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diff --git a/44833-0.txt b/44833-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..885d3dc --- /dev/null +++ b/44833-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,26789 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 44833 *** + +Transcriber's note: Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). + +[=a] signifies "a with macron"; [)a] "a with breve"; and so forth. [gh] +represents yogh, [*e] the schwa. A carat character is used to denote +superscription: a single character following the carat is superscripted +(example: 4^o). + +Project Gutenberg has Volume VI of Skeat's edition, which contains a +Glossary covering the two texts in this volume. See: +http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/43097 + + * * * * * + +[Illustration: MS. CORP. CHR. COLL., CAMBRIDGE. Troil. iv. 575-588 + +_Frontispiece**_] + + + + +THE COMPLETE WORKS + +OF + +GEOFFREY CHAUCER + +_EDITED, FROM NUMEROUS MANUSCRIPTS_ + +BY THE + +REV. WALTER W. SKEAT, M.A. + +LITT.D., LL.D., D.C.L., PH.D. + +ELRINGTON AND BOSWORTH PROFESSOR OF ANGLO-SAXON +AND FELLOW OF CHRIST'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE + +* * + + +BOETHIUS AND TROILUS + + 'Adam scriveyn, if ever it thee befalle + Boece or Troilus to wryten newe, + Under thy lokkes thou most have the scalle, + But after my making thou wryte trewe.' + _Chaucers Wordes unto Adam._ + +SECOND EDITION + +Oxford + +AT THE CLARENDON PRESS + +M DCCCC + +* * * * * * + + +Oxford + +PRINTED AT THE CLARENDON PRESS +BY HORACE HART, M.A. +PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY + +* * * * * * + + + + +CONTENTS. + + + PAGE + + INTRODUCTION TO BOETHIUS.--§ 1. Date of the Work. § 2. Boethius. + § 3. The Consolation of Philosophy; and fate of its author. § 4. + Jean de Meun. § 5. References by Boethius to current events. + § 6. Cassiodorus. § 7. Form of the Treatise. § 8. Brief sketch + of its general contents. § 9. Early translations. § 10. Translation + by Ælfred. § 11. MS. copy, with A.S. glosses. § 12. Chaucer's + translation mentioned. § 13. Walton's verse translation. § 14. + Specimen of the same. § 15. His translation of Book ii. met. 5. + § 16. M. E. prose translation; and others. § 17. Chaucer's + translation and le Roman de la Rose. § 18. Chaucer's scholarship. + § 19. Chaucer's prose. § 20. Some of his mistakes. § 21. Other + variations considered. § 22. Imitations of Boethius in Chaucer's + works. § 23. Comparison with 'Boece' of other works by + Chaucer. § 24. Chronology of Chaucer's works, as illustrated by + 'Boece.' § 25. The Manuscripts. § 26. The Printed Editions. + § 27. The Present Edition vii + + INTRODUCTION TO TROILUS.--§ 1. Date of the Work. § 2. Sources of + the Work; Boccaccio's Filostrato. §§ 3, 4. Other sources. + § 5. Chaucer's share in it. § 6. Vagueness of reference to sources. + § 7. Medieval note-books. § 8. Lollius. § 9. Guido delle + Colonne. § 10. 'Trophee.' §§ 11, 12. The same continued. + §§ 13-17. Passages from Guido. §§ 18, 19. Dares, Dictys, and + Benôit de Ste-More. § 20. The names; Troilus, &c. § 21. + Roman de la Rose. § 22. Gest Historiale. § 23. Lydgate's + Siege of Troye. § 24. Henrysoun's Testament of Criseyde. § 25. + The MSS. § 26. The Editions. § 27. The Present Edition. + § 28. Deficient lines. § 29. Proverbs. § 30. Kinaston's Latin + translation. § 31. Sidnam's translation xlix + + BOETHIUS DE CONSOLATIONE PHILOSOPHIE 1 + BOOK I. 1 + BOOK II. 23 + BOOK III. 51 + BOOK IV. 92 + BOOK V. 126 + + TROILUS AND CRISEYDE 153 + BOOK I. 153 + BOOK II. 189 + BOOK III. 244 + BOOK IV. 302 + BOOK V. 357 + + NOTES TO BOETHIUS 419 + + NOTES TO TROILUS 461 + + + + +INTRODUCTION TO BOETHIUS. + +§ 1. DATE OF THE WORK. + +In my introductory remarks to the Legend of Good Women, I refer to the +close connection that is easily seen to subsist between Chaucer's +translation of Boethius and his Troilus and Criseyde. All critics seem now +to agree in placing these two works in close conjunction, and in making the +prose work somewhat the earlier of the two; though it is not at all +unlikely that, for a short time, both works were in hand together. It is +also clear that they were completed before the author commenced the House +of Fame, the date of which is, almost certainly, about 1383-4. Dr. Koch, in +his Essay on the Chronology of Chaucer's Writings, proposes to date +'Boethius' about 1377-8, and 'Troilus' about 1380-1. It is sufficient to be +able to infer, as we can with tolerable certainty, that these two works +belong to the period between 1377 and 1383. And we may also feel sure that +the well-known lines to Adam, beginning-- + + 'Adam scriveyn, if ever it thee befalle + _Boece_ or _Troilus_ to wryten newe'-- + +were composed at the time when the fair copy of Troilus had just been +finished, and may be dated, without fear of mistake, in 1381-3. It is not +likely that we shall be able to determine these dates within closer limits; +nor is it at all necessary that we should be able to do so. A few further +remarks upon this subject are given below. + +§ 2. BOETHIUS. + +Before proceeding to remark upon Chaucer's translation of Boethius, or (as +he calls him) Boece, it is necessary to say a few words as to the original +work, and its author. + +Anicius Manlius Torquatus Severinus Boethius, the most learned philosopher +of his time, was born at Rome about A. D. 480, and was put to death A. D. +524. In his youth, he had the advantage of a liberal training, and enjoyed +the rare privilege of being able to read the Greek philosophers in their +own tongue. In the particular treatise which here most concerns us, his +Greek quotations are mostly taken from Plato, and there are a few +references to Aristotle, Homer, and to the _Andromache_ of Euripides. His +extant works shew that he was well acquainted with geometry, mechanics, +astronomy, and music, as well as with logic and theology; and it is an +interesting fact that an illustration of the way in which waves of sound +are propagated through the air, introduced by Chaucer into his House of +Fame, ll. 788-822, is almost certainly derived from the treatise of +Boethius _De Musica_, as pointed out in the note upon that passage. At any +rate, there is an unequivocal reference to 'the felinge' of Boece 'in +musik' in the Nonnes Preestes Tale, B 4484. + +§ 3. The most important part of his political life was passed in the +service of the celebrated Theodoric the Goth, who, after the defeat and +death of Odoacer, A. D. 493, had made himself undisputed master of Italy, +and had fixed the seat of his government in Ravenna. The usual account, +that Boethius was twice married, is now discredited, there being no clear +evidence with respect to Elpis, the name assigned to his supposed first +wife; but it is certain that he married Rusticiana, the daughter of the +patrician Symmachus, a man of great influence and probity, and much +respected, who had been consul under Odoacer in 485. Boethius had the +singular felicity of seeing his two sons, Boethius and Symmachus, raised to +the consular dignity on the same day, in 522. After many years spent in +indefatigable study and great public usefulness, he fell under the +suspicion of Theodoric; and, notwithstanding an indignant denial of his +supposed crimes, was hurried away to Pavia, where he was imprisoned in a +tower, and denied the means of justifying his conduct. The rest must be +told in the eloquent words of Gibbon[1]. + +'While Boethius, oppressed with fetters, expected each moment the sentence +or the stroke of death, he composed in the tower of Pavia the "Consolation +of Philosophy"; a golden volume, not unworthy of the leisure of Plato or +Tully, but which claims incomparable merit from the barbarism of the times +and the situation of the author. The celestial guide[2], whom he had so +long invoked at Rome and at Athens, now condescended to illumine his +dungeon, to revive his courage, and to pour into his wounds her salutary +balm. She taught him to compare his long prosperity and his recent +distress, and to conceive new hopes from the inconstancy of fortune[3]. +Reason had informed him of the precarious condition of her gifts; +experience had satisfied him of their real value[4]; he had enjoyed them +without guilt; he might resign them without a sigh, and calmly disdain the +impotent malice of his enemies, who had left him happiness, since they had +left him virtue[5]. From the earth, Boethius ascended to heaven in search +of the SUPREME GOOD[6], explored the metaphysical labyrinth of chance and +destiny[7], of prescience and freewill, of time and eternity, and +generously attempted to reconcile the perfect attributes of the Deity with +the apparent disorders of his moral and physical government[8]. Such topics +of consolation, so obvious, so vague, or so abstruse, are ineffectual to +subdue the feelings of human nature. Yet the sense of misfortune may be +diverted by the labour of thought; and the sage who could artfully combine, +in the same work, the various riches of philosophy, poetry, and eloquence, +must already have possessed the intrepid calmness which he affected to +seek. Suspense, the worst of evils, was at length determined by the +ministers of death, who executed, and perhaps exceeded, the inhuman mandate +of Theodoric. A strong cord was fastened round the head of Boethius, and +forcibly tightened till his eyes almost started from their sockets; and +some mercy may be discovered in the milder torture of beating him with +clubs till he expired. But his genius survived to diffuse a ray of +knowledge over the darkest ages of the Latin world; the writings of the +philosopher were translated by the most glorious of the English Kings, and +the third emperor of the name of Otho removed to a more honourable tomb the +bones of a catholic saint, who, from his Arian persecutors, had acquired +the honours of martyrdom and the fame of miracles. In the last hours of +Boethius, he derived some comfort from the safety of his two sons, of his +wife, and of his father-in-law, the venerable Symmachus. But the grief of +Symmachus was indiscreet, and perhaps disrespectful; he had presumed to +lament, he might dare to revenge, the death of an injured friend. He was +dragged in chains from Rome to the palace of Ravenna; and the suspicions of +Theodoric could only be appeased by the blood of an innocent and aged +senator.' + +This deed of injustice brought small profit to its perpetrator; for we read +that Theodoric's own death took place shortly afterwards; and that, on his +death-bed, 'he expressed in broken murmurs to his physician Elpidius, his +deep repentance for the murders of Boethius and Symmachus.' + +§ 4. For further details, I beg leave to refer the reader to the essay on +'Boethius' by H. F. Stewart, published by W. Blackwood and Sons, Edinburgh +and London, in 1891. We are chiefly concerned here with the 'Consolation of +Philosophy,' a work which enjoyed great popularity in the middle ages, and +first influenced Chaucer indirectly, through the use of it made by Jean de +Meun in the poem entitled Le Roman de la Rose, as well as directly, at a +later period, through his own translation of it. Indeed, I have little +doubt that Chaucer's attention was drawn to it when, somewhat early in +life, he first perused with diligence that remarkable poem; and that it was +from the following passage that he probably drew the inference that it +might be well for him to translate the whole work:-- + + 'Ce puet l'en bien des clers enquerre + Qui _Boëce de Confort_ lisent, + Et les sentences qui là gisent, + _Dont grans biens as gens laiz feroit + Qui bien le lor translateroit_' (ll. 5052-6). + +I.e. in modern English:--'This can be easily ascertained from the learned +men who read Boece on the Consolation of Philosophy, and the opinions which +are found therein; as to which, any one _who would well translate it for +them_ would confer much benefit on the unlearned folk':--a pretty strong +hint[9]! + +§ 5. The chief events in the life of Boethius which are referred to in the +present treatise are duly pointed out in the notes; and it may be well to +bear in mind that, as to some of these, nothing further is known beyond +what the author himself tells us. Most of the personal references occur in +Book i. Prose 4, Book ii. Prose 3, and in Book iii. Prose 4. In the first +of these passages, Boethius recalls the manner in which he withstood one +Conigastus, because he oppressed the poor (l. 40); and how he defeated the +iniquities of Triguilla, 'provost' (_præpositus_) of the royal household +(l. 43). He takes credit for defending the people of Campania against a +particularly obnoxious fiscal measure instituted by Theodoric, which was +called 'coemption' (_coemptio_); (l. 59.) This Mr. Stewart describes as 'a +fiscal measure which allowed the state to buy provisions for the army at +something under market-price--which threatened to ruin the province.' He +tells us that he rescued Decius Paulinus, who had been consul in 498, from +the rapacity of the officers of the royal palace (l. 68); and that, in +order to save Decius Albinus, who had been consul in 493, from wrongful +punishment, he ran the risk of incurring the hate of the informer Cyprian +(l. 75). In these ways, he had rendered himself odious to the court-party, +whom he had declined to bribe (l. 79). His accusers were Basilius, who had +been expelled from the king's service, and was impelled to accuse him by +pressure of debt (l. 81); and Opilio and Gaudentius, who had been sentenced +to exile by royal decree for their numberless frauds and crimes, but had +escaped the sentence by taking sanctuary. 'And when,' as he tells us, 'the +king discovered this evasion, he gave orders that, unless they quitted +Ravenna by a given day, they should be branded on the forehead with a hot +iron and driven out of the city. Nevertheless on that very day the +information laid against me by these men was admitted' (ll. 89-94). He next +alludes to some forged letters (l. 123), by means of which he had been +accused of 'hoping for the freedom of Rome,' (which was of course +interpreted to mean that he wished to deliver Rome from the tyranny of +Theodoric). He then boldly declares that if he had had the opportunity of +confronting his accusers, he would have answered in the words of Canius, +when accused by Caligula of having been privy to a conspiracy against +him--'If I had known it, thou shouldst never have known it' (ll. 126-135). +This, by the way, was rather an imprudent expression, and probably told +against him when his case was considered by Theodoric. + +He further refers to an incident that took place at Verona (l. 153), when +the king, eager for a general slaughter of his enemies, endeavoured to +extend to the whole body of the senate the charge of treason, of which +Albinus had been accused; on which occasion, at great personal risk, +Boethius had defended the senate against so sweeping an accusation. + +In Book ii. Prose 3, he refers to his former state of happiness and good +fortune (l. 26), when he was blessed with rich and influential +parents-in-law, with a beloved wife, and with two noble sons; in particular +(l. 35), he speaks with justifiable pride of the day when his sons were +both elected consuls together, and when, sitting in the Circus between +them, he won general praise for his wit and eloquence. + +In Book iii. Prose 4, he declaims against Decoratus, with whom he refused +to be associated in office, on account of his infamous character. + +§ 6. The chief source of further information about these circumstances is a +collection of letters (Variæ Epistolæ) by Cassiodorus, a statesman who +enjoyed the full confidence of Theodoric, and collected various +state-papers under his direction. These tell us, in some measure, what can +be said on the other side. Here Cyprian and his brother Opilio are spoken +of with respect and honour; and the only Decoratus whose name appears is +spoken of as a young man of great promise, who had won the king's sincere +esteem. But when all has been said, the reader will most likely be inclined +to think that, in cases of conflicting evidence, he would rather take the +word of the noble Boethius than that of any of his opponents. + +§ 7. The treatise 'De Consolatione Philosophiæ' is written in the form of a +discourse between himself and the personification of Philosophy, who +appears to him in his prison, and endeavours to soothe and console him in +his time of trial. It is divided (as in this volume) into five Books; and +each Book is subdivided into chapters, entitled Metres and Proses, because, +in the original, the alternate chapters are written in a metrical form, the +metres employed being of various kinds. Thus Metre 1 of Book I is written +in alternate hexameters and pentameters; while Metre 7 consists of very +short lines, each consisting of a single dactyl and spondee. The Proses +contain the main arguments; the Metres serve for embellishment and +recreation. + +In some MSS. of Chaucer's translation, a few words of the original are +quoted at the beginning of each Prose and Metre, and are duly printed in +this edition, in a corrected form. + +§ 8. A very brief sketch of the general contents of the volume may be of +some service. + + BOOK I. Boethius deplores his misfortunes (met. 1). Philosophy appears to + him in a female form (pr. 2), and condoles with him in song (met. 2); + after which she addresses him, telling him that she is willing to share + his misfortunes (pr. 3). Boethius pours out his complaints, and + vindicates his past conduct (pr. 4). Philosophy reminds him that he seeks + a heavenly country (pr. 5). The world is not governed by chance (pr. 6). + The book concludes with a lay of hope (met. 7). + + BOOK II. Philosophy enlarges on the wiles of Fortune (pr. 1), and + addresses him in Fortune's name, asserting that her mutability is natural + and to be expected (pr. 2). Adversity is transient (pr. 3), and Boethius + has still much to be thankful for (pr. 4). Riches only bring anxieties, + and cannot confer happiness (pr. 5); they were unknown in the Golden Age + (met. 5). Neither does happiness consist in honours and power (pr. 6). + The power of Nero only taught him cruelty (met. 6). Fame is but vanity + (pr. 7), and is ended by death (met. 7). Adversity is beneficial (pr. 8). + All things are bound together by the chain of Love (met. 8). + + BOOK III. Boethius begins to receive comfort (pr. 1). Philosophy + discourses on the search for the Supreme Good (_summum bonum_; pr. 2). + The laws of nature are immutable (met. 2). All men are engaged in the + pursuit of happiness (pr. 3). Dignities properly appertain to virtue (pr. + 4). Power cannot drive away care (pr. 5). Glory is deceptive, and the + only true nobility is that of character (pr. 6). Happiness does not + consist in corporeal pleasures (pr. 7); nor in bodily strength or beauty + (pr. 8). Worldly bliss is insufficient and false; and in seeking true + felicity, we must invoke God's aid (pr. 9). Boethius sings a hymn to the + Creator (met. 9); and acknowledges that God alone is the Supreme Good (p. + 10). The unity of soul and body is necessary to existence, and the love + of life is instinctive (pr. 11). Error is dispersed by the light of Truth + (met. 11). God governs the world, and is all-sufficient, whilst evil has + no true existence (pr. 12). The book ends with the story of Orpheus (met. + 12). + + BOOK IV. This book opens with a discussion of the existence of evil, and + the system of rewards and punishments (pr. 1). Boethius describes the + flight of Imagination through the planetary spheres till it reaches + heaven itself (met. 1). The good are strong, but the wicked are + powerless, having no real existence (pr. 2). Tyrants are chastised by + their own passions (met. 2). Virtue secures reward; but the wicked lose + even their human nature, and become as mere beasts (pr. 3). Consider the + enchantments of Circe, though these merely affected the outward form + (met. 4). The wicked are thrice wretched; they _will_ to do evil, they + _can_ do evil, and they actually _do_ it. Virtue is its own reward; so + that the wicked should excite our pity (pr. 4). Here follows a poem on + the folly of war (met. 4). Boethius inquires why the good suffer (pr. 5). + Philosophy reminds him that the motions of the stars are inexplicable to + one who does not understand astronomy (met. 5). She explains the + difference between Providence and Destiny (pr. 6). In all nature we see + concord, due to controlling Love (met. 6). All fortune is good; for + punishment is beneficial (pr. 7). The labours of Hercules afford us an + example of endurance (met. 7). + + BOOK V. Boethius asks questions concerning Chance (pr. 1). An example + from the courses of the rivers Tigris and Euphrates (met. 1). Boethius + asks questions concerning Free-will (pr. 2). God, who sees all things, is + the true Sun (met. 2). Boethius is puzzled by the consideration of God's + Predestination and man's Free-will (pr. 3). Men are too eager to inquire + into the unknown (met. 3). Philosophy replies to Boethius on the subjects + of Predestination, Necessity, and the nature of true Knowledge (pr. 4); + on the impressions received by the mind (met. 4); and on the powers of + Sense and Imagination (pr. 5). Beasts look downward to the earth, but man + is upright, and looks up to heaven (met. 5). This world is not eternal, + but only God is such; whose prescience is not subject to necessity, nor + altered by human intentions. He upholds the good, and condemns the + wicked; therefore be constant in eschewing vice, and devote all thy + powers to the love of virtue (pr. 6). + +§ 9. It is unnecessary to enlarge here upon the importance of this +treatise, and its influence upon medieval literature. Mr. Stewart, in the +work already referred to, has an excellent chapter 'On Some Ancient +Translations' of it. The number of translations that still exist, in +various languages, sufficiently testify to its extraordinary popularity in +the middle ages. Copies of it are found, for example, in Old High German by +Notker, and in later German by Peter of Kastl; in Anglo-French by Simun de +Fraisne; in continental French by Jean de Meun[10], Pierre de Paris, Jehan +de Cis, Frere Renaut de Louhans, and by two anonymous authors; in Italian, +by Alberto della Piagentina and several others; in Greek, by Maximus +Planudes; and in Spanish, by Fra Antonio Ginebreda; besides various +versions in later times. But the most interesting, to us, are those in +English, which are somewhat numerous, and are worthy of some special +notice. I shall here dismiss, as improbable and unnecessary, a suggestion +sometimes made, that Chaucer may have consulted some French version in the +hope of obtaining assistance from it; there is no sure trace of anything of +the kind, and the internal evidence is, in my opinion, decisively against +it. + +§ 10. The earliest English translation is that by king Ælfred, which is +particularly interesting from the fact that the royal author frequently +deviates from his original, and introduces various notes, explanations, and +allusions of his own. The opening chapter, for example, is really a +preface, giving a brief account of Theodoric and of the circumstances which +led to the imprisonment of Boethius. This work exists only in two MSS., +neither being of early date, viz. MS. Cotton, Otho A VI, and MS. Bodley NE. +C. 3. 11. It has been thrice edited; by Rawlinson, in 1698; by J. S. +Cardale, in 1829; and by S. Fox, in 1864. The last of these includes a +modern English translation, and forms one of the volumes of Bohn's +Antiquarian Library; so that it is a cheap and accessible work. Moreover, +it contains an alliterative verse translation of most of the _Metres_ +contained in Boethius (excluding the _Proses_), which is also attributed to +Ælfred in a brief metrical preface; but whether this ascription is to be +relied upon, or not, is a difficult question, which has hardly as yet been +decided. A summary of the arguments, for and against Ælfred's authorship, +will be found in Wülker's _Grundriss zur Geschichte der angelsächsischen +Litteratur_, pp. 421-435. + +§ 11. I may here mention that there is a manuscript copy of this work by +Boethius, in the original Latin, in Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, No. +214, which contains a considerable number of Anglo-Saxon glosses. A +description of this MS., by Prof. J. W. Bright and myself, is printed in +the American Journal of Philology, vol. v, no. 4. + +§ 12. The next English translation, in point of date, is Chaucer's; +concerning which I have more to say below. + +§ 13. In the year 1410, we meet with a _verse_ translation of the whole +treatise, ascribed by Warton (Hist. E. Poetry, § 20, ed. 1871, iii. 39) to +John Walton, Capellanus, or John the Chaplain, a canon of Oseney. 'In the +British Museum,' says Warton, 'there is a correct MS. on parchment[11] of +Walton's translation of Boethius; and the margin is filled throughout with +the Latin text, written by Chaundler above mentioned [i. e. Thomas +Chaundler, among other preferments dean of the king's chapel and of +Hereford Cathedral, chancellor of Wells, and successively warden of +Wykeham's two colleges at Winchester and Oxford.] There is another less +elegant MS. in the same collection[12]. But at the end is this +note:--'Explicit liber Boecij de Consolatione Philosophie de Latino in +Anglicum translatus A.D. 1410, per Capellanum Ioannem. This is the +beginning of the prologue:--"In suffisaunce of cunnyng and witte[13]." And +of the translation:--"Alas, I wrecch, that whilom was in welth." I have +seen a third copy in the library of Lincoln cathedral[14], and a fourth in +Baliol college[15]. This is the translation of Boethius printed in the +monastery of Tavistock in 1525[16], and in octave stanzas. This translation +was made at the request of Elizabeth Berkeley.' + +Todd, in his Illustrations of Gower and Chaucer, p. xxxi, mentions another +MS. 'in the possession of Mr. G. Nicol, his Majesty's bookseller,' in which +the above translation is differently attributed in the colophon, which ends +thus: 'translatus anno d_omi_ni millesimo ccccx^o. per Capellanum Iohannem +Tebaud, alius Watyrbeche.' This can hardly be correct[17]. + +I may here note that this verse translation has _two_ separate Prologues. +One Prologue gives a short account of Boethius and his times, and is extant +in MS. Gg. iv. 18 in the Cambridge University Library. An extract from the +other is quoted below. MS. E Museo 53, in the Bodleian Library, contains +both of them. + +§ 14. As to the work itself, Metre 1 of Book i. and Metre 5 of the same are +printed entire in Wülker's Altenglisches Lesebuch, ii. 56-9. In one of the +metrical prologues to the whole work the following passage occurs, which I +copy from MS. Royal 18 A xiii:-- + + 'I have herd spek and sumwhat haue y-seyne, + Of diuerse men[18], that wounder subtyllye, + In metir sum, and sum in prosë pleyne, + This book translated haue[19] suffishantlye + In-to[20] Englissh tongë, word for word, wel nye[21]; + Bot I most vse the wittes that I haue; + Thogh I may noght do so, yit noght-for-thye, + With helpe of god, the sentence schall I saue. + + To Chaucer, that is floure of rethoryk + In Englisshe tong, and excellent poete, + This wot I wel, no-thing may I do lyk, + Thogh so that I of makynge entyrmete: + And Gower, that so craftily doth trete, + As in his book, of moralitee, + Thogh I to theym in makyng am vnmete, + [Gh]it most I schewe it forth, that is in me.' + +This is an early tribute to the excellence of Chaucer and Gower as poets. + +§ 15. When we examine Walton's translation a little more closely, it soon +becomes apparent that he has largely availed himself of Chaucer's prose +translation, which he evidently kept before him as a model of language. For +example, in Bk. ii. met. 5, l. 16, Chaucer has the expression:--'tho weren +the cruel clariouns ful hust and ful stille.' This reappears in one of +Walton's lines in the form:--'Tho was ful huscht the cruel clarioun.' This +is poetry made easy, no doubt. + +In order to exhibit this a little more fully, I here transcribe the whole +of Walton's translation of this metre, which may be compared with Chaucer's +rendering at pp. 40, 41 below. I print in italics all the words which are +common to the two versions, so as to shew this curious result, viz. that +Walton was here more indebted to Chaucer, than Chaucer, when writing his +poem of 'The Former Age,' was to himself. The MS. followed is the Royal MS. +mentioned above (p. xvi). + + BOETHIUS: BOOK II: METER V. + + A VERSE TRANSLATION BY JOHN WALTON. + + Full wonder _blisseful was_ that rather _age_, + When mortal men couthe _holde hem_-selven[22] _payed_ + To fede hem-selve[23] with-oute suche _outerage_, + _With mete that trewe feeldes_[24] have arrayed; + _With acorne[s] thaire hunger_ was alayed, + And so thei couthe sese thaire talent; + Thei had[den] yit no queynt[e] craft assayed, + As _clarry_ for to _make_ ne _pyment_[25]. + + _To de[y]en purpure couthe thei noght_ be-thynke, + _The white flees, with venym Tyryen_; + _The rennyng_ ryver yaf hem lusty drynke, + And _holsom sleep the[y]_ took _vpon the_ grene. + _The pynes_, that so full of braunches been, + That was thaire hous, to kepe[n] _vnder schade_. + _The see[26] to kerve_ no _schippes_ were there seen; + Ther was no man that _marchaundise_ made. + + They liked not to sailen vp and doun, + But kepe hem-selven[27] where thei weren bred; + _Tho was ful huscht the cruel clarioun_, + For _eger hate_ ther was _no blood I-sched_, + Ne therwith was non _armour_ yet be-bled; + _For_ in that tyme who durst have be so _wood_ + Suche bitter _woundes_ that he nold have dred, + With-outen réward, for to lese his _blood_. + + _I wold oure tyme_ myght _turne_ certanly, + And wise[28] _maneres_ alwey with vs dwelle; + _But love of hauyng brenneth_ feruently, + _More_ fersere _than the_ verray _fuyre_ of helle. + _Allas!_ who _was_ that man _that_ wold him melle + With[29] _gold and_ gemmes that were _kevered_ thus[30], + _That first_ began to myne; I can not telle, + But that he fond _a perel[31] precious_. + +§ 16. MS. Auct. F. 3. 5, in the Bodleian Library, contains a _prose_ +translation, different from Chaucer's. After this, the next translation +seems to be one by George Colvile; the title is thus given by Lowndes: +'Boetius de Consolatione Philosophiæ, translated by George Coluile, alias +Coldewel. London: by John Cawoode; 1556. 4to.' This work was dedicated to +Queen Mary, and reprinted in 1561; and again, without date. + +There is an unprinted translation, in hexameters and other metres, in the +British Museum (MS. Addit. 11401), by Bracegirdle, temp. Elizabeth. See +Warton, ed. Hazlitt, iii. 39, note 6. + +Lowndes next mentions a translation by J. T., printed at London in 1609, +12mo. + +A translation 'Anglo-Latine expressus per S. E. M.' was printed at London +in quarto, in 1654, according to Hazlitt's Hand-book to Popular Literature. + +Next, a translation into English verse by H. Conningesbye, in 1664, 12mo. + +The next is thus described: 'Of the Consolation of Philosophy, made English +and illustrated with Notes by the Right Hon. Richard (Graham) Lord Viscount +Preston. London; 1695, 8vo. Second edition, corrected; London; 1712, 8vo.' + +A translation by W. Causton was printed in London in 1730; 8vo. + +A translation by the Rev. Philip Ridpath, printed in London in 1785, 8vo., +is described by Lowndes as 'an excellent translation with very useful +notes, and a life of Boethius, drawn up with great accuracy and fidelity.' + +A translation by R. Duncan was printed at Edinburgh in 1789, 8vo.; and an +anonymous translation, described by Lowndes as 'a pitiful performance,' was +printed in London in 1792, 8vo. + +In a list of works which the Early English Text Society proposes shortly to +print, we are told that 'Miss Pemberton has sent to press her edition of +the fragments of Queen Elizabeth's Englishings (in the Record Office) from +Boethius, Plutarch, &c.' + +§ 17. I now return to the consideration of Chaucer's translation, as +printed in the present volume. + +I do not think the question as to the probable date of its composition need +detain us long. It is so obviously connected with 'Troilus' and the 'House +of Fame,' which it probably did not long precede, that we can hardly be +wrong in dating it, as said above, about 1377-1380; or, in round numbers, +about 1380 or a little earlier. I quite agree with Mr. Stewart (Essay, p. +226), that, 'it is surely most reasonable to connect its composition with +those poems which contain the greatest number of recollections and +imitations of his original;' and I see no reason for ascribing it, with +Professor Morley (English Writers, v. 144), to Chaucer's youth. Even Mr. +Stewart is so incautious as to suggest that Chaucer's 'acquaintance with +the works of the Roman philosopher ... would seem to date from about the +year 1369, when he wrote the Deth of Blaunche.' When we ask for some +tangible evidence of this statement, we are simply referred to the +following passages in that poem, viz. the mention of 'Tityus (588); of +Fortune the debonaire (623); Fortune the monster (627); Fortune's +capriciousness and her rolling wheel (634, 642); Tantalus (708); the mind +compared to a clean parchment (778); and Alcibiades (1055-6);' see Essay, +p. 267. In every one of these instances, I believe the inference to be +fallacious, and that Chaucer got all these illustrations, _at second hand_, +from Le Roman de la Rose. As a matter of fact, they are all to be found +there; and I find, on reference, that I have, in most instances, already +given the parallel passages in my notes. However, to make the matter +clearer, I repeat them here. + +Book Duch. 588. Cf. Comment li juisier _Ticius_ + S'efforcent ostoir de mangier; + Rom. Rose, 19506. + Si cum tu fez, las _Sisifus_, &c.; + R. R. 19499. + +Book Duch. 623. The dispitouse debonaire, + That scorneth many a creature. + +I cannot give the exact reference, because Jean de Meun's description of +the various moods of Fortune extends to a portentous length. Chaucer +reproduces the general impression which a perusal of the poem leaves on the +mind. However, take ll. 4860-62 of Le Roman:-- + + Que miex vaut asses et profite + Fortune _perverse et contraire_ + Que la mole et _la debonnaire_. + +Surely 'debonaire' in Chaucer is rather French than Latin. And see +_debonaire_ in the E. version of the Romaunt, l. 5412. + +Book Duch. 627. She is the monstres heed y-wryen, + As _filth over y-strawed with floures_. + + Si di, par ma parole ovrir, + Qui vodroit _un femier covrir_ + De dras de soie ou _de floretes_; R. R. 8995. + +As the second of the above lines from the Book of the Duchesse is obviously +taken from _Le Roman_, it is probable that the first is also; but it is a +hard task to discover the particular word _monstre_ in this vast poem. +However, I find it, in l. 4917, with reference to Fortune; and her _wheel_ +is not far off, six lines above. + +B. D. 634, 642. Fortune's capriciousness is treated of by Jean de Meun at +intolerable length, ll. 4863-8492; and elsewhere. As to her wheel, it is +continually rolling through his verses; see ll. 4911, 5366, 5870, 5925, +6172, 6434, 6648, 6880, &c. + +B. D. 708. Cf. Et de fain avec _Tentalus_; R. R. 19482. + +B. D. 778. Not from Le Roman, nor from Boethius, but from Machault's +_Remède de Fortune_, as pointed out by M. Sandras long ago; see my note. + +B. D. 1055-6. Cf. Car le cors Alcipiades + Qui de biauté avoit adés ... + _Ainsinc le raconte Boece_; R. R. 8981. + +See my note on the line; and note the spelling of _Alcipiades_ with a _p_, +as in the English MSS. + +We thus see that all these passages (except l. 778) are really taken from +Le Roman, not to mention many more, already pointed out by Dr. Köppel +(_Anglia_, xiv. 238). And, this being so, we may safely conclude that they +were _not_ taken from Boethius directly. Hence we may further infer that, +in all probability, Chaucer, in 1369, was not very familiar with Boethius +in the Latin original. And this accounts at once for the fact that he +seldom quotes Boethius at first hand, perhaps not at all, in any of his +earlier poems, such as the Complaint unto Pite, the Complaint of Mars, or +Anelida and Arcite, or the Lyf of St. Cecilie. I see no reason for +supposing that he had closely studied Boethius before (let us say) 1375; +though it is extremely probable, as was said above, that Jean de Meun +inspired him with the idea of reading it, to see whether it was really +worth translating, as the French poet said it was. + +§ 18. When we come to consider the style and manner in which Chaucer has +executed his self-imposed task, we must first of all make some allowance +for the difference between the scholarship of his age and of our own. One +great difference is obvious, though constantly lost sight of, viz. that the +teaching in those days was almost entirely oral, and that the student had +to depend upon his memory to an extent which would now be regarded by many +as extremely inconvenient. Suppose that, in reading Boethius, Chaucer comes +across the phrase 'ueluti quidam clauus atque gubernaculum' (Bk. iii. pr. +12, note to l. 55), and does not remember the sense of _clauus_; what is to +be done? It is quite certain, though this again is frequently lost sight +of, that he had no access to a convenient and well-arranged Latin +Dictionary, but only to such imperfect glossaries as were then in use. +Almost the only resource, unless he had at hand a friend more learned than +himself, was to guess. He guesses accordingly; and, taking _clauus_ to mean +much the same thing as _clauis_, puts down in his translation: 'and he is +as a _keye_ and a stere.' Some mistakes of this character were almost +inevitable; and it must not greatly surprise us to be told, that the +'inaccuracy and infelicity' of Chaucer's translation 'is not that of an +inexperienced Latin scholar, but rather of one who was no Latin scholar at +all,' as Mr. Stewart says in his Essay, p. 226. It is useful to bear this +in mind, because a similar lack of accuracy is characteristic of Chaucer's +other works also; and we must not always infer that emendation is +necessary, when we find in his text some curious error. + +§ 19. The next passage in Mr. Stewart's Essay so well expresses the state +of the case, that I do not hesitate to quote it at length. 'Given (he says) +a man who is sufficiently conversant with a language to read it fluently +without paying too much heed to the precise value of participle and +preposition, who has the wit and the sagacity to grasp the meaning of his +author, but not the intimate knowledge of his style and manner necessary to +a right appreciation of either, and--especially if he set himself to write +in an uncongenial and unfamiliar form--he will assuredly produce just such +a result as Chaucer has done. + +'We must now glance (he adds) at the literary style of the translation. As +Ten Brink has observed, we can here see as clearly as in any work of the +middle ages what a high cultivation is requisite for the production of a +good prose. Verse, and not prose, is the natural vehicle for the expression +of every language in its infancy, and it is certainly not in prose that +Chaucer's genius shews to best advantage. The restrictions of metre were +indeed to him as silken fetters, while the freedom of prose only served to +embarrass him; just as a bird that has been born and bred in captivity, +whose traditions are all domestic, finds itself at a sad loss when it +escapes from its cage and has to fall back on its own resources for +sustenance. In reading "Boece," we have often as it were to pause and look +on while Chaucer has a desperate wrestle with a tough sentence; but though +now he may appear to be down, with a victorious knee upon him, next moment +he is on his feet again, disclaiming defeat in a gloss which makes us doubt +whether his adversary had so much the best of it after all. But such +strenuous endeavour, even when it is crowned with success, is strange in a +writer one of whose chief charms is the delightful ease, the complete +absence of effort, with which he says his best things. It is only necessary +to compare the passages in Boethius in the prose version with the same when +they reappear in the poems, to realise how much better they look in their +verse dress. Let the reader take Troilus' soliloquy on Freewill and +Predestination (Bk. iv. ll. 958-1078), and read it side by side with the +corresponding passage in "Boece" (Bk. v. proses 2 and 3), and he cannot +fail to feel the superiority of the former to the latter. With what +clearness and precision does the argument unfold itself, how close is the +reasoning, how vigorous and yet graceful is the language! It is to be +regretted that Chaucer did not do for all the Metra of the "Consolation" +what he did for the fifth of the second book. A solitary gem like "The +Former Age" makes us long for a whole set[32]. Sometimes, whether +unconsciously or of set purpose, it is difficult to decide, his prose slips +into verse:-- + + It lyketh me to shewe, by subtil song, + With slakke and délitáble soun of strenges (Bk. iii. met. 2. 1). + + Whan Fortune, with a proud right hand (Bk. ii. met. 1. 1)[33].' + +The reader should also consult Ten Brink's History of English Literature, +Book iv. sect. 7. I here give a useful extract. + +'This version is complete, and faithful in all essential points. Chaucer +had no other purpose than to disclose, if possible wholly, the meaning of +this famous work to his contemporaries; and notwithstanding many errors in +single points, he has fairly well succeeded in reproducing the sense of the +original. He often employs for this purpose periphrastic turns, and for the +explanation of difficult passages, poetical figures, mythological and +historical allusions; and he even incorporates a number of notes in his +text. His version thus becomes somewhat diffuse, and, in the undeveloped +state of prose composition so characteristic of that age, often quite +unwieldy. But there is no lack of warmth, and even of a certain +colouring.... + +'The language of the translation shews many a peculiarity; viz. numerous +Latinisms, and even Roman idioms in synthesis, inflexion, or syntax, which +are either wholly absent or at least found very rarely in Chaucer's poems. +The labour of this translation proved a school for the poet, from which his +powers of speech came forth not only more elevated but more self-reliant; +and above all, with a greater aptitude to express thoughts of a deeper +nature.' + +§ 20. Most of the instances in which Chaucer's rendering is inaccurate, +unhappy, or insufficient are pointed out in the notes. I here collect some +examples, many of which have already been remarked upon by Dr. Morris and +Mr. Stewart. + +i. met. 1. 3. rendinge Muses: 'lacerae Camenae.' + + " 20. unagreable dwellinges[34]: 'ingratas moras.' + +i. pr. 1. 49. til it be at the laste: 'usque in exitium;' (but see the +note). + +i. pr. 3. 2. I took hevene: 'hausi caelum.' + +i. met. 4. 5. hete: 'aestum;' (see the note). So again, in met. 7. 3. + +i. pr. 4. 83. for nede of foreine moneye: 'alienae aeris necessitate.' + +i. pr. 4. 93. lykned: 'astrui;' (see the note). + +i. met. 5. 9. cometh eft ayein hir used cours: 'Solitas iterum mutet +habenas;' (see the note). + +ii. pr. 1. 22. entree: 'adyto;' (see the note). + +ii. pr. 1. 45. use hir maneres: 'utere moribus.' + +ii. pr. 5. 10. to hem that despenden it: 'effundendo.' + + " 11. to thilke folk that mokeren it: 'coaceruando.' + + " 90. subgit: 'sepositis;' (see the note). + +ii. met. 6. 21. _the gloss is wrong_; (see the note). + +ii. met. 7. 20. cruel day: 'sera dies;' (see the note). + +iii. pr. 2. 57. birefte awey: 'adferre.' Here MS. C. has _afferre_, and +Chaucer seems to have resolved this into _ab-ferre_. + +iii. pr. 3. 48. foreyne: 'forenses.' + +iii. pr. 4. 42. many maner dignitees of consules: 'multiplici consulatu.' + +iii. pr. 4. 64. of usaunces: 'utentium.' + +iii. pr. 8. 11. anoyously: 'obnoxius;' (see the note). + + " 29. of a beest that highte lynx: 'Lynceis;' (see the note). + +iii. pr. 9. 16. Wenest thou that he, that hath nede of power, that him ne +lakketh no-thing? 'An tu arbitraris quod nihilo indigeat egere potentia?' +On this Mr. Stewart remarks that 'it is easy to see that _indigeat_ and +_egere_ have changed places.' To me, it is not quite easy; for the senses +of the M.E. _nede_ and _lakken_ are very slippery. Suppose we make them +change places, and read:--'Wenest thou that he, that hath lak of power, +that him ne nedeth no-thing?' This may be better, but it is not wholly +satisfactory. + +iii. pr.9. 39-41. that he ... yif him nedeth = whether he needeth. A very +clumsy passage; see the Latin quoted in the note. + +iii. pr. 10. 165. the soverein fyn and the cause: 'summa, cardo, atque +caussa.' + +iii. pr. 12. 55, 67. a keye: 'clauus;' and again, 'clauo.' + + " 74. a yok of misdrawinges: 'detrectantium iugum.' + + " 75. the savinge of obedient thinges: 'obtemperantium +salus.' + +iii. pr. 12. 136. the whiche proeves drawen to hem-self hir feith and hir +acord, everich of hem of other: 'altero ex altero fidem trahente ... +probationibus.' (Not well expressed.) + +iii. met. 12. 5. the wodes, moveable, to rennen; and had maked the riveres, +&c.: 'Siluas currere, mobiles Amnes,' &c. + +iii. met. 17-19. Obscure and involved. + +iv. pr. 1. 22. of wikkede felounes: 'facinorum.' + +iv. pr. 2. 97. Iugement: 'indicium' (_misread as_ iudicium). + +iv. met. 7. 15. empty: 'immani;' (_misread as_ inani). + +v. pr. 1. 3. ful digne by auctoritee: 'auctoritate dignissima.' + + " 34. prince: 'principio.' + + " 57. the abregginge of fortuit hap: 'fortuiti caussae compendii.' + +v. pr. 4. 30. by grace of position (_or_ possessioun): 'positionis gratia.' + +v. pr. 4. 56. right as we trowen: 'quasi uero credamus.' + +v. met. 5. 6. by moist fleeinge: 'liquido uolatu.' + +§ 21. In the case of a few supposed errors, as pointed out by Mr. Stewart, +there remains something to be said on the other side. I note the following +instances. + +i. pr. 6. 28. Lat. 'uelut hiante ualli robore.' Here Mr. Stewart quotes the +reading of MS. A., viz. 'so as the strengthe of the paleys schynyng is +open.' But the English text in that MS. is corrupt. The correct reading is +'palis chyning;' where _palis_ means _palisade_, and translates _ualli_; +and _chyning is open_ means _is gaping open_, and translates _hiante_. + +ii. pr. 5. 16. Lat. 'largiendi usu.' The translation has: 'by usage of +large yevinge _of him that hath yeven it_.' I fail to see much amiss; for +the usual sense of _large_ in M. E. is _liberal_, _bounteous_, _lavish_. Of +course we must not substitute the modern sense without justification. + +ii. pr. 5. 35. 'of the laste beautee' translates Lat. 'postremae +pulcritudinis.' For this, see my note on p. 431. + +ii. pr. 7. 38. Lat. 'tum commercii insolentia.' Chaucer has: 'what for +defaute of unusage and entrecomuninge of marchaundise.' There is not much +amiss; but MS. A. omits the word _and_ after _unusage_, which of course +makes nonsense of the passage. + +ii. met. 8. 6. Lat. 'Ut fluctus auidum mare Certo fine coerceat.' Chaucer +has: 'that the see, greedy to flowen, constreyned with a certein ende hise +floodes.' Mr. Stewart understands 'greedy to flowen' to refer to 'fluctus +auidum.' It seems to me that this was merely Chaucer's first idea of the +passage, and that he afterwards meant 'hise floodes' to translate +'fluctus,' but forgot to strike out 'to flowen.' I do not defend the +translation. + +iii. pr. 11. 86. Lat. 'sede;' Eng. 'sete.' This is quite right. Mr. Stewart +quotes the Eng. version as having 'feete,' but this is only a corrupt +reading, though found in the best MS. Any one who is acquainted with M. E. +MSS. will easily guess that 'feete' is merely mis-copied from 'seete,' with +a long _s_; and, indeed, _sete_ is the reading of the black-letter +editions. There is a blunder here, certainly; only it is not the author's, +but due to the scribes. + +iv. pr. 6. 176. Lat. 'quidam me quoque excellentior:' Eng. 'a philosophre, +the more excellent by me.' The M. E. use of _by_ is ambiguous; it +frequently means 'in comparison with.' + +v. met. 5. 14. Lat. 'male dissipis:' Eng. 'wexest yvel out of thy wit.' In +this case, _wexest out of thy wit_ translates _dissipis_; and _yvel_, which +is here an adverb, translates _male_. + +Of course we must also make allowances for the variations in Chaucer's +Latin MS. from the usually received text. Here we are much assisted by MS. +C., which, as explained below, appears to contain a copy of the very text +which he consulted, and helps to settle several doubtful points. To take +two examples. In Book ii. met. 5. 17, Chaucer has 'ne hadde nat deyed yit +_armures_,' where the usual Lat. text has 'tinxerat _arua_.' But many MSS. +have _arma_; and, of these, MS. C. is one. + +Once more, in Book ii. met. 2. 11, Chaucer has 'sheweth _other_ gapinges,' +where the usual Lat. text has '_Altos_ pandit hiatus.' But some MSS. have +_Alios_; and, of these, MS. C. is one. + +§ 22. After all, the chief point of interest about Chaucer's translation of +Boethius is the influence that this labour exercised upon his later work, +owing to the close familiarity with the text which he thus acquired. I have +shewn that we must not expect to find such influence upon his earliest +writings; and that, in the case of the Book of the Duchesse, it affected +him at second hand, through Jean de Meun. But in other poems, viz. Troilus, +the House of Fame, The Legend of Good Women, some of the Balades, and in +the Canterbury Tales, the influence of Boethius is frequently observable; +and we may usually suppose such influence to have been direct and +immediate; nevertheless, we should always keep an eye on Le Roman de la +Rose, for Jean de Meun was, in like manner, influenced in no slight degree +by the same work. I have often taken an opportunity of pointing out, in my +Notes to Chaucer, passages of this character; and I find that Mr. Stewart, +with praiseworthy diligence, has endeavoured to give (in Appendix B, +following his Essay, at p. 260) 'An Index of Passages in Chaucer which seem +to have been suggested by the De Consolatione Philosophiae.' Very useful, +in connection with this subject, is the list of passages in which Chaucer +seems to have been indebted to Le Roman de la Rose, as given by Dr. E. +Köppel in _Anglia_, vol. xiv. 238-265. Another most useful help is the +comparison between Troilus and Boccaccio's _Filostrato_, by Mr. W. M. +Rossetti; which sometimes proves, beyond all doubt, that a passage which +may seem to be due to Boethius, is really taken from the Italian poet. As +this seems to be the right place for exhibiting the results thus obtained, +I proceed to give them, and gladly express my thanks to the above-named +authors for the opportunity thus afforded. + + +§ 23. COMPARISON WITH 'BOECE' OF OTHER WORKS BY CHAUCER. + + +TROILUS AND CRISEYDE: BOOK I. + +365.[35] a mirour.--Cf. B. v. met. 4. 8. + +638. sweetnesse, &c.--B. iii. met. 1. 4. + +730. What? slombrestow as in a lytargye?--See B. i. pr. 2. 14. + +731. an asse to the harpe.--B. i. pr. 4. 2. + +786. Ticius.--B. iii. met. 12. 29. + +837. Fortune is my fo.--B. i. pr. 4. 8. + +838-9. May of hir cruel wheel the harm withstonde.--B. ii. pr. 1. 80-82. + +840. she pleyeth.--B. ii. met. 1. 10; pr. 2. 36. + +841. than blamestow Fortune.--B. ii. pr. 2. 14. + +846-7. That, as hir Ioyes moten overgoon, + So mote hir sorwes passen everichoon.--B. ii. pr. 3. 52-4. + +848-9. For if hir wheel stinte any-thing to torne, + Than cessed she Fortune anoon to be. + B. ii. pr. 1. 82-4. + +850. Now, sith hir wheel by no wey may soiorne, &c.--B. ii. pr. 2. 59. + +857. For who-so list have helping of his leche.--B. i. pr. 4. 3. + +1065-71. For every wight that hath an hous to founde.--B. iv. pr. 6. 57-60. + + +TROILUS: BOOK II. + +*42.[36] Forthy men seyn, ech contree hath his lawes.--B. ii. pr. 7. 49-51. +(This case is doubtful. Chaucer's phrase--_men seyn_--shews that he is +quoting a common proverb. 'Ase fele thedes, as fele thewes, quoth Hendyng.' +'Tant de gens, tant de guises.'--Ray. So many countries, so many +customs.--Hazlitt). + +526. O god, that at thy disposicioun + Ledest the fyn, by Iuste purveyaunce, + Of every wight. B. iv. pr. 6. 149-151. + +766-7. And that a cloud is put with wind to flighte + Which over-sprat the sonne as for a space. + B. i. met. 3. 8-10. + + +TROILUS: BOOK III. + +617.[37] But O, Fortune, executrice of wierdes, + O influences of thise hevenes hye! + Soth is, that, under god, ye ben our hierdes. + B. iv. pr. 6. 60-71. + +624. The bente mone with hir hornes pale.--B. i. met. 5. 6. + +813. O god--quod she--so worldly selinesse ... + Y-medled is with many a bitternesse.--B. ii. pr. 4. 86, 87. + +816. Ful anguisshous than is, god woot--quod she-- + Condicioun of veyn prosperitee. + B. ii. pr. 4. 56. + +820-833.--B. ii. pr. 4. 109-117. + +*836. Ther is no verray wele in this world here. + B. ii. pr. 4. 130. + +1219. And now swetnesse semeth more swete.--B. iii. met. 1. 4. + +1261. Benigne Love, thou holy bond of thinges.--B. ii. met. 8. 9-11. + +1625-8. For of Fortunes sharp adversitee, &c.--B. ii. pr. 4. 4-7. + +1691-2. Feicitee.--B. iii. pr. 2. 55. + +1744-68. Love, that of erthe and see hath governaunce, &c. + B. ii. met. 8. 9-11; 15, 16; 3-8; 11-14; 17, 18. + + +TROILUS: BOOK IV. + +*1-7. (Fortune's changes, her wheel, and her scorn).--B. ii. pr. 1. 12; +met. 1. 1, 5-10; pr. ii. 37. (But note, that ll. 1-3 are really due to the +_Filostrato_, Bk. iii. st. 94; and ll. 6, 7 are copied from _Le Roman de la +Rose_, 8076-9). + +200. cloud of errour.--B. iii. met. 11. 7. + +391. Ne trust no wight to finden in Fortune + Ay propretee; hir yeftes ben comune. + B. ii. pr. 2. 7-9; 61-2. + +*481-2. (Repeated from Book III. 1625-8. But, this time, it is copied from +the _Filostrato_, Bk. iv. st. 56). + +503. For sely is that deeth, soth for to seyne, + That, oft y-cleped, comth and endeth peyne. + B. i. met. 1. 12-14. + +*835. And alle worldly blisse, as thinketh me, + The ende of blisse ay sorwe it occupyeth. + B. ii. pr. 4. 90. + +(A very doubtful instance; for l. 836 is precisely the same as Prov. xiv. +13. The word _occupyeth_ is decisive; see my note to Cant. Ta. B 421). + +958; 963-6. (Predestination).--B. v. pr. 2. 30-34. + +974-1078. (Necessity and Free Will).--B. v. pr. 3. 7-19; 21-71. + +*1587. ... thenk that lord is he + Of Fortune ay, that nought wol of hir recche; + And she ne daunteth no wight but a wrecche. + B. ii. pr. 4. 98-101. + +(But note that l. 1589 really translates two lines in the _Filostrato_, Bk. +iv. st. 154). + + +TROILUS: BOOK V. + +278. And Phebus with his rosy carte.--B. ii. met. 3. 1, 2. + +763. Felicitee clepe I my suffisaunce.--B. iii. pr. 2. 6-8. + +*1541-4. Fortune, whiche that permutacioun + Of thinges hath, as it is hir committed + Through purveyaunce and disposicioun + Of heighe Iove. B. iv. pr. 6. 75-77. + +*1809. (The allusion here to the 'seventh spere' has but a remote reference +to Boethius (iv. met. 1. 16-19); for this stanza 259 is translated from +Boccaccio's _Teseide_, Bk. xi. st. 1). + +It thus appears that, for this poem, Chaucer made use of B. i. met. 1, pr. +2, met. 3, pr. 4, met. 5; ii. pr. 1, met. 1, pr. 2, pr. 3, met. 3, pr. 4, +pr. 7, met. 8; iii. met. 1, pr. 2, met. 2, pr. 3, met. 11, 12; iv. pr. 6; +v. pr. 2, pr. 3. + + +THE HOUSE OF FAME. + +*535 (Book ii. 27). Foudre. (This allusion to the thunderbolt is copied +from Machault, as shewn in my note; but Machault probably took it from +Boeth. i. met. 4. 8; and it is curious that Chaucer has _tour_, not +_toun_). + +730-746 (Book ii. 222-238).--Compare B. iii. pr. 11; esp. 98-111. (Also Le +Roman de la Rose, 16957-69; Dante, _Purg._ xviii. 28). + +972-8 (Book ii. 464-70).--B. iv. met. 1. 1-5. + +1368-1375 (Book iii. 278-285).--Compare B. i. pr. 1. 8-12. + +*1545-8 (Book iii. 455-8).--Compare B. i. pr. 5. 43, 44. (The likeness is +very slight). + +1920 (Book iii. 830). An hous, that _domus Dedali_, That _Laborintus_ +cleped is.--B. iii. pr. 12. 118. + + +LEGEND OF GOOD WOMEN. + +195 (p. 78). tonne.--B. ii. pr. 2. 53-5. + +*2228-30. (_Philomela_, 1-3).--B. iii. met. 9. 8-10. (Doubtful; for the +same is in _Le Roman de la Rose_, 16931-6, which is taken from Boethius. +And Köppel remarks that the word _Eternally_ answers to nothing in the +Latin text, whilst it corresponds to the French _Tous jors en +pardurableté_). + + +MINOR POEMS. + + +III. BOOK OF THE DUCHESSE. + +The quotations from Boethius are all taken at second-hand. See above, pp. +xx, xxi. + + +V. PARLEMENT OF FOULES. + +*380. That hoot, cold, hevy, light, [and] moist and dreye, &c.--B. iii. pr. +11. 98-103. + +(Practically, a chance resemblance; these lines are really from Alanus, De +Planctu Naturæ; see the note). + +599. ... as oules doon by light; + The day hem blent, ful wel they see by night. + B. iv. pr. 4. 132-3. + + +IX. THE FORMER AGE. + +Partly from B. ii. met. 5; see the notes. + + +X. FORTUNE. + +1-4. Compare B. ii. met. 1. 5-7. + +10-12. Compare B. ii. pr. 8. 22-25. + +13. Compare B. ii. pr. 4. 98-101. + +*17. Socrates.--B. i. pr. 3. 20. (But really from Le Roman de la Rose, +5871-4). + +25. No man is wrecched, but himself it wene.--B. ii. pr. 4. 79, 80; cf. pr. +2. 1-10. + +29-30. Cf. B. ii. pr. 2. 17, 18. + +31. Cf. B. ii. pr. 2. 59, 60. + +33, 34. Cf. B. ii. pr. 8. 25-28. + +38. Yit halt thyn ancre.--B. ii. pr. 4. 40. + +43, 44. Cf. B. ii. pr. 1. 69-72, and 78-80. + +45, 46. Cf. B. ii. pr. 2. 60-62; and 37. + +50-52. Cf. B. ii. pr. 8. 25-28. + +57-64. Cf. B. ii. pr. 2. 11-18. + +65-68. Cf. B. iv. pr. 6. 42-46. + +68. Ye blinde bestes.--B. iii. pr. 3. 1. + +71. Thy laste day.--B. ii. pr. 3. 60, 61. + + +XIII. TRUTH. + +2. Cf. B. ii. pr. 5. 56, 57. + +3. For hord hath hate.--B. ii. pr. 5. 11. + +3. and climbing tikelnesse.--B. iii. pr. 8. 10, 11. + +7. And trouthe shal delivere. Cf. B. iii. met. 11. 7-9; 15-20. + +8. Tempest thee noght.--B. ii. pr. 4. 50. + +9. hir that turneth as a bal.--B. ii. pr. 2. 37. + +15. That thee is sent, receyve in buxumnesse.--B. ii. pr. 1. 66-68. + +17, 19. Her nis non hoom. Cf. B. i. pr. 5. 11-15. + +18. Forth, beste.--B. iii. pr. 3. 1. + +19. Know thy contree, lok up.--B. v. met. 5. 14, 15. + + +XIV. GENTILESSE. + +For the general idea, see B. iii. pr. 6. 24-38; met. 6. 2, and 6-10. With +l. 5 compare B. iii. pr. 4. 25. + + +XV. LAK OF STEDFASTNESSE. + +For the general idea, cf. B. ii. met. 8. + + +CANTERBURY TALES: GROUP A. + +PROLOGUE. 337-8. Pleyn delyt, &c.--B. iii. pr. 2. 55. + +741-2. The wordes mote be cosin to the dede.--B. iii. pr. 12. 152. + +KNIGHTES TALE. 925. Thanked be Fortune, and hir false wheel.--B. ii. pr. 2. +37-39. + +1164. Who shal yeve a lover any lawe?--B. iii, met. 12. 37. + +*1251-4. Cf. B. iv. pr. 6. 147-151. + +1255, 1256. Cf. B. iii. pr. 2. 19; ii. pr. 5. 122. + +1262. A dronke man, &c.--B. iii. pr. 2. 61. + +1266. We seke faste after felicitee, + But we goon wrong ful often, trewely. + B. iii. pr. 2. 59, 60; met. 8. 1. + +1303-12. O cruel goddes, that governe, &c.--B. i. met. 5. 22-26; iv. pr. 1. +19-26. + +*1946. The riche Cresus. Cf. B. ii. pr. 2. 44. (But cf. Monkes Ta. B. 3917, +and notes.) + +2987-2993[38]. The firste moevere, &c.--B. ii. met. 8. 6-11. (But see also +the _Teseide_, Bk. ix. st. 51.) + +2994-9, 3003-4.--B. iv. pr. 6. 29-35. + +3005-3010.--B. iii. pr. 10. 18-22. + +3011-5.--B. iv. pr. 6. + + +GROUP B. + +MAN OF LAWES TALE. 295-299. O firste moeving cruel firmament. Cf. B. i. +met. 5. 1-3; iii. pr. 8. 22; pr. 12. 145-147; iv. met. 1. 6. + +481-3. Doth thing for certein ende that ful derk is.--B. iv. pr. 6. +114-117, and 152-154. + +813-6. O mighty god, if that it be thy wille.--B. i. met. 5. 22-30; iv. pr. +1. 19-26. + +N.B. The stanzas 421-7, and 925-931, are not from Boethius, but from Pope +Innocent; see notes. + +THE TALE OF MELIBEUS. The suggested parallels between this Tale and Boece +are only three; the first is marked by Mr. Stewart as doubtful, the third +follows Albertano of Brescia word for word; and the second is too general a +statement. It is best to say that no certain instance can be given[39]. + +THE MONK'S PROLOGUE. 3163. Tragedie.--B. ii. pr. 2. 51. + +THE MONKES TALE: HERCULES. 3285-3300.--B. iv. met. 7. 20-42. (But see +Sources of the Tales, § 48; vol. iii. p. 430.) + +*3329. Ful wys is he that can him-selven knowe. Cf. B. ii. pr. 4. 98-101. + +3434. For what man that hath freendes thurgh fortune, + Mishap wol make hem enemys, I gesse. + B. iii. pr. 5. 48-50. + +3537. But ay fortune hath in hir hony galle.--B. ii. pr. 4. 86-7. + +3587. Thus can fortune hir wheel governe and gye.--B. ii. pr. 2. 37-39. + +*3636. Thy false wheel my wo al may I wyte.--B. ii. pr. 1. 7-10. + +3653. NERO. See B. ii. met. 6; esp. 5-16. + +3914. JULIUS CESAR. No man ne truste upon hir favour longe. B. ii. pr. 1. +48-53. + +3921. CRESUS.--B. ii. pr. 2. 44-46. + +3951. TRAGEDIE.--B. ii. pr. 2. 51-2. (See 3163 above.) + +3956. And covere hir brighte face with a cloude.--B. ii. pr. 1. 42. + +NONNE PREESTES TALE. 4190. That us governeth alle as in comune.--B. ii. pr. +2. 61. + +4424. But what that god forwoot mot nedes be.--B. v. pr. 3. 7-10. + +4433. Whether that godes worthy forwiting, &c.--B. v. pr. 3. 5-15; 27-39; +pr. 4. 25-34; &c. + + +GROUP D. + +*100. WYF OF BATH. He hath not every vessel al of gold.--B. iv. pr. 1. +30-33. (But cf. 2 Tim. ii. 20.) + +170. Another tonne.--B. ii. pr. 2. 53. + +1109-1116. 'Gentilesse.'--B. iii. pr. 6. 24-38; met. 6. 6, 7. + +1140. Caucasus.--B. ii. pr. 7. 43. + +1142. Yit wol the fyr as faire lye and brenne.--B. iii. pr. 4. 47. + +1170. That he is gentil that doth gentil dedis.--B. iii. met. 6. 7-10. + +1187. He that coveyteth is a povre wight.--B. iii. pr. 5. 20-32. + +1203. Povert a spectacle is, as thinketh me.--B. ii. pr. 8. 23-25, 31-33. + +THE FRERES TALE. 1483. For som-tyme we ben goddes instruments.--B. iv. pr. +6. 62-71. + +THE SOMNOURS TALE. 1968. Lo, ech thing that is oned in him-selve, &c.--B. +iii. pr. 11. 37-40. + + +GROUP E. + +THE CLERKES TALE. Mr. Stewart refers ll. 810-2 to Boethius, but these lines +translate Petrarch's sentence--'Nulla homini perpetua sors est.' Also ll. +1155-1158, 1161; but these lines translate Petrarch's sentence--'Probat +tamen et sæpe nos, multis ac _grauibus flagellis exerceri sinit_, non ut +animum nostrum sciat, quem sciuit antequam crearemur ... abundè ergo +constantibus uiris ascripserim, quisquis is fuerit, qui pro Deo suo sine +murmure patiatur.' I find no hint that Chaucer was directly influenced by +Boethius, while writing this Tale. + +THE MARCHANTES TALE. Mr. Stewart refers ll. 1311-4 to Boethius, but they +are more likely from Albertanus Brixiensis, _Liber de Amore dei_, fol. 30 a +(as shewn by Dr. Köppel):--'Et merito uxor est diligenda, qui donum est +Dei,' followed by a quotation from Prov. xix. 14. + +1582. a mirour--B. v. met. 4. 8. + +1784. O famulier foo.--B. iii. pr. 5. 50. + +1849. The slakke skin.--B. i. met. 1. 12. + +1967-9. Were it by destinee or aventure, &c.--B. iv. pr. 6. 62-71. + +2021. felicitee Stant in delyt.--B. iii. pr. 2. 55. + +2062. O monstre, &c.--B. ii. pr. 1. 10-14. + + +GROUP F. + +THE SQUIERES TALE. *258. As sore wondren somme on cause of thonder. Cf. B. +iv. met. 5. 6. (Somewhat doubtful.) + +608. Alle thing, repeiring to his kinde.--B. iii. met. 2. 27-29. + +611. As briddes doon that men in cages fede.--B. iii. met. 2. 15-22. + +THE FRANKELEINS TALE. 865. Eterne god, that thurgh thy purveyaunce, &c.--B. +i. met. 5. 22, 23; iii. met. 9. 1; cf. iii. pr. 9. 147, 148. + +879. Which mankinde is so fair part of thy werk.--B. i. met. 5. 38. + +886. Al is for the beste.--B. iv. pr. 6. 194-196. + +1031. God and governour, &c.--B. i. met. 6. 10-14. + + +GROUP G. + +THE SECONDE NONNES TALE. I think it certain that this early Tale is quite +independent of Boethius. L. 114, instanced by Mr. Stewart, is from +'Ysidorus'; see my note. + +THE CANOUNS YEMANNES TALE. *958. We fayle of that which that we wolden +have.--B. iii. pr. 9. 89-91. (Very doubtful.) + + +GROUP H. + +THE MAUNCIPLES TALE. 160. + + ther may no man embrace + As to destreyne a thing, which that nature + Hath naturelly set in a creature.--B. iii. met. 2. 1-5. + +163. Tak any brid, &c.--B. iii. met. 2. 15-22. + + +GROUP I. + +THE PERSONES TALE. *212. A shadwe hath the lyknesse of the thing of which +it is shadwe, but shadwe is nat the same thing of which it is shadwe.--B. +v. pr. 4. 45, 46. (Doubtful.) + +*471. Who-so prydeth him in the goodes of fortune, he is a ful greet fool; +for som-tyme is a man a greet lord by the morwe, that is a caitif and a +wrecche er it be night.--B. ii. met. 3. 16-18. (I think this is doubtful, +and mark it as such.) + +472. Som-tyme the delyces of a man is cause of the grevous maladye thurgh +which he dyeth.--B. iii. pr. 7. 3-5. + +§ 24. It is worth while to see what light is thrown upon the chronology of +the Canterbury Tales by comparison with Boethius. + +In the first place, we may remark that, of the Tales mentioned above, there +is nothing to shew that The Seconde Nonnes Tale, the Clerkes Tale, or even +the Tale of Melibeus, really refer to any passages in Boethius. They may, +in fact, have been written _before_ that translation was made. In the +instance of the Second Nonnes Tale, this was certainly the case; and it is +not unlikely that the same is true with respect to the others. + +But the following Tales (_as revised_) seem to be later than 'Boece,' viz. +The Knightes Tale, The Man of Lawes Tale, and The Monkes Tale; whilst it is +quite certain that the following Tales were amongst the latest written, +viz. the Nonne Preestes Tale, the three tales in Group D (Wyf, Frere, +Somnour), the Marchantes Tale, the Squieres Tale, the Frankeleins Tale, the +Canouns Yemannes Tale, and the Maunciples Tale; all of which are in the +heroic couplet, and later than 1385. + +The case of the Knightes Tale is especially interesting; for the numerous +references in it to Boece, and the verbal resemblances between it and +Troilus shew that _either_ the original _Palamoun and Arcite_ was written +just after those works, _or else_ (which is more likely) it was revised, +and became the Knight's Tale, nearly at that time. The connection between +Palamon and Arcite, Anelida, and the Parlement of Foules, and the +introduction of three stanzas from the Teseide near the end of Troilus, +render the former supposition unlikely; whilst at the same time we are +confirmed in the impression that the (revised) Knightes Tale succeeded +Boece and Troilus at no long interval, and was, in fact, the _first_ of the +Canterbury Tales that was written _expressly for the purpose_ of being +inserted in that collection, viz. about 1385-6. + + +§ 25. THE MANUSCRIPTS. + +I have now to explain the sources of the present edition. + +1. MS. C. = MS. Camb. Ii. 3. 21. This MS., in the Cambridge University +Library, is certainly the best; and has therefore been taken as the basis +of the text. The English portion of it was printed by Dr. Furnivall for the +Chaucer Society in 1886; and I have usually relied upon this very useful +edition[40]. It is a fine folio MS., wholly occupied with Boethius (_De +Consolatione Philosophiae_), and comments upon it. + +It is divided into two distinct parts, which have been bound up together. +The latter portion consists of a lengthy commentary upon Boethius, at the +end of which we find the title, viz.--'Exposicio preclara quam Iohannes +Theutonicus prescripsit et finiuit Anno d_omi_ni M^oCCCvj viij ydus Iunii;' +i.e. An Excellent Commentary, written by Johannes Teutonicus, and finished +June 6, 1306. This vast commentary occupies 118 folios, in double columns. + +The former part of the volume concerns us more nearly. I take it to be, for +all practical purposes, _the authentic copy_. For it presents the following +peculiarities. It contains the whole of the Latin text, as well as +Chaucer's English version; and it is surprising to find that these are +written in alternate chapters. Thus the volume begins with the Latin text +of Metre 1, at the close of which there follows immediately, on the same +page, Chaucer's translation of Metre 1. Next comes Prose 1 in Latin, +followed by Prose 1 in English; and so throughout. + +Again, if we examine the Latin text, there seems reason to suppose that it +fairly represents the very recension which Chaucer used. It abounds with +side-notes and glosses, all in Latin; and the glosses correspond to those +in Chaucer's version. Thus, to take an example, the following lines occur +near the end of Bk. iii. met. 11:-- + + 'Nam cur rogati sponte recte[41] censetis + Ni mersus alto uiueret fomes corde.' + +Over _rogati_ is written the gloss _i. interrogato_. + +Over _censetis_ is written _i. iudicatis_. + +Over _Ni_ is _i. nisi_; over _mersus alto_ is _i. latenter conditos_; over +_uiueret_ is _i. vigeret_; and over _fomes_ is _i. radix veritatis_. + +Besides these glosses, there is here the following side-note:--'Nisi radix +veritatis latenter conditus vigeret in abscondito mentis, homo non +iudicaret recta quacunque ordinata interrogata.' + +When we turn to Chaucer's version, we find that he first gives a +translation of the two verses, thus:-- + +'For wherefor elles demen ye of your owne wil the rightes, whan ye ben +axed, but-yif so were that the norisshinge of resoun ne livede y-plounged +in the depthe of your herte?' + +After this he adds, by way of comment:--'This is to seyn, how sholden men +demen the sooth of anything that were axed, yif ther nere a rote of +soothfastnesse that were y-plounged and hid in naturel principles, the +whiche soothfastnesse lived with-in the deepnesse of the thought.' + +It is obvious that he has here reproduced the general sense of the Latin +side-note above quoted. The chief thing which is missing in the Latin is +the expression 'in naturel principles.' But we have only to look to a +passage a little higher up, and we find the line-- + + 'Suis retrusum possidere thesauris.' + +Over the word _retrusum_ is written _i. absconditum_; and over _thesauris_ +is _i. naturalibus policiis et principiis naturaliter inditis_. Out of +these we have only to pick the words _absconditum naturalibus ... +principiis_, and we at once obtain the missing phrase--'hid in naturel +principles.' + +Or, to take another striking example. Bk. iv. met. 7 begins, in the MS., +with the lines: + + 'Bella bis quinis operatus annis + Vltor attrides frigie ruinis, + Fratris amissos thalamos piauit.' + +At the beginning, just above these, is written a note: 'Istud metrum est de +tribus exemplis: de agamenone (_sic_); secundum de vlixe; tertium, de +hercule.' + +The glosses are these; over _quinis_ is _i. decim_; over _attrides_ is +_agamenon_ (_sic_); over _Fratris_ is _s. menelai_; and over _piauit_ is +_i. vlcissendo_ (_sic_) _purgauit: troia enim erat metropolis Frigie_. + +If we turn to Chaucer's version, in which I print the additions to the text +in italics, we find that it runs thus:-- + +'The wreker Attrides, _that is to seyn, Agamenon_, that wroughte and +continuede the batailes by ten yeer, recovered and purgede _in wrekinge_, +by the destruccioun of Troye, the loste chaumbres of mariage of his +brother; _this is to seyn, that he, Agamenon, wan ayein Eleyne, that was +Menelaus wyf his brother_.' + +We see how this was made up. Not a little curious are the spellings +_Attrides_ and _Agamenon_[42], as occurring both in the Latin part of this +MS. and in Chaucer's version. Again, Chaucer has _ten_, corresponding to +the gloss _decim_, not to the textual phrase _bis quinis_. His explanation +of _piauit_ by _recovered and purgede in wrekinge_ is clearly due to the +gloss _ulciscendo purgauit_. His substitution of _Troye_ for _Frigie_ is +due to the gloss: _troia enim erat metropolis Frigie_. And even the name +_Menelaus his brother_ answers to _Fratris, s. menelai_. And all that is +left, as being absolutely his own, are the words _and continuede_, +_recovered_, and _wan ayein Eleyne_. We soon discover that, in a hundred +instances, he renders a single Latin verb or substantive by two English +verbs or substantives, by way of making the sense clearer; which accounts +for his introduction of the verbs _continuede_ and _recovered_; and this +consideration reduces Chaucer's additional contribution to a mention of the +name of _Eleyne_, which was of course extremely familiar to him. + +Similarly, we find in this MS. the original of the gloss explaining +_coempcioun_ (p. 11); of the 'Glose' on p. 15; of the 'Glosa' on p. 26; and +of most of the notes which, at first sight, look like additions by Chaucer +himself[43]. + +The result is that, in all difficulties, the first authority to be +consulted is the Latin text in this particular MS.; for we are easily led +to conclude that it was intentionally designed to preserve both Chaucer's +translation and the original text. It does not follow that it is always +perfect; for it can only be a _copy_ of the Latin, and the scribe may err. +In writing _recte_ for _recta_ (see note on p. xxxviii), he has certainly +committed an error by a slip of the pen. The same mistake has been observed +to occur in another MS., viz. Codex Gothanus I. + +The only drawback is this. The MS. is so crowded with glosses and +side-notes, many of them closely written in small characters, that it is +almost impossible to consult them all. I have therefore contented myself +with resorting to them for information in difficult passages only. For +further remarks on this subject, I must refer the reader to the Notes. + +Lastly, I may observe that the design of preserving in this MS. all the +apparatus referring to Chaucer's Boethius, is made the more apparent by the +curious fact that, _in this MS. only_, the two poems by Chaucer that are +closely related to Boethius, viz. The Former Age, and Fortune, are actually +inserted into the very body of it, immediately after Bk. ii. met. 5. This +place was of course chosen because The Former Age is, to some extent, a +verse translation of that metre; and Fortune was added because, being +founded upon scraps from several chapters, it had no definite claim to any +specific place of its own. + +In this MS., the English text, like the Latin one, has a few imperfections. +One imperfection appears in certain peculiarities of spelling. The scribe +seems to have had some habits of pronunciation that betoken a greater +familiarity with Anglo-French than with English. The awkward position of +the guttural sound of _gh_ in _neighebour_ seems to have been too much for +him; hence he substituted _ssh_ (= _sh-sh_) for _gh_, and gives us the +spelling _neysshebour_ (Bk. ii. pr. 3. 24, foot-note; pr. 7. 57, +foot-note.) Nevertheless, it is the best MS. and has most authority. For +further remarks, see the account of the present edition, on pp. +xlvi-xlviii. + +2. MS. Camb. Ii. 1. 38. This MS. also belongs to the Cambridge University +Library, and was written early in the fifteenth century. It contains 8 +complete quires of 8 leaves, and 1 incomplete quire of 6 leaves, making 70 +leaves in all. The English version appears alone, and occupies 68 leaves, +and part of leaf 69 recto; leaf 69, verso, and leaf 70, are blank. The last +words are:--'þe eyen of þe Iuge þat seeth and demeth alle thinges. +_Explicit liber boecij, &c._' Other treatises, in Latin, are bound up with +it, but are unrelated. The readings of this MS. agree very closely with +those of Ii. 3. 21, and of our text. Thus, in Met. i. l. 9, it has the +reading _wyerdes_, with the gloss _s. fata_, as in Ii. 3. 21. (The scribe +at first wrote _wyerldes_, but the _l_ is marked for expunction.) In l. 12, +it has _emptid_, whereas the Addit. MS. has _emty_; and in l. 16 it has +_nayteth_, whereas the Addit. MS. wrongly has _naieth_. On account of its +close agreement with the text, I have made but little use of it. + +It is worth notice that this MS. (like Harl. 2421) frequently has correct +readings in cases where even the MS. above described exhibits some blunder. +A few such instances are given in the notes. For example, it has the +reading _wrythith_ in Bk. i. met. 4. 7, where MS. C. has the absurd word +_writith_, and MS. A. has _wircheth_. In the very next line, it has +_thonder-leit_, and it is highly probable that _leit_ is the real word, and +_light_ an ignorant substitution; for _leit_ (answering to A.S. _l[=e]get_, +_l[=i]get_) is the right M.E. word for 'lightning'; see the examples in +Stratmann. So again, in Bk. ii. met. 3. 13, it reads _ouer-whelueth_, like +the black-letter editions; whilst MS. C. turns _whelueth_ into _welueeth_, +and MS. A. gives the spelling _whelweth_. In Bk. ii. pr. 6. 63, it +correctly retains _I_ after _may_, though MSS. C. and A. both omit it. In +Bk. ii. pr. 8. 17, it has _wyndy_, not _wyndynge_; and I shew (in the note +at p. 434) that _windy_ is, after all, the correct reading, since the Lat. +text has _uentosam_. In Bk. iii. met. 3. 1, it resembles the printed +editions in the insertion of the words _or a goter_ after _river_. In Bk. +iv. pr. 3. 47, 48, it preserves the missing words: _peyne, he ne douteth +nat þat he nys entecchid and defouled with_. In Bk. iv. met. 6. 24, it has +the right reading, viz. _brethith_. Finally, it usually retains the word +_whylom_ in places where the MS. next described substitutes the word +_somtyme_. If any difficulty in the text raises future discussion, it is +clear that this MS. should be consulted. + +3. MS. A. = MS. Addit. 10340, in the British Museum. This is the MS. +printed at length by Dr. Morris for the Early English Text Society, and +denoted by the letter 'A.' in my foot-notes. As it is so accessible, I need +say but little. It is less correct than MS. Ii. 3. 21 in many readings, and +the spelling, on the whole, is not so good. The omissions in it are also +more numerous, but it occasionally preserves a passage which the Cambridge +MS. omits. It is also imperfect, as it omits Prose 8 and Metre 8 of Bk. +ii., and Prose 1 of Bk. iii. It has been collated throughout, though I have +usually refrained from quoting such readings from it as are evidently +inferior or wrong. I notice one peculiarity in particular, viz. that it +almost invariably substitutes the word _somtyme_ for the _whylom_ found in +other copies; and _whylom_, in this treatise, is a rather common word. Dr. +Morris's account of the MS. is here copied. + +'The Additional MS. is written by a scribe who was unacquainted with the +force of the final _-e_. Thus he adds it to the preterites of strong verbs, +which do not require it; he omits it in the preterites of weak verbs where +it is wanted, and attaches it to passive participles of weak verbs, where +it is superfluous. The scribe of the Cambridge MS. is careful to preserve +the final _-e_ where it is a sign (1) of the definite declension of the +adjective; (2) of the plural adjective; (3) of the infinitive mood; (4) of +the preterite of weak verbs; (5) of present participles; (6) of the 2nd +pers. pret. indic. of strong verbs; (7) of adverbs; (8) of an older +vowel-ending. + +'The Addit. MS. has frequently _thilk_ (singular and plural) and _-nes_ (in +_wrechednes_, &c.), when the Camb. MS. has _thilke_ (as usual in the +Canterbury Tales) and _-nesse_.' + +The copy of Boethius is contained on foll. 3-40. On fol. 41, recto, is a +copy of Chaucer's _Truth_, and the description of the 'Persone,' extracted +from the Prologue to the Cant. Tales. The other side of the leaf is blank. +This is, in fact, the MS. which I denote by 'At.,' as described in the +Introduction to the 'Minor Poems' in vol. i. p. 57. + +4. MS. Addit. 16165, in the British Museum. This is one of Shirley's MSS., +being that which I denote by 'Ad.,' and have described in the Introduction +to the 'Minor Poems' in vol. i. p. 56. I believe this MS. to be of less +value than MS. A. (above), and have therefore not collated it; for even A. +is not a very good authority. + +5. MS. Harl. 2421. The Harleian Catalogue describes it thus: 'Torq. Sever. +Boetius: his 5 Books of the Comfort of Philosophy. Translated into English. +On vellum, 152 leaves. XV century.' + +A small quarto MS. of the middle of the fifteenth century. The first Prose +of Bk. i. begins (like MS. A.) with the words: 'In þe mene while þat y stil +recorded þese þinges;' &c. Hence are derived the readings marked 'H.' in +Morris's edition, pp. 62-64. It rightly reads _writheth_, _wyndy_, +_bretheth_ (see p. xlii). + +6. The celebrated Hengwrt MS. of the Canterbury Tales (denoted by 'Hn.' in +the foot-notes to that poem) contains a part of Chaucer's Boethius. See the +Second Report of the Historical MSS. Commission, p. 106. + +7. There is also a copy in a MS. belonging to the Cathedral Library at +Salisbury. It was discovered by Dr. Wülker in 1875; see the _Academy_ for +Oct. 5, 1875. Bk. i. met. 1 was printed, from this MS., by Dr. Wülker in +_Anglia_, ii. 373. It resembles MS. A. + +8. In the Phillipps collection, MS. no. 9472 is described as 'Boetius' Boke +of Comfort,' and is said to be of the fifteenth century. I do not know its +real contents. + + +§ 26. THE PRINTED EDITIONS. + +CAXTON. Chaucer's Boethius was first printed by Caxton, without date; but +probably before 1479. See the description in The Biography and Typography +of W. Caxton, by W. Blades; second edition, 1882; p. 213. A complete +collation of this text with MS. A., as printed by Morris, was printed by L. +Kellner, of Vienna, in Englische Studien, vol. xiv, pp. 1-53; of which I +have gladly availed myself. The text agrees very closely indeed with that +printed by Thynne in 1532, and resembles MS. C. rather than MS. A. + +Perhaps it is necessary to remark that the readings of MS. C., as given in +Kellner's collation, are sometimes incorrect, because MS. C. had not at +that time been printed, and the readings of that MS. were only known to him +from the foot-notes in Morris's edition, which are not exhaustive, but only +record the more important variations. There is a curious but natural error, +for example, in his note on l. 1002 of Morris's edition (Bk. ii. met. 3. +14, p. 32, l. 1), where MS. C. has _[gh]eelde_ (= _zeelde_). The word is +missing in MS. A., but Morris supplied it from C. to complete the text. +Hence the foot-note has: '[_[gh]eelde_]--from C.'; meaning that A. omits +_[gh]eelde_, which is supplied from C. This Kellner took to mean that A. +has _[gh]eelde_, and C. has _from_. However, the readings of A. and of +Caxton are given with all possible care and minuteness; and now that C. is +also in type, the slight inevitable errors are easily put right. This +excellent piece of work has saved me much trouble. + +It turns out that Caxton's text is of great value. He followed a MS. (now +lost) which is, in some places, even more correct than MS. C. The following +readings are of great importance, as they correct MSS. C. and A. (I denote +Caxton's edition by the symbol Cx.) + +Bk. i. met. 4. 7. Cx. writheth. (Cf. p. xlii. above, l. 6.) + +Bk. i. met. 4. 8. Cx. thonder leyte[44]. + +Bk. i. met. 5. 26. Cx. punisheth. + +Bk. i. met. 5. 28. Cx. on the nekkes. + +Bk. i. pr. 6. 54. Cx. funden (_but read_ founden). + +Bk. i. pr. 6. 65. Cx. norissing. (Perhaps better than _norisshinges_, as in +the MSS.; for the Lat. text has the sing. _fomitem_.) Cf. Bk. iii. met. 11. +27. + +Bk. ii. pr. 3. 59. Cx. seeld (_better_ selde). It is clear that _yelde_ in +MS. A. arose from a reading _[gh]elde_, which really meant _zelde_, the +Southern form of _selde_. See below. + +Bk. ii. met. 3. 14. Cx. selde (_correctly_). And so again in Bk. ii. pr. 6. +15. + +Bk. ii. pr. 6. 63. Cx. may I most. (MSS. C. A. _omit_ I.) + +Bk. ii. pr. 8. 17. Cx. wyndy (which is right; see note, p. 434). + +Bk. iii. pr. 1. 26. Cx. thyne (_better_ thyn, _as in_ Thynne). + +Bk. iii. pr. 10. 10. Cx. denyed (_or read_ deneyed). + +Bk. iii. pr. 10. 51. Cx. that the fader. (MSS. that this prince.) Caxton's +translation is closer; Lat. text, _patrem_. + +Bk. iii. pr. 11. 116. Cx. slepen. + +Bk. iii. pr. 11. 152. Cx. maistow (Thynne _has_ mayst thou) MS. C. _omits_ +thou; and MS. A. is defective. + +Bk. iii. pr. 12. 143. Cx. Parmenides. + +Bk. iv. pr. 6. 52. Cx. be cleped. + +Bk. iv. pr. 6. 188, 189. Cx. and some dispyse that they mowe not here +(_misprint for_ bere). MSS. C. and A. omit this clause. + +Bk. v. pr. 1. 9, 10. Cx. assoilen to the the dette (where the former _the_ += thee). + +Bk. v. pr. 3. 142. Cx. impetren. + +In a few places, Caxton's text is somewhat fuller than that of the MSS. +Thus in Bk. ii. pr. 3. 8, Cx. has: thei ben herd _and sowne in eeres_ thei, +&c. However, the Lat. text has merely: 'cum audiuntur.' And again, only 9 +lines lower (l. 17), Cx. inserts _and ajuste_ after _moeve_; but the Lat. +text has merely: 'admouebo.' In some cases, it is closer to the Latin text; +as, e. g. in Bk. i. met. 3. 9, where Cx. has _kaue_ (Lat. _antro_), whereas +MSS. C. and A. have the pl. _kaues_. In Bk. i. pr. 3. 41, where C. has the +E. form _Sorans_, Cx. preserves the Latin form _Soranos_. + +It thus appears that a collation with Caxton's text is of considerable +service. + +THYNNE. Thynne's edition of Chaucer, printed in 1532, contains Boethius. I +suspect that Thynne simply reprinted Caxton's text, without consulting any +other authority; for it is hard to detect any difference, except that his +spellings are somewhat less archaic. Hence this text, by a lucky accident, +is an extremely good one, and I have constantly referred to it in all cases +of difficulty. Readings from this edition are marked in the foot-notes with +the symbol 'Ed.' + +The later black-letter copies are mere reprints of Thynne's text, each +being, as usual, a little worse than its predecessor, owing to the +introduction of misprints and later forms. I have consulted the editions of +1550 (undated) and 1561. Perhaps the most readable edition is that by +Chalmers, in vol. i. of his British Poets, as it is in Roman type. It +closely resembles the edition of 1561, and is therefore not very correct. + + +§ 27. THE PRESENT EDITION. + +The present edition is, practically, the first in which the preparation of +the text has received adequate attention. Caxton's edition probably +represents a single MS., though a very good one; and all the black-letter +editions merely reproduce the same text, with various new errors. Dr. +Morris's edition was unfortunately founded on an inferior MS., as he +discovered before the printing of it was completed. Dr. Furnivall's text +reproduces the excellent MS. C., but collation was rightly refrained from, +as his object was to give the exact spellings of the MS. for the benefit of +students. Hence there are several passages, in both of these editions, +which do not afford the best sense; in a few places, they are less correct +than the black-letter editions. It is also a considerable drawback to the +reader, that they reproduce, of course intentionally and fully, the +troublesome and obscure punctuation-marks of the MSS. + +Finding the ground thus clear, I have taken occasion to introduce the +following improvements. The text is founded on MS. C., certainly the best +extant authority, which it follows, on the whole, very closely. At the same +time, it has been carefully collated throughout with the text of MS. A., +and (what is even more important) with the texts printed by Caxton and +Thynne and with the original Latin text (1) as given in the edition by +Obbarius (Jena 1843)[45] and (2) as existing in MS. C. The latter usually +gives the exact readings of the MS. used by Chaucer himself. By taking +these precautions, I have introduced a considerable number of necessary +corrections, so that we now possess a very close approximation to the +original text as it left Chaucer's hands. In all cases where emendations +are made, the various readings are given in the foot-notes, where 'C.' and +'A.' refer to the two chief MSS., and 'Ed.' refers to Thynne's first +edition (1532). But I have intentionally refrained from crowding these +foot-notes with inferior readings which are certainly false. Some readings +from the excellent MS. Ii. 1. 38 are given in the Notes; I now wish that I +had collated it throughout. I have introduced modern punctuation. As I am +here entirely responsible, the reader is at liberty to alter it, provided +that he is justified in so doing by the Latin text. + +Wherever Chaucer has introduced explanatory words and phrases which are not +in the Latin text, I have printed them _in italics_; as in lines 6, 7, and +18 on page 1. However, these words and phrases are seldom original; they +are usually translated or adapted from some of the Latin glosses and notes +with which MS. C. abounds; as explained above, at p. xxxviii. + +I have also adopted an entirely new system of numbering. In Dr. Morris's +edition, every line of the _printed_ text is numbered consecutively, from 1 +up to 5219, which is the last line of the treatise. In Dr. Furnivall's +print of MS. C., a new numbering begins on every page, from 1 to 32, 33, +34, or 35. Both these methods are entirely useless for general reference. +The right method of reference is Tyrwhitt's, viz. to treat every chapter +separately. Thus a reference to 'Bk. 1. met. 2' serves for every edition; +but I have further taken occasion to number the lines of every chapter, for +greater convenience. Thus the word _acountinge_ occurs in Bk. i. met. 2. +10: and even in referring to a black-letter edition, the number 10 is of +some use, since it shews that the word occurs very nearly _in the middle_ +of the Metre. The usual method of referring to editions _by the page_ is an +extremely poor and inconvenient makeshift; and it is really nearly time +that editors should learn this elementary lesson. Unfortunately, some +difficulty will always remain as to the numbering of the lines of _prose_ +works, because the length of each line is indefinite. The longest chapter, +Bk. iv. pr. 6, here extends to 258 lines; the shortest, Bk. iii. met. 3, +has less than 7 lines. + +I have also corrected the spelling of MS. C. in a large number of places, +but within very narrow limits. The use of the final _e_ in that MS. is +exceedingly correct, and has almost always been followed, except where +notice to the contrary is given in the notes. My corrections are chiefly +limited to the substitution of _in_ for _yn_, and of _i_ for short _y_, in +such words as _bygynnen_, for which I write _biginnen_; the substitution of +_y_ for long _i_, as in _whylom_, when the MS. has _whilom_; the use of _v_ +for the MS. symbol _u_ (where necessary); the substitution of _sch_ or +_ssh_ for _ss_, when the sound intended is double _sh_; and the +substitution of _e_ and _o_ for _ee_ and _oo_ where the vowels are +obviously long by their position in the word. I also substitute _-eth_ and +_-ed_ for the variable _-eth_ or _-ith_, and _-ed_, _-id,_ or _-yd_ of the +MS. Such changes render the text more uniformly phonetic, and much more +readable, without really interfering with the evidence. Changes of a bolder +character are duly noted. + +The introduction of these slight improvements will not really trouble the +reader. The trouble has been the editor's; for I found that the only +satisfactory way of producing a really good text was to rewrite the whole +of it. It seemed worth while to have a useful critical edition of +'Boethius' for general reference, because of the considerable use which +Chaucer himself made of his translation when writing many of his later +poems. + +The Notes are all new, in the sense that no annotated edition of Chaucer's +text has hitherto appeared. But many of them are, necessarily, copied or +adapted from the notes to the Latin text in the editions by Vallinus and +Valpy. + + + + +INTRODUCTION TO TROILUS. + + +§ 1. DATE OF THE WORK. The probable date is about 1380-2, and can hardly +have been earlier than 1379 or later than 1383. No doubt it was in hand for +a considerable time. It certainly followed close upon the translation of +Boethius; see p. vii above. + +§ 2. SOURCES OF THE WORK. The chief authority followed by Chaucer is +Boccaccio's poem named _Il Filostrato_, in 9 Parts or Books of very +variable length, and composed in ottava rima, or stanzas containing eight +lines each. I have used the copy in the Opere Volgari di G. Boccaccio; +Firenze, 1832. + +Owing to the patient labours of Mr. W. M. Rossetti, who has collated the +_Filostrato_ with the _Troilus_ line by line, and published the results of +his work for the Chaucer Society in 1875, we are able to tell the precise +extent to which Chaucer is indebted to Boccaccio for this story. The +_Filostrato_ contains 5704 lines; and the _Troilus_ 8239 lines[46], if we +do not reckon in the 12 Latin lines printed below, at p. 404. Hence we +obtain the following result. + + Total of lines in _Troilus_ 8239 + Adapted from the _Filostrato_ + (2730 lines, condensed into) 2583 + ---- + Balance due to Chaucer 5656 + +In other words, Chaucer's debt to Boccaccio amounts to _less than_ +one-third of the whole poem; and there remains more than two-thirds of it +to be accounted for from other sources. But even after all deductions have +been made for passages borrowed from other authors, very nearly two-thirds +remain for which Chaucer is solely responsible. As in the case of the +Knightes Tale, close investigation shews that Chaucer is, after all, less +indebted to Boccaccio than might seem, upon a hasty comparison, to be the +case. + +As it was found impracticable to give Mr. Rossetti's results in full, I +have drawn up lists of parallel passages in a somewhat rough way, which are +given in the Notes, at the beginning of every Book; see pp. 461, 467, 474, +484, 494. These lists are sufficiently accurate to enable the reader, in +general, to discover the passages which are in no way due to the +_Filostrato_. + +§ 3. I have taken occasion, at the same time, to note _other_ passages for +which Chaucer is indebted to some other authors. Of these we may +particularly note the following. In Book I, lines 400-420 are translated +from Petrarch's 88th Sonnet, which is quoted at length at p. 464. In Book +III, lines 813-833, 1625-9, and 1744-1768 are all from the second Book of +Boethius (Prose 4, 86-120 and 4-10, and Metre 8). In Book IV, lines +974-1078 are from Boethius, Book V. In Book V, lines 1-14 and 1807-27 are +from various parts of Boccaccio's _Teseide_; and a part of the last stanza +is from Dante. On account of such borrowings, we may subtract about 220 +lines more from Chaucer's 'balance'; which still leaves due to him nearly +5436 lines. + +§ 4. Of course it will be readily understood that, in the case of these +5436 lines, numerous short quotations and allusions occur, most of which +are pointed out in the notes. Thus, in Book II, lines 402-3 are from Ovid, +Art. Amat. ii. 118; lines 716-8 are from Le Roman de la Rose[47]; and so +on. No particular notice need be taken of this, as similar hints are +utilised in other poems by Chaucer; and, indeed, by all other poets. But +there is one particular case of borrowing, of considerable importance, +which will be considered below, in § 9 (p. liii). + +§ 5. It is, however, necessary to observe here that, in taking his story +from Boccaccio, Chaucer has so altered and adapted it as to make it +peculiarly his own; precisely as he has done in the case of the Knightes +Tale. Sometimes he translates very closely and even neatly, and sometimes +he takes a mere hint from a long passage. He expands or condenses his +material at pleasure; and even, in some cases, transposes the order of it. +It is quite clear that he gave himself a free hand. + +The most important point is that he did not accept the characters of the +three chief actors, Troilus, Criseyde, and Pandarus, as pourtrayed by +Boccaccio; he did not even accept all the incidents which gave occasion for +their behaviour. Pandarus is no longer the cousin of Criseyde, a young and +dashing gallant, but her middle-aged uncle, with blunted perceptions of +what is moral and noble. In fact, Chaucer's Pandarus is a thorough and +perfect study of character, drawn with a dramatic skill not inferior to +that of Shakespeare, and worthy of the author of the immortal Prologue to +the Canterbury Tales. I must leave the fuller consideration of these points +to others; it is hardly necessary to repeat, at full length, the Prefatory +Remarks by Mr. Rossetti, whilst at the same time, if I begin to quote from +them, I shall hardly know where to stop. See also Ten Brink's English +Literature, and Morley's English Writers, vol. v. + +§ 6. It has been observed that, whilst Chaucer carefully read and made very +good use of two of Boccaccio's works, viz. Il Filostrato and Il Teseide, he +nowhere mentions Boccaccio by name; and this has occasioned some surprise. +But we must not apply modern ideas to explain medieval facts, as is so +frequently done. When we consider how often MSS. of works by known authors +have no author's name attached to them, it becomes likely that Chaucer +obtained manuscript copies of these works unmarked by the author's name; +and though he must doubtless have been aware of it, there was no cogent +reason why he should declare himself indebted to one in whom Englishmen +were, as yet, quite uninterested. Even when he refers to Petrarch in the +Clerk's Prologue (E 27-35), he has to explain who he was, and to inform +readers of his recent death. In those days, there was much laxity in the +mode of citing authors. + +§ 7. It will help us to understand matters more clearly, if we further +observe the haphazard manner in which quotations were often made. We know, +for example, that no book was more accessible than the Vulgate version of +the Bible; yet it is quite common to find the most curious mistakes made in +reference to it. The author of Piers Plowman (B. text, iii. 93-95) +attributes to Solomon a passage which he quotes from Job, and (B. vii. 123) +to St. Luke, a passage from St. Matthew; and again (B. vi. 240) to St. +Matthew, a passage from St. Luke. Chaucer makes many mistakes of a like +nature; I will only cite here his reference to Solomon (Cant. Tales, A +4330), as the author of a passage in Ecclesiasticus. Even in modern +dictionaries we find passages cited from 'Dryden' or 'Bacon' at large, +without further remark; as if the verification of a reference were of +slight consequence. This may help to explain to us the curious allusion to +_Zanzis_ as being the author of a passage which Chaucer must have known was +from his favourite Ovid (see note to Troil. iv. 414), whilst he was, at the +same time, well aware that Zanzis was not a poet, but a painter (Cant. +Tales, C 16); however, in this case we have probably to do with a piece of +our author's delicious banter, since he adds that Pandarus was speaking +'for the nonce.' + +There is another point about medieval quotations which must by no means be +missed. They were frequently made, not from the authors themselves, but +from manuscript note-books which contained hundreds of choice passages, +from all sorts of authors, collected by diligent compilers. Thus it was, I +strongly suspect, that Albertano of Brescia was enabled to pour out such +quantities of quotations as those which Chaucer copied from him in his Tale +of Melibeus. Thus it was that borrowers of such note-books often trusted to +their strong memories for the words of a quotation, yet forgot or mistook +the author's name; as was readily done when a dozen such names occurred on +every page. A MS. of this character is before me now. It contains many +subjects in alphabetical order. Under _Fortitudo_ are given 17 quotations +which more or less relate to it, from Ambrose, Gregory, Chrysostom, and the +rest, all in less than a single page. And thus it was, without doubt, that +Chaucer made acquaintance with the three scraps of Horace which I shall +presently consider. It is obvious that Chaucer never saw Horace's works in +the complete state; if he had done so, he would have found a writer after +his own heart, and he would have quoted him even more freely than he has +quoted Ovid. 'Chaucer on Horace' would have been delightful indeed; but +this treat was denied, both to him and to us. + +§ 8. The first and second scraps from Horace are hackneyed quotations. +'Multa renascentur' occurs in Troil. ii. 22 (see note, p. 468); and 'Humano +capiti' in Troil. ii. 1041 (note, p. 472). In the third case (p. 464), +there is no reason why we should hesitate to accept the theory, suggested +by Dr. G. Latham (_Athenæum_, Oct. 3, 1868) and by Professor Ten Brink +independently, that the well-known line (Epist. I, 2. 1)-- + + 'Troiani belli scriptorem, maxime Lolli,' + +was misunderstood by Chaucer (or by some one else who misled him) as +implying that Lollius was the name of a writer on the Trojan war. Those who +are best acquainted with the ways of medieval literature will least +hesitate to adopt this view. It is notorious that _first lines_ of a poem +are frequently quoted apart from their context, and repeated as if they +were complete; and, however amazing such a blunder may seem to us now, +there is really nothing very extraordinary about it. + +We should also notice that Lollius was to Chaucer a mere name, which he +used, in his usual manner, as a sort of convenient embellishment; for he is +inconsistent in his use of it. In Book i. 394, 'myn autour called Lollius' +really means Petrarch; whereas in Book v. 1653, though the reference is to +the Filostrato, Bk. viii. st. 8, Chaucer probably meant no more than that +Lollius was an author whom the Italian poet might have followed[48]. Cf. my +note to the House of Fame, 1468, where the name occurs for the third time. +We may also notice that, in Book iii. 1325, Chaucer bears testimony to the +'excellence' of his 'auctor.' The statement, in Book ii. 14, that he took +the story 'out of Latin' is less helpful than it appears to be; for 'Latin' +may mean either Latin or Italian. + +§ 9. I have spoken (§ 4) of 'a particular case of borrowing,' which I now +propose to consider more particularly. The discovery that Chaucer mainly +drew his materials from Boccaccio seems to have satisfied most enquirers; +and hence it has come to pass that one of Chaucer's sources has been little +regarded, though it is really of some importance. I refer to the Historia +Troiana of Guido delle Colonne[49], or, as Chaucer rightly calls him, Guido +de Columpnis, i.e. Columnis (House of Fame, 1469). Chaucer's obligations to +this author have been insufficiently explored. + +When, in 1889, in printing the Legend of Good Women with an accuracy never +before attempted, I restored the MS. reading _Guido_ for the _Ouyde_ of all +previous editions in l. 1396, a clue was thus obtained to a new source for +some of Chaucer's work. It was thus made clear that the Legend of Hypsipyle +and Medea was primarily derived from this source; and further, that it was +from Guido that Chaucer derived his use of _Ilioun_ to mean the citadel of +Troy (Leg. of Good Women, 936, and note). In the Nonne Prestes Tale, B +4331, as was pointed out by Tyrwhitt long ago, the dream of Andromache is +taken from Guido. And I find in Lounsbury's Studies in Chaucer, ii. 315, +the significant but insufficient remark, that 'it was in Guido da (_sic_) +Colonna's work that Chaucer found the martial deeds of Troilus recounted in +full, the slaughter he wrought, and the terror he inspired.' Hence we +naturally come to the question, what incidents in Troilus are expressly due +to Guido? + +§ 10. Before answering this question, it will be best to consider the +famous _crux_, as to the meaning of the word _Trophee_. + +When Lydgate is speaking of his master's Troilus, viz. in his Prologue to +the Falls of Princes, st. 3, he says that Chaucer + + 'made a translacion + Of a boke which called is _Trophe_ + In Lumbarde tong,' &c. + +No book or author is now known by that name; and, as Chaucer was in this +case much indebted to Boccaccio, critics have jumped to the conclusion that +_Trophee_ means either Boccaccio or the Filostrato; and this conclusion has +been supported by arguments so hopeless as to need no repetition. But it is +most likely that Lydgate, who does not seem to have known any Italian[50], +spoke somewhat casually; and, as Chaucer was to some extent indebted to +Guido, he may possibly have meant Guido. + +So far, I have merely stated a supposition which is, in itself, possible; +but I shall now adduce what I believe to be reasonable and solid proof of +it. + +We have yet another mention of _Trophee_, viz. in Chaucer himself! In the +Monkes Tale, B 3307, he says of Hercules-- + + 'At bothe the worldes endes, _seith Trophee_, + In stede of boundes, he a piler sette.' + +Whence, we may ask, is this taken? My answer is, _from Guido_. + +§ 11. If we examine the sources of the story of Hercules in the Monkes +Tale, we see that all the supposed facts _except_ the one mentioned in the +two lines above quoted are taken from Boethius and Ovid (see the Notes). +Now the next most obvious source of information was Guido's work, since the +very first Book has a good deal about Hercules, and the Legend of Hypsipyle +clearly shews us that Chaucer was aware of this. And, although neither Ovid +(in Met. ix.) nor Boethius has any allusion to the Pillars of Hercules, +they are expressly mentioned by Guido. In the English translation called +the Gest Historiale of the Destruction of Troy, ed. Panton and Donaldson +(which I call, for brevity, the alliterative Troy-book), l. 308, we read:-- + + 'But the wonders that he wroght in this world here + In yche cuntré ben knowen under Criste evyn. + Tow pyllers he pight in a place lowe + Vppon Gades groundes, that he gotton had.' + +And again, further on, the Latin text has:--'Locus ille, in quo predicte +_Herculis columpne_ sunt affixe, dicitur Saracenica lingua Saphy.' To which +is added, that Alexander afterwards came to the same spot. + +When Lydgate, in translating Guido, comes to this passage, he says:-- + + 'And of the pyllers that at Gades he set, + Which Alexsaundre, of Macedone the kyng, + That was so worthy here in his lyuynge, + Rood in his conquest, as _Guydo_ list to write, + With all his hoost proudely to visyte ... + And these boundes named be of all + Of Hercules, for he hymselfe theim set + As for his markes, all other for to lette + Ferther to passe, as _Guydo_ maketh mynde'; &c. + Siege of Troye, ed. 1555, fol. B6. + +We can now easily see that, when Lydgate speaks of the book 'which called +is Trophe in Lumbarde tong,' he is simply copying the name of the book from +Chaucer, though he seems also to have heard some rumour of its being so +called in Italy. + +§ 12. _Why_ this particular book was so called, we have no means of +knowing[51]; but this does not invalidate the fact here pointed out. Of +course the Latin side-note in some of the MSS. of the Monkes Tale, which +explains 'Trophee' as referring to 'ille vates Chaldeorum Tropheus,' must +be due to some mistake, even if it emanated (as is possible) from Chaucer +himself. It is probable that, when the former part of the Monkes Tale was +written, Chaucer did not know much about Guido's work; for the account of +Hercules occurs in the very first chapter. Perhaps he confused the name of +Tropheus with that of Trogus, i.e. Pompeius Trogus the historian, whose +work is one of the authorities for the history of the Assyrian monarchy. + +§ 13. It remains for me to point out some of the passages in Troilus which +are clearly due to Guido, and are not found in Boccaccio at all. + +Book I. 145-7:-- + + 'But the Troyane gestes, as they felle, + In Omer, or in Dares, or in Dyte, + Who-so that can, may rede hem as they wryte.' + +The reference here is simply to Guido's history, whence, and not at first +hand, both Chaucer and his readers could easily get the required +information. Guido constantly refers to these authors; and, although he +speaks disrespectfully of Homer[52], he professes to put great faith in +Dares and Dytes, whose names he frequently cites as being those of his best +authorities[53]. + +With the description of Troilus in ll. 1072-1085, it is interesting to +compare the words of Guido, in Book VIII. 'Troilus vero, licet multum fuit +corpore magnus, magis fuit tamen corde magnanimus; animosus multum, set +multam habuit in sua animositate temperiem; dilectus plurimum a puellis cum +ipse aliqualem seruando modestiam delectaretur in illis. In viribus et +strenuitate bellandi _uel fuit alius Hector uel secundus ab ipso_. In toto +eciam regno Troie iuuenis nullus fuit tantis viribus nec tanta audacia +gloriosus[54].' The latter part of this description should be compared with +Book II. 157-161, where the very phrase 'Ector the secounde' is used; see +also ll. 181-189. + +§ 14. Book II. 618. 'The yate ... Of Dardanus.' The six gates of Troy are +named in Guido, Book IV, 'Quarum vna _Dardanides_, secunda Tymbrea, tercia +Helyas, quarta Chetas, quinta Troiana, vltima Anthenorides vocabantur.' + + 'The furst and the fairest fourmet was Dardan.' + Allit. Troy-book, l. 1557. + +Lydgate keeps the form 'Dardanydes'; cap. xi. fol. F 5. + +§ 15. Book IV. 204. 'For he was after traytour to the toun.' The treason of +Antenor is told by Guido at great length; see 'Boke xxviii' of the allit. +Troy-book, p. 364; Lydgate, Siege of Troye, Y 6, back. Cf. Dictys +Cretensis, lib. iv. c. 22. + +Book IV. 1397, &c. 'For al Apollo and his clerkish lawes,' &c. Guido gives +rather a long account of the manner in which Criseyde upbraided her father +Chalcas at their meeting. Chaucer says nothing about this matter in Book V. +193, but he here introduces an account of the same speech, telling us that +Creseyde _intended_ to make it! I quote from Book XIX. 'Sane deceperunt te +Apollinis friuola responsa, a quo dicis te suscepisse mandatum vt tu +paternas Lares desereres, et tuos in tanta acerbitate Penates[55] sic tuis +specialiter hostibus adhereres. Sane non fuit ille deus Apollo, set, puto, +fuit comitiua infernalium Furiarum a quibus responsa talia recepisti.' Cf. +allit. Troy-book, 8103-40; and observe that Lydgate, in his Siege of Troye, +R 3, back, omits the speech of Criseyde to her father, on the ground that +it is given in Chaucer. Yet such is not the case, unless we allow the +present passage to stand for it. In Book V. 194, Chaucer (following +Boccaccio) expressly says that she was _mute_! + +Book IV. 1695-1701. This last stanza is not in Boccaccio; but the general +sense of it is in Guido, Book XIX, where the interview ends thus:--'Set +diei Aurora quasi superueniente uicina, Troilus a Brisaida in multis +anxietatibus et doloribus discessit; et ea relicta ad sui palacii menia +properauit.' Lydgate, at this point, refers us to Chaucer; Siege of Troye, +fol. R 2, back. The allit. Troy-book actually does the same; l. 8054. + +§ 16. Book V. 92-189. These fourteen stanzas are not in Boccaccio. The +corresponding passage in Guido (Book XIX) is as follows:-- + +'Troilus et Troiani redeunt, Grecis eam recipientibus in suo commeatu. +Inter quos dum esset Diomedes, et illam Diomedes inspexit, statim in ardore +veneris exarsit et eam vehementi desiderio concupiuit, qui collateralis +associando Brisaidam cum insimul equitarent, sui ardoris flammam continere +non valens Brisaide reuelat sui estuantis cordis amorem; quam in multis +affectuosis verbis et blandiciis necnon et promissionibus reuera magnificis +allicere satis humiliter est rogatus. Set Brisaida in primis monitis, vt +mulierum moris est, suum prestare recusauit assensum; nec tamen passa est +quin post multa Diomedis verba, ipsum nolens a spe sua deicere verbis +similibus dixit ei: "Amoris tui oblaciones ad presens nec repudio nec +admitto, cum cor meum non sit ad presens ita dispositum quod tibi possim +aliter respondere."' + +Book V. 799-805[56]. The description of Diomede in Boccaccio (Fil. VI. 33) +is merely as follows:-- + + 'Egli era grande e bel della persona, + Giovane fresco e piacevole assai, + E forte e fier siccome si ragiona, + E parlante quant'altro Greco mai, + E ad amor la natura aveva prona.' + +The account in Guido (Book VIII) is as follows:--'Diomedes vero multa fuit +proceritate, distensus amplo pectore, robustis scapulis, aspectu ferox; in +promissis fallax; in armis strenuus; victorie cupidus; timendus a multis, +cum multum esset iniuriosus; sermonibus sibi nimis impaciens, cum molestus +seruientibus nimis esset; libidinosus quidem multum, et qui multas traxit +angustias ob feruorem amoris.' Cf. allit. Troy-book, ll. 3794-3803; +Lydgate, Siege of Troye, fol. K 1, back. + +Book V. 810. To gon y-tressed, &c. Perhaps suggested by the remark in Guido +(Book XIX) that Cressid's hair was unbound in her hour of deepest +sorrow:--'aureos crines suos a lege ligaminis absolutos a lactea sui +capitis cute diuellit.' Cf. IV. 736. + +Book V. 827-840. Troilus is not described by Boccaccio. Guido's description +of him has already been quoted above; see remarks on Book I. 1072; pp. lvi, +lvii. + +Book V. 1002-4. The parallel passage in Guido has already been quoted, +viz.: 'Amoris tui oblaciones ad presens nec repudio nec admitto.' See +remarks on l. 92; p. lviii. + +Book V. 1013. Obviously from Guido; the passage follows soon after that +last quoted. 'Associauit [Diomedes] eam vsquequo Brisaida recipere in sui +patris tentoria se debebat. Et ea perueniente ibidem, ipse eam ab equo +descendentem promptus adiuit, et vnam de cirothecis[57], quam Brisaida +gerebat in manu, ab ea nullo percipiente furtiue subtraxit. Set cum ipsa +sola presensit, placitum furtum dissimulauit amantis.' + +For this incident of the glove, cf. allit. Troy-book, l. 8092. + +Book V. 1023-1099. This passage is not in Boccaccio. Several hints for it +seem to have been taken from Guido, Book XIX, whence I quote the following. + +'Nondum dies illa ad horas declinauerat vespertinas, cum iam suas Brisaida +recentes mutauerat voluntates,' &c.. 'Et iam nobilis Troili amor ceperat in +sua mente tepescere, et sic repente subito facta volubilis se in omnibus +variauit. Quid est ergo quod dicitur de constancia mulierum,' &c. + +'Tunc ilico Diomedes superuenit . . qui repente in Troilum irruit, ipsum ab +equo prosternit, ab eo auferens equum suum, quem per suum nuncium specialem +ad Brisaidam in exennium[58] destinauit, mandans nuncio suo predicto vt +Brisaide nunciet equum ipsum eius fuisse dilecti . . . . Brisaida vero +equum Troili recepit hilariter, et ipsi nuncio refert hec verba: "Dic +secure domino tuo quod ilium odio habere non possum, qui me tanta puritate +cordis affectat . . . . [Diomedes] Brisaidam accedit, et eam suplex +hortatur vt sibi consenciat in multitudine lacrimarum. Set illa, que multum +vigebat sagacitatis astucia, Diomedem sagacibus machinacionibus differre +procurat, ut ipsum afflictum amoris incendio magis affligat, et eius amoris +vehemenciam in maioris augmentum ardoris extollat. Vnde Diomedi suum amorem +non negat, etiam nec promittit."' + +In l. 1039, read _he_, i. e. Diomede; see my note on the line, at p. 499. + +In l. 1037, _the story_ means the Historia Troiana; and in l. 1044, _in the +stories elles-where_ means 'elsewhere in the same History.' The passage (in +Book XXV) is as follows:-- + +'Troilus autem tunc amorem Brisaide Diomedi obprobriosis verbis improperat; +set Greci Diomedem ... abstraxerunt' ... + +'Interim Brisaida contra patris sui voluntatem videre Diomedem in lecto suo +iacentem ex vulnere sibi facto frequenter accedit, et licet sciuisset illum +a Troilo dudum dilecto suo sic vulneratum, multa tamen in mente sua +reuoluit; et dum diligenter attendit de se iungenda cum Troilo nullam sibi +superesse fiduciam, totum suum animum, tanquam varia et mutabilis, sicut +est proprium mulierum, in Diomedis declinat amorem.' + +Cf. Troy-book, ll. 9942-59; Lydgate, Siege of Troye, fol. U 4. + +Book V. 1558-60. The treacherous slaughter of Hector by Achilles is in +Guido, near the end of Book XXV. See my note to l. 1558, at p. 503. + +Book V. 1771. 'Read Dares.' This merely means that Guido cites Dares as his +authority for the mighty deeds of Troilus. In Book XXV, I find:--'_Scripsit +enim Dares_, quod illo die _mille_ milites interfecit [Troilus] ex Grecis'; +cf. l. 1802 below. So in the allit. Troy-book, ll. 9877-9:-- + + 'As _Dares_ of his dedis duly me tellus, + A thowsaund thro knightes throng he to dethe, + That day with his dynttes, of the derffe Grekes.' + +So Lydgate, Siege of Troye, fol. U 3, back:-- + + 'And, as _Dares_ wryteth specyally, + A thousand knightes this Troyan champyowne + That day hath slayne, rydyng vp and downe, + As myne auctour Guydo lyst endyte; + _Saue after hym_, I can no ferther wryte.' + +I. e. he only knew of Dares through the medium of Guido. In fact, Dares +(capp. 29, 31, 32) has 'multos,' not 'mille.' + +Book V. 1849-1855. The introduction of this stanza is quite irrelevant, +unless we remember that, in Guido, the story of Troy is completely mixed up +with invectives against idolatry. In Book X, there is a detailed account of +the heathen gods, the worship of which is attributed to the instigation of +fiends. See the long account in the allit. Troy-book, ll. 4257-4531, +concluding with the revelation by Apollo to Calchas of the coming fall of +Troy. Cf. Lydgate, Siege of Troye, fol. K 6. Of course, this notion of the +interference of the gods in the affairs of the Greeks and Trojans is +ultimately due to Homer. + +§ 17. With regard to the statement in Guido, that Achilles slew Hector +_treacherously_, we must remember how much turns upon this assertion. His +object was to glorify the Trojans, the supposed ancestors of the Roman +race, and to depreciate the Greeks. The following passage from Guido, Book +XXV, is too characteristic to be omitted. 'Set o Homere, qui in libris tuis +Achillem tot laudibus, tot preconiis extulisti, _que probabilis racio_ te +induxit, vt Achillem tantis probitatis meritis vel titulis exultasses?' +Such was the general opinion about Homer in the thirteenth and fourteenth +centuries. + +§ 18. This is not the place for a full consideration of the further +question, as to the sources of information whence Boccaccio and Guido +respectively drew their stories. Nor is it profitable to search the +supposed works of Dares and Dictys for the passages to which Chaucer +appears to refer; since he merely knew those authors by name, owing to +Guido's frequent appeals to them. Nevertheless, it is interesting to find +that Guido was quite as innocent as were Chaucer and Lydgate of any +knowledge of Dares and Dictys at first hand. He acquired his great +reputation in the simplest possible way, by stealing the whole of his +'History' bodily, from a French romance by Benoît de Sainte-More, entitled +_Le Roman de Troie_, which has been well edited and discussed by Mons. A. +Joly. Mons. Joly has shewn that the _Roman de Troie_ first appeared between +the years 1175 and 1185; and that Guido's _Historia Troiana_ is little more +than an adaptation of it, which was completed in the year 1287, without any +acknowledgment as to its true source. + +Benoît frequently cites Dares (or Daires), and at the end of his poem, ll. +30095-6, says:-- + + 'Ce que dist Daires et Dithis + I avons si retreit et mis.' + +In his Hist. of Eng. Literature (E. version, ii. 113), Ten Brink remarks +that, whilst Chaucer prefers to follow Guido rather than Benoît in his +Legend of Good Women, he 'does the exact opposite to what he did in +Troilus.' For this assertion I can find but little proof. It is hard to +find anything in Benoît's lengthy Romance which he may not have taken, much +more easily, from Guido. There are, however, just a few such points in Book +V. 1037-1078. Thus, in l. 1038, Criseyde gives Diomede Troilus' horse; cf. +Benoît, l. 15046--'lo cheval Vos presterai.' L. 1043 is from the same, ll. +15102-4:-- + + 'La destre manche de son braz + Bone et fresche de ciclaton + Li done en leu de gonfanon.' + +Ll. 1051-7 answer to the same, beginning at l. 20233; and l. 1074 is from +the same, l. 20308:--'Dex donge bien à Troylus!' I doubt if there is much +more. + +For some further account of the works ascribed to Dares Phrygius and Dictys +Cretensis, both duly edited among the 'Delphin Classics,' I must refer the +reader to Smith's Classical Dictionary. + +§ 19. The whole question of the various early romances that relate to Troy +is well considered in a work entitled 'Testi Inediti di Storia Trojana, +preceduti da uno studio sulla Leggenda Trojana in Italia, per Egidio Gorra; +Torino, 1887'; where various authorities are cited, and specimens of +several texts are given. At p. 136 are given the very lines of Benoît's +_Roman_ (ll. 795-6) where Guido found a reference to the columns of +Hercules:-- + + 'Et les bonnes ilec ficha + Ou Alixandre les trova.' + +This hint he has somewhat elaborated, probably because he took a personal +interest in 'columns,' on account of their reference to his own +name--'delle Colonne.' I believe that the notion of Alexander finding +Hercules' Pillars is due to a rather large blunder in geography. Hercules +set up his pillars 'at the end of the world,' viz. at the straits of +Gibraltar, whereas Alexander set up his at another 'end of the world,' viz. +at the furthest point of India which he succeeded in reaching. So says his +Romance; see Alexander and Dindimus, ed. Skeat, l. 1137; Wars of Alexander, +l. 5063. The setting up of pillars as boundary-marks seems to have been +common; cf. Vergil, Æn. xi. 262. Among the points noticed by Gorra, I may +mention the following:-- + +1. Some account (p. 7) of the Ephemeris Belli Troiani by Dictys Cretensis, +who, it was pretended, accompanied Idomeneus to the Trojan war. Achilles is +depicted in dark colours; he is treacherous towards Agamemnon; falls in +love with the Trojan princess, Polyxena; and slays Hector by a stratagem. +It appears to have been a work of invention, resting upon no Greek +original. + +2. Some account (p. 17) of the Historia de Excidio Troiae of Dares +Phrygius, a work which (as was pretended) was discovered by Cornelius +Nepos. This also, in the opinion of most critics, was an original work. At +p. 115, there is a comparison of the lists of Greek leaders and the number +of their ships (cf. Homer, Il. ii.) as given by Dares, Benoît, and Guido. + +3. At p. 123, there is an enumeration of points in which Guido varies from +Benoît. + +4. At p. 152, is an account of some Italian prose versions of the story of +Troy. Such are: La Istorietta Trojana, with extracts from it at p. 371; a +romance by Binduccio dello Scelto, with extracts relating to 'Troilo e +Briseida' at p. 404; a version of Guido by Mazzeo Bellebuoni, with extracts +relating to 'Paride ed Elena' at p. 443; an anonymous version, with +extracts relating to 'Giasone e Medea' at p. 458; a version in the Venetian +dialect, with extracts relating to 'Ettore ed Ercole' at p. 481; another +anonymous version, with extracts at p. 493; and La 'Fiorita' of Armannino, +Giudice da Bologna, with extracts at p. 532. + +5. At p. 265, is an account of Italian poetical versions, viz. Enfances +Hector, Poema d'Achille, Il Trojano di Domenico da Montechiello, Il Trojano +a stampa (i.e. a printed edition of Il Trojano), and L'Intelligenza. At p. +336, Boccaccio's Filostrato is discussed; followed by a brief notice of an +anonymous poem, also in ottava rima, called Il cantare di Insidoria. It +appears that Boccaccio followed some recension of the French text of +Benoît, but much of the work is his own invention. In particular, he +created the character of Pandaro, who resembles a Neapolitan courtier of +his own period. + +The most interesting of the extracts given by Gorra are those from +Binduccio dello Scelto; at p. 411, we have the incident of Diomede +possessing himself of Briseida's glove, followed by the interview between +Briseida and her father Calcas. At p. 413, Diomede overthrows Troilus, +takes his horse from him and sends it to Briseida, who receives it +graciously; and at p. 417, Briseida gives Diomede her sleeve as a +love-token, after which a 'jousting' takes place between Diomede and +Troilus, in which the former is badly wounded. + +For further remarks, we are referred, in particular, to H. Dunger's +Dictys-Septimius: über die ursprüngliche Abfassung und die Quellen der +Ephemeris belli Troiani; Dresden, 1878 (Programm des Vitzthumschen +Gymnasiums); to another essay by the same author on Die Sage vom +trojanischen Kriege, Leipzig, 1869; to Koerting's Dictys und Dares, &c., +Halle, 1874; to A. Joly's Benoît de Sainte-More et le Roman de Troie, +Paris, 1871; and to an article by C. Wagener on Dares Phrygius, in +_Philologus_, vol. xxxviii. The student may also consult E. Meybrinck, Die +Auffassung der Antike bei Jacques Millet, Guido de Columna, und Benoît de +Ste-More, printed in Ausgaben und Abhandlungen aus dem Gebiete für +Romanischen Philologie, Marburg, 1886; where the author concludes that +Millet was the originator of the story in France. Also W. Greif, Die +mittelalterlichen Bearbeitungen der Trojanersage; Marburg, 1886. + +§ 20. A few words may be said as to the names of the characters. Troilus is +only once mentioned in Homer, where he is said to be one of the sons of +Priam, who were slain in battle, Iliad, xxiv. 257; so that his story is of +medieval invention, except as to the circumstance of his slayer being +Achilles, as stated by Vergil, Æn. i. 474, 475; cf. Horace, Carm. ii. 9. +16. Pandarus occurs as the name of two distinct personages; (1) a Lycian +archer, who wounded Menelaus; see Homer, Il. iv. 88, Vergil, Æn. 5. 496; +and (2) a companion of Æneas, slain by Turnus; see Vergil, Æn. ix. 672, xi. +396. Diomede is a well-known hero in the Iliad, but his love-story is of +late invention. The heroine of Benoît's poem is Briseida, of whom Dares (c. +13) has merely the following brief account: 'Briseidam formosam, alta +statura, candidam, capillo flauo et molli, superciliis junctis[59], oculis +venustis, corpore aequali, blandam, affabilem, uerecundam, animo simplici, +piam'; but he records nothing more about her. The name is simply copied +from Homer's [Greek: Brisêida], Il. i. 184, the accusative being taken (as +often) as a new nominative case; this Briseis was the captive assigned to +Achilles. But Boccaccio substitutes for this the form Griseida, taken from +the accusative of Homer's Chryseis, mentioned just two lines above, Il. i. +182. For this Italian form Chaucer substituted Criseyde, a trisyllabic +form, with the _ey_ pronounced as the _ey_ in _prey_. He probably was led +to this correction by observing the form Chryseida in his favourite author, +Ovid; see Remed. Amoris, 469. Calchas, in Homer, Il. i. 69, is a Grecian +priest; but in the later story he becomes a Trojan soothsayer, who, +foreseeing the destruction of Troy, secedes to the Greek side, and is +looked upon as a traitor. Cf. Vergil, Æn. ii. 176; Ovid, Art. Amat. ii. +737. + +§ 21. In Anglia, xiv. 241, there is a useful comparison, by Dr. E. Köppel, +of the parallel passages in Troilus and the French Roman de la Rose, ed. +Méon, Paris, 1814, which I shall denote by 'R.' These are mostly pointed +out in the Notes. Köppel's list is as follows:-- + +Troilus. I. 635 (cf. III. 328).--Rom. Rose, 8041. 637.--R. 21819. 747.--R. +7595. 810.--R. 21145. 969--R. 12964. + +II. 167.--R. 5684. 193.--R. 8757. 716.--R. 5765. 754.--R. 6676. 784 (cf. +III. 1035).--R. 12844. 1564.--R. 18498. + +III. 294.--R. 7085. 328; _see_ I. 635. 1035; _see_ II. 784. 1634.--R. 8301. + +IV. 7.--R. 8076. 519.--R. 6406. 1398.--R. 6941. + +V. 365.--R. 18709. + +Some of the resemblances are but slight; but others are obvious. The +numbers refer to the beginning of a passage; sometimes the really +coincident lines are found a little further on. + +The parallel passages common to Troilus and Boethius are noted above, pp. +xxviii-xxx. + +An excellent and exhaustive treatise on the Language of Chaucer's Troilus, +by Prof. Kitteredge, is now (1893) being printed for the Chaucer Society. A +Ryme-Index to the same, compiled by myself, has been published for the same +society, dated 1891. + +§ 22. I have frequently alluded above to the alliterative 'Troy-book,' or +'Gest Historiale,' edited for the Early English Text Society, in 1869-74, +by Panton and Donaldson. This is useful for reference, as being a tolerably +close translation of Guido, although a little imperfect, owing to the loss +of some leaves and some slight omissions (probably) on the part of the +scribe. It is divided into 36 Books, which agree, very nearly, with the +Books into which the original text is divided. The most important passages +for comparison with Troilus are lines 3922-34 (description of Troilus); +3794-3803 (Diomede); 7268-89 (fight between Troilus and Diomede); 7886-7905 +(Briseida and her dismissal from Troy); 8026-8181 (sorrow of Troilus and +Briseida, her departure, and the interviews between Briseida and Diomede, +and between her and Calchas her father); 8296-8317 (Diomede captures +Troilus' horse, and presents it to Briseida); 8643-60 (death of Hector); +9671-7, 9864-82, 9926-9 (deeds of Troilus); 9942-59 (Briseida visits the +wounded Diomede); 10055-85, 10252-10311 (deeds of Troilus, and his death); +10312-62 (reproof of Homer for his false statements). + +At l. 8053, we have this remarkable allusion; speaking of Briseida and +Troilus, the translator says:-- + + 'Who-so wilnes to wit of thaire wo fir [futher], + Turne hym to TROILUS, and talke[60] there ynoughe!' + +I.e. whoever wishes to know more about their wo, let him turn to TROILUS, +and there find enough. This is a clear allusion to Chaucer's work by its +name, and helps to date the translation as being later than 1380 or 1382. +And, as the translator makes no allusion to Lydgate's translation of Guido, +the date of which is 1412-20, we see that he probably wrote between 1382 +and 1420[61]; so that the date 'about 1400,' adopted in the New Eng. +Dictionary (s. v. _Bercelet_, &c.) cannot be far wrong[62]. + +§ 23. Another useful book, frequently mentioned above, is Lydgate's Siege +of Troye[61], of which I possess a copy printed in 1555. This contains +several allusions to Chaucer's Troilus, and more than one passage in praise +of Chaucer's poetical powers, two of which are quoted in Mr. Rossetti's +remarks on MS. Harl. 3943 (Chaucer Soc. 1875), pp. x, xi. These passages +are not very helpful, though it is curious to observe that he speaks of +Chaucer not only as 'my maister Chaucer,' but as 'noble Galfride, chefe +Poete of Brytaine,' and 'my maister Galfride.' The most notable passages +occur in cap. xv, fol. K 2; cap. xxv, fol. R 2, back; and near the end, +fol. Ee 2. Lydgate's translation is much more free than the preceding one, +and he frequently interpolates long passages, besides borrowing a large +number of poetical expressions from his 'maister.' + +§ 24. Finally, I must not omit to mention the remarkable poem by Robert +Henrysoun, called the Testament and Complaint of Criseyde, which forms a +sequel to Chaucer's story. Thynne actually printed this, in his edition of +1532, as one of Chaucer's poems, immediately after Troilus; and all the +black-letter editions follow suit. Yet the 9th and 10th stanzas contain +these words, according to the edition of 1532:-- + + 'Of his distresse me nedeth nat reherse; + For worthy Chaucer, in that same boke, + In goodly termes, and in ioly verse, + Compyled hath his cares, who wyl loke. + To breke my slepe, another queare I toke, + In whiche I founde the fatal desteny + Of fayre Creseyde, whiche ended wretchedly. + + Who wot if al that Chaucer wrate was trewe? + Nor I wotte nat if this narration + Be authorysed, or forged of the newe + Of some poete by his inuention, + Made to reporte the lamentation + And woful ende of this lusty Creseyde, + And what distresse she was in or she deyde.' + +§ 25. THE MANUSCRIPTS. + +1. MS. CL.--The Campsall MS., on vellum, written before 1413; prepared for +Henry, Prince of Wales, afterwards Henry V, as shewn by his arms on leaf 2. +The poem occupies leaves 2-120; each page usually contains five stanzas. +Two pages have been reproduced by the autotype process for the Chaucer +Society; viz. leaf 1, recto, containing stanzas 1-5, and leaf 42, verso, +containing stanzas 249-251 of Book II, and stanza 1 of Book III. This is a +beautifully written MS., and one of the best; but it is disappointing to +find that it might easily have been much better. The scribe had a still +better copy before him, which he has frequently treated with supreme +carelessness; but it is some consolation to find that his mistakes are so +obvious that they can easily be corrected. Thus, in Book I, l. 27, he +writes _dorst_ for _dorste_, though it ruins the grammar and the metre; in +l. 31, he actually has _hym_ for _hem_, to the destruction of the sense; in +l. 69, he has _high_ (!) for _highte_; and so on. It therefore requires +careful control. In particular, the scribe gives many examples of the fault +of 'anticipation,' i.e. the fault whereby the mind, swifter than the pen, +has induced him to write down letters that belong to a _later_ syllable or +word, or to omit one or more letters. Thus in Book I. l. 80, he omits _u_ +in _pryuely_, writing _pryely_; in l. 126, he omits _and_ before _hoom_; in +l. 198, he omits _lewede_; in l. 275, he omits _gan_; &c. But the faults of +'anticipation' appear most clearly in such startling forms as _addermost_ +for _aldermost_, I. 248, where the former _d_ is due to the one that is +coming; _assent_ for _absent_, IV. 1642, for a like reason; _estal_ for +_estat_, because the next word is _royal_, I. 432; _þyn_ for _þyng_, +because the next word is _myn_, I. 683; _nat_ for _nas_, because the next +word is _not_, I. 738; _seynt_ for _seyn_, because the next word is _that_, +V. 369; _shad_ for _shal_, because the next word is _drede_, V. 385; +_liten_ for _litel_, because _weten_ follows, IV. 198; _make_ for _may_, +because the line ends with _wake_, III. 341; _fleld_ for _feld_, II. 195. +Sometimes, however, the scribe's mind reverts to something already written, +so that we find _Delphebus_ for _Delphicus_, because _Phebus_ precedes, I. +70; _bothen_ for _bothe_, because _deden_ precedes, I. 82; _falles_ for +_fallen_, after _unhappes_, II. 456; _daunder_ for _daunger_, III. 1321; +_tolle_ for _tolde_, III 802; &c. Downright blunders are not uncommon; as +_incocent_ for _innocent_ (where again the former _c_ is due to the +latter), II. 1723; _agarst_ for _agast_, III. 737; _right_ for _rit_, V. +60. We even find startling variations in the reading, as in III. 1408:-- + + 'Reson wil not that I speke of _shep_, + For it accordeth nough[t] to my matere.' + +Certainly, _shep_ (sheep) is irrelevant enough; however, Chaucer refers to +_sleep_. And again, the line in II. 1554, which should run-- + + As for to bidde a wood man for to renne + +appears in the startling form-- + + As for to bydde a womman for to renne. + +As all the variations of 'Cl.' from the correct text are given in the +foot-notes, it is not necessary to say more about these peculiarities. I +must add, however, that, as in Boethius, I have silently corrected _yn_ to +_in_ in such words as _thing_; besides altering _ee_ and _oo_ to _e_ and +_o_ in open syllables, writing _v_ for _u_, and the like. See above. + +The Campsall MS., now in the possession of Mr. Bacon Frank, has been +printed in full, as written, for the Chaucer Society; and I have relied +upon the accuracy of this well-edited print. + +2. MS. CP.--MS. No. 61 in Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, described in +Nasmith's Catalogue, p. 40, as 'a parchment book in folio neatly written, +and ornamented with a frontispiece richly illuminated, containing Chaucer's +Troilus, in four [_error for_ five] books.' It is a fine folio MS., 12 +inches by 8½. This MS., noticed by Warton, has not as yet been printed, +though the Chaucer Society have undertaken to print it, upon my +recommendation. It contains many pages that are left wholly or partially +blank, obviously meant to be supplied with illuminations; which shews that +it was written for some wealthy person. On the left margin, near the 83rd +stanza of Book IV, is a note of ownership, in a hand of the fifteenth +century--'neu_er_ foryeteth: Anne neuyll.' This probably refers to Anne +Neville, wife of Humphrey, duke of Buckingham (who was killed at +Northampton in 1460), and daughter of Ralph Neville, earl of Westmoreland, +and of Joan Beaufort, daughter of John of Gaunt. That is, she was John of +Gaunt's granddaughter; and it seems reasonable to infer that the MS. was +actually written for one of John of Gaunt's family. This probability is a +very interesting one, when we consider how much Chaucer owed to John of +Gaunt's favour and protection. + +The MS. is slightly deficient, owing to the omission of a few stanzas; but +not much is missing. It is of a type closely resembling the preceding, and +gives excellent readings. I have therefore taken the opportunity of +founding the text upon a close collation of Cl. and Cp., taking Cl. as the +foundation, but correcting it by Cp. throughout, without specifying more +than the rejected reading of Cl. in passages where these MSS. differ. In +this way the numerous absurdities of Cl. (as noted above) have been easily +corrected, and the resulting text is a great improvement upon all that have +hitherto appeared. In a few places, as shewn by the foot-notes, the +readings of other MSS. have been preferred. + +3. MS. H.--MS. Harl. 2280, in the British Museum. An excellent MS., very +closely related to both the preceding. Printed in full for the Chaucer +Society, and collated throughout in the present edition. It was taken as +the basis of the text in Morris's Aldine edition, which in many passages +closely resembles the present text. It is certainly the third best MS. One +leaf is missing (Bk. V. 1345-1428; twelve stanzas). + +4. MS. CM.--MS. Gg. 4. 27, in the Cambridge University Library; the same +MS. as that denoted by 'Cm.' in the foot-notes to the Canterbury Tales, and +by 'C.' in the foot-notes to the Legend of Good Women. A remarkable MS., +printed in full for the Chaucer Society. It exhibits _a different type_ of +text from that found in Cl., Cp., and H. The most noteworthy differences +are as follows. In Bk. ii. 734, 5, this MS. has quite a different couplet, +viz.: + + Men louyn women þ_our_ al þis tou_n_ aboute; + Be þey þe wers? whi, nay, w_i_t_h_-outyn doute. + +Bk. ii. 792 runs thus:-- + + How ofte tyme may men rede and se. + +Bk. iv. 309-15 (stanza 45) runs thus:-- + + What shulde ye don but, for myn disconfort, + Stondyn for nought, and wepyn out youre ye? + Syn sche is queynt that wont was yow disport[63], + In vayn from this forth have I seyn twye; + For[64] medycyn youre vertu is a-weye; + O crewel eyen, sythyn that youre dispyt + Was al to sen Crisseydes eyen bryght. + +Bk. iv. 638 runs thus:-- + + Pandare answerde, of that be as be may. + +After Bk. iv. 735, MS. Cm. introduces the following stanza, which, in the +present text, appears a little later (ll. 750-6) in a slightly altered +form. + + The salte teris fro_m_ hyre ey[gh]yn tweyn + Out ran, as scho_ur_ of aprille, ful swythe; + Hyre white brest sche bet, and for the peyne, + Aftyr the deth cryede a thousent sithe, + Syn he that wonyt was hir wo for to lythe, + Sche mot forgon; for which disauenture + Sche held hire-selue a for-lost creature. + +Bk. iv. 806-33 (four stanzas) are omitted; so also are the 18 stanzas +referring to Free-Will, viz. Bk. iv. 953-1078. Bk. v. 230-1 runs thus:-- + + To whom for eu_er_emor myn herte is holde: + And thus he pleynyd, and ferth_er_e-more he tolde. + +We cannot believe that Bk. iv. 309-15, as here given, can be genuine[65]; +but it seems possible that some of the other readings may be so. The +stanza, Bk. iv. 750-6, as here given, seems to represent the first draft of +these lines, which were afterwards altered to the form in which they appear +in the text, whilst at the same time the stanza was shifted down. However, +this is mere speculation; and it must be confessed that, in many places, +this MS. is strangely corrupted. Several stanzas have only six lines +instead of seven, and readings occur which set all ideas of rime at +defiance. Thus, in I. 1260, _paste_ (riming with _caste_) appears as +_passede_; in I. 1253, _ryde_ (riming with _aspyde_) appears as _rydende_; +in III. 351, _hayes_ (riming with _May is_) appears as _halis_; &c. + +Yet the MS. is worth collating, as it gives, occasionally, some excellent +readings. For example, in Bk. i. 143, it preserves the word _here_, which +other MSS. wrongly omit; and, in the very next line, rightly has _to longe +dwelle_, not _to longe to dwelle_. + +The MS. has been, at some time, shamefully maltreated by some one who has +cut out several leaves, no doubt for the sake of their illuminated +initials. Hence the following passages do not appear: I. 1-70; I. 1037--II. +84; III. 1-56; III. 1807--IV. 112; IV. 1667--V. 35; V. 1702--_end_ +(_together with a piece at the beginning of the_ Canterbury Tales). + +5. MS. H2.--Harleian MS. 3943, in the British Museum. Printed in full for +the Chaucer Society in 1875, together with a most valuable line by line +collation with Boccaccio's Filostrato, by Wm. Michael Rossetti. Referred to +in Prof. Lounsbury's Studies in Chaucer, i. 398, as 'much the worst that +has been printed,' where his object is to depreciate its authority. Yet it +is well worth a careful study, and it must be particularly borne in mind +that it consists of two parts, written at different dates, and of different +value. In Bell's Chaucer, we read of it:--'Unfortunately it is imperfect. +The first few leaves, and the whole of the latter part of the poem, appear +to have been destroyed, and the deficiency supplied by a later copyist.' +The late hand occurs in I. 1-70, 498-567, III. 1429-1638, IV. 197--_end_, +and Book V.; and thus occupies a large portion of the MS. Moreover, two +leaves are lost after leaf 59, comprising III. 1289-1428; these are +supplied in Dr. Furnivall's edition from Harl. 1239, which accounts for the +extraordinary disorder in which these stanzas are arranged. The MS. also +omits III. 1744-1771, and some other stanzas occasionally. + +This is one of those curious MSS. which, although presenting innumerable +corrupt readings (the worst being _Commodious_ for _Commeveden_ in III. +17), nevertheless have some points of contact with an excellent source. All +editors must have observed a few such cases. Thus, in II. 615, it happily +restores the right reading _latis_, where the ordinary reading _gates_ is +ludicrously wrong. In III. 49, it supplies the missing word _gladnes_. In +V. 8, it has 'The Auricomus tressed Phebus hie on lofte,' instead of 'The +golden tressed'; and this reading, though false, lets us into the secret of +the origin of this epithet, viz. that it translates the Latin _auricomus_; +see note to the line. In the very next line, V. 9, it preserves the correct +reading _bemes shene_[66], riming with _grene_, _quene_, where other MSS. +have _bemes clere_, a reminiscence of the opening line of Book III. Hence I +have carefully collated this MS., and all readings of value are given in +the Notes. See, e. g. III. 28, 49, 136, 551, 1268, 1703, &c. + +6. MS. Harl. 1239 (B. M.). 'It is an oblong folio, written from the +beginning in a small, clear character, which ceases at an earlier place +[III. 231] than the change occurs in MS. 3943 [IV. 197], leaving the +remainder comparatively useless as an authority.'--Bell. Dr. Furnivall has +printed the passages in III. 1289-1428, and III. 1744-1771, from this MS. +to supply the gaps in H 2 (see above); we thus see that it transposes +several of the stanzas, and is but a poor authority. + +7. MS. Harl. 2392 (B. M.). A late MS. on paper, not very correct; once the +property of Sir H. Spelman. As an example of a strange reading, observe 'O +mortal Gower,' in V. 1856. Still, it has the correct reading _sheene_ in V. +9; and in III. 49, supplies the rare reading _gladnesse_, which is +necessary to the sense. + +This MS. has a large number of notes and glosses. Some are of small +interest, but others are of value, and doubtless proceeded from the author +himself, as they furnish useful references and explanations. I here notice +the best of them. + +II. 8. 'Cleo: domina eloquencie.' This view of Clio explains the context. + +II. 784. Side-note: 'nota mendacium.' A remarkable comment. + +II. 1238-9. 'Leuis impressio, leuis recessio.' Clearly, a proverb. + +III. 933. 'Dulcarnon: i. fuga miserorum.' This proves that Chaucer confused +the 47th proposition of Euclid with the 5th; see note. + +III. 1177. 'Beati misericordes'; from Matt. v. 7. + +III. 1183. 'Petite et accipi[e]tis'; a remarkable comment. + +III. 1415. 'Gallus vulgaris astrologus; Alanus, de Planctu Nature'; see +note. + +III. 1417. 'Lucifera: Stella matutina.' + +III. 1466. 'Aurora: amica solis'; shewing the confusion of _Tithonus_ with +_Titan_. + +IV. 22. 'Herine (_sic_), furie infernales; unde Lucanus, me pronuba duxit +Herinis.' This proves that Chaucer really took the name from Lucan, Phars. +viii. 90, q. v. + +IV. 32. 'Sol in Leone'; i. e. the sun was in Leo; see note. + +IV. 600. 'Audaces fortuna iuuat'; error for 'Audentes'; see note. + +IV. 790. 'Vmbra subit terras,' &c.; Ovid, Met. xi. 61. + +IV. 836. 'Extrema gaudii luctus'; see note. + +IV. 1138. 'Flet tamen, et tepide,' &c.; Ovid, Met. x. 500. + +IV. 1504. 'Non est bonum perdere substantiam propter accidens.' + +IV. 1540. 'Styx, puteus infernalis.' Chaucer's mistake. + +V. 8. 'The gold-tressed Phebus,' glossed 'Auricomus Sol'; which is from +Valerius Flaccus; see note. + +V. 319. Reference to Ovid's Metamorphoses; see note. + +V. 655. 'Latona, i. luna'; shewing that 'Latona' is mis-written for +'Lucina.' Cf. IV. 1591. + +V. 664. Reference to Ovid, Metam. ii. See note. + +V. 1039. For 'she,' MS. has 'he,' correctly (see note); side-note, 'Nota, +de donis c. d.', i. e. of Criseyde to Diomede. + +V. 1107. 'Laurigerus'; see note. + +V. 1110. 'Nisus,' glossed 'rex'; 'douhter,' glossed 'alauda'; see note. + +V. 1548. 'Parodye: duracio'; see note. + +V. 1550. 'Vnbodye: decorporare.' + +There are many more such glosses, of lesser interest. + +8. MS. Harl. 4912 (B. M.). On vellum; rather large pages, with wide +margins; five stanzas on the page. Imperfect; ends at IV. 686. A poor copy. +In III. 49, it retains the rare reading 'gladnes,' but miswritten as +'glanes.' + +9. MS. Addit. 12044 (B. M.). On vellum; five stanzas to the page. Last leaf +gone; ends at V. 1820. Not a good copy. In III. 17, it has 'Comeued hem,' +an obvious error for 'Comeueden,' which is the true reading. In V. 8, it +has 'golden dressed,' error for 'golden tressed.' Note this correct form +'golden'; for it is miswritten as 'gold' or 'golde' in nearly all other +copies. + +The next four are in the Bodleian Library, Oxford. + +10. Arch. Seld. B. 24 is the Scottish MS., dated 1472, described in the +Introduction to the Minor Poems, where it is denoted by 'Ar.,' and fully +collated throughout the Legend of Good Women, where it appears in the +foot-notes as 'A.' It seems to be the best of the Oxford MSS., and has some +good readings. In III. 17, it has 'Co_m_meued tham' for Commeueden,' which +is near enough for a MS. that so freely drops inflexions; and the line ends +with 'and amoreux tham made.' In III. 49, it correctly preserves +'gladness.' + +11. MS. Rawlinson, Poet. 163. Not a very good copy. It omits the Prologue +to Book III. At the end is the colophon:-- + + { Heer endith the book of } + 'Tregentyll { } Chaucer.' + { Troylus and of Cresseyde} + +I take 'Tregentyll' to be the scribe's name[67]. Besides the 'Troilus,' the +MS. contains, on a fly-leaf, the unique copy of the Balade to Rosemounde, +beneath which is written (as in the former case) 'tregentil' to the left of +the page, and 'chaucer' to the right; connected by a thin stroke. See my +'Twelve Facsimiles of Old English MSS.'; Plate XII. + +12. MS. Arch. Seld. supra 56. Small quarto, 8 inches by 5½, on paper; +vellum binding; writing clear. A poor copy. The grammar shews a Northern +dialect. + +13. MS. Digby 181. Incomplete; nearly half being lost. It ends at III. +532--'A certayn houre in which she come sholde.' A poor copy, closely +allied to the preceding. Thus, in III. 17, both have _moreux_ for +_amoreux_; in III. 2, both have _Adornes_; in III. 6, both absurdly have +_Off_ (_Of_) for _O_; and so on. + +14. MS. L. 1, in St. John's College, Cambridge. A fair MS., perhaps earlier +than 1450. Subjoined to the Troilus is a sixteenth century copy of the +Testament of Creseide. Quarto; on vellum; 10 inches by 6½; in 10 sheets of +12 leaves each. Leaf g 12 is cut out, and g 11 is blank, but nothing seems +to be lost. It frequently agrees with Cp., as in I. 5, fro ye; 21, be this; +36, desespeyred; 45, fair ladys so; 70, Delphicus; 308, kan thus. In I. +272, it correctly has: p_er_cede; in 337, nou_n_c_er_teyne. In II. 734, it +agrees with H.; 735 runs--'And whan hem list no lenger, lat hem leue'; a +good line. In II. 894, it has 'mosten axe,' the very reading which I give; +and in II. 968, stalkes. + +15. MS. Phillipps 8252; the same MS. as that described in my preface to the +C. text of Piers the Plowman, p. xix, where it is numbered XXVIII. + +16. A MS. in the Library of Durham Cathedral, marked V. ii. 13. A single +stanza of Troilus, viz. I. 631-7, occurs in MS. R. 3. 20, in Trinity +College Library, Cambridge; and three stanzas, viz. III. 302-322, in MS. +Ff. 1. 6, leaf 150, in the Cambridge University Library; all printed in Odd +Texts of Chaucer's Minor Poems, ed. F. J. Furnivall, Chaucer Society, 1880, +pp. x-xii. In 1887, Dr. Stephens found two vellum strips in the cover of a +book, containing fragments of a MS. of Troilus (Book V. 1443-1498); see +Appendix to the Report of the Cambridge Antiquarian Society, May 24, 1887; +pp. 331-5. + +The MSS. fall, as far as I can tell, into two main families. The larger +family is that which resembles Cl., Cp., and H. Of the smaller, Cm. may be +taken as the type. The description of Cm. shews some of the chief +variations. Observe that many MSS. omit I. 890-6; in the John's MS., it is +inserted in a much later hand. The stanza is obviously genuine. + +§ 26. THE EDITIONS. 'Troilus' was first printed by Caxton, about 1484; but +without printer's name, place, or date. See the description in Blades' Life +of Caxton, p. 297. There is no title-page. Each page contains five stanzas. +Two copies are in the British Museum; one at St. John's College, Oxford; +and one (till lately) was at Althorp. The second edition is by Wynkyn de +Worde, in 1517. The third, by Pynson, in 1526. These three editions present +Troilus as a separate work. After this, it was included in Thynne's edition +of 1532, and in all the subsequent editions of Chaucer's Works. + +Of these, the only editions accessible to me have been Thynne's (1532), of +which there is a copy in the Cambridge University Library; also the +editions of 1550 (or thereabouts) and 1561, of both of which I possess +copies. + +Thynne's edition was printed from so good a MS. as to render it an +excellent authority. In a few places, I fear he has altered the text for +the worse, and his errors have been carefully followed and preserved by +succeeding editors. Thus he is responsible for altering _io_ (= _jo_) into +_go_, III. 33; for creating the remarkable 'ghost-word' _gofysshe_, III. +584; and a few similar curiosities. But I found it worth while to collate +it throughout; and readings from it are marked 'Ed.' The later black-letter +copies are mere reproductions of it. + +§ 27. THE PRESENT EDITION. The present edition has the great advantage of +being founded upon Cl. and Cp., neither of which have been previously made +use of, though they are the two best. Bell's text is founded upon the +Harleian MSS. numbered 1239, 2280, and 3943, in separate fragments; hence +the text is neither uniform nor very good. Morris's text is much better, +being founded upon H. (closely related to Cl. and Cp.), with a few +corrections from other unnamed sources. + +Thanks to the prints provided by the Chaucer Society, I have been able to +produce a text which, I trust, leaves but little to be desired. I point out +some of the passages which now appear in a correct form for the first time, +as may be seen by comparison with the editions by Morris and Bell, which I +denote by M. and B. + +I. 136; _derre_, dearer; M. B. dere (no rime). 285. _meninge_, i. e. +intention; _and so in_ l. 289; M. B. mevynge. 388. M. B. insert a semicolon +after _arten_. 465. _fownes_ (see note); M. B. fantasye (line too long). +470 _felle_, fell, pl. adj.; M. B. fille, i. e. fell (verb). 590. _no +comfort_; M. comfort; B. eny comfort. 786. _Ticius_ (see note); M. +Syciphus; B. Siciphus. 896. _Thee oughte_; M. To oght (no sense); B. The +oght (will not scan). 1026. See note; put as a question in M. B.; B. even +inserts _not_ before _to done_. 1050. _me asterte_; M. may sterte; B. me +stert (better). + +II. 41. _seyde_, i. e. if that they seyde; M. B. seyinge (will not scan). +138. _were_ (would there be); M. B. is. 180. _wight_; M. B. knyght (but see +l. 177). 808. _looth_; M. B. leve. 834. _Ye_; M. B. The. 1596. _For for_; +M. B. For. + +III. 17. _Comeveden_ (see note); M. Comeneden; B. Commodious. _him_; M. B. +hem. 33. _io_ (= _jo_); M. B. go. 49. M. B. omit _gladnes_. 572. _Yow +thurfte_; M. Thow thruste; B. Yow durst. 584. _goosish_; M. goofish; B. +gofisshe. 674. M. Thei voide [_present_], dronke [_past_], and traveres +drawe [_present_] anon; B. They voyded, and drunk, and travars drew anone. +Really, _dronke_ and _drawe_ are both past participles; see note. 725. +_Cipris_; M. Cyphes; B. Ciphis. 1231. _Bitrent and wryth_, i. e. winds +about and wreathes itself; M. Bytrent and writhe is; B. Bitrent and writhen +is. _Wryth_ is short for _writheth_; not a pp. 1453. _bore_, i. e. hole; M. +boure; B. bowre. 1764. _to-hepe_, i. e. together; M. B. to kepe. + +IV. 538. _kyth_; M. B. right (no sense). 696. _thing is_; M. B. thynges is. + 818. _martyre_; M. B. matere (neither sense nor rime). + +V. 49. _helpen_; M. B. holpen. 469. _howve_; M. B. howen. 583. _in my_; M. +B. omit _my_. 927. _wight_; M. B. with. 1208. _trustinge_; M. B. trusten +(against grammar). 1266. _bet_; M. B. beste. 1335, 6. _wyte The teres_, +i. e. blame the tears; M. B. wite With teres. 1386. _Commeve_; M. Com in +to; B. Can meven. 