like the language of Rowley, which, in every thing else, is refined and harmonious poetry, nor upon an agglomeration of, confonants in the orthography, the refource of later and more. contemptible forgers, but upon the ftyle itfelf, upon its alternate ftrength and weakness, now nervous and concife, now diffufe and eked out by the feeble aid of expletives. In general, imitators with to write like ancient poets, without ceafing to ufe modern meafure and phrafeology; but had the confcience of this author permitted him to palm thefe verfes upon the public as an original production of the fourteenth century, we know no internal evidence by which the impofture could have been

detected.

From confidering the ftate of the Anglo-Saxon poetry at and previous to the Conqueft, Mr Ellis turns his confideration to that of the invaders, and treats at confiderable length of what may be called the Anglo-Norman literature. It is well known, that the monarchs who immediately fucceeded the conqueror, adopted Lis policy, in foftering the language and arts of Normandy, in oppofition to thofe of the Anglo-Saxons, whom they oppreffed, and by whom they were detehed. The French poetry was not neglected; and it is now confidered as an established point, that the most ancient metrical romances exifting in that language, were compofed, not for the court of Paris, but for that of London; and hence a British ftory, the glories of King Arthur, became their favourite theme. The ingenious Abbé de la Rue wrote feveral eflays, printed in the Archæologia, which throw great light upon the Anglo-Norman poets; and of this information Mr Ellis has judiciously availed himself. But, he alfo difcovers by the explanations attached to his extracts from Wace, that intimate acquaintance with the Romanz language, which is at once fo difficult to acquire, and fo indifpenfable to the execut tion of his history.

In the third chapter, we fee the laft rays of Saxon literature, in a long extract from Layamon's tranflation of the Brut of Wace. But fo little were the Saxon and Norman languages calculated to amalgamate, that though Layamon wrote in the reign of Henry II, his language is almoft pure Saxon; and hence it is probable, that if the mixed language now called Englif at all exifted, it was deemed as yet unfit for compofition, and only ufed as a pie-bald jargon for carrying on the indifpenf able intercourfe betwixt the Anglo-Saxons and Normans. In process of time, however, the dialect fo much defpifed made its way into the fervice of the poets, and feems to have fuper, feded the ufe of the Saxon, although the French, being the court language, continued to maintain its ground till a later pe

riod. Mr Ellis has traced this change with a heedful and difcriminating eye, and has guided us through the harsh numbers of the romancers and the compilers of legends, and through the wide waste of profaic verfe, in which it was the pleasure of Robert of Gloucester and Robert de Brunne to record the hiftory of their country, down to that period when English poetry began to affumé a claffical form, and to counterbalance, in the esteem even of the kings and nobles, the hitherto triumphant AngloNorman. This grand change was doubtlefs brought on by very flow degrees, and it is difficult exactly to ascertain its progrefs. The hiftory of English Minstrelfy, in oppofition to that of the Anglo-Normans, would probably throw great light on this fubject; for thefe itinerant poets must have made ufe of the Englith long before it was thought fit for higher purposes. Mr Ellis has obferved, juftly, that the hiftory alluded to is involved in great obfcurity: nevertheless, before concluding, we intend to recommend it to his further attention.

The epoch from which English may be confidered as a claffical language, may be fixed in the reign of Edward III, the age of Gower and of Chaucer, in which it was no longer confined to what the latter has called the drafty riming of the wandering minstrel, but employed in the compofition of voluminous and ferious productions by men poffeffed of all the learning of the times. The Confeffio Amantis of Dan. Gower is thus characterized by Mr Ellis.

This poem is a long dialogue between a lover and his confeffor, who is a priest of Venus, and is called Genius. As every vice is in its nature unamiable, it ought to follow, that immorality is unavoidably pu nished by the indignation of the fair fex; and that every fortunate lover muft of neceffity be a good man, and a good chriftian; and upon this prefumption, which perhaps is not strictly warranted by experience, the confeffor paffes in review all the defects of the human character, and carefully fcrutinizes the heart of his penitent with refpect to each, before he will confent to give him absolution.

