Page:History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella the Catholic Vol. I.djvu/156

12 12 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF CASTILE. r.i^RT must have left them oftentimes in painful uncer- '- — taintj, and deprived them of the cheering support of public opinion. The voice of remonstrance, which derives such confidence from numbers, would hardly now be raised in their deserted halls with the same frequency or energy as before ; and, how- ever the representatives of that day might maintain their integrity uncorrupted, yet, as every facility was afforded to the undue influence of the crown, the time might come when venality would prove stronger than principle, and the unworthy patriot be tempted to sacrifice his birthright for a mess of pottage. Thus early was the fair dawn of freedom overcast, which opened in Castile under more bril- liant auspices, perhaps, than in any other country in Europe. While the reign of John the Second is so de- servedly odious in a political view, in a literary, it may be inscribed with what Giovio calls " the golden pen of history." It was an epoch in the Castilian, corresponding with that of the reign of Francis the First in French literature, dis- tinguished not so much by any production of ex- traordinary genius, as by the effort made for the introduction of an elegant culture, by conducting it on more scientific principles than had been hitherto known. The early literature of Castile could boast of the " Poem of the Cid," in some respects the most remarkable performance of the middle ages. It was enriched, moreover, with other elaborate compositions, displaying occasional glimpses of a buoyant fancy, or of sensibility to Early litera- ture of Cas- tile.