Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 20, 1909.djvu/415

 REVIEWS.

Irish Texts Society, Vol. X. — The Story of the Crop- Eared Dog. The Story of Eagle-Boy. Two Irish Arthurian Romances. Edited and translated by R. A. Stewart MacAlister. Nutt, 1908. 8vo., pp. ix+207.

The publication of a volume of the Irish Texts Society bearing such a title as the above is of extreme interest, in view of the increasing body of evidence in favour of the essentially Celtic, and traditional, character of much of the material underlying the extant Arthurian literature. The existence of a genuine Irish Arthurian tradition, could such be proved, would be of the highest importance.

Regarded purely from the point of view of an Arthurian student, these stories must, however, be pronounced profoundly disappointing.

Have they any real claim to be called Arthurian ? I doubt it. It seems quite evident that the writer knew little, or nothing, of the genuine "Arthur" tradition, and that it was only familiar to him in its latest and most literary form. The only knight of the court who takes any part in the action is Sir Galahad, who is here provided with the title of " ^i? Cordibus" ; the writer does not appear to be aware that he is the son of Lancelot, and the whole presentment differs widely from that familiar to us through the Queste. This, however, suggests an interesting possibility ; it is now generally recognized that there are three extant forms of the Queste, — that found in close connection with the Lancelot and familiar to us in Malory's translation, that incorporated in the Tristan, and the version originally connected with the Merlin