Because example is more impreffive than precept, he illuftrates his injunctions by a series of appofite tales, with the morality of which our lover profeffes himself to be highly edified; and being of a more inquifitive turn than lovers ufually are, or perhaps hoping to fubdue his miftrefs by directing against her the whole artillery of fcience, he gives his confeffor an opportunity of incidentally inftructing him in chemistry, and in the Ariftotelian philofophy. At length, all the intereft that he has endeavoured to excite, by the long and minute details of his fufferings, and by manifold proofs of his patience, is rather abruptly and unexpectedly extinguished: for he tells us, not that his miftrefs is inflexible or faithlefs, but that he is arrived at fuch a good old age, that the fubmiffion of his fair enemy would not have been fufficient for enfuring his triumph. '

We

We regret that our limits do not permit us to include our author's account of Chaucer, and his poetry. It has been warmly disputed in what particular manner the father of English poetry contributed to its improvement. Mr Ellis, with great plaufibility, afcribes this effect chiefly to the peculiar ornaments of his style, confifting in an affectation of splendour, and especially of latinity, which is not to be found in the fimple ftrains of Robert of Gloucefter, or any of the anterior poets, nor indeed in that of Lau rence Minot, or others about his own time.

In chapter ninth, the language of Scotland, and the hiftory of her early poetry, comes into confideration. This is a thorny point with every antiquary. The English and Scotish languages are in early times exactly fimilar; and yet, from the circumftances of the two countries, they must neceffarily have had a feparate origin. Mr Ellis feems difpofed to adopt the folution of Mr Hume, who fuppofes the Saxon language to have been impofed upon the Scotish, by a series of fuccefsful invafions and conquefts, of which history takes no notice. To this propofition, in a limited degree, we are inclined to fubfcribe; for there is no doubt that the Anglo-Saxons of Bernicia extended themselves, at leaft occafionally, as far as the frith of Forth, occupied the Merfe and Lothian, introduced into them their language, and, when conquered by the Scots and Picts, were in fact the Angli, to whom, as fubjects of the Crown of Scotland, our Kings' charters were fo frequently addreffed. But we cannot admit thefe conquefts to be fuppofed farther than they are proved; nor do we conceive that one province, though a rich one, could have impofed its language upon the other fubjects of the Kings who acquired it by conqueft. There must have been fome other fource from which the Scoto-Teutonick is derived, than the Anglo-Saxon spoken in Lothian. This grand fource we conceive to have been the language of the ancient Picts; nor would it be eafy to alter our opinion. Thofe who are connoiffeurs in the Scotifh dialects as now spoken, will obferve many inftances of words in the idiom of Angus-fhire (the feat of the Picts) which can only be referred to a Belgic root; whereas thofe of South-country idiom may almoft univerfally be traced to the Anglo-Saxon. The Norman, from which, as Mr Ellis justly remarks, the Scotifh dialect, as foon as we have a fpecimen of it, appears to have borrowed as much as the English, was probably introduced by the influx of Norman nobles, whom the oppreffion of their own Kings drove into exile, or whom their nauve chivalrous and impatient temper urged to feek fortune and adventures in the court of Scotland. Having traced the origin of our language, the earlier Scotifh poets Barbour and Winton pals in review, with fpecimens from each, very happily felected,

to

to illuftrate at once their own powers of compofition, and the manners of the age in which they wrote. Thefe are intermingled with criticisms, in which the reader's attention is directed to what is moft worthy of notice, and kept perpetually awake by the lively and happy ftyle in which they are conveyed.

The merit of Occleve and Lydgate are next examined, who, with equal popularity, but with merit incalculably inferior, fupported the renown of English poetry after the death of Chaucer. One fpecimen from the latter we cannot help extracting as irrefiftibly ludicrous.

