version she turned them into French verse. 38 Mary, the French translator, lived in the thirteenth century. The evidence of her assertion, as to Alfred being the English translator of the fables, can certainly only have the force of her individual belief; and as this belief may have been merely founded on popular tradition, it cannot be considered as decisive evidence. Such an assertion and belief, however, of an authoress of the thirteenth century, must be allowed to have so much weight as to be entitled to notice here. 39 The 38 Mary's words are:— "Por amur le cunte Willame Harl. MS. 978. p. 87. 39 Mons. La Rue thinks, that Alfred was not the author of the English translation which Mary used. His reasons are by no means conclusive: 1st. Asser mentions no translations of Alfred's, and therefore his omission of Æsop is of no consequence. 2d. Though Malmsbury does not particularize Æsop among the translations he enumerates, this argument is indecisive, because Malmsbury expressly states, that the king translated more books than those which he enumerates. His words are," Denique plurimam partem Romanæ Bibliothecæ Anglorum auribus decit, cujus præcipui sunt libri Orosius," &c. Malmsbury only names the chief of his translations; a monk would have hardly ranked Æsop in this honourable class. 3d. The abbe's doubt, whether Mary could, in the thirteenth century, have understood Alfred's language, is of no great force, because we cannot think it unlikely that there should be persons in England who knew both Norman and Saxon, or that Mary should have learnt Saxon if she wished it. 4th. As CHAP. III. BOOK completest MS. of Mary's translation contains an V. hundred and four fables, out of which thirty-one only are Æsop's. 40 BUT it would seem that Alfred's extensive mind had even condescended to write on one of the rural sports of his day'; for in the catalogue of MSS. which in 1315 were in the Christ Church library, we find a treatise of this king on keeping hawks mentioned. "Liber Alured, regis, de custodiendis accipitribus." 4 This book corresponds 41 with the fact mentioned by Asser, that Alfred was accustomed "to teach his falconers and hawkers, and hound-trainers." 42 IT has been declared that the Parables of Alfred had great edification, beauty, pleasantry, and nobleness. 43 It is a great loss to our curiosity, perhaps to our education, that we have not these tales, or moral apologues, which were existing in the reign of Henry the Second. 4 ALFRED is also praised for his excellence in proverbial sayings. 45 Some collections of this sort to the feudal expressions which Mary uses, as we have not the English MSS. which she translated, and therefore cannot know what were the actual expressions in that, I think no argument can be rested on them. Alfred, in his Boetius, puts king in one place, and heretogas in another, for Roman consuls. 40 Archæologia, p. 53 42 Asser, 43. 41 Wanley's preface. 43 So the MSS. Chron. Joan. Oxenedes says: ، Parabola ejus plurimum habentes edificationis, venustatis, jocunditatis et nobilitatis." Cott. Lib. MSS. Nero, D. 2. 44 Ail. Riev., who then lived, declares," Extant parabolæ ejus," &c., using nearly the same words as Oxenedes, p. 355. 45 “In proverbiis ita enituit ut nemo post illum amplius." Ann. Eccl. Wint. 1 Angl. Sacra, p. 289. Some of these are noticed in the old English dialogue between the owl and the nightingale. III. have been noticed by his biographer, Spelman, CHA P. which may perhaps contain some of his ideas, as they were preserved by tradition, and in a later age committed to writing; but they are probably not wholly in the phrases of his own composition. 46 OF Alfred's manual or memorandum book, which seems to have existed in Malmsbury's days 47, and which would have been such a curiosity to modern times, not even a remnant has been found. in the arts. THE genius of Alfred was not confined to His taste literature: it also extended to the arts; and in three of these, architecture, ship-building, and 46 One of these, the least likely to be Alfred's, may be seen in Dr. Hickes's Anglo-Saxon Grammar, p. 222. The other, which suits better Alfred's wisdom, has been quoted by Spelman, in his Life of Alfred, and translated from the MS. in the Cotton Library. See p. 94. of Walker's edition, and 127. of Hearne's. Spelman's extracts may be more valued, as the Cotton MS. of Galba, A. 19., was ruined by the fire which destroyed much valuable antiquity. 47 Malmsbury's references to this, show, that it was not a mere receptacle for devout extracts, but was rather a general common-place book; for he cites from it some traits of biography, and observations on a piece of poetry. "Qui enim legit manualem librum regis Elfredi, reperiet Kenterum Beati Aldhelmi patrum non fuisse regis Inæ germanum sed arctissima necessitudine consanguineum," lib. v. De Pont. 341. Again, speaking of Aldhelm, he says, he cultivated AngloSaxon poetry, "Adeo ut, teste libro Elfredi, de quo superius dixi, nullo unquam ætate par ei fuerit quisquam poesin Anglicam posse facere, tantum componere, eadem apposite vel canere vel dicere. Denique commemorat Elfredus carmen triviale quod adhuc vulgo cantitatur Aldelmum fecisse." By the next paragraph, Alfred seems to have reasoned upon the subject. His manual was therefore the repository of his own occasional literary reflections; for Malmsbury adds, speaking still of Alfred, Adjiciens causam qua probet rationabiliter, tantum virum his quæ videantur frivola, instituisse populum eo tempore semibarbarum, parum divinis sermonibus intentum, statim cantatis missis, cursitare solitum," p. 342. V. BOOK gold and silver workmanship, he obtained an excellence which corresponded with his other talents. Architecturc. ASSER mentions, that he caused edifices to be constructed from his own new designs, more venerable and precious than those which his predecessors had raised."48 These not only consisted of halls and royal apartments, made of wood or stone, in pursuance of his directions, to the surprise of his contemporaries, but he also formed cities and towns, some of which he repaired, aud others built; some he destroyed on their ancient sites, to raise them of stone, in positions more useful and · appropriate. 49 He was so earnest in these improvements, that he procured from many nations numerous artificers, versed in every sort of building, and he regularly appropriated a sixth of his yearly revenues to pay their expences, and remunerate their labour.50 ShipHis talent and cultivation of naval architecture building. have been already noticed. Workmanship in gold. He also taught his artisans and workers in gold", and by his instructions, occasioned many things to be incomparably executed (we use the epithet of his contemporary) in gold and silver. 52 One specimen of his talent in this art yet exists to us in a jewel of gold, which was found near Athelney. 53 48 Et ædificia supra omnem antecessorum suorum consuetudinem venerabiliora et pretiosiora nova sua machinatione facere. Asser, 43. 49 Asser, 58. 51 Ibid. 43. 50 Asser, 66. 53 On one side is a rude outline of a human figure apparently sitting, and holding what seem like two flowers. On the other side is a flower; it is much ornamented, and the |