PART III. SELECTIONS FOR READING.

PROSE. Introductory.

I. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.

This famous work, a series of progressive annals by unknown hands, embraces a period extending from Cæsar’s invasion of England to 1154. It is not known when or where these annals began to be recorded in English.

“The annals from the year 866—that of Ethelred’s ascent of the throne—to the year 887 seem to be the work of one mind. Not a single year is passed over, and to several is granted considerable space, especially to the years 871, 878, and 885. The whole has gained a certain roundness and fulness, because the events—nearly all of them episodes in the ever-recurring conflict with the Danes—are taken in their connection, and the thread dropped in one year is resumed in the next. Not only is the style in itself concise; it has a sort of nervous severity and pithy rigor. The construction is often antiquated, and suggests at times the freedom of poetry; though this purely historical prose is far removed from poetry in profusion of language.” (Ten Brink, Early Eng. Lit., I.)

II. The Translations of Alfred.

Alfred’s reign (871-901) may be divided into four periods. The first, the period of Danish invasion, extends from 871 to 881; the second, the period of comparative quiet, from 881 to 893; the third, the period of renewed strife (beginning with the incursions of Hasting), from 893 to 897; the fourth, the period of peace, from 897 to 901. His literary work probably falls in the second period.*

The works translated by Alfred from Latin into the vernacular were (1) Consolation of Philosophy (De Consolatione Philosophiae) by Boëthius (475-525), (2) Compendious History of the World (Historiarum Libri VII) by Orosius (c. 418), (3) Ecclesiastical History of the English (Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum) by Bede (672-735), and (4) Pastoral Care (De Cura Pastorali) by Pope Gregory the Great (540-604).

The chronological sequence of these works is wholly unknown. That given is supported by Turner, Arend, Morley, Grein, and Pauli. Wülker argues for an exact reversal of this order. According to Ten Brink, the order was more probably (1) Orosius, (2) Bede, (3) Boëthius, and (4) Pastoral Care. The most recent contribution to the subject is from Wülfing, who contends for (1) Bede, (2) Orosius, (3) Pastoral Care, and (4) Boëthius.

I. THE BATTLE OF ASHDOWN.

[From the Chronicle, Parker MS. The event and date are significant. The Danes had for the first time invaded Wessex. Alfred’s older brother, Ethelred, was king; but to Alfred belongs the glory of the victory at Ashdown (Berkshire). Asser (Life of Alfred) tells us that for a long time Ethelred remained praying in his tent, while Alfred and his followers went forth “like a wild boar against the hounds.”]

1 871. Hēr cuōm1 sē hęre tō Rēadingum on Westseaxe,

2 ǫnd þæs ymb iii niht ridon ii eorlas ūp. Þa gemētte hīe

1 Æþelwulf aldorman2 on Ęnglafelda, ǫnd him þǣr wiþ gefeaht,

2 ǫnd sige nam. Þæs ymb iiii niht Æþered cyning

3 ǫnd Ælfred his brōþur3 þǣr micle fierd tō Rēadingum

4 gelǣddon, ǫnd wiþ þone hęre gefuhton; ǫnd þǣr wæs

5 micel wæl geslægen on gehwæþre hǫnd, ǫnd Æþelwulf

6 aldormǫn wearþ ofslægen; ǫnd þa Dęniscan āhton wælstōwe

7 gewald.

8 Ǫnd þæs ymb iiii niht gefeaht Æþered cyning ǫnd

9 Ælfred his brōþur wiþ alne4 þone hęre on Æscesdūne.

10 Ǫnd hīe wǣrun5 on twǣm gefylcum: on ōþrum wæs

11 Bāchsęcg ǫnd Halfdęne þā hǣþnan cyningas, ǫnd on

12 ōþrum wǣron þā eorlas. Ǫnd þā gefeaht sē cyning

13 Æþered wiþ þāra cyninga getruman, ǫnd þǣr wearþ sē

14 cyning Bāgsęcg ofslægen; ǫnd Ælfred his brōþur wiþ

15 þāra eorla getruman, ǫnd þǣr wearþ Sidroc eorl ofslægen

16 sē alda,6 ǫnd Sidroc eorl sē gioncga,7 ǫnd Ōsbearn eorl,

17 ǫnd Frǣna eorl, ǫnd Hareld eorl; ǫnd þā hęrgas8 bēgen

18 geflīemde, ǫnd fela þūsenda ofslægenra, ǫnd onfeohtende

19 wǣron oþ niht.

20 Ǫnd þæs ymb xiiii niht gefeaht Æþered cyning ǫnd

21 Ælfred his brōður wiþ þone hęre æt Basengum, ǫnd þǣr

22 þa Dęniscan sige nāmon.

23 Ǫnd þæs ymb ii mōnaþ gefeaht Æþered cyning ǫnd

24 Ælfred his brōþur wiþ þone hęre æt Męretūne, ǫnd hīe

25 wǣrun on tuǣm9 gefylcium, ǫnd hīe būtū geflīemdon, ǫnd

26 lǫnge on dæg sige āhton; ǫnd þǣr wearþ micel wælsliht

27 on gehwæþere hǫnd; ǫnd þā Dęniscan āhton wælstōwe

1 gewald; ǫnd þær wearþ Hēahmund bisceop ofslægen,

2 ǫnd fela gōdra mǫnna. Ǫnd æfter þissum gefeohte cuōm1

3 micel sumorlida.

4 Ǫnd þæs ofer Ēastron gefōr Æþered cyning; ǫnd hē

5 rīcsode v gēar; ǫnd his līc līþ æt Wīnburnan.

6 Þā fēng Ælfred Æþelwulfing his brōþur tō Wesseaxna

7 rīce. Ǫnd þæs ymb ānne mōnaþ gefeaht Ælfred cyning

8 wiþ alne4 þone hęre lȳtle werede10 æt Wiltūne, ǫnd hine

9 lǫnge on dæg geflīemde, ǫnd þā Dęniscan āhton wælstōwe

10 gewald.

11 Ǫnd þæs gēares wurdon viiii folcgefeoht gefohten wiþ

12 þone hęre on þȳ cynerīce be sūþan Tęmese, būtan þām þe

13 him Ælfred þæs cyninges brōþur ǫnd ānlīpig aldormǫn2 ǫnd

14 cyninges þegnas oft rāde onridon þe mǫn nā ne rīmde;

15 ǫnd þæs gēares wǣrun5 ofslægene viiii eorlas ǫnd ān cyning.

16 Ǫnd þȳ gēare nāmon Westseaxe friþ wiþ þone hęre.

100.8. gefeaht. Notice that the singular is used. This is the more common construction in O.E. when a compound subject, composed of singular members, follows its predicate. Cf. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory. See also p. 107, note on wæs.

100.18. ǫnd fela þūsenda ofslægenra, and there were many thousands of slain (§ 91).

101.12. būtan þām þe, etc., besides which, Alfred ... made raids against them (him), which were not counted. See § 70, Note.