One of the most amufing paffages in this poem (the Book of Troy) is contained in the feventeenth chapter, and relates to a well known event in the life of Venus. Lydgate thus expreffes his indignation against Vulcan.

The fmotry* fmith, this fwarte Vulcanus,
That whilom in hearte was fo jealous
Toward Venus that was his wedded wife,
Whereof there rose a deadly mortal ftrife,
When he with Mars gan her first espy,
Of high malice, and cruel falfe envy,
Through the fhining of Phebus' beams bright,
Lying a-bed with Mars her owne knight.
For which in heart he brent as any glede, †
Making the flander all abroad to fprede,
And gan thereon falfely for to muse.

And God forbid that any man accuse
FOR SO LITTLE any woman ever!
Where love is fet, hard is to diffever!
For though they do fuch thing of gentleness,
Pafs over lightly, and bear none heavinefs,
Left that thou be to woman odious!

And yet this fmith, this falfe Vulcanus,

Albe that he had them thus efpied,

Among Paynims yet was he defied!

And, for that he so FALSELY THEM AWOKE,

I have him fet laft of all my boke,

Among the goddes of false mawmentry‡,' &c. (Sign. L. i)

Upon this occafion, the morals of our poetical monk are so very pliant, that it is difficult to fuppofe him quite free from perfonal motives which might have influenced his doctrine. Perhaps he had been incommoded by fome intrufive husband, at a moment when he felt tired

of

* Smoky or smutty. A burning coal. Loix. Mahometry, i. e. idolatry. It may be proper to obferve, that no part of this paffage is to be found in Colonna's original. In general, indeed, Lydgate's is by no means a tranflation, but a very loofe para phrafe.

of celebacy, and wifhed to indulge in a temporary relaxation from the feverity of monaftic difcipline ⚫.'

From Lydgate our author proceeds to James I. of Scotland, upon whofe perfonal qualities he pronounces a merited panegyric, accompanied with feveral extracts from the 'Kingis Quair. The next chapter is peculiarly interefting. It contains a retrofpect of the conclufions to be drawn from the information already conveyed; and this introduces a well written and pleafing digreffion upon the private life of the Englith during the middle ages. Wo learn that, even in that early period, the life of the English farmer or yeoman was far fuperior in eafe and comfort to that of perfons of the fame rank in France. Pierce Ploughman, a yeoman appar ently, poffcffed a cow and calf, and a cart-mare for tranfporting manure; and although, at one time of the year, he fed upon cheese curds and oat cakes, yet after Lammas, when his harvest was got in, he could drefs his dinner to his own mind.' We aifo learn, that the peafants were fo far independent, as to exact great wages; and doubtlefs thefe circumftances,, combined with the practice of archery, gave the English infantry fuch an infinite advantage over thofe of other nations, confifting of poor half-fed ferfs, and gained them fo many battles in fpite of the high-foul'd chivalry of France, and the obftinate and enduring courage of our Scotifh ancestors. Mr Ellis remarks, on this fubject It is very honourable to the good fenfe of the English nation, that our two beft early poets have highly extolled this useful body of men, while the French minstrels of the twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth centuries, univerfally feem to approve the fupercilious contempt with which the nobles affected to treat them.' We have alfo much curious information concerning the drefs of the period, particularly of the ladies, who in the day-time feem to have been wrapt up in furs, and in the night-time to have flept without fhifts. The ferenades, the amufements, the food, the fafhions, the manners of the period, are all illuftrated by quotations from the authors who have referred to them; and, with the fingular advantage

Sufpecting that Lydgate had borrowed this fingular passage from fome French paraphrafe of Colonna's work, I examined the anonymous tranflation in the Mufeu, (Bibl. Reg. 16. F. IX.), but could not and any traces of fuch a deviation from the original.

+ We have noticed a folitary exception to this general rule. Quoique je di, et quoique non

Nus n'eft vilains fe de cuer non ;

Vilains eft qui fait vilenie,

Ja tant iert de haute lignie.'

Fabliau de Chevalier des Clers et des Vilains.