who is represented as the son of a maid "with outen mannes bizeteing." Merlin, in the Romance, thus relates his own origin. "A fende it was that me begat, And pelt me in an holy fat; Telle y can nouzt al and some. " The Scotish Merlin, is represented as the son of a river-mermaid, by whom he was educated till he arrived at the age of three years, when he was delivered to his father by his mother, with this declaration, "Gin ye school him as weel as I hae skeeled him, a' the deils o' Hell winna cheat him." This origin, however, is likewise attributed, by popular tradition, to Michael Scot, a character, whose superior learning and genius were sufficient to procure him the denomination of magician and sorcerer in the dark ages. To both these personages indifferently, tradition attributes the formation of the Catrail, a trench and rampart of great antiquity, apparently intended to divide the inhabitants of the East coast from those of the West. It is supposed to have been formed by the agency of dæmons, and is sometimes said to have divided England and Scotland, and, sometimes, to have passed between Craik cross and Berwick bridge. Merlin is, however, distinguished from Michael Scot, by his prophetical character, which is not attributed to Arthour and Merlin, Ms. 2 C the the latter, by tradition. The supposed prophetical character of Merlins, has frequently been employed for political purposes; and numerous prophecies attributed to them, metrical and prosaic, in French and English, exist in different libraries. They are cited both by Geoffroy of Monmouth, and Robert of Gloucester, and also by Laurence Minot, who says, that, at that early period, numerous writings were ascribed to this personage. "Men may rede in romance right, Of a grete clerk that Merlin hight; May men find of Merlin bokes." In his illustrations of Minot, Mr Ritson has cited certain" Prophecies of Merlin," of great antiquity, from the Cotton Ms. Warton cites a translation, from the French, of some of these rhymes, which thus commences : "Listeneth now to Merlin's saw, And I woll tell to aw, What he wrat for men to come, Nother by greffe, ne by plume. " › Of the two Merlins, the elder, who, in the Ms. Romance, is constantly denominated " Merlin the gode felawe," is reckoned by the Welch Bards more obscure than the other, who has always been most popular in Scotland. The Scotish Merlin is represented as a savage or wild beast, in that farrago of prophetical verses still current in Scotland, which are ascribed to Thomas Rymer, Bede, and the Marvellous Merlin, &c. and which, from the political allusions Ritson's Poems of Laurence Minot, p. 26. and 96. 2 Warton's History of English Poetry, vol. iii. sions which they contain, are referred, by the accurate Lord Hailes, to a period somewhat anterior to the composition of the Complaynt. The following verses in "the Prophesie of Waldhave," plainly allude to the Welch traditions, concerning the madness of Merlin, on account of the slaughter of his nephew. "He was formed like a freik, all his four quarters, And then his chin and his face haired so thick, With hair growing so grim, fearful to seeBy trouble of my kin, that I am off come Hath me turned into this care, and careful me made.— In woods and wilderness where my way liesHere in wilderness I dwell, my weird for to dreeGo musing upon Merlin if thou wilt—” 1 It is a curious fact, that though almost all the printed prophecies plainly refer to Merlin Ambrosius as their author, yet this circumstance in no degree affects the popular tradition of the South of Scotland, which invariably ascribe them to the Scotish Merlin. As the English had employed the prophecies of Merlin as a political engine, to intimidate the minds of the Scotish nation, the author of the Complaynt passionately expresses his hope that the "diabolic prophane propheseis of Merlyne, and vthir ald corrupit vaticinaris, " like the ambiguous oracles of the Pagan deities, would receive an accomplishment to their "perpetual confusione. " As a confirmation of his opinion, he produces a counter-prophecy from Higden's Polychronicon, which is thus given in Trevisa's version: "But amonge all Englyshe men medled togyders, is so grete chaungynge & dyuersyte of clothing, and of aray, and so many maner, & diuers shappes, that wel nyghe is there ony man knowen by his clothynge and 2 cij The Prophecies of Thomas Rymer, &c. Edin. 1737. his his aray of whatsomeuer degre that he be. Therof prophecyed an holy anker in kyng Egelfredus tyme in this maner (Henricus libro Sexto): Englyshe men for as muche as they use them to dronkelewnes, to treason, & to rechelesnes of goddes house, fyrste by Danes, and thenne by Normans, and at the thyrde tyme by Scottes, that they holde moost wretches, and lest worth of al other, they schal be ouercome. During the unsuccessful wars of the English against Robert Bruce, this prophecy seems to have had a powerful effect on their desponding minds; for the same author, in another passage, says, "The Scottes wexed stronger and stronger thyrty yeres togyder, unto Kyng Edwardes tyme, the thyrde after the Conquest, and bete down Englyshemen aft, and Englyshe places that were nygh to theyr marches. Some seyd that that myshappe fell for softnesse of Englyshemen; and some sayde, that it was goddes owne wreche, as the prophecye sayd, that Englyshemen sholde be destroyed by Danes, by Frenshemen, and by Scottes. The contemptuous idea of the Scotish nation implied in this passage, forms a striking contrast to the opinion of the author of the Complaynt, expressed in his comparative view of the characters of the two nations (p. 165.), and illustrates the powerful influence of national prejudice. Higden has characterized both nations, but in a very different manner from our author, though with an equally partial pencil: "Scottes ben light of herte, straunge and wylde ynough, but by medlyng of Englyshe men they ben moche amended: they ben cruell upon theyr enmyes, & hateth bondage moost of ony thynge, and holde for a foule slouthe yf a man deye in his bed, & grete worshyp yf he dye in ye 1 Ranuli's Polychronicon, fol. 37. ye felde. They ben lytell of meate, and mowe faste longe, and eten selde whan the sun is up; and ete fleshe, fyshe, mylke and frute, more than brede: and thoughe thay ben fayre of shappe, they ben defouled, and made unsemely ynough with theyr owne clothyng. They prayse faste the usage of theyr owne forfaders, and despysen other mennes doynge. Theyr londe is fruytfull ynough in pasture, gardyns, & feldes." For this character, the authority of Giraldus is cited. The English are thus delineated-" In beryng outward, they ben mynstrales and herawdes; in talkynge, grete spekers; in etynge and drynkynge, glotons; in gaderynge of catell, hucksters and tauerners; in araye, tourmentours; in wynnynges, Argy; in trauayll, Tantaly; in talkynge lude, Dedaly; in beddes, Sardanapaly; in chirches, mawmetes; in courtes, thonder; onely in preuelege of clergye and in prebendes, the knowlege themselfe clerkes. " It is not, however, solely the features of general national character, modified by local and temporary prejudices, that the Complaynt illustrates; but the manners and habits of the different classes of society are likewise marked Ranulf's Polychronicon, f. 56. The animosity of the English has frequently displayed itself in virulent poetical invectives against the Scotish national character. To evince this assertion, it is only necessary, to allude to the names of Minot, Skelton, Cleveland and Churchill. The Scotish Poets exhibit few examples of this species of illiberality, though the following sonnet by A. Montgomery, author of the Cherry and Slae, shows that they have not been able to escape contamination entirely. "Ane Answer to ane Inglis railar praysing his awin Genalogy. Ze Inglische hursone sum tyme will avant or ane santt; Zour progeny frome Brutus to haif tane; Except |