, XVII. 53. + +FORS, _s._ matter, III. 327; V. 273. + +FORSAKE, _pp._ refused, rejected, XVI. 502. + +FOR-SHRONK, _pp._ shrunken up, XX. 358. + +FORSOKEN, _pt. pl._ forsook, V. 441. + +FORSWAT, _pp._ covered with sweat, II. 14. + +FORSWONKE, _pp._ worn with toil, II. 14. + +FORSWORE, _pp._ forsworn, V. 310. + +FORT, _adj._ strong, XIV. 4. + +FORTH, _adv._ forward; _do f._, go on, V. 327. + +FOR-THAN, _adv._ therefore, II. 603. + +FORTHERER, _s._ Advancer, Promoter, XXIV. 1033. + +FORTHERINGE, _s._ helping forward, preparing, I. ii. 3. 105. + +FORTHREN, _v._ further, II. 1080; _pr. s._ advances, VIII. 384; _pp._ I. i. +9. 8. + +FORTHRIGHT, _adv._ immediately, XX. 439. + +FOR-THY, _adv._ therefore, V. 264; _nat for-thy_, all the same, +nevertheless, XVI. 3. + +FORTUNAIT, _adj._ afflicted by fortune, XVII. 79. + +FORTUNED, _pp._ directed by fortune, XIII. 73. + +FORWARD, _adv._ afterwards, I. iii. 8. 146. + +FORWARD, _s._ covenant, agreement, I. i. 9. 96; -warde, I. i. 3. 152. + +FOR-WERIED, _pp._ tired out, XXI. 45. + +FORWETING, _s._ foreknowledge, I. iii. 2. 159; I. iii. 3. 78. + +FORWOT, _pr. s._ foresees, I. iii. 2. 155. + +FORYETE, _v._ forget, V. 423; Foryet, _pr. s._ II. 465; _pr. pl._ I. ii. +11. 136; _pp._ I. i. 2. 52. + +FORYETING. _s._ forgetfulness, I. iii. 9. 86. + +FOTEN, _pr. pl._ foot, dance, XXIV. 586. + +FOUL, _s._ a foul or evil fate, II. 60. + +FOULE, _adj._ ugly, VIII. 390. + +FOULERS, _gen._ fowler's, I. ii. 3. 55. + +FOULES, _s. pl._ birds, II. 83. + +FOUNDEMENT, _s._ foundation, I. i. 5. 111; I. ii. 14. 64. + +FOYLES, _s. pl._ leaves, X. 38. + +FRA, _adv._ from, XVII. 7; from the time that, as soon as, XVII. 101. + +FRATERNITÈ, _s._ fraternity, III. 246. + +FRAUNCHYSE, _s._ freedom, XVI. 236, 364; liberality, XVI. 422; +privileged place, VIII. 273. + +FRAWARD, _adj._ froward, XVII. 352. + +FRAY, _ger._ to quarrel, XXIV. 682. + +FRAYNE, _imp. s._ ask, III. 424; _1 pt. s._ XXIV. 1275. + +FREEL-WITTED, _adj._ thin-witted, I. iii. 7. 57. + +FREESED, _adj._ very cold, I. ii. 6. 105. + +FREISIT, _pt. s._ froze, XVI. 19. + +FRELE, _adj._ frail, VII. 22; XXII. 45. + +FREND, _for_ Fremd, _adj._ strange, II. 626. + +FRENDED, _pp._ befriended, I. iii. 9. 109. + +FRERES, _s. pl._ friars, II. 1065; XXIV. 1097. + +FRESSHE, _ger._ to refresh, X. 61. + +FRET, _s._ ornament, XX. 152. + +FRET, _pp._ lit. adorned, XXIV. 124; hence, furnished, XIII. 80. + +FRETE, _pr. pl._ fret, annoy, XXIV. 940; Fretes, _pr. pl._ eat, devour, +II. 151; Frettith, _pr. pl._ (_or s._), vex, XXIV. 579. + +FRITH, _s._ coppice, XVI. 124. + +FRIVOLL, _adj._ frivolous, hence, poor, base, XVII. 454. + +FRO, _prep._ after, VIII. 233. + +FRONSIT, _pp._ wrinkled, XVII. 155. + +FROUNTER, _s._ first attack, XVI. 176. See note. + +FRUCTIF, _adj._ fruitful, X. 38. + +FRUCTIFYING, _pres. pt._ fruit-producing, X. 133. + +FULFILLED, _pp._ filled full, I. ii. 9. 54; V. 301. + +FUTUR, _adj._ future, I. iii. 3. 177. + +FYLE, _ger._ to file, to whet, VIII. 253, 441. + +FYNDING, _s._ food, II. 794. + +FYNE, _s._ end, VIII. 343, 400; XVI. 594. + +FYNED, _pp._ refined, I. ii. 4. 130. + +FYNESSE, _s._ fineness, I. ii. 12. 44; Fynenesse, I. ii. 12. 48. + +FYRLES, _s._ without fire, X. 129. + + + +GA, _v._ go; _ga dy_, go and die, XVII. 203. + +GABBEST, _2 pr. s._ talkest idly, I. iii. 4. 171; Gabbeth, _pr. s._ lies, +V. 142. + +GABBING, _s._ boasting, XVI. 342. + +GADER, _ger._ gather, III. 301; _pp._ I. i. _pr._ 98. + +GAINCOME, _s._ coming again, XVII. 55. + +GAIR, _s._ gore, strip, XVII. 179. + +GALERYES, _s. pl._ galleries, XXI. 165. + +GALLE, _s._ gall, bitterness, XIV. 26. + +GAN, _1 pt. s._ did, XXIV. 274. + +GARMOUND, _s._ garment, XVII. 164. + +GARNEMENT, _s._ garment, I. iii. 7. 132. + +GARNISHING, _s._ ornamentation, XX. 143. + +GARNISOUN, _s._ garrison, XVII. 484; complete array, XVI. 175. + +GASTETH, _pr. s._ frightens, I. ii. 7. 76. + +GAYNETH, _pr. s._ serves, helps, XVI. 623. + +GEDER, _2 pr. pl._ gather, III. 191; _pres. pt._ collecting, II. 733. + +GEMETRYE, _s._ geometry, I. i. 1. 79. + +GENERABILL, _adj._ that can be produced, created, XVII. 148, 171. + +GENERALTEE, _s._ generality, V. 402. + +GENTILLESSE, _s._ nobility, I. ii. 8. 94. + +GENTILWOMAN, _s._ gentlewoman, XXI. 133. + +GENTYLED, _pp._ ennobled, I. ii. 8. 100. + +GERE, _s._ dress, XX. 26; array, II. 651. + +GERNERE, _s._ garner, I. ii. 2. 27. + +GESON, _adj._ scarce, XIV. 9. + +GESSE, _pr. pl._ guess, make guesses, II. 170. + +GEST, _s._ guest, I. ii. 5. 51; _pl._ II. 531. + +GET, _pr. s._ gets, II. 275; Gete, _pp._ gotten, obtained, IV. 306; XVI. +67. + +GIF, _pr. s. subj._ grant, XVII. 414. + +GIF, _conj._ if, XVII. 64. + +GIGGES, _s. pl._ concubines, II. 759. + +GIGLOT-LYK, _adj._ like a giglot, like a common woman, XVII. 83. + +GINNE, _1 pr. s._ begin, XI. 26; _pr. pl._ I. i. 3. 48. + +GINNING, _s._ beginning, I. i. 3. 61; IX. 88, 253. + +GLAD, _adj._ pleasant, XX. 35. + +GLADDE, _ger._ to gladden, please, I. ii. 12. 86; _pp._ X. 99. + +GLADSOM, _adj._ pleasant, X. 43. + +GLASSE, _s._ glass, i.e. mirror, I. ii. 1. 83. + +GLEDES, _s. pl._ kites, II. 1337. + +GLEED, _s._ glowing coal, VIII. 231; Gledes, _pl._ I. iii. 7. 37. + +GLEYVE, _s._ glaive, sword, XXIV. 544. + +GLITERANDE, _pres. pt._ glittering, I. ii. 13. 75; Glitterand, II. 134. + +GLOSE, _s._ explanation, comment, II. 842. + +GLOSE, _v._ explain (it) away, XXIV. 1260; _imp. s._ XXIV. 420; _pr. s._ +glosses over (things), dissembles, XXII. 50; _pt. pl._ flattered, I. ii. 7. +105; _pp._ commented upon, II. 312. + +GLOSING, _s._ explaining, II. 1140; flattery, I. i. 6. 14; deception, I. i. +10. 58. + +GLOSOURS, _s. pl._ flatterers, I. i. 10. 11. + +GLOTON, _adj._ gluttonous, devouring, I. iii. 9. 65. + +GLOTOUN, _s._ glutton, XII. 44. + +GLOWRAND, _pres. pl._ glowering, lowering, XVII. 191. + +GNAT, _s._ gnat, II. 459. + +GNAWEN, _pp._ gnawed, I. ii. 9. 113. + +GODLIHEED, _error for_ Godheed, _s._ godhead, I. i. 9. 117. + +GOER, _s._ walker (on foot), I. ii. 1. 63. + +GOINGE, _s._ departure, I. i. 10. 110. + +GOLD, _s._ marigold, XXIV. 1437. + +GOLD-BURNED, _pp._ burnished like gold, VIII. 34. + +GOLDFINCH, _s._ XX. 89; XXIV. 1368. + +GOLD-MASTLING, _s._ latten, II. 187. See note. + +GONG, _s._ privy, II. 152. + +GONNEN, _pt. pl._ began, VIII. 61; Gonne, VIII. 32. + +GOODLIHEDE, _s._ excellence, IX. 244. + +GOODLY, _adj._ courteous, XXI. 367. + +GOODLY, _adj. as s._ goodness, I. iii. 2. 99, 104. + +GOODLY, _adv._ well, justly, I. iii. 2. 106. + +GOSPEL, _s._ gospel, truth, I. ii. 3. 38. + +GOSPELL-BOOK, _s._ gospel, II. 595. + +GOSTLY, _adj._ spiritual, II. 1118. + +GOVERNAUNCE, _s._ guidance, VII. 139. + +GOVERNAYL, _s._ steersman, II. 1078. + +GOVERNED, _pp._ steered, I. i. 1. 36. + +GOVERNERESSE, _s._ mistress, XXII. 71. + +GRAFFEN, _pr. pl._ graft, I. ii. 3. 19; _pp._ I. ii. 3. 92; _gr. in_, +become grafted into, I. i. _pr._ 6. + +GRAME, _s._ anger, II. 961; XXIV. 320; harm, XI. 55. + +GRAME, _v._ make angry, VI. 57. + +GRAMERCY, _s._ great thanks, XX. 462. + +GRANE, _s._ grain, minute particular, XVII. 433. See note. + +GRAUNTETH, _pr. s._ admits (a thing), I. i. 7. 32. + +GRAVE, _ger._ to engrave, V. 280; _pp._ buried, VII. 67; XVI. 171; +engraved, I. iii. 8. 14. + +GRAY, _adj._ gray (referring to the Franciscans), XXIV. 1096. + +GREDE, _1 pr. s._ exclaim, cry out, XVIII. 135. + +GREE, _s._ rank, grade, I. iii. 1. 116; favour, II. 334; XXIV. 28; _to take +in gr._, to receive with favour, XVI. 842. + +GREET-NAMED, _adj._ renowned, I. i. 8. 112. + +GREISSIS, _s. pl._ grasses, XVII. 425. + +GRETTE, _pt. s._ greeted, X. 100; XXIV. 772. + +GREVAUNCE, _s._ grievance, harm, XX. 311. + +GREVE, _v._ grieve, VI. 57; Greven, _error for_ Greve, _1 pr. s. subj._ +grieve, XXIV. 928. + +GREVES, _s. pl._ groves, XX. 367. + +GREYNED, _pp._ formed like grain, I. ii. 2. 124. + +GRIFFON, _s._ griffin, II. 86. + +GRIPE, _s._ grip, grasp, I. ii. 11. 71. + +GRITH, _s._ protection, II. 247. + +GROBBED, _pp._ grubbed, dug round about, I. i. 5. 92. + +GROME, _s._ groom, XXIV. 1433. + +GROUF; _on gr._, in a grovelling posture, XVII. 362. See GRUFFE. + +GROUNDE, _pp._ ground down, VIII. 225. + +GROUNDED, _pp._, founded, I. ii. 5. 118. + +GRUCCHEN, _v._ murmur, XXIV. 960; grumble, II. 1164; _pr. s. subj._ may +grumble (at), II. 886; murmur at, XXI. 47. + +GRUFFE, _adv._ grovelling, VIII. 167. + +GRYPEN, _pr. pl._ grasp, II. 667. + +GUBERNATIF, _adj._ governing, relating to government, political, I. i. 6. +120. + +GUERDON, _s._ reward, I. i. 8. 136; VIII. 371; X. 6; XVI. 443. + +GUERDONETH, _pr. s._ rewards, V. 97; _pp._ XXI. 591. + +GUERDONING, _s._ reward, I. i. 8. 135. + +GUERDONLES, _adj._ without reward, VIII. 399. + +GUYSE, _s._ way, XXIV. 245. + +GYDIT, _pt. s._ guided, XVII. 205. + +GYE, _v._ guide, VIII. 177; XIII. 55; preserve, VII. 79; direct, XXIV. +1250. + +GYLOUR, _s._ traitor, XII. 74. + +GYSE, _s._ manner, XXI. 9. + +GYTE, _s._ mantle, XVII. 164, 178, 260. See note, p. 522. + +GYVES, _s. pl._ fetters, II. 651. + + + +HABIRGEOUN, _s._ coat of mail, XVII. 186. + +HABIT, _s._ friar's dress, III. 101; dress, I. ii. 11. 121. + +HABOUNDE, _adj._ abundant, X. 126. + +HABOUNDETH, _pr. s._ abounds, I. i. 1. 75; I. ii. 2. 140. + +HABUNDAUNCE, _s._ abundance, VI. 63. + +HACE, _adj._ hoarse, XVII. 338, 445. + +HAILL, _adj._ whole, XVII. 73. + +HAILSUM, _adj._ wholesome, XVII. 249. + +HAIT, _adj._ hot, XVII. 29, 237. + +HALE, _s._ the cry of 'haul,' II. 872. + +HALETH, _pr. s._ draws, I. i. 10. 104. + +HALFE, _s._ side, direction, I. ii. 3. 47; _a goddes h._, in God's name, I. +ii. 4. 147. + +HALKE, _s._ nook, I. i. 3. 32; II. 489. + +HALOWE, _pr. pl._ consecrate, II. 277. + +HALSE, _1 pr. s._ embrace, XXIV. 1289. + +HALT, _pr. s._ holds, I. ii. 3. 12; VIII. 21; keeps, I. i. 1. 115. + +HALTE, _adj._ halt, VI. 43. + +HALVE, _s._ side, I. ii. 1. 7; part, I. iii. 7. 32; IV. 120; way, respect, +I. ii. 12. 86. + +HAN, _pr. pl._ have, possess, I. ii. 5. 42; II. 601. + +HANCHE, _s._ haunch, hip, XVII. 187. + +HANDLE, _ger._ to handle, feel, I. iii. 6. 52. + +HANG, _pt. pl._ hung, XVII. 160. + +HAP, _s._ chance, mere luck, I. i. 3. 121. + +HAPPED, _pp._ chanced; _was happed_, had such fortune, XX. 16. + +HAPPY, _adj._ due to chance, casual, I. i. 3. 157; fortunate, V. 393. + +HAPPYOUS, _adj._ chance, casual, I. i. 10. 29. + +HARBEROWED, _pp._ harboured, lodged, I. ii. 2. 19. + +HARD, _pt. s._ heard, XVII. 143. + +HARDILY, _adv._ certainly, XX. 234. + +HARDYED, _pp._ emboldened, I. iii. 7. 30. + +HARDYER, _adj._ more difficult, I. i. _pr._ 116. + +HARLOTRY, _s._ evil conduct, II. 1100. + +HARNEYS, _s._ defensive armour, I. i. 4. 45; XX. 242; Harnes, XVII. 186. + +HARSE, _s._ _perhaps an error for_ harm, I. i. 3. 158. + +HART, _s._ hart, I. ii. 11. 43. + +HASEL, _s._ hazel-bush, I. iii. 6. 5. + +HAT, _pr. s._ is called, II. 454. + +HATE, _v._ hate; hence, put force upon, XVI. 729. + +HATE, _1 pr. s._ command, bid, XXI. 689. (Better, _hote_.) + +HAUNCE, _pr. pl._ enhance, advance, VIII. 430. + +HAUTAYN, _adj._ haughty, I. iii. 6. 89. + +HAVELESSE, _adj._ indigent, as one that possesses nothing, XVI. 605. + +HAW, _adj._ wan, dull of colour, XVII. 257; livid, XVII. 340. + +HAWE, _s._ haw, II. 304; _sette nat an h._, care not a haw, I. i. 7. 100. + +HAYLES, _s. pl._ hailstorms, I. iii. 5. 22. + +HAYNE, _s._ hatred, dislike, I. i. _pr._ 102; I. i. 7. 43. + +HECHT, _1 pt. s._ promised, XVII. 23; _pt. s._ was named, XVII. 213. + +HEDE-TAKING, _s._ taking heed, I. ii. 4. 67. + +HEEP, _s._ crowd, VI. 43. + +HEER, _s._ hair, I. ii. 4. 22 (see note); XIII. 84. + +HEERDES, _s. pl._ herds, I. i. 3. 44. + +HEGGE, _s._ hedge, XX. 54, 66. + +HEIDIT, _pp._ headed, XVII. 168. + +HEIL, _s._ health (E. _heit_) XVII. 334. + +HEIRD, _prob. for_ Heir it, hear it, XVII. 415. Cf. Lowl. Sc. _dude_, do it +(Jamieson). + +HEKLIT, _pp._ drawn forward over, XVII. 244. Cf. Icel. _hekla_, _hökull_. + +HELDE, _v._ hold, II. 704; Helden, _3 pr. s. subj._ might hold, XXIV. 347 +(ungrammatical). + +HELDED, _pp._ inclined, poured out, I. i. 4. 19. + +HELE, _s._ health, XXIV. 193, 666; salvation, IV. 343; VII. 24. + +HELEDEST, _pr. s._ didst conceal, I. i. 7. 117; _pp._ hidden, I. i. 8. 128 +(obviously a false reading; read _deled_, distributed). + +HELEN, _v._ (to) heal, I. ii. 11. 23; _pt. s._ healed; _h. with his hele_, +healed his heel with, I. i. 5. 45. + +HELES, _s. pl._ heels, IV. 113. + +HELL-YATES, _s. pl._ hell-gates, II. 419. + +HENNE, _adv._ hence, XVIII. 102. + +HENS-FORWARD; _from h._, from henceforth, I. ii. 10. 144. + +HENSHMEN, _s. pl._ henchmen, XX. 252. + +HENTE, _v._ catch, I. i. _pr._ 12; seize, I. i. 1. 12; _pr. s._ catches, I. +iii. 4. 115; _pt. pl._ caught, seized, V. 257; _pp._ caught, II. 555; +seized, XXIV. 1144; gained, I. i. 3. 121. + +HEPED, _pp._ heaped, i.e. great, V. 407. + +HERAUD, _s._ herald, XVI. 258; _pl._ XX. 233. + +HERBER, _s._ arbour, VIII. 125, 127; XVI. 191; XX. 48; XXI. 48. + +HERBERGERE, _s._ harbinger, officer who provides apartments, XXI. 268, 389. + +HERBEROWED, _pp._ lodged, I. ii. 2. 34. + +HERBERWE, _s._ harbour, X. 35; Herbery, shelter, XVII. 403. + +HERDES, _s. pl._ shepherds, II. 339. + +HERE, _s._ hair, XX. 332. + +HERE, _pron._ her, V. 70, 71; IX. 111. + +HERE-TOFORN, _adv._ formerly, I. i. 8. 6. + +HERNES, _s. pl._ corners, II. 489. + +HERRE, _s._ hinge; _out of h._, off the hinge, IV. 185. A.S. _heorr_. + +HERTED, _pp._ hardened, strengthened, I. iii. 7. 91. + +HERTELY, _adj._ dear to my heart, XI. 23; Hertly, severe, VIII. 139. + +HEST, _s._ promise, VIII. 319; Heste, VIII. 571; command, III. 106; +_pl._ commands, II. 209; V. 354. + +HETE, _s._ heat, XXIV. 1379. + +HETE, _v._ be called (_probably an error for_ hote), I. ii. 6. 86. See +HOTE. + +HETH, _s._ heath, XXIV. 755. + +HETHENESSE, _s._ pagan country, VI. 17. + +HEVE, _s._ the cry of 'heave,' II. 872. See note. + +HEVEN-KAY, _s._ the key of heaven, II. 865. + +HEVYE, _ger._ to be sorrowful, I. i. 4. 4. + +HEWE, _ger._ to hew, IX. 158. + +HEWMOUND, _s._ helmet, XVII. 186. + +HEY, _interj._ hey! II. 890. + +HEYR, _s._ heir, successor, XVIII. 180 (see note); _pl._ III. 207. + +HIGHNES, _s._ exaltation, II. 116. + +HIGHT, _pr. s._ is named, XXI. 169; _2 pr. pl._ XXII. 23; _do h._, are +called, XXIV. 145; _1 pt. s._ promised, XXIV. 1319; _pp._ promised, +VIII. 319; IX. 97. + +HILDETH, _pr. s._ pours out, I. ii. 1. 13. + +HING, _pt. s._ hung, XXIV. 1201; Hingen, _pt. pl._ I. i. 4. 36; _pres. +pt._ hanging, XXIV. 139. See HONG. + +HIT, _pr. s._ hits, XVIII. 203. + +HO, _s._ proclamation, XXIV. 270. See note. + +HOGGES, _s. pl._ hogs, I. i. _pr._ 121. + +HOIR, _adj._ lit. hoary, XVII. 163; old, feeble, XVII. 338, 445. See +HORE. + +HOLD, _s._ fortress, II. 475. + +HOLDEN, _pp._ beholden, I. ii. 4. 122; compelled, I. iii. 7. 120; +Holde, _pp._ bound, IV. 7. + +HOLE, _adj._ whole, IV. 226; XVIII. 7; entire, XXIV. 302; trustworthy, +XIII. 39. + +HOLE, _adv._ wholly, II. 212; XXIV. 322. + +HOLOWNESSE, _s._ hollow vault, concave, I. ii. 9. 109. + +HOLPEN, _pp._ helped, I. ii. 12. 23. + +HOLTES, _s. pl._ woods, copses, VIII. 119; IX. 47. + +HONDE, _s._ hand, IV. 384. + +HONG, _v._ hang, XX. 245; Hongen, _pr. pl._ IV. 263; Hong, _pt. s._ +hung, II. 8; Honged, _pp._ hung on, II. 1042. See HING. + +HONY, _s._ honey, I. i. 2. 46; I. ii. 9. 38; XXIV. 1040. + +HONYED, _adj._ full of honey, I. ii. 14. 24. + +HONY-SOUKELS, _s. pl._ honeysuckles, I. iii. 6. 6. + +HOOKES, _s. pl._ hooks, I. i. 10. 105. + +HOOL, _adj. as adv._ wholly, XVI. 234; in full, XXI. 628. + +HOOLLY, _adv._ wholly, XXII. 14. + +HOOLSOM, _adj._ wholesome, VIII. 14; X. 36; XX. 6. + +HOOMLINESSE, _s._ plainness of speech, V. 132. + +HOOT, _adj._ hot, VIII. 136. + +HOPPEN, _pr. pl._ dance, II. 872. + +HORE, _adj. pl._ hoary, old, hence bare (as trees in winter), VIII. 119; +IX. 47. See HOIR. + +HORISONS, _s. pl._ prayers, I. iii. 9. 92. + +HORN, _s._ horn; _give us an horn_, scoff at us, XXIV. 1390. + +HOROWE, _adj._ dirty, II. 1097. + +HORS, _s. pl._ horses, XX. 201, 274. + +HORS-HARNEYS, _s._ horse-trappings, XX. 218, 226, 237. + +HOSPÍTALL, _s._ hospital, XVII. 382. + +HOSTEL, _s._ lodging, I. i. 2. 57. + +HOTE, _v._ be called, I. ii. 4. 139; Hoten, have a name, XVIII. 185; +Hote, _pt. s._ was named, XXIV. 159; _pp._ called, XXIV. 741. + +HOUGE, _adj._ huge, great, II. 1109. + +HOURES, _s. pl._ services, as matins, &c., XVIII. 70. See note. + +HOUSELIN, _ger._ to receive the eucharist, II. 1211. + +HOUTEN, _pr. pl._ hoot, shout, II. 872. + +HOW, _adv._ however, XXIV. 207. + +HOW, _adj._ hollow, XVII. 157. + +HOWSINGE, _s._ building of houses, III. 296. + +HUDE, _s._ hood, XVII. 244. + +HUISHT, _adj._ silent, I. ii. 7. 122. See below. + +HUISSHT, _interj._ whist! peace! I. i. 5. 90. + +HULFERE, _s._ holly, VIII. 129. + +HY, _s._ haste; _in hy_, XVII. 361; XXIV. 268, 698. + +HYE, _v. refl._ hasten, I. iii. 5. 71; IX. 33; _imp. pl. refl._ XXI. 244; +_pr. s._ I. iii. 4. 98. + +HYLY, _adv._ highly, IX. 185. + +HYND, _s._ hind, I. ii. 11. 43. + +HYNE, _s._ hind, farm-labourer, II. 26. + + + +I-CLEPED, _pp._ called, II. 73. + +IDEOT, _s._ idiot, I. i. 9. 87; _pl._ I. ii. 1. 94. + +IDOLE, _s._ image, XVII. 507. + +ILKE, _adj_. same, I. i. 3. 80; I. i. 9. 62. + +IMPEDIMENTES, _s. pl._ hindrances, I. ii. 6. 96. + +IMPERCIABLE, _adj._ impervious, not to be pierced, I. i. 4. 45. + +IMPERFITE, _adj._ imperfect, III. 186, 199. + +IMPORTÁBLE, _adj._ unbearable, I. i. 1. 108; V. 26. + +IMPOSSIBLE, _s._ a thing impossible, I. ii. 4. 152; Impossible, VII. 12. + +IMPRENTIT, _pp._ imprinted, XVII. 508. + +IMPRESSION, _s._ impression, I. ii. 9. 32. + +IN PRINCIPIO, first verse of St. John's gospel, III. 136. + +INCHAUNGEABLE, _adj._ unchangeable, I. i. _pr._ 52. + +INCLOSE, _pp._ included, I. iii. 4. 164. + +INCOMMODITÈ, _s._ inconvenience, I. iii. 8. 141. + +INCONVENIENCE, _s._ unfitness, I. iii. 4. 139; mistake, I. ii. 4. 153. + +INCONVENIENT, _adj._ unfitting, I. iii. 9. 12. + +IND, _adj._ blue, XXIV. 78; Inde, _pl._ VIII. 127. + +INDIFFERENT, _adj._ impartial, I. i. 7. 34. + +INDUCTATIFE, _adj._ capable of being reduced, I. ii. 13. 48. + +INFAME, _s._ ill fame, disgrace, I. i. 8. 49; ill report, I. i. 6. 70. + +INFECTED, _pp._ impaired, XXIV. 1053. + +IN-FERE, _adv._ together, II. 1212; V. 458; XVIII. 78, 263, 273; XXI. 407; +fully, XXI. 602. + +INFLAT, _pp._ inflated, blown, XVII. 463. + +INFORTUNE, _s._ misfortune, IV. 49. + +INHAUNSING, _s._ enhancing, II. 112. + +INKE, _s._ ink, I. i. _pr._ 15. + +INLY, _adv._ inwardly, extremely, XX. 113; very, XXI. 515, 747. + +IN-MIDDES, _prep._ amid, XXI. 55. + +INNE, _s._ inn, lodging, II. 977. + +INNE, _adv._ within, in, XVIII. 62. + +INNOMINABLE, _adj._ unnameable, I. i. 9. 55; I. ii. 4. 53. + +INOBEDIENCE, _s._ disobedience, XXIII. 12. + +INPOSSESSION, _s._ an error for 'imposition,' i.e. the imposing of a name, +I. ii. 4. 141. See the note. + +INPUT, _pp._ placed in, implanted, I. ii. 2. 120. + +INSEËR, _s._ investigator, looker into, I. iii. 1. 141; I. iii. 9. 91; +reader, I. iii. 1. 25; _pl._ I. ii. 1. 103. + +INSIGHT, _s._ perception, I. ii. 6. 96. + +INSPIRACION, _s._ inspiration, I. ii. 1. 13. + +INSUFFISANCE, _s._ insufficiency, I. i. 9. 13. + +INSUFFYSAUNT, _adj._ insufficient, I. i. 4. 63. + +INTENT, _pr. s._ means, XXIV. 1370. + +INTERE, _adj._ entire, sincere, XIII. 31. + +IN-TO, _prep._ in, XVII. 212. + +INTRUCIOUN, _s._ intrusion, I. i. 1. 17. + +INWIT, _s._ conscience, I. i. 4. 17. + +I-PAYNTED, _pp._ painted, II. 135. + +I-PERLED, _pp._ adorned with pearls, II. 158. + +IPOCRYTE, _s._ hypocrite, XII. 65. + +IRRECUPERABLE, _adj._ irrecoverable, I. ii. 1. 34. + +IS, _pron._ them, II. 941. + +ISSEWE, _s._ issue, flow, XVI. 52. + +ITINERARIE, _s._ road-book, guide, X. 64. + +IVORIE, _s._ ivory, XI. 3. + + + +JANGELING, _adj._ prattling, vain, I. iii. 6. 89. + +JANGLE, _ger._ to prattle, XVI. 744; _pr. s._ prates, II. 791; XVI. 333. + +JANGLERS, _s. pl._ praters, I. i. 4. 64. + +JANGLES, _s. pl._ idle words, I. ii. 9. 93. + +JANGLINGE, _s._ discord, I. ii. 9. 52; gossip, I. i. 5. 19; _pl._ +babblings, I. ii. 14. 10. + +JAPE, _s._ jest, I. i. 10. 87; XXI. 348; _pl._ XXII. 53. + +JAY, _s._ jay, I. i. _pr._ 30; II. 791. + +JEUSE, _s._ juice, I. iii. 5. 115. + +JOCOUNDE, _adj._ jocund, pleasant, V. 475. + +JOLEYVINGE, _pres. pt._ cheering, I. i. 1. 