Works of John Dryden: Volume 7 Poems 1697–1700 [Reprint 2020 ed.] 9780520905276

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T H E

WORKS

OF

JOHN

Editor VINTON A. DEARING

DRYDEN

VOLUME

SEVEN

EDITOR

Vinton A. Dearing

?U.F

(ONVEWAL ION NX A S AS R ECO MI I!T THFE CQSPTL And all the Cyprian Queen is in her Face. ) If thou art Venus, (for thy Charms confess That Face was form'd in Heav'n) nor art thou less; Disguis'd in Habit, undisguis'd in Shape, O help us Captives from our Chains to scape; But if our Doom be past in Bonds to lie For Life, and in a loathsom Dungeon die; Then be thy Wrath appeas'd with our Disgrace, And shew Compassion to the Theban Race, 240 began;] F. 245 Horoscope] Horoscope F,

241

Offence.]

F.

69

Poems,

70

1697-1700

That is so lowe ybrought by tyranny. And with that worde Arcite gan espy Where as the lady romed to and fro, And with that sight her bewte hurt him so, That if that Palamon was wounded sore, Arcite was hurt as much as he, or more: And with a sigh he said pitously, The fresh beutie sleeth me sodenly, Of her that rometh in yonder place, 1120 And but I haue her mercy and her grace, That I may seen her at the leste way, I nam but deed, there nys no more to say: This Palamon, whan he these words herd, Dispitously he loked, and answerd: Whether sayest thou this in ernest or in play? Nay quod Arcite, in ernest by my fay, God helpe me so, me list full yuell to pley: This Palamon gan knit his browes twey, It were (quod he) to the no great honour ii3o T o be false, ne for to be traytour T o me, that am thy cosyn and thy brother Isworne full depe, and eche of vs to other That neuer for to dyen in the payne Till that the deth departe vs twayne: Neither of vs in loue to hindre other, Ne in none other case my leue brother, But that thou shuldest truly further me In eury case, as I shulde further the: This was thine othe, and mine also certain, ii4o I wote it well thou d a T S t it not withsayn, Thus art thou of my counsell out of doubte, And now thou woldest falsly ben aboute T o love my lady, whom I loue and serue, And euer shall, till that myn herte sterue: Now certes, false Arcite, thou shalt not so; I loued her first, and tolde the my wo, 1131

brother]

F.

1138

Isworne] I sworne F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book I aw Oppress'd by Tyrant Pow'rl While yet he spoke, Arcite on Emily had fix'd his Look; The fatal Dart a ready Passage found, And deep within his Heart infix'd the Wound: So that if Palamon were wounded sore, Arcite was hurt as much as he, or more: Then from his inmost Soul he sigh'd, and said, The Beauty I behold has struck me dead: Unknowingly she strikes; and kills by chance; Poyson is in her Eyes, and Death in ev'ry Glance. 280 O, I must ask; nor ask alone, but move Her Mind to Mercy, or must die for Love. Thus Arcite: And thus Palamon replies, (Eager his Tone, and ardent were his Eyes.) Speak'st thou in earnest, or in jesting Vein? 1 Jesting, said Arcite, suits but ill with Pain. > It suits far worse (said Palamon again, / And bent his Brows) with Men who Honour weigh, Their Faith to break, their Friendship to betray; But worst with Thee, of Noble Lineage born, £90 My Kinsman, and in Arms my Brother sworn. Have we not plighted each our holy Oath, That one shou'd be the Common Good of both? One Soul shou'd both inspire, and neither prove His Fellows Hindrance in pursuit of Love? T o this before the Gods we gave our Hands, And nothing but our Death can break the Bands. This binds thee, then, to farther my Design; As I am bound by Vow to farther thine: Nor canst, nor dar'st thou, Traytor, on the Plain soo Appeach my Honour, or thy own maintain, Since thou art of my Council, and the Friend Whose Faith I trust, and on whose Care depend: And would'st thou court my Ladies Love, which I Much rather than release, would chuse to die? But thou false A rcite never shalt obtain Thy bad Pretence; I told thee first my Pain:

7»

Poems,

7*

1697—1700

As to my counsell, and to my brother sworne T o further me, as I haue tolde beforne, For which thou art ibounden as a knight 1150 T o helpen me, if it lye in thy might; Or els thou art false, I dare well saine. This Arcite full proudly spake againe, T h o u shalt (quod he) be rather false than I, And thou art false I tell the vtterly. For paramount I loued her first, or thou, What wilt thou sain, thou wist it nat or now Whether she be woman or goddesse, Thine is affection of holinesse, And mine is loue as to a creature, 1160 For which I tolde the mine auenture. As to my cosyn, and my brother sworne, Suppose that thou louedst her beforne, Wost thou not well the olde clerkes sawe? T h a t who shall giue a louer any lawe. Loue is a gretter lawe by my pan T h a n may be yeuen to any erthly man, And therfore posityfe lawe, and such decre Is broken all day for loue in eche degre. A man mote nedes loue, maugre his heed, mo He may nat sleen it though he shuld be deed, All be she maide, widowe, or wife. And eke it is not likely all thy life T o stonden in her grace, no more shall I, For well thou wost thy selfe verely, That thou and I be dampned to prison Perpetuell, vs gaineth no raunson. 1163

clerkes] clerks F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book I For first my Love began e'er thine was born; Thou, as my Council, and my Brother sworn, Art bound t' assist my Eldership of Right, 310 Or justly to be deem'd a perjur'd Knight. T h u s Palamon: But Arcite with disdain In haughty Language thus reply'd again: Forsworn thy self: T h e Traytor's odious Name I first return, and then disprove thy Claim. If Love be Passion, and that Passion nurst With strong Desires, I lov'd the Lady first. Canst thou pretend Desire, whom Zeal inflam'd T o worship, and a Pow'r Coelestial nam'd? T h i n e was Devotion to the Blest above, 320 I saw the Woman, and desir'd her Love; First own'd my Passion, and to thee commend T h ' important Secret, as my chosen Friend. Suppose (which yet I grant not) thy Desire A Moment elder than my Rival Fire; Can Chance of seeing first thy Title prove? And know'st thou not, no Law is made for Love? Law is to Things which to free Choice relate; Love is not in our Choice, but in our Fate: Laws are but positive: Loves Pow'r we see 330 Is Natures Sanction, and her first Decree. Each Day we break the Bond of Humane Laws For Love, and vindicate the Common Cause. Laws for Defence of Civil Rights are plac'd, Love throws the Fences down, and makes a general Waste: Maids, Widows, Wives, without distinction fall; T h e sweeping Deluge, Love, comes on, and covers all. If then the Laws of Friendship I transgress, \ I keep the Greater, while I break the Less; > And both are mad alike, since neither can possess: J 34o Both hopeless to be ransom'd, never more T o see the Sun, but as he passes o'er. 339

possess:]

F.

73

74

Poems,

1697-1700

We striuen, as did the houndes for the bone That foughten al day, and yet her part was non; Ther cam a cur, whil that they wer so wroth, 1180 And bare away the bone from hem both: And therfore, at kings court, my brother, Eche man for him selfe, there is none other. Loue if thou list, for I loue and ay shall, And sothly lefe brother this is all, Here in this prison mote we endure, And euerich of vs taken his auenture. Great was the strife betwix hem twey, If that I had leyser for to sey: But to theffect; it happed on a dey, ii9o T o tell it you shortly as I may, A worthy duke that hight Perithous, That felowe was to duke Theseus Sith thilke day that they were children lite Was come to A thenes, his felowe to visite, And for to play, as he was wont to do, For in this world he loued no man so; And he loued him as tenderly againe, So wel they loued, as old bokes sayne, That when that one was deed, sothly to tell 1200 His fellow went and sought him down in hell; But of that story list me not to write. Duke Perithous loued well Arcite, And had him know at Thebes yere by yere, And finally as request and prayere Of Perithous, withouten any raunson Duke Theseus let him out of prison Frely to gon whither him list ouer all In such a gyse as I you tellen shall. This was the forwarde, plainly to endite 1210 Betwixt duke Theseus and him Arcite, That if so were, that Arcite were yfounde Ever in his life, by day, night or stounde In any countre of this duke Theseus And he were caught, it was acorded thus,

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book I Like /Esop's Hounds contending for the Bone, Each pleaded Right, and wou'd be Lord alone: T h e fruitless Fight continu'd all the Day; A Cur came by, and snatch'd the Prize away: As Courtiers therefore justle for a Grant, And when they break their Friendship, plead their Want: So thou, if Fortune will thy Suit advance, Love on; nor envy me my equal Chance: a» For I must love, and am resolv'd to try My Fate, or failing in th' Adventure die. Great was their Strife, which hourly was renew'd, Till each with mortal Hate his Rival view'd: Now Friends no more, nor walking Hand in Hand; But when they met, they made a surly Stand; And glar'd like angry Lions as they pass'd, And wish'd that ev'ry Look might be their last. It chanc'd at length, Perithous came, t' attend This worthy Theseus, his familiar Friend: mo Their Love in early Infancy began, And rose as Childhood ripen'd into Man: Companions of the War; and lov'd so well, } That when one dy'd, as ancient Stories tell, > His Fellow to redeem him went to Hell. ) But to pursue my Tale; to welcome home His Warlike Brother, is Perithous come: Arcite of Thebes was known in Arms long since, And honour'd by this young Thessalian Prince. Theseus, to gratifie his Friend and Guest, 370 Who made our Arcite's Freedom his Request, Restor'd to Liberty the Captive Knight, But on these hard Conditions I recite: That if hereafter Arcite shou'd be found Within the Compass of Athenian Ground, 348 /Esop's] Esop's F. 847 Want:] F.

345 away:] — F. 361 Man:] F.

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Poems, 7 6 9 7 - / 7 0 0

T h a t w i t h a s w e r d h e s h o u l d lese his h e e d , T h e r e was n o n e o t h e r r e m e d y , n e r e e d , B u t t a k e t h h i s l e u e , a n d h o m w a r d h i m sped, L e t h i m b e w a r e , his n e c k e l i e t h t o w e d d . H o w g r e a t s o r o w e s u f f e r e t h n o w Arcite? 1220 T h e d e t h e h e f e l e t h t h r o u g h his h e r t s m i t e : H e ;vepeth, w a i l e t h , a n d c r i e t h p i t o u s l y , T o s l e e n h i m selfe h e w a i t e t h p r i u e l y A n d said, alas t h e d a y t h a t I was b o r n e ; N o w is m y p r i s o n w o r s e t h a n b e f o r n e , N o w is m e s h a p e n e t e r n a l l y t o d w e l l N o u g h t in purgatory, b u t in hell. Alas! t h a t e u e r I k n e w Perithous, F o r els h a d I d w e l t w i t h Theseus I f e t e r e d i n his p r i s o n e u e r m o , 1230 T h e n h a d I b e i n blisse, a n d n a t i n wo, O n l y t h e sight of h e r , w h o m t h a t I s e r u e , T h o u g h t h a t I n e u e r h e r grace m a y d e s e r u e , W o l d e h a u e suffised r i g h t y n o u g h f o r m e . O d e r e cosyn Palamon ( q u o d h e ) T h i n e is t h e v i c t o r i e of this a u e n t u r e , F u l blisful in prison mayst t h o u e n d u r e : I n p r i s o n , N a y certes b u t i n p a r a d i s e , W e l l h a t h f o r t u n e t o t h e t u r n e d t h e dise, T h a t h a s t t h e s i g h t of h e r , a n d I t h a b s e n c e : 1240 F o r p o s s i b l e is, s i t h e n s t h o u h a s t h e r p r e s e n c e , A n d art a knight, a worthie m a n and able T h a t b y s u m case, syn f o r t u n e is c h a n g e a b l e , T h o u maist sometime to thy desire attaine:

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book I By Day or Night, or on whate'er Pretence, His Head shou'd pay the Forfeit of th' Offence. T o this, Perithous for his Friend, agreed, And on his Promise was the Pris'ner freed. Unpleas'd and pensive hence he takes his way, 88« At his own Peril; for his Life must pay. Who now but Arcite mourns his bitter Fate, Finds his dear Purchase, and repents too late? What have I gain'd, he said, in Prison pent, If I but change my Bonds for Banishment? And banish'd from her Sight, I suffer more In Freedom, than I felt in Bonds before; Forc'd from her Presence, and condemn'd to live: Unwelcom Freedom, and unthank'd Reprieve: Heav'n is not but where Emily abides, 390 And where she's absent, all is Hell besides. Next to my Day of Birth, was that accurst Which bound my Friendship to Perithous first: Had I not known that Prince, I still had been In Bondage, and had still Emilia seen: For tho' I never can her Grace deserve, 'Tis Recompence enough to see and serve. 0 Palamon, my Kinsman and my Friend, How much more happy Fates thy Love attendl Thine is th' Adventure; thine the Victory: 400 Well has thy Fortune turn'd the Dice for thee: Thou on that Angels Face maist feed thy Eyes, In Prison, no; but blissful Paradise! Thou daily seest that Sun of Beauty shine, And lov'st at least in Loves extreamest Line. 1 mourn in Absence, Loves Eternal Night, "1 And who can tell but since thou hast her Sight, > And art a comely, young, and valiant Knight, J Fortune (a various Pow'r) may cease to frown, And by some Ways unknown thy Wishes crown: 410 But I, the most forlorn of Humane Kind, Nor Help can hope, nor Remedy can find;

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169J—1J00

But I that am exiled, and baraine Of all grace, and in so great dispeyre, T h a t there nys water, erthe, fyre, ne eyre, N e creature that of hem maked is T h a t may me heale, or done comfort in this, Wei ought I sterue in wanhope and distresse, i25o Farewell my life, my lust, and my gladnesse. Alas, why playnen men so in commune Of purveyance of God, or of fortune, T h a t yeueth him full oft in many a gise Well bette than hem self can deuise; Some man desireth to haue richesse T h a t cause is of her murdre or sicknesse, And some man wold out of his prison faine T h a t in his house, is of his meyne slaine. Infinite harmes beene in this mattere, mo W e wote not what thing we prayen here: W e faren as he that dronke is as a mouse: A dronken man woten well he hath an house, But he wot not which the right way thider, And to a dronken man the way is slider; A n d certes in this world so faren we: W e seken fast after felicite, But we go wrong full ofte truely: T h u s we may say all, and namely I, T h a t wenden, and had a great opinion, mo T h a t if I might scape fro prison, T h a n had I ben in ioye and parfite hele, There now I am exiled fro my wele, Sith that I may nat seen you, Emely, I nam but deed, there nys no remedy. f Upon that other side, Palamon, Whan that he wist Arcite was gon, Such sorow he maketh, that the great tour Resowned of his yelling and clamour; IS49 wanhope] wan hope F.

1253

a gise] agise F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book I But doom'd to drag my loathsom Life in Care, For my Reward, must end it in Despair. Fire, Water, Air, and Earth, and Force of Fates T h a t governs all, and Heav'n that all creates, Nor Art, nor Natures Hand can ease my Grief, Nothing but Death, the Wretches last Relief: Then farewel Youth, and all the Joys that dwell With Youth and Life, and Life it self farewell. 420

But why, alas! do mortal Men in vain Of Fortune, Fate, or Providence complain? God gives us what he knows our Wants require, And better Things than those which we desire: Some pray for Riches; Riches they obtain; But watch'd by Robbers, for their Wealth are slain: Some pray from Prison to be freed; and come When guilty of their Vows, to fall at home; Murder'd by those they trusted with their Life, A favour'd Servant, or a Bosom Wife. 430 Such dear-bought Blessings happen ev'ry Day, Because we know not for what Things to pray. Like drunken Sots about the Streets we roam; Well knows the Sot he has a certain Home; Yet knows not how to find th' uncertain Place, And blunders on, and staggers ev'ry Pace. Thus all seek Happiness; but few can find, For far the greater Part of Men are blind. This is my Case, who thought our utmost Good Was in one Word of Freedom understood: 440 T h e fatal Blessing came: From Prison free, I starve abroad, and lose the Sight of Emily. Thus Arcite; but if Arcite thus deplore His Suff'rings, Palamon yet suffers more. For when he knew his Rival freed and gone, He swells with Wrath; he makes outrageous Moan: He frets, he fumes, he stares, he stamps the Ground; T h e hollow Tow'r with Clamours rings around:

79

Poems,

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169J-1J00

T h e pure fetters on his shinnes grete i28o Were of his bitter salt teares wete. Alas (quoth he) Arcite, cosyn mine, Of all our strife, God wot, the frute is thine. T h o u walkest now in Thebes at large And of my wo, thou yeuest littell charge: T h o u maist, sith thou hast wisedom and manhed, Assemble all the folke of our kinrede, And make warre so sharpe in this countre That by some auenture, or by some treate T h o u maist haue her to lady and to wife, 1290 For whom I must nedes lese my life: For as by way of possibilité, Sithe thou art at thy large of prison fre, And art a Lord, great is thine aduantage, More than is myne, that sterue here in a cage; For I may wepe and wayle, whiles that I liue, With all the wo that prison may me yeue, And eke with paine that loue yeueth me also, That doubleth all my tourment and my wo: Therewith the fire of ielousie vp stert woo Within his brest, and hent him by the hert So woodly that he likely was to behold T h e boxe tree, or the assen deed and cold: Than said he, O cruell goddes, that gouerne This worlde with your word eterne, And written in the table of Athamant, Your parliament, and eterne graunt; What is mankind more unto you yholde Than is the shepe, that rouketh in the folde? For slain is man, right as another beest, 1310 And dwelleth eke in prison, and in arrest, And hath sicknesse, and great aduersite, And oft time giltlesse parde. What gouernance is in this prescience, That giltlesse turmenteth innocence, And encreaseth thus all my penaunce, 1294

here] her F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book I With briny Tears he bath'd his fetter'd Feet, And dropp'd all o'er with Agony of Sweat. 450 Alas! he cry'd, I Wretch in Prison pine, T o o happy Rival, while the Fruit is thine: Thou liv'st at large, thou draw'st thy Native Air, Pleas'd with thy Freedom, proud of my Despair: Thou may'st, since thou hast Youth and Courage join'd, A sweet Behaviour, and a solid Mind, Assemble ours, and all the Theban Race, To vindicate on Athens thy Disgrace. And after (by some Treaty made) possess Fair Emily, the Pledge of lasting Peace. 460 So thine shall be the beauteous Prize, while I Must languish in Despair, in Prison die. Thus all th' Advantage of the Strife is thine, Thy Portion double Joys, and double Sorrows mine. T h e Rage of Jealousie then fir'd his Soul, And his Face kindl'd like a burning Coal: Now cold Despair, succeeding in her stead, T o livid Paleness turns the glowing Red. His Blood scarce Liquid, creeps within his Veins, Like Water, which the freezing Wind constrains. 470 Then thus he said; Eternal Deities, Who rule the World with absolute Decrees, And write whatever Time shall bring to pass With Pens of Adamant, on Plates of Brass; What is the Race of Humane Kind your Care Beyond what all his Fellow-Creatures are? He with the rest is liable to Pain, And like the Sheep, his Brother-Beast, is slain. Cold, Hunger, Prisons, Ills without a Cure, All these he must, and guiltless oft, endure: «so Or does your Justice, Pow'r, or Prescience fail, When the Good suffer, and the Bad prevail? What worse to wretched Vertue could befall, If Fate, or giddy Fortune govern'd all? Nay, worse than other Beasts is our Estate;

81

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Poems,

1697-ijoo

That man is bounden to his obseruance, For God's sake to leten of his will, There as a beest may all his lustes fulfill: And whan a beest is deed, he hath no payne, ISM But after his death, man mote wepe and plain: Though in this world he haue care and wo, Without doute it may stonden so. The answer of this lete I to diuines, But well, I wote, in this world great pine is, Alas I se a serpent or a thefe, That many a true man hath do mischiefe, Gon at his large, and where him list may turn: But I mote ben in prison through Saturn, And eke through Juno jalous and eke wood, isao That hath stroyed well nigh all the blood Of Thebes, with his wast walles wide; And Venus sleeth me on that other side For ielousie and fear of him, Arcite. Now will I stinte of Palamon alite, And let him in his prison still dwell: And of Arcite forth woll I you tell. The sommer passeth, and the nights long Encreseth double wise the paines strong Both of the louer and of the prisoner, is4o I not which hath the wofuller mister: For shortly to say, this Palamon Perpetuell is damned to prison In chaines and feters to the deed; And Arcite is exiled on his heed For euermore as out of that countre, Ne neuermore shall his lady se. You louers aske I now this question, W h o hath the worse, Arcite, or Palamon?

That one may se his lady day by day, 1350 But in prison mote he dwell alway, That other where him list may ride or go, But sene his lady shall he neuer mo:

1383 lete]

F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book I Them, to pursue their Pleasures you create; We, bound by harder Laws, must curb our Will, And your Commands, not our Desires fulfil: Then when the Creature is unjustly slain, Yet after Death at least he feels no Pain; 490 But Man in Life surcharg'd with Woe before, Not freed when dead, is doom'd to suffer more. A Serpent shoots his Sting at unaware; An ambush'd Thief forelays a Traveller; T h e Man lies murder'd, while the Thief and Snake, One gains the Thickets, and one thrids the Brake. This let Divines decide; but well I know, Just, or unjust, I have my Share of Woe: Through Saturn seated in a luckless Place, And Juno's Wrath, that persecutes my Race; 500 Or Mars and Venus in a Quartile, move My Pangs of Jealousie for Arcite's Love. Let Palamon oppress'd in Bondage mourn, While to his exil'd Rival we return. By this the Sun declining from his Height, T h e Day had shortned to prolong the Night: T h e lengthen'd Night gave length of Misery Both to the Captive Lover, and the Free. For Palamon in endless Prison mourns, And Arcite forfeits Life if he returns. 510 T h e Banish'd never hopes his Love to see, Nor hopes the Captive Lord his Liberty: 'Tis hard to say who suffers greater Pains, One sees his Love, but cannot break his Chains: One free, and all his Motions uncontroul'd, Beholds whate'er he wou'd, but what he wou'd behold. Judge as you please, for I will haste to tell What Fortune to the banish'd Knight befel. When Arcite was to Thebes return'd again, T h e Loss of her he lov'd renew'd his Pain; 500 Quartile] Quartil F.

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84

Now deemeth as ye list, ye that can, For I woll tell forth my tale, as I began, f Whan that Arcite to Thebes comen was, Full ofte a day he swelte, and said alas, For sene his lady shall he neuer mo; And shortely to conclude all his wo, So mikell sorowe made neuer creature is6o That is or shal be while the world may dure: His slepe, his meat, his drinke is him byraft, That lean he waxeth, and drye as a shaft: His eyen hollow, and grisly to behold, His hewe pale, and salowe as asshen colde: And solitary he was, and euer alone, And wailing all the night, making mone; And if he heard song or instrament, Then would he wepe, he might not stent: So feble were his spirites, and so lowe, 1370 And chaunged so, that no man coude him know: His speech, ne his voice, though men it herde, As in his gyre, for all the world it ferde. Nought comly like to louers malady Of Hereos, but rather like many Engendred of humours melancholike, Beforne him fell fantastike: And shortely was turned all vp so doun Bothe habite and disposicion: Of him, this woful louer Arcite, i38o What shulde I all day of his wo endite? Whan he endured had a yere or two This cruel torment, and this paine and wo At Thebes in his countre, as I saide, Upon a night in slepe as he him laide, Him thought how that the winged Mercury Beforne him stode, and bad him be mery: His slepy yerde in hande he bare vpright, An hatte he wered upon his heares bright, Irayed was this god, as he toke kepe 1374

Hereos] heroes F.

1376 him] his F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book I 62o What could be worse, than never more to see His Life, his Soul, his charming Emily? He rav'd with all the Madness of Despair, He roar'd, he beat his Breast, he tore his Hair. Dry Sorrow in his stupid Eyes appears, For wanting Nourishment, he wanted Tears: His Eye-balls in their hollow Sockets sink, Bereft of Sleep; he loaths his Meat and Drink. He withers at his Heart, and looks as wan As the pale Spectre of a murder'd Man: 580 That Pale turns Yellow, and his Face receives T h e faded Hue of sapless Boxen Leaves: In solitary Groves he makes his Moan, Walks early out, and ever is alone: Nor mix'd in Mirth, in youthful Pleasure shares, But sighs when Songs and Instruments he hears: His Spirits are so low, his Voice is drown'd, j He hears as from afar, or in a Swound, > Like the deaf Murmurs of a distant Sound: ' Uncomb'd his Locks, and squalid his Attire, 540 Unlike the Trim of Love and gay Desire; But full of museful Mopings, which presage T h e loss of Reason, and conclude in Rage. This when he had endur'd a Year and more, Now wholly chang'd from what he was before, It happen'd once, that slumbring as he lay, He dreamt (his Dream began at Break of Day) That Hermes o'er his Head in Air appear'd, And with soft Words his drooping Spirits cheer'd: His Hat, adorn'd with Wings, disclos'd the God, 850 And in his Hand he bore the Sleep-compelling Rod: Such as he seem'd, when at his Sire's Command On Argus Head he laid the Snaky Wand; Arise, he said, to conqu'ring Athens go, There Fate appoints an End of all thy Woe. 535 alone:] — F.

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1390 As he was, whan Argus toke his slepe: And said him thus, T o Athens shalt thou wend, There is the shapen of thy wo an end. And with that word Arcite awoke and stert; Now truely how sore that me smert, Quod he: to Athens right now woll I fare, Ne for no drede of death shall I spare T o se my lady, that I loue and serue, In her presence recke I not to sterue. And with that word he caught a great mirror, 1400 And sawe that chaunged was all his colour, And saw his visage all in another kinde; And right anon it ran him in his mind, That sith his face was so disfigured Of malady, the which he had indured, He might well, if that he bare him low Liue in A thenes euermore vnknow, And sene his lady welnigh day by day. And right anon he chaunged his aray, And clad him as a poore labourer, 1410 And all alone (saue only a squier That knew his priuitie and all his caas, Which was disgised porely as he was) T o A thenes is he gon the next way, And to the court he went upon a day, And at the gate he profered his seruice, T o drugge and draw what men would deuise: And shortly of this matter for to sayne, He fell in office with a chamberlayne, The which was dwelling with Emely; 1420 For he was wise, and soon couth espye Of euery seruaunt which that serued here, Well couth he hewen wood, and water bere, For he was yong and mighty for the nones, And, therto he was strong and bigge of bones T o done that any wight gan him deuise: A yere or two he was in this seruice, 1394

truely] truly F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book I T h e Fright awaken'd Arcite with a Start, Against his Bosom bounc'd his heaving Heart; But soon he said, with scarce-recover'd Breath, A n d thither will I go, to meet my Death, Sure to be slain; but Death is my Desire, Since in Emilia's Sight I shall expire. By chance he spy'd a Mirrour while he spoke, And gazing there beheld his alter'd Look; Wondring, he saw his Features and his Hue So much were chang'd, that scarce himself he knew. A sudden Thought then starting in his Mind, Since I in Arcite cannot Arcite find, T h e World may search in vain with all their Eyes, But never penetrate through this Disguise. Thanks to the Change which Grief and Sickness give, In low Estate I may securely live, A n d see unknown my Mistress Day by Day: He said; and cloth'd himself in course Array; A lab'ring Hind in shew: T h e n forth he went, And to th' Athenian Tow'rs his Journey bent: One Squire attended in the same Disguise, Made conscious of his Master's Enterprize. Arriv'd at Athens, soon he came to Court, Unknown, unquestion'd in that thick Resort; Proff'ring for Hire his Service at the Gate, T o drudge, draw Water, and to run or wait. So fair befel him, that for little Gain He serv'd at first Emilia's Chamberlain; And watchful all Advantages to spy, Was still at Hand, and in his Master's Eye; A n d as his Bones were big, and Sinews strong, Refus'd no T o i l that could to Slaves belong; But from deep Wells with Engines Water drew, A n d us'd his Noble Hands the Wood to hew. He pass'd a Year at least attending thus O n Emily, and call'd Philostratus. But never was there Man of his Degree

87

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Page of the chamber of Emelye the bright, And Philostrate he saied that he hight: But halfe so welbeloued man as he 1430 Ne was there none in court of his degre He was so gentill of condition, T h a t through all the court was his renon: T h e i said that it were a charitie T h a t Theseus wold enhauncen his degre, And put him in a wurshipfull seruice, There as he might his vertue exercise: And thus within a while his name is sprong Both of his dedes, and of his good tong; T h a t Theseus hath taken him so nere, 1440 T h a t of his chamber he made him squiere; And yaue him gold to maintain his degre; And eke men brought him out of his contre Fro yere to yere full priuely his rent; But honestly and slyly he it spent, That no man wondered how he it had, And thre yere in this wise his life he lade; And bare him so in peace and eke in were, There was no man that Theseus hath der. And in this blisse let I now Arcite, 1450 And speke I woll oi Palamon alite; In darknesse horrible and strong prison This seuen yere hath sitten this Palamon, Forpined, what for wo and distresse; Who feleth double sore and heuinesse But Palamon? that loue distraineth so T h a t wode out of his wit he goeth for wo, And eke therto he is a prisonere Perpetuel, and not only for a yere. Who could rime in English properly urn His martyrdome? forsoth it am nat I: Therfore I passe as lightly as I may. It befel that in the seuenth yere in May, T h e third night, as olde bokes sayne, (That all this story tellen more playne)

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book

II

So much esteem'd, so well belov'd as he. So gentle of Condition was he known, T h a t through the Court his Courtesie was blown: All think him worthy of a greater Place, And recommend him to the Royal Grace; That exercis'd within a higher Sphere, His Vertues more conspicuous might appear. Thus by the general Voice was Arcite prais'd, «00 And by Great Theseus to high Favour rais'd; Among his Menial Servants first enroll'd, And largely entertain'd with Sums of Gold: Besides what secretly from Thebes was sent, Of his own Income, and his Annual Rent. This well employ'd, he purchas'd Friends and Fame, But cautiously conceal'd from whence it came. T h u s for three Years he liv'd with large Increase, In Arms of Honour, and Esteem in Peace; T o Theseus Person he was ever near, eio A n d Theseus for his Vertues held him dear. The End of the First Book.

B O O K II.

W

Arcite lives in Bliss, the Story turns Where hopeless Palamon in Prison mourns. For six long Years immur'd, the captive Knight Had dragg'd his Chains, and scarcely seen the Light: Lost Liberty, and Love at once he bore; His Prison pain'd him much, his Passion more: Nor dares he hope his Fetters to remove, Nor ever wishes to be free from Love. HILE

But when the sixth revolving Year was run, 10 A n d May within the Twins receiv'd the Sun, xo Twins] Twins F.

89

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book

II

So much esteem'd, so well belov'd as he. So gentle of Condition was he known, T h a t through the Court his Courtesie was blown: All think him worthy of a greater Place, And recommend him to the Royal Grace; That exercis'd within a higher Sphere, His Vertues more conspicuous might appear. Thus by the general Voice was Arcite prais'd, «00 And by Great Theseus to high Favour rais'd; Among his Menial Servants first enroll'd, And largely entertain'd with Sums of Gold: Besides what secretly from Thebes was sent, Of his own Income, and his Annual Rent. This well employ'd, he purchas'd Friends and Fame, But cautiously conceal'd from whence it came. T h u s for three Years he liv'd with large Increase, In Arms of Honour, and Esteem in Peace; T o Theseus Person he was ever near, eio A n d Theseus for his Vertues held him dear. The End of the First Book.

B O O K II.

W

Arcite lives in Bliss, the Story turns Where hopeless Palamon in Prison mourns. For six long Years immur'd, the captive Knight Had dragg'd his Chains, and scarcely seen the Light: Lost Liberty, and Love at once he bore; His Prison pain'd him much, his Passion more: Nor dares he hope his Fetters to remove, Nor ever wishes to be free from Love. HILE

But when the sixth revolving Year was run, 10 A n d May within the Twins receiv'd the Sun, xo Twins] Twins F.

89

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Were it by aduenture or by destine, (As when a thing is shapen, it shal be) That soon after midnight Palamon By helping of a frende brake his prison, And fleeth the cite as fast as he may go, 1470 For he hath yeuen the gailer drinke so Of a clarrie, made of certain wine With Narcotise and Opie, of Thebes fine, That all the night though men wold him shake, T h e gailer slept, he might not awake; And thus he fleeth as fast as he maie. The night was short, and fast by the daie, That nedes cost he mote himselfe hide, And to a groue fast there beside, With dredfull foote than stalketh Palamon, M80 For shortly this was his opinion, That in the groue he would him hide al daie, And in the night than wold he take his waie T o Thebes ward his friendes for to prie On Theseus to helpe him to warrie: And shortly, either he would lese his life, Or winne Emelye vnto his wife: This is the effect, and his intent plain. Now will I tourne to Arcite again, That little wist how nie was his care, 1490 Till that fortune had brought him in her snare: The merie larke, messanger of the daie Saleweth in her song the morrow graie, And firie Phebus riseth vp so bright, That all the orisont laugheth of the sight; And with his stremes drieth in the greues The siluer droppes hanging in the leues. And Arcite, that in the court reall With Theseus is squier principall, Is risen, and looketh on the merie daie, 1M0 And for to doen his obseruances to Maie, Remembring on the poinct of his Desire, He on his courser startlyng as the fire, 1474 might] nugh F. 1498 Theseus is] Theseus, his F.

1492 song] song on F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II Were it by Chance, or forceful Destiny, Which forms in Causes first whate'er shall be, Assisted by a Friend one Moonless Night, This Palamon from Prison took his Flight: A pleasant Beverage he prepar'd before Of Wine and Honey mix'd, with added Store Of Opium; to his Keeper this he brought, Who swallow'd unaware the sleepy Draught, And snor'd secure till Morn, his Senses bound In Slumber, and in long Oblivion drown'd. Short was the Night, and careful Palamon Sought the next Covert e'er the Rising Sun. A thick spread Forest near the City lay, \ T o this with lengthen'd Strides he took his way, > (For far he cou'd not fly, and fear'd the Day:) / Safe from Pursuit, he meant to shun the Light, \ Till the brown Shadows of the friendly Night > T o Thebes might favour his intended Flight: ) When to his Country come, his next Design Was all the Theban Race in Arms to join, And war on Theseus, till he lost his Life, Or won the Beauteous Emily to Wife. Thus while his Thoughts the lingring Day beguile, T o gentle Arcite let us turn our Style; Who little dreamt how nigh he was to Care, Till treacherous Fortune caught him in the Snare. The Morning-Lark, the Messenger of Day, Saluted in her Song the Morning gray; And soon the Sun arose with Beams so bright, That all th* Horizon laugh'd to see the joyous Sight; He with his tepid Rays the Rose renews, And licks the dropping Leaves, and dries the Dews; When Arcite left his Bed, resolv'd to pay Observance to the Month of merry May: Forth on his fiery Steed betimes he rode, 17

Opium] opium F.

28 Flight:] — F.

91

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Is riden into the fieldes him to plaie Out of the court, were it a mile or tweie, A n d to the groue of whyche I you tolde, By aduenture, his way he gan holde; T o maken him a garlonde of the greues, Were it of Wodbind or Hauthorn leues, A n d loud he song ayenst the Sonne shene: 1510 Male, with all thy floures and thy grene, Welcome be thou, faire freshe Maie} I hope that I some grene get maie: A n d from his courser, with a lustie hert Into the groue full hastily he stert, A n d in a pathe he romed vp and doun. There, as by aduenture this Paiamoti Was in a bushe, that no man might hym se, For sore afraied of death was he: Nothing ne knew he that it was Arcite, 1520 God wote he would haue trowed full lite, Both soth is saied, go sithen many yeres T h a t field hath jyen, and wodde hath eres, It is full fair a man to beare him euin, For all daie men mete at vnset steuin: Full little wote Arcite of his felawe, T h a t was so nigh to herken of his sa we: For in the bushe sitteth he now full still. W h e n that Arcite had romed all his fill, A n d songen all the roundell lustely, 1521

sithen] sighen F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II T h a t scarcely prints the T u r f on which he trod: A t ease he seem'd, and pransing o'er the Plains, T u r n ' d only to the Grove his Horses Reins, T h e Grove I nam'd before; and lighting there, A Woodbind Garland sought to crown his Hair; T h e n turn'd his Face against the rising Day, A n d rais'd his Voice to welcom in the May. For thee, sweet Month, the Groves green Liv'ries wear: If not the first, the fairest of the Year: For thee the Graces lead the dancing Hours, A n d Nature's ready Pencil paints the Flow'rs: W h e n thy short Reign is past, the Fev'rish Sun T h e sultry Tropick fears, and moves more slowly on. So may thy tender Blossoms fear no Blite, N o r Goats with venom'd Teeth thy Tendrils bite, As thou shalt guide my wandring Feet to find T h e fragrant Greens I seek, my Brows to bind. His Vows address'd, within the Grove he stray'd, \ T i l l Fate, or Fortune, near the Place convey'd > His Steps where secret Palamon was laid. ) Full little thought of him the gentle Knight, W h o flying Death had there conceal'd his Flight, In Brakes and Brambles hid, and shunning Mortal Sight. A n d less he knew him for his hated Foe, But fear'd him as a Man he did not know. But as it has been said of ancient Years, T h a t Fields are full of Eyes, and Woods have Ears; For this the Wise are ever on their Guard, For, Unforeseen, they say, is unprepar'd. Uncautious Arcite thought himself alone, A n d less than all suspected Palamon, W h o listning heard him, while he search'd the Grove, A n d loudly sung his Roundelay of Love: 78

Love:]

F.

93

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i89o Into a studie he fell sodenly; As doen these louers in their queint gires, Now in the crop, and now doun in the brires, Now vp, now doune, as boket in a well; Right as the Fridaie. sothly for to tell, Now it raineth, now it shineth fast: Right so gan gerie Venus ouercast T h e hartes of her folke right as her daie, As gerifull, right so chaungeth she araie; Selde is the Friday all the weke alike. 1540 When that Arcite had song, he gan to sike And set him doun withouten any more, Alas (quoth he) the daie that I was bore! How long, Juno, with thy cruelte Wilt thou warren Thebes the citee? Alas ibrought is to confusion T h e blood reall of Cadmus and Amphion: Of Cadmus, which was the first man That Thebes builte, or first the toun began, And of the citee first was crouned king, isso Of his linage am I, and of his spring By very line as of the stocke reall, And now I am so caitiffe and so thrall; That he that is my mortall enemie I serue him as his squire poorely, And yet doeth me Juno well more shame. For I dare nat be knowe myne owne name, But there, as I was wont to hight Arcite, Now hight I Philostrat nat worth a mite: Alas, thou fell Mars! alas, thou fell Juno, isso Thus hath your ire our linage all for do, Saue only me, and wretched Palamon, That Theseus martireth in prison; And ouer all this, to slean me vtterly, Loue hath his firie dart so brennyngly Isticked through my true carefull hert, That shapen was my death erst my shert; Ye slean me with your iyen Emelie, Ye been the cause wherefore I die,

1541 Asl II F.

1566 death] dearh F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II But on the sudden stopp'd, and silent stood, so (As Lovers often muse, and change their Mood;) Now high as Heav'n, and then as low as Hell; Now up, now down, as Buckets in a Well: For Venus, like her Day, will change her Cheer, And seldom shall we see a Friday clear. Thus Arcite having sung, with alter'd Hue Sunk on the Ground, and from his Bosom drew A desp'rate Sigh, accusing Heav'n and Fate, And angry Juno's unrelenting Hate. Curs'd be the Day when first I did appear; so Let it be blotted from the Calendar, Lest it pollute the Month, and poison all the Year. Still will the jealous Queen pursue our Race? Cadmus is dead, the Theban City was: Yet ceases not her Hate: For all who come From Cadmus are involv'd in Cadmus Doom. I suffer for my Blood: Unjust Decree! That punishes another's Crime on me. In mean Estate I serve my mortal Foe, T h e Man who caus'd my Countrys Overthrow. 100 This is not all; for Juno, to my shame, "j Has forc'd me to forsake my former Name; > Arcite I was, Philostratus I am. ) That Side of Heav'n is all my Enemy: Mars ruin'd Thebes; his Mother ruin'd me. Of all the Royal Race remains but one Beside my self, th' unhappy Palamon, Whom Theseus holds in Bonds, and will not free; Without a Crime, except his Kin to me. Yet these, and all the rest I cou'd endure; no But Love's a Malady without a Cure: Fierce Love has pierc'd me with his fiery Dart, He fries within, and hisses at my Heart. Your Eyes, fair Emily, my Fate pursue; 93 was]

was F.

