wife been in a very precarious state of health, and living at the Gardens, where I go every evening, I would long ago have seen you. I thought my servant must have made a mistake but flattered myself that you might have said better, which he translated very well. I believe Mr. Canning, who lives at Mr. Blaquiere's, is going to China, but means to stop at Madras. If Lady Jones comes any evening to town, I will infallibly call upon you. Need I add, that I shall ever be happy to see you? I will not fail to make your apology, as you desire, to my two brethren. I am, dear Pritchard, ever affectly yours, W. JONES.* * Indorsed, March, 1787. 1 SIR, ON THE WORD AUMERE. To the Editor of the Bristol Memorialist. IN the third number of the Bristol Memorialist, p. 176, there is an ingenious and a very candid criticism on the word AUMERE, the writer of which contends, and not without reason, that "Aumere of Silk" is the correct translation of" Bourse de Soye" in the original French of the Romaunt of the Rose. Few persons will be disposed to doubt of this: but it may be worth while to show how the word Aumere came to be thus used by Chaucer in the sense of a purse, since its more direct meaning is "a welt, skirt, or border," "a fringe, or a girdle." De Gans, et de Bourse de Soye The Gallant is here directed to wear Gloves and a Purse of silk, and to make himself spruce, neat, or queint, with a Saincture, i. e. a Ceincture, a Girdle, or rather a Girdle-purse; which is properly rendered by Chaucer an Aumere of Silk, because the French phrase "Ceincture à Bourse," designated "a large double Belt, used in old time, both as a Purse and a Girdle." Thus, perhaps, Chaucer's phrase Aumere expresses both words of the original, viz. Bourse and Saincture, which he renders an Aumere of Silk, i. e. a Purse-girdle of Silk. A reference to the Dictionaries of Bailey, Kersey, Cole, Junius, Adam Littleton, (in voce fimbrias) Cotgrave, and Skinner, will justify this explanation. The word Aumere occurs in the Balade of Charitie in an animated and truely poetical description of Autumn, in which the Author appears to have had an eye to Virgil's equally poetical description of Spring Et nunc omnis Ager, nunc omnis parturit Arbos: Ecl. III. ""Twas nowe the pride, the Manhode of the Yeare, This expression is here used in the same manner as the good Bishop of Dunkeld, Gawen Douglass, in a 'similar allusion to the same passage of Virgil, does "the fertyl skirt-Lappis of the Ground," in his description of the month of May, in that much admired prologue to the twelfth Book of the Æneid, Copland's Edition. Aumere is used again in the third Eclogue of the Poems attributed to Rowley, L. 25. "Dame Agnes, whoe lies ynne the Chyrche With Birlette Golde, Why the gelten Aumeres stronge ontolde." It is here worthy of observation, that the gelten Aumeres are the "Ceinctures dorées," which Cotgrave informs us were "golden girdles, (in former times) worn only by such as went for honest (i. e. chaste) women; for noted whores were forbidden" them. Here then the Poet, with the strictest propriety, ornaments the monumental Effigies of a Lady with such honourable testimonies of chastity, viz. Ceinctures dorées, or gelten Aumeres. With equal propriety is the same word applied in Celmonde's celebrated Apostrophe to Hope, in Ælla 397. "Hope, hallie Suster, sweepeynge thro' the ́skie, Hecket ynne a myste, and wyth thyne eyne ybleute, Nowe commest thou to mee wythe starrie lyghte; Ontoe thie veste the rodde Sonne ys adente; The Sommer tyde, the month of Maie appere, Depycte wythe skylledd honde upponn thie wyde Aumere.” &c. thie wyde Aumere, i. e. the visible Circle or Girdle of the Horizon. Having thus, Sir, I hope, vindicated the propriety and legitimacy of Aumere, as it occurs in the above-mentioned Poems, I trust I may be permitted to add a word on the Aumer of the Percy house-hold Book, which undoubtedly means an Almoner: it is synonymous with the Almer in the Balade of Charitie, viz. one who was both an Alms-craver and a Distributor of Alms, or an Almer. In one work it is written and pronounced an Almer, in the other an Aumer, exactly as the word all, in all-things, in some parts of this Island is pronounced au-things. When I admit that Chaucer's Aumere of Silk is the translation of the French Bourse de Soye, I am far from condemning those who by adopting the Fimbria or Limbus of Junius have understood the Lines in Chaucer, "Weare streight Gloves with Aumere Of Silke, and alwaie with good chere To be a direction to the Gallant to wear straight Gloves with silk Fringe; because such was exactly the Costume of Chaucer's Age and Country. I have quoted the Lines as they are printed, and pointed in a bl. 1. edition of Chaucer "imprynted by John Kyngston; for John Whight in poules Church Yarde, anno 1561.” Chaucer's Poem is very far from being either a servile or a faithful translation of the French, for in this very passage he takes no notice of the expressive phrase “ te cointoye" nor of the Saincture, unless that be included, as I have said before, in the word Aumere. It was not unreasonable, therefore, in any Critic to suppose that Chaucer's allusion might have been to the straight Gloves with silk Fringe, worn by the Beaux of his own time. Does the original give him authority for saying Perhaps it may now be admitted by your ingenious Correspondent, that Chaucer has used Aumere in the sense of a purse, not because that word ever literally meant a purse, but because when it was dedicated to the purpose of containing money for, charitable uses, it became by a figure of speech an Aumer, an Aumere, an Amner, an Almer, an Aumener, or an Aumonere, for I believe, with him, that those words are all synonymous. * * * Ritson's conjecture "groves?" is correct. It is the language of Sir Tristram, where I see no reason for supposing with Mr. Scott that it is a mistake for groues," or any good ground for the exposition "Meadows," given in the glossary. This semly somers day, This greves wexen al gray, That in her time were grene. Fytte. i. st. 2. The context alone in Lybeaus Disconus, is sufficient to point out its connexion with the A. S. "greaf, lucus." ATEONED. Al day togedere hy wrastly conne That thre ribbes in him to barste. · Cronycle of Englonde, v. 59. LL |