November 21, 1912] 



NATURE 



;29 



read every line of the printed text five times, 

 three times with the original manuscript, once 

 with my transcript, and finally without cither " 

 {lb.). For checking his reading of the original 

 manuscript, he "constructed a sliding indicator 

 with a cardboard ruler covered with soft leather, 

 a strong ribbon of siJk attached to a small leather- 

 bag for the reception of a lead-weight, and a clip 

 to be attached to the stand on which the manu- 

 script was placed ; this was easily moveable from 

 line to line, and just as easily transferable from 

 column to column and from leaf to leaf " (pref. 

 xxxiii.). 



In his introduction (vol. i.) the editor gives an 

 outline of his studies of the vulgate cycle, as the 

 French version of the Arthurian prose-romances 

 is called. That version "represents the ultimate 

 stage in a process of welding heterogeneous ele- 

 ments into a not very harmonious whole " (pref. 

 vii.). In other words, the version is the furthest 

 removed, barring still later modifications, from 

 the original sources. Even between that version 

 and the older strata of the Welsh Mabinogion 

 and their Irish analogues is a great gulf fixed, 

 and the latter again are now well proven to be late 

 Celtic versions of pre-Celtic traditions. The 

 French romances throw very little light on the 

 ultimate sources. On the other hand, the evi- 

 dence of deliberate adaptation to mediaeval condi- 

 tions is in these volumes most apparent. The 

 Welsh and Irish extant sources are downright 

 pagan productions, with very little to show that 

 we are indebted for them to Christian ecclesi- 

 astics. 



The French version is, or once was, popular 

 Christian theological literature. The core of the 

 typical tale of the conception and birth of an 

 illustrious child of an unknown father and a king's 

 wife or daughter appears in the Welsh and Irish 

 versions as something separate from any moral 

 considerations, and while it may reflect a state of 

 society far removed from ours, it seems fairly 

 clear that such tales were not originally intended 

 to represent actual human relationships and con- 

 <litions, but were rather symbolical representations 

 of phenomena. We must come down to the 

 vulgate cycle to find in such legends the element 

 of sin. The editor has clearly discerned the essen- 

 tial change which ensued in the character of the 

 legends when he remarks : " Syr Lancelot, the 

 title-hero of the huge romance of that name, has 

 no prototype in Celtic literature" (pref. viii.). He 

 is simply a Frenchman of the twelfth century. 

 One cannot compare the groups of legends referred 

 to without being deeply impressed with the com- 

 parative worthlessness of the French romances as 

 guides to prehistoric cults, customs, and manners. 

 NO. 2247, VOL. go] 



As French literature, the materials must, of 

 course, be seriously treated. The editor, in justly 

 claiming recognition for the noble work he has 

 done, expresses himself here and there rather un- 

 fortunately. 



" I shall be glad if I have succeeded in pointing 

 out the path on which others after me may 

 advance to success, for then I shall have done 

 more than any scholar has achieved before me in 

 these studies " (pref. v.]. " Scholars of various 

 nationalities have devoted much time and effort 

 during the last seventy years to the study of the 

 origin and growth of the Arthurian romances, but 

 the results of their labours are comparatively in- 

 significant, and have done little to open up this 

 vast tract of romantic literature " (pref. iii.). 



In penning such sentences, the editor must 

 have discarded his "sliding indicator." Conscious 

 of the soundness of his weapon — his excellent 

 transcript — and his intimate knowledge of the 

 subject, he appears rather eager for a free all- 

 round fight. He announces that his study of the 

 manuscripts concerned has led him to "results 

 considerably at variance with what has hitherto 

 been accepted as probable and correct " (pref. 

 vii.). He asserts that the matiere de Bre- 

 taigne, although undoubtedly the fountain-head 

 of many episodes and adventures in Arthurian 

 romance, has exercised an infinitesimal, if any 

 direct, influence on the several branches of the 

 vulgate cycle (/&.). He does not believe that 

 Walter Map had anything to do with the French 

 prose-romances (pref. xi., note). As transcribers 

 form an absolutely indispensable class, we 

 have learnt to tolerate almost anything they are 

 pleased to say. To supply others with excellent 

 texts, with never a chance to preach a sermon 

 from them, would have been very hard lines 

 indeed. John Griffith. 



GEOGRAPHICAL TEXT-BOOKS AND 

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