Part II
. s. 6. l. 8 (vol. iii. p. 194) that 'the nadir of the sonne is thilke degree that is opposit to the degree of the sonne, _in the seventhe signe_,' appears in most early editions as 'in the 320 signe.' But 320 signs for the zodiac is much too liberal an allowance.
My edition for the E.E.T.S. also contains an edition of Messahala's Latin treatise, from which Chaucer derived about two-thirds of his work; see vol. iii. p. lxx.
This Treatise is of more importance than might be supposed, owing to Chaucer's frequent allusions to astronomical subjects. Every editor of Chaucer should know that there are nine spheres; otherwise, he may fall (as three editors have done) into the trap prepared by the scribe of the Harleian MS., who gives lines 1280 and 1283 of Group F of the Canterbury Tales in this extraordinary form:--
'And by his _thre speeres_ in his worching' ... 'That in the _fourthe speere_ considred is.'
It was a special pleasure to find that Chaucer's star Aldiran (Cant. Tales, F 265) was one of the stars marked on the 'Rete' or web of a Parisian astrolabe in A.D. 1223, and is described (in MS. Ii. 3. 3, in the Camb. Univ. Library) as being 'in fronte Leonis.' See vol. v. p. 380.
Some attempts have been made to calculate the date of the Canterbury Tales from ll. 10, 11 of the Parson's Prologue. The absurdity of such an endeavour is patent to any one who knows enough of the old astronomy and astrology to be aware that the 'moon's exaltation' is merely a name for a sign of the zodiac, and has nothing whatever to do with the position of the moon itself. Here, again, the scribe of the Harleian MS. has turned the phrase _I mene_ into _In mena_[7], misleading many enquirers who fail to realise that he was as careless in this passage as in the former one.
s. 10. THE CANTERBURY TALES. The great gain in this poem has been the foundation of the text upon the basis of the Ellesmere MS., the most satisfactory of all existing MSS. having any reference to Chaucer.
The general excellence and correctness of its spellings and readings render it the safest on which to found rules for our guidance as to pronunciation, syntax, and prosody. For further remarks, see the Introduction to vol. iv. p. xvii.
Much help has been obtained from the experience gained in editing various portions of the Tales from the same MS. in former years. The edition of the Prologue, the Knightes Tale, and the Nonnes Preestes Tale, originally issued by Dr. Morris, underwent a considerable amount of revision by him and by myself conjointly; and so great was the interest which he took in the work, and so freely were the results of our researches thrown, as it were, into a common fund, that in many instances I am unable to say which of us it was that suggested the illustrations given in the Notes. Dr. Morris was justly celebrated for his acuteness in unravelling the intricacies of the various Middle-English dialects, and for his swiftness of perception of the right use of grammatical inflections; and he communicated the results of his labours with unsparing generosity.
The Prioresses Tale, Sire Thopas, the Monkes Tale, the Clerkes Tale, and the Squieres Tale were first edited by me, with Notes and a Glossary, as far back as 1874; and the book has passed through several editions since that date[8].
The Tale of the Man of Lawe, the Pardoneres Tale, the Second Nonnes Tale, and the Chanouns Yemannes Tale, were first edited by me, with Notes and a Glossary, in 1877; and have been several times revised in subsequent editions[8].
It will now be readily understood that nearly all the notes and illustrations that have appeared in these various books are here collected and reproduced (with corrections where necessary); and that many others have been added of a like kind.
Perhaps I may fairly introduce here the remark that many illustrations and explanations which are now perfectly familiar to readers of Chaucer originally appeared for the first time in these smaller editions. Thus, to mention a matter of no great importance, my note on Group C, l. 321, demonstrates the exact form and position of the _ale-stake_, and shews that the old interpretation of 'may-pole' in Speght is wrong, and that Tyrwhitt's statement as to its being 'set up' is misleading; for its position was horizontal. And only a little further on, at l. 405, I explain how the peculiar construction arose which admitted of such a phrase as 'goon a-blakeberied'; an explanation which is duly quoted as mine in the New E. Dict., s.v. _Begged_.
Nevertheless, provided that correct explanations are given, it makes but little difference to the reader by whom they were first made. Hence notes have been included from all accessible sources, and it has not always seemed to be necessary, in minor instances, to specify whence they are derived; though this has usually been done.
s. 11. It remains for me to express my great obligations to the labours of others, and to acknowledge, with thankfulness, their assistance and guidance.
