P R 
 
 1966 
 
 H3 
 
 1884 
 MAIN 
 
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 *s 
 
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LIBRARY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. 
 Class l 3- 5" 
 
 
nf 
 
 ul 
 
 Inaugural - Dissertation 
 
 welche niit Genehmigung der 
 
 hohen Philosophischen Fakultat der Universitat Breslau 
 
 fceliuls Erlangung dcr philosopliisclicn Doclorwurdc 
 
 Dienstag, den 29. April 1884, Mittags 12 Uhr 
 
 in der Aula Leopoldina 
 
 gegen die Herren Opponenten 
 
 Dr. phil. Julius Aust 
 Dr. phil. Hermann tfeufert 
 
 offentlich vertheidigen wird 
 
 Hugo Haenlseh 
 
 Schlesier. 
 
 Breslau 1884. 
 
 Druck der Breslauor Genossenschafts-Buchdruckerei, Eingetr. Gen. 
 Ursuliner - Strasse No. 1. 
 
Separatabdruck aus den Prolegomena zu Rev. Richard 
 
 Morris' Ausgabe des Cursor Mundi in den Publikationen 
 
 der Early Englisch Text Society; daselbst wird auch die 
 
 Fortsetzung vorliegender Arbeit erscheinen 
 
< 
 
 
 Seinem hochverehrten Lehrer 
 
 Herrn Professor Dr, Eugen Kolbing 
 
 in Hochachtung und Dankbarkeit 
 
 gewidmet 
 
 vom 
 
 110035 
 
 Verfasser. 
 
INQUIRY INTO 
 
 THE SOURCES OF THE " CURSOR MUNDL" 
 
 BY DR. HAENISCH. 
 
INQUIRY INTO THE SOURCES OF THE 
 "CURSOR MUNDL" 
 
 THE purpose of the following essay is to find out the sources from which 
 the author of the Cursor Mundi drew his information. As the four MSS. 
 of the Cursor agree with one another almost word for word, it does not much 
 matter which of them we choose for our quotations. I prefer the Cotton 
 MS., because it is pretty complete, and has preserved the northern dialect. 
 Ten-Brink 1 supposes the following books, beside Holy Writ, to have been 
 used by the poet : Biblical commentators and homilists, apocryphal books, as 
 the Pseudo-evangelium Matthcei, Evangelium de Nativitate Marice, Evangelium 
 Nicodemi, and perhaps Eobert Grosseteste's Chasteau d' Amour. This enumer- 
 ation, however, which only refers to the Christian period, is, when compared with 
 the various contents of the Cursor, neither exhaustive nor accurate enough. 
 From a treatise of Dr. Robert Reinsch 2 we learn indeed that some passages of 
 the Pseudo-evangelium Matthcei were certainly known to the author of the 
 Cursor Mundi. But I do not think any one else has said a word about this 
 question, which, considering the importance of the poem, undoubtedly deserves 
 our full attention. I have therefore taken it up. 
 
 I. 
 
 PETRUS COMESTOR'S HISTORIA SCHOLASTICA. 
 
 In the Latin religious literature of the Middle Ages, there is a book which, 
 owing to its careful and terse wording, was often made a source for religious 
 writings. I mean the Historia Scholastica of Peter Comestor, which was 
 composed between 1169 and 1175. As it has been clearly proved 3 that an 
 earlier English poem, called Genesis and Exodus, is founded almost wholly on 
 the first part of this work, the author of the Cursor, who treated the same 
 subject, is very likely to have made use of the same widely-known original. 
 
 1 GesehicTite der englischen Liter atur. Berlin, 1877. Bd. I. p. 360. 
 
 2 Die Pseudo-evangelien von Jesus' und Maria's KindJieit in der germanischen und 
 romanischen Llteratur. Halle, 1879. 
 
 3 Ten-Brink, Gesch. d. engl. Lit., p. 274 ; Kolbing, in Engl. Studien, III. p. 273 ff. ; 
 Fritzsche, in Anglia, V. p. 43 ff. 
 
4* SOURCES: I. PETRUS COMESTORS HISTOR1A SCHOLASTICA. 
 
 Omitting all the passages which the Cursor has in common with Scripture, 
 since they cannot afford us any evidence, I shall now set forth the most strik- 
 ingly corresponding passages in the Hisforia Scholastica 1 (= H. Sch.) and 
 the Cursor (= C.). 
 
 The very first lines contain a remark, not found in the Vulgate, concerning 
 the four elements : 
 
 C., 1. 355 ff. P. C., H. Sch., ch. 1, p. 1055 C. 
 
 Jns elementz )?at al thinges bindes et in principio natura quosdam atomos 
 
 Four er }?ai, als clerkes findes. solidavit in terram, alios in aquam, alios 
 
 \>Q ne^ermast es watur and erth, in ae're, alios in ignem. 
 J>e thrid es air, and fir J?e ferth. 
 
 Much more characteristic is the following passage : 
 
 C., 1. 71316. II. Sch., ch. 21, p. 1072 B. 
 
 Quen sathan sagh >at he was chosin Lucifer cnim dejectus a paradiso spiri- 
 
 To win J?e blis he had forlosin, ( tuum, invidit homini, quod esset in pa- 
 
 Sorful hicom >at fals file, . radiso corporum, sciens si faceret eum 
 
 And thoght how he moght man biwile ; transgredi, quod et ille ejiceretur. 
 
 The region where paradise was situated is mentioned in the same place in 
 both works : 
 
 C., 1. 1006. H. Sch., ch. 13, p. 1067 A. 
 
 In erth toward >e est it standes . . . paradisum in Eden ad orientem. 
 
 Adam's mourning for Abel during a hundred years, his vow to keep apart 
 from his wife, and the breach of it in consequence of God's order, C., 1. 1191 
 1199, are found in the H. Sch., ch. 25, p. 1076 C, and 29, p. 1080 A. 
 
 Adam was blessed with thirty sons and as many daughters, 1. 1216 17 
 = H. Sch., ch. 29. Though we find the same notice in a Latin legend, called 
 Vita Adce et Evce, 2 the poet cannot have borrowed it from this book, for the 
 account of Adam's life differs materially from the Cursor : 
 
 C., 1. 146970. H. Sch., ch. 30, p. 1081 A. Add. 1. 
 
 He was >e first f?at letters fand, Henoch quasdam litteras invenit, et 
 
 And wrot sum bokes wit his hand. quosdam Hbros scripsit. 
 
 C., 1. 1471. H. Sch., ch. 30, p. 1080 D. 
 
 To paradis quik was he tan. et transtulit ilium Deus in paradisum 
 
 voluptatis. 
 
 On Doomsday, Enoch will return with Elias : C., 1. 147374 = H. Sch., 
 ch. 30, p. 1080 D. With. Noah, ends the first age of the world : C., 1. 149192 
 = H. Sch., ch. 30, p. 1081 A. 
 
 1 Patrologice Cnrsns cowpletus, ed. Migne, torn, cxcviii. 
 
 2 Vita Adce et Evce. Herausgegeben und erlautert von Wilhelm Me} r er. Aus den 
 Abhandlungen der k. Bayer. Akademie der Wissenschaften. I. Cl. XIV. Bd. III. Abth. 
 Munchen, 1879. 
 
SOURCES I I. PETRUS COMESTOR'S HISTORIA SCHOLAST1CA. 
 
 5* 
 
 C.,1. 1501. 
 Til him was spused calmana. 
 
 0., 1. 152325. 
 A sister had J?is brewer alsua, 
 And sco was heiten noema ; 
 Scho was J?e formest webster . . . 
 
 0., 1. 151314. 
 
 pis lameth was cald lameth J?e blind, 
 Caym he slogh wit chaunge, we find ; 
 
 And 
 
 0., 1. 153338. 
 
 Tua pilers j?ai mad, o tile J?e tan, 
 pe toj?er it was o merbul stan ; 
 pair craftes al J?at j?ai moght min, 
 pai put J?am in ^eir pilers tuin ; 
 pe stan, egain watur for to last ; 
 Again \>Q fire, >e tile, at it ne brast ; 
 
 0., 1. 15745. 
 
 pe toners wijf lai be >e broker ; 
 pair cursnes was noght unkid, 
 
 C., 1. 162730. 
 
 Fiue hundret yeir had j?an noe 
 Quen he had geten his suns thre ; 
 pe first was sem, cham was the toj^eir, 
 And Japhet hight }?at yonges[t] broker. 
 
 C., 1. 16778. 
 
 Fiueten on heght, j?at es Content, 
 Fra grund unto f?e tabulnient ; 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 27, p. 1078 B. 
 . . . cum uxore sua Chalmana . . . 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 28, p. 1079 0. 
 Soror yero Tubalcain, Noema, quae in 
 venit artem varise texturae. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 28, p. 10790. 
 Lamech vero vir Sagittarius diu viyendo 
 caliginem oculorum incurrit . . . casu 
 interfecit Cain. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 28, p. 1079 B. 
 
 . . . ne periret ars inventa, scripsit earn 
 in duabus columnis, in qualibet totain, 
 ut dicit Josephus, una marmorea, altera 
 latericia, quarum altera non diluetur 
 diluvio, altera non solve tur incendio. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 31, p. 1081 0. 
 filii Cain abutebantur uxoribus fratrum 
 suorum nimiis fornicationibus. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 31, p. 1081 B. 
 Noe vero cum quingentorum esset an- 
 norum, genuit Sem, Cham et Japhet. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 32, note, p. 1083 C. 
 . . . quod dicitur area habuisse triginta 
 cubitos in altum . . . id est a fundo 
 usque ad tabulatum. 
 
 In the Cursor the measure is expressed in ellen (1. 1675). From other 
 similar statements of measure, given also by the Vulgate, it is evident that one 
 ell is the same as two cubiti. 
 
 In describing the arrangement of the different rooms of the ark, Peter 
 Comestor quotes several traditions, one of which agrees with the statement in 
 the Cursor: 
 
 C., 1. 16911700. 
 
 In J>e ouermast stage }>i self sal be, 
 pe fou^ules al)?ernest be \>Q ; 
 SiJ?en efter atyernest hand, 
 pe meke beistes sal haue jr>air stand, 
 pat es, J?ai J?at er tame and mild, 
 And under j?am sal stand >e wild ; 
 And }>ou sal alsua mak a boure 
 For to hald in \>i wermestore ; 
 In >e bo^em sal be na stall, 
 For al )?eir filth sal Jedir fall. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 32, p. 1083 B. 
 Alii vero has quinque cameras in alti- 
 tudine sola disponunt, inferioremque et 
 sentina stercoriam dicentes; secundam 
 supra illam apothecariam, tertiam im- 
 mitium animalium et serpentum . . . 
 quartam mitium animalium ; supremam 
 hominum et avium. 
 
6* SOURCES : I. PETRUS COMESTOR' S HISTORIA SCHOLASTICA. 
 
