Germany before the Protestant Revolt 37 their lives, and are very loyal to their lords. They are loath to exert themselves to earn anything, and the little they get they speedily drink up. II. "The Ship of Fools" and "The Praise of Folly" Two famous satires of the early sixteenth century 236. The afford an idea of the evils of the time which were upper- Jy Sebas-'* most in men's minds. The first, The Ship of Fools, by tian Brant. Sebastian Brant, a citizen of Strasburg, was originally issued in 1494. It describes in lively German verse the various kinds of fools that were got together to be shipped off to Fool-land. Brant's "fools," who are gen- erally of the vicious variety, range from the harmless impostor who buys books that he is too lazy to read, to the scandal monger, the cheating lawyer, the blasphemer, and the robber knight. Brant's book enjoyed incredible popularity. It was praised by scholars and was devoured eagerly by the common people, who were delighted to have so amusing and instructive a book in their own language. It was speedily translated into Latin, Dutch, French, and English. The following passages give some idea of Brant's style of treating his theme. 1 Europe's door is opened wide. There's nothing to stay the enemy's tide, Whose ardor knows no rest nor sleep 1 Brant, Narrenschiff, critical edition, with elaborate introduction and scholarly notes by Zarncke, 1854; more recent and convenient, Das Narrenschiff, edited by Goedeke, 1872. A translation into the German of to-day is given by Simrock, 1872. Barclay's version in English, — a very diffuse adaptation of the original, — first published in 1509, was beautifully reprinted in two volumes in 1874. This edition is especially noteworthy on account of the admirable reproductions of the original woodcuts, in which Brant himself took great interest and which are often more humorous than the text itself.
