when they may be supposed to have imported plays of this nature, did not understand the Greek language, yet they could understand, and consequently could imitate, what they saw.

"In defence of Voltaire's hypothesis, it may be further observed, that The feast of Fools, and of the Ass, with other religious farces of that sort, so common in Europe, originated at Constantinople. They were instituted, although perhaps under other names, in the Greek Church, about the year 990, by Theophylact, patriarch of Constantinople, probably with a better design than is imagined by the ecclesiastical annalists; that of weaning the minds of the people from the pagan ceremonies, by the substitution of christian spectacles partaking of the same spirit of licentiousness.-To those who are accustomed to contemplate the great picture of human follies, which the unpolished ages of Europe hold up to our view, it will not appear surprising, that the people who were forbidden to read the events of the sacred history in the Bible, in which they were faithfully and beautifully related, should at the same time be permitted to see them represented on the stage, disgraced with the grossest improprieties, corrupted with inventions and additions of the most ridiculous kind, sullied with impurities, and expressed in the language of the lowest farce.

"On the whole, the Mysteries appear to have originated among the ecclesiasticks; and were most probably first acted with any degree of form by the monks. This was certainly the case in the English monasteries". I have already mentioned the play of

7" In some regulations given by Cardinal Wolsey to the monasteries of the Canons regular of St. Austin, in the year 1519, the brothers are forbidden to be lusores aut mimici, players or mimicks. But the prohibition means that the monks should not go abroad to exercise these arts in a secular and mercenary capacity. See Annal. Burtonenses, p. 437."

Saint Catherine, performed at Dunstable Abbey, by the novices in the eleventh century, under the superintendance of Geoffrey a Parisian ecclesiastick: and the exhibition of the Passion by the mendicant friars of Coventry and other places. Instances have been given of the like practice among the French. The only persons who could now read were in the religious societies; and various circumstances, peculiarly arising from their situation, profession, and institution, enabled the monks to be the sole performers of these representations.

"As learning encreased, and was more widely disseminated, from the monasteries, by a natural and easy transition, the practice migrated to schools and universities, which were formed on the monastick plan, and in many respects resembled the ecclesiastical bodies."

Candlemas day, or The Slaughter of the Innocents, written by Ihan Parfre, in 1512, Mary Mag-dalene, produced in the same year, and The Promises of God, written by John Bale, and printed in 1538, are curious specimens of this early species of drama. But the most ancient as well as most complete collection of this kind is The Chester Mysteries, which were written by Ralph Higden, a monk of the Abbey of Chester, about the year 1328', of which a partí

In 1589, however, an injunction made in the Mexican Council was ratified at Rome, to prohibit all clerks from playing in the Mysteries, even on Corpus Christi day. See History of English Poetry, vol. ii. p. 201.

8 Warton's History of English Poetry, vol. ii. pp. 366, et seq. 9 MSS. Digby, 133, Bibl. Bodl.

1 MSS. Harl. 2013, &c. "Exhibited at Chester in the year 1327, at the expence of the different trading companies of that city. The Fall of Lucifer, by the Tanners. The Creation, by the Drapers. The Deluge by the Dyers. Abraham, Melchisedech, and Lot, by the Barbers. Moses, Balak, and Balaam, by the Cappers. The Salutation and Nativity, by the Wrightes. The Shepherds Feeding their Flocks by Night, by the Painters

cular account will be found below. I am tempted to transcribe a few lines from the third of these pageants, The Deluge, as a specimen of the ancient Mysteries.

