Chap. I. The initials of the fourteen Chapters in this Book give the words: VIRTW HAVE MERCI. Thynne has not preserved the right division, but makes fifteen chapters, giving the words: VIRTW HAVE MCTRCI. I have set this right, by making Chap. XI begin with 'Every.' Thynne makes Chapter XI begin with 'Certayn,' p. 86, l. 133, and another Chapter begin with 'Trewly,' p. 89, l. 82. This cannot be right, because the latter word, 'Trewly,' belongs to the last clause of a sentence; and the Chapter thus beginning would have the unusually small number of 57 lines.
1. Chapter I really forms a Prologue to the Second Book, interrupting our progress. At the end of Book I we are told that Love is about to sing, but her song begins with Chap. II. Hence this first Chapter must be regarded as a digression, in which the author reviews what has gone before (ll. 10-3), and anticipates what is to come (l. 61).
9. steering, government (of God), otherwysed, changed, varied; an extraordinary form.
12, 13. after as, according as. hildeth, outpours.
14-8. There is clearly much corruption in this unintelligible and
imperfect sentence. The reference to 'the Roman emperor' is mysterious.
21. woweth; so in Thynne, but probably an error for waweth, i.e. move, shift; see waȝien in Stratmann.
23. phane, vane; cf. 'chaunging as a vane'; Ch. C. T., E 996.
34. irrecuperable, irrecoverable; irrecuperabilis is used by Tertullian (Lewis and Short).
40. armes; this refers, possibly, to the struggle between the pope and anti-pope, after the year 1378.