And all they that were in her were drowned, save the daughter of the king, who put her trust in God and was saved. At length the storm abated, and the ship, broken and helpless, rose from beneath the waves and floated. But, lo, a great whale followed after the ship, to swallow up it and the maiden. So the maiden struck a light, and lighted a fire, that terrified the whale, which dared not to approach the ship for fear of the fire. At break of day, she fell asleep, for she was weary of watching; and as she slept the fire ceased for want of fuel, and the whale came and devoured the maiden.

When she awoke, darkness was around her on every side, for she was in the belly of the whale; but she feared not, but struck with the stone until the fire came, and thrust with a knife into the sides of the whale, that he made towards the shore, for he felt that he was wounded.

In that country dwelt a noble, a servant of the emperor, who for his recreation walked on the shore the time the whale was making towards the land. When he saw the monster, he turned homeward, summoned his servants, and returning to the shore fought with the whale until it was sore wounded, and like to die. And even as they smote the fish, the maiden cried with a loud voice from within the whale,

"Mercy, gentle friends; mercy on me, for I am a king's daughter."

Wondering greatly at these words, the noble hauled the fish ashore, and opening the side of the whale, released the lady from her prison. And when he heard her story, he pitied her sore, and took her to his own castle to comfort her until he could convey her to the court of the emperor.

When Anselmus heard of the maiden's safety, he rejoiced greatly, and came to her, and had compassion on her. "Fair maiden," said the emperor, "sorely as thou hast been tried, and great woe as thou hast suffered for the love of my son, still must thou endure another trial ere thou be proclaimed worthy to be his wife! Let the caskets be brought hither."

F

Then the king's servants brought three caskets. The was of pure gold, richly set about with precious stones within was full of dead men's bones. On this was inscr 68 WHOSO CHOOSETH ME, SHALL FIND WHAT HE DESERVE The second casket was made of fine silver, filled with and worms; and its inscription was, WHOSO CHOOSETH SHALL FIND THAT HIS NATURE DESIRETH." But the last v was made of lead, and without was dull and useless within were precious stones. On this casket was wri

WHOSO CHOOSETH ME, SHALL FIND THAT WHICH GOD H DISPOSED FOR HIM."

Then said the emperor, "Maiden, look on these three sels, they be rich vessels; if thou choose that wherein is p to thee and to others, then thou shalt marry my son; if thou choose that in which is no profit to thee or to oth then in peace return to thy father."

The king's daughter lifted up her hands to God, prayed for his grace in the hour of her trial. First she loo upon the golden casket, and as she read the words of inscription, she said, "Full, precious, and gay, art thou casket, but I know not what is within; therefore, dear lor choose not this."

Then looked she on the silver casket, and its inscripti "Whoso chooseth me, shall find that which his nature sireth." "Alas!" said the maiden, "I know not what herein; but this I know, that I shall therein find that wh my nature desireth, even the wickedness of the flesh. Cas of silver, I will have none of thee."

Lastly she looked on the leaden casket.

"Poor art thou, O casket, to look upon, and yet thy scription giveth comfort; thou promisest, that which G hath disposed;' and God never disposeth any thing harmfu by his permission, I take thee, O casket."

Then cried the emperor,

'Well done, thou fair and go maiden; open thy casket, for it is full of precious gifts. W hast thou chosen."

Then appointed he the day of the wedding: and the maiden and the prince were married with great solemnity, and with much honour among all the nation lived they until their lives' end.

"Your title is, I think, perfected," said Herbert.

"And yet there are those that can put in an earlier claim," said Lathom.

"An earlier claim; how far back then would you carry it?"

Nearly to the eighth century; one link between the east and the west. Damascenus, the Greek monk, who wrote the spiritual romance of Barlaam and Josaphat, makes the hermit Barlaam, late the king of a brother monarch, who commanded four chests to be made, two covered with gold, and two overlaid with pitch, and bound with common cords. In the former he placed dead men's bones, in the latter jewels, gold, and precious ointments. He then gave his courtiers the choice; and when they chose the golden coffers, the king said, "I anticipated your decision, for ye look with the eyes of sense. To discern the good or evil that lies within, we must look with the eyes of the mind." Then he opened the chests, and showed his courtiers their error.

"It is that kind of tale that would be most acceptable to all writers," said Herbert.

"The general use they have made of it, in one form or other, is evidence of its popularity. Boccaccio has dressed it up under the story of the King and Signor Rogiero, and Gower has versified it, filling the unlucky chest with earth, stones, and rubbish, instead of men's bones. To-morrow evening, I will give you some more instances of this kind of conversion of the old monks' stories.

CHAPTER V.

THE PROBABLE AUTHOR OF THE GESTA-MODERN CONVERS PARNELL'S HERMIT IMPROVEMENTS SCHI

THE POET'S

FRIDOLIN-IRVING'S VISION IN THE MUSEUM-THE CLAIMS O

OLD WRITERS ON THE NEW.

"ON what nation have the antiquarics endeavoured to fi authorship of these tales ?” replied Herbert.

"Here doctors disagree: Wharton contends for a Poitevin of the Benedictine convent of St. Eloi at Paris; whilst 1 argues for a German origin, because in the moralization att to one tale there is a German proverb, and in another the of some dogs are partly German, partly Saxon.”

Might not this arise from the pen of a translator or adap suggested Thompson.

66

More than probably it did. The fact of the scenes in o two of the tales being laid in England, may tend to show tha copy in which they appear was prefaced by a writer of that cou as the introduction of the German proverb would lead us to pose that the editor of that copy was a German."

"Is it not probable," said Herbert, " that this book may been a mere collection of the popular tales of the age in whi was written, confined to no particular country, drawn from e available source; thus leaving to the reputed author, the ta arrangement and transcription, rather than of origination ?"

"It is now useless to endeavour to determine this point: as in history of fiction it is far more easy to upset prior theories, tha set up new ones,” replied Lathom.

"Whose conversions, as you kindly denominate them, do you propose illustrating this evening?" asked Thompson.

Parnell and Schiller," rejoined Lathom, "the Lay of the Hermit, and the ballad of Fridolin. We will begin with Parnell,"

THE ANGEL AND THE HERMIT.

FAR in a wild unknown to public view, in a cell which he had hollowed out with his own hands, on the edge of an open down, from youth to age a reverend hermit grew. The neighbouring lord's shepherd was wont to feed his sheep on short but sweet pasture of the hermit's down.

One day the poor shepherd, fatigued with watching, fell asleep, and a robber came and stole the lord's flock.

When he awoke, he discovered the loss, and stoutly maintained that the sheep had been stolen, but the lord would not believe the shepherd, and commanded him to be put to death.

The hermit saw the deed, and thus communed with himself:-" Merciful God, seest thou what this man hath done, and how the innocent suffers for the guilty? Why permittest thou these things? If injustice is to triumph, why remain I here? Verily I will re-enter the world, and do as other men do."

Impressed with these thoughts, the hermit left his cell, and wandered back to the world and the abodes of men, and on his way, an angel, sent from God, met him, and being in the form of a traveller, he joined himself to the hermit, and asked him which way he journeyed.

"To the city that lieth before us," rejoined the hermit.

"I will accompany you," replied his companion; “I am an angel sent from God, to be the associate of your wanderings."

So they walked onwards to the city. When they entered the gates, they sought the house of a soldier, and entreated him, by God's love, to give them harbourage during the night.