For thar was a ful fayre cuntre, There are three old poems on the exploits of Gawain, one of the heroes of this romance. There is a fourth in the Scotch dialect, by Clerke of Tranent, an old Scotch poet. See LAMENT FOR THE DEATH OF THE MAKKARIS, ft. xvii. Clerke of Tranent eke has [death] tane That made the Aventers of GAWANE. ANC. SCOTT. P. 1576. YWAIN The two heroes of this romance, and GAWAIN, are mentioned jointly in a very old French verfion of the British or Armorican LAY OF LAUNVAL, of which there is a beautiful vellum manufcript. MSS. Cott. VESPAS. B. xiv. 1. [fupr. modo citat.] Enfemble od eus GAWAYNS, This LAY, or SONG, like the romance in the text, is opened with a feast celebrated at Whitfontide by king Arthur at Kardoyl, a French corruption from Carliol, by which is meant Cairleon in Wales, fometimes in romances confounded with Cardiff. [See Geoffr. Monm. ix 12.] 66 Jci commence le Lay de LAUNVAL." Laventure de un Lay, Cum de avint uns cunteray, En Bretaigne lapelent LAUNVAL: En la terre de Logresa le trououent, A la Pentecuíte en eftè, I aveit li reys fojournè, A les i dona riches duns, a Logres, or Loegria, from Locrine, was the middle part of Britain. Counts. So in ROBERT OF GLOUCESTER, we have CONTASs for countefs. On which word his gainst the Scots and Picts, who deftroyed "the country. He found them in the "land of Logres, where they committed frequent outrages. The king was there "at the feaft of Pentecoft, where he gave "rich gifts to the counts and barons, and "the knights of the round table, &c." The writing of this manufcript of LAUNVAL feems about 1300. The compofition is undoubtedly much earlier. There is another, MSS. HARL. 978. §. 112. This I have cited in the FIRST DISSERTATION. From this French LAUNVAL is tranflated, but with great additions, the English LAUNFALL, of which I have given feveral extracts in the DISSERTATION prefixed to this Volume, p. lxxv. &c. [See alfo fupr. Vol. ii. EMEND. ADD. ad Pag. 103.] I prefume this romance of YwAYN and GAWAYNE is tranflated from a French one of the fame title, and in the reign of Henry the fixth; but not by Thomas Cheftre, who tranflated, or rather paraphrafed, LAUNVAL, or Sir LAUNFALL, and who feems to have been mafter of a more copious and poetic ftyle. It is not however unlikely, that Cheftre tranflated from a more modern French copy of LAUNVAL, heightened and improved from the old fimple Armorican tale, of which I have here produced a fhort extract. [See fupr. Vol. ii. p. 102.] The fame perhaps may editor Hearne obferves, that king James the first ufed to call a Countess a cuntys. And he quotes one of James's letters, "Come and bring the three Cuntys [for coun"teffes] with you," GLOSS, p. 635. be perhaps recollect, that the old Cornish Miracle interlude was called the Guary Mirakil, that is, the Miracle Play. [See fupr. Vol. i. p. 237.] In Cornish, Plán az guare is the level place, the plain of sport and paftime, the theatre of games, &c. Guare is a Cornish verb, to fport, to play. In affinity with which, is probably Garish, gay, fplendid. Milton, IL PENS. V. 141. Day's garish eye. Shakespeare, ROM. JUL. iii. 4. The garish fun. KING RICHARD THE THIRD. A garish flag. Compare Lye, Sax. Dict. V. geappian. To dress fine. Who was the tranflator of EMARE, it is not known. I prefume it was translated in the reign of Henry the fixth, and very probably by Thomas Cheftre, the tran flator of LAUNVAL. SECT. SECT. XXVI. I FEAR I shall be pronounced a heretic to modern criticism, in retracting what I have said in a preceding page, and in placing the NOT BROWNE MAYDE under fome part of this reign. Prior, who, about the year 1718, paraphrafed this poem, without improving its native beauties, fuppofes it to have been three hundred years old. old. It appears from two letters preferved in the British Museum, written by Prior to Wanley, lord Oxford's librarian, that Prior confulted Wanley about this antient ballad*. It is, however, certain, that Wanley, an antiquarian of unqueftionable skill and judgement in these niceties, whatever directions and information he might have imparted to Prior on this subject, could never have communicated fuch a decifion. He certainly in these letters gives no fuch opinion. This is therefore the hafty conjecture of Prior; who thought that the curiofity which he was presenting to the world, would derive proportionable value from its antiquity, who was better employed than in the petty labour of ascertaining dates, and who knew much more of modern than antient poetry. The NOT-BROWNE MAYDE first appeared in Arnolde's CHRONICLE, OF CUSTOMS OF LONDON, which was first printed about the year 1521. This is perhaps the most heterogeneous and multifarious mifcellany that ever existed. The collector sets out with a catalogue of the mayors and sheriffs, the customs and charters, of the city of London. Soon afterwards we have • MSS. HARL. 3777. These letters are printed in the Ad- S DITIONS TO POPE'S WORKS, in two volumes, published about two years ago. receipts receipts to pickle fturgeon, to make vinegar, ink, and gunpowder; how to raise parfley in an hour; the arts of brewery and foap-making; an estimate of the livings in London; an account of the laft vifitation of faint Magnus's church; the weight of Effex cheese, and a letter to cardinal Wolfey. The NOT-BROWNE MAYDE is introduced, between an estimate of some subsidies paid into the exchequer, and directions for buying goods in Flanders. In a word, it seems to have been this compiler's plan, by way of making up a volume, to print together all the notices and papers, whether antient or modern, which he could amass, of every fort and fubject. It is fuppofed, that he intended an antiquarian repertory: but as many recent materials were admitted, that idea was not at least uniformly observed; nor can any argument be drawn from that fuppofition, that this poem exifted long before, and was inferted as a piece of antiquity. The editor of the PROLUSIONS infers, from an identity of rhythmus and orthography, and an affinity of words and phrases, that this poem appeared after fir Thomas More's JEST OF THE SERJEANT AND FREER, which, as I have obferved, was written about the year 1500. This reafoning, were not other arguments obvious, would be inconclufive, and might be turned to the oppofite fide of the question. But it is evident from the language of the NOT BROWNE MAYDE, that it was not written. earlier than the beginning, at least, of the fixteenth century. There is hardly an obfolete word, or that requires a gloffary, in the whole piece: and many parts of Surry and Wyat are much more difficult to be understood. Reduce any two ftanzas to modern orthography, and they fhall hardly wear the appearance of antient poetry. The reader fhall try the experiment on the two following, which occur accidentally *. PROLUSIONS, or felet pieces of antient • V. 168. Poetry, Lond. 1760. 4to. Pref. p. vii. HE. |