95

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Of all the remenaunt of mine other care 1570 Ne set I nat the mountaunce of a Tare; So that I cou'd do ought to your pleasaunce: And with that word he fel down in a traunce A long time, and afterward he vp stert. This Palamon thought that through his hart He felt a colde sworde sodenly glide, For ire he quoke, no lenger could he abide, And when that he had heard Arcite's tale, As he were wode, with face dedde and pale He stert him vp out of the bushes thicke, is» And saied, Arcite, false traitour wicke, Now art thou hent, that louest my ladie so For whom that I haue this pain and wo, And art my blood, and to my counsell sworn, As I haue full oft tolde thee here beforn: And hast beiaped here duke Theseus, And falsely hast chaunged thy name thus, I will be dedde, or els thou shalt die. Thou shalt not loue my ladie Emelie, But I woll loue her only and no mo, 1590 For I am Palamon thy mortall fo. Though that I haue no weapen in this place, But out of prison am astert by grace, I dred nat that either thou shalt die Or thou ne shalt nat louen Emelye: Chese which thou wilt, or thou shalt not astert. This Arcite, with full dispitous hert When he hym knewe, and had his tale herd, As fers as a Lion, pulled out his sweard, And saied, By God, that sitteth aboue 1600 Ne wer that thou art sicke, and wod for loue, And eke that thou no weapen hast in this place, T h o u shouldest neuer out of this groue pace, T h a t thou ne shouldest dien of mine honde: For I defie the suertie and the bonde Which that thou saist that I haue made to thee, What very foole, thinke wel that loue is free? 1595 Chese] These F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book

II

I suffer f o r t h e rest, I die for you. O f such a Goddess n o T i m e leaves R e c o r d , W h o b u r n ' d t h e T e m p l e w h e r e she was a d o r ' d : A n d let it b u r n , I never will complain, Pleas'd with m y Suff'rings, if you knew m y P a i n . A t t h i s a s i c k l y Q u a l m h i s H e a r t assail'd, 120 H i s E a r s r i n g i n w a r d , a n d h i s S e n s e s f a i l ' d . N o W o r d miss'd

Palamon

of all h e spoke,

B u t s o o n t o d e a d l y P a l e h e c h a n g ' d his L o o k : H e t r e m b l ' d ev'ry L i m b , a n d felt a Smart, A s i f c o l d S t e e l h a d g l i d e d t h r o u g h his H e a r t ; N o r l o n g e r s t a i d , b u t s t a r t i n g f r o m his P l a c e , D i s c o v e r ' d stood, a n d shew'd his hostile F a c e : False T r a y tor

Arcite, T r a y t o r t o t h y B l o o d ,

B o u n d b y thy sacred O a t h to seek m y G o o d , N o w art thou found forsworn, for

Emily;

wo A n d d a r ' s t a t t e m p t h e r L o v e , f o r w h o m I d i e . So hast t h o u cheated

Theseus w i t h a W i l e ,

Against thy Vow, returning to beguile U n d e r a b o r r o w ' d N a m e : As false to m e , S o f a l s e t h o u a r t t o h i m w h o set t h e e f r e e : B u t rest assur'd, that e i t h e r t h o u shalt die, O r else r e n o u n c e thy C l a i m i n

Emily:

F o r t h o u g h u n a r m ' d I a m , a n d (freed by C h a n c e ) A m here without m y Sword, or pointed L a n c e ; H o p e n o t , b a s e M a n , u n q u e s t i o n ' d h e n c e t o go, 140 F o r I a m Arcite,

Palamon

thy m o r t a l Foe.

w h o h e a r d his T a l e , a n d k n e w t h e M a n ,

H i s Sword unsheath'd, a n d fiercely thus b e g a n : N o w by the Gods, who govern Heav'n above, W e r t thou not weak with Hunger, mad with Love, T h a t W o r d h a d b e e n t h y last, o r i n t h i s G r o v e T h i s H a n d should force thee to renounce thy Love. T h e S u r e t y w h i c h I gave thee, I defie;

\

Fool, n o t to k n o w that L o v e endures n o T i e , > And

Jove b u t l a u g h s a t L o v e r s P e r j u r y .

)

97

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And I will loue her maugre all thy might: But for asmoch as thou art a knight, And wilnest to daren here by battaile, leio Haue here mi truth, to morrow I will not fail Without wittyng of any other wight, That here I will be founden as a knight, And bringen harneis right inough for thee, And chese the best, and leaue the worst for me, And meate and drinke this night will I bring, Inough for thee, and clothes for thy bedding; And if so be that thou my ladie win, And slea me in this wodde there I am in, Thou maiest well haue thy ladie as for me. 1020 This Palamon answered, I grant it thee. And thus thei been departed till a morrow, When ech of hem had laied his faith to borow. O Cupide, out of all charitee, O reigne, that wouldest haue no felow with thee, Full soth is saied, that loue ne lordship Woll nat his thankes haue any feliship: We finde that of Arcite and Palamon. Arcite is ridden anon into the toun, And on the morow or it were daie light, 1830 Full priuely twoo harneis had he dight, Bothe sufficient and mete to darreigne The battail in the field betwixt hem tweine; And on his horse, alone as he was borne, He carrieth all his harneis him beforne, And in the groue, at time and place iset, That Arcite and this Palamon been met, T o changen gan the colour in her face, Right as the hunter in the royume of Trace That standeth at a gappe, with a speare is« When hunted is the lion or the beare; And hereth him rushing in the leues, And breaketh the bowes in the greues, And thinketh, here cometh my mortal enemy, Without faile he must be dede, or I:

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II 1» Know I will serve the Fair in thy despight; But since thou art my Kinsman, and a Knight, Here, have my Faith, to morrow in this Grove Our Arms shall plead the Titles of our Love: And Heav'n so help my Right, as I alone Will come, and keep the Cause and Quarrel both unknown; With Arms of Proof both for my self and thee; Chuse thou the best, and leave the worst to me. And, that at better ease, thou maist abide, Bedding and Clothes I will this Night provide, im And needful Sustenance, that thou maist be A Conquest better won, and worthy me. His Promise Palamon accepts; but pray'd, T o keep it better than the first he made. Thus fair they parted till the Morrows Dawn, For each had laid his plighted Faith to pawn. Oh Love I Thou sternly dost thy Pow'r maintain, } And wilt not bear a Rival in thy Reign, > Tyrants and thou all Fellowship disdain. ) This was in Arcite prov'd, and Palamon, 170 Both in Despair, yet each would love alone. Arcite return'd, and, as in Honour ty'd, His Foe with Bedding, and with Food supply'd; Then, e'er the Day, two Suits of Armour sought, Which born before him on his Steed he brought: Both were of shining Steel, and wrought so pure, As might the Strokes of two such Arms endure. Now, at the Time, and in th' appointed Place, T h e Challenger, and Challeng'd, Face to Face, Approach; each other from afar they knew, wo And from afar their Hatred chang'd their Hue. So stands the Thracian Heardsman with his Spear, Full in the Gap, and hopes the hunted Bear, And hears him rustling in the Wood, and sees His Course at Distance by the bending Trees; And thinks, Here comes my mortal Enemy, And either he must fall in Fight, or I:

99

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For either I mote slea him at the gap, Or he mote slea me, if me mishap. So ferden thei, in chaunging of her hewe, As far as eueriche of other knewe; There was no good daie, ne no saluing, 16S0 But streight without word or rehersing Eueriche of hem helped for to arme other As friendly as he were his own brother; And after that, with sharpe speares strong T h e i foinen eche at other wonder long: T h o u mightest wenen, that this Palamon In his fighting were a wodde Lion, And as a cruel T i g r e was Arcite, As wild Bores gan they fight and smite, T h a t frothen white as fome for ire woode; 1660 V p to the ancle foughten they in her bloode. And in this wise I let hem fighting dwell, As foorth I woll of Theseus you tell: T h e destinie, and the minister generall, T h a t executeth in the worlde ouer all T h e purueyance that God hath said beforne, So strong it is, that though the world had swome T h e contrary of thing be ye and naie, Yet sometime it sholl fall on a daie T h a t fell neuer yet in a thousand yere: i67o For certainly our appetites here, Be it of warre, peace, hate or loue, All is ruled by the sight aboue; T h i s meane I now by mightie Theseus T h a t for to hunt is so desirous,

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II This while he thinks, he lifts aloft his Dart; \ A gen'rous Chilness seizes ev'ry Part; > T h e Veins pour back the Blood, and fortifie the Heart. ) lso

T h u s pale they meet; their Eyes with Fury burn; None greets; for none the Greeting will return: But in dumb Surliness, each arm'd with Care His Foe profest, as Brother of the War: T h e n both, no Moment lost, at once advance Against each other, arm'd with Sword and Lance: They lash, they foin, they pass, they strive to bore Their Corslets, and the thinnest Parts explore. Thus two long Hours in equal Arms they stood, And wounded, wound; till both were bath'd in Blood; 200 And not a Foot of Ground had either got, As if the World depended on the Spot. Fell Arcite like an angry Tyger far'd, And like a Lion Palamon appear'd: Or as two Boars whom Love to Battel draws, With rising Bristles, and with froathy Jaws, Their adverse Breasts with Tusks oblique they wound; With Grunts and Groans the Forest rings around. So fought the Knights, and fighting must abide, Till Fate an Umpire sends their Diff'rence to decide. 210 T h e Pow'r that ministers to God's Decrees, And executes on Earth what Heav'n foresees, Call'd Providence, or Chance, or fatal Sway, Comes with resistless Force, and finds or makes her Way. Nor Kings, nor Nations, nor united Pow'r One Moment can retard th' appointed Hour. And some one Day, some wondrous Chance appears, Which happen'd not in Centuries of Years: For sure, whate'er we Mortals hate or love, Or hope, or fear, depends on Pow'rs above; 220 They move our Appetites to Good or 111, And by Foresight necessitate the Will. In Theseus this appears; whose youthful Joy

101

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And namely at the great Hart in Maie, That in his bed there daweth him day That he nys clad, and ready for to ride With hunt and home, and houndes him beside, For in his hunting hath he soche delit, i«8o That it is all his ioie and appetite T o been himselfe the greate hartes bane; For after Mars he serueth now Diane: Clere was the day, as I haue tolde or this, And Theseus with all ioy and blis, With his Ipolita, the faire quene, And Emely, iclothen all in grene, An hunting been thei ridden rially, And to the groue, that stood there fast by, In which ther was an Hart, as men him told, 1690 Duke Theseus the streight way hath holde, And to the land he rideth him full right, For thither was the hart wont to haue his flight, And ouer a broke, and so foorth on his weie This duke wol haue a cours at him or twey With houndes, soch as him list commaunde: And when the duke was comen into the launde, Under the soone he looked, and that anon He was ware of Arcite and Palamon, That foughten breme as it were bulles two, 1700 T h e bright swordes wenten to and fro So hidiously, that with the lest stroke It semed that it would haue fell en an oke: But what thei weren nothing he ne wote, This Duke with his sporrs his courser smote, And at a start he was betwixt hem two, And pulled out his sworde, and cried, ho: No more, on pain of lesing your hedde, By mightie Mars, he shall anone be dedde That smiteth any stroke that I may seen, 1710 But telleth me what mister men ye been 1689 him] hun F.

1701

hidiously] hodiously F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II Was Beasts of Chase in Forests to destroy; This gentle Knight, inspir'd by jolly May, "j Forsook his easie Couch at early Day, > And to the Wood and Wilds pursu'd his Way. ) Beside him rode Hippolita the Queen, And Emily attir'd in lively Green: With Horns, and Hounds, and all the tuneful Cry, 380 T o hunt a Royal Hart within the Covert nigh: And as he follow'd Mars before, so now He serves the Goddess of the Silver Bow. The Way that Theseus took was to the Wood Where the two Knights in cruel Battel stood: The Laund on which they fought, th' appointed Place In which th' uncoupl'd Hounds began the Chace. Thither forth-right he rode to rowse the Prey, That shaded by the Fern in Harbour lay; And thence dislodg'd, was wont to leave the Wood, 84o For open Fields, and cross the Crystal Flood. Approach'd, and looking underneath the Sun, He saw proud Arcite, and fierce Palamon, In mortal Battel doubling Blow on Blow: Like Lightning flam'd their Fauchions to and fro, And shot a dreadful Gleam; so strong they strook, There seem'd less Force requir'd to fell an Oak: He gaz'd with Wonder on their equal Might, Look'd eager on, but knew not either Knight: Resolv'd to learn, he spurr'd his fiery Steed 2so With goring Rowels, to provoke his Speed. The Minute ended that began the Race, So soon he was betwixt 'em on the Place; And with his Sword unsheath'd, on pain of Life Commands both Combatants to cease their Strife: Then with imperious Tone pursues his Threat; What are you? Why in Arms together met? How dares your Pride presume against my Laws, 843 on Blow:]

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That been so hardie for to fighten here Without judge or other officere, As though it were in listes rially? This Palamon answered hastely, And said, Sir, what nedeth words mo? We haue the death deserued bothe two, Two woful wretches been we and caitiues, That been encombred of our own liues; And as thou art a rightful lorde and judge 1720 Ne yeue us neither mercie ne refuge, But slea me first for sainct charitee, But slea my felowe as well as me: Or slea him first, for though thou knowe it lite, This is thy mortall foe, this is Arcite, That fro thy land is banished on his hedde, For which he hath deserued to be dedde; For this is he that came unto thy yate And saied that he hight Philostrate, Thus hath he iaped full many a yere 1730 And thou hast made him thy chiefe squiere: And this is he that loueth Emelye. For sith the daie is come that I shall die, I make plainly my confession, I am thilke wofull Palamon That hath thy prison broke wickedly, I am thy mortall foe, and he am I That loueth so hote Emelye the bright, That I woll die here present in her sight;

Fables: Paiamoti and Arcite, Book II As in a listed Field to fight your Cause? Unask'd the Royal Grant; no Marshal by, mo As Knightly Rites require; nor Judge to try? T h e n Palamon, with scarce recover'd Breath, T h u s hasty spoke; W e both deserve the Death, A n d both wou'd die; for look the World around, A Pair so wretched is not to be found. O u r Life's a Load; encumber'd with the Charge, W e long to set th' imprison'd Soul at large. Now as thou art a Sovereign Judge, decree \ T h e rightful Doom of Death to him and me, > Let neither find thy Grace; for Grace is Cruelty. / 2ro Me first, O kill me first; and cure my Woe: T h e n sheath the Sword of Justice on my Foe: O r kill him first; for when his Name is heard, He foremost will receive his due Reward. Arcite of Thebes is he; thy mortal Foe, O n whom thy Grace did Liberty bestow, But first contracted, that if ever found By Day or Night upon th' Athenian Ground, His Head should pay the Forfeit: See return'd T h e perjur'd Knight, his Oath and Honour scorn'd. 280 For this is he, who with a borrow'd Name And profer'd Service, to thy Palace came, Now call'd Philostratus: retain'd by thee,} A Traytor trusted, and in high Degree, > Aspiring to the Bed of beauteous Emily. ) My Part remains: From Thebes my Birth I own, A n d call my self th' unhappy Palamon. T h i n k me not like that Man; since no Disgrace Can force me to renounce the Honour of my Race. Know me for what I am: I broke thy Chain, 290 Nor promis'd I thy Pris'ner to remain: T h e Love of Liberty with Life is giv'n, A n d Life it self th' inferiour Gift of Heaven. T h u s without Crime I fled; but farther know, I with this Arcite am thy mortal Foe:

105

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Therefore I aske death and my iewise, 1740 But slea my felowe in the same wise; For both we haue deserued to be slain. This worthy duke answered anon again And saied, this is a short conclusion, Your owne mouth, by your confession Hath damned you, and I woll it recorde, It nedeth not to pine you with a corde: Ye shall be dedde by mighty Mars the redde. The quene anon for very womanhedde Gan for to wepe and so did Emelye, 1750 And all the ladies in the companie; Great pitie was it, as thought hem all, That euer soch a chaunce was befall, For gentilmen thei were of great estate, And nothing but for loue was this debate And saw her bloody woundes wide and sore, And all criden both lesse and more: Haue mercie, lord, upon us wemen all, And on her bare knees doune thei fall; And would haue kist his fete there he stode: 1748 womanhedde] woman hedde F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II Then give me Death, since I thy Life pursue, For Safeguard of thy self, Death is my Due. More would'st thou know? I love bright Emily, And for her Sake, and in her Sight will die: But kill my Rival too; for he no less ) soo Deserves; and I thy righteous Doom will bless, > Assur'd that what I lose, he never shall possess. / T o this reply'd the stern Athenian Prince, And sow'rly smil'd, In owning your Offence You judge your self; and I but keep Record In place of Law, while you pronounce the Word. Take your Desert, the Death you have decreed; I seal your Doom, and ratifie the Deed. By Mars, the Patron of my Arms, you die. He said; dumb Sorrow seiz'd the Standers by. 310 The Queen above the rest, by Nature Good, (The Pattern form'd of perfect Womanhood) For tender Pity wept: When she began, Through the bright Quire th' infectious Vertue ran. All dropp'd their Tears, ev'n the contended Maid; And thus among themselves they softly said: What Eyes can suffer this unworthy Sight? T w o Youths of Royal Blood, renown'd in Fight, T h e Mastership of Heav'n in Face and Mind, And Lovers, far beyond their faithless Kind; 320 See their wide streaming Wounds; they neither came From Pride of Empire, nor desire of Fame: Kings fight for Kingdoms, Madmen for Applause; But love for Love alone; that crowns the Lover's Cause. This Thought, which ever bribes the beauteous Kind, Such Pity wrought in ev'ry Ladies Mind, They left their Steeds, and prostrate on the Place, From the fierce King, implor'd th' Offenders Grace. 303 smil'd] smild F. 316 Sight?]

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1760 Till at the last, aslaked was his mode, For pitie renneth sone in gentle hert, And though he first for ire quoke and stert, He hath concluded shortly in a clause: The Trepasses of hem both, and eke the cause And although his ire her gilt accused, Yet in his reason he hem both excused: As thus: he thought well that euery man Woll helpe himselfe in loue all that he can, And eke deliuer himself out of prison; 1770 And eke his heart had compassion Of wemen, for they wepen euer in one, And in his gentle hert he thought anone And soft vnto himselfe he saied, fie Upon a lorde that woll haue no mercie, But be a Lion both in worde and deede T o hem that been in repentance and dreede, As well as to a proud dispitous man That will maintain that he first began: That lorde hath little of discrecion i78o That in soch case can no diffinicion, But waieth pride and humblenesse after one; And shortly when his ire was thus agone, He gan to looken up with iyen light, And spake these wordes all one hight: T h e God of loue, ah benedicite! How mighty, and how great a lorde is he! Again his might there gaineth no obstacles, He may be cleaped a God for his miracles: For he can maken at his owne gise 1790 Of euerich heart, as him list deuise. Loe here this Arcite, and this Palamon, That quietly were out of my prison gon, And might haue liued in Thebes rially, And knowen I am her mortall enemie, And that her death is in my power also, And yet hath loue maugre her iyen two, Brought hem hither both for to die.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II He paus'd a while, stood silent in his Mood, (For yet, his Rage was boiling in his Blood) 330 But soon his tender Mind th' Impression felt, (As softest Metals are not slow to melt And Pity soonest runs in gentle Minds:) Then reasons with himself; and first he finds His Passion cast a Mist before his Sense, And either made, or magnifi'd th' Offence. Offence! of what? to whom? Who judg'd the Cause? The Pris'ner freed himself by Natures Laws: Born free, he sought his Right: The Man he freed Was perjur'd, but his Love excus'd the Deed: a« Thus pond'ring, he look'd under with his Eyes, And saw the Womens Tears, and heard their Cries; Which mov'd Compassion more: He shook his Head, And softly sighing to himself, he said, Curse on th' unpard'ning Prince, whom Tears can draw T o no Remorse; who rules by Lions Law; And deaf to Pray'rs, by no Submission bow'd, Rends all alike; the Penitent, and Proud: At this, with Look serene, he rais'd his Head, Reason resum'd her Place, and Passion fled: 350 Then thus aloud he spoke: T h e Pow'r of Love, In Earth, and Seas, and Air, and Heav'n above, Rules, unresisted, with an awful Nod; By daily Miracles declar'd a God: He blinds the Wise, gives Eye-sight to the Blind; And moulds and stamps anew the Lover's Mind. Behold that Arcite, and this Palamon, Freed from my Fetters, and in Safety gone, What hinder'd either in their Native Soil At ease to reap the Harvest of their Toil? 360 But Love, their Lord, did otherwise ordain, And brought 'em in their own despite again, T o suffer Death deserv'd; for well they know, 'Tis in my Pow'r, and I their deadly Foe;

109

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Now loketh, is not this a great follie? Who may be a fool, but if he loue, lsoo Behold for Goddes sake, that sitteth aboue, See how they blede; be they nat wel araied? Thus hath her lord, the god of loue, hem paied Her wager, and her fees for her seruice, And yet thei wenen to be full wise That serue loue, for ought that may befall. But yet is this the best game of all, That she, for whom they haue this jolitie, Cen hem therefore as moch thanke as me: She wote no more of all this hote fare «10 By God, than wote a Cokowe or an Hare; But all mote been assaied hote and cold. A man mote been a foole, other young or old, I wotte it by my selfe full yore agone; For in my time a seruant was I one, And therefore sith I knowe of loues pain I wote how sore it can a man distrain; As he that oft hath be caught in her laas I you foryeue all hooly this trespass At the request of the quene, that kneleth here, 1820 And eke of Emelye, my sister dere. And ye shall both anon unto me swere That ye shall neuer more my countre dere; Ne make warre upon me night ne daie, But been my friends in all that ye maie. I you foryeue this trespas euery dele, And thei him sware his asking faire and wele; And him of lordship and of mercie praied, And he hem graunted grace, and thus he saied: T o speake of worthie linage and richesse, 18S0 Though that she were a quene or a princesse, like of you both is worthy doubtles T o wed when time is; but netheles I speake, as for my sister Emelye, For whom ye haue this strief and ielousy, Ye wote your selfe, she maie not wedde two At ones, though ye fighten euer mo; 1826 him] hem F.

Fables: Paiamoti and Arcite, Book II The Proverb holds, That to be wise and love, Is hardly granted to the Gods above. See how the Madmen bleed: Behold the Gains With which their Master, Love, rewards their Pains: For sev'n long Years, on Duty ev'ry Day, Lo their Obedience, and their Monarch's Pay: 870 Yet, as in Duty bound, they serve him on, And ask the Fools, they think it wisely done: Nor Ease, nor Wealth, nor Life it self regard, For 'tis their Maxim, Love is Love's Reward. This is not all; the Fair for whom they strove Nor knew before, nor could suspect their Love, Nor thought, when she beheld the Fight from far, Her Beauty was th' Occasion of the War. But sure a gen'ral Doom on Man is past, And all are Fools and Lovers, first or last: s8o This both by others and my self I know, For I have serv'd their Sovereign, long ago: Oft have been caught within the winding Train Of Female Snares, and felt the Lovers Pain, And learn'd how far the God can Humane Hearts constrain. T o this Remembrance, and the Pray'rs of those Who for th' offending Warriors interpose, I give their forfeit Lives; on this accord, T o do me Homage as their Sov'reign Lord; And as my Vassals, to their utmost Might, 390 Assist my Person, and assert my Right. This, freely sworn, the Knights their Grace obtain'd; Then thus the King his secret Thoughts explain'd: If Wealth, or Honour, or a Royal Race, Or each, or all, may win a Ladies Grace, Then either of you Knights may well deserve A Princess born; and such is she you serve: For Emily is Sister to the Crown, And but too well to both her Beauty known: 381

ago:]~.F.

111

112

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But one of you, all be him lothe or lefe, He mote go pipe in an Iue lefe; This is to saie, she maie not haue both is« N e been ye neuer so ielous, ne so wroth: A n d therefore I you put in this degre, T h a t ech of you shall haue his destine As him is shape, and herken in what wise, L o here your end, of that I shall deuise. My will is this, for plat conclusion, Without any replication: If that you liketh, taketh it for the best, T h a t euerich of you shall go where him lest, Frely, without ransom or danger: 1850 A n d this day fiftie wekes, ferre ne nere: Euerich of you shall bring an C. knights Armed for the lestes vpon all rightes, Alredy to darrein here by battaile: And this behote I you withouten faile, Upon my truthe, as I am true knight; T h a t whether of you bothe hath that might; T h a t is to saie, that whether he or thou May with his hundred, as I spake of now, Slea his contrary, or out of listes driue, i860 Him shall I yeue Emelye to wiue; T o whom that fortune yeueth so fair a grace. T h e lestes shall I make in this place; And God so wisely on my soul rewe, As I shall euen judge be, and trewe: Ye shal non other ende with me make, T h a t one of you shall be dedde or take; And ye thinken this is well isaied, Saith your aduise, and hold you well apaid. T h i s is your end, and your conclusion: «70 W h o loketh lightly now but Palamon? W h o springeth vp for ioie but Arcite? W h o could tell, or who could endite T h e ioye that is made in this place, W h e n Theseus had doen so faire a grace?

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II But shou'd you combate till you both were dead, 400 Two Lovers cannot share a single Bed: As therefore both are equal in Degree, T h e Lot of both be left to Destiny. Now hear th' Award, and happy may it prove T o her, and him who best deserves her Love. Depart from hence in Peace, and free as Air, Search the wide World, and where you please repair; But on the Day when this returning Sun T o the same Point through ev'ry Sign has run, Then each of you his Hundred Knights shall bring, 410 In Royal Lists, to fight before the King; And then, the Knight whom Fate or happy Chance Shall with his Friends to Victory advance, And grace his Arms so far in equal Fight, From out the Bars to force his Opposite, Or kill, or make him Recreant on the Plain, T h e Prize of Valour and of Love shall gain; T h e vanquish'd Party shall their Claim release, And the long Jars conclude in lasting Peace. T h e Charge be mine t' adorn the chosen Ground, 420 T h e Theatre of War, for Champions so renown'd; And take the Patrons Place of either Knight, "j With Eyes impartial to behold the Fight; > And Heav'n of me so judge, as I shall judge aright. / If both are satisfi'd with this Accord, Swear by the Laws of Knighthood on my Sword. Who now but Palamon exults with Joy? And ravish'd Arcite seems to touch the Sky: T h e whole assembl'd Troop was pleas'd as well, Extol'd th' Award, and on their Knees they fell 430 T o bless the gracious King. The Knights with Leave Departing from the Place, his last Commands receive; On Emily with equal Ardour look, And from her Eyes their Inspiration took: 433 took:] — F.

113

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ISM

1900

1910

169J-1J00

But doun on knees went euery maner wight, And thanked him, with all her hert and might, And namely these Thebanes many a sithe. And thus with good hope and hert blithe They taken her leue, and homeward gan they ride T o Thebes ward, with old walles wide. I trawe men would deme it negligence If I foryetten to tell the dispence Of Theseus, that goeth busely T o maken up the lestes rially, That such a noble Theatre as it was, I dare well saie in this world there nas. The circute a mile was about, Walled with stone, and diched all about; Round was the shape in maner of a compas, Full of degrees, the hight of sixtie paas; That when a man was set on one degree He letted not his felowe for to see. Eastward there stode a gate of marble wite; Westward right such another in the opposite: And shortly to conclude, such a place Was none in yearth, as in so litell space: For in the londe there nas no craftes man That Geometrie or Arithmetike can, Ne purtreiture, ne caruer of Images, That Theseus ne gaue him mete and wages, That Theatre to make and deuise: And for to do his Rite and Sacrifice He Eastward hath vpon the yate aboue, In worship of Venus, the Goddesse of loue, Doe make an auter, and an oratorie; And on the West-side, in memorie Of Mars he maked such an other That cost of golde largely a fother: And Northward, in a turret in the wall Of Alabaster white, and redde Corall, An oratorie rich for to see, In worship of Diane, the Goddes of chastite 1877

a sithe] asithe F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II From thence to Thebes old Walls pursue their Way, Each to provide his Champions for the Day. It might be deem'd on our Historian's Part, Or too much Negligence, or want of Art, If he forgot the vast Magnificence Of Royal Theseus, and his large Expence. 440 He first enclos'd for Lists a level Ground, The whole Circumference a Mile around: T h e Form was Circular; and all without A Trench was sunk, to Moat the Place about. Within; an Amphitheatre appear'd, Rais'd in Degrees; to sixty Paces rear'd: That when a Man was plac'd in one Degree, Height was allow'd for him above to see. Eastward was built a Gate of Marble white; T h e like adorn'd the Western opposite. 450 A nobler Object than this Fabrick was, Rome never saw; nor of so vast a Space. For, rich with Spoils of many a conquer'd Land, All Arts and Artists Theseus could command; Who sold for Hire, or wrought for better Fame: The Master-Painters, and the Carvers came. So rose within the Compass of the Year An Ages Work, a glorious Theatre. Then, o'er its Eastern Gate was rais'd above A Temple, sacred to the Queen of Love; 460 An Altar stood below: On either Hand A Priest with Roses crown'd, who held a Myrtle Wand. T h e Dome of Mars was on the Gate oppos'd, And on the North a Turret was enclos'd, Within the Wall, of Alabaster white, \ And crimson Coral, for the Queen of Night, > Who takes in Sylvan Sports her chaste Delight. )

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Hath Theseus doe wrought in noble wise: But yet had I foryetten to deuise The noble caruings, and the purtreitures, The shape, the countnaunce, and the figures That were in the oratories three. First, in the temple of Venus thou maist se Wrought on the wall, full pitously to behold, 1920 The broken slepes and the sighes cold, The sault teares, and the weymenting, The fire strokes, and the desiring That loues seruauntes in this life enduren; The othes that her couenauntes assuren, Pleasaunce and hope, desire, foolehardinesse, Beautie and youth, baudrie and richesse, Charmes and sorcerie, leesings and flatterie, Dispence, businesse, and ielousie, That weared of yelowe goldes a garlande, 1930 And a Cokow sitting on her hande; Feastes, instruments, carolles and daunces, Justes and araie, and all the circumstaunces Of loue, which I reken, and reken shall, By order were painted on the wall, And more than I can make mencion: For sothly all the mount of Citheron, Where Venus hath her principal dwelling, Was shewed on the wall in purtreing With all the joy, and the lustinesse: 1940 Nought was foryetten the portresse idlenesse,

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book 11 Within these Oratories might you see Rich Carvings, Pourtraitures, and Imagery: Where ev'ry Figure to the Life express'd 470 The Godhead's Pow'r to whom it was address'd. In Venus Temple, on the Sides were seen T h e broken Slumbers of inamour'd Men: Pray'rs that ev'n spoke, and Pity seem'd to call, And issuing Sighs that smoak'd along the Wall: Complaints, and hot Desires, the Lover's Hell, And scalding Tears, that wore a Channel where they fell: And all around were Nuptial Bonds, the Ties ) Of Loves Assurance, and a Train of Lies, > That, made in Lust, conclude in Perjuries: ) 480 Beauty, and Youth, and Wealth, and Luxury, And spritely Hope, and short-enduring Joy; And Sorceries to raise th' Infernal Pow'rs, And Sigils fram'd in Planetary Hours: Expence, and After-thought, and idle Care, And Doubts of motley Hue, and dark Despair: Suspicions, and fantastical Surmise, And Jealousie suffus'd, with Jaundice in her Eyes; Discolouring all she view'd, in Tawney dress'd; Down-look'd, and with a Cuckow on her Fist. 490 Oppos'd to her, on t' other Side, advance T h e costly Feast, the Carol, and the Dance, Minstrels, and Musick, Poetry, and Play, And Balls by Night, and Turnaments by Day. All these were painted on the Wall, and more; With Acts, and Monuments of Times before: And others added by Prophetick Doom, And Lovers yet unborn, and Loves to come: For there, th' Idalian Mount, and Cither on, T h e Court of Venus, was in Colours drawn: 500 Before the Palace-gate, in careless Dress, And loose Array, sat Portress Idleness: 474 Wall:]

F.

479 Perjuries:]

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Ne Narcissus the fair, of yore agone, Ne yet the folie of king Salomon, Ne yet the great strength of Hercules, Th'enchauntment of Medea and Circes, Ne of Turnus, with his hardie fers corage, The rich Cresus, caitife in seruage. Thus may you sen, that wisedom ne richesse, Beuty ne sleight, strength ne hardinesse, Ne maie with Venus hold champartie; 1950 For as her list, the world may she gie. Lo, all these folke so cought were in her laas, Till thei for wo full oft saied alas: Sufficeth here one example or two; And though I could reken a thousand mo. The statue of Venus, glorious to se, Was maked fleting in the large see, And fro the nauell doune all couered was With waues grene, and bright as any glas: A citriole in her right hand had she, i960 And on her hedde full seemely for to se A rose garland fresh, and wel smelling, Aboue her hedde doues flittering, Before her stood her sonne Cupido, Upon his shoulders winges had he two, And blind he was, as it is oft sene; A bow he had, and arrowes bright and kene. Why should I not as well tellen all T h e purgatory that was ther about ouer all. Within the temple of mightie Mars the rede, mo All painted was the wal in length and in brede, Like to the estris of the grisly place, That hight the great Temple of Mars in Trace: In thilke cold frosty region, There Mars hath his soueraine mancion. First, on the wall was painted a forest, In which there wonneth nother man ne best, With knottie and knarie trees old, Of stubbes sharpe, and hidous to behold,

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II There, by the Fount, Narcissus pin'd alone; J There Samson was; with wiser Solomon, > And all the mighty Names by Love undone: ) Medea's Charms were there, Circean Feasts, With Bowls that turn'd inamour'd Youth to Beasts. Here might be seen, that Beauty, Wealth, and Wit, And Prowess, to the Pow'r of Love submit: The spreading Snare for all Mankind is laid; iio And Lovers all betray, and are betray'd. T h e Goddess self, some noble Hand had wrought; Smiling she seem'd, and full of pleasing Thought: From Ocean as she first began to rise, And smooth'd the ruffl'd Seas, and clear'd the Skies; She trode the Brine all bare below the Breast, And the green Waves but ill conceal'd the rest; A Lute she held; and on her Head was seen A Wreath of Roses red, and Myrtles green: Her Turtles fann'd the buxom Air above; 820 And, by his Mother, stood an Infant-Love: With Wings unfledg'd; his Eyes were banded o'er; \ His Hands a Bow, his Back a Quiver bore, > Supply'd with Arrows bright and keen, a deadly Store. ) But in the Dome of mighty Mars the Red, With diff'rent Figures all the Sides were spread: This Temple, less in Form, with equal Grace Was imitative of the first in Thrace: For that cold Region was the lov'd Abode, And Sov'reign Mansion of the Warriour-God. MO T h e Landscape was a Forest wide and bare; Where neither Beast, nor Humane Kind repair; T h e Fowl, that scent afar, the Borders fly, And shun the bitter Blast, and wheel about the Sky. A Cake of Scurf lies baking on the Ground, And prickly Stubs, instead of Trees, are found; 516 Waves]

F.

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In which there was a romble and a shwow, 1980 As though a storme should breake euery bow, And dounward vnder a hill, vnder a bent, There stode the temple of Mars armipotent, Wrought all of burned stele, of which th'entre Was long and streight, and gastly for to se, And therout came soch a rage and soch a vise, That it made all the gates for to rise. The northern light in at the dores shone; For window on the wall was there none, Through which men might any light discern. 1900 The dores were all of athamant eterne, Yclenched ouerthwart and hedlong, With Iron tough, for to maken it strong; Euery piller, the temple to susteine, Was tonne great, of yren bright and shene. There saw I first the darke imagining Of felonie, and eke the compassing: The cruell ire, redde as any glede, The pick-purse, and eke the pale drede; The smiler, with the knife vnder the cloke; «000 The shepen brenning with the blacke smoke; The treason of the murdring in the bedde, The open warre, with woundes all bebledde, 1991

Yclenched] Yelenched F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book

II

O r Woods with Knots, and Knares deform'd and old; Headless the most, and hideous to behold: A ratling Tempest through the Branches went, T h a t stripp'd 'em bare, and one sole way they bent. 540 Heav'n froze above, severe, the Clouds congeal, A n d through the Crystal Vault appear'd the standing Hail. Such was the Face without, a Mountain stood Threatning from high, and overlook'd the Wood: Beneath the lowring Brow, and on a Bent, T h e Temple stood of Mars Armipotent: T h e Frame of burnish'd Steel, that cast a Glare From far, and seem'd to thaw the freezing Air. A streight, long Entry, to the Temple led, Blind with high Walls; and Horrour over Head: 5so Thence issu'd such a Blast, and hollow Rore, As threaten'd from the Hinge, to heave the Door; In, through that Door, a Northern Light there shone; 'Twas all it had, foT Windows there were none. T h e Gate was Adamant; Eternal Frame! Which hew'd by Mars himself, from Indian Quarries came, T h e Labour of a God; and all along T o u g h Iron Plates were clench'd to make it strong. A T u n about, was ev'ry Pillar there; A polish'd Mirrour shone not half so clear. 560 There saw I how the secret Fellon wrought, "j A n d Treason lab'ring in the Traytor's Thought; > And Midwife T i m e the ripen'd Plot to Murder brought. / There, the Red Anger dar'd the Pallid Fear; Next stood Hypocrisie, with holy Lear: Soft, smiling, and demurely looking down, But hid the Dagger underneath the Gown: T h ' assassinating Wife, the Houshold Fiend; A n d far the blackest there, the Traytor-Friend. On t' other Side there stood Destruction bare; «70 Unpunish'd Rapine, and a Waste of War: 570 War:]

F.

121

128

Poems, 1697—1700

Conteke with blody kniues, and sharpe manace: All full of chirking was that sory place. T h e slear of himself yet saw I there; His hart blode hath bathed all his here; T h e naile ydriuen in the shode on hight, With colde death, with mouth gaping vpright. A middes of the temple sate Mischaunce soio With discomfort, and sory countenaunce: Yet saw I Wodnesse laghing in his rage, Armed complaint on theft, and fiers courage; T h e carraine in the bush, with throt ycorue; A thousand slain, and nat of qualme istorue; T h e tiraunt with the praie by force iraft; T h e toune destroied, there was nothing ilaft: Yet saw I brent the shippes hoppesteres; T h e hunter istrangled with the wilde beres; T h e Sow fretting the child in cradell; £020 T h e coke is scalded for all his long ladell: Nought was foryetten the infortune of Mart, T h e Carter ouer-ridden by his own cart, Vnder the whele full low he lay a doun. There were also of Martes deuision, T h e Barbour, the Botcher and the Smith That forgeth sharp swordes on the stith; And all aboue depainted in a toure, Saw I conquest sitting in great honour, With the sharpe sword ouer his hedde 2080 Hanging by a subtill twined thredde: Depainted was there the slaughter of Julius>

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II Contest, with sharpen'd Knives in Cloysters drawn, And all with Blood bespread the holy Lawn. Loud Menances were heard, and foul Disgrace, And bawling Infamy, in Language base; T i l l Sense was lost in Sound, and Silence fled the Place. T h e Slayer of Himself yet saw I there, T h e Gore congeal'd was clotter'd in his Hair: With Eyes half clos'd, and gaping Mouth he lay, And grim, as when he breath'd his sullen Soul away. 580 In midst of all the Dome, Misfortune sate, And gloomy Discontent, and fell Debate: And Madness laughing in his ireful Mood; And arm'd Complaint on Theft; and Cries of Blood. There was the murder'd Corps, in Covert laid, And Violent Death in thousand Shapes display'd: T h e City to the Soldier's Rage resign'd: Successless Wars, and Poverty behind: Ships burnt in Fight, or forc'd on Rocky Shores, And the rash Hunter strangled by the Boars: s9o T h e new-born Babe by Nurses overlaid; And the Cook caught within the raging Fire he made. All Ills of Mars his Nature, Flame and Steel: T h e gasping Charioteer, beneath the Wheel Of his own Car; the ruin'd House that falls And intercepts her Lord betwixt the Walls: T h e whole Division that to Mars pertains, All Trades of Death that deal in Steel for Gains, Were there: T h e Butcher, Armourer, and Smith, Who forges sharpen'd Fauchions, or the Scythe. MO T h e scarlet Conquest on a Tow'r was plac'd, With Shouts, and Soldiers Acclamations grac'd: A pointed Sword hung threatning o'er his Head, Sustain'd but by a slender Twine of Tlrred. There saw I Mars his Ides, the Capitol, T h e Seer in vain foretelling Ceesar's Fall, 580

sate] sat F.

