Chapter 57

‘Veez Europe que il ont,La tierce partie del mont,Où sont li meillor chevalier.’ 3791 ff.,

‘Veez Europe que il ont,

La tierce partie del mont,

Où sont li meillor chevalier.’ 3791 ff.,

while Guido says, ‘Nostis enim ... totam Affricam et Europam hodie Grecis esse subiectam, quanta Greci multitudine militum sunt suffulti,’ &c. See below, 7340 ff.

The story is told by Gower with good judgement, and he freely omits unnecessary details, as those of the mission of Antenor to Greece. The debate in Priam’s parliament is shortened, and the speeches of Hector and Paris much improved.

7197 ff. Cp. 3303 ff.

7202. The sentence is broken off and resumed in a different form: see note on i. 98.

7015* ff. Cp.Mirour, 7156 ff.

7033*.And that, i. e. ‘And provided that.’

7092*. See note on l. 6634.

7105* ff. The tale is told also in theMirour de l’Omme, 7093-7128. It is to be found in theGesta Romanorum(which however is not Gower’s source), and in various other places. Cicero tells what is practically the same story of Dionysius of Syracuse (De Nat. Deorum, iii. 34), but the acts of sacrilege were committed by him in various places. The golden mantle was taken from the statue of Zeus at Olympia, and the beard from that of Aesculapius at Epidaurus, the justification in this latter case being that Apollo, the father of Aesculapius, was always represented without a beard. Those who repeated the anecdote in the Middle Ages naturally missed this point. We may note that Dyonis is the name given in theMirour.

7213 ff. Cp.Rom. de Troie, 2779 ff.

7235 ff.Rom. de Troie, 3029 ff. Gower has judiciously cut short the architectural details.

7275.Esionam: see note on l. 6719.

7307.in his yhte, ‘in his possession.’ For the substance of these lines cp.Rom. de Troie, 2915-2950.

7372.schape ye, imperative, forschapeth; so ‘Sey ye’ in l. 7435.

7377.Strong thing, i. e. a hard thing to bear. This is apparently a translation of the French ‘fort,’ which was very commonly used in the sense of ‘difficult’: see the examples in Godefroy’s Dictionary, e. g. ‘forte chose est de çou croire,’ ‘fors choses est a toi guerroier ancontre moi.’

7390 ff. ‘Ten men have been seen to deal with a hundred and to have had the better.’

7400.Rom. de Troie, 3842, ‘L’autrier ès kalendes de Mai,’ &c. The word ‘ender’ is an adjective meaning ‘former,’ originally perhaps an adverb. It is used only in the expressions ‘ender day’ and ‘ender night.’ The combination ‘enderday’ occurs in i. 98.

7420.Rom. de Troie, 3889 f.,

‘Cascune conseilla à meiPrivéement et en segrei,’ &c.

‘Cascune conseilla à mei

Privéement et en segrei,’ &c.

7451 ff. For Cassandra as the Sibyl cp. Godfrey of Viterbo,Pantheon, p. 214 (ed. 1584).

7497 f.

‘Molt est isnele Renommée,Savoir fist tost par la contrée,’ &c.

‘Molt est isnele Renommée,

Savoir fist tost par la contrée,’ &c.

Rom. de Troie, 4299 ff.

7555 ff. The further incidents of the embarkation and of the voyage home,Rom. de Troie, 4505-4832, are omitted.

7576 f. Cp.Rom. de Troie, 4867 ff.

7591 ff. This incident is related in theRom. de Troie, 17457 ff. The occasion was an anniversary celebration at the tomb of Hector, and though the temple of Apollo is not actually named here by Benoît, it has been previously described at large as Hector’s burial place.

7597 ff. The scene in Chaucer’sTroilus, i. 155 ff., is well known. He took it from Boccaccio.

7612. In the treatment of Avarice Gower has departed entirely from the plan of fivefold division which he follows in the first three books, as throughout in theMirour. In the sixth book he deliberately declines to deal with more than two of the branches of Gule (vi. 12f.), and the treatment of Lechery is also irregular.

7651.here tuo debat, i. e. the strife of those two.

7716.the Cote for the hod: that is, he gets a return larger than the amount that he gave; a different form of the expression from that which we have in l. 4787.

7719.hors: probably plural in both cases.

7724. ‘If a man will go by the safe way.’

7736 ff. This saying is not really quoted from Seneca, but from Caecilius Balbus,Nug. Phil.xi. It must have been in Chaucer’s mind when he wrote ‘Suffice unto thy good, though it be smal,’ that is, ‘Adapt thy life to thy worldly fortune.’

7830 f. I take this to mean, ‘And suddenly to meet his flowers the summer appears and is rich.’ For the meaning of ‘hapneth’ see the examples in theNew English Dictionary.

7838.be war: written as one word in F and afterwards divided by a stroke.

LIB. VI.

Latin Verses.i. 6.ruitseems to be transitive, ‘casts down.’

i. 7. Rather involved in order: ‘on the lips which Bacchus intoxicates and which are plunged in sleep.’

4.mystymed, ‘unhappily produced.’ In other places, as i. 220, iii. 2458, the word seems to mean to order or arrange wrongly. The OE. ‘mistīmian’ means to happen amiss.

7.dedly, ‘mortal,’ i. e. subject to death.

34.wext, ‘he waxeth’: for the omission of the pronoun see note on i. 1895 and cp. ll. 149, 213, 367, below.

57. For the form of expression cp. i. 380, ii. 2437, and below, l. 106.

59.sterteis for ‘stert,’ pres. tense.

70.in vers, that is ‘in order.’ The word ‘vers’ is given in Godefroy’s Dictionary with the sense ‘state,’ ‘situation’; e. g.Rom. de la Rose, 9523 ff.,

‘Malement est changies li vers,Or li vient li gieus si divers,Qu’el ne puet ne n’ose joer.’

‘Malement est changies li vers,

Or li vient li gieus si divers,

Qu’el ne puet ne n’ose joer.’

71 f. Cp.Mirour, 8246 f.

84.the jolif wo: cp. i. 88, vii. 1910, andBalades, xii. 4, ‘Si porte ades le jolif mal sanz cure.’

105.of such a thew, ‘by such a habit’ (i. e. of love), to be taken with ‘dronkelew.’

144.hovedance, ‘court dance’: seeNew Eng. Dictionary.

145.the newefot: written thus as one word in S and F: it must be regarded as the name of some dance.

160.it am noght I: cp. Chaucer,Leg. of G. Women, 314, ‘sir, hit am I,’Cant. Tales, A 1736, &c.