 In 1. 1698, the word wermestore might lead us to believe a special room to 
 have been set apart for reptiles (worm, werm). Two manuscripts show warne 
 and warnistoure ; but the Trinity MS. reads wardestoure, that is, the store- 
 room, corresponding with apotliecaria in the Latin work. 
 
 C., 1. 17014. H. Sch., ch. 31, p. 1082 A. 
 
 It sal be mikel wit-outen pere, Et tamen prius quam disperdam eum, 
 
 In making sexsith tuenti yere ; dabo ei tempus pcenitudinis, si voluerit, 
 
 Sua lang terme i haue hem lent, eruntque dies illius ad poenitendum, 
 
 pat wil come til a-mendement, scilicet centum et viginti annorum. 
 
 C., 1. 1885 7. The remark, that the raven sat on the dead body of a 
 drowned beast, is not mentioned in the Bible, but in the H. Sch., ch. 34, 
 p. 1085 B : . . . vel inveniens supernatans cadaver in aquis est illectus eo. 
 
 C., 1. 191720. H. Sch., ch. 35, p. 1085 D. 
 
 A tuelfmoth was gan with }?is ; Et egressus est Noe cum universis, qure 
 
 For als )?at ilk dai I.-wijs erant cum eo, eadem die, qua ingressus 
 
 Tuelfmo[n]th >at he ^od bar-in, fuerat, revoluto anno. 
 He self it euermar to min, 
 
 C., 1. 1921 2. The poet himself says that he has used a work of 
 
 peris (peirs) : 
 
 Als peirs mayner, >e god clerk, 
 Telles of Jns in sumkin werk. 
 
 After considering the parallel passages above cited, we may justly identify 
 this Peirs with Peter Comestor. The word mayner, I believe to be an 
 anglicized form of the Latin manducator, a surname generally given to the 
 canon and dean Peter Comestor. The other manuscripts give maior instead. 
 This, I suppose to be a mistake of the copier. 
 
 Other corresponding passages are 
 
 0., 1. 20012. H. Sch., ch. 34, p. 1085 C. 
 
 Quen Noe left J>e schipp allan, Igitur sexcentesimo primo anno vitas 
 
 He had sex hundret yeir and an, Noe . . . aperuit Noe tectum arcse. 
 
 C., 1. 20478. H. Sch., ch. 36, p. 1087 A. 
 
 Herbi inai men understand, Patet quia nondum homines utebantur 
 
 Was funden ban na breke in land. femoralibus. 
 
 C., 1. 2087 90. In apportioning the earth to the sons of Noah, God gives 
 Sem Asia, Ham Africa, Japhet Europe. H. Sch., ch. 37, p. 1087 D : Sem 
 Asiam, Cham Africam, Japhet Europam sortitns est. 
 
 C., 1. 2175. H. Sch., ch. 41, p. 1091 A. 
 
 pe toj?er eild endis in thare, In Thare terminatur secunda aetas. 
 
 The accounts that follow are taken from the Yulgate, with the exception 
 of C., 1. 275761. 
 
SOURCES ! I. PETRUS COMESTOR S EISTOEIA SCHOLASTICS. 
 
 r* 
 
 C., 1. 275761. H. Set., ch. 52, p. 1100 A. 
 
 If \>o i J?ar findes fine sith tene, Si fuerint quinquaginta . . . item, si 
 
 Fifty or fourte o \>i lele men, quadraginta. quid, si triginta ? quid, si 
 
 Tuenti mai fall, or tuis fiue, viginti ? quid si decem ? Et ait Domi- 
 
 Ne sal J?ai alle naue J>ar for liue ? " nus : Non delebo eos propter decem. 
 pus said our lauerd; 
 
 It is true, the Bible mentions in the 18th chapter the same dialogue 
 between God and Abraham ; but it is just this striking abbreviation of it in 
 the H. Sch. and in the Cursor, as against the longer discourse in the Bible, 
 that clearly proves the H. Sch. to have been the source of our poem even in 
 this passage. It is the same thing with C., 1. 2861 2880, compared with H. 
 Sch., ch. 53, where the region of Sodom and Gomorrha, destroyed by the Lord, 
 is described : in their stead, is now a sea killing all life. 
 
 C., 1. 287380. H. Sch., ch. 53, p. 1101 C. 
 
 If >ou a brand ^ar-in wil cast, Lucerna ardens superenatat, exstincta 
 
 pe fire it haldes J?ar stedfast, mergitur. Multis in locis nigras glebas 
 
 Thoru brennyng of J>e brinstane, bituminis vomit . . . 
 
 Quare-of }?ar es sa mikel wan. Dicitur etiam quod poma nata in ar- 
 
 par-bi groues sum apell tre, boribus circumpositis, usque ad matu- 
 
 Wit appuls selcut fair to se ; ritatem coloris sunt viridis, matura si 
 
 Quen }?ai ar in hand, als a fise bal, incidas, fa villas intus invenies. 
 To poudir wit a stink >ai fal. 
 
 C., 1. 3214. Sarah is buried in the burying-place of Adam : 
 
 C., 1. 3214. H. Sch., ch. 59, p. 1106 A. 
 
 . . . J>ar formast was grauen Adam. Adam, et Eva jam ibidem sepulti erant. 
 
 The struggle of Esau and Jacob for the priority of birth was already begun 
 while they were in their mother's womb : 
 
 C., 1. 34812. H. Sch., ch. 66, p. 1110 A. 
 
 pan wex \>Q fight mare J?an be-forn, Moyebantur enim mixtim pueri, ut vi- 
 
 Quilk o Jnr tua suld first be born ; cissim alter prior altero videretur posse 
 
 prodire ad ortum. 
 
 C., 1. 3864. H. Sch., ch. 74, p. 1115 C. 
 
 He [Jacob] was master bird of his fee ; Tandem curam gregis eum habere de- 
 
 crevit. 
 
 On returning home, Jacob finds his mother no longer alive : 
 
 C., 1. 4024. H. Sch., ch. 85, p. 1123 0. 
 
 Rebecca his moder ded he fand. . . . et jam mortuam invenit matrem. 
 
 After having sold Joseph, the brothers tell Eeuben what they have done 
 (L 4204). In the Vulgate this fact is not mentioned. 
 
 C., 1. 4204. H. Sch., p. 1126 B. 
 
 And J?ai him tald wat j?ai had don. Ruben . . . non invenit puerum, et cre- 
 
 dens eum interemptum, scissis vestibus 
 ejulabat. Sed accepto quod viveret, quievit. 
 
8* 
 
 SOURCES : 
 
 PETRUS COMESTORS HISTORIA SCHOLASTICA. 
 
 C., 1. 5604 6. Aram had three children, Moses, Aaron, and Mary, corre- 
 sponding to H. Sch., ch. 5, p. 1143 C. 
 
 C., 1. 661526 = H. Sch., ch. 73, p. 1190 B. Moses breaks the golden calf, 
 grinds it to powder, and puts it in water which all were made to drink The 
 guilty immediately had their beards gilt ; on the innocent, there was nothing 
 extraordinary to be seen. 
 
 Moses is buried by God in a hidden place : 
 
 C., 1. 69212. 
 
 For, wist J>e Juus quare he lai, 
 Honur him als godd wald >ai. 
 
 C., 1. 70034. 
 
 . -. . . . in his 1 time was 
 pe cite made of Thebas". 
 
 0., 1. 701314. 
 Manigath 2 com after him ; 
 Troi was bi-gunnen in his time, 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 20, p. 1260 B. 
 quod ideo factum autumant Hebrsei, ne 
 ipsi Moysen pro Deo colerent, 
 
 . H. Sch., ch. 5, p. 1274 C. 
 
 In diebus Othoniel Cadmus regnayit 
 Thebis. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 6, p. 1275 D. 
 In Dardania regnavit Tros a quo Trojam 
 conditam ferunt. 
 
 The English poet differs from his original at this place. In the H. Sch. 
 Tros is already reigning under the predecessor of Samgath, but mention is not 
 yet made of the foundation of Troy. 
 
 C., 1. 70278. 
 In time o Jris ledeon, wees 
 Bath orpheus and hercules. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 8, p. 1281 A, incidentia. 
 Orphseus clarus habitus est. Linus 
 magister Herculis claruit. 
 
 The Cursor, omitting Linus, especially lays stress upon Hercules, whereas 
 the H. Sch. only accidentally quotes him as a pupil of Linus. The poet may 
 have omitted the latter as quite unknown to him, or his Latin text was corrupt 
 in this passage. 
 
 C., 1. 703740. 
 In grece }>an regned priamus, 
 Als aid stori telles us. 
 In >is ilk lairs time, 
 Was letters funden o latine. 
 
 C., 1. 7045-7. 
 
 Sebon [Esebon] si^en, sais J?e bok, 
 
 Tok israel to lede and lok ; 
 
 He leed j?am seuen yeir and mare ; 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 10, p. 1283 B, incd. 
 Priamus films Laoinedontis regnavit in 
 Troja. 
 
 ibd. C. Carmentis nympha litteras 
 Latinas invenit. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 13, p. 1285 A. 
 Post Jephte judicavit Israel Abessan, 
 vel Essebon . . . septem annis. 
 
 Although the same remark is given in the Vulgate [Judicum, ch. xii. 8], 
 the name of Essebon there does not correspond with the English poem; the 
 conciseness of the passage also points to Peter Comestor. 
 
 OthomePs. 
 
 2 In the other MSS. Samgath, Sanigath, Sanygath. 
 
SOURCES : I. PETRUS COMESTOR's HISTORIA SCHOLASflCA. 9* 
 
 C., 1. 7048 50. H. Sch., ch. 14, p. 1285 B, incd. 
 
 Alexandre, in >at siquar, * Eo tempore Paris Helenam rapuit, bel- 
 
 pat paris hight, raiuist helayn, lum decennale surrexit. 
 Quarfor j?at mani man was slain. 
 
 During Ladon's reign, Troy was taken : 
 
 0., 1. 7059. H. Sch., ch. 15, p; 1285 C, incd. 
 
 In his time was troi nomyn, Hujus anno tertio capta est Troja. 
 
 There is the remarkable fact to be observed here, that in C., 1. 7064 ff., 
 the exact numbers of the Greeks and Trojans (870,000 and 686,000) aro 
 stated, which notice is wanting in the H. Sch. It is possible that the poet 
 was indebted for it to another source, or that he has invented the numbers only 
 for the purpose of adding more probability to his account. The superscription 
 to C., 1. 7861 ff. is found in three manuscripts. 
 
 0. (Gott. MS.), 1. 7861 ff. H. Sch., ch. 2, p. 1325 B. 
 
 Here biginnys ful witterli, Hie inchoatur quarta setas (sc. with the 
 
 pe feird elde, at (J?)e king daui. anointing of David). 
 
 L. 85534. Under David, Carthage is founded = H. Sch., ch. 3, p. 1350 A : 
 In diebus David , Carthago condita est. 
 
 C., 1. 91756. H. Sch., ch. 25, p. 1406 D, incd. 
 
