and legends regarding them. After this he again occupied himself with lesser writings for some years. He devoted some attention to philology, aided in the preparation of a German-Latin dictionary, and pointed out the force and undreamt-of beauty that lay in that then vulgar and half-developed tongue. But again these and other publications were only secondary labours, for he had a third great work in preparation. He had for some time given great atten- tion to botany, and he now proposed to publish a work on that science corresponding to his great work on zoology. He had made a large collection of materials towards this when his health, never very good, completely gave way. A few hours before his death he desired to be carried into his museum, and there he spent the last moments of life. He died 13th December 1565, not having completed his fiftieth
year.Gesner’s intense devotion to science, and his almost incredible powers of acquisition, are seen from the recital of the facts of his biography, and from a mere catalogue of his labours. It deserves to be added that his life was singularly pure and blameless, that his love of knowledge was as disinterested as it was engrossing, that he was always ready and glad to acknowledge any help he received. When obliged to engage in controversy, he did so in a dignified and courteous manner. His medical writings show him to have been far above the silly prejudices of his day. A cheerful and amiable piety was a prominent feature in his character—a character chastened, not soured, by the trials of a hard lifetime.
After Gesner’s death his unpublished writings went through a career of vicissitudes not unlike that of their author. A part of them, edited by Professor Schmiedel, was published at Nuremberg in 1753. Other parts followed, but the work was never completed. Lives of Gesner have been written by J. Simmler (Ziirich, 1566) and J. Hanhart (Winterthur, 1824). See also chert’s flesncr als Arzt (Ziirich, 1854), and Gesner’s autobiography in his Bibliotlwca Unirersalis (lst ed., p. 180).
GESSNER, Salomon (1730–1788), Swiss painter and poet, and once a very favourite and widely-read author, was born at Ziirich 1st April 173 . With the exception of some time spent in Berlin, and a visit to Hamburg undertaken in order to see IIagedorn, he passed the'wh‘ole of his life in his native town, where he carried on the business of a book— seller. He died 2d March 1788. The first of his writings that attracted attention was his Lied elnes Sc/uveizers an sein bewaf/zctes .lld'llc/wn (1751). Then followed Bap/unis (1754), [rig/[lea ([756), Ill/i'tl and Yuri/co (1756), a version of a story already worked out by Gellert and Bodmer, and Der Tod .lbels (1758), “a sort of idyllic prose pastoral.” It is somewhat difficult for 11s now to understand the reason of Gessner’s universal popularity, unless it was the taste of the period for the conventional pastoral. His writings are marked, it is true, by sweetness and melody, but the sweet— ness soon becomes insipidity, and the melody monotony. He represents in most of his works the existence of shepherds in a golden or rather tinsel age, and nothing more unreal could possibly be imagined. His men and women are inane and lifeless representations. They are all alike, and all equally uninteresting. They never give utter- ance to any powerful, genuine, human sentiments. Their talk is but meaningless platitude. As a painter Gessner represented —“ still country scenes, rocks, springs, and water- falls, shepherds and shepherdesses ”—in short, the conven- tional classical landscape. His son, Konrad Gessner (1764— 1826), was also a painter of some reputation.
Collected editions of Gessner’s works were repeatedly published (2 vols. 1777—78. finally 2 vols. 1841, both at Ziirich). They were translated into French (3 vols, Paris, 1786—93), and versions of the Idyllcn appeared in English, Dutch, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, and Bohemian. Gessner’s life was written by Hottingcr (Zurich, 1796); see also his Bricfwcchscl mil sciacm Sohn (Bern and Ziirich, 1801).
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 (Esterley 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 service- able 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 \Varwick,” the story of “ Darius and his Three Sons,” versified by Occleve, part of Chaucer’s “ M an of Lawes’ Tale,” a tale of the emperor Theodosius, the same in its main features as that of Lear, the story of the “ Three Black Crows,” the “Hermit and the Angel,” so well—known from Parnell’s version, and a story identical with the Friclolin of Schiller. Owing to the loose structure of the book, it was easy for a. transcriber to insert any ad- ditional story into his own copy, and consequently the M88. of the Gala Romanoram exhibit considerable variety. GEsterley, who has bestowed the fullest investigation on the subject, recognizes an English group of MSS. (written always in Latin), :1 German group (sometimes in Latin and sometimes in German), and a group which is represented by the vulgate or common printed text. The earliest editions are supposed to be those of Ketelaer and De Lecompt at Utrecht, of Arnold Ter Hoenen at Cologne, and of Ulrich Zell at Cologne; but the exact date'is in all three cases uncertain.
An English translation, probably based directly on the MS. Bar]. 5369, was published by “'ynkyn de \Vorde about 1510–1515, the only copy of which now known to exist is preserved in the library of St John’s College, Cambridge. In 1577 Riehard Robin- son published a revised edition of Wynkyn de “'orde, and the book proved highly popular. Between 1648 and 1703 at least eight impressions were issued. In 1703 appeared the first vol. of atrans- lation by B. P., probably Bartholomew Pratt, “from the Latin edition of 1514.” A translation by the Rev. C. Swan, first pub- lished in 2 vols. in 1824, forms part of Bohn's Antiquarian Library, and was re-editcd by “'ynnard Hooper in 1877. The German translation was first printed at Augsburg, 1489. A French version, under the title of Le Violicr dos Iz-z'stoi-rcs romaz'ncs 7noralisé:, appeared in the early part of the 16th century, and went through a number of editions ; it has been reprinted by G. Brunet (Paris, 1858). Critical editions of the Latin text have been produced by A. Keller (Stuttgart, 1842), and (Esterlcy (Berlin, 1872). See also “'arton, “ On the Gesta Romanorum," dissertation iii., prefixed to the H [story of English. Poetry ; Douce, Illustrations of .S'Izalccqycarr, vol. ii.; Frederick Madden, Introduction to the Roxburghe Club edition of The Old English Versions of the Gcsta Romanorum, 1838.
