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,