188.holde forth the lusti route: perhaps simply, ‘continue to be with the merry company.’ See ‘forth’ in the Glossary.

218.vernage: the same wine that is called ‘gernache’ or ‘garnache’ in theMirour de l’Omme, ‘vernaccia’ in Italian, but whether a wine of Italy or Greece seems uncertain.

221.at myn above: see note on iv. 914.

239.the blanche fievere: cp. Chaucer,Troilus, i. 916, with Skeat’s note.

249. Cp. Chaucer,Troilus, i. 420, ‘For hete of cold, for cold of hete, I dye.’

253.of such reles: this seems to men ‘of such strength,’ and ‘relais’ perhaps has a somewhat similar sense inMirour, 3021,

‘C’est droit qu’il sente le relaisDe la tempeste et de l’orage.’

‘C’est droit qu’il sente le relais

De la tempeste et de l’orage.’

As in the modern ‘relay,’ the idea of ceasing or of relaxation may be accompanied by the notion of fresh vigour taking the place of exhaustion, and so the word may stand simply for strength or freshness.

If this explanation is not admissible, we must suppose that ‘reles’ means here the power of relaxing or dissolving.

285 f. Cp.Rom. de la Rose, 4326 f.,

‘C’est la soif qui tous jors est ivre,Yvrece qui de soif s’enyvre.’

‘C’est la soif qui tous jors est ivre,

Yvrece qui de soif s’enyvre.’

290.liste: perhaps pret. subjunctive; so l. 606, and ‘leste,’ 357.

296.be the bend, i. e. ‘by the band,’ at his girdle.

311 f. ‘This for the time alleviates the pain for him who has no other joy.’ ‘As for the time yit’ means simply ‘for the time,’ cp. ll. 738, 893.

321. For ‘men’ with singular verb cp. ii. 659, v. 5510, 6045, vii. 1352, and Chaucer,Cant. Tales, A 149, &c.

330 ff. Cp. viii. 2252 ff. and.Traitié, xv. 2. The poet referred to in the margin is perhaps Homer, who is quoted in theRom. de la Roseas authority for an arrangement somewhat similar to that described here:

‘Jupiter en toute saisonA sor le suel de sa maison,Ce dit Omers, deus plains tonneaus;Si n’est viex hons ne garçonneaus,N’il n’est dame ne damoisele,Soit vielle ou jone, laide ou bele,Qui vie en ce monde reçoive,Qui de ces deus tonneaus ne boive.C’est une taverne planière,Dont Fortune la tavernièreTrait aluine et piment en coupes’ &c. 6836 ff. (ed. Méon).

‘Jupiter en toute saison

A sor le suel de sa maison,

Ce dit Omers, deus plains tonneaus;

Si n’est viex hons ne garçonneaus,

N’il n’est dame ne damoisele,

Soit vielle ou jone, laide ou bele,

Qui vie en ce monde reçoive,

Qui de ces deus tonneaus ne boive.

C’est une taverne planière,

Dont Fortune la tavernière

Trait aluine et piment en coupes’ &c. 6836 ff. (ed. Méon).

Gower has applied the idea especially to the subject of love, and has made Cupid the butler instead of Fortune. The basis in Homer isIl.xxiv. 527 ff.,

δοιοὶ γάρ τε πίθοι κατακείαται ἐν Διὸς οὔδει, κ.τ.λ.

360.troubleis properly an adjective, cp. v. 4160. The corrupt reading ‘chere’ for ‘cler’ has hitherto obscured the sense.

399 ff. This story of Bacchus is told by Hyginus,Poet. Astr.ii, under the heading ‘Aries.’

437.a riche temple.This was the temple of Jupiter Ammon.

439. ‘To remind thirsty men’ of the power of prayer.

485 ff. The story is from Ovid,Metam.xii. 210 ff.

502 f.thilke tonne drouh, wherof, &c., ‘drew such wine for themthat by it,’ &c. See note on i. 771 and cp. ll. 618 and 1249 of this book.

537. I do not know what authority is referred to.

598.unteid, ‘set free,’ so ‘wandering abroad.’

609. The name of this second branch of Gluttony has not been mentioned before.

632 f. ‘so long as he has wealth by which he may be provided with the means.’ For the use of ‘founde’ cp. v. 2690 and Chaucer,Cant. Tales, C 537, ‘How gret labour and cost is thee to fynde!’ (addressing the belly).

640.for the point of his relief, ‘in order to please him,’ so below ‘he is noght relieved,’ l. 678.

656.toke, subjunctive, ‘how he should take it.’

662. After this line a couplet is inserted by Pauli from the Harleian MS. 7184 (H₃),

To take metes and drinkes newe,For it shulde alwey eschewe.’

To take metes and drinkes newe,

For it shulde alwey eschewe.’

The lines are nonsense and have no metre. They come originally from K, the copyist of which apparently inserted them out of his own head, to fill up a space left by the accidental omission of two lines (645 f.) a little above in the same column. He was making his book correspond column for column with the copy, and therefore discovered his mistake when he reached the bottom, but did not care to draw attention to it by inserting what he had omitted.

663. ‘Physique’ is apparently meant for the Physics of Aristotle, and something very like this maxim is to be found there, but the quotation, ‘Consuetudo est altera natura,’ is actually taken from theSecretum Secretorum(ed. 1520, f. 21).

664. The transposition after this line of the passage ll. 665-964, which occurs in MSS. of the second recension, is not accidental, as we see by the arrangements made afterwards for fitting in the passage (l. 1146). The object apparently was to lay down the principle ‘Delicie corporis militant aduersus animam,’ illustrated by the parable of Dives and Lazarus, before proceeding to the discussion of ‘Delicacie’ in the case of love, and this is perhaps the more logical arrangement; but the alteration, as it is made, involves breaking off the discussion here of the ill effects of change, and resuming it after an interval of nearly two hundred lines.

674.Avise hem wel, i. e. ‘let them take good heed.’

683. ‘Without regard to her honour’: cp.Balades, xxii. 4, ‘Salvant toutdis l’estat de vostre honour.’

709.abeched, from the French ‘abechier,’ to feed, used properly of feeding young birds. The word ‘refreched’ is conformed to it in spelling.

728. The reading of Pauli, ‘I say I am nought gilteles,’ just reverses the sense. Berthelette has the text right here.

738.for a time yit: cp. 311, ‘As for the time yit,’ and 893, ‘As for the while yit.’

770. ‘Without wrinkle of any kind,’ cp.Mirour, 10164, ‘Car moult furont de noble grein’; or perhaps ‘Without the smallest wrinkle,’ ‘grein’ being taken to stand for the smallest quantity of a thing: cp. ii. 3310.