 Achaz, his sun, him efter come ; Sub Achaz Eoma condita est. 
 
 pat sith was made J?e tun o rome. 
 
 C., 1. 91834. ^ H. Sch., ch. 33, p. 1415 B, incd. 
 
 pat time was, als sais stori, In diebus Manasse, Sybilla Erophila 
 
 A sibile >at hight osami. claruit in Samo; unde et Samia dicta est. 
 
 Osami is a contraction of "of Samy." 
 
 C., 1. 9197. H. Sch., ch. 38, p. 1418 D. 
 
 Josias gat Jeconiam. Beliquit autem Josias tres filios, Eliacim, 
 
 qui et Jechonias .... dictus est. 
 
 In the Bible, the name of Jechonias is not to be found. 
 
 But the poet does not make use of the H. Sch. in that part of C. which 
 comprises the contents of the Old Testament only ; the influence of this work 
 is to be seen in the later parts too. 
 
 Compare C., 1. 11380, etc. with H. Sch. in Evgl. ch. vii, p. 1541 C. The 
 poet quotes Chrysostom as his authority for a tale of Jesus' birth found in a 
 book of the prophet Balaam. 
 
 This short notice which the poet found in the H. Sch. may have led him to 
 the tale of the wonderful arrival of the three kings from the East ; for P. C. 
 does not give a detailed account of this story. 
 
10* SOURCES I I. PETRUS COMESTOR's HISTORIA SCHOLASTIC A. 
 
 C., 1. 1321013. H. Sch., ch. 73, p. 1571 D. 
 
 His disciplis ^at war bun, Discipuli vero Joannis tulerunt corpus 
 
 pai ledd his licam ute o tun, ejus de cur cere, et sepelierunt illud .... 
 
 Til sebastin wit inikel far, .... Corpus vero in Sebaste .... sepul- 
 
 pe hali cors )>ai biiid J?ar. turn est. 
 
 The fate of John's corpse is described thus : 
 
 C., 1. 1323541. H. Sch., ch. 73, p. 1574 D. 
 
 Bot sco did efter haij?en lede, Quse (ossa) rursus collecta, ab eisdem 
 
 pis bodi ute of erth j?ai hint, cremata sunt, et pulvis ventilatus .... 
 
 And al to pouder J?ai it brind. Cum autem colligerentur ossa, quidam 
 
 SiJ?en war hali munckes send, monachi a Jerosolymis .... niagnani 
 
 To gedir J?aa askes J?at >aa brend, eorum partem tulerunt. 
 Pouder or ban }?at J->ai fand f?ar, 
 pai gader up, and wit J?aim bar. 
 
 In lines 13185 13187, the poet says the beheading of John is still 
 remembered in our days ; on St. John's day, people in France are accustomed 
 to go to church. H. Sch., p. 1575 B, gives more particulars. The beheading 
 of St. John took place at Edessa. From this town the head was brought to 
 Constantinople, then to Gaul. This legend is probably to be derived from the 
 gradual propagation of the worship of the Saint. 
 
 The blind soldier who pierced Christ's side with a spear, received his sight 
 again through the blood that ran down : 
 
 0., 1. 168414 (Cotton MS. 1. 2832). H. Sch., ch. 179, p. 1634 A. 
 
 Bothe blode & water oute lett . . . . et qui lanceavit eum, ut tradunt 
 
 By e spere, til his hand quidam, cum fere caligassent oculi ejus, 
 
 Ban doun of his blode : et casu tetigisset oculos sanguine ejus, 
 
 He wipped is egen ^er- withe, clare vidit. 
 And si^t he hade ful gode. 
 
 Our poet follows the H. Sch. especially closely in the account of the first 
 Christian communions. Compare, for instance 
 
 C., 1. 19419. H.Sch.,Act.Apost.,ch.31,p.l663C. 
 
 Tua wittnes fals >ai J?am puruaid, . . et surrexerunt duo falsi testes. 
 
 In the Vulgate no number is mentioned. 
 
 It is likewise mentioned only by P. C. that the witnesses, as the law 
 commanded, were the first who stoned him : 
 
 C., 1. 1945760. H. Sch., Act. Ap., ch. 38, p. 1668 A. 
 
 pe fals wittnes stain him bigan, Et testes, duo scilicet falsi, qui prinii 
 
 pat said }>ai herd him drightin bann ; secundum legem tenebantur lapides pro- 
 pai held for lau wit uten sin, jicere, quia in lege dictum est de bias- 
 
 pat J?e wittnes suld J?at bigiii. phemo : Prima manus testium lapidabit 
 
 eum. 
 
 To the account in the Bible, that the clothes of the persons stoning Stephen 
 were laid down at the feet of Saul, the poet adds the remark that Saul was 
 
SOURCES: i. PETRUS COMESTORS HISTORIA SCHOLASTIC*. 
 
 11 
 
 afterwards called Paul. Of course this change of the name must have already 
 been known to the poet ; but its being found just at the same place and with 
 the same words in the H. Sch. increases the probability that he had H. Sch. 
 before him ; for in the Vulgate this fact does not occur here. Compare 
 
 0., 1. 19465 ff. 
 
 pat ilk J?at j?an was hate saul, 
 SiJ?en he was apostel paul. 
 
 H. Sch., Act. Ap., ch. 38, p. 1668 A. 
 .... deposueruiit vestimenta sua, secus 
 pedes adolescentis, qui vocabatur Saulus. 
 Postea vocatus est. Paulus. 
 
 Another passage evidently taken from the H. Sch. is 1. 19481 8. After 
 the death of Stephen, the holy church of Jerusalem is specially persecuted : 
 
 C., 1. 194818. 
 For he, [Stephen,] J>at ouer-man was 
 
 slan, 
 
 Was o |>e seuen dekens an ; 
 Disciplis folud f>ai sa herd, 
 pat j?ai J>am draf ute o j^air ward, 
 Sauue \>e apostels J?at J?am ledd, 
 pai stod, hot all f>as oj?er fledd : 
 All o^er bam fledd, hot yeitt |?ai stod, 
 Sua dos J?aa hirdes ^at er god. 
 
 In the same way 
 
 C., 1. 194916. 
 Alphei sun J?at hight iacob, 
 O ierusalem |>ai mad biscop ; 
 pai laid f>air handes him apon, 
 Petre and iacob and sant iohan ; 
 For-j?i o quoner }?an o thre, 
 Mai na biscop sacrid be. 
 
 H. Sch., Act. Ap., ch. 38, p. 1668 B. 
 Et facta est persecutio magna inEcclesia, 
 quae erat Hierosolymis, quia occiso beato 
 Stephano uno de principibus Ecclesise, 
 quasi primicerio septem diaconorum, 
 coeperunt alios persequi graviter, in tan- 
 tum, quod omnes discipuli, prseter apos- 
 tolos, qui ut pastores gregis, cseteris 
 erant constantiores 
 
 Ibid. 
 
 Tune . . . ordinaverunt Jacobum Alphsei 
 episcopum Hierosolymorum, et impo- 
 suerunt ei manus Petrus, et Jacobus, et 
 Johannes. Ideo non a paucioribus quam 
 tribus episcopis, episcopus hodie conse- 
 cratur. 
 
 God, who protects the good, does not suffer Saul to kill any one : 
 
 C., 1. 19502-4. 
 
 Als godd wald, nan o J?am he slogh, 
 For godd him geit, >at euer es god, 
 Un-wemmed his hend in sacles blod. 
 
 C., 1. 1950910. 
 Philip, >at was o dekens an, 
 pe neiest fra steuen was slau, 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 39, p. 1668 D. 
 Neminem tamen occidebat, Domino cus- 
 todiente manus ejus, ne sanguine inno- 
 centium polluerentur. 
 
 H. Sch., ch. 39, p. 1668 D. 
 Philippus autem Diaconus secundus a 
 
 Stephano, descendens prsedicabat 
 
 ibi Christum. 
 
 The latter line in C., stating the death of Philip, is not found in the 
 H. Sch. I assume a misreading here, especially as the three other manuscripts 
 
 differ : 
 
 Ffx. pe neist to telle fra seint stephan 
 
 Oottg. pe neist to tell fra sant stephane 
 
 Trinity. Next aftir steuen was gone 
 
12* SOURCES: I. PETRUS COMESTOR's HISTORIA SCHOLASTICA. 
 
 Simon suffered himself to be baptized only for show, in order to become 
 the confidant of Philip and to learn his wonderful deeds : 
 
 0., 1. 195348. H. Sch., ch. 39, p. 1669 A. 
 
 Bot for he wend at come >ar-to, . . . nee ita facile putavit ex quadam 
 
 par-for tok he baptim faint, industria fieri, ideo ficte baptizatus est, 
 
 For to be wit philipp a-quaint, ut familiarius ei adhsereret, et addisceret 
 
 To be him als his priue nere, artem, qua similia posset facere. 
 pat he moght of his craftes lere. 
 
 The precept that only bishops are allowed to perform the rite of confirmation : 
 
 C., 1. 1954952. H. Sch., ch. 40, p. 1669 C. 
 
 Herbi mai se J?at oght es wise, . . . quia manum impositionem reserva- 
 
 pat J?of sunimen mai baptise, vit apostolis, quse propterea reservatur 
 
 Mai naman f>at es in land hodie solis eorum vicariis, id est episco- 
 
 Conferming giue, bot biscop hand. pis, qui inanus irnpommt, et frontem 
 
 liniunt in confirmatione. 
 
 The lines 19553 6 in C. relate that Philip had not been an apostle; for 
 although he might have laid his hands upon the person to be baptized, yet he 
 
 did not, for 
 
 H. Sch., Act. Ap., ch. 40, p. 1669 C. 
 
 pat ilk ful wel f>is philipp wist, Si enim Philippus iste apostolus esset, 
 
 For->i of all J?at he baptist, statini baptizatis manus imponeret, nee 
 
 He heild J>am to \>e apostels ai, ad hoc alios exspectaret. 
 
 pat J?ai suld on J?am handes lai, 
 
 In this place, indeed, the poet has not, as usually, translated literally ; the 
 substance, however, of the two versions is the same. 
 
 Saul learned all that he afterwards taught, within three days and nights : 
 
 C., 1. 1S653 5. H. Sch., Act. Ap., ch. 42, p. 1671 C. 
 
 Wit-in J?aa thre night and thre dais, In quo triduo creditur a Spiritu sancto 
 
 Mikel he lered, als summen sais, didicisse Evangelium. 
 O spelling J?at he sij?en spak, 
 
 The command from Heaven. " Peter, kill and eat," is followed in the Cursor 
 by an explanation of these words which quite agrees with the H. Sch. 
 
 C., 1. 198548. H. Sch., Act. Ap., ch. 47, p. 1676 B. 
 
 Al sua [say], ' gang and J?ou sal gete Ac si diceretur in spiritu : Transi ad 
 
 pe luen folk, o-mang }?ou ga gentes, et occide in eis vitia, et sic 
 
 pe he)>en lede, for }>ou sal sla Ecclesiae incorpora. 
 pair lastes J>at es noght to prais, 
 And haali halikirc up-rais.' 
 
