Page:The Journal of English and Germanic Philology Volume 18.djvu/274

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268
Klaeber

Middle Dutch[1]

a) Construction with genitive.

Dat wi Gode ghewerden laten ons selfs ende alre dinc, Ruusb. 2, 195; 'decide about,' 'dispose of.'

Wat seldi herden, vrouwe? Des laet mi gewerden, doet dat ic u heete nu, Lorr. II 1731. (Cf. ib. 1734: Ic late u, broeder, gewerden altemale.)

Lates mi ende hare gewerden, Rose 11115.[2]

b) Construction with preposition met.

Ende laten der geestelicker iusticie daermede gewerden, Wiel. Instr. 165, 617.

Besides, met in connection with persons; cf. the Middle Low German (and the Dutch) example cited in the second division. Cases of this type could, indeed, be explained in conformity with the Old English examples under a.

laet my met haer ghewerden, ic zalse gaen met voeten terden, V Maagd. 52, 763.

laet mi metten neve mijn ghewerden, ic wils geweldech sijn, Yst. Bl. 1403.

c) Absolute use.

Ghi moet Christum minnen … ende hem in allen dinghen ghewerden laten, Ruusb. 5, 131.

si liet ghewerden den jonghen, Boerden III 111.

d) With a thing as the object.[3]

Dit liet hi also gewerden doe, Flor. 3236.

Cresus liet al gewerden sire sotheit ende sire hoverden, Rose 6249.

The phrase is continued in the Dutch iemand laten geworden. [4]

  1. These examples are derived from Verwijs-Verdam's Dictionary. Cf. also Hubbard's paper. Verdam renders laten gewerden by 'laten begaan,' 'laten geworden,' 'laten betijen,' 'zijn gang laten gaan.'
  2. W. L. van Helten, Tijdschrift wor nederl. Taal-en Letterkunde, III, 113. The meaning of this gewerden is well brought out by van Helten's 'voor iets zorgen.'
  3. These cases are needlessly separated from the preceding ones in Verwijs-Verdam.
  4. In Sicherer-Akveld's Dictionary laat hem geworden is rendered by 'lass ihn gehen, machen.' The phrase has also been compared with the French laisser faire, cf. Wunderlich, l.c., 4852.