778. Cp. Chaucer,Book of the Duchess, 939 ff.

785.schapthe.For this form, which is given by S and F, cp. the word ‘ssepþe,’ meaning ‘creature’ or ‘form,’ which occurs repeatedly in theAyenbite of Inwyt.

800. ‘And if it seemed so to all others.’ The person spoken of throughout this passage as ‘he,’ ‘him,’ is the eye of the lover. This seems to itself to have sufficient sustenance by merely gazing on the beloved object, and if it seemed so to all others also, that is, to the other senses, the eye would never cease to feed upon the sight: but they, having other needs, compel it to turn away.

809.as thogh he faste: the verb seems to be pret. subjunctive, as ‘syhe’ down below.

817.tireth.This expresses the action of a falcon pulling at its prey: cp. Chaucer,Troilus, i. 787, ‘Whos stomak foules tiren everemo.’ The word is used in the same sense also in theMirour, 7731.

845.mi ladi goode, ‘my lady’s goodness.’

857. Lombard cooks were celebrated, and there was a kind of pastry called ‘pain lumbard,’Mirour, 7809.

879. The romance of Ydoine and Amadas is one of those mentioned at the beginning of theCursor Mundi. It has been published in the ‘Collection des poètes français du moyen âge’ (ed. Hippeau, 1863). Amadas is the type of the lover who remains faithful through every kind of trial.

891.a cherie feste: cp. Prol. 454. It is an expression used for pleasures that last but a short time: cp. Audelay’s Poems (Percy Soc. xiv) p. 22,

‘Hit fallus and fadys forth so doth a chere fayre’

(speaking of the glory of this world).

893. Cp. 311, 738.

897.he, i. e. my ear.

908.me lacketh: the singular form is due perhaps to the use of the verb impersonally in many cases.

961.excede, subjunctive, ‘so as to go beyond reason.’

986 ff. This story furnishes a favourable example of our author’s style and versification. It is told simply and clearly, and the verse is not only smooth and easy, but carefully preserved from monotony by the breaking of the couplet very frequently at the pauses: see 986, 998, 1006, 1010, 1016, &c.

995. We have remarked already upon Gower’s fatalism, iii. 1348, &c. Here we may refer also to ll. 1026, 1613, 1702, for further indications of the same tendency.

1059.is overronne, that is, ‘has passed beyond.’

1110.descryve, apparently ‘understand,’ ‘discern,’ perhaps by that confusion with ‘descry’ which is noted in theNew Engl. Dictionary.

1149 f. These two lines are omitted without authority by Pauli.

1176. That is, though they had rendered no services for which they ought to be so distinguished.

1180.sojorned: the word is used in French especially of a horse kept in stable at rack and manger and refreshed for work: seeMirour, Glossary.

1216. ‘So that that pleasure should not escape him.’

1245.out of feere, ‘without fear.’

1262.unwar, here ‘unknown’: cp. Chaucer,Cant. Tales, B 427, ‘The unwar wo or harm that comth behinde.’

1295. Originally geomancy seems to have been performed, as suggested in this passage, by marks made in sand or earth, then by casual dots on paper: see the quotations under ‘geomancy’ in theNew Engl. Dictionary. Gower here mentions the four recognized kinds of divination, by the elements of earth, water, fire, and air.

1306 ff. It is practically certain that Gower was acquainted with the treatise ascribed to Albertus Magnus, calledSpeculum AstronomiaeorDe libris licitis et illicitis(Alberti Magni Opera, v. 655 ff.), since he seems to follow it to a great extent not only here, but also in his list of early astronomers (vii. 1449 ff.). There are however some things here which he must have had from other sources; for there is no mention in the above-mentioned treatise of ‘Spatula,’ ‘Babilla,’ ‘Cernes,’ ‘Honorius.’

1312.comun rote, that is, apparently, ‘common custom.’ The word ‘rote’ is used also below, l. 1457, where it appears to mean ‘condition.’ It must be the same as that which appears in the phrase ‘by rote,’ and it is difficult to believe that it can be the French ‘route,’ as is usually said. The rhyme here and in l. 1457, as well as those in Chaucer (with ‘cote,’ ‘note’), show that the ‘o’ had an open sound, and this would be almost impossible from French ‘ou.’ The expression ‘par routine’ or ‘par rotine’ is given by Cotgrave as equivalent to the English ‘by rote,’ but I am not aware of any use of such an expression in French as early as the fourteenth century. Many of the examples of the phrase ‘by rote’ seem to have to do with singing or church services (cp. Chaucer,Cant. Tales, B 1712,Piers Plowmans Crede, 379), and Du Cange gives a quotation in which ‘rotae’ seems to mean ‘chants’ or ‘hymns’ (‘rota,’ 6). From such a sense as this the idea of a regular order of service, and thence of ‘custom,’ ‘habit,’ might without much difficulty arise.

1314 ff. The following passage from theSpec. Astronomiae, cap. 10, gives most of the names and terms which occur in these lines: ‘Ex libris vero Toz Graeci est liber de stationibus ad cultum Veneris, qui sic incipit:Commemoratio historiarum... Ex libris autem Salomonis est liber de quatuor anulis, quem intitulat nominibus quatuor discipulorum suorum, qui sic incipit:De arte eutonica et ideica, &c. Et liberde nouem candariis.... Et alius paruus de sigillis ad dæmoniacos, qui sic incipit:Caput sigilli gendal et tanchil.’

1316.Razel.‘Est autem unus liber magnus Razielis, qui dicitur liber institutionum,’ &c. In MS. Ashmole 1730 there is a letter to Dr. Richard Napier from his nephew at Oxford, speaking of a book of Solomon in the University Library calledCephar Raziel, that is, he explains, ‘Angelus magnus secreti Creatoris,’ of which he proposes to make a copy, having obtained means of entering the library at forbidden hours. Again, in MS. Ashmole 1790 there is a description of this book.

1320. ‘cui adiungitur liber Beleni de horarum opere,’Spec. Astron.p. 661. The seal of Ghenbal is the ‘sigillum gendal,’ mentioned in the former citation.

1321 f.thymage Of Thebith.Thebith (or Thebit) stands for Thabet son of Corah, a distinguished Arabian mathematician, to whom were attributed certain works on astrology and magic that were current in Latin. Thus we findThebit de imaginibusvery commonly in MSS., and aLiber Thebit ben Corat de tribus imaginibus magiciswas printed in 1559 at Frankfort. In this latter book the author says, ‘Exercentur quoque hae imagines in amore vel odio, si fuerit actor earum prouidus et sapiens in motibus coeli ad hoc utilibus.’ Thebith is mentioned several times in theSpec. Astronomiae, e. g. p. 662, ‘Super istis imaginibus reperitur unus liber Thebith eben Chorath,’ &c. We must take ‘therupon’ in l. 1321 to mean ‘moreover,’ for it is not to be supposed that the image of Thebith was upon the seal of Ghenbal.

