French, returned
as the King was coming from mass, and related to him all that they had
seen and met with. After he had been assured by them that there was not
any likelihood of the French collecting another army, he sent to have
the number and condition of the dead examined. He ordered on this
business Lord Reginald Cobham, Lord Stafford, and three heralds to
examine their arms, and two secretaries to write down all the names.
They took much pains to examine all the dead, and were the whole day in
the field of battle, not returning but just as the King was sitting down
to supper. They made him a very circumstantial report of all they had
observed, and said they had found eighty banners, the bodies of eleven
princes, twelve hundred knights, and about thirty thousand common men.

MODERN RECOGNITION OF SCENIC BEAUTY

CROWNING OF PETRARCH AT ROME

A.D. 1341

JACOB BURCKHARDT

The beauty of nature, of natural scenery amid mountains,
fields, and lakes, seems to have passed unheeded during
early mediaeval times. Even in the ancient days of classic
culture it apparently attracted very little notice, except
from an occasional poet. The present attitude of enthusiasm,
which leads thousands of tourists to flock to Switzerland or
to Niagara every year, is wholly a modern development. This
development of what is almost a new sense in man certainly
deserves notice. To fix an exact date for its beginning is,
of course, impossible, but it is generally regarded as a
product of the Italian Renaissance, and Burckhardt, seeking
for its slow unfolding, traces it back to Petrarch, who, in
his poetry, speaks of nature repeatedly.

Petrarch's poetry was so highly valued by the Italians that
they unanimously agreed to confer upon the author a laurel
crown. This was a revival of the old Greek method of
honoring poets, and as such it was felt by the Italians a
specially fitting way to proclaim their reviving interest in
art. So a great public gathering was arranged at Rome, and
the laurel was with elaborate ceremonies placed on
Petrarch's brow.

The recipient of this new and distinguished honor is
regarded as second only to Dante in Italian literature. In
addition to his world-famed sonnets to Laura, he wrote
much-admired Latin poems, and was a scholar of high repute.
His enthusiasm for the ancient Greek and Latin authors made
him the central figure in that revival of cla