29.

30.

31.

32.

But natheless* this marquis hath done make
Of gemmes, set in gold and in azure,
Brooches and ringes for Griseldes sake;
And of her clothing took he the measure
Of a maiden like unto her in stature;
And eke, of other ornamentes, all
That unto such a wedding shoulde fall.

The time of undern of the same day
Approacheth that this wedding shoulde be,
And all the palace put was in array,

Both hall and chambers, each in his degree;
Houses of office stuffed with plenty.
There mayest thou see of dainteous vitaille
That may be found as fer as lasteth Itaille.
This real marquis, really arrayed,
Lordes and ladies in his company,
The which unto the feste weren prayed,
And of his retinue the bachelerie,
With many a sound of sundry melody,
Unto the village of the which I told,
In this array the righte way they hold.
Griseld of this, God wot, full innocent
That for her shapen was all this array,
To fetchen water at a well is went,

And cometh home as soon as ever she may;

* Natheless. See Index.-Done make, caused to make, got made. Make is here properly an infinitive.-Gemmes (Lat. gemma, gem, jewel). Dissyl.-Azure (Per. lajuward, azure; Ar. azraq, azure; Ger. lasur, azure-color; Sp. azul, the lapis lazuli, Ger. lasurstein, the stone of blue color). Azure or blue, the color of the sky, is the color of truth. So in Hudibras, "Presbyterian true blue." See Spenser's Epithalamium, 3d stanza.-Brooches (Lat. brochus, a projecting tooth; W. proc, a stab; Fr. broche, a spit, pin; Eng. brooch, a clasp, so called from the pin which fastens it), clasps. -Ringes. Dissyl.-Undern (A. S.), the third hour of the day, or nine in the morning.-Same. Dissyl.-His degree, its degree. The form its, as possessive, is quite modern, being very rarely found as early as in Shakespeare's time. In King James's version of the Bible, his is used instead of its.-Stuffed. Dissyl.-Fer (A. S.), far.-Lasteth. Monosyl.-Real (0. Fr. real; Lat. regalis, kingly, rez, king; Fr. royal), royal. -Bachelerie (W. bach, little, young; W. baches, a pretty little woman; O. Fr. bacheler, a young man; L. Lat. baccalarius, a soldier not old or rich enough to lead his retainers into battle with a banner), knights of the lowest order, or young knights.-Righte. Dissyl.-Shapen (see schope, st. 21), made.—Went (A. S. wendan, to turn, go; imperf. went), gone.-Home. A. S. hẩm; 0. Sax., O. Friesic, Sw., hem; Dan. hiem; Ice. heimr; Ger., D., heim; Goth. haims; Gr. «ŵμŋ? village; Lith. kaimas?

To fetchen water at a well is went. The sound of w, in water, well, went, being a weak and flowing sound, is adapted to express gentle motion, gentleness, weakness. E. g. Lat. vado (for v in Latin often corresponds to w, the latter not being found in that language), Eng. wade; Lat. vert-ĕre, Eng. -wards, Ger. -wärts; Lat. veho, Eng. way, wagon, wain; Ger. wallen, to spring up, Eng. well; Ger. wandern, Eng. wander; Ger. wehen, to blow, Eng. wind, Lat. vent-us; Ger. wenden, to turn, Eng. wend, went; Ger. winden, Eng. wind; Eng. wave, welter, wallow, warble, waddle, waft, wax, wane. Give other illustrations.

33.

34.

f 35.

36.

For well she had heard say that thilke * day
The marquis shoulde wed, and, if she might,
She woulde fain have seen some of that sight.

She thought, "I will with other maidens stand
That be my fellows, in our door and see
The marquisesse, and therefore will I fond
To done at home, as soon as it may be,
The labor which that longeth unto me;
And then I may at leisure her behold,
If she this way unto the castle hold."

And as she would over the threshold gon,
The marquis came and gan her for to call.
And she set down her water-pot anon
Beside the threshold of this oxe stall,
And down upon her knees she gan to fall,
And with sad countenance she kneeleth still,
Till she had heard what was the lordes will.

