Reliques of ancient English poetry: consisting of old heroic ballads ...

ii ANCIENT
SONGS
that the jirft compojitions of this kind were in Verfe, and
ufually Jung to the Harp.
O N
the Ancient Metrical Romances, &c.
I. '"THE firft attempts at compofition among all barbarous
nations are ever found to be Poetry and
Song. The praifes of their Gods, and the achievements
of their heroes, are ufually chanted at their feftival
meetings. Thefe are the firft rudiments of Hiftory.
It is in this manner that the favages of North
America preferve the memory of pall events (a) : and
the fame method is known to have prevailed among
our Saxon Anceflors, before they quitted their German
forefts (b). The ancient Britons had their Bards,
and the Gothic nations theirScALDS or popular poets (c),
whofe bufmefs it was to record the victories of their
warriors, and the genealogies of their Princes, in a
kind of narrative fongs, which were committed to me«
mory, and delivered down from one Reciter to another.
So long as Poetry continued a diflinft profeffion, and
while the Bard, or Scald was a regular and Mated of-
ficer in the Prince's court, thefe men are thought to
have performed the fun&ions of the hiftorian pretty
faithfully ; for tho' their narrations would be apt to receive
a good deal of embellifhment, they are fuppofed
(a) Vid. Lafiteau Moeurs de Sauvages, T. *. Dr. Browne's Hift.
of the Rife and Progreis of Poetry.
(b) German'i celebrant camnmbus antlquh (quod ttvum apud Uhr
memoria et annalium genus eft) Tujftonem &c. Tacit. Germ. c. 2.
"
(c) Barth. Antiq. Dan. Lib. 1. Cap, 10.——Wcrmii Literature
Runica. ad linera.
to