1467. _She_; M. B. So. 1791. _pace_; M. B. space (see +note). + +It is curious to find that such remarkable words as _commeveden_, _io_, +_voidee_, _goosish_, _to-hepe_, appear in no Chaucerian glossary; they are +only found in the MSS., being ignored in the editions. + +A large number of lines are now, for the first time, spelt with forms that +comply with grammar and enable the lines to be scanned. For example, M. and +B. actually give _wente_ and _wonte_ in V. 546, instead of _went_ and +_wont_; _knotles_ for _knotteles_ in V. 769, &c. + +I have also, for the first time, numbered the lines and stanzas correctly. +In M., Books III. and IV. are both misnumbered, causing much trouble in +reference. Dr. Furnivall's print of the Campsall MS. omits I. 890-6; and +his print of MS. Harl. 3943 counts in the Latin lines here printed at p. +404. + +§ 28. It is worth notice that Troilus contains about fifty lines in which +the first foot consists of a single syllable. Examples in Book I are:-- + + That | the hot-e fyr of lov' him brende: 490. + Lov' | ayeins the which who-so defendeth: 603. + Twen | ty winter that his lady wiste: 811. + Wer' | it for my suster, al thy sorwe: 860. + Next | the foule netle, rough and thikke: 948. + Now | Pandar', I can no mor-e seye: 1051. + Al | derfirst his purpos for to winne: 1069. + +So also II. 369, 677, 934, 1034, 1623 (and probably 1687); III. 412, 526, +662, 855 (perhaps 1552), 1570; IV. 176, 601, 716, 842, 1328, 1676; V. 67 +(perhaps 311), 334, 402, 802, 823, 825, 831, 880, 887, 949, 950, 1083, +1094, 1151, 1379, 1446, 1454, 1468, 1524. + +It thus appears that deficient lines of this character are by no means +confined to the poems in 'heroic verse,' but occur in stanzas as well. +Compare the Parlement of Foules, 445, 569. + +§ 29. PROVERBS. Troilus contains a considerable number of proverbs and +proverbial phrases or similes. See, e. g., I. 257, 300, 631, 638, 694, 708, +731, 740, 946-952, 960, 964, 1002, 1024; II. 343, 398, 403, 585, 784, 804, +807, 861, 867, 1022, 1030, 1041, 1238, 1245, 1332, 1335, 1380, 1387, 1553, +1745; III. 35, 198, 294, 308, 329, 405, 526, 711, 764, 775, 859, 861, 931, +1625, 1633; IV. 184, 415, 421, 460, 588, 595, 622, 728, 836, 1098, 1105, +1374, 1456, 1584; V. 484, 505, 784, 899, 971, 1174, 1265, 1433. + +§ 30. A translation of the first two books of Troilus into Latin verse, by +Sir Francis Kinaston, was printed at Oxford in 1635. The volume also +contains a few notes, but I do not find in them anything of value. The +author tries to reproduce the English stanza, as thus:-- + + 'Dolorem Troili duplicem narrare, + Qui Priami Regis Trojae fuit gnatus, + Vt primùm illi contigit amare, + Vt miser, felix, et infortunatus + Erat, decessum ante sum conatus. + Tisiphone, fer opem recensere + Hos versus, qui, dum scribo, visi flere.' + +For myself, I prefer the English. + +§ 31. Hazlitt's Handbook to Popular Literature records the following +title:--'A Paraphrase vpon the 3 first bookes of Chaucer's Troilus and +Cressida. Translated into modern English ... by J[onathan] S[idnam]. About +1630. Folio; 70 leaves; in 7-line stanzas.' + + + + +ERRATA AND ADDENDA. + + +I. BOETHIUS. + +P. 8, Book I, met. 4, l. 8. _For_ thonder-light _a better reading is_ +thonder-leit; see p. xliii, and the note (p. 422). + +P. 10; foot-notes, l. 10. _Read_: C. vnplitable; A. inplitable. + +P. 26, Book II, met. 1, l. 11. _For_ proeueth _read_ proeveth. + +P. 29, Book II, pr. 3, l. 3. _Delete the comma after_ wherwith. + +P. 48, Book II, pr. 7, l. 86. _For_ thas _read_ that. + +P. 50, Book II, pr. 8, l. 17. _For_ windinge _read_ windy. See pp. xlii, +434. + +P. 58, Book III, pr. 3, l. 68. _For_ all _read_ al. + +P. 62, l. 4. Counted as l. 10; it is really l. 9. + +P. 63, Book III, pr. 5, l. 41. _For_ of _read_ _of_ (in italics). + +P. 74, Book III, pr. 10, l. 6. _For_ has _read_ hast. + +P. 111. The side-number 215 is one line too high. + +P. 122, Book IV, met. 6, l. 24. Delete the square brackets; see pp. xlii, +xliii. + +P. 124, Book IV, pr. 7, l. 61. MS. C. _has_ confirme; _and_ MS. A. _has_ +conferme. _But the right reading must be_ conforme; _for the_ Latin _text +has_ conformandae. + + +II. TROILUS. + +P. 159, Book I, 204. _For_ cast _read_ caste. + +P. 160, Book I, 217. The alternative reading is better; see note, p. 463. + +P. 160, Book I, 239. _For_ yet _read_ yit (for the rhyme). + +P. 162, Book I, 284. _For_ neuer _read_ never. + +P. 163, Book, I, 309. _For_ Troylus _read_ Troilus. + +P. 163, Book I, 310. _For_ thyng _read_ thing. + +P. 165, Book I, 401. _Alter_ ! _to_ ? + +P. 166, Book I, 406. _For_ thurst _read_ thurste. + +P. 166, Book I, 420. _For_ deye _read_ dye (for the rhyme). + +P. 171, Book I, 570. _For_ euery _read_ every. + +P. 172, Book I, 621. _For_ Troylus _read_ Troilus (as elsewhere). + +P. 173, Book I, 626. Delete the comma after 'fare.' + +P. 174, Book I, 656. _For_ y _read_ I. + +P. 174, Book I, 657. _Insert_ ' _at the beginning_. + +P. 181, Book I, 879. _For_ the _read_ thee. + +P. 192, Book II, 113. _Delete_ ' _at the end_. + +P. 194, Book II, 170. _Insert_ ' _at the beginning_. + +P. 205, Book II, 529. _For_ penaunc _read_ penaunce. + +P. 208, Book II, 628. _For_ swych _read_ swich. + +P. 229, Book II, 1294. _Insert_ ' _at the beginning_. + +P. 234, Book II, 1461. _For_ streyt _read_ streght, _as in_ MS. H. + +P. 260, Book III, 522. _Delete the comma after_ laft. + +P. 260, Book III, 535. _For_ made _read_ mad _or_ maad. + +P. 261, Book III, 558. _For_ lengere _read_ lenger. + +P. 264, Book III, 662. _For_ thondre _read_ thonder. + +P. 271, Book III, 885. _For_ ringe _read_ ring. + +P. 282, Book III, 1219. _For_ sweet _read_ swete. + +P. 312, Book IV, 318. _For_ to the peyne _read_ to my peyne. + +P. 390, Book V, 1039. _For_ she _read_ he. Cf. note, p. 499; and p. lx, l. +3. + +P. 431, note to Prose 5, 35; l. 3. _Delete_ for which I find _no_ +authority. (In fact, _postremo_ is the reading given by Peiper, from _one_ +MS. only; most MSS. have _postremae_, the reading given by Obbarius, who +does not recognise the reading _postremo_). + +P. 463. Note to I, 217. _Add_--So too in Barbour's Bruce, i. 582: 'Bot oft +failyeis the fulis thocht.' + +P. 479, last line; and p. 480, first line. _For_ represents the Pers. and +Arab. _d[=u]'lkarnayn_, lit. two-horned; from Pers. _d[=u]_, two, and +_karn_, horn--_read_ represents the Arab, _z[=u]'lkarnayn_, lit. +two-horned; from Arab. _z[=u]_, lord of, _hence_, possessing, and the dual +form of _karn_, horn. + +Notes to I. 948, 951; II. 36, 1335; III. 1219. Dr. Köppel has shewn (in +Archiv für das Studium der neueren Sprachen, xc. 150, that Chaucer here +quotes from Alanus de Insulis, Liber Parabolarum (as printed in Migne, +Cursus Patrologicus, vol. ccx). The passages are:-- + + Fragrantes uicina rosas urtica perurit (col. 582). + + Post noctem sperare diem, post nubila solem; + Post lacrimas risus laetitiamque potes (583). + + Mille uiae ducunt homines per saecula Romam (591). + + De nuce fit corylus, de glande fit ardua quercus (583). + + Dulcius haerescunt humano mella palato, + Si malus hoc ipsum mordeat ante sapor (592). + +P. 498, Note to V, 806. _Add_--L. 813 is due to Dares; see p. lxiv, note. + +P. 499, Note to V, 1039, l. 6. _For_ the rest is Chaucer's addition _read_ +the statement that she gave it to Diomede is due to Benoît; see p. lxii. +Again, just below, _read_ The incidents of the 'broche' and 'pensel' are +also due to the same; see p. lxii. + + + + +BOETHIUS DE CONSOLATIONE PHILOSOPHIE. + + + +BOOK I. + + +METRE I. + +_Carmina qui quondam studio florente peregi._ + + Allas! I, weping, am constreined to biginnen vers of sorowful + matere, that whylom in florisching studie made delitable ditees. + For lo! rendinge Muses of poetes endyten to me thinges to be + writen; and drery vers of wrecchednesse weten my face with + verray teres. At the leeste, no drede ne mighte overcomen tho 5 + Muses, that they ne weren felawes, and folweden my wey, _that is + to seyn, whan I was exyled_; they that weren glorie of my youthe, + whylom weleful and grene, comforten now the sorowful werdes of + me, olde man. For elde is comen unwarly upon me, hasted by + the harmes that I have, and sorow hath comaunded his age to be 10 + in me. Heres hore ben shad overtymeliche upon myn heved, + and the slake skin trembleth upon myn empted body. Thilke + deeth of men is weleful that ne cometh not in yeres that ben + swete, but cometh to wrecches, often y-cleped. + + Allas! allas! with how deef an ere deeth, cruel, torneth awey 15 + fro wrecches, and naiteth to closen wepinge eyen! Whyl Fortune, + unfeithful, favorede me with lighte goodes, the sorowful houre, + _that is to seyn, the deeth_, hadde almost dreynt myn heved. But + now, for Fortune cloudy hath chaunged hir deceyvable chere to + me-ward, myn unpitous lyf draweth a-long unagreable dwellinges 20 + _in me_. O ye, my frendes, what or wherto avauntede ye me to + ben weleful? for he that hath fallen stood nat in stedefast + degree. + +C. = MS. Ii. 3. 21, Cambridge; A. = MS. Addit. 10340 (Brit. Mus.). _The +text follows_ C. _mainly_. Ed. = Printed edition (1532), _quoted +occasionally_. + +1, 2. _Imperfect in_ C. 6. C. foleweden; A. folweden. 8. C. sorful; A. +sorouful. // C. wierdes, _glossed_ fata; A. werdes. 11. C. arn; A. ben. 12. +C. of; A. upon. // C. emptyd; A. emty. 16. C. nayteth; A. Ed. naieth. 17. +A. _glosses_ lighte _by_ sc. temporels. // C. sorwful; A. sorouful. 19. C. +deceyuable; A. disceyuable. 20. C. vnpietous; A. vnpitouse. 22. C. +stidefast; A. stedfast. + + +PROSE I. + +_Hec dum mecum tacitus ipse reputarem._ + + Whyle that I stille recordede thise thinges with my-self, and + markede my weeply compleynte with office of pointel, I saw, + stondinge aboven the heighte of myn heved, a woman of ful greet + reverence by semblaunt, hir eyen brenninge and cleer-seinge over + the comune might of men; with a lyfly colour, and with swich 5 + vigour and strengthe that it ne mighte nat ben empted; al were it + so that she was ful of so greet age, that men ne wolde nat trowen, + in no manere, that she were of oure elde. The stature of hir was + of a doutous Iugement; for som-tyme she constreinede and shronk + hir-selven lyk to the comune mesure of men, and sum-tyme it 10 + semede that she touchede the hevene with the heighte of hir + heved; and whan she heef hir heved hyer, she percede the + selve hevene, so that the sighte of men looking was in ydel. Hir + clothes weren maked of right delye thredes and subtil crafte, of + perdurable matere; the whiche clothes she hadde woven with hir 15 + owene hondes, as I knew wel after by hir-self, declaringe and + shewinge to me the beautee; the whiche clothes a derknesse of a + forleten and dispysed elde hadde dusked and derked, as it is wont + to derken bi-smokede images. + + In the nethereste hem or bordure of thise clothes men redden, 20 + y-woven in, a Grekissh P, _that signifyeth the lyf Actif_; and aboven + that lettre, in the heyeste bordure, a Grekissh T, _that signifyeth + the lyf Contemplatif_. And bi-twixen these two lettres ther weren + seyn degrees, nobly y-wroght in manere of laddres; by whiche + degrees men mighten climben fro the nethereste lettre to the 25 + uppereste. Natheles, handes of some men hadde corven that cloth + by violence and by strengthe; and everiche man of hem hadde + born awey swiche peces as he mighte geten. And forsothe, this + forseide woman bar smale bokes in hir right hand, and in hir left + hand she bar a ceptre. 30 + + And whan she say thise poetical Muses aprochen aboute my + bed, and endytinge wordes to my wepinges, she was a litel + amoved, and glowede with cruel eyen. 'Who,' quod she, 'hath + suffred aprochen to this syke man thise comune strompetes of + swich a place that men clepen the theatre? The whiche nat 35 + only ne asswagen nat hise sorwes with none remedies, but they + wolden feden and norisshen hem with swete venim. Forsothe, + thise ben tho that with thornes and prikkinges of talents or + affecciouns, whiche that ne ben no-thing fructefyinge nor + profitable, destroyen the corn plentevous of fruites of resoun; 40 + for they holden the hertes of men in usage, but they ne delivere + nat folk fro maladye. But if ye Muses hadden withdrawen fro + me, with your flateryes, any uncunninge and unprofitable man, as + men ben wont to finde comunly amonges the poeple, I wolde + wene suffre the lasse grevously; for-why, in swiche an unprofitable 45 + man, myn ententes ne weren no-thing endamaged. But ye withdrawen + me this man, that hath be norisshed in the studies or + scoles of Eleaticis and of Achademicis _in Grece_. But goth now + rather awey, ye mermaidenes, whiche that ben swete til it be at + the laste, and suffreth this man to be cured and heled by myne 50 + Muses,' _that is to seyn, by noteful sciences_. + + And thus this companye of Muses y-blamed casten wrothly the + chere dounward to the erthe; and, shewinge by reednesse hir + shame, they passeden sorowfully the threshfold. + + And I, of whom the sighte, plounged in teres, was derked so 55 + that I ne mighte not knowen what that womman was, of so + imperial auctoritee, I wex al abaisshed and astoned, and caste my + sighte doun to the erthe, and bigan stille for to abyde what she + wolde don afterward. Tho com she ner, and sette hir doun up-on + the uttereste corner of my bed; and she, biholdinge my chere, 60 + that was cast to the erthe, hevy and grevous of wepinge, compleinede, + with thise wordes that I shal seyen, the perturbacioun + of my thought. + +PR. I. 1. C. While that; A. In the mene while that. 2. C. sawh; A. sawe. 3. +C. heyhte; A. hey[gh]t. // C. gret; A. greet. 5. C. myht; A. my[gh]t. 6. C. +vygor; A. vigoure. // C. myhte; A. my[gh]t. // C. emted; A. emptid. 7. C. +gret; A. greet (_and so often_). 9. C. dowtows; A. doutous (_and so_ ow +_for_ ou _often_). 10. C. lyk; A. lyche. 11. C. heyhte; A. hey[gh]te (_and +so elsewhere_). 12. C. hef; A. heued; Ed. houe. 14. C. riht (_and so_ h +_for_ gh _often_). 16. C. knewh; A. knewe. 17. C. dirknesse; A. derkenes. +19. _Both_ dyrken. // C. the smokede; A. bysmoked. 21. A. in swiche; C. +_om._ swiche. C. _glosses_ P _by_ practik. // C. syngnifieth; A. +signifieth. 22. C. _glosses_ T _by_ theorik. // C. singnifieth; A. +signifieth. 23. C. by-twixen; A. by-twene. 24. C. nobely; A. nobly. 25. C. +clymbyn (_and so_ -yn _for_ -en _constantly_). // C. Ed. nethereste; A. +nethemast. 26. C. Ed. vppereste; A. ouermast 31. C. say; A. sau[gh]. 33. C. +amoued; A. ameued. // C. cruwel; A. cruel. 34. C. sike; A. seek. // C. the; +A. thise (Lat. _has_). 37. C. noryssyn; A. norysche. // C. hym; A. hem. 39. +C. fructefiynge; A. frutefiyng. 40. C. corn; A. cornes (Lat. _segetem_). +41. C. _om._ the. // C. _om._ ne. 42. C. maledye; A. maladye. 44. C. +poeple; A. peple. 45. C. greuosly; A. greuously (_and so often_ os _for_ +ous _in_ C.). 48. C. schooles; A. scoles. 53. C. downward; A. adounward. // +C. _om._ and. // C. rednesse; A. redenesse. 54. C. sorwfully. // C. +thresshfold; A. threschefolde. 55. C. dyrked; A. derked. 57. C. wax; A. +wex. // C. cast; A. caste. 58. C. down to; A. adoune in-to. 59. C. ner; A. +nere. 61. C. compleyde; A. compleinede. 63. C. thowht; A. thou[gh]t. + + +METRE II. + +_Heu quam precipiti mersa profundo._ + + 'Allas! how the thought of man, dreint in over-throwinge + deepnesse, dulleth, and forleteth his propre cleernesse, mintinge + to goon in-to foreine derknesses, as ofte as his anoyous bisinesse + wexeth with-oute mesure, that is driven to and fro with worldly + windes! This man, that whylom was free, to whom the hevene 5 + was open and knowen, and was wont to goon in heveneliche + pathes, and saugh the lightnesse of the rede sonne, and saugh the + sterres of the colde mone, and whiche sterre in hevene useth + wandering recourses, y-flit by dyverse speres--this man, overcomer, + hadde comprehended al this by noumbre _of acountinge in 10 + astronomye_. And over this, he was wont to seken the causes + whennes the souning windes moeven and bisien the smothe water + of the see; and what spirit torneth the stable hevene; and why + the sterre aryseth out of the rede eest, to fallen in the westrene + wawes; and what atempreth the lusty houres of the firste somer 15 + sesoun, that highteth and apparaileth the erthe with rosene flowres; + and who maketh that plentevouse autompne, in fulle yeres, fleteth + with hevy grapes. And eek this man was wont to telle the + dyverse causes of nature that weren y-hidde. Allas! now lyeth + he empted of light of his thought; and his nekke is pressed with 20 + hevy cheynes; and bereth his chere enclyned adoun for the grete + weighte, and is constreined to looken on the fool erthe! + +ME. II. 3. C. dyrk-; A. derk-. 4. C. wordely; A. worldly (Lat. _terrenis_). +5. C. Ed. whilom; A. sumtyme. 7. C. lythnesse; A. ly[gh]tnesse. 10. C. +comprendyd; A. Ed. comprehendid. 11. C. seken; A. seche. 14. C. est; A. +eest. 15. C. fyrst; A. fyrste. 17. A. that; C. the. // C. autompne; A. +autumpne. 19. C. I-hydde; A. yhidde. // C. lith; A. lieth. 20. A. emptid; +C. emted. 22. C. the fool; Ed. the fole; A. foule (Lat. _stolidam_). + + +PROSE II. + +_Set medicine, inquit, tempus est._ + + But tyme is now,' quod she, 'of medicine more than of + compleinte.' Forsothe than she, entendinge to me-ward with alle + the lookinge of hir eyen, seide:--'Art nat thou he,' quod she, + 'that whylom y-norisshed with my milk, and fostered with myne + metes, were escaped and comen to corage of a parfit man? 5 + Certes, I yaf thee swiche armures that, yif thou thy-self ne + haddest first cast hem a-wey, they shulden han defended thee + in sikernesse that may nat ben over-comen. Knowest thou me + nat? Why art thou stille? Is it for shame or for astoninge? + It were me lever that it were for shame; but it semeth me that 10 + astoninge hath oppressed thee.' And whan she say me nat only + stille, but with-outen office of tunge and al doumb, she leide hir + hand softely upon my brest, and seide: 'Here nis no peril,' quod + she; 'he is fallen into a litargie, whiche that is a comune sykenes + to hertes that ben deceived. He hath a litel foryeten him-self, 15 + but certes he shal lightly remembren him-self, yif so be that he + hath knowen me or now; and that he may so don, I wil wypen a + litel his eyen, that ben derked by the cloude of mortal thinges.' + Thise wordes seide she, and with the lappe of hir garment, y-plyted + in a frounce, she dryede myn eyen, that weren fulle of the wawes 20 + of my wepinges. + +PR. II. 4. C. Ed. whilom; A. sumtyme. // C. noryssed; A. I-norschide. 5. C. +escaped; A. ascaped. 8. C. Knowestow; A. Knowest thou. 9. C. artow; A. art +thou. // C. it is; A. Ed. is it. // C. asthonynge (_but_ astonynge +_below_). 14. C. litarge; A. litargie. // C. sykenesse; A. sekenes. 15. C. +desseyued; A. desceiued. 16. C. remenbren; A. reme_m_bren. + + +METRE III. + +_Tunc me discussa liquerunt nocte tenebre._ + + Thus, whan that night was discussed and chased a-wey, + derknesses forleften me, and to myn eyen repeirede ayein hir + firste strengthe. And, right by ensaumple as the sonne is hid + whan the sterres ben clustred (_that is to seyn, whan sterres ben + covered with cloudes_) by a swifte winde that highte Chorus, and 5 + that the firmament stant derked by wete ploungy cloudes, and + that the sterres nat apperen up-on hevene, so that the night + semeth sprad up-on erthe: yif thanne the wind that highte Borias, + y-sent out of the caves of the contree of Trace, beteth this night + (_that is to seyn, chaseth it a-wey_), and descovereth the closed day: 10 + than shyneth Phebus y-shaken with sodein light, and smyteth + with his bemes in mervelinge eyen. + +ME. III. 1. C. descussed; A. discussed. 2. C. dirk-; A. derk-. // C. _om._ +ayein. 3. C. fyrst; A. firste. 5. C. heyhte; A. hy[gh]t. 6. C. dirked; A. +derked. 8. C. hyhte; A. hy[gh]t. + + +PROSE III. + +_Haud aliter tristicie nebulis dissolutis._ + + Right so, and non other wyse, the cloudes of sorwe dissolved + and don a-wey, I took hevene, and receivede minde to knowen the + face of my fysicien; so that I sette myn eyen on hir, and fastnede + my lookinge. I beholde my norice Philosophie, in whos houses + I hadde conversed and haunted fro my youthe; and I seide thus. 5 + 'O thou maistresse of alle vertues, descended from the soverein + sete, why artow comen in-to this solitarie place of myn exil? + Artow comen for thou art maked coupable with me of false + blames?' + + 'O,' quod she, 'my norry, sholde I forsaken thee now, and 10 + sholde I nat parten with thee, by comune travaile, the charge + that thou hast suffred for envie of my name? Certes, it nere + not leveful ne sittinge thing to Philosophie, to leten with-outen + companye the wey of him that is innocent. Sholde I thanne + redoute my blame, and agrysen as though ther were bifallen a 15 + newe thing? _quasi diceret, non_. For trowestow that Philosophie + be now alderfirst assailed in perils by folk of wikkede maneres? + Have I nat striven with ful greet stryf, in olde tyme, bifore the + age of my Plato, ayeines the foolhardinesse of folye? And eek, + the same Plato livinge, his maister Socrates deservede victorie of 20 + unrightful deeth in my presence. The heritage of which Socrates--_the + heritage is to seyn the doctrine of the whiche Socrates in his + opinioun of Felicitee, that I clepe welefulnesse_--whan that the + poeple of Epicuriens and Stoiciens and many othre enforceden + hem to go ravisshe everich man for his part--_that is to seyn, 25 + that everich of hem wolde drawen to the defence of his opinioun the + wordes of Socrates_--they, as in partie of hir preye, to-drowen me, + cryinge and debatinge ther-ayeins, and corven and to-renten my + clothes that I hadde woven with myn handes; and with tho + cloutes that they hadden araced out of my clothes they wenten 30 + awey, weninge that I hadde gon with hem everydel. + + In whiche _Epicuriens and Stoiciens_, for as moche as ther semede + some traces or steppes of myn habite, the folye of men, weninge + tho _Epicuriens and Stoiciens_ my famuleres, perverted (_sc. + persequendo_) + some through the errour of the wikkede or uncunninge 35 + multitude of hem. _This is to seyn that, for they semede philosophres, + they weren pursued to the deeth and slayn._ So yif thou hast nat + knowen the exilinge of Anaxogore, ne the enpoysoninge of + Socrates, ne the tourments of Zeno, for they weren straungeres: + yit mightestow han knowen the Senecciens and the Canios and 40 + the Sorans, of whiche folk the renoun is neither over-olde ne + unsolempne The whiche men, no-thing elles ne broughte hem to + the deeth but only for they weren enfourmed of myne maneres, + and semeden most unlyke to the studies of wikkede folk. And + forthy thou oughtest nat to wondren though that I, in the bittre 45 + see of this lyf, be fordriven with tempestes blowinge aboute, in + the whiche tempestes this is my most purpos, _that is to seyn_, to + displesen to wikkede men. Of whiche shrewes, al be the ost + never so greet, it is to dispyse; for it nis governed with no leder + of resoun, but it is ravisshed only by fletinge errour folyly and 50 + lightly. And if they som-tyme, makinge an ost ayeins us, assaile + us as strenger, our leder draweth to-gidere hise richesses in-to his + tour, and they ben ententif aboute sarpulers or sachels unprofitable + for to taken. But we that ben heye aboven, siker fro alle + tumulte and wode noise, warnestored and enclosed in swich a 55 + palis, whider as that chateringe or anoyinge folye ne may nat + atayne, we scorne swiche ravineres and henteres of fouleste + thinges. + +PR. III. 3. C. fesissien; A. fyciscien; Ed. phisycien. // C. fastnede; A. +festned. 4. Lat. _respicio_. 6. C. vertuus; A. vertues. 7. C. artow; A. art +thou. 13. A. _om._ thing. 14. C. compaygnie; A. compaignie. 16. C. +trowestow; A. trowest thou. 20. C. desseruede; A. deserued. 21. C. eritage; +A. heritage. 25. C. rauysse; A. rauische. 26. C. deffence; A. defence. 30. +C. arraced; A. arased. 31. C. _om._ I. 33. C. or; A. and. 34. A. familers. +36. A. _om._ that. 38. C. _om. 1st_ of. 40. C. myhtestow; A. my[gh]test +thou. // C. Senecciens; A. Senectiens; Ed. Senecas. 43. C. enformyd; A. +vnfourmed. 44. C. vnlyk; A. vnlyke. 48. C. oost, _glossed_ i. acies. 50. C. +rauyssed; A. rauysched. // C. folyly, i. sine consilio. 52. A. hys +rycchesse. 53. C. sarpuleris; A. sarpulers. 55. C. tumolte; A. tumulte. // +A. stored. 56. C. palis; A. palays (Lat. _uallo_). // C. _om._ that. // C. +anoyenge; A. anoying. 57 C. atayne; A. attayne. // C. schorne; A. scorne. + + +METRE IV. + +_Quisquis composito serenus euo._ + + Who-so it be that is cleer of vertu, sad, and wel ordinat of + livinge, that hath put under foot the proude werdes and looketh + upright up-on either fortune, he may holde his chere undiscomfited. + The rage ne the manaces of the see, commoevinge or + chasinge upward hete fro the botme, ne shal not moeve that 5 + man; ne the unstable mountaigne that highte Vesevus, that + wrytheth out through his brokene chiminees smokinge fyres. Ne + the wey of thonder-light, that is wont to smyten heye toures, ne + shal nat moeve that man. Wher-to thanne, o wrecches, drede ye + tirauntes that ben wode and felonous with-oute any strengthe? 10 + Hope after no-thing, ne drede nat; and so shaltow desarmen + the ire of thilke unmighty tiraunt. But who-so that, quakinge, + dredeth or desireth thing that nis nat stable of his right, that + man that so doth hath cast awey his sheld and is remoeved fro + his place, and enlaceth him in the cheyne with the which he may 15 + ben drawen. + +ME. IV. 2. C. leuynge; A. lyuyng. // _Both_ wierdes; C. _has the gloss_ +fata. 3. C. may his cheere holde vndescounfited; A. may holde hys chiere +vndiscomfited. 4. C. manesses; A. manace (Lat. _minae_). 5. hete (Lat. +_aestum_). 6. C. hihte; A. hy[gh]t. 7. Ed. writheth; C. writith; A. +wircheth (Lat. _torquet_). // A. chemineys. 9. C. Whar-; A. Wher-. 10. C. +felonos; A. felownes. 11. C. deseruien; A. desarmen; Ed. disarmen. 14. C. +remwed; A. remoeued. 15. A. _om._ the _before_ which. + + +PROSE IV. + +_Sentisne, inquit, hec._ + + 'Felestow,' quod she, 'thise thinges, and entren they aught in + thy corage? Artow lyke an asse to the harpe? Why wepestow, + why spillestow teres? Yif thou abydest after help of thy leche, + thee bihoveth discovere thy wounde.' + + Tho I, that hadde gadered strengthe in my corage, answerede 5 + and seide: 'And nedeth it yit,' quod I, 'of rehersinge or of + amonicioun; and sheweth it nat y-nough by him-self the sharpnesse + of Fortune, that wexeth wood ayeins me? Ne moeveth it + nat thee to seen the face or the manere of this place (_i. prisoun_)? + Is this the librarie whiche that thou haddest chosen for a right 10 + certein sete to thee in myn hous, ther-as thou desputedest ofte + with me of the sciences of thinges touchinge divinitee and touchinge + mankinde? Was thanne myn habite swich as it is now? + Was than my face or my chere swiche as now (_quasi diceret, non_), + whan I soughte with thee secrets of nature, whan thou enformedest 15 + my maneres and the resoun of alle my lyf to the ensaumple of + the ordre of hevene? Is nat this the guerdoun that I referre to + thee, to whom I have be obeisaunt? Certes, thou confermedest, + by the mouth of Plato, this sentence, _that is to seyn_, that comune + thinges or comunalitees weren blisful, yif they that hadden studied 20 + al fully to wisdom governeden thilke thinges, or elles yif it so + bifille that the governoures of comunalitees studieden to geten + wisdom. + + Thou seidest eek, by the mouth of the same Plato, that it was + a necessarie cause, wyse men to taken and desire the governaunce 25 + of comune thinges, for that the governements of citees, y-left + in the handes of felonous tormentours citizenes, ne sholde nat + bringe in pestilence and destruccioun to gode folk. And therfor + I, folwinge thilke auctoritee (_sc. Platonis_), desired to putten forth + in execucioun and in acte of comune administracioun thilke 30 + thinges that I hadde lerned of thee among my secree resting-whyles. + Thou, and god that putte thee in the thoughtes of wyse + folk, ben knowinge with me, that no-thing ne broughte me to + maistrie or dignitee, but the comune studie of alle goodnesse. + And ther-of comth it that bi-twixen wikked folk and me han ben 35 + grevous discordes, that ne mighten ben relesed by preyeres; for + this libertee hath the freedom of conscience, that the wratthe of + more mighty folk hath alwey ben despysed of me for savacioun of + right. + + How ofte have I resisted and withstonde thilke man that highte 40 + Conigaste, that made alwey assautes ayeins the prospre fortunes of + pore feble folk? How ofte eek have I put of or cast out him, + Trigwille, provost of the kinges hous, bothe of the wronges that he + hadde bigunne to don, and eek fully performed? How ofte have + I covered and defended by the auctoritee of me, put ayeins perils-- 45 + _that is to seyn, put myn auctoritee in peril for_--the wrecched + pore folk, that the covetyse of straungeres unpunished tourmenteden + alwey with miseyses and grevaunces out of noumbre? Never man + ne drow me yit fro right to wronge. Whan I say the fortunes and + the richesses of the poeple of the provinces ben harmed or 50 + amenused, outher by privee ravynes or by comune tributes or + cariages, as sory was I as they that suffreden the harm. + + GLOSSA. _Whan that Theodoric, the king of Gothes, in a dere + yere, hadde hise gerneres ful of corn, and comaundede that no man + ne sholde byen no corn til his corn were sold, and that at a grevous 55 + dere prys, Boece withstood that ordinaunce, and over-com it, knowinge + al this the king him-self._ + + TEXTUS. Whan it was in the soure hungry tyme, ther was + establisshed or cryed grevous and inplitable coempcioun, that men + sayen wel it sholde greetly turmenten and endamagen al the 60 + province of Campaigne, I took stryf ayeins the provost of the pretorie + for comune profit. And, the king knowinge of it, I overcom + it, so that the coempcioun ne was not axed ne took effect. + + [GLOSSA.] _Coempcioun, that is to seyn, comune achat or bying + to-gidere, that were establisshed up-on the poeple by swiche a manere 65 + imposicioun, as who-so boughte a busshel corn, he moste yeve the king + the fifte part._ + + [TEXTUS.] Paulin, a counseiller of Rome, the richesses of the + whiche Paulin the houndes of the palays, _that is to seyn, the + officeres_, + wolden han devoured by hope and covetise, yit drow I him out of 70 + the Iowes (_sc. faucibus_) of hem that gapeden. And for as moche + as the peyne of the accusacioun aiuged biforn ne sholde nat + sodeinly henten ne punisshen wrongfully Albin, a counseiller of + Rome, I putte me ayeins the hates and indignaciouns of the + accusor Ciprian. Is it nat thanne y-nough y-seyn, that I have 75 + purchased grete discordes ayeins my-self? But I oughte be the + more assured ayeins alle othre folk (_s. Romayns_), that for the love + of rightwisnesse I ne reserved never no-thing to my-self to hem-ward + of the kinges halle, _sc. officers_, by the whiche I were the more + siker. But thorugh tho same accusers accusinge, I am condempned. 80 + Of the noumbir of the whiche accusers oon Basilius, + that whylom was chased out of the kinges service, is now compelled + in accusinge of my name, for nede of foreine moneye. + Also Opilion and Gaudencius han accused me, al be it so that the + Iustice regal hadde whylom demed hem bothe to go in-to exil for 85 + hir trecheryes and fraudes withoute noumbir. To whiche Iugement + they nolden nat obeye, but defendeden hem by the sikernesse + of holy houses, _that is to seyn, fledden into seintuaries_; and + whan this was aperceived to the king, he comaundede, that but + they voidede the citee of Ravenne by certein day assigned, that 90 + men sholde merken hem on the forheved with an hoot yren and + chasen hem out of the toune. Now what thing, semeth thee, + mighte ben lykned to this crueltee? For certes, thilke same day + was received the accusinge of my name by thilke same accusers. + What may ben seid her-to? (_quasi diceret, nichil_). Hath my 95 + studie and my cunninge deserved thus; or elles the forseide dampnacioun + _of me_, made that hem rightful accusers or no? (_quasi + diceret, non_). Was not Fortune ashamed of this? Certes, al + hadde nat Fortune ben ashamed that innocence was accused, yit + oughte she han had shame of the filthe of myne accusours. 100 + + But, axestow in somme, of what gilt I am accused, men seyn + that I wolde save the companye of the senatours. And desirest + thou to heren in what manere? I am accused that I sholde han + destourbed the accuser to beren lettres, by whiche he sholde han + maked the senatoures gilty ayeins the kinges real maiestee. O 105 + maistresse, what demestow of this? Shal I forsake this blame, + that I ne be no shame to thee? (_quasi diceret, non_). Certes, I have + wold it, _that is to seyn, the savacioun of the senat_, ne I shal never + leten to wilne it, and that I confesse and am aknowe; but the + entente of the accuser to be destourbed shal cese. For shal I 110 + clepe it thanne a felonie or a sinne that I have desired the + savacioun of the ordre of the senat? (_quasi diceret, dubito quid_). + And certes yit hadde thilke same senat don by me, thorugh hir + decrets and hir Iugements, as though it were a sinne or a felonie; + _that is to seyn, to wilne the savacioun of hem_ (_sc. senatus_). But 115 + folye, that lyeth alwey to him-self, may not chaunge the merite + of thinges. Ne I trowe nat, by the Iugement of Socrates, that + it were leveful to me to hyde the sothe, ne assente to lesinges. + But certes, how so ever it be of this, I putte it to gessen or + preisen to the Iugement of thee and of wyse folk. Of whiche 120 + thing al the ordinaunce and the sothe, for as moche as folk that + ben to comen after our dayes shullen knowen it, I have put it + in scripture and in remembraunce. For touching the lettres falsly + maked, by whiche lettres I am accused to han hoped the fredom + of Rome, what aperteneth me to speke ther-of? Of whiche 125 + lettres the fraude hadde ben shewed apertly, yif I hadde had + libertee for to han used and ben at the confessioun of myne + accusours, the whiche thing in alle nedes hath greet strengthe. + For what other fredom may men hopen? Certes, I wolde that + som other fredom mighte ben hoped. I wolde thanne han 130 + answered by the wordes of a man that highte Canius; for whan + he was accused by Gaius Cesar, Germeynes sone, that he + (_Canius_) was knowinge and consentinge of a coniuracioun + y-maked ayeins him (_sc. Gaius_), this Canius answerede thus: + "Yif I hadde wist it, thou haddest nat wist it." In which thing 135 + sorwe hath nat so dulled my wit, that I pleyne only that shrewede + folk aparailen felonies ayeins vertu; but I wondre greetly how + that they may performe thinges that they hadde hoped for to + don. For-why, to wilne shrewednesse, that comth peraventure + of oure defaute; but it is lyk a monstre and a mervaille, how 140 + that, in the present sighte of god, may ben acheved and performed + swiche thinges as every felonous man hath conceived in his + thought ayeins innocents. For which thing oon of thy famileres + nat unskilfully axed thus: "Yif god is, whennes comen wikkede + thinges? And yif god ne is, whennes comen gode thinges?" 145 + But al hadde it ben leveful that felonous folk, that now desiren + the blood and the deeth of alle gode men and eek of alle the + senat, han wilned to gon destroyen me, whom they han seyen + alwey batailen and defenden gode men and eek al the senat, + yit had I nat desserved of the faderes, _that is to seyn, of the 150 + senatoures_, that they sholden wilne my destruccioun. + + Thou remembrest wel, as I gesse, that whan I wolde doon or + seyen any thing, thou thyself, alwey present, rewledest me. At + the city of Verone, whan that the king, gredy of comune slaughter, + caste him to transporten up al the ordre of the senat the gilt of 155 + his real maiestee, of the whiche gilt that Albin was accused, with + how gret sikernesse of peril to me defendede I al the senat! + Thou wost wel that I seye sooth, ne I ne avauntede me never + in preysinge of my-self. For alwey, whan any wight receiveth + precious renoun in avauntinge him-self of his werkes, he amenuseth 160 + the secree of his conscience. But now thou mayst wel seen to + what ende I am comen for myne innocence; I receive peyne + of fals felonye for guerdon of verray vertu. And what open + confessioun of felonye hadde ever Iuges so acordaunt in crueltee, + _that is to seyn, as myn accusinge hath_, that either errour of + mannes 165 + wit or elles condicioun of Fortune, that is uncertein to alle mortal + folk, ne submittede some of hem, _that is to seyn, that it ne enclynede + som Iuge to han pitee or compassioun_? For al-thogh I hadde ben + accused that I wolde brenne holy houses, and strangle preestes + with wikkede swerde, or that I hadde greythed deeth to al gode 170 + men, algates the sentence sholde han punisshed me, present, + confessed, or convict. But now I am remewed fro the citee _of + Rome_ almost fyve hundred thousand pas, I am with-oute defence + dampned to proscripcioun and to the deeth, for the studie and + bountees that I have doon to the senat. But O, wel ben they 175 + worthy of merite (_as who seith, nay_), ther mighte never yit non + of hem be convict of swiche a blame as myne is! Of whiche + trespas, myne accusours sayen ful wel the dignitee; the whiche + dignitee, for they wolden derken it with medeling of som felonye, + they baren me on hand, and lyeden, that I hadde polut and 180 + defouled my conscience with sacrilege, for coveitise of dignitee. + And certes, thou thy-self, that are plaunted in me, chacedest + out of the sege of my corage al coveitise of mortal thinges; ne + sacrilege hadde no leve to han a place in me biforn thyne eyen. + For thou droppedest every day in myne eres and in my thought 185 + thilke comaundement of Pictagoras, _that is to seyn_, men shal + serve to godde, _and not to goddes_. Ne it was nat convenient, + _ne no nede_, to taken help of the foulest spirites; I, that thou + hast ordeined and set in swiche excellence that thou makedest + me lyk to god. And over this, the right clene secree chaumbre 190 + of myne hous, _that is to seyn, my wyf_, and the companye of + myn honest freendes, and my wyves fader, as wel holy as worthy + to ben reverenced thorugh his owne dedes, defenden me from + alle suspecioun of swich blame. But O malice! For they that + accusen me taken of thee, _Philosophie_, feith of so gret blame! 195 + For they trowen that I have had affinitee to malefice _or enchauntement_, + by-cause that I am replenisshed and fulfilled with thy + techinges, and enformed of thy maneres. And thus it suffiseth + not only, that thy reverence ne availe me not, but-yif that thou, + of thy free wille, rather be blemished with myn offencioun. But 200 + certes, to the harmes that I have, ther bitydeth yit this + encrees of harm, that the gessinge and the Iugement of moche + folk ne looken no-thing to the desertes of thinges, but only + to the aventure of fortune; and iugen that only swiche thinges + ben purveyed of god, whiche that temporel welefulnesse commendeth. 205 + + GLOSE. _As thus: that, yif a wight have prosperitee, he is a + good man and worthy to han that prosperitee; and who-so hath + adversitee, he is a wikked man, and god hath forsake him, and + he is worthy to han that adversitee. This is the opinioun of some 210 + folk._ + + And ther-of comth that good gessinge, first of alle thing, forsaketh + wrecches: certes, it greveth me to thinke right now the + dyverse sentences that the poeple seith of me. And thus moche + I seye, that the laste charge of contrarious fortune is this: that, 215 + whan that any blame is leyd upon a caitif, men wenen that he + hath deserved that he suffreth. And I, that am put awey fro + gode men, and despoiled of dignitees, and defouled of my name + by gessinge, have suffred torment for my gode dedes. Certes, + me semeth that I see the felonous covines of wikked men 220 + habounden in Ioye and in gladnesse. And I see that every + lorel shapeth him to finde out newe fraudes for to accuse gode + folk. And I see that gode men beth overthrowen for drede + of my peril; and every luxurious tourmentour dar doon alle + felonye unpunisshed and ben excited therto by yiftes; and 225 + innocents ne ben not only despoiled of sikernesse but of defence; + and therfore me list to cryen _to god_ in this wyse:-- + +PR. IV. 1. C. Felistow; A. Felest thou. 2. A. Art thou. // C. wepistow; A. +wepest thou. 3. A. spillest thou. 9. C. sen; A. seen. 11. A. sege (_for_ +sete). 12. _So_ A.; C. deuynyte. // C. _om. 2nd_ touchinge. 13. C. _om._ it +is. 14. C. om. _quasi ... non_. 17. _After_ this, C. _has_ nonne; A. _has_ +ironice. // C. gerdou_n_s; A. gerdou_n_ (Lat. _praemia_). 18. C. +conformedest (Lat. _sanxisti_); see note. 19. C. Mowht; A. mouthe. 20. A. +comunabletes. 22. A. studieden in grete wisdomes. 25. C. whise; A. wyse. +26. A. of comune citees (Lat. _urbium_). 27. C. citesenes; A. citizenis. +29. A. folowynge. // C. autorite; A. auctoritee. 30. C. excussioun(!); A. +execusioun. 32. C. whise; A. wise. 33. A. knowen; C. _has the gloss_ concij +(= conscii). 34. C. dignete; A. dignite. // C. _om._ the. 36. _So_ A.; C. +descordes. // _Above_ preyeres, C. _has_ i. est inexorabiles. 37. A. _om. +2nd_ the. 38. C. sauacioun; A. saluacioun. 40. C. recisted. // C. hyhte; A. +hy[gh]t. 41. C. Ed. prosp_er_e; A. p_ro_pre. 42. A. poure. // C. fookk; A. +folke. 45. C. deffended; A. defended. // C. autorite; A. auctorite. 47. C. +vnpunyssed; A. -nysched. 49. C. ne drowh; A. drowe. 50. A. rychesse. // C. +_om. 2nd_ the. 51. A. eyther (_for_ outher). // C. pryuey; A. priue. // C. +Raueynes; A. rauynes. 54. C. yer; A. yere. 55. C. A. solde. 58. C. sowr_e_; +A. soure (Lat. _acerbae famis tempore_). 59. A. establissed; C. +estabelissed. // C. vnplitable; A. inplitable (Lat. _inexplicabilis_). 61. +Ed. Campayne; C. A. Compaygne. 64. _The gloss_ (Coempcioun ... part) _is +misplaced in both_ MSS., _so as to precede_ Whan it was (58). 65. C. +estabelissed. // A. _om._ the. 66. C. imposiscioun. // C. bossel; A. +busshel. 68. _So_ A.; C. consoler (!). // A. rychesse. 69. C. palysse; A. +palays. 70. C. drowh; A. drowe. 71. sc. faucibus _from_ A. 73. C. punisse; +A. punischen. // C. conseyler. 75. A. yseyne. 77. A. asseured. 78. _After_ +no-thing, C. _adds_ i. affinite. 79. C. _om. 2nd_ the. 81. A. _om. 2nd_ +the. 82, 85. C. whilom; A. somtyme. 84. C. caudencius (_wrongly_). 88. C. +sentuarye; A. seyntuaries. 89. C. _om._ was. 90. C. assingned; A. assigned. +91. C. me (= men); A. men. // C. marke; A. merken. 92. A. _om._ the. // C. +_om._ thee. 93. C. crwelte. 94. C. resseyued. 98. C. asshamyd; A. asshamed. +99. C. whas. 101. A. axest thou. 102. C. desires. 104. C. destorbed; A. +distourbed. 106. C. mayst_er_esse; A. meistresse. A. demest thou. 109. C. +_om._ that. 109. C. I am; A. Ed. _om._ I. 110. C. destorbed. 111. A. a +felonie than. 114. C. and (_for_ or). 119. C. A. put. 120. C. whise. 122. +C. shellen; A. schollen (_better_ shullen). 123. A. _om. 2nd_ in. C. +thowchinge. 125. C. _om._ Of whiche lettres. 129. C. _om._ what. // C. +hoepen. 133. C. _om._ Canius. 136. C. sorw. 137. C. felonies; A. folies +(Lat. _scelerata_). // A. vertues (_wrongly_). 138. C. han; A. had +(_better_ hadde). 139. C. _om._ to. 148. C. gon and; A. Ed. _om._ and. 151. +C. willene; A. wilne. 153. C. rwledest. 154. C. _om. 1st_ the. 155. C. +transpor(!). C. vp; A. vp on. 157. C. deffendede. 158. A. _om. 2nd_ ne. +159. C. resseyueth; A. resceiueth. 162. C. resseyue; A. receiue. 163. A. in +(_for_ for). // _Both_ gerdoun; Ed. gwerdone. 164. C. crwelte. 171. C. +punyssed; A. punysched. 172. A. conuict; C. _con_uict. // _So_ A.; C. +remwed. 173. C. paas. 176. C. m_er_ite; A. mercye; (_gloss in_ C. ironice; +O meritos). 179. C. dirken. 180. C. an; A. on. 181. C. sacrilege; _glossed_ +sorcerie. 183. C. alle; A. al. 185. C. _om. 2nd_ in. 187. _in margin of_ +C.; Homo debet seruire deo et non diis. // C. _om._ was. // A. no couenaunt +(Lat. _Nec conueniebat_). 188. A. spirites; C. spirite (Lat. _spirituum_). +189. C. and; A. or. 190. C. chaumbyr; A. chaumbre. 191. C. compaygnye; A. +compaignie. 193. C. deffenden. // C. from; A. of. 195. C. the philosophre; +A. the philosophie (Lat. _te_). 196. A. enchau_n_tementz. 198. C. +thechinges. 207. A. _Glosa_. 208. C. who; A. who so. 217. C. desserued. +218. C. of (1); A. from. 223. C. beth; A. ben. 225. C. vnpunnysshed; A. +vnpunissed. 227. C. wise; A. manere; Ed. maner. + + +METRE V. + +_O stelliferi conditor orbis._ + + O thou maker of the whele that bereth the sterres, which that + art y-fastned to thy perdurable chayer, and tornest the hevene + with a ravisshing sweigh, and constreinest the sterres to suffren + thy lawe; so that the mone som-tyme shyning with hir ful hornes, + meting with alle the bemes of the sonne hir brother, hydeth the 5 + sterres that ben lesse; and somtyme, whan the mone, pale with + hir derke hornes, approcheth the sonne, leseth hir lightes; and + that the eve-sterre Hesperus, whiche that in the firste tyme of + the night bringeth forth hir colde arysinges, cometh eft ayein + hir used cours, and is pale _by the morwe_ at the rysing of the 10 + sonne, and is thanne cleped Lucifer. Thou restreinest the day + by shorter dwelling, in the tyme of colde winter that maketh + the leves to falle. Thou dividest the swifte tydes of the night, + whan the hote somer is comen. Thy might atempreth the + variaunts sesons of the yere; so that Zephirus the deboneir 15 + wind bringeth ayein, _in the first somer sesoun_, the leves that + the wind that highte Boreas hath reft awey _in autumpne, that + is to seyn, in the laste ende of somer_; and the sedes that the + sterre that highte Arcturus saw, ben waxen heye cornes whan the + sterre Sirius eschaufeth hem. Ther nis no-thing unbounde from 20 + his olde lawe, ne forleteth the werke of his propre estat. + + O thou governour, governinge alle thinges by certein ende, why + refusestow only to governe the werkes of men by dewe manere? + Why suffrest thou that slydinge fortune torneth so grete entrechaunginges + of thinges, so that anoyous peyne, that sholde dewely 25 + punisshe felouns, punissheth innocents? And folk of wikkede + maneres sitten in heye chayres, and anoyinge folk treden, and + that unrightfully, on the nekkes of holy men? And vertu cler-shyninge + naturelly is hid in derke derkenesses, and the rightful + man bereth the blame and the peyne of the feloun. Ne forsweringe 30 + ne the fraude, covered and kembd with a fals colour, + ne anoyeth nat to shrewes; the whiche shrewes, whan hem list + to usen hir strengthe, they reioysen hem to putten under hem + the sovereyne kinges, whiche that poeple with-outen noumbre + dreden. 35 + + O thou, what so ever thou be that knittest alle bondes of + thinges, loke on thise wrecchede erthes; we men that ben nat + a foule party, but a fayr party of so grete a werk, we ben + tormented in this see of fortune. Thou governour, withdraw + and restreyne the ravisshinge flodes, and fastne and ferme thise 40 + erthes stable with thilke bonde, with whiche thou governest the + hevene that is so large.' + +ME. V. 1. C. whel; A. whele. 3. C. Rauessyng; A. rauyssyng. // C. sweyh; A. +sweigh; Ed. sweygh. 4. C. wyt (_for_ with). 6. A. lasse. // C. wan (_for_ +whan). 9. C. est; A. eft (Lat. _iterum_). // A. a[gh]eynes. 10. C. _om._ +the _after_ at. 13. C. falle; A. to falle. // C. swift; A. swifte. 14. C. +wan (_for_ whan). 15. C. sesoun (_wrongly_); A. sesons. 17. C. hihte; A. +hy[gh]t. // C. borias. 19. C. hihte; A. hy[gh]t. // C. sawgh; A. saw. // C. +hyye; A. hey. // C. wan. 20. C. eschaufed; A. eschaufeth; (Lat. _urat_). // +C. fram. 21. C. the werke; A. hym. 23. C. refowsestow; A. refusest thou. // +C. dwwe; A. dewe. 24. C. suffres. // C. so; A. to. // A. vtter; (_for_ +entre-). 25. C. dwwelly; A. duelly. 26. C. punysshe; A. punissit[gh]. 27. +C. heer_e_; A. hei[gh]e (Lat. _celsos_). // C. chayres; A. chaiers. 28. C. +oon (_read_ on); A. in. 29. A. clere and shynyng (Lat. _clara_). 30. A. Ne +the forsweryng. 32. C. weche (_for_ whiche). // C. wan (_for_ whan). 34. C. +weche. // C. nowmbyr; A. noumbre. 38. C. _om._ a _bef._ werk. 39. C. this; +A. the. // C. withdrawh. 40. C. restryne; A. restreyne. // C. thei (_for_ +the). // C. rauesynge; A. rauyssinge. 41. C. by whiche; A. with whiche +(_better?_) + + +PROSE V. + +_Hic ubi continuato dolore delatraui._ + + Whan I hadde, with a continuel sorwe, sobbed or borken out + thise thinges, she with hir chere pesible, and no-thing amoeved + with my compleintes, seide thus: 'Whan I say thee,' quod she, + 'sorweful and wepinge, I wiste anon that thou were a wrecche + and exiled; but I wiste never how fer thyne exile was, yif thy 5 + tale ne hadde shewed it to me. But certes, al be thou fer fro thy + contree, thou nart nat put out of it; but thou hast failed of thy + weye and gon amis. And yif thou hast lever for to wene that + thou be put out of thy contree, than hast thou put out thy-self + rather than any other wight hath. For no wight but thy-self ne 10 + mighte never han don that to thee. For yif thou remembre of + what contree thou art born, it nis nat governed by emperours, ne + by governement of multitude, as weren the contrees of hem of + Athenes; but oo lord and oo king, _and that is god, that is lord of + thy contree_, whiche that reioyseth him of the dwelling of hise 15 + citezenes, and nat for to putte hem in exil; of the whiche lorde + it is a soverayne fredom to be governed by the brydel of him and + obeye to his Iustice. Hastow foryeten thilke right olde lawe of thy + citee, in the whiche citee it is ordeined and establisshed, that for + what wight that hath lever founden ther-in his sete or his hous than 20 + elles-wher, he may nat be exiled by no right from that place? For + who-so that is contened in-with the palis and the clos of thilke citee, + ther nis no drede that he may deserve to ben exiled. But who-so + that leteth the wil for to enhabite there, he forleteth also to deserve + to ben citezein of thilke citee. So that I sey, that the face of this 25 + place ne moveth me nat so mochel as thyne owne face. Ne I + axe nat rather the walles of thy librarie, aparayled and wrought + with yvory and with glas, than after the sete of thy thought. In + whiche I putte nat whylom bokes, but I putte that that maketh + bokes worthy of prys or precious, that is to seyn, the sentence of 30 + my bokes. And certeinly of thy desertes, bistowed in comune + good, thou hast seid sooth, but after the multitude of thy gode + dedes, thou hast seid fewe; and of the honestee or of the falsnesse + of thinges that ben aposed ayeins thee, thou hast remembred + thinges that ben knowen to alle folk. And of the felonyes and 35 + fraudes of thyne accusours, it semeth thee have y-touched it forsothe + rightfully and shortly, al mighten tho same thinges betere + and more plentivousely ben couth in the mouthe of the poeple + that knoweth al this. + + Thou hast eek blamed gretly and compleined of the wrongful 40 + dede of the senat. And thou hast sorwed for my blame, and thou + hast wopen for the damage of thy renoun that is apayred; and thy + laste sorwe eschaufede ayeins fortune, and compleinest that guerdouns + ne ben nat evenliche yolden to the desertes of folk. And + in the latere ende of thy wode Muse, thou preyedest that thilke 45 + pees that governeth the hevene sholde governe the erthe. But + for that manye tribulaciouns of affecciouns han assailed thee, and + sorwe and ire and wepinge to-drawen thee dyversely; as thou art + now feble of thought, mightier remedies ne shullen nat yit touchen + thee, for whiche we wol usen somdel lighter medicines: so that 50 + thilke passiouns that ben woxen harde in swellinge, by perturbaciouns + flowing in-to thy thought, mowen wexen esy and softe, + to receiven the strengthe of a more mighty and more egre + medicine, by an esier touchinge. + +PR. V. 1. C. _om._ a. // C. borken (= barked); A. broken (Lat. +_delatraui_). 2. A. peisible. 4. C. soruful; A. sorweful. // C. wrechche; +A. wrecche. 6. C. nadde; A. ne hadde. // A. to me; C. _om._ to. 8. C. wey; +A. weye. 11. C. remenbre; A. remembre. 13. C. _om._ hem of. 16. C. +cytesenis; A. citezenis. C. put; A. putte. 17. C. brydul; A. bridel. 18. C. +hasthow; A. hast thou. 19. C. weche. 20. C. whyht; A. wy[gh]t. 21. C. wer; +A. where. 22. C. contyned; A. contened. // C. palys; A. paleis (Lat. +_uallo_). 23. C. desserue. 25. C. cytesein; A. Citezein. // C. face, +_glossed_ i. manere (Lat. _facies_). 26. C. moueth; A. amoeueth. 27. A. Ne +I ne axe. // C. wrowht; A. wrou[gh]t. 29. C. put; A. putte (_twice_). // C. +whilom; A. somtyme. 30. C. presyous. 32. C. seyde; A. seid. 33. A. +vnhonestee (_wrongly_). 34. A. Ed. opposed. // C. remenbryd. 36. C. +Acusours. // C. I-twoched (_for_ I-towched); A. I-touched. 38: C. mowhth; +A. mouthe. 42. A. wepen. 43. C. A. gerdouns; Ed. guerdons. 44. C. _om._ +nat. 45. C. later_e_; A. l_att_re. // C. _glosses_ wode _by_ s. seuientis. +52. A. p_er_turbac_i_ou_n_ folowyng (_wrongly_). + + +METRE VI. + +_Cum Phebi radiis graue +Cancri sidus inestuat._ + + Whan that the hevy sterre of the Cancre eschaufeth by the + bemes of Phebus, _that is to seyn, whan that Phebus the sonne is + in the signe of the Cancre_, who-so yeveth thanne largely hise sedes + to the feldes that refusen to receiven hem, lat him gon, bigyled of + trust that he hadde to his corn, to acorns of okes. Yif thou wolt 5 + gadre violettes, ne go thou not to the purpur wode whan the feld, + chirkinge, agryseth of colde by the felnesse of the winde that highte + Aquilon. Yif thou desirest or wolt usen grapes, ne seke thou nat, + with a glotonous hond, to streyne and presse the stalkes of the + vine in the ferst somer sesoun; for Bachus, the god of wyne, hath 10 + rather yeven hise yiftes to autumpne, _the later ende of somer_. + + God tokneth and assigneth the tymes, ablinge hem to hir + propres offices; ne he ne suffreth nat the stoundes whiche that + him-self hath devyded and constreyned to ben y-medled to-gidere. + And forthy he that forleteth certein ordinaunce of doinge by + over-throwinge 15 + wey, he ne hath no glade issue or ende of his werkes. + +ME. VI. 1. C. ca_n_kyr; A. Ed. cancre. 2. C. beemes; A. beme (Lat. +_radiis_). 3. C. cankyr; A. Ed. Cancre. 4. C. feeldes. // C. Reseyue; A. +receiuen. // C. _glosses_ hem _by_ s. corn. 5. C. Accornes of Okes; A. +acorns or okes. // C. wolt; A. wilt. 6. C. gadery; A. gadre. // C. feeld; +A. felde. 7. C. felnesses; A. felnesse. // C. hyhte; A. hy[gh]t. 9. C. +stryne; A. streyne. 11. C. later; A. latter. 13. C. propres; A. propre. 16. +C. issw; A. issue. + +PROSE VI. + +_Primum igitur paterisne me pauculis rogacionibus._ + + First woltow suffre me to touche and assaye the estat of thy + thought by a fewe demaundes, so that I may understonde what + be the manere of thy curacioun?' + + 'Axe me,' quod I, 'at thy wille, what thou wolt, and I shal + answere.' 5 + + Tho seide she thus: 'Whether wenestow,' quod she, 'that + this world be governed by foolish happes and fortunous, or + elles that ther be in it any governement of resoun?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'I ne trowe nat in no manere, that so + certein thinges sholde be moeved by fortunous fortune; but I 10 + wot wel that god, maker and mayster, is governour of his werk. + Ne never nas yit day that mighte putte me out of the sothnesse + of that sentence.' + + 'So is it,' quod she; 'for the same thing songe thou a litel + her-biforn, and biweyledest and biweptest, that only men weren 15 + put out of the cure of god. For of alle other thinges thou + ne doutedest nat that they nere governed by resoun. But owh! + (_i. pape!_) I wondre gretly, certes, why that thou art syk, sin + that thou art put in so holsom a sentence. But lat us seken + depper; I coniecte that ther lakketh I not nere what. But 20 + sey me this: sin that thou ne doutest nat that this world be + governed by god, with whiche governailes takestow hede that + it is governed?' + + 'Unnethe,' quod I, 'knowe I the sentence of thy questioun; + so that I ne may nat yit answeren to thy demaundes.' 25 + + 'I nas nat deceived,' quod she, 'that ther ne faileth somwhat, + by whiche the maladye of thy perturbacioun is crept into + thy thought, so as the strengthe of the palis chyning is open. + But sey me this: remembrest thou what is the ende of thinges, + and whider that the entencioun of alle kinde tendeth?' 30 + + 'I have herd it told som-tyme,' quod I; 'but drerinesse hath + dulled my memorie.' + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'thou wost wel whennes that alle thinges + ben comen and procedeth?' + + 'I wot wel,' quod I, and answerede, that 'god is beginning 35 + of al.' + + 'And how may this be,' quod she, 'that, sin thou knowest + the beginning of thinges, that thou ne knowest nat what is the + ende of thinges? But swiche ben the customes of perturbaciouns, + and this power they han, that they may moeve a 40 + man out of his place, _that is to seyn, fro the stablenes and perfeccioun + of his knowinge_; but, certes, they may nat al arace + him, ne aliene him in al. But I wolde that thou woldest + answere to this: remembrestow that thou art a man?' + + 'Why sholde I nat remembre that?' quod I. 45 + + 'Maystow nat telle me thanne,' quod she, 'what thing is a man?' + + 'Axestow me nat,' quod I, 'whether that I be a resonable + mortal beest? I woot wel, and I confesse wel that I am it.' + + 'Wistestow never yit that thou were any other thing?' quod + she. 50 + + 'No,' quod I. + + 'Now woot I,' quod she, 'other cause of thy maladye, and + that right grete. Thou hast left for to knowen thy-self, what + thou art; thorugh whiche I have pleynly founden the cause of + thy maladye, or elles the entree of recoveringe of thyn hele. 55 + For-why, for thou art confounded with foryeting of thy-self, for-thy + sorwestow that thou art exiled of thy propre goodes. And + for thou ne wost what is the ende of thinges, for-thy demestow + that felonous and wikked men ben mighty and weleful. And + for thou hast foryeten by whiche governements the world is 60 + governed, for-thy wenestow that thise mutaciouns of fortune + fleten with-oute governour. Thise ben grete causes not only + to maladye, but, certes, grete causes to deeth. But I thanke + the auctor and the maker of hele, that nature hath not al + forleten thee. I have grete norisshinges of thyn hele, and that 65 + is, the sothe sentence of governaunce of the worlde; that thou + bilevest that the governinge of it nis nat subiect ne underput + to the folie of thise happes aventurous, but to the resoun of + god. And ther-for doute thee no-thing; for of this litel spark + thyn hete of lyf shal shyne. 70 + + But for as moche as it is nat tyme yit of faster remedies, and + the nature of thoughtes deceived is this, that as ofte as they + casten awey sothe opiniouns, they clothen hem in false opiniouns, + of which false opiniouns the derkenesse of perturbacioun wexeth + up, that confoundeth the verray insighte: and that derkenesse 75 + shal I assaye som-what to maken thinne and wayk by lighte + and meneliche remedies; so that, after that the derkenesse of + deceivinge desiringes is don awey, thou mowe knowe the shyninge + of verray light. + +PR. VI. 1. C. woltow; A. wolt thou. // C. estat; A. stat. 6. C. wheyther. +// C. weenesthow; A. wenest thou. 8. A. _ins._ wenest thou _after_ elles. +9. A. _om. 2nd_ I. 11. C. his; A. this (Lat. _suo_). 12. C. put; A. putte. +14. C. lytul; A. lytel. 17. C. dowtedest, A. doutest. // C. owh; A. how; +Ed. ough. 18. C. syk; A. seek. 19. C. sin that; A. sithen. // A. in-to +(_for_ in). 20. A. _om._ ner_e_. 21. C. syn; A. sithen. 22. A. takest thou. +23. C. _om._ it. 25. C. _om._ nat. // A. demaunde (Lat. _inquisita_). 26. +C. desseyued. 27. C. of thi; A. _om._ thi. 28. C. palys chynyng; A. paleys +schynyng (Lat. _hiante ualli robore_). 29. C. remenbres. // A. _adds_ thi +_bef._ thinges; _and om._ and. 30. C. entensyn. 34. A. p_ro_ceded. 35. A. +is the. 37. C. syn; A. sithen. 39. A. endyng. 42. C. arrace; A. arace. 44. +C. Remenbresthow; A. remembrest thou. 45. C. remenbre. 46. C. Maysthow; A. +Maiste thou. // C. thinge. 47. C. Axestow me nat; A. Axest not me. // C. +wheither. // A. _om._ I _after_ that. 48. A. best mortel. 49. C. +Wystesthow; A. Wistest thou. 54. C. fwonde; A. knowen. 56. C. confwndyd. +57. C. sorwistow; A. sorwest thou. 58. C. domesthow; A. demest. 59. A. +_om._ And. 60. C. ast foryeeten. // C. gou_er_nement; A. gouernementz (Lat. +_gubernaculis_). 61. A. wenest thou. 63. C. thi deth; A. (_rightly_) _om._ +thi. 64. C. alle; A. al. 65. A. _ins._ and _before_ I have. 67. A. subgit. +// C. -putte; A. -put. 68. C. Auentros; A. auenturouses; Ed. auenturous. // +C. _om._ to. 69. C. lytul; A. litel. 70. A. heet. 71. C. meche (= moche). +72. C. desseyued; A. disseiued. 74. C. dirkenesse; A. derknesse. // C. +perturba (!). // C. wexit. 78. C. A. desseyuynge. + + +METRE VII. + +_Nubibus atris._ + + The sterres, covered with blake cloudes, ne mowen yeten + a-doun no light. Yif the trouble wind that hight Auster, turning + and walwinge the see, medleth the hete, _that is to seyn, + the boyling up from the botme_; the wawes, that whylom weren + clere as glas and lyke to the faire clere dayes, withstande anon 5 + the sightes of men by the filthe and ordure that is resolved. + And the fletinge streem, that royleth doun dyversly fro heye + mountaignes, is arested and resisted ofte tyme by the encountringe + of a stoon that is departed and fallen from som roche. + + And for-thy, yif thou wolt loken and demen sooth with cleer 10 + light, and holden the wey with a right path, weyve thou Ioye, + dryf fro thee drede, fleme thou hope, ne lat no sorwe aproche; + _that is to seyn, lat non of thise four passiouns over-comen thee + or blende thee_. For cloudy and derke is thilke thought, and + bounde with brydles, where-as thise thinges regnen.' 15 + +ME. VII. 1. C. Ed. yeten; A. geten. 2. C. A. wynde. 4. C. Ed. whilom; A. +somtyme. 5. C. lyk; A. lyke. // C. cleer_e_ dayes and brihte; A. bry[gh]t +dayes. // C. withstand; A. withstant. 7. C. hy; A. hey[gh]e. 9. C. fram. +14. C. A. dirke. 15. C. were (_for_ where). // C. reygnen; A. regnen. + + +EXPLICIT LIBER PRIMUS. + + + + +BOOK II. + + +PROSE I. + +_Postea paulisper conticuit._ + + After this she stinte a litel; and, after that she hadde gadered + by atempre stillenesse myn attencioun, she seide thus: (_As who + mighte seyn thus: After thise thinges she stinte a litel; and whan + she aperceived by atempre stillenesse that I was ententif to herkene + hir, she bigan to speke in this wyse_): 'Yif I,' quod she, 'have 5 + understonden and knowen outrely the causes and the habit of + thy maladye, thou languissest and art defeted for desyr and + talent of thy rather fortune. She, that ilke Fortune only, that + is chaunged, as thou feynest, to thee-ward, hath perverted the + cleernesse and the estat of thy corage. I understonde the 10 + fele-folde colours and deceites of thilke merveilous monstre + Fortune, and how she useth ful flateringe familaritee with hem + that she enforceth to bigyle; so longe, til that she confounde + with unsufferable sorwe hem that she hath left in despeyr unpurveyed. + And yif thou remembrest wel the kinde, the maneres, 15 + and the desert of thilke Fortune, thou shalt wel knowe that, + as in hir, thou never ne haddest ne hast y-lost any fair thing. + But, as I trowe, I shal nat gretly travailen to do thee remembren + on thise thinges. For thou were wont to hurtelen and despysen + hir, with manly wordes, whan she was blaundissinge and present, 20 + and pursewedest hir with sentences that were drawen out of myn + entree, _that is to seyn, out of myn informacioun_. But no sodein + mutacioun ne bitydeth nat with-oute a manere chaunginge of + corages; and so is it befallen that thou art a litel departed + fro the pees of thy thought. 25 + + But now is tyme that thou drinke and ataste some softe and + delitable thinges; so that, whan they ben entred with-in thee, + it mowe maken wey to strengere drinkes of medicynes. Com + now forth therfore the suasioun of swetenesse rethorien, whiche + that goth only the right wey, whyl she forsaketh nat myne estatuts. 30 + And with Rhetorice com forth Musice, a damisel of our hous, + that singeth now lighter moedes _or prolaciouns_, now hevyer. + What eyleth thee, man? What is it that hath cast thee in-to + morninge and in-to wepinge? I trowe that thou hast seyn + som newe thing and uncouth. Thou wenest that Fortune be 35 + chaunged ayein thee; but thou wenest wrong, yif thou that + wene. Alwey tho ben hir maneres; she hath rather kept, as + to thee-ward, hir propre stablenesse in the chaunginge of hir-self. + Right swich was she whan she flatered thee, and deceived 40 + thee with unleveful lykinges of fals welefulnesse. Thou + hast now knowen and ataynt the doutous or double visage of + thilke blinde goddesse Fortune. She, that yit covereth hir and + wimpleth hir to other folk, hath shewed hir every-del to thee. + Yif thou aprovest hir and thenkest that she is good, use hir + maneres and pleyne thee nat. And yif thou agrysest hir false 45 + trecherye, despyse and cast awey hir that pleyeth so harmfully; + for she, that is now cause of so muche sorwe to thee, sholde + ben cause to thee of pees and of Ioye. She hath forsaken + thee, forsothe; the whiche that never man may ben siker that + she ne shal forsake him. 50 + + GLOSE. _But natheles, some bokes han the text thus_: For sothe, + she hath forsaken thee, ne ther nis no man siker that she ne + hath nat forsaken. + + Holdestow than thilke welefulnesse precious to thee that shal + passen? And is present Fortune dereworthe to thee, which that 55 + nis nat feithful for to dwelle; and, whan she goth awey, that + she bringeth a wight in sorwe? For sin she may nat ben withholden + at a mannes wille, she maketh him a wrecche whan she + departeth fro him. What other thing is flittinge Fortune but a + maner shewinge of wrecchednesse that is to comen? Ne it ne 60 + suffyseth nat only to loken on thinge that is present biforn the + eyen of a man. But wisdom loketh and amesureth the ende + of thinges; and the same chaunginge from oon in-to an-other, + _that is to seyn, from adversitee in-to prosperitee_, maketh that the + manaces of Fortune ne ben nat for to dreden, ne the flateringes 65 + of hir to ben desired. Thus, at the laste, it bihoveth thee to + suffren with evene wille in pacience al that is don in-with the + floor of Fortune, _that is to seyn, in this world_, sin thou hast + ones put thy nekke under the yok of hir. For yif thou wolt + wryten a lawe of wendinge and of dwellinge to Fortune, whiche 70 + that thou hast chosen frely to ben thy lady, artow nat wrongful + in that, and makest Fortune wroth and aspere by thyn inpatience, + and yit thou mayst nat chaunge hir? + + Yif thou committest and bitakest thy sailes to the winde, thou + shall be shoven, not thider that thou woldest, but whider that the 75 + wind shoveth thee. Yif thou castest thy sedes in-to the feldes, + thou sholdest han in minde that the yeres ben, amonges, other-whyle + plentevous and other-whyle bareyne. Thou hast bitaken + thy-self to the governaunce of Fortune, and for-thy it bihoveth + thee to ben obeisaunt to the maneres of thy lady. Enforcest 80 + thou thee to aresten or withholden the swiftnesse and the sweigh + of hir turninge whele? O thou fool of alle mortal fooles, if + Fortune bigan to dwelle stable, she cesede thanne to ben + Fortune! + +PR. I. 1. C. lytul; A. litel; (_and so below_). // A. she; C. I +(_wrongly_). 2. C. atencioun. 4. C. aperseyuyd; A. aperceiued. 5. C. here; +A. hire. // C. whise. 6. A. vtterly. 7. C. maledye. // A. talent and +desijr. 9. C. changed; A. chaunged. 10. A. astat. 11. C. feelefold; A. +felefolde. // A. colo_ur_. // C. meruayles; A. merueillous. 14. C. +onsufferabele; A. vnsuffreable. // C. dyspeyr; A. despeir. 15. C. +remenbrest. 16. A. _om._ that. 17. C. thinge. 18. C. remenbr_e_; A. +remembren. 19. C. on; A. of. // C. hurtelyn; A. hurtlen. 20. C. wan. // C. +_om._ was. 21. C. purswedest; A. pursewedest. 24. A. departed a litel. 26. +C. ataast; A. atast. 29. C. suacyou_n_; A. suasiou_n_. 30. C. estatutes; A. +estatutz. 31. A. damoisel. 32. C. A. moedes (Lat. _modos_). // C. +probasyons; A. prolaciouns. 36. C. weenes. 38. C. stabylnesse; A. +stablenes. // C. _ins._ standeth _bef._ in. // C. chau_n_nynge. 40. C. +desseyued; A. desseiued. // C. vnlefful; A. vnleueful. 42. C. coueryht. 43. +C. hat (_for_ hath). 44. C. thinkest; A. thenkest. // C. god; A. goode. 48. +A. to the cause. 53. C. forsake; A. forsaken. 54. C. holdestow; A. holdest +thou. // C. p_re_syes; A. p_re_ciouse. 56. C. feythfulle; A. feithful. 57. +C. whitholden. 62. A. _om._ a. // A. mesureth. 63. C. fram. 64. C. in-to; +A. to. 65. C. manesses; A. manaces. 67. C. wit. 68. C. syn; A. sythen. 69. +C. welt; A. wilt; Ed. wolt. 71. C. artow; A. art thou. 75. C. thedyr; A. +thider. // C. whedyr. 76. C. A. wynde. // C. in-to; A. in. // C. feeldes. +77. A. _om._ amonges. 78. C. barayne. 81. C. swey[gh]; A. sweyes (Lat. +_impetum_). 82. C. wheel; A. whele. + + +METRE I. + +_Hec cum superba uerterit uices dextra._ + + Whan Fortune with a proud right hand hath torned hir + chaunginge stoundes, she fareth lyk the maneres of the boilinge + Eurype. GLOSA. _Eurype is an arm of the see that ebbeth and + floweth; and som-tyme the streem is on o syde, and som-tyme on + the other._ TEXT. She, cruel Fortune, casteth adoun kinges 5 + that whylom weren y-drad; and she, deceivable, enhaunseth up + the humble chere of him that is discomfited. Ne she neither + hereth ne rekketh of wrecchede wepinges; and she is so hard + that she laugheth and scorneth the wepinges of hem, the whiche + she hath maked wepe with hir free wille. Thus she pleyeth, 10 + and thus she proeueth hir strengthes; and sheweth a greet wonder + to alle hir servauntes, yif that a wight is seyn weleful, and over-throwe + in an houre. + +ME. I. 3. C. A. Eurippe (_twice_); Ed. Eurype. 5. C. the; A. that. 6. C. +whilom; A. somtyme. // C. enhanseth; A. enhau_n_seth. 7. C. vmble; A. +humble. // C. descounfited; A. discomfited. // C. Ne; A. and. 9. C. +lyssheth; A. lau[gh]eth; Ed. laugheth (Lat. _ridet_.) 11. A. p_re_ueth. // +A. strengthe (Lat. _uires_). // C. A. grete. 12. C. whiht; A. wy[gh]t. + + +PROSE II. + +_Vellem autem pauca tecum._ + + Certes, I wolde pleten with thee a fewe thinges, usinge the + wordes of Fortune; tak hede now thy-self, yif that she axeth + right. "O thou man, wher-fore makest thou me gilty by thyne + every-dayes pleyninges? What wrong have I don thee? What + goodes have I bireft thee that weren thyne? Stryf or plete 5 + with me, bifore what Iuge that thou wolt, of the possessioun + of richesses or of dignitees. And yif thou mayst shewen me + that ever any mortal man hath received any of tho thinges to + ben hise in propre, than wol I graunte frely that alle thilke + thinges weren thyne whiche that thou axest. Whan that nature 10 + broughte thee forth out of thy moder wombe, I receyved thee + naked and nedy of alle thinges, and I norisshede thee with my + richesses, and was redy and ententif through my favour to + susteyne thee; and that maketh thee now inpacient ayeins me; + and I envirounde thee with alle the aboundance and shyninge 15 + of alle goodes that ben in my right. Now it lyketh me to + with-drawen my hand; thou hast had grace as he that hath + used of foreine goodes: thou hast no right to pleyne thee, as + though thou haddest outrely for-lorn alle thy thinges. Why + pleynest thou thanne? I have done thee no wrong. Richesses, 20 + honours, and swiche other thinges ben of my right. My servauntes + knowen me for hir lady; they comen with me, and departen + whan I wende. I dar wel affermen hardily, that yif tho thinges, + of which thou pleynest that thou hast forlorn, hadde ben thyne, + thou ne haddest not lorn hem. Shal I thanne only ben defended 25 + to usen my right? + + Certes, it is leveful to the hevene to make clere dayes, and, + after that, to coveren tho same dayes with derke nightes. The + yeer hath eek leve to apparailen the visage of the erthe, now + with floures and now with fruit, and to confounden hem som-tyme 30 + with reynes and with coldes. The see hath eek his right + to ben som-tyme calme and blaundishing with smothe water, + and som-tyme to ben horrible with wawes and with tempestes. + But the covetise of men, that may nat ben stanched, shal it + binde me to ben stedefast, sin that stedefastnesse is uncouth 35 + to my maneres? Swich is my strengthe, and this pley I pleye + continuely. I torne the whirlinge wheel with the torning cercle; + I am glad to chaungen the lowest to the heyest, and the heyest + to the lowest. Worth up, if thou wolt, so it be by this lawe, + that thou ne holde nat that I do thee wronge thogh thou 40 + descende adoun, whan the resoun of my pley axeth it. + + Wistest thou nat how Cresus, the king of Lydiens, of whiche + king Cyrus was ful sore agast a litel biforn, that this rewliche + Cresus was caught of Cyrus and lad to the fyr to ben brent, + but that a rayn descendede doun fro hevene that rescowede 45 + him? And is it out of thy minde how that Paulus, consul of + Rome, whan he hadde taken the king of Perciens, weep pitously + for the captivitee of the self kinge? What other thing biwailen + the cryinges of tragedies but only the dedes of Fortune, that + with an unwar stroke overtorneth realmes of grete nobley? 50 + GLOSE. _Tragedie is to seyn, a ditee of a prosperitee for a tyme, + that endeth in wrecchednesse._ + + Lernedest nat thou _in Greke_, whan thou were yonge, that + in the entree, _or in the celere_, of Iupiter, ther ben couched two + tonnes; that on is ful of good, that other is ful of harm? What 55 + right hast thou to pleyne, yif thou hast taken more plentevously + of the goode syde, _that is to seyn, of my richesses and prosperites_; + and what eek if I ne be nat al departed fro thee? What eek + yif my mutabilitee yiveth thee rightful cause of hope to han yit + beter thinges? Natheles dismaye thee nat in thy thought; and 60 + thou that art put in the comune realme of alle, ne desyre nat to + liven by thyn only propre right. + +PR. II. 3. C. makes; A. makest. 4. A. wronges (Lat. _iniuriam_). 5. C. +pleten; A. plete (Lat. _contende_). 8. C. reseyued. // C. tho; A. these. 9. +C. thykke; A. thilke. 11. C. browht; A. brou[gh]t. // C. resseyued. 12. A. +al thing. // C. noryssede; A. norysshed. 13. C. fauor; A. fauo_ur_. 19. A. +vtterly lorn. 20. C. pleynes. 25. C. I shal; A. Shal I. // C. deffendyd. +28. C. coeueryn; A. keuere (_better_ coveren). // C. dirk; A. derke. 29. C. +apayrelyn; A. apparaile. 30. C. frut; A. fruyt. 32. C. kalm; A. calme. // +C. blawndyssynge; A. blaundyshing. 33. C. _om. 2nd_ with. 35. C. stidefast; +A. stedfast. _So_ stide(sted-)fastnesse. 41. C. dessende. // A. dou_n_. // +A. _om._ the. 42. C. wistesthow; A. Wost thou (Lat. _Nesciebas_). // A. +_om._ the. 44. C. kawth; A. cau[gh]t. 45. C. dessendede; A. descended. 48. +C. kapteuite; A. captiuitee. // C. thinge; A. thinges. 49. C. cryenges; A. +criinges. 50. A. the realmes; C. _om._ the. // C. noblye; A. nobley. 54. A. +seler. // C. cowched; A. couched (Lat. _iacere_). 56. C. hasthow. 57. A. +rycchesse. 58. A. _om._ be _and_ al. 59. C. yeueth; A. [gh]iueth. 60. A. +desmaye. 61. A. _om._ the. + + +METRE II. + +_Si quantas rapidis flatibus incitus._ + + Though Plentee, _that is goddesse of richesses_, hielde adoun + with ful horn, and withdraweth nat hir hand, as many richesses + as the see torneth upward sandes whan it is moeved with + ravisshinge blastes, or elles as many richesses as ther shynen + brighte sterres on hevene on the sterry nightes; yit, for al 5 + that, mankinde nolde not cese to wepe wrecchede pleyntes. + And al be it so that god receyveth gladly hir preyers, and + yiveth them (as fool-large) moche gold, and aparaileth coveitous + men with noble or clere honours: yit semeth hem haven y-geten + no-thing, but alwey hir cruel ravyne, devouringe al that they 10 + han geten, sheweth other gapinges; _that is to seyn, gapen and + desyren yit after mo richesses_. What brydles mighten withholden, + to any certein ende, the desordenee covetise of men, whan, + ever the rather that it fleteth in large yiftes, the more ay brenneth + in hem the thurst of havinge? Certes he that, quakinge and 15 + dredful, weneth him-selven nedy, he ne liveth never-more riche." + +ME. II. 1. A. rycche. // _Both_ hielde; Ed. hylde. 2. A. recches(!). 4. C. +rauyssynge. // A. rycches. 5. A. ny[gh]t (Lat. _noctibus_). 6. C. plentes; +A. pleyntes. 7. C. resseyueth. // C. preyres; A. p_ra_yers. 8. C. A. +yeueth. // A. ful (_for_ fool). 9. A. folk (_for_ men). 10. C. thinge; A. +thing. // C. crewel. 12. A. rycchesse. 15. A. threst. 16. C. leueth; A. +lyueth. // A. -mo. + + +PROSE III. + +_Hiis igitur si pro se tecum Fortuna loqueretur._ + + Therfor, yif that Fortune spake with thee for hir-self in this + manere, for-sothe thou ne haddest nat what thou mightest answere. + And, if thou hast any-thing wherwith, thou mayest rightfully defenden + thy compleint, it behoveth thee to shewen it; and I wol + yeven thee space to tellen it.' 5 + + 'Certeynly,' quod I thanne, 'thise beth faire thinges, and + enointed with hony swetenesse of rethorike and musike; and + only whyl they ben herd they ben delicious. But to wrecches is + a depper felinge of harm; _this is to seyn, that wrecches felen the + harmes that they suffren more grevously than the remedies or the 10 + delites of thise wordes mowen gladen or comforten hem_; so that, + whan thise thinges stinten for to soune in eres, the sorwe that is + inset greveth the thought.' + + 'Right so is it,' quod she. 'For thise ne ben yit none remedies + of thy maladye; but they ben a maner norisshinges of thy sorwe, 15 + yit rebel ayein thy curacioun. For whan that tyme is, I shal + moeve swiche thinges that percen hem-self depe. But natheles, + that thou shalt not wilne to leten thy-self a wrecche, hast thou + foryeten the noumber and the manere of thy welefulnesse? I + holde me stille, how that the soverayne men of the citee token 20 + thee in cure and kepinge, whan thou were orphelin of fader and + moder, and were chosen in affinitee of princes of the citee; and + thou bigunne rather to be leef and dere than forto ben a neighbour; + the whiche thing is the most precious kinde of any propinquitee + or alyaunce that may ben. Who is it that ne seide tho 25 + that thou were right weleful, with so grete a nobleye of thy + fadres-in-lawe, + and with the chastitee of thy wyf, and with the oportunitee + and noblesse of thy masculin children, _that is to seyn, thy sones_? + And over al this--me list to passen the comune thinges--how + thou haddest in thy youthe dignitees that weren werned to olde 30 + men. But it delyteth me to comen now to the singuler uphepinge + of thy welefulnesse. Yif any fruit of mortal thinges may han any + weighte or prys of welefulnesse, mightest thou ever foryeten, for + any charge of harm that mighte bifalle, the remembraunce of + thilke day that thou saye thy two sones maked conseileres, and 35 + y-lad to-gedere fro thyn house under so greet assemblee of + senatoures and under the blythenesse of poeple; and whan thou + saye hem set in the court in here chayeres of dignitees? Thou, + rethorien or pronouncere of kinges preysinges, deservedest glorie + of wit and of eloquence, whan thou, sittinge bitwene thy two sones, 40 + conseileres, in the place that highte Circo, fulfuldest the abydinge + of the multitude of poeple that was sprad abouten thee, with so large + preysinge and laude, as men singen in victories. Tho yave thou + wordes to Fortune, as I trowe, _that is to seyn, tho feffedest thou + Fortune with glosinge wordes and deceivedest hir_, whan she acoyede 45 + thee and norisshede thee as hir owne delyces. Thou bere away of + Fortune a yifte, _that is to seyn, swiche guerdoun_, that she never yaf + to privee man. Wilt thou therfor leye a rekeninge with Fortune? + She hath now twinkled first upon thee with a wikkede eye. Yif + thou considere the noumbre and the manere of thy blisses and 50 + of thy sorwes, thou mayst nat forsaken that thou art yit blisful. + For if thou therfor wenest thy-self nat weleful, for thinges that + tho semeden ioyful ben passed, ther nis nat why thou sholdest wene + thy-self a wrecche; for thinges that semen now sorye passen also. + + Art thou now comen first, a sodein gest, in-to the shadwe or 55 + tabernacle of this lyf; or trowest thou that any stedefastnesse be + in mannes thinges, whan ofte a swift houre dissolveth the same + man; _that is to seyn, whan the soule departeth fro the body_? For, + al-though that selde is ther any feith that fortunous thinges wolen + dwellen, yit natheles the laste day of a mannes lyf is a manere 60 + deeth to Fortune, and also to thilke that hath dwelt. And therfor, + what, wenestow, thar [thee] recche, yif thou forlete hir in deyinge, + or elles that she, _Fortune_, forlete thee in fleeinge awey? + +PR. III. 2. A. _om._ nat. 4. A. tellen (_for_ defenden). 6. C. bet (_for_ +beth); A. ben. 8. C. delysyos; A. deliciouse. 15. C. maledye. // C. +noryssynges; A. norissinges. // C. sorwes; A. sorwe (Lat. _doloris_). 17. +C. swych; A. swiche. 20. C. souerane; A. souerayn. 23. C. begunne; A. +bygunne. 24. C. neysshebo_ur_; A. ney[gh]bo_ur_. // C. presyous. 26. A. +_om._ tho that. // A. nere (_for_ were). // C. fadyris. 27. C. castete; A. +chastite. 29. C. lyste; A. lyst. // C. the; A. of. 30. A. thought (_for_ +youthe); Ed. youthe. 32. C. wel-; A. wele-. // C. frute; A. fruyt. 36. C. A +semble; A. Ed. assemble. 37. C. peeple; A. poeple. 39. C. des-; A. de-. 40. +C. bitwyen; A. bytwix; Ed. bytwene. 41. C. hihte; A. hy[gh]t. // C. A. Ed. +_all insert_ and _before_ fulfuldest; _I omit it, because it obscures the +sense_. 42. A. _om._ the _and_ so. 44. C. to; A. of. 45. _So_ Ed.; C. A. +desseiuedest. 46. C. noryssede; A. norsshed; Ed. norisshed. // A. hast had +(_for_ bere away). // C. bar. 47. C. A. gerdoun; Ed. guerdon. 48. C. lye; +A. leye; Ed. laye (Lat. _ponere_). 49. C. _om._ a. 50. C. blysse +(_wrongly_); A. Ed. blisses. 51. C. art; A. Ed. nart. // C. blysse-; A. +blys-. 53. C. the; A. tho (Lat. _tunc_). 57. C. dyssoluede; A. Ed. +dissolueth. 59. C. al that thowgh; A. Ed. although that. // Ed. selde; C. +[gh]elde (= zelde); A. yelde (= [gh]elde); Lat. _rara_. // C. fortune; A. +Ed. fortunous. 62: C. weenestow; A. wenest thou. // C. dar; A. thar. // _I +supply_ thee. // C. recke; A. recche. + + +METRE III. + +_Cum polo Phebus roseis quadrigis._ + + Whan Phebus, the sonne, biginneth to spreden his cleernesse + with rosene chariettes, thanne the sterre, y-dimmed, paleth hir + whyte cheres, by the flambes of the sonne that overcometh the + sterre-light. _This is to seyn, whan the sonne is risen, the dey-sterre + wexeth pale, and leseth hir light for the grete brightnesse of the 5 + sonne._ + + Whan the wode wexeth rody of rosene floures, in the first somer + sesoun, thorugh the brethe of the winde Zephirus that wexeth + warm, yif the cloudy wind Auster blowe felliche, than goth awey + the fairenesse of thornes. 10 + + Ofte the see is cleer and calm withoute moevinge flodes; and + ofte the horrible wind Aquilon moeveth boilinge tempestes and + over-whelveth the see. + + Yif the forme of this worlde is so selde stable, and yif it turneth + by so many entrechaunginges, wolt thou thanne trusten in the 15 + tomblinge fortunes of men? Wolt thou trowen on flittinge goodes? + It is certein and establisshed by lawe perdurable, that no-thing that + is engendred nis stedefast ne stable.' + +ME. III. 1. C. hyr; A. Ed. his. 2. C. palyt. 3. A. flamus. 7. C. rosyn; A. +rosene. 9. C. A. wynde. 10. C. thornesse. 11. C. floedes. 13. Ed. +-whelueth; C. -welueeth; A. -whelweth. 14. Ed. selde; C. [gh]eelde (= +zeelde); A. _om._ (Lat. _rara_). 15. C. wolthow; A. Ed. wilt thou. 16. C. +towmblynge; Ed. tomblyng; A. trublynge (Lat. _caducis_). // C. wolthow; A. +Ed. wilt thou. // C. Ed. on; A. in. // C. flettynge; A. flittyng. 17. C. is +it; A. It is. // C. A. establyssed; Ed. establysshed. // C. thinge; A. +thing. 18. C. estable; A. stable. + + +PROSE IV. + +_Tunc ego, uera, inquam, commemoras._ + + Thanne seide I thus: 'O norice of alle vertues, thou seist ful + sooth; ne I ne may nat forsake the right swifte cours of my + prosperitee; _that is to seyn, that prosperitee ne be comen to me + wonder swiftly and sone_. But this is a thing that greetly smerteth + me whan it remembreth me. For in alle adversitee of fortune, 5 + the most unsely kinde of contrarious fortune is to han ben + weleful.' + + 'But that thou,' quod she, 'abyest thus the torment of thy + false opinioun, that mayst thou nat rightfully blamen ne aretten + to thinges: _as who seith, for thou hast yit many habundaunces of 10 + thinges_. + + TEXT. For al be it so that the ydel name of aventurous + welefulnesse moeveth thee now, it is leveful that thou rekne with + me of how manye grete thinges thou hast yit plentee. And + therfor, yif that thilke thing that thou haddest for most precious 15 + in al thy richesse of fortune be kept to thee yit, by the grace of + god, unwemmed and undefouled, mayst thou thanne pleyne + rightfully upon the meschef of Fortune, sin thou hast yit thy + beste thinges? Certes, yit liveth in good point thilke precious + honour of mankinde, Symacus, thy wyves fader, which that is 20 + a man maked alle of sapience and of vertu; the whiche man + thou woldest byen redely with the prys of thyn owne lyf. He + biwayleth the wronges that men don to thee, and nat for him-self; + for he liveth in sikernesse of any sentences put ayeins him. And + yit liveth thy wyf, that is atempre of wit, and passinge other 25 + wimmen in clennesse of chastetee; and for I wol closen shortely + hir bountees, she is lyk to hir fader. I telle thee wel, that she + liveth looth of this lyf, and kepeth to thee only hir goost; and is + al maat and overcomen by wepinge and sorwe for desyr of thee, + in the whiche thing only I moot graunten that thy welefulnesse is 30 + amenused. What shal I seyn eek of thy two sones, conseilours, + of whiche, as of children of hir age, ther shyneth the lyknesse of + the wit of hir fader or of hir elder fader? And sin the sovereyn + cure of alle mortel folk is to saven hir owen lyves, O how weleful + art thou, yif thou knowe thy goodes! For yit ben ther 35 + thinges dwelled to thee-ward, that no man douteth that they ne + ben more dereworthe to thee than thyn owen lyf. And for-thy + drye thy teres, for yit nis nat everich fortune al hateful to thee-ward, + ne over greet tempest hath nat yit fallen upon thee, whan + that thyn ancres cleven faste, that neither wolen suffren the 40 + counfort of this tyme present ne the hope of tyme cominge to + passen ne to faylen.' + + 'And I preye,' quod I, 'that faste moten they halden; for + whyles that they halden, how-so-ever that thinges ben, I shal wel + fleten forth and escapen; but thou mayst wel seen how grete 45 + aparayles and aray that me lakketh, that ben passed away fro + me.' + + 'I have som-what avaunsed and forthered thee,' quod she, 'yif + that thou anoye nat or forthinke nat of al thy fortune: _as who + seith, I have som-what comforted thee, so that thou tempest thee nat 50 + thus with al thy fortune, sin thou hast yit thy beste thinges_. But + I may nat suffren thy delices, that pleynest so wepinge and + anguissous, for that ther lakketh som-what to thy welefulnesse. + For what man is so sad or of so parfit welefulnesse, that he ne + stryveth and pleyneth on som halve ayen the qualitee of his 55 + estat? For-why ful anguissous thing is the condicioun of mannes + goodes; for either it cometh nat al-togider to a wight, or elles it + last nat perpetuel. For sum man hath grete richesses, but he is + ashamed of his ungentel linage; and som is renowned of noblesse + of kinrede, but he is enclosed in so grete anguisshe of nede 60 + of thinges, that him were lever that he were unknowe. And + som man haboundeth both in richesse and noblesse, but yit he + bewaileth his chaste lyf, for he ne hath no wyf. And som man is + wel and selily y-maried, but he hath no children, and norissheth + his richesses to the eyres of strange folkes. And som man is 65 + gladed with children, but he wepeth ful sory for the trespas of + his sone or of his doughter. And for this ther ne acordeth no + wight lightly to the condicioun of his fortune; for alwey to every + man ther is in som-what that, unassayed, he ne wot nat; or elles + he dredeth that he hath assayed. And adde this also, that every 70 + weleful man hath a ful delicat felinge; so that, but-yif alle thinges + bifalle at his owne wil, for he is impacient, or is nat used to han + non adversitee, anon he is throwen adoun for every litel thing. + And ful litel thinges ben tho that withdrawen the somme or the + perfeccioun of blisfulnesse fro hem that ben most fortunat. How 75 + many men, trowest thou, wolden demen hem-self to ben almost in + hevene, yif they mighten atayne to the leest party of the remnaunt + of thy fortune? This same place that thou clepest exil, is + contree to hem that enhabiten heer, and forthy nothing [is] + wrecched but whan thou wenest it: _as who seith, thou thy-self, ne 80 + no wight elles, nis a wrecche, but whan he weneth him-self a wrecche + by reputacioun of his corage_. And ayeinward, alle fortune is blisful + to a man by the agreabletee or by the egalitee of him that + suffreth it. + + What man is that, that is so weleful, that nolde changen his 85 + estat whan he hath lost pacience? The swetnesse of mannes + welefulnesse is sprayned with many biternesses; the whiche welefulnesse, + al-though it seme swete and ioyful to hem that useth it, + yit may it nat ben with-holden that it ne goth away whan it wole. + Thanne is it wel sene, how wrecched is the blisfulnesse of mortal 90 + thinges, that neither it dureth perpetuel with hem that every + fortune receiven agreablely or egaly, ne it delyteth nat in al to + hem that ben anguissous. O ye mortal folk, what seke ye thanne + blisfulnesse out of your-self, whiche that is put in your-self? + Errour and folye confoundeth yow. 95 + + I shal shewe thee shortely the poynt of sovereyne blisfulnesse. + Is ther any-thing more precious to thee than thy-self? Thou + wolt answere, "nay." Thanne, yif it so be that thou art mighty + over thy-self, _that is to seyn, by tranquillitee of thy sowle_, than + hast + thou thing in thy power that thou noldest never lesen, ne Fortune 100 + ne may nat beneme it thee. And that thou mayst knowe that + blisfulnesse ne may nat standen in thinges that ben fortunous + and temporel, now understonde and gader it to-gidere thus: + Yif blisfulnesse be the sovereyn good of nature that liveth by + resoun, ne thilke thing nis nat sovereyn good that may be taken 105 + awey in any wyse, (for more worthy thing and more digne is + thilke thing that may nat ben taken awey); than sheweth it wel, + that the unstablenesse of fortune may nat atayne to receiven + verray blisfulnesse. And yit more-over: what man that this + toumbling welefulnesse ledeth, either he woot that it is chaungeable, 110 + or elles he woot it nat. And yif he woot it nat, what blisful + fortune may ther be in the blindnesse of ignorance? And yif he + woot that it is chaungeable, he moot alwey ben adrad that he ne + lese that thing that he ne doubteth nat but that he may lesen it; + _as who seith, he mot ben alwey agast, lest he lese that he wot wel + he 115 + may lese it_. For which, the continuel dreed that he hath ne + suffreth him nat to ben weleful. Or yif he lese it, he weneth to + be dispysed and forleten. Certes eek, that is a ful litel good that + is born with evene herte whan it is lost; _that is to seyn, that men + do no more fors of the lost than of the havinge_. And for as moche 120 + as thou thy-self art he, to whom it hath ben shewed and proved + by ful manye demonstraciouns, as I wot wel, that the sowles of + men ne mowe nat deyen in no wyse; and eek sin it is cleer and + certein, that fortunous welefulnesse endeth by the deeth of the + body; it may nat ben douted that, yif that deeth may take awey 125 + blisfulnesse, that alle the kinde of mortal thinges ne descendeth + in-to wrecchednesse by the ende of the deeth. And sin we knowen + wel, that many a man hath sought the fruit of blisfulnesse nat + only with suffringe of deeth, but eek with suffringe of peynes and + tormentes; how mighte than this present lyf maken men blisful, 130 + sin that, whan thilke selve lyf is ended, it ne maketh folk no + wrecches? + +PR. IV. 1. C. vertuus; A. vertues. 4. C. _om._ a. 6. C. vn[gh]ely (= +vnzely); A. Ed. vnsely. 8. A. abaist (!). // C. tormentz; A. to_ur_ment +(Lat. _supplicium_). 10. C. -daunce; A. Ed. -daunces. 13. C. leefful; A. +leueful. 15. C. thinge; A. thing. 19. C. leueth; A. lyueth. 21. C. _om. +2nd_ of. 24. C. leueth; A. liueth. 29. C. maad; A. maat; Ed. mate. 30. C. +thinge; A. thing. 31. C. amenyssed; A. Ed. amenused. 32. C. lyke-; A. lyk-. +33. A. Ed. eldefadir. 35. A. But (_for_ For). 36. _So_ C. Ed.; A. +dwelly_n_g. // A. -wardes. 40. A. cliue. 42. A. fallen. 43. A. holden. 44. +C. A. halden. 45. C. mayste. 49. A. forthenke. 52. C. delites (?); A. Ed. +delices (Lat. _delicias_). 55. C. Ed. and; A. or. 57. A. _om._ nat. 58. A. +lasteth. // A. p_er_petuely. // A. rycchesse. 59. A. renomed. 60. anguisshe +of] A. angre for. 63. Ed. chaste; C. caste; A. chast. 64. C. zelyly; A. Ed. +selily. // C. hat. // C. noriseth; A. norissheth. 66. C. A. sory; Ed. sore. +69. A. is in mest som-what. 71. A. wel (_for_ ful). 72. Ed. is; C. A. _om._ +77. A. remenaunt. 79. _I supply_ is; Lat. nihil _est_ miserum. 80. C. ho; +A. who. 81. A. no (_for_ a). 83. C. egreablete; A. agreablete. 86. C. what +(!); A. whan. // C. lost; A. lorn. 87. C. sprayngd (!); A. y-spranid; Ed. +spraynte. // C. beter-; A. bitter-. // C. weche. 89. C. wan. // C. woole; +A. wol. 92. C. resseyuen; A. receyuen. 100, 106. C. thinge; A. thing. 101. +A. bynyme. 102. A. _om._ ne. 107. C. take; A. taken. 108. C. resseyuen; A. +receyue. 110. A. _om._ it. 115. C. list; A. lest. 116. A. _om._ it. 118. A. +forleten hit. 120. C. A. lost; Ed. losse. // C. meche (_for_ moche). 126. +C. dessendeth; A. descendith. 128. C. frut; A. fruit. + + +METRE IV. + +_Quisquis uolet perennem Cautus ponere sedem._ + + What maner man, stable and war, that wole founden him + a perdurable sete, and ne wole nat ben cast down with the loude + blastes of the wind Eurus; and wole despyse the see, manasinge + with flodes; lat him eschewen to bilde on the cop of the mountaigne + or in the moiste sandes. For the felle wind Auster 5 + tormenteth the cop of the mountaigne with all his strengthes; + and the lause sandes refusen to beren the hevy wighte. + + And forthy, if thou wolt fleen the perilous aventure, _that is to + seyn, of the worlde_; have minde certeinly to ficchen thyn hous of + a merye site in a lowe stoon. For al-though the wind, troubling 10 + the see, thondre with over-throwinges, thou that art put in quiete, + and weleful by strengthe of thy palis, shalt leden a cleer age, + scorninge the woodnesses and the ires of the eyr. + +ME. IV. 1. C. waar. 7. Ed. lose; A. lowe see(!); (Lat. _solutae_). // A. +wey[gh]te. 10. C. lowh; A. Ed. lowe. 12. C. A. palys (Lat. _ualli_). + + +PROSE V. + +_Set cum rationum iam in te._ + + But for as moche as the norisshinges of my resouns descenden + now in-to thee, I trowe it were tyme to usen a litel strenger + medicynes. Now understond heer, al were it so that the yiftes of + Fortune ne were nat brutel ne transitorie, what is ther in hem + that may be thyn in any tyme, or elles that it nis foul, yif that it 5 + be considered and loked perfitly? Richesses, ben they precious + by the nature of hem-self, or elles by the nature of thee? What is + most worth of richesses? Is it nat gold or might of moneye + assembled? Certes, thilke gold and thilke moneye shyneth and + yeveth betere renoun to hem that despenden it thanne to thilke 10 + folk that mokeren it; for avarice maketh alwey mokereres to ben + hated, and largesse maketh folk cleer of renoun. For sin that + swich thing as is transferred fram o man to another ne may nat + dwellen with no man; certes, thanne is thilke moneye precious + whan it is translated into other folk and stenteth to ben had, by 15 + usage of large yevinge _of him that hath yeven it_. And also: yif + that al the moneye that is over-al in the worlde were gadered + toward o man, it sholde maken alle other men to ben nedy as of that. + And certes a voys al hool, _that is to seyn, with-oute amenusinge_, + fulfilleth to-gidere the hering of moche folk; but certes, youre 20 + richesses ne mowen nat passen in-to moche folke with-oute + amenusinge. And whan they ben apassed, nedes they maken + hem pore that for-gon the richesses. + + O! streite and nedy clepe I this richesse, sin that many folk + ne may nat han it al, ne al may it nat comen to o man with-outen 25 + povertee of alle other folk! And the shyninge of gemmes, _that + I clepe precious stones_, draweth it nat the eyen of folk to hem-ward, + _that is to seyn, for the beautee_? But certes, yif ther were + beautee or bountee in the shyninge of stones, thilke cleernesse is + of the stones hem-self, and nat of men; for whiche I wondre 30 + gretly that men mervailen on swiche thinges. For-why, what + thing is it, that yif it wanteth moeving and Ioynture of sowle and + body, that by right mighte semen a fair creature to him that hath + a sowle of resoun? For al be it so that gemmes drawen to hem-self + a litel of the laste beautee of the world, through the entente of 35 + hir creatour and through the distinccioun of hem-self; yit, for as + mochel as they ben put under youre excellence, they ne han nat + deserved by no wey that ye sholden mervailen on hem. And + the beautee of feldes, delyteth it nat mochel un-to yow?' + + _Boece._ 'Why sholde it nat delyten us, sin that it is a right fair 40 + porcioun of the right faire werke, _that is to seyn, of this world_? + And right so ben we gladed som-tyme of the face of the see + whan it is cleer; and also mervailen we on the hevene and on the + sterres, and on the sonne and on the mone.' + + _Philosophye._ 'Aperteneth,' quod she, 'any of thilke thinges to 45 + thee? Why darst thou glorifyen thee in the shyninge of any + swiche thinges? Art thou distingwed and embelised by the + springinge floures of the first somer sesoun, or swelleth thy + plentee in the fruites of somer? Why art thou ravisshed with + ydel Ioyes? Why embracest thou straunge goodes as they weren 50 + thyne? Fortune ne shal never maken that swiche thinges ben + thyne, that nature of thinges hath maked foreine fro thee. Sooth + is that, with-outen doute, the frutes of the erthe owen to ben to + the norissinge of bestes. And yif thou wolt fulfille thy nede after + that it suffyseth to nature, than is it no nede that thou seke after 55 + the superfluitee of fortune. For with ful fewe things and with ful + litel thinges nature halt hir apayed; and yif thou wolt achoken + the fulfillinge of nature with superfluitees, certes, thilke thinges + that thou wolt thresten or pouren in-to nature shullen ben unioyful + to thee, or elles anoyous. Wenest thou eek that it be a fair 60 + thing to shyne with dyverse clothinge? Of whiche clothinge yif + the beautee be agreeable to loken up-on, I wol mervailen on the + nature of the matere of thilke clothes, or elles on the werkman + that wroughte hem. But also a long route of meynee, maketh + that a blisful man? The whiche servants, yif they ben vicious of 65 + condiciouns, it is a great charge and a distruccioun to the hous, + and a greet enemy to the lord him-self. And yif they ben goode + men, how shal straunge or foreine goodnesse ben put in the + noumbre of thy richesse? So that, by all these forseide thinges, + it is clearly y-shewed, that never oon of thilke thinges that thou 70 + acountedest for thyne goodes nas nat thy good. In the whiche + thinges, yif ther be no beautee to ben desyred, why sholdest thou + ben sory yif thou lese hem, or why sholdest thou reioysen thee + to holden hem? For yif they ben faire of hir owne kinde, what + aperteneth that to thee? For al so wel sholden they han ben 75 + faire by hem-selve, though they weren departed fram alle thyne + richesses. Forwhy faire ne precious ne weren they nat, for that + they comen among thy richesses; but, for they semeden faire and + precious, ther-for thou haddest lever rekne hem amonges thy + richesses. 80 + + But what desirest thou of Fortune with so grete a noise, and + with so grete a fare? I trowe thou seke to dryve awey nede with + habundaunce of thinges; but certes, it torneth to you al in the + contrarie. Forwhy certes, it nedeth of ful manye helpinges to + kepen the diversitee of precious ostelments. And sooth it is, 85 + that of manye thinges han they nede that manye thinges han; and + ayeinward, of litel nedeth hem that mesuren hir fille after the nede + of kinde, and nat after the outrage of coveityse. Is it thanne so, + that ye men ne han no proper good y-set in you, for which + ye moten seken outward youre goodes in foreine and subgit 90 + thinges? So is thanne the condicioun of thinges torned up-so-down, + that a man, that is a devyne beest by merite of his resoun, + thinketh that him-self nis neither faire ne noble, but-yif it be + thorugh possessioun of ostelments that ne han no sowles. And + certes, al other thinges ben apayed of hir owne beautee; but ye 95 + men, that ben semblable to god by your resonable thought, + desiren to aparailen your excellent kinde of the lowest thinges; + ne ye understonden nat how greet a wrong ye don to your + creatour. For he wolde that mankinde were most worthy and + noble of any othre erthely thinges; and ye threste adoun your 100 + dignitees benethe the lowest thinges. For yif that al the good of + every thinge be more precious than is thilke thing whos that + the good is: sin ye demen that the fouleste thinges ben youre + goodes, thanne submitten ye and putten your-selven under tho + fouleste thinges by your estimacioun; and certes, this tydeth nat 105 + with-oute youre desertes. For certes, swiche is the condicioun of + alle mankinde, that only whan it hath knowinge of it-selve, than + passeth it in noblesse alle other thinges; and whan it forleteth the + knowinge of it-self, than is it brought binethen alle beestes. For-why + al other livinge beestes han of kinde to knowe nat hem-self; 110 + but whan that men leten the knowinge of hemself, it cometh hem + of vice. But how brode sheweth the errour and the folye of yow + men, that wenen that any thing may ben aparailed with straunge + aparailements! But for sothe that may nat ben doon. For yif + a wight shyneth with thinges that ben put to him, _as thus, if 115 + thilke thinges shynen with which a man is aparailed_, certes, thilke + thinges ben comended and preysed with which he is aparailed; + but natheles, the thing that is covered and wrapped under that + dwelleth in his filthe. + + And I denye that thilke thing be good that anoyeth him that 120 + hath it. Gabbe I of this?. Thou wolt seye "nay." Certes, + richesses han anoyed ful ofte hem that han tho richesses; sin that + every wikked shrewe, (and for his wikkednesse the more gredy + after other folkes richesses, wher-so ever it be in any place, be it + gold or precious stones), weneth him only most worthy that hath 125 + hem. Thou thanne, that so bisy dredest now the swerd and now + the spere, yif thou haddest entred in the path of this lyf a voide + wayferinge man, than woldest thou singe beforn the theef; _as + who seith, a pore man, that berth no richesse on him by the weye, + may boldely singe biforn theves, for he hath nat wherof to ben 130 + robbed_. O precious and right cleer is the blisfulnesse of mortal + richesses, that, whan thou hast geten it, than hast thou lorn thy + sikernesse! + +PR. V. 1. C. A. noryssinges; Ed. norisshynges. // C. dess-; A. desc-. 6. A. +Richesse. 8. A. worthi. // A. rycchesse. // C. _om._ it. 15. C. stenteth; +A. stynteth. 19. A. al hool; Ed. al hole; C. _om._; (Lat. _tota_). 21. A. +rycchesse. 24. A. thise rycchesses. 25. A. _om. 1st_ ne. 27. A. in-to. 28. +C. beautes; A. Ed. beaute. // C. But; A. For. 29. A. _om._ the. 31. C. +gretely; A. gretly. 32. C. Ioyngture; A. ioynture. 33. C. myht; A. my[gh]t. +35. C. last; A. laste. 36. C. _om._ and. 38. C. A. desserued. // A. +shullen. 41. C. ryhte; A ry[gh]t. 46. C. darsthow; A. darst thou. 47. C. +Arthow; A. Art thou. 49. A. _om._ the. // C. fructes; A. fruytes. // C. +arthow. // C. rauyssed; A. rauyshed. 52. A. _om._ hath. // A. Syche (!). +53. A. on (_for 2nd_ to). 59. C. shollen; A. shullen. 60. C. anoyos; A. +anoies; Ed. anoyous. 64. C. wrowht; A. wrou[gh]t. 70. oon] A. none. 71. A. +accou_m_ptedest. 75. A. as (_for_ al-so). 77, 78, 80. A. rycchesse. 90. A. +outwardes. 98. A. ne ye ne, &c. 100. A. Ed. erthely; C. wordly. 103. C. +tho; A. the. // C. A. foulest. 104. A. summytten. // C. the; A. tho. 106. +A. desert. 110. A. _om._ livinge. // C. hym-; A. hem-. 111. C. _om._ that. +119. _So_ A.; C. felthe. 122. A. rycchesse (_thrice_). // C. tho; A. the. +125. C. A. Ed. and weneth; _but_ and _must be omitted_ (_see_ Latin +_text_). // C. hat. 126. A. _om. 2nd_ now. 128. A. wayfaryng. 132. A. +rycchesse. + + +METRE V. + +_Felix nimium prior etas._ + + Blisful was the first age of men! They helden hem apayed + with the metes that the trewe feldes broughten forth. They + ne distroyede nor deceivede nat hem-self with outrage. They + weren wont lightly to slaken hir hunger at even with acornes + of okes. They ne coude nat medly the yifte of Bachus to the 5 + cleer hony; _that is to seyn, they coude make no piment nor clarree_; + ne they coude nat medle the brighte fleeses of the contree of + Seriens with the venim of Tyrie; _this is to seyn, they coude nat + deyen whyte fleeses of Serien contree with the blode of a maner + shelfisshe that men finden in Tyrie, with whiche blood men deyen 10 + purpur_. They slepen hoolsom slepes up-on the gras, and + dronken of the renninge wateres; and layen under the shadwes + of the heye pyn-trees. Ne no gest ne straungere ne carf yit + the heye see with ores or with shippes; ne they ne hadde seyn + yit none newe strondes, to leden marchaundyse in-to dyverse 15 + contrees. Tho weren the cruel clariouns ful hust and ful stille, + ne blood y-shad by egre hate ne hadde nat deyed yit armures. + For wher-to or which woodnesse of enemys wolde first moeven + armes, whan they seyen cruel woundes, ne none medes be of + blood y-shad? 20 + + I wolde that oure tymes sholde torne ayein to the olde + maneres! But the anguissous love of havinge brenneth in folk + more cruely than the fyr of the mountaigne Ethna, _that ay brenneth_. + Allas! what was he that first dalf up the gobetes or the weightes + of gold covered under erthe, and the precious stones that wolden 25 + han ben hid? He dalf up precious perils. _That is to seyn, that + he that hem first up dalf, he dalf up a precious peril; for-why for + the preciousnesse of swiche thinge, hath many man ben in peril._ + +ME. V. 2. Ed. feldes; C. feeldes; A. erthes. 3. C. desseyuyd; A. desceyued. +4. C. accornes; A. acornes. 6. C. nor; Ed. or; A. of. 7. C. fleezes; A. +flies; Ed. fleces. 8. A. siriens (Lat. _Serum_). 9. C. flezes; A. flies; +Ed. fleces. // C. syryen; A. sirien; Ed. Syrien. 10. C. shylle-; A. Ed. +shel-. 13. A. _om. 3rd_ ne. // C. karue; A. karf; Ed. carfe. 16. C. crwel +(_and so again below_). // C. Ed. hust; A. whist. 17. A. y-shed. // A. +armurers (!). 18. C. wer to. 19. C. say; A. seien. 22. C. angwissos; A. +anguissous. 23. C. _om. 2nd_ the. // A. Ed. of Ethna; C. _om._ of. // A. +euer (_for_ ay). 27. C. _om. 2nd_ he. 28. A. _om._ thinge. // A. ben; C. +be. + + +PROSE VI. + +_Quid autem de dignitatibus._ + + But what shal I seye of dignitees and of powers, the whiche + ye men, that neither knowen verray dignitee ne verray power, + areysen hem as heye as the hevene? The whiche dignitees and + powers, yif they comen to any wikked man, they don as grete + damages and destrucciouns as doth the flaumbe of the mountaigne 5 + Ethna, whan the flaumbe walweth up; ne no deluge ne doth so + cruel harmes. Certes, thee remembreth wel, as I trowe, that + thilke dignitee that men clepen the imperie of consulers, the + whiche that whylom was biginninge of fredom, youre eldres + coveiteden to han don away that dignitee, for the pryde of the 10 + consulers. And right for the same pryde your eldres, biforn that + tyme, hadden don awey, out of the citee of Rome, the kinges + name; _that is to seyn, they nolde han no lenger no king_. But + now, yif so be that dignitees and powers be yeven to goode men, + the whiche thing is ful selde, what agreable thing is ther in tho 15 + dignitees or powers but only the goodnesse of folkes that usen + hem? And therfor it is thus, that honour ne comth nat to vertu + for cause of dignitee, but ayeinward honour comth to dignitee for + cause of vertu. But whiche is thilke youre dereworthe power, + that is so cleer and so requerable? O ye ertheliche bestes, 20 + considere ye nat over which thinge that it semeth that ye han + power? Now yif thou saye a mous amonges other mys, that + chalaunged to him-self-ward right and power over alle other mys, + how greet scorn woldest thou han of it! GLOSA. _So fareth it by + men; the body hath power over the body._ For yif thou loke wel 25 + up-on the body of a wight, what thing shall thou finde more + freele than is mankinde; the whiche men wel ofte ben slayn with + bytinge of smale flyes, or elles with the entringe of crepinge + wormes in-to the privetees of mannes body? But wher shal man + finden any man that may exercen or haunten any right up-on 30 + another man, but only up-on his body, or elles up-on thinges + that ben lowere than the body, the whiche I clepe fortunous + possessiouns? Mayst thou ever have any comaundement over + a free corage? Mayst thou remuen fro the estat of his propre + reste a thought that is clyvinge to-gidere in him-self by stedefast 35 + resoun? As whylom a tyraunt wende to confounde a free man + of corage, and wende to constreyne him by torment, to maken + him discoveren and acusen folk that wisten of a coniuracioun, + _which I clepe a confederacie_, that was cast ayeins this tyraunt; + but this free man boot of his owne tonge and caste it in the 40 + visage of thilke wode tyraunt; so that the torments that this + tyraunt wende to han maked matere of crueltee, this wyse man + maked it matere of vertu. + + But what thing is it that a man may don to another man, that + he ne may receyven the same thing of othre folk in him-self: 45 + _or thus, what may a man don to folk, that folk ne may don him the + same?_ I have herd told of Busirides, that was wont to sleen his + gestes that herberweden in his hous; and he was sleyn him-self + of Ercules that was his gest. Regulus hadde taken in bataile + many men of Affrike and cast hem in-to feteres; but sone after 50 + he moste yeve his handes to ben bounde with the cheynes of + hem that he hadde whylom overcomen. Wenest thou thanne + that he be mighty, that hath no power to don a thing, that othre + ne may don in him that he doth in othre? And yit more-over, + yif it so were that thise dignitees or poweres hadden any propre 55 + or natural goodnesse in hem-self, never nolden they comen to + shrewes. For contrarious thinges ne ben nat wont to ben + y-felawshiped to-gidere. Nature refuseth that contrarious thinges + ben y-ioigned. And so, as I am in certein that right wikked folk + han dignitees ofte tyme, than sheweth it wel that dignitees and 60 + powers ne ben nat goode of hir owne kinde; sin that they suffren + hem-self to cleven or ioinen hem to shrewes. And certes, the + same thing may I most digneliche iugen and seyn of alle the + yiftes of fortune that most plentevously comen to shrewes; of + the whiche yiftes, I trowe that it oughte ben considered, that no 65 + man douteth that he nis strong in whom he seeth strengthe; and + in whom that swiftnesse is, sooth it is that he is swift. Also + musike maketh musiciens, and phisike maketh phisiciens, and + rethorike rethoriens. For-why the nature of every thing maketh + his propretee, ne it is nat entremedled with the effects of the 70 + contrarious thinges; and, as of wil, it chaseth out thinges that + ben to it contrarie. But certes, richesse may not restreyne + avarice unstaunched; ne power ne maketh nat a man mighty + over him-self, whiche that vicious lustes holden destreyned with + cheynes that ne mowen nat be unbounden. And dignitees that 75 + ben yeven to shrewede folk nat only ne maketh hem nat digne, + but it sheweth rather al openly that they ben unworthy and + undigne. And why is it thus? Certes, for ye han Ioye to clepen + thinges with false names that beren hem alle in the contrarie; + the whiche names ben ful ofte reproeved by the effecte of the 80 + same thinges; so that thise ilke richesses ne oughten nat by + right to ben cleped richesses; ne swich power ne oughte nat + ben cleped power; ne swich dignitee ne oughte nat ben cleped + dignitee. + + And at the laste, I may conclude the same thing of alle the 85 + yiftes of Fortune, in which ther nis nothing to ben desired, ne + that hath in him-self naturel bountee, as it is ful wel y-sene. For + neither they ne ioignen hem nat alwey to goode men, ne maken + hem alwey goode to whom that they ben y-ioigned. + +PR. VI. 1. A. seyne. 2. A. _om._ ye. 5. C. flawmbe; A. fla_m_me (_twice_). +6. A. _ins._ wit (!) _bef._ walweth. 7. C. crwel. // C. remenbryth. 8. A. +thilke; C. thikke. // A. emperie; C. Imp_er_iye. 11. A. conseilers. 13. A. +kyng; C. kynge. 15. Ed. selde; C. A. zelde. // C. A. Ed. thinges; _read_ +thing (Lat. _quid placet_). 19. A. _om._ thilke. 22. C. mus[gh]; A. myse; +Ed. myce. 23. C. mys[gh]; A. myse; Ed. myce. 26. C. shalthow. 27. A. mannes +kynde. // A. whiche ben ful ofte slayn. 29. A. mennes bodyes. 33. C. +Maysthow. 34. C. Maysthow remwen. 35. A. cleuyng. // C. stidefast; A. +stedfast. 40. Ed. caste; C. A. cast. 42. C. crwelte. 45. C. resseyuen; A. +receyue. 48. A. herburghden. 52. C. _om._ he. // C. whylom; A. somtyme. // +C. weenesthow. 53. C. thinge; A. thing. 54. A. _om. 1st_ in. // A. to (_for +2nd_ in). 63. Ed. I (_after_ may); C. A. _omit_. 67. C. _om._ it. 68. _So_ +A.; C. musuciens, phisissiens. 70. A. effect_is_; C. effect. // A. _om._ +the. 72. C. A. to it ben. 73. A. _om. 2nd_ ne. 81, 82. A. rycchesse +(_twice_). 82, 83. A. whiche (_for_ swich; _twice_). 87. C. I-seene; A. +sene. + + +METRE VI. + +_Nouimus quantas dederit ruinas._ + + We han wel knowen how many grete harmes and destrucciouns + weren don _by the emperor Nero_. He leet brenne the citee of + Rome, and made sleen the senatoures. And he, cruel, whylom + slew his brother; and he was maked moist with the blood of + his moder; _that is to seyn, he leet sleen and slitten the body of 5 + his moder, to seen wher he was conceived_; and he loked on every + halve up-on her colde dede body, ne no tere ne wette his face, but + _he was so hard-herted that_ he mighte ben domes-man or Iuge of + hir dede beautee. And natheles, yit governede this _Nero_ by + ceptre alle the poeples that Phebus the sonne may seen, cominge 10 + from his outereste arysinge til he hyde his bemes under the + wawes; _that is to seyn, he governed alle the poeples by ceptre imperial + that the sonne goth aboute, from est to west_. And eek _this + Nero governed by ceptre_ alle the poeples that ben under the + colde sterres that highten "septem triones"; _this is to seyn, he 15 + governede alle the poeples that ben under the party of the north_. + And eek _Nero governed_ alle the poeples that the violent wind + Nothus scorkleth, and baketh the brenning sandes by his drye + hete; _that is to seyn, alle the poeples in the south_. But yit ne + mighte nat al his hye power torne the woodnesse of this wikked 20 + Nero. Allas! it is a grevous fortune, as ofte as wikked swerd + is ioigned to cruel venim; _that is to seyn, venimous crueltee to + lordshippe_.' + +ME. VI. 2. C. let; A. letee (!). 3. C. crwel. // C. whylom; A. somtyme. 5. +C. lette (_wrongly_); A. let. 6. C. conseyued; A. conceiued. 7. A. half. // +C. wecte; A. wette. 9. A. [gh]itte neuertheles. 11. A. hidde. 12. C. +sceptre; A. ceptre. 15. C. vii. tyryones (_sic_); A. the seuene triones; +Ed. the Septentrions. 16. A. parties. 18. C. Ed. scorklith; A. scorchith. +19-21. A. _om._ But yit ... Nero; Ed. _retains it, omitting_ hye. // _For_ +Allas ... it is, A. _has_--But ne how greuous fortune is; C. _om._ a _bef._ +greuous, _but_ Ed. _retains it_. C. _repeats_ it is. 22. C. crwel; +crwelte. + + +PROSE VII. + +_Tum ego, scis, inquam._ + + Thanne seyde I thus: 'Thou wost wel thy-self that the coveitise + of mortal thinges ne hadde never lordshipe of me; but + I have wel desired matere of thinges to done, _as who seith, I + desire to han matere of governaunce over comunalitees_, for vertu, + stille, ne sholde nat elden;' _that is to seyn, that [him] leste that, 5 + or he wex olde, his vertu, that lay now ful stille, ne should nat + perisshe unexercised in governaunce of comune; for which men + mighten speken or wryten of his goode governement_. + + _Philosophye._ 'For sothe,' quod she, 'and that is a thing that + may drawen to governaunce swiche hertes as ben worthy and 10 + noble of hir nature; but natheles, it may nat drawen or tollen + swiche hertes as ben y-brought to the fulle perfeccioun of vertu, + that is to seyn, coveitise of glorie and renoun to han wel administred + the comune thinges or don gode desertes to profit of the + comune. For see now and considere, how litel and how voide of 15 + alle prys is thilke glorie. Certein thing is, as thou hast lerned by + the demonstracioun of astronomye, that al the environinge of the + erthe aboute ne halt nat but the resoun of a prikke at regard of the + greetnesse of hevene; that is to seyn, that yif ther were maked + comparisoun of the erthe to the greetnesse of hevene, men wolden 20 + iugen in al, that the erthe ne helde no space. Of the whiche litel + regioun of this worlde, the ferthe partye is enhabited with livinge + bestes that we knowen, as thou thyself hast y-lerned by Tholomee + that proveth it. And yif thou haddest with-drawen and abated in + thy thought fro thilke ferthe partye as moche space as the see and 25 + the mareys contenen and over-goon, and as moche space as the + regioun of droughte over-streccheth, _that is to seyn, sandes and + desertes_, wel unnethe sholde ther dwellen a right streit place to + the habitacioun of men. And ye thanne, that ben environed and + closed with-in the leste prikke of thilke prikke, thinken ye to 30 + manifesten your renoun and don youre name to ben born forth? + But your glorie, that is so narwe and so streite y-throngen in-to so + litel boundes, how mochel coveiteth it in largesse and in greet + doinge? And also sette this there-to: that many a nacioun, + dyverse of tonge and of maneres and eek of resoun of hir livinge, 35 + ben enhabited in the clos of thilke litel habitacle; to the whiche + naciouns, what for difficultee of weyes and what for dyversitee of + langages, and what for defaute of unusage and entrecomuninge of + marchaundise, nat only the names of singuler men ne may nat + strecchen, but eek the fame of citees ne may nat strecchen. At 40 + the laste, certes, in the tyme of Marcus Tullius, as him-self writ in + his book, that the renoun of the comune of Rome ne hadde nat + yit passed ne cloumben over the mountaigne that highte Caucasus; + and yit was, thilke tyme, Rome wel waxen and greetly redouted of + the Parthes and eek of other folk enhabitinge aboute. Seestow 45 + nat thanne how streit and how compressed is thilke glorie that ye + travailen aboute to shewe and to multiplye? May thanne the + glorie of a singuler Romaine strecchen thider as the fame of the + name of Rome may nat climben ne passen? And eek, seestow nat + that the maneres of dyverse folk and eek hir lawes ben discordaunt 50 + among hem-self; so that thilke thing that som men + iugen worthy of preysinge, other folk iugen that it is worthy of + torment? And ther-of comth it that, though a man delyte him in + preysinge of his renoun, he may nat in no wyse bringen forth ne + spreden his name to many maner poeples. There-for every man 55 + oughte to ben apayed of his glorie that is publisshed among his + owne neighbours; and thilke noble renoun shal ben restreyned + within the boundes of o manere folke. But how many a man, + that was ful noble in his tyme, hath the wrecched and nedy + foryetinge of wryteres put out of minde and don awey! Al be 60 + it so that, certes, thilke wrytinges profiten litel; the whiche + wrytinges long and derk elde doth awey, bothe hem and eek hir + autours. But ye men semen to geten yow a perdurabletee, whan + ye thenken that, in tyme to-cominge, your fame shal lasten. But + natheles, yif thou wolt maken comparisoun to the endeles spaces 65 + of eternitee, what thing hast thou by whiche thou mayst reioysen + thee of long lastinge of thy name? For yif ther were maked comparisoun + of the abydinge of a moment to ten thousand winter, + for as mochel as bothe the spaces ben ended, yit hath the + moment som porcioun of it, al-though it litel be. But natheles, 70 + thilke selve noumbre of yeres, and eek as many yeres as + ther-to may be multiplyed, ne may nat, certes, ben comparisoned + to the perdurabletee that is endeles; for of thinges that han ende + may be maked comparisoun, but of thinges that ben with-outen + ende, to thinges that han ende, may be maked no comparisoun. 75 + And forthy is it that, al-though renoun, of as long tyme as ever + thee list to thinken, were thought to the regard of eternitee, that + is unstaunchable and infinit, it ne sholde nat only semen litel, but + pleynliche right naught. But ye men, certes, ne conne don + nothing a-right, but-yif it be for the audience of poeple and for 80 + ydel rumours; and ye forsaken the grete worthinesse of conscience + and of vertu, and ye seken your guerdouns of the smale wordes of + straunge folk. + + Have now heer and understonde, in the lightnesse of swich + pryde and veine glorie, how a man scornede festivaly and merily 85 + swich vanitee. Whylom ther was a man that hadde assayed + with stryvinge wordes another man, the whiche, nat for usage of + verray vertu but for proud veine glorie, had taken up-on him + falsly the name of a philosophre. This rather man. _that I spak + of_ thoughte he wolde assaye, wher he, thilke, were a philosophre 90 + or no; that is to seyn, yif that he wolde han suffred lightly in + pacience the wronges that weren don un-to him. This feynede + philosophre took pacience a litel whyle, and, whan he hadde + received wordes of outrage, he, as in stryvinge ayein and reioysinge + of him-self, seyde at the laste right thus: "understondest 95 + thou nat that I am a philosophre?" That other man answerde + ayein ful bytingly, and seyde: "I hadde wel understonden it, yif + thou haddest holden thy tonge stille." But what is it to thise + noble worthy men (for, certes, of swiche folke speke I) that seken + glorie with vertu? What is it?' quod she; 'what atteyneth fame 100 + to swiche folk, whan the body is resolved by the deeth at the + laste? For yif it so be that men dyen in al, _that is to seyn, body + and sowle_, the whiche thing our resoun defendeth us to bileven, + thanne is ther no glorie in no wyse. _For what sholde thilke glorie + ben_, whan he, of whom thilke glorie is seyd to be, nis right naught 105 + in no wyse? And yif the sowle, whiche that hath in it-self science + of goode werkes, unbounden fro the prison of the erthe, wendeth + frely to the hevene, despyseth it nat thanne alle erthely occupacioun; + and, being in hevene, reioyseth that it is exempt fro alle + erthely thinges? _As who seith, thanne rekketh the sowle of no 110 + glorie of renoun of this world._ + +PR. VII. 4. A. desired. 5. _I supply_ him (_to make sense_). // Ed. leste; +C. A. list. 6. A. wex; C. wax. 7. C. p_er_ise; A. perisshe. // Ed. +vnexercysed; C. A. vnexcercised. 17. A. _om. 1st_ the. // C. _om._ of. 21. +A. that erthe helde. 26. A. and mareys. // C. spaces (_for_ space). 28. C. +vel; A. wel. 32. C. narwh; A. narwe. 36. A. cloos. 37. C. deficulte; A. +difficulte. // C. deficulte (_repeated_); A. Ed. diuersite. 38. A. _om._ +and _after_ vnusage. 39. Ed. synguler; C. A. syngler. // A. _om._ nat +(_bef. 1st_ strecchen). 41. C. marchus; A. Marcus. // Ed. Tullius; C. A. +Tulius. // C. writ; A. writeth. 43. C. _om._ yit. // A. hy[gh]t. 44. C. +thikke; A. thilk. // A. wexen. 45. C. sestow; A. Sest thou. 48. Ed. +synguler; C. singler; A. singlere. // A. strecchen; C. strechchen. 49. C. +seysthow; A. sest thou; Ed. seest thou. 51. C. thinge; A. thing. 56. A. +paied. // Ed. publysshed; C. publyssed; A. puplissed. 57. A. ney[gh]bores; +Ed. neyghbours; C. nesshebours. 59. A. nedy and wrecched. 63. A. autours; +Ed. auctours; C. actorros (!). // A. Ed. ye men semen; C. yow men semeth. +64. A. thenke; C. thinken. // A. comyng (_om._ to-). 65. A. space (Lat. +_spatia_). 69. C. A. Ed. _insert_ for _bef._ yit (_wrongly_). 70. A. it a +litel. 73. C. -durablyte; A. -durablete. // A. eenles (_for_ endeles). 74, +75. A. _om._ but of ... comparisoun. 77. A. by (_for 2nd_ to). 82. C. A. +gerdouns; Ed. guerdones. 84. A. whiche (_for_ swich). 89. A. speke. 90. C. +weer_e_ he; A. where he; Ed. wheder he. 91. A. _om._ that. 94. C. +resseyuyd; A. receiued. 95. C. vnderstondow. 97. A. _om._ it. 98. C. +_glosses_ it _by_ s. fama. 102. A. _om._ it. 103. C. deffendeth; A. +defendith. 105. A. for (_for_ whan). 107. C. _glosses_ erthe _by_ i. +corporis. 108. C. _glosses_ it _by_ i. anima. 110, 111. A. _om._ As who ... +this world. + + +METRE VII. + +_Quicunque solam mente praecipiti petit._ + + Who-so that, with overthrowinge thought, only seketh glorie of + fame, and weneth that it be sovereyn good: lat him loken up-on + the brode shewinge contrees of hevene, and up-on the streite site + of this erthe; and he shal ben ashamed of the encrees of his + name, that may nat fulfille the litel compas _of the erthe_. O! 5 + what coveiten proude folk to liften up hir nekkes in ydel in the + dedly yok _of this worlde_? For al-though that renoun y-sprad, + passinge to ferne poeples, goth by dyverse tonges; and al-though + that grete houses or kinredes shynen with clere titles of honours; + yit, natheles, deeth despyseth alle heye glorie of fame: and deeth 10 + wrappeth to-gidere the heye hevedes and the lowe, and maketh + egal and evene the heyeste to the loweste. Wher wonen now the + bones of trewe Fabricius? What is now Brutus, or stierne + Catoun? The thinne fame, yit lastinge, of hir ydel names, is + marked with a fewe lettres; but al-though that we han knowen 15 + the faire wordes of the fames of hem, it is nat yeven to knowe + hem that ben dede and consumpte. Liggeth thanne stille, al + outrely unknowable; ne fame ne maketh yow nat knowe. And + yif ye wene to liven the longer for winde of your mortal name, + whan o cruel day shal ravisshe yow, thanne is the seconde deeth 20 + dwellinge un-to yow.' GLOSE. _The first deeth he clepeth heer the + departinge of the body and the sowle; and the seconde deeth he + clepeth, as heer, the stintinge of the renoun of fame._ + +3. C. cyte (_for_ site); A. sete (_error for_ site; Lat. _situm_). 6. A. +liften vpon hire nekkes in ydel and dedely. 7. A. _om._ that. 9. A. _om._ +that. // C. cler; A. clere. 13. A. stiern; Ed. sterne. 17. A. Ed. consumpt. +18. A. vtterly. 21. Ed. to (_for_ un-to); A. in. // A. Ed. the; C. _om._ +(_after_ heer). + + +PROSE VIII. + +_Set ne me inexorabile contra fortunam._ + + 'But for as mochel as thou shalt nat wenen', quod she, 'that I + bere untretable bataile ayeins fortune, yit som-tyme it bifalleth that + she, deceyvable, deserveth to han right good thank of men; and + that is, whan she hir-self opneth, and whan she descovereth hir + frount, and sheweth hir maneres. Peraventure yit understondest 5 + thou nat that I shal seye. It is a wonder that I desire to telle, + and forthy unnethe may I unpleyten my sentence with wordes; for + I deme that contrarious Fortune profiteth more to men than + Fortune debonaire. For alwey, whan Fortune semeth debonaire, + than she lyeth falsly in bihetinge the hope of welefulnesse; but 10 + forsothe contrarious Fortune is alwey soothfast, whan she sheweth + hir-self unstable thorugh hir chaunginge. The amiable Fortune + deceyveth folk; the contrarie Fortune techeth. The amiable + Fortune bindeth with the beautee of false goodes the hertes of + folk that usen hem; the contrarie Fortune unbindeth hem by the 15 + knowinge of freele welefulnesse. The amiable Fortune mayst + thou seen alwey windinge and flowinge, and ever misknowinge of + hir-self; the contrarie Fortune is atempre and restreyned, and wys + thorugh exercise of hir adversitee. At the laste, amiable Fortune + with hir flateringes draweth miswandringe men fro the sovereyne 20 + good; the contrarious Fortune ledeth ofte folk ayein to soothfast + goodes, and haleth hem ayein as with an hooke. Wenest thou + thanne that thou oughtest to leten this a litel thing, that this aspre + and horrible Fortune hath discovered to thee the thoughtes of thy + trewe freendes? For-why this ilke Fortune hath departed and uncovered 25 + to thee bothe the certein visages and eek the doutous + visages of thy felawes. Whan she departed awey fro thee, she + took awey hir freendes, and lafte thee thyne freendes. Now whan + thou were riche and weleful, as thee semede, with how mochel + woldest thou han bought the fulle knowinge of this, _that is to seyn, 30 + the knowinge of thy verray freendes_? Now pleyne thee nat thanne + of richesse y-lorn, sin thou hast founden the moste precious kinde + of richesses, that is to seyn, thy verray freendes. + +PR. VIII. A. _omits to end of_ bk. iii. pr. 1. 3. C. desseyuable. // C. +desserueth. 7. _So_ C.; Ed. vnplyten. 13. C. desseyueth. 17. C. maysthow. +30. C. woldesthow. + + +METRE VIII. + +_Quod mundus stabili fide._ + + That the world with stable feith varieth acordable chaunginges; + that the contrarious qualitee of elements holden among hem-self + aliaunce perdurable; that Phebus the sonne with his goldene + chariet bringeth forth the rosene day; that the mone hath commaundement + over the nightes, which nightes Hesperus the eve-sterre 5 + hath brought; that the see, greedy to flowen, constreyneth + with a certein ende hise flodes, so that it is nat leveful to strecche + hise brode termes or boundes up-on the erthes, _that is to seyn, to + covere al the erthe_:--al this acordaunce of thinges is bounden with + Love, that governeth erthe and see, and hath also commaundements 10 + to the hevenes. And yif this Love slakede the brydeles, + alle thinges that now loven hem to-gederes wolden maken a bataile + continuely, and stryven to fordoon the fasoun of this worlde, the + whiche they now leden in acordable feith by faire moevinges. + This Love halt to-gideres poeples ioigned with an holy bond, and 15 + knitteth sacrement of mariages of chaste loves; and Love endyteth + lawes to trewe felawes. O! weleful were mankinde, yif thilke + Love that governeth hevene governed youre corages!' + +ME. VIII. 6. C. hat. 7. C. lueful; Ed. leful. 8. erthes; Lat. _terris_. + + +EXPLICIT LIBER SECUNDUS. + + + + +BOOK III. + + +PROSE I. + +_Iam cantum illa finierat._ + + By this she hadde ended hir song, whan the sweetnesse of hir + ditee hadde thorugh-perced me that was desirous of herkninge, + and I astoned hadde yit streighte myn eres, _that is to seyn, to + herkne the bet what she wolde seye_; so that a litel here-after I + seyde thus: 'O thou that art sovereyn comfort of anguissous 5 + corages, so thou hast remounted and norisshed me with the + weighte of thy sentences and with delyt of thy singinge; so that + I trowe nat now that I be unparigal to the strokes of Fortune: + _as who seyth, I dar wel now suffren al the assautes of Fortune, and + wel defende me fro hir_. And tho remedies whiche that thou 10 + seydest her-biforn weren right sharpe, nat only that I am nat + a-grisen of hem now, but I, desirous of heringe, axe gretely to + heren the remedies.' + + Than seyde she thus: 'That felede I ful wel,' quod she, 'whan + that thou, ententif and stille, ravisshedest my wordes; and I 15 + abood til that thou haddest swich habite of thy thought as thou + hast now; or elles til that I my-self hadde maked to thee the + same habit, which that is a more verray thing. And certes, the + remenaunt of thinges that ben yit to seye ben swiche, that first + whan men tasten hem they ben bytinge, but whan they ben 20 + receyved withinne a wight, than ben they swete. But for thou + seyst that thou art so desirous to herkne hem, with how gret + brenninge woldest thou glowen, yif thou wistest whider I wol + leden thee!' + + 'Whider is that?' quod I. 25 + + 'To thilke verray welefulnesse,' quod she, 'of whiche thyn herte + dremeth; but for as moche as thy sighte is ocupied and distorbed + by imaginacioun _of erthely thinges_, thou mayst nat yit seen thilke + selve welefulnesse.' + + 'Do,' quod I, 'and shewe me what is thilke verray welefulnesse, 30 + I preye thee, with-oute taryinge.' + + 'That wole I gladly don,' quod she, 'for the cause of thee; + but I wol first marken thee by wordes and I wol enforcen me to + enformen thee thilke _false_ cause _of blisfulnesse_ that thou more + knowest; so that, whan thou hast fully bi-holden thilke false 35 + goodes, and torned thyn eyen to that other syde, thou mowe knowe + the cleernesse of verray blisfulnesse. + +PR. I. 3. C. streyhte; Ed. streyght. 5. C angwissos. 7. C. weyhte; Ed. +weight. // C. sentenses; Ed. sentences. 8. C. vnparygal; Ed. vnperegall. +10. C. deffende; Ed. defende. 11. C. hir-; Ed. here-. 12. C. desiros; Ed. +desyrous. 17. C. Ed. had. 21. C. resseyued. 22. C. wit; Ed. with. 23. C. +woldesthow; Ed. woldest thou. 26. C. thynge (!); Ed. thyn; Lat. _tuus_. 28. +C. herthely; Ed. erthly. 31. C. tarynge; Ed. taryeng; Lat. _cunctatione_. +33. C. the (_for_ thee); Ed. _om._ + + +METRE I. + +_Qui serere ingenuum uolet agrum._ + + Who-so wole sowe a feeld plentivous, lat him first delivere it fro + thornes, and kerve asunder with his hook the busshes and the + fern, so that the corn may comen hevy of eres and of greynes. + Hony is the more swete, yif mouthes han first tasted savoures that + ben wikkid. The sterres shynen more agreably whan the wind 5 + Nothus leteth his ploungy blastes; and after that Lucifer the + day-sterre hath chased awey the derke night, the day the fairere + ledeth the rosene hors _of the sonne_. And right so thou, bi-holdinge + first the false goodes, bigin to with-drawen thy nekke + fro the yok _of erthely affecciouns_; and after-ward the verray goodes 10 + shollen entren in-to thy corage.' + +ME. I. 1. A. of (_for_ fro). 2. A. bushes; Ed. busshes; C. bosses. 3. C. +heres; A. eres. 5. A. wikke. // C. agreablely. 7. C. dirke; A. derke. 8. A. +_om._ And. 10. C. verre; A. verrey. + + +PROSE II. + +_Tunc defixo paullulum uisu._ + + Tho fastnede she a litel the sighte of hir eyen, and with-drow + hir right as it were in-to the streite sete of hir thought; and bigan + to speke right thus: 'Alle the cures,' quod she, 'of mortal folk, + whiche that travaylen hem in many maner studies, goon certes by + diverse weyes, but natheles they enforcen hem alle to comen only 5 + to oon ende of blisfulnesse. And blisfulnesse is swiche a good, + that who-so that hath geten it, he ne may, over that, no-thing + more desyre. And this thing is forsothe the sovereyn good that + conteyneth in him-self alle maner goodes; to the whiche good yif + ther failede any thing, it mighte nat ben cleped sovereyn good: 10 + for thanne were ther som good, out of this ilke sovereyn good, that + mighte ben desired. Now is it cleer and certein thanne, that + blisfulnesse is a parfit estat by the congregacioun of alle goodes; + the whiche blisfulnesse, as I have seyd, alle mortal folk enforcen + hem to geten by diverse weyes. For-why the coveitise of verray 15 + good is naturelly y-plaunted in the hertes of men; but the miswandringe + errour mis-ledeth hem in-to false goodes. Of the + whiche men, som of hem wenen that sovereyn good be to liven + with-oute nede of any thing, and travaylen hem to be haboundaunt + of richesses. And som other men demen that sovereyn good be, 20 + for to ben right digne of reverence; and enforcen hem to ben + reverenced among hir neighbours by the honours that they han + y-geten. And some folk ther ben that holden, that right heigh + power be sovereyn good, and enforcen hem for to regnen, or elles + to ioignen hem to hem that regnen. And it semeth to some other 25 + folk, that noblesse of renoun be the sovereyn good; and hasten + hem to geten glorious name by the arts of werre and of pees. + And many folk mesuren and gessen that sovereyn good be Ioye + and gladnesse, and wenen that it be right blisful thing to ploungen + hem in voluptuous delyt. And ther ben folk that entrechaungen 30 + the causes and the endes of thise forseyde goodes, as they that + desiren richesses to han power and delytes; or elles they desiren + power for to han moneye, or for cause of renoun. In thise thinges, + and in swiche othre thinges, is torned alle the entencioun of + desiringes and of werkes of men; as thus: noblesse and favour 35 + of people, whiche that yeveth to men, as it semeth hem, a maner + cleernesse of renoun; and wyf and children, that men desiren for + cause of delyt and of merinesse. But forsothe, frendes ne sholden + nat be rekned a-mong the godes of fortune, but of vertu; for it is + a ful holy maner thing. Alle thise othre thinges, forsothe, ben 40 + taken for cause of power or elles for cause of delyt. + + Certes, now am I redy to referren the goodes of the body to + thise forseide thinges aboven; for it semeth that strengthe and + gretnesse of body yeven power and worthinesse, and that beautee + and swiftnesse yeven noblesses and glorie of renoun; and hele of 45 + body semeth yeven delyt. In alle thise thinges it semeth only + that blisfulnesse is desired. For-why thilke thing that every man + desireth most over alle thinges, he demeth that it be the sovereyn + good; but I have defyned that blisfulnesse is the sovereyn good; + for which every wight demeth, that thilke estat that he desireth 50 + over alle thinges, that it be blisfulnesse. + + Now hast thou thanne biforn thyn eyen almest al the purposed + forme of the welefulnesse of man-kinde, that is to seyn, richesses, + honours, power, and glorie, and delyts. The whiche delyt only + considerede Epicurus, and iuged and establisshed that delyt is 55 + the sovereyn good; for as moche as alle othre thinges, as him + thoughte, bi-refte awey Ioye and mirthe fram the herte. But I + retorne ayein to the studies of men, of whiche men the corage + alwey reherseth and seketh the sovereyn good, al be it so that + it be with a derked memorie; but he not by whiche path, right 60 + as a dronken man not nat by whiche path he may retorne him to + his hous. Semeth it thanne that folk folyen and erren that + enforcen hem to have nede of nothing? Certes, ther nis non other + thing that may so wel performe blisfulnesse, as an estat plentivous + of alle goodes, that ne hath nede of non other thing, but that is 65 + suffisaunt of himself unto him-self. And folyen swiche folk thanne, + that wenen that thilke thing that is right good, that it be eek right + worthy of honour and of reverence? Certes, nay. For that thing + nis neither foul ne worthy to ben despised, that wel neigh al the + entencioun of mortal folk travaylen for to geten it. And power, 70 + oughte nat that eek to ben rekened amonges goodes? What + elles? For it is nat to wene that thilke thing, that is most worthy + of alle thinges, be feble and with-oute strengthe. And cleernesse + of renoun, oughte that to ben despised? Certes, ther may no + man forsake, that al thing that is right excellent and noble, that it + ne 75 + semeth to ben right cleer and renomed. For certes, it nedeth nat + to seye, that blisfulnesse be [nat] anguissous ne drery, ne subgit to + grevaunces ne to sorwes, sin that in right litel thinges folk seken + to have and to usen that may delyten hem. Certes, thise ben + the thinges that men wolen and desiren to geten. And for this 80 + cause desiren they richesses, dignitees, regnes, glorie, and delices. + For therby wenen they to han suffisaunce, honour, power, renoun, + and gladnesse. Than is it good, that men seken thus by so many + diverse studies. In whiche desyr it may lightly ben shewed how + gret is the strengthe of nature; for how so that men han diverse 85 + sentences and discordinge, algates men acorden alle in lovinge the + ende of good. + +PR. II. 2. C. cyte; A. sete; Lat. _sedem_. 5. C. enforsen; A. enforced; Ed. +enforcen. 6. A. _om._ And blisfulnesse. 10. A. _om._ cleped. 14. C. +enforsen; A. enforcen. 18. A. is (_for_ be). 20. C. ben; A. be. 22. C. +nesshebors; A. neyghbours. 23. A. halden. // C. heyh; A. hey[gh]e; Ed. hye. +24: A. to b (_for_ be). 28. C. by (_for_ be); A. Ed. be. 29. A. _om._ +thing. 32. A. rycchesse. 35. A. _om. 1st_ of. // C. fauor; A. fauo_ur_. 36. +A. _om._ to men _and_ hem. 38. A. shollen. 39. A. Ed. the; C. tho. 45. C. +sweft-; A. swifte-. 49. C. deffyned; A. Ed. diffined. 52. A. _om._ thy +eyen; C. thy (_for_ thyn); Ed. thyn. // A. almost. 55. A. _om._ and _bef._ +iuged. // C. A. establyssed; Ed. establysshed. 59. A. _ins._ of _after_ +good (_wrongly_). 60. C. dirkyd; A. derke; Ed. dyrked. // A. _om._ but he +... path. // C. paath (_twice_). 62. C. foleyen; A. folyen. 65. C. A. +_ins._ it _bef._ is; Ed. _om._ 66. C. A. foleyen; Ed. folyen. 69. C. wel +neyh; Ed. wel nygh; A. _om._ // C. alle; A. Ed. al. 77. _I supply_ nat. // +C. angwyssos. // C. subgyd; A. subgit. 81. A. rycches. 86. C. allegates; A. +algates. // A. lyuynge (!). + + +METRE II. + +_Quantas rerum flectat habenas._ + + It lyketh me to shewe, by subtil song, with slakke and delitable + soun of strenges, how that Nature, mighty, enclineth and flitteth + the governements of thinges, and by whiche lawes she, purveyable, + kepeth the grete world; and how she, bindinge, restreyneth alle + thinges by a bonde that may nat ben unbounde. Al be it so that 5 + the lyouns of the contre of Pene beren the faire chaynes, and + taken metes of the handes of folk that yeven it hem, and dreden + hir sturdy maystres of whiche they ben wont to suffren betinges: + yif that hir horrible mouthes ben be-bled, _that is to seyn, of bestes + devoured_, hir corage of time passed, that hath ben ydel and rested, 10 + repeyreth ayein; and they roren grevously and remembren on hir + nature, and slaken hir nekkes fram hir chaynes unbounde; and + hir mayster, first to-torn with blody tooth, assayeth the wode + wrathes of hem; _this is to seyn, they freten hir mayster_. And the + iangelinge brid that singeth on the heye braunches, _that is to seyn, 15 + in the wode_, and after is enclosed in a streyt cage: al-though that + the pleyinge bisinesse of men yeveth hem honiede drinkes and + large metes with swete studie, yit natheles, yif thilke brid, skippinge + out of hir streyte cage, seeth the agreables shadewes of the + wodes, she defouleth with hir feet hir metes y-shad, and seketh 20 + mourninge only the wode; and twitereth, desiringe the wode, with + hir swete vois. The yerde of a tree, that is haled a-doun by + mighty strengthe, boweth redily the crop a-doun: but yif that the + hand of him that it bente lat it gon ayein, anon the crop loketh + up-right to hevene. The sonne Phebus, that falleth at even in 25 + the westrene wawes, retorneth ayein eftsones his carte, by privee + path, ther-as it is wont aryse. Alle thinges seken ayein to hir + propre cours, and alle thinges reioysen hem of hir retorninge ayein + to hir nature. Ne non ordinaunce nis bitaken to thinges, but that + that hath ioyned the endinge to the beginninge, and hath maked 30 + the cours of it-self stable, _that it chaungeth nat from his propre + kinde_. + +ME. II. 3. A. _om._ the. 8. A. _om._ betinges. 9. C. horyble. 11. A. that +(_for 1st_ and). 13. A. to-teren. 15. A. Iangland. // A. this (_for 2nd_ +that). 16. A. inclosed. // C. streyht; A. streit. 17. C. pleynynge; A. +pleiyng; Lat. _ludens_. 19. A. Ed. agreable. 24. C. bent; A. bente. 27. A. +in-to (_for_ to). 30. C. hat; A. hath. + + +PROSE III. + +_Vos quoque, o terrena animalia._ + + Certes also ye men, that ben ertheliche beestes, dremen alwey + youre beginninge, al-though it be with a thinne imaginacioun; + and by a maner thoughte, al be it nat cleerly ne parfitly, ye loken + fram a-fer to thilke verray fyn of blisfulnesse; and ther-fore naturel + entencioun ledeth you to thilke verray good, but many maner 5 + errours mis-torneth you ther-fro. Consider now yif that by thilke + thinges, by whiche a man weneth to geten him blisfulnesse, yif + that he may comen to thilke ende that he weneth to come by + nature. For yif that moneye or honours, or thise other forseyde + thinges bringen to men swich a thing that no good ne fayle hem 10 + ne semeth fayle, certes than wole I graunte that they ben maked + blisful by thilke thinges that they han geten. But yif so be that + thilke thinges ne mowen nat performen that they bi-heten, and + that ther be defaute of manye goodes, sheweth it nat thanne + cleerly that fals beautee of blisfulnesse is knowen and ateint in 15 + thilke thinges? First and forward thou thy-self, that haddest + habundaunces of richesses nat long agon, I axe yif that, in the + habundaunce of alle thilke richesses, thou were never anguissous + or sory in thy corage of any wrong or grevaunce that bi-tidde thee + on any syde?' 20 + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'it ne remembreth me nat that evere I was + so free of my thought that I ne was alwey in anguissh of + som-what.' + + 'And was nat that,' quod she, 'for that thee lakked som-what + that thou noldest nat han lakked, or elles thou haddest that thou 25 + noldest nat han had?' + + 'Right so is it,' quod I. + + 'Thanne desiredest thou the presence of that oon and the + absence of that other?' + + 'I graunte wel,' quod I. 30 + + 'Forsothe,' quod she, 'than nedeth ther som-what that every + man desireth?' + + 'Ye, ther nedeth,' quod I. + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'and he that hath lakke or nede of aught + nis nat in every wey suffisaunt to himself?' 35 + + 'No,' quod I. + + 'And thou,' quod she, 'in al the plentee of thy richesses haddest + thilke lakke of suffisaunse?' + + 'What elles?' quod I. + + 'Thanne may nat richesses maken that a man nis nedy, ne that 40 + he be suffisaunt to him-self; and that was it that they bi-highten, + as it semeth. And eek certes I trowe, that this be gretly to + considere, that moneye ne hath nat in his owne kinde that it + ne may ben bi-nomen of hem that han it, maugre hem?' + + 'I bi-knowe it wel,' quod I. 45 + + 'Why sholdest thou nat bi-knowen it,' quod she, 'whan every + day the strenger folk bi-nemen it fro the febler, maugre hem? + For whennes comen elles alle thise foreyne compleyntes or + quereles of pletinges, but for that men axen ayein here moneye + that hath ben bi-nomen hem by force or by gyle, and alwey 50 + maugre hem?' + + 'Right so is it,' quod I. + + 'Than,' quod she, 'hath a man nede to seken him foreyne + helpe by whiche he may defende his moneye?' + + 'Who may sey nay?' quod I. 55 + + 'Certes,' quod she; 'and him nedede non help, yif he ne hadde + no moneye that he mighte lese?' + + 'That is douteles,' quod I. + + 'Than is this thinge torned in-to the contrarye,' quod she. + 'For richesses, that men wenen sholde make suffisaunce, they 60 + maken a man rather han nede of foreyne help! Which is + the manere or the gyse,' quod she, 'that richesse may dryve awey + nede? Riche folk, may they neither han hunger ne thurst? + Thise riche men, may they fele no cold on hir limes on winter? + But thou wolt answeren, that riche men han y-now wher-with they 65 + may staunchen hir hunger, slaken hir thurst, and don a-wey cold. + In this wyse may nede be counforted by richesses; but certes, + nede ne may nat all outrely ben don a-wey. For though this nede, + that is alwey gapinge and gredy, be fulfild with richesses, and axe + any thing, yit dwelleth thanne a nede that mighte be fulfild. I 70 + holde me stille, and telle nat how that litel thing suffiseth to + nature; but certes to avarice y-nough ne suffiseth no-thing. For + sin that richesses ne may nat al don awey nede, but richesses + maken nede, what may it thanne be, that ye wenen that richesses + mowen yeven you suffisaunce? 75 + +PR. III. 2. A. _om._ youre biginninge. 15. C. ataynt; A. a-teint. 24. A. +that (_for_ And). // A. _om._ nat that ... for. // A. thou lakkedest; Ed. +the lacked. 34. A. a wy[gh]t (_for_ aught). 35. C. suffysaunte; A. +suffisaunt. 37, 40. A. rycchesse. 46. C. sholdesthow. 47. A. bynymen. // C. +febeler_e_; A. febler. 50. C. _om._ hem. 54. C. deffende. 56. A. nedith. +60. A. rycchesse. 63. A. threst. 64. C. the; A. thei. 65. A. y-nou[gh]. 66. +A. threst. 68. C. _om._ nat. // C. vtrely; A. outerly. 69, 70. C. fulfyd; +A. fulfilled (_twice_). 72. C. aueryce; A. auarice. 73. C. rychesse (_1st +time only_); A. rychesse (_twice_). // C. alwey; A. awey. + +METRE III. + +_Quamvis fluente diues auri gurgite._ + + Al were it so that a riche coveytous man hadde a river fletinge + al of gold, yit sholde it never staunchen his coveitise; and though + he hadde his nekke y-charged with precious stones of the rede + see, and though he do ere his feldes plentivous with an hundred + oxen, never ne shal his bytinge bisinesse for-leten him whyl he 5 + liveth, ne the lighte richesses ne sholle nat beren him companye + whan he is ded. + +ME. III. 1. A. _om. 2nd_ a. 2. A. couetise. 4. A. erye. // C. feeldes. 6. +C. leuith; A. lyueth. // C. shol; A. shal. // C. A. compaignie. + + +PROSE IV. + +_Set dignitates._ + + But dignitees, to whom they ben comen, maken they him + honorable and reverent? Han they nat so gret strengthe, that + they may putte vertues in the hertes of folk that usen the lordshipes + of hem? Or elles may they don a-wey the vyces? Certes, they + ne be nat wont to don awey wikkednesse, but they ben wont 5 + rather to shewen wikkednesse. And ther-of comth it that I have + right grete desdeyn, that dignitees ben yeven ofte to wikked + men; for which thing Catullus cleped _a consul of Rome, that + highte_ Nonius, "postum" or "boch"; _as who seyth, he cleped him + a congregacioun of vyces in his brest, as a postum is ful of + corupcioun_, 10 + al were this Nonius set in a chayre of dignitee. Seest thou nat + thanne how gret vilenye dignitees don to wikked men? Certes, + unworthinesse of wikked men sholde be the lasse y-sene, yif they + nere renomed of none honours. Certes, thou thyself ne mightest + nat ben brought with as manye perils as thou mightest suffren 15 + that thou woldest beren the magistrat with Decorat; _that is to + seyn, that for no peril that mighte befallen thee by offence of the king + Theodorike, thou noldest nat be felawe in governaunce with Decorat_; + whan thou saye that he hadde wikked corage of a likerous shrewe + and of an accuser. Ne I ne may nat, for swiche honours, iugen 20 + hem worthy of reverence, that I deme and holde unworthy to han + thilke same honours. Now yif thou saye a man that were fulfild + of wisdom, certes, thou ne mightest nat deme that he were unworthy + to the honour, or elles to the wisdom of which he is + fulfild?'--'No,' quod I.--'Certes, dignitees,' quod she, 'apertienen 25 + proprely to vertu; and vertu transporteth dignitee anon to + thilke man to which she hir-self is conioigned. And for as moche + as honours of poeple ne may nat maken folk digne of honour, it + is wel seyn cleerly that they ne han no propre beautee of dignitee. + And yit men oughten taken more heed in this. For yif it so be 30 + that a wikked wight be so mochel the foulere and the more out-cast, + that he is despysed of most folk, so as dignitee ne may nat + maken shrewes digne of reverence, the which shrewes dignitee + sheweth to moche folk, thanne maketh dignitee shrewes rather so + moche more despysed than preysed; and forsothe nat unpunisshed: 35 + _that is for to seyn, that shrewes revengen hem ayeinward + up-on dignitees_; for they yilden ayein to dignitees as gret guerdoun, + whan they bi-spotten and defoulen dignitees with hir + vilenye. And for as mochel as thou mowe knowe that thilke + verray reverence ne may nat comen by thise shadewy transitorie 40 + dignitees, undirstond now thus: yif that a man hadde used and + had many maner dignitees of consules, and were comen peraventure + amonge straunge naciouns, sholde thilke honour maken + him worshipful and redouted of straunge folk? Certes, yif that + honour of poeple were a naturel yift to dignitees, it ne mighte 45 + never cesen nowher amonges no maner folk to don his office, + right as fyr in every contree ne stinteth nat to eschaufen and to + ben hoot. But for as moche as for to ben holden honourable or + reverent ne cometh nat to folk of hir propre strengthe of nature, + but only of the false opinioun of folk, _that is to seyn, that wenen 50 + that dignitees maken folk digne of honour_; anon therfore whan + that they comen ther-as folk ne knowen nat thilke dignitees, hir + honours vanisshen awey, and that anon. But that is amonges + straunge folk, mayst thou seyn; but amonges hem ther they + weren born, ne duren nat thilke dignitees alwey? Certes, the 55 + dignitee of the provostrie of Rome was whylom a gret power; + now is it nothing but an ydel name, and the rente of the senatorie + a gret charge. And yif a wight whylom hadde the office to taken + hede to the vitailes of the poeple, as of corn and other thinges, he + was holden amonges grete; but what thing is now more out-cast 60 + thanne thilke provostrie? And, as I have seyd a litel her-biforn, + that thilke thing that hath no propre beautee of him-self receiveth + som-tyme prys and shyninge, and som-tyme leseth it by the + opinioun of usaunces. Now yif that dignitees thanne ne mowen + nat maken folk digne of reverence, and yif that dignitees wexen 65 + foule of hir wille by the filthe of shrewes, and yif that dignitees + lesen hir shyninge by chaunginge of tymes, and yif they wexen + foule by estimacioun of poeple: what is it that they han in hem-self + of beautee that oughte ben desired? _as who seyth, non_; + thanne ne mowen they yeven no beautee of dignitee to non other. 70 + +PR. IV. 2. C. honorable, _glossed_ ironice. 3. C. lordshippys; A. +lordshipes. 5. A. _om._ ne. // A. wikkednesses (_twice_); Lat. _nequitiam_. +6. C. _om._ to _bef._ shewen. 7. C. desdaign; A. desdeyne. 9. C. nomyus; A. +nonius. // Ed. postome. 11. C. nomyus. // C. _om._ a. // C. Sesthow. 12. C. +fylonye; A. vylenye; Ed. vylonies; Lat. _dedecus_. 16. C. Ed. the; A. thi. +// A. magistrat; C. magestrat. 17. A. by the offence; C. by offense; Ed. by +offence. 