604 Capitol] Capitol F.

123

Poems,

124

1697-1700

Of great Nero, and of Antonius: All be that thilke time they were vnborne; Yet was her death depainted there beforne; By manacing of Mars right by figure: So was it shewed in that portreiture As is depainted in the certes aboue, Who shall be dead, or els slain for loue, Sufficeth one ensample in stories old; 2040 I may not reken them all though I would. The statue of Mars upon a carte stode, Armed, and loked grim as he were wode; And ouer his head there shinen two figures Of sterres that been cleped in Scriptures, That one (Puella) hight, that other (Rubeus.) This God of armes was arraied thus: A wolfe there stode beforne him at his fete, With iyen redde, and of a man he ete. With subtell pensill was painted this story, »so In redouting of Marce and of his glory. Now to the temple of Diane the chast As shortly as I can, I woll me hast, T o tell you all the description Depainted been the walles vp and doune, Of hunting and of shamfast chastite. There saw I how wofull Calistope When that Diane greued was with her, Was tourned fro a woman to a bere; And afterward was she made the lode sterre: aoeo Thus was it painted: I can say no ferre: Her sonne is eke a sterre, as men may see. There saw I Diane tourned vnto a tree; I meane not the goddesse Diane; But Venus doughter, which that hight Dane. There saw I A theon an hert ymaked, For vengeance that he saw Diane all naked: I saw how that his hounds haue him cought, And freten him, for they knew him nought; Yet ypainted was a litell ferthermore, 2061

sonne] soone F.

Fables: Paîamon and Arcite, Book II T h e last Triumvirs, and the Wars they move, And Antony, who lost the World for Love. These, and a thousand more, the Fane adorn; Their Fates were painted e'er the Men were born, eio All copied from the Heav'ns, and ruling Force Of the Red Star, in his revolving Course. The Form of Mars high on a Chariot stood, All sheath'd in Arms, and gruffly look'd the God: Two Geomantick Figures were display'd \ Above his Head, a * Warriour and a Maid, > * Rubeus, One when Direct, and one when Retrograde. ; Tir'd with Deformities of Death, I haste T o the third Temple of Diana chaste; A Sylvan Scene with various Greens was drawn, 620 Shades on the Sides, and in the midst a Lawn: T h e Silver Cynthia, with her Nymphs around, Pursu'd the flying Deer, the Woods with Horns resound: Calisto there stood manifest of Shame, And turn'd a Bear, the Northern Star became: Her Son was next, and by peculiar Grace In the cold Circle held the second Place: T h e Stag Acteon in the Stream had spy'd T h e naked Huntress, and, for seeing, dy'd: His Hounds, unknowing of his Change, pursue 630 T h e Chace, and their mistaken Master slew. Peneian Daphne too was there to see, Apollo's Love before, and now his Tree: T h ' adjoining Fane th' assembl'd Greeks express'd, 606 Triumvirs] Triumvirs F. 6*3 Calisto] Calistho F.

620 and in] and on F. 631 see,] —A F.

125

& Puella.

126

Poems,

1697-1700

mo How A thalant hunted the wilde bore; And Meliager, and many other mo, For which Diane wrought him care and wo: There saw I many another wonder storie Which me list not to draw in memorie. This goddesse full well vpon an hert shete, With small houndes all about her fete, And vnderneth her fete she had a Moone, Wexing it was, and should wane soone. In gaudie greene her statue clothed was, «wo With bow in hand and arrowes in caas. Her eine she cast full low adoun, There Pluto hath his darke region: A woman trauelling was her before; But for her child so long was vnbore, Full pitously, Lucina gan she call; And saide, helpe, for thou maist best of all. Well could he paint liuely that it wrought; With many a florein he the hewes bought. Now bene these listes made, and Theseus 2090 That at his great cost hath araied thus, The temples and the theatre euerydel, Whan it was done, it liked him wonder wel. But stint I wol of Theseus alite, And speake of Palamon and Arcite.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book II And hunting of the Caledonian Beast: Oenides Valour, and his envy'd Prize; The fatal Pow'r of Atalanta's Eyes; Diana's Vengeance on the Victor shown, T h e Murdress Mother, and consuming Son; T h e Volscian Queen extended on the Plain; 640 T h e Treason punish'd, and the Traytor slain. T h e rest were various Huntings, well design'd, And Salvage Beasts destroy'd, of ev'ry Kind: T h e graceful Goddess was array'd in Green; About her Feet were little Beagles seen, That watch'd with upward Eyes the Motions of their Queen. Her Legs were Buskin'd, and the Left before, } In act to shoot, a Silver Bow she bore, / And at her Back a painted Quiver wore. ' She trod a wexing Moon, that soon wou'd wane, 650 And drinking borrow'd Light, be fill'd again: With down-cast Eyes, as seeming to survey T h e dark Dominions, her alternate Sway. Before her stood a Woman in her Throws, And call'd Lucina's Aid, her Burden to disclose. All these the Painter drew with such Command, That Nature snatch'd the Pencil from his Hand, Asham'd and angry that his Art could feign And mend the Tortures of a Mothers Pain. Theseus beheld the Fanes of ev'ry God, 660 And thought his mighty Cost was well bestow'd: So Princes now their Poets should regard; But few can write, and fewer can reward. T h e Theater thus rais'd, the Lists enclos'd, And all with vast Magnificence dispos'd, We leave the Monarch pleas'd, and haste to bring T h e Knights to combate; and their Arms to sing. The End of the Second Book. 634

Beast:]

F.

638

Son;] — F.

127

Poems,

1697—1700

T h e day approcheth of her r e t u r n i n g T h a t euerich shuld an C . knights b r i n g T h e battaile to darraine, as I you told, A n d to Athenes

her couenauntes to hold,

H a t h euerich of h e m b r o u g h t an C . knights jioo W e l l armed f o r the w a r r e at all rights; A n d sikerly there trowed m a n y a m a n T h a t neuer sithens the w o r l d began: A s f o r to speake of k n i g h t h o o d of her h o n d A s f a r as G o d hath m a d e see or lond; N a s of so f e w so noble a c o m p a n y : F o r euery w i g h t that loued chiualrie, A n d w o l d his thanks h a u e a passing n a m e H a t h praied that he m i g h t be of that g a m e ; A n d w e l was h i m that therto chosen was: 2110 F o r if there fell to m o r o w e such a caas, Y e k n o w w e l l that euery lustie knight, T h a t loueth paramours, a n d hath his m i g h t , W e r e it in England

or elsewhere,

T h e y w o l d faine willen to be there T o fight f o r a lady; ah benedicite, It w e r e a lusty sight for to se. A n d right so farden they w i t h

Palamon,

W i t h h i m there w e n t knights m a n y on; S o m e w o l d ben a r m e d in an habergeon; 2120 A n d in a brest-plate, w i t h a light g i p p i o n ; A n d some w o l d h a u e a paire of plates large, A n d some w o u l d h a u e a pruce shield o r a targe; 2122

pruce]

F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III

BOOK III.

T

HE Day approach'd when Fortune shou'd decide T h ' important Enterprize, and give the Bride; For now, the Rivals round the World had sought, And each his Number, well appointed, brought. T h e Nations far and near, contend in Choice, And send the Flow'r of War by Publick Voice; That after, or before, were never known Such Chiefs; as each an Army seem'd alone: Beside the Champions; all of high Degree, Who Knighthood lov'd, and Deeds of Chivalry, Throng'd to the Lists, and envy'd to behold T h e Names of others, not their own inroll'd. Nor seems it strange; for ev'ry Noble Knight, ") Who loves the Fair, and is endu'd with Might, > In such a Quarrel wou'd be proud to fight. ' There breaths not scarce a Man on British Ground (An Isle for Love, and Arms of old renown'd) But would have sold his Life to purchase Fame, T o Palamon or Arcite sent his Name: And had the Land selected of the best, Half had come hence, and let the World provide the rest. A hundred Knights with Palamon there came, Approv'd in Fight, and Men of mighty Name; Their Arms were sev'ral, as their Nations were, But furnish'd all alike with Sword and Spear. Some wore Coat-armour, imitating Scale; And next their Skins were stubborn Shirts of Mail. Some wore a Breastplate and a light Juppon, Their Horses cloth'd with rich Caparison: Some for Defence would Leathern Bucklers use, Of folded Hides; and others Shields of Pruce. 18 purchase] puchase F.

31

Pruce] Pruce F.

129

Poems,

169J-1J00

Some would be armed on his legs wele, And haue an axe, and some a mace of stele: There nas none new gyse, that it nas olde; Armed were they, as I haue you tolde, Eueriche after his opinion. ^J Ther maist thou se coming with Palamon; Licurge himselfe, the great king of Trace. also Black was his berd, and manly was his face: The sercles of his eyen in his heed They glouden betwixt yelow and reed; And like a lion, loked he aboute, With kemped heares on his browes stoute; His limmes grete, his brawnes strong, His shoulders brode, his armes round and long: And as the gise was in his countre, Full hie upon a chare of gold stode he, With foure white bulles in the trayes, ai4o Instede of a cote armure, ouer his harnayes, With nayles yelow and bright as any gold, He hath a bear's skin, cole black for olde: His long heare was kemped behind his back, As any rauens fether it shone for blacke. A wreth of gold arme gret, of huge weight Upon his heed, set full of stones bright Of fine rubies and diamandes. About his chare there went white allaundes Twentie and mo, as grete as any stere 2i5o T o hunten at the lion, or at the wilde bere; And folowed him, with mosell fast ybounde; Colers of gold, and torrettes yfiled rounde: And hundred lords had he in his route, Armed ful well, with hertes sterne and stoute. With Arcite, in stories, as men fynde, The great Emetrius, the king of Inde, Upon a stede bay, trapped in stele,

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III One hung a Poleax at his Saddle-bow, And one a heavy Mace, to stun the Foe: One for his Legs and Knees provided well, With Jambeux arm'd, and double Plates of Steel: This on his Helmet wore a Ladies Glove, And that a Sleeve embroider'd by his Love. With Palamon, above the rest in Place, \ Lycurgus came, the surly King of Thrace; > Black was his Beard, and manly was his Face: ) T h e Balls of his broad Eyes roll'd in his Head, And glar'd betwixt a Yellow and a Red: He look'd a Lion with a gloomy Stare, And o'er his Eye-brows hung his matted Hair: Big-bon'd, and large of Limbs, with Sinews strong, Broad-shoulder'd, and his Arms were round and long. Four Milk-white Bulls (the Thracian Use of old) Were yok'd to draw his Car of burnish'd Gold. Upright he stood, and bore aloft his Shield, Conspicuous from afar, and over-look'd the Field. His Surcoat was a Bear-skin on his Back; His Hair hung long behind, and glossy Raven-black. His ample Forehead bore a Coronet With sparkling Diamonds, and with Rubies set: T e n Brace, and more, of Greyhounds, snowy fair, \ And tall as Stags, ran looose, and cours'd around his Chair, > A Match for Pards in flight, in grappling, for the Bear: ) With Golden Muzzels all their Mouths were bound, And Collars of the same their Necks surround. Thus thro' the Fields Lycurgus took his way; His hundred Knights attend in Pomp and proud Array. T o match this Monarch, with strong A rcite came Emetrius King of Inde, a mighty Name, On a Bay Courser, goodly to behold, 35 Jambeaux] Jambeaux F.

131

Poems,1697-ijoo

132

Couered with a cloth of gold, diapred wele, Came riding like the god of Armes, Mars: 2i6o His cote armure was of clothe of Trace, Cauched with perle, white, round and gret; His sadle was of brent golde newe ybet, A mantel vpon his shoulders honging; Brette full of rubies, redde as fire sparkling, His crispe hear, like rings, was yronne: And that was yelow, and glitering as the sonne; His nose was hie, his eyen bright cytryn, His lippes ruddy, his colour was sanguyne; A few frekles in his face yspreinte, 2170 Betwixt yelow, and somdele black ymente; And as a lyon, he his eyen keste; Of fiue and twenty yere his age I geste; His berde was wel begönne for to spring; His voyce was as a trompet sowning; Vpon his heed he wered of laurel grene A garlande fresh and lusty for to sene; Vpon his hande he bare for his delite An Egle tame, as any lylly white: An hundred lordes had he with him there, also All armed saue her heades in her gere, Full richely in all maner thinges: For trusteth wel, that erles, dukes and kinges, Were gathered in this noble company, For loue, and for increase of chiualry. About this king there ran on euery parte Ful many a tame Lion and libarte. 2169

yspreinte] yspente F.

133

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III T h e T r a p p i n g s of his H o r s e emboss'd w i t h b a r b ' r o u s Not

Mars

Gold.

bestrode a Steed with greater Grace;

H i s S u r c o a t o ' e r h i s A r m s w a s C l o t h of

Thrace,

A d o r n ' d w i t h Pearls, all Orient, r o u n d , a n d great; H i s S a d d l e was of G o l d , w i t h E m e r a l d s set. 70 H i s S h o u l d e r s l a r g e , a M a n t l e d i d a t t i r e , W i t h R u b i e s t h i c k , a n d s p a r k l i n g as t h e F i r e : H i s Amber-colour'd Locks in Ringlets run, W i t h graceful Negligence, a n d shone against the Sun. H i s N o s e was Aquiline, his Eyes were blue, R u d d y his Lips, a n d fresh a n d fair his H u e : S o m e sprinkled Freckles o n his Face were seen, W h o s e D u s k s e t off t h e W h i t e n e s s of t h e S k i n : His awful Presence did the Crowd

surprize,

N o r d u r s t t h e rash Spectator m e e t his Eyes, so E y e s t h a t c o n f e s s ' d h i m b o r n f o r K i n g l y S w a y , So fierce, t h e y

flash'd

intolerable Day.

His Age in Nature's youthful Prime appear'd, A n d just began to b l o o m his yellow Beard. W h e n e ' e r h e spoke, his Voice was heard a r o u n d , L o u d as a T r u m p e t , w i t h a Silver S o u n d . A L a u r e l w r e a t h ' d his T e m p l e s , fresh, a n d green; A n d M y r t l e - s p r i g s , t h e M a r k s of L o v e , w e r e m i x ' d b e t w e e n . U p o n his Fist h e bore, for his Delight, A n Eagle well reclaim'd, a n d

90

Lilly-white.

His h u n d r e d Knights attend h i m to the W a r , All a r m ' d for Battel; save their H e a d s were bare. W o r d s , a n d Devices blaz'd o n ev'ry Shield, A n d p l e a s i n g w a s t h e T e r r o u r of t h e F i e l d . F o r K i n g s , a n d D u k e s , a n d B a r o n s y o u m i g h t see, L i k e s p a r k l i n g Stars, t h o u g h diff'rent in D e g r e e , A l l f o r t h ' I n c r e a s e o f A r m s , a n d L o v e of C h i v a l r y . Before the King, t a m e Leopards led the way, A n d T r o o p s of L i o n s i n n o c e n t l y play. So

Bacchus

through the conquer'd

Indies

rode,

100 A n d B e a s t s i n G a m b o l s f r i s k ' d b e f o r e t h e i r h o n e s t

God

Poems,

134

1697-1700

A n d in this wise, these lords all a n d s o m e Ben on the

Sonday

to the cite come

A b o u t prime, a n d in the toune alight. 2190 T h i s

Theseus,

this duke, this w o r t h y knizt,

W h e n he had brought h e m into his cite, A n d i n n e d h e m , e u e r i c h after his degre, H e festeth h e m , a n d d o t h so great l a b o u r e T o easen h e m , a n d d o n h e m all h o n o u r e , T h a t yet m e n w e n e n that n o mans wit O f n o n e estate c o u d e a m e n d e it: T h e minstralcie, the seruice at the T h e great yeftes, to the m o s t a n d T h e rich aray, t h r o u g h o u t

feest; leest;

Theseus

palays,

2200 N e w h o s a t e first n e l a s t u p o n t h e d e y s ; W h a t ladies fayrest ben, o r best d a u n c i n g ; O r which of h e m can best daunce or sing; N e who most felingly speketh of loue; N e what haukes sitten on perchen aboue, N e what hounds liggen on the O f all this n o w m a k e I n o

flour

adoun.

mencion;

B u t all the effect, that t h i n k e t h m e the beste; N o w c o m e t h t h e p o i n t , h e r k e n e t h if y o u lest. The 2210 W h a n

Sonday a t n i g h t o r d a y b e g a n Palamon t h e l a r k e h e r d e s i n g ;

to spring,

A l t h o u g h it w e r e n a t day by h o u r e s two; Y e t song the larke, a n d

Palamon

right tho

W i t h holy hert, and with an hie corage, H e rose vp, to w e n d e n o n his pilgrimage V n t o the blissful I meane

Venus,

Citherea

beninge:

honourable and

digne;

A n d in h e r h o u r h e walketh forth a paas V n t o t h e listes, t h e r e t h e t e m p l e was; A n d doune he kneleth, and with h u m b l e chere, 2220 A n d h e r t e s o r e h e s a i d , a s y e s h a l l h e r e : f

Fairest of faire: O lady m i n e

Doughter of

Joue,

2190 knizt] kniht F.

a n d spouse to

Venus, Vulcanus, 2x15

Citherea] Cithere a F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III

135

In this Array the War of either Side Through Athens pass'd with Military Pride. At Prime, they enter'd on the Sunday Morn; Rich Tap'stry spread the Streets, and Flow'rs the Posts adorn. T h e Town was all a Jubilee of Feasts; So Theseus will'd, in Honour of his Guests: Himself with open Arms the Kings embrac'd, Then all the rest in their Degrees were grac'd. No Harbinger was needful for the Night, For ev'ry House was proud to lodge a Knight. I pass the Royal Treat, nor must relate T h e Gifts bestow'd, nor how the Champions sate; Who first, who last, or how the Knights address'd Their Vows, or who was fairest at the Feast; Whose Voice, whose graceful Dance did most surprise, Soft am'rous Sighs, and silent Love of Eyes. T h e Rivals call my Muse another way, T o sing their Vigils for th' ensuing Day. 'Twas ebbing Darkness, past the Noon of Night; And Phospher on the Confines of the Light, Promis'd the Sun; e'er Day began to spring \ The tuneful Lark already stretch'd her Wing, > And flick'ring on her Nest, made short Essays to sing: ; When wakeful Palamon, preventing Day, "J Took, to the Royal Lists, his early way, > T o Venus at her Fane, in her own House to pray. ) There, falling on his Knees before her Shrine, He thus implor'd with Pray'rs her Pow'r Divine. Creator Venus, Genial Pow'r of Love, T h e Bliss of Men below, and Gods above, Beneath the sliding Sun thou runn'st thy Race, Dost fairest shine, and best become thy Place. 104 Flow'rs the Posts] Flowr's the Poo F. 119 F does not begin a new paragraph. i s i Sun;] F. i«3 134 F begins a new paragraph.

sing:]

F.

Poems,

136

i6py-iyoo

Thou glader of the mount of Citheron For thilke loue thou haddest to A don, Haue pite of my bitter teares smerte, And take my humble praier at thine herte. Alas, I ne haue no language to tel The effect, ne the turment of mine hel: Mine herte may not mine harmes bewraie; 2230 I am so confused that I cannot saie: But mercy lady bright, that woste wele My thought, and seest what harmes that I fele: Consider al this, and rue vpon my sore As wisly as I shal for euermore, Emforth my might, thy true seruaunt be, And holde warre alway with chastitie; That make I myn auowe, so ye me helpe; I kepe not of armes for to yelpe: Ne I ne aske to morowe to haue victory, 2240 Ne renome in this case, ne vaine glory Of prise of armes, to blowen vp and doun, But wolde haue fully possessioun OiEmelye, and die in her seruice: Finde thou the maner howe, and in what wise I retche not, but it may better be T o haue victory of hem, or they of me; So that I haue my lady in mine armes; For though so be that Mars is god of Armes, Your vertue is so great in heauen aboue, mm That if you liste, I shall well haue my loue; 8234

euermore,] . — F .

Fables: Paiamoti and Arcite, Book III For thee the Winds their Eastern Blasts forbear, Thy Month reveals the Spring, and opens all the Year. Thee, Goddess, thee the Storms of Winter fly, } Earth smiles with Flow'rs renewing; laughs the Sky, > And Birds to Lays of Love their tuneful Notes apply.) For thee the Lion loaths the Taste of Blood, And roaring hunts his Female through the Wood: 140 For thee the Bulls rebellow through the Groves, And tempt the Stream, and snuff their absent Loves. 'Tis thine, whate'er is pleasant, good, or fair: ^ All Nature is thy Province, Life thy Care; > Thou mad'st the World, and dost the World repair. ; Thou Gladder of the Mount of Cytheron, Increase of Jove, Companion of the Sun; If e'er Adonis touch'd thy tender Heart, Have pity, Goddess, for thou know'st the Smart: Alas! I have not Words to tell my Grief; lso T o vent my Sorrow wou'd be some Relief: Light Suff'rings give us leisure to complain; We groan, but cannot speak, in greater Pain. O Goddess, tell thy self what I would say, Thou know'st it, and I feel too much to pray. So grant my Suit, as I enforce my Might, In Love to be thy Champion, and thy Knight; A Servant to thy Sex, a Slave to thee, A Foe profest to barren Chastity. Nor ask I Fame or Honour of the Field, i«o Nor chuse I more to vanquish, than to yield: In my Divine Emilia make me blest, Let Fate, or partial Chance, dispose the rest: Find thou the Manner, and the Means prepare; Possession, more than Conquest, is my Care. Mars is the Warriour's God; in him it lies, On whom he favours, to confer the Prize; With smiling Aspect you serenely move In your fifth Orb, and rule the Realm of Love. The Fates but only spin the courser Clue, 170 The finest of the Wooll is left for you.

137

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T h y t e m p l e shall I worship euer m o : A n d o n thine aulter, w h e r e I ride or go I w o l l d o n e sacrifice, a n d fires b e t e ; A n d if y e w o l l n o t s o , m y l a d y s w e t e , T h a n pray I you to m o r o w e with a spere That

Arcite

m e through the hert bere.

T h a n recke I n o t w h a n I h a u e lost m y life, Though

Arcite

w i n n e her to wife.

T h i s is t h e e f f e c t e a n d e n d e o f m y p r a y e r e ; 22«o Y e u e m e m y l a d y , t h o u b l i s s f u l l a d y d e r e . W h a n t h e o r i s o n w a s d o n e of

Palamon,

H i s sacrifice h e did, a n d t h a t a n o n . F u l l pitously w i t h all c i r c u m s t a u n c e s A l l tell I n a t as n o w his o b s e r u a u n c e s . B u t a t t h e l a s t t h e s t a t u e of

Venus s h o k e ,

A n d m a d e a signe, w h e r e b y that h e toke, T h a t his prayer accepted was that day; F o r t h o u g h the signe shewed a delay, Yet wist h e well, that g r a u n t e d was his bone, 2270 A n d w i t h g l a d h e r t h e w e n t h i m h o m e f u l l s o n e . T h e third hour inequall that Began to

Venus t e m p l e

for to gon,

Emelye,

V p rose the sunne, a n d v p rose A n d v n t o t h e t e m p l e of

Palamon

Diane

gan hie:

H e r maidens, the which thider were lad, Full redily with h e m the fyre they had: T h e encense, the clothes, a n d t h e r e m e n a u n t all T h a t to t h e sacrifice l o n g e n shall, T h e h o m e s f u l l of m e e t h , as w a s t h e gise, 2280 T h e r e l a c k e d n a u g h t t o d o n h e r s a c r i f i c e , S m o k i n g t h e t e m p l e , f u l l of c l o t h e s f a y r e : This

Emelye

with herte debonayre

H e r b o d y w i t h e w i t h w a t e r of a well: B u t h o w she did, right I dare n o t tell; B u t it be any t h i n g in generall, A n d yet it w e r e a g a m e t o h e r e it all: 2271

inequall] in equall F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III Spare me but one small Portion of the Twine, And let the Sisters cut below your Line: The rest among the Rubbish may they sweep, Or add it to the Yarn of some old Miser's Heap. But if you this ambitious Pray'r deny, (A Wish, I grant, beyond Mortality) Then let me sink beneath proud Arcite's Arms, And I once dead, let him possess her Charms. Thus ended he; then, with Observance due, 180 The sacred Incense on her Altar threw: The curling Smoke mounts heavy from the Fires; At length it catches Flame, and in a Blaze expires; At once the gracious Goddess gave the Sign, Her Statue shook, and trembl'd all the Shrine: Pleas'd Palamon the tardy Omen took: For, since the Flames pursu'd the trailing Smoke, He knew his Boon was granted; but the Day To distance driv'n, and Joy adjourn'd with long Delay. Now Morn with Rosie Light had streak'd the Sky, 190 Up rose the Sun, and up rose Emily; Address'd her early Steps to Cynthia's Fane, In State attended by her Maiden Train, Who bore the Vests that Holy Rites require, Incense, and od'rous Gums, and cover'd Fire. The plenteous Horns with pleasant Mead they crown, Nor wanted ought besides in honour of the Moon. Now while the Temple smoak'd with hallow'd Steam, They wash the Virgin in a living Stream; The secret Ceremonies I conceal: 200 Uncouth; perhaps unlawful to reveal: But such they were as Pagan Use requir'd, Perform'd by Women when the Men retir'd, Whose Eyes profane, their chast mysterious Rites Might turn to Scandal, or obscene Delights. 180 Incense] Incence F. 194 Incense] Incence F.

185

Omen] Omen F.

139

Poems,

140

2290

2800

2310

2320

169J—1J00

T o him that meaneth wel it were no charge, But it is good a man be at his large. Her bright heare was unkempt and vntressed all, A crowne of a grene oke vnseriall, Vpon her hed set ful fayre and mete; Two fyres on the aulter gan she bete, And did her things, as men may beholde, In Stace of Thebes, and these bokes olde. Whan kendled was the fire, with pitous chere, Vnto Diane she spake, as ye may here. 0 chaste goddesse of the woddes grene, T o whom both heuen, and yearth, and see is sene, Quene of the reigne of Pluto, derke and low, Goddesse of maidens, that myn hert hath know Full many a yere, and woste what I desire, As kepe me fro the vengeance of thine yre That Acteon abought cruelly, Chaste Goddesse, well woste thou that I Desyre to ben a mayde all my life, Ne neuer woll I be loue ne wife. 1 am (thou woste well) of thy company A mayde, and loue hunting and venery, And for to walken in the woddes wilde, And not for to ben a wife, and ben with childe: Nought will I know company of man; Now helpe me lady, sith you may and can: For tho thre formes that thou hast in thee, And Palamon, that hath such a loue to me, And eke Arcite that loueth me so sore, This grace I pray thee, withouten more; And send loue and peace betwixt hem two; And fro me turne away her hertes so, That all her hot loue and her desire, And all her busy turment, and all her fire Be queint, or turned in another place: And if so be thou wolte not do me that grace; Or if so be my destiny be shapen so, That I shall nedes haue one of hem two; «300 know]

F.

2302

yre]

F.

Fables: Palamon and, Arcite, Book III

141

Well-meaners think no Harm; but for the rest, Things Sacred they pervert, and Silence is the best. Her shining Hair, uncomb'd, was loosly spread, A Crown of Mastless Oak adorn'd her Head: When to the Shrine approach'd, the spotless Maid 210 Had kindling Fires on either Altar laid: (The Rites were such as were observ'd of old, By Statins in his Theban Story told.) Then kneeling with her Hands across her Breast, Thus lowly she preferr'd her chast Request. O Goddess, Haunter of the Woodland Green, T o whom both Heav'n and Earth and Seas are seen; Queen of the nether Skies, where half the Year T h y Silver Beams descend, and light the gloomy Sphere; Goddess of Maids, and conscious of our Hearts, 220 So keep me from the Vengeance of thy Darts, Which Nlobe's devoted Issue felt, When hissing through the Skies the feather'd Deaths were dealt: As I desire to live a Virgin-life, Nor know the Name of Mother or of Wife. Thy Votress from my tender Years I am, And love, like thee, the Woods and Sylvan Game. Like Death, thou know'st, I loath the Nuptial State, ^ And Man, the Tyrant of our Sex, I hate, > A lowly Servant, but a lofty Mate. / 2so Where Love is Duty, on the Female Side; On theirs meer sensual Gust, and sought with surly Pride. Now by thy triple Shape, as thou art seen In Heav'n, Earth, Hell, and ev'ry where a Queen, Grant this my first Desire; let Discord cease, And make betwixt the Rivals lasting Peace: Quench their hot Fire, or far from me remove The Flame, and turn it on some other Love. Or if my frowning Stars have so decreed, That one must be rejected, one succeed, 209 approach'd,... Maid]

...

F.

142

Poems,

1697-1700

As sende me him that most desireth me. Beholde, goddesse of clene chastite, T h e bitter teares, that on my chekes fall, Syn thou art a mayde, and keper of vs all; My maidenhede thou kepe, and wel conserue, 2330 And while I liue a maiden woll I thee serue. T h e fyres brenne upon the auter clere, While Emelye was thus in her prayere; But sodenly she sawe a thing queynte: For right anon one of the fyres queynte, And quicked again; and after that anon That other fyre was queynte, and all agon; And as it queynte it made a whistling As done these wete brondes in her brenning; And at the brondes ende out ran anone 2340 As it were bloddy droppes many a one: For which so sore agaste was Emelye That she was well nye madde, and gan to crye: For she ne wiste what it signified; But onely for the feare thus she cried, And wept, that it was pite for to here. And therewithal Diane gan to appere With bow in honde, right as an hunteresse, And said, doughter, stint thine heuinesse; Among the goddes hie it is affirmed, 2310 And by eterne word written and confirmed, Thou shalt ben wedded to one of tho

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III

143

a» Make him my Lord within whose faithful Breast Is fix'd my Image, and who loves me best. But, ohl ev'n that avert! I chuse it not, But take it as the least unhappy Lot. A Maid I am, and of thy Virgin-Train; Oh, let me still that spotless Name retain 1 Frequent the Forests, thy chast Will obey, And only make the Beasts of Chace my Prey! T h e Flames ascend on either Altar clear, While thus the blameless Maid address'd her Pray'r: 250 When Io! the burning Fire that shone so bright, Flew off, all sudden, with extinguish'd Light, And left one Altar dark, a little space; Which turn'd self-kindl'd, and renew'd the Blaze: T h a t other Victour-Flame a Moment stood, T h e n fell, and lifeless left th' extinguish'd Wood; For ever lost, th' irrevocable Light Forsook the blackning Coals, and sunk to Night: At either End it whistled as it flew, ) And as the Brands were green, so dropp'd the Dew; > ; 2«o Infected as it fell with Sweat of Sanguin Hue. T h e Maid from that ill Omen turn'd her Eyes, And with loud Shrieks and Clamours rent the Skies, Nor knew what signifi'd the boding Sign, But found the Pow'rs displeas'd, and fear'd the Wrath Divine. Then shook the Sacred Shrine, and sudden Light Sprung through the vaulted Roof, and made the Temple bright. T h e Pow'r, behold! the Pow'r in Glory shone, By her bent Bow, and her keen Arrows known: T h e rest, a Huntress issuing from the Wood, 270 Reclining on her Cornel Spear she stood: Then gracious thus began; Dismiss thy Fear, And Heav'ns unchang'd Decrees attentive hear: 249 Pray'r:] F. 261 Omen] Omen F.

270 stood:] — F.

Poems,

144

169J-1700

T h a t haue for thee so moch care and wo; But vnto which of hem I may not tell: Farewell; for I may no lenger dwell: T h e fires which on mine auter brenne Shall declaren er that thou gon henne, T h i s auenture of loue, as in this case. And with that word, the arrows in the case Of the goddesse clatteren fast and ring; 2360 And forth she went, and made vaneshing: For which this Emely astonied was, And said, what mounteth this? alas, I put me vnder thy protection, Diane, and under thy disposicion; And home she goeth the next way: This is the effect, there is no more to say. T h e next houre of Mars following this, Arcite unto the temple walked is Of fiers Mars to done his sacrifice 2370 With all the might of his paynem wise; With piteous hert and hie devocion, Right thus to Mars he said his orison. O stronge God, that in the reignes cold Of Trace, honoured art, and lord yhold; And hast in euery reigne and euery lond Of armes, all the bridle in thine hond, And hem fortunest as the list deuise; Accept of me my pitous sacrifice, If so be my thought may deserue; 2357

case.]

F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III More pow'rful Gods have torn thee from my Side, Unwilling to resign, and doom'd a Bride: T h e two contending Knights are weigh'd above; One Mars protects, and one the Queen of Love: But which the Man, is in the Thund'rer's Breast, This he pronounc'd, 'tis he who loves thee best. T h e Fire that once extinct, reviv'd again, 280 Foreshews the Love allotted to remain. Farewell, she said, and vanish'd from the Place; T h e Sheaf of Arrows shook, and rattl'd in the Case. Aghast at this, the Royal Virgin stood, Disclaim'd, and now no more a Sister of the Wood: But to the parting Goddess thus she pray'd; \ Propitious still be present to my Aid, > Nor quite abandon your once favour'd Maid. ' Then sighing she return'd; but smil'd betwixt, With Hopes, and Fears, and Joys with Sorrows mixt. 290

T h e next returning Planetary Hour Of Mars, who shar'd the Heptarchy of Pow'r, His Steps bold Arcite to the Temple bent, T ' adore with Pagan Rites the Pow'r Armipotent: Then prostrate, low before his Altar lay, And rais'd his manly Voice, and thus began to pray. Strong God of Arms, whose Iron Scepter sways T h e freezing North, and Hyperborean Seas, And Scythian Colds, and Thracia's Wintry Coast, Where stand thy Steeds, and thou art honour'd most: soo There most; but ev'ry where thy Pow'r is known, T h e Fortune of the Fight is all thy own: Terrour is thine, and wild Amazement flung From out thy Chariot, withers ev'n the Strong: And Disarray and shameful Rout ensue, And Force is added to the fainting Crew. Acknowledg'd as thou art, accept my Pray'r, If ought I have atchiev'd deserve thy Care: 883 Aghast] Agast F.

145

146

Poems,

1697-1700

2380 And that my might be worthy for to serue Thy godhead, that I may bene one of thine; Than pray I thee that thou rue on my pine: For thilke paine, and thilke hot fire In which thou brentest whylom for desire; Whan thou vsedest the faire beaute Of faire yong fresh Venus ire, And haddest her in thine armes at thy will, Although thou ones on a time misfill; Whan Vulcanus had caught thee in his laas, as«» And found thee ligging by his wife, alas, For thilke sorrowe, that was in thine herte, Haue ruthe as well on my pains smerte. I am yong and vnconning as thou wost; And as I trow, with loue offended most That euer was any liues creature; For she that doth me al this wo endure, Ne retcheth neuer where I sinke or flete; And well I wote, or she me mercy hete, I mote with strength win her in this place; 2400 And well I wote, without helpe or grace Of thee, ne may my strength not auaile: Than help me lord to morrow in my battaile, For thilke fire that whilom brent thee As well as the fire now brenneth me: And do, that I to morrow haue the victorie: Mine be the trauell, and thine be the glorie; Thy souereign temple wol I most honouren Of any place, and alway most labouren In thy pleasaunce, and in thy crafts strong, 2410 And in thy temple I woll my banner hong; And all the armes of my companie, And euermore vntil the day I die:

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III

sjo

320

830

s4o

If to my utmost Pow'r with Sword and Shield I dar'd the Death, unknowing how to yield, And falling in my Rank, still kept the Field: Then let my Arms prevail, by thee sustain'd, T h a t Emily by Conquest may be gain'd. Have pity on my Pains; nor those unknown T o Mars, which when a Lover, were his own. Venus, the Publick Care of all above, Thy stubborn Heart has softned into Love: Now by her Blandishments and pow'rful Charms When yielded, she lay curling in thy Arms, Ev'n by thy Shame, if Shame it may be call'd, When Vulcan had thee in his Net inthrall'd; O envy'd Ignominy, sweet Disgrace, When ev'ry God that saw thee, wish'd thy Place I By those dear Pleasures, aid my Arms in Fight, And make me conquer in my Patron's Right: For I am young, a Novice in the Trade, T h e Fool of Love, unpractis'd to persuade; And want the soothing Arts that catch the Fair, But caught my self, lie strugling in the Snare: And she I love, or laughs at all my Pain, Or knows her Worth too well; and pays me with Disdain. For sure I am, unless I win in Arms, T o stand excluded from Emilia's Charms: Nor can my Strength avail, unless by thee Endu'd with Force, I gain the Victory: Then for the Fire which warm'd thy gen'rous Heart, Pity thy Subject's Pains, and equal Smart. So be the Morrows Sweat and Labour mine, T h e Palm and Honour of the Conquest thine: Then shall the War, and stern Debate, and Strife Immortal, be the Bus'ness of my Life; And in thy Fane, the dusty Spoils among, High on the burnish'd Roof, my Banner shall be hung; Rank'd with my Champions Bucklers, and below With Arms revers'd, th' Atchievements of my Foe: And while these Limbs the Vital Spirit feeds,

147

148

Poems,169J-1J00

Eterne fyre I wol beforne the finde; And eke to this auow I wol me binde. My berd, my heare, that hongeth low adoun, That neuer yet felt offensioun, Of rasour ne of shere, I wol the yeue, And ben thy true seruant while I liue. Now lord haue ruth vpon my sorows sore: 2420 Yeue me the victorie; I aske the no more. The praier stint of Arcite the strong; The ringes on the temple dore they rong: And eke the dores clatren ful fast; Of which Arcite somwhat him agast. The fires brennen vpon the auter bright, That it gan all the temple light. A swete smel anon the ground vp yafe: And Arcite anon his hond vp hafe; And more ensence into the fire he cast, 2430 With other rites mo; and at the last The statu of Mars began his hauberke ring; And with that sound he herd a murmuring Full low and dym, that saied thus, victory: For which he yaue to Mars honor and glory. And thus with ioy, and hope well to fare, Arcite anon into his inne is fare; As faine as foule is of the bright sonne: And right anon such a strife is begonne: For thilke graunting is the heuen aboue 2440 Bytwixt Venus, the goddesse of loue, And Mars the sterne god armipotent,

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book

III

While Day to Night, and Night to Day succeeds, T h y smoaking Altar shall be fat with Food Of Incense, and the grateful Steam of Blood; Burnt Off'rings Morn and Ev'ning shall be thine; 850 And Fires eternal in thy Temple shine. This Bush of yellow Beard, this Length of Hair, Which from my Birth inviolate I bear, Guiltless of Steel, and from the Razour free, Shall fall a plenteous Crop, reserv'd for thee. So may my Arms with Victory be blest, I ask no more; let Fate dispose the rest. T h e Champion ceas'd; there follow'd in the Close A hollow Groan, a murm'ring Wind arose, T h e Rings of Ir'n, that on the Doors were hung, 360 Sent out a jarring Sound, and harshly rung: T h e bolted Gates flew open at the Blast, T h e Storm rush'd in; and Arcite stood aghast: T h e Flames were blown aside, yet shone they bright, Fann'd by the Wind, and gave a ruffl'd Light. Then from the Ground a Scent began to rise, Sweet-smelling, as accepted Sacrifice: This Omen pleas'd, and as the Flames aspire With od'rous Incense Arcite heaps the Fire: Nor wanted Hymns to Mars, or Heathen Charms: 870 A t length the nodding Statue clash'd his Arms, And with a sullen Sound, and feeble Cry, Half sunk, and half pronounc'd the Word of Victory. For this, with Soul devout, he thank'd the God, And of Success secure, return'd to his Abode. These Vows thus granted, rais'd a Strife above, Betwixt the God of War, and Queen of Love. She granting first, had Right of Time to plead; 348 362 367

Incense] Incence F. aghast] agast F. Omen] Omen F.

364 Light.] F. 368 Incense] Incence F.

149

150

Poems,

iöyj-ijoo

That Jupiter was busie it to stent; Till that the pale Saturnus the colde, That knew so many auentures olde, Found in his experience and art, That he full sone hath pleased euery part: And soth is said, eld hath grete auantage; In elde is both wisdome and vsage. Men may the old out ren, but not out rede. 24so Saturne anon, to stinten strife and drede: All be it that it be again his kind; Of all this strife he can remedy find. My dere daughter Venus, quod Saturn; My course that hath so wide for to turne, Hath more power than wote any man, Myne is the drenching in the see so wan: Myne is the prison in the derke cote; Myne is the strangling and the honging by the throte, The murmure, and the churles rebelling, 2460 The groning and the priuy enpoysoning: I do vengeaunce and plain correction While I dwell in the signe of the Lion. Mine is the ruine of the hie halles, The falling of the toures and of the walles Vpon the mynor, or vpon the carpenters.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III But he had granted too, nor would recede. Jove was for Venus; but he fear'd his Wife, Sao And seem'd unwilling to decide the Strife; Till Saturn from his Leaden Throne arose, And found a Way the Diff'rence to compose: Though sparing of his Grace, to Mischief bent, He seldom does a Good with good Intent. Wayward, but wise; by long Experience taught T o please both Parties, for ill Ends, he sought: For this Advantage Age from Youth has won, As not to be outridden, though outrun. By Fortune he was now to Venus Trin'd, 89o And with stern Mars in Capricorn was join'd: Of him disposing in his own Abode, He sooth'd the Goddess, while he gull'd the God: Cease, Daughter, to complain; and stint the Strife; Thy Palamon shall have his promis'd Wife: And Mars, the Lord of Conquest, in the Fight With Palm and Laurel shall adorn his Knight. Wide is my Course, nor turn I to my Place Till length of Time, and move with tardy Pace. Man feels me, when I press th' Etherial Plains, 400 My Hand is heavy, and the Wound remains. Mine is the Shipwreck, in a Watry Sign; And in an Earthy, the dark Dungeon mine. Cold shivering Agues, melancholy Care, And bitter blasting Winds, and poison'd Air, Are mine, and wilful Death, resulting from Despair. T h e throtling Quinsey 'tis my Star appoints, And Rheumatisms I send to rack the Joints: When Churls rebel against their Native Prince, I arm their Hands, and furnish the Pretence; 4io And housing in the Lion's hateful Sign, Bought Senates, and deserting Troops are mine. Mine is the privy Pois'ning, I command Unkindly Seasons, and ungrateful Land. By me Kings Palaces are push'd to Ground, And Miners, crush'd beneath their Mines are found.

