TRADITIONS AND FOLKLORE refer to some collection of these traditions. Perhaps the best of all such collections is Robert Hunt's Popular Romances of the West oj England; the title is deceptive, for the West of England is a wide district, and he deals almost exclusively with Cornwall. Hunt is not a mere collector ; his pages have genuine literary merit. Bottrell's Traditions and Hearth- side Stories are also very valuable, and the writings of Tregellas embody much traditionary matter. All deal with an aspect of Cornish life that is fast disappearing, in each case the archaeology must be received with caution. In one sense Cornwall is peculiarly favoured. It combines Celtic and pre-Aryan tradition with the later folklore of Teutonism. The local lore of the eastern counties is chiefly Teutonic — full of interest, certainly, but differing in kind from that of the West Country. Though it may ultimately be proved that Celt and Teuton were racially one, circumstance and environment had wrought a great divergence in language and tradition. Without paying too much homage to a modern fanciful glori- fication of the Celt, we may frankly acknow- ledge that there is a distinctive Celtic note in literature — a note often of striking tenderness and beauty. This point has been sufficiently dealt with by men like Renan and Matthew Arnold. Celticism was also nobly treated by George Borrow. But it may be more than suspected that where these and later writers use the word Celt, the word Ivernian might quite 41