19. Ed. saw. // C. lykoros; A. likerous. 22. Ed. sawe. 25. A. Ed. +quod she; C. _om._ 29. C. they, _glossed_, s. honurs. 30. A. more; C. mor. +// C. _om._ it. 30-5. A. For if it so be that he that is most out-cast that +most folk dispisen. or as dignite ne may nat maken shrewes worthi of no +reuerences. than maketh dignites shrewes more dispised than preised. the +whiche shrewes dignit (_sic_) scheweth to moche folk. and forsothe not +vnpunissed; Ed. for if a wight be in so muche the more outcast, that he is +dispysed of moste folke, so as dignyte ne may not maken shrewes worthy of +no reuerence, than maketh dignite shrewes rather dispysed tha_n_ praysed, +the whiche shrewes dignite sheweth to moche folk. And forsothe not +vnpunisshed. 38. C. A. gerdoun; Ed. guerdons. // C. by-spetten; A. +byspotten; Lat. _commaculant_. 40. C. thyse shadwye; A. the shadewy. 41. A. +this (_for_ thus). 47. A. enchaufen. 50. C. _om._ that _bef._ wenen. 53. C. +vanesshen; A. vanissen. 54. C. maysthow. // A. but; C. Ed. ne. 56, 58. C. +whylom; A. som-tyme (_twice_). 57. C. _om._ the _bef._ senatorie. 59. A. +and what other; Ed. and of other. 62. C. resseyueth; A. resceyueth. 66. C. +felthe; A. filthe. // C. _om._ that _after_ yif (_3rd time only_). 70. C. +dignete. + + +METRE IV. + +_Quamvis se, Tyrio superbus ostro._ + + Al be it so that the proude Nero, with alle his wode luxurie, + kembde him and aparailede him with faire purpres of Tirie, + and with whyte perles, algates yit throf he hateful to alle folk: + _this is to seyn, that al was he behated of alle folk_. Yit this + wikked _Nero hadde gret lordship, and_ yaf whylom to the 5 + reverents senatours the unworshipful setes of dignitees. _Unworshipful + setes he clepeth here, for that Nero, that was so wikked, yaf + tho dignitees._ Who-so wolde thanne resonably wenen, that blisfulnesse + were in swiche honours as ben yeven by vicious shrewes? 10 + +ME. IV. 2. A. kembed; apparailed. 5. C. lorshippe; A. lordship. // C. Ed. +whylom; A. som-tyme. 6. C. reuerentz; Ed. reuerent; A. dredeful; Lat. +_uerendis_. 8. A. tho; C. Ed. the. // A. _om._ so. 10. C. vysios; A. +vicious. + + +PROSE V. + +_An vero regna regumque familiaritas._ + + But regnes and familiaritees of kinges, may they maken a + man to ben mighty? How elles, whan hir blisfulnesse dureth + perpetuely? But certes, the olde age of tyme passed, and eek + of present tyme now, is ful of ensaumples how that kinges ben + chaunged in-to wrecchednesse out of hir welefulnesse. O! a 5 + noble thing and a cleer thing is power, that is nat founden + mighty to kepen it-self! And yif that power of reaumes be + auctour and maker of blisfulnesse, yif thilke power lakketh on + any syde, amenuseth it nat thilke blisfulnesse and bringeth in + wrecchednesse? But yit, al be it so that the reaumes of mankinde 10 + strecchen brode, yit mot ther nede ben moche folk, over + whiche that every king ne hath no lordshipe ne comaundement. + And certes, up-on thilke syde that power faileth, which that + maketh folk blisful, right on that same syde noun-power entreth + under-nethe, that maketh hem wrecches; in this manere thanne 15 + moten kinges han more porcioun of wrecchednesse than of + welefulnesse. A tyraunt, _that was king of Sisile_, that hadde + assayed the peril of his estat, shewede by similitude the dredes + of reaumes by gastnesse of a swerd that heng over the heved + _of his familier_. What thing is thanne this power, that may nat 20 + don awey the bytinges of bisinesse, ne eschewe the prikkes of + drede? And certes, yit wolden they liven in sikernesse, but + they may nat; and yit they glorifye hem in hir power. Holdest + thou thanne that thilke man be mighty, that thou seest that + he wolde don that he may nat don? And holdest thou thanne 25 + him a mighty man, that hath envirownede his sydes with men + of armes or seriaunts, and dredeth more hem that he maketh + agast than they dreden him, and that is put in the handes of + his servaunts for he sholde seme mighty? But of familieres + or servaunts of kinges what sholde I telle thee anything, sin 30 + that I myself have shewed thee that reaumes hem-self ben + ful of gret feblesse? The whiche familieres, certes, the ryal + power of kinges, in hool estat and in estat abated, ful ofte + throweth adown. Nero constreynede Senek, his familier and + his mayster, to chesen on what deeth he wolde deyen. Antonius 35 + comaundede that knightes slowen with hir swerdes Papinian + _his familier_, which Papinian hadde ben longe tyme ful mighty + amonges hem of the court. And yit, certes, they wolden bothe + han renounced hir power; of whiche two Senek enforcede him + to yeven to Nero his richesses, and also to han gon in-to 40 + solitarie exil. But whan the grete weighte, _that is to seyn_, of + _lordes power or of fortune_, draweth hem that shullen falle, + neither of hem ne mighte do that he wolde. What thing is + thanne thilke power, that though men han it, yit they ben agast; + and whanne thou woldest han it, thou nart nat siker; and 45 + yif thou woldest forleten it, thou mayst nat eschuen it? But + whether swiche men ben frendes at nede, as ben conseyled by + fortune and nat by vertu? Certes, swiche folk as weleful + fortune maketh freendes, contrarious fortune maketh hem + enemys. And what pestilence is more mighty for to anoye a 50 + wight than a familier enemy? + +PR. V. 3. C. perpetualy; A. perpetuely. 7. A. realmes. 8. C. auctor; A. +auctour. 10. A. realmes (_om._ the). 11. C. node (_for_ nede). 12. C. +lorshipe. 14. C. A. nou_n_power. 19. A. realmes. 20. C. famyler. 23. A. +yit; C. yif. 24. C. seyst; A. seest; Lat. _uideas_. 27. A. seruauntes. // +A. _om._ hem. 31. A. realmes. 32. A. feblenesse. // A. real; Ed. royal. 34. +C. hyr famyler (_sic_); A. his familier. 37. C. famyler; A. familier. // C. +that hadde; A. _om._ that. 41. C. solutarie; A. solitarie. 42. C. sholen; +Ed. shullen; A. sholden; Lat. _ruituros_. 44. C. yit; Ed. yet; A. that. 47. +C. wheyther. + + +METRE V. + +_Qui se uolet esse potentem._ + + Who-so wol be mighty, he mot daunten his cruel corage, + ne putte nat his nekke, overcomen, under the foule reynes of + lecherye. For al-be-it so that thy lordshipe strecche so fer, + that the contree of Inde quaketh at thy comaundements or at + thy lawes, and that the last _ile in the see, that hight_ Tyle, 5 + be thral to thee, yit, yif thou mayst nat putten awey thy foule + derke desyrs, and dryven out fro thee wrecched complaintes, + certes, it nis no power that thou hast. 8 + +ME. V. 1. C. wole; Ed. wol; A. wolde. 4. C. thath (!). // A. contre Inde. +// A. comaundement. 5. A. leest (_for_ last); Lat. _ultima_. + + +PROSE VI. + +_Gloria uero quam fallax saepe._ + + But glorie, how deceivable and how foul is it ofte! For + which thing nat unskilfully a tragedien, _that is to seyn, a maker + of ditees that highten tragedies_, cryde and seide: "O glorie, + glorie," quod he, "thou art nothing elles to thousandes of folkes + but a greet sweller of eres!" For manye han had ful greet 5 + renoun by the false opinioun of the poeple, and what thing + may ben thought fouler than swiche preysinge? For thilke folk + that ben preysed falsly, they moten nedes han shame of hir + preysinges. And yif that folk han geten hem thonk or preysinge + by hir desertes, what thing hath thilke prys eched or 10 + encresed to the conscience of wyse folk, that mesuren hir good, + nat by the rumour of the poeple, but by the soothfastnesse of + conscience? And yif it seme a fair thing, a man to han + encresed and spred his name, than folweth it that it is demed + to ben a foul thing, yif it ne be y-sprad and encresed. But, 15 + as I seyde a litel her-biforn that, sin ther mot nedes ben many + folk, to whiche folk the renoun of a man ne may nat comen, + it befalleth that he, that thou wenest be glorious and renomed, + semeth in the nexte partie of the erthes to ben with-oute glorie + and with-oute renoun. 20 + + And certes, amonges thise thinges I ne trowe nat that the + prys and grace of the poeple nis neither worthy to ben + remembred, ne cometh of wyse Iugement, ne is ferme perdurably. + But now, of this name of gentilesse, what man is it + that ne may wel seen how veyn and how flittinge a thing it 25 + is? For yif the name of gentilesse be referred to renoun and + cleernesse of linage, thanne is gentil name but a foreine thing, + _that is to seyn, to hem that glorifyen hem of hir linage_. For it + semeth that gentilesse be a maner preysinge that comth of the + deserte of ancestres. And yif preysinge maketh gentilesse, 30 + thanne moten they nedes be gentil that ben preysed. For + which thing it folweth, that yif thou ne have no gentilesse of + thy-self, _that is to seyn, preyse that comth of thy deserte_, foreine + gentilesse ne maketh thee nat gentil. But certes, yif ther be + any good in gentilesse, I trowe it be al-only this, that it semeth 35 + as that a maner necessitee be imposed to gentil men, for that + they ne sholden nat outrayen or forliven fro the virtues of hir + noble kinrede. + +PR. VI. 4. A. Ed. he; C. she (!). 6. A. _om._ the _bef._ poeple. 9. C. of +(_for_ or). 15. A. ne encresed. 19. A. parties of the erthe; Lat. _parte +terrarum_. 23. C. remenbred. 24, 26, 29. C. gentellesse; A. gentilesse. 26. +C. refferred. 30. A. decert; Ed. desert_es_. 32. A. folweth; C. folueth. +36. C. inposed. + + +METRE VI. + +_Omne hominum genus in terris._ + + Al the linage of men that ben in erthe ben of semblable + birthe. On allone is fader of thinges. On allone ministreth + alle thinges. He yaf to the sonne hise bemes; he yaf to the + mone hir hornes. He yaf the men to the erthe; he yaf the + sterres to the hevene. He encloseth with membres the soules 5 + that comen fro his hye sete. Thanne comen alle mortal folk + of noble sede; why noisen ye or bosten of youre eldres? For + yif thou loke your biginninge, and god your auctor and your + maker, thanne nis ther no forlived wight, but-yif he norisshe + his corage un-to vyces, and forlete his propre burthe. 10 + +ME. VI. 4. A. Ed. hir hornes; C. hyse hornes. 5. C. menbrys. 8. Ed. ye +loke; Lat. _spectes_. // A. thy (_for 1st_ your); Lat. _uestra_. + + +PROSE VII. + +_Quid autem de corporis uoluptatibus._ + + But what shal I seye of delices of body, of whiche delices the + desiringes ben ful of anguissh, and the fulfillinges of hem ben ful + of penaunce? How greet syknesse and how grete sorwes unsufferable, + right as a maner fruit of wikkednesse, ben thilke delices + wont to bringen to the bodies of folk that usen hem! Of whiche 5 + delices I not what Ioye may ben had of hir moevinge. But this + wot I wel, that who-so-ever wole remembren him of hise luxures, + he shal wel understonde that the issues of delices ben sorwful + and sorye. And yif thilke delices mowen maken folk blisful, + than by the same cause moten thise bestes ben cleped blisful; 10 + of whiche bestes al the entencioun hasteth to fulfille hir bodily + Iolitee. And the gladnesse of wyf and children were an honest + thing, but it hath ben seyd that it is over muchel ayeins kinde, + that children han ben founden tormentours to hir fadres, I not + how manye: of whiche children how bytinge is every condicioun, 15 + it nedeth nat to tellen it thee, that hast or this tyme assayed + it, and art yit now anguissous. In this approve I the sentence + of my disciple Euripidis, that seyde, that "he that hath no + children is weleful by infortune." + +PR. VII. 12. A. _om._ an. 15. A. Ed. euery; C. eu_er_e. 18. Ed. Euripidis; +C. Eurydyppys; A. Euridippus; Lat. _Euripidis_ (gen.). + + +METRE VII. + +_Habet omnis hoc uoluptas._ + + Every delyt hath this, that it anguissheth hem with prikkes + that usen it. It resembleth to thise flyinge flyes that we clepen + been, that, after that he hath shad hise agreable honies, he fleeth + awey, and stingeth the hertes, of hem that ben y-smite, with + bytinge overlonge holdinge. 5 + +ME. VII. 1. C. A. anguisseth. 3. C. _om. 2nd_ that. // A. the bee (_for_ +he). + + +PROSE VIII. + +_Nihil igitur dubium est._ + + Now is it no doute thanne that thise weyes ne ben a maner + misledinges to blisfulnesse, ne that they ne mowe nat leden + folk thider as they biheten to leden hem. But with how grete + harmes thise forseyde weyes ben enlaced, I shal shewe thee + shortly. For-why yif thou enforcest thee to asemble moneye, 5 + thou most bireven him his moneye that hath it. And yif + thou wolt shynen with dignitees, thou most bisechen and + supplien hem that yeven tho dignitees. And yif thou coveitest + by honour to gon biforn other folk, thou shalt defoule thy-self + thorugh humblesse of axinge. Yif thou desirest power, thou 10 + shalt by awaytes of thy subgits anoyously ben cast under manye + periles. Axest thou glorie? Thou shalt ben so destrat by aspre + thinges that thou shalt forgoon sikernesse. And yif thou wolt + leden thy lyf in delices, every wight shal despisen thee and + forleten thee, as thou that art thral to thing that is right foul 15 + and brotel; that is to seyn, servaunt to thy body. Now is it + thanne wel seen, how litel and how brotel possessioun they + coveiten, that putten the goodes of the body aboven hir owne + resoun. For mayst thou sormounten thise olifaunts in gretnesse + or weight of body? Or mayst thou ben stronger than the bole? 20 + Mayst thou ben swifter than the tygre? Bihold the spaces and + the stablenesse and the swifte cours of the hevene, and stint + som-tyme to wondren on foule thinges; the which hevene, certes, + nis nat rather for thise thinges to ben wondred up-on, than for + the resoun by which it is governed. But the shyning of thy 25 + forme, _that is to seyn, the beautee of thy body_, how swiftly passinge + is it, and how transitorie; certes, it is more flittinge than the + mutabilitee of flowers of the somer-sesoun. For so Aristotle + telleth, that yif that men hadden eyen of a beest that highte + lynx, so that the lokinge of folk mighte percen thorugh the 30 + thinges that with-stonden it, who-so loked thanne in the entrailes + of the body of Alcibiades, that was ful fayr in the superfice + with-oute, it shold seme right foul. And forthy, yif thou semest + fayr, thy nature maketh nat that, but the desceivaunce of the + feblesse of the eyen that loken. But preyse the goodes of the 35 + body as mochel as ever thee list; so that thou knowe algates + that, what-so it be, _that is to seyn, of the goodes of thy body_, + which that thou wondrest up-on, may ben destroyed or dissolved + by the hete of a fevere of three dayes. Of alle whiche forseyde + thinges I may reducen this shortly in a somme, that thise worldly 40 + goodes, whiche that ne mowen nat yeven that they biheten, ne + ben nat parfit by the congregacioun of alle goodes; that they + ne ben nat weyes ne pathes that bringen men to blisfulnesse, + ne maken men to ben blisful. + +PR. VIII. 9. C. shal. 10. A. by (_for_ thorugh). 11. C. be (_for_ by). // +A. vndir many; C. Ed. vndyr by many; Lat. _periculis subiacebis_. 12. C. A. +destrat; Ed. distracte. 16. C. brwtel (_for_ brotel; _1st time_). 19. A. +mayst thou; C. maysthow. 20. C. weyhty (!). 32. C. in superfyce (_om._ +the). 34. A. desceiuaunce of the; Ed. disceyuaunce of; C. deceyuable or +(!). 37. A. the goodes of thi; Ed. the goodes of the; C. godes of the. 40. +A. Ed. a somme; C. _om._ a. // C. wordly. 42. C. ne ne ben. // A. Ed. by +the; C. _om._ the. 43. C. man (_for_ men; _1st time_). + +METRE VIII. + +_Eheu! quae miseros tramite deuios._ + + Allas! which folye and which ignoraunce misledeth wandringe + wrecches fro the path of verray goode! + + Certes, ye ne seken no gold in grene trees, ne ye ne gaderen + nat precious stones in the vynes, ne ye ne hyden nat your + ginnes in the hye mountaignes to cacchen fish of whiche ye 5 + may maken riche festes. And yif yow lyketh to hunte to roes, + ye ne gon nat to the fordes of the water that highte Tyrene. + And over this, men knowen wel the crykes and the cavernes + of the see y-hid in the flodes, and knowen eek which water + is most plentivous of whyte perles, and knowen which water 10 + haboundeth most of rede purpre, _that is to seyn, of a maner + shelle-fish with which men dyen purpre_; and knowen which + strondes habounden most with tendre fisshes, or of sharpe fisshes + that highten echines. But folk suffren hem-self to ben so blinde, + that hem ne reccheth nat to knowe where thilke goodes ben 15 + y-hid whiche that they coveiten, but ploungen hem in erthe + and seken there thilke good that sormounteth the hevene that + bereth the sterres. What preyere may I maken that be digne + to the nyce thoughtes of men? But I preye that they coveiten + richesse and honours, so that, whan they han geten tho false 20 + goodes with greet travaile, that ther-by they mowe knowen the + verray goodes. + +ME. VIII. 4. A. _om._ nat. 5. C. hyye mountaygnes; A. hey[gh]e mountaignes. +// C. kachche; A. kachen; Ed. catchen (= cacchen). 6. C. honte; A. Ed. +hunte. // C. rooes; Ed. roes; A. roos. 8. A. crikes; Ed. crekes; C. brykes; +Lat. _recessus_. 9. A. Ed. in the; C. _om._ the. 14. Ed. Echines; C. A. +echynnys. 15. C. rechcheth; A. recchith. // C. weer_e_ (_for_ where). + + +PROSE IX. + +_Hactenus mendacis formam._ + + It suffyseth that I have shewed hider-to the forme of false + welefulnesse, so that, yif thou loke now cleerly, the order of + myn entencioun requireth from hennes-forth to shewen thee the + verray welefulnesse.' + + 'For sothe,' quod I, 'I see wel now that suffisaunce may nat 5 + comen by richesses, ne power by reames, ne reverence by + dignitees, ne gentilesse by glorie, ne Ioye by delices.' + + 'And hast thou wel knowen the causes,' quod she, 'why it is?' + + 'Certes, me semeth,' quod I, 'that I see hem right as though + it were thorugh a litel clifte; but me were levere knowen hem 10 + more openly of thee.' + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'the resoun is al redy. For thilke thing + that simply is o thing, with-outen any devisioun, the errour + and folye of mankinde departeth and devydeth it, and misledeth + it and transporteth from verray and parfit good to goodes that 15 + ben false and unparfit. But sey me this. Wenest thou that + he, that hath nede of power, that him ne lakketh no-thing?' + + 'Nay,' quod I. + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'thou seyst a-right. For yif so be that + ther is a thing, that in any partye be febler of power, certes, 20 + as in that, it mot nedes ben nedy of foreine help.' + + 'Right so is it,' quod I. + + 'Suffisaunce and power ben thanne of o kinde?' + + 'So semeth it,' quod I. + + 'And demest thou,' quod she, 'that a thing that is of this 25 + manere, _that is to seyn, suffisaunt and mighty_, oughte ben + despysed, or elles that it be right digne of reverence aboven + alle thinges?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'it nis no doute, that it is right worthy to + ben reverenced.' 30 + + 'Lat us,' quod she, 'adden thanne reverence to suffisaunce + and to power, so that we demen that thise three thinges ben + al o thing.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'lat us adden it, yif we wolen graunten the + sothe.' 35 + + 'What demest thou thanne?' quod she; 'is that a derk thing + and nat noble, _that is suffisaunt, reverent, and mighty_, or elles that + it is right noble and right cleer by celebritee of renoun? Consider + thanne,' quod she, 'as we han graunted her-biforn, that he that + ne hath nede of no-thing, and is most mighty and most digne 40 + of honour, yif him nedeth any cleernesse of renoun, which + cleernesse he mighte nat graunten of him-self, so that, for lakke + of thilke cleernesse, he mighte seme the febeler on any syde + or the more out-cast?' GLOSE. _This is to seyn, nay; for who-so + that is suffisaunt, mighty, and reverent, cleernesse of renoun folweth 45 + of the forseyde thinges; he hath it al redy of his suffisaunce._ + + _Boece._ 'I may nat,' quod I, 'denye it; but I mot graunte + as it is, that this thing be right celebrable by cleernesse of renoun + and noblesse.' + + 'Thanne folweth it,' quod she, 'that we adden cleernesse of 50 + renoun to the three forseyde thinges, so that ther ne be amonges + hem no difference?' + + 'This is a consequence,' quod I. + + 'This thing thanne,' quod she, 'that ne hath nede of no + foreine thing, and that may don alle thinges by hise strengthes, 55 + and that is noble and honourable, nis nat that a mery thing + and a Ioyful?' + + 'But whennes,' quod I, 'that any sorwe mighte comen to this + thing that is swiche, certes, I may nat thinke.' + + 'Thanne moten we graunte,' quod she, 'that this thing be 60 + ful of gladnesse, yif the forseyde thinges ben sothe; and certes, + also mote we graunten that suffisaunce, power, noblesse, reverence, + and gladnesse ben only dyverse by names, but hir substaunce + hath no diversitee.' + + 'It mot needly been so,' quod I. 65 + + 'Thilke thing thanne,' quod she, 'that is oon and simple + in his nature, the wikkednesse of men departeth it and devydeth + it; and whan they enforcen hem to geten partye of a thing + that ne hath no part, they ne geten hem neither thilke partye that + nis non, ne the thing al hool that they ne desire nat.' 70 + + 'In which manere?' quod I. + + 'Thilke man,' quod she, 'that secheth richesses to fleen + povertee, he ne travaileth him nat for to gete power; for he + hath levere ben derk and vyl; and eek withdraweth from + him-self many naturel delyts, for he nolde lese the moneye that 75 + he hath assembled. But certes, in this manere he ne geteth + him nat suffisaunce that power forleteth, and that molestie + prikketh, and that filthe maketh out-cast, and that derkenesse + hydeth. And certes, he that desireth only power, he wasteth + and scatereth richesse, and despyseth delyts, and eek honour 80 + that is with-oute power, ne he ne preyseth glorie no-thing. + Certes, thus seest thou wel, that manye thinges faylen to him; + for he hath som-tyme defaute of many necessitees, and many + anguisshes byten him; and whan he ne may nat don tho defautes + a-wey, he forleteth to ben mighty, and that is the thing that 85 + he most desireth. And right thus may I maken semblable + resouns of honours, and of glorie, and of delyts. For so as + every of thise forseyde thinges is the same that thise other + thinges ben, _that is to seyn, al oon thing_, who-so that ever + seketh to geten that oon of thise, and nat that other, he ne 90 + geteth nat that he desireth.' + + _Boece._ 'What seyst thou thanne, yif that a man coveiteth + to geten alle thise thinges to-gider?' + + _Philosophie._ 'Certes,' quod she, 'I wolde seye, that he wolde + geten him sovereyn blisfulnesse; but that shal he nat finde in 95 + tho thinges that I have shewed, that ne mowen nat yeven that + they beheten.' + + 'Certes, no,' quod I. + + 'Thanne,' quod she, 'ne sholden men nat by no wey seken + blisfulnesse in swiche thinges as men wene that they ne mowen 100 + yeven but o thing senglely of alle that men seken.' + + 'I graunte wel,' quod I; 'ne no sother thing ne may ben + sayd.' + + 'Now hast thou thanne,' quod she, 'the forme and the causes + of false welefulnesse. Now torne and flitte the eyen of thy 105 + thought; for ther shalt thou sen anon thilke verray blisfulnesse + that I have bihight thee.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'it is cleer and open, thogh it were to + a blinde man; and that shewedest thou me ful wel a litel her-biforn, + whan thou enforcedest thee to shewe me the causes 110 + of the false blisfulnesse. For but-yif I be bigyled, thanne + is thilke the verray blisfulnesse parfit, that parfitly maketh a + man suffisaunt, mighty, honourable, noble, and ful of gladnesse. + And, for thou shalt wel knowe that I have wel understonden + thise thinges with-in my herte, I knowe wel that thilke blisfulnesse, 115 + that may verrayly yeven oon of the forseyde thinges, sin + they ben al oon, I knowe, douteles, that thilke thing is the + fulle blisfulnesse.' + + _Philosophie._ 'O my norie,' quod she, 'by this opinioun I + seye that thou art blisful, yif thou putte this ther-to that I 120 + shal seyn.' + + 'What is that?' quod I. + + 'Trowest thou that ther be any thing in thise erthely mortal + toumbling thinges that may bringen this estat?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'I trowe it naught; and thou hast shewed 125 + me wel that over thilke good ther nis no-thing more to ben + desired.' + + 'Thise thinges thanne,' quod she, '_that is to sey, erthely + suffisaunce and power and swiche thinges_, either they semen + lykenesses of verray good, or elles it semeth that they yeve to 130 + mortal folk a maner of goodes that ne ben nat parfit; but thilke + good that is verray and parfit, that may they nat yeven.' + + 'I acorde me wel,' quod I. + + 'Thanne,' quod she, 'for as mochel as thou hast knowen + which is thilke verray blisfulnesse, and eek whiche thilke thinges 135 + ben that lyen falsly blisfulnesse, _that is to seyn, that by deceite + semen verray goodes_, now behoveth thee to knowe whennes and + where thou mowe seke thilke verray blisfulnesse.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'that desire I greetly, and have abiden longe + tyme to herknen it.' 140 + + 'But for as moche,' quod she, 'as it lyketh to my disciple + Plato, in his book of "in Timeo," that in right litel thinges men + sholden bisechen the help of god, what iugest thou that be now + to done, so that we may deserve to finde the sete of thilke + verray good?' 145 + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'I deme that we shollen clepen the fader + of alle goodes; for with-outen him nis ther no-thing founden + a-right.' + + 'Thou seyst a-right,' quod she; and bigan anon to singen + right thus:-- 150 + +PR. IX. 5. A. _om._ sothe _and 2nd_ I. 6. A. richesse. // A. Ed. realmes. +8. A. hast thou; C.hasthow. // A. cause; Lat. _caussas_. 16. A. inparfit. +// C. Wenesthow. 20. A. fieble; C. Ed. febler; Lat. _imbecillioris +ualentiae_. 21. C. mot; Ed. mote; A. most. 25. C. demesthow. 29. A. nis +(_twice_). 36. C. demesthow. // Ed. derke; C. dyrk; A. dirke. 38. A. of +(_for_ by). 53. A. And this (_for_ This). // C. consequens; Ed. +consequence; A. consequente _or_ consequence. 54. C. hat (_for_ hath). // +A. no nede. 58. Ed. whence; A. wenest (!); Lat. _unde_. 72. A. rychesse. +74. Ed. derke; C. dyrk; A. dirk. 75. C. delices (_or_ delites); A. delitz; +Ed. delytes. 77. Ed. molestie; C. A. moleste; Lat. _molestia_. 78. A. +derknesse; C. dyrkenesse. 80. C. schatereth. // C. delytz; A. delices (_or_ +delites). 83. C. Ed. defaute; A. faute. 84. Ed. anguysshes; A. anguysses; +C. angwyssos. 86. A. semblable; C. semlable. 90. C. oothr_e_. 92. C. +seysthow. 101. C. A. senglely. 104. C. hasthow. 106. C. shalthow. 109. A. +_om._ ful wel. 115. C. Ed. that thilke; A. _om._ that. 118. A. the fulle of +(_wrongly_). 119. C. norye; A. nurry. 130. A. likenesse; Lat. _imagines_. +141. A. disciple; C. dissipule. 142. C. in tymeo; A. in thimeo; Lat. _uti +in Timaeo Platoni_. 143. C. byshechen. // A. _om._ now. + + +METRE IX. + +_O qui perpetua mundum ratione gubernas._ + + 'O thou fader, creator of hevene and of erthes, that governest + this world by perdurable resoun, that comaundest the tymes to + gon from sin that age hadde beginninge; thou that dwellest + thy-self ay stedefast and stable, and yevest alle othre thinges + to ben moeved; ne foreine causes necesseden thee never to 5 + compoune werk of floteringe matere, but only the forme of + soverein good y-set with-in thee with-oute envye, _that moevede + thee freely_. Thou that art alder-fayrest, beringe the faire world + in thy thought, formedest this world to the lyknesse semblable + of that faire world in thy thought. Thou drawest al thing of 10 + thy soverein ensaumpler, and comaundest that this world, + parfitliche y-maked, have freely and absolut his parfit parties. + Thou bindest the elements by noumbres proporcionables, that + the colde thinges mowen acorden with the hote thinges, and + the drye thinges with the moiste thinges; that the fyr, that 15 + is purest, ne flee nat over hye, ne that the hevinesse ne drawe + nat adoun over-lowe the erthes that ben plounged in the wateres. + Thou knittest to-gider the mene sowle of treble kinde, moevinge + alle thinges, and devydest it by membres acordinge; and whan + it is thus devyded, it hath asembled a moevinge in-to two 20 + roundes; it goth to torne ayein to him-self, and envirouneth a + ful deep thought, and torneth the hevene by semblable image. + Thou by evene-lyke causes enhansest the sowles and the lasse + lyves, and, ablinge hem heye by lighte cartes, thou sowest hem + in-to hevene and in-to erthe; and whan they ben converted to 25 + thee by thy benigne lawe, thou makest hem retorne ayein to + thee by ayein-ledinge fyr. + + O fader, yive thou to the thought to styen up in-to thy streite + sete, and graunte him to enviroune the welle of good; and, the + lighte y-founde, graunte him to fichen the clere sightes of his 30 + corage in thee. And scater thou and to-breke thou the weightes + and the cloudes of erthely hevinesse, and shyne thou by thy + brightnesse. For thou art cleernesse; thou art peysible reste + to debonaire folk; thou thy-self art biginninge, berer, leder, path, + and terme; to loke on thee, that is our ende. 35 + +ME. IX. 3. A. for to gon. // C. from sin that; A. from tyme that; Ed. syth +that. 7. A. _om._ thee _after_ with-in. 10. A. alle thinges. 11. A. +comaundedist. 12. C. _om._ and absolut. 13. A. Ed. proporcionables; C. +porcionables. 16. A. fleye (_for_ flee). // A. Ed. drawe; C. drawen. 18. C. +_glosses_ sowle _by_ anima mundi. 19. C. menbres. 20. C. in to two; A. in +two; Ed. in to. 22. C. tornet; A. tournith. 24. C. Ed. sowest; A. sewest. +26. A. Ed. benigne; C. bygynnynge (!). 28. A. thi thou[gh]t (_wrongly_); C. +_has the gloss_: s. boecii. // A. thi streite; Ed. thy strayte; C. the +streite. 29. A. _om._ him. // C. enuerowne; A. enuiroune. 31. A. _om. 2nd_ +thou. 33. A. _om._ reste. 34. C. paath. 35. A. _om._ that. + + +PROSE X. + +_Quoniam igitur quae sit imperfecti._ + + For as moche thanne as thou hast seyn, which is the forme + of good that nis nat parfit, and which is the forme of good that + is parfit, now trowe I that it were good to shewe in what this + perfeccioun of blisfulnesse is set. And in this thing, I trowe + that we sholden first enquere for to witen, yif that any swiche 5 + maner good as thilke good that thou has diffinisshed a litel + heer-biforn, _that is to seyn, soverein good_, may ben founde in the + nature of thinges; for that veyn imaginacioun of thought ne + deceyve us nat, and putte us out of the sothfastnesse of thilke + thing that is summitted unto us. But it may nat ben deneyed 10 + that thilke good ne is, and that it nis right as welle of alle + goodes. For al thing that is cleped inparfit is proeved inparfit + by the amenusinge of perfeccioun or of thing that is parfit. + And ther-of comth it, that in every thing general, yif that men + sen any-thing that is inparfit, certes, in thilke general ther mot 15 + ben som-thing that is parfit; for yif so be that perfeccioun is + don awey, men may nat thinke ne seye fro whennes thilke + thing is that is cleped inparfit. For the nature of thinges ne + took nat hir beginninge of thinges amenused and inparfit, but + it procedeth of thinges that ben al hoole and absolut, and 20 + descendeth so doun in-to outterest thinges, and in-to thinges + empty and with-outen frut. But, as I have y-shewed a litel + her-biforn, that yif ther be a blisfulnesse that be freele and + veyn and inparfit, ther may no man doute that ther nis som + blisfulnesse that is sad, stedefast, and parfit.' 25 + + _Boece._ 'This is concluded,' quod I, 'fermely and sothfastly.' + + _Philosophie._ 'But considere also,' quod she, 'in wham this + blisfulnesse enhabiteth. The comune acordaunce and conceite + of the corages of men proeveth and graunteth, that god, prince + of alle thinges, is good. For, so as nothing ne may ben thought 30 + bettre than god, it may nat ben douted thanne that he, that + nothing nis bettre, that he nis good. Certes, resoun sheweth + that god is so good, that it proveth by verray force that parfit + good is in him. For yif god ne is swich, he ne may nat ben + prince of alle thinges; for certes som-thing possessing in it-self 35 + parfit good, sholde ben more worthy than god, and it sholde + semen that thilke thing were first, and elder than god. For + we han shewed apertly that alle thinges that ben parfit ben + first or thinges that ben unparfit; and for-thy, for as moche as + that my resoun or my proces ne go nat a-wey with-oute an 40 + ende, we owen to graunten that the soverein god is right ful + of soverein parfit good. And we han establisshed that the + soverein good is verray blisfulnesse: thanne mot it nedes be, + that verray blisfulnesse is set in soverein god.' + + 'This take I wel,' quod I, 'ne this ne may nat ben withseid 45 + in no manere.' + + 'But I preye,' quod she, 'see now how thou mayst proeven, + holily and with-oute corupcioun, this that I have seyd, that the + soverein god is right ful of soverein good.' + + 'In which manere?' quod I. 50 + + 'Wenest thou aught,' quod she, 'that this prince of alle + thinges have y-take thilke soverein good any-wher out of him-self, + of which soverein good men proveth that he is ful, right + as thou mightest thinken that god, that hath blisfulnesse in + him-self, and thilke blisfulnesse that is in him, weren dyvers in 55 + substaunce? For yif thou wene that god have received thilke + good out of him-self, thou mayst wene that he that yaf thilke + good to god be more worthy than is god. But I am bi-knowen + and confesse, and that right dignely, that god is right worthy + aboven alle thinges; and, yif so be that this good be in him 60 + by nature, but that it is dyvers fro him by weninge resoun, + sin we speke of god prince of alle thinges: feigne who-so + feigne may, who was he that hath conioigned thise dyverse + thinges to-gider? And eek, at the laste, see wel that a thing + that is dyvers from any thing, that thilke thing nis nat that 65 + same thing fro which it is understonden to ben dyvers. Thanne + folweth it, that thilke thing that by his nature is dyvers fro + soverein good, that that thing nis nat soverein good; but certes, + that were a felonous corsednesse to thinken that of him that + nothing nis more worth. For alwey, of alle thinges, the nature 70 + of hem ne may nat ben bettre than his biginning; for which + I may concluden, by right verray resoun, that thilke that is + biginning of alle thinges, thilke same thing is soverein good + in his substaunce.' + + _Boece._ 'Thou hast seyd rightfully,' quod I. 75 + + _Philosophie._ 'But we han graunted,' quod she, 'that the + soverein good is blisfulnesse.' + + 'And that is sooth,' quod I. + + 'Thanne,' quod she, 'moten we nedes graunten and confessen + that thilke same soverein good be god.' 80 + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'I ne may nat denye ne withstonde the + resouns purposed; and I see wel that it folweth by strengthe + of the premisses.' + + 'Loke now,' quod she, 'yif this be proved yit more fermely + thus: that ther ne mowen nat ben two soverein goodes that 85 + ben dyverse amonge hem-self. For certes, the goodes that + ben dyverse amonges hem-self, that oon nis nat that that other + is; thanne ne [may] neither of hem ben parfit, so as either of + hem lakketh to other. But that that nis nat parfit, men may + seen apertly that it nis nat soverein. The thinges, thanne, that 90 + ben sovereinly goode, ne mowen by no wey ben dyverse. But + I have wel concluded that blisfulnesse and god ben the soverein + good; for whiche it mot nedes ben, that soverein blisfulnesse + is soverein divinitee.' + + 'Nothing,' quod I, 'nis more soothfast than this, ne more 95 + ferme by resoun; ne a more worthy thing than god may nat + ben concluded.' + + 'Up-on thise thinges thanne,' quod she, 'right as thise geometriens, + whan they han shewed hir proposiciouns, ben wont + to bringen in thinges that they clepen porismes, _or declaraciouns 100 + of forseide thinges_, right so wole I yeve thee heer as a corollarie, + _or a mede of coroune_. For-why, for as moche as by the getinge + of blisfulnesse men ben maked blisful, and blisfulnesse is + divinitee: thanne is it manifest and open, that by the getinge + of divinitee men ben maked blisful. Right as by the getinge 105 + of Iustice [they ben maked iust], and by the getinge of sapience + they ben maked wyse: right so, nedes, by the semblable resoun, + whan they han geten divinitee, they ben maked goddes. Thanne + is every blisful man god; but certes, by nature, ther nis but + o god; but, by the participacioun of divinitee, ther ne let ne 110 + desturbeth nothing that ther ne ben manye goddes.' + + 'This is,' quod I, 'a fair thing and a precious, clepe it as + thou wolt; be it porisme or corollarie,' _or mede of coroune or + declaringes_. + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'nothing nis fayrer than is the thing that 115 + by resoun sholde ben added to thise forseide thinges.' + + 'What thing?' quod I. + + 'So,' quod she, 'as it semeth that blisfulnesse conteneth many + thinges, it were for to witen whether that alle thise thinges maken + or conioignen as a maner body of blisfulnesse, by dyversitee of 120 + parties or of membres; or elles, yif that any of alle thilke thinges + be swich that it acomplisshe by him-self the substaunce of + blisfulnesse, so that alle thise othre thinges ben referred and + brought to blisfulnesse,' _that is to seyn, as to the cheef of hem_. + + 'I wolde,' quod I, 'that thou makedest me cleerly to understonde 125 + what thou seyst, and that thou recordedest me the forseyde + thinges.' + + 'Have I nat iuged,' quod she, 'that blisfulnesse is good?' + + 'Yis, forsothe,' quod I; 'and that soverein good.' + + 'Adde thanne,' quod she, 'thilke good, _that is maked blisfulnesse_, 130 + to alle the forseide thinges; for thilke same blisfulnesse + that is demed to ben soverein suffisaunce, thilke selve is soverein + power, soverein reverence, soverein cleernesse _or noblesse_, and + soverein delyt. CONCLUSIO. What seyst thou thanne of alle thise + thinges, that is to seyn, suffisaunce, power, and this othre thinges; 135 + ben they thanne as membres of blisfulnesse, or ben they referred + and brought to soverein good, right as alle thinges that ben brought + to the chief of hem?' + + 'I understonde wel;' quod I, 'what thou purposest to seke; + but I desire for to herkne that thou shewe it me.' 140 + + 'Tak now thus the discrecioun of this questioun,' quod she. + 'Yif alle thise thinges,' quod she, 'weren membres to felicitee, + than weren they dyverse that oon from that other; and swich is + the nature of parties or of membres, that dyverse membres compounen + a body.' 145 + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'it hath wel ben shewed heer-biforn, that alle + thise thinges ben alle o thing.' + + 'Thanne ben they none membres,' quod she; 'for elles it + sholde seme that blisfulnesse were conioigned al of on membre + allone; but that is a thing that may nat be don.' 150 + + 'This thing,' quod I, 'nis nat doutous; but I abyde to herknen + the remnaunt of thy questioun.' + + 'This is open and cleer,' quod she, 'that alle othre thinges ben + referred and brought to good. For therefore is suffisaunce requered, + for it is demed to ben good; and forthy is power requered, 155 + for men trowen also that it be good; and this same thing mowen + we thinken and coniecten of reverence, and of noblesse, and of + delyt. Thanne is soverein good the somme and the cause of al + that aughte ben desired; for-why thilke thing that with-holdeth + no good in it-self, ne semblaunce of good, it ne may nat wel in 160 + no manere be desired ne requered. And the contrarie: for + thogh that thinges by hir nature ne ben nat goode, algates, yif + men wene that ben goode, yit ben they desired as though that + they weren verrayliche goode. And therfor is it that men oughten + to wene by right, that bountee be the soverein fyn, and the cause 165 + of alle the thinges that ben to requeren. But certes, thilke that + is cause for which men requeren any thing, it semeth that thilke + same thing be most desired. As thus: yif that a wight wolde + ryden for cause of hele, he ne desireth nat so mochel the moevinge + to ryden, as the effect of his hele. Now thanne, sin that 170 + alle thinges ben requered for the grace of good, they ne ben nat + desired of alle folk more thanne the same good. But we han + graunted that blisfulnesse is that thing, for whiche that alle thise + othre thinges ben desired; thanne is it thus: that, certes, only + blisfulnesse is requered and desired. By whiche thing it sheweth 175 + cleerly, that of good and of blisfulnesse is al oon and the same + substaunce.' + + 'I see nat,' quod I, 'wherfore that men mighten discorden in + this.' + + 'And we han shewed that god and verray blisfulnesse is al oo 180 + thing.' + + 'That is sooth,' quod I. + + 'Thanne mowen we conclude sikerly, that the substaunce of + god is set in thilke same good, and in non other place. 184 + +PR. X. 6. A. diffinissed; C. dyffynnyssed; Ed. diffynished. 10. _After_ us, +A. _ins._ this is to seyne (_needlessly_). // C. A. denoyed (_error for_ +deneyed); Ed. denyed. 12. A. al; C. alle. 14. C. ther-of; A. Ed. her-of. // +C. comht (_for_ comth). 20. C. absolut, i. laws. 21. C. dessendeth. 28. C. +conseite; A. conceite. 31. A. _om._ he that. 32. A. is bettre. 35. C. Ed. +it-self; A. hym self. 36. A. _om._ it. 39. A. inperfit. 40. C. as that; A. +_om._ that. // A. Ed. proces; C. processes. 41. owen] A. ou[gh]t. 44. A. +_om._ that ... is. 50. A. _om._ In which ... I. 51. C. Wenesthow awht. 56. +A. receyued; C. resseyud. 58. A. goode (_for_ worthy). 61. A. it is; C. is +is (_sic_). // fro him] A. _om._ him. 63. A. _om._ hath. 70. A. Ed. nis; C. +is. 73. A. _om._ soverein. 84. A. _om._ yit. 86, 87. A. _om._ For certes +... hem-self. // C. othre. 88. A. _om._ ne. // C. A. Ed. mowen; _read_ may. +90. A. Ed. nis; C. is. 106. _I supply_ they ben maked iust; Lat. _iusti_. +110. C. by thy (_wrongly_); A. Ed. by the. 119. A. witen; C. whyten. // C. +wheyther that; A. _om._ that. // A. thise; C. this. 120. A. Ed. by; C. be. +121. C. or of; A. _om._ of. 122. Ed. accomplysshe; C. acomplyse; A. +acomplise. 126. A. recordest. 134. C. _om._ thise. 141. Ed. discrecion; A. +discressioun; C. descressioun. 143. C. swhych. 157. C. coniecten; A. +coneiten; Lat. _coniectare_. 159. C. awht; A. au[gh]t. 161. A. requered; C. +required. 171. A. requered; C. required. 176. C. of good; A. _om._ of; Lat. +_boni_. + + +METRE X. + +_Huc omnes pariter uenite capti._ + + O cometh alle to-gider now, ye that ben y-caught and y-bounde + with wikkede cheynes, by the deceivable delyt of erthely thinges + enhabitinge in your thought! Heer shal ben the reste of your + labours, heer is the havene stable in peysible quiete; this allone + is the open refut to wrecches. GLOSA. _This is to seyn, that ye 5 + that ben combred and deceived with worldely affecciouns, cometh now + to this soverein good, that is god, that is refut to hem that wolen + comen to him._ TEXTUS. Alle the thinges that the river Tagus + yeveth yow with his goldene gravailes, or elles alle the thinges + that the river Hermus yeveth with his rede brinke, or that Indus 10 + yeveth, that is next the hote party of the world, that medleth the + grene stones with the whyte, ne sholde nat cleeren the lookinge + of your thought, but hyden rather your blinde corages with-in hir + derknesse. Al that lyketh yow heer, and excyteth and moeveth + your thoughtes, the erthe hath norisshed it in hise lowe caves. 15 + But the shyninge, by whiche the hevene is governed and whennes + he hath his strengthe, that eschueth the derke overthrowinge of + the sowle; and who-so may knowen thilke light of blisfulnesse, + he shal wel seyn, that the whyte bemes of the sonne ne ben nat + cleer.' 20 + +ME. X. 3. A. Ed. Here; C. He. 6. A. deceyued; C. desseyued. 10. A. Ed. +Hermus; C. Herynus (!). 12. C. grene stones, _i. smaragdes_; with the +whyte, _i. margaretes_. 14. Ed. derkenesse; C. dyrknesse. 16. A. by the +whiche. 17. C. eschueth; A. chaseth; Lat. _uitat_. // A. derke; C. dyrke. + + +PROSE XI. + +_Assentior, inquam._ + + _Boece._ 'I assente me,' quod I; 'for alle thise thinges ben + strongly bounden with right ferme resouns.' + + _Philosophie._ 'How mochel wilt thou preysen it,' quod she, + 'yif that thou knowe what thilke good is?' + + 'I wol preyse it,' quod I, 'by prys with-outen ende, yif it shal 5 + bityde me to knowe also to-gider god that is good.' + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'that shal I do thee by verray resoun, yif + that tho thinges that I have concluded a litel her-biforn dwellen + only in hir first graunting.' + + 'They dwellen graunted to thee,' quod I; _this is to seyn, as 10 + who seith: I graunte thy forseide conclusiouns_. + + 'Have I nat shewed thee,' quod she, 'that the thinges that ben + requered of many folkes ne ben nat verray goodes ne parfite, for + they ben dyverse that oon fro that othre; and so as ech of hem + is lakkinge to other, they ne han no power to bringen a good that 15 + is ful and absolut? But thanne at erst ben they verray good, + whanne they ben gadered to-gider alle in-to o forme and in-to oon + wirkinge, so that thilke thing that is suffisaunce, thilke same be + power, and reverence, and noblesse, and mirthe; and forsothe, + but-yif alle thise thinges ben alle oon same thing, they ne han nat 20 + wherby that they mowen ben put in the noumber of thinges that + oughten ben requered or desired.' + + 'It is shewed,' quod I; 'ne her-of may ther no man douten.' + + 'The thinges thanne,' quod she, 'that ne ben no goodes + whanne they ben dyverse, and whan they beginnen to ben alle 25 + oon thing thanne ben they goodes, ne comth it hem nat thanne + by the getinge of unitee, that they ben maked goodes?' + + 'So it semeth,' quod I. + + 'But al thing that is good,' quod she, 'grauntest thou that it be + good by the participacioun of good, or no?' 30 + + 'I graunte it,' quod I. + + 'Thanne most thou graunten,' quod she, 'by semblable resoun, + that oon and good be oo same thing. For of thinges, of whiche + that the effect nis nat naturelly diverse, nedes the substance mot + be oo same thing.' 35 + + 'I ne may nat denye that,' quod I. + + 'Hast thou nat knowen wel,' quod she, 'that al thing that is + hath so longe his dwellinge and his substaunce as longe as it is + oon; but whan it forleteth to ben oon, it mot nedes dyen and + corumpe to-gider?' 40 + + 'In which manere?' quod I. + + 'Right as in bestes,' quod she, 'whan the sowle and the body + ben conioigned in oon and dwellen to-gider, it is cleped a beest. + And whan hir unitee is destroyed by the disseveraunce of that oon + from that other, than sheweth it wel that it is a ded thing, and 45 + that it nis no lenger no beest. And the body of a wight, whyl + it dwelleth in oo forme by coniunccioun of membres, it is + wel seyn that it is a figure of man-kinde. And yif the parties + of the body ben so devyded and dissevered, _that oon fro that + other_, that they destroyen unitee, the body forleteth to ben that 50 + it was biforn. And, who-so wolde renne in the same manere by + alle thinges, he sholde seen that, with-oute doute, every thing is + in his substaunce as longe as it is oon; and whan it forleteth to + ben oon, it dyeth and perissheth.' + + 'Whan I considere,' quod I, 'manye thinges, I see non other.' 55 + + 'Is ther any-thing thanne,' quod she, 'that, in as moche as it + liveth naturelly, that forleteth the talent or appetyt of his beinge, + and desireth to come to deeth and to corupcioun?' + + 'Yif I considere,' quod I, 'the beestes that han any maner + nature of wilninge and of nillinge, I ne finde no beest, but-yif 60 + it be constreined fro with-oute forth, that forleteth or + despyseth the entencioun to liven and to duren, or that wole, + his thankes, hasten him to dyen. For every beest travaileth him + to deffende and kepe the savacioun of his lyf, and eschueth deeth + and destruccioun. 65 + + But certes, I doute me of herbes and of trees, _that is to + seyn, that I am in a doute of swiche thinges as herbes or trees_, that + ne han no felinge sowles, _ne no naturel wirkinges servinge to + appetytes as bestes han, whether they han appetyt to dwellen + and to duren_.' 70 + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'ne ther-of thar thee nat doute. Now + loke up-on thise herbes and thise trees; they wexen first in + swiche places as ben covenable to hem, in whiche places they + ne mowen nat sone dyen ne dryen, as longe as hir nature may + deffenden hem. For som of hem waxen in feeldes, and som 75 + in mountaignes, and othre waxen in mareys, and othre cleven + on roches, and somme waxen plentivous in sondes; and yif + that any wight enforce him to beren hem in-to othre places, + they wexen drye. For nature yeveth to every thing that that + is convenient to him, and travaileth that they ne dye nat, as 80 + longe as they han power to dwellen and to liven. What woltow + seyn of this, that they drawen alle hir norisshinges by hir rotes, + right as they hadden hir mouthes y-plounged with-in the erthes, + and sheden by hir maryes hir wode and hir bark? And what + woltow seyn of this, that thilke thing that is right softe, as the 85 + marye is, that is alwey hid in the sete, al with-inne, and that + is defended fro with-oute by the stedefastnesse of wode; and + that the uttereste bark is put ayeins the destemperaunce of + the hevene, as a defendour mighty to suffren harm? And thus, + certes, maystow wel seen how greet is the diligence of nature; 90 + for alle thinges renovelen and puplisshen hem with seed y-multiplyed; + ne ther nis no man that ne wot wel that they ne + ben right as a foundement and edifice, for to duren nat only + for a tyme, but right as for to duren perdurably by generacioun. + And the thinges eek that men wenen ne haven none sowles, 95 + ne desire they nat ech of hem by semblable resoun to kepen + that is hirs, _that is to seyn, that is acordinge to hir nature in + conservacioun of hir beinge and enduringe_? For wher-for elles + bereth lightnesse the flaumbes up, and the weighte presseth + the erthe a-doun, but for as moche as thilke places and thilke 100 + moevinges ben covenable to everich of hem? And forsothe + every thing kepeth thilke that is acordinge and propre to him, + right as thinges that ben contraries and enemys corompen hem. + And yit the harde thinges, as stones, clyven and holden hir + parties to-gider right faste and harde, and deffenden hem in 105 + withstondinge that they ne departe nat lightly a-twinne. And + the thinges that ben softe and fletinge, as is water and eyr, + they departen lightly, and yeven place to hem that breken or + devyden hem; but natheles, they retornen sone ayein in-to + the same thinges fro whennes they ben arraced. But fyr fleeth 110 + and refuseth al devisioun. Ne I ne trete nat heer now of + wilful moevinges of the sowle that is knowinge, but of the + naturel entencioun of thinges, as thus: right as we swolwe the + mete that we receiven and ne thinke nat on it, and as we + drawen our breeth in slepinge that we wite it nat whyle we 115 + slepen. For certes, in the beestes, the love of hir livinges ne + of hir beinges ne comth nat of the wilninges of the sowle, but + of the biginninges of nature. For certes, thorugh constreininge + causes, wil desireth and embraceth ful ofte tyme the deeth + that nature dredeth; _that is to seyn as thus: that a man may 120 + ben constreyned so, by som cause, that his wil desireth and + taketh the deeth which that nature hateth and dredeth ful sore_. + And somtyme we seeth the contrarye, as thus: that the wil + of a wight destorbeth and constreyneth that that nature desireth + and requereth al-wey, _that is to seyn_, the werk of generacioun, 125 + by the whiche generacioun only dwelleth and is sustened the + long durabletee of mortal thinges. + + And thus this charitee and this love, that every thing hath + to him-self, ne comth nat of the moevinge of the sowle, but + of the entencioun of nature. For the purviaunce of god hath 130 + yeven to thinges that ben creat of him this, that is a ful + gret cause to liven and to duren; for which they desiren + naturelly hir lyf as longe as ever they mowen. For which + thou mayst nat drede, by no manere, that alle the thinges + that ben anywhere, that they ne requeren naturelly the ferme 135 + stablenesse of perdurable dwellinge, and eek the eschuinge of + destruccioun.' + + _Boece._ 'Now confesse I wel,' quod I, 'that I see now wel + certeinly, with-oute doutes, the thinges that whylom semeden + uncertain to me.' 140 + + 'But,' quod she, 'thilke thing that desireth to be and to + dwellen perdurably, he desireth to ben oon; for yif that that + oon were destroyed, certes, beinge ne shulde ther non dwellen + to no wight.' + + 'That is sooth,' quod I. 145 + + 'Thanne,' quod she, 'desiren alle thinges oon?' + + 'I assente,' quod I. + + 'And I have shewed,' quod she, 'that thilke same oon is + thilke that is good?' + + 'Ye, for sothe,' quod I. 150 + + 'Alle thinges thanne,' quod she, 'requiren good; and thilke + good thanne mayst thou descryven right thus: good is thilke + thing that every wight desireth.' + + 'Ther ne may be thought,' quod I, 'no more verray thing. + For either alle thinges ben referred and brought to nought, 155 + and floteren with-oute governour, despoiled of oon as of hir + propre heved; or elles, yif ther be any thing to which that + alle thinges tenden and hyen, that thing moste ben the soverein + good of alle goodes.' + + Thanne seyde she thus: 'O my nory,' quod she, 'I have 160 + gret gladnesse of thee; for thou hast ficched in thyn herte + the middel soothfastnesse, _that is to seyn_, the prikke; but this + thing hath ben descovered to thee, in that thou seydest that + thou wistest nat a litel her-biforn.' + + 'What was that?' quod I. 165 + + 'That thou ne wistest nat,' quod she, 'which was the ende + of thinges; and certes, that is the thing that every wight + desireth; and for as mochel as we han gadered and comprehended + that good is thilke thing that is desired of alle, thanne + moten we nedes confessen, that good is the fyn of alle thinges. 170 + +PR. XI. 3. C. wylthow. 5. C. pr_e_ys; A. Ed. price. 6. A. Ed. bytyde; C. +betydde. 7. C. _om._ that. // A. Ed. resoun; C. resouns; Lat. _ratione_. +17. C. in on; A. in to oon; Ed. in to one. 23. C. _om._ ther. 29. C. +grauntisthow. 32. Ed. muste thou; C. mosthow; A. mayst thou. // Ed. +semblable; A. sembleable; C. semlable. 37. C. Hasthow. 43. A. conioigned; +C. conioigne. 44. A. disseueraunce; C. desseueraunce; _after which_ C. A. +_om._ of, _which_ Ed. _retains_. 51. A. Ed. who so; C. who. 54. Ed. +perissheth; C. periseth; A. perissith. 60. C. wylnynge; A. Ed. willynge. +62. A. _om._ the entencioun. 64. C. _om._ and _bef._ eschueth. 68. A. +soule. 69. A. Ed. appetite; C. apetid. 76. Ed. mareys; A. mareis; C. marys. +// A. _has here lost a leaf, from_ and othre _to past end of_ Met. xi. 84. +C. maryes, _i. medulle_. 86. Ed. seete; C. feete (!); Lat. _sede_. 87. Ed. +is; C. is is (_sic_). // C. stidefastnesse. 88. C. _om._ the _bef._ +destemperaunce; Ed. _has it_. 91. C. pupllisen; Ed. publysshen. 94. Ed. +perdurably; C. perdurablely. 103. Ed. corrumpen. 106. Ed. _om._ nat lightly +... departen. // C. a twyne. 110. Ed. araced. // Ed. fleeth and; C. and +(_om._ fleeth); Lat. _refugit_. 112. Ed. wylful; C. weleful; Lat. +_uoluntariis_. 114. Ed. receyuen; C. resseyuen. 116. Ed. slepen; C. slepyt. +127. Ed. durabylite. 142. Ed. perdurablye; C. perdurablely. 152. Ed. thou; +C. _om._ // Ed. discryuen. 161. C. fichched; Ed. fyxed. 163. Ed. +discouered. 165. Ed. is that (_for_ was that). + + +METRE XI. + +_Quisquis profunda mente uestigat uerum._ + + Who-so that seketh sooth by a deep thoght, and coveiteth + nat to ben deceived by no mis-weyes, lat him rollen and trenden + with-inne him-self the light of his inward sighte; and lat him + gadere ayein, enclyninge in-to a compas, the longe moevinges + _of his thoughtes_; and lat him techen his corage that he hath 5 + enclosed and hid in his tresors, al that he compasseth or seketh + fro with-oute. And thanne thilke thinge, that the blake cloude + of errour whylom hadde y-covered, shal lighten more cleerly + thanne Phebus him-self ne shyneth. + + GLOSA. _Who-so wole seken the deep grounde of sooth in his 10 + thought, and wol nat be deceived by false proposiciouns that goon + amis fro the trouthe, lat him wel examine and rolle with-inne him-self + the nature and the propretees of the thing; and lat him yit + eftsones examine and rollen his thoughtes by good deliberacioun, or + that he deme; and lat him techen his sowle that it hath, by natural 15 + principles kindeliche y-hid with-in it-self, alle the trouthe the whiche + he imagineth to ben in thinges with-oute. And thanne alle the + derknesse of his misknowinge shal seme more evidently to sighte of + his understondinge thanne the sonne ne semeth to sighte + with-oute-forth._ 20 + + For certes the body, bringinge the weighte of foryetinge, ne + hath nat chased out of your thoughte al the cleernesse _of your + knowinge_; for certeinly the seed of sooth haldeth and clyveth + with-in your corage, and it is awaked and excyted by the winde + and by the blastes of doctrine. For wherfor elles demen ye of 25 + your owne wil the rightes, whan ye ben axed, but-yif so were that + the norisshinge _of resoun_ ne livede y-plounged in the depthe of + your herte? _this is to seyn, how sholden men demen the sooth of + any thing that were axed, yif ther nere a rote of soothfastnesse that + were y-plounged and hid in naturel principles, the whiche + soothfastnesse 30 + lived with-in the deepnesse of the thought_. And yif so be + that the Muse and the doctrine of Plato singeth sooth, al that + every wight lerneth, he ne doth no-thing elles thanne but + recordeth, as men recorden thinges that ben foryeten.' + +ME. XI. 2. Ed. _om._ nat. // Ed. treaten (_for_ trenden). 18. Ed. +derknesse; C. dyrknesse. // Ed. seme; C. seen (_but note_ semeth _below_). +24. Ed. wyndes. 26. Ed. asked. 27. Ed. norisshyng; C. noryssynges; Lat. +_fomes_. 29. Ed. asked. 30. Ed. naturel; C. the nature (_sic_). + + +PROSE XII. + +_Tum ego, Platoni, inquam._ + + Thanne seide I thus: 'I acorde me gretly to Plato, for thou + remembrest and recordest me thise thinges yit the secounde + tyme; _that is to seyn_, first whan I loste my memorie by the + contagious coniunccioun of the body with the sowle; and + eftsones afterward, whan I loste it, confounded by the charge and 5 + by the burdene of my sorwe.' + + And thanne seide she thus: 'yif thou loke,' quod she, 'first + the thinges that thou hast graunted, it ne shal nat ben right fer + that thou ne shalt remembren thilke thing that thou seydest that + thou nistest nat.' 10 + + 'What thing?' quod I. + + 'By whiche governement,' quod she, 'that this world is + governed.' + + 'Me remembreth it wel,' quod I; 'and I confesse wel that I + ne wiste it naught. But al-be-it so that I see now from a-fer 15 + what thou purposest, algates, I desire yit to herkene it of thee + more pleynly.' + + 'Thou ne wendest nat,' quod she, 'a litel her-biforn, that men + sholden doute that this world nis governed by god.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'ne yit ne doute I it naught, ne I nel never 20 + wene that it were to doute; _as who seith, but I wot wel that god + governeth this world_; and I shal shortly answeren thee by what + resouns I am brought to this. This world,' quod I, 'of so manye + dyverse and contrarious parties, ne mighte never han ben + assembled in o forme, but-yif ther nere oon that conioignede so 25 + manye dyverse thinges; and the same dyversitee of hir natures, + that so discorden that oon fro that other, moste departen and + unioignen the thinges that ben conioigned, yif ther ne were oon + that contenede that he hath conioined and y-bounde. Ne the + certein ordre of nature ne sholde nat bringe forth so ordenee 30 + moevinges, by places, by tymes, by doinges, by spaces, by + qualitees, yif ther ne were oon that were ay stedefast dwellinge, + that ordeynede and disponede thise dyversitees of moevinges. + And thilke thing, what-so-ever it be, by which that alle thinges + ben y-maked and y-lad, I clepe him "god"; that is a word that 35 + is used to alle folk.' + + Thanne seyde she: 'sin thou felest thus thise thinges,' quod + she, 'I trowe that I have litel more to done that thou, mighty of + welefulnesse, hool and sounde, ne see eftsones thy contree. + But lat us loken the thinges that we han purposed her-biforn. 40 + Have I nat noumbred and seyd,' quod she, 'that suffisaunce is in + blisfulnesse, and we han acorded that god is thilke same blisfulnesse?' + + 'Yis, forsothe,' quod I. + + 'And that, to governe this world,' quod she, 'ne shal he never 45 + han nede of non help fro with-oute? For elles, yif he hadde + nede of any help, he ne sholde nat have no ful suffisaunce?' + + 'Yis, thus it mot nedes be,' quod I. + + 'Thanne ordeineth he by him-self al-one alle thinges?' quod she. + + 'That may nat be deneyed,' quod I. 50 + + 'And I have shewed that god is the same good?' + + 'It remembreth me wel,' quod I. + + 'Thanne ordeineth he alle thinges by thilke good,' quod she; + 'sin he, which that we han acorded to be good, governeth alle + thinges by him-self; and he is as a keye and a stere by which 55 + that the edifice of this world is y-kept stable and with-oute + coroumpinge.' + + 'I acorde me greetly,' quod I; 'and I aperceivede a litel her-biforn + that thou woldest seye thus; al-be-it so that it were by + a thinne suspecioun.' 60 + + 'I trowe it wel,' quod she; 'for, as I trowe, thou ledest now + more ententifly thyne eyen to loken the verray goodes. But + natheles the thing that I shal telle thee yit ne sheweth nat lasse to + loken.' + + 'What is that?' quod I. 65 + + 'So as men trowen,' quod she, 'and that rightfully, that god + governeth alle thinges by the keye of his goodnesse, and alle thise + same thinges, as I have taught thee, hasten hem by naturel + entencioun to comen to good: ther may no man douten that they + ne be governed voluntariely, and that they ne converten hem of 70 + hir owne wil to the wil of hir ordenour, as they that ben acordinge + and enclyninge to hir governour and hir king.' + + 'It mot nedes be so,' quod I; 'for the reaume ne sholde nat + semen blisful yif ther were a yok of misdrawinges in dyverse + parties; ne the savinge of obedient thinges ne sholde nat be.' 75 + + 'Thanne is ther nothing,' quod she, 'that kepeth his nature, + that enforceth him to goon ayein god?' + + 'No,' quod I. + + 'And yif that any-thing enforcede him to with-stonde god, + mighte it availen at the laste ayeins him, that we han graunted to 80 + ben almighty by the right of blisfulnesse?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'al-outrely it ne mighte nat availen him.' + + 'Thanne is ther no-thing,' quod she, 'that either wole or may + with-stonden to this soverein good?' + + 'I trowe nat,' quod I. 85 + + 'Thanne is thilke the soverein good,' quod she, 'that alle + thinges governeth strongly, and ordeyneth hem softely.' + + Thanne seyde I thus: 'I delyte me,' quod I, 'nat only in the + endes or in the somme of the resouns that thou hast concluded + and proeved, but thilke wordes that thou usest delyten me moche 90 + more; so, at the laste, fooles that sumtyme renden grete thinges + oughten ben ashamed of hem-self;' _that is to seyn, that we fooles + that reprehenden wikkedly the thinges that touchen goddes governaunce, + we oughten ben ashamed of our-self: as I, that seyde that + god refuseth only the werkes of men, and ne entremeteth nat of 95 + hem_. + + 'Thou hast wel herd,' quod she, 'the fables of the poetes, + how the giaunts assaileden the hevene _with the goddes_; but forsothe, + the debonair force _of god_ deposede hem, as it was worthy; + _that is to seyn, destroyede the giaunts, as it was worthy_. But wilt 100 + thou that we ioignen to-gider thilke same resouns? For per-aventure, + of swich coniuncioun may sterten up som fair sparkle + of sooth.' + + 'Do,' quod I, 'as thee liste.' + + 'Wenest thou,' quod she, 'that god ne be almighty? No man 105 + is in doute of it.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'no wight ne douteth it, yif he be in his + minde.' + + 'But he,' quod she, 'that is almighty, ther nis nothing that he + ne may?' 110 + + 'That is sooth,' quod I. + + 'May god don yvel?' quod she. + + 'Nay, forsothe,' quod I. + + 'Thanne is yvel nothing,' quod she, 'sin that he ne may nat + don yvel that may don alle thinges.' 115 + + 'Scornest thou me?' quod I; '_or elles pleyest thou or deceivest + thou me_, that hast so woven me with thy resouns the hous of + Dedalus, so entrelaced that it is unable to be unlaced; thou that + other-whyle entrest ther thou issest, and other-whyle issest ther + thou entrest, ne foldest thou nat to-gider, _by replicacioun of 120 + wordes_, a maner wonderful cercle or environinge of the simplicitee + devyne? For certes, a litel her-biforn, whan thou bigunne at + blisfulnesse, thou seydest that it is soverein good; and seydest + that it is set in soverein god; and seydest that god him-self + is soverein good; and that god is the fulle blisfulnesse; for which 125 + thou yave me as a covenable yift, _that is to seyn_, that no wight + nis blisful but-yif he be god also ther-with. And seidest eek, + that the forme of good is the substaunce of god and of blisfulnesse; + and seidest, that thilke same oon is thilke same good, that is + requered and desired of alle the kinde of thinges. And thou 130 + proevedest, in disputinge, that god governeth all the thinges of + the world by the governements of bountee, _and seydest_, that alle + thinges wolen obeyen to him; and _seydest_, that the nature of yvel + nis no-thing. And thise thinges ne shewedest thou nat with none + resouns y-taken fro with-oute, but by proeves _in cercles and_ + hoomlich 135 + knowen; the whiche proeves drawen to hem-self hir feith and + hir acord, everich of hem of other.' + + Thanne seyde she thus: 'I ne scorne thee nat, _ne pleye, ne + deceive thee_; but I have shewed thee the thing that is grettest + over alle thinges by the yift of god, that we whylom preyeden. 140 + For this is the forme of the devyne substaunce, that is swich that + it ne slydeth nat in-to outterest foreine thinges, ne ne receiveth + no straunge thinges in him; but right as Parmenides seyde _in + Greek_ of thilke devyne substaunce; he seyde thus: that "thilke + devyne substaunce torneth the world and the moevable cercle of 145 + thinges, whyl thilke devyne substaunce kepeth it-self with-oute + moevinge;" _that is to seyn, that it ne moeveth never-mo, and yit it + moeveth alle othre thinges_. But natheles, yif I have stired resouns + that ne ben nat taken fro with-oute the compas of thing of which + we treten, but resouns that ben bistowed with-in that compas, 150 + ther nis nat why that thou sholdest merveilen; sin thou hast + lerned by the sentence of Plato, that "nedes the wordes moten + be cosines to the thinges of which they speken." + +PR. XII. 2. A. _begins again with_ the seconde tyme. 4. A. coniunccioun; C. +coniuncsioun. 12. C. wordyl (_for_ world). 19. C. world nis; Ed. A. worlde +is. 26. A. _om._ dyverse. 27. A. discordeden. 30. C. ordene; A. ordinee. +31. A. Ed. spaces; C. splaces (!). 32. C. stidefast; A. stedfast. 35. Ed. +ymaked; C. A. maked. 40. A. han; C. ha (_for_ h[=a]). 47. A. _om._ no. 50. +C. denoyed (_for_ deneyed); A. Ed. denied. 55. A. Ed. _om._ as; Lat. +_ueluti_. // C. A. stiere (_better_ stere). 57. A. corumpynge. 63. A. +natheles; C. natles. 82. C. hem; A. Ed. hym. 84. A. this; C. Ed. his. 93. +C. reprehendnen. 96. A. hem; C. Ed. it. 99. C. desposede; A. Ed. disposed; +_read_ deposed; Lat. _deposuit_. 100. A. wilt; Ed. wylte; C. wil. 105. C. +Ed. be; A. is. // A. Ed. No man; C. non. 107. A. Ed. if he; C. yif it. 110. +A. may do. 116. C. scornesthow ... pleyesthow ... desseyuesthow. 118. Ed. +Dedalus; C. dydalus; A. didalus. 119. C. A. issest; Ed. issuest. 120. C. +fooldesthow. 125. C. fulle the; A. the ful; Lat. _plenam beatitudinem_. +127. Ed. god (_Deus_); C. A. good. 132. A. bountee; C. bowonte. 139. C. A. +desseyue. 142. C. resseiueth. 143. C. aparmanides; Ed. Permenides; A. +parmaynws; Lat. _Parmenides_. 148. C. Ed. styred; A. stered. + + +METRE XII. + +_Felix, qui potuit boni._ + + Blisful is that man that may seen the clere welle of good; blisful + is he that may unbinden him fro the bondes of the hevy erthe. + The poete of Trace, _Orpheus_, that whylom hadde right greet sorwe + for the deeth of his wyf, after that he hadde maked, by his weeply + songes, the wodes, moevable, to rennen; and hadde maked the 5 + riveres to stonden stille; and hadde maked the hertes and the + hindes to ioignen, dredeles, hir sydes to cruel lyouns, _for to herknen + his songe_; and hadde maked that the hare was nat agast of the + hounde, which that was plesed by his songe: so, whan the moste + ardaunt love of his wif brende the entrailes of his brest, ne the 10 + songes that hadden overcomen alle thinges ne mighten nat + asswagen hir lord _Orpheus_, he pleynede him of the hevene goddes + that weren cruel to him; he wente him to the houses of helle. + And there he temprede hise blaundisshinge songes by resowninge + strenges, and spak and song in wepinge al that ever he hadde 15 + received and laved out of the noble welles of his moder _Calliope_ + the goddesse; and he song with as mochel as he mighte of wepinge, + and with as moche as love, that doublede his sorwe, mighte + yeve him and techen him; and he commoevede the helle, and + requerede and bisoughte by swete preyere the lordes of sowles 20 + in helle, of relesinge; _that is to seyn, to yilden him his wyf_. + + _Cerberus_, the porter of helle, with his three hevedes, was caught + and al abayst for the newe song; and the three goddesses, _Furies_, + and vengeresses of felonyes, that tormenten and agasten the sowles + by anoy, woxen sorwful and sory, and wepen teres for pitee. 25 + Tho ne was nat the heved of Ixion y-tormented by the overthrowinge + wheel; and Tantalus, that was destroyed by the woodnesse + of longe thurst, despyseth the flodes to drinke; the fowl that + highte voltor, that eteth the stomak or the giser of Tityus, is so + fulfild of his song that it nil eten ne tyren no more. At the laste 30 + the lord and Iuge of sowles was moeved to misericordes and + cryde, "we ben overcomen," quod he; "yive we to Orpheus his + wyf to bere him companye; he hath wel y-bought hir by his song + and his ditee; but we wol putte a lawe in this, and covenaunt in + the yifte: _that is to seyn_, that, til he be out of helle, yif he + loke 35 + behinde him, that his wyf shal comen ayein unto us." + + But what is he that may yive a lawe to loveres? Love is + a gretter lawe and a strenger to him-self _than any lawe that men + may yeven_. Allas! whan Orpheus and his wyf weren almest at the + termes of the night, _that is to seyn, at the laste boundes of helle_, 40 + Orpheus lokede abakward on Eurydice his wyf, and loste hir, and + was deed. + + This fable aperteineth to yow alle, who-so-ever desireth or + seketh to lede his thought in-to the soverein day, _that is to seyn, + to cleernesse of soverein good_. For who-so that ever be so overcomen 45 + that he ficche his eyen into the putte of helle, _that is to + seyn, who-so sette his thoughtes in erthely thinges_, al that ever he + hath drawen of the noble good celestial, he leseth it whan he + loketh the helles,' _that is to seyn, in-to lowe thinges of the erthe_. + +ME. XII. 2. A. bonde; Lat. _uincula_. // A. Ed. _om. 2nd_ the. 4. C. +wepply; A. Ed. wepely. 7. A. cruel; C. cruwel. 10. A. Ed. ardaunt; C. +ardent. 12. C. goodes; A. godes (_om._ hevene); Lat. _superos_. 14. C. +blaundyssynge; A. blaundissyng. 15. C. soonge; A. song (_twice_). 16. C. +resseyued; A. resceyued. // C. calyope; A. calliope. 17. A. as mychel as he +my[gh]t; C. _om._ he. 19. C. thechen; _after_ techen him, A. _adds_ in his +seke herte (_not in_ Lat.) 23. Ed. Furyes; C. A. furijs. 27. C. tatalus +(_for_ t[=a]talus). 28. A. thrust. 29. Ed. Tityus; C. A. ticius; Lat. +_Tityi_. 33. A. his faire song; Lat. _carmine_. 38. A. gretter; C. gret; +Lat. _maior_. 41. C. A. Erudice; Ed. Euridice; Lat. _Eurydicen_. 43. C. +apartienyth; A. apperteineth. 45. C. god; A. goode. 46. C. fychche. 47. C. +_om._ his _after_ sette. 49. A. to (_for_ in-to). // C. _om._ the _bef._ +erthe. + + +EXPLICIT LIBER TERCIUS. + + + + +BOOK IV. + + +PROSE I. + +_Hec cum Philosophia, dignitate uultus._ + + Whan Philosophye hadde songen softely and delitably the + forseide thinges, kepinge the dignitee of hir chere and the + weighte of hir wordes, I thanne, that ne hadde nat al-outerly + foryeten the wepinge and the mourninge that was set in myn + herte, forbrak the entencioun of hir that entendede yit to seyn 5 + some othre thinges. 'O,' quod I, 'thou that art gyderesse of + verrey light; the thinges that thou hast seid me hider-to ben so + clere to me and so shewinge by the devyne lookinge of hem, and + by thy resouns, that they ne mowen ben overcomen. And + thilke thinges that thou toldest me, al-be-it so that I hadde 10 + whylom foryeten hem, for the sorwe of the wrong that hath ben + don to me, yit natheles they ne weren nat al-outrely unknowen to + me. But this same is, namely, a right greet cause of my sorwe, + so as the governour of thinges is good, yif that yveles mowen ben + by any weyes; or elles yif that yveles passen with-oute punisshinge. 15 + The whiche thing only, how worthy it is to ben wondred + up-on, thou considerest it wel thy-self certeinly. But yit to this + thing ther is yit another thing y-ioigned, more to ben wondred + up-on. For felonye is emperesse, and floureth _ful of richesses_; + and vertu nis nat al-only with-oute medes, but it is cast under and 20 + fortroden under the feet of felonous folk; and it abyeth the + torments in stede of wikkede felounes. Of alle whiche thinges + ther nis no wight that may merveylen y-nough, ne compleine, + that swiche thinges ben doon in the regne of god, that alle thinges + woot and alle thinges may, and ne wole nat but only gode 25 + thinges.' + + Thanne seyde she thus: 'Certes,' quod she, 'that were a greet + merveyle, and an enbasshinge with-outen ende, and wel more + horrible than alle monstres, yif it were as thou wenest; _that is to + seyn_, that in the right ordenee hous of so mochel a fader and an 30 + ordenour of meynee, that the vesseles that ben foule and vyle + sholden ben honoured and heried, and the precious vesseles + sholden ben defouled and vyle; but it nis nat so. For yif tho + thinges that I have concluded a litel her-biforn ben kept hole + and unraced, thou shalt wel knowe by the autoritee of god, of the 35 + whos regne I speke, that certes the gode folk ben alwey mighty, + and shrewes ben alwey out-cast and feble; ne the vyces ne ben + never-mo with-oute peyne, ne the vertues ne ben nat with-oute + mede; and that blisfulnesses comen alwey to goode folk, and + infortune comth alwey to wikked folk. And thou shalt wel 40 + knowe many thinges of this kinde, that shollen cesen thy pleintes, + and strengthen thee with stedefast sadnesse. And for thou hast + seyn the forme of the verray blisfulnesse by me, that have + whylom shewed it thee, and thou hast knowen in whom blisfulnesse + is y-set, alle thinges y-treted that I trowe ben necessarie to 45 + putten forth, I shal shewe thee the wey that shal bringen thee + ayein un-to thyn hous. And I shal ficchen fetheres in thy thought, + by whiche it may arysen in heighte, so that, alle tribulacioun + y-don awey, thou, by my gydinge and by my path and by my + sledes, shalt mowe retorne hool and sound in-to thy contree. 50 + +PR. I. 6. A. _om._ some. // A. Se (_for_ O); Lat. _o_. // C. _om._ that. 7. +A. _om._ me. 9. A. Ed. thy; C. the. 14. C. so as; Ed. so that as; A. that +so as. 19. C. imperisse; A. emperisse; Ed. emperesse. // A. rycchesse. 20. +A. vertues (_badly_). 22. Ed. stede; C. stide; A. sted. 25. C. good; A. +goode. 28. A. enbaissynge; Ed. abasshyng. 29. C. horible. // C. al; A. +alle. 31. A. Ed. vyle; C. vyl (_twice_). 32. C. he heryed (_mistake for_ +heryed). 33. C. tho; A. Ed. the. 35. Ed. vnaraced. 37. A. yuel (_for_ +out-cast). 42. C. strengthyn; A. stedfast (!). // C. stidfast; A. stedfast. +45. C. I tretyd; A. I treted; Ed. treated; Lat. _decursis omnibus_. 48. C. +areysen. 50. C. sledys; A. Ed. sledes. // C. shal (_for_ shalt). + + +METRE I. + +_Sunt etenim pennae uolucres mihi._ + + I have, forsothe, swifte fetheres that surmounten the heighte of + hevene. Whan the swifte thought hath clothed it-self in tho + fetheres, it despyseth the hateful erthes, and surmounteth the + roundnesse of the grete ayr; and it seeth the cloudes behinde his + bak; and passeth the heighte of the region of the fyr, that 5 + eschaufeth by the swifte moevinge of the firmament, til that he + areyseth him in-to the houses that beren the sterres, and ioyneth + his weyes with the sonne Phebus, and felawshipeth the wey of + the olde colde Saturnus; and he y-maked a knight of the clere + sterre; _that is to seyn, that the thought is maked goddes knight by 10 + the sekinge of trouthe to comen to the verray knowleche of god_. + And thilke thoght renneth by the cercle of the sterres, in alle + places ther-as the shyninge night is peinted; _that is to seyn, the + night that is cloudeles; for on nightes that ben cloudeles it semeth as + the hevene were peinted with dyverse images of sterres_. And 15 + whanne he hath y-doon ther y-nough, he shal forleten the laste + hevene, and he shal pressen and wenden on the bak of the + swifte firmament, and he shal ben maked parfit of the worshipful + light _of god_. Ther halt the lord of kinges the ceptre of his + might, and atempreth the governements of the world, and the 20 + shyninge Iuge of thinges, stable in him-self, governeth the swifte + cart or wayn, _that is to seyn, the circuler moevinge of the sonne_. + And yif thy wey ledeth thee ayein so that thou be brought thider, + thanne wolt thou seye now that that is the contree that thou + requerest, of which thou ne haddest no minde: "but now it 25 + remembreth me wel, heer was I born, heer wol I fastne my + degree, heer wole I dwelle." But yif thee lyketh thanne to loken + on the derknesse of the erthe that thou hast forleten, thanne + shalt thou seen that thise felonous tyraunts, that the wrecchede + peple dredeth, now shollen ben exyled fro thilke fayre contree.' 30 + +ME. I. 1. C. swife (_for_ swifte). 4. A. hey[gh]enesse (_for_ roundnesse); +Lat. _globum_. // A. hir (_for_ his). 6. A. til that she areisith hir +in-til ... hir weyes. 9. C. saturnis; A. saturnus. // A. she (_for_ he). +10. A. soule (_for_ thought); _twice_. 12. C. alle; A. alle the; Ed. al +the. 13. Ed. ypaynted; A. depeynted. 16. A. And whan the soule hath gon +ynou[gh] she shal forleten the last poynt of the heuene, and she. 17. A. +Ed. wenden; C. wyndyn. 18. A. she (_for_ he). 18, 19. C. Ed. worshipful +lyht; A. dredefulle clerenesse. // A. haldeth. 20. A. this; _for_ the (2). +22. A. _om._ or wayn. 25. C. requerest; Ed. requirest; A. requeredest. 27. +A. lyke (_for_ lyketh). 28. C. dyrknesses; A. derkenesse; Lat. _noctem_. + + +PROSE II. + +_Tum ego, Papae, inquam._ + + Than seyde I thus: 'owh! I wondre me that thou bihetest me + so grete thinges; ne I ne doute nat that thou ne mayst wel + performe that thou bihetest. But I preye thee only this, that + thou ne tarye nat to telle me thilke thinges that thou hast + moeved.' 5 + + 'First,' quod she, 'thou most nedes knowen, that goode folk + ben alwey stronge and mighty, and the shrewes ben feble and + desert and naked of alle strengthes. And of thise thinges, certes, + everich of hem is declared and shewed by other. For so as + good and yvel ben two contraries, yif so be that good be stedefast, 10 + than sheweth the feblesse of yvel al openly; and yif thou + knowe cleerly the frelenesse of yvel, the stedefastnesse of good is + knowen. But for as moche as the fey of my sentence shal be the + more ferme and haboundaunt, I will gon by that oo wey and by + that other; and I wole conferme the thinges that ben purposed, 15 + now on this syde and now on that syde. Two thinges ther ben + in whiche the effect of alle the dedes of mankinde standeth, that + is to seyn, wil and power; and yif that oon of thise two fayleth, + ther nis nothing that may be don. For yif that wil lakketh, ther + nis no wight that undertaketh to don that he wol nat don; and 20 + yif power fayleth, the wil nis but in ydel and stant for naught. + And ther-of cometh it, that yif thou see a wight that wolde geten + that he may nat geten, thou mayst nat douten that power ne + fayleth him to haven that he wolde.' + + 'This is open and cleer,' quod I; 'ne it may nat ben deneyed 25 + in no manere.' + + 'And yif thou see a wight,' quod she, 'that hath doon that he + wolde doon, thou nilt nat douten that he ne hath had power to + don it?' + + 'No,' quod I. 30 + + 'And in that that every wight may, in that men may holden + him mighty; _as who seyth, in so moche as man is mighty to don a + thing, in so mochel men halt him mighty_; and in that that he ne + may, in that men demen him to be feble.' + + 'I confesse it wel,' quod I. 35 + + 'Remembreth thee,' quod she, 'that I have gadered and + shewed by forseyde resouns that al the entencioun of the wil of + mankinde, which that is lad by dyverse studies, hasteth to + comen to blisfulnesse?' + + 'It remembreth me wel,' quod I, 'that it hath ben shewed.' 40 + + 'And recordeth thee nat thanne,' quod she, 'that blisfulnesse + is thilke same good that men requeren; so that, whan that + blisfulnesse is requered of alle, that good also is requered and + desired of alle?' + + 'It ne recordeth me nat,' quod I; 'for I have it gretly alwey 45 + ficched in my memorie.' + + 'Alle folk thanne,' quod she, 'goode and eek badde, enforcen + hem with-oute difference of entencioun to comen to good?' + + 'This is a verray consequence,' quod I. + + 'And certein is,' quod she, 'that by the getinge of good ben 50 + men y-maked goode?' + + 'This is certein,' quod I. + + 'Thanne geten goode men that they desiren?' + + 'So semeth it,' quod I. + + 'But wikkede folk,' quod she, 'yif they geten the good that 55 + they desiren, they ne mowe nat be wikkede?' + + 'So is it,' quod I. + + 'Thanne, so as that oon and that other,' quod she, 'desiren + good; and the goode folk geten good, and nat the wikke folk; + thanne nis it no doute that the goode folk ne ben mighty and 60 + the wikkede folk ben feble?' + + 'Who-so that ever,' quod I, 'douteth of this, he ne may nat + considere the nature of thinges ne the consequence of resouns.' + + And over this quod she, 'yif that ther be two thinges that + han oo same purpose by kinde, and that oon of hem pursueth 65 + and parformeth thilke same thing by naturel office, and that + other ne may nat doon thilke naturel office, but folweth, by other + manere thanne is convenable to nature, him that acomplissheth + his purpos kindely, and yit he ne acomplissheth nat his owne + purpos: whether of thise two demestow for more mighty?' 70 + + 'Yif that I coniecte,' quod I, 'that thou wolt seye, algates yit + I desire to herkne it more pleynly of thee.' + + 'Thou wilt nat thanne deneye,' quod she, 'that the moevement + of goinge nis in men by kinde?' + + 'No, forsothe,' quod I. 75 + + 'Ne thou ne doutest nat,' quod she, 'that thilke naturel office + of goinge ne be the office of feet?' + + 'I ne doute it nat,' quod I. + + 'Thanne,' quod she, 'yif that a wight be mighty to moeve and + goth upon his feet, and another, to whom thilke naturel office of 80 + feet lakketh, enforceth him to gon crepinge up-on his handes: + whiche of thise two oughte to ben holden the more mighty by + right?' + + 'Knit forth the remenaunt,' quod I; 'for no wight ne douteth + that he that may gon by naturel office of feet ne be more mighty 85 + than he that ne may nat.' + + 'But the soverein good,' quod she, 'that is eveneliche purposed + to the gode folk and to badde, the gode folk seken it by naturel + office of vertues, and the shrewes enforcen hem to geten it by + dyverse coveityse _of erthely thinges_, which that nis no naturel + office 90 + to geten thilke same soverein good. Trowestow that it be any + other wyse?' + + 'Nay,' quod I; 'for the consequence is open and shewinge of + thinges that I have graunted; that nedes gode folk moten ben + mighty, and shrewes feeble and unmighty.' 95 + + 'Thou rennest a-right biforn me,' quod she, 'and this is the + Iugement; _that is to seyn, I iuge of thee_ right as thise leches ben + wont to hopen _of syke folk, whan they aperceyven_ that nature is + redressed and withstondeth to the maladye. But, for I see thee + now al redy to the understondinge, I shal shewe thee more thikke 100 + and continuel resouns. For loke now how greetly sheweth the + feblesse and infirmitee of wikkede folk, that ne mowen nat comen + to that hir naturel entencioun ledeth hem, and yit almost thilke + naturel entencioun constreineth hem. And what _were to demen + thanne of shrewes_, yif thilke naturel help hadde forleten hem, the 105 + which _naturel help of intencioun_ goth awey biforn hem, and is so + greet that unnethe it may ben overcome? Consider thanne how + greet defaute of power and how greet feblesse ther is in wikkede + felonous folk; _as who seyth, the gretter thing that is coveited and + the desire nat acomplisshed, of the lasse might is he that coveiteth + it 110 + and may nat acomplisshe. And forthy Philosophie seyth thus by + soverein good_: Ne shrewes ne requeren nat lighte medes ne veyne + games, whiche they ne may folwen ne holden; but they failen of + thilke somme and of the heighte of thinges, _that is to seyn, soverein + good_; ne thise wrecches ne comen nat to the effect _of soverein 115 + good_, the which they enforcen hem only to geten, by nightes and + by dayes; in the getinge of which good the strengthe of good folk + is ful wel y-sene. For right so as thou mightest demen him mighty + of goinge, that gooth on his feet til he mighte come to thilke + place, fro the whiche place ther ne laye no wey forther to ben 120 + gon; right so most thou nedes demen him for right mighty, that + geteth and ateyneth to the ende of alle thinges that ben to desire, + biyonde the whiche ende ther nis nothing to desire. Of the + which _power of good folk_ men may conclude, that the wikked + men semen to be bareine and naked of alle strengthe. For-why 125 + forleten they vertues and folwen vyces? Nis it nat for that they + ne knowen nat the goodes? But what thing is more feble and + more caitif thanne is the blindnesse of ignoraunce? Or elles they + knowen ful wel whiche thinges that they oughten folwe, but + lecherye and coveityse overthroweth hem mistorned; and certes, 130 + so doth distemperaunce to feble men, that ne mowen nat wrastlen + ayeins the vyces. Ne knowen they nat thanne wel that they + forleten the good wilfully, and tornen hem wilfully to vyces? And + in this wyse they ne forleten nat only to ben mighty, but they + forleten al-outrely in any wyse for to ben. For they that forleten 135 + the comune fyn of alle thinges that ben, they forleten also therwith-al + for to ben. + + And per-aventure it sholde semen to som folk that this were + a merveile to seyen: that shrewes, whiche that contienen the more + partye of men, ne ben nat ne han no beinge; but natheles, it is so, 140 + and thus stant this thing. For they that ben shrewes, I deneye + nat that they ben shrewes; but I deneye, and seye simplely and + pleinly, that they ne ben nat, ne han no beinge. For right as + thou mightest seyen of the carayne of a man, that it were a deed + man, but thou ne mightest nat simplely callen it a man; so graunte 145 + I wel forsothe, that vicious folk ben wikked, but I ne may nat + graunten absolutly and simplely that they ben. For thilke thing + that with-holdeth ordre and kepeth nature, thilke thing is and + hath beinge; but what thing that faileth of that, _that is to seyn, + that he forleteth naturel ordre_, he forleteth thilke thing that is + set 150 + in his nature. But thou wolt seyn, that shrewes mowen. Certes, + that ne deneye I nat; but certes, hir power ne descendeth nat of + strengthe, but of feblesse. For they mowen don wikkednesses; + the whiche they ne mighte nat don, yif they mighten dwellen in + the forme and in the doinge of good folk. And thilke power 155 + sheweth ful evidently that they ne mowen right naught. For so + as I have gadered and proeved a litel her-biforn, that yvel is + naught; and so as shrewes mowen only but shrewednesses, this + conclusioun is al cleer, that shrewes ne mowen right naught, ne + han no power. 160 + + And for as moche as thou understonde which is the strengthe + of this power of shrewes, I have definisshed a litel her-biforn, that + nothing is so mighty as soverein good.' + + 'That is sooth,' quod I. + + 'And thilke same soverein good may don non yvel?' 165 + + 'Certes, no,' quod I. + + 'Is ther any wight thanne,' quod she, 'that weneth that men + mowen doon alle thinges?' + + 'No man,' quod I, 'but-yif he be out of his witte.' + + 'But, certes, shrewes mowen don yvel,' quod she. 170 + + 'Ye, wolde god,' quod I, 'that they mighten don non!' + + 'Thanne,' quod she, 'so as he that is mighty to doon only but + goode thinges may don alle thinges; and they that ben mighty to + don yvele thinges ne mowen nat alle thinges: thanne is it open + thing and manifest, that they that mowen don yvel ben of lasse 175 + power. And yit, _to proeve this conclusioun_, ther helpeth me this, + that I have y-shewed her-biforn, that alle power is to be noumbred + among thinges that men oughten requere. And I have shewed + that alle thinges, that oughten ben desired, ben referred to good, + right as to a maner heighte of hir nature. But for to mowen don 180 + yvel and felonye ne may nat ben referred to good. Thanne nis + nat yvel of the noumbir of thinges that oughte ben desired. But + alle power oughte ben desired and requered. Than is it open and + cleer that the power ne the mowinge of shrewes nis no power; and + of alle thise thinges it sheweth wel, that the goode folke ben + certeinly 185 + mighty, and the shrewes douteles ben unmighty. And it is + cleer and open that thilke opinioun of Plato is verray and sooth, that + seith, that only wyse men may doon that they desiren; and + shrewes mowen haunten that hem lyketh, but that they desiren, + _that is to seyn, to comen to sovereign good_, they ne han no power 190 + to acomplisshen that. For shrewes don that hem list, whan, by + tho thinges in which they delyten, they wenen to ateine to thilke + good that they desiren; but they ne geten ne ateinen nat ther-to, + for vyces ne comen nat to blisfulnesse. + +PR. II. 1. C. owh; Ed. O; A. _om._; Lat. _Papae_. 8. C. dishert; A. desert; +Ed. deserte; Lat. _desertos_. // _All_ strengthes; Lat. _uiribus_. 10. C. +stidefast; A. stedfast. 12. C. stidefastnesse; A. stedfastnesse. 13. C. A. +fey; Ed. faythe. 19. C. lakkit; A. lakketh. 25. C. denoyed. 28. C. _om._ he +_bef._ ne. 33. C. halt; A. halden; Ed. holde. // A. Ed. that that; C. that. +42. A. whan that; C. Ed. _om._ that. 45. C. It ne ... nat; A. It recordeth +me wel; Lat. _Minimè ... recordor_. 48. C. defference; A. Ed. difference. +63. A. resoun; Lat. _rationum_. 67. C. by (_for_ but; _by mistake_). 68. +Ed. accomplyssheth; A. acomplisith; C. a-complesseth (_twice_). 70. A. +demest thou. 73. C. denoye (_for_ deneye); A. Ed. denye. // A. moeuementz; +Lat. _motum_. 88. C. good folk (_1st time_); goode folk (_2nd time_). 91. +A. trowest thou. 92. A. wyse; C. whise. 99. C. maledie; A. maladie. 104. C. +_om._ hem _after_ constreineth. 109. A. the gretter thinges that ben. 110. +C. acomplised; A. accomplissed; Ed. accomplysshed. 112. C. veyn; A. veyne. +120. A. lay. 122. C. desired (_for_ desire, _by mistake_). 135. A. wise; C. +whise. 141. C. denoye (_for_ deneye); A. denye (_thrice_). 142. C. sympeli +(_1st time_). 149. C. Ed. what; A. that. 151. C. shrewen (_by mistake_). +152. A. descendeth; C. dessendit (_sic_). 158. A. shrewednesse; Lat. +_mala_. 160. A. to han (_for_ ne han no). 162. C. diffinissed; A. +diffinised; Ed. defynisshed; Lat. _definiuimus_. 169. A. but yif; Ed. but +if; C. but. 186. A. _om._ ben. 188. A. _om._ doon. 192. C. the; A. Ed. tho. +194. C. _om._ to. + +METRE II. + +_Quos uides sedere celsos._ + + Who-so that the covertoures of hir veyne aparailes mighte strepen + of thise proude kinges, that thou seest sitten on heigh in hir + chaires gliteringe in shyninge purpre, envirouned with sorwful + armures, manasinge with cruel mouth, blowinge by woodnesse of + herte, he shulde seen thanne that thilke lordes beren with-inne hir 5 + corages ful streite cheines. For lecherye tormenteth hem in that + oon syde with gredy venims; and troublable ire, that araiseth in + him the flodes _of troublinges_, tormenteth up-on that other syde + hir thought; or sorwe halt hem wery and y-caught; or slydinge + and deceivinge hope tormenteth hem. And therfore, sen thou 10 + seest oon heed, _that is to seyn, oon tyraunt_, beren so manye + tyrannyes, thanne ne doth thilke tyraunt nat that he desireth, sin + he is cast doun with so manye wikkede lordes; _that is to seyn, with + so manye vyces, that han so wikkedly lordshipes over him_. + +ME. II. 1. Ed. vayne; C. A. veyn. 2. A. Ed. in; C. on. 3. Ed. chayres; C. +(_miswritten_) charyes; A. chayeres. 4. A. manasyng; C. manassinge. 8. A. +troublynges; C. trwblynges. 9. C. hym (_for_ hem). 12. C. Ed. tyrannyes; A. +tyrauntis. 14. A. wicked (_for_ wikkedly). + + +PROSE III. + +_Videsne igitur quanto in coeno._ + + Seestow nat thanne in how grete filthe thise shrewes ben + y-wrapped, and with which cleernesse thise good folk shynen? In + this sheweth it wel, that to goode folk ne lakketh never-mo hir + medes, ne shrewes lakken never-mo torments. For of alle thinges + that ben y-doon, thilke thing, for which any-thing is don, it semeth 5 + as by right that thilke thing be the mede of that; as thus: yif + a man renneth in the stadie, _or in the forlong_, for the corone, + thanne lyth the mede in the corone for which he renneth. And + I have shewed that blisfulnesse is thilke same good for which + that alle thinges ben doon. Thanne is thilke same good purposed 10 + to the workes of mankinde right as a comune mede; which + mede ne may ben dissevered fro good folk. For no wight as by + right, fro thennes-forth that him lakketh goodnesse, ne shal ben + cleped good. For which thing, folk of goode maneres, hir medes + ne forsaken hem never-mo. For al-be-it so that shrewes wexen 15 + as wode as hem list _ayeins goode folk_, yit never-the-lesse the + corone of wyse men shal nat fallen ne faden. For foreine shrewednesse + ne binimeth nat fro the corages of goode folk hir propre + honour. But yif that any wight reioyse him of goodnesse that he + hadde take fro with-oute (_as who seith, yif that any wight hadde 20 + his goodnesse of any other man than of him-self_), certes, he that yaf + him thilke goodnesse, or elles som other wight, mighte binime it + him. But for as moche as to every wight his owne propre bountee + yeveth him his mede, thanne at erst shal he failen of mede whan + he forleteth to ben good. And at the laste, so as alle medes ben 25 + requered for men wenen that they ben goode, who is he that + wolde deme, that he that is right mighty of good were part-les of + mede? And of what mede shal he be guerdoned? Certes, of + right faire mede and right grete aboven alle medes. Remembre + thee of thilke noble corolarie that I yaf thee a litel her-biforn; 30 + and gader it to-gider in this manere:--so as good him-self is + blisfulnesse, thanne is it cleer and certein, that alle good folk ben + maked blisful for they ben goode; and thilke folk that ben blisful, + it acordeth and is covenable to ben goddes. Thanne is the mede + of goode folk swich that no day shal enpeiren it, ne no wikkednesse 35 + ne shal derken it, ne power of no wight ne shal nat amenusen it, + _that is to seyn_, to ben maked goddes. + + And sin it is thus, _that goode men ne failen never-mo of hir mede_, + certes, no wys man ne may doute of undepartable peyne of the + shrewes; _that is to seyn, that the peyne of shrewes ne departeth nat 40 + from hem-self never-mo_. For so as goode and yvel, and peyne and + medes ben contrarye, it mot nedes ben, that right as we seen + bityden in guerdoun of goode, that also mot the peyne of yvel + answery, by the contrarye party, to shrewes. Now thanne, so as + bountee and prowesse ben the mede to goode folk, al-so is 45 + shrewednesse it-self torment to shrewes. Thanne, who-so that + ever is entecched and defouled with peyne, he ne douteth nat, + that he is entecched and defouled with yvel. Yif shrewes thanne + wolen preysen hem-self, may it semen to hem that they ben with-outen + party of torment, sin they ben swiche that the uttereste 50 + wikkednesse (_that is to seyn, wikkede thewes, which that is the + uttereste and the worste kinde of shrewednesse_) ne defouleth ne + enteccheth nat hem only, but infecteth and envenimeth hem + gretly? And also look on shrewes, that ben the contrarie party + of goode men, how greet peyne felawshipeth and folweth hem! 55 + For thou hast lerned a litel her-biforn, that al thing that is and + hath beinge is oon, and thilke same oon is good; thanne is this + the consequence, that it semeth wel, that al that is and hath beinge + is good; _this is to seyn, as who seyth, that beinge and unitee and + goodnesse is al oon_. And in this manere it folweth thanne, that al 60 + thing that faileth to ben good, it stinteth for to be and for to han + any beinge; wherfore it is, that shrewes stinten for to ben that + they weren. But thilke other forme of mankinde, that is to seyn, + the forme of the body with-oute, sheweth yit that thise shrewes + weren whylom men; wher-for, whan they ben perverted and 65 + torned in-to malice, certes, than han they forlorn the nature of + mankinde. But so as only bountee and prowesse may enhaunsen + every man over other men; thanne mot it nedes be that shrewes, + which that shrewednesse hath cast out of the condicioun of mankinde, + ben put under the merite and the desert of men. Thanne 70 + bitydeth it, that yif thou seest a wight that be transformed into + vyces, thou ne mayst nat wene that he be a man. + + For yif he be ardaunt in avaryce, and that he be a ravinour by + violence of foreine richesse, thou shalt seyn that he is lyke to the + wolf. And yif he be felonous and with-oute reste, and exercyse 75 + his tonge to chydinges, thou shalt lykne him to the hound. And + yif he be a prevey awaitour y-hid, and reioyseth him to ravisshe + by wyles, thou shalt seyn him lyke to the fox-whelpes. And yif he + be distempre and quaketh for ire, men shal wene that he bereth + the corage of a lyoun. And yif he be dredful and fleinge, and 80 + dredeth thinges that ne oughten nat to ben dred, men shal holden + him lyk to the hert. And yif he be slow and astoned and lache, he + liveth as an asse. And yif he be light and unstedefast of corage, and + chaungeth ay his studies, he is lykned to briddes. And if he be + plounged in foule and unclene luxuries, he is with-holden in the 85 + foule delyces of the foule sowe. Thanne folweth it, that he that + forleteth + bountee and prowesse, he forleteth to ben a man; sin he may + nat passen in-to the condicioun of god, he is torned in-to a beest. + +PR. III. 1. A. Seest thou. 16. A. les; C. leese (_error for_ lesse). 17. C. +faaden. 25. A. laste; C. last. 27. A. wolde; C. Ed. nolde; Lat. _quis ... +iudicet_. 27, 28. A. Ed. of mede; C. of the mede. // C. A. gerdoned; Ed. +reguerdoned. 30. C. yat (_miswritten for_ yaf). 31. C. good him-self; A. +Ed. god him-self; Lat. _ipsum bonum_. // C. his (_error for_ is); _after_ +him-self. 36. A. endirken (_for_ derken). 38. A. medes. 43. C. gerdown; A. +gerdoun; Ed. guerdone. 44. A. Ed. answer_e_. // A. Ed. by the; C. _om._ +the. 45. A. medes; Lat. _praemium_. 47. C. entechched. // _Both_ MSS. _om._ +peyne ... defouled with; _but_ Ed. _has_: payne, he ne douteth not, that he +is entetched and defouled with; Lat. _quisquis afficitur poena, malo se +affectum esse non dubitat_. 50. A. _om._ uttereste ... which that is the. +52. C. vtteriste (_1st time_); owttereste (_2nd time_). 55. C. folueth. 56. +C. alle; A. al. 58. C. alle; A. al (_twice_). 67. A. Ed. so as; C. _om._ +as. // C. enhawsen (_for_ enhaw_n_sen). 73. A. rauynour; Ed. rauenour; C. +rauaynour. 75. A. Ed. a wolf. // C. excersise. 77. A. rauysshe; C. rauysse. +78. A. Ed. wyles; C. whiles; Lat. _fraudibus_. 81. C. dredd. 82. A. Ed. +slowe; C. slowh. 83. C. vnstidefast. + + +METRE III. + +_Vela Neritii dulcis._ + + Eurus _the wind_ aryvede the sailes of _Ulixes_, duk of the contree + of Narice, and his wandringe shippes by the see, in-to the ile + ther-as _Circes_, the faire goddesse, doughter of the sonne, + dwelleth; that medleth to hir newe gestes drinkes that ben + touched and maked with enchauntements. And after that hir 5 + hand, mighty over the herbes, hadde chaunged hir gestes in-to + dyverse maneres; that oon of hem, is covered his face with forme + of a boor; that other is chaunged in-to a lyoun of the contree of + Marmorike, and his nayles and his teeth wexen; that other of + hem is neweliche chaunged in-to a wolf, and howleth whan he 10 + wolde wepe; that other goth debonairely in the hous as a tygre + of Inde. + + But al-be-it so that the godhed of _Mercurie, that is cleped_ the + brid of Arcadie, hath had mercy of the duke _Ulixes_, biseged with + dyverse yveles, and hath unbounden him fro the pestilence of 15 + his ostesse, algates the roweres and the marineres hadden by this + y-drawen in-to hir mouthes and dronken the wikkede drinkes. + They that weren woxen swyn hadden by this y-chaunged hir + mete of breed, for to eten akornes of okes. Non of hir limes ne + dwelleth with hem hole, but they han lost the voice and the 20 + body; only hir thought dwelleth with hem stable, that wepeth + and biweileth the monstruous chaunginge that they suffren. O + overlight hand (_as who seyth, O! feble and light is the hand of + Circes the enchaunteresse, that chaungeth the bodyes of folkes in-to + bestes, to regard and to comparisoun of mutacioun that is maked by 25 + vyces_); ne the herbes _of Circes_ ne ben nat mighty. For al-be-it + so that they may chaungen the limes of the body, algates yit + they may nat chaunge the hertes; for with-inne is y-hid the + strengthe and vigor of men, in the secree tour _of hir hertes; that + is to seyn, the strengthe of resoun_. But thilke venims _of vyces_ + to-drawen 30 + a man to hem more mightily _than the venim of Circes_; + for vyces ben so cruel that they percen and thorugh-passen the + corage with-inne; and, thogh they ne anoye nat the body, yit + vyces wooden _to destroye men_ by wounde of thought.' + +ME. III. 1. C. A. Ed. wynde. 2. C. A. Ed. Narice; Lat. _Neritii_. 3. C. Ed. +Circes; A. Circe. 8. C. boer; A. boor. 9. C. A. Ed. Marmorike; Lat. +_Marmaricus leo_. 14. A. Arcadie; C. Ed. Archadie; Lat. _Arcadis alitis_. +15. A. Ed. vnbounden; C. vnbounded. // A. pestilence; C. pestelence. 16. A. +oosteresse (!). 18. A. Ed. woxen; C. wexen. 19. C. akkornes; A. acorns. // +C. lemes; A. lymes; Ed. lymmes. 20. A. Ed. hoole; C. hool. + + +PROSE IV. + +_Tum ego, Fateor, inquam._ + + Than seyde I thus: 'I confesse and am a-knowe it,' quod I; + 'ne I ne see nat that men may sayn, as by right, that shrewes ne + ben chaunged in-to bestes by the qualitee of hir soules, al-be-it so + that they kepen yit the forme of the body of mankinde. But I + nolde nat of shrewes, of which the thought cruel woodeth al-wey 5 + in-to destruccioun of goode men, that it were leveful to hem to + don that.' + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'ne is nis nat leveful to hem, as I shal wel + shewe thee in covenable place; but natheles, yif so were that thilke + that men wenen be leveful to shrewes were binomen hem, _so that 10 + they ne mighte nat anoyen or doon harm to goode men_, certes, a + greet partye of the peyne to shrewes sholde ben allegged and + releved. For al-be-it so that this ne seme nat credible thing, + per-aventure, to some folk, yit moot it nedes be, that shrewes ben + more wrecches and unsely whan they may doon and performe 15 + that they coveiten, than yif they mighte nat complisshen that they + coveiten. For yif so be that it be wrecchednesse to wilne to don + yvel, than is more wrecchednesse to mowen don yvel; with-oute + whiche mowinge the wrecched wil sholde languisshe with-oute + effect. Than, sin that everiche of thise thinges hath his 20 + wrecchednesse, _that is to seyn, wil to don yvel and mowinge to don + yvel_, it moot nedes be that they ben constreyned by three + unselinesses, that wolen and mowen and performen felonyes and + shrewednesses.' + + 'I acorde me,' quod I; 'but I desire gretly that shrewes 25 + losten sone thilke unselinesse, _that is to seyn_, that shrewes weren + despoyled of mowinge to don yvel.' + + 'So shullen they,' quod she, 'soner, per-aventure, than thou + woldest; or soner than they hem-self wene to lakken _mowinge to + don yvel_. For ther nis no-thing so late in so shorte boundes of 30 + this lyf, that is long to abyde, nameliche, to a corage inmortel; + of whiche shrewes the grete hope, and the hye compassinges of + shrewednesses, is ofte destroyed by a sodeyn ende, or they ben + war; and that thing estableth to shrewes the ende of hir + shrewednesse. For yif that shrewednesse maketh wrecches, than 35 + mot he nedes ben most wrecched that lengest is a shrewe; the + whiche wikked shrewes wolde I demen aldermost unsely and caitifs, + yif that hir shrewednesse ne were finisshed, at the leste wey, by + the outtereste deeth. For yif I have concluded sooth of the unselinesse + of shrewednesse, than sheweth it cleerly that thilke 40 + wrecchednesse is with-outen ende, the whiche is certein to ben + perdurable.' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'this conclusioun is hard and wonderful to + graunte; but I knowe wel that it acordeth moche to the thinges + that I have graunted her-biforn.' 45 + + 'Thou hast,' quod she, 'the right estimacioun of this; but + who-so-ever wene that it be a hard thing to acorde him to a + conclusioun, it is right that he shewe that some of the premisses + ben false; or elles he moot shewe that the collacioun of proposiciouns + nis nat speedful to a necessarie conclusioun. And yif it 50 + be nat so, but that the premisses ben y-graunted, ther is not why + he sholde blame the argument. + + For this thing that I shal telle thee now ne shal nat seme lasse + wonderful; but of the thinges that ben taken also it is necessarie;' + _as who seyth, it folweth of that which that is purposed biforn_. 55 + + 'What is that?' quod I. + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'that is, that thise wikked shrewes ben + more blisful, _or elles lasse wrecches_, that abyen the torments that + they han deserved, than yif no peyne of Iustice ne chastysede + hem. Ne this ne seye I nat now, for that any man mighte 60 + thenke, that the maners of shrewes ben coriged and chastysed by + veniaunce, and that they ben brought to the right wey by the + drede of the torment, ne for that they yeven to other folk + ensaumple to fleen fro vyces; but I understande yit in another + manere, that shrewes ben more unsely whan they ne ben nat 65 + punisshed, al-be-it so that ther ne be had no resoun or lawe of + correccioun, ne non ensaumple of lokinge.' + + 'And what manere shal that ben,' quod I, 'other than hath be + told her-biforn?' + + 'Have we nat thanne graunted,' quod she, 'that goode folk 70 + ben blisful, and shrewes ben wrecches?' + + 'Yis,' quod I. + + 'Thanne,' quod she, 'yif that any good were added to the + wrecchednesse of any wight, nis he nat more weleful than he that + ne hath no medlinge of good in his solitarie wrecchednesse?' 75 + + 'So semeth it,' quod I. + + 'And what seystow thanne,' quod she, 'of thilke wrecche that + lakketh alle goodes, _so that no good nis medled in his wrecchednesse_, + and yit, over al his wikkednesse for which he is a wrecche, that + ther be yit another yvel anexed and knit to him, shal nat men 80 + demen him more unsely than thilke wrecche of whiche the unselinesse + is releved by the participacioun of som good?' + + 'Why sholde he nat?' quod I. + + 'Thanne, certes,' quod she, 'han shrewes, whan they ben + punisshed, som-what of good anexed to hir wrecchednesse, that is 85 + to seyn, the same peyne that they suffren, which that is good by + the resoun of Iustice; and whan thilke same shrewes ascapen + with-oute torment, than han they som-what more of yvel yit over + the wikkednesse that they han don, _that is to seyn_, defaute of + peyne; which defaute of peyne, thou hast graunted, is yvel for 90 + the deserte of felonye.' 'I ne may nat denye it,' quod I. 'Moche + more thanne,' quod she, 'ben shrewes unsely, whan they ben + wrongfully delivered fro peyne, than whan they ben punisshed by + rightful veniaunce. But this is open thing and cleer, that it is + right that shrewes ben punisshed, and it is wikkednesse and 95 + wrong that they escapen unpunisshed.' + + 'Who mighte deneye that?' quod I. + + 'But,' quod she, 'may any man denye that al that is right nis + good; and also the contrarie, that al that is wrong is wikke?' + + 'Certes,' quod I, 'these thinges ben clere y-nough; and that 100 + we han concluded a litel her-biforn. But I praye thee that thou + telle me, yif thou acordest to leten no torment to sowles, after that + the body is ended by the deeth;' _this is to seyn, understandestow + aught that sowles han any torment after the deeth of the body?_ + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'ye; and that right greet; of which sowles,' 105 + quod she, 'I trowe that some ben tormented by asprenesse of + peyne; and some sowles, I trowe, ben exercised by a purginge + mekenesse. But my conseil nis nat to determinye of thise peynes. + But I have travailed and told yit hiderto, for thou sholdest knowe + that the mowinge of shrewes, which mowinge thee semeth to ben 110 + unworthy, nis no mowinge: and eek of shrewes, of which thou + pleinedest that they ne were nat punisshed, that thou woldest + seen that they ne weren never-mo with-outen the torments of hir + wikkednesse: and of the licence _of the mowinge to don yvel_, + that thou preydest that it mighte sone ben ended, and that thou 115 + woldest fayn lernen that it ne sholde nat longe dure: and that + shrewes ben more unsely yif they were of lenger duringe, and + most unsely yif they weren perdurable. And after this, I have + shewed thee that more unsely ben shrewes, whan they escapen + with-oute hir rightful peyne, than whan they ben punisshed by 120 + rightful veniaunce. And of this sentence folweth it, that thanne + ben shrewes constreined at the laste with most grevous torment, + whan men wene that they ne be nat punisshed.' + + 'Whan I consider thy resouns,' quod I, 'I ne trowe nat that + men seyn any-thing more verayly. And yif I torne ayein to the 125 + studies of men, who is he to whom it sholde seme that he ne + sholde nat only leven thise thinges, but eek gladly herkne + hem?' + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'so it is; but men may nat. For they han + hir eyen so wont to the derknesse _of erthely thinges_, that they ne 130 + may nat liften hem up to the light of cleer sothfastnesse; but + they ben lyke to briddes, of which the night lightneth hir lokinge, + and the day blindeth hem. For whan men loken nat the ordre of + thinges, but hir lustes and talents, they wene that either the leve + or the mowinge to don wikkednesse, or elles the scapinge with-oute 135 + peyne, be weleful. But consider the Iugement of the + perdurable lawe. For yif thou conferme thy corage to the beste + thinges, thou ne hast no nede of no Iuge to yeven thee prys or + mede; for thou hast ioyned thy-self to the most excellent thing. + And yif thou have enclyned thy studies to the wikked thinges, ne 140 + seek no foreyne wreker out of thy-self; for thou thy-self hast + thrist thy-self in-to wikke thinges: right as thou mightest loken by + dyverse tymes the foule erthe and the hevene, and that alle other + thinges stinten fro with-oute, _so that thou nere neither in hevene + ne in erthe, ne saye no-thing more_; than it sholde semen to 145 + thee, as by only resoun of lokinge, that thou were now in the + sterres and now in the erthe. But the poeple ne loketh nat on + thise thinges. What thanne? Shal we thanne aprochen us to + hem that I have shewed that they ben lyk to bestes? And what + woltow seyn of this: yif that a man hadde al forlorn his sighte 150 + and hadde foryeten that he ever saugh, and wende that no-thing + ne faylede him of perfeccioun of mankinde, now we that mighten + seen the same thinges, wolde we nat wene that he were blinde? + Ne also ne acordeth nat the poeple to that I shal seyn, the which + thing is sustened by a stronge foundement of resouns, _that is to_ 155 + _seyn_, that more unsely ben they that don wrong to othre folk + than they that the wrong suffren.' + + 'I wolde heren thilke same resouns,' quod I. + + 'Denyestow,' quod she, 'that alle shrewes ne ben worthy to + han torment?' 160 + + 'Nay,' quod I. + + 'But,' quod she, 'I am certein, by many resouns, that shrewes + ben unsely.' + + 'It acordeth,' quod I. + + 'Thanne ne doutestow nat,' quod she, 'that thilke folk that ben 165 + worthy of torment, that they ne ben wrecches?' + + 'It acordeth wel,' quod I. + + 'Yif thou were thanne,' quod she, 'y-set a Iuge or a knower of + thinges, whether, trowestow, that men sholden tormenten him + that hath don the wrong, or elles him that hath suffred the 170 + wrong?' + + 'I ne doute nat,' quod I, 'that I nolde don suffisaunt satisfaccioun + to him that hadde suffred the wrong by the sorwe of him + that hadde don the wrong.' + + 'Thanne semeth it,' quod she, 'that the doere of wrong is 175 + more wrecche than he that suffred wrong?' + + 'That folweth wel,' quod I. + + 'Than,' quod she, 'by these causes and by othre causes that + ben enforced by the same rote, filthe or sinne, by the propre + nature of it, maketh men wrecches; and it sheweth wel, that the 180 + wrong that men don nis nat the wrecchednesse of him that + receyveth the wrong, but the wrecchednesse of him that doth the + wrong. But certes,' quod she, 'thise oratours or advocats don al + the contrarye; for they enforcen hem to commoeve the Iuges to + han pitee of hem that han suffred and receyved the thinges that 185 + ben grevous and aspre, and yit men sholden more rightfully han + pitee of hem that don the grevaunces and the wronges; the + whiche shrewes, it were a more covenable thing, that the + accusours or advocats, nat wroth but pitous and debonair, ledden + tho shrewes that han don wrong to the Iugement, right as men 190 + leden syke folk to the leche, for that they sholde seken out the + maladyes of sinne by torment. And by this covenaunt, either the + entente of deffendours or advocats sholde faylen and cesen in al, + or elles, yif the office of advocats wolde bettre profiten to men, + it sholde ben torned in-to the habite of accusacioun; _that is to 195 + seyn, they sholden accuse shrewes, and nat excuse hem_. And eek + the shrewes hem-self, yif hit were leveful to hem to seen at any + clifte the vertu that they han forleten, and sawen that they + sholden putten adoun the filthes of hir vyces, by the torments of + peynes, they ne oughte nat, right for the recompensacioun for to 200 + geten hem bountee and prowesse which that they han lost, + demen ne holden that thilke peynes weren torments to hem; and + eek they wolden refuse the attendaunce of hir advocats, and + taken hem-self to hir Iuges and to hir accusors. For which it + bitydeth that, as to the wyse folk, ther nis no place y-leten to 205 + hate; _that is to seyn, that ne hate hath no place amonges wyse men_. + For no wight nil haten goode men, but-yif he were over-mochel a + fool; and for to haten shrewes, it nis no resoun. For right so as + languissinge is maladye of body, right so ben vyces and sinne + maladye of corage. And so as we ne deme nat, that they that ben 210 + syke of hir body ben worthy to ben hated, but rather worthy of + pitee: wel more worthy, nat to ben hated, but for to ben had in + pitee, ben they of whiche the thoughtes ben constreined by + felonous wikkednesse, that is more cruel than any languissinge of 215 + body. + +PR. IV. 1. A. _om._ it. 3. C. ne ben; A. ne ben nat; Ed. ben. 10. C. to; A. +for. 16. A. _om._ than yif ... coveiten. 19. C. languesse. 22. A. thre; C. +the; Lat. _triplici_. 26. Ed. vnselynesse; C. A. vnselynysses; Lat. _hoc +infortunio_. 29. A. to lakken ... yvel; C. Ed. _omit_. 30. A. Ed. so short; +C. the shorte; Lat. _tam breuibus_. 38. A. yfinissed. 49. A. colasioun; Ed. +collacyon; C. collacions; Lat. _collationem_. 58. A. byen (_for_ abyen). +59. A. chastied. 61. A. thenk; C. thinke. // C. A. Ed. coriged. 64. A. +yitte; Ed. yet; C. yif. 66. Ed. punysshed; C. A. punyssed. 67. C. +correcsioun. 78. C. lakked; A. lakketh. 80. A. knyt; C. knytte. 96. A. +escapin. 99. A. nis wicked. 101. A. a litel; C. alyter. 103. A. dedid +(_for_ ended). 108. A. this peyne; Lat. _de his_. 109. C. yit; Ed. yet; A. +it. 110. C. mowynge, i. myght. 113. A. seen; C. seyn; _uideres_. 116. C. +dure; A. endure. 120. A. _om._ hir. 124. A. resouns; C. resoun; _rationes_. +135. A. escaping; C. schapynge (_for_ scapynge). 138. C. of no; A. to no. +142. A. threst the. 143. C. _puts_ the foule erthe _before_ by dyverse +tymes. 145. A. _om._ nere neither ... erthe; Ed. were in neyther (_om._ in +hevene ... erthe). 147. A. Ed. on; C. in. 149. A. to the bestes. 150. A. +wilt thou. 153. A. thing; _eadem_. 155. C. _om._ is. 159. A. Deniest thou. +165. A. dowtest thou. 168. C. Ed. _om._ quod she. 169. C. _om._ whether. // +A. trowest thou. 172. C. _om._ suffisaunt. 176. C. that (_for_ than). // A. +that hath suffred the wrong. 179. C. _wrongly ins._ of _bef._ enforced. // +A. _ins._ that _bef._ filthe. 182, 3. C. _om._ but the ... wrong. 198. A. +Ed. sawen; C. sawh. 199. C. felthes. 209. A. languissing; C. langwissynges. +// C. maledye; A. maladie. + + +METRE IV. + +_Quid tantos iuuat excitare motus._ + + What delyteth you to excyten so grete moevinges _of hateredes_, + and to hasten and bisien the fatal disposicioun of your deeth with + your propre handes? _that is to seyn, by batailes or by contek_. For + yif ye axen the deeth, it hasteth him of his owne wil; ne deeth + ne tarieth nat his swifte hors. And the men that the serpent and 5 + the lyoun and the tygre and the bere and the boor seken to sleen + with hir teeth, yit thilke same men seken to sleen everich of hem + other with swerd. Lo! for hir maneres ben dyverse and descordaunt, + they moeven unrightful ostes and cruel batailes, and wilnen + to perisshe by entrechaunginge of dartes. But the resoun of 10 + crueltee nis nat y-nough rightful. + + Wiltow thanne yelden a covenable guerdoun to the desertes of + men? Love rightfully goode folk, and have pitee on shrewes.' + +ME. IV. 1. A. deliteth it yow. // A. moewynges; C. moeuynge; _motus_. 5. +hors _is plural_; Lat. _equos_. // A. serpentz. 6. A. lyouns. 8. A. +discordaunt. 10. Ed. perysshe; A. perisse; C. perise. A. Ed. -chaungynge; +C. -chaungynges. 12. C. A. gerdoun; Ed. guerdon. + + +PROSE V. + +_Hic ego uideo inquam._ + + 'Thus see I wel,' quod I, 'either what blisfulnesse or elles + what unselinesse is establisshed in the desertes of goode men and + of shrewes. But in this ilke fortune of poeple I see somwhat of + good and somwhat of yvel. For no wyse man hath lever ben + exyled, poore and nedy, and nameles, than for to dwellen in his 5 + citee and flouren of richesses, and be redoutable by honour, and + strong of power. For in this wyse more cleerly and more witnesfully + is the office of wyse men y-treted, whan the blisfulnesse and + the poustee of governours is, as it were, y-shad amonges poeples + that be neighebours _and subgits_; sin that, namely, prisoun, lawe, 10 + and thise othre torments of laweful peynes ben rather owed to + felonous citezeins, for the whiche felonous citezeins tho peynes + ben establisshed, _than for good folk_. Thanne I mervaile me + greetly,' quod I, 'why that the thinges ben so mis entrechaunged, + that torments of felonyes pressen and confounden goode folk, and 15 + shrewes ravisshen medes of vertu, _and ben in honours and in + gret estats_. And I desyre eek for to witen of thee, what semeth + thee to ben the resoun of this so wrongful a conclusioun? For I + wolde wondre wel the lasse, yif I trowede that al thise thinges + weren medled by fortunous happe; but now hepeth and encreseth 20 + myn astonyinge god, governour of thinges, that, so as god + yeveth ofte tymes to gode men godes and mirthes, and to shrewes + yveles and aspre thinges: and yeveth ayeinward to gode folk hardnesses, + and to shrewes he graunteth hem hir wil and that they + desyren: what difference thanne may ther be bitwixen that that 25 + god doth, and the happe of fortune, yif men ne knowe nat the + cause why that it is?' + + 'Ne it nis no mervaile,' quod she, 'though that men wenen that + ther be somewhat folissh and confuse, whan the resoun of the + ordre is unknowe. But al-though that thou ne knowe nat the 30 + cause of so greet a disposicioun, natheles, for as moche as god, + the gode governour, atempreth and governeth the world, ne doute + thee nat that alle thinges ben doon a-right. + +PR. V. 4. C. hath leuere; A. hath nat leuer; Ed. had not leuer. 8. A. Ed. +witnes-; C. witnesse-. 10. A. ney[gh]bours; C. nesshebors. 17. A. witen; C. +weten. 21. C. A. astonyenge. 25. C. defference. 28. C. Ne it nis; A. it +nis. 33. C. ben; A. ne ben. + + +METRE V. + +_Si quis Arcturi sidera nescit._ + + Who-so that ne knowe nat the sterres of Arcture, y-torned neigh + to the soverein contree or point, _that is to seyn, y-torned neigh to + the soverein pool of the firmament_, and wot nat why _the sterre_ + Bootes passeth or gadereth his weynes, and drencheth his late + flambes in the see, and why that Bootes _the sterre_ unfoldeth his 5 + over-swifte arysinges, thanne shal he wondren of the lawe of the + heye eyr. + + _And eek, yif that he ne knowe nat why that_ the hornes of the fulle + mone wexen pale and infect by the boundes of the derke night; + and _how_ the mone, derk and confuse, discovereth the sterres that 10 + she hadde y-covered by hir clere visage. The comune errour + moeveth folk, and maketh wery hir basins of bras by thikke + strokes; _that is to seyn, that ther is a maner of poeple that highte + Coribantes, that wenen that, whan the mone is in the eclipse, that it + be enchaunted; and therfore, for to rescowe the mone, they beten hir 15 + basins with thikke strokes_. + + Ne no man ne wondreth whan the blastes of the wind Chorus + beten the strondes of the see by quakinge flodes; ne no man ne + wondreth whan the weighte of the snowe, y-harded by the colde, + is resolved by the brenninge hete of Phebus the sonne; for heer 20 + seen men redely the causes. + + But the causes y-hid, _that is to seyn, in hevene_, troublen the + brestes of men; the moevable poeple is astoned of alle thinges + that comen selde and sodeinly in our age. But yif the troubly + errour of our ignoraunce departede fro us, _so that we wisten the 25 + causes why that swiche thinges bi-tyden_, certes, they sholden cese + to seme wondres.' + +ME. V. 1. Ed. Arcture; C. Arctour; A. aritour. 4. Ed. Bootes; C. A. +boetes (_twice_). 9. A. Ed. by the; C. by. 11. A. Ed. had; C. hadde. 12. +C. basynnes (1_st time_); basyns (2_nd_). 14. Ed. Coribantes; C. A. +coribandes. 17. A. Ed. blastes; C. blases. 18. A. Ed. man ne; C. manne. 19. +A. Ed. the snowe; C. sonwh (_sic_; _om._ the). + + +PROSE VI. + +_Ita est, inquam._ + + 'Thus is it,' quod I. 'But so as thou hast yeven or bi-hight + me to unwrappen the hid causes of thinges, and to discovere me + the resouns covered with derknesses, I prey thee that thou devyse + and iuge me of this matere, and that thou do me to understonden + it; for this miracle or this wonder troubleth me right gretly.' 5 + + And thanne she, a litel what smylinge, seyde: 'thou clepest + me,' quod she, 'to telle thing that is grettest of alle thinges that + mowen ben axed, and to the whiche questioun unnethes is ther + aught y-nough to laven it; _as who seyth, unnethes is ther suffisauntly + anything to answere parfitly to thy questioun_. For the 10 + matere of it is swich, that whan o doute is determined and cut + awey, ther wexen other doutes with-oute number; right as the + hevedes wexen of Ydre, _the serpent that Ercules slowh_. Ne ther + ne were no manere ne non ende, but-yif that a wight constreinede + tho doutes by a right lyfly and quik fyr of thought; _that is to_ 15 + _seyn, by vigour and strengthe of wit_. For in this manere men + weren wont to maken questions of the simplicitee of the purviaunce + of god, and of the order of destinee, and of sodein + happe, and of the knowinge and predestinacioun divyne, and of + the libertee of free wille; the whiche thinges thou thy-self 20 + aperceyvest wel, of what weight they ben. But for as mochel + as the knowinge of thise thinges is a maner porcioun of the + medicine of thee, al-be-it so that I have litel tyme to don it, + yit natheles I wol enforcen me to shewe somwhat of it. But + al-thogh the norisshinges of ditee of musike delyteth thee, thou 25 + most suffren and forberen a litel of thilke delyte, whyle that + I weve to thee resouns y-knit by ordre.' + + 'As it lyketh to thee,' quod I, 'so do.' Tho spak she right as + by another biginninge, and seyde thus. 'The engendringe of + alle thinges,' quod she, 'and alle the progressiouns of muable 30 + nature, and al that moeveth in any manere, taketh his causes, his + ordre, and his formes, of the stablenesse of the divyne thoght; + and thilke divyne thought, that is y-set and put in the tour, _that + is to seyn, in the heighte_, of the simplicitee of god, stablissheth + many maner gyses to thinges that ben to done; the whiche 35 + maner, whan that men loken it in thilke pure clennesse of the + divyne intelligence, it is y-cleped purviaunce; but whan thilke + maner is referred by men to thinges that it moveth and disponeth, + thanne of olde men it was cleped destinee. The whiche thinges, + yif that any wight loketh wel in his thought the strengthe of that 40 + oon and of that other, he shal lightly mowen seen, that thise two + thinges ben dyverse. For purviaunce is thilke divyne reson that + is establisshed in the soverein prince of thinges; the whiche purviaunce + disponeth alle thinges. But destinee is the disposicioun + and ordinaunce clyvinge to moevable thinges, by the whiche 45 + disposicioun the purviaunce knitteth alle thinges in hir ordres; + for purviaunce embraceth alle thinges to-hepe, al-thogh that they + ben dyverse, and al-thogh they ben infinite; but destinee departeth + and ordeineth alle thinges singulerly, and divyded in + moevinges, in places, in formes, in tymes, as thus: lat the 50 + unfoldinge of temporel ordinaunce, assembled and ooned in the + lokinge of the divyne thought, be cleped purviaunce; and thilke + same assemblinge and ooninge, divyded and unfolden by tymes, + lat that ben called destinee. And al-be-it so that thise thinges + ben dyverse, yit natheles hangeth that oon on that other; for-why 55 + the order destinal procedeth of the simplicitee of purviaunce. + For right as a werkman, that aperceyveth in his thoght the forme + of the thing that he wol make, and moeveth the effect of the + werk, and ledeth that he hadde loked biforn in his thoght simply + and presently, by temporel ordinaunce: certes, right so god 60 + disponeth in his purviaunce, singulerly and stably, the thinges + that ben to done, but he aministreth in many maneres and in + dyverse tymes, by destinee, thilke same thinges that he hath + disponed. + + Thanne, whether that destinee be exercysed outher by some 65 + divyne spirits, servaunts to the divyne purviaunce, or elles by + som sowle, or elles by alle nature servinge to god, or elles by the + celestial moevinges of sterres, or elles by the vertu of angeles, or + elles by the dyverse subtilitee of develes, or elles by any of hem, + or elles by hem alle, the destinal ordinaunce is y-woven and 70 + acomplisshed. Certes, it is open thing, that the purviaunce is + an unmoevable and simple forme of thinges to done; and the + moveable bond and the temporel ordinaunce of thinges, whiche + that the divyne simplicitee of purviaunce hath ordeyned to done, + that is destinee. For which it is, that alle thinges that ben put 75 + under destinee ben, certes, subgits to purviaunce, to whiche purviaunce + destinee itself is subgit and under. But some thinges + ben put under purviaunce, that surmounten the ordinaunce of + destinee; and tho ben thilke that stably ben y-ficched negh to the + firste godhed: they surmounten the ordre of destinal moevabletee. 80 + For right as of cercles that tornen a-boute a same centre or a-boute + a poynt, thilke cercle that is innerest or most with-inne ioyneth to + the simplesse of the middel, and is, as it were, a centre or a poynt + to that other cercles that tornen a-bouten him; and thilke that is + outterest, compassed by larger envyronninge, is unfolden by 85 + larger spaces, in so moche as it is forthest fro the middel simplicitee + of the poynt; and yif ther be any-thing that knitteth and + felawshippeth him-self to thilke middel poynt, it is constreined + in-to simplicitee, _that is to seyn, in-to unmoevabletee_, and it ceseth + to be shad and to fleten dyversely: right so, by semblable resoun, 90 + thilke thing that departeth forthest fro the first thoght of god, it is + unfolden and summitted to gretter bondes of destinee: and in so + moche is the thing more free and laus fro destinee, as it axeth and + holdeth him ner to thilke centre of thinges, _that is to seyn, god_. + And yif the thing clyveth to the stedefastnesse of the thoght of god, 95 + and be with-oute moevinge, certes, it sormounteth the necessitee of + destinee. Thanne right swich comparisoun as it is of skilinge to + understondinge, and of thing that is engendred to thing that is, and + of tyme to eternitee, and of the cercle to the centre, right so is the + ordre of moevable destinee to the stable simplicitee of purviaunce. 100 + + Thilke ordinaunce moeveth the hevene and the sterres, and + atempreth the elements to-gider amonges hem-self, and transformeth + hem by entrechaungeable mutacioun; and thilke same + ordre neweth ayein alle thinges growinge and fallinge a-doun, by + semblable progressiouns of sedes and of sexes, _that is to seyn, 105 + male and femele_. And this ilke ordre constreineth the fortunes and + the dedes of men by a bond of causes, nat able to ben unbounde; + the whiche destinal causes, whan they passen out fro the biginninges + of the unmoevable purviaunce, it mot nedes be that they + ne be nat mutable. And thus ben the thinges ful wel y-governed, 110 + yif that the simplicitee dwellinge in the divyne thoght sheweth + forth the ordre of causes, unable to ben y-bowed; and this ordre + constreineth by his propre stabletee the moevable thinges, or elles + they sholden fleten folily. For which it is, that alle thinges semen + to ben confus and trouble to us men, for we ne mowen nat considere 115 + thilke ordinaunce; natheles, the propre maner of every + thinge, dressinge hem to goode, disponeth hem alle. + + For ther nis no-thing don for cause of yvel; ne thilke thing + that is don by wikkede folk _nis nat don for yvel_. The whiche + shrewes, as I have shewed ful plentivously, seken good, but 120 + wikked errour mistorneth hem, ne the ordre cominge fro the + poynt of soverein good ne declyneth nat fro his biginninge. But + thou mayst seyn, what unreste may ben a worse confusioun than + that gode men han somtyme adversitee and somtyme prosperitee, + and shrewes also now han thinges that they desiren, and now 125 + thinges that they haten? Whether men liven now in swich + hoolnesse of thoght, (_as who seyth, ben men now so wyse_), that + swiche folk as they demen to ben gode folk or shrewes, that + it moste nedes ben that folk ben swiche as they wenen? But in + this manere the domes of men discorden, that thilke men that 130 + some folk demen worthy of mede, other folk demen hem worthy of + torment. But lat us graunte, I pose that som man may wel demen + or knowen the gode folk and the badde; may he thanne knowen + and seen thilke innereste atempraunce of corages, as it hath ben + wont to be seyd of bodies; _as who seyth, may a man speken and 135 + determinen of atempraunces in corages, as men were wont to demen or + speken of complexiouns and atempraunces of bodies?_ Ne it ne is nat + an unlyk miracle, to hem that ne knowen it nat, (_as who seith, but it + is lyke a merveil or a miracle to hem that ne knowen it nat_), why that + swete thinges ben covenable to some bodies that ben hole, and to 140 + some bodies bittere thinges ben covenable; and also, why that + some syke folk ben holpen with lighte medicynes, and some folk + ben holpen with sharpe medicynes. But natheles, the leche that + knoweth the manere and the atempraunce of hele and of maladye, + ne merveileth of it no-thing. But what other thing semeth hele 145 + of corages but bountee and prowesse? And what other thing + semeth maladye _of corages_ but vyces? Who is elles kepere of + good or dryver awey of yvel, but god, governour and lecher of + thoughtes? The whiche god, whan he hath biholden from the + heye tour of his purveaunce, he knoweth what is covenable to 150 + every wight, and leneth hem that he wot that is covenable to hem. + Lo, her-of comth and her-of is don this noble miracle of the ordre + destinal, whan god, that al knoweth, doth swiche thing, of which + thing that unknowinge folk ben astoned. But for to constreine, + _as who seyth, but for to comprehende and telle_ a fewe thinges of + the 155 + divyne deepnesse, the whiche that mannes resoun may understonde, + thilke man that thou wenest to ben right Iuste and right + kepinge of equitee, the contrarie of that semeth to the divyne + purveaunce, that al wot. And Lucan, my familer, telleth that + "the victorious cause lykede to the goddes, and the cause over-comen 160 + lykede to Catoun." Thanne, what-so-ever thou mayst seen + that is don in this werld unhoped or unwened, certes, it is the + right ordre of thinges; but, as to thy wikkede opinioun, it is a + confusioun. But I suppose that som man be so wel y-thewed, + that the divyne Iugement and the Iugement of mankinde acorden 165 + hem to-gider of him; but he is so unstedefast of corage, that, yif + any adversitee come to him, he wol forleten, par-aventure, to + continue innocence, by the whiche he ne may nat with-holden + fortune. Thanne the wyse dispensacioun of god spareth him, the + whiche man adversitee mighte enpeyren; for that god wol nat 170 + suffren him to travaile, to whom that travaile nis nat covenable. + Another man is parfit in alle vertues, and is an holy man, and + negh to god, so that the purviaunce of god wolde demen, that + it were a felonye that he were touched with any adversitees; so + that he wol nat suffre that swich a man be moeved with any 175 + bodily maladye. But so as seyde a philosophre, the more excellent + by me: _he seyde in Grek_, that "vertues han edified the body + of the holy man." And ofte tyme it bitydeth, that the somme of + thinges that ben to done is taken to governe to gode folk, for that + the malice haboundaunt of shrewes sholde ben abated. And god 180 + yeveth and departeth to othre folk prosperitees and adversitees + y-medled to-hepe, after the qualitee of hir corages, and remordeth + som folk _by adversitee_, for they ne sholde nat wexen proude by + longe welefulnesse. And other folk he suffreth to ben travailed + with harde thinges, for that they sholden confermen the vertues 185 + of corage by the usage and exercitacioun of pacience. And + other folk dreden more than they oughten [that] whiche they + mighten wel beren; and somme dispyse that they mowe nat + beren; and thilke folk god ledeth in-to experience of himself by + aspre and sorwful thinges. And many othre folk han bought 190 + honourable renoun of this world by the prys of glorious deeth. + And som men, that ne mowen nat ben overcomen by torments, + have yeven ensaumple to othre folk, that vertu may nat ben overcomen + by adversitees; and of alle thinges ther nis no doute, that + they ne ben don rightfully and ordenely, to the profit of hem to 195 + whom we seen thise thinges bityde. For certes, that adversitee + comth somtyme to shrewes, and somtyme that that they desiren, + it comth of thise forseide causes. And of sorwful thinges _that + bityden to shrewes_, certes, no man ne wondreth; for alle men + wenen that they han wel deserved it, and that they ben of 200 + wikkede merite; of whiche shrewes the torment somtyme agasteth + othre to don felonyes, and somtyme it amendeth hem that suffren + the torments. And the prosperitee _that is yeven to shrewes_ + sheweth a greet argument to gode folk, what thing they sholde + demen of thilke welefulnesse, the whiche prosperitee men seen 205 + ofte serven to shrewes. In the which thing I trowe that god + dispenseth; for, per-aventure, the nature of som man is so overthrowinge + _to yvel_, and so uncovenable, that the nedy povertee of + his houshold mighte rather egren him to don felonyes. And to + the maladye of him god putteth remedie, to yeven him richesses. 210 + And som other man biholdeth his conscience defouled with sinnes, + and maketh comparisoun of his fortune and of him-self; and + dredeth, per-aventure, that his blisfulnesse, of which the usage is + Ioyeful to him, that the lesinge of thilke blisfulnesse ne be nat + sorwful to him; and therfor he wol chaunge his maneres, and, for 215 + he dredeth to lese his fortune, he forleteth his wikkednesse. To + othre folk is welefulnesse y-yeven unworthily, the whiche overthroweth + hem in-to distruccioun that they han deserved. And to + som othre folk is yeven power to punisshen, for that it shal be + cause of _continuacioun and_ exercysinge to gode folk and cause of 220 + torment to shrewes. For so as ther nis non alyaunce by-twixe + gode folk and shrewes, ne shrewes ne mowen nat acorden amonges + hem-self. And why nat? For shrewes discorden of hem-self by + hir vyces, the whiche vyces al to-renden hir consciences; and don + ofte tyme thinges, the whiche thinges, whan they han don hem, 225 + they demen that tho thinges ne sholden nat han ben don. For + which thing thilke soverein purveaunce hath maked ofte tyme fair + miracle; so that shrewes han maked shrewes to ben gode men. + For whan that som shrewes seen that they suffren wrongfully + felonyes of othre shrewes, they wexen eschaufed in-to hate of hem 230 + that anoyeden hem, and retornen to the frut of vertu, whan they + studien to ben unlyk to hem that they han hated. Certes, only + this is the divyne might, to the whiche might yveles ben thanne + gode, whan it useth tho yveles covenably, and draweth out the + effect of any gode; _as who seyth, that yvel is good only to the + might 235 + of god, for the might of god ordeyneth thilke yvel to good_. + + For oon ordre embraseth alle thinges, so that what wight that + departeth fro the resoun of thilke ordre which that is assigned to + him, algates yit he slydeth in-to another ordre, so that no-thing + nis leveful to folye in the reame of the divyne purviaunce; _as who 240 + seyth, nothing nis with-outen ordinaunce in the reame of the divyne + purviaunce_; sin that the right stronge god governeth alle thinges + in this world. For it nis nat leveful to man to comprehenden by + wit, ne unfolden by word, alle the subtil ordinaunces and disposiciouns + of the divyne entente. For only it oughte suffise to 245 + han loked, that god him-self, maker of alle natures, ordeineth and + dresseth alle thinges to gode; whyl that he hasteth to with-holden + the thinges that he hath maked in-to his semblaunce, _that is to + seyn, for to with-holden thinges in-to good, for he him-self is good_, + he chaseth out al yvel fro the boundes of his comunalitee by the 250 + ordre of necessitee destinable. For which it folweth, that yif thou + loke the purviaunce ordeininge the thinges that men wenen ben + outrageous or haboundant in erthes, thou ne shalt nat seen in no + place no-thing of yvel. But I see now that thou art charged with + the weighte of the questioun, and wery with the lengthe of my 255 + resoun; and that thou abydest som sweetnesse of songe. Tak + thanne this draught; and whan thou art wel refresshed and refect, + thou shal be more stedefast to stye in-to heyere questiouns. + +PR. VI. 4. A. Ed. do; C. don. 5. C. meracle. 6. A. _om._ what. 13. A. +Ed. Hercules. C. slowh; A. Ed. slough. 21. C. wyht. 22, 3. A. to the +medicine to the. 25. C. norysynges. 27. C. A. weue; _glossed_ contexo. 28. +A. Tho; C. So. 30. A. progressiouns; C. progressioun; _progressus_. 48. C. +Ed. infynyte; A. with-outen fyn. 49. C. dyuydyd; A. Ed. diuideth; +_distributa_. 50. _After_ tymes A. _ins._ departith (_om._ as). // C. lat; +Ed. Let; A. so that. 52. Ed. be cleaped; C. A. is (_see_ 54). 55. A. Ed. +on; C. of. 57. C. _om._ a. 59. C. symplely. 60. C. Ed. ordinaunce; A. +thou[gh]t. 61. C. stablely. 64. C. desponed. 65. C. weyther. C. destyn +(_miswritten_). 67. C. A. sowle; _glossed_ anima mundi. 68. C. _om._ the +_bef._ vertu. 71. C. acomplyssed; A. accomplissed. 79. C. stablely. A. +yficched; C. y-fechched; Ed. fyxed. 80. Ed. mouablyte; A. moeuablite. 81. +A. Ed. _om._ of. 85. A. Ed. larger; C. a large. 86. C. Ed. fertherest; A. +forthest. 91. C. A. fyrthest (_see_ 86). 93. A. lovs; Ed. loce. 96. C. +necissite. 103. C. mutasioun. 105. A. Ed. progressiouns; C. progressioun; +Lat. _progressus_. 106. A. female. 107. A. unbounden; _glossed_ +indissolubili. 137. _After_ bodies, A. _has_ '_quasi non_.' 139. C. _om. +2nd_ a. 142, 3. A. _om._ and some ... medicynes. 148. A. leecher. 159. A. +familier. 160. Ed. victoriouse; C. A. victories; _uictricem_. 164. C. +sopose. 166. C. _om._ so. 176. bodily] A. manere. // A. _om._ the more ... +by me; _me quoque excellentior_. A. _has_: the aduersites comen nat, he +seide in grec, there that vertues. 186. C. corages (_animi_). // C. +excercitacion. 187. _All_ the (_for_ that.) 188, 9. Ed. and some ... not +beare; C. A. _om._ 191. C. of the; A. Ed. of. 195. A. ordeinly. 202. C. Ed. +felonies; A. folies. 210. A. puttith; C. pittyth. // A. rychesse. 213. A. +his; C. is. 219. C. A. punyssen; Ed. punysshen. 220. C. excercisynge. 222. +A. Ed. accorden; C. acordy. 228. _After_ maked A. _ins._ oftyme (_not in_ +Lat.). 232. C. _om._ studien. 235. A. by (_for_ to). 238. C. assyngned. +240. A. realme (_twice_). 243. A. to no man. 247. C. wyl; A. while. 253. +Ed. outragyous; C. outraious; A. _om._ 255. C. the lengthe; A. Ed. _om._ +the. 257. A. refet. 258. C. stydefast. + + +METRE VI. + +_Si uis celsi iura tonantis._ + + If thou, wys, wilt demen in thy pure thought the rightes or the + lawes of the heye thonderer, _that is to seyn, of god_, loke thou and + bihold the heightes of the soverein hevene. There kepen the + sterres, by rightful alliaunce of thinges, hir olde pees. The sonne, + y-moeved by his rody fyr, ne distorbeth nat the colde cercle of 5 + the mone. Ne the sterre y-cleped "the Bere," that enclyneth his + ravisshinge courses abouten the soverein heighte of the worlde, ne + the same sterre Ursa nis never-mo wasshen in the depe westrene + see, ne coveiteth nat to deyen his flaumbes in the see of the occian, + al-thogh he see othre sterres y-plounged in the see. And Hesperus 10 + _the sterre_ bodeth and telleth alwey the late nightes; and Lucifer + _the sterre_ bringeth ayein the clere day. + + And thus maketh Love entrechaungeable the perdurable courses; + and thus is discordable bataile y-put out of the contree of the + sterres. This acordaunce atempreth by evenelyk maneres the 15 + elements, that the moiste thinges, stryvinge with the drye thinges, + yeven place by stoundes; and the colde thinges ioynen hem by + feyth to the hote thinges; and that the lighte fyr aryseth in-to + heighte; and the hevy erthes avalen by hir weightes. By thise + same causes the floury yeer yildeth swote smelles in the firste 20 + somer-sesoun warminge; and the hote somer dryeth the cornes; + and autumpne comth ayein, hevy of apples; and the fletinge reyn + bideweth the winter. This atempraunce norissheth and bringeth + forth al thing that [bretheth] lyf in this world; and thilke same + atempraunce, ravisshinge, hydeth and binimeth, and drencheth 25 + under the laste deeth, alle thinges y-born. + + Amonges thise thinges sitteth the heye maker, king and lord, + welle and biginninge, lawe and wys Iuge, to don equitee; and + governeth and enclyneth the brydles of thinges. And tho thinges + that he stereth to gon by moevinge, he withdraweth and aresteth; 30 + and affermeth the moevable or wandringe thinges. For yif that + he ne clepede ayein the right goinge of thinges, and yif that he ne + constreinede hem nat eft-sones in-to roundnesses enclynede, the + thinges that ben now continued by stable ordinaunce, they sholden + departen from hir welle, _that is to seyn, from hir biginninge_, and 35 + faylen, _that is to seyn, torne in-to nought_. + + This is the comune Love to alle thinges; and alle thinges axen + to ben holden by the fyn of good. For elles ne mighten they nat + lasten, yif they ne come nat eft-sones ayein, by Love retorned, to + the cause that hath yeven hem beinge, _that is to seyn, to god_. 40 + +ME. VI. 1. A. _om._ wys; Lat. _sollers_. 3. C. the souereyn; A. _om._ the. +5. C. clerke (!); _for_ cercle. 7. C. cours (_meatus_); _see_ 13. 9. A. +dy[gh]en; C. deeyn, _glossed_ tingere; Ed. deyen. 10. A. in-to (_for_ in). +16. A. striuen nat with the drye thinges, but yiuen. 24. A. al; C. alle. // +A. bredith; C. Ed. bereth; _read_ bretheth (_spirat_). 31. C. _om._ the. +35. A. bygynnynge; C. bygynge. + + +PROSE VII. + +_Iamne igitur uides._ + + Seestow nat thanne what thing folweth alle the thinges that I + have seyd?' _Boece._ 'What thing?' quod I. + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'al-outrely, that alle fortune is good.' + + 'And how may that be?' quod I. + + 'Now understand,' quod she, 'so as alle fortune, whether so it 5 + be Ioyeful fortune or aspre fortune, is yeven either by cause of + guerdoning or elles of exercysinge of good folk, or elles by cause + to punisshen or elles chastysen shrewes; thanne is alle fortune + good, the whiche fortune is certein that it be either rightful or + elles profitable.' 10 + + 'Forsothe, this is a ful verray resoun,' quod I; 'and yif I consider + the purviaunce and the destinee that thou taughtest me a + litel her-biforn, this sentence is sustened by stedefast resouns. + But yif it lyke unto thee, lat us noumbren hem amonges thilke + thinges, of whiche thou seydest a litel her-biforn, that they ne were 15 + nat able to ben wened to the poeple.' 'Why so?' quod she. + + 'For that the comune word of men,' quod I, 'misuseth this + _maner speche of fortune_, and seyn ofte tymes that the fortune of + som wight is wikkede.' + + 'Wiltow thanne,' quod she, 'that I aproche a litel to the wordes 20 + of the poeple, so that it seme nat to hem that I be overmoche departed + as fro the usage of mankinde?' + + 'As thou wolt,' quod I. + + 'Demestow nat,' quod she, 'that al thing that profiteth is good?' + + 'Yis,' quod I. 25 + + 'And certes, thilke thing that exercyseth or corigeth, profiteth?' + + 'I confesse it wel,' quod I. + + 'Thanne is it good?' quod she. + + 'Why nat?' quod I. + + 'But this is the fortune,' quod she, 'of hem that either ben put 30 + in vertu and batailen ayeins aspre thinges, or elles of hem that + eschuen and declynen fro vyces and taken the wey of vertu.' + + 'This ne may I nat denye,' quod I. + + 'But what seystow of the mery fortune that is yeven to good + folk in guerdoun? Demeth aught the poeple that it is wikked?' 35 + + 'Nay, forsothe,' quod I; 'but they demen, as it sooth is, that it + is right good.' + + 'And what seystow of that other fortune,' quod she, 'that, + al-thogh that it be aspre, and restreineth the shrewes by rightful + torment, weneth aught the poeple that it be good?' 40 + + 'Nay,' quod I, 'but the poeple demeth that it is most wrecched + of alle thinges that may ben thought.' + + 'War now, and loke wel,' quod she, 'lest that we, in folwinge + the opinioun of the poeple, have confessed and concluded thing + that is unable to be wened _to the poeple_. 45 + + 'What is that?' quod I. + + 'Certes,' quod she, 'it folweth or comth of thinges that ben + graunted, that alle fortune, what-so-ever it be, of hem that ben + either in possessioun of vertu, or in the encres of vertu, or elles in + the purchasinge of vertu, that thilke fortune is good; and that alle 50 + fortune is right wikkede to hem that dwellen in shrewednesse;' _as + who seyth, and thus weneth nat the poeple_. + + 'That is sooth,' quod I, 'al-be-it so that no man dar confesse it + ne biknowen it.' + + 'Why so?' quod she; 'for right as the stronge man ne semeth 55 + nat to abaissen or disdaignen as ofte tyme as he hereth the noise + of the bataile, ne also it ne semeth nat, to the wyse man, to beren + it grevously, as ofte as he is lad in-to the stryf of fortune. For + bothe to that oon man and eek to that other thilke difficultee is + the matere; to that oon man, of encres of his glorious renoun, 60 + and to that other man, to confirme his sapience, _that is to seyn, to + the asprenesse of his estat_. For therfore is it called "vertu," for + that it susteneth and enforseth, by hise strengthes, that it nis nat + overcomen by adversitees. Ne certes, thou that art put in the + encres or in the heighte of vertu, ne hast nat comen to fleten with 65 + delices, and for to welken in bodily luste; thou sowest or plauntest + a ful egre bataile _in thy corage_ ayeins every fortune: for that the + sorwful fortune ne confounde thee nat, ne that the merye fortune + ne corumpe thee nat, occupye the mene by stedefast strengthes. + For al that ever is under the mene, or elles al that overpasseth the 70 + mene, despyseth welefulnesse (_as who seyth, it is vicious_), and ne + hath no mede of his travaile. For it is set in your hand (_as who + seyth, it lyth in your power_) what fortune yow is levest, _that is to + seyn, good or yvel_. For alle fortune that semeth sharp or aspre, + yif it ne exercyse nat _the gode folk_ ne chastyseth _the wikked + folk_, it 75 + punissheth. + +PR. VII. 1. A. Sest thou; C. Sestow. 5, 6. A. _om._ alle ... aspre. 7. Ed. +guerdonyng; C. A. gerdonynge. // C. excersisinge. 16. A. ywened. 20. A. +proche. 24. A. Demest thou; Ed. Wenest thou. A. al; C. alle. 26. C. +excersiseth. C. corigit; A. corigith; Ed. corrygeth. 34. A. seist thou. +35. Ed. guerdon; C. A. gerdoun. C. Ed. demeth; A. deuinith; _decernit_. +A. poeples; _uulgus_. 38. A. seist thou. 41. C. Ed. is; A. be. 49. A. _om._ +or in ... vertu. 55. C. the stronge; A. no strong. 56. Ed. abasshen; A. +abassen. 66. A. welken; Ed. walken; C. wellen; _emarcescere_. 69. A. Ed. +corrumpe. C. Ocupye; A. Occupy. C. stydefast. 75. C. excersyse. 76. C. +punysseth; A. punisseth. + + +METRE VII. + +_Bella bis quinis operatus annis._ + + The wreker Attrides, _that is to seyn, Agamenon_, that wroughte + and continuede the batailes by ten yeer, recovered and purgede + _in wrekinge_, by the destruccioun of Troye, the loste chaumbres of + mariage of his brother; _this is to seyn, that he, Agamenon, wan + ayein Eleyne, that was Menelaus wyf his brother_. In the mene 5 + whyle that thilke _Agamenon_ desirede to yeven sayles to the + Grekissh navye, and boughte ayein the windes by blood, he unclothede + him of pitee of fader; and the sory preest yiveth in + sacrifyinge the wrecched cuttinge of throte of the doughter; _that + is to seyn, that Agamenon let cutten the throte of his doughter by + the_ 10 + _preest, to maken allyaunce with his goddes, and for to han winde + with whiche he mighte wenden to Troye_. + + Itacus, _that is to seyn, Ulixes_, biwepte his felawes y-lorn, the + whiche felawes the ferse Poliphemus, ligginge in his grete cave, + hadde freten and dreynt in his empty wombe. But natheles 15 + Poliphemus, wood for his blinde visage, yald to Ulixes Ioye by + his sorwful teres; _this is to seyn, that Ulixes smoot out the eye of + Poliphemus that stood in his forehed, for which Ulixes hadde Ioye, + whan he say Poliphemus wepinge and blinde_. + + Hercules is celebrable for his harde travailes; he dauntede the 20 + proude Centaures, _half hors, half man_; and he birafte the dispoylinge + fro the cruel lyoun, _that is to seyn, he slowh the lyoun and + rafte him his skin_. He smoot the briddes _that highten Arpyes_ + with certein arwes. He ravisshede apples fro the wakinge dragoun, + and his hand was the more hevy for the goldene metal. 25 + He drow Cerberus, _the hound of helle_, by his treble cheyne. He, + overcomer, as it is seyd, hath put an unmeke lord foddre to his + cruel hors; _this is to seyn, that Hercules slowh Diomedes, and made + his hors to freten him_. And he, Hercules, slowh Ydra _the serpent_, + and brende the venim. And Achelous the flood, defouled in his 30 + forhed, dreynte his shamefast visage in his strondes; _this is to + seyn, that Achelous coude transfigure him-self in-to dyverse lyknesses; + and, as he faught with Hercules, at the laste he tornede him in-to a + bole; and Hercules brak of oon of his hornes, and he, for shame, + hidde him in his river_. And he, Hercules, caste adoun Antheus 35 + the gyaunt in the strondes of Libie; and Cacus apaysede the + wratthes of Evander; _this is to seyn, that Hercules slowh the + monstre Cacus, and apaysede with that deeth the wratthe of + Evander_. And the bristlede boor markede with scomes the + shuldres of Hercules, the whiche shuldres the heye cercle of 40 + hevene sholde thriste. And the laste of his labours was, that he + sustened the hevene up-on his nekke unbowed; and he deservede + eft-sones the hevene, to ben the prys of his laste travaile. + + Goth now thanne, ye stronge men, ther-as the heye wey of the + grete ensaumple ledeth yow. O nyce men, why nake ye youre 45 + bakkes? _As who seyth: O ye slowe and delicat men, why flee ye + adversitees, and ne fighten nat ayeins hem by vertu, to winnen the + mede of the hevene?_ For the erthe, overcomen, yeveth the sterres'; + _this is to seyn, that, whan that erthely lust is overcomen, a man is + maked worthy to the hevene_. 50 + +ME. VII. 4. A. Ed. _om._ he. 8. A. pite as fader. 16. A. yeld. 22. A. +slou[gh]. 23. Ed. Arpyes; C. A. arpiis; _glossed_--in the palude of lyrne. +26. C. drowh; A. drou[gh]. 