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It was published

affords no pofitive indication of that date". from an antient manuscript in the year 1631, and reduced to a more modern style, by William Bedwell, rector of Tottenham, and one of the tranflators of the Bible. He fays it was written by Gilbert Pilkington, supposed to have been rector of the fame parish, and author of an unknown tract, called PASSIO DOMINI JESU. But Bedwell, without the leaft comprehenfion of the scope and spirit of the piece, imagines it to be a serious narrative of a real event; and, with as little fagacity, believes it to have been written before the year 1330. Allowing that it might originate from a real event, and that there might be fome private and local abuse at the bottom, it is impoffible that the poet could be ferious. Undoubtedly the chief merit of this poem, although not deftitute of humour, confifts in the defign rather than the execution. As Chaucer, in the RIME OF SIR THOPAS, traveftied the romances of chivalry, the TOURNA

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MENT OF TOTTENHAM is a burlesque on the parade and fopperies of chivalry itself. In this light, it may be confidered as a curiofity; and does honour to the good fenfe and cifernment of the writer, who seeing through the folly of thefe fauionable exercises, was fenfible at the fame time, that they were too popular to be attacked by the more folid weapons of reafon and argument. Even on a fuppofition that here is an allufion to real facts and characters, and that it was intended to expofe fome popular story of the amours of the daughter of the Reve of Tottenham, we must acknowledge that the fatire is conveyed in an ingenious mode. He has introduced a parcel of clowns and ruftics, the inhabitants of Tottenham, Islington, Highgate, and Hackney, places then not quite so polished as at prefent, who imitate all

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War faire feld in the ferene,

Thaire heviddes for to hide.
And leves wele, it is no lye,:
And felde hat Flemangrye

That king Edward was in;
With princes that war ftif and bolde,
And dukes that war doghty tolde,
In batayle to begin.

The princes that war rich on raw,
Gert nakers ftrikes and trumpes blaw',

And made mirth at thaire might;
Both ariblaft and many a bow
War redy railed upon a row,

And full frek for to fight.

Gladly thai gaf mete and drink,
So that thai fuld the better swink,

The wight men that thar ware:
Sir Philip of Fraunce fled for dout,
And hied him hame with all his rout,
Coward God giff him care.

For thare than had the lely flowre
Lorn all halely his honowre,

That fo gat fled for ferd;
Bot oure king Edward come ful still,
When that he trowed no harm till,
And keped him in the berde.

a In glittering ranks, made the drums, &c,
the

1

the folemnities of the barriers. The whole is a mock-parody on the challenge, the various events of the encounter, the exhibition of the prize, the devices and efcocheons, the display of arms, the triumphant proceffion of the conqueror, the oath before the combat, and the fplendid feast which followed, with every other ceremony and circumstance which constituted the regular tournament. The reader will form an idea of the work from

a fhort extract ".

He that bear'th him beft in the tournament,

Shal be graunted the gree by the common affent,

For to winne my daughter with doughtineffe of dent ̊,
And Copple my broode hen that was brought out of Kent,
And my dunned cow:

For no fpence will I fpare,

For no cattell will I care.

He shall have my gray mare, and my fpotted fow.

There was many a bold lad their bodyes to bede *;
Then they toke their leave, and hamward they hede';
And all the weke after they gayed her wede *,

Till it come to the day that they should do their dede:
They armed them in mattes;

They fett on their nowls'

Good blacke bowls *,

To keep their powls' from battering of battes".

They sewed hem in sheepskinnes for they should not brest*, And every ilk of them had a blacke hatte instead of a creft;

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A baskett or panyer before on their brest,

And a flayle in her hande, for to fight preft",

Forthe con thei fare 1.

There was kid mickle force.

Who fhould beft fend his corfe,

He that had no good horfe, borrowed him a mare, &c'.

It appears to me, that the author, to give dignity to his narrative, and to heighten the ridicule by stiffening the familiarity of his incidents and characters, has affected an antiquity of ftyle. This I could prove from the caft of its fundamental diction and idiom, with which many of the old words do not agree. Perhaps another of the author's affectations is the alliterative manner. For although other fpecimens of alliteration, in fmaller pieces, are now to be found, yet it was a fingularity. To those which I have mentioned, of this reign, I take this opportunity of adding an alliterative poem, which may be called the FALCON AND THE PIE, who fupport a DYALOGUE DESENSYVE FOR WOMEN AGAYNST MALICYOUS DETRACTOURS, printed in 1542". The author's name Robert Vaghane,

P Ready.

On they went.

Kithed, i. e. fhewn.

$ Defend.

