'A jest's prosperity lies in the ear Of him that hears it; never in the tongue Of him that makes it.' [248] 3995. 'For the propriety of this remark, see note to Prol. A. 166'; Tyrwhitt. 4000. _Sir_; 'The title of _Sir_ was usually given, by courtesy, to priests, both secular and regular'; Tyrwhitt. Tyrwhitt also remarks that, 'in the principal modern languages, John, or its equivalent, is a name of contempt or at least of slight. So the Italians use _Gianni_, from whence _Zani_ [Eng. _zany_]; the Spaniards _Juan_, as _Bobo Juan_, a foolish John; the French _Jean_, with various additions.' The reason (which Tyrwhitt failed to see) is simply that _John_ is one of the commonest of common names. For example, twenty-three popes took that name; and cf. our phrase _John_ Bull, which answers to the French _Jean_ Crapaud, and the Russian _Ivan_ Ivanovitch, 'the embodiment of the peculiarities of the Russian people'; Wheeler's Noted Names of Fiction. Ivan Ivanovitch would be John Johnson in English and Evan Evans in Welsh. Hence _sir John_ became the usual contemptuous name for a priest; see abundant examples in the Index to the Parker Society's publications. 4004. _serve_ has two syllables; hence _rek_, in the Harl. MS., is perhaps better than _rekke_ of the other MSS. _A bene_, the value of a bean; in the Milleres Tale _a kers_ (i. e. a blade of grass) occurs in a similar manner (A. 3756); which has been corrupted into 'not caring a _curse_'! 4006. _Ye_, yea, is a mild form of assent; _yis_ is a stronger form, generally followed, as here, by some form of asseveration. See note to B. 1900 above. 4008. _attamed_, commenced, begun. The Lat. _attaminare_ and Low Lat. _intaminare_ are equivalent to _contaminare_, to contaminate, soil, spoil. From Low Lat. _intaminare_ comes F. _entamer_, to cut into, attack, enter upon, begin. From _attaminare_ comes the M. E. _attame_ or _atame_, with a similar sense. The metaphor is taken from the notion of cutting into a joint of meat or of broaching or opening a cask. This is well shewn by the use of the word in P. Plowman, B. xvii. 68, where it is said of the Good Samaritan in the parable that he 'breyde to his boteles, and bothe he _atamede_,' i. e. he went hastily to his bottles, and broached or opened them both. So here, the priest broached, opened, or began his tale. THE NONNE PREESTES TALE. We may compare Dryden's modernised version of this tale, entitled 'The Cock and the Fox.' See further in vol. iii. pp. 431-3. 4011. _stape._ Lansd. MS. reads _stoupe_, as if it signified bent, _stooped_; but _stoop_ is a _weak_ verb. _Stape_ or _stope_ is the past participle of the strong verb _stapen_, to step, advance. _Stape in age_ = advanced in years. Roger Ascham has almost the same phrase: 'And [Varro] beyng depe _stept in age_, by negligence some wordes do scape and fall from him in those bookes as be not worth the taking up,' &c.--The Schoolmaster, ed. Mayor, p. 189; ed. Arber, p. 152. [249]