what is ftated in the Agiologio. It is certain that the work was executed under the infpection of an Infant of Portugal; for Montalvo exprefsly ftates, that at the inftance of this high perfonage, an alteration, of a very peculiar nature, was made in the ftory. The paffage, which is curious in more refpects than one, is thus rendered by Mr Southey. At the end of the 41ft chapter, it is faid that Briolania would have given herself and her kingdom to Amadis; but he told her, right loyally, how he was another's. In the Spanish verfion, ff. 72, this paffage follows" But though the Infante Don Alphonfo of Portugal, having pity upon this fair damfel, ordered it to be fet down after another manner, that was what was his good pleasure, and not what actually was written of their loves; and they relate that history of these loves thus, though, with more reafon, faith is to be given to what we before faid :-Briolania, being restored to her kingdom, and enjoying the company of Amadis and Agrayes, perfifted in her love; and, feeing no way whereby he could accomplish her mortal defires, fhe fpake very fecretly with the damfel, to whom Amadis, and Galaor, and Agrayes, had each promifed a boon, if she would guide Don Galaor where he might find the Knight of the Foreft. This damfel was now returned, and to her fhe disclosed her mind, and befought her, with many tears, to advise fome remedy for that ftrong paffion. The damfel then, in pity to her lady, demanded, as the performance of his promife, from Amadis, that he fhould not go out of a certain tower till he had a fon or a daughter by Briolania: and they fay, that, upon this, Amadis went into the tower, because he would not break his word; and there, because he would not confent to Briolania's defires, he remained, lofing both his appetite and his fleep, till his life was in great danger. This being known in the court of King Lifuarte, his lady Oriana, that the might not lofe him, fent and commanded him to grant the damfel's defire; and he having this command, and confidering, that by no other means could he recover his liberty, or keep his word, took that fair Queen for his leman, and had by her a fon and a daughter at one birth. But it was not fo, unless Briolania, feeing how Amadis was drawing nigh to death in the tower, told the damfel to releafe him of his promife, if he would only remain till Don Galaor was arrived; doing thus, that the might fo long enjoy the fight of the fair and famous knight, whom, when she did not behold, fhe thought herfelf in great darknefs. This carries with it more reason why it should be believed; because this fair Queen was afterwards married to Don Galaor, as the fourth book relates." Introduction, p. vii. It seems to us clear, from this fingular paffage, that the work upon which Lobeira was bufied, under the aufpices of the Infant -Don Alfonfo, or what Infant foever was his patron, muft neceffarily have been a translation, more or less free, from fome ancient authority. If Amadis was the mere creature of Lobeira's fancy, the the author might no doubt be unwilling, in compliance with the whimsical compaffion of his patron for the fair Briolania, to violate the image of ideal perfection pictured in his hero, to which fidelity was fo neceffary an attribute; but he could in no fenfe be faid to interpolate what actually was written, unless he derived his story from fome authority, independent of the refources of his own imagination. We do not think it neceflary to enter into the question, how far the good tafte and high spirit difplayed in this romance, entitles us to afcribe it exclufively to the French. The modeft affurance with which Monfieur de Treffan advances the claim of his nation upon this ground, is, as Mr Southey has justly observed, a truly French argument. We have not, however, that very high opinion of the Portugueze character, about the conclufion of the 14th century, which has been adopted by Mr Southey. We recollect that the good and loyal Portugueze, who fought at Aljubarrota for king Joam of good memory,' were indebted for that victory to Northberry and Hartfell, the English mercenaries, who arranged their hoft in fo ftrong a pofition; to the headlong impetuofity of the Gafcon, Berneze, and French adventurers, who compofed the van of the Spanish army; and to the jealoufy or cowardice of the Caftilians, who refused to support their auxiliaries: So that little of the fame of that memorable day can in truth be imputed to the courage of the Portugueze. At that time, indeed, Caftile and Portugal were rather the ftages whereon foreigners exercifed their courage in prize-fighting, than theatres for the display of national valour. Edward the Black Prince, John of Gaunt, John Chandos, and Sir Edward Knowles, fought in thofe countries, againft Bertram of Clefquy and the flower of French chivalry; but we hear little of the prowess of the inhabitants themfelves. Such an infolent fuperiority was exercised by the English and Gafcons, who came to the affiftance of the king of Portugal, that, upon occafion of fome difcontent, they erected the pennon of St George as a fignal of revolt; elected Sir John Soltier, a natural fon of the Black Prince, to be their captain; and proclaimed themfelves, friends to God, and enemies to all the world; nor had the King any other mode of faving his country from pillage, than by complying with their demands. Indeed, it is more than probable, that both Portugal and Spain would have fallen under the dominion of England, if the port wine, which now agrees fo well with the conftitution of our fouthern brethren, had been equally congenial to that of their martial ancestors: But the Englyfhmen founde the wynes there fo ftrong, hot and brinning, that it corrupted their heads, and dried their bowelles, and brente their lightes and lyvers; and they H 2 they had no remedy; for they could fynde but lytill good water to tempre their wynes, nor to refresh them; which was contrary to their natures; for Englyfhmen, in their own countries, are fweetly nourished; and there they were brent both within and without. To fuch circumftances was Portugal occafionally indebted to fafety at the hands of her too dangerous allies. It feems to us more than probable, that, during thefe wars, the French or Picard original of Amadis, was acquired by Lobeira from fome minstrel attendant upon the numerous Breton and Gafcon knights who followed the banners of the Earl of Cambridge, or the Duke of Lancafter; for to Brittainy or Acquitaine we conceive the original to be referred. But while we cannot believe, against the