GESTA ROMANORUM, a Latin collection of anecdotes and tales, probably compiled about the end of the 13th century or the beginning of the 14th, which still possesses a twofold literary interest, first as one of the most popular books of its time, and secondly as the source, directly or indirectly, of much which has since become current under the stamp of genius. Of its authorship nothing certain is known; and there is little but gratuitous conjecture to associate it either with the name of Helinandus or with that of Petrus Berchorius (Pierre Bercheure). It is even a matter of debate whether it took its rise in England, Germany, or France; while Mr Douce was disposed to give the credit of it to the Germans, Herr Oesterley is inclined to recognize the priority of the English. The work at least was evidently intended as a manual for preachers, and was probably written by one who himself belonged to the clerical profession. The name, Deeds of the Romans, is only partially appropriate to the collection in its present form, since, besides the titles from Greek and Latin history and legend, it comprises fragments of very various origin, Oriental and European. The unifying element of the book is its moral purpose: everything is made serviceable for reproof and doctrine, the powerful chemistry of the allegorical method extracting the sunshine of Christian truth from the cucumbers of the most worldly and wicked circumstance. The style is barbarous, and the narrative ability of the compiler seems to vary with his source; but he has managed to bring together a considerable variety of excellent material. He gives us, for example, the germ of the romance of “Guy of Warwick,” the story of “Darius and his Three Sons,” versified by Occleve, part of Chaucer’s “Man of Lawes’ ...