forsterne, 3664:

So stowttly the forsterne one the stam hyttis,

or should we perhaps assume that the first half-verse contains only one rime-letter and in that case accentuate forsterne? frówarde, 3345.

selcouthe, sélkouthe, sélkouthely, 75, 1298, 1948, 3252, 3531. in-come, 2009, but

in-cóme, 2171:

Bot Kayous at the in-come was kepyd vn-fayre.
A case analogous to that of forsterne.

óuer-hande, 4300.

óuerlynge, 289, 520, 710.

ówte-iles, ówt illes, 30, 2359.

ówte-mountes, 3909.

ówte landes, owt londes, 2607, 2723, but

out-lóndys, 3697:

When ledys of owt-londys leppyne in waters,

again a case analogous to those above. incouthe, 3449, but

encó the, 3514:

And that castelle es cawghte with vncowthe ledys.

With accented un- the word occurs also in Chaucer (Koch I, S. 161):

So uncouth and so riche, and wroght so weel (Kn. T. 1639), in Spenser (Günther, S. 31):

In some straunge habit, after uncouth wize (513b)

And doubtfully dismayd through that so uncouth sight (328b), in Marlowe (Bullen's edition):

An uncouth pain torments my grieved soul (1, 45),

in Shakspere (Schmidt, S. 1415):

And thus begins: 'What uncouth ill event' (Luc. 1598), in Jonson (Wilke, S. 44):

May be our rise. It is no uncouth thing (1, 404).

In the modern literary language we find only uncouth, but the modern dialects lay the stress on the first syllable, because, in consequence of the special development of meaning, the force of the word as a compound was no longer felt. Cf. Morsbach, Me. Gram. § 26 p. 67.

unfáire, 303. vnblýthely, 1434. enfaye, 2796. vnférs, 4122.

vnfrély, 780.

vn-lórdly, vnlórdlyeste, 1267, 1313. rn-méte, 4070.

en-résonable, 3452.

vnrýghtwyslye, 329.

vnsékyrly, 966.

rn-sémly, 1044.

vn-slély, 979.

vn-sounde, 3290, 3931, 3942.

vn-spárely, vn-spáryly, 235, 3160.

vn-ténderly, vn-téndirly, 1144, 2575. rn-tréwe, vn-tréwely, 886, 4227. rnwittyly, 3802.

en-wýnly, vnwýnnly, 955, 1302, 1481, 3562. vnwýse, 3817.

c) in Piers the Plowman.

Before proceeding to the examination of the examples from Langland's poem, we must once more emphasise the fact that he uses alliteration in a very free and irregular manner, and that we have therefore to practise special caution in deducing rules for the accentuation of words from his work. Cf. also p. 17 under inwit. Luick (Anglia XI p. 430) pronounces, on this point, the following opinion: „Langley's poem shows a peculiar irregularity in the construction of his verse. At one time his verse flows on quite smoothly and pleasantly, especially at the end of the Passus, at another time we find such an accumulation of unstressed syllables and so faulty a distribution of accented ones, that the rhythm is almost entirely lost, and many passages afford examples of the worst alliterative verse of the fourteenth century (on the treatment of Alliteration cf. also Bühlbring, Anglia, Beiblatt VII). Moreover, the placing of the rime-letters is often unsatisfactory or faulty: they fall on syllables, that have no verbal or syntactic stress, nay more, they are often entirely absent". Skeat also (Clar. Press Edit.

vol. II p. lxi) gives an equally unfavourable verdict on the poet's metrical practice: ... Langland was not very particular about his metre. He frequently neglects to observe the strict rules, and evidently considered metre of much less importance than the sense".

We shall now illustrate those remarks more fully by a few examples.

As in the following verse:

He scholde not be só hardi to decéyue so the péple (A. Pr. 76) we frequently find an unstressed syllable provided with the alliteration. It would seem that L. himself was not satisfied with this verse, for in the B-text it appears in the form: His seel shulde nouzt be sent to deceyue the peple.

An improvement in the later texts is also found in: Bot the parisch prest and he departed the seluer (A. Pr. 78). for which we have in B:

For the parisch prest and the pardoner parten the siluer and in C:

The parsheprest and the pardoner parten the seluer.

In the following verse the alliteration of the first halfline is not carried on into the second, which has instead an alliteration of its own:

Joure grace and zoure good happe zoure welthe for to wýnne (A 1, 176).

This verse is not found in B and C.

In B Prol. 180:

And helden hem vnhardy and here conseille feble.

the chief-letter is found at the beginning of an unstressed word. In A 1, 11:

And seide, merci, madame what is this to mene?' the chief-letter begins the latter of the two strong syllables in the second half-line.

The alliteration fails altogether in:

That one is vesture from chele the to saue (B I, 23).

Cases like the preceding ones show sufficiently that L. does not bestow much care on his metre. Further proofs of this negligence will be found in the discussion of the following examples.

When these occur in all the three texts, we quote from A; when they are wanting in A, we take them from B, and from C when neither A nor B contains the example. bátte-nelde, C 7, 218 (pák-neelde, A 5, 126).

bódyhalf, B 13, 317. chirityme, B 5, 161.

colplontes, A 7, 273:

Bot I haue porettes and percyl and moni colplontes. Here we have probably to assume that the chief rimeletter is wanting and to accentuate the first part of the word. dáy-sterre, A 6, 83.

bí-gurdeles, A 9, 79 has the correct stress (cf. Morsbach § 23, 1,

Anm. 1). So also:

bismeres, B 19, 289.

býlyue, C 2, 18 bý-lyue, C 6, 21 (livelihood).

by-heste, C 21, 322:

And dudest hem breke here buxomnesse thorw false by-heste.

The prefix bi had already usually lost its accent in OE. But we still find cases where it was stressed both in OE. and in ME. Cf. Morsbach, Me. Gram. § 23, and Anm. 1, where among the examples of original prefix-stress the word beheste is also quoted.

In all the other passages in P. P. where this word occurs, it is always found as here, at the end of the verse (A 3, 122; B 11, 60; C 11, 250; C 19, 123), once (C. 23, 118) at the end of the first halfverse, and bi- is always unstressed. Only in the verse quoted the idea might be suggested to make the prefix bi- the bearer of the alliteration, but more probably we have to assume that the rime-letter is placed irregularly in the second half verse.

forbóde, B 15, 570:

Aren férme as in the faith goddes fórbode élles.

Here also the rhythm seems to require the accentuation fórbod. But in C 4, 138 for- does not bear the alliteration. fóre-sleuys, A 5, 64.

mán-kynde, C 11, 246, cf. also Shakspere (König 1,65):

To the whole race of mankind, high or low (Tim. IV. 1, 40); Thou common whore of mankind, that put'st odds. (Tim. IV. 3, 42). ésteward, éstwarde, C 1, 14; C 2, 133.

sélcouth, sélcouthe, sélcouthes, sélkouthes, C 1, 5; B 11, 355; B 12, 133; B 15, 579; C 19, 148.

fóreward, (= agreement), A 4, 13; A 7, 38; fórward, B 11, 63; (= foremost) A 10, 127.

All these have the regular old accentuation.

afterwarde, C 18, 62:

And afterwarde awaite hoo hath moost neede.

This verse again is metrically defective, as the chief-letter is wanting. We cannot, therefore, prove the accentuation afterwarde from it.

In B 16, 169:

Estwarde and westwarde I awayted after faste

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