he begins his
verses by announcing the birth of Henry IV.:--

"A son aspect, mille cris d'allegresse
Ebranlent le palais et montent jusqu'au ciel:
Le voila beau comme dans sa jeunesse,
Alors qu'il recevait le baiser maternel.
A ce peuple charme qui des yeux le devore
Le bon Roi semble dire encore:
'Braves Gascons, accourez tous;
A mon amour pour vous vous devez croire;
Je met a vous revoir mon bonheur et ma gloire,
Venez, venez, approchez-vous!'"

{2} Gascon or Gasconade is often used as implying boasting or
gasconading.

{3} This letter was written before Jasmin had decided to publish the
second volume of his Papillotes, which appeared in 1835.

{4} The following are the lines in Gascon:--

"Atai boudroy dan bous fini ma triplo paouzo;
Mais anfin, ey cantat, n'hazardi pas gran caouzo:
Quand Pegazo reguinno, et que d'un cot de pe
M'emboyo friza mas marotos,
Perdi moun ten, es bray, mais noun pas moun pape;
Boti mous bers en papillotos!"

{5} 'Portraits Contemporains,' ii. 50. Par C. A. Sainte-Beuve, Membre de
l'Academie Francaise. 1847.

{6} 'Perpignan, l'Ariege et le poete Jasmin' (Journal politique et
litteraire de Lot-et-Garonne).

CHAPTER VII. 'THE BLIND GIRL OF CASTEL-CUILLE.'

Jasmin was now thirty-six years old. He was virtually in the prime of
life. He had been dreaming, he had been thinking, for many years, of
composing some poems of a higher order than his Souvenirs. He desired
to embody in his work some romantic tales in verse, founded upon local
legends, noble in conception, elaborated with care, and impressive by
the dignity of simple natural passion.

In these new lyrical poems his intention was to aim high, and he
succeeded to a marvellous extent. He was enabled to show the depth and
strength of his dramatic powers, his fidelity in the description of
romantic and picturesque incidents, his shrewdness in reading character
and his skill in representing it, all of which he did in perfect
innocence of all established canons in the composition of dramatic
poetry.

The first of Jasmin's poetical legends was 'The Blind Girl of
Castel-Cuille' (L'Abuglo). It was translated into English, a few years
after its appearance, by Lady Georgiana Fullerton, daughter of the
British ambassador at Paris,{1} and afterwards by Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow, the American poet. Longfellow follows the rhythm of the
original, and on the whole his translation of the poem is more correct,
so tha