THE FRAGMENTS.

THE FRAGMENTS.I.1[The King of Portugal plots Torrent’s death.]Desonell gives Torrent a Horse[T]. . . .est hym vp. . . .462. . . . .chent be for to fle. . . . .ly ivyll he gone464which the King of Nazareth had sent her.The kynge of Nazareth sent hym me,Torent, I wot-saue hym on the,For better loue I none!’467Afterwarde vpon a tyde,As they walkyd by the ryvers syde,The kynge and yonge Torent,470The KingThis lorde wolde fayne, that he dede wereAnd he wyst nat, on what manere,Howe he myght hym shent.473treacherouslyA fals letter made the kyngeAnd made a messangere it brynge,On the ryuer syde as they went,476asks Torrent to get Desonell a FalconTo Torent, that was true as stele,If he loued Dyssonell wele,Gete hir a faucon gent.479Torent the letter began to rede,The kynge came nere and lystened,As thoughe he it neuer had sene.482The kynge sayde, ‘what may this be?’‘Lorde, it is sent to meFor a faucon shene;485I ne wote, so God me spede,In what londe that they brede.’The kynge sayde, ‘as I herde sayne,488. . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . .from the Forest of Magdalen.In the forest of Maudelayne491FRAG. 2. TORRENT GOES TO THE FOREST OF MAUDELAYNE.II.2Than sayde [the] kyn[g] vntrue,492‘And ye fynde haw[k]es of great value,Brynge me one with the!’494Torent sayd: ‘so God me saue,Torrent agrees to do it.Yf it betyde, that I any haue,At your wyll shall they be.’497To his squyer bade he thare,After his armoure to fare,In the felde abode he;500He ridesThey armed hym in his wede,He bestrode a noble stede. . . . . . . . . .503to the Forest of Magdalen,Torent toke the way agayneUnto the forest of Maudelayne,In a wylsome way;506Berys and apes there founde heAnd wylde bestys great plenteAnd lyons, where they lay.509In a wode, that is tyght,It drewe towarde the nyght.By dymmynge of the day512Lysten, lordes, of them came wo,gets separated from his Squire,He and his squyer departed in two,Carefull men then were they.515At a shedynge of a romeEyther departed other frome,As I vnderstande.518Torent taketh a dolefull wayDowne into a depe valay,. . . . . . . . . .521FRAG. 3. TORRENT IS TO FIGHT THE CALABRIAN GIANT, SLOGUS.III.3[The King of Portugal sends Torrent to be kild by the Giant Slogus.]Torrent sits at the head of a side table.. . . . . . . . . . . .819And the good squyres after h[ym],That knyghtes sholde be.821The King asks Torrent if he’llAs they were a-myddes theyr. . .The kynge wolde not forgete,To Torente than sayd he,824He sayd: ‘so god me saue,Fayne thou woldest my dough[ter haue],Thou hast loued her many a d[aye].’827‘Ye, by my trouthe,’ sayd Torente,‘And I were a ryche man,Ryght gladly by my faye.’830do a deed of arms for Desonell.‘If thou durst for her sakeA poynte of armes vndertake,Thou broke her vp for ay.’833‘Yes,’ says Torrent.‘Ye,’ sayde he, ‘or I go,Sykernes thou make me soOf thy doughter hende.836Ye and after all my ryghtesBy VII score of hardy knyghtes’Al they were Torentes frende.839‘Now, good lordes, I you praye,Bere wytnes of this dayAgayne yf god me sende!’842Torente sayd, ‘so may I the,Wyst I, where my jorney shold [be],Thyder I wolde me dyghte.’845The kyng gaue hym an answ[e]re,‘Then go to Calabria,‘In the londe of Caleb[e]reThere wonneth a gyaunte wygh[hte]848. . . . . . . . . . . .Slogus he hyght as I the tolde,and fight the Giant Slogus.’God sende the that waye ryghte!’851FRAG. 4. TORRENT WILL NOT GIVE UP HIS GIANT-FIGHT.IV.4[Torrent is offerd a Princess of Provyns.]The king of Provyns warns. . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . .For why I wyll the saye,917Moche folke of that countreCometh heder for socoure to me,Bothe by nyghte and by daye.920him against the terrible Giant there,There is a gyaunte of grete renowne,He destroyeth bothe cyte and towneAnd all that he may.923As bokes of rome tell,He was goten with the deuyll of hell,As his moder slepynge lay.’926The kynge sayde, ‘by Saynt Adryan,I rede, a nother gentylmanBe there and haue the degre.929I haue a doughter, that me is dere,and offers him his Daughter and 2 Duchies.Thou shalte wedde her to thy fere,And yf it thy wyll be,932Two duchyes in hondeI wyll gyue her in londe.’‘Gramercy, syr,’ sayd he,935Torrent says he must keep his troth.‘With my tonge I haue so wrought,To breke my day wyll I nought,Nedes me behoueth there to be.’938‘On Goddes name,’ the kynge gan sayne,‘Iesu brynge the saffe agayne,Lorde, moche of myght!’941Mynstralsy was them amonge,With harpe, fedyll and songe,Delycyous notes on hygh[t]e.944Whan it was tyme, to bed they wente,And on the morowe rose TorenteAnd toke leue of kynge and knyght947Torrent starts,And toke a redy way.FRAG. 5. TORRENT HEARS OF THE CALABRIAN GIANT, SLOGUS.Fragment V.5By the se syde as it lay,God sende hym gatys ryght!950An hye waye hath he nome,reaches Calabria,Into Calabre is he comeWithin two dayes or thre.953So he met folke hym agayne,Fast comynge with carte and wayneFrowarde the se.956‘Dere God,’ sayd Torente now,‘Good folke, what eyleth you,That ye thus fast fle?’959and hears of the Giant.‘There lyeth a gyaunte here besyde,For all this londe brode and wydeNo man on lyue leueth he.’962‘Dere God,’ sayd Torente then,‘Wher euer be that fendes den?’They answered hym anone:965‘In a castell in the see,Slogus’ they sayd ‘hyght he,Many a man he hath slone.968The Giant Slogus is in Hungary.We wote full well, where he doth lyByfore the cyte of Hungry,’. . . . . . . . . .971FRAG. 6. TORRENT FIGHTS A GIANT. DESONELL HAS TWINS.VI.6[Torrent fights the Giant.]The number and configuration of dots corresponds as closely as possible to the printed book.The giant says he’ll wring Torrent’s nose.. . . . . .all the wrynge,1014. . . . . . . .lynge. . . . . . . . .thou the1016. . . . . . . .he toke,. . . . . . . .bare a crokeHis Crook is 13 ft. long.. . . . . . . .te longe and thre1019. . . . . .ever so longe were. . . . . . . .had no fere. . . .yd darste thou come nere1022. . . . .nte nolengre a-bydeTorrent charges,. . . . .nte wolde he ryde. . . .ghte.1025. . . .one eye but one,. . . . . .neuer none,. . .nor by nyght.1028. . . .lpe of god of heuen,pierces the Giant’s eye,. . . . .herin euen,. . . . . . . . . . . .1031and makes him roar.. . . .gan to rore,. . . .the cyte wore,. . .ay.1034. . . .es eyen were oute. . . . . . . .boute. . . . . . . . . . .1037FRAG. 7. DESONELL AND HER TWINS ARE SENT TO SEA.VII.7[Desonell bears twins. All are sent out to sea. They reach land.]Thus the lady dwelled there,1807Desonell is delivered of 2 male childrenTyll that she delyuered wereOf men chyldren two.1809Of all poyntes were they gent,like Torrent.Lyke were they to Sir Torent,For his loue suffred they wo.1812The kynge sayd, ‘so mote I the,Her Father says she shall be sent out to sea.Thou shalt into the seWithout wordes mo.1815Every kynges doughter fer and nereAt the they shall lere,Agaynst right to do!’1818She is led from his land.Great ruthe it was to se,Whan they led that lady freOut of hir faders lande.1821The Queen bewails her daughter’s fate.The quene, hir moder, was nere wodeFor hir doughter, that gentyll fode,Knyghtes stode wepynge.81824A clothe of sylke toke they tho,And departed it bytwene the chyldren two,Therin they were wonde.1827Desonell is sent to sea.Whan they had shypped that gentyll thynge,Anone she fell in swownyngeAt Peron on the sonde.1830Whan that lady was downe fall,On Iesu Cryste dyd she call.To defende hir with his honde:1833She prays to Christ for her children.‘Rightfull God, ye me sendeSome good londe on to lende,That my chyldren may crystened be[n].’1836She sayd, ‘ladyes fayre and gent,Great well my lorde Sir Torent,Yf euer ye hym se[n]!’1839The wynde arose on the myght,Fro the londe it blewe that lady bryghtInto the se so grene.1842FRAG. 7. DESONELL AND HER TWINS REACH LAND.Wyndes and weders hathe hir dryuen,That in a forest she is aryuen,Where wylde bestys were.1845Desonell and her twin babes reach land.The se was ebbe and went hem froAnd left hir and hir chyldren two[Alo]ne without any fere.1848Hir one chylde began to wepe,The lady awoke out of hir slepeShe stills her crying child,And sayde, ‘be styll, my dere,1851Ihesu Cryste hathe sent vs lande,Yf there be any Crysten man at hande,We shall haue socoure here.’1854The carefull lady then was blythe,To the londe she went full swythe,As fast as she myght.1857Tyll the day began to sprynge,Foules on trees merely gan syngeDelicyous notes on hyght.1860goes up a mountain,To a hyll went that lady fre,Where she was ware of a cyteWith toures fayre and bryght.1863Therof I-wys she was fayne,and sits down.She set hir downe, as I herd sayne,Hir chyldren for to dyght.1866Footnotes to Fragments1.In Halliwell’s edition III.2.In Halliwell’s edition II.3.In Halliwell’s edition VI.4.In Halliwell’s edition V.5.In Halliwell’s edition IV.6.Printed inEnglische Studien, VII. p. 347 f.7.In Halliwell’s edition I.8.wepande.NOTES.St. 1Page1,line 12. Cf.ll. 118,187,190,198,558,924,1924,2183. So inEglamour(Thornton Romances), l. 408:‘The boke of Rome thus can telle,’andThe Erl of Tolouse, ed. Lüdtke, l. 1219:‘Yn Rome thys geste cronyculyd ys.’See Halliwell’s and Lüdtke’s notes to these passages. I agree with both of them, that an expression like that does not earnestly refer the reader to a Latin or Italian source of the story; there is evidently no difference at all betweenin Romeandin romance.St. 2p. 1,l. 15.wyghthas been inserted instead ofdowghttyin order to restore the rhyme withhyght,knyght,myght; cf.Havelok, ed. Skeat, l. 344:‘He was fayr man and wicth.’p. 1,l. 17=Ipomadon, l. 63. Parallel passages to this hyperbolic expression are collected in Kölbing’s note to this line (p. 364).p. 1,l. 24. We find the same idea as here, viz. that nobody can resist the will of God, who has power over death and life, inSir Tristrem, ll. 236 ff.:‘Þat leuedi, nouȝt to lain,For soþe ded is sche!Who may be ogain?As god wil, it schal be,Vnbliþe.’St. 3p. 2,l. 28. I have not met with the verbfesomnenanywhere else, and it is not mentioned in Stratmann and Mätzner. Halliwell, Dictionary, p. 354, explains it by ‘feoffed, gave in fee,’ doubtless regarding this very passage, although he doesn’t cite it; mightfesomnydnot be a corruption fromsesyd? cf.Havelok, ll. 250 f.:‘Þat he ne dede al EngelondSone sayse intil his hond.’Hall writes to me on this word as follows:fesomnydis, I am convinced, not a word at all, but a scribe’s error forfestonydorfestnyd= confirmed, fixed. Comp. ’And þat ich hym wolde myd trewþe siker faste on honde,’ Robert of Gloucester (Hearne), p. 150. For this use offasten, fastnen, comp. ’But my forwarde with þe I festen on þis wyse,’ Alliterative Poems, p. 47, l. 327: ’& folden fayth to þat fre, festned so harde,’ SirGawayne, p. 57, l. 1783: ’And þis forward, in faith, I festyn with hond,’ Destruction of Troy, p. 22, l. 636. See also Jamieson’s Scottish Dictionary, ii. p. 216, underto Fest.p. 2,l. 30. I am by no means sure thatfedeis the original reading, but I wasn’t able to find a better word rhyming withdedde,wede; even thene.‘feed’ meanspasture, and that is what we expect here.p. 2,l. 31. For my correction cf. Lüdtke’s note toThe Erl of Tolouse, l. 199, sub 2;Eglam., l. 26:‘That was a maydyn as whyte as fome,’Ib.l. 683:‘Crystyabelle as whyte as fome,’where thePercy Folio MS.reads:‘Christabell that was as faire as sunn;’Chronicle of England, l. 75 f.:‘Ant nomeliche to thy lemmon,That ys wyttore then the fom.’St. 5p. 2,l. 50. The alteration ofAndandbeeintoAnandseeseemed necessary;saymentis like Fr.essaiement, Lat.exagimentum.p. 3,l. 59. Cf.l. 1216 f.andThe Lyfe ofIpomydon, ed. Kölbing, l. 1795:‘If thou hyr haue, thou shalt hyr bye.’St. 7p. 3,l. 77 f.As half of the stanza is lost, it is impossible to make out to whomtheyrefers. Nor do I believe thatl. 78is correct, especially as tochaunce.St. 8p. 3,l. 79. Cf.Ipomadon, ed. Kölbing, l. 8123:‘A myle wyth in the Grekes see.’p. 3,l. 80.in an yleis certainly the correct reading;mauylewas introduced by a scribe who supposed it to be the giant’s name; but that is mentioned some twenty lines later.St. 13p. 5,l. 136. The correction oflyghtintoryghtI owe to Hall, who refers me to the legend ofSancta Maria Egyptiaca; cf. f. i. Barbour’sLegends of Saints, ed. Horstmann, I. p. 143 ff.St. 14p. 6,l. 153.nowyd= ‘anoyed’ gives a poor sense. Hall suggestsnowtyd; cf. E. D. S., No. 6, Ray’sNorth Country Words, p. 59,note, to push, strike or soar, with the horn, as a bull or ram,’ ab. A.S.huitan, ejusdem significationis. The word might then mean ‘spurred.’St. 16p. 6,l. 171=l. 596. This alliterative binding is a very frequent one; cf.Sir Orfeo, ed. Zielke, p. 9.St. 17p. 7,l. 188. The same rhyme, which I have restored here, occursl. 559 f.p. 7,l. 190.Yt tellythe=Yt is told; cf. Lüdtke, note toThe Erl of Tolouse, l. 1070, and Sarrazin, note toOctavian, l. 1749.St. 22p. 9,l. 236. I was about to write,Crystyn men thow they were, referring this line to the guardians of the lions; but, no doubt, Hall’s reconstruction of the line, which I have put into the text, is far better.p. 9,l. 237.Hys browys wexe bla, i.e. he turned pale, he was struck with fear; cf.bloo askes, P. Pl., l. 1553, and the Germanaschfahl. Quite a similar expression occurs inPerceval, l. 687 f.:‘Now sone of that salle wee see,Whose browes schalle blakke.’Ib.l. 1056:‘His browes to blake.’St. 23p. 9,l. 245. Thoughsyghynggives no offence, still it may be, that the author has writtensyngyng, and the scribe was wrong in altering it; cf. Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 5424.p. 9,l. 251. Cf.l. 802,1204,Ipomadon, l. 6481 f.:‘Your nece of Calabyre, that lady clere,Ys bovnden wyth a fendes fere.’Reliquiæ Antiquæ, i. p. 241:‘He seith bi niȝte and eke bi day,That hy beth fendes ifere.’St. 25p. 10,l. 265 f.The reading of these two lines is quite destroyed by the careless scribe. My correction is not more than an attempt to restore the rhyme.St. 26p. 10,l. 277 ff.There is nothing in Torrent’s words which could lead the princess to a conclusion like that. I think that afterl. 276one stanza is wanting.p. 11,l. 286-8. As to the contents of these lines, Kölbing refers me toEnglische studien, vol. IV. p. 133 f., where F. Liebrecht mentions a passage inSir Beves of Hamtoun, according to which a king’s daughter,—if she is a pure virgin,—can never be hurt by a lion. Here we have another proof for this remarkable bit of folk-lore.St. 27p. 11,l. 292=l. 329.St. 28p. 11,l. 303=l. 342.p. 11,l. 305. I am not quite sure whether I was right in substituting the prince’s name—which is mentioned once more, the first time, as it were,l. 341—for the name of his father’s kingdom; but I didn’t see any other way of restoring the rhyme.p. 12,l. 311. Cf.l. 469and Skeat’s note toSir Thopas, l. 1927.St. 30p. 12,l. 334. Instead ofheI should prefer to readthey: Torrent has just admonished the prisoners to cheer up.St. 31p. 13,l. 344. There must be something wrong in this line, because the name of the third Earl’s son is missing; to writethe thirdinstead ofofmay not suffice to put the text right; even the namesTorrenandBerweyneseem to me very suspicious.St. 34p. 14,l. 379. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 4245,for Crystys dede;Crystyswas substituted by Kölbing formannes, which is clearly wrong; he could as well have chosengodes.St. 35p. 15,l. 393 ff.Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 736.St. 38p. 16,l. 427. Of this allusion to Veland, Halliwell treats in hisedition ofSir Torrent, p. vii f. Cf. Zupitza,Ein zeugnis für die Wieland-sage,Zeitschrift für deutsches Alterthum, Vol. XIX, p. 129 f.p. 16,l. 429-31. The line which follows l. 429 in the MS. is superfluous; it damages the metre; and the rhyme with l. 430 won’t do. The old king wishes to say; ‘I have seen the day when, if this sword wielded by me fell on any one, he was considered done for, doomed to death.’ Therefore l. 431,I fawght therfor I toldhas been corrected intoFawe they were I-told. The scribe did not understand the obsolescent wordfaweorfaye, so he wrote the nearest word to it to make sense,I-told= ‘held, considered.’—I.Hall.St. 41p. 17,l. 458. Cf. Breul’s note toSir Gowther, l. 410.p. 17,l. 465. Cf.l. 2061 f.St. 48p. 20,l. 542. The scribe, who evidently didn’t know the pretty rare wordclow, has spoilt it tocolod, orcolvd; the same rhyme,clouȝ,drouȝ,anouȝoccurs inSir Tristrem, l. 1761 ff. Nor did the scribe know the wordswowe= ‘noise,’ and changed it toswayne; cf. Hall. Dict., p. 843:He come to him with a swowe.p. 20,l. 543.Of and on, off and on, intermittently.St. 49p.21,l. 555.schyldis not to the point here, Torrent having only his sword at hand. The scribe has forgotten what he has said himself,l. 526and549; cf.l. 652.St. 51p. 21,l. 582-4. We meet with this description twice more in the poem,ll. 1514-16, andll. 1858-60.St. 56p. 23,l. 640. On the meaning oftheff, cf. Kölbing’s note toAm. and Amil., l. 787.St. 58p. 24,l. 659.of Perowneis certainly wrong, as it does not agree with the rhymesstere,nere,fere; but I don’t know how to amend the line.p. 24,l. 662.scheregives no meaning; I writestereand translate, There might nobody move further,i.e.the giant was brought to a standstill in the glen.p. 24,l. 665. Cf.ll. 434,791.St. 60p. 25,l. 688. Cf.Eglam., l. 324:‘And to [the] herte hym bare.’The weak preterit tense ofberienis very rare; ifbere= A.S.beransometimes has the same meaning,i.e.‘to strike,’ the reason is that A.S.beranand Icel.berjaare confounded.St. 61p. 25,l. 696.woocan hardly stand forwood. It seems to me like a last corruption of an old romance phrase, likeworthy inwith wall (woȝe); possibly the line was simply so:Thus in II journeys Torrent so.—Hall.p. 25,l. 700. On the use of M.E.foteas a plural see Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 598.St. 63p. 26,l. 722. Hall suggests, the original phrase may have been:pomely whyt and grey; cf. Chaucer,C. T., Prol., l. 615 f.:‘This reeve sat vpon a ful good stot,That was alpomely gray, and highte Scot.’St. 65p. 27,l. 744. Cf.l. 788. OnSt. Jamescf. Kölbing’s note toAm. and Amil., l. 796.St. 70p. 29,l. 808 f.