This thoughtful marquis spake unto this maid
Full soberly, and said in this mannere,
"Where is your father, Griseldes?" he said,
And she with reverence and humble cheer
Answered, "Lord, he is all ready here."
And in she goeth, withouten longer let,
And to the marquis she her father fet.

He by the hand then taketh this old man,
And saide thus, when he him had aside:
"Janicula, I neither may nor can
Longer the pleasance of mine herte hide.

If that thou vouchesafe what so betide,

*Thilke, this same. See st. 21.-Fellows (A. S. felow, fr. fyligan, fylian, to follow), companions.-Fond (Ice. fana, to act sillily; Scot. fone, to fondle; fon, to play the fool; O. Eng. fond, to dote on, fondle, caress), be eager.-Which that, which.-Longeth, belongeth.-Leisure (Lat. licere, to be at liberty; Fr. loisir, permission).-Threshold (A. S. threscan, to thresh; wald, weald, wood; A. 8. threscwald).-Gan, began. A. S. ginnan, gynnan, begin. "The original sense of ginnan is to cut, split." Webster.-Oxe, dissyl. In Italy and some other countries the peasantry sometimes live under the same roof with their cattle.-Sad. See st. 24.-Withouten (A. S. widh, with; utan, out), without.-Let (A. S. lettan, to retard, make late; lät, late), hindrance, delay.--Fet (A. S. fetian, to bring), fetched.-Pleasaunce (Lat. placere, to please; Fr. plaisir, to please; plaisance), pleasure.-Vouchesafe (vouch fr. Lat. vocare, the c changed to ch by Grimm's law; vocare, to call; O. Fr. vocher; Lat. salvus, Fr. sauf, safe; vouchesafe, vouch for safety, permit to be done safely), permit. Trisyl.-What so betide, what [I pray] may happen so. Betide, A. S. tidan, to happen. In the note on beguile, st. 28, it was shown that the prefix besometimes gives emphasis. Here observe another effect of the prefix; viz., it renders intransitive verbs transitive. E. g., belie, befall. Let the student look up other examples to illustrate both these points.

And down upon her knees she gan to fall. The sound of kn, in knee (and of gn, in the Lat. genu, knee, Gr. yóvv, knee), was originally a broken sound, and so expressed a breaking off suddenly. E. g., knot, knock, knell, knap, knit, knag, knead, knuckle, knurly. So gnarl. Other examples?

37.

38.

39.

40.

Thy daughter will I take, ere that I wend,
As for my wife unto her lifes end.

"Thou lovest me, that wot I well certain,
And art my faithful liegeman* ybore,
And all that liketh me, I dare well sayn,
It liketh thee, and, specially, therefore,
Tell me that point that I have said before,
If that thou wilt unto this purpose draw,
To taken me as for thy son-in-law."

The sudden case the man astonied so
That red he wax, abashed, and all quaking
He stood, unnethes said he wordes mo;

But only this, "Lord," quoth he, "my willing
Is as ye will; against your liking

I will no thing, ye be my lord so dear,
Right as you list, governeth this matier."

"Then will I," quoth this marquis softely,
"That, in thy chamber, I and thou and she
Have a collation, and wost thou why?
For I will ask her if it her will be

To be my wife and rule her after me;
And all this shall be done in thy presence:
I will not speak out of thine audience."

