Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 21.djvu/567

Rh LITERATURE.] SCOTLAND 541 about 1460 a worthy chronicler in Henry the Minstrel, or Blind Harry, who, born with such a serious defect, must be regarded as one of the most extraordinary individuals recorded in the annals of literature. His well-known poem, which bears the name of his hero, is in versification, ex- pression, and poetic imagery a remarkable production for nry- that period. The grave and thoughtful poetry of Robert HENRYSON (q.v.), notary public and preceptor in the Bene- dictine convent at Dunfermline, who flourished about 1470, contrasts favourably with that of his English contempo- raries. His Testament of Cresseid was often incorporated in the old editions of the works of Chaucer, to whose poetry it is not inferior. His Robene and Makyne is the earliest specimen of pastoral poetry in the Scottish lan- guage. These, with his Fables and other works, entitle him to a high place amongst the early Scottish poets. Nearly coeval with Henryson was Sir Gilbert Hay, chamberlain to Charles VI. of France, who made several translations from the works of French authors. One of these, taken from a popular French romance of Alex- ander the Great, extends to upwards of 20,000 lines. A long anonymous poem called Clariodus belongs to this period. It is a romance founded on a French original, the more material incidents of which are supposed to have happened at the English court. It abounds with illustra- tions of the manners and customs peculiar to the age of chivalry. Being nearly 3000 lines in length, it is, like the last-mentioned, an extensive specimen of the language and versification of the time. The Thrie Tales of the Thrie Preistis of Peblis (1490), the authorship of which is un- known, are moral tales possessing considerable freshness. As a fragment of an old version of them occurs in the Asloan MS., written in 1490, they must have existed long before the edition printed by Henry Charteris in 1603, in which form only they are now accessible. The Ledger of Andrew Halyburton, conservator of the privileges of the Scottish nation in the Netherlands, 1492-1503, is a valu- able source of information regarding the early trade of Scotland. The close of the 15th century exhibited a consider- able growth of literary ability in the writings of William bar. DUNBAR (q.v.) and his contemporaries. His works were so highly esteemed at the time he wrote that he was raised to the dignity of " the makar " or poet-laureate of Scot- land. Such of Dunbar's writings as have come down to the present time are of a miscellaneous character, in which there is much power of description and command of verse. The Thistle and the Row and the Golden Targe are excel- lent specimens of his poetic power. His satirical poems, such as the Twa Mariit Wemen and the Wedo and the Flyt- ing with Kennedie, contain much coarse humour. Seven of his poems were the first specimens of Scottish typo- graphy, having been printed by Chepman and Myllar at Edinburgh in 1508, followed in 1509 by the well-known Breviary for the church of Aberdeen. A humorous poem called the Freiris of Benuik has been attributed to Dunbar and is usually printed with his works. Contemporary with ' Dunbar were a number of minor Scottish poets, of whose works only a few specimens have come down to the present time. These were Walter Kennedie, with whom he had his "fly ting" or poetical contest, Sir John Rowll, Quintyne Shaw, Patrick Johnestoun, Merseir, James Afflek, and others. 1 The most classical of the Scottish poets was Gawyn or Gavin DOUGLAS (q.v.), bishop of Dunkeld, whose great g las - literary work was the translation of the JSneid of Virgil into Scottish verse. To each book he prefixed a prologue; 1 Kennedie wrote The Praise of Aige and The Passioun of Christ ; Rowll, The Cursing on the. Steilaris of his Fowlis ; Shaw, Advice to a Courtier ; Johnestouu, The Three Deid Powis ; Merseir, Perrell in Paramours; and Afflek, The Quair of Jelousy. the one before the twelfth is an admirable descriptive poem of the beauties of May. His Police of Honour and Kyng Hart, two allegorical poems, are able productions, the latter of which is full of dramatic vigour. Contemporary with Douglas was Sir David LYNDSAY (q.v.), Lyon king-of-arms Sh- in the reign of James V., who may be regarded as the most David popular of the early Scottish poets. His Monarchic, or L y nds ane Dialog betuix Experience and ane Courteour of the Miserabyl Estait of the Warld gives a short survey of sacred and classical history which rendered it very popular in its time. His Satire of the Thrie Estaitis is a skilfully written attempt to reform the abuses of the period, especi- ally those of the church. While some of its characters recite long and erudite political speeches, he introduces interludes of a farcical kind suited to the tastes of the times. This work may be considered the first dramatic effort of any British author. In his Testament of Squire Meldrum he relates the adventures of his hero with much poetic fire. Lyndsay's other poems consist of appeals to the king for advancement and some jeux d'esprit of no great length. One of the best scholars and teachers of this period was John Major or Mair, a native of Haddington, who was principal of St Salvator's College, St Andrews. Besides being the author of learned commentaries on Aristotle, he wrote a well-known work, De historia gentis Scotorum libri sex, printed in 1521. Another Scottish author that wrote in Latin with considerable elegance was Hector BOECE (q.v.), principal of King's College, Aberdeen. Boece His great work, Historia gentis Scotorum a prima gentis- origine, was published in Paris in 1526. It was translated into Scottish by John Bellenden, archdeacon of Moray, under the title of the Hystory and CroniUis of Scotland, printed at Edinburgh in 1536. Bellenden also translated the first five books of Livy into Scottish. The Chronicle of Boece was versified in Scottish in 1531-35 by William Stewart, a descendant of the first earl of Buchan. It was. written by command of Margaret, sister of Henry VIII. of England, for the instruction of her son, 4 the youthful James V. A Latin poem of much merit, entitled De animi tran- quillitate, was published in 1543 by Florence Wilson, master of Carpentras School. It is in the form of a dialogue and displays much variety of knowledge, while its Latinity has long been celebrated. In an anonymous work, written in 1548 or 1549, and called the Complaynt of Scotland, the author deplores the calamities to which Scotland was then subject. These are stated to be the wrongs done to the Scottish labourers at the hands of the landholders and the clergy, the difficulties with England, and the treachery of the Scottish nobility. The work is valuable as affording a glimpse of the literature then popular in Scotland, some pieces of which are no longer to be found, such as The Tayle of the Reyde Eyttyn [red giant] vith the Thre Heydes, The Tayl of the Volfe of the Varldis End, The Tayl of the Giantis that eit Quyk Men, The Tayl of the thrie futtit Dog of Norroway, and Robyn Hude and Litil Jhone. In 1552 there was printed at St Andrews a Catechism, that is to say ane Commone and Catholike Instructioun of the Christian People in Materis of our Catholike Faith and Religioun, written by John Hamilton, archbishop of St Andrews, the last primate of the Roman Catholic faith in Scotland. The poems of Sir Richard Maitland, which are Mait- of a somewhat satirical kind, are valuable, as they, like land - those of Lyndsay, contain much information about the abuses of the time (1560), such as the oppressive conduct of the landholders, vexatious lawsuits, and the depredations of the Border thieves. Sir Richard deserves the thanks of posterity for the large manuscript collection of poems by Scottish authors which he and his daughter formed, and which is now preserved in the Pepysian Library, at Magdalene College, Cambridge. The name of George