»5*

Poems,

169J-1700

I slew Sampson shaking the pillers; And mine ben the maladies colde, The derke treasons and the castels olde. My loking is the father of pestilence: 2470 Now wepe no more; I shall do my diligence That Palamon, that is thin owne knight, Shall haue his lady as thou him behight: Though Mars shal help his knight natheles; Betwixt you it mote somtime be pees: All be ye not of one compleccion That causeth all day such deuision. I am thine ayle, redy at thy will: Wepe no more; I woll thy lust fulfill. Now woll I stinten of these goddes aboue, 2480 Of Mars and of Venus, goddesse of loue; And plainly I woll tellen you as I can, The great effect, of which that I began. Great was the feast in Athenes that day, And eke that lusty season in May, Made euery wight to ben in such pleasaunce, That all that day iusten they and daunce; And spenten it in Venus hie seruice: But bicause that they shulden arise Erly, for to se the great sight, 24»o Vnto her rest went they at night: And on the morow, whan day gan spring, Of horse and harneys, noise and clatering, There was in the hostelries all about; And to the palys rode there many a rout Of lordes vpon stedes and palfreys.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book

III

'Twas I slew Samson, when the Pillar'd Hall Fell down, and crush'd the Many with the Fall. My Looking is the Sire of Pestilence, That sweeps at once the People and the Prince. 420 Now weep no more, but trust thy Grandsire's Art; Mars shall be pleas'd, and thou perform thy Part. 'Til ill, though diff'rent your Complexions are, The Family of Heav'n for Men should war. T h ' Expedient pleas'd, where neither lost his Right: Mars had the Day, and Venus had the Night. The Management they left to Cronos Care; Now turn we to th' Effect, and sing the War. In Athens, all was Pleasure, Mirth, and Play, All proper to the Spring, and spritely May: 430 Which ev'ry Soul inspir'd with such Delight, 'Twas Justing all the Day, and Love at Night. Heav'n smil'd, and gladded was the Heart of Man; And Venus had the World, as when it first began. At length in Sleep their Bodies they compose, And dreamt the future Fight, and early rose. Now scarce the dawning Day began to spring, As at a Signal giv'n, the Streets with Clamours ring: At once the Crowd arose; confus'd and high j Ev'n from the Heav'n was heard a shouting Cry; > 440 For Mars was early up, and rowz'd the Sky. ) The Gods came downward to behold the Wars, Sharpning their Sights, and leaning from their Stars. T h e Neighing of the gen'rous Horse was heard, For Battel by the busie Groom prepar'd: Rustling of Harness, ratling of the Shield, Clatt'ring of Armour, furbish'd for the Field. Crowds to the Castle mounted up the Street, Batt'ring the Pavement with their Coursers Feet: 4*6

Cronos] Chrono's F.

153

154

Poems, 169J-1700

T h e r e m a i e s t t h o u s e e d e u i s i n g of h a r n e i s , So u n c o u t h , so r i c h , a n d w r o u g h t so w e l e , O f g o l d s m y t h r y , o f b r a u d r y , a n d of s t e l e ; T h e shildes bright, testers a n d trappers, 2500 G o l d h e w e n h e l m e s , h a u b e r k e s a n d c o t a r m e r s , Lordes in paramentes, o n her coursers. K n i g h t e s of r e t e n u e , a n d e k e s q u i e r s , N a y l i n g the speres, a n d h e l m e s bokeling, G i g g i n g of s h e l d e s , w i t h l a i n e r s l a c i n g : T h e r e , as n e d e is, t h e y w e r e n o t h i n g y d e l l ; T h e f o m i n g stedes o n the golden bridell, G n a w i n g , a n d fast t h e a r m u r e r s also W i t h file a n d h a m m e r r i d i n g t o a n d f r o ; Y e m e n o n foot, a n d c o m m u n e s m a n y o n e 2sio W i t h s h o r t s t a u e s , t h i c k e as t h e y m a y g o n e , Pipes, T r o m p e s , nakoners a n d clarions, T h a t in the battel b l o w e n bloody sowns; T h e palais f u l l of p e o p l e v p a n d d o u n ; H e r e three, there ten, holding her question, D e u i n i n g of t h e s e

Theban

knights two;

S o m e s a i d t h u s , s o m e said it s h o u l d b e so. Som held with h i m with the black berde: Som with the bald, som with the thick herde: S o m e said, h e l o k e d g r i m a n d w o u l d

fight;

2520 H e h a t h a s p a r t h o f t w e n t y p o u n d of w e i g h t . T h u s w a s t h e h a l l f u l l of d i u i n i n g , L o n g a f t e r t h e s o n n e gan to spring.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III

155

T h e greedy Sight might there devour the Gold 450 Of glittring Arms, too dazling to behold; And polish'd Steel that cast the View aside, And Crested Morions, with their Plumy Pride. Knights, with a long Retinue of their Squires, In gawdy Liv'ries march, and quaint Attires. One lac'd the Helm, another held the Lance: A third the shining Buckler did advance. The Courser paw'd the Ground with restless Feet, And snorting foam'd, and champ'd the Golden Bit. T h e Smiths and Armourers on Palfreys ride, 460 Files in their Hands, and Hammers at their Side, And Nails for loosen'd Spears, and Thongs for Shields provide. T h e Yeomen guard the Streets, in seemly Bands; And Clowns come crowding on, with Cudgels in their Hands. T h e Trumpets, next the Gate, in order plac'd, Attend the Sign to sound the Martial Blast: T h e Palace-yard is fill'd with floating Tides, And the last Comers bear the former to the Sides. The Throng is in the midst: The common Crew Shut out, the Hall admits the better Few. 470 In Knots they stand, or in a Rank they walk, Serious in Aspect, earnest in their Talk: Factious, and fav'ring this or t' other Side, As their strong Fancies, and weak Reason, guide: Their Wagers back their Wishes: Numbers hold With the fair freckl'd King, and Beard of Gold: So vig'rous are his Eyes, such Rays they cast, So prominent his Eagles Beak is plac'd. But most their Looks on the black Monarch bend, His rising Muscles, and his Brawn commend; 480 His double-biting Ax, and beamy Spear, Each asking a Gygantick Force to rear. All spoke as partial Favour mov'd the Mind; And safe themselves, at others Cost divin'd.

156

Poems,

169J-1700

The great Theseus of his slepe gan wake With minstralcie and noise that they make, Held yet the chamber of his palais rich, Till that the Theban knights both yliche Honoured weren, and into the place ifette. Duke Theseus is at the window set, Araied right as he were a god in trone: 2530 The people preased thiderward ful sone, Him for to sene, and done him hie reuerence, And eke for to here his hest and his sentence. An heraude on a scaffold made on 00, Til al the noise of the people was ydo: And whan he saw the people of noise still; Thus shewed he the mightie dukes will. The lorde hath of his hie discreción Considered that it were destruction To gentle blood to fighten in this gise 2540 Of mortall battaile now in this emprise: Wherefore to shapen that they shall not die, He wol his first purpose modifie. No man therfore vp paine of losse of life, No maner shotte, polax, ne short knife Into the listes send, or thyder bring; Ne short sword to stick with point biting; No man ne draw, ne beare it by his side, Ne no man shal to his felow ride But one course with a sharp grounden spere: 2550 Foine if him list on foot himselfe to were: And he that is at mischief shal be take, And not slain, but brought to the stake: That shal ben ordained on either side; 2548 ride]

F.

2549 spere:] ~ A F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III Wak'd by the Cries, th' Athenian Chief arose, The Knightly Forms of Combate to dispose; And passing through th' obsequious Guards, he sate Conspicuous on a Throne, sublime in State; There, for the two contending Knights he sent: Arm'd Cap-a-pe, with Rev'rence low they bent; 490 He smil'd on both, and with superiour Look Alike their offer'd Adoration took. The People press on ev'ry Side to see Their awful Prince, and hear his high Decree. Then signing to the Heralds with his Hand, They gave his Orders from their lofty Stand. Silence is thrice enjoin'd; then thus aloud T h e King at Arms bespeaks the Knights and listning Crowd. Our Sovereign Lord has ponder'd in his Mind T h e Means to spare the Blood of gentle Kind; coo And of his Grace, and in-born Clemency, He modifies his first severe Decree; T h e keener Edge of Battel to rebate, T h e Troops for Honour fighting, not for Hate. He wills, not Death shou'd terminate their Strife; And Wounds, if Wounds ensue, be short of Life: But issues, e'er the Fight, his dread Command, That Slings afar, and Ponyards Hand to Hand, Be banish'd from the Field; that none shall dare With shortned Sword to stab in closer War; 510 But in fair Combate fight with manly Strength, Nor push with biting Point, but strike at length. T h e Turney is allow'd but one Career, Of the tough Ash, with the sharp-grinded Spear. But Knights unhors'd may rise from off the Plain, And fight on Foot, their Honour to regain. Nor, if at Mischief taken, on the Ground Be slain, but Pris'ners to the Pillar bound, At either Barrier plac'd; nor (Captives made,) 489 Cap-a-pe] Cap-a-pe F. 505 Life:] — F.

157

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Poems, 1697—i joo

But thider he shal by force, and there abide: And if so fall that the chieftain be take On either side, or else sleen his make, No lenger shal the turnament last: God speede you; gothe, and laieth on fast; With swords and long maces fighten your fill: 8S60 Goth now your way, this is the lord's will. The voice of the people touched heuen: So loud cried they with mery steuen, God saue such a lorde that is so good He willeth no distruction of blood: Vp gothe trompes and the melody, And to the listes rideth so the company, By ordinaunce throughout the cite large, Honged with cloth of gold, and not with sarge. Ful like a lord this noble duke gan ride, M7o These two Thebans on euery side; And after rode the quene and Emely; And after that another companye Of one and other after her degre: And thus they passen throughout the cite; And to the listes comen they be by time; It nas not of the day yet fully prime, Whan sat was Theseus ful riche and hye, Ipolita the quene, and Emelye, And other ladies in degrees aboute: 2580 Vnto the seates preaseth all the route;

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III Be freed, or arm'd anew the Fight invade. 520 T h e Chief of either Side, bereft of Life, Or yielded to his Foe, concludes the Strife. Thus dooms the Lord: Now valiant Knights and young, Fight each his fill with Swords and Maces long. T h e Herald ends: The vaulted Firmament With loud Acclaims, and vast Applause is rent: Heav'n guard a Prince so gracious and so good, So just, and yet so provident of Blood! This was the gen'ral Cry. The Trumpets sound, And Warlike Symphony is heard around. 530 The marching Troops through Athens take their way, T h e great Earl-Marshal orders their Array. The Fair from high the passing Pomp behold; A Rain of Flow'rs is from the Windows roll'd. T h e Casements are with Golden Tissue spread, And Horses Hoofs, for Earth, on Silken Tap'stry tread. T h e King goes midmost, and the Rivals ride In equal Rank, and close his either Side. Next after these, there rode the Royal Wife, With Emily, the Cause, and the Reward of Strife. 5« T h e following Cavalcade, by Three and Three, Proceed by Titles marshall'd in Degree. Thus through the Southern Gate they take their Way, And at the Lists arriv'd e'er Prime of Day. There, parting from the King, the Chiefs divide, And wheeling East and West, before their Many ride. T h ' Athenian Monarch mounts his Throne on high, And after him the Queen, and Emily: Next these, the Kindred of the Crown are grac'd With nearer Seats, and Lords by Ladies plac'd. 550 Scarce were they seated, when with Clamours loud In rush'd at once a rude promiscuous Crowd: The Guards, and then each other overbare, And in a Moment throng the spacious Theatre. Now chang'd the jarring Noise to Whispers low, As Winds forsaking Seas more softly blow;

»59

i6o

Poems,

1697-1700

And westward, thrugh the yates vnder Mart Arcite, and eke an hundred of his parte With baner reed is entred right anon; And in the selue moment entred Palamon Is vnder Venus, estwarde in that place With baner white, and hardy chere and face. And in al the world, to seken vp and doun, So euen without variacion There nas such companies twey: 2590 For there nas none so wise that coude sey That any had of other auantage Of worthines, ne of estate, ne age; So euen were they chose to gesse, And into the renges fayre they hem dresse, Whan that her names red were euerich one That in her nombre gue were there none, T h o were the gates shit, and cried was loude Do nowe your deuer yong knightes proude. T h e heraudes left her pricking vp and doun: a«o« Now ryngen trompes loude and clarioun: There is no more to say; este and west In goth the sharpe speres sadly in the arrest; In goth the sharpe spurres into the side: There se men who can iust and who can ride: There shiueren shaftes upon sheldes thicke;

Fables: Palamon

and Arcite, Book III

W h e n at the Western Gate, on which the Car Is plac'd aloft, that bears the God of War, Proud Arcite entring arm'd before his Train, Stops at the Barrier, and divides the Plain. S80 Red was his Banner, and display'd abroad, T h e bloody Colours of his Patron God. At that self-moment enters Palamon T h e Gate of Venus, and the Rising Sun; Wav'd by the wanton Winds, his Banner flies, All Maiden White, and shares the Peoples Eyes. From East to West, look all the World around, T w o Troops so match'd were never to be found: Such Bodies built for Strength, of equal Age, In Stature siz'd; so proud an Equipage: 570 T h e nicest Eye cou'd no Distinction make, Where lay th' Advantage, or what Side to take. T h u s rang'd, the Herald for the last proclaims A Silence, while they answer'd to their Names: For so the King decreed, to shun with Care T h e Fraud of Musters false, the common Bane of War. T h e Tale was just, and then the Gates were clos'd; And Chief to Chief, and T r o o p to T r o o p oppos'd. T h e Heralds last retir'd, and loudly cry'd, T h e Fortune of the Field be fairly try'd. 580

At this, the Challenger with fierce Defie His T r u m p e t sounds; the Challeng'd makes Reply: With Clangour rings the Field, resounds the vaulted Sky. T h e i r Vizors clos'd, their Lances in the Rest, Or at the Helmet pointed, or the Crest; They vanish from the Barrier, speed the Race, And spurring see decrease the middle Space. A Cloud of Smoke envellops either Host, And all at once the Combatants are lost: Darkling they join adverse, and shock unseen, 590 Coursers with Coursers justling, Men with Men:

161

162

Poems,

1697—1700

He feleth through the hert spoune the pricke. V p springeth the speres, twenty fote on hight, Out goth the swordes as the siluer bright. The helmes they to hewe and to shrede, 2610 Out burst the blood with sterne stremes rede, With mighty maces, the bones they to breke; He throgh the thickest of the throng gan threke There stomblen stedes strong, and doun gon all, He rolled vnder the foote as dothe a ball, He foyneth on his feete with a tronchoun: And he hurleth with his horse adoun. He through the body is hurte, and sith ytake Maugre his heed, and brought vnto the stake, As forward was, right there he must abide; 2620 An other is ladde on that other side: And somtime doeth hem Theseus to reste, Hem to refreshe, and drinke if hem leste. Full ofte a day haue these Thebans two, Togither met, and don eche other wo: Vnhorsed hath ech other of hem twey:

Fables: Palamon and Arcite,

Book III

163

As lab'ring in Eclipse, a while they stay, T i l l the next Blast of Wind restores the Day. T h e y look anew: The beauteous Form of Fight Is chang'd, and War appears a grizly Sight. T w o Troops in fair Array one Moment show'd, T h e next, a Field with fallen Bodies strow'd: Not half the Number in their Seats are found, But Men and Steeds lie grov'ling on the Ground. T h e Points of Spears are stuck within the Shield, TOO T h e Steeds without their Riders scour the Field. T h e Knights unhors'd, on Foot renew the Fight; T h e glitt'ring Fauchions cast a gleaming Light: Hauberks and Helms are hew'd with many a Wound; Out spins the streaming Blood, and dies the Ground. T h e mighty Maces with such haste descend, They break the Bones, and make the solid Armour bend. This thrusts amid the Throng with furious Force; Down goes, at once, the Horseman and the Horse: T h a t Courser stumbles on the fallen Steed, 6io And floundring, throws the Rider o'er his Head. One rolls along, a Foot-ball to his Foes; One with a broken Truncheon deals his Blows. This halting, this disabl'd with his Wound, In Trumph led, is to the Pillar bound, Where by the King's Award he must abide: There goes a Captive led on t' other Side. By Fits they cease; and leaning on the Lance, Take Breath a while, and to new Fight advance. Full oft the Rivals met, and neither spar'd «20 His utmost Force, and each forgot to ward. T h e Head of this was to the Saddle bent, T h a t other backward to the Crupper sent: Both were by Turns unhors'd; the jealous Blows Fall thick and heavy, when on Foot they close. So deep their Fauchions bite, that ev'ry Stroke Pierc'd to the Quick; and equal Wounds they gave and took.

Poems,

164

169J-1J00

T h e r was no tigre in the vale of Galaphey, Whan her whelpe is stole, whan it is lite So cruell on the hunt, as is Arcite For ielous herte upon this Palamon; 2«3o Ne in Belmarye there is no fell Lion T h a t hunted is, or for his hunger woode, Ne of his prey desireth so the bloode, As Palamon to slee his foe Arcite, T h e ielous strokes on her helmes bite. Out renneth the blood on both her sides rede: Sometime an end there is of euery dede: For er the sunne vnto the rest wente, T h e strong King Emetrius gan hente This Palamon as he faught with this Arcite, 2640 And made his sworde depe in his flesh bite; And by force of twenty is he take, Vnyolden, and drawen to the stake: And in the rescous of this Palamon T h e strong king Ligurge is borne adoun; And king Emetrius, for all his strength Is borne out of his saddle a swordes length; So hurt him Palamon or he were take; But al for naught he was broght to the stake: His hardy herte might him helpe naught; 2650 He must abide, when that he was caught By force, and eke by composicion: W h o soroweth now but woful Palamon? T h a t mote no more gon againe to fight. And whan that Theseus had sene that sight He cried, hoe: no more; for it is don; 2638

hente]

F.

2643

Vnyolden] Vn yolden F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book

III

Born far asunder by the Tides of Men, Like Adamant and Steel they meet agen. So when a Tyger sucks the Bullock's Blood, ) 630 A famish'd Lion issuing from the Wood > Roars Lordly fierce, and challenges the Food. ) Each claims Possession, neither will obey, But both their Paws are fasten'd on the Prey: They bite, they tear; and while in vain they strive, T h e Swains come arm'd between, and both to distance drive. A t length, as Fate foredoom'd, and all things tend By Course of T i m e to their appointed End; So when the Sun to West was far declin'd, And both afresh in mortal Battel join'd, 640 T h e strong Emetrius came in Arcite's Aid, And Palamon with Odds was overlaid: For turning short, he struck with all his Might Full on the Helmet of th' unwary Knight. Deep was the Wound; he stagger'd with the Blow, And turn'd him to his unexpected Foe; Whom with such Force he struck, he fell'd him down, And cleft the Circle of his Golden Crown. But Arcite's Men, who now prevail'd in Fight, Twice T e n at once surround the single Knight: 6so O'erpowr'd at length, they force him to the Ground, Unyielded as he was, and to the Pillar bound; And King Lycurgus, while he fought in vain His Friend to free, was tumbl'd on the Plain. Who now laments but Palamon, compell'd No more to try the Fortune of the Field! And worse than Death, to view with hateful Eyes His Rival's Conquest, and renounce the Prize! T h e Royal Judge on his Tribunal plac'd, Who had beheld the Fight from first to last, 656

Eyes] Eye F.

165

i66

Poems,

1697-ijoo

Ne none shall lenger to his felowe gon. I woll be true iudge, and not party. Arcite of Thebes shall haue Emely, That by his fortune hath her fayre ywonne. 28«o Anon there is a noyse of people bygonne, For ioye of this, so loude and hie withall, It semed that the listes should fall. What can now faire Venus done aboue? What saith she now? what doth the quene of loue, But wepeth so for wanting of her wil, Till that her teares on the listes fell? She said, I am ashamed doutles. Saturne saide, doughter holde thy pees; Mars hath al his wil, his knizt hath his bone; 2670 And by mine heed, thou shalt be eased sone. The Trompes with the loude minstralcye, T h e heraudes that so loude yel and crye, Ben in her wele, for loue of dan Arcite; But herkeneth me, and stinteth noise a lite, Which a miracle there bifell anon. The fiers Arcite hath his helme of ydon; And on a courser for to shewe his face, He pricketh endlong the large place, Loking vpward vpon Emelye;

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III ««0 Bad cease the War; pronouncing from on high Arcite of Thebes had won the beauteous Emily. T h e Sound of Trumpets to the Voice reply'd, ) And round the Royal Lists the Heralds cry'd, > Arcite of Thebes has won the beauteous Bride.) The People rend the Skies with vast Applause; All own the Chief, when Fortune owns the Cause. Arcite is own'd ev'n by the Gods above, And conqu'ring Mars insults the Queen of Love. So laugh'd he, when the rightful Titan fail'd, «70 And Jove's usurping Arms in Heav'n prevail'd. Laugh'd all the Pow'rs who favour Tyranny; And all the Standing Army of the Sky. But Venus with dejected Eyes appears, And weeping, on the Lists, distill'd her Tears; Her Will refus'd, which grieves a Woman most, And in her Champion foil'd, the Cause of Love is lost: Till Saturn said, Fair Daughter, now be still, T h e blustring Fool has satisfi'd his Will: His Boon is giv'n; his Knight has gain'd the Day, 680 But lost the Prize, th' Arrears are yet to pay. Thy Hour is come, and mine the Care shall be T o please thy Knight, and set thy Promise free. Now while the Heralds run the Lists around, And Arcite, Arcite, Heav'n and Earth resound; A Miracle (nor less it could be call'd) Their Joy with unexpected Sorrow pall'd. T h e Victor Knight had laid his Helm aside, Part for his Ease, the greater part for Pride: Bare-headed, popularly low he bow'd, «so And paid the Salutations of the Crowd: Then spurring at full speed, ran endlong on Where Theseus sat on his Imperial Throne; Furious he drove, and upward cast his Eye, Where next the Queen was plac'd his Emily; 676 lost:] — F.

167

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Poems,

1697-1700

2680 And she ayen him cast a friendly eye: (For women, as to speke in commune, They followen all the fauour of fortune) And was al his chere, as in his herte, Out of the ground a fyre infernall sterte, From Pluto sent, at the request of Saturne; For which his horse for feare gan to turne, And lepe aside, and foundred as he lepe, And er that Arcite may taken kepe, He pight him of on the pomel of his heed, 2690 That in the place he lay as he were deed; His brest to brosten with his sadel bowe; As blacke he lay as any cole or crowe: So was the blood yronne in his face. Anon he was brought out of the place, With hert sore, to Theseus paleis, T h o was he coruen out of his harneis, And in a bedde ybrought ful faire and bliue: For he was yet in memory, and on liue, And alway cryeng after Emely. 2700 Duke Theseus with al his company Is comen home to Athenes his cite With all blisse and great solempnite: Al be it that this auenture was fall, He would not discomfort hem all. Men said, eke, that Arcite should not die; He should ben yhealed of his maladie: And of another thing they were as faine, That of hem al there was none slaine: All were they sore hurt, and namely one, 2710 That with a sper was thronled his brest bone: Two other woundes, and two broken armes; Some had salues, and some had charmes, Fermaces of herbes, and eke saue They dronken; for they would her liues haue; For which this noble duke, as he well can,

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III

169

T h e n passing, to the Saddle-bow he bent, A sweet Regard the gracious Virgin lent: (For Women, to the Brave an easie Prey, Still follow Fortune, where she leads the Way:) Just then, from Earth sprung out a flashing Fire, By Pluto sent, at Saturn's bad Desire; T h e startling Steed was seiz'd with sudden Fright, And, bounding, o'er the Pummel cast the Knight: Forward he flew, and pitching on his Head, He quiver'd with his Feet, and lay for Dead. Black was his Count'nance in a little space, For all the Blood was gather'd in his Face. Help was at Hand; they rear'd him from the Ground, And from his cumbrous Arms his Limbs unbound; T h e n lanc'd a Vein, and watch'd returning Breath; It came, but clogg'd with Symptoms of his Death. T h e Saddle-bow the Noble Parts had prest, All bruis'd and mortifi'd his Manly Breast. Him still entranc'd, and in a Litter laid, T h e y bore from Field, and to his Bed convey'd. At length he wak'd, and with a feeble Cry, T h e Word he first pronounc'd was Emily. Mean time the King, though inwardly he mourn'd, In Pomp triumphant to the Town return'd, Attended by the Chiefs, who fought the Field; (Now friendly mix'd, and in one Troop compell'd:) Compos'd his Looks to counterfeited Cheer, And bade them not for Arcite's Life to fear. But that which gladded all the Warriour Train, Though most were sorely wounded, none were slain. T h e Surgeons soon despoil'd 'em of their Arms, And some with Salves they cure, and some with Charms: Foment the Bruises, and the Pains asswage, A n d heal their inward Hurts with Sov'reign Draughts of Sage. T h e King in Person visits all around, 7s6 Charms:] — F.

170

Poems,

ißg'j-i'joo

Comforteth and honoureth euery man, And made reuel al the long night Vnto the straunge lordes, as it was right; Ne there nas holde no discomforting; 2720 But at iustes or at turneyng: For sothly there nas no discomfiture: For falling is holde but an auenture; Ne to be lood by force vnto a stake, Vnyolden, and with twenty knightes take One person alone, withouten any mo, And haried forth by arme, fote and too, And eke his stede driuen forth with staues, With fotemen, both yemen and knaues. It was aretted him no vilanie: 2730 There may no man cleap it cowardie; For which anon duke Theseus did cry T o stinten all rancour and enuy, The grete as well of one side as of other, And either side ylike, as others brother; And yaue hem rightes after her degre, And fully helde a fest daies thre, And conueyed the knightes worthely Out of his toune, a daies iorney largely, And home went euery man the right waie; 2740 Ther nas no more, but fare wel, and haue good daie. Of this battaile I wol no more endite, But speake of Palamon and Arcite. Swelleth the brest of Arcite, and the sore Encreaseth at his hert more and more: T h e clotered blode, for any liche crafte Corrumped, and is in his body lafte, That neither veineblode, ne ventousing, Ne drinke of herbes, may be helping, By vertue expulsed or anymall, 2750 For thilke vertue cleaped naturall; Ne may the venim void, ne expell; T h e pipes of his longes began to swell; «734 ylike] ylke F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III 7so Comforts the Sick, congratulates the Sound; Honours the Princely Chiefs, rewards the rest, And holds for thrice three Days a Royal Feast. None was disgrac'd; for Falling is no Shame; And Cowardice alone is Loss of Fame. T h e vent'rous Knight is from the Saddle thrown; But 'tis the Fault of Fortune, not his own. If Crowns and Palms the conqu'ring Side adorn, T h e Victor under better Stars was born: T h e brave Man seeks not popular Applause, 740 Nor overpow'r'd with Arms, deserts his Cause; Unsham'd, though foil'd, he does the best he can; Force is of Brutes, but Honour is of Man. Thus Theseus smil'd on all with equal Grace; And each was set according to his Place. With ease were reconcil'd the diff'ring Parts, For Envy never dwells in Noble Hearts. At length they took their Leave, the Time expir'd; Well pleas'd; and to their sev'ral Homes retir'd. Mean while the Health of Arcite still impairs; 750 From Bad proceeds to Worse, and mocks the Leeches Cares: Swoln is his Breast, his inward Pains increase, All Means are us'd, and all without Success. The clotted Blood lies heavy on his Heart, Corrupts, and there remains in spite of Art: Nor breathing Veins, nor Cupping will prevail; All outward Remedies and inward fail: T h e Mold of Natures Fabrick is destroy'd, Her Vessels discompos'd, her Vertue void: T h e Bellows of his Lungs begins to swell: ] 760 All out of frame is ev'ry secret Cell, > Nor can the Good receive, nor Bad expel. )

171

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1697-1700

And euery lacerte in his brest adoun, Is shent with venim and corrupción. Him gaineth neither for to get his life, Vomite upwarde, ne dounward laxatife; All is to brust thilke región; Nature hath no dominación: And certainly ther, as nature wol nat wirch; 2760 Farwel phisike, go beare the corsé to chirch. This is all and some, that Arcite must die; For which he sendeth after Emelye, And Palamon, his cosyn dere: Then said he thus, as ye shall after here. Nought may my wofull spirite in my hert Declare a point of all my sorowes smert T o you, my lady, that I loue most; But I bequeth the seruice of my gost T o you abouen any creature, 2770 Sin that my life may no lenger dure. Alas the wo, alas my paines strong, That I for you haue suffered, and so long; Alas the dethe, alas myn Emely, Alas departing of our company; Alas myn hertes quene, alas my liues wife, Myn hertes lady, ender of my life; What is the world? what asken men to haue? Now with his loue, now in his cold graue, Alone, withouten any company.

Fables: Paiamoti and Arcite, Book III Those breathing Organs thus within opprest, With Venom soon distend the Sinews of his Breast. Nought profits him to save abandon'd Life, Nor Vomits upward aid, nor downward Laxatife. T h e midmost Region batter'd, and destroy'd, When Nature cannot work, th' Effect of Art is void. For Physick can but mend our crazie State, Patch an old Building, not a new create. 770 Arcite is doom'd to die in all his Pride, Must leave his Youth, and yield his beauteous Bride, Gain'd hardly, against Right, and unenjoy'd. When 'twas declar'd, all Hope of Life was past, \ Conscience, that of all Physick works the last, / Caus'd him to send for Emily in haste. / With her, at his desire, came Palamon; T h e n on his Pillow rais'd, he thus begun. No Language can express the smallest part Of what I feel, and suffer in my Heart, 780 For you, whom best I love and value most; But to your Service I bequeath my Ghost; Which from this mortal Body when unty'd, Unseen, unheard, shall hover at your Side; Nor fright you waking, nor your Sleep offend, But wait officious, and your Steps attend: How I have lov'd, excuse my faltring Tongue, My Spirits feeble, and my Pains are strong: This I may say, I only grieve to die Because I lose my charming Emily: 790 T o die, when Heav'n had put you in my Pow'r, Fate could not chuse a more malicious Hour! What greater Curse cou'd envious Fortune give, T h a n just to die, when I began to live? Vain Men, how vanishing a Bliss Ave crave, Now warm in Love, now with'ring in the Grave! Never, O never more to see the Sun! Still dark, in a damp Vault, and still alone! This Fate is common; but I lose my Breath; 793

live?]

F.

798

Breath;]

F.

173

174

Poems,

169J-1700

2780 Farwel my swete foe, myn Emely, And soft take me in your armes twey: For the loue of God, herkeneth what I sey. I haue here with my cosin Palamon, Had strife and rancour many a daie agon, For loue of you, and for my ielousie; And Jupiter so wisely my soule gie, T o speaken of a seruant properlie, With circumstances, all trulie; That is to say, trouth, honour, and knighthede, 2790 Wisedome, humblesse, estate, and hie kinrede, Fredome, and all that longeth to that art; So Jupiter haue of my soule part, As in this world right now knowe I non So worth to be loued as Palamon, That serueth you, and woll doen all his life; And if that you shall euer been a wife, Foryet not Palamon, the gentle man: And with that worde his speche fail began: For from his feete vnto his brest was come 28oo The colde death that hath hym nome: And yet more ouer: for in his armes two The vital strength is lost, and all ago, Saue onely the intellect, without more, That dwelleth in his hert sicke and sore, Gan failen, when the hert felt death, Dusked his iyen two, and failed breath: But on his Ladie yet cast he his iye: His last worde was, mercie Emelye.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III Near Bliss, and yet not bless'd before my Death. 800 Farewell; but take me dying in your Arms, 'Tis all I can enjoy of all your Charms: This Hand I cannot but in Death resign; Ah, could I live! But while I live 'tis mine. I feel my End approach, and thus embrac'd, Am pleas'd to die; but hear me speak my last. Ah I my sweet Foe, for you, and you alone, I broke my Faith with injur'd Palamon. But Love the Sense of Right and Wrong confounds, Strong Love and proud Ambition have no Bounds. 810 And much I doubt, shou'd Heav'n my Life prolong, I shou'd return to justifie my Wrong: For while my former Flames remain within, Repentance is but want of Pow'r to sin. With mortal Hatred I pursu'd his Life, Nor he, nor you, were guilty of the Strife; Nor I, but as I lov'd: Yet all combin'd, Your Beauty, and my Impotence of Mind; And his concurrent Flame, that blew my Fire; For still our Kindred Souls had one Desire. 820 He had a Moments Right in point of Time; Had I seen first, then his had been the Crime. Fate made it mine, and justified his Right; Nor holds this Earth a more deserving Knight, For Vertue, Valour, and for Noble Blood, Truth, Honour, all that is compriz'd in Good; So help me Heav'n, in all the World is none So worthy to be lov'd as Palamon. He loves you too; with such a holy Fire, As will not, cannot but with Life expire: sao Our vow'd Affections both have often try'd, Nor any Love but yours cou'd ours divide. Then by my Loves inviolable Band, By my long Suff'ring, and my short Command, If e'er you plight your Vows when I am gone, Have pity on the faithful Palamon.

175

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His spirite chaunged, and out went there, 28io Whetherwarde I cannot tell, ne where: Therefore I stint, I am no diuinistre; Of soules finde I not in this registre; Ne me leste not thilke opinion to tell Of hem, though they writen where thei dwell. Arcite is cold, that Mars his soule gie. Now woll I speke foorth of Emelye, Shright Emelye, and houlen Palamon, And Theseus his suster vp toke anon Swouning, and bare her fro his corse awaie; 2820 What helpeth it to tary forth the daie, T o tellen how she wept bothe euen and morow: For in such case women haue much sorowe, When that her husbands been fro hem go, T h a t for the more partie they sorowen so, Or els fallen in such maladie, That at the last, certainly they die. Infinite been the sorowe and the teres Of old folke, and folke of tender yeres, In all the toune, for death of this Theban; 2830 For hym there wepeth bothe child and man: So great wepyng was there not certain, When Hector was brought, all fresh islain, T o Troie: Alas! the pite that was there,

Fables: Paiamoti and Arcite, Book III This was his last; for Death came on amain, And exercis'd below, his Iron Reign; Then upward, to the Seat of Life he goes; Sense fled before him, what he touch'd he froze: 840 Yet cou'd he not his closing Eyes withdraw, Though less and less of Emily he saw: So, speechless, for a little space he lay; Then grasp'd the Hand he held, and sigh'd his Soul away. But whither went his Soul, let such relate Who search the Secrets of the future State: Divines can say but what themselves believe; Strong Proofs they have, but not demonstrative: For, were all plain, then all Sides must agree, And Faith it self be lost in Certainty. 850 T o live uprightly then is sure the best, T o save our selves, and not to damn the rest. The Soul of Arcite went, where Heathens go, Who better live than we, though less they know. In Palamon a manly Grief appears; Silent, he wept, asham'd to shew his Tears: Emilia shriek'd but once, and then oppress'd With Sorrow, sunk upon her Lovers Breast: Till Theseus in his Arms convey'd with Care, Far from so sad a Sight, the swooning Fair, seo 'Twere loss of Time her Sorrow to relate; \ 111 bears the Sex a youthful Lover's Fate, > When just approaching to the Nuptial State. ) But like a low-hung Cloud, it rains so fast, That all at once it falls, and cannot last. The Face of Things is chang'd, and A thens now, That laugh'd so late, becomes the Scene of Woe: Matrons and Maids, both Sexes, ev'ry State, With Tears lament the Knight's untimely Fate. Not greater Grief in falling Troy was seen «70 For Hector's Death; but Hector was not then.

177

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Cratching of chekes, rentyng eke here I Why woldest thou be dedde, thus women crie, And haddest gold inough, and Emelye? No man maie glad Theseus, Sauing his old father Egeus, That knewe this worlds transmutación, as« As he had seen it, bothe up and doun, Joie after wo, and wo after gladnesse, And shewed him ensamples and likenesse, Right as there died neuer man, quod he, That he ne liued in yearth in some degree; Right so there liued neuer man, he saied, In this world, that sometime he ne deied: This world is but a throughfare, full of wo, And we been pilgrimes, passing to and fro: Death is an end of euery worldes sore. 2850 And over all this, yet saied he moche more, T o this effect, full wisely to exhort The people, that they should hem recomfort. Duke Theseus, with all his busie cure, Casteth now, where that the sepulture Of good Arcite shall best imaked bee, And eke moste honourable of degree: And at the last he tooke conclusion, That there as Arcite and Palamon Had for love the battaile hem between, 2880 That in the same selue groue, swete and grene, There, as he had his amerous desires, His complaint, and for loue his hote fires, He would make a fire, in which the offis Funerall he might hem all accomplis.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III Old Men with Dust deform'd their hoary Hair, The Women beat their Breasts, their Cheeks they tear. Why would'st thou go, with one Consent they cry, When thou hadst Gold enough, and Emily? Theseus himself, who shou'd have cheer'd the Grief Of others, wanted now the same Relief. Old AEgeus only could revive his Son, Who various Changes of the World had known; And strange Vicissitudes of Humane Fate, 880 Still alt'ring, never in a steady State: Good after 111, and after Pain, Delight; Alternate, like the Scenes of Day and Night: Since ev'ry Man who lives, is born to die, And none can boast sincere Felicity. With equal Mind, what happens, let us bear, Nor joy, nor grieve too much for Things beyond our Care. Like Pilgrims, to th' appointed Place we tend; The World's an Inn, and Death the Journeys End. Ev'n Kings but play; and when their Part is done, 890 Some other, worse or better, mount the Throne. With Words like these the Crowd was satisfi'd, And so they would have been, had Theseus dy'd. But he, their King, was lab'ring in his Mind, A fitting Place for Fun'ral Pomps to find, > Which were in Honour of the Dead design'd. ) And after long Debate, at last he found (As Love it self had mark'd the Spot of Ground) T h a t Grove for ever green, that conscious Lawnd, Where he with Palamon fought Hand to Hand: 900 That where he fed his amorous Desires With soft Complaints, and felt his hottest Fires, There other Flames might waste his Earthly Part, And burn his Limbs, where Love had burn'd his Heart. 874 Emily}] F. 877 /Egeus] Egeus F.

179

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169J-1700

He hath anon commaunded to hack and hew The okes old, and laie hem all on a rew In culpons, well arraied for to brenne: His officers with swift foote they renne, And right anon at his commaundement. 2870 And after Theseus hath he isent After a beare, and it all oversprad With cloth of gold, the richest that he had; And of the same sute he clothed Arcite, Upon his handes his gloues white, Eke on his hedde a croune of Laurell grene, And in his hand a sworde full bright and kene. He laied hym bare the visage on the bere, Therewith he wept that pite was to here; And for the people should seen hym all, 2880 When it was daie, he brought him to the hall, That rorreth of the crie, and of the sorowes soun. Then gan this woful Theban, Palamon, With glittering beard, and ruddie shining heres, In clothes blacke, dropped all with teres, And passing other of wepyng Emelye, The rufullest of all the companie. And in as much as the service should bee The more noble, and riche in his degree, Duke Theseus let foorth the stedes bring, 2890 That trapped were in stele all glitering, And couered with the armes of Dan Arcite; Upon these stedes, great and white, Ther saten folk, of which one bare his sheld, Another his speare in his hand held, The third bare with him a bowe Turkes, Of brent gold was the case, and eke the harnes; And ridden foorth apace with sorie chere, Toward the groue, as ye shall after here. The noblest of the Grekes that there were 2900 Upon her shoulders carried the bere, With slake pace, and iyen redde and white, Throughout the cite, by the maister strete,

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III T h i s , once resolv'd, the Peasants were e n j o i n ' d Sere W o o d , a n d Firs, a n d d o d d e r ' d O a k s to

find.

W i t h s o u n d i n g A x e s to t h e G r o v e they go, Fell, split, a n d lay t h e Fewel o n a R o w ,

Vulcanian

F o o d : A B i e r is n e x t p r e p a r ' d ,

O n w h i c h t h e lifeless B o d y s h o u l d b e rear'd, »10 C o v e r ' d w i t h C l o t h o f G o l d , o n w h i c h w a s l a i d T h e C o r p s of

Arcite,

in like Robes array'd.

