hint, and referring to various writers who treat of the allegory. For the benefit of those who will be satisfied with a brief and ready explanation of the form adopted, they quote a passage from the Bestiary of Philippe de Thaun. (Edited by Mr. Wright, London, 1841, p. 108.)
E ceo dit escripture, cetus ad tel nature,
Que quand il volt manger, cumence a balier:
Et el baliement de sa buche odur rent
Tant suef e tant bon que li petit peissun
Ki l'odur amerunt en sa buche enterunt,
Lores les ocirat, issi les transgluterat.
E l'diable ensement strangluerat la gent
E ceo dit Bestiaire un livre de grammaire.
An illumination accompanying the verses is mentioned, which has these words. "Cetus hie pingitur . . . et quomodo pisces entrant in os ejus . . . . Cetus diabolum significat . . . et pisces animas."
Besides the window of "the new covenant" there are described those representing the History of St. Thomas (Plate 2), the last Judgment (Plate 3 and 19, the latter Plate is not yet published), the Prodigal Son (Plate 4), the Passion of Christ (Plate 5), the Good Samaritan (Plate 6), and the Apocalypse, or reign of Christ through the Church (Plate 7). Our limits prevent us from doing more than merely enumerating these Plates. We have also abstained from making any remarks on the costumes, and on the colours and artistical treatment of the windows, as the authors have reserved these subjects to be treated of in a subsequent part of the work.
We ought not to omit noticing that in the commentary on the window containing the History of St. Thomas, occasion is taken to give an analysis of part of "Les Catholiques Œuvres et Actes des Apôtres," a mystery, or miracle play, represented at Bourges in 1536. It contains 66,000 lines, and occupied between thirty and forty days in the representation. But we are under the necessity of omitting all particular mention of this curious production, as well as of many other subjects, the consciousness of having already too greatly exceeded our limits obliging us to rest satisfied with a very imperfect notice of a work which, from the care and labour that have been bestowed upon it, might well deserve to be treated of more at length.
f. b. & c. w.
⁂ Since the above was written we have been informed that fourteen livraisons are now published: but we have not had an opportunity of seeing any more than those we have already noticed. We have also learned that Messrs. Cahier and Martin are not priests of the cathedral of Bourges, as we had been led to suppose, but are Jesuits resident at Paris: and that the descriptions of the windows, &c., were written by le Père Cahier, and the drawings made by le Père Martin.