Consult Glossary and Paradigms under Forms given below.

No note is made of such variants as y (ȳ) or i (ī) for ie (īe). See Glossary under ie (īe); occurrences, also, of and for ǫnd, land for lǫnd, are found on almost every page of Early West Saxon. Such words should be sought for under the more common forms, ǫnd, lǫnd.

II. A PRAYER OF KING ALFRED.

[With this characteristic prayer, Alfred concludes his translation of Boëthius’s Consolation of Philosophy. Unfortunately, the only extant MS. (Bodleian 180) is Late West Saxon. I follow, therefore, Prof. A. S. Cook’s normalization on an Early West Saxon basis. See Cook’s First Book in Old English, p. 163.]

1 Dryhten, ælmihtiga God, Wyrhta and Wealdend ealra

2 gesceafta, ic bidde ðē for ðīnre miclan mildheortnesse,

3 and for ðǣre hālgan rōde tācne, and for Sanctæ Marian

4 mægðhāde, and for Sancti Michaeles gehīersumnesse, and

5 for ealra ðīnra hālgena lufan and hīera earnungum, ðæt

6 ðū mē gewissie bęt ðonne ic āworhte tō ðē; and gewissa

7 mē tō ðīnum willan, and tō mīnre sāwle ðearfe, bęt ðonne

8 ic self cunne; and gestaðela mīn mōd tō ðinum willan and

9 tō mīnre sāwle ðearfe; and gestranga mē wið ðæs dēofles

10 costnungum; and āfierr fram mē ðā fūlan gālnesse and

11 ǣlce unrihtwīsnesse; and gescield mē wið mīnum wiðerwinnum,

12 gesewenlīcum and ungesewenlīcum; and tǣc mē

13 ðīnne willan tō wyrceanne; ðæt ic mæge ðē inweardlīce

14 lufian tōforan eallum ðingum, mid clǣnum geðance and

15 mid clǣnum līchaman. For ðon ðe ðū eart mīn Scieppend,

16 and mīn Alīesend, mīn Fultum, mīn Frōfor, mīn Trēownes,

17 and mīn Tōhopa. Sīe ðē lof and wuldor nū and

18 ā ā ā, tō worulde būtan ǣghwilcum ęnde. Amen.

102.3-4. Marian ... Michaeles. O.E. is inconsistent in the treatment of foreign names. They are sometimes naturalized, and sometimes retain in part their original inflections. Marian, an original accusative, is here used as a genitive; while Michaeles has the O.E. genitive ending.

102.17. Sīe ðē lof. See § 105, 1.

III. THE VOYAGES OF OHTHERE AND WULFSTAN.

[Lauderdale and Cottonian MSS. These voyages are an original insertion by Alfred into his translation of Orosius’s Compendious History of the World.

“They consist,” says Ten Brink, “of a complete description of all the countries in which the Teutonic tongue prevailed at Alfred’s time, and a full narrative of the travels of two voyagers, which the king wrote down from their own lips. One of these, a Norwegian named Ohthere, had quite circumnavigated the coast of Scandinavia in his travels, and had even penetrated to the White Sea; the other, named Wulfstan, had sailed from Schleswig to Frische Haff. The geographical and ethnographical details of both accounts are exceedingly interesting, and their style is attractive, clear, and concrete.”

Ohthere made two voyages. Sailing first northward along the western coast of Norway, he rounded the North Cape, passed into the White Sea, and entered the Dwina River (ān micel ēa). On his second voyage he sailed southward along the western coast of Norway, entered the Skager Rack (wīdsǣ), passed through the Cattegat, and anchored at the Danish port of Haddeby (æt Hǣþum), modern Schleswig.

Wulfstan sailed only in the Baltic Sea. His voyage of seven days from Schleswig brought him to Drausen (Trūsō) on the shore of the Drausensea.]

Ohthere’s First Voyage.

1 Ōthęre sǣde his hlāforde, Ælfrede cyninge, þæt hē

2 ealra Norðmǫnna norþmest būde. Hē cwæð þæt hē būde

3 on þǣm lande norþweardum wiþ þā Westsæ. Hē sǣde

4 þēah þæt þæt land sīe swīþe lang norþ þonan; ac hit is

5 eal wēste, būton on fēawum stōwum styccemælum wīciað

6 Finnas, on huntoðe on wintra, ǫnd on sumera on fiscaþe

7 be þǣre sǣ. Hē sǣde þæt hē æt sumum cirre wolde

8 fandian hū lǫnge þæt land norþryhte lǣge, oþþe hwæðer

9 ǣnig mǫn be norðan þǣm wēstenne būde. Þā fōr hē

10 norþryhte be þǣm lande: lēt him ealne weg þæt wēste

11 land on ðæt stēorbord, ǫnd þā wīdsǣ on ðæt bæcbord þrīe

12 dagas. Þā wæs hē swā feor norþ swā þā hwælhuntan

13 firrest faraþ. Þā fōr hē þā gīet norþryhte swā feor swā

14 hē meahte on þǣm ōþrum þrīm dagum gesiglan. Þā bēag

15 þæt land þǣr ēastryhte, oþþe sēo sǣ in on ðæt lǫnd, hē

16 nysse hwæðer, būton hē wisse ðæt hē ðǣr bād westanwindes

17 ǫnd hwōn norþan, ǫnd siglde ðā ēast be lande

18 swā swā hē meahte on fēower dagum gesiglan. Þā

19 sceolde hē ðǣr bīdan ryhtnorþanwindes, for ðǣm þæt

20 land bēag þǣr sūþryhte, oþþe sēo sǣ in on ðæt land, hē

21 nysse hwæþer. Þā siglde hē þǫnan sūðryhte be lande

1 swā swā hē męhte1 on fīf dagum gesiglan. Ðā læg þǣr

2 ān micel ēa ūp in on þæt land. Þā cirdon hīe ūp in on

3 ðā ēa, for þǣm hīe ne dorston forþ bī þǣre ēa siglan for

4 unfriþe; for þǣm ðæt land wæs eall gebūn on ōþre healfe

5 þǣre ēas. Ne mētte hē ǣr nān gebūn land, siþþan hē

6 frǫm his āgnum hām fōr; ac him wæs ealne weg wēste

7 land on þæt stēorbord, būtan fiscerum ǫnd fugelerum ōnd

8 huntum, ǫnd þæt wǣron eall Finnas; ǫnd him wæs ā

9 wīdsǣ on ðæt bæcbord. Þā Beormas hæfdon swīþe wel

10 gebūd hira land: ac hīe ne dorston þǣr on cuman. Ac

11 þāra Terfinna land wæs eal wēste, būton ðǣr huntan

12 gewīcodon, oþþe fisceras, oþþe fugeleras.