126. + +JOLIF, _adj._ happy, XXIV. 177; spruce, XXIV. 473. + +JONESSE, _s._ Youth, XXII. 69. + +JORNED, _1 pt. s._ journeyed, XXIV. 72. + +JOURNEY, _s._ day's work, I. i. 5. 31. + +JOWALL, _s._ jewel, XVII. 521. + +JOYNT, _pp. as s._ a thing closed, II. 220. + +JUMPERE, _v._ jumble together; _conne j._, know how to mix, I. i. _pr._ +30. + +JUPARDYE, _s._ risk, peril, VIII. 475. + +JUPARTING, _s._ jeoparding, risking, VIII. 419. + +JURISDICCIOUN, _s._ jurisdiction, VIII. 271. + +JUSTES, _s. pl._ jousts, tournaments, XX. 282. + +JUSTIFICACION, _s._ justification, I. ii. 13. 88. + +JUVENTÈ, _s._ youth, VII. 11. + +JUYSE, _s._ penalty, XVI. 622. + + + +KALENDS, _s._ the beginning, VII. 146. + +KELE, _ger._ to cool, XXIV. 775. + +KEMBE, _pr. pl._ comb, II. 306; Kemmit, _pp._ XVII. 222. + +KEND, _pp._ known, XVII. 380. + +KENDILLIS, _pr. s._ kindles, takes fire, XVII. 30. + +KEPE, _s._ heed, XVIII. 207; _I take no kepe_, I take no heed, XVI. 267. + +KEPEN, _1 pr. s._ (_for_ Kepe), take care, XXIV. 684. + +KEPTEN, _pp._ (_false form, for_ Kept), kept, XXIV. 526. + +KERVE, _v._ cut, XII. 121; _pr. pl._ V. 245. + +KIDDE, _pt. s._ shewed, V. 314; Kid, _pp._ made known, I. iii. 5. 70. + +KIND, _s._ nature, XIII. 80. + +KINDE, _adj._ natural, XXII. 29. + +KINGES OF ARMES, _s. pl._ kings-at-arms, XX. 220. + +KINREDE, _s._ kindred, I. ii. 2. 113; V. 2; _pl._ III. 8. + +KINREST, _s._ rest for the people, time of rest, I. i. 5. 103. See the +note. + +KIRK, _s._ church, XVII. 117. + +KITE, _s._ kite, XXIV. 1416. + +KITH, _s._ native country, I. i. _pr._ 123. + +KNETTE, _v._ knit, weave, suggest, I. i. 7. 39; Knitten, _pr. pl._ +accept, lit. knit together, I. ii. 5. 34; _imp. s._ knit, fasten, XI. 17; +_pp._ knit, IX. 171; Knit, _pp._ chosen, I. ii. 8. 62. + +KNITTING, _s._ choosing friends, I. ii. 8. 19. + +KNOT, _s._ knot, a fanciful term for the bliss for which a man strives, the +_summum bonum_, I. ii. 4. 140. + +KNOWERS, _s. pl._ men who know (it), I. ii. 8. 28. + +KNOWING, _s._ knowledge, I. ii. 9. 17. + +KNOWLEGEDEN, _pt. pl._ acknowledged, I. i. 6. 157. + +KNOWLEGINGE, _s._ knowledge, I. i. 8. 99; meaning, I. i. _pr._ 29. + +KNYF, _s._ knife, II. 241. + +KYME, _s._ wretch, II. 695. See note. + +KYNDE, _adj._ kindred, I. i. 6. 49. + +KYNDELY, _adj._ natural, I. i. _pr._ 36; I. ii. 3. 52. + +KYTHEN, _v._ (to) manifest, V. 224; _imp. pl._ shew, VI. 42. + + + +LABORIOUS, _adj._ full of endeavour, VII. 69. + +LACCHE, _ger._ to seize, grasp, I. i. 3. 51. + +LACE, _s._ tie, bond, XI. 17. + +LACED, _pp._ bound, I. i. 3. 144. + +LACHE, _2 pr. s. subj._ loosen (it), let go, _or perhaps_, turn coward, +relax, I. ii. 14. 83. F. _lâcher_. + +LACKE, _v._ fail, III. 222. + +LACKED, _pp._ dispraised, I. i. 8. 104; I. i. 10. 83. + +LACKING, _s._ blaming, I. ii. 8. 33; dispraise, I. iii. 2. 112. + +LADDE, _2 pt. pl._ led, I. i. 3. 76; _pp._ IX. 219. + +LADE, _pp._ laden, XX. 305. + +LADELS, _s. pl._ cross-paths, by-paths, I. i. 3. 42. (See note, p. 456.) + +LAFT, _pt. s._ remained, XX. 364. + +LAK, _s._ reproof, blame, reproach, XVII. 276. + +LAKE, _s._ linen cloth, X. 70. + +LAKKEN, _pr. pl._ blame, V. 192. + +LAMENTACIOUS, _adj._ mournful, I. i. 1. 128. + +LANES, _s. pl._ pathways, tracks, I. i. 3. 41. + +LANGORING, _adj._ full of langour, swooning, I. ii. 14. 59. + +LAPWINGES, _s. pl._ lapwings, II. 1339. + +LARDER, _s._ larder (i.e. slaughter), I. ii. 14. 13. + +LARGE, _adj._ loose, too free, IX. 157; liberal, XVI. 455. + +LARGE, _s._; _at hir l._, at freedom, free, VIII. 329; _at your l._, IX. +15. + +LARGESSE, _s._ bounty, II. 511; XVIII. 157; XXI. 318. + +LARSON, _s._ larceny, II. 323. + +LAS, _adj. pl._ less, XXI. 439. + +LASSE, _adj._ less, I. ii. 9. 77; IV. 109. + +LASSHED, _pt. pl._ burst, ran forth, flowed, I. i. 6. 71. + +LAST, _pt. pl._ lasted, XX. 288. + +LAT, _adj._ late, behindhand, II. 457. + +LATTIT, _pp._ hindered, XVII. 27. + +LAUCH (_for_ Leuch?), _pt. s._ laughed, XVII. 231 (_or infin._ to laugh). + +LAUDEST, _2 pr. s._ praisest, I. i. 10. 76. + +LAUGHANDE, _pres. pt._ laughing, I. i. 1. 47. + +LAUNDË, _s._ glade, VIII. 120; XVIII. 61. + +LAUREAT, _adj._ made of laurel, X. 68. + +LAURER, _s._ laurel, VIII. 65; IX. 238; XX. 158; -tree, XX. 109. + +LAURIOLE, _s._ laurel crown, X. 73. + +LAVEROK, _s._ lark, X. 82. + +LAWDE, _s._ praise, XXIV. 1332. + +LAWEST, _adj._ lowest, XVII. 298. + +LAWFULLY, _adv._ in a low tone, XVII. 312. + +LAWN, _s._ lawn covering, lawn kerchief, XVII. 423. + +LAY, _s._ lea, XVIII. 285. + +LAY, _s._ lay, song, I. iii. 7. 53. + +LAY, _s._ law, faith, belief, V. 433. + +LAY-FEE, _s._ fee belonging to laymen, II. 686, 741. + +LAYSER, _s._ leisure, XI. 41. + +LAZAROUS, _s._ leprous person, leper, XVII. 343, 531. + +LECHE, _s._ physician, I. iii. 7. 79; X. 42. + +LECHECRAFT, _s._ healing, I. iii. 9. 69. + +LECTORN, _s._ lectern, XXIV. 1382. + +LEED, _s._ lead, II. 160. + +LEEF, _adj._ lief, dear, longed for, XXI. 694. + +LEEFFUL, _adj._ permissible, VII. 75. + +LEEFLY, _adj._ permissible, I. ii. 14. 8. + +LEEL, _adj._ loyal, II. 755. + +LEES, _s._ lie, V. 444. + +LEET, _pt. s._ caused; _leet do crye_, caused to be cried or proclaimed, +IV. 174. + +LEFFER, _adj._ liefer, XXIV. 1130. + +LEFFUL, ADJ. permissible, I. iii. 2. 51; Leful, I. i. 3. 129. + +LEFTE, _1 pt. s._ remained, V. 443; XXI. 190; abandoned, IV. 342; +Leften, _error for_ Left, _pp._ left, XXIV. 1166. + +LEGE, _adj._ liege, III. 10. + +LEGEAUNCE, _s._ allegiance, VIII. 551. + +LEGENDE, Legend, V. 316. See note. + +LEGGE, _v._ allege, XXIV. 1065; Legen, _pr. pl._ allege, I. i. 7. 73; +Leged, _pp._ alleged (to be), I. ii. 2. 103. + +LEGISTRES, _s. pl._ lawyers, I. ii. 2. 69. + +LEID, _s._ lead, XVII. 155. + +LEID, _s._ person, man, XVII. 449. + +LEIF, _ger._ to live, XVII. 384. + +LEIR, _ger._ to learn, XVII. 479. + +LEMES, _s. pl._ rays, X. 116. + +LEMMAN, _s._ leman, II. 883; _gen._ II. 338. + +LENE, _pr. s. subj._ may lend, I. iii. 9. 78. + +LENE, _adj._ lean, weak, V. 408. + +LENETH, _pr. s._ leans, inclines, I. ii. 6. 53. + +LENGER, _adv._ the longer, XVI. 678. + +LENGEST, _adv._ longest, I. ii. 9. 86. + +LENT, _s._ spring, XVII. 5. + +LEPRE, _s._ leprosy, IV. 349. + +LERE, _ger._ to learn, XX. 229; _pp._ learned, II. 754. + +LERNE, _ger._ to learn, to be taught, XVI. 535; _2 pr. pl._ teach, I. i. +4. 41; _pp._ instructed, XVI. 635. + +LESE, _ger._ to lose, II. 591; IV. 295; _2 pr. s._ I. i. 8. 131; _pr. +s._ XVI. 388; _pr. pl._ XVI. 588; _imp. pl._ VII. 87. + +LESERS, _s. pl._ losers, I. i. 10. 62. + +LESING, _s._ losing, loss, I. ii. 7. 65; I. ii. 10. 120. + +LESING, _s._ falsehood, lie, XVIII. 238; XXI. 263; XXIV. 422; _pl._ I. i. +6. 159; VIII. 421. + +LESTE, _pt. s._ lasted (_or_, might last), I. i. 5. 32. + +LET, _pr. s._ letteth, lets, VIII. 464. + +LET, _pr. s._ hinders, I. i. 1. 119. + +LET, _pr. s._ leads, I. iii. 9. 11. + +LETE, _v._ let go, spare, let alone, XX. 215; Let, _v._ pretend, XVI. +583; Lete, _2 pr. pl._ allow to be, III. 362; Let commaunde, caused men +to command, XXIV. 296. + +LET-GAMES, _s. pl._ hinderers of sport, I. i. 3. 124; I. i. 4. 61. + +LETHY, _adj._ weak, I. iii. 7. 101. + +LETTE, _v._ hinder, III. 289; VIII. 251; _ger._ to prevent, II. 1189; +_pp._ hindered, I. i. 8. 100. + +LETTING, _s._ hindrance, I. i. 9. 114. + +LETTOURS, _s. pl._ hinderers, I. i. 3. 126. + +LETTRED, _pp._ learned, XXIV. 302. + +LEUDE, _adj._ ignorant, I. i. _pr._ 16. + +LEUDNESSE, _s._ ignorance, want of skill, I. i. _pr._ 19. + +LEVE, _s._ belief, II. 1135. + +LEVE, _adj. pl._ dear ones, IV. 354. + +LEVE, _v._ leave, abandon, XVI. 534; _pr. s._ leaves off, ceases, I. ii. +5. 46; remains, I. ii. 4. 7; is left, XVI. 668; _pp._ left, I. i. 7. +22; neglected, I. ii. 9. 191. + +LEVEN, _ger._ to believe, II. 895; V. 56; _v._ I. ii. 13. 130; _1 pr. +s._ XVI. 710; _imp. s._ XVIII. 237; _pp._ I. i. 4. 69. + +LEVER, _adv._ sooner, rather, I. ii. 10. 71; VIII. 535. + +LEVES, _s. pl._ leaves, XXIV. 519. + +LEWED, _adj._ ignorant, II. 146, 970; Lewde, unskilful, XIX. 1; +ill-omened, XVIII. 50. + +LEYSER, _s._ leisure, V. 129; XIX. 13; Leysar, I. i. 2. 43. + +LICH, _adj._ like, similar, I. i. 5. 42; II. 303; XXIV. 696; Liche, _pl._ +alike, I. i. 5. 46. + +LICHE, _adv._ alike, XXI. 117. + +LIERE, _s._ Liar, XXIV. 1242. + +LIFT, _adj._ left, I. i. 1. 111; I. ii. 1. 6. + +LIGE, _adj._ liege, VI. 9. + +LIGEAUNCE, _s._ allegiance, I. i. 6. 165; VI. 37. + +LIGGE, _ger._ to lie, I. ii. 6. 90; Lig, _v._ II. 4; _2 pr. pl._ lodge, +III. 81; _pr. pl._ lie still, III. 181. + +LIGGEN, _2 pr. pl._ lay, III. 46. (Incorrectly used.) + +LIGHT, _adj._ easy, IV. 218; Lighter, _comp._ I. ii. 12. 202. + +LIGHT, _s._ lightning, XIV. 37. See note. As 'lightning' is certainly +meant, a better reading would be _leyt_. + +LIGHTE, _pr. s. subj._ may alight, alight, X. 83; _pt. s._ I. i. 2. 5. + +LIGHTINGE, _pres. pt._ shining; _suche lightinge_, giving such a kind of +light, I. ii. 6. 101. + +LIGHTLES, _adj._ deprived of light, I. i. 1. 20. + +LIGHTLY, _adv._ easily, I. ii. 5. 121; XVI. 426. + +LIGHTSOM, _adj._ light, XVI. 405; pleasant, X. 30. + +LIGNES (?), I. ii. 3. 10; see note, p. 467. + +LIMITACION, _s._ boundary, limit, III. 85. + +LIMITORS, _s. pl._ friars begging within a fixed limit, III. 83. + +LIMMES, _s. pl._ limbs, IV. 260; XXIV. 228. + +LINET, _s._ linnet, XXIV. 1408. + +LIPPER, _adj._ belonging to lepers, XVII. 438; leprous, XVII. 372. + +LIPPER-LEID, _s._ leper-folk, XVII. 451. + +LISSE, _s._ comfort, alleviation, I. ii. 14. 3. + +LISSEN, _v._ ease, relieve, XVIII. 245; _pp._ I. iii. 6. 13. + +LIST, _pr. s._ is pleased, I. i. 3. 35; XVI. 455; _pr. s._ prefers, likes, +XVII. 256; List, _2 pr. pl._ are (you) pleased, XVI. 276; _pr. s. subj._ +may please, IX. 63; _pt. s. subj._ (it) should please, IX. 255. + +LISTED, _pp._ listened, IX. 29. + +LISTIS, _s. pl._ borders, XVII. 179. + +LIVING, _pres. pt._ living, existing, (_but perhaps an error for_ leming, +i.e. shining), X. 24. See note. + +LIVINGES, _s. pl._ modes of life (?), I. ii. 1. 119 (_perhaps an error for_ +livinge). + +LODEMANAGE, _s._ pilotage, steering, XIII. 61. + +LODESTERRE, _s._ lode-star, guiding star, XVI. 257. + +LOËNGE, _s._ praise, IV. 371. + +LOGGE, _s._ lodge, VIII. 585. + +LOGGED, _pp._ lodged, I. i. 2. 18. + +LOGGING, _s._ lodging, abode, XVI. 82. + +LOKE, _ger._ to look, I. iii. 6. 97; _pr. s. subj._ let (him) see, II. 834; +Lokeden, _pt. pl._ looked, I. i. 7. 105. + +LOKERS, _s. pl._ onlookers, I. i. 5. 71. + +LOLLERS, _s._ Lollards, II. 73, 88. + +LONDE, _s._ country, II. 1138. + +LONDLEES, _adj._ landless, II. 73. + +LOND-TILLERS, _s. pl._ farmers, I. i. 3. 32. + +LONGETH, _pr. s._ belongs, I. ii. 9. 78; II. 965; XVI. 53; is suitable, +XXIV. 408; _pt. s._ XXI. 518. + +LOOS, _s._ praise, I. i. 7. 26; fame, VI. 8; _badde l._, ill fame, I. i. 6. +179. + +LORDLYCH, _adj._ lordly, II. 1052. + +LORE, _s._ teaching, I. i. 4. 48; IX. 220. + +LORE, _pp._ lost, II. 731, 986. + +LORELL, _s._ abandoned wretch, II. 374, 1138. + +LORN, _pp._ lost, I. i. 4. 28; I. ii. 3. 77. + +LOSE, _s._ praise; _out of lose_, to my dispraise, IX. 234. + +LOSED, _pp._ praised, I. i. 8. 113, 126. + +LOSEL, _s._ abandoned wretch, I. ii. 2. 49. + +LOSENGEOUR, _s._ flatterer, I. ii. 2. 52. + +LOSENGERY, _s._ flattery, II. 635; III. 202. + +LOTHE, _adj._ hated, I. i. 3. 37; _pl._ hostile ones, IV. 354. + +LOTHER, _adj._ more loath, XVIII. 160. + +LOUGH, _pt. s._ laughed, XXI. 279. + +LOUPE, _s._ a hard knot in a gem, X. 92, 93. See note. + +LOUTE, _v._ bow down, II. 181; _pt. pl._ I. i. 10. 10. + +LOUTINGES, _s._ salutations, respects, I. i. 5. 116. + +LOVEDAY, _s._ day of reconciliation, I. i. 2. 95. + +LOWE, _s._ blaze; _on a l._, in a blaze, V. 61. + +LOWED, _pp._ set low, put down, I. iii. 6. 11. + +LUCERNE, _s._ lantern, XIX. 23; XXIV. 632. + +LUCIFER, the morning-star, IX. 115. + +LUIFFERIS, _s. pl._ lovers, XVII. 140. + +LUIFIS, _gen. sing._ love's, of love, XVII. 22. + +LURE, _s._ lure, enticement, II. 88; XVI. 634. + +LURKEN, _pr. pl._ lurk, I. i. 8. 80. + +LUST, _s._ pleasure, I. i. _pr._ 74; XXIV. 272. + +LUST, _pr. pl._ please, are pleased, XX. 590. + +LUSTY, _adj._ pleasureable, I. iii. 1. 129. _adv._ jollily, II. 434. + +LYART, _adv._ gray, XVII. 162. + +LYBEL, _s._ bill (of divorce), I. iii. 2. 14; XVII. 74. (See note, p. 480.) + +LYF, _s._ person, IV. 86. + +LYFELICH, _adj._ lively, I. iii. 9. 107; life-giving, I. i. _pr._ 12. + +LYKE, _v._ please, XXIV. 394; _pr. s. impers._ XVIII. 43. + +LYKINGE, _adj._ pleasant, I. i. _pr._ 74; delicate, III. 297. + +LYKLY, _adj._ similar, II. 1303. + +LYNDE, _s. dat._ lime-tree, IX. 256. + +LYNES, _s. pl._ lines, I. iii. 8. 7. See the note, p. 483. + +LYNX, _s._ lynx, I. ii. 8. 104. + +LYOUN, _s._ lion, II. 1317. + +LYRE, _s._ complexion, hue, XVII. 339. + +LYTE, _s._ little, XVIII. 42; XX. 205; _adv._ VIII. 413. + +LYTHER, _adj._ vicious, XVIII. 14. + +LYVELODE, _s._ livelihood, I. iii. 5. 104; Lyvelod, II. 34. + + + +MACULAIT, _adj._ stained, XVII. 81. + +MAD, _pp._ made, XIII. 12; written, I. iii. 9. 84. + +MADDING, _s._ madness, V. 131. + +MAIST, _adv._ most, XVII. 52. + +MAISTRES, _s._ mistress, I. iii. 4. 227. + +MAISTRYE, _s._ mastery, power, I. i. 3. 128; miracle, II. 900. + +MAKE, _s._ companion, V. 57; IX. 56; XVIII. 183. + +MAKERS, _s. pl._ poets, I. iii. 4. 258. + +MAKING, _s._ composition of poetry, IX. 237; poem, II. 1066. + +MALAPERT, _adj._ malapert, XXIV. 737. + +MALE, _s._ bag, II. 145. + +MALE-BOUCHE, _s._ Scandal, VIII. 260; IX. 84; XVI. 741; XX. 580. + +MANACE, _s._ threat, II. 1370. + +MANACE, _v._ menace, XVI. 615. + +MANERLESSE, _adj._ devoid of good manners, rude, XVI. 714. + +MANLICH, _adj._ manly, I. ii. 4. 46. + +MANNA, _s._ manna, I. iii. 9. 98; II. 784. + +MAPLE, _s._ maple-tree, XVIII. 283. + +MARCHANDRY, _s._ trade, II. 800. + +MARCIAL, _adj._ warlike, I. i. 5. 29. + +MARGARETTES, _s. pl._ daisies, XXI. 57. + +MARGARIT-PERLE, _s._ pearl, I. iii. 1. 35; _pl._ I. iii. 1. 37. + +MARJOLAIN, _s._ marjoram, XXI. 56. + +MARKET-BETERS, _s. pl._ haunters of the market, II. 871. + +MARS, i.e. ordeal by combat, I. i. 7. 11. + +MARTYR, _s._ martyr, I. i. 7. 115; _pl._ Martres, V. 316; XXIV. 1376. + +MARTYRE, _ger._ to be martyred, IV. 341; Martred, _pp._ martyred, full of +martyrdom, I. ii. 9. 108. + +MASE, _s._ maze, XXI. 17, 32. + +MASED, _pp._ amazed, confused, I. i. 3. 103; perplexed, XXI. 38. + +MASONRY, masonry, _s._ XXI. 53. + +MASSEDAY, _s._ day when mass is said, I. i. 5. 103. + +MAST, _s._ mast (of a ship), XXIV. 88. + +MASTE, _s._ mast fallen from trees, beech-mast, I. i. 3. 42. + +MATE, _adj._ depressed, XVI. 35. + +MATED, _pp._ overcome, I. i. 1. 120. + +MATENS, _s. pl._ matins, XXIV. 1353. + +MATER, _s._ matter, I. iii. 9. 85. + +MAUGRÈ, _prep._ in spite of, II. 886; V. 232; _m. me_, in spite of myself, +unwillingly, I. iii. 3. 114. + +MAUGRÈ, _s._ ill will, XVI. 240; Maugree, dislike, V. 376; displeasure, I. +ii. 6. 53. + +MAUNDËMENTS, _s. pl._ commandments, II. 633. + +MAVIS, _s._ thrush, XVII. 430; XXIV. 798. + +MAY, _pr. s._ can (do a thing), I. ii. 7. 131. + +MAYNTENAUNCE, _s._ abetting, II. 1256. + +MAYNTEYNOURS, _s. pl._ maintainers, abettors, II. 302, 801. + +MAYRE, _s._ mayor, I. ii. 6. 132. + +MAYSTERFULLY, _adv._ tyrannously, II. 656. + +MAYSTERS, _s. pl._ masters, II. 1115. + +MAYSTRESHIP, _s._ sovereignty, I. ii. 3. 40; rank of a master, II. 1122. + +MAYSTRESSE, _s._ mistress, I. i. 4. 18. + +MAYSTRY, _s._ mastery, II. 1117; superior powers, I. ii. 2. 23. (_That +wolden m. me have_, who wished me to have authority.) + +ME, _indef. pron._ one, I. i. _pr._ 68; I. i. 1. 18; I. ii. 11. 10; I. iii. +8. 10; XXI. 22. + +MEDE, _s._ reward, II. 944. + +MEDED, _pp._ rewarded, I. ii. 9. 98; I. iii. 2. 11. + +MEDEFULLY, _adv._ deservedly, I. iii. 2. 37. + +MEDLEST, _pr. s._ takest part, interferest, I. i. 7. 111; _pp._ mingled, I. +ii. 13. 76; I. iii. 7. 33; XVI. 657. + +MEDLE-TREE, _s._ medlar, XX. 86, 442. + +MEDLINGE, _pres. pt._ meddling, I. ii. 10. 51; mixture, I. ii. 1. 92; +interference, I. i. 6. 77. + +MEEDFUL, _adj._ meritorious, III. 178. + +MEES, _s. pl._ dwellings, houses, V. 334. O.F. _mes_, _meis_, _meix_, +'ferme ... habitation, démeure'; Godefroy. + +MEID, _s._ reward, recompense, XVII. 277. + +MELANCOLIOUS, _adj._ melancholy, XX. 314. + +MELDROP, _s._ hanging drop of mucus, XVII. 158. + +MELES, _s. pl._ meals, II. 1036. + +MELL, _v._ meddle, II. 857. + +MEMORIAL, _s._ memory, XXIV. 876. + +MEMOUR, _s._ memory, XVII. 465. + +MENE, _adj._ intermediate, I. ii. 12. 56; middle, XXIV. 652. + +MENE, _s._ mean, intermediate, III. 162; mean, I. iii. 5. 53; middle +course, III. 170; mediator, I. ii. 2. 100; method, way, I. i. _pr._ 54; +moderation (?), I. ii. 10. 43. + +MENING, _s._ intention, XVI. 393; _pl._ I. i. 8. 30. + +MERCHANDE, _s._ (_perhaps_) merchants' meeting, VII. (_title_). + +MERCIABLE, _adj._ merciful, II. 96; XXII. 62; XXIV. 645. + +MERCIABLY, _adv._ mercifully, I. iii. 9. 73. + +MERLE, _s._ blackbird, XVII. 430. + +MERVAYL, _s._ marvel, XXI. 648. + +MERY, _adj._ pleasant, I. ii. 9. 131. + +MES, _s._ dish, course of meats, XVI. 154. + +MESCHAUNCË, _s._ misfortune, VII. 179. + +MESCREAUNCE, _s._ unbelief, VI. 50. + +MESURABELLY, _adv._ with moderation, XVI. 248. + +MESURABLE, _adj._ moderate, V. 350. + +MESURE, _imp. s._ moderate, X. 119. + +METE-BORDE, _s._ dining-table, I. ii. 2. 61. + +METELY, _adj._ moderate, i.e. of middle height, XXI. 79. + +METRICIANS, _s. pl._ men skilled in metre, XXIV. 30. + +MEVABLE, _adj._ moveable; i.e. (more) moveable, XIV. 36. + +MEVE, _ger._ to move, I. i. 1. 109; _pr. s._ moves, V. 432; _2 pt. pl._ +discussed, I. iii. 5. 158. + +MEVINGES, _s. pl._ motions, I. ii. 9. 45. + +MEWARD; _to m._, towards me, i. ii. 9. 123. + +MEWE, _s._ mew, coop; _in mewe_, under restraint, XVI. 338. + +MEWET, _adj._ mute; _in m._, in a tone unheard, to myself, XXIV. 148. + +MEYNALL, _adj._ belonging to their household, domestic, II. 322. See note, +p. 487. + +MEYNT, _pp._ mingled, VIII. 229. + +MEYNY, _s._ household, I. ii. 5. 52; crowd, I. i. 7. 104; followers, I. i. +6. 145. + +MICHEL, _adv._ much, V. 142. + +MIDDIS, _s._ midst, XVII. 5. + +MIDLE-ERTH, _s._ the earth, I. iii. 1. 65. + +MILK-WHYT, _adj._ milk-white, XXIV. 787. + +MINDE, _s._ remembrance, XI. 42. + +MING, _imp. s._ mix, XVII. 613; _pp._ 236. + +MIROUR, _s._ mirror, V. 179. + +MIRTHED, _pp._ cheered, I. ii. 3. 98. + +MIS, _adj._ wrong, I. ii. 5. 111; II. 1197; VIII. 603; XXII. 61; _pl._ +things that are wrong, I. ii. 9. 84. + +MISCARY, _v._ go astray, fail, I. ii. 14. 98; _pp._ gone astray, I. ii. 4. +106. + +MISCHAUNCE, _s._ a curse, ill luck, II. 1168; III. 423. + +MISCHESE, _2 pr. pl._ choose amiss, VII. 187. + +MISCHEVES, _s._ diseases, X. 54. + +MISCLEPINGE, _s._ misnaming, I. i. 10. 46. + +MISCORDEN, _pr. pl._ disagree, I. ii. 14. 27. + +MISCREANTS, _s. pl._ unbelievers, IV. 268. + +MISESE, _s._ lack of ease, misery, I. ii. 5. 21. + +MISESY, _adj._ uneasy, I. i. 3. 150. + +MISGLOSED, _pp._ misinterpreted, I. ii. 1. 59. + +MISGO, _pp._ gone astray, II. 756. + +MISGOING, _s._ error, I. ii. 8. 129. + +MISHAPPED, _pp._ come to misfortune, V. 217. + +MISPEND, _v._ misspend, II. 618. + +MISPLESAUNCE, _s._ displeasure, grief, I. i. 3. 22. + +MISQUEME, _pr. s. subj._ displease, II. 647. + +MIS-SECHING, _s._ seeking amiss, I. ii. 11. 48. + +MISSE-MENING, _adj._ ill-intentioned, I. ii. 9. 88. + +MISTER, _s._ occupation, handicraft; _m. folk_, craftsmen, XXIV. 227. + +MISTIHEDE, _s._ mistiness, darkness, XXII. 33. + +MISTURNEN, _v._ overturn, change the fortunes of, I. i. 10. 31; _pp._ +altered amiss, I. ii. 5. 88; misdirected, I. ii. 4. 11. + +MISTY, _adj._ mystic, mysterious, X. 134. + +MISUSING, _s._ misuse, VII. 95. + +MISWENT, _pp._ gone astray, I. ii. 10. 143. + +MO, _adv._ besides, X. 1; XVI. 713; _adj._ others, I. i. 5. 11; others +besides, XVI. 329, 480; XXI. 60. + +MOCHE-FOLDE, _adj._ manifold, I. i. 8. 43. + +MOCHEL, _adj._ much, XVIII. 240. + +MODER, _s._ mother, I. iii. 8. 86. + +MODIFY, _ger._ to adjudge, appoint, specify, XVII. 299. + +MOEBLE, _s._ (moveable) property, wealth, I. i. 3. 231; I. i. 4. 62; _pl._ +I. i. 9. 15. + +MOKEL, _adv._ much, I. ii. 6. 161. + +MOKKEN, _ger._ to mock, XXIV. 1186. + +MOLLES, _s. pl._ birds of the kite or buzzard family (see the context); II. +1338. (The exact sense is not known.) + +MONE, _s._ moon, II. 2. + +MONE, _s._ moan, lament, I. iii. 7. 