the twelfth century, affected the grammatical forms of the language; final vowels were changed, some consonants became softened, and many of the older inflexions of nouns, adjectives and verbs went out of use, their place being supplied by prepositions and auxiliary words. This was a period of great grammatical confusion, but the vocabulary remained unchanged. At the beginning of the thirteenth century, we find the grammatical forms more settled; but many provincial elements unknown to the oldest English had crept in, and about the middle of this period we have to note a further change in the substance of the language, caused by the infusion of the NormanFrench element. The additions to the vocabulary were at first small, but they gradually increased, and about the middle of the fourteenth century they formed no inconsiderable part of the written language. In Chaucer's works these loans are so numerous that he has been accused of corrupting the English language by a large and unnecessary admixture of NormanFrench terms. But Chaucer, with few exceptions, employed only such terms as were in use in the spoken language, and stamped them with the impress of his genius, so that they became current coin of the literary realm.

The period in which Chaucer lived was one of great literary activity, and such names as Richard Rolle of Hampole, Minot, Mandeville, Langland, Wicliffe, and Gower, prove that the English language was in a healthy and vigorous condition, and really deserving of the importance into which it was rising. But as yet there was no national language, and consequently no national literature; the English of the twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth centuries diverged into many dialects, each having its own literature intelligible only to a comparatively small circle of readers, and no one form of English can be considered as the type of the language of the period. Of these dialects the East Midland, spoken, with some variation, from the Humber to the Thames, was perhaps the simplest in its grammatical structure, the most free from those broad provincialisms which particularised the speech of other districts, and

presented the nearest approach in form and substance to the language of the present day as spoken and written by educated Englishmen. In the works of Ormin and Robert of Brunne we have evidence of its great capacity for literary purposes. Wicliffe and Gower added considerably to its importance, but in the hands of Chaucer it attained to the dignity of a national language 1. He represented, and identified himself with, that new life which the English people at this time were just commencing, and his works reflect not only his own inimitable genius, but the spirit, tastes, and feelings of his age. It was this, combined with his thorough mastery over the English language, that caused Chaucer to become to others (what no one had been before) a standard of literary excellence; and for two hundred years after he had no equal, but was regarded as the father of English poetry, the Homer of his country, and the well of English undefiled.

With the Canterbury Tales commences the modern period of English literature. Our earlier authors are usually studied for their philological importance, and most of them require the aid of a grammar and a glossary, but Chaucer is as easily understood as Spenser and Shakespeare. Not many of his terms are wholly obsolete, and but few of his inflections have gone wholly out of use. But as some special acquaintance with Chaucer's English will be of great service in mastering the poet's system of versification, an outline of his grammatical forms (for the most part taken from Prof. F. J. Child's Essay on Chaucer) is here subjoined, which will be found useful should

'From this Babylonish confusion of speech [i.e. the numerous local dialects of the English language in the fourteenth century] the influence and example of Chaucer did more to rescue his native tongue than any other single cause; and if we compare his dialect with that of any writer of an earlier date, we shall find that in compass, flexibility, expressiveness, grace, and all the higher qualities of poetical diction, he gave it at once the utmost perfection which the materials at his hand would admit of.' (Marsh, Origin and History of the English Language, p. 381.)

In the first place, as he (Chaucer) is the father of English poetry, so I hold him in the same degree of veneration as the Grecians held Homer, or the Romans Virgil. (Dryden's Preface to The Fables.)

the young student feel disposed to make himself acquainted with the works of earlier English writers.

NOUNS.

Number.-The plural for the most part terminates in

-ës:

'And with his stremes dryeth in the greves
The silver dropës hanging on the levës.'

(Knightes Tale, 11. 637-8.)

1. -s is frequently added, (a) to nouns terminating in a liquid or dental, as bargayns, naciouns, palmers, pilgryms, &c.; (b) to most words of more than one syllable.

In some MSS. we find -is, -us, for -es-as bestis, beasts; leggus, legs; othus, oaths-which seem to be dialectical varieties, and probably due to the scribes who copied the MSS.

2. Some few nouns (originally forming the plural in -an) have -en, -n; as asschen, ashes; assen, asses; been, bees; eyen, yen, eyes; fleen, fleas; flon, arrows; oxen; ton, toon, toes; schoon, shoon, shoes.

The following have -n, which has been added to older forms-(a) in -e (originally in -u); (b) in -y.

(a) Brethren (A. S. bróthru, O. E. brothre, brethre), brothers. Doughtren (A. S. dohtru, O. E. dohtre), daughters.