13 Fela spella him sǣdon þā Beormas ǣgþer ge of hiera

14 āgnum lande ge of þǣm landum þe ymb hīe ūtan wǣron;

15 ac hē nyste hwæt þæs sōþes wæs, for þǣm hē hit self ne

16 geseah. Þā Finnas, him þūhte, ǫnd þā Beormas sprǣcon

17 nēah ān geþēode. Swīþost hē fōr ðider, tō ēacan þæs

18 landes scēawunge, for þǣm horshwælum, for ðǣm hīe

19 habbað swīþe æþele bān on hiora2 tōþum—þā tēð hīe brōhton

20 sume þǣm cyninge—ǫnd hiora hȳd bið swīðe gōd tō

21 sciprāpum. Sē hwæl bið micle lǣssa þonne ōðre hwalas:

22 ne bið hē lęngra ðonne syfan3 ęlna lang; ac on his āgnum

23 lande is sē bętsta hwælhuntað: þā bēoð eahta and fēowertiges

24 ęlna lange, and þā mǣstan fīftiges ęlna lange;

25 þāra hē sǣde þæt hē syxa sum ofslōge syxtig on twām

26 dagum.

1 Hē wæs swȳðe spēdig man on þǣm ǣhtum þe heora2

2 spēda on bēoð, þæt is, on wildrum. Hē hæfde þā gȳt, ðā

3 hē þone cyningc5 sōhte, tamra dēora unbebohtra syx hund.

4 Þā dēor hī hātað ‘hrānas’; þāra wǣron syx stælhrānas;

5 ðā bēoð swȳðe dȳre mid Finnum, for ðǣm hȳ fōð þā

6 wildan hrānas mid. Hē wæs mid þǣm fyrstum mannum

7 on þǣm lande: næfde hē þēah mā ðonne twēntig hrȳðera,

8 and twēntig scēapa, and twēntig swȳna; and þæt lȳtle

9 þæt hē ęrede, hē ęrede mid horsan.4 Ac hyra ār is mǣst

10 on þǣm gafole þe ðā Finnas him gyldað. Þæt gafol bið

11 on dēora fellum, and on fugela feðerum, and hwales bāne,

12 and on þǣm sciprāpum þe bēoð of hwæles hȳde geworht

13 and of sēoles. Ǣghwilc gylt be hys gebyrdum. Sē byrdesta

14 sceall gyldan fīftȳne mearðes fell, and fīf hrānes,

15 and ān beren fel, and tȳn ambra feðra, and berenne kyrtel

16 oððe yterenne, and twēgen sciprāpas; ǣgþer sȳ syxtig

17 ęlna lang, ōþer sȳ of hwæles hȳde geworht, ōþer of sīoles.6

18 Hē sǣde ðæt Norðmanna land wǣre swȳþe lang and

19 swȳðe smæl. Eal þæt his man āðer oððe ęttan oððe ęrian

20 mæg, þæt līð wið ðā sǣ; and þæt is þēah on sumum

21 stōwum swȳðe clūdig; and licgað wilde mōras wið ēastan

22 and wið ūpp on emnlange þǣm bȳnum lande. On þǣm

23 mōrum eardiað Finnas. And þæt bȳne land is ēasteweard

24 brādost, and symle swā norðor swā smælre. Ēastewęrd7

25 hit mæg bīon8 syxtig mīla brād, oþþe hwēne brǣdre;

26 and middeweard þrītig oððe brādre; and norðeweard hē

27 cwæð, þǣr hit smalost wǣre, þæt hit mihte bēon þrēora

28 mīla brād tō þǣm mōre; and sē mōr syðþan,9 on sumum

1 stōwum, swā brād swā man mæg on twām wucum oferfēran;

2 and on sumum stōwum swā brād swā man mæg

3 on syx dagum oferfēran.

4 Ðonne is tōemnes þǣm lande sūðeweardum, on ōðre

5 healfe þæs mōres, Swēoland, oþ þæt land norðeweard;

6 and tōemnes þǣm lande norðeweardum, Cwēna land. Þā

7 Cwēnas hęrgiað hwīlum on ðā Norðmęn ofer ðone mōr,

8 hwīlum þā Norðmęn on hȳ. And þǣr sint swīðe micle

9 męras fersce geond þā mōras; and berað þā Cwēnas hyra

10 scypu ofer land on ðā męras, and þanon hęrgiað on ðā

11 Norðmęn; hȳ habbað swȳðe lȳtle scypa and swȳðe

12 leohte.

104.6. frǫm his āgnum hām. An adverbial dative singular without an inflectional ending is found with hām, dæg, morgen, and ǣfen.

104.8. ǫnd þæt wǣron. See § 40, Note 3.

104.15. hwæt þæs sōþes wæs. Sweet errs in explaining sōþes as attracted into the genitive by þæs. It is not a predicate adjective, but a partitive genitive after hwæt.

104.25. syxa sum. See § 91, Note 2.

105.2. on bēoð. See § 94, (5).

105.19. Eal þæt his man. Pronominal genitives are not always possessive in O.E.; his is here the partitive genitive of hit, the succeeding relative pronoun being omitted: All that (portion) of it that may, either-of-the-two, either be grazed or plowed, etc. (§ 70, Note).

106.11-12. scypa ... leohte. These words exhibit inflections more frequent in Late than in Early West Saxon. The normal forms would be scypu, leoht; but in Late West Saxon the -u of short-stemmed neuters is generally replaced by -a; and the nominative accusative plural neuter of adjectives takes, by analogy, the masculine endings; hwate, gōde, hālge, instead of hwatu, gōd, hālgu.

Ohthere’s Second Voyage.

13 Ōhthęre sǣde þæt sīo1 scīr hātte Hālgoland, þe hē on

14 būde. Hē cwæð þæt nān man ne būde be norðan him.

15 Þonne is ān port on sūðeweardum þǣm lande, þone man

16 hǣt Sciringeshēal. Þyder hē cwæð þæt man ne mihte

17 geseglian on ānum mōnðe, gyf man on niht wīcode, and

18 ǣlce dæge hæfde ambyrne wind; and ealle ðā hwīle hē

19 sceal seglian be lande. And on þæt stēorbord him bið

20 ǣrest Īraland, and þonne ðā īgland þe synd betux Īralande

21 and þissum lande. Þonne is þis land, oð hē cymð

22 tō Scirincgeshēale, and ealne weg on þæt bæcbord Norðweg.

1 Wið sūðan þone Sciringeshēal fylð swȳðe mycel

2 sǣ ūp in on ðæt land; sēo is brādre þonne ǣnig man ofer

3 sēon mæge. And is Gotland on ōðre healfe ongēan, and

4 siððan Sillęnde. Sēo sǣ līð mænig2 hund mīla ūp in on

5 þæt land.