 The influence of the H. Sch. on the Cursor is evident in the lines 
 19881 8, which treat of some details in the rite of baptism : 
 
SOURCES: i. PETRUS COMESTOR; 11. WAGE'S FTE DE LA CONCEPTION. 13* 
 
 C., 1. 198818. H. Sch., Act. Ap., ch. 47, p. 1676 C. 
 
 Saint anabros sais j?at we sai tlire Nam, ut dicit Ambrosius, in catechismo 
 
 Kehercing quen child sal houen be. fit trina interrogatio, scilicet, credis in 
 
 "Trus J?ou in godd," ya, Jns es an, Deum ? abrenuntias Satanse ? vis bap- 
 
 pe toj?er, " for-sakes J?ou sathan," tizari ? Similiter trina unctio, in vertice, 
 
 pe thrid es, " wil j?ou baptis be; " sive fronte ; in scapulis; in pectore; in 
 
 And alsua, smeiiing es }?ar 'thre, baptismo quoque fit trina immersio. 
 In brest, in suldres, and in frunt, 
 And thris J?an es he put in funt. 
 
 Peter sees that God makes no difference between persons : 
 
 C., 1. 199456. H. Sch., Act. Ap., ch. 48, p. 1677 0. 
 
 Ne he ne be-halds que>er it be nee discernit inter Judseos et gentes. 
 
 luen or hai>en, thral or fre, 
 
 The Yulgate (Act. Apost., ch. 10, 1. 34) contains this exclamation of Peter 
 too, but it does not directly oppose Jews and heathens, as is done by P. C. 
 
 C., 1. 199902. H. Sch., Act. Ap., ch. 49, p. 1678 B. 
 
 And >is it was J?e first passage, Et hie fuit primus transitus particularis 
 
 pat J?e apostels in parti apostolorum ad gentes, 
 Mad mang J?e folk o paeni. 
 
 With these lines the poet, for the present, closes the history of the 
 Apostles ; he treats of their life more particularly in another section, beginning 
 with 1. 20849. 
 
 The miraculous deeds of the Apostles Peter and John, not mentioned 
 above, exactly agree with the Yulgate (Act. Apost., ch. 2 5). 
 
 Another passage corresponding with the H. Sch., ch. 141, is : 
 
 C., 1. 224412. ch. 141, p. 1611 A. 
 
 Als Jerome sais J?at man wel truus, Hieronymus autem in annalibus Hebrse- 
 
 Sais he fand in \>Q bok o Juus, orum invenit signa quindecim dierum 
 
 ante diem judicii. 
 
 But the fifteen signs before Doomsday cannot be taken as a proof that the 
 Latin work was made use of, because the quotation of Jerome appears in a 
 great many poems which mention those signs. [See Nolle, Die Legende von 
 den fiinfzehn Zdclien vor dem jilngsten Gericht. Halle, 1879, p. 6.] More- 
 over, the order of the signs is quite different from that in the H. Sch. 
 
 II. 
 
 WAGE, U&TABLISSEMENT DE LA F$TE DE LA CONCEPTION 
 
 NOTRE-DAME. 
 
 From 1. 10123 11232 the poet treats of the Yirgin Mary's conception. 
 The details of this legend might be taken from different apocryphal gospels 
 
1 4* SOURCES : ii. WAGE'S FETE DE LA CONCEPTION NOTRE-DAME. 
 
 (1) the Pseudo-Mattlicei evangelium, (2) the Evangelium de nativitate Marice, 
 (3) the Protevangdium Jacobi minoris, 1 as well as from a French poem of 
 "Wace, U etallissement de la fete de la conception Not re-Dame. 2 
 
 Now, the question is, whether the English poet, for this part of his work, 
 made use of the Latin works above mentioned, (which undoubtedly were very 
 well known at his time,) or preferred the more developed telling of the story as 
 we find it in the poem of Wace. An accurate examination of all these texts 
 shows that there are a good many passages, where C. mentions single circum- 
 stances, which we only meet with besides in the work of Wace. Compare 
 
 0., 1. 10214. W., p. 11, 1. 1718. 
 
 A mikel fest in winter fell, En yver, ce trovons lisant, 
 
 Une feste faisoient grant ; 
 
 In none of the Latin texts is there a remark that the festivity took place 
 in winter. 
 
 Joachim, cursed by the priest for his childlessness, flees into the desert : 
 
 C., 1. 10293. W., p. 16, 1. 5. 
 
 Into wildirness he went Fairfax. Joachim as deserz ala. 
 
 He went amang >aa wildrin laus. Cotton. 
 
 C., 1. 103023. W., p. 16, 1. 78. 
 
 Tn praier, wak, and weping sare, En plorant faisoit oroisons, 
 
 And fastand was in wil to be, Geunes et afflictions ; 
 
 Again 
 
 C., 1. 1034142. W., p. 18, 1. 67. 
 
 pat of egypti was hei stiward, Qui eut d'Egipte la baillie 
 
 And al J?at land had in his ward. Et trestoute la seignorie. 
 
 The English poet has correctly translated the French word la bailtie with 
 the correspondent stewardship ; whereas, in the Apocryphal Gospel, Joseph is 
 called dominus Egypti. 
 
 C., 1. 1035759. W., p. 18, at the bottom. 
 
 For sco sal be al godd be-kend ; A .III. ans iert a dieu donnee 
 
 Til him offrid at thrid yere end, Et presentee a damde, 
 
 Als J?ou of hir J?i wou has made, Issi con vos Tavez voe, 
 
 The angel orders Joachim to sacrifice : 
 
 C., 1. 1037576. W., p. 19, 1. 1718. < 
 
 Bot ar he went, he bad him mak Torna s'en, mais primes li dist 
 
 A sacrifijs for drightin sak. Que sacrefice a Dieu feist. 
 
 1 Edited by Tischendorf. Evangelia Apocrypha, Leipzig, 1853. 
 2 Edited by Mancel et Trebutien, Caen, 1842. 
 
SOURCES : ii. WAGE'S FETE DE LA CONCEPTION KOTRE-DAME. 
 
 15* 
 
 The next part of the story, relating Joachim's sacrifice, is wanting in the 
 Latin texts. I set some passages of the English and French poems side 
 
 by side : 
 
 C., 1. 1037788. 
 Sir loachirn. was fain and blith, 
 And up he sett an auter suith, 
 Mad sacrifijs on maner suilk, 
 First ten lambes, quitte als milk 
 pat beres takins o ^ana-self ; 
 Si^en >er neist, boles tuelue, 
 And at be last, a hundret scepe ; 
 II u [he] >am delt ta mi god kepe. 
 To godd, \>Q lambes he gaf to lottes ; 
 And to j?e pouer, ^e bul scottes ; 
 pis hundret scepe J>at i of melt, 
 Til al J?e comun war J>ai delt ; 
 
 In the following lines the poet explains the meaning of the sacrifice 
 mentioned above : 
 
 W., p. 19, last line ; p. 20, 1. 7. 
 
 Mult fu liez, et Dieu mercia 
 
 Joachim si sacrefia 
 
 Doze aingniaus blaus premierement, 
 
 Doze toriaus, oeilles cent. 
 
 A Dieu donna les .xii. aigniax ; 
 
 A .xii. povres, les toriaus ; 
 
 Et les oeilles toutes cent, 
 
 Mist au pueple communement ; 
 
 C., 1. 10391407. 
 pir lambes ten, J?am al als an, 
 Bitakens iesu crist was tan. 
 And don on rode for our wite, 
 And for us sufferd gret despite ; 
 pe bulles tuelue he offrid sua, 
 pou sal \>G tuelue apostels ta, 
 pat tholod for crist bath soru and sare, 
 And martird for his luue J?ai war. 
 pir hundreth scepe J;at J?ar was bun, 
 War don to dele al to J>e comun, 
 Bitakens felascip i-wiss, 
 Of halus hei in heuen bliss ; 
 pe takening of a hundret tale, 
 Al fullines it taken s hale. 
 For J?ai J?at stad er in J?air blis, 
 Wit-uten seke, wit-uten sare, 
 Mai nankin nede be funden j?ar. 
 
 W., p. 20, 1. 10; p. 21,1. 8. 
 Par les aigniaus que il ocist, 
 Nos senefie Jhesucrist, 
 Qui en la croiz fu mors et pris, 
 Et por noz pechiez f u ocis : 
 Li .xn. tor senefierent 
 Li .xii. apostle qui prechierent, 
 Et puis furent sacrefie 
 Por amour dieu et martreie. 
 Les cent brebiz qu'ot demandees, 
 Au pueple furent devisees : 
 Ce nos est avis, senefie 
 La celestiaus compaignie, 
 Car cent, cist nombres, ce savon, 
 Senefie perfection. 
 Icil qui sont el ciel lassus 
 Sont parfait, ne lor estuet plus ; 
 Sanz enferte sont, et sanz vice, 
 Sanz mauvestie et sanz dampnice. 
 
 From C., 1. 10409, both works show so striking a likeness that there cannot 
 be the slightest doubt about the fact that the author of C. knew the poem of 
 Wace, and made use of it for his poem. I compare only a few passages : 
 C., 1. 1040913. W., p. 21, 1. 1316. 
 
 Leue we nu ioachim }ms-gate, 
 And speke we nu of anna state, 
 Of hir site and of hir care, 
 Hu sco it for hir husband bare, 
 Quen J?at he heild him fram hame. 
 
 C., 1. 1041516. 
 pis leuedi was o mikel prise, 
 Loued and lered, bath war and wise, 
 
 De Joachim vos avons dit ; 
 Or, dirons d'Anna .i. petit, 
 Qu'ele fist, comment se contint, 
 Quant ses sires en maison vint. 
 
 W., p. 21, 1. 1718. 
 Anna fu dame mult proisie, 
 Mult loee et mult ensaiiignie : 
 
16' 
 
 SOURCES : ii. WAGE'S FETE DE LA CONCEPTION NOTEE-DAME. 
 
 C., 1. 1041723. 
 Quen sco had herd al fns ti>and 
 Of ysacar and hir husband, 
 Sco tok on hir clewing o care, 
 Sco sperd hir dore, and wepid sare, 
 Weped and mornd night and dai, 
 Hir lijf in langing lastand ai, 
 O gladscip was hir al>er-leist. 
 
 0., 1. 1042427. 
 
 Quen J?at J?air dai was comin o fest, 
 pan men suld bald )>am to be blith, 
 And ilk man al his malice mith, 
 Fair scrud on J^am to take, 
 
 W., p. 22, 1. 17. 
 Quant le reprovier ot oi 
 Que Ten ot fait a son mari, 
 Dras de dolor et de plor prist ; 
 Clost sa maison, et grant duel fist, 
 Flora la nuit, plora le jour, 
 Toute sa vie ert en tristor, 
 Onques de joie ne li tint. 
 
