GISIPPO, and of Lydgate's Tale of two Marchants of Egypt and of Baldad, a manuscript poem in the British Museum, and lately in the library of doctor Afkew'. Peter Alphonfus is quoted for this story; and it makes the fecond Fable of his CLERICALIS DISCIPLINA.

I take the liberty of introducing a small digreffion here, which refers to two pieces of the poet last-mentioned, never enumerated among his works. In the year 1483, Caxton printed at Westminster, "The PYLGREMAGE OF THE SOWLE tranflated "oute of Frensfbe into Englishe. Full of devout maters touching "the fowle, and many queftyons affoyled to cause a man to lyve the "better, &c. Emprinted at Westminster by William Caxton the first

yere of kynge Edward V. 1483." The French book, which is a vision, and has fome degree of imagination, is probably the PELERIN DE L'AME, of Guillaume prior of Chaulis *. This translation was made from the French, with additions, in the year 1413. For in the colophon are these words. "Here "endeth the dreme of the PYLGREMAGE OF THE SOWLE "tranflated out of Frenfche into Englisfhe, with fomwhat of "Addicions, the yere of our lorde м.cccc. and thyrteen, and "endethe in the vigyle of seint Bartholomew." The tranflator of this book, at least the author of the Addicions, which altogether confift of poetry in feven-lined ftanzas, I believe to be Lydgate. Not to infist on the correspondence of time and style, I observe, that the thirty-fourth chapter of Lydgate's metrical LIFE OF THE VIRGIN MARY is literally repeated in the thirtyfourth chapter of this Translation. This chapter is a digreffion of five or six stanzas in praise of Chaucer; in which the writer feelingly laments the recent death of his maister Chaucer, poete of Britaine, who used to amende and correcte the wronge traces of my rude penne. No writer befides, in Lydgate's own life-time, can be fuppofed, with any fort of grace or propriety, to have mentioned those personal affiftances of Chaucer, in Lydgate's own * See fupr. vol. ii. p. 120. words.

iR, Edwards has a play on this story, 1582.

words. And if we fuppofe that the Tranflation, or its Addicions, were written by Lydgate before he wrote his LIFE OF THE VIRGIN, the proof will be the fame *.

Another piece probably written by Lydgate, yet never suppofed or acknowledged to be of his compofition, is a poem in the octave stanza, containing thirty-feven leaves in folio, and entitled LABEROUS AND MARVEYLOUS WORKE OF SAPIENCE. After a long debate between MERCY and TRUTH, and JUSTICE and PEACE, all the products of nature and of human knowledge are described, as they stand arranged in the palace and dominions of WISDOM. It is generally allowed to have been printed by Caxton: it has not the name of the printer, nor any date. Had it been written by Caxton, as I once haftily fufpected, or by any of his cotemporaries, the name of Lydgate would have appeared in conjunction with thofe of Gower and Chaucer, who are highly celebrated in the Prologue as erthely gods expert in poefie: for these three writers were conftantly joined in panegyric, at least for a century, by their fucceffors, as the diftinguished triumvirate of English poetry. In the fame Prologue, the author fays he was commanded to write this poem by the king. No poet cotemporary with Caxton was of confequence enough to receive fuch a command: and we know that Lydgate compiled many of his works by the direction, or under the patronage, of king Henry the fifth. Lydgate was born in Suffolk : and our author from the circumftance of having lived in a part of England not of a very polished dialect, apologises for the rudeness of his language, so that he cannot delycately endyte. It is much in the style and manner of Lydgate and I believe it to have been one of his early performances'.

CHAP. clxxii. A king of England has two knights, named

* Stowe mentions Lydgate's "PILGRIMAGE OF THE WORLD by the com"maundement of the earle of Salisburie, 1426." But this must be a different work. Ad calc. Opp. Chauc. fol. 376. col. 1.

46

See fupr. vol. ii. p. 194. I know not if this is the poem recited by Stowe and called, "The Courte of Sapience in hea"ven for redemption of mankind." Ubi fupr. col. i.