6 And of Sciringeshēale hē cwæð ðæt hē seglode on fīf

7 dagan3 tō þǣm porte þe mǫn hǣt æt Hǣþum; sē stęnt

8 betuh Winedum, and Seaxum, and Angle, and hȳrð in

9 on Dęne. Ðā hē þiderweard seglode fram Sciringeshēale,

10 þā wæs him on þæt bæcbord Dęnamearc and on

11 þæt stēorbord wīdsǣ þrȳ dagas; and þā, twēgen dagas ǣr

12 hē tō Hǣþum cōme, him wæs on þæt stēorbord Gotland,

13 and Sillęnde, and īglanda fela. On þǣm landum eardodon

14 Ęngle, ǣr hī hider on land cōman.4 And hym wæs

15 ðā twēgen dagas on ðæt bæcbord þā īgland þe in on

16 Dęnemearce hȳrað.

107.7. æt Hǣþum. “This pleonastic use of æt with names of places occurs elsewhere in the older writings, as in the Chronicle (552), ‘in þǣre stōwe þe is genęmned æt Searobyrg,’ where the æt has been erased by some later hand, showing that the idiom had become obsolete. Cp. the German ‘Gasthaus zur Krone,’ Stamboul = es tān pólin.” (Sweet.) See, also, Atterbury, § 28, Note 3.

107.14-15. wæs ... þā īgland. The singular predicate is due again to inversion (p. 100, note on gefeaht). The construction is comparatively rare in O.E., but frequent in Shakespeare and in the popular speech of to-day. Cf. There is, Here is, There has been, etc., with a (single) plural subject following.

Wulfstan’s Voyage.

17 Wulfstān sǣde þæt hē gefōre of Hǣðum, þæt hē wǣre

18 on Trūsō on syfan dagum and nihtum, þæt þæt scip wæs

19 ealne weg yrnende under segle. Weonoðland him wæs

1 on stēorbord, and on bæcbord him wæs Langaland, and

2 Lǣland, and Falster, and Scōnēg; and þās land eall

3 hȳrað tō Dęnemearcan. And þonne Burgenda land wæs

4 ūs on bæcbord, and þā habbað him sylfe1 cyning. Þonne

5 æfter Burgenda lande wǣron ūs þās land, þā synd hātene

6 ǣrest Blēcinga-ēg, and Mēore, and Ēowland, and Gotland

7 on bæcbord; and þās land hȳrað tō Swēom. And Weonodland

8 wæs ūs ealne weg on stēorbord oð Wīslemūðan.

9 Sēo Wīsle is swȳðe mycel ēa, and hīo2 tōlīð Wītland and

10 Weonodland; and þæt Wītland belimpeð tō Estum; and

11 sēo Wīsle līð ūt of Weonodlande, and līð in Estmęre;

12 and sē Estmęre is hūru fīftēne3 mīla brād. Þonne cymeð

13 Ilfing ēastan in Estmęre of ðām męre, ðe Trūsō standeð

14 in stæðe; and cumað ūt samod in Estmęre, Ilfing ēastan

15 of Estlande, and Wīsle sūðan of Winodlande. And

16 þonne benimð Wīsle Ilfing hire naman, and ligeð of þǣm

17 męre west and norð on sǣ; for ðȳ hit man hǣt

18 Wīslemūða.

19 Þæt Estland is swȳðe mycel, and þǣr bið swȳðe manig

20 burh, and on ǣlcere byrig bið cyning. And þǣr bið

21 swȳðe mycel hunig, and fiscnað; and sē cyning and þā

22 rīcostan męn drincað mȳran meolc, and þā unspēdigan

23 and þā þēowan drincað medo.4 Þǣr bið swȳðe mycel

24 gewinn betwēonan him. And ne bið ðǣr nǣnig ealo5

25 gebrowen mid Estum, ac þǣr bið medo genōh. And þǣr

26 is mid Estum ðēaw, þonne þǣr bið man dēad, þæt hē līð

27 inne unforbærned mid his māgum and frēondum mōnað,

28 ge hwīlum twēgen; and þā cyningas, and þā ōðre hēahðungene

29 męn, swā micle lęncg6 swā hī māran spēda

30 habbað, hwīlum healf gēar þæt hī bēoð unforbærned, and

1 licgað bufan eorðan on hyra hūsum. And ealle þā hwīle

2 þe þæt līc bið inne, þǣr sceal bēon gedrync and plega,

3 oð ðone dæg þe hī hine forbærnað. Þonne þȳ ylcan dæge

4 þe hī hine tō þǣm āde beran wyllað, þonne tōdǣlað hī

5 his feoh, þæt þǣr tō lāfe bið æfter þǣm gedrynce and þǣm

6 plegan, on fīf oððe syx, hwȳlum on mā, swā swā þæs fēos

7 andēfn bið. Ālęcgað hit ðonne forhwæga on ānre mīle

8 þone mǣstan dǣl fram þǣm tūne, þonne ōðerne, ðonne

9 þone þriddan, oþ þe hyt eall ālēd bið on þǣre ānre mīle;

10 and sceall bēon sē lǣsta dǣl nȳhst þǣm tūne ðe sē dēada

11 man on lið. Ðonne sceolon7 bēon gesamnode ealle ðā

12 męnn ðe swyftoste hors habbað on þǣm lande, forhwæga

13 on fīf mīlum oððe on syx mīlum fram þǣm fēo. Þonne

14 ærnað hȳ ealle tōweard þǣm fēo: ðonne cymeð sē man

15 sē þæt swiftoste hors hafað tō þǣm ǣrestan dǣle and tō

16 þǣm mǣstan, and swā ǣlc æfter ōðrum, oþ hit bið eall

17 genumen; and sē nimð þone lǣstan dǣl sē nȳhst þǣm

18 tūne þæt feoh geærneð. And þonne rīdeð ǣlc hys weges

19 mid ðǣm fēo, and hyt mōtan8 habban eall; and for ðȳ

20 þǣr bēoð þā swiftan hors ungefōge dȳre. And þonne his

21 gestrēon bēoð þus eall āspęnded, þonne byrð man hine ūt,

22 and forbærneð mid his wǣpnum and hrægle; and swīðost

1 ealle hys spēda hȳ forspęndað mid þǣm langan legere

2 þæs dēadan mannes inne, and þæs þe hȳ be þǣm wegum

3 ālęcgað, þe ðā fręmdan tō ærnað, and nimað. And þæt

4 is mid Estum þēaw þæt þǣr sceal ǣlces geðēodes man

5 bēon forbærned; and gyf þār9 man ān bān findeð unforbærned,

6 hī hit sceolan7 miclum gebētan. And þǣr is mid

7 Estum ān mǣgð þæt hī magon cyle gewyrcan; and þȳ

8 þǣr licgað þā dēadan męn swā lange, and ne fūliað, þæt

9 hȳ wyrcað þone cyle him on. And þēah man āsętte

10 twēgen fǣtels full ealað oððe wæteres, hȳ gedōð þæt

11 ǣgþer bið oferfroren, sam hit sȳ sumor sam winter.

108.1-4. him ... ūs. Note the characteristic change of person, the transition from indirect to direct discourse.

109.2. sceal. See § 137, Note 2 (2).

