tory of "Rhomeo and Iulietta," from which
Shakespeare derived his immortal drama; another tale in the same
collection supplied the plot of "All's Well," and another the main
events of "Measure for Measure." Then came G. Fenton's "Tragicall
Discourses," 1567, finished at Paris and published by the author as the
first-fruits of his travels; T. Fortescue's "Foreste or collection of
histories ... done out of French," 1571; George Pettie's "Pettie Pallace
of Pettie his pleasure," 1576; Robert Smyth's "Straunge and tragicall
histories translated out of french," 1577; Barnabe Rich's "Farewell to
militarie profession," 1584, where Shakespeare found the plot of
"Twelfth Night"; G. Whetstone's "Heptameron of civill discourses," 1582;
Ed. Grimeston's translation of the "Admirable and memorable histories"
of Goulart, 1607, and several others.

Besides such collections many stories were separately translated and
widely circulated. A number have been lost, but some remain, such, for
instance, as "The adventures passed by Master F. I.," adapted by
Gascoigne from the Italian,[43] or a certain "Hystorie of Hamblet,"
1608,[44] which was destined to have great importance in English
literature, or the "Goodli history of the ... Ladye Lucres of Scene in
Tuskane and of her lover Eurialus," a translation from the Latin of
AEneas Sylvius Piccolomini, and one of the most popular novels of the
time. It went through twenty-three editions in the fifteenth century,
and was eight times translated, one of the French translations being
made "a la priere et requeste des dames." A German translation by
Nicolaus von Wyle is embellished with coloured woodcuts of the most
naive and amusing description. Three English translations were
published, one before 1550, another in 1669, and a third in 1741.[45]

[Illustration: THE KNIGHT EURIALUS GETTING SECRETLY INTO HIS LADY-LOVE'S
CHAMBER, 1477.]

It is a tale of unlawful love, and tells how Lucrece a married lady of
Sienna, fell in love with Eurialus, a knight of the court of the Emperor
Sigismond. It is, we are told, a story of real life under fictitious
names. The dialogue is easy, vigorous, and passionate, and the
translator has well succeeded in transmuting these qualities into his
yet unbroken mother tongue. Here, for instance, Lucrece is discussing
with the faithful Zosias the subject of her love.

"Houlde thy peace quod Lucrece, there is no feare at all. Nothynge he
feareth that feareth not death ...