 W.,p. 22,1.810. 
 Quant li jors de la feste yint, 
 Que Ten s'en devoit esbaudir 
 Mieuz conreer et mieuz vestir. 
 
 The Latin gospels do not know this fact, nor do they know anything about 
 the consolation which the maid-servant of Anna gives to her lady ; whereas the 
 French poem agrees almost literally with C. : 
 
 0., 1. 1043134. 
 Sco had a maiden hight vtaine, 
 pat was hir priue chambur-laine, 
 "Leuedi," sco said, "for drightin dere, 
 pou mend Ja. mode, and turn >i chere ! " 
 
 Or, 
 
 C., 1. 1043742. 
 
 " Hu lang sal j^ou Jms-gat be wroth ? 
 pou cleth J?e wit sum better cloth. 
 t pou agh um- thine j^e, leuedi lele, 
 pat JJQU es of kind of ysrael ; 
 Ne wat )?ou noght, it semes nai, 
 Quat a fest it es to dai ? " 
 
 W., p. 22, 1. 1114. 
 
 Si vint Item sa chamberiere 
 Si 1'apela en tel maniere : 
 "Anna, dame, conforte-toi, 
 For quoi ne prenz conroi de toi ? " 
 
 W., p. 22, 1. 1519. 
 " Dessi qu' a quant issi ploras ? 
 Yestoi, dame, pren meilleurs dras 
 Tu te doiz contenir plus bel, 
 Qui es del lignage Israel ; 
 Dont ne sez tu la feste est hui ? " 
 
 The Cursor continues C., 1. 1044350 = Wace, p. 22, 1. 20 p. 23, 1. 4. 
 Utaine tries to cheer her lady. She says : " I am very sorry to see you always 
 so mournful, whereas you should be glad, cast off your melancholy, and array 
 yourself better for the feast of God." 
 
 W., p. 23, 1. 512 = C., 1. 1045261. Anna forbids her maid to speak ; 
 she cannot have any pleasure if she does not see her husband. 
 
 W., p. 23, 1. 1320 = C., 1. 1046270. The reply of Utaine, wanting 
 in Evgl. de Nat. Mar. y is also shortly given in Psd. Mth. Evgl. ch. ii. 
 
 From Wace, are further taken, lines 1047194 = W., p. 23, 1. 21 
 p. 24, 1. 20. Anna goes into her orchard to weep and complain there ; she 
 begs God to bless her with a child, as he had blessed Sarah ; she mourns the 
 day of her birth, being now cursed by church and community. 
 
 W., p. 25, 1. 7 9. The apparition of the angel and the promise of a 
 child, which are spoken of from line 10495, are also to be found in Evgl. de 
 
SOURCES: n. WAGE'S FETE DE LA CONCEPTION NOTRE-DAME. 17* 
 
 Nat. M. ch. iv. The discourse, however, between Anna and the angel, is 
 wanting there ;' she devotes her child to the Lord's service = C. 10503 5. 
 
 Further, from 1. 10506, the angel tells her that there are many wives whom 
 God has not blessed with children till their old age, as Sarah and Rachel. This 
 account is also given in Evgl. de Nat. M. ch. iii., but the words are addressed 
 to Joseph instead of to Mary. All these facts are found, in just the very same 
 succession, in Wace, and have in the Cursor the mark of the correctest 
 translation. W., p. 25, 1. 11 p. 26, 1. 13. 
 
 I add to these some other particulars not given in Pseudo-Mattli. EvgL, or 
 in Evgl. de Nat. M. ; but only to be found in Wace's poem. 
 
 W., p. 26, 1. 1415 = C., 1. 1053032 ; W., p. 27, 1. 1 = C., 1. 10542 ; 
 W., p. 27, 1. 920 = C., 1. 1055162 ; W., p. 7, 1. 1920 = C., 1. 10573 
 74; W., p. 29, 1. 911 = C., 1. 10599601; W., p. 30, 1. 914 = C., 
 1. 1062328; W., p. 30, 1. 15 p. 31, 1. 11 == C., 1. 1062946 ; W., p. 34, 
 1. 19 = C., 1. 10723. 
 
 "With C., 1. 10835, begins a divergency of the four manuscripts. The 
 Cotton and Gottingen manuscripts still follow the French poem in lines 
 1083568. The Fairfax and Trinity manuscripts turn to the Bible. The 
 very unexpected tale concerning the apparition of the angel is remarkable. 
 Mary and Joseph, who have hitherto filled the poet's thoughts, all at once seem 
 to be persons quite unknown to us. Lines 10835 ff. run thus : " God sent 
 his angel Gabriel into a town of Galilee, named Nazareth ; there lived a man 
 of the name of Joseph, of David's family. He was married to Mary," etc. 
 
 This passage, compared with Luke i. 1. 26 ff., turns out to be a literal 
 translation of the Evangelist's words. Another proof, that the Bible was used 
 here, is 1. 10861 : And his name slialle ]>ou Jhesu ca'lle. = Luke i. 31. 
 
 Neither Wace nor any one of the Latin works mentioned above makes 
 mention of Jesus's name in speaking of the Annunciation. NOT does Wace 
 say that Jesus shall for ever reign over Jacob's house. See Luke i. 33 ; and 
 Evgl. de Nat. M. ix. From line 10869 900 the other two manuscripts also 
 agree with the Bible. Although Wace in general mentions the same prin- 
 cipal points of the story, we see from lines 10892 98 that only the Bible 
 can have been the source of the Cursor. 
 
 The angel shows Mary her kinswoman Elizabeth, who then was in the sixth 
 month of her pregnancy, as an example of God's power. Compare with this account, 
 Luke i. 1. 36 : Et ecce Elisabeth cognata tua, et ipsa concepit filium in senedute 
 sua, et hie mcnsis sextus est illi, qitce, vocatur sterilis. And W. p. 40, 1. 22 ff. : 
 
1 8* SOURCES : n. WAGE'S FETE DE LA CONCEPTION NOTRE-DAME. 
 
 Voiz Elysabel ta parente, 
 Qui lonyues a brehaingne este, 
 Et enfant a tant desirre, 
 Conceit a de son seignor 
 Un fil qui iert de grant valor. 
 
 In Wace the exact time, six months, is not given precisely. C., 1. 
 10899 900. With God nothing is impossible/ Luke i. 37: Quia non erit 
 impob-sibile apud Deum omne verbinn. 
 
 Wace makes no mention here of God's omnipotence. 
 
 After this short interruption, the poet turns again to his original authority, 
 as is proved by 1. 10905912, compared with TV., p. 41, 1. 817. 
 
 After having obeyed the command of God, Mary says : " The Saviour may 
 be born of me, I am my Lord's handmaiden." 
 
 He who has all in His power, who was from eternity and will be for ever, 
 is seen in the pure virgin. The poet saying : 
 
 C., 1. 1090910. W., p. 41, 1. 1213. 
 
 pat all wroght, and has in hand, Qui tout a fait, tout yoit, tout ot ; 
 
 Sun and mone, and se and sand, Qui mer et terre et ciel enclot, 
 
 He has for once deviated from his custom of exactly translating even the 
 very words of his original. 
 
 C., 1091314. W., p. 41, 1. 1819. 
 
 Wat )?ou quat for soth i tell ? Savez que por voir puet 1'en dire 
 
 pe lauerd es nu bicummen threll, Sers devint cil qui estoit sire, 
 
 W., p. 41 end p. 42, 1. 7 = C., 1091724. ' The immortal Lord became 
 man, in order to die for us, without being under any necessity, for He would 
 defend us from death and from the fiend. 
 
 Once more the poet leaves Wace, from 1. 10935, to insert the annunciation 
 and birth of John, wanting in the French poem. He found the matter for it, 
 with the exception of a few additions, in Luke i. 1. 5 22. He doesn't return 
 to Wace's poem until 1. 11023. Compare : 
 
 C., 1. 1102336. W., p. 43, 1. 1021. 
 
 Quen )?ai wer mett, )nr leuedis tuin, Quant les .11. dames s'asamblerent, 
 
 pat war bath cosins of a kin, Qui cousines d'un lignage erent, 
 
 Formast sant maria spak, Sainte Marie avant parla, 
 
 And hir greting be-gan to mak Sainte Elisabel salua. 
 
 Til elizabeth J?an welforth stadd, Quant cele a le salu o'i, 
 
 Hir child in wamb be gladd, Ses fiz del ventre s'esjo'i ; 
 
 And for ioi it sett up-right D'amor et de joie s'esmut, 
 
 For to wirscip f?at lauerd dright, Son seignor qui venoit connut. 
 
 Again him mad gladnes an glu, Cil qui estoit encore a naistre, 
 pof he ne him sagh, wel he him kneu ; 
 
SOURCES: n. WAGE'S FETE DE LA CONCEPTION NOTRE-DAME. 19* 
 
 Ilijs lauerd he kneu welwel bi-forn Connut son seigneur et son maistre, 
 
 pat he was of his moder born, Criature son ciiatour, 
 
 pe man his lauerd, >e rnaister his clerc, Deciples maistre, sers son seignor. 
 pe maker kneu his hand- were. 
 
 In the same manner the translation of the French poem proceeds. "W., p. 43, 
 1. 22 p. 44, 1. 19 = C., 1. 1103756. Though the meeting of the two women, 
 and Elizabeth's prophecy, is also found in Luke i. 40 56, the remark, that 
 the two women dearly loved each other and told each other what they liked ; 
 that the one was a young girl, the other a married wife, is only told by "Wace, 
 p. 44, 1. 1318. 
 
 Lines 11115 76 relate the pregnancy of Mary, Joseph's distrust, and 
 his intention of leaving his wife. Though this passage, too, agrees with Evgl. 
 de Nat. M. ch. x., as to its contents, the corresponding passage of the Cursor 
 turns out to be a literal translation of Wace's poem, p. 44, 1. 19 p. 47, 1. 17. 
 
 Annexed to the birth of Christ, the poet gives an argument for Mary's imma- 
 culateness, which we find again in the very same passage of the French original. 
 
 An exact translation from Wace is the following passage : 
 
 C., 1. W., 1120912. W., p. 48, 1. 14. 
 
 Qua godds might kneu witerli, Qui la puissance Dieu sauroit, 
 
 par-of thurt him haf na ferli : Nient ne s 'esmerveilleroit 
 
 Maria barn her in chastite, due Marie virge enfanta, 
 
 Sin godd wald };at it sua suld be. Quant Diex le vout et commanda. 
 
 C., 1. 1121326 = W., p. 48, 1. 5 p. 49, 1. 7. God, who made the 
 dry rod bear blossoms and fruit without its being covered with soil, cculd also 
 cause a child to be born of a virgin at the end of the ninth month. He who 
 wrought all things in a little time, made the dumb ass speak, and clave the sea 
 to destroy His enemies, could cause a virgin to give birth to a child. 
 
