in the French romances, to be yet alive in some of the forests of France, but having been offended

nous nous puissions voir tous et toutes pardurablement. Amen. And so ends the romance. According to popular belief, Thomas the Rymer still frees his waird in fairy land and is one day expected to revisit earth.' Sir W. SCOTT, Minstrel. of the Scot. Bord. ii. 249.

This story concerning Bajardo being nearly drowned and now living in some wild wood, is evidently and undoubtedly of British origin, as can be proved from the lays of MARIE DE FRANCE. A late critic (Mr. RITSON) has denied the Armorical origin of these lays; but it is quite needless to discuss his opinions concerning a work which he had manifestly neglected to read, or was unable to understand.' ELLIS, ii Appendix to the Introduct. to Spec. of Ear. Eng. Met. Rom. There are two Lays among those of MARIE, one entitled Sir Launfal and the other Sir Graelent, the ground work of which is the same, but the incidents varied. The scene of the former is laid in Wales, at the Court of King Arthur; of the latter, in Brittany under a king and queen whose names are not mentioned. Both lays have been often published in old French, as well as in old English, extracted in modern French, and translated into modern English. The reader may see them in these different dresses in BARBAZAN, Fabliaux et Contes, vol. iv. Poésies de MARIE DE FRANCE, pub. by ROQUEFORT, vol. i. RITSON, Metric. Roman. vol.i. and vol. iii. note. WAY'S Fabliaux, vol. ii. and iii.. LE GRAND, Fabliaux, vol. i. In both these lays the knights are carried by a fairy, their sweet friend, to Avalon, where they are said by the British poets, who wrote the original lay, to be still living.

Quant la Pucele ist fors de l'us,

Sor le palefroi dérier li

De plain eslais Lanvax sali.

Od li s'en vait en Avalon,

Ce nus racuntent li Breton,
En une isle qui mut est biax,
Là fu ravis li Damoisiax,

with Charlemagne, who basely attempted to have him drowned, he became a misanthrope, and now

E nus n'en oï plus parler,

Ne jeo n' en sai avant cunter.

MARIE DE FRANCE, Lai de Lanval.

On her tall steed he sprang with vigorous bound;
Thenceforth their footsteps never wight has found.
But 'tis the Breton tale they both are gone

To the fair isle of fertile Avalon ;

There in the lap of love for ever laid,

By sorrow unassail'd, in bliss embay'd,

They make their won: for me where-e'er they dwell
No farther tale befalls me here to tell.

WAY'S translation.

Sir Graelent would have been drowned in crossing a river, as he insisted on following his beloved fairy, who was leaving him for ever, to punish him for his indiscretion, had not the heart of the cruel lady been melted to pity. She ran to his assistance.

Hastiuement est returnée,

A la rivière en est alée,

Par le flancs saisist son ami,

Si l' en amaine ensanble od li.
Quant d'autre part sunt arivés,
Ses dras mulliés li a osté,

De sun mantel l'a afublé,

En sa terre l' en ad mené,

Encor dient cil du païs

Que Graelent i est tous vis.

MARIE DE FRANCE, Sir Graelent.

Her knight she now with snowy arm sustains,

And wakes the stagnant life-blood in his veins :

Awhile he rests upon the flowery strand,

Then both together part for fairy land.
Rife goes the Breton tale Gruelan's lot
Is with the fairy still, where death is not.

WAY's translation.

runs off on beholding any one; on which account all hope of securing him is vain. The writer

No mention is made in the French lay of the horse of Sir Launfal. That of Sir Graelent, however, is not for

gotten.

Ses destriers qui d'eve eschapa,
Pur sun Segnur grant dol mena:

En la forest fist son retur,
Ne fut en pais ne nuit ne jur;
De piés grata, furment heni,
Par la cuntrée fu oï.

Prendre cuident è retenir,
Unques nus d'aus nel' pot saisir.
Il ne voleit nului atendre,

Nus ne le puet lacier ne prendre.
Mut lunc-tant après l'oï-un
Chascun an en cele saisun,
Que se Sire parti de li,

La noise, et le freinte, et le cri
Ke li bons chevaus demenot
Pur sun Seignur que perdu ot.
L'aventure du bun destrier,
L'aventure du Chevalier
Cum il s'en ala od sa Mie,
Fu par tute Bretaigne oïe,

Un Lai en firent li Bretun,

Graalent-Mor l' appela-un.

M. de FRANCE, Sir Graelent.

Mr. WAY in his translation calls the horse Gedefer; and in the old English of Launfal Miles, which we shall presently quote, one Gyfre is mentioned as the fairy's knave, whom she gives along with the steed Blaunchard to Sir Launfal.

I yeve the Baunchard my stede lel (true)

An Gyfre my owen knave.

RITSON says that no such names occur in the original.' It is

thinks it prudent to mention this fact, lest any of his readers should try to catch so noble a steed,

difficult to believe that the word Gyfre, so much like Gedefer, is an addition, and that, as it is pretended, Gedefer is a misreading of the word destriers, which was mistaken for gesdefers by SAINTE PALAYE and LE GRAND, from whose collection Mr. WAY translated the lays of MARIE, which were not then printed. See BARBAZAN (MEON's edit.), vol. iv. p. 72. note. ROQUEFORT, Poésies de M. DE FRANCE, vol. i. p. 338. The following is the translation :

But for the palfrey Gedefer, who stood
Reft of his lord beside that wondrous flood,
As with his loss distraught the peerless steed,
Spurn'd the green sward, and madly scour'd the mead;
Shrill doleful neighings night and day were heard,
And still amain he fled when man appear'd.
So pass'd his life: e'en now, tradition holds,
Oft as that day the circling year unfolds,
By the stream side is seen the steed forlorn,
And for his fruitless search is heard to mourn.
Soon through the land the dittied story spread
Of the good knight and of his faithful steed:
And some choice mind, in rhyme's propitious day,
From the rude strain wrought out GRUELAN'S LAY.

In the old English version of the story, entitled Launfal Miles, the steed of Launfal is not forgotten, and out of two lays, one seems to have been made, with improvements; that is with many additions and interpolations, but without any allusion whatever either to British or French originals. THOMAS CHESTRE very modestly claims the merit to himself of having made the tale.

The Lady lep on her palfray,

And bad hem all have good day,

Sche wolde no longer abyde.

unequalled save by Alexander's, and that brought by Ogier from fairy land, which last breathed

Wyth that come Gyfre all so prest,

Wyth Launfalys stede out of the forest,
And stod Launfal besyde.

The knygt to hors he gan to sprynge,
Anoon, without any lettynge,

Wyth hys lemman away to ryde.
The Lady tok her maydenys echon,
And went the way that sche had er gon,
Wyth solas and wyth pryde.

The Lady rod forth [of] Cardeuyle.
Far into a jolyf ile.

Olyroun that hygte;

Everych yer, upon a certayn day,

Me may here Launfales stede nay (neigh),
And hym se wyth sygt.

Ho that wyll ther axsy justes,

To kepe hys armes [fro] the rustes,

In tournement, other fygt,

Dar he never forther gon;

Ther he may fynde justes anon,

Wyth Syr Launfal the knygt.

Thus Launfal, wythouten fable,

That noble knygt of the round table,

Was take ynto Fayrye:

Seythe (since) saw hym yn thys land no man,

Ne no more of hym tell y ne can,

For sothe wythoute lye.

Thomas Chestre made thys tale,
Of the noble knygt Syr Launfale,
Good of Chyvalrye:

Jesus that ys Hevene Kyng,

Geve us all hys blessyng,

And hys moder Marye! Amen.