As regards the texts, my chief debt is to the Chaucer Society, which means, practically, Dr. Furnivall, through whose zeal and energy so many splendid and accurate prints of the MSS. have been produced, thus rendering the actual readings and spellings of the scribes accessible to students in all countries. It is obvious that, but for such work, no edition of Chaucer could have been attempted without an enormous increase of labour and a prodigal expenditure of time.
Next to the MSS., the only authorities of any value are a few of the earliest prints; viz. those by Caxton, and (in the case of the Envoy to Bukton) by Julian Notary; and the editions by Thynne and Stowe. Thynne's text of the Book of the Duchesse is, in _one_ passage, the sole authority; and his text of the Romaunt of the Rose is, not unfrequently, correct where the Glasgow MS. is wrong. His text of the House of Fame is also valuable, and so is that of Caxton; and the same remark applies to some of the Minor Poems. Both Caxton and Thynne furnish very fair texts of Boethius. Thynne's version of Troilus follows a good MS., and is worth collation throughout; but his Legend of Good Women follows a MS. of a very poor type, and his Treatise on the Astrolabe is decidedly bad. Very little help is to be got from Thynne as regards the Canterbury Tales; indeed, it is the chief fault of Tyrwhitt's text that he trusted far too much to the old black-letter editions.
Stowe's edition of 1561 is useful in the case of A Complaint to his Lady and Words to Adam. Otherwise, it may usually be ignored.
As regards later editions, I am most indebted to the following.
To Dr. John Koch, for his edition of the shorter Minor Poems, viz. those which in the present edition are numbered as I. VIII. IX. X., XIII-XVII., and XIX. His text is excellent, and there are numerous notes. He has also written several important criticisms in Anglia, besides a detailed examination in Englische Studien (xv. 399) of my own edition of the Minor Poems, published in 1888.
To Dr. Max Lange, whose dissertation on the Book of the Duchesse is careful and useful.
To Professor Lounsbury, who has published an edition of the Parliament of Foules, though I have not made much use of it. On the other hand, I am deeply indebted to him, as many other Chaucer students must be also, for his great work, in three large volumes, entitled Studies in Chaucer. I would draw particular attention to his excellent chapters on Chaucer's Life, in which he separates the true accounts from the false, giving the latter under the title of 'The Chaucer Legend,' in a chapter which is highly instructive and furnishes a good example of true criticism. The subjects entitled 'The Text of Chaucer,' 'The Writings of Chaucer,' 'The Learning of Chaucer,' 'Chaucer in Literary History,' and 'Chaucer as a Literary Artist' are all admirably handled, and command, in general, the reader's assent; though he may wish, at times, that the material could have been condensed into a shorter space. It seems invidious, in the midst of so much that is good and acceptable, to express any adverse criticism; but it is difficult to believe that the linguistic part of the work is as sound as that which is literary; and many must hope that a time may come when the author will cease to maintain that The Romaunt of the Rose, in its known form, is all the product of one author. However this may be, it should be clearly understood that I fully recognise and thankfully acknowledge the general value of this helpful book. It is a special pleasure to record that (by no means in this work alone) the study of Chaucer has received much encouragement from America.
Dr. Piaget has completely solved the construction of the Compleynt of Venus, by his recovery of the three original Balades by Sir Otes de Granson, which are somewhat freely translated by Chaucer in this poem. See vol. i. pp. 86, 559.
The best general commentary on Boethius is the essay by Mr. H. F. Stewart; see vol. ii. p. x.
The best commentary on Troilus is Mr. W. M. Rossetti's line by line collation of Chaucer's work with the Filostrato of Boccaccio. Besides this, remarkably little has been done with regard to this important poem, with the splendid exception of the Remarks on the Language of 'Troilus' by Prof. Kitteredge, only recently issued by the Chaucer Society.
I have already acknowledged the usefulness of Dr. Willert's dissertation on the House of Fame; see vol. iii. p. xiii. Also of the articles by Dr. Koch; see the same, p. xv; and of the article by Rambeau, which is surely somewhat extravagant, though right in the main contention.
Of the Legend of Good Women it has already been said that the chief article is that by Bech (vol. iii. p. xli); and that some useful notes are given by Corson. The discovery that the Prologue exists in two separate forms, both of them being genuine, was really made by Mr. Henry Bradshaw, who was familiar with the Cambridge MS. (which contains the earlier version) for some time before he disclosed the full significance of it.
s. 12. As regards the Canterbury Tales, my debts are almost too numerous to recount. First and foremost, must be mentioned the honoured name of Thomas Tyrwhitt, whose diligence, sagacity, and discrimination have never been surpassed by any critic, and to whom are due nearly all the more important discoveries as to Chaucer's sources. See the admirably just remarks on this 'great scholar' in Lounsbury's Studies in Chaucer, vol. i. pp. 300-5. 'The sanest of English poets had the good fortune to meet with the sanest of editors.' And again--'It seems almost too much to hope that a combination of learning, of critical sagacity, of appreciation of poetry as poetry, will ever again meet in the person of another willing to assume and discharge the duties of an editor of Chaucer.'
