72. 73. 74. 75. And in her barm* this little child she leid And thus she said in her benigne voice: Well might a mother then have cried, And to the sergeant meekely she said, "Alas! "Have here again your little younge maid. "Goth now," quoth she, "and doth my lordes hest. But if my lord forbade you, at the lest, As lordes don, when they will have their will; * Barm (A. S. beorma, bearm; Ger. barme; fr. A. S. beoran, beran, to bear: fr. Lat. Jerre, by Grimm's law; Gr. pépeir), bosom, lap.-Leid (A. S. lecgan; O. Eng. leggen; Lat. leg-ĕre, to lay), laid.-Lulled (Lat. lallare, to sing lalla, or lullaby; Ger. lallen), soothed, quieted.-Crois (0. Fr. crois; Lat. cruz, cross), cross.-Mote, must,-Him betake, entrust to him.-Trow, believe. See Index.-Norice (A. S., fr. Fr. nourrice; Lat. nutrix, nurse, fr. nutrire, to nourish), nurse.-Routhe (A. S. hreow, grief), ruth, grief. See ruth, Index.-Goth (impera. plu. for sing.), go.Hest, command. See hestes, Index.-But if, unless.--Lest (A. S. lytel, little; lassa, less; last, lasest, least), least. At least, unless my lord forbade you.--Ne, nor.-Burieth. Impera.-Briddes (A. S. bird or brid, fr. bredan, to nourish), birds.-To-race (Gr. páxos, a rag; þýyvuμɩ, to tear, to break; Lat. f-reg-i, fr. frango, whence, by Grimm's law, break), to rags, tear in pieces. And in her barm this little child she leid. The sound of i, in little, being very minute, is excellently adapted by nature to express diminutives. Hence the great majority of diminutives have this sound prominent. The effect is heightened in little by the sound of 1, which, itself, often has a diminutive force. Pill, little, nit, flit, whittle, giggle, illustrate this principle, which is of very extensive application. See the word diminutive, in the Index. Well might a mother then have cried, "Alas!" The sound of m, in mother, is very easily made by Infants. Hence it is used to express the mother or nurse. E. g., Heb. em, mother; Eng. ma mamma; Ger. amme, nurse. Other examples of this and the preceding? 76. 77. 78. 79. 80. And bade the sergeant that he privily And carry it in a coffer,* or in his lap; He should it take and show her this matiere, This child to foster in all gentleness; And whose child that it was, he bade her hide For now goeth he full fast imagining, If by his wifes cheer he mighte see, Or by her wordes apperceive that she As glad, as humble, as busy in service, Was seen in her, ne never her daughter name In this estate there passed ben four year A knave child she bare by this Waltier, *Coffer (Gr. κópivos, a basket; Ger. and Dan. koffer), a chest, trunk.-Peyne (Gr. пowý; Lat. pœna, penalty; A. S. pin; Ger. pein; O. Eng. peyne, paine), penalty, pain.-Swap (Ger. schwappen, to strike; whence swop,' to strike a bargain, to barter), to strike.-Boloygne (Lat. Bononia; Fr. Bologne; Ital. Bologna), a famous city of Italy, S.S.W. of Venice, N.N.W. of Rome, capital of the province of Bologna. Its population is about 90,000.-Suster (A. S. sweoster, swyster, suster; Ger. schwester; Lat. soror), sister.-Don, etc. (A. S. don, to do), to make it her business, take pains.-Wifes (A. S. wif; Ger. weib), wife's.-Apperceive (Fr. appercevoir; Lat. ad, percipere, fr. per, through. thoroughly, wholly, and capere, to take), perceive.-Ever in one, continually.-Ylike (A. S. gelic, fr. ge-, intensive, very, and -lic, like), alike.—Non, no.-Every manner wise - every way.-Nempyned (A. S. nemnan, namian, to name; Lat. nominare; Gr. ovoμása; Ger. nennen; fr. root no or gno, by Grimm's law, Eng. kno-w; Sans. naman), named.-Game (A. S. gamen, game; fr. gamian, to play), sport.-Year, years.-Wold, would, willed. See wolde, Index.-Knave, boy.-Daughter name, in st. 79, must be considered equivalent to daughter's name. Daughter is A. S. dohtor; Ger. tochter; Gr. Ovyárηp. Shoulde this childe softe wind and wrap. The sound of wr in wrap, denotes twisting or distorted motion; as in wrest, wring, wrong, wriggle, wrap, wreck, wrangle, wrench, wrist, wrestle, wreck, wrath, writhe, wry. Give other illustrations of this. 81. 82. 83. 84. Full gracious and fair for to behold; Not only he, but all his country, merry Was for this child, and God they thank and hery.* This marquis caughte yet another lest "Wife," quoth this marquis, "ye have heard ere this, And, namely, sin my son yboren is, Now is it worse than ever in all our age; The murmur sleth mine heart and my courage; For to mine eares cometh the voice so smart That it well nigh destroyed hath mine heart. "Now say they thus: When Walter is agone, And ben our lord, for other have we none." "I wolde live in peace, if that I might; This warn I you, that ye not suddenly, Out of yourself for nothing should outraye. *Hery (A. S. herian, to praise; Goth. harjan), praise.-Norice, nurse. See st. 73.