23; X. 77; XI. 104. + +MONED, _pp._ bemoaned, I. i. 2. 124. + +MONETH, _s._ month, I. ii. 8. 113; XIII. 20. + +MOO, _adj._ more numerous, III. 421. + +MOON, _s._ moan, lament, XVI. 783. + +MOOT, _pr. s._ must, V. 35. + +MORE, _adj._ greater, I. i. 1. 69; I. ii. 9. 73; I. iii. 1. 63; Mores, +_adj. gen._; _that mores_, of that greater thing, I. ii. 9. 74. + +MORNING, _s._ mourning, XXIV. 250. + +MOROW-DAY, _s._ morn, XXIV. 437. + +MOROWNING, _s._ morning, VIII. 25. + +MOTE, _pr. s. subj._ may, II. 60; V. 111. + +MOTLË, _s._ motley, VIII. 72. + +MOUCHE, _pr. pl._ sneak about, II. 947. + +MOULE, _v._ go mouldy, be putrid, II. 1275; _pp._ gone mouldy, I. ii. 2. +29. + +MOUN, _2 pr. pl._ can, are able to, I. i. 5. 22. + +MOUNTENANCE, _s._ amount, period, I. i. 9. 49. + +MOUSTRE, _s._ example, pattern, I. ii. 6. 86. + +MOW, _pr. pl._ may, V. 381; Mowe, _2 pr. pl._ can, III. 94; _pr. pl._ I. +ii. 6. 155. + +MOWLIT, _adj._ mouldy, XVII. 441. + +MUFE, _ger._ to move, provoke, XVII. 352. + +MURTHED, _pt. s._ cheered, I. i. 1. 11. + +MUSE, _v._ study, meditate, V. 238; _pt. s._ considered, II. 89. + +MUSKLE, _s._ mussel (shell-fish), I. ii. 12. 32; _pl._ I. iii. 1. 45. + +MYND, _s._ memory, II. 1076; remembrance, I. i. 1. 20. + +MYRRE, _s._ myrrh, VIII. 66. + +MYSTERE, _s._ ministry, II. 216. + +MYSTRY, _s._ mystery, II. 1219. + +MYTE, _s._ mite, I. ii. 3. 68. + + + +NAD, _pt. s._ had not, V. 357. + +NAKED, _pt. s._ deprived, V. 353. + +NALE, _s._; _at the nale_ = _at then ale_, at the ale-house, II. 870. + +NAME-CLEPING, _s._ naming, I. iii. 1. 42. + +NAMELICHE, _adv._ especially, I. iii. 6. 100; Namely, I. i. 2. 27; III. +264; V. 322; VIII. 480. + +NAMORE, no more, V. 357. + +NAR, _adv._ nearer, XVII. 263. + +NAT-FOR-THAN, _adv._ nevertheless, I. iii. 5. 52. + +NAUGHT, _adj._ wicked, XVIII. 190; Naughty, I. ii. 5. 7. + +NAY, _s._ denial, XVIII. 281; denying, XXI. 351, 521. + +NAYED, _pp._ said no, I. i. 7. 7. + +NEBULE, _s._ mist, X. 53. + +NEDE, _s._ need, V. 77. + +NEDES, _adv._ of necessity, I. iii. 2. 83. + +NEDEST, _2 pr. s._ art needy, I. ii. 5. 16. + +NEDY, _adj._ needy, II. 1086. + +NEEDLY, _adv._ needs, XXIV. 644. + +NEER, _adv._ nearer, XVI. 198, 201. + +NEET, _s. pl._ neat cattle, I. ii. 2. 31. + +NEIGHE, _v._ approach, I. i. 2. 32; _pr. s._ approaches, I. ii. 12. 14; I. +iii. 4. 100; Neigh, _pr. s. imp._ may it come near to, I. iii. 3. 131. + +NEIST, _adj._ nearest, XVII. 109. + +NELD, _s._ needle, II. 780; XIII. 62. + +NE-MOUBLIE-MIES, _s. pl._ forget-me-nots, XXI. 61. See note, p. 535. + +NEMPNE, _v._ name, mention, I. i. 6. 172; I. iii. 8. 14; _2 pr. s._ I. iii. +5. 143; _2 pt. s._ didst name, I. ii. 4. 30; _pp._ I. i. 7. 48. + +NER, _adv._ nearer, XXIV. 113; Nere, XXIV. 749, 1274; nearly (i.e. it +touched her very nearly), XXI. 663. + +NERE, _adv._ never, I. i. 6. 89; XXIV. 1197. + +NERE, _for_ Ne were, were it not (for), XXII. 34; _n. it_, were it not, I. +i. 3. 119. + +NESSH, _adj._ soft, XXIV. 1092. + +NETTIL, _s._ nettle, I. i. 2. 167. + +NEVER-THE-LATTER (-LATER), nevertheless, I. i. 1. 19; I. i. 6. 137; I. ii. +1. 94. + +NEWE, _adj._; _for the n._, in the new guise, II. 926. + +NEWEFANGELNESSE, _s._ newfangledness, IX. 173; XIII. 54. + +NEXT, _adj._ nearest, most intimate, I. i. 4. 17. + +NEYGHED, _1 pt. s._ drew near, I. i. 3. 45. + +NIGARD, _s._ niggard, XII. 47; Nigges, _pl._ II. 757. + +NIGHTERTALE, _s._ night-time, XXIV. 999, 1355. + +NIL, _pr. pl._ will not, I. i. 1. 102; II. 950; Nilt, wilt not, XI. 38. + +NIST, _2 pr. s._ knowest not, II. 1172. + +NOBLERER, _adj._ more noble, I. ii. 1. 106. + +NOBLES, _s. pl._ coins so called, I. iii. 5. 120. A _noble_ was worth 6_s._ +8_d._ + +NOBLEY, _s._ nobility, I. iii. 1. 142; VII. 73; nobleness, I. i. 1. 62; +XVI. 473; excellence, I. ii. 9. 62. + +NOGHT, _adj._ evil, V. 321. + +NO-KINS WYSE, lit. 'a way of no kind,' no kind of way, XVI. 384. + +NOMBRE, _s._ number, proportion, I. i. 8. 119. + +NOMBRED, _pp._ numbered, estimated, X. 100. + +NOMPERE, _s._ umpire, I. i. 2. 96. + +NON, none, i.e. not, I. i. 2. 62. + +NON-CERTAYN, _s._ uncertainty, I. iii. 1. 61. + +NONES; _for the n._, for the occasion, XX. 198. + +NONNES, _s. pl._ nuns, XXIV. 1102. + +NONPOWER, _s._ weakness, I. ii. 7. 36. + +NOOT, _1 pr. s._ know not, XXIV. 909. + +NORICE, _s._ nurse, VI. 58. + +NORITURE, _s._ nutriment, I. i. 1. 34. + +NORTURE, _s._ good breeding, XXII. 1. + +NORY, _s._ pupil. I. i. 2. 37; _pl._ I. i. 2. 121. + +NOT, _1 pr. s._ know not, I. i. 1. 119; I. iii. 1. 158; _pr. s._ knows not, +XVIII. 203. + +NOTHING, _adv._ not at all, in no respect, I. i. 2. 139; XVI. 132. + +NOUGHTY, _adj._ needy, II. 1097. + +NOVELLERIES, _s. pl._ novelties, I. ii. 14. 42. + +NOW-A-DAYES, _adv._ now-a-days, VII. 134. + +NOY, _2 pr. pl._ annoy, XVI. 795. + +NUISAUNCE, _s._ annoyance, VI. 47. + +NUNCUPACION, _s._ naming, I. i. 9. 119. + +NUREIS, _s._ nurse, nourisher, XVII. 171, 199. + +NUTTE, _s._ nut, I. i. 3. 32. + +NYCE, _adj._ foolish, V. 148; VII. 14; XVIII. 13; Nyse, I. i. 4. 55. + +NYCETÈ, _s._ folly, I. iii. 4. 257. + +NYE-BORE, _s._ neighbour, I. ii. 9. 144. + + + +O, _adj._ one and the same, XI. 44. + +OBEDIENCER, _adj._ under obedience, I. iii. 1. 131. + +OBEYSAUNCE, _s._ obedience, XXIV. 47. + +OBEYSAUNT, _adj._ obedient, II. 182. + +OBUMBRED, _pp._ overshadowed, X. 102. See note, p. 512. + +OCCIAN, _s._ ocean, XIV. 45. + +OCCUPACIOUN, _s._ occupation, employment, XX. 565. + +OCCUPYER, _s._ owner, user, I. ii. 5. 75; I. ii. 6. 30. + +OCHANE, _s._ och hone! cry of woe, XVII. 541. + +OCY, _s._ French _oci_, an exclamation imitating the cry of a nightingale, +XVIII. 124, 127, 135. See note. + +OF, _prep._ for (with _biseche_), XIX. 26; during, XVIII. 42, 54; XX. 40. + +OF-DROW, _pt. s._ drew off, II. 7. + +OFFEND, _pp._ offended, II. 538. + +OFFICE, _s._ duty, XVI. 468. + +OFFREND, _s._ offering, II. 490. + +OF-NEW, _adv._ anew, XX. 319. + +OFTSISS, _adv._ oftentimes, XXVI. 6; -syis, XVII. 525. + +OKES, _s. pl._ oaks, I. iii. 6. 6. + +ON, _prep._ against, I. ii. 3. 101. + +ONBELDE, _ger._ to build on, X. 111. + +ON-BREDE, _adv._ abroad, VIII. 33. + +ONBYDE, _ger._ to abide, I. iii. 5. 68; _v._ I. iii. 6. 147; remain, I. +iii. 7. 161; _1 pr. s._ await, I. iii. 3. 128. + +ONE, _pr. pl._ unite, I. iii. 4. 165; _pp._ joined together, I. ii. 8. 50. + +ONHEED, _s._ unity, I. iii. 3. 9; Onhed, I. ii. 13. 21. + +ON-LOFT, _adv._ aloft, upwards, XXIV. 1293. + +ON-LYVE, _adv._ alive, II. 1223; IV. 71; VIII. 158; XIV. 22; XVIII. 141; +XXIV. 780. + +ONY, _pron._ any, III. 30; XVII. 118. + +OO, one, V. 165, 258. + +OO-FOLD, _adj._ simple, lit. one-fold, XIII. 90. Cf. Lat. _sim-plex_. + +OOK, _s._ oak, VIII. 73. + +OON, one, any one, XX. 74; Oon and oon, severally, XX. 144. + +OONHED, _s._ unity, I. iii. 2. 34. + +OPE, _adj._ open, XXIV. 262; Open, displayed, I. ii. 6. 79; _as s._ a thing +open, II. 220. + +OR, _conj._ ere, IV. 176; VII. 32; Or that, before, XVI. 802. + +ORATURE, _s._ oratory, XVII. 8. + +ORDENAUNCE, _s._ arrangement, XXI. 235. See ORDINAUNCE. + +ORDERS, _s. pl._ orders (of friars), III. 28. + +ORDINABLE, _adj._ adjustable, brought into relation with, I. ii. 13. 29. + +ORDINAUNCE, _s._ order, XXI. 575; (apparently) self-control, decision, XVI. +153; warlike array, XVI. 818; orderly disposition, I. ii. 5. 43; a row, +XXI. 57. + +ORIENT, _adj._ (_as applied to gems_), of prime excellence, XX. 148 (see +note); XXI. 528; XXIV. 788. + +ORIZONT, _s._ horizon, VIII. 6. + +ORNAT, _adj._ ornate, XXIV. 34. + +OTHERWHILE, _adv._ sometimes, I. i. 7. 56; I. ii. 13. 96; V. 49. + +OTHERWYSED, _pp._ changed, altered, I. ii. 1. 9. + +OUCHES, _s._ settings for jewels, II. 904, 1006. + +OURFRET, _pp._ covered over, XVII. 163. + +OURQUHELMIT, _pt. pl._ overwhelmed, covered, XVII. 401. + +OURSPRED, _pp._ overspread, marked all over, XVII. 339. + +OUT-BRINGE, _v._ educe, I. ii. 6. 88. + +OUTFORTH, _adv._ externally, I. ii. 5. 85; I. ii. 10. 145. + +OUT-HELPES, _s. pl._ external aids, I. ii. 5. 46. + +OUTHER, _conj._ either, V. 171. + +OUTHERWHILE, _adv._ sometimes, I. iii. 3. 107. + +OUTRAGE, _s._ violent act, IX. 213; extravagance of conduct, XV. _a._ 2. + +OUTRAGE, _ger._ to banish, drive out, VII. 85. + +OUTRAGIOUSNESSE, _s._ extravagance, II. 507. + +OUTRANCE, _s._ excessive injury, defeat, VI. 36. + +OUT-THROWE, _pp._ thrown out, I. ii. 5. 116. + +OUTWAILL, _s._ outcast, XVII. 129. See note. + +OUT-WAYE, out of the way, I. i. 8. 15. (But read _out-waye-going_ as one +word, meaning deviation; see note to bk. iii. 1. 6; p. 479.) + +OUT-WAYE-GOING, _s._ deviation, error, I. ii. 8. 126. + +OUT-WRESTE, _v._ force out, VIII. 48. + +OVER, _prep._ besides, I. i. _pr._ 88. + +OVER-AL, _adv._ everywhere, I. i. 3. 136; XII. 18. + +OVERCHARGE, _ger._ to overburden, III. 265. + +OVERCHAUNGINGES, _s._ changes, I. iii. 2. 49. + +OVERCOOM, _2 pt. s._ didst overcome, V. 425. + +OVERLEDE, _pr. pl._ oppress, treat cruelly, V. 332; overwhelm, XXII. 32. + +OVERLEYN, _pp._ covered, I. iii. 7. 39. + +OVERLOKE, _ger._ to oversee, I. i. 3. 125. + +OVERLOKERS, _s. pl._ overseers, I. i. 3. 128; I. i. 4. 62. + +OVER-REDE, _adj._ too red, XXIV. 793. + +OVERSEE, _pr. pl._ are overseers of, II. 1021. + +OVERSHAKE, _v._ pass away, XVI. 726. + +OVERSPRAD, _pp._ overspread, VIII. 51. + +OVERTHROWE, _v._ tumble over, I. ii. 7. 70. + +OVERTHWARTLY, _adv._ contrarily, adversely, I. i. 3. 56; perversely, I. +iii. 7. 155. + +OVERTOURNING, _pres. pt._ overwhelming, I. i. 9. 83. + +OVER-WHELMED, _pt. s._ overturned, I. ii. 2. 13. + +OVERWHELMINGES, _s. pl._ circuits overhead, I. iii. 4. 145. + +OW, _pr. s._ ought, II. 545; Oweth, _pr. s._ I. iii. 5. 54; ought (to be), +I. ii. 8. 64; Owe, _pr. pl._ I. iii. 4. 251; Owande, _pres. pt._ due, I. +ii. 1. 104. + +OYNTMENTES, _s. pl._ ointments, I. iii. 9. 78. + + + +PAAS, _s._ pace, XVI. 29. + +PACKE, _s._ pack, bundle of garments, I. ii. 3. 65; Pak, V. 110. + +PADDE, _s._ frog, toad, I. iii. 5. 37. + +PALASY-YUEL, _s._ paralysis, I. iii. 7. 40. + +PALESTRE, _s._ wrestling match, struggle, X. 69. + +PALEYS, _s._ palace, V. 473. + +PALFRAY, _s._ horse (for a lady), XX. 425. + +PALL, _s._ fine cloth, II. 106, 299. + +PALLED, _pp._ rendered vapid, as stale liquor, X. 46; enfeebled, VII. 145. + +PALME, _s._ palm-branch, XXIX. 4. + +PAMFLET, _s._ pamphlet, I. iii. 9. 54. + +PAMPIRED, _pp._ pampered, XXIV. 177. + +PANE, _s._ pain, XVII. 291; Panis, _pl._ 277. + +PANE, _s._ plot of ground, bed for flowers, XVII. 427; Pannes, _s. pl._ +clothes, I. ii. 2. 29. See the note. (A better spelling is _panes_.) + +PAPINJAY, _s._ parrot, used merely in scorn, XVIII. 222. + +PARCEL, _s._ part, portion, I. i. 10. 32; _as adv._ in part, VIII. 224. + +PARDÈ, pardieu, XX. 47; XXI. 753. + +PARDURABLE, _adj._ everlasting, I. ii. 8. 87. + +PARFYTË, _adj. fem._ perfect, IV. 316. + +PARISHENS, _s. pl._ parishioners, II. 767; III. 114. + +PARTABLE, _adj._ divisible, I. ii. 10. 76. + +PARTED, _pt. s._ departed, XVI. 798. + +PARTY, _s._ part, I. ii. 9. 95; XXIV. 1192; _pl._ _On some p._, in some +respects, XVI. 746; Partie, _adv._ partly, XXIV. 1434. + +PASSE, _ger._ to surpass, excel, I. ii. 2. 12; _v._ II. 972; XX. 63; Pas, +_v._ pass beyond, XVI. 76; _pr. s._ IX. 114; _pr. pl._ III. 298; _pp._ past +away, long ago dead, I. i. _pr._ 77. + +PASSIF, _adj._ passive (man), I. i. 6. 122; (thing), I. ii. 9. 102. + +PASSING, _adj._ surpassing, great, severe, I. i. _pr._ 118. + +PASSINGE, _prep._ surpassing, beyond, I. i. _pr._ 90. + +PASSINGLY, _adv._ surpassingly, XX. 352. + +PASSIVE, _s._ subject, I. ii. 12. 6. + +PASTOUR, _s._ shepherd, pastor, II. 582. + +PATENS, _s. pl._ pattens, XXIV. 1087. + +PATRON, _s._ patron, founder, III. 33. + +PAUSACIOUN, _s._ waiting, repose, X. 61. + +PAVILIOUN, _s._ tent, X. 60. + +PAY, _s._ satisfaction; _her to pay_, for a satisfaction to her, VIII. 536. + +PAYËN, _adj._ pagan, IV. 45; _s. pl._ IV. 183. + +PAYNIMS, _pl. adj._ pagan, I. ii. 1. 49; _s. pl._ I. ii. 1. 46. + +PAYNTURE, _s._ painting, I. ii. 13. 78. + +PECOK, _s._ peacock, XXIV. 1408. + +PEES, _s._ peace, IV. 62. + +PEES, _s._ pea, I. i. 8. 118; Peese, I. ii. 9. 126. + +PEIRRY, _s._ perry, XVII. 441. + +PEISE, _ger._ to weigh, consider, XXIV. 689; _pp._ XIII. 91. + +PEITREL, _s._ poitrel, breast-strap (of a horse), XX. 246. + +PELE, _1 pr. s._ appeal, XVI. 783. + +PELURE, _s._ fur, I. ii. 2. 30; II. 106. + +PEND, _pp._ penned, II. 650. + +PENNY, _s._ money, fee, II. 309. + +PENSEES, _s. pl._ pansies, XXI. 62. + +PENSIFHEED, _s._ pensiveness, VIII. 102. + +PENSIVENES, _s._ sadness, XVII. 317. + +PENURITIE, _s._ penury, XVII. 321. + +PENY, _s._ money, III. 142. + +PERAGALL, _s._ equal, II. 130. + +PERAUNTER, _adv._ perhaps, I. ii. 13. 44. + +PERCAS, _adv._ perchance, XXIV. 794. + +PERCE, _v._ pierce, X. 3. + +PERDONED, _pp._ pardoned, XXIV. 288. + +PERDURABLE, _adj._ everlasting, I. ii. 9. 40; IV. 371. + +PERE, _s._ peer, II. 219; _pl._ XVIII. 277. + +PEREGAL, _adj._ fully equal, XII. 16. + +PERELES, _adj._ peerless, VIII. 346. + +PERFITER, _adj._ more perfect, III. 387. + +PERFITEST, _adj._ most perfect, III. 29. + +PERREY, _s._ jewellery, II. 159. + +PERSAUNT, _adj._ piercing, VIII. 28, 358; XXIV. 849. + +PERSE, _pr. pl._ pierce, XXIV. 940. + +PERSÉVER, _v._ persevere, IX. 174. + +PERSONAGE, _s._ dignity, title, II. 269, 723; titles, II. 953. See note to +II. 723, p. 465. + +PERSONER, _s._ a participant, I. ii. 2. 49. See the note. + +PERTE, _adj._ open, evident, I. iii. 7. 70. + +PERTINACIE, _s._ obstinacy, I. ii. 1. 46. + +PERTURBAUNCE, _s._ distress, VIII. 214. + +PESE, _s._ pea, II. 1163. + +PEYNTURE, _s._ painting, description, I. i. 10. 42. + +PEYRETH, _pr. s._ impairs, XVI. 228. (Short for _apeyreth_.) + +PEYSE, _v._ weigh, ponder, IV. 143; _pr. pl._ I. ii. 9. 125. + +PHANE, _s._ vane, weathercock, I. ii. 1. 23. + +PHENIX, _s._ phoenix, II. 1343. + +PHILBERT, _s._ filbert, VIII. 68. + +PILER, _s._ pillar, VI. 13; _pl._ VIII. 358. + +PILGRIMAGED, _1 pt. s._ made a pilgrimage, I. i. _pr._ 122. + +PILL, _ger._ to pillage, rob, II. 355; III. 338; _pp._ III. 317. + +PINCHE AT, _ger._ to find fault with, XIII. 68. + +PISCYNE, _s._ fish-pool, X. 134. + +PITOUS, _adj._ merciful, IV. 345; Pitousë, _fem._ piteous, V. 23. + +PITTË, _s._ pit, well, VIII. 92. + +PLAIN, _adj._ open, true, XIII. 39. + +PLAT, _adv._ flatly, plainly, II. 12. + +PLATE, _s._ coin, I. i. 7. 98. + +PLAYING-FERE, _s._ playmate, II. 723. + +PLAYN, _s._ plain, VIII. 44. + +PLAYN, _adj._ flat, free from mountains, XVI. 750. + +PLAYNE, _v._ complain, I. i. 3. 130; lament, IX. 71. + +PLAYNING, _adj._ complaining, sad, XXI. 611. + +PLAYNTE, _s._ complaint, VIII. 599. + +PLAYTED, _adj._ pleated, involved, I. i. 8. 45. + +PLEDOURS, _s._ pleaders, II. 802. + +PLEE, _s._ plea, pleading, I. ii. 5. 22. + +PLENTUOUSLY, _adv._ fully, I. iii. 5. 16. + +PLESANDLY, _adv._ pleasantly, XVII. 427. + +PLESAUNCE, _s._ pleasure, XVI. 382. + +PLESYR, _s._ pleasure, XX. 113. + +PLEYN, _1 pr. s. refl._ complain, XVI. 785; _pp._ XVIII. 73. + +PLIGHT, _pp._ folded, XXIV. 1102. + +PLITED, _pp._ folded, XXIV. 1440. + +PLITES, _s. pl._ folds, I. iii. 9. 77. + +PLOT, _s._ plot, bed (of flowers), XX. 499. + +PLOW, _s._ plough, II. 1042. + +PLUCKINGE, _s._ inducement, I. ii. 14. 78. + +PLY, _s._ plight, XVII. 501. See note. + +PLYTE, _s._ condition, state (lit. fold), I. ii. 1. 8; I. ii. 9. 103; IV. +318. + +POESIES, _s. pl._ poems, songs, I. iii. 7. 57. + +POESYE-MATER, _s._ composition, I. i. _pr._ 25. + +POINTE; _in p. to_, ready to, I. i. 2. 70. + +POKES, _s. pl._ pockets, II. 933. + +POLEIST, _pp._ polished, XVII. 347. + +POME, _s._ apple; _punical p._, Punic apple, i.e. pomegranate, X. 121. + +POMELLES, _s. pl._ pommels, balls, XXI. 479. + +POPINJAY, _s._ parrot, X. 81; XXIV. 1366. + +PORT, _s._ demeanour, I. i. 5. 73; VIII. 409; XXI. 137. + +PORTRED, _pp._ pourtrayed, II. 135. + +POSSED, _pp._ pushed about, VIII. 236. + +POST, _s._ support, XXIV. 1189. + +POSTERIORITÈ, _s._ being behind, I. iii. 4. 166. + +POTHECAIRIS, _s. pl._ apothecaries, XVII. 248. + +POVERT, _s._ poverty, II. 430. + +POVRE, _adj._ poor, VII. 89; XXI. 62. + +POWDERING, _s._ sprinkling (with bright ornaments), XXI. 530. + +POYNTE; _in p. to_, ready to, I. i. _pr._ 126; _pl._ (_perhaps_) stakes, +XVI. 524. See note, p. 519. + +PRAKTIK, _s._ practice, XVII. 269. + +PRANG, _s._ pang, XXIV. 1150. + +PRAUNCE, _v._ prance about, I. ii. 6. 84. + +PRAY, _s._ prey, II. 355. + +PRAYS, _ger._ to praise, to be worthy of praise, XVI. 631. + +PRECELLING, _pres. pt._ excelling, XVII. 446. + +PREEF, _s._ proof, I. ii. 13. 103; Prefe, XVI. 577. + +PREES, _s._ press, throng, crowd, XX. 592; XXI. 429; _putten me in p._, +force me, I. i. _pr._ 96. + +PREGNANT, _adj._ pregnant, full, comprehensive, XVII. 270. + +PREIF, _imp. pl._ prove, make trial, XVII. 565. + +PREJUDYCE, _s._ harm, XVI. 229. + +PRENE, _s._ brooch, XVII. 423. + +PREROGATYF, _s._ prerogative, first claim, X. 74. + +PREST, _adj._ ready, II. 745. + +PRETENDE, _pr. pl._ tend to advance, I. i. 1. 110. + +PRETERIT, _adj._ preterite, gone by, I. iii. 4. 56. + +PRETILY, _adv._ prettily, XX. 89. + +PRETY, _adj._ pretty, XXIV. 1088. + +PREVAYL, _v._ benefit, be of service to, help, XVI. 519. + +PREVE, _s._ proof, XVI. 751. + +PREVEN, _ger._ to prove, to test, I. i. 5. 15; _v._ V. 55; _pr. s._ XVI. +350; _pp._ XVI. 586. + +PREVY NOR APERT, i.e. in no respect, XVI. 174. + +PRICKE, _s._ dot, point, I. i. 8. 95; moment, I. i. 8. 128. + +PRIME FACE, first look; _at the p. f._, prim[=a] facie, I. i. 6. 57. + +PRINCIPALITÈ, _s._ rule, I. i. 9. 47; -altè, dominion, I. ii. 3. 12. + +PRINT, _s._ impression, XVI. 477. + +PRINTED, _pp._ imprinted, I. ii. 12. 106. + +PRISE, _s._ prize, I. i. 7. 22. + +PRISONMENT, _s._ imprisonment, I. ii. 11. 54. + +PROBATYK, _adj._ sheep-cleansing, X. 134. See note, p. 513. + +PROCESSE, _s._ work, business, XVI. 15. + +PROCURATOUR, _s._ proctor, II. 733. + +PROCUREN, _pr. pl._ procure, suborn, V. 95. (Accented on the _o_.) + +PROFESSE, _s._ the professed member of a religious order, I. iii. 1. 130. + +PROFESSED, _pp._ professed as members, III. 70; devoted, VIII. 296. + +PROPER, _adj._ own, I. i. 10. 112; Propre, peculiar, I. ii. 6. 135. + +PROPER, _s._ personal property, III. 190. + +PROPINQUITÈ, _s._ nearness of kin, I. ii. 2. 101. + +PROPORCIONS, _s. pl._ suppositions, I. iii. 3. 19. (_Probably for_ +propositions.) + +PROPYNE, _imp. s._ give to drink, afford, X. 52. + +PROTECTRICE, _s._ protectrix, X. 57. + +PROVE, _s._ proof, I. iii. 4. 73. + +PROVED, _pp._ approved, VIII. 161. + +PROVENDRE, _s._ prebend, I. ii. 2. 50. + +PROYNED, _pt. pl._ preened, trimmed, XVIII. 76. + +PRUNITH, _pr. s. refl._ preens himself, trims himself, XXIV. 607. + +PRYDED, _pp._ made proud, IV. 257. + +PRYEN, _v._ pry (about), XX. 68. + +PRYMEROSE, _s._ primrose, XXIV. 1437. + +PRYSE, _s._ value, X. 11; Prys, glory, V. 308. + +PSAUTER, _s._ psalter, I. ii. 14. 85. + +PUCELLE, _s._ maiden, X. 54. + +PUISSANCE, _s._ power, XII. 3. + +PULCRITUDE, _s._ beauty, XXIV. 613. + +PULL, _ger._ to pluck, tear, II. 1329. + +PUNGITIVE, _adj._ pungent, i.e. ready to sting, XVII. 229. + +PUNICAL, _adj._ Punic, X. 121. See Pome. + +PUNISSHËMENT, _s._ punishment, V. 467; _pl._ II. 520. + +PURCHACE, _s._ earning (it), obtaining (it), XVI. 322; Purchas, bargain, +XVI. 74; purchase, XXVIII. 3. + +PURCHACE, _imp. s._ purchase, procure, obtain, IV. 124; _1 pr. s. subj._ +XVI. 371. + +PURFELING, _s._ edging, ornamenting an edge, XXI. 527. + +PURFYL, _s._ edge (of her sleeve), XXI. 87, 524; _pl._ XX. 146. + +PURFYLED, _pp._ ornamented at the edge, XX. 328. + +PURGACIOUN, _s._ purgation, a clearing of a false charge, II. 342. + +PURPOSE, _pr. s. subj._ intend, V. 372. + +PURSE, _ger._ to put in their purse, II. 178. + +PURSEVAUNTES, _s. pl._ pursuivants, XX. 232. + +PURTREYTURE, _s._ drawing, I. i. _pr._ 17; _pl._ I. ii. 13. 76. + +PURVEY, _ger._ to provide, XX. 429; _v._ XXIV. 1396; _pp._ I. ii. 14. 9; +XVI. 219; destined, I. i. 1. 46. + +PURVEYAUNCE, _s._ providence, disposal, I. i. 3. 130; IV. 21; VIII. 303; +IX. 68; provision, XVI. 165. + +PURVEYOUR, _s._ purveyor, XXI. 266. + +PUTRYE, _s._ whoredom, II. 287. + +PUTTOCKES, _s. pl._ kites, II. 1338. (Lit. poult(ry)-hawks.) + +PYE, _s._ magpie, II. 1334; XXIV. 1421. + +PYKES, _s. pl._ peaks, II. 930. + +PYLES, _s. pl._ piles, strong stakes, I. ii. 5. 