Guido and Tirius. Guido having achieved many splendid exploits for the love of a beautiful lady, at length married her. Three days after his marriage he faw a vifion, which fummoned him to engage in the holy war. At parting fhe gave him a ring; faying, "as often as you look on this ring, remember "me." Soon after his departure fhe had a fon. After various adventures, in which his friend Tirius has a share, at the end of seven years he returned to England in the habit of a pilgrim. Coming to his castle, he saw at the gate his lady fitting, and distributing alms to a croud of poor people; ordering them all to pray for the return of her lord Guido from the holy land. She was on that day accompanied by her fon a little boy, very beautiful, and richly apparelled; and who hearing his mother, as she was distributing her alms, perpetually recommending Guido to their prayers, asked, if that was his father? Among others, she gave alms to her husband Guido, not knowing him in the pilgrim's difguife. Guido, feeing the little boy, took him in his arms, and kiffed him: faying, "O my sweet son, may "God give you grace to please him!" For this boldness he was reproved by the attendants. But the lady, finding him destitute and a stranger, affigned him a cottage in a neighbouring foreft. Soon afterwards falling fick, he faid to his fervant, "Carry this ring to your lady, and tell her, if the defires ever to see me again, to come hither without delay." The fervant conveyed the ring; but before the arrived, he was dead. She threw herfelf on his body, and exclaimed with tears, "Where are now my alms which I daily gave for my lord? "those alms, but I knew you not.-You "and kiffed your own fon, but did not discover yourself to "him nor to me. What have I done, that I fhall fee you no She then interred him magnificently.

"more ?"

I faw you receive beheld, embraced,

The reader perceives this is the story of Guido, or Guy, earl of Warwick; and probably this is the early outline of the life and death of that renowned champion.

Many romances were at firft little more than legends of de

votion,

votion, containing the pilgrimage of an old warrior. At length, as chivalry came more into vogue, and the ftores of invention were increased, the youthful and active part of the pilgrim's life was also written, and a long feries of imaginary martial adventures was added, in which his religious was eclipfed by his heroic character, and the penitent was lost in the knight-errant. That which was the principal subject of the short and fimple legend, became only the remote catastrophe of the voluminous romance. And hence by degrees it was almost an established rule of every romance, for the knight to end his days in a hermitage. Cervantes has ridiculed this circumftance with great pleasantry, where Don Quixote holds a grave debate with Sancho, whether he shall turn faint or archbishop.

mance.

So reciprocal, or rather fo convertible, was the pious and the military character, that even fome of the apostles had their roIn the ninth century, the chivalrous and fabling spirit of the Spaniards transformed faint James into a knight. They pretended that he appeared and fought with irresistible fury, completely armed, and mounted on a stately white horse, in most of their engagements with the Moors; and because, by his fuperior prowess in these bloody conflicts, he was supposed to have freed the Spaniards from paying the annual tribute of a hundred christian virgins to their infidel enemies, they reprefented him as a profeffed and powerful champion of distressed damfels. This apotheofis of chivalry in the person of their own apostle, must have ever afterwards contributed to exaggerate the characteristical romantic heroifm of the Spaniards, by which it was occafioned; and to propagate through fucceeding ages, a ftronger veneration for that species of military enthusiasm, to which they were naturally devoted. It is certain, that in confequence of these illuftrious achievements in the Moorish wars, faint James was conftituted patron of Spain; and became the founder of one of the most magnificent fhrines, and of the most opulent order of knighthood, now exifting in christendom.

The

The Legend of this invincible apoftle is inferted in the Mosarabic liturgy. A b

CHAP. clxxiii. A king goes to a fair, carrying in his train,' a mafter with one of his fcholars, who expofe fix bundles, containing a fyftem of ethics, to fale'.

Among the revenues accruing to the crown of England from the Fair of saint Botolph at Boston in Lincolnshire, within the HONOUR of RICHMOND, mention is made of the royal pavilion, or booth, which stood in the fair, about the year 1280. This fair was regularly frequented by merchants from the most capital trading towns of Normandy, Germany, Flanders, and other countries. "Ibidem [in feria] funt quædam domus quæ "dicuntur BоTHE REGIÆ, quæ valent per annum xxviii, 1. “xìii, s. iiii, d. Ibidem funt quædam domus quas MERCA"TORES DE YPRE tenent, quæ valent per annum, xx, l. Et "quædam domus quas MERCATORES DE CADOMO ET "OSTOGANIO tenent, xi, 1. Et quædam domus quas MER"CATORES DE ANACO tenent, xiii, l. vi, s. viii, d. Et quæ"dam domus quas MERCATORES DE COLONIA tenent, xxv, 1. "x, s'." The high rent of thefe lodges, is a proof that they were confiderable edifices in point of fize and accommodation.

W

t

CHAP. clxxiv. The fable of a ferpent cherished in a man's bofom '.

About the year 1470, a collection of Latin fables, in fix books, distinguished by the name of Efop, was published in Germany. The three first books confift of the fixty anonymous elegiac fables, printed in Nevelet's collection, under the title of Anonymi Fabula Efopica, and tranflated in 1503, by Wynkyn de Worde, with a few variations: under each is a fable in profe on the same subject from ROMULUS, or the old profe LATIN