A zens ye sarasyms in batayle
Many swore and sayde samfayle
That we that spere smerte

Oure lorde was stongen to ye herte
And a party of the holy crosse
Jn crystalle done yn a cloos
And iij of the thornes kene
That was in crystes hede sene
And a ryche crowne of golde
None rycher Kyng wery scholde

Y made w' yn & w oute

With precius stonys alle a bowte,"—&c.

See the remainder in Warton, i. 94, 95, who has however omitted the metrical titles, in Latin, prefixed to the reigns of the several kings. These do not seem to be found in the royal MS. or in that at Edinburgh. 1. "Post Athelstanum fratrem regnauerat Edmund, Quem post occidit gladio sicarius unus.

2. Edred Edmundo successit, tercius horum,
Uir sanctus, sed dum vixit, ualitudine tentus.
Edmundus fratrem medius generauit Edwynum,
Edgarumque pium morum probitate venustum.
3. Tunc pius Edgarus fratri successit Edwyno,
Justicia cum pace tenens, per tempora longa :
Archiepiscopus efficitur Dunstanus ab isto,
Odmari comitis hic natam duxerat ex qua,"

The remaining portion of these fragments is on a subject totally different, although no doubt can exist of their being written by the same hand; in all probability indeed, they were composed by the same author, as the preceding Chronicle. They consist of short explanations of various scriptural passages in prose, intermixed with exhortations in metre, to which are prefixed texts, in Latin, as titles to the subjects illustrated. An extract from each will more immediately shew the nature of these ancient instructions.

"Omnia quecumq. uultis ut faciant uobis homines, eadem uos facite illis.* That ys to say alle thynges that ye wylle y men do to zow do ze ye the same to hemen.† And therfore y der hardely say. yt yf ze kepeth thes commaundementis yn * In red.

+ Them. Hem is continually used by old writers in this sense. Ang. Sas, heome.

louying

louying god ouer alle thyng. And zowre neyzebor as zow selfe. And last yn kepyng of thys lesson to zowre lyfe ys ende."-&c.

"Beati mundo corde quoniam ipsi deum uidebunt.*

That ys to say y telle hyt the,

The clene of herte y blessed they be.
Ffor ate the hyze domet sykerlyche,‡
They schullen se god a pertelyche§
In hys god hede, and yn hys blysse,
Of wyche they schullen neuer mysse.
Than schullen they hyre and herkne nowthe
A blessed worde of god ys mowthe;
Cometh my blessyd fere,

That to my fader beth leue¶ & dere,
Into my blysse ze schullen wende,**
That lastyth euer w' oute ende.
And ever more ther ynne to wonett
Wyt the fader and wyth the sone,
And w the holy goste, yn vnite,
Ther ys the holy trinite."-&c.

From the general character of these curious fragments, I should suppose they originally formed part of a volume intended for the study and information of the younger part of society in some religious house. Theological, historical, and arithmetical instruction were evidently the ends proposed, and it seenis by no means improbable, that the metrical portions were used either for recitation, or as songs on the principal festivals of the church, and at the commemorations of the founders of the society.

They were probably written about the year 1320.

It is singular that Selden, in his notes to the Polyolbion song 3, quotes a part of the Chronicle, which he tells us he found " in a very ancient fragment." It is very likely to have been a portion of this identical MS.

* In red. Companion.

+ Last Judgment.
Loved.

P. B.

Certainly. ** Go.

$ Openly. tt Dwell.

I The Kyng and the Hermyt.
Fragment of a Metrical Romance. MS.

It is well known to those conversant with our early literature that poems of the humorous kind, especially those which answer to the fabliau of the French minstrels, are comparatively of very rare occurrence in our own language.*

This circumstance induces me to think the annexed fragment not unworthy of insertion in the Bibliographer. It is faithfully copied from the same MS. which afforded the termination of Sir Cleges. The story evidently belongs to the same class with those of The King and the Tanner of Tamworth, The Miller of Mansfield, &c.

I have added a few explanatory notes, and those few are perhaps scarcely necessary for persons even moderately acquainted with the works of our earlier poets.

