"In the faddle-bow were two jewels of India, very beautiful "The palfrey on which the lady fate, was "whiter than any flower de lis: the bri"dle was worth a thousand Parifian fols, " and a richer Saubue never was feen." The French word however, is properly written Sambue, and is not uncommon in old French wardrobe rolls, where it appears to be a female faddle-cloth, or houfing. So in Le ROMAN DE LA Rose. Comme royne fuft veftue, Et chevauchaft à grand SAMBUE. The Latin word, and in the fame restrained fenfe, is fometimes SAMBUA, but most commonly SAMBUCA. Ordericus Vitalis, Lib. viii. p. 694. edit. Par. 1619. "Man nos et mulas cum SAMBUCIS muliebribus "profpexit." Vincent of Beauvais fays, that the Tartarian women, when they ride, have CAMBUCAS of painted leather, embroidered with gold, hanging down on either fide of the horfe. SPECUL. HIST. x. 85. But Vincent's CAMBUCAS was originally written çambucas, or Sambucas. To fuch an enormity this article of the trappings of female horfemanfhip had arifen in the middle ages, that Frederick king of Sicily restrained it by a fumptuary law; which enjoined, that no woman, even of the highest rank, fhould prefume to use a Sambuca, or faddle-cloth, in which were gold, filver, or pearls, &c. CONSTITUT. cap. 92. Queen Olympias, in Davie's GEST of Alexander, has a Sambue of filk, fol. 54. [Supr. vol. i. 221.] "to be seen, in confequence of the great art with which they "were wrought." Chaucer calls his Monke, fayre for the Maistrie, An outrider, that lovid venery". Fayre for the Maistrie means, skilled in the Maistrie of the game, La Maiftrife du Venerie, or the fcience of hunting, then fo much a favorite, as fimply and familiarly to be called the maistrie. From many other inftances which I could produce, I will only add, that the fearch of the Philofopher's Stone is called in the Latin Geber, INVESTIGATIO MAGISTERII. CHAP. Ciii. The merchant who fells three wife maxims to the wife of Domitian. CHAP. Civ. A knight in hunting meets a lion, from whofe foot he extracts a thorn. Afterwards he becomes an outlaw and being seized by the king, is condemned to be thrown into a deep pit to be devoured by a hungry lion. The lion fawns on the knight, whom he perceives to be the fame that drew the thorn from his paw. Then faid the king, "I will learn forbearance "from the beafts. As the lion has fpared your life, when it was "in his power to take it, I therefore grant you a free pardon. Depart, and be admonished hence to live virtuously." The learned reader must immediately recollect a fimilar story of one Androclus, who being exposed to fight with wild beasts in the Roman amphitheatre, is recognised and unattacked by a most savage lion, whom he had formerly healed exactly in the fame manner. But I believe the whole is nothing more than an oriental apologue on gratitude, written much earlier; and that it here exists in its original state. Androclus's story is related by Aulus Gellius, on the authority of a Greek writer, one Appion, called Pliftonices, who flourished under Tiberius. The character of Appion, with which Gellius prefaces this tale, in some measure invalidates his credit; notwithstanding he pretends to Y PROL. V. 165. * MS. fol. 40, a. have been an eye witness of this extraordinary fact. « Ejus libri, " fays Gellius, non incelebres feruntur; quibus, omnium ferme quæ mirifica in Ægypto visuntur audiunturque, hiftoria comprehen"ditur. Sed in his quæ audiviffe et legiffe fefe dicit, fortaffe a "vitio ftudioque oftentationis fit loquacior, &c." Had our compiler of the GESTA taken this story from Gellius, it is probable he would have told it with fome of the fame circumstances: especially as Gellius is a writer whom he frequently follows, and even quotes; and to whom, on this occafion, he might have been obliged for a few more strokes of the marvellous. But the two writers agree only in the general fubject. Our compiler's narrative has much more fimplicity than that of Gellius; and contains marks of eastern manners and life. me add, that the oriental fabulifts are fond of illuftrating and enforcing the duty of gratitude, by feigning inftances of the gratitude of beafts towards men. And of this the present compilation, which is strongly tinctured with orientalism, affords several other proofs. Let CHAP. CV. Theodofius the blind emperor ordained, that the cause of every injured person should be heard, on ringing a bell placed in a public part