‘In so dangerous conditions he has been before [and still come back safe], so he will come back even this time.’St. 71p. 29,l. 819. On the meaning of the phrase ’the bord beginne,’cf. Kölbing,Englische studien, III. p. 104, and Zupitza,Anglia, III. p. 370 f.St. 73p. 30,l. 838. This stanza being incomplete, I think, the lacuna is to be put after l. 838. The missing three lines contained the fact, that the king promises Torrent, before his knights, that, when he has done this deed, he will give him his daughter, and grant him one half of his kingdom during his life, and the whole afterwards; cf.l. 1206 ff.The odd number of XXVII knights is probably due only to the scribe; cf.F. III:By VII score of hardy knyghtes.St. 76p. 31,l. 867 f.These two lines are poor, and the rhyme is very bad; l. 868 may have run originally,Thurrow Pervyns, for sothe, it ley; cf.l. 949.St. 78p. 32,l. 901.squyere, although very odd at the first sight, may still be right; Torrent says: ‘The only squier that I took with me for this journey, is my sword’; cf.l. 909.St. 80p. 33,l. 922. Cf. Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 3344.p. 33,l. 924-6. On the story of a child, begotten by a devil on a sleeping woman, cf. Breul,Sir Gowther, p. 119 f.St. 83p. 34,l. 954 ff.Cf.Tristrem, l. 1409 ff.:‘Out of Deuelin tounÞe folk wel fast ran,In a water to droun,So ferd were þai þan.’St. 84p. 34,l. 963 f.Cf.Beves of Hamtoun, l. 187 f.:‘Madame, a seide, for loue myn,Whar mai ich finde þat wilde swin?’St. 87p. 36,l. 1000. Instead ofspereperhaps we ought to readsworde.St. 89p. 37,l. 1030 f.If we compare the rests of these lines inF. VI., this reading or a similar one is to be expected. The reading of l. 1029 ff. in the fragments may be completed so:[Thourgh the he]lpe of god of heuen Thorough ye and] herin euen God send the spere the right way.p. 36,l. 1033 f.Cf.ll. 1166,2468 f., and Kölbing’s note toSir Tristrem, l. 69 f.St. 92p. 38,l. 1070. ‘I came hither to seek my death,’i.e.this expedition was so dangerous, that I expected to die.St. 93p. 38,l. 1076. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 239 f.:‘Tyll vncovth contreys will I wende,The maner wille I see.’p. 39,l. 1081.iswas to be corrected intoit: ‘Because you slew him that possessed it.’St. 94p. 39,l. 1086. This line, according to Hall’s emendation, means: You owe no homage or feudal due, the manor is yours and your heirs’for ever;i.e.the manor is in fee simple, and free from any feudal obligation.St. 95p. 39,st. 95. The text would be improved by puttingll. 1104-6before 1101-3, although this transposition is not absolutely necessary.p. 39,l. 1105.leftemay be a mistake forloste; cf.Gower, I. 207:‘Contenaunce for a þroweHe loste.’St. 96p. 40,l. 1117. Cf. Ritson’sMet. Rom., III. p. 341 f., and Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 436.St. 97p. 40,l. 1121.he barelooks rather suspicious, but it is supported byl. 2169. The author is about to describe the figures inlaid on the shield. Cf.Eglamour, l. 1030 f.:’He barein azure1a grype of golde,Rychely beton on the molde.’p. 40,l. 1124. This line is hopelessly spoilt; the scribe, careless as he was, has almost literally repeatedl. 1121; l. 1125 directly continues the description begun before.St. 98p. 40,l. 1132. Isthan I haue in taleright? We expect rather:than I can telle in tale.p. 41,l. 1138 f.Cf.l. 1587 f.St. 99p. 41,l. 1143. I thought it necessary to insertmete, although Mätzner,Wörterbuch, II. p. 274, cites this line as the only instance in the M.E. literature forgladas a substantive. But even the sense is very poor without this addition.p. 41,l. 1144. As to a man riding into the hall, cf. Skeat’s note to Chaucer’sSquiere’s Tale, l. 80, and Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 6253 f.p. 41,l. 1150 f.I hope my alterations in l. 1151 are right. It cannot be said that the King of Aragon defends the lady unless somebody has laid claims to her. Torrent wants either three combats or the lady, quite a regular occurrence in mediæval romances.St. 100p. 41,l. 1154.none, i.e.no lady.p. 41,l. 1160. Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 138.St. 101p. 41,l. 1165.the gres, which word is here required by the rhyme, is, in the same way as in this passage, used for ‘battle-field,’ inPerceval, l. 1225 f.:‘Hedes and helmys ther was,I telle ȝow withowttene lese,Many laydeone the gresse,And many brode schelde.’St. 102p. 42,l. 1181.For tynding of his hand= for fear of (=for) the beating (blows) of his hand. Schoolboy slang still keeps the word ’to tund’ = to beat with something flat.—Hall.St. 103p. 42,l. 1193. On this expression Skeat treats inNotes to P. Pl., p. 3987, to which note I refer the reader. Cf.Li B. Disc.,l.130 f. (Ritson,Rom.II. p. 6):‘Hys schon wer with gold ydyghtAndkopethas a knyght.’p. 43,l. 1198 f.: ‘None of them said a single word, But that Torrent had been right to do so as he had done.’St. 104p. 43,l. 1211. There is an evident contradiction between this line andl. 1199. I suppose the wordwariedto be wrong; but I am not able to give a fairly certain emendation of it.St. 106p. 44,l. 1228 f.: ‘The king had supposed he was dead, and, indeed, foolhardy he was to undertake an adventure like this.’St. 109p. 45,l. 1268 f.This fight between the giant Cate and Torrent reminds us in some points of the combat between Guy and Colbrond. Like the old northernholmganga, both fights take place on an island, and in both cases the giant declines to sit on horseback, because he is too heavy; cf.Guy of Warwike, Edinburgh, 1840, l. 9940 ff.:‘When þai had sworn and ostage founde,Colbrond stirt vp in þat stounde,To fiȝt he was ful felle.He was so michel and so vnrede,That no hors miȝt him lede,In gest as y you telle.So mani he hadde of armes gere,Vnneþe a cart miȝt hem bere,Þe Inglisse for to quelle.’p. 45,l. 1270.heinstead ofhimis remarkable; this personal construction, provided that it is right, would offer an analogue toI am woinstead ofme is wo; cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 245.p. 45,l. 1271=l. 1546.St. 113p. 46,l. 1307. This line ought probably to run thus:’Sir Torent praid, as was his wonne.’St. 115p. 47,l. 1337 f.This isSAINTNycholas de Barr, not sir N., as the copyist has put. He was hardly a cleric, or he would have known the Boy Bishop. An English reference for S. Nicholas is Alban Butler,Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, etc., vol. vii. p. 989, Dublin, 1833. His day is Dec. 6th, consequently he is not inActa Sanctorum; see besidesAltenglische legenden, Neue folge, ed. Horstmann, Heilbronn, 1881, p. 11-16, and Barbour’sLegendensammlung, ed. Horstmann, I. p. 229-245.BarrisBariin Italy, and Barbour, I. p. 238, l. 601 f., knew it was two syllables (cf. the rhymeþame be: Barre). Nicholas was the patron of sailors, and churches on the sea-coast in all parts of Europe were dedicated to him. Now as Sir Torrent had been in peril at sea, he offers to him. It was customary to offer garments at such shrines. See Hampson,Medii Ævi Kalendarium, I. p. 72. Hence I propose for l. 1338:A grett Erldome and a simarr.Simarris not a common word, which makes it all the more probable here, since the uncommon words are those which are corrupted and lost. SeePrompt. Parv., I. p. 75: ’chymer, abella,’ that is ‘abolla, cloak.’ M.E.simar, Fr.simarre.—Hall.I have not hesitated for a moment to introduce this sagacious conjecture into the text; also the correction ofredithintotasI owe to Mr. Hall.St. 116p. 48,l. 1353. Cf. Kölbing’s note toSir Tristrem, l. 2508.St. 117p. 48,l. 1364. We ought probably to readsheinstead ofhe.St. 118p. 48,l. 1367 f.Cf.l. 1756 f.p. 48,l. 1378. Cf.Sir Tristrem, l. 2458:‘Bi holtes and bi hille.’St. 119p. 49,l. 1385 ff.Here he addresses the King of Portugal. In l. 1385theis superfluous, and should perhaps be struck out.St. 120p. 49,l. 1395.fend=defend; cf. Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 576.St. 124p. 51,l. 1443 f.As the existence offede=fode, ‘fellow’ is proved by no other passage, we ought perhaps to writeAs spede me god: ffode, orAs g. me save: knave, instead ofAs god me spede: ffede.p. 51,l. 1445. The alteration offleand, which is absurd here, intofailandis supported byl. 1280.p. 51,l. 1446. As tomakeinstead ofmade, cf.l. 332.St. 126p. 51,l. 1463. Cf.l. 2090 f.I am afraid neither of these passages is quite right.St. 131p. 53,l. 1518. Perhaps we ought to read:‘And out of the valey he hyd swith.’St. 132p. 54,l. 1531. I don’t believe that the poet used the wordtreethrice within these four lines; perhaps he wrote for l. 1531:Shold not drawe it, parde.St. 134p. 54,l. 1551. Cf.Guy, ed. Zupitza, l. 5430:‘To reste þer horsys a lytull wyght,’and Zupitza’s note to l. 419.St. 135p. 55,l. 1570. Cf. Stratmann’s note toHavelok, l. 1129 (Englische studien, I. p. 424).St. 137p. 56,l. 1592.To the I haue full good gatemeans, ‘I am fully entitled to kill you.’ I don’t recollect to have met with any parallel passage.St. 138p. 56,l. 1600. Thatdyntis wrong, the rhyme shows as well as the meaning. But whether my alteration is right, seems very doubtful, especially asl. 1609offers the same rhyming word.St. 142p. 58,st. 142. Rhymes likedight,be-taught,draught,rightcan by no means be admitted. Now, instead ofbe-taughtwe may be allowed to writebe-teighte(cf.Beket, l. 1827), andl. 1654may have run:‘He wold haue a draught, aplight.’St. 144p. 59,l. 1676. Afterwas,sentmay have been dropped.St. 145p. 59,l. 1692.For his love, i.e. ‘As his sweetheart.’St. 148p. 60,l. 1714. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 52:‘Begge he wex of bonne and blode.’Ib.l. 1763:‘Ryghtte bygge of bone and blode.’p. 60,l. 1722: ‘All his men agreed with him,’ viz. that this was the knight whom he came to seek.St. 152p. 62,l. 1774. Isher day= A.S.aerdagas, cf.Havelok, l. 27? The word is very rare, and in this meaning occurs only in the plural.p. 62,l. 1777. Afterking,on knemay have dropped out.St. 155p. 63,l. 1799. Cf. Chaucer,C. T., the Millere’s Tale, l. 325:‘Say what thou wolt, I schal it never telleTo childnowyf, by him that harwed helle.’Ib., The Sompnoure’s Tale, l. 407:‘Now help, Thomas, for him that harewed helle.’Perhaps even here,l. 1702,Iesu, that made hell, ought to be altered intoI. that harowde hell.St. 159p. 64,l. 1846. Perhaps we ought to readebbynginstead ofeb, according tol. 223; one can hardly say, that ‘the sea is eb.’St. 169p. 68,l. 1961. Instead ofAI should prefer to readThe, because this griffon is the same which robbed the child before.St. 171p. 69,l. 1982.Of what lond that he is left, i.e. ‘Wherever he may be born.’St. 172p. 69,l. 1991 f.Cf.Ipomadon, l. 50 f.:‘He sayd: Fro tyme he kepe tham con,My landes I shall hym take.’St. 173p. 70,l. 2002.It is good in euery fight, i.e. there is a stone in the ring which heals wounds, if they are touched with it; cf. Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 8018.p. 70,l.2010. Halliwell, p. 306, explainsdisparlidby ‘beaten down, destroyed,’ a meaning which is not fit for this passage. I read with a slight additiondisparplid= ‘dispersed,’ a rare word; cf.Stratmann, p. 156.St. 175p. 71,l. 2026.Butis probably to be altered intoAnd.St. 178p. 72,l. 2053. Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 3068.St. 180p. 72,l. 2075. One might be inclined to write:‘That my two children vncrystonyd ware,’but I don’t think that we are obliged to change: ‘I cared only for that one thing, That my two children might be christened.’St. 184p. 74,l. 2126. Forhinginstead ofhengcf. Mätzner,Sprachproben, I. 1, p. 292, note to line 675, wherehyngesrhymes withspringes.St. 185p. 74,l. 2135.hede vale, i.e. principal, best choice;vale=wale, or perhaps aphetic foravale= value.—Hall.p. 74,l. 2138.bornseems to me somewhat suspicious, though I cannot propose a better reading;and torninstead ofbornwouldn’t do.St. 186p. 75,l. 2152. The imperfect rhyme shows that there is something wrong in this line; it may be restored thus:‘Loo, lordys good and hende.’p. 75,l. 2153.wyll hauehas probably been inserted here from the following line; we ought to readhas.St. 187p. 75,l. 2157.Season for to hold, i.e. ‘in order to hold court.’ But I don’t know another instance ofseasonwith this meaning.St. 188p. 76,l. 2174. This line involves a contradiction tol. 2158 f.St. 189p. 76,l. 2185.smotemeans the same ascaste; cf.King Horn, ed. Wissmann, l. 1038:‘And ankere gunne caste.’The only question is, whetherankereis allowed to be supplied or must be added; cf.l. 2203.St. 191p. 77,l. 2209-2214. The Sultan informs Torrent by messengers, that the inhabitants of the town are starving, evidently appealing to his generosity. Torrent answers him, that if they will lie here,i.e.leave the town, they are to have victuals enough. But the Sultan doesn’t accept this condition, and so the siege is continued. That seems to me to be the meaning of this half of the stanza.St. 192p. 77,l. 2216 f.dedemeans here, andl. 2400, ‘exploit, battle.’ In the same way Saber, Beves’s uncle, once a year on a certain day fights against the Emperor; cf.Sir Beues, l. 2917 ff.:’& eueri ȝer on a dai certaineVpon þemperur of AlmaineHe ginneþ gret bataile take,Beues, al for þine sake.’It agrees very well with the religious feelings of the Middle Ages, when they thought it a merit to fight against the heathens on Good Friday; cf. herel. 2230 ff.p. 77,l. 2224 ff.I am afraid there is something wrong in these lines; the copyist seems to mean, that Torrent didn’t bereave the inhabitants of their worldly goods, their treasures; then we must writethemforit. But what we really expect here is, that he leaves in the town some trustworthy men to keep it. Accordingly, the fault lies inWorldely goodis. Besides, l. 2224,did wyn, instead ofwas yn, would improve the rhyme.St. 193p. 77,l. 2232.bryghtis a rather odd epithet toSarȝins.p. 78,l. 2233 ff.Fifteen years have past since Torrent began to fight against the infidels: he besieges the first town two years (cf.l. 2189), the second, six years (cf.l. 2206), the third, seven years (cf.l. 2230). Meanwhile, the education of a young man being finished at the age of fifteen (cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 287), his son had become just old enough to win his spurs.St. 194p. 78,l. 2240. I doubt whetherordeyncan be allowed to stand without an object, such asyour folk, oryour ships; cf.Robert of Glo’ster, ed. Hearne, p. 139, l. 19:‘He bigan to ordeyne ys folk, & to batail aȝen drow.’St. 195p. 78,l. 2256: ‘Woebegone was she, that must see that,’ viz. that ‘le leopard took away her sone.’St. 196p. 78,l. 2259 f.The meaning of these two lines is not quite perspicuous, and they may be corrupt; only this one thing is clear, that these two knights are Torrent and his son, who belong to different parties.St. 197p. 79,l. 2269 ff.It may be that ll. 2269-71 and ll. 2272-74 areto be transposed, but I don’t think it necessary: Torrent’s men flee when they see that their chief has surrendered.St. 199p. 80,l. 2302.wekid= wicked, mischievous. But I don’t recollect to have met with this adj. as an epithet tolandorcountry.p. 80,l. 2304. Cf.Tristrem, l. 88, Kölbing’s note to that passage, andYork Plays, p. 438, l. 155:‘For, certys, my lyf days are nere done.’St. 200p. 80,l. 2316. The alteration of this line is rather a radical one; but there was no other way to restore the rhyme; I think that first,dayandnyȝthad changed their places in line 2313, and then the copyist, in order to get a rhyme tonyȝt, spoilt the latter line.St. 202p. 81,l. 2335.be my ffayeandparmaffayin the same stanza, and both in the rhyme, are rather poor; one of these lines may have run thus:‘Be god of heven, the king gan say.’St. 204p. 82,l. 2357. The same confusion betweenturmentandturnamentoccurs inIpomadon, l. 2868; cf. Kölbing’s note to this line.St. 207p. 83,l. 2392. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 3958:‘A mercy, syr, for Crystes pitte,’and Kölbing’s note to this line.p. 83,l. 2395 f.Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 3064, where he cites an interesting parallel passage to this line fromGuy of Warwick, ed. Zupitza, l. 4707 f.:‘Ȝyt þou art the trewest knyght,That euer slepyd in wynturs nyght.’St. 208p. 83,l. 2405.andis perhaps miswritten foranoron.p. 83,l. 2407. This line, as it stands, is rather odd; perhaps it ought to be identical withl. 1128.St. 209p. 84,l. 2420.juster,jouster, means here a knight who joins in a joust or tournament: in the only other passage where it is known to occur,Alis., l. 1400, it is a horse for tourneying.St. 210p. 84,l. 2433=l. 2456; cf.Ipomadon, l. 8830:’Euery man in there degre.’St. 212p. 85,l. 2450. Onroial, cf. Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 64. Toa roall ffyghtmay be compared Shakespeare’sA royal battle(Rich. III., IV. iv.).St. 213p. 85,l. 2461.with oute lent= ‘without fasting’? I have not met with this expletive phrase anywhere else.St. 216p. 86,l. 2493. It was not superfluous to mention this fact, because knights were very often killed in tournaments; cf. Niedner,Das deutsche turnier im XII. und XIII.Iahrhundert, Berlin, 1881, p. 24. See also R. Brunne’sHandlyng-Synne, ed. Furnivall, 1862, p. 144-6.St. 218p. 87,l. 2518-20. As to the meaning ofcouplid, cf. Mätzner,Wörterbuch, I. p. 491. These lines evidently mean that gentlemen and ladies sit alternately, what one calls in German,bunte reihe machen.Cf. A. Schultz,Das höfische Leben Zur Zeit der Minnesinger, I. p. 330, and P. Pietsch, Bunte Reihe,Zeitschrift für deutsche Philologie, vol. xvi. Halle, 1884, p. 231, who cites fromBiterolf, l. 7399 ff.:‘Do hiezens under mîne manIr ingesinde wol getânSich teilen in dem palas,Daz kein mîn recke dâ was,Ern sæze zwischen magedîn.’St. 219p. 87,l. 2526.emellwas added by Hall in order to restore the rhyme withDesonell.St. 220p. 88,l. 2535. For this correction, cf. Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 600.St. 225p. 90,l. 2593. Aftermarked,themmay have dropped; cf.Layamon, l. 5642 f.:‘And heom markedeforđ,Touward Munt-giu heo ferden,’instead of which lines the laterMSS. writes:‘Hii nome riht hire wayTouward Muntageu.’St. 226p. 90,l. 2597. Oncastelletourecf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 158.St. 229p. 91,l. 2636. Cf. Kölbing’s notes toAmis and Amiloun, l. 1019, and toThe lyfe of Ipomadon, l. 506. Here the expression,no good he ne couthmeans, he was quite feeble and strengthless.St. 231p. 92,l. 2658.up-tyed= so limited by the deed of foundation that they (the churches and abbeys) could not be diverted to any other purpose.—Hall.p. 92,l. 2661. Cf.Eglamour, l. 1339, Lincoln MS.:‘In Rome this romance crouned es.’The Cambridge MS. reads instead:‘In Rome thys geste cronyculd ys.’I am inclined to think thatcrounedis nothing else but a misreading forcronyculd. Afterwards, considered to be correct, it has originated expressions like those we find here.Footnote to Notes

