Thirdly, the Abbe de la Rue may be considered as having proved the fact, by pointing out, in English history, the persons to whom the original romances were addressed.  His three dissertations on the Anglo-Norman poets, in the twelfth and thirteenth volume of the Archaelogia, will convince the reader that no man has studied, with more attention, the early history and poetry of France; and he has given it as his decided opinion, that “it was from England and Normandy that the French received the first works which deserve to be cited in their language.”—­Ellis’s Specimens of Early English Metrical Romances.

[9] Prolog. des Lais de Marie.

[10] Oeuvres de Fauchet, 579.  Recherches de la France, l.8. s. i.

[11] Pyramus loco citate.

[12] Oeuvres de Fauchet, p. 579.

[13] Conclusion of Mary’s Fables.

[14] Dictionaire Raisonnee de Diplomatique Verbo Comte.

[15] Martineus Dict.  Geographique, v.  Dampierre.

[16] Sandford’s Genealogical History of the Kings of England, p. 114.

[17] Ibid, p. 116, and M. Paris, p. 817

[18] Sandford, ibid.

[19] Fabliaux, vol. iv. p.330.

[20] Conclusion of Mary’s Fables.

[21] Phaedr.  Prolog. lib. i.

[22] Preface to Mary’s Fables.

[23] Fabric.  Bibl.  Latin, lib. ii. c. 3.

[24] Preface to the Fables of Mary

[25] Vincent Bellovac, lib. iv. c. 2.

[26] Fabric. loco citato.

[27] Menage Diction.  Etymol.  V. Romans.  Duchesne, Oeuvres de Maistre Alain Chartris, p. 861.

[28] Pasquier Recherches, liv. viii. c. 1.

[29] Asser, Vita Alfredi, Malsmb.

[30] Madox’s Hist. of the Exchequer, c. 4.

[31] Ordoric.  Vitalis Hist. apud Duchesne, pp. 488, 681, & 1084.

[32] See his Works amongst the Harleian MSS.  No. 4333.

APPENDIX II.

MARIE’S LAYS.

Versions of only two of the Lays can be given; but it will be better to lay before the reader an abstract of the whole collection, which is in many respects interesting, because it was certainly written in this country, was never printed, and is known to exist only in one manuscript, viz.  Harl.  MSS.  No. 978.

About 56 lines at the beginning of the work are intended as a general prologue; and 26 more form the introduction to the first Lay.  This prefatory matter is written in a style of considerable obscurity, which the author defends by the example of the ancients, and quotes Priscian as her authority.  But the doctrine she means to inculcate is, that those who possess talents are bound to employ them; and that study is always good as a preservative from vice and from affliction.  She tells us, she had therefore form’d a plan of translating, from Latin into romance, some good history, but found her project had been anticipated