Vnder the title of youre Annotacions and Corrections.
Of the Vernacle. In youre Annotacions you describe, oute of the prologues, the vernacle to be a broche or figure, wherein was sett the instruments wherewith Christe was crucyfyed, and withall a napkyn whereine was the printe of his face. but the vernacle did not conteyne the instrumentes of his deathe, but only the clothe wherein was the figure of his face; as I conceve yt with others.
Master Thynne would read Campaneus for Capaneus, and giveth reasons. Fo: 1. pa: 2. For Campaneus you wolde reade Capaneus, wherunto I cannott yelde. for althoughe Statius and other latine authors do call hym Capaneus; yet all the writers of Englande in that age call him campaneus; as Gower, in confessione amantis, and Lidgat in the historye of Thebes taken out of Statius, and Chaucer hym selfe in many other places. so that yt semethe they made the pronuntiatione of Campaneus to be the dialecte of our tongue for Capaneus. Besides chaucer is in this to be pardoned, in that taking his knightes tale out of the Thesayde of Bocas, written in Italiane (and of late translated into frenche,) doth there, after the Italiane manner, call him campaneus; for so the Italians pronounce woordes beginninge with cap: with the interpositione of the lettere m, pronouncinge yt camp: for, that whiche the Latins call capitolium, the Italians call campidoglio; and suche lyke. Wherefore since yt was vniversallye receued in that age, to call him Campaneus: lett vs not nowe alter yt, but permytte yt to have free passage accordinge to the pronuntiatione and wrytinge of that age. since, in deducinge woordes from one language to one other, there ys often additione and substractione of letters, or of Sillabes, before, in the middle, and in the ende of those wordes. whereof infynyte examples mighte be produced, whiche I nowe shonne for brevytye.
Liketh the reading of Eros, but preferreth that of Heros, and giveth reasons. Fo: 3. pa: 2. (“Noughte comelye lyke to lovers maladye of Hereos.”) for whiche woorde hereos you reade eros, i. cupide, a very good and probable correctione, well gathered out of Luciane. But (salua patientia vestra, and reservinge to myselfe better iudgmente hereafter yf I nowe mystake yt,) I wolde, for the printed hereos of Chaucer, read heroes. whiche two woordes onlye differ in misplacinge of the letters; a comone thinge for the printer to do, and the corrector to overpasse. for Arcyte, in this furye of his love, did not shewe those courses of gouer[n]mente, whiche the Heroes, or valiante persons, in tymes past vsed, for thoughe they loued, yet that passione did not generallye so farre overrule them (althoughe yt mighte in some one particuler personne) as that theye lefte to contynewe the valor, and heroicke actions, whiche they before performed. for the Heroes sholde so love, as that they sholde not forgett, what they were in place, valor, or magnanymytye, whiche Arcite, in this passione, did not observe “lyke to lovers malady of Heroes.” Whereof I coulde produce six hundred examples, (as the proverbe ys,) were yt not that I avoyde tedious prolixytye.
Of florins and their name from the Florentines. Fo: 6. pa: 2. (“Manye a florence.”) In whiche noote you expounde a florence to be ijs frenche, and a gelder to be the same in dutche. Wherein you mistake the valewe of the florens, suche as was vsed in Chaucers tyme, whiche taking his name of the woorkemenne, beinge florentynes, (of the terrytorye of florence in Italye,) were called Florens; Sterling money taketh its name from the Esterlings. as sterlinge money tooke their name of Esterlinges, whiche refyned and coyned the silver in the tyme of kinge Henry the seconde. for two shillinges frenche ys not equall in valewe (as I nowe take yt) to two shillinges Englishe: and much lesse equall to the florens in Chaucers tyme, whiche was of the valewe of thre shillings, fowre pence, or halfe a noble, or, at the leaste, of two shillinges tenne pence farthinge, as apperethe by recorde and historye: some of them being called florens de scuto or of the valewe of the shelde or frenche crowne and some of them called florens regall. Whereof you shall fynde, in the recorde of pellis exitus in the exchequer in michelmas terme 41. Ed. 3. this note. Bartholomeo de Burgershe militi in denariis sibi liberatis in parte solutionis 8000 florenorum de scuto pretii petii iijs. iiijd. sibi debitis de illis 30000 florenorum de scuto in quibus Rex tenebatur eidem Bartholomeo pro comite de Ventadoure, prisonario suo apud Bellum de Poyters in guerra capto, et ab eodem Bartholomeo ad opus Regis empto, vt patet per litteras Regis patentes, quas idem Bartholomeus inde penes se habet. in Dors. de summa subscripta, per breve de magno sigillo, inter mandata de Term. Michaelis de anno 36 —xxli. To the valewe whereof agreeth Hipodigma Neustriæ, pa. 127, King John of France, his ransom of three millions of florens. where setting downe the ransome of the frenche kinge taken at Poyters to the valewe of thre milliones of florens, he sayethe “of whiche florens duo valebant vjs. viijd.” These florens the same Walsingham in another place callethe scutes or frenche crownes, pa. 170, sayinge: Rex quidem Franciæ pro sua redemptione soluit regi Angliæ tres milliones scutorum, quorum duo valent vnum nobile, videlicet, sex solidos et octo denarios. Whiche scutes in lyke manner, in the tyme of kinge Henry the sixte were of the same valewe, as apperethe in Fortescues commentaries of the lawes of Englande. But as those florens for the redemptione of the frenche kinge, were of the valewe of half one noble: so at the tyme of that kings reigne there were also one other sorte of florens, not of lyke valewe, but conteyned within the price of ijs. xd.