THE FRAGMENTS.I.1[The King of Portugal plots Torrent’s death.]Desonell gives Torrent a Horse[T]. . . .est hym vp. . . .462. . . . .chent be for to fle. . . . .ly ivyll he gone464which the King of Nazareth had sent her.The kynge of Nazareth sent hym me,Torent, I wot-saue hym on the,For better loue I none!’467Afterwarde vpon a tyde,As they walkyd by the ryvers syde,The kynge and yonge Torent,470The KingThis lorde wolde fayne, that he dede wereAnd he wyst nat, on what manere,Howe he myght hym shent.473treacherouslyA fals letter made the kyngeAnd made a messangere it brynge,On the ryuer syde as they went,476asks Torrent to get Desonell a FalconTo Torent, that was true as stele,If he loued Dyssonell wele,Gete hir a faucon gent.479Torent the letter began to rede,The kynge came nere and lystened,As thoughe he it neuer had sene.482The kynge sayde, ‘what may this be?’‘Lorde, it is sent to meFor a faucon shene;485I ne wote, so God me spede,In what londe that they brede.’The kynge sayde, ‘as I herde sayne,488. . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . .from the Forest of Magdalen.In the forest of Maudelayne491FRAG. 2. TORRENT GOES TO THE FOREST OF MAUDELAYNE.II.2Than sayde [the] kyn[g] vntrue,492‘And ye fynde haw[k]es of great value,Brynge me one with the!’494Torent sayd: ‘so God me saue,Torrent agrees to do it.Yf it betyde, that I any haue,At your wyll shall they be.’497To his squyer bade he thare,After his armoure to fare,In the felde abode he;500He ridesThey armed hym in his wede,He bestrode a noble stede. . . . . . . . . .503to the Forest of Magdalen,Torent toke the way agayneUnto the forest of Maudelayne,In a wylsome way;506Berys and apes there founde heAnd wylde bestys great plenteAnd lyons, where they lay.509In a wode, that is tyght,It drewe towarde the nyght.By dymmynge of the day512Lysten, lordes, of them came wo,gets separated from his Squire,He and his squyer departed in two,Carefull men then were they.515At a shedynge of a romeEyther departed other frome,As I vnderstande.518Torent taketh a dolefull wayDowne into a depe valay,. . . . . . . . . .521FRAG. 3. TORRENT IS TO FIGHT THE CALABRIAN GIANT, SLOGUS.III.3[The King of Portugal sends Torrent to be kild by the Giant Slogus.]Torrent sits at the head of a side table.. . . . . . . . . . . .819And the good squyres after h[ym],That knyghtes sholde be.821The King asks Torrent if he’llAs they were a-myddes theyr. . .The kynge wolde not forgete,To Torente than sayd he,824He sayd: ‘so god me saue,Fayne thou woldest my dough[ter haue],Thou hast loued her many a d[aye].’827‘Ye, by my trouthe,’ sayd Torente,‘And I were a ryche man,Ryght gladly by my faye.’830do a deed of arms for Desonell.‘If thou durst for her sakeA poynte of armes vndertake,Thou broke her vp for ay.’833‘Yes,’ says Torrent.‘Ye,’ sayde he, ‘or I go,Sykernes thou make me soOf thy doughter hende.836Ye and after all my ryghtesBy VII score of hardy knyghtes’Al they were Torentes frende.839‘Now, good lordes, I you praye,Bere wytnes of this dayAgayne yf god me sende!’842Torente sayd, ‘so may I the,Wyst I, where my jorney shold [be],Thyder I wolde me dyghte.’845The kyng gaue hym an answ[e]re,‘Then go to Calabria,‘In the londe of Caleb[e]reThere wonneth a gyaunte wygh[hte]848. . . . . . . . . . . .Slogus he hyght as I the tolde,and fight the Giant Slogus.’God sende the that waye ryghte!’851FRAG. 4. TORRENT WILL NOT GIVE UP HIS GIANT-FIGHT.IV.4[Torrent is offerd a Princess of Provyns.]The king of Provyns warns. . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . .For why I wyll the saye,917Moche folke of that countreCometh heder for socoure to me,Bothe by nyghte and by daye.920him against the terrible Giant there,There is a gyaunte of grete renowne,He destroyeth bothe cyte and towneAnd all that he may.923As bokes of rome tell,He was goten with the deuyll of hell,As his moder slepynge lay.’926The kynge sayde, ‘by Saynt Adryan,I rede, a nother gentylmanBe there and haue the degre.929I haue a doughter, that me is dere,and offers him his Daughter and 2 Duchies.Thou shalte wedde her to thy fere,And yf it thy wyll be,932Two duchyes in hondeI wyll gyue her in londe.’‘Gramercy, syr,’ sayd he,935Torrent says he must keep his troth.‘With my tonge I haue so wrought,To breke my day wyll I nought,Nedes me behoueth there to be.’938‘On Goddes name,’ the kynge gan sayne,‘Iesu brynge the saffe agayne,Lorde, moche of myght!’941Mynstralsy was them amonge,With harpe, fedyll and songe,Delycyous notes on hygh[t]e.944Whan it was tyme, to bed they wente,And on the morowe rose TorenteAnd toke leue of kynge and knyght947Torrent starts,And toke a redy way.FRAG. 5. TORRENT HEARS OF THE CALABRIAN GIANT, SLOGUS.Fragment V.5By the se syde as it lay,God sende hym gatys ryght!950An hye waye hath he nome,reaches Calabria,Into Calabre is he comeWithin two dayes or thre.953So he met folke hym agayne,Fast comynge with carte and wayneFrowarde the se.956‘Dere God,’ sayd Torente now,‘Good folke, what eyleth you,That ye thus fast fle?’959and hears of the Giant.‘There lyeth a gyaunte here besyde,For all this londe brode and wydeNo man on lyue leueth he.’962‘Dere God,’ sayd Torente then,‘Wher euer be that fendes den?’They answered hym anone:965‘In a castell in the see,Slogus’ they sayd ‘hyght he,Many a man he hath slone.968The Giant Slogus is in Hungary.We wote full well, where he doth lyByfore the cyte of Hungry,’. . . . . . . . . .971FRAG. 6. TORRENT FIGHTS A GIANT. DESONELL HAS TWINS.VI.6[Torrent fights the Giant.]The number and configuration of dots corresponds as closely as possible to the printed book.The giant says he’ll wring Torrent’s nose.. . . . . .all the wrynge,1014. . . . . . . .lynge. . . . . . . . .thou the1016. . . . . . . .he toke,. . . . . . . .bare a crokeHis Crook is 13 ft. long.. . . . . . . .te longe and thre1019. . . . . .ever so longe were. . . . . . . .had no fere. . . .yd darste thou come nere1022. . . . .nte nolengre a-bydeTorrent charges,. . . . .nte wolde he ryde. . . .ghte.1025. . . .one eye but one,. . . . . .neuer none,. . .nor by nyght.1028. . . .lpe of god of heuen,pierces the Giant’s eye,. . . . .herin euen,. . . . . . . . . . . .1031and makes him roar.. . . .gan to rore,. . . .the cyte wore,. . .ay.1034. . . .es eyen were oute. . . . . . . .boute. . . . . . . . . . .1037FRAG. 7. DESONELL AND HER TWINS ARE SENT TO SEA.VII.7[Desonell bears twins. All are sent out to sea. They reach land.]Thus the lady dwelled there,1807Desonell is delivered of 2 male childrenTyll that she delyuered wereOf men chyldren two.1809Of all poyntes were they gent,like Torrent.Lyke were they to Sir Torent,For his loue suffred they wo.1812The kynge sayd, ‘so mote I the,Her Father says she shall be sent out to sea.Thou shalt into the seWithout wordes mo.1815Every kynges doughter fer and nereAt the they shall lere,Agaynst right to do!’1818She is led from his land.Great ruthe it was to se,Whan they led that lady freOut of hir faders lande.1821The Queen bewails her daughter’s fate.The quene, hir moder, was nere wodeFor hir doughter, that gentyll fode,Knyghtes stode wepynge.81824A clothe of sylke toke they tho,And departed it bytwene the chyldren two,Therin they were wonde.1827Desonell is sent to sea.Whan they had shypped that gentyll thynge,Anone she fell in swownyngeAt Peron on the sonde.1830Whan that lady was downe fall,On Iesu Cryste dyd she call.To defende hir with his honde:1833She prays to Christ for her children.‘Rightfull God, ye me sendeSome good londe on to lende,That my chyldren may crystened be[n].’1836She sayd, ‘ladyes fayre and gent,Great well my lorde Sir Torent,Yf euer ye hym se[n]!’1839The wynde arose on the myght,Fro the londe it blewe that lady bryghtInto the se so grene.1842FRAG. 7. DESONELL AND HER TWINS REACH LAND.Wyndes and weders hathe hir dryuen,That in a forest she is aryuen,Where wylde bestys were.1845Desonell and her twin babes reach land.The se was ebbe and went hem froAnd left hir and hir chyldren two[Alo]ne without any fere.1848Hir one chylde began to wepe,The lady awoke out of hir slepeShe stills her crying child,And sayde, ‘be styll, my dere,1851Ihesu Cryste hathe sent vs lande,Yf there be any Crysten man at hande,We shall haue socoure here.’1854The carefull lady then was blythe,To the londe she went full swythe,As fast as she myght.1857Tyll the day began to sprynge,Foules on trees merely gan syngeDelicyous notes on hyght.1860goes up a mountain,To a hyll went that lady fre,Where she was ware of a cyteWith toures fayre and bryght.1863Therof I-wys she was fayne,and sits down.She set hir downe, as I herd sayne,Hir chyldren for to dyght.1866

[The King of Portugal plots Torrent’s death.]