And in the chamber while they were about
The treaty, which as ye shall after hear,

The people came unto the house without,
And wondered them in how honest mannere

Liegeman. See lieges, st. 2.-Liketh (A. 8. lician, to be pleased, to please), pleaseth.Sayn, say.-Astonied (A. S. stunian, to stun; Ger. staunen, to be astonished; Lat. attonare, to thunder at; fr. ad, to, and tonare, to thunder; Fr. étonner; O. Eng. astone), astonished. So in the Bible; e. g., Dan. iv. 19.-Wax (A. S. weazen; Ger. wachsen, to grow), waxed, grew.-Unnethes (A. 8. un; Lat. in, not; A. S. eadh, ready, easy; Goth. azets, easy: Fr. aisé), not easily, with difficulty.-Mo (A. S. mâ; Scot. mae, more; A. 8. mára; Ger. mehr; Lat. magis, more), more.— Against. To make out the metre, pronounce against as a trisyl.-Governeth. Impera. plu. See governance, st. 134.-Matier. Acc. 2d syl.-Collation (Lat. co-, con-, cum, together, latum, to bring; collatio, a bringing together), a conference, an interview.-Wost (2d sing. fr. wis, pres. tense of A. S. witan, to know; wiste, knew; Lat. vid-ere, to separate with the eye, to see, becoming Eng. wit by Grimm's law, and the latter meaning to separate with the mind, to know, Gr. ¿Fida, I know), knowest. See void, in Index.-Rule her, rule herself.-Audience, hearing.— Treaty (Fr. traité; Lat. tractatus, a drawing out, agreement drawn up; Fr. traho, I draw), agreement.-Which as which.-Wondered them (a reflexive combination, like 'bethought them'), wondered.-Honest (Lat. honestus, honorable), respectable. Acc. 2d syl.

Thou lovest me, that wot I well certain. The smooth sound of l is adapted to express what is soft or soothing; as in lull, like, love, lave, lute; Lat. levis, smooth; Gr. Aeios; Lat. libet and lubet, it pleases. By analogy, especially at the end of words, it denotes slight or little things; as satchel, a little sack; Lat. scutulum, a little shield. Naturally it is employed to name actions in which the tongue, the organ that is chiefly used in enunciating the sound, is the main instrument; as Gr. λadéw, to prate; Lat. lallo; Ger. lallen; Eng. loll; Welsh, Holian; Gr. λánтw; Eng. lap; Lat. lambo; Gr. λeixw; Lat. lingo, Eng. lick, Ger. lecken, Ir. lighim. Other examples?

41.

42.

43.

44.

And tenderly she kept her father dear.
But utterly Griseldes wonder might,
For never erst ne saw she such a sight.

No wonder is, though that she be astoned
To see so great a guest come in that place.
She never was to none such guestes woned;
For which she looked with full pale face.
But shortly forth this matter for to chase,
These arn the wordes that the marquis said
To this benign, veray, and faithful maid.

"Griseld," he said, "ye shall well understand,
It liketh to your father and to me

That I you wed; and eke it may so stand,
As I suppose ye will that it so be.
But these demandes ask I first," quoth he,
"That since it shall be done in hasty wise,
Will ye assent, or elles you avise?

"I say this, 'Be ye ready with good heart
To all my lust, and that I freely may,
As me best thinketh, do you laugh or smart,
And never ye to grutchen night ne day,
And eke when I say yea, ye say not nay,
Neither by word ne frowning countenance?'
Swear this, and here I swear our alliance."

Wondering upon this thing, quaking for dread,

She saide, "Lord, undigne and unworthy

Am I to thilk honor that ye me bid;

But as ye will yourself, right so will I ;
And here I swear that never willingly

In work, ne thought, I n'ill you disobey,

* Erst (superlative of ere, before; fr. A. S. ær, before; ærest, most before; Ger. cher, before; erst, first), before.-Never. ..ne. The double negative increases the negative force.Astoned. Same as astonied, st. 38.-Never... none. Strengthened negation.-Woned (A. S. wunian, to dwell; O. Eng. won; Ger. wohnen), wonted, accustomed.-Chase (O. Fr. chacier; Fr. chasser; Lat. captare, to strive to seize, fr. capere, to take. See Grimm's law), pursue. -Arn (0. Eng. plu.), are.-Veray (Lat. verus, true), true, very.-Avise, give counsel, advise. See st. 26.-Me best thinketh, seems best to me.-My lust, my wish or will.-Grutchen (0. Fr. groucher, to murmur; Ger. grunzen, Eng. grunt. The u in these and many other words expresses low and obscure sounds), grudge.-Ne, nor. See n'as, st. 54.-Alliance. Acc. 1st and 3d. syl.-Saide. Dissyl.-Undigne (Lat. in, not, dignus, worthy), undeserving.—Unworthy. Acc. 1st and 3d syl.-Thilk, this. See st. 21.-Honor. Acc. 2d syl. N'ill, will not.-The reader will notice the large infusion of the French element in Chaucer's language. Contemporaries complained that he "imported a wagon-load of foreign words." Why may Chaucer have been predisposed to do this?

