Note 96.Page 341.
"This fable is told in the Greek legend of Barlaam and Josaphat, written by Johannes Damascenus; and in Caxton's Golden Legende, fol. 129. It is also found in Clericalis Disciplina of Alphonsus."—Warton.
Mr. Way has told this tale so beautifully, that no apology is necessary for its introduction here.
"THE LAY OF THE LITTLE BIRD.
"In days of yore, at least a century since,
There liv'd a carle as wealthy as a prince:
His name I wot not; but his wide domain
Was rich with stream and forest, mead and plain;
To crown the whole, one manor he possess'd
In choice delight so passing all the rest,
No castle, burgh, or city might compare
With the quaint beauties of that mansion rare.
The sooth to say, I fear my words may seem
Like some strange fabling, or fantastick dream,
If, unadvis'd, the portraiture I trace,
And each brave pleasure of that peerless place;
Foreknow ye then, by necromantick might
Was rais'd this paradise of all delight;