Desonell gives Torrent a Horse[T]. . . .est hym vp. . . .462. . . . .chent be for to fle. . . . .ly ivyll he gone464which the King of Nazareth had sent her.The kynge of Nazareth sent hym me,Torent, I wot-saue hym on the,For better loue I none!’467

[T]. . . .est hym vp. . . .462

. . . . .chent be for to fle

. . . . .ly ivyll he gone464

The kynge of Nazareth sent hym me,

Torent, I wot-saue hym on the,

For better loue I none!’467

Afterwarde vpon a tyde,As they walkyd by the ryvers syde,The kynge and yonge Torent,470The KingThis lorde wolde fayne, that he dede wereAnd he wyst nat, on what manere,Howe he myght hym shent.473treacherouslyA fals letter made the kyngeAnd made a messangere it brynge,On the ryuer syde as they went,476asks Torrent to get Desonell a FalconTo Torent, that was true as stele,If he loued Dyssonell wele,Gete hir a faucon gent.479

Afterwarde vpon a tyde,

As they walkyd by the ryvers syde,

The kynge and yonge Torent,470

This lorde wolde fayne, that he dede were

And he wyst nat, on what manere,

Howe he myght hym shent.473

A fals letter made the kynge

And made a messangere it brynge,

On the ryuer syde as they went,476

To Torent, that was true as stele,

If he loued Dyssonell wele,

Gete hir a faucon gent.479

Torent the letter began to rede,The kynge came nere and lystened,As thoughe he it neuer had sene.482The kynge sayde, ‘what may this be?’‘Lorde, it is sent to meFor a faucon shene;485

Torent the letter began to rede,

The kynge came nere and lystened,

As thoughe he it neuer had sene.482

The kynge sayde, ‘what may this be?’

‘Lorde, it is sent to me

For a faucon shene;485

I ne wote, so God me spede,In what londe that they brede.’The kynge sayde, ‘as I herde sayne,488. . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . .from the Forest of Magdalen.In the forest of Maudelayne491

I ne wote, so God me spede,

In what londe that they brede.’

The kynge sayde, ‘as I herde sayne,488

. . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . .

In the forest of Maudelayne491

FRAG. 2. TORRENT GOES TO THE FOREST OF MAUDELAYNE.

Than sayde [the] kyn[g] vntrue,492‘And ye fynde haw[k]es of great value,Brynge me one with the!’494Torent sayd: ‘so God me saue,Torrent agrees to do it.Yf it betyde, that I any haue,At your wyll shall they be.’497

Than sayde [the] kyn[g] vntrue,492

‘And ye fynde haw[k]es of great value,

Brynge me one with the!’494

Torent sayd: ‘so God me saue,

Yf it betyde, that I any haue,

At your wyll shall they be.’497

To his squyer bade he thare,After his armoure to fare,In the felde abode he;500He ridesThey armed hym in his wede,He bestrode a noble stede. . . . . . . . . .503to the Forest of Magdalen,

To his squyer bade he thare,

After his armoure to fare,

In the felde abode he;500

They armed hym in his wede,

He bestrode a noble stede

. . . . . . . . . .503

Torent toke the way agayneUnto the forest of Maudelayne,In a wylsome way;506Berys and apes there founde heAnd wylde bestys great plenteAnd lyons, where they lay.509In a wode, that is tyght,It drewe towarde the nyght.By dymmynge of the day512Lysten, lordes, of them came wo,gets separated from his Squire,He and his squyer departed in two,Carefull men then were they.515

Torent toke the way agayne

Unto the forest of Maudelayne,

In a wylsome way;506

Berys and apes there founde he

And wylde bestys great plente

And lyons, where they lay.509

In a wode, that is tyght,

It drewe towarde the nyght.

By dymmynge of the day512

Lysten, lordes, of them came wo,

He and his squyer departed in two,

Carefull men then were they.515

At a shedynge of a romeEyther departed other frome,As I vnderstande.518Torent taketh a dolefull wayDowne into a depe valay,. . . . . . . . . .521

At a shedynge of a rome

Eyther departed other frome,

As I vnderstande.518

Torent taketh a dolefull way

Downe into a depe valay,

. . . . . . . . . .521

FRAG. 3. TORRENT IS TO FIGHT THE CALABRIAN GIANT, SLOGUS.

[The King of Portugal sends Torrent to be kild by the Giant Slogus.]

Torrent sits at the head of a side table.. . . . . . . . . . . .819And the good squyres after h[ym],That knyghtes sholde be.821The King asks Torrent if he’llAs they were a-myddes theyr. . .The kynge wolde not forgete,To Torente than sayd he,824

. . . . . . . . . . . .819

And the good squyres after h[ym],

That knyghtes sholde be.821

As they were a-myddes theyr. . .

The kynge wolde not forgete,

To Torente than sayd he,824

He sayd: ‘so god me saue,Fayne thou woldest my dough[ter haue],Thou hast loued her many a d[aye].’827‘Ye, by my trouthe,’ sayd Torente,‘And I were a ryche man,Ryght gladly by my faye.’830do a deed of arms for Desonell.‘If thou durst for her sakeA poynte of armes vndertake,Thou broke her vp for ay.’833‘Yes,’ says Torrent.

He sayd: ‘so god me saue,

Fayne thou woldest my dough[ter haue],

Thou hast loued her many a d[aye].’827

‘Ye, by my trouthe,’ sayd Torente,

‘And I were a ryche man,

Ryght gladly by my faye.’830

‘If thou durst for her sake

A poynte of armes vndertake,

Thou broke her vp for ay.’833

‘Ye,’ sayde he, ‘or I go,Sykernes thou make me soOf thy doughter hende.836Ye and after all my ryghtesBy VII score of hardy knyghtes’Al they were Torentes frende.839‘Now, good lordes, I you praye,Bere wytnes of this dayAgayne yf god me sende!’842

‘Ye,’ sayde he, ‘or I go,

Sykernes thou make me so

Of thy doughter hende.836

Ye and after all my ryghtes

By VII score of hardy knyghtes’

Al they were Torentes frende.839

‘Now, good lordes, I you praye,

Bere wytnes of this day

Agayne yf god me sende!’842

Torente sayd, ‘so may I the,Wyst I, where my jorney shold [be],Thyder I wolde me dyghte.’845The kyng gaue hym an answ[e]re,‘Then go to Calabria,‘In the londe of Caleb[e]reThere wonneth a gyaunte wygh[hte]848. . . . . . . . . . . .Slogus he hyght as I the tolde,and fight the Giant Slogus.’God sende the that waye ryghte!’851

Torente sayd, ‘so may I the,

Wyst I, where my jorney shold [be],

Thyder I wolde me dyghte.’845

The kyng gaue hym an answ[e]re,

‘In the londe of Caleb[e]re

There wonneth a gyaunte wygh[hte]848

. . . . . . . . . . . .

Slogus he hyght as I the tolde,

God sende the that waye ryghte!’851

FRAG. 4. TORRENT WILL NOT GIVE UP HIS GIANT-FIGHT.

[Torrent is offerd a Princess of Provyns.]

The king of Provyns warns. . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . .For why I wyll the saye,917Moche folke of that countreCometh heder for socoure to me,Bothe by nyghte and by daye.920him against the terrible Giant there,There is a gyaunte of grete renowne,He destroyeth bothe cyte and towneAnd all that he may.923As bokes of rome tell,He was goten with the deuyll of hell,As his moder slepynge lay.’926

. . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . .

For why I wyll the saye,917

Moche folke of that countre

Cometh heder for socoure to me,

Bothe by nyghte and by daye.920

There is a gyaunte of grete renowne,

He destroyeth bothe cyte and towne

And all that he may.923

As bokes of rome tell,

He was goten with the deuyll of hell,

As his moder slepynge lay.’926

The kynge sayde, ‘by Saynt Adryan,I rede, a nother gentylmanBe there and haue the degre.929I haue a doughter, that me is dere,and offers him his Daughter and 2 Duchies.Thou shalte wedde her to thy fere,And yf it thy wyll be,932Two duchyes in hondeI wyll gyue her in londe.’‘Gramercy, syr,’ sayd he,935Torrent says he must keep his troth.‘With my tonge I haue so wrought,To breke my day wyll I nought,Nedes me behoueth there to be.’938

The kynge sayde, ‘by Saynt Adryan,

I rede, a nother gentylman

Be there and haue the degre.929

I haue a doughter, that me is dere,

Thou shalte wedde her to thy fere,

And yf it thy wyll be,932

Two duchyes in honde

I wyll gyue her in londe.’

‘Gramercy, syr,’ sayd he,935

‘With my tonge I haue so wrought,

To breke my day wyll I nought,

Nedes me behoueth there to be.’938

‘On Goddes name,’ the kynge gan sayne,‘Iesu brynge the saffe agayne,Lorde, moche of myght!’941Mynstralsy was them amonge,With harpe, fedyll and songe,Delycyous notes on hygh[t]e.944Whan it was tyme, to bed they wente,And on the morowe rose TorenteAnd toke leue of kynge and knyght947Torrent starts,And toke a redy way.

‘On Goddes name,’ the kynge gan sayne,

‘Iesu brynge the saffe agayne,

Lorde, moche of myght!’941

Mynstralsy was them amonge,

With harpe, fedyll and songe,

Delycyous notes on hygh[t]e.944

Whan it was tyme, to bed they wente,

And on the morowe rose Torente

And toke leue of kynge and knyght947

And toke a redy way.

FRAG. 5. TORRENT HEARS OF THE CALABRIAN GIANT, SLOGUS.

By the se syde as it lay,God sende hym gatys ryght!950

By the se syde as it lay,

God sende hym gatys ryght!950

An hye waye hath he nome,reaches Calabria,Into Calabre is he comeWithin two dayes or thre.953So he met folke hym agayne,Fast comynge with carte and wayneFrowarde the se.956‘Dere God,’ sayd Torente now,‘Good folke, what eyleth you,That ye thus fast fle?’959and hears of the Giant.‘There lyeth a gyaunte here besyde,For all this londe brode and wydeNo man on lyue leueth he.’962

An hye waye hath he nome,

Into Calabre is he come

Within two dayes or thre.953

So he met folke hym agayne,

Fast comynge with carte and wayne

Frowarde the se.956

‘Dere God,’ sayd Torente now,

‘Good folke, what eyleth you,

That ye thus fast fle?’959

‘There lyeth a gyaunte here besyde,

For all this londe brode and wyde

No man on lyue leueth he.’962

‘Dere God,’ sayd Torente then,‘Wher euer be that fendes den?’They answered hym anone:965‘In a castell in the see,Slogus’ they sayd ‘hyght he,Many a man he hath slone.968The Giant Slogus is in Hungary.

‘Dere God,’ sayd Torente then,

‘Wher euer be that fendes den?’

They answered hym anone:965

‘In a castell in the see,

Slogus’ they sayd ‘hyght he,

Many a man he hath slone.968

We wote full well, where he doth lyByfore the cyte of Hungry,’. . . . . . . . . .971

We wote full well, where he doth ly

Byfore the cyte of Hungry,’

. . . . . . . . . .971

FRAG. 6. TORRENT FIGHTS A GIANT. DESONELL HAS TWINS.

[Torrent fights the Giant.]

The number and configuration of dots corresponds as closely as possible to the printed book.

The giant says he’ll wring Torrent’s nose.. . . . . .all the wrynge,1014. . . . . . . .lynge. . . . . . . . .thou the1016. . . . . . . .he toke,. . . . . . . .bare a crokeHis Crook is 13 ft. long.. . . . . . . .te longe and thre1019. . . . . .ever so longe were. . . . . . . .had no fere. . . .yd darste thou come nere1022. . . . .nte nolengre a-bydeTorrent charges,. . . . .nte wolde he ryde. . . .ghte.1025. . . .one eye but one,. . . . . .neuer none,. . .nor by nyght.1028. . . .lpe of god of heuen,pierces the Giant’s eye,. . . . .herin euen,. . . . . . . . . . . .1031and makes him roar.. . . .gan to rore,. . . .the cyte wore,. . .ay.1034. . . .es eyen were oute. . . . . . . .boute. . . . . . . . . . .1037

. . . . . .all the wrynge,1014

. . . . . . . .lynge

. . . . . . . . .thou the1016

. . . . . . . .he toke,

. . . . . . . .bare a croke

. . . . . . . .te longe and thre1019

. . . . . .ever so longe were

. . . . . . . .had no fere

. . . .yd darste thou come nere1022

. . . . .nte nolengre a-byde

. . . . .nte wolde he ryde

. . . .ghte.1025

. . . .one eye but one,

. . . . . .neuer none,

. . .nor by nyght.1028

. . . .lpe of god of heuen,

. . . . .herin euen,

. . . . . . . . . . . .1031

. . . .gan to rore,

. . . .the cyte wore,

. . .ay.1034

. . . .es eyen were oute

. . . . . . . .boute

. . . . . . . . . . .1037

FRAG. 7. DESONELL AND HER TWINS ARE SENT TO SEA.

[Desonell bears twins. All are sent out to sea. They reach land.]

Thus the lady dwelled there,1807Desonell is delivered of 2 male childrenTyll that she delyuered wereOf men chyldren two.1809Of all poyntes were they gent,like Torrent.Lyke were they to Sir Torent,For his loue suffred they wo.1812The kynge sayd, ‘so mote I the,Her Father says she shall be sent out to sea.Thou shalt into the seWithout wordes mo.1815Every kynges doughter fer and nereAt the they shall lere,Agaynst right to do!’1818She is led from his land.

Thus the lady dwelled there,1807

Tyll that she delyuered were

Of men chyldren two.1809

Of all poyntes were they gent,

Lyke were they to Sir Torent,

For his loue suffred they wo.1812

The kynge sayd, ‘so mote I the,

Thou shalt into the se

Without wordes mo.1815

Every kynges doughter fer and nere

At the they shall lere,

Agaynst right to do!’1818

Great ruthe it was to se,Whan they led that lady freOut of hir faders lande.1821The Queen bewails her daughter’s fate.The quene, hir moder, was nere wodeFor hir doughter, that gentyll fode,Knyghtes stode wepynge.81824

Great ruthe it was to se,

Whan they led that lady fre

Out of hir faders lande.1821

The quene, hir moder, was nere wode

For hir doughter, that gentyll fode,

Knyghtes stode wepynge.81824

A clothe of sylke toke they tho,And departed it bytwene the chyldren two,Therin they were wonde.1827Desonell is sent to sea.Whan they had shypped that gentyll thynge,Anone she fell in swownyngeAt Peron on the sonde.1830Whan that lady was downe fall,On Iesu Cryste dyd she call.To defende hir with his honde:1833She prays to Christ for her children.

A clothe of sylke toke they tho,

And departed it bytwene the chyldren two,

Therin they were wonde.1827

Whan they had shypped that gentyll thynge,

Anone she fell in swownynge

At Peron on the sonde.1830

Whan that lady was downe fall,

On Iesu Cryste dyd she call.

To defende hir with his honde:1833

‘Rightfull God, ye me sendeSome good londe on to lende,That my chyldren may crystened be[n].’1836She sayd, ‘ladyes fayre and gent,Great well my lorde Sir Torent,Yf euer ye hym se[n]!’1839The wynde arose on the myght,Fro the londe it blewe that lady bryghtInto the se so grene.1842

‘Rightfull God, ye me sende

Some good londe on to lende,

That my chyldren may crystened be[n].’1836

She sayd, ‘ladyes fayre and gent,

Great well my lorde Sir Torent,

Yf euer ye hym se[n]!’1839

The wynde arose on the myght,

Fro the londe it blewe that lady bryght

Into the se so grene.1842

FRAG. 7. DESONELL AND HER TWINS REACH LAND.