W h i t e Gloves w e r e o n his H a n d s , a n d o n his H e a d A W r e a t h of L a u r e l , m i x ' d w i t h M y r t l e , s p r e a d . A Sword keen-edg'd within his R i g h t he held, T h e w a r l i k e E m b l e m of t h e c o n q u e r ' d F i e l d : B a r e was his m a n l y Visage o n the Bier; M e n a c ' d his C o u n t ' n a n c e ; ev'n in D e a t h severe. T h e n to the Palace-Hall they bore the Knight, T o lie in s o l e m n State, a P u b l i c k Sight. 920 G r o a n s , C r i e s , a n d H o w l i n g s f i l l t h e c r o w d e d P l a c e , A n d u n a f f e c t e d S o r r o w sat o n ev'ry Face. Sad

Palamon

above the rest appears,

In Sable Garments, dew'd with gushing Tears: His A u b o u r n Locks on either Shoulder flow'd, W h i c h t o t h e F u n ' r a l of h i s F r i e n d h e v o w ' d : But

Emily,

as C h i e f , w a s n e x t h i s Side,

A Virgin-Widow, and a

Mourning

Bride.

A n d that the Princely Obsequies might be P e r f o r m ' d according to his h i g h Degree, 930 T h e S t e e d t h a t b o r e h i m l i v i n g t o t h e F i g h t , W a s t r a p p ' d w i t h p o l i s h ' d Steel, all s h i n i n g b r i g h t , A n d c o v e r ' d w i t h t h ' A t c h i e v e m e n t s of t h e K n i g h t . T h e R i d e r s r o d e abreast, a n d o n e his Shield, H i s L a n c e of C o r n e l - w o o d a n o t h e r h e l d ; T h e third his Bow, and, glorious to behold, T h e c o s t l y Q u i v e r , a l l of b u r n i s h ' d G o l d . T h e N o b l e s t of t h e

Grecians

next appear,

A n d weeping, on their Shoulders bore the Bier; W i t h sober Pace they m a r c h ' d , a n d often staid, 940 A n d t h r o u g h t h e M a s t e r - S t r e e t t h e C o r p s c o n v e y ' d .

181

Poems,

l82

löyy—i'joo

T h a t sprad was al with blake, and that wonder hie, Right of the same is the strete iwrie. Upon the right hand went Egeus, And on the other side, Duke Theseus, With vessels in her hand of gold full fine, All full of honie, milke, blode, and wine: Eke Palamon, with full great companie, 2910 And after that came woful Emelye, With fire in hand, as was that time the gise, T o doen the office of funerall service. Hie labour, and full great apparailyng Was at service, and at fire makyng, That with his grene top the heauen raught, And twentie fadome of bred armes straught; This is to sain, the bowes were so brode, Of strawe first there was laied many a lode. But how the fire was maken up on height, 2920 And eke the names how the trees height, As oke, firre, beche, aspe, elder, elme, popelere, Willow, Holm, Plane, Boxe, Chesten, Laure, Maple, thorne, beche, ewe, hasel, Whipultre, How they were felde, shall not be tolde for me, Ne how the goddess ronne u p and doune, Disherited of her habitation, In which they wonned in rest and pees, Nimphes, Faunies and Amadriades; Ne how the beastes, ne the birdes all 2930 Fledden for feare when the trees fall; Ne how the ground agast was of the light, T h a t was not wont to see the sunne bright; Ne how the fire was couched first with stre, And than with drie stickes clouen a thre, And than with grene wodde and spicerie, «988

Faunies] Faunie F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III The Houses to their Tops with Black were spread, And ev'n the Pavements were with Mourning hid. The Right-side of the Pall old ¿Egeus kept, And on the Left the Royal Theseus wept: Each bore a Golden Bowl of Work Divine, With Honey fill'd, and Milk, and mix'd with ruddy Wine. Then Palamon the Kinsman of the Slain, And after him appear'd th' Illustrious Train: T o grace the Pomp, came Emily the Bright, 950 With cover'd Fire, the Fun'ral Pile to light. With high Devotion was the Service made, And all the Rites of Pagan-Honour paid: So lofty was the Pile, a Parthian Bow, With Vigour drawn, must send the Shaft below. The Bottom was full twenty Fathom broad; With crackling Straw beneath in due Proportion strow'd. The Fabrick seem'd a Wood of rising Green, With Sulphur and Bitumen cast between, T o feed the Flames: The Trees were unctuous Fir, \ 860 And Mountain-Ash, the Mother of the Spear; > T h e Mourner Eugh, and Builder Oak were there: / T h e Beech, the swimming Alder, and the Plane, Hard Box, and Linden of a softer Grain, And Laurels, which the Gods for Conqu'ring Chiefs ordain. How they were rank'd, shall rest untold by me, With nameless Nymphs that liv'd in ev'ry Tree; Nor how the Dryads, and the Woodland Train, Disherited, ran howling o'er the Plain: Nor how the Birds to Foreign Seats repair'd, 970 Or Beasts, that bolted out, and saw the Forest bar'd: Nor how the Ground, now clear'd, with gastly Fright Beheld the sudden Sun, a Stranger to the Light. T h e Straw, as first I said, was laid below; Of Chips and Sere-wood was the second Row; The third of Greens, and Timber newly fell'd; 943 jEgeus] Egeus F.

183

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Poems, 1697—1700

And than with cloth of gold and perrie; And garlonds hanging with many a floure, T h e mirre, the ensence, with swete odoure; Ne how Arcite laie emong all this, 2940 Ne what richesse about his bodie is; Ne how that Emelye, as was the gise, Put in the fire of funerall seruice; Ne how she souned, whan maked was the fire, Ne what she spake, ne what was her desire; Ne what jewels men in the fire cast Whan that the fire was great, and brent fast; Ne how some cast her shield, and some her spere, And of her vestments, which that they were; And cuppes full of wine, milke and blood 29so Into the fire that brent as it were wood; Ne how the Grekes with a huge route Thrise ridden all the fire aboute. Vpon the left hande, with a loude shouting, And thrise with her speres clattering, And thrise how the ladies gan crie; Ne how that ladde was homward Emelye, Ne how that Arcite is brent to ashen cold, Ne how the liche wake was hold All that night, ne how the Grekes plaie, »so The wake plaies kepe I nat to saie, Who wrestled best naked, with oile anoint, Ne who bare him best in euery poinct. I woll nat tellen how they gone Home to Athenes, whan the plaie is doen: But shortly to the poinct than woll I wend, And make of my long tale an ende. By processe and by length of yeres, All stinten is the murning and the teres Of Grekes, by one generall assent, 2970 Than semed me there was a Parlement At A thenes, vpon a certain poinct and caas; Emong the which poincts ispoken was 2964 Home] Whom F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III T h e fourth high Stage the fragrant Odours held, And Pearls, and Precious Stones, and rich Array; In midst of which, embalm'd, the Body lay. T h e Service sung, the Maid with mourning Eyes 9so T h e Stubble fir'd; the smouldring Flames arise: This Office done, she sunk upon the Ground; But what she spoke, recover'd from her Swoond, I want the Wit in moving Words to dress; But by themselves the tender Sex may guess. While the devouring Fire was burning fast, Rich Jewels in the Flame the Wealthy cast; And some their Shields, and some their Lances threw, And gave the Warriour's Ghost a Warriour's Due. Full Bowls of Wine, of Honey, Milk, and Blood, ^ 990 Were pour'd upon the Pile of burning Wood, > And hissing Flames receive, and hungry lick the Food. ' T h e n thrice the mounted Squadrons ride around T h e Fire, and Ernie's Name they thrice resound: Hail, and Farewell, they shouted thrice amain, Thrice facing to the Left, and thrice they turn'd again: Still as they turn'd, they beat their clatt'ring Shields; T h e Women mix their Cries; and Clamour fills the Fields. T h e warlike Wakes continu'd all the Night, And Fun'ral Games were plaid at new-returning Light: IOOO Who naked wrestl'd best, besmear'd with Oil, Or who with Gantlets gave or took the Foil, I will not tell you, nor wou'd you attend; But briefly haste to my long Stories End. I pass the rest; the Year was fully mourn'd, And Palamon long since to Thebes return'd, When, by the Grecians general Consent, At Athens Theseus held his Parliament: Among the Laws that pass'd, it was decreed,

185

i86

Poems,

iß^'j-i'joo

T o haue with certain countres aliaunce, A n d haue of The bans fullie obeisaunce; For which this noble Theseus anon Let sende after this gentle Palamon, Vnwiste of him what was the cause, and why: But in his blacke clothes sorowfully, He came at his commaundement on hie, 2980 T h o sent Theseus after Emelye. When they were set, and husht was the place, A n d Theseus abidden hath a space, Or any worde came from his wise brest, His iyen sette he there as was his lest; And with a sad visage he siked stil; And after that, right thus he saied his will. T h e first mouer of the cause aboue, Whan he first made the faire chaine of loue; Great was theffect, and hie was his entente; 2090 Wei wist he why, and what thereof he mente: For with that faire chaine of loue he bonde T h e fire, the aire, the water and the londe, In certain bondes, that they may nat flee. T h e same prince and that mouer, quod he, Hath stablish'd in this wretched world adoun Certen of daies and duracioun T o all that are engendred in this place, Ouer the which daie they may nat pace: A l l mowe they yet tho' daies abredge, «993

flee.]~AF.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III That conquer'd IOIO

Thebes

from Bondage shou'd be freed;

Reserving H o m a g e to th'

A thenian

T o which the Sov'reign s u m m o n ' d

Throne,

Palamon.

U n k n o w i n g of t h e C a u s e , h e t o o k his W a y , M o u r n f u l in M i n d , a n d still i n B l a c k A r r a y . T h e M o n a r c h mounts the T h r o n e , and plac'd on high, C o m m a n d s into the C o u r t the beauteous

Emily:

S o call'd, she c a m e ; t h e S e n a t e rose, a n d p a i d B e c o m i n g Rev'rence to the Royal Maid. A n d first s o f t W h i s p e r s t h r o u g h t h ' A s s e m b l y w e n t : W i t h silent W o n d e r then they watch'd th' E v e n t : 1020 A l l h u s h ' d , t h e K i n g a r o s e w i t h a w f u l G r a c e , D e e p T h o u g h t was i n his B r e a s t , a n d C o u n s e l in his F a c e . A t l e n g t h h e s i g h ' d ; a n d h a v i n g first p r e p a r ' d T h ' a t t e n t i v e A u d i e n c e , t h u s his W i l l d e c l a r ' d . T h e Cause and Spring of Motion, from above H u n g down on Earth the Golden Chain of L o v e : G r e a t w a s t h ' Effect, a n d h i g h was his I n t e n t , W h e n P e a c e a m o n g t h e j a r r i n g Seeds h e sent. F i r e , F l o o d , a n d E a r t h , a n d A i r b y this w e r e b o u n d , A n d Love, the c o m m o n Link, the new Creation crown'd. 1030 T h e C h a i n s t i l l h o l d s ; f o r t h o u g h t h e F o r m s d e c a y , Eternal Matter never wears away: T h e s a m e F i r s t M o v e r c e r t a i n B o u n d s has plac'd, H o w l o n g t h o s e p e r i s h a b l e F o r m s shall l a s t ; N o r c a n t h e y last b e y o n d t h e T i m e assign'd B y that All-seeing, a n d All-making M i n d : S h o r t e n t h e i r H o u r s t h e y m a y ; f o r W i l l is f r e e ; B u t n e v e r pass t h ' a p p o i n t e d Destiny. So M e n oppress'd, w h e n weary of their B r e a t h , T h r o w off t h e B u r d e n , a n d s u b b o r n t h e i r D e a t h . 1040 T h e n s i n c e t h o s e F o r m s b e g i n , a n d h a v e t h e i r E n d , O n some unalter'd Cause they sure depend: Parts of the W h o l e are we; but G o d the W h o l e ; W h o gives us L i f e , a n d a n i m a t i n g Soul.

187

i88

Poems,

i6pj-iyoo

8000 There needeth non aucthorite to ledge: For it is proued by experience, But that me list declare my sentence: T h e n may men by this order discerne, T h a t thilke mouer stable is and eterne. Well may men know but he be a foole T h a t euery part is deriued from his hoole: For nature hath nat taken his beginning Of one part or cantell of a thing; But of a thing that perfit is and stable, soio Discending so till it be corrumpable: And therefore of his wise purueiaunce, He hath so well beset his ordinaunce, T h a t spaces of things and progressions Shullen endure by successions, And not eterne, without any lie; T h u s maist thou vnderstand, and see at iye. Lo the oke, that hath so long a norishing, Fro the time that it beginneth fyrst to spring, And hath so long a life, as ye may see, 8020 Yet at the last wasted is the tree: Considereth eke, how that the hard stone Vnder our feete, on which we tread and gone; Yet wasteth it, as it lieth in the weie, T h e brode riuer somtime wexeth drie; T h e great touns se we wane and wend; T h a n ye see that all this thing hath end; And man and woman see shall we also, T h a t endeth in one of the terms two: T h a t is to sain, in youth or els in age; 8030 He mote be dedde a king as well as a page. Some in his bed, some in the deepe see, Some in the large field, as ye may see; It helpeth not, al goeth that ilke weie; T h a n maie you see that al thing mote deie. What maketh this but Jupiter the king, T h a t is prince, and cause of al thing,

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book 111 For Nature cannot from a Part derive That Being, which the Whole can only give: He perfect, stable; but imperfect We, Subject to Change, and diff'rent in Degree, Plants, Beasts, and Man; and as our Organs are, We more or less of his Perfection share. 1050 But by a long Descent, th' Etherial Fire Corrupts; and Forms, the mortal Part, expire: As he withdraws his Vertue, so they pass, And the same Matter makes another Mass: This Law th' Omniscient Pow'r was pleas'd to give, That ev'ry Kind should by Succession live; That Individuals die, his Will ordains; The propagated Species still remains. The Monarch Oak, the Patriarch of the Trees, Shoots rising up, and spreads by slow Degrees: 1060 Three Centuries he grows, and three he stays, Supreme in State; and in three more decays: So wears the paving Pebble in the Street, And Towns and Tow'rs their fatal Periods meet. So Rivers, rapid once, now naked lie, Forsaken of their Springs; and leave their Channels dry. So Man, at first a Drop, dilates with Heat, Then form'd, the little Heart begins to beat; Secret he feeds, unknowing in the Cell; At length, for Hatching ripe, he breaks the Shell, 1070 And struggles into Breath, and cries for Aid; Then, helpless, in his Mothers Lap is laid. He creeps, he walks, and issuing into Man, Grudges their Life, from whence his own began: Retchless of Laws, affects to rule alone, Anxious to reign, and restless on the Throne: First vegetive, then feels, and reasons last; Rich of Three Souls, and lives all three to waste: 1047 1073

Degree,] began:]

F. F.

1055 1077

live;] waste:]

F. F.

189

igo

Poems,1697—IJOO

Conuerting al to his proper will; From which it is deriued soth to tell: And here againe no creature on liue, S040 Of no degree auaileth for to striue; Than is it wisedome, as thinketh me, T o make vertue of necessite: And take it wel that we may not eschewe, And namely that to vs all is dewe; And who so grutcheth aught he doth follie, And rebell is to him, that all may gie; And certainly a man hath most honour T o dien in his excellence and flour, When he is siker of his good name, 8050 Than hath he don his frends ne him no shame, And glader ought his frends be of his death, When with honour iyold is vp the breath, Than when his name apaled is for age: For all foryetten in his vassellage; Than it is best as for a worthie fame, T o dien when he is of best name. T h e contrarie of all this is wilfulnesse: Why grutchen we? why haue we heuinesse That good Arcite, of cheualrie the flour, 3o«o Departed is with dutie and with honour Out of this foule prison of this life? Why grutchen here his cosin and his wife Of his welfare, that loueth him so wele? Can he hem thank? nay, god wot, neuer a dele, That both his soule, and eke hem offende, And yet they mowe not her lustes amende.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III

191

Some thus; but thousands more in Flow'r of Age: For few arrive to run the latter Stage. 1080 Sunk in the first, in Battel some are slain, And others whelm'd beneath the stormy Main. What makes all this, but Jupiter the King, At whose Command we perish, and we spring? Then 'tis our best, since thus ordain'd to die, T o make a Vertue of Necessity: Take what he gives, since to rebel is vain; The Bad grows better, which we well sustain: And cou'd we chuse the Time, and chuse aright, 'Tis best to die, our Honour at the height. 1090 When we have done our Ancestors no Shame, But serv'd our Friends, and well secur'd our Fame; Then should we wish our happy Life to close, And leave no more for Fortune to dispose: So should we make our Death a glad Relief, From future Shame, from Sickness, and from Grief: Enjoying while we live the present Hour, And dying in our Excellence, and Flow'r. Then Tound our Death-bed ev'ry Friend shou'd run, And joy us of our Conquest, early won: 1100 While the malicious World with envious Tears Shou'd grudge our happy End, and wish it Theirs. Since then our Arcite is with Honour dead, \ Why shou'd we mourn, that he so soon is freed, > Or call untimely, what the Gods decreed? ) With Grief as just, a Friend may be deplor'd, From a foul Prison to free Air restor'd. Ought he to thank his Kinsman, or his Wife, Cou'd Tears recall him into wretched Life? Their Sorrow hurts themselves; on him is lost; 1110 And worse than both, offends his happy Ghost. 1085 1089 others 1108

Necessity:] F. Tis] in some copies of F the apostrophe has worked down a line and in it has disappeared entirely. Life?] F.

192

Poems,

iöyy-ijoo

What may I conclude of this long storie, But after sorow, I rede vs be merie; And thank Jupiter of all his grace; 8070 And er we departen from this place, I rede we maken of sorowes two, One parfite ioie, lasting euer mo: And looke now where most sorrow is herein, T h e r wol I first amend and begin. Suster, qd. he, this is my full assent, With al the people of my parlement, T h a t gentle Palamon, your own knight, T h a t serueth you with wil, hert, and might, And euer hath done, sith ye first him knew; 3080 T h a t ye shal of your grace vpon him rew, And take him for husbonde and for lord. Lene me your hand: for this is our accord. Let see now of your womanly pite; He is a king's brother's Sonne parde: And though he were a poore bachelere, Sin he hath serued you so many a yere, A n d had for you so great aduersite, It must been considered, leueth me: For gentle mercie ought to passen right. 3090 T h a n said he thus to Palamon the knight, I trow ther need little sarmoning T o make you assenten to this thing: Cometh nere, and taketh your lady by the hond. Betwixt hem was maked anon the bond, T h a t hight Matrimonie or Marriage By al the counsail of the baronage: And thus with al blisse and melodie Hath Palamon iwedded Emelye. 3067 may I] may F.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III What then remains, but after past Annoy, T o take the good Vicissitude of Joy? T o thank the gracious Gods for what they give, Possess our Souls, and while we live, to live? Ordain we then two Sorrows to combine, A n d in one Point th' Extremes of Grief to join; T h a t thence resulting Joy may be renew'd, As jarring Notes in Harmony conclude. T h e n I propose, that Palamon shall be 1120 In Marriage join'd with beauteous Emily; For which already I have gain'd th' Assent Of my free People in full Parliament. Long Love to her has born the faithful Knight, A n d well deserv'd, had Fortune done him Right: 'Tis time to mend her Fault; since Emily By Arcite's Death from former Vows is free: If you, Fair Sister, ratifie th' Accord, A n d take him for your Husband, and your Lord. 'Tis no Dishonour to confer your Grace u3o O n one descended from a Royal Race: A n d were he less, yet Years of Service past From grateful Souls exact Reward at last: Pity is Heav'ns and yours: Nor can she find A Throne so soft as in a Womans Mind. He said; she blush'd; and as o'eraw'd by Might, Seem'd to give Theseus, what she gave the Knight. T h e n turning to the Theban, thus he said; Small Arguments are needful to persuade Your Temper to comply with my Command; ii4o A n d speaking thus, he gave Emilia's Hand. Smil'd Venus, to behold her own true Knight Obtain the Conquest, though he lost the Fight, And bless'd with Nuptial Bliss the sweet laborious Night. Eros, and Anteros, on either Side, One fir'd the Bridegroom, and one warm'd the Bride;

193

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And God, that al this world hath wrought, 8100 Send him his loue that it hath so dere bought: For now is Palamon in al wele, Liuing in blisse, in riches and in hele; And Emelye him loueth so tenderly, And he her serueth so gentelly, That neuer was ther no word hem bitween Of ielousie, or of any other tene. Thus endeth Palamon and Emelye, And God saue al this faire company.

Fables: Palamon and Arcite, Book III And long-attending Hymen from above Showr'd on the Bed the whole Idalian Grove. All of a Tenour was their After-Life, No Day discolour'd with Domestick Strife; ii5o No Jealousie, but mutual Truth believ'd, Secure Repose, and Kindness undeceiv'd. Thus Heav'n, beyond the Compass of his Thought, Sent him the Blessing he so dearly bought. So may the Queen of Love long Duty bless, And all true Lovers find the same Success. The End of the Third Book. 115s

Heav'n] Heavn F.

195

196

Poems, 1697-1700

To My Honour'd Kinsman, John Driden, of Chesterton in the County of Huntingdon, Esquire

H

ow Bless'd is He, who leads a Country Life, Unvex'd with anxious Cares, and void of Strife I W h o studying Peace, and shunning Civil Rage, Enjoy'd his Youth, and now enjoys his Age: All who deserve his Love, he makes his own; And, to be lov'd himself, needs only to be known. Just, Good, and Wise, contending Neighbours come \ From your Award to wait their final Doom; > And, Foes before, return in Friendship home. 7 10 Without their Cost, you terminate the Cause; And save th' Expence of long Litigious Laws: Where Suits are travers'd; and so little won, T h a t he who conquers, is but least undone: Such are not your Decrees; but so design'd, T h e Sanction leaves a lasting Peace behind; > Like your own Soul, Serene; a Pattern of your Mind. 7 Promoting Concord, and composing Strife, Lord of your self, uncumber'd with a Wife; Where, for a Year, a Month, perhaps a Night, 20 Long Penitence succeeds a short Delight: Minds are so hardly match'd, that ev'n the first, T h o u g h pair'd by Heav'n, in Paradise, were curs'd. For Man and Woman, though in one they grow, Yet, first or last, return again to T w o . He to God's Image, She to His was made; So, farther from the Fount, the Stream at random stray'd. 8 Award] F. 13 least] last F.

Fables:

To My Honour'd

Kinsman

How cou'd He stand, when, put to double Pain, He must a Weaker than himself sustain? Each might have stood perhaps; but each alone; Two Wrestlers help to pull each other down. Not that my Verse wou'd blemish all the Fair; \ But yet, if some be Bad, 'tis Wisdom to beware; > And better shun the Bait, than struggle in the Snare. ) Thus have you shunn'd, and shun the married State, Trusting as little as you can to Fate. No Porter guards the Passage of your Door; T ' admit the Wealthy, and exclude the Poor: For God, who gave the Riches, gave the Heart T o sanctifie the Whole, by giving Part: Heav'n, who foresaw the Will, the Means has wrought, And to the Second Son, a Blessing brought: The First-begotten had his Father's Share; But you, like ]acob, are Rebecca's Heir. So may your Stores, and fruitful Fields increase; And ever be you bless'd, who live to bless. As Ceres sow'd, where e'er her Chariot flew; As Heav'n in Desarts rain'd the Bread of Dew, So free to Many, to Relations most, You feed with Manna your own Israel-Host. With Crowds attended of your ancient Race, You seek the Champian-Sports, or Sylvan-Chace: With well-breath'd Beagles, you surround the Wood; Ev'n then, industrious of the Common Good: And often have you brought the wily Fox T o suffer for the Firstlings of the Flocks; Chas'd ev'n amid the Folds; and made to bleed, Like Felons, where they did the murd'rous Deed. This fiery Game, your active Youth maintain'd; 27 when,] ~ A F.

28 sustain?]

F.

197

Poems,

169J-1700

Not yet by Years extinguish'd, though restrain'd: You season still with Sports your serious Hours; For Age but tastes of Pleasures, Youth devours. T h e Hare, in Pastures or in Plains is found, Emblem of Humane Life, who runs the Round; And, after all his wand'ring Ways are done, "i His Circle fills, and ends where he begun, > Just as the Setting meets the Rising Sun. / T h u s Princes ease their Cares: But happier he, W h o seeks not Pleasure thro' Necessity, T h a n such as once on slipp'ry Thrones were plac'd; And chasing, sigh to think themselves are chas'd. So liv'd our Sires, e'er Doctors learn'd to kill, And multiply'd with theirs, the Weekly Bill: T h e first Physicians by Debauch were made: Excess began, and Sloth sustains the Trade. Pity the gen'rous Kind their Cares bestow T o search forbidden Truths; (a Sin to know:) T o which, if Humane Science cou'd attain, T h e Doom of Death, pronounc'd by God, were vain. In vain the Leech wou'd interpose Delay; Fate fastens first, and vindicates the Prey. What Help from Arts Endeavours can we have? Guibbons but guesses, nor is sure to save: But Maurus sweeps whole Parishes, and Peoples ev'ry Grave; And no more Mercy to Mankind will use, T h a n when he robb'd and murder'd Maro's Muse. Wou'dst thou be soon dispatch'd, and perish whole? Trust Maurus with thy Life, and M—lb—rn with thy Soul. By Chace our long-liv'd Fathers earn'd their Food; T o i l strung the Nerves, and purifi'd the Blood: But we, their Sons, a pamper'd Race of Men,

59

81

yet]

have?]

F.

F.

83 Grave;]

F.

Fables: To My Honour'd

Kinsman

Are dwindl'd down to threescore Years and ten. Better to hunt in Fields, for Health unbought, Than fee the Doctor for a nauseous Draught. The Wise, for Cure, on Exercise depend; God never made his Work, for Man to mend. The Tree of Knowledge, once in Eden plac'd, Was easie found, but was forbid the Taste: O, had our Grandsire walk'd without his Wife, He first had sought the better Plant of Life! 100 Now, both are lost: Yet, wandring in the dark, Physicians for the Tree, have found the Bark: They, lab'ring for Relief of Humane Kind, \ With sharpen'd Sight some Remedies may find; > T h ' Apothecary-Train is wholly blind. ' From Files, a Random-Recipe they take, And Many Deaths of One Prescription make. Garth, gen'rous as his Muse, prescribes and gives; The Shop-man sells; and by Destruction lives: Ungrateful Tribe! who, like the Viper's Brood, 110 From Med'cine issuing, suck their Mother's Blood! Let These obey; and let the Learn'd prescribe; That Men may die, without a double Bribe: Let Them, but under their Superiours kill; When Doctors first have sign'd the bloody Bill: He scapes the best, who Nature to repair, Draws Phisick from the Fields, in Draughts of Vital Air. You hoard not Health, for your own private Use; But on the Publick spend the rich Produce: When, often urg'd, unwilling to be Great, 120 Your Country calls you from your lov'd Retreat, And sends to Senates, charg'd with Common Care, Which none more shuns; and none can better bear. Where cou'd they find another form'd so fit, T o poise, with solid Sense, a spritely Wit? 105 Random-Recipe] Random-iieeipe F. 118 Produce:] F.

124 Wit?]

F.

199

200

Poems,

1697-1700

Were these both wanting, (as they both abound) Where cou'd so firm Integrity be found? Well-born, and Wealthy; wanting no Support, You steer betwixt the Country and the Court: Nor gratifie whate'er the Great desire, 130 Nor grudging give, what Publick Needs require. Part must be left, a Fund when Foes invade; And Part employ'd to roll the Watry Trade: Ev'n Canaan's happy Land, when worn with T o i l , Requir'd a Sabbath-Year, to mend the meagre Soil. Good Senators, (and such are you,) so give, T h a t Kings may be supply'd, the People thrive. And He, when Want requires, is truly Wise, \ Who slights not Foreign Aids, nor over-buys; > But, on our Native Strength, in time of need, relies. / 140 Munster was bought, we boast not the Success; Who fights for Gain, for greater, makes his Peace. Our Foes, compell'd by Need, have Peace embrac'd: T h e Peace both Parties want, is like to last: Which, if secure, securely we may trade; Or, not secure, shou'd never have been made. Safe in our selves, while on our selves we stand, T h e Sea is ours, and that defends the Land. Be, then, the Naval Stores the Nations Care, New Ships to build, and batter'd to repair. 150

Observe the War, in ev'ry Annual Course; What has been done, was done with British Force: Namur Subdu'd, is England1s Palm alone; T h e Rest Besieg'd; but we Constrain'd the Town: We saw th' Event that follow'd our Success; France, though pretending Arms, pursu'd the Peace; Oblig'd, by one sole Treaty, to restore 133 Canaan's] Canaans F.

Fables:

To My Honour'd

Kinsman

What Twenty Years of War had won before. Enough for Europe has our A Ibion fought: Let us enjoy the Peace our Blood has bought. W h e n once the Persian King was put to Flight, T h e weary Macedons refus'd to fight: Themselves their own Mortality confess'd; A n d left the Son of Jove, to quarrel for the rest. Ev'n Victors are by Victories undone; 1 T h u s Hannibal, with Foreign Laurels won, > T o Carthage was recall'd, too late to keep his own. ) While sore of Battel, while our Wounds are green, W h y shou'd we tempt the doubtful Dye agen? In Wars renew'd, uncertain of Success, Sure of a Share, as Umpires of the Peace. A Patriot, both the King and Country serves; Prerogative, and Privilege preserves: Of Each, our Laws the certain Limit show; One must not ebb, nor t' other overflow: Betwixt the Prince and Parliament we stand; T h e Barriers of the State on either Hand: May neither overflow, for then they drown the Land. W h e n both are full, they feed our bless'd Abode; Like those, that water'd once, the Paradise of God. Some Overpoise of Sway, by Turns they share; In Peace the People, and the Prince in War: Consuls of mod'rate Pow'r in Calms were made; W h e n the Gauls came, one sole Dictator sway'd. Patriots, in Peace, assert the Peoples Right; With noble Stubbornness resisting Might: N o Lawless Mandates from the Court receive, Nor lend by Force; but in a Body give. Such was your gen'rous Grandsire; free to grant In Parliaments, that weigh'd their Prince's Want: But so tenacious of the Common Cause,

201

Poems,

202

1697-1700

As not to lend the King against his Laws: And, in a lothsom Dungeon doom'd to lie, \ In Bonds retain'd his Birthright Liberty, > And sham'd Oppression, till it set him free. ; O true Descendent of a Patriot Line, Who, while thou shar'st their Lustre, lend'st 'em thine, Vouchsafe this Picture of thy Soul to see; 'Tis so far Good, as it resembles thee: T h e Beauties to th' Original I owe; 200 Which, when I miss, my own Defects I show: Nor think the Kindred-Muses thy Disgrace; A Poet is not born in ev'ry Race. T w o of a House, few Ages can afford; One to perform, another to record. Praise-worthy Actions are by thee embrac'd; A n d 'tis my Praise, to make thy Praises last. For ev'n when Death dissolves our Humane Frame, \ T h e Soul returns to Heav'n, from whence it came; > Earth keeps the Body, Verse preserves the Fame. ) 191 Laws:]

F.

Fables: Meleager

and

Atalanta

203

Meleager and Atalanta, Out of the Eighth Book of Ovid's Metamorphoses. Connexion to the Former Story. Ovid, having told how Theseus had freed Athens from the Tribute of Children, (which was impos'd on them by Minos King of Creta) by killing the Minotaur, here makes a Digression to the Story of Meleager and Atalanta, which is one of the most inartificial Connexions in all the Metamorphoses: For he only says, that Theseus obtain'd such Honour from that Combate, that all Greece had recourse to him in their Necessities; and, amongst others, Calydon, though the Heroe of that Country, Prince Meleager, was then living.

F

ROM him, the Calydonians sought Relief; T h o ' valiant Meleagrus was their Chief: T h e Cause, a Boar, who ravag'd far and near: Of Cynthia's Wrath, th' avenging Minister. For Oeneus with Autumnal Plenty bless'd, By Gifts to Heav'n his Gratitude express'd: Cull'd Sheafs, to Ceres; to Lyceus, Wine; } T o Pan, and Pales, offer'd Sheep and Kine; > A n d Fat of Olives, to Minerva's Shrine. ) 10 Beginning from the Rural Gods, his Hand Was lib'ral to the Pow'rs of high Command: Each Deity in ev'ry Kind was bless'd, T i l l at Diana's Fane th' invidious Honour ceas'd. Wrath touches ev'n the Gods; the Queen of Night Fir'd with Disdain, and jealous of her Right, Unhonour'd though I am, at least, said she, Not unreveng'd that impious Act shall be. Metamorphoses] METAMORPHOSIS 1 Calydonians] Caledonians F.

F.

Connexion: 8 Heroe] Heroe F. a Chief:] F.

204

Poems,

169J-1J00

Swift as the Word, she sped the Boar away, With Charge on those devoted Fields to prey. N o larger Bulls th* /Egyptian Pastures feed, And none so large Sicilian Meadows breed: His Eye-balls glare with Fire suffus'd with Blood; His Neck shoots up a thick-set thorny Wood; His bristled Back a Trench impal'd appears, A n d stands erected, like a Field of Spears. Froth fills his Chaps, he sends a grunting Sound, A n d part he churns, and part befoams the Ground. For Tusks with Indian Elephants he strove, And Jove's own Thunder from his Mouth he drove. He burns the Leaves; the scorching Blast invades T h e tender Corn, and shrivels u p the Blades: O r suff'ring not their yellow Beards to rear, He tramples down the Spikes, and intercepts the Year. In vain the Barns expect their promis'd Load, Nor Barns at home, nor Reeks are heap'd abroad: In vain the Hinds the Threshing-Floor prepare, A n d exercise their Flails in empty Air. With Olives ever-green the Ground is strow'd, A n d Grapes ungather'd shed their gen'rous Blood. Amid the Fold he rages, nor the Sheep T h e i r Shepherds, nor the Grooms their Bulls can keep. From Fields to Walls the frighted Rabble run, Nor think themselves secure within the T o w n : T i l l Meleagros, and his chosen Crew, Contemn the Danger, and the Praise pursue: Fair Leda's Twins (in time to Stars decreed) One fought on Foot, one curb'd the fiery Steed; T h e n issu'd forth fam'd Jason after These, W h o mann'd the foremost Ship that sail'd the Seas; T h e n Theseus join'd with bold Perithous came; A single Concord in a double Name: 33 45

Year] F (corrected state); Ear F (uncorrected state). pursue:] . — F.

Fables:

Meleager

and

Atalanta

T h e Thestian Sons; Idas who swiftly ran, And Cceneus, once a Woman, now a Man. Lynceus, with Eagles Eyes, and Lions Heart; Leucippus, with his never-erring Dart; Acastus, Phyleus, Phoenix, Telamon, } Echion, Lelex, and Eurytion, > Achilles Father, and Great Phocus Son; ) Dryas the Fierce, and Hippasus the Strong; With twice old lolaus, and Nestor then but young. Laertes active, and Ancceus bold; ) Mopsus the Sage, who future Things foretold; > And t' other Seer,* yet by his Wife unsold. ' A thousand others of immortal Fame; Among the rest, fair Atalanta came, Grace of the Woods: A Diamond Buckle bound Her Vest behind, that else had flow'd upon the Ground, And shew'd her buskin'd Legs; her Head was bare, But for her Native Ornament of Hair; Which in a simple Knot was ty'd above, Sweet Negligence! unheeded Bait of Love! Her sounding Quiver, on her Shoulder ty'd, One Hand a Dart, and one a Bow supply'd. Such was her Face, as in a Nymph display'd \ A fair fierce Boy, or in a Boy betray'd > T h e blushing Beauties of a modest Maid. ) T h e Calydonian Chief at once the Dame Beheld, at once his Heart receiv'd the Flame, With Heav'ns averse. O happy Youth, he cry'd, For whom thy Fates reserve so fair a Bride! He sigh'd, and had no leisure more to say; 1 His Honour call'd his Eyes another way, > And forc'd him to pursue the now neglected Prey.) * A mphiaraus. 55 Sons;] F. 53 Cceneus] Ceneus F. 56 Phyleus] Phileus F. 60 lolaus] lolas F. 63 Seer,* . . . Wife unsold] Seer,.. . Wife* unfold F. 77 Calydonian] Caledonian F.

205

2O6

Poems,

169J-1700

There stood a Forest on a Mountains Brow, Which over-look'd the shaded Plains below. No sounding Ax presum'd those Trees to bite; Coeval with the World, a venerable Sight. T h e Heroes there arriv'd, some spread around ) T h e Toils; some search the Footsteps on the Ground: > 90 Some from the Chains the faithful Dogs unbound. ) Of Action eager, and intent in Thought, The Chiefs their honourable Danger sought: A Valley stood below; the common Drain Of Waters from above, and falling Rain: T h e Bottom was a moist and marshy Ground, Whose Edges were with bending Oziers crown'd: T h e knotty Bulrush next in Order stood, And all within of Reeds a trembling Wood. From hence the Boar was rows'd, and sprung amain 100 Like Lightning sudden, on the Warriour-Train; Beats down the Trees before him, shakes the Ground, ) T h e Forest echoes to the crackling Sound; > Shout the fierce Youth, and Clamours ring around. ) All stood with their protended Spears prepar'd, With broad Steel Heads, the brandish'd Weapons glar'd. T h e Beast impetuous with his Tusks aside Deals glancing Wounds; the fearful Dogs divide: > All spend their Mouth aloof, but none abide. ) Echion threw the first, but miss'd his Mark, 110 And stuck his Boar-spear on a Maples Bark. Then Jason: and his Javelin seem'd to take, But fail'd with over-force, and whiz'd above his Back. Mopsus was next; but e'er he threw, address'd T o Phcebus, thus: O Patron, help thy Priest: If I adore, and ever have ador'd Thy Pow'r Divine, thy present Aid afford; That I may reach the Beast. The God allow'd His Pray'r, and smiling, gave him what he cou'd: 88

Heroes] Heroes F.

Fables: Meleager and Atalanta He reach'd the Savage, but no Blood he drew, 120 Dian unarm'd the Javelin as it flew. This chaf'd the Boar, his Nostrils Flames expire, And his red Eye-balls roll with living Fire. Whirl'd from a Sling, or from an Engine thrown, Amid the Foes, so flies a mighty Stone, As flew the Beast: The Left Wing put to flight, The Chiefs o'er-born, he rushes on the Right. Empalamos and Pelagon he laid In Dust, and next to Death, but for their Fellows Aid. Onesimus far'd worse, prepar'd to fly, lso The fatal Fang drove deep within his Thigh, And cut the Nerves: The Nerves no more sustain The Bulk; the Bulk unprop'd, falls headlong on the Plain. Nestor had fail'd the Fall of Troy to see, But leaning on his Lance, he vaulted on a Tree; Then gath'ring up his Feet, look'd down with Fear, And thought his monstrous Foe was still too near. Against a Stump his Tusk the Monster grinds, And in the sharpen'd Edge new Vigour finds; Then, trusting to his Arms, young Othrys found, 1« And ranch'd his Hip with one continu'd Wound. Now Leda's Twins, the future Stars, appear; White were their Habits, white their Horses were: Conspicuous both, and both in act to throw, Their trembling Lances brandish'd at the Foe: Nor had they miss'd; but he to Thickets fled, Conceal'd from aiming Spears, not pervious to the Steed. But Telamon rush'd in, and happ'd to meet A rising Root, that held his fastned Feet; So down he fell; whom, sprawling on the Ground, iH> His Brother from the Wooden Gyves unbound. Mean time the Virgin-Huntress was not slow T ' expel the Shaft from her contracted Bow: îïo

Dian]

F.

j40 Hip] Hips F.

207

2O8

Poems,

1697-1700

Beneath his Ear the fastned Arrow stood, And from the Wound appear'd the trickling Blood. She blush'd for Joy: But Meleagros rais'd His voice with loud Applause, and the fair Archer prais'd. He was the first to see, and first to show His Friends the Marks of the successful Blow. Nor shall thy Valour want the Praises due, X60 He said; a vertuous Envy seiz'd the Crew. They shout; the Shouting animates their Hearts, And all at once employ their thronging Darts: But out of Order thrown, in Air they joyn; And Multitude makes frustrate the Design. With both his Hands the proud Anceeus takes, And flourishes his double-biting Ax: T h e n forward to his Fate, he took a Stride Before the rest, and to his Fellows cry'd, Give place, and mark the difference, if you can, 170 Between a Woman Warriour, and a Man; T h e Boar is doom'd; nor though Diana lend Her Aid, Diana can her Beast defend. Thus boasted he; then stretch'd, on Tiptoe stood, Secure to make his empty Promise good. But the more wary Beast prevents the Blow, And upward rips the Groin of his audacious Foe. Ancaus falls; his Bowels from the Wound Rush out, and clotter'd Blood distains the Ground. Perithous, no small Portion of the War 180 Press'd on, and shook his Lance: T o whom from far Thus Theseus cry'd; O stay, my better Part, My more than Mistress; of my Heart, the Heart. T h e Strong may fight aloof; Ancaus try'd His Force too near, and by presuming dy'd: He said, and while he spake his Javelin threw, Hissing in Air th* unerring Weapon flew; 165,183 Anceeus] Anceus F.