28. C. slowgh; A. slou[gh] (_thrice_). 28, 31, +37, 49. C. this (_for_ this is). 29. A. etyn (_for_ freten). 30. C. +achelows (_1st time_); achelous (_2nd_); A. achelaus (_twice_). 34. C. he, +_glossed_ achelous; A. achelaus (_om._ he). 39. Ed. vomes (_for_ scomes). +40. A. Ed. cercle; C. clerke (!). 48. A. mede of the. // A. Ed. the +sterres; C. _om._ the. + + + + +BOOK V. + + +PROSE I. + +_Dixerat, orationisque cursum._ + + She hadde seyd, and torned the cours of hir resoun to some + othre thinges to ben treted and to ben y-sped. Thanne seyde I, + 'Certes, rightful is thyn amonestinge and ful digne by auctoritee. + But that thou seidest whylom, that the questioun of the divyne + purviaunce is enlaced with many other questiouns, I understonde 5 + wel and proeve it by the same thing. But I axe yif that thou + wenest that hap be any thing in any weys; and, yif thou wenest + that hap be anything, what is it?' + + Thanne quod she, 'I haste me to yilden and assoilen to thee + the dette of my bihest, and to shewen and opnen the wey, by 10 + which wey thou mayst come ayein to thy contree. But al-be-it + so that the thinges which that thou axest ben right profitable to + knowe, yit ben they diverse somwhat fro the path of my purpos; + and it is to douten that thou ne be maked wery by mis-weyes, so + that thou ne mayst nat suffyce to mesuren the right wey.' 15 + + 'Ne doute thee ther-of nothing,' quod I. 'For, for to knowen + thilke thinges to-gedere, in the whiche thinges I delyte me greetly, + that shal ben to me in stede of reste; sin it is nat to douten of + the thinges folwinge, whan every syde of thy disputacioun shal han + be stedefast to me by undoutous feith.' 20 + + Thanne seyde she, 'That manere wol I don thee'; and bigan + to speken right thus. 'Certes,' quod she, 'yif any wight diffinisshe + hap in this manere, that is to seyn, that "hap is bitydinge + y-brought forth by foolish moevinge and by no knettinge of + causes," I conferme that hap nis right naught in no wyse; and I 25 + deme al-outrely that hap nis, ne dwelleth but a voice, _as who seith, + but an ydel word_, with-outen any significacioun of thing submitted + to that vois. For what place mighte ben left, or dwellinge, + to folye and to disordenaunce, sin that god ledeth and constreineth + alle thinges by ordre? For this sentence is verray and 30 + sooth, that "nothing ne hath his beinge of naught"; to the + whiche sentence none of thise olde folk ne withseyde never; al-be-it + so that they ne understoden ne meneden it naught by god, + prince and beginnere of werkinge, but they casten [it] as a manere + foundement of subiect material, that is to seyn, of the nature of 35 + alle resoun. And yif that any thing is woxen or comen of no + causes, than shal it seme that thilke thing is comen or woxen of + naught; but yif this ne may nat ben don, thanne is it nat possible, + that hap be any swich thing as I have diffinisshed a litel heer-biforn.' + + 'How shal it thanne be?' quod I. 'Nis ther thanne no-thing 40 + that by right may be cleped either "hap" or elles "aventure of + fortune"; or is ther aught, al-be-it so that it is hid fro the peple, + to which these wordes ben covenable?' + + 'Myn Aristotulis,' quod she, 'in the book of his Phisik, diffinissheth + this thing by short resoun, and neigh to the sothe.' 45 + + 'In which manere?' quod I. + + 'As ofte,' quod she, 'as men doon any thing for grace of any + other thing, and an-other thing than thilke thing that men + entenden to don bitydeth by some causes, it is cleped "hap." + Right as a man dalf the erthe by cause of tilyinge of the feeld, 50 + and founde ther a gobet of gold bidolven, thanne wenen folk that + it is bifalle by fortunous bitydinge. But, for sothe, it nis nat of + naught, for it hath his propre causes; of whiche causes the cours + unforeseyn and unwar semeth to han maked hap. For yif the + tilyere of the feld ne dolve nat in the erthe, and yif the hyder of 55 + the gold ne hadde hid the gold in thilke place, the gold ne hadde + nat been founde. Thise ben thanne the causes of the abregginge + of fortuit hap, the which abregginge of fortuit hap comth of causes + encountringe and flowinge to-gidere to hem-self, and nat by the + entencioun of the doer. For neither the hyder of the gold ne the 60 + delver of the feeld ne understoden nat that the gold sholde han + ben founde; but, as I sayde, it bitidde and ran to-gidere that he + dalf ther-as that other hadde hid the gold. Now may I thus + diffinisshe "hap." Hap is an unwar bitydinge of causes assembled + in thinges that ben don for som other thing. But thilke ordre, 65 + procedinge by an uneschuable bindinge to-gidere, which that + descendeth fro the welle of purviaunce that ordeineth alle thinges + in hir places and in hir tymes, maketh that the causes rennen and + assemblen to-gidere. + +PR. I. 1. C. by cours (_wrongly_); A. Ed. the cours. 4. C. whilom; A. som +tyme. // the (2)] C. thy. 8. A. any (_for_ any thing). // C. it is; A. Ed. +is it. 9. C. Ed. to the; A. the to the; Cax. to the the (= to thee the). +13. C. and yit; A. Ed. _om_. and. 19. A. disputisou_n_. 19, 20. C. han be; +Ed. haue ben; A. be. 22, 23. C. deffenysshe; _but_ diffinysshed _in_ 39. // +C. _glosses_ bitydinge _by_ i. euentu_m_. 24. A. knyttyng. 31. A. _om._ +the. 33. C. -stondyn; A. -stoden. // C. meneden _or_ meueden; A. moeueden +(_not in the_ Latin _text_). 34. _I supply_ it. 35. A. _om._ the. 38. C. +_om._ yif (Lat. _quod si_). 43. C. co_n_venable. 50. C. to tylyinge; A. of +tylienge. 52. A. fallen. 53. C. of nawht (_de nihilo_); A. for nau[gh]t. +55. C. of the feld (_agri_); A. in the erthe. // C. in the erthe (_humum_); +A. in the felde. 57. A. abreggynge; C. abriggynge (_but_ abreggynge _2nd +time_). 58. A. fortune (!), _for_ fortuit; _twice_. 66. A. vneschewable. + + +METRE I. + +_Rupis Achemenie scopulis, ubi uersa sequentum._ + + Tigris and Eufrates resolven and springen of oo welle, in the + cragges of the roche of the contree of Achemenie, ther-as the + fleinge bataile ficcheth hir dartes, retorned in the brestes of hem + that folwen hem. And sone after tho same riveres, Tigris and + Eufrates, unioinen and departen hir wateres. And yif they comen 5 + to-gideres, and ben assembled and cleped to-gidere into o cours, + thanne moten thilke thinges fleten to-gidere which that the water + of the entrechaunginge flood bringeth. The shippes and the + stokkes arraced with the flood moten assemblen; and the wateres + y-medled wrappeth or implyeth many fortunel happes or maneres; 10 + the whiche wandringe happes, natheles, thilke declyninge lownesse + of the erthe and the flowinge ordre of the slydinge water governeth. + Right so Fortune, that semeth as that it fleteth with slaked or + ungovernede brydles, it suffereth brydles, _that is to seyn, to be + governed_, and passeth by thilke lawe, _that is to seyn, by thilke_ 15 + _divyne ordenaunce_.' + +ME. I. 1. A. _om._ and _after_ Tigris. 3. A. _om._ bataile. 8. C. +entrechaungynge, _glossed_ i. alt_er_ni. 10. A. fortuned. 11. C. +declynynge, _glossed_ decliuitas. 13. A. _om._ that (2). 15. _thilke_] A. +the. + + +PROSE II. + +_Animaduerto, inquam._ + + 'This understonde I wel,' quod I, 'and I acorde wel that it is + right as thou seyst. But I axe yif ther be any libertee of free wil + in this ordre of causes that clyven thus to-gidere in hem-self; or + elles I wolde witen yif that the destinal cheyne constreineth the + movinges of the corages of men?' 5 + + 'Yis,' quod she; 'ther is libertee of free wil. Ne ther ne was + nevere no nature of resoun that it ne hadde libertee of free wil. + For every thing that may naturely usen resoun, it hath doom by + which it decerneth and demeth every thing; thanne knoweth it, + by it-self, thinges that ben to fleen and thinges that ben to desiren. 10 + And thilke thing that any wight demeth to ben desired, that axeth + or desireth he; and fleeth thilke thing that he troweth ben to + fleen. Wherfore in alle thinges that resoun is, in hem also is + libertee of willinge and of nillinge. But I ne ordeyne nat, _as who + seyth, I ne graunte nat_, that this libertee be evene-lyk in alle 15 + thinges. Forwhy in the sovereines devynes substaunces, _that is + to seyn, in spirits_, Iugement is more cleer, and wil nat y-corumped, + and might redy to speden thinges that ben desired. But the + soules of men moten nedes be more free whan they loken hem in + the speculacioun or lokinge of the devyne thought, and lasse free 20 + whan they slyden in-to the bodies; and yit lasse free whan they + ben gadered to-gidere and comprehended in erthely membres. + But the laste servage is whan that they ben yeven to vyces, and + han y-falle from the possessioun of hir propre resoun. For after + that they han cast awey hir eyen fro the light of the sovereyn 25 + soothfastnesse to lowe thinges and derke, anon they derken by + the cloude of ignoraunce and ben troubled by felonous talents; to + the whiche talents whan they aprochen and asenten, they hepen + and encresen the servage which they han ioyned to hem-self; and + in this manere they ben caitifs fro hir propre libertee. The whiche 30 + thinges, nathelesse, the lokinge of the devyne purviaunce seeth, + that alle thinges biholdeth and seeth fro eterne, and ordeineth + hem everich in hir merites as they ben predestinat: _and it is seyd + in Greek, that_ "alle thinges he seeth and alle thinges he hereth." + +PR. II. 1. A. Ed. quod I; C. _om._ // C. Ed. acorde me; A. acorde wel. 2. +C. of; A. or (_wrongly_); Lat. _arbitrii_. 3. C. hym; A. Ed. hem. 5. C. +mouynges (_motus_); A. moeueuynge (!). 12. A. _om._ thilke. // C. to ben +fleen; A. ben to fleen; Ed. be to flyen. 16. C. dyuynes; A. deuynes (_as +often in_ C). 17. C. wil nat I-coromped (_uoluntas incorrupta_); A. wil nat +be corumped (_wrongly_). 18. C. myht (_potestas_); A. hath my[gh]t. 27. C. +clowdes; A. Ed. cloude (_nube_). 27, 8. Ed. A. to the; C. _om._ the. 31. A. +purueaunce. 34. _The last clause, in the original, is in Greek._ + + +METRE II. + +_Puro clarum lumine Phebum._ + + Homer with the hony mouth, _that is to seyn, Homer with the + swete ditees_, singeth, that the sonne is cleer by pure light; natheles + yit ne may it nat, by the infirme light of his bemes, breken or + percen the inwarde entrailes of the erthe, or elles of the see. So + ne seeth nat _god_, maker of the grete world: to him, that loketh 5 + alle thinges from an heigh, ne withstondeth nat no thinges by + hevinesse of erthe; ne the night ne withstondeth nat to him by + the blake cloudes. _Thilke god_ seeth, in oo strok of thought, alle + thinges that ben, or weren, or sholle comen; and _thilke god_, for + he loketh and seeth alle thinges alone, thou mayst seyn that he is 10 + the verray sonne.' + +ME. II. 3. A. inferme. 6. C. _om._ nat. 7. C. heuynesse (_mole_); A. +heuynesses. 8. C. strokk, _glossed_ i. ictu. + +PROSE III. + +_Tum ego, en, inquam._ + + Thanne seyde I, 'now am I confounded by a more hard doute + than I was.' + + 'What doute is that?' quod she. 'For certes, I coniecte now + by whiche thinges thou art troubled.' + + 'It semeth,' quod I, 'to repugnen and to contrarien greetly, 5 + that god knoweth biforn alle thinges, and that ther is any freedom + of libertee. For yif so be that god loketh alle thinges biforn, ne + god ne may nat ben desseived in no manere, than mot it nedes + been, that alle thinges bityden the whiche that the purviaunce of + god hath seyn biforn to comen. For which, yif that god 10 + knoweth biforn nat only the werkes of men, but also hir conseiles + and hir willes, thanne ne shal ther be no libertee of arbitre; ne, + certes, ther ne may be noon other dede, ne no wil, but thilke + which that the divyne purviaunce, that may nat ben desseived, + hath feled biforn. For yif that they mighten wrythen awey in 15 + othre manere than they ben purveyed, than sholde ther be no + stedefast prescience of thing to comen, but rather an uncertein + opinioun; the whiche thing to trowen of god, I deme it felonye + and unleveful. Ne I ne proeve nat thilke same resoun, _as who + seyth, I ne alowe nat, or I ne preyse nat, thilke same resoun_, by 20 + which that som men wenen that they mowen assoilen and + unknitten the knotte of this questioun. For, certes, they seyn + that thing nis nat to comen for that the purviaunce of god hath + seyn it biforn that is to comen, but rather the contrarye, _and that + is this_: that, for that the thing is to comen, therfore ne may it 25 + nat ben hid fro the purviaunce of god; and in this manere this + necessitee slydeth ayein in-to the contrarye partye: ne it ne + bihoveth nat, nedes, that thinges bityden that ben purvyed, but + it bihoveth, nedes, that thinges that ben to comen ben y-porveyed: + but as it were y-travailed, _as who seyth, that thilke answere_ 30 + _procedeth right as thogh men travaileden, or weren bisy to enqueren_, + the whiche thing is cause of the whiche thing:--as, whether the + prescience is cause of the necessitee of thinges to comen, or elles + that the necessitee of thinges to comen is cause of the purviaunce. + But I ne enforce me nat now to shewen it, that the bitydinge of 35 + thinges y-wist biforn is necessarie, how so or in what manere + that the ordre of causes hath it-self; al-thogh that it ne seme nat + that the prescience bringe in necessitee of bitydinge to thinges to + comen. For certes, yif that any wight sitteth, it bihoveth by + necessitee that the opinioun be sooth of him that coniecteth that 40 + he sitteth; and ayeinward also is it of the contrarye: yif the + opinioun be sooth of any wight for that he sitteth, it bihoveth by + necessitee that he sitte. Thanne is heer necessitee in that oon + and in that other: for in that oon is necessitee of sittinge, and, + certes, in that other is necessitee of sooth. But therfore ne 45 + sitteth nat a wight, for that the opinioun of the sittinge is sooth; + but the opinioun is rather sooth, for that a wight sitteth biforn. + And thus, al-thogh that the cause of the sooth cometh of that + other syde (_as who seyth, that al-thogh the cause of sooth comth_ + _of the sitting, and nat of the trewe opinioun_), algates yit is ther 50 + comune necessitee in that oon and in that other. Thus sheweth + it, that I may make semblable skiles of the purviaunce of god + and of thinges to comen. For althogh that, for that thinges ben + to comen, ther-fore ben they purveyed, nat, certes, for that they + ben purveyed, ther-fore ne bityde they nat. Yit natheles, 55 + bihoveth it by necessitee, that either the thinges to comen ben + y-purveyed of god, or elles that the thinges that ben purveyed of + god bityden. And this thing only suffiseth y-nough to destroyen + the freedom of oure arbitre, _that is to seyn, of oure free wil_. But + now, certes, _sheweth it wel, how fer fro the sothe and_ how + up-so-doun 60 + is this thing that we seyn, that the bitydinge of temporel + thinges is cause of the eterne prescience. But for to wenen that + god purvyeth the thinges to comen for they ben to comen, what + other thing is it but for to wene that thilke thinges that bitidden + whylom ben causes of thilke soverein purvyaunce _that is in god_? 65 + And her-to _I adde yit this thing_: that, right as whan that I wot + that a thing is, it bihoveth by necessitee that thilke selve thing be; + and eek, whan I have knowe that any thing shal bityden, so + byhoveth it by necessitee that thilke thing bityde:--so folweth it + thanne, that the bitydinge of the thing y-wist biforn ne may nat 70 + ben eschued. And at the laste, yif that any wight wene a thing + to ben other weyes thanne it is, it is nat only unscience, but it is + deceivable opinioun ful diverse and fer fro the sothe of science. + Wherfore, yif any thing be so to comen, that the bitydinge of hit + ne be nat certein ne necessarie, who may weten biforn that thilke 75 + thing is to comen? For right as science ne may nat ben medled + with falsnesse (_as who seyth, that yif I wot a thing, it ne may nat + be false that I ne wot it_), right so thilke thing that is conceived by + science ne may nat ben non other weys than as it is conceived. + For that is the cause why that science wanteth lesing (_as who_ 80 + _seyth, why that witinge ne receiveth nat lesinge of that it wot_); for + it bihoveth, by necessitee, that every thing be right as science + comprehendeth it to be. What shal I thanne seyn? In whiche + manere knoweth god biforn the thinges to comen, yif they ne be + nat certein? For yif that he deme that they ben to comen 85 + uneschewably, and so may be that it is possible that they ne + shollen nat comen, god is deceived. But nat only to trowen that + god is deceived, but for to speke it with mouth, it is a felonous + sinne. But yif that god wot that, right so as thinges ben _to + comen_, so shullen they comen--so that he wite egaly, _as who_ 90 + _seyth, indifferently_, that thinges mowen ben doon or elles nat + y-doon--what is thilke prescience that ne comprehendeth no + certein thing ne stable? Or elles what difference is ther bitwixe + the prescience and thilke Iape-worthy divyninge of Tiresie the + divynour, _that seyde_: "Al that I seye," quod he, "either it shal be, 95 + or elles it ne shal nat be?" Or elles how mochel is worth the + devyne prescience more than the opinioun of mankinde, yif so be + that it demeth the thinges uncertein, as men doon; of the whiche + domes of men the bitydinge nis nat certein? But yif so be that + non uncertein thing ne may ben in him that is right certein welle 100 + of alle thinges, thanne is the bitydinge certein of thilke thinges + whiche he hath wist biforn fermely to comen. For which it + folweth, that the freedom of the conseiles and of the werkes of + mankind nis non, sin that the thoght of god, that seeth alle + thinges without errour of falsnesse, bindeth and constreineth 105 + hem to a bitydinge _by necessitee_. And yif this thing be ones + y-graunted and received, _that is to seyn, that ther nis no free wille_, + than sheweth it wel, how greet destruccioun and how grete + damages ther folwen of thinges of mankinde. For in ydel ben + ther thanne purposed and bihight medes to gode folk, and peynes 110 + to badde folk, sin that no moevinge of free corage voluntarie ne + hath nat deserved hem, _that is to seyn, neither mede ne peyne_; and + it sholde seme thanne, that thilke thing is alderworst, which that + is now demed for aldermost iust and most rightful, _that is to seyn_, + that shrewes ben punisshed, or elles that gode folk ben y-gerdoned: 115 + the whiche folk, sin that hir propre wil ne sent hem nat to that oon + ne to that other, _that is to seyn, neither to gode ne to harm_, but + constreineth + hem certein necessitee of thinges to comen: thanne ne + shollen ther nevere ben, ne nevere weren, vyce ne vertu, but it + sholde rather ben confusioun of alle desertes medled with-outen 120 + discrecioun. And yit _ther folweth an-other inconvenient_, of the + whiche ther ne may ben thoght no more felonous ne more wikke; + _and that is this_: that, so as the ordre of thinges is y-led and + comth of the purviaunce of god, ne that no-thing nis leveful to + the conseiles of mankinde (_as who seyth, that men han no power to 125 + doon no-thing, ne wilne no-thing_), than folweth it, that oure vyces + ben referred to the maker of alle good (_as who seyth, than folweth + it, that god oughte han the blame of oure vyces, sin he constreineth us + by necessitee to doon vyces_). Thanne is ther no resoun to hopen _in + god_, ne for to preyen _to god_; for what sholde any wight hopen _to_ 130 + _god_, or why sholde he preyen _to god_, sin that the ordenaunce of + destinee, which that ne may nat ben inclyned, knitteth and streineth + alle thinges that men may desiren? Thanne sholde ther be doon + awey thilke only allyaunce bitwixen god and men, that is to seyn, + to hopen and to preyen. But by the prys of rightwisnesse and of 135 + verray mekenesse we deserven the gerdoun of the divyne grace, + which that is inestimable, _that is to seyn, that it is so greet, that it + ne may nat ben ful y-preysed_. And this is only the manere, _that is + to seyn, hope and preyeres_, for which it semeth that men mowen + speke with god, and by resoun of supplicacioun be conioined to 140 + thilke cleernesse, that nis nat aproched no rather or that men + beseken it and impetren it. And yif men wene nat that hope ne + preyeres ne han no strengthes, by the necessitee of thinges to + comen y-received, what thing is ther thanne by whiche we mowen + ben conioined and clyven to thilke soverein prince of thinges? 145 + For which it bihoveth, by necessitee, that the linage of mankinde, + as thou songe a litel her-biforn, be departed and unioined from + his welle, and failen _of his biginninge, that is to seyn, god_. + +PR. III. 9. A. purueaunce. 14. A. _om._ that (1). 18. C. of; A. on. 24. C. +_om._ it. // C. but; _glossed_ s. aiunt. 25. C. _om._ is (1). // A. that +therfore. 28. A. _om._ nat. // A. ypurueid. 28, 9. A. _om._ but it bihoveth +... y-porveyed. 32. A. whiche thinges (_for 2nd_ the whiche thing). // C. +weyther. 34. C. p_ur_uyaunce; _glossed_ s. p_ro_uidencie. 35. C. it; +_glossed_ illud. 38. A. of thinges. 48, 9. A. _om._ the sooth cometh ... +cause of. 53. C. Ed. that for that; A. for that that. 58. A. bitiden by +necessite; C. _has the gloss_--s. by necessite. 60. A. _om._ certes. 60, 1. +C. vp so down; _glossed_ p_re_postere. 62. A. is the cause. 63. A. _om._ +the. 64, 5. A. bitiden som-tyme. 71. C. at the laste; _glossed_ i. +postremo. 74. A. so that the. 75. A. _om._ biforn. 79. A. _om._ nat. // C. +as it is; A. it is be. 82. A. _om._ be. 85. C. he; _glossed_ s. deus. // C. +they; _glossed_ s. thynges. 86. C. vneschwably; _glossed_ i. +memorabilit_er_ (!) 87. C. A. desseyued (_twice_). 92. A. don. 94. C. Iape +worthi; _glossed_ i. ridiculo. 100. A. _om._ ne. 102. C. he; _glossed_ s. +deus. // C. fermely; _glossed_ i. firmit_er_. 106. A. _om._ this. 107. C. +resseyuyd; A. receyued. 108. C. destruccyou_n_; _glossed_ i. occasus. 110. +C. Meedes to; A. medes of. 113. A. alther-worste. 114. A. alther-moste. +116. C. hir; A. the. // A. _om._ ne _before_ sent. 120. C. dissertes; A. +desertes. 121. _For_ of the, _read_ than; _see note_. 122. A. ne (_for_ +no). 128. A. _om._ us. 129. A. to han hopen. 135. A. p_re_is. 136. C. +desseruyn; A. deserue. 139. A. _om._ men. 142. Ed. impetren; C. impetrent +(!); A. emprenten. // A. _om._ nat. // A. _om._ hope. 143. C. _om._ no. +144. C. I-resseyuyd (_glossed_ i. graunted); A. y-resceiued. 147. C. thou; +_glossed_ s. philosophie. // C. her by-forn, libro 4^o metro sexto [_line_ +35]. + + +METRE III. + +_Quenam discors federa rerum._ + + What discordable cause hath to-rent and unioined the bindinge, + _or the alliaunce_, of thinges, _that is to seyn, the coniunccioun of god + and man_? Whiche god hath establisshed so greet bataile bitwixen + thise two soothfast or verray thinges, _that is to seyn, + bitwixen the purviaunce of god and free wil_, that they ben singuler 5 + and devyded, ne that they ne wolen nat be medeled ne coupled + to-gidere? But ther nis no discord to the verray thinges, but they + clyven, certein, alwey to hem-self. But the thought of man, confounded + and overthrowen by the dirke membres of the body, ne + may nat, by fyr of his derked looking, _that is to seyn, by the + vigour_ 10 + _of his insighte, whyl the soule is in the body_, knowe the thinne + subtil knittinges of thinges. But wherfore enchaufeth it so, by so + greet love, to finden thilke notes of sooth y-covered; _that is to + seyn, wherfore enchaufeth the thoght of man by so greet desyr to + knowen thilke notificacions that ben y-hid under the covertoures of 15 + sooth?_ Wot it aught thilke thing that it, anguissous, desireth to + knowe? _As who seith, nay; for no man travaileth for to witen + thinges that he wot. And therfore the texte seith thus_: but who + travaileth to witen thinges y-knowe? And yif that he ne knoweth + hem nat, what seketh thilke blinde thoght? What is he that 20 + desireth any thing of which he wot right naught? _As who seith, + who so desireth any thing, nedes, somwhat he knoweth of it; or + elles, he ne coude nat desire it._ Or who may folwen thinges that ne + ben nat y-wist? _And thogh that he seke tho thinges_, wher shal he + finde hem? What wight, that is al unconninge and ignoraunt, 25 + may knowen the forme that is y-founde? But whan the soule + biholdeth and seeth the heye thoght, _that is to seyn, god_, than + knoweth it to-gidere the somme and the singularitees, _that is to + seyn, the principles and everich by him-self_. + + But now, whyl the soule is hid in the cloude and in the derkenesse 30 + of the membres of the body, it ne hath nat al for-yeten + it-self, but it with-holdeth the somme of thinges, and leseth the + singularitees. Thanne, who-so that seeketh soothnesse, he nis in + neither nother habite; for he noot nat al, ne he ne hath nat al + foryeten: but yit him remembreth the somme of thinges that he 35 + with-holdeth, and axeth conseil, and retreteth deepliche thinges + y-seyn biforn, _that is to seyn, the grete somme in his minde_: so that + he mowe adden the parties that he hath for-yeten to thilke that he + hath with-holden.' + +ME. III. 1. C. vnioygnyd, _glossed_ s. ne se compaciant_ur_ si_mi_l_iter_. +2. C. coniuncciou_n_s; A. coniuncc_i_oun. 3. C. man, _quasi dicat, nullus_. +// C. which that god; A. Ed. whiche god (_quis Deus_). 6. C. deuydyd, +_quasi dicat, non est ita_. 7. A. _om._ the. // C. thinges, _s. prudencia +et liberum arbitrium_. 8. A. cleuen. 10. A. dirk. 12. C. it, _s. anima_. +13. A. note (Lat. _notas_). 16. C. it, _s. anima_. 18. _After_ thus, A. +_adds_--Si enim anima ignorat istas subtiles connexiones, responde, vnde +est quod desiderat scire cum nil ignotum possit desiderare; _but both_ C. +_and_ Ed. _omit this_. 21. wot] C. not. // C. nawht, _quasi dicat, non_. +24. A. _om._ that. 26. C. yfownde, _quasi dicat, nullus_. 29. A. Ed. +principles; C. principulis. 34. A. nouthir habit. 36. C. retretith, _i. +retractat_; A. tretith. + + +PROSE IV. + +_Tum illa: Vetus, inquit, hec est._ + + Thanne seide she: 'this is,' quod she, 'the olde question of + the purviaunce of god; and Marcus Tullius, whan he devyded the + divynaciouns, _that is to seyn, in his book that he wroot of + divynaciouns_, + he moevede gretly this questioun; and thou thy-self has y-sought + it mochel, and outrely, and longe; but yit ne hath it nat ben 5 + determined ne y-sped fermely and diligently of any of yow. And + the cause of this derkenesse and of this difficultee is, for that the + moevinge of the resoun of mankinde ne may nat moeven to (_that + is to seyn, applyen or ioinen to_) the simplicitee of the devyne + prescience; the whiche _simplicitee of the devyne prescience_, yif 10 + that men mighten thinken it in any maner, _that is to seyn, that yif + men mighten thinken and comprehenden the thinges as god seeth + hem_, thanne ne sholde ther dwellen outrely no doute: the whiche + _resoun and cause of difficultee_ I shal assaye at the laste to shewe + and to speden, whan I have first y-spended and answered to tho 15 + resouns by which thou art y-moeved. For I axe why thou wenest + that thilke resouns of hem that assoilen this questioun ne ben + nat speedful y-nough ne sufficient: the whiche _solucioun, or the + whiche resoun_, for that it demeth that the prescience nis nat cause + of necessitee to thinges to comen, than ne weneth it nat that 20 + freedom of wil be destorbed or y-let by prescience. For ne + drawestow nat arguments from elles-where of the necessitee of + thinges to-comen (_as who seith, any other wey than thus_) but that + thilke thinges that the prescience wot biforn ne mowen nat unbityde? + _That is to seyn, that they moten bityde._ But thanne, yif 25 + that prescience ne putteth no necessitee to thinges to comen, as + thou thy-self hast confessed it and biknowen a litel her-biforn, what + cause or what is it (_as who seith, ther may no cause be_) by which + that the endes voluntarie of thinges mighten be constreined to + certein bitydinge? For by grace of positioun, so that thou mowe 30 + the betere understonde this that folweth, I pose, _per impossibile_, + that ther be no prescience. Thanne axe I,' quod she, 'in as + mochel as apertieneth to that, sholden thanne thinges that comen + of free wil ben constreined to bityden by necessitee?' + + _Boece._ 'Nay,' quod I. 35 + + 'Thanne ayeinward,' quod she, 'I suppose that ther be prescience, + but that it ne putteth no necessitee to thinges; thanne + trowe I, that thilke selve freedom of wil shal dwellen al hool and + absolut and unbounden. But thou wolt seyn that, al-be-it so that + prescience nis nat cause of the necessitee of bitydinge to thinges 40 + to comen, algates yit it is a signe that the thinges ben to bityden + by necessitee. By this manere thanne, al-thogh the prescience + ne hadde never y-ben, yit _algate or at the leeste weye_ it is certein + thing, that the endes and bitydinges of thinges to comen sholden + ben necessarie. For every signe sheweth and signifyeth only what 45 + the thing is, but it ne maketh nat the thing that it signifyeth. For + which it bihoveth first to shewen, that no-thing ne bitydeth that it + ne bitydeth by necessitee, so that it may appere that the prescience + is signe of this necessitee; or elles, yif ther nere no necessitee, + certes, thilke prescience ne mighte nat be signe of thing that nis 50 + nat. But certes, it is now certein that the proeve of this, + y-sustened by stidefast resoun, ne shal nat ben lad ne proeved by + signes ne by arguments y-taken fro with-oute, but by causes + covenable and necessarie. But _thou mayst seyn_, how may it be + that the thinges ne bityden nat that ben y-purveyed to comen? 55 + But, certes, right as we trowen that tho thinges which that the + purviance wot biforn to comen ne ben nat to bityden; but that + ne sholden we nat demen; but rather, al-thogh that they shal + bityden, yit ne have they no necessitee of hir kinde to bityden. + And this maystow lightly aperceiven by this that I shal seyn. For 60 + we seen many thinges whan they ben don biforn oure eyen, right + as men seen the cartere worken in the torninge or atempringe or + adressinge of hise cartes or charietes. And by this manere (_as + who seith, maystow understonde_) of alle othere _workmen_. Is ther + thanne any necessitee, _as who seith, in oure lokinge_, that + constreineth 65 + or compelleth any of thilke thinges to ben don so?' + + _Boece._ 'Nay,' quod I; 'for in ydel and in veyn were al the + effect of craft, yif that alle thinges weren moeved by constreininge;' + _that is to seyn, by constreininge of oure eyen or of oure sight_. + + _Philosophie._ 'The thinges thanne,' quod she, 'that, whan men 70 + doon hem, ne han no necessitee that men doon hem, eek tho + same thinges, first or they ben doon, they ben to comen with-oute + necessitee. For-why ther ben somme thinges to bityden, of which + the endes and the bitydinges of hem ben absolut and quit of alle + necessitee. For certes, I ne trowe nat that any man wolde seyn 75 + this: that tho thinges that men doon now, that they ne weren to + bityden first or they weren y-doon; and thilke same thinges, + al-thogh that men had y-wist hem biforn, yit they han free + bitydinges. For right as science of thinges present ne bringeth in + no necessitee to thinges that men doon, right so the prescience of 80 + thinges to comen ne bringeth in no necessitee to thinges to + bityden. But thou mayst seyn, that of thilke same it is y-douted, + as whether that of thilke thinges that ne han non issues and + bitydinges necessaries, yif ther-of may ben any prescience; for + certes, they semen to discorden. For thou wenest that, yif that 85 + thinges ben y-seyn biforn, that necessitee folweth hem; and yif + necessitee faileth hem, they ne mighten nat ben wist biforn, and + that no-thing ne may ben comprehended by science but certein; + and yif tho thinges that ne han no certein bitydinges ben purveyed + as certein, it sholde ben dirknesse of opinioun, nat soothfastnesse 90 + of science. And thou wenest that it be diverse fro the hoolnesse + of science that any man sholde deme a thing to ben other-weys + thanne it is it-self. And the cause of this erroure is, that of alle + the thinges that every wight hath y-knowe, they wenen that tho + thinges been y-knowe al-oonly by the strengthe and by the nature 95 + of the thinges that ben y-wist or y-knowe; and it is al the + contrarie. For al that ever is y-knowe, it is rather comprehended + and knowen, nat after his strengthe and his nature, but after the + facultee, _that is to seyn, the power and the nature_, of hem that + knowen. And, for that this thing shal mowen shewen by a short 100 + ensaumple: the same roundnesse of a body, other-weys the sighte + of the eye knoweth it, and other-weyes the touchinge. The + lokinge, by castinge of his bemes, waiteth and seeth from afer al + the body to-gidere, with-oute moevinge of it-self; but the touchinge + clyveth and conioineth to the rounde body, and moeveth aboute 105 + the environinge, and comprehendeth by parties the roundnesse. + And the man him-self, other-weys wit biholdeth him, and + other-weys imaginacioun, and other-weys resoun, and other-weys + intelligence. For the wit comprehendeth withoute-forth the + figure of the body of the man that is establissed in the 110 + matere subiect; but the imaginacioun comprehendeth only the + figure withoute the matere. Resoun surmounteth imaginacioun, + and comprehendeth by universal lokinge the comune spece that + is in the singuler peces. But the eye of intelligence is heyere; for + it surmounteth the environinge of the universitee, and looketh, 115 + over that, by pure subtilitee of thoght, thilke same simple forme + _of man that is perdurably in the divyne thoght_. In whiche this + oughte greetly to ben considered, that the heyeste strengthe to + comprehenden thinges enbraseth and contieneth the lowere + strengthe; but the lowere strengthe ne aryseth nat in no manere 120 + to heyere strengthe. For wit ne may no-thing comprehende out + of matere, ne the imaginacioun ne loketh nat the universels + speces, ne resoun taketh nat the simple forme _so as intelligence + taketh it_; but intelligence, that looketh al aboven, whan it hath + comprehended the forme, it knoweth and demeth alle the thinges 125 + that ben under that forme. But _she knoweth hem_ in thilke manere + in the whiche it comprehendeth thilke same simple forme that + ne may never ben knowen to none of that other; _that is to seyn, + to none of tho three forseide thinges of the sowle_. For it knoweth + the universitee of resoun, and the figure of the imaginacioun, 130 + and the sensible material _conceived by wit_; ne it ne useth nat nor + of resoun ne of imaginacioun ne of wit withoute-forth; but it + biholdeth alle thinges, so as I shal seye, by a strok of thought + formely, _withoute discours or collacioun_. Certes resoun, whan it + looketh any-thing universel, it ne useth nat of imaginacioun, nor 135 + of witte, and algates yit it comprehendeth the thinges imaginable + and sensible; for resoun is she that diffinisseth the universel of hir + conseyte right thus:--man is a resonable two-foted beest. And + how so that this knowinge is universel, yet nis ther no wight that + ne woot wel that a man is a thing imaginable and sensible; and 140 + this same considereth wel resoun; but that nis nat by imaginacioun + nor by wit, but it looketh it by a resonable concepcioun. Also + imaginacioun, al-be-it so that it taketh of wit the beginninges to + seen and to formen the figures, algates, al-thogh that wit ne were + nat present, yit it environeth and comprehendeth alle thinges 145 + sensible; nat by resoun sensible of deminge, but by resoun + imaginatif. Seestow nat thanne that alle the thinges, in knowinge, + usen more of hir facultee or of hir power than _they doon of the + facultee or power_ of thinges that ben y-knowe? Ne that nis nat + wrong; for so as every Iugement is the dede or doinge of him 150 + that demeth, it bihoveth that every wight performe the werk and + his entencioun, nat of foreine power, but of his propre power. + +PR. IV. 2. C. deuynede; Ed. deuyded; A. deuided; _distribuit_. 7. C. +dirknesse; A. derkenesse. // A. _om. 2nd_ of this. 11, 12. A. _om._ mighten +thinken it ... yif men. 15. A. _om._ y-spended and. // C. the; A. tho. 22. +A. drawest thou. 24. A. thinge. // A. _om._ ne. 28. A. _om._ or what. 29. +C. A. _gloss_ endes _by_ exitus. 30. Ed. posycion (Lat. _positionis_); C. +A. possessioun; _and_ C. _glosses_ For ... possessioun _by_ uerbi gratia. +31. A. _inpossibile_; C. _per impossibile_ (as a gloss). 37. Ed. it; C. is. +44. C. endes, _i. exitus_. // A. and the (_for_ and). 46. C. thing is, _i. +se eius significatum_. // C. maketh, _glossed_ causat. 47, 48. A. _om._ +that it ne bitydeth. 48, 49. C. _om._ so that ... necessitee. 51. A. preue. +52. A. stedfast. // A. p_ro_ued. 57. C. but that; A. _om._ that. 58. A. +_om._ that. 60. A. maist thou. 62. A. and in attempryng or in adressyng. +63. A. chariottes. 64. A. mayst thou. 65. A. _om._ that. 66. C. _om._ +thilke. // C. so, _quasi dicat, non_. 70. A. thise thingus. 80, 81. A. +_om._ that men doon ... to thinges. 83. C. Ed. issues; A. endes; C. +_adds_--_i. exitus_. 87, 88. C. and yif (_wrongly_); A. Ed. and that. +91-93. A. _om._ And thou ... is it-self _here, but inserts the same in a +wrong place_ (131 _below_). 99. A. _om. 2nd_ the. 100. A. Ed. that; C. +_om._ // Ed. thing; C. A. _om._ 103. C. after; A. afer; Ed. a-ferre. 105. +C. body, _glossed_ orbis; A. body, _glossed_ orbi (Lat. _orbi_). 109. A. +fro with-outen furthe. 111. C. comprehendeth, _vel iudicat_. 111, 2. A. +_om._ comprehendeth ... imaginacioun. 113. C. Ed. by; A. by an. // C. A. +(_gloss_) speciem. 120, 121. A. _om._ but the ... strengthe. // A. Ed. For; +C. _om._ 124. A. Ed. it; C. _om._ // A. but the. // A. Ed. that; C. _om._ +126. C. she; _glossed_ intelligence. // C. Ed. in; A. vndir. 131. _Here_ A. +_wrongly inserts a clause omitted above_ (91-93). 136. A. _om._ it. // A. +comprendith. 139. A. _om._ is. 140. A. _om._ a thing. 142. A. _om._ a. 147. +A. Sest thou. 148. A. of faculte or of power. 149. A. Ed. no (_for_ nat). +150. A. or the. + + +METRE IV. + +_Quondam porticus attulit._ + + The Porche, _that is to seyn, a gate of the town of Athenes ther-as + philosophres hadden hir congregacioun to desputen_, thilke Porche + broughte som-tyme olde men, ful derke in hir sentences, _that is to + seyn, philosophres that highten Stoiciens_, that wenden that images + and sensibilitees, _that is to seyn, sensible imaginaciouns, or elles 5 + imaginaciouns of sensible thinges_, weren empreinted in-to sowles + fro bodies withoute-forth; _as who seith, that thilke Stoiciens wenden + that the sowle hadde ben naked of it-self, as a mirour or a clene + parchemin, so that alle figures mosten first comen fro thinges fro + withoute-forth in-to sowles, and ben empreinted in-to sowles_: TEXT: 10 + right as we ben wont som-tyme, by a swifte pointel, to ficchen + lettres empreinted in the smothenesse or in the pleinnesse of the + table of wex _or in parchemin_ that ne hath no figure ne note in it. + GLOSE. _But now argueth Boece ayeins that opinioun, and seith + thus_: But yif the thryvinge sowle ne unpleyteth no-thing, _that is 15 + to seyn, ne doth no-thing_, by his propre moevinges, but suffreth and + lyth subgit to tho figures and to tho notes of bodies withoute-forth, + and yildeth images ydel and veyn in the manere of a mirour, + whennes thryveth thanne or whennes comth thilke knowinge in + our sowle, that discerneth and biholdeth alle thinges? And 20 + whennes is thilke strengthe that biholdeth the singuler thinges; + or whennes is the strengthe that devydeth thinges y-knowe; and + thilke strengthe that gadereth to-gidere the thinges devyded; and + the strengthe that cheseth his entrechaunged wey? For som-tyme + it heveth up the heved, _that is to seyn, that it heveth up the + entencioun 25 + to right heye thinges_; and som-tyme it descendeth in-to + right lowe thinges. And whan it retorneth in-to him-self, it reproeveth + and destroyeth the false thinges by the trewe thinges. + Certes, this strengthe is cause more efficient, and mochel + more mighty _to seen and to knowe thinges_, than thilke cause that 30 + suffreth and receiveth the notes and the figures impressed in + maner of matere. Algates the passioun, _that is to seyn, the + suffraunce or the wit_, in the quike body, goth biforn, excitinge and + moevinge the strengthes of the thought. Right so as whan that + cleernesse smyteth the eyen _and moeveth hem to seen_, or right so 35 + as vois or soun hurteleth to the eres _and commoeveth hem to + herkne_, than is the strengthe of the thought y-moeved and + excited, and clepeth forth, to semblable moevinges, the speces + that it halt with-inne it-self; and addeth tho speces to the notes + and to the thinges withoute-forth, and medleth the images of 40 + thinges withoute-forth to tho formes y-hidde with-inne him-self. + +ME. IV. 3. C. dirke; A. Ed. derke. 5. A. _om._ and. 9. A. _om._ first. 10. +A. inp_re_ntid; C. apreyntyd (_but_ emprientyd _just below, and_ enpreynted +_above_). 12. A. emp_re_ntid. 13. A. _om. 2nd._ ne. 14. A. Ed. that; C. +the. 15. A. vnplitith. 17. A. subgit; Ed. subiecte; C. _om._ // A. the +(_for_ tho); _twice_. 20. A. Ed. discernith; C. decerneth. 26. C. heye +thinges, _i. principijs_. // C. dessendith; A. discendith. 27. C. lowe +thynges, s. conclu_sion_es. // A. rep_re_uith. 29. C. strengthe, _s. +anima_. 31. C. resseyuyth; A. resceyueth; Ed. receyueth. // C. A. +inpressed; Ed. impressed. 36. A. hurtlith. 38. C. Ed. to; A. the (Lat. +_Ad_). 40. A. medeleth. 41. A. to the forme. + + +PROSE V. + +_Quod si in corporibus sentiendis._ + + But what yif that in bodies to ben feled, _that is to seyn, in the + takinge of knowelechinge of bodily thinges_, and al-be-it so that the + qualitees of bodies, that ben obiecte fro withoute-forth, moeven + and entalenten the instruments of the wittes; and al-be-it so that + the passioun of the body, _that is to seyn, the wit or the suffraunce_, 5 + goth to-forn the strengthe of the workinge corage, the which + passioun or suffraunce clepeth forth the dede of the thoght in him-self, + and moeveth and exciteth in this mene whyle the formes that + resten withinne-forth; and yif that, in sensible bodies, as I have + seyd, our corage nis nat y-taught or empreinted by passioun _to 10 + knowe thise thinges_, but demeth and knoweth, of his owne strengthe, + the passioun or suffraunce subiect to the body: moche more + thanne tho thinges that ben absolut and quite fro alle talents + or affecciouns of bodies, _as god or his aungeles_, ne folwen nat in + discerninge thinges obiect fro withoute-forth, but they accomplisshen 15 + and speden the dede of hir thoght. By this resoun + thanne ther comen many maner knowinges to dyverse and + differinge substaunces. For the wit of the body, the whiche + wit is naked and despoiled of alle other knowinges, thilke wit + comth to beestes that ne mowen nat moeven hem-self her and 20 + ther, as _oystres and muscules, and other swiche_ shelle-fish of the + see, that clyven and ben norisshed to roches. But the imaginacioun + comth to remuable beestes, that semen to han talent to + fleen or to desiren any thing. But resoun is al-only to the linage + of mankinde, right as intelligence is only [to] the devyne nature: 25 + of which it folweth, that thilke knowinge is more worth than thise + othre, sin it knoweth by his propre nature nat only his subiect, _as + who seith, it ne knoweth nat al-only that apertieneth properly to his + knowinge_, but it knoweth the subiects of alle other knowinges. + But how shal it thanne be, yif that wit and imaginacioun stryven 30 + ayein resoninge, and seyn, that of thilke universel thing that + resoun weneth to seen, that it nis right naught? _For wit and + imaginacioun seyn that_ that, that is sensible or imaginable, it ne + may nat be universel. Thanne is either the Iugement of resoun + sooth, ne that ther nis nothing sensible; or elles, for that resoun 35 + wot wel that many thinges ben subiect to wit and to imaginacioun, + thanne is the concepcioun of resoun veyn and false, which that + loketh and comprehendeth that that is sensible and singuler as + universel. And yif that resoun wolde answeren ayein to thise + two, _that is to seyn, to witte and to imaginacioun_, and seyn, that 40 + soothly she hir-self, _that is to seyn, resoun_, loketh and + comprehendeth, + by resoun of universalitee, bothe that that is sensible + and that that is imaginable; and that thilke two, _that is to seyn, + wit and imaginacioun_, ne mowen nat strecchen ne enhansen hem-self + to the knowinge of universalitee, for that the knowinge of 45 + hem ne may exceden ne surmounte the bodily figures: certes, of + the knowinge of thinges, men oughten rather yeven credence to + the more stedefast and to the more parfit Iugement. In this + maner stryvinge thanne, we that han strengthe of resoninge and + of imagininge and of wit, _that is to seyn, by resoun and by + imaginacioun 50 + and by wit_, we sholde rather preyse the cause of resoun; _as + who seith, than the cause of wit and of imaginacioun_. + + Semblable thing is it, that the resoun of mankinde ne weneth + nat that the devyne intelligence bi-holdeth or knoweth thinges to + comen, but right as the resoun of mankinde knoweth hem. For 55 + thou arguest and seyst thus: that yif it ne seme nat to men that + some thinges han certein and necessarie bitydinges, they ne + mowen nat ben wist biforn certeinly to bityden. And thanne + nis ther no prescience of thilke thinges; and yif we trowe that + prescience be in thise thinges, thanne is ther no-thing that it ne 60 + bitydeth by necessitee. But certes, yif we mighten han the Iugement + of the devyne thoght, as we ben parsoneres of resoun, right + so as we han demed that it behoveth that imaginacioun and wit + be binethe resoun, right so wolde we demen that it were rightful + thing, that mannes resoun oughte to submitten it-self and to ben 65 + binethe the divyne thoght. For which, yif that we mowen, _as + who seith, that, yif that we mowen, I counseyle, that_ we enhanse us + in-to the heighte of thilke sovereyn intelligence; for ther shal + resoun wel seen that, that it ne may nat biholden in it-self. And + certes that is this, in what maner the prescience of god seeth alle 70 + thinges certeins and diffinisshed, al-thogh they ne han no certein + issues or bitydinges; ne this is non opinioun, but it is rather the + simplicitee of the sovereyn science, that nis nat enclosed nor + y-shet within none boundes. + +PR. V. 1. A. _om._ yif (Lat. _Quod si_). 5. C. A. witte; Ed. wytte. // A. +_om._ or the. 6, 7. A. _om._ goth ... suffraunce. 10. A. enp_re_ntid; C. +emprienpted. 20, 1. A. here ne there. // A. muscles. 25. _I supply_ to. 26, +7. C. thise oothr_e_; A. is other. 29. A. subgitz. 31. Ed. vnyuersal +thynge; A. vniuersel thinges; C. vniuersels thinges (Lat. _uniuersale_). +35. C. soth; Ed. sothe; A. _om._ // C. sensible, _quod absurdum est_. 41. +C. seyn; A. seyn that. 44. C. enhansen; A. enhaunsen. 45. Ed. the knowing; +A. knowynge; C. knowy (Lat. _cognitionem_). 46. A. figure. 48. C. +stidefast; A. stedfast. 51. C. and we; A. Ed. _om._ and. 52. C. Ed. and of; +A. or. 56. A. Ed. ne; C. _om._ 58. A. _om._ And. 59. A. _om._ ther. 61. C. +bideth (!). 62. C. parsoneres; A. parsoners; Ed. parteners. 63. A. _om. +1st_ that. 65. A. su_m_mitten. 66. C. yif that; Ed. if; A. that yif. 71. C. +diffinysshed; A. difinissed. 72. A. Ed. is; C. nis. + +METRE V. + +_Quam uariis terris animalia permeant figuris._ + + The beestes passen by the erthes by ful diverse figures. For + som of hem han hir bodies straught and crepen in the dust, and + drawen after hem a tras or a foruh y-continued; _that is to seyn, as + nadres or snakes_. And other beestes, by the wandringe lightnesse + of hir winges, beten the windes, and over-swimmen the spaces of 5 + the longe eyr by moist fleeinge. And other beestes gladen hem-self + to diggen hir tras or hir steppes in the erthe with hir goings + or with hir feet, and to goon either by the grene feldes, or elles to + walken under the wodes. And al-be-it so that thou seest that + they alle discorden by diverse formes, algates hir faces, enclined, 10 + hevieth hir dulle wittes. Only the linage of man heveth heyeste + his heye heved, and stondeth light with his up-right body, and + biholdeth the erthes under him. And, but-yif thou, erthely man, + wexest yvel out of thy wit, this figure amonesteth thee, that axest + the hevene with thy righte visage, and hast areysed thy fore-heved, 15 + to beren up a-heigh thy corage; so that thy thoght ne be nat + y-hevied ne put lowe under fote, sin that thy body is so heye + areysed. + +ME. V. 3. C. traas; A. t_ra_is; Ed. trace. // C. forwh; A. forghe; Ed. +forough. // A. Ed. continued. 4. A. addres; Ed. nedders. // A. _om._ the. +7. C. A. traas. // A. goynge (Lat. _gressibus_). 8. C. feeldes. // A. _om._ +elles. 10. A. _om._ faces. // A. enclini[n]g. 13. A. erthe (Lat. _terras_). +// A. _om._ And. 16. A. on heye. + + +PROSE VI. + +_Quoniam igitur, uti paullo ante._ + + Therfor thanne, as I have shewed a litel her-biforn, that al + thing that is y-wist nis nat knowen by his nature propre, but by + the nature of hem that comprehenden it, lat us loke now, in as + mochel as it is leveful to us, _as who seith, lat us loke now as we + mowen_, which that the estat is of the devyne substaunce; so that 5 + we mowen eek knowen what his science is. The commune Iugement + of alle creatures resonables thanne is this: that god is eterne. + Lat us considere thanne what is eternitee; for certes that shal + shewen us to-gidere the devyne nature and the devyne science. + + Eternitee, thanne, is parfit possessioun and al-togidere of lyf 10 + interminable; and that sheweth more cleerly by the comparisoun + or the collacioun of temporel thinges. For al thing that liveth in + tyme it is present, and procedeth fro preterits in-to futures, _that is + to seyn, fro tyme passed in-to tyme cominge_; ne ther nis no-thing + establisshed in tyme that may enbracen to-gider al the space of 15 + his lyf. For certes, yit ne hath it taken the tyme of to-morwe, and + it hath lost the tyme of yisterday. And certes, in the lyf of this + day, ye ne liven no more but right as in the moevable and + transitorie moment. Thanne thilke thing that suffreth temporel + condicioun, al-thogh that it never bigan to be, ne thogh it never 20 + cese for to be, as Aristotle demed of the world, and al-thogh that + the lyf of it be strecched with infinitee of tyme, yit algates nis + it no swich thing that men mighten trowen by right that it is + eterne. For al-thogh that it comprehende and embrace the space + of lyf infinit, yit algates ne embraceth it nat the space of the lyf 25 + al-togider; for it ne hath nat the futures that ne ben nat yit, _ne it + ne hath no lenger the preterits that ben y-doon or y-passed_. But + thilke thing thanne, that hath and comprehendeth to-gider al the + plentee of the lyf interminable, to whom ther ne faileth naught of + the future, and to whom ther nis naught of the preterit escaped 30 + nor y-passed, thilke same is y-witnessed and y-proeved by right to + be eterne. And it bihoveth by necessitee that thilke thing be + al-wey present to him-self, and compotent; _as who seith, al-wey + present to him-self, and so mighty that al be right at his plesaunce_; + and that he have al present the infinitee of the moevable tyme. 35 + Wher-for som men trowen wrongfully that, whan they heren that + it semede to Plato that this world ne hadde never beginninge + of tyme, ne that it never shal han failinge, they wenen in this + maner that this world be maked coeterne with his maker; _as who + seith, they wene that this world and god ben maked togider eterne,_ 40 + _and that is a wrongful weninge_. For other thing is it to ben y-lad + by lyf interminable, as Plato graunted to the world, and other + thing is it to embrace to-gider al the present of the lyf interminable, + the whiche thing it is cleer and manifest that it is propre to the + devyne thoght. 45 + + Ne it ne sholde nat semen to us, that god is elder thanne + thinges that ben y-maked by quantitee of tyme, but rather by + the propretee of his simple nature. For this ilke infinit moevinge + of temporel thinges folweth this presentarie estat of lyf unmoevable; + and so as it ne may nat countrefeten it ne feynen it ne be evenlyke 50 + to it for the inmoevabletee, _that is to seyn, that is in the + eternitee of god_, it faileth and falleth in-to moevinge fro the + simplicitee + of the presence _of god_, and disencreseth in-to the infinit + quantitee of future and of preterit: and so as it ne may nat han + to-gider al the plentee of the lyf, algates yit, for as moche as it 55 + ne ceseth never for to ben in som maner, it semeth som-del to us, + that it folweth and resembleth thilke thing that it ne may nat + atayne to ne fulfillen, and bindeth it-self to som maner presence + of this litel and swifte moment: the which _presence of this litel + and swifte moment_, for that it bereth a maner image or lyknesse 60 + of the ay-dwellinge presence _of god_, it graunteth, to swiche maner + thinges as it bitydeth to, that it semeth hem as thise thinges _han + y-ben, and_ ben. + + And, for that _the presence of swich litel moment_ ne may nat + dwelle, ther-for it ravisshed and took the infinit wey of tyme, _that_ 65 + _is to seyn, by successioun_; and by this maner is it y-doon, for that + it sholde continue the lyf in goinge, of the whiche lyf it ne mighte + nat enbrace the plentee in dwellinge. And for-thy, yif we wollen + putten worthy names to thinges, and folwen Plato, lat us seye + thanne soothly, that god is eterne, and the world is perpetuel. 70 + Thanne, sin that every Iugement knoweth and comprehendeth by + his owne nature thinges that ben subiect un-to him, ther is soothly + to god, al-weys, an eterne and presentarie estat; and the science + of him, that over-passeth al temporel moevement, dwelleth in the + simplicitee of his presence, and embraceth and considereth alle 75 + the infinit spaces of tymes, preterits and futures, and loketh, in + his simple knowinge, alle thinges _of preterit_ right as they weren + y-doon presently right now. Yif thou wolt thanne thenken and + avyse the prescience, by which it knoweth alle thinges, thou ne + shal nat demen it as prescience of thinges to comen, but thou 80 + shalt demen it more rightfully that it is science of presence or of + instaunce, that never ne faileth. For which it nis nat y-cleped + "previdence," but it sholde rather ben cleped "purviaunce," that + is establisshed ful fer fro right lowe thinges, and biholdeth from + a-fer alle thinges, right as it were fro the heye heighte of thinges. 85 + + Why axestow thanne, or why desputestow thanne, that thilke + thinges ben doon by necessitee whiche that ben y-seyn and + knowen by the devyne sighte, sin that, forsothe, men ne maken + nat thilke thinges necessarie which that they seen ben y-doon in + hir sighte? For addeth thy biholdinge any necessitee to thilke 90 + thinges that thou biholdest presente?' + + 'Nay,' quod I. + + _Philosophie._ 'Certes, thanne, if men mighte maken any digne + comparisoun or collacioun of the presence devyne and of the + presence of mankinde, right so as ye seen some thinges in this 95 + temporel present, right so seeth god alle thinges by his eterne + present. Wher-fore this devyne prescience ne chaungeth nat the + nature ne the propretee of thinges, but biholdeth swiche thinges + present to him-ward as they shullen bityde to yow-ward in tyme + to comen. Ne it confoundeth nat the Iugement of thinges; but 100 + by o sighte of his thought, he knoweth the thinges to comen, as + wel necessarie as nat necessarie. Right so as whan ye seen + to-gider a man walken on the erthe and the sonne arysen in + the hevene, al-be-it so that ye seen and biholden that oon and + that other to-gider, yit natheles ye demen and discernen that that 105 + oon is voluntarie and that other necessarie. Right so thanne the + devyne lookinge, biholdinge alle thinges under him, ne troubleth + nat the qualitee of thinges that ben certeinly present to him-ward; + but, as to the condicioun of tyme, forsothe, they ben future. For + which it folweth, that this nis noon opinioun, but rather a stedefast 110 + knowinge, y-strengthed by soothnesse, that, whanne that god + knoweth anything to be, he ne unwot nat that thilke thing wanteth + necessitee to be; _this is to seyn, that, whan that god knoweth any + thing to bityde, he wot wel that it ne hath no necessitee to bityde._ + + And yif thou seyst heer, that thilke thing that god seeth to 115 + bityde, it ne may nat unbityde (_as who seith, it mot bityde_), and + thilke thing that ne may nat unbityde it mot bityde by necessitee, + and that thou streyne me by this name of necessitee: certes, + I wol wel confessen and biknowe a thing of ful sad trouthe, but + unnethe shal ther any wight mowe _seen it or_ come ther-to, but-yif 120 + that he be biholder of the devyne thoght. For I wol answeren + thee thus: that thilke thing that is future, whan it is referred + to the devyne knowinge, thanne is it necessarie; but certes, whan it + is understonden in his owne kinde, men seen it is outrely free, + and absolut _fro alle necessitee_. 125 + + For certes, ther ben two maneres of necessitee. That oon + necessitee is simple, as thus: that it bihoveth by necessitee, that + alle men be mortal _or deedly_. Another necessitee is conditionel, + as thus: yif thou wost that a man walketh, it bihoveth by necessitee + that he walke. Thilke thing thanne that any wight hath y-knowe 130 + to be, it ne may ben non other weyes thanne he knoweth it to be. + But this condicioun ne draweth nat with hir thilke necessitee + simple. For certes, this necessitee _conditionel_, the propre nature + of it ne maketh it nat, but the adieccioun of the condicioun + _maketh it_. For no necessitee ne constreyneth a man to gon, 135 + that goth by his propre wil; al-be-it so that, whan he goth, + that it is necessarie that he goth. Right on this same maner + thanne, yif that the purviaunce of god seeth any thing present, + than mot thilke thing ben by necessitee, al-thogh that it ne have + no necessitee of his owne nature. But certes, the futures that 140 + bityden by freedom of arbitre, god seeth hem alle to-gider present. + Thise thinges thanne, yif they ben referred to the devyne sighte, + thanne ben they maked necessarie by the condicioun of the + devyne knowinge. But certes, yif thilke thinges be considered + by hem-self, they ben absolut _of necessitee_, and ne forleten nat ne 145 + cesen nat of the libertee of hir owne nature. Thanne, certes, + with-oute doute, alle the thinges shollen ben doon which that + god wot biforn that they ben to comen. But som of hem comen + and bityden of free arbitre _or of free wille_, that, al-be-it so that + they bityden, yit algates ne lese they nat hir propre nature in 150 + beinge; by the which first, or that they weren y-doon, they + hadden power nat to han bitid.' + + _Boece_. 'What is this to seyn thanne,' quod I, 'that thinges ne + ben nat necessarie _by hir propre nature_, so as they comen in alle + maneres in the lyknesse of necessitee by the condicioun of the 155 + devyne science?' + + _Philosophie._ 'This is the difference,' quod she; 'that tho + thinges that I purposede thee a litel heer-biforn, that is to seyn, + the sonne arysinge and the man walkinge, that, ther-whyles that + thilke thinges been y-doon, they ne mighte nat ben undoon; 160 + natheles, that oon of hem, or it was y-doon, it bihoved by necessitee + that it was y-doon, but nat that other. Right so _is it + here_, that the thinges that god hath present, with-oute doute they + shollen been. But som of hem descendeth of the nature of + thinges, _as the sonne arysinge_; and som descendeth of the power 165 + of the doeres, _as the man walkinge_. Thanne seide I no wrong, + that yif these thinges ben referred to the devyne knowinge, thanne + ben they necessarie; and yif they ben considered by hem-self, + thanne ben they absolut fro the bond of necessitee. Right so as + alle thinges that apereth or sheweth to the wittes, yif thou referre 170 + it to resoun, it is universel; and yif thou referre it or loke it + to it-self, than is it singuler. But now, yif thou seyst thus, that + yif it be in my power to chaunge my purpos, than shal I voide the + purviaunce _of god_, whan that, peraventure, I shal han chaunged + the thinges that he knoweth biforn, thanne shal I answere thee 175 + thus. Certes, thou mayst wel chaunge thy purpos; but, for as + mochel as the present soothnesse of the devyne purviaunce biholdeth + that thou mayst chaunge thy purpos, and whether thou + wolt chaunge it or no, and whiderward that thou torne it, thou ne + mayst nat eschuen the devyne prescience; right as thou ne mayst 180 + nat fleen the sighte of the presente eye, al-though that thou torne + thy-self by thy free wil in-to dyverse acciouns. But thou mayst + seyn ayein: "How shal it thanne be? Shal nat the devyne + science be chaunged by my disposicioun, whan that I wol o thing + now, and now another? And thilke prescience, ne semeth it nat 185 + to entrechaunge stoundes of knowinge;"' _as who seith, ne shal it + nat seme to us, that the devyne prescience entrechaungeth hise dyverse + stoundes of knowinge, so that it knowe sum-tyme o thing and sum-tyme + the contrarie of that thing?_ + + 'No, forsothe,' _quod I_. 190 + + _Philosophie._ 'For the devyne sighte renneth to-forn and seeth alle + futures, and clepeth hem ayein, and retorneth hem to the presence + of his propre knowinge; ne he ne entrechaungeth nat, so as thou + wenest, the stoundes of forknowinge, as now this, now that; but + he ay-dwellinge comth biforn, and embraceth at o strook alle thy 195 + mutaciouns. And this presence to comprehenden and to seen + alle thinges, god ne hath nat taken it of the bitydinge of thinges + to come, but of his propre simplicitee. And her-by is assoiled + thilke thing that thou puttest a litel her-biforn, _that is to seyn_, + that it is unworthy thing to seyn, that our futures yeven cause of 200 + the science of god. For certes, this strengthe of the devyne + science, which that embraceth alle thinges by his presentarie + knowinge, establissheth maner to alle thinges, and it ne oweth + naught to latter thinges; and sin that these thinges ben thus, + _that is to seyn, sin that necessitee nis nat in thinges by the + devyne_ 205 + _prescience_, than is ther freedom of arbitre, that dwelleth hool and + unwemmed to mortal men. Ne the lawes ne purposen nat + wikkedly medes and peynes to the willinges of men that ben + unbounden and quite of alle necessitee. And god, biholder and + for-witer of alle thinges, dwelleth above; and the present eternitee 210 + of his sighte renneth alwey with the dyverse qualitee of oure + dedes, despensinge and ordeyninge medes to goode men, and + torments to wikked men. Ne in ydel ne in veyn ne ben ther nat + put in god hope and preyeres, that ne mowen nat ben unspeedful + ne with-oute effect, whan they ben rightful. 215 + + Withstond thanne and eschue thou vyces; worshipe and love + thou virtues; areys thy corage to rightful hopes; yilde thou + humble preyeres a-heigh. Gret necessitee of prowesse and vertu + is encharged and commaunded to yow, yif ye nil nat dissimulen; + sin that ye worken and doon, _that is to seyn, your dedes or your 220 + workes_, biforn the eyen of the Iuge that seeth _and demeth_ alle + thinges.' _To whom be glorye and worshipe by infinit tymes_. AMEN. + +PR. VI. 1, 2. C. alle thinges; A. Ed. al thing (Lat. _omne_). 6. A. _om._ +eek. 12. A. _om._ the. // C. alle; A. al. 16. A. the morwe. 17. A. that +(_for_ the tyme). 18. A. this (_for_ the). 20. A. _om._ it. 22. C. +strechched. 25. A. braceth. 30. C. preterite; A. preterit. 31. C. +I-witnesshed; A. ywitnessed. // C. and; A. or. 34. A. plesaunce; C. +pleasaunce. 35. A. infinit. 41. A. it (_for_ that). 43. A. embracen. 49. A. +of the lijf. 53. A. _om._ the. // C. in-to; A. to. 58. A. presence; C. +presensse. 64. A. _om._ that. 65. A. _om._ it. // C. Infynyte; A. infinit. +73. A. alwey to god. 78. C. thinken; A. thenke. 81. A. _om._ it. 83. A. +prouidence; C. puruydence (_glossed_ p_r_ouidentia); _but see note_. 86. A. +disputest thou. 88. A. yknowen. 101. C. o; Ed. one; A. of (!); Lat. +_unoque_. 104. A. _om._ the. 106. A. _om._ the. 110. C. stidefast; A. +stedfast. 116. A. bitide; C. bide (_miswritten_; _2nd time_). 120. A. _om._ +mowe. 124. A. _om._ is. 134. A. nau[gh]t (_for_ nat). 135, 6. A. _om._ gon +that. 141. A. presentz. 142. A. _om._ yif. 143. C. by; A. to (Lat. _per_). +149. A. _om. 1st_ free. 150. C. in; A. ne (_wrongly_). 161. A. byhoued; Ed. +behoueth; C. houyd (!). 169. A. _om._ as. 170. Ed. apereth; C. apiereth; A. +appiereth. 178. C. wheyther; A. whethir. 179. A. _om._ ne. 186. A. +knowynges (Lat. _noscendi_). 189. Ed. of that thing; C. A. _om._ 190. Ed. +quod she (_for_ quod I; _wrongly_). 193. A. _om._ so. 194. A. _om._ as. +203. A. awith nat. 205, 6. C. _om._ that is ... prescience; Ed. _and_ A. +_have it_. 213. C. torment; A. tourmentz (_supplicia_). 214. A. nat; Ed. +not; C. ne. 216. C. withston (_sic_). 218. A. an hey[gh]e. 222. C. To whom +be goye (_sic_) and worshipe bi Infynyt tymes. AMEN; _which_ A. Ed. +(_perhaps rightly_) _omit_. + + + + +TROILUS AND CRISEYDE. + +BOOK I. + + + 1. The double sorwe of Troilus to tellen, + That was the king Priamus sone of Troye, + In lovinge, how his aventures fellen + Fro wo to wele, and after out of Ioye, + My purpos is, er that I parte fro ye. 5 + Thesiphone, thou help me for tendyte + Thise woful vers, that wepen as I wryte! + + 2. To thee clepe I, thou goddesse of torment, + Thou cruel Furie, sorwing ever in peyne; + Help me, that am the sorwful instrument 10 + That helpeth lovers, as I can, to pleyne! + For wel sit it, the sothe for to seyne, + A woful wight to han a drery fere, + And, to a sorwful tale, a sory chere. + + 3. For I, that god of Loves servaunts serve, 15 + Ne dar to Love, for myn unlyklinesse, + Preyen for speed, al sholde I therfor sterve, + So fer am I fro his help in derknesse; + But nathelees, if this may doon gladnesse + To any lover, and his cause avayle, 20 + Have he my thank, and myn be this travayle! + + 4. But ye loveres, that bathen in gladnesse, + If any drope of pitee in yow be, + Remembreth yow on passed hevinesse + That ye han felt, and on the adversitee 25 + Of othere folk, and thenketh how that ye + Han felt that Love dorste yow displese; + Or ye han wonne him with to greet an ese. + + 5. And preyeth for hem that ben in the cas + Of Troilus, as ye may after here, 30 + That love hem bringe in hevene to solas, + And eek for me preyeth to god so dere, + That I have might to shewe, in som manere, + Swich peyne and wo as Loves folk endure, + In Troilus unsely aventure. 35 + + 6. And biddeth eek for hem that been despeyred + In love, that never nil recovered be, + And eek for hem that falsly been apeyred + Thorugh wikked tonges, be it he or she; + Thus biddeth god, for his benignitee, 40 + To graunte hem sone out of this world to pace, + That been despeyred out of Loves grace. + + 7. And biddeth eek for hem that been at ese, + That god hem graunte ay good perseveraunce, + And sende hem might hir ladies so to plese, 45 + That it to Love be worship and plesaunce. + For so hope I my soule best avaunce, + To preye for hem that Loves servaunts be, + And wryte hir wo, and live in charitee. + + 8. And for to have of hem compassioun 50 + As though I were hir owene brother dere. + Now herkeneth with a gode entencioun, + For now wol I gon streight to my matere, + In whiche ye may the double sorwes here + Of Troilus, in loving of Criseyde, 55 + And how that she forsook him er she deyde. + + 9. It is wel wist, how that the Grekes stronge + In armes with a thousand shippes wente + To Troyewardes, and the citee longe + Assegeden neigh ten yeer er they stente, 60 + And, in diverse wyse and oon entente, + The ravisshing to wreken of Eleyne, + By Paris doon, they wroughten al hir peyne. + + 10. Now fil it so, that in the toun ther was + Dwellinge a lord of greet auctoritee, 65 + A gret devyn that cleped was Calkas, + That in science so expert was, that he + Knew wel that Troye sholde destroyed be, + By answere of his god, that highte thus, + Daun Phebus or Apollo Delphicus. 70 + + 11. So whan this Calkas knew by calculinge, + And eek by answere of this Appollo, + That Grekes sholden swich a peple bringe, + Thorugh which that Troye moste been for-do, + He caste anoon out of the toun to go; 75 + For wel wiste he, by sort, that Troye sholde + Destroyed been, ye, wolde who-so nolde. + + 12. For which, for to departen softely + Took purpos ful this forknowinge wyse, + And to the Grekes ost ful prively 80 + He stal anoon; and they, in curteys wyse, + Him deden bothe worship and servyse, + In trust that he hath conning hem to rede + In every peril which that is to drede. + + 13. The noyse up roos, whan it was first aspyed, 85 + Thorugh al the toun, and generally was spoken, + That Calkas traytor fled was, and allyed + With hem of Grece; and casten to ben wroken + On him that falsly hadde his feith so broken; + And seyden, he and al his kin at ones 90 + Ben worthy for to brennen, fel and bones. + + 14. Now hadde Calkas left, in this meschaunce, + Al unwist of this false and wikked dede, + His doughter, which that was in gret penaunce, + For of hir lyf she was ful sore in drede, 95 + As she that niste what was best to rede; + For bothe a widowe was she, and allone + Of any freend, to whom she dorste hir mone. + + 15. Criseyde was this lady name a-right; + As to my dome, in al Troyes citee 100 + Nas noon so fair, for passing every wight + So aungellyk was hir natyf beautee, + That lyk a thing inmortal semed she, + As doth an hevenish parfit creature, + That doun were sent in scorning of nature. 105 + + 16. This lady, which that al-day herde at ere + Hir fadres shame, his falsnesse and tresoun, + Wel nigh out of hir wit for sorwe and fere, + In widewes habit large of samit broun, + On knees she fil biforn Ector a-doun; 110 + With pitous voys, and tendrely wepinge, + His mercy bad, hir-selven excusinge. + + 17. Now was this Ector pitous of nature, + And saw that she was sorwfully bigoon, + And that she was so fair a creature; 115 + Of his goodnesse he gladed hir anoon, + And seyde, 'lat your fadres treson goon + Forth with mischaunce, and ye your-self, in Ioye, + Dwelleth with us, whyl you good list, in Troye. + + 18. And al thonour that men may doon yow have, 120 + As ferforth as your fader dwelled here, + Ye shul han, and your body shal men save, + As fer as I may ought enquere or here.' + And she him thonked with ful humble chere, + And ofter wolde, and it hadde ben his wille, 125 + And took hir leve, and hoom, and held hir stille. + + 19. And in hir hous she abood with swich meynee + As to hir honour nede was to holde; + And whyl she was dwellinge in that citee, + Kepte hir estat, and bothe of yonge and olde 130 + Ful wel beloved, and wel men of hir tolde. + But whether that she children hadde or noon, + I rede it nought; therfore I lete it goon. + + 20. The thinges fellen, as they doon of werre, + Bitwixen hem of Troye and Grekes ofte; 135 + For som day boughten they of Troye it derre, + And eft the Grekes founden no thing softe + The folk of Troye; and thus fortune on-lofte, + And under eft, gan hem to wheelen bothe + After hir cours, ay whyl they were wrothe. 140 + + 21. But how this toun com to destruccioun + Ne falleth nought to purpos me to telle; + For it were here a long disgressioun + Fro my matere, and yow to longe dwelle. + But the Troyane gestes, as they felle, 145 + In Omer, or in Dares, or in Dyte, + Who-so that can, may rede hem as they wryte. + + 22. But though that Grekes hem of Troye shetten, + And hir citee bisegede al a-boute, + Hir olde usage wolde they not letten, 150 + As for to honoure hir goddes ful devoute; + But aldermost in honour, out of doute, + They hadde a relik hight Palladion, + That was hir trist a-boven everichon. + + 23. And so bifel, whan comen was the tyme 155 + Of Aperil, whan clothed is the mede + With newe grene, of lusty Ver the pryme, + And swote smellen floures whyte and rede, + In sondry wyses shewed, as I rede, + The folk of Troye hir observaunces olde, 160 + Palladiones feste for to holde. + + 24. And to the temple, in al hir beste wyse, + In general, ther wente many a wight, + To herknen of Palladion the servyse; + And namely, so many a lusty knight, 165 + So many a lady fresh and mayden bright, + Ful wel arayed, bothe moste and leste, + Ye, bothe for the seson and the feste. + + 25. Among thise othere folk was Criseyda, + In widewes habite blak; but nathelees, 170 + Right as our firste lettre is now an A, + In beautee first so stood she, makelees; + Hir godly looking gladede al the prees. + Nas never seyn thing to ben preysed derre, + Nor under cloude blak so bright a sterre 175 + + 26. As was Criseyde, as folk seyde everichoon + That hir bihelden in hir blake wede; + And yet she stood ful lowe and stille alloon, + Bihinden othere folk, in litel brede, + And neigh the dore, ay under shames drede, 180 + Simple of a-tyr, and debonaire of chere, + With ful assured loking and manere. + + 27. This Troilus, as he was wont to gyde + His yonge knightes, ladde hem up and doun + In thilke large temple on every syde, 185 + Biholding ay the ladyes of the toun, + Now here, now there, for no devocioun + Hadde he to noon, to reven him his reste, + But gan to preyse and lakken whom him leste. + + 28. And in his walk ful fast he gan to wayten 190 + If knight or squyer of his companye + Gan for to syke, or lete his eyen bayten + On any woman that he coude aspye; + He wolde smyle, and holden it folye, + And seye him thus, 'god wot, she slepeth softe 195 + For love of thee, whan thou tornest ful ofte! + + 29. 'I have herd told, pardieux, of your livinge, + Ye lovers, and your lewede observaunces, + And which a labour folk han in winninge + Of love, and, in the keping, which doutaunces; 200 + And whan your preye is lost, wo and penaunces; + O verrey foles! nyce and blinde be ye; + Ther nis not oon can war by other be.' + + 30. And with that word he gan cast up the browe, + Ascaunces, 'lo! is this nought wysly spoken?' 205 + At which the god of love gan loken rowe + Right for despyt, and shoop for to ben wroken; + He kidde anoon his bowe nas not broken; + For sodeynly he hit him at the fulle; + And yet as proud a pekok can he pulle. 210 + + 31. O blinde world, O blinde entencioun! + How ofte falleth al theffect contraire + Of surquidrye and foul presumpcioun; + For caught is proud, and caught is debonaire. + This Troilus is clomben on the staire, 215 + And litel weneth that he moot descenden. + But al-day falleth thing that foles ne wenden. + + 32. As proude Bayard ginneth for to skippe + Out of the wey, so priketh him his corn, + Til he a lash have of the longe whippe, 220 + Than thenketh he, 'though I praunce al biforn + First in the trays, ful fat and newe shorn, + Yet am I but an hors, and horses lawe + I moot endure, and with my feres drawe.' + + 33. So ferde it by this fers and proude knight; 225 + Though he a worthy kinges sone were, + And wende no-thing hadde had swiche might + Ayens his wil that sholde his herte stere, + Yet with a look his herte wex a-fere, + That he, that now was most in pryde above, 230 + Wex sodeynly most subget un-to love. + + 34. For-thy ensample taketh of this man, + Ye wyse, proude, and worthy folkes alle, + To scornen Love, which that so sone can + The freedom of your hertes to him thralle; 235 + For ever it was, and ever it shal bifalle, + That Love is he that alle thing may binde; + For may no man for-do the lawe of kinde. + + 35. That this be sooth, hath preved and doth yet; + For this trowe I ye knowen, alle or some, 240 + Men reden not that folk han gretter wit + Than they that han be most with love y-nome; + And strengest folk ben therwith overcome, + The worthiest and grettest of degree; + This was, and is, and yet men shal it see. 245 + + 36. And trewelich it sit wel to be so; + For alderwysest han ther-with ben plesed; + And they that han ben aldermost in wo, + With love han ben conforted most and esed; + And ofte it hath the cruel herte apesed, 250 + And worthy folk maad worthier of name, + And causeth most to dreden vyce and shame. + + 37. Now sith it may not goodly be withstonde, + And is a thing so vertuous in kinde, + Refuseth not to Love for to be bonde, 255 + Sin, as him-selven list, he may yow binde. + The yerde is bet that bowen wole and winde + Than that that brest; and therfor I yow rede + To folwen him that so wel can yow lede. + + 38. But for to tellen forth in special 260 + As of this kinges sone of which I tolde, + And leten other thing collateral, + Of him thenke I my tale for to holde, + Bothe of his Ioye, and of his cares colde; + And al his werk, as touching this matere, 265 + For I it gan, I wil ther-to refere. + + 39. With-inne the temple he wente him forth pleyinge, + This Troilus, of every wight aboute, + On this lady and now on that lokinge, + Wher-so she were of toune, or of with-oute: 270 + And up-on cas bifel, that thorugh a route + His eye perced, and so depe it wente, + Til on Criseyde it smoot, and ther it stente. + + 40. And sodeynly he wex ther-with astoned, + And gan hire bet biholde in thrifty wyse: 275 + 'O mercy, god!' thoughte he, 'wher hastow woned, + That art so fair and goodly to devyse?' + Ther-with his herte gan to sprede and ryse, + And softe sighed, lest men mighte him here, + And caughte a-yein his firste pleyinge chere. 280 + + 41. She nas not with the leste of hir stature, + But alle hir limes so wel answeringe + Weren to womanhode, that creature + Was neuer lasse mannish in seminge. + And eek the pure wyse of here meninge 285 + Shewede wel, that men might in hir gesse + Honour, estat, and wommanly noblesse. + + 42. To Troilus right wonder wel with-alle + Gan for to lyke hir mening and hir chere, + Which somdel deynous was, for she leet falle 290 + Hir look a lite a-side, in swich manere, + Ascaunces, 'what! may I not stonden here?' + And after that hir loking gan she lighte, + That never thoughte him seen so good a sighte. + + 43. And of hir look in him ther gan to quiken 295 + So greet desir, and swich affeccioun, + That in his hertes botme gan to stiken + Of hir his fixe and depe impressioun: + And though he erst hadde poured up and doun, + He was tho glad his hornes in to shrinke; 300 + Unnethes wiste he how to loke or winke. + + 44. Lo, he that leet him-selven so konninge, + And scorned hem that loves peynes dryen, + Was ful unwar that love hadde his dwellinge + With-inne the subtile stremes of hir yën; 305 + That sodeynly him thoughte he felte dyen, + Right with hir look, the spirit in his herte; + Blessed be love, that thus can folk converte! + + 45. She, this in blak, lykinge to Troylus, + Over alle thyng he stood for to biholde; 310 + Ne his desir, ne wherfor he stood thus, + He neither chere made, ne worde tolde; + But from a-fer, his maner for to holde, + On other thing his look som-tyme he caste, + And eft on hir, whyl that servyse laste. 315 + + 46. And after this, not fulliche al awhaped, + Out of the temple al esiliche he wente, + Repentinge him that he hadde ever y-iaped + Of loves folk, lest fully the descente + Of scorn fille on him-self; but, what he mente, 320 + Lest it were wist on any maner syde, + His wo he gan dissimulen and hyde. + + 47. Whan he was fro the temple thus departed, + He streyght anoon un-to his paleys torneth, + Right with hir look thurgh-shoten and thurgh-darted, 325 + Al feyneth he in lust that he soiorneth; + And al his chere and speche also he borneth; + And ay, of loves servants every whyle, + Him-self to wrye, at hem he gan to smyle. + + 48. And seyde, 'lord, so ye live al in lest, 330 + Ye loveres! for the conningest of yow, + That serveth most ententiflich and best, + Him tit as often harm ther-of as prow; + Your hyre is quit ayein, ye, god wot how! + Nought wel for wel, but scorn for good servyse; 335 + In feith, your ordre is ruled in good wyse! + + 49. In noun-certeyn ben alle your observaunces, + But it a sely fewe poyntes be; + Ne no-thing asketh so grete attendaunces + As doth your lay, and that knowe alle ye; 340 + But that is not the worste, as mote I thee; + But, tolde I yow the worste poynt, I leve, + Al seyde I sooth, ye wolden at me greve! + + 50. But tak this, that ye loveres ofte eschuwe, + Or elles doon of good entencioun, 345 + Ful ofte thy lady wole it misconstrue, + And deme it harm in hir opinioun; + And yet if she, for other enchesoun, + Be wrooth, than shalt thou han a groyn anoon: + Lord! wel is him that may be of yow oon!' 350 + + 51. But for al this, whan that he say his tyme, + He held his pees, non other bote him gayned; + For love bigan his fetheres so to lyme, + That wel unnethe un-to his folk he feyned + That othere besye nedes him destrayned; 355 + For wo was him, that what to doon he niste, + But bad his folk to goon wher that hem liste. + + 52. And whan that he in chaumbre was allone, + He doun up-on his beddes feet him sette, + And first he gan to syke, and eft to grone, 360 + And thoughte ay on hir so, with-outen lette, + That, as he sat and wook, his spirit mette + That he hir saw a temple, and al the wyse + Right of hir loke, and gan it newe avyse. + + 53. Thus gan he make a mirour of his minde, 365 + In which he saugh al hoolly hir figure; + And that he wel coude in his herte finde, + It was to him a right good aventure + To love swich oon, and if he dide his cure + To serven hir, yet mighte he falle in grace, 370 + Or elles, for oon of hir servaunts pace. + + 54. Imagininge that travaille nor grame + Ne mighte, for so goodly oon, be lorn + As she, ne him for his desir ne shame, + Al were it wist, but in prys and up-born 375 + Of alle lovers wel more than biforn; + Thus argumented he in his ginninge, + Ful unavysed of his wo cominge. + + 55. Thus took he purpos loves craft to suwe, + And thoughte he wolde werken prively, 380 + First, to hyden his desir in muwe + From every wight y-born, al-outrely, + But he mighte ought recovered be therby; + Remembring him, that love to wyde y-blowe + Yelt bittre fruyt, though swete seed be sowe. 385 + + 56. And over al this, yet muchel more he thoughte + What for to speke, and what to holden inne, + And what to arten hir to love he soughte, + And on a song anoon-right to biginne, + And gan loude on his sorwe for to winne; 390 + For with good hope he gan fully assente + Criseyde for to love, and nought repente. + + 57. And of his song nought only the sentence, + As writ myn autour called Lollius, + But pleynly, save our tonges difference, 395 + I dar wel sayn, in al that Troilus + Seyde in his song; lo! every word right thus + As I shal seyn; and who-so list it here, + Lo! next this vers, he may it finden here. + + CANTUS TROILI. + + 58. 'If no love is, O god, what fele I so? 400 + And if love is, what thing and whiche is he! + If love be good, from whennes comth my wo? + If it be wikke, a wonder thinketh me, + Whenne every torment and adversitee + That cometh of him, may to me savory thinke; 405 + For ay thurst I, the more that I it drinke. + + 59. And if that at myn owene lust I brenne, + Fro whennes cometh my wailing and my pleynte? + If harme agree me, wher-to pleyne I thenne? + I noot, ne why unwery that I feynte. 410 + O quike deeth, o swete harm so queynte, + How may of thee in me swich quantitee, + But-if that I consente that it be? + + 60. And if that I consente, I wrongfully + Compleyne, y-wis; thus possed to and fro, 415 + Al sterelees with-inne a boot am I + A-mid the see, by-twixen windes two, + That in contrarie stonden ever-mo. + Allas! what is this wonder maladye? + For hete of cold, for cold of hete, I deye.' 420 + + 61. And to the god of love thus seyde he + With pitous voys, 'O lord, now youres is + My spirit, which that oughte youres be. + Yow thanke I, lord, that han me brought to this; + But whether goddesse or womman, y-wis, 425 + She be, I noot, which that ye do me serve; + But as hir man I wole ay live and sterve. + + 62. Ye stonden in hire eyen mightily, + As in a place un-to your vertu digne; + Wherfore, lord, if my servyse or I 430 + May lyke yow, so beth to me benigne; + For myn estat royal here I resigne + In-to hir hond, and with ful humble chere + Bicome hir man, as to my lady dere.' + + 63. In him ne deyned sparen blood royal 435 + The fyr of love, wher-fro god me blesse, + Ne him forbar in no degree, for al + His vertu or his excellent prowesse; + But held him as his thral lowe in distresse, + And brende him so in sondry wyse ay newe, 440 + That sixty tyme a day he loste his hewe. + + 64. So muche, day by day, his owene thought, + For lust to hir, gan quiken and encrese, + That every other charge he sette at nought; + For-thy ful ofte, his hote fyr to cese, 445 + To seen hir goodly look he gan to prese; + For ther-by to ben esed wel he wende, + And ay the ner he was, the more he brende. + + 65. For ay the ner the fyr, the hotter is, + This, trowe I, knoweth al this companye. 450 + But were he fer or neer, I dar seye this, + By night or day, for wysdom or folye, + His herte, which that is his brestes yë, + Was ay on hir, that fairer was to sene + Than ever was Eleyne or Polixene. 455 + + 66. Eek of the day ther passed nought an houre + That to him-self a thousand tyme he seyde, + 'Good goodly, to whom serve I and laboure, + As I best can, now wolde god, Criseyde, + Ye wolden on me rewe er that I deyde! 460 + My dere herte, allas! myn hele and hewe + And lyf is lost, but ye wole on me rewe.' + + 67. Alle othere dredes weren from him fledde, + Bothe of the assege and his savacioun; + Ne in him desyr noon othere fownes bredde 465 + But arguments to this conclusioun, + That she on him wolde han compassioun, + And he to be hir man, whyl he may dure; + Lo, here his lyf, and from the deeth his cure! + + 68. The sharpe shoures felle of armes preve, 470 + That Ector or his othere bretheren diden, + Ne made him only ther-fore ones meve; + And yet was he, wher-so men wente or riden, + Founde oon the best, and lengest tyme abiden + Ther peril was, and dide eek such travayle 475 + In armes, that to thenke it was mervayle. + + 69. But for non hate he to the Grekes hadde, + Ne also for the rescous of the toun, + Ne made him thus in armes for to madde, + But only, lo, for this conclusioun, 480 + To lyken hir the bet for his renoun; + Fro day to day in armes so he spedde, + That alle the Grekes as the deeth him dredde. + + 70. And fro this forth tho refte him love his sleep, + And made his mete his foo; and eek his sorwe 485 + Gan multiplye, that, who-so toke keep, + It shewed in his hewe, bothe eve and morwe; + Therfor a title he gan him for to borwe + Of other syknesse, lest of him men wende + That the hote fyr of love him brende. 490 + + 71. And seyde, he hadde a fever and ferde amis; + But how it was, certayn, can I not seye, + If that his lady understood not this, + Or feyned hir she niste, oon of the tweye; + But wel I rede that, by no maner weye, 495 + Ne semed it [as] that she of him roughte, + Nor of his peyne, or what-so-ever he thoughte. + + 72. But than fel to this Troylus such wo, + That he was wel neigh wood; for ay his drede + Was this, that she som wight had loved so, 500 + That never of him she wolde have taken hede; + For whiche him thoughte he felte his herte blede. + Ne of his wo ne dorste he not biginne + To tellen it, for al this world to winne. + + 73. But whanne he hadde a space fro his care, 505 + Thus to him-self ful ofte he gan to pleyne; + He sayde, 'O fool, now art thou in the snare, + That whilom Iapedest at loves peyne; + Now artow hent, now gnaw thyn owene cheyne; + Thou were ay wont eche lovere reprehende 510 + Of thing fro which thou canst thee nat defende. + + 74. What wole now every lover seyn of thee, + If this be wist, but ever in thyn absence + Laughen in scorn, and seyn, "lo, ther gooth he, + That is the man of so gret sapience, 515 + That held us loveres leest in reverence! + Now, thonked be god, he may goon in the daunce + Of hem that Love list febly for to avaunce! + + 75. But, O thou woful Troilus, god wolde, + Sin thow most loven thurgh thy destinee, 520 + That thow beset were on swich oon that sholde + Knowe al thy wo, al lakkede hir pitee: + But al so cold in love, towardes thee, + Thy lady is, as frost in winter mone, + And thou fordoon, as snow in fyr is sone." 525 + + 76. God wolde I were aryved in the port + Of deeth, to which my sorwe wil me lede! + A, lord, to me it were a greet comfort; + Then were I quit of languisshing in drede. + For by myn hidde sorwe y-blowe on brede 530 + I shal bi-Iaped been a thousand tyme + More than that fool of whos folye men ryme. + + 77. But now help god, and ye, swete, for whom + I pleyne, y-caught, ye, never wight so faste! + O mercy, dere herte, and help me from 535 + The deeth, for I, whyl that my lyf may laste, + More than my-self wol love yow to my laste. + And with som freendly look gladeth me, swete, + Though never more thing ye me bi-hete!' + + 78. This wordes and ful manye an-other to 540 + He spak, and called ever in his compleynte + Hir name, for to tellen hir his wo, + Til neigh that he in salte teres dreynte. + Al was for nought, she herde nought his pleynte; + And whan that he bithoughte on that folye, 545 + A thousand fold his wo gan multiplye. + + 79. Bi-wayling in his chambre thus allone, + A freend of his, that called was Pandare, + Com ones in unwar, and herde him grone, + And sey his freend in swich distresse and care: 550 + 'Allas!' quod he, 'who causeth al this fare? + O mercy, god! what unhap may this mene? + Han now thus sone Grekes maad yow lene? + + 80. Or hastow som remors of conscience, + And art now falle in som devocioun, 555 + And waylest for thy sinne and thyn offence, + And hast for ferde caught attricioun? + God save hem that bi-seged han our toun, + And so can leye our Iolyte on presse, + And bring our lusty folk to holinesse!' 560 + + 81. These wordes seyde he for the nones alle, + That with swich thing he mighte him angry maken, + And with an angre don his sorwe falle, + As for the tyme, and his corage awaken; + But wel he wiste, as fer as tonges spaken, 565 + Ther nas a man of gretter hardinesse + Than he, ne more desired worthinesse. + + 82. 'What cas,' quod Troilus, 'or what aventure + Hath gyded thee to see my languisshinge, + That am refus of euery creature? 570 + But for the love of god, at my preyinge, + Go henne a-way, for certes, my deyinge + Wol thee disese, and I mot nedes deye; + Ther-for go wey, ther is no more to seye. + + 83. But if thou wene I be thus syk for drede, 575 + It is not so, and ther-for scorne nought; + Ther is a-nother thing I take of hede + Wel more than ought the Grekes han y-wrought, + Which cause is of my deeth, for sorwe and thought. + But though that I now telle thee it ne leste, 580 + Be thou nought wrooth, I hyde it for the beste.' + + 84. This Pandare, that neigh malt for wo and routhe, + Ful often seyde, 'allas! what may this be? + Now freend,' quod he, 'if ever love or trouthe + Hath been, or is, bi-twixen thee and me, 585 + Ne do thou never swiche a crueltee + To hyde fro thy freend so greet a care; + Wostow nought wel that it am I, Pandare? + + 85. I wole parten with thee al thy peyne, + If it be so I do thee no comfort, 590 + As it is freendes right, sooth for to seyne, + To entreparten wo, as glad desport. + I have, and shal, for trewe or fals report, + In wrong and right y-loved thee al my lyve; + Hyd not thy wo fro me, but telle it blyve.' 595 + + 86. Than gan this sorwful Troilus to syke, + And seyde him thus, 'god leve it be my beste + To telle it thee; for, sith it may thee lyke, + Yet wole I telle it, though myn herte breste; + And wel wot I thou mayst do me no reste. 600 + But lest thow deme I truste not to thee, + Now herkne, freend, for thus it stant with me. + + 87. Love, a-yeins the which who-so defendeth + Him-selven most, him alder-lest avayleth, + With desespeir so sorwfully me offendeth, 605 + That streyght un-to the deeth myn herte sayleth. + Ther-to desyr so brenningly me assaylleth, + That to ben slayn it were a gretter Ioye + To me than king of Grece been and Troye! + + 88. Suffiseth this, my fulle freend Pandare, 610 + That I have seyd, for now wostow my wo; + And for the love of god, my colde care + So hyd it wel, I telle it never to mo; + For harmes mighte folwen, mo than two, + If it were wist; but be thou in gladnesse, 615 + And lat me sterve, unknowe, of my distresse.' + + 89. 'How hastow thus unkindely and longe + Hid this fro me, thou fool?' quod Pandarus; + 'Paraunter thou might after swich oon longe, + That myn avys anoon may helpen us.' 620 + 'This were a wonder thing,' quod Troylus, + 'Thou coudest never in love thy-selven wisse; + How devel maystow bringen me to blisse?' + + 90. 'Ye, Troilus, now herke,' quod Pandare, + 'Though I be nyce; it happeth ofte so, 625 + That oon that exces doth ful yvele fare, + By good counseyl can kepe his freend ther-fro. + I have my-self eek seyn a blind man go + Ther-as he fel that coude loke wyde; + A fool may eek a wys man ofte gyde. 630 + + 91. A whetston is no kerving instrument, + And yet it maketh sharpe kerving-tolis. + And ther thow woost that I have ought miswent, + Eschewe thou that, for swich thing to thee scole is; + Thus ofte wyse men ben war by folis. 635 + If thou do so, thy wit is wel biwared; + By his contrarie is every thing declared. + + 92. For how might ever sweetnesse have be knowe + To him that never tasted bitternesse? + Ne no man may be inly glad, I trowe, 640 + That never was in sorwe or som distresse; + Eek whyt by blak, by shame eek worthinesse, + Ech set by other, more for other semeth; + As men may see; and so the wyse it demeth. + + 93. Sith thus of two contraries is a lore, 645 + I, that have in love so ofte assayed + Grevaunces, oughte conne, and wel the more + Counsayllen thee of that thou art amayed. + Eek thee ne oughte nat ben yvel apayed, + Though I desyre with thee for to bere 650 + Thyn hevy charge; it shal the lasse dere. + + 94. I woot wel that it fareth thus by me + As to thy brother Parys an herdesse, + Which that y-cleped was Oënone, + Wrot in a compleynt of hir hevinesse: 655 + Ye say the lettre that she wroot, y gesse?' + Nay, never yet, y-wis,' quod Troilus. + 'Now,' quod Pandare, 'herkneth; it was thus.-- + + 95. "Phebus, that first fond art of medicyne," + Quod she, "and coude in every wightes care 660 + Remede and reed, by herbes he knew fyne, + Yet to him-self his conninge was ful bare; + For love hadde him so bounden in a snare, + Al for the doughter of the kinge Admete, + That al his craft ne coude his sorwe bete."-- 665 + + 96. Right so fare I, unhappily for me; + I love oon best, and that me smerteth sore; + And yet, paraunter, can I rede thee, + And not my-self; repreve me no more. + I have no cause, I woot wel, for to sore 670 + As doth an hauk that listeth for to pleye, + But to thyn help yet somwhat can I seye. + + 97. And of o thing right siker maystow be, + That certayn, for to deyen in the peyne, + That I shal never-mo discoveren thee; 675 + Ne, by my trouthe, I kepe nat restreyne + Thee fro thy love, thogh that it were Eleyne, + That is thy brotheres wyf, if ich it wiste; + Be what she be, and love hir as thee liste. + + 98. Therfore, as freend fullich in me assure, 680 + And tel me plat what is thyn enchesoun, + And final cause of wo that ye endure; + For douteth no-thing, myn entencioun + Nis nought to yow of reprehencioun, + To speke as now, for no wight may bireve 685 + A man to love, til that him list to leve. + + 99. And witeth wel, that bothe two ben vyces, + Mistrusten alle, or elles alle leve; + But wel I woot, the mene of it no vyce is, + For for to trusten sum wight is a preve 690 + Of trouthe, and for-thy wolde I fayn remeve + Thy wrong conceyte, and do thee som wight triste, + Thy wo to telle; and tel me, if thee liste. + + 100. The wyse seyth, "wo him that is allone, + For, and he falle, he hath noon help to ryse;" 695 + And sith thou hast a felawe, tel thy mone; + For this nis not, certeyn, the nexte wyse + To winnen love, as techen us the wyse, + To walwe and wepe as Niobe the quene, + Whos teres yet in marbel been y-sene. 700 + + 101. Lat be thy weping and thy drerinesse, + And lat us lissen wo with other speche; + So may thy woful tyme seme lesse. + Delyte not in wo thy wo to seche, + As doon thise foles that hir sorwes eche 705 + With sorwe, whan they han misaventure, + And listen nought to seche hem other cure. + + 102. Men seyn, "to wrecche is consolacioun + To have an-other felawe in his peyne;" + That oughte wel ben our opinioun, 710 + For, bothe thou and I, of love we pleyne; + So ful of sorwe am I, soth for to seyne, + That certeynly no more harde grace + May sitte on me, for-why ther is no space. + + 103. If god wole thou art not agast of me, 715 + Lest I wolde of thy lady thee bigyle, + Thow wost thy-self whom that I love, pardee, + As I best can, gon sithen longe whyle. + And sith thou wost I do it for no wyle, + And sith I am he that thou tristest most, 720 + Tel me sumwhat, sin al my wo thou wost.' + + 104. Yet Troilus, for al this, no word seyde, + But longe he lay as stille as he ded were; + And after this with sykinge he abreyde, + And to Pandarus voys he lente his ere, 725 + And up his eyen caste he, that in fere + Was Pandarus, lest that in frenesye + He sholde falle, or elles sone dye: + + 105. And cryde 'a-wake' ful wonderly and sharpe; + 'What? slombrestow as in a lytargye? 730 + Or artow lyk an asse to the harpe, + That hereth soun, whan men the strenges plye, + But in his minde of that no melodye + May sinken, him to glade, for that he + So dul is of his bestialitee?' 735 + + 106. And with that Pandare of his wordes stente; + But Troilus yet him no word answerde, + For-why to telle nas not his entente + To never no man, for whom that he so ferde. + For it is seyd, 'man maketh ofte a yerde 740 + With which the maker is him-self y-beten + In sondry maner,' as thise wyse treten, + + 107. And namely, in his counseyl tellinge + That toucheth love that oughte be secree; + For of him-self it wolde y-nough out-springe, 745 + But-if that it the bet governed be. + Eek som-tyme it is craft to seme flee + Fro thing which in effect men hunte faste; + Al this gan Troilus in his herte caste. + + 108. But nathelees, whan he had herd him crye 750 + 'Awake!' he gan to syke wonder sore, + And seyde, 'freend, though that I stille lye, + I am not deef; now pees, and cry no more; + For I have herd thy wordes and thy lore; + But suffre me my mischef to biwayle, 755 + For thy proverbes may me nought avayle. + + 109. Nor other cure canstow noon for me. + Eek I nil not be cured, I wol deye; + What knowe I of the quene Niobe? + Lat be thyne olde ensaumples, I thee preye.' 760 + 'No,' quod tho Pandarus, 'therfore I seye, + Swich is delyt of foles to biwepe + Hir wo, but seken bote they ne kepe. + + 110. Now knowe I that ther reson in thee fayleth. + But tel me, if I wiste what she were 765 + For whom that thee al this misaunter ayleth? + Dorstestow that I tolde hir in hir ere + Thy wo, sith thou darst not thy-self for fere, + And hir bisoughte on thee to han som routhe?' + 'Why, nay,' quod he, 'by god and by my trouthe!' 770 + + 111. 'What? not as bisily,' quod Pandarus, + 'As though myn owene lyf lay on this nede?' + 'No, certes, brother,' quod this Troilus. + 'And why?'--'For that thou sholdest never spede.' + 'Wostow that wel?'--'Ye, that is out of drede,' 775 + Quod Troilus, 'for al that ever ye conne, + She nil to noon swich wrecche as I be wonne.' + + 112. Quod Pandarus, 'allas! what may this be, + That thou despeyred art thus causelees? + What? liveth not thy lady? _benedicite!_ 780 + How wostow so that thou art gracelees? + Swich yvel is not alwey botelees. + Why, put not impossible thus thy cure, + Sin thing to come is ofte in aventure. + + 113. I graunte wel that thou endurest wo 785 + As sharp as doth he, Ticius, in helle, + Whos stomak foules tyren ever-mo + That highte volturis, as bokes telle. + But I may not endure that thou dwelle + In so unskilful an opinioun 790 + That of thy wo is no curacioun. + + 114. But ones niltow, for thy coward herte, + And for thyn ire and folish wilfulnesse, + For wantrust, tellen of thy sorwes smerte, + Ne to thyn owene help do bisinesse 795 + As muche as speke a resoun more or lesse, + But lyest as he that list of no-thing recche. + What womman coude love swich a wrecche? + + 115. What may she demen other of thy deeth, + If thou thus deye, and she not why it is, 800 + But that for fere is yolden up thy breeth, + For Grekes han biseged us, y-wis? + Lord, which a thank than shaltow han of this! + Thus wol she seyn, and al the toun at ones, + "The wrecche is deed, the devel have his bones!" 805 + + 116. Thou mayst allone here wepe and crye and knele; + But, love a woman that she woot it nought, + And she wol quyte that thou shalt not fele; + Unknowe, unkist, and lost that is un-sought. + What! many a man hath love ful dere y-bought 810 + Twenty winter that his lady wiste, + That never yet his lady mouth he kiste. + + 117. What? shulde he therfor fallen in despeyr, + Or be recreaunt for his owene tene, + Or sleen him-self, al be his lady fayr? 815 + Nay, nay, but ever in oon be fresh and grene + To serve and love his dere hertes quene, + And thenke it is a guerdoun hir to serve + A thousand-fold more than he can deserve.' + + 118. And of that word took hede Troilus, 820 + And thoughte anoon what folye he was inne, + And how that sooth him seyde Pandarus, + That for to sleen him-self mighte he not winne, + But bothe doon unmanhod and a sinne, + And of his deeth his lady nought to wyte; 825 + For of his wo, god woot, she knew ful lyte. + + 119. And with that thought he gan ful sore syke, + And seyde, 'allas! what is me best to do?' + To whom Pandare answerde, 'if thee lyke, + The best is that thou telle me thy wo; 830 + And have my trouthe, but thou it finde so, + I be thy bote, or that it be ful longe, + To peces do me drawe, and sithen honge!' + + 120. 'Ye, so thou seyst,' quod Troilus tho, 'allas! + But, god wot, it is not the rather so; 835 + Ful hard were it to helpen in this cas, + For wel finde I that Fortune is my fo, + Ne alle the men that ryden conne or go + May of hir cruel wheel the harm withstonde; + For, as hir list, she pleyeth with free and bonde.' 840 + + 121. Quod Pandarus, 'than blamestow Fortune + For thou art wrooth, ye, now at erst I see; + Wostow nat wel that Fortune is commune + To every maner wight in som degree? + And yet thou hast this comfort, lo, pardee! 845 + That, as hir Ioyes moten over-goon, + So mote hir sorwes passen everichoon. + + 122. For if hir wheel stinte any-thing to torne, + Than cessed she Fortune anoon to be: + Now, sith hir wheel by no wey may soiorne, 850 + What wostow if hir mutabilitee + Right as thy-selven list, wol doon by thee, + Or that she be not fer fro thyn helpinge? + Paraunter, thou hast cause for to singe! + + 123. And therfor wostow what I thee beseche? 855 + Lat be thy wo and turning to the grounde; + For who-so list have helping of his leche, + To him bihoveth first unwrye his wounde. + To Cerberus in helle ay be I bounde, + Were it for my suster, al thy sorwe, 860 + By my wil, she sholde al be thyn to-morwe. + + 124. Loke up, I seye, and tel me what she is + Anoon, that I may goon aboute thy nede; + Knowe ich hir ought? for my love, tel me this; + Than wolde I hopen rather for to spede.' 865 + Tho gan the veyne of Troilus to blede, + For he was hit, and wex al reed for shame; + 'A ha!' quod Pandare, 'here biginneth game!' + + 125. And with that word he gan him for to shake, + And seyde, 'theef, thou shalt hir name telle.' 870 + But tho gan sely Troilus for to quake + As though men sholde han lad him in-to helle, + And seyde, 'allas! of al my wo the welle, + Than is my swete fo called Criseyde!' + And wel nigh with the word for fere he deyde. 875 + + 126. And whan that Pandare herde hir name nevene, + Lord, he was glad, and seyde, 'freend so dere, + Now fare a-right, for Ioves name in hevene, + Love hath biset the wel, be of good chere; + For of good name and wysdom and manere 880 + She hath y-nough, and eek of gentilesse; + If she be fayr, thow wost thy-self, I gesse. + + 127. Ne I never saw a more bountevous + Of hir estat, ne a gladder, ne of speche + A freendlier, ne a more gracious 885 + For to do wel, ne lasse hadde nede to seche + What for to doon; and al this bet to eche, + In honour, to as fer as she may strecche, + A kinges herte semeth by hires a wrecche. + + 128. And for-thy loke of good comfort thou be; 890 + For certeinly, the firste poynt is this + Of noble corage and wel ordeynè, + A man to have pees with him-self, y-wis; + So oughtest thou, for nought but good it is + To loven wel, and in a worthy place; 895 + Thee oughte not to clepe it hap, but grace. + + 129. And also thenk, and ther-with glade thee, + That sith thy lady vertuous is al, + So folweth it that ther is som pitee + Amonges alle thise othere in general; 900 + And for-thy see that thou, in special, + Requere nought that is ayein hir name; + For vertue streccheth not him-self to shame. + + 130. But wel is me that ever I was born, + That thou biset art in so good a place; 905 + For by my trouthe, in love I dorste have sworn, + Thee sholde never han tid thus fayr a grace; + And wostow why? for thou were wont to chace + At love in scorn, and for despyt him calle + "Seynt Idiot, lord of thise foles alle." 910 + + 131. How often hastow maad thy nyce Iapes, + And seyd, that loves servants everichone + Of nycetee ben verray goddes apes; + And some wolde monche hir mete alone, + Ligging a-bedde, and make hem for to grone; 915 + And som, thou seydest, hadde a blaunche fevere, + And preydest god he sholde never kevere! + + 132. And some of hem toke on hem, for the colde, + More than y-nough, so seydestow ful ofte; + And some han feyned ofte tyme, and tolde 920 + How that they wake, whan they slepen softe; + And thus they wolde han brought hem-self a-lofte, + And nathelees were under at the laste; + Thus seydestow, and Iapedest ful faste. + + 133. Yet seydestow, that, for the more part, 925 + These loveres wolden speke in general, + And thoughten that it was a siker art, + For fayling, for to assayen over-al. + Now may I iape of thee, if that I shal! + But nathelees, though that I sholde deye, 930 + That thou art noon of tho, that dorste I seye. + + 134. Now beet thy brest, and sey to god of love, + "Thy grace, lord! for now I me repente + If I mis spak, for now my-self I love:" + Thus sey with al thyn herte in good entente.' 935 + Quod Troilus, 'a! lord! I me consente, + And pray to thee my Iapes thou foryive, + And I shal never-more whyl I live.' + + 135. 'Thow seyst wel,' quod Pandare, 'and now I hope + That thou the goddes wraththe hast al apesed; 940 + And sithen thou hast wepen many a drope, + And seyd swich thing wher-with thy god is plesed, + Now wolde never god but thou were esed; + And think wel, she of whom rist al thy wo + Here-after may thy comfort been al-so. 945 + + 136. For thilke ground, that bereth the wedes wikke, + Bereth eek thise holsom herbes, as ful ofte + Next the foule netle, rough and thikke, + The rose waxeth swote and smothe and softe; + And next the valey is the hil a-lofte; 950 + And next the derke night the glade morwe; + And also Ioye is next the fyn of sorwe. + + 137. Now loke that atempre be thy brydel, + And, for the beste, ay suffre to the tyde, + Or elles al our labour is on ydel; 955 + He hasteth wel that wysly can abyde; + Be diligent, and trewe, and ay wel hyde. + Be lusty, free, persevere in thy servyse, + And al is wel, if thou werke in this wyse. + + 138. But he that parted is in every place 960 + Is no-wher hool, as writen clerkes wyse; + What wonder is, though swich oon have no grace? + Eek wostow how it fareth of som servyse? + As plaunte a tre or herbe, in sondry wyse, + And on the morwe pulle it up as blyve, 965 + No wonder is, though it may never thryve. + + 139. And sith that god of love hath thee bistowed + In place digne un-to thy worthinesse, + Stond faste, for to good port hastow rowed; + And of thy-self, for any hevinesse, 970 + Hope alwey wel; for, but-if drerinesse + Or over-haste our bothe labour shende, + I hope of this to maken a good ende. + + 140. And wostow why I am the lasse a-fered + Of this matere with my nece trete? 975 + For this have I herd seyd of wyse y-lered, + "Was never man ne woman yet bigete + That was unapt to suffren loves hete + Celestial, or elles love of kinde;" + For-thy som grace I hope in hir to finde. 980 + + 141. And for to speke of hir in special, + Hir beautee to bithinken and hir youthe, + It sit hir nought to be celestial + As yet, though that hir liste bothe and couthe; + But trewely, it sete hir wel right nouthe 985 + A worthy knight to loven and cheryce, + And but she do, I holde it for a vyce. + + 142. Wherfore I am, and wol be, ay redy + To peyne me to do yow this servyse; + For bothe yow to plese thus hope I 990 + Her-afterward; for ye beth bothe wyse, + And conne it counseyl kepe in swich a wyse, + That no man shal the wyser of it be; + And so we may be gladed alle three. + + 143. And, by my trouthe, I have right now of thee 995 + A good conceyt in my wit, as I gesse, + And what it is, I wol now that thou see. + I thenke, sith that love, of his goodnesse, + Hath thee converted out of wikkednesse, + That thou shalt be the beste post, I leve, 1000 + Of al his lay, and most his foos to-greve. + + 144. Ensample why, see now these wyse clerkes, + That erren aldermost a-yein a lawe, + And ben converted from hir wikked werkes + Thorugh grace of god, that list hem to him drawe, 1005 + Than arn they folk that han most god in awe, + And strengest-feythed been, I understonde, + And conne an errour alder-best withstonde.' + + 145. Whan Troilus had herd Pandare assented + To been his help in loving of Criseyde, 1010 + Wex of his wo, as who seyth, untormented, + But hotter wex his love, and thus he seyde, + With sobre chere, al-though his herte pleyde, + 'Now blisful Venus helpe, er that I sterve, + Of thee, Pandare, I may som thank deserve. 1015 + + 146. But, dere frend, how shal myn wo ben lesse + Til this be doon? and goode, eek tel me this, + How wiltow seyn of me and my destresse? + Lest she be wrooth, this drede I most, y-wis, + Or nil not here or trowen how it is. 1020 + Al this drede I, and eek for the manere + Of thee, hir eem, she nil no swich thing here.' + + 147. Quod Pandarus, 'thou hast a ful gret care + Lest that the cherl may falle out of the mone! + Why, lord! I hate of thee thy nyce fare! 1025 + Why, entremete of that thou hast to done! + For goddes love, I bidde thee a bone, + So lat me alone, and it shal be thy beste.'-- + 'Why, freend,' quod he, 'now do right as thee leste. + + 148. But herke, Pandare, o word, for I nolde 1030 + That thou in me wendest so greet folye, + That to my lady I desiren sholde + That toucheth harm or any vilenye; + For dredelees, me were lever dye + Than she of me ought elles understode 1035 + But that, that mighte sounen in-to gode.' + + 149. Tho lough this Pandare, and anoon answerde, + 'And I thy borw? fy! no wight dooth but so; + I roughte nought though that she stode and herde + How that thou seyst; but fare-wel, I wol go. 1040 + A-dieu! be glad! god spede us bothe two! + Yif me this labour and this besinesse, + And of my speed be thyn al that swetnesse.' + + 150. Tho Troilus gan doun on knees to falle, + And Pandare in his armes hente faste, 1045 + And seyde, 'now, fy on the Grekes alle! + Yet, pardee, god shal helpe us at the laste; + And dredelees, if that my lyf may laste, + And god to-forn, lo, som of hem shal smerte; + And yet me athinketh that this avaunt me asterte! 1050 + + 151. Now, Pandare, I can no more seye, + But thou wys, thou wost, thou mayst, thou art al! + My lyf, my deeth, hool in thyn honde I leye; + Help now,' quod he. 'Yis, by my trouthe, I shal.' + 'God yelde thee, freend, and this in special,' 1055 + Quod Troilus, 'that thou me recomaunde + To hir that to the deeth me may comaunde.' + + 152. This Pandarus tho, desirous to serve + His fulle freend, than seyde in this manere, + 'Far-wel, and thenk I wol thy thank deserve; 1060 + Have here my trouthe, and that thou shalt wel here.'-- + And wente his wey, thenking on this matere, + And how he best mighte hir beseche of grace, + And finde a tyme ther-to, and a place. + + 153. For every wight that hath an hous to founde 1065 + Ne renneth nought the werk for to biginne + With rakel hond, but he wol byde a stounde, + And sende his hertes lyne out fro with-inne + Alderfirst his purpos for to winne. + Al this Pandare in his herte thoughte, 1070 + And caste his werk ful wysly, or he wroughte. + + 154. But Troilus lay tho no lenger doun, + But up anoon up-on his stede bay, + And in the feld he pleyde tho leoun; + Wo was that Greek that with him mette that day. 1075 + And in the toun his maner tho forth ay + So goodly was, and gat him so in grace, + That ech him lovede that loked on his face. + + 155. For he bicom the frendlyeste wight, + The gentileste, and eek the moste free, 1080 + The thriftieste and oon the beste knight, + That in his tyme was, or mighte be. + Dede were his Iapes and his crueltee, + His heighe port and his manere estraunge, + And ech of tho gan for a vertu chaunge. 1085 + + 156. Now lat us stinte of Troilus a stounde, + That fareth lyk a man that hurt is sore, + And is somdel of akinge of his wounde + Y-lissed wel, but heled no del more: + And, as an esy pacient, the lore 1090 + Abit of him that gooth aboute his cure; + And thus he dryveth forth his aventure. + +EXPLICIT LIBER PRIMUS. + +The MSS. are:--Cl. (= Campsall MS.), _and_ Cp. (= Corp. Chr. Camb. 61), +_taken as the basis of the text_; H. (= Harl. 2280); H2. (= Harl. 3943); +Cm. (= Cambridge MS. Gg. 4. 27); Ed. (= printed edition, 1532). + +1-70. _Lost in_ Cm. and H2. (_where it is supplied in late hand_). 5. Cl. +Cp. froye; H. fro ye. 6. Cl. helpe; Cp. H. help. 7. Cp. thise; Cl. H. this. +15. Cl. seruauntz. 18. Cl. _om._ I; H. I am; Cp. Ed. am I. 20. Cl. H. +Vn-to; Cp. Ed. To. 21. Cl. be his; Cp. be this; H. by this. 23. Cl. ony; +Cp. Hl. any (_often_). 24. Cp. Hl. Remembreth; Cl. Remembre. 26. Cl. other +fok; Cp. othere folk. 27. Cl. dorst; Cp. H. dorste. 31. Cp. H. Ed. hem; Cl. +him. 36, 42. Cl. Cp. desespeyred; H. despeyred; Ed. dispeyred. 41. Cp. To; +Cl. H. So. 44. Cl. H. goode; Cp. Ed. good. 45. Cp. ladies so; Cl. loues +for; H. loueres for. 48. Cl. seruauntz. 58. Cl. went; Cp. H. wente. 62. Cl. +raueshyng; Cp. rauysshynge. 69. Cl. high (!); Cp. highte; H. hyghte. 70. +Cl. Delphebus; Cp. H. Ed. Delphicus. 71. Cl. whanne; Cp. whan. 76. Cl. +wyst; H. west; Cm. woste; Cp. wiste. 79. Cl. forknowyng; Cp. H. Cm. +for-knowynge. 80. Cl. pryely (!); Cp. H. pryuely; Cm. preuili. 82. Cl. H. +bothen; Cp. Cm. bothe. 87. Cl. Cp. H. _ins._ fals _bef._ fled; H2. Ed. +_om._ 90. Cl. onys. 96. Cl. H. nyst; Cm. nyste. 98. Cl. dorst make; Cp. +dorste; H. dorst; Cm. durste. 99. Cp. a-; _rest_ al. 101. Cl. H. faire; Cp. +Cm. fair. 102. Cl. angelyk; Cp. aungelik. 112. Cl. Cm. selue; Cp. H. +seluen. 126. Cl. _om. 2nd_ and. // H. hoom; Cm. hom; Cl. home. 128. to] Cp. +H. til. 129. Cl. dwelled; Cp. H. Cm. Ed. was dwellynge. 130. Cl. Kept; Cp. +Kepte. // Cl. yong; H. Cp. yonge. 132. Cl. hadde children; _rest_ children +hadde. 133. Cm. lete; Cl. late; H. latt. 137. Cp. H. Cm. eft; Ed. efte; Cl. +ofte. 139. H. Ed. vnder; H2. vndur; Cl. wonder (_wrongly_). // H. H2. eft; +Ed. efte; Cl. ofte. // H. whielen (_better_ wheelen); Cp. whilen; H2. +whilyn; Ed. whelmen; Cl. weylen; Cm. weyle. 143. Cm. here; _rest om._ 144. +Cm. dwelle; _rest_ to dwelle (_badly_). // Cl. Troiane; H2. troianys; +_rest_ troyan. 146. H2. homere; _rest_ Omer. // Cl. of (_for 1st_ or). 155. +Cl. come; _rest_ comen (comyn). 158. Cl. swoot; Cp. H. swote; Cm. swete. +161. Cl. H. H2. Palladions; Cm. Palasdionis (_for_ Palladionis). 162. Cl. +H. _wrongly ins._ goodly _before_ beste. Cp. Cm. beste; _rest_ best. 163. +H. Cm. wente; _rest_ went. 164. Cl. Cm. herkenen; Cp. herknen. 167. Cl. +bothe meene meste; H. Cp. bothe most meyne; Cm. bothe meste; Ed. bothe +most. 168. Cl. and for the; Cp. H. Cm. Ed. _om._ for. 171. H. furste; Cl. +Cm. first. 172. Cl. stode; Cp. stood. 174. Cl. yet thing seyn; H. þat seyn +thing; Cm. yit seyen þyng; H2. seyn thing (_best_). // Cl. presed; H. Cp. +preysed. 175. H. Cm. Cp. cloude; Cl. cloud. 176, 178. Cl. euerichone, +allone. 192. Cp. baiten; Cl. beyten. 196. H. Cm. Cp. ful; Cl. _om._ 198. +Cm. lewede; H2. lewde; Ed. leude; Cl. H. _om._ 199. H. Cm. Cp. Ed. which a +labour; Cl. swych labour as. 202. Cl. loues; _rest_ fooles (folis). 206. +Cl. to loken; _rest om._ to. 208. Cp. He kidde; Cl. And kyd. 209. Cp. Ful; +_rest_ For. 211. Cl. blynd; Cp. blynde (_twice_). 213. Cl. Suriquidrie. +216. Cm. mot; Ed. mote; Cp. moot; Cl. moste; H. schall. 217. _So_ Cl.; +_rest_ But alday fayleth thing that fooles wenden. 220. Cl. long; H. Cp. +longe. 224. Cl. felawes; _rest_ feres. 225. Cl. proud; H. Cm. Cp. proude. +227. Cp. swiche; Cl. swich. 228. Cl. dere; _rest_ stere. 229. Cl. hert +(_see_ l. 228). Cl. H. wax; Cp. Cm. wex. 231. Cl. H. Wax; Cm. Wex. 234. +scornen] Cp. seruen. 240. Cl. H. Cp. Cm. or; H2. Ed. and. 244. Cl. of; +_rest_ in. 246. Cp. Cm. wel; Cl. H. wele. 248. Cl. addermost (!). 252. Cp. +H. H2. causeth; Cl. causen. 261. Cl. H. Cm. _om._ As (H2. Ed. _have it_). +262. Cl. letten; Cp. H. Cm. leten; H2. Ed. leuen. 264. Cl. Cm. Ioyes; +_rest_ Ioye. 266. H. refeere. 267. Cl. went; Cp. H. Cm. wente. // Cl. +pleynge. 268. H. Cm. Cp. Ed. of; Cl. and. 272. H. percede; Ed. perced; Cl. +Cp. procede (!). 274. Cl. wax; H. Cm. wex. 275. Cl. _om._ gan. 278. Cp. +herte; Cl. hert. 280. Cl. pleynge. 286. Cm. Schewede; Cl. H. Shewed. 294. +H. Cp. Cm. thoughte; Cl. thought. 294. Cl. fair; _rest_ good. 301. Cp. H. +wiste; Cl. wyst. 305. _All_ eyen (ey[gh]en). 306. Cp. Ed. he felte; H. he +felt; Cl. that he sholde; Cm. for to. 307. Cl. _om._ his. 308. Cl. Blyssyd; +Cp. H. Blissed; Cm. Ed. Blessed; _see_ 436. // Cl. Cp. kan thus; H. Ed. +thus kan. 310. Cl. al; H. Cm. alle. // Cl. _om._ for. 312. Cl. ne made. // +Cp. H. worde; Cl. word. 315. Cl. Ed. the seruise; _rest om._ the. 321. Cp. +H. Cm. Lest; Cl. Lyst. 324. Cp. H. torneth; Cl. Cm. turneth. 327. Cl. H2. +speche and cher; _rest_ chere and speche. 329. H. Ed. wrie; Cl. wre; Cp. +wrey. 330. Cl. lyst; Cp. lest; H. leste. 337. Cl. I; _rest_ In. // Cl. +noun-; H. non-; H2. Ed. no; Cp. Cm. veyn (_for_ noun). 341. Cp. H. mote; +Cl. Cm. mot. 351. Cl. H. _om._ that. 354. Cp. vn-til. 356. Cp. doon; H. +don; Cl. Cm. done. 357. Cl. hym; _rest_ hem. 360. Cl. _om._ eft. 361. Cl. +ony lette; _rest om._ ony. 363. Cl. a; H2. in the; _rest_ and. 369. H. +dydde; Ed. dyd; _rest_ dede. 371. Cl. seruauntz. 374. Cp. Cm. ne (_2nd_); +Cl. H. no. 379. Cl. H. toke; Cp. took. 381. H. Cp. hiden; Cl. hide. 385. +Cp. [gh]eldeth. // Cl. _om._ seed. 386. Cp. H. muchel; Cl. muche. 387. Cl. +For what (_for_ What for). // Cl. speken; _rest_ speke (spek). 394. Cp. H. +Cm. myn; Cl. my. 395. Cp. H. tonges; Cm. tungis; Cl. tonge. // Cl. +deference (!). 398. Cl. _om._ so. // Cl. it to; _rest om._ to. // Cl. hire; +_rest_ here. 399. HEADING; _so_ Cp. H.; Cm. Cantus; Ed. The song of +Troylus. 400. Cl. _om._ no. 401. whiche] Cl. what. 402. H. Cp. whennes +comth; Cm. whennys comyt; Cl. whens cometh. 403. Cl. thenketh. 405. Cl. me +so goodly; _rest_ to me sauory. 406. Cm. H2. _om._ it. 408. Cl. walyng. +409. Cl. thanne. 411. Cp. Cm. harm; Cl. H. harme. 412. Cl. _om._ thee. // +Cp. swich; Cl. H. swiche. 413. Cp. H. Cm. be; _rest_ so be. 416. Cm. +stereles; H. stierlees; Cl. sterles; Cp. sterlees. 417. Cp. bitwixen; H. +betwexen; Cm. be-twexe; Cl. by-twen. 423. Cp. oughte; Cm. au[gh]te; Cl. +aught. // H. yours; Cp. youres; Cl. youre; _see_ l. 422. 427. Cl. leue; Cp. +H. Cm. lyue. 430. Cl. my lord; _rest om._ my. 432. estat] Cl. estal. 435. +Cl. deynede; Cp. H. Cm. deyned. 436. _After_ love, Cl. _ins._ þe, _and_ H. +_ins._ ye. // H2. blesse; Cl. blysse; Cp. H. blisse; Cm. blys. 439. held] +Cl. hold. 440. Cm. brende; Cl. brend. 444. Cp. Cm. sette; Cl. H. sett. 446. +H. preesse. 453. Cp. H. Cm. herte; Cl. hert. // _All_ eye (ey[gh]e). 454. +Cl. fairest; _rest_ fairer. 457. Cl. tymes; _see_ 531. 460. H2. deyd; Cp. +Ed. deyde; Cl. Cm. deyede; H. dyede. 462. rewe] Cl. rew. 463. dredes] Cl. +dredres. // Cp. H. Ed. fledde; _rest_ fled. 464. Cp. thassege. // +savacioun] Cl. saluacioun. 465. Ne in] Cm. Cp. Nyn. // Cl. doon; _rest_ non +(none). // Cl. H. Ed. fownes; Cm. founys. 470. Cl. shoures sharpe. // Cm. +felle; Ed. fel; Cl. H. fille. 471. Cl. and; _rest_ or. 475. Cl. trauayl. +483. H2. al; _rest om._; _read_ alle. 486. H. toke; Cl. took. 487. Cp. H. +eue; Cl. euen. 490. _So all._ 491. H. Cm. ferde; Cl. ferd. 496. H2. as; +_rest_ that; _read_ as that. 498. H. than; Cl. Cm. thanne. // Cm. fel to; +Cl. Cp. felt. 500. Cl. H. hadde; Cm. hade; Ed. _om._ 502. Cp. H. Ed. +whiche; Cl. such. // Cl. thought; felt. 503. Cl. dorst; Cp. dorste. 511. +Cp. H. nat; Cm. not; Cl. nought. 516. H. leest; Cl. lest. 517. Cp. H. _om._ +be. 518. Cm. febly; Cl. febely; H. fiebly. 520. H. Cp. Ed. louen; Cm. loue; +Cl. leue. 528. Cl. _om._ a. 530. Cp. H. hidde; Ed. hyd; Cl. Cm. hed. 534. +Cl. yet; _rest_ ye. 536. Cp. H. Cm. may; Cl. wole. 544. Cl. H. herd; Cm. +Cp. herde. 545. Cm. thoughte; Cl. H. bithought. 546. Cl. multeplie. 549. +Cl. onys. // H. herde; Cl. herd. 554. Cl. _om._ som. 555. H. Cm. Cp. falle; +Cl. fallen. 557. H. ferde; Cl. Cm. ferd. 563. Cm. H2. sorwe; Ed. sorowe; +Cp. H. wo to; Cl. wo. 567. Cl. Cm. desirede. 569. Cp. H. Ed. sen me. 572. +H. henne; Cm. hene; Cl. hens; Cp. hennes. 573. Cl. dishese. 578. Cl. Cm. +wrought; H. y-wrogth; Cp. H2. Ed. yet wrought. 580. Cp. H. Ed. leste; Cl. +Cm. lest. 581. Cl. Ne be; _rest om._ Ne. 582. Cl. sorwe; _rest_ wo. 586. H. +swiche; Cp. Cm. swich; Cl. such. 589. Cl. Cm. þyn; H. Cp. þi. 596. Cp. H. +Cm. sorwful Troilus; Cl. Troilus sorwfully. 600. Cl. don. 601. Cp. Cm. +truste; H. tryste; Cl. trust. 602. Cm. herkene; Cl. H. herke. // Cm. frend; +Cl. H. frende. 606. Cp. H. sailleth; Cm. saylyth; Ed. sayleth; Cl. +ffayleth. 607. Cl. brennynly. 612. Cm. colde; Cl. H. cold. 613. Cl. telle; +_rest_ tolde. 622. Cl. Cm. thyn; Cp. H. thi. 626. Cm. exces; Cl. Cm. +excesse; Ed. axes. 630. Cl. ofte a wys man; Ed. H. Cp. a wys man ofte. 631. +Ed. whetston; Cl. Cp. H. wheston; Cm. weston. 633. Cl. out; Cm. ou[gh]t; H. +Cp. aught. 637. Cl. eche; _rest_ his. 643. Cp. H. Ech; Cl. Cm. Eche. 647. +Cl. ought; _but see_ l. 649. 650. Cp. Though; H. Thoughe; Cl. Cm. Thow. // +Cl. desir; H. Ed. desire; Cp. desyre. 653. Cp. herdesse; Cl. H. Cm. +hierdesse. 654. H. Oonone. 658. Cl. No (_for_ Now). // Cl. herkene; Cp. +herkne; H. herken; Cm. herkenyt; Ed. herkeneth. 659. Cl. medecyne. 661. Cp. +H. Ed. herbes; Cl. erbess. // Cl. Cp. H. she; _rest_ he. 663. Cp. H. +bounden; Cm. boundyn; Cl. bounde. 664. Ed. Admete; _rest_ Amete. 665. Cl. +koude al; _rest om._ al. 667. Cl. H. oone; Cm. on. 674. Cm. deyen; Cl. +deye; Cp. H. dyen. 675. Cp. H. Ed. mo; Cl. Cm. more. 677. H2. thogh; Cm. +þow; Cl. they; Cp. H. theigh. // thogh that] Ed. although. 680. Cl. as a; +_rest om._ a. 681. Cl. Cp. Cm. telle; _rest_ tel. 682. H2. Ed. final; Cl. +finally; Cp. finaly; H. fynali; Cm. finially (!). 683. Cl. þyn (_for_ +þyng). 685. Cl. wygh (!). 687. H. witeth; Cl. Cm. weteth. 689. Cl. wot I. +690. H. Cm. For for; Ed. As for; Cl. For. 693. H. Cm. Cp. Ed. tel me; Cl. +telle me. // Cl. Cm. thou; Cp. H. the. 694. Cl. Thise; _rest_ The. 697. Cl. +yn certeyn; _rest om._ yn. // Cl. next. 700. Cl. terys. 703. Cl. this; Cp. +H. thy. 704. Cl. forto; _rest_ to. 707. Cl. sechen; _rest_ seche hem. 710. +Cp. owghte; Cm. au[gh]te; Cl. H. ought. 716. Cp. Cm. wolde; Cl. wold; H. +wol. 720. Cl. sithen; Cp. H. sith; Ed. sythe; H2. seyst. // Cp. H. Cm. Ed. +that; Cl. yn whom. 723. H. Cp. Cm. lay as; Cl. _om._ as. 730. _All_ +lytargye (litargye). 734. H. Cp. synken; Cm. synkyn; Cl. synk yn. 737. H. +Cp. answerde; Cl. answerede. 738. Cp. H. nas; Cl. nat (!); _rest_ was. 739. +Cl. _om._ no. 741. Cp. H. ybeten; Cm. I-bete; Cl. beten. 742. Cm. maner; +Cp. H. manere; Cl. maneres. // H. Cp. þise; Cl. þis. 743. H. tellynge; Cl. +Cm. tellyng. 744. Cl. ought; H. ougthte (_sic_). 745. Cp. Ed. ynough +outsprynge; Cm. Inow outsprynge; Cl. not ought sprynge. 764. Cp. H. Cm. +ther; _rest om._ 765. H. tel; Cl. Cm. telle. // Cl. wyst; Cp. H. Cm. Ed. +wiste. 767. Cm. told hyre; Ed. H2. tolde it; Cp. H. tolde; Cl. telle. 769. +Cp. by-soughte; Cl. H. bysought. 777. Cl. nyl not; _rest om._ not. // Cp. +H. noon; Cm. non; Cl. no. // Cl. _om._ as I. 779. Cl. desespered; Cm. +dispeyred; Cp. dispeired; H. despired. 780. Cp. bendiste; H. bendistee. +786. Cm. Cp. Ed. he; Cl. H2. the; H. _om._ // Ticius] Cm. which is; Ed. +Tesiphus; H2. Siciphus. 787. Cl. foughles. 788. Cl. H. volturis; H2. +vulturus; Ed. vultures; Cm. wulturn_us_ (!). 793. Cl. folessh. 796. Cp. H. +muche; Cl. Cm. meche. // Cl. lasse. 797. Ed. H2. lyest; Cp. list; H. liste; +Cl. lyk. // H2. lyst; Cl. H. lest; Cm. leste. 798. Cl. wolde (_for_ coude). +799. Cp. H. demen; Cm. demyn; Cl. deme. 803. H. Cm. thank; Cl. thonk. // +Cl. then; Cp. than. 812. he] Cl. yet. 814. Cp. recreant; Cl. H. recreaunte. +// Cl. H2. of; _rest_ for. 815. Cl. feyr. 817. H. Cp. Ed. serue; Cl. +seruen. 818. Cl. thenk. 819. Cp. Cm. fold; Cl. H. folde. 820. Cl. Cp. H. +_om._ And. 821. Cl. þought. 822. Cl. hym soth. 824. Cl. Cp. H2. _om._ a. +826. woot she knew] Cl. knoweth (!). 830. Cl. Cp. H. _ins._ al _bef._ thy. +833. Cl. Cp. H. pieces. 837. Cm. wel; Cl. H. wele. 839. Cm. whel; Cl. H. +whiel. 842. Cp. H. [gh]e; Cm. [gh]a; Cl. _om._ 846, 7. Cm. -gon, -on; Cl. +H. -gone, -one. 848, 850. Cl. H. whiel; Cm. whelys (whel). 851. if] Cl. of +(!). 855. what] Cl. whan. 858. Cm. onwrye; Ed. vnwrie; Cl. H. vnwre. 862, +864. Cm. tel; Cl. H. telle. 863. Cp. thy; H. þi; Cl. Cm. þin. 865. Cp. +hopen; Cl. H. hopen the; Cm. Ed. hope. 867. H. Cm. wex; Cl. wax. 871. Cl. +bigan; Cp. H. Cm. gan. 883. H2. Ne y; H. Ny (= Ne y); Cl. Cm. _om._ I. 885. +Cl. frendliour. // H2. ne a; Cl. H. na (= ne a); _see_ l. 884. 886. Cp. +_om. 2nd_ to. 889. Cl. H. hires; Ed. hers. 890-896. Cl. Cp. H. Cm. _omit_; +_from_ Ed. _and_ H2.; _also in_ Jo. _and_ Harl. 2392. 891. Ed. first; H2. +ferst; _read_ firste. 892. Ed. H2. wele. // Ed. ordayne the (_with_ the +_added_; ordeynè _is trisyllabic_). 894. H2. _om._ nought but (!). 895. H2. +wele; Ed. wel. 896. H2. oght; Ed. ought; _read_ oughte. 902. H. Cp. nought; +Cl. not. 907. Cp. H. Cm. han; Cl. a. // thus] Cl. so. 908. Ed. wo_n_t; Cp. +H. wonte; Cl. woned. 911. H. Cp. often; Cl. Cm. ofte. 914. H2. monche; Ed. +monch; Cl. mucche; H. muche. 915. Cl. _om._ make. 917. Cp. H. preydest; Cl. +preyedest. 918. Cl. som. 921. H. slepten. 922. Cl. wolden. 925. Ed. H. Cp. +Yet; Cm. Yit; Cl. Ye. // Cl. _om._ that. 927. Ed. H. Cp. thoughten; Cm. +thou[gh]tyn; Cl. thought. // Cl. Ed. _om._ that. 928. Cl. to assayn; H. Cp. +tassayen. 931. H. noon; Cp. non; Cl. none. 932. H. Cp. sey; Cl. seye. 935. +H. Cp. herte; Cl. hert. 937. Cp. H. for-[gh]iue; Cl. Cm. for-yeue. 938. Cp. +liue; Cl. Cm. leue. 939. Ed. H2. Pandare; Cl. H. Pandarus. 941. Cl. sithen +that; Cp. H. sithen. // H. wepen; Cm. wepyn; Cl. wopen. 945. H. Cm. ben; +Cl. be. 947. as] Cl. al; H2. and. 950, 1. Cl. nexst. // Cl. Cp. H2. derk; +_rest_ derke. 952. the--of] Cl. after. 955. Cp. al; Cl. H. alle. 958. Cp. +thy; Cl. Cm. þyn. 959. Cp. werke; Cl. werk. 960. Cm. H2. partyd; _rest_ +departed. 962. Cp. H. Cm. though swich; Cl. that such. 963. of] Cl. on. +966. H. though; Cl. Cm. thow. // may] Cl. mowe. 969. Cp. Cm. faste; _rest_ +fast. 972. Cm. bothis. 973. Cp. H. Ed. maken; Cl. Cm. make. 980. Cl. Cp. +Cm. _om._ to. 982. Cp. H. Ed. bethynken; Cl. byþynke. 984. As] Cl. And. +985. Cp. Cm. trewely; Cl. H. trewly. H. Cp. sate; Cl. Cm. sat; (_read_ +sete). 986. H. Cp. louen; Cl. Cm. loue. 993. Cl. of it the wiser. 995. And] +Cl. For. 997. it] Cl. that. 1002. now] Cl. ye. // Cl. Cp. H. wyse; _rest_ +grete. 1003. a] Cl. the. 1006. most god] Cm. god most. 1009. Cl. Whanne. +1017. MSS. telle; Ed. tel; _see_ l. 681. 1020. Cp. H. here; Cl. heren. +1024. may] // Cl. wole. 1028. Cp. malone. 1033. Cp. H. Ed. any; Cl. Cm. +ony. 1034. Cp. H. Ed. dredeles; _rest_ dredles. 1036. Cp. myghte; Cl. H. +myght. 1039. H. Cp. roughte; Cl. rought. 1042. H. Cm. Yif; Cp. Yef; Cl. +Yeue. 1044-1092. _Lost in_ Cm. 1044. Tho] Cl. But. // on] Cl. on his. 1045. +H. Cp. Ed. hente; Cl. hent. 1048. Cp. H. dredelees; Cl. dredles. 1050. H. +mathynketh; Ed. me athinketh; Cl. me ofthynketh; Cp. mathenketh. // Ed. +masterte; Cp. me sterte. 1051. _So all._ 1052. _Accent_ thou. 1059. Cp. H. +than; Cl. thenne. 1067. Cp. H. wol; Cl. wole. 1068. Cp. H. sende; Cl. send. +1069. _So all_. 1074. Cl. lyoun. 1075. Wo] Cl. Who (!) // that (2)] H. a. +1079. Cp. bicom; Cl. by come. 1080. _All_ most; _read_ moste. 1084. H. +hieghe; Cl. heigh. 1086. Cp. H. lat; Cl. late. 1092. H2. Ed. driueth; Cl. +drieth; Cp. H. dryeth. + + + + +BOOK II. + +INCIPIT PROHEMIUM SECUNDI LIBRI. + + 1. Out of these blake wawes for to sayle, + O wind, O wind, the weder ginneth clere; + For in this see the boot hath swich travayle, + Of my conning that unnethe I it stere: + This see clepe I the tempestous matere 5 + Of desespeyr that Troilus was inne: + But now of hope the calendes biginne. + + 2. O lady myn, that called art Cleo, + Thou be my speed fro this forth, and my muse, + To ryme wel this book, til I have do; 10 + Me nedeth here noon other art to use. + For-why to every lovere I me excuse, + That of no sentement I this endyte, + But out of Latin in my tonge it wryte. + + 3. Wherfore I nil have neither thank ne blame 15 + Of al this werk, but pray yow mekely, + Disblameth me, if any word be lame, + For as myn auctor seyde, so seye I. + Eek though I speke of love unfelingly, + No wonder is, for it no-thing of newe is; 20 + A blind man can nat Iuggen wel in hewis. + + 4. Ye knowe eek, that in forme of speche is chaunge + With-inne a thousand yeer, and wordes tho + That hadden prys, now wonder nyce and straunge + Us thinketh hem; and yet they spake hem so, 25 + And spedde as wel in love as men now do; + Eek for to winne love in sondry ages, + In sondry londes, sondry ben usages. + + 5. And for-thy if it happe in any wyse, + That here be any lovere in this place 30 + That herkeneth, as the story wol devyse, + How Troilus com to his lady grace, + And thenketh, so nolde I nat love purchace, + Or wondreth on his speche and his doinge, + I noot; but it is me no wonderinge; 35 + + 6. For every wight which that to Rome went, + Halt nat o path, or alwey o manere; + Eek in some lond were al the gamen shent, + If that they ferde in love as men don here, + As thus, in open doing or in chere, 40 + In visitinge, in forme, or seyde hir sawes; + For-thy men seyn, ech contree hath his lawes. + + 7. Eek scarsly been ther in this place three + That han in love seyd lyk and doon in al; + For to thy purpos this may lyken thee, 45 + And thee right nought, yet al is seyd or shal; + Eek som men grave in tree, som in stoon wal, + As it bitit; but sin I have begonne, + Myn auctor shal I folwen, if I conne. + +EXPLICIT PROHEMIUM SECUNDI LIBRI. + + +INCIPIT LIBER SECUNDUS. + + 8. In May, that moder is of monthes glade, 50 + That fresshe floures, blewe, and whyte, and rede, + Ben quike agayn, that winter dede made, + And ful of bawme is fletinge every mede; + Whan Phebus doth his brighte bemes sprede + Right in the whyte Bole, it so bitidde 55 + As I shal singe, on Mayes day the thridde, + + 9. That Pandarus, for al his wyse speche, + Felte eek his part of loves shottes kene, + That, coude he never so wel of loving preche, + It made his hewe a-day ful ofte grene; 60 + So shoop it, that him fil that day a tene + In love, for which in wo to bedde he wente, + And made, er it was day, ful many a wente. + + 10. The swalwe Proignè, with a sorwful lay, + Whan morwe com, gan make hir weymentinge, 65 + Why she forshapen was; and ever lay + Pandare a-bedde, half in a slomeringe, + Til she so neigh him made hir chiteringe + How Tereus gan forth hir suster take, + That with the noyse of hir he gan a-wake; 70 + + 11. And gan to calle, and dresse him up to ryse, + Remembringe him his erand was to done + From Troilus, and eek his greet empryse; + And caste and knew in good plyt was the mone + To doon viage, and took his wey ful sone 75 + Un-to his neces paleys ther bi-syde; + Now Ianus, god of entree, thou him gyde! + + 12. Whan he was come un-to his neces place, + 'Wher is my lady?' to hir folk seyde he; + And they him tolde; and he forth in gan pace, 80 + And fond, two othere ladyes sete and she + With-inne a paved parlour; and they three + Herden a mayden reden hem the geste + Of the Sege of Thebes, whyl hem leste. + + 13. Quod Pandarus, 'ma dame, god yow see, 85 + With al your book and al the companye!' + 'Ey, uncle myn, welcome y-wis,' quod she, + And up she roos, and by the hond in hye + She took him faste, and seyde, 'this night thrye, + To goode mote it turne, of yow I mette!' 90 + And with that word she doun on bench him sette. + + 14. 'Ye, nece, ye shal fare wel the bet, + If god wole, al this yeer,' quod Pandarus; + 'But I am sory that I have yow let + To herknen of your book ye preysen thus; 95 + For goddes love, what seith it? tel it us. + Is it of love? O, som good ye me lere!' + 'Uncle,' quod she, 'your maistresse is not here!' + + 15. With that they gonnen laughe, and tho she seyde, + 'This romaunce is of Thebes, that we rede; 100 + And we han herd how that king Laius deyde + Thurgh Edippus his sone, and al that dede; + And here we stenten at these lettres rede, + How the bisshop, as the book can telle, + Amphiorax, fil thurgh the ground to helle.' 105 + + 16. Quod Pandarus, 'al this knowe I my-selve, + And al the assege of Thebes and the care; + For her-of been ther maked bokes twelve:-- + But lat be this, and tel me how ye fare; + Do wey your barbe, and shew your face bare; 110 + Do wey your book, rys up, and lat us daunce, + And lat us don to May som observaunce.' + + 17. 'A! god forbede!' quod she, 'be ye mad?' + Is that a widewes lyf, so god you save? + By god, ye maken me right sore a-drad, 115 + Ye ben so wilde, it semeth as ye rave! + It sete me wel bet ay in a cave + To bidde, and rede on holy seyntes lyves: + Lat maydens gon to daunce, and yonge wyves.' + + 18. 'As ever thryve I,' quod this Pandarus, 120 + 'Yet coude I telle a thing to doon you pleye.' + 'Now uncle dere,' quod she, 'tel it us + For goddes love; is than the assege aweye? + I am of Grekes so ferd that I deye.' + 'Nay, nay,' quod he, 'as ever mote I thryve! 125 + It is a thing wel bet than swiche fyve.' + + 19. 'Ye, holy god!' quod she, 'what thing is that? + What? bet than swiche fyve? ey, nay, y-wis! + For al this world ne can I reden what + It sholde been; som Iape, I trowe, is this; 130 + And but your-selven telle us what it is, + My wit is for to arede it al to lene; + As help me god, I noot nat what ye mene.' + + 20. 'And I your borow, ne never shal, for me, + This thing be told to yow, as mote I thryve!' 135 + 'And why so, uncle myn? why so?' quod she. + 'By god,' quod he, 'that wole I telle as blyve; + For prouder womman were ther noon on-lyve, + And ye it wiste, in al the toun of Troye; + I iape nought, as ever have I Ioye!' 140 + + 21. Tho gan she wondren more than biforn + A thousand fold, and doun hir eyen caste; + For never, sith the tyme that she was born, + To knowe thing desired she so faste; + And with a syk she seyde him at the laste, 145 + 'Now, uncle myn, I nil yow nought displese, + Nor axen more, that may do yow disese.' + + 22. So after this, with many wordes glade, + And freendly tales, and with mery chere, + Of this and that they pleyde, and gunnen wade 150 + In many an unkouth glad and deep matere, + As freendes doon, whan they ben met y-fere; + Til she gan axen him how Ector ferde, + That was the tounes wal and Grekes yerde. + + 23. 'Ful wel, I thanke it god,' quod Pandarus, 155 + 'Save in his arm he hath a litel wounde; + And eek his fresshe brother Troilus, + The wyse worthy Ector the secounde, + In whom that every vertu list abounde, + As alle trouthe and alle gentillesse, 160 + Wysdom, honour, fredom, and worthinesse.' + + 24. 'In good feith, eem,' quod she, 'that lyketh me; + They faren wel, god save hem bothe two! + For trewely I holde it greet deyntee + A kinges sone in armes wel to do, 165 + And been of good condiciouns ther-to; + For greet power and moral vertu here + Is selde y-seye in o persone y-fere.' + + 25. 'In good feith, that is sooth,' quod Pandarus; + But, by my trouthe, the king hath sones tweye, 170 + That is to mene, Ector and Troilus, + That certainly, though that I sholde deye, + They been as voyde of vyces, dar I seye, + As any men that liveth under the sonne, + Hir might is wyde y-knowe, and what they conne. 175 + + 26. Of Ector nedeth it nought for to telle; + In al this world ther nis a bettre knight + Than he, that is of worthinesse welle; + And he wel more vertu hath than might. + This knoweth many a wys and worthy wight. 180 + The same prys of Troilus I seye, + God help me so, I knowe not swiche tweye.' + + 27. 'By god,' quod she, 'of Ector that is sooth; + Of Troilus the same thing trowe I; + For dredelees, men tellen that he dooth 185 + In armes day by day so worthily, + And bereth him here at hoom so gentilly + To every wight, that al the prys hath he + Of hem that me were levest preysed be.' + + 28. 'Ye sey right sooth, y-wis,' quod Pandarus; 190 + 'For yesterday, who-so hadde with him been, + He might have wondred up-on Troilus; + For never yet so thikke a swarm of been + Ne fleigh, as Grekes fro him gonne fleen; + And thorugh the feld, in every wightes ere, 195 + Ther nas no cry but "Troilus is there!" + + 29. Now here, now there, he hunted hem so faste, + Ther nas but Grekes blood; and Troilus, + Now hem he hurte, and hem alle doun he caste; + Ay where he wente it was arayed thus: 200 + He was hir deeth, and sheld and lyf for us; + That as that day ther dorste noon with-stonde, + Whyl that he held his blody swerd in honde. + + 30. Therto he is the freendlieste man + Of grete estat, that ever I saw my lyve; 205 + And wher him list, best felawshipe can + To suche as him thinketh able for to thryve.' + And with that word tho Pandarus, as blyve, + He took his leve, and seyde, 'I wol go henne:' + 'Nay, blame have I, myn uncle,' quod she thenne. 210 + + 31. 'What eyleth yow to be thus wery sone, + And namelich of wommen? wol ye so? + Nay, sitteth down; by god, I have to done + With yow, to speke of wisdom er ye go.' + And every wight that was a-boute hem tho, 215 + That herde that, gan fer a-wey to stonde, + Whyl they two hadde al that hem liste in honde. + + 32. Whan that hir tale al brought was to an ende + Of hire estat and of hir governaunce, + Quod Pandarus, 'now is it tyme I wende; 220 + But yet, I seye, aryseth, lat us daunce, + And cast your widwes habit to mischaunce: + What list yow thus your-self to disfigure, + Sith yow is tid thus fair an aventure?' + + 33. 'A! wel bithought! for love of god,' quod she, 225 + 'Shal I not witen what ye mene of this?' + 'No, this thing axeth layser,' tho quod he, + 'And eek me wolde muche greve, y-wis, + If I it tolde, and ye it toke amis. + Yet were it bet my tonge for to stille 230 + Than seye a sooth that were ayeins your wille. + + 34. For, nece, by the goddesse Minerve, + And Iuppiter, that maketh the thonder ringe, + And by the blisful Venus that I serve, + Ye been the womman in this world livinge, 235 + With-oute paramours, to my witinge, + That I best love, and lothest am to greve, + And that ye witen wel your-self, I leve.' + + 35. 'Y-wis, myn uncle,' quod she, 'grant mercy; + Your freendship have I founden ever yit; 240 + I am to no man holden trewely + So muche as yow, and have so litel quit; + And, with the grace of god, emforth my wit, + As in my gilt I shal you never offende; + And if I have er this, I wol amende. 245 + + 36. But, for the love of god, I yow beseche, + As ye ben he that I most love and triste, + Lat be to me your fremde maner speche, + And sey to me, your nece, what yow liste:' + And with that word hir uncle anoon hir kiste, 250 + And seyde, 'gladly, leve nece dere, + Tak it for good that I shal seye yow here.' + + 37. With that she gan hir eyen doun to caste, + And Pandarus to coghe gan a lyte, + And seyde, 'nece, alwey, lo! to the laste, 255 + How-so it be that som men hem delyte + With subtil art hir tales for to endyte, + Yet for al that, in hir entencioun, + Hir tale is al for som conclusioun. + + 38. And sithen thende is every tales strengthe, 260 + And this matere is so bihovely, + What sholde I peynte or drawen it on lengthe + To yow, that been my freend so feithfully?' + And with that word he gan right inwardly + Biholden hir, and loken on hir face, 265 + And seyde, 'on suche a mirour goode grace!' + + 39. Than thoughte he thus, 'if I my tale endyte + Ought hard, or make a proces any whyle, + She shal no savour han ther-in but lyte, + And trowe I wolde hir in my wil bigyle. 270 + For tendre wittes wenen al be wyle + Ther-as they can nat pleynly understonde; + For-thy hir wit to serven wol I fonde'-- + + 40. And loked on hir in a besy wyse, + And she was war that he byheld hir so, 275 + And seyde, 'lord! so faste ye me avyse! + Sey ye me never er now? what sey ye, no?' + 'Yes, yes,' quod he, 'and bet wole er I go; + But, by my trouthe, I thoughte now if ye + Be fortunat, for now men shal it see. 280 + + 41. For to every wight som goodly aventure + Som tyme is shape, if he it can receyven; + And if that he wol take of it no cure, + Whan that it cometh, but wilfully it weyven, + Lo, neither cas nor fortune him deceyven, 285 + But right his verray slouthe and wrecchednesse; + And swich a wight is for to blame, I gesse. + + 42. Good aventure, O bele nece, have ye + Ful lightly founden, and ye conne it take; + And, for the love of god, and eek of me, 290 + Cacche it anoon, lest aventure slake. + What sholde I lenger proces of it make? + Yif me your hond, for in this world is noon, + If that you list, a wight so wel begoon. + + 43. And sith I speke of good entencioun, 295 + As I to yow have told wel here-biforn, + And love as wel your honour and renoun + As creature in al this world y-born; + By alle the othes that I have yow sworn, + And ye be wrooth therfore, or wene I lye, 300 + Ne shal I never seen yow eft with yë. + + 44. Beth nought agast, ne quaketh nat; wher-to? + Ne chaungeth nat for fere so your hewe; + For hardely, the werste of this is do; + And though my tale as now be to yow newe, 305 + Yet trist alwey, ye shal me finde trewe; + And were it thing that me thoughte unsittinge, + To yow nolde I no swiche tales bringe.' + + 45. 'Now, my good eem, for goddes love, I preye,' + Quod she, 'com of, and tel me what it is; 310 + For bothe I am agast what ye wol seye, + And eek me longeth it to wite, y-wis. + For whether it be wel or be amis, + Sey on, lat me not in this fere dwelle:' + 'So wol I doon, now herkneth, I shal telle: 315 + + 46. Now, nece myn, the kinges dere sone, + The goode, wyse, worthy, fresshe, and free, + Which alwey for to do wel is his wone, + The noble Troilus, so loveth thee, + That, bot ye helpe, it wol his bane be. 320 + Lo, here is al, what sholde I more seye? + Doth what yow list, to make him live or deye. + + 47. But if ye lete him deye, I wol sterve; + Have her my trouthe, nece, I nil not lyen; + Al sholde I with this knyf my throte kerve'-- 325 + With that the teres braste out of his yën, + And seyde, 'if that ye doon us bothe dyen, + Thus giltelees, than have ye fisshed faire; + What mende ye, though that we bothe apeyre? + + 48. Allas! he which that is my lord so dere, 330 + That trewe man, that noble gentil knight, + That nought desireth but your freendly chere, + I see him deye, ther he goth up-right, + And hasteth him, with al his fulle might, + For to be slayn, if fortune wol assente; 335 + Allas! that god yow swich a beautee sente! + + 49. If it be so that ye so cruel be, + That of his deeth yow liste nought to recche, + That is so trewe and worthy, as ye see, + No more than of a Iapere or a wrecche, 340 + If ye be swich, your beautee may not strecche + To make amendes of so cruel a dede; + Avysement is good bifore the nede. + + 50. Wo worth the faire gemme vertulees! + Wo worth that herbe also that dooth no bote! 345 + Wo worth that beautee that is routhelees! + Wo worth that wight that tret ech under fote! + And ye, that been of beautee crop and rote, + If therwith-al in you ther be no routhe, + Than is it harm ye liven, by my trouthe! 350 + + 51. And also thenk wel, that this is no gaude; + For me were lever, thou and I and he + Were hanged, than I sholde been his baude, + As heyghe, as men mighte on us alle y-see: + I am thyn eem, the shame were to me, 355 + As wel as thee, if that I sholde assente, + Thorugh myn abet, that he thyn honour shente. + + 52. Now understond, for I yow nought requere, + To binde yow to him thorugh no beheste, + But only that ye make him bettre chere 360 + Than ye han doon er this, and more feste, + So that his lyf be saved, at the leste: + This al and som, and playnly our entente; + God helpe me so, I never other mente. + + 53. Lo, this request is not but skile, y-wis, 365 + Ne doute of reson, pardee, is ther noon. + I sette the worste that ye dredden this, + Men wolden wondren seen him come or goon: + Ther-ayeins answere I thus a-noon, + That every wight, but he be fool of kinde, 370 + Wol deme it love of freendship in his minde. + + 54. What? who wol deme, though he see a man + To temple go, that he the images eteth? + Thenk eek how wel and wysly that he can + Governe him-self, that he no-thing foryeteth, 375 + That, wher he cometh, he prys and thank him geteth; + And eek ther-to, he shal come here so selde, + What fors were it though al the toun behelde? + + 55. Swich love of freendes regneth al this toun; + And wrye yow in that mantel ever-mo; 380 + And, god so wis be my savacioun, + As I have seyd, your beste is to do so. + But alwey, goode nece, to stinte his wo, + So lat your daunger sucred ben a lyte, + That of his deeth ye be nought for to wyte.' 385 + + 56. Criseyde, which that herde him in this wyse, + Thoughte, 'I shal fele what he meneth, y-wis.' + 'Now, eem,' quod she, 'what wolde ye devyse, + What is your reed I sholde doon of this?' + 'That is wel seyd,' quod he, 'certayn, best is 390 + That ye him love ayein for his lovinge, + As love for love is skilful guerdoninge. + + 57. Thenk eek, how elde wasteth every houre + In eche of yow a party of beautee; + And therfore, er that age thee devoure, 395 + Go love, for, olde, ther wol no wight of thee. + Lat this proverbe a lore un-to yow be; + "To late y-war, quod Beautee, whan it paste;" + And elde daunteth daunger at the laste. + + 58. The kinges fool is woned to cryen loude, 400 + Whan that him thinketh a womman bereth hir hyë, + "So longe mote ye live, and alle proude, + Til crowes feet be growe under your yë, + And sende yow thanne a mirour in to pryë + In whiche ye may see your face a-morwe!" 405 + Nece, I bidde wisshe yow no more sorwe.' + + 59. With this he stente, and caste adoun the heed, + And she bigan to breste a-wepe anoon. + And seyde, 'allas, for wo! why nere I deed? + For of this world the feith is al agoon! 410 + Allas! what sholden straunge to me doon, + When he, that for my beste freend I wende, + Ret me to love, and sholde it me defende? + + 60. Allas! I wolde han trusted, doutelees, + That if that I, thurgh my disaventure, 415 + Had loved other him or Achilles, + Ector, or any mannes creature, + Ye nolde han had no mercy ne mesure + On me, but alwey had me in repreve; + This false world, allas! who may it leve? 420 + + 61. What? is this al the Ioye and al the feste? + Is this your reed, is this my blisful cas? + Is this the verray mede of your beheste? + Is al this peynted proces seyd, allas! + Right for this fyn? O lady myn, Pallas! 425 + Thou in this dredful cas for me purveye; + For so astonied am I that I deye!' + + 62. With that she gan ful sorwfully to syke; + 'A! may it be no bet?' quod Pandarus; + 'By god, I shal no-more com here this wyke, 430 + And god to-forn, that am mistrusted thus; + I see ful wel that ye sette lyte of us, + Or of our deeth! Allas! I woful wrecche! + Mighte he yet live, of me is nought to recche. + + 63. O cruel god, O dispitouse Marte, 435 + O Furies three of helle, on yow I crye! + So lat me never out of this hous departe, + If that I mente harm or vilanye! + But sith I see my lord mot nedes dye, + And I with him, here I me shryve, and seye 440 + That wikkedly ye doon us bothe deye. + + 64. But sith it lyketh yow that I be deed, + By Neptunus, that god is of the see, + Fro this forth shal I never eten breed + Til I myn owene herte blood may see; 445 + For certayn, I wole deye as sone as he'-- + And up he sterte, and on his wey he raughte, + Til she agayn him by the lappe caughte. + + 65. Criseyde, which that wel neigh starf for fere, + So as she was the ferfulleste wight 450 + That mighte be, and herde eek with hir ere, + And saw the sorwful ernest of the knight, + And in his preyere eek saw noon unright, + And for the harm that mighte eek fallen more, + She gan to rewe, and dradde hir wonder sore; 455 + + 66. And thoughte thus, 'unhappes fallen thikke + Alday for love, and in swich maner cas, + As men ben cruel in hem-self and wikke; + And if this man slee here him-self, allas! + In my presence, it wol be no solas. 460 + What men wolde of hit deme I can nat seye; + It nedeth me ful sleyly for to pleye.' + + 67. And with a sorwful syk she seyde thrye, + 'A! lord! what me is tid a sory chaunce! + For myn estat now lyth in Iupartye, 465 + And eek myn emes lyf lyth in balaunce; + But nathelees, with goddes governaunce, + I shal so doon, myn honour shal I kepe, + And eek his lyf;' and stinte for to wepe. + + 68. 'Of harmes two, the lesse is for to chese; 470 + Yet have I lever maken him good chere + In honour, than myn emes lyf to lese; + Ye seyn, ye no-thing elles me requere?' + 'No, wis,' quod he, 'myn owene nece dere.' + 'Now wel,' quod she, 'and I wol doon my peyne; 475 + I shal myn herte ayeins my lust constreyne, + + 69. But that I nil not holden him in honde, + Ne love a man, ne can I not, ne may + Ayeins my wil; but elles wol I fonde, + Myn honour sauf, plese him fro day to day; 480 + Ther-to nolde I nought ones have seyd nay, + But that I dredde, as in my fantasye; + But cesse cause, ay cesseth maladye. + + 70. And here I make a protestacioun, + That in this proces if ye depper go, 485 + That certaynly, for no savacioun + Of yow, though that ye sterve bothe two, + Though al the world on o day be my fo, + Ne shal I never on him han other routhe.'-- + 'I graunte wel,' quod Pandare, 'by my trouthe. 490 + + 71. But may I truste wel ther-to,' quod he, + 'That, of this thing that ye han hight me here, + Ye wol it holden trewly un-to me?' + 'Ye, doutelees,' quod she, 'myn uncle dere.' + 'Ne that I shal han cause in this matere,' 495 + Quod he, 'to pleyne, or after yow to preche?' + 'Why, no, pardee; what nedeth more speche?' + + 72. Tho fillen they in othere tales glade, + Til at the laste, 'O good eem,' quod she tho, + 'For love of god, which that us bothe made, 500 + Tel me how first ye wisten of his wo: + Wot noon of hit but ye?' He seyde, 'no.' + 'Can he wel speke of love?' quod she, 'I preye, + Tel me, for I the bet me shal purveye.' + + 73. Tho Pandarus a litel gan to smyle, 505 + And seyde, 'by my trouthe, I shal yow telle. + This other day, nought gon ful longe whyle, + In-with the paleys-gardyn, by a welle, + Gan he and I wel half a day to dwelle, + Right for to speken of an ordenaunce, 510 + How we the Grekes mighte disavaunce. + + 74. Sone after that bigonne we to lepe, + And casten with our dartes to and fro, + Til at the laste he seyde, he wolde slepe, + And on the gres a-doun he leyde him tho; 515 + And I after gan rome to and fro + Til that I herde, as that I welk allone, + How he bigan ful wofully to grone. + + 75. Tho gan I stalke him softely bihinde, + And sikerly, the sothe for to seyne, 520 + As I can clepe ayein now to my minde, + Right thus to Love he gan him for to pleyne; + He seyde, "lord! have routhe up-on my peyne, + Al have I been rebel in myn entente; + Now, _mea culpa_, lord! I me repente. 525 + + 76. O god, that at thy disposicioun + Ledest the fyn, by Iuste purveyaunce, + Of every wight, my lowe confessioun + Accepte in gree, and send me swich penaunce + As lyketh thee, but from desesperaunce, 530 + That may my goost departe awey fro thee, + Thou be my sheld, for thy benignitee. + + 77. For certes, lord, so sore hath she me wounded + That stod in blak, with loking of hir yën, + That to myn hertes botme it is y-sounded, 535 + Thorugh which I woot that I mot nedes dyen; + This is the worste, I dar me not bi-wryen; + And wel the hotter been the gledes rede, + That men hem wryen with asshen pale and dede." + + 78. With that he smoot his heed adoun anoon, 540 + And gan to motre, I noot what, trewely. + And I with that gan stille awey to goon, + And leet ther-of as no-thing wist hadde I, + And come ayein anoon and stood him by, + And seyde, "a-wake, ye slepen al to longe; 545 + It semeth nat that love dooth yow longe, + + 79. That slepen so that no man may yow wake. + Who sey ever or this so dul a man?" + "Ye, freend," quod he, "do ye your hedes ake + For love, and lat me liven as I can." 550 + But though that he for wo was pale and wan, + Yet made he tho as fresh a contenaunce, + As though he shulde have led the newe daunce. + + 80. This passed forth, til now, this other day, + It fel that I com roming al allone 555 + Into his chaumbre, and fond how that he lay + Up-on his bed; but man so sore grone + Ne herde I never, and what that was his mone, + Ne wiste I nought; for, as I was cominge, + Al sodeynly he lefte his compleyninge. 560 + + 81. Of which I took somwhat suspecioun, + And neer I com, and fond he wepte sore; + And god so wis be my savacioun, + As never of thing hadde I no routhe more. + For neither with engyn, ne with no lore, 565 + Unethes mighte I fro the deeth him kepe; + That yet fele I myn herte for him wepe. + + 82. And god wot, never, sith that I was born, + Was I so bisy no man for to preche, + Ne never was to wight so depe y-sworn, 570 + Or he me tolde who mighte been his leche. + But now to yow rehersen al his speche, + Or alle his woful wordes for to soune, + Ne bid me not, but ye wol see me swowne. + + 83. But for to save his lyf, and elles nought, 575 + And to non harm of yow, thus am I driven; + And for the love of god that us hath wrought, + Swich chere him dooth, that he and I may liven. + Now have I plat to yow myn herte schriven; + And sin ye woot that myn entente is clene, 580 + Tak hede ther-of, for I non yvel mene. + + 84. And right good thrift, I pray to god, have ye, + That han swich oon y-caught with-oute net; + And be ye wys, as ye ben fair to see, + Wel in the ring than is the ruby set. 585 + Ther were never two so wel y-met, + Whan ye ben his al hool, as he is youre: + Ther mighty god yet graunte us see that houre!' + + 85. 