ended without bloodshed, was so satisfactory to all parties that it produced a second, in which twenty combatants appeared on a side.

I

A-pon the morn, when that they were

2

Makand them boon himself3 came there,

And found all open the entrée,

And, nought-forthy,4 there knocked he,
Without the door all privily;

While Ramsay til him came in hy
And gert him enter. Soon then he
Said, "God mot at your liking be!"
Syne said he, "Lords, in what mannere
"Will ye run at this justing here?"
"With plate shilds," said Ramsay,
"As it affairs 5 to this play."
"Ah sirs, by our Lord," said he,
"So should no man here prized be,
"For none to other might do ill:
"But, an it likand were you til,
"As men hostayis 7 for to ryn 8

6

"So might men price of worship win."

Quoth Alexander the Ramsay,
"It shall like til us all, parfay,
"That ilk man run his fellow till
"In kirtle' alone, if that ye will.
The Earl said then debonairly,
"Nay, that is all too hard truly."
Quoth William of the Towers, than,
"Sir, if ye na will let ilk man

"Ryn all bare visage, and ye

"Who eschews first, right soon shall see.”
The Earl said meekly, “ Sirs, nay,

"Yet that is all too hard, parfay:

"But, as I said you, will ye do?

"There should some price follow us to."
Thereto they all gave their consent

And he forth til his fellows went.

This tournament, the description of which occupies about a hundred lines, must have been very magnificent, for three English knights were killed; one of the Scottish knights died of his wounds, and another, Sir William the Ramsay, had his head pierced with a spear, so that a priest was sent for, to receive his confession, which he gave without taking off his helmet; a circumstance which "the

"good earl Derby" considered as so very agree-
able, that he exclaimed-

I would God of his grace would send
To me in swilk manere to end!

But the preceding extract was transcribed chiefly because it gives such a minute description of the ceremonies which constituted the politeness or ፡፡ courtesy" of our ancestors. The Scottish knights, we see, kept their door constantly open, but lord Derby was too great a proficient in civility, to enter without an express invitation. The open door, it seems, was indispensable on such occasions, as being a symbol of knightly hospitality: and for this reason it is carefully noted by our author, on another occasion. In 1408 the earl of Mar passed over into France

With a noble company,

Well array'd and daintily,

Knights and squires, great gentlemen, &c.

In Paris he held a royal state,

At the sign known the Tin-plate;

All the time that he was there

Bidand,' twelve weeks full, or mare,
1
• Dwelling.

Door and gate both gert he
Ay stand open, that men might se1
Enter all time at their pleasance,
Til eat or drink, or sing, or dance,
Of all nations generally

Commended he was greatumly'
Of wit, virtue, and largess-

Many more particulars respecting tournaments, may be found in the account of Sir David Lindsay's duel with "the Lord of the Wellis" (Vol. II. p. 353.), and in other parts of the work.

Upon the whole, Wyntown's Chronicle is certainly a valuable acquisition to our stock of early literature. It is a curious specimen of language and poetry, and contains much information for the historical antiquary. The more indolent reader will, perhaps, be amused to observe the instances of our holy prior's credulity: as, for instance, the miracles related of St. Serf (Vol. I. p. 130.); a still more singular miracle (Vol. I. p. 152.), the story of Pope Joan (Vol. I. p. 165.); the tales in the thirteenth chapter of book vi. (Vol. I. p. 194.); and the story of Matilda, wife of our Henry I. which is usually applied to the Lady Godiva (Vol. II. p. 50.). This credulity, however, was the charac

• So..

teristic of the age, rather than of the writer; and a knowledge of the opinions and prejudices of mankind, is always a necessary comment on their actions. From a want of this knowledge, which no ingenuity can bestow, and which, from the scantiness of original materials, no diligence can acquire, our modern surveys of history, are always, to a certain degree, insipid. The distance from which we view the scene of action is too great; the principal groups may remain, but the features and countenances vanish. Those, therefore, who are so inquisitive as to wish for the portraits of the actors, must consult the gossiping histories of contemporary writers; must associate with Froissart and Wyntown, submit to the punctilio and formality of the times, and listen to long stories, with complacency and patience.

Of Wyntown's English contemporaries, there is only one, whose name has descended to posterity. This is Occleve, or Hoccleve, 66 a feeble writer "(says Mr. Warton), whose chief merit seems to "be, that his compositions continued to propagate "and establish those improvements in our language, "which were now beginning to take place. He

was educated in the municipal law; as were "both Chaucer and Gower; and it reflects no "small honour on that very liberal profession, that