Fables: Meleager and Atalanta But on an Arm of Oak, that stood betwixt The Marks-man and the Mark, his Lance he fixt. Once more bold Jason threw, but fail'd to wound »0 The Boar, and slew an undeserving Hound; And through the Dog the Dart was nail'd to Ground. / Two Spears from Meleager's Hand were sent, With equal Force, but various in th' Event: The first was fix'd in Earth, the second stood On the Boars bristled Back, and deeply drank his Blood. Now while the tortur'd Salvage turns around, And flings about his Foam, impatient of the Wound, The Wounds great Author close at Hand provokes His Rage, and plyes him with redoubled Strokes; 200 Wheels as he wheels; and with his pointed Dart Explores the nearest Passage to his Heart. Quick, and more quick he spins in giddy Gires, Then falls, and in much Foam his Soul expires. This Act with Shouts Heav'n high the friendly Band Applaud, and strain in theirs the Victour Hand. Then all approach the Slain with vast Surprize, Admire on what a Breadth of Earth he lies, And scarce secure, reach out their Spears afar, And blood their Points, to prove their Partnership of War. 210

But he, the conqu'ring Chief, his Foot impress'd On the strong Neck of that destructive Beast; And gazing on the Nymph with ardent Eyes, Accept, said he, fair Nonacrine, my Prize, And, though inferiour, suffer me to join My Labours, and my Part of Praise with thine: At this presents her with the Tusky Head And Chine, with rising Bristles roughly spread. Glad, she receiv'd the Gift; and seem'd to take 198 Hand]

F.

209

210

Poems,

169J-1J00

With double Pleasure, for the Giver's sake. 220 T h e rest were seiz'd with sullen Discontent, And a deaf Murmur through the Squadron went: All envy'd; but the Thestian Brethren show'd T h e least Respect, and thus they vent their Spleen aloud: Lay down those honour'd Spoils, nor think to share, Weak Woman as thou art, the Prize of War: Ours is the Title, thine a foreign Claim, Since Meleagros from our Lineage came. Trust not thy Beauty; but restore the Prize, Which he, besotted on that Face and Eyes, 230 Would rend from us: At this, inflam'd with Spite, From her they snatch the Gift, from him the Givers Right. But soon th' impatient Prince his Fauchion drew, And cry'd, Ye Robbers of another's Due, Now learn the Diff'rence, at your proper Cost, Betwixt true Valour, and an empty Boast: At this advanc'd, and sudden as the Word, In proud Plexippus Bosom plung'd the Sword: Toxeus amaz'd, and with Amazement slow, Or to revenge, or ward the coming Blow, 240 Stood doubting; and, while doubting thus he stood, Receiv'd the Steel bath'd in his Brother's Blood. Pleas'd with the first, unknown the second News, Althtea, to the Temples, pays their Dues, For her Son's Conquest; when at length appear \ Her griesly Brethren stretch'd upon the Bier: > Pale at the sudden Sight, she chang'd her Cheer, ' And with her Cheer her Robes; but hearing tell T h e Cause, the Manner, and by whom they fell, 'Twas Grief no more, or Grief and Rage were one 250 Within her Soul; at last 'twas Rage alone; Which burning upwards in succession dries T h e Tears that stood consid'ring in her Eyes. 222 Thestian] Thestyan F. 237 Plexippus] Ploxippiis F.

235 Boast:] — F. 243 Althcea] AUhea F.

2 x 1

Fables: Meleager and Atalanta There lay a Log unlighted on the Hearth, When she was lab'ring in the Throws of Birth For th' unborn Chief; the Fatal Sisters came, And rais'd it up, and toss'd it on the Flame: T h e n on the Rock a scanty Measure place Of Vital Flax, and turn'd the Wheel apace; And turning sung, T o this red Brand and thee, 280 O new-born Babe, we give an equal Destiny: So vanish'd out of View. The frighted Dame Sprung hasty from her Bed, and quench'd the Flame: T h e Log in secret lock'd, she kept with Care, And that, while thus preserv'd, preserv'd her Heir. This Brand she now produc'd; and first she straws T h e Hearth with Heaps of Chips, and after blows, Thrice heav'd her Hand, and heav'd, she thrice repress'd: T h e Sister and the Mother long contest Two doubtful Titles in one tender Breast: 270 And now her Eyes and Cheeks with Fury glow, Now pale her Cheeks, her Eyes with Pity flow: Now lowring Looks presage approaching Storms, And now prevailing Love her Face reforms: Resolv'd, she doubts again; the Tears she dry'd With burning Rage, are by new Tears supply'd; And as a Ship, which Winds and Waves assail, \ Now with the Current drives, now with the Gale, > Both opposite, and neither long prevail: ' She feels a double Force, by Turns obeys 280 T h ' imperious Tempest, and th' impetuous Seas: So fares Althcea's Mind; she first relents With Pity, of that Pity then repents: Sister and Mother long the Scales divide, But the Beam nodded on the Sisters side. Sometimes she softly sigh'd, then roar'd aloud; But Sighs were stifl'd in the Cries of Blood. 253

Hearth,]

F.

255

Chief;]

I.

212

Poems,

iöyj-ijoo

T h e pious, impious Wretch at length decreed, T o please her Brothers Ghosts, her Son shou'd bleed: And when the Fun'ral Flames began to rise, 290 Receive, she said, a Sisters Sacrifice; A Mothers Bowels burn: High in her Hand Thus while she spoke, she held the fatal Brand; Then thrice before the kindled Pyle she bow'd, And the three Furies thrice invok'd aloud: Come, come, revenging Sisters, come and view A Sister paying her dead Brothers Due: A Crime I punish, and a Crime commit; But Blood for Blood, and Death for Death is fit: Great Crimes must be with greater Crimes repaid, 300 And second Funerals on the former laid. Let the whole Houshold in one Ruine fall, And may Diana's Curse o'ertake us all. Shall Fate to happy Oeneus still allow ^ One Son, while Thestius stands depriv'd of two? > Better three lost, than one unpunish'd go. / Take then, dear Ghosts, (while yet admitted new In Hell you wait my Duty) take your Due: A costly Off'ring on your Tomb is laid, When with my Blood the Price of yours is paid. aio

Ah! Whither am I hurried? Ah! forgive, Ye Shades, and let your Sisters Issue live: A Mother cannot give him Death, though he Deserves it, he deserves it not from me. Then shall th' unpunish'd Wretch insult the Slain, Triumphant live, nor only live, but reign? While you, thin Shades, the Sport of Winds, are toss'd O'er dreery Plains, or tread the burning Coast? I cannot, cannot bear; 'tis past, 'tis done; Perish this impious, this detested Son: 288 Brothers Ghosts] Brother's Ghost F. 317 Coast?] F.

318

'tis past] tis ~ F.

Fables: Meleager and Atalanta

213

820 Perish his Sire, and perish I withal; And let the Houses Heir, and the hop'd Kingdom fall. Where is the Mother fled, her pious Love, And where the Pains with which ten Months I strove? Ah! hadst thou dy'd, my Son, in Infant-years, Thy little Herse had been bedew'd with Tears. Thou liv'st by me; to me thy Breath resign; Mine is the Merit, the Demerit thine. Thy Life by double Title I require; Once giv'n at Birth, and once preserv'd from Fire: 330 One Murder pay, or add one Murder more, And me to them who fell by thee restore. I wou'd, but cannot: My Son's Image stands Before my Sight; and now their angry Hands My Brothers hold, and Vengeance these exact, This pleads Compassion, and repents the Fact. He pleads in vain, and I pronounce his Doom: My Brothers, though unjustly, shall o'ercome. But having paid their injur'd Ghosts their Due, My Son requires my Death, and mine shall his pursue. 840

At this, for the last time she lifts her Hand, Averts her Eyes, and, half unwilling, drops the Brand. T h e Brand, amid the flaming Fewel thrown, Or drew, or seem'd to draw a dying Groan: T h e Fires themselves but faintly lick'd their Prey, Then loath'd their impious Food, and wou'd have shrunk away. Just then the Heroe cast a doleful Cry, And in those absent Flames began to fry: T h e blind Contagion rag'd within his Veins; But he with manly Patience bore his Pains: 383 strove?] —I F.

346 Heroe] Heroe F.

Poems,

814

169J-1J00

sso He fear'd not Fate, but only griev'd to die Without an honest Wound, and by a Death so dry. Happy A ncceus, thrice aloud he cry'd, With what becoming Fate in Arms he dy'd! Then call'd his Brothers, Sisters, Sire, around, And her to whom his Nuptial Vows were bound; Perhaps his Mother; a long Sigh he drew, And his Voice failing, took his last Adieu: For as the Flames augment, and as they stay At their full Height, then languish to decay, sso They rise, and sink by Fits; at last they soar In one bright Blaze, and then descend no more: Just so his inward Heats at height, impair, Till the last burning Breath shoots out the Soul in Air. Now lofty Calydon in Ruines lies; All Ages, all Degrees unsluice their Eyes; And Heav'n & Earth resound with Murmurs, Groans, & Cries. Matrons and Maidens beat their Breasts, and tear Their Habits, and root up their scatter'd Hair: The wretched Father, Father now no more, S70 With Sorrow sunk, lies prostrate on the Floor, Deforms his hoary Locks with Dust obscene, And curses Age, and loaths a Life prolong'd with Pain. By Steel her stubborn Soul his Mother freed, And punish'd on her self her impious Deed. Had I a hundred Tongues, a Wit so large As cou'd their hundred Offices discharge; Had Phcebus all his Helicon bestow'd In all the Streams inspiring all the God; Those Tongues, that Wit, those Streams, that God, in vain sso Wou'd offer to describe his Sisters pain: They beat their Breasts with many a bruizing Blow, Till they turn'd livid, and corrupt the Snow. The Corps they cherish, while the Corps remains, 364

Calydon] Calidon F.

Fables: Meleager and Atalanta And exercise and rub with fruitless Pains; And when to Fun'ral Flames 'tis born away, They kiss the Bed on which the Body lay: And when those Fun'ral Flames no longer burn, (The Dust compos'd within a pious Urn) Ev'n in that Urn their Brother they confess, sto And hug it in their Arms, and to their Bosoms press. His Tomb is rais'd; then, stretch'd along the Ground, Those living Monuments his Tomb surround: Ev'n to his Name, inscrib'd, their Tears they pay, Till Tears and Kisses wear his Name away. But Cynthia now had all her Fury spent, Not with less Ruine than a Race, content: Excepting Gorgé, perish'd all the Seed, And * Her whom Heav'n for Hercules decreed. Satiate at last, no longer she pursu'd 400 The weeping Sisters; but with Wings endu'd, And Horny Beaks, and sent to flit in Air; Who yearly round the Tomb in Feather'd Flocks repair. •

Deianira.

397 Gorgé] Gorge F.

3981» Deianira] Dejanira F.

215

2l6

Poems, 1697-1700

Sigismonda and Guiscardo, from

Boccace

W

HILE Norman Tancred in Salerno reign'd, The Title of a Gracious Prince he gain'd; T i l l turn'd a Tyrant in his latter Days, H e lost the Lustre of his former Praise; And from the bright Meridian where he stood, Descending, dipp'd his Hands in Lovers Blood. This Prince, of Fortunes Favour long possess'd, Yet was with one fair Daughter only bless'd; And bless'd he might have been with her alone: But oh I how much more happy, had he none! She was his Care, his Hope, and his Delight, Most in his Thought, and ever in his Sight: Next, nay beyond his Life, he held her dear; She liv'd by him, and now he liv'd in her. For this, when ripe for Marriage, he delay'd Her Nuptial Bands, and kept her long a Maid, As envying any else should share a Part Of what was his, and claiming all her Heart. At length, as Publick Decency requir'd, And all his Vassals eagerly desir'd, With Mind averse, he rather underwent His Peoples Will, than gave his own Consent: So was she torn, as from a Lover's Side, And made almost in his despite a Bride. Short were her Marriage-Joys; for in the Prime Of Youth, her Lord expir'd before his time: And to her Father's Court, in little space 1 Restor'd anew, she held a higher Place; > More lov'd, and more exalted into Grace. ) This Princess fresh and young, and fair, and wise,

Fables: Sigismonda

and

Guiscardo

T h e worshipp'd Idol of her Father's Eyes, Did all her Sex in ev'ry Grace exceed, A n d had more W i t beside than Women need. Youth, Health, and Ease, and most an amorous Mind, T o second Nuptials had her Thoughts inclin'd: A n d former Joys had left a secret Sting behind. But prodigal in ev'ry other Grant, Her Sire left unsupply'd her only Want; And she, betwixt her Modesty and Pride, Her Wishes, which she could not help, would hide. Resolv'd at last to lose no longer Time, A n d yet to please her self without a Crime, She cast her Eyes around the Court, to find A worthy Subject suiting to her Mind, T o him in holy Nuptials to be ty'd, A seeming Widow, and a secret Bride. Among the Train of Courtiers, one she found With all the Gifts of bounteous Nature crown'd, Of gentle Blood; but one whose niggard Fate Had set him far below her high Estate; Guiscard his Name was call'd, of blooming Age, Now Squire to Tancred, and before his Page: T o him, the Choice of all the shining Crowd, Her Heart the noble Sigismonda vow'd. Yet hitherto she kept her Love conceal'd, A n d with close Glances ev'ry Day beheld T h e graceful Youth; and ev'ry Day increas'd T h e raging Fire that burn'd within her Breast: Some secret Charm did all his Acts attend, A n d what his Fortune wanted, hers could mend: T i l l , as the Fire will force its outward way, Or, in the Prison pent, consume the Prey; So long her earnest Eyes on his were set, A t length their twisted Rays together met;

217

Poems, 1697—1700

218

A n d he, surpriz'd with h u m b l e Joy,

survey'd

O n e sweet Regard, shot by the Royal

Maid:

N o t well assur'd, while d o u b t f u l H o p e s he

nurs'd,

A s e c o n d G l a n c e c a m e g l i d i n g l i k e t h e first; A n d h e w h o s a w t h e S h a r p n e s s of t h e 70 W i t h o u t D e f e n c e r e c e i v ' d i t i n h i s

Dart,

Heart.

In Publick though their Passion wanted

Speech,

Yet m u t u a l Looks interpreted for each: T i m e , W a y s , a n d M e a n s of M e e t i n g w e r e B u t all those W a n t s i n g e n i o u s L o v e

deny'd;

supply'd.

T h ' inventive G o d , w h o n e v e r fails his

Part,

Inspires the Wit, when once he warms the

Guiscard n e x t w a s Sigismonda h e l d t h e

W h e n Where

in the Circle Place of

seen,

Queen,

A hollow Cane within her H a n d she so B u t i n t h e C o n c a v e h a d e n c l o s ' d a

brought,

Note:

W i t h this s h e s e e m ' d t o play, a n d , as i n T o s s ' d to h e r L o v e , i n p r e s e n c e of t h e

sport, Court;

T a k e it, s h e said; a n d w h e n y o u r N e e d s

require,

T h i s little B r a n d will serve to light y o u r H e t o o k it w i t h a B o w , a n d s o o n

Heart.

Fire.

divin'd

T h e seeming T o y was not for nought

design'd:

B u t w h e n retir'd, so l o n g w i t h c u r i o u s

Eyes

H e view'd the Present, that he found the

Prize.

M u c h was in little writ; a n d all convey'd

\

90 W i t h c a u t i o u s C a r e , f o r f e a r t o b e b e t r a y ' d

>

B y s o m e false C o n f i d e n t , o r Fav'rite M a i d . T h e T i m e , the Place, the M a n n e r h o w to W e r e all in p u n c t u a l O r d e r plainly

; meet,

writ:

B u t since a T r u s t m u s t be, she t h o u g h t it best

)

T o p u t it o u t of L a y m e n s P o w ' r a t least,

>

A n d for their solemn Vows prepar'd a Priest.

)

Guiscard

(her secret P u r p o s e

understood)

W i t h Joy prepar'd to meet the coming

Good;

N o r Pains nor D a n g e r was resolv'd to

spare,

100 B u t u s e t h e M e a n s a p p o i n t e d b y t h e

Fair.

Fables: Sigismondo and

Guiscardo

Near the proud Palace of Salerno stood A Mount of rough Ascent, and thick with Wood; Through this a Cave was dug with vast Expence, T h e Work it seem'd of some suspicious Prince, Who, when abusing Pow'r with lawless Might, From Publick Justice would secure his Flight. T h e Passage made by many a winding Way, Reach'd ev'n the Room in which the Tyrant lay. Fit for his Purpose, on a lower Floor He lodg'd, whose Issue was an Iron Door, From whence, by Stairs descending to the Ground, In the blind Grot a safe Retreat he found. Its Outlet ended in a Brake o'ergrown With Brambles, choak'd by Time, and now unknown. A Rift there was, which from the Mountains Height Convey'd a glimm'ring and malignant Light, A Breathing-place to draw the Damps away, A Twilight of an intercepted Day. T h e Tyrants Den, whose Use though lost to Fame, Was now th' Apartment of the Royal Dame, T h e Cavern only to her Father known, By him was to his Darling-Daughter shown. Neglected long she let the Secret rest, T i l l Love recall'd it to her lab'ring Breast, And hinted as the Way by Heav'n design'd T h e Teacher, by the Means he taught, to blind. What will not Women do, when Need inspires T h e i r Wit, or Love their Inclination fires? Though Jealousie of State th' Invention found, Yet Love refin'd upon the former Ground. T h a t Way, the Tyrant had reserv'd, to fly Pursuing Hate, now serv'd to bring two Lovers nigh. T h e Dame, who long in vain had kept the Key, Bold by Desire, explor'd the secret Way; Now try'd the Stairs, and wading through the Night, 128

fires?]

F.

219

220

Poems, 1697—1700

Search'd all the deep Recess, and issu'd into Light. All this her Letter had so well explain'd, Th' instructed Youth might compass what remain'd: The Cavern-mouth alone was hard to find, 140 Because the Path disus'd, was out of mind: But in what Quarter of the Cops it lay, His Eye by certain Level could survey: Yet (for the Wood perplex'd with Thorns he knew) A Frock of Leather o'er his Limbs he drew: And thus provided, search'd the Brake around, Till the choak'd Entry of the Cave he found. Thus, all prepar'd, the promis'd Hour arriv'd, So long expected, and so well contriv'd: With Love to Friend, th' impatient Lover went, 150 Fenc'd from the Thorns, and trod the deep Descent. The conscious Priest, who was suborn'd before, Stood ready posted at the Postern-door; The Maids in distant Rooms were sent to rest, And nothing wanted but th' invited Guest. He came, and knocking thrice, without delay, The longing Lady heard, and turn'd the Key; At once invaded him with all her Charms, And the first Step he made, was in her Arms: The Leathern Out-side, boistrous as it was, wo Gave way, and bent beneath her strict Embrace: On either Side the Kissesflewso thick, That neither he nor she had Breath to speak. The holy Man amaz'd at what he saw, Made haste to sanctifie the Bliss by Law; And mutter'd fast the Matrimony o're, For fear committed Sin should get before. His Work perform'd, he left the Pair alone, ) Because he knew he could not go too soon; > His Presence odious, when his Task was done. ) 170 What Thoughts he had, beseems not me to say; Though some surmise he went to fast and pray, And needed both, to drive the tempting Thoughts away.

Fables: Sigismonda and

Guiscardo

The Foe once gone, they took their full Delight; 'Twas restless Rage, and Tempest all the Night: For greedy Love each Moment would employ, And grudg'd the shortest Pauses of their Joy. Thus were their Loves auspiciously begun, And thus with secret Care were carried on. The Stealth it self did Appetite restore, xso And look'd so like a Sin, it pleas'd the more. The Cave was now become a common Way, The Wicket often open'd, knew the Key: Love rioted secure, and long enjoy'd, Was ever eager, and was never cloy'd. But as Extremes are short, of 111 and Good, And Tides at highest Mark regorge the Flood; So Fate, that could no more improve their Joy, Took a malicious Pleasure to destroy. Tancred, who fondly lov'd, and whose Delight 190 Was plac'd in his fair Daughters daily Sight, Of Custom, when his State-Affairs were done, Would pass his pleasing Hours with her alone: And, as a Father's Privilege allow'd, Without Attendance of th' officious Crowd. It happen'd once, that when in Heat of Day He try'd to sleep, as was his usual Way, The balmy Slumber fled his wakeful Eyes, And forc'd him, in his own despite, to rise: Of Sleep forsaken, to relieve his Care, 200 He sought the Conversation of the Fair: But with her Train of Damsels she was gone, In shady Walks the scorching Heat to shun: He would not violate that sweet Recess, And found besides a welcome Heaviness That seiz'd his Eyes; and Slumber, which forgot

221

Poems, 1697—i yoo

222

W h e n call'd before to come, n o w c a m e unsought. F r o m L i g h t retir'd, b e h i n d his D a u g h t e r s Bed, H e f o r a p p r o a c h i n g Sleep c o m p o s ' d his H e a d ; A C h a i r was ready, for that Use design'd, 210 S o q u i l t e d , t h a t h e l a y a t e a s e r e c l i n ' d ; T h e C u r t a i n s closely d r a w n , t h e L i g h t to skreen, A s if h e h a d c o n t r i v ' d t o l i e u n s e e n : T h u s cover'd w i t h a n artificial N i g h t , Sleep d i d his Office soon, a n d seal'd his Sight. W i t h H e a v ' n averse, in this ill-omen'd H o u r Was

Guiscard

s u m m o n ' d t o the secret Bow'r,

A n d the fair N y m p h , with Expectation

fir'd,

F r o m her attending Damsels was retir'd: F o r , t r u e t o L o v e , s h e m e a s u r ' d T i m e so r i g h t , 220 A s n o t t o m i s s o n e M o m e n t o f D e l i g h t . T h e G a r d e n , seated o n the level Floor, She left behind, a n d locking ev'ry Door, T h o u g h t all secure; b u t little d i d she k n o w , B l i n d to h e r Fate, she h a d inclos'd h e r Foe. Attending

Guiscard,

in his L e a t h e r n Frock,

Stood ready, with his thrice-repeated Knock: Thrice with a doleful Sound the jarring Grate R u n g deaf, a n d hollow, a n d presag'd their Fate. T h e D o o r unlock'd, to k n o w n Delight they haste, 230 A n d p a n t i n g , i n e a c h o t h e r s A r m s e m b r a c ' d , R u s h to the conscious Bed, a m u t u a l Freight, A n d heedless press it w i t h t h e i r w o n t e d W e i g h t . T h e s u d d e n B o u n d a w a k ' d t h e sleeping Sire, A n d shew'd a Sight n o P a r e n t can desire: His o p e n i n g Eyes at once with odious View T h e Love discover'd, a n d the Lover knew: H e w o u l d have cry'd; b u t h o p i n g that he dreamt, A m a z e m e n t ty'd his T o n g u e , a n d stopp'd th' A t t e m p t . 230 panting,. . . Arms embrac'd,] ~ A . . .

F.

Fables: Sigismonda and Guiscardo T h ' ensuing Moment all the Truth declar'd, 240 But now he stood collected, and prepar'd; For Malice and Revenge had put him on his Guard. So, like a Lion that unheeded lay, \ Dissembling Sleep, and watchful to betray, > With inward Rage he meditates his Prey. ) T h e thoughtless Pair, indulging their Desires, Alternate, kindl'd, and then quench'd their Fires; Nor thinking in the Shades of Death they play'd, \ Full of themselves, themselves alone survey'd, > And, too secure, were by themselves betray'd. ) 250 Long time dissolv'd in Pleasure thus they lay, Till Nature could no more suffice their Play; Then rose the Youth, and through the Cave again Return'd; the Princess mingl'd with her Train. Resolv'd his unripe Vengeance to defer T h e Royal Spy, when now the Coast was clear, Sought not the Garden, but retir'd unseen, T o brood in secret on his gather'd Spleen, And methodize Revenge: T o Death he griev'd; And, but he saw the Crime, had scarce believ'd. 260 T h ' Appointment for th' ensuing Night he heard; } And therefore in the Cavern had prepar'd > T w o brawny Yeomen of his trusty Guard. ) Scarce had unwary Guiscard set his Foot Within the farmost Entrance of the Grot, When these in secret Ambush ready lay, And rushing on the sudden seiz'd the Prey: Encumber'd with his Frock, without Defence, ) An easie Prize, they led the Pris'ner thence, > And, as commanded, brought before the Prince. ' 270 T h e gloomy Sire, too sensible of Wrong T o vent his Rage in Words, restrain'd his Tongue; And only said, Thus Servants are preferr'd,

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And trusted, thus their Sov'reigns they reward. Had I not seen, had not these Eyes receiv'd Too clear a Proof, I could not have believ'd. He paus'd, and choak'd the rest. T h e Youth, who saw His forfeit Life abandon'd to the Law, The Judge th' Accuser, and th' Offence to him Who had both Pow'r and Will t' avenge the Crime; MO No vain Defence prepar'd; but thus reply'd, T h e Faults of Love by Love are justifi'd: With unresisted Might the Monarch reigns, He levels Mountains, and he raises Plains; And not regarding Diff'rence of Degree, Abas'd your Daughter, and exalted me. This bold Return with seeming Patience heard, The Pris'ner was remitted to the Guard. The sullen Tyrant slept not all the Night, But lonely walking by a winking Light, 29« Sobb'd, wept, and groan'd, and beat his wither'd Breast, But would not violate his Daughters Rest; Who long expecting lay, for Bliss prepar'd, Listning for Noise, and griev'd that none she heard; Oft rose, and oft in vain employ'd the Key, And oft accus'd her Lover of Delay; And pass'd the tedious Hours in anxious Thoughts away. The Morrow came; and at his usual Hour Old Tancred visited his Daughters Bow'r; Her Cheek (for such his Custom was) he kiss'd, JOO Then bless'd her kneeling, and her Maids dismiss'd. The Royal Dignity thus far maintain'd, Now left in private, he no longer feign'd; But all at once his Grief and Rage appear'd, And Floods of Tears ran trickling down his Beard. O Sigismonda, he began to say: } Thrice he began, and thrice was forc'd to stay, > Till Words with often trying found their Way: '

Fables: Sigismonda and

Guiscardo

I thought, O Sigismonda, (But how blind Are Parents Eyes, their Childrens Faults to find!) sio Thy Vertue, Birth, and Breeding were above A mean Desire, and vulgar Sense of Love: Nor less than Sight and Hearing could convince \ So fond a Father, and so just a Prince, / Of such an unforeseen, and unbeliev'd Offence. ' Then what indignant Sorrow must I have, T o see thee lie subjected to my Slave! A Man so smelling of the Peoples Lee, T h e Court receiv'd him first for Charity; And since with no Degree of Honour grac'd, 320 But only suffer'd, where he first was plac'd: A grov'ling Insect still; and so design'd By Natures Hand, nor born of Noble Kind: A Thing, by neither Man nor Woman priz'd, And scarcely known enough, to be despis'd. T o what has Heav'n reserv'd my Age? Ahl why Should Man, when Nature calls, not chuse to die, Rather than stretch the Span of Life, to find Such Ills as Fate has wisely cast behind, For those to feel, whom fond Desire to live 830 Makes covetous of more than Life can give? Each has his Share of Good; and when 'tis gone, T h e Guest, though hungry, cannot rise too soon. But I, expecting more, in my own wrong Protracting Life, have liv'd a Day too long. If Yesterday cou'd be recall'd again, Ev'n now would I conclude my happy Reign: But 'tis too late, my glorious Race is run, And a dark Cloud o'ertakes my setting Sun. Hadst thou not lov'd, or loving sav'd the Shame, 340 If not the Sin, by some Illustrious Name, This little Comfort had reliev'd my Mind, 'Twas frailty, not unusual to thy Kind: But thy low Fall beneath thy Royal Blood, 330 give?]

F.

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Shews downward Appetite to mix with Mud: Thus not the least Excuse is left for thee, Nor the least Refuge for unhappy me. For him I have resolv'd: whom by Surprize I took, and scarce can call it, in Disguise: For such was his Attire, as with Intent as« Of Nature, suited to his mean Descent: The harder Question yet remains behind, } What Pains a Parent and a Prince can find > T o punish an Offence of this degenerate Kind. ) As I have lov'd, and yet I love thee more Than ever Father lov'd a Child before; So, that Indulgence draws me to forgive: Nature, that gave thee Life, would have thee live. But, as a Publick Parent of the State, My Justice, and thy Crime, requires thy Fate. Sao Fain would I chuse a middle Course to steer; Nature's too kind, and Justice too severe: Speak for us both, and to the Balance bring On either side, the Father, and the King. Heav'n knows, my Heart is bent to favour thee; Make it but scanty weight, and leave the rest to me. Here stopping with a Sigh, he pour'd a Flood Of Tears, to make his last Expression good. She, who had heard him speak, nor saw alone The secret Conduct of her Love was known; 870 But he was taken who her Soul possess'd, Felt all the Pangs of Sorrow in her Breast: And little wanted, but a Womans Heart With Cries, and Tears, had testifi'd her Smart: But in-born Worth, that Fortune can controul, New strung, and stiffer bent her softer Soul; The Heroine assum'd the Womans Place, 376

Heroine] Heroine F.

Fables: Sigismonda and Guiscardo Confirm'd her Mind, and fortifi'd her Face: Why should she beg, or what cou'd she pretend, When her stern Father had condemn'd her Friend? «so Her Life she might have had; but her Despair Of saving his, had put it past her Care: Resolv'd on Fate, she would not lose her Breath, But rather than not die, sollicit Death. Fix'd on this Thought, she not as Women use, Her Fault by common Frailty would excuse; But boldly justifi'd her Innocence, And while the Fact was own'd, deny'd th* Offence: Then with dry Eyes, and with an open Look, She met his Glance mid-way, and thus undaunted spoke. s9o

Tancred, I neither am dispos'd to make Request for Life, nor offer'd Life to take: Much less deny the Deed; but least of all Beneath pretended Justice weakly fall. My Words to sacred Truth shall be confin'd, My Deeds shall shew the Greatness of my Mind. That I have lov'd, I own; that still I love, I call to Witness all the Pow'rs above: Yet more I own: T o Guiscard's Love I give The small remaining Time I have to live; 400 And if beyond this Life Desire can be, Not Fate it self shall set my Passion free. This first avow'd; nor Folly warp'd my Mind, Nor the frail Texture of the Female Kind Betray'd my Vertue: For, too well I knew What Honour was, and Honour had his Due: Before the Holy Priest my Vows were ty'd, So came I not a Strumpet, but a Bride; This for my Fame: and for the Publick Voice: Yet more, his Merits justifi'd my Choice; 410 Which had they not, the first Election thine, 379 Friend?]

F.

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That Bond dissolv'd, the next is freely mine: Or grant I err'd, (which yet I must deny,) Had Parents pow'r ev'n second Vows to tie, Thy little Care to mend my Widow'd Nights 1 Has forc'd me to recourse of Marriage-Rites, > T o fill an empty Side, and follow known Delights. ; What have I done in this, deserving Blame? State-Laws may alter: Nature's are the same; Those are usurp'd on helpless Woman-kind, 420 Made without our Consent, and wanting Pow'r to bind. Thou, Tancred, better should'st have understood, That as thy Father gave thee Flesh and Blood, So gav'st thou me: Not from the Quarry hew'd, But of a softer Mould, with Sense endu'd; Ev'n softer than thy own, of suppler Kind, More exquisite of Taste, and more than Man refin'd. Nor need'st thou by thy Daughter to be told, Though now thy spritely Blood with Age be cold, Thou hast been young; and canst remember still, 430 That when thou hadst the Pow'r, thou hadst the Will; And from the past Experience of thy Fires, Canst tell with what a Tide our strong Desires Come rushing on in Youth, and what their Rage requires. And grant thy Youth was exercis'd in Arms, When Love no leisure found for softer Charms; My tender Age in Luxury was train'd, ) With idle Ease and Pageants entertain'd; V My Hours my own, my Pleasures unrestrain'd. ) So bred, no wonder if I took the Bent 440 That seem'd ev'n warranted by thy Consent; For, when the Father is too fondly kind, Such Seed he sows, such Harvest shall he find. Blame then thy self, as Reason's Law requires, (Since Nature gave, and thou foment'st my Fires;) If still those Appetites continue strong,

Fables: Sigismonda and

Guiscardo

Thou maist consider, I am yet but young: Consider too, that having been a Wife, I must have tasted of a better Life, And am not to be blam'd, if I renew, 4so By lawful Means, the Joys which then I knew. Where was the Crime, if Pleasure I procur'd, Young, and a Woman, and to Bliss inur'd? That was my Cafe, and this is my Defence; I pleas'd my self, I shunn'd Incontinence, > And, urg'd by strong Desires, indulg'd my Sense. ) Left to my self, I must avow, I strove From publick Shame to screen my secret Love, And, well acquainted with thy Native Pride, ) Endeavour'd, what I could not help, to hide; , 4eo For which, a Womans Wit an easie Way supply'd. ' How this, so well contriv'd, so closely laid, Was known to thee, or by what Chance betray'd, Is not my Care: T o please thy Pride alone, I could have wish'd it had been still unknown. Nor took I Guiscard by blind Fancy led, Or hasty Choice, as many Women wed; But with delib'rate Care, and ripen'd Thought, At leisure first design'd, before I wrought: On him I rested, after long Debate, 470 And not without consid'ring, fix'd my Fate: His Flame was equal, though by mine inspir'd; (For so the Diff'rence of our Birth requir'd:) Had he been born like me, like me his Love Had first begun, what mine was forc'd to move: But thus beginning, thus we persevere; Our Passions yet continue what they were, Nor length of Trial makes our Joys the less sincere. At this my Choice, though not by thine allow'd, (Thy Judgment herding with the common Crowd)

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Shall on m y Person be perform'd by me. ' Away, with W o m e n weep, and leave m e here, Fix'd, like a M a n to die, without a T e a r ; 680 O r s a v e , o r s l a y u s b o t h t h i s p r e s e n t H o u r , ' T i s all that F a t e has left w i t h i n thy P o w ' r . She said: N o r did her F a t h e r fail to

find,

I n all she spoke, the Greatness of h e r M i n d ;

Fables:

Sigismondo,

and

Guiscardo

Yet thought she was not obstinate to die, Nor deem'd the Death she promis'd was so nigh: Secure in this Belief, he left the Dame, Resolv'd to spare her Life, and save her Shame; But that detested Object to remove, T o wreak his Vengeance, and to cure her Love. Intent on this, a secret Order sign'd, The Death of Guiscard to his Guards enjoin'd; Strangling was chosen, and the Night the Time, A mute Revenge, and blind as was the Crime: His faithful Heart, a bloody Sacrifice, Torn from his Breast, to glut the Tyrant's Eyes, Clos'd the severe Command: For, (Slaves to Pay) What Kings decree, the Soldier must obey: Wag'd against Foes; and, when the Wars are o'er, Fit only to maintain Despotick Pow'r: «00 Dang'rous to Freedom, and desir'd alone By Kings, who seek an Arbitrary Throne: Such were these Guards; as ready to have slain The Prince himself, allur'd with greater gain: So was the Charge perform'd with better Will, By Men inur'd to Blood, and exercis'd in 111.

590

Now, though the sullen Sire had eas'd his Mind, \ The Pomp of his Revenge was yet behind, > A Pomp prepar'd to grace the Present he design'd. ) A Goblet rich with Gems, and rough with Gold, 6io Of Depth, and Breadth, the precious Pledge to hold, With cruel Care he chose: The hollow Part Inclos'd; the Lid conceal'd the Lover's Heart: Then of his trusted Mischiefs, one he sent, And bad him with these Words the Gift present; Thy Father sends thee this, to cheer thy Breast, And glad thy Sight with what thou lov'st the best; As thou hast pleas'd his Eyes, and joy'd his Mind, With what he lov'd the most of Humane Kind.

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E'er this the Royal Dame, who well had weigh'd «20 The Consequence of what her Sire had said, Fix'd on her Fate, against th' expected Hour, Procur'd the Means to have it in her Pow'r: For this, she had distill'd, with early Care, The Juice of Simples, friendly to Despair, A Magazine of Death; and thus prepar'd, Secure to die, the fatal Message heard: Then smil'd severe; nor with a troubl'd Look, Or trembling Hand, the Fun'ral Present took; Ev'n kept her Count'nance, when the Lid remov'd, «so Disclos'd the Heart, unfortunately lov'd: She needed not be told within whose Breast It lodg'd; the Message had explain'd the rest. Or not amaz'd, or hiding her Surprize, She sternly on the Bearer fix'd her Eyes: Then thus; Tell Tancred, on his Daughters part, The Gold, though precious, equals not the Heart: But he did well to give his best; and I, Who wish'd a worthier Urn, forgive his Poverty. At this, she curb'd a Groan, that else had come, «40 And pausing, view'd the Present in the Tomb: Then, to the Heart ador'd, devoutly glew'd Her Lips, and raising it, her Speech renew'd; Ev'n from my Day of Birth, to this, the Bound Of my unhappy Being, I have found My Father's Care, and Tenderness express'd: But this last Act of Love excels the rest: For this so dear a Present, bear him back The best Return that I can live to make. The Messenger dispatch'd, again she view'd «so The lov'd Remains, and sighing, thus pursu'd; Source of my Life, and Lord of my Desires, In whom I liv'd, with whom my Soul expires; Poor Heart, no more the Spring of Vital Heat, Curs'd be the Hands that tore thee from thy SeatI

Fables:

Sigismonda

and

Guiscardo

T h e Course is finish'd, which thy Fates decreed, And thou, from thy Corporeal Prison freed: Soon hast thou reach'd the Goal with mended Pace, A World of Woes dispatch'd in little space: Forc'd by thy Worth, thy Foe in Death become Thy Friend, has lodg'd thee in a costly Tomb; There yet remain'd thy Fun'ral Exequies, T h e weeping Tribute of thy Widows Eyes, And those, indulgent Heav'n has found the way That I, before my Death, have leave to pay. My Father ev'n in Cruelty is kind, ) Or Heav'n has turn'd the Malice of his Mind > T o better Uses than his Hate design'd; / And made th' Insult which in his Gift appears, The Means to mourn thee with my pious Tears; Which I will pay thee down, before I go, And save my self the Pains to weep below, If Souls can weep; though once I meant to meet My Fate with Face unmov'd, and Eyes unwet, Yet since I have thee here in narrow Room, My Tears shall set thee first afloat within thy Tomb: Then (as I know thy Spirit hovers nigh) Under thy friendly Conduct will I fly T o Regions unexplor'd, secure to share ] Thy State; nor Hell shall Punishment appear; > And Heav'n is double Heav'n, if thou art there. ) She said: Her brim-full Eyes, that ready stood, And only wanted Will to weep a Flood, Releas'd their watry Store, and pour'd amain, Like Clouds low hung, a sober Show'r of Rain; Mute solemn Sorrow, free from Female Noise, Such as the Majesty of Grief destroys: For, bending o'er the Cup, the Tears she shed Seem'd by the Posture to discharge her Head, O'er-fill'd before; and oft (her Mouth apply'd T o the cold Heart) she kiss'd at once, and cry'd. Her Maids, who stood amaz'd, nor knew the Cause

*35

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Of her Complaining, nor whose Heart it was; Yet all due Measures of her Mourning kept, Did Office at the Dirge, and by Infection wept; And oft enquir'd th' Occasion of her Grief, (Unanswer'd but by Sighs) and offer'd vain Relief. At length, her Stock of Tears already shed, She wip'd her Eyes, she rais'd her drooping Head, And thus pursu'd: O ever faithful Heart, 700 I have perform'd the Ceremonial Part, The Decencies of Grief: It rests behind, That as our Bodies were, our Souls be join'd: T o thy whate'er abode, my Shade convey, And as an elder Ghost, direct the way. She said; and bad the Vial to be brought, Where she before had brew'd the deadly Draught, First pouring out the med'cinable Bane, The Heart, her Tears had rins'd, she bath'd again; Then down her Throat the Death securely throws, 710 And quaffs a long Oblivion of her Woes. This done, she mounts the Genial Bed, and there, (Her Body first compos'd with honest Care,) Attends the welcom Rest: Her Hands yet hold Close to her Heart, the Monumental Gold; Nor farther Word she spoke, but clos'd her Sight, And quiet, sought the Covert of the Night. The Damsels, who the while in Silence mourn'd, Not knowing, nor suspecting Death suborn'd, Yet, as their Duty was, to Tancred sent, 720 Who, conscious of th' Occasion, fear'd th' Event. Alarm'd, and with presaging Heart he came, And drew the Curtains, and expos'd the Dame T o loathsom Light: then with a late Relief Made vain Efforts, to mitigate her Grief. She, what she could, excluding Day, her Eyes Kept firmly seal'd, and sternly thus replies:

Fables: Sigismondo and

Guiscardo

Tancred, restrain thy Tears, unsought by me, And Sorrow, unavailing now to thee: Did ever Man before, afflict his Mind, 730 To see th' Effect of what himself design'd? Yet if thou hast remaining in thy Heart Some Sense of Love, some unextinguish'd Part Of former Kindness, largely once profess'd, \ Let me by that adjure thy harden'd Breast, > Not to deny thy Daughters last Request: ) The secret Love, which I so long enjoy'd, And still conceal'd, to gratifie thy Pride, Thou hast disjoin'd; but, with my dying Breath, Seek not, I beg thee, to disjoin our Death: 740 Where-e'er his Corps by thy Command is laid, Thither let mine in publick be convey'd; Expos'd in open View, and Side by Side, Acknowledg'd as a Bridegroom and a Bride. The Prince's Anguish hinder'd his Reply: And she, who felt her Fate approaching nigh, Seiz'd the cold Heart, and heaving to her Breast, Here, precious Pledge, she said, securely rest: These Accents were her last; the creeping Death Benum'd her Senses first, then stopp'd her Breath. 780

Thus she for Disobedience justly dy'd; The Sire was justly punish'd for his Pride: The Youth, least guilty, suffer'd for th' Offence Of Duty violated to his Prince; Who late repenting of his cruel Deed, One common Sepulcher for both decreed; Intomb'd the wretched Pair in Royal State, And on their Monument inscrib'd their Fate.

