1932. _Every thridde yeer_, every third year. This is due to Ovid's expression--'tertia sors annis domuit repetita nouenis' (Met. viii. 171), which Golding translates by--'The third time at the ninth yeares end the lot did chance to light On Theseus,' &c. But Hyginus (Fab. xli) says:--'Instituit autem ut anno unoquoque septenos liberos suos Minotauro ad epulandum mitterent.' 1944. _Egeus_, Ægeus, king of Athens; Met. vii. 402, 404. 1954. 'That thou wouldst be deeply indebted to any one who,' &c. 1960. 'Furthermore, after he [Theseus] was arrived in Creta, he slew there the Minotaur ... by the means and help of Ariadne: who being fallen in fancy with him, did give him a clue of thread, by the help wherof she taught him, how he might easily wind out of the turnings and crancks of the labyrinth.'--Shak. Plutarch, p. 283. Cf. Ovid, Met. viii. 172; Hyginus, Fab. xlii. 1962. _Foreyne_, outer chamber; belonging to the _chambres grete_, or set of larger rooms occupied by the daughters of the king. It seems to answer to the A.S. _búr_, mod. E. _bower_, explained in Murray's Dict. as 'an inner apartment, esp. as distinguished from the "hall," or large public room; _also_, esp. applied to a lady's private apartment; boudoir.' It is merely a peculiar use of our word _foreign_; the O. Fr. _forain_ (fem. _foraine_) often meant 'outer,' as in the phrases _une foraine rue_, an outer (more retired) street; _es tenebres forennes_, into outer darkness; see Godefroy's F. Dict. I agree with Mätzner, that there is no sufficient reason for explaining the word in this passage by 'privy,' though it admittedly has that meaning also (as given in Levins). 1965. _Maister-strete_, principal street; as in Kn. Ta., A 2902. 1966. Most MSS. begin the line with _Of Athenes_, as in l. 2306. This would be a most extraordinary oversight, as the scene is laid in Crete, in the town of Gnossus. MS. T. substitutes 'In mochell myrthe'; and the old printed editions have 'Of the towne,' which scans badly, though 'Of thilke toune' would do well enough. We seem justified in rejecting the reading _Of Athenes_, because Chaucer distinctly mentions _Athenes_ in ll. 1940, 1944, as being the place whence Theseus was sent 'unto the court of Minos'; l. 1949. Besides this, in l. 2122 Theseus calls Ariadne by the prospective title of 'duchess of Athens'; on which Ariadne playfully remarks that she and her sister are now 'assured to royal positions in Athens'; l. 2128. From all which it does not seem fair to charge the error upon Chaucer himself; and I therefore make the bold alteration suggested by MS. T., and supported by MS. Addit. 9832, which has 'In moche myrth.' In the title of the poem, Ariadne is called 'Adriane de Athenes,' but this is another matter, and has reference to l. 2122. She became 'duchess of Athens' in the right of her husband Theseus.