 A characteristic testimony for the immaculate conception is likewise taken 
 from the French by our poet : 
 
 0., 1. 11227 32. W., p. 49, 1. 9 15. 
 
 pe liknes o J?is barn-teme, Issi con li soulauz son rai 
 
 Right als J?ou seis j?e sun beme Par la verriere met et trait, 
 
 Gais thoru J?e glas and cums again, Qu'a la verriere mal ne fait : 
 
 Wit-uten brest, right sua al plain, Issi et mult plus soutilment, 
 
 Bot flescheliker, he com and yede, Entra, et issi chastement 
 
 Saufand his moder hir maidenhede. En Nostre Dame le fil De, 
 
 Pour garder sa virginite. 
 
 a. PASSAGES NOT TO BE FOUND IN THE WORKS MENTIONED ABOVE. 
 
 After having proved in the preceding part of my essay that "Wace was a 
 source of the Cursor Mundi, there still remain a few passages whose source I 
 
20* SOURCES : n. WAGE'S FETE DE LA CONCEPTION NOTRE-DAME. 
 
 cannot find anywhere, though I hope some future searches may hit on their 
 original. 
 
 C., 1. 10783 816. The reasons for which Christ should be born of a 
 married wife are as follows : 
 
 1. The fiend should be deceived, that he might not triumph over the soul 
 of Mary, in case of Jesus' bastard birth. 
 
 2. The Jews should be prevented from stoning Mary. 
 
 3. Mary should not lack a husband's protection. 
 
 A similar argument is found in an old English poem. Geburt Jesu. 1 
 
 Geburt Jesu, p. 81, 1. 26368 : 
 Josep weddede in j?is entente 
 
 pis clene maide ere; 
 Ac for oj?er >ing our lord wolde 
 
 pat heo wedded were : 
 pat is moder isclaundred nere 
 
 WiJ? child e un wedded were, 
 Ne }?at ]>Q deuel it under }ite 
 
 pat am aide achild bere ; 
 Yor, :$if he it wuste, e wolde wite 
 
 pat hit were godes sone, 
 And habbe destourbed al j>e dede 
 
 Of his swete passione. 
 
 In this legend, only the first of these reasons is mentioned, therefore the 
 conjecture that this legend was the source of the Cursor is to be rejected. 
 Probably this argument in the Cursor, as well as in the legend, is taken from 
 some common source. An evidence for such a source is found in the legend, 
 1. 413, which contains almost the same words as C., 1. 11060 if. 
 
 Qeburt Jesu, 1. 41314. 
 And, as in some stude is iwrite, 
 
 vorte >at child were ibore, 
 po^eode he a^en to hire owne hous, 
 
 From wham heo come bifore. 2 
 
 C., 1. 11057 64. Mary remained at Elizabeth's till the birth of John, 
 and helped her with her own hand ; the poet adds : 
 
 And, als i in sum bakes fand. 
 
 For the following lines I have not succeeded in finding a source : 1. 11101 
 14, where the poet tells us, that John, when seven years old, went into the 
 wilderness to escape from sin. He fed on roots, grass, and honey, and wore 
 neither cloth nor linen. 
 
 1 Edited by Horstmanu, AltengliscTie Legenden. Paderborn : 1875. 
 * The reasons why Mary's betrothal with Joseph was necessary, are to be found too in 
 JSeda, and in the Ormulum. 
 
SOURCES: n. WAGE'S FETE DE LA CONCEPTION NOTRE-DAME. 21* 
 
 b. THE STORY OF ELSEY, AND THE FESTIVAL OF THE CONCEPTION. 
 
 The institution of the festival of Mary's conception is described, 1. In a 
 Latin Miraculum de Conceptions Sanctce Marice. 1 2. In the Introduction to 
 Wace's French poem mentioned above, p. 1 9. But as I have already proved 
 that the author of the Cursor knew this French poem, it is very likely that 
 his mind reverted to it again when he was near the end of his voluminous 
 work ; and it' is easy to show that this really was so. The introduction of the 
 tale shows, from 1. 24755 62, some accordance with the French poem, both 
 authors expressing their intention of relating the time and manner in which 
 the festival was instituted. Compare with them Wace, p. 1. The Miraculum 
 does not contain this introduction. Wace, p. 2, 1. 6 15 relates, that Harold's 
 death much afflicted the King of Denmark, and he equipped ships to fight 
 against the Normans, who had usurped the kingdom. The Miraculum also 
 knows of the preparations for the combat against the Normans, but here, 
 instead of being led by grief and desire of vengeance upon the murderer of his 
 friend, the King of Denmark wishes to take possession of England himself : 
 1. 24789 contains one word which goes to prove that our poet made use of 
 
 Wace : the line runs 
 
 He gadir sauders her and }>ar, 
 
 that is, he gathered soldiers everywhere. 
 
 It can scarcely be explained how this word "saudors" could have the 
 meaning of " milites " in the Miraculum^ but " soudoiers " in the French text, 
 p. 2, 1. 19, shows apparently the original of the English word. 
 
 Compare further the following passages : 
 
 C., 1. 24793 6. Wace, p. 3, 1. 36. 
 
 His consail badd him for to faand, A ses barons se conseilla 
 
 pe king of danemerk wit seand, Q'en Danemarche envoiera, 
 
 For to spek a-bute sum pais Savoir se ja par nul endroit 
 
 Bituix him and J?e danais. As Danois pais faire porroit. 
 
 The conspicuous qualities of Elsey are not to be found in the Miraculum, 
 but in Wace's poem : 
 
 0., 1. 248002. W., p. 3, 1. 9-12. 
 
 A hend man he was and wise ; Bien cointement savoit parler, 
 
 A gret resun wel sceu he cuth, Et bon conseil prendre et doner ; 
 
 Wit-uten ani mer in muth. Mult estoit de bonne eloquence, 
 
 Si parloit par grant sapience. 
 
 1 Printed in the appendix to Wace's Conception Notre Dame, ed. by Mancel et 
 Trebutien ; Caen, 1842, p. 87. Cf. G. Sarrazin, Ueler die Qitellen des Ormnlum in 
 E. Kolbing's Englische Stndlen, vi. p. 7. 
 
 2 Miraculum, p. 88. ... et ex circumjacentibus regionibus milites quam plurimos 
 congregravit. 
 
22* SOURCES : n. WAGE'S FETE DE LA CONCEPTION NOTEE-DAME. 
 
 In the same way, 
 
 C., 1. 2480811. W., p. 3, 1. 15-18. 
 
 presaundes mani, and riche gift, Livra li mult bons garnemenz, 
 
 O siluer and gold giftes to bede, Et d'or et d'argent granz presenz, 
 
 Mar }?an mister es to rede ; Qu'il au roi des Danois portast, 
 
 pe sing o pes alsua to bring. En signe de pais li donnast, 
 
 The Miraculum only gives the following remark : Salutes ac munera atque 
 servitia ex Guillelmi Regis parte obtulit. 
 
 C., 1. 2481826. W., p. 4, 1. 38. 
 
 His presand to >e king he mad, Au roi vint, si fist son present, 
 
 His presand welcum was and he, Oil le re9ut mult doucement; 
 
 Als bringand wont was to be ; Et as contes et as barons 
 
 Til earls and baruns o }>at rike, De la terre donna granz dons, 
 
 pan gaf he serekin giftes rike ; etc. Et tel i ot qui li prondst 
 
 L'ost remanoir, cil tant lor dist. 
 
 He gave the earls and barons presents, speaking so well, that the army was 
 allowed to remain in the country. Compare with this the short notice of the 
 Miraculum : Deinde omnia ut sibi jussum fuerat, inquisivit. 
 
 W., p. 4, 1. 912 = C., 1. 2482732. After having settled his affairs, 
 Elsey, richly endowed by the king, betakes himself with his men to the ship. 
 
 The Miraculum does not make any mention of the royal presents, nor of 
 the ship's being favoured by a fair wind : 
 
 C., 1. 2483537. W., p. 4, 1. 1316. 
 
 At }?e last moght >ai noght se, A la mer vinrent, enz entrerent ; 
 
 Bot heuen aboue j?am and J?e see : En mer s'enpaintrent et siglerent. 
 
 pe weder als in somer smeth, En haute mer ja loinz estoient, 
 
 Fors ciel et mer riens ne veoient. 
 
 W., p. 4, 1. 17 p. 5, 1. 3 = C., 1. 2483848. The vivid description of the 
 storm, where no details are omitted, the darkness of the clouds, the roaring of 
 the sea, the contrary wind, the breaking of the masts, is an accurate translation 
 of the corresponding passage in the French poem. W., p. 5, 1. 10 11 = C., 
 1. 24856 59. After useless efforts, they let the helmless ship drive. 
 
 C., 1. 24863 68. The English poet inserts a prayer of the shipwrecked 
 sailors, not to be found in Wace's poem ; this prayer seems really to be the 
 only passage where the Miraculum has influenced the English poet : 
 
 C., 1. 2486568. Mir. de Cone. S. Marice, p. 89. 
 
 "Leuedi," f>ai said, " J?at es sa mild, Maria mater Domini, ora pro nobis 
 
 Prai for us to \>\ suet child, miseris, tuo filio, 6 Domina, commenda 
 
 All mon we drun, sa wailawai ! nostra flamina. 
 Leuedi ! nu help, for well f?ou mai." 
 
SOURCES : III. ROBERT GROSSETETE's CHASTEAU D'AMOUK. 23* 
 
 The lines 2488586 of C. point again to Wace : 
 
 W.,p. 6,1. 1415. 
 
 All J?aa J?at in >at ferr cost fard Tuit cil de la nef s'esbahirent 
 
 War medd quen J?ai him sagh and herd ; Quant ils le virent et oirent ; 
 
 The effect of the angel's coming is not so great in the Miraculum, where we 
 read : admirantibus omnibus quaenam esset persona ilia . . . 
 
 The line 24893 : " Quen \ou cums in-til england" means that Elsey was to 
 establish the festival mentioned above in England \ and this mention of the 
 country not being made in either authority, the more accurate remark may be 
 attributed to the English poet himself, who only wrote for his native country. 
 
 The end of the tale, 1. 24957 68, also agrees with Wace, p. 9, 1. 7 12. 
 Having come home again, Elsey established this feast in his abbey, and many 
 other abbeys followed the example. The results of my inquiry in reference to 
 this part of the poem are, that the poet here once more made use of the famous 
 work of Wace, with the exception of one passage, which he borrowed from the 
 Latin prose. 
 
 III. 
 EGBERT GROSSETETE'S CHASTEAU & AMOUR. 
 
 In 1. 951416 the poet says : 
 
 A sample for to tell herbi, 
 A sample cordant, J?at i tok 
 TJte of sent Robert bok. 
 