Wyndes and weders hathe hir dryuen,That in a forest she is aryuen,Where wylde bestys were.1845Desonell and her twin babes reach land.The se was ebbe and went hem froAnd left hir and hir chyldren two[Alo]ne without any fere.1848Hir one chylde began to wepe,The lady awoke out of hir slepeShe stills her crying child,And sayde, ‘be styll, my dere,1851Ihesu Cryste hathe sent vs lande,Yf there be any Crysten man at hande,We shall haue socoure here.’1854

Wyndes and weders hathe hir dryuen,

That in a forest she is aryuen,

Where wylde bestys were.1845

The se was ebbe and went hem fro

And left hir and hir chyldren two

[Alo]ne without any fere.1848

Hir one chylde began to wepe,

The lady awoke out of hir slepe

And sayde, ‘be styll, my dere,1851

Ihesu Cryste hathe sent vs lande,

Yf there be any Crysten man at hande,

We shall haue socoure here.’1854

The carefull lady then was blythe,To the londe she went full swythe,As fast as she myght.1857Tyll the day began to sprynge,Foules on trees merely gan syngeDelicyous notes on hyght.1860goes up a mountain,To a hyll went that lady fre,Where she was ware of a cyteWith toures fayre and bryght.1863Therof I-wys she was fayne,and sits down.She set hir downe, as I herd sayne,Hir chyldren for to dyght.1866

The carefull lady then was blythe,

To the londe she went full swythe,

As fast as she myght.1857

Tyll the day began to sprynge,

Foules on trees merely gan synge

Delicyous notes on hyght.1860

To a hyll went that lady fre,

Where she was ware of a cyte

With toures fayre and bryght.1863

Therof I-wys she was fayne,

She set hir downe, as I herd sayne,

Hir chyldren for to dyght.1866

1.In Halliwell’s edition III.2.In Halliwell’s edition II.3.In Halliwell’s edition VI.4.In Halliwell’s edition V.5.In Halliwell’s edition IV.6.Printed inEnglische Studien, VII. p. 347 f.7.In Halliwell’s edition I.8.wepande.

1.In Halliwell’s edition III.

2.In Halliwell’s edition II.

3.In Halliwell’s edition VI.

4.In Halliwell’s edition V.

5.In Halliwell’s edition IV.

6.Printed inEnglische Studien, VII. p. 347 f.

7.In Halliwell’s edition I.

8.wepande.