109.7. Ālęcgað hit. Bosworth illustrates thus:

Where the horsemen assemble. The six parts of the property placed within one mile.

“The horsemen assemble five or six miles from the property, at d or e, and run towards c; the man who has the swiftest horse, coming first to 1 or c, takes the first and largest part. The man who has the horse coming second takes part 2 or b, and so, in succession, till the least part, 6 or a, is taken.”

Text version of illustration

110.5-6. man ... hī. Here the plural hī refers to the singular man. Cf. p. 109, ll. 18-19, ǣlc ... mōtan. In Exodus xxxii, 24, we find “Whosoever hath any gold, let them break it off”; and Addison writes, “I do not mean that I think anyone to blame for taking due care of their health.” The construction, though outlawed now, has been common in all periods of our language. Paul remarks (Prinzipien der Sprachgeschichte, 3d ed., § 186) that “When a word is used as an indefinite [one, man, somebody, etc.] it is, strictly speaking, incapable of any distinction of number. Since, however, in respect of the external form, a particular number has to be chosen, it is a matter of indifference which this is.... Hence a change of numbers is common in the different languages.” Paul fails to observe that the change is always from singular to plural, not from plural to singular. See Note on the Concord of Collectives and Indefinites (Anglia XI, 1901). See p. 119, note on ll. 19-21.

IV. THE STORY OF CÆDMON.

[From the so-called Alfredian version of Bede’s Ecclesiastical History. The text generally followed is that of MS. Bodley, Tanner 10. Miller (Early English Text Society, No. 95, Introd.) argues, chiefly from the use of the prepositions, that the original O.E. MS. was Mercian, composed possibly in Lichfield (Staffordshire). At any rate, O.E. idiom is frequently sacrificed to the Latin original.

“Cædmon, as he is called, is the first Englishman whose name we know who wrote poetry in our island of England; and the first to embody in verse the new passions and ideas which Christianity had brought into England.... Undisturbed by any previous making of lighter poetry, he came fresh to the work of Christianising English song. It was a great step to make. He built the chariot in which all the new religious emotions of England could now drive along.” (Brooke, The History of Early English Literature, cap. XV.) There is no reason to doubt the historical existence of Cædmon; for Bede, who relates the story, lived near Whitby, and was seven years old when Cædmon died (A.D. 680)].

1 In ðysse abbudissan mynstre wæs sum brōðor syndriglīce

2 mid godcundre gife gemǣred ǫnd geweorðad, for þon

3 he gewunade gerisenlīce lēoð wyrcan, þā ðe tō ǣfęstnisse1

4 ǫnd tō ārfæstnisse belumpon; swā ðætte swā hwæt swā

5 hē of godcundum stafum þurh bōceras geleornode, þæt hē

6 æfter medmiclum fæce in scopgereorde mid þā mǣstan

7 swētnisse ǫnd inbryrdnisse geglęngde, ǫnd in Ęngliscgereorde

8 wel geworht forþ brōhte. Ǫnd for his lēoþsǫngum

1 mǫnigra mǫnna mōd oft to worulde forhogdnisse ǫnd tō

2 geþēodnisse þæs heofonlīcan līfes onbærnde wǣron. Ǫnd

3 ēac swelce2 mǫnige ōðre æfter him in Ǫngelþēode ongunnon

4 ǣfęste lēoð wyrcan, ac nǣnig hwæðre him þæt gelīce

5 dōn ne meahte; for þon hē nālæs frǫm mǫnnum nē ðurh

6 mǫn gelǣred wæs þæt hē ðone lēoðcræft leornade, ac hē

7 wæs godcundlīce gefultumod, ǫnd þurh Godes gife þone

8 sǫngcræft onfēng; ǫnd hē for ðon nǣfre nōht lēasunge,

9 nē īdles lēoþes wyrcan ne meahte, ac efne þā ān ðā ðē tō

10 ǣfęstnisse1 belumpon ǫnd his þā ǣfęstan tungan gedafenode

11 singan.

12 Wæs hē, sē mǫn, in weoruldhāde3 gesęted oð þā tīde þe

13 hē wæs gelȳfdre ylde, ǫnd nǣfre nǣnig lēoð geleornade.

14 Ǫnd hē for þon oft in gebēorscipe, þonne þǣr wæs blisse

15 intinga gedēmed, þæt hēo4 ealle sceolden þurh ęndebyrdnesse

16 be hearpan singan, þonne hē geseah þā hearpan him

17 nēalēcan, þonne ārās hē for scǫme frǫm þǣm symble,

18 ǫnd hām ēode tō his hūse. Þā hē þæt þā sumre tīde

19 dyde, þæt hē forlēt þæt hūs þæs gebēorscipes, ǫnd ūt wæs

1 gǫngende tō nēata scipene, þāra heord him wæs þǣre

2 nihte beboden; þā hē ðā þǣr on gelimplīcre tīde his

3 leomu5 on ręste gesętte ǫnd onslēpte, þa stōd him sum

4 mǫn æt þurh swefn, ǫnd hine hālette ǫnd grētte, ǫnd hine

5 be his nǫman nęmnde: “Cædmǫn, sing mē hwæthwugu.”

6 Þā ǫndswarede hē, ǫnd cwæð: “Ne cǫn ic nōht singan;

7 ǫnd ic for þon of þyssum gebēorscipe ūt ēode ǫnd hider

8 gewāt, for þon ic nāht singan ne cūðe.” Eft hē cwæð sē ðe

9 wið hine sprecende wæs: “Hwæðre þū meaht mē singan.”

10 Þā cwæð hē: “Hwæt sceal ic singan?” Cwæð hē: “Sing

11 mē frumsceaft.” Þā hē ðā þās andsware onfēng, þā

12 ongǫn hē sōna singan, in hęrenesse Godes Scyppendes,

13 þā fers ǫnd þā word þe hē nǣfre ne gehȳrde, þāra ęndebyrdnes

14 þis is:

6 Þā ārās hē frǫm þǣm slǣpe, ǫnd eal þā þe hē slǣpende

7 sǫng fæste in gemynde hæfde; ǫnd þǣm wordum sōna

8 mǫnig word in þæt ilce gemet Gode wyrðes sǫnges

9 tōgeþēodde. Þā cōm hē on morgenne tō þǣm tūngerēfan,

10 sē þe his ealdormǫn wæs: sægde him hwylce gife hē

11 onfēng; ǫnd hē hine sōna tō þǣre abbudissan gelǣdde,

12 ǫnd hire þæt cȳðde ǫnd sægde. Þā heht hēo gesǫmnian

13 ealle þā gelǣredestan męn ǫnd þā leorneras, ǫnd him

14 ǫndweardum hēt sęcgan þæt swefn, ǫnd þæt lēoð singan,

15 þæt ealra heora7 dōme gecoren wǣre, hwæt oððe hwǫnan

16 þæt cumen wǣre. Þā wæs him eallum gesewen, swā swā

17 hit wæs, þæt him wǣre frǫm Drihtne sylfum heofonlīc

1 gifu forgifen. Þā ręhton hęo4 him ǫnd sægdon sum hālig

2 spell ǫnd godcundre lāre word: bebudon him þā, gif hē

3 meahte, þæt hē in swīnsunge lēoþsǫnges þæt gehwyrfde.