I would add my humble testimony to Tyrwhitt's unfailing greatness; and it will readily be understood, that, whenever it becomes necessary, in consequence of recent linguistic discoveries, to point out that Tyrwhitt's knowledge of Middle-English grammar was naturally imperfect, certainly from no fault of his own, I never waver in my admiration of his great qualities. Even as regards linguistic knowledge, he was certainly in advance of his time; and it is remarkable to observe with what diligence he once edited the 'Rowley Poems' of Chatterton, merely as a piece of literary duty, although he was one of the very first to see that they were hopelessly the reverse of genuine.
A great deal of information has also been obtained from the notes in the editions by Thomas Wright and by Bell; from the various publications of the Chaucer Society, especially from the 'Essays on Chaucer,' by various authors, and from the 'Originals and Analogues'; from Thor Sundby's wonderful edition of Albertano of Brescia's Liber Consolationis et Consilii; from the Essay by Dr. Eilers on the Parson's Tale; and from various books, notes, and articles, by well-known German critics, especially Ten Brink, Koch, K[:o]lbing, K[:o]ppel, Zupitza, and others. Much encouragement and various useful hints have been received from Professor Hales. If I have anywhere failed to notice the true discoverer of any important suggestion, each in his due place, I trust it will be regarded as an oversight. The fact that some points, and even some rather important ones, were really discovered by myself, is somewhat embarrassing. I have no wish to claim as my own anything that can, with any shew of reason, be claimed by another; but would rather say, with Chaucer himself, that 'I nam but a lewd compilatour of the labour of' other men; 'and with this swerd shal I sleen envye[9].'
s. 13. PHONETICS. All the more important and somewhat recent discoveries as regards Middle-English grammar and rhythm are due to the increased attention paid to phonetics and rhythmical details. It is well known that this impulse came from America, and was due, as Dr. Ellis has justly said, to 'the wonderful industry, acuteness, and accuracy' of Prof. F. J. Child, of Harvard College, Cambridge, Massachusetts. His celebrated 'Observations on the Language of Chaucer' were well followed up by others; notably by Dr. Alexander J. Ellis, in his work 'On Early English Pronunciation,' and by Dr. Sweet, in his 'History of English Sounds' and his First and Second Middle-English Primers. Also, by Ten Brink, in his admirable work on 'Chaucers Sprache und Verskunst.' The latest essays of this character are, like the first, from America, viz. the essay on 'The Language of the Legend of Good Women' by J. M. Manly, and the full and exhaustive essay on 'The Language of Chaucer's Troilus' by Prof. Kittredge[10].
s. 14. THE GLOSSARY. As regards the Glossary, I have much pleasure in recording my thanks to Miss Gunning and Miss Wilkinson, of Cambridge, who prepared the 'slips' recording the references, and, in most cases, the meanings also, throughout a large portion of the whole work, with praiseworthy carefulness and patience. My obligations to these two ladies began many years ago, as they undertook most of the glossarial work of my smaller edition of the Man of Law's Tale (with others); work which is now incorporated with the rest. It required some devotion to analyse the language of Boethius and the Romaunt, of Melibeus and the Parson's Tale, all of which they successfully undertook.
Mr. Sapsworth, formerly scholar of St. John's College, was the original compiler of the glossary to the Minor Poems and the Legend of Good Women. Amongst the pieces which I specially undertook myself, I may mention the Treatise on the Astrolabe, and some of the Canterbury Tales, including those of the Miller, the Reeve, the Shipman, the Merchant, and the Wife of Bath. The original references for the Prioresses Tale (and others) were made by my wife, more than twenty years ago; and I have, in various ways, received help from other members of my family. I think Dr. Morris and myself may claim to have done much for Middle-English by way of compiling glossaries. Dr. Morris led the way by the very full glossaries to his Early English Alliterative Poems, Sir Gawayne and the Grene Knight, and Genesis and Exodus; whilst it fell to my lot to gloss Lancelot of the Laik, the Romance of Partenay, Piers the Plowman (305 pages, in double columns), Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, the alliterative Joseph of Arimathie, Barbour's Bruce (114 pages), The Wars of Alexander[11], and Alexander and Dindimus[12]; besides preparing the glossary to Specimens of English, Part III ., and rewriting