'Nay, therof spak I not, a, ha!' quod she, + 'As helpe me god, ye shenden every deel!' 590 + 'O mercy, dere nece,' anoon quod he, + 'What-so I spak, I mente nought but weel, + By Mars the god, that helmed is of steel; + Now beth nought wrooth, my blood, my nece dere.' + 'Now wel,' quod she, 'foryeven be it here!' 595 + + 86. With this he took his leve, and hoom he wente; + And lord, how he was glad and wel bigoon! + Criseyde aroos, no lenger she ne stente, + But straught in-to hir closet wente anoon, + And sette here doun as stille as any stoon, 600 + And every word gan up and doun to winde, + That he hadde seyd, as it com hir to minde; + + 87. And wex somdel astonied in hir thought, + Right for the newe cas; but whan that she + Was ful avysed, tho fond she right nought 605 + Of peril, why she oughte afered be. + For man may love, of possibilitee, + A womman so, his herte may to-breste, + And she nought love ayein, but-if hir leste. + + 88. But as she sat allone and thoughte thus, 610 + Thascry aroos at skarmish al with-oute, + And men cryde in the strete, 'see, Troilus + Hath right now put to flight the Grekes route!' + With that gan al hir meynee for to shoute, + 'A! go we see, caste up the latis wyde; 615 + For thurgh this strete he moot to palays ryde; + + 89. For other wey is fro the yate noon + Of Dardanus, ther open is the cheyne.' + With that com he and al his folk anoon + An esy pas rydinge, in routes tweyne, 620 + Right as his happy day was, sooth to seyne, + For which, men say, may nought disturbed be + That shal bityden of necessitee. + + 90. This Troilus sat on his baye stede, + Al armed, save his heed, ful richely, 625 + And wounded was his hors, and gan to blede, + On whiche he rood a pas, ful softely; + But swych a knightly sighte, trewely, + As was on him, was nought, with-outen faile, + To loke on Mars, that god is of batayle. 630 + + 91. So lyk a man of armes and a knight + He was to seen, fulfild of heigh prowesse; + For bothe he hadde a body and a might + To doon that thing, as wel as hardinesse; + And eek to seen him in his gere him dresse, 635 + So fresh, so yong, so weldy semed he, + It was an heven up-on him for to see. + + 92. His helm to-hewen was in twenty places, + That by a tissew heng, his bak bihinde, + His sheld to-dasshed was with swerdes and maces, 640 + In which men mighte many an arwe finde + That thirled hadde horn and nerf and rinde; + And ay the peple cryde, 'here cometh our Ioye, + And, next his brother, holdere up of Troye!' + + 93. For which he wex a litel reed for shame, 645 + Whan he the peple up-on him herde cryen, + That to biholde it was a noble game, + How sobreliche he caste doun his yën. + Cryseyda gan al his chere aspyen, + And leet so softe it in hir herte sinke, 650 + That to hir-self she seyde, 'who yaf me drinke?' + + 94. For of hir owene thought she wex al reed, + Remembringe hir right thus, 'lo, this is he + Which that myn uncle swereth he moot be deed, + But I on him have mercy and pitee;' 655 + And with that thought, for pure a-shamed, she + Gan in hir heed to pulle, and that as faste, + Whyl he and al the peple for-by paste, + + 95. And gan to caste and rollen up and doun + With-inne hir thought his excellent prowesse, 660 + And his estat, and also his renoun, + His wit, his shap, and eek his gentillesse; + But most hir favour was, for his distresse + Was al for hir, and thoughte it was a routhe + To sleen swich oon, if that he mente trouthe. 665 + + 96. Now mighte som envyous Iangle thus, + 'This was a sodeyn love, how mighte it be + That she so lightly lovede Troilus + Right for the firste sighte; ye, pardee?' + Now who-so seyth so, mote he never thee! 670 + For every thing, a ginning hath it nede + Er al be wrought, with-outen any drede. + + 97. For I sey nought that she so sodeynly + Yaf him hir love, but that she gan enclyne + To lyke him first, and I have told yow why; 675 + And after that, his manhod and his pyne + Made love with-inne hir for to myne, + For which, by proces and by good servyse, + He gat hir love, and in no sodeyn wyse. + + 98. And also blisful Venus, wel arayed, 680 + Sat in hir seventhe hous of hevene tho, + Disposed wel, and with aspectes payed, + To helpen sely Troilus of his wo. + And, sooth to seyn, she nas nat al a fo + To Troilus in his nativitee; 685 + God woot that wel the soner spedde he. + + 99. Now lat us stinte of Troilus a throwe, + That rydeth forth, and lat us tourne faste + Un-to Criseyde, that heng hir heed ful lowe, + Ther-as she sat allone, and gan to caste 690 + Wher-on she wolde apoynte hir at the laste, + If it so were hir eem ne wolde cesse, + For Troilus, up-on hir for to presse. + + 100. And, lord! so she gan in hir thought argue + In this matere of which I have yow told, 695 + And what to doon best were, and what eschue, + That plyted she ful ofte in many fold. + Now was hir herte warm, now was it cold, + And what she thoughte somwhat shal I wryte, + As to myn auctor listeth for to endyte. 700 + + 101. She thoughte wel, that Troilus persone + She knew by sighte and eek his gentillesse, + And thus she seyde, 'al were it nought to done, + To graunte him love, yet, for his worthinesse, + It were honour, with pley and with gladnesse, 705 + In honestee, with swich a lord to dele, + For myn estat, and also for his hele. + + 102. Eek, wel wot I my kinges sone is he; + And sith he hath to see me swich delyt, + If I wolde utterly his sighte flee, 710 + Paraunter he mighte have me in dispyt, + Thurgh which I mighte stonde in worse plyt; + Now were I wys, me hate to purchace, + With-outen nede, ther I may stonde in grace? + + 103. In every thing, I woot, ther lyth mesure. 715 + For though a man forbede dronkenesse, + He nought for-bet that every creature + Be drinkelees for alwey, as I gesse; + Eek sith I woot for me is his distresse, + I ne oughte not for that thing him despyse, 720 + Sith it is so, he meneth in good wyse. + + 104. And eek I knowe, of longe tyme agoon, + His thewes goode, and that he is not nyce. + Ne avauntour, seyth men, certein, is he noon; + To wys is he to do so gret a vyce; 725 + Ne als I nel him never so cheryce, + That he may make avaunt, by Iuste cause; + He shal me never binde in swiche a clause. + + 105. Now set a cas, the hardest is, y-wis, + Men mighten deme that he loveth me: 730 + What dishonour were it un-to me, this? + May I him lette of that? why nay, pardee! + I knowe also, and alday here and see, + Men loven wommen al this toun aboute; + Be they the wers? why, nay, with-outen doute. 735 + + 106. I thenk eek how he able is for to have + Of al this noble toun the thriftieste, + To been his love, so she hir honour save; + For out and out he is the worthieste, + Save only Ector, which that is the beste. 740 + And yet his lyf al lyth now in my cure, + But swich is love, and eek myn aventure. + + 107. Ne me to love, a wonder is it nought; + For wel wot I my-self, so god me spede, + Al wolde I that noon wistë of this thought, 745 + I am oon the fayreste, out of drede, + And goodlieste, who-so taketh hede; + And so men seyn in al the toun of Troye. + What wonder is it though he of me have Ioye? + + 108. I am myn owene woman, wel at ese, 750 + I thank it god, as after myn estat; + Right yong, and stonde unteyd in lusty lese, + With-outen Ialousye or swich debat; + Shal noon housbonde seyn to me "chekmat!" + For either they ben ful of Ialousye, 755 + Or maisterful, or loven novelrye. + + 109. What shal I doon? to what fyn live I thus? + Shal I nat loven, in cas if that me leste? + What, _par dieux_! I am nought religious! + And though that I myn herte sette at reste 760 + Upon this knight, that is the worthieste, + And kepe alwey myn honour and my name, + By alle right, it may do me no shame.' + + 110. But right as whan the sonne shyneth brighte, + In March, that chaungeth ofte tyme his face, 765 + And that a cloud is put with wind to flighte + Which over-sprat the sonne as for a space, + A cloudy thought gan thorugh hir soule pace, + That over-spradde hir brighte thoughtes alle, + So that for fere almost she gan to falle. 770 + + 111. That thought was this, 'allas! sin I am free, + Sholde I now love, and putte in Iupartye + My sikernesse, and thrallen libertee? + Allas! how dorste I thenken that folye? + May I nought wel in other folk aspye 775 + Hir dredful Ioye, hir constreynt, and hir peyne? + Ther loveth noon, that she nath why to pleyne. + + 112. For love is yet the moste stormy lyf, + Right of him-self, that ever was bigonne; + For ever som mistrust, or nyce stryf, 780 + Ther is in love, som cloud is over the sonne: + Ther-to we wrecched wommen no-thing conne, + Whan us is wo, but wepe and sitte and thinke; + Our wreche is this, our owene wo to drinke. + + 113. Also these wikked tonges been so prest 785 + To speke us harm, eek men be so untrewe, + That, right anoon as cessed is hir lest, + So cesseth love, and forth to love a newe: + But harm y-doon, is doon, who-so it rewe. + For though these men for love hem first to-rende, 790 + Ful sharp biginning breketh ofte at ende. + + 114. How ofte tyme hath it y-knowen be, + The treson, that to womman hath be do? + To what fyn is swich love, I can nat see, + Or wher bicomth it, whan it is ago; 795 + Ther is no wight that woot, I trowe so, + Wher it bycomth; lo, no wight on it sporneth; + That erst was no-thing, in-to nought it torneth. + + 115. How bisy, if I love, eek moste I be + To plesen hem that Iangle of love, and demen, 800 + And coye hem, that they sey non harm of me? + For though ther be no cause, yet hem semen + Al be for harm that folk hir freendes quemen; + And who may stoppen every wikked tonge, + Or soun of belles whyl that they be ronge?' 805 + + 116. And after that, hir thought bigan to clere, + And seyde, 'he which that no-thing under-taketh, + No-thing ne acheveth, be him looth or dere.' + And with an other thought hir herte quaketh; + Than slepeth hope, and after dreed awaketh; 810 + Now hoot, now cold; but thus, bi-twixen tweye, + She rist hir up, and went hir for to pleye. + + 117. Adoun the steyre anoon-right tho she wente + In-to the gardin, with hir neces three, + And up and doun ther made many a wente, 815 + Flexippe, she, Tharbe, and Antigone, + To pleyen, that it Ioye was to see; + And othere of hir wommen, a gret route, + Hir folwede in the gardin al aboute. + + 118. This yerd was large, and rayled alle the aleyes, 820 + And shadwed wel with blosmy bowes grene, + And benched newe, and sonded alle the weyes, + In which she walketh arm in arm bi-twene; + Til at the laste Antigone the shene + Gan on a Troian song to singe clere, 825 + That it an heven was hir voys to here.-- + + 119. She seyde, 'O love, to whom I have and shal + Ben humble subgit, trewe in myn entente, + As I best can, to yow, lord, yeve ich al + For ever-more, myn hertes lust to rente. 830 + For never yet thy grace no wight sente + So blisful cause as me, my lyf to lede + In alle Ioye and seurtee, out of drede. + + 120. Ye, blisful god, han me so wel beset + In love, y-wis, that al that bereth lyf 835 + Imaginen ne cowde how to ben bet; + For, lord, with-outen Ialousye or stryf, + I love oon which that is most ententyf + To serven wel, unwery or unfeyned, + That ever was, and leest with harm distreyned. 840 + + 121. As he that is the welle of worthinesse, + Of trouthe ground, mirour of goodliheed, + Of wit Appollo, stoon of sikernesse, + Of vertu rote, of lust findere and heed, + Thurgh which is alle sorwe fro me deed, 845 + Y-wis, I love him best, so doth he me; + Now good thrift have he, wher-so that he be! + + 122. Whom sholde I thanke but yow, god of love, + Of al this blisse, in which to bathe I ginne? + And thanked be ye, lord, for that I love! 850 + This is the righte lyf that I am inne, + To flemen alle manere vyce and sinne: + This doth me so to vertu for to entende, + That day by day I in my wil amende. + + 123. And who-so seyth that for to love is vyce, 855 + Or thraldom, though he fele in it distressse, + He outher is envyous, or right nyce, + Or is unmighty, for his shrewednesse, + To loven; for swich maner folk, I gesse, + Defamen love, as no-thing of him knowe; 860 + They speken, but they bente never his bowe. + + 124. What is the sonne wers, of kinde righte, + Though that a man, for feblesse of his yën, + May nought endure on it to see for brighte? + Or love the wers, though wrecches on it cryen? 865 + No wele is worth, that may no sorwe dryen. + And for-thy, who that hath an heed of verre, + Fro cast of stones war him in the werre! + + 125. But I with al myn herte and al my might, + As I have seyd, wol love, un-to my laste, 870 + My dere herte, and al myn owene knight, + In which myn herte growen is so faste, + And his in me, that it shal ever laste. + Al dredde I first to love him to biginne, + Now woot I wel, ther is no peril inne.' 875 + + 126. And of hir song right with that word she stente, + And therwith-al, 'now, nece,' quod Criseyde, + 'Who made this song with so good entente?' + Antigone answerde anoon, and seyde, + 'Ma dame, y-wis, the goodlieste mayde 880 + Of greet estat in al the toun of Troye; + And let hir lyf in most honour and Ioye.' + + 127. 'Forsothe, so it semeth by hir song,' + Quod tho Criseyde, and gan ther-with to syke, + And seyde, 'lord, is there swich blisse among 885 + These lovers, as they conne faire endyte?' + 'Ye, wis,' quod fresh Antigone the whyte, + 'For alle the folk that han or been on lyve + Ne conne wel the blisse of love discryve. + + 128. But wene ye that every wrecche woot 890 + The parfit blisse of love? why, nay, y-wis; + They wenen al be love, if oon be hoot; + Do wey, do wey, they woot no-thing of this! + Men mosten axe at seyntes if it is + Aught fair in hevene; why? for they conne telle; 895 + And axen fendes, is it foul in helle.' + + 129. Criseyde un-to that purpos nought answerde, + But seyde, 'y-wis, it wol be night as faste.' + But every word which that she of hir herde, + She gan to prenten in hir herte faste; 900 + And ay gan love hir lasse for to agaste + Than it dide erst, and sinken in hir herte, + That she wex somwhat able to converte. + + 130. The dayes honour, and the hevenes yë, + The nightes fo, al this clepe I the sonne, 905 + Gan westren faste, and dounward for to wrye, + As he that hadde his dayes cours y-ronne; + And whyte thinges wexen dimme and donne + For lak of light, and sterres for to appere, + That she and al hir folk in wente y-fere. 910 + + 131. So whan it lyked hir to goon to reste, + And voyded weren they that voyden oughte, + She seyde, that to slepe wel hir leste. + Hir wommen sone til hir bed hir broughte. + Whan al was hust, than lay she stille, and thoughte 915 + Of al this thing the manere and the wyse. + Reherce it nedeth nought, for ye ben wyse. + + 132. A nightingale, upon a cedre grene, + Under the chambre-wal ther as she lay, + Ful loude sang ayein the mone shene, 920 + Paraunter, in his briddes wyse, a lay + Of love, that made hir herte fresh and gay. + That herkned she so longe in good entente, + Til at the laste the dede sleep hir hente. + + 133. And, as she sleep, anoon-right tho hir mette, 925 + How that an egle, fethered whyt as boon, + Under hir brest his longe clawes sette, + And out hir herte he rente, and that a-noon, + And dide his herte in-to hir brest to goon, + Of which she nought agroos ne no-thing smerte, 930 + And forth he fleigh, with herte left for herte. + + 134. Now lat hir slepe, and we our tales holde + Of Troilus, that is to paleys riden, + Fro the scarmuch, of the whiche I tolde, + And in his chambre sit, and hath abiden 935 + Til two or three of his messages yeden + For Pandarus, and soughten him ful faste, + Til they him founde, and broughte him at the laste. + + 135. This Pandarus com leping in at ones + And seide thus, 'who hath ben wel y-bete 940 + To-day with swerdes, and with slinge-stones, + But Troilus, that hath caught him an hete?' + And gan to Iape, and seyde, 'lord, so ye swete! + But rys, and lat us soupe and go to reste;' + And he answerde him, 'do we as thee leste.' 945 + + 136. With al the haste goodly that they mighte, + They spedde hem fro the souper un-to bedde; + And every wight out at the dore him dighte, + And wher him list upon his wey he spedde; + But Troilus, that thoughte his herte bledde 950 + For wo, til that he herde som tydinge, + He seyde, 'freend, shal I now wepe or singe?' + + 137. Quod Pandarus, 'ly stille, and lat me slepe, + And don thyn hood, thy nedes spedde be; + And chese, if thou wolt singe or daunce or lepe; 955 + At shorte wordes, thow shall trowe me.-- + Sire, my nece wol do wel by thee, + And love thee best, by god and by my trouthe, + But lak of pursuit make it in thy slouthe. + + 138. For thus ferforth I have thy work bigonne, 960 + Fro day to day, til this day, by the morwe, + Hir love of freendship have I to thee wonne, + And also hath she leyd hir feyth to borwe. + Algate a foot is hameled of thy sorwe.' + What sholde I lenger sermon of it holde? 965 + As ye han herd bifore, al he him tolde. + + 139. But right as floures, thorugh the colde of night + Y-closed, stoupen on hir stalkes lowe, + Redressen hem a-yein the sonne bright, + And spreden on hir kinde cours by rowe; 970 + Right so gan tho his eyen up to throwe + This Troilus, and seyde, 'O Venus dere, + Thy might, thy grace, y-heried be it here!' + + 140. And to Pandare he held up bothe his hondes, + And seyde, 'lord, al thyn be that I have; 975 + For I am hool, al brosten been my bondes; + A thousand Troians who so that me yave, + Eche after other, god so wis me save, + Ne mighte me so gladen; lo, myn herte, + It spredeth so for Ioye, it wol to-sterte! 980 + + 141. But lord, how shal I doon, how shal I liven? + Whan shal I next my dere herte see? + How shal this longe tyme a-wey be driven, + Til that thou be ayein at hir fro me? + Thou mayst answere, "a-byd, a-byd," but he 985 + That hangeth by the nekke, sooth to seyne, + In grete disese abydeth for the peyne.' + + 142. 'Al esily, now, for the love of Marte,' + Quod Pandarus, 'for every thing hath tyme; + So longe abyd til that the night departe; 990 + For al so siker as thow lyst here by me, + And god toforn, I wol be there at pryme, + And for thy werk somwhat as I shal seye, + Or on som other wight this charge leye. + + 143. For pardee, god wot, I have ever yit 995 + Ben redy thee to serve, and to this night + Have I nought fayned, but emforth my wit + Don al thy lust, and shal with al my might. + Do now as I shal seye, and fare a-right; + And if thou nilt, wyte al thy-self thy care, 1000 + On me is nought along thyn yvel fare. + + 144. I woot wel that thow wyser art than I + A thousand fold, but if I were as thou, + God helpe me so, as I wolde outrely, + Right of myn owene hond, wryte hir right now 1005 + A lettre, in which I wolde hir tellen how + I ferde amis, and hir beseche of routhe; + Now help thy-self, and leve it not for slouthe. + + 145. And I my-self shal ther-with to hir goon; + And whan thou wost that I am with hir there, 1010 + Worth thou up-on a courser right anoon, + Ye, hardily, right in thy beste gere, + And ryd forth by the place, as nought ne were, + And thou shalt finde us, if I may, sittinge + At som windowe, in-to the strete lokinge. 1015 + + 146. And if thee list, than maystow us saluwe, + And up-on me makë thy contenaunce; + But, by thy lyf, be war and faste eschuwe + To tarien ought, god shilde us fro mischaunce! + Ryd forth thy wey, and hold thy governaunce; 1020 + And we shal speke of thee som-what, I trowe, + Whan thou art goon, to do thyne eres glowe! + + 147. Touching thy lettre, thou art wys y-nough, + I woot thow nilt it digneliche endyte; + As make it with thise argumentes tough; 1025 + Ne scrivenish or craftily thou it wryte; + Beblotte it with thy teres eek a lyte; + And if thou wryte a goodly word al softe, + Though it be good, reherce it not to ofte. + + 148. For though the beste harpour upon lyve 1030 + Wolde on the beste souned Ioly harpe + That ever was, with alle his fingres fyve, + Touche ay o streng, or ay o werbul harpe, + Were his nayles poynted never so sharpe, + It shulde maken every wight to dulle, 1035 + To here his glee, and of his strokes fulle. + + 149. Ne Iompre eek no discordaunt thing y-fere, + As thus, to usen termes of phisyk; + In loves termes, hold of thy matere + The forme alwey, and do that it be lyk; 1040 + For if a peyntour wolde peynte a pyk + With asses feet, and hede it as an ape, + It cordeth nought; so nere it but a Iape.' + + 150. This counseyl lyked wel to Troilus; + But, as a dreedful lover, he seyde this:-- 1045 + 'Allas, my dere brother Pandarus, + I am ashamed for to wryte, y-wis, + Lest of myn innocence I seyde a-mis, + Or that she nolde it for despyt receyve; + Thanne were I deed, ther mighte it no-thing weyve.' 1050 + + 151. To that Pandare answerde, 'if thee lest, + Do that I seye, and lat me therwith goon; + For by that lord that formed est and west, + I hope of it to bringe answere anoon + Right of hir hond, and if that thou nilt noon, 1055 + Lat be; and sory mote he been his lyve, + Ayeins thy lust that helpeth thee to thryve.' + + 152. Quod Troilus, '_Depardieux_, I assente; + Sin that thee list, I will aryse and wryte; + And blisful god preye ich, with good entente, 1060 + The vyage, and the lettre I shal endyte, + So spede it; and thou, Minerva, the whyte, + Yif thou me wit my lettre to devyse:' + And sette him doun, and wroot right in this wyse.-- + + 153. First he gan hir his righte lady calle, 1065 + His hertes lyf, his lust, his sorwes leche, + His blisse, and eek this othere termes alle, + That in swich cas these loveres alle seche; + And in ful humble wyse, as in his speche, + He gan him recomaunde un-to hir grace; 1070 + To telle al how, it axeth muchel space. + + 154. And after this, ful lowly he hir prayde + To be nought wrooth, though he, of his folye, + So hardy was to hir to wryte, and seyde, + That love it made, or elles moste he dye, 1075 + And pitously gan mercy for to crye; + And after that he seyde, and ley ful loude, + Him-self was litel worth, and lesse he coude; + + 155. And that she sholde han his conning excused, + That litel was, and eek he dredde hir so, 1080 + And his unworthinesse he ay acused; + And after that, than gan he telle his wo; + But that was endeles, with-outen ho; + And seyde, he wolde in trouthe alwey him holde;-- + And radde it over, and gan the lettre folde. 1085 + + 156. And with his salte teres gan he bathe + The ruby in his signet, and it sette + Upon the wex deliverliche and rathe; + Ther-with a thousand tymes, er he lette, + He kiste tho the lettre that he shette, 1090 + And seyde, 'lettre, a blisful destenee + Thee shapen is, my lady shal thee see.' + + 157. This Pandare took the lettre, and that by tyme + A-morwe, and to his neces paleys sterte, + And faste he swoor, that it was passed pryme, 1095 + And gan to Iape, and seyde, 'y-wis, myn herte, + So fresh it is, al-though it sore smerte, + I may not slepe never a Mayes morwe; + I have a Ioly wo, a lusty sorwe.' + + 158. Criseyde, whan that she hir uncle herde, 1100 + With dreedful herte, and desirous to here + The cause of his cominge, thus answerde, + 'Now by your feyth, myn uncle,' quod she, 'dere, + What maner windes gydeth yow now here? + Tel us your Ioly wo and your penaunce, 1105 + How ferforth be ye put in loves daunce.' + + 159. 'By god,' quod he, 'I hoppe alwey bihinde!' + And she to-laugh, it thoughte hir herte breste. + Quod Pandarus, 'loke alwey that ye finde + Game in myn hood, but herkneth, if yow leste; 1110 + Ther is right now come in-to toune a geste, + A Greek espye, and telleth newe thinges, + For which come I to telle yow tydinges. + + 160. Into the gardin go we, and we shal here, + Al prevely, of this a long sermoun.' 1115 + With that they wenten arm in arm y-fere + In-to the gardin from the chaumbre doun. + And whan that he so fer was that the soun + Of that he speke, no man here mighte, + He seyde hir thus, and out the lettre plighte, 1120 + + 161. 'Lo, he that is al hoolly youres free + Him recomaundeth lowly to your grace, + And sent to you this lettre here by me; + Avyseth you on it, whan ye han space, + And of som goodly answere yow purchace; 1125 + Or, helpe me god, so pleynly for to seyne, + He may not longe liven for his peyne.' + + 162. Ful dredfully tho gan she stonde stille, + And took it nought, but al hir humble chere + Gan for to chaunge, and seyde, 'scrit ne bille, 1130 + For love of god, that toucheth swich matere, + Ne bring me noon; and also, uncle dere, + To myn estat have more reward, I preye, + Than to his lust; what sholde I more seye? + + 163. And loketh now if this be resonable, 1135 + And letteth nought, for favour ne for slouthe, + To seyn a sooth; now were it covenable + To myn estat, by god, and by your trouthe, + To taken it, or to han of him routhe, + In harming of my-self or in repreve? 1140 + Ber it a-yein, for him that ye on leve!' + + 164. This Pandarus gan on hir for to stare, + And seyde, 'now is this the grettest wonder + That ever I sey! lat be this nyce fare! + To deethe mote I smiten be with thonder, 1145 + If, for the citee which that stondeth yonder, + Wolde I a lettre un-to yow bringe or take + To harm of yow; what list yow thus it make? + + 165. But thus ye faren, wel neigh alle and some, + That he that most desireth yow to serve, 1150 + Of him ye recche leest wher he bicome, + And whether that he live or elles sterve. + But for al that that ever I may deserve, + Refuse it nought,' quod he, and hente hir faste, + And in hir bosom the lettre doun he thraste, 1155 + + 166. And seyde hir, 'now cast it away anoon, + That folk may seen and gauren on us tweye.' + Quod she, 'I can abyde til they be goon,' + And gan to smyle, and seyde him, 'eem, I preye, + Swich answere as yow list your-self purveye, 1160 + For trewely I nil no lettre wryte.' + 'No? than wol I,' quod he, 'so ye endyte.' + + 167. Therwith she lough, and seyde, 'go we dyne.' + And he gan at him-self to iape faste, + And seyde, 'nece, I have so greet a pyne 1165 + For love, that every other day I faste'-- + And gan his beste Iapes forth to caste; + And made hir so to laughe at his folye, + That she for laughter wende for to dye. + + 168. And whan that she was comen in-to halle, 1170 + 'Now, eem,' quod she, 'we wol go dyne anoon;' + And gan some of hir women to hir calle, + And streyght in-to hir chaumbre gan she goon; + But of hir besinesses, this was oon + A-monges othere thinges, out of drede, 1175 + Ful prively this lettre for to rede; + + 169. Avysed word by word in every lyne, + And fond no lak, she thoughte he coude good; + And up it putte, and went hir in to dyne. + And Pandarus, that in a study stood, 1180 + Er he was war, she took him by the hood, + And seyde, 'ye were caught er that ye wiste;' + 'I vouche sauf,' quod he, 'do what yow liste.' + + 170. Tho wesshen they, and sette hem doun and ete; + And after noon ful sleyly Pandarus 1185 + Gan drawe him to the window next the strete, + And seyde, 'nece, who hath arayed thus + The yonder hous, that stant afor-yeyn us?' + 'Which hous?' quod she, and gan for to biholde, + And knew it wel, and whos it was him tolde, 1190 + + 171. And fillen forth in speche of thinges smale, + And seten in the window bothe tweye. + Whan Pandarus saw tyme un-to his tale, + And saw wel that hir folk were alle aweye, + 'Now, nece myn, tel on,' quod he, 'I seye, 1195 + How lyketh yow the lettre that ye woot? + Can he ther-on? for, by my trouthe, I noot.' + + 172. Therwith al rosy hewed tho wex she, + And gan to humme, and seyde, 'so I trowe.' + 'Aquyte him wel, for goddes love,' quod he; 1200 + 'My-self to medes wol the lettre sowe,' + And held his hondes up, and sat on knowe, + 'Now, goode nece, be it never so lyte, + Yif me the labour, it to sowe and plyte.' + + 173. 'Ye, for I can so wryte,' quod she tho; 1205 + 'And eek I noot what I sholde to him seye.' + 'Nay, nece,' quod Pandare, 'sey not so; + Yet at the leste thanketh him, I preye, + Of his good wil, and doth him not to deye. + Now for the love of me, my nece dere, 1210 + Refuseth not at this tyme my preyere.' + + 174. '_Depar-dieux_,' quod she, 'god leve al be wel! + God helpe me so, this is the firste lettre + That ever I wroot, ye, al or any del.' + And in-to a closet, for to avyse hir bettre, 1215 + She wente allone, and gan hir herte unfettre + Out of disdaynes prison but a lyte; + And sette hir doun, and gan a lettre wryte, + + 175. Of which to telle in short is myn entente + Theffect, as fer as I can understonde:-- 1220 + She thonked him of al that he wel mente + Towardes hir, but holden him in honde + She nolde nought, ne make hir-selven bonde + In love, but as his suster, him to plese, + She wolde fayn, to doon his herte an ese. 1225 + + 176. She shette it, and to Pandarus gan goon, + There as he sat and loked in-to strete, + And doun she sette hir by him on a stoon + Of Iaspre, up-on a quisshin gold y-bete, + And seyde, 'as wisly helpe me god the grete, 1230 + I never dide a thing with more peyne + Than wryte this, to which ye me constreyne;' + + 177. And took it him: he thonked hir and seyde, + 'God woot, of thing ful ofte looth bigonne + Cometh ende good; and nece myn, Criseyde, 1235 + That ye to him of hard now ben y-wonne + Oughte he be glad, by god and yonder sonne! + For-why men seyth, "impressiounes lighte + Ful lightly been ay redy to the flighte." + + 178. But ye han pleyed tyraunt neigh to longe, 1240 + And hard was it your herte for to grave; + Now stint, that ye no longer on it honge, + Al wolde ye the forme of daunger save. + But hasteth yow to doon him Ioye have; + For trusteth wel, to longe y-doon hardnesse 1245 + Causeth despyt ful often, for distresse.' + + 179. And right as they declamed this matere, + Lo, Troilus, right at the stretes ende, + Com ryding with his tenthe some y-fere, + Al softely, and thiderward gan bende 1250 + Ther-as they sete, as was his wey to wende + To paleys-ward; and Pandare him aspyde, + And seyde, 'nece, y-see who cometh here ryde! + + 180. O flee not in, he seeth us, I suppose; + Lest he may thinke that ye him eschuwe.' 1255 + 'Nay, nay,' quod she, and wex as reed as rose. + With that he gan hir humbly to saluwe, + With dreedful chere, and ofte his hewes muwe; + And up his look debonairly he caste, + And bekked on Pandare, and forth he paste. 1260 + + 181. God woot if he sat on his hors a-right, + Or goodly was beseyn, that ilke day! + God woot wher he was lyk a manly knight! + What sholde I drecche, or telle of his aray? + Criseyde, which that alle these thinges say, 1265 + To telle in short, hir lyked al y-fere, + His persone, his aray, his look, his chere, + + 182. His goodly manere and his gentillesse, + So wel, that never, sith that she was born, + Ne hadde she swich routhe of his distresse; 1270 + And how-so she hath hard ben her-biforn, + To god hope I, she hath now caught a thorn. + She shal not pulle it out this nexte wyke; + God sende mo swich thornes on to pyke! + + 183. Pandare, which that stood hir faste by, 1275 + Felte iren hoot, and he bigan to smyte, + And seyde, 'nece, I pray yow hertely, + Tel me that I shal axen yow a lyte. + A womman, that were of his deeth to wyte, + With-outen his gilt, but for hir lakked routhe, 1280 + Were it wel doon?' Quod she, 'nay, by my trouthe!' + + 184. 'God helpe me so,' quod he, 'ye sey me sooth. + Ye felen wel your-self that I not lye; + Lo, yond he rit!' Quod she, 'ye, so he dooth.' + 'Wel,' quod Pandare, 'as I have told yow thrye, 1285 + Lat be your nyce shame and your folye, + And spek with him in esing of his herte; + Lat nycetee not do yow bothe smerte.' + + 185. But ther-on was to heven and to done; + Considered al thing, it may not be; 1290 + And why, for shame; and it were eek to sone + To graunten him so greet a libertee. + 'For playnly hir entente,' as seyde she, + Was for to love him unwist, if she mighte, + And guerdon him with no-thing but with sighte.' 1295 + + 186. But Pandarus thoughte, 'it shal not be so, + If that I may; this nyce opinioun + Shal not be holden fully yeres two.' + What sholde I make of this a long sermoun? + He moste assente on that conclusioun 1300 + As for the tyme; and whan that it was eve, + And al was wel, he roos and took his leve. + + 187. And on his wey ful faste homward he spedde, + And right for Ioye he felte his herte daunce; + And Troilus he fond alone a-bedde, 1305 + That lay as dooth these loveres, in a traunce, + Bitwixen hope and derk desesperaunce. + But Pandarus, right at his in-cominge, + He song, as who seyth, 'lo! sumwhat I bringe.' + + 188. And seyde, 'who is in his bed so sone 1310 + Y-buried thus?' 'It am I, freend,' quod he. + 'Who, Troilus? nay helpe me so the mone,' + Quod Pandarus, 'thou shalt aryse and see + A charme that was sent right now to thee, + The which can helen thee of thyn accesse, 1315 + If thou do forth-with al thy besinesse.' + + 189. 'Ye, through the might of god!' quod Troilus. + And Pandarus gan him the lettre take, + And seyde, 'pardee, god hath holpen us; + Have here a light, and loke on al this blake.' 1320 + But ofte gan the herte glade and quake + Of Troilus, whyl that he gan it rede, + So as the wordes yave him hope or drede. + + 190. But fynally, he took al for the beste + That she him wroot, for sumwhat he biheld 1325 + On which, him thoughte, he mighte his herte reste, + Al covered she the wordes under sheld. + Thus to the more worthy part he held, + That, what for hope and Pandarus biheste, + His grete wo for-yede he at the leste. 1330 + + 191. But as we may alday our-selven see, + Through more wode or col, the more fyr; + Right so encrees of hope, of what it be, + Therwith ful ofte encreseth eek desyr; + Or, as an ook cometh of a litel spyr, 1335 + So through this lettre, which that she him sente, + Encresen gan desyr, of which he brente. + + 192. Wherfore I seye alwey, that day and night + This Troilus gan to desiren more + Than he dide erst, thurgh hope, and dide his might 1340 + To pressen on, as by Pandarus lore, + And wryten to hir of his sorwes sore + Fro day to day; he leet it not refreyde, + That by Pandare he wroot somwhat or seyde; + + 193. And dide also his othere observaunces 1345 + That to a lovere longeth in this cas; + And, after that these dees turnede on chaunces, + So was he outher glad or seyde 'allas!' + And held after his gestes ay his pas; + And aftir swiche answeres as he hadde, 1350 + So were his dayes sory outher gladde. + + 194. But to Pandare alwey was his recours, + And pitously gan ay til him to pleyne, + And him bisoughte of rede and som socours; + And Pandarus, that sey his wode peyne, 1355 + Wex wel neigh deed for routhe, sooth to seyne, + And bisily with al his herte caste + Som of his wo to sleen, and that as faste; + + 195. And seyde, 'lord, and freend, and brother dere, + God woot that thy disese dooth me wo. 1360 + But woltow stinten al this woful chere, + And, by my trouthe, or it be dayes two, + And god to-forn, yet shal I shape it so, + That thou shalt come in-to a certayn place, + Ther-as thou mayst thy-self hir preye of grace. 1365 + + 196. And certainly, I noot if thou it wost, + But tho that been expert in love it seye, + It is oon of the thinges that furthereth most, + A man to have a leyser for to preye, + And siker place his wo for to biwreye; 1370 + For in good herte it moot som routhe impresse, + To here and see the giltles in distresse. + + 197. Paraunter thenkestow: though it be so + That kinde wolde doon hir to biginne + To han a maner routhe up-on my wo, 1375 + Seyth Daunger, "Nay, thou shalt me never winne; + So reuleth hir hir hertes goost with-inne, + That, though she bende, yet she stant on rote; + What in effect is this un-to my bote?" + + 198. Thenk here-ayeins, whan that the sturdy ook, 1380 + On which men hakketh ofte, for the nones, + Receyved hath the happy falling strook, + The grete sweigh doth it come al at ones, + As doon these rokkes or these milne-stones. + For swifter cours cometh thing that is of wighte, 1385 + Whan it descendeth, than don thinges lighte. + + 199. And reed that boweth doun for every blast, + Ful lightly, cesse wind, it wol aryse; + But so nil not an ook whan it is cast; + It nedeth me nought thee longe to forbyse. 1390 + Men shal reioysen of a greet empryse + Acheved wel, and stant with-outen doute, + Al han men been the lenger ther-aboute. + + 200. But, Troilus, yet tel me, if thee lest, + A thing now which that I shal axen thee; 1395 + Which is thy brother that thou lovest best + As in thy verray hertes privetee?' + 'Y-wis, my brother Deiphebus,' quod he. + 'Now,' quod Pandare, 'er houres twyes twelve, + He shal thee ese, unwist of it him-selve. 1400 + + 201. Now lat me allone, and werken as I may,' + Quod he; and to Deiphebus wente he tho + Which hadde his lord and grete freend ben ay; + Save Troilus, no man he lovede so. + To telle in short, with-outen wordes mo, 1405 + Quod Pandarus, 'I pray yow that ye be + Freend to a cause which that toucheth me.' + + 202. 'Yis, pardee,' quod Deiphebus, 'wel thow wost, + In al that ever I may, and god to-fore, + Al nere it but for man I love most, 1410 + My brother Troilus; but sey wherfore + It is; for sith that day that I was bore, + I nas, ne never-mo to been I thinke, + Ayeins a thing that mighte thee for-thinke.' + + 203. Pandare gan him thonke, and to him seyde, 1415 + 'Lo, sire, I have a lady in this toun, + That is my nece, and called is Criseyde, + Which som men wolden doon oppressioun, + And wrongfully have hir possessioun: + Wherfor I of your lordship yow biseche 1420 + To been our freend, with-oute more speche.' + + 204. Deiphebus him answerde, 'O, is not this, + That thow spekest of to me thus straungely, + Crisëyda, my freend?' He seyde, 'Yis.' + 'Than nedeth,' quod Deiphebus hardely, 1425 + 'Na-more to speke, for trusteth wel, that I + Wol be hir champioun with spore and yerde; + I roughte nought though alle hir foos it herde. + + 205. But tel me, thou that woost al this matere, + How I might best avaylen? now lat see.' 1430 + Quod Pandarus, 'if ye, my lord so dere, + Wolden as now don this honour to me, + To prayen hir to-morwe, lo, that she + Com un-to yow hir pleyntes to devyse, + Hir adversaries wolde of hit agryse. 1435 + + 206. And if I more dorste preye as now, + And chargen yow to have so greet travayle, + To han som of your bretheren here with yow, + That mighten to hir cause bet avayle, + Than, woot I wel, she mighte never fayle 1440 + For to be holpen, what at your instaunce, + What with hir othere freendes governaunce.' + + 207. Deiphebus, which that comen was, of kinde, + To al honour and bountee to consente, + Answerde, 'it shal be doon; and I can finde 1445 + Yet gretter help to this in myn entente. + What wolt thow seyn, if I for Eleyne sente + To speke of this? I trowe it be the beste; + For she may leden Paris as hir leste. + + 208. Of Ector, which that is my lord, my brother, 1450 + It nedeth nought to preye him freend to be; + For I have herd him, o tyme and eek other, + Speke of Criseyde swich honour, that he + May seyn no bet, swich hap to him hath she. + It nedeth nought his helpes for to crave; 1455 + He shal be swich, right as we wole him have. + + 209. Spek thou thy-self also to Troilus + On my bihalve, and pray him with us dyne.' + 'Sire, al this shal be doon,' quod Pandarus; + And took his leve, and never gan to fyne, 1460 + But to his neces hous, as streyt as lyne, + He com; and fond hir fro the mete aryse; + And sette him doun, and spak right in this wyse. + + 210. He seyde, 'O veray god, so have I ronne! + Lo, nece myn, see ye nought how I swete? 1465 + I noot whether ye the more thank me conne. + Be ye nought war how that fals Poliphete + Is now aboute eft-sones for to plete, + And bringe on yow advocacyës newe?' + 'I? no,' quod she, and chaunged al hir hewe. 1470 + + 211. 'What is he more aboute, me to drecche + And doon me wrong? what shal I do, allas? + Yet of him-self no-thing ne wolde I recche, + Nere it for Antenor and Eneas, + That been his freendes in swich maner cas; 1475 + But, for the love of god, myn uncle dere, + No fors of that, lat him have al y-fere; + + 212. With-outen that, I have ynough for us.' + 'Nay,' quod Pandare, 'it shal no-thing be so. + For I have been right now at Deiphebus, 1480 + And Ector, and myne othere lordes mo, + And shortly maked eche of hem his fo; + That, by my thrift, he shal it never winne + For ought he can, whan that so he biginne.' + + 213. And as they casten what was best to done, 1485 + Deiphebus, of his owene curtasye, + Com hir to preye, in his propre persone, + To holde him on the morwe companye + At diner, which she nolde not denye, + But goodly gan to his preyere obeye. 1490 + He thonked hir, and wente up-on his weye. + + 214. Whanne this was doon, this Pandare up a-noon, + To telle in short, and forth gan for to wende + To Troilus, as stille as any stoon, + And al this thing he tolde him, word and ende; 1495 + And how that he Deiphebus gan to blende; + And seyde him, 'now is tyme, if that thou conne, + To bere thee wel to-morwe, and al is wonne. + + 215. Now spek, now prey, now pitously compleyne; + Lat not for nyce shame, or drede, or slouthe; 1500 + Som-tyme a man mot telle his owene peyne; + Bileve it, and she shal han on thee routhe; + Thou shalt be saved by thy feyth, in trouthe. + But wel wot I, thou art now in a drede; + And what it is, I leye, I can arede. 1505 + + 216. Thow thinkest now, "how sholde I doon al this? + For by my cheres mosten folk aspye, + That for hir love is that I fare a-mis; + Yet hadde I lever unwist for sorwe dye." + Now thenk not so, for thou dost greet folye. 1510 + For right now have I founden o manere + Of sleighte, for to coveren al thy chere. + + 217. Thow shall gon over night, and that as blyve, + Un-to Deiphebus hous, as thee to pleye, + Thy maladye a-wey the bet to dryve, 1515 + For-why thou semest syk, soth for to seye. + Sone after that, doun in thy bed thee leye, + And sey, thow mayst no lenger up endure, + And lye right there, and byde thyn aventure. + + 218. Sey that thy fever is wont thee for to take 1520 + The same tyme, and lasten til a-morwe; + And lat see now how wel thou canst it make, + For, par-dee, syk is he that is in sorwe. + Go now, farewel! and, Venus here to borwe, + I hope, and thou this purpos holde ferme, 1525 + Thy grace she shal fully ther conferme.' + + 219. Quod Troilus, 'y-wis, thou nedelees + Counseylest me, that sykliche I me feyne! + For I am syk in ernest, doutelees, + So that wel neigh I sterve for the peyne.' 1530 + Quod Pandarus, 'thou shalt the bettre pleyne, + And hast the lasse nede to countrefete; + For him men demen hoot that men seen swete. + + 220. Lo, holde thee at thy triste cloos, and I + Shal wel the deer un-to thy bowe dryve.' 1535 + Therwith he took his leve al softely, + And Troilus to paleys wente blyve. + So glad ne was he never in al his lyve; + And to Pandarus reed gan al assente, + And to Deiphebus hous at night he wente. 1540 + + 221. What nedeth yow to tellen al the chere + That Deiphebus un-to his brother made, + Or his accesse, or his syklych manere, + How men gan him with clothes for to lade, + Whan he was leyd, and how men wolde him glade? 1545 + But al for nought, he held forth ay the wyse + That ye han herd Pandare er this devyse. + + 222. But certeyn is, er Troilus him leyde, + Deiphebus had him prayed, over night, + To been a freend and helping to Criseyde. 1550 + God woot, that he it grauntede anon-right, + To been hir fulle freend with al his might. + But swich a nede was to preye him thenne, + As for to bidde a wood man for to renne. + + 223. The morwen com, and neighen gan the tyme 1555 + Of meel-tyd, that the faire quene Eleyne + Shoop hir to been, an houre after the pryme, + With Deiphebus, to whom she nolde feyne; + But as his suster, hoomly, sooth to seyne, + She com to diner in hir playn entente. 1560 + But god and Pandare wiste al what this mente. + + 224. Come eek Criseyde, al innocent of this, + Antigone, hir sister Tarbe also; + But flee we now prolixitee best is, + For love of god, and lat us faste go 1565 + Right to the effect, with-oute tales mo, + Why al this folk assembled in this place; + And lat us of hir saluinges pace. + + 225. Gret honour dide hem Deiphebus, certeyn, + And fedde hem wel with al that mighte lyke. 1570 + But ever-more, 'allas!' was his refreyn, + 'My goode brother Troilus, the syke, + Lyth yet'--and therwith-al he gan to syke; + And after that, he peyned him to glade + Hem as he mighte, and chere good he made. 1575 + + 226. Compleyned eek Eleyne of his syknesse + So feithfully, that pitee was to here, + And every wight gan waxen for accesse + A leche anoon, and seyde, 'in this manere + Men curen folk; this charme I wol yow lere.' 1580 + But there sat oon, al list hir nought to teche, + That thoughte, best coude I yet been his leche. + + 227. After compleynt, him gonnen they to preyse, + As folk don yet, whan som wight hath bigonne + To preyse a man, and up with prys him reyse 1585 + A thousand fold yet hyer than the sonne:-- + 'He is, he can, that fewe lordes conne.' + And Pandarus, of that they wolde afferme, + He not for-gat hir preysing to conferme. + + 228. Herde al this thing Criseyde wel y-nough, 1590 + And every word gan for to notifye; + For which with sobre chere hir herte lough; + For who is that ne wolde hir glorifye, + To mowen swich a knight don live or dye? + But al passe I, lest ye to longe dwelle; 1595 + For for o fyn is al that ever I telle. + + 229. The tyme com, fro diner for to ryse, + And, as hem oughte, arisen everychoon, + And gonne a while of this and that devyse. + But Pandarus brak al this speche anoon, 1600 + And seyde to Deiphebus, 'wole ye goon, + If yourë wille be, as I yow preyde, + To speke here of the nedes of Criseyde?' + + 230. Eleyne, which that by the hond hir held, + Took first the tale, and seyde, 'go we blyve;' 1605 + And goodly on Criseyde she biheld, + And seyde, 'Ioves lat him never thryve, + That dooth yow harm, and bringe him sone of lyve! + And yeve me sorwe, but he shal it rewe, + If that I may, and alle folk be trewe.' 1610 + + 231. 'Tel thou thy neces cas,' quod Deiphebus + To Pandarus, 'for thou canst best it telle.'-- + 'My lordes and my ladyes, it stant thus; + What sholde I lenger,' quod he, 'do yow dwelle?' + He rong hem out a proces lyk a belle, 1615 + Up-on hir fo, that highte Poliphete, + So hëynous, that men mighte on it spete. + + 232. Answerde of this ech worse of hem than other, + And Poliphete they gonnen thus to warien, + 'An-honged be swich oon, were he my brother; 1620 + And so he shal, for it ne may not varien.' + What sholde I lenger in this tale tarien? + Pleynly, alle at ones, they hir highten, + To been hir helpe in al that ever they mighten. + + 233. Spak than Eleyne, and seyde, 'Pandarus, 1625 + Woot ought my lord, my brother, this matere, + I mene, Ector? or woot it Troilus?' + He seyde, 'ye, but wole ye now me here? + Me thinketh this, sith Troilus is here, + It were good, if that ye wolde assente, 1630 + She tolde hir-self him al this, er she wente. + + 234. For he wole have the more hir grief at herte, + By cause, lo, that she a lady is; + And, by your leve, I wol but right in sterte, + And do yow wite, and that anoon, y-wis, 1635 + If that he slepe, or wole ought here of this.' + And in he lepte, and seyde him in his ere, + 'God have thy soule, y-brought have I thy bere!' + + 235. To smylen of this gan tho Troilus, + And Pandarus, with-oute rekeninge, 1640 + Out wente anoon to Eleyne and Deiphebus, + And seyde hem, 'so there be no taryinge, + Ne more pres, he wol wel that ye bringe + Crisëyda, my lady, that is here; + And as he may enduren, he wole here. 1645 + + 236. But wel ye woot, the chaumbre is but lyte, + And fewe folk may lightly make it warm; + Now loketh ye, (for I wol have no wyte, + To bringe in prees that mighte doon him harm + Or him disesen, for my bettre arm), 1650 + Wher it be bet she byde til eft-sones; + Now loketh ye, that knowen what to doon is. + + 237. I sey for me, best is, as I can knowe, + That no wight in ne wente but ye tweye, + But it were I, for I can, in a throwe, 1655 + Reherce hir cas, unlyk that she can seye; + And after this, she may him ones preye + To ben good lord, in short, and take hir leve; + This may not muchel of his ese him reve. + + 238. And eek, for she is straunge, he wol forbere 1660 + His ese, which that him thar nought for yow; + Eek other thing, that toucheth not to here, + He wol me telle, I woot it wel right now, + That secret is, and for the tounes prow.' + And they, that no-thing knewe of this entente, 1665 + With-oute more, to Troilus in they wente. + + 239. Eleyne in al hir goodly softe wyse, + Gan him saluwe, and womanly to pleye, + And seyde, 'ywis, ye moste alweyes aryse! + Now fayre brother, beth al hool, I preye!' 1670 + And gan hir arm right over his sholder leye, + And him with al hir wit to recomforte; + As she best coude, she gan him to disporte. + + 240. So after this quod she, 'we yow biseke, + My dere brother, Deiphebus, and I, 1675 + For love of god, and so doth Pandare eke, + To been good lord and freend, right hertely, + Un-to Criseyde, which that certeinly + Receyveth wrong, as woot wel here Pandare, + That can hir cas wel bet than I declare.' 1680 + + 241. This Pandarus gan newe his tunge affyle, + And al hir cas reherce, and that anoon; + Whan it was seyd, sone after, in a whyle, + Quod Troilus, 'as sone as I may goon, + I wol right fayn with al my might ben oon, 1685 + Have god my trouthe, hir cause to sustene.' + 'Good thrift have ye,' quod Eleyne the quene. + + 242. Quod Pandarus, 'and it your wille be, + That she may take hir leve, er that she go?' + 'Or elles god for-bede,' tho quod he, 1690 + 'If that she vouche sauf for to do so.' + And with that word quod Troilus, 'ye two, + Deiphebus, and my suster leef and dere, + To yow have I to speke of o matere, + + 243. To been avysed by your reed the bettre':-- 1695 + And fond, as hap was, at his beddes heed, + The copie of a tretis and a lettre, + That Ector hadde him sent to axen reed, + If swich a man was worthy to ben deed, + Woot I nought who; but in a grisly wyse 1700 + He preyede hem anoon on it avyse. + + 244. Deiphebus gan this lettre to unfolde + In ernest greet; so dide Eleyne the quene; + And rominge outward, fast it gan biholde, + Downward a steyre, in-to an herber grene. 1705 + This ilke thing they redden hem bi-twene; + And largely, the mountaunce of an houre, + They gonne on it to reden and to poure. + + 245. Now lat hem rede, and turne we anoon + To Pandarus, that gan ful faste prye 1710 + That al was wel, and out he gan to goon + In-to the grete chambre, and that in hye, + And seyde, 'god save al this companye! + Com, nece myn; my lady quene Eleyne + Abydeth yow, and eek my lordes tweyne. 1715 + + 246. Rys, take with yow your nece Antigone, + Or whom yow list, or no fors, hardily; + The lasse prees, the bet; com forth with me, + And loke that ye thonke humblely + Hem alle three, and, whan ye may goodly 1720 + Your tyme y-see, taketh of hem your leve, + Lest we to longe his restes him bireve.' + + 247. Al innocent of Pandarus entente, + Quod tho Criseyde, 'go we, uncle dere'; + And arm in arm inward with him she wente, 1725 + Avysed wel hir wordes and hir chere; + And Pandarus, in ernestful manere, + Seyde, 'alle folk, for goddes love, I preye, + Stinteth right here, and softely yow pleye. + + 248. Aviseth yow what folk ben here with-inne, 1730 + And in what plyt oon is, god him amende! + And inward thus ful softely biginne; + Nece, I coniure and heighly yow defende, + On his half, which that sowle us alle sende, + And in the vertue of corounes tweyne, 1735 + Slee nought this man, that hath for yow this peyne! + + 249. Fy on the devel! thenk which oon he is, + And in what plyt he lyth; com of anoon; + Thenk al swich taried tyd, but lost it nis! + That wol ye bothe seyn, whan ye ben oon. 1740 + Secoundelich, ther yet devyneth noon + Up-on yow two; com of now, if ye conne; + Whyl folk is blent, lo, al the tyme is wonne! + + 250. In titering, and pursuite, and delayes, + The folk devyne at wagginge of a stree; 1745 + And though ye wolde han after merye dayes, + Than dar ye nought, and why? for she, and she + Spak swich a word; thus loked he, and he; + Lest tyme I loste, I dar not with yow dele; + Com of therfore, and bringeth him to hele.' 1750 + + 251. But now to yow, ye lovers that ben here, + Was Troilus nought in a cankedort, + That lay, and mighte whispringe of hem here, + And thoughte, 'O lord, right now renneth my sort + Fully to dye, or han anoon comfort'; 1755 + And was the firste tyme he shulde hir preye + Of love; O mighty god, what shal he seye? + +EXPLICIT SECUNDUS LIBER. + + + +RUBRIC. _So_ Cp. H. 1-84. _Lost in_ Cm. 4. Ed. connyng; H. coniynge(!); Cl. +H2. comynge; Cp. c[=o]myng. 6. Cp. desespeir; H. desespeyre; Cl. desper. 8. +H2. Clyo; _rest_ Cleo. 11. Cl. H2. _om._ other. 15. Cl. nel. 17. H. +Desblameth. 21. can nat] Cl. ne kan. 25. H. Ed. thynketh; Cl. Cp. thenketh. +37. Cl. al o; _rest om._. al. 38. H. Ed. gamen; _rest_ game. 39. Cl. _om._ +that. 40. Ed. open; _rest_ opyn. 41. H2. seying; _rest_ seyde. 42. Cl. +seyth. 46. H2. to me; _rest_ thee. 49. H. Cp. folwen; Cl. folwe. 55. Cl. so +it. 58. H2. shottis; Ed. shottes; Cl. H. shotes. 59. Cl. _om._ of loving. +61. fil] Cl. felt(!). 64. H. Proignee. 68. Cl. hym so neigh. // Cl. Cp. +cheterynge; H. H2. chiteringe. 69. H2. Ed. Thereus (_for_ Tereus); Cl. Cp. +Tireux; H. Tryeux. 73. his] Cl. þe. 75. Cl. tok weye soone. 79. Cl. vn-to. +80. Cl. in forth. 81. Cl. sette; Cp. H. sete; H2. sate. 84. _So all._ 86. +Cl. Cp. H. faire book; _rest om._ faire. 90. H. Cm. goode; Cl. good. H. +Cm. mote; Cl. mot. 94. Cl. _om._ that. 95. H. herknen; _rest_ herken +(herkyn). 97. Cp. H. o; Cm. Ed. or; Cl. _om._ H2. Is it of love, some +good ye may me lere. 99. Cl. _om._ tho. 101. Cl. that the; _rest om._ the. +102. _All_ Edippus. 104. _So all._ 107. Cp. H. Ed. thassege. Cl. al the +care; _rest om._ al. 110. barbe] Cm. wimpil. 113. Cl. A; Ed. Eighe; _rest_ +I. 115. _So_ Cp. Cl. H. Ed.; Cm. H2. Ye makyn me be iouys sore adradde +(a-drad). 116. as] Cl. that. 117. H. H2. sate; Cp. satte; _rest_ sat; +_read_ sete. Cl. H. _om._ a. 120. Cl. I thriue; _om._ this. 123. Cp. H. +Ed. thassege; Cm. H2. the sege. 124. Cp. fered. 126. _So_ Cp. H. H2. Ed.; +Cm. better (_for_ wel bet); Cl. _corrupt_; _see_ l. 128. 128. Ed. eighe +(_better_ ey); Cl. Cp. H. Cm. I. 131. Cl. _om._ vs. 134. H2. borow; Cm. +borw; Cp. H. borugh; Ed. borowe; Cl. bourgh. 138. Cl. were; _rest_ is. 141. +wondren] Cl. Iape. 155. Cp. H. Ed. it; _rest om._ 159. H2. Ed. euery; Cl. +H. al; Cp. alle. 160. H2. In; _rest_ As (_usually with_ al). 164. Cl. +trewly; Cp. H. trewelich; Cm. trewely. 176. Cm. nought; H2. no thing (_om._ +for); _rest_ no more. 177. H. Cm. ther; Cl. ner. 179. Cp. H. Cm. than; Cl. +that. 185. H. Cp. dredelees; Cl. Cm. dredles. 188. Cm. al the; Cl. Cp. H. +alle; _rest_ al. 194. Cl. Cm. gonne fro him. 195. Cl. fleld (_for_ feld). +201. Cl. lyf and sheld; Cp. H. Ed. sheld and lif; H2. sheld of lyf; Cm. +schild and spere. 202. as] Cl. al. 204. H. Cm. freendlyeste; Cl. +frendlyest. 206. Cl. felawship; H. felaweschipe. 207. Cl. thenketh. 212. +Cl. womman; H2. woman; _rest_ wommen. 215. Cl. two; Cm. to; _rest_ tho. +216. Cm. Ed. herde; _rest_ herd. 217. they two] Cl. that they. 220. Cm. H2. +it; _rest om._ 221. Cl. Cm. H2. and lat. 223. Cl. yow-; _rest_ your-. 224. +Cl. it; _rest_ is. // fair] Cp. gladde; Cm. H2. Ed. glad. 226. witen] Cl. +wete. 227. Cl. _om._ this _and_ tho. 238. Cl. Cm. wete; Cp. H. Ed. weten; +H2. wite. // your] Cl. yow. 239. Cl. Cp. H. _om._ myn. 247. Cl. Cm. truste. +248. Cl. _om._ to me. // Cp. H. frende (_error for_ fremde); H2. frend; Ed. +fremed; Cl. Cm. frendly. 250. Cl. here he keste; _rest om._ he. 255. Cl. lo +alwey. 259. Cl. tales (!). 260. H. sithen; Cp. Cm. sithe; Cl. sith. // Cl. +Cm. H2. the ende. // Cl. _ins._ of _after_ is. 262. H2. Ed. peynt; Cm. +pente; _rest_ poynte. 265. Cl. loke. 266. Cp. H. goode; _rest_ good. 269. +Cl. litel (!). 276. Cl. _om._ faste. // Cp. H. mauise. 279. Cm. thoughte; +Cl. Cp. thought. 284. that] Cl. than. // Cl. weylen (!). 287. Cl. _om._ a. +289. and] Cl. if. 291. H. it slake; _rest om._ it. 296. Cl. toforn; _rest_ +biforn. 299. Cl. to yow; _rest om._ to. // Cl. H. Ed. sworne; _rest_ sworn. +300. or] Cl. and. 301. _All_ eye (eighe). 303. chaungeth] Cl. quaketh (!). +308. Cl. nolde; _rest_ wolde. 309. Cl. H. Cp. _om._ my. 315. Cl. shal yow; +_rest om._ yow. 317. H. Cm. goode; Cl. Cp. good. 323. Cl. thow; _rest_ ye. +// H2. lete; Cl. Cp. Cm. late; H. lat. 324. Cl. nel. // Cl. H. lye. 325. +Cl. myn owene; _rest_ my (myn). 326. _All_ eyen (eighen). 328. Cl. giltles; +H. Cm. gilteles. 329. mende] H2. wyn. 338. H. Cm. liste; Ed. lysteth; Cl. +lyst. 349. If] Cl. And. 350. Cl. that ye; _rest om._ that. 351. this] Cm. +H2. it; H. _om._ 359. Cl. behest. 368. Cl. to se; Cp. H. sen. 369. H2. +a-yens; Ed. ayenst; H. ayeyn; Cm. ayen. 370. fool] Cl. fel (_for_ fol). +371. Cl. frenship. 372. Cl. _om._ //What. 374. Cl. _om._ wel and. 380. Ed. +wrie; Cm. wri; Cl. Cp. wre; H. were (!); H2. couere. 381. Cp. H. Cm. Ed. +sauacioun; _rest_ saluacioun. 383. Cm. H2. Ed. _put_ alwey _after_ nece. // +Cm. goode; _rest_ good. 384. Ed. H2. sugred. 385. Cp. Cm. for; Ed. al; Cl. +H. _om._ 386. Cl. herd. 387. meneth] H. Cm. mene. 388. Cl. wole. 389. +sholde] Cl. shal. 395. Cl. H2. _om._ that. 401. _Read_ think'th, ber'th +(Cl. thenketh; Cp. H. berth). // Cl. Cp. H. heighe; Ed. Cm. hye. 403. Cl. +ben growen; Cp. H. be growe; Ed. growe; Cm. hem waxen; H2. be wox. // _All_ +eye (eighe, ey, eyen). 405. H. H2. whiche; Cl. Cm. which; Cp. Ed. which +that. 406. Cm. H2. _om._ Nece. // Cm. I bidde with (!); H2. I kepe than +wisshe; (_read_ Nec' I bidd' wisshë). 411. Cl. Cp. Ed. straunge; H. H2. +straunge folk; Cm. straunge men. 413. Cp. H2. Ret; Ed. Rate; Cm. Redith; +Cl. Bet (!); H. Let (!). 414. H. tristed. 421. this] Cl. that. 423. Cl. +behest. 429. Cl. Ay; Cm. O; Ed. Ne; _rest_ A. 435. H. dispitouse; Cm. +dispituse; _rest_ dispitous (despitous). 438. Cl. _ins._ ony (Cp. H. any, +H2. eny) _before_ vilanye. // Cl. vylonye. 446. Cl. certaynly. 448. Cl. hym +agayn. 456. Cl. falles (_sic_). 460. Cl. wyl; Cp. H. wol. 461. Cl. of hit +wold. 466. lyth] Cp. H. is. 468. Cl. don so. 474. Cl. H2. y-wis; _rest_ +wis. 480. Cm. H2. plese; _rest_ plesen. 482. Cp. Ed. dredde; _rest_ drede. +483. H. Ed. Cp. cesse; Cm. sese; (_see_ l. 1388); Cl. cesseth. 486. H. Cm. +Ed. sauacioun; _rest_ saluacioun. 490. Cp. Ed. H2. Pandare; _rest_ +Pandarus. 491. Cp. H. truste; Cm. troste; _rest_ trust. 494. Cp. Cm. +doutelees; Cl. doutles. 496. Cm. Cp. after; H. efter; _rest_ ofter (!). +500. love of god] Cl. Cp. H. his love. 505. a litel gan to] Cl. bygan for +to. 507. Cl. go. // Cp. H. Ed. longe; _rest_ long. 516. Cm. Ed. after; Cl. +Cp. H. ther-after. 519. Cl. softly hym. 523. upon] Cl. on. 534. _All_ eyen +(eighen). 535. Cl. _om._ botme. 536. Cl. Cp. Cm. deyen. 537. Cp. Cm. Ed. +bywreyen; Cl. H2. bywryen; H. wryen. 539. hem] Cl. hym. // asshen] Cl. +asshe. 540. Cl. adown his hed. 541. Cp. H. Cm. trewely; _rest_ trewly. 542. +Cl. _puts_ awey _after_ I. 543. Cp. leet; H. lete; Cl. Cm. let. 549. Cl. ye +do. 554. Cl. passede. 555. Cp. com; Cm. cam; _rest_ come. 556. his] Cl. a. +562. Cp. com; _rest_ come. 563. Cl. saluacioun. 564. Cl. ne hadde I routhe. +567. Cp. H. Cm. Ed. herte; _rest_ hert. 570. Cl. _puts_ was _after_ depe. +574. see] Cl. do. // Cl. H. swone. 576. Cl. dreuen. 577. Cl. hath vs. 588. +Cp. H. houre; Cl. Cm. oure. 589. Ed. H2. a ha; H. ha a; Cm. Cp. ha ha; Cl. +_om._ 590, 592, 593. Cl. del, wele, stel. 595. Cm. Cp. Ed. wel; H2. wele; +Cl. H. wole I. 597. Cm. H2. Ed. Ye; _rest_ And. // Cl. Cp. H. H2. _om._ +how. 602. Cp. com; H2. cam; Ed. came; _rest_ come. 603. Cm. wex; H2. wax; +Ed. woxe; _rest_ was. 611. Ed. Thascrye; Cm. The acry (_sic_); H2. In the +skye (!); Cl. Cp. H. Ascry. 612. MSS. cryede, cried, criedyn. 615. H2. +latis; _rest_ yates. 616. this] Cl. that. 617. Cm. from; Ed. H2. fro; Cl. +Cp. H. to. 618. Cl. Gardanus; H2. Cardanus; Cm. dardannis; _rest_ Dardanus. +// open] Cl. Cm. vp on. 624. Cl. H. Thus. Cp. Ed. baye; Cm. bay[gh]e; +_rest_ bay. 628. Cp. H. Cm. sighte; _rest_ sight. 636. weldy] Cm. worthi. +642. Cl. thrilled. 643. Cp. cryde; Cl. cryede. 644. Cl. nexst. 648. _All_ +eyen, eighen. 650. Cl. Ed. it so softe. 651. Cl. seluen. 658. for] Cl. Ed. +forth. 659. Cl. casten. 662. Cl. _om._ his _bef._ shap. 666. _Read_ +envýous. 669. _All_ syght (_wrongly_). 670. thee] Cp. H. y-the. 677. H2. +_ins._ hert (_error for_ herte) _bef._ for. 681. Cl. seuenethe. 686. Cm. +sonere; Ed. sooner; _rest_ sonner. 694. Cl. she yn thought gan to. 696. Ed. +don; H2. do; _rest_ done. 697, 8. Cl. folde, colde. 700. Cp. H. Ed. +tendite. 701. Cl. thought; _see_ l. 699. 702. his] Cl. Cm. Ed. by. 710. H. +sighte; _rest_ sight. 713. H. No (_for_ Now). // wys] H2. a fole. 718. Cl. +drynklees; Cm. Cp. drynkeles. 719. Cl. Ek for me sith I wot. // Cl. al his; +_rest om._ al. 720. Cp. Cm. aughte; _rest_ ought, aught. 722. Cl. _om._ +And. // Cl. Cm. long. 723. he] Cl. she (!). 724. Cl. Ne auaunter; Ed. No +vauntour; Cp. H. Nauauntour. 725. vyce] Cl. nyse. 726. Cl. cherishe; _rest_ +cherice. 729. y-wis] Cl. wys. 733. H. Ed. alway. 734. wommen] Cl. a woman. +// Cl. H. Cp. al bysyde hire leue; Cm. þo_ur_ al this town aboute; Ed. H2. +al this towne aboute. 735. _So_ Cm. H2. Ed.; Cl. H. Cp. // And whanne hem +leste no more lat hem byleue. 736. Cl. Ed. H2. _om._ for. 737. Cl. Cp. H. +this ilke; _rest om._ ilke. // Cl. thryftiest (_also_ worthiest _in_ l. +739, _and_ best _in_ l. 740). 745. Cm. H2. no man; _rest_ noon (none). 746. +Cm. Cp. H. fayreste; _rest_ fairest. 747. Cp. H. goodlieste; _rest_ +goodliest. 752. Ed. H. vnteyd; Cp. vnteyde; Cm. onteyed; _rest_ vntyd. 753. +Cl. H2. With-out. 757. Cl. _om. 2nd_ I. 758. Cp. Ed. leste; _rest_ lyst +(liste). 759. H. Cp. nought; _rest_ not. 763. Cp. alle; _rest_ al. 764. H. +brighte; _rest_ bright. 765. H. Cm. March; _rest_ Marche. 766. _All_ +flight. 772. H. Cm. putte; _rest_ put. 777. Cm. why; _rest_ (_except_ H2) +weye (wey). // H2. Ther lovith none with-out bothe care and peyn +(_wrongly_). 778. Cm. moste; Cl. meste. 781. Cp. Cm. the; _rest_ that. 787. +Cp. H. Ed. cessed; Cl. Cm. sesed. 791. Cl. at the; _rest om._ the. 792. Cp. +H. y-knowen; Cl. knowe. // Cm. H2. Ed. tyme may men rede and se. 795. Cl. +Cm. go; Cp. H. ago. 797. _All_ bycometh; _see_ l. 795. 800. Cl. Cp. H. +dremen; _rest_ demen (deme). 801. Cl. H. _om._ that. 804. Cp. H. Ed. +stoppen; _rest_ stoppe. 804, 5. Cl. tungen (!), rungen. // whyl] Cl. +whanne. 814, 9. Cl. gardeyn. 819. Cm. folwede; Cl. folweden. 820. yerd] // +Cl. gardeyn. 821. Cl. shadwede (_om._ wel). // Cl. bowes blosmy and grene. +830. Cl. herte. 833. Cp. H. alle; _rest_ al; _see_ 763. Cl. surete; H. Cm. +H2. seurte. 834. Cp. H2. Ye; _rest_ The. 838. Cl. _om._ that. 840. Cp. H. +leest; Cl. Ed. H2. lest. 843. Of wit] Cl. With (!). // Cl. H. secrenesse +(!). 844. lust] Cl. luf (!). 845. Cl. Cm. al; _rest_ alle. 847. Cl. _om._ +so. 851. Cm. ryghte; _rest_ right. 857. Cf. l. 666. 860. Ed. H2. him; +_rest_ it; see 861. 862, 4. H. righte, bryghte; _rest_ right, bryght. 863. +Cl. Cp. feblesse; _rest_ fieblenesse (febilnesse). // _All_ eyen (eighen). +867. who] Cl. he (_for_ ho). 872. Cl. H2. is growen. 876. Cl. stynte; H2. +stynt. 882. Cp. H. Cm. let; _rest_ led. 884. _See_ note. 894. Cl. Cp. H. +moste; Cm. miste; Ed. mote; H2. must. // at] Cl. of. 896. H2. axe; Ed. +aske; Cl. H. Cp. axen; Cm. axith. // Cl. ful (_for_ foul). 903. Cp. Cm. +wex; Cl. was; _rest_ wax. 904. Cl. heighe; Cp. H. heye; _rest_ eye; _read_ +yë. 909. H. Cp. for tapere. 910. Cl. _om._ al. // in] Cm. H2. hom. 916. Cl. +alle. 919. Under] Cl. Vp-on. 923. Cl. Cm. Ed. herkened; Cp. H. herkned. +924. Til] Cl. That. 934. H. scarmich; H2. Ed. scarmysshe. 936. yeden] Cm. +ridyn. 937. Cl. sought. 938. Cp. H. Cm. laste; _rest_ last. 939. Ed. came; +_rest_ come. 941. Cl. Cp. H2. slyng; H. sleynge (_for_ slynge); Ed. slonge; +Cm. slynging of. 942. Cl. now an; _rest om._ now. 943. Ed. Cm. _om._ so. +945. H. Ed. answerde; Cl. answered. 947. Cp. H. Ed. the; H2. her; _rest +om._ 950. Cl. Cp. H. Ed. _om._ that. 953. Cl. vs; _rest_ me. 954. don] Cm. +Ed. do on. // Cl. H2. sped; _rest_ spedde. 955. Cl. _om._ And. 956. Cp. H. +Cm. Ed. shorte; _rest_ short. 957. _So all._ 959. lak] Cl. lat (!). // Cl. +_om._ thy. 967. Cl. of the; _rest om._ the. 968. Ed. stalkes; H2. stalkys; +Cm. stalke; _rest_ stalk. 973. Cl. y-hered. 974. Cp. H2. Pandare; _rest_ +Pandarus. 976. Cl. bonden; Cm. woundis (!). 979. Cl. myght; Cp. H. Cm. +myghte. 982. Cl. Whanne; nexst. 983. Cl. ben y-dreuen. 987. Cl. dishese. +995. Cp. H. Cm. yit; _rest_ yet. 999. fare] Cl. do. 1001. along] Cl. +y-long. 1002. Cl. _om._ wel. 1003. as] Cl. a. 1005. Cl. Cp. H. _om._ // +Right. 1006. Cp. H. Ed. tellen; _rest_ telle. 1009. Cl. myn-. // Cl. wil; +Cp. H. wol; _rest_ shal. 1011. Cl. Cm. _om._ thou. 1012. right] Cm. and +that; Cl. _om._ 1015. _All_ strete. 1016. H. leste; Cm. lyste; Cl. lyke; +_rest_ list. 1017. make] Cp. H. Ed. make thou; H2. thow make. 1022. Whan] +Cl. Than. 1023. Cl. that thow; _rest om._ that. 1025. Cp. H. Ed. tough; Cl. +towh; _rest_ tow. 1026. Cm. _om._ it. 1030. Cm. Cp. Ed. beste; _rest_ best. +1031. H. Cm. Cp. Ed. beste; _rest_ best. // Cl. sounded. 1033. H2. werble; +Ed. warble; H. warbul; Cm. warbele. 1035. Cp. H. maken; _rest_ make. 1037. +Cm. iumpere; Ed. iombre. 1039. of] Cl. vp. 1043. nere] Cl. Ed. were. 1044. +H2. to; _rest_ vn-to. 1049. Cl. Cm. _om._ it. 1051. H. Cm. answerde; Cl. +answered. // Cp H. leste; Cm. Ed. lest; _rest_ lyst. 1053. that lord] Cl. +hym. 1055. Cl. Cp. H. _om._ Right. 1060. Cl. I pray; Cm. preye I; _rest_ +prey ich. 1063. Cp. H. Cm. Yif; Cl. Yef. 1064. Cp. H. sette; Cl. Ed. set; +Cm. sat. 1065. Cl. _om._ hir. // Cm. ryghte; _rest_ right. 1066. Cl. lece. +1068. Cl. alle these loueres. 1071. Cp. H. muchel; Cl. muche. 1072. Cl. H2. +_om._ this. // Cl. louely; Ed. H2. lowly; _rest_ lowely. 1077. Cp. H. +leigh; H2. Ed. lyed. 1079. Cl. wold (_for_ sholde). 1086. Cl. salty; Cp. +Cm. Ed. salte; _rest_ salt. 1090. H. Cm. Cp. Ed. kiste; Cl. cussed. 1093. +Cl. Cm. Pandarus. 1095. it] Cl. is (!). 1097. Cp. Ed. H. sore; Cl. so. +1107. Cp. H. Cm. hoppe; _rest_ hope. 1108. Cl. Ed. laughe; H. laugh; H2. +lagh; Cm. law. // H. breste; _rest_ brest. 1109. Ed. alway that ye; Cm. +that ye alwey; _rest om._ that. 1111. come] Cl. y-come. 1112. Cl. griek; +Cp. greek; _rest_ greke. 1113. Cm. H2. come I; Cl. I am come; Cp. H. Ed. I +come. // Cl. Cp. H. Ed. _ins._ newe _after_ yow. 1116. Cl. wente. 1119. Cl. +they spoke; H. Ed. he spake (_read_ speke); Cp. he spak; Cm. H2. his +wordis. 1123. Cp. Ed. sente; _rest_ sent. // H2. to; _rest om._ 1130. Ed. +scripte. 1131. swich] Cl. this. 1137. Cm. H. seyn; Cl. sey. 1145. Cm. H2. +Ed. dethe; _rest_ deth. // smiten be] Cl. be smet. 1148. Cl. H2. to; _rest_ +it (_better_). 1149. Cp. H. neigh; Cl. nyh. // Cp. Cm. alle; Cl. H. al. +1154. Cl. hent. 1155. H2. doun the lettre cast; _perhaps read_ doun the +lettre thraste. 1156. Cl. or noon (_for_ anoon). 1157. Cl. gaueren; _rest_ +gauren. 1159. Cl. Cm. _om._ him. 1160. your] Cl. yow. 1161. Cl. Ed. wol. +1162. Cl. thanne wole. 1172. Cl. som; _rest_ some. 1174. Cp. Ed. +besynesses; _rest_ besynesse. 1181. Cl. Cp. H. _om._ him. 1182. Cl. H. H2. +_om._ that. 1186. Cl. wyndowe nexst. 1188. Cl. aforn-yeyn; Cp. afor[gh]eyn; +Ed. aforyene; H. aforyeynes; H2. aforyens; Cm. aforn. 1193. vn-to] Cl. Cm. +to. 1194. Cl. Cp. H. weren. // Cl. H2. _om._ alle. 1198. Cl. Cm. _om._ tho. +// Cp. H. Cm. wex; Cl. wax. 1202. Cl. honde. // Cm. fel; H2. fil; _rest_ +sat. 1214. Cl. wrote; ony. 1215. in-to] H2. in. 1217. Cm. disdainys; Ed. +disdaynes; Cp. desdaynes; Cl. H. disdayns; H2. disdeynous. 1223. Cl. wolde. +// Ed. Cp. seluen; H. selfen; _rest_ self. 1225. Cp. fayn; Cl. H. fayne; +Cm. ay fayn. // Cm. _om._ to. 1227. Cp. Ed. in-to; Cl. in-to a; _rest_ +in-to the. 1229. Cp. quysshyn; Cm. quysschyn; H. Ed. quysshen; Cl. +quysshon; H2. cusshyn. 1238. _All_ impressions. 1245. Cp. H. y-doon; Ed. +ydone; _rest_ don. 1247. they] Cl. he. 1250. Cl. softly: thederwardes. +1252. Cl. paylays; H. payleysse; _rest_ paleys. // Ed. H2. Pandare; _rest_ +Pandarus. 1254. Cp. seeth; H. seth; Ed. sethe; Cl. seyth; Cm. sey. 1256. +Cp. H. Cm. wex; Cl. wax. // Cl. as the rose; _rest om._ the. 1260. Cl. +_om._ he. 1270. Cl. a routhe; _rest om._ a. 1273. Cp. Cm. nexte; Cl. nexst. +1278. Cl. H. Telle; _rest_ Tel. 1284. Cp. Ed. H. yonde; Cl. H2. yend; Cm. +yondir. // Cl. ritt; Cp. Cm. rit; Ed. rydeth; H. ride. // Cl. _om._ ye. +1298. Cp. H. Ed. holden; _rest_ holde (hold). 1309. Ed. lo; _rest om._ +1313. Cl. Cp. ryse; Ed. vp ryse; _rest_ aryse. 1317. Cl. Cp. thorugh. 1320. +H2. and se thes lettres blake. 1323. yave] Cl. yaf; Cm. yeue. 1329. H. Cp. +Ed. biheste; _rest_ byhest. 1332. Ed. Through; Cl. Cp. Thorugh; H. Thorw; +H2. The. // or] Cl. and. 1336. Cl. Cp. H. thorugh. 1347. Ed. dyce. 1349. +Cl. gistes; H2. gyltes; Cp. gostes; _rest_ gestes. 1350. And] Cp. H. H2. +As. 1352. Cl. Cm. Pandarus; _rest_ Pandare. 1354. Cl. Cm. red. 1355. Cp. H. +woode; Cm. Ed. wode; Cl. wod; H2. wood. 1360. Cl. dishese. 1368. Cp. H. Ed. +_om._ that. 1374. Ed. her don. // Cm. H2. Ed. for to; Cl. H. _om._ for. +1379. What] Cl. That. 1383. Cl. Cp. H. Cm. _ins._ to _bef._ come. // come] +Cm. falle; H2. than fal. 1384. doon] Cl. doth. // Cp. H. Ed. milne; Cm. +melle; Cl. H2. myl. 1387. Cp. reed; Cl. H. ried. 1388. Cl. wold. 1394. H. +Ed. tel; Cl. telle. // Cp. H. Ed. lest; Cl. lyste; _rest_ lyst. 1401. Cp. +lat malone. 1409. Cl. to-forn. 1413. nas] Cl. na. 1418. doon] Cl. do. 1423. +thus] Cl. so. 1427. spore] H. H2. Cm. spere. 1428. Cp. Cm. roughte; _rest_ +rought (roght). 1429. Cl. H. Cm. telle. 1436. Cl. Cp. H. yow as; _rest om._ +yow. 1452. and eek] Cl. ek and. 1460. gan to] Cl. wolde he. 1465. Cl. _om._ +myn. 1466. Cl. H2. _put_ me _before_ the. 1467. Cl. H. _om._ ye. // H2. +that; _rest om._ 1473. Cp. H. ne wolde; Cm. yit wolde; _rest_ wolde. 1482. +Cp. Ed. maked; H. makes (_for_ maked); _rest_ made (mad). 1484. Ed. H2. so +that; Cl. Cp. H. that so; Cm. so euere. 1489. nolde] Cl. H. wolde. 1490. +goodly] Cl. good. 1495. _So all_. 1504. thou] Cl. yow. // Ed. H2. a; _rest +om._ 1509. Yet] Cl. That. 1513. Cm. Ed. belyue; H2. as blyue; _rest_ blyue. +1517. Cm. Ed. Sone; Cl. So; Cp. H. And. 1526. Cp. H. Ed. fully ther; H2. +fully the; Cl. there fully; Cm. the fulli. 1527. thou] Cl. Cm. H2. now. +1532. Cl. H. Cm. _om._ the. 1536. Cl. _om._ al. 1554. wood man] Cl. womman. +1556. Cp. meel-tide; Ed. mealtyde; Cl. meltid; H. meelited (!); Cm. mele. +1557. Shoop] Cl. H. Shapt; Cp. Shapte. 1558. Cl. nold not; H2. wold not; +_rest_ nolde. 1559. sooth] Cl. for. 1561. Cp. Ed. Cm. al what; Cl. H. what +al. 1582. Cp. H. Cm. thoughte; _rest_ thought. // coude] Cl. cowede. 1585. +Cl. Cp. H. Ed. _om._ up. 1588. they] Cl. he. 1591. Cl. _om._ for. 1594. +don] H2. to; Cl. _om._ 1595. lest] Cl. Cp. H. lyst. 1596. H. _glosses_ For +for _by_ quia propter. 1598. arisen] Cl. aryse; H2. thei risyn. 1602. H2. +If it; _rest om._ it. 1604. Cl. H. Ed. whiche. 1605. Took] Cl. To(!). 1607. +Cm. H2. Iouis. 1611. thou] Cl. yow; H. how. 1615. Cl. Cm. _om._ out. 1618. +Answerde] Cl. Answere. 1621. it] Cl. he. 1628. Cl. _om._ me. 1629. +thinketh] Cl. thenketh. // H. sith; _rest_ sith that. 1635. Cl. _om._ do. +Cp. H. H2. wyte; Cl. Ed. wete. 1638. thy] Cl. the. 1641. _So all._ 1647. +Cl. lightly may. 1648, 1652. loketh] Cl. loke. 1649. Cl. H. _om._ him. +1650. Cl. dishesen. 1652. Cp. H. Ed. knowen; Cl. Cm. knoweth. 1659. H. +muchel; Cl. mechel. 1661. him] Cl. he. 1662. toucheth] Cl. toucher(!). +1665, 6. Cp. H. entente, wente; _rest_ entent, went. 1667. Cl. goode +softly. 1670. Cl. fare. 1673. Cp. H. H2. Ed. to; _rest om._ 1674. Cp. Ed. +biseke; H. bisike; _rest_ byseche. 1680. than] Cl. that. 1686. Cl. Cm. +susteyne. 1687. Ed. Now good thrift. 1690. Cm. H2. Or; _rest_ O. // Cl. Cm. +for-bede; _rest_ for-bede it. // Cl. H2. _om._ tho. 1691. Cp. H. sauf; Cl. +Cm. saf. 1697. Cl. tretes. 1703. Cl. Cm. dede. 1708. Cp. H. Ed. gonne; Cl. +gon; Cm. gan. // Cl. rede. 1719. Cl. humbely; Cp. H. humblely; Cm. vmbely; +_rest_ humbly. 1722. his--bireve] Cl. of his reste hym reue. 1723. Cl. +Incocent (!). 1730. Cl. Avise. 1734. Cl. by halue; Cm. halue; _rest_ half. +// Cl. vs alle sowle; H2. vs soule hath; Cp. Cm. Ed. soule us alle; H. same +(_for_ soule) vs al. 1739. Cl. Thenk that; _rest om._ that. 1741. Cl. +Secundelich; Cm. Secundeli; Cp. Secoundely; H. Secoundly; _rest_ Secondly. +1746. Cl. wolden; Cm. woldyn. 1749. Ed. H2. Lest; _rest_ Las (!). // Ed. +H2. be lost; Cp. I loste; _rest_ I lost. 1752. H2. kankerdorte; _rest_ +kankedort, cankedort. 1757. Cl. Cm. I; _rest_ he. + + + + +BOOK III. + + +INCIPIT PROHEMIUM TERCII LIBRI. + + 1. O Blisful light, of whiche the bemes clere 1 + Adorneth al the thridde hevene faire! + O sonnes leef, O Ioves doughter dere, + Plesaunce of love, O goodly debonaire, + In gentil hertes ay redy to repaire! 5 + O verray cause of hele and of gladnesse, + Y-heried be thy might and thy goodnesse! + + 2. In hevene and helle, in erthe and salte see + Is felt thy might, if that I wel descerne; + As man, brid, best, fish, herbe and grene tree 10 + Thee fele in tymes with vapour eterne. + God loveth, and to love wol nought werne; + And in this world no lyves creature, + With-outen love, is worth, or may endure. + + 3. Ye Ioves first to thilke effectes glade, 15 + Thorugh which that thinges liven alle and be, + Comeveden, and amorous him made + On mortal thing, and as yow list, ay ye + Yeve him in love ese or adversitee; + And in a thousand formes doun him sente 20 + For love in erthe, and whom yow liste, he hente. + + 4. Ye fierse Mars apeysen of his ire, + And, as yow list, ye maken hertes digne; + Algates, hem that ye wol sette a-fyre, + They dreden shame, and vices they resigne; 25 + Ye do hem corteys be, fresshe and benigne, + And hye or lowe, after a wight entendeth; + The Ioyes that he hath, your might him sendeth. + + 5. Ye holden regne and hous in unitee; + Ye soothfast cause of frendship been also; 30 + Ye knowe al thilke covered qualitee + Of thinges which that folk on wondren so, + Whan they can not construe how it may io, + She loveth him, or why he loveth here; + As why this fish, and nought that, cometh to were. 35 + + 6. Ye folk a lawe han set in universe, + And this knowe I by hem that loveres be, + That who-so stryveth with yow hath the werse: + Now, lady bright, for thy benignitee, + At reverence of hem that serven thee, 40 + Whos clerk I am, so techeth me devyse + Som Ioye of that is felt in thy servyse. + + 7. Ye in my naked herte sentement + Inhelde, and do me shewe of thy swetnesse.-- + Caliope, thy vois be now present, 45 + For now is nede; sestow not my destresse, + How I mot telle anon-right the gladnesse + Of Troilus, to Venus heryinge? + To which gladnes, who nede hath, god him bringe! + +EXPLICIT PROHEMIUM TERCII LIBRI. + + +INCIPIT LIBER TERCIUS. + + 8. Lay al this mene whyle Troilus, 50 + Recordinge his lessoun in this manere, + 'Ma fey!' thought he, 'thus wole I seye and thus; + Thus wole I pleyne un-to my lady dere; + That word is good, and this shal be my chere; + This nil I not foryeten in no wyse.' 55 + God leve him werken as he gan devyse. + + 9. And lord, so that his herte gan to quappe, + Heringe hir come, and shorte for to syke! + And Pandarus, that ladde hir by the lappe, + Com ner, and gan in at the curtin pyke, 60 + And seyde, 'god do bote on alle syke! + See, who is here yow comen to visyte; + Lo, here is she that is your deeth to wyte.' + + 10. Ther-with it semed as he wepte almost; + 'A ha,' quod Troilus so rewfully, 65 + 'Wher me be wo, O mighty god, thou wost! + Who is al there? I see nought trewely.' + 'Sire,' quod Criseyde, 'it is Pandare and I.' + 'Ye, swete herte? allas, I may nought ryse + To knele, and do yow honour in som wyse.' 70 + + 11. And dressede him upward, and she right tho + Gan bothe here hondes softe upon him leye, + 'O, for the love of god, do ye not so + To me,' quod she, 'ey! what is this to seye? + Sire, come am I to yow for causes tweye; 75 + First, yow to thonke, and of your lordshipe eke + Continuaunce I wolde yow biseke.' + + 12. This Troilus, that herde his lady preye + Of lordship him, wex neither quik ne deed, + Ne mighte a word for shame to it seye, 80 + Al-though men sholde smyten of his heed. + But lord, so he wex sodeinliche reed, + And sire, his lesson, that he wende conne, + To preyen hir, is thurgh his wit y-ronne. + + 13. Cryseyde al this aspyede wel y-nough, 85 + For she was wys, and lovede him never-the-lasse, + Al nere he malapert, or made it tough, + Or was to bold, to singe a fool a masse. + But whan his shame gan somwhat to passe, + His resons, as I may my rymes holde, 90 + I yow wol telle, as techen bokes olde. + + 14. In chaunged vois, right for his verrey drede, + Which vois eek quook, and ther-to his manere + Goodly abayst, and now his hewes rede, + Now pale, un-to Criseyde, his lady dere, 95 + With look doun cast and humble yolden chere, + Lo, the alderfirste word that him asterte + Was, twyes, 'mercy, mercy, swete herte!' + + 15. And stinte a whyl, and whan he mighte out-bringe, + The nexte word was, 'god wot, for I have, 100 + As feythfully as I have had konninge, + Ben youres, also god my sowle save; + And shal, til that I, woful wight, be grave. + And though I dar ne can un-to yow pleyne, + Y-wis, I suffre nought the lasse peyne. 105 + + 16. Thus muche as now, O wommanliche wyf, + I may out-bringe, and if this yow displese, + That shal I wreke upon myn owne lyf + Right sone, I trowe, and doon your herte an ese, + If with my deeth your herte I may apese. 110 + But sin that ye han herd me som-what seye, + Now recche I never how sone that I deye.' + + 17. Ther-with his manly sorwe to biholde, + It mighte han maad an herte of stoon to rewe; + And Pandare weep as he to watre wolde, 115 + And poked ever his nece newe and newe, + And seyde, 'wo bigon ben hertes trewe! + For love of god, make of this thing an ende, + Or slee us bothe at ones, er that ye wende.' + + 18. 'I? what?' quod she, 'by god and by my trouthe, 120 + I noot nought what ye wilne that I seye.' + 'I? what?' quod he, 'that ye han on him routhe, + For goddes love, and doth him nought to deye.' + 'Now thanne thus,' quod she, 'I wolde him preye + To telle me the fyn of his entente; 125 + Yet wiste I never wel what that he mente.' + + 19. 'What that I mene, O swete herte dere?' + Quod Troilus, 'O goodly fresshe free! + That, with the stremes of your eyen clere, + Ye wolde som-tyme freendly on me see, 130 + And thanne agreën that I may ben he, + With-oute braunche of vyce in any wyse, + In trouthe alwey to doon yow my servyse + + 20. As to my lady right and chief resort, + With al my wit and al my diligence, 135 + And I to han, right as yow list, comfort, + Under your yerde, egal to myn offence, + As deeth, if that I breke your defence; + And that ye deigne me so muche honoure, + Me to comaunden ought in any houre. 140 + + 21. And I to ben your verray humble trewe, + Secret, and in my paynes pacient, + And ever-mo desire freshly newe, + To serven, and been y-lyke ay diligent, + And, with good herte, al holly your talent 145 + Receyven wel, how sore that me smerte, + Lo, this mene I, myn owene swete herte.' + + 22. Quod Pandarus, 'lo, here an hard request, + And resonable, a lady for to werne! + Now, nece myn, by natal Ioves fest, 150 + Were I a god, ye sholde sterve as yerne, + That heren wel, this man wol no-thing yerne + But your honour, and seen him almost sterve, + And been so looth to suffren him yow serve.' + + 23. With that she gan hir eyen on him caste 155 + Ful esily, and ful debonairly, + Avysing hir, and hyed not to faste + With never a word, but seyde him softely, + 'Myn honour sauf, I wol wel trewely, + And in swich forme as he can now devyse, 160 + Receyven him fully to my servyse, + + 24. Biseching him, for goddes love, that he + Wolde, in honour of trouthe and gentilesse, + As I wel mene, eek mene wel to me, + And myn honour, with wit and besinesse, 165 + Ay kepe; and if I may don him gladnesse, + From hennes-forth, y-wis, I nil not feyne: + Now beeth al hool, no lenger ye ne pleyne. + + 25. But nathelees, this warne I yow,' quod she, + 'A kinges sone al-though ye be, y-wis, 170 + Ye shul na-more have soverainetee + Of me in love, than right in that cas is; + Ne I nil forbere, if that ye doon a-mis, + To wrathen yow; and whyl that ye me serve, + Cherycen yow right after ye deserve. 175 + + 26. And shortly, derë herte and al my knight, + Beth glad, and draweth yow to lustinesse, + And I shal trewely, with al my might, + Your bittre tornen al in-to swetnesse; + If I be she that may yow do gladnesse, 180 + For every wo ye shal recovere a blisse'; + And him in armes took, and gan him kisse. + + 27. Fil Pandarus on knees, and up his yën + To hevene threw, and held his hondes hye, + 'Immortal god!' quod he, 'that mayst nought dyen, 185 + Cupide I mene, of this mayst glorifye; + And Venus, thou mayst make melodye; + With-outen hond, me semeth that in towne, + For this merveyle, I here ech belle sowne. + + 28. But ho! no more as now of this matere, 190 + For-why this folk wol comen up anoon, + That han the lettre red; lo, I hem here. + But I coniure thee, Criseyde, and oon, + And two, thou Troilus, whan thow mayst goon, + That at myn hous ye been at my warninge, 195 + For I ful wel shal shape your cominge; + + 29. And eseth ther your hertes right y-nough; + And lat see which of yow shal bere the belle + To speke of love a-right!' ther-with he lough, + 'For ther have ye a layser for to telle.' 200 + Quod Troilus, 'how longe shal I dwelle + Er this be doon?' Quod he, 'whan thou mayst ryse, + This thing shal be right as I yow devyse.' + + 30. With that Eleyne and also Deiphebus + Tho comen upward, right at the steyres ende; 205 + And lord, so than gan grone Troilus, + His brother and his suster for to blende. + Quod Pandarus, 'it tyme is that we wende; + Tak, nece myn, your leve at alle three, + And lat hem speke, and cometh forth with me.' 210 + + 31. She took hir leve at hem ful thriftily, + As she wel coude, and they hir reverence + Un-to the fulle diden hardely, + And speken wonder wel, in hir absence, + Of hir, in preysing of hir excellence, 215 + Hir governaunce, hir wit; and hir manere + Commendeden, it Ioye was to here. + + 32. Now lat hir wende un-to hir owne place, + And torne we to Troilus a-yein, + That gan ful lightly of the lettre passe, 220 + That Deiphebus hadde in the gardin seyn. + And of Eleyne and him he wolde fayn + Delivered been, and seyde, that him leste + To slepe, and after tales have reste. + + 33. Eleyne him kiste, and took hir leve blyve, 225 + Deiphebus eek, and hoom wente every wight; + And Pandarus, as faste as he may dryve, + To Troilus tho com, as lyne right; + And on a paillet, al that glade night, + By Troilus he lay, with mery chere, 230 + To tale; and wel was hem they were y-fere. + + 34. Whan every wight was voided but they two, + And alle the dores were faste y-shette, + To telle in short, with-oute wordes mo, + This Pandarus, with-outen any lette, 235 + Up roos, and on his beddes syde him sette, + And gan to speken in a sobre wyse + To Troilus, as I shal yow devyse. + + 35. 'Myn alderlevest lord, and brother dere, + God woot, and thou, that it sat me so sore, 240 + When I thee saw so languisshing to-yere, + For love, of which thy wo wex alwey more; + That I, with al my might and al my lore, + Have ever sithen doon my bisinesse + To bringe thee to Ioye out of distresse; 245 + + 36. And have it brought to swich plyt as thou wost, + So that, thorugh me, thow stondest now in weye + To fare wel, I seye it for no bost, + And wostow why? for shame it is to seye, + For thee have I bigonne a gamen pleye 250 + Which that I never doon shal eft for other, + Al-though he were a thousand fold my brother. + + 37. That is to seye, for thee am I bicomen, + Bitwixen game and ernest, swich a mene + As maken wommen un-to men to comen; 255 + Al sey I nought, thou wost wel what I mene. + For thee have I my nece, of vyces clene, + So fully maad thy gentilesse triste, + That al shal been right as thy-selve liste. + + 38. But god, that al wot, take I to witnesse, 260 + That never I this for coveityse wroughte, + But only for to abregge that distresse, + For which wel nygh thou deydest, as me thoughte. + But gode brother, do now as thee oughte, + For goddes love, and keep hir out of blame, 265 + Sin thou art wys, and save alwey hir name. + + 39. For wel thou wost, the name as yet of here + Among the peple, as who seyth, halwed is; + For that man is unbore, I dar wel swere, + That ever wiste that she dide amis. 270 + But wo is me, that I, that cause al this, + May thenken that she is my nece dere, + And I hir eem, and traytor eek y-fere! + + 40. And were it wist that I, through myn engyn, + Hadde in my nece y-put this fantasye, 275 + To do thy lust, and hoolly to be thyn, + Why, al the world up-on it wolde crye, + And seye, that I the worste trecherye + Dide in this cas, that ever was bigonne, + And she for-lost, and thou right nought y-wonne. 280 + + 41. Wher-fore, er I wol ferther goon a pas, + Yet eft I thee biseche and fully seye, + That privetee go with us in this cas, + That is to seye, that thou us never wreye; + And be nought wrooth, though I thee ofte preye 285 + To holden secree swich an heigh matere; + For skilful is, thow wost wel, my preyere. + + 42. And thenk what wo ther hath bitid er this, + For makinge of avauntes, as men rede; + And what mischaunce in this world yet ther is, 290 + Fro day to day, right for that wikked dede; + For which these wyse clerkes that ben dede + Han ever yet proverbed to us yonge, + That "firste vertu is to kepe tonge." + + 43. And, nere it that I wilne as now tabregge 295 + Diffusioun of speche, I coude almost + A thousand olde stories thee alegge + Of wommen lost, thorugh fals and foles bost; + Proverbes canst thy-self y-nowe, and wost, + Ayeins that vyce, for to been a labbe, 300 + Al seyde men sooth as often as they gabbe. + + 44. O tonge, allas! so often here-biforn + Hastow made many a lady bright of hewe + Seyd, "welawey! the day that I was born!" + And many a maydes sorwes for to newe; 305 + And, for the more part, al is untrewe + That men of yelpe, and it were brought to preve; + Of kinde non avauntour is to leve. + + 45. Avauntour and a lyere, al is on; + As thus: I pose, a womman graunte me 310 + Hir love, and seyth that other wol she non, + And I am sworn to holden it secree, + And after I go telle it two or three; + Y-wis, I am avauntour at the leste, + And lyere, for I breke my biheste. 315 + + 46. Now loke thanne, if they be nought to blame, + Swich maner folk; what shal I clepe hem, what, + That hem avaunte of wommen, and by name, + That never yet bihighte hem this ne that, + Ne knewe hem more than myn olde hat? 320 + No wonder is, so god me sende hele, + Though wommen drede with us men to dele. + + 47. I sey not this for no mistrust of yow, + Ne for no wys man, but for foles nyce, + And for the harm that in the world is now, 325 + As wel for foly ofte as for malyce; + For wel wot I, in wyse folk, that vyce + No womman drat, if she be wel avysed; + For wyse ben by foles harm chastysed. + + 48. But now to purpos; leve brother dere, 330 + Have al this thing that I have seyd in minde, + And keep thee clos, and be now of good chere, + For at thy day thou shalt me trewe finde. + I shal thy proces sette in swich a kinde, + And god to-forn, that it shall thee suffyse, 335 + For it shal been right as thou wolt devyse. + + 49. For wel I woot, thou menest wel, parde; + Therfore I dar this fully undertake. + Thou wost eek what thy lady graunted thee, + And day is set, the chartres up to make. 340 + Have now good night, I may no lenger wake; + And bid for me, sin thou art now in blisse, + That god me sende deeth or sone lisse.' + + 50. Who mighte telle half the Ioye or feste + Which that the sowle of Troilus tho felte, 345 + Heringe theffect of Pandarus biheste? + His olde wo, that made his herte swelte, + Gan tho for Ioye wasten and to-melte, + And al the richesse of his sykes sore + At ones fledde, he felte of hem no more. 350 + + 51. But right so as these holtes and these hayes, + That han in winter dede been and dreye, + Revesten hem in grene, whan that May is, + Whan every lusty lyketh best to pleye: + Right in that selve wyse, sooth to seye, 355 + Wex sodeynliche his herte ful of Ioye, + That gladder was ther never man in Troye. + + 52. And gan his look on Pandarus up caste + Ful sobrely, and frendly for to see, + And seyde, 'freend, in Aprille the laste, 360 + As wel thou wost, if it remembre thee, + How neigh the deeth for wo thou founde me; + And how thou didest al thy bisinesse + To knowe of me the cause of my distresse. + + 53. Thou wost how longe I it for-bar to seye 365 + To thee, that art the man that I best triste; + And peril was it noon to thee by-wreye, + That wiste I wel; but tel me, if thee liste, + Sith I so looth was that thy-self it wiste, + How dorste I mo tellen of this matere, 370 + That quake now, and no wight may us here? + + 54. But natheles, by that god I thee swere, + That, as him list, may al this world governe, + And, if I lye, Achilles with his spere + Myn herte cleve, al were my lyf eterne, 375 + As I am mortal, if I late or yerne + Wolde it biwreye, or dorste, or sholde conne, + For al the good that god made under sonne; + + 55. That rather deye I wolde, and determyne, + As thinketh me, now stokked in presoun, 380 + In wrecchednesse, in filthe, and in vermyne, + Caytif to cruel king Agamenoun; + And this, in alle the temples of this toun, + Upon the goddes alle, I wol thee swere, + To-morwe day, if that thee lyketh here. 385 + + 56. And that thou hast so muche y-doon for me, + That I ne may it never-more deserve, + This knowe I wel, al mighte I now for thee + A thousand tymes on a morwen sterve, + I can no more, but that I wol thee serve 390 + Right as thy sclave, whider-so thou wende, + For ever-more, un-to my lyves ende! + + 57. But here, with al myn herte, I thee biseche, + That never in me thou deme swich folye + As I shal seyn; me thoughte, by thy speche, 395 + That this, which thou me dost for companye, + I sholde wene it were a bauderye; + I am nought wood, al-if I lewed be; + It is not so, that wool I wel, pardee. + + 58. But he that goth, for gold or for richesse, 400 + On swich message, calle him what thee list; + And this that thou dost, calle it gentilesse, + Compassioun, and felawship, and trist; + Departe it so, for wyde-where is wist + How that there is dyversitee requered 405 + Bitwixen thinges lyke, as I have lered. + + 59. And, that thou knowe I thenke nought ne wene + That this servyse a shame be or Iape, + I have my faire suster Polixene, + Cassandre, Eleyne, or any of the frape; 410 + Be she never so faire or wel y-shape, + Tel me, which thou wilt of everichone, + To han for thyn, and lat me thanne allone. + + 60. But sin that thou hast don me this servyse, + My lyf to save, and for noon hope of mede, 415 + So, for the love of god, this grete empryse + Parforme it out; for now is moste nede. + For high and low, with-outen any drede, + I wol alwey thyne hestes alle kepe; + Have now good night, and lat us bothe slepe.' 420 + + 61. Thus held him ech with other wel apayed, + That al the world ne mighte it bet amende; + And, on the morwe, whan they were arayed, + Ech to his owene nedes gan entende. + But Troilus, though as the fyr he brende 425 + For sharp desyr of hope and of plesaunce, + He not for-gat his gode governaunce. + + 62. But in him-self with manhod gan restreyne + Ech rakel dede and ech unbrydled chere, + That alle tho that liven, sooth to seyne, 430 + Ne sholde han wist, by word or by manere, + What that he mente, as touching this matere. + From every wight as fer as is the cloude + He was, so wel dissimulen he coude. + + 63. And al the whyl which that I yow devyse, 435 + This was his lyf; with al his fulle might, + By day he was in Martes high servyse, + This is to seyn, in armes as a knight; + And for the more part, the longe night + He lay, and thoughte how that he mighte serve 440 + His lady best, hir thank for to deserve. + + 64. Nil I nought swerë, al-though he lay softe, + That in his thought he nas sumwhat disesed, + Ne that he tornede on his pilwes ofte, + And wolde of that him missed han ben sesed; 445 + But in swich cas man is nought alwey plesed, + For ought I wot, no more than was he; + That can I deme of possibilitee. + + 65. But certeyn is, to purpos for to go, + That in this whyle, as writen is in geste, 450 + He say his lady som-tyme; and also + She with him spak, whan that she dorste or leste, + And by hir bothe avys, as was the beste, + Apoynteden ful warly in this nede, + So as they dorste, how they wolde procede. 455 + + 66. But it was spoken in so short a wyse, + In swich awayt alwey, and in swich fere, + Lest any wyght divynen or devyse + Wolde of hem two, or to it leye an ere, + That al this world so leef to hem ne were 460 + As that Cupido wolde hem grace sende + To maken of hir speche aright an ende. + + 67. But thilke litel that they speke or wroughte, + His wyse goost took ay of al swich hede, + It semed hir, he wiste what she thoughte 465 + With-outen word, so that it was no nede + To bidde him ought to done, or ought for-bede; + For which she thoughte that love, al come it late, + Of alle Ioye hadde opned hir the yate. + + 68. And shortly of this proces for to pace, 470 + So wel his werk and wordes he bisette, + That he so ful stood in his lady grace, + That twenty thousand tymes, or she lette, + She thonked god she ever with him mette; + So coude he him governe in swich servyse, 475 + That al the world ne mighte it bet devyse. + + 69. For-why she fond him so discreet in al, + So secret, and of swich obëisaunce, + That wel she felte he was to hir a wal + Of steel, and sheld from every displesaunce; 480 + That, to ben in his gode governaunce, + So wys he was, she was no more afered, + I mene, as fer as oughte ben requered. + + 70. And Pandarus, to quike alwey the fyr, + Was ever y-lyke prest and diligent; 485 + To ese his frend was set al his desyr. + He shof ay on, he to and fro was sent; + He lettres bar whan Troilus was absent. + That never man, as in his freendes nede, + Ne bar him bet than he, with-outen drede. 490 + + 71. But now, paraunter, som man wayten wolde + That every word, or sonde, or look, or chere + Of Troilus that I rehersen sholde, + In al this whyle, un-to his lady dere; + I trowe it were a long thing for to here; 495 + Or of what wight that stant in swich disioynte, + His wordes alle, or every look, to poynte. + + 72. For sothe, I have not herd it doon er this, + In storye noon, ne no man here, I wene; + And though I wolde I coude not, y-wis; 500 + For ther was som epistel hem bitwene, + That wolde, as seyth myn auctor, wel contene + Neigh half this book, of which him list not wryte; + How sholde I thanne a lyne of it endyte? + + 73. But to the grete effect: than sey I thus, 505 + That stonding in concord and in quiete + Thise ilke two, Criseyde and Troilus, + As I have told, and in this tyme swete, + Save only often mighte they not mete, + Ne layser have hir speches to fulfelle, 510 + That it befel right as I shal yow telle, + + 74. That Pandarus, that ever dide his might + Right for the fyn that I shal speke of here, + As for to bringe to his hous som night + His faire nece, and Troilus y-fere, 515 + Wher-as at leyser al this heigh matere, + Touching hir love, were at the fulle up-bounde, + Hadde out of doute a tyme to it founde. + + 75. For he with greet deliberacioun + Hadde every thing that her-to mighte avayle 520 + Forn-cast, and put in execucioun, + And neither laft, for cost ne for travayle; + Come if hem lest, hem sholde no-thing fayle; + And for to been in ought espyed there, + That, wiste he wel, an inpossible were. 525 + + 76. Dredelees, it cleer was in the wind + Of every pye and every lette-game; + Now al is wel, for al the world is blind + In this matere, bothe fremed and tame. + This timber is al redy up to frame; 530 + Us lakketh nought but that we witen wolde + A certein houre, in whiche she comen sholde. + + 77. And Troilus, that al this purveyaunce + Knew at the fulle, and waytede on it ay, + Hadde here-up-on eek made gret ordenaunce, 535 + And founde his cause, and ther-to his aray, + If that he were missed, night or day, + Ther-whyle he was aboute this servyse, + That he was goon to doon his sacrifyse, + + 78. And moste at swich a temple alone wake, 540 + Answered of Appollo for to be; + And first, to seen the holy laurer quake, + Er that Apollo spak out of the tree, + To telle him next whan Grekes sholden flee, + And forthy lette him no man, god forbede, 545 + But preye Apollo helpen in this nede. + + 79. Now is ther litel more for to done, + But Pandare up, and shortly for to seyne, + Right sone upon the chaunging of the mone, + Whan lightles is the world a night or tweyne, 550 + And that the welken shoop him for to reyne, + He streight a-morwe un-to his nece wente; + Ye han wel herd the fyn of his entente. + + 80. Whan he was come, he gan anoon to pleye + As he was wont, and of him-self to Iape; 555 + And fynally, he swor and gan hir seye, + By this and that, she sholde him not escape, + Ne lengere doon him after hir to gape; + But certeynly she moste, by hir leve, + Come soupen in his hous with him at eve. 560 + + 81. At whiche she lough, and gan hir faste excuse, + And seyde, 'it rayneth; lo, how sholde I goon?' + 'Lat be,' quod he, 'ne stond not thus to muse; + This moot be doon, ye shal be ther anoon.' + So at the laste her-of they felle at oon, 565 + Or elles, softe he swor hir in hir ere, + He nolde never come ther she were. + + 82. Sone after this, to him she gan to rowne, + And asked him if Troilus were there? + He swor hir, 'nay, for he was out of towne,' 570 + And seyde, 'nece, I pose that he were, + Yow thurfte never have the more fere. + For rather than men mighte him ther aspye, + Me were lever a thousand-fold to dye.' + + 83. Nought list myn auctor fully to declare 575 + What that she thoughte whan he seyde so, + That Troilus was out of town y-fare, + As if he seyde ther-of sooth or no; + But that, with-oute awayt, with him to go, + She graunted him, sith he hir that bisoughte, 580 + And, as his nece, obeyed as hir oughte. + + 84. But nathelees, yet gan she him biseche, + Al-though with him to goon it was no fere, + For to be war of goosish peples speche, + That dremen thinges whiche that never were, 585 + And wel avyse him whom he broughte there; + And seyde him, 'eem, sin I mot on yow triste, + Loke al be wel, and do now as yow liste.' + + 85. He swor hir, 'yis, by stokkes and by stones, + And by the goddes that in hevene dwelle, 590 + Or elles were him lever, soule and bones, + With Pluto king as depe been in helle + As Tantalus!' What sholde I more telle? + Whan al was wel, he roos and took his leve, + And she to souper com, whan it was eve, 595 + + 86. With a certayn of hir owene men, + And with hir faire nece Antigone, + And othere of hir wommen nyne or ten; + But who was glad now, who, as trowe ye, + But Troilus, that stood and mighte it see 600 + Thurgh-out a litel windowe in a stewe, + Ther he bishet, sin midnight, was in mewe, + + 87. Unwist of every wight but of Pandare? + But to the poynt; now whan she was y-come + With alle Ioye, and alle frendes fare, 605 + Hir eem anoon in armes hath hir nome, + And after to the souper, alle and some, + Whan tyme was, ful softe they hem sette; + God wot, ther was no deyntee for to fette. + + 88. And after souper gonnen they to ryse, 610 + At ese wel, with hertes fresshe and glade, + And wel was him that coude best devyse + To lyken hir, or that hir laughen made. + He song; she pleyde; he tolde tale of Wade. + But at the laste, as every thing hath ende, 615 + She took hir leve, and nedes wolde wende. + + 89. But O, Fortune, executrice of wierdes, + O influences of thise hevenes hye! + Soth is, that, under god, ye ben our hierdes, + Though to us bestes been the causes wrye. 620 + This mene I now, for she gan hoomward hye, + But execut was al bisyde hir leve, + At the goddes wil; for which she moste bleve. + + 90. The bente mone with hir hornes pale, + Saturne, and Iove, in Cancro ioyned were, 625 + That swich a rayn from hevene gan avale, + That every maner womman that was there + Hadde of that smoky reyn a verray fere; + At which Pandare tho lough, and seyde thenne, + 'Now were it tyme a lady to go henne! 630 + + 91. But goode nece, if I mighte ever plese + Yow any-thing, than prey I yow,' quod he, + 'To doon myn herte as now so greet an ese + As for to dwelle here al this night with me, + For-why this is your owene hous, pardee. 635 + For, by my trouthe, I sey it nought a-game, + To wende as now, it were to me a shame.' + + 92. Criseyde, whiche that coude as muche good + As half a world, tok hede of his preyere; + And sin it ron, and al was on a flood, 640 + She thoughte, as good chep may I dwellen here, + And graunte it gladly with a freendes chere, + And have a thank, as grucche and thanne abyde; + For hoom to goon it may nought wel bityde. + + 93. 'I wol,' quod she, 'myn uncle leef and dere, 645 + Sin that yow list, it skile is to be so; + I am right glad with yow to dwellen here; + I seyde but a-game, I wolde go.' + 'Y-wis, graunt mercy, nece!' quod he tho; + 'Were it a game or no, soth for to telle, 650 + Now am I glad, sin that yow list to dwelle.' + + 94. Thus al is wel; but tho bigan aright + The newe Ioye, and al the feste agayn; + But Pandarus, if goodly hadde he might, + He wolde han hyed hir to bedde fayn, 655 + And seyde, 'lord, this is an huge rayn! + This were a weder for to slepen inne; + And that I rede us sone to biginne. + + 95. And nece, woot ye wher I wol yow leye, + For that we shul not liggen fer asonder, 660 + And for ye neither shullen, dar I seye, + Heren noise of reynes nor of thondre? + By god, right in my lyte closet yonder. + And I wol in that outer hous allone + Be wardeyn of your wommen everichone. 665 + + 96. And in this middel chaumbre that ye see + Shul youre wommen slepen wel and softe; + And ther I seyde shal your-selve be; + And if ye liggen wel to-night, com ofte, + And careth not what weder is on-lofte. 670 + The wyn anon, and whan so that yow leste, + So go we slepe, I trowe it be the beste.' + + 97. Ther nis no more, but here-after sone, + The voydè dronke, and travers drawe anon, + Gan every wight, that hadde nought to done 675 + More in that place, out of the chaumber gon. + And ever-mo so sternelich it ron, + And blew ther-with so wonderliche loude, + That wel neigh no man heren other coude. + + 98. Tho Pandarus, hir eem, right as him oughte, 680 + With women swiche as were hir most aboute, + Ful glad un-to hir beddes syde hir broughte, + And toke his leve, and gan ful lowe loute, + And seyde, 'here at this closet-dore with-oute, + Right over-thwart, your wommen liggen alle, 685 + That, whom yow liste of hem, ye may here calle.' + + 99. So whan that she was in the closet leyd, + And alle hir wommen forth by ordenaunce + A-bedde weren, ther as I have seyd, + There was no more to skippen nor to traunce, 690 + But boden go to bedde, with mischaunce, + If any wight was steringe any-where, + And late hem slepe that a-bedde were. + + 100. But Pandarus, that wel coude eche a del + The olde daunce, and every poynt ther-inne, 695 + Whan that he sey that alle thing was wel, + He thoughte he wolde up-on his werk biginne, + And gan the stewe-dore al softe un-pinne, + And stille as stoon, with-outen lenger lette, + By Troilus a-doun right he him sette. 700 + + 101. And, shortly to the poynt right for to gon, + Of al this werk he tolde him word and ende, + And seyde, 'make thee redy right anon, + For thou shalt in-to hevene blisse wende.' + 'Now blisful Venus, thou me grace sende,' 705 + Quod Troilus, 'for never yet no nede + Hadde I er now, ne halvendel the drede.' + + 102. Quod Pandarus, 'ne drede thee never a del, + For it shal been right as thou wilt desyre; + So thryve I, this night shal I make it wel, 710 + Or casten al the gruwel in the fyre.' + 'Yit blisful Venus, this night thou me enspyre,' + Quod Troilus, 'as wis as I thee serve, + And ever bet and bet shal, til I sterve. + + 103. And if I hadde, O Venus ful of murthe, 715 + Aspectes badde of Mars or of Saturne, + Or thou combust or let were in my birthe, + Thy fader prey al thilke harm disturne + Of grace, and that I glad ayein may turne, + For love of him thou lovedest in the shawe, 720 + I mene Adoon, that with the boor was slawe. + + 104. O Iove eek, for the love of faire Europe, + The whiche in forme of bole away thou fette; + Now help, O Mars, thou with thy blody cope, + For love of Cipris, thou me nought ne lette; 725 + O Phebus, thenk whan Dane hir-selven shette + Under the bark, and laurer wex for drede, + Yet for hir love, O help now at this nede! + + 105. Mercurie, for the love of Hiersè eke, + For which Pallas was with Aglauros wrooth, 730 + Now help, and eek Diane, I thee biseke, + That this viage be not to thee looth. + O fatal sustren, which, er any clooth + Me shapen was, my destenè me sponne, + So helpeth to this werk that is bi-gonne!' 735 + + 106. Quod Pandarus, 'thou wrecched mouses herte, + Art thou agast so that she wol thee byte? + Why, don this furred cloke up-on thy sherte, + And folowe me, for I wol han the wyte; + But byd, and lat me go bifore a lyte.' 740 + And with that word he gan un-do a trappe, + And Troilus he broughte in by the lappe. + + 107. The sterne wind so loude gan to route + That no wight other noyse mighte here; + And they that layen at the dore with-oute, 745 + Ful sykerly they slepten alle y-fere; + And Pandarus, with a ful sobre chere, + Goth to the dore anon with-outen lette, + Ther-as they laye, and softely it shette. + + 108. And as he com ayeinward prively, 750 + His nece awook, and asked 'who goth there?' + 'My dere nece,' quod he, 'it am I; + Ne wondreth not, ne have of it no fere;' + And ner he com, and seyde hir in hir ere, + 'No word, for love of god I yow biseche; 755 + Lat no wight ryse and heren of our speche.' + + 109. 'What! which wey be ye comen, _benedicite_?' + Quod she, 'and how thus unwist of hem alle?' + 'Here at this secre trappe-dore,' quod he. + Quod tho Criseyde, 'lat me som wight calle.' 760 + 'Ey! god forbede that it sholde falle,' + Quod Pandarus, 'that ye swich foly wroughte! + They mighte deme thing they never er thoughte! + + 110. It is nought good a sleping hound to wake, + Ne yeve a wight a cause to devyne; 765 + Your wommen slepen alle, I under-take, + So that, for hem, the hous men mighte myne; + And slepen wolen til the sonne shyne. + And whan my tale al brought is to an ende, + Unwist, right as I com, so wol I wende. 770 + + 111. Now nece myn, ye shul wel understonde,' + Quod he, 'so as ye wommen demen alle, + That for to holde in love a man in honde, + And him hir "leef" and "dere herte" calle, + And maken him an howve above a calle, 775 + I mene, as love an other in this whyle, + She doth hir-self a shame, and him a gyle. + + 112. Now wherby that I telle yow al this? + Ye woot your-self, as wel as any wight, + How that your love al fully graunted is 780 + To Troilus, the worthieste knight, + Oon of this world, and ther-to trouthe plyght, + That, but it were on him along, ye nolde + Him never falsen, whyl ye liven sholde. + + 113. Now stant it thus, that sith I fro yow wente, 785 + This Troilus, right platly for to seyn, + Is thurgh a goter, by a privè wente, + In-to my chaumbre come in al this reyn, + Unwist of every maner wight, certeyn, + Save of my-self, as wisly have I Ioye, 790 + And by that feith I shal Pryam of Troye! + + 114. And he is come in swich peyne and distresse + That, but he be al fully wood by this, + He sodeynly mot falle in-to wodnesse, + But-if god helpe; and cause why this is, 795 + He seyth him told is, of a freend of his, + How that ye sholde love oon that hatte Horaste, + For sorwe of which this night shalt been his laste.' + + 115. Criseyde, which that al this wonder herde, + Gan sodeynly aboute hir herte colde, 800 + And with a syk she sorwfully answerde, + 'Allas! I wende, who-so tales tolde, + My dere herte wolde me not holde + So lightly fals! allas! conceytes wronge, + What harm they doon, for now live I to longe! 805 + + 116. Horaste! allas! and falsen Troilus? + I knowe him not, god helpe me so,' quod she; + 'Allas! what wikked spirit tolde him thus? + Now certes, eem, to-morwe, and I him see, + I shal ther-of as ful excusen me 810 + As ever dide womman, if him lyke'; + And with that word she gan ful sore syke. + + 117. 'O god!' quod she, 'so worldly selinesse, + Which clerkes callen fals felicitee, + Y-medled is with many a bitternesse! 815 + Ful anguisshous than is, god woot,' quod she, + 'Condicioun of veyn prosperitee; + For either Ioyes comen nought y-fere, + Or elles no wight hath hem alwey here. + + 118. O brotel wele of mannes Ioye unstable! 820 + With what wight so thou be, or how thou pleye, + Either he woot that thou, Ioye, art muable, + Or woot it not, it moot ben oon of tweye; + Now if he woot it not, how may he seye + That he hath verray Ioye and selinesse, 825 + That is of ignoraunce ay in derknesse? + + 119. Now if he woot that Ioye is transitorie, + As every Ioye of worldly thing mot flee, + Than every tyme he that hath in memorie, + The drede of lesing maketh him that he 830 + May in no parfit selinesse be. + And if to lese his Ioye he set a myte, + Than semeth it that Ioye is worth ful lyte. + + 120. Wherfore I wol deffyne in this matere, + That trewely, for ought I can espye, 835 + Ther is no verray wele in this world here. + But O, thou wikked serpent Ialousye, + Thou misbeleved and envious folye, + Why hastow Troilus me mad untriste, + That never yet agilte him, that I wiste?' 840 + + 121. Quod Pandarus, 'thus fallen is this cas.' + 'Why, uncle myn,' quod she, 'who tolde him this? + Why doth my dere herte thus, allas?' + 'Ye woot, ye nece myn,' quod he, 'what is; + I hope al shal be wel that is amis. 845 + For ye may quenche al this, if that yow leste, + And doth right so, for I holde it the beste.' + + 122. 'So shal I do to-morwe, y-wis,' quod she, + 'And god to-forn, so that it shal suffyse.' + 'To-morwe? allas, that were a fayr,' quod he, 850 + 'Nay, nay, it may not stonden in this wyse; + For, nece myn, thus wryten clerkes wyse, + That peril is with drecching in y-drawe; + Nay, swich abodes been nought worth an hawe. + + 123. Nece, al thing hath tyme, I dar avowe; 855 + For whan a chaumber a-fyr is, or an halle, + Wel more nede is, it sodeynly rescowe + Than to dispute, and axe amonges alle + How is this candele in the straw y-falle? + A! _benedicite!_ for al among that fare 860 + The harm is doon, and fare-wel feldefare! + + 124. And, nece myn, ne take it not a-greef, + If that ye suffre him al night in this wo, + God help me so, ye hadde him never leef, + That dar I seyn, now there is but we two; 865 + But wel I woot, that ye wol not do so; + Ye been to wys to do so gret folye, + To putte his lyf al night in Iupartye.' + + 125. 'Hadde I him never leef? By god, I wene + Ye hadde never thing so leef,' quod she. 870 + 'Now by my thrift,' quod he, 'that shal be sene; + For, sin ye make this ensample of me, + If I al night wolde him in sorwe see + For al the tresour in the toun of Troye, + I bidde god, I never mote have Ioye! 875 + + 126. Now loke thanne, if ye, that been his love, + Shul putte al night his lyf in Iupartye + For thing of nought! Now, by that god above, + Nought only this delay comth of folye, + But of malyce, if that I shal nought lye. 880 + What, platly, and ye suffre him in distresse, + Ye neither bountee doon ne gentilesse!' + + 127. Quod tho Criseyde, 'wole ye doon o thing, + And ye therwith shal stinte al his disese; + Have here, and bereth him this blewe ringe, 885 + For ther is no-thing mighte him bettre plese, + Save I my-self, ne more his herte apese; + And sey my dere herte, that his sorwe + Is causeles, that shal be seen to-morwe.' + + 128. 'A ring?' quod he, 'ye, hasel-wodes shaken! 890 + Ye, nece myn, that ring moste han a stoon + That mighte dede men alyve maken; + And swich a ring, trowe I that ye have noon. + Discrecioun out of your heed is goon; + That fele I now,' quod he, 'and that is routhe; 895 + O tyme y-lost, wel maystow cursen slouthe! + + 129. Wot ye not wel that noble and heigh corage + Ne sorweth not, ne stinteth eek for lyte? + But if a fool were in a Ialous rage, + I nolde setten at his sorwe a myte, 900 + But feffe him with a fewe wordes whyte + Another day, whan that I mighte him finde: + But this thing stont al in another kinde. + + 130. This is so gentil and so tendre of herte, + That with his deeth he wol his sorwes wreke; 905 + For trusteth wel, how sore that him smerte, + He wol to yow no Ialouse wordes speke. + And for-thy, nece, er that his herte breke, + So spek your-self to him of this matere; + For with o word ye may his herte stere. 910 + + 131. Now have I told what peril he is inne, + And his coming unwist is to every wight; + Ne, pardee, harm may ther be noon ne sinne; + I wol my-self be with yow al this night. + Ye knowe eek how it is your owne knight, 915 + And that, by right, ye moste upon him triste, + And I al prest to fecche him whan yow liste.' + + 132. This accident so pitous was to here, + And eek so lyk a sooth, at pryme face, + And Troilus hir knight to hir so dere, 920 + His privè coming, and the siker place, + That, though that she dide him as thanne a grace, + Considered alle thinges as they stode, + No wonder is, sin she dide al for gode. + + 133. Cryseyde answerde, 'as wisly god at reste 925 + My sowle bringe, as me is for him wo! + And eem, y-wis, fayn wolde I doon the beste, + If that I hadde grace to do so. + But whether that ye dwelle or for him go, + I am, til god me bettre minde sende, 930 + At dulcarnon, right at my wittes ende.' + + 134. Quod Pandarus, 'ye, nece, wol ye here? + Dulcarnon called is "fleminge of wrecches"; + It semeth hard, for wrecches wol not lere + For verray slouthe or othere wilful tecches; 935 + This seyd by hem that be not worth two fecches. + But ye ben wys, and that we han on honde + Nis neither hard, ne skilful to withstonde.' + + 135. 'Thanne, eem,' quod she, 'doth her-of as yow list; + But er he come I wil up first aryse; 940 + And, for the love of god, sin al my trist + Is on yow two, and ye ben bothe wyse, + So wircheth now in so discreet a wyse, + That I honour may have, and he plesaunce; + For I am here al in your governaunce.' 945 + + 136. 'That is wel seyd,' quod he, 'my nece dere, + Ther good thrift on that wyse gentil herte! + But liggeth stille, and taketh him right here, + It nedeth not no ferther for him sterte; + And ech of yow ese otheres sorwes smerte, 950 + For love of god; and, Venus, I thee herie; + For sone hope I we shulle ben alle merie.' + + 137. This Troilus ful sone on knees him sette + Ful sobrely, right by hir beddes heed, + And in his beste wyse his lady grette; 955 + But lord, so she wex sodeynliche reed! + Ne, though men sholden smyten of hir heed, + She coude nought a word a-right out-bringe + So sodeynly, for his sodeyn cominge. + + 138. But Pandarus, that so wel coude fele 960 + In every thing, to pleye anoon bigan, + And seyde, 'nece, see how this lord can knele! + Now, for your trouthe, seeth this gentil man!' + And with that word he for a quisshen ran, + And seyde, 'kneleth now, whyl that yow leste, 965 + Ther god your hertes bringe sone at reste!' + + 139. Can I not seyn, for she bad him not ryse, + If sorwe it putte out of hir remembraunce, + Or elles if she toke it in the wyse + Of duëtee, as for his observaunce; 970 + But wel finde I she dide him this plesaunce, + That she him kiste, al-though she syked sore; + And bad him sitte a-doun with-outen more. + + 140. Quod Pandarus, 'now wol ye wel biginne; + Now doth him sitte, gode nece dere, 975 + Upon your beddes syde al there with-inne, + That ech of yow the bet may other here.' + And with that word he drow him to the fere, + And took a light, and fond his contenaunce + As for to loke up-on an old romaunce. 980 + + 141. Criseyde, that was Troilus lady right, + And cleer stood on a ground of sikernesse, + Al thoughte she, hir servaunt and hir knight + Ne sholde of right non untrouthe in hir gesse, + Yet nathelees, considered his distresse, 985 + And that love is in cause of swich folye, + Thus to him spak she of his Ielousye: + + 142. 'Lo, herte myn, as wolde the excellence + Of love, ayeins the which that no man may, + Ne oughte eek goodly maken resistence 990 + And eek bycause I felte wel and say + Your grete trouthe, and servyse every day; + And that your herte al myn was, sooth to seyne, + This droof me for to rewe up-on your peyne. + + 143. And your goodnesse have I founde alwey yit, 995 + Of whiche, my dere herte and al my knight, + I thonke it yow, as fer as I have wit, + Al can I nought as muche as it were right; + And I, emforth my conninge and my might, + Have and ay shal, how sore that me smerte, 1000 + Ben to yow trewe and hool, with al myn herte; + + 144. And dredelees, that shal be founde at preve.--- + But, herte myn, what al this is to seyne + Shal wel be told, so that ye noght yow greve, + Though I to yow right on your-self compleyne. 1005 + For ther-with mene I fynally the peyne, + That halt your herte and myn in hevinesse, + Fully to sleen, and every wrong redresse. + + 145. My goode, myn, not I for-why ne how + That Ialousye, allas! that wikked wivere, 1010 + Thus causelees is cropen in-to yow; + The harm of which I wolde fayn delivere! + Allas! that he, al hool, or of him slivere, + Shuld have his refut in so digne a place, + Ther Iove him sone out of your herte arace! 1015 + + 146. But O, thou Iove, O auctor of nature, + Is this an honour to thy deitee, + That folk ungiltif suffren here iniure, + And who that giltif is, al quit goth he? + O were it leful for to pleyne on thee, 1020 + That undeserved suffrest Ialousye, + And that I wolde up-on thee pleyne and crye! + + 147. Eek al my wo is this, that folk now usen + To seyn right thus, "ye, Ialousye is love!" + And wolde a busshel venim al excusen, 1025 + For that o greyn of love is on it shove! + But that wot heighe god that sit above, + If it be lyker love, or hate, or grame; + And after that, it oughte bere his name. + + 148. But certeyn is, som maner Ialousye 1030 + Is excusable more than som, y-wis. + As whan cause is, and som swich fantasye + With pietee so wel repressed is, + That it unnethe dooth or seyth amis, + But goodly drinketh up al his distresse; 1035 + And that excuse I, for the gentilesse. + + 149. And som so ful of furie is and despyt, + That it sourmounteth his repressioun; + But herte myn, ye be not in that plyt, + That thanke I god, for whiche your passioun 1040 + I wol not calle it but illusioun, + Of habundaunce of love and bisy cure, + That dooth your herte this disese endure. + + 150. Of which I am right sory, but not wrooth; + But, for my devoir and your hertes reste, 1045 + Wher-so yow list, by ordal or by ooth, + By sort, or in what wyse so yow leste, + For love of god, lat preve it for the beste! + And if that I be giltif, do me deye, + Allas! what mighte I more doon or seye?' 1050 + + 151. With that a fewe brighte teres newe + Out of hir eyen fille, and thus she seyde, + 'Now god, thou wost, in thought ne dede untrewe + To Troilus was never yet Criseyde.' + With that hir heed doun in the bed she leyde, 1055 + And with the shete it wreigh, and syghed sore, + And held hir pees; not o word spak she more. + + 152. But now help god to quenchen al this sorwe, + So hope I that he shal, for he best may; + For I have seyn, of a ful misty morwe 1060 + Folwen ful ofte a mery someres day; + And after winter folweth grene May. + Men seen alday, and reden eek in stories, + That after sharpe shoures been victories. + + 153. This Troilus, whan he hir wordes herde, 1065 + Have ye no care, him liste not to slepe; + For it thoughte him no strokes of a yerde + To here or seen Criseyde his lady wepe; + But wel he felte aboute his herte crepe, + For every teer which that Criseyde asterte, 1070 + The crampe of deeth, to streyne him by the herte. + + 154. And in his minde he gan the tyme acurse + That he cam therë, and that he was born; + For now is wikke y-turned in-to worse, + And al that labour he hath doon biforn, 1075 + He wende it lost, he thoughte he nas but lorn. + 'O Pandarus,' thoughte he, 'allas! thy wyle + Serveth of nought, so weylawey the whyle!' + + 155. And therwithal he heng a-doun the heed, + And fil on knees, and sorwfully he sighte; 1080 + What mighte he seyn? he felte he nas but deed, + For wrooth was she that shulde his sorwes lighte. + But nathelees, whan that he speken mighte, + Than seyde he thus, 'god woot, that of this game, + Whan al is wist, than am I not to blame!' 1085 + + 156. Ther-with the sorwe so his herte shette, + That from his eyen fil ther not a tere, + And every spirit his vigour in-knette, + So they astoned and oppressed were. + The feling of his sorwe, or of his fere, 1090 + Or of ought elles, fled was out of towne; + And doun he fel al sodeynly a-swowne. + + 157. This was no litel sorwe for to see; + But al was hust, and Pandare up as faste, + 'O nece, pees, or we be lost,' quod he, 1095 + Beth nought agast;' but certeyn, at the laste, + For this or that, he in-to bedde him caste, + And seyde, 'O theef, is this a mannes herte?' + And of he rente al to his bare sherte; + + 158. And seyde, 'nece, but ye helpe us now, 1100 + Allas, your owne Troilus is lorn!' + 'Y-wis, so wolde I, and I wiste how, + Ful fayn,' quod she; 'allas! that I was born!' + 'Ye, nece, wol ye pullen out the thorn + That stiketh in his herte?' quod Pandare; 1105 + 'Sey "al foryeve," and stint is al this fare!' + + 159. 'Ye, that to me,' quod she, 'ful lever were + Than al the good the sonne aboute gooth'; + And therwith-al she swoor him in his ere, + 'Y-wis, my dere herte, I am nought wrooth, 1110 + Have here my trouthe and many another ooth; + Now speek to me, for it am I, Cryseyde!' + But al for nought; yet mighte he not a-breyde. + + 160. Therwith his pous and pawmes of his hondes + They gan to frote, and wete his temples tweyne, 1115 + And, to deliveren him from bittre bondes, + She ofte him kiste; and, shortly for to seyne, + Him to revoken she dide al hir peyne. + And at the laste, he gan his breeth to drawe, + And of his swough sone after that adawe, 1120 + + 161. And gan bet minde and reson to him take, + But wonder sore he was abayst, y-wis. + And with a syk, whan he gan bet a-wake, + He seyde, 'O mercy, god, what thing is this?' + 'Why do ye with your-selven thus amis?' 1125 + Quod tho Criseyde, 'is this a mannes game? + What, Troilus! wol ye do thus, for shame?' + + 162. And therwith-al hir arm over him she leyde, + And al foryaf, and ofte tyme him keste. + He thonked hir, and to hir spak, and seyde 1130 + As fil to purpos for his herte reste. + And she to that answerde him as hir leste; + And with hir goodly wordes him disporte + She gan, and ofte his sorwes to comforte. + + 163. Quod Pandarus, 'for ought I can espyen, 1135 + This light nor I ne serven here of nought; + Light is not good for syke folkes yën. + But for the love of god, sin ye be brought + In thus good plyt, lat now non hevy thought + Ben hanginge in the hertes of yow tweye:' 1140 + And bar the candele to the chimeneye. + + 164. Sone after this, though it no nede were, + Whan she swich othes as hir list devyse + Hadde of him take, hir thoughte tho no fere, + Ne cause eek non, to bidde him thennes ryse. 1145 + Yet lesse thing than othes may suffyse + In many a cas; for every wight, I gesse, + That loveth wel meneth but gentilesse. + + 165. But in effect she wolde wite anoon + Of what man, and eek where, and also why 1150 + He Ielous was, sin ther was cause noon; + And eek the signe, that he took it by, + She bad him that to telle hir bisily, + Or elles, certeyn, she bar him on honde, + That this was doon of malis, hir to fonde. 1155 + + 166. With-outen more, shortly for to seyne, + He moste obeye un-to his lady heste; + And for the lasse harm, he moste feyne. + He seyde hir, whan she was at swiche a feste + She mighte on him han loked at the leste; 1160 + Not I not what, al dere y-nough a risshe, + As he that nedes moste a cause fisshe. + + 167. And she answerde, 'swete, al were it so, + What harm was that, sin I non yvel mene? + For, by that god that boughte us bothe two, 1165 + In alle thinge is myn entente clene. + Swich arguments ne been not worth a bene; + Wol ye the childish Ialous contrefete? + Now were it worthy that ye were y-bete.' + + 168. Tho Troilus gan sorwfully to syke, 1170 + Lest she be wrooth, him thoughte his herte deyde; + And seyde, 'allas! upon my sorwes syke + Have mercy, swete herte myn, Cryseyde! + And if that, in tho wordes that I seyde, + Be any wrong, I wol no more trespace; 1175 + Do what yow list, I am al in your grace.' + + 169. And she answerde, 'of gilt misericorde! + That is to seyn, that I foryeve al this; + And ever-more on this night yow recorde, + And beth wel war ye do no more amis.' 1180 + 'Nay, dere herte myn,' quod he, 'y-wis.' + 'And now,' quod she, 'that I have do yow smerte, + Foryeve it me, myn owene swete herte.' + + 170. This Troilus, with blisse of that supprysed, + Put al in goddes hond, as he that mente 1185 + No-thing but wel; and, sodeynly avysed, + He hir in armes faste to him hente. + And Pandarus, with a ful good entente, + Leyde him to slepe, and seyde, 'if ye ben wyse, + Swowneth not now, lest more folk aryse.' 1190 + + 171. What mighte or may the sely larke seye, + Whan that the sparhauk hath it in his foot? + I can no more, but of thise ilke tweye, + To whom this tale sucre be or soot, + Though that I tarie a yeer, som-tyme I moot, 1195 + After myn auctor, tellen hir gladnesse, + As wel as I have told hir hevinesse. + + 172. Criseyde, which that felte hir thus y-take, + As writen clerkes in hir bokes olde, + Right as an aspes leef she gan to quake, 1200 + Whan she him felte hir in his armes folde. + But Troilus, al hool of cares colde, + Gan thanken tho the blisful goddes sevene; + Thus sondry peynes bringen folk to hevene. + + 173. This Troilus in armes gan hir streyne, 1205 + And seyde, 'O swete, as ever mote I goon, + Now be ye caught, now is ther but we tweyne; + Now yeldeth yow, for other boot is noon.' + To that Criseyde answerde thus anoon, + 'Ne hadde I er now, my swete herte dere, 1210 + Ben yolde, y-wis, I were now not here!' + + 174. O! sooth is seyd, that heled for to be + As of a fevre or othere greet syknesse, + Men moste drinke, as men may often see, + Ful bittre drink; and for to han gladnesse, 1215 + Men drinken often peyne and greet distresse; + I mene it here, as for this aventure, + That thourgh a peyne hath founden al his cure. + + 175. And now swetnesse semeth more sweet, + That bitternesse assayed was biforn; 1220 + For out of wo in blisse now they flete. + Non swich they felten, sith they were born; + Now is this bet, than bothe two be lorn! + For love of god, take every womman hede + To werken thus, if it comth to the nede. 1225 + + 176. Criseyde, al quit from every drede and tene, + As she that iuste cause hadde him to triste, + Made him swich feste, it Ioye was to sene, + Whan she his trouthe and clene entente wiste. + And as aboute a tree, with many a twiste, 1230 + Bitrent and wryth the sote wode-binde, + Gan eche of hem in armes other winde. + + 177. And as the newe abaysshed nightingale, + That stinteth first whan she biginneth singe, + Whan that she hereth any herde tale, 1235 + Or in the hegges any wight steringe, + And after siker dooth hir voys out-ringe; + Right so Criseyde, whan hir drede stente, + Opned hir herte, and tolde him hir entente. + + 178. And right as he that seeth his deeth y-shapen, 1240 + And deye moot, in ought that he may gesse, + And sodeynly rescous doth him escapen, + And from his deeth is brought in sikernesse, + For al this world, in swich present gladnesse + Was Troilus, and hath his lady swete; 1245 + With worse hap god lat us never mete! + + 179. Hir armes smale, hir streyghte bak and softe, + Hir sydes longe, fleshly, smothe, and whyte + He gan to stroke, and good thrift bad ful ofte + Hir snowish throte, hir brestes rounde and lyte; 1250 + Thus in this hevene he gan him to delyte, + And ther-with-al a thousand tyme hir kiste; + That, what to done, for Ioye unnethe he wiste. + + 180. Than seyde he thus, 'O, Love, O, Charitee, + Thy moder eek, Citherea the swete, 1255 + After thy-self next heried be she, + Venus mene I, the wel-willy planete; + And next that, Imenëus, I thee grete; + For never man was to yow goddes holde + As I, which ye han brought fro cares colde. 1260 + + 181. Benigne Love, thou holy bond of thinges, + Who-so wol grace, and list thee nought honouren, + Lo, his desyr wol flee with-outen winges. + For, noldestow of bountee hem socouren + That serven best and most alwey labouren, 1265 + Yet were al lost, that dar I wel seyn, certes, + But-if thy grace passed our desertes. + + 182. And for thou me, that coude leest deserve + Of hem that nombred been un-to thy grace, + Hast holpen, ther I lykly was to sterve, 1270 + And me bistowed in so heygh a place + That thilke boundes may no blisse pace, + I can no more, but laude and reverence + Be to thy bounte and thyn excellence!' + + 183. And therwith-al Criseyde anoon he kiste, 1275 + Of which, certeyn, she felte no disese. + And thus seyde he, 'now wolde god I wiste, + Myn herte swete, how I yow mighte plese! + What man,' quod he, 'was ever thus at ese + As I, on whiche the faireste and the beste 1280 + That ever I say, deyneth hir herte reste. + + 184. Here may men seen that mercy passeth right; + The experience of that is felt in me, + That am unworthy to so swete a wight. + But herte myn, of your benignitee, 1285 + So thenketh, though that I unworthy be, + Yet mot I nede amenden in som wyse, + Right thourgh the vertu of your heyghe servyse. + + 185. And for the love of god, my lady dere, + Sin god hath wrought me for I shal yow serve, 1290 + As thus I mene, that ye wol be my stere, + To do me live, if that yow liste, or sterve, + So techeth me how that I may deserve + Your thank, so that I, thurgh myn ignoraunce, + Ne do no-thing that yow be displesaunce. 1295 + + 186. For certes, fresshe wommanliche wyf, + This dar I seye, that trouthe and diligence, + That shal ye finden in me al my lyf, + Ne I wol not, certeyn, breken your defence; + And if I do, present or in absence, 1300 + For love of god, lat slee me with the dede, + If that it lyke un-to your womanhede.' + + 187. 'Y-wis,' quod she, 'myn owne hertes list, + My ground of ese, and al myn herte dere, + Graunt mercy, for on that is al my trist; 1305 + But late us falle awey fro this matere; + For it suffyseth, this that seyd is here. + And at o word, with-outen repentaunce, + Wel-come, my knight, my pees, my suffisaunce!' + + 188. Of hir delyt, or Ioyes oon the leste 1310 + Were impossible to my wit to seye; + But iuggeth, ye that han ben at the feste, + Of swich gladnesse, if that hem liste pleye! + I can no more, but thus thise ilke tweye + That night, be-twixen dreed and sikernesse, 1315 + Felten in love the grete worthinesse. + + 189. O blisful night, of hem so longe y-sought, + How blithe un-to hem bothe two thou were! + Why ne hadde I swich on with my soule y-bought, + Ye, or the leeste Ioye that was there? 1320 + A-wey, thou foule daunger and thou fere, + And lat hem in this hevene blisse dwelle, + That is so heygh, that al ne can I telle! + + 190. But sooth is, though I can not tellen al, + As can myn auctor, of his excellence, 1325 + Yet have I seyd, and, god to-forn, I shal + In every thing al hoolly his sentence. + And if that I, at loves reverence, + Have any word in eched for the beste, + Doth therwith-al right as your-selven leste. 1330 + + 191. For myne wordes, here and every part, + I speke hem alle under correccioun + Of yow, that feling han in loves art, + And putte it al in your discrecioun + To encrese or maken diminucioun 1335 + Of my langage, and that I yow bi-seche; + But now to purpos of my rather speche. + + 192. Thise ilke two, that ben in armes laft, + So looth to hem a-sonder goon it were, + That ech from other wende been biraft, 1340 + Or elles, lo, this was hir moste fere, + That al this thing but nyce dremes were; + For which ful ofte ech of hem seyde, 'O swete, + Clippe ich yow thus, or elles I it mete?' + + 193. And, lord! so he gan goodly on hir see, 1345 + That never his look ne bleynte from hir face, + And seyde, 'O dere herte, may it be + That it be sooth, that ye ben in this place?' + 'Ye, herte myn, god thank I of his grace!' + Quod tho Criseyde, and therwith-al him kiste, 1350 + That where his spirit was, for Ioye he niste. + + 194. This Troilus ful ofte hir eyen two + Gan for to kisse, and seyde, 'O eyen clere, + It were ye that wroughte me swich wo, + Ye humble nettes of my lady dere! 1355 + Though ther be mercy writen in your chere, + God wot, the text ful hard is, sooth, to finde, + How coude ye with-outen bond me binde?' + + 195. Therwith he gan hir faste in armes take, + And wel an hundred tymes gan he syke, 1360 + Nought swiche sorwful sykes as men make + For wo, or elles whan that folk ben syke, + But esy sykes, swiche as been to lyke, + That shewed his affeccioun with-inne; + Of swiche sykes coude he nought bilinne. 1365 + + 196. Sone after this they speke of sondry thinges, + As fil to purpos of this aventure, + And pleyinge entrechaungeden hir ringes, + Of which I can nought tellen no scripture; + But wel I woot a broche, gold and asure, 1370 + In whiche a ruby set was lyk an herte, + Criseyde him yaf, and stak it on his sherte. + + 197. Lord! trowe ye, a coveitous, a wrecche, + That blameth love and holt of it despyt, + That, of tho pens that he can mokre and kecche, 1375 + Was ever yet y-yeve him swich delyt, + As is in love, in oo poynt, in som plyt? + Nay, doutelees, for also god me save, + So parfit Ioye may no nigard have! + + 198. They wol sey 'yis,' but lord! so that they lye, 1380 + Tho bisy wrecches, ful of wo and drede! + They callen love a woodnesse or folye, + But it shal falle hem as I shal yow rede; + They shul forgo the whyte and eke the rede, + And live in wo, ther god yeve hem mischaunce, 1385 + And every lover in his trouthe avaunce! + + 199. As wolde god, tho wrecches, that dispyse + Servyse of love, hadde eres al-so longe + As hadde Myda, ful of coveityse; + And ther-to dronken hadde as hoot and stronge 1390 + As Crassus dide for his affectis wronge, + To techen hem that they ben in the vyce, + And loveres nought, al-though they holde hem nyce! + + 200. Thise ilke two, of whom that I yow seye, + Whan that hir hertes wel assured were, 1395 + Tho gonne they to speken and to pleye, + And eek rehercen how, and whanne, and where, + They knewe hem first, and every wo and fere + That passed was; but al swich hevinesse, + I thanke it god, was tourned to gladnesse. 1400 + + 201. And ever-mo, whan that hem fel to speke + Of any thing of swich a tyme agoon, + With kissing al that tale sholde breke, + And fallen in a newe Ioye anoon, + And diden al hir might, sin they were oon, 1405 + For to recoveren blisse and been at ese, + And passed wo with Ioye countrepeyse. + + 202. Reson wil not that I speke of sleep, + For it accordeth nought to my matere; + God woot, they toke of that ful litel keep, 1410 + But lest this night, that was to hem so dere, + Ne sholde in veyn escape in no manere, + It was biset in Ioye and bisinesse + Of al that souneth in-to gentilnesse. + + 203. But whan the cok, comune astrologer, 1415 + Gan on his brest to bete, and after crowe, + And Lucifer, the dayes messager, + Gan for to ryse, and out hir bemes throwe; + And estward roos, to him that coude it knowe, + _Fortuna maior_, [than] anoon Criseyde, 1420 + With herte sore, to Troilus thus seyde:-- + + 204. 'Myn hertes lyf, my trist and my plesaunce, + That I was born, allas! what me is wo, + That day of us mot make desseveraunce! + For tyme it is to ryse, and hennes go, 1425 + Or elles I am lost for evermo! + O night, allas! why niltow over us hove, + As longe as whanne Almena lay by Iove? + + 205. O blake night, as folk in bokes rede, + That shapen art by god this world to hyde 1430 + At certeyn tymes with thy derke wede, + That under that men mighte in reste abyde, + Wel oughte bestes pleyne, and folk thee chyde, + That there-as day with labour wolde us breste, + That thou thus fleest, and deynest us nought reste! 1435 + + 206. Thou dost, allas! to shortly thyn offyce, + Thou rakel night, ther god, makere of kinde, + Thee, for thyn hast and thyn unkinde vyce, + So faste ay to our hemi-spere binde, + That never-more under the ground thou winde! 1440 + For now, for thou so hyest out of Troye, + Have I forgon thus hastily my Ioye!' + + 207. This Troilus, that with tho wordes felte, + As thoughte him tho, for pietous distresse, + The blody teres from his herte melte, 1445 + As he that never yet swich hevinesse + Assayed hadde, out of so greet gladnesse, + Gan therwith-al Criseyde his lady dere + In armes streyne, and seyde in this manere:-- + + 208. 'O cruel day, accusour of the Ioye 1450 + That night and love han stole and faste y-wryen, + A-cursed be thy coming in-to Troye, + For every bore hath oon of thy bright yën! + Envyous day, what list thee so to spyen? + What hastow lost, why sekestow this place, 1455 + Ther god thy lyght so quenche, for his grace? + + 209. Allas! what han thise loveres thee agilt, + Dispitous day? thyn be the pyne of helle! + For many a lovere hastow shent, and wilt; + Thy pouring in wol no-wher lete hem dwelle. 1460 + What proferestow thy light here for to selle? + Go selle it hem that smale seles graven, + We wol thee nought, us nedeth no day haven.' + + 210. And eek the sonne Tytan gan he chyde, + And seyde, 'O fool, wel may men thee dispyse, 1465 + That hast the Dawing al night by thy syde, + And suffrest hir so sone up fro thee ryse, + For to disesen loveres in this wyse. + What! hold your bed ther, thou, and eek thy Morwe! + I bidde god, so yeve yow bothe sorwe!' 1470 + + 211. Therwith ful sore he sighte, and thus he seyde, + 'My lady right, and of my wele or wo + The welle and rote, O goodly myn, Criseyde, + And shal I ryse, allas! and shal I go? + Now fele I that myn herte moot a-two! 1475 + For how sholde I my lyf an houre save, + Sin that with yow is al the lyf I have? + + 212. What shal I doon, for certes, I not how, + Ne whanne, allas! I shal the tyme see, + That in this plyt I may be eft with yow; 1480 + And of my lyf, god woot, how that shal be, + Sin that desyr right now so byteth me, + That I am deed anoon, but I retourne. + How sholde I longe, allas! fro yow soiourne? + + 213. But nathelees, myn owene lady bright, 1485 + Yit were it so that I wiste outrely, + That I, your humble servaunt and your knight, + Were in your herte set so fermely + As ye in myn, the which thing, trewely, + Me lever were than thise worldes tweyne, 1490 + Yet sholde I bet enduren al my peyne.' + + 214. To that Cryseyde answerde right anoon, + And with a syk she seyde, 'O herte dere, + The game, y-wis, so ferforth now is goon, + That first shal Phebus falle fro his spere, 1495 + And every egle been the dowves fere, + And every roche out of his place sterte, + Er Troilus out of Criseydes herte! + + 215. Ye be so depe in-with myn herte grave, + That, though I wolde it turne out of my thought, 1500 + As wisly verray god my soule save, + To dyen in the peyne, I coude nought! + And, for the love of god that us hath wrought, + Lat in your brayn non other fantasye + So crepe, that it cause me to dye! 1505 + + 216. And that ye me wolde han as faste in minde + As I have yow, that wolde I yow bi-seche; + And, if I wiste soothly that to finde, + God mighte not a poynt my Ioyes eche! + But, herte myn, with-oute more speche, 1510 + Beth to me trewe, or elles were it routhe; + For I am thyn, by god and by my trouthe! + + 217. Beth glad for-thy, and live in sikernesse; + Thus seyde I never er this, ne shal to mo; + And if to yow it were a gret gladnesse 1515 + To turne ayein, soone after that ye go, + As fayn wolde I as ye, it were so, + As wisly god myn herte bringe at reste!' + And him in armes took, and ofte keste. + + 218. Agayns his wil, sin it mot nedes be, 1520 + This Troilus up roos, and faste him cledde, + And in his armes took his lady free + An hundred tyme, and on his wey him spedde, + And with swich wordes as his herte bledde, + He seyde, 'farewel, my dere herte swete, 1525 + Ther god us graunte sounde and sone to mete!' + + 219. To which no word for sorwe she answerde, + So sore gan his parting hir destreyne; + And Troilus un-to his palays ferde, + As woo bigon as she was, sooth to seyne; 1530 + So hard him wrong of sharp desyr the peyne + For to ben eft there he was in plesaunce, + That it may never out of his remembraunce. + + 220. Retorned to his real palais, sone + He softe in-to his bed gan for to slinke, 1535 + To slepe longe, as he was wont to done, + But al for nought; he may wel ligge and winke, + But sleep ne may ther in his herte sinke; + Thenkinge how she, for whom desyr him brende, + A thousand-fold was worth more than he wende. 1540 + + 221. And in his thought gan up and doun to winde + Hir wordes alle, and every contenaunce, + And fermely impressen in his minde + The leste poynt that to him was plesaunce; + And verrayliche, of thilke remembraunce, 1545 + Desyr al newe him brende, and lust to brede + Gan more than erst, and yet took he non hede. + + 222. Criseyde also, right in the same wyse, + Of Troilus gan in hir herte shette + His worthinesse, his lust, his dedes wyse, 1550 + His gentilesse, and how she with him mette, + Thonkinge love he so wel hir bisette; + Desyring eft to have hir herte dere + In swich a plyt, she dorste make him chere. + + 223. Pandare, a-morwe which that comen was 1555 + Un-to his nece, and gan hir fayre grete, + Seyde, 'al this night so reyned it, allas! + That al my drede is that ye, nece swete, + Han litel layser had to slepe and mete; + Al night,' quod he, 'hath reyn so do me wake, 1560 + That som of us, I trowe, hir hedes ake.' + + 224. And ner he com, and seyde, 'how stont it now + This mery morwe, nece, how can ye fare?' + Criseyde answerde, 'never the bet for yow, + Fox that ye been, god yeve your herte care! 1565 + God helpe me so, ye caused al this fare, + Trow I,' quod she, 'for alle your wordes whyte; + O! who-so seeth yow knoweth yow ful lyte!' + + 225. With that she gan hir face for to wrye + With the shete, and wex for shame al reed; 1570 + And Pandarus gan under for to prye, + And seyde, 'nece, if that I shal ben deed, + Have here a swerd, and smyteth of myn heed.' + With that his arm al sodeynly he thriste + Under hir nekke, and at the laste hir kiste. 1575 + + 226. I passe al that which chargeth nought to seye, + What! God foryaf his deeth, and she al-so + Foryaf, and with hir uncle gan to pleye, + For other cause was ther noon than so. + But of this thing right to the effect to go, 1580 + Whan tyme was, hom til hir hous she wente, + And Pandarus hath fully his entente. + + 227. Now torne we ayein to Troilus, + That resteles ful longe a-bedde lay, + And prevely sente after Pandarus, 1585 + To him to come in al the haste he may. + He com anoon, nought ones seyde he 'nay,' + And Troilus ful sobrely he grette, + And doun upon his beddes syde him sette. + + 228. This Troilus, with al the affeccioun 1590 + Of frendes love that herte may devyse, + To Pandarus on kneës fil adoun, + And er that he wolde of the place aryse, + He gan him thonken in his beste wyse; + A hondred sythe he gan the tyme blesse, 1595 + That he was born to bringe him fro distresse. + + 229. He seyde, 'O frend, of frendes the alderbeste + That ever was, the sothe for to telle, + Thou hast in hevene y-brought my soule at reste + Fro Flegiton, the fery flood of helle; 1600 + That, though I mighte a thousand tymes selle, + Upon a day, my lyf in thy servyse, + It mighte nought a mote in that suffyse. + + 230. The sonne, which that al the world may see, + Saw never yet, my lyf, that dar I leye, 1605 + So inly fair and goodly as is she, + Whos I am al, and shal, til that I deye; + And, that I thus am hires, dar I seye, + That thanked be the heighe worthinesse + Of love, and eek thy kinde bisinesse. 1610 + + 231. Thus hastow me no litel thing y-yive, + Fo which to thee obliged be for ay + My lyf, and why? for thorugh thyn help I live; + For elles deed hadde I be many a day.' + And with that word doun in his bed he lay, 1615 + And Pandarus ful sobrely him herde + Til al was seyd, and thanne he him answerde: + + 232. 'My dere frend, if I have doon for thee + In any cas, god wot, it is me leef; + And am as glad as man may of it be, 1620 + God help me so; but tak now not a-greef + That I shal seyn, be war of this myscheef, + That, there-as thou now brought art in-to blisse, + That thou thy-self ne cause it nought to misse. + + 233. For of fortunes sharp adversitee 1625 + The worst kinde of infortune is this, + A man to have ben in prosperitee, + And it remembren, whan it passed is. + Thou art wys y-nough, for-thy do nought amis; + Be not to rakel, though thou sitte warme, 1630 + For if thou be, certeyn, it wol thee harme. + + 234. Thou art at ese, and holde thee wel ther-inne. + For also seur as reed is every fyr, + As greet a craft is kepe wel as winne; + Brydle alwey wel thy speche and thy desyr. 1635 + For worldly Ioye halt not but by a wyr; + That preveth wel, it brest alday so ofte; + For-thy nede is to werke with it softe.' + + 235. Quod Troilus, 'I hope, and god to-forn, + My dere frend, that I shal so me bere, 1640 + That in my gilt ther shal no thing be lorn, + Ne I nil not rakle as for to greven here; + It nedeth not this matere ofte tere; + For wistestow myn herte wel, Pandare, + God woot, of this thou woldest litel care.' 1645 + + 236. Tho gan he telle him of his glade night. + And wher-of first his herte dredde, and how, + And seyde, 'freend, as I am trewe knight, + And by that feyth I shal to god and yow, + I hadde it never half so hote as now; 1650 + And ay the more that desyr me byteth + To love hir best, the more it me delyteth. + + 237. I noot my-self not wisly what it is; + But now I fele a newe qualitee, + Ye, al another than I dide er this.' 1655 + Pandare answerde, and seyde thus, that he + That ones may in hevene blisse be, + He feleth other weyes, dar I leye, + Than thilke tyme he first herde of it seye. + + 238. This is o word for al; this Troilus 1660 + Was never ful, to speke of this matere, + And for to preysen un-to Pandarus + The bountee of his righte lady dere, + And Pandarus to thanke and maken chere. + This tale ay was span-newe to biginne 1665 + Til that the night departed hem a-twinne. + + 239. Sone after this, for that fortune it wolde, + I-comen was the blisful tyme swete, + That Troilus was warned that he sholde, + Ther he was erst, Criseyde his lady mete; 1670 + For which he felte his herte in Ioye flete; + And feythfully gan alle the goddes herie; + And lat see now if that he can be merie. + + 240. And holden was the forme and al the wyse, + Of hir cominge, and eek of his also, 1675 + As it was erst, which nedeth nought devyse. + But playnly to the effect right for to go, + In Ioye and seurte Pandarus hem two + A-bedde broughte, whan hem bothe leste, + And thus they ben in quiete and in reste. 1680 + + 241. Nought nedeth it to yow, sin they ben met, + To aske at me if that they blythe were; + For if it erst was wel, tho was it bet + A thousand-fold, this nedeth not enquere. + A-gon was every sorwe and every fere; 1685 + And bothe, y-wis, they hadde, and so they wende, + As muche Ioye as herte may comprende. + + 242. This is no litel thing of for to seye, + This passeth every wit for to devyse; + For eche of hem gan otheres lust obeye; 1690 + Felicitee, which that thise clerkes wyse + Commenden so, ne may not here suffyse. + This Ioye may not writen been with inke, + This passeth al that herte may bithinke. + + 243. But cruel day, so wel-awey the stounde! 1695 + Gan for to aproche, as they by signes knewe, + For whiche hem thoughte felen dethes wounde; + So wo was hem, that changen gan hir hewe, + And day they gonnen to dispyse al newe, + Calling it traytour, envyous, and worse, 1700 + And bitterly the dayes light they curse. + + 244. Quod Troilus, 'allas! now am I war + That Pirous and tho swifte stedes three, + Whiche that drawen forth the sonnes char, + Han goon som by-path in despyt of me; 1705 + That maketh it so sone day to be; + And, for the sonne him hasteth thus to ryse, + Ne shal I never doon him sacrifyse!' + + 245. But nedes day departe moste hem sone, + And whanne hir speche doon was and hir chere, 1710 + They twinne anoon as they were wont to done, + And setten tyme of meting eft y-fere; + And many a night they wroughte in this manere. + And thus Fortune a tyme ladde in Ioye + Criseyde, and eek this kinges sone of Troye. 1715 + + 246. In suffisaunce, in blisse, and in singinges, + This Troilus gan al his lyf to lede; + He spendeth, Iusteth, maketh festeyinges; + He yeveth frely ofte, and chaungeth wede, + And held aboute him alwey, out of drede, 1720 + A world of folk, as cam him wel of kinde, + The fressheste and the beste he coude fynde; + + 247. That swich a voys was of hym and a stevene + Thorugh-out the world, of honour and largesse, + That it up rong un-to the yate of hevene. 1725 + And, as in love, he was in swich gladnesse, + That in his herte he demede, as I gesse, + That there nis lovere in this world at ese + So wel as he, and thus gan love him plese. + + 248. The godlihede or beautee which that kinde 1730 + In any other lady hadde y-set + Can not the mountaunce of a knot unbinde, + A-boute his herte, of al Criseydes net. + He was so narwe y-masked and y-knet, + That it undon on any manere syde, 1735 + That nil not been, for ought that may betyde. + + 249. And by the hond ful ofte he wolde take + This Pandarus, and in-to gardin lede, + And swich a feste and swich a proces make + Him of Criseyde, and of hir womanhede, 1740 + And of hir beautee, that, with-outen drede, + It was an hevene his wordes for to here; + And thanne he wolde singe in this manere. + + 250. 'Love, that of erthe and see hath governaunce, + Love, that his hestes hath in hevene hye, 1745 + Love, that with an holsom alliaunce + Halt peples ioyned, as him list hem gye, + Love, that knetteth lawe of companye, + And couples doth in vertu for to dwelle, + Bind this acord, that I have told and telle; 1750 + + 251. That that the world with feyth, which that is stable, + Dyverseth so his stoundes concordinge, + That elements that been so discordable + Holden a bond perpetuely duringe, + That Phebus mote his rosy day forth bringe, 1755 + And that the mone hath lordship over the nightes, + Al this doth Love; ay heried be his mightes! + + 252. That that the see, that gredy is to flowen, + Constreyneth to a certeyn ende so + His flodes, that so fersly they ne growen 1760 + To drenchen erthe and al for ever-mo; + And if that Love ought lete his brydel go, + Al that now loveth a-sonder sholde lepe, + And lost were al, that Love halt now to-hepe. + + 253. So wolde god, that auctor is of kinde, 1765 + That, with his bond, Love of his vertu liste + To cerclen hertes alle, and faste binde, + That from his bond no wight the wey out wiste. + And hertes colde, hem wolde I that he twiste + To make hem love, and that hem leste ay rewe 1770 + On hertes sore, and kepe hem that ben trewe.' + + 254. In alle nedes, for the tounes werre, + He was, and ay the firste in armes dight; + And certeynly, but-if that bokes erre, + Save Ector, most y-drad of any wight; 1775 + And this encrees of hardinesse and might + Cam him of love, his ladies thank to winne, + That altered his spirit so with-inne. + + 255. In tyme of trewe, on haukinge wolde he ryde, + Or elles hunten boor, bere, or lyoun; 1780 + The smale bestes leet he gon bi-syde. + And whan that he com rydinge in-to toun, + Ful ofte his lady, from hir window doun, + As fresh as faucon comen out of muwe, + Ful redy was, him goodly to saluwe. 1785 + + 256. And most of love and vertu was his speche, + And in despyt hadde alle wrecchednesse; + And doutelees, no nede was him biseche + To honouren hem that hadde worthinesse, + And esen hem that weren in distresse. 1790 + And glad was he if any wight wel ferde, + That lover was, whan he it wiste or herde. + + 257. For sooth to seyn, he lost held every wight + But-if he were in loves heigh servyse, + I mene folk that oughte it been of right. 1795 + And over al this, so wel coude he devyse + Of sentement, and in so unkouth wyse + Al his array, that every lover thoughte, + That al was wel, what-so he seyde or wroughte. + + 258. And though that he be come of blood royal, 1800 + Him liste of pryde at no wight for to chase; + Benigne he was to ech in general, + For which he gat him thank in every place. + Thus wolde Love, y-heried be his grace, + That Pryde, Envye, Ire, and Avaryce 1805 + He gan to flee, and every other vyce. + + 259. Thou lady bright, the doughter to Dione, + Thy blinde and winged sone eek, daun Cupyde; + Ye sustren nyne eek, that by Elicone + In hil Parnaso listen for to abyde, 1810 + That ye thus fer han deyned me to gyde, + I can no more, but sin that ye wol wende, + Ye heried been for ay, with-outen ende! + + 260. Thourgh yow have I seyd fully in my song + Theffect and Ioye of Troilus servyse, 1815 + Al be that ther was som disese among, + As to myn auctor listeth to devyse. + My thridde book now ende ich in this wyse; + And Troilus in luste and in quiete + Is with Criseyde, his owne herte swete. 1820 + +EXPLICIT LIBER TERCIUS. + + + +RUBRIC; _from_ Cp. 1-56. _Lost in_ Cm. 3. H2. leef; Ed. lefe; Cl. lyef; Cp. +H. lief. 7. Cl. thin (_for 2nd_ thy). 9. Cl. of; _rest_ if. // Cp. Ed. wel; +H2. wil; Cl. wole; H. wol. 10. Cl. Cp. beste. 11. Cl. H. Ed. The; H2. To. +// Cl. feld (_for_ fele). 12. Cl. nough (!). 13. Cl. word; H. world; Cp. +Ed. worlde; H2. wirk. 17. Cl. H. Comeueden (_rightly_); Cp. Comended; Ed. +Comenden; H2. Commodious(!). // Cp. Ed. amorous; H2. amerous; Cl. H. +amoreux. // _All_ hem (_wrongly_); _read_ him; _see_ l. 19. 20. Cp. H. H2. +hym; Ed. him; Cl. hem. 22. H. apasen; Ed. apeasen; H2. apesyn. // Cl. Iire. +23. Cl. lyste; _rest_ list. 28. H2. hym; _rest_ it. 32. Cl. thing. 33. Cl. +constreue. // Cl. H. Cp. Io; H2. io; Ed. go; (Io=jo). 36. Cl. vniuersite +(!). 38. Cl. H. worse. 42. Cl. this (_for_ thy). // Cl. seruyce. 44. Cp. H. +Inhielde. 49. H2. gladnes; _rest om._ 51. _All_ lesson. 