1338. The ‘Naturiens’ are those who pursue the methods of astrology, as opposed to those who practise necromancy (‘nigromance’) or black magic.

1356.He bede nevere: see note on v. 4455.

1359.red, originally written ‘rede’ in F, but the final letter was afterwards erased. See Introduction, p. cxiv.

1371 f. The rhyme requires that ‘become,’ ‘overcome’ shall either be both present or both preterite (subjunctive), and ‘wonne’ seems to decide the matter for preterite. The only difficulty is ‘have I’ for ‘hadde I’ in l. 1370, the latter being required also by the sense (for the reference is to the former time of youth), but not given by the MSS. ‘So that I wonne’ means ‘Provided that I won.’

1391 ff. This story is from theRoman de Troie, 28571-28666, 29629-30092. Guido does not differ as to the main points, but there are several details given by Gower from Benoît which are not found in Guido. In particular the ensign carried by Telegonus is mentioned by Guido only in telling of the dream of Ulysses. Some of the passages which tend to show that Benoît was our author’s authority are noted below.

1408.al the strengthe of herbes: a poemDe Viribus Herbarumpassed in the Middle Ages under the name of Macer.

1422. The mention of ‘nedle and ston’ in this connexion is a rather daring anachronism, for which of course Gower is responsible.

1424.Cilly.Benoît says ‘les isles d’Oloi,’ and Guido ‘in Eolidem insulam,’ but Sicily has been mentioned shortly before.

1438 f. Cp.Rom. de Troie, 28594 ff. Guido does not mention it.

1441. ‘S’el sot des arz, il en sot plus,’Rom. de Troie, 28641.

1445 ff. Benoît says nothing of this, but the story of the adventures of Ulysses was to some extent matter of common knowledge in the Middle Ages. Gower may have had it from Ovid,Metam.xiv. 277 ff. Guido says in a general way that Circe was in the habit of transforming those who resisted her power into beasts.

1457.into such a rote, that is, ‘into such a habit’ (or ‘condition’): see note on l. 1312.

1467.toswolle bothe sides, ‘with both her sides swollen’: cp.Rom. de Troie, 28660 f.,

‘Et si li lesse les costezToz pleins, ço quit, de vif enfant.’

‘Et si li lesse les costez

Toz pleins, ço quit, de vif enfant.’

1474.understode: subj., see note on Prol. 460.

1481.on of al the beste, see note on iv. 2606.

1513 f.margin.This quotation is not from Horace, but from Ovid,Pont.iv. 3. 35. Cp.Mirour, 10948, where the same quotation occurs and is attributed as here to ‘Orace.’

1524. The form ‘stature’ is required by the metre here, and is given by the best MSS. of the second and third recensions. In Prol. 891, where ‘statue’ occurs, it is reduced to a monosyllable by elision, and so it is in Chaucer,Cant. Tales, A 975, 1955. The forms ‘statura,’ ‘stature,’ are found with this sense in the Latin and French of the time.

1541 ff.

‘Et si me disoit: HulixesSaiches, ceste conjuncions,Cist voloir, ceste asembloisons,Que de moi et de toi desirres,Ce sunt dolors et mortex ires.’

‘Et si me disoit: Hulixes

Saiches, ceste conjuncions,

Cist voloir, ceste asembloisons,

Que de moi et de toi desirres,

Ce sunt dolors et mortex ires.’

Rom. de Troie, 29670 ff.

The prediction, however, that one of the two would have his death by reason of their meeting comes later, 29699, whereas Guido combines the materials here much in the same way as Gower.

1552 ff. This idea of a pennon embroidered with a device is Gower’s own conception, constructed from the not very clear or satisfactory account of the matter given by his authority here and later, 29819 ff. The fact is that Benoît did not understand the expression used in the Latin book (the so-called ‘Dictys Cretensis’) which he was here following, the passage being probably corrupt in his copy, and consequently failed to make it intelligible to his readers. The original statement (made with reference to the ensign carried afterwards by Telegonus) is, ‘Ithacam venit gerens manibus quoddam hastile, cui summitasmarinae turturis osse armabatur, scilicet insigne insulae eius in qua genitus erat.’ The meaning apparently is that his spearhead was made of a sea-turtle’s shell. Benoît, in recounting the vision, says that the figure which appeared bore upon the steel head of his lance a crown worked of the bone of a sea-fish,

‘Portoit une coronne ovréeD’os de poisson de mer salée.’ 29687 f.

‘Portoit une coronne ovrée

D’os de poisson de mer salée.’ 29687 f.

Then afterwards, in telling of the departure of Telegonus to seek his father, he says that, to show of what country he was, he bore on the top of his lance the sign of a sea-fish worked like a tower,

‘En semblance de tor ovrée.’ 29822.

Guido apparently was not able to make much of this, and after saying, in the account of the dream, that at the top of the lance there appeared ‘quedam turricula tota ex piscibus artificiose composita’ (Bodl. MS. Laud 645, with variants ‘craticula,’ MS. Add. 365, ‘curricula,’ printed editions), he subsequently omitted mention of the recognisance.

1561 f.A signe it is ... Of an Empire.Benoît has,

‘Que c’iert d’ampire conoissanceEt si aperte demostranceQue por ce seroient devis,’ &c. 29695 ff.,

‘Que c’iert d’ampire conoissance

Et si aperte demostrance

Que por ce seroient devis,’ &c. 29695 ff.,

which may perhaps mean, ‘that it was the cognisance of a kingdom and a sign that they should be divided.’ In Guido, however, it is ‘hoc est signum impie disiunccionis’ (MS. Laud 645 and printed text), or ‘hoc est signum impii et disiunccionis’ (MS. Add. 365).

1567 f. Cp. 2296 ff.

1603 ff. For the order of the clauses here cp. ii. 709, iv. 3520 ff.

1622 ff.That, for ‘Til that’; cp. iv. 3273, v. 3422.

1636. ‘And he made himself ready forthwith.’ For the omission of the pronoun even where the subject is changed cp. v. 3291, 4590.

1637 ff. Cp.Rom. de Troie, 29824 ff. Guido says nothing about it.

1643. That is, ‘to avoid espial and wrong suspicions.’

1656.Rom. de Troie, 29801 f.,

‘A Hulyxes, qui fut ses druz,Mande par lui v. c. saluz.’