4 Þā hē ðā hæfde þā wīsan onfǫngne, þā ēode hē hām tō

5 his hūse, ǫnd cwōm eft on morgenne, ǫnd þȳ bętstan

6 lēoðe geglęnged him āsǫng ǫnd āgeaf þæt him beboden

7 wæs.

8 Ðā ongan sēo abbudisse clyppan ǫnd lufigean8 þā Godes

9 gife in þǣm męn, ǫnd hēo hine þā mǫnade ǫnd lǣrde

10 þæt hē woruldhād forlēte ǫnd munuchād onfēnge: ǫnd

11 hē þæt wel þafode. Ǫnd hēo hine in þæt mynster onfēng

12 mid his gōdum, ǫnd hine geþēodde tō gesǫmnunge þāra

13 Godes þēowa, ǫnd heht hine lǣran þæt getæl þæs hālgan

14 stǣres ǫnd spelles. Ǫnd hē eal þā hē in gehȳrnesse

15 geleornian meahte, mid hine gemyndgade, ǫnd swā swā

16 clǣne nēten9 eodorcende in þæt swēteste lēoð gehwyrfde.

17 Ǫnd his sǫng ǫnd his lēoð wǣron swā wynsumu tō gehȳranne,

18 þætte þā seolfan10 his lārēowas æt his mūðe writon

19 ǫnd leornodon. Sǫng hē ǣrest be middangeardes gesceape,

20 ǫnd bī fruman mǫncynnes, ǫnd eal þæt stǣr Genesis (þæt

21 is sēo ǣreste Moyses bōc); ǫnd eft bī ūtgǫnge Israhēla

22 folces of Ǣgypta lǫnde, ǫnd bī ingǫnge þæs gehātlandes;

23 ǫnd bī ōðrum mǫnegum spellum þæs hālgan gewrites

1 canōnes bōca; ǫnd bī Crīstes męnniscnesse, ǫnd bī his

2 þrōwunge, ǫnd bī his ūpāstīgnesse in heofonas; ǫnd bī

3 þæs Hālgan Gāstes cyme, ǫnd þāra apostola lāre; ǫnd eft

4 bī þǣm dæge þæs tōweardan dōmes, ǫnd bī fyrhtu þæs

5 tintreglīcan wītes, ǫnd bī swētnesse þæs heofonlīcan rīces,

6 hē monig lēoð geworhte; ǫnd swelce2 ēac ōðer mǫnig be

7 þǣm godcundan fręmsumnessum ǫnd dōmum hē geworhte.

8 In eallum þǣm hē geornlīce gēmde11 þæt hē męn ātuge

9 frǫm synna lufan ǫnd māndǣda, ǫnd tō lufan ǫnd tō

10 geornfulnesse āwęhte gōdra dǣda, for þon hē wæs, sē

11 mǫn, swīþe ǣfęst ǫnd regollīcum þēodscipum ēaðmōdlīce

12 underþēoded; ǫnd wið þǣm þā ðe in ōðre wīsan dōn woldon,

13 hē wæs mid welme12 micelre ęllenwōdnisse onbærned.

14 Ǫnd hē for ðon fægre ęnde his līf betȳnde ǫnd geęndade.

111.1. ðysse abbudissan. The abbess referred to is the famous Hild, or Hilda, then living in the monastery at Streones-halh, which, according to Bede, means “Bay of the Beacon.” The Danes afterward gave it the name Whitby, or “White Town.” The surroundings were eminently fitted to nurture England’s first poet. “The natural scenery which surrounded him, the valley of the Esk, on whose sides he probably lived, the great cliffs, the billowy sea, the vast sky seen from the heights over the ocean, played incessantly upon him.” (Brooke.)

Note, also, in this connection, the numerous Latin words that the introduction of Christianity (A.D. 597) brought into the vocabulary of O.E.: abbudisse, mynster, bisceop, Lǣden, prēost, æstel, mancus.

112.4-5. The more usual order of words would be ac nǣnig, hwæðre, ne meahte ðæt dōn gelīce him.

112.10-11. ǫnd his ... singan, and which it became his (the) pious tongue to sing.

112.14-15. blisse intinga, for the sake of joy; but the translator has confused laetitiae causā (ablative) and laetitiae causa (nominative). The proper form would be for blisse with omission of intingan, just as for my sake is usually for mē; for his (or their) sake, for him. Cf. Mark vi, 26: “Yet for his oath’s sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her,” for ðǣm āðe, ǫnd for ðǣm þe him mid sǣton. For his sake is frequently for his ðingon (ðingum), rarely for his intingan. Þingon is regularly used when the preceding genitive is a noun denoting a person: for my wife’s sake, for mīnes wīfes ðingon (Genesis xx, 11), etc.

112.18-19. þæt ... þæt hē forlēt. The substantival clause introduced by the second þæt amplifies by apposition the first þæt: When he then, at a certain time (instrumental case, § 98, (2)), did that, namely, when he left the house. The better Mn.E. would be this ... that: “Added yet this above all, that he shut up John in prison” (Luke iv, 20).

113.1-2. þāra ... beboden. This does not mean that Cædmon was a herdsman, but that he served in turn as did the other secular attendants at the monastery.

113.13-14. þāra ęndebyrdnes þis is. Bede writes Hic est sensus, non autem ordo ipse verborum, and gives in Latin prose a translation of the hymn from the Northumbrian dialect, in which Cædmon wrote. The O.E. version given above is, of course, not the Northumbrian original (which, however, with some variations is preserved in several of the Latin MSS. of Bede’s History), but a West Saxon version made also from the Northumbrian, not from the Latin.

113.15. Nū sculon hęrigean, Now ought we to praise. The subject wē is omitted in the best MSS. Note the characteristic use of synonyms, or epithets, in this bit of O.E. poetry. Observe that it is not the thought that is repeated, but rather the idea, the concept, God. See p. 124.

113.17. wundra gehwæs. See p. 140, note on cēnra gehwylcum.

114.7-9. ǫnd þǣm wordum ... tōgeþēodde, and to those words he soon joined, in the same meter, many (other) words of song worthy of God. But the translator has not only blundered over Bede’s Latin (eis mox plura in eundem modum verba Deo digna carminis adjunxit), but sacrificed still more the idiom of O.E. The predicate should not come at the end; in should be followed by the dative; and for Gode wyrðes sǫnges the better O.E. would be sǫnges Godes wyrðes. When used with the dative wyrð (weorð) usually means dear (= of worth) to.

