celebrated yeoman. 2 vols.
London, 1847.

HUNTER, Rev. Joseph. The Ballad-Hero Robin Hood. London, 1852. (No. 4 of
_Critical and Historical Tracts_.)

FRICKE, Richard. Die Robin-Hood-Balladen. In Herrig's _Archiv_, lxix.
241-344. Also separately, Braunschweig, 1883.

BRANDL, Alois. Englische Volkspoesie. In Paul's _Grundriss der
Germanischen Philologie_. Strassburg, 1893.

KIESSMAN, R. Untersuchungen ueber die Motivs der Robin-Hood-Balladen.
Halle, 1895.

CHAMBERS, E. K. The Mediaeval Stage. 2 vols. Oxford, 1903. (Vol. i,
chap. viii.)

HEUSLER, A. Lied und Epos. Dortmund, 1905.

HART, W. M. Ballad and Epic. In _Harvard Studies and Notes in Philology
and Literature_. Vol. xi. Boston, 1907.

CLAWSON, W. H. The Gest of Robin Hood. In _University of Toronto
Studies_. Toronto, 1909.

ARTICLES

The London and Westminster Review. March 1840. Vol. xxxiii.

The Academy (correspondence). 1883. Vol. xxiv.

The Quarterly Review. July 1898.

A GEST OF ROBYN HODE

'Rebus huius Roberti gestis tota Britannia in cantibus utitur.'
--MAJOR.

+The Text.+--There are seven texts of the _Gest_, to be distinguished as
follows:--

(i.) begins 'Here begynneth a gest of Robyn Hode'; an undated printed
fragment preserved with other early pieces in a volume in the Advocates'
Library, Edinburgh. It was reprinted in 1827 by David Laing, who then
supposed it to be from the press of Chepman and Myllar, Edinburgh
printers of the early sixteenth century; but he afterwards had reason to
doubt this opinion. It is now attributed to Jan van Doesborch, a printer
from Antwerp. The extent of this fragment is indicated below. Internal
evidence (collected by Child, iii. 40) shows it to be an older text than

(ii.) 'Here begynneth a lytell geste of Robyn hode'--so runs the
title-page; at the head of the poem are added the words--'and his meyne
[= meinie, company], And of the proude Sheryfe of Notyngham.' The
colophon runs 'Explycit. kynge Edwarde and Robyn hode and Lytell Johan
Enprented at London in fletestrete at the sygne of the sone By Wynken de
Worde.' This also is undated, and Child says it 'may be anywhere from
1492 to 1534.' Recent bibliographical research shows that Wynkyn de
Worde moved to Fleet Street at the end of the year 1500, which gives the
downward limit; and as the printer died in 1584, the _Lytell Geste_ must
be placed between those dates.[1] The text is complete save for two
lines (7.1 and 339.1), which hav