116. + +PYMENT, _s._ piment, wine mixed with honey and spices, II. 432. + +PYNANDE, _pres. pt._ wearisome, I. i. 6. 77; Pynd, _pp._ pined, tortured, +II. 481. + +PYNE, _s._ pain, XVIII. 245; punishment, V. 399. + +PYNE, _s._ pine, VIII. 65; -tree, X. 44. + +PYPE, _v._ pipe, whistle, I. iii. 7. 50. + + + +QUAIR, _s._ book (lit. quire), XVII. 40; Quayre, VIII. 674. + +QUAKE, _v._ quake, VIII. 181. + +QUARELE, _s._ complaint, IV. 242. + +QUARTERS, _s. pl._ quarters (measures so called), I. iii. 5. 120. + +QUAYNTLY, _adv._ curiously, II. 186. + +QUEME, _s._; _to qu._, to your pleasure, VII. 30. + +QUEME, _v._ please, V. 39. + +QUERE, _s._ choir, XXIV. 1417. + +QUEYNT, _pp._ quenched, I. ii. 2. 33; II. 40; Queint, XXIV. 457. + +QUEYNTE, _adj._ curious, XVIII. 182; particular, II. 1013; Queinte, pretty, +XIII. 8. + +QUEYNTYSE, _s._ finery, ornaments, II. 627; Queyntyses, contrivances, I. i. +7. 40. + +QUHAIR, _adv._ where, XVII. 34. + +QUHAIS, _pron._ whose, of which, XVII. 146. + +QUHEN, _adv._ when, XVII. 5. + +QUHETTING, _pres. pt._ whetting, XVII. 193. + +QUHILK, _pron._ which, XVII. 33. + +QUHILL, _adv._ until, XVII. 48, 482. + +QUHISLING, _pres. pt._ whistling, XVII. 20. + +QUHYL, _adv._ sometimes, XVII. 49. + +QUHYTLY, _adj._ whitish, XVII. 214. + +QUIK, _adj._ alive, IX. 256; Quicke, living, III. 71. + +QUYTE, _v._ requite, VIII. 401; repay, IV. 279; _ger._ to requite, XV. _c._ +3; to redeem, IX. 230; Quitte, _pt. s._ requited, V. 304; _pt. pl._ V. 263. + +QUYTINGE, _s._ requital, I. iii. 7. 125, 142. + + + +RACE, _pr. s. subj._ pluck, XXIV. 868. + +RADDEST, _2 pt. s._ readest, hast thou read, I. i. 5. 6; Rad, _pp._ read, +I. i. 2. 91; I. ii. 1. 101; XXI. 473. + +RAGE, _adj._ raging, VII. 143. + +RAKET, _s._ the game of rackets, I. i. 2. 166. + +RAMAGE, _adj._ wild, I. i. 3. 49. + +RANCOUR, _s._ hatred, I. ii. 1. 63; _pl._ heartburnings, I. ii. 6. 32. + +RANK, _adj._ rank, overgrown, II. 407. + +RASOURS, _s. pl._ razors, XIV. 24. + +RATHE, _adv._ soon, I. ii. 8. 9; _to r._, too soon, I. ii. 3. 50; Rather, +_comp._ XVIII. 104; Rathest, _superl._ I. i. 5. 30. + +RAUGHTE, _1 pt. s._ reached down, VIII. 111. + +RAUNSOUN, _s._ ransom, XX. 255. + +RAVE, _ger._ to rave, be mad, XVI. 283. + +RAVEYNOUS, _adj._ ravenous, I. ii. 2. 90. + +RAVINOUR, _s._ gluttonous destroyer, II. 735; Ravinere, spoiler, II. 1318. + +RAVINS, _s. pl._ ravens, II. 1334. + +RAVISSHED, _pp._ torn away, I. ii. 7. 4. + +RAWK, _adj._ hoarse, XVII. 445. Lat. _raucus_. + +RAYED, _pp._ arrayed, XXIV. 819. + +RAYLE, _s._ rail, bar, XXI. 42. See note. + +RËALMES, _s. pl._ kingdoms, I. ii. 7. 23, 33. + +REBÉL, _adj._ rebellious, XVI. 656. + +RECCHE, _v._ reck, care, I. iii. 2. 68; III. 332; _pr. s. subj._ I. ii. 7. +63; _pr. s._ I. iii. 6. 118. + +RECEYT, _s._ receipt, receiving, XVI. 553. + +RECHACE, _s._ ransom, XVI. 324. (An erroneous form, meant to answer to F. +_rachat_; see note.) + +RECHELESS, _adj._ reckless, V. 149. + +RECLAYMED, _pp._ reclaimed (as a hawk), XVI. 634. + +RECOMFORTE, _ger._ to comfort anew, VIII. 8. + +RECORDE, _s._ example, VIII. 330. + +RECOVER, _s._ recovery, I. i. 1. 45; Recour, I. i. 4. 14; Recure, XVII. +335; remedy, VIII. 681. + +RECURED, _pp._ recovered, VIII. 651. + +REDBREST, _s._ redbreast, IX. 58. + +REDE, _s._ advice, II. 739. + +REDE, _1 pr. s._ advise, VII. 77; XXI. 215; Red, _pp._ read, II. 400. + +REDRESSE, _s._ redresser, XXIV. 591. + +REED, _adj._ red, I. i. 4. 31. + +REFRAYNE, _v._ restrain, XVI. 219; hold back, VIII. 341. + +REFRESSHMENTS, _s. pl._ aids, I. iii. 7. 31. + +REFRETE, _s._ burden (of a song), I. iii. 1. 156. See Halliwell. + +REFUSE, _s._ denial, rejection, XVI. 506, 755; Refus, Denial, XVI. 817. + +REFUT, _s._ refuge, XI. 89; shelter, XVI. 845; XXIV. 884. + +REGALL, _adj. as s._ chief, II. 202. + +REGALYE, _s._ sovereignty, royalty, IX. 121; royal rank, IV. 9. + +REGESTER, _imp. s._ register, note, XXIV. 464. + +REGNES, _s. pl._ kingdoms, IV. 261. + +REGRAIT, _s._ complaint, XVII. 397. + +REGULER, _s._ full member of a religious order, I. iii. 1. 131. + +REHERSAYLE, _s._ rehearsal, I. iii. 6. 160. + +REID, _adj._ red, XVII. 211. + +REID, _s._ redness, XVII. 464. + +REIGNATIF, _adj._ governing, I. ii. 2. 83. A coined word. + +REJOICE, _ger._ to enjoy, XVI. 680; _pp._ gained, XVI. 794. + +REJOYSE, _s._ joy, enjoyment, XXIV. 666. + +REKES, _s. pl._ ricks, I. i. _pr._ 100. + +RELEES, _s._ release, VIII. 332; Réles, VIII. 20. + +RELESSE, _v._ relax, XXIV. 1014. + +RELIEF, _s._ remnant, remnants, orts, I. i. _pr._ 109. F. _relief_. + +RELIGIOSITEE, _s._ religiousness, piety, XXIV. 686. + +RELIGIOUN, _s._ a life as of one of a religious order, II. 1041; XXIV. +1101. + +RELYED, _pt. s._ united, I. ii. 6. 39. + +REMEDYE, _s._ Remedy (of Love), V. 204. + +REMEID, _s._ remedy, XVII. 33. + +REMEID, _v._ remedy, cure, XVII. 473. + +REMËNANT, _s._ rest, V. 163. + +REMES, _s. pl._ realms, V. 333; X. 117. + +REMEWE, _v._ move away, change, XVI. 641; _ger._ to remove, XII. 122; +Remuf, XVII. 21. + +REMISSAILES, _s. pl._ left fragments, scraps, leavings, I. i. _pr._ 108. + +RENEGATES, _s. pl._ recreants, renegades, I. ii. 3. 101. + +RENEY, _ger._ to deny, renounce, XXIV. 874. + +RENNE, _ger._ to run, I. i. 1. 107; _pr. pl._ X. 64; _pres. pt._ running, +variable, VIII. 458. + +RENOMÈ, _s._ renown, fame, I. ii. 4. 21; XI. 93. + +RENOMMED, _pp._ renowned, XVI. 756. + +RENOVEL, _ger._ to spring anew, I. ii. 9. 133. + +RENT, _s._ income, II. 281. + +RENTER, _s._ landlord, I. i. 7. 110. + +RENTEST, _2 pt. s._ didst rend, I. i. 8. 40. + +RENYANT, _s._ renegade, I. i. 3. 118. + +REPARATRYCE, _s._ restorer, V. 403. + +REPELE, _v._ recall, repeal, XVI. 649. + +REPENT, _s._ repentance, XXIV. 667. + +REPENTAUNT, _adj._ repentant, I. ii. 10. 49. + +REPLY, _ger._ to turn back, recall, unsay, I. i. 6. 181. + +REPREEF, _s._ reproof, V. 71; XVIII. 174. + +REPRENDE, _v._ reprehend, II. 610. + +REPRESENTATIVE, _adj._ capable of representing, I. ii. 13. 40. + +REPREVABLE, _adj._ reprehensible, V. 319; XVI. 512. + +REPUDY, _s._ divorce, XVII. 74. + +REPUGNAUNCE, _s._ opposition, contrariety, I. iii. 3. 49. + +REPUGNAUNT, _adj._ opposite, contrary, I. iii. 3. 32. + +REPUGNETH, _pr. s._ opposes, I. iii. 2 158. + +REQUESTË, _s._ request (trisyllabic), IV. 27 (not _request_, as in the +text); _withoute r._, unintentionally, XVI. 122. + +RESCEYT, _s._ receptacle, VIII. 226. + +RESCOWE, _ger._ to rescue, XVIII. 228; _v._ XVI. 91; _pp._ I. i. 3. 55. + +RESONABLES, _s. pl._ reasonable beings, I. ii. 10. 12. + +RESONABLICH, _adj._ reasonable, I. ii. 10. 25. + +RESONFULLY, _adv._ reasonably, I. iii. 1. 136. + +RESORT, _s._ place of resort, XXII. 29. + +RESOWNING, _pres. pt._ resounding, sounding, IX. 167. + +RESPIRETH, _pr. s._ breathes again, comes up to breathe, I. i. 5. 35. + +RESPONSAILL, _s._ response, XVII. 127. + +RESPYTE, _ger._ to respite, pardon, VIII. 403. + +RESSOUN, _s._ reason; hence, sentence, declaration, XVII. 606. + +RESTINGE-WHYLES, _s. pl._ times of rest, I. i. 9. 24. + +RETHORICIEN, _s._ rhetorician, XXIX. 2. + +RETHORIKE, _s._ rhetoric, I. i. 2. 133; I. iii. 1. 180; _r. wise_, manner +of rhetoric, I. ii. 2. 3. + +RETHORY, _s._ rhetoric, XVII. 240. + +RETOUR, _s._ return, X. 58; XVII. 51. + +RETOUR, _v._ return, XVII. 464; Returnith, _pr. s._ sends back, XXIV. 1213. + +REULE, _s._ rule, order, IV. 259; Reull, XVII. 233. + +REVE, _v._ tear away, remove, I. ii. 4. 102; _2 pr. s._ XXIV. 1134. + +REVERS, _adj._ reverse, XXIV. 96; opposite, I. iii. 4. 83, 84. + +REVERS, _s._ reverse, opposite, contrary, XII. 132; XXIV. 1190. + +REVERSEST, _pr. s._ goest in the opposite direction, I. iii. 4. 86. + +REVERSINGE, _s._ retrogradation, I. iii. 4. 90. + +REVOLVEN, _v._ turn round, exercise, I. i. 7. 72. + +REVOLVING, _s._ revolution, I. ii. 9. 158. + +REWARDE, _v._ reward, III. 151. + +REWETH, _imp. pl._ have mercy, XI. 62. + +REYNE, _s._ reign, VIII. 510. + +REYNINGE, _pres. pt._ raining, I. i. 2. 46. + +REYVE, _v._ reave, take away, XXIV. 193; bereave, XXIV. 331; _ger._ to rob, +XXIV. 543. + +RIBAUD, _adj._ ribald, XXIV. 479. + +RICHEN, _v._ enrich, II. 738. + +RIGHT, _s._ justice, XVI. 483. + +RIGHTFUL, _adj._ just, I. iii. 3. 66. + +RIGHTWYSE, _adj._ righteous, II. 361. + +RIGHTWYSED, _pp._ justified, I. i. 8. 35. + +RIGHTWYSENESSE, _s._ righteous dealing, I. iii. 2. 28. + +RIGHTWYSLY, _adv._ justly, XVI. 371. + +RIN, _v._ run; _can rin_, ran, did run, XVII. 158. + +RINDE, _s._ bark, VIII. 64. + +RINGAND, _pres. pt._ ringing, XVII. 144. + +RINKIS, _s. pl._ men, people, XVII. 432. + +RINNING, _pres. pt. as adj._ running, talkative, XXIV. 737. + +ROBBERYE, _s._ robbery, II. 190. + +ROBIN REDEBREST, XXIV. 1380. + +RODE, _s._ road, common use, V. 102. + +RODE, _s._ rood, cross, II. 256, 1294. + +RODY, _adj._ ruddy, X. 50; XXIV. 1203. + +ROIS, _s._ rose, XVII. 211. + +ROISING, _pres. pt._ growing rosy, roseate, XVII. 464. + +ROKES, _s. pl._ rooks, II. 1334. + +ROKKETH, _pr. s._ rocks; _but prob. an error for_ Rouketh, i.e. cowers, +XXIV. 1255. + +ROMEN, _v._ roam, XXIV. 651. + +RON, _pt. s._ ran, XVIII. 82; Ronne, _pp._ run, I. i. 6. 70; run (its full +course), IV. 296. + +RONG, _pt. s._ rang, VIII. 45; XX. 100. + +RORE, _s._ tumult, I. i. 6. 150. + +ROSË-FLOUR, _s._ rose, II. 752. + +ROSEN, _adj._ rosy, VIII. 656. + +ROSETH, _pr. s._ grows rosy, grows red, revives, XXII. 59. See note. + +ROSIER, _s._ rose-bush, X. 50. + +ROTE, _s._ rote, XVIII. 71. See note. + +ROUGHT, _pt. s. refl._ recked, I. i. 5. 61. + +ROUM, _s._ room, space, XXI. 552. + +ROUNDE, _ger._ to cut all round, XIII. 84. + +ROUNDEL, _s._ roundel, XI. 40; XX. 176. + +ROUSTY, _adj._ rusty, XVII. 187. + +ROUT, _s._ great company, XX. 196. + +ROWE BY ROWE, in rows, I. i. 9. 70. + +ROWES, _s. pl._ beams, VIII. 596. + +ROWNE, _ger._ to whisper, XIII. 67. + +ROWNING, _s._ whispering, I. i. 5. 89. + +ROWTE, _s._ company, XXIV. 70. + +RUBIFYED, _pp._ reddened, X. 85. + +RUIK, _s._ rook (bird), XVII. 445. + +RUSE, _v._ praise, XVII. 573. + +RUSSET, _adj._ russet-brown, XXIV. 255. + +RYALL, _adj._ royal, XXIV. 306. + +RYALLY, _adv._ royally, XXIV. 71, 1350. + +RYALTEE, _s._ royalty, XXIV. 126. + +RYATOURS, _s. pl._ rioters, riotous persons, II. 281. + +RYDER, _s._ rider (on horseback), I. ii. 1. 62. + +RYME, _v._ rime, I. ii. 2. 74 (see the note, p. 466); write verses, IX. +101. + +RYPING, _adj._ ripening, VII. 153. + +RYVE, _v._ be rent, VIII. 576. + +RYVE, _ger._ to arrive (at), X. 27. + + + +SA, _adv._ so, XVII. 3. + +SACRAMENT, _s._ oath, I. i. 6. 165. + +SAD, _adj._ settled, constant, steadfast, firm, XI. 107; XVII. 567; XXIV. +45. + +SADLY, _adv._ staidly, in a staid manner, XX. 159; firmly, I. i. 1. 79; +permanently, XXIV. 877. + +SAFE-CONDUCTE, _s._ safe conduct, I. iii. 1. 122. + +SAIPHERON, _adj._ made with saffron, XVII. 421. + +SAIT, _s._ seat, XVII. 331. + +SALS, _s._ sauce, XVII. 421. + +SALUED, _1 pt. s._ saluted, I. i. 2. 25; XX. 460; _1 pt. pl._ XXI. 442. + +SALVE, _s._ salve, healing, medicament, IV. 122. + +SAMIN, _adv._ same, XVII. 58, 484. + +_Sans ose ieo dyre_, without saying 'may I dare to mention it,' II. 955. + +SAPHYRE, _s._ sapphire, X. 92; XX. 224; _pl._ XXI. 480. + +SAPIENCE, _s._ wisdom, VII. 50; XIX. 19; XXII. 66; XXIII. 1. + +SARAZINS, _s. pl._ Saracens, I. ii. 3. 100; IV. 250. + +SAT, _pt. s._ affected, pressed upon, XXI. 663. + +SAUF, _prep._ save, except, XXI. 507. + +SAUF, _adj._ safe, IV. 158; Save, _pl._ IV. 291. + +SAUNZ, _prep._ without, XXIV. 117. + +SAUTES, _s. pl._ assaults, VIII. 418. + +SAUTRY, _s._ psaltery, XX. 337. + +SAVOUR, _s._ understanding, I. iii. 4. 79. + +SAWE, _s._ saying, command, II. 359; teaching, II. 641; sayings, XXVIII. 1. + +SAWIN, _pp._ sown, XVII. 137. + +SCAPLERYE, _s._ scapulary, III. 50. + +SCHREWIS, _s. pl._ wicked persons, XXVI. 8. + +SCLAUNDER, _pr. pl._ slander, III. 198; _2 pr. s._ III. 153. + +SCOCHONES, _s. pl._ escutcheons, XX. 216, 223, 237. + +SCOLE-MAISTER, _s._ schoolmaster, oddly used to mean mistress, XVI. 137. + +SCOLERS, _s. pl._ scholars, schoolboys, V. 211. + +SCOLES, _s. pl._ schools, XVI. 329. + +SCORGES, _s. pl._ scourges, I. iii. 9. 69. + +SCOURGE, _ger._ to scourge, I. ii. 11. 94; Scorged, _pp._ I. iii. 9. 74. + +SCRIBABLE, _adj._ fit to write on, XIV. 44. + +SCRIPPE, _s._ scrip, II. 13. + +SCRIPTURE, _s._ writing, I. i. 6. 195. + +SCRIVEYN, _s._ scrivener, scribe, XIV. 47. + +SECHERS, _s. pl._ seekers, I. i. _pr._ 117. + +SECHETH, _imp. pl._ seek, XVI. 518. + +SECREE, _adj._ secret, IX. 195. + +SECTE, _s._ order, III. 38, 58, 106; sex, I. ii. 2. 139. + +SEE, _s._ seat, II. 113. + +SEEMELY, _adj._ handsome, XX. 240. + +SEEMLIHEED, _s._ seemly behaviour, XVIII. 157. + +SEER, _adj._ sere, withered, I. ii. 11. 105; I. iii. 7. 22. + +SEE-SYDES, _s. pl._ coasts, I. iii. 1. 45. + +SEET, _pt. s._ sat, II. 464. + +SEETH, _imp. pl._ see, VII. 158. + +SEE-WARD, sea-ward, I. iii. 5. 78. + +SEID, _s._ seed, XVII. 137, 139. + +SEINT, _s._ girdle, XXIV. 817. + +SEKE, _adj. pl._ sick, XVI. 53; XVIII. 7; XXIV. 948. + +SEKE, _ger._ to seek, to learn, XX. 234 (cf. 229). + +SEKER, _adv._ surely, II. 625. + +SELE, _s._ seal, III. 260; _pl._ II. 328. + +SELF, _adj._ same, XVII. 552. + +SELINESS, _s._ happiness, I. i. 10. 79; I. ii. 4. 6. + +SELY, _adj._ happy, I. ii. 10. 108; simple, IX. 57; innocent, II. 695, +1312. + +SEMBLABLE, _adj._ like, I. i. 9. 37; similar, V. 390. + +SEMBLAUNT, _s._ notice, appearance of taking notice, XVI. 107; glance, I. +ii. 12. 3; mien, XVI. 293; method, I. i. 4. 13. + +SEMELICH, _adj._ seemly, pleasing, I. i. _pr._ 11. + +SEMES, _s. pl._ seams, XX. 142. + +SEN, _conj._ since, XVII. 288. + +SEND, _pp._ sent, II. 546. + +SENE, _adj._ visible, VIII. 437; XVII. 353; XVIII. 65; obvious, I. ii. 6. +156. + +SENE, _ger._ to behold, XX. 157. + +SENGED, _pp._ singed, II. 19. + +SENGLE, _adj._ single, XIII. 89. + +SENTEMENT, _s._ feeling, VIII. 197. + +SENTENCE, _s._ meaning, I. i. _pr._ 9, 12. + +SEPULTURE, _s._ sepulchre, XXIV. 699. + +SEQUELE, _s._ following, X. 59. + +SERE, _adj._ sear, withered, dead (?), I. i. 4. 23. Cf. '_derke_ opinions.' +Or _sere_ may mean 'several, particular.' + +SERMENT, _s._ oath, I. i. 7. 52. + +SERPENTYNES, _adj. pl._ winding, tortuous, I. i. 7. 40. + +SERVAUNT, _s._ lover, XVI. 321. + +SERVEN, _error for_ Serve, _2 pr. s. subj._ serve, XXIV. 290. + +SESSOUN, _s._ seasoning, XVII. 421. + +SET BY, _pp._ esteemed, XVI. 420. + +SETE, _s._ seat, I. ii. 10. 126. + +SETE, _pp._ sat, XX. 436. + +SETLING, _s._ sapling, shoot, I. iii. 5. 23; I. iii. 6. 12. + +SETTE, _v._ (_perhaps_) lay down (a stake), XVI. 524 (see note); _1 pr. s._ +suppose, I. i. 9. 64; _pr. pl._ lay stakes (upon), run risk (upon), XIII. +77. + +SEW, SEWE, _ger._ to follow up, pursue, XXI. 117; to sue, XXI. 420; _v._ +sue, XXI. 594; pursue, XVI. 541; _1 pr. s._ follow, pursue, XVI. 227; _pr. +pl._ follow, II. 608, 776; go, II. 928; sue, XXIV. 265; _imp. s._ sue, XXI. +332. + +SEWE, _pp._ sown, II. 55. + +SEWE, _error for_ Shewe, _ger._ to shew, II. 929. + +SEY, _s._ sea, XVII. 217. + +SEY, _1 pt. s._ saw, XXIV. 693; Seye, _pp._ seen, I. ii. 12. 13. + +SHAD, _pp._ shed, IV. 105. + +SHADDOW, _s._ reflexion, image, XVII. 347. + +SHADOWE, _v._ shelter, II. 587. + +SHAKE, _ger._ to be shaken down, VIII. 63. + +SHALL, _1 pr. s._ owe, XXIV. 131. + +SHAPEN, _pp._ shaped, XX. 64; Shape, II. 926; _imp. pl._ endeavour, VII. +40. + +SHARE, _s._ plough-share, II. 7. + +SHEDE, _v._ part, II. 275. + +SHEDE, _ger._ to shed, VIII. 3; _v._ part, II. 275; _pp._ dispersed, XVII. +18; poured out, I. ii. 2. 27. + +SHEDINGE, _s._ that which is shed or dropped, I. i. _pr._ 112. + +SHEEF, _s._ sheaf, XXI. 3. + +SHEL, _s._ shell, I. i. 3. 78. + +SHENDE, _ger._ to disgrace, I. i. 2. 122; I. iii. 9. 56; to harm, I. ii. 9. +57; to reprove, II. 485; _v._ disgrace, IX. 90; destroy, I. ii. 1. 19; _pr. +s._ disgraces, I. ii. 2. 47; _pr. s. subj._ spoil, V. 132; _pr. pl. subj._ +may (they) disgrace, XVI. 370; Shent, _pp._ reproached, II. 24; scolded, +XVI. 766; exhausted, XX. 360; ill-treated, II. 259; disgraced, I. ii. 3. +77. + +SHENE, _adj._ showy, fair, XVII. 419; bright, VIII. 3; XX. 34. + +SHENE, _ger._ to shine, XXIV. 81. Misused for _shine_. + +SHEPY, _adj._ sheepish, I. i. 6. 161. + +SHERES, _s. pl._ shears, XIII. 84; XIV. 24. + +SHERTE, _s._ shirt, VIII. 489. + +SHETETH, _pr. s._ shoots, VIII. 462. + +SHETH, _s._ sheath, II. 571. + +SHETINGE, _s._ shooting, VIII. 466. + +SHEW, _1 pr. s._ shew, XVII. 287. + +SHILDE, _pr. s. subj._ shield, XVIII. 259. + +SHILL, _adv._ shrilly, XVII. 20. + +SHIPCRAFT, _s._ use of a ship, I. i. 3. 46. + +SHIR, _s._ sir, XVII. 296. + +SHIT, _pp._ shut, XVI. 671; XXIV. 792. + +SHIVER, _v._ break, be shattered, VIII. 46. + +SHO, _pron._ she, XVII. 142. + +SHOCKES, _s. pl._ shocks of corn, I. i. _pr._ 105. + +SHON, _ger._ to shun, XXIV. 381; _pp._ avoided, I. iii. 4. 38. + +SHOON, _s. pl._ shoes, II. 930. + +SHOOP, _pt. s._ endeavoured, I. i. 6. 148; Shopen, _pt. pl._ appointed, +made, I. i. 6. 77; decreed, VIII. 489. + +SHORERS, _s._ posts to shore a thing up, props, I. ii. 7. 87. + +SHOT, _s._ glance, XVI. 145. (F. _trait_.) + +SHOVE, _imp. pl._ push, VI. 36. + +SHREUDNES, _s._ wickedness, I. ii. 6. 14. + +SHREWE, 1 PR. S. curse, XVIII. 250. + +SHRIFTE-FATHERS, _s. pl._ confessors, III. 118. + +SHROUDE, _v. refl._ (to) shelter themselves, XIII. 72; _ger._ to cover, +hide, VIII. 147. + +SHRYFT-SILVER, _s._ money for shriving, II. 941. + +SHRYKED, _pt. s._ shrieked, XXIV. 1149. + +SHYNANDE, _pres. pt._ shining, I. ii. 2. 15; Shynende, I. i. 10. 39. + +SHYRE, _s._ shire, II. 952. + +SICAMOUR, _s._ sycamore, XX. 56 + +SIGHTFUL, _adj._ visible, I. iii. 9. 98. + +SIKER, _adj._ secure, I. iii. 6. 3; sure, I. ii. 6. 62; IV. 319; XIX. 5. + +SIKER, _adv._ certainly, II. 1268. + +SIKERNESSE, _s._ security, VIII. 459; XIII. 6; XVI. 470. + +SILDE, _adv._ seldom, I. ii. 10. 77. + +SIMPLELY, _adv._ simply, XXI. 741. + +SIMPLESSE, _s._ simplicity, XVI. 651. + +SINGULER, _adj._ single, I. i. 8. 103. + +SIT, _pr. s. impers._ suits, IV. 166; V. 339; befits, IV. 52; becomes, +VIII. 552. See SITTETH. + +SITH, _s. pl._ times, XXIV. 621, 1127. + +SITH, _conj._ since, III. 59; VII. 101; XIX. 2; Sithe, VIII. 323; Sithen, +I. i. 2. 13; XVIII. 278. + +SITHEN, _adv._ since, ago, I. ii. 13. 34. + +SITTETH, _pr. s._ suits, XVI. 706; _impers._ (it) oppresses, I. iii. 5. 81; +_pres. pt._ fitting, VIII. 169; XX. 141. + +SKALL, _s._ sore place, scab, II. 282. + +SKERE, _adj._ sheer, clean, pure, II. 987. + +SKIL, _s._ reason, I. ii. 6. 121; Skille, VIII. 378; _pl._ I. i. 4. 7; I. +i. 9. 5. + +SKILFULLY, _adv._ reasonably, III. 27. + +SKIPPEN, _v._ skip, XXIV. 1372. + +SKLAUNDRINGE, _pres. pt._ slandering, I. i. 7. 70. + +SKLEREN, _pr. pl._ veil, I. ii. 14. 25. + +SKOFFES, _s. pl._ scoffs, XXIV. 1185. + +SKRIVENERE, _s._ scrivener, VIII. 194. + +SLAKE, _adj._ slack, ended, XVI. 41. + +SLAKE, _v._ pay slight heed to, XVI. 507; become slack, get loose, IV. 220. + +SLEE, _v._ (to) slay, II. 567; XI. 21; _pr. s._ VIII. 385; Slawe, _pp._ +slain, I. ii. 9. 196; II. 305; VIII. 259. + +SLEIGH, _adj._ cunning, I. iii. 1. 141. + +SLEIGHT, _s._ subtlety, V. 394; trick, XIV. 33. + +SLEIGHTLY, _adj._ sly, VIII. 255. + +SLENDRE, _adj._ thin, slim, V. 171. + +SLEVELESSE, _adj._ sleeveless, vain, I. ii. 8. 77. + +SLEVES, _s. pl._ sleeves, XX. 147; XXI. 119, 523. + +SLIDDEN, _pp._ slid, slipped, I. i. 8. 114. + +SLIPER, _adj._ slippery, XIII. 51; XVI. 262. + +SLO, _v._ slay, XI. 36. + +SLOGARD, _s._ sluggard, XII. 19. + +SLOGARDRYE, _s._ sluggishness, VII. 76, 161. + +SLOUTHE, _s._ sloth, VIII. 380. + +SLOWE, _pt. s. subj._ should slay, IV. 132. + +SLUTTE, _s._ slut, V. 237. + +SLUTTISHNESS, _s._ slovenliness, XXIV. 472. + +SLYE, _adj._ cunning, I. ii. 8. 7. + +SMAL, _adj._ high, treble, XX. 180. See note, p. 532. + +SMARAGDE, _s._ emerald, XXIV. 789. + +SMERE, _pr. pl._ smear, II. 282; _pr. pl. (or v.)_, smear, II. 707. + +SMERTETH, _pr. s._ causes to smart, XVI. 454; Smertande, _pres. pt._ +smarting, I. ii. 3. 115; painful, I. ii. 10. 29. + +SMYTETH, _pr. s._ defiles, I. ii. 6. 128. + +SNAK, _s._ snack, share, V. 109. + +SOBBINGES, _s. pl._ sobs, I. iii. 1. 156. + +SOCOURES, _s. pl._ assistance, XVI. 847. + +SODAINLY, _adv._ suddenly, XI. 21; XX. 79. + +SODAYN, _adj._ sudden, I. iii. 5. 