In the Legend, 1696, it is maintained that _wroghte_ is a past participle. It is surely a preterite, the word _they_, i.e. the besiegers, being understood. This is a little forced, but it cannot be helped. To take it as a pp. gives no sense; for it then becomes, 'the siege lay full long, and (was) little wrought.' To 'work a siege' would be a harsh expression. If, on the other hand, we are to understand _was_ before _wrought_, we may just as well understand _they_. It is quite as easy. s. 49. My position is, in short, that the attack upon Chaucer in this passage (Studies in Chaucer, i. 402-405) fails in every single instance. It is called 'a formidable' list; but is nothing of the kind. The attack against Gower also fails in every single instance. Omitting the two charges which the author himself withdraws, the passage (p. 405) runs thus:-- 'In the Confessio Amantis, the preterites _herde_, _wente_, _tremblede_, and _com_ will be found ryming respectively with the past participles _answerd_, _went_, _assembled_, and _overcome_ (see i. 151, ii. 7, iii. 263, 350). He has also the infin. _wedde_ ryming with the pp. _sped_ (iii. 265).' Answer. _Herde_ rimes with the _plural_ pp. _answerde_. In ii. 7, the text is wrong, and makes nonsense[49]. _Trembled_ is a correct preterite. _C[=o]m_ could not rime with _overc[)o]me_ in the least, if it were a preterite; the reading _c[)o]me_ is right, and represents the pres. sing. subj. = may come. In iii. 265, the reading is obviously false, as the line consists of _eleven_ syllables; we have merely to strike out _were_, which reduces the line to the normal length, and turns the pp. _sped_ into the pt. t. _spedde_, correctly. The syllables should have been counted. s. 50. ASSONANCES. I have drawn attention to the above passages because it affords an opportunity of illustrating Chaucer's habits. I have said that Prof. Lounsbury is very anxious to fasten upon Chaucer the charge of using mere assonances, i.e. syllables in which nothing rimes but the vowel-sound; for specimens of which see vol. i. p. 5. I doubt if the charge can be fairly proved. But it is well to examine the cases. Book of the Duchesse, 79, 80. L. 79 ends with _terme_. L. 80, according to Thynne's edition[50], ends in _yerne_. The correction of _yerne_ to _erme_, which produces a perfect rime, is so obvious, that it occurred to Mr. Bradshaw, to myself, and to Ten Brink (to the best of my belief) independently. As the reading _yerne_ is due to no MS., but rests upon Thynne, who is, practically, the sole authority for ll. 31-96, I decline to bow down to him; seeing that Chaucer himself uses _erme_ elsewhere (C 312), to rime with the same word _terme_.