Page:A History of Domestic Manners and Sentiments in England During the Middle Ages.djvu/310

 290 Hijiory of 'Dofnejiic Manners century, the hero, in travelling, meets a young knight who, in token of his joyous humour, carries a chaplet of flowers on his head. In the later Englilh romance of the " Squyer of Lowe Degree," when the "fquyer" was preparing to do his office of carver in the hall — There he ara'ied him in fear let red, A nd Jet a chaplet upon his hed ; A belte about his fydes tiuo, White brod barres to and fro. Walter de Biblefworth talks of ladies dancing the carole, their heads crowned with garlands of the blue-bottle flower — Mener karole De^owx, chapeau de hlanjcrole. — Vocabularies, p. 161. Garlands of flowers were alfo the common rewards for fuccefs in the popular games. All thefe enjoyments naturally rendered the garden a favourite and important part of every man's domeftic eflablifliment ; during the warmer months of the year it was a chofen place of refort, efpecially after dinner. In the romance of " Garin le Loherain," Begues is reprefented as defcending from his palace, after dinner, to walk with his fair wife Beatrice in his garden — En fan palais fu Begues de Belin ; Apres mangier entra en un jar din, A-veuc luifu la belle Biatris. — Roman de Garin, vol. ii. p. 97. In another part of the fame romance, Begues de Belin and his barons, on riling from the table, went to feek recreation in the fields — S^ant mangie ont et beu a loifr, Lcs napes ojicnt, et en pris funt failli. — Ibid., vol. i. p. 203. The manufcript in the Britifli Mufeum, from which we took our laft illuftration, furniflies the accompanying reprefentation of a group of ladies walking in the garden, and gathering flowers (No. 196). In the "Menagier de Paris," compiled about the year 1393, its author, addrefling his young wife, treats briefly of the behaviour of a woman when