NOTES.St. 1Page1,line 12. Cf.ll. 118,187,190,198,558,924,1924,2183. So inEglamour(Thornton Romances), l. 408:‘The boke of Rome thus can telle,’andThe Erl of Tolouse, ed. Lüdtke, l. 1219:‘Yn Rome thys geste cronyculyd ys.’See Halliwell’s and Lüdtke’s notes to these passages. I agree with both of them, that an expression like that does not earnestly refer the reader to a Latin or Italian source of the story; there is evidently no difference at all betweenin Romeandin romance.St. 2p. 1,l. 15.wyghthas been inserted instead ofdowghttyin order to restore the rhyme withhyght,knyght,myght; cf.Havelok, ed. Skeat, l. 344:‘He was fayr man and wicth.’p. 1,l. 17=Ipomadon, l. 63. Parallel passages to this hyperbolic expression are collected in Kölbing’s note to this line (p. 364).p. 1,l. 24. We find the same idea as here, viz. that nobody can resist the will of God, who has power over death and life, inSir Tristrem, ll. 236 ff.:‘Þat leuedi, nouȝt to lain,For soþe ded is sche!Who may be ogain?As god wil, it schal be,Vnbliþe.’St. 3p. 2,l. 28. I have not met with the verbfesomnenanywhere else, and it is not mentioned in Stratmann and Mätzner. Halliwell, Dictionary, p. 354, explains it by ‘feoffed, gave in fee,’ doubtless regarding this very passage, although he doesn’t cite it; mightfesomnydnot be a corruption fromsesyd? cf.Havelok, ll. 250 f.:‘Þat he ne dede al EngelondSone sayse intil his hond.’Hall writes to me on this word as follows:fesomnydis, I am convinced, not a word at all, but a scribe’s error forfestonydorfestnyd= confirmed, fixed. Comp. ’And þat ich hym wolde myd trewþe siker faste on honde,’ Robert of Gloucester (Hearne), p. 150. For this use offasten, fastnen, comp. ’But my forwarde with þe I festen on þis wyse,’ Alliterative Poems, p. 47, l. 327: ’& folden fayth to þat fre, festned so harde,’ SirGawayne, p. 57, l. 1783: ’And þis forward, in faith, I festyn with hond,’ Destruction of Troy, p. 22, l. 636. See also Jamieson’s Scottish Dictionary, ii. p. 216, underto Fest.p. 2,l. 30. I am by no means sure thatfedeis the original reading, but I wasn’t able to find a better word rhyming withdedde,wede; even thene.‘feed’ meanspasture, and that is what we expect here.p. 2,l. 31. For my correction cf. Lüdtke’s note toThe Erl of Tolouse, l. 199, sub 2;Eglam., l. 26:‘That was a maydyn as whyte as fome,’Ib.l. 683:‘Crystyabelle as whyte as fome,’where thePercy Folio MS.reads:‘Christabell that was as faire as sunn;’Chronicle of England, l. 75 f.:‘Ant nomeliche to thy lemmon,That ys wyttore then the fom.’St. 5p. 2,l. 50. The alteration ofAndandbeeintoAnandseeseemed necessary;saymentis like Fr.essaiement, Lat.exagimentum.p. 3,l. 59. Cf.l. 1216 f.andThe Lyfe ofIpomydon, ed. Kölbing, l. 1795:‘If thou hyr haue, thou shalt hyr bye.’St. 7p. 3,l. 77 f.As half of the stanza is lost, it is impossible to make out to whomtheyrefers. Nor do I believe thatl. 78is correct, especially as tochaunce.St. 8p. 3,l. 79. Cf.Ipomadon, ed. Kölbing, l. 8123:‘A myle wyth in the Grekes see.’p. 3,l. 80.in an yleis certainly the correct reading;mauylewas introduced by a scribe who supposed it to be the giant’s name; but that is mentioned some twenty lines later.St. 13p. 5,l. 136. The correction oflyghtintoryghtI owe to Hall, who refers me to the legend ofSancta Maria Egyptiaca; cf. f. i. Barbour’sLegends of Saints, ed. Horstmann, I. p. 143 ff.St. 14p. 6,l. 153.nowyd= ‘anoyed’ gives a poor sense. Hall suggestsnowtyd; cf. E. D. S., No. 6, Ray’sNorth Country Words, p. 59,note, to push, strike or soar, with the horn, as a bull or ram,’ ab. A.S.huitan, ejusdem significationis. The word might then mean ‘spurred.’St. 16p. 6,l. 171=l. 596. This alliterative binding is a very frequent one; cf.Sir Orfeo, ed. Zielke, p. 9.St. 17p. 7,l. 188. The same rhyme, which I have restored here, occursl. 559 f.p. 7,l. 190.Yt tellythe=Yt is told; cf. Lüdtke, note toThe Erl of Tolouse, l. 1070, and Sarrazin, note toOctavian, l. 1749.St. 22p. 9,l. 236. I was about to write,Crystyn men thow they were, referring this line to the guardians of the lions; but, no doubt, Hall’s reconstruction of the line, which I have put into the text, is far better.p. 9,l. 237.Hys browys wexe bla, i.e. he turned pale, he was struck with fear; cf.bloo askes, P. Pl., l. 1553, and the Germanaschfahl. Quite a similar expression occurs inPerceval, l. 687 f.:‘Now sone of that salle wee see,Whose browes schalle blakke.’Ib.l. 1056:‘His browes to blake.’St. 23p. 9,l. 245. Thoughsyghynggives no offence, still it may be, that the author has writtensyngyng, and the scribe was wrong in altering it; cf. Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 5424.p. 9,l. 251. Cf.l. 802,1204,Ipomadon, l. 6481 f.:‘Your nece of Calabyre, that lady clere,Ys bovnden wyth a fendes fere.’Reliquiæ Antiquæ, i. p. 241:‘He seith bi niȝte and eke bi day,That hy beth fendes ifere.’St. 25p. 10,l. 265 f.The reading of these two lines is quite destroyed by the careless scribe. My correction is not more than an attempt to restore the rhyme.St. 26p. 10,l. 277 ff.There is nothing in Torrent’s words which could lead the princess to a conclusion like that. I think that afterl. 276one stanza is wanting.p. 11,l. 286-8. As to the contents of these lines, Kölbing refers me toEnglische studien, vol. IV. p. 133 f., where F. Liebrecht mentions a passage inSir Beves of Hamtoun, according to which a king’s daughter,—if she is a pure virgin,—can never be hurt by a lion. Here we have another proof for this remarkable bit of folk-lore.St. 27p. 11,l. 292=l. 329.St. 28p. 11,l. 303=l. 342.p. 11,l. 305. I am not quite sure whether I was right in substituting the prince’s name—which is mentioned once more, the first time, as it were,l. 341—for the name of his father’s kingdom; but I didn’t see any other way of restoring the rhyme.p. 12,l. 311. Cf.l. 469and Skeat’s note toSir Thopas, l. 1927.St. 30p. 12,l. 334. Instead ofheI should prefer to readthey: Torrent has just admonished the prisoners to cheer up.St. 31p. 13,l. 344. There must be something wrong in this line, because the name of the third Earl’s son is missing; to writethe thirdinstead ofofmay not suffice to put the text right; even the namesTorrenandBerweyneseem to me very suspicious.St. 34p. 14,l. 379. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 4245,for Crystys dede;Crystyswas substituted by Kölbing formannes, which is clearly wrong; he could as well have chosengodes.St. 35p. 15,l. 393 ff.Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 736.St. 38p. 16,l. 427. Of this allusion to Veland, Halliwell treats in hisedition ofSir Torrent, p. vii f. Cf. Zupitza,Ein zeugnis für die Wieland-sage,Zeitschrift für deutsches Alterthum, Vol. XIX, p. 129 f.p. 16,l. 429-31. The line which follows l. 429 in the MS. is superfluous; it damages the metre; and the rhyme with l. 430 won’t do. The old king wishes to say; ‘I have seen the day when, if this sword wielded by me fell on any one, he was considered done for, doomed to death.’ Therefore l. 431,I fawght therfor I toldhas been corrected intoFawe they were I-told. The scribe did not understand the obsolescent wordfaweorfaye, so he wrote the nearest word to it to make sense,I-told= ‘held, considered.’—I.Hall.St. 41p. 17,l. 458. Cf. Breul’s note toSir Gowther, l. 410.p. 17,l. 465. Cf.l. 2061 f.St. 48p. 20,l. 542. The scribe, who evidently didn’t know the pretty rare wordclow, has spoilt it tocolod, orcolvd; the same rhyme,clouȝ,drouȝ,anouȝoccurs inSir Tristrem, l. 1761 ff. Nor did the scribe know the wordswowe= ‘noise,’ and changed it toswayne; cf. Hall. Dict., p. 843:He come to him with a swowe.p. 20,l. 543.Of and on, off and on, intermittently.St. 49p.21,l. 555.schyldis not to the point here, Torrent having only his sword at hand. The scribe has forgotten what he has said himself,l. 526and549; cf.l. 652.St. 51p. 21,l. 582-4. We meet with this description twice more in the poem,ll. 1514-16, andll. 1858-60.St. 56p. 23,l. 640. On the meaning oftheff, cf. Kölbing’s note toAm. and Amil., l. 787.St. 58p. 24,l. 659.of Perowneis certainly wrong, as it does not agree with the rhymesstere,nere,fere; but I don’t know how to amend the line.p. 24,l. 662.scheregives no meaning; I writestereand translate, There might nobody move further,i.e.the giant was brought to a standstill in the glen.p. 24,l. 665. Cf.ll. 434,791.St. 60p. 25,l. 688. Cf.Eglam., l. 324:‘And to [the] herte hym bare.’The weak preterit tense ofberienis very rare; ifbere= A.S.beransometimes has the same meaning,i.e.‘to strike,’ the reason is that A.S.beranand Icel.berjaare confounded.St. 61p. 25,l. 696.woocan hardly stand forwood. It seems to me like a last corruption of an old romance phrase, likeworthy inwith wall (woȝe); possibly the line was simply so:Thus in II journeys Torrent so.—Hall.p. 25,l. 700. On the use of M.E.foteas a plural see Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 598.St. 63p. 26,l. 722. Hall suggests, the original phrase may have been:pomely whyt and grey; cf. Chaucer,C. T., Prol., l. 615 f.:‘This reeve sat vpon a ful good stot,That was alpomely gray, and highte Scot.’St. 65p. 27,l. 744. Cf.l. 788. OnSt. Jamescf. Kölbing’s note toAm. and Amil., l. 796.St. 70p. 29,l. 808 f.‘In so dangerous conditions he has been before [and still come back safe], so he will come back even this time.’St. 71p. 29,l. 819. On the meaning of the phrase ’the bord beginne,’cf. Kölbing,Englische studien, III. p. 104, and Zupitza,Anglia, III. p. 370 f.St. 73p. 30,l. 838. This stanza being incomplete, I think, the lacuna is to be put after l. 838. The missing three lines contained the fact, that the king promises Torrent, before his knights, that, when he has done this deed, he will give him his daughter, and grant him one half of his kingdom during his life, and the whole afterwards; cf.l. 1206 ff.The odd number of XXVII knights is probably due only to the scribe; cf.F. III:By VII score of hardy knyghtes.St. 76p. 31,l. 867 f.These two lines are poor, and the rhyme is very bad; l. 868 may have run originally,Thurrow Pervyns, for sothe, it ley; cf.l. 949.St. 78p. 32,l. 901.squyere, although very odd at the first sight, may still be right; Torrent says: ‘The only squier that I took with me for this journey, is my sword’; cf.l. 909.St. 80p. 33,l. 922. Cf. Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 3344.p. 33,l. 924-6. On the story of a child, begotten by a devil on a sleeping woman, cf. Breul,Sir Gowther, p. 119 f.St. 83p. 34,l. 954 ff.Cf.Tristrem, l. 1409 ff.:‘Out of Deuelin tounÞe folk wel fast ran,In a water to droun,So ferd were þai þan.’St. 84p. 34,l. 963 f.Cf.Beves of Hamtoun, l. 187 f.:‘Madame, a seide, for loue myn,Whar mai ich finde þat wilde swin?’St. 87p. 36,l. 1000. Instead ofspereperhaps we ought to readsworde.St. 89p. 37,l. 1030 f.If we compare the rests of these lines inF. VI., this reading or a similar one is to be expected. The reading of l. 1029 ff. in the fragments may be completed so:[Thourgh the he]lpe of god of heuen Thorough ye and] herin euen God send the spere the right way.p. 36,l. 1033 f.Cf.ll. 1166,2468 f., and Kölbing’s note toSir Tristrem, l. 69 f.St. 92p. 38,l. 1070. ‘I came hither to seek my death,’i.e.this expedition was so dangerous, that I expected to die.St. 93p. 38,l. 1076. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 239 f.:‘Tyll vncovth contreys will I wende,The maner wille I see.’p. 39,l. 1081.iswas to be corrected intoit: ‘Because you slew him that possessed it.’St. 94p. 39,l. 1086. This line, according to Hall’s emendation, means: You owe no homage or feudal due, the manor is yours and your heirs’for ever;i.e.the manor is in fee simple, and free from any feudal obligation.St. 95p. 39,st. 95. The text would be improved by puttingll. 1104-6before 1101-3, although this transposition is not absolutely necessary.p. 39,l. 1105.leftemay be a mistake forloste; cf.Gower, I. 207:‘Contenaunce for a þroweHe loste.’St. 96p. 40,l. 1117. Cf. Ritson’sMet. Rom., III. p. 341 f., and Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 436.St. 97p. 40,l. 1121.he barelooks rather suspicious, but it is supported byl. 2169. The author is about to describe the figures inlaid on the shield. Cf.Eglamour, l. 1030 f.:’He barein azure1a grype of golde,Rychely beton on the molde.’p. 40,l. 1124. This line is hopelessly spoilt; the scribe, careless as he was, has almost literally repeatedl. 1121; l. 1125 directly continues the description begun before.St. 98p. 40,l. 1132. Isthan I haue in taleright? We expect rather:than I can telle in tale.p. 41,l. 1138 f.Cf.l. 1587 f.St. 99p. 41,l. 1143. I thought it necessary to insertmete, although Mätzner,Wörterbuch, II. p. 274, cites this line as the only instance in the M.E. literature forgladas a substantive. But even the sense is very poor without this addition.p. 41,l. 1144. As to a man riding into the hall, cf. Skeat’s note to Chaucer’sSquiere’s Tale, l. 80, and Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 6253 f.p. 41,l. 1150 f.I hope my alterations in l. 1151 are right. It cannot be said that the King of Aragon defends the lady unless somebody has laid claims to her. Torrent wants either three combats or the lady, quite a regular occurrence in mediæval romances.St. 100p. 41,l. 1154.none, i.e.no lady.p. 41,l. 1160. Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 138.St. 101p. 41,l. 1165.the gres, which word is here required by the rhyme, is, in the same way as in this passage, used for ‘battle-field,’ inPerceval, l. 1225 f.:‘Hedes and helmys ther was,I telle ȝow withowttene lese,Many laydeone the gresse,And many brode schelde.’St. 102p. 42,l. 1181.For tynding of his hand= for fear of (=for) the beating (blows) of his hand. Schoolboy slang still keeps the word ’to tund’ = to beat with something flat.—Hall.St. 103p. 42,l. 1193. On this expression Skeat treats inNotes to P. Pl., p. 3987, to which note I refer the reader. Cf.Li B. Disc.,l.130 f. (Ritson,Rom.II. p. 6):‘Hys schon wer with gold ydyghtAndkopethas a knyght.’p. 43,l. 1198 f.: ‘None of them said a single word, But that Torrent had been right to do so as he had done.’St. 104p. 43,l. 1211. There is an evident contradiction between this line andl. 1199. I suppose the wordwariedto be wrong; but I am not able to give a fairly certain emendation of it.St. 106p. 44,l. 1228 f.: ‘The king had supposed he was dead, and, indeed, foolhardy he was to undertake an adventure like this.’St. 109p. 45,l. 1268 f.This fight between the giant Cate and Torrent reminds us in some points of the combat between Guy and Colbrond. Like the old northernholmganga, both fights take place on an island, and in both cases the giant declines to sit on horseback, because he is too heavy; cf.Guy of Warwike, Edinburgh, 1840, l. 9940 ff.:‘When þai had sworn and ostage founde,Colbrond stirt vp in þat stounde,To fiȝt he was ful felle.He was so michel and so vnrede,That no hors miȝt him lede,In gest as y you telle.So mani he hadde of armes gere,Vnneþe a cart miȝt hem bere,Þe Inglisse for to quelle.’p. 45,l. 1270.heinstead ofhimis remarkable; this personal construction, provided that it is right, would offer an analogue toI am woinstead ofme is wo; cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 245.p. 45,l. 1271=l. 1546.St. 113p. 46,l. 1307. This line ought probably to run thus:’Sir Torent praid, as was his wonne.’St. 115p. 47,l. 1337 f.This isSAINTNycholas de Barr, not sir N., as the copyist has put. He was hardly a cleric, or he would have known the Boy Bishop. An English reference for S. Nicholas is Alban Butler,Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, etc., vol. vii. p. 989, Dublin, 1833. His day is Dec. 6th, consequently he is not inActa Sanctorum; see besidesAltenglische legenden, Neue folge, ed. Horstmann, Heilbronn, 1881, p. 11-16, and Barbour’sLegendensammlung, ed. Horstmann, I. p. 229-245.BarrisBariin Italy, and Barbour, I. p. 238, l. 601 f., knew it was two syllables (cf. the rhymeþame be: Barre). Nicholas was the patron of sailors, and churches on the sea-coast in all parts of Europe were dedicated to him. Now as Sir Torrent had been in peril at sea, he offers to him. It was customary to offer garments at such shrines. See Hampson,Medii Ævi Kalendarium, I. p. 72. Hence I propose for l. 1338:A grett Erldome and a simarr.Simarris not a common word, which makes it all the more probable here, since the uncommon words are those which are corrupted and lost. SeePrompt. Parv., I. p. 75: ’chymer, abella,’ that is ‘abolla, cloak.’ M.E.simar, Fr.simarre.—Hall.I have not hesitated for a moment to introduce this sagacious conjecture into the text; also the correction ofredithintotasI owe to Mr. Hall.St. 116p. 48,l. 1353. Cf. Kölbing’s note toSir Tristrem, l. 2508.St. 117p. 48,l. 1364. We ought probably to readsheinstead ofhe.St. 118p. 48,l. 1367 f.Cf.l. 1756 f.p. 48,l. 1378. Cf.Sir Tristrem, l. 2458:‘Bi holtes and bi hille.’St. 119p. 49,l. 1385 ff.Here he addresses the King of Portugal. In l. 1385theis superfluous, and should perhaps be struck out.St. 120p. 49,l. 1395.fend=defend; cf. Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 576.St. 124p. 51,l. 1443 f.As the existence offede=fode, ‘fellow’ is proved by no other passage, we ought perhaps to writeAs spede me god: ffode, orAs g. me save: knave, instead ofAs god me spede: ffede.p. 51,l. 1445. The alteration offleand, which is absurd here, intofailandis supported byl. 1280.p. 51,l. 1446. As tomakeinstead ofmade, cf.l. 332.St. 126p. 51,l. 1463. Cf.l. 2090 f.I am afraid neither of these passages is quite right.St. 131p. 53,l. 1518. Perhaps we ought to read:‘And out of the valey he hyd swith.’St. 132p. 54,l. 1531. I don’t believe that the poet used the wordtreethrice within these four lines; perhaps he wrote for l. 1531:Shold not drawe it, parde.St. 134p. 54,l. 1551. Cf.Guy, ed. Zupitza, l. 5430:‘To reste þer horsys a lytull wyght,’and Zupitza’s note to l. 419.St. 135p. 55,l. 1570. Cf. Stratmann’s note toHavelok, l. 1129 (Englische studien, I. p. 424).St. 137p. 56,l. 1592.To the I haue full good gatemeans, ‘I am fully entitled to kill you.’ I don’t recollect to have met with any parallel passage.St. 138p. 56,l. 1600. Thatdyntis wrong, the rhyme shows as well as the meaning. But whether my alteration is right, seems very doubtful, especially asl. 1609offers the same rhyming word.St. 142p. 58,st. 142. Rhymes likedight,be-taught,draught,rightcan by no means be admitted. Now, instead ofbe-taughtwe may be allowed to writebe-teighte(cf.Beket, l. 1827), andl. 1654may have run:‘He wold haue a draught, aplight.’St. 144p. 59,l. 1676. Afterwas,sentmay have been dropped.St. 145p. 59,l. 1692.For his love, i.e. ‘As his sweetheart.’St. 148p. 60,l. 1714. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 52:‘Begge he wex of bonne and blode.’Ib.l. 1763:‘Ryghtte bygge of bone and blode.’p. 60,l. 1722: ‘All his men agreed with him,’ viz. that this was the knight whom he came to seek.St. 152p. 62,l. 1774. Isher day= A.S.aerdagas, cf.Havelok, l. 27? The word is very rare, and in this meaning occurs only in the plural.p. 62,l. 1777. Afterking,on knemay have dropped out.St. 155p. 63,l. 1799. Cf. Chaucer,C. T., the Millere’s Tale, l. 325:‘Say what thou wolt, I schal it never telleTo childnowyf, by him that harwed helle.’Ib., The Sompnoure’s Tale, l. 407:‘Now help, Thomas, for him that harewed helle.’Perhaps even here,l. 1702,Iesu, that made hell, ought to be altered intoI. that harowde hell.St. 159p. 64,l. 1846. Perhaps we ought to readebbynginstead ofeb, according tol. 223; one can hardly say, that ‘the sea is eb.’St. 169p. 68,l. 1961. Instead ofAI should prefer to readThe, because this griffon is the same which robbed the child before.St. 171p. 69,l. 1982.Of what lond that he is left, i.e. ‘Wherever he may be born.’St. 172p. 69,l. 1991 f.Cf.Ipomadon, l. 50 f.:‘He sayd: Fro tyme he kepe tham con,My landes I shall hym take.’St. 173p. 70,l. 2002.It is good in euery fight, i.e. there is a stone in the ring which heals wounds, if they are touched with it; cf. Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 8018.p. 70,l.2010. Halliwell, p. 306, explainsdisparlidby ‘beaten down, destroyed,’ a meaning which is not fit for this passage. I read with a slight additiondisparplid= ‘dispersed,’ a rare word; cf.Stratmann, p. 156.St. 175p. 71,l. 2026.Butis probably to be altered intoAnd.St. 178p. 72,l. 2053. Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 3068.St. 180p. 72,l. 2075. One might be inclined to write:‘That my two children vncrystonyd ware,’but I don’t think that we are obliged to change: ‘I cared only for that one thing, That my two children might be christened.’St. 184p. 74,l. 2126. Forhinginstead ofhengcf. Mätzner,Sprachproben, I. 1, p. 292, note to line 675, wherehyngesrhymes withspringes.St. 185p. 74,l. 2135.hede vale, i.e. principal, best choice;vale=wale, or perhaps aphetic foravale= value.—Hall.p. 74,l. 2138.bornseems to me somewhat suspicious, though I cannot propose a better reading;and torninstead ofbornwouldn’t do.St. 186p. 75,l. 2152. The imperfect rhyme shows that there is something wrong in this line; it may be restored thus:‘Loo, lordys good and hende.’p. 75,l. 2153.wyll hauehas probably been inserted here from the following line; we ought to readhas.St. 187p. 75,l. 2157.Season for to hold, i.e. ‘in order to hold court.’ But I don’t know another instance ofseasonwith this meaning.St. 188p. 76,l. 2174. This line involves a contradiction tol. 2158 f.St. 189p. 76,l. 2185.smotemeans the same ascaste; cf.King Horn, ed. Wissmann, l. 1038:‘And ankere gunne caste.’The only question is, whetherankereis allowed to be supplied or must be added; cf.l. 2203.St. 191p. 77,l. 2209-2214. The Sultan informs Torrent by messengers, that the inhabitants of the town are starving, evidently appealing to his generosity. Torrent answers him, that if they will lie here,i.e.leave the town, they are to have victuals enough. But the Sultan doesn’t accept this condition, and so the siege is continued. That seems to me to be the meaning of this half of the stanza.St. 192p. 77,l. 2216 f.dedemeans here, andl. 2400, ‘exploit, battle.’ In the same way Saber, Beves’s uncle, once a year on a certain day fights against the Emperor; cf.Sir Beues, l. 2917 ff.:’& eueri ȝer on a dai certaineVpon þemperur of AlmaineHe ginneþ gret bataile take,Beues, al for þine sake.’It agrees very well with the religious feelings of the Middle Ages, when they thought it a merit to fight against the heathens on Good Friday; cf. herel. 2230 ff.p. 77,l. 2224 ff.I am afraid there is something wrong in these lines; the copyist seems to mean, that Torrent didn’t bereave the inhabitants of their worldly goods, their treasures; then we must writethemforit. But what we really expect here is, that he leaves in the town some trustworthy men to keep it. Accordingly, the fault lies inWorldely goodis. Besides, l. 2224,did wyn, instead ofwas yn, would improve the rhyme.St. 193p. 77,l. 2232.bryghtis a rather odd epithet toSarȝins.p. 78,l. 2233 ff.Fifteen years have past since Torrent began to fight against the infidels: he besieges the first town two years (cf.l. 2189), the second, six years (cf.l. 2206), the third, seven years (cf.l. 2230). Meanwhile, the education of a young man being finished at the age of fifteen (cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 287), his son had become just old enough to win his spurs.St. 194p. 78,l. 2240. I doubt whetherordeyncan be allowed to stand without an object, such asyour folk, oryour ships; cf.Robert of Glo’ster, ed. Hearne, p. 139, l. 19:‘He bigan to ordeyne ys folk, & to batail aȝen drow.’St. 195p. 78,l. 2256: ‘Woebegone was she, that must see that,’ viz. that ‘le leopard took away her sone.’St. 196p. 78,l. 2259 f.The meaning of these two lines is not quite perspicuous, and they may be corrupt; only this one thing is clear, that these two knights are Torrent and his son, who belong to different parties.St. 197p. 79,l. 2269 ff.It may be that ll. 2269-71 and ll. 2272-74 areto be transposed, but I don’t think it necessary: Torrent’s men flee when they see that their chief has surrendered.St. 199p. 80,l. 2302.wekid= wicked, mischievous. But I don’t recollect to have met with this adj. as an epithet tolandorcountry.p. 80,l. 2304. Cf.Tristrem, l. 88, Kölbing’s note to that passage, andYork Plays, p. 438, l. 155:‘For, certys, my lyf days are nere done.’St. 200p. 80,l. 2316. The alteration of this line is rather a radical one; but there was no other way to restore the rhyme; I think that first,dayandnyȝthad changed their places in line 2313, and then the copyist, in order to get a rhyme tonyȝt, spoilt the latter line.St. 202p. 81,l. 2335.be my ffayeandparmaffayin the same stanza, and both in the rhyme, are rather poor; one of these lines may have run thus:‘Be god of heven, the king gan say.’St. 204p. 82,l. 2357. The same confusion betweenturmentandturnamentoccurs inIpomadon, l. 2868; cf. Kölbing’s note to this line.St. 207p. 83,l. 2392. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 3958:‘A mercy, syr, for Crystes pitte,’and Kölbing’s note to this line.p. 83,l. 2395 f.Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 3064, where he cites an interesting parallel passage to this line fromGuy of Warwick, ed. Zupitza, l. 4707 f.:‘Ȝyt þou art the trewest knyght,That euer slepyd in wynturs nyght.’St. 208p. 83,l. 2405.andis perhaps miswritten foranoron.p. 83,l. 2407. This line, as it stands, is rather odd; perhaps it ought to be identical withl. 1128.St. 209p. 84,l. 2420.juster,jouster, means here a knight who joins in a joust or tournament: in the only other passage where it is known to occur,Alis., l. 1400, it is a horse for tourneying.St. 210p. 84,l. 2433=l. 2456; cf.Ipomadon, l. 8830:’Euery man in there degre.’St. 212p. 85,l. 2450. Onroial, cf. Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 64. Toa roall ffyghtmay be compared Shakespeare’sA royal battle(Rich. III., IV. iv.).St. 213p. 85,l. 2461.with oute lent= ‘without fasting’? I have not met with this expletive phrase anywhere else.St. 216p. 86,l. 2493. It was not superfluous to mention this fact, because knights were very often killed in tournaments; cf. Niedner,Das deutsche turnier im XII. und XIII.Iahrhundert, Berlin, 1881, p. 24. See also R. Brunne’sHandlyng-Synne, ed. Furnivall, 1862, p. 144-6.St. 218p. 87,l. 2518-20. As to the meaning ofcouplid, cf. Mätzner,Wörterbuch, I. p. 491. These lines evidently mean that gentlemen and ladies sit alternately, what one calls in German,bunte reihe machen.Cf. A. Schultz,Das höfische Leben Zur Zeit der Minnesinger, I. p. 330, and P. Pietsch, Bunte Reihe,Zeitschrift für deutsche Philologie, vol. xvi. Halle, 1884, p. 231, who cites fromBiterolf, l. 7399 ff.:‘Do hiezens under mîne manIr ingesinde wol getânSich teilen in dem palas,Daz kein mîn recke dâ was,Ern sæze zwischen magedîn.’St. 219p. 87,l. 2526.emellwas added by Hall in order to restore the rhyme withDesonell.St. 220p. 88,l. 2535. For this correction, cf. Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 600.St. 225p. 90,l. 2593. Aftermarked,themmay have dropped; cf.Layamon, l. 5642 f.:‘And heom markedeforđ,Touward Munt-giu heo ferden,’instead of which lines the laterMSS. writes:‘Hii nome riht hire wayTouward Muntageu.’St. 226p. 90,l. 2597. Oncastelletourecf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 158.St. 229p. 91,l. 2636. Cf. Kölbing’s notes toAmis and Amiloun, l. 1019, and toThe lyfe of Ipomadon, l. 506. Here the expression,no good he ne couthmeans, he was quite feeble and strengthless.St. 231p. 92,l. 2658.up-tyed= so limited by the deed of foundation that they (the churches and abbeys) could not be diverted to any other purpose.—Hall.p. 92,l. 2661. Cf.Eglamour, l. 1339, Lincoln MS.:‘In Rome this romance crouned es.’The Cambridge MS. reads instead:‘In Rome thys geste cronyculd ys.’I am inclined to think thatcrounedis nothing else but a misreading forcronyculd. Afterwards, considered to be correct, it has originated expressions like those we find here.

