John Mandeville from his marvellous voyages and travels." This narrative (which has been often printed) contains two chapters respecting Prester John's domains, character, &c. see ch. lxxxvi. ; and Mr.Weber, Met. Roman. vol. 3, p. 302, quotes from a MS. Mandeville, in the Advocate's Library, Edinburgh, the following account of his having obtained the appellation of Prester John.

"There was sumtyme an emperour that was a noble man and a dowty. And he hade many Cristen kynges vnder him. And the emperour thought that he wold se the maner of Cristen men seruyse in holy chyrch. And than wer chyrches in all the cuntres, in Torky, Surrye, Tartari, Jerusalem, Palastari, Arabi, and Harrape, and all the lond of Egypt; and all the londes were that time Cresten. And yt was on a Saturdaye in Wytson-weke wan the basschope made ordyrs; and he beheld the servyce, and he askyd a knyght what folke schuld be tho that stode before the busschope. And the knyght seyd the schuld be prester; and than he seyd, that a wold no more be callyd emperour nor kynge, but prester. And he wold haue the name of hym that cam out wat that euer he hight. And so yt happid, that the prest that cam out fyrst, hight John, and so hath all the emperours sythyn be called Prester Jon." Avril, voyage en divers

etats d'Europe, &c. Paris, 1693, contains some further illustrations of the history of this renowned character.

The hundred whifflers most richly attired who were appointed to keepe the streets plain and open, appear from the definition in Minsheu's Dictionary, 1617, to be club or staff bearers. Sometimes the whifflers carried white staves, as in the annual feast of the printers, founders, and inkmakers, so curiously described in Randle Holme's Academy of Armory, book iii. c. 3, where one of them is stated to have carried in his right hand a great bowl of white wine and vinegar.*

The present reprint has been made from the seventh Edition of the Romance, 4to. 1635, with the loan of which the Editor has been favored by Mr. Utterson, but the last leaf being defective, it has been supplied from a copy of the 12th Edition, 4to. London, 1682, in the Pepysian Library, Cambridge, an edition in many respects much abbreviated, but capable of supplying the few lines wanting in the copy made use of on the present occasion.

I cannot better conclude this notice than by a list of the other works which were written by our author, which are, The Nine Worthies of London, 4to. 1592.

* Douce's Illust. of Shakspeare, vol. 1, p. 507-8.

The Pleasant Walks of Moorfields, 4to. 1607. A Crown Garland of Golden Roses, &c. 8vo. 1612. The Life and Death of Robert Cecill, Earl of Salisbury, 1612. 4to. The History of Tom Thumbe, (in prose) 12mo. 1621.

He likewise reprinted Don Flores of Greece, 4to.

OF THE

FAMOUS HISTORIE

OF

TOM A LINCOLN E,

The Red Rose Knight;

Wherein is declared his unfortunate Death, his Ladies Disloyaltie, his Childrens Honours, and lastly his Death most strangely revenged.

Written by the first Author.

LONDON:

PRINTED BY A.M.

1635