‘A Hulyxes, qui fut ses druz,

Mande par lui v. c. saluz.’

Guido says nothing about this.

1660.Nachaie, a mistake for ‘Acaie,’

‘Tant qu’il vint droit en Acaie’;

and this again seems to be from ‘Ithaca.’

1685.and welnyh ded: cp.Rom. de Troie, 29906 f. Guido says only ‘et ab illis est grauiter vulneratus.’

1689. Gower has judiciously reduced the number from fifteen (Rom. de Troie, 29902).

1696.for wroth, that is, ‘by reason that he was wroth’: see note on iv. 1330. We can hardly take ‘wroth’ as a substantive.

1701. ‘Se il ne fust un poi guenchiz,’Rom. de Troie, 29939.

1707.With al the signe, ‘together with the signe,’ like the French ‘ove tout’; cp.Mirour4 (note).

1745 f.Rom. de Troie, 30022 ff. Guido omits this.

1769 ff. For this repetition cp. 2095 ff.

1785. The ‘Cronique imperial’ is evidently the story itself, and not any particular book in which it is to be found.

1789 ff. The authority which is mainly followed by our author for this story is the Anglo-NormanRoman de toute Chevalerie, by Eustace (or Thomas) of Kent. The beginning of this, including all that we have to do with here, has been printed by M. Paul Meyer in his book on the Alexander romances, ‘Bibliothèque française du moyen âge’ vol. iv. pp. 195-216. Gower was acquainted, however, also with the LatinHistoria Alexandri de Preliis, and has made use of this in certain places, as (1) in the account of Philip’s vision (2129-2170) where he probably found the French unintelligible, and (2) in the story of the death of Nectanabus (2289 ff.), of which the Latin authority certainly gives the more satisfactory account.

The following are some of the points in which Gower agrees with theRoman de toute Chevalerieagainst the two Latin versions of the story, viz. theHistoria de Preliisand theRes Gestae Alexandriof Valerius: (1) the celebration by Olympias of the festival of her nativity, when she rides out on a white mule and is first seen by Nectanabus, ll. 1823-1880; (2) the omission of the sealing of the queen’s womb by Nectanabus, this being introduced only in Philip’s vision; (3) the question of the queen as to how she shall procure further interviews with the god, and the answer of Nectanabus, ll. 2109 ff.; (4) the circumstances connected with the egg from which the serpent was hatched, ll. 2219 ff. The English metrical Romance of Alexander, printed by Weber, is also taken from theRoman de toute Chevalerie, and consequently the details of it are for the most part the same as those in Gower. It is certain, however, that Gower does not follow this. It would be quite contrary to his practice to follow an English authority, and apart from this there are many small matters here in which he agrees with the French as against the English, e. g. the name Nectanabus, which is Neptanabus in the English (Anectanabus in theHist. de Preliis), the mention of thenativityof Olympias as the occasion of her festival, ‘Grant feste tint la dame de sa nativité,’ the use of the word ‘artemage,’ l. 1957, the incident of the dragon being changed into an eagle, l. 2200; and such points of correspondence as may seem to suggest a connexion between the two English writers, as in ll. 1844 f., 2231 f., are also to be found in the French. The English alliterative Romance of Alexander follows theHist. de Preliis, and consequently it agrees with Gower in the two passages which have been referred to above.

1798. The sentence is broken off and finished in a different manner. See note on i. 98, and cp. vii. 3632.

1811.Thre yomen, &c. This is an addition by Gower. According tothe original story Nectanabus was alone, and this would evidently be the better for his purpose.

1828.list.This may be present tense, ‘it pleases.’ Loss of the finalein the preterite would hardly occur except before a vowel: see Introduction, p. cxv. The French original lays stress here on the extravagant desire that women have to display themselves.

1831.At after, i. e. ‘After,’ used especially of meals, cp. l. 1181, and Chaucer,Cant. Tales, B 1445, F 918 ‘at after diner,’ E 1921 ‘At after mete,’ F 302, 1219 ‘At after soper,’ for which references, as for many others elsewhere, I am indebted to Prof. Skeat’s very useful Glossary.

1844 f. The French has

‘E tymbres e tabours ont e leur corns corné,’ 130,

and later

‘Plus de mil damoisels ount le jur karolé, 140.

The English version of the second line,

‘There was maidenes carolying,’

comes very near to Gower.

1924.Bot if I sihe, ‘unless I should see,’ pret. subj.

1943 ff. This promise is not in the French.

1959 ff. The astrological terms in these lines are due to Gower. The original says that Nectanabus laid the image in a bed with candles lighted round it, bathed it in the juice of certain herbs, and said his charms over it.

1997.such thing ... Wherof: cp. ll. 502, 2398.

2005 f.

‘Nectanabus idunc ses karectes fina.’

2062.putte him.We should rather read ‘put him’ with S and F: see Introduction, p. cxvi. The French romance here grotesquely represents Nectanabus as making up a disguise for himself with a ram’s head and a dragon’s tail, which he joins together with wax, ‘e puis dedens se mist.’ The LatinHist. de Preliissays simply that he changed himself into a dragon.

2074 ff. The French has,

‘Une pel de moton ouvec les cornes prist,Une coroune d’or sur les cornes assist.’

‘Une pel de moton ouvec les cornes prist,

Une coroune d’or sur les cornes assist.’

The punctuation after ‘tok’ is that of F, but I suspect that ‘in signe of his noblesse’ belongs really in sense to 2076 f., and refers rather to the crown than to the horns, in which case we ought to set a full stop after ‘bar.’

2113.seth hire grone, that is, in child-bed.

2128 ff. The French romance, following Valerius in the main, gives a rather confused account of Philip’s dream. Gower has turned from it to theHistoria de Preliis.

2160.Amphion.The name apparently is got from ‘Antifon,’ which occurs below in connexion with the incident of the pheasant’s egg.

2182.rampende.The French has ‘mult fierement rampant.’

2199 ff. The transformation into an eagle is found in Valerius and the French romance, and not in theHist. de Preliis. It may be noted, however, that the picturesque description which we have here of the eagle pruning himself and then shaking his feathers, so that the hall was moved as by an earthquake, is Gower’s own.

2219 ff. The Latin accounts say that a bird, according to Valerius a hen, came and laid an egg in Philip’s lap as he sat in his hall. TheRom. de toute Chevaleriemakes the incident take place out in the fields, and the bird, as here, is a pheasant. The expression used, ‘Un oef laissat chaïr sur les curs Phelippun,’ seems to mean that the egg was laid in Philip’s lap. There is nothing about the heat of the sun in the Latin versions.