That I you wed, and eke it may so stand. To sound the st, as in stand, tends to bare and set the front teeth, and gives the face a look that denotes firmness, stability. Thus, Gr. iorηue, Lat. stare, Eng. stand, staff, stake, stalk, stall, stay, steady, stem, stick, stiff, stock, stout, stub, stubborn, stump, sturdy; Ger. stein, Eng. stone. Other illustrations of this?

45.

46.

47.

48.

And to the people he said in this mannere :
"This is my wife," quoth he, "that standeth here.
Honoreth her and loveth her, I pray,

Whoso me loveth. There is no more to say."

And for that nothing of her olde gear
She shoulde bring into his house, he had
That women should despoilen her right there;
Of which these ladies weren nothing glad
To handle her clothes, wherein she was clad.
But natheless this maiden bright of hue,
From foot to head they clothed have all new.
Her haires have they kempt, that lay untressed
Full rudely, and with their fingers smale

A coroune on her head they have ydressed,
And set her full of nouches great and smale.
Of her array what should I make a tale ?
Unneth the people her knew for her fairness,
When she translated was in such richesse.

This marquis hath her spoused with a ring
Brought for the same cause, and then her set
Upon a horse snow-white and well ambling,
And to his palace, ere he longer let,

* Though... die, though to die were grievous to me.-Honoreth. Impera. plu. Acc. 2d syl. For that, because.-Gear (A. S. geara, gearwa, provision, furniture; gearwian, to prepare; Ger. gärben, to prepare leather, to tan), clothing.-Clothes. Dissyl.-Haires. Dissyl.-Kempt (A. S. cemban; O. Eng. kemben; Ger, kämmen; to comb), combed.-Rudely. Trisyl.-Coroune (Lat. corona), crown.-Ydressed, adjusted.-Nouches (allied to notch, or from 'Late Latin' nusca, or nosca, noschio, a clasp), clasps, buckles, jewels.-What, why.-Unneth, scarcely. See unnethes, st. 38.--Translated, transformed.-Richesse (Fr. and O. Eng.), riches. A. S. ric, Ger. reich, rich. The word was originally in the singular number.-Same. Dissyl. -Let (A. S. lat, late; letian, lettan, to make late, hinder), delayed. Let in the sense of permit, is from A. S. lætan, O. Sax. latan, Ger. lassen. The student should accustom himself to scrutinize closely the root-meanings of words. The teacher will find it a very profitable exercise, for pupils to look out and memorize with great care the roots, primitive meanings, and kindred forms, of a number of words regularly assigned for the purpose as a part of the daily lesson.

To handle her clothes, wherein she was clad. The sound of cl, as in cloth and clad, often denotes cleaving to, or adhering. E. g., cleave, clay, cling, clinch, clutch, climb, clamber, clot, clod, clasp ; Ger. kleid, garment. Shakespeare's lines illustrate this origin of the word clothes:

"New honors, come upon him,

Like our strange garments, cleave not to their mould,
But with the aid of use.-MACBETH, Act I., Scene 3.

This marquis hath her spoused with a ring. The sound of r, as in ring, denotes interrupted or distorted motion; as Lat. rota, wheel; Eng. ring, round, cramp, crook, crown, gripe, grasp, reel, roll. It also denotes broken or rattling noises, as Gr. κpigw, κроτéw, kρwsw; Eng. croak, crack, cry, crash, creak, rattle. Other examples?