Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1852-01-17

[old English " Laie Fran"
Such is the prologue of an ancient aid curious
little poem, done into Yngysche" from the
q Frensche rym" of the celebrated Norpn poetess,
Marie de France, by whom it was first cmposed IN
the early part of the thirteenth century. This same
Marie de France was the most facile md prolific
authoress Of her times having written Twelve sepa-
rate laws in her own Norman French, containing in
the aggregate nearly 10000 lines. Thelays which
she thus composed in the langue doi are all of
Armorican origin though the fact has been strangely
doubted by Mr. Ritson, in the face of Mr.. Ellis,
Mr. Weber, Sir Walter Scott, and we may add, of
Marie herself for she says that it was eintention
in their composition to relate, with all breSty, such
stories as she knows to be hne and from which the
Bretons had already tornacd lays, or legendary
8 Les contes Ike jeo sal gerrais,
Dant Il Bretm ont fat les las,
Vus conterai briefment," SC.
In fact, Marie de France seems merely to have
reduced to metrca form the legends of knights
and ogres which she found circulating by oral ira
dition in Wales and Brittany some of which metri-
cal versions were afterwards re-transated into Eng
lish rhyme by contemporary poets in England. Thus
it will be that stories originally derived from
the Celtic dialects of Wales and Armorica, or from
Anglo-Saxon prose- after having passed through the
transformations of rendering into Norman French
by this lady aoupere were subsequently, re produced
in English verse We have alluded to this fact in
the literary history of these early Romaunts because
it illustrates, we think, similar fact which occurred
in the early Gothic literature of Germany, and Of
which parallel is to be found in the origin and
composition of the Nibelungen-Lied.
As has been stated in previous article on the
NJelaasgea, the same legend, in all its essential
features, as that which composes the substance of
the old Teutonic poem, and of which we have given
analysis is found in the literature of Scandinavia,
while fragments of it, written in Latin, have been
recently found in Flanders, thus showing wide
spread prevalence of the same popular story, and
arguing either community of derivation from re
mote source hidden in antiquity or else explicabe
only by the fact of its transmission from country
to another. The Germans maintain that the Morse
received the legend from them, while the scho-
lars of modern Scandinavia assert it to have been
original with themselves, when up comes the Dutch
man to claim it genuine and peculiar tradition
of his forefathers As in the successive migrations
from the East which peopled Europe, it is undenia-
bic that these nations were of allied race and
common origin, we think the difficulty is best solved
by supposing it to have been the common property
alike of Norsemen, Flanand and later German.
The careless reader of the early popular poetry
of the Teutonic people cannot have failed to remark
that it all bears the impress of the migratory spirit
of the times in which it was written. In old Ger
man poesy we meet with perpetual descriptions of
and vassals of bloody battles fought between nvad
ing hoss-and defensive people; of vast solitudes
traversed by the rowing tribes in search Of a new
home As the early French poesy has reference
TO the Crusades, and delights TO exhibit all the
pomp and circumstance" of those glorious" wars
against the Moslem knights and nfdels so the early
Teutonic poetry relates TO the civil connections and
wanderings of those semibarbarous tribes of Europe
which, half heather, half christian, had lost much OF
Il. IL
rugged Norsemen, without acquiring the refinement
of the contemporary Italian Gaul so that like the
children of the captive jews who spoke I" half in
Hebrew and half in the speech of Ashdod" we find
the Germanic tribes retaining many Of their old hea
then superstitions and legends, though modified BY
the corrupt christianity engrafted upon them. The
inevitable effect moreover, Of these constant migra-
tons to destroy the memory of old ancestral ira
ditions, which still remained unimpared among the
more settled and unchrstianzed nations Of Iceland
and Norway so that it seems quite probable as has
been suggested by Gervnus, that much Of the Nibe-
lungen legend was wholly forgotten among the Ger
manic tribes, and re-imported into Germany
from the well undefled" Of the more northern ma
tons among whom it longer retained in its pris-
tine purity and without being in part forgotten and
in part overlad BY Christianity In order that our
readers may judge between the two versions of the
same story, as preserved in the Germanic poem and
IN the various Scandinavian saga, we VIII give
short outline of the legend as we find it compiled
from the latter by critic Of the Edinburgh Review
Of which abstract, batting few omissions and varia
TONS avail ourselves with the less hesitation be-
the writer has himself evidently derived the
entire statement from Muller's Library of Saga "
The country Of Niederland or Frankenland, on the
right bank Of the lower Rhine, was governed by a
King Signund, whose son Sigurd (Siegfried in the
German version was destined to become the most
celebrated Of his race. The Scandinavian SAGA give
his descent from Odin. Sigurd, in his youth slew
the serpent Fafnir; hence his name in all the Scan
dnavian Saga, Of Sigurd Fafnrsbane, or Sigurd FAT
nir-kil-ler. Fafnir was dwarf, who had the power
Of changing his form, was in enmity with Odin and
Loki, and, having killed his own father, watched
over immense treasure; in the shape of aserpcnt
Sigurd slew the serpent, and ate its heart thus be
coming acquainted with the language Of birds an,
the secrets of nature. Sgurd becomes master Of Faf
Mrs treasures, of his sword and Of Other mapica
implements, and loading his horse Gran with tn
booty, comes to a kingdom on the Rhine Gibesh
the king Of the country, had three sons Gunther
Hagen, and Gselher, and one daughter Gudrun
(Chriemhilda, in the German story) Her beaut
was so celebrated that Sigurd determinedto see he1
On his way he came to q lofty mountain, on tn
summit Of which he found a beautiful young woman
in complete armor, fast asleep This was Brllnhild
a Falyria or Of the female divinties d the obi
poyfboloor Who aasiSf AZ baftng npd