About 1540, Clement Marot made his celebrated version of the psalms into French rhyme, which were sung to popular tunes, and adopted by the French court; and some were probably introduced at Christmas, as well as the noëls. About the same time, Calvin introduced the psalms into his congregation at Geneva, and Sternhold and Hopkins brought out their version in England, “with apt notes to sing them withall.” In the same century was a collection of “Noëls vieux et nouveaux.” Pasquier, in his work on France, published in 1643, says, “En ma ieunesse c’estoit une coustume que l’on ausit tournée en cérémonie, de chanter tous les soirs presque en chaque famille des noüels, qui estoient chansons spirituelles faites en l’honneur de nostre Seignor. Lesquelles on chante encores en plusieurs Eglises pendant que l’on célèbre la grand messe le iour de noüel, lors que le prestre reçoit les offrandes. Or cette allegresse manifesta encores hors les Eglises; parce que le peuple n’auoit moyen plus ouvert pour denoter sa ioye, que de crier en lieu public noüel, quand il vouloit congratuler à un Prince.” In 1610, appeared ‘Melanges de la musique de Eustaché du Caurroy, maistre de la musique de la Chappelle du Roy,’ which contains some noëls, of one of which Burney has given the music; and it is said that the greater part of the noëls sung in France are gavots and other airs, which Du Caurroy composed for Charles the Ninth. The well-known air, ‘Charmante Gabrielle,’ was also a Christmas hymn. In ‘Recueil de Poètes Gascons, première partie, contenant les œuvres de Pierre Goudelin de Toulouse,’ Amsterdam, 1700, are some carols. There are upwards of twenty different collections in the patois. In 1699, was a collection by Le Sieur Nicolas Saboly. In 1701, one was published at Dijon, in the dialect of the province, which at first gave some offence, from the freedom of the compositions; but the naïveté of the patois, which also prevented their being perfectly understood, saved them. There were subsequent editions of these. In 1720, the fourth edition of ‘Noël Bourgignon de Gui Barôzai,’ was published, containing thirty-four noëls, and two chansons, with the music to each, and an ample glossary; and there was a subsequent edition in 1736. There is also a recent edition by Fertiault, at Paris, in 1842. Many of these are written in a vein of burlesque humour, quite out of character with the subject, and in a very free and irreverent style. In the seventh noël, the salutation of the Virgin by the angel, is quite in the manner of a _petit maître_. “Po lai fenétre el antri, Et peù de queique distance, Ai li fi lai reverance, Car el étó bén épri. Dei vo gar, mai chére aimie, Dit-i d’ene douce voi, &c.” The effect of the salutation reminds one of the old lines, “Gaude Virgo, Mater Christi, Quæ per aurem concepisti.”