called florene regales, as apperethe in this record, of Easter terme, of Pellis exitus before sayed, where yt is thus entred one the sixte of Julye: Guiscardo de Angles. Domino de pleyne martyne, In denariis sibi liberatis per manus Walteri Hewett militis in pretio 4000 florenorum regalium pretii petii —ijs. xd.
de quibus florenis regalibus 7 computantur pro tribus nobilibus, eidem Guiscardo debitis. Whereby you see the meanest of these florens did exceed the valewe of ijs. frenche, (although you sholde equall that with iis. Englishe,) as yt did also in other countryes. for in the lowe countryes at those dayes yt was much aboute the valewe of iijs. iiijd. beinge halfe a pistolet Italiane or Spanyshe. for so sayethe Heuterius Delphicus, (in the Historye of Burgundye, in the lyfe of Philippe le hardye,) lyving at that tyme, and sonne to the frenche kinge taken prisoner by the Inglishe. Heuterius’ woordes be these. Illustris viri aliorumque nobilium mors adeò comitem commovit, vt relicta obsidione exercitus ad commeatus ducendos in proxima loca distribuerit. Decem millibus florenorum (moneta Belgica est semipistoletum Italicum pendens) pro Anglicani, aliorumque nobilium cadaverum redemptione solutis, &c.
Of the oken garland of Emelye. Fo: 7. pa: 2. For unseriall you will vs to reade cerriall, for cerrus[8] is a kynde of tree lyke one oke, bearinge maste; and therefore by your correctione yt sholde be a garland of grene oke cerriall: But for the same reasone (because cerrus ys a kynde of oke as ys also the Ilex) I judge yt sholde not be redde cerriall but unseriall, that ys, (yf you will nedes have this worde cerriall,) a garlande of greene oke not cerriall, as who sholde saye, she had a Garlande of Grene oke, but not of the oke Cerriall. and therefore a garlande of oke unseriall, signifyinge a garlande that was freshe and Grene, and not of dedd wannyshe Coolor as the oke Cerriall in some parte ys. for the Cerrus, being the tree whiche we comonly call the holme oke, (as Cooper also expoundeth the ilex to be that which wee call holme,) produceth two kyndes; whereof the one hathe greater, and the other lesser acornes, whose leaves beinge somewhat grene one the one syde, and of one ouerrussett and darkyshe Coolor on the other syde, were not mete for this garland of Emelye, whiche sholde be freshe and Grene one everye parte, as were her younge and grene yeres, lyke to the goddesse to whome she sacryfyced, and therefore a garlande of Grene oke unseriall, not beinge of oke cerriall, for yf yt had byn oke serriall, yt wolde haue shewed duskyshe and as yt were of dedishe leaves, and not freshe and orient as chaucer wolde haue her garlande. And this for your e[x]positione of unseriall, in some parte: for I wolde suppose that this worde unseriall dothe not vnaptly signifye perfectione of coolor, so that She having a Garlande of Grene oke unseriall, doth signyfye the oke to be grene and unseriall, that is, (as some do expounde this worde unseriall,) unsered, unsinged, unwithered, of freshe coolor, lyke unto the oke Quercus whiche hath no sered nor withered cooloor in his leafes. And yt was of necessytye that Emely (sacryfysinge to Diana) must haue a garlande of the Grene oke Quercus, because that they whiche sacryfyced vnto Diana, otherwise called Hecate, (which name is attribute to Diana, as natalis Comes affirmethe with statius in his Acheleidos in his first Booke sayinge,