I. iv. 16 l. 3. hurtlen] hurlen 1609. 1609 makes the same change at I. iv. 40 l. 1 and II. v. 8 l. 7, as if ‘hurtle’ were unfamiliar. Yet it has ‘hurtling’ in I. viii. 17, IV. iv. 29; and ‘hurtle’ in II. vii. 42.
I. iv. 23 l. 5. seldome] seeldome 1590, sildom 1609. See Introduction, p. v.
I. iv. 23 l. 7. dry dropsie. Upton’s conjecture, ‘dire dropsie’ (‘dirus hydrops’), is worth noticing.
I. v. 7 l. 9. helmets hewen] hewen helmets 1590. This is one of those slight changes of order, made here for the sake of grammar, but more often for the sake of rhythm, which reveal the poet’s own hand in 1596 more conclusively than more conspicuous alterations. Others are recorded at II. i. 18 l. 6; II. iii. 38 l. 4; II. v. 5 l. 9; II. vi. 3 l. 6; II. vi. 12 l. 9; III. ii. 8 l. 5; III. ii. 30 l. 5; III. iv. 59 l. 5; III. v. 40 l. 4; III. xi. 4 ll. 4 and 9; III. xi. 22 l. 8.
I. v. 10 l. 6. Doest] Doost 1609 passim. See Introduction, p. v.
I. v. 17 l. 5. can] gan 1590. ‘Can’ (in the sense of ‘did’) and ‘gan’ are easily confused, and difficult to pronounce between.
I. v. 23 l. 8. Nightes children] Nights drad children 1609. On the significance of this variant see Introduction, p. xviii. Other instances in which 1609 fails to recognize syllabic -es are I. x. 34 l. 8; III. vi. 6 l. 5; III. x. 46 l. 6.
I. v. 26 l. 6. am] ame 1590. This is the one eye-rhyme of 1590 that is generally avoided in 1596. Otherwise, so far as I have compared them in this respect, there is little or no difference; both are excessively addicted to eye-rhyme. The current heresy on this subject is expressed by Puttenham (1589):—‘It is somewhat more tollerable to help the rime by false orthographie then to leaue an vnpleasant dissonance to the eare by keeping trewe orthographie and loosing the rime.’ (The Arte of English Poesie, Bk. II. ch. ix.)
I. v. 38 l. 6. cliffs] clifts 1590 &c.: corr. F. E. There is the same correction in I. ix. 34 l. 6. Together they suggest that Spenser meant at first to change ‘clift’ to ‘cliff’ throughout; but found that it would impair the rhyme, e.g. in I. viii. 22 l. 5.
I. v. 45 l. 4. On the 1609 ‘woundez’ see Introduction, p. xviii.