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Baucis and Philemon, Out of the Eighth Book of Ovid's Metamorphoses The Author pursuing the Deeds of Theseus; relates how He, with his Friend Perithous, were invited by Achelous, the River-God, to stay with him, till his Waters were abated. Achelous entertains them with a Relation of his own Love to Perimele, who was chang'd into an Island by Neptune, at his Request. Perithous, being an Atheist, derides the Legend, and denies the Power of the Gods, to work that Miracle. Lelex, another Companion of Theseus, to confirm the Story of Achelous, relates another Metamorphosis of Baucis and Philemon, into Trees; of which he was partly an Eye-witness.

T

HUS Achelous ends: His Audience hear, With admiration, and admiring, fear The Pow'rs of Heav'n; except Ixion's Son, Who laugh'd at all the Gods, believ'd in none: He shook his impious Head, and thus replies, These Legends are no more than pious Lies: You attribute too much to Heavenly Sway, T o think they give us Forms, and take away.

The rest of better Minds, their Sense declar'd 10 Against this Doctrine, and with Horrour heard. Then Lelex rose, an old experienc'd Man, And thus with sober Gravity began; Heav'ns Pow'r is Infinite: Earth, Air, and Sea, The Manufactur'd Mass, the making Pow'r obey: By Proof to clear your Doubt; In Phrygian Ground Two neighb'ring Trees, with Walls encompass'd round, Stand on a mod'rate Rise, with wonder shown, One a hard Oak, a softer Linden one: Headnote: 8 confirm] constrm F. 14 Manufactur'd] Manufacture F.

Fables: Baucis and Philemon I saw the Place and them, by Pittheus sent T o Phrygian Realms, my Grandsire's Government. Not far from thence is seen a Lake, the Haunt Of Coots, and of the fishing Cormorant: Here Jove with Hermes came; but in Disguise Of mortal Men conceal'd their Deities; One laid aside his Thunder, one his Rod; And many toilsom Steps together trod: For Harbour at a thousand Doors they knock'd, Not one of all the thousand but was lock'd. At last an hospitable House they found, \ A homely Shed, the Roof, not far from Ground, > Was thatch'd with Reeds, and Straw together bound. / There Baucis and Philemon liv'd, and there Had liv'd long marry'd, and a happy Pair: Now old in Love, though little was their Store, ) Inur'd to Want, their Poverty they bore, / Nor aim'd at Wealth, professing to be poor. ) For Master or for Servant here to call, Was all alike, where only Two were All. Command was none, where equal Love was paid, Or rather both commanded, both obey'd. From lofty Roofs the Gods repuls'd before, Now stooping, enter'd through the little Door: T h e Man (their hearty Welcome first express'd) ) A common Settle drew for either Guest, > Inviting each his weary Limbs to rest. ) But e'er they sat, officious Baucis lays T w o Cushions stuff'd with Straw, the Seat to raise; Course, but the best she had; then rakes the Load Of Ashes from the Hearth, and spreads abroad T h e living Coals; and, lest they shou'd expire, With Leaves and Barks she feeds her Infant-fire: It smoaks; and then with trembling Breath she blows, Till in a chearful Blaze the Flames arose. With Brush-wood and with Chips she strengthens these; And adds at last the Boughs of rotten Trees.

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The Fire thus form'd, she sets the Kettle on, (Like burnish'd Gold the little Seether shone) Next took the Coleworts which her Husband got From his own Ground, (a small well-water'd Spot;) She stripp'd the Stalks of all their Leaves; the best She cull'd, and then with handy-care she dress'd. High o'er the Hearth a Chine of Bacon hung; Good old Philemon seiz'd it with a Prong, And from the sooty Rafter drew it down, T h e n cut a Slice, but scarce enough for one; Yet a large Portion of a little Store, Which for their Sakes alone he wish'd were more. This in the Pot he plung'd without delay, T o tame the Flesh, and drain the Salt away. T h e T i m e between, before the Fire they sat, And shorten'd the Delay by pleasing Chat. A Beam there was, on which a Beechen Pail Hung by the Handle, on a driven Nail: This fill'd with Water, gently warm'd, they set Before their Guests; in this they bath'd their Feet, And after with clean Towels dry'd their Sweat: This done, the Host produc'd the genial Bed, Sallow the Feet, the Borders, and the Sted, > Which with no costly Coverlet they spread; ) But course old Garments, yet such Robes as these They laid alone, at Feasts, on Holydays. T h e good old Huswife tucking up her Gown, T h e Table sets; th' invited Gods lie down. T h e Trivet-Table of a Foot was lame, A Blot which prudent Baucis overcame, Who thrusts beneath the limping Leg, a Sherd, So was the mended Board exactly rear'd: Then rubb'd it o'er with newly-gather'd Mint, A wholesom Herb, that breath'd a grateful Scent. Pallas began the Feast, where first was seen T h e party-colour'd Olive, Black, and Green: Autumnal Cornels next in order serv'd,

Fables: Baucis and Philemon In Lees of Wine well pickl'd, and preserv'd. A Garden-Sallad was the third Supply, Of Endive, Radishes, and Succory: Then Curds and Cream, the Flow'r of Country-Fare, ) And new-laid Eggs, which Baucis busie Care > Turn'd by a gentle Fire, and roasted rear. ) All these in Earthen Ware were serv'd to Board; \ ioo And next in place, an Earthen Pitcher stor'd, > cou'd afford. ) With Liquor of the best the Cottage This was the Tables Ornament, and Pride, With Figures wrought: Like Pages at his Side Stood Beechen Bowls; and these were shining clean, Vernish'd with Wax without, and lin'd within. By this the boiling Kettle had prepar'd, And to the Table sent the smoaking Lard; On which with eager Appetite they dine, A sav'ry Bit, that serv'd to rellish Wine: 110 T h e Wine it self was suiting to the rest, Still working in the Must, and lately press'd. T h e Second Course succeeds like that before, Plums, Apples, Nuts, and of their Wintry Store, Dry Figs, and Grapes, and wrinkl'd Dates were set In Canisters, t' enlarge the little Treat: All these a Milk-white Honey-comb surround, Which in the midst the Country-Banquet crown'd: But the kind Hosts their Entertainment grace With hearty Welcom, and an open Face: 120 In all they did, you might discern with ease, A willing Mind, and a Desire to please. Mean time the Beechen Bowls went round, and still Though often empty'd, were observ'd to fill; Fill'd without Hands, and of their own accord Ran without Feet, and danc'd about the Board. Devotion seiz'd the Pair, to see the Feast With Wine, and of no common Grape, increas'd; And up they held their Hands, and fell to Pray'r, Excusing as they cou'd, their Country Fare.

241

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lso

One Goose they had, ('twas all they cou'd allow) \ A wakeful Cent'ry, and on Duty now, > Whom to the Gods for Sacrifice they vow: ; Her, with malicious Zeal, the Couple view'd; She ran for Life, and limping they pursu'd: Full well the Fowl perceiv'd their bad intent, And wou'd not make her Masters Compliment; But persecuted, to the Pow'rs she flies, And close between the Legs of Jove she lies: He with a gracious Ear the Suppliant heard, 140 And sav'd her Life; then what he was declar'd, And own'd the God. The Neighbourhood, said he, Shall justly perish for Impiety: You stand alone exempted; but obey With speed, and follow where we lead the way: Leave these accurs'd; and to the Mountains Height Ascend; nor once look backward in your Flight. They haste, and what their tardy Feet deny'd, The trusty Staff (their better Leg) supply'd. An Arrows Flight they wanted to the Top, iso And there secure, but spent with Travel, stop; Then turn their now no more forbidden Eyes; Lost in a Lake the floated Level lies: A Watry Desart covers all the Plains, Their Cot alone, as in an Isle, remains: Wondring with weeping Eyes, while they deplore Their Neighbours Fate, and Country now no more, Their little Shed, scarce large enough for Two, Seems, from the Ground increas'd, in Height and Bulk to grow. A stately Temple shoots within the Skies, 160 The Crotches of their Cot in Columns rise: The Pavement polish'd Marble they behold, T h e Gates with Sculpture grac'd, the Spires and Tiles of Gold. Then thus the Sire of Gods, with Look serene, Speak thy Desire, thou only Just of Men;

Fables: Baucis and

Philemon

And thou, O Woman, only worthy found T o be with such a Man in Marriage bound. A while they whisper; then to Jove address'd, Philemon thus prefers their joint Request. We crave to serve before your sacred Shrine, 170 And offer at your Altars Rites Divine: And since not any Action of our Life Has been polluted with Domestick Strife, We beg one Hour of Death; that neither she With Widows Tears may live to bury me, Nor weeping I, with wither'd Arms may bear My breathless Baucis to the Sepulcher. The Godheads sign their Suit. They run their Race In the same Tenor all th' appointed Space: Then, when their Hour was come, while they relate 180 These past Adventures at the Temple-gate, Old Baucis is by old Philemon seen Sprouting with sudden Leaves of spritely Green: Old Baucis Iook'd where old Philemon stood, And saw his lengthen'd Arms a sprouting Wood: New Roots their fasten'd Feet begin to bind, Their Bodies stiffen in a rising Rind: Then e'er the Bark above their Shoulders grew, They give and take at once their last Adieu: At once, Farewell, O faithful Spouse, they said; i«o At once th' incroaching Rinds their closing Lips invade. Ev'n yet, an ancient Tyancean shows A spreading Oak, that near a Linden grows; The Neighbourhood confirm the Prodigie, Grave Men, not vain of Tongue, or like to lie. I saw my self the Garlands on their Boughs, And Tablets hung for Gifts of granted Vows; And off'ring fresher up, with pious Pray'r, The Good, said I, are God's peculiar Care, And such as honour Heav'n, shall heav'nly Honour share.

243

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244

Pygmalion and the Statue, Out of the Tenth Book of Ovid's Metamorphoses The Propoetides, for their impudent Behaviour, being turn'd into Stone by Venus, Pygmalion, Prince of Cyprus, detested all Women for their Sake, and resolv'd never to marry: He falls in love with a Statue of his own making, which is changd into a Maid, whom he marries. One of his Descendants is Cinyras, the Father of Myrrha; the Daughter incestuously loves her own Father; for which she is chang'd into the Tree which bears her Name. These two Stories immediately follow each other, and are admirably well connected.

P

loathing their lascivious Life, Abhorr'd all Womankind, but most a Wife: So single chose to live, and shunn'd to wed, Well pleas'd to want a Consort of his Bed: Yet fearing Idleness, the Nurse of 111, In Sculpture exercis'd his happy Skill; And carv'd in Iv'ry such a Maid, so fair, As Nature could not with his Art compare, Were she to work; but in her own Defence 10 Must take her Pattern here, and copy hence. Pleas'd with his Idol, he commends, admires, Adores; and last, the Thing ador'd, desires. A very Virgin in her Face was seen, And had she mov'd, a living Maid had been: One wou'd have thought she cou'd have stirr'd; but strove With Modesty, and was asham'd to move. Art hid with Art, so well perform'd the Cheat, It caught the Carver with his own Deceit: He knows 'tis Madness, yet he must adore, 20 And still the more he knows it, loves the more: YGMALION

Headnote: 4

Bed:]

1 F.

Propoetides] Propae tides F.

Fables: Pygmalion and the Statue The Flesh, or what so seems, he touches oft, Which feels so smooth, that he believes it soft. Fir'd with this Thought, at once he strain'd the Breast, And on the Lips a burning Kiss impress'd. 'Tis true, the harden'd Breast resists the Gripe, And the cold Lips return a Kiss unripe: But when, retiring back, he look'd agen, T o think it Iv'ry, was a Thought too mean: So wou'd believe she kiss'd, and courting more, Again embrac'd her naked Body o'er; And straining hard the Statue, was afraid His Hands had made a Dint, and hurt his Maid: Explor'd her, Limb by Limb, and fear'd to find So rude a Gripe had left a livid Mark behind: With Flatt'ry now, he seeks her Mind to move, And now with Gifts, (the pow'rful Bribes of Love:) He furnishes her Closet first; and fills The crowded Shelves with Rarities of Shells; Adds Orient Pearls, which from the Conchs he drew, And all the sparkling Stones of various Hue: And Parrots, imitating Humane Tongue, And Singing-birds in Silver Cages hung; And ev'ry fragrant Flow'r, and od'rous Green, Were sorted well, with Lumps of Amber laid between: Rich, fashionable Robes her Person deck, Pendants her Ears, and Pearls adorn her Neck: Her taper'd Fingers too with Rings are grac'd, And an embroider'd Zone surrounds her slender Waste. Thus like a Queen array'd, so richly dress'd, Beauteous she shew'd, but naked shew'd the best. Then, from the Floor, he rais'd a Royal Bed, With Cov'rings of Sidonian Purple spread: The Solemn Rites perform'd, he calls her Bride, With Blandishments invites her to his Side, And as she were with Vital Sense possess'd, Her Head did on a plumy Pillow rest. 5«

Sidonian] Sydonian F.

245

Poems,

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T h e Feast of Venus came, a Solemn Day, T o which the Cypriots due Devotion pay; With gilded Horns, the Milk-white Heifers led, Slaughter'd before the sacred Altars, bled: Pygmalion off'ring, first, approach'd the Shrine, And then with Pray'rs implor'd the Pow'rs Divine, Almighty Gods, if all we Mortals want, If all we can require, be yours to grant; Make this fair Statue mine, he wou'd have said, \ But chang'd his Words, for shame; and only pray'd, > Give me the Likeness of my Iv'ry Maid. ) T h e Golden Goddess, present at the Pray'r, Well knew he meant th' inanimated Fair, And gave the Sign of granting his Desire; For thrice in chearful Flames ascends the Fire. T h e Youth, returning, to his Mistress hies, \ And impudent in Hope, with ardent Eyes, > And beating Breast, by the dear Statue lies. ' He kisses her white Lips, renews the Bliss, And looks, and thinks they redden at the Kiss; He thought them warm before: Nor longer stays, But next his Hand on her hard Bosom lays: Hard as it was, beginning to relent, It seem'd, the Breast beneath his Fingers bent; He felt again, his Fingers made a Print, 'Twas Flesh, but Flesh so firm, it rose against the Dint: T h e pleasing Task he fails not to renew; Soft, and more soft at ev'ry T o u c h it grew; Like pliant Wax, when chafing Hands reduce T h e former Mass to Form, and frame for Use. He would believe, but yet is still in pain, \ And tries his Argument of Sense again, > Presses the Pulse, and feels the leaping Vein. ; Convinc'd, o'erjoy'd, his studied Thanks and Praise, T o her who made the Miracle, he pays: 7s

r e t u r n i n g , . . . hies] ~ A . . .

F.

Fables: Pygmalion and the Statue Then Lips to Lips he join'd; now freed from Fear, He found the Savour of the Kiss sincere: At this the waken'd Image op'd her Eyes, And view'd at once the Light and Lover, with surprize. The Goddess present at the Match she made, So bless'd the Bed, such Fruitfulness convey'd, That e'er ten Moons had sharpen'd either Horn, T o crown their Bliss, a lovely Boy was born; 100 Paphos his Name, who grown to Manhood, wall'd The City Paphos, from the Founder call'd.

247

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Cinyras and Myrrha, Out of the Tenth Book of Ovid's Metamorphoses There needs no Connection of this Story with the Former; for the Beginning of This immediately follows the End of the Last: The Reader is only to take notice, that Orpheus, who relates both, was by Birth a Thracian; and his Country far distant from Cyprus where Myrrha was born, and from Arabia whither she fled. You will see the Reason of this Note, soon after the first Lines of this Fable.

N

OR him alone produc'd the fruitful Queen; But Cinyras, who like his Sire had been A happy Prince, had he not been a Sire. Daughters and Fathers from my Song retire; I sing of Horrour; and could I prevail, You shou'd not hear, or not believe my Tale. Yet if the Pleasure of my Song be such, That you will hear, and credit me too much, Attentive listen to the last Event, 10 And with the Sin believe the Punishment: Since Nature cou'd behold so dire a Crime, I gratulate at least my Native Clime, That such a Land, which such a Monster bore, So far is distant from our Thracian Shore. Let Araby extol her happy Coast, Her Cinamon, and sweet Amomum boast, Her fragrant Flow'rs, her Trees with precious Tears, Her second Harvests, and her double Years; > How can the Land be call'd so bless'd that Myrrha bears? ) so Nor all her od'rous Tears can cleanse her Crime, Her Plant alone deforms the happy Clime: Cupid denies to have inflam'd thy Heart, 16 Amomum] Amomum F.

Fables: Cinyras and Myrrha Disowns thy Love, and vindicates his Dart: Some Fury gave thee those infernal Pains, And shot her venom'd Vipers in thy Veins. To hate thy Sire, had meritted a Curse; But such an impious Love deserv'd a worse. The Neighb'ring Monarchs, by thy Beauty led, Contend in Crowds, ambitious of thy Bed: The World is at thy Choice; except but one, Except but him thou canst not chuse alone. She knew it too, the miserable Maid, \ E'er impious Love her better Thoughts betray'd, > ; And thus within her secret Soul she said: Ah Myrrha! whither wou'd thy Wishes tend? Ye Gods, ye sacred Laws, my Soul defend From such a Crime, as all Mankind detest, And never lodg'd before in Humane Breast! But is it Sin? Or makes my Mind alone Th' imagin'd Sin? For Nature makes it none. What Tyrant then these envious Laws began, Made not for any other Beast, but Man? The Father-Bull his Daughter may bestride, The Horse may make his Mother-Mare a Bride; What Piety forbids the lusty Ram Or more salacious Goat, to rut their Dam? The Hen is free to wed the Chick she bore, And make a Husband, whom she hatch'd before. All Creatures else are of a happier Kind, Whom nor ill-natur'd Laws from Pleasure bind, Nor Thoughts of Sin disturb their Peace of Mind. But Man, a Slave of his own making lives; The Fool denies himself what Nature gives: Too busie Senates, with an over-care T o make us better than our Kind can bear, Have dash'd a Spice of Envy in the Laws, And straining up too high, have spoil'd the Cause. Yet some wise Nations break their cruel Chains, 4« Man?]

F.

249

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Poems,

1697-1700

And own no Laws, but those which Love ordains: Where happy Daughters with their Sires are join'd, A n d Piety is doubly paid in Kind. O that I had been born in such a Clime, Not here, where 'tis the Country makes the Crimel But whither wou'd my impious Fancy stray? Hence Hopes, and ye forbidden Thoughts away! His Worth deserves to kindle my Desires, But with the Love, that Daughters bear to Sires. T h e n had not Cinyras my Father been, What hinder'd Myrrha's Hopes to be his Queen? But the Perverseness of my Fate is such, T h a t he's not mine, because he's mine too much: Our Kindred-Blood debars a better T i e ; He might be nearer, were he not so nigh. Eyes and their Objects never must unite, Some Distance is requir'd to help the Sight: Fain wou'd I travel to some Foreign Shore, \ Never to see my Native Country more, > So might I to my self my self restore; ' So might my Mind these impious Thoughts remove, A n d ceasing to behold, might cease to love. But stay I must, to feed my famish'd Sight, T o talk, to kiss; and more, if more I might: More, impious Maid! What more canst thou design, 1 T o make a monstrous Mixture in thy Line, > A n d break all Statutes Humane and Divine? / Canst thou be call'd (to save thy wretched Life) T h y Mother's Rival, and thy Father's Wife? Confound so many sacred Names in one, T h y Brother's Mother, Sister to thy Son! And fear'st thou not to see th' Infernal Bands, T h e i r Heads with Snakes, with Torches arm'd their Hands; Full at thy Face, th' avenging Brands to bear, And shake the Serpents from their hissing Hair?

74 Objects] Ojects F.

Fables: Cinyras and

Myrrha

But thou in time th' increasing 111 controul, N o r first debauch the Body by the Soul; Secure the sacred Quiet of thy Mind, And keep the Sanctions Nature has design'd. Suppose I shou'd attempt, th' Attempt were vain, No Thoughts like mine his sinless Soul profane: 100 Observant of the Right; and O, that he Cou'd cure my Madness, or be mad like me! T h u s she: But Cinyras who daily sees A Crowd of Noble Suitors at his Knees, Among so many, knew not whom to chuse; Irresolute to grant, or to refuse. But having told their Names, enquir'd of her, W h o pleas'd her best, and whom she would prefer. T h e blushing Maid stood silent with Surprize, And on her Father fix'd her ardent Eyes, 110 And looking sigh'd, and as she sigh'd, began R o u n d Tears to shed, that scalded as they ran. T h e tender Sire, who saw her blush, and cry, Ascrib'd it all to Maiden-modesty, And dry'd the falling Drops, and yet more kind, H e stroak'd her Cheeks, and holy Kisses join'd. She felt a secret Venom fire her Blood, And found more Pleasure than a Daughter shou'd; And, ask'd again, what Lover of the Crew She lik'd the best, she answer'd, One like you. 120 Mistaking what she meant, her pious Will H e prais'd, and bad her so continue still: T h e Word of Pious heard, she blush'd with shame Of secret Guilt, and cou'd not bear the Name. 'Twas now the mid of Night, when Slumbers close O u r Eyes, and sooth our Cares with soft Repose; But no Repose cou'd wretched Myrrha find, H e r Body rouling, as she roul'd her Mind: 107 prefer.] F. iss Pious] Pious F.

1S7 roul'd] rould F.

251

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Poems,

1697-1700

Mad with Desire, she ruminates her Sin, And wishes all her Wishes o'er again: Now she despairs, and now resolves to try; Wou'd not, and wou'd again, she knows not why; Stops, and returns, makes and retracts the Vow; Fain wou'd begin, but understands not how. As when a Pine is hew'd upon the Plains, And the last mortal Stroke alone remains, Lab'ring in Pangs of Death, and threatning all, This way, and that she nods, consid'ring where to fall: So Myrrha's Mind, impell'd on either Side, Takes ev'ry Bent, but cannot long abide: Irresolute on which she shou'd relie, At last unfix'd in all, is only fix'd to die; On that sad Thought she rests, resolv'd on Death, She rises, and prepares to choak her Breath: Then while about the Beam her Zone she ties, Dear Cinyras, farewell, she softly cries; For thee I die, and only wish to be Not hated, when thou know'st I die for thee: Pardon the Crime, in pity to the Cause: This said, about her Neck the Noose she draws. The Nurse, who lay without, her faithful Guard, Though not the Words, the Murmurs overheard, And Sighs, and hollow Sounds: Surpriz'd with Fright, She starts, and leaves her Bed, and springs a Light; Unlocks the Door, and entring out of Breath, The Dying saw, and Instruments of Death; She shrieks, she cuts the Zone, with trembling haste, And in her Arms, her fainting Charge embrac'd: Next, (for she now had leisure for her Tears) She weeping ask'd, in these her blooming Years, What unforeseen Misfortune caus'd her Care, To loath her Life, and languish in Despairl The Maid, with down-cast Eyes, and mute with Grief For Death unfinished, and ill-tim'd Relief, Stood sullen to her Suit: The Beldame press'd The more to know, and bar'd her wither'd Breast,

Fables: Cinyras and Myrrha Adjur'd her by the kindly Food she drew From those dry Founts, her secret III to shew. Sad Myrrha sigh'd, and turn'd her Eyes aside; T h e Nurse still urg'd, and wou'd not be deny'd: 170 Nor only promis'd Secresie; but pray'd She might have leave to give her offer'd Aid. Good-will, she said, my want of Strength supplies, And Diligence shall give, what Age denies: If strong Desires thy Mind to Fury move, With Charms, and Med'cines, I can cure thy Love: If envious Eyes their hurtful Rays have cast, More pow'rful Verse shall free thee from the Blast: If Heav'n offended sends thee this Disease, Offended Heav'n with Pray'rs we can appease. 180 What then remains, that can these Cares procure? Thy House is flourishing, thy Fortune sure: Thy careful Mother yet in Health survives, And, to thy Comfort, thy kind Father lives. The Virgin started at her Father's Name, And sigh'd profoundly, conscious of the Shame: Nor yet the Nurse her impious Love divin'd; But yet surmis'd, that Love disturb'd her Mind: Thus thinking, she pursu'd her Point, and laid And lull'd within her Lap the mourning Maid; wo Then softly sooth'd her thus, I guess your Grief: You love, my Child; your Love shall find Relief. My long-experienc'd Age shall be your Guide; Relie on that, and lay Distrust aside: No Breath of Air shall on the Secret blow, Nor shall (what most you fear) your Father know. Struck once again, as with a Thunder-clap, T h e guilty Virgin bounded from her Lap, And threw her Body prostrate on the Bed, And, to conceal her Blushes, hid her Head: 200 There silent lay, and warn'd her with her Hand T o go: But she receiv'd not the Command; 166

she] shew F.

253

Poems,

*54

1697-1700

Remaining still importunate to know: Then Myrrha thus; Or ask no more, or go: I prethee go, or staying spare my Shame; What thou wou'dst hear, is impious ev'n to name. At this, on high the Beldame holds her Hands, And trembling, both with Age, and Terrour, stands; Adjures, and falling at her Feet in treats, Sooths her with Blandishments, and frights with Threats, 210 T o tell the Crime intended, or disclose What Part of it she knew, if she no farther knows: And last; if conscious to her Counsel made, Confirms anew the Promise of her Aid. Now Myrrha rais'd her Head; but soon oppress'd \ With Shame, reclin'd it on her Nurses Breast; > Bath'd it with Tears, and strove to have confess'd: ) Twice she began, and stopp'd; again she try'd; The falt'ring Tongue its Office still deny'd. At last her Veil before her Face she spread, "j 220 And drew a long preluding Sigh, and said, > O happy Mother, in thy Marriage-bed! ) Then groan'd, and ceas'd; the good Old Woman shook, Stiff were her Eyes, and ghastly was her Look: Her hoary Hair upright with Horrour stood, Made (to her Grief) more knowing than she wou'd: Much she reproach'd, and many Things she said, T o cure the Madness of th' unhappy Maid: In vain: For Myrrha stood convict of 111; Her Reason vanquish'd, but unchang'd her Will: 230 Perverse of Mind, unable to reply; She stood resolv'd or to possess, or die. At length the Fondness of a Nurse prevail'd Against her better Sense, and Vertue fail'd: Enjoy, my Child, since such is thy Desire, Thy Love, she said; she durst not say, thy Sire; Live, though unhappy, live on any Terms: Then with a second Oath her Faith confirms. sii

knows:]

F.

835 Sire;]

F.

Fables: Cinyras and Myrrha T h e Solemn Feast of Ceres now was near, When long white Linen Stoles the Matrons wear; 240 Rank'd in Procession walk the pious Train, Off'ring First-fruits, and Spikes of yellow Grain: For nine long Nights the Nuptial-Bed they shun, And sanctifying Harvest, lie alone. Mix'd with the Crowd, the Queen forsook her Lord, And Ceres Pow'r with secret Rites ador'd: T h e Royal Couch now vacant for a time, T h e crafty Crone, officious in her Crime, T h e curst Occasion took: T h e King she found Easie with Wine, and deep in Pleasures drown'd, 250 Prepar'd for Love: T h e Beldame blew the Flame, Confess'd the Passion, but conceal'd the Name. Her Form she prais'd; the Monarch ask'd her Years, And she reply'd, T h e same thy Myrrha bears. Wine and commended Beauty fir'd his Thought; Impatient, he commands her to be brought. Pleas'd with her Charge perform'd, she hies her home, And gratulates the Nymph, the Task was overcome. Myrrha was joy'd the welcom News to hear; But clogg'd with Guilt, the Joy was unsincere: 26o So various, so discordant is the Mind, That in our Will, a diff'rent Will we find. Ill she presag'd, and yet pursu'd her Lust; For guilty Pleasures give a double Gust. 'Twas Depth of Night: Arctophylax had driv'n His lazy Wain half round the Northern Heav'n; When Myrrha hasten'd to the Crime desir'd, T h e Moon beheld her first, and first retir'd: T h e Stars amaz'd, ran backward from the Sight, And (shrunk within their Sockets) lost their Light. 270 Icarius first withdraws his holy Flame: T h e Virgin Sign, in Heav'n the second Name, Slides down the Belt, and from her Station flies, And Night with Sable Clouds involves the Skies.

255

256

Poems,

1697-iyoo

Bold Myrrha still pursues her black Intent; 1 She stumbl'd thrice, (an Omen of th' Event;) > Thrice shriek'd the Fun'ral Owl, yet on she went, ) Secure of Shame, because secure of Sight; Ev'n bashful Sins are impudent by Night. Link'd Hand in Hand, th' Accomplice, and the Dame, 2M Their Way exploring, to the Chamber came: The Door was ope, they blindly grope their Way, Where dark in Bed th' expecting Monarch lay: Thus far her Courage held, but here forsakes; Her faint Knees knock at ev'ry Step she makes. T h e nearer to her Crime, the more within She feels Remorse, and Horrour of her Sin; Repents too late her criminal Desire, And wishes, that unknown she cou'd retire. Her, lingring thus, the Nurse (who fear'd Delay 290 T h e fatal Secret might at length betray) Pull'd forward, to compleat the Work begun, And said to Cinyras, Receive thy own: Thus saying, she deliver'd Kind to Kind, Accurs'd, and their devoted Bodies join'd. T h e Sire, unknowing of the Crime, admits His Bowels, and profanes the hallow'd Sheets; He found she trembl'd, but believ'd she strove With Maiden-Modesty, against her Love, And sought with flatt'ring Words vain Fancies to remove, soo Perhaps he said, My Daughter, cease thy Fears, (Because the Title suited with her Years;) And Father, she might whisper him agen, That Names might not be wanting to the Sin. Full of her Sire, she left th' incestuous Bed, And carry'd in her Womb the Crime she bred: Another, and another Night she came; For frequent Sin had left no Sense of Shame: Till Cinyras desir'd to see her Face, Whose Body he had held in close Embrace, sio And brought a Taper; the Revealer, Light,

Fables:

Cinyras and

Myrrha

Expos'd both Crime, and Criminal to Sight: Grief, Rage, Amazement, cou'd no Speech afford, But from the Sheath he drew th' avenging Sword; The Guilty fled: The Benefit of Night, That favour'd first the Sin, secur'd the Flight. Long wandring through the spacious Fields, she bent Her Voyage to th' Arabian Continent; Then pass'd the Region which Panchaa join'd, And flying left the Palmy Plains behind. 82o Nine times the Moon had mew'd her Horns; at length With Travel weary, unsupply'd with Strength, And with the Burden of her Womb oppress'd, Sabeean Fields afford her needful Rest: There, loathing Life, and yet of Death afraid, In anguish of her Spirit, thus she pray'd. Ye Pow'rs, if any so propitious are T ' accept my Penitence, and hear my Pray'r; Your Judgments, I confess, are justly sent; Great Sins deserve as great a Punishment: 330 Yet since my Life the Living will profane, And since my Death the happy Dead will stain, A middle State your Mercy may bestow, Betwixt the Realms above, and those below: Some other Form to wretched Myrrha give, Nor let her wholly die, nor wholly live. The Pray'rs of Penitents are never vain; At least, she did her last Request obtain: For while she spoke, the Ground began to rise, And gather'd round her Feet, her Leggs, and Thighs; a« Her Toes in Roots descend, and spreading wide, A firm Foundation for the Trunk provide: Her solid Bones convert to solid Wood, T o Pith her Marrow, and to Sap her Blood: Her Arms are Boughs, her Fingers change their Kind, Her tender Skin is harden'd into Rind. And now the rising Tree her Womb invests, Now, shooting upwards still, invades her Breasts,

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258

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And shades the Neck; when, weary with Delay, She sunk her Head within, and met it half the Way. sso And though with outward Shape she lost her Sense, With bitter Tears she wept her last Offence; And still she weeps, nor sheds her Tears in vain; For still the precious Drops her Name retain. Mean time the mis-begotten Infant grows, And, ripe for Birth, distends with deadly Throws The swelling Rind, with unavailing Strife, To leave the wooden Womb, and pushes into Life. The Mother-Tree, as if oppress'd with Pain, Writhes here and there, to break the Bark, in vain; sso And, like a Lab'ring Woman, wou'd have pray'd, But wants a Voice to call Lucina's Aid: The bending Bole sends out a hollow Sound, And trickling Tears fall thicker on the Ground. The mild Lucina came uncall'd, and stood Beside the struggling Boughs, and heard the groaning Wood: Then reach'd her Midwife-Hand, to speed the Throws, And spoke the pow'rful Spells that Babes to Birth disclose. The Bark divides, the living Load to free, And safe delivers the Convulsive Tree. 370 The ready Nymphs receive the crying Child, And wash him in the Tears the Parent-Plant distill'd. They swath'd him with their Scarfs; beneath him spread The Ground with Herbs; with Roses rais'd his Head. The lovely Babe was born with ev'ry Grace, Ev'n Envy must have prais'd so fair a Face: Such was his Form, as Painters when they show Their utmost Art, on naked Loves bestow: And that their Arms no Diff'rence might betray, Give him a Bow, or his from Cupid take away, sso Time glides along, with undiscover'd haste, The Future but a Length behind the past; So swift are Years: The Babe whom just before His Grandsire got, and whom his Sister bore; The Drop, the Thing which late the Tree inclos'd,

Fables: Cinyras and

Myrrha

And late the yawning Bark to Life expos'd; A Babe, a Boy, a beauteous Youth appears, And lovelier than himself at riper Years. Now to the Queen of Love he gave Desires, And, with her Pains, reveng'd his Mother's Fires.

259

26o

Poems,

The First Book of Homer's

iö^y—ijoo

Ilias

The ARGUMENT. Chryses, Priest of A p o l l o , brings Presents to the Grecian Princes, to ransom his Daughter Chryseis, who was Prisoner in the Fleet. A g a m e m n o n , the General, whose Captive and Mistress the young Lady was, refuses to deliver her, threatens the Venerable Old Man, and dismisses him with Contumely. The Priest craves Vengeance of his God; who sends a Plague among the Greeks: Which occasions Achilles, their Great Champion, to summon a Council of the Chief Officers: He encourages Calchas, the High Priest and Prophet, to tell the Reason, why the Gods were so io much incens'd against them. Calchas is fearful of provoking A g a m e m n o n , till Achilles engages to protect him: Then, embolden'd by the Heroe, he accuses the General as the Cause of all, by detaining the Fair Captive, and refusing the Presents offer'd for her Ransom. By this Proceeding, A g a m e m n o n is obligd, against his Will, to restore Chryseis, with Gifts, that he might appease the Wrath of Phoebus; but, at the same time, to revenge himself on Achilles, sends to seize his Slave Briseis. Achilles, thus affronted, complains to his Mother T h e t i s ; and begs her to revenge his Injury, not only on the General, but on 20 all the Army, by giving Victory to the T r o j a n s , till the ungrateful King became sensible of his Injustice. At the same time, he retires from the Camp into his Ships, and withdraws his Aid from his Country-men. T h e t i s prefers her Son's Petition to Jupiter, who grants her Sute. Juno suspects her Errand, and quarrels with her Husband, for his Grant; till Vulcan reconciles his Parents with a Bowl of Nectar, and sends them peaceably to Bed.

Argument: 12 Heroe] Heroe F. Argument: 26 JVectar] Nectar F.

Fables: Homer's Ilias, Book I

261

T

HE Wrath of Peleus Son, 0 Muse, resound; Whose dire Effects the Grecian Army found: And many a Heroe, King, and hardy Knight, Were sent, in early Youth, to Shades of Night: Their Limbs a Prey to Dogs and Vulturs made; So was the Sov'reign Will of Jove obey'd: From that ill-omen'd Hour when Strife begun, Betwixt Atrid.es Great, and Thetis God-like Son. What Pow'r provok'd, and for what Cause, relate, Sow'd, in their Breasts, the Seeds of stern Debate: Jove's and Latona's Son his Wrath express'd, In Vengeance of his violated Priest, Against the King of Men; who swoln with Pride, Refus'd his Presents, and his Pray'rs deny'd. For this the God a swift Contagion spread Amid the Camp; where Heaps 011 Heaps lay dead. For Venerable Chryses came to buy, With Gold and Gifts of Price, his Daughters Liberty. Suppliant before the Grecian Chiefs he stood; Awful, and arm'd with Ensigns of his God: Bare was his hoary Head; one holy Hand Held forth his Laurel Crown, and one his Sceptre of Command. His Suit was common; but above the rest, T o both the Brother-Princes thus address'd: Ye Sons of Atreus, and ye Grecian Pow'rs, So may the Gods who dwell in Heav'nly Bow'rs Succeed your Siege, accord the Vows you make, And give you Troy's Imperial Town to take; So, by their happy Conduct, may you come With Conquest back to your sweet Native Home; 1 Peleus] Peleu's F. 28 Troy's] Troys F.

2Ö2

Poems,1697—ijoo

As you receive the Ransom which I bring, (Respecting Jove, and the far-shooting King,) And break my Daughters Bonds, at my desire; And glad with her Return her grieving Sire. With Shouts of loud Acclaim the Greeks decree T o take the Gifts, to set the Damsel free. The King of Men alone with Fury burn'd; And haughty, these opprobrious Words return'd: Hence, Holy Dotard, and avoid my Sight, E'er Evil intercept thy tardy Flight: Nor dare to tread this interdicted Strand, ^ Lest not that idle Sceptre in thy Hand, > Nor thy God's Crown, my vow'd Revenge withstand. ) Hence on thy Life: T h e Captive-Maid is mine; Whom not for Price or Pray'rs I will resign: Mine she shall be, till creeping Age and Time Her Bloom have wither'd, and consum'd her Prime: T i l l then my Royal Bed she shall attend; And having first adorn'd it, late ascend: This, for the Night; by Day, the Web and Loom And homely Houshold-task, shall be her Doom, Far from thy lov'd Embrace, and her sweet Native Home. He said: T h e helpless Priest reply'd no more, But sped his Steps along the hoarse-resounding Shore: Silent he fled; secure at length he stood, Devoutly curs'd his Foes, and thus invok'd his God. O Source of Sacred Light, attend my Pray'r, God with the Silver Bow, and Golden Hair; Whom Chrysa, Cilia, Tenedos obeys, And whose broad Eye their happy Soil surveys: If, Smintheus, I have pour'd before thy Shrine T h e Blood of Oxen, Goats, and ruddy Wine, And Larded Thighs on loaded Altars laid, Hear, and my just Revenge propitious aid. 64 propitious] proptious F.

Fables: Homer's

Ilias, Book

I

263

Pierce the proud Greeks, and with thy Shafts attest How much thy Pow'r is injur'd in thy Priest. He pray'd, and Phoebus hearing, urg'd his Flight, With Fury kindled, from Olympus Height; His Quiver o'er his ample Shoulders threw; His Bow twang'd, and his Arrows rattl'd as they flew. Black as a stormy Night, he rang'd around T h e Tents, and compass'd the devoted Ground. T h e n with full Force his deadly Bowe he bent, A n d Feather'd Fates among the Mules and Sumpters sent: T h ' Essay of Rage, on faithful Dogs the next; A n d last, in Humane Hearts his Arrows fix'd. T h e God nine Days the Greeks at Rovers kill'd, Nine Days the Camp with Fun'ral Fires was fill'd; T h e Tenth, Achilles, by the Queens Command, W h o bears Heav'ns awful Sceptre in her Hand, A Council summon'd: for the Goddess griev'd Her favour'd Hoast shou'd perish unreliev'd. T h e Kings, assembl'd, soon their Chief inclose; T h e n from his Seat the Goddess-born arose, A n d thus undaunted spoke: What now remains, But that once more we tempt the watry Plains, A n d wandring homeward, seek our Safety hence In Flight, at least if we can find Defence? Such Woes at once encompass us about, T h e Plague within the Camp, the Sword without. Consult, O King, the Prophets of th' event: A n d whence these Ills, and what the Gods intent, Let them by Dreams explore; for Dreams from Jove are sent. What want of offer'd Victims, what Offence In Fact committed cou'd the Sun incense, T o deal his deadly Shafts? What may remove His settled Hate, and reconcile his Love: 87 hence] F. 88 Flight,] ~ A F.