142. + +SOFTE, _adj._ easy, III. 412. + +SOGET, _s._ subject, XXIV. 1131; _adj._ XXIV. 93. + +SOILL, _v._ absolve, III. 427. + +SOJORN, _pr. s. subj._ dwell, XXIV. 499. + +SOJOUR, _s._ abode, XXIV. 105. + +SOJOURE, _v._ sojourn, XXIV. 1253. + +SOJOURNANT, _s._ visitor, guest, II. 772. + +SOJOURNE, _s._ residence, rest, XVI. 100. + +SOLE, _adj._ alone, XX. 165. + +SOLEYN, _adj._ sole, unsupported, I. iii. 1. 90. + +SOMER-SONNE, _s._ summer-sun, IX. 113. + +SOMER-WYSE, _adj._ suitable for summer, XXIV. 815. + +SOMME, _s._ sum, II. 418. + +SOMPNING, _s._ summoning, II. 880. + +SOMPNOUR, _s._ summoner, II. 325. + +SONDE, _s._ sending, ordinance, IV. 84. + +SONË, _s._ son, V. 5. + +SONGE, _pp._ sung, III. 95. + +SONGEDEST, _2 pt. s._ didst dream, I. ii. 4. 100. F. _songer_. + +SOOT, _s._ soot, I. ii. 9. 38. + +SOOTE, _adj._ sweet, XXIV. 8. + +SOP, _s._ sup, XVII. 407. + +SORT, _s._ kind, set, XXI. 533; company, XXIV. 1157; multitude, XXII. 31; +_after a s._, after one pattern, XXI. 526. + +SOT, _s._ foolish person, XX. 101. + +SOTE, _s._ soot, I. ii. 14. 60. + +SOTE, _adj._ sweet, I. ii. 14. 57; XX. 84. + +SOTELL-PERSING, _adj._ subtly piercing, XXIV. 768. + +SOTELTÈ, _s._ subtlety, XVI. 619. + +SOTH, _s._ truth, II. 171. + +SOTHED, _pp._ verified, I. i. 5. 110. + +SOTILLY, _adv._ subtly, V. 255. + +SOTILTEE, _s._ subtilty, V. 78. + +SOTTED, _pp._ besotted, I. i. 10. 18; XVI. 326. + +SOTTES, _s. pl._ dolts, I. iii. 7. 89. + +SOUDED, _pp._ fixed, I. i. 1. 80. + +SOUKE, _v._ suck, I. ii. 14. 53; I. iii. 1. 141. + +SOUKINGES, _s. pl._ food for infants, I. i. 4. 27. + +SOULED, _pp._ conferred on the soul, I. iii. 1. 15. + +SOULË-HELE, _s._ health of the soul, salvation, II. 1193. + +SOUN, _s._ sound, VIII. 200. + +SOUNDE, _s._ swoon, XXIV. 995. + +SOUNDE, _ger._ to heal, VIII. 292. + +SOUPË, _v._ sup, II. 1096; _ger._ XX. 417. + +SOUPLE, _adj._ supple, weak, II. 58. + +SOUVERAIN, _s._ mistress, XXIV. 1288. + +SOVENEZ, _s. pl._ remember-me's, plants of germander, XXI. 61, 86. See +note, p. 536. + +SOVERAINNESSE, _s._ sovereignty, I. ii. 2. 85. + +SOVERAYNE, _adj._ supreme, IX. 217. + +SOVERAYNTEE, s. supremacy, I. ii. 6. 47; IX. 219. + +SOWE, _pp._ sown, I. iii. 5. 32; V. 10. + +SOWE, _ger._ to sew together, I. i. 8. 41. + +SOWN, _v._ sound, be heard, XXIV. 312; _pr. pl._ tend, XXIV. 527; _pres. +pt._ tending, XVI. 530. + +SOWNE, _s._ sound, voice, I. i. 1. 127; XVI. 123; _pl._ XX. 275. + +SOWPIT, _pp._ drenched, XVII. 450. See note. + +SOYLE, _ger._ to absolve, II. 986. + +SOYR, _adj._ sorrel (in colour), reddish brown, XVII. 211. + +SPAN, _s._ span (in length), XXIV. 182. + +SPECES, _s. pl._ kinds, sorts, I. iii. 1. 52. + +SPEDE, _v._ prosper, XXI. 226; expedite, II. 395; _pr. pl._ succeed, XXIV. +945; Sped, _pp._ provided with a mate, XXIV. 560. + +SPEID, _s._ speed; _good sp._, quickly, eagerly, XVII. 492. + +SPEIR, _s._ spear, XVII. 161. + +SPEIRIS, _pr. s._ asks, XVII. 272. + +SPERD, _pp._ fastened, shut up, XVI. 66. + +SPERE, _s._ sphere, VIII. 34; X. 53. + +SPERKELANDE, _pres. pt._ wandering in different directions, I. i. 2. 75. + +SPILLE, _ger._ to destroy, I. i. _pr._ 127; I. ii. 14. 43; to perish, to +pine, I. i. 1. 7; _v._ perish, XVIII. 200; _pr. s._ spoils, XXIV. 385; +Spilte, _pp._ destroyed, I. i. 2. 86. + +SPINNE, _ger._ to spin, XIV. 31. + +SPIRE, _s._ blade, young shoot, I. iii. 5. 4, 9. + +SPITTAIL-HOUS, _s._ hospital, XVII. 391. + +SPLAYE, _ger._ to display, VIII. 33. + +SPLENE, _s._ spleen, ill temper, XVI. 327. + +SPONNE, _pp._ spun, IV. 299; VIII. 487. + +SPONTANYE, _adj._ spontaneous, I. iii. 4. 33. + +SPOUSAYLE, _s._ espousal, I. i. 9. 96; I. ii. 12. 27. + +SPRAD, _pp._ spread, I. i. _pr._ 1; I. i. 3. 55. + +SPREIT, _s._ spirit, XVII. 587; _pl._ XVII. 37. + +SPRINGEN, _pr. s. subj._ (_for_ Springe), may spring, should spring +(abroad), XXIV. 725. + +SPRINGES, _s. pl._ growths, growing things, shoots, I. iii. 6. 4; sources, +I. ii. 13. 59. + +SPRINGING, _s._ dawning, XX. 25; XXI. 218. + +SPRONGE, _pp._ sprinkled, I. i. 1. 100. (The right form is _spreyned_.) + +SPRYT, _s._ spirit, II. 1182. + +SPURNIS, _2 pr. s._ kickest, XVII. 475. + +SPYCES, _s. pl._ species, sorts of people, I. ii. 3. 86. + +SPYNE, _s._ thorn, X. 50. + +SQUARE, _v._ to square, make square by cutting, XX. 404. + +SQUEYMOUS, _adj._ squeamish, XXIV. 332. + +STABELNESSE, _s._ stability, XIII. 38. + +STABLISSHMENT, _s._ establishment, I. iii. 1. 132. + +STAD, _pp._ bestead, beset, XI. 109; XVII. 542. + +STAL, _pt. s._ stole, II. 618. + +STALE, _adj._ late, II. 873. + +STALKING, _pres. pt._ going stealthily, XXIV. 1030. + +STALLE, _s._ stall, papal chair, IV. 483. + +STALLE, _v._ install, VI. 32. + +STAMPED, _pp._ stamped, pressed, I. iii. 5. 114. + +STANCHE, _ger._ to quench, I. iii. 1. 152. + +STANT, _pr. s._ stands, I. iii. 4. 15; IV. 6; is, XVI. 364. + +STARKLY, _adv._ strongly, severely, XVII. 280. + +STARNIS, _s. pl._ stars, XVII. 170. + +STATLY, _adj._ stately, costly, XX. 153. + +STATUT, _s._ statute, XXIV. 304. + +STAUNCHING, _s._ staying, I. iii. 1. 50. + +STAYRES, _s. pl._ stairs, XXI. 54. + +STEDFASTNESSE, _s._ assurance, VIII. 425. + +STEDSHIP, _s._ security, safety (?), I. i. 4. 40. A coined word. + +STEERING, _s._ guidance, I. ii. 1. 9. + +STEIR, _ger._ to govern, XVII. 149. + +STEIR, _ger._ to stir, XVII. 352. + +STELE, _s._ handle, V. 50. + +STELTHE, _s._ stealth, subtle trick, V. 362. + +STENT, _s._ rate; _at oo s._, at one rate, valued equally, XVI. 769. + +STEPMODER, _s._ stepmother, I. iii. 9. 86. + +STERE, _s._ rudder, IV. 230; VII. 138. + +STERE, _ger._ to stir, move men to, IV. 71; I. i. 8. 1; _pp._ I. ii. 1. +111; displaced, I. i. 9. 10; _pres. pt._ moving, XX. 199; active, I. ii. +11. 1. + +STERING, _pres. pt._ guiding, XXIV. 603. + +STERING, _s._ stirring, I. i. 4. 67; movement, I. i. _pr._ 82; provocation, +XVIII. 23. + +STERINGE, _s._ management, I. ii. 3. 107. + +STERNE, _s._ rudder, I. i. 1. 35. + +STERRE, _s._ star, X. 22, 23, 68; (of Bethlehem), I. ii. 1. 50. + +STERRY, _adj._ starry, XX. 2. + +STERTE, _pt. s._ started, leapt, I. iii. 7. 160; darted, XVII. 537; _1 pt. +s._ started, XVIII. 216. + +STERVE, _ger._ to die, XVIII. 134; _v._ I. i. 3. 120; _1 pr. s._ IX. 97. + +STEVIN, _s._ voice, XVII. 491. + +STEYE, _ger._ to climb, I. i. 1. 45. + +STEYERS, _s. pl._ stairs, I. i. 1. 44. + +STIGH, _pt. s._ ascended, IV. 177. + +STIK, _v._ stick, remain, XXIV. 675. + +STINTE, _v._ leave off, I. i. 3. 88; _pr. s._ ceases, I. iii. 5. 74; +Stinten, _pr. pl._ (_error for_ Stinteth, _pr. s._ ceases), I. ii. 9. 172; +_pt. s._ ceased, I. ii. 3. 1; _pt. s. subj._ were to leave off, I. iii. 7. +104; _pp._ stopped, VIII. 256. + +STIRPE, _s._ stock, race, XXIV. 16. + +STOCKE, _s._ trunk, stem, I. iii. 7. 12; idol, II. 893; _pl._ the stocks, +I. i. 3. 144. + +STONDMELE, _adv._ at various times, I. ii. 9. 156. + +STOON, _s._ stone (but here used with reference to the magnet), XIII. 62. + +STORIED, _pp._ full of stories, representing various stories, I. ii. 13. +76. + +STORIERS, _s. pl. gen._ of story-tellers, I. iii. 4. 257. (Th. +_starieres_.) + +STORIES, _s. pl._ histories, XIII. 87. + +STOUNDE, _s._ time, IX. 64; XVIII. 6; meanwhile, XXIV. 769; sudden pain, +XVII. 537; _pl._ times, hours, I. i. 1. 2; _pl._ acute pains, XVII. 542. + +STOUNDEMELE, _adv._ sometimes, now and then, I. ii. 13. 105; I. iii. 3. +108. + +STOUT, _adj._ proud, II. 699. + +STRAIT, _adj._ strict, XVI. 28; narrow, XXI. 47. + +STRAUNGE, _adj._ distant in manner, XXIV. 834; _as s._ a stranger, I. i. 1. +17. + +STRAYNE, _v._ constrain, I. ii. 14. 72. + +STRAYT, _adj._ strict, XVI. 550; close, XVI. 563; vexatious, I. ii. 5. 48. + +STRECCHEN, _v._ extend, last, suffice, I. ii. 5. 22. + +STREMES, _s. pl._ glances, beams, XXIV. 768; glances, XXIV. 849; rays, +VIII. 3, 592; X. 22; XXII. 30. + +STREMING, _pres. pt._ beaming, X. 68. + +STRENE, _s._ race, kindred, strain, stock, XXIV. 370. + +STRENGTHETH, _pr. s._ strengthens, I. iii. 8. 64. + +STRENGTHINGE, _s._ strengthening, I. ii. 4. 145. + +STREYGHT, _pt. s._ stretched, I. ii. 14. 99. + +STRO, _s._ straw, XVII. 439. + +STROY, _ger._ to destroy, XVI. 304. + +STUDIENT, _adj._ studious, I. iii. 6. 137. + +STULTY, _adj._ foolish, I. ii. 3. 106. + +STURDILY, _adv._ strongly, XX. 362. + +STURTE, _pr. pl._ start up, II. 868. + +STYLE, _s._ style, VIII. 177. + +STYRED, _1 pt. s._ stirred, I. ii. 14. 79. + +STYROPPES, _s._ stirrups, II. 187. + +SUBGET, _s._ subject, II. 1222. + +SUBMIT, _pp._ submitted, XVI. 234. + +SUBSTANCIAL, _adj._ that which is substance, I. ii. 7. 144. + +SUERLY, _adv._ surely, verily, XXI. 318. + +SUFFISAUNCE, _s._ sufficiency, XI. 23; what suffices (me), XXII. 13. + +SUFFRAUNCE, sufferance, XVI. 545; patience, II. 518. + +SUGER-DROPES, _s. pl._ sweet drops, XXIV. 22. + +SUGETS, _s. pl._ subjects, V. 7. + +SUGRE, _s._ sugar, XXIV. 542. + +SUGRED, _adj._ sugared, sweet, I. i. 4. 34; XII. 100; XIV. 26. + +SULD, _pt. s._ should, XXVII. 3. + +SUPERSCRIPTIOUN, _s._ title, description, XVII. 604. + +SUPPLE-WERCHINGE, _adj._ pliant, I. iii. 7. 103. + +SUPPORTACIOUN, _s._ support, XVI. 841. + +SUPPOSAILE, _s._ expectation, I. iii. 3. 129. + +SUPPRYSE, _v._ undertake, IX. 232. + +SURCOTES, _s. pl._ surcoats, XX. 141, 327. + +SURFETTES, _s. pl._ surfeits, I. ii. 14. 58. + +SURPLICE, _s._ surplice, I. ii. 2. 65. + +SURQUEDRY, _s._ arrogance, I. iii. 2. 60; VIII. 430. + +SURSANURE, _s._ a wound that only heals outwardly, IX. 75. + +SUSPENT, _pp._ suspended, II. 283. + +SUSPIRIES, _s. pl._ sighs, XIX. 25. + +SUSTENE, _v._ sustain, endure, bear up, XX. 291; _pr. s._ maintains, V. +161. + +SUSTENOUR, _s._ sustainer, VI. 12. + +SUSTERN, _s. pl._ sisters, I. iii. 1. 93; Sustren, VIII. 488; Susters, +XXIV. 1171. + +SUTE, _s._ suit, XVI. 538; livery, XX. 227, 238, 335; set, row, VIII. 82. + +SWAK, _v._ throw; _can swak_, _v._ threw, cast quickly, XVII. 522. + +SWAYE, _s._ sway, I. iii. 7. 160. + +SWEIT, _s._ sweat, XVII. 514. + +SWELT, _pt. pl._ fainted, XVII. 599; XX. 360; died, XVII. 591. + +SWETE, _s._ sweat, I. i. 1. 40. + +SWETE, _1 pr. s._ sweat, VIII. 231; Swetande, _pres. pt._ sweating, +laborious, I. i. _pr._ 72. + +SWINK, _s._ toil, I. i. 1. 13; I. i. 2. 93 (see note, p. 454). + +SWINKE, _ger._ to toil, II. 29. + +SWOTE, _adv._ sweetly, VIII. 72. + +SWOUGH, _s._ swoon, VIII. 154. + +SWOUN, _s._ swoon, XVII. 599; Swow, XVIII. 87. + +SWOWNING, _s._ trance, XVIII. 107. + +SWYRE, _s._ neck, II. 1236. + +SY, _1 pt. s._ saw, XX. 60. + +SYCHING, _pres. pt._ sighing, XVII. 601; _s._ XVII. 540. + +SYDER, _s._ cider, XVII. 441. + +SYE, _pt. pl._ saw, II. 765. + +SYKE, _v._ sigh, VIII. 575; _pr. s._ XVIII. 19. + +SYLIT, _pp._ lit. ceiled; hence, covered, XVII. 10. + +SYNE, _adv._ afterwards, XVII. 593. + +SYPHER, _s._ cipher, I. ii. 7. 82. + +SYROPIS, _s. pl._ syrups, XVII. 247. + +SYS AND CINQ, six and five, XIII. 75. See note. + +SYTE, _s._ sorrow, XVII. 450. + +SYTHES, _s. pl._ scythes, I. i. _pr._ 99. + + + +TABARD, _s._ ploughman's coat, II. 9. + +TABARD-WYSE, (in) a way like a tabard, or herald's coat, XXI. 523. + +TABLES, _s. pl._ writing-tablets, III. 149. + +T'ABYDE, _ger._ to abide, II. 777. + +TACHE, _s._ defect, blame, XIII. 48; _pl._ XVIII. 192. + +TAIDIS, _s. pl._ toads, XVII. 578. + +TAIKNING, _s._ token, XVII. 232. + +TAISTIS, _pr. s._ tastes, tries, XXVII. 4. + +TAKE, _v._ be set, VIII. 62. + +TALENT, _s._ pleasure, XXIV. 718. + +T'APERE, to appear, XXIV. 55. + +TAPET, _s._ piece of tapestry, XXI. 499, 579; Tapites, _pl._ tapestry, I. +ii. 2. 64; carpets, VIII. 51. + +TARTARIUM, _s._ Tartary cloth, XX. 212. + +T'ASSURE, _ger._ to secure, protect, XIII. 103. + +TAYLAGES, _s. pl._ taxes, I. ii. 2. 40. + +TELLE, _v._ recount, I. ii. 3. 66; _pr. pl._ count, II. 488. + +TELLINGE, _s._ counting, I. ii. 1. 114; I. iii. 1. 2. + +TENAUNTES, _s. pl._ tenants, III. 339. + +TEND, _pr. pl._ attend, II. 506. + +TENDER, _v._ affect, cherish, XXIV. 881. + +T'ENDURE, to endure, XXIV. 1176. + +T'ENDYTE, _ger._ to indite, IX. 179. + +TENE, _s._ vexation, I. ii. 10. 89; XVIII. 209; XX. 389; sorrow, I. i. 1. +3; V. 242; harm, VII. 157; anger, XVII. 194. + +TENEFUL, _adj._ distressful, I. ii. 11. 132; miserable, I. ii. 5. 49. + +TENETH, _pr. s._ grieves, vexes, I. i. 2. 66. + +TENETZ, _s._ tennis, IV. 295. See note. + +T'ENPRINTË, to imprint, VII. 131. + +TERME, _s._ term, appointed age, I. iii. 4. 112; _t. of my lyf_, for all my +lifetime, XVIII. 289. + +TERRESTRE, _adj._ terrestrial, I. ii. 9. 33. + +TEWNE, _s._ tune, XXIV. 1404. + +T'EXCUSE, to excuse, VIII. 282. + +TEYED, _pp._ tied, bound, I. iii. 2. 144. + +THAN, _adv._ then; _or than_, ere then, before, XX. 125. + +THANK, _s._ thanks, VIII. 249. + +THANKFULLY, _adv._ by way of thanks, XVI. 443. + +THANK-WORTHY, _adj._ worthy of thanks. I. i. _pr._ 39. + +TH'AYR, the air, V. 472. + +THEE, _v._ prosper, succeed, II. 339. + +THEE-WARDES, to, towards thee, I. i. 10. 121. + +TH'EFFECT, the effect, V. 14; the tenour, VIII. 217. + +THENKEN, _ger._ to think, VIII. 432; _pr. s._ XXIV. 1062. + +TH'ENTENT, the intent, I. i. 1. 93. + +THERAFTER, _adv._ accordingly, I. i. 6. 20; III. 32. + +THER-AS, _adv._ where that, I. i. _pr._ 91; XVI. 645. + +THER-AYEINES, _adv._ there-against, VIII. 533; Ther-ayenst, on the +contrary, VII. 158. + +THERETO, _adv._ moreover, XX. 122. + +THERE-WITHOUT, _adv._ outside, XX. 71. + +THER-INNE, _adv._ therein, V. 469. + +THERTHOROUGH, _adv._ thereby, I. iii. 8. 89; There-thorow, I. i. 9. 10. + +TH'ESCHAUNGE, _s._ the exchange, I. iii. 6. 36. + +THEWES, _s. pl._ customs, manner, V. 339; XXVI. 6. + +THILKE, _adj._ that (person), I. i. _pr._ 85; that same, I. iii. 4. 15; +_pron._ those, IV. 115. + +THINKES ME, _pr. s. impers._ it seems to me, I intend, XXIV. 874. + +THIR, _pron._ those, XVII. 264. + +THIRLITH, _pr. s._ pierces, XXIV. 294. + +THO, _adv._ then, I. i. 6. 175; XVII. 106. + +THOILLIT, _pt. s._ suffered, XVII. 70. + +THOO, _pron._ those, XXIV. 254. + +THOROUGH, _prep._ through, by, XIX. 10. + +THOROUGH-SOUGHT, _pp._ (that has) penetrated (me), I. i. 1. 120. + +THOUGHTFUL, _adj._ anxious, I. ii. 9. 185. + +THRALL, _adj._ subject, II. 178. (Doubtful; perhaps _wol come thrall_ = +will consent to become servants.) + +THRALLE, _v._ enthral, VI. 22; _pp._ made subject, I. ii. 3. 40; I. iii. 8. +168. + +THRALLES, _s. pl._ thralls, II. 41. + +THREED, _s._ thread, XX. 370. + +THRESHING, _pres. pt._ thrashing, II. 1043. + +THRESTEN, _pr. pl._ endeavour (lit. thrust), I. i. 2. 153. + +THRIDDE, _adj._ third, XVIII. 55; XX. 257. + +THRIST, _1 pr. s._ thirst, I. i. 3. 160. + +THRONGE, _pp._ thrust, I. i. 3. 98. + +THROUGH-GIRT, _pp._ pierced through, VIII. 291. + +THROW, _s._ time, XX. 190; moment, short time, XIV. 37; XXIV. 538; space of +time, XX. 318. + +THROW-OUT, _as adj._ thorough, I. ii. 5. 105; I. ii. 6. 69. + +THRUST, _s._ thirst, VIII. 107. + +THRUSTELL-COK, _s._ thrush, XXIV. 1401. + +THURSTING, _pres. pt._ thirsting, I. iii. 3. 126. + +TIFFELERS, _s. pl._ triflers, II. 195. See _Tiffle_ in Halliwell. + +TILLOUR, _s._ tiller, II. 453; _pl._ II. 868. + +TILTHE, _s._ tillage, I. iii. 5. 107. + +TITMOSE, _s._ titmouse, IX. 57. + +TO, _adv._ too, XVII. 324. + +TO, _prep._ up to; _to thy might_, as far you can, XXIV. 289. + +TO-BENTE, _pp. as adj._ bowed down, subject, rendered obedient, IX. 260. + +TO-BRAST, _pt. s._ burst asunder, XVI. 799. + +TO-BREKE, _v._ break in two, XVIII. 211. + +TO-BRENT, _pp._ (were) much burnt, XX. 358. + +TO-BREST, _pt. s._ burst in twain, XVI. 207. + +TO-BROKE, _pp._ utterly broken, IV. 221. + +TODER; _the toder_ = _that oder_, the other, XXIV. 1049, 1218. + +TO-DRAWE, _pp._ drawn, II. 1237; drawn asunder, XVIII. 137. + +TOFORE, _adj._ before, IX. 264. + +TOFOR(E)GOING, _adj._ foregoing, antecedent, I. iii. 3. 180. + +TOFORE-NEMPNED, _pp._ aforenamed, I. ii. 3. 122. + +TOFORN, _prep._ before, I. i. _pr._ 98; _conj._ before that, I. ii. 2. 35. + +TOFORN-GOING, _adj._ antecedent, I. iii. 8. 30. + +TO-FORN-HAND, _adv._ beforehand, I. i. 6. 154. + +TO-FORN-SAYD, _pp._ aforesaid, I. ii. 2. 73; I. iii. 4. 261. + +TO-HEMWARD, towards them, I. ii. 5. 114. + +TO-HIM-WARDES, towards him, I. iii. 8. 148. + +TOLE, _s._ tool, instrument, II. 375, 575; _pl._ II. 919. + +TOMBESTERE, _s._ female dancer, I. ii. 2. 117. + +TO-MORNE, to-morrow, I. iii. 4. 214. + +TONE; _the tone_ = _thet one_, the one, XXIV. 1049, 1316. + +TO-PULL, _pr. pl._ pull to pieces, II. 179. + +TO-RACE, _v._ tear to pieces, II. 1274. + +TORCENCIOUS, _adj._ exacting, I. i. 9. 131. Apparently a false form; it +should rather be _torcenous_, from O.F. _torconos_, _torcenous_, exacting; +see Godefroy. + +TORCIOUS, _adj._ exacting, I. ii. 2. 73. Probably for _torcenous_ (see +above). + +TORE, _pp._ torn, VIII. 220. + +TO-RENT, _pp._ with garments much rent, XII. 17; much torn, II. 20. + +TORNED, _pp._ turned, XIV. 46. + +TORT, _s._ wrong, I. ii. 2. 71. + +TO-TERE, _v._ rend in pieces, II. 255; XX. 488; _pt. s._ tore to pieces, +VII. 178. + +TOTETH, _pr. s._ looks, II. 74, 418. + +TOTHER; _the tother_ = _thet other_, that other, XX. 394. + +TO-TORN, _pp._ with garments much torn, XII. 17. + +TOUR, _s._ tower, I. i. 5. 8. + +TOWAYLE, _s._ towel, I. ii. 2. 60; Towelles, _pl._ I. ii. 2. 62. + +TOWN, _s._ farm, II. 1043. + +TO-YERE, _adv._ this year, XVIII. 79. Cf. _to-day_. + +TRACE, _s._ a round (in a dance), XVI. 190. + +TRAINES, _s. pl._ trains (of dresses), XX. 147. + +TRAISTIT, _1 pt. s._ trusted, hoped, XVII. 22. + +TRAITORY, _s._ treachery, III. 234; XIV. 48. + +TRANSITORIE, _adj._ transitory, I. iii. 1. 11; I. iii. 4. 148. + +TRANSMEW, _ger._ to move across, change, XIII. 44. + +TRANSVERSE, _v._ gainsay, I. i. 2. 195. + +TRAPPED, _pp._ adorned with trappings, XX. 262. + +TRAPPURES, _s. pl._ trappings, XX. 244. + +TRAUNCE, _s._ trance, dream, XVI. 407. + +TRAVAYLE, _s._ toil, XVI. 471. + +TRAVEYLED, _pp._ worked for, I. iii. 5. 112; Travall, _pr. pl._ labour, II. +426. + +TRAY, _ger._ to betray, II. 808; _v._ II. 621. + +TRAYLE, _s._ trellis, XVI. 184, 195. (F. text, _treille_.) + +TRAYNES, _s. pl._ snares, IX. 90. + +TRENCHOURS, _s. pl._ trenchers, i.e. pieces of bread used as plates, I. i. +_pr._ 109. + +TRENTALL, _s._ trental, mass repeated for thirty days, III. 95. + +TRESORY, _s._ treasury, III. 302; XX. 202. + +TRETED, _pp._ treated, IV. 312. + +TRETIS, _s._ treatise, I. iii. 4. 253; Tretesse, XXIV. 28. + +TREW-LOVE, _s._ true-lover's knot, bow of ribbon, XXIV. 1440. See note. + +TRISTESSE, _s._ sadness, XI. 55. + +TRONCHEOUN, _s._ thick and short staff (properly, a broken piece of a +spear), XX. 253. + +TRONE, _s._ throne, IV. 378. + +TRONED, _pp._ enthroned, I. i. 2. 94. + +TROUBLOUS, _adj._ troublesome, XX. 389. + +TRUMPE, _s._ trumpet, XX. 211; _pl._ XX. 192. + +TRUMPET, _s._ trumpeter, XX. 213; _pl._ XX. 210. + +TRUSSE, _pr. pl._ pack up, II. 750. + +TUCKE, _s._ fold, I. i. 5. 132. + +TUILYOUR, _s._ quarreller; _t.-lyk_, quarrelsome, XVII. 194. + +TURKEIS (lit. Turkish), an epithet of Baleis, XXIV. 80. + +TURTILL-DOVE, _s._ turtle-dove, XXIV. 234, 1387. + +TURTLE, _s._ turtle-dove, X. 78. + +TURVED, _pp._ turfed, XX. 51. + +TURVES, _s. pl._ pieces of turf, XX. 50. + +TUTELE, _s._ guardian, X. 57. + +TWEY, _num._ two, I. iii. 1. 99; XXIV. 1313; Twa, XVII. 301. + +TWINKLING, _s._ small point, least matter, I. i. 1. 28. (Lit. glimmer, +glimpse.) + +TWINNE, _1 pr. s. subj._ may depart, IX. 256; _2 pr. s._ V. 104. + +TYTHEN, _ger._ to pay tithes, II. 1209. + +TYTHING, _s._ tithe, II. 317, 861; _pl._ II. 1159. + +TYTLED, _pp._ entitled, I. ii. 1. 99. + + + +UMPLE, fine stuff in a single fold, fine gauze or lawn, XXI. 471. + +UNABLE, _adj._ weak, I. iii. 1. 171. + +UNBODYE, _ger._ to quit the body, I. i. 1. 88. + +UNBRENT, _pp._ unburnt, X. 129. + +UNCONNING, _adj._ unskilful, I. i. 3. 164. + +UNCONNING, _s._ ignorance, I. iii. 4. 224; VII. 7; Uncunning, III. 391. + +UNCOUTH, _adj._ strange, unusual, XXIV. 451; unknown, I. ii. 11. 45. + +UNDEFOULED, _pp._ undefiled, X. 132. + +UNDERFONGEN, _pp._ undertaken, IV. 264. + +UNDERNEMINGE, _s._ reproof, III. 110. + +UNDERNIME, _2 pr. pl._ reprove, III. 109. + +UNDERPUT, _pp._ shored up, supported, I. ii. 7. 72; subjected, I. i. 9. 38; +subject, I. i. 9. 52. + +UNDERSTONDE, _pp._ understood, I. iii. 3. 77; II. 683; Understande, I. iii. +6. 