[763]. Holde, beholden. 'Nec sumus ingrati'; 76.
[773]. Chaucer practically transposes the offices of Phoebus and Aurora.
'Postera nocturnos Aurora remouerat ignes,
solque pruinosas radiis siccauerat herbas'; 82.
[782]. And for, and because, &c.
[783]. For stands alone in the first foot. Cf. l. 797.
[784]. 'Conueniant ad busta Nini, lateantque sub umbra Arboris'; 88. Ll. 786, 787 are explanatory, and added by Chaucer. Ninus, the supposed founder of Nineveh, was the husband of Semiramis. Cf. Shak. Mid. Nt. Dr. v. 1. 139.
[786]. Lounsbury (Studies in Chaucer, i. 403) says that the pt. t. of herien is heried-e, with final e. But the form is right; héried-e is hardly pronounceable, and the final e is naturally dropped when the accent is thrown so far back. The forms of the past tenses of weak verbs are variable; whether they take a final e or not often depends on the form of the stem. See Ten Brink, Chaucer's Sprache, § 194.
[797]. Y-wimpled, covered with a wimple, or cloth covering the neck and fitting close round the face, chiefly worn by nuns. Another medieval touch. Ovid has 'adopertaque uultum'; 94. See note to l. 813.
[798-801]. These four lines are mainly original, and quite in Chaucer's own manner. Ovid has merely 'fallitque suos.'