 Now, as this parable is given at great length in Chasteau d'amour, or carmen 
 de Creatione Mundi, by Robert Grossetete, bishop of Lincoln, the lines quoted 
 above lead us to Robert Grossetete's work. Besides the French original 1 
 there exists a Middle-English version, 2 which dates from the beginning of 
 the fourteenth century. 3 
 
 A part of the allegory, viz. 440 lines, containing only the first parable, is 
 printed in Horstmann's Altenglisclie Legenden. Neue Folge. Heilbronn, 1881. 
 No. 16, p. 349. De principio creationis mundi ; eine Allegoric, von Grostlied. 
 It is now our task to decide whether the author of C. was acquainted with the 
 
 1 Cf. Kobert Grossetete's Chasteau d'amour. London : printed and published for the 
 Caxton Society, 1852, ed. by M. Cooke. 
 
 2 Castel off Love, {Chasteau d'amour or carmen de Creatione Mundi,') an Early 
 English translation of an old French poem by Eobert Grossetete, bishop of Lincoln, ed. 
 by Richard Francis Weymouth, M.A. London : 1864. 
 
 3 Cf. Weymoutli, p. 5. 
 
24* SOURCES : in. ROBERT GROSSETETE'S CHASTEAU D* AMOUR. 
 
 Middle-English version of the French poem, or went to the French original. 
 In the French poem, the tale given in the Cursor begins at 1. 205 ; in the 
 English version at 1. 275. 
 
 The following is a summary of the contents of C., 1. 9517 9816: A 
 mighty king had a son so wise that he made him his partner in all his acts ; 
 he had, besides, four daughters, Mercy, Truth, Justice, and Peace, without 
 whom he could not reign. A servant of the king was, because of a crime, 
 given over to his foe. Mercy, disliking this act of severity, begs the king's 
 pardon for him. Truth is astonished, and says if it depended on Mercy, 
 crimes would no more be punished ; but the servant ought to be punished. 
 Justice consents to the sentence of death. Poor wretch ! His foe deprived him 
 of mind and strength, all his kin are enslaved and killed, but Noah and his 
 family. Truth and Justice shall keep Peace in the country, that Mercy may 
 be heard. K"o judgment can be passed except by the unanimous assent of the 
 four sisters. Peace also begs for the servant ; the king's son supports her ; he 
 will suffer the punishment for him. The explanation of the allegory is as 
 follows : God is threefold, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Adam, after his 
 fall, could not be ransomed by the angels nor by the prophets ; there must be 
 one, who was both God and man, and thus God Himself came on earth. 
 
 THE PARABLE OF THE CASTLE OF LOVE AND GRACE, 1. 9877 10094. 
 
 A castle of help and comfort stands high on a rock, so polished that no 
 weapon can touch it ; it is enclosed by four stone walls and a deep ditch, 
 fortified with battlements and seven barbicans, with gate and tower. Every 
 fugitive can take refuge here. It is painted with three colours, the foundation 
 green, the middle blue, the battlements red. A clear well, from which run 
 four all-healing streams, springs from the tower. "Within that tower is a 
 throne, with the brilliant light of which the bright colours mingle. The castle 
 is the shield against our enemies. The polished rock is Mary's heart, the 
 green colour betokens her end, the blue is her love and truth, the red her holy 
 charity. The four towers are the four cardinal virtues ; the seven barbicans 
 represent the seven other virtues which quell the seven sins. The well is 
 Mary's mercy, which can never be exhausted, the brilliant throne is Christ, 
 who made His seat in Mary's soul. 
 
 The account of C. agrees most closely with the French source mentioned ; 
 the very introduction distinctly shows the strong likeness of both works : 
 
SOURCES : III. ROBERT GROSSETETE S CHASTE AU D AMOUR. 
 
 25^ 
 
 0., 1. 951722. 
 It was a king o mikel pris, 
 Wight he was, worthi and wis. 
 pis ilk king J>at i of mon, 
 He had an anlepe son, 
 pat wit his fader was sa wele 
 pat wist his wisdom, ilk dele, etc. 
 
 0., 1. 952728. 
 
 All J?at his fader wald ha wroght, 
 Thoru him til end it suld be broght. 
 
 Grosset, 1. 20510. 
 Un reis esteit de grant poeir, 
 De bon voleir, de grant saveir. 
 Iceu rois un filz avoit 
 Ki tres tut son seu savoit. 
 Tut autre tens cum fu le pere, 
 Si est le fiz en sa manere. etc. 
 
 Gr., 1. 21516. 
 Quankil voleit comenceir, 
 Par son fiz le vout cheveir. 
 
 In the English version (ed. by Weymouth) this passage is not clearly put ; 
 in 1. 287 88 we read there : 
 
 [What ]>at was of] his begynnynge, 
 pe fader wolde to ende bringe. 
 
 Whilst in the two former poems it is the son who carries out his father's 
 orders, in the translation the king himself performs his work. 
 The king distributes presents to the daughters : 
 
 C., 1. 953739. Gr., 1. 22325. 
 
 Of his sustenance he gaf ilkan, De sa substance ot chescune, 
 
 And ilkan gaf he substance an, E trestut est substance une, 
 
 Als to J>air fader it aght to fere, Ka lur pere avenait. 
 
 In the Middle-English version this passage is translated in a different way : 
 
 M.E., 1. 29091. 
 And to uchone sunderlyng 
 He ^af a dole of his fulnesse, 
 
 Respecting the unhappy servant, the Cursor reads : 
 
 0., 1. 955052. Gr., 1. 23740. 
 
 pis ilk king, J?at i of rede, Iceu rei dont jo vous di, 
 
 A seruand had in his baiH, Un serf ot kiert maubailli. 
 
 pat gain his lauerd had don foli, etc. Ki par un tres grant forfet, 
 
 Ke ver son seignur ot fet : etc. 
 
 This fact is, of course, also mentioned by the M.E. translator : 
 
 M.E., 1. 30710. 
 pis king, as >ou herdest ar Jns, 
 Hedde a ^ral J?at dude amis, 
 pat for his gult strong and gret, 
 WiJ? his lord was so i-vet. 
 
 But the French lines are much closer to the Cursor. 
 
 0., 1. 955758. Gr., 1. 24546. 
 
 For he ne had neuer sa gret envie, Kar dautre rien neurent envie 
 
 Als >is man for to be baillie. Fors kavoir li en lur baillie. 
 
 The translation of these words in the M.E. poem is not so accurate : 
 
 1. 31516. 
 
 pat of no Jnng heo nedden onde 
 Bote hi to habben under honde. 
 
26* SOURCES: in. ROBERT GROSSETETE'S CHASTEAU D' AMOUR. 
 
 Mercy begs for the prisoner : 
 
 0., 1. 9593 94. Gr., 1. 281 82. 
 
 I sal noglit fine merci to cri Pur lui merci crierai 
 
 Bituixand lie haue \>i merci." Tant ke merci troverai. 
 
 Our poet is always inclined to adopt French, words, whilst the English 
 translator, on the contrary, prefers old English expressions. Compare : 
 
 M.E., 1. 35556. 
 
 pi milce for him I crie euer-more, 
 And haue of him milce and ore." 
 
 C., 1. 959799. Gr., 1. 28587. 
 
 And ]>at sco was algat a-bute E veut enfin le serf sauver 
 
 Por to bij his prisun ute, E de prison deliverer, 
 
 Be-for j?e king fote sco stode, Devant le rei sest areste. 
 
 The M.E. poem enters more into the details : 
 
 1. 35962. 
 
 And wolde }?is >ral of prisu. bringe, 
 pat Eiht hedde hi i-demet w'-oute edige ; 
 Al heo chaunged hire mood, 
 And bi-foren >e kyng heo stood. 
 
 C., 1. 96012. Gr., v. 28990. 
 
 Sli selcut haue i herd to-dai, Teu merveille ai oie 
 
 pat i mai not forber to sai. Ne puis ke jo nel die. 
 
 M.E., 1. 36465. 
 I ne may for-bere to telle hit J?e 
 Hou hit me JjinkeJ? a wonder j^ing. 
 
 C.,1. 9621. Gr., 1. 311. 
 
 Rightwisnes rais J?an and said E justice a tant se leve 
 
 Si dit. 
 
 The earlier M.E. translation takes three lines to express the same thought : 
 
 1. 39597. 
 
 Riht i-herde >is talkyng ; 
 Anon heo stod bi-fore J?e kyng. 
 " pi doubter," heo seij?, etc. 
 
 C., 1. 9645-46. Gr., 1. 335-36. 
 
 Ilkman sco gis ai wit will, A chescun done par saveir 
 
 pair right to haue god and ill ; Quankil doit par dreit aveir. 
 
 The manner of representing this thought in the M.E. version is somewhat 
 
 different : ^ 421 22. 
 
 porw wisdom heo demej> alle 
 As wole to his gult bi-falle." 
 
 C., 1. 964748. Gr., 1. 33738. 
 
 For sothfastnes has said his sake, Verite de mal la tice 
 
 And }?ar-of dom wil on him wrak, E dampner le veut justice. 
 
SOURCES I III. ROBERT GROSSETETE'S CHASTEAU D AMOUR, 
 
 27* 
 
 "While in both works Truth alone demands the doom of the servant, in the 
 M.E. version Truth is assisted by Eight : 
 
 M.E., 1. 42324. 
 So}> and Kiht lo }ms heo suggej?, 
 And j>is >ral to dej?e juggejj. 
 
 C., 1. 964950. 
 
 Agh naman god him sai in werld, 
 Sin ]?at pite es nu noght herd." 
 
 Gr., 1. 33940. 
 Ni ad nul que bien li die 
 Puis ke pitie nest oie. 
 
 M.E., 1. 42526. 
 Neuer nouf?er ne spekef? hi good, 
 v Ne non [of hem] merci understood. 
 
 C., 1. 965354. 
 
 Ne he mai scap, ga quar he ga, 
 pat him ne sailles ai his fa, 
 
 Gr., 1. 34344. 
 
 Ne se peut garir ou kil aut 
 Kel enemi nel assaut. 
 
 M.E., 1. 42930. 
 
 Ne helped hi no J?Ig wher-so he wende 
 pat his fo fettej? hi in uche ende, 
 
 Sometimes the poet deviates from his principle concerning a literal trans- 
 lation; passing over insignificant passages, he docks his tale, as 1. 9681 86, 
 containing the complaint of Peace at her sisters, which takes up more lines in 
 the French poem [1. 37186] and the M.E. version [1. 45774]. 
 
 C., 1. 969596. 
 
 Sauf es i noght nu in )?is werld 
 Bot-if J>at merci mai be herd. 
 
 Gr., 1. 39596. 
 Mes sauve ne su jo mie 
 Se misericorde nest oie. 
 
 The M.E. version renders this same thought in another way : 
 
 M.E., 1. 48384. 
 
 Ak he ne louede [me] neuere to fere, 
 pat Merci my suster nul not here. 
 
 C., 1. 9697706. 
 pou agh me here, wit-uten less, 
 For fader es j?ou, and prince o pes. 
 Pes endes al >at wel es wroght ; 
 Qua has na pes, he has als noght. 
 Qua(t) es richess, qua can me sai, 
 Quar wisdom, quar pes es awai ? 
 Qua wil for pes his trauaill spend, 
 In pes for-soth J>an sal he end. 
 pan agh wel pes be herd for-Jn, 
 For J>is prisun J?at cries merci ! 
 