of his palace. A serpent had a nest near the spot where the bell-rope fell. In the absence of the serpent, a toad took poffeffion of her neft. The ferpent twisting herself round the rope, rang the bell for justice; and by the emperor's special command the toad was killed. A few days afterwards, as the king was repofing on his couch, the ferpent entered the chamber, bearing a precious stone in her mouth. The ferpent creeping up to the emperor's face, laid the precious stone on his eyes, and glided out of the apartment. Immediately the emperor was restored to his fight. This circumstance of the Bell of Juftice occurs in the real history of some eastern monarch, whose name I have forgot. z NOCT. ATTIC. Lib. v. cap. xiv. See another fabulous ftory, of which Appion was an eye witnefs, ibid. L. vii. cap. viii. It is of a boy beloved by a dolphin. VOL. III. f In In the Arabian philofophy, ferpents, either from the brightnefs of their eyes, or because they inhabit the cavities of the earth, were confidered as having a natural, or occult, connection with precious ftones. In Alphonfus's CLERICALIS DISCIPLINA, a fnake is mentioned, whofe eyes were real jacinths. In Alexander's romantic history, he is faid to have found ferpents in the vale of Jordian, with collars of huge emeralds growing on their necks. The toad, under a vulgar indifcriminating idea, is ranked with the reptile race: and Shakespeare has a beautiful comparison on the traditionary notion, that the toad has a rich gem inclosed within its head. Milton gives his ferpent eyes of carbuncle '. CHAP. cvi. The three fellow-travellers, who have only one loaf of bread. This apologue is in Alphonfus. CHAP. cvii. There was an image in the city of Rome, which ftretched forth its right hand, on the middle finger of which was written STRIKE HERE. For a long time none could understand the meaning of this mysterious infcription. At length a certain fubtle Clerk, who came to fee this famous image, observed, as the fun fhone against it, the fhadow of the inscribed finger on the ground at some distance. He immediately took a fpade, and began to dig exactly on that fpot. He came at length to a flight of steps which defcended far under ground, and led him to a stately palace. Here he entered a hall, where he faw a king and queen fitting at table, with their nobles and a multitude of people, all clothed in rich garments. But no person spake a word. He looked towards one corner, where he saw a polished carbuncle, which illuminated the whole room ". In the oppofite corner he perceived the figure of a man standing, having a bended bow with an arrow in his hand, as prepared to fhoot. On his forehead was written, "I am, who am. No"thing can escape my stroke, not even yonder carbuncle which "fhines fo bright." The Clerk beheld all with amazement; and entering a chamber, faw the most beautiful ladies working at the loom in purple . But all was filence. ‘. He then entered a ftable full of the moft excellent horfes and affes: he touched some of them, and they were instantly turned into stone., He next furveyed all the apartments of the palace, which abounded 4 Of bournedde golde, ryche and good, And in the alliterative romance, called Tytus tarriedde nozte for that, but to the tempul rode. That was rayled in the roofe with rubyes. ryche, With perles and with perytotes all the place fette, That glyftered as coles in the fyre, on the golde ryche; The dores with dyamondes dryven were thykke, And made alfo marveyloufly with margery? perles, That ever lemede the lyzt, and as a lampe shewed: The clerkes had none other lyzte. The original is, "mulieres pulcherrimas in purpura et pallo operantes invenit.” 3 Enamel, Moon. fol. L. a. col. r. This may mean either the fenfe in the text, or that the ladies were cloathed in purpura et pallo, a phrase which I never faw before in barbarous latinity but which tallies with the old English expreffion purple and pall. This is fometimes written purple pall. As in SYR LAUNFAL, ut fupr. fol. 40. a. The lady was clad yn purpure palle. Antiently Pallium, as did Purpura, fignified in general any rich cloth. Thus there were faddles, de pallio et ebore; a bed, de pallio; a cope, de pallio, &c &c. See Dufresne, LAT. GLOSS. V. PALLIUM. And PELLUM, its corruption. In old French, to cover a hall with tapestry was called paller. So in SYR LAUNFAL, ut fupr. fol. 40. a. Thyn halle agyrde, and hele [cover] the walles 5 Nought. |