RESULT OF THE COLLATION OF WHITTAKER'S FACSIMILES WITH THE ORIGINAL PAGES.1

HE following table shows how far Whittaker succeeded in reproducing the original in his facsimile pages. In the first column are quoted the readings of Lord Spencer's copy as I have reproduced them in my text; the second column shows the readings of the only perfect copy, once at Osterley, now in America.

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1 Leaves: г, verso [page 306*]; N2 recto [613*]; N, recto [623*]; ee, recto [855]; ee, verso [857*] and ee, recto [861*] are faultless.

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Previous to the first issue of his Globe edition in 1867 Sir Edward Strachey collated his text of the Southey edition (of course only the doubtful pages), not only with Whittaker's facsimiles, but also with the originals then still at Osterley. He kindly sent me his volumes to London, and thus enabled me to check the American collation. According to Sir E. Strachey, we have to read: Page 305* 33, “hit," for it; 855* 6, "erthyly," erthly; 858* 20, cryften," chrysten; 35, "that," then; 859* 14, " &," and; 860* 29, "cuntreyes," countreyes; 39, "hoole," booke.

NOTES ON THE LANGUAGE OF "LE MORTE

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DARTHUR."

HE language in which Sir Thomas Malory's "Le Morte Darthur" has come down to us in Caxton's imprint offers many peculiar features, and cannot fail to be of interest and value to the philologist. It would be a useful and meritorious task to treat the whole of Caxton's numerous volumes with regard to their linguistic peculiarities; in short, to write a Caxton-grammar similar to those of the language of Chaucer1 and Shakspere. This

1 B. ten Brink, "Chaucer's Sprache und Verskunst." Leipzig, 1884, 8vo.

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2 E. A. Abbot, "A Shakspearian Grammar: an Attempt to illustrate some of the Differences between Elizabethan and Modern English." London, 1870, 8vo.

suggestion can, of course, only be realized when trustworthy editions of all the works issued from the press of the first English printer are within the reach of every scholar.' Time and space only allow me to note in brief the most characteristic examples of Caxton's orthography, phraseology, and syntax which attracted my attention during the compilation of the Index and Glossary.

If we adopt the common division into three periods of the English language-viz., Old English till 1250, Middle English till 1485, and from thence onward Modern English-our text belongs (taking in consideration that it was in manuscript in 1474, eleven years before it saw the light of day) either to the close of Middle English or to the opening of Modern English. And, indeed, whilst resembling in many respects the familiar language of Chaucer's poetry, it has also a marked modern colouring, and is akin to the language of Shakspere and his predecessors. Being thus the product of a period of transition and change, it is not surprising to find on every page, in every line, the strife of ancient and modern forms. No uniform orthography existed at that time, and the art of printing, still in its infancy, was incapable of effecting such an innovation.

Just as the first printed books closely resemble the manuscripts they were intended to replace, so their language is like that of the manuscripts, the orthography is that of the individual scribe, and here and there abbreviations and contractions occur, though not to the same extent as in the manuscripts.

Caxton's orthography, as I prefer to call it, instead of Malory's, believing that Malory's text underwent a considerable change while passing through the press, is, to say the least of it, most remarkable ;; what it is like can be best seen from some examples.

The Modern English word means occurs in the following different spellings:-1. "menes" (394 35); 2. "meane" (11 30); 3. "moyne" (16 11); 4. “moyan" (10 23); 5. “moyane" (6 4).

Realm is spelled: 1.❝reame" (39 34); 2. "royame” (11 2);

1 Dr. L. Kellner, in his forthcoming edition of Caxton's "Blanchardyn & Eglantyne (Early-English Text Society), of which he kindly submitted to me some proof-sheets of the opening pages of the Introduction, has devoted himself to the study of Caxton's syntax. He quotes not only from his text, but also from the "Foure Sonnes of Aymon,” ed. by Miss O. Richardson (E.-E. T. S.), 1885, and from my edition of "Le Morte Darthur." To judge from what I have seen of it, his work will be a most valuable contribution to the study of the English tongue.

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3. "reaume" (45 8); 4. "royalme" (4 1); 5. "realme" (67 5); 6. "royaume" (160 15).

Thorough: 1. "thorugh" (1 12); 2. "thorowe" (37 16); 3. “thorou❞ (235 16); 4. "thurgh" (59 12).

Hair: 1. "hayre" (657 16); 2. "hayr" (27 27); 3. "heyre (362 19); 4. “here” (83 22).

Whither: 1. "whyder" (378 10); 2. "whydder" (702 28); 3. "whyther" (384 15); 4.“whether" (219 15); 5. "wheder " (297 21).

The Glossary will disclose many more examples of a similar character.

Many words which in Modern English differ in meaning and orthography are spelled alike in Caxton: e.g., "here" (to hear); "here" (the hair), "here" (here); "hede" (the head), “hede" (heed); “herte” (heart), “herte" (hart); “mete" (meat), “mete” (meet, fitting), “mete” (to meet); etc.

Compounds of different particles which generally form one word nowadays are written in two: e.g., "to gyder"; "by nethe"; "by cause "; likewise all pronouns with "felf," as "her felf"; "hym self." In Caxton "felf" has no plural, or rather the plural selves is always spelt like the singular (comp. 389 6; 198 12). The same is the case with "other," which is also plural and singular (305 12; 361 12; 446 13).

The termination "er "er" occurs both in the Saxon and in the Norman form: "hongre," "honger."

The final mute "e" is more frequently used than in Modern English: "fente"; "grene"; "hande"; "owne"; "rede”; “none.” Words are not divided according to syllables or roots and terminations, but according to the space. The conjunctive-hyphen is rarely employed.

The prefixes "be-” (“bi-" or "by-"), "for-," "to-," and "male often occur where unused nowadays, and are mostly separated from the verb.

be-": "bebled" (294 12); “bybledest" (176 33); “beclosed " (601 2); “bedasshed" (773 31); “befalle" (420 34), etc.; for others see the Glossary.

"for-": "forbled" (350 26); "fordone" (334 32); "fordyd' (993); “forfende" (727 8); "forfendyd" (727 13); “"forfoughten" (87