114.16. þā ... gesewen. We should expect frǫm him eallum; but the translator has again closely followed the Latin (visumque est omnibus), as later (in the Conversion of Edwin) he renders Talis mihi videtur by þyslīc mē is gesewen. Talis (þyslīc) agreeing with a following vita (līf). Ælfric, however, with no Latin before him, writes that John wearð ðā him [= frǫm Drihtene] inweardlīce gelufod. It would seem that in proportion as a past participle has the force of an adjective, the to relation may supplant the by relation; just as we say unknown to instead of unknown by, unknown being more adjectival than participial. Gesewen, therefore, may here be translated visible, evident, patent (= gesynelīc, sweotol); and gelufod, dear (= weorð, lēof).

A survival of adjectival gesewen is found in Wycliffe’s New Testament (1 Cor. xv, 5-8): “He was seyn to Cephas, and aftir these thingis to enleuene; aftirward he was seyn to mo than fyue hundrid britheren togidere ... aftirward he was seyn to James, and aftirward to alle the apostlis. And last of alle he was seyn to me, as to a deed borun child.” The construction is frequent in Chaucer.

115.9-10. ǫnd hēo hine þā mǫnade ... munuchād onfēnge. Hild’s advice has in it the suggestion of a personal experience, for she herself had lived half of her life (thirty-three years) “before,” says Bede, “she dedicated the remaining half to our Lord in a monastic life.”

116.6. hē mǫnig lēoð geworhte. The opinion is now gaining ground that of these “many poems” only the short hymn, already given, has come down to us. Of other poems claimed for Cædmon, the strongest arguments are advanced in favor of a part of the fragmentary poetical paraphrase of Genesis.

V. ALFRED’S PREFACE TO THE PASTORAL CARE.

[Based on the Hatton MS. Of the year 597, the Chronicle says: “In this year, Gregory the Pope sent into Britain Augustine with very many monks, who gospelled [preached] God’s word to the English folk.” Gregory I, surnamed “The Great,” has ever since been considered the apostle of English Christianity, and his Pastoral Care, which contains instruction in conduct and doctrine for all bishops, was a work that Alfred could not afford to leave untranslated. For this translation Alfred wrote a Preface, the historical value of which it would be hard to overrate. In it he describes vividly the intellectual ruin that the Danes had wrought, and develops at the same time his plan for repairing that ruin.

This Preface and the Battle of Ashdown (p. 99) show the great king in his twofold character of warrior and statesman, and justify the inscription on the base of the statue erected to him in 1877, at Wantage (Berkshire), his birth-place: “Ælfred found Learning dead, and he restored it; Education neglected, and he revived it; the laws powerless, and he gave them force; the Church debased, and he raised it; the Land ravaged by a fearful Enemy, from which he delivered it. Ælfred’s name will live as long as mankind shall respect the Past.”]

1 Ælfred kyning hāteð grētan Wærferð biscep1 his wordum

2 luflīce ǫnd frēondlīce; ǫnd ðē cȳðan hāte ðæt mē cōm

3 swīðe oft on gemynd, hwelce2 witan īu3 wǣron giond4

4 Angelcynn, ǣgðer ge godcundra hāda ge woruldcundra;

5 ǫnd hū gesǣliglīca tīda ðā wǣron giond Angelcynn; ǫnd

6 hū ðā kyningas ðe ðone onwald hæfdon ðæs folces on

7 ðām dagum Gode ǫnd his ǣrendwrecum hērsumedon5;

8 ǫnd hū hīe ǣgðer ge hiora sibbe ge hiora siodo6 ge hiora

9 onweald innanbordes gehīoldon,4 ǫnd ēac ūt hiora ēðel

10 gerȳmdon; ǫnd hū him ðā spēow ǣgðer ge mid wīge ge

11 mid wīsdōme; ǫnd ēac ða godcundan hādas hū giorne

12 hīe wǣron ǣgðer ge ymb lāre ge ymb liornunga, ge ymb

13 ealle ðā ðīowotdōmas ðe hīe Gode dōn scoldon; ǫnd hū

14 man ūtanbordes wīsdōm ǫnd lāre hieder on lǫnd sōhte,

15 ǫnd hū wē hīe nū sceoldon ūte begietan, gif wē hīe habban

16 sceoldon. Swǣ7 clǣne hīo wæs oðfeallenu on Angelcynne

17 ðæt swīðe fēawa wǣron behionan Humbre ðe hiora ðēninga

18 cūðen understǫndan on Ęnglisc oððe furðum ān ǣrendgewrit

19 of Lǣdene on Ęnglisc āręccean; ǫnd ic wēne ðætte

20 nōht mǫnige begiondan Humbre nǣren. Swǣ7 fēawa

21 hiora wǣron ðæt ic furðum ānne ānlēpne8 ne mæg geðencean

1 be sūðan Tęmese, ðā ðā ic tō rīce fēng. Gode ælmihtegum

2 sīe ðǫnc ðætte wē nū ǣnigne onstāl habbað

3 lārēowa. Ǫnd for ðon ic ðē bebīode ðæt ðū dō swǣ7 ic

4 gelīefe ðæt ðū wille, ðæt ðū ðē ðissa woruldðinga tō ðǣm

5 geǣmetige, swǣ ðū oftost mæge, ðæt ðū ðone wīsdōm ðe

6 ðē God sealde ðǣr ðǣr ðū hiene befæstan mæge, befæste.

7 Geðęnc hwelc9 wītu ūs ðā becōmon for ðisse worulde, ðā

8 ðā wē hit nōhwæðer nē selfe ne lufodon, nē ēac ōðrum

9 mǫnnum ne lēfdon10: ðone naman ānne wē lufodon ðætte

10 wē Crīstne wǣren, ǫnd swīðe fēawe ðā ðēawas.

11 Ðā ic ðā ðis eall gemunde, ðā gemunde ic ēac hū ic

12 geseah, ǣr ðǣm ðe hit eall forhęrgod wǣre ǫnd forbærned,

13 hū ðā ciricean giond eall Angelcynn stōdon

14 māðma ǫnd bōca gefylda, ǫnd ēac micel męnigeo11 Godes

15 ðīowa; ǫnd ðā swīðe lȳtle fiorme ðāra bōca wiston, for

16 ðǣm ðe hīe hiora nānwuht12 ongietan ne meahton, for

17 ðǣm ðe hīe nǣron on hiora āgen geðīode awritene.

18 Swelce13 hīe cwǣden: “Ure ieldran, ðā ðe ðās stōwa ǣr

19 hīoldon, hīe lufodon wīsdōm, ǫnd ðurh ðone hīe begēaton

20 welan, ǫnd ūs lǣfdon. Hēr mǫn mæg gīet gesīon hiora

21 swæð, ac wē him ne cunnon æfter spyrigean,14 ǫnd for

22 ðǣm wē habbað nū ǣgðer forlǣten ge ðone welan ge ðone

23 wīsdōm, for ðǣm ðe wē noldon tō ðǣm spore mid ūre

24 mōde onlūtan.”