Sistren, sustren (A. S. sweostru, O. E. swustre), sisters.
Children (A. S. cildru, O. E. childre), childrent.

(b) Kyn (A. S. cý), kine". Add fon, foon (A. S. fán), foes. 3. The following nouns, originally neuter, have no termination in the plural:-deer, folk, good, hors, neet, scheep, swin, thing, yer, yeer; as in the older stages of the language night, winter, freond (A. S. frýnd) are used as plurals.

4. Feet, gees, men, teeth, are examples of the plural by vowelchange.

t In some of the O.E. Northern and Midland dialects we find brether (brothers), childer (children), deghter (daughters).

u In some of the Northern and Midland dialects we find kye (cows).

Case. The genitive case singular ends in -ës; as—

'Ful worthy was he in his lordes werre.' (Prol. 1. 47.)

I. In Anglo-Saxon, fæder, bróthor, dohtor, took no inflexion in the genitive singular: this explains such phrases as 'fader day,' 'fader soule,' ' brother sone,' 'doughter name.'

2. The following phrases contain remnants of feminine nouns which originally formed the genitive in -an (first declension of A. S. nouns):-'Lady (=ladyë) grace;' 'lady veyl;' 'cherche blood;' 'hertë blood;' 'widow (=widewë) sone;' 'sonnë upriste' (uprising).

3. The dative case singular occasionally occurs and terminates in -e; as beddë, holtë, &c.

4. The genitive plural is much the same as in modern English; as 'foxës tales;' 'mennës wittes.' Forms in -en (= -ene) are not common in Chaucer's works: 'his eyghen (of eyes) sight' occurs in Canterbury Tales, l. 10134 (Wright's Text).

ADJECTIVES.

Adjectives, like the modern German, have two forms-Definite and Indefinite. The definite form is preceded by the definite article, a demonstrative adjective, or a possessive pronoun, and terminates in -ë in all cases of the singular; as 'the yong-e sone,' 'his half-e cours.' Words of more than one syllable nearly always omit the final -e.

The vocative case of the adjective takes this -e; as 'lev-e brother' (1. 326, p. 42); ‘O strong-e God' (l. 1515, p. 81).

Degrees of Comparison.-The Comparative degree is formed by adding -er (-re) to the Positive; as lever, gretter. We find some few forms in -re remaining; as derre (dearer); more (mare); ferre (further); herre (higher); nerre, ner (nearer); sorre (sorer).

Leng, lenger (lengre), = longer; strenger, = stronger, are

- Occasionally the definite form of the comparative seems to end in -ere (-re), to distinguish it from the indefinite form in -er; but no positive rule can be laid down, as -er and -re are easily interchanged,

C

examples of vowel-change; as seen in the modern English elder, the comparative of old.

Bet (bettre) and mo are contracted forms.

The Superlative degree terminates in -este (-est): nest or next, and hext (highest) are abbreviated forms.

(Prol. 1. 9.)

Number. The plural of adjectives is denoted by the final -e :— 'And smalë fowles maken melodye.' Adjectives of more than one syllable, and dicatively, mostly drop the -e in the plural.

adjectives used preSome few adjectives

of Romance origin form the plural in -es; as 'places delitables?

DEMONSTRATIVES.

I. The old plural tho (A. S. thá) of the definite article is still used by Chaucer, but the uninflected the is more frequently used. In the phrases 'that oon,'' that other'-which in some dialects became the toon (ton), the tother—that is the old form of the neuter article; but Chaucer never uses that except as a demonstrative adjective; as in the present stage of the language. 2. Atte=at the (A.S. æt thảm ; O.E. at than, attan, atta, masc. and neut.); the feminine would be atter (O. E.), æt þære (A.S.). 3. Tho must be rendered those, as well as the; as 'tho wordes,' ' and tho were bent.' It is occasionally used pronominally, as oon of tho that,' one of those that.

4. This has for its plural thise, thes, these (A. S. thás, thæs). In some MSS. this occurs for thise.

5. Thilkë (A. S. thyllic, thylc=the like; O. E. thellich, pl. thelliche), the like, that.

6. That ilkë, that same (A. S. ylc, same ; y is a remnant of an old demonstrative base; -lc=lic=like).

7. Som

som=one . another.

'He moot ben deed, the king as shal a page;
Som in his bed, som in the depë see,

Som in the largë feeld, as men may se.'

(Knightes Tale, 11. 2172-4.)

The superlatives of adverbs always seem to end in -est, and not in -este; cp. p. 76, ll. 1340, 1349, with 11. 1342, 1343, 1344, 1345.