8 February

Wednesday (Ash)^8th. # Holiday at the Mus^m. I remained at home

all day, copying part of a MS. sent me yesterday by Mr Petrie, &

belonging to Hudson Gurney Esqr. This MS. or MSS. (for it #####^contains

# several ^very##### different in point of age & subject) was formerly

in the possession of D^r. Macro, & was purchased at Christie’s by Mr

Gurney. It consists of the following pieces: — 

1. Juvenal, in a neat hand of _^^the 12 Cent^y, but very early, in fact,

it might be placed in the 11th. membr. A very copious gloss is

added to the 1^st. Satire by different hands, one _^^{of which is} coæval. It appears

to be a good copy, but I had not time to collate it. At the end is

HIC. IVVENALIS EXPLICIT. fol. 43.

2. Collection of Laws, written in a hand temp. Hen 2^d #^{in a} fine clear

letter. It is imperfect at the beginning, 20 folios being lost, con-

taining _^^the Laws of Canute, Alfred, & part of Ina’s. The remainder are

partly printed in Brompton, but not exactly^correctly, & the Saxon of many of them is

to be found in the Textus Roffensis  & elsewhere. _^^{(The Latin (except 6) of these Laws is in Brompton.)} The Laws in this

MS. occur in the following order.

Leges Canuti (gone) _^^In Brompton, col.

_____ Alfredi (gone) Do – col.

_____ Inæ (partly gone) Init: baptismo emendetur. Do. _^^col. 761.57 – 768.11.

_____ Athelstani. _____ Do. _^^col. 839.53 – 841.46.

__________ De Officio Episcopi. _____ Do. _^^col 845.6 – 67. 

__________ de Weregildis personarum. __________ Do _^^col. 845.58 – 846.15.

_________ de emendatione et infractioni Ordinis:– Do _^^col. 846.15 – 42.

_____Inæ, de triplici juramento et ordalio. — Do _^^col 846.65 – 847.24.

_____ Athelstani de hundredis. ________ Do _^^col. 848.54

_____ _____ (Exoniæ institutæ) _____ Do _^^col. 850.4 – 55.

Epistola epor^~ Cantensium ad Athelstanum. D^o. _^^col.  850.57 – 851.38.

Judicia Civitatis Londoniæ (Text. Roff. Sax^e) — D^o. _^^col. 851.44 – 856.5.

Lex Inæ, de ordalio. (Text. Roff.) — D^o. col. 856.5 -37.

Leges Ӕthelredi ( Wodestoc) — (Text. Roff.) D^o. _^^col. 893.53 – 894.62.

Do ————– (Uuanting) ———– D^o. col. 894.83 – 899.18.

Pax Ӕthelredi cum Analavo, &c. _____ D^o. col. 899.24 – 901.31.

Senatus consultus de Monti colis Walliæ. ________ (Wilkins _^^p.125.)

Leges Ӕthelredi (Huban) – Brompt. _^^col. 901.36 – 903. 2.

Quales debent esse Judices. _^^{Brompt. col.} 903.3 – 52.

Institutiones Eadgari. — Brompt. col. 870.52 – 872.42.

Foedus Alfredi et Godrum. ________ (Wilkins)

Leges quædam.

Foedus Alfredi et Guthrum. ________ (Wilkins)

Leges Eadwardi. – Brompt. _^^col. 835.37 – 837.42.

________ Edmundi. (Lundon) Br. _^^col 858.34 – 859.19.

________________ (Culinton.) Br. _^^col 859.25 – 860.28.

Do _____________ ___ Br. _^^col 860.34 – 861.41.

De Juramentis (Text. Roff. )

De Sponsalib₃ et persolutione occisi. Br. _^^col 861.46 – 862.19.

Institutio Willielmi Regis. (Text. Roff. Sax^e.) — _^^(Wilkins.)

________________ De Veteri Consuetudine promotionum. Br. _^^col. 982.46 – 983.3. 

Rectitudines personarum.

Institutiones Hen. [I.] Regis. – Br. _^^col. 1021.38 – 1022.54:

Carta Regis Stephani de Constitutione H. II. hered. sui. ________

Coll. Foed. 1 . 18 . Br. _^^col. 1037.62. 

Of this collection I am to copy as far as Instit. H. Regis. I have been

thus particular in making a list _^^{of the contents,} because I know there is a similar ^MS.####

at Mr Coke‘s, & therefore I may have occasion to take notice of this MS.

hereafter.