65; Understont, _pr. s._ II. 792; Understondeth, _imp. pl._ V. 428. + +UNDERSTONDING, _adj._ intelligible, I. i. _pr._ 56. + +UNDER-THROWEN, _pp._ made subject, I. iii. 8. 151. + +UNFAIR, _adv._ horribly, XVII. 163. + +UNFOLD, _pp._ unfolded, XX. 595. + +UNGENTIL, _adj._ not of gentle birth, I. ii. 2. 129. + +UNGOODLY, _adj._ unkind, II. 387. + +UNGOODLY, _adv._ evilly, unfairly, VIII. 385. + +UNHOLD, _adj._ faithless, II. 473. + +UNIVERSAL, _s._ the whole, I. ii. 13. 70. + +UNIVERSITEE, _s._ the universe, I. i. 9. 46. + +UNKINDLY, _adj._ unnatural, XX. 413. + +UNKNIT, _pp._ rejected, I. ii. 8. 36. + +UNKNOWE, _pp._ unknown, I. ii. 10. 71. + +UNKYNDELY, _adv._ unusually, I. i. _pr._ 126. + +UNLEFFUL, _adj._ not permissible, forbidden, I. ii. 14. 23. + +UNLOK, _v._ unlock, XXIV. 1403. + +UNLUST, _s._ listlessness, V. 227. + +UNMETE, _adj._ unsuitable, XX. 17. + +UNMIGHTY, _adj._ weak, feeble, I. ii. 7. 39; III. 394. + +UNNETH, _adv._ scarcely, I. i. _pr._ 28; II. 789; IV. 196; XX. 46; with +difficulty, I. iii. 9. 76. + +UNNETHES, _adv._ scarcely, II. 311; V. 380. + +UNPEES, _s._ war, I. ii. 13. 86. + +UNPERFIT, _adj._ imperfect, III. 66. + +UNPOWER, _s._ weakness, III. 391. + +UNPURVEYED, _pp._ unprovided, XXI. 382; XXIV. 561. + +UNRESON, _s._ lack of reason, I. iii. 6. 133. + +UNRESTY, _adj._ restless, X. 62. + +UNRICHT, _adv._ wrongly, amiss, XVII. 205. + +UNRIGHT, _s._ injustice, II. 1071; VIII. 334. + +UNRIGHTFUL, _adj._ unjust, I. iii. 3. 68. + +UNSELY, _adj._ unhappy, I. i. 10. 80. + +UNSENE, _adj._ invisible, I. i. _pr._ 57. + +UNSHITTE, _v._ open, unfasten, I. iii. 1. 160; Unshit, disclose, XXIV. +1245; Unshet, _2 pr. pl._ I. i. 4. 41; _pp._ opened, XVI. 65. + +UNSHRIVE, _pp._ unshriven, II. 751. + +UNTALL, _adj._ not tall, weak, II. 74. + +UNTHRIFTY, _adj._ unprofitable, I. i. 4. 55. + +UNTHRYVE, _v._ prosper ill, have ill luck, XVIII. 142. See note. + +UNTREND, _pp._ not rolled up, II. 594. See note. + +UNWAR, _adv._ at unawares, XXIV. 848. + +UNWELDY, _adj._ unwieldy, hence, infirm, XV. _a._ 4; XV. _b._ 2; weak, VII. +145. + +UNWETINGE, _pres. pt._ unwitting, I. i. 7. 110; _but an error for_ unwist, +i.e. unknown. + +UNWORSHIP, _s._ discredit, I. i. 5. 24. + +UNWORSHIPPED, _pp._ treated with disrespect, I. ii. 6. 125. + +UNWYSE, _adj._ not wise, III. 155. + +UPHAP, _adv._ perhaps, I. i. 8. 132. + +UPLANDE, i.e. living in the country, countryman, III. 1. + +UPPEREST, _adj._ highest, I. i. 10. 32. + +UPRAIS, _pt. s._ rose, XVII. 12. + +URE, _s._ fortune, destiny, VIII. 151, 302, 482; XXIV. 634, 862; XXV. 11. + +US(E), _s._ use, I. iii. 6. 104; Use, 110. + +USSHER, _s._ usher, XXI. 102. + + + +VAILABLE, _adj._ useful, IV. 142. + +VAILE, _s._ veil, XXIV. 1102. + +VAILING, _pres. pt._ lowering, XVII. 271. + +VALE, _s._ valley, VIII. 44. + +VALEWE, _s._ value, I. i. 7. 97. + +VALEY, _s._ valley, XVI. 24. + +VALIS, _pr. s._ avails, XXVII. 5. (Sing. after _what_.) + +VARYAUNT, _adj._ changeable, I. ii. 1. 24; variable, I. ii. 6. 148. + +VASSALAGE, _s._ prowess, VII. 148. + +VAYLANCE, _s._ benefit, profit, I. ii. 5. 85. + +VAYLETH, _pr. s._ availeth (it), XVI. 720; _pp._ I. i. 2. 163. + +VELUËT, _s._ velvet, VIII. 80; XX. 233; Veluet, XX. 141, 261. + +VENGEABLE, _adj._ revengeful, I. ii. 11. 92; II. 805. + +VENT, _s._ slit of a gown at the neck, XXI. 526. F. _fente_. + +VENYM, _s._ venom, V. 258. + +VERAMENT, _adv._ truly, II. 1224. + +VERE, _s._ spring-time, I. ii. 9. 133. + +VERMAYLE, _adj._ crimson, X. 45. + +VERMELET, _adj._ red, XXIV. 142. + +VERTULES, _adj._ without virtue, VII. 133, 157. + +VERTUOUS, _adj._ endowed with virtue or power, I. iii. 1. 45. + +VERY, _adv._ extremely, XX. 10, 35; very, XX. 409; XXI. 479. + +VESTËMENT, _s._ vestment, II. 278, 934. + +VIAGE, _s._ voyage, journey, I. i. 5. 84; IV. 57; XXI. 46. + +VIBRAT, _pp._ vibrated, X. 115. + +VICAIRE, _s._ vicar, II. 830; _pl._ III. 279. + +VINOLENT, _adj._ drunken, XII. 45. + +VIOLET, _s._ violet, II. 96; XXIV. 1437. + +VIRELAY, _s._ lay with recurring rimes, XI. 40. (Such as _aabaab . +bbabba_.) + +VIRGINAL, _adj._ virgin-like, XII. 110. + +VOCACIOUN, _s._ calling of an assembly together, XVII. 272. + +VOIDEN, _v._ (to) take away, XXIV. 628; escape, XIII. 52; _pr. s._ +retreats, I. i. 5. 34. + +VOLUNTARIOUS, _adj._ voluntary, free, I. ii. 8. 116. + +VOLUNTÈ, _s._ free will, VIII. 299. + +VOLUPTUOUSLY, _adv._ luxuriously, I. ii. 10. 18. + +VOUCHE, _pr. pl._ avouch, II. 945. + +VOYDE, _ger._ to banish, IX. 116; _v._ escape, I. i. 3. 140; set aside, I. +iii. 6. 15; _pr. s._ dispels, I. ii. 10. 34; departs, I. i. 10. 95. + +VYNTRE, Vintry, VII. (_title_). + +VYOLE, _s._ vial, X. 113. + +VYSE, _s._ advice, intention, I. i. 2. 60. + +VYTRE, _s._ glass, X. 113. + + + +WA, _adj._ sad, XVII. 350. + +WAGEOURS, _s. pl._ wagers, XXI. 383. + +WAGGE, _v._ move, stir, I. i. _pr._ 90; _ger._ XVII. 196. + +WAILLIT, _pp._ chosen, choice, XVII. 440. + +WAIT, _pr. s._ knows, XVII. 64. + +WAITED, _1 pt. s._ watched, XX. 106. + +WAKE, _s._ fair, II. 869. + +WAKE, _v._ keep a revel, I. ii. 2. 54. + +WALD, _pt. s._ would (have), desired, XVII. 102. + +WALET, _s._ wallet, bag, I. i. _pr._ 106. + +WALL,_ s._ well, II. 298. See note. + +WALLED, _pp._ walled, VIII. 42. + +WALOWE, _ger._ to toss about, XXIV. 334; _1 pr. s._ I. i. 3. 102. + +WAN, _adj._ pale, dim of colour, XIV. 43. + +WAN, _pt. pl._ won, XX. 480. (A guess; the old ed. has _manly_!) + +WANDRED, _pp._ men who have wandered, X. 60. + +WANE, _s._ weening, thought, XVII. 543. See WILL. + +WANG-TOOTH, _s._ molar tooth, II. 16. + +WANHOPE, _s._ despair, I. i. 1. 112; I. i. 4. 54; XVII. 47. + +WANT, _1 pr. s._ lack, do not possess, do not know, XX. 150; _pr. s._ is +lacking, XVI. 449. + +WANTINGE, _s._ lacking, I. i. _pr._ 83. + +WANTRUST, _s._ distrust, I. i. 8. 19; I. ii. 9. 50. + +WAR, _adj._ aware, I. i. 3. 76; _be w._, beware, VII. 180. + +WAR, _adj._ worse, XVII. 460. + +WARANTYSE, _s._ surety; _on w._, on my surety, XXI. 406. + +WARDEROBE, _s._ wardrobe, I. ii. 9. 140. + +WAREN, _pt. pl._ wore, XX. 267. + +WARIED, _pp._ cursed, XXIV. 1171. + +WARLDLY, _adj._ worldly, XXVII. 1. + +WARNE, _v._ refuse, I. ii. 3. 31. + +WARNISSHE, _s._ protection, I. ii. 7. 78. + +WARNISSHED, _pp._ defended, I. ii. 7. 78. + +WASTOUR, _s._ waster, XII. 72. + +WAVED, _pp._ wavered, I. i. 2. 167. + +WAWES, _s. pl._ waves, I. i. _pr._ 125; I. i. 3. 57; VII. 80; XIII. 33. + +WAXE, _v._ grow to be, II. 128; _pp._ become, II. 371. + +WAYTED, _pp._ watched, IV. 204. + +WAYTERS, _s. pl._ spies, I. iii. 6. 88; guards, sentinels, I. i. 3. 124. + +WAYTINGE, _s._ watching, lying in wait, I. ii. 9. 59. + +WEBBES, _s. pl._ dimness of vision, I. i. 2. 180. See note, p. 455. + +WEDE, _s._ covering, XIV. 26. + +WEDEN, _pr. pl._ weed, III. 11. + +WEDER, _s._ weather, I. i. _pr._ 123; Wedder, XVII. 4; _pl._ storms, I. i. +3. 63; I. ii. 9. 130; I. iii. 5. 25. + +WEDES, _s. pl._ weeds, X. 36. + +WEDRING, _s._ tempest, I. iii. 7. 74. + +WEED, _s. (as pl.)_ garments, apparel, XX. 371; Weid, XVII. 165. + +WEGHT, _s._ weight, XIII. 92. + +WEIP, _pt. s._ wept, XVII. 231 (or _infin._ to weep). + +WEIR, _s._ war, XVII. 196, 486. + +WEIR, _ger._ to guard, ward off, XVII. 182. + +WEIRD, _s._ destiny, XVII. 384, 412. + +WEIRIS, _pr. s._ wears, wastes away, XVII. 467. + +WEKED, _pp._ rendered weak (but read _wikked_), I. i. 6. 25. + +WEL-CONDICIONED, _adj._ of good condition, XX. 581. + +WELDE, _v._ possess, II. 118, 416, 702; manage, XXIV. 227; _1 pr. s._ I. +ii. 12. 91. + +WELDOING, _s._ well-doing, I. ii. 10. 120. + +WELE, _s._ wealth, II. 812; VII. 165. + +WELFULNESSE, _s._ wealth, I. i. 6. 24. + +WELKE, _1 pr. s._ wither, I. ii. 11. 105; Welked, _pp._ withered, old, I. +iii. 5. 33; withered, wrinkled, I. iii. 5. 37. + +WELKEN, _s._ sky, I. i. 3. 57. + +WELKENETH, _pr. s._ withers, fades, XXII. 59. + +WELLE, _s._ well, source, IX. 139; _pl._ streams, rills, XVII. 588. + +WELLEN, _pr. pl._ rise up, have their source, I. i. 2. 151; _pres. pt._ +flowing, I. i. 1. 86. + +WEL-MENINGE, _adj._ well-intentioned, I. ii. 5. 117. + +WELTERIT, _pp._ overturned, XVII. 436. + +WELTH, _s._ happiness, I. i. 1. 39. + +WELWILLY, _adj._ benignant, favourable, VIII. 627. + +WEM, _s._ stain, I. i. 1. 74. + +WEMLEES, _adj._ spotless, X. 104. + +WENDE, _v._ go, XVIII. 252; _pt. s._ went, XVII. 474; _pp._ gone, II. 498. + +WENE, _s._ _withoute w._, without doubt, IX. 237; XIII. 12. + +WENEN, _pr. pl._ imagine, I. ii. 3. 38; _1 pt. s._ expected, I. i. 3. 65; +_2 pt. s._ didst expect, I. ii. 14. 80; Wenden, _pt. pl._ imagined, I. ii. +11. 9; Wend (_old text_, went), imagined, XXI. 34; Went, _pr. s._ weens, +imagines, guesses, VIII. 462. See note. + +WENING, _s._ fancy, XVI. 286. + +WENT, _pp._ gone, departed, I. ii. 1. 34. + +WEPEN, _s._ weapon, II. 1092. + +WERBLES, _s. pl._ warblings, notes, I. ii. 2. 6; I. iii. 1. 157. + +WERCHE, _pr. s. subj._ operate, I. ii. 13. 127; _pres. pt._ working, +active, I. ii. 5. 43. + +WERCHER, _s._ agent, I. iii. 2. 63. + +WERCHINGE, _s._ operation, I. ii. 13. 118. + +WERDES, _s. pl._ fates, XXIV. 1173. + +WERE, _s._ doubt, IX. 223; X. 5. + +WERE, _pt. pl. subj._ should be, XI. 64; Wern, _pt. pl._ were, I. iii. 8. +91. + +WERETH, _pr. s._ wears away, III. 45; _pr. pl._ wear, XXIV. 247. + +WERIEN, _v._ grow weary, II. 1068. + +WERNE, _2 pr. pl._ refuse, I. i. 4. 47; _pp._ IV. 26. + +WERNINGES, _s. pl._ refusals, I. i. 2. 58. + +WERRE, _s._ war, VIII. 256. + +WERREY, _1 pr. s._ war, V. 431; _pp._ warred against, VIII. 665. + +WERREYOUR, _s._ warrior, IV. 130; VI. 13. + +WESTRETH, _pr. s._ sets in the west, XXII. 24. + +WETE, _adj._ wet, I. iii. 3. 126; XX. 406. + +WETE, _ger._ to know, I. i. 3. 18; Weten, _2 pr. pl._ I. i. 8. 80; II. +1206; _pr. pl._ I. iii. 8. 128. + +WETHERCOCKE, _s._ weathercock, I. i. 2. 167. + +WETING, _s._ knowledge, I. iii. 4. 62, 243. + +WEXETH, _pr. s._ grows, XX. 14; _pres. pt._ I. iii. 1. 30; Wexte, _pt. s._ +became, I. i. 2. 24. + +WEXING, _s._ growth, I. i. 9. 42. + +WEYE, _ger._ to weigh, IV. 91; _pp._ 320. + +WEYMENTING, _s._ lamenting, XXIV. 233. + +WEYVE, _ger._ to put away, I. ii. 10. 40; _v._ put aside, I. ii. 7. 100; +_pr. s. subj._ I. iii. 1. 136; _2 pr. s._ rejectest, I. iii. 6. 154; _pr. +s._ rejects, I. ii. 13. 95; _pp._ I. i. 1. 63; I. ii. 14. 36; I. iii. 8. +154. + +WHEDER, _conj._ whether (or no), I. iii. 3. 30; XVI. 401. + +WHEEL, _s._ _turning wheel_, winding staircase, XXI. 55 (see note); orbit, +I. ii. 1. 124. + +WHEROF, _adv._ to what purpose, XVI. 431. + +WHERTHROUGH, _adv._ whereby, I. i. 4. 53; X. 103; wherefore, I. ii. 13. +109. + +WHERTO, _adv._ why? I. i. 3. 87. + +WHICCHE, _s._ hutch, chest, I. ii. 2. 29. + +WHIRLED, _pp._ whirled, driven, XX. 2. + +WHISTEL, _s._ whistle, I. ii. 3. 55. + +WHYLE, _s._ time, VIII. 244. + +WHYT, _adj._ white, II. 1338; plausible, XXIV. 1042. + +WICCHE, _s._ witch, II. 891. + +WICHT, _s._ wight, man, XXVII. 2. + +WIDDERCOCK, _s._ weathercock, XVII. 567. + +WIDDERIT, _pp._ withered, XVII. 238; soiled by weather, XVII. 165. + +WIGHT, _s._ person, XX. 38, 46. + +WIKKE, _adj._ noxious, X. 36. + +WIKKIT, _adj._ evil, XVII. 412. + +WILDE, _adj._ wild (i.e. unquenchable), I. ii. 6. 29. + +WILDE, _ger._ to become wild, I. i. 3. 45. + +WILL OF WANE, lit. wild of weening, at a loss as to what to do, XVII. 543. + +WILLERS, _s. pl._ wishers, II. 228; _gen._ _such w._, of men who so desire, +II. 780. + +WILLINGLY, _adv._ wilfully, V. 391. + +WILNE, _ger._ to desire, I. i. 6. 101; _v._ I. iii. 4. 11; _2 pr. pl._ II. +1250; _pr. pl._ II. 118; _pp._ I. iii. 6. 111. + +WIMPELN, _pr. pl._ cover as with a wimple, I. ii. 14. 25; _pp._ covered up, +I. iii. 9. 76. + +WIMPLE, _s._ chin-cloth, XXIV. 1102. + +WINNE, _v._ make a gain, II. 979. + +WISSE, _pr. s. subj._ may (He) guide, keep away, II. 235. + +WITE, _v._ know, XXI. 749; Witen, _2 pr. pl._ know, XVIII. 266; Wistest, _2 +pt. s._ I. i. 8. 31; Wist, _pp._ known, II. 1092. + +WITHDRAWE, _ger._ to draw back, hold in, I. ii. 6. 84; _pr. s._ draws away, +I. ii. 5. 129. + +WITH-HOLDE, _pp._ retained, I. ii. 8. 121; XVIII. 289; kept back, I. iii. +3. 114. + +WITHIES, _s. pl._ withies, twigs of willow, XVI. 186. (F. text, Entrelacee +de _saulx vers_.) + +WITHIN-BORDE, on board, I. i. 3. 54. + +WITHOUT, _conj._ unless, XXI. 299. + +WITHSAYE, _ger._ to contradict, I. i. 2. 184; I. i. 8. 65; _v._ gainsay, +II. 599. + +WITHSETTEN, _pp._ opposed, I. iii. 1. 133; Withset, I. ii. 7. 66. + +WITHSITTE, _v._ resist, I. ii. 7. 133; _ger._ I. iii. 8. 64. + +WITHSITTINGE, _s._ opposition, I. ii. 7. 142. + +WITLES, _adj._ ignorant, II. 528. + +WITTES, _s. pl._ wits, senses, I. iii. 5. 51. + +WIVERS, _s. pl._ vipers, serpents, snakes, I. iii. 5. 34. + +WLATE, _v._ loathe, II. 1098. + +WO-BESTAD, _pp._ beset with woe, XXIV. 845. + +WODE, _adj._ mad, I. iii. 7. 53. + +WODEBINDE, _s._ woodbine, VIII. 129; IX. 261. + +WOIR, _pt. s._ carried, wafted away, XVII. 165. (It seems to be merely a +peculiar use of E. _wore_, pt. t. of _wear_; cf. _boir_, bore, in l. 166.) + +WOL, _s._ wool, XX. 53. See WOLLE. + +WOLDE, _pt. s. subj._ would wish, XVI. 272; Wold, _pp._ desired, V. 305. + +WOLLE, _s._ wool, I. ii. 2. 28 (see the note, p. 465); IV. 299; Woll, II. +177, 594. + +WOMANLY, _adj._ woman-like, I. ii. 12. 114. + +WON, _pr. s. subj._ dwell, XXIV. 500. + +WONDER, _adj._ wonderful, III. 7; XX. 434. + +WONDERLY, _adv._ wondrously, XXIV. 100, 697. + +WONDERS, _adv._ wondrously, I. ii. 3. 45. + +WONE, _s._ custom, XXI. 5. + +WONES, _s. pl._ dwellings, XX. 201. + +WONETH, _pr. s._ dwells, XXIV. 143; Wonneth, II. 1140. + +WONNE, _pp._ won, XVI. 356. + +WONNING, _s._ abode, VII. 86. + +WOOD, _adj._ mad, II. 299, 764, 1075, 1269; XVIII. 188. + +WOODBIND, _s._ woodbine, XX. 159. + +WOODE, _s._ _an error for_ Weede, weed, III. 11. See note. + +WOODNESSE, _s._ madness, VI. 50; XVIII. 175. + +WOOK, _1 pt. s._ awoke, XXI. 737. + +WORCH, _pr. pl._ work, II. 411. + +WORD, _s._ motto, XXI. 87, 310, 312; Wordes, _pl._ XXI. 119. + +WORLD, _s._ great quantity, XX. 137; a thing worth the world, XXI. 539. + +WORSHIP, _s._ honour, XIV. 382. + +WORSTED, _s._ worsted, II. 1002. + +WORTHYED, _pp._ honoured, I. i. 2. 109. + +WOST, _2 pr. s._ knowest, XVIII. 126; Wottest, I. i. 2. 74. + +WOWE, _v._ woo, XXIV. 1222. + +WOWETH, _pr. pl._ move, I. ii. 1. 21. _Put for_ waweth; and properly +singular. + +WOX, _1 pt. s._ became, I. i. 4. 30; grew, XVII. 102; Woxen, _pp._ I. iii. +5. 24. + +WRAIKFUL, _adj._ vengeful, XVII. 329. + +WRAIT, _pt. s._ wrote, XVII. 64. + +WRAITH, _s._ wroth, XVII. 182. + +WRAK, _s._ vengeance, XVII. 370. + +WRALL, _pr. pl._ pervert, II. 370. Cf. M.E. _wrawe_, perverse. + +WRANGLEN, _pr. pl._ wrangle, II. 426. + +WRAPPED, _pp._ involved; _in be w._, been mixed up with, V. 216. + +WRECHE, _s._ misery, I. i. 1. 60; vengeance, VIII. 471. + +WREKE, _v._ avenge, XXIV. 702; _pp._ VIII. 284; Wreche, _pr. pl. subj._ +X. 41. + +WRENNE, _s._ wren, IX. 57; Wren, XXIV. 1372. + +WRETHE, _s._ a wreath, garland, I. iii. 6. 158. + +WRINGING, _pres. pt._ wringing (wringing wet), XX. 406. + +WRITHEN, _pp._ wreathed, twined, XX. 57. + +WRO, _s._ corner, II. 81. Icel. _r[=a]_. + +WROCHT, _pp._ wrought, made, XVII. 203. + +WRY, _adj._ deformed, XXIV. 1062. + +WRYE, _v._ turn aside, XVI. 331. + +WRYETH, _pr. s._ disguises, I. ii. 5. 102. + +WRYTHING, _s._ twisting, turning aside, error, rebellion, X. 96. + +WYDE-WHERE, _adv._ far and wide, I. ii. 11. 107. + +WYNDE, _s._ breath, XVI. 795. + +WYNDE, _1 pr. s. subj._ wind, go, IX. 263. + +WYNDING,_ s._ envelopment (in snow) (?), I. i. 3. 39. + +WYR, _s._ wire, I. iii. 7. 103. + +WYR-DRAWER, _s._ wire-drawer, I. iii. 7. 103. + +WYTE, _s._ blame, VIII. 603; IX. 103. + +WYTE, _ger._ to blame, I. iii. 7. 145; II. 577; XVII. 134; _1 pr. s._ +blame (for it), VIII. 460; _imp. s._ blame (for), I. iii. 1. 170; _imp. +pl._ II. 1373; V. 376. + + + +Y, _s._ eye, XVI. 263; XX. 85; XXIV. 229, 1139; _at y_, in appearance, +XIV. 6. + +YAF, _pt. s._ gave, IX. 248. + +YALL, _v._ yell, II. 386, 1355. + +YATE, _s._ gate, XXI. 274; _pl._ II. 65. + +Y-BE, _pp._ been, XVIII. 190; XX. 375. + +Y-BORE, _pp._ born, XVI. 462. + +Y-BRENT, _pp._ burnt, II. 18; Y-brend, II. 634. + +Y-BUILDE, _v._ build (_or pp._ build), II. 120. + +Y-CALLED, _pp._ named, VIII. 70. + +Y-CHASED, _pp._ chased, XVI. 287. + +Y-CLEPED, _pp._ called, I. iii. 1. 12. + +Y-DAMPNED, _pp._ damned, II. 1243. + +YDEL; _in y._, in vain, I. i. 1. 70; I. ii. 11. 109. + +Y-DIGHT, _pp._ dressed, II. 1002. + +Y-DON, _pp._ made, XX. 61. + +YE, yea, I. i. 7. 34. + +YË, _s._ eye, IX. 124. + +YEDE, _1 pt. s._ went, VIII. 120; _pt. s._ I. i. 10. 111; XX. 54; _pt. +pl._ XX. 295, 301. + +YEF, _pr. pl._ give, II. 957. + +YEFTES, _s. pl._ gifts, bribes, I. i. 10. 41. + +YELDE, _ger._ to pay, X. 112; _v._ yield, render, II. 778; _pr. s. +subj._ may (He) repay, XXI. 360; _pr. pl. subj._ may yield, I. iii. 9. +93. + +YELDINGE, _s._ yielding, giving, I. iii. 1. 13. + +YELKE, _s._ yolk, hence centre, nucleus, I. iii. 4. 198. + +YEN, _s. pl._ eyes, XXIV. 135, 154. + +YERDE, _s._ rod, I. ii. 11. 136; X. 133; correction, XXIV. 363. + +YERN, _ger._ to earn, XXIV. 367. + +YERNE, _adv._ quickly; _as y._, very quickly, I. ii. 8. 41; Yern, +eagerly, XXIV. 1299. + +YET, _s._ gate, XVII. 388. + +YEVE, _1 pr. s._ give, XI. 80; _2 pr. pl._ III. 208; _pr. pl._ I. i. +_pr._ 18; _pp._ XVIII. 279; XXIV. 278. + +YEVER, _s._ giver, I. iii. 7. 134, 138; III. 176. + +YEXINGE, _s._ sobbing, outburst (of grief), I. i. 1. 6. + +Y-FED, _pp._ fed, XXIV. 975. + +Y-FERE, _adv._ together, in company, IX. 59, 224; XI. 64. + +Y-FEYNED, _pp._ feigned, XVIII. 74. + +Y-FURTHERED, _pp._ advanced, VIII. 327. + +Y-FYNED, _pp._ refined, XIII. 99. + +Y-GRAVE, _pp._ buried, XVI. 60. + +Y-GROUNDED, _pp._ rooted, I. ii. 9. 19. + +Y-GURD, _pp._ girt, i.e. ready, II. 1336. + +Y-HANDLED, _pp._ handled, treated of, I. ii. 11. 101. + +Y-HERD, _pp._ heard, XVIII. 85. + +Y-HERIED, _pp._ praised, XXIV. 592. + +Y-KEND, _pp._ taught, II. 482; known, II. 530. + +YLE, _s._ isle, I. i. 3. 64; V. 15; VI. 17. + +Y-LOST, _pp._ lost, VII. 36. + +Y-LYKE, _adv._ alike, equally, XVIII. 64. + +Y-MAD, _pp._ made, VIII. 163. + +Y-MEYNT, _pp._ mingled, VIII. 457. + +YNDE, _adj. pl._ blue, IX. 257. + +Y-NEMPNED, _pp._ named, I. i. 1. 5. + +Y-NOMEN, _pp._ taken up, II. 1031. + +Y-NOW, _adj._ enough, II. 3, 1044; _pl._ (men) enough, I. i. 3. 51. + +YOK, _s._ yoke, XVIII. 140. + +YOKKIT, _pp._ yoked, XVII. 209. + +YOLDEN, _pp._ yielded, I. i. 7. 30; returned, I. i. 3. 107; repaid, I. +iii. 5. 140. + +YON, _adj._ yonder, yon, that, XVII. 533. + +YOUTHHEID, _s._ time of youth, XVII. 30. + +YOVE, _1 pt. s._ gave, XXIV. 688. + +Y-PASSED, _pp._ past, VIII. 591. + +Y-PENT, _pp._ pent, II. 22; fastened, II. 939. + +Y-POUDRED, _pp._ besprinkled, XVIII. 63. + +Y-RENT, _pp._ torn, II. 256. + +YS, _s._ ice, VIII. 234; Yse, XVII. 168. + +YSE-SHOKLIS, _s. pl._ icicles, XVII. 160. + +Y-SET, _pp._ appointed, XVI. 613. + +Y-SHONED, _pp._ shunned, I. ii. 11. 10. + +Y-SLAYN, _pp._ slain, VIII. 88. + +Y-SOGHT, _pp._ importuned, V. 128. + +Y-SPED, _pp._ granted, XXIV. 977. + +Y-STOCKED, _pp._ fastened as in the stocks, I. i. 1. 41. + +Y-STOPE, _pp._ advanced, XXIV. 281. + +Y-TAKE, _pp._ taken, II. 1281. + +Y-THEE, _v._ prosper, XVIII. 187. + +Y-TOURNED, _pp._ turned, I. i. 7. 51. + +Y-TYED, _pp._ tied, V. 226. + +YVÈ-LEFE, _s._ ivy-leaf, I. iii. 7. 50. + +YUEL-SPEKERS, _s. pl._ evil-speakers, I. i. 9. 6. + +Y-WHET, _pp._ whetted, V. 243. + +Y-WIS, _adv._ verily, I. i. 2. 116. + +Y-WONED, _pp._ dwelt, XXIV. 241. + +Y-WONNE, _pp._ won, V. 49. + +Y-WOUNDED, _pp._ wounded, VIII. 361. + +Y-WROUGHT, _pp._ made, XX. 48. + + * * * * * + + +INDEX OF NAMES. + +AARON, X. 133. + +ABRAHAM, I. i. 8. 59. + +ACHILLES, VIII. 367. + +ACRISIUS, I. i. 5. 8. + +ACTEON, Actaeon, VIII. 97. + +ADAM, I. i. 1. 39; I. i. 8. 73; I. iii. 8. 104; V. 199, 366. + +ADMETE, Admetus, XXIV. 107. + +ADON, Adonis, VIII. 386; Adoun, VIII. 644. + +ALBION, V. 16; XXVIII. 5. + +ALCESTE, Alcestis, IX. 198; XII. 117; XXIV. 105. + +ALCMENIA, Alcmene, XXIV. 821. + +ALEXANDER, I. iii. 2. 26; II. 335; Alisaundre, I. ii. 2. 114; IV. 36; +Alisander, I. i. _pr._ 89; IV. 281; _gen._ XII. 96. + +ALEYN, Alain Chartier, XVI. 11. + +ANNELIDA, XXI. 465; Anelida, XXIV. 234. + +ANTICHRIST, II. 191, 493; III. 2; _gen._ II. 956. + +ANTIGONE, IX. 196. + +ANTIOCHUS, VII. 177. + +ANTIOPA, XXIV. 824. + +ANTONIUS, VIII. 367; Antony, XXI. 462; XXIV. 873. + +ARCITE, VIII. 368, 379; XXI. 466; XXIV. 235. + +ARIADNE, IX. 200. + +ARISTOTEL, I. iii. 2. 