56. H2. leve +(_sic_); _rest_ leue. // Cp. H. Ed. werken; Cl. werke. 57. Cm. how; _rest_ +so. // Cl. _om._ that. 58. Cp. Ed. Cm. shorte; _rest_ short. 59. Cl. lad. +60. Cl. _om._ in. 65. Cl. rufully; Ed. routhfully. 66. thou] Cl. yow. 74. +H2. Ed. ey; _rest_ I. 76. lordshipe] Cl. mercy. 77. Cl. beseche. 79. H. Cm. +wex; Cl. Cp. wax. 81. Cl. smyte. 83. Cl. _om._ he. 90. Cp. H. Ed. resons; +Cl. resones; Cm. werkis; H2. wordis. 92. Cl. An; H2. Hym; _rest_ In. 93. +Cl. quooke. 97. Cm. ferste; _rest_ first (ferst). 99. Cl. whily. // Cl. ho +(_for_ he). 100. Cl. that; _rest_ for. 101. Cl. _om._ I. 110. Cm. wrethe +(_for_ herte). // Cm. I; H2. y; _rest om._ 114. Cl. for to; _rest_ to. 116. +H. puked; H2. p_ro_curid (!). 119. Cm. H2. _om._ that. 121. Cp. H. Ed. +wilne; Cm. wiln; Cl. wille. // Cl. shal seye; _rest om._ shal. 125. of] Cl. +on. 135. Cl. deligence. 136. Cl. Cp. H. Ed. _om._ I; _see_ l. 141. 138. Cl. +defende (!). 139. Cl. Cm. digne; _rest_ deigne. 142. Cl. Cp. myn; Cm. myne. +144. H2. serve; _rest_ seruen. // Cl. Cp. H. ben ay I-lyke; Ed. to ben aye +ylike; H2. bene y-lyke; Cm. ay ben I-lik; _but read_ been y-lyke ay. 149. +And] Cl. A. // Cl. _om._ a. 150. Cl. Cp. H. feste. 152. Cl. that this; +_rest om._ that. 160. Cl. But (_for_ And). 167. Cp. H. hennes; Cm. henys; +Cl. hens. 172. MSS. soueraynte. 173. Cp. Ny (_for_ Ne I). 176. Cl. my dere; +_rest om._ my. 179. Cl. Ed. to; _rest_ in-to. 180. yow] Cl. now. 183. H. +yen; Cm. ey[gh]yn; _rest_ eyen. 188. Cl. Cp. H. in the; _rest om._ the. +190. Cl. Cm. H2. Ed. _om._ as. 193. Cl. and on; Ed. H2. and one; H. and +oon; Cp. an oon; Cm. a-non; _read_ as oon? 194. Cm. H2. the; Cp. to; _rest_ +two. 195. my] Cl. Cm. myn. 205. H2. They come vpwardis at. 207. Cl. blynde. +208. Cl. it is tyme. 213. Cl. _ins._ hire _bef._ diden. // Cp. H. diden; +Cl. deden. 214. Cm. spekyn wondir wel; Cl. (_and rest_) wonder wel spaken +(speken). 221. Cl. gardeyn. 223. Cl. lyste; Cp. Ed. H. leste. 229. Cp. Ed. +paillet; _rest_ pailet. 237. Cl. speke; _rest_ speken (spekyn). 240. Cl. +_om._ so. 242. Cp. Cm. waxeth; Ed. woxe; _rest_ wax (_but read_ wex). 244. +Cl. sethen do. 250. Cl. a game bygonne to. 254. Cp. H. Bitwixen; Cl. +Bytwene. 260. Cl. alle; _rest_ al. 262. Cl. for to abrygge; Cp. H. for +tabregge; Cm. to abregge. // Cl. destresse. 268. Cl. alwed. 269. Cl. dar I; +_rest_ I dar wel. 270. Cl. _om._ that. 279. Cl. bygone. 280. Cl. wonne. +281. Cl. _om._ wol. // Cl. H2. go. 283. Cl. preuete. 290. Cl. Cm. Ed. _om._ +ther. 293. H. Ed. this (_for_ yet); Cp. thus. 299. Cl. selue; Cm. seluyn. +300. H2. as for to; blabbe. 301. Cl. the (_for_ they). 308. Cl. kyng (_for_ +kynde). // Cl. auauntures (!). 310. As] Cl. A. 312. Cl. H2. holde; _rest_ +holden. 313. Cl. _om._ it. 315. Cl. Cp. H2. And a; _rest_ And. // Cl. +heste; H2. hest; _rest_ byheste. 319. Cl. byhight; Cp. bihyghte. 320. Cl. +no more; _rest om._ no. 332. Cl. womman (!). 323. Cl. this not. 324. Cm. +wis man; H2. wyse man; _rest_ wyse men. 327. Cl. wys. 329. Cl. _om._ harm. +335. Cl. suffice; _rest_ suffise. 337. Cl. _om._ wel. 340. the] Cl. H2. +thi. 341. Cl. make (_for_ may). 344. or] Cl. and. 346. theffect] Cl. the +feyth. 347. Cl. sorwe (_for_ herte). 351. Cl. _om._ as. 352. Cp. H. H2. +dede; Cl. Cm. ded. 355. Cl. Cp. H. for to (_for_ to). 356. Cm. Wex; Cl. Cp. +H. Wax. 360. Cm. aprille; H. ap_er_il; _rest_ April. 361. remembre] Cl. +remembreth. 363. H. didest; Cl. Cp. dedest. 366. Cl. I to; _rest om._ to. +368. Cm. Ed. tel; _rest_ telle. 380. Cl. thenketh. 382. Cp. H. Caytif; Cl. +Castif; _rest_ Captif. // _All_ Agamenoun. 385. Ed. the lyketh; H2. it lyke +the; Cl. it lyketh; Cp. H. Cm. it liketh the. 386. Cl. meche; Cp. muche. // +Cl. Cm. don; _rest_ I-do (y-do, ydon). 389. Cl. In; _rest_ on. 390. Cl. the +wole. 391. Cp. H. sclaue; Ed. slaue; Cl. knaue (_with_ sl _altered to_ kn). +397. Cl. baudery. 398. Cl. _om._ wood. 412. _All_ Tel. // Cl. Cp. H. _om._ +me. 414. Cl. seruyce. 417. Ed. moste; _rest_ most. 425. Cp. Ed. though; H2. +thogh; Cl. H. thought; Cm. tho. 441. Cl. he (_for_ her). 442. _All_ lay; +_perhaps read_ laye (_subjunctive_). 443. Cl. dishesed. 446. Cm. man; Cl. +Cp. H. men. // Ed. men be. // Cl. yplesed; _rest_ plesed. 450. Cp. H. +writen; Cl. wreten. 451. Cl. _om._ and. 452. or] Cl. Ed. and. 453. Cl. as +it; _rest om._ it. 457. Cl. _om._ awayt. 462. Cl. make; a (_for_ an). 463. +Cm. speke; _rest_ spake. 475. Cl. seruyce. 476. Cp. H. auyse; _rest_ +deuyse. 481. Cm. goode; _rest_ good. 485. Cp. Ed. y-like; H. yhold; _rest_ +ylyk. 491. wayten] Cl. wene. 496. Cl. stont; Cp. H. Cm. stant. 497. Cl. Cp. +Cm. Hise. 507. Cm. These; _rest_ This. 509. Cl. myght; Cp. H. Cm. myghte. +510. Ed. fulfell; _rest_ fulfille. 514. Cl. And; _rest_ As. 516. Cl. +There-as; _rest_ Wher-as. 520. Cl. _om._ -to. 525. Cp. H. H2. impossible. +526. Cp. H. Cm. Dredeles; Cl. Dredles. // Cm. cler; _rest_ clere. 527. Of] +Cl. From. 531. Cp. H. H2. witen; _rest_ weten. 533. Cl. puruyaunce. 540. H. +moste; Cm. Ed. muste; Cl. most. 545. Cl. _om._ -thy. 547. Cl. there but; +_rest om._ but. 548. Cl. shortely. 551. Ed. H2. welken; Cp. wolken; _rest_ +walkene (walken). 552. Cl. straught; H. H2. streight; Cp. streght. 555. Cl. +woned; _rest_ wont. 558. Cp. H. cape. 562. sholde] Cl. shal. 563. Cl. _om._ +ne. 572. Cp. H. thruste (!); Cm. thourrste (_for_ thurfte); H2. Ed. durst; +Cl. dorste (_but read_ thurfte). // Cl. haue neuere. 573. Cl. hem; _rest_ +him. 576. Cl. Cp. H2. whan that; _rest om._ that. 578. Cl. ther; _rest_ +ther-of. 579. Cl. Cp. Ed. with-outen. // Cl. a-wayte. 584. H. goosish; Cp. +goosissh; H2. gosisshe; Cl. gosylyche; Ed. gofysshe (!). // Cl. peple; H. +peples; Cm. puples; Cp. poeples; Ed. peoples. 587. Cm. mot; _rest_ most +(must). 589. Cl. _om._ hir. 595. Cl. vn to the; _rest_ to. 601. Cl. Cp. +stuwe. 602. Cl. _om._ in. 603. Cl. H. Wnwist. 608. Cl. hym; _rest_ hem. +612. Cl. auyse; _rest_ deuyse. 613. Cl. like; Cp. H. Cm. liken. // Cl. +laughen that here. 614. Cp. Cm. Ed. tolde; Cl. H. told. // Cl. tales; Ed. a +tale; H2. the tale; _rest_ tale. 616. Cl. she wolde; _rest om._ she. 617. +H2. werdis; Cl. Cp. Ed. wyerdes; H. wierdes; Cm. wordis (!). 619. Cm. H2. +herdis; _rest_ hierdes. 621. Cl. _om._ now. 630. it] Cl. a. 632. Cl. _om._ +I. 636. Cl. be. nought a-] Cl. for no. 637. Cl. _om._ as. 640. ron] Ed. +rayned. H2. flood; Cl. H. Cm. flode. 642. Cl. _om._ it. 645. dere] Cl. +drede. 648. a] Cm. on. 664. Cp. outer; H. outter; Cl. other; Ed. vtter; Cm. +vttir. 674. Cl. Cp. H. The voyde; Cm. They voydyn; Ed. They voyde; H2. They +voydid &. 676. Cl. that; H2. _om._; _rest_ the. 684. Cl. in; _rest_ at. +690. Cp. Ed. skippen; H. skipen; Cm. schepe; H2. skipe; Cl. speken. // +traunce] Ed. praunce. 696. Cl. Cp. sey; H. seye; Cm. woste; H2. wist; Ed. +sawe. // Cl. Ed. H2. al. 697. Cl. _om._ up-. 704. Cl. _om._ For. 711. Cp. +H. gruwel; Cl. Cm. growel; Ed. gruell. 715. Cl. An; Cp. As; _rest_ And. +717. Cl. combest; Cm. H2. cumbrid; Cp. H. Ed. combust. // Cl. _om._ in. +722. Cl. Cp. Ed. _om._ O. 725. Cl. Cp. H. Cipres; Cm. Cipris; Ed. Cipria; +H2. Ciphis. 726. Ed. Daphne. 727. Cm. wex; Cl. Cp. H. wax. 729. Cl. Cp. H. +hierse; H2. hyerce; Cm. hirie; Ed. her (!). 729, 731. Cl. ek, by-sek; H. +eke, bi-seke. 735. Cl. help; _rest_ helpeth. 737. Cl. a-garst (!). 738. Cp. +H. don; Cm. do; _rest_ do on. // Cl. a-boue; _rest_ up-on. 739. Cl. folewe; +Cp. Cm. folwe; H. Ed. folowe. 745. Cp. H. Ed. layen; Cl. lay. 753. Cl. Cm. +haveth. 756. H. rise; Cl. rysen. 758. Cm. H2. thus; _rest om._ // hem] Cl. +vs. 761. H2. Ey; Ed. Eygh; _rest_ I. 762. Cl. Quod tho; _rest om._ tho. +763. Cl. _om._ er. 770. com] Cl. cam. 775. Cm. houe; H2. howe. 776. Cl. Cp. +H. Ed. this mene while; Cm. H2. _om._ mene. 777. Cl. _om._ _2nd_ a. 780. +Cl. that; Cp. Cm. H. Ed. al. 791. shal] H2. ow; Ed. owe. 795. Cl. Ed. H2. +is this. 797. Cp. H. Cm. scholden louen oon; Cl. louen sholde on. // hatte] +Ed. hight. 799. Cl. alle these thynges herde. 801. she] Cl. H2. ful. // Cl. +answerede. 802. Cl. tolle (!). 804. Cl. conseytes. 809. Cl. more (_for_ +morwe). // and] Cl. yf. 810. Cl. fully excuse. 811. him] Cl. he. 813. Cl. +_om._ god. 818. Cp. Ed. either; H. oyther (_for_ eyther); Cl. Cm. other. // +Cl. nough. 823. Cl. Other he; _rest_ Or. 826. derknesse] H. distresse. 829. +Cl. _om._ that. 833. ful] Cl. but. 834. Cl. Cm. manere. 839. Cl. H. mad +Troylus to me; H2. thus Troylus me made; Cm. Ed. Cp. Troylus mad to me. +842. him] Cl. yow. 843. Cl. myn; Cp. H. my. 847. Ed. I (_for_ for I). // H. +Ed. for the beste. 850. Ed. H2. _om._ a. 854. H. abedes; Cm. abydis. 857. +Cp. H. Ed. Wel; _rest om._ // Cl. H2. to rescowe; _rest om._ to. 859. Cm. +H2. How is; _rest om._ is (_here_). // H2. y-fall_e_; Cm. falle; _rest_ is +falle. 861. H2. feldyfare; Cl. feld-fare; _rest_ feldefare. 862. Cp. H. Ed. +ne; _rest om._ // Cl. gref. 869. I] Cl. ye. 870. Ye] Cl. I. 880. Cl. malis. +887. more] Cl. H2. bettre. 889. Cl. ben sene; Cp. H. Cm. be sene; H2. be +seyn; Ed. he sene. 892. dede men] Cl. a dede man. 893. trowe I] Cl. I +trowe. 898. Cl. stenteth; _rest_ stynteth. 900. Cp. Ed. Cm. nolde; H. nold; +Cl. nold not. Cp. H. setten; Cl. Cm. sette. 909. Cl. To; _rest_ So. // H. +spek; _rest_ speke. 912. Cm. _om._ is. // H. teuery (_for_ to euery). 917. +Cl. at; H2. am; Cm. H. Ed. al; Cp. _om._ 928. to] Cl. Cp. H. Ed. for to. +931. Cl. H. A; _rest_ At. 935. or] Cl. Cm. H2. and. // Cl. tacches. 936. +Cp. Ed. This is seyd. // Cl. hym; _rest_ hem. // Cl. is; _rest_ be (ben, +beth). 947. Cl. That; H2. That good; _rest_ Ther good. 954. Cl. Cm. Cp. H2. +hede; Ed. heed; H. hed. 956. Cl. -lych; H. -lyche. 964. Cl. quysshon; Cm. +qwischin; H2. cusshyn. 965. Cp. Ed. leste; _rest_ lyste, lyst. 968. Cl. +put; Cp. H. putte. 970. H2. dewte; Cp. dewete. 975. Cl. H2. now gode; _rest +om._ now. 976. Cl. _om._ al. 978. Cl. fyre; Ed. fiere; _rest_ fere. 980. +Cl. loken. 990. Cl. goudly; Cp. H. goodly. // Cl. Cp. make; H. Cm. Ed. +maken. 994. for] Cl. first; Cm. H2. _om._ 995. H2. found; _rest_ founden. +// Cp. [gh]it; Cm. yite; _rest_ yet. 999. Cl. emforthe; Cp. H. Ed. emforth. +1002. Cl. H2. dredles. 1004. Cl. H2. yow not. 1005. your] Cl. H2. yow. +1009. Cl. loue (_for_ myn, _as a correction_). 1014. Cl. refuyt; Cp. H. Cm. +refut; Ed. refute. 1015. Cl. _ins._ him _bef._ arace. // arace] Cl. Ed. +race. 1017. Ed. dignyte (_for_ deitee). 1020. for to] Cl. that I. // on] +Cl. Ed. of. 1022. up-on] Cl. on. 1029. Cl. Cm. to bere; _rest om._ to. +1032. Cl. And whanne. 1033. Cp. H. piete; _rest_ pite. 1043. Cl. dishese. +1046. Cp. H. Ed. list; Cl. lyste. // Cm. ordel. 1047. Cl. lyste; Cp. H. Ed. +leste. 1055. Cl. in-to the bed down; _rest_ doun in the bed. 1056. Cl. +wreygh; Cp. H. wreigh; Cm. wrigh; Ed. wrighe. 1060. Cl. _om._ a. 1066. Cm. +Ed. liste; _rest_ lyst (list, lest). 1067. Cl. _om._ a. 1074. in] Cl. vn. +1075. that] Cl. the. 1087. Cl. eighen; Cp. H. Ed. eyen. 1094. Cl. H2. For; +_rest_ But. // Ed. hushte. 1096. Cl. Buth; Cp. H. Ed. Beth. 1097. Cl. he +him in-to bedde. 1104. Cp. Ed. Cm. pullen; Cl. H. pulle. 1113. Cl. no; Cm. +not; Cp. H. nought. 1116. to] Cl. for. 1121. Cl. bet gan; _rest_ gan bet. +1129. Cp. Ed. keste; Cl. Cm. kyste. 1131. Cp. H. herte; _rest_ hertes. +1132. Cp. H. Ed. leste; Cl. lyste. 1137. _All_ eyen (ey[gh]en). 1141. Cl. +Cp. chimeney; H. Cm. chimeneye. 1143. H. Ed. list; Cl. lyste. 1144. Cp. Cm. +thoughte; Cl. H. thought. 1163. Cp. Ed. andswerde; H. answarde; Cl. +answered. 1168. Cp. H. Ed. Ialous; Cm. Ielous; Cl. Ialousye. 1169. Cl. +_om._ it. 1177. Cp. H. answerde; Cl. answered. 1192. Cl. Cp. Cm. it; _rest_ +him. // Cp. H. foot; Cl. fote. 1193. Cp. H. thise; Cm. these; Cl. this. +1194. Cp. H. sucre; Cm. seukere; H2. Ed. sugre; Cl. sour. // Cp. H. soot; +Cl. sot; Cm. H2. sote; Ed. soote. 1195. Cl. mot. 1200. Ed. aspen; H2. +auspen. 1201. Cl. _om._ his. 1203. Cl. _om._ tho. 1206. Cm. Ed. mote; +_rest_ mot. 1208. H. boot; Cl. Cp. Cm. bote. 1209. Cp. H. Cm. answerde; Cl. +answered. 1211. Cl. yolden. 1218. hath] Cl. is. 1219. Cl. the more; _rest +om._ the. 1222. Cl. sith that; _rest om._ that. 1225. Cp. comth; Cl. come. +1227. Cl. Iust. 1229. Cl. entent; H. entente. 1231. Cl. Cm. wrythe; Cp. H. +Ed. writhe; H2. writhen is (_read_ wryth _or_ writh). 1234. Cl. gynneth to; +Cp. bygynneth to; _rest_ begynneth. 1236. Cl. ony. 1238. Cl. Criseyd. // +Cl. stynte; Cp. H. stente. 1240. y-] Cl. is. 1241. Cl. out; gysse. 1244. +Cl. alle; word. 1247. Cl. streyght; Cp. streghte. 1248. Cl. fleysshly. +1251. Cl. _om._ heuene _and_ to. 1258. Cl. the; _rest_ that (_after_ next). +1261. Cl. Cm. Benyngne; Cp. H. Benigne. 1264. Cl. nodestow(!). 1266. Cl. +seye; Cp. H. Cm. seyn. 1268. H2. coude leest; Cm. couthe lest; Cp. H. leest +koude; Cl. lest kowde. 1269. Cl. be; Cp. H. Cm. ben. // Cl. to; Cp. H. Cm. +vn-to. 1272. Cp. H. H2. pace; Cl. passe. 1276. Cl. dishese. 1285. Cp. H. +Cm. benignite; Cl. benyngnite. 1286. Cm. thynkith; Cl. thenk; Cp. H. thynk +that. 1288. Cl. seruyce. 1290. Cl. for that; _rest om._ that. 1291. Cl. Cm. +Cp. stere; H. Ed. fere (feere). 1294. Cl. _om._ that I; Cm. Cp. _om._ I. +1296. Cl. But; _rest_ For. 1298. H. Cp. Ed. fynden; Cl. Cm. fynde. // Cl. +lyfe. 1299. Cp. H. Ny (_for_ Ne I). // Cm. Ed. H2. not; Cl. Cp. H. _om._ +1302. Cl. to; _rest_ un-to. 1314. Cl. _om._ thise. 1315. Cm. be-twixe; Cl. +be-twexen; H. bitweyne. // Cl. Cm. dred; _rest_ drede (_read_ dreed). 1318. +Cl. _om._ two. 1321. Cl. daunder (!). 1322. Cl. blyssyd; _rest_ blisse +(blis). 1324. Cp. Ed. tellen; Cm. tellyn; H. talen; Cl. telle. 1326. Cm. +(_2nd_) I; Cl. Cp. H. and; Ed. _om._ 1339. Cp. H. Cm. Ed. a-sonder; Cl. +a-sondry. // Cp. H. Cm. Ed. gon; Cl. go ne(!) // Cl. _om._ it. 1340. Cm. +H2. wende; Cp. Cl. H. wenden. 1341. Cm. Ed. Cp. H2. moste; Cl. H. most. +1342. Cl. nere (_for_ were). 1345. And] Cl. A. // goodly] Cl. gladly. 1346. +H. Cm. blynte; Cp. Ed. bleynte; Cl. blente. 1352. Cl. eighen; Cp. H. Ed. +eyen. 1356. Cl. wreten; Cp. H. writen. 1361. H. swiche; H2. Ed. suche; Cl. +swich. 1362. Cl. whanne; Cm. whan; Cp. H. when. 1365. H. bilynne; _rest_ +blynne. 1370. Cl. of; _rest_ and. 1373. Cl. Cp. H. or a; Cm. a; _rest om._ +1375. tho] Cl. the. // Cl. Ed. pens; Cp. H. Cm. pans. // Cp. H. mokre; H2. +moker; Cm. mokere; Cl. moke. // Cl. Ed. kecche; Cm. crache(!); Cp. +tecche(!); H2. teche(!); H. theche(!). 1385. Cp. H. Ed. lyue; Cl. leue. +1387. tho] Cl. that. 1388. Cl. eerys. 1390. Cl. drenken. 1394. Cp. H. +Thise; Cl. This. 1396. Cp. H. speken; Cl. speke. 1398. hem] Cl. hym. 1400. +to] H. Cm. in-to. 1401. Cp. H. Cm. mo; _rest_ more. // Cp. H. fel; Cl. +fille. 1403. Cp. H. Cm. al; Cl. alle. 1405. Cl. dede; Cm. dedyn; Ed. +dydden; _rest_ diden. 1407. Cl. Cp. Ed. -peyse; _rest_ -pese. 1408. Cl. +shep(!); H. slep; _rest_ slepe. 1409. Cl. nough(!) 1410. H. Cm. kep; _rest_ +kepe. 1414. Cl. Cp. gentilesse; _rest_ gentilnesse. 1415. Cl. whanne; Cp. +Cm. whan; H. when. 1416. Cl. to crowe; _rest om._ to. 1418. Cm. hese (= +his); _rest_ here (hire). // Cl. bemys throw. 1419. Cl. Cm. after-; _rest_ +est-. 1420. than] _All_ that. 1424. Cl. Cm. des-; _rest_ dis-. 1425. Cp. H. +hennes; Cm. henys; Cl. hens to. 1426. Cl. ellys. 1428. Ed. Alcmena. 1435. +Cl. Cm. flest; Cp. H. H2. fleest. 1442. Cl. hastely. 1444. H. piteous; Cp. +pietous; _rest_ pitous. 1450. Cl. crueel. 1453. Cp. H2. yen; _rest_ eyen. +1454. Cm. espyen. 1457. Cl. Cm. these; Cp. H2. thise. 1459. Cl. shent; +_rest_ slayn. 1460. Cm. Ed. let; Cl. late; _rest_ lat (_read_ lete). 1462. +Cl. Cp. selys. 1464. Cl. he to; _rest om._ to. 1465. Cp. H. fool; Cl. Cm. +fol. 1466. Cl. Cp. Cm. dawyng; _rest_ dawnyng. 1471. H. Cp. sighte; Cl. +sight; Ed. syghed. 1476. H. my lyf an oure; Cp. Ed. my lyf an houre; Cl. an +hour my lyf. 1482. Cl. brenneth; H. bitleth(!); Cp. biteth; Ed. byteth; +_rest_ streyneth. 1486. Cm. H2. Yit; _rest om._ // Cp. H. wiste; Cl. wist. +1490. Cl. Cm. wordes; _rest_ worldes. 1491. Cp. H. Cm. Ed. enduren; Cl. +endure. 1492. Cp. H. answerde; Cl. answered. 1498. Cl. Troles(!). 1506. Cl. +An. 1516. H. Cp. ayein; Cl. a-yen. 1525. Cl. myn herte and dere swete. +1526. Cp. H. sownde; Cl. sound. 1527. Cp. H. Cm. answerde; Cl. answerede. +1535. Cl. Cp. Ed. bedde; _rest_ bed. 1536. Cl. woned. 1542. Cl. Hise; +_rest_ Hire (Her). 1543. Cl. hire; _rest_ his. 1546. Cl. new; Cp. H. Cm. +newe. 1554. Cp. dorste; Cl. H. dorst. 1558. Cl. ye my; _rest om._ my. 1559. +slepe] Cl. shepe(!). 1562. Cp. H. com; Cl. Cm. come. 1563. Cl. H. murye; +Cm. merie. 1564. Cp. H. answerde; Cl. Cm. answerede. // Cl. _om._ for. +1566. Cp. H. caused; Cl. causes. 1568. Cl. Cm. _om._ O. 1570. H. Cm. wex; +Cl. Cp. wax. 1573. Cl. Here haue. // Ed. smyteth; Cp. smyten; _rest_ smyte. +1575. Cl. keste. 1576-82. Cp. _om._ 1577. and] Cl. an. 1578. to] Cl. for +to. 1579. Cl. H2. but; _rest_ than. 1583. H. Cp. ayeyn; Cl. a-yen. 1587. +Cl. come. 1592. Cm. kneis; Cp. H. knowes. 1593. Cl. out of; _rest om._ out. +1595. he] Cl. Cm. and. // Cl. H. Cm. blysse; _rest_ blesse. 1600. Cp. Cm. +flegetoun; Ed. Phlegeton. // Cl. Cp. H. Cm. fery; H2. firy; Ed. fyrie. +1603. Cm. myghte; Cl. might. // Cm. Ed. mote; Cp. H. moote; Cl. mot. 1608. +Cp. H. hires; Cl. heres. 1609. Cp. heighe; Cm. hye; Cl. H. heigh. 1611. Cp. +y-[gh]iue; Cl. y-yeue. 1613. Cl. Cm. leue; _rest_ lyue. 1619, 1621, 1622. +Cl. Cp. lief, grief, mischief; Cm. lef, gref, myschef; H2. leef, greef, +mischeef. 1621. now] Cl. it. 1622. Cl. of of (!); _rest_ of this. 1627. Cl. +H2. be; _rest_ ben. 1629. Cp. H. Thart. // Cl. ynowh. 1634. Cl. kep; _rest_ +kepe. 1642. Cp. H. Ny. 1644. Cm. wistist thou; Ed. wystest thou; Cp. +wystestow; Cl. H. wistow. 1655. than] Cl. er. 1656. H. answerde; Cl. +answerede. 1657. Cl. Cm. onys. 1659. Cp. H. Cm. herde; Cl. herd. 1662. H. +Cp. preysen; Cl.preyse. 1663. Cp. Cm. righte; Cl. H. right. 1664. chere] +Cl. clere. 1671. Cp. Cm. felte; Cl. H. felt. 1675. Cm. H2. ek; _rest om._ +1677. Cp. H. theffect. 1679. _Al_ brought. // Cl. Cp. H. H2. whan that; Cm. +Ed. _om._ that. 1680. Cl. _om._ thus. 1687. Cl. complende(!); Cp. +comprende; _rest_ comprehende. 1693. H. wryten; H2. writyn; Cl. y-wrete. +1694. Cl. by-thenke; _rest_ by-thynke. 1696. signes] Cl. synes. 1700. +traytour] Cl. traytous. 1702. Cl. Cp. H. _om._ allas. 1703. H2. Pirous; Ed. +Pyrous; H. Pirors; Cl. Cp. Cm. Piros. 1704. Ed. Whiche; _rest_ Which. 1708. +him] Cl. here; Cp. H. hire. // Cl. sacrifice. 1711. Cl. woned; Cp. H2. Ed. +wont; H. wonte; Cm. wone. 1713. Cp. Cm. wroughte; Cl. H. wrought. 1718. Cl. +H. festeynynges; Cp. H2. festynges; Cm. festyngys; (_read_ festeyinges). +1720. aboute him] Cl. hym aboute. 1722. H. fresshiste; Cl. fresshest. 1723. +Cl. _om. 2nd_ a. // stevene] H. neuene. 1725. Cl. rong vp into. 1731. Cl. +ony. 1734. Cl. y-maked(!). 1738. Cp. H. Cm. Ed. gardyn; Cl. gardeyn. 1745. +Cl. heste. 1747. Cl. hem lyst hym (_wrongly_). 1748. Cl. Cp. knetteth; H. +knettheth; Ed. knytteth; H2. kennyth; Cm. endytyth. // Cl. Cm. of; H. Cp. +Ed. and; H2. _om._ 1753. Cl. elementes; Cp. H. elementz. 1755. Cp. H2. Ed. +mote; Cl. H. mot; Cm. may. 1759. Cl. Constreyne. 1760. Cl. _om._ so. // Cp. +H. Ed. fiersly; Cm. fersely; H2. fersly; Cl. freshly. 1762. Cp. H. lete; +Cl. late; Cm. let; Ed. lette. 1767. H. Cp. cerclen; Cm. serkelyn; Cl. +cerchen; Ed. serchen; H2. cherysson. 1768. Cp. H. wey; Cl. weye. 1769. +twiste] Cl. it wyste. 1770. Cl. lest; Cp. H. liste. 1771. Cl. kep. 1774. +Cl. certaynly. 1776. Cl. H. Cm. encres; Ed. encrease. 1779. Cl. _om_. he. +1780. Cp. boor; Cm. bor; _rest_ bore. 1784. Cl. H2. cometh; _rest_ comen. +1787. Cl. Cp. H. alle; _rest_ al. 1794. Cl. heyghe; Cp. H. heigh. 1797. Cm. +vnkouth; Cl. vnkow; Cp. vnkoude; _rest_ vnkouthe. 1800. Cm. real. 1801. Cl. +Lyst hym; Cp. H. Him liste. 1804. Cp. Cm. wolde; Cl. H. wold. 1805. Cp. H. +Ed. pride and Ire enuye. 1807-1820. _Lost in_ Cm. 1810. In] Cl. I. // Cp. +H. tabide. 1815. Cl. seruyce. 1816. Cl. dishese. 1818. wyse] Cl. wys. +COLOPHON. _From_ Ed.; Cl. Cp. H. H2. _wrongly place it after_ Book IV, l. +28. + + + + +BOOK IV. + +[PROHEMIUM.] + + 1. But al to litel, weylawey the whyle, + Lasteth swich Ioye, y-thonked be Fortune! + That semeth trewest, whan she wol bygyle, + And can to foles so hir song entune, + That she hem hent and blent, traytour comune; 5 + And whan a wight is from hir wheel y-throwe, + Than laugheth she, and maketh him the mowe. + + 2. From Troilus she gan hir brighte face + Awey to wrythe, and took of him non hede, + But caste him clene oute of his lady grace, 10 + And on hir wheel she sette up Diomede; + For which right now myn herte ginneth blede, + And now my penne, allas! with which I wryte, + Quaketh for drede of that I moot endyte. + + 3. For how Criseyde Troilus forsook, 15 + Or at the leste, how that she was unkinde, + Mot hennes-forth ben matere of my book, + As wryten folk thorugh which it is in minde. + Allas! that they shulde ever cause finde + To speke hir harm; and if they on hir lye, 20 + Y-wis, hem-self sholde han the vilanye. + + 4. O ye Herines, Nightes doughtren three, + That endelees compleynen ever in pyne, + Megera, Alete, and eek Thesiphone; + Thou cruel Mars eek, fader to Quiryne, 25 + This ilke ferthe book me helpeth fyne, + So that the los of lyf and love y-fere + Of Troilus be fully shewed here. + +EXPLICIT [PROHEMIUM]. INCIPIT QUARTUS LIBER. + + 5. Ligginge in ost, as I have seyd er this, + The Grekes stronge, aboute Troye toun, 30 + Bifel that, whan that Phebus shyning is + Up-on the brest of Hercules Lyoun, + That Ector, with ful many a bold baroun, + Caste on a day with Grekes for to fighte, + As he was wont to greve hem what he mighte. 35 + + 6. Not I how longe or short it was bitwene + This purpos and that day they fighte mente; + But on a day wel armed, bright and shene, + Ector, and many a worthy wight out wente, + With spere in hond and bigge bowes bente; 40 + And in the berd, with-oute lenger lette, + Hir fomen in the feld anoon hem mette. + + 7. The longe day, with speres sharpe y-grounde, + With arwes, dartes, swerdes, maces felle, + They fighte and bringen hors and man to grounde, 45 + And with hir axes out the braynes quelle. + But in the laste shour, sooth for to telle, + The folk of Troye hem-selven so misledden, + That with the worse at night homward they fledden. + + 8. At whiche day was taken Antenor, 50 + Maugre Polydamas or Monesteo, + Santippe, Sarpedon, Polynestor, + Polyte, or eek the Troian daun Ripheo, + And othere lasse folk, as Phebuseo. + So that, for harm, that day the folk of Troye 55 + Dredden to lese a greet part of hir Ioye. + + 9. Of Pryamus was yeve, at Greek requeste, + A tyme of trewe, and tho they gonnen trete, + Hir prisoneres to chaungen, moste and leste, + And for the surplus yeven sommes grete. 60 + This thing anoon was couth in every strete, + Bothe in thassege, in toune, and every-where, + And with the firste it cam to Calkas ere. + + 10. Whan Calkas knew this tretis sholde holde, + In consistorie, among the Grekes, sone 65 + He gan in thringe forth, with lordes olde, + And sette him there-as he was wont to done; + And with a chaunged face hem bad a bone, + For love of god, to don that reverence, + To stinte noyse, and yeve him audience. 70 + + 11. Thanne seyde he thus, 'lo! lordes myne, I was + Troian, as it is knowen out of drede; + And if that yow remembre, I am Calkas, + That alderfirst yaf comfort to your nede, + And tolde wel how that ye sholden spede. 75 + For dredelees, thorugh yow, shal, in a stounde, + Ben Troye y-brend, and beten doun to grounde. + + 12. And in what forme, or in what maner wyse + This town to shende, and al your lust to acheve, + Ye han er this wel herd it me devyse; 80 + This knowe ye, my lordes, as I leve. + And for the Grekes weren me so leve, + I com my-self in my propre persone, + To teche in this how yow was best to done; + + 13. Havinge un-to my tresour ne my rente 85 + Right no resport, to respect of your ese. + Thus al my good I loste and to yow wente, + Wening in this you, lordes, for to plese. + But al that los ne doth me no disese. + I vouche-sauf, as wisly have I Ioye, 90 + For you to lese al that I have in Troye, + + 14. Save of a doughter, that I lafte, allas! + Slepinge at hoom, whanne out of Troye I sterte. + O sterne, O cruel fader that I was! + How mighte I have in that so hard an herte? 95 + Allas! I ne hadde y-brought hir in hir sherte! + For sorwe of which I wol not live to morwe, + But-if ye lordes rewe up-on my sorwe. + + 15. For, by that cause I say no tyme er now + Hir to delivere, I holden have my pees; 100 + But now or never, if that it lyke yow, + I may hir have right sone, doutelees. + O help and grace! amonges al this prees, + Rewe on this olde caitif in destresse, + Sin I through yow have al this hevinesse! 105 + + 16. Ye have now caught and fetered in prisoun + Troians y-nowe; and if your willes be, + My child with oon may have redempcioun. + Now for the love of god and of bountee, + Oon of so fele, allas! so yeve him me. 110 + What nede were it this preyere for to werne, + Sin ye shul bothe han folk and toun as yerne? + + 17. On peril of my lyf, I shal not lye, + Appollo hath me told it feithfully; + I have eek founde it by astronomye, 115 + By sort, and by augurie eek trewely, + And dar wel seye, the tyme is faste by, + That fyr and flaumbe on al the toun shal sprede; + And thus shal Troye turne in asshen dede. + + 18. For certeyn, Phebus and Neptunus bothe, 120 + That makeden the walles of the toun, + Ben with the folk of Troye alwey so wrothe, + That thei wol bringe it to confusioun, + Right in despyt of king Lameadoun. + By-cause he nolde payen hem hir hyre, 125 + The toun of Troye shal ben set on-fyre.' + + 19. Telling his tale alwey, this olde greye, + Humble in speche, and in his lokinge eke, + The salte teres from his eyën tweye + Ful faste ronnen doun by eyther cheke. 130 + So longe he gan of socour hem by-seke + That, for to hele him of his sorwes sore, + They yave him Antenor, with-oute more. + + 20. But who was glad y-nough but Calkas tho? + And of this thing ful sone his nedes leyde 135 + On hem that sholden for the tretis go, + And hem for Antenor ful ofte preyde + To bringen hoom king Toas and Criseyde; + And whan Pryam his save-garde sente, + Thembassadours to Troye streyght they wente. 140 + + 21. The cause y-told of hir cominge, the olde + Pryam the king ful sone in general + Let here-upon his parlement to holde, + Of which the effect rehersen yow I shal. + Thembassadours ben answered for fynal, 145 + Theschaunge of prisoners and al this nede + Hem lyketh wel, and forth in they procede. + + 22. This Troilus was present in the place, + Whan axed was for Antenor Criseyde, + For which ful sone chaungen gan his face, 150 + As he that with tho wordes wel neigh deyde. + But nathelees, he no word to it seyde, + Lest men sholde his affeccioun espye; + With mannes herte he gan his sorwes drye. + + 23. And ful of anguish and of grisly drede 155 + Abood what lordes wolde un-to it seye; + And if they wolde graunte, as god forbede, + Theschaunge of hir, than thoughte he thinges tweye, + First, how to save hir honour, and what weye + He mighte best theschaunge of hir withstonde; 160 + Ful faste he caste how al this mighte stonde. + + 24. Love him made al prest to doon hir byde, + And rather dye than she sholde go; + But resoun seyde him, on that other syde, + 'With-oute assent of hir ne do not so, 165 + Lest for thy werk she wolde be thy fo, + And seyn, that thorugh thy medling is y-blowe + Your bother love, there it was erst unknowe.' + + 25. For which he gan deliberen, for the beste, + That though the lordes wolde that she wente, 170 + He wolde late hem graunte what hem leste, + And telle his lady first what that they mente. + And whan that she had seyd him hir entente, + Ther-after wolde he werken also blyve, + Though al the world ayein it wolde stryve. 175 + + 26. Ector, which that wel the Grekes herde, + For Antenor how they wolde han Criseyde, + Gan it withstonde, and sobrely answerde:-- + 'Sires, she nis no prisoner,' he seyde; + 'I noot on yow who that this charge leyde, 180 + But, on my part, ye may eft-sone him telle, + We usen here no wommen for to selle.' + + 27. The noyse of peple up-stirte thanne at ones, + As breme as blase of straw y-set on fyre; + For infortune it wolde, for the nones, 185 + They sholden hir confusioun desyre. + 'Ector,' quod they, 'what goost may yow enspyre, + This womman thus to shilde and doon us lese + Daun Antenor?--a wrong wey now ye chese-- + + 28. That is so wys, and eek so bold baroun, 190 + And we han nede of folk, as men may see; + He is eek oon, the grettest of this toun; + O Ector, lat tho fantasyës be! + O king Pryam,' quod they, 'thus seggen we, + That al our voys is to for-gon Criseyde;' 195 + And to deliveren Antenor they preyde. + + 29. O Iuvenal, lord! trewe is thy sentence, + That litel witen folk what is to yerne + That they ne finde in hir desyr offence; + For cloud of errour lat hem not descerne 200 + What best is; and lo, here ensample as yerne. + This folk desiren now deliveraunce + Of Antenor, that broughte hem to mischaunce! + + 30. For he was after traytour to the toun + Of Troye; allas! they quitte him out to rathe; 205 + O nyce world, lo, thy discrecioun! + Criseyde, which that never dide hem skathe, + Shal now no lenger in hir blisse bathe; + But Antenor, he shal com hoom to toune, + And she shal out; thus seyden here and howne. 210 + + 31. For which delibered was by parlement, + For Antenor to yelden up Criseyde, + And it pronounced by the president, + Al-theigh that Ector 'nay' ful ofte preyde. + And fynaly, what wight that it with-seyde, 215 + It was for nought, it moste been, and sholde; + For substaunce of the parlement it wolde. + + 32. Departed out of parlement echone, + This Troilus, with-oute wordes mo, + Un-to his chaumbre spedde him faste allone, 220 + But-if it were a man of his or two, + The whiche he bad out faste for to go, + By-cause he wolde slepen, as he seyde, + And hastely up-on his bed him leyde. + + 33. And as in winter leves been biraft, 225 + Eche after other, til the tree be bare, + So that ther nis but bark and braunche y-laft, + Lyth Troilus, biraft of ech wel-fare, + Y-bounden in the blake bark of care, + Disposed wood out of his wit to breyde, 230 + So sore him sat the chaunginge of Criseyde. + + 34. He rist him up, and every dore he shette + And windowe eek, and tho this sorweful man + Up-on his beddes syde a-doun him sette, + Ful lyk a deed image pale and wan; 235 + And in his brest the heped wo bigan + Out-breste, and he to werken in this wyse + In his woodnesse, as I shal yow devyse. + + 35. Right as the wilde bole biginneth springe + Now here, now there, y-darted to the herte, 240 + And of his deeth roreth in compleyninge, + Right so gan he aboute the chaumbre sterte, + Smyting his brest ay with his festes smerte; + His heed to the wal, his body to the grounde + Ful ofte he swapte, him-selven to confounde. 245 + + 36. His eyen two, for pitee of his herte, + Out stremeden as swifte welles tweye; + The heighe sobbes of his sorwes smerte + His speche him rafte, unnethes mighte he seye, + 'O deeth, allas! why niltow do me deye? 250 + A-cursed be the day which that nature + Shoop me to ben a lyves creature!' + + 37. But after, whan the furie and the rage + Which that his herte twiste and faste threste, + By lengthe of tyme somwhat gan asswage, 255 + Up-on his bed he leyde him doun to reste; + But tho bigonne his teres more out-breste, + That wonder is, the body may suffyse + To half this wo, which that I yow devyse. + + 38. Than seyde he thus, 'Fortune! allas the whyle! 260 + What have I doon, what have I thus a-gilt? + How mightestow for reuthe me bigyle? + Is ther no grace, and shal I thus be spilt? + Shal thus Criseyde awey, for that thou wilt? + Allas! how maystow in thyn herte finde 265 + To been to me thus cruel and unkinde? + + 39. Have I thee nought honoured al my lyve, + As thou wel wost, above the goddes alle? + Why wiltow me fro Ioye thus depryve? + O Troilus, what may men now thee calle 270 + But wrecche of wrecches, out of honour falle + In-to miserie, in which I wol biwayle + Criseyde, allas! til that the breeth me fayle? + + 40. Allas, Fortune! if that my lyf in Ioye + Displesed hadde un-to thy foule envye, 275 + Why ne haddestow my fader, king of Troye, + By-raft the lyf, or doon my bretheren dye, + Or slayn my-self, that thus compleyne and crye, + I, combre-world, that may of no-thing serve, + But ever dye, and never fully sterve? 280 + + 41. If that Criseyde allone were me laft, + Nought roughte I whider thou woldest me stere; + And hir, allas! than hastow me biraft. + But ever-more, lo! this is thy manere, + To reve a wight that most is to him dere, 285 + To preve in that thy gerful violence. + Thus am I lost, ther helpeth no defence! + + 42. O verray lord of love, O god, allas! + That knowest best myn herte and al my thought, + What shal my sorwful lyf don in this cas 290 + If I for-go that I so dere have bought? + Sin ye Cryseyde and me han fully brought + In-to your grace, and bothe our hertes seled, + How may ye suffre, allas! it be repeled? + + 43. What I may doon, I shal, whyl I may dure 295 + On lyve in torment and in cruel peyne, + This infortune or this disaventure, + Allone as I was born, y-wis, compleyne; + Ne never wil I seen it shyne or reyne; + But ende I wil, as Edippe, in derknesse 300 + My sorwful lyf, and dyen in distresse. + + 44. O wery goost, that errest to and fro, + Why niltow fleen out of the wofulleste + Body, that ever mighte on grounde go? + O soule, lurkinge in this wo, unneste, 305 + Flee forth out of myn herte, and lat it breste, + And folwe alwey Criseyde, thy lady dere; + Thy righte place is now no lenger here! + + 45. O wofulle eyen two, sin your disport + Was al to seen Criseydes eyen brighte, 310 + What shal ye doon but, for my discomfort, + Stonden for nought, and wepen out your sighte? + Sin she is queynt, that wont was yow to lighte, + In veyn fro-this-forth have I eyen tweye + Y-formed, sin your vertue is a-weye. 315 + + 46. O my Criseyde, O lady sovereyne + Of thilke woful soule that thus cryeth, + Who shal now yeven comfort to the peyne? + Allas, no wight; but when myn herte dyeth, + My spirit, which that so un-to yow hyeth, 320 + Receyve in gree, for that shal ay yow serve; + For-thy no fors is, though the body sterve. + + 47. O ye loveres, that heighe upon the wheel + Ben set of Fortune, in good aventure, + God leve that ye finde ay love of steel, 325 + And longe mot your lyf in Ioye endure! + But whan ye comen by my sepulture, + Remembreth that your felawe resteth there; + For I lovede eek, though I unworthy were. + + 48. O olde unholsom and mislyved man, 330 + Calkas I mene, allas! what eyleth thee + To been a Greek, sin thou art born Troian? + O Calkas, which that wilt my bane be, + In cursed tyme was thou born for me! + As wolde blisful Iove, for his Ioye, 335 + That I thee hadde, where I wolde, in Troye!' + + 49. A thousand sykes, hottere than the glede, + Out of his brest ech after other wente, + Medled with pleyntes newe, his wo to fede, + For which his woful teres never stente; 340 + And shortly, so his peynes him to-rente, + And wex so mat, that Ioye nor penaunce + He feleth noon, but lyth forth in a traunce. + + 50. Pandare, which that in the parlement + Hadde herd what every lord and burgeys seyde, 345 + And how ful graunted was, by oon assent, + For Antenor to yelden so Criseyde, + Gan wel neigh wood out of his wit to breyde, + So that, for wo, he niste what he mente; + But in a rees to Troilus he wente. 350 + + 51. A certeyn knight, that for the tyme kepte + The chaumbre-dore, un-dide it him anoon; + And Pandare, that ful tendreliche wepte, + In-to the derke chaumbre, as stille as stoon, + Toward the bed gan softely to goon, 355 + So confus, that he niste what to seye; + For verray wo his wit was neigh aweye. + + 52. And with his chere and loking al to-torn, + For sorwe of this, and with his armes folden, + He stood this woful Troilus biforn, 360 + And on his pitous face he gan biholden; + But lord, so often gan his herte colden, + Seing his freend in wo, whos hevinesse + His herte slow, as thoughte him, for distresse. + + 53. This woful wight, this Troilus, that felte 365 + His freend Pandare y-comen him to see, + Gan as the snow ayein the sonne melte, + For which this sorwful Pandare, of pitee, + Gan for to wepe as tendreliche as he; + And specheles thus been thise ilke tweye, 370 + That neyther mighte o word for sorwe seye. + + 54. But at the laste this woful Troilus, + Ney deed for smert, gan bresten out to rore, + And with a sorwful noyse he seyde thus, + Among his sobbes and his sykes sore, 375 + 'Lo! Pandare, I am deed, with-outen more. + Hastow nought herd at parlement,' he seyde, + 'For Antenor how lost is my Criseyde?' + + 55. This Pandarus, ful deed and pale of hewe, + Ful pitously answerde and seyde, 'yis! 380 + As wisly were it fals as it is trewe, + That I have herd, and wot al how it is. + O mercy, god, who wolde have trowed this? + Who wolde have wend that, in so litel a throwe, + Fortune our Ioye wolde han over-throwe? 385 + + 56. For in this world ther is no creature, + As to my doom, that ever saw ruyne + Straungere than this, thorugh cas or aventure. + But who may al eschewe or al devyne? + Swich is this world; for-thy I thus defyne, 390 + Ne trust no wight to finden in Fortune + Ay propretee; hir yeftes been comune. + + 57. But tel me this, why thou art now so mad + To sorwen thus? Why lystow in this wyse, + Sin thy desyr al holly hastow had, 395 + So that, by right, it oughte y-now suffyse? + But I, that never felte in my servyse + A frendly chere or loking of an yë, + Lat me thus wepe and wayle, til I dye. + + 58. And over al this, as thou wel wost thy-selve, 400 + This town is ful of ladies al aboute; + And, to my doom, fairer than swiche twelve + As ever she was, shal I finde, in som route, + Ye, oon or two, with-outen any doute. + For-thy be glad, myn owene dere brother, 405 + If she be lost, we shul recovere another. + + 59. What, god for-bede alwey that ech plesaunce + In o thing were, and in non other wight! + If oon can singe, another can wel daunce; + If this be goodly, she is glad and light; 410 + And this is fayr, and that can good a-right. + Ech for his vertu holden is for dere, + Bothe heroner and faucon for rivere. + + 60. And eek, as writ Zanzis, that was ful wys, + "The newe love out chaceth ofte the olde;" 415 + And up-on newe cas lyth newe avys. + Thenk eek, thy-self to saven artow holde; + Swich fyr, by proces, shal of kinde colde. + For sin it is but casuel plesaunce, + Som cas shal putte it out of remembraunce. 420 + + 61. For al-so seur as day cometh after night, + The newe love, labour or other wo, + Or elles selde seinge of a wight, + Don olde affecciouns alle over-go. + And, for thy part, thou shalt have oon of tho 425 + To abrigge with thy bittre peynes smerte; + Absence of hir shal dryve hir out of herte.' + + 62. Thise wordes seyde he for the nones alle, + To helpe his freend, lest he for sorwe deyde. + For doutelees, to doon his wo to falle, 430 + He roughte not what unthrift that he seyde. + But Troilus, that neigh for sorwe deyde, + Tok litel hede of al that ever he mente; + Oon ere it herde, at the other out it wente:-- + + 63. But at the laste answerde and seyde, 'freend, 435 + This lechecraft, or heled thus to be, + Were wel sitting, if that I were a feend, + To traysen hir that trewe is unto me! + I pray god, lat this consayl never y-thee; + But do me rather sterve anon-right here 440 + Er I thus do as thou me woldest lere. + + 64. She that I serve, y-wis, what so thou seye, + To whom myn herte enhabit is by right, + Shal han me holly hires til that I deye. + For, Pandarus, sin I have trouthe hir hight, 445 + I wol not been untrewe for no wight; + But as hir man I wol ay live and sterve, + And never other creature serve. + + 65. And ther thou seyst, thou shall as faire finde + As she, lat be, make no comparisoun 450 + To creature y-formed here by kinde. + O leve Pandare, in conclusioun, + I wol not be of thyn opinioun, + Touching al this; for whiche I thee biseche, + So hold thy pees; thou sleest me with thy speche. 455 + + 66. Thow biddest me I sholde love an-other + Al freshly newe, and lat Criseyde go! + It lyth not in my power, leve brother. + And though I mighte, I wolde not do so. + But canstow pleyen raket, to and fro, 460 + Netle in, dokke out, now this, now that, Pandare? + Now foule falle hir, for thy wo that care! + + 67. Thow farest eek by me, thou Pandarus, + As he, that whan a wight is wo bi-goon, + He cometh to him a pas, and seyth right thus, 465 + "Thenk not on smert, and thou shalt fele noon." + Thou most me first transmuwen in a stoon, + And reve me my passiounes alle, + Er thou so lightly do my wo to falle. + + 68. The deeth may wel out of my brest departe 470 + The lyf, so longe may this sorwe myne; + But fro my soule shal Criseydes darte + Out never-mo; but doun with Proserpyne, + Whan I am deed, I wol go wone in pyne; + And ther I wol eternally compleyne 475 + My wo, and how that twinned be we tweyne. + + 69. Thow hast here maad an argument, for fyn, + How that it sholde lasse peyne be + Criseyde to for-goon, for she was myn, + And live in ese and in felicitee. 480 + Why gabbestow, that seydest thus to me + That "him is wors that is fro wele y-throwe, + Than he hadde erst non of that wele y-knowe?" + + 70. But tel me now, sin that thee thinketh so light + To chaungen so in love, ay to and fro, 485 + Why hastow not don bisily thy might + To chaungen hir that doth thee al thy wo? + Why niltow lete hir fro thyn herte go? + Why niltow love an-other lady swete, + That may thyn herte setten in quiete? 490 + + 71. If thou hast had in love ay yet mischaunce, + And canst it not out of thyn herte dryve, + I, that livede in lust and in plesaunce + With hir as muche as creature on-lyve, + How sholde I that foryete, and that so blyve? 495 + O where hastow ben hid so longe in muwe, + That canst so wel and formely arguwe? + + 72. Nay, nay, god wot, nought worth is al thy reed, + For which, for what that ever may bifalle, + With-outen wordes mo, I wol be deed. 500 + O deeth, that endere art of sorwes alle, + Com now, sin I so ofte after thee calle, + For sely is that deeth, soth for to seyne, + That, ofte y-cleped, cometh and endeth peyne. + + 73. Wel wot I, whyl my lyf was in quiete, 505 + Er thou me slowe, I wolde have yeven hyre; + But now thy cominge is to me so swete, + That in this world I no-thing so desyre. + O deeth, sin with this sorwe I am a-fyre, + Thou outher do me anoon in teres drenche, 510 + Or with thy colde strook myn hete quenche! + + 74. Sin that thou sleest so fele in sondry wyse + Ayens hir wil, unpreyed, day and night, + Do me, at my requeste, this servyse, + Delivere now the world, so dostow right, 515 + Of me, that am the wofulleste wight + That ever was; for tyme is that I sterve, + Sin in this world of right nought may I serve.' + + 75. This Troilus in teres gan distille, + As licour out of alambyk ful faste; 520 + And Pandarus gan holde his tunge stille, + And to the ground his eyen doun he caste. + But nathelees, thus thoughte he at the laste, + 'What, parde, rather than my felawe deye, + Yet shal I som-what more un-to him seye:' 525 + + 76. And seyde, 'freend, sin thou hast swich distresse, + And sin thee list myn arguments to blame, + Why nilt thy-selven helpen doon redresse, + And with thy manhod letten al this grame? + Go ravisshe hir ne canstow not for shame! 530 + And outher lat hir out of toune fare, + Or hold hir stille, and leve thy nyce fare. + + 77. Artow in Troye, and hast non hardiment + To take a womman which that loveth thee, + And wolde hir-selven been of thyn assent? 535 + Now is not this a nyce vanitee? + Rys up anoon, and lat this weping be, + And kyth thou art a man, for in this houre + I wil be deed, or she shal bleven oure.' + + 78. To this answerde him Troilus ful softe, 540 + And seyde, 'parde, leve brother dere, + Al this have I my-self yet thought ful ofte, + And more thing than thou devysest here. + But why this thing is laft, thou shalt wel here; + And whan thou me hast yeve an audience, 545 + Ther-after mayst thou telle al thy sentence. + + 79. First, sin thou wost this toun hath al this werre + For ravisshing of wommen so by might, + It sholde not be suffred me to erre, + As it stant now, ne doon so gret unright. 550 + I sholde han also blame of every wight, + My fadres graunt if that I so withstode, + Sin she is chaunged for the tounes goode. + + 80. I have eek thought, so it were hir assent, + To aske hir at my fader, of his grace; 555 + Than thenke I, this were hir accusement, + Sin wel I woot I may hir not purchace. + For sin my fader, in so heigh a place + As parlement, hath hir eschaunge enseled, + He nil for me his lettre be repeled. 560 + + 81. Yet drede I most hir herte to pertourbe + With violence, if I do swich a game; + For if I wolde it openly distourbe, + It moste been disclaundre to hir name. + And me were lever deed than hir defame, 565 + As nolde god but-if I sholde have + Hir honour lever than my lyf to save! + + 82. Thus am I lost, for ought that I can see; + For certeyn is, sin that I am hir knight, + I moste hir honour levere han than me 570 + In every cas, as lovere oughte of right. + Thus am I with desyr and reson twight; + Desyr for to distourben hir me redeth, + And reson nil not, so myn herte dredeth.' + + 83. Thus wepinge that he coude never cesse, 575 + He seyde, 'allas! how shal I, wrecche, fare? + For wel fele I alwey my love encresse, + And hope is lasse and lasse alwey, Pandare! + Encressen eek the causes of my care; + So wel-a-wey, why nil myn herte breste? 580 + For, as in love, ther is but litel reste.' + + 84. Pandare answerde, 'freend, thou mayst, for me, + Don as thee list; but hadde ich it so hote, + And thyn estat, she sholde go with me; + Though al this toun cryede on this thing by note, 585 + I nolde sette at al that noyse a grote. + For when men han wel cryed, than wol they roune; + A wonder last but nyne night never in toune. + + 85. Devyne not in reson ay so depe + Ne curteysly, but help thy-self anoon; 590 + Bet is that othere than thy-selven wepe, + And namely, sin ye two been al oon. + Rys up, for by myn heed, she shal not goon; + And rather be in blame a lyte y-founde + Than sterve here as a gnat, with-oute wounde. 595 + + 86. It is no shame un-to yow, ne no vyce + Hir to with-holden, that ye loveth most. + Paraunter, she mighte holden thee for nyce + To lete hir go thus to the Grekes ost. + Thenk eek Fortune, as wel thy-selven wost, 600 + Helpeth hardy man to his empryse, + And weyveth wrecches, for hir cowardyse. + + 87. And though thy lady wolde a litel hir greve, + Thou shalt thy pees ful wel here-after make, + But as for me, certayn, I can not leve 605 + That she wolde it as now for yvel take. + Why sholde than for ferd thyn herte quake? + Thenk eek how Paris hath, that is thy brother, + A love; and why shaltow not have another? + + 88. And Troilus, o thing I dar thee swere, 610 + That if Criseyde, whiche that is thy leef, + Now loveth thee as wel as thou dost here, + God helpe me so, she nil not take a-greef, + Though thou do bote a-noon in this mischeef. + And if she wilneth fro thee for to passe, 615 + Thanne is she fals; so love hir wel the lasse. + + 89. For-thy tak herte, and thenk, right as a knight, + Thourgh love is broken alday every lawe. + Kyth now sumwhat thy corage and thy might, + Have mercy on thy-self, for any awe. 620 + Lat not this wrecched wo thin herte gnawe, + But manly set the world on sixe and sevene; + And, if thou deye a martir, go to hevene. + + 90. I wol my-self be with thee at this dede, + Though ich and al my kin, up-on a stounde, 625 + Shulle in a strete as dogges liggen dede, + Thourgh-girt with many a wyd and blody wounde. + In every cas I wol a freend be founde. + And if thee list here sterven as a wrecche, + A-dieu, the devel spede him that it recche!' 630 + + 91. This Troilus gan with tho wordes quiken, + And seyde, 'freend, graunt mercy, ich assente; + But certaynly thou mayst not me so priken, + Ne peyne noon ne may me so tormente, + That, for no cas, it is not myn entente, 635 + At shorte wordes, though I dyen sholde, + To ravisshe hir, but-if hir-self it wolde.' + + 92. 'Why, so mene I,' quod Pandarus, 'al this day. + But tel me than, hastow hir wel assayed, + That sorwest thus?' And he answerde, 'nay.' 640 + 'Wher-of artow,' quod Pandare, 'than a-mayed, + That nost not that she wol ben yvel apayed + To ravisshe hir, sin thou hast not ben there, + But-if that Iove tolde it in thyn ere? + + 93. For-thy rys up, as nought ne were, anoon, 645 + And wash thy face, and to the king thou wende, + Or he may wondren whider thou art goon. + Thou most with wisdom him and othere blende; + Or, up-on cas, he may after thee sende + Er thou be war; and shortly, brother dere, 650 + Be glad, and lat me werke in this matere. + + 94. For I shal shape it so, that sikerly + Thou shalt this night som tyme, in som manere, + Com speke with thy lady prevely, + And by hir wordes eek, and by hir chere, 655 + Thou shalt ful sone aparceyve and wel here + Al hir entente, and in this cas the beste; + And fare now wel, for in this point I reste.' + + 95. The swifte Fame, whiche that false thinges + Egal reporteth lyk the thinges trewe, 660 + Was thorugh-out Troye y-fled with preste winges + Fro man to man, and made this tale al newe, + How Calkas doughter, with hir brighte hewe, + At parlement, with-oute wordes more, + I-graunted was in chaunge of Antenore. 665 + + 96. The whiche tale anoon-right as Criseyde + Had herd, she which that of hir fader roughte, + As in this cas, right nought, ne whanne he deyde, + Ful bisily to Iuppiter bisoughte + Yeve him mischaunce that this tretis broughte. 670 + But shortly, lest thise tales sothe were, + She dorste at no wight asken it, for fere. + + 97. As she that hadde hir herte and al hir minde + On Troilus y-set so wonder faste, + That al this world ne mighte hir love unbinde, 675 + Ne Troilus out of hir herte caste; + She wol ben his, whyl that hir lyf may laste. + And thus she brenneth bothe in love and drede, + So that she niste what was best to rede. + + 98. But as men seen in toune, and al aboute, 680 + That wommen usen frendes to visyte, + So to Criseyde of wommen com a route + For pitous Ioye, and wenden hir delyte; + And with hir tales, dere y-nough a myte, + These wommen, whiche that in the cite dwelle, 685 + They sette hem doun, and seyde as I shal telle. + + 99. Quod first that oon, 'I am glad, trewely, + By-cause of yow, that shal your fader see.' + A-nother seyde, 'y-wis, so nam not I; + For al to litel hath she with us be.' 690 + Quod tho the thridde, 'I hope, y-wis, that she + Shal bringen us the pees on every syde, + That, whan she gooth, almighty god hir gyde!' + + 100. Tho wordes and tho wommannisshe thinges, + She herde hem right as though she thennes were; 695 + For, god it wot, hir herte on other thing is, + Although the body sat among hem there. + Hir advertence is alwey elles-where; + For Troilus ful faste hir soule soughte; + With-outen word, alwey on him she thoughte. 700 + + 101. Thise wommen, that thus wenden hir to plese, + Aboute nought gonne alle hir tales spende; + Swich vanitee ne can don hir non ese, + As she that, al this mene whyle, brende + Of other passioun than that they wende, 705 + So that she felte almost hir herte deye + For wo, and wery of that companye. + + 102. For which no lenger mighte she restreyne + Hir teres, so they gonnen up to welle, + That yeven signes of the bitter peyne 710 + In whiche hir spirit was, and moste dwelle; + Remembring hir, fro heven unto which helle + She fallen was, sith she forgoth the sighte + Of Troilus, and sorowfully she sighte. + + 103. And thilke foles sittinge hir aboute 715 + Wenden, that she wepte and syked sore + By-cause that she sholde out of that route + Departe, and never pleye with hem more. + And they that hadde y-knowen hir of yore + Seye hir so wepe, and thoughte it kindenesse, 720 + And eche of hem wepte eek for hir distresse; + + 104. And bisily they gonnen hir conforten + Of thing, god wot, on which she litel thoughte; + And with hir tales wenden hir disporten, + And to be glad they often hir bisoughte. 725 + But swich an ese ther-with they hir wroughte + Right as a man is esed for to fele, + For ache of heed, to clawen him on his hele! + + 105. But after al this nyce vanitee + They took hir leve, and hoom they wenten alle. 730 + Criseyde, ful of sorweful pitee, + In-to hir chaumbre up wente out of the halle, + And on hir bed she gan for deed to falle, + In purpos never thennes for to ryse; + And thus she wroughte, as I shal yow devyse. 735 + + 106. Hir ounded heer, that sonnish was of hewe, + She rente, and eek hir fingres longe and smale + She wrong ful ofte, and bad god on hir rewe, + And with the deeth to doon bote on hir bale. + Hir hewe, whylom bright, that tho was pale, 740 + Bar witnes of hir wo and hir constreynte; + And thus she spak, sobbinge, in hir compleynte: + + 107. 'Alas!' quod she, 'out of this regioun + I, woful wrecche and infortuned wight, + And born in corsed constellacioun, 745 + Mot goon, and thus departen fro my knight; + Wo worth, allas! that ilke dayes light + On which I saw him first with eyen tweyne, + That causeth me, and I him, al this peyne!' + + 108. Therwith the teres from hir eyen two 750 + Doun fille, as shour in Aperill, ful swythe; + Hir whyte brest she bet, and for the wo + After the deeth she cryed a thousand sythe, + Sin he that wont hir wo was for to lythe, + She mot for-goon; for which disaventure 755 + She held hir-self a forlost creature. + + 109. She seyde, 'how shal he doon, and I also? + How sholde I live, if that I from him twinne? + O dere herte eek, that I love so, + Who shal that sorwe sleen that ye ben inne? 760 + O Calkas, fader, thyn be al this sinne! + O moder myn, that cleped were Argyve, + Wo worth that day that thou me bere on lyve! + + 110. To what fyn sholde I live and sorwen thus? + How sholde a fish with-oute water dure? 765 + What is Criseyde worth, from Troilus? + How sholde a plaunte or lyves creature + Live, with-oute his kinde noriture? + For which ful oft a by-word here I seye, + That, "rotelees, mot grene sone deye." 770 + + 111. I shal don thus, sin neither swerd ne darte + Dar I non handle, for the crueltee, + That ilke day that I from yow departe, + If sorwe of that nil not my bane be, + Than shal no mete or drinke come in me 775 + Til I my soule out of my breste unshethe; + And thus my-selven wol I do to dethe. + + 112. And, Troilus, my clothes everichoon + Shul blake been, in tokeninge, herte swete, + That I am as out of this world agoon, 780 + That wont was yow to setten in quiete; + And of myn ordre, ay til deeth me mete, + The observaunce ever, in your absence, + Shal sorwe been, compleynte, and abstinence. + + 113. Myn herte and eek the woful goost ther-inne 785 + Biquethe I, with your spirit to compleyne + Eternally, for they shul never twinne. + For though in erthe y-twinned be we tweyne, + Yet in the feld of pitee, out of peyne, + That hight Elysos, shul we been y-fere, 790 + As Orpheus and Erudice his fere. + + 114. Thus herte myn, for Antenor, allas! + I sone shal be chaunged, as I wene. + But how shul ye don in this sorwful cas, + How shal your tendre herte this sustene? 795 + But herte myn, for-yet this sorwe and tene, + And me also; for, soothly for to seye, + So ye wel fare, I recche not to deye.' + + 115. How mighte it ever y-red ben or y-songe, + The pleynte that she made in hir distresse? 800 + I noot; but, as for me, my litel tonge, + If I discreven wolde hir hevinesse, + It sholde make hir sorwe seme lesse + Than that it was, and childishly deface + Hir heigh compleynte, and therfore I it pace. 805 + + 116. Pandare, which that sent from Troilus + Was to Criseyde, as ye han herd devyse, + That for the beste it was accorded thus, + And he ful glad to doon him that servyse, + Un-to Criseyde, in a ful secree wyse, 810 + Ther-as she lay in torment and in rage, + Com hir to telle al hoolly his message. + + 117. And fond that she hir-selven gan to trete + Ful pitously; for with hir salte teres + Hir brest, hir face y-bathed was ful wete; 815 + The mighty tresses of hir sonnish heres, + Unbroyden, hangen al aboute hir eres; + Which yaf him verray signal of martyre + Of deeth, which that hir herte gan desyre. + + 118. Whan she him saw, she gan for sorwe anoon 820 + Hir tery face a-twixe hir armes hyde, + For which this Pandare is so wo bi-goon, + That in the hous he mighte unnethe abyde, + As he that pitee felte on every syde. + For if Criseyde hadde erst compleyned sore, 825 + Tho gan she pleyne a thousand tymes more. + + 119. And in hir aspre pleynte than she seyde, + 'Pandare first of Ioyes mo than two + Was cause causinge un-to me, Criseyde, + That now transmuwed been in cruel wo. 830 + Wher shal I seye to yow "wel come" or no, + That alderfirst me broughte in-to servyse + Of love, allas! that endeth in swich wyse? + + 120. Endeth than love in wo? Ye, or men lyeth! + And alle worldly blisse, as thinketh me, 835 + The ende of blisse ay sorwe it occupyeth; + And who-so troweth not that it so be, + Lat him upon me, woful wrecche, y-see, + That my-self hate, and ay my birthe acorse, + Felinge alwey, fro wikke I go to worse. 840 + + 121. Who-so me seeth, he seeth sorwe al at ones, + Peyne, torment, pleynte, wo, distresse. + Out of my woful body harm ther noon is, + As anguish, langour, cruel bitternesse, + A-noy, smert, drede, fury, and eek siknesse. 845 + I trowe, y-wis, from hevene teres reyne, + For pitee of myn aspre and cruel peyne!' + + 122. 'And thou, my suster, ful of discomfort,' + Quod Pandarus, 'what thenkestow to do? + Why ne hastow to thy-selven som resport, 850 + Why woltow thus thy-selve, allas, for-do? + Leef al this werk and tak now hede to + That I shal seyn, and herkne, of good entente, + This, which by me thy Troilus thee sente.' + + 123. Torned hir tho Criseyde, a wo makinge 855 + So greet that it a deeth was for to see:-- + 'Allas!' quod she, 'what wordes may ye bringe? + What wol my dere herte seyn to me, + Which that I drede never-mo to see? + Wol he have pleynte or teres, er I wende? 860 + I have y-nowe, if he ther-after sende!' + + 124. She was right swich to seen in hir visage + As is that wight that men on bere binde; + Hir face, lyk of Paradys the image, + Was al y-chaunged in another kinde. 865 + The pleye, the laughtre men was wont to finde + In hir, and eek hir Ioyes everychone, + Ben fled, and thus lyth now Criseyde allone. + + 125. Aboute hir eyen two a purpre ring + Bi-trent, in sothfast tokninge of hir peyne, 870 + That to biholde it was a dedly thing, + For which Pandare mighte not restreyne + The teres from his eyen for to reyne. + But nathelees, as he best mighte, he seyde + From Troilus thise wordes to Criseyde. 875 + + 126. 'Lo, nece, I trowe ye han herd al how + The king, with othere lordes, for the beste, + Hath mad eschaunge of Antenor and yow, + That cause is of this sorwe and this unreste. + But how this cas doth Troilus moleste, 880 + That may non erthely mannes tonge seye; + For verray wo his wit is al aweye. + + 127. For which we han so sorwed, he and I, + That in-to litel bothe it hadde us slawe; + But thurgh my conseil this day, fynally, 885 + He somwhat is fro weping now with-drawe. + And semeth me that he desyreth fawe + With yow to been al night, for to devyse + Remede in this, if ther were any wyse. + + 128. This, short and pleyne, theffect of my message, 890 + As ferforth as my wit can comprehende. + For ye, that been of torment in swich rage, + May to no long prologe as now entende; + And her-upon ye may answere him sende. + And, for the love of god, my nece dere, 895 + So leef this wo er Troilus be here.' + + 129. 'Gret is my wo,' quod she, and sighte sore, + As she that feleth dedly sharp distresse; + 'But yet to me his sorwe is muchel more, + That love him bet than he him-self, I gesse. 900 + Allas! for me hath he swich hevinesse? + Can he for me so pitously compleyne? + Y-wis, this sorwe doubleth al my peyne. + + 130. Grevous to me, god wot, is for to twinne,' + Quod she, 'but yet it hardere is to me 905 + To seen that sorwe which that he is inne; + For wel wot I, it wol my bane be; + And deye I wol in certayn,' tho quod she; + 'But bidde him come, er deeth, that thus me threteth, + Dryve out that goost, which in myn herte beteth.' 910 + + 131. Thise wordes seyd, she on hir armes two + Fil gruf, and gan to wepe pitously. + Quod Pandarus, 'allas! why do ye so, + Syn wel ye wot the tyme is faste by, + That he shal come? Arys up hastely, 915 + That he yow nat biwopen thus ne finde, + But ye wol han him wood out of his minde! + + 132. For wiste he that ye ferde in this manere, + He wolde him-selve slee; and if I wende + To han this fare, he sholde not come here 920 + For al the good that Pryam may despende. + For to what fyn he wolde anoon pretende, + That knowe I wel; and for-thy yet I seye, + So leef this sorwe, or platly he wol deye. + + 133. And shapeth yow his sorwe for to abregge, 925 + And nought encresse, leve nece swete; + Beth rather to him cause of flat than egge, + And with som wysdom ye his sorwes bete. + What helpeth it to wepen ful a strete, + Or though ye bothe in salte teres dreynte? 930 + Bet is a tyme of cure ay than of pleynte. + + 134. I mene thus; whan I him hider bringe, + Sin ye ben wyse, and bothe of oon assent, + So shapeth how distourbe your goinge, + Or come ayen, sone after ye be went. 935 + Wommen ben wyse in short avysement; + And lat sen how your wit shal now avayle; + And what that I may helpe, it shal not fayle.' + + 135. 'Go,' quod Criseyde, 'and uncle, trewely, + I shal don al my might, me to restreyne 940 + From weping in his sight, and bisily, + Him for to glade, I shal don al my peyne, + And in myn herte seken every veyne; + If to this soor ther may be founden salve, + It shal not lakken, certain, on myn halve.' 945 + + 136. Goth Pandarus, and Troilus he soughte, + Til in a temple he fond him allone, + As he that of his lyf no lenger roughte; + But to the pitouse goddes everichone + Ful tendrely he preyde, and made his mone, 950 + To doon him sone out of this world to pace; + For wel he thoughte ther was non other grace. + + 137. And shortly, al the sothe for to seye, + He was so fallen in despeyr that day, + That outrely he shoop him for to deye. 955 + For right thus was his argument alwey: + He seyde, he nas but loren, waylawey! + 'For al that comth, comth by necessitee; + Thus to be lorn, it is my destinee. + + 138. For certaynly, this wot I wel,' he seyde, 960 + That for-sight of divyne purveyaunce + Hath seyn alwey me to for-gon Criseyde, + Sin god seeth every thing, out of doutaunce, + And hem desponeth, thourgh his ordenaunce, + In hir merytes sothly for to be, 965 + As they shul comen by predestinee. + + 139. But nathelees, allas! whom shal I leve? + For ther ben grete clerkes many oon, + That destinee thorugh argumentes preve; + And som men seyn that nedely ther is noon; 970 + But that free chois is yeven us everichoon. + O, welaway! so sleye arn clerkes olde, + That I not whos opinion I may holde. + + 140. For som men seyn, if god seth al biforn, + Ne god may not deceyved ben, pardee, 975 + Than moot it fallen, though men hadde it sworn, + That purveyaunce hath seyn bifore to be. + Wherfor I seye, that from eterne if he + Hath wist biforn our thought eek as our dede, + We have no free chois, as these clerkes rede. 980 + + 141. For other thought nor other dede also + Might never be, but swich as purveyaunce, + Which may not ben deceyved never-mo, + Hath feled biforn, with-outen ignoraunce. + For if ther mighte been a variaunce 985 + To wrythen out fro goddes purveyinge, + Ther nere no prescience of thing cominge; + + 142. But it were rather an opinioun + Uncerteyn, and no stedfast forseinge; + And certes, that were an abusioun, 990 + That god shuld han no parfit cleer witinge + More than we men that han doutous weninge. + But swich an errour up-on god to gesse + Were fals and foul, and wikked corsednesse. + + 143. Eek this is an opinioun of somme 995 + That han hir top ful heighe and smothe y-shore; + They seyn right thus, that thing is not to come + For that the prescience hath seyn bifore + That it shal come; but they seyn, that therfore + That it shal come, therfore the purveyaunce 1000 + Wot it biforn with-outen ignoraunce; + + 144. And in this manere this necessitee + Retorneth in his part contrarie agayn. + For needfully bihoveth it not to be + That thilke thinges fallen in certayn 1005 + That ben purveyed; but nedely, as they seyn, + Bihoveth it that thinges, whiche that falle, + That they in certayn ben purveyed alle. + + 145. I mene as though I laboured me in this, + To enqueren which thing cause of which thing be; 1010 + As whether that the prescience of god is + The certayn cause of the necessitee + Of thinges that to comen been, pardee; + Or if necessitee of thing cominge + Be cause certeyn of the purveyinge. 1015 + + 146. But now ne enforce I me nat in shewinge + How the ordre of causes stant; but wel wot I, + That it bihoveth that the bifallinge + Of thinges wist biforen certeynly + Be necessarie, al seme it not ther-by 1020 + That prescience put falling necessaire + To thing to come, al falle it foule or faire. + + 147. For if ther sit a man yond on a see, + Than by necessitee bihoveth it + That, certes, thyn opinioun soth be, 1025 + That wenest or coniectest that he sit; + And ferther-over now ayenward yit, + Lo, right so it is of the part contrarie, + As thus; (now herkne, for I wol not tarie): + + 148. I seye, that if the opinioun of thee 1030 + Be sooth, for that he sit, than seye I this, + That he mot sitten by necessitee; + And thus necessitee in either is. + For in him nede of sitting is, y-wis, + And in thee nede of sooth; and thus, forsothe, 1035 + Ther moot necessitee ben in yow bothe. + + 149. But thou mayst seyn, the man sit not therfore, + That thyn opinion of sitting soth is; + But rather, for the man sit ther bifore, + Therfore is thyn opinion sooth, y-wis. 1040 + And I seye, though the cause of sooth of this + Comth of his sitting, yet necessitee + Is entrechaunged, bothe in him and thee. + + 150. Thus on this same wyse, out of doutaunce, + I may wel maken, as it semeth me, 1045 + My resoninge of goddes purveyaunce, + And of the thinges that to comen be; + By whiche reson men may wel y-see, + That thilke thinges that in erthe falle, + That by necessitee they comen alle. 1050 + + 151. For al-though that, for thing shal come, y-wis, + Therfore is it purveyed, certaynly, + Nat that it comth for it purveyed is: + Yet nathelees, bihoveth it nedfully, + That thing to come be purveyed, trewely; 1055 + Or elles, thinges that purveyed be, + That they bityden by necessitee. + + 152. And this suffyseth right y-now, certeyn, + For to destroye our free chois every del.-- + But now is this abusion to seyn, 1060 + That fallinge of the thinges temporel + Is cause of goddes prescience eternel. + Now trewely, that is a fals sentence, + That thing to come sholde cause his prescience. + + 153. What mighte I wene, and I hadde swich a thought, 1065 + But that god purveyth thing that is to come + For that it is to come, and elles nought? + So mighte I wene that thinges alle and some, + That whylom been bifalle and over-come, + Ben cause of thilke sovereyn purveyaunce, 1070 + That for-wot al with-outen ignoraunce. + + 154. And over al this, yet seye I more herto, + That right as whan I woot ther is a thing, + Y-wis, that thing mot nedefully be so; + Eek right so, whan I woot a thing coming, 1075 + So mot it come; and thus the bifalling + Of thinges that ben wist bifore the tyde, + They mowe not been eschewed on no syde.' + + 155. Than seyde he thus, 'almighty Iove in trone, + That wost of al this thing the soothfastnesse, 1080 + Rewe on my sorwe, or do me deye sone, + Or bring Criseyde and me fro this distresse.' + And whyl he was in al this hevinesse, + Disputinge with him-self in this matere, + Com Pandare in, and seyde as ye may here. 1085 + + 156. 'O mighty god,' quod Pandarus, 'in trone, + Ey! who seigh ever a wys man faren so? + Why, Troilus, what thenkestow to done? + Hastow swich lust to been thyn owene fo? + What, parde, yet is not Criseyde a-go! 1090 + Why lust thee so thy-self for-doon for drede, + That in thyn heed thyn eyen semen dede? + + 157. Hastow not lived many a yeer biforn + With-outen hir, and ferd ful wel at ese? + Artow for hir and for non other born? 1095 + Hath kinde thee wroughte al-only hir to plese? + Lat be, and thenk right thus in thy disese. + That, in the dees right as ther fallen chaunces, + Right so in love, ther come and goon plesaunces. + + 158. And yet this is a wonder most of alle, 1100 + Why thou thus sorwest, sin thou nost not yit, + Touching hir goinge, how that it shal falle, + Ne if she can hir-self distorben it. + Thou hast not yet assayed al hir wit. + A man may al by tyme his nekke bede 1105 + Whan it shal of, and sorwen at the nede. + + 159. For-thy take hede of that that I shal seye; + I have with hir y-spoke and longe y-be, + So as accorded was bitwixe us tweye. + And ever-mo me thinketh thus, that she 1110 + Hath som-what in hir hertes prevetee, + Wher-with she can, if I shal right arede, + Distorbe al this, of which thou art in drede. + + 160. For which my counseil is, whan it is night, + Thou to hir go, and make of this an ende; 1115 + And blisful Iuno, thourgh hir grete mighte, + Shal, as I hope, hir grace un-to us sende. + Myn herte seyth, "certeyn, she shal not wende;" + And for-thy put thyn herte a whyle in reste; + And hold this purpos, for it is the beste.' 1120 + + 161. This Troilus answerde, and sighte sore, + 'Thou seyst right wel, and I wil do right so;' + And what him liste, he seyde un-to it more. + And whan that it was tyme for to go, + Ful prevely him-self, with-outen mo, 1125 + Un-to hir com, as he was wont to done; + And how they wroughte, I shal yow telle sone. + + 162. Soth is, that whan they gonne first to mete, + So gan the peyne hir hertes for to twiste, + That neither of hem other mighte grete, 1130 + But hem in armes toke and after kiste. + The lasse wofulle of hem bothe niste + Wher that he was, ne mighte o word out-bringe, + As I seyde erst, for wo and for sobbinge. + + 163. Tho woful teres that they leten falle 1135 + As bittre weren, out of teres kinde, + For peyne, as is ligne aloës or galle. + So bittre teres weep nought, as I finde, + The woful Myrra through the bark and rinde. + That in this world ther nis so hard an herte, 1140 + That nolde han rewed on hir peynes smerte. + + 164. But whan hir woful wery gostes tweyne + Retorned been ther-as hem oughte dwelle, + And that som-what to wayken gan the peyne + By lengthe of pleynte, and ebben gan the welle 1145 + Of hire teres, and the herte unswelle, + With broken voys, al hoors for-shright, Criseyde + To Troilus thise ilke wordes seyde: + + 165. 'O Iove, I deye, and mercy I beseche! + Help, Troilus!' and ther-with-al hir face 1150 + Upon his brest she leyde, and loste speche; + Hir woful spirit from his propre place, + Right with the word, alwey up poynt to pace. + And thus she lyth with hewes pale and grene, + That whylom fresh and fairest was to sene. 1155 + + 166. This Troilus, that on hir gan biholde, + Clepinge hir name, (and she lay as for deed, + With-oute answere, and felte hir limes colde, + Hir eyen throwen upward to hir heed), + This sorwful man can now noon other reed, 1160 + But ofte tyme hir colde mouth he kiste; + Wher him was wo, god and him-self it wiste! + + 167. He rist him up, and long streight he hir leyde; + For signe of lyf, for ought he can or may, + Can he noon finde in no-thing on Criseyde, 1165 + For which his song ful ofte is 'weylaway!' + But whan he saugh that specheles she lay, + With sorwful voys, and herte of blisse al bare, + He seyde how she was fro this world y-fare! + + 168. So after that he longe hadde hir compleyned, 1170 + His hondes wrong, and seyde that was to seye, + And with his teres salte hir brest bireyned, + He gan tho teris wypen of ful dreye, + And pitously gan for the soule preye, + And seyde, 'O lord, that set art in thy trone, 1175 + Rewe eek on me, for I shal folwe hir sone!' + + 169. She cold was and with-outen sentement, + For aught he woot, for breeth ne felte he noon; + And this was him a preignant argument + That she was forth out of this world agoon; 1180 + And whan he seigh ther was non other woon, + He gan hir limes dresse in swich manere + As men don hem that shul be leyd on bere. + + 170. And after this, with sterne and cruel herte, + His swerd a-noon out of his shethe he twighte, 1185 + Him-self to sleen, how sore that him smerte, + So that his sowle hir sowle folwen mighte, + Ther-as the doom of Mynos wolde it dighte; + Sin love and cruel Fortune it ne wolde, + That in this world he lenger liven sholde. 1190 + + 171. Thanne seyde he thus, fulfild of heigh desdayn, + 'O cruel Iove, and thou, Fortune adverse, + This al and som, that falsly have ye slayn + Criseyde, and sin ye may do me no werse, + Fy on your might and werkes so diverse! 1195 + Thus cowardly ye shul me never winne; + Ther shal no deeth me fro my lady twinne. + + 172. For I this world, sin ye han slayn hir thus, + Wol lete, and folowe hir spirit lowe or hye; + Shal never lover seyn that Troilus 1200 + Dar not, for fere, with his lady dye; + For certeyn, I wol bere hir companye. + But sin ye wol not suffre us liven here, + Yet suffreth that our soules ben y-fere. + + 173. And thou, citee, whiche that I leve in wo, 1205 + And thou, Pryam, and bretheren al y-fere, + And thou, my moder, farewel! for I go; + And Attropos, make redy thou my bere! + And thou, Criseyde, o swete herte dere, + Receyve now my spirit!' wolde he seye, 1210 + With swerd at herte, al redy for to deye. + + 174. But as god wolde, of swough ther-with she abreyde, + And gan to syke, and 'Troilus' she cryde; + And he answerde, 'lady myn Criseyde, + Live ye yet?' and leet his swerd doun glyde. 1215 + 'Ye, herte myn, that thanked be Cupyde!' + Quod she, and ther-with-al she sore sighte; + And he bigan to glade hir as he mighte; + + 175. Took hir in armes two, and kiste hir ofte, + And hir to glade he dide al his entente; 1220 + For which hir goost, that flikered ay on-lofte, + In-to hir woful herte ayein it wente. + But at the laste, as that hir eyen glente + A-syde, anoon she gan his swerd aspye, + As it lay bare, and gan for fere crye, 1225 + + 176. And asked him, why he it hadde out-drawe? + And Troilus anoon the cause hir tolde, + And how himself ther-with he wolde have slawe. + For which Criseyde up-on him gan biholde, + And gan him in hir armes faste folde, 1230 + And seyde, 'O mercy, god, lo, which a dede! + Allas! how neigh we were bothe dede! + + 177. Thanne if I ne hadde spoken, as grace was, + Ye wolde han slayn your-self anoon?' quod she. + 'Ye, douteless;' and she answerde, 'allas! 1235 + For, by that ilke lord that made me, + I nolde a forlong wey on-lyve han be, + After your deeth, to han be crowned quene + Of al the lond the sonne on shyneth shene. + + 178. But with this selve swerd, which that here is, 1240 + My-selve I wolde have slayn!'--quod she tho; + 'But ho, for we han right y-now of this, + And late us ryse and streight to bedde go; + And therë lat vs speken of our wo. + For, by the morter which that I see brenne, 1245 + Knowe I ful wel that day is not fer henne.' + + 179. Whan they were in hir bedde, in armes folde, + Nought was it lyk tho nightes here-biforn; + For pitously ech other gan biholde, + As they that hadden al hir blisse y-lorn, 1250 + Biwaylinge ay the day that they were born. + Til at the last this sorwful wight Criseyde + To Troilus these ilke wordes seyde:-- + + 180. 'Lo, herte myn, wel wot ye this,' quod she, + 'That if a wight alwey his wo compleyne, 1255 + And seketh nought how holpen for to be, + It nis but folye and encrees of peyne; + And sin that here assembled be we tweyne + To finde bote of wo that we ben inne, + It were al tyme sone to biginne. 1260 + + 181. I am a womman, as ful wel ye woot, + And as I am avysed sodeynly, + So wol I telle yow, whyl it is hoot. + Me thinketh thus, that neither ye nor I + Oughte half this wo to make skilfully. 1265 + For there is art y-now for to redresse + That yet is mis, and sleen this hevinesse. + + 182. Sooth is, the wo, the whiche that we ben inne, + For ought I woot, for no-thing elles is + But for the cause that we sholden twinne. 1270 + Considered al, ther nis no-more amis. + But what is thanne a remede un-to this, + But that we shape us sone for to mete? + This al and som, my dere herte swete. + + 183. Now that I shal wel bringen it aboute 1275 + To come ayein, sone after that I go, + Ther-of am I no maner thing in doute. + For dredeles, with-inne a wouke or two, + I shal ben here; and, that it may be so + By alle right, and in a wordes fewe, 1280 + I shal yow wel an heep of weyes shewe. + + 184. For which I wol not make long sermoun, + For tyme y-lost may not recovered be; + But I wol gon to my conclusioun, + And to the beste, in ought that I can see. 1285 + And, for the love of god, for-yeve it me + If I speke ought ayein your hertes reste; + For trewely, I speke it for the beste; + + 185. Makinge alwey a protestacioun, + That now these wordes, whiche that I shal seye, 1290 + Nis but to shewe yow my mocioun, + To finde un-to our helpe the beste weye; + And taketh it non other wyse, I preye. + For in effect what-so ye me comaunde, + That wol I doon, for that is no demaunde. 1295 + + 186. Now herkeneth this, ye han wel understonde, + My goinge graunted is by parlement + So ferforth, that it may not be with-stonde + For al this world, as by my Iugement. + And sin ther helpeth noon avysement 1300 + To letten it, lat it passe out of minde; + And lat us shape a bettre wey to finde. + + 187. The sothe is, that the twinninge of us tweyne + Wol us disese and cruelliche anoye. + But him bihoveth som-tyme han a peyne, 1305 + That serveth love, if that he wol have Ioye. + And sin I shal no ferthere out of Troye + Than I may ryde ayein on half a morwe, + It oughte lasse causen us to sorwe. + + 188. So as I shal not so ben hid in muwe, 1310 + That day by day, myn owene herte dere, + Sin wel ye woot that it is now a truwe, + Ye shul ful wel al myn estat y-here. + And er that truwe is doon, I shal ben here, + And thanne have ye bothe Antenor y-wonne 1315 + And me also; beth glad now, if ye conne; + + 189. And thenk right thus, "Criseyde is now agoon, + But what! she shal come hastely ayeyn;" + And whanne, allas? by god, lo, right anoon, + Er dayes ten, this dar I saufly seyn. 1320 + And thanne at erste shul we been so fayn, + So as we shulle to-gederes ever dwelle, + Thal al this world ne mighte our blisse telle. + + 190. I see that ofte, ther-as we ben now, + That for the beste, our conseil for to hyde, 1325 + Ye speke not with me, nor I with yow + In fourtenight; ne see yow go ne ryde. + May ye not ten dayes thanne abyde, + For myn honour, in swich an aventure? + Y-wis, ye mowen elles lite endure! 1330 + + 191. Ye knowe eek how that al my kin is here, + But-if that onliche it my fader be; + And eek myn othere thinges alle y-fere, + And nameliche, my dere herte, ye, + Whom that I nolde leven for to see 1335 + For al this world, as wyd as it hath space; + Or elles, see ich never Ioves face! + + 192. Why trowe ye my fader in this wyse + Coveiteth so to see me, but for drede + Lest in this toun that folkes me dispyse 1340 + By-cause of him, for his unhappy dede? + What woot my fader what lyf that I lede? + For if he wiste in Troye how wel I fare, + Us neded for my wending nought to care. + + 193. Ye seen that every day eek, more and more, 1345 + Men trete of pees; and it supposed is, + That men the quene Eleyne shal restore, + And Grekes us restore that is mis. + So though ther nere comfort noon but this, + That men purposen pees on every syde, 1350 + Ye may the bettre at ese of herte abyde. + + 194. For if that it be pees, myn herte dere, + The nature of the pees mot nedes dryve + That men moste entrecomunen y-fere, + And to and fro eek ryde and gon as blyve 1355 + Alday as thikke as been flen from an hyve; + And every wight han libertee to bleve + Wher-as him list the bet, with-outen leve. + + 195. And though so be that pees ther may be noon, + Yet hider, though ther never pees ne were, 1360 + I moste come; for whider sholde I goon, + Or how mischaunce sholde I dwelle there + Among tho men of armes ever in fere? + For which, as wisly god my soule rede, + I can not seen wher-of ye sholden drede. 1365 + + 196. Have here another wey, if it so be + That al this thing ne may yow not suffyse. + My fader, as ye knowen wel, pardee, + Is old, and elde is ful of coveityse. + And I right now have founden al the gyse, 1370 + With-oute net, wher-with I shal him hente; + And herkeneth how, if that ye wole assente. + + 197. Lo, Troilus, men seyn that hard it is + The wolf ful, and the wether hool to have; + This is to seyn, that men ful ofte, y-wis, 1375 + Mot spenden part, the remenaunt for to save. + For ay with gold men may the herte grave + Of him that set is up-on coveityse; + And how I mene, I shal it yow devyse. + + 198. The moeble which that I have in this toun 1380 + Un-to my fader shal I take, and seye, + That right for trust and for savacioun + It sent is from a freend of his or tweye, + The whiche freendes ferventliche him preye + To senden after more, and that in hye, 1385 + Whyl that this toun stant thus in Iupartye. + + 199. And that shal been an huge quantitee, + Thus shal I seyn, but, lest it folk aspyde, + This may be sent by no wight but by me; + I shal eek shewen him, if pees bityde, 1390 + What frendes that ich have on every syde + Toward the court, to doon the wrathe pace + Of Priamus, and doon him stonde in grace. + + 200. So, what for o thing and for other, swete, + I shal him so enchaunten with my sawes, 1395 + That right in hevene his sowle is, shal he mete! + For al Appollo, or his clerkes lawes, + Or calculinge avayleth nought three hawes; + Desyr of gold shal so his sowle blende, + That, as me lyst, I shal wel make an ende. 1400 + + 201. And if he wolde ought by his sort it preve + If that I lye, in certayn I shal fonde + Distorben him, and plukke him by the sleve, + Makinge his sort, and beren him on honde, + He hath not wel the goddes understonde. 1405 + For goddes speken in amphibologyes, + And, for a sooth, they tellen twenty lyes. + + 202. Eek drede fond first goddes, I suppose, + Thus shal I seyn, and that his cowarde herte + Made him amis the goddes text to glose, 1410 + Whan he for ferde out of his Delphos sterte. + And but I make him sone to converte, + And doon my reed with-inne a day or tweye, + I wol to yow oblige me to deye.' + + 203. And treweliche, as writen wel I finde, 1415 + That al this thing was seyd of good entente; + And that hir herte trewe was and kinde + Towardes him, and spak right as she mente, + And that she starf for wo neigh, whan she wente, + And was in purpos ever to be trewe; 1420 + Thus writen they that of hir werkes knewe. + + 204. This Troilus, with herte and eres spradde, + Herde al this thing devysen to and fro; + And verraylich him semed that he hadde + The selve wit; but yet to lete hir go 1425 + His herte misforyaf him ever-mo. + But fynally, he gan his herte wreste + To trusten hir, and took it for the beste. + + 205. For which the grete furie of his penaunce + Was queynt with hope, and ther-with hem bitwene 1430 + Bigan for Ioye the amorouse daunce. + And as the briddes, whan the sonne is shene, + Delyten in hir song in leves grene, + Right so the wordes that they spake y-fere + Delyted hem, and made hir hertes clere. 1435 + + 206. But natheles, the wending of Criseyde, + For al this world, may nought out of his minde; + For which ful ofte he pitously hir preyde, + That of hir heste he might hir trewe finde. + And seyde hir, 'certes, if ye be unkinde, 1440 + And but ye come at day set in-to Troye, + Ne shal I never have hele, honour, ne Ioye. + + 207. For al-so sooth as sonne up-rist on morwe, + And, god! so wisly thou me, woful wrecche, + To reste bringe out of this cruel sorwe, 1445 + I wol my-selven slee if that ye drecche. + But of my deeth though litel be to recche, + Yet, er that ye me cause so to smerte, + Dwel rather here, myn owene swete herte! + + 208. For trewely, myn owene lady dere, 1450 + Tho sleightes yet that I have herd yow stere + Ful shaply been to failen alle y-fere. + For thus men seyn, "that oon thenketh the bere, + But al another thenketh his ledere." + Your sire is wys, and seyd is, out of drede, 1455 + "Men may the wyse at-renne, and not at-rede." + + 209. It is ful hard to halten unespyed + Bifore a crepul, for he can the craft; + Your fader is in sleighte as Argus yëd; + For al be that his moeble is him biraft, 1460 + His olde sleighte is yet so with him laft, + Ye shal not blende him for your womanhede, + Ne feyne a-right, and that is al my drede. + + 210. I noot if pees shal ever-mo bityde; + But, pees or no, for ernest ne for game, 1465 + I woot, sin Calkas on the Grekes syde + Hath ones been, and lost so foule his name, + He dar no more come here ayein for shame; + For which that weye, for ought I can espye, + To trusten on, nis but a fantasye. 1470 + + 211. Ye shal eek seen, your fader shal yow glose + To been a wyf, and as he can wel preche, + He shal som Grek so preyse and wel alose, + That ravisshen he shal yow with his speche, + Or do yow doon by force as he shal teche. 1475 + And Troilus, of whom ye nil han routhe, + Shal causeles so sterven in his trouthe! + + 212. And over al this, your fader shal despyse + Us alle, and seyn this citee nis but lorn; + And that thassege never shal aryse, 1480 + For-why the Grekes han it alle sworn + Til we be slayn, and doun our walles torn. + And thus he shal you with his wordes fere, + That ay drede I, that ye wol bleve there. + + 213. Ye shul eek seen so many a lusty knight 1485 + A-mong the Grekes, ful of worthinesse, + And eche of hem with herte, wit, and might + To plesen yow don al his besinesse, + That ye shul dullen of the rudenesse + Of us sely Troianes, but-if routhe 1490 + Remorde yow, or vertue of your trouthe. + + 214. And this to me so grevous is to thinke, + That fro my brest it wol my soule rende; + Ne dredeles, in me ther may not sinke + A good opinioun, if that ye wende; 1495 + For-why your faderes sleighte wol us shende. + And if ye goon, as I have told yow yore, + So thenk I nam but deed, with-oute more. + + 215. For which, with humble, trewe, and pitous herte, + A thousand tymes mercy I yow preye; 1500 + So reweth on myn aspre peynes smerte, + And doth somwhat, as that I shal yow seye, + And lat us stele away bitwixe us tweye; + And thenk that folye is, whan man may chese, + For accident his substaunce ay to lese. 1505 + + 216. I mene this, that sin we mowe er day + Wel stele away, and been to-gider so, + What wit were it to putten in assay, + In cas ye sholden to your fader go, + If that ye mighte come ayein or no? 1510 + Thus mene I, that it were a gret folye + To putte that sikernesse in Iupartye. + + 217. And vulgarly to speken of substaunce + Of tresour, may we bothe with us lede + Y-nough to live in honour and plesaunce, 1515 + Til in-to tyme that we shul ben dede; + And thus we may eschewen al this drede. + For everich other wey ye can recorde, + Myn herte, y-wis, may not ther-with acorde. + + 218. And hardily, ne dredeth no poverte, 1520 + For I have kin and freendes elles-where + That, though we comen in our bare sherte, + Us sholde neither lakke gold ne gere, + But been honoured whyl we dwelten there. + And go we anoon, for, as in myn entente, 1525 + This is the beste, if that ye wole assente.' + + 219. Criseyde, with a syk, right in this wyse + Answerde, 'y-wis, my dere herte trewe, + We may wel stele away, as ye devyse, + And finde swiche unthrifty weyes newe; 1530 + But afterward, ful sore it wol us rewe. + And help me god so at my moste nede + As causeles ye suffren al this drede! + + 220. For thilke day that I for cherisshinge + Or drede of fader, or of other wight, 1535 + Or for estat, delyt, or for weddinge + Be fals to yow, my Troilus, my knight, + Saturnes doughter, Iuno, thorugh hir might, + As wood as Athamante do me dwelle + Eternaly in Stix, the put of helle! 1540 + + 221. And this on every god celestial + I swere it yow, and eek on eche goddesse, + On every Nymphe and deite infernal, + On Satiry and Fauny more and lesse, + That halve goddes been of wildernesse; 1545 + And Attropos my threed of lyf to-breste + If I be fals; now trowe me if thow leste! + + 222. And thou, Simoys, that as an arwe clere + Thorugh Troye rennest ay downward to the see, + Ber witnesse of this word that seyd is here, 1550 + That thilke day that ich untrewe be + To Troilus, myn owene herte free, + That thou retorne bakwarde to thy welle, + And I with body and soule sinke in helle! + + 223. But that ye speke, awey thus for to go 1555 + And leten alle your freendes, god for-bede, + For any womman, that ye sholden so, + And namely, sin Troye hath now swich nede + Of help; and eek of o thing taketh hede, + If this were wist, my lif laye in balaunce, 1560 + And your honour; god shilde us fro mischaunce! + + 224. And if so be that pees her-after take, + As alday happeth, after anger, game, + Why, lord! the sorwe and wo ye wolden make, + That ye ne dorste come ayein for shame! 1565 + And er that ye Iuparten so your name, + Beth nought to hasty in this hote fare; + For hasty man ne wanteth never care. + + 225. What trowe ye the peple eek al aboute + Wolde of it seye? It is ful light to arede. 1570 + They wolden seye, and swere it, out of doute, + That love ne droof yow nought to doon this dede, + But lust voluptuous and coward drede. + Thus were al lost, y-wis, myn herte dere, + Your honour, which that now shyneth so clere. 1575 + + 226. And also thenketh on myn honestee, + That floureth yet, how foule I sholde it shende, + And with what filthe it spotted sholde be, + If in this forme I sholde with yow wende. + Ne though I livede un-to the worldes ende, 1580 + My name sholde I never ayeinward winne; + Thus were I lost, and that were routhe and sinne. + + 227. And for-thy slee with reson al this hete; + Men seyn, "the suffraunt overcometh," pardee; + Eek "who-so wol han leef, he leef mot lete;" 1585 + Thus maketh vertue of necessitee + By pacience, and thenk that lord is he + Of fortune ay, that nought wol of hir recche; + And she ne daunteth no wight but a wrecche. + + 228. And trusteth this, that certes, herte swete, 1590 + Er Phebus suster, Lucina the shene, + The Leoun passe out of this Ariete, + I wol ben here, with-outen any wene. + I mene, as helpe me Iuno, hevenes quene, + The tenthe day, but-if that deeth me assayle, 1595 + I wol yow seen, with-outen any fayle.' + + 229. 'And now, so this be sooth,' quod Troilus, + 'I shal wel suffre un-to the tenthe day, + Sin that I see that nede it moot be thus. + But, for the love of god, if it be may, 1600 + So lat us stele prively away; + For ever in oon, as for to live in reste, + Myn herte seyth that it wol been the beste.' + + 230. 'O mercy, god, what lyf is this?' quod she; + 'Allas, ye slee me thus for verray tene! 1605 + I see wel now that ye mistrusten me; + For by your wordes it is wel y-sene. + Now, for the love of Cynthia the shene, + Mistrust me not thus causeles, for routhe; + Sin to be trewe I have yow plight my trouthe. 1610 + + 231. And thenketh wel, that som tyme it is wit + To spende a tyme, a tyme for to winne; + Ne, pardee, lorn am I nought fro yow yit, + Though that we been a day or two a-twinne. + Dryf out the fantasyes yow with-inne; 1615 + And trusteth me, and leveth eek your sorwe, + Or here my trouthe, I wol not live til morwe. + + 232. For if ye wiste how sore it doth me smerte, + Ye wolde cesse of this; for god, thou wost, + The pure spirit wepeth in myn herte, 1620 + To see yow wepen that I love most, + And that I moot gon to the Grekes ost. + Ye, nere it that I wiste remedye + To come ayein, right here I wolde dye! + + 233. But certes, I am not so nyce a wight 1625 + That I ne can imaginen a way + To come ayein that day that I have hight. + For who may holde thing that wol a-way? + My fader nought, for al his queynte pley. + And by my thrift, my wending out of Troye 1630 + Another day shal torne us alle to Ioye. + + 234. For-thy, with al myn herte I yow beseke, + If that yow list don ought for my preyere, + And for the love which that I love yow eke, + That er that I departe fro yow here, 1635 + That of so good a comfort and a chere + I may you seen, that ye may bringe at reste + Myn herte, which that is at point to breste. + + 235. And over al this, I pray yow,' quod she tho, + 'Myn owene hertes soothfast suffisaunce, 1640 + Sin I am thyn al hool, with-outen mo, + That whyl that I am absent, no plesaunce + Of othere do me fro your remembraunce. + For I am ever a-gast, for-why men rede, + That "love is thing ay ful of bisy drede." 1645 + + 236. For in this world ther liveth lady noon, + If that ye were untrewe, as god defende! + That so bitraysed were or wo bigoon + As I, that alle trouthe in yow entende. + And douteles, if that ich other wende, 1650 + I nere but deed; and er ye cause finde, + For goddes love, so beth me not unkinde.' + + 237. To this answerde Troilus and seyde, + 'Now god, to whom ther nis no cause y-wrye, + Me glade, as wis I never un-to Criseyde, 1655 + Sin thilke day I saw hir first with yë, + Was fals, ne never shal til that I dye. + At shorte wordes, wel ye may me leve; + I can no more, it shal be founde at preve.' + + 238. 'Graunt mercy, goode myn, y-wis,' quod she, 1660 + 'And blisful Venus lat me never sterve + Er I may stonde of plesaunce in degree + To quyte him wel, that so wel can deserve; + And whyl that god my wit wol me conserve, + I shal so doon, so trewe I have yow founde, 1665 + That ay honour to me-ward shal rebounde. + + 239. For trusteth wel, that your estat royal + Ne veyn delyt, nor only worthinesse + Of yow in werre, or torney marcial, + Ne pompe, array, nobley, or eek richesse, 1670 + Ne made me to rewe on your distresse; + But moral vertue, grounded upon trouthe, + That was the cause I first hadde on yow routhe! + + 240. Eek gentil herte and manhod that ye hadde, + And that ye hadde, as me thoughte, in despyt 1675 + Every thing that souned in-to badde, + As rudenesse and poeplish appetyt; + And that your reson brydled your delyt, + This made, aboven every creature, + That I was your, and shal, whyl I may dure. 1680 + + 241. And this may lengthe of yeres not for-do, + Ne remuable fortune deface; + But Iuppiter, that of his might may do + The sorwful to be glad, so yeve us grace, + Er nightes ten, to meten in this place, 1685 + So that it may your herte and myn suffyse; + And fareth now wel, for tyme is that ye ryse.' + + 242. And after that they longe y-pleyned hadde, + And ofte y-kist and streite in armes folde, + The day gan ryse, and Troilus him cladde, 1690 + And rewfulliche his lady gan biholde, + As he that felte dethes cares colde. + And to hir grace he gan him recomaunde; + Wher him was wo, this holde I no demaunde. + + 243. For mannes heed imaginen ne can, 1695 + Ne entendement considere, ne tonge telle + The cruel peynes of this sorwful man, + That passen every torment doun in helle. + For whan he saugh that she ne mighte dwelle, + Which that his soule out of his herte rente, 1700 + With-outen more, out of the chaumbre he wente. + +Explicit Liber Quartus. + +TITLE. _Not in the_ MSS. // C. _has lost ll._ 1-112. 4. Cl. kane. 6, 11. +Cl. Cp. H. whiel; H2. Ed. whele. 7. Cl. here; _rest_ him. 12. Cl. rytht. +21. Cl. vilonye; H. vilenye; _rest_ vilanye. 22. _All_ herynes. // Cl. +nyghttes. 23. Cl. compleynes; H. compleynen; Cp. compleignen. 24. Ed. +Allecto; Tesiphonee. 25. Cp. H. to; Cl. H2. of. 27. H. los; Cl. losse. +COLOPHON. Cl. Cp. H. _wrongly have_ Explicit liber Tercius; _read_ +prohemium. 30. Cl. Grekys. 31. Cl. whanne. 32. H. herculis. 33. H. Cp. ful; +_rest om._ 35. Cl. woned. 40. Cl. on; _rest_ in. 41. Cl. lenge; _rest_ +lenger. 43. sharpe] Cl. faste. 44. Cl. fele. 47. Cl. last; Cp. H. Ed. +laste. 51. Ed. Polymydas. // Cl. Cp. H. Ed. Monesteo; H2. Penestio. 52. Ed. +Xantyppe; H2. Sartip. // Ed. Palestynor. 53. H2. Riphio; Cl. Cp. H. Rupheo. +57. Cp. H. a Grek; Cl. H2. Ed. at Grekes; _read_ at Greek. 59. Ed. moste; +Cp. meste; _rest_ most. 60. Cl. yeue; Cp. Ed. yeuen. 67. Cl. woned. 69. Cl. +don hym; _rest om._ hym. 75. Cl. told; Cp. H. tolde. 76. Cl. dredles; Cp. +H. dredeles. 78. Cl. for (_for 2nd_ in). 79. Cp. H. Ed. tacheue. 81. H. +leue (_glossed_ i. credo). 82. Cl. weres; Cp. H. Ed. weren. // H. leue +(_gl._ i. cari). 86. Ed. regarde; _rest_ resport (_see_ l. 850). 89. Cl. +losse; dishese. 90. Cl. -saf; Cp. H. -sauf. 94. Cp. and (_for 2nd_ O). // +Cl. cruwel. 99. Cl. H. say; _rest_ sawe. 101. Cl. yif. // H. H2. _om._ +that. 103. Cp. amonges; _rest_ among (amonge). 105. through] Cl. for. 106. +Cl. preson; H. prisoun. 107. Cl. wille. 108. Cl. chyd (_sic_). 110. Cl. On; +Cp. H. Oon. 115. Cp. Cm. Ed. it; _rest om._ 117. And] Cl. I. 118. Cm. fer; +H2. fere. 119. Cl. in; Cp. H. Cm. Ed. to; H2. in-to. 120. Cp. Ed. H2. +Neptunus; H. neptimus; Cl. Neptainus; Cm. Natyinus. 121. Cp. Ed. makeden; +H. makkeden; _rest_ maden. 124. Ed. Lamedoun. 125, 6. Cm. here, fere. 129. +Cl. terys; twye. 131. Cl. by-seche. 132. Cl. helen. 133. Cp. yaue; Cl. Cm. +yaf; Ed. gaue. 134. Cl. y-nowh. 138. Cp. Ed. Cm. bryngen; H. brynge; Cl. +bryng. // H. hom; Cl. Cm. hem; _rest_ home. // H. Tooas; Ed. Thoas. 139. +Cp. H. Ed. -garde; Cl. -gard. // Cm. H2. his saf cundwyt hem sente. 140. +Cp. H. Ed. Thembassadours; Cl. H2. The ambassiatours (_see_ l. 145). 155. +Cl. angwyssh. 163. Cl. gon; _rest_ go. 165. H. Cm. ne; _rest om._ 167. Cl. +blowe; _rest_ y-blowe. 168. Cl. bothere; Ed. bother; Cp. brother (!); H2. +bothe; Cm. botheis; H. eyther. 173. Cl. whanne. // Cl. Cp. Cm. hadde; +_rest_ had. 175. Cp. H. a[gh]eyn; Cl. Cm. ayen. 176. Cp. H. Ed. Grekes; +_rest_ Grekis. 178. Cl. answerede; Cp. H. Cm. answerde. 179. Cl. Cm. +presoner. 180. Cl. H2. _om._ that. 183, 5. Cl. onys, nonys. 184. Cl. in; +H2. a; _rest_ on. 186. Cp. H. Ed. sholden; Cl. sholde. 191. Cl. Cp. Ed. to; +H. tolk (_for_ to folk); _rest_ of. 192. Cl. stown (!). 198. Cl. liten (!). +// Cl. weten; H. Cp. witen; Ed. wenen; H2. know. 201. Cl. here an; _rest +om._ an. 204. Cl. after he was. 205. Ed. quytte; H2. quytt; H. Cp. quite; +Cl. Cm. quyt. 206. Cl. discressioun. 207. Cl. Cm. dede. 210. Cl. seyden; +Cp. H. Cm. seyde; Ed. sayd; H2. saide. // Ed. heere; _rest_ here. // Cm. +hou_n_ne; _rest_ howne (hown). 211. Cl. was delibered. 213. Cl. pronuncede; +precident. 214. Cl. Al they; preyede. 220. Cl. Cm. spede; _rest_ spedde. +223. Cp. H. Cm. Ed. slepen; Cl. slepe. 229. Cl. I-bounde. 236. Cl. hepede; +H. heped. 237. Cl. -brest; Cp. Cm. -breste; H. -brast. // Cl. werkyn. 242. +Cl. Righ. 243. Cl. Cm. festes; _rest_ fistes. 245. Cp. H. Ed. seluen; Cl. +self. 252. MSS. Schop, Shope. 257. Cl. terys. 260. Cl. Thanne; Cp. H. Than. +270. Cp. Cm. Ed. now the; Cl. H. the now. 277. Cl. on (_for_ or). // Cl. +Cm. deye; Cp. H. dye. 282. Cp. H. Ed. whider; Cl. Cm. wheder. 286. H. +gerful; Ed. gierful; Cl. greful; Cm. gery; Cp. serful(!). 294. Cl. +repeles(!). 295. Cm. H2. schal I; _rest_ I may. 296. Cl. cruwel; Cm. +crewel. 298. Cl. Allas; _rest_ Allone. 302. Cp. Ed. wery; Cm. werray; +_rest_ verray. 305. H. vnneste (_glossed_ i. go out of thi nest). // Ed. +woful neste (_wrongly_). 309. Cl. desport. 310. Cp. H2. brighte; _rest_ +bright (_but_ Cm. _varies_). 312. Cp. H. Stonden; Cm. Stondyn; Ed. +Sto_n_den; Cl. Stondeth. // Cp. H. sighte; Cl. sight. 313. Cp. H. lighte; +Cl. lyght. 314. Cl. tweyne; Cp. H. tweye. 317. H2. thilke; Cm. ye ilke; +_rest_ this. 318. Cl. Cp. H. the; Ed. thy; _rest_ my. 320. Cl. vn-to yow +so. 323. H. heighe; Cp. heigh; Cl. heyhe. 327. Cl. whanne; be. 330. Cp. H. +Ed. myslyued; H2. mysleuyd; Cl. Cm. mysbyleued. 336. Cl. where as; _rest +om._ as. 339. Cl. Meddles; _rest_ Medled (Medlid). 345. Cl. Burgeys & lord. +350. Cp. H. rees; Cl. Cm. res; Ed. race. 352. Cp. H. vndid; Cl. vndede. +354. Cl. as ony; _rest om._ ony. 356. Cm. nyste; Cl. Cp. H. nyst; _see_ +349. 362. Cl. colde. 364. Cp. H. slough. 367. H. Cp. ayein; Cl. Cm. ayen; +Ed. ayenst. 368. Cl. wyych. 370. Cp. H. thise; Cl. this. 379. Ed. deed; H. +Cm. ded; Cl. Cp. dede. 380. Cl. answerede. 387. Cl. Als; _rest_ As. 392. +Cl. Cm. his; _rest_ hire (her). 398. _All_ eye (ey). 402. Cm. sweche; Ed. +H2. suche; Cl. H. Cp. swych. 405. Cm. owene; Cl. Cp. H. owen; Ed. owne. +408. Cl. _om._ in. 413. Cl. Cm. of; _rest_ for. 414. Cl. H. zauzis; _rest_ +zanzis. 415. Cp. H. chaceth; Cl. cacheth. 417. Cl. thow art; Cp. artow; H. +ertow; Cm. or thow; _rest_ art thou. 423. Cl. ellys. 424. Cl. al. 426. H. +Tabrigge; Cp. Tabregge; Cm. To abregge. 430. Cl. Cm. sorwe; _rest_ wo. 431. +Cm. roughte; Cl. Cp. H. rought. // Cl. vnthryf; _om._ that. 434. Cp. at +oothir; H. attother. 435. Cl. he answered. // Cl. seyde a; _rest om._ a. +437. Cl. fende. 438. Cp. H. traysen; Cl. trassen; Ed. trayen. // Cl. Cm. +here (hire); _rest_ a wight. 439. Cl. to god; _rest om._ to. // Cp. H. +y-the; Cl. the. 440. Cl. anoon sterue right. 443. Cl. her (_for_ herte). +444. Cl. heres; Cp. H. hires; Ed. hers. 445. Cl. syn that; _rest om._ that. +455. Cl. sleste; H. Cm. slest; _rest_ sleest. 459. H2. wolde; Cm. nulde; +Cp. H. Ed. wol; Cl. wil. 462. Cl. that (_before_ for) _and_ hath (_over +erasure_); Cp. H. and; _rest_ that. 468. Cm. pasciounys; _rest_ passions. +472. Cl. Criseyde; Cm. Crisseid; _rest_ Criseydes. 478. Cl. a lasse; _rest +om._ a. 480. Cl. leue; Cm. lyuyn; Cp. H. lyuyd (!). 483. Cl. Ed. knowe; +_rest_ y-knowe. 484. Cl. thenketh; Cp. H. Cm. thynketh. Cp. _omits_ +491-532. 493. Cl. leuede; H. lyuede; Ed. lyued. 498. H2. _repeats_ nay; +_rest_ Nay. 506. Ed. hyre; H. H2. hire; Cl. Cm. here. 510. H. outher; Cl. +Cm. other; H2. eyther. // Cl. yn this teris; _rest om._ this. 520. Cl. +_om._ out. // Cl. a lambyc; H. a lambic; Cm. a lambik; H2. lambyke; Ed. +allambyke. 525. Cl. it; _rest_ him. 526. Cm. seyde; Cl. H. seyd. 527. Cl. +thow; _rest_ thee (the). // H. Cm. H2. to; _rest om._ 528. Cl. self; H. Ed. +seluen; Cm. selue. 530. Cl. H2. To; _rest_ Go. 531. H. outher; Cl. Cm. +other; H2. either. 535. Cl. H2. be; _rest_ ben. 539. Cm. beleuyn. 540. Cl. +answerede. 544. Cl. _om._ this. 548. by] Cl. my. 556. Cl. Thanne. 564. Cp. +mooste; Cl. most. 566. Cl. Cp. H. nold; _rest_ nolde. 582. Cl. answerede. +583. Cl. for; _rest_ so. 586. Cl. H. nold; Cm. nylde; _rest_ nolde. 591. +Cp. H. Ed. seluen; _rest_ self. 592. Cl. Cp. namly. 594. Cp. H. lite; Cl. +Ed. Cm. litel. 596. Cp. H. Ed. vn-to; Cl. to. 599. H2. lete; Cm. letyn; Cp. +H. laten; Cl. late. // H2. to; Cm. in-to (_om._ thus); _rest_ vn-to. 601. +man] Cm. men. 607. Cl. Cp. H. of; _rest_ for. // Cl. Cp. H. fered; Cm. +ferd; Ed. feare; H2. drede. 612. Cl. loue. 614. Ed. H2. Though; Cp. H. +Theigh; Cl. They; Cm. That. 615. thee] Cl. yow. 619. Cl. Kygh (!); Ed. +Kythe; Cp. Cm. Kith. 624. dede] Cl. nede. 625. Cl. H. Cp. Theygh; Ed. +Though. // Cl. stonde. 630. H. H2. it; _rest om._ 631. Cl. to quiken. 636. +Cl. short. 637. Cl. Cp. H. Ed. rauysshen. 639. Cl. thanne. // wel] Cp. H. +wil. 640. Cl. answered. 642. H. Ed. yuel; Cp. yuele; Cl. Cm. euele. 643. +Cl. Cp. H. Ed. rauysshen. 652. Cl. shappe; _om._ that. 662. Cp. H. Ed. al; +Cl. of; Cm. _om._ 667. Cl. _om._ which. 671. Cp. thise; Cm. Ed. these; Cl. +H. this. // Cp. H. Cm. sothe; Cl. soth. 675. this] Cl. the. // mighte] Cl. +koude. 679. Cl. _om._ So. 682. Cp. H. com; _rest_ come. 684. Cl. ynowh. +688. Cl. that ye shal; Cm. ye schal; _rest om._ ye. 689. seyde] Cl. +answered. // nam] Cl. Cm. Ed. am. 691. Cp. H. Ed. tho; _rest om._ 692. Cp. +bryngen; Cm. bryngyn; Cl. H. brynge. 693. Cl. whanne. 694. Cl. wodes (!); +wo_m_mannyssh. 695. Cp. thennes; H. tennes (!); Cl. thens. 699. Cl. herte; +_rest_ soule. 701. Cp. H. Thise; Cl. This. // Cl. _om._ thus. 703. Cl. hem; +Ed. her; _rest_ hire. 707. _So all_ (_except_ their _for_ that _in_ H2.). +708-714. Cp. Cl. H. _omit_. // _From_ Ed. (_corrected by_ John's MS.) 708. +Ed. H2. might she no lenger; Cm. myghte sche no lenger to. 709. Ed. H2. +they gan so; Cm. so gunne thei; (_read_ so they gonnen). 710. Cm. yeuyn; +Ed. gaue. // Cm. the; _rest_ her. 713. Cm. sithe; H2. sythe; Ed. sens. // +Cm. forgoth; Ed. forgo; H2. forgeten. 716. Cp. H. Wenden; _rest_ Wende. +717. Cl. _om._ she. 720. Cl. Seygh; H. Cp. Seigh; Cm. Saw. 722. Cl. +comforten; H. Cm. conforten. 731. Ed. soroufull; Cl. H. sorwful. _After_ l. +735, Cm. _inserts_ 750-756, _with various readings_. 741. Cl. _om. 2nd_ +hir. 750-756. Cm. _has these lines after_ l. 735. 750. Cm. The salte teris +from hyre ey[gh]yn tweyn. 751. Doun fille] Cm. Out ran. // in] Cm. of. // +Cm. H2. Aprille; Cp. April. // Cm. ful; _rest om._ 752. wo] Cm. peyne. 756. +forlost] H2. soore lorn. 757. doon] Cl. do. // Cm. What schal he don what +schal I don also. 758. Cl. _om._ that. 765. Cl. I a; _rest om._ I. 768. Cm. +Leuyn. 772. Cp. crueltee; Cl. cruwelte; H. Ed. cruelte. 773. yow] Cl. him. +775. Ed. Cp. H2. drinke; _rest_ drynk. 777. Cp. Ed. wol; Cm. wele; Cl. H. +wold. 788. Cl. Ed. Cm. twynned. 790. Cm. There Pluteo regnyth schal. 791. +Cm. Erodice; _rest_ Erudice. 799. y-red] H. y-herd. 805. I] Cp. H. ich. +806-833. Cm. _omits_. 806. Cl. sent was; _rest om._ was. 807. Cl. _om._ +Was. // H2. to; _rest_ vn-to. 810. Cp. secree; Cl. seere (!); Ed. H2. +secrete; H. faire. 812. Cl. Cp. Come; H. Com; Ed. Came. 814. Cl. terys. +816. Cl. herys. 817. Cl. eris. 818. H2. martire; Cp. matire; Ed. matiere; +_rest_ matere (!). 824. H2. pite felte; Cp. pitie felt; H. pite hadde; Cl. +felte pyte. 827. Cp. H. pleynte; Cl. pleynt. 832. Cl. -ferst; brough (!). +833. swich] Cl. this. 834. Cl. thanne. // or] Cl. er. 835. Cm. euery; +_rest_ alle. // Cl. thenketh. 837. Cl. who that. 839. Cl. accurse; Cp. H. +a-corse. 840. wikke] Cl. wo. 841. Cl. onys. 842. Cp. H. pleynte; Cl. +pleynt. // Cl. Ed. wo and; Cp. H. H2. _om._ and. 845. Cl. sikenesse; H. +sekenesse; Cp. siknesse. 846. Cl. teris. 847. Cl. cruwel. 850. Cp. Cl. Ed. +resport (_see_ l. 86); H. reporte; Cm. report; H2. desporte. 851. Cl. _om._ +allas. 852. Cl. Lef; Cp. H. Leef; Cm. Leue. // werk] Cl. wek. // Cm. tak; +Cl. Cp. H. take. 858. wol] Cl. wold. // Cl. _om._ herte. 860. Cl. ye (_for_ +he). // Cl. terys. 864. Cl. a; H. to; _rest_ of. 870. H2. Betrent. // H. +toknynge; Cl. tokenynge. 872. Cl. H. myght; Cp. Cm. myghte. 873. Cl. terys; +hise. 875. Cp. H. thise; Cl. this. 882. Cl. awey. 887. Cl. It; _rest_ And. +891. can] Cl. may. 893. Cl. May as; _rest om._ as. 894. Cl. an answere; +_rest om._ an. 896. Cp. H2. leue; Ed. leaue; Cm. leuyth; Cl. H. Lef. 897. +Cp. H. sighte; Cl. Ed. sighed; Cm. syghynge. 898. Cl. felt; _rest_ feleth. +// Cl. sharpe; Cp. H. sharp. 899. Cp. H. muchel; Cl. muche. 900. Cl. +loueth. 903. Cp. Cm. sorwe; Cl. H. sorw. 909. Cl. And; _rest_ But. // Cl. +treteth. 910. Cl. the; _rest_ that. // Cp. Cl. H. H2. he beteth; Cm. Ed. +_om._ he. 911. Cl. This. 914. Cl. ye wel. 917. Cl. Cm. wod. 919. Cl. wend. +924. Cl. Cp. H. lef; H2. leue; Ed. leaue. 925. Cl. shappeth. // H. +tabrigge. 927. Cl. Buth; Cm. Be; _rest_ Beth. // Cl. _om._ cause. // flat] +Ed. plat. 930. Cl. drenche; Cm. drenk; _rest_ dreynte. 932. hider] Cl. +here. 934. Cl. shappeth. // Cl. Cm. this; _rest_ your. 937. Cl. _puts_ now +_after_ sen. 944. this] Cl. Cm. H2. his. // H. soor; Cl. Cm. sor. 948. Cl. +rowhte. 949. Cp. H. Cm. pitouse; Cl. petouse. 953-1078. Cm. _omits_. 957. +_Read_ loren (Legend, 1048); MSS. lorn. 966. Cl. come; _rest_ comen. 968. +Cl. clerkes grete. 969. Cp. H2. Ed. argumentes; Cl. H. argumentz. 974. som] +Cl. so. 975. Ne] Cl. And. 976. Cl. falle; _rest_ fallen. // H2. Ed. though; +Cl. they; Cp. H. theigh. 977. Cl. seighen; Ed. sene; _rest_ seyn. 978. _In_ +H., he _is glossed_ i. deus. 984. _All_ feled (felid); _read_ fel'd. 989. +Cl. stedefast. 994. Cl. corsed wykkednesse. 998. Cl. seyghen; Ed. sene; +_rest_ seyn. 1011. Cl. wheyther. 1016. Cp. H. nenforce. // Cp. Ed. H. nat; +Cl. nought; _rest_ not. 1019. Cl. byforn; H. Cp. bifor; H2. Ed. before; +_read_ biforen. 1021. Cp. Ed. necessaire; _rest_ necessarie. 1026. Cl. +coniestest. 1029. Cl. nowe herkene. 1035. Cl. _om._ in thee (_rest_ in +the). 1036. Cl. Ter mot. 1038. _All give too long a line_: That thyn +opinion of his sitting soth is. 1039. sit] Ed. sate. 1045. Cl. make. 1048. +Cl. Cp. H. which. 1052. Cl. it is; _rest_ is it. 1053. Cl. Nough; _rest_ +Nat (Not). 1065. I (_2nd_)] Cl. ich. 1066. H2. purueyth; Cl. purueyed; +_rest_ purueyeth. 1070. Cl. H. soueyren; H2. souereyn. 1072. H. H2. herto; +Cl. Ed. therto. 1073. Cl. _om._ That. // as] Cl. a. 1077. the] Cl. that. +1079. Cl. Thanne. 1080. Cl. H2. alle; _rest_ al this. 1085. Cp. H. Ed. in; +_rest om._ 1087. Cm. H2. Ey; Ed. Eygh; Cl. Cp. H. I. 1089. Cm. owene; H. +Ed. owne; Cl. owen. 1091. Cl. thyn; H. Cp. thy. 1092. Cl. eyghen. 1093. Cl. +by-fore; _rest_ be-forn (by-forne). 1097. Cl. _om._ thy. 1099. Cl. H. com; +Cp. Ed. come. 1103. Cl. seluen; _rest_ self. 1114. Cl. swych; Cm. why; +_rest_ which. 1116. Cl. blissyd; _rest_ blisful. 1120. this] Cl. H2. thi. +1121. Cl. answerede; H. answerde. // Cl. sight; Cp. H. sighte. 1128. Cl. it +is; _rest om._ it. // that] H. than; Cl. _om._ // Cl. whanne. 1129. peyne] +Cl. peynes; Cm. sorwe. 1135, 6, 8. Cl. teris. 1139. Cl. thought; Ed. +through; Cp. thorugh; H. thorwgh. 1144. H. woken; Ed. weaken; Cm. lesse. +1146. Cl. teris. 1147. H2. Cm. hors; Ed. horse; H. hois. // Cp. H. Ed. H2. +for shright; Cl. for bright (!); Cm. for feynt. 1151. Cl. lost; H. lefte; +_rest_ loste. 1153. Cl. vp; Cm. H2. a; Cp. H. o; Ed. in. 1158. Cm. +With-oute; _rest_ With-outen. 1166. ful] Cl. fyl. // is] Cl. his. 1171. Cl. +honde. 1178. Cl. _om._ aught. // he] Cl. I. 1181. Cl. Cm. won; H. H2. wone. +1184, 1189. Cl. cruwel; Cp. H. cruel. 1185. Cl. He (_for_ His). 1186. Ed. +sleen; Cl. Cp. Cm. slen. 1187. Cl. sowe (_2nd time_). 1188. Cp. doom; Cl. +Cm. dom; _rest_ dome. 1191. Cl. Cp. H2. fulfilled; _rest_ fulfild. 1193. +Cl. _om._ ye. 1202. H. wol; Cl. wole. 1203. H. suffure; Cp. Ed. H2. suffre; +Cl. Cm. suffren. // H. lyues here; Cl. y-fere (!); _rest_ lyuen here. 1207. +Cl. now I; _rest om._ now. 1208. H2. Attropos; Ed. Attropose; Cl. H. Cp. +Attropes. 1212. H. breyde; Cm. brayd; _rest_ abreyde (Cp. shabreyde). 1221. +Cl. flekered; Cm. flekerede; Cp. Ed. flikered; H2. fykered (!); H. fliked. +1222. Cl. a-yen; H. a-yein. 1226. Cp. H. it hadde; H2. that (he) hadde; +_rest_ hadde it. 1227. Cl. Cm. _om._ hir. 1231. Cl. swich; _rest_ which. +1234. Cl. wolden; slay. 1235. Cl. answerede. 1236. Cl. mad; _rest_ made. +1241. slayn] Cm. slawe. 1244. Cm. Ed. there; _rest_ ther. 1245. morter] Cm. +p_er_cher. 1246. ful] Cl. right. 1248. tho] Cl. Cm. H2. the. 1249. Cl. gan +other. 1257. nis] Cl. H. is. // Cl. Cm. encres; Cp. H. encresse; H2. +encrease; Ed. encreace. 1259. Cl. H2. be; _rest_ ben. 1261, 3. Cl. Cm. wot, +hot; H. woote, hoote. 1264. Cl. thenketh; _rest_ thinketh. // Cl. H2. ne; +_rest_ nor. 1265. Cm. Aughte; _rest_ Ought. 1267. Ed. sleen; Cl. H. Cm. +slen. 1268. Cl. _om. 2nd_ the. 1271. nis] Cl. Cm. is. 1272. Cl. Cp. remede; +H. remade; _rest_ remedie. 1276. H. Cp. ayein; Cl. Cm. ayen. 1278. Cl. +dredles; Cp. H. Cm. dredeles. // Cl. Cp. H. wowke; Cm. wouke; H2. wooke; +Ed. weke. 1281. Cl. Cm. hep; Cp. H. heepe. 1282. Cl. wot; Cp. H. Ed. wol; +Cm. nyl. // Cl. sermon. 1283. may] Cl. wol. 1284. Cl. conclusyon. 1287. Cl. +Cm. ayen; H. ayenis; Cp. ayeyns. 1296. Cl. for ye; _rest om._ for. 1299. +Cl. Iuggement. 1304. Cl. dishese; cruwellyche. 1308. Cl. Cm. ayen; H. Cp. +ayein. 1309. Cp. oughte; Cl. ought. // Cl. H2. the lasse; _rest om._ the. +1312. Cl. ye wel. 1318. H. Cp. ayein; Cl. ayen. 1319. Cl. righ. 1321. Cl. +Cm. erst; _rest_ erste. // Cl. shal; _see_ 1322. 1324. Cl. Cp. H. Ed. +_insert_ tyme _after_ ofte. 1329. Cp. H. an; _rest om._ 1330. lite] Cl. Cm. +H2. litel. 1343. if] Cl. and. 1344. Cl. nedede; H. H2. neded. 1354. Cm. +moste; H. most; Cp. moost; Cl. mose (!). 1356. Cl. Cm. ben; _rest_ been. +1358. Cl. wit-outen. 1361. Cl. wheder. 1373. Cl. Cp. H. Ed. ful hard; _rest +om._ ful. 1376. Cm. Mot; H. Moot; Cl. Cp. Mote. 1380. Cp. H. H2. moeble; +Cl. moble; _see_ l. 1460. 1384. Cl. wheche. 1385. Cm. sendyn; _rest_ sende. +1387. H. _glosses_ quantitee _by_ i. of golde; _hence_ Ed. _has_ be of +golde an. 1388-1408. Cp. _omits_. 1388. Ed. aspyde; Cm. aspiede; H. aspied; +Cl. aspie. 1391. Cl. H2. _om._ that. 1394. what for] Cl. that for other +(!). 1397. Cl. and or; _rest om._ and. 1398. Cl. calkullynge. 1399. Ed. +blende; _rest_ blynde. 1406. Ed. speke. 1407. a] Ed. o. 1409. his] Cl. is. +1411. H. Ed. ferde; Cm. fer; Cl. Cp. fered; H2. drede. // Cl. his; _rest +om._ 1415. Cl. wreten. 1416. of] H. Cm. in. // Cp. Ed. entente; _rest_ +entent. 1422. Cl. eerys. 1423. Ed. H2. deuysed. 1425. selve] Cl. same. // +H2. lete; Cl. Cp. H. late. // hir] Cl. he. 1426. Cl. _om._ him. 1431. Cp. +H. thamorouse. 1435. Cp. H2. Delited; Cl. Ed. Deliten; Cm. Delite; H. +Delites (!). 1436. Cp. H. natheles; Cl. nathles. 1445. Cp. Ed. H. cruel; +Cl. cruwel. 1449. Ed. Dwell; H2. Dwelleth; _rest_ Dwelle. 1452. Cl. +fayllen; Cp. H. faylen. 1456. and] Cl. but. // Cl. a-rede; H. Cp. atrede; +Cm. at-rede. 1458. Cl. H. crepul; Cp. crepel; _rest_ crepil. // Cl. can on; +_rest om._ on. 1459. MSS. eyed. 1463. Cl. H. alle; Cm. Cp. Ed. al. 1468. +Cl. a-yen; H. Cp. ayein. 1470. on] Cl. to. 1473. preyse] Cl. prese. 1476. +of] Cm. Ed. on; H. of on (!). // Cl. H2. he; _rest_ ye. 1483. And] Cl. Al. +1490. Cm. Troilus; Cl. Cp. H. Ed. Troians (_but read_ Troián-es). 1492. Cl. +thenke; _rest_ thinke. 1494. Cp. H. dredeles; Cl. Cm. dredles. 1498. Cl. +am; Cp. H. Ed. H2. nam. 1501. reweth] Cl. rewes. 1503. Cp. H. bi-twixe; Cl. +by-twext. 1505. his] Cl. is. 1507. Cp. H. to-gidere; Cl. to-gedre. 1508. +wit] Cl. nede. 1509. Cp. sholden; H. sholdon; Cm. schuldyn; Cl. sholde. +1515. Cl. Y-nowh. // Cl. pleasaunce; Cp. H. Cm. plesaunce. 1520. Cl. Cm. +Ed. hardely. 1523. Cp. Cm. gold; _rest_ golde. 1532. Cl. Cp. helpe; H. Cm. +help. // Cm. moste; Cp. mooste; Cl. H. most. 1538. Cl. Ed. Saturnus. 1539. +Cp. H. wood; Cl. wod. // Cm. achamaunt; Ed. Achamante. 1546. Cp. H. Cm. Ed. +to-breste; Cl. H2. thow breste. 1548. Ed. Synoys; _rest_ Symoys. 1549. Cm. +_om._ ay. 1550. Cl. wittenesse. 1555. awey] Cl. alwey. 1557. any] Cl. ony. +1558. Cl. namly. 1560. Cm. leye; Ed. laye; H2. were; Cl. Cp. H. lay. 1562. +Ed. herafter be take. // _Perhaps read_: pees be after take. 1565. Cp. H. +ayeyne; Cl. ayen. 1567, 8. Cp. H. Cm. hastif. 1569. Cl. ye that the peple +ek of al; _rest om._ that _and_ of. 1570. Cp. H. tarede. 1577. I] Cl. H2. +it. 1585. Cp. H. moot; Cl. Cm. mote. 1587. Cp. H. Ed. By pacience +(paciens); Cl. By pacient; H2. Be pacient; Cm. Beth pacient. // Cl. thenk; +Cm. thynkith; _rest_ thynke. 1592. H. leon, _glossed_ i. signum leonis; +ariete, _glossed_ i. signum arietis. 1595. Cp. H. messaile. 1603. Cl. _om._ +that. 1608. H. cynthia; Cp. Cinthia; Cl. Cynthes (!); Ed. Scythia (!). +1623. Cp. H. Cm. wiste; Cl. H2. wist. 1624. Cl. H. com. 1626. H. H2. way; +Cp. wey; Cl. weye. 1632. Cl. Cm. beseche. 1633. Cl. ough. 1636. so] Cl. +the. // Cl. good of; Cm. good; _rest_ good a. 1637. Cl. _om._ ye. 1638. Ed. +at; H2. in; H. a; Cl. Cp. Cm. o. // point] Cl. poyn. 1640. Cp. Cm. owene; +Ed. owne; Cl. owen. 1642. Cl. assent (!). 1643. Cl. do ye me. 1649. Cp. H2. +alle; _rest_ al. 1655. Cm. Ed. glade; H2. gladde; Cl. H. glad. 1656. H2. +yhe; _rest_ eye. 1658. Cm. schorte; Cp. Ed. shorte; _rest_ short. 1660. Cp. +H. Cm. goode; Cl. good. 1664. Cl. _om._ god. 1667-1701. Cm. _omits_. 1669. +H. tournay; H2. tourney. 1670. Cl. aray. 1677. and] Cl. an. // Cl. +pepelyssh; H. Cp. H2. poeplissh. 1682. _Read_ fortun-è. 1689. Cp. H2. +streite; H. streyte; Cl. streyght. 1691. Cl. Cp. rowfullych; H. +rewfulliche; H2. pitously. 1693. hir] Cl. his. 1696. Ed. H2. Ne +entendement; Cl. Cp. Nentendement. 1697. The] Cl. This. // H. cruel; Cp. +cruele; Cl. cruwel. 1699. Cl. _om._ whan. + + + + +BOOK V. + +INCIPIT LIBER QUINTUS. + + 1. Aprochen gan the fatal destinee + That Ioves hath in disposicioun, + And to yow, angry Parcas, sustren three, + Committeth, to don execucioun; + For which Criseyde moste out of the toun, 5 + And Troilus shal dwelle forth in pyne + Til Lachesis his threed no lenger twyne.-- + + 2. The golden-tressed. Phebus heighe on-lofte + Thryës hadde alle with his bemes shene + The snowes molte, and Zephirus as ofte 10 + Y-brought ayein the tendre leves grene, + Sin that the sone of Ecuba the quene + Bigan to love hir first, for whom his sorwe + Was al, that she departe sholde a-morwe. + + 3. Ful redy was at pryme Dyomede, 15 + Criseyde un-to the Grekes ost to lede, + For sorwe of which she felte hir herte blede, + As she that niste what was best to rede. + And trewely, as men in bokes rede, + Men wiste never womman han the care, 20 + Ne was so looth out of a toun to fare. + + 4. This Troilus, with-outen reed or lore, + As man that hath his Ioyes eek forlore, + Was waytinge on his lady ever-more + As she that was the soothfast crop and more 25 + Of al his lust, or Ioyes here-tofore. + But Troilus, now farewel al thy Ioye, + For shaltow never seen hir eft in Troye! + + 5. Soth is, that whyl he bood in this manere, + He gan his wo ful manly for to hyde, 30 + That wel unnethe it seen was in his chere; + But at the yate ther she sholde oute ryde + With certeyn folk, he hoved hir tabyde, + So wo bigoon, al wolde he nought him pleyne, + That on his hors unnethe he sat for peyne. 35 + + 6. For ire he quook, so gan his herte gnawe, + Whan Diomede on horse gan him dresse, + And seyde un-to him-self this ilke sawe, + 'Allas,' quod he, 'thus foul a wrecchednesse + Why suffre ich it, why nil ich it redresse? 40 + Were it not bet at ones for to dye + Than ever-more in langour thus to drye? + + 7. Why nil I make at ones riche and pore + To have y-nough to done, er that she go? + Why nil I bringe al Troye upon a rore? 45 + Why nil I sleen this Diomede also? + Why nil I rather with a man or two + Stele hir a-way? Why wol I this endure? + Why nil I helpen to myn owene cure?' + + 8. But why he nolde doon so fel a dede, 50 + That shal I seyn, and why him liste it spare: + He hadde in herte alwey a maner drede, + Lest that Criseyde, in rumour of this fare, + Sholde han ben slayn; lo, this was al his care. + And elles, certeyn, as I seyde yore, 55 + He hadde it doon, with-outen wordes more. + + 9. Criseyde, whan she redy was to ryde, + Ful sorwfully she sighte, and seyde 'allas!' + But forth she moot, for ought that may bityde, + And forth she rit ful sorwfully a pas. 60 + Ther nis non other remedie in this cas. + What wonder is though that hir sore smerte, + Whan she forgoth hir owene swete herte? + + 10. This Troilus, in wyse of curteisye, + With hauke on hond, and with an huge route 65 + Of knightes, rood and dide hir companye, + Passinge al the valey fer with-oute. + And ferther wolde han riden, out of doute, + Ful fayn, and wo was him to goon so sone; + But torne he moste, and it was eek to done. 70 + + 11. And right with that was Antenor y-come + Out of the Grekes ost, and every wight + Was of it glad, and seyde he was wel-come. + And Troilus, al nere his herte light, + He peyned him with al his fulle might 75 + Him to with-holde of wepinge at the leste, + And Antenor he kiste, and made feste. + + 12. And ther-with-al he moste his leve take, + And caste his eye upon hir pitously, + And neer he rood, his cause for to make, 80 + To take hir by the honde al sobrely. + And lord! so she gan wepen tendrely! + And he ful softe and sleighly gan hir seye, + 'Now hold your day, and dooth me not to deye.' + + 13. With that his courser torned he a-boute 85 + With face pale, and un-to Diomede + No word he spak, ne noon of al his route; + Of which the sone of Tydeus took hede, + As he that coude more than the crede + In swich a craft, and by the reyne hir hente; 90 + And Troilus to Troye homwarde he wente. + + 14. This Diomede, that ladde hir by the brydel, + Whan that he saw the folk of Troye aweye, + Thoughte, 'al my labour shal not been on ydel, + If that I may, for somwhat shal I seye. 95 + For at the worste it may yet shorte our weye. + I have herd seyd, eek tymes twyës twelve, + "He is a fool that wol for-yete him-selve."' + + 15. But natheles this thoughte he wel ynough, + 'That certaynly I am aboute nought 100 + If that I speke of love, or make it tough; + For douteles, if she have in hir thought + Him that I gesse, he may not been y-brought + So sone awey; but I shal finde a mene, + That she not wite as yet shal what I mene.' 105 + + 16. This Diomede, as he that coude his good, + Whan this was doon, gan fallen forth in speche + Of this and that, and asked why she stood + In swich disese, and gan hir eek biseche, + That if that he encrese mighte or eche 110 + With any thing hir ese, that she sholde + Comaunde it him, and seyde he doon it wolde. + + 17. For trewely he swoor hir, as a knight, + That ther nas thing with whiche he mighte hir plese, + That he nolde doon his peyne and al his might 115 + To doon it, for to doon hir herte an ese. + And preyede hir, she wolde hir sorwe apese, + And seyde, 'y-wis, we Grekes con have Ioye + To honouren yow, as wel as folk of Troye.' + + 18. He seyde eek thus, 'I woot, yow thinketh straunge, 120 + No wonder is, for it is to yow newe, + Thaqueintaunce of these Troianes to chaunge, + For folk of Grece, that ye never knewe. + But wolde never god but-if as trewe + A Greek ye shulde among us alle finde 125 + As any Troian is, and eek as kinde. + + 19. And by the cause I swoor yow right, lo, now, + To been your freend, and helply, to my might, + And for that more acqueintaunce eek of yow + Have ich had than another straunger wight, 130 + So fro this forth I pray yow, day and night, + Comaundeth me, how sore that me smerte, + To doon al that may lyke un-to your herte; + + 20. And that ye me wolde as your brother trete, + And taketh not my frendship in despyt; 135 + And though your sorwes be for thinges grete, + Noot I not why, but out of more respyt, + Myn herte hath for to amende it greet delyt. + And if I may your harmes not redresse, + I am right sory for your hevinesse. 140 + + 21. And though ye Troians with us Grekes wrothe + Han many a day be, alwey yet, pardee, + O god of love in sooth we serven bothe. + And, for the love of god, my lady free, + Whom so ye hate, as beth not wroth with me. 145 + For trewely, ther can no wight yow serve, + That half so looth your wraththe wolde deserve. + + 22. And nere it that we been so neigh the tente + Of Calkas, which that seen us bothe may, + I wolde of this yow telle al myn entente; 150 + But this enseled til another day. + Yeve me your hond, I am, and shal ben ay, + God help me so, whyl that my lyf may dure, + Your owene aboven every creature. + + 23. Thus seyde I never er now to womman born; 155 + For god myn herte as wisly glade so, + I lovede never womman here-biforn + As paramours ne never shal no mo. + And, for the love of god, beth not my fo; + Al can I not to yow, my lady dere, 160 + Compleyne aright, for I am yet to lere. + + 24. And wondreth not, myn owene lady bright, + Though that I speke of love to you thus blyve; + For I have herd or this of many a wight, + Hath loved thing he never saugh his lyve. 165 + Eek I am not of power for to stryve + Ayens the god of love, but him obeye + I wol alwey, and mercy I yow preye. + + 25. Ther been so worthy knightes in this place, + And ye so fair, that everich of hem alle 170 + Wol peynen him to stonden in your grace. + But mighte me so fair a grace falle, + That ye me for your servaunt wolde calle, + So lowly ne so trewely you serve + Nil noon of hem, as I shal, til I sterve.' 175 + + 26. Criseide un-to that purpos lyte answerde, + As she that was with sorwe oppressed so + That, in effect, she nought his tales herde, + But here and there, now here a word or two. + Hir thoughte hir sorwful herte brast a-two. 180 + For whan she gan hir fader fer aspye, + Wel neigh doun of hir hors she gan to sye. + + 27. But natheles she thonked Diomede + Of al his travaile, and his goode chere, + And that him liste his friendship hir to bede; 185 + And she accepteth it in good manere, + And wolde do fayn that is him leef and dere; + And trusten him she wolde, and wel she mighte, + As seyde she, and from hir hors she alighte. + + 28. Hir fader hath hir in his armes nome, 190 + And tweynty tyme he kiste his doughter swete, + And seyde, 'O dere doughter myn, wel-come!' + She seyde eek, she was fayn with him to mete, + And stood forth mewet, mildë, and mansuete. + But here I leve hir with hir fader dwelle, 195 + And forth I wol of Troilus yow telle. + + 29. To Troye is come this woful Troilus, + In sorwe aboven alle sorwes smerte, + With felon look, and face dispitous. + Tho sodeinly doun from his hors he sterte, 200 + And thorugh his paleys, with a swollen herte, + To chambre he wente; of no-thing took he hede, + Ne noon to him dar speke a word for drede. + + 30. And there his sorwes that he spared hadde + He yaf an issue large, and 'deeth!' he cryde; 205 + And in his throwes frenetyk and madde + He cursed Iove, Appollo, and eek Cupyde, + He cursed Ceres, Bacus, and Cipryde, + His burthe, him-self, his fate, and eek nature, + And, save his lady, every creature. 210 + + 31. To bedde he goth, and weyleth there and torneth + In furie, as dooth he, Ixion, in helle; + And in this wyse he neigh til day soiorneth. + But tho bigan his herte a lyte unswelle + Thorugh teres which that gonnen up to welle; 215 + And pitously he cryde up-on Criseyde, + And to him-self right thus he spak, and seyde:-- + + 32. 'Wher is myn owene lady lief and dere, + Wher is hir whyte brest, wher is it, where? + Wher ben hir armes and hir eyen clere, 220 + That yesternight this tyme with me were? + Now may I wepe allone many a tere, + And graspe aboute I may, but in this place, + Save a pilowe, I finde nought tenbrace. + + 33. How shal I do? Whan shal she com ayeyn? 225 + I noot, allas! why leet ich hir to go? + As wolde god, ich hadde as tho be sleyn! + O herte myn, Criseyde, O swete fo! + O lady myn, that I love and no mo! + To whom for ever-mo myn herte I dowe; 230 + See how I deye, ye nil me not rescowe! + + 34. Who seeth yow now, my righte lode-sterre? + Who sit right now or stant in your presence? + Who can conforten now your hertes werre? + Now I am gon, whom yeve ye audience? 235 + Who speketh for me right now in myn absence? + Allas, no wight; and that is al my care; + For wel wot I, as yvel as I ye fare. + + 35. How shulde I thus ten dayes ful endure, + Whan I the firste night have al this tene? 240 + How shal she doon eek, sorwful creature? + For tendernesse, how shal she this sustene, + Swich wo for me? O pitous, pale, and grene + Shal been your fresshe wommanliche face + For langour, er ye torne un-to this place.' 245 + + 36. And whan he fil in any slomeringes, + Anoon biginne he sholde for to grone, + And dremen of the dredfulleste thinges + That mighte been; as, mete he were allone + In place horrible, makinge ay his mone, 250 + Or meten that he was amonges alle + His enemys, and in hir hondes falle. + + 37. And ther-with-al his body sholde sterte, + And with the stert al sodeinliche awake, + And swich a tremour fele aboute his herte, 255 + That of the feer his body sholde quake; + And there-with-al he sholde a noyse make, + And seme as though he sholde falle depe + From heighe a-lofte; and than he wolde wepe, + + 38. And rewen on him-self so pitously, 260 + That wonder was to here his fantasye. + Another tyme he sholde mightily + Conforte him-self, and seyn it was folye, + So causeles swich drede for to drye, + And eft biginne his aspre sorwes newe, 265 + That every man mighte on his sorwes rewe. + + 39. Who coude telle aright or ful discryve + His wo, his pleynte, his langour, and his pyne? + Nought al the men that han or been on-lyve. + Thou, redere, mayst thy-self ful wel devyne 270 + That swich a wo my wit can not defyne. + On ydel for to wryte it sholde I swinke, + Whan that my wit is wery it to thinke. + + 40. On hevene yet the sterres were sene, + Al-though ful pale y-waxen was the mone; 275 + And whyten gan the orisonte shene + Al estward, as it woned is to done. + And Phebus with his rosy carte sone + Gan after that to dresse him up to fare, + Whan Troilus hath sent after Pandare. 280 + + 41. This Pandare, that of al the day biforn + Ne mighte have comen Troilus to see, + Al-though he on his heed it hadde y-sworn, + For with the king Pryam alday was he, + So that it lay not in his libertee 285 + No-wher to gon, but on the morwe he wente + To Troilus, whan that he for him sente. + + 42. For in his herte he coude wel devyne, + That Troilus al night for sorwe wook; + And that he wolde telle him of his pyne, 290 + This knew he wel y-nough, with-oute book. + For which to chaumbre streight the wey he took, + And Troilus tho sobreliche he grette, + And on the bed ful sone he gan him sette. + + 43. 'My Pandarus,' quod Troilus, 'the sorwe 295 + Which that I drye, I may not longe endure. + I trowe I shal not liven til to-morwe; + For whiche I wolde alwey, on aventure, + To thee devysen of my sepulture + The forme, and of my moeble thou dispone 300 + Right as thee semeth best is for to done. + + 44. But of the fyr and flaumbe funeral + In whiche my body brenne shal to glede, + And of the feste and pleyes palestral + At my vigile, I pray thee take good hede 305 + That al be wel; and offre Mars my stede, + My swerd, myn helm, and, leve brother dere, + My sheld to Pallas yef, that shyneth clere. + + 45. The poudre in which myn herte y-brend shal torne, + That preye I thee thou take and it conserve 310 + In a vessel, that men clepeth an urne, + Of gold, and to my lady that I serve, + For love of whom thus pitously I sterve, + So yeve it hir, and do me this plesaunce, + To preye hir kepe it for a remembraunce. 315 + + 46. For wel I fele, by my maladye, + And by my dremes now and yore ago, + Al certeinly, that I mot nedes dye. + The owle eek, which that hight Ascaphilo, + Hath after me shright alle thise nightes two. 320 + And, god Mercurie! of me now, woful wrecche, + The soule gyde, and, whan thee list, it fecche!' + + 47. Pandare answerde, and seyde, 'Troilus, + My dere freend, as I have told thee yore, + That it is folye for to sorwen thus, 325 + And causeles, for whiche I can no-more. + But who-so wol not trowen reed ne lore, + I can not seen in him no remedye, + But lete him worthen with his fantasye. + + 48. But Troilus, I pray thee tel me now, 330 + If that thou trowe, er this, that any wight + Hath loved paramours as wel as thou? + Ye, god wot, and fro many a worthy knight + Hath his lady goon a fourtenight, + And he not yet made halvendel the fare. 335 + What nede is thee to maken al this care? + + 49. Sin day by day thou mayst thy-selven see + That from his love, or elles from his wyf, + A man mot twinnen of necessitee, + Ye, though he love hir as his owene lyf; 340 + Yet nil he with him-self thus maken stryf. + For wel thow wost, my leve brother dere, + That alwey freendes may nought been y-fere. + + 50. How doon this folk that seen hir loves wedded + By freendes might, as it bi-tit ful ofte, 345 + And seen hem in hir spouses bed y-bedded? + God woot, they take it wysly, faire and softe. + For-why good hope halt up hir herte on-lofte, + And for they can a tyme of sorwe endure; + As tyme hem hurt, a tyme doth hem cure. 350 + + 51. So sholdestow endure, and late slyde + The tyme, and fonde to ben glad and light. + Ten dayes nis so longe not tabyde. + And sin she thee to comen hath bihight, + She nil hir hestes breken for no wight. 355 + For dred thee not that she nil finden weye + To come ayein, my lyf that dorste I leye. + + 52. Thy swevenes eek and al swich fantasye + Dryf out, and lat hem faren to mischaunce; + For they procede of thy malencolye, 360 + That doth thee fele in sleep al this penaunce. + A straw for alle swevenes signifiaunce! + God helpe me so, I counte hem not a bene, + Ther woot no man aright what dremes mene. + + 53. For prestes of the temple tellen this, 365 + That dremes been the revelaciouns + Of goddes, and as wel they telle, y-wis, + That they ben infernals illusiouns; + And leches seyn, that of complexiouns + Proceden they, or fast, or glotonye. 370 + Who woot in sooth thus what they signifye? + + 54. Eek othere seyn that thorugh impressiouns, + As if a wight hath faste a thing in minde, + That ther-of cometh swiche avisiouns; + And othere seyn, as they in bokes finde, 375 + That, after tymes of the yeer by kinde, + Men dreme, and that theffect goth by the mone; + But leve no dreem, for it is nought to done. + + 55. Wel worth of dremes ay thise olde wyves, + And treweliche eek augurie of thise foules; 380 + For fere of which men wenen lese her lyves, + As ravenes qualm, or shryking of thise oules. + To trowen on it bothe fals and foul is. + Allas, allas, so noble a creature + As is a man, shal drede swich ordure! 385 + + 56. For which with al myn herte I thee beseche, + Un-to thy-self that al this thou foryive; + And rys up now with-oute more speche, + And lat us caste how forth may best be drive + This tyme, and eek how freshly we may live 390 + Whan that she cometh, the which shal be right sone; + God help me so, the beste is thus to done. + + 57. Rys, lat us speke of lusty lyf in Troye + That we han lad, and forth the tyme dryve; + And eek of tyme cominge us reioye, 395 + That bringen shal our blisse now so blyve; + And langour of these twyës dayes fyve + We shal ther-with so foryete or oppresse, + That wel unnethe it doon shal us duresse. + + 58. This toun is ful of lordes al aboute, 400 + And trewes lasten al this mene whyle. + Go we pleye us in som lusty route + To Sarpedon, not hennes but a myle. + And thus thou shalt the tyme wel bigyle, + And dryve it forth un-to that blisful morwe, 405 + That thou hir see, that cause is of thy sorwe. + + 59. Now rys, my dere brother Troilus; + For certes, it noon honour is to thee + To wepe, and in thy bed to iouken thus. + For trewely, of o thing trust to me, 410 + If thou thus ligge a day, or two, or three, + The folk wol wene that thou, for cowardyse, + Thee feynest syk, and that thou darst not ryse.' + + 60. This Troilus answerde, 'O brother dere, + This knowen folk that han y-suffred peyne, 415 + That though he wepe and make sorwful chere, + That feleth harm and smert in every veyne, + No wonder is; and though I ever pleyne, + Or alwey wepe, I am no-thing to blame, + Sin I have lost the cause of al my game. 420 + + 61. But sin of fyne force I moot aryse, + I shal aryse, as sone as ever I may; + And god, to whom myn herte I sacrifyse, + So sende us hastely the tenthe day! + For was ther never fowl so fayn of May, 425 + As I shal been, whan that she cometh in Troye, + That cause is of my torment and my Ioye. + + 62. But whider is thy reed,' quod Troilus, + 'That we may pleye us best in al this toun?' + 'By god, my conseil is,' quod Pandarus, 430 + 'To ryde and pleye us with king Sarpedoun.' + So longe of this they speken up and doun, + Til Troilus gan at the laste assente + To ryse, and forth to Sarpedoun they wente. + + 63. This Sarpedoun, as he that honourable 435 + Was ever his lyve, and ful of heigh prowesse, + With al that mighte y-served been on table, + That deyntee was, al coste it greet richesse, + He fedde hem day by day, that swich noblesse, + As seyden bothe the moste and eek the leste, 440 + Was never er that day wist at any feste. + + 64. Nor in this world ther is non instrument + Delicious, through wind, or touche, or corde, + As fer as any wight hath ever y-went, + That tonge telle or herte may recorde, 445 + That at that feste it nas wel herd acorde; + Ne of ladies eek so fayr a companye + On daunce, er tho, was never y-seyn with yë. + + 65. But what avayleth this to Troilus, + That for his sorwe no-thing of it roughte? 450 + For ever in oon his herte piëtous + Ful bisily Criseyde his lady soughte. + On hir was ever al that his herte thoughte. + Now this, now that, so faste imagininge, + That glade, y-wis, can him no festeyinge. 455 + + 66. These ladies eek that at this feste been, + Sin that he saw his lady was a-weye, + It was his sorwe upon hem for to seen, + Or for to here on instrumentz so pleye. + For she, that of his herte berth the keye, 460 + Was absent, lo, this was his fantasye, + That no wight sholde make melodye. + + 67. Nor ther nas houre in al the day or night, + Whan he was ther-as no wight mighte him here, + That he ne seyde, 'O lufsom lady bright, 465 + How have ye faren, sin that ye were here? + Wel-come, y-wis, myn owene lady dere.' + But welaway, al this nas but a mase; + Fortune his howve entended bet to glase. + + 68. The lettres eek, that she of olde tyme 470 + Hadde him y-sent, he wolde allone rede, + An hundred sythe, a-twixen noon and pryme; + Refiguringe hir shap, hir womanhede, + With-inne his herte, and every word and dede + That passed was, and thus he droof to an ende 475 + The ferthe day, and seyde, he wolde wende. + + 69. And seyde, 'leve brother Pandarus, + Intendestow that we shul herë bleve + Til Sarpedoun wol forth congeyen us? + Yet were it fairer that we toke our leve. 480 + For goddes love, lat us now sone at eve + Our leve take, and homward lat us torne; + For trewely, I nil not thus soiorne.' + + 70. Pandare answerde, 'be we comen hider + To fecchen fyr, and rennen hoom ayeyn? 485 + God helpe me so, I can not tellen whider + We mighten goon, if I shal soothly seyn, + Ther any wight is of us more fayn + Than Sarpedoun; and if we hennes hye + Thus sodeinly, I holde it vilanye, 490 + + 71. Sin that we seyden that we wolde bleve + With him a wouke; and now, thus sodeinly, + The ferthe day to take of him our leve, + He wolde wondren on it, trewely! + Lat us holde forth our purpos fermely; 495 + And sin that ye bihighten him to byde, + Hold forward now, and after lat us ryde.' + + 72. Thus Pandarus, with alle peyne and wo, + Made him to dwelle; and at the woukes ende, + Of Sarpedoun they toke hir leve tho, 500 + And on hir wey they spedden hem to wende. + Quod Troilus, 'now god me grace sende, + That I may finden, at myn hom-cominge, + Criseyde comen!' and ther-with gan he singe. + + 73. 'Ye, hasel-wode!' thoughte this Pandare, 505 + And to him-self ful softely he seyde, + 'God woot, refreyden may this hote fare + Er Calkas sende Troilus Criseyde!' + But natheles, he Iaped thus, and seyde, + And swor, y-wis, his herte him wel bihighte, 510 + She wolde come as sone as ever she mighte. + + 74. Whan they un-to the paleys were y-comen + Of Troilus, they doun of hors alighte, + And to the chambre hir wey than han they nomen. + And in-to tyme that it gan to nighte, 515 + They spaken of Crisëyde the brighte. + And after this, whan that hem bothe leste, + They spedde hem fro the soper un-to reste. + + 75. On morwe, as sone as day bigan to clere, + This Troilus gan of his sleep tabreyde, 520 + And to Pandare, his owene brother dere, + 'For love of god,' ful pitously he seyde, + 'As go we seen the paleys of Criseyde; + For sin we yet may have namore feste, + So lat us seen hir paleys at the leste.' 525 + + 76. And ther-with-al, his meyne for to blende, + A cause he fond in toune for to go, + And to Criseydes hous they gonnen wende. + But lord! this sely Troilus was wo! + Him thoughte his sorweful herte braste a-two. 530 + For whan he saugh hir dores sperred alle, + Wel neigh for sorwe a-doun he gan to falle. + + 77. Therwith whan he was war and gan biholde + How shet was every windowe of the place, + As frost, him thoughte, his herte gan to colde; 535 + For which with chaunged deedlich pale face, + With-outen word, he forth bigan to pace; + And, as god wolde, he gan so faste ryde, + That no wight of his contenaunce aspyde. + + 78. Than seyde he thus, 'O paleys desolat, 540 + O hous, of houses whylom best y-hight, + O paleys empty and disconsolat, + O thou lanterne, of which queynt is the light, + O paleys, whylom day, that now art night, + Wel oughtestow to falle, and I to dye, 545 + Sin she is went that wont was us to gye! + + 79. O paleys, whylom croune of houses alle, + Enlumined with sonne of alle blisse! + O ring, fro which the ruby is out-falle, + O cause of wo, that cause hast been of lisse! 550 + Yet, sin I may no bet, fayn wolde I kisse + Thy colde dores, dorste I for this route; + And fare-wel shryne, of which the seynt is oute!' + + 80. Ther-with he caste on Pandarus his yë + With chaunged face, and pitous to biholde; 555 + And whan he mighte his tyme aright aspye, + Ay as he rood, to Pandarus he tolde + His newe sorwe, and eek his Ioyes olde, + So pitously and with so dede an hewe, + That every wight mighte on his sorwe rewe. 560 + + 81. Fro thennesforth he rydeth up and doun, + And every thing com him to remembraunce + As he rood forth by places of the toun + In whiche he whylom hadde al his plesaunce. + 'Lo, yond saugh I myn owene lady daunce; 565 + And in that temple, with hir eyen clere, + Me caughte first my righte lady dere. + + 82. And yonder have I herd ful lustily + My dere herte laughe, and yonder pleye + Saugh I hir ones eek ful blisfully. 570 + And yonder ones to me gan she seye, + "Now goode swete, love me wel, I preye." + And yond so goodly gan she me biholde, + That to the deeth myn herte is to hir holde. + + 83. And at that corner, in the yonder hous, 575 + Herde I myn alderlevest lady dere + So wommanly, with voys melodious, + Singen so wel, so goodly, and so clere, + That in my soule yet me thinketh I here + The blisful soun; and, in that yonder place, 580 + My lady first me took un-to hir grace.' + + 84. Thanne thoughte he thus, 'O blisful lord Cupyde, + Whanne I the proces have in my memorie, + How thou me hast werreyed on every syde, + Men mighte a book make of it, lyk a storie. 585 + What nede is thee to seke on me victorie, + Sin I am thyn, and hoolly at thy wille? + What Ioye hastow thyn owene folk to spille? + + 85. Wel hastow, lord, y-wroke on me thyn ire, + Thou mighty god, and dredful for to greve! 590 + Now mercy, lord, thou wost wel I desire + Thy grace most, of alle lustes leve. + And live and deye I wol in thy bileve; + For which I naxe in guerdon but a bone, + That thou Criseyde ayein me sende sone. 595 + + 86. Distreyne hir herte as faste to retorne + As thou dost myn to longen hir to see; + Than woot I wel, that she nil not soiorne. + Now, blisful lord, so cruel thou ne be + Un-to the blood of Troye, I preye thee, 600 + As Iuno was un-to the blood Thebane, + For which the folk of Thebes caughte hir bane.' + + 87. And after this he to the yates wente + Ther-as Criseyde out-rood a ful good paas, + And up and doun ther made he many a wente, 605 + And to him-self ful ofte he seyde 'allas! + From hennes rood my blisse and my solas! + As wolde blisful god now, for his Ioye, + I mighte hir seen ayein come in-to Troye. + + 88. And to the yonder hille I gan hir gyde, 610 + Allas! and there I took of hir my leve! + And yond I saugh hir to hir fader ryde, + For sorwe of which myn herte shal to-cleve. + And hider hoom I com whan it was eve; + And here I dwelle out-cast from alle Ioye, 615 + And shal, til I may seen hir eft in Troye.' + + 89. And of him-self imagined he ofte + To ben defet, and pale, and waxen lesse + Than he was wont, and that men seyde softe, + 'What may it be? who can the sothe gesse 620 + Why Troilus hath al this hevinesse?' + And al this nas but his malencolye, + That he hadde of him-self swich fantasye. + + 90. Another tyme imaginen he wolde + That every wight that wente by the weye 625 + Had of him routhe, and that they seyen sholde, + 'I am right sory Troilus wol deye.' + And thus he droof a day yet forth or tweye. + As ye have herd, swich lyf right gan he lede, + As he that stood bitwixen hope and drede. 630 + + 91. For which him lyked in his songes shewe + Thencheson of his wo, as he best mighte, + And make a song of wordes but a fewe, + Somwhat his woful herte for to lighte. + And whan he was from every mannes sighte, 635 + With softe voys he, of his lady dere, + That was absent, gan singe as ye may here. + + 92. 'O sterre, of which I lost have al the light, + With herte soor wel oughte I to bewayle, + That ever derk in torment, night by night, 640 + Toward my deeth with wind in stere I sayle; + For which the tenthe night if that I fayle + The gyding of thy bemes brighte an houre, + My ship and me Caribdis wol devoure.' + + 93. This song when he thus songen hadde, sone 645 + He fil ayein in-to his sykes olde; + And every night, as was his wone to done, + He stood the brighte mone to beholde, + And al his sorwe he to the mone tolde; + And seyde, 'y-wis, whan thou art horned newe, 650 + I shal be glad, if al the world be trewe! + + 94. I saugh thyn hornes olde eek by the morwe, + Whan hennes rood my righte lady dere, + That cause is of my torment and my sorwe; + For whiche, O brighte Lucina the clere, 655 + For love of god, ren faste aboute thy spere! + For whan thyn hornes newe ginne springe, + Than shal she come, that may my blisse bringe!' + + 95. The day is more, and lenger every night, + Than they be wont to be, him thoughte tho; 660 + And that the sonne wente his course unright + By lenger wey than it was wont to go; + And seyde, 'y-wis, me dredeth ever-mo, + The sonnes sone, Pheton, be on-lyve, + And that his fadres cart amis he dryve.' 665 + + 96. Upon the walles faste eek wolde he walke, + And on the Grekes ost he wolde see, + And to him-self right thus he wolde talke, + 'Lo, yonder is myn owene lady free, + Or elles yonder, ther tho tentes be! 670 + And thennes comth this eyr, that is so sote, + That in my soule I fele it doth me bote. + + 97. And hardely this wind, that more and more + Thus stoundemele encreseth in my face, + Is of my ladyes depe sykes sore. 675 + I preve it thus, for in non othere place + Of al this toun, save onliche in this space, + Fele I no wind that souneth so lyk peyne; + It seyth, "allas! why twinned be we tweyne?"' + + 98. This longe tyme he dryveth forth right thus, 680 + Til fully passed was the nynthe night; + And ay bi-syde him was this Pandarus, + That bisily dide alle his fulle might + Him to comforte, and make his herte light; + Yevinge him hope alwey, the tenthe morwe 685 + That she shal come, and stinten al his sorwe. + + 99. Up-on that other syde eek was Criseyde, + With wommen fewe, among the Grekes stronge; + For which ful ofte a day 'allas!' she seyde, + 'That I was born! Wel may myn herte longe 690 + After my deeth; for now live I to longe! + Allas! and I ne may it not amende; + For now is wors than ever yet I wende. + + 100. My fader nil for no-thing do me grace + To goon ayein, for nought I can him queme; 695 + And if so be that I my terme passe, + My Troilus shal in his herte deme + That I am fals, and so it may wel seme. + Thus shal I have unthank on every syde; + That I was born, so weylawey the tyde! 700 + + 101. And if that I me putte in Iupartye, + To stele awey by nighte, and it bifalle + That I be caught, I shal be holde a spye; + Or elles, lo, this drede I most of alle, + If in the hondes of som wrecche I falle, 705 + I am but lost, al be myn herte trewe; + Now mighty god, thou on my sorwe rewe!' + + 102. Ful pale y-waxen was hir brighte face, + Hir limes lene, as she that al the day + Stood whan she dorste, and loked on the place 710 + Ther she was born, and ther she dwelt hadde ay. + And al the night wepinge, allas! she lay. + And thus despeired, out of alle cure, + She ladde hir lyf, this woful creature. + + 103. Ful ofte a day she sighte eek for destresse, 715 + And in hir-self she wente ay portrayinge + Of Troilus the grete worthinesse, + And alle his goodly wordes recordinge + Sin first that day hir love bigan to springe. + And thus she sette hir woful herte a-fyre 720 + Thorugh remembraunce of that she gan desyre. + + 104. In al this world ther nis so cruel herte + That hir hadde herd compleynen in hir sorwe, + That nolde han wopen for hir peynes smerte, + So tendrely she weep, bothe eve and morwe. 725 + Hir nedede no teres for to borwe. + And this was yet the worste of al hir peyne, + Ther was no wight to whom she dorste hir pleyne. + + 105. Ful rewfully she loked up-on Troye, + Biheld the toures heighe and eek the halles; 730 + 'Allas!' quod she, 'the plesaunce and the Ioye + The whiche that now al torned in-to galle is, + Have I had ofte with-inne yonder walles! + O Troilus, what dostow now,' she seyde; + 'Lord! whether yet thou thenke up-on Criseyde? 735 + + 106. Allas! I ne hadde trowed on your lore, + And went with yow, as ye me radde er this! + Thanne hadde I now not syked half so sore. + Who mighte have seyd, that I had doon a-mis + To stele awey with swich on as he is? 740 + But al to late cometh the letuarie, + Whan men the cors un-to the grave carie. + + 107. To late is now to speke of this matere; + Prudence, allas! oon of thyn eyen three + Me lakked alwey, er that I cam here; 745 + On tyme y-passed, wel remembred me; + And present tyme eek coude I wel y-see. + But futur tyme, er I was in the snare, + Coude I not seen; that causeth now my care. + + 108. But natheles, bityde what bityde, 750 + I shal to-morwe at night, by est or weste, + Out of this ost stele on som maner syde, + And go with Troilus wher-as him leste. + This purpos wol I holde, and this is beste. + No fors of wikked tonges Ianglerye, 755 + For ever on love han wrecches had envye. + + 109. For who-so wole of every word take hede, + Or rewlen him by every wightes wit, + Ne shal he never thryven, out of drede. + For that that som men blamen ever yit, 760 + Lo, other maner folk commenden it. + And as for me, for al swich variaunce, + Felicitee clepe I my suffisaunce. + + 110. For which, with-outen any wordes mo, + To Troye I wol, as for conclusioun.' 765 + But god it wot, er fully monthes two, + She was ful fer fro that entencioun. + For bothe Troilus and Troye toun + Shal knotteles through-out hir herte slyde; + For she wol take a purpos for tabyde. 770 + + 111. This Diomede, of whom yow telle I gan, + Goth now, with-inne him-self ay arguinge + With al the sleighte and al that ever he can, + How he may best, with shortest taryinge, + In-to his net Criseydes herte bringe. 775 + To this entente he coude never fyne; + To fisshen hir, he leyde out hook and lyne. + + 112. But natheles, wel in his herte he thoughte, + That she nas nat with-oute a love in Troye. + For never, sithen he hir thennes broughte, 780 + Ne coude he seen her laughe or make Ioye. + He niste how best hir herte for tacoye. + 'But for to assaye,' he seyde, 'it nought ne greveth; + For he that nought nassayeth, nought nacheveth.' + + 113. Yet seide he to him-self upon a night, 785 + 'Now am I not a fool, that woot wel how + Hir wo for love is of another wight, + And here-up-on to goon assaye hir now? + I may wel wite, it nil not been my prow. + For wyse folk in bokes it expresse, 790 + "Men shal not wowe a wight in hevinesse." + + 114. But who-so mighte winnen swich a flour + From him, for whom she morneth night and day, + He mighte seyn, he were a conquerour.' + And right anoon, as he that bold was ay, 795 + Thoughte in his herte, 'happe, how happe may, + Al sholde I deye, I wole hir herte seche; + I shal no more lesen but my speche.' + + 115. This Diomede, as bokes us declare, + Was in his nedes prest and corageous; 800 + With sterne voys and mighty limes square, + Hardy, testif, strong, and chevalrous + Of dedes, lyk his fader Tideus. + And som men seyn, he was of tunge large; + And heir he was of Calidoine and Arge. 805 + + 116. Criseyde mene was of hir stature, + Ther-to of shap, of face, and eek of chere, + Ther mighte been no fairer creature. + And ofte tyme this was hir manere, + To gon y-tressed with hir heres clere 810 + Doun by hir coler at hir bak bihinde, + Which with a threde of gold she wolde binde. + + 117. And, save hir browes ioyneden y-fere, + Ther nas no lak, in ought I can espyen; + But for to speken of hir eyen clere, 815 + Lo, trewely, they writen that hir syen, + That Paradys stood formed in hir yën. + And with hir riche beautee ever-more + Strof love in hir, ay which of hem was more. + + 118. She sobre was, eek simple, and wys with-al, 820 + The beste y-norisshed eek that mighte be, + And goodly of hir speche in general, + Charitable, estatliche, lusty, and free; + Ne never-mo ne lakkede hir pitee; + Tendre-herted, slydinge of corage; 825 + But trewely, I can not telle hir age. + + 119. And Troilus wel waxen was in highte, + And complet formed by proporcioun + So wel, that kinde it not amenden mighte; + Yong, fresshe, strong, and hardy as lyoun; 830 + Trewe as steel in ech condicioun; + On of the beste enteched creature, + That is, or shal, whyl that the world may dure. + + 120. And certainly in storie it is y-founde, + That Troilus was never un-to no wight, 835 + As in his tyme, in no degree secounde + In durring don that longeth to a knight. + Al mighte a geaunt passen him of might, + His herte ay with the firste and with the beste + Stod paregal, to durre don that him leste. 840 + + 121. But for to tellen forth of Diomede:-- + It fil that after, on the tenthe day, + Sin that Criseyde out of the citee yede, + This Diomede, as fresshe as braunche in May, + Com to the tente ther-as Calkas lay, 845 + And feyned him with Calkas han to done; + But what he mente, I shal yow telle sone. + + 122. Criseyde, at shorte wordes for to telle, + Welcomed him, and doun by hir him sette; + And he was ethe y-nough to maken dwelle. 850 + And after this, with-outen longe lette, + The spyces and the wyn men forth hem fette; + And forth they speke of this and that y-fere, + As freendes doon, of which som shal ye here. + + 123. He gan first fallen of the werre in speche 855 + Bitwixe hem and the folk of Troye toun; + And of thassege he gan hir eek byseche, + To telle him what was hir opinioun. + Fro that demaunde he so descendeth doun + To asken hir, if that hir straunge thoughte 860 + The Grekes gyse, and werkes that they wroughte? + + 124. And why hir fader tarieth so longe + To wedden hir un-to som worthy wight? + Criseyde, that was in hir peynes stronge + For love of Troilus, hir owene knight, 865 + As fer-forth as she conning hadde or might, + Answerde him tho; but, as of his entente, + It semed not she wiste what he mente. + + 125. But natheles, this ilke Diomede + Gan in him-self assure, and thus he seyde, 870 + 'If ich aright have taken of yow hede, + Me thinketh thus, O lady myn, Criseyde, + That sin I first hond on your brydel leyde, + Whan ye out come of Troye by the morwe, + Ne coude I never seen yow but in sorwe. 