concurring teftimony of Herberay and Treffan, as well as against the ufual progrefs of romantic compofition, that Amadis de Gaul is, from beginning to end, the invention of Lobeira; yet, we conceive enough may fafely be afcribed to him, to warrant the praises beftowed on him by Mr Southey, and perhaps to entitle him to the name of an original author. We do not indeed know the precife nature of Lobeira's work, nor what additions have been made to it by Montalvo; but it is eafy to conceive that it must have been fomething very different from the Picard original. In making fome remarks on the style and structure of Amadis, we fhall endeavour to contraft them with thofe of the earlier romance. The metrical romances differed in many moft material particulars from the profe romances by which they were fuperfeded. The former partook of the character of the rhapfodifts, by whom they were ufually compofed, and always fung. It was vain to expect from the ignorant minstrels, or thofe who wrote for them, a well connected hiftory: nor, if they had been capable of fuch a refined. compofition, could its beauties have been relished by their audience, to whom they had seldom time to fing above one or two of the adventures contained in a long romance. Their narration was therefore rambling and defultory. One adventure followed another, without much visible connexion; the only object of the author being, to produce fuch detached pieces as might intereft during the time of recitation, without any regard to the unity of the composition. Thus, in many cafes, the only connexion feems to arife from the fame hero figuring in all the adventures, which are otherwife as much detached from each other, as the fcenes in the box of a fhow-man. But when a book was fubftituted for the minstrel's fong, when the adventures of a preux chevalier were no longer listened to by ftarts, amid the roar of convivial feftivity, but furnished the amufement of the clofet, and that in fo permanent a fhape, that the the ftudent might turn back to refume the connexions which had escaped him; it became the ftudy of the author to give a greater appearance of uniformity to his work. As an arrangement, in which all the incidents fhould feem to conduce to one general end, muft foon have become a merit with the reader; it became, neceffarily, to the author, a worthy object of attainment. Hence, in the best of our profe romances, and particularly in Amadis de Gaul, a combined and regular progrefs of the story may be discovered; whereas the metrical romances prefent, with a few exceptions, a fuite of unconnected adventures, often ftriking and fplendid indeed in themselves, but appearing rather an affemblage of loofe materials for a hiftory, than a history itself. But the advantage, thus gained by the profe romances, was often loft, by carrying too far the principle on which it was grounded. Having once regularly completed a ftory, good tafte and judgement required them to ftop, and choose for their future labours fome fubject unconnected with what was already perfect. But this was not the genius of the age. When they had fecured an interesting fet of characters, the authors could not refift the temptation of bringing them again upon the ftage; and hence, the endlefs continuations with which Amadis and the other romances of that clafs, were faddled, and of which Mr Southey complains with fo much juftice. Only four books of Amadis are genuine. The remaining twenty are an interpolation, containing the hiftory of his defcendants; in all refpects greatly inferior to the original. In another point of view, it appears to us not quite clear that the profe romancers obtained any fuperiority over their poetical predeceffors. The rude poctry of the minstrels was no doubt frequently rambling and diffufive; partaking, in fhort, of those faults which naturally attach to unpremeditated compofition. But we doubt greatly, whether the ftudied and affected ornaments of the profe romance are not more tedious and intolerable than the rhapsodies of the minstrels. Mr Southey, in his tranflation of Amadis, has, with due attention to modern tafte, fhortened the long fpeeches of the lovers, and fimplified many of their high-flown compliments. On the other hand, the cuftom of interweaving the hiftory with little defcriptive fketches, which, in many instances, were very beautiful, was dropt by the profe narrators, as an unneceflary interruption to the continuation of the story. We allude to fuch paffages as the following, which are introductions to the Fyttes of the unpublifhed romance of Merfin. The ancient orthography is altered, for the fake of modern readers. In time of winter along it is, In May is merry time fwithe, Maidens dreffen them with pride. Merry it is in the month of June, When fennel hangeth abroad in town; Groweth then on maidens bower; The small birds maketh merry fong.' Of fuch paffages, which ferve to relieve the heaviness of the perpetually recurring fight and tournament, the profe romance affords us no example. The ornaments which it presents, are thofe of ftudied defcription, every word of which is laboured, as applicable to the precife fcene which is defcribed, without expreffing or exciting any general fenfibility of the beauties of nature. -We may take, as no unfavourable inftance, the account of the tower and gardens conftructed by Apollidon in the Firm Ifland. In that tower were nine apartments, three on a floor; and though fome part was the work of skilful artists, the rest was wrought by the fill and feience of Apollidon himself, fo wonderoufly, that no man in the world could rightly value, nor even understand its exceeding rarity. And because it would be long to defcribe it all at length, I fhall only fay, that the tower flood in the midft of a garden, furrounded with a wall of goudly ftone and mortar; and the garden was the goodlieft that might be feen, by reafon of its trees and herbs, and fountains of sweet water. Of those trees, many were hung with fruit the whole year through, and others bore flowers; and round about the garden by the walls, were covered walks, with golden trellis-work, through which might all that pleasant greennefs be feen. The ground was covered with flones, fome clear as the cryftal, others coloured like rubies and other precious stones, the which Apollidon had procured from certain iflands in the Eaft, where jewels, gold, and other rare things are produced, by reafon of the great heat of the fun continually acting. Thefe islands are uninhabited, lave only by wild beats; and, for fear of those beafts, Tedious. no |