87; I. iii. 7. 59; Aristotle, I. i. _pr._ 64, 117; +I. ii. 1. 105; I. ii. 5. 5. + +ARTEYS, Artois, XXIV. 1227. + +ARTOUR, Arthur, I. ii. 2. 116; Arthus, IV. 283; _gen._ XII. 103. + +ATHALANS, Atalanta, VIII. 396. + +ATHENES, Athens, I. i. 9. 114. + +AURORA, IX. 38; X. 135. + +AUSTEN, St. Augustine, I. ii. 13. 43; _gen._ III. 112. + + + +BALTHASAR, Belshazzar, VII. 175. + +BEDFORD, duke of, VII. (_title_). + +BELIAL, II. 234. + +BENET, St. Benedict, II. 993, 1011. + +BOECE, Boethius, I. i. _pr._ 110; I. ii. 13. 49; VII. 150. + +BOREAS, north wind, I. i. _pr._ 124; IX. 96. + +BRETAYNE, Britain, VII. 126; XXIV. 1226; XXIX. 2; Britayne, I. iii. 1. +45. + +BURGOYNE, _s._ Burgundy, XXIV. 1228. + +BUSERUS, Busiris, I. ii. 7. 117. + + + +CALCHAS, XVII. 97. + +CALIOPE, Calliope, IX. 242; XXIV. 19. + +CALIXTO, Callisto, XXIV. 821. + +CAMBRIGE, Cambridge, XXIV. 913. + +CANACEE, IX. 206. + +CARTÁGË, Carthage, V. 311; XXIV. 231. + +CASSODORE, Cassiodorus, IV. 330. + +CATOUN, Cato, XII. 102; Dionysius Cato, XII. 130; _gen._ I. iii. 2. 24. + +CAYNES, Cain's, I. ii. 2. 107. + +CESAR, Julius Caesar, XII. 95. + +CHARLES, Charlemagne, XII. 103; Charlemayne, IV. 283. + +CHAUCER, VII. 65, 98; IX. 236; XVII. 41; XXIX. 1. + +CIPRYDE, Venus, IX. 20. (_Venus and Cipryde_, Venus and the Cyprian +goddess, really one and the same.) + +CITHAREA, Venus, XXIV. 50, 556; Cithera, V. 5; Citherè, XXIV. 1178. + +CITHAREE, Cythera, _but an error for_ Cithaeron, XXIV. 49. See note. + +CITHERON, Cithaeron, XXIV. 69. (See l. 49.) + +CLARENCE, DUKE OF, VII. (_title_). + +CLEO, Clio, X. 13; Clio, IX. 242. + +CLEOPATRE, Cleopatra, IX. 195; XXIV. 873; Cleopatras, XXI. 462; _gen._ +XIII. 86. + +COLKOS, Colchis, VIII. 373. + +COLLO, I. ii. 7. 119. + +CONSTANTYN, Constantine, IV. 339; VI. 10. + +CRESSEID, XVII. 42. + +CUPIDO, Cupid, V. 1; Cupyde, VIII. 88; _gen._ VIII. 361. + +CYNTHIA, the Moon, XVII. 253. + + + +DALIDA, Delilah, XIII. 83; XXIV. 538. + +DANE, Danaë, I. i. 5. 8; XXIV. 824. + +DAPHNE, VIII. 64. + +DAVID, I. i. 5. 126; I. i. 8. 73; &c. + +DEMOPHOON, Demophon, XXI. 458; _spelt_ Demophon, VIII. 380; Demophoun, +VIII. 70. + +DIANE, Diana, XVII. 587; XX. 472; XXIV. 682; Dyane, VIII. 95. + +DIDO, V. 311; XXIV. 232; Dydo, IX. 211. + +DIOMEID, Diomede, XVII. 43. + +DIVES, II. 533. + +DOMINIKS, _gen._ St. Dominic's, III. 406. + +DORIGENE, Dorigen, IX. 192. + + + +EDWARD, Edward III, I. i. _pr._ 91. + +EGYPTE, Egypt, I. i. 9. 100. + +ELEYNES, Helen's, XII. 115. + +ELICON, Helicon, XXIV. 22. + +ENEAS, Aeneas, I. i. 5. 129; V. 309; XXIV. 233; Enee, VIII. 375; IX. 212. + +ENGLISSH, English, I. iii. 4. 249. + +ENGLOND, England, XXIV. 1226; Engëlond, IV. 358. + +EOY, Eous, XVII. 212. + +ESDRAM, Ezra, I. ii. 3. 8. + +ETHIOS, Aethon, XVII. 213. + +EUROPA, XXIV. 823; _gen._ I. i. 5. 127. + +EVE, I. i. 1. 39; I. iii. 8. 104; V. 361, 365. + + + +FEVRIER, February, IX. 1. + +FLORA, goddess of flowers, VIII. 1; XVII. 426; XX. 534. + +FRAUNCE, France, I. i. _pr._ 91; XXIV. 1227. + +FRAUNCES, St. Francis, III. 356; _gen._ III. 215. + + + +GABRIEL, X. 99. + +GADES, Cadiz, in Spain (see note), I. i. _pr._ 88; VIII. 349. + +GALFRID, Geoffrey de Vinsauf, XXIV. 11. See note. + +GARTER, _s._ the Garter, VI. 5; (Knights of the), XX. 519. + +GEDEON, Gideon, X. 132. + +GEORGES, St. George's, VI. 54. + +GLOUCESTRE, DUKE OF, VII. (_title_). + +GODFRAY, Godfray of Bouillon, IV. 283. + +GOWER, IV. 374. + +GRECE, Greece, I. i. 5. 29; I. ii. 2. 116; XXIV. 1229. + +GREGORY, ST., III. 49. + +GRISILDE, Griselda, IX. 119; Griseldes, XII. 108. _See_ The Clerkes Tale. + + + +HANIBAL, Hannibal, I. i. 6. 49. + +HAWES, Havise (?), XXI. 463. + +HECTOR, I. i. 8. 61; I. ii. 2. 115; IV. 281; XII. 93. + +HELAYNE, Helen, IX. 191; Heleyne, I. i. 5. 7. + +HELISEE, Elysium, XXIV. 119. + +HENRY CURTMANTIL, Henry II. (see the note), I. ii. 7. 17; Henry (IV.), IV. +358; _gen._ IV. 272. + +HERCULES, I. ii. 7. 118; VIII. 344; _gen._ I. i. _pr._ 87. + +HERODES, Herod, I. i. 7. 54; I. ii. 6. 80. + +HESTER, Esther, IX. 197; Hestre, XII. 107. + +HIPSIPHILEE, Hypsipyle, IX. 204. + +HOLAND, Holland, XXIV. 1227. + +HUGEST, _for_ Hengist (?), I. ii. 7. 118. See note. + + + +INDE, India, VIII. 351; XXI. 482. + +IPOMENES, Hippomanes, VIII. 393. + +ISAIE, Isaiah, X. 109; _gen._ X. 118. + +ITALY, XXIV. 1228. + + + +JACOBES, _s._ Jacob's, I. i. 8. 32. + +JAMES, St. James, III. 389; XXI. 689. + +JAPHETES, Japhet's, I. ii. 2. 105. + +JASON, I. i. 2. 92; VIII. 372; IX. 214; Jasoun, V. 302. + +JEWES, _pl._ Jews, I. ii. 1. 43. + +JOHAN, St. John, VIII. 12; John, II. 226; _gen._ II. 193; king John, I. ii. +6. 81. + +JOHN DE MEUN, V. 281. + +JOSEPH, X. 138. + +JOSUË, Joshua, IV. 282; XII. 88. + +JOVE, Jupiter, XXIV. 94, 820; Jovis, I. ii. 9. 167. + +JUDAS, II. 615; III. 147. + +JUDAS MACHABEE, Judas Maccabeus, XII. 88. + +JUDITH, IX. 197; XII. 109. + +JULIAN, SAINT, XXI. 224. See note. + +JULIUS CESAR, I. i. 5. 128; I. iii. 2. 23; Julius, IV. 281; VII. 168. + +JUPITER, I. i. 5. 10, 127; I. ii. 9. 108; Juppiter, XVII. 169; _gen._ I. i. +9. 68. + +JUSTINIANS, Justinian's, VI. 3. + + + +LABAN, I. i. 5. 94. + +LACHASES, Lachesis, I. i. 6. 78. + +LAMUALL, Lamuel, II. 434. + +LONDENOYS, Londoner, I. i. 8. 103. + +LONDON, I. i. 6. 98; I. i. 8. 103. + +LOTHE, _s._ Lot, I. i. 8. 58; _gen._ I. i. 8. 17. + +LUCIFER, II. 119, 380, 833, 937; VIII. 5. + +LUCRECE, Lucretia, IX. 201. + +LYA, Leah, I. i. 5. 95. + + + +MACHABEUS, IV. 282. + +MARCES, _gen._ of Mars, I. ii. 4. 116. + +MARCIA CATOUN, Marcia, daughter of Cato, IX. 198; XII. 116. + +MARGARIT, Margaret, I. i. 1. 19, &c.; Margarete, V. 421; X. 119. + +MARS, I. i. 2. 192; XVII. 183. + +MAXIMIAN, the poet, XXIV. 798. + +MAXIMIEN, Maximianus, II. 293. + +MEDEA, V. 302; Medee, VIII. 373; IX. 214; XII. 115. + +MELPOMENE, the muse, XXIV. 24. + +MERCURIUS, Mercury, XVII. 239; _gen._ I. ii. 14. 46; Mercury, I. ii. 13. +92; XXIV. 56. + +METAMORPHOSOSE, Ovid's Metamorphoses, XXIV. 1259. See note. + +MINERVA, XXIV. 20. + +MIRRE, Myrrha, VIII. 180. + + + +NAPLES, XXIV. 1228. + +NARCISUS, Narcissus, VIII. 87. + +NAVERNE, Navarre, XXIV. 1229. + +NERO, I. ii. 3. 110; I. ii. 6. 78; I. ii. 7. 8; II. 294, 1250; VII. 174. + +NIOBE, VIII. 178. + +NOE, Noah, I. i. 8. 56; Noës, _gen._ I. i. 7. 83; I. ii. 2. 108. + +NORMANDES, _s. pl._ Normans', I. ii. 7. 19. + +NOVEMBRE, November, I. i. 3. 30. + + + +OCTOBRE, October, I. i. 3. 30. + +OVYDE, Ovid, V. 204, 246; XXIV. 1259. + + + +PALAMIDES, Palamedes, VIII. 330. + +PALEMOUN, VIII. 368. + +PALLAS, I. ii. 13. 92. + +PARCAS, _s. pl._ the Fates, VIII. 483. + +PARIS, I. i. 2. 92; I. i. 5. 6; I. i. 8. 63. + +PAULYN, Paulinus, I. iii. 2. 19, 21. See note. + +PEGACÈ, _s._ Pegasus, VIII. 92. + +PENELOPE, IX. 203; XII. 113. + +PERDICAS, Perdiccas, I. ii. 2. 116; I. iii. 2. 25. + +PERNASO, _s._ Parnassus, VIII. 93. + +PEROS, Pyroëis, XVII. 215. + +PETER, II. 365, 443; _gen._ II. 66. + +PHAETON, Phaethon, XVII. 205. + +PHARISEES, _pl._ III. 351. + +PHEBUS, Phoebus, VIII. 3, 358; XVII. 197; the sun, XVII. 14; XX. 1; XXII. +30; (an emblem of the Holy Ghost), X. 83; _gen._ VIII. 55, 597; XXIV. 88. + +PHILEGONEY, Phlegon, XVII. 216. + +PHILOBONE, XXIV. 160, 912, 1028. + +PHILOGENET, XXIV. 912, 1029. + +PHYLLIS, IX. 204; XXI. 457. + +PIRAMUS, Pyramus, VIII. 365. + +PLATO, I. ii. 11. 93. + +PLUTO, XXIV. 94. + +POLICENE, Polyxena, IX. 190; _gen._ XII. 110. + +POMPEUS, Pompey, I. iii. 2. 20. + +PORRUS, Porus, I. iii. 2. 27. + +POULE, Paul, I. iii. 4. 120. + +PRESTER JOHN, XX. 202. + +PRIAMUS, _gen._ of Priam, I. i. 2. 92. + +PYCARDIE, Picardy, XXIV. 1226. + + + +RACHEL, I. i. 9. 95. + +ROMANCE OF THE ROSE, V. 283. + +ROMAYNE, Roman, I. i. 6. 48; I. ii. 1. 14. + +ROME, I. i. 5. 130. + +ROSAMOUNDE, XI. 77; XIII. 85. + +ROSIALL, XXIV. 741, 767, 1019, 1327. + + + +SALAMOUN, Solomon, I. i. 8. 74; IV. 29; V. 199; XIII. 63; XIV. 4. + +SAMPSOUN, Samson, V. 199; XIII. 81; XIV. 4. + +SARAZINS, _s. pl._ Saracens, IV. 250. + +SATAN, II. 1208. + +SATURN, XVII. 151; _gen._ I. ii. 2. 24. + +SCOGAN, HENRY, VII. (_title_). + +SELANDE, _s._ Zealand, I. i. 7. 108. See note, p. 460. + +SENEK, Seneca, XII. 101. + +SEPTEMBRE, September, XXI. 1. + +SILOË, Siloam, I. ii. 14. 40. + +SILVESTER, pope, IV. 346. + +SION, X. 120. + +SONDAY, Sunday, I. ii. 9. 162. + +SPAIN, XXIV. 1226. + +STYX, considered as 'the pit of hell,' I. i. _pr._ 80. + +SUNAMYTE, Shunammite, X. 118. See 2 Kings, iv. 12. + + + +THEBES, VIII. 379. + +THESEUS, VIII. 374. + +THOMAS, St. Thomas, II. 11. + +TISBEE, Thisbe, XXI. 459. + +TITUS LIVIUS, Livy, XX. 532. + +TRISTRAM, VIII. 366. + +TROILUS, I. iii. 4. 254; XII. 94; XVII. 42; XXIV. 872. + +TROY, I. i. 2. 92; I. i. 5. 6; V. 81. + +TUBALL, Tubal, XXIV. 1402. + +TULLIUS, Cicero, XII. 100; XXIV. 8. + +TULLIUS HOSTILIUS, VII. 166. + +TYTAN, _s._ the sun, VIII. 28; IX. 265; XVII. 9; (as an emblem of Jesus), +X. 114. + + + +URYE, Uriah, I. i. 8. 60; _gen._ I. i. 8. 74. + + + +VALENTYNE, SAINT, IX. 4, 252. + +VENERIENS, _s. pl._ servants of Venus, I. ii. 14. 47. + +VENUS, XVII. 218; (the planet), VIII. 614; _gen._ VIII. 360. + +VIRGIL, XXIV. 10. + +VULCANUS, Vulcan, VIII. 389. + + + +WODESTOK, Woodstock, XVIII. 285. + + + +ZEDEOREYS (see note), I. i. 6. 48. + +ZEPHERUS, Zephyr, VIII. 57. + + * * * * * + + +INDEX + +TO SOME + +SUBJECTS EXPLAINED IN THE NOTES. + +A large number of the Notes refer to explanations of peculiar words and to +proper names; the references to these will be found in the Glossarial Index +and in the Index of Names. A few other subjects of more general interest +are also discussed; the chief of these are indexed below. The references +are to the pages. + + Arbours described, 535. + + Bell, Book, and Candle, cursing by, 485. + Birds singing the 'hours,' 552. + _burly_, etymology of, 524. + Burning of heretics, 489, 490, 494. + + Cardinal Virtues, 479. + Chaucer's death alluded to, 510. + Chaucer's Boëthius, alluded to, 451, 453-4, 457-8, 461-3, 466-76, 481-3. + -- Anelida, 537, 543. + -- Book of the Duchess, 473, 530. + -- Canterbury Tales, 456, 503, &c. + -- Compleynt of Venus, 548-9. + -- House of Fame, imitated, 467-8. + -- Legend of Good Women, 452, 467, 483, 500-1, 537, 542-3, 547. + -- Merciless Beautè, 513. + -- Rom. of the Rose, 456-7, 504-6, 545, 549, 551. + -- Troilus, 452, 455, 457, 459, 472, 481-3, 521-3, 525, 551. + Christine de Pisan, 499. + Creeping to the cross, 490. + Cupid's arrows, 531-2. + + _determission_ (a false form), 476. + + Elements, the four, 462, 472. + + Final cause, 464. + Forget-me-not, 536. + Friars, the, 493-6. + + Geoffrey de Vinsauf, 540. + Gower's blindness, 498. + Griffin, the, 485. + + Hengist, perhaps alluded to, 471. + Hercules, pillars of, 507. + 'Hours,' Canonical, 552-3. + + Knot, the, defined, 468. + + Lent, three divisions of, 521. + Lepers, 523, 525. + Lollards, the, 464, 485, 489. + London, election of the mayor, 459. + Lydgate's Temple of Glass, imitated, 540, &c. + + Margaret, meaning of, 475-6, 484; + derivation of, 479. + Maze described, 535. + _me_, for _men_ = _man_, 452. + Mottoes worn on sleeves, 536. + + Pearl, virtues of the, 453, 475. + Pelican, the, 485. + Piers Plowman, imitated, 456-8, 464-6, 477, 482-4. + Popes, schism of the, 487. + Prester John, 532. + Proverbs, Book of (quoted), 477-8. + Proverbs:--a cipher in augrim, 470; + against the hair, 468; + all day fails the fool's thought, 472; + he that hews above his head, the chips fall in his eye, 462, 509; + it may rime, but it accords not, 466; + silence gives consent, 461; + the habit makes not the monk, 475; + when bale is highest, boot is nighest, 473; + _fallere, flere_, &c., 516, 546; + _vento quid levius_, &c., 516. + + Remember-me, 536. + Romance of the Rose, 456-7, 504-6, 545, 549, 551. + + St. Julian's paternoster, 536-7. + Sun, four horses of the, 523; + greater than the earth, 479. + + Virgin, five joys of the, 511. + + _web and pin_, 455. + Week, names of the days of the, 473-4. + Worthies, the nine, 497, 514, 532. + + Zealand, 460. + +THE END. + + * * * * * + + +CHAUCERIAN AND OTHER PIECES + +_LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS._ + + ADAM, P., Esq., Kidderminster. + ADAMS, SAMUEL, Esq., New Barnet. + AINGER, Rev. 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I., Bookseller, Eton (_four copies_). + DRESDEN PUBLIC LIBRARY. + DREXEL INSTITUTE, Philadelphia, U.S.A. + DUFF, Prof. J. WIGHT, Durham College of Science, Newcastle-on-Tyne. + DULAU & CO., Booksellers, London, W. (_two copies_). + DUNCAN, Hon. GEORGE. + DUNCAN, W. A., Esq., Woolton, Liverpool. + DUNN, Mrs. COLMORE, London, W. + DUNN, Miss SARA R., Thirsk. + DURHAM, The Right Rev. LORD BISHOP OF. + + EARLE, Miss, Newnham College, Cambridge. + ECCLES, Miss JANE HELEN, London, S.W. + EDINBURGH FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY. + EDWARDS, FRANCIS, Bookseller, Marylebone, London, W. (_two copies_). + EDWARDS, JOHN, Esq., Glasgow. + ELLERSHAW, Rev. H., M.A., Durham. + ELLIOT, ANDREW, Bookseller, Edinburgh. + ELLIS, F. S., Esq., Torquay. + ENGLISCHES SEMINAR DER UNIVERSITÄT, Grätz, Austria. + ENGLISCHES SEMINAR DER UNIVERSITÄT, Strassburg. + EVANS, H. A., Esq., Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester. + EVERARD, C. H., Esq., East Grinstead. + EXETER COLLEGE, Oxford, The Rev. the RECTOR OF. + EXETER COLLEGE LIBRARY, Oxford. + + FABER, REGINALD S., Esq., London, N.W. + FACULTY OF PROCURATORS (THE), Glasgow. + FAIRBAIRN, Rev. A. M., M.A., D.D., LL.D., Principal of Mansfield College, + Oxford. + FANE, W. D., Esq., Grantham. + FANSHAWE, H. C., Esq., Lahore, India. + FARWELL, GEORGE, Esq., Q.C., London, W. + FAUNTHORPE, Rev. J. P., Whitelands College, Chelsea, London, S.W. + FAWN, J., & SON, Booksellers, Bristol. + FINLAY, Sir ROBERT B., Q.C., London, W. + FIRTH COLLEGE, Sheffield. + FISHER, W. E. GARRATT, Esq., Richmond, Surrey. + FLECKER, Rev. W. H., D.C.L., Cheltenham. + FLEMING, GEORGE, Esq., C.B., LL.D., F.R.C.V.S., Combe Martin, N. Devon. + FLETCHER, CHARLES E., Esq., Maidstone. + FLOWER, WICKHAM, Esq., London, S.W. + FORD, Hon. W. C., Washington, D.C., U.S.A. + FÖRSTER, Prof. Dr. MAX, University, Bonn. + FOSTER, Prof. GREGORY, London, W. + FOWLER, H. W., Esq., Sedbergh. + FOX, Mrs. HAMILTON, Keston, Kent. + FOX, F. F., Esq., Gloucester. + FOX, J. R., Esq., London, E.C. + FRAPNELL, ALFRED, Esq., Clifton. + FRASER, JOHN, Esq., Liverpool. + FRAZER, J. G., Esq., Trinity College, Cambridge. + FREEMAN, Rev. J., Wakefield. + FRESHFIELD, W. D., Esq., London, W. + FRY, Miss, Clifton. + FULLER-MAITLAND, J. A., Esq., London, W. + + GARDNER, Dr., Royton, near Manchester. + GAYE, ARTHUR, Esq., Ealing, London, W. + GEBHARDT, Prof. VON, Leipzig. + GENEVA PUBLIC LIBRARY. + GEORGE'S SONS, Booksellers, Bristol. + GERICH, F. E., Esq., Beckenham. + GEROLD & CO., Booksellers, Vienna. + GILBERT & FIELD, Booksellers, London, E.C. (_five copies_). + GILLFORD, GEORGE, Esq., Redland, Bristol. + GILMOUR, T. L., Esq., West Hampstead, London, N.W. + GILRAY, Prof. THOMAS, M.A., University of Otago, Dunedin, N.Z. + GINN, S. R., Esq., Cambridge. + GOLDSMITH, G. P., Esq., M.D., Bedford. + GOLLANCZ, I., Esq., Christ's College, Cambridge. + GORDON, Rev. J. M., Redhill, Surrey. + GOULDEN, W. E., Bookseller, Canterbury. + GOVER, W. S., Esq., London, E.C. + GOWANS, ADAM L., Esq., Glasgow. + GREENFIELD, T. C., Esq., Enfield. + GREENWOOD, Mrs., Withington, Manchester. + GREG, W. W., Esq., Trinity College, Cambridge. + GREGORY, H. E., Esq., Hurst Green, Sussex. + GRIERSON, Prof. H. J. C., M.A., Aberdeen. + GRIFFITH, G., Esq., Harrow. + GROSSHERZOGLICHE BIBLIOTHEK, Weimar. + GROVE, Rev. W. H., Rochester. + GUILDHALL LIBRARY, London, E.C. + GULLY, the Right Hon. W. C., Speaker of the House of Commons. + GUNN, THOMAS BUTLER, Esq., Banbury. + GUNN, W., Esq., Edinburgh. + GUTCH, Mrs., York. + GUY, ROBERT, Esq., Glasgow. + + HAIGH, F., Esq., Leeds. + HAINES, GREGORY, Esq., Putney, London, S.W. + HALES, Rev. C. T., Newton-le-Willows, Yorks. + HALEWOOD, A., Bookseller, Preston. + HALL, F. J., Esq., Wavertree. + HALL, JOSEPH, Esq., M.A., Manchester. + HALLWORTH, ARTHUR, Esq., Manchester. + HAMILTON, W., Esq., Liverpool. + HANNEN, H. A., Esq., Ashburton. + HARBEN, H. A., Esq., London, W. + HARRASSOWITZ, OTTO, Bookseller, Leipzig (_three copies_). + HARRINGTON, Dr., Birkenhead. + HARRIS, WILLIAM, Esq., J.P., Edgbaston. + HARRISON, Miss, York. + HARTLAND, E. SIDNEY, Esq., Gloucester. + HARVARD COLLEGE LIBRARY, Mass., U.S.A. + HARVEY, H. C., Esq., Ryton-on-Tyne. + HARVEY, Rev. RALPH, M.A., Cork. + HATCHARDS, Booksellers, Piccadilly, London (_twelve copies_). + HAUPT, Prof. Dr., Giessen. + HAWTHORN, J., Bookseller, Uppingham. + HEATH, Prof. + HELME, Rev. ROBERT, Hassocks. + HEYWOOD, JOHN, Bookseller, Manchester (_two copies_). + HIGGINS, A. P., Esq., Downing College, Cambridge. + HILL, GEORGE W., Esq., Glasgow. + HILL, Mrs. JAMES S., W. Hampstead, London, N.W. + HIRSCHFELD BROS., Booksellers, London, E.C. + HITCHMAN, JOHN, Bookseller, Birmingham. + HODGSON, T. T., Esq. + HÖLDER, A., Esq., Vienna. + HOLLINGWORTH, Miss, London, W. + HOLLINS, F., Esq., Eastbourne. + HOLMES, TIMOTHY, Esq., London, W. + HORE, J. C., Esq., Highbury Hill, London, N. + HORNE, A. B., Esq., Temple, London, E.C. + HORNELL, R., Esq., London, E.C. + HORSFALL, T. C., Esq., J.P., Macclesfield. + HOW, WALTER W., Esq., M.A., Merton College, Oxford. + HUBBART, H. E., Esq., Nottingham. + HUDSON, Rev. C. H. BICKERTON, M.A., Magdalen College, Oxford. + HUGHES, W. R., Esq., F.L.S., Birmingham. + HUGHES, Dr., Plymouth. + HULL SUBSCRIPTION LIBRARY. + HUNTER, R. W., Bookseller, Edinburgh. + HURST, G. H. J., Esq., Eton College. + HUTCHISON, Rev. JOHN, D.D., Edinburgh. + + INNER TEMPLE LIBRARY, London. + IRVING, C. S., Esq., Tiverton. + + JACKS, WILLIAM, Esq., M.P., Glasgow. + JACKSON, C. H., Esq., London, E.C. + JACKSON, Rev. J., Bampton, Oxon. + JACOBS, JOSEPH, Esq., West Hampstead, London, N.W. + JAMES, Mrs. C. H., Merthyr Tydvil. + JAMESON, T., Esq., London, W.C. + JEKYLL, COLONEL, London, W. + JENKINS, Mrs., Chalfont St. Peter's, Bucks. + JENKINS, Sir JAMES, K.C.B., Plymouth. + JESUS COLLEGE LIBRARY, Cambridge. + JOACHIM, H. H., Esq., M.A., Oxford. + JOHN, E. T., Esq., Middlesbrough. + JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY, Baltimore, U.S.A. + JOHNSON, C. P., Esq., London, W. + JOHNSON, E., Bookseller, Cambridge. + JOHNSON, H., Esq., Bath. + JOHNSON, WILFRID R., Esq., Rochester. + JOHNSTON, G. P., Bookseller, Edinburgh. + JOHNSTONE, P. DE LACY, Esq., M.A., Edinburgh. + JONAS, EDWARD A., Esq., Henderson, Ky., U.S.A. + JONES, H. R., Esq., Richmond, Surrey. + JONES, R. M., Esq., M.A., Belfast. + JONES, W. LEWIS, Esq., M.A., University College, Bangor. + JONES, WILLIAM, Bookseller, 6 Duke St., Cardiff. + JOY, A., Esq., London, S.W. + + KARKECK, PAUL Q., Esq., Torquay. + KENRICK, ARCHIBALD, Esq., Edgbaston. + KENYON, GEORGE, Esq., London, S.W. + KER, W. P., Esq., London, W.C. + KERSHAW, A. H., Esq., Bristol. + KEYS, H. W., Esq., Forest Officer, Dhulia, W. Khandesh, India. + KING'S COLLEGE, Cambridge. + KING'S INNS LIBRARY, Dublin. + KIRBERGER & KESPER, Booksellers, Amsterdam (_two copies_). + KIRKCUDBRIGHT INSTITUTE LIBRARY. + KITCHEN, T. M., Esq., Farnham. + KITCHIN, GEORGE, Esq., Bromley, Kent. + KOEHLER'S (K. F.) Antiquarium, Leipzig. + KOEPPEL, Prof. Dr., Strassburg. + + LAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, U.S.A. + LANCASHIRE INDEPENDENT COLLEGE, Manchester. + LANDOR, R. HENRY, Esq., B.A., LL.M., Rugeley. + LANGE, R., Esq., St. Petersburg. + LARMUTH, Dr., Manchester. + LAURIE, Prof. S. S., LL.D., Edinburgh. + LAWLEY, Hon. & Rev. S., Exminster. + LAWRENCE, A. J., Bookseller, Rugby. + LAYTON, Rev. W. E., M.A., F.S.A., Worcester Park, Surrey. + LEEDS LIBRARY. + LEGISLATIVE LIBRARY, Toronto. + LEIGH, W. B., Esq., Heaton Mersey. + LE SOUDIER, H., Bookseller, Paris. + LIBRARY COMPANY, Philadelphia, U.S.A. + LIBRARY OF PARLIAMENT, Ottawa. + LINGING, EDWARD W., Esq., London, E.C. + LINTON, FREDERICK T. C., Esq., Edinburgh. + LITTLEBOY, Miss ANNA L., London, W.C. + LIVEING, Prof. G. D., St. John's College, Cambridge. + LIVERPOOL FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY. + LOCKE, CYRIL