875 + + 126. Can I not seyn what may the cause be + But-if for love of som Troyan it were, + The which right sore wolde athinken me + That ye, for any wight that dwelleth there, + Sholden spille a quarter of a tere, 880 + Or pitously your-selven so bigyle; + For dredelees, it is nought worth the whyle. + + 127. The folk of Troye, as who seyth, alle and some + In preson been, as ye your-selven see; + For thennes shal not oon on-lyve come 885 + For al the gold bitwixen sonne and see. + Trusteth wel, and understondeth me, + Ther shal not oon to mercy goon on-lyve, + Al were he lord of worldes twyës fyve! + + 128. Swich wreche on hem, for fecching of Eleyne, 890 + Ther shal be take, er that we hennes wende, + That Manes, which that goddes ben of peyne, + Shal been agast that Grekes wol hem shende. + And men shul drede, un-to the worldes ende, + From hennes-forth to ravisshe any quene, 895 + So cruel shal our wreche on hem be sene. + + 129. And but-if Calkas lede us with ambages, + That is to seyn, with double wordes slye, + Swich as men clepe a "word with two visages," + Ye shul wel knowen that I nought ne lye, 900 + And al this thing right seen it with your yë, + And that anoon; ye nil not trowe how sone; + Now taketh heed, for it is for to done. + + 130. What wene ye your wyse fader wolde + Han yeven Antenor for yow anoon, 905 + If he ne wiste that the citee sholde + Destroyed been? Why, nay, so mote I goon! + He knew ful wel ther shal not scapen oon + That Troyan is; and for the grete fere, + He dorste not, ye dwelte lenger there. 910 + + 131. What wole ye more, lufsom lady dere? + Lat Troye and Troyan fro your herte pace! + Dryf out that bittre hope, and make good chere, + And clepe ayein the beautee of your face, + That ye with salte teres so deface. 915 + For Troye is brought in swich a Iupartye, + That, it to save, is now no remedye. + + 132. And thenketh wel, ye shal in Grekes finde, + A more parfit love, er it be night, + Than any Troyan is, and more kinde, 920 + And bet to serven yow wol doon his might. + And if ye vouche sauf, my lady bright, + I wol ben he to serven yow my-selve, + Ye, lever than be lord of Greces twelve!' + + 133. And with that word he gan to waxen reed, 925 + And in his speche a litel wight he quook, + And caste a-syde a litel wight his heed, + And stinte a whyle; and afterward awook, + And sobreliche on hir he threw his look, + And seyde, 'I am, al be it yow no Ioye, 930 + As gentil man as any wight in Troye. + + 134. For if my fader Tydeus,' he seyde, + 'Y-lived hadde, I hadde been, er this, + Of Calidoine and Arge a king, Criseyde! + And so hope I that I shal yet, y-wis. 935 + But he was slayn, allas! the more harm is, + Unhappily at Thebes al to rathe, + Polymites and many a man to scathe. + + 135. But herte myn, sin that I am your man, + And been the ferste of whom I seche grace, 940 + To serven you as hertely as I can, + And ever shal, whyl I to live have space, + So, er that I departe out of this place, + Ye wol me graunte, that I may to-morwe, + At bettre leyser, telle yow my sorwe.' 945 + + 136. What shold I telle his wordes that he seyde? + He spak y-now, for o day at the meste; + It preveth wel, he spak so that Criseyde + Graunted, on the morwe, at his requeste, + For to speken with him at the leste, 950 + So that he nolde speke of swich matere; + And thus to him she seyde, as ye may here: + + 137. As she that hadde hir herte on Troilus + So faste, that ther may it noon arace; + And straungely she spak, and seyde thus: 955 + 'O Diomede, I love that ilke place + Ther I was born; and Ioves, for his grace, + Delivere it sone of al that doth it care! + God, for thy might, so leve it wel to fare! + + 138. That Grekes wolde hir wraththe on Troye wreke, 960 + If that they mighte, I knowe it wel, y-wis. + But it shal not bifallen as ye speke; + And god to-forn, and ferther over this, + I wot my fader wys and redy is; + And that he me hath bought, as ye me tolde, 965 + So dere, I am the more un-to him holde. + + 139. That Grekes been of heigh condicioun, + I woot eek wel; but certein, men shal finde + As worthy folk with-inne Troye toun, + As conning, and as parfit and as kinde, 970 + As been bitwixen Orcades and Inde. + And that ye coude wel your lady serve, + I trowe eek wel, hir thank for to deserve. + + 140. But as to speke of love, y-wis,' she seyde, + 'I hadde a lord, to whom I wedded was, 975 + The whos myn herte al was, til that he deyde; + And other love, as helpe me now Pallas, + Ther in myn herte nis, ne never was. + And that ye been of noble and heigh kinrede, + I have wel herd it tellen, out of drede. 980 + + 141. And that doth me to han so gret a wonder, + That ye wol scornen any womman so. + Eek, god wot, love and I be fer a-sonder; + I am disposed bet, so mote I go, + Un-to my deeth, to pleyne and maken wo. 985 + What I shal after doon, I can not seye; + But trewely, as yet me list not pleye. + + 142. Myn herte is now in tribulacioun, + And ye in armes bisy, day by day. + Here-after, whan ye wonnen han the toun, 990 + Paraunter, thanne so it happen may, + That whan I see that I never er say, + Than wole I werke that I never wroughte! + This word to yow y-nough suffysen oughte. + + 143. To-morwe eek wol I speke with yow fayn, 995 + So that ye touchen nought of this matere. + And whan yow list, ye may come here ayeyn; + And, er ye gon, thus muche I seye yow here: + As helpe me Pallas with hir heres clere, + If that I sholde of any Greek han routhe, 1000 + It sholde be your-selven, by my trouthe! + + 144. I sey not therfore that I wol yow love, + Ne I sey not nay, but in conclusioun, + I mene wel, by god that sit above:'-- + And ther-with-al she caste hir eyen doun, 1005 + And gan to syke, and seyde, 'O Troye toun, + Yet bidde I god, in quiete and in reste + I may yow seen, or do myn herte breste.' + + 145. But in effect, and shortly for to seye, + This Diomede al freshly newe ayeyn 1010 + Gan pressen on, and faste hir mercy preye; + And after this, the sothe for to seyn, + Hir glove he took, of which he was ful fayn. + And fynally, whan it was waxen eve, + And al was wel, he roos and took his leve. 1015 + + 146. The brighte Venus folwede and ay taughte + The wey, ther brode Phebus doun alighte; + And Cynthea hir char-hors over-raughte + To whirle out of the Lyon, if she mighte; + And Signifer his candeles shewed brighte, 1020 + Whan that Criseyde un-to hir bedde wente + In-with hir fadres faire brighte tente. + + 147. Retorning in hir soule ay up and doun + The wordes of this sodein Diomede, + His greet estat, and peril of the toun, 1025 + And that she was allone and hadde nede + Of freendes help; and thus bigan to brede + The cause why, the sothe for to telle, + That she tok fully purpos for to dwelle. + + 148. The morwe com, and goostly for to speke, 1030 + This Diomede is come un-to Criseyde, + And shortly, lest that ye my tale breke, + So wel he for him-selve spak and seyde, + That alle hir sykes sore adoun he leyde. + And fynally, the sothe for to seyne, 1035 + He refte hir of the grete of al hir peyne. + + 149. And after this the story telleth us, + That she him yaf the faire baye stede, + The which he ones wan of Troilus; + And eek a broche (and that was litel nede) 1040 + That Troilus was, she yaf this Diomede. + And eek, the bet from sorwe him to releve, + She made him were a pencel of hir sleve. + + 150. I finde eek in the stories elles-where, + Whan through the body hurt was Diomede 1045 + Of Troilus, tho weep she many a tere, + Whan that she saugh his wyde woundes blede; + And that she took to kepen him good hede, + And for to hele him of his sorwes smerte. + Men seyn, I not, that she yaf him hir herte. 1050 + + 151. But trewely, the story telleth us, + Ther made never womman more wo + Than she, whan that she falsed Troilus. + She seyde, 'allas! for now is clene a-go + My name of trouthe in love, for ever-mo! 1055 + For I have falsed oon, the gentileste + That ever was, and oon the worthieste! + + 152. Allas, of me, un-to the worldes ende, + Shal neither been y-writen nor y-songe + No good word, for thise bokes wol me shende. 1060 + O, rolled shal I been on many a tonge; + Through-out the world my belle shal be ronge; + And wommen most wol hate me of alle. + Allas, that swich a cas me sholde falle! + + 153. They wol seyn, in as muche as in me is, 1065 + I have hem don dishonour, weylawey! + Al be I not the firste that dide amis, + What helpeth that to do my blame awey? + But sin I see there is no bettre way, + And that to late is now for me to rewe, 1070 + To Diomede algate I wol be trewe. + + 154. But Troilus, sin I no better may, + And sin that thus departen ye and I, + Yet preye I god, so yeve yow right good day + As for the gentileste, trewely, 1075 + That ever I say, to serven feithfully, + And best can ay his lady honour kepe:'-- + And with that word she brast anon to wepe. + + 155. 'And certes, yow ne haten shal I never, + And freendes love, that shal ye han of me, 1080 + And my good word, al mighte I liven ever. + And, trewely, I wolde sory be + For to seen yow in adversitee. + And giltelees, I woot wel, I yow leve; + But al shal passe; and thus take I my leve.' 1085 + + 156. But trewely, how longe it was bitwene, + That she for-sook him for this Diomede, + Ther is non auctor telleth it, I wene. + Take every man now to his bokes hede; + He shal no terme finden, out of drede. 1090 + For though that he bigan to wowe hir sone, + Er he hir wan, yet was ther more to done. + + 157. Ne me ne list this sely womman chyde + Ferther than the story wol devyse. + Hir name, allas! is publisshed so wyde, 1095 + That for hir gilt it oughte y-now suffyse. + And if I mighte excuse hir any wyse, + For she so sory was for hir untrouthe, + Y-wis, I wolde excuse hir yet for routhe. + + 158. This Troilus, as I biforn have told, 1100 + Thus dryveth forth, as wel as he hath might. + But often was his herte hoot and cold, + And namely, that ilke nynthe night, + Which on the morwe she hadde him byhight + To come ayein: god wot, ful litel reste 1105 + Hadde he that night; no-thing to slepe him leste. + + 159. The laurer-crouned Phebus, with his hete, + Gan, in his course ay upward as he wente, + To warmen of the est see the wawes wete; + And Nisus doughter song with fresh entente, 1110 + Whan Troilus his Pandare after sente; + And on the walles of the toun they pleyde, + To loke if they can seen ought of Criseyde. + + 160. Til it was noon, they stoden for to see + Who that ther come; and every maner wight, 1115 + That cam fro fer, they seyden it was she, + Til that they coude knowen him a-right. + Now was his herte dul, now was it light; + And thus by-iaped stonden for to stare + Aboute nought, this Troilus and Pandare. 1120 + + 161. To Pandarus this Troilus tho seyde, + 'For ought I wot, bi-for noon, sikerly, + In-to this toun ne comth nought here Criseyde. + She hath y-now to done, hardily, + To winnen from hir fader, so trowe I; 1125 + Hir olde fader wol yet make hir dyne + Er that she go; god yeve his herte pyne!' + + 162. Pandare answerde, 'it may wel be, certeyn; + And for-thy lat us dyne, I thee biseche; + And after noon than mayst thou come ayeyn.' 1130 + And hoom they go, with-oute more speche; + And comen ayein, but longe may they seche + Er that they finde that they after cape; + Fortune hem bothe thenketh for to Iape. + + 163. Quod Troilus, 'I see wel now, that she 1135 + Is taried with hir olde fader so, + That er she come, it wol neigh even be. + Com forth, I wol un-to the yate go. + Thise portours been unkonninge ever-mo; + And I wol doon hem holden up the yate 1140 + As nought ne were, al-though she come late.' + + 164. The day goth faste, and after that comth eve, + And yet com nought to Troilus Criseyde. + He loketh forth by hegge, by tree, by greve, + And fer his heed over the wal he leyde. 1145 + And at the laste he torned him, and seyde, + 'By god, I woot hir mening now, Pandare! + Al-most, y-wis, al newe was my care. + + 165. Now douteles, this lady can hir good; + I woot, she meneth ryden prively. 1150 + I comende hir wysdom, by myn hood! + She wol not maken peple nycely + Gaure on hir, whan she comth; but softely + By nighte in-to the toun she thenketh ryde. + And, dere brother, thenk not longe to abyde. 1155 + + 166. We han nought elles for to don, y-wis. + And Pandarus, now woltow trowen me? + Have here my trouthe, I see hir! yond she is. + Heve up thyn eyen, man! maystow not see?' + Pandare answerde, 'nay, so mote I thee! 1160 + Al wrong, by god; what seystow, man, wher art? + That I see yond nis but a fare-cart.' + + 167. 'Allas, thou seist right sooth,' quod Troilus; + 'But hardely, it is not al for nought + That in myn herte I now reioyse thus. 1165 + It is ayein som good I have a thought. + Noot I not how, but sin that I was wrought, + Ne felte I swich a confort, dar I seye; + She comth to-night, my lyf, that dorste I leye!' + + 168. Pandare answerde, 'it may be wel, y-nough'; 1170 + And held with him of al that ever he seyde; + But in his herte he thoughte, and softe lough, + And to him-self ful sobrely he seyde: + 'From hasel-wode, ther Ioly Robin pleyde, + Shal come al that that thou abydest here; 1175 + Ye, fare-wel al the snow of ferne yere!' + + 169. The wardein of the yates gan to calle + The folk which that with-oute the yates were, + And bad hem dryven in hir bestes alle, + Or al the night they moste bleven there. 1180 + And fer with-in the night, with many a tere, + This Troilus gan hoomward for to ryde; + For wel he seeth it helpeth nought tabyde. + + 170. But natheles, he gladded him in this; + He thoughte he misacounted hadde his day, 1185 + And seyde, 'I understonde have al a-mis. + For thilke night I last Criseyde say, + She seyde, "I shal ben here, if that I may, + Er that the mone, O dere herte swete! + The Lyon passe, out of this Ariete." 1190 + + 171. For which she may yet holde al hir biheste.' + And on the morwe un-to the yate he wente, + And up and down, by west and eek by este, + Up-on the walles made he many a wente. + But al for nought; his hope alwey him blente; 1195 + For which at night, in sorwe and sykes sore + He wente him hoom, with-outen any more. + + 172. This hope al clene out of his herte fledde, + He nath wher-on now lenger for to honge; + But for the peyne him thoughte his herte bledde, 1200 + So were his throwes sharpe and wonder stronge. + For when he saugh that she abood so longe, + He niste what he iuggen of it mighte, + Sin she hath broken that she him bihighte. + + 173. The thridde, ferthe, fifte, sixte day 1205 + After tho dayes ten, of which I tolde, + Bitwixen hope and drede his herte lay, + Yet som-what trustinge on hir hestes olde. + But whan he saugh she nolde hir terme holde, + He can now seen non other remedye, 1210 + But for to shape him sone for to dye. + + 174. Ther-with the wikked spirit, god us blesse, + Which that men clepeth wode Ialousye, + Gan in him crepe, in al this hevinesse; + For which, by-cause he wolde sone dye, 1215 + He ne eet ne dronk, for his malencolye, + And eek from every companye he fledde; + This was the lyf that al the tyme he ledde. + + 175. He so defet was, that no maner man + Unnethe mighte him knowe ther he wente; 1220 + So was he lene, and ther-to pale and wan, + And feble, that he walketh by potente; + And with his ire he thus him-selven shente. + And who-so axed him wher-of him smerte, + He seyde, his harm was al aboute his herte. 1225 + + 176. Pryam ful ofte, and eek his moder dere, + His bretheren and his sustren gonne him freyne + Why he so sorwful was in al his chere, + And what thing was the cause of al his peyne? + But al for nought; he nolde his cause pleyne, 1230 + But seyde, he felte a grevous maladye + A-boute his herte, and fayn he wolde dye. + + 177. So on a day he leyde him doun to slepe, + And so bifel that in his sleep him thoughte, + That in a forest faste he welk to wepe 1235 + For love of hir that him these peynes wroughte; + And up and doun as he the forest soughte, + He mette he saugh a boor with tuskes grete, + That sleep ayein the brighte sonnes hete. + + 178. And by this boor, faste in his armes folde, 1240 + Lay kissing ay his lady bright Criseyde: + For sorwe of which, whan he it gan biholde, + And for despyt, out of his slepe he breyde, + And loude he cryde on Pandarus, and seyde, + 'O Pandarus, now knowe I crop and rote! 1245 + I nam but deed, ther nis non other bote! + + 179. My lady bright Criseyde hath me bitrayed, + In whom I trusted most of any wight, + She elles-where hath now hir herte apayed; + The blisful goddes, through hir grete might, 1250 + Han in my dreem y-shewed it ful right. + Thus in my dreem Criseyde I have biholde'-- + And al this thing to Pandarus he tolde. + + 180. 'O my Criseyde, allas! what subtiltee, + What newe lust, what beautee, what science, 1255 + What wratthe of iuste cause have ye to me? + What gilt of me, whal fel experience + Hath fro me raft, allas! thyn advertence? + O trust, O feyth, O depe asëuraunce, + Who hath me reft Criseyde, al my plesaunce? 1260 + + 181. Allas! why leet I you from hennes go, + For which wel neigh out of my wit I breyde? + Who shal now trowe on any othes mo? + God wot I wende, O lady bright, Criseyde, + That every word was gospel that ye seyde! 1265 + But who may bet bigylen, if him liste, + Than he on whom men weneth best to triste? + + 182. What shal I doon, my Pandarus, allas! + I fele now so sharpe a newe peyne, + Sin that ther is no remedie in this cas, 1270 + That bet were it I with myn hondes tweyne + My-selven slow, than alwey thus to pleyne. + For through my deeth my wo sholde han an ende, + Ther every day with lyf my-self I shende.' + + 183. Pandare answerde and seyde, 'allas the whyle 1275 + That I was born; have I not seyd er this, + That dremes many a maner man bigyle? + And why? for folk expounden hem a-mis. + How darstow seyn that fals thy lady is, + For any dreem, right for thyn owene drede? 1280 + Lat be this thought, thou canst no dremes rede. + + 184. Paraunter, ther thou dremest of this boor, + It may so be that it may signifye + Hir fader, which that old is and eek hoor, + Ayein the sonne lyth, on poynt to dye, 1285 + And she for sorwe ginneth wepe and crye, + And kisseth him, ther he lyth on the grounde; + Thus shuldestow thy dreem a-right expounde.' + + 185. 'How mighte I thanne do?' quod Troilus, + 'To knowe of this, ye, were it never so lyte?' 1290 + 'Now seystow wysly,' quod this Pandarus, + 'My reed is this, sin thou canst wel endyte, + That hastely a lettre thou hir wryte, + Thorugh which thou shalt wel bringen it aboute, + To knowe a sooth of that thou art in doute. 1295 + + 186. And see now why; for this I dar wel seyn, + That if so is that she untrewe be, + I can not trowe that she wol wryte ayeyn. + And if she wryte, thou shalt ful sone see, + As whether she hath any libertee 1300 + To come ayein, or elles in som clause, + If she be let, she wol assigne a cause. + + 187. Thou hast not writen hir sin that she wente, + Nor she to thee, and this I dorste leye, + Ther may swich cause been in hir entente, 1305 + That hardely thou wolt thy-selven seye, + That hir a-bood the beste is for yow tweye. + Now wryte hir thanne, and thou shalt fele sone + A sothe of al; ther is no more to done.' + + 188. Acorded been to this conclusioun, 1310 + And that anoon, these ilke lordes two; + And hastely sit Troilus adoun, + And rolleth in his herte to and fro, + How he may best discryven hir his wo. + And to Criseyde, his owene lady dere, 1315 + He wroot right thus, and seyde as ye may here. + + 189. 'Right fresshe flour, whos I have been and shal, + With-outen part of elles-where servyse, + With herte, body, lyf, lust, thought, and al; + I, woful wight, in every humble wyse 1320 + That tonge telle or herte may devyse, + As ofte as matere occupyeth place, + Me recomaunde un-to your noble grace. + + 190. Lyketh it yow to witen, swete herte, + As ye wel knowe how longe tyme agoon 1325 + That ye me lafte in aspre peynes smerte, + Whan that ye wente, of which yet bote noon + Have I non had, but ever wers bigoon + Fro day to day am I, and so mot dwelle, + While it yow list, of wele and wo my welle! 1330 + + 191. For which to yow, with dredful herte trewe, + I wryte, as he that sorwe dryfth to wryte, + My wo, that every houre encreseth newe, + Compleyninge as I dar or can endyte. + And that defaced is, that may ye wyte 1335 + The teres, which that fro myn eyen reyne, + That wolde speke, if that they coude, and pleyne. + + 192. Yow first biseche I, that your eyen clere + To look on this defouled ye not holde; + And over al this, that ye, my lady dere, 1340 + Wol vouche-sauf this lettre to biholde. + And by the cause eek of my cares colde, + That sleeth my wit, if ought amis me asterte, + For-yeve it me, myn owene swete herte. + + 193. If any servant dorste or oughte of right 1345 + Up-on his lady pitously compleyne, + Than wene I, that ich oughte be that wight, + Considered this, that ye these monthes tweyne + Han taried, ther ye seyden, sooth to seyne, + But dayes ten ye nolde in ost soiourne, 1350 + But in two monthes yet ye not retourne. + + 194. But for-as-muche as me mot nedes lyke + Al that yow list, I dar not pleyne more, + But humbely with sorwful sykes syke; + Yow wryte ich myn unresty sorwes sore, 1355 + Fro day to day desyring ever-more + To knowen fully, if your wil it were, + How ye han ferd and doon, whyl ye be there. + + 195. The whos wel-fare and hele eek god encresse + In honour swich, that upward in degree 1360 + It growe alwey, so that it never cesse; + Right as your herte ay can, my lady free, + Devyse, I prey to god so mote it be. + And graunte it that ye sone up-on me rewe + As wisly as in al I am yow trewe. 1365 + + 196. And if yow lyketh knowen of the fare + Of me, whos wo ther may no wight discryve, + I can no more but, cheste of every care, + At wrytinge of this lettre I was on-lyve, + Al redy out my woful gost to dryve; 1370 + Which I delaye, and holde him yet in honde, + Upon the sight of matere of your sonde. + + 197. Myn eyen two, in veyn with which I see, + Of sorweful teres salte arn waxen welles; + My song, in pleynte of myn adversitee; 1375 + My good, in harm; myn ese eek waxen helle is. + My Ioye, in wo; I can sey yow nought elles, + But turned is, for which my lyf I warie, + Everich Ioye or ese in his contrarie. + + 198. Which with your cominge hoom ayein to Troye 1380 + Ye may redresse, and, more a thousand sythe + Than ever ich hadde, encressen in me Ioye. + For was ther never herte yet so blythe + To han his lyf, as I shal been as swythe + As I yow see; and, though no maner routhe 1385 + Commeve yow, yet thinketh on your trouthe. + + 199. And if so be my gilt hath deeth deserved, + Or if you list no more up-on me see, + In guerdon yet of that I have you served, + Biseche I yow, myn hertes lady free, 1390 + That here-upon ye wolden wryte me, + For love of god, my righte lode-sterre, + Ther deeth may make an ende of al my werre. + + 200. If other cause aught doth yow for to dwelle, + That with your lettre ye me recomforte; 1395 + For though to me your absence is an helle, + With pacience I wol my wo comporte. + And with your lettre of hope I wol desporte. + Now wryteth, swete, and lat me thus not pleyne; + With hope, or deeth, delivereth me fro peyne. 1400 + + 201. Y-wis, myn owene dere herte trewe, + I woot that, whan ye next up-on me see, + So lost have I myn hele and eek myn hewe, + Criseyde shal nought conne knowe me! + Y-wis, myn hertes day, my lady free, 1405 + So thursteth ay myn herte to biholde + Your beautee, that my lyf unnethe I holde. + + 202. I sey no more, al have I for to seye + To you wel more than I telle may; + But whether that ye do me live or deye, 1410 + Yet pray I god, so yeve yow right good day. + And fareth wel, goodly fayre fresshe may, + As ye that lyf or deeth me may comaunde; + And to your trouthe ay I me recomaunde + + 203. With hele swich that, but ye yeven me 1415 + The same hele, I shal noon hele have. + In you lyth, whan yow list that it so be, + The day in which me clothen shal my grave. + In yow my lyf, in yow might for to save + Me from disese of alle peynes smerte; 1420 + And fare now wel, myn owene swete herte! + LE VOSTRE T.' + + 204. This lettre forth was sent un-to Criseyde, + Of which hir answere in effect was this; + Ful pitously she wroot ayein, and seyde, + That al-so sone as that she might, y-wis, 1425 + She wolde come, and mende al that was mis. + And fynally she wroot and seyde him thanne, + She wolde come, ye, but she niste whanne. + + 205. But in hir lettre made she swich festes, + That wonder was, and swereth she loveth him best, 1430 + Of which he fond but botmelees bihestes. + But Troilus, thou mayst now, est or west, + Pype in an ivy leef, if that thee lest; + Thus gooth the world; god shilde us fro mischaunce, + And every wight that meneth trouthe avaunce! 1435 + + 206. Encresen gan the wo fro day to night + Of Troilus, for taryinge of Criseyde; + And lessen gan his hope and eek his might, + For which al doun he in his bed him leyde; + He ne eet, ne dronk, ne sleep, ne word he seyde, 1440 + Imagininge ay that she was unkinde; + For which wel neigh he wex out of his minde. + + 207. This dreem, of which I told have eek biforn, + May never come out of his remembraunce; + He thoughte ay wel he hadde his lady lorn, 1445 + And that Ioves, of his purveyaunce, + Him shewed hadde in sleep the signifiaunce + Of hir untrouthe and his disaventure, + And that the boor was shewed him in figure. + + 208. For which he for Sibille his suster sente, 1450 + That called was Cassandre eek al aboute; + And al his dreem he tolde hir er he stente, + And hir bisoughte assoilen him the doute + Of the stronge boor, with tuskes stoute; + And fynally, with-inne a litel stounde, 1455 + Cassandre him gan right thus his dreem expounde. + + 209. She gan first smyle, and seyde, 'O brother dere, + If thou a sooth of this desyrest knowe, + Thou most a fewe of olde stories here, + To purpos, how that fortune over-throwe 1460 + Hath lordes olde; through which, with-inne a throwe, + Thou wel this boor shalt knowe, and of what kinde + He comen is, as men in bokes finde. + + 210. Diane, which that wrooth was and in ire + For Grekes nolde doon hir sacrifyse, 1465 + Ne encens up-on hir auter sette a-fyre, + She, for that Grekes gonne hir so dispyse, + Wrak hir in a wonder cruel wyse. + For with a boor as greet as oxe in stalle + She made up frete hir corn and vynes alle. 1470 + + 211. To slee this boor was al the contree reysed, + A-monges which ther com, this boor to see, + A mayde, oon of this world the best y-preysed; + And Meleagre, lord of that contree, + He lovede so this fresshe mayden free 1475 + That with his manhod, er he wolde stente, + This boor he slow, and hir the heed he sente; + + 212. Of which, as olde bokes tellen us, + Ther roos a contek and a greet envye; + And of this lord descended Tydeus 1480 + By ligne, or elles olde bokes lye; + But how this Meleagre gan to dye + Thorugh his moder, wol I yow not telle, + For al to long it were for to dwelle.' + + [_Argument of the 12 Books of_ Statius' Thebais.] + + Associat profugum Tideo primus Polimitem; + Tidea legatum docet insidiasque secundus; + Tercius Hemoniden canit et vates latitantes; + Quartus habet reges ineuntes prelia septem; 4 + Mox furie Lenne quinto narratur et anguis; + Archimori bustum sexto ludique leguntur; + Dat Graios Thebes et vatem septimus vmbris; + Octauo cecidit Tideus, spes, vita Pelasgis; 8 + Ypomedon nono moritur cum Parthonopeo; + Fulmine percussus, decimo Capaneus superatur; + Vndecimo sese perimunt per vulnera fratres; + Argiuam flentem narrat duodenus et ignem. 12 + + 213. She toldë eek how Tydeus, er she stente, 1485 + Un-to the stronge citee of Thebes, + To cleyme kingdom of the citee, wente, + For his felawe, daun Polymites, + Of which the brother, daun Ethyocles + Ful wrongfully of Thebes held the strengthe; 1490 + This tolde she by proces, al by lengthe. + + 214. She tolde eek how Hemonides asterte, + Whan Tydeus slough fifty knightes stoute. + She told eek al the prophesyes by herte, + And how that sevene kinges, with hir route, 1495 + Bisegeden the citee al aboute; + And of the holy serpent, and the welle, + And of the furies, al she gan him telle. + + 215. Of Archimoris buryinge and the pleyes, + And how Amphiorax fil through the grounde, 1500 + How Tydeus was slayn, lord of Argeyes, + And how Ypomedoun in litel stounde + Was dreynt, and deed Parthonope of wounde; + And also how Cappanëus the proude + With thonder-dint was slayn, that cryde loude. 1505 + + 216. She gan eek telle him how that either brother, + Ethyocles and Polimyte also, + At a scarmyche, eche of hem slough other, + And of Argyves wepinge and hir wo; + And how the town was brent she tolde eek tho. 1510 + And so descendeth doun from gestes olde + To Diomede, and thus she spak and tolde. + + 217. 'This ilke boor bitokneth Diomede, + Tydeus sone, that doun descended is + Fro Meleagre, that made the boor to blede. 1515 + And thy lady, wher-so she be, y-wis, + This Diomede hir herte hath, and she his. + Weep if thou wolt, or leef; for, out of doute, + This Diomede is inne, and thou art oute.' + + 218. 'Thou seyst nat sooth,' quod he, 'thou sorceresse, 1520 + With al thy false goost of prophesye! + Thou wenest been a greet devyneresse; + Now seestow not this fool of fantasye + Peyneth hir on ladyes for to lye? + Awey,' quod he, 'ther Ioves yeve thee sorwe! 1525 + Thou shalt be fals, paraunter, yet to-morwe! + + 219. As wel thou mightest lyen on Alceste, + That was of creatures, but men lye, + That ever weren, kindest and the beste. + For whanne hir housbonde was in Iupartye 1530 + To dye him-self, but-if she wolde dye, + She chees for him to dye and go to helle, + And starf anoon, as us the bokes telle.' + + 220. Cassandre goth, and he with cruel herte + For-yat his wo, for angre of hir speche; 1535 + And from his bed al sodeinly he sterte, + As though al hool him hadde y-mad a leche. + And day by day he gan enquere and seche + A sooth of this, with al his fulle cure; + And thus he dryeth forth his aventure. 1540 + + 221. Fortune, whiche that permutacioun + Of thinges hath, as it is hir committed + Through purveyaunce and disposicioun + Of heighe Iove, as regnes shal ben flitted + Fro folk in folk, or whan they shal ben smitted, 1545 + Gan pulle awey the fetheres brighte of Troye + Fro day to day, til they ben bare of Ioye. + + 222. Among al this, the fyn of the parodie + Of Ector gan approchen wonder blyve; + The fate wolde his soule sholde unbodie, 1550 + And shapen hadde a mene it out to dryve; + Ayeins which fate him helpeth not to stryve; + But on a day to fighten gan he wende, + At which, allas! he caughte his lyves ende. + + 223. For which me thinketh every maner wight 1555 + That haunteth armes oughte to biwayle + The deeth of him that was so noble a knight; + For as he drough a king by thaventayle, + Unwar of this, Achilles through the mayle + And through the body gan him for to ryve; 1560 + And thus this worthy knight was brought of lyve. + + 224. For whom, as olde bokes tellen us, + Was mad swich wo, that tonge it may not telle; + And namely, the sorwe of Troilus, + That next him was of worthinesse welle. 1565 + And in this wo gan Troilus to dwelle, + That, what for sorwe, and love, and for unreste, + Ful ofte a day he bad his herte breste. + + 225. But natheles, though he gan him dispeyre, + And dradde ay that his lady was untrewe, 1570 + Yet ay on hir his herte gan repeyre. + And as these loveres doon, he soughte ay newe + To gete ayein Criseyde, bright of hewe. + And in his herte he wente hir excusinge, + That Calkas causede al hir taryinge. 1575 + + 226. And ofte tyme he was in purpos grete + Him-selven lyk a pilgrim to disgyse, + To seen hir; but he may not contrefete + To been unknowen of folk that weren wyse, + Ne finde excuse aright that may suffyse, 1580 + If he among the Grekes knowen were; + For which he weep ful ofte many a tere. + + 227. To hir he wroot yet ofte tyme al newe + Ful pitously, he lefte it nought for slouthe, + Biseching hir that, sin that he was trewe, 1585 + She wolde come ayein and holde hir trouthe. + For which Criseyde up-on a day, for routhe, + I take it so, touchinge al this matere, + Wrot him ayein, and seyde as ye may here. + + 228. 'Cupydes sone, ensample of goodlihede, 1590 + O swerd of knighthod, sours of gentilesse! + How mighte a wight in torment and in drede + And helelees, yow sende as yet gladnesse? + I hertelees, I syke, I in distresse; + Sin ye with me, nor I with yow may dele, 1595 + Yow neither sende ich herte may nor hele. + + 229. Your lettres ful, the papir al y-pleynted, + Conseyved hath myn hertes piëtee; + I have eek seyn with teres al depeynted + Your lettre, and how that ye requeren me 1600 + To come ayein, which yet ne may not be. + But why, lest that this lettre founden were, + No mencioun ne make I now, for fere. + + 230. Grevous to me, god woot, is your unreste, + Your haste, and that, the goddes ordenaunce, 1605 + It semeth not ye take it for the beste. + Nor other thing nis in your remembraunce, + As thinketh me, but only your plesaunce. + But beth not wrooth, and that I yow biseche; + For that I tarie, is al for wikked speche. 1610 + + 231. For I have herd wel more than I wende, + Touchinge us two, how thinges han y-stonde; + Which I shal with dissimulinge amende. + And beth nought wrooth, I have eek understonde, + How ye ne doon but holden me in honde. 1615 + But now no fors, I can not in yow gesse + But alle trouthe and alle gentilesse. + + 232. Comen I wol, but yet in swich disioynte + I stonde as now, that what yeer or what day + That this shal be, that can I not apoynte. 1620 + But in effect, I prey yow, as I may, + Of your good word and of your frendship ay. + For trewely, whyl that my lyf may dure, + As for a freend, ye may in me assure. + + 233. Yet preye I yow on yvel ye ne take, 1625 + That it is short which that I to yow wryte; + I dar not, ther I am, wel lettres make, + Ne never yet ne coude I wel endyte. + Eek greet effect men wryte in place lyte. + Thentente is al, and nought the lettres space; 1630 + And fareth now wel, god have you in his grace! + LA VOSTRE C.' + + 234. This Troilus this lettre thoughte al straunge, + Whan he it saugh, and sorwefully he sighte; + Him thoughte it lyk a kalendes of chaunge; + But fynally, he ful ne trowen mighte 1635 + That she ne wolde him holden that she highte; + For with ful yvel wil list him to leve + That loveth wel, in swich cas, though him greve. + + 235. But natheles, men seyn that, at the laste, + For any thing, men shal the sothe see; 1640 + And swich a cas bitidde, and that as faste, + That Troilus wel understood that she + Nas not so kinde as that hir oughte be. + And fynally, he woot now, out of doute, + That al is lost that he hath been aboute. 1645 + + 236. Stood on a day in his malencolye + This Troilus, and in suspecioun + Of hir for whom he wende for to dye. + And so bifel, that through-out Troye toun, + As was the gyse, y-bore was up and doun 1650 + A maner cote-armure, as seyth the storie, + Biforn Deiphebe, in signe of his victorie, + + 237. The whiche cote, as telleth Lollius, + Deiphebe it hadde y-rent from Diomede + The same day; and whan this Troilus 1655 + It saugh, he gan to taken of it hede, + Avysing of the lengthe and of the brede, + And al the werk; but as he gan biholde, + Ful sodeinly his herte gan to colde, + + 238. As he that on the coler fond with-inne 1660 + A broche, that he Criseyde yaf that morwe + That she from Troye moste nedes twinne, + In remembraunce of him and of his sorwe; + And she him leyde ayein hir feyth to borwe + To kepe it ay; but now, ful wel he wiste, 1665 + His lady nas no lenger on to triste. + + 239. He gooth him hoom, and gan ful sone sende + For Pandarus; and al this newe chaunce, + And of this broche, he tolde him word and ende, + Compleyninge of hir hertes variaunce, 1670 + His longe love, his trouthe, and his penaunce; + And after deeth, with-outen wordes more, + Ful faste he cryde, his reste him to restore. + + 240. Than spak he thus, 'O lady myn Criseyde, + Wher is your feyth, and wher is your biheste? 1675 + Wher is your love, wher is your trouthe,' he seyde; + 'Of Diomede have ye now al this feste! + Allas, I wolde have trowed at the leste, + That, sin ye nolde in trouthe to me stonde, + That ye thus nolde han holden me in honde! 1680 + + 241. Who shal now trowe on any othes mo? + Allas, I never wolde han wend, er this, + That ye, Criseyde, coude han chaunged so; + Ne, but I hadde a-gilt and doon amis, + So cruel wende I not your herte, y-wis, 1685 + To slee me thus; allas, your name of trouthe + Is now for-doon, and that is al my routhe. + + 242. Was ther non other broche yow liste lete + To feffe with your newe love,' quod he, + 'But thilke broche that I, with teres wete, 1690 + Yow yaf, as for a remembraunce of me? + Non other cause, allas, ne hadde ye + But for despyt, and eek for that ye mente + Al-outrely to shewen your entente! + + 243. Through which I see that clene out of your minde 1695 + Ye han me cast, and I ne can nor may, + For al this world, with-in myn herte finde + To unloven yow a quarter of a day! + In cursed tyme I born was, weylaway! + That ye, that doon me al this wo endure, 1700 + Yet love I best of any creature. + + 244. Now god,' quod he, 'me sende yet the grace + That I may meten with this Diomede! + And trewely, if I have might and space, + Yet shal I make, I hope, his sydes blede. 1705 + O god,' quod he, 'that oughtest taken hede + To fortheren trouthe, and wronges to punyce, + Why niltow doon a vengeaunce on this vyce? + + 245. O Pandare, that in dremes for to triste + Me blamed hast, and wont art ofte up-breyde, 1710 + Now maystow see thy-selve, if that thee liste, + How trewe is now thy nece, bright Criseyde! + In sondry formes, god it woot,' he seyde, + 'The goddes shewen bothe Ioye and tene + In slepe, and by my dreme it is now sene. 1715 + + 246. And certaynly, with-oute more speche, + From hennes-forth, as ferforth as I may, + Myn owene deeth in armes wol I seche; + I recche not how sone be the day! + But trewely, Criseyde, swete may, 1720 + Whom I have ay with al my might y-served, + That ye thus doon, I have it nought deserved.' + + 247. This Pandarus, that alle these thinges herde, + And wiste wel he seyde a sooth of this, + He nought a word ayein to him answerde; 1725 + For sory of his frendes sorwe he is, + And shamed, for his nece hath doon a-mis; + And stant, astoned of these causes tweye, + As stille as stoon; a word ne coude he seye. + + 248. But at the laste thus he spak, and seyde, 1730 + 'My brother dere, I may thee do no-more. + What shulde I seyn? I hate, y-wis, Criseyde! + And god wot, I wol hate hir evermore! + And that thou me bisoughtest doon of yore, + Havinge un-to myn honour ne my reste 1735 + Right no reward, I dide al that thee leste. + + 249. If I dide ought that mighte lyken thee, + It is me leef; and of this treson now, + God woot, that it a sorwe is un-to me! + And dredelees, for hertes ese of yow, 1740 + Right fayn wolde I amende it, wiste I how. + And fro this world, almighty god I preye, + Delivere hir sone; I can no-more seye.' + + 250. Gret was the sorwe and pleynt of Troilus; + But forth hir cours fortune ay gan to holde. 1745 + Criseyde loveth the sone of Tydeus, + And Troilus mot wepe in cares colde. + Swich is this world; who-so it can biholde, + In eche estat is litel hertes reste; + God leve us for to take it for the beste! 1750 + + 251. In many cruel batayle, out of drede, + Of Troilus, this ilke noble knight, + As men may in these olde bokes rede, + Was sene his knighthod and his grete might. + And dredelees, his ire, day and night, 1755 + Ful cruelly the Grekes ay aboughte; + And alwey most this Diomede he soughte. + + 252. And ofte tyme, I finde that they mette + With blody strokes and with wordes grete, + Assayinge how hir speres weren whette; 1760 + And god it woot, with many a cruel hete + Gan Troilus upon his helm to-bete. + But natheles, fortune it nought ne wolde, + Of otheres hond that either deyen sholde.-- + + 253. And if I hadde y-taken for to wryte 1765 + The armes of this ilke worthy man, + Than wolde I of his batailles endyte. + But for that I to wryte first bigan + Of his love, I have seyd as that I can. + His worthy dedes, who-so list hem here, 1770 + Reed Dares, he can telle hem alle y-fere. + + 254. Bisechinge every lady bright of hewe, + And every gentil womman, what she be, + That al be that Criseyde was untrewe, + That for that gilt she be not wrooth with me. 1775 + Ye may hir gilt in othere bokes see; + And gladlier I wol wryten, if yow leste, + Penelopeës trouthe and good Alceste. + + 255. Ne I sey not this al-only for these men, + But most for wommen that bitraysed be 1780 + Through false folk; god yeve hem sorwe, amen! + That with hir grete wit and subtiltee + Bitrayse yow! and this commeveth me + To speke, and in effect yow alle I preye, + Beth war of men, and herkeneth what I seye!-- 1785 + + 256. Go, litel book, go litel myn tregedie, + Ther god thy maker yet, er that he dye, + So sende might to make in som comedie! + But litel book, no making thou nenvye, + But subgit be to alle poesye; 1790 + And kis the steppes, wher-as thou seest pace + Virgile, Ovyde, Omer, Lucan, and Stace. + + 257. And for ther is so greet diversitee + In English and in wryting of our tonge, + So preye I god that noon miswryte thee, 1795 + Ne thee mismetre for defaute of tonge. + And red wher-so thou be, or elles songe, + That thou be understonde I god beseche! + But yet to purpos of my rather speche.-- + + 258. The wraththe, as I began yow for to seye, 1800 + Of Troilus, the Grekes boughten dere; + For thousandes his hondes maden deye, + As he that was with-outen any pere, + Save Ector, in his tyme, as I can here. + But weylaway, save only goddes wille, 1805 + Dispitously him slough the fiers Achille. + + 259. And whan that he was slayn in this manere, + His lighte goost ful blisfully is went + Up to the holownesse of the seventh spere, + In convers letinge every element; 1810 + And ther he saugh, with ful avysement, + The erratik sterres, herkeninge armonye + With sownes fulle of hevenish melodye. + + 260. And doun from thennes faste he gan avyse + This litel spot of erthe, that with the see 1815 + Enbraced is, and fully gan despyse + This wrecched world, and held al vanitee + To respect of the pleyn felicitee + That is in hevene above; and at the laste, + Ther he was slayn, his loking doun he caste; 1820 + + 261. And in him-self he lough right at the wo + Of hem that wepten for his deeth so faste; + And dampned al our werk that folweth so + The blinde lust, the which that may not laste, + And sholden al our herte on hevene caste. 1825 + And forth he wente, shortly for to telle, + Ther as Mercurie sorted him to dwelle.-- + + 262. Swich fyn hath, lo, this Troilus for love, + Swich fyn hath al his grete worthinesse; + Swich fyn hath his estat real above, 1830 + Swich fyn his lust, swich fyn hath his noblesse; + Swich fyn hath false worldes brotelnesse. + And thus bigan his lovinge of Criseyde, + As I have told, and in this wyse he deyde. + + 263. O yonge fresshe folkes, he or she, 1835 + In which that love up groweth with your age, + Repeyreth hoom from worldly vanitee, + And of your herte up-casteth the visage + To thilke god that after his image + Yow made, and thinketh al nis but a fayre 1840 + This world, that passeth sone as floures fayre. + + 264. And loveth him, the which that right for love + Upon a cros, our soules for to beye, + First starf, and roos, and sit in hevene a-bove; + For he nil falsen no wight, dar I seye, 1845 + That wol his herte al hoolly on him leye. + And sin he best to love is, and most meke, + What nedeth feyned loves for to seke? + + 265. Lo here, of Payens corsed olde rytes, + Lo here, what alle hir goddes may availle; 1850 + Lo here, these wrecched worldes appetytes; + Lo here, the fyn and guerdon for travaille + Of Iove, Appollo, of Mars, of swich rascaille! + Lo here, the forme of olde clerkes speche + In poetrye, if ye hir bokes seche.-- 1855 + + 266. O moral Gower, this book I directe + To thee, and to the philosophical Strode, + To vouchen sauf, ther nede is, to corecte, + Of your benignitees and zeles gode. + And to that sothfast Crist, that starf on rode, 1860 + With al myn herte of mercy ever I preye; + And to the lord right thus I speke and seye: + + 267. Thou oon, and two, and three, eterne on-lyve, + That regnest ay in three and two and oon, + Uncircumscript, and al mayst circumscryve, 1865 + Us from visible and invisible foon + Defende; and to thy mercy, everichoon, + So make us, Iesus, for thy grace digne, + For love of mayde and moder thyn benigne! Amen. + +EXPLICIT LIBER TROILI ET CRISEYDIS. + +1-35. Cm. _omits_. 4. Cp. Ed. Committeth; H. Comitteth; Cl. Comytted. 8. +Ed. golde; Cl. Cp. H. gold; _read_ golden. // H2. The Auricom_us_ tressed +(!). 9. H. alle; Cl. Cp. al. // H2. shene; _rest_ clere; cf. ii. 920, iv. +1432. 11. H. a-yeyn; Cl. a-yen. 12. H. sone (_glossed_ Troilus). 13. H. +hire (_glossed_ i. Criseyde). 14. Cl. o morwe; Cp. H. a morwe. 16. Cl. for +to; _rest om._ for. 18. Cp. H. nyste; _rest_ nyst. 20. Cl. wyst. 21. Cl. +_om._ a. 22. Cp. H. reed; Cl. red. 26. Cl. here by fore. 27. Cl. farewel +now. 29. Cp. bood; Cl. bod; _rest_ bode. 31. Cl. H. Cp. Ed. sene; H2. sen. +33. Cl. houede. // Cl. H. Cp. tabyde; _rest_ to abide. 37. Cm. H2. Ed. +horse; _rest_ hors. 40. Cl. do it; _rest om._ do. 41. Cl. onys. 41, 42. H2. +deye, dreye. 43. Cl. onys. 44. Cl. y-nowh. 51. Cp. Ed. H. Cm. liste. // Cl. +lyst. 52. alwey] Cl. alweys; Cp. H. alweyes. 58. Cp. H. sighte; Cl. sight; +Cm. syhede. 60. Cp. rit; H. rite (_for_ rit); H2. ritte; Ed. rydeth; Cl. +right(!). 62. Cl. that though. 64. Cl. curtasie. 66. Cl. H. compaynye. 80. +Cl. Cm. ner, rod; Cp. H. neer, rood. 82. she] Cp. Cm. he. 85. Cl. he al; +_rest om._ al. 88. Cl. Ed. toke. 99. Cl. ynowh. 105. _So_ Cp. H.; Cl. That +she shal not as yet wete what. 109. Cl. desese. 117. Cl. H. Cp. H2. preyde; +Ed. prayde; Cm. preyede. 120. Cl. thenketh (_badly_). 122. H2. Troiaunes; +Cl. H. Cp. Ed. Troians; _read_ Troian-es. 124. Cl. Cm. _om._ if. 127. Cl. +An. 133. Cl. Cm. to; _rest_ vn-to. 135. Cl. take. 138. Cl. Cm. to amenden; +Cp. H. tamende; _rest_ to amende. 151. Cm. But be this; (this = this is). +154. Cl. H2. aboue; _rest_ abouen. 155. Cl. H. borne; Cp. Ed. Cm. born. +164. or] Cl. of; Cp. er. 170. Cl. feyr; _see_ 172. 172. Cm. myghte; Cl. Cp. +H. myght. 174. Cl. you to; _rest om._ to. 176. Ed. H. Cp. lyte; _rest_ +litel. 180. Cl. hert; Cp. H. Cm. herte. 182. of] Cl. on. 185. H. H2. liste; +Cl. Cp. lyst. 186. Cp. Cm. good; Cl. H. goode. 189. H. shalighte. 194. Cl. +mewet; Cp. H. muwet; Ed. muet. 199. Cl. _om._ face. 202. Cl. went; toke. +206. Cm. frentyk. 207, 8. Cl. curssed. 214. Ed. lyte; Cp. H. lite; _rest_ +litel. // Cl. Cm. a lytel his herte. 224. Cp. Ed. pilowe; H2. pillowe; H. +pilwo; _rest_ pilwe. 225. H. Cp. ayein; Cl. Cm. ayen. 226. H. leete; Cl. +Cm. let. 230. H2. endowe. 232. Cm. ryghte; Cl. Cp. H. right. 236. _Here_ +speketh = spek'th. 238. Cl. Cm. yuele. 242. Cl. tendresse. 245. Cl. in-to; +_rest_ vn-to. 246. Cl. fill; ony. 247. Cl. by-gonne; _rest_ by-gynne. 249. +mete] H2. dreme. // Cl. as he; _rest om._ as. 255. Cl. tremor; _rest_ +tremour. 263. Cl. Cp. H. seine; Ed. sayne; Cm. H2. sey. 268. Cl. peyne; +_rest_ pyne. 273. Cl. thenke. 275. H2. y-waxen; Cl. H. Ed. y-woxen. 277. +Cl. wonted; Cm. wone; _rest_ wont(e); _read_ woned. 280. Cl. H. sente. 288. +Cp. H. Cm. deuyne; Cl. dyuyne. 290. Cl. peyne. 297. Cp. H. Ed. lyuen; Cl. +lyue. 308. Cl. Cp. H. yef; Ed. yeue; _rest_ yif. 315. Cm. H2. prey; _rest_ +preyen. // Cl. Cp. Ed. to kepe; _rest om._ to. 319. Ed. hyght; Cm. highte; +Cl. hatte; Cp. H. hette. // Ed. Ascaphylo (i.e. Ascalaphus); Cl. Cp. +Escaphilo; H. esciphilo; Cm. H2. eschaphilo. 320. Cp. thise; Cm. Ed. these; +Cl. H. this. 327. Cm. red; _rest_ rede. 329. Cl. late; Cp. H. lat; _rest_ +let; _read_ lete. // Cp. worthen; Cl. worthe; H2. worth; _rest_ worchen. +330. Cp. Ed. tel; _rest_ telle. // Cl. nowe. 331. Cl. Cm. ony. 334. gon] +Cm. forgon. 335, 336. H. care, fare. 348. Cm. H2. on-; Cl. Cp. H. o-; Ed. +a-. 352. Cl. fond; _rest_ fonde. 353. Cp. H. nought (_for_ not). // Ed. H2. +to abyde. // Cm. is not so longe to on-byde. 354. Cp. H. Ed. comen; _rest_ +come. 355. Cl. nyl not; _rest om._ not. 356. Cm. dred; _rest_ drede. 357. +Cp. H. ayein; Cl. Cm. a-yen. 360. Cl. Cm. proceden. 362. _Read_ all' +swev'nés. 368. Cl. Cp. H. Ed. infernals; _rest_ infernal. 369. Cl. seynt +(!). 378. Cl. lef; _rest_ leue. 380. Cl. foweles; H. fowelis. 382. Cl. +owlys. 383. Cl. foule; Cp. H. Cm. foul. 385. Cl. shad (!). 387, 389, 390. +H. Cp. foryiue, dryue, lyue; Cl. foryeue, dreue, leue. 398. Cl. foyete; Cp. +H. foryete. // Ed. or; _rest_ oure. 403. Cl. hens; Cp. H. hennes. 409. Ed. +rouken (_wrongly_). 410. Cl. thow trust; _rest om._ thow. 413. Cl. dar. +414. Cl. answered; Cp. Cm. Ed. answerde. 421. Cl. Cp. Cm. fyn; _rest_ fyne. +423. Cl. sacrefise. 425. Cl. foule; H. fowl; Cm. foul. 428. Cp. H. reed; +Cl. Cm. red. 438. Cl. H. cost; _rest_ coste. 440. Ed. moste; H2. most; Cl. +Cm. meste; H. meest. // Cl. _om._ eek. 441. Cl. ony. 443. Cl. Cp. H. +thorugh; Ed. through. 444. Cl. ony. 446. Cl. as; _rest_ at. 447. H. Nof. +448. Cp. Ie; H2. ye; _rest_ eye. 451. Cp. pietous; H. pietus; _rest_ +pitous. 455. Cl. gladyn; Cp. glade; Cl. H. Ed. glad. // Cl. Cp. festenynge +(_for_ festeiynge = festeyinge); _rest_ feestynge (festyng). 456. Cl. +laydyes. 459. Cl. ony; H2. an; _rest_ on. 464. Cl. _om._ him. 466. Cl. Cp. +Ed. there; _rest_ here. 468. Cl. Cp. H. maze; _rest_ mase. 469. Cl. Cp. +howue; Ed. houe; H. howen. // Cl. Cp. H. glaze; _rest_ glase. 470. Cl. old. +473. Cl. Ed. shap and; _rest om._ and. 475. H. droofe; Cl. Cp. Cm. drof. // +Cp. H. tanende. 479. Ed. H2. conueyen. 480. Cl. tok; _rest_ toke. 483. nil] +Cl. wol. 484. Cl. answered; H. Cp. Ed. answerde. // Cl. heder; H. hyder; +Cp. H2. hider. 485. Cl. a-yen. 488. Cl. ony. 489. Cl. hens; Cp. H. hennes. +490. Cl. vilonye. 491. Cl. H. wold. 492. Cm. wouke; Cl. Cp. H. wowke; Ed. +weke. 498. H2. alle; _rest_ al. 499. Cm. woukis; Cl. Cp. wykes; H. Ed. +wekes. // Cl. H. end. 503. H. fynden; Cl. Cp. Cm. fynde. 506. Cl. H. +sobrelich; _rest_ softely (softly). 510. Cp. H. bihighte; Cl. byhight. 513. +Cl. Cm. of here; _rest om._ here. 515. Cl. _om._ it. 519. Cm. Cp. Ed. H2. +On; Cl. H. O. 520. Cp. tabrayde; H. to breyde; _rest_ to abreyde. 523. H. +Ed. H2. As; Cl. So; Cm. _om._ 528. Cl. Criseyde; _rest_ Criseydes. 530. Cl. +Cm. brast. 531. Cl. dorres sperid. 533. Cp. Cm. H2. war; _rest_ ware. 538. +god] Cl. gold. 548. Cl. Cm. with the; _rest om._ the. 550. Cp. John. lisse; +H2. hisse(!); _rest_ blisse. 553. which] Cl. whom. 554. H. ye; H2. yee; +_rest_ eye. 561. Cl. Cm. H2. thens; Cp. thennes; H. tennes(!). 565. Cl. +yende; _rest_ yonder; _see_ 573. 567. Cm. caughte, righte; _rest_ kaught, +right. 568, 569, 571. Cl. yender; _see_ 575. 579. Cl. thenketh; _rest_ +thinketh. 583. Cm. myn; H2. my; _rest om._ (_read_ memórie). 584. Cl. +waryed; Cp. wereyed; H2. weryhed; _rest_ weryed (_read_ werreyed = +werréy'd). 593. Cl. leue; Cm. lyf; _rest_ lyue. // Cl. _om._ in. 594. Ed. +ne aske; Cl. Cp. H. naxe; _rest_ ne axe. 599. Cl. lorde; cruwel. 605. Cp. +H. Ed. wente; _rest_ went. 607. Cl. hens; Cp. H. hennes. 609. Cl. in; Ed. +to; _rest_ in-to. 610. Cp. hille; H. hill_e_; Cl. hill; Cm. hil. 614. Cp. +H. hider; Cl. heder. 616. H. seen; Cl. se. 617. Cl. Ed. woxen. 618. Cl. Cp. +H. defet; Cm. defect; Ed. defayted (_om._ and). 631. Cl. hise. 632. Cm. The +enchesoun. 636. Cm. Ed. softe; Cl. Cp. H. soft. 637. Cl. gan to; _rest om._ +to. // Cl. syngen; _rest_ singe (syng). 639. Cp. H. soore; Cl. Cm. sor. +641. H2. and stere; Cm. on sterid; Cl. Cp. H. in stere. // Ed. I stere and +sayle. 643. The] Cl. Thi. 644. Caribdis H2.; Cp. Carikdis; _rest_ Caribdes. +653. Cp. H. hennes; Cl. hens. // Cm. bryghte; _rest_ right. 655. Cm. Cp. +bryghte; _rest_ bright. // Cl. lathona; Ed. Lucyna; _rest_ latona; _see_ +iv. 1591. 657. Cl. whanne. 658. she] Cl. he; H2. ye. // my] Cl. me. 659. +Cm. Ed. H2. day is; _rest_ dayes. 662. was] Cl. is. 669. yonder] Cl. H2. +yender. 670. Cl. Cp. tho; _rest_ the. // Cl. tenten (!). 671. Cp. H. +thennes; Cl. thens. 675. Cl. It is. 686. Ed. Cp. Cm. stynten; H. stenten; +_rest_ stynte. 693. Cl. it is; _rest om._ it. 695. Cl. ought; Ed. aught; +_rest_ nought (naught). 696. Cp. H. H2. Ed. pace. 701. Cp. Cm. putte; +_rest_ put. 702. and] Cl. an. 703. Cl. _om._ I. // Cp. Ed. Cm. holde; Cl. +H. hold. 711. Ther] Cl. The. // H2. Cm. ther; _rest om._ 708. Cm. I-waxen; +Cl. H. Ed. y-woxen. 713-719. Cm. _omits_. 715. Cl. syked; _om._ eek. 716. +Ed. purtrayeng; H2. portering; Cl. portraynge; H. portreynge; Cp. +purtrayng. 720. woful] Cl. ful. 722. Cp. cruel; Cl. H. cruwel; Cm. crewel. +723. Cp. Ed. compleynen; _rest_ compleyne. 725. _All_ wepte (_but see_ +wopen _in_ 724). 726. MSS. teris. 729. Cl. Cp. rowfully; Ed. rewfully; Cm. +reufully. 733. Cl. H. tho yonder; _rest om._ tho. // Cp. H2. walles; _rest_ +wallys. 734. O] Cl. Of (!). // Cp. H. dostow; Cm. dost thou; Cl. dost. 735. +whether] Cl. wher. 744. three] Cl. two. 751. H. weste; _rest_ west. 752. +Cl. stelen. // Cl. Ed. on; H2. by; _rest_ in. 753, 4. H. H2. leste, beste; +_rest_ lest, best. 756. on] Cm. of. 757. Cl. wold. 758. H. Ed. rulen; Cm. +H2. reule; Cp. reulen; Cl. rewelyn (_for_ rewlen). 759. Cl. Cm. _om._ Ne. +// Cp. H. Cm. thryuen; Cl. thryue. 760. Cl. somme han blamed; _rest_ that +(at) som men blamen. 764. Cl. ony. 765. Cl. for my; _rest om._ my. 769. Cp. +Cm. knotteles; _rest_ knotles. 770. Ed. H2. to abyde. 774. Cl. Cm. short; +_rest_ shortest. 780. Cp. H. thennes; Cl. Cm. thens. 781. Cl. laughen. 782. +H2. to accoy. 784. Cl. H. Cp. nassayeth; _rest_ assayeth. // Cl. Cp. H. +nacheueth; Cm. ne cheueth; _rest_ acheueth. 787. Cl. _om._ of. 790. For] +Cl. As. // Cl. wys; H. Cp. Cm. Ed. wyse. 800. Cl. H. corageus. 805. Ed. +Calcidony. 808. Cp. Cm. myghte; Cl. H. myght. 809. Cl. H. oft; _rest_ ofte. +812. Cl. Cm. thred; _rest_ threde. // Cl. H. wold. 815. Cl. H2. speke; +_rest_ speken. 817. Cl. formede. // H. H2. yen; _rest_ eyen. 821. Cm. +I-norschid. 827. Cm. waxen; H2. waxe; _rest_ woxen. 834. Cp. H. y-founde; +_rest_ founde. 837. Cp. H. duryng; Cl. dorryng; Cm. dorynge to; Ed. daryng; +(_best_ durring). // Cl. Cp. don; _rest_ do. 840. Cp. durre; H. durre to; +Cl. dorre; Cm. dore; Ed. dare. // Cl. Cp. Cm. don; Ed. done; H. do. 845. +Cl. a (_for_ as). 846. Cm. Cp. H2. done; Cl. don. 849. H. by hire hym; Cm. +by hire; _rest_ hym by here. 850. Cl. y-nowh. 851. longe] // Cl. more. 856. +H2. Betwixe; Cl. Cp. H. Ed. Bytwyxen. 860. H. Cp. Cm. axen. 867. Cl. +Answered. 868. Cp. H. Ed. wiste; Cl. wist. 872. Cl. thenketh. 879. Cl. ony. +880. Cp. H. Sholden; Ed. Shulden; _rest_ Sholde. 882. Cl. H2. dredles; +_rest_ dredeles. 885. Cl. Ed. Fro. // Cp. H. thennes; Cl. Cm. thens. 888. +to] Cm. for. 891, 895. Cp. H. hennes; Cm. henys; Cl. hens. 895. H. Cp. Ed. +to rauysshen any; Cm. to rauych ony; H2. to rauissh_e_ any; Cl. the +rauesshynge of a. 896. Cl. Cm. ben; _rest_ be. 898. Cl. H. sleye; _rest_ +slye. 909. Cp. H. Cm. grete; Cl. gre (!). 912. Cl. an. 916. Cl. brough. +920. Cl. ony. 924. Cp. Ed. be; Cm. ben; H. ben a; _rest_ the. 925. Ed. +reed; Cl. Cm. red. 926. Cp. quook; H. quooke; Cl. Cm. quok. 927. Cl. cast a +litel wight a syde. 931. Cl. ony. 934. Of] Cl. O. // Ed. Calcidony. 938. +H2. Polymites; Cm. Polymyght; _rest_ Polymyte. 942. Cl. I shal; _rest om._ +I. // Cp. H. Ed. H2. lyue; Cl. lyuen. 945. Cl. tel. 950. Cp. H. speken; Cl. +Cm. speke. 952. Cp. H2. to hym she; Cl. H. Ed. she to hym. 954. H. Cp. Ed. +it noon; Cl. H2. non it. 970. _All but_ Cp. H. _om._ 1_st_ and. 971. Cl. +an. 977. now] Cl. here. 982. Cl. ony. 986. Cl. done. 987. Cl. to pleye; +_rest om._ to. 989. Cp. bisy; H. bysi; Cm. besi; Ed. H2. besy; Cl. ben. +997. Cl. H. com. 999. Cl. _om._ hir. // heres] H. eres; Cm. eyyn. 1003. Cm. +Ne I; Cp. H. Ny; Cl. H2. Ed. Ne. 1005. Cl. ther-with (_om._ al). // eyen] +Cl. ey. 1006. Troye] Cl. Ed. Troilus and Troye(!); H. Troilus(!). 1010. al] +Cl. as. // Cl. a-yen. 1013. Cl. wich. 1014. Cm. waxen; H2. waxe; _rest_ +woxen. 1016. Cl. folewede. 1018. Ed. Cythera. 1032. Cl. shorly; _om._ that; +tales. 1033. Cl. Cm. H2. _put_ he _before_ spak. // Ed. selfe; _rest_ self. +1034. Cl. sore sykes. 1036. Cp. refte; Cl. reste (_for_ refte); H2. rafte; +H. ref. (_for_ refte); Ed. lefte; Cm. reuyth. // Cl. Cp. H. (1_st_) of; H2. +all; _rest om._ 1039. Ed. she; _rest_ he; _see note_. // Cl. onys. 1043. +Cl. Cp. Ed. pencel; _rest_ pensel. 1044. Cp. H. the; _rest om._ 1045. Cl. +thorugh. 1046. Cm. wep; _rest_ wepte. 1048. Cl. _om._ kepen. 1049. Cm. +hele; H2. helpe; _rest_ helen. 1053. Cl. falsede. 1056. Cl. falsede on; +gentilest. 1057. Cl. Thas; on; worthyest. 1060. word] Cl. wood. 1062. Cl. +Thorugh ought. 1070. Cl. _om._ for. // Cm. H2. _om._ me. 1077. Cl. Cp. +lady; Ed. H2. ladyes; _rest om._ 1079. Cp. Ed. Cm. ne; Cl. H. to; H2. _om._ +1081. H2. might I; Cl. Cm. myghty(!); Ed. shulde I; Cp. sholde I; H. shold +I. 1083. _So all._ 1084. Cl. giltles. 1085. Cl. Ed. And; _rest_ But. 1089. +Cl. H. Tak. // Cl. Cm. hise. 1090. Cp. H. Ed. fynden; Cl. fynd; _rest_ +fynde. 1091. Cp. H. Ed. that; _rest om._ // Cl. Cm. gan; _rest_ bigan. +1094. the] Cl. this. 1095. H2. Ed. publisshed; _rest_ punisshed(!). 1096. +oughte] Cl. out. 1097. Cl. ony. 1098. Cl. H. _om._ so. 1100. Cl. tolde. +1102. Cp. hoot; Cl. Cm. hot; _rest_ hote (=hoot). 1109. H2. warme; _rest_ +warmen. // _All_ est; _read_ th'est. 1113. Cl. _om._ of. 1114. Cp. noon; +Cm. non; _rest_ noone (none); see 1122. 1118. Cl. here; _rest_ his. 1123. +Cl. Cm. _om._ here. 1125. Cl. twinnen; _rest_ winnen. 1128. Cl. answered. +1130. Cl. thanne; a-yen. 1133. Cl. Cp. H. cape; _rest_ gape. 1139. H. +portou_r_s; Cp. Ed. H2. porters; Cl. Cm. porterys. 1140. Cl. H2. holde; +_rest_ holden. 1142. H2. comth; H. Cm. cometh; Cl. Cp. come; Ed. came. +1147. hir] Cl. his. 1153. Cl. Cp. Ed. H. whan that; _rest om._ that. 1155. +Cl. not to; _rest om._ to. 1156. H. nought; Cp. Ed. naught; _rest_ not. // +Cp. Ed. H. Cm. for; _rest om._ 1161. Ed. H2. art; _rest_ arte. 1162. fare] +Ed. farre; H2. soory. // _All_ carte. 1170. Cl. y-nowh. 1176. Ed. ferne; +Cl. H. fern; Cp. farn. 1179. hem] Cl. hym. 1180. Cm. H2. Ed. muste; Cp. +moste; Cl. H. most. // Cl. beuen (_for_ bleuen); H2. beleue. 1181. Ed. +within the; Cl. Cp. H2. with-inne the; _rest_ with-inne. 1184. H. Ed. +gladded; Cl. Cp. gladed. 1191. Cl. holden. 1197. Cl. ony. 1198. Cl. is +fledde; _rest om._ is. 1201. Cl. Cm. hise. 1203. Cl. Cp. nyst; H. Cm. +nyste. // Cl. myght; Cp. H. myghte. 1204. Cl. byhyght; Cp. H. bihighte. +1205. Cl. H2. fifthe; _rest_ fifte. // Cp. H. Cm. H2. sexte. 1206. of] Cm. +the; Cl. _om._ 1209. hir] Cl. he. 1211. Cl. _om._ for to. 1213. Cl. þe +wode; _rest om._ the. 1215. Cl. H. wold. 1217. Cl. compaignye. 1219. Ed. +defayte. 1223. Cl. Iire. // Cp. _omits_ 1233-74. 1224. Cp. H. H2. axed; Ed. +asked; Cm. axe; Cl. asketh. 1235. Cl. welk; H. welke; _rest_ walked. 1239. +Cm. slep; _rest_ slepte. 1248. Cl. ony. 1249. Cl. ellis. 1250. Cl. thorugh. +1256. Cl. Iust; H. Cm. Ed. Iuste. 1259. _So_ Cl.; H. eseuraunce; _rest_ +assuraunce. 1263. Cl. trowen; ony. 1266. _All_ bigile (begile). 1272. Ed. +slowe; Cl. slowh; H2. sloo; H. slewe. // Ed. than alway; Cl. H. H2. alwey +than. // Cm. My_n_ self to sle than thus alwey. // Cl. compleyne; _rest_ to +pleyne. 1275. Cl. answerede. 1278. folk] Cl. men. 1279. Cl. dastow. 1285. +Ed. on; H2. in; Cl. Cp. H. o; Cm. a. 1288. Cl. a-righ. 1289. Cm. thanne; +_rest_ than. 1292. Cl. can. 1293. Cl. thow a lettre here. 1294. Cl. H2. +brynge. 1298. Cm. H2. trowe; _rest_ trowen. 1300. Cl. wheyther. // Cl. Cm. +ony. 1301. Cl. ellys. 1302. Cl. And yf; _rest om._ And. 1303. Cp. writen; +Cl. H2. wreten; Cm. wrete; H. writon. 1305. Cl. The (_for_ Ther). 1310. Cl. +H2. Accorded; _rest_ Acorded. 1317. Cl. Cp. H. ben haue. 1324. Cl. H2. +wite; Cp. witen; H. wyten; Ed. weten. 1336. Cl. terys. 1342. Cl. _om._ my. +1343. Cl. Cp. H. masterte (_for_ me asterte). 1345. Cl. ony. 1345-1428. H. +_omits_. 1347. Cl. ought; Cp. Cm. oughte. 1348. Cl. Cm. monethes. 1350. Cl. +Ed. ten dayes. 1351. Cl. Cm. monethes. // Cl. retorne. 1352. me] Cl. I. +1354. Cm. sikis I sike. 1357. Cl. H2. it youre wil; Ed. Cm. your wyl it. +1363. Cl. _om._ to. // Cl. mot; Cp. moot; _rest_ mote. 1364. up-on] Cl. on. +1365. Cl. Cp. yow; _rest_ to yow. 1368. Cl. chyste; Cp. chiste; _rest_ +cheste. 1374. Cl. wellys. 1374, 6. Cm. waxen; Cl. Ed. woxen. 1376. Cp. Ed. +Cm. harm; _rest_ harme. 1377. Cl. ellys. 1386. Cl. Cp. Commeue; Ed. Can +meuen; Cm. Remeue; H2. Remorde. 1388. more] Cl. maner. 1393. Cl. Ther; H2. +The (_for_ Ther); _rest_ That. 1394. Cl. dothe. 1397. Cl. Wit. 1398. Ed. +Cm. disporte. 1400. or] Cl. er. // Cp. H2. Ed. deliuereth; _rest_ deliuere. +1410. Cl. we ether (_for_ whether). 1412. _Read_ far'th. 1415. Cl. but +that; _rest_ that but. 1420. Cl. dyshese. 1421. Cp. Ed. _add_--Le vostre +T.; _see l._ 1631. 1424. Cl. wrote a-yen. 1428. Cm. Ed. nyste; _rest_ nyst. +1430. Cp. swerth. _Read_ swer'th, lov'th; Ed. swore she loued. 1440. Cl. +slep; H. slepe. // Cm. ne no word he ne seyde; _rest_ ne word (worde) +seyde; _where_ worde = word he. 1442. Cl. wax; H. Cp. Cm. wex. 1444. come] +Cl. ek. 1446. _Read_ out of? 1448. Cl. vntrothe. // his] Cl. here. 1461. +Cl. thorugh.] 1462. Cl. & ek of; _rest om._ ek. 1464. Cl. _om._ wrooth. +1466. H. Nencens. 1468. Cm. Wrok; H2. Venged. // Cl. cruwel. 1469. Cl. Cp. +H. grete; Cm. H2. gret. 1473. Cl. _om._ the. 1475. Cp. H. Ed. mayden; +_rest_ mayde. 1480. Cl. _om._ And. // Cl. descendede. 1482. But] Cl. H. +And. 1484. Cl. were it. [LATIN. 2. Cl. doceat; _rest_ docet. // Cl. +insideas. 3. Cl. Cp. H. H2. Hemoduden; Cm. sinoduden; Ed. Hermodien; _read_ +Hemoniden (Theb. iii. 42). 9. Ed. -peo; H. -pes; _rest_ -pea. 10. Cl. +Flumine; _rest_ Fulmine. 12. Ed. Argiuam; _rest_ Argiua.] 1485. Cl. H. +told; _rest_ tolde. 1486. Cl. strong; _rest_ stronge. 1491. Cp. Ed. H2. +tolde; _rest_ told. // Cp. Ed. H. by; Cl. the; Cm. on. 1493. H. Ed. H2. +slough; Cl. slowh; Cm. slow. 1499. Cl. H. burynge; Cp. H2. burying; Ed. +buryeng; Cm. brenynge. 1500. Cp. H. Ed. fil; Cl. ful; Cm. fel. 1501. Cp. H. +Ed. Argeyes; Cl. Cm. Argeys. 1502. Cl. _om._ how. // in] Cl. y. 1508. Cp. +scarmuche; H. scarmyche; H2. Ed. scarmisshe; Cl. scarmych. // Cl. slowh; +Cp. H. slough. 1515. Cl. Meleagree. 1516. so] Cl. that. 1517. Cl. H. is; +_rest_ his. 1518. Ed. leaue. 1521. Cl. Cp. H. fals. 1522. Cm. gret; _rest_ +grete. 1523. Cl. seystow; Cp. H. sestow; Ed. seest thou; H2. sest thou. // +Cl. fol; Cp. H. Cm. fool. 1528. Cl. _om._ was. 1534. Cl. cruwel. 1537. Cp. +y-mad; H. H2. Ed. ymade; Cl. made; Cm. mad. 1540. Cp. Cl. H. dryeth; _rest_ +dryueth. 1542. Cp. H2. hire; Ed. her; _rest_ here. 1543. Cl. Cp. Thorugh. +1544. Cp. H2. flitted; Cl. H. fletted. 1546. brighte] Cl. out. 1552. Cl. +_om._ him. 1555. Cl. H. thenketh. 1558. Cm. H2. the auentayle. 1559. Cl. +Achille thorugh. 1563. Cl. may it. 1567. Cl. Cp. H2. _om. 2nd_ for. 1573. +Cl. a-yen. 1576. Cl. Cm. gret. 1577. Cl. Cp. H2. Hym self; _rest_ Hym +seluen. // Ed. Cm. disgyse; Cp. desgise; Cl. H. degyse. 1582. Cl. Cp. wep; +_rest_ wepte. 1585. Cm. H2. (_1st_) that; _rest om._ 1586. _All_ That she; +_I omit_ That. 1588. Cl. _om._ al. 1598. Cp. pietee; Cm. pete; _rest_ pite. +1601. Cl. a-yen. // Cp. H. Ed. ne; _rest om._ 1602. Cl. Cm. _om._ that. +1607. Cl. nys not; _rest om._ not. 1608. Cl. H. thenketh. 1615. Cl. _om._ +How. 1618. _All_ Come (Com). 1618. Cl. Cm. H2. disioynt. 1623. Cl. _om._ +that. 1625. Cl. Cp. H. an; _rest_ on. // Cl. yuyl. Cl. H2. that ye; _rest +om._ that. 1629. Cl. Of; _rest_ Eek. 1630. H. H2. The entente. 1631. H. Ed. +_add_--La vostre C. 1632. _So_ Cp. H.; Cl. This lettre this Troilus. 1634. +Cl. Cp. Ed. kalendes; H. kalendas; Cm. kalendis. // Ed. eschaunge. 1636. +Cl. now; _rest_ ne. 1640. Cl. Cm. ony. 1643. Cl. trewe; _rest_ kynde. 1645. +been] Cl. gon. 1651. Cl. arme (_for_ armure). 1652. Cp. H. Biforn; Ed. +Beforne; _rest_ Byfore. 1653. Cl. H. which. 1661. Cl. broch; _rest_ broche. +1664. Cl. a-yen. 1667. Cl. forth hom; _rest om._ forth. 1669. _All_ word +_or_ worde (_put for_ ord). 1674. Cl. Cm. Thanne. 1681. Cl. other; _rest_ +othes. 1684. and] Cl. or. 1685. Cl. cruwel. 1688. Cm. leste. 1694. Cp. H. +Ed. Cm. shewen; Cl. shewe. 1697. Cl. Cp. H. Cm. with-inne; _rest_ with-in. +1701. Cl. Cm. ony. 1702-1869. _Lost in_ Cm. 1708. on] Cp. H. Ed. of. 1709. +H2. Pandar_e_; _rest_ Pandarus. 1711. Cl. thow; _rest_ thee. // Cl. lyst; +Cp. H. H2. Ed. liste. 1715. Cl. slep; drem. 1717. Cl. hensforth; Cp. H. +hennes forth. 1719. Cp. H. Ed. be the; Cl. H2. by this. 1724. Cl. H. wist. +1725. Cl. a-yen; answerede. 1728. Ed. H2. astonyed. 1730. Cl. last. 1731. +Cl. dere brother. 1735. un-to] Cl. to. 1736, 7. Cl. dede. 1740. Cl. +dredles. 1745. hir] Cl. his. 1751. Cl. cruwel. 1755. Cl. H2. dredles. 1756. +Cl. cruwely. 1760. Cp. H. Ed. weren; Cl. were. 1761. Cl. cruwel. 1765. Cl. +wryten. 1767. Cl. wold; hise; battayles (_read_ batail-lès). 1769. H2. that +(_for_ as); _rest_ seyd as I can; _read_ as that. 1770. Cl. Hese. 1771. Cl. +H. Red; _rest_ Rede. 1774. Ed. Al be it that. 1777. _All_ write. 1778. Cl. +goode. 1779. Cp. H. Ny (_for_ Ne I). 1780. Ed. betrayed. 1783. Ed. +Betrayen. 1787. Cl. makere. 1788. Ed. make; _rest_ make in; (_read_ maken +?). 1789. Cl. Cp. H. nenuye; H2. enuye. // Ed. make thou none enuye. 1791. +Cl. ther-as. // Cl. Ed. pace; _rest_ space. 1792. Ed. Of Vergil; _rest om._ +Of. 1798. Cl. Cp. _om._ I; _rest_ god I; _but read_ I god. 1799. Cl. +rathere. 1802. Cl. thousandys hese. 1803. Cl. ony. 1806. Cl. slowh. // H2. +fers. 1807-1827. _Not in_ H2. 1809. Ed. holownesse; Cl. holwghnesse; Cp. H. +holughnesse. // _All_ seuenthe. 1810. Cl. lettynge; H. letynge; Cp. Ed. +letyng. 1812. Cl. Th (_for_ The). 1814. Cp. H. thennes; Cl. thens. 1824. +Cl. _om._ that. 1825. Ed. shulden; H. Cp. sholden; Cl. shuld. 1843. Cl. +cros; Cp. H. crois. 1849. rytes] Cl. vyces. 1852. Cl. trauayle. 1853. Ed. +and (_for 3rd_ of). 1855. Cl. _om._ ye. 1856. Cp. book; _rest_ boke +(booke). 1857. Cl. H. _om._ to. 1859. Cp. Ed. goode; H. H2. good; Cl. +garde. 1862. Cl. _om._ to. 1867. Cl. eurychon. 1868. Cl. grace; _rest_ +mercy. COLOPHON: _So_ H.; Cl. _has_ Criseide; Cp. Explicit Liber Troily. + + + + +NOTES TO BOETHIUS. + + +BOOK I. + +METRE 1. In order to elucidate the English text, I frequently quote the +original Latin, usually from the text of T. Obbarius, Jena, 1843. See +further in the Introduction. + +3. _rendinge_, Lat. 'lacerae'; rather rent, or tattered. The sense +'rending' occurs in Ovid, Met. viii. 880. + +6. _that is to seyn._ The words in italics are not in the original, but +were added by Chaucer as explanatory. Throughout the treatise, I print all +such passages in italics. + +8. _werdes_, 'weirds,' fate. + + 'Gloria felicis olim uiridisque iuuentae + Solantur maesti nunc mea fata senis.' + +12. _slake_, better _slakke_; cf. Cant. Ta. E. 1849. _empted_, 'effeto.' +MS. C. has _emty_. + +13. _in yeres ... swete_: 'dulcibus annis.' + +14. _y-cleped_, invoked; 'uocata,' sc. 'mors.' Cf. Troilus, iv. 503. + +16. _naiteth_, refuseth; 'negat.' Icel. _neita_, to say nay. + +17. _lighte_, i.e. transitory; 'leuibus ... bonis.' The gloss 'sc. +temporels' (in A) gives the right sense. _sc._ = scilicet, namely; the form +_temporels_ is the French plural. + +18, 19. _But now_: + + 'Nunc quia fallacem mutauit nubila uultum, + Protrahit ingratas impia uita moras.' + +The translation _unagreable dwellinges_ is an unhappy one. + +22. _in stedefast degree_, in a secure position; 'stabili ... gradu.' + +With regard to the last sentence, Mr. Stewart remarks, in his essay on +Boethius, that Chaucer here 'actually reproduces the original Latin metre,' +i.e. a hexameter and pentameter. The true M. E. pronunciation must, for +this purpose, be entirely neglected; which amounts to saying that Chaucer +must have been profoundly unconscious of any such intention. + +PROSE 1. 2. _and markede_: 'querimoniamque lacrimabilem stili officio +designarem.' Hence _markede_ is 'wrote down'; and _pointel_ refers to the +_stilus_. Cf. Som. Tale, D 1742. _with office_, by the use (of). + +6. _empted_, exhausted; 'inexhausti uigoris.' Of course the woman here +described is _Philosophia_. + +9. _doutous_; 'statura discretionis ambiguae.' + +12. _heef_, heaved; A. S. _h[=o]f_. In Layamon, _hof_, _haf_, _heaf_. I put +_heef_ for _hef_, because the _e_ is long. + +13. _so that_: 'respicientiumque hominum frustrabatur intuitum.' + +14. _delye_ (so in both MSS.) = _deli-[=e]_, O. F. _deliè_ (see Cotgrave), +delicate, thin, slender, from Lat. _delicatus_, with the usual loss of _c_ +between two vowels and before the accented syllable; Lat. 'tenuissimis +filis.' + +After _crafte_ it would have been better to insert _and_; Lat. +'indissolubili_que_ materiâ.' But some MSS., including C., omit _que_. + +18. _as it is wont_: 'ueluti fumosas imagines solet.' + +21. _a Grekissh P_; i.e. [PI]. _a Grekissh T_; i.e. [THETA], not [TAU]; the +Greek [theta] being pronounced as _t_ in Latin. The reference is to [Greek: +philosophia praktikê kai theôrêtikê]; in Latin, Philosophia Actiua et +Contemplatiua; i. e. Practical (or Active) and Theoretical (or +Contemplative) Philosophy. This is the same distinction as that between the +_Vita Actiua_ and _Vita Contemplatiua_, so common in medieval literature; +see note (3) to the Sec. Non. Tale, G 87; and note to P. Plowman, B. vi. +251. + +26. _corven_, cut, cut away pieces from; Lat. 'sciderant.' + +33. _cruel_, i. e. stern; 'toruis.' + +34. _thise comune_: 'has scenicas meretriculas.' + +39. _no-thing fructefyinge_; 'infructuosis.' Hence we may perhaps prefer to +read _no-thing fructuous_, as in Caxton and Thynne. + +41. _holden_: 'hominumque mentes assuefaciunt morbo, non liberant.' + +45. _for-why_, because (very common); seldom interrogative. + +47. _me_, from me; and, in fact, Caxton and Thynne read _from me_ or _fro +me_. The forms _Eleaticis_, &c. are due to the Lat. text--'Eleaticis atque +Academicis studiis.' He should rather have said--'scoles of Elea and of the +Academie.' The _Eleatici philosophi_ were the followers of Zeno of Elea +(Zeno Eleates, born about B. C. 488 at Elea (Velia) in Italy), and the +favourite disciple of Parmenides (who is expressly mentioned in Book iii. +pr. 12, l. 143). The Academic philosophers were followers of Plato. + +49. _mermaidenes_; Lat. 'Sirenes,' Sirens; cf. N. P. Tale, B 4461, and +note. + +_til it be at the laste_; a false translation. Rather _unto destruction_; +'usque in exitium.' But, instead of _exitium_, MS. C. has _exitum_. + +55. _plounged_, drowned; 'mersa.' Cf. _dreint_, Met. 2, l. 1. + +59. _ner_, nearer; comparative, not positive; 'propius.' + +METRE 2. 2. _mintinge_, intending; 'tendit ... ire.' Still in use in +Cambridgeshire. + +8. _sterres of the cold moon_: 'gelidae sidera lunae.' I suppose this means +the constellations seen by moonlight, but invisible in the day. The +expression _sidus lunae_, the moon's bright form, occurs in Pliny, Nat. +Hist. ii. 9. 6; but it is difficult to see how _sidera_ can have the same +sense, as some commentators say. + +9. _recourses_, orbits; referring to the planets. + +_y-flit_, moved or whirled along by their different spheres; alluding to +the old Ptolemaic system of astronomy, which supposed that each planet was +fastened to a revolving sphere, thus causing it to perform its orbit in a +certain time, varying in the case of each. + +_this man_: 'Comprensam [sc. stellam] in numeris uictor habebat.' + +16. _highteth_, adorns; 'ornet.' Prob. from the sb. _hight_, _hiht_ (A. S. +_hyht_), joy, delight. + +17. _fleteth_, flows (i.e. abounds); 'grauidis influat uuis.' + +20. _empted_: 'Nunc iacet effeto lumine mentis.' + +22. _fool_, i.e. foolish, witless, senseless; 'stolidam.' + +PROSE 2. 6. _armures_, i.e. defensive armour; 'arma.' + +8. _in sikernesse_: 'inuicta te firmitate tuerentur.' + +14. _litargie_; better _letargye_, i.e. lethargy. Cf. Troil. i. 730. + +19. _yplyted_, pleated into a wrinkle; 'contracta in rugam ueste.' + +METRE 3. 1. _discussed_, driven away; 'discussâ ... nocte.' + +4. _clustred_; 'glomerantur'; or 'covered with clouds,' as Chaucer says. + +5. _Chorus_, Corus, or Caurus, the north-west wind. + +6. _ploungy_, stormy, rainy; 'nimbosis ... imbribus.' + +8. _Borias_, Boreas, the north wind, from Thrace. + +9. _caves_; better _cave_, as in Caxton and Thynne; Lat. 'antro.' _beteth_; +'uerberet'; hence Chaucer's gloss. + +11. _y-shaken_, 'uibratus'; i.e. tremulous, sparkling. + +PROSE 3. 2. _took_, drew in, received light; 'hausi caelum.' + +4. _beholde_, the present tense; 'respicio.' + +10. _norry_, pupil, lit. nourished one; 'alumne.' + +11. _parten the charge_, share the burden. + +15. _redoute my blame_, fear blame. _agrysen_, shudder. + +16. _quasi diceret non_, as if she would say no; as if she expected the +answer no. This remark is often inserted by Chaucer. + +19. _Plato_; B.C. 428-347. Before his time, Solon, Anaxagoras, and +Pythagoras all met with opposition. The fate of Socrates is well known. + +21. _The heritage_: 'Cuius hereditatem cum deinceps Epicureum uulgus ac +Stoicum, ceterique pro sua quisque parte raptum ire molirentur, meque +reclamantem renitentemque uelut in partem praedae detraherent, uestem, quam +meis texueram manibus, disciderunt, abreptisque ab ea panniculis, totam me +sibi cessisse credentes abiere.' + +38. _Anaxogore_, Anaxagoras, a Greek philosopher (B.C. 500-428); exiled +from Athens (B.C. 450). + +39. _Zeno_; Zeno of Elea (see p. 420), born about B.C. 488, is said to have +risked his life to defend his country. His fate is doubtful. + +40. _Senecciens_, apparently meant for 'the followers of Seneca.' The +original has: 'at Canios, at Senecas, at Soranos ... scire potuisti.' + +_Canios_, the Canii; i. e. men like Canius. The constancy and death of +Julius Canius (or Canus) is related by Seneca, De Tranquillitate, cap. xiv. +Cf. Pr. iv. 131, and note, p. 424. + +41. _Sorans_, the Sorani; men like Soranus. Soranus is mentioned in +Tacitus, Annal. xvi. 23. Caxton and Thynne read _Soranos_, as in the Latin +text. + +42. _unsolempne_, uncelebrated; 'incelebris.' + +49. _it is to dispyse_, it (the host) is to be despised. + +53. _ententif_, busy about seizing useless baggage as spoil. + +_sarpulers_, sacks made of coarse canvas; in Caxton, _sarpleris_; +'sarcinulas.' Cotgrave has: '_Serpillere_, a Sarpler, or Sarp-cloth, a +piece of course canvas to pack up things in.' Cf. mod. F. _serpillière_. + +56. _palis_, also spelt _paleis_ (O. F. _palis_), lit. a palisading, or a +piece of strong paling, a rampart, used to translate Lat. _uallum_. When +spelt _paleis_, it must not be confused with _paleis_, a palace. + +METRE 4. 3. _either fortune_, good fortune or bad. + +5. _hete_: 'Versum funditus excitantis aestum.' I suppose that _aestum_ is +rather 'surge' than 'heat' here. See Met. vii. below, l. 3. + +6. _Vesevus_, 'Veseuus'; the same as Vesuvius; cf. Vergil, Georg. ii. 224. + +7. _wrytheth_, writhes out, throws forth wreaths of smoke. Here the old +printed editions by Caxton and Thynne, as well as MS. Ii. 1. 38, happily +restore the text; Lat. 'Torquet.' + +8. Caxton and Thynne have _thonder-leyte_, which is perhaps better. MS. Ii. +1. 38 has _thonder leit_. + +13. _stable of his right_: 'stabilis, suique iuris.' + +PROSE 4. 2. _Artow lyk_. The original is partly in Greek. 'An [Greek: onos +luras]?' Some MSS. have: 'Esne [Greek: onos pros luran]?' And MS. C. has: +'Esne asinus ad liram?' In an edition of Boethius by Renatus Vallinus, +printed in 1656, I find the following note: 'Ut et omnes veteres scripsere, +Varro in satyra quæ Testamentum inscribitur apud Agellium, lib. iii. cap. +xvi: _Ii_ liberi, _si erunt_ [Greek: onoi luras], _exheredes sunto_. Suidas +ex Menandro, Lucianus, Martian. Capella, lib. viii., atque alii quos refert +Erasmus, in eo adagio. Imo et apud Varronem id nominis satyra extitit.' It +has clearly a proverbial reference to dullness of perception. Ch. quotes it +again in his Troilus, i. 731, where he so explains it. + +3. _why spillestow teres_, why do you waste tears; 'Quid lacrimis manas?' +After these words occur, in the original, four Greek words which Chaucer +does not translate, viz.: [Greek: Exauda, mê keuthe noô]: i. e. speak out, +do not hide them in your mind; quoted from Homer, Iliad i. 363. + +With lines 3 and 4 compare Troilus, i. 857. + +7. _by him-self_, in itself; 'per se.' Alluding to 'sharpnesse,' i. e. +'asperitas.' + +15. _enformedest_, didst conform; 'formares.' + +17. _ordre of hevene_; 'ad caelestis ordinis exemplar.' This refers to the +words of Plato just at the end of the 9th book of The Republic: [Greek: en +ouranô isôs paradeigma anakeitai.] Cf. also the last lines of Book II of +the present treatise. + +18. _confermedest_ (MS. A, _enfourmedist_), didst confirm; 'sanxisti.' The +reading _conformedest_ evidently arose from confusion with _enformedest_ +above, in l. 15. + +19. _mouth of Plato_; referring to Book V (473 D) of the Republic: [Greek: +ean mê, ê hoi philosophoi basileusôsin en tais polesin, ê hoi basilês te +nyn legomenoi ki dynastai philosophêsôsi gnêsiôs te kai hikanôs, kai touto +eis tauton xympesê, dynamis te politikê kai philosophia; tôn de nyn +poreuomenôn chôris eph' hekateron hai pollai physeis ex anankês +apokleisthôsin, ouk esti kakôn paula ... tais polesi; dokô de, oude tô +anthrôpinô genei.] + +24. _the same Plato_; in the 6th Dialogue on the Republic. + +25. _cause_, reason; 'caussam.' _wyse_, i.e. '_for_ wise men.' + +27. _felonous tormentours citizenes_, citizens who are wicked and +oppressive; the substantives are in apposition. + +33. _knowinge with me_, my witnesses; 'mihi ... conscii.' + +36. _discordes ... preyeres_; 'inexorabilesque discordiae.' + +37. _for this libertee_, &c.; 'et quod conscientiae libertas habet.' + +41. _Conigaste_, Conigastus, or Cunigastus; mentioned in Cassiodorus, +Epist. lib. viii. ep. 28. The facts here referred to are known only from +the present passage. + +_prospre fortunes_ translates 'fortunas' simply; it seems to mean 'success' +or 'well-being.' + +43. _Trigwille_, Triguilla; 'regiae praepositum domus.' + +45. _auctoritee_; 'obiecta periculis auctoritate protexi.' + +52. _cariages_, taxes; 'uectigalibus.' See a similar use in the Pers. Tale, +I 752, and note. + +59. _inplitable_, intricate: 'inexplicabilis.' _coempcioun_, an imposition +so called; see Chaucer's explanation below, in l. 64. In Greek, [Greek: +synônê]. + +61. _Campaigne_, Campania, in Italy, _provost_; 'praefectum praetorii.' + +64-67. See the footnote. I have here transposed this gloss, so as to make +it _follow_, instead of _preceding_, the mention of _coempcioun_ in the +text. + +68. _Paulin_, Decius Paulinus, consul in 498; mentioned in Cassiodorus, +Epist. lib. i. epist. 23, lib. iii. epist. 29. + +69. _houndes_; 'Palatini canes.' + +73. _Albin_, perhaps Decius Albinus, to whom Theodoric addressed a letter +preserved in Cassiodorus, lib. iv. ep. 30. See l. 156 below. + +75. _Ciprian_, Cyprian. We know something of him from two letters in +Cassiodorus, Epist. v. 40, 41. Theodoric esteemed him highly. See a +discussion of his career in H. F. Stewart's Essay on Boethius, pp. 42-52. + +78. _to hem-ward_, i.e. for the benefit of the officers around me; 'mihi +... nihil apud aulicos, quo magis essem tutior, reseruaui.' + +81. _Basilius_. Not much is known of him; see H. F. Stewart, as above, p. +48. + +82. _compelled_, i.e. bribed to accuse me. _for nede of foreine moneye_: +'alienae aeris necessitate.' + +84. _Opilion_, Opilio; the Opilio mentioned in Cassiodorus, lib. v. epist. +41, and lib. viii. epist. 16, and brother of the Cyprian mentioned above, +l. 75. His father's name was Opilio likewise. + +89. _aperceived_, made known. _the king_, i.e. Theodoric, king of Italy for +33 years, A.D. 493-526. His reign was, on the whole, good and glorious, but +he committed the great crime of putting to death both Boethius and his aged +father-in-law Symmachus, for which he afterwards expressed his deep +repentance. See Gibbon's Roman Empire. The chief record of his reign is in +the collection of twelve books of public epistles composed in his name by +Cassiodorus. The seat of his government was Ravenna, as mentioned below. + +93. _lykned_; rather, _added_; Lat. 'posse _adstrui_ uidetur.' + +95-194. See a translation into modern English of the whole of this passage, +in H. F. Stewart's Essay, pp. 37-41. + +101. _axestow in somme_, if you ask particularly; 'summam quaeris?' + +106, 107. _forsake_, deny. _have wold_, have willed, did wish. + +109. _and that I confesse_. Here Chaucer's version seems to be quite at +fault. 'At uolui, nec unquam uelle desistam. Fatebimur? [MS. C. Et +fatebimur.] Sed impediendi delatoris opera cessabit.' + +113. _by me_, with regard to me; 'de me.' + +117. _Socrates_; in Plato's Republic, Book VI: [Greek: tên apseudeian ... +misein, tên d' alêtheian stergein] (485 C). + +120. _preisen_, appraise, judge of: 'aestimandum.' + +131. _Canius_, better _Canus_, i.e. 'Julius Canus, whose philosophic death +is described by Seneca, De Tranquillitate Animi, cap. xiv.'--Gibbon. He has +already been mentioned above, Prose iii. l. 40. + +132. _Germeynes sone_, the son of Germanicus. This Gaius Cæsar is better +known as Caligula, the emperor who succeeded Tiberius. + +143. _famileres_, friends, i.e. disciples, viz. Epicurus, in the De Ira +Divina, cap. xiii (Stewart). + +154. _Verone_, Verona; next to Ravenna, the favourite residence of +Theodoric. + +156. _his real maiestee_, high treason, lit. 'his royal majesty'; Lat. +'maiestatis crimen.' The king was intent upon repressing all freedom of +speech. + +167. _submittede_, subdued: 'summitteret.' + +171. _present_, i.e. he would, even in such a case, have been allowed to +appear in his defence, would have been called upon to confess his crime, +and would have been condemned in a regular manner. + +173. _fyve hundred_, nearly 500 miles. Boethius was imprisoned in a tower +at Pavia. + +176. _as who seith, nay_; i.e. it is said ironically. The senate well +deserve that no one should ever defend them as I did, and be convicted for +it. + +181. _sacrilege_; glossed _sorcerie_: 'sacrilegio.' Sorcery or magic is +intended. 'At the command of the barbarians, the occult science of a +philosopher was stigmatised with the names of sacrilege and +magic.'--Gibbon. See below, l. 196. + +186. _Pictagoras_, Pythagoras. The saying here attributed to him is given +in the original in Greek--[Greek: hepou theô]. Some MSS. add the gloss, _i. +deo non diis seruiendum_. MS. C. has: _deo et non diis sacrificandum_. + +188. _I_, i. e. for me. A remarkable grammatical use. + +190. _right clene_: 'penetral innocens domus.' + +193. _thorugh_, i. e. for. Caxton and Thynne read _for_. + +195. _feith_: 'de te tanti criminis fidem capiunt.' + +198. _it suffiseth nat only ... but-yif_, this alone is insufficient ... +unless thou also, &c. _of thy free wille_: 'ultro.' + +212. _good gessinge_, high esteem: 'existimatio bona.' + +215. _charge_, burden, load: 'sarcinam.' + +219. _by gessinge_, in men's esteem: 'existimatione.' + +223. _for drede_: 'nostri discriminis terrore.' + +METRE 5. 1. _whele_, sphere: 'orbis.' Not only were there seven spheres +allotted to the planets, but there was an eighth larger sphere, called the +sphere of fixed stars, and a ninth 'sphere of first motion,' or _primum +mobile_, which revolved round the earth once in 24 hours, according to the +Ptolemaic astronomy. This is here alluded to. God is supposed to sit in an +immoveable throne beyond it. + +3. _sweigh_, violent motion; the very word used in the same connexion in +the Man of Lawes Tale, B 296; see note to that passage. + +4. _ful hornes_, i. e. her horns filled up, as at full moon, when she meets +'with alle the bemes' of the Sun, i. e. reflects them fully. + +7. _derke hornes_, horns faintly shining, as when the moon, a thin +crescent, is near the sun and nearly all obscured. + + 'The bente mone with hir hornes pale;' Troil. iii. 624. + +9. _cometh eft ayein hir used cours_, returns towards her accustomed +course, i. e. appears again, as usual, as a morning-star, in due course. I +think the text is incorrect; for _cometh_ read _torneth_, i. e. turns. Lat. +text: 'Solitas iterum mutet habenas.' The planet Venus, towards one +apparent extremity of her orbit, follows the sun, as an evening-star; and +again, towards the other apparent extremity, precedes it as a morning-star. +So Cicero, De Nat. Deorum, ii. 20. 53: 'dicitur Lucifer, cum antegreditur +solem, cum subsequitur autem, Hesperus.' + +11. _restreinest_, shortenest; the sun's apparent course being shorter in +winter. Lat. 'stringis.' + +13. _swifte tydes_, short times; viz. of the summer nights. + +19. _Arcturus_, [alpha] Boötis, in the sign Libra; conspicuous in the +nights of spring. + +20. _Sirius_, [alpha] Canis Maioris, or the Dog-star, in the sign of +Cancer; seen before sun-rise in the so-called dog-days, in July and August. +It was supposed that the near approach of Sirius to the Sun caused great +heat. + +21. _his lawe_, i.e. '_its_ law'; and so again in _his propre_. + +28. _on._ Caxton and Thynne rightly read _on_. + +29. _derke derknesses_, obscure darkness: 'obscuris ... tenebris.' Not a +happy expression. + +31. _covered and kembd_: 'compta.' Cf. _kembde_ in Squi. Ta. F 560. + +37. _erthes_, lands; the pl. is used, to translate 'terras.' + +41. _bonde_, i.e. the chain of love; see Bk. ii. Met. 8. l. 15. + +PROSE 5. 1. _borken out_, barked out; 'delatraui.' MS. A. changes _borken_ +into _broken_. The glossaries, &c., all seem to miss this excellent example +of the strong pp. of _berken_. _Borken_ appears as a pt. t. pl. in the King +of Tars, l. 400. The A.S. pp. _borcen_ appears in the A.S. Leechdoms, ed. +Cockayne, i. 170, l. 17. + +14. _oo ... king._ The original is in Greek--[Greek: heis koiranos estin, +heis basileus]: quoted from Homer, Iliad, ii. 204, with the change from +[Greek: estô] to [Greek: estin]. + +18, 19. _thy citee_, i.e. the city of heaven; note the context. + +22. _palis_, paling, rampart; 'uallo.' Clearer than _paleis_, as in A, +which might mean palace; but both spellings occur in French. + +25. _face_ (facies), the look of this prison. + +31. _in comune good_, for the common good: 'in commune bonum.' + +34. _thinges ... aposed_, accusations; 'delatorum.' + +45. _thy wode Muse_: 'Musae saeuientis'; cf. Met. 5 above, l. 22. + +51. _thilke passiouns_: 'ut quae in tumorem perturbationibus influentibus +induruerunt.' + +54. _by an esier touchinge_ refers to the preceding _mowen ... softe_: +'tactu blandiore mollescant.' + +METRE 6. This Metre refers to the necessity of doing everything in its +proper season. + +2. 'When the sun is in Cancer'; i.e. in the month of June. + +4. _lat him gon_, let him go and eat acorns. + +6. _whan the feld_: 'Cùm saeuis Aquilonibus Stridens campus inhorruit.' +_Chirkinge_, hoarse, rustling; alluding to the rustling of frozen grass in +a high wind. + +15. _And forthy_: 'Sic quod praecipiti uiâ Certum deserit ordinem, Laetos +non habet exitus.' + +PROSE 6. 10. _by fortunous fortune_: 'fortuitis casibus.' Not well +expressed. + +14. _the same ... thou_, thou didst sing the same thing. See Met. v. 22. + +17. _owh!_ an exclamation of astonishment: Lat. 'papae.' + +18. _why that thou_: 'cur in tam salubri sententiâ locatus aegrotes.' + +20. _I not ... what_: 'nescio, quid abesse coniecto.' + +22. _with whiche governailes_, by what sort of government. + +28. _the strengthe_, the strength of the gaping stockade discloses an +opening: 'uelut hiante ualli robore.' The corruption of _chyning_ to +_schynyng_ in MS. A. makes sad nonsense of the passage. + +42. _they may nat al_: 'sibique totum extirpare non possint.' + +55. _or elles the entree_: 'uel aditum reconciliandae sospitatis inueni.' + +56. _For-why, for_, Because, since. _for-thy_, therefore. + +64. _the auctor ... of hele_: 'sospitatis auctori.' + +65. _norisshinges_; perhaps better _norisshing_, as in Caxton and Thynne; +'fomitem,' i. e. furtherance. + +71. _faster_, firmer, stronger: 'firmioribus.' + +76. _to maken thinne and wayk_: 'attenuare.' + +77. _meneliche_, moderate: 'mediocribus.' + +METRE 7. 1. _yeten a-doun_, pour down; 'fundere.' Not _geten_, as in A. + +2. _trouble_, turbid; 'Turbidus Auster.' + +3. _medleth the hete_: 'Misceat aestum.' See above, Met. iv. l. 5. + +5. _clere as glas_; cf. Knight's Tale, A 1958. + +_withstande_: 'Mox resoluto Sordida caeno, Visibus obstat.' + +7. _royleth_, wanders; 'uagatur.' Not 'rolls.' + +11. _holden_, keep to; cf. 'Hold the hye wey'; Truth, l. 20. _weyve_: +'Gaudia pelle, Pelle timorem; Spemque fugato.' + + +BOOK II. + +PROSE 1. 13. _to begyle_; copied in Troil. iv. 2, 3:-- + + '---- y-thonked be Fortune, + That semeth trewest whan she wol bigyle.' + +22. _myn entree_: 'de nostro adyto.' But Chaucer has translated 'adyto' as +if it were 'aditu.' He translates _aditum_ by _entree_ in Bk. i. Pr. 6, l. +55. _Adyto_ is 'sanctuary.' + +28. _Com_, i. e. let (it) come; imperative: 'Adsit igitur rhetoricae +suadela dulcedinis.' + +32. _moedes_, moods, strains; 'modos.' _prolaciouns_, utterances. + +35. Compare Chaucer's poem on Fortune; and see the long note at the +beginning of the Notes to that poem. + +45. _use hir maneres_; rather, make the best of her conduct: 'utere +moribus.' _agrysest_, shudderest at, dreadest. + +48. _She hath forsaken_: 'Reliquit enim te, quam non relicturam nemo umquam +poterit esse securus.' + +51. The MSS. usually agree in this clause. Chaucer's gloss is due to an +obscure note in MS. C., viz. 'vel quam non relictam, secundum alios +libros.' Other notes occur there, but do not help us. + +68. _floor_: 'intra fortunae aream.' We say 'area' or 'domain.' + +77. _amonges_, at various times, from time to time, now and then; see New +E. Dict., s.v. _Among_, B. 2. + +83. _cesede_, would cease; copied in Troil. i. 848:-- + + 'For if hir wheel stinte any-thing to torne, + Than cessed she Fortune anoon to be.' + +METRE 1. 3. _Eurype_, Euripus; a narrow channel, with a strong current; +especially that between Boeotia and Euboea. This use of the word is here +seen to be far older in English than the quotation from Holland's Pliny in +the New E. Dict. + +8. _so hard_: 'Ultroque gemitus, dura quos fecit, ridet.' + +9. _laugheth_, laughs at; 'ridet.' It is impossible to accept the reading +_lyssheth_ in C. There seems to be no such word. It probably arose from the +attempt of the scribe to represent the guttural sound of _gh_, because we +actually find him writing _neysshebour_ for _neighbour_ twice, viz. in Bk. +ii. Pr. 3. 24, and in Pr. 7. 57. This passage is imitated in Troil. iv. 7: +'Than laugheth she and maketh him the mowe.' + +PROSE 2. 1. Compare Chaucer's 'Fortune'; l. 25, &c. + +4. _every-dayes_, daily: 'cottidianis querelis.' + +37. _I torne_: 'Rotam uolubili orbe uersamus.' + +39. _Worth up_, climb up: 'Ascende.' Cf. P. Plowman, B. vii. 91; Wars of +Alexander, 2878, 2973. + +42. _Cresus_, Croesus; see note to Monk. Tale, B 3917. + +47. _Perciens_, Persians. But Chaucer is here wrong. The Lat. text has +'Persi regis,' i. e. king Perseus. Perseus, or Perses III, was the last +king of Macedonia, who was defeated by L. Æmilius Paulus in a decisive +battle fought near Pydna, in June, B.C. 168. 'When brought before Æmilius +[here, Paulus], he is said to have degraded himself by the most abject +supplications; but he was treated with kindness by the Roman general;' +Smith, Class. Dict. See Livy, xl. 57; xli. 53; xliv. 32; &c.; Plutarch, +Life of Æmilius. + +51. _Tragedie._ Cf. the definition in the Monk. Prol. B 3163; and note to +Anelida, 320. + +53. _in Greke._ These two words are not in the original, but the following +quotation is given in Greek: [Greek: duo tous pithous, ton men hena kakôn, +ton de heteron kalôn]. Some MSS. add: 'duo dolia quidem malum alterum +bonum.' From Homer, Iliad, xxiv. 527: + + [Greek: doioi gar te pithoi katakeiatai en Dios oudei,] + [Greek: dôrôn, hoia didôsi, kakôn, heteros de eaôn.] + +Cf. notes to Wyf of Bathes Prol. D 170, and to Leg. of Good Women, 195. + +54. _in the entree_: 'in Iouis limine': [Greek: en Dios oudei]. + +61. _realme_: 'intra commune omnibus regnum locatus.' + +METRE 2. 1. _hielde_, pour: 'Tantas fundat opes, nec retrahat manum Pleno +copia cornu.' + +8. _as fool-large_, like one that is foolishly lavish: 'Multi prodigus +auri.' + +11. _other gapinges_: 'Alios pandit hiatus.' Some MSS. have _Altos_, but +Chaucer evidently read _Alios_, as in MS. C. + +13. _to any ... ende_; rather, 'within a prescribed boundary'; 'Certo fine +retentent.' + +PROSE 3. 22. _princes._ These were, in particular, Festus and Symmachus. +Boethius married Rusticiana, the daughter of Symmachus. Hence the allusion +to his _fadres-in-lawe_ (socerorum) just below, in l. 26; where the right +sense is _parents-in-law_. See Stewart's Essay, p. 24. + +23. _leef_: 'delectusque in affinitatem principum ciuitatis, quod +pretiosissimum propinquitatis genus est, priùs carus, quam proximus esse +coepisti.' Hence _the whiche thing_ really refers back to _affinitee_, +which is hardly obvious in the E. version. + +40. _whan thou_: 'cùm in Circo duorum medius consulum circumfusae +multitudinis exspectationem triumphali largitione satiasti.' + +43. _gave thou wordes_: 'Dedisti ... uerba fortunae.' + +48. _privee_, a man of private station, not of noble rank: 'priuato.' The +reference is to the election of his two sons as consuls in one day. + +55. _Art thou_: 'An tu in hanc uitae scenam nunc primum subitus hospesque +uenisti.' Thus _shadwe or tabernacle_ is meant to translate _scenam_. + +60. _laste day_; quoted in Chaucer's 'Fortune,' l. 71; see note to the +line. + +61. _and also_, i. e. even to such Fortune as abides and does _not_ desert +the man: 'fortunae ... etiam manentis.' + +62. _thar recche_; it is absolutely necessary to insert _thee_ after +_thar_; i. e. And therefore, what, do you suppose, need you care? _yif +thou_, i. e. whether thou. + +METRE 3. 10. _the fairnesse_: 'Iam spinis abeat decus.' + +13. _over-whelveth_, turns over: 'Verso concitat aequore.' _whelveth_ is +the right form, as noted by Stratmann; it occurs in MS. Ii. 1. 38, and in +the black-letter editions. It occurs again in Palladius on Husbandry, i. +161: 'For harme ... may ... perchaunce the _overwhelve_,' i.e. for perhaps +harm may overthrow thee. And again, in the same, i. 781: '_overwhelve_ hit +upsodowne,' i.e. turn it (the land) right over. + +16. _tomblinge_, fleeting, transitory; 'caducis.' + +18. _nis_, is; we must disregard the second negative. + +PROSE 4. 3. _ne be comen_, is not come; i.e. did not come. It refers to +past time. + +5. _For in alle_: 'Nam in omni aduersitate fortunae infelicissimum genus +est infortunii, fuisse felicem.' This famous sentence has been several +times copied. See, e.g., Troil. iii. 1625-8; Dante, _Inferno_, v. 121-3; +Tennyson, _Locksley Hall_, 76. + +8. _But that thou_, i.e. 'but the fact that thou.' _abyest_, sufferest: +'falsae opinionis supplicium luis.' + +12. _For al be it_: 'Nam si te hoc inane nomen fortuitae felicitatis +mouet.' + +20. _Symacus_, Symmachus. There were several distinguished men of this +family. Q. Aurelius Symmachus was a statesman and author in the latter half +of the fourth century. The one here referred to is Q. Aurelius Memmius +Symmachus, who had been consul under Odoacer in 485, and was involved in +the fate of Boethius, being put to death by Theodoric in 525, shortly after +the execution of Boethius in 524. He had two daughters, Rusticiana and +Galla, of whom the former married Boethius. See Procopius, de Bello +Gothico, lib. i., and several Epistles in Cassiodorus, viz. lib. iv. epist. +22, 37, 66. + +25. _thy wyf_; i. e. Rusticiana, daughter of Symmachus; for there is no +proof that Boethius was twice married (Stewart, p. 24). She survived the +capture of Rome by the Goths under Totila, A.D. 546. 'The riches of +Rusticiana, the daughter of Symmachus and widow of Boethius, had been +generously devoted to alleviate the calamities of famine. But the +barbarians were exasperated by the report, that she had prompted the people +to overthrow the statue of the great Theodoric; and the life of that +venerable matron would have been sacrificed to his memory, if Totila had +not respected her birth, her virtues, and even the pious motive of her +revenge.'--Gibbon, Rom. Empire, ch. 43. + +31. _two sones_; the two spoken of just above (Pr. iii. l. 35), as being +both made consuls together. This was in 522. + +_conseilours_, i.e. of consular rank: 'consulares.' + +40. _thyne ancres_. Hence the line, 'Yit halt thyn ancre.' Fortune, l. 38. + +52. _thy delices_: 'delicias tuas.' The sense here intended is +'effeminacy,' or 'unmanly weakness.' + +56. _ful anguissous_, very full of anxieties: 'Anxia enim res,' &c. +Repeated in Troilus, iii. 816, q.v. + +68. _for alwey_, &c. Very obscure. Chaucer seems to mean--'for always, in +every man's case, there is, in something or other, that which (if he has +not experienced it) he does not understand; or else he dreads that which he +has already experienced.' The Latin is clearer: 'inest enim singulis, quod +inexpertus ignoret, expertus exhorreat.' + +79. _nothing [is] wrecched_. The insertion of _is_ completes the sense: +'adeo nihil _est_ miserum, nisi cùm putes.' Observe '_nis a wrecche_' in +Chaucer's own gloss (l. 81); and see l. 25 of 'Fortune.' + +83. _by the agreabletee_, by means of the equanimity: 'aequanimitate +tolerantis.' Not having the word 'equanimity' at command, Chaucer +paraphrases it by 'agreeabletee or egalitee,' i. e. accommodating or +equable behaviour. Cf. l. 92. + +86. _The swetnesse_, &c. Cf. Troilus, iii. 813-5; and Man of Lawes Tale, B +421-2, and note. + +89. _withholden_, retained: 'retineri non possit.' _that_, so that. + +107. _sheweth it wel_, it is plain: 'manifestum est.' + +110. _either he woot_, &c.; copied in Troilus, iii. 820-833. + +115. _lest he lese that ... it_, lest he lose that which. MS. A. _omits_ +'it'; but the phrase is idiomatic. + +119. _this is to seyn that men_, that is to say that, in such a case, men, +&c. + +120. _lost_, loss. This form of the sb. occurs elsewhere; as in Gower, i. +147 (goth to _lost_); and in P. Plowman, C. vii. 275; &c. See Stratmann. + +131. _it ne maketh_, it does not make men miserable. + +METRE 4. 7. _lause_, loose; Icel. _lauss_: 'solutae.' Usually _loos_, as in +Cant. Ta. A 4064, 4352. + +8. _forthy if thou_: 'Fugiens periculosam Sortem sedis amoenae, Humili +domum memento Certus figere saxo.' Chaucer's translation is hardly correct; +_sortem_ and _sedis_ must be taken in close connection. 'Avoiding the +perilous condition of a fair (and exposed) situation, take care to found +thy house securely on a low-lying (and sheltered) rock.' + +12. _weleful_: 'Felix robore ualli Duces serenus aeuum.' _palis_, stockade, +rampart; as before, Bk. i. Pr. 3. 56, Pr. 5. 22. + +PROSE 5. 10. _to hem that despenden it_; rather, by spending it; Lat. +'effundendo.' So again, in l. 11, _to thilke folke that mokeren it_ answers +to the Lat. gerund 'coaceruando.' + +11. _mokeren it_, hoard it. Perhaps related to O.F. _mucier_; see +_Curmudgeon_ in my Etym. Dict. See _mokereres_, misers, below. + +15. _stenteth to ben had_, ceases to be possessed: 'desinit possideri.' + +16. _large_, lavish; 'largiendi usu desinit possideri.' + +18. _as of that_, as regards that hoard. + +19. _a voys al hool_, a voice not yet dispersed: 'uox ... tota.' + +32. _yif it wanteth_, if it lacks: 'carens animae motu atque membrorum +compage.' + +35. _of the laste_: 'postremae aliquid pulcritudinis.' Perhaps it means +'of the lowest kind of beauty.' Mr. Stewart, in his Essay, p. 225, reads +_postremo_, for which I find _no_ authority. MS. C. has _postreme_. + +36. _through the distinccioun_: 'suique distinctione.' + +40. _Why sholde it nat_, &c. In some editions, this passage is not marked +as being assigned to Boethius. In others, it is. + +85. _ostelments_, furniture, household goods: 'supellectilis.' O.F. +_ostillement_, _oustillement_, furniture; cf. mod. F. _outil_, a word of +doubtful origin. Cf. l. 94. + +90. _subgit_; as if for 'suppositis'; but the Lat. text has 'sepositis,' +i.e. separate, independent. + +92. _beest_, animal: 'diuinum merito rationis animal.' + +97. _of the lowest_, &c., 'by means of vilest things.' + +101. _yif that al_, &c., 'if all the good possessed is more valuable than +the thing possessing it.' + +105. _and certes_: 'quod quidem haud immerito cadit.' + +111. _it cometh_: 'it arises from some defect in them.' + +121. _Gabbe I of this_, do I lie concerning this? + +125. _weneth._ The texts have _and weneth_; but I suppress _and_ to make +sense, and to make the translation agree with the Latin. 'Atqui diuitiae +possidentibus persaepè nocuerunt, cùm pessimus quisque, eóque alieni magis +auidus, quidquid usquam auri gemmarumque est, se solum qui habeat +dignissimum putat.' + +128. _way-feringe_; MS. A, _way-faryng_. Both forms, _feringe_ and +_faring(e)_ occur; see Stratmann. _Feringe_ = A. S. _f[=e]rende_, from the +weak verb _f[=e]ran_, to go, travel; whilst _faringe_ = A. S. _farende_, +from the strong verb _faran_, to go. _F[=e]ran_ (= _*f[=o]rian_) is +derived, with vowel-mutation, from the stem _*f[=o]r_, appearing in +_f[=o]r_, the pt. t. of _faran_. + +130. _singe_, &c. Doubtless from Juvenal, Sat. x. 22; see Wyf of Bathes +Tale, D 1191, and the note. + +METRE 5. Largely imitated in Chaucer's poem called 'The Former Age,' which +see. See also the Notes to the same. + +5. _They ne coude_, they knew not how: 'Non Bacchica munera norant Liquido +confundere melle.' + +6. _piment_, usually spiced wine; here, wine mixed with honey. See Rom. of +the Rose, 6027, and the note. _clarree_, wine mixed with honey and spices, +and then strained till it is clear; clarified wine. See Rom. of the Rose, +5967, 6026; Former Age, 16; Kn. Tale, A 1471. Chaucer uses these two words +here in conjunction, for the simple reason that he was thinking of the +parallel passage in the French Rom. de la Rose, which is imitated from the +present passage in Boethius. Ll. 8418-9 are:-- + + 'Et de l'iaue simple bevoient + Sans querre _piment_ ne _claré_.' + +7. _ne they coude_: 'Nec lucida uellera Serum Tyrio miscere ueneno.' Hence +the _Seriens_ are the _Seres_, or Chinese; and _the venim of Tyrie_ should +rather be _the venim of Tyre_, but Chaucer follows the adjectival form in +the original, both here and in Bk. iii. Met. 4, l. 2. _Venim_ is not the +right word here; 'ueneno' merely means 'dye.' The reference is to the +_murex_ or purple shell-fish. See Vergil, Aen. iv. 262: '_Tyrio_que ardebat +_murice_ laena'; and Georg. ii. 465: '_alba_ nec Assyrio _fucatur lana +ueneno_.' + +13. _gest ne straungere_: 'hospes.' Cf. Former Age, 21. + +17. _armures_, defensive armour: 'arma.' The usual reading is _arua_, i. e. +fields; but more than six MSS. have _arma_, and Chaucer's copy had the +same; as appears from MS. C. + +18. _For wherto_: 'for to what purpose, or what sort of madness of enemies +would first take up arms, when they saw but cruel wounds (as the result) +and no rewards for the blood that was shed?' + +22. _But the anguissous_: 'Sed saeuior ignibus Aetnae Feruens amor ardet +habendi.' + +24. _Allas!_ &c. Cf. Former Age, 27-32. _the gobetes or the weightes of +gold_: 'Auri ... pondera.' + +26. _He dalf_: 'Pretiosa pericula fodit.' + +PROSE 6. 8. _the imperie of consulers_, consular rank: 'consulare +imperium.' The reference is to the creation of Decemviri; see Livy, iii. +32. + +20. _so requerable_, in such request: 'expetibilis.' + +29. _into the ... body_: 'in secreta quaeque.' + +32. _the whiche I clepe_, by which I mean; so again below, l. 39. + +35. _a thought_, a mind; 'mentem firma sibi ratione cohaerentem.' + +36. _a free man_; Anaxarchus of Abdera, B.C. 323. The _tyraunt_ was +Nicocreon, king of Cyprus. See Valerius Maximus, iii. 3. + +44. _But what_: 'Quid autem est, quod in alium quisquam facere possit, quod +sustinere ab alio ipse non possit?' + +47. _Busirides_, Busiris (gen. case, _Busiridis_), a king of Egypt, who +sacrificed all strangers on his altars. But Hercules, coming to Egypt, slew +him and abolished the custom. See Vergil, Georg. iii. 5; Ovid, Tr. iii. 11. +39. In the Monkes Tale, B 3293, Chaucer calls him _Busirus_. + +49. _Regulus_; M. Regulus, taken prisoner by the Carthaginians, B.C. 255. +The story of his embassy to Rome is well known. + +63. _may I._ It is necessary to insert _I_ (only found in the black-letter +editions) to complete the sense. 'Quod quidem de cunctis fortunae muneribus +dignius existimari potest.' + +71. _as of wil_, i.e. when it can: 'ultro.' + +80. _reproeved_, disproved: 'redarguuntur.' + +METRE 6. 2. _Nero._ Cf. Monkes Tale, B 3653-84. + +4. _his brother_; Britannicus, poisoned by Nero; Tacitus, Annal. xiii. 16; +Suetonius, Nero, 33. + +8. _domesman_, judge; see Monk. Ta. B 3680, and note. + +15. _septem triones_, properly, the seven chief stars in the Lesser Bear; +also sometimes used of the seven bright stars in the Greater Bear. The +leading star in the Lesser Bear is the pole-star; and as that remains fixed +in the north, the whole constellation came to signify the north. Hence, in +the Monk. Ta. B 3657, we are told that Nero ruled over 'Both Est and West, +South and _Septemtrioun_'; see note to that line. + +18. _Nothus_, Notus, the south wind; see below. _scorkleth_, scorches; MS. +A has _scorchith_. The Prompt. Parv. has: 'Scorkelyn, _ustulo_, _ustillo_'; +and 'Scorklyd, _ustillatus_.' As Mr. Bradley notes, it is a variant of +_scorknen_ or _scorpnen_. The orig. Icel. verb is _skorpna_, to become +shrivelled, allied to _skorpinn_, shrivelled. This is a pp. form as if from +_*skerpa_, pt. t. _*skarp_; cf. _skera_, pt. t. _skar_, pp. _skorinn_. The +adj. _skarpr_ means 'sharp,' whence the weak verb _skerpa_, to sharpen. The +sense of the primitive verb _*skerpa_ was, doubtless, 'to cut'; and +_scorklen_ is, lit., 'to cause to be cut about,' when used as a transitive +verb; hence, 'to shrivel up,' from the appearance of plants 'cut' with +frost or parched with heat. + +21. _Allas!_ + + 'Heu grauem sortem, quoties iniquus + Additur saeuo gladius ueneno!' + +More correctly, 'lordshippe to venimous crueltee.' MS. C has 'gladius, i. +potestas exercendi gladium'; and 'ueneno, i. venenose crudelitati.' + +PROSE 7. 3. _I have wel desired_: 'materiam gerendis rebus optauimus, quo +ne uirtus tacita consenesceret.' + +10. _drawen to governaunce_: 'allicere,' i. e. allure (simply). + +18. _a prikke_, a point; cf. Parl. of Foules, 57; Troil. v. 1815; Ho. Fame, +907. From Ptolemy, Syntaxis, lib. i. cap. 6; cf. Macrobius, In Somnium +Scipionis, lib. ii. c. 9. + +23. _Tholomee_, Ptolemy; viz. in the beginning of book ii. of his Megale +Syntaxis. See the same in Pliny, Nat. Hist. ii. 68. + +28. _wel unnethe_, scarcely, hardly at all: 'uix angustissima inhabitandi +hominibus area relinquetur.' + +34. _And also sette_: 'Adde, quod hoc ipsum breuis habitaculi septum plures +incolunt nationes.' + +38. _defaute ... marchaundise_; Lat. only: 'tum conmercii insolentia.' + +41. _Marcus Tullius_, i.e. Cicero, in his Somnium Scipionis, which +originally formed part of the sixth book of the De Republica. See cap. vi. +of that work, and Note to Parl. Foules, 31. + +43. _Caucasus_; mentioned again in the Wyf of Bathes Tale, D 1140. + +45. _Parthes_, Parthians. + +59. _hath the wrecched_: 'scriptorum inops deleuit obliuio.' + +69. _ended_: 'definitum.' We now say 'finite.' + +73. _endeles_: 'interminabilem.' We now say 'infinite.' + +77. _were thought_, were considered in comparison with eternity. + +89. _This rather man_, this former man, the former. + +95. _seyde_: 'Iam tandem, inquit, intelligis me esse philosophum? Tum ille +nimium mordaciter, Intellexeram, inquit, si tacuisses.' This story is +alluded to in Piers Plowman; see my note to that poem, C. xiv. 226. + +108. _despyseth it_; cf. Troilus, v. 1821-7. + +METRE 7. 1. _with overthrowing thought_: 'mente praecipiti.' + +3. _shewinge_, evident, open to the view: 'Latè patentes ... plagas.' + +7. _dedly_, mortal, perishable: 'mortali iugo.' + +8. _ferne_, distant: 'remotos.' This is important, as settling the sense of +'ferne halwes' in the Prologue to the Tales, l. 14. + +13. _Fabricius_, the conqueror of Pyrrhus; censor in B.C. 275. _Brutus_, +the slayer of Cæsar. + +14. _Catoun_, Cato of Utica (B.C. 95-46). + +17. _Liggeth_, lie ye; 'Iacetis.' The imperative mood. + +20. _cruel_; Lat. 'sera,' which Chaucer has taken as 'seua.' 'Cum sera +uobis rapiet hoc etiam dies.' _thanne is_: 'Iam uos secunda mors manet.' + +PROSE 8. 2. _untretable_, not to be treated with, intractable, inexorable: +'inexorabile.' + +7. _unpleyten_, unplait, explain: 'explicare.' + +17. _windinge._ Read _windy_, i.e. unstable; Lat. 'uentosam.' Caxton's +edition has _wyndy_, which proves the point. So also other old black-letter +editions. + +23. _aspre_: 'haec aspera, haec horribilis fortuna.' + +26. _visages_, faces. See Notes to the poem on Fortune. + +METRE 8. 1. It begins 'Quòd mundus stabile fide Concordes uariat uices; +Quòd pugnantia semina Foedus perpetuum tenent.' The whole of this metre +reappears in Troilus, iii. 1744-1764. + +6. _hath brought_, hath led in, introduced: 'duxerit.' + +_greedy to flowen_; the Lat. text merely has _auidum_; 'Ut fluctus auidum +mare Certo fine coerceat.' The Lat. _fluctus_ answers to 'hise flodes.' + +7. _ende_, boundary: 'fine.' + +8. _termes or boundes_, borders: 'terminos.' + +10. _Love_: 'Et caelo imperitans amor.' On this passage is founded one in +the Knightes Tale, A 2991-3. + +11. _slakede_, were to relax. The last lines are:-- + + 'Et quam nunc socia fide Pulcris motibus incitant, + Certent soluere machinam. Hic sancto populos quoque + Iunctos foedere continet: Hic et coniugii sacrum + Castis nectit amoribus: Hic fidis etiam sua + Dictat iura sodalibus. O felix hominum genus, + Si uestros animos amor, Quo caelum regitur, regat!' + + +BOOK III. + +PROSE 1. 3. _streighte_, pp., i.e. stretched; 'adrectis ... auribus.' The +form _streight-e_ is plural. + +6. _so_, i.e. so much. Better 'how much'; Lat. _quantum_. + +8. _unparigal_, unequal; 'imparem.' + +11. _nat only that_, it is not only the case that. It would be clearer if +_that_ were omitted. + +12. _agrisen_, filled with dread; pp., with short _i_, of _agrysen_. Cf. +_agryseth_, Bk. i. Met. 6, l. 7. + +15. _ravisshedest_, didst greedily receive; 'rapiebas.' + +32. _for the cause of thee_, for thy sake; 'tui caussa.' + +33. _but I wol_, &c.; 'sed quae tibi caussa notior est, eam prius designare +uerbis atque informare conabor.' + +METRE 1. 2. _hook_, sickle; 'falce.' + +4. _Hony_; cf. Troilus, i. 638, iii. 1219. + +6. _Nothus_, Notus, the South wind. _ploungy_, stormy, rainy; 'imbriferos.' + +9. _bigin_, do thou begin; imperative; 'incipe.' + +PROSE 2. 2. _streite sete_, narrow (retired) seat; 'in angustam sedem.' + +3. _cures_, endeavours; 'omnis mortalium cura.' + +7. _over that_, beyond it; 'ulterius.' + +8. _sovereyn good_; 'omnium summum bonorum.' + +11. _out of ... good_; 'extrinsecus.' + +28. _mesuren_, &c.; 'Plurimi uerò boni fructum gaudio laetitiâque +metiuntur.' + +34. _is torned_; a bad translation of 'uersatur,' i.e. 'resides.' + +38. _merinesse_, enjoyment; 'iocunditatis.' + +50. _for which_, on which account; 'quare.' + +55. _Epicurus._ See Cant. Tales, Prol. 336-8, where this is quoted; and see +Merch. Ta. E 2021; Troil. iii. 1691; 'Epicurus ... sibi summum bonum +uoluptatem esse constituit.' + +57. _birefte awey._ But the Lat. text has precisely the opposite sense: +'quod caetera omnia iocunditatem animo uideantur adferre.' For _adferre_ +[MS. C _afferre_], Chaucer has given us the sense of _auferre_. + +58. _studies_, i.e. endeavours; 'studia.' _corage_; 'animus.' + +59. _al be it_, &c.; 'et si caligante memoria.' + +60. _not_, knows not; 'uelut ebrius, domum quo tramite reuertatur, +ignorat.' See Cant. Tales, A 1262. + +67. _that ... it_: 'qui quod sit optimum, id etiam ... putant.' + +75. _forsake_, deny; 'sequestrari nequit.' + +77. _be anguissous_, i.e. 'be _neither_ full of anxiety.' The _neither_ is +implied in the following _ne_; 'non esse anxiam tristemque.' It is clearer +if we supply _nat_, as in the text. + +83. _Than is it good_, then it is the _summum bonum_. + +86. _lovinge_, as if translating _diligendo_, which occurs in many MSS.; +but the better reading is 'deligendo,' i.e. selecting. + +METRE 2. 1. _with slakke ... strenges_; 'fidibus lentis.' + +2. _enclineth and flitteth_; 'flectat.' _flitteth_ here means 'shifts.' + +3. _purveyable_, with provident care; 'prouida.' + +6. _of the contre of Pene_; 'Poeni leones'; lions of North Africa, supposed +to be extremely ferocious. + +8. _sturdy_, cruel, hard; 'trucem ... magistrum.' + +13. _and hir mayster_: 'Primusque lacer dente cruento Domitor rabidas +imbuit iras.' + +15. _Iangelinge_, garrulous; 'garrula.' This passage is imitated twice in +the Cant. Tales, F 607-617, H 163-174. + +17. _pleyinge bisinesse_; 'ludens cura.' + +19. _agreables_; this form of the pl. adj. is only used in the case of +words of French origin. Examples are not very common; cf. _reverents_ +below, Bk. iii. Met. 4, l. 6; and _delitables_, C. T. F 899. + +26. _by privee path_, by an unseen route; 'secreto tramite.' Alluding to +the apparent passage of the sun below the horizon and, as it were, +underneath the world. Cf. Troil. iii. 1705. + +27. _Alle thinges_: 'Repetunt proprios quaeque recursus.' + +PROSE 3. 1. _beestes_, animals; 'animalia.' Chaucer always uses _beest_ for +'animal.' + +15. _fals beautee_, a false beauty; 'falsa ... beatitudinis species.' But +'species' may simply mean 'semblance.' + +17. After _axe_, Caxton and Thynne insert _the_, i.e. thee; 'te ipsum.' + +24. _thee lakked_: 'uel aberat quod abesse non uelles, uel aderat quod +adesse noluisses.' This sentence much impressed Chaucer. He again recurs to +it in the Complaint to Pite, 99-104; Parl. Foules, 90, 91; and Complaint to +his Lady, 47-49. This fact helps to prove the genuineness of the last-named +poem. + +36. _No._ Observe the use of _no_ after a sentence containing _nis nat_. If +there had been no negative in the preceding sentence, the form would have +been _Nay_. Such is the usual rule. + +40, 41. _maken_, cause, bring it about. _bihighten_, promised. + +48. _foreyne ... pletinges_; 'forenses querimoniae.' But _forenses_ means +'public.' + +69. _be fulfild ... and axe any thing_; rather paraphrastic; 'aliquid +poscens opibus expletur.' _fulfild_ here means 'plentifully supplied,' not +'completely satisfied,' whereas in the very next line it means 'completely +satisfied.' + +71. _I holde me stille, and telle nat_, I say nothing about; 'Taceo.' Seven +E. words for one of Latin. + +74. _what may ... be_, why is it; 'quid est quod,' &c. + +METRE 3. 1. After _river_, Caxton and Thynne insert _or a gutter_; Lat. +'gurgite.' + +2. _yit sholde it never_. This gives quite a false turn to the translation, +and misses the sense intended. I quote the whole Metre. + + 'Quamuis fluente diues auri gurgite + Non expleturas cogat auarus opes, + Oneretque baccis colla rubri litoris; + Ruraque centeno scindat opima boue: + Nec cura mordax deserit superstitem, + Defunctumque leues non comitantur opes.' + +3. _rede see_; lit. 'red shore.' However, the Red Sea is alluded to. +Chaucer's translation of _baccis_ by 'stones' is not happy; for 'pearls' +are meant. Cf. Horace, Epod. viii. 14; Sat. ii. 3. 241. Pliny praises the +pearls from the Red Sea; Nat. Hist. lib. xii. c. 18. + +PROSE 4. 9. _postum_, short for _apostume_, i.e. imposthume. _boch_, botch, +pustule. Lat. _struma_. Catullus is the well-known poet, and the allusion +is to his lines addressed to himself (Carm. 52):-- + + 'Quid est, Catulle, quid moraris emori? + Sella in curuli struma Nonius sedet.' + +14. _Certes, thou_, &c. Rather involved. 'Tu quoque num tandem tot +periculis adduci potuisti, ut cum Decorato gerere magistratum putares, cùm +in eo mentem nequissimi scurrae delatorisque respiceres?' _With_ is used +for _by_: 'by so many perils' is intended. See Chaucer's gloss. + +16. _Decorat_, Decoratus. He seems to have been in high favour with king +Theodoric, who wrote him a letter which is preserved in Cassiodorus, lib. +v. 31. It is clear that Boethius thought very ill of him. + +32. _that he is despysed_, i.e. _because_ he is despised. The argument is, +that a wicked man seems the more wicked when he is despised by a very great +number of people; and if he be of high rank, his rank makes him more +conspicuous, and therefore the more generally contemned. The MSS. vary +here; perhaps the scribes did not see their way clearly. See the footnote. + +35. _and ... nat unpunisshed_; 'Verùm non impunè.' + +40. _comen by_, arise from; 'per has umbratiles dignitates non posse +contingere.' See Chaucer's Balade on Gentilesse, l. 5. + +42. _many maner_, a mistranslation: 'Si quis multiplici consulatu functus.' + +46. _to don his office_, to perform its function. Cf. Wyf of Bathes Tale, D +1144. + +50. _that wenen_, i.e. (folk or people) who suppose. + +56. _provostrie_, i.e. the prætorship; 'praetura.' + +57. _rente_, income; 'et senatorii census grauis sarcina.' + +58. _the office_; this alludes to the _Praefectus annonae_, once an +honourable title. It was borne by Augustus, when emperor. + +64. _by the opinioun of usaunces_; 'opinione utentium.' Chaucer's phrase +seems to mean 'by estimation of the mode in which it is used.' He should +have written 'by the opinioun of hem that usen it.' + +66. _of hir wille_, of their own accord (as it were); 'ultro.' + +68. _what is it_; 'quid est, quòd in se expetendae pulcritudinis habeant, +nedum aliis praestent?' + +METRE 4. Cf. Monkes Tale, B 3653-60. + +2. _Tirie_, Tyre; lit. 'Tyrian,' the adjectival form; 'Tyrio superbus +ostro.' So above, Bk. ii. Met. 5, l. 8. + +3. _throf he_, he flourished (lit. throve); 'uigebat.' + +6. _reverents_, the pl. form of the adj. See above, Bk. iii. Met. 2, l. 19. +_unworshipful_, &c.; 'indecores curules.' + +PROSE 5. 1. _regnes_, kingdoms; _familiaritees_, friendships. + +2. _How elles_, why not? 'Quidni?' _whan_, whenever. + +4. _kinges ben chaunged._ This is the subject of Chaucer's Monkes Tale. +Examples are certainly numerous. In the time of Boethius (470-524), they +were not wanting. Thus Basiliscus, emperor of the East, had a reign which +Gibbon describes as 'short and turbulent,' and perished miserably of hunger +in 476; and Odoacer was killed by Theodoric in 493; see Gibbon's History. + +13. _upon thilke syde that_, on whichever side. + +14. _noun-power ... undernethe_; 'impotentia subintrat.' _nounpower_, lack +of power, occurs in P. Plowman, C. xx. 292; see my note. + +17. _A tyraunt_; Dionysius, tyrant of Syracuse, in Sicily, who caused a +sword to be hung by a slender thread over the head of his favourite +Damocles, to teach him that riches could not make happy the man whose death +was imminent. See Cicero, Tuscul. v. 21. 6; Horace, Carm. iii. 1. 17; +Persius, Sat. iii. 40. And see Ch. Kn. Tale, A 2029. + +27. _seriaunts_, serjeants (satellite), different from _servauntes_ +(seruientium) below. The difference is one of use only; for the form +_seriaunt_, E. _serjeant_, represents the Lat. _seruientem_, whilst +_servaunt_, E. _servant_, represents the O. F. pres. part. of the O. F. +verb _servir_; which comes to much about the same thing. + +30. _what_, why; _what ... anything_ answers to Lat. 'quid.' + +33. _in hool_, &c., whether that power is unimpaired or lost; Lat. +'incolumis ... lapsa.' + +34. _Nero_; see note to Monkes Tale, B 3685. + +35. _Antonius_, a mistake for _Antoninus_, as in the Lat. text. By +Antoninus is meant the infamous emperor Caracalla, on whom Septimius +Severus had conferred the title of Antoninus. Papinianus was a celebrated +Roman jurist, who was put to death at the command of Caracalla; see Gibbon, +Roman Empire, ch. vi. + +39. _Senek_, Seneca; see Tacitus, Annal. xiv. + +41. _But whan_; 'Sed dum ruituros moles ipsa trahit, neuter, quod uoluit, +effecit.' I.e. neither Papinian nor Seneca found it possible to forego +their position. + +48. _Certes, swiche folk_; see Monkes Ta. B 3434-5. + +50. _pestilence_; see Merch. Ta. E. 1784, and 1793-4. + +METRE 5. 1. For _corage_, Caxton and Thynne have _corages_, but this may be +an alteration due to the Latin which they quote as a heading: 'Qui se uolet +esse potentem, _Animos_,' &c. + +5. _Tyle_; 'ultima Thule.' Supposed to be Iceland, or one of the Shetland +Islands. + +PROSE 6. 3. _tragedies_; see note to Cant. Ta. B 3163. + +3, 4. _O glorie._ The original has: [Greek: ô doxa doxa myrioisi dê brotôn, +ouden gegôsi bioton ônkôsas megan]. See Euripides, Andromache, 319. For +this, MS. C. gives, as the Latin equivalent--'o gloria, gloria, in milibus +hominum nichil aliud facta nisi auribus inflatio magna'; an interpretation +which Chaucer here follows. + +24. _gentilesse._ See remarks (in the notes) on Chaucer's Balade of +Gentilesse. + +METRE 6. 8. _For yif thou loke your_; the change from _thy_ to _your_ is +due to the Latin: 'Si promordia _uestra_ Auctoremque Deum _spectes_.' + +9. _forlived_, degenerate; 'degener.' In Prose 6 (above), l. 37, _outrayen +or forliven_ translates 'degenerent.' + +PROSE 7. 1. _delices_; 'uoluptatibus.' The MSS. so confuse the words +_delices_ and _delyts_ that it is hardly possible to say which is meant, +except when the Lat. text has _deliciae_. Both E. words seem to correspond +to _uoluptates_. + +12. _Iolitee_: intended to translate 'lasciuiam,' a reading of some MSS.; +MS. C. has this reading, glossed 'voluptatem.' Most MSS. read _lacunam_, +i.e. void, want. _were_, would be; 'foret.' + +14. _that children_: 'nescio quem filios inuenisse tortores.' + +15. _bytinge_; 'mordax.' _anguissous_: 'anxium.' + +16. _or_, ere; in fact, Caxton has _ere_, and Thynne, _er_. + +18. _Euripidis_; in the gen. case, as in the Lat. text. The reference is to +Euripides, Andromache, 418: [Greek: pasi d' anthrôpois ar' ên psychê, +tekn'; hostis d' aut' apeiros ôn psegei, hêsson men algei, dystychôn d' +eudaimonei]. + +METRE 7. 3. _he fleeth_: 'Fugit et nimis tenaci Ferit icta corda morsu.' As +to the use of _flyes_ for 'bees,' see note to Parl. Foules, 353. + +PROSE 8. 1. _that thise weyes_: 'quin hae ad beatitudinem uiae deuiae +quaedam sint.' + +8. _supplien_, supplicate, beg: 'danti supplicabis.' + +11. _awaytes_, snares: 'subiectorum insidiis obnoxius periculis +subiacebis.' _anoyously_; a mistranslation of 'obnoxius,'; see above. + +12. _destrat_, distracted: 'distractus.' + +16. _brotel_, brittle, frail: 'fragilissimae.' + +28. _of the somer-sesoun_: 'uernalium.' So elsewhere, _somer-sesoun_ really +means the spring. Cf. P. Plowman, line 1. + +_Aristotle._ The reference is not known; but the belief was common. It is +highly probable that the fable about the lynx's sharp sight arose from a +confusion with the sharp sight of Lynceus; and it is Lynceus who is really +meant in the present passage; 'Lynceis oculis.' Cf. Horace, Sat. i. 2. 90: + + --'ne corporis optima Lyncei + Contemplere oculis.' + +METRE 8. 5. _ginnes_, snares: 'laqueos.' + +7. _Tyrene_; 'Tyrrhena ... uada'; see Vergil, Aen. i. 67. + +14. _echines_: 'uel asperis Praestent echinis litora.' + +PROSE 9. 10. _thorugh a litel clifte_: 'rimulâ.' + +14. _misledeth it and transporteth_: 'traducit.' + +16. _Wenest thou_: 'An tu arbitraris, quod nihilo indigeat, egere +potentia?' + +38. _Consider_: 'Considera uero, ne, quod nihilo indigere, quod +potentissimum, quod honore dignissimum esse concessum est, egere +claritudine, quam sibi praestare non possit, atque ob id aliqua ex parte +uideatur abiectius.' + +53. _This is a consequence_: 'Consequitur.' + +69. _they ne geten hem_: 'nec portionem, quae nulla est, nec ipsam, quam +minimè affectat, assequitur.' + +77. _that power forleteth_: 'ei, quem ualentia deserit, quem molestia +pungit, quem uilitas abicit, quem recondit obscuritas.' Hence _that_ means +'whom,' and refers to the man. + +95. _that shal he not finde._ This is turned into the affirmative instead +of the interrogative form: 'sed num in his eam reperiet, quae +demonstrauimus, id quod pollicentur, non posse conferre?' + +119. _norie_, pupil; Lat. 'alumne.' + +136. _that lyen_: 'quae autem beatitudinem mentiantur.' + +142. _in Timeo_; 'uti in Timaeo Platoni.' Here Chaucer keeps the words _in +Timaeo_ without alteration, as if they formed the title of Plato's work. +The passage is: [Greek: all' ô Sôkrates, touto ge dê pantes hosoi kai kata +brachy sôphrosynês metechousin epi pasê hormê kai smikrou kai megalou +pragmatos theon aei pou kalousin] (27 C). + +METRE 9. 3. _from sin that age hadde biginninge_, since the world began: +'ab aeuo.' _thou that dwellest_: cf. Kn. Tale, A 3004. + +5. _necesseden_, compelled, as by necessity: 'pepulerunt.' + +6. _floteringe matere_: 'materiae fluitantis'; see below, Pr. xi. 156. + +8. _beringe_, &c.; see Leg. of Good Women, 2229, and note. + +13. _Thou bindest_: 'Tu numeris elementa ligas.' + +14. _colde._ Alluding to the old doctrine of the four elements, with their +qualities. Thus the nature of fire was thought to be _hot_ and _dry_, that +of water _cold_ and _moist_, that of air _cold_ and _dry_, that of earth +_hot_ and _moist_. Cf. Ovid, Met. i. 19:-- + + 'Frigida pugnabant calidis, humentia siccis, + Mollia cum duris, sine pondere habentia pondus. + Hanc Deus et melior litem Natura diremit ... + Dissociata locis concordi pace ligauit.' + +Sometimes the four elements are represented as lying in four layers; the +earth at the bottom, and above it the water, the air, and the fire, in due +order. This arrangement is here alluded to. Cf. Kn. Ta. A 2992. + +18. _Thou knittest_, &c. + + 'Tu triplicis mediam naturae cuncta mouentem + Connectens animam per consona membra resoluis. + Quae cum secta duos motum glomerauit in orbes, + In semet reditura meat mentemque profundam + Circuit, et simili conuertit imagine caelum. + Tu caussis animas paribus uitasque minores + Prouehis, et leuibus sublimes curribus aptans + In caelum terramque seris, quas lege benigna + Ad te conuersas reduci facis igne reuerti. + Da pater angustam menti conscendere sedem, + Da fontem lustrare boni, da luce reperta + In te conspicuos animi defigere uisus.' + +24. _cartes_, vehicles; the bodies which contain the souls. + +34. _berer_: 'uector, dux, semita, terminus idem.' + +PROSE 10. 8. _for that veyn_, in order that vain, &c. + +11. _ne is_, exists. We should now drop the negative after 'deny.' _nis +right as_, is precisely as. + +12. _is proeved_: 'id imminutione perfecti imperfectum esse perhibetur.' + +14. _in every thing general_: 'in quolibet genere.' + +21. _descendeth_: 'in haec extrema atque effeta dilabitur.' Cf. Kn. Ta. +3003-10. + +31, 2. _that nothing nis bettre_, i.e. than whom nothing is better. So +below (l. 70) we have--'that nothing nis more worth.' + +32. _nis good_, is good. The _ne_ is due to the preceding 'douted.' + +39. _for as moche_: 'ne in infinitum ratio procedat.' + +51. _this prince_; Caxton and Thynne have _the fader_; Lat. 'patrem.' + +62. _feigne_: 'fingat qui potest.' + +88. _thanne ne may_: 'quare neutrum poterit esse perfectum, cum alterutri +alterum deest.' Thus we must read _may_ (sing.), not _mowen_ (pl.). + +98. _Upon thise thinges_, besides this: 'Super haec.' + +100. _porismes_: '[Greek: porismata]'; corollaries, or deductions from a +foregoing demonstration. + +101. _as a corollarie_: 'ueluti corollarium.' _Corollary_ is derived from +_corolla_, dimin. of _corona_, a garland. It meant money paid for a garland +of flowers; hence, a gift, present, gratuity; and finally, an additional +inference from a proposition. Chaucer gives the explanation _mede of +coroune_, i.e. gift of a garland. + +106. _they ben maked iust_: these four words must be added to make sense; +it is plain that they were lost by the inadvertence of the scribes. Lat. +text: 'Sed uti iustitiae adeptione _iusti_, sapientiae sapientes fiunt, ita +diuinitatem adeptos, Deos fieri simili ratione necesse est.' + +165. _the soverein fyn_; Lat. text: 'ut summa, cardo, atque caussa.' +Chaucer seems to have taken _summa_ to be the superl. adjective; and _fyn_, +i.e. end, is meant to represent _cardo_. + +METRE 10. 8. _Tagus_; the well-known river flowing by Toledo and Lisbon, +once celebrated for its golden sands; see Ovid, Am. i. 15. 34; Met. ii. +251, &c. + +10. _Hermus_, an auriferous river of Lydia, into which flowed the still +more celebrated Pactolus. 'Auro turbidus Hermus;' Verg. Georg. ii. 137. + +_rede brinke_: 'rutilante ripa.' + +_Indus_; now the Sind, in N. W. India. + +11. _that medleth_: 'candidis miscens uirides lapillos'; which Chaucer +explains as mingling _smaragdes_ (emeralds) with _margaretes_ (pearls); see +footnote on p. 80. + +17. _that eschueth_: 'Vitat obscuras animae ruinas.' + +PROSE 11. 3. _How mochel_; i.e. at what price will you appraise it: 'quanti +aestimabis.' + +24. _The thinges thanne_: 'Quae igitur, cùm discrepant, minimè bona sunt; +cùm uero unum esse coeperint, bona fiunt: nonne haec ut bona sint, unitatis +fieri adeptione contingit?' + +55. _non other_; i.e. no other conclusion: 'minimè aliud uidetur.' + +63. _travaileth him_, endeavours: 'tueri salutem laborat.' + +71. _thar thee nat doute_, thou needst not doubt. + +81. _What woltow_: 'Quid, quod omnes, uelut in terras ore demerso trahunt +alimenta radicibus, ac per medullas robur corticemque diffundunt?' +(_maryes_, marrows.) + +91. _renovelen and puplisshen hem_: 'propagentur.' + +92. _that they ne ben_, that they are; the superfluous _ne_ is due to the +_ne_ preceding. + +110. _But fyr_: 'Ignis uero omnem refugit sectionem.' + +112. _wilful_: 'de uoluntariis animae cognoscentis motibus.' + +123. _som-tyme_: 'gignendi opus ... interdum coërcet uoluntas.' + +128. _And thus_: 'Adeò haec sui caritas.' + +142. _for yif that that oon_: 'hoc enim sublato, nec esse quidem cuiquam +permanebit.' + +156. _floteren_, fluctuate, waver; 'fluitabunt'; see above, Met. ix. 6. + +161. _for thou hast_: 'ipsam enim mediae ueritatis notam mente fixisti.' + +163. _in that_, in that thing which: 'in hoc ... quod.' + +METRE 11. 2. _mis-weyes_, by-paths: 'nullis ... deuiis.' + +_rollen and trenden_: 'reuoluat.' Chaucer here uses the causal verb +_trenden_, to revolve, answering to an A.S. form _*trendan_, causal of a +lost verb _*trindan_. The E. _trund-le_ is from the same strong verb (pp. +_*getrunden_). + + 'Longosque in orbem cogat inflectens motus, + Animumque doceat quidquid extra molitur + Suis retrusum possidere thesauris.' + +7. Cf. Troilus, iv. 200. + +8. _lighten_, i.e. shine: 'Lucebit.' + +10. _Glosa._ This gloss is an alternative paraphrase of all that precedes, +from the beginning of the Metre. + +32. _Plato_. From Plato's Phaedo, where Socrates says: [Greek: hoti hêmin +hê mathêsis ouk allo ti ê anamnêsis tynchanei ousa] (72 E). + +PROSE 12. 18. _Wendest_, didst ween: 'Mundum, inquit, hunc â Deo regi +paullo antè minimè dubitandum putabas.' Surely Chaucer has quite mistaken +the construction. He should rather have said: 'Thou wendest, quod she, a +litel her-biforn that men ne sholden nat doute,' &c. + +19. _nis governed_, is governed; the same construction as before. So also +_but-yif there nere_ = unless there were (l. 25). + +28. _yif ther ne were_: 'nisi unus esset, qui quod nexuit contineret.' + +30. _bringe forth_, bring about, dispose, arrange: 'disponeret.' + +_so ordenee_: 'tam dispositos motus.' + +38. _that thou_: 'ut felicitatis compos, patriam sospes reuisas.' + +55. _a keye and a stere_: 'ueluti quidam clauus atque gubernaculum.' Here +Chaucer unluckily translates _clauus_ as if it were _clauis_. + +63. _ne sheweth_: 'non minùs ad contuendum patet'; i.e. is equally plain to +be seen. + +67. _by the keye_: 'bonitatis clauo'; see note to l. 55. + +73. _It mot nedes be so_: 'Ita, inquam, necesse est; nec beatum regimen +esse uideretur, si quidem detrectantium iugum foret, non obtemperantium +salus.' The translation has here gone wrong. + +87. _softely_, gently, pleasurably: 'suauiter.' + +91. _so at the laste_: 'ut tandem aliquando stultitiam magna _lacerantem_ +sui pudeat.' Another common reading is _latrantem_, but this was evidently +not the reading in Chaucer's copy; MS. C. has _lacerantem_. + +97. _the poetes._ See Ovid, Met. i. 151-162; Vergil, Georg. i. 277-283. + +116. _Scornest thou me_: 'Ludisne, inquam, me, inextricabilem labyrinthum +rationibus texens, quae nunc quidem, qua egrediaris, introeas; nunc uerò +qua introieris, egrediare; an mirabilem quemdam diuinae simplicitatis orbem +complicas?' + +117. _the hous of Dedalus_; used to translate 'labyrinthum.' See Vergil, +Aen. vi. 24-30, v. 588. No doubt Boethius borrowed the word +_inextricabilis_ from Aen. vi. 27. + +125. _for which_: 'ex quo neminem beatum fore, nisi qui pariter Deus esset, +quasi munusculum dabas.' Here _munusculum_ refers to _corollarium_, which +Chaucer translates by 'a mede of coroune'; see above, Pr. x. 101. + +132. _by the governements_: 'bonitatis gubernaculis.' + +135. _by proeves in cercles and hoomlich knowen_: 'atque haec nullis +extrinsecus sumptis, sed altero ex altero fidem trahente insitis +domesticisque probationibus.' Chaucer inserts _in cercles and_, by way of +reference to arguments drawn from circles; but the chief argument of this +character really occurs later, viz. in Bk. iv. Pr. vi. 81. + +143. _Parmenides_, a Greek philosopher who, according to Plato, accompanied +Zeno to Athens, where he became acquainted with Socrates, who was then but +a young man. Plato, in his Sophistes, quotes the line of Parmenides which +is here referred to: [Greek: pantothen eukyklou sphairas enalinkion onkô]. +This the MSS. explain to mean: 'rerum orbem mobilem rotat, dum se immobilem +ipsa conseruat.' The Greek quotation is corruptly given in the MSS., but is +restored by consulting Plato's text (244 E); hence we do not know what +reading Boethius adopted. It can hardly have been the one here given, which +signifies that God is 'like the mass of a sphere that is well-rounded on +all sides.' Perhaps he took the idea of God's immobility from the next two +verses:-- + + [Greek: messothen isopales pantê, to gar oute ti meizon] + [Greek: oute bebaioteron pelei.] + +i.e. 'equidistant from the centre in all directions; for there is nothing +greater (than Him), and nothing more immoveable.' + +152. _Plato._ From Plato's Timaeus, 29 B: [Greek: hôs ara tous logous +hônper eisin exêgêtai, toutôn autôn kai syngeneis ontas]. Chaucer quotes +this saying twice; see Cant. Tales, A 741-2, H 207-210. + +METRE 12. 3. _Orpheus._ This well-known story is well told in Vergil, +Georg. iv. 454-527; and in Ovid, Met. x. 1-85. + +_Trace_, Thrace; as in Cant. Ta. A 1972. + +4. _weeply_, tearful, sorrowful: 'flebilibus.' + +5. _moevable_ should precede _riveres_; 'Silvas currere, mobiles Amnes +stare coegerat.' Chaucer took these two lines separately. + +12. _hevene goddes_, gods of heaven: 'superos.' + + 'Illic blanda sonantibus Chordis carmina temperans + Quicquid praecipuis deae Matris fontibus hauserat, + Quod luctus dabat impotens, Quod luctum geminans amor + Deflet Taenara commouens, Et dulci ueniam prece + Umbrarum dominos rogat.' + +16. _laved out_, drawn up (as from a well). The M. E. _laven_, to draw up +water, to pour out, is from the A. S. _lafian_, to pour; for which see +Cockayne's A. S. Leechdoms, ii. 124, ii. 74, iii. 48. It is further +illustrated in my Etym. Dict., s. v. _Lavish_, its derivative. No doubt it +was frequently confused with F. _laver_, to wash; but it is an independent +Teutonic word, allied to G. _laben_. In E. Friesic we find _lafen sük_ or +_laven sük_, to refresh oneself. It is curious that it appears even in so +late an author as Dryden, who translates Lat. _egerit_ (Ovid, Met. xi. 488) +by _laves_, i.e. bales out. And see _laven_ in Mätzner. + +16. _Calliope._ Orpheus was son of Oeagrus, king of Thrace, and of +Calliope, chief of the Muses; cf. Ovid, Ibis, 484. + +17. _and he song._ This does not very well translate the Latin text; see +note to l. 12. + +21. _of relesinge_: 'ueniam'; i.e. for the release (of Eurydice). + +22. _Cerberus_, the three-headed dog; cf. Verg. Georg. iv. 483; Aen. vi. +417; Ovid, Met. iv. 449. + +23. _Furies_; the Eumenides; cf. Verg. Georg. iv. 483; Ovid, Met. x. 46. + +26. _Ixion_, who was fastened to an ever-revolving wheel; see Georg. iv. +484; iii. 38; Ovid, Met. iv. 460. + +_overthrowinge_, turning over: 'Non Ixionium caput Velox praecipitat rota.' + +27. _Tantalus_, tormented by perpetual thirst; Ovid, Met. x. 41; iv. 457. + +29. _Tityus_: 'Vultur dum satur est modis Non traxit Tityi iecur.' Cf. +Verg. Aen. vi. 595-600; Ovid, Met. iv. 456. And see Troilus, i. 786-8. + +34. _But we wol_: 'Sed lex dona coërceat.' + +37. _But what_; quoted in Kn. Tale, A 1164. + +42. _and was deed_: 'occidit.' The common story does not involve the +immediate death of Orpheus. + +49. _loketh_, beholds: 'uidet inferos.' The story of Orpheus is excellently +told in King Alfred's translation of Boethius, cap. xxxv. §6. + + +BOOK IV. + +PROSE 1. 5. _forbrak_, broke off, interrupted: 'abrupi.' + +14. _so as_, seeing that, since: 'cùm.' + +25. _alle thinges may_, is omnipotent: 'potentis omnia.' + +27. _an enbasshinge ... ende_: 'infiniti stuporis.' + +30. _right ordenee_, well ordered: 'dispositissima domo.' + +32. _heried_, praised. This resembles the language of St. Paul; 2 Tim. ii. +20. + +41. _cesen_, cause to cease: 'sopitis querelis.' + +45. _alle thinges_, all things being treated of: 'decursis omnibus.' + +47. _fetheres_, wings; 'pennas.' The A. S. pl. _fethera_ sometimes means +wings. + +50. _sledes_, sleds, i. e. sledges: 'uehiculis.' The Vulgate version of 1 +Chron. xx. 3 has: 'et fecit super eos tribulas, et _trahas_, et ferrata +carpenta transire.' Wycliffe translates _trahas_ by _sledis_ (later +version, _sleddis_). + +METRE 1. 2-5. Quoted in Ho. Fame, 973-8. + +5. _fyr_, fire. In the old astronomy, the region of air was supposed to be +surrounded by a region of fire, which Boethius here says was caused by the +swift motion of the ether: 'Quique agili motu calet aetheris Transcendit +ignis uerticem.' Beyond this region were the planetary spheres, viz. those +of the moon, Mercury, Venus, the sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. This +explains the allusion to the passage of Thought (Imagination) through 'the +houses that bear the stars' (i. e. planets), in Latin _astriferas domos_, +and so, past the sun, to the seventh sphere of Saturn. After this, Thought +soars to the eighth sphere, called the Sphere of the Fixed Stars (denoted +below by 'the circle of the stars' or 'the firmament'); and after 'wending +on the back of it,' i. e. getting beyond it, reaches the _primum mobile_, +where 'the lord of kings holds the sceptre of his might.' + + 'Donec in astriferas surgat domos, + Phoeboque coniungat uias, + Aut comitetur iter gelidi senis + Miles corusci sideris; + Vel quocunque micans nox pingitur, + Recurrat astri circulum, + Atque ubi iam exhausti fuerit satis, + Polum relinquit extimum, + Dorsaque uelocis premat aetheris + Compos uerendi luminis.' + +9. _Saturnus_, the planet Saturn; which Chaucer rightly gives as the sense +of 'senis.' + +_and he y-maked_, i.e. and he (Thought) becomes a knight. I hesitate to +insert _is_ after _he_, because all the authorities omit it; in fact, the +phrase _and he y-maked_ seems to be equivalent to 'he being made.' I do not +understand what is meant by 'Miles corusci sideris,' unless it means that +Boethius imagines Thought to become a companion of Mars, and thus to be +made a soldier, in the service of that bright planet. + +15. _images of sterres_, i.e. constellations, which were fancifully +supposed to represent various objects. + +18. _worshipful light._ MS. A has _dredefulle clerenesse_. Both are +translations of 'uerendi luminis.' + +22. _swifte cart_: 'uolucrem currum.' _Cart_ is sometimes used for car or +chariot. + +25. _but now_, &c. These words are supposed to be spoken by Boethius, when +he remembers all the truth. 'Haec dices, memini, patria est mihi.' + +26. _heer wol I fastne my degree_: 'hic sistam gradum.' The sense is +rather, 'here will I [_or_, let me] fix my step,' or 'plant my foot'; i.e. +remain. Cf. 'Siste gradum,' i. e. stop; Verg. Aen. vi. 465. + +27. _But yif_: + + 'Quod si terrarum placeat tibi + Noctem relictam uisere, + Quos miseri toruos populi timent + Cernes tyrannos exules.' + +PROSE 2. 1. _owh_, an exclamation; 'Papae.' + +13. _fey_, the faith, the certainty: 'fides.' _sentence_, opinion. + +31. _And in that_: 'Quod uero quisque potest.' _may_, can do. + +38. _lad_, led; _studies_, desires: 'quae diuersis studiis agitur.' + +71. _Yif that_: 'Etsi coniecto, inquam, quid uelis.' + +84. _knit forth_: 'Contexe, inquam, cetera.' + +93. _shewinge_, evident; _is open and shewinge_: 'patet.' + +97. _Iugement._ Evidently meant to translate _iudicium_. But Chaucer +misread his text, which has _indicium_. 'Idque, ut medici sperare solent, +indicium est erectae iam resistentisque naturae.' + +103. _ledeth hem_, i. e. leads them to: 'qui ne ad hoc quidem peruenire +queunt, ad quod eos naturalis ducit, ac pene compellit, intentio.' + +104. _And what_: 'Et quid? si hoc tam magno ac pene inuicto praeeuntis +naturae desererentur auxilio?' + +112. _Ne shrewes_: 'Neque enim leuia aut ludicra praemia petunt, quae +consequi atque obtinere non possunt.' + +120. _laye_, might lie (subjunctive): 'quo nihil ulterius peruium iaceret +incessui.' + +137. _for to ben_, even to exist. So below, _ben_ frequently means 'to +exist,' as appears from the argument. + +151. _mowen_, have power to act: 'possunt.' + +161. _understonde_, mayest understand: 'ut intelligas.' + +187. _Plato_, viz. in the Gorgias and Alcibiades I, where many of the +arguments here used may be found. + +METRE 2. The subject of this metre is from Plato, De Republica, x. +Chaucer's translation begins with the 7th line of the Latin. + + 'Quos uides sedere celsos Solii culmine reges, + Purpura claros nitente, Septos tristibus armis, + Ore toruo comminantes, Rabie cordis anhelos, + Detrahat si quis superbis Vani tegmina cultus, + Iam uidebit intus arctas Dominos ferre catenas. + Hinc enim libido uersat Auidis corda uenenis; + Hinc flagellat ira mentem Fluctus turbida tollens, + Moeror aut captos fatigat, Aut spes lubrica torquet. + Ergo, cum caput tot unum Cernas ferre tyrannos, + Non facit, quod optat, ipse Dominis pressus iniquis.' + +12. _tyrannyes._ This reading (in C ed.) gives the sense better than the +reading _tyrauntis_ (in A); although the latter is quite literal. + +PROSE 3. 7. _stadie_, race-course: 'in stadio'; which Chaucer explains by +'furlong.' + +10. _purposed_, equivalent to _proposed_; 'praemium commune propositum.' + +14. _For which thing_: 'quare probos mores sua praemia non relinquunt.' + +25, 26. _so as_, whereas. _for men_, because men. + +27. _part-les_, without his share of: 'praemii ... expertem.' + +35. _no day_: 'quod nullus deterat dies.' + +39. _undepartable_, inseparable: 'inseparabili poena.' + +49. _may it semen_: 'possuntne sibi supplicii expertes uideri, quos omnium +malorum extrema nequitia non afficit modò, verumetiam uehementer inficit?' + +70. _under_, beneath, below: 'infra hominis meritum.' + +METRE 3. 1. _aryvede_, cause to arrive, drove: 'appulit.' + +_the sailes_: 'Vela Neritii ducis;' Chaucer inserts _Ulixes_, i. e. +Ulysses. The phrase is from Ovid: 'Dux quoque Neritius,' i. e. Ulysses; +Fasti, iv. 69. Neritos was a mountain of Ithaca, the island of Ulysses. MS. +C. reads _Naricii_, which accounts for the form _Narice_. + +3. _Circes_, Circe, as in Ho. Fame, 1272; inserted by Chaucer. + +7. _that oon of hem_: 'Hunc apri facies tegit.'--'One of them, his face is +covered,' &c. + +9. _Marmorike_: 'Marmaricus leo.' This refers to the country of Barca, on +the N. African coast, to the W. of Egypt. + +13. _But al-be-it_: 'Sed licet uariis modis Numen Arcadis alitis Obsitum +miserans ducens Peste soluerit hospitis.' _Arcas ales_, the winged +Arcadian, i. e. Mercury, because born on the Arcadian mountain Cyllene. + +16. _algates_, at any rate; _by this_, already. + +19. _akornes of okes_; this is not tautology, for an _acorn_ was, +originally, any fruit of the field, as the etymology (from _acre_) shews. + +23. _over-light_, too light, too feeble: 'O leuem nimium manum, Nec +potentia gramina, Membra quae ualeant licet, Corda uertere non ualent.' + +32. _for vyces_: 'Dira, quae penitus meant, Nec nocentia corpori Mentis +uulnere saeuiunt.' + +PROSE 4. 2. _ne I ne see nat_: 'nec iniuria dici uideo uitiosos, tametsi +humani corporis speciem seruent, in belluas tamen animorum qualitate +mutari.' Chaucer's 'as by right' should rather be 'as by wrong.' It means +'I do not see that it is wrongly said.' + +4, 5. _But I nolde_, but I would rather that it were not so with regard to +evil men: 'eis licere noluissem.' + +18. _to mowen don_, to be able to do: 'potuisse.' + +22. _three_, i. e. the triple misfortune of _wishing_ to do evil, of _being +able_ to do it, and of _doing_ it. + +26. _thilke unselinesse_: 'hoc infortunio'; i. e. the ability to sin. + +28. _So shullen_: 'Carebunt, inquit, ocius, quàm uel tu forsitan uelis, uel +illi sese existiment esse carituros.' + +30. _For ther_: 'Neque enim est aliquid in tam breuibus uitae metis ita +serum, quod exspectare longum immortalis praesertim animus putet.' + +39. _by the outtereste_: 'eorum malitiam ... mors extrema finiret.' + +42. _ben perdurable_, i. e. to exist eternally: 'infinitam liquet esse +miseriam, quam constat esse aeternam.' + +51. _ther is not why_, there is no reason why. + +54. _but of the thinges_: 'sed ex his, quae sumpta sunt, aeque est +necessarium.' + +64. _but I understande_: 'sed alio quodam modo infeliciores esse improbos +arbitror impunitos, tametsi nulla ratio correctionis, nullus respectus +habeatur exempli.' Thus 'non ensaumple of lokinge' is wrong; it should +rather be 'non lokinge of ensaumple,' i. e. no regard to the example thus +set. + +90. _which defaute_: 'quam iniquitatis merito malum esse confessus es.' +Hence 'for the deserte of felonye' means 'when we consider what wickedness +deserves.' + +102. _to leten_, to leave: 'nullane animarum supplicia ... relinquis?' + +132. _briddes_, i. e. owls. See Parl. Foules, 599. + +142. _right as thou_: 'ueluti si uicibus sordidam humum caelumque +respicias, cunctis extra cessantibus, ipsa cernendi ratione nunc coeno nunc +sideribus interesse uidearis.' + +153. Wrong. It should rather run: 'sholde we wene that _we_ were blinde?' +Lat. 'num uidentes eadem caecos putaremus?' + +193. _in al_, altogether: 'tota,' sc. opera defensorum. + +197, 8. _at any clifte_: 'aliqua rimula.' + +_sawen_, if they should perceive: 'uiderent.' + +200. _right for_: 'compensatione adipiscendae probitatis.' Hence _for to +geten hem_ means 'of obtaining for themselves.' + +205. _y-leten_, left: 'nullus prorsus odio locus relinquatur.' + +METRE 4. 1. _What delyteth you_, Why does it delight you? 'Quid tantos +iuuat excitare motus?' + +Lines 8-10 are put interrogatively in the Latin text. + +9. _and wilnen_: 'Alternisque uolunt perire telis.' + +10. _But the resoun_: 'Non est iusta satis saeuitiae ratio.' + +PROSE 5. 9. _y-shad_, shed, spread abroad: 'transfunditur.' + +20. _hepeth_: 'Nunc stuporem meum Deus rector exaggerat.' + +METRE 5. The Latin text begins thus:-- + + 'Si quis Arcturi sidera nescit + Propinqua summo cardine labi, + Cur legat tardus plaustra Boötes, + Mergatque seras aequore flammas, + Cum nimis celeres explicet ortus, + Legem stupebit aetheris alti.' + +1. _sterres of Arcture_, the stars of the constellation Arcturus. Arcturus +was (as here) another name for Boötes, though it properly meant the +brightest star in that constellation. It is at no great distance from the +north pole, and so appears to revolve round it. The passage, which is +somewhat obscure, seems to refer to the manner of the rising and setting of +Boötes; and the argument is, that a person ignorant of astronomy, must be +puzzled to understand the laws that rule the motions of the sky. + +3. _the sterre_, the constellation. Chaucer uses _sterre_ in this sense in +several passages; see Kn. Tale, A 2059, 2061, and the notes. + +8. _the fulle mone._ This alludes to an eclipse of the moon, as appears +from below. + +9. _infect_: 'Infecta metis noctis opacae.' + +_confuse_, confounded, overcome; the light of the moon disappears in a full +eclipse, rendering the stars brighter. + +11. _The comune errour_: 'Commouet gentes publicus error.' The people who +do not understand an eclipse, are excited by it; they bring out basins, and +beat them with a loud din, to frighten away the spirit that is preying on +the moon. Chaucer calls them _Corybantes_, but these were the priests of +Cybele. Still, they celebrated her rites to the sound of noisy music; and +he may have been thinking of a passage in Ovid, Fasti, iv. 207-14. C. adds +a gloss: 'i. vulgaris error, quo putatur luna incantari.' + +12. _thikke strokes_, frequent strokes. The word resembles _thilke_ in C., +because _lk_ is not unfrequently written for _kk_ in the fifteenth century, +to the confusion of some editors; see my paper on Ghost-words, in the +Philol. Soc. Trans. 1886, p. 370. + +18. _by quakinge flodes_: 'frementi ... fluctu.' + +23. _alle thinges_: 'Cuncta, quae rara prouehit aetas.' + +24. _troubly errour_: 'nubilus error.' + +PROSE 6. 9. _laven it_, to exhaust the subject: 'cui uix exhausti quidquam +satis sit.' As to _lave_, see note to Bk. iii. Met. 12-16. + +13. _Ydre_, Hydra; see note below to Met. 7. The form is due to _hydrae_ +(MS. _hydre_) in the Latin text. + +_Ne ther ... ende_: 'nec ullus fuerit modus.' _Manere_ is not the sense of +_modus_ here; it rather means _ende_ or 'limit.' + +14. _but-yif_: 'nisi quis eas uiuacissimo mentis igne coërceat.' + +24, 5. _But althogh_: 'Quòd si te musici carminis oblectamenta delectant, +hanc oportet paullisper differas uoluptatem, dum nexas sibi ordine contexo +rationes.' This is said, because this 'Prose' is of unusual length. For +_sibi_, another reading is _tibi_; hence Chaucer's 'weve _to thee_ +resouns.' + +30. _muable_, mutable, changeable: 'mutabilium naturarum.' Cf. Kn. Tale, A +2994-3015. + +33. _in the tour_: 'Haec in suae simplicitatis arce composita, multiplicem +rebus gerendis modum statuit.' + +48. _but destinee_: 'fatum uero singula digerit in motum, locis, formis, ac +temporibus distributa.' + +59. _and ledeth_: 'et quod simpliciter praesentarieque prospexit, per +temporales ordines ducit.' Cf. Troilus, i. 1065-9. + +67. _by some sowle_; glossed 'anima mundi.' This idea is from Plato, De +Legibus, bk. x: [Greek: psychên dê dioikousan kai enoikousan en hapasi tois +pantê kinoumenois môn ou kai ton ouranon anankê dioikein phanai]; (896 D). + +68. _by the celestial_, &c.; alluding to the old astrology. + +81. _a same centre_; i.e. concentric circles, as on a target. + +87. _and yif ther be_: 'si quid uero illi se medio connectat et societ, in +simplicitatem cogitur, diffundique ac diffluere cessat.' + +93. _laus_, loose; from Icel. _lauss_. Also spelt _loos_, _los_. _it +axeth_: 'quantò illum rerum cardinem uicinius petit.' Thus _it axeth_ is +due to 'petit,' i.e. seeks, tends to. + +97. _Thanne right swich_: 'Igitur uti est ad intellectum ratiocinatio; ad +id quod est, id quod gignitur; ad aeternitatem tempus; ad puncti medium +circulus: ita est fati series mobilis ad prouidentiae stabilem +simplicitatem.' + +108. _whan they passen_: 'cùm ... proficiscantur.' Thus _whan_ should +rather be _so as_, i.e. whereas, because. + +112. _unable to ben ybowed_: 'indeclinabilem caussarum ordinem promat.' + +114. _sholden fleten_: 'res ... temerè fluituras.' + +_For which it is_: 'Quo fit.' + +116. _natheles_: 'nihilominus tamen suus modus ad bonum dirigens cuncta +disponat.' + +121. _ne the ordre_: 'ne dum ordo de summi boni cardine proficiscens, a suo +quoquam deflectat exordio.' MS. C. has 'deflectatur.' + +123. 'Quae uero, inquies, potest ulla iniquior esse confusio.' For +'iniquior,' MS. C. has the extraordinary reading 'inquiescior,' which +Chaucer seems to have tried to translate. + +138. _Ne it ne is nat_: 'Non enim dissimile est miraculum nescienti.' + +145. _hele of corages_: 'animorum salus.' + +148. _lecher_, i.e. leech-er, healer: 'medicator mentium Deus.' + +151. _leneth hem_, gives them: 'quod conuenire nouit, accommodat.' Printed +_leueth_ in Dr. Furnivall's print of MS. C., but _leneth_ in Morris's +edition of MS. A. There is no doubt as to the right reading, because +_accommodare_ and _lenen_ are both used in the sense 'to lend.' + +154. _for to constreine_: 'ut pauca ... perstringam,' i.e. 'to touch +lightly on a few things.' Chaucer has taken it too literally, but his +paraphrase is nearly right. + +157. _right kepinge_: 'aequi seruantissimum.' + +159. _my familer_: 'familiaris noster Lucanus.' Alluding to the famous +line:--'Victrix caussa deis placuit, sed uicta Catoni'; Pharsalia, i. 128. + +168. _with-holden_, retain: 'retinere fortunam.' + +176. _by me_, by my means, by my help: 'Nam ut quidam me quoque +excellentior ait.' This looks like a slip on the part of Boethius himself, +for the supposed speaker is Philosophy herself. The philosopher here +alluded to still remains unknown. MS. C. has 'me quidem'; and 'me' is +glossed by 'philosophus per me.' + +177. _in Grek._ Some MSS. have: [Greek: andros hierou sôma dynameis +oikodomousi]. There are various readings, but Chaucer had before him only +the interpretation: 'Viri sacri corpus aedificauerunt uirtutes.' Such is +the reading in MS. C. + +179. _taken_, delivered, entrusted. 'Fit autem saepe, uti bonis summa rerum +gerenda deferatur.' + +182. _remordeth_: 'remordet,' i.e. plagues, troubles. + +186. _And other folk_: 'Alii plus aequo metuunt, quod ferre possunt.' + +201. _of wikkede merite_: 'eos male meritos omnes existimant.' + +206. _serven to shrewes_: 'famulari saepe improbis.' _I trowe_: 'illud +etiam dispensari credo.' + +207, 8. _overthrowinge to yvel_: 'praeceps.' + +209. _egren him_: 'eum ... exacerbare possit.' + +219. _shal be cause_: 'ut exercitii bonis, et malis esset caussa +supplicii.' Hence _continuacion_ seems to mean 'endurance' or +'continuance.' + +242. _sin that_: the original is in Greek, with (in MS. C.) the false +gloss:--'fortissimus in mundo Deus omnia regit.' The Greek is--[Greek: +Argaleon de me tauta theon hôs pant' agoreuein]. From Homer, Il. xii. 176, +with the change from [Greek: agoreusai] to [Greek: agoreuein]. + +247. _with-holden_, to retain, keep, maintain; 'retinere.' + +253. _ben outrageous or haboundant_: 'abundare.' Hence _outrageous_ is +'superfluous' or 'excessive.' + +257. _and whan_: 'quo refectus, firmior in ulteriora contendas.' + +METRE 6. 1. 'Si uis celsi iura tonantis Pura sollers cernere mente, Adspice +summi culmina caeli'; &c. + +5. _cercle_: 'Non Sol ... Gelidum Phoebes impedit axem.' + +6. _Ne the sterre_: 'Nec quae summo uertice mundi Flectit rapidos Ursa +meatus, Numquam occiduo lota profundo, Cetera cernens sidera mergi, Cupit +Oceano tingere flammas.' Hence _deyen_ is to dye, to dip. + +10. _Hesperus_, the evening-star; _Lucifer_, the morning-star. + +13. _And thus_: 'Sic aeternos reficit cursus Alternus amor; sic astrigeris +Bellum discors exsulat oris. Haec concordia temperat aequis Elementa modis, +ut pugnantia Vicibus cedant humida siccis'; &c. + +20, 1. _in the firste somer-sesoun warminge_: 'uere tepenti.' This is not +the only place where _uer_ is translated _somer-sesoun_, a phrase used as +applicable to May in P. Plowman, Prol. 1. Another name for 'spring' was +_Lent_ or _Lenten_. + +24. _and thilke_: 'Eadem rapiens condit et aufert Obitu mergens orta +supremo.' + +29. _And tho_: 'Et quae motu concitat ire, Sistit retrahens, ac uaga +firmat.' + +31. _For yif_: 'Nam nisi rectos reuocans itus, Flexos iterum cogat in +orbes, Quae nunc stabilis continet ordo, Dissepta suo fonte fatiscant.' + +37. _This is_: 'Hic est cunctis communis amor Repetuntque boni fine teneri, +Quia non aliter durare queunt, Nisi conuerso rursus amore Refluant caussae, +quae dedit esse.' + +PROSE 7. 