I have before obferved, that it was a difgrace to chivalry to ride a mare.

The poems of this manuf.ript do not feem to be all precifely of the faine hand, and might probably once have been feparate papers, here ftitched together. At the end of one of them, viz. fol. 46. The lyfom ledys the Blynde, mention is inferted of an accompt fettled ann. 34. Hen. vi. And this is in the hand and ink of that poem, and of fome others. The TOURNAMENT OF TOTTENHAM, which might once have been detached from the prefent collection, comes at fome distance afterwards, and cannot perhaps for a certainty be pronounced to be of the fame writing. I take this opportunity of correcting a wrong reference to SIR PENI juft cited, at p. 93. It belongs to GALB. E. 9. MSS. Cott.

Coloph." Thus endeth the faucon "and pie anno dni 1542. Imprynted by "me Rob. Wyer for Richarde Bankes "

I have an antient manufcript alliterative poem, in which a defpairing lover bids farewel to his miftrefs. At the end is written, "Explicit Amōr p. Ducem Ebōrr "nuper fact." I will here cite a few of the ftanzas of this unknown prince.

Farewell Lade of grete pris,
Farewell wyfe, both faire and free,
Farewell freefull flourdelys,
Farewell beril, bright of ble!-
Farewell mirthe that I do miffe,
Farewell Proweffe in purpell pall!
Farewell creature comely to kiffe,
Farewell Faucon, fare you befall!
Farewell amoroufe and amyable,
Farewell worthy, witty, and wys,
Farewell pris prifable,
Farewell ryal rofe in the rys.-

Farewell

or Vaughan, is prefixed to fome fonnets which form a fort of epilogue to the performance.

For the purpose of ascertaining or illuftrating the age of pieces which have been lately or will be foon produced, I here stop to

Farewell dereworth of dignite,
Farewell grace of governaunce,
However y fare, farewell ye,
Farewell primerofe my plefaunce!

For the ufe of those who collect specimens of alliteration, I will add an instance in the reign of Edward the third from the BANOCBURN of Laurence Minot, all whose pieces, in fome degree, are tinctured with it. MSS. Cott. GALB. E. ix. ut fupr.

Skottes out of Berwick and of Abirdene,
At the Bannockburn war ze to kene;
Thare flogh ze many fackles, als it was
fene.

And now has king Edward wroken it I

wene;

It es wroken I wene wele wurth the while, War zit with the Skottes for thai er ful of gile.

Whare er ze Skottes of faint Johnes toune?
The bofte of zowre baner es betin all doune;
When ze bofting will bede, fir Edward es
boune,

For to kindel zow care and crak zowre

crowne :

He has crakked zowre croune wele worth the while,

Schame bityde the Skottes for thai er ful of
gile.

Skottes of Striflin war fteren © and stout,
Of God ne of gude men had thai no dout;
Now have thai the pelers priked obout,
Bot at the laft fir Edward rifild thaire rout;
He has rifild thaire rout wele wurth the
while,

Bot euer er thai under bot gaudes and gile.

a Naked.

b Allow it..

< Stern..

Clothing.
Go.

f As the moon began to rife,

Rughfute riueling now kindels thi care,
Bere bag with thi bofte thi biging is bare;
Fals wretche and forfworn, whider wiltou
fare?

Bufk the unto Brig and abide thare.
Thare wretche faltou won and wery the
while,

Thi dwelling in Donde es done for thi gile.

The Skottes gafe in burghes and betes
the ftretes,

All thife Inglis men harmes he hetes;
Faft makes he his mone to men that he

metes,

Bot fone frendes he finds that his bale betes;
Sune betes his bale wele wurth the while,
He ufes all threting with gaudes and gile.

Bot many man thretes and spekes full ill,
That fumtyme war better to be stane ftill;
The Skot in his wordes has wind for to spill,
For at the laft Edward fall haue al his will:
He had his will at Berwick wele wurth
the while,

Skottes broght him the kayes, bot get for
thaire gile.

A VISION on vellum, perhaps of the fame age, is alliterative. MSS. Cott. NERO, A. x. These are specimens.

Ryzt as the maynful mone con rys,
Er theven the day glem dryve aldon,
So fodenly, on a wonder wyfe,
I was war of a profeffyoun:
This noble cite of ryche enpreffe
Was fodanly full, withouten fomoun',
Of fuch vergynes in the fame gyfe
That was my blisful an under croun,
A corone wernalle of the fame fafoun,
Depaynt in perles and wedes qwhyte'

g The even drove down the day-light.

h Proceffion.

iSummons. Notice,

k All wore a crown.

1 White robes.

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