L. C., Esq., Winchfield. + LOWE, J. W., Esq., Temple, London, E.C. + LYSTER, T. W., Esq., Dublin. + + MACANDREW, J., Esq., London, N.W. + MACANDREW, WILLIAM, Esq., Colchester. + MAC BRAYNE, D., Esq., Jun., Glasgow. + MC GEE, W., Bookseller, Dublin. + MC GILL, H. J., Esq., Elstree. + MC ILWRAITH, WILLIAM, Esq., Wolverhampton. + MACK, Rev. A. W. BRADSHAW, Swords. + MACKAY, Rev. G. S., Doune, N.B. + MCKELVIE, Miss, Lamlash, Arran. + MCKERROW, R. B., Esq., London, S.W. + MACKEY, A. J., Esq., Twyford, Berks. + MACKINLAY, J. T. C., Esq., Pollokshields, Glasgow. + MACLEAN, Rev. M., B.D., Brodick, Arran. + MCLINTOCK, ROBERT, Esq., Liverpool. + MACMILLAN & BOWES, Booksellers, Cambridge (_twenty-four copies_). + MCNICOL, R. S., Esq., Glasgow. + MACNIVEN & WALLACE, Booksellers, Edinburgh. + MACRORY, EDMUND, Esq., Q.C., Temple, London, E.C. + MADHOWLAL, CHINOOBHAI, Esq., Ahmedabad, India. + MADRAS CHRISTIAN COLLEGE LIBRARY. + MAGDALEN COLLEGE, The President of, Oxford. + MAGDALEN COLLEGE LIBRARY, Oxford. + MALCOLM, R., Esq., Dollar. + MALDEN, H. E., Esq., Holmwood, Surrey. + MANCHESTER FREE LIBRARY. + MANCHESTER GRAMMAR SCHOOL. + MANFIELD, Sir PHILIP, Northampton. + MANLEY, F. E., Esq., London, N. + MANN, JAMES, Esq., Glasgow. + MARKS, GEOFFREY, Esq., London, W. + MARRIOTT, W. K., Esq., Barking. + MARSHALL, J. W., Esq., M.A., Charterhouse, Godalming. + MARTEL, L. O., Esq., Paris. + MARTIN, Sir THEODORE, K.C.B., London, S.W. + MARWICK, Sir JAMES D., LL.D., F.R.S.E., Glasgow. + MASKELYNE, N. STORY, Esq., Swindon. + MASON SCIENCE COLLEGE LIBRARY, Birmingham. + MATHIESON, F. C., Esq., Hampstead, London, N.W. + MATTHEWS & BROOKE, Booksellers, Bradford. + MATVEIEFF, B., Esq., London, W. + MELBOURNE PUBLIC LIBRARY. + MELVEN BROS., Booksellers, Nairn. + MELVILLE, Right Hon. VISCOUNT, Lasswade, N.B. + MELVILLE, MULLEN & SLADE, Booksellers, Melbourne (_two copies_). + MERCHANT TAYLORS' SCHOOL LIBRARY, London, E.C. + MERTON COLLEGE LIBRARY, Oxford. + METCALFE, REGINALD, Esq., Penrith. + MICHELL, WILLIAM, Esq., Redruth, Cornwall. + MIDDLEMORE, THOMAS, Esq., J.P., London, W. + MIDDLESBROUGH FREE LIBRARY. + MILL, Miss, Liverpool. + MILLER, Rev. W., LL.D., C.I.E., Principal, Christian College, Madras. + MILLSON, Rev. F. E., Halifax. + MINSHULL & MEESON, Booksellers, Chester. + MITCHELL LIBRARY (THE), Glasgow. + MOBERLY LIBRARY, Winchester. + MOIR, JAMES, Esq., LL.D., Aberdeen. + MONTEFIORE, CLAUDE G., Esq., London, W. (_two copies_). + MONTGOMERY, JAMES, Bookseller, Londonderry. + MORGAN, JOHN W., Esq., Glasgow. + MORISON, A. J., Esq., West Dulwich, London, S.E. + MORISON, JOHN, Esq., Glasgow. + MORRIS, Prof., Melbourne. + MUNRO, THOMAS, Esq., Hamilton, N.B. + MURDOCH, Rev. ALEXANDER GUTHRIE, M.A., B.D., Wallacetown, Ayr. + MURISON, WILLIAM, Esq., M.A., Aberdeen. + + NASH, EDMUND, Esq., M.D., Notting Hill, London, W. + NATIONAL LIBRARY OF IRELAND, Dublin. + NESBITT, A., Esq., Barnes. + NETTLEFORD, F., Esq., London, W.C. + NEW, G., Bookseller, Eton. + NEW HAVEN FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY, New Haven, U.S.A. + NEW UNIVERSITY CLUB, London. + NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY. + NEW YORK STATE LIBRARY. + NEWCASTLE-ON-TYNE PUBLIC LIBRARY. + NICHOLSON, Prof. J., Aberdeen. + NICHOLSON, Prof. J. SHIELD, Edinburgh. + NOBLE, WILLIAM, Esq., Liverpool. + NOCK, LAWRENCE FREDERICK, Esq., Birmingham. + NORMAL SEMINARY (THE), Glasgow. + NORWICH FREE LIBRARY. + NOTCUTT, H. CLEMENT, Esq., South African College, Cape Town. + NOTTINGHAM CENTRAL FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY. + NUTT, DAVID, Bookseller, London, W.C. (_five copies_). + + OGILVIE, JOSEPH, Esq., LL.D., Aberdeen. + O'GRADY, STANDISH HAYES, Esq., Hon. Litt. D. Cantab., London, W. + OLDHAM FREE LIBRARY. + OLIPHANT, T. L. KINGTON, Esq., Auchterarder, N.B. + ORIEL COLLEGE LIBRARY, Oxford. + ORMEROD, WILLIAM, Esq., J.P., Todmorden, Lancashire. + ORR, JOHN F., Esq., Glasgow. + OWENS COLLEGE, Manchester. + OXFORD AND CAMBRIDGE CLUB, London, S.W. + OXFORD UNION SOCIETY, Oxford. + + PARKER, J., & CO., Booksellers, Oxford (_two copies_). + PARKINSON, JOHN WILSON, Esq., Tottenham. + PARRY, C. HUBERT, Esq., Rustington, Sussex. + PARSONS, J. R., Esq., Yokohama, Japan. + PASSAUVERT, Mons. A., St. Petersburg. + PATERSON, DOUGLAS, Esq., M.A., Melbourne. + PATERSON, MAURICE, Esq., LL.D., Free Church Training College, Edinburgh. + PATERSON, WILLIAM ROMAINE, Esq., Glasgow. + PATTERSON, ARTHUR J., Esq., Buda-Pesth. + PATTIN, Dr. H. COOPER, M.A., D.P.H., Norwich. + PAYNE, F. J., Esq., London, E.C. + PEABODY INSTITUTE, Baltimore, U.S.A. + PEARCE, W. R., Esq., Glasgow. + PEARSE, H., Bookseller, Rochdale. + PEMBROKE COLLEGE LIBRARY, Cambridge. + PENSON, G. W., Esq., London, W. + PEORIA PUBLIC LIBRARY, Ill., U.S.A. + PERKINS, Mrs. G. C., Hartford, Conn., U.S.A. + PERKINS, O. T., Esq., Wellington College. + PERMANENT LIBRARY (THE), Leicester. + PHINN, Rev. C. P., Watford. + PINSENT, HUME C., Esq., Harborne, Birmingham. + PITMAN, Rev. A. A. + PITTAR, P. M., Esq., London, S.W. + PLATT, J. A., Esq., M.A., London, W. + POLLOCK, Sir FREDERICK, Bart., M.A., Corpus Christi College, Oxford. + PONSONBY, E., Bookseller, Dublin. + POOLER, Rev. CHARLES KNOX, M.A., Belfast. + PORT ELIZABETH PUBLIC LIBRARY, South Africa. + PORTER, R. T., Esq. + PORTICO LIBRARY, Manchester. + POULTER, R. C., Bookseller, London, W.C. (_two copies_). + POWER, H., Esq., London, W. + PRATT INSTITUTE, Brooklyn, N.Y., U.S.A. + PRICE, F. G. HILTON, Esq., F.S.A., London, S.W. + PROCTOR, R., Esq. + + QUARITCH, BERNARD, Bookseller, London, W. (_eight copies_). + QUEEN'S COLLEGE, Belfast. + QUEEN'S COLLEGE, Melbourne. + QUEEN'S COLLEGE LIBRARY, Oxford. + QUINN, M. T., Esq., M.A., F.R.Hist.S., London, S.W. + + RADCLIFFE, F. M., Esq., Liverpool. + RALEIGH, Prof., University College, Liverpool. + REFFITT-OLDFIELD, J., Esq., London, W.C. + REGNART, H. G., Esq., Cambridge. + REICHEL, Principal H.R., M.A., University College of North Wales, Bangor. + RENOUF, E. M., Bookseller, Montreal. + RENSHAW, W., Esq., London, W. + REYNOLDS, Miss CLARE, London, W. + RICHARDS, F., Esq., M.A., Bath. + RICHARDSON & CO., Booksellers, London, S.W. + RIDLEY, THOMAS D., Esq., Redcar. + RIPON, The Most Hon. THE MARQUIS OF, K.G. + RITCHIE, Prof. WILLIAM, South African College, Cape Town. + RITTENHOUSE CLUB, Philadelphia, U.S.A. + ROBARTS, N. F., Esq., F.G.S., Croydon. + ROBERTS, CHARLES J., Esq., B.A., Folkestone. + ROBERTS, D. LLOYD, Esq., M.D., F.R.C.P., F.R.S. Edin., Manchester. + ROBERTS, Sir OWEN, London, E.C. + ROBERTSON & CO., Booksellers, Melbourne (_two copies_). + ROSS, ALEXANDER GALT, Esq., South Kensington, London, S.W. + ROSS, MAJOR-GEN. A. G., Indian Staff Corps, Ealing. + ROWE, LOUIS T., Esq., Hammersmith, London, W. + ROWLEY, Prof. JAMES, Clifton. + ROWSELL, HUBERT G., Esq., London, W. + ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY, Bombay Branch. + ROYAL DUBLIN SOCIETY LIBRARY. + ROYAL LIBRARY, The Hague. + RUGBY SCHOOL TEMPLE READING ROOM. + RUTHERFORD, Rev. W. GUNION, Westminster, London, S.W. + RYAN, CHARLES, Esq., Brixton, London, S.W. + + SAGE, E. J., Esq., Stoke Newington, London, N. + ST. BENEDICT'S ABBEY, Fort Augustus, Inverness. + ST. CHARLES COLLEGE LIBRARY. + ST. LOUIS PUBLIC LIBRARY, U.S.A. + ST. PETER'S COLLEGE LIBRARY, Westminster, London, S.W. + SAINTSBURY, Prof., Edinburgh. + SALTMARSHE, E., Esq. + SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON & CO., LTD., London, E.C. + SANDERS, Rev. Francis, Hoylake, Cheshire. + SCARTH, LEVESON, Esq., Bath. + SEARTH, H. W., Esq., Chislehurst. + SEPHTON, Rev. J., Liverpool. + SHAEN, Miss Margaret J., Kensington, London, W. + SHAW, Miss, Leeds. + SHELDON, EDWARD W., Esq., New York City. + SHELDON, R. P., Esq., Twyford by Winchester. + SHERBORNE SCHOOL LIBRARY. + SHERRATT & HUGHES, Booksellers, Manchester. + SHORTER, C. K., Esq., London, W. + SIBBALD, W. ASPINWALL, Esq., Liscard, Cheshire. + SIMPKIN, MARSHALL, HAMILTON, KENT & CO., London, E.C. (_eight copies_). + SIMPSON, W. W., Esq., Whalley, Lancashire. + SINCLAIR, ROBERT, Esq., Florence. + SLACK, J. BAMFORD, Esq., London, W.C. + SLATER, A., Esq., Bescot. + SLATER, J. A., Esq., London, W.C. + SMITH, ARTHUR C., Esq., Finchley, London, N.W. + SMITH, G. GREGORY, Esq., M.A., University of Edinburgh. + SMITH, J., & SON, Booksellers, Glasgow. + SMITH, Rev. Canon R. TRAVERS, D.D., Dublin. + SMITH, W. F., Esq., St. John's College, Cambridge. + SMITH, W. H., & SON, London, W.C. + SNELGROVE, A. G., Esq., Forest Gate, Essex. + SOTHEBY, MAJOR-GEN. F. E., Northampton. + SOTHERAN, H., & CO., Booksellers, London, W.C. (_two copies_). + SOWERBY, T. B., Esq. + SPOONER, F., Esq., M.A., Bedford. + SQUAREY, A. T., Esq., Birkenhead. + SRINIVASA, VARADACHARI & CO., Booksellers, Madras. + STANFORD, E., Bookseller, London, S.W. (_three copies_). + STECHERT, G. E., Bookseller, New York, U.S.A., (_two copies_). + STENHOUSE, ALEXANDER, Esq., Glasgow. + STEWART, Mrs. A. B., Glasgow. + STEWART, C. HUNTER, Esq., M.B., Edinburgh. + STEWART, Rev. G. WAUCHOPE, Fraserburgh, N.B. + STIRLING, Hon. Sir JAMES, London, S.W. + STOPFORD-SACKVILLE, S. G., Esq., Thrapston. + STRIDE, Mrs. ARTHUR L., Hatfield. + STRONG, Rev. T. B., M.A., Christ Church, Oxford. + STUBBS, W. W., Esq., Dulwich College, London, S.E. + SWANSEA PUBLIC LIBRARY. + SWINBURNE, A., Esq., Putney, London, S.W. + SYDNEY FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY. + SYKES, A., Esq., Leeds. + SYMINGTON, JAMES HALLIDAY, Esq. + + TABOR, JAMES, Esq., Sutton Rochford. + TAIT, JAMES, Esq., M.A., Manchester. + TANGYE, Sir RICHARD, Newquay, Cornwall. + TAYLOR, E. R., Esq., San Francisco. + TAYLOR, R. C., Esq., Edgbaston. + TERRY, F. C. BIRKBECK, Esq., M.A., Diss. + THACKER, W., & CO., Booksellers, London, E.C. (_five copies_). + THIN, JAMES, Bookseller, Edinburgh. + THOMAS, ARTHUR, Bookseller, Leicester. + THOMPSON, W., Esq., London, E.C. + THOMSON, R. T., Esq., Glasgow. + TOLLEY, R. MENTZ, Esq., Darlaston. + TOMKINSON, M., Esq., Kidderminster. + TORONTO PUBLIC LIBRARY. + TOUT, Prof., M.A., Manchester. + TRINITY COLLEGE LIBRARY, Cambridge. + TRINITY COLLEGE LIBRARY, Oxford. + TRUSLOVE & HANSON, Booksellers, London, W. + TURNBULL, ALEXANDER H., Esq., Wellington, New Zealand. + TURNER, FREDERIC, Esq., Egham. + TWIETMEYER, A., Bookseller, Leipzig (_two copies_). + TWISDEN, Rev. JOHN F., Bradbourne, East Malling. + TYAS, J. W., Esq., Tunbridge Wells. + + UNION CLUB, Manchester. + UNITED UNIVERSITY CLUB, London, S.W. + UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LIBRARY, Bangor. + UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LIBRARY, Dundee. + UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LIBRARY, Oxford. + UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF SOUTH WALES AND MONMOUTH, Cardiff. + UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Aberdeen. + UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Christiania. + UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Edinburgh. + UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Glasgow. + UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Sydney. + UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Tübingen. + UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Utrecht. + UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO, Boulder, U.S.A. + UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, Ann Arbor, U.S.A. + UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA, U.S.A. + UNIVERSITY OF MOUNT ALLISON COLLEGE LIBRARY, Sackville, New Brunswick. + UNIVERSITY OF ST. ANDREWS. + UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO. + USHERWOOD, Rev. T. E. (late Archdeacon of Maritzburg), Parkstone, Dorset. + + VAN DER KEMP, Dr., Neuilly, France. + VASSAR COLLEGE LIBRARY, Poughkeepsie, N.Y., U.S.A. + VAUGHAN, Prof. C. E., Cardiff. + VERNON, W. H., Esq., Kenley, Surrey. + VERULAM, Right Hon. THE EARL OF. + VEZEY, J. J., Esq., London, S.E. + VICKERS, WILLIAM, Esq., Manchester. + + WADHAM COLLEGE LIBRARY, Oxford. + WALDRON, LAWRENCE, Esq., Dublin. + WALKER, Rev. H. A., Ipswich. + WALKER, J. R., Esq., Sheffield. + WALKER, Prof. T., M.A., LL.D., Victoria College, Stellenbosch, Cape + Colony. + WALL, G. P., Esq., Sheffield. + WALMISLEY, Rev. H., Blackburn. + WARBURTON, SAMUEL, Esq., Cheetham Hill, Manchester. + WARMINGTON, C. M., Esq., Q.C., London, W.C. + WARWICK, WILLIAM DEEPING, Esq., Newark. + WATERS, A. C., Esq., Bromley, Kent. + WATSON, G. S., Esq., Sheffield. + WATT, A. P., Esq., London, W.C. + WEIR, R. S., Esq., North Shields. + WELLESLEY COLLEGE, Wellesley, Mass., U.S.A. + WELLS, P. & G., Booksellers, Winchester (_two copies_). + WELTER, H., Bookseller, Paris (_two copies_). + WENLEY, Dr. R. M., Michigan University, U.S.A. + WHITEHALL, W. J., Esq., Oxford. + WIDDISON, THOMAS, Bookseller, Sheffield. + WILCOCKS, H. 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F., Muir-of-Ord, Ross-shire, N.B. + + * * * * * + +FOOTNOTES. + +[1] In this connection, we must not forget the curious story told in +Francis Thynne's _Animadversions_ on Speght's edition of 1598, to the +effect that his father (William Thynne) had some thoughts of inserting in +the volume a piece called _The Pilgrim's Tale_, but was advised by the king +to let it alone; and this, _not_ on the ground that the Tale was written +after 1536, and contained an allusion to _Perkin Warbeck_, but solely in +deference to the king's remark--'William Thynne, I doubt this will not be +allowed, for I suspect the bishops will call thee in question for it.' See +F. Thynne, _Animadversions_, &c., ed. Furnivall (Ch. Soc.), pp. 9, 89. + +[2] These names are given, in the margin, in MS. Addit. 34360 only. + +[3] Morris printed _sleepe_, giving no sense; MS. 10303 has _slepye_. + +[4] The way in which the spelling was gradually altered can be seen even +from the following example, in which the eighth line of the Plowman's Tale +is represented:-- + + Ed. 1542. And honge his harneys on a pynne; fol. cxix. + Ed. 1550. And honged his harnys on a pynne; fol. xc. + Ed. 1561. And honged his harnis on a pinne; fol. xciii. + +[5] So in Thynne. But 'tyme' really concludes a sentence; and 'there' +should have a capital letter. + +[6] He had been imprisoned in 1384 (p. 33, l. 101); but at p. 49, l. 126, +he is leisurely planning a _future_ treatise! At p. 60, l. 104, he is in +prison _again_. + +[7] See p. 128, l. 16. He did not care to be 'a stinking martyr'; p. 34, l. +115. + +[8] Perhaps this is why Langland refers to 'the castel of Corf'; P. +Plowman, C. iv. 140. + +[9] Rolls of Parliament, iii. 234 a. + +[10] Professor Morley says:--'As Boethius ... wrote three books of the +Consolation of Philosophy," &c. But Boethius wrote _five_ books. + +[11] One line is enough to shew the order of the texts; see p. xv, +footnote. + +[12] But this proves nothing, as Urry departs from all sound texts in an +erratic manner all his own. + +[13] The expression 'the quenes heed,' at l. 158, hardly implies that there +was then a queen of England. If it does, it makes the poem later than +October, 1396. + +[14] The line, as it stands, is ambiguous; what Spenser meant to say +was--'the Ploughman that the Pilgrim playde awhyle'; which expresses the +fact. The subject is 'the Ploughman'; and 'that' means 'whom.' + +[15] Mr. Wright says 1401, and refers to Capgrave's Chronicle. But this is +surely an error; see J. H. Wylie's Hist. of Henry IV, i. 277-8; with a +reference to the Close Rolls, 3 Hen. IV, 2. 16. + +[16] Fairfax deduced the date from the poem here printed, l. 393. + +[17] Shirley also refers to Lydgate's Temple of Glas; see Schick's edition +of that poem; p. lxxxii. + +[18] Which is not the case; the text in the Trinity MS. is in the correct +order. + +[19] Richard Ros, born March 8, 1428-9; Nichols, Hist. of Leicestershire, +vol. ii. p. 37. + +[20] There is _no_ copy in MS. Harl. 7333, as said by error in vol. i. p. +39. + +[21] There is no authority, except Thynne, for the title The Cuckoo and the +Nightingale. It has been repeated in all the printed editions, but does not +appear in any MS. + +[22] 'In Hereford and the far West, not Oldcastle alone, but the Actons, +Cheynes, Clanvowes, Greindors, and many great gentlemen of birth, had begun +to mell of Lollardy and drink the gall of heresy.'--Wylie, Hist. of Henry +IV, vol. iii. p. 296. Sir T. Clanvowe was alive in 1404 (Test. Vetusta). + +[23] The MSS. have _ran_ in C. T., B 661. _Man_ rimes with _can_ in Parl. +Foules, 479, and with _began_ in the same, 563. + +[24] Perhaps, more strictly, a dedication, the true envoy consisting of the +last six lines only. But it is no great matter. + +[25] Hence F. 148, 'As gret-e perl-es, round and orient,' reappears in A. +528 without the final _-e_, in the form: 'With gret' perlés, _ful_ fyne and +orient.' + +[26] The examples of _trewly_ in Book Duch. 1111, 1151, are doubtful. It is +a slippery poem to scan. Elsewhere, we find _trew-e-ly_. + +[27] F. and L. 134-138. + +[28] F. and L. 151-158, 333. + +[29] F. and L. 148, 224. + +[30] F. and L. 192, 193. + +[31] Cf. F. and L. 358-364. + +[32] See the English translation in Bohn's Library, i. 214. + +[33] A piece entitled 'De Duodecim Abusivis' is one of three pieces +appended to Ælfric's Lives of the Saints in MS. Julius E. 7. + +[34] No. 61 is The Storie of Thebes, which he of course knew to be +Lydgate's; he adds it _after_ the note--'Thus endeth the workes of Geffray +Chaucer.' + +[35] At the same time he struck out no. 56 (p. 34), as being by Lydgate. + +[36] In Moxon's Chaucer, which professed to accept Tyrwhitt's canon, this +piece was omitted; but it was revived once more by Bell. + +[37] See The Athenæum, Nov. 4, 1876; The Academy, June 3, 1878; Aug. 3, +1878. + +[38] My remark upon the Trinity MS. in vol. i. p. 56, that 'most of the +pieces are in a handwriting of a later date [than 1463], not far from +1500,' does not apply to The Court of Love. This poem, together with two +poems by Lydgate, fills part of a quire of twenty-four leaves _near the +end_ of the MS., of which the seventeenth has been cut out and the last +three are blank; and this quire is quite distinct from the rest as regards +the date of the writing, which is considerably later than 1500, and +exhibits a marked change. There are two _lacunæ_ in the poem, one after l. +1022, and another after l. 1316; probably six stanzas are lost in each +case, owing to the loss of the two corresponding leaves in the original +from which the existing copy was made. + +[39] I doubt if speculation as to the possible meaning of these names will +really help us. + +[40] Which looks as if the author had written _grewen_ for _greven_, like a +Scotchman. + +[41] A very bad mistake occurs in l. 1045, viz. _thou wot_ instead of _thou +wost_, as if one should say in Latin _tu scio_. It rimes with _dote_, +which, in Chaucer, is dissyllabic. + +[42] There are many more; _fon-ne_ becomes _fon_, to rime with _on_, 458; +_tell-e_ is cut down to _tell_, 518; _behold-e_, to _behold_, 652; +_accord-e_, to _accord_, 746; &c. The reader can find out more for himself; +see ll. 771, 844, 862, 896, 1032, 1334, 1389, &c. In ll. 1063-4, we have +_opinion_ riming with _begon_, the Chaucerian forms being _opinioun_ and +_bigonne_ or _bigunne_! + +[43] See vol. vi. p. xlv. + +[44] The MS. has:--'Than is is lande'--by mistake. + +[45] It is clear that The Plowmans Tale and Jack Upland were inserted by +Thynne and Speght respectively on religious grounds. + +[46] We may safely assign to Lydgate the pieces numbered XXII and XXIII, as +well as those numbered VIII to XV. + + * * * * * + + +Corrections made to the printed original. + +P. lx. "Of sek-e folk ful hol-e" corrected from "seke-e". + +P. 142. Line 93. "come; read com" corrected from "com; read come". + +P. 297. Line B 7. "I supply eek" corrected from "suppy". + +P. 346. "Th. Thynne, ed. 1532" corrected from "Thyme". + +P. 358. Line 267 "Th. chyde; T. chide" - "T." corrected from "Th.". + +P. 522. Line 97 "her father Calchas" corrected from "Chalcas". + +P. 537. Line 477. "meaning not only chalcedony" corrected from "chaledony". + +P. 556. s.v. Alegge. "XIX. 26." corrected from "XVIII. 26." + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Chaucerian and Other Pieces, edited by Walter Skeat + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 43195 *** |