t--such portions of his
various unpublished but frequently advertised works as did not fall to
Dr. Knapp.[247] Of these I do not hesitate to say that whatever the
difference of opinion as to their poetic quality there can be no
difference of opinion as to their being well-told stories of an
exceedingly interesting and invigorating character. But I must leave for
another time and another opportunity any discussion of Borrow's poetic
achievement of which at present the world has had little opportunity of
knowing anything.[248] Of prose manuscript there is also a considerable
quantity, including diaries of travel and translations of nine or ten
stories from various languages. Of the minor books already published we
have already spoken of _Faustus_, _Romantic Ballads_, _Targum_, and _The
Talisman_, and Borrow's last and least interesting book _Romano
Lavo-Lil_. There remains but to recall:--

_The Sleeping Bard_, published by John Murray, 1860
_The Turkish Jester_, " W. Webber, 1884
_The Death of Balder_, " Jarrold and Sons, 1889

These eight little volumes will always remain Borrow's least-read books.
Only in _Targum_ and _The Sleeping Bard_ do we find much indication of
those qualities which made him famous. It is not in the least surprising
that the other work failed to find a publisher, and, indeed, from a
merely commercial point of view, the late John Murray had more excuse
for refusing _Romano Lavo-Lil,_ which he did publish, than _The Sleeping
Bard_, which he refused to publish--at least on his own responsibility.
Such books, whatever their merits, are issued to-day only by learned
societies. In a quite different category were those many ballads[249]
from diverse languages that Borrow had hoped to issue under such titles
as _Celtic Bards_, _Chiefs and Kings_, and _Northern Skalds, Kings and
Earls_. These books would have had no difficulty in finding a publisher
to-day were they offered by a writer of one half the popularity of
Borrow.[250]

[Illustration: BORROW AS A PROFESSOR OF LANGUAGES

An 'Advertisement' put forth by Borrow in Norwich during the years of
struggle before he was sent to Russia by the Bible Society. This
interesting document, which is in Borrow's handwriting, is in the
possession of Mr. Frank J. Farrell of Great Yarmouth, by whose courtesy
it is reproduced here.]

There is, I repeat, excellent work in these ballads. As to _Targum_ let
it not be forgotten that Ha