Page1,line 12. Cf.ll. 118,187,190,198,558,924,1924,2183. So inEglamour(Thornton Romances), l. 408:

‘The boke of Rome thus can telle,’

andThe Erl of Tolouse, ed. Lüdtke, l. 1219:

‘Yn Rome thys geste cronyculyd ys.’

See Halliwell’s and Lüdtke’s notes to these passages. I agree with both of them, that an expression like that does not earnestly refer the reader to a Latin or Italian source of the story; there is evidently no difference at all betweenin Romeandin romance.

p. 1,l. 15.wyghthas been inserted instead ofdowghttyin order to restore the rhyme withhyght,knyght,myght; cf.Havelok, ed. Skeat, l. 344:

‘He was fayr man and wicth.’

p. 1,l. 17=Ipomadon, l. 63. Parallel passages to this hyperbolic expression are collected in Kölbing’s note to this line (p. 364).

p. 1,l. 24. We find the same idea as here, viz. that nobody can resist the will of God, who has power over death and life, inSir Tristrem, ll. 236 ff.:

‘Þat leuedi, nouȝt to lain,For soþe ded is sche!Who may be ogain?As god wil, it schal be,Vnbliþe.’

‘Þat leuedi, nouȝt to lain,

For soþe ded is sche!

Who may be ogain?

As god wil, it schal be,

Vnbliþe.’

p. 2,l. 28. I have not met with the verbfesomnenanywhere else, and it is not mentioned in Stratmann and Mätzner. Halliwell, Dictionary, p. 354, explains it by ‘feoffed, gave in fee,’ doubtless regarding this very passage, although he doesn’t cite it; mightfesomnydnot be a corruption fromsesyd? cf.Havelok, ll. 250 f.:

‘Þat he ne dede al EngelondSone sayse intil his hond.’

‘Þat he ne dede al Engelond

Sone sayse intil his hond.’

Hall writes to me on this word as follows:fesomnydis, I am convinced, not a word at all, but a scribe’s error forfestonydorfestnyd= confirmed, fixed. Comp. ’And þat ich hym wolde myd trewþe siker faste on honde,’ Robert of Gloucester (Hearne), p. 150. For this use offasten, fastnen, comp. ’But my forwarde with þe I festen on þis wyse,’ Alliterative Poems, p. 47, l. 327: ’& folden fayth to þat fre, festned so harde,’ SirGawayne, p. 57, l. 1783: ’And þis forward, in faith, I festyn with hond,’ Destruction of Troy, p. 22, l. 636. See also Jamieson’s Scottish Dictionary, ii. p. 216, underto Fest.

p. 2,l. 30. I am by no means sure thatfedeis the original reading, but I wasn’t able to find a better word rhyming withdedde,wede; even thene.‘feed’ meanspasture, and that is what we expect here.

p. 2,l. 31. For my correction cf. Lüdtke’s note toThe Erl of Tolouse, l. 199, sub 2;Eglam., l. 26:

‘That was a maydyn as whyte as fome,’

Ib.l. 683:

‘Crystyabelle as whyte as fome,’

where thePercy Folio MS.reads:

‘Christabell that was as faire as sunn;’

Chronicle of England, l. 75 f.:

‘Ant nomeliche to thy lemmon,That ys wyttore then the fom.’

‘Ant nomeliche to thy lemmon,

That ys wyttore then the fom.’

p. 2,l. 50. The alteration ofAndandbeeintoAnandseeseemed necessary;saymentis like Fr.essaiement, Lat.exagimentum.

p. 3,l. 59. Cf.l. 1216 f.andThe Lyfe ofIpomydon, ed. Kölbing, l. 1795:

‘If thou hyr haue, thou shalt hyr bye.’

p. 3,l. 77 f.As half of the stanza is lost, it is impossible to make out to whomtheyrefers. Nor do I believe thatl. 78is correct, especially as tochaunce.

p. 3,l. 79. Cf.Ipomadon, ed. Kölbing, l. 8123:

‘A myle wyth in the Grekes see.’

p. 3,l. 80.in an yleis certainly the correct reading;mauylewas introduced by a scribe who supposed it to be the giant’s name; but that is mentioned some twenty lines later.

p. 5,l. 136. The correction oflyghtintoryghtI owe to Hall, who refers me to the legend ofSancta Maria Egyptiaca; cf. f. i. Barbour’sLegends of Saints, ed. Horstmann, I. p. 143 ff.

p. 6,l. 153.nowyd= ‘anoyed’ gives a poor sense. Hall suggestsnowtyd; cf. E. D. S., No. 6, Ray’sNorth Country Words, p. 59,note, to push, strike or soar, with the horn, as a bull or ram,’ ab. A.S.huitan, ejusdem significationis. The word might then mean ‘spurred.’

p. 6,l. 171=l. 596. This alliterative binding is a very frequent one; cf.Sir Orfeo, ed. Zielke, p. 9.

p. 7,l. 188. The same rhyme, which I have restored here, occursl. 559 f.

p. 7,l. 190.Yt tellythe=Yt is told; cf. Lüdtke, note toThe Erl of Tolouse, l. 1070, and Sarrazin, note toOctavian, l. 1749.

p. 9,l. 236. I was about to write,Crystyn men thow they were, referring this line to the guardians of the lions; but, no doubt, Hall’s reconstruction of the line, which I have put into the text, is far better.

p. 9,l. 237.Hys browys wexe bla, i.e. he turned pale, he was struck with fear; cf.bloo askes, P. Pl., l. 1553, and the Germanaschfahl. Quite a similar expression occurs inPerceval, l. 687 f.:

‘Now sone of that salle wee see,Whose browes schalle blakke.’

‘Now sone of that salle wee see,

Whose browes schalle blakke.’

Ib.l. 1056:

‘His browes to blake.’

p. 9,l. 245. Thoughsyghynggives no offence, still it may be, that the author has writtensyngyng, and the scribe was wrong in altering it; cf. Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 5424.

p. 9,l. 251. Cf.l. 802,1204,Ipomadon, l. 6481 f.:

‘Your nece of Calabyre, that lady clere,Ys bovnden wyth a fendes fere.’

‘Your nece of Calabyre, that lady clere,

Ys bovnden wyth a fendes fere.’

Reliquiæ Antiquæ, i. p. 241:

‘He seith bi niȝte and eke bi day,That hy beth fendes ifere.’

‘He seith bi niȝte and eke bi day,

That hy beth fendes ifere.’

p. 10,l. 265 f.The reading of these two lines is quite destroyed by the careless scribe. My correction is not more than an attempt to restore the rhyme.

p. 10,l. 277 ff.There is nothing in Torrent’s words which could lead the princess to a conclusion like that. I think that afterl. 276one stanza is wanting.

p. 11,l. 286-8. As to the contents of these lines, Kölbing refers me toEnglische studien, vol. IV. p. 133 f., where F. Liebrecht mentions a passage inSir Beves of Hamtoun, according to which a king’s daughter,—if she is a pure virgin,—can never be hurt by a lion. Here we have another proof for this remarkable bit of folk-lore.

p. 11,l. 292=l. 329.

p. 11,l. 303=l. 342.

p. 11,l. 305. I am not quite sure whether I was right in substituting the prince’s name—which is mentioned once more, the first time, as it were,l. 341—for the name of his father’s kingdom; but I didn’t see any other way of restoring the rhyme.

p. 12,l. 311. Cf.l. 469and Skeat’s note toSir Thopas, l. 1927.

p. 12,l. 334. Instead ofheI should prefer to readthey: Torrent has just admonished the prisoners to cheer up.

p. 13,l. 344. There must be something wrong in this line, because the name of the third Earl’s son is missing; to writethe thirdinstead ofofmay not suffice to put the text right; even the namesTorrenandBerweyneseem to me very suspicious.

p. 14,l. 379. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 4245,for Crystys dede;Crystyswas substituted by Kölbing formannes, which is clearly wrong; he could as well have chosengodes.

p. 15,l. 393 ff.Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 736.

p. 16,l. 427. Of this allusion to Veland, Halliwell treats in hisedition ofSir Torrent, p. vii f. Cf. Zupitza,Ein zeugnis für die Wieland-sage,Zeitschrift für deutsches Alterthum, Vol. XIX, p. 129 f.

p. 16,l. 429-31. The line which follows l. 429 in the MS. is superfluous; it damages the metre; and the rhyme with l. 430 won’t do. The old king wishes to say; ‘I have seen the day when, if this sword wielded by me fell on any one, he was considered done for, doomed to death.’ Therefore l. 431,I fawght therfor I toldhas been corrected intoFawe they were I-told. The scribe did not understand the obsolescent wordfaweorfaye, so he wrote the nearest word to it to make sense,I-told= ‘held, considered.’—I.Hall.

p. 17,l. 458. Cf. Breul’s note toSir Gowther, l. 410.

p. 17,l. 465. Cf.l. 2061 f.

p. 20,l. 542. The scribe, who evidently didn’t know the pretty rare wordclow, has spoilt it tocolod, orcolvd; the same rhyme,clouȝ,drouȝ,anouȝoccurs inSir Tristrem, l. 1761 ff. Nor did the scribe know the wordswowe= ‘noise,’ and changed it toswayne; cf. Hall. Dict., p. 843:He come to him with a swowe.

p. 20,l. 543.Of and on, off and on, intermittently.

p.21,l. 555.schyldis not to the point here, Torrent having only his sword at hand. The scribe has forgotten what he has said himself,l. 526and549; cf.l. 652.

p. 21,l. 582-4. We meet with this description twice more in the poem,ll. 1514-16, andll. 1858-60.

p. 23,l. 640. On the meaning oftheff, cf. Kölbing’s note toAm. and Amil., l. 787.

p. 24,l. 659.of Perowneis certainly wrong, as it does not agree with the rhymesstere,nere,fere; but I don’t know how to amend the line.

p. 24,l. 662.scheregives no meaning; I writestereand translate, There might nobody move further,i.e.the giant was brought to a standstill in the glen.

p. 24,l. 665. Cf.ll. 434,791.

p. 25,l. 688. Cf.Eglam., l. 324:

‘And to [the] herte hym bare.’

The weak preterit tense ofberienis very rare; ifbere= A.S.beransometimes has the same meaning,i.e.‘to strike,’ the reason is that A.S.beranand Icel.berjaare confounded.

p. 25,l. 696.woocan hardly stand forwood. It seems to me like a last corruption of an old romance phrase, likeworthy inwith wall (woȝe); possibly the line was simply so:Thus in II journeys Torrent so.—Hall.

p. 25,l. 700. On the use of M.E.foteas a plural see Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 598.

p. 26,l. 722. Hall suggests, the original phrase may have been:pomely whyt and grey; cf. Chaucer,C. T., Prol., l. 615 f.:

‘This reeve sat vpon a ful good stot,That was alpomely gray, and highte Scot.’

‘This reeve sat vpon a ful good stot,

That was alpomely gray, and highte Scot.’

p. 27,l. 744. Cf.l. 788. OnSt. Jamescf. Kölbing’s note toAm. and Amil., l. 796.

p. 29,l. 808 f.‘In so dangerous conditions he has been before [and still come back safe], so he will come back even this time.’

p. 29,l. 819. On the meaning of the phrase ’the bord beginne,’cf. Kölbing,Englische studien, III. p. 104, and Zupitza,Anglia, III. p. 370 f.

p. 30,l. 838. This stanza being incomplete, I think, the lacuna is to be put after l. 838. The missing three lines contained the fact, that the king promises Torrent, before his knights, that, when he has done this deed, he will give him his daughter, and grant him one half of his kingdom during his life, and the whole afterwards; cf.l. 1206 ff.The odd number of XXVII knights is probably due only to the scribe; cf.F. III:By VII score of hardy knyghtes.

p. 31,l. 867 f.These two lines are poor, and the rhyme is very bad; l. 868 may have run originally,Thurrow Pervyns, for sothe, it ley; cf.l. 949.

p. 32,l. 901.squyere, although very odd at the first sight, may still be right; Torrent says: ‘The only squier that I took with me for this journey, is my sword’; cf.l. 909.

p. 33,l. 922. Cf. Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 3344.

p. 33,l. 924-6. On the story of a child, begotten by a devil on a sleeping woman, cf. Breul,Sir Gowther, p. 119 f.

p. 34,l. 954 ff.Cf.Tristrem, l. 1409 ff.:

‘Out of Deuelin tounÞe folk wel fast ran,In a water to droun,So ferd were þai þan.’

‘Out of Deuelin toun

Þe folk wel fast ran,

In a water to droun,

So ferd were þai þan.’

p. 34,l. 963 f.Cf.Beves of Hamtoun, l. 187 f.:

‘Madame, a seide, for loue myn,Whar mai ich finde þat wilde swin?’

‘Madame, a seide, for loue myn,

Whar mai ich finde þat wilde swin?’

p. 36,l. 1000. Instead ofspereperhaps we ought to readsworde.

p. 37,l. 1030 f.If we compare the rests of these lines inF. VI., this reading or a similar one is to be expected. The reading of l. 1029 ff. in the fragments may be completed so:[Thourgh the he]lpe of god of heuen Thorough ye and] herin euen God send the spere the right way.

p. 36,l. 1033 f.Cf.ll. 1166,2468 f., and Kölbing’s note toSir Tristrem, l. 69 f.

p. 38,l. 1070. ‘I came hither to seek my death,’i.e.this expedition was so dangerous, that I expected to die.

p. 38,l. 1076. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 239 f.:

‘Tyll vncovth contreys will I wende,The maner wille I see.’

‘Tyll vncovth contreys will I wende,

The maner wille I see.’

p. 39,l. 1081.iswas to be corrected intoit: ‘Because you slew him that possessed it.’

p. 39,l. 1086. This line, according to Hall’s emendation, means: You owe no homage or feudal due, the manor is yours and your heirs’for ever;i.e.the manor is in fee simple, and free from any feudal obligation.

p. 39,st. 95. The text would be improved by puttingll. 1104-6before 1101-3, although this transposition is not absolutely necessary.

p. 39,l. 1105.leftemay be a mistake forloste; cf.Gower, I. 207:

‘Contenaunce for a þroweHe loste.’

‘Contenaunce for a þrowe

He loste.’

p. 40,l. 1117. Cf. Ritson’sMet. Rom., III. p. 341 f., and Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 436.

p. 40,l. 1121.he barelooks rather suspicious, but it is supported byl. 2169. The author is about to describe the figures inlaid on the shield. Cf.Eglamour, l. 1030 f.:

’He barein azure1a grype of golde,Rychely beton on the molde.’

’He barein azure1a grype of golde,

Rychely beton on the molde.’

p. 40,l. 1124. This line is hopelessly spoilt; the scribe, careless as he was, has almost literally repeatedl. 1121; l. 1125 directly continues the description begun before.

p. 40,l. 1132. Isthan I haue in taleright? We expect rather:than I can telle in tale.

p. 41,l. 1138 f.Cf.l. 1587 f.

p. 41,l. 1143. I thought it necessary to insertmete, although Mätzner,Wörterbuch, II. p. 274, cites this line as the only instance in the M.E. literature forgladas a substantive. But even the sense is very poor without this addition.

p. 41,l. 1144. As to a man riding into the hall, cf. Skeat’s note to Chaucer’sSquiere’s Tale, l. 80, and Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 6253 f.

p. 41,l. 1150 f.I hope my alterations in l. 1151 are right. It cannot be said that the King of Aragon defends the lady unless somebody has laid claims to her. Torrent wants either three combats or the lady, quite a regular occurrence in mediæval romances.

p. 41,l. 1154.none, i.e.no lady.

p. 41,l. 1160. Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 138.

p. 41,l. 1165.the gres, which word is here required by the rhyme, is, in the same way as in this passage, used for ‘battle-field,’ inPerceval, l. 1225 f.:

‘Hedes and helmys ther was,I telle ȝow withowttene lese,Many laydeone the gresse,And many brode schelde.’

