Though not written for that complex and formidable entity ‘the child-mind,’ two poems in the collection, ‘Paul Revere’s Ride’ and ‘King Robert of Sicily,’ are beloved of school-children and dear to the amateur elocutionist. The most original of the tales is ‘The Saga of King Olaf,’ drawn from the _Heimskringla_, and appropriately put into the lips of the Musician. It is a poem redolent of the sea and the forest. The theme was congenial to Longfellow, who loved ‘the misty world of the north, weird and wonderful.’ Prompted by the good fortune of _Tales of a Wayside Inn_, the poet was led to make additions to it. A second part appeared in _Three Books of Song_, a third part in _Aftermath_. With these fifteen additional tales the three parts were then collected into a single volume. VII _CHRISTUS, JUDAS MACCABÆUS, PANDORA, MICHAEL ANGELO_ As early as 1841 Longfellow had conceived the idea of an ‘elaborate poem ... the theme of which would be the various aspects of Christendom in the Apostolic, Middle, and Modern Ages.’ In 1851 _The Golden Legend_ appeared, with no word to indicate that it was the second part of a trilogy. Seventeen years more elapsed and _The New England Tragedies_ came from the press, to be followed three years later by _The Divine Tragedy_. The three parts were then arranged in chronological order and the completed work given the title of _Christus, a Mystery_. One may guess why the first part of the trilogy was the last to be published. A bard the most indubitably inspired might question his power to meet the infinite requirements of so lofty a theme. Longfellow’s _Divine Tragedy_ has received less than due meed of praise. It has an austere beauty. If a reader can be moved by the Scripture narrative, he can scarcely remain unmoved by this reverent handling of the story of the Christ. Through many lines the poet follows the Scriptural version almost to the letter, bending the text only enough to throw it into metrical form. Often the dialogue seems bald and the transitions abrupt because the poet allows himself the least degree of liberty. This severity and repression in the treatment are one source of that power which _The Divine Tragedy_ certainly has. Part two, _The Golden Legend_, is a retelling of the story of Prince Henry of Hoheneck. Here, Longfellow reproduces with skill the light and color of mediæval life, if not its darkness and diablerie. The street-preaching, the miracle-play in the church, the revel of the monks at Hirschau, and the lawless gayety of the pilgrims are all painted with a clear and certain touch, but in colors almost too pale, too delicate. Longfellow had not the courage or the taste to handle these themes with the touch of almost brutal realism they seem to require.