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, 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 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; so that the date 'about 1400,' adopted in the New Eng. Dictionary (s. v. Bercelet, &c.) cannot be far wrong.
§ 23. Another useful book, frequently mentioned above, is Lydgate's Siege of Troye, 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--'neuer 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 þour al þis toun aboute;
Be þey þe wers? whi, nay, with-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,
In vayn from this forth have I seyn twye;
For 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 from hyre ey[gh]yn tweyn
Out ran, as schour 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 eueremor myn herte is holde:
And thus he pleynyd, and ferthere-more he tolde.
We cannot believe that Bk. iv. 309-15, as here given, can be genuine; 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, 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 'Commeued 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. 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: percede; in 337, nouncerteyne. 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:--
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. remembren.
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
