_Painting by C. Bega_ (Vol. ii., p. 494.).--The translation of the lines
is, I believe,
"We Sing certainly what is new, and have still a prize." "A Cracknel is
our gain, but the ditty must first (come) out."
In modern Dutch most probably,
"Wÿ singen vast wat nienw, en hebben nog een buit. Een Krakeling is
onze winst maar het Liedker moet eerst uit."
I should think there is a lake somewhere in the picture, and the lines are
probably part of an old Dutch song. As to the painter C. Bega, I have at
hand a Catalogue of the Munich Gallery, and find there "Cornelius Bega,
geb. 1620, gest. 1664." His picture is described as "Eine Rauch- und
Trinkgesellschaft belustiget sich mit Tanz in einer Schenke." In a
Catalogue of the Louvre, I have the following description:
"Bega, Corneille ou Cornille, né à Harlem en 1620, mort de la peste
dans la même ville en 1664; élève d'Adrien Van Ostade."