Swanborow, helfled, his sistres fair.” --Ellis. We may then perhaps alter _gangande_ to _ganginde_. I do not quite like writing the modern form _fair_ instead of the old plural _fayre_ in order to gain a rime to _eir_. Cf. ll. 1095, 2300, 2538, 2768.] [Footnote 42: “_Hon, lond_ may arise from a Danism, or from an English custom at that time of not pronouncing _d_ after _n_ in _nd_ final; Danish _Mand_ and German _Mann_ are identical.” --Ellis. I prefer to call it Danish; we English, now at least, often _add_ a _d_, as in _sound_, _gownd_, from _soun_, _gown_.] [Footnote 43: “_Johan_ is almost _Jon_ in Chaucer, however written, but l. 177 wants a measure; read-- Bi [Jhesu] crist, and bi seint ion. In l. 1720 also the verse is defective; omit _al_, and read-- In denemark nis wimman [non] So fayr so sche, bi _seint_ Johan, where _seint_ is a dissyllable; see p. 264 of my Early English Pronunciation. _Hey, fri_, 1071, is an error; read _hy_, and see p. 285 of my book. The other instances of _ei_, _ai_ are all regular, the confusion of _ei_, _ai_ being perfect in the thirteenth century. _Shame_, l. 88, is dative, and would prove nothing, but _shame_ in Orrmin is conclusive. Hence in _sham’_, 56, we have an _e_ omitted; compare p. 323 of my book, and the German _Ruh’_.” --Ellis. In other places, the spelling _heye_ occurs, rather than _hy_: see ll. 719, 987, 1071, 1083, 1289, 1685, 2431, 2471, 2544, 2724, 2750, 2945, &c.] [Footnote 44: “The instances of _o_ are all regular, except _croud, god_, 2338, which is a false rhyme altogether; _ou_ = modern _oo_.” --Ellis.] § 29. ON THE FINAL -E, &c. There can be little doubt that the final _-e_ is, in general, fully pronounced in this poem wherever it is written, with but a very few exceptions; but at the same time it is liable to be elided when followed by a vowel or (sometimes) by the letter _h_, as is usual in old English poetry. In the following remarks, I shall use an apostrophe to signify that _e_ is _written, but not pronounced_; thus “wil’” signifies that “wile” is the MS. form, but “wil” the apparent pronunciation. I shall use an italic _e_ to signify that the _e_ is elided because followed by a vowel or _h_, as “cupp_e_” (l. 14); and in the same way, “rid_en_,” “lit_el_,” &c, signify that the syllables _-en_, _-el_ are slurred over in a like manner. It will be seen that such syllables are, in general, slurred over when they occur before a vowel or _h_; under the same circumstances, that is, as the final _-e_. When I simply write the word in the form “gode” as in the MS., I mean that the _-e_ is _fully pronounced_; so that “gode” stands for “godë.” The following, then, are instances. I follow the order in Mr Morris’s Introduction to Chaucer’s Prologue, &c. (Clarendon Press Series).