57. _ne also it_: 'ita uir sapiens molestè ferre non debet, +quotiens in fortunae certamen adducitur.' + +60. _matere_, material, source. + +62. _vertu._ Boethius here derives _uirtus_ from _uires_: 'quod suis +_uiribus_ nitens non superetur aduersis.' + +64. _Ne certes_: 'Neque enim uos in prouectu positi uirtutis, diffluere +deliciis, et emarcescere uoluptate uenistis; proelium cum omni fortuna +nimis acre conseritis, ne uos aut tristis opprimat, aut iucunda corrumpat: +firmis medium uiribus occupate.' + +72. _in your hand_: 'In uestra enim situm est manu.' + +METRE 7. 1. _wreker_, avenger; _Attrides_, Atrides, i.e. Agamemnon, son of +Atreus. Chaucer derived the spelling _Agamenon_ from a gloss in MS. C. +Gower (C. A. ii. 344) has the same form. + +2. _recovered_: 'Fratris amissos thalamos piauit.' + +5. _Menelaus_, &c.; 'that was his brother Menelaus' wife.' The usual idiom; +see note to Squieres Tale, E 209. + +9. _doughter_, i.e. Iphigenia; Ovid, Met. xii. 27-38. + +13. _Itacus_: 'Fleuit amissos Ithacus sodales.' The well-known story of +Ulysses of Ithaca; from Homer, Od. ix. + +15. _empty_; as if translating 'inani.' But the right reading is _inmani_ +(or _immani_); i.e. 'vast.' MS. C. 'inmani,' glossed 'magno.' + +20. _Hercules._ See Monkes Tale, B 3285, and the notes. In the first note, +this passage from Boethius is given at length. + +21. _Centaures_, Centaurs; Hercules was present at the fight between the +Centauri and Lapithae; Ovid, Met. xii. 541; ix. 191. + +22. _lyoun_, the Nemean lion; Ovid, Met. ix. 197, 235; Her. ix. 61. + +23. _Arpyes_, the Harpies; with reference to the destruction of the +Stymphalian birds, who ate human flesh; Met. ix. 187. The gloss in the +footnote--_in the palude of lyrne_ (in the marsh of Lerna) is a mistake; it +should refer to the Hydra mentioned below. + +25. _dragoun_, the dragon in the garden of the Hesperides; Met. ix. 190. +The 'golden metal' refers to the golden apples. + +26. _Cerberus_; Ovid, Met. ix. 185. + +27. _unmeke_, proud; see note to Monkes Tale, B 3293; and Ovid, Met. ix. +194-6. Note that _hors_ (= horses) is plural. + +29. _Ydra_, Hydra; Ovid, Met. ix. 192. + +30. _Achelous_; see the story in Ovid, Met. ix. 1-97. Boethius imitates +Ovid, l. 97, viz. 'Et lacerum cornu mediis caput abdidit undis.' + +35. _Antheus_, Antaeus; Ovid, Met. ix. 184. For the story, see Lucan, +Phars. iv. 590-660; Lucan refers to _Lybia_ as the place of combat; l. 582. + +36. _Cacus_; see the story in Ovid, Fasti, i. 543-86. + +39. _boor_, the boar of Erymanthus; Ovid, Her. ix. 87. For _scomes_ (lit. +scums), Caxton and Thynne have _vomes_, for _fomes_ (foams). + +40. _the whiche_, 'which shoulders were fated to sustain (lit. thrust +against) the high sphere of heaven.' Alluding to Hercules, when he took the +place of Atlas. + +45. _nake_, expose your unarmed backs (Lat. nudatis), like one who runs +away. An unarmed man was usually said to be _naked_; as in Othello, v. 2. +258; 2 Hen. VI. iii. 2. 234; &c. + + +BOOK V. + +PROSE 1. 3. A mistranslation. 'Recta quidem exhortatio, tuaque prorsus +auctoritate dignissima.' + +9. _assoilen to thee the._ I prefer this reading, adopted from Caxton's +edition, because the others make no sense. The original reading was _to the +the_ (= _to thee the_), as in MS. Ii. 1. 38, whence, by dropping one _the_, +the reading _to the_ in C. and Ed. MS. A. alters it to _the to the_, +absurdly. The fact is, that _to thee_ belongs to the next clause. 'Festino, +inquit, debitum promissionis absoluere, uiamque _tibi_,' &c. + +14. _to douten_, to be feared; 'uerendumque est.' + +28. _left, or dwellinge_, left, or remaining (_reliquus_). 'Quis enim ... +locus esse ullus temeritati reliquus potest?' + +31. _nothing_: 'nihil ex nihilo exsistere.' Referring to the old +saying:--'Ex nihilo nihil fit.' + +34. _prince and beginnere_ oddly represents Lat. 'principio.' _casten it_, +laid it down: 'quasi quoddam iecerint fundamentum.' I supply _it_. + +44. _Aristotulis_, Aristotle. The reference is to Aristotle's Physics, bk. +ii. ch. 5. + +47. _for grace_, for the sake of; 'gratia.' + +50. _Right as_, just as if. _by cause_, for the purpose. + +55. _ne dolve_, had not digged; subj. mood. + +57. _abregginge._ A mistranslation. 'Hae sunt igitur fortuiti caussae +compendii'; these then are the causes of this fortuitous acquisition. +_Compendium_ also means 'an abbreviating,' which Chaucer here expresses by +_abbregginge_, introducing at the same time the word 'hap,' to make some +sense. + +66. _uneschuable_, inevitable; 'ineuitabili.' + +METRE 1. 2. _Achemenie_: 'Rupis Achaemeniae scopulis,' in the crags of the +Achæmenian rock or mountain. _Achaemenius_ signifies 'Persian,' from +Achaemenes, the grandfather of Cyrus; but is here extended to mean +Armenian. The sources of the Tigris and Euphrates are really different, +though both rise in the mountains of Armenia; they run for a long way at no +great distance apart, and at last join. + +3. _fleinge bataile_, the flying troop; with reference to the well-known +Parthian habit, of shooting arrows at those who pursue them; see Vergil, +Georg. iii. 31. + +5. _yif they_, when they; meaning that they _do_ converge. + +9. _and the wateres_: 'Mixtaque fortuitos implicet unda modos: Quae tamen +ipsa uagos terrae decliuia cursus Gurgitis et lapsi defluus ordo regit.' + +14. _it suffereth_: 'Fors patitur frenos, ipsaque lege meat.' + +PROSE 2. 4, 5. _destinal_, fatal; 'fatalis.' _corages_, minds. + +10. _thinges ... fleen_, i.e. to be avoided: 'fugienda.' + +13. _is_, i.e. is in, resides in: 'quibus in ipsis inest ratio.' + +14. _ordeyne_, determine: 'constituo.' + +16. _sovereines_, the supreme divine substances. This is a good example of +adjectives of French origin with a plural in _-es_. + +17, 18. _wil_: 'et incorrupta uoluntas.' _might_: 'potestas.' + +27. _talents_, affections: 'affectibus.' + +30. _caitifs_, captive: 'propriâ libertate captiuae.' Ll. 30-34 are +repeated in Troilus, iv. 963-6; q.v. + +34. _in Greek_: [Greek: pant' ephora kai pant' epakouei]. From Homer, +Iliad, iii. 277--[Greek: Êelios th', hos pant' ephoras kai pant' +epakoueis]. Cf. Odys. xii. 323. + +METRE 2. 1, 2. _with the_, &c.; 'Melliflui ... oris.' _cleer_, bright; +alluding to the common phrase in Homer: [Greek: lampron phaos êelioio]; Il. +i. 605, &c. + +8. _strok_: 'Uno mentis cernit in ictu.' + +PROSE 3. A large portion of this Prose, down to l. 71, is paraphrased in +Troilus, iv. 967-1078; q.v. + +12. _libertee of arbitre_, freedom of will (arbitrii). + +19. _proeve_, approve of: 'Neque ... illam probo rationem.' + +30. _but ... ytravailed_: 'Quasi uero ... laboretur'; which means, rather, +'as if the question were.' + +35. _But I ne_, &c. The translation is here quite wrong; and as in another +place, Chaucer seems to have read _nitamur_ as _uitamus_. The text has: 'At +nos illud demonstrare nitamur.' The general sense is: 'But let me endeavour +to shew, that, in whatever manner the order of causes be arranged, the +happening of things foreseen is necessary, although the foreknowledge does +not seem to impose on future things a necessity of their happening.' + +53. _For althogh that_; cf. Troil. iv. 1051-7, which is clearer. + +55. _therfore ne bityde they nat_, it is not on _that_ account that they +happen. Cf. 'Nat that it comth for it purveyed is'; Troil. iv. 1053. + +71. _at the laste_, finally: 'Postremò.' + +78. _that I ne wot it._ The _ne_ is superfluous, though in all the copies. +The sense is--'if I know a thing, it cannot be false (must be true) that I +know it.' + +80. _wanteth lesing_, is free from falsehood: 'mendacio careat.' + +90, 1. _egaly_, equally: 'aeque.' _indifferently_, impartially. + +94. _Iape-worthy,_ ridiculous: 'ridiculo.' From Horace, Sat. ii. 5. 59--'O +Laërtiade, quicquid dicam, aut erit, aut non.' + +116. _sent_, for _sendeth_, sends: 'mittit.' + +117. _constreineth_: 'futuri cogit certa necessitas.' + +121. _discrecioun_, discernment: 'indiscreta confusio.' + +_And yit_, &c. To make sense, read _than whiche_ for _of the whiche_. The +whole clause, from _And yit_ down to _wikke_ is expanded from 'Quoque nihil +sceleratius excogitari potest.' + +131. _sin that_: 'quando optanda omnia series indeflexa connectit?' + +141. _that nis nat ... or that_, that cannot be approached before. The +Latin is: 'illique inaccessae luci, prius quoque quam impetrent, ipsa +supplicandi ratione coniungi.' + +142. _impetren_, ask for it; such is the reading of MS. Ii. 1. 38. A coined +word, from the Lat. _impetrent_; see the last note. + +146. _linage of mankind_, the human race; to which _his_ (its) twice refers +below. + +147. _a litel her-biforn_; i.e. in Bk. iv. Met. 6. 34, where we find--'they +sholden departen from hir welle, that is to seyn, from hir biginninge, and +faylen.' See p. 122. + +METRE 3. 1. _What_, &c.: 'Quaenam discors foedera rerum Caussa resoluit?' + +2. _the coniunccioun_; but this gloss seems to be wrong, for the reference +is rather (as Chaucer, following a sidenote in MS. C., says in l. 5) to +foreknowledge and free will. + +3. _Whiche god_, i.e. what divinity: 'Quis tanta deus Veris statuit bella +duobus?' + +7. _But ther nis._ The Lat. text is put interrogatively: 'An nulla est +discordia ueris, Semperque sibi certa cohaerent?' + +10. _by fyr_: 'oppressi luminis igne.' + +12. _But wherefore_: 'Sed cur tanto flagrat amore Veri tectas reperire +notas?' It thus appears that _y-covered_, i.e. 'that are hidden,' refers to +_thilke notes_, not to _sooth_; cf. l. 15. But the translation is not at +all happy. + +16. _Wot it_: 'Scitne, quod appetit anxia nosse?' + +18. _seith thus_: 'Sed quis nota scire laborat? At si nescit, quid caeca +petit? Quis enim quidquam nescius optet?' + +23. _or who_: 'Aut quis ualeat nescita sequi? Quoue inueniat, quisue +repertam Queat ignarus noscere formam?' + +26. _But whan_: not a statement, as here taken, but a question. 'An cùm +mentem cerneret altam Pariter summam et singula norat?' The translation is +quite incorrect, and the passage is difficult. The reference seems to be to +the supposition that the soul, apart from the body, sees both universals +and particulars, but its power in the latter respect is impeded by the +body; ideas taken from Plato's Meno and Phædo. + +32, 33. _withholdeth_, retains: 'tenet.' _singularitees_, particulars: +'singula.' + +34. _in neither nother_, put for _in ne either ne other_, i.e. not in one +nor in the other; or, in modern English, 'he is neither in one position nor +the other': 'Neutro est habitu.' This curious phrase is made clearer by +comparing it with the commoner _either other_. Thus, in P. Plowman, B. v. +148: '_either_ despiseth _other_'; in the same, B. v. 164: '_eyther_ hitte +_other_'; and again, in B. xi. 173: 'that alle manere men .. Louen her +_eyther other_'; and, in B. vii. 138: 'apposeden _either other_'; and +lastly, in B. xvi. 207: '_either_ is _otheres_ Ioye.' + +36. _retreteth_, reconsiders: 'altè uisa _retractans_.' + +PROSE 4. 2. _Marcus Tullius_, i.e. Cicero; De Diuinatione, lib. ii. 60. + +8. _moeven to_: 'ad diuinae praescientiae simplicitatem non potest +admoueri.' + +15. _y-spended_, spent; but the right sense of the Latin is weighed or +considered: 'si prius ea quibus moueris, _expendero_.' + +22. _from elles-where_: 'aliunde'; compare Chaucer's gloss. + +24. _unbityde_, not happen: 'non euenire non possunt.' + +27. _thou thyself._ The reference is to Bk. v. Pr. 3. l. 27, above--'ne it +ne bihoveth nat, nedes, that thinges bityden that ben purvyed.' + +28, 9. _what cause_: 'quid est, quod uoluntarii exitus rerum ad certum +cogantur euentum?' _endes_, results: 'exitus;' and so again below. + +30. _by grace of position_, for the sake of a supposition, by way of +supposition: 'positionis gratia.' Cf. Chaucer's use of _pose_ for 'suppose' +in the next line. The reading _possessioun_ (in both MSS.) is obviously +wrong; it sounds as if taken down from dictation. + +31. _I pose_, I suppose, I put the case: 'statuamus nullam esse +praescientiam.' The words 'per impossibile' are inserted by Chaucer, and +mean, 'to take an impossible case.' + +56. _But, certes, right_; only, indeed, just as, &c. It is difficult to +give the right force intended; and, probably, Chaucer quite mistook the +sense. 'Quasi uero nos ea, quae prouidentia futura esse praenoscit, non +esse euentura credamus.' + +62. _in the torninge_: 'in quadrigis moderandis atque flectendis.' + +63. _And by_: 'atque ad hunc modum caetera.' + +100. _and for that this thing shal mowen shewen_, and in order that this +may appear (lit. may be able to appear). The whole clause merely +means--'And to make this clearer by an easy example.' Lat. 'Nam ut hoc +breui liqueat exemplo.' + +101. _roundnesse_ is here in the objective case: 'eandem corporis +rotunditatem aliter uisus aliter tactus agnoscit.' + +107. _And the man_: 'Ipsum quoque hominem.' _wit_, i.e. sense. The 'five +wits' were the five senses. + +113. _spece_, species. _peces_, parts; _in the singuler peces_, i.e. in the +particular parts. + +114. _intelligence_, understanding; 'intelligentiae.' + +115. _universitee_, that which is universal: 'uniuersitatis ambitum.' + +133. _by a strok_: 'illo uno ictu mentis formaliter.' + +137. _diffinissheth_, defines the universality of her conception. + +METRE 4. 1. _The Porche_; in Latin, _Porticus_; in Gk. [Greek: stoa], a +roofed colonnade or porch in Athens, frequented by Zeno and his followers, +who hence obtained the name of Stoics. + + 'Quondam Porticus attulit Obscuros nimium senes, + Qui sensus, et imagines E corporibus extimis + Credant mentibus imprimi.' + +10. TEXT. The Latin text continues thus:-- + + 'Vt quondam celeri stilo Mos est aequore paginae + Quae nullas habeat notas, Pressas figere litteras.' + +11. _pointel_; see note to Somn. Tale, D 1742. And cf. Troilus, i. 365; +Cant. Ta. E 1581, 2. + +15. _But yif_: + + 'Sed mens si propriis uigens Nihil motibus explicat + Sed tantùm patiens iacet Notis subdita corporum, + Cassasque in speculi uicem Rerum reddit imagines. + Vnde haec sic animis uiget Cernens omnia notio? + Quae uis singula prospicit, Aut quae cognita diuidit? + Quae diuisa recolligit, Alternumque legens iter + Nunc summis caput inserit, Nunc desidit in infima, + Tum sese referens sibi, Veris falsa redarguit?' + +32. _passioun_, passive feeling, impression: 'passio.' + +PROSE 5. 1. _But what yif ... and al be it so_, Nevertheless, even if it be +so: 'Quod si ... quamuis.' + +4. _entalenten_, affect, incline, stimulate: 'afficiant.' + +18. _For the wit_, i.e. the sense, the external senses. + +21. _as oystres ... see_: the Latin merely has: 'quales sunt conchae +maris.' + +23. _remuable_, capable of motion from place to place: 'mobilibus belluis.' + +_talent_, inclination, desire, wish: 'affectus.' + +30. _But how ... yif that_, but how will it be if? + +33. _that that that_, that _that_ thing which. + +35. _ne that ther nis_, so that there is: 'nec quicquam esse sensibile.' + +49. _maner stryvinge_, sort of strife: 'In huiusmodi igitur lite.' + +62. _parsoneres_, partners of, endowed with. The modern _partner_ +represents the M. E. _parcener_, variant of _parsoner_, from O. F. +_parsonier_, representing a Latin form _*partitionarius_. Lat. +'participes.' + +66. _For which_: 'Quare in illius summae intelligentiae cacumen, si +possumus, erigamur.' + +METRE 5. 1. _passen by_, move over: 'permeant.' + +6. _by moist fleeinge_: 'liquido ... uolatu.' _gladen hemself_, delight: +'gaudent.' + +7. _with hir goings ... feet_: 'gressibus.' + +9. _to walken under_, to enter: 'subire.' + +10. _enclined_, i.e. enclined earthwards: 'Prona.' + +11. _hevieth_, oppresses: 'Prona tamen facies hebetes ualet ingrauare +sensus.' From Aristotle, On the Parts of Animals, Bk. iv. [Greek: Dio +pleionos genomenou tou barous kai tou sômatôdous, anankê rhepein ta sômata +pros tên gên] (chap. 10). As to the upright carriage of man, see the same +chapter. Cf. Ovid, Met. i. 84, and see note to Chaucer's 'Truth,' l. 19. + +12. _light_, i.e. not bowed down: 'leuis recto stat corpore.' + +14. _axest_, seemest to seek: 'caelum ... petis.' + +PROSE 6. 21. _as Aristotle demed_; in De Caelo, lib. i. + +33. _present_: 'et sui compos praesens sibi semper assistere.' + +42. _Plato._ This notion is found in Proclus and Plotinus, and other +followers of Plato; but Plato himself really expressed a contrary opinion, +viz. that the world had a definite beginning. See his Timæus. + +48. _For this ilke_: 'Hunc enim uitae immobilis praesentarium statum +infinitus ille temporalium rerum motus imitatur; cumque eum effingere atque +aequare non possit, ex immobilitate deficit in motum, et ex simplicitate +praesentiae decrescit in infinitam futuri ac praeteriti quantitatem;' &c. + +53. _disencreseth_; a clumsy form for _decreseth_: 'decrescit.' + +65. _therfor it_: 'infinitum temporis iter arripuit.' + +81. _it is science_: 'sed scientiam nunquam deficientis instantiae rectius +aestimabis.' + +82. _For which_: 'Unde non praeuidentia, sed prouidentia, potius dicitur.' +The footnote to l. 83 is wrong, as Dr. Furnivall's reprint of MS. C. is +here at fault. That MS. (like MS. Ii. 1. 38) has here the correct reading +'p_re_uydence,' without any gloss at all. The gloss 'p_ro_uidentia' belongs +to the word 'purviaunce.' Hence the reading 'previdence,' which I thought +to be unsupported, is really supported by two good MSS. + +86. _Why axestow ... thanne_: 'Quid igitur postulas?' + +112. _he ne unwot_: 'quod idem exsistendi necessitate carere non nesciat.' + +116. _it ne may nat unbityde_: 'id non euenire non posse.' + +119. _but unnethe_: 'sed cui uix aliquis nisi diuini speculator +accesserit.' + +150, 1. _in beinge_, in coming to pass: 'exsistendo.' + +_by the which_: 'qua prius quam fierent, etiam non euenire potuissent.' MS. +C. has the contraction for 'que,' i.e. 'quae'; but Chaucer clearly adopted +the reading 'qua.' The usual reading is 'quia' or 'quae.' + +154. _so as they comen_, since they come: 'cum ... eueniant.' + +159. _the sonne arysinge._ See above, p. 148, l. 102: 'Right so,' &c. + +185. _And thilke_: 'illa quoque noscendi uices alternare uideatur?' + +191. _For the devyne_: 'Omne namque futurum diuinus praecurrit intuitus, et +ad praesentiam propriae cognitionis retorquet ac reuocat.' Hence _retorneth +hem_ means 'makes them return.' + +193. _ne he ne_: 'nec alternat, ut existimas, nunc hoc, nunc illud +praenoscendi uices; sed uno ictu mutationes tuas manens praeuenit atque +complectitur.' + +199. _a litel her-biforn._ See above, Bk. v. Pr. 3, ll. 62-65; &c. + +207. _purposen_, propose, assign: 'proponunt.' + +208. _to the willinges_: 'solutis omni necessitate uoluntatibus.' + +211. _renneth ... with_, concurs with: 'concurrit.' + +214. _put_, set: 'positae.' _that ne mowen_: 'quae cum rectae sunt, +inefficaces esse non possunt.' + +217. _areys thy corage_: 'animum subleuate.' _yilde_: 'humiles preces in +excelsa porrigite.' + +220. _sin that ye_: 'cum ante oculos agitis iudicis cuncta cernentis.' With +the word 'cernentis' the Lat. treatise ends. + +The words--'To whom ... Amen' occur in the Cambridge MS. only; and, in all +probability, were merely added by the scribe. However, the Latin copy in +that MS. adds, after 'cernentis,' the following: 'Qui est dominus noster +Iesus Christus, cui sit honor et gloria in secula seculorum. AMEN.' + + + + +NOTES TO TROILUS. + + +BOOK I. + +I must refer the student to Mr. Rossetti's work (Chaucer Soc. 1875) for a +detailed comparison of Chaucer's poem with the _Filostrato_ of Boccaccio. +The following table roughly indicates the portions of these works which are +more or less similar, down to the end of Book I. Similar tables are +prefixed to the Notes on the other books. It often happens that a stanza in +Chaucer has a mere general resemblance to the corresponding one in +Boccaccio. The lines in Chaucer not mentioned below are, in the main, +original; e.g. 1-20, 31-56, &c.; and so are many others that cannot be here +more exactly specified. + + CHAUCER: BOOK I. FILOSTRATO. + + ll. 21-30. Bk. I. St. V, VI. + 57-213. VII-XXV. + 267-329. XXVI-XXXII. 6. + 354-392. XXXII. 7-XXXVII. + 400-420. [Petrarch: Sonnet 88.] + 421-546. XXXVIII-LVII. + 547-553. Bk. II. St. I. + 568-630. II-X. + 645-7, 666-7, 675-6. XI. 1, XIII. 7, 8, XI, 7, 8. + 680-686. XII. + 701-3, 708-9, 722-3. XIII, XV. 1. + 860-889. XVI, XVII, XX-XXII. + 897-900. XXIII. 1-3. + 967-1060. XXIV-XXXIV. + +2. 'That was the son of King Priam of Troy.' + +5. _fro ye_, from you; observe the rime. The form _ye_ is not here the nom. +case, but the _unemphatic form_ of the acc. _you_; pronounced (y[*e]), +where ([*e]) is the indefinite vowel, like the _a_ in _China_. So in Shak. +Two Gent. iv. 1. 3, 4, we have _about ye_ (unemphatic) in l. 3, and _you_ +twice in l. 4. + +6. _Thesiphone_, Tisiphone, one of the Furies, invoked as being a 'goddess +of torment.' Cf. '_furial_ pyne of helle,' Sq. Ta. F 448. + +13. _fere_, companion; viz. Tisiphone. + +16. 'Nor dare pray to Love,' &c. + +21. Cf. Boccaccio: 'Tuo sia l'onore, e mio si sia l'affanno,' Fil. I. st. +5. And see ll. 1042, 3 below. + +57. Here begins the story; cf. Fil. I. st. 7. Bell remarks that 'a thousand +shippes,' in l. 58, may have been suggested by 'mille carinae' in Verg. Æn. +ii. 198; cf. 'anni decem' in the same line, with l. 60. + +67. Read _éxpert_. _Calkas_ is Homer's Calchas, Il. i. 69. He was a Greek, +but Guido makes him a Trojan, putting him in the place of Homer's Chryses. +See the allit. Troy-book, 7886. + +70. _Delphicus_, of Delphi; cf. Ovid, Met. ii. 543. + +77. _Ye_, yea. _wolde who-so nolde_, whoever wished it or did not wish it. +This idiomatic phrase is thus expressed in the MSS. Bell's edition has +_wold who so or nolde_, where the _e_ in _wolde_ is suppressed and the word +_or_ inserted without authority. I hesitate, as an editor, to alter an +idiomatic phrase. Cf. _will he, nill he_, in which there is no _or_. + +91. 'Deserve to be burnt, both skin and bones.' + +99. _Criseyde_; Boccaccio has _Griseida_, answering to Homer's [Greek: +Chrysêida], Il. i. 143. It was common, in the Middle Ages, to adopt the +accusative form as the standard one, especially in proper names. Her father +was Chryses; see note to l. 67. But Benoît de Sainte-Maure calls her +_Briseida_, and _Chryseis_ and _Briseis_ seem to have been confused. The +allit. Troy-book has _Bresaide_; l. 8029. + +119. 'While it well pleases you'; _good_ is used adverbially. Ital. 'mentre +t' aggrada.' + +125. 'And would have done so oftener, if,' &c. + +126. _and hoom_, and (went) home. + +132, 133. This is a curious statement, and Chaucer's object in making it is +not clear. Boccaccio says expressly that she had neither son nor daughter +(st. 15); and Benoît (l. 12977) calls her 'la pucele.' + +136. _som day_, one day; used quite generally. + +138. 'And thus Fortune wheeled both of them up and down again.' Alluding to +the wheel of Fortune; see the Ballade on Fortune, l. 46, and note. + +145. _Troyane gestes_, Trojan history; cf. the title of Guido delle +Colonne's book, viz. 'Historia Troiana,' which Chaucer certainly consulted, +as shewn by several incidents in the poem. + +146. _Omer_, Homer; whose account was considered untrustworthy by the +medieval writers; see Ho. Fame, 1477, and note. _Dares_, Dares Phrygius; +_Dyte_, Dictys Cretensis; see notes to Ho. Fame, 1467, 1468. These three +authors really mean Guido delle Colonne, who professed to follow them. + +153. _Palladion_, the Palladium or sacred image of Pallas, on the keeping +of which the safety of Troy depended. It was stolen from Troy by Diomede +and Ulysses; see Æneid, ii. 166. But Chaucer doubtless read the long +account in Guido delle Colonne. + +171. Hence Henrysoun, in his Testament of Criseyde, st. 12, calls her 'the +flower and A-per-se Of Troy and Greece.' Cf. 'She was a woman A-per-se, +alon'; Romance of Partenay, 1148. Boccaccio's image is much finer; he says +that she surpassed other women as the rose does the violet. On the other +hand, l. 175 is Chaucer's own. + +172. _makelees_, matchless, peerless; cf. A.S. _gemaca_. + +189. _lakken_, to blame; see P. Pl. B. v. 132. + +192. _bayten_, feed, feast (metaphorically); E. _bait_. + +205. _Ascaunces_, as if; in l. 292, the Ital. text has _Quasi dicesse_, as +if she said. See Cant. Ta. D 1745, G 838. It is tautological, being formed +from E. _as_ and the O.F. _quanses_, as if (Godefroy); so that the literal +force is 'as as if.' + +210. 'And nevertheless [or, still] he (Cupid) can pluck as proud a peacock +(as was Troilus).' Cf. Prol. A 652. + +214-266. These lines are Chaucer's own. + +217. _falleth_, happens; _ne wenden_, would not expect. In Ray's Proverbs, +ed. 1737, p. 279, is a Scotch proverb--'All fails that fools thinks' +(_sic_); which favours the alternative reading given in the footnote. + +218. _Bayard_, a name for a bay horse; see Can. Yem. Ta. G 1413. + +229. _wex a-fere_, became on fire. _Fere_ is a common Southern form, as a +variant of _fyre_, though _a-fyre_ occurs in Ho. Fame, 1858. The A.S. vowel +is _[=y]_, the A.S. form being _f[=y]r_. + +239. 'Has proved (to be true), and still does so.' + +257. 'The stick that will bend and ply is better than one that breaks.' +Compare the fable of the Oak and the Reed; see bk. ii. 1387. + +266. _ther-to refere_, revert thereto. Halliwell gives: '_Refeere_, to +revert; _Hoccleve_.' Chaucer here ends his own remarks, and goes back to +the _Filostrato_. + +292. _Ascaunces_, as if (she said); see note to l. 205. + +316. _awhaped_, amazed, stupefied; see Anelida, 215; Leg. of Good Women, +132, 814, 2321; he was 'not utterly confounded,' but only dazed; cf. l. +322. + +327. _borneth_, burnishes, polishes up; i.e. makes bright and cheerful. The +rime shews that it is a variant spelling of _burneth_; cf. _burned_, +burnished, Ho. Fame, 1387; Kn. Ta. A 1983. + +MS. Harl. 3943 has _vnournith_, an error for _anorneth_, adorns; with a +like sense. + +333. _Him tit_, to him betideth; _tit_ is for _tydeth_. + +336. _ordre_, sect, brotherhood; a jesting allusion to the religious +orders. So also _ruled_ = under a religious rule. + +337. _noun-certeyn_, uncertainty; cf. O.F. _noncerteit_, uncertainty +(Godefroy); _nounpower_, want of power (P. Plowman); and F. _nonchalance_. +Again spelt _noun-certeyn_, Compl. Venus, 46. + +340. _lay_, law, ordinance; see Sq. Ta. F 18. + +344. 'But observe this--that which ye lovers often avoid, or else do with a +good intention, often will thy lady misconstrue it,' &c. + +363. _a temple_, i.e. in the temple. + +381. _First_ stands alone in the first foot. Cf. ll. 490, 603, 811. + +385. _Yelt_, short for _yeldeth_, yields. + +394. _writ_, writeth. _Lollius_; Chaucer's reason for the use of this name +is not known. Perhaps we may agree with Dr. Latham, who suggested (in a +letter to the _Athenæum_, Oct. 3, 1868, p. 433), that Chaucer misread this +line in Horace (_Epist._ i. 2. 1), viz. 'Troiani belli scriptorem, maxime +_Lolli_'; and thence derived the notion that Lollius wrote on the Trojan +war. This becomes the more likely if we suppose that he merely saw this +line quoted apart from the context. Chaucer does not seem to have read +Horace for himself. As a matter of fact, ll. 400-420 are translated from +the 88th sonnet of Petrarch. See note to Ho. of Fame, 1468. The following +is the text of Petrarch's sonnet: + + 'S'amor non è, che dunque è quel ch' i'sento? + Ma s'egli è amor, per Dio, che cosa e quale? + Se buona, ond' è l'effetto aspro mortale? + Se ria, ond' è si dolce ogni tormento? + S'a mia voglia ardo, ond' è 'l pianto e'l lamento? + S'a mal mia grado, il lamentar che vale? + O viva morte, o dilettoso male, + Come puoi tanto in me s'io nol consento? + E s'io 'l consento, a gran torto mi doglio. + Fra si contrari venti, in frale barca + Mi trovo in alto mar, senza governo. + Sì lieve di saver, d'error sì carca + Ch' i' medesmo non so quel ch'io mi voglio, + E tremo a mezza state, ardendo il verno.' + +In l. 401, _whiche_ means 'of what kind.' + +425. Ital. text--'Non so s'io dico a donna, ovvero a dea'; Fil. I. 38. Cf. +Æneid, i. 327. Hence the line in Kn. Ta. A 1101. + +457. _That_; in modern E., we should use _But_, or else _said not_ for +_seyde_. + +463. _Fled-de_ is here a plural form, the pp. being treated as an +adjective. Cf. _sprad-de_, iv. 1422; _whet-te_, v. 1760. + +464. _savacioun_; Ital. 'salute.' Mr. Rossetti thinks that _salute_ here +means 'well-being' or 'health'; and perhaps _savacioun_ is intended to mean +the same, the literal sense being 'safety.' + +465. _fownes_, fawns; see Book of the Duch. 429. It is here used, +metaphorically, to mean 'young desires' or 'fresh yearnings.' This image is +not in Boccaccio. + +470. I take the right reading to be _felle_, as in Cm. Ed., with the sense +'destructive.' As it might also mean 'happened,' other MSS. turned it into +_fille_, which makes a most awkward construction. The sense is: 'The sharp +destructive assaults of the proof of arms [i.e. which afforded proof of +skill in fighting], which Hector and his other brothers performed, not once +made him move on _that_ account only'; i.e. when he exerted himself, it was +not for mere fighting's sake. Chaucer uses _fel_ elsewhere; the pl. _felle_ +is in Troil. iv. 44; and see Cant. Ta. D 2002, B 2019. For _preve_, proof, +see l. 690. + +473, 4. _riden_ and _abiden_ (with short _i_) rime with _diden_, and are +past tenses plural. l. 474 is elliptical: 'found (to be) one of the best, +and (one of those who) longest abode where peril was.' + +483. _the deeth_, i.e. the pestilence, the plague. + +488. _title_, a name; he said it was 'a fever.' + +517. _daunce_, i.e. company of dancers. Cf. Ho. Fame, 639, 640. + +530-2. 'For, by my hidden sorrow, (when it is) blased abroad, I shall be +befooled more, a thousand times, than the fool of whose folly men write +rimes.' No particular reference seems to be intended by l. 532; the Ital. +text merely has 'più ch' altro,' more than any one. + +557. _attricioun_, attrition. 'An imperfect sorrow for sin, as if a +bruising which does not amount to utter crushing (_contrition_); horror of +sin through fear of punishment ... while _contrition_ has its motive in the +love of God;' New E. Dict. + +559. _ley on presse_, compress, diminish; cf. Prol. A 81. + +560. _holinesse_, the leanness befitting a holy state. + +626. 'That one, whom excess causes to fare very badly.' + +631-679. Largely original; but, for l. 635, see note to Bk. III. 329. + +638-644. There is a like passage in P. Pl. C. xxi. 209-217. Chaucer, +however, here follows Le Roman de la Rose, 21819-40, q.v. + +648. _amayed_, dismayed; O.F. _esmaier_. So in Bk. IV. l. 641. + +654. _Oënone_ seems to have four syllables. MS. H. has _Oonone_; MS. Cm. +_senome_ (over an erasure); MS. Harl. 3943, _Tynome_. Alluding to the +letter of _Oenone_ to Paris in Ovid, Heroid. v. + +659-665. Not at all a literal translation, but it gives the general sense +of Heroid. v. 149-152: + + 'Me miseram, quod amor non est medicabilis herbis! + Deficior prudens artis ab arte mea. + Ipse repertor opis uaccas pauisse Pheraeas + Fertur, et a nostro saucius igne fuit.' + +_Ipse repertor opis_ means Phoebus, who 'first fond art of medicyne;' +_Pheraeas_, i.e. of Pherae, refers to Pherae in Thessaly, the residence of +king Admetus. Admetus gained Alcestis for his wife by the assistance of +Apollo, who, according to some accounts, served Admetus out of attachment +to him, or, according to other accounts, because he was condemned to serve +a mortal for a year. Chaucer seems to adopt a theory that Apollo loved +Admetus chiefly for his daughter's sake. The usual story about Apollo is +his love for Daphne. + +674. 'Even though I had to die by torture;' cf. Kn. Ta. A 1133. + +686. 'Until it pleases him to desist.' + +688. 'To mistrust every one, or to believe every one.' + +694. _The wyse_, Solomon; see Eccles. iv. 10. + +699. _Niobe_; 'lacrimas etiamnum marmora manant;' Ovid, Met. vi. 311. + +705. 'That eke out (increase) their sorrows,' &c. + +707. 'And care not to seek for themselves another cure.' + +708. A proverb; see note to Can. Yem. Ta. G 746. + +713. _harde grace_, misfortune; cf. Cant. Ta. G 665, 1189. Tyrwhitt quotes +Euripides, Herc. Furens, 1250: [Greek: Gemô kakôn dê, kouket' esth' hopou +tethê]. + +730, 731. From Boethius, Bk. I. Pr. 2. l. 14, and Pr. 4. l. 2. + +739. 'On whose account he fared so.' + +740. Compare: 'He makes a rod for his own breech'; Hazlitt's Proverbs. + +745. 'For it (love) would sufficiently spring to light of itself.' + +747. Cf. Rom. de la Rose, 7595-6. + +763. 'But they do not care to seek a remedy.' + +780. Pronounced _ben'cite_; see note to Cant. Ta. B 1170. + +786. _Ticius_, Tityos. MS. H2. wrongly has _Siciphus_. 'The fowl that +highte _voltor_, that eteth the stomak or the giser of Tityus, is so +fulfild of his song that it nil eten ne tyren no more;' tr. of Boeth. Bk. +III. Met. 12. 28. The original has: + + 'Vultur, dum satur est modis, + Non traxit Tityi iecur.' + +See also Verg. Æn. vi. 595; Ovid, Met. iv. 456. + +811. First foot deficient, as in ll. 603, 1051, 1069, &c. _winter_, years. +Perhaps imitated from Le Rom. de la Rose, 21145-9. + +846, 847. See Boethius, Bk. ii. Pr. 3. 52-54. + +848. From Boethius, Lib. II. Pr. 1: 'si manere incipit, fors esse +desistit.' See p. 26 above, l. 83. + +887. 'And, to augment all this the more.' + +890-966. This is all Chaucer's own; so also 994-1008. + +916. _a blaunche fevere_, a fever that turns men white; said jocosely. +Lovers were supposed to be pale; Ovid, Art. Am. i. 729. Cotgrave is +somewhat more precise. He gives: '_Fievres blanches_, the agues wherewith +maidens that have the green sickness are troubled; hence, _Il a les fievres +blanches_, either he is in love, or sick of wantonness.' In the Cuckoo and +the Nightingale, l. 41, we find: 'I am so shaken with _the feveres white_.' + +932. _beet_; beat thy breast (to shew thy repentance). Cf. P. Plowm. B. v. +454. + +956. A proverb. 'The more haste, the worse speed (success).' Cf. Bk. iii. +1567, and The Tale of Melibeus, B 2244. + +964. Dr. Köppel says--cf. Albertano of Brescia, Liber de Amore Dei, 45b: +'Iam et Seneca dixit, Non conualescit planta, quae saepe transfertur.' + +969. 'A bon port estes arrivés'; Rom. de la Rose, 12964. + +977. Fil. ii. st. 27: 'Io credo certo, ch' ogni donna in voglia Viva +amorosa.' + +1000. _post_, pillar, support; as in Prol. A 214. + +1002. Cf. 'The greater the sinner, the greater the saint.' + +1011. Understand _he_. 'He became, as one may say, untormented of his wo.' + +1024. _cherl_, man. 'You are afraid the man will fall out of the moon!' +Alluding to the old notion that the spots on the moon's surface represent a +man with a bundle of sticks. See the curious poem on this subject in +Wright's Specimens of Lyric Poetry, p. 110; also printed in Ritson's +Ancient Songs, i. 68, and in Böddeker's Altenglische Dichtungen, p. 176, +where a fear is expressed that the man may fall out of the moon. Cf. Temp. +ii. 2. 141; Mids. Nt. Dr. v. 1. 249; and see Alex. Neckam, ed. Wright, pp. +xviii, 54. + +1026. 'Why, meddle with that which really concerns you,' i.e. mind your own +business. Some copies needlessly turn this into a question and insert _ne_ +before _hast_. + +1038. 'And am I to be thy surety?' + +1050. _Scan_: 'And yet m' athink'th ... m'asterte.' The sense is: 'And yet +it repents me that this boast should escape me.' + +1051. Deficient in the first foot: 'Now | Pandáre.' So in l. 1069. + +1052. 'But thou, being wise, thou knowest,' &c. In this line, _thou_ seems +to be emphatic throughout. + +1058. Read _désiróus_; as in Book ii. 1101, and Sq. Ta. F 23. + +1070. _Pandare_ is here trisyllabic; with unelided _-e_. + +1078. The same line occurs in the Clerk. Ta. E 413. + +1088. 'And is partly well eased of the aching of his wound, yet is none the +more healed; and, like an easy patient (i.e. a patient not in pain), awaits +(lit. abides) the prescription of him that tries to cure him; and thus he +perseveres in his destiny.' _Dryveth forth_ means 'goes on with,' or 'goes +through with.' The reading _dryeth_, i.e. endures, is out of place here, as +it implies suffering; whereas, at the present stage, Troilus is extremely +hopeful. + + +BOOK II. + +The chief correspondences are shewn in the following table. + + CHAUCER: BOOK II. FILOSTRATO: BOOK II. + + ll. 265-6, 274-308. st. 35-37. + 316-322. 46. + 391-419, 428-455. 43, 54, 47-56. + 501-523, 540-1. 55-57, 61. + 554-578. 62-64. + 584-588. 43. + 589-602. 65, 66, 68. + 645-665. 82-88, 71-78. + 733-5, 746-763. 69, 70. + 768-784. 73, 75-78. + 937-8, 966-981. 79-81, 89. + 995-1010. 90, 91. + 1044-1104. 93-98, 100-109. + 1125-1232. 109-128. + 1305-1351. 128-131. + +Other passages are mainly original; as, e.g. ll. 1352-1757 at the end, and +1-264 at the beginning. + +1-3. These lines somewhat resemble Dante, Purgat. i. 1-3. + + 'Per correr miglior acqua alza le vele + Omai la navicella del mio ingegno, + Che lascia dietro a sè mar sì crudele;' &c. + +7. _calendes_, the introduction to the beginning; see bk. v. l. 1634. Thus +the 'kalends of January' precede that month, being the period from Dec. 14 +to Dec. 31. + +8. _Cleo_; so in most copies; H2. has _Clyo_; Clio, the muse of history. + +14. _Latin_ seems, in this case, to mean Italian, which was called _Latino +volgare_. + +21. 'A blind man cannot judge well of colours;' a proverb. + +22. Doubtless from Horace's Ars Poetica, 71-3; probably borrowed at +second-hand. + +28. A proverb. In the Proverbs of Hendyng, l. 29, we have: 'Ase fele thede, +ase fele thewes,' i.e. so many peoples, so many customs. See l. 42 below. +Cf. Boethius, Bk. ii. Pr. 7. 49 (p. 47). + +36. _went_, for _wendeth_; i.e. goes; pres. tense. + +46. 'Yet all is told, or must be told.' + +48. _bitit_, for _bitydeth_; i.e. betides, happens. + +55. _Bole_, Bull, the sign Taurus. On the third of May, in Chaucer's time, +the sun would be in about the 20th degree of Taurus. The epithet _white_ is +from Ovid, Met. ii. 852. + +63. _wente_, sb., a turn; i.e. he tossed about. + +64-68. _forshapen_, metamorphosed. Progne was changed into a swallow; Ovid, +Met. vi. 668. Tereus carried off Progne's sister Philomela; see Leg. of +Good Women (Philomela). + +74. 'And knew that the moon was in a good plight (position) for him to take +his journey.' That is, the moon's position was propitious; see note to Man +of Lawes Tale, B 312. + +77. '_Janus_, god of (the) entry;' see Ovid, Fasti, i. 125. + +81. 'And found (that) she and two other ladies were sitting.' _Sete_ (A. S. +_s[=æ]ton_) is the pt. t. pl., not the pp. + +84. The celebrated story of the Siege of Thebes, known to Chaucer through +the Thebais of Statius; see bk. v. 1484. And see l. 100. + +87. _Ey_, eh! a note of exclamation, of frequent occurrence in the present +poem. + +103. _lettres rede_, i.e. the rubric describing the contents of the next +section. + +100-105. Oedipus unwittingly slew his father Laius; and the two sons of +Oedipus contended for Thebes. For _Amphiorax_, see note to bk. v. 1500, and +to Anelida, 57. + +108. _bokes twelve_; the 12 Books of the Thebais. The death of Amphioraus +is related at the end of Book vii. + +110. _barbe_, 'part of a woman's dress, still sometimes worn by nuns, +consisting of a piece of white plaited linen, passed over or under the +chin, and reaching midway to the waist;' New E. Dict. She wore it because +she was a widow; see the quotations in the New E. Dict., esp. 'wearing of +_barbes_ at funerals.' And see _Barbuta_ in Ducange. + +112. 'Let us perform some rite in honour of May;' see note to Kn. Ta. A +1500. + +117. The right reading is necessarily _sete_, for A. S. _s[=æ]te_, 3 p. s. +pt. t. subj. of _sitten_; 'it would befit.' Cf. _seten_, they sat, 81, +1192. + +134. 'And I am your surety,' i.e. you may depend upon me; see bk. i. 1038. + +151. _unkouth_, unknown, strange; hence, very; Sc. _unco'_. + +154. _wal_, wall, defence; _yerde_, rod, scourge, as in bk. i. 740. + +167. From Le Rom. de la Rose, 5684-6:-- + + 'Lucan redit, qui moult fu sages, + C'onques _vertu et grant pooir_ + Ne pot nus _ensemble veoir_.' + +Cf. Lucan, Phar. i. 92. + +236. _Withoute_, excepting sweethearts; or, excepting by way of passionate +love. The latter is the usual sense in Chaucer. + +273. 'Therefore I will endeavour to humour her intelligence.' + +294. _so well bigoon_, so well bestead, so fortunate. Cf. Parl. Foules, +171. + +318. _Which ... his_, whose; cf. _that ... his_, Kn. Ta. A 2710. + +328. 'Then you have fished to some purpose;' ironical. To _fish fair_ is to +catch many fish. + +329. _What mende ye_, what do you gain, though we both lose? + +344. Gems were supposed to have hidden virtues. + +387. _fele_, find out, investigate. + +391, 2. Cf. Ovid, Art. Amat. ii. 107: 'Ut ameris, amabilis esto.' + +393. In the same, 113, we find: 'Forma bonum fragile est,' &c. + +396. 'Go and love; for, when old, no one will have you.' + +398. 'I am warned too late, when it has past away, quoth Beauty.' + +400. The 'king's fool' got the hint from Ovid, Art. Amat. ii. 118: 'Iam +uenient rugae,' &c. + +403. _crowes feet_, crow's feet; wrinkles at the corners of the eyes; from +the shape. So in Spenser, Shep. Kal. _December_, 136: 'And by myne eie the +crow his clawe doth write.' + +408. _breste a wepe_, burst out a-weeping. + +413. _Ret_, for _redeth_, advises; cf. P. Plowman C. iv. 410, and note. + +425. _Pallas_; perhaps invoked with reference to the Palladium of Troy; bk. +I. l. 153. Moreover, Pallas was a virgin goddess. + +434. 'Of me no consideration need be taken.' + +477. 'Except that I will not give him encouragement;' see 1222. + +483. 'But when the cause ceases, the disease ceases.' + +507. _gon_, gone; 'not very long ago.' + +525. _mea culpa_, by my fault; words used in confession: see P. Plowman, B. +v. 77, and note. + +527. _Ledest the fyn_, guidest the end; cf. Boeth. Bk. iv. Pr. 6. 149. + +537. _biwryen_, used in place of _biwreyen_, to bewray. The same rather +arbitrary form appears in Parl. Foules, 348. + +539. 'Because men cover them up,' &c. + +586. _were never_, never would be; _were_ is in the subjunctive mood. + +611. _Thascry_, for _The ascry_, the alarm. _Ascry_ occurs in Wyclif, Prov. +vii. 6. + +615. _latis_, lattice. The reading _yates_, gates, is wrong, as shewn by l. +617. + +618. Dardanus, ancestor of Priam. Cf. _Dardanidae_, i. e. Trojans, Verg. +Aen. i. 560, ii. 72, &c. Troy had six gates, according to Guido; the +strongest of these was _Dardanus_; see the allit. Destruction of Troy, ed. +Panton and Donaldson, l. 1557, Lydgate, Siege of Troy, b. ii. c. 11, and +Shakespeare's Prologue to his Troilus. + +_ther open is the cheyne_, where the chain is open, or unfastened. Alluding +to the chains sometimes drawn across a street, to block it against +horsemen. The sense is, 'he will come down _this_ street, because the +others are blocked.' + +621. _happy_, fortunate. It was a lucky day for him. + +627. _a pas_, at a foot-pace; see Prol. A 825, and l. 620 above. + +637. _an heven_, a beautiful sight; cf. Sq. Ta. F 558. + +639. _tissew_, lace, twisted band; from F. _tistre_, to weave. + +642. The shield was covered with horn, sinews or _nerf_, and skin or +_rind_. + +651. 'Who has given me a love-potion?' + +656. _for pure ashamed_, for being completely ashamed, i.e. for very shame. +A curious idiom. + +666. _envýous_, envious person; accented on _y_, as in l. 857. + +677. _Ma | de_; two syllables. The first foot is imperfect. + +681. The astrological term 'house' has two senses; it sometimes means a +zodiacal sign, as when, e.g. Taurus is called the 'house' or mansion of +Venus; and sometimes it has another sense, as, probably, in the present +passage. See Chaucer's treatise on the Astrolabe, pt. ii. § 37, on 'the +equations of houses.' In the latter case, the whole celestial sphere was +divided into twelve equal parts, called 'houses,' by great circles passing +through the north and south points of the horizon. The first of these, +reckoning upwards from the eastern horizon, was called the _first_ house, +and the _seventh_ house, being opposite to it, was reckoned downwards from +the western horizon. The _first_ and _seventh_ houses were both considered +very fortunate; and it is here said that Venus was in her seventh house, +i.e. was just below the western horizon at the moment when Criseyde first +saw him. The same planet was also 'well disposed,' i.e. in a favourable +sign of the zodiac; and at the same time was 'pleased (or made propitious) +by favourable aspects' of other planets, i.e. other planets were favourably +situated as regards their angular distances from Venus. Moreover, Venus was +no foe to Troilus in his nativity, i.e. she was also favourably situated at +the moment of his birth. + +716. Imitated from Le Rom. de la Rose, 5765-9, q.v. + +746. 'I am one (who is) the fairest.' The _-e_ in _fairest-e_ is not +elided; neither is the _-e_ in _wist-e_ in l. 745. + +750. I.e. 'I am my own mistress.' + +752. _lese_, pasture; 'I stand, unfastened, in a pleasant pasture.' From A. +S. _l[=æ]su_. Cf. Ho. Fame, 1768. It does not mean 'leash,' as usually +said; Chaucer's form of 'leash' is _lees_, as in Cant. Ta. G 19. + +754. _chekmat_, check-mate, as in chess; see Book Duch. 659. Bell sees a +pun in it; '_check_ to my _mate_,' i.e. wife; but it remains to be shewn +that the form _mate_ (wife) was known to Chaucer, who spells it _make_ +(Cant. Ta. E 2080). + +759. I.e. 'I am not a nun,' nor vowed to chastity. + +767, 769. _sprat_, for _spredeth_, spreads, pres. t.; _spradde_, pt. t. Cf. +Boethius, Bk. i. Met. 3. 9-12. + +777. According to Bell, MS. Harl. 1239 also has _why_, i.e. wherefore, a +reason why, cause. + +784. Cf. 'S'il fait folie, si la boive;' Rom. Rose, 12844. + +797. 'No one stumbles over it;' for it is too unsubstantial. + +802. 'Yet all things seem to them to be harmful, wherein folks please their +friends.' + +807. 'Nothing venture, nothing have.' + +830. _hertes lust_, heart's pleasure; _to rente_, by way of rent. + +831. _no wight_, to no one; dat. case. + +861. See Hazlitt's notes on the proverb--'Many talk of Robin Hood, that +never shot in his bow,' &c. + +866. 'Who cannot endure sorrow deserves no joy.' + +867. 'And therefore let him, who has a glass head, beware of stones cast in +battle.' + +882. _let_, short for _ledeth_, leads (Stratmann). + +884. The MSS. end the line with _syke_. It has been pointed out that _syke_ +is not a perfect rime to _endyte_, _whyte_, but only an assonance. It is +difficult to believe Chaucer guilty of this oversight; and hence I would +suggest, with all submission to the critics, that possibly Chaucer wrote +_syte_. The M. E. _syte_ means to be anxious, and occurs in the Cursor +Mundi, 11675; where Joseph says to Mary:--'Bot I _site_ for an other thing +That we o water has nu wanting,' i.e. but I am anxious about another thing, +that we lack water. The sb. _site_, grief, occurs in the Midland dialect as +well as in Northumbrian; see _site_ in Stratmann. As the word is unusual, +it would naturally be altered by the scribes to the familiar _syke_, to +sigh, with a cognate meaning. + +920. 'And loude he song ageyn the sonne shene;' Kn. Ta. A 1509. + +959. 'Unless lack of pursuit is the cause (of failure),' &c.; cf. 1075. + +964. _hameled_, cut off, docked; cf. P. Pl. Crede, 300. + +1001. 'Your ill hap is not owing to me.' + +1017. Read _And úpon mé_, where _me_ is emphatic. + +1022. When people's ears glow, it is because they are being talked of; +according to folk-lore. See Brand's Popular Antiquities, ed. Ellis, iii. +171. + +1026. 'Sed lateant uires, nec sis in fronte disertus;' Ovid, Art. Am. i. +463. + +1027. 'Quascunque adspicies, lacrimae fecere lituras;' Ovid, Heroid. iii. +3. + +1033. 'Or always harp one tune.' + +1041. 'Humano capiti,' &c.; Horace, Ars Poet. 1-5. _pyk_, a pike (fish), as +in the Balade to Rosemounde, 17. + +1062. Accent _Mínervá_ on the first and third syllables. + +1075-7. _it made_, was the cause of it. _ley_, lied. + +1107. _hoppe_, dance. 'I always dance in the rear.' + +1108. _to-laugh_ (H2, _to lagh_, Cm. _to law_), laughed exceedingly. I know +of no other example. A better form is _to-lough_; see l. 1163, and Pard. +Ta. C 476. + +1119. _spek-e_, might speak, should say; pt. t. subjunctive. + +1123. _sent_, i. e. _sendeth_, sends; the pt. t. is _sent-e_ or _send-e_. + +1177-8. _Avysed_, she took notice; pt. tense. So also _fond_, found, which +Bell takes to be a pp.; but the pp. is _founden_. _Coude good_, knew what +was becoming. So, in l. 1197, _Can he_ means 'has he skill.' + +1201, 1204. _sowe_, to sew the pieces of parchment together. Tyrwhitt +remarks, s. v. _sowe_; 'It was usual, and indeed necessary, formerly to +_sew_ letters, when they were written upon parchment; but the practice +continued long after the invention of paper.' _plyte_, to fold it up. + +1229. 'A cushion, beaten with gold;' cf. Kn. Ta. A 979. + +1238. A proverb: 'slight impressions soon fade.' + +1249. Tyrwhitt, s. v. _somme_, boggles over this line, but it is quite +right. Bell takes occasion to speak of the 'rugged lines' to be found in +this poem; which is true enough of his own peculiar text. In Beowulf, l. +207, we have _fift[=e]na sum_, one of fifteen, where the cardinal number is +used; and this is the usual idiom. But the ordinal number is used also. In +St. Juliana, p. 79, we read that 'te sea sencte him on his _thrituthe +sum_,' the sea drowned him and 'thirtieth some' of his men, which I +understand to mean 'and twenty-nine of his men,' the master being the +thirtieth; but Mr. Cockayne and Mr. Bradley make it mean 'him and thirty +others.' So again, in Sir Tristrem, 817, we have: 'He busked and made him +yare hi[s] _fiftend som_ of knight,' he made ready for himself his +'fifteenth some' of knights, which I should explain to mean a band of +fifteen knights, _himself included_, or, himself being the fifteenth. +_Some_ in such phrases has a collective force. However, the examples in +Bosworth and Toller's A. S. Dict., s. v. _sum_, shew that this mode of +expression is also sometimes used _exclusively_ of the leader. + +1274. _on to pyke_, for her to pick upon, or pick at; i. e. for her to pull +out; see l. 1273. See examples in Halliwell, s. v. _pike_, of 'to _pyke +out_ thornes,' to pick out thorns. + +1276. Cf. 'to strike while the iron is hot;' see Melibeus, B 2226. + +1289. 'But therein he had much to heave at and to do.' + +1291. 'And why? for fear of shame.' Cm. has _for speche_, i. e. for fear of +talk or scandal. + +1315. _accesse_, attack, as of fever. See New E. Dict. + +1343. _refreyde_, grow cool; cf. Balade to Rosemounde, l. 21. + +1349. _after his gestes_, according to his deeds, or adventures. + +1390. _forbyse_, to give (thee) instances. Hardly a correct form; it should +rather be _forbysne_, short for _forbysnen_, as the verb is formed from the +sb. _forbysne_, A. S. _foreb[=y]sen_, an example, instance. The word was +obsolescent. + +1398. _Deiphebus_ (= _Dé'ph[)e]bús)_ is always trisyllabic. + +1410. He means that he would do more for him than for any one, 'except for +him whom he loves most,' i. e. Troilus. + +1427. 'With spur and whip,' i. e. with all expedition. + +1495. _word and ende_, beginning and end; cf. iii. 702, v. 1669. The right +phrase is _ord and ende_, where _ord_ is 'beginning;' but it would seem +that, by Chaucer's time, _word_ had been corruptly substituted for the +obsolescent _ord_. See Monk. Ta. B 3911, and the note. + +1534. _triste_, station for a huntsman to shoot from. See _Tristre_ in +Stratmann. + +1554. _renne_, to run, like an excited madman. + +1564. 'Bon fait prolixite foïr;' Rom. de la Rose, 18498. + +1581. 'Although it does not please her to recommend (a remedy).' + +1594. _To mowen_, to have it in her power; A. S. _mugan_. + +1650. _for my bettre arm_, not even to save my right arm. + +1661. _him thar nought_, 'him needeth not,' he need not do. + +1735. An obscure allusion. 'Perhaps it means, in regard for the king and +queen, his parents;' Bell. My own guess is different. I think it quite +possible that Chaucer is referring to the two 'crowns' or garlands, one of +roses and one of lilies, about which so much is said in his early work +entitled the _Lyf of Seint Cecile_, afterwards called the Second Nonnes +Tale (see G 270). Thus Pandarus, with his usual impudence, conjures +Criseyde to pity Troilus by two solemn adjurations, viz. for the sake of +Him who gave us all our souls, and by the virtue of the two heavenly crowns +which an angel once brought _to a chaste couple_. He thus boldly insinuates +that the proposed meeting is of the most innocent character. This I take to +be the whole point of the allusion. + +1737. 'Fie on the devil!' I. e. despise detraction. + +1738. _com of_, come off; we _now_ say 'come on!' See ll. 1742, 1750. + +1751. 'But now (I appeal) to you.' + +1752. _cankedort_, a state of suspense, uncertainty, or anxiety; as appears +from the context. The word occurs nowhere else. Only one MS. (H2) has the +spelling _kankerdort_, usually adopted in modern editions; Thynne has +_cankedorte_, but it needs no final _e_. The etymology is unknown nor do we +even know how to divide it. There is a verb _kanka_, to shake, be unsteady, +&c., in Swedish dialects (Rietz), and the Swed. _ort_ is a place, quarter; +if there is any relationship, _kanked-ort_ might mean 'shaky place,' or +ticklish position. Another theory is that _canker_ relates to _canker_, a +cancer, disease, and that _dort_ is related to Lowl. Sc. _dort_, sulkiness. +But this is assuming that the right spelling is _canker-dort_, a theory +which the MSS. do not favour. Neither does the sense of 'ill-humour' seem +very suitable. As I am bound, in this difficult case, to suggest what I +can, I must add that it is also possible to suppose that _cankedort_ is of +French origin, answering to an O. F. _quant que dort_, lit. 'whenever he is +asleep (?),' or 'although he is asleep(?);' and hence (conceivably) meaning +'in a sleepy state.' The phrase _quant que_, also spelt _kan ke_ (and in +many other ways) is illustrated by a column of examples in Godefroy's +Dictionary; but its usual sense is 'as well as,' or 'whatever'; thus _kan +ke poet_ = as well as he can. Or can we make it = _com ki dort_, like one +who sleeps? + + +BOOK III. + +The following scheme gives a general idea of the relationship of this Book +to the original. + + CHAUCER: BOOK III. FILOSTRATO: BOOK III. + ll. 1-38. st. 74-79. + 239-287. 5-10. + 344-441. 11-20. + 813-833. [Boethius, II. Pr. 4. 86-120.] + 1310-1426. 31-43. + 1443-1451. 44. + 1471-1492. 44-48. + 1513-1555. 50-56. + 1588-1624. 56-60. + 1625-1629. [Boethius, II. Pr. 4. 4-10.] + 1639-1680. 61-65. + 1695-1743. 70-73. + 1744-1768. [Boethius, II. Met. 8.] + 1772-1806. 90-93. + 1807-1813. Bk. I, st. 3. 1. + +1-38. This is an exceptionally difficult passage, and some of the editions +make great nonsense of it, especially of ll. 15-21. It is, however, +imitated from stanzas 74-79 of the Filostrato, Book III; where the +invocation is put into the mouth of Troilus. + +The key to it is that it is an address to _Venus_, both the planet and the +goddess. + +2. The planet Venus was considered to be in 'the _third_ heaven.' The +'heavens' or spheres were named, respectively, after the Moon, Mercury, +Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and the 'fixed stars;' beyond which was +the Primum Mobile, the earth being in the centre of all, and immoveable. +Sometimes the spheres of the seven planets were reckoned backwards from +Saturn, Venus being then in the _fifth_ heaven; see Lenvoy a Scogan, 9, and +the note. + +3. 'O favourite of the Sun, O dear daughter of Jove!' Venus was considered +a fortunate planet. Perhaps it is best to quote the Italian text here:-- + + 'O luce eterna, il cui lieto splendore 585 + Fa bello il terzo ciel, dal qual ne piove + Piacer, vaghezza, pietade ed amore; + Del sole amica, e figliuola di Giove, + Benigna donna d'ogni gentil core, + Certa cagion del valor che mi muove 590 + A' sospir dolci della mia salute, + Sempre lodata sia la tua virtute. + + Il ciel, la terra, lo mare e l'inferno + Ciascuno in sè la tua potenzia sente, + O chiara luce; e s'io il ver discerno, 595 + Le piante, i semi, e l'erbe puramente, + Gli uccei, le fiere, i pesci con eterno + Vapor ti senton nel tempo piacente, + E gli uomini e gli dei, nè creatura + Senza di te nel mondo vale o dura. 600 + + Tu Giove prima agli alti affetti lieto, + Pe' qua' vivono e son tutte le cose, + Movesti, o bella dea; e mansueto + Sovente il rendi all' opere noiose + Di noi mortali; e il meritato fleto 605 + In liete feste volgi e dilettose; + E in mille forme già quaggiù il mandasti, + Quand' ora d'una ed or d'altra il pregasti. + +11. _vapour_, influence; Ital. _Vapor_ (l. 598). + +15. The readings in this stanza are settled by the Ital. text. Thus, in ll. +17, 19, 20, read _him_, not _hem_. _Comeveden_, didst move or instigate; +agreeing with _ye_, for which Mod. E. uses _thou_. 'Thou didst first +instigate Jove to those glad effects (influences), through which all things +live and exist; and didst make him amorous of mortal things; and, at thy +pleasure, didst ever give him, in love, success or trouble; and, in a +thousand forms, didst send him down to (gain) love on earth; and he caught +those whom it pleased you (he should catch).' + +In l. 17 we find _Comeveden_ sometimes turned into _Comenden_, or even +_Commodious_! The Italian text has _Movesti_ (l. 603). + +22. Venus was supposed to appease the angry planet Mars; see Compl. of +Mars, 36-42. + +27. 'According as a man wishes.' + +29. 'Tu in unità le case e li cittadi, Li regni, ... Tien.' + +31-34. + + 'Tu sola le nascosi qualitadi + Delle cose conosci, onde 'l costrutto + Vi metti tal, che fai maravigliare + Chi tua potenza non sa riguardare.' + +I. e. 'Thou only knowest the hidden qualities of things, whence thou +formest such a construction, that thou makest to marvel any one who knows +not how to estimate thy power.' Chaucer seems to have used _construe_ +because suggested by _costrutto_, but he really uses it as answering to +_sa_ (in the fourth line), and omits the words _'l costrutto vi metti tal_ +altogether. Hence ll. 33-35 mean: 'when they cannot explain how it may come +to pass that _she_ loves _him_, or why _he_ loves _her_; (so as to shew) +why _this_ fish, and not _that_ one, comes to the weir.' + +_Io_ (= _jo_), come to pass. This word is not in the dictionaries, and has +been coolly altered into _go_ (!) in various editions. But it answers to O. +F. _joer_ (F. _jouer_), to play, hence, to play a game, to make a move (as +in a game); here, to come about, come to pass. + +35. _were_, weir, pool where fish are caught; see Parl. Foules, 138, and +note. + +36. 'You have imposed a law on folks in this universe;' Ital. 'Tu legge, o +dea, poni all' universo.' + +44, 45. _Inhelde_, pour in. _Caliope_, Calliope, muse of epic poetry; +similarly invoked by Dante, Purg. i. 9. + +87. 'Though he was not pert, nor made difficulties; nor was he too bold, +(as if about) to sing a mass for a fool.' The last expression was probably +proverbial; it seems to mean to speak without hesitation or a feeling of +respect. + +115. _to watre wolde_, would turn to water; cf. Squi. Ta. F 496. + +120. '_I? what?_' i. e. 'I? what (am I to do)?' In l. 122, Pandarus repeats +her words, mockingly: 'You say I? what? why, of course you should pity +him.' + +136-138. 'And I (am) to have comfort, as it pleases you, (being at the same +time) under your correction, (so as to have what is) equal to my offence, +as (for instance) death.' See Cant. Ta. B 1287. + +150. 'By the feast of Jupiter, who presides over nativities.' The reason +for the use of _natal_ is not obvious. Cf. 'Scit Genius, natale comes qui +temperat astrum;' Horat. Ep. ii. 2. 187. + +188. 'I seem to hear the town-bells ringing for this miracle, though no +hand pulls the ropes.' + +193, 194. _and oon, And two_, 'both the one of you and the other.' + +198. _bere the belle_, take the former place, take precedence; like the +bell-wether that heads the flock. See the New E. Dict. + +228. 'Straight as a line,' i. e. directly, at once. + +294. See Manc. Ta. H 333, and note. + +299. 'Thou understandest and knowest enough proverbs against the vice of +gossiping, even if men spoke truth as often as they lie.' + +308. 'No boaster is to be believed, in the natural course of things.' + +328, 329. _drat_, dreadeth. Cf. 'Felix, quem faciunt aliena pericula +cautum.' But Chaucer took it from Le Rom. de la Rose, 8041-2: 'Moult a +benéurée vie Cil qui par autrui se chastie.' + +340. 'And a day is appointed for making up the charters' (which will +particularise what she has granted you); metaphorical. + +349. _richesse_, abundance; not a happy word, but suggested by the Ital. +text: 'I sospir ch'egli aveva a gran dovizia;' Fil. iii. 11. _Dovizia_ +(Lat. _diuitiae_) is precisely 'richesse.' Bell has _rehetyng_, i. e. +comforting (from O. F. _rehaiter_, _reheiter_), which gives no sense; and +explains it by '_reheating_!' + +354. _lusty_, lusty person; cf. Cant. Ta. A 165, 208. + +377. 'Or durst (do so), or should know (how).' + +380. _stokked_, fastened in the stocks; cf. Acts xvi. 24. + +404. _Departe it so_, make this distinction. + +410. _frape_, company, troop. Marked by Tyrwhitt as not understood. Other +examples occur. 'With hem a god gret _frape_;' Adam Davy, &c., ed. +Furnivall, p. 60, col. 1, text 3, l. 390; and see Allit. Morte Arthure, ed. +Brock, 2163, 2804, 3548. Godefroy gives O. F. _frap_, a multitude, and +_frapaille_, rabble. + +445. 'And wished to be seised of that which he lacked.' + +497. 'Or to enumerate all the looks and words of one that is in such +uncertainty.' + +502. _as seith_; but it does not appear that Boccaccio says anything of the +kind. The same remark applies to l. 575. + +510. _Fulfelle_ is a Kentish form, the _e_ answering to A. S. _y_. Similar +forms occur in Gower. See note to Book Duch. 438. + +526. Scan: Dréd | elées | it cleer,' &c. The sense is: 'it was clear, in +the direction of the wind, from every magpie and every spoil-sport.' I. e. +no one could detect them; they kept (like hunters) well to leeward, and +there were no magpies or telltale birds to windward, to give an alarm. + +529. Scan: In this matér-e, both-e frem'd. _fremed_, strange, wild. + +542. _holy_, i. e. sacred to Apollo. From Ovid, Met. i. 566: 'laurea .. +uisa est agitasse cacumen.' + +545. 'And therefore let no one hinder him.' + +572. The readings all shew various corruptions of _thurfte_, which none of +the scribes understood; see _thurfen_, _tharf_, in Stratmann. This is not +the only place where _thurfte_ has been ousted from the text. Cf. _thar_ +(for _tharf_) in the Reves Ta. A 4320, &c. _Yow thurfte have_, you would +need (to) have. _Yow_ is the dat. case, governed by the impers. verb. The +reading _yow durste_ turns _yow_ (an accusative) into an imaginary +nominative; but the nom. form is _ye_, which the scribes did not venture to +substitute. + +584. _goosish_, goose-like, silly. This delicious epithet was turned into +_gofysshe_ by Thynne, and modern editions perpetuate the blunder. Tyrwhitt +derived _gofish_ from F. _goffe_, a word which is much later than Chaucer, +and was probably merely adapted from Ital. _goffo_, stupid. The Century +Dict. goes a step further, inserting a second _f_, and producing a form +_goffish_, against all authority. Cf. Parl. Foules, 568, 586. + +601. _stewe_, small chamber, closet; cf. G. _Stube_. + +602. 'Where he was shut in, as in a coop.' + +609. 'There was no dainty to be fetched'; they were all there. + +614. _Wade_; this is the hero mentioned in the Merch. Tale, E 1424; see +note. + +617-620. Cf. Boethius, Bk. iv. Pr. 6. 60-68. + +622. 'Without her leave, at the will of the gods.' + +624. _bente_, i. e. curved, crescent; see l. 549. Cf. Boeth. Bk. I. Met. 5. +6, 7. + +625. The Moon, Saturn, and Jupiter were all in conjunction in Cancer, which +was the mansion of the moon. We are to understand that this caused the +great rain. + +640. _ron_, rained; so also in l. 677. The usual pt. t. is _reinede_, but +we also find _roon_, _ron_, as in P. Plowm. B. xiv. 66 (C. xvi. 270), and +in Trevisa, tr. of Higden, ii. 239. The pt. t. of A. S. _rignan_, +_r[=i]nan_, is usually _r[=i]nde_; but the strong pt. _r[=a]n_ occurs in +the Blickling Glosses. + +648. _a game_, in game; _a_ = _an_, _on_; Cm. has _on_. + +671. _The wyn anon_, the wine (shall come) at once; alluding to the wine +drunk just before going to bed. See Prol. A 819, 820. + +674. 'The _voidè_ being drunk, and the cross-curtain drawn immediately +afterwards.' The best reading is _voyde_ or _voydee_. This seems to be here +used as a name for the 'loving-cup' or 'grace-cup,' which was drunk after +the table had been cleared or _voided_. Properly, it was a slight dessert +of 'spices' and wine; where _spices_ meant sweetmeats, dried fruits, &c. +See Notes and Queries, 2 S. xi. 508. The _traverse_ was a screen or curtain +drawn across the room; cf. Cant. Ta. E 1817; King's Quair, st. 90. See +Additional Note, p. 506. + +690. This refers to the attendants. They were no longer allowed to skip +about (run on errands) or to tramp about noisily, but were packed off to +bed, with a malediction on those who stirred about. _Traunceth_, tramps +about, is used of a bull by Gower, C. A. ii. 72. In Beaumont and Fletcher, +Fair Maid of the Inn, v. 2, we find--'but, _traunce_ the world over, you +shall never,' &c. For _traunce_, Thynne reads _praunce_, which has a +similar sense. Morris explains _traunce_ here as a sb., which seems +impossible. + +695. _The olde daunce_, the old game; see Prol. A 476. + +696. _sey_, saw; perhaps read _seye_, subj., might perceive. If so, read +_al_, i. e. every. + +702. 'Beginning and end;' see note to bk. II. 1495. + +711. I. e. or else upset everything; cf. the phrase, 'all the fat is in the +fire.' + +716. Mars and Saturn both had an evil influence. + +717. _combust_, quenched, viz. by being too near the sun; see Astrolabe, +pt. ii. § 4. Venus and Mercury, when thus 'combust,' lost their influence. +_let_, hindered. + +721. _Adoon_, Adonis; see Ovid, Met. x. 715. + +722. _Europe_, Europa; see Leg. of Good Women, 113, and note. + +725. _Cipris_, Venus; see Ho. Fame, 518. + +726. _Dane_, Daphne; see Kn. Ta. A 2062. + +729. _Mercúrie_, Mercury; _Herse_, daughter of Cecrops, beloved by Mercury. +Her sister, Aglauros, had displeased Minerva (_Pallas_); whereupon Minerva +made Aglauros envious of Herse. Mercury turned Aglauros into stone because +she hindered his suit. See Ovid, Met. ii. 708-832. + +733. 'Fatal sisters;' i.e. the Fates, Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos. 'Which +spun my destiny, before any cloth (infant's covering) was made for me.' See +Kn. Ta. A 1566; Leg. G. Wom. 2629. + +764. Let sleeping dogs lie; a proverb. + +773. 'To hold in hand' is to feed with false hopes, to delude by pretended +love. + +775. Lit. 'and make him a hood above a cap.' A _calle_ (caul) was a +close-fitting cap, a skull-cap. To put on a hood over this evidently means +to cover up the eyes, to cajole, to hoodwink. + +791, 797. _shal_, owe to. _sholde love_, i.e. are reported to love. + +813-836. Founded on Boethius, lib. II. Pr. 4. 'Quàm multis amaritudinibus +humanae felicitatis dulcedo respersa est!... Anxia enim res est humanorum +conditio bonorum, et quae uel numquam tota proueniat, uel numquam perpetua +subsistat.... Ad haec, quem caduca ista felicitas uehit, uel scit eam, uel +nescit esse mutabilem. Si nescit, quaenam beata sors esse potest +ignorantiae caecitate? Si scit, metuat necesse est, ne amittat, quod amitti +potest non dubitat; quare continuus timor non sinit esse felicem.... quonam +modo praesens uita facere beatos potest?' See the E. version, ll. 86, 56, +109. + +839. 'Why hast thou made Troilus distrust me?' + +853, 854. 'Danger is drawn nearer by delay.' We say, 'Delays are +dangerous.' Cf. Havelok, l. 1352. _abodes_, abidings, tarryings. + +855. _Néc'_, with elided _e_, forms the first foot. 'Every thing has its +time;' cf. Eccl. iii. 1. + +861. _farewel feldefare_, (and people will say) farewell, fieldfare! Cf. +Rom. Rose, 5510. In the Rom. Rose, it refers to false friends, who, when +fortune frowns, say 'Go! farewell fieldfare,' i.e. Begone, we have done +with you. As fieldfares come here in the winter months, people are glad to +see them go, as a sign of approaching summer. In the present case, the +sense appears to be that, when an opportunity is missed, the harm is done; +and people will cry, 'farewell, fieldfare!' by way of derision. We might +paraphrase the line by saying: 'the harm is done, and nobody cares.' + +885. _blewe_, blue; the colour of _constancy_. + +890. 'Hazle-bushes shake.' This is a truism known to every one, and no news +at all; in like manner, your ring will tell him nothing, and is useless. + +901. _feffe him_, enfeoff him, bestow on him. _whyte_, fair. + +919. _at pryme face_, at the first glance; _primâ facie_. + +931. _At dulcarnon_, at a non-plus, in extreme perplexity. _Dulcarnon_, as +pointed out by Selden, in his Pref. to Drayton's Polyolbion, represents the +Pers. and Arab. _d[=u]'lkarnayn_, lit. two-horned; from Pers. _d[=u]_, two, +and _karn_, horn. It was a common medieval epithet of Alexander the Great, +who was so called because he claimed descent from Jupiter Ammon, whose +image was provided with horns like a ram. Speght rightly says that +_Dulcarnon_ was also a name for the 47th prop. of Euclid, Book I, but gives +a false reason and etymology. The real reason is plain enough, viz. that +the two smaller squares in the diagram stick up like two horns. And, as +this proposition is somewhat difficult for beginners, it here takes the +sense of 'puzzle;' hence Criseyde was _at Dulcarnon_, because she was in +perplexity. Speght refers to Alex. Neckam, De Naturis Rerum; see Wright's +edition, p. 295. + +But this is not all. In l. 933, Pandarus explains that Dulcarnon is called +'fleming of wrecches.' There is a slight error here: 'fleming of wrecches,' +i.e. banishment of the miserable, is a translation of _Fuga miserorum_, +which is written opposite this line in MS. Harl. 1239; and further, _Fuga +miserorum_ is a sort of Latin translation of _Eleëfuga_ or _Eleufuga_, from +[Greek: eleos] pity, and [Greek: phygê], flight. The error lies in +confusing _Dulcarnon_, the 47th proposition, with _Eleufuga_, a name for +the 5th proposition; a confusion due to the fact that both propositions +were considered difficult. Roger Bacon, Opus Tertium, cap. 6, says: 'Quinta +propositio geometricae Euclidis dicitur _Elefuga_, id est, _fuga +miserorum_.' Ducange, s. v. _Eleufuga_, quotes from Alanus, Anticlaudiani +lib. iii. cap. 6--'Huius tirones curantis [_read_ cur artis] _Eleufuga_ +terret,' &c. The word also occurs in Richard of Bury's Philobiblon, cap. +xiii, somewhat oddly translated by J.B. Inglis in 1832. 'How many scholars +has the Helleflight of Euclid repelled!' + +This explanation, partly due to the Rev. W.G. Clark (joint-editor of the +Globe Shakespeare), was first given in the _Athenæum_, Sept. 23, 1871, p. +393, in an article written by myself. + +934. _It_, i.e. _Dulcarnon_, or Euclid's proposition. 'It seems hard, +because the wretched pupils will not learn it, owing to their very sloth or +other wilful defects.' + +936. _This_ = _this is_; as elsewhere. _fecches_, vetches. + +947. Understand _be_; 'where (I hope) good thrift may be.' Cf. 966. + +978. _fere_, fire; as in Bk. i. 229. Usually _fyre_. + +979. _fond his contenaunce_, lit. found his demeanour, i.e. composed +himself as if to read. + +1010. _wivere_, viper; O. F. _wivre_ (F. _givre_), from Lat. _uipera_. The +heraldic _wiver_ or _wyvern_ became a wondrous winged dragon, with two +legs; wholly unlike the original viper. See Thynne's Animadversions, &c., +ed. Furnivall, p. 41. + +1013. 'Alas! that he, either entirely, or a slice of him.' + +1021. 'That sufferest undeserved jealousy (to exist).' + +1029. _after that_, accordingly; _his_, its. + +1035. See note to Bk. ii. 784. + +1046. _ordal_, ordeal, trial by ordeal, i.e. by fire or water. See Thynne's +Animadversions, ed. Furnivall, p. 66. + +1056. _wreigh_, covered; A. S. _wr[=a]h_; see _wr[=i]hen_ in Stratmann. + +1064. _shoures_, assaults. Bell actually substitutes _stouris_, as being +'clearly the true reading.' But editors have no right to reject real words +which they fail to understand. _Shour_ sometimes means a shower of arrows +or darts, an assault, &c.; cf. A.S. _hildesc[=u]r_, a flight of missiles. +In fact, it recurs in this sense in Bk. iv. 47, where Bell again turns it +into _stoure_, against authority. + +1067. 'For it seemed to him not like (mere) strokes with a rod ... but he +felt the very cramp of death.' + +1106. _al forgeve_, all is forgiven. _stint_, stopped. + +1154. _bar him on honde_, assured him. + +1177. 'For a crime, there is mercy (to be had).' + +1194. _sucre be or soot_, may be like sugar or like soot, i.e. pleasant or +the reverse. We must read _soot_ (not _sote_, sweet, as in Bell) because it +rimes with _moot_. Moreover, soot was once proverbially bitter. 'Bittrore +then the sote' occurs in Altenglische Dichtungen, ed. Boddeker, p. 121; and +in Rutebuef's Vie Sainte Marie l'Egiptianne, ed. Jubinal, 280, we find +'plus amer que suie;' cf. Rom. Rose, 10670: 'amer Plus que n'est suie.' + +1215. Cf. 'Bitter pills may have sweet effects;' Hazlitt's Proverbs. + +1231. _Bitrent_, for _bitrendeth_, winds round; cf. iv. 870. _wryth_, for +_wrytheth_, writhes. + +1235. 'When she hears any shepherd speak.' + +1249. 'And often invoked good luck upon her snowy throat.' + +1257. _welwilly_, full of good will, propitious. + +1258. _Imeneus_, Hymenæus, Hymen; cf. Ovid, Her. xiv. 27. + +1261-4. Imitated from Dante, Parad. xxxiii. 14:-- + + 'Che qual vuol grazie, e a te non ricorre, + Sua disianza vuol volar senz' ali. + La tua benignità non pur soccorre,' &c. + +1282. 'Mercy prevails over (lit. surpasses) justice.' + +1344. 'Or else do I dream it?' + +1357. _sooth_, for _sooth is_, i.e. it is true. + +1369. Bell takes _scripture_ to mean the mottos or posies on the rings. +Perhaps this is right. + +1374. _holt_, holds; 'that holds it in despite.' + +1375. 'Of the money, that he can heap up and lay hold of.' For _mokren_, +cf. Chaucer's Boethius, Bk. ii. Pr. 5. 11. _Pens_, pence, is a translation +of Ital. _denari_, money, in the Filostrato, Book iii. st. 38. + +1384. _the whyte_, silver coins; _the rede_, gold coins. + +1389. _Myda_, Midas; see Wyf of Bathes Tale, D 951. + +1391. _Crassus_; wantonly altered to _Cresus_ in Bell's edition, on the +ground that the story is told of Croesus. But Chaucer knew better. M. +Crassus, surnamed Dives (the Rich), was slain in battle against the +Parthians, B. C. 53. Orodes, king of Parthia, caused molten gold to be +poured into the mouth of his dead enemy, saying, 'Sate thyself now with +that metal of which, in life, thou wast so greedy;' Cicero, Att. vi. 1. 14; +Florus, iii. 11. 4. + +1407. 'And to counterbalance with joy their former woe'. + +1415. The cock is called a common astrologer (i. e. astronomer), because he +announces to all the time of day; cf. Non. Pr. Ta. B 4043; Parl. Foules, +350. Translated from 'vulgaris astrologus;' Alanus. + +1417, 9. _Lucifer_, the morning-star, the planet Venus. _Fortuna maior_, +the planet Jupiter. Mars and Saturn were supposed to have an _evil_ +influence; the Sun, Mercury, and Moon, had no great influence either way; +whilst Jupiter and Venus had a _good_ influence, and were therefore called, +respectively, _Fortuna maior_ and _Fortuna minor_. See G. Douglas, ed. +Small, ii. 288. The MSS. have _that anoon_, (it happened) that anon; but +this requires us to suppose so awkward an ellipsis that it is better to +read _than_, answering to _whan_. + +1428. _Almena_, Alcmena; a note in MS. H. has: 'Almena mater Herculis.' +Alcmena was the mother of Hercules by Jupiter. Jupiter lengthened the night +beyond its usual limit. Plautus has a play on the subject, called +_Amphitruo_, as Jupiter personated Amphitryon. + +1437-9. _ther_, wherefore; 'wherefore (I pray that) God, creator of nature, +may bind thee so fast to our hemisphere,' &c. A similar construction occurs +in l. 1456. + +1453. _bore_, aperture, chink; 'for every chink lets in one of thy bright +rays.' See New E. Dict. + +1462. Engravers of small seals require a good light. + +1464. _Tytan_, Titan, frequently used as synonymous with the sun; as in +Ovid, Met. i. 10. Chaucer has confused him with _Tithonus_, the husband of +Aurora, whom he denotes by _dawing_ in l. 1466, and by _morwe_ in l. 1469. + + 'Iamque, fugatura Tithoni coniuge noctem, + Praeuius Aurorae Lucifer ortus erat.' + Ovid, Heroid. xviii. 111. + +1490. Read _wer-e_, in two syllables. _these worldes tweyne_ seems to mean +'two worlds such as this.' + +1495. This somewhat resembles Verg. Ecl. i. 60-4. + +1502. 'Even if I had to die by torture;' as in Bk. i. 674. + +1514. _mo_, others; see note to Cler. Ta. E 1039. + +1546. 'Desire burnt him afresh, and pleasure began to arise more than at +first.' Cf. the parallel line in Leg. Good Wom. 1156: 'Of which ther gan to +breden swich a fyr.' Yet Bell rejects this reading as being 'not at all in +Chaucer's manner,' and prefers nonsense. + +1577. 'Christ forgave those who crucified him.' + +1600. Cf. Æneid. vi. 550:-- + + 'Quae rapidus flammis ambit torrentibus amnis + Tartareus Phlegethon.' + +1625. From Boethius, lib. ii. Pr. 4: 'Sed hoc est, quod recolentem +uehementius coquit. Nam in omni aduersitate fortunae infelicissimum genus +est infortunii, fuisse felicem.' Cf. Dante, Inf. v. 121; Tennyson, Locksley +Hall--'That a sorrow's crown of sorrow is remembering happier things.' + +1634. Cf. Rom. de la Rose, 8301-4; from Ovid, Art. Amat. ii. 13. + +1642. _Ne I_, read _N'I_. _rakle_, behave rashly; it is plainly a _verb_, +formed from the adj. _rakel_. Morris inserts _ben_ after _rakel_, to the +ruin of the scansion. Cf. Norweg. _rakla_, to ramble, totter, be unsteady +(Aasen); Swed. dial. _rakkla_, to rove (Rietz); Icel. _reka_, to drive. + +1649. _I shal_, I owe; A. S. _ic sceal_. + +1687. _comprende_, comprehend; F. _comprendre_. This is clearly the right +form. In the Sq. Ta. F 223, though the MSS. have _comprehende_, it is +obvious that _comprende_ is the real reading. + +1703. _Pirous_, i. e. Pyroeis, one of the four horses that drew the chariot +of the sun. The other three were Eöus, Æthon, and Phlegon; see Ovid, Met. +ii. 153. + +1705. 'Have taken some short cut, to spite me.' + +1732. 'To the extent of a single knot.' It would not be necessary to +explain this, if it were not for Bell's explanation of _knot_ as 'gnat.' + +1734. _y-masked_, enmeshed; cf. A. S. _masc_, a mesh. + +1744-68. Paraphrased from Boethius, lib. ii. Met. 8; but note that the +lines italicised are transposed, and represent ll. 1744-1750: + + 'Quòd mundus stabili fide Concordes uariat uices, + Quòd pugnantia semina Foedus perpetuum tenent, + Quòd Phoebus roseum diem Curru prouehit aureo, + Ut quas duxerit Hesperus Phoebe noctibus imperet, + Ut fluctus auidum mare Certo fine coërceat, + Ne terris liceat uagis Latos tendere terminos. + _Hanc rerum seriem ligat, Terras ac pelagus regens, + Et caelo imperitans Amor._ Hic si fraena remiserit, + Quidquid nunc amat inuicem, Bellum continuò geret: + Et quam nunc socia fide Pulcris motibus incitant, + Certent soluere machinam. Hic sancto populos quoque + Iunctos foedere continet: Hic et coniugii sacrum + Castis nectit amoribus: Hic fidis etiam sua + Dictat iura sodalibus. O felix hominum genus, + Si uestros animos Amor Quo caelum regitur, regat!' + +1764. _halt to-hepe_, holds together, preserves in concord. Bell and Morris +have the corrupt reading _to kepe_. _To hepe_, to a heap, became the adv. +_to-hepe_, together. It occurs again in Ch. Astrolabe, Part I. § 14, and in +Boethius, Bk. iv. Pr. 6. 182. Cf. 'gaderen tresor _to-hepe_,' Polit. Songs, +ed. Wright, p. 325; 'han brought it _to-hepe_,' P. Ploughman's Crede, l. +727. + +1766. 'That Love, by means of his power, would be pleased,' &c. + +1779. _In tyme of trewe_, in time of truce; as in Boccaccio, Fil. iii. st. +91. Bell wrongly has _Out of Troy_. Morris alters _trewe_ to _trewes_; but +see Bk. iv. l. 1312. + +1805. These are four of the seven deadly sins; see Pers. Tale. + +1807. _lady_, i. e. Venus, called _Dionaea_ as being daughter of Dione; +Æneid. iii. 19. Cf. Homer, Il. v. 370. + +1809. The nine Muses. Helicon was a long way from Mount Parnassus; but see +notes to Anelida, 15, and Ho. Fame, 521. + +1817. 'As it pleases my author to relate.' + + +BOOK IV. + +The following scheme gives some notion of the relationship of the contents +of this book to the Filostrato, but Chaucer constantly expands and adds to +the original, and not unfrequently transposes the order of the text. + + TROILUS: BOOK IV. FILOSTRATO. + + 1-10. Bk. III. st. 94. + 29-35. Bk. IV. st. 1. + 47-110. " 2-10. + 127-166. " 12-16. + 211-217. " 17. + 218-385. " 22, 23, 26-46. + 393-406. " 47, 48. + 414-451. " 49, 50. + 459-497. " 52, 54, 56-58. + 501-787. " 60-89, 92, 93, 88-91. + 799-821. " 95, 96. + 848-925, 939-946. " 98-109 (l. 1). + 1089-1095, 1108-1260. " 109 (l. 4)-127. + 1310-1400. " 131-136. + 1422-1446. " 137-140. + 1464-1542, 1555-1694. " 141-167. + +1. In the Proem, ll. 1-3 correspond to Fil. iii. st. 94, ll. 1-3; and ll. 8 +and 10 to the same stanza, ll. 4 and 7. The rest is original. + +3. Cf. Boethius, lib. ii. Pr. 1: 'Intelligo ... illius [Fortunae] ... cum +his, quos eludere nititur, blandissimam familiaritatem.' + +5. _hent and blent_, for _hendeth and blendeth_, catches and blinds. + +6, 7. Cf. Boethius, lib. ii. Met. 2: 'Ultroque gemitus, dura quos fecit +[Fortuna], ridet.' Whence, in Le Roman de la Rose, 8076-9, the passage +which Chaucer here imitates; _the mowe_ = F. _la moe_. + +22. _Herines_ i. e. Furies; used as the pl. of _Erynis_ or _Erinnys_; see +note to Compl. to Pite, 92. Their names (see l. 24) were Megaera, Alecto, +and Tisiphone. Bell's remark, that Chaucer found these names in Boccaccio, +does not seem to be founded on fact. He more likely found them in Vergil, +who has _Erinnys_, Æn. ii. 336, 573; vii. 447, 570; _Alecto_, id. vii. 324, +341, 405, 415, 445, 476; _Megæra_, id. xii. 846; _Tisiphone_, vi. 571, x. +761. But I suppose that, even in Chaucer's time, MS. note-books existed, +containing such information as the names of the Furies. Chaucer even knew +that some (as Æschylus) considered them to be the daughters of Night. + +25. _Quiryne_, Quirinus. Ovid, Fasti, ii. 476, tells us that Quirinus was +Romulus; and just above, ii. 419, that Romulus and Remus were sons of Mars. + +29. _Ligginge ... The Grekes_, while the Greeks lay. + +32. _Hercules Lyoun_, Hercules' lion, the lion of Hercules; alluding to the +lion's skin which Hercules wore. Valerius Flaccus, Argonauticon, lib. i. +263, has 'Herculeo ... leoni;' and Chaucer seems to have read this author, +or at any rate his first book; see Leg. of Good Women, l. 1457, and the +note. However, Chaucer shews his knowledge of the story clearly enough in +his tr. of Boethius, Bk. iv. Met. 7. The reference is, simply, to the sign +Leo. The sun was in this sign during the latter part of July and the former +part of August; but we are further told that he was in the 'breast' of Leo, +and therefore near the very bright star Regulus, called in Arabic +_Kalbalased_, or the Lion's Heart, which was situated almost on the zodiac, +and (at that time) near the 20th degree of the sign. This gives the date as +being the first week in August. + +41. _in the berd_, in the beard, i. e. face to face. + +47. _shour_, assault, attack; see note to Bk. iii. 1064. + +50-4. From Boccaccio. The right names are Antenor, Polydamas, Menestheus or +Mnestheus, Xanthippus, Sarpedon, Polymnestor, Polites, Riphaeus, all +mentioned by Boccaccio, who probably took them from Guido delle Colonne. +But Boccaccio omits 'Phebuseo,' and I do not know who is meant. Several of +these names may be found in the allit. Destruction of Troy, ed. Panton and +Donaldson; as Antenor and his son Polydamas, at ll. 3947, 3954; Xanthippus, +king of Phrygia, l. 6107; Sarpedon, prince of Lycia, l. 5448; and in +Lydgate's Siege of Troy, Bk. ii. capp. 16, 20. Polymestor, or Polymnestor, +was king of the Thracian Chersonese, and an ally of the Trojans. Polites +was a son of Priam (Æneid. ii. 526). Mnestheus is repeatedly mentioned in +Vergil (Æn. v. 116, &c.), and is also called Menestheus (id. x. 129); he is +a different person from Menestheus, king of Athens, who fought on the other +side. For Riphaeus, see Verg. Aen. ii. 339. The Ital. forms are Antenorre, +Polidamas, Monesteo, Santippo, Serpedon, Polinestorre, Polite, Rifeo. +Observe that Monostéo, Riphéo, Phebuséo rime together, with an accent on +the penultimate. + +62. _thassege_, for _the assege_, the siege; Barbour has _assege_, siege, +in his Bruce, xvii. 270, xx. 8; pl. _assegis_, xx. 12. MS. H. wrongly has +_thessage_. See l. 1480 below. + +64. _Calkas_, Calchas; see Bk. i. 66, 71. + +79. _This town to shende_, i. e. (it will be best for you) to despoil this +town. + +86. _resport_, regard. This strange word is certified by its reappearance +in l. 850, where it rimes to _discomfórt_. It is given in Roquefort, but +only in a technical sense. It was, doubtless, formed from O. F. _esport_, +deportment, demeanour, regard (Godefroy), by prefixing _re-_; and means +'demeanour towards,' or (here) simply 'regard,' as also in l. 850. The +etymology is from Lat. _re-_, _ex_, and _portare_. Cf. F. _rapport_, from +_re-_, _ad_, and _portare_. + +96. _in hir sherte_, in her smock only; i.e. without much rich clothing; +'as she was.' + +99. 'For because I saw no opportunity.' + +112. _as yerne_, as briskly as possible, very soon; so in l. 201. + +120-4. Laomedon, father of Priam, founded Troy. Apollo and Poseidon +(Neptune) had been condemned for a while to serve him for wages. But +Laomedon refused them payment, and incurred their displeasure. + +133. Antenor had been taken prisoner by the Greeks; see Lydgate, Siege of +Troye, Bk. iii. ch. 24. Lydgate's version is that Antenor was to be +exchanged for Thoas, king of Calydon; and, at the request of Chalcas, it +was arranged that Antenor should be exchanged for both Thoas and Criseyde +(see l. 138); to which Priam consented. + +_withoute more_, without further ado; cf. l. 376. + +143. _parlement_; here Boccaccio has _parlamento_, i.e. a parley. Chaucer +gives it the English sense. + +168. 'The love of you both, where it was before unknown.' + +197. From Juvenal, Sat. x. ll. 2-4:-- + + 'pauci dignoscere possunt + Vera bona atque illis multum diuersa, remota + Erroris nebula.' + +Cf. Dryden's translation and Dr. Johnson's poem on the Vanity of Human +Wishes. + +198, 9. _what is to yerne_, what is desirable. _offence_, disappointment. + +203. _mischaunce_; because Antenor contrived the removal from Troy of the +Palladium, on which the safety of the city depended. Cf. Lydgate, Siege of +Troye, Bk. iv. ch. 34; or the account by Caxton, quoted in Specimens of +English from 1394-1579, ed. Skeat, p. 89. + +210. _here and howne._ The sense of this phrase is not known; but, judging +by the context, it seems to mean--'thus said every one, such was the common +rumour.' It has been explained as 'thus said _hare_ and _hound_,' i.e. +people of all sorts; but the M. E. form of _hare_ is _hare_ (A. S. _hara_), +and the M. E. form of 'hound' never appears as _howne_, which, by the way, +is evidently dissyllabic. In the absence of further evidence, guesswork is +hardly profitable; but I should like to suggest that the phrase may mean +'gentle and savage.' The M. E. _here_, gentle, occurs in Layamon, 25867; +and in Amis and Amiloun, 16 (Stratmann); from A. S. _h[=e]ore_. _Houne_ +answers, phonetically, to an A. S. _H[=u]na_, which may mean a Hun, a +savage; cf. Ger. _Hüne_. + +225. From Dante, Inf. iii. 112:-- + + 'Come d'autunno si levan le foglie + L'una appresso dell' altra infin che 'l ramo + Rende alla terra tutte le sue spoglie.' + +239. This stanza follows Boccaccio closely; but Boccaccio, in his turn, +here imitates a passage in Dante, Inf. xii. 22:-- + + 'Qual è quel toro che si slaccia in quella + C'ha ricevuto già 'l colpo mortale, + Che gir non sa, ma qua e là saltella.' + +251, 2. Almost repeated in the Clerk Ta. E 902, 3; see note to the latter +line, and cf. Gower, Conf. Amant. ii. 14--'Right as a lives creature She +semeth,' &c. + +263. In MS. H., _thus_ is glossed by 'sine causa.' + +272. Accent _misérie_ on _e_; 'Nella miseria;' Inf. v. 123. + +279. _combre-world_, encumbrance of the world, a compound epithet. It is +used by Hoccleve, in his lament for Chaucer, De Regim. Principum, st. 299. +'A _cumber-world_, yet in the world am left;' Drayton, Pastorals, Ecl. ii. +25. + +286. _gerful_, changeable; see note to Kn. Ta. A 1536. + +300. _Edippe_, Oedipus, king of Thebes, who put out his own eyes on finding +that he had slain his father Laius and married his mother Jocasta; Statius, +Theb. i. 46. + +302. Rossetti thus translates Fil. iv. st. 34: 'O soul, wretched and +astray, Why fliest thou not out of the most ill-fortuned body that lives? O +soul brought low, part from the body, and follow Chryseis.' + +305. _unneste_, glossed in H. by 'go out of thi nest;' correctly. + +318. Read _my_, not _the_ or _thy_; Rossetti thus translates Fil. iv. st. +36: 'O my Chryseis, O sweet bliss of the sorrowing soul which calls on +thee! Who will any more give comfort to _my_ pains?' + +330. _unholsom_; Boccaccio has _insano_, Fil. iv. st. 38. 'I think it +pretty clear that B. means _insane_ in our ordinary sense for that word; +but Chaucer's _unholsom_ is no doubt founded on B.'s epithet, and is highly +picturesque.'--Rossetti. + +356, 7. Nearly repeated in Man of Lawes Ta. B 608, 9. See l. 882. + +381. 'As certainly do I wish it were false, as I know it is true.' + +392. _propretee_, his own indefeasible possession; see Boethius, Bk. ii. +Pr. 2. 9 (p. 27), 61 (p. 28). + +407. Pandarus took his morality from Ovid; cf. Amorum lib. ii. 4. 10-44: +'Centum sunt causae, cur ego semper amem;' &c. + +413. _heroner_, a large falcon for herons; _faucon for rivere_, a goshawk +for waterfowl. See note to Sir Thopas, B 1927. + +414, 5. From Boccaccio, who does not, however, give the name of the author +of the saying. The remark 'as Zanzis writeth' is Chaucer's own. It is quite +clear that _Zanzis_ in this passage is the same as the _Zanzis_ in the +Physiciens Tale, C 16; and he is no other than Zeuxis the painter. I do not +suppose that Chaucer had any special reason for assigning to him the +saying, but his name was as useful as that of any one else, and the +medieval method of reference is frequently so casual and light-hearted that +there is nothing to wonder at. Besides, we are distinctly told (l. 428) +that Pandarus was speaking _for the nonce_, i.e. quite at random. The real +author is Ovid: 'Successore nouo uincitur omnis amor;' Remed. Amor. 462. + +460. _pleyen raket_, play at rackets, knocking the ball forwards and +backwards; alluding to the rebound of the ball after striking the wall. + +461. _Netle in, dokke out_ means, as Chaucer says, first one thing and then +another. The words are taken from a charm for curing the sting of a nettle, +repeated whilst the patient rubs in the juice from a dock-leaf. The usual +formula is simply, 'in dock, out nettle,' for which see Brockett's Glossary +of North-Country Words, s. v. _dockon_ (dock); but Chaucer is doubtless +correct. He refers to a fuller form of words, given in Notes and Queries, +1st Ser. iii. 368:-- + + 'Nettle in, dock out--Dock in, nettle out; + Nettle in, dock out--Dock rub nettle out.' + +Akermann's Glossary of Wiltshire Words gives a third formula, as follows:-- + + 'Out 'ettle, in dock--Dock shall ha' a new smock; + 'Ettle zhan't ha' narrun.' + +i.e. nettle shan't have ne'er one. See also N. and Q. 1st Ser. iii. 205, +368; xi. 92; Athenæum, Sept. 12, 1846; Brand, Pop. Antiq. iii. 315. + +In the Testament of Love, Bk. i., the present passage is quoted in the +following form: 'Ye wete wel, lady, eke (quod I) that _I haue not playde +racket, nettyl in, docke out_, and with the wethercocke waued;' ed. 1550, +fol. cccv. col. 2. This shews that the text is correct. + +462. 'Now ill luck befall her, that may care for thy wo.' + +481-3. _gabbestow_, liest thou. Ll. 482, 3 are a reproduction of Pandarus' +own saying, in Bk. iii. 1625-8. + +493. Deficient in the first foot; read--'I | that liv'd' | &c. + +497. _formely_; Cm. _formaly_; for _formelly_, i.e. formally. + +503. From Boethius, Bk. i. Met. 1. 13, 14 (p. 1). + +506. Troilus speaks as if dead already. 'Well wot I, whilst I lived in +peace, before thou (death) didst slay me, I would have given (thee) hire;' +i.e. a bribe, not to attack me. + +520. _alambyk_, alembic; i.e. a retort, or vessel used in distilling; in +Cant. Ta. G 794, MS. E. has the pl. _alambikes_, and most other MSS. have +_alembikes_. The word was afterwards split up into _a lembick_ or _a +limbeck_; see Macb. i. 7. 67. Chaucer took this from Le Rom. de la Rose, +6406-7:-- + + 'Je vois maintes fois que tu plores + Cum alambic sus alutel.' + +556. 'Then think I, this would injure her reputation.' + +583. 'But if I had so ardent a love, and had thy rank.' + +588. Cf. the phrase 'a nine days' wonder.' Lat. _nouendiale sacrum_; Livy, +i. 31. + +600. 'Audentes Fortuna iuuat;' Æneid. x. 284; 'Fortes Fortuna adiuuat'; +Terence, Phormio, i. 4. 26. + +602. 'Unhardy is unsely;' Reves Ta. A 4210. + +603. For _litel_, MS. H. and Thynne have _lite_. It makes no difference, +either to the sense or the scansion. + +607. _for ferd_, for fear (H2. _for drede_; Thynne, _for feare_). Properly +_for ferde_, as in Ho. Fame, 950; but often shortened to _for ferd_. +_Ferde_ or _ferd_ is tolerably common as a sb., but some scribes hardly +understood it. Hence MSS. Cl. and H. have _of-fered_, i.e. greatly +frightened. + +618. Cf. Kn. Ta. A 1163-8; and the notes. + +622. 'Boldly stake the world on casts of the dice.' Cf. Cant. Tales, B 125, +C 653, and the notes. + +627. Nearly repeated in Kn. Tale, A 1010. + +630. 'The devil help him that cares about it.' + +659-61. From Boccaccio, Fil. iv. st. 78; cf. Æneid. iv. 188. + +683. 'And expected to please her.' _For pitous Ioye_ represents 'pietosa +allegrezza,' Fil. iv. st. 80. + +684. 'Dear enough at a mite;' cf. note to L. G. Wom. 741. + +692. _on every syde_; 'd'ogni partito;' Fil. iv. 81. I suppose it means, +literally, 'on every side;' Troy being subject to attacks at various +points. + +708-14. Certainly genuine; found also in Fil. iv. 84. + +716. Deficient in the first foot. + +735. Dr. Furnivall says that MSS. Cl., H., and others have here misplaced a +stanza, meaning that ll. 750-6 should have come next, as shewn by +Boccaccio's text. But only MS. Cm. has such an order, and it is quite +certain that the other MSS. are right. The order in Boccaccio's text +furnishes no real guide, as Chaucer often transposes such order; and it is +odd that only this _one_ instance should have been noted. It is better to +consider the order in MS. Cm. as wrong, and to say that it transposes the +text by placing ll. 750-6 after l. 735, and gives a somewhat different +version of ll. 750-2. + +736. _ounded_, waved, wavy; see Ho. Fame, 1386, and note. Cf. 'Tear my +bright hair,' &c.; Shak. Troilus, iv. 2. 112. + +750. Cf. note to l. 735. MS. Cm., which inserts this stanza after l. 735, +begins thus:-- + + 'The salte teris from hyre ey[gh]yn tweyn + Out ran, as schour of Aprille ful swythe; + Hyre white brest sche bet, and for the peyne,' &c. + +762. This line, giving the name of Criseyde's mother, is not in Boccaccio +(Fil. iv. stt. 89-93). I do not know where Chaucer found the form _Argyve_; +in Statius, Theb. ii. 297, _Argia_ is the name of the wife of Polynices, +and Ch. calls her _Argyve_; see Bk. v. l. 1509 below. + +769, 70. _by-word_, proverb: 'plants without a root soon die.' + +782. _ordre_, order. She will pass her life in mourning and abstinence, as +if she had entered a religious order. + +790. _Elysos_, Elysium. It looks as if Chaucer was thinking of Vergil's +'Elysios ... campos;' Georg. i. 38; for the story of Orpheus and Eurydice +occurs in Georg. iv. 453-527. Cf. Ovid, Met. x. 1-85. + +829. _cause causinge_, the primary cause. '_Causa causans_, a primary or +original cause; _causa causata_, a secondary or intermediate cause;' New E. +Dict., s. v. _Causa_. + +831. _Wher_, short for _whether_; as in Cant. Ta. B 3119, &c. + +836. 'Extrema gaudii luctus occupat;' Prov. xiv. 13. See note to Man of +Lawes Ta. B 421. + +842. The first foot is deficient: 'Peyn | e tor | ment,' &c. + +843. 'There is no misery that is not within my body.' + +850. _resport_, regard; see note to l. 86 above. + +865. Compare the similar lines in Kn. Ta. A 1400, 1. + +866. _men_, weakened form of _man_, takes a sing. verb. + +870. _Bi-trent_, winds round; see note to iii. 1231. + +884. _into litel_, within a little, very nearly. + +887. _fawe_, gladly; cf. Cant. Ta. D 220. + +907. _bane_, destruction; see Kn. Ta. A 1097, 1681. + +927. 'Be to him rather a cause of the _flat_ than of the _edge_,' i.e. of +healing rather than of harming. A curious allusion which is fully explained +by reference to the Squieres Tale, F 156-165. See also note to the same, F +238. + +947-1085. This passage is not in Boccaccio, but some of it is in Boethius; +see below. + +963-1078. A considerable portion of this passage is copied, more or less +closely, from Boethius, lib. v. Pr. 2 and Pr. 3. The correspondences are +all pointed out below. Chaucer's own prose translation should be compared. +For example, the word _wrythen_ (l. 986) appears in that also (Bk. v. Pr. +3. 15). + +963-6. 'Quae tamen ille, ab aeterno cuncta prospiciens, prouidentiae cernit +intuitus, et suis quaeque meritis praedestinata disponit;' Boeth. v. Pr. 2 +(end). + +968. _grete clerkes_; such as Boethius, Saint Augustine, and bishop +Bradwardine; see Non. Pr. Ta. B 4431, 2. + +974-80. 'Nam si cuncta prospicit Deus, neque falli ullo modo potest, +euenire necesse est, quod prouidentia futurum esse praeuiderit. Quare si ab +aeterno non facta hominum modo, sed etiam consilia uoluntatesque +praenoscit, nulla erit arbitrii libertas;' Boeth. v. Pr. 3. 981-7 +(_continued_): 'neque enim uel factum aliud ullum, uel quaelibet existere +poterit uoluntas, nisi quam nescia falli prouidentia diuina praesenserit. +Nam si res aliorsum, quam prouisae sunt, detorqueri ualent, non iam erit +futuri firma praescientia.' 988-994 (_continued_): 'sed opinio potius +incerta: quod de Deo credere nefas iudico.' + +996. I.e. who have received the tonsure. + +997-1001. 'Aiunt enim, non ideo quid esse euenturum, quoniam id prouidentia +futurum esse prospexerit: sed è contrario potius, quoniam quid futurum est, +id diuinam prouidentiam latere non posse;' Boeth. v. Pr. 3. 1002-1008 +(_continued_): 'eoque modo necessarium hoc in contrariam relabi partem. +Neque enim necesse est contingere, quae prouidentur; sed necesse esse, quae +futura sunt, prouideri.' 1009-1015 (_continued_): 'Quasi uero, quae +cuiusque rei caussa sit, praescientiane futurorum necessitatis, an +futurorum necessitas prouidentiae, laboretur.' 1016-1022 (_continued_): 'At +nos illud demonstrare nitamur, quoquo modo sese habeat ordo caussarum, +necessarium esse euentum praescitarum rerum, etiam si praescientia futuris +rebus eueniendi necessitatem non uideatur inferre.' + +(The negative in l. 1016 is remarkable, but Chaucer's prose rendering +presents the same form. Surely he has taken _nitamur_ as if it were +_uitamus_.) + +1023-9. (_continued_): 'Etenim si quispiam sedeat, opinionem quae eum +sedere coniectat ueram esse necesse est: atque è conuerso rursus, (1030-6) +si de quopiam uera sit opinio, quoniam sedet, eum sedere necesse est. In +utroque igitur necessitas inest: in hoc quidem sedendi, at uerò in altero +ueritatis.' 1037-1047 (_continued_): 'Sed non idcirco quisque sedet, +quoniam uera est opinio; sed haec potius uera est, quoniam quempiam sedere +praecessit. Ita cùm caussa ueritatis ex altera parte procedat, inest tamen +communis in utraque necessitas. Similia de prouidentia futurisque rebus +ratiocinari patet.' 1051-78 (_continued_): 'Nam etiam si idcirco, quoniam +futura sunt, prouidentur; non uero ideo, quoniam prouidentur eueniunt: +nihilo minus tamen à Deo uel uentura prouideri, uel prouisa euenire necesse +est: quod ad perimendam arbitrii libertatem solùm satis est. Iam uero quam +praeposterum est, ut aeternae praescientiae temporalium rerum euentus +caussa esse dicatur? Quid est autem aliud arbitrari, ideo Deum futura, +quoniam sunt euentura, prouidere, quam putare quae olim acciderunt, caussam +summae illius esse prouidentiae? Ad haec, sicuti cum quid esse scio, id +ipsum esse necesse est: ita cum quid futurum noui, id ipsum futurum necesse +est. Sic fit igitur, ut euentus praescitae rei nequeat euitari.' + +1094. _ferd_, fared; not the pp. of _faren_ (l. 1087), but of the weak verb +_feren_ (A. S. _f[=e]ran_). The correct pp. of _faren_ is _faren_. See +Stratmann. + +1105. 'A man may offer his neck soon enough when it (i. e. his head) must +come off.' + +1136. 'Beyond the nature of tears.' + +1139. Myrrha, daughter of Cinyras, king of Cyprus, who was changed into a +myrrh-tree; Ovid, Met. x. 298. The tree wept tears of myrrh; id. x. 500. + +1146. _hir-e_ (MS. Cl. _here_), their, is here dissyllabic. _unswelle_, +cease to swell, as in Bk. v. 214. + +1147. 'All hoarse, and exhausted with shrieking.' _forshright_ is the pp. +of _forshriken_, to shriek excessively. Bell wrongly has _for shright_; but +_shright_ is not a noun. The Ital. has 'con _rotta_ voce,' with broken +voice; Fil. iv. st. 116. + +1153. 'Being always on the point of departing.' + +1162. 'Whether it was sad for him.' + +1174. Cf. 'And _bisily_ gan,' &c.; Prol. A 301. + +1179. _preignant_ (F. _preignant_, _pregnant_, Cotgrave), catching hold of +tightly, hence, forcible; pres. part. of _prendre_, to seize. Quite +distinct from _pregnant_ when representing Lat. _praegnans_. + +1181. _woon_, hope, resource. This answers to Early E. _w[=a]n_ (see +Stratmann), and is allied to Icel. _ván_, hope, expectation; cf. Icel. +_væna_, to hope for, to ween. The word is monosyllabic, and the long _o_ is +'open,' as shewn by its riming with _noon_, _goon_, from A. S. _n[=a]n_, +_g[=a]n_. Bell quite fails to explain it, and Morris suggests 'remedy,' +without assigning any reason. It is common in Rob. of Gloucester, with +similar rimes, and does not mean 'custom' or 'habit' or 'manner,' as +suggested in Mr. Wright's Glossary, nor has it any connection with M. E. +_wone_, custom, which was dissyllabic, and had a short vowel in the former +syllable; but it means, as here, 'hope' or 'resource.' For example: 'tho he +ne sey other _won_' = when he saw nothing else to be done; Rob. Glouc. ed. +Hearne, p. 12; ed. Wright, l. 275. 'And flowe in-to hor castles, vor hii +nadde other _won_,' i. e. no other resource; id. p. 19, ed. Hearne, l. 442. +This is one of the rather numerous words in Chaucer that have not been +rightly understood. + +1185. _twighte_, plucked; pt. t. of _twicchen_. + +1188. 'Where the doom of Minos would assign it a place.' Boccaccio here +uses the word _inferno_ (Fil. iv. 120) to denote the place where Troilus' +soul would dwell; which Rossetti explains to mean simply Hades. Chaucer's +meaning is the same; he is referring to Æneid. vi. 431-3. + +1208. Atropos is the Fate who cuts the thread of life; see note to v. 7. + +1237. _a forlong wey_, two minutes and a half, to speak exactly; see note +to C. T., A 3637. + +1241. Either _slayn_ is here expanded into _slayen_, or the pause after +this word does duty for a syllable, in the scansion. + +1242. _ho_, stop, cease; see Kn. Ta. A 1706. + +1244. _ther-e_ is here made into a dissyllable. + +1245. _morter_, mortar. The Century Dict. quotes from Dugdale's Hist. of +St. Paul's (ed. Ellis), p. 27: 'A _mortar_ was a wide bowl of iron or +metal; it rested upon a stand or branch, and was filled either with fine +oil or wax, which was kept burning by means of a broad wick [at funerals or +on tombs].' It was named from its similarity in shape to the _mortar_ in +which things were pounded. I remember the word in common use; it came to +denote what is now called a _night-light_, and the word _night-light_ seems +to have nearly displaced it. In this modern contrivance, the old 'mortar' +is sometimes represented by a paper casing. The term was frequently +applied, not merely to the saucer which held the grease, but to the light +itself, which sometimes took the shape of a short candle. Cotgrave explains +F. _mortier_ as 'a kind of small chamber-lamp.' Instead of _morter_, MS. +Cm. has _percher_, which meant a kind of wax candle placed upon a branch or +bar called a _perche_ (perch). + +1295. 'About that (there) is no question.' Cf. l. 1694. + +1374. _wether_, sheep. I. e. it is advisable to give the wolf a limb of a +sheep, in order to save the rest. + +1377. _grave_, incise, make an impression upon. + +1380. _moble_ (H., H2. _moeble_), movable property; cf. F. _meubles_. + +1404. 'Whilst he is making his divination; and I will make him believe.' +Ll. 1401-14 are due to a passage in Guido; see allit. Destruction of Troy, +8101-40. + +1406. _amphibologyes_, ambiguities. A more correct form is _amphiboly_, +from Gk. [Greek: amphibolia]; see New E. Dict. The ambiguous character of +the old oracular responses is well known. + +1411. 'When he started away from Delphi for fear.' Cf. l. 607. + +1422. See note to Book i. 463. + +1425. _the selve wit_, the same opinion. + +1435. _clere_, clear of woe, free, light. MS. H. has _chere_. + +1453. 'The bear has one opinion, and his leader another.' + +1456. Repeated in Kn. Ta. A 2449; see note. + +1459. 'With eyes like Argus;' i. e. seeing everywhere. Argus had a hundred +eyes; Ovid, Met. i. 625. + +1483. _fere_, frighten, terrify; as in Bk. ii. 124. + +1505. 'To lose the substance, for the sake of something accidentally +representing it;' as when the dog dropped the piece of meat, in his anxiety +to get the shadow (or reflected image) of it. As to the famous words +_substance_ and _accident_, see note to Pard. Ta. C 539. + +1525. _go we_, let us go; also written _gowe_, P. Plowm. B. Pr. 226. + +1538-40. Juno caused Athamas, the husband of Ino, to run mad. As Ovid tells +the story, Juno descended into hell, and crossed the Styx, in order to +persuade the fury Tisiphone to haunt Athamas. Hence the mention of the Styx +was readily suggested. See Ovid, Met. iv. 416-561, esp. l. 434. Styx was +not, as Chaucer says, 'the pit of hell,' but a river that flowed through +it. + +1544. _Satiry and Fauny_, Satyri and Fauni, Satyrs and Fauns. Chaucer was +probably thinking of Ovid, Met. vi. 392-4, where the _Fauni_, _Satyri_, and +_Nymphae_ are described as 'ruricolae, siluarum numina.' For _halve +goddes_, we now say _demigods_. + +1548. _Simois_, a river of Troas; Æneid. i. 100. + +1560. _laye_, would lie; subj. The _e_ is elided. + +1562. _take_, take place, be made. Thynne has _be take_, but _be_ clogs the +line, and is not in the MSS. + +1584. 'Vincit qui patitur;' see Frank. Ta. F 773. + +1585. 'He who will have what he wants must give up what he likes.' Such +seems to be the sense intended. _Leef_ means 'dear.' One of Heywood's +proverbs is--'Nought lay down, nought take up;' and very similar to this +is--'Nothing venture, nothing have.' For the second _leef_, MS. H. has +_lyfe_, a reading adopted by Bell and Morris. This takes all point out of +the saying, and does not seem applicable to the case. Ll. 1587 and 1588 +repeat the saying in another form, and confirm the reading in the text. Cf. +Boeth. Bk. ii. Pr. 4. 98. + +1591, 2. _Lucina_, i. e. Diana, or the moon; cf. Kn. Ta. A 2085. 'Before +the moon pass out of the sign of Aries beyond that of Leo.' In order to +this, the moon would have to pass wholly through Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, +and Leo, thus traversing a distance represented by about 4 signs, or a +third part of the whole zodiac: this would take up about the third part of +28 days, or more than 9 days. This brings us, as Criseyde says, to the 10th +day (l. 1595). Such a method of counting is natural enough to those that +watch the moon's course; and lovers are generally credited with taking a +special interest in that luminary; cf. l. 1608. In the sequel, a good deal +turns upon this 'tenth day.' Cf. ll. 1320, 1328, 1685; V. 239, 642, 681, +1103, 1206. + +1608. _Cynthia_, i. e. Diana, the moon; Ovid, Met. ii. 465. + +1612. 'To lose one opportunity, in order to gain another.' + +1620. _pure_, very; as in Kn. Ta. A 1279. + +1628. 'Who can hold a thing that tries to get away?' + + 'An eel and woman, + A learned poet says, unless by th' tail + And with thy teeth thou hold, will either fail.' + The Two Noble Kinsmen, A. iii. sc. 5. l. 49. + +1645. 'Res est solliciti plena timoris amor;' Ovid, Her. i. 12. + +1667-73. In Boccaccio, a stanza of a similar character is assigned to +Troilus, not to Criseyde. + +1677. _poeplish_; Boccaccio (Fil. iv. st. 165) has _popolesco_, which +Rossetti translates by 'low-bred.' Florio's Ital. Dict. has: '_popolesco_, +popular, of the common people.' + +1682. _fórtun-è_ is trisyllabic. + + +BOOK V. + +The following sketch gives a general notion of the relation of this Book to +the Filostrato, though Chaucer often amplifies and transposes the material +in a way that it would be tedious to particularise more minutely. + + TROILUS: BOOK V. FILOSTRATO. + + ll. 1-7. [_Teseide_, Bk. ix. st. 1.] + 8-14. [_Teseide_, Bk. ii. st. 1.] + 15-91. Bk. v. st. 1-13. + 190-266. " 14-21, 24-28. + 280-295. " 22. + 323-336, 351-372. " 29-32. + 386-686. " 33-38, 40-62, 67-71. + 687-693. Bk. vi. 1 (ll. 1-3), 6. + 708-777. " 1 (l. 4)-8. + 785-798, 820. Bk. vi. 10, 11. + 799-805, 817. " 33; Bk. i. 28 (l. 8). + 841-1001. " 9, 11-31. + 1100-1274. Bk. vii. 1-33. + 1275-1309. " 37, 40-43, 48-50. + 1310-1327. " 51, 52. + 1335, 1336. " 74 (ll. 7, 8). + 1338-1421. " 53-75. + 1422-1444. " 76, 105, 77, 76. + 1450-1456. " 84, 26. + 1513-1521. " 27, 90. + 1523-1554. " 100-102, 104, 106. + 1555-1589. Bk. viii. 1-5. + 1632-1701. " 6-15. + 1702-1768. " 21, 17, 19-26. + 1800-1806. " 27. + 1807-1827. [_Teseide_, Bk. xi. 1-3.] + 1828-1841. " 28, 29. + 1863-1865. [Dante, _Par._ xiv. 28-30.] + +3. _Parcas_, Fates; the accusative case, as usual. + +7. _Lachesis_, the Fate that apportions the thread of life; often +represented with the spindle, though this is properly the attribute of +Clotho alone. Clotho spins, Lachesis apportions, and Atropos cuts, the +thread of life. Atropos has been mentioned above; Bk. iv. 1208, 1546. +Statius mentions all three in lib. iii. of his Thebaid; Clotho at l. 556, +Lachesis (Lachesim putri uacuantem saecula penso) at l. 642, and Atropos at +l. 68. + +8. For _golden tressed_, MS. Harl. 3943 has _Auricomus tressed_ (!). Cf. +'Sol auricomus, cingentibus Horis;' Valerius Flaccus, Argonaut. iv. 92. + +12, 13. _sone of Hecuba_, Troilus; _hir_, Criseyde. + +15-9. Note that ll. 15, 17 rime on _-éde_, with close _e_, but ll. 16, 18, +19 rime on _-ède_, with open _e_. Cf. Anelida, 299-307. + +22-6. Lines 22, 24 rime on _-[=o]re_, with long close _o_; ll. 23, 25, 26 +on _-[)o]re_, with (original) short open _o_. + +25. _crop_, shoot, upper part of a tree. _more_, root, still in use in +Hants; A. S. _more_, _moru_; see P. Plowman, B. xvi. 5, C. xviii. 21. + +53. 'Upon the report of such behaviour of his.' + +65. So in Boccaccio: 'Con un falcone in pugno;' Fil. v. st. 10. + +67. A mistranslation. Boccaccio's word is not _valle_, a valley, but +_vallo_, a rampart. The first foot lacks a syllable. + +71. Antenor was the Trojan, captured by the Greeks, who was restored to +Troy in exchange for Thoas and Criseyde. + +88. _sone of Tydeus_, i. e. Diomede, often called _Tydides_; as in Æneid. +i. 97, 471, &c. + +89. To know one's creed is very elementary knowledge. + +90. _by the reyne hir hente_; Rossetti thinks Chaucer misunderstood _di +colei si piglia_ (Fil. v. 13), which might mean 'takes hold of her,' but +really means 'takes a fancy to her.' + +98. This resembles 'to take care of No. 1.' + +101. _make it tough_, raise a difficulty, viz. by disparaging Troilus. + +106. _coude his good_, knew what was good for him, knew what he was about. +Bell says--'understood good manners.' + +128. _helply_; we now say 'helpful,' i.e. serviceable. _to my might_, to +the best of my power. + +143. _O god of love_, one and the same god of love. + +151. _this_, contracted form of _this is_. _enseled_, sealed up. + +158. _As paramours_, as by way of love. Cf. l. 332. + +180. See below (l. 530), and Man of Lawes Ta. B 697. We can read either +_brast_ (burst), or _braste_ (would burst). + +182. _sye_, to sink down; A. S. _s[=i]gan_; see _si[gh]en_ in Stratmann. + +194. _mewet_, mute; as in the Court of Love, 148. _Mewet_, _muwet_, or +_muet_ is from the O. F. _muët_, orig. dissyllabic, and answering to a Low +Lat. diminutive type _*mutettum_. The E. word is now obsolete, being +displaced by the simple form _mute_, borrowed directly from Lat. _mutus_, +which in O. F. became _mu_. _Mute_ is common in Shakespeare. Lydgate has: +'And also clos and _muët_ as a stone;' Siege of Thebes, pt. iii. § 8. In +Merlin, ed. Wheatley, p. 172, we find 'stille and _mewet_ as though thei +hadde be dombe.' + +The _-e_ in _mild-e_ is not elided; the A. S. _milde_ is dissyllabic. + +208. _Cipryde_, i.e. Cypris, or Venus; see note to Parl. Foules, 277. + +212. The _-ie_ in _furie_ is rapidly slurred over. _Ixion_ is accented on +the _first_ syllable. Ixion was bound, in hell, to an ever-revolving wheel; +Georg. iii. 38; Æn. vi. 601. + +249. _as mete_, as (for instance) dream; see l. 251. + +283. 'Although he had sworn (to do so) on forfeit of his head.' + +304. _pálestrál_, i.e. games consisting of wrestling-matches and similar +contests; from Lat. _palaestra_; see Verg. Æn. iii. 280, 281; and G. +Douglas, ed. Small, vol. iii. p. 52, l. 24. There is a description of such +games, held at a funeral, in Statius, Theb. vi., which is imitated by +Chaucer in the Knightes Tale; see note to A 2863. _Vigile_ (l. 305) is the +same as Chaucer's _liche-wake_; see note to A 2958. + +306. He means that his steed, sword, and helm are to be offered up to Mars, +and his shield to Pallas, at his funeral; cf. Kn. Ta. A 2889-2894. + +319. _Ascaphilo_, a transposed form of Ascalaphus, whom Proserpine changed +into an owl; Ovid, Met. v. 539. So also _Adriane_ for Ariadne. Bell's note, +that the form of _Ascaphilo_ is Italian, and helps to prove that Chaucer +here follows Boccaccio is misleading; for Boccaccio does not mention +Ascalaphus. + +321. Mercury was supposed to convey men's souls to Hades. See l. 1827 +below, and note. + +332. _paramours_, passionately; an adverb, as usual; cf. l. 158. + +345. _By freendes might_, by constraint of their relatives. + +350. _hurt_, for _hurteth_, hurts; present tense. + +360. On dreams, cf. Non. Pr. Ta. B 4113-4129, 4280-4. + +365-8. From Le Rom. de la Rose, 18709-12, q. v. + +379. Lit. 'Well is it, concerning dreams, to these old wives;' i.e. these +old women set a value on dreams. + +387. Boccaccio has: 'a te stesso perdona,' i.e. spare thyself; Chaucer +takes it literally--'forgive thyself.' + +403. Sarpedon had been taken prisoner by the Greeks (iv. 52). Neither +Boccaccio nor Chaucer explains how he had got back to Troy. See l. 431. + +409. _iouken_, slumber; cf. P. Plowman, C. xix. 126. It was chiefly used as +a term in falconry, and applied to hawks. In the Boke of St. Albans, fol. a +6, we are told that it is proper to say that 'your hauke _Ioukith_, and not +slepith.' From O. F. _joquier_, _jouquier_; see Godefroy. + +421. _of fyne force_, by very necessity. + +451. I read 'piëtous,' as in MS. H., not 'pitous,' for the sake of the +metre, as in Bk. iii. 1444; cf. _pietee_, id. 1033. Perhaps Chaucer was +thinking of the Ital. _pietoso_. We also find the spelling _pitevous_, for +which form there is sufficient authority; see Wyclif, 2 Tim. iii. 12, Titus +ii. 12; Rob. of Glouc. ed. Wright, 5884 (footnote); cf. Mod. E. _piteous_. +Chaucer's usual word is _pitous_, as in Cant. Ta. B 449, 1059, C 298, &c. + +460. _For_, because; as frequently. + +469. 'Fortune intended to glaze his hood still better.' To 'glaze one's +hood' was to furnish a man with a glass hood, a jocular phrase for to mock +or expose to attack; because a glass hood would be no defence at all. +Chaucer himself admirably illustrates this saying in a passage which has +already occurred above; see Bk. ii. 867. + +478. _her-e_ is dissyllabic; as in Ho. Fame, 980, 1014, 1885, 1912, &c. + +479. _congeyen us_, bid us take leave, dismiss us. + +484. 'Did we come here to fetch light for a fire, and run home again?' A +man who borrows a light must hurry back before it goes out. + +505. _Hasel-wode_, hazel-wood; an allusion to a popular saying, expressive +of incredulity. See note to l. 1174 below. Not the same proverb as that in +Bk. iii. 890. + +541. 'O house, formerly called the best of houses.' Bell and Morris place +the comma after _houses_. + +552. As to kissing the door, see note to Rom. Rose, 2676. + +601. Referring, probably, to Statius, Theb. i. 12--'Quod saeuae Iunonis +opus.' But this refers to the wrath of Juno against Athamas rather than +against Thebes. + +642. 'Wherefore, if, on the tenth night, I fail (to have) the guiding of +thy bright beams for a single hour,' &c. + +655. Here Thynne's reading, _Lucina_, is obviously correct; see Bk. iv. +1591. By the common mistake of writing _t_ for _c_, it became Lutina, and +was then changed into _Latona_. But Latona was Lucina's _mother_. + +664. _Pheton_, Phaethon; alluding to Ovid, Met. ii. 34, 47, &c. + +744. Prudence is here represented with _three_ eyes, to behold present, +past, and future; but Creseyde had but _two_ eyes, and failed to see what +was to come. Cf. 'rerum fato Prudentia maior;' Georg. i. 416. + +763. 'I call it felicity when I have what satisfies me;' cf. the parallel +passage in Prol. A 338; and Boeth. Bk. iii. Pr. 2. 6-8. + +769. _knotteles_; 'like a thread in which there is no knot.' + +784. 'Nothing venture, nothing have.' + +805. In Lydgate's Siege of Troye, we are told that Diomede brought 80 ships +with him 'fro Calidonye and Arge;' Bk. ii. ch. 16, in the catalogue of the +ships. The English alliterative Romance omits this passage. _Arge_ is the +town of Argos, ruled over by Diomede; Homer, Il. ii. 559. _Calidoine_ is +Calydon, in Ætolia, of which city Tydeus, father of Diomede, was king; see +l. 934, and ll. 1513-5 below. + +806. This description seems to be mainly Chaucer's own. It occurs again, +much amplified, in Lydgate's Siege of Troy, Bk. ii. ch. 15, where it +precedes the description of Priam. Boccaccio says that she had 'lucent eyes +and an angelic face' (Fil. i. st. 28), with which cf. l. 816. He also +describes her as 'Accorta, savia, onesta, e costumata,' which Rossetti +translates by 'Discerning, wise, honourable, and high-bred' (Fil. i. 11); +cf. ll. 820, 821. + +827. Troilus is described by Guido delle Colonne; see the translations, in +the alliterative Destruction of Troy, ed. Panton and Donaldson, l. 3922, +and in Lydgate's Siege of Troye, Bk. ii. ch. 16. + +836. Troilus was second to Hector in prowess (Bk. ii. 158, 644), but not in +courage (Bk. i. 474). + +837. _durring don_, daring to do, courage; where _durring_ is a sb. formed +from _durren_, to dare. So in l. 840, _to durre don_ is 'to dare to do.' It +is quite a mistake to regard _durring don_ as a compound word, as is +usually done by such as are ignorant of Middle English grammar. Spenser +borrowed the phrase, but may have misunderstood it. In the Globe edition of +Spenser, _derring-doe_ occurs _with a hyphen_, in Shep. Kal. _Oct._ l. 65, +but _as two words_, in F. Q. ii. 4. 42, vi. 5. 37. In F. Q. ii. 7. 10, we +find 'in _der-doing_ armes,' which I leave to be explained by the +omniscient critic. + +852. See the parallel line, Squi. Ta. F 294; cf. Bk. iii. 674. + +883. _as who seyth_, so to speak. + +892. _Manes_, the departed spirits or shades of the dead. He means that +even these will dread the Greeks. The idea that they are the 'gods of pain' +is taken from Vergil, Æn. vi. 743; cf. Statius, Theb. viii. 84. Boccaccio +merely has 'tra' morti in inferno'; Fil. vi. st. 16. + +897. _ambages_, ambiguities; adapted from Boccaccio's 'ambage' (Fil. vi. +st. 17), which Ch. has to explain. + +911-938. These lines are fairly close to the original. + +934. See note above, to l. 805. B. has: 'Di Calidonia e d' Argo;' Fil. vi. +st. 24. + +937. Tydeus, father of Diomede, is one of the chief heroes in the Thebaid +of Statius, which describes the struggle between Eteocles and Polynices +(called _Polymites_ in l. 938) for the possession of Thebes. Tydeus and +Polynices married sisters, the daughters of Adrastus, king of Argos; hence +their alliance. For the death of Tydeus in battle, see the conclusion of +Book viii of the Thebaid. See ll. 1480-1501 below. + +971. _Orcades_, the Orkney islands, very remote from Rome; Juvenal, Sat. +ii. 161. _Inde_, India, remote from Rome in the other direction; Vergil, +Æn. vi. 794. Here the point of view is transferred from Rome to Troy. + +975. She was a widow; Bk. i. 97. In l. 977, she lies boldly. + +992. 'When I see what I have never seen yet (viz. Troy taken), perhaps I +will do what I have never yet done (i. e. think of a second husband).' + +1013. This incident is not in Boccaccio; but it occurs in Guido delle +Colonne, which Chaucer must therefore have consulted. The alliterative +Destruction of Troy duly records the circumstance, ll. 8092-4:-- + + 'A gloue of that gay gate he belyue, + Drogh hit full dernly the damsell fro; + None seond but hir-selfe, that suffert full well.' + +1016. I. e. Venus was seen as 'the evening-star.' + +1018, 9. _Cynthea_, i. e. the moon; Bk. iv. 1608. In Bk. iv. l. 1591, +Criseyde had promised to return before the moon passed out of the sign Leo. +This was now on the point of happening; the moon was leaving Leo, to pass +into Virgo. + +1020. _Signifer_, the 'sign-bearer,' the zodiac. 'This forseide hevenish +zodiak is cleped the cercle of the signes;' Astrolabe, pt. i. § 21. The +zodiac extended, north and south, to the breadth of 6 degrees on both sides +of the ecliptic line, thus forming a belt 12 degrees wide. This included +numerous bright stars, such as Regulus ([alpha] Leonis) and Spica Virginis +([alpha] Virginis), here called 'candles.' Chaucer may have found the word +_Signifer_ in Claudian, In Rufinum, i. 365. + +1039. _he wan_, he took in battle. Thynne reads _she_; but _he_ is right. +Diomede got possession of Troilus' horse, and sent it to Criseyde; +whereupon she said that Diomede might keep it for himself. Note that +Chaucer refers us to 'the story' for this incident; by which he means the +_Historia Troiana_ of Guido. But Guido only goes as far as to say that +Diomed sent Troilus' horse to Criseyde; the rest is Chaucer's addition. See +the allit. Destruction of Troy, ll. 8296-8317; and Lydgate's Siege of +Troye, Bk. iii. ch. 26, ed. 1557, fol. R 4, back. Cf. Shak. Troilus, v. 5. +1: '_Dio._ Go, go, my servant, take thou Troilus' horse, Present the fair +steed to my lady Cressid.' The incidents of the 'broche' and 'pensel' are +Chaucer's own; see Bk. iii. 1370-2. + +1043. _pencel_, short for _penoncel_, a little pennon or banner; here it +means that Diomede wore a sleeve of hers as a streamer on his helmet or +arm. This was a common custom; cf. Shak. Troil. v. 2. 69, 169. '_Pensell_, +a lytel baner;' Palsgrave; and see P. Plowm. C. xix. 189. + +1044. _the stories elles-wher_, i.e. in another part of Guido's _Historia_, +viz. in Book xxv; see the allit. Destruct. of Troy, ll. 9942-9959, and +Lydgate's Siege of Troye, Bk. iv. ch. 30, ed. 1557, fol. U 4. + +1051. I cannot find this in Guido. + +1062. 'My bell shall be rung;' my story shall be told. + +1104. I.e. 'on the morrow of which.' + +1107. Cf. 'laurigero ... Phoebo'; Ovid, Art. Am. iii. 389. + +1110. 'Nisus' daughter,' i.e. Scylla, changed into the bird _ciris_, which +some explain as a lark; see Leg. Good Wom. 1908, and note; Ovid, Met. viii. +9-151; Vergil, Georg. i. 404-9. + +1114. _noon_, noon, mid-day; the time for dinner (see l. 1129, and Cant. +Ta. E 1893). See my note to Piers Plowm. C. ix. 146. + +1133. _cape_, gape; see Miller's Tale, A 3444, 3841 (footnotes). + +1140, 1. _yate_, i.e. port-cullis. _As nought ne were_, as if there were no +special reason for it. I.e. I will make them do it, without telling them +why. + +1151. Deficient in the first foot; hardly a good line. + +1155. 'Think it not tedious to (have to) wait.' + +1162. _fare-cart_, cart for provisions; cf. our phrase 'to enjoy good +_fare_.' It might mean 'travelling-car,' but that is inapplicable. B. has +simply 'carro;' Fil. vii. 8. + +1163-9. Cf. Romeo's speech in Rom. v. 1. 1-11. + +1174. 'The happiness which you expect will come out of the wood,' i.e. if +it comes at all. A jocular form of expressing unlikelihood. There is +evidently a reference to some popular song or saying; compare the Jeu de +Robin in Toynbee's Specimens of Old French, p. 224. In the Rom. of the +Rose, 7455, we have an allusion to a 'ioly Robin,' who was a gay dancer and +a minstrel, and the exact opposite of a Jacobin friar. Shakespeare's clown +in Twelfth Night (iv. 2. 78) sings of a 'jolly Robin' whose lady 'loves +another.' And Ophelia sang 'bonny sweet Robin is all my joy;' Haml. iv. 5. +187. + +1176. Another proverbial saying, _ferne yere_, last year; see _fern, fürn_, +in Stratmann, and cf. A. S. _fyrng[=e]arum fr[=o]d_, wise with the +experience of past years, Phoenix, 219. Last year's snow will not be seen +again. + +1190. He persuades himself that the moon is to pass well beyond the end of +the sign Leo; thus allowing another day. + +1222. _by potente_, with a stick, or staff with a spiked end and +crutch-like top; cf. Somp. Ta. D 1776. A _potent_, in heraldry, is a figure +resembling the top of a crutch, consisting of a rectangle laid horizontally +above a small square. See Rom. of the Rose, 368. + +1274. 'Whereas I daily destroy myself by living.' + +1313. _rolleth_, revolves; see Pard. Ta. C 838; Somn. Ta. D 2217. + +1335. 'And for that which is defaced, ye may blame the tears.' + +1354. 'I sigh with sorrowful sighs.' MS. Cm. has _sikis I sike_. + +1368. 'I can only say that, being a receptacle for every sorrow, I was +still alive.' _cheste_, box; like that of Pandora. + +1372. 'Until I see the contents of your reply.' + +1431. 'Bottomless promises;' i. e. that held nothing. + +1433. See the parallel line, Kn. Ta. A 1838, and note. + +1450. _Sibille_, the Sibyl, the prophetess; not here a proper name, but an +epithet of Cassandra. Cf. Æneid. vi. 98. + +1464. (Ll. 1457-1512 are not in Boccaccio.) The story of Meleager and the +Calydonian boar-hunt is told at length in Ovid, Met. viii. 271, &c.; whence +Chaucer doubtless took it; cf. l. 1469 with Met. viii. 282. The 'mayde,' in +l. 1473, was Atalanta. + +1480. Chaucer seems to be mistaken here. Tydeus, according to one account, +was Meleager's brother; and, according to another, his half-brother. He +does not tell us to what 'olde bokes' he refers. + +1483. _moder_; his mother Althaea; see Ovid, Met. viii. 445. + +LATIN LINES: Argument of the 12 books of the Thebaid of Statius. These +lines are placed, in the MSS., after l. 1498, interrupting the connection. +I therefore insert them after l. 1484, which is certainly their proper +place. Ll. 1485-1510 give a loose rendering of them. I subjoin an epitome, +in a more intelligible form; but suppress many details not mentioned in +Chaucer. + +BOOK I. Polynices and Tydeus meet, and become allies. + +II. Tydeus sets out on an embassy to Eteocles at Thebes, and escapes an +ambush by the way (ll. 1485-1491). He spares Mæon, one of his 50 +assailants, and sends him to Thebes with the news, whilst he himself +returns to Argos instead of proceeding to Thebes (1492-3). + +III. Maeon (also called Haemonides, as being the son of Haemon, Bk. iii. l. +42) returns to Thebes, and relates how Tydeus had slain 49 men out of 50. +At Argos, Amphiaraus, the augur, had concealed himself, hoping to delay the +war against Thebes, which he prophesied would be disastrous; but Capaneus +forces him from his retirement, and war is resolved upon (1494). + +IV. The seven chiefs set out against Thebes. The army suffers from thirst, +but Hypsipyle, a Lemnian princess, appears, and shews them a river (1495). + +V. Hypsipyle relates the story of 'the furies of Lemnos,' i. e. of the +Lemnian women who killed all the men in the island except Thoas, her +father, whom she saved. (See Leg. of Good Women, 1467, and note.) While she +is speaking, a snake, sent by Jupiter, kills her infant, named Archemorus. +The snake is killed by Capaneus (1497, 8). + +VI. Description of the obsequies of Archemorus, and of the funeral games +(1499). + +VII. Description of the temple of Mars (see Knightes Tale). The allies +arrive before Thebes, and the city is attacked. Amphiaraus is swallowed up +by an earthquake (1500). + +VIII. Tydeus is slain, after a great slaughter of his enemies (1501). + +IX. Hippomedon, after great deeds of valour, is drowned in the river. Death +of Parthenopaeus (1502, 3). + +X. Capaneus is killed by lightning whilst scaling the walls of Thebes +(1504, 5). + +XI. Single combat between Eteocles and Polynices; both are slain (1506-8). + +XII. Creon forbids the burial of the slain invaders. The wives of the six +chieftains seek assistance from Theseus, king of Athens (see Knightes +Tale). Argia, wife of Polynices, finds and burns her husband's body. +Theseus slays Creon, and the Thebans open their gates to him (1509-10). + +1485-1491. From the Thebaid, Bk. i (see above). _felawe_, comrade, +brother-in-law. _Polymites_, Polynices. _Ethyocles_, Eteocles. + +1492-8. From the same, Books ii-v. _Hemonides_, Haemonides, i. e. Maeon, +son of Haemon. _asterte_, escaped. _fifty_; but he only slew 49, though +attacked by 50. _sevene_; the seven chieftains, who went to besiege Thebes. +_holy serpent_, the snake sent by Jupiter. _welle_, (apparently) the stream +Langia, which refreshed the army (end of Bk. iv). _The furies_, the furious +women of Lemnos, who killed all the males (but one) in the island. + +1499-1505. From the same, Bks. vi-x. _Archimoris_, Archemorus, infant son +of Hypsipyle; honoured by funeral games. _Amphiorax_, Amphiaraus; see Bk. +ii. 105, and note to Anelida, 57. _Argeyes_, Argives, people of Argos. +_Ypomedon_, Hippomedon; _Parthonope_, Parthenopaeus; see note to Anelida, +58. _Cappaneus_, Capaneus; see note to Anelida, 59. + +1506-1512. From the same, Bks. xi, xii. _Argyve_, Argia, wife of Polynices; +cf. Bk. iv. l. 762, above. _brent_, burnt; see Kn. Ta. A 990; but Statius +says that the Thebans opened their gates to Theseus, who entered in +triumph. I find nothing about any harm done to the city on this occasion. + +1514. But Tydeus was Meleager's brother; see note to l. 1480. + +1518. _leef_, leave it alone. Usually _leve_. + +1523. _seestow_, seest thou; a general observation, _not_ addressed to +Cassandra in particular, but to every one at large. + +1527. _Alceste_, Alcestis; see Leg. of Good Women, 432. + +1528. _but_, except, unless. Yet Bell misunderstands it. + +1530. _housbonde_; Admetus, king of Pherae, in Thessaly. + +1545. _smitted_, smutted, disgraced; cf. l. 1546. + +1548. _fyn of the paródie_, end of the period. Chaucer, not being a Greek +scholar, has somewhat mistaken the form of the word; but, in MS. H., +_parodie_ is duly glossed by 'duracion,' shewing the sense intended. It is +from the O. F. fem. sb. _perióde_, or _peryóde_, of which Littré gives an +example in the 14th century: '_Peryode_ est le temps et la mesure de la +_duracion_ d'une chose;' Oresme, Thèse de Meunier. Chaucer, being more +familiar with the prefix _per-_ than with the Greek [Greek: peri-], has +dropped the _i_; and the confusion between _per-_ and _par-_ is extremely +common, because both prefixes were denoted, in contracted writing, by the +same symbol. We may give up the old attempts at explaining the word +otherwise, as we know that the glosses are usually due to the author. 'The +end of the period of Hector's life was nigh at hand.' + +Lydgate uses the word in the same sense, having caught it up from the +present passage:-- + + 'When the _paródye_ of this worthy knyght [Hector] + Aproche shall, without[e] wordes mo, + Into the fyelde playnly if he go.' + Siege of Troye, Bk. iii. ch. 27; ed. 1557, fol. R 6. + + 'And how that he [Ulysses] might[e] not escape + The _párodye_ that was for hym shape; + For Parchas haue his last[e] _terme_ set,' &c. + Id., Bk. v. ch. 38; fol. Dd 3. + +Observe that _parodye_ is here equated to _terme_. + +1558. From Guido; according to whose account Hector, having taken a +prisoner, was conveying him through the throng, when Achilles thrust him +through with a spear in a cowardly manner, stealing up to him unperceived. +See allit. Dest. of Troy, ll. 8649-8660; Lydgate, Siege of Troy, Bk. iii. +ch. 27, fol. S 2, back; Shak. Troil. v. 6. 27, 8. 1. + +1634. _kalendes_, an introduction to the beginning; see note to Bk. ii. 7. + +1653. _Lollius_; this incident is in the Filostrato, viii. st. 8; I do not +find it in Guido. + +1669. _word and ende_, beginning and end; see note to Monk. Ta. B 3911; and +note to Bk. ii. 1495. + +1689. 'To present your new love with.' + +1760. See note to Book i. 463. + +1764. Here the story practically ends. Beyond this point, the lines taken +from Boccaccio are less than twenty. + +1771. _Dares_, i. e. Guido, who professes to follow Dares; see note to Book +Duch. 1070. + +1778. I. e. Chaucer was beginning to think of his Legend of Good Women. + +1786. Here begins the Envoy (interrupted by ll. 1800-1827). Compare the +last three lines of the Filostrato (ix. 8):-- + + 'Or va'; ch' io prego Apollo che ti presti + Tanto di grazia ch' ascoltata sii, + E con lieta risposa a me t'invii.' + +1787. 'Whereas may God send power to him that wrote thee to take part in +composing some "comedy," before he die.' + +1789. 'Do not envy any (other) poetry, but be humble.' + +1791. Imitated from the concluding lines of the Thebaid, xii. 816:-- + + 'nec tu diuinam Æneida tenta, + Sed longe sequere, et _uestigia semper adora_.' + +The sense is--'And kiss their footsteps, wherever you see Vergil, &c. pass +along.' The reading _space_ is ridiculous; and, in l. 1792, the names +_Virgíle_, &c., are accented on the second syllable. _Steppes_ means +'foot-prints,' Lat. _uestigia_; see Leg. Good Women, 2209. + +1792. An important line. Chaucer, in this poem, has made use of Statius +(see l. 1485), Ovid (in many places), Vergil (occasionally), and Homer (not +at first hand). Lucan seems to be mentioned only out of respect; but see +note to Bk. ii. 167. He is mentioned again in Boethius, Bk. iv. Pr. 6. 159. + +1796. _mismetre_, scan wrongly. This shews that Chaucer was conscious of +his somewhat archaic style, and that there was a danger that some of the +syllables might be dropped. + +1797. _red_, read (by a single person), _songe_, read aloud, recited in an +intoned voice. + +1802. _thousandes_ is to be taken in the literal sense. On one occasion, +according to Guido, Troilus slew a thousand men at once. See the allit. +Destruction of Troy, 9878; Lydgate, Siege of Troy, fol. U 3, back, l. 7. + +1806. So in Guido; see allit. Destr. of Troy, 10302-11; Lydgate, Siege of +Troye, Bk. iv. ch. 31. Cf. l. 1558, and the note. + +1807-1827. These three stanzas are from Boccaccio's _Teseide_, xi. 1-3, +where, however, they refer to Arcita:-- + + 'Finito Arcita colei nominando + La qual nel mondo più che altro amava, + L'anima lieve se ne gì volando + Vêr la concavità del cielo ottava: + Degli elementi i conuessi lasciando, + Quivi le stelle erratiche ammirava ... + Suoni ascoltando pieni di dolcezza. + + Quindi si volse in giù a rimirare + Le cose abbandonate, e vide il poco + Globo terreno, a cui d'intorno il mare + Girava ... + Ed ogni cosa da nulla stimare + A respetto del ciel; e in fine al loco + Là dove aveva il corpo suo lasciato + Gli occhi fermò alquanto rivoltato. + + E fece risa de' pianti dolenti + Della turba lernea; la vanitate + Forte dannando delle umane genti, + Le qua' da tenebrosa cechitate + Mattamente oscurate nelle menti + Seguon del Mondo la falsa beltate: + Lasciando il cielo, quindi se ne gio + Nel loco a cui Mercurio la sortio.' + +_holownesse_ translates 'concavità.' For _seventh_, B. has 'ottava,' +eighth. The seventh sphere is that of Saturn, from which he might be +supposed to observe the motion of Saturn and of all the inferior planets. +But surely _eighth_ is more correct; else there is no special sense in +'holownesse.' The eighth sphere is that of the fixed stars; and by taking +up a position on the _inner_ or _concave_ surface of this sphere, he would +see all the planetary spheres revolving within it. (The 'spheres' were +supposed to be concentric shells, like the coats of an onion.) The 'erratic +stars,' or wandering stars, are the seven planets. As to the music of their +spheres, see notes to Parl. Foules, ll. 59 and 61. + +1810. _in convers leting_, leaving behind, on the other side. When, for +example, he approached the sphere of Mars, it was _concave_ to him; after +passing beyond it, it appeared _convex_. Some modern editions of the +Teseide read _connessi_ (connected parts), but the right reading is +_conuessi_ (convex surfaces), for which Chaucer substitutes _convers_. See +_converse_ in the New E. Dictionary. + +1815. Cf. Parl. Foules, 57. Boccaccio had in mind Cicero's _Somnium +Scipionis_. + +1825. _sholden_, and we ought; _we_ is understood. + +1827. _sorted_, allotted; Ital. 'sortio.' + +1828-1837. Chiefly from Il Filostrato, viii. 28, 29. + +1838-1862. These lines are Chaucer's own, and assume a higher strain. + +1840. 'This lyf, my sone, is but a chery-feyre.' + Hoccleve, De Regim. Princ. ed. Wright, p. 47. + +See four more similar comparisons in Halliwell's Dict., s. v. +_Cherry-fair_. + +1856. _moral Gower._ This epithet of Gower has stuck to him ever since; he +moralises somewhat too much. + +1857. _Strode._ Concerning this personage, Leland discovered the following +note in an old catalogue of the worthies of Merton College, Oxford: +'Radulphus Strode, nobilis poeta fuit et versificavit librum elegiacum +vocatum Phantasma Radulphi.' In the introduction to his edition of 'Pearl,' +p. l., Mr. Gollancz says: 'This Ralph Strode is identical with the famous +philosopher of that name whose philosophical works hold an important place +in the history of medieval logic. He was also famous in his time as a +controversialist with Wiclif, and from Wiclif MSS., still unprinted, it is +possible to gain some insight into Strode's religious views.' He was, +perhaps, related to the philosopher N. Strode, who is mentioned at the end +of pt. ii. § 40 of the Treatise on the Astrolabe as being the tutor, at +Oxford, of Chaucer's son Lewis. + +1863-5. From Dante, Paradiso, xiv. 28-30:-- + + 'Quell' uno e due e tre che sempre vive, + E regna sempre in tre e due e uno, + Non circonscritto, e tutto circonscrive.' + + +ADDITIONAL NOTE TO BOOK III. 674. + +As the curious word _voidee_ has been suppressed in all previous editions, +I add some more examples of it, for some of which I am indebted to Dr. +Murray. It occurs, e.g., in the extremely interesting account of the death +of James I of Scotland. + +'Within an owre the Kyng askid the _voidee_, and drank, the travers yn the +chambure edraw [= _y-drawe_, drawn], and every man depairtid and went to +rist': (1400) JN. SHIRLEY, Dethe of James Stewarde, Kyng of Scotys, p. 13, +ed. 1818. + +Hence, no doubt, Mr. Rossetti, in his poem of The King's Tragedy, drew the +line:--'Then he called for the _voidee_-cup.' + +'A _voidy_ of spices': (1548) Hall's Chron. 14 Hen. VIII. + +'A _voidee_ of spices': (1577-87) Holinshed's Chron. vol. iii. p. 849. + +In A Collection of Ordinances and Regulations for the Royal Household, +London, 1790, there are several examples of it. + +'The Archbishoppe to stand on the Kinges right hand, and the King to make +him a becke when hee shall take _spice and wine_. And when the _voide_ is +donne, then the King to goe into his chamber; and all other estates to goe +into their chambers, or where it shall please them,' &c.: p. 111; in +Articles ordained by King Henry VII. + +At p. 113, there are minute directions as to the _voidè_. The chamberlain +and others fetch a towel, the cups, and the spice-plates; the king and the +bishop take 'spice and wine,' and afterwards the lords and people are +served 'largely' with spice and wine also; after which the cups are +removed. At p. 36, we read: 'the bourde _avoyded_ [cleared] when wafyrs +come with ypocras, or with other swete wynes. The King never taketh a +_voyd_ [read _voydè_] of comfites and other spices, but standing.' At p. +121: 'as for the voide on twelfth day at night, the King and Queene ought +to take it in the halle.' At the Coronation of Queen Anne Boleyn, there was +a voidè 'of spice-plates and wine'; English Garner, ed. Arber, ii. 50. + +The _voidee_ was, in fact, a sort of dessert. The word _spices_ included +many things besides what it now implies. In the Ordinances above-mentioned, +there is a list of spices, at p. 103. It includes pepper, saffron, ginger, +cloves, maces, cinnamon, nutmegs, dates, prunes, quinces, comfits, raisins, +currants, figs, and even rice. In the North of England, even at the present +day, it includes sweetmeats, gingerbread, cakes, and dried fruits. + + +THE OXFORD EDITION + +OF + +PIERS THE PLOWMAN + +In two Volumes, demy 8vo, pp. civ + 1112, uniform with this +Edition, price £1 11s. 6d. + + +THE VISION OF WILLIAM + +CONCERNING + +PIERS THE PLOWMAN + +_IN THREE PARALLEL TEXTS_ + +TOGETHER WITH + +RICHARD THE REDELESS + +BY WILLIAM LANGLAND + +(ABOUT 1362-1399 A.D.) + + +EDITED FROM NUMEROUS MANUSCRIPTS + +_WITH PREFACE, NOTES, AND A GLOSSARY_ + +BY THE REV. + +WALTER W. SKEAT, LITT.D., LL.D. + +ELRINGTON AND BOSWORTH PROFESSOR OF ANGLO-SAXON +AND FELLOW OF CHRIST'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE + +OXFORD + +AT THE CLARENDON PRESS + +LONDON: HENRY FROWDE + +OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS WAREHOUSE, AMEN CORNER, E.C. + + + + +OTHER WORKS + +BY THE REV. + +PROF. W. W. SKEAT, LITT.D. + + + _An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language_, arranged on an + Historical Basis. _Second Edition._ 4to, _cloth_, 2_l._ 4_s._ + + _A Concise Etymological Dictionary of the English Language._ _Fourth + Edition._ Crown 8vo, _cloth_, 5_s._ 6_d._ + + _A List of English Words the Etymology of which is illustrated by + comparison with Icelandic._ 4to, 2_s._ + + _The Principles of English Etymology._ Crown 8vo. + + FIRST SERIES. _The Native Element._ Second Edition. 10_s._ 6_d._ + + SECOND SERIES. _The Foreign Element._ 10_s._ 6_d._ + + _A Primer of English Etymology._ 1_s._ 6_d._ + + _Specimens of Early English._ Part II. From Robert of Gloucester to Gower + (A.D. 1298 to A.D. 1393). By R. MORRIS, LL.D., and W. W. SKEAT, Litt. D. + _Third Edition._ Extra fcap. 8vo, _cloth_, 7_s._ 6_d._ + + _Specimens of English Literature_, from the 'Ploughman's Crede' to the + 'Shepheardes Calender' (A.D. 1394 to A.D. 1579). With Introduction, + Notes, and Glossarial Index. 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In one vol., crown + 8vo, _cloth_, 7_s._ 6_d._ + + *** Glossarial Index to the above, crown 8vo, _limp cloth_, 1_s._ 6_d._ + + _Chaucerian and other Pieces_, being a Supplementary Volume to the above. + Edited, from numerous MSS., by W. W. SKEAT, Litt.D. 8vo, 18_s._ + + _The Oxford Chaucer._ On Oxford India Paper, _cloth extra_, 9_s._ 6_d._ + + _The Chaucer Canon._ With a discussion of the Works associated with the + name of Geoffrey Chaucer. Crown 8vo, 3_s._ 6_d._ net. + + _The Tale of Gamelyn._ Edited with Notes, Glossary, &c. Extra fcap. 8vo, + _stiff covers_, 1_s._ 6_d._ + + _Twelve Facsimiles of Old English MSS._, with Transcriptions and + Introduction. 4to, 7_s._ 6_d._ + + +OXFORD + +AT THE CLARENDON PRESS + +LONDON: HENRY FROWDE + +OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS WAREHOUSE, AMEN CORNER, E.C. + + + + +Notes. + + [1] Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, chap. xxxix. See the whole + chapter. + + [2] Philosophy personified; see Book i, Prose 1, l. 3. + + [3] See Book ii, Prose 1. + + [4] See Book ii, Proses 5, 6. + + [5] See Book iii, Prose 9. + + [6] See Book iv, Metre 1. + + [7] See Book iv, Prose 6. + + [8] See Book v. + + [9] See the Romaunt of the Rose (in vol. i.), ll. 5659-5666; and the note + to l. 5661. It is also tolerably obvious, that Chaucer selected Metre + 5 of Book ii. of Boethius for poetical treatment in his 'Former Age,' + because Jean de Meun had selected for similar treatment the very same + passage; see Rom. de la Rose, ll. 8395-8406. + +[10] There is a copy of this in the British Museum, MS. Addit. 10341. + +[11] MS. Harl. 44 (Wülker); _not_ MS. Harl. 43, as in Warton, who has + confused this MS. with that next mentioned. + +[12] MS. Harl. 43 (Wülker); _not_ MS. Harl. 44, as in Warton. + +[13] There is a better copy than either of the above in MS. Royal 18 A. + xiii. The B. M. Catalogue of the Royal MSS., by Casley, erroneously + attributes this translation to Lydgate. And there is yet a fourth + copy, in MS. Sloane 554. The Royal MS. begins, more correctly:--'In + suffisaunce of cunnyng and of wyt.' + +[14] MS. i. 53. + +[15] MS. B. 5. There is yet another MS. in the library of Trinity College, + Oxford, no. 75; and others in the Bodleian Library (MS. Rawlinson + 151), in the Cambridge University Library (Gg. iv. 18), and in the + Phillipps collection (as in note 5 below). + +[16] 'The Boke of Comfort, translated into Englesse tonge. Enprented in the + exempt Monastery of Tavestok in Denshyre, by me, Dan Thomas Rychard, + Monke; 1525. 4to.'--Lowndes. + +[17] The MS. is now in the collection of Sir Thomas Phillipps; no. 1099. + +[18] He here implies that Chaucer's translation was by no means the only + one then in existence; a remarkable statement. + +[19] MS. inserts _full_, needlessly. + +[20] _Perhaps read_ In. + +[21] MS. neye. + +[22] MS. hy_m_self. + +[23] MS. theym self. + +[24] _Printed_ feldes _by_ Mr. Stewart. + +[25] Observe that this line is due to Chaucer's _gloss_, not to his text. + +[26] MS. Thisee (!). + +[27] MS. hem self. + +[28] _Printed_ thise _by_ Mr. Stewart. + +[29] MS. This (giving no sense). + +[30] Mr. Stewart _omits_ thus. + +[31] MS. parelous (!). This shews that Walton's text can be corrected by + Chaucer's. + +[32] Yet we must remember that 'The Former Age' only reproduces a _part_ of + this Metre; and that it also introduces a passage from Jerome, besides + reminiscences of Ovid and of Le Roman de la Rose; as shewn in the + notes. + +[33] Mr. Stewart adds another instance, from Bk. iii. met. 5. 5:-- + + And that the last ile in the see + That hight Tyle, be thral to thee. + + I hope this was unintentional, for they are poor verses. It is higher + praise to say that, especially in the Metres, Chaucer's prose often + flows well, with a certain melody of its own. Mr. Stewart also gives + some instances in which he supposes that Chaucer 'actually reproduces + the original Latin metre;' but they are imperfect and unintended. + +[34] Mr. Stewart quotes this as: 'a long unagreable dwellynges;' but + 'draweth a-long' is a fair translation of 'protrahit.' + +[35] 365 is the number of the line; see p. 164 below. I refer to Boethius + by the letter 'B.', meaning the text as printed in the present volume, + giving the _line_ of the text as well as the number of the Prose or + Metre, so that every passage can easily be found. + +[36] The prefixed asterisk marks a _doubtful_ or _wrong_ instance. + +[37] I omit the comparison of Bk. iii. ll. 8-14 with Boethius; for the + whole stanza is copied from the _Filostrato_, Bk. iii. st. 75. Also, + that of l. 373 with B. iii. met. 9. 1; for l. 373 is copied from the + _Filostrato_, Bk. iii. st. 15. + +[38] I omit mention of l. 2839 (compared with B. ii. met. 3. 14); for it is + taken from the _Teseide_, Bk. ix, 10, 11. + +[39] The three points are: (1) Avarice is insatiable, l. 2321, which + answers to 'finem quaerendi non inuenit,' quoted as from Seneca, but + really from Palladius; see Albertani Brixiensis Liber Consolationis, + ed. T. Sundby, p. 37: (2) Good and evil are two contraries, l. 2479; + compare the same, p. 96: (3) Fortune the nurse, l. 2635, translated + from 'fortuna usque nunc me fouit'; see the same, p. 89. + +[40] I have noted a few inaccuracies, chiefly due to confusion of _c_ and + _t_ (which are written alike), and to abbreviations. At p. 2, l. 13, + for 'p_ro_cede' read 'p_er_cede.' At p. 9, l. 28, for 'basilicis' read + 'basilius.' At p. 11, l. 32, read 'auauntede.' At p. 12, l. 10, read + 'c_on_uict'; &c. Cf. note to Bk. v. pr. 6. 82. + +[41] Here _recte_ is miswritten for _recta_, clearly because the scribe was + still thinking of the latter syllable of the preceding _sponte_. But + observe that Ch. has 'the rightes,' a translation of _recta_. This + proves at once that Chaucer did not use _this particular copy_ as his + original; and of course the peculiar mode in which it is written + precludes such a supposition. But I believe it to be copied from + Chaucer's copy, all the same. + +[42] This shews how entirely wrong an editor would be who should change the + forms into _Atrides_ and _Agamemnon_; unless, indeed, he were to give + due notice. For it destroys the evidence. Note also, that _Agamenon_ + is the usual M. E. form. It appears as _Agamenoun_ in Troil. iii. 382. + +[43] Hence it is easy to see that when Chaucer's glosses agree, as they + sometimes do, with those in Notker's Old High German version or in any + other version, the agreement is due to the fact that both translators + had similar _Latin_ glosses before them. + +[44] My text has _thonder-light_, as in the MSS.; but _leyte_ or _leyt_ is + better; see note to the line (p. 422), and see above, p. xlii, l. 8. + +[45] There is a later edition by Peiper, said to be the best; but it is out + of print, and I failed to obtain a copy. But I have also collated the + Latin text in the Delphin edition, ed. Valpy, 1823, and the edition by + Renatus Vallinus, 1656; both of these contain useful notes. + +[46] Mr. Rossetti has a note, shewing that Prof. Morley's figures are + incorrect. He himself reckons _Troilus_ as containing 8246 lines, + because the number of stanzas in Book V. of Dr. Furnivall's print of + MS. Harl. 3943 is wrongly given as 268 instead of 267. + +[47] For a fuller comparison with this poem, see § 21 below; p. lxv. + +[48] Lydgate accepts Chaucer's view without question. He says--'And of this + syege wrote eke Lollius'; Siege of Troye, ed. 1555, fol. B 2, back. + +[49] Usually called Guido de Colonna, probably because he was supposed to + belong to a famous family named Colonna; but his name seems to have + been taken from the name of a place (see note 1 on p. lvi). My + quotations from Guido are from MS. Mm. 5. 14, in the Cambridge + University Library. + +[50] He refers to the story of Troy as existing 'in the Latyn and the + Frenshe'; Siege of Troye, fol. B 1, back; and explains 'the Latyn' as + 'Guido.' + +[51] In an Italian work entitled 'Testi Inediti di Storia Trojana,' by E. + Gorra, Turin, 1887, a passage is quoted at p. 137, from Book XIII of + Guido, which says that Terranova, on the S. coast of Sicily, was also + called 'columpne Herculis,' and Gorra suggests that this was the place + whence Guido derived his name 'delle Colonne.' At any rate, Guido was + much interested in these 'columns'; see Lydgate, Siege of Troye, fol. + M 4. I think _Tropæus_, from Gk. [Greek: tropaia], may refer to these + _columnæ_; or Guido may have been connected with _Tropea_, on the W. + coast of Calabria, less than fifty miles from Messina, where he was a + judge. + +[52] 'Homerus ... fingens multa que non fuerunt, et que fuerunt aliter + transformando'; Prologus. See the E. translation in the Gest + Hystoriale, or alliterative Troy-book, ll. 38-47; Lydgate, Siege of + Troye, fol. B 2. + +[53] See allit. Troy-book, ll. 60-79. + +[54] See allit. Troy-book, ll. 3922-34; Lydgate, Siege of Troye, fol. F 3, + back. + +[55] MS. penatos. + +[56] The mention of Escaphilo, i.e. Ascalaphus, in Book V. 319, was perhaps + suggested by the mention of Ascalaphus by Guido (after Dictys, i. 13, + Homer, Il. ii. 512) as being one of the Grecian leaders; see allit. + Troy-book, l. 4067. + +[57] I. e. glove; from Gk. [Greek: cheir], hand, and [Greek: thêkê], case. + +[58] Put for xenium ([Greek: xenion]), a gift, present. + +[59] Cf. 'And save hir browes ioyneden y-fere'; Troil. v. 813. + +[60] _Talke_ is not in the Glossary. As _lk_ is a common way of writing + _kk_ (as shewn in my paper on 'Ghost-words' for the Phil. Soc.), the + word is really _takke_, a variant of _take_; and the sense is 'let him + take.' + +[61] Lydgate began his Troy-book on Oct. 31, 1412, and finished it in 1420; + see this shewn in my letter to the _Academy_, May 7, 1892. + +[62] Hence it was not written by Sir Hugh Eglintoun, if he died either in + 1376 or 1381; see Pref. to allit. Troy-book, pp. xvii, xxv. + +[63] MS. to disport; _but_ to _is needless_. + +[64] MS. I for; I _is needless_. + +[65] Two false rimes; _ye_ and _aweye_; _dispyt_ and _bright_ (correctly, + _bright e_). + +[66] Not _clene_, as in the St. John's MS. and in the Phillipps MS.; for + Chaucer never rimes _clene_ (with open _e_) with such words as + _grene_, _quene_ (with close _e_); see, on this point, the remarks on + my Rime-Index to Troilus, published for the Chaucer Society. MS. Harl. + 2392 likewise has _sheene_, a word in which the long _e_ is of + 'variable' quality. + +[67] Some guess that it means 'Tres gentil Chaucer.' But this seems to me + very improbable, if not stupid. + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Chaucer's Works, Volume 2 (of 7), by +Geoffrey Chaucer + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 44833 *** |