LIBRARY OF OLD AUTHORS. 369 



an English nobleman spoke of " my people," he meant 

 simply his domestics ] 



Encountering the familiar phrase No do ! (Vol. IV. 

 p. 64), Mr. Hazlitt changes it to Not do ! He informs 

 us that Goddes are (Vol. I. p. 197) means " God's heir" ! 

 He says (Vol 11. p. 146) \ '■'■ To borrow, in the sense of 

 to take, to guard, or to protect, is so common in early 

 English that it is unnecessary to bring forward any illus- 

 tration of its use in this way." But he relents, and 

 presently gives us two from Ralph Roister Bolster, each 

 containing the phrase " Saint George to borrow ! " That 

 borrow means take no owner of books need be told, and 

 Mr. Hazlitt has shown great skill in borrowing other peo- 

 ple's illustrations for his notes, but the phrase he quotes 

 has no such meaning as he gives it. Mr. Dyce in a note 

 on Skelton explains it rightly, ^' St. George being my 

 pledge or surety." 



We gather a few more of these flowers of exposition 

 and etymology : — 



" The while thou sittest in chirche, thi bedys schalt thou bidde." 



(VoL L p. 181.) 



i. e. thou shalt offer thy prayers. Mr. Hazlitt's note 



on bidde is, " i. e. bead. So in The Kyng and the Hermit, 



line 111: — 



'That herd an hermyte there within 

 Unto the gate he gan to wyn 

 Bedying his prayer.' " 



Precisely what Mr. Hazlitt understands by beading (or 

 indeed by anything else) we shall not presume to divine, 

 but we shoidd like to hear him translate "if any man 

 bidde the w^orshyp," which comes a few^ lines further on. 

 Now let us turn to page 191 of the same volume. 

 *' Maydenys ben loneliche and no thing sekir." Mr. 

 Hazlitt tells us in a note that '' sekir or sicker " is a 

 very common form of secure, and quotes in illustration 

 16* X 



