FOOTNOTES: [9] In the "Gesta Grayorum" one of the articles which the Knights of the Helmet were required to vow to keep, each kissing his helmet as he took his vow, was "Item--every Knight of this Order shall endeavour to add conference and experiment to reading; and therefore shall not only read and peruse 'Guizo,' 'The French Academy,' 'Galiatto the Courtier,' 'Plutarch,' 'The Arcadia,' and the Neoterical writers from time to time," etc. The "Gesta Grayorum," which was written in 1594, was not published until 1687. The manuscript was probably incorrectly read as to the titles of the books. "Galiatto," apparently, should be "Galateo," described in a letter of Gabriel Harvey as "The Italian Archbishop brave Galateo." The "Courtier" is the Italian work by Castiglione which was Englished by Sir Thomas Hoby. "Guizo" should be "Guazzo." Stefano Guazzo's "Civil Conversation"--four books--was Englished by G. Pettie and Young. [10] "Hit" is used by Chaucer as the past participle of "Hide." The name thus yields a suggestive anagram, "Bacohit." [11] 1618 Edition, page 712. [12] In addition to this and to the "Gesta Grayorum" (1692) I have only been able to find two references to "The French Academy" in the works of English writers. J. Payne Collier, in his "Poetical Decameron," Vol. II., page 271, draws attention to the epistle "to the Christian reader" prefixed to the second part, and suggests that the initials T.B. which occur at the end of the dedicatory epistle stand for Thomas Beard, the author of "Theatre of God's Judgments." Collier does not appear to have read "The French Academy." Dibdin, in "Notes on More's Utopia," says, "But I entreat the reader to examine (if he be fortunate enough to possess the book) "The French Academy of Primaudaye," a work written in a style of peculiarly impressive eloquence, and which, not very improbably, was the foundation of Derham's and Paley's "Natural Theology." [13] "It being now forty years as I remember, since I composed a juvenile work on this subject which with great confidence and a magnificent title I named "The greatest birth of Time." [14] The block was used on page 626 of the 1594 quarto edition of William Camden's "Britannia," published in London by George Bishop, who was the publisher of the 1586, 1589, and 1594 editions of "The French Academy." There is a marginal note at the foot of the imprint of the block commencing "R. Bacons." Francis Bacon is known to have assisted Camden in the preparation of this work. The manuscript bears evidence of the fact in his handwriting. CHAPTER VII. BACON'S FIRST ALLEGORICAL ROMANCE.