3. [fol. 88.] In a hand of _^^the 17th. Centy. is written: –

“Liber Alchemiæ sine principio et fini.”

5. “Two olde playes or maskes but Imperfect, & little worthe.”

Below, in ^another##### hand: –

3. “1. Fragmentum Libri Aristotelis perfecti magisterii in Scientia occulta.”

fol. primo.

“2. Liber Secretorum, de voce Rubici Rubecari Mahumeth, &c. de

specieb₃, vasibus, operatione specierum. f.1.b. et sequentib₃ usque ad

finem. Est autem hoc fragmentum libri tantum, ex libris enim par-

tibus, in quas hoc opus divisum fuit, prima tantum et principum

secundæ hic exhibetur, cætera desidenatur.  Ja. Cob. 5^o. Januarii 1650.” 

These two alchemical tracts are written on parchment in _^^a hand of _^^the 14^th. Centy.

Imperfect at beginning & end. The first occupies a folio & 1/2. “Explicit

liber Aristotel‘ ꝑfcī magisterii in scientia occulta. Laus sit Deo“.

4. The ## title of the 2^d is: “Incipit liber Secretorum de voce rubica

rubeorii, Mahumeth, filii Zeciarrazi”. (Const. 7. fol. et olim.)

5. [f. 98] The rest of the MS. is on paper and contains three plays or

Moralities, written in a hand of the Hen. ⁶7th’s time.  There are no titles,

but the plot may easily be learnt by a perusal, & they are extremely

curious, as tending to throw much light on the early history of ###^the

stage.^x I took large extracts from them, which I shall not introduce

here. The stage directions are frequent & very curious. ^{All the Plays are}#########

written in verse, & the last in a of stanza precisely similar to that

of the old ballad of Sussan in _^^{MS Cott.} Calig. A. II. & with similar alliteration

The characters of the first play are added at the end (fol. 121.), thus: 

“Wysdom _______ Two lines are added, (- but not by the same hand)

Aīa v Wytt^es _____| which give us the _^^{name of the} owner of the book – but I

Mynde _________ | doubt whether we can ascribe the plays to him,

6. [fol. 122]. Here follows the 2^d Playwork, which may ##^or may not want the

beginn’g, but the others are perfect. The characters are: Mercy, Myscheffe, 

Nought’, New gyse, Now a days, Mankynde, & Tytyvillins.

The ###### lowest ribaldry seems to have been admitted into

these compositions, which it is difficult to believe were ever exhibited to a

public audience. What would the polished manners & refined ears

of the present generation say to # the follow.^g dilectable catch of three

voices?

“Make rom’, f’s, for we have be longe, Now A days.

We wyll’ end (cum?) gyf yow a crystemas songe.

Now I prey all’ ye yemandry yt ys her’  Nought‘.

To synge w^t ws w^t A mery cher’.

‘Yt ys wretyn’ w^t A coll’ [coal], yt ys wretyn’ w^t a cole, 

Yt ys wretyn’ w^t A colle _^ yt ys wretyn, c^~ [&c.] New gyse & Nowad

He yt schytyth w^t hys hoyll’, _^^[hole?] he yt schytyth w^t hys hoyll’, Nought‘

He yt schytyth w^t hys hoyll’, c^~ Newgys nowad

But he wyppe his ars clen’#, but he c^~ Nought’.

But he wype hys ars clen’, but he c^~ New gyse Nowad.

On’ hys breche yt xall’ be sen’, on’ hys breche c^~ Nought’.

On hys breche yt xall’ be sen’, on’ hys c^~  Newgyse Nowad.

Hoylyke, holyke, holyke, holyke, holyke, holyke, cātant omēs

The same couplet “o liber“. &c. occurs at the end, f. 134.

7. [f. 135] Another title page. In the former hand of _^^the 17. Cent’y is written

“1. Judicium Urinæ exitusq. morbi, secundum ### signorum stellarumq.

virtutes, per Willielmum Browne.

8. 2. Chimica Hermetis et Rogeri Baconis, per Tho. Oliverium transcripta”.

Cob has added: –

“Willielmi, natione anglici, civis massiliensis, medici et astronomi,

de natura Egritudinis et exitu morbi judicium, secundum signorum

stellarumq. vires. Liber quidem non ineligans aut indoctus, sed scrip=

toris inscitia miseris modis deformatus.

