760. _maad our rekeninges_, i. e. paid our scores.
764. _I saugh nat_ (Elles. &c.); _I ne saugh_ (Harl.). To scan the line, read _I n' saugh_, dropping the _e_ in _ne_. The insertion of _ne_ is essential to the sense, viz. 'I have not seen.'
765. _herberwe_, inn, lit. harbour. The F. _auberge_ is from the O.H.G. form of the same word.
770. 'May the blessed martyr duly reward you!'
772. _shapen yow_, intend; cf. l. 809. _talen_, to tell tales.
777. _yow lyketh alle_, it pleases you all; _yow_ is in the dat. case, as in the mod. E. 'if _you_ please.' See note to l. 37.
783. 'Hold up your hands'; to signify assent.
785. _to make it wys_, to make it a matter of wisdom or deliberation; so also _made it strange_, made it a matter of difficulty, A. 3980.
791. 'To shorten your way with.' In M. E., the prep. _with_ always comes next the verb in phrases of this character. Most MSS. read _our_ for _your_ here, but this is rather premature. The host introduces his proposal to accompany the pilgrims by the use of _our_ in l. 799, and _we_ in l. 801; the proposal itself comes in l. 803.
792. As to the number of the tales, see vol. iii. pp. 374, 384.
798. 'Tales best suited to instruct and amuse.'
799. _our aller cost_, the expense of us all; here _our_ = A. S. _[=u]re_, of us; see ll. 710, 823.
808. _mo_, more; A. S. _m[=a]_. In M. E., _mo_ generally means 'more in number,' whilst _more_ means 'larger,' from A. S. _m[=a]ra_. Cf. l. 849.
810. _and our othes swore_, and _we_ swore our oaths; see next line.
817. _In heigh and lowe._ 'Lat. _In_, or _de alto et basso_, Fr. _de haut en bas_, were expressions of entire submission on one side, and sovereignty on the other.'--Tyrwhitt. Cotgrave (s. v. _Bas_) has:--'_Taillables haut et bas_, taxable at the will and pleasure of their lord.' It here means--'under all circumstances.'
819. _fet_, fetched; from A. S. _fetian_, to fetch, pp. _fetod_.
822. _day._ It is the morning of the 17th of April. See note to l. 1.
823. _our aller cok_, cock of us all, i. e. cock to awake us all. _our aller_ = A. S. _[=u]re ealra_, both in gen. pl.
825. _riden_, rode; pt. t. pl., as in l. 856. The _i_ is short.
_pas_, a foot-pace. Cf. A. 2897; C. 866; G. 575; Troil. ii. 627. [59]