THE IIAMII.TON ASSOCIATION. 6l 



A\'as common or unclean. After Chaucer's death, Hoccleve, 

 one of his contemporaries, caused to be painted a picture of the 

 poet, which has become famous, and which sustains the best 

 estimates of his character. It represents a well knit elderly 

 man, of medium size, and whitening hair. He is clad in dark 

 hood and gown, and stands with right arm outstretched and 

 index finger extended as if to emphasize something he had just 

 said. In the left hand is a rosary. The eyes ai'e full, features 

 regular, and the brow and nose indicate perfection of refine- 

 ment. A shade of sadness rests upon the face, and the averted 

 eyes are looking downwards ; eyes and mouth both betoken 

 rich humour, and fathomless sympathy. The ballade " Truth, 

 or good Counsel," Chaucer is said to have written on his death 

 bed, incidentally illustrates some of the finer traits of his own 

 character. Though the whole ballade must be read to realize 

 its beautv, I qviote one verse : 



" That thee is sent receive in buxumnesse, 

 The wrestling for this world asketh a fall. 

 Here is no home, here is but wilderness, 

 Forth pilgrim forth 1 Forth beast out of thy stall, 

 Know thy country, look up, thank God of all ; 

 Hold the highway, and let thy spirit lead, 

 And truth shall thee deliver, it is no dread. 



Five hundred years have passed since Chaucer li\ed, and 

 in the interval between his day and ours lovers of English 

 literature have devoted no little time and learning to furnish an 

 accurate text of what Chaucer wrote. The result of this labour 

 is embodied in the noble " Oxford Chaucer," edited bv pro- 

 fessor Skeat and published in 1894, and in the excellent "Globe 

 Chaucer," published by Macmillan & Co., in 189S. These 

 works meet fully all ordinary requirements, although their 

 editors take pains to say, a definitive text, absolutely satisfac- 

 tory to diplomatic criticism, is yet to come. To rightly esti- 

 mate the difficult task of establishing such a text one must bear 

 in mind : Chaucer wrote a century before the days of printing ; 

 and although more than fifty manuscripts of the Canterbui-y 

 Tales, and from one to a dozen manuscripts of the several 