2250 ff. These lines refer to the precautions taken by Nectanabus to secure that the child shall be born precisely at the right astrological moment: cp.Rom. de toute Chevalerie, 401-425. Gower has chosen to omit the details.

2274.Calistre, i. e. Callisthenes, who was reputed to be the author of the history of Alexander which Valerius translated.

2299 ff. The question of Alexander and the answer of Nectanabus is given as here in theHist. de Preliis. In Valerius and the French romance Alexander throws Nectanabus down merely in order to surprise him, and the suggestion that Nectanabus knew that he should die by the hands of his son is not made till afterwards.

2368.Zorastes.The statement here about the laughter of Zoroaster at his birth is ultimately derived from Pliny,Hist. Nat.vii. 15. It is repeated by Augustine, with the addition ‘nec ei boni aliquid monstrosus risus ille portendit. Nam magicarum artium fuisse perhibetur inventor; quae quidem illi nec ad praesentis vitae vanam felicitatem contra suos inimicos prodesse potuerunt; a Nino quippe rege Assyriorum, cum esset ipse Bactrianorum, bello superatus est’ (De Civ. Dei, xxi. 14).

2381. ‘Like wool which is ill spun’: cp. i. 10.

2387.Phitonesse, cp. iv. 1937.

2411.betawht To Aristotle, ‘delivered over to Aristotle’: ‘betawht’ is the past partic. of ‘beteche,’ which occurs afterwards, vii. 4234, and in Chaucer,Cant. Tales, B 2114, ‘Now such a rym the devel I beteche.’

2418.Yit for a time: to be taken as one phrase; cp. ‘for a while yit,’ &c., ll. 311, 738, 893.

LIB. VII.

The account given in the earlier part of this book of the parts of Philosophy, that is, of the objects of human knowledge, represents in its essentials the Aristotelian system. The division into ‘Theorique,’‘Rethorique,’ and ‘Practique’ is in effect the same as Aristotle’s classification of knowledge as Theoretical, Poetical, and Practical, and the further division of ‘Theorique’ into Theology, Physics, and Mathematics, and of ‘Practique’ into Ethics, Economics, and Politics, is that which is made by Aristotle. The statement of Pauli and others that this part of Gower’s work is ‘very likely borrowed’ from theSecretum Secretorumis absolutely unfounded. This treatise is not in any sense an exposition of the Aristotelian philosophy, indeed it is largely made up of rules for diet and regimen with medical prescriptions. Gower is indebted to it only in a slight degree, and principally in two places, vii. 2014-2057, the discussion of Liberality in a king, and 3207*-3360*, the tale of the Jew and the Pagan.

The most important authority, however, for the earlier part of the seventh book has hitherto been overlooked. It is theTrésorof Brunetto Latini. This book is very largely based upon Aristotle, with whose works Latini was exceptionally well acquainted, and it is from this that Gower takes his classification of the sciences, though in regard to the place of Rhetoric he does not quite agree with Latini, who brings it in under the head of ‘Politique,’ making Logic the third main branch of philosophy. Gower takes from theTrésoralso many of his physical and geographical statements and his reference to the debate on the conspiracy of Catiline. On the other hand his astronomy is for the most part independent of theTrésor, and so also is his method of dealing with the principles of Government, under the five points of Policy. Brunetto Latini does not treat of politics generally so much as of the practical rules to be observed by the Podestà of an Italian republic. It may be observed that Gower has drawn on theTrésoralso in the sketch of general history given in the Prologue (ll. 727-820). I refer to pages of the edition of Chabaille, 1863.

26 ff. ‘As to which Aristotle ... declares the “intelligences” under three heads especially.’ The meaning of ‘intelligences’ here and in l. 176, and of ‘intelligencias’ in the margin, l. 149, seems to be nearly the same as ‘sciences,’ that is to say, divisions or provinces of knowledge.

155.Algorisme.This stands properly for the decimal system of numeration, but the use of the word in the plural, l. 158, shows that Gower did not use it in this sense only. The association of the word ‘Algorismes’ below with the lettersa,b,c(‘Abece’) seems to suggest some kind of algebraical expression, but this is perhaps due to a misunderstanding by Gower of the word ‘abaque’ (or ‘abake’) in theTrésor, p. 6: ‘Et de ce sont li enseignement de l’abaque et de l’augorisme.’

183 ff. ‘Ce est la science par laquele li vii sage s’esforcierent par soutillece de geometrie de trover la grandeur dou ciel et de la terre, et la hautesce entre l’un et l’autre.’Trésor, pp. 6, 7.

207 ff. Cp.Trésor, p. 15, ‘Cele matiere de quoi ces choses furent formées les desvance de naissance, non mie de tens, autressi comme lisons est devant le chant, ... et neporquant andui sont ensemble.’ Cp. pp. 104, 105.

216.Ylem, this is ‘hyle’ (Gr. ὕλη), the Aristotelian term for matter. For what follows cp.Trésor, p. 105.

245. This comparison of the movement of water within the earth to the circulation of blood in the veins, is taken from theTrésor, p. 115: ‘autressi comme li sangs de l’ome qui s’espant par ses vaines, si que il encherche tout le cors amont et aval.’

256 ff. Cp.Trésor, p. 117.

265 ff. This which follows about the Air seems to be partly independent of theTrésor, and the word ‘periferie’ is not there used. Aristotle divides the atmosphere into two regions only, that of ἀτμίς or moist vapour, corresponding to the first and second periferies here, and that of exhalation (ἀναθυμίασις) or fiery vapour, corresponding to the third,Meteor.i. 3.

283 f. ‘According to the condition under which they take their form.’ I suppose the word ‘intersticion’ to be taken from ‘interstitium,’ as used with a technical sense in astrology. Albumasar, for example, says, ‘Quicquid in hoc mundo nascitur et occidit ex quatuor elementis est compositum, tribus interstitiis educatum, scilicet principio, medio et fine, quae tria in illa quatuor ducta duodecim producunt.’ This is the cause, he says, why there are twelve signs of the zodiac, ‘Praesunt siquidem haec signa quatuor elementis eorumque tribus interstitiis.’ He then explains that the first ‘interstitium’ of each element is that condition of it which is favourable to production, growth and vigour, the second that which is stationary, and the third that which tends to decay and corruption, so that the word is almost equivalent to condition or quality. (Vincent of Beauvais,Spec. Nat.xv. 36.)

302. Cp.Trésor, p. 119, ‘mais li fors deboutemenz dou vent la destraint et chace si roidement que ele fent et passe les nues et fait toner et espartir.’

307 ff. Cp.Trésor, p. 120.

