Then called Arthur, noblest [boldest] of kings: Where be ye, my Britons, my bold thanes [knights]? The day it forth goeth; this folk against us standeth. Cause we to glide to them sharp darts enow, and teach them to ride the way towards Rome!' Even with the words that Arthur [then] said he [they] sprang forth on steed [upon steeds], as spark doth of fire. Fifty thousand were following him. 47. In the second specimen, which is from the elder text, th has been substituted for þ and 8, to accommodate the unpractised reader. THE PASSING OF ARTHUR. Tha nas ther na mare, i than fehte to laue, of twa hundred thusend monnen, Ther to him com a cnaue, mine kineriche: and wite mine Bruttes, a to thines lifes: and hald heom alle tha lazen, tha habbeoth istonden a mine dazen: and alle tha lazen gode, tha bi Vtheres dazen stode. And ich wulle uaren to Aualun, to uairest alre maidene; to Argante there quene, aluen swithe sceone : and heo scal mine wunden, makien alle isunde, Then was there no more There to him came a youth I here commit to thee, my kingdom: and guide thou my Britons aye to thy life's cost: and assure them all the laws, that have stood in my days: and all the laws so good, that by Uther's days stood. And I will fare to Avalon, to the fairest of all maidens ; to Argante the queen, elf exceeding sheen: and she shall my wounds, make all sound, al hal me makien, mid haleweize drenchen. And seothe ich cumen wulle to mine kineriche: and wunien mid Brutten, mid muchelere wunne. Efne than worden, ther com of se wenden, that wes an sceort bat lithen, sceouen mid vthen: and twa wimmen therinne, wunderliche idihte: and heo nomen Arthur anan, and aneouste hine uereden, and softe hine adun leiden, and forth gunnen hine lithen. Tha wes hit iwurthen, that Merlin seide whilen; that weore unimete care, of Arthures forth fare. Bruttes ileueth zete, that he beo on liue, and wunnie in Aualun mid fairest alre aluen: and lokieth euere Bruttes gete, whan Arthur cume lithen. all whole me make, with healing drinks. And sith return I will, to my kingdom: and dwell with Britons, with mickle joy. Even with these words, there came from sea-ward wending, that was a short boat sailing, moving with the waves: and two women therein, of marvellous aspect: and they took Arthur anon, and quickly bore him off, and softly him down laid, and forth with him to sea they gan to move away. Then was it come to pass what Merlin said whilome; that there should be much curious care, and dwelling in Avalon, 48. A third specimen shall be taken from near the close of this voluminous work, where the elder text only is preserved. A BRITISH VIEW OF ATHELSTAN'S REIGN. and hu he sette moting, þat he wes on liue. and how he set mote-ting, and in Saxish gan he ken, 49. The Ormulum may be proximately dated at A.D. 1215. This is a versified narrative of the Gospels, addressed by Ormin or Orm to his brother Walter, and after his own name called by the author 'Ormulum'; by which designation it is commonly known. Icc patt tiss Ennglish hafe sett Ennglisshe men to lare, piss boc iss nemmnedd Orrmulum Forrpi þatt Orrm itt wroghte. I that this English have set I was there-where I christened was This book is named Ormulum In this poem we find for the first time the word 'English' in the mature form. Layamon has the forms englisc, englis, anglis, anglisce; but Orm has enngliss, and still more frequently the fully developed form ennglissh. The author is lavish of his consonants. 50. This is a constant feature of the Ormulum. For Orm was one of Nature's philologers, and a spellingreformer. He carefully puts the double consonant after the short vowel. Had his orthography been generally adopted, we should have had in English not only the mm and nn with which German is studded, but many other double consonants which we do not now possess. How great a study Orm had made of this subject we are not left to gather from observation of his spelling, for he has emphatically called attention to it in the opening of his work. HOW TO SPELL. And whase wilenn shall piss boc efft operr sipe writenn himm bidde icc pat he't write rihht swa summ piss boc him tæchepp and tatt he loke well patt he an bocstaff write twiggess eggwhær þæt itt uppo piss boc iss writen o þatt wise. loke well patt he't write swa, for he ne magg nohht elless on Ennglissh writenn rihht te word, þatt wite he well to sope. And whoso shall purpose to make another copy of this book, I beg him to write it exactly as this book directeth; and that he look well that he write a letter twice wherever upon this book it is written in that wise. Let him look carefully that he write it so, for else he cannot write it correctly in English-that know he well for certain! 51. There is another point of orthography which is (almost) peculiar to this author. When words beginning with follow words ending in d or t, he generally (with but a few, and those definite exceptions) alters the initial þ to t. Where (for example) he has the three words patt and batt and be succeeding one another continuously, he writes, not batt þatt be, but patt tatt te. One important exception to this rule is where the word ending with the d or t is severed from the word beginning with by a metrical pause; in that case the change does not take place, as— 1 agg affter be Goddspell stannt patt tatt te Goddspell menepp. and aye after the Gospel standeth that which the Gospel meaneth. Here the stannt does not change the initial of the next word, because of the metrical division that separates them. Other examples of these peculiarities may be seen in the following extract. CHARACTER OF A GOOD MONK. Forr himm birrp beon full clene mann, and all wipputenn ahhte, Buttan þatt mann himm findenn shall And himm birrp æfre standenn inn to lofenn Godd and wurrpen, And agg himm birrp beon fressh þærto bi daggess and by nihhtess; And tat iss harrd and strang and tor and hefig lif to ledenn, And forbi birrp wel clawwstremann onnfangenn mikell mede, Att hiss Drih htin Allwældennd Godd, forr whamm he mikell swinnkepp. And all hiss herrte and all hiss lusst birrp agg beon towarrd heoffne, And himm birrp geornenn agg þatt an hiss Drihhtin wel to cwemenn, Wipp daggsang and wipp uhhtennsang wipp messess and wipp beness, &c. TRANSLATION. For he ought to be a very pure man and altogether without property, Except that he shall be found in simple meat and clothes. And that is all the earthly thing that minster-man should own, Except a knife and sheath and comb and needle, if he want it. And all this shall they find for him, and it is his duty to take care of it, For he may neither do with it, neither give it nor sell. And he must ever stand in (vigorously) to praise and worship God, And aye must he be fresh thereto by daytime and by nights; And that's a hard and stiff and rough |