3. The letters _italicized_ are (in the MS.) represented by signs of contraction. One source of difficulty is the flourish over a word, used _sometimes_ as a contraction for _m_ or _n_. I have expanded this flourish as an _m_ or _n_ wherever such letter is manifestly required; but it also occurs where it is best to attach to it no value. In such instances, the flourish occurs most frequently over the last word in a line, and (except very rarely) only over words which have an _m_ or _n_ in them. It would thus seem that their presence is due to the fact of the scribe wanting employment for his pen after the line had been written, and that the flourish therefore appears over certain words, not so much because the _n_ is _wanting_ in them, as because it is _there already_. Such words have a special attraction for the wandering pen. Still, in order that the reader may know wherever such flourishes occur, they have all been noted down; thus, in l. 46, the stroke over the _n_ in “greñ” means that a long flourish occurs drawn over the whole word, and the reader who wishes to expand this word into “gren{e}” or “gren{n}” may easily do it for himself, though he should observe that the most usual form of the word is simply “gren,” as in lines 1000, 1305. In a few nouns ending in _-l_, the plural is indicated by a stroke drawn through the doubled letter; as in _perillis_, _sadillis_, etc.; and even the word _ellis_ (else) is thus abbreviated. 4. I am responsible for all hyphens, and letters and words between square brackets; thus, “with-outen” is in the MS. “with outen;” and “knych[t]ly” is written “knychly.” Whenever a line begins with a capital letter included between two brackets, the original has a blank space left, evidently intended for an illuminated letter. Wherever illuminated letters actually occur in the MS., they are denoted in this edition by large capitals. 5. We find, in the MS., both the long and the twisted _s_ (ſ and s). These have been noted down as they occur, though I do not observe any law for their use. The letter “ß” has been adopted as closely resembling a symbol in the MS., which apparently has the force of double _s_, and is not unlike the “_sz_” used in modern German hand-writing. It may be conveniently denoted by _ss_ when the type “ß” is not to be had, and is sometimes so represented in the “Notes.” 6. The MS. is, of course, not punctuated. The punctuation in the present edition is mostly new; and many passages, which in the former edition were meaningless, have thus been rendered easily intelligible. I am also responsible for the headings of the pages, the abstract at the sides of them, the numbering of the folios in the margin, the notes, and the glossary; which I hope may be found useful. The greatest care has been taken to make the text accurate, the proof-sheets having been compared with the MS. _three times_ throughout.[P3]