323 ff.Trésor, p. 120, ‘dont aucunes gens cuident que ce soit li dragons ou que ce soit une estele qui chiet.’ What follows about ‘exhalations’ is not from theTrésor.

334.Assub.This word is used in Latin translations of Aristotle as an equivalent of ‘stella cadens.’

339.exalacion.This stands for fiery vapour only, originally a translation of Aristotle’s ἀναθυμίασις.

351 ff. The names ‘Eges’ and ‘Daaly’ (l. 361), must be taken originally from Aristotle’s expression δαλοὶ καὶ αἶγες, which he says are names given by some people to various forms of fire in the sky,Meteor.i. 4. Our author simply repeated the terms after his authorities and without understanding them. In fact, ‘Eges’ stands for the same as the ‘Capra saliens’ of the preceding lines.

389. The idea of the four complexions of man, corresponding to thefour elements, is not due to Aristotle, but we find it in theTrésor. The application to matters of love in ll. 393-440 is presumably Gower’s own.

405 f. Aristotle says on the contrary, οἱ μελαγχολικοὶ οἱ πλεῖστοι λάγνοι εἰσίν,Probl.30.

437.To thenke.For this use of ‘may’ with the gerund cp. ii. 510, ‘I myhte noght To soffre.’

510. ‘While the flesh has power to act,’ that is during the life of the body.

521 ff. For the geography which follows cp.Trésor, pp. 151-153.

534.the hevene cope: cp. l. 1579, ‘under the coupe of hevene,’ where the spelling suggests the Latin ‘cupa,’ rather than ‘capa,’ as the origin of the word in this common phrase. The quality of the ‘o’ in Europe is perhaps doubtful.

536.Begripeth: used here as plural, cp. l. 1107: ‘calleth’ in l. 561 with ‘men’ (indef.) as the subject is not a case of the same kind.

545.who that rede: subj., cp. Prol. 460.

559. That is, presumably, double as much as either of the other two: cp.Trésor, p. 152, ‘car Asie tient bien l’une moitié de toute la terre.’

566.Canahim: a mistake for ‘Tanaim’ (or ‘Tanain’), seeTrésor, p. 152, where the extent of Asia is said to be from the mouths of the Nile and the ‘Tanain’ (i. e. the Don) as far as the Ocean and the terrestrial Paradise.

593 ff. Cp.Trésor, p. 115.

597. Latini says that this is the explanation given by some people of the tides, but he adds that the astronomers do not agree with them (Trésor, p. 172).

611. Aristotle does in fact make of αἰθήρ a fifth element, of which the heaven and the heavenly bodies consist, but Gower takes this account of it and the name Orbis from theTrésor, p. 110, where also we find the comparison to the shell of an egg.

652 ff. ‘Sapiens dominabitur astris,’ an opinion which is developed in theVox Clamantis, ii. 217 ff.

694.Bot thorizonte, ‘beyond the horizon’: so perhaps in the first text of v. 3306, ‘But of his lond’ stood for ‘Out of his lond.’ However, this use of ‘but’ is not clearly established in Southern ME. and perhaps the reading of the second recension, ‘Be thorizonte,’ may be right. As regards sense, one is much the same as the other: neither is very intelligible, unless ‘thorizonte’ means the ecliptic.

699.thei, that is the planets, not the signs.

725 ff. Cp.Trésor, p. 141.

831.is that on, i. e. ‘is one,’ or ‘is the first.’

853. The sun’s horses are named by Fulgentius,Mythol.ii, in the same order as we have here, ‘Erythreus, Actæon, Lampos, Philogeus.’ They are said there to represent four divisions of the day, Erythreus, for example, having his name from the red light of morning, and Philogeus from the inclination of the sun towards the earth at evening. Ovid gives a different set of names.

944. ‘In whatever degree he shall exercise his powers.’

978.as it appendeth, ‘as it is fitting,’ lit. ‘as it belongs’: cp. ‘appent,’Mir.1535.

979.natheles.This word is frequently used by Gower with no sense of opposition, meaning ‘moreover’ or something similar: cp. i. 21, vii. 3877, &c.

983. It may be observed that (in spite of this reference and that in l. 1043) our author’s statements about the number and arrangement of stars in the constellations of the zodiac do not at all correspond with those in the Almagest.

983 (margin).produxit ad esse, ‘brought forth into existence’: the infinitive is often used as a substantive in Gower’s Latin: e. g. Prol.Lat. Verses, iv. 4, v. 6.

989.hot and drye.According to the astrologers, Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius preside over the element of fire, and are hot and dry by nature; Taurus, Virgo, Capricornus over that of earth, being dry and cold; Gemini, Libra, Aquarius preside over air, and are hot and moist; while Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces are moist and cold, having dominion over water (Albumasar, cited by Vincent of Beauvais,Spec. Nat.xv. 36).

991 f. Aries and Scorpio are the ‘houses’ or ‘mansions’ of Mars, Taurus and Libra of Venus, Gemini and Virgo of Mercury, Cancer of the Moon, Leo of the Sun, Sagittarius and Pisces of Jupiter, Capricornus and Aquarius of Saturn.

1021.somdiel descordant: the hot and moist Libra is more in accordance with her nature: see 1111 ff.

1036 f. This statement and the others like it below, 1073, 1089, 1127, 1147, 1198, 1222, may be taken to indicate that the division of the signs was very uncertain in our author’s mind. It may be observed that the usual representation of Taurus in star-maps is with his head, not his tail, towards Gemini.

1085.the risinge: that is to say, Virgo is the ‘exaltation’ of Mercury, as well as one of his houses.

1100. For the sense of ‘applied’ cp. v. 913.

1115 f. Libra is the exaltation of Saturn.

1135. That is to say, Scorpio is the ‘fall’ of Venus, being the sign opposite to one of her houses, namely Taurus.

1155 f. Sagittarius is a house of Jupiter, and it is opposite to Gemini, which is one of the houses of Mercury.

1162.The Plowed Oxe, i. e. the ox that has ploughed the land.

1166. Then the swine are killed and the larder, or bacon-tub, comes into use.

1175. Capricorn is the ‘fall’ of the Moon, being opposite to her house, Cancer, as the next sign Aquarius is that of the Sun, see l. 1190.

1216. ‘Piscis’ is the reading of the MSS. here in text and margin, but ‘Pisces’ in l. 1253.

1229 ff. That is, Pisces is a house of Jupiter and the exaltation of Venus.

1239 ff. The reference is apparently to theIntroductoriumof Albumasar, but the printed editions of this give an abbreviated text which does not help us here. A fuller translation of the original may be found in manuscript, e. g. MS. Digby 194, where something more or less corresponding to this may be found on f. 55, but the Arabic names of places make it difficult to follow.