2. Accedunt Chimica Hermetis et Rogeri Baconis per Tho. Oliverium, 

transcripta.”

Both on paper #### sec. 16. – Cob has added corrections throughout.

9. [f.150] “Liber aureus Rog. Baconis.” at the end: “Aureus iste liber

haud est de opere Gebir. Anno 1571. Aprilis 25^o. Thomas Oliu^~ scripsit.”

10 [.f.154] the third ^Play#### – which is the longest, & the most curious, & is

written in a neater hand. I have some idea of copying in entirety. It is

preceded by ^{a Prologue,}################, in which the King is prayed

for, & the “good comowns of this towne”. The name of the town is thus

^{[Qy Nottingham]}

letter is an N. & the other apparently an m. The following lines are

curious. After describ^~g the plot, the 2nd banner says:-

þ^ese ꝑ cell’ in ꝓpyrtes we p^rpose us to pl#^aye _____|__

þis day sevenenyt be for’ you in syth ____________| _ |

ye haste you þāne þedyrward syr^es hendly ī hyth __

all’ goode neybor^es ful specyaly we you pray ______|__

& loke þ^t ye be þer’ be tyme luffely & lyth __________|__|

for we schul be onward be underne of þ^e day.” _______|

Grossness of expression is often to be met with, but perhaps not more

so than in Ben Jonson, & Shakespeare. The fact ^iswas, in the time 

of our forefathers, the maidens did not blush to hear “a spade called

a spade”, as anyone who reads the French fabliaux will perceive,

had we not _^^English examples in Chaucer’s hendy Nicholas, – & the ad=

venture of Tristram with la belle Iseult. So, in the play before

us, Lechery says to Mankynde. – “Therfor’ _^^mankynde, my swete leman, In my

cūte þou shall crepe”!⁺ The stage directions are very odd – All the

^{three Esdoites”, in vol. i. p. 470 of his Works, 1806. 8o.]}

“Hec sunt noīa ludi.

Inp’m^es ii. vexillat’, Mundus & cū eo voluptas, stulticia &

garcio, Belyal & cū eo suꝑbia & Invidia. Caro & cū eo Gula, luxuria

& accidia, hūanū genus & cū es bon’ angel’ & mal’ angel’.

Avaricia, detracō, confessio. Penitencia, Hūilitas, paciencia

caritas, abstinēcia, castitas, solicitudo & largitas, mors, aīa. Mīa

Veritas. Justicia & pax. Pater sedens in trono. Sm^a [Summa] XXXVI.

lud^es.”

On the reverse of this leaf is an excessively curious drawing by

the same pen, of the stage & properties of the play in question, with

stage directions. The stage in fact or ‘place’ was nothing more

then a green, which was to have a circular ditch dug ## round #

it, # filled with water, or, if that ##^could not be accomplished, to be strongly

barred, to prevent _^^the people disturbing the play. In the middle is

a castle _^^{of wood,} & underneath a bed, where the soul is directed to lie.

Four scaffolds are # at the four cardinal points, Caro– Deus–

Mundus, & Belial. The directions also  for Belyal are perfectly

ridiculous. Altogether it is so curious, that I made a fac–

simile of it,* & am astonished it ##^should have escaped the _^^{notice of the} writers on

^{Coventry Mystery Plays, 18    4to.]}

In the evening I drank tea with Mr Douce, & mentioned to him

Gurney‘s MS. & the drawing I have above described. He told me, he

had also tak##^en a facsim. of it, whilst at Christie’s’, but added

that we both might have saved ourselves the trouble, for it was

^engraved#### in Sharp’s “Coventry Mysteries”, a work lately published, &

which Mr D. shewed me. — It is a very curious book, & is dedi-

cated to Mr D. who contributed many of the prints in it. I remained

till ten oC. convers.^g. on our usual topics. I gave _^^{Mr. Douce} the alphabets

###^from Kopp, Eticus, &c. Among other things, Mr D. shewed me a ####^curious

gold coin, which he is unable to decipher, but believes it to be

_^^ancient Persian, _^^{& the characters to be Pehlvi.} I have subjoined a drawg of it.

^x An # analysis is given of them by Collier, in his “Annals of the Stage”, 1831. vol. ii.  pp.279-297.