25 Ðā ic ðā ðis eall gemunde, ðā wundrade ic swīðe swīðe

26 ðāra gōdena wiotona15 ðe gīu wǣron giond Angelcynn, ǫnd

27 ðā bēc ealla be fullan geliornod hæfdon, ðæt hīe hiora ðā

1 nǣnne dǣl noldon on hiora āgen geðīode węndan. Ac

2 ic ðā sōna eft mē selfum andwyrde, ǫnd cwæð: “Hīe ne

3 wēndon þætte ǣfre męnn sceolden swǣ7 reccelēase weorðan,

4 ǫnd sīo lār swǣ oðfeallan; for ðǣre wilnunga hīe

5 hit forlēton, ǫnd woldon ðæt hēr ðȳ māra wīsdōm on

6 lǫnde wǣre ðȳ wē mā geðēoda cūðon.”

7 Ðā gemunde ic hū sīo ǣ wæs ǣrest on Ebrēisc geðīode

8 funden, ǫnd eft, ðā hīe Crēacas geliornodon, ðā węndon

9 hīe hīe on hiora āgen geðīode ealle, ǫnd ēac ealle ōðre

10 bēc. Ǫnd eft Lǣdenware swǣ same, siððan hīe hīe geliornodon,

11 hīe hīe węndon ealla ðurh wīse wealhstōdas

12 on hiora āgen geðīode. Ǫnd ēac ealla ōðra Crīstena

13 ðīoda sumne dǣl hiora on hiora āgen geðīode węndon.

14 For ðȳ mē ðyncð bętre, gif īow swǣ ðyncð, ðæt wē ēac

15 suma bēc, ðā ðe nīedbeðearfosta sīen eallum mǫnnum

16 tō wiotonne,16 ðæt wē ðā on ðæt geðīode węnden ðe wē

17 ealle gecnāwan mægen, ǫnd gedōn swǣ wē swīðe ēaðe

18 magon mid Godes fultume, gif wē ðā stilnesse habbað,

19 ðætte eall sīo gioguð ðe nū is on Angelcynne friora

20 mǫnna, ðāra ðe ðā spēda hæbben ðæt hīe ðǣm befēolan

21 mægen, sīen tō liornunga oðfæste, ðā hwīle ðe hīe tō

1 nānre ōðerre note ne mægen, oð ðone first ðe hīe wel

2 cunnen Ęnglisc gewrit ārǣdan: lǣre mǫn siððan furður

3 on Lǣdengeðīode ðā ðe mǫn furðor lǣran wille, ǫnd tō

4 hīerran hāde dōn wille. Ðā ic ðā gemunde hū sīo lār

5 Lǣdengeðīodes ǣr ðissum āfeallen wæs giond Angelcynn,

6 ǫnd ðeah mǫnige cūðon Ęnglisc gewrit ārǣdan, ðā

7 ongan ic ongemang oðrum mislīcum ǫnd manigfealdum

8 bisgum ðisses kynerīces ðā bōc węndan on Ęnglisc ðe is

9 genęmned on Lǣden “Pastoralis,” ǫnd on Ęnglisc “Hierdebōc,”

10 hwīlum word be worde, hwīlum andgit of andgiete,

11 swǣ swǣ ic hīe geliornode æt Plegmunde mīnum

12 ærcebiscepe, ǫnd æt Assere mīnum biscepe, ǫnd æt Grimbolde

13 mīnum mæsseprīoste, ǫnd æt Iōhanne mīnum mæsseprēoste.

14 Siððan ic hīe ðā geliornod hæfde, swǣ swǣ

15 ic hīe forstōd, ǫnd swǣ ic hīe andgitfullīcost āręccean

16 meahte, ic hīe on Ęnglisc āwęnde; ǫnd tō ǣlcum biscepstōle

17 on mīnum rīce wille āne onsęndan; ǫnd on ǣlcre

18 bið ān æstel, sē bið on fīftegum mancessa. Ǫnd ic bebīode

19 on Godes naman ðæt nān mǫn ðone æstel frǫm

20 ðǣre bēc ne dō, nē ðā bōc frǫm ðǣm mynstre; uncūð hū

21 lǫnge ðǣr swǣ gelǣrede biscepas sīen, swǣ swǣ nū, Gode

22 ðonc, wel hwǣr siendon. For ðȳ ic wolde ðætte hīe ealneg

1 æt ðǣre stōwe wǣren, būton sē biscep hīe mid him

2 habban wille, oððe hīo hwǣr tō lǣne sīe, oððe hwā ōðre

3 bī wrīte.

117.1-2. Ælfred kyning hāteð ... hāte. Note the change from the formal and official third person (hāteð) to the more familiar first person (hāte). So Ælfric, in his Preface to Genesis, writes Ælfric munuc grēt Æðelwærd ealdormann ēadmōdlīce. Þū bǣde mē, lēof, þæt ic, etc.: Ælfric, monk, greets Æthelweard, alderman, humbly. Thou, beloved, didst bid me that I, etc.

118.5. Notice that mæge (l. 5) and mæge (l. 6) are not in the subjunctive because the sense requires it, but because they have been attracted by gǣmetige and befæste. Sīen (p. 119, l. 15) and hæbben (p. 119, l. 20) illustrate the same construction.

118.9-10. We liked only the reputation of being Christians, very few (of us) the Christian virtues.

119.14. Alfred is here addressing the bishops collectively, and hence uses the plural īow (= ēow), not þē.

119.16. ðæt wē ðā. These three words are not necessary to the sense. They constitute the figure known as epanalepsis, in which “the same word or phrase is repeated after one or more intervening words.” Þā is the pronominal substitute for suma bēc.

119.17. Gedōn is the first person plural subjunctive (from infinitive gedōn). It and węnden are in the same construction. Two things seem “better” to Alfred: (1) that we translate, etc., (2) that we cause, etc.

119.19-21. sīo gioguð ... is ... hīe ... sīen. Notice how the collective noun, gioguð, singular at first both in form and function, gradually loses its oneness before the close of the sentence is reached, and becomes plural. The construction is entirely legitimate in Mn.E. Spanish is the only modern language known to me that condemns such an idiom: “Spanish ideas of congruity do not permit a collective noun, though denoting a plurality, to be accompanied by a plural verb or adjective in the same clause” (Ramsey, Text-Book of Modern Spanish, § 1452).

120.2. lǣre mǫn. See § 105, 1.

120.11-13. That none of these advisers of the king, except Plegmond, a Mercian, were natives, bears out what Alfred says about the scarcity of learned men in England when he began to reign. Asser, to whose Latin Life of Alfred, in spite of its mutilations, we owe almost all of our knowledge of the king, came from St. David’s (in Wales), and was made Bishop of Sherborne.

121.1. Translate ǣt ðǣre stōwe by each in its place. The change from plural hīe (in hīe ... wǣren) to singular hīe (in the clauses that follow) will thus be prepared for.

121.2-3. oððe hwā ōðre bī wrīte, or unless some one wish to copy a new one (write thereby another).