1281 ff. This account of the fifteen stars with their herbs and stones is taken by Gower from a treatise called ‘Liber Hermetis de xv stellis et de xv lapidibus et de xv herbis, xv figuris,’ &c., which may be found in several manuscripts, e. g. MSS. Ashmole 341 (f. 123) and 1471 (f. 120 vo): cp. l. 1437, where Hermes is mentioned as the authority. Some information as to the names of the stars here mentioned may be found in Ideler’sUntersuchungen über den Ursprung und die Bedeutung der Sternnamen, 1809.

1292 ff. ‘Et scias quod stelle fixe habent fortunia et infortunia quemadmodum et planete’ (Lib. Herm.).

1317. ‘anabulla seu titimallum.’

1329.Algol, or Caput Algol, the Arabic ‘Ras el-ghûl’ (devil’s head), in Perseus.

1338.Alhaiot, probably for ‘Alhaioc,’ that is Capella, from the Arabic ‘El-‛aijûk.’

1343. ‘prassium seu marrubium.’

1345.Canis maior, ‘Alhabor,’ i. e. Sirius.

1356.Canis minor, ‘Algomeiza,’ i. e. Procyon.

1362.Primerole: in theLiber Hermetiswe have here ‘solsecium, quam elitropiam vocant.’

1364.Arial, apparently ‘Cor Leonis,’ i. e. Regulus.

1367.Gorgonza: ‘gregonza’ in MS. Ash. 341.

1375. ‘lappacium maius.’

1378.gret riote: ‘color huius niger est, faciens hominem iratum, animosum et audacem et mala cogitantem et maledicentem ... et faciens fugere demones et congregare.’

1379 ff. ‘Nona stella dicitur Atimet Alaazel, ... et est ex natura Veneris et Mercurii, et dicitur stella pulchritudinis et racionis,’ &c. The name ‘Atimet Alaazel’ is from the Arabic ‘El-simâk el-a‛zal,’ that is the star which we call Spica.

1385.Salge, Lat. ‘saluia.’

1387. ‘Decima vero stella Atimet Alrameth, et dicitur saltator, et est ex natura Martis et Iouis.’ This is the Arabic ‘El-simâk el-râmih,’ which we call Arcturus.

1393.Venenas: ‘Vndecima stella dicitur Benenais et est postrema de ii stellis que sunt in cauda urse maioris.’ In Arabic ‘Banat Na‛sh.’

1401.Alpheta, ‘Elfetah,’ from the Arabic ‘El-fak‛ah’ (the beggar’s dish), meaning the constellation which we call the Northern Crown. Here the name stands for the principal star of that constellation, Gemma.

1419.Botercadent.The Latin says ‘Vultur cadens,’ that is perhapsVega; but ‘Botercadent’ would probably be a different star, namely that called in Arabic ‘Batn-Kaitos’ or Whale’s belly.

1426.Tail of Scorpio: in the Latin ‘Cauda Capricorni.’

1449 ff. These names of the chief authors of the science of astronomy seem to be partly taken from the treatise calledSpeculum AstronomiaeorDe libris licitis et illicitis, cap. ii. (Alberti Magni Opera, v. 657): cp. note on vi. 1311 ff. The passage is as follows, under the heading ‘De libris astronomicis antiquorum’: ‘Ex libris ergo qui post libros geometricos et arithmeticos inueniuntur apud nos scripti super his, primus tempore compositionis est liber quem edidit Nembroth gigas ad Iohathonem discipulum suum, qui sic incipit:Sphaera caeli&c., in quo est parum proficui et falsitates nonnullae, sed nihil est ibi contra fidem quod sciam. Sed quod de hac scientia vtilius inuenitur, est liber Ptolemaei Pheludensis, qui dicitur Graece Megasti, Arabice Almagesti, ... quod tamen in eo diligentiae causa dictum est prolixe, commode restringitur ab Azarchele Hispano, qui dictus est Albategni in libro suo.... Voluitque Alpetragius corrigere principia et suppositiones Ptolemaei,’ &c.

It would seem that, either owing to corruption of his text or to misunderstanding, our author separated the name ‘Megasti’ from its connexion with Ptolemy and the Almagest, and made of it a book called ‘Megaster,’ which he attributes to Nembrot.

1461. Alfraganus was author of a book called in LatinRudimenta Astronomica.

1576 f.out of herre ... entriketh, that is, ‘involves (this world) in perplexity, so that it is disordered.’

1579.coupe of hevene, see note on l. 534.

1595 ff. The discussion in the Roman Senate on the fate of the accomplices of Catiline is here taken as a model of rhetorical treatment. The idea is a happy one, but it is borrowed from theTrésor, where Latini, after laying down the rules of rhetoric, illustrates them (pp. 505-517) by a report and analysis of the speeches in this debate, as they are given by Sallust. The ‘Cillenus’ mentioned below is D. Junius Silanus, who as consul-designate gave his opinion first. It is tolerably evident in this passage, as it is obvious in iv. 2647 ff., that Gower did not identify Tullius with Cicero, though Latini actually says, ‘Marcus Tullius Cicero, cils meismes qui enseigne l’art de rectorique, estoit adonques consule de Rome.’

1615 ff. Cp.Trésor, p. 509, ‘mais Jules Cesar, qui autre chose pensoit, se torna as covertures et as moz dorez, porce que sa matiere estoit contraire,’ &c.

1623.after the lawe.It may be observed as a matter of fact that the law was on the side of Caesar, and that this was his chief argument against the death penalty.

1706.Fyf pointz.TheSecretum Secretorumrecommends to rulers the virtues of Liberality, Wisdom, Chastity, Mercy, Truth, and afterwards of Justice, but there is no very systematic arrangement there,nor in general does the treatment of the subject, except partly as regards Liberality, resemble Gower’s. It has been already observed that the treatment of Politics in theTrésoris altogether different from that which we have here.

1783 ff. This story comes originally from 3 Esdras, ch. iii, iv. The names, however, of Arpaghes and Manachaz are not found in the text of that book, and the story of Alcestis, which Zorobabel tells, is of course a later addition, made no doubt by our author.

1809. ‘Having his mind so disposed.’

1856.behelde, an archaic form, used here for the rhyme.

1884 ff. 3 Esdr. iv. 29, ‘Videbam tamen Apemen filiam Bezacis, mirifici concubinam regis, sedentem iuxta regem ad dexteram,’ &c.

1961 f. ‘He that is true shall never rue,’ or some such jingle. Cp. Shaksp.K. John, v. 7,

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