-After (A. S. æft, eft, after, behind, again. "After seems to be the comparative degree of af or aft." Webster. -R, or -er, the comparative ending, seems to be allied to Lat. -ior, and Gr. -óτep-os), again.-Sikely (A. S. sican, to sigh; O. Eng. sike; Ger. seufzen), sorrowfully, with sighs.-Sin, since.-Sleth, slayeth. See slaien, Index.-Smart (A. S. smeortan; Ger. schmerzen; perhaps akin to Lat. mors, death), painful.-Audience, hearing.-Plainen (Fr. plaindre; Lat. plangere, to beat the breast, to bewail), complain.-Woulde, Dissyl.-Ere. See erst, Index. -Outraye (Lat. ultra, beyond; Fr. outrer, to go beyond reason, to exaggerate; outre, extravagant), be excessive, be outrageous.-Beth, be ye. Impera. plu. The plu. of the impera. in Early Eng. ended in -eth or -th; but in Chaucer this ending is occasionally shortened to e; and frequently it is omitted altogether. The sing. of the impera. in O. Eng. is the same as the root of the verb. The murmur sleth mine heart and my courage. The sound of u in murmur, being indistinct and produced low in the chest, expresses, when soft, gentleness; when loud, harshness, discontent, muttering, smothered wrath. E. g., Lat. murmuro, murmur; Ger. murren; Rus. murtshu; Gr. μvýw; Lat. mutio, musso; Eng. mutter; Eug. grumble; Dan. and Eng. grum; Welsh grwm; Gr. ypów, Lat. grundio, Ger. grunzen, Eng. grunt. Give other examples. 85. 86. 87. 88. 89. Quoth. "I have," quoth* she, "said thus and ever shall, But as you list. Nought grieveth me at all, "Ye been our lord, doth with your owen thing For as I left at home all my clothing But now I wot your lust, and what ye wold, "Death may not maken no comparison And forth he goeth with dreary countenance, That he her daughter fette, right so he, Or worse, if men can any worse devise, Hath hent her son, that full was of beauty; And ever in one so patient was she, See Index.-Nill (A. S. nilian or nyllun, fr. ne, not, and willan, to will), not will, refuse, reject.-Grieveth (Lat. gravare, to burden; fr. gravis, heavy).--Owen, own.-Rede (A. 8. rædan, to advise; ræd, counsel), counsel.-Certes, surely. See Index.-Lust, pleasure.Wot, know.-Wold, would, would have.-Wist, knew.-Dien (O. Eng, infin, ending -en), die.— Say (A. S. seon, to see; Ger. sehen; A. S. schwan, to see), saw.-Cast (Dan. kaste; Ice. and Sw. kasta), cast.-Eyen, eyes. See Index Patience. Trisyl.-Fette, brought. See Index.Hent, seized. See Index.-Ever in one, ever in one way, continually. See st. 78. Though that my daughter and my son be slain. The sound of m in my, being made with closed lips, is pre-eminently internal and personal to every one. It expresses the personal pronoun of the first person, on account of its subjective importance. E. g., Sans. mam; Gr. μé; Lat. me; Eng. me, my, mine. Other examples? Other significance of this sound? Hath hent her son, that full was of beauty. The sound of fl, as in full (corresponding by Grimm's law to λ in Gr., pl in Lat., and el in Ger.), is said to denote fullness or extension, from its swelling the cheeks, and filling the mouth. E. g. Gr. #λéos, ñàýρns, #iμñànui; Lat. plere, to fill; plenus, full; Ger. füllen, voll; Eng. fill, full. Other examples? 90. 91. 92. 93. 94. That she no cheere* made of heaviness, This marquis wondreth ever lenger the more Ne hadde soothly knowen there before He would have weened that of some subtlety That she had suffered this with sad visage. But well he knew that, next himself, certain If these assayes mighten not suffice. What could a sturdy husband more devise But there ben folk of such condition She was aye one in heart and in visage, *Cheere, appearance.-After, afterwards. See Index. -Grave (A. S. grafan, to carve, dig; Gr. ypáper, to scratch, write, grave; Ger. graben ; Fr. graver ; A. 8. graf, a grave; Ger. grab; Russ. grob), bury, entomb.-Limmes (A. S. lim; O. Eng. lyme), limbs. Dissyl.-Fowles (A. S. fleogan, to fly; fugel, a bird; Ger. vogel; Ger. fliegen, to fly; flog, flew: O. E. fowles, flying animals), birds. Rought (A. S. recan, to reck, care for; Gor. geruhen; O. Dutch, rochten), recked, cared.-Lenger (A. S. lang, long, long; lengdh, length), longer.-Soothly (A. S. sodh, true; O. S. soth, truth; lic, like), truly.-Therebefore, previously thereto.-Parfitly (Lat. perfectus, perfect; fr. perficere, to complete; per, thoroughly; facere, to make or do; O. Fr. parfit), perfectly.-Weened, thought. See wend, Index.-Courage, heart, spirit. See Index.-Fain (A. S. feaha, gladness; fagen, glad; gefeohan, fagnian, to rejoice), gladly.-Sturdy (0. F. estourdi, stunned; Fr. étourdi, giddy, rash; Ice. styrdir, rigid), foolishly obstinate, blunt, rude.-Wifehood, the state of wife. See note on womanhood, st. 27.-Condition. Quadrisyl.-Take, taken.-Stint (A. S. stintan, to blunt; stentan, to be blunt, to be weary; Norw. stinta, to have enough), restrain within bounds, weary of, desist from.-Slake, slacken, fail. See Index. |