Observe that, in l. 2360, the stuff is called 'a stamin.'
[2359]. By that, by the time that.
[2360]. A stamin large, a large piece of stamine. Stamin or stamine is usually explained as a kind of woollen cloth. Cotgrave gives: 'Estamine, the stuffe tamine.' Godefroy gives both estamin, masc. and estamine, fem. explained by 'tissu léger de laine ou de coton.' Palsgrave has:—'Stamell, fyne worstede, estamine'; and—'Stamyne, estamine.' The Prompt. Parv. has:—'Stamyn, clothe, stamina.' Stamin was used as a material for shirts, and was worn by way of penance; Fosbrooke explains it as 'a shirt made of woollen and linen, used instead of a penitentiary hair-shirt.' 'Stamin habbe whoso wule,' whoso will may have a stamin; Ancren Riwle, p. 418. Chaucer uses it thus near the end of the Persones Tale (I 1052); 'Also in weringe of heyres or of stamin or of haubergeons on hir naked flesh for Cristes sake, and swiche manere penances.'
MSS. C. T. A. have stamyn, which seems the better form; the rest (like the printed editions) have stames, which may be an error for stamel, O.F. estamel, used in the same sense as O.F. estamine. Else it may answer to O.F. estame, 'laine peignée, tricot de laine' in Godefroy. The fact that Ovid's word is stamina is in favour of the spelling stamin. (Bell remarks that 'the printed copies read flames, which is nonsense.' He seems to have misread stames (with long s) as flames. The editions of 1532, 1550, and 1561 certainly have stames.)
[2373-82]. Abridged from Met. vi. 581-605. Ovid mentions the triennial festival to Bacchus.
[2379]. Compleint is a much better reading than the constreynte of the old editions.
[2383]. No charge, of no consequence; Squi. Ta., F 359.
[2383-93]. All Chaucer's own. The last line is characteristic: 'unless it happens to be the case that he cannot get another,' i.e. a new love. For non other, old editions have another!
[2385]. Here deserved is the usual Chaucerian form of the pt. tense. Prof. Lounsbury (Studies in Chaucer, i. 403) calls this a false form. But cf. wyped, lipsed (in -ed, not -ede); Prol. to C. T., 133, 264.