Thesu that is hevyn kyng
Giff them all god endyng.
(If it be thy wyll.)

And gif them parte of hevenly game,
That well can call gestes samet

With mete and drinke to fylle.

When that men be glad and blyth,
Tham were solas god to lyth,
He that wold be stylle.
Off a kyng I wyll you telle,
What a ventore hym be felle,
He that wyll herke theretylle.
It be felle be god Edwerd's deys,
Ffor soth so the romans seys,
Herkyng I wyll you telle.

The Kyng to Scherwod gan wend,
On hys pleyng for to lend,
Ffor to solas bym that stond,
The grete herte for to hunte,
In Sfrythys and in felle.

With ryali fests and feyr ensemblè
With all ye lordys of that contrè

* See Mr. Weber's Introduction to Sir Cleges.

↑ Together.

VOL. IV.

To remain.

G

§ Woods,

With

With hym ther gan thei well.
Tyll it be fell upon a day.
To bys forstere he gan sey,
"Ffelowys were is the best?
"In your playng wher ye have bene?
Were have ye most gam sene
"Off dere in this forest?"
They answerd, and fell on kne,
"Over all, Lord, is gret plente
"Both est and west,

"We may schew you at a syht
"Two thousand dere this same nyht
"Or ye son go to reste."
An old forester drew hym nere,
"Lyfans Lord, I saw a dere
Under a tre,

So grete a hed as he bare
"Sych one saw I never *are,
No feyrer myht be,

"He is +more than any two,
"That ever I saw on erth go,"
Than seyd the kyng so fre,
"Thy waryson 1 will ye geve
"Ever more whyll you doyst lyve,
"That dere you late me se,
Upon the morne thei ryden fast
With hounds and with hornes blast
To wodde than are thei wente
Netts and gynnes than leyd he,
Every archer to hys tre,

With bowys redy bent,

They blew thrys, uncoupuld hounds,

They reysed the dere up that stonds,§

So nere that span and sprent||

The hounds all as they were wode

They ronne the dere as they were wode¶
The kyng hys hors he hent**

$ Time.

Sprung up and leaped away. The two words in the original are perhaps still more nearly synonymous.

I apprehend that the copyist has through inadvertency substituted a repetition of part of the first line in this couplet, for the clause which originally terminated the second. By reading "thro' the grene wode," we may avoid this awkard recurrence.

**Took.

The

The kyng sate one a god coreser
Ffast he rode after ye dere,

And chasyd hym ryght fast,
Both throw thyke and thine,
Throw the forest he gan wyn

With hounds and hornes blast.

The kyng had followyd hym so long,
Hys god sted was ne strong,

Hys hert awey was past,

Horn ne hunter myght he not here,
So ranne the hounds at the dere,
A wey was at the last.

The kyng had folowyd hym so long
Ffro mydey to the ev'ning song,
That lykyd hym full ille.
He ne wyst were that he was,
Ne out of the forest for to passe,
And thus he rode all wylle.
"Whyle I may the dey liht se
"Better is to loge under a tre"
He seyd hym selve untylle.
The kyng cast in hys wytte.
"Gyff 1 stryke into a pytte

"Hors and man myght spylle.
"I have herd poré men call at morow
"Seynt Julyan send yem god *harborow
"When they had nede

"And that when that they were travyst, t
"And of herborow were abayst, ‡

"He wole them wysse and rede.
"Seynt Julyan, as I ame trew knyht,
"Send me grace this iche nyght,
"Of god harborow to sped.
"A gift I schall thee gyve,
"Every here whyll that I lyve,

"Ffolke for thy sake to fede."

Harbour, lodging. Three saints named Julyan are commemorated in the Golden Legend. One of these is supposed to be the same person with Simon the Leper; and some saye that this is he that Pylgrymes and wayferinge men call and require for good herbobecause our Lord was lodged in hys house. G. L. The author however, afterwards states his belief that another St. Julyan is the patron invoked in such cases. His legend is to be found in that work, and is not uninteresting.

rowe,

† Bewildered

+ Disappointed.