he account of the origin of chess attributed to the last is
amplified a little further on. The legend that Palamedes invented a game
of this kind at the siege of Troy is emphatically rejected by our
author, who pins his fame on Xerxes, a Greek philosopher! This became
the received opinion, as may be gathered from the unhesitating language
of Polydore Vergil in a passage which is thus rendered by John
Langley:--"The chesse were invented the year of the world 3635, by a
certain Wise man called Xerxes, to declare to a Tyrant, that Majesty or
Authority without strength, assistance & help of his subjects, was
casual feeble & subject to many calamities of fortune; his intent was to
break the fierce cruelty of his heart, by fear of such dangers as might
come to passe in the life of man." [24]

The curious treatise which contains the supposed conversations of King
Bocchus and the philosopher Sidrac (p. 171) was a favourite science book
of the middle ages. It is probably of oriental origin, but there are
editions in Latin, French, German, Flemish, Dutch, Italian, and English.
By way of question and answer very decided statements are made on a wide
variety of topics of which the author was profoundly ignorant. The
particular part referred to by Cessoles is chap, cclxxxi: "Pourquoy
sacostent les hommes charnellement aux femmes grosses et les bestes ne
le font pas?"[25] John the Monk (p. 70) is the noted canonist Giovanni
Andrea, who died at the plague of Bologna in 1347. His learning gained
him such titles as _rabbi doctorum_ and _normaque morum_. His
commentaries on the decretals were frequently reprinted. He gave the
name of "Novellae" to this work after the name of his mother and
daughter. His code of morality contained no prohibition of literary
theft, for his additions to the "Speculum Juris" of Durand are said to
have been taken bodily from Oddrale. In the same magnificent manner he
appropriated the treatise "De Sponsalibus et Matrimonio" of Anguissola.
His daughter Novella was a learned woman, and became the wife of
Giovanni Calderino, a jurist of Bologna. Their son, Gaspard Calderino,
wrote a commentary on the decretals. Father, daughter, son-in-law, and
grandson appear to have all been experts in the canon law.[26]

The reference to the "first book of the Truphes of the Philosophers by
figure" does not convey a very definite idea as to the particular work
intended. It must have been somewhat miscellaneous in character, fo