and Glaziers. The Three Kings, by the Vintners. The Oblation of the Three Kings, by the Mercers. The Killing of the Innocents, by the Goldsmiths. The Purification, by the Blacksmiths. The Temptation, by the Butchers. The Last Supper, by the Bakers. The Blind Men and Lazarus, by the Glovers. Jesus and the Lepers, by the Corvesarys. Christ's Passion, by the Bowyers, Fletchers, and Ironmongers. Descent into Hell, by the Cooks and Innkeepers. The Resurrection, by the Skinners. The Ascension, by the Taylors. The Election of S. Mathias, sending of the Holy Ghost, &c. by the Fishmongers. Antichrist, by the Clothiers. Day of Judgment, by the Websters. The reader will perhaps smile at some of these combinations. This is the substance and order of the former part of the play. God enters creating the world; he breathes life into Adam, leads him into Paradise, and opens his side while sleeping. Adam and Eve appear naked, and not ashamed, and the old serpent enters lamenting his fall. He converses with Eve. She eats of the forbidden fruit, and gives part to Adam. They propose, according to the stage-direction, to make themselves subligacula a foliis quibus tegamus pudenda. Cover their nakedness with leaves, and converse with God. God's curse. The serpent exit hissing. They are driven from Paradise by four angels and the cherubim with a flaming sword. Adam appears digging the ground, and Eve spinning. Their children Cain and Abel enter: the former kills his brother. Adam's lamentation. Cain is banished," &c. Warton's History of English Poetry, vol. i. p. 243.

Mr. Warton observes in a note in his second volume, p. 180, that "if it be true that these Mysteries were composed in the year 1328, and there was so much difficulty in obtaining the Pope's permission that they might be presented in English, a presumptive proof arises, that all our Mysteries before that period were in Latin. These plays will therefore have the merit of being the first English interludes."

Polydore Virgil mentions in his book De Rerum Inventoribus, lib. v. c. ii. that the Mysteries were in his time in English. "Solemus vel more priscorum spectacula edere populo, ut ludos, venationes,-recitare comædias, item in templis vitas divorum ac martyria repræsentare, in quibus, ut cunctis, par sit voluptas, qui recitant, vernaculam linguam tantum usurpant." The first three books of Polydore's work were published in 1499; in 1517, at which time he was in England, he added five more.

The first scenical direction is," Et primo in aliquo supremo loco, sive in nubibus, si fieri poterat, loquator Deus ad Noe, extra archam existente cum tota familia sua." Then the ALMIGHTY, after expatiating on the sins of mankind is made to say:

"Man that I made I will destroye,
"Beast, worme, and fowle to fley,
"For one earthe the doe me nye,
"The folke that are therone.
"It harmes me sore hartefully
"The malice that doth nowe multiplye,
"That sore it greeves me inwardlie
"That ever I made man.

"Therefore, Noe, my servant free,
"That righteous man arte, as I see,
"A shipp soone thou shalt make thee
"Of trees drye and lighte.

"Litill chambers therein thou make,
"And byndinge pytche also thou take,
"Within and without ney thou slake,

"To anoynte yt through all thy mighte," &c.

After some dialogue between Noah, Shem, Ham, Japhet, and their wives, we find the following stage direction: "Then Noe with all his family shall make a signe as though the wrought uppon the shippe with divers instruments, and after that God shall speake to Noe:

"Then Noe shall go into the arke with all his

familye, his wife excepte.

The arke must be boarded

round about, and uppon

the bordes all the beastes

and fowles hereafter rehearsed must be painted, that there wordes maye agree with the pictures."

"Sem. Sier, here are lions, libardes, in,
Horses, mares, oxen and swyne,
"Neates, calves, sheepe and kyne,

"Here sitten thou maye see,

&c,

After all the beasts and fowls have been described, Noah thus addresses his wife:

"Noe. Wife, come in, why standes thou there? "Thou art ever froward, that dare I swere,

"Come in on Godes halfe; tyme it were,

"For fear lest that wee drowne."

"Wife. Yea, sir, set up your saile, "And rowe forth with evil haile,

"For withouten anie saile

At length Shem and his brethren put her on board by force, and on Noah's welcoming her, "Welcome, wife, into this boate," she gives him a box on the ear: adding, "Take thou that for thy note"."

Many licentious pleasantries, as Mr. Warton has observed, were sometimes introduced in these religious representations. "This might imperceptibly lead the way to subjects entirely profane, and to comedy; and perhaps earlier than is imagined. In a Mystery of The Massacre of the Holy Innocents3, part of the

It is obvious, that the transcriber of these ancient Mysteries, which appear to have been written in 1328, represents them as they were exhibited at Chester in 1600, and that he has not adhered to the original orthography.

3 MSS. Digby 134, Bibl. Bodl.