 Gr., 1. 397406. 
 
 Mon dit doit porter grant fes, 
 
 Kar tu es prince de pes. 
 
 Peis est la fin de tuz biens ; 
 
 Ki peis ad, ne li faut riens. 
 
 Ne sanz peis ne vaut aveir 
 
 Ne richesce, ne saveir. 
 
 Ki pur peis aver se travaille, 
 
 En peis aura defmaille. 
 
 E pur co peis doit estre oie, 
 
 Pur ceu serf ki inerci crie. 
 
 The corresponding lines in the M.E. version, compared with these, show 
 a complete transposition of some lines, viz. 1. 503 11 : 
 
 Of uche goodschipe Pees is ende, 
 
 Ne faylej? no weole >er heo wol lende ; 
 
28* SOURCES : in. ROBERT GROSSETETE'S CHASTE AU D' AMOUR. 
 
 Ne wisdam nis not worj? an hawe, 
 per Pees faylej> to felawe ; 
 And hose Pees louej> wij?-outen gabbe, 
 Pees wij?-outen ende he schal habbe. 
 Mi word ou^te ben of good reles, 
 For bou art Kyng and Prince of Pes, 
 " For-J?i >ou ou^test to here me, etc. 
 
 But I think these passages are sufficient, and I now confine myself to some 
 very striking lines, e. g. : 
 
 0., 1. 9749. Gr., 1. 453. 
 
 I sal cri pes in land, i-wis. E peis en terre frai crier. 
 
 M.E. 1. 551. 
 And maken I chulle Pees to londe come. 
 
 Transposition of single lines is to be met with in M.E., e. g. : Gr., 1. 
 463 64 = C., 975960, corresponding to 1. 561 62 in the M.E. version; 
 Gr., 1. 50918 = C., 1. 9818 27 = M.E., 1. 60716; Gr., 1. 53536 = 
 C., 1. 984546. 
 
 Sli scap to se was na ferlik, Memeillus nierent ja nomez, 
 
 Bot monstres moght man call J?am like. Mes mustres soient apelez. 
 
 M.E., 1. 63334. 
 
 Ac hit is as hit mot nede ben, 
 
 Of un-mete kuynde a forschipte streon. 
 
 In what follows, the Parable treats of the prophecy of Isaiah : Christ 
 sliall be called wonderful. The poet explains how we are to understand this 
 word. It is not to be misconceived ; for a child with three feet or hands, or 
 any other misshaped creature, would not be called wonderful, but a monstrum. 
 
 It is strange that both the M.E. version and the Cursor should have 
 misconceived the original text in the following line 555 : 
 
 Kar en defaute nest pas fet. 
 
 The meaning of this line is without any doubt : Christ was not created 
 in sin. 
 
 According to "Weymouth, this preposition " en " was thought by the 
 English poet to be the pronoun; accordingly he translates 1. 651 52 : 
 
 And wij?outen (synne he is) euere ; 
 For wone (thereof) dude ne neuere. 
 
 And the corresponding line in C. must have the same meaning : 1. 9862 : 
 And all es fulli J?at he wroght, 
 
SOURCES : III. ROBERT GROSSETETfi's CHASTE AU D* AMOUR. 29* 
 
 C., 1. 988384 tell of the Castle of Love : 
 
 Gr., 1. 57576. 
 
 A-pon >e mathe it standes traist, En la marche est assis, 
 
 fede ne dredes it na fraist ; Nad regard de ses ennemis. 
 
 M.E. renders these lines less accurately : 
 
 M.E., 1. 67172. 
 
 In J?e mere he stont bi-twene two, 
 Ne ha)? he ferlak for no fo ; 
 
 C., 1. 989192. Gr., 1. 58788. 
 
 Wit walles loken four a stan, Enuirun ad quatre tureles, 
 
 pat fairer in J?is werld es nan. En tut le mund ni a sibeles. 
 
 The latter remark is totally wanting in the M.E. version at the 
 corresponding passage : 
 
 M.E., 1. 68c 86. 
 
 (Foure) smale toures (f>er) be]? abouten 
 To witen be he^e tour wi^-outen. 
 
 C., 1. 9913. Gr., 1. 607. 
 
 O thre colurs o sun-dri heu, De in colurs diversement 
 
 The superfluous remark of the two poems, that the three colours were 
 different, is omitted in the M.E. version, 1. 705 : 
 
 WiJ? Jn*eo heowes >* wel be)? sene ; 
 
 C., 1. 992324. Gr., 1. 61718. 
 
 pe thrid ouermast of all La tierce colur par enson 
 
 pat J>e kirnels ar paint wit-all, Les karneaus covre environ. 
 
 The latter remark is again wanting in M.E. : 
 
 1. 71516. 
 
 pe bridde hem an ouemast 
 Ouer-wrije}? all and so is i-cast 
 
 In a similar way the influence of the French poem is to be seen : 
 
 C., 1. 992526. Gr., 1. 62122. 
 
 It castes lem ouer al sa bright, Tant reflambeie environ, 
 
 pat reches to \>Q dunjon light, Ke tut covere le dongon. 
 
 M.E., 1. 71718. 
 pat wi>-innen and wijj-outen 
 pe castel lihtej? al abouten, 
 
 LI. 992932 are translated from Gr., 1. 623 26; the M.E. version, 
 1. 721 26, gives the lines in another order. 
 
 C., 1. 9985, apparently misunderstands the French poem; the meaning of 
 the lower colour, the green, being explained by " }>at es end o \at mayden 
 dene." Grosset., on the contrary, says, 1. 679 : "c'est la foi de la virgine." 
 So we have in all English MSS. of C., 1. 998990: 
 
30* SOURCES: m. ROBERT GROSSETETE'S CHASTEAU ri AMOUR. 
 
 Por god ending of al and all, 
 Of al vertus it es grund-wald. 
 
 Contrary to the original work, Gr., 1. 683 84 : 
 
 Kar foi est apertement 
 De tutes vertuz fundement. 
 
 On comparison, we find the M.E. version rightly expresses the idea of the 
 original, that faith is the principal virtue. 
 
 1. 777. 
 [pat is] }>Q Maydenes bi-leue so riht, 
 
 And so M .E ., 1. 78182. 
 
 For hi-leue is apertement 
 Of alle vertues foundement. 
 
 The prayer to Mary (C., L 1009510122), though not literally translated, 
 yet derives its contents from Gr., 1. 787 818. The M.E. version gives it 
 too, 1. 881910. 
 
 Our poet, now leaving his original, turns to his readers and says, 1. 9765 
 9816, " You have now heard of the creation and Adam's fall, and that the 
 angels could not ransom him. If angels had saved him, they would have 
 become weaker and would have easily fallen, like Lucifer ; neither patriarch 
 nor prophet could ransom Adam ; now, as no angel nor man could carry out 
 the redemption, who was to do it 1 " As this passage is wanting in both poem 
 and translation of Grossetete, I believe it to be an original addition of our poet. 
 
 After the prayer to Mary, Grossetete's Chasteau d Amour continues with 
 a discourse between Jesus and Satan. 
 
 But the author of the Cursor, intending to glorify Mary and her family, 
 leaves his source, and turns to the conception of the Virgin Mary, from 
 1. 1012311232. 
 
 L. 11233372 treat of the birth of Christ, exactly following the Bible, 
 Luke ii. 138. 
 
Lebenslauf. 
 
 ich, Hugo Carl Wilhelm Haenisch, Sohn des Maschinen- 
 meisters Carl Haenisch und dessen Ehefrau Johanna geb. Beckel- 
 mann, evangelischer Confession, bin am 24. Juni 1859 in Jackschenau 
 bei Breslau geboren. Nach erhaltener Elementarbildung besuchte ich 
 die Schule des Waisenhauses zu Bunzlau. Ostern 1873 trat ich in 
 das Realgymnasium ,,am Zwinger" zu Breslau ein, das ich Oktober 
 1878 mit dem Zeugniss der Reife verliess. Hierauf bezog ich die 
 Universitat zu Breslau, um mich dem Studium der Philosophic, spe- 
 ciell der neueren Sprachen zu widmen. Wahrend meiner Studien- 
 semester auf dieser Hochschule horte ich die Vorlesungen der Herren 
 Professoren und Docenten: Bobertag, Caro, Dilthey, Dove, Frey- 
 mond, Gaspary, Grober, Hillebrand, Kolbing, Neumann, 
 Partsch, Reifferscheid, Roepell, Weber, Weinhold. An den 
 Uebungen des romanischen und englischen Seminars unter Leitung 
 der Herren Professoren DDr. Grober, Gaspary, Kolbing beteiligte 
 ich mich wahrend meiner letzten Studiensemester als ordentliches 
 Mitglied. Allen genannten Herren, insbesondere Herrn Professor Dr. 
 Kolbing, der mir in liebenswiirdiger Weise Rat und Anleitung in 
 meinen Arbeiten gab, sowie auch Herrn Professor Dr. Gaspary fiihle 
 ich mich zu tiefem Danke verpflichtet. 
 
 An dieser Stelle- nehme ich auch Gelegenheit, dem um die alt- 
 englische Sprachforschung hochverdienten Begrunder der E. E. T. S., 
 Herrn F. J. Furnivall in London, fur seine liebenswiirdige Bereit- 
 willigkeit, diese Erstlingsarbeit in eine Publikation der Society auf- 
 zunehmen, desgleichen auch Herrn P. Z. Round in London fur seine 
 freundliche Untersttitzung bei der Durchsicht der Druckbogen meinen 
 ergebensten Dank auszusprechen. 
 
 Das Erscheinen vorliegender Arbeit in England diirfte auch die 
 Abfassung derselben in englischer Sprache rechtfertigen. 
 
T h e s e n. 
 
 1. Die bis jetzt aufgestellten Gesetze der anglonormannischen Metrik 
 sind noch nicht gesichert genug, um die Textkritik beeinflussen 
 zu diirfen. 
 
 2. Die 6. Strophe des geistlichen Liedes No. XV. in Boddeker's 
 Sammlung n Altenglische Dichtungen" ist als Schlussstrophe un- 
 haltbar; sie ist vielmehr als 4. Strophe einzusetzen. 
 
 3. Der Abschnitt des Cursor Mundi von v. 10783 10816 und die 
 Legende n Geburt Jesu" in Horstmann's Ausgabe altenglischer 
 Legenden (Paderborn 1875) stammen aus einer gemeinsamen 
 Quelle. 
 
 4. Weymouth's Frage (Ausgabe des Castel of Love von Grosseteste 
 p. 28): When did monster in this sense first become an English 
 word? lasst sich dahin beantworten, dass die Anglisierung dieses 
 Wortes im Anfang des 14. Jahrhunderts geschah. 
 
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