Thie mynde ys now thieselfe; why wylte thou
bee

All blanche, al kyngelie, all soe wyse yn mynde,
Alleyne to lett pore wretched Ella see,
Whatte wondrous bighes he nowe muste leave
behynde?
[wynde,
O Birtha fayre, warde everyche commynge
On everych wynde I wylle a token sende:
Onn mie longe shielde ycorne thie name thoul 't
fynde.
[and friende.
Butte here commes Celmonde, wordhie knyghte

ÆLLA, BIRTHA, CELMONDE speaking.
Thie Brystowe knyghtes for thie forth-comynge
lynge
[shield dothe slynge.
Echone athwarte hys backe hys longe warre-

ELLA.

Birtha, adieu; but yette I cannotte goe.

BIRTHA.

Lyfe of mie spryte, mie gentle Ælla staie.
Engyne mee notte wyth syke a drierie woe.

ÆLLA.

I muste, I wylle; tys honnoure cals awaie.

BIRTHA.

O mie agroted harte, braste, braste ynn twaie.
Ella, for honnoure, flyes awaie from mee.

ELLA.

Birtha, adieu; I maie notte here obaie.
I'm flyynge from mieselfe yn flying thee.

BIRTHA.

O Ælla, housband, friend, and loverde, staie. He's gon, he's gone, alass! percase he's gone for aie.

CELMONDE.

Hope, hallie suster, sweepeynge thro' the skie,
In crowne of goulde, and robe of lillie whyte,
Whyche farre abrode ynne gentle ayre doe flie,
Meetynge from dystaunce the enjoyous syghte,
Albeytte efte thou takest thie hie flyghte
Hecket ynne a myste, and wyth thyne eyne
yblente,
lyghte;
Nowe commest thou to mee wythe starrie
Ontoe thie veste the rodde sonne ys adente;
The sommer tyde, the month of Maie appere,
Depycte wythe skylledd honde upponne thie wyde
aumere 8.

72y. Hap?

8 Aumere. The word does not occur in any of our ancient poets, except in Chaucer's Romaunt of the Rose, v. 2271.

I from a nete of hopelen am adawed,
Awhaped atte the fetyveness of daie;
Ælla, bie nete moe thann hys myndbruche awed,
Is gone, and I moste followe, toe the fraie.
Celmonde canne ne'er from anie byker staie.
Dothe warre begynne? there's Celmonde yn the
place
[awaie.
Botte whanne the warre ys donne, I'll haste
The reste from nethe tymes masque must she
yttes face.

I see onnombered joies arounde mee ryse; Blake stondethe future doome, and joie dothe mee alyse.

Weare streighte gloves with aumere
Of elk.

The French original stands thus

De gaus et de bourse de soye,
Et de saincture te cointoye.
Skinner, who probably did not think of consulting
longing to gloves, and so at a venture expounded it
the original, supposes aumere to be something be-
fimbria, instita; a fringe or border. It seemed, and
still seems most probable to me, that aumere of silk
is Chaucer's translation of bourse de soye; and con-
to a purse. But the dean, if I understand him
sequently that aumere was sometimes equivalent
rightly, differs from us both, and thinks that a-
mere is a translation of ceinture, a girdle. "The
ceinture, or girdle," says he, "has escaped the no-
tice of the learned editor, though, as a principal
ornament in ancient dress, it was more likely to be
mentioned by the poet, than the purse." Which
was more likely to be mentioned by the poet, is
not the question, but which is mentioned; and if
the girdle escaped the notice of Chaucer, I do not
see that I was bound to take any notice of it. In
short aumere, upon the face of this passage,
must probably signify, either something belong
ing to gloves, or a purse, or a girdle; and I think I
might safely trust the intelligent reader with the
determination, in which of these three senses it is
used by Chaucer. But I have also referred to
another passage of the same poem R. R. ver. 2087.
in which he uses aumener in this same sense of a
purse.

Then from his aumener he drough
A little key fetise enough.

The original is

Adonc de sa bourse il traict
Un petit clef bien fait.

Where aumener is undoubtedly the translation of
bourse. I must observe further, that in what I

of the French Roman de la Rose, (Paris 1727) these two lines are thus written, v. 2028.

take to be the most accurate and authentic edition

Lors a de l'aumoniere traicte
Une petite clef bien faicte.

Which, I apprehend, adds no small strength to my
conjecture, that both aumener and aumere are de-
rivatives from the French aumoniere. If so, it be
comes still clearer, that the proper signification
fof aumere is a purse; a signification which will not
suit any one of the passages, in which the word
occurs in these poems.-Tyrwhitt.

Swythe lette the offrendes to the goddes begynne,
To knowe of hem the issue of the fyghte.
Potte the blodde-steyned sword and pavyes ynne;
Spreade swyth yn all arounde the hallie lyghte.
HIE PREESTE syngeth.

Yee, who hie yn mokie ayre
Delethe seasonnes foule or fayre.

Yee, who, whanne yee weere agguylte,
The mone yn bloddie gyttelles hyite,
Mooved the starres, and dyd unbynde
Everyche barriere to the wynde;
Whanne the oundynge waves dystreste,
Stroven to be overcst,

Sockeynge yn the spyre-gyrte towne,
Swolterynge wole natyones downe,
Sendynge dethe on plagues astrodde,
Moovynge lyke the erthys godde;
To mee send your heste dyvyne,
Lyghte eletten all myne eyne,
Thatt I maie now undevyse
All the actyonnes of th' empprize.
falleth dorone and efte rysethe.
Thus sayethe the goddes; goe, yssue to the playne;
Forr there shall meynte of mytte menne bee slayne.

MAGNUS.

Whie, soe there evere was, whanne Magnus foughte.

Mie sheelde, lyche sommere morie gronfer droke Mie lethalle speere, alyche a levyn-mylted oke.

Efte have Itreynted noyance throughethe hoaste,
Athorowe swerdes, alyche the queed dystraughte,
Have Magnus pressynge wroghte hys foemen
loaste,

As whanne a tempeste vexe the soare the coaste,
The dyngeynge ounde the sandeie stronde doe
So dyd I inne the warre the javlynne toste, [tare,
Full meynte a champyonnes breaste received
mie spear.

9 A word of unknown origin.

HURRA.

Thie wordes are greate, full hyghe of sound, and
ecke
[rayne.
Lyche thonderre, to the whych dothe comme no
Itte lacketh notte a doughtie honde to speke;
Thecocke saiethe drefte, ytt armed ys he alleyne.
Certis thie wordes maie, thou motest have sayne
Of mee, and meynte of moe, who eke canne
fyghte,

Who haveth trodden downe the adventayle,
And tore the heaulmes from heades of myckle
myghte.

Sythence syke myghte ys placed yn thie honde, Lette blowes thie actyons speeke, and bie thie corrage stonde.

HURRA.

I kenne thee, Magnus, welle; a wyghte thou art
That doest aslee 10 alonge ynn doled dystresse,
Strynge bulle yn boddie, lyoncelle yn harte,
I almost wysche thie prowes were made lesse.
Whan Ella (name drest uppe yn ugsomness
To thee and recrcandes) thondered on the playne,
Howe dydste thou thorowe fyrste of fleers presse!
Swefter thanne federed takelle dydste thou reyne.

10 An unknown word.