"The Fight of Finsburg. "The sun had climb'd the eastern sky- The warrior's winged serpent fly: Pauses from blood the foeman's hand, Nor strives he yet to fire yon hall's proud canopy. Sweetly sung the birds of night, The wakeful cricket chirrup'd loud, Was seen beneath the wandering cloud. The buckler's massy circle rung. The matchless Hengist to the battle woke. Uprose in that eventful tide Full many a warrior brave, Garulf next with fiery speed Rous'd Guthere from the slumb'rer's bed. No care of dress their steps delay'd, Each grasp'd in haste his shining blade, Aud And now in accents loud "Known to all the warrior train "Where spreads the Saxon's wide domain. Now, chieftain, turn thee to the fight, "Or yield thee to the Saxon might." Soon the tented halls among There to seek his destin'd food, The dark and willow pinion'd raven stood : The sword's dread radiance beam'd to heav'n. At the high ball a chosen band, In all the golden pomp of war: The hall of Mead for that proud foe. Five live-long days the battle's sound Was heard by Finsburg's earth-rais'd mound, Yet undiminished and unquell'd That hero band the portal held. Till bleeding from the Saxon blade And told, in accents of despair, His head and bosom bare. Then sought the vanquish'd foe relief ART. ¶ Fragments of a French Metrical Romance upon Gup Earl of Warwick. The annexed fragments of a French Metrical Romance on the subject of Guy Earl of Warwick, were discovered on a half sheet of parchment, which had been used as a fly-leaf to a life of Thomas à Becket, printed early in the sixteenth century, and preserved in the Bodleian Library. They will afford sufficient proof that whether or no the story be (as Mr. Ellis has ingeniously suspected) of Saxon origin, its more modern relators were indebted for a part at least of its incidents to a French Minstrel of the thirteenth century. * It was possibly a copy of this Romance which formed the article entitled "Une Volum del Romaunce de Gwy & de la Reygne," in the collection of books bequeathed by Guy Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, to the monastery of Bordeslye. + No I. En la sale par devant li Re Dieu garist son seignours Guy. Cum ele soleit user, A une fe quant ele mangoit, Les XIII Poores demandoit, E home tost les amena, En heir devant li assisles a, C. Porceo In the hall before her that God might preserve her Lord Guy. When she ate (in public) on festivals, she asked these twelve paupers to share such drink and viands as she was herself accustomed to use, and men speedily brought them to her. In . . . . . she has placed them before her. Guy was one of the twelve. He fears much lest he should be recognized-The Countess This seems the latest date which the style of the fragment will permit us to assign for its composition. + See this curious bequest in Mr. Todd's Illustrations of Chaucer, p. 161. This word is not to be found in Roquefot. Porceo k'il est plus meseise De son vin & de son Mie.* Assee viande, av'eit cev dist. Mult tost de la sale Guy sen ist, Kant il vint al hermitage." No. 2. "Atant est venuz Colebrant Ki tant est corsu § & grant, Que Countess viewed them, and because he appeared the most unfortunate object among them, she took great pity upon him. She sent to that pilgrim of every meat that she ate herself, of her wine and her Malmsey in rich goblets of carved gold. She commanded him by a that he should remain in the city, and come every day to court to her repast. She said this and Guy greatly thanked her, but much had he in his thoughts. When the Countess had feasted and the tables were broken up, he quickly départed from the hall, conveyed himself out of the city, and went straight to Arden, seeking an holy man whom he well knew, and who dwelt in that forest. He directly sought that quarter, and when he came to the bermitage In the mean time Colebrant approached, who was so unwieldy and * I know not what this abbreviation stands for. It inay be Malvoisie, and I have ventured so to render it. This word is unintelligible to me. For a ses viandes ? $ The word corsu is not to be found in Roquefort: if it be derived from cors, a body, it may signify, as I have ventured to render it, unwieldy or corpulent. The reader of early French MSS. will soon discover that even the dictionary of Roquefort, copious and Excellent as it is, will not unfrequently fail or disappoint him. Que nul cheval ne'l peut porter, Jointz erent de'splentes d assere, and large, that no horse could carry him or sustain the weight of his armour. Both fought on foot; he sought not a horse for their combat, for he had such a weight of heavy armour that a chariot would scarcely have borne it. Colbrand was most unwieldy; he had armed himself in a hauberk not of mail; far differently was it forged. Great splints of steel were joined together to defend his body both before and behind; they covered his body, his arms, and his hands. He had cuisses of such a fashion, that there was no splint in them. He had a helm good, stout, and hard as iron. He feared not the stroke of the steeled blade-At his neck hung a round shield. There was none stronger in the whole world; it was entirely made of iron and polished steel. ¶ Of Gentylnes & nobplyte. A dpaloge betwen the marchaut, the knpght the plowman, opsputyng who is a very gentylman, who is a noble man, and how men shuld come to auctoryte, compilio in maner. of an enterlude with diucrs tops & gestis added therto to make merp pastyme and disport. Of the author, some account will be found in Athena Oxonienses, Vol. I. Col. 348, edit. 4to. One of |