‘Hedes and helmys ther was,

I telle ȝow withowttene lese,

Many laydeone the gresse,

And many brode schelde.’

p. 42,l. 1181.For tynding of his hand= for fear of (=for) the beating (blows) of his hand. Schoolboy slang still keeps the word ’to tund’ = to beat with something flat.—Hall.

p. 42,l. 1193. On this expression Skeat treats inNotes to P. Pl., p. 3987, to which note I refer the reader. Cf.Li B. Disc.,l.130 f. (Ritson,Rom.II. p. 6):

‘Hys schon wer with gold ydyghtAndkopethas a knyght.’

‘Hys schon wer with gold ydyght

Andkopethas a knyght.’

p. 43,l. 1198 f.: ‘None of them said a single word, But that Torrent had been right to do so as he had done.’

p. 43,l. 1211. There is an evident contradiction between this line andl. 1199. I suppose the wordwariedto be wrong; but I am not able to give a fairly certain emendation of it.

p. 44,l. 1228 f.: ‘The king had supposed he was dead, and, indeed, foolhardy he was to undertake an adventure like this.’

p. 45,l. 1268 f.This fight between the giant Cate and Torrent reminds us in some points of the combat between Guy and Colbrond. Like the old northernholmganga, both fights take place on an island, and in both cases the giant declines to sit on horseback, because he is too heavy; cf.Guy of Warwike, Edinburgh, 1840, l. 9940 ff.:

‘When þai had sworn and ostage founde,Colbrond stirt vp in þat stounde,To fiȝt he was ful felle.He was so michel and so vnrede,That no hors miȝt him lede,In gest as y you telle.So mani he hadde of armes gere,Vnneþe a cart miȝt hem bere,Þe Inglisse for to quelle.’

‘When þai had sworn and ostage founde,

Colbrond stirt vp in þat stounde,

To fiȝt he was ful felle.

He was so michel and so vnrede,

That no hors miȝt him lede,

In gest as y you telle.

So mani he hadde of armes gere,

Vnneþe a cart miȝt hem bere,

Þe Inglisse for to quelle.’

p. 45,l. 1270.heinstead ofhimis remarkable; this personal construction, provided that it is right, would offer an analogue toI am woinstead ofme is wo; cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 245.

p. 45,l. 1271=l. 1546.

p. 46,l. 1307. This line ought probably to run thus:

’Sir Torent praid, as was his wonne.’

p. 47,l. 1337 f.This isSAINTNycholas de Barr, not sir N., as the copyist has put. He was hardly a cleric, or he would have known the Boy Bishop. An English reference for S. Nicholas is Alban Butler,Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, etc., vol. vii. p. 989, Dublin, 1833. His day is Dec. 6th, consequently he is not inActa Sanctorum; see besidesAltenglische legenden, Neue folge, ed. Horstmann, Heilbronn, 1881, p. 11-16, and Barbour’sLegendensammlung, ed. Horstmann, I. p. 229-245.BarrisBariin Italy, and Barbour, I. p. 238, l. 601 f., knew it was two syllables (cf. the rhymeþame be: Barre). Nicholas was the patron of sailors, and churches on the sea-coast in all parts of Europe were dedicated to him. Now as Sir Torrent had been in peril at sea, he offers to him. It was customary to offer garments at such shrines. See Hampson,Medii Ævi Kalendarium, I. p. 72. Hence I propose for l. 1338:A grett Erldome and a simarr.Simarris not a common word, which makes it all the more probable here, since the uncommon words are those which are corrupted and lost. SeePrompt. Parv., I. p. 75: ’chymer, abella,’ that is ‘abolla, cloak.’ M.E.simar, Fr.simarre.—Hall.I have not hesitated for a moment to introduce this sagacious conjecture into the text; also the correction ofredithintotasI owe to Mr. Hall.

p. 48,l. 1353. Cf. Kölbing’s note toSir Tristrem, l. 2508.

p. 48,l. 1364. We ought probably to readsheinstead ofhe.

p. 48,l. 1367 f.Cf.l. 1756 f.

p. 48,l. 1378. Cf.Sir Tristrem, l. 2458:

‘Bi holtes and bi hille.’

p. 49,l. 1385 ff.Here he addresses the King of Portugal. In l. 1385theis superfluous, and should perhaps be struck out.

p. 49,l. 1395.fend=defend; cf. Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 576.

p. 51,l. 1443 f.As the existence offede=fode, ‘fellow’ is proved by no other passage, we ought perhaps to writeAs spede me god: ffode, orAs g. me save: knave, instead ofAs god me spede: ffede.

p. 51,l. 1445. The alteration offleand, which is absurd here, intofailandis supported byl. 1280.

p. 51,l. 1446. As tomakeinstead ofmade, cf.l. 332.

p. 51,l. 1463. Cf.l. 2090 f.I am afraid neither of these passages is quite right.

p. 53,l. 1518. Perhaps we ought to read:

‘And out of the valey he hyd swith.’

p. 54,l. 1531. I don’t believe that the poet used the wordtreethrice within these four lines; perhaps he wrote for l. 1531:Shold not drawe it, parde.

p. 54,l. 1551. Cf.Guy, ed. Zupitza, l. 5430:

‘To reste þer horsys a lytull wyght,’

and Zupitza’s note to l. 419.

p. 55,l. 1570. Cf. Stratmann’s note toHavelok, l. 1129 (Englische studien, I. p. 424).

p. 56,l. 1592.To the I haue full good gatemeans, ‘I am fully entitled to kill you.’ I don’t recollect to have met with any parallel passage.

p. 56,l. 1600. Thatdyntis wrong, the rhyme shows as well as the meaning. But whether my alteration is right, seems very doubtful, especially asl. 1609offers the same rhyming word.

p. 58,st. 142. Rhymes likedight,be-taught,draught,rightcan by no means be admitted. Now, instead ofbe-taughtwe may be allowed to writebe-teighte(cf.Beket, l. 1827), andl. 1654may have run:

‘He wold haue a draught, aplight.’

p. 59,l. 1676. Afterwas,sentmay have been dropped.

p. 59,l. 1692.For his love, i.e. ‘As his sweetheart.’

p. 60,l. 1714. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 52:

‘Begge he wex of bonne and blode.’

Ib.l. 1763:

‘Ryghtte bygge of bone and blode.’

p. 60,l. 1722: ‘All his men agreed with him,’ viz. that this was the knight whom he came to seek.

p. 62,l. 1774. Isher day= A.S.aerdagas, cf.Havelok, l. 27? The word is very rare, and in this meaning occurs only in the plural.

p. 62,l. 1777. Afterking,on knemay have dropped out.

p. 63,l. 1799. Cf. Chaucer,C. T., the Millere’s Tale, l. 325:

‘Say what thou wolt, I schal it never telleTo childnowyf, by him that harwed helle.’

‘Say what thou wolt, I schal it never telle

To childnowyf, by him that harwed helle.’

Ib., The Sompnoure’s Tale, l. 407:

‘Now help, Thomas, for him that harewed helle.’

Perhaps even here,l. 1702,Iesu, that made hell, ought to be altered intoI. that harowde hell.

p. 64,l. 1846. Perhaps we ought to readebbynginstead ofeb, according tol. 223; one can hardly say, that ‘the sea is eb.’

p. 68,l. 1961. Instead ofAI should prefer to readThe, because this griffon is the same which robbed the child before.

p. 69,l. 1982.Of what lond that he is left, i.e. ‘Wherever he may be born.’

p. 69,l. 1991 f.Cf.Ipomadon, l. 50 f.:

‘He sayd: Fro tyme he kepe tham con,My landes I shall hym take.’

‘He sayd: Fro tyme he kepe tham con,

My landes I shall hym take.’

p. 70,l. 2002.It is good in euery fight, i.e. there is a stone in the ring which heals wounds, if they are touched with it; cf. Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 8018.

p. 70,l.2010. Halliwell, p. 306, explainsdisparlidby ‘beaten down, destroyed,’ a meaning which is not fit for this passage. I read with a slight additiondisparplid= ‘dispersed,’ a rare word; cf.Stratmann, p. 156.

p. 71,l. 2026.Butis probably to be altered intoAnd.

p. 72,l. 2053. Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 3068.

p. 72,l. 2075. One might be inclined to write:

‘That my two children vncrystonyd ware,’

but I don’t think that we are obliged to change: ‘I cared only for that one thing, That my two children might be christened.’

p. 74,l. 2126. Forhinginstead ofhengcf. Mätzner,Sprachproben, I. 1, p. 292, note to line 675, wherehyngesrhymes withspringes.

p. 74,l. 2135.hede vale, i.e. principal, best choice;vale=wale, or perhaps aphetic foravale= value.—Hall.

p. 74,l. 2138.bornseems to me somewhat suspicious, though I cannot propose a better reading;and torninstead ofbornwouldn’t do.

p. 75,l. 2152. The imperfect rhyme shows that there is something wrong in this line; it may be restored thus:

‘Loo, lordys good and hende.’

p. 75,l. 2153.wyll hauehas probably been inserted here from the following line; we ought to readhas.

p. 75,l. 2157.Season for to hold, i.e. ‘in order to hold court.’ But I don’t know another instance ofseasonwith this meaning.

p. 76,l. 2174. This line involves a contradiction tol. 2158 f.

p. 76,l. 2185.smotemeans the same ascaste; cf.King Horn, ed. Wissmann, l. 1038:

‘And ankere gunne caste.’

The only question is, whetherankereis allowed to be supplied or must be added; cf.l. 2203.

p. 77,l. 2209-2214. The Sultan informs Torrent by messengers, that the inhabitants of the town are starving, evidently appealing to his generosity. Torrent answers him, that if they will lie here,i.e.leave the town, they are to have victuals enough. But the Sultan doesn’t accept this condition, and so the siege is continued. That seems to me to be the meaning of this half of the stanza.

p. 77,l. 2216 f.dedemeans here, andl. 2400, ‘exploit, battle.’ In the same way Saber, Beves’s uncle, once a year on a certain day fights against the Emperor; cf.Sir Beues, l. 2917 ff.:

’& eueri ȝer on a dai certaineVpon þemperur of AlmaineHe ginneþ gret bataile take,Beues, al for þine sake.’

’& eueri ȝer on a dai certaine

Vpon þemperur of Almaine

He ginneþ gret bataile take,

Beues, al for þine sake.’

It agrees very well with the religious feelings of the Middle Ages, when they thought it a merit to fight against the heathens on Good Friday; cf. herel. 2230 ff.

p. 77,l. 2224 ff.I am afraid there is something wrong in these lines; the copyist seems to mean, that Torrent didn’t bereave the inhabitants of their worldly goods, their treasures; then we must writethemforit. But what we really expect here is, that he leaves in the town some trustworthy men to keep it. Accordingly, the fault lies inWorldely goodis. Besides, l. 2224,did wyn, instead ofwas yn, would improve the rhyme.

p. 77,l. 2232.bryghtis a rather odd epithet toSarȝins.

p. 78,l. 2233 ff.Fifteen years have past since Torrent began to fight against the infidels: he besieges the first town two years (cf.l. 2189), the second, six years (cf.l. 2206), the third, seven years (cf.l. 2230). Meanwhile, the education of a young man being finished at the age of fifteen (cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 287), his son had become just old enough to win his spurs.

p. 78,l. 2240. I doubt whetherordeyncan be allowed to stand without an object, such asyour folk, oryour ships; cf.Robert of Glo’ster, ed. Hearne, p. 139, l. 19:

‘He bigan to ordeyne ys folk, & to batail aȝen drow.’

p. 78,l. 2256: ‘Woebegone was she, that must see that,’ viz. that ‘le leopard took away her sone.’

p. 78,l. 2259 f.The meaning of these two lines is not quite perspicuous, and they may be corrupt; only this one thing is clear, that these two knights are Torrent and his son, who belong to different parties.

p. 79,l. 2269 ff.It may be that ll. 2269-71 and ll. 2272-74 areto be transposed, but I don’t think it necessary: Torrent’s men flee when they see that their chief has surrendered.

p. 80,l. 2302.wekid= wicked, mischievous. But I don’t recollect to have met with this adj. as an epithet tolandorcountry.

p. 80,l. 2304. Cf.Tristrem, l. 88, Kölbing’s note to that passage, andYork Plays, p. 438, l. 155:

‘For, certys, my lyf days are nere done.’

p. 80,l. 2316. The alteration of this line is rather a radical one; but there was no other way to restore the rhyme; I think that first,dayandnyȝthad changed their places in line 2313, and then the copyist, in order to get a rhyme tonyȝt, spoilt the latter line.

p. 81,l. 2335.be my ffayeandparmaffayin the same stanza, and both in the rhyme, are rather poor; one of these lines may have run thus:

‘Be god of heven, the king gan say.’

p. 82,l. 2357. The same confusion betweenturmentandturnamentoccurs inIpomadon, l. 2868; cf. Kölbing’s note to this line.

p. 83,l. 2392. Cf.Ipomadon, l. 3958:

‘A mercy, syr, for Crystes pitte,’

and Kölbing’s note to this line.

p. 83,l. 2395 f.Cf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 3064, where he cites an interesting parallel passage to this line fromGuy of Warwick, ed. Zupitza, l. 4707 f.:

‘Ȝyt þou art the trewest knyght,That euer slepyd in wynturs nyght.’

‘Ȝyt þou art the trewest knyght,

That euer slepyd in wynturs nyght.’

p. 83,l. 2405.andis perhaps miswritten foranoron.

p. 83,l. 2407. This line, as it stands, is rather odd; perhaps it ought to be identical withl. 1128.

p. 84,l. 2420.juster,jouster, means here a knight who joins in a joust or tournament: in the only other passage where it is known to occur,Alis., l. 1400, it is a horse for tourneying.

p. 84,l. 2433=l. 2456; cf.Ipomadon, l. 8830:

’Euery man in there degre.’

p. 85,l. 2450. Onroial, cf. Kölbing’s note toIpomadon, l. 64. Toa roall ffyghtmay be compared Shakespeare’sA royal battle(Rich. III., IV. iv.).

p. 85,l. 2461.with oute lent= ‘without fasting’? I have not met with this expletive phrase anywhere else.

p. 86,l. 2493. It was not superfluous to mention this fact, because knights were very often killed in tournaments; cf. Niedner,Das deutsche turnier im XII. und XIII.Iahrhundert, Berlin, 1881, p. 24. See also R. Brunne’sHandlyng-Synne, ed. Furnivall, 1862, p. 144-6.

p. 87,l. 2518-20. As to the meaning ofcouplid, cf. Mätzner,Wörterbuch, I. p. 491. These lines evidently mean that gentlemen and ladies sit alternately, what one calls in German,bunte reihe machen.Cf. A. Schultz,Das höfische Leben Zur Zeit der Minnesinger, I. p. 330, and P. Pietsch, Bunte Reihe,Zeitschrift für deutsche Philologie, vol. xvi. Halle, 1884, p. 231, who cites fromBiterolf, l. 7399 ff.:

‘Do hiezens under mîne manIr ingesinde wol getânSich teilen in dem palas,Daz kein mîn recke dâ was,Ern sæze zwischen magedîn.’

‘Do hiezens under mîne man

Ir ingesinde wol getân

Sich teilen in dem palas,

Daz kein mîn recke dâ was,

Ern sæze zwischen magedîn.’

p. 87,l. 2526.emellwas added by Hall in order to restore the rhyme withDesonell.

p. 88,l. 2535. For this correction, cf. Zupitza’s note toGuy, l. 600.

p. 90,l. 2593. Aftermarked,themmay have dropped; cf.Layamon, l. 5642 f.:

‘And heom markedeforđ,Touward Munt-giu heo ferden,’

‘And heom markedeforđ,

Touward Munt-giu heo ferden,’

instead of which lines the laterMSS. writes:

‘Hii nome riht hire wayTouward Muntageu.’

‘Hii nome riht hire way

Touward Muntageu.’

p. 90,l. 2597. Oncastelletourecf. Kölbing’s note toTristrem, l. 158.

p. 91,l. 2636. Cf. Kölbing’s notes toAmis and Amiloun, l. 1019, and toThe lyfe of Ipomadon, l. 506. Here the expression,no good he ne couthmeans, he was quite feeble and strengthless.

p. 92,l. 2658.up-tyed= so limited by the deed of foundation that they (the churches and abbeys) could not be diverted to any other purpose.—Hall.

p. 92,l. 2661. Cf.Eglamour, l. 1339, Lincoln MS.:

‘In Rome this romance crouned es.’

The Cambridge MS. reads instead:

‘In Rome thys geste cronyculd ys.’

I am inclined to think thatcrounedis nothing else but a misreading forcronyculd. Afterwards, considered to be correct, it has originated expressions like those we find here.

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