97 Love:]

F.

Poems,

1697-1700

That he may look propitious on our Toils; And hungry Graves no more be glutted with our Spoils? 100

Thus to the King of Men the Hero spoke, Then Calchas the desir'd Occasion took: Calchas the sacred Seer, who had in view Things present and the past; and Things to come foreknew: Supream of Augurs, who by Phoebus taught The Grecian Pow'rs to Troy's Destruction brought. Skill'd in the secret Causes of their Woes, T h e Reverend Priest in graceful Act arose: And thus bespoke Pelides: Care of Jove, Favour'd of all th' Immortal Pow'rs above; no Wou'dst thou the Seeds deep sown of Mischief know, And why, provok'd Apollo bends his Bow? Plight first thy Faith, inviolably true, T o save me from those Ills, that may ensue. For I shall tell ungrateful Truths, to those Whose boundless Pow'r of Life and Death dispose. And Sov'reigns ever jealous of their State, Forgive not those whom once they mark for Hate; Ev'n tho' th' Offence they seemingly digest, Revenge, like Embers, rak'd within their Breast, 120 Bursts forth in Flames; whose unresisted Pow'r Will seize th' unwary Wretch and soon devour. Such, and no less is he, on whom depends T h e sum of Things; and whom my Tongue of force offends. Secure me then from his foreseen Intent, T h a t what his Wrath may doom, thy Valour may prevent. T o this the stern Achilles made Reply: Be bold; and on my plighted Faith rely, T o speak what Phoebus has inspir'd thy Soul For common Good; and speak without controul. 130 His Godhead I invoke, by him I swear, 99

Spoils?]

F.

104

Augurs] Angurs

F.

Fables: Homer's Ilias, Book I That while my Nostrils draw this vital Air, None shall presume to violate those Bands; ) Or touch thy Person with unhallow'd Hands: /• Ev'n not the King of Men that all commands. ) At this, resuming Heart, the Prophet said: Nor Hecatombs unslain, nor Vows unpaid, On Greeks, accurs'd, this dire Contagion bring; Or call for Vengeance from the Bowyer King; But he the Tyrant, whom none dares resist, 140 Affronts the Godhead in his injur'd Priest: He keeps the Damsel Captive in his Chain, And Presents are refus'd, and Pray'rs preferr'd in vain. For this th* avenging Pow'r employs his Darts; And empties all his Quiver in our Hearts: Thus will persist, relentless in his Ire, Till the fair Slave be render'd to her Syre: And Ransom-free restor'd to his Abode, With Sacrifice to reconcile the God: Then he, perhaps, atton'd by Pray'r, may cease lso His Vengeance justly vow'cl; and give the Peace. Thus having said he sate: Thus answer'd then Upstarting from his Throne, the King of Men, His Breast with Fury fill'd, his Eyes with Fire; Which rowling round, he shot in Sparkles on the Sire: Augur of 111, whose Tongue was never found Without a Priestly Curse or boding Sound; For not one bless'd Event foretold to me Pass'd through that Mouth, or pass'd unwillingly: And now thou dost with Lies the Throne invade, wo By Practice harden'd in thy sland'ring Trade: Obtending Heav'n, for what e'er Ills befal; And sputtring under specious Names thy Gall. Now Phcebus is provok'd; his Rites and Laws Are in his Priest profan'd, and I the Cause: 144 Hearts:] F. 153 fill'd,] ~ A F .

160 Trade:] — F.

265

266

Poems,

1697-1700

Since I detain a Slave, my Sov'reign Prize; And sacred Gold, your Idol-God, despise. I love her well: And well her Merits claim, T o stand preferr'd before my Grecian Dame: Not Clytemnestra's self in Beauties Bloom 170 More charm'd, or better ply'd the various Loom: Mine is the Maid; and brought in happy Hour With every Houshold-grace adorn'd, to bless my Nuptial Bow'r. Yet shall she be restor'd; since publick Good j For private Int'rest ought not be withstood, > T o save th' Effusion of my People's Blood. ) But Right requires, if I resign my own, I shou'd not suffer for your sakes alone; Alone excluded from the Prize I gain'd, And by your common Suffrage have obtain'd. 180 The Slave without a Ransom shall be sent: It rests for you to make th' Equivalent. T o this the fierce Thessalian Prince reply'd: O first in Pow'r, but passing all in Pride, Griping, and still tenacious of thy Hold, Would'st thou the Grecian Chiefs, though largely Soul'd, Shou'd give the Prizes they had gain'd before; And with their Loss thy Sacrilege restore? Whate'er by force of Arms the Soldier got, Is each his own, by dividend of Lot: 190 Which to resume, were both unjust, and base: Not to be born but by a servile Race. But this we can: If Saturn's Son bestows The Sack of Troy, which he by Promise owes; Then shall the conquering Greeks thy Loss restore, And with large Int'rest, make th' advantage more. T o this Atrides answer'd, Though thy Boast Assumes the foremost Name of all our Host, Pretend not, mighty Man, that what is mine 185 Soul'd] Sould F.

19s

Son]

F.

Fables: Homer's Ilias, Book I Controll'd by thee, I tamely shou'd resign. 200 Shall I release the Prize I gain'd by Right, In taken Towns, and many a bloody Fight, While thou detain'st Briseis in thy Bands, By priestly glossing on the God's Commands? Resolve on this, (a short Alternative) Quit mine, or, in exchange, another give; Else I, assure thy Soul, by Sov'reign Right Will seize thy Captive in thy own Despight: Or from stout Ajax, or Ulysses, bear What other Prize my Fancy shall prefer: 210 Then softly murmur, or aloud complain, Rage as you please, you shall resist in vain. But more of this, in proper Time and Place, T o Things of greater moment let us pass. A Ship to sail the sacred Seas prepare; Proud in her Trim; and put on board the Fair, With Sacrifice and Gifts, and all the pomp of Pray'r. T h e Crew well chosen, the Command shall be "J In Ajax; or if other I decree, > In Creta's King, or Ithacus, or if I please in Thee: / 220 Most fit thy self to see perform'd th' intent | For which my Pris'ner from my Sight is sent; / (Thanks to thy pious Care) that Phoebus may relent.) At this, Achilles roul'd his furious Eyes, Fix'd on the King askant; and thus replies. O, Impudent, regardful of thy own, Whose Thoughts are center'd on thy self alone, Advanc'd to Sovereign Sway, for better Ends Than thus like abject Slaves to treat thy Friends: What Greek is he, that urg'd by thy Command, 230 Against the Trojan Troops will lift his Hand? Not I: Nor such inforc'd Respect I owe; Nor Pergamus I hate, nor Priam is my Foe. 207 Despight:] F. 228 Friends:] ,— F.

267

268

Poems,1697—1700

What Wrong from Troy remote, cou'd I sustain, \ T o leave my fruitful Soil, and happy Reign, > And plough the Surges of the stormy Main? ) Thee, frontless Man, we follow'd from afar; T h y Instruments of Death, and Tools of War. T h i n e is the Triumph; ours the T o i l alone: W e bear thee on our Backs, and mount thee on the Throne. 2« For thee we fall in Fight; for thee redress T h y baffled Brother; not the Wrongs of Greece. A n d now thou threaten'st with unjust Decree, T o punish thy affronting Heav'n, on me: T o seize the Prize which I so dearly bought; By common Suffrage giv'n, confirm'd by Lot: Mean Match to thine: For still above the rest, T h y hook'd rapacious Hands usurp the best: T h o u g h mine are first in Fight, to force the Prey; A n d last sustain the Labours of the Day. 2so Nor grudge I thee, the much the Grecians give; Nor murm'ring take the little I receive. Yet ev'n this little, thou, who would'st ingross T h e whole, Insatiate, envy'st as thy Loss. Know, then, for Phthia, fix'd is my return:

\

Better at home my ill-paid Pains to mourn, > T h a n from an Equal here sustain the publick Scorn. ) T h e King, whose Brows with shining Gold were bound; W h o saw his Throne with scepter'd Slaves incompass'd round, T h u s answer'd stern: Go, at thy Pleasure, go: 260 W e need not such a Friend, nor fear we such a Foe. There will not want to follow me in Fight: Jove will assist, and Jove assert my Right. But thou of all the Kings (his Care below) A r t least at my Command, and most my Foe. Debates, Dissentions, Uproars are thy Joy; 243 me:] F. S45 Lot:] — F. «54 Phthia] Phthya F.

247 b e s t : ] ~ . F . 259 stern:] F.

Fables: Homer's

Ilias, Book I

Provok'd without Offence, and practis'd to destroy. Strength is of Brutes; and not thy Boast alone; At least 'tis lent from Heav'n; and not thy own. Fly then, ill-manner'd, to thy Native Land, 270 And there, thy Ant-born Myrmidons command. But mark this Menace; since I must resign My black-ey'd Maid, to please the Pow'rs divine: (A well-rigg'd Vessel in the Port attends, Man'd at my Charge, commanded by my Friends;) The Ship shall waft her to her wish'd Abode, Full fraught with holy Bribes to the far-shooting God. This thus dispatch'd, I owe my self the Care, My Fame and injur'd Honour to repair: From thy own Tent, proud Man, in thy despight, 280 This Hand shall ravish thy pretended Right. Briseis shall be mine, and thou shalt see, What odds of awful Pow'r I have on thee: That others at thy cost may learn the diff'rence of degree. At this th' Impatient Hero sowrly smil'd: His Heart, impetuous in his Bosom boil'd, And justled by two Tides of equal sway, Stood, for a while, suspended in his way. Betwixt his Reason, and his Rage untam'd; One whisper'd soft, and one aloud reclaim'd: 290 That only counsell'd to the safer side; This to the Sword, his ready Hand apply'd. Unpunish'd to support th' Affront was hard: Nor easy was th' Attempt to force the Guard. But soon the thirst of Vengeance fir'd his Blood: Half shone his Faulchion, and half sheath'd it stood. In that nice moment, Pallas, from above, Commission'd by th' Imperial Wife of Jove, Descended swift: (the white arm'd Queen was loath «74 Charge,]

F.

269

Poems,

270

169J-1J00

The Fight shou'd follow; for she favour'd both:) soo Just as in Act he stood, in Clouds inshrin'd, Her Hand she fasten'd on his Hair behind; Then backward by his yellow Curls she drew: To him, and him alone confess'd in view. Tam'd by superiour Force he turn'd his Eyes Aghast at first, and stupid with Surprize: But by her sparkling Eyes, and ardent Look, The Virgin-Warrior known, he thus bespoke. Com'st thou, Celestial, to behold my Wrongs? Then view the Vengeance which to Crimes belongs. 8io

Thus He. The blue-ey'd Goddess thus rejoin'd: I come to calm thy turbulence of Mind, If Reason will resume her soveraign Sway, And sent by Juno, her Commands obey. Equal she loves you both, and I protect: Then give thy Guardian Gods their due respect; And cease Contention; be thy Words severe, Sharp as he merits: But the Sword forbear. An Hour unhop'd already wings her way, When he his dire Affront shall dearly pay: S20 When the proud King shall sue, with trebble Gain, To quit thy Loss, and conquer thy Disdain. But thou secure of my unfailing Word, Compose thy swelling Soul; and sheath the Sword. The Youth thus answer'd mild; Auspicious Maid, Heav'ns will be mine; and your Commands obey'd. The Gods are just, and when subduing Sense, We serve their Pow'rs, provide the Recompence. He said; with surly Faith believ'd her Word, And, in the Sheath, reluctant, plung'd the Sword. 830 Her Message done, she mounts the bless'd Abodes, And mix'd among the Senate of the Gods. 311

Mind,]

F.

Fables: Homer's Ilias, Book I

271

A t her departure his Disdain return'd: T h e Fire she fan'd, with greater Fury burn'd; Rumbling within till thus it found a vent: Dastard, and Drunkard, Mean and Insolent: Tongue-valiant Hero, Vaunter of thy Might, In Threats the foremost, but the lag in Fight; W h e n did'st thou thrust amid the mingled Preace, Content to bide the W a r aloof in Peace? 840 Arms are the Trade of each plebeyan Soul; 'Tis Death to fight; but Kingly to controul. Lord-like at ease, with arbitrary Pow'r, T o peel the Chiefs, the People to devour: These, Traitor, are thy Tallents; safer far T h a n to contend in Fields, and Toils of War. Nor coud'st thou thus have dar'd the common Hate, Were not their Souls as abject as their State. But, by this Scepter, solemnly I swear, (Which never more green Leaf or growing Branch shall bear: 850 T o r n from the Tree, and giv'n by Jove to those W h o Laws dispence and mighty Wrongs oppose) T h a t when the Grecians want my wonted Aid, N o Gift shall bribe it, and no Pray'r persuade. W h e n Hector comes, the Homicide, to wield His conquering Arms, with Corps to strow the Field: T h e n shalt thou mourn thy Pride; and late confess, My Wrong repented when 'tis past redress: He said: And with Disdain in open view, Against the Ground his golden Scepter threw: 860 T h e n sate. With boiling Rage Atrides burn'd: A n d Foam betwixt his gnashing Grinders churn'd. But from his Seat the Pylian Prince arose, W i t h Reas'ning mild, their Madness to compose: Words, sweet as Hony, from his Mouth distill'd; T w o Centuries already he fulfill'd; 339 bide] bid F. 343 devour:] F. 360 sate. With . . . Atrides]

340 plebeyan] Plebeyan F. 359 threw:] F. with . . . Altrides F.

Poems, 1697-1

272

joo

And now began the third; unbroken yet: Once fam'd for Courage; still in Council great. What worse, he said, can Argos undergo, What can more gratify the Phrygian Foe, aro Than these distemper'd Heats? If both the Lights Of Greece their private Int'rest disunitesl Believe a Friend, with thrice your Years increas'd, And let these youthful Passions be repress'd: I flourish'd long before your Birth; and then \ Liv'd equal with a Race of braver Men, > Than these dim Eyes shall e'er behold agen: ) Cceneus and Dryas, and, excelling them, Great Theseus, and the force of greater Polypheme. With these I went, a Brother of the War, S80 Their Dangers to divide; their Fame to share. Nor idle stood with unassisting Hands, When salvage Beasts, and Men's more salvage Bands, Their virtuous Toil subdu'd: Yet those I sway'd, With pow'rful Speech: I spoke and they obey'd. If such as those, my Councils cou'd reclaim, Think not, young Warriors, your diminish'd Name, Shall lose of Lustre, by subjecting Rage T o the cool Dictates of experienc'd Age. Thou, King of Men, stretch not thy sovereign Sway s9o Beyond the Bounds free Subjects can obey: But let Pelides in his Prize rejoice, Atchiev'd in Arms, allow'd by publick Voice. Nor Thou, brave Champion, with his Pow'r contend, Before whose Throne, ev'n Kings their lower'd Scepters bend. T h e Head of Action He, and Thou the Hand, Matchless thy Force; but mightier his Command: Thou first, O King, release the rights of Sway, Pow'r, self-restrain'd, the People best obey. Sanctions of Law from Thee derive their Source; 400 Command thy Self, whom no Commands can force. 376 377

agen:] — F. Cceneus] Ceneus F.

390

Beyond]

F.

Fables:

Homer's

Ilias, Book

I

The Son of Thetis Rampire of our Host, Is worth our Care to keep; nor shall my Pray'rs be lost. Thus Nestor said, and ceas'd: Atrid.es broke His Silence next; but ponder'd e'er he spoke. Wise are thy Words, and glad I would obey, But this proud Man affects Imperial Sway. Controlling Kings, and trampling on our State His Will is Law; and what he wills is Fate. The Gods have giv'n him Strength: But whence the Style, 410 Of lawless Pow'r assum'd, or Licence to revile? Achilles, cut him short; and thus reply'd: My Worth allow'd in Words, is in effect deny'd. For who but a Poltron, possess'd with Fear, Such haughty Insolence, can tamely bear? Command thy Slaves: My freeborn Soul disdains A Tyrant's Curb; and restiff breaks the Reins. Take this along; that no Dispute shall rise (Though mine the Woman) for my ravish'd Prize: But she excepted, as unworthy Strife, 420 Dare not, I charge thee dare not, on thy Life, Touch ought of mine beside, by Lot my due, But stand aloof, and think profane to view: This Fauchion, else, not hitherto withstood, These hostile Fields shall fatten with thy Blood. He said; and rose the first; the Council broke; And all their grave Consults dissolv'd in Smoke. The Royal Youth retir'd, on Vengeance bent, Patroclus follow'd silent to his Tent. Mean time, the King with Gifts a Vessel stores; 4so Supplies the Banks with twenty chosen Oars: And next, to reconcile the shooter God, Within her hollow Sides the Sacrifice he stow'd:

273

274

Poems,

iög'j-i'joo

Chryseis last was set on board; whose Hand ) Ulysses took, intrusted with Command; , They plow the liquid Seas; and leave the less'ning Land. J Atrides then his outward Zeal to boast, Bade purify the Sin-polluted Host. With perfect Hecatombs the God they grac'd; Whose offer'd Entrails in the Main were cast. 440 Black Bulls, and bearded Goats on Altars lie; And clouds of sav'ry stench, involve the Sky. These Pomps the Royal Hypocrite design'd, For Shew: But harbour'd Vengeance in his Mind: Till holy Malice, longing for a vent, At length, discover'd his conceal'd Intent. Talthybius,

and Eurybates

the just

Heralds of Arms, and Ministers of Trust, He call'd; and thus bespoke: Haste hence your way; And from the Goddess-born demand his Prey. 460 If yielded, bring the Captive: If deny'd, The King (so tell him) shall chastise his Pride: And with arm'd Multitudes in Person come T o vindicate his Pow'r, and justify his Doom. This hard Command unwilling they obey, And o'er the barren Shore pursue their way, Where quarter'd in their Camp, the fierce Thessalians lay. Their Sov'reign seated on his Chair, they find; \ His pensive Cheek upon his Hand reclin'd, > And anxious Thoughts revolving in his Mind. ) 480 With gloomy Looks he saw them entring in j Without Salute: Nor durst they first begin, > Fearful of rash Offence and Death foreseen. ) He soon the Cause divining, clear'd his Brow; And thus did liberty of Speech allow. Interpreters of Gods and Men, be bold: Awful your Character, and uncontroll'd,

Fables: Homer's

Ilias, Book

I

Howe'er unpleasing be the News you bring, I blame not you, but your Imperious King. Y o u come, I know, my Captive to demand; 470 Patroclus, give her, to the Herald's Hand. But you, authentick Witnesses I bring, Before the Gods, and your ungrateful King, Of this my Manifest: T h a t never more T h i s Hand shall combate on the crooked Shore: No, let the Grecian Pow'rs oppress'd in Fight, Unpity'd perish in their Tyrants sight. Blind of the future and by Rage misled, He pulls his Crimes upon his People's Head: Forc'd from the Field in Trenches to contend, 48o A n d his Insulted Camp from Foes defend. He said, and soon obeying his intent, Patroclus brought Briseis from her Tent; T h e n to th' intrusted Messengers resign'd: She wept, and often cast her Eyes behind: Forc'd from the Man she lov'd: They led her thence, Along the Shore a Pris'ner to their Prince. Sole on the barren Sands the suff'ring Chief Roar'd out for Anguish, and indulg'd his Grief: Cast on his Kindred Seas a stormy Look, 490 A n d his upbraided Mother thus bespoke. Unhappy Parent, of a short-liv'd Son, Since Jove in pity by thy Pray'rs was won T o grace my small Remains of Breath with Fame, W h y loads he this imbitter'd Life with Shame? Suff'ring his King of Men to force my Slave, W h o m well deserv'd in War, the Grecians gave. Set by old Ocean's side the Goddess heard; T h e n from the sacred Deep her Head she rear'd: 467 478

unpleasing] Head:] — F.

F. 488 Grief:]

F.

«75

276

Poems,

1697—1700

Rose like a Morning-mist; and thus begun BOO T o sooth the Sorrows of her plaintive Son. Why cries my Care, and why conceals his Smart? Let thy afflicted Parent, share her part. Then, sighing from the bottom of his Breast, T o the Sea-Goddess thus the Goddess-born address'd. T h o u know'st my Pain, which telling but recals: By force of Arms we raz'd the Theban Walls; T h e ransack'd City, taken by our Toils, We left, and hither brought the golden Spoils: Equal we shar'd them; but before the rest, 510 T h e proud Prerogative had seiz'd the best. Chryseis was the greedy Tyrant's Prize, Chryseis rosy Cheek'd with charming Eyes. Her Syre, Apollo's Priest, arriv'd to buy With proffer'd Gifts of Price, his Daughter's liberty. Suppliant before the Grecians Chiefs he stood, Awful, and arm'd with Ensigns of his God: Bare was his hoary Head, one holy Hand, Held forth his Lawrel-Crown, and one, his Scepter of Command. His Suit was common, but above the rest 520 T o both the Brother-Princes was address'd. With Shouts of loud Acclaim the Greeks agree T o take the Gifts, to set the Pris'ner free. Not so the Tyrant, who with scorn the Priest Receiv'd, and with opprobrious Words dismiss'd. T h e good old Man, forlorn of human Aid, For Vengeance to his heav'nly Patron pray'd; T h e Godhead gave a favourable Ear, And granted all to him he held so dear; In an ill hour his piercing Shafts he sped; 530 And heaps on heaps of slaughter'd Greeks lay dead, While round the Camp he rang'd: At length arose A Seer who well divin'd; and durst disclose 501 cries . . . Smart?] cry's . . . w j . 525 forlorn] F.

502 part.] 530 dead,]

F. F.

Fables: Homer's Ilias, Book I T h e Source of all our Ills: I took the Word; And urg'd the sacred Slave to be restor'd, T h e God appeas'd: T h e swelling Monarch storm'd; And then, the Vengeance, vow'd, he since perform'd: T h e Greeks 'tis true, their Ruin to prevent Have to the Royal Priest, his Daughter sent; But from their haughty King his Heralds came 640 And seiz'd by his Command, my Captive Dame, By common Suffrage given; but, thou, be won, If in thy Pow'r, t' avenge thy injur'd Son: Ascend the Skies; and supplicating move Thy just Complaint, to Cloud-compelling Jove. If thou by either Word or Deed hast wrought A kind remembrance in his grateful Thought, Urge him by that: For often hast thou said T h y Pow'r was once not useless in his Aid. When He who high above the Highest reigns, sso Surpriz'd by Tray tor-Gods, was bound in Chains: When Juno, Pallas, with Ambition fir'd, And his blue Brother of the Seas conspir'd: Thou freed'st the Soveraign from unworthy Bands, Thou brought'st Briareus with his hundred Hands, (So call'd in Heav'n, but mortal Men below By his terrestrial Name, Mgeon know: Twice stronger than his Syre, who sate above Assessor to the Throne of thundring Jove.) T h e Gods, dismay'd at his approach, withdrew seo Nor durst their unaccomplish'd Crime, pursue. That Action to his grateful Mind recal; Embrace his Knees, and at his Footstool fall: That now if ever, he will aid our Foes; Let Troy's triumphant Troops the Camp inclose: Ours beaten to the Shore, the Siege forsake; 536 541 543 552

vow'd,] — ; F. won,] ~ A F. move] F. conspir'd:] . — F.

542 550 565

If] F. Chains:] —•. F. forsake] fasake F.

277

Poems, 1697-1

joo

And what their King deserves with him partake: T h a t the proud Tyrant at his proper cost, May learn the value of the Man he lost. T o whom the Mother-Goddess thus reply'd, sro Sigh'd e'er she spoke, and while she spoke she cry'd, A h wretched me! by Fates averse, decreed, T o bring thee forth with Pain, with care to breedl Did envious Heav'n not otherwise ordain, \ Safe in thy hollow Ships thou shou'd'st remain; > Nor ever tempt the fatal Field again. / But now thy Planet sheds his pois'nous Rays: A n d short, and full of Sorrow are thy Days. For what remains, to Heav'n I will ascend, And at the Thund'rer's Throne thy Suit commend. no ' T i l l then, secure in Ships, abstain from Fight; Indulge thy Grief in Tears, and vent thy Spight. For yesterday the Court of Heav'n with Jove, Remov'd: 'Tis dead Vacation now above. Twelve Days the Gods their solemn Revels keep, And quaff with blameless Mthiops in the Deep. Return'd from thence, to Heav'n my Flight I take, Knock at the brazen Gates, and Providence awake: Embrace his Knees, and suppliant to the Sire, Doubt not I will obtain the grant of thy desire. «so

She said: And parting left him on the place, Swoln with Disdain, resenting his Disgrace: Revengeful Thoughts revolving in his Mind, He wept for Anger and for Love he pin'd. Mean time with prosperous Gales, Ulysses brought T h e Slave, and Ship with Sacrifices fraught, T o Chrysa's Port: Where entring with the T i d e He drop'd his Anchors, and his Oars he ply'd: Furl'd every Sail, and drawing down the Mast, 566

partake:]

587

awake:]

F. F.

585

/Ethiops]

597 Ply'*]

Ethiops

F-

F.

Fables: Homer's Ilias, Book I His Vessel moor'd; and made with Haulsers fast. «00 Descending on the Plain, ashore they bring The Hecatomb to please the shooter King. The Dame before an Altars holy Fire, Ulysses led; and thus bespoke her Sire. Reverenc'd be thou, and be thy God ador'd: The King of Men thy Daughter has restor'd; And sent by me with Presents and with Pray'r; He recommends him to thy pious Care: That Phoebus at thy Sute his Wrath may cease, And give the penitent Offenders Peace. BIO

He said, and gave her to her Father's Hands, Who glad receiv'd her, free from servile Bands. This done, in Order they with sober Grace, Their Gifts around the well-built Altar place: Then wash'd, and took the Cakes; while Chryses stood With Hands upheld, and thus invok'd his God.

God, of the Silver Bow, whose Eyes survey J The sacred Cilia, thou whose awful Sway > Chrysa the bless'd, and Tenedos obey: } Now hear, as thou before my Pray'r hast heard, 820 Against the Grecians, and their Prince, preferr'd: Once thou hast honour'd, honour once again Thy Priest; nor let his second Vows be vain. But from th' afflicted Host and humbled Prince, Avert thy Wrath, and cease thy Pestilence. Apollo heard, and conquering his Disdain, Unbent his Bow and Greece respir'd again. Now when the solemn Rites of Pray'r were past, Their salted Cakes on crackling Flames they cast. Then, turning back, the Sacrifice they sped: «30 The fatted Oxen slew, and flea'd the Dead, 607 Care:] 613 place:]

F. F.

630 Dead,]

F.

279

Poems,

280

169J-1700

Chop'd off their nervous Thighs, and next prepar'd T ' involve the lean in Cauls, and mend with Lard. Sweet-breads and Collops, were with Skewers prick'd About the Sides; imbibing what they deck'd. T h e Priest with holy Hands was seen to tine T h e cloven Wood, and pour the ruddy Wine. T h e Youth approach'd the Fire and as it burn'd On five sharp Broachers rank'd, the Roast they turn'd: These Morsels stay'd their Stomachs; then the rest «40 They cut in Legs and Fillets for the Feast; Which drawn and serv'd, their Hunger they appease With sav'ry Meat, and set their Minds at ease. Now when the rage of Eating was repell'd, The Boys with generous Wine the Goblets fill'd. T h e first Libations to the Gods they pour: And then with Songs indulge the Genial Hour. Holy Debauch! Till Day to Night they bring, With Hymns and Paeans to the Bowyer King. At Sun-set to their Ship they make return, 850 And snore secure on Decks, till rosy Morn. The Skies with dawning Day were purpled o'er; Awak'd, with lab'ring Oars they leave the Shore: T h e Pow'r appeas'd, with Winds suffic'd the Sail, T h e bellying Canvas strutted with the Gale; T h e Waves indignant roar with surly Pride, And press against the Sides, and beaten off divide. They cut the foamy way, with Force impell'd Superiour, till the Trojan Port they held: Then hauling on the Strand their Gaily, moor, aw And pitch their Tents along the crooked Shore. Mean time the Goddess-born, in secret pin'd; Nor visited the Camp, nor in the Council join'd, But keeping close, his gnawing Heart he fed 634 648

imbibing] inbibing F. Paeans] Paans F.

659

Gaily, moor] ~ A Moor F.

Fables: Homer's Ilias, Book I

281

With hopes of Vengeance on the Tyrant's Head: And wish'd for bloody Wars and mortal Wounds, And of the Greeks oppress'd in Fight, to hear the dying Sounds. Now, when twelve Days compleat had run their Race, T h e Gods bethought them of the Cares belonging to their place. Jove at their Head ascending from the Sea, 670 A shoal of puny Pow'rs attend his way. Then Thetis not unmindful of her Son Emerging from the Deep, to beg her Boon, Pursu'd their Track; and waken'd from his rest, Before the Soveraign stood a Morning Guest. Him in the Circle but apart, she found: T h e rest at awful distance stood around. She bow'd, and e'er she durst her Sute begin, One Hand embrac'd his Knees, one prop'd his Chin. Then thus. If I, Celestial Sire, in aught era Have serv'd thy Will, or gratify'd thy Thought, One glimpse of Glory to my Issue give; Grac'd for the little time he has to live. Dishonour'd by the King of Men he stands: His rightful Prize is ravish'd from his Hands. But thou, O Father, in my Son's Defence, Assume thy Pow'r, assert thy Providence. Let Troy prevail, till Greece th' Affront has paid, With doubled Honours; and redeem'd his Aid. She ceas'd, but the consid'ring God was mute: 89o 'Till she resolv'd to win, renew'd her Sute, Nor loos'd her Hold, but forc'd him to reply, Or grant me my Petition, or deny: Jove cannot fear: Then tell me to my Face That I, of all the Gods am least in grace. This I can bear. T h e Cloud-Compeller mourn'd, And sighing, first, this Answer he return'd. 690 Sute,] 695 bear.]

F. F.

282

Poems,

169J-1700

Know'st thou what Clamors will disturb my Reign, What my stun'd Ears from Juno must sustain? In Council she gives Licence to her Tongue, TOO Loquacious, Brawling, ever in the wrong. And now she will my partial Pow'r upbraid, If alienate from Greece, I give the Trojans Aid. But thou depart, and shun her jealous Sight, The Care be mine, to do Pelides right. Go then, and on the Faith of Jove rely; When nodding to thy Sute, he bows the Sky. This ratifies th' irrevocable Doom: The Sign ordain'd, that what I will shall come: The Stamp of Heav'n, and Seal of Fate: He said, no And shook the sacred Honours of his Head. With Terror trembled Heav'ns subsiding Hill: And from his shaken Curls Ambrosial Dews distil. The Goddess goes exulting from his Sight, And seeks the Seas profound; and leaves the Realms of Light. He moves into his Hall: The Pow'rs resort, Each from his House to fill the Soveraign's Court: Nor waiting Summons, nor expecting stood; But met with Reverence, and receiv'd the God. He mounts the Throne; and Juno took her place: 720 But sullen Discontent sate lowring on her Face. With jealous Eyes, at distance she had seen, Whisp'ring with Jove the Silver-footed Queen; Then, impotent of Tongue (her Silence broke) Thus turbulent in rattling Tone she spoke. Author of Ills, and close Contriver Jove, Which of thy Dames, what Prostitute of Love, Has held thy Ear so long and begg'd so hard For some old Service done, some new Reward? Apart you talk'd, for that's your special care 716 Court:] — F.

Fables:

Homer's

Ilias, Book

I

730 The Consort never must the Council share. One gracious Word is for a Wife too much: Such is a Marriage-Vow, and Jove's own Faith is such. Then thus the Sire of Gods, and Men below, What I have hidden, hope not thou to know. Ev'n Goddesses are Women: And no Wife Has Pow'r to regulate her Husband's Life: Counsel she may; and I will give thy Ear T h e Knowledge first, of what is fit to hear. What I transact with others, or alone, 740 Beware to learn; nor press too near the Throne. T o whom the Goddess with the charming Eyes, What hast thou said, O Tyrant of the Skies, When did I search the Secrets of thy Reign, Though priviledg'd to know, but priviledg'd in vain? But well thou dost, to hide from common Sight Thy close Intrigues, too bad to bear the Light. Nor doubt I, but the Silver-footed Dame, Tripping from Sea, on such an Errand came, T o grace her Issue, at the Grecians Cost, 7so And for one peevish Man destroy an Host. T o whom the Thund'rer made this stern Reply; \ My Houshold Curse, my lawful Plague, the Spy / Of Jove's Designs, his other squinting Eye; ) Why this vain prying, and for what avail? Jove will be Master still and Juno fail. Shou'd thy suspicious Thoughts divine aright, Thou but becom'st more odious to my Sight, For this Attempt: uneasy Life to me Still watch'd, and importun'd, but worse for thee. 780 Curb that impetuous Tongue, before too late T h e Gods behold, and tremble at thy Fate: 761 Fate:] — F.

883

Poems, 169J—1700 Pitying, but daring not in thy Defence, T o lift a Hand against Omnipotence. This heard, the Imperious Queen sate mute with Fear; Nor further durst incense the gloomy Thunderer. Silence was in the Court at this Rebuke: Nor cou'd the Gods abash'd, sustain their Sov'reigns Look. The Limping Smith, observ'd the sadden'd Feast; And hopping here and there (himself a Jest) 770 Put in his Word, that neither might offend; T o Jove obsequious, yet his Mother's Friend. What end in Heav'n will be of civil War, If Gods of Pleasure will for Mortals jar? Such Discord but disturbs our Jovial Feast; One Grain of Bad, embitters all the best. Mother, tho' wise your self, my Counsel weigh; 'Tis much unsafe my Sire to disobey. Not only you provoke him to your Cost, But Mirth is marr'd, and the good Chear is lost. 780 Tempt not his heavy Hand; for he has Pow'r T o throw you Headlong, from his Heav'nly Tow'r. But one submissive Word, which you let fall, Will make him in good Humour with us All. He said no more but crown'd a Bowl, unbid: The laughing Nectar overlook'd the Lid: Then put it to her Hand; and thus pursu'd, This cursed Quarrel be no more renew'd. Be, as becomes a Wife, obedient still; Though griev'd, yet subject to her Husband's Will. 780 I wou'd not see you beaten; yet affraid Of Jove's superiour Force, I dare not aid. Too well I know him, since that hapless Hour When I, and all the Gods employ'd our Pow'r T o break your Bonds: Me by the Heel he drew; 788 still;] Carter and Host confronted Face to Face. ' Stiff in denial, as the Law appoints On Engins they distend their tortur'd Joints: So was Confession forc'd, th' Offence was known, And publick Justice on th' Offenders done. 279 found] bound F.

3°3

Poems,

3°4

169J—1J00

Here may ye see that dremes ben to drede. And certes in the same lefe I rede, 3085 Right in the next chapter after this, I gabbe not, so haue I ioye and blis. T w o men would have passed ouer the se For certaine causes, into a ferre countre, If the winde ne had be contrarie, That made hem in a citie to tarrie, That stoode full mery vpon an hauen side: But on a day, ayenst an euen tide. T h e winde gan chaunge, and blewe as hem lest, Ioly and glad they went to rest, S075 And cast hem full erly for to saile, But herken to one man fell a great meruaile, T o one of hem in sleping as he lay, He met a wonders dreme again the day: Him thought a man stoode by his beddes side, And him commaunded that he should abide, And said him thus, If thou to morow wende, T h o u shalt be dreint, my tale is at an ende. He woke, and tolde his felowe what he mette, And praied him his voyage for to lette, so85 As for that day, he prayd him for to abide. His felowe that lay by beddes side, Gan for to laugh, and scorned him full faste: No dreme (qd. he) may so my herte agaste, That I woll let for to do my thinges: I set not a strawe for thy dreminges, For sweuens ben but vanities and iapes: 3070

hem] him F.

Fables:

The Cock and the Fox

Here may you see that Visions are to dread: And in the Page that follows this; I read Of two young Merchants, whom the hope of Gain Induc'd in Partnership to cross the Main: »00 Waiting till willing Winds their Sails supply'd, \ > Within a Trading-Town they long abide, Full fairly situate on a Haven's side. ) One Evening it befel that looking out, The Wind they long had wish'd was come about: Well pleas'd they went to Rest; and if the Gale 'Till Morn continu'd, both resolv'd to sail. But as together in a Bed they lay, The younger had a Dream at break of Day. A Man, he thought, stood frowning at his side; \ sio Who warn'd him for his Safety to provide, > Not put to Sea, but safe on Shore abide. ' I come, thy Genius, to command thy stay; \ Trust not the Winds, for fatal is the Day, > And Death unhop'd attends the watry way.; The Vision said: And vanish'd from his sight, The Dreamer waken'd in a mortal Fright: Then pull'd his drowzy Neighbour, and declar'd What in his Slumber he had seen, and heard. His Friend smil'd scornful, and with proud contempt 8zo Rejects as idle what his Fellow dreamt. Stay, who will stay: For me no Fears restrain, Who follow Mercury the God of Gain: Let each Man do as to his Fancy seems, I wait not, I, till you have better Dreams. Dreams are but Interludes, which Fancy makes; When Monarch-Reason sleeps, this Mimick wakes: Compounds a Medley of disjointed Things, A Mob of Coblers, and a Court of Kings: Light Fumes are merry, grosser Fumes are sad; 324 wait not,]

F.

325 makes;]

F.

305

go6

Poems,

169J-1J00

Men meten all day of oules and of apes, And eke of many a mase therewithall, And dremen of a thing that neuer was, ne shall. But sithe I see that thou wolt here abide, And thus slouthe wilfully thy tide, God wote it rueth me, and haue good day, And thus he toke his leue, and went his way. But er he had half his course ysailed, I not why, ne what mischaunce it ayled, But casuelly the shippes botome to rent, And ship and men under the water went In sight of other shippes beside, That with hem sailed at the same tide. 8io5 And therefore, fair Pertelot so dere, By such ensamples olde maist thou lere That no man should be to rechelesse Of dremes, for I say thee doutlesse, That many a dreme full sore is for to drede. Lo, in the life of Saint Kenelme, we rede, That was Kenelphus sonne, the noble king Of Mereturike, how Kenelm mette a thing, A little er he were murdred on a day: His murder in this vision he say:

Fables: The Cock and the Fox 830 Both are the reasonable Soul run mad: And many monstrous Forms in sleep we see, That neither were, nor are, nor e'er can be. Sometimes, forgotten Things long cast behind Rush forward in the Brain, and come to mind. The Nurses Legends are for Truths receiv'd, And the Man dreams but what the Boy believ'd. Sometimes we but rehearse a former Play, \ The Night restores our Actions done by Day; > As Hounds in sleep will open for their Prey. ) a« In short, the Farce of Dreams is of a piece, Chimeras all; and more absurd, or less: You, who believe in Tales, abide alone, What e'er I get this Voyage is my own. Thus while he spoke he heard the shouting Crew That call'd aboard, and took his last adieu. The Vessel went before a merry Gale, And for quick Passage put on ev'ry Sail: But when least fear'd, and ev'n in open Day, The Mischief overtook her in the way: 850 Whether she sprung a Leak, I cannot find, Or whether she was overset with Wind; Or that some Rock below, her bottom rent, But down at once with all her Crew she went; Her Fellow Ships from far her Loss descry'd; But only she was sunk, and all were safe beside. By this Example you are taught again, That Dreams and Visions are not always vain: But if, dear Partlet, you are yet in doubt, Another Tale shall make the former out. 360

Kenelm the Son of Kenulph, Mercia's King, Whose holy Life the Legends loudly sing, Warn'd, in a Dream, his Murther did foretel 341

Chimeras] Chimera's F.

3O8

Poems,

169J—1700

ails His norice him expouned it euery dele His sweuen, and badde him kepe him wele Fro trayson, but he was but seuen yere olde, And therefore little tale he thereof tolde Of any dreme, so holy was his herte: By God, I had rather than my sherte, That ye haue herde his legend, as haue I. Dame Pertelot, I say to you truely, Macrobius, that writeth the auision In Afrike, of the worthy Scipion, 8125 Affirmeth dremes, and saith that they been Warning of things that we after seen. And ferthermore I pray you loketh well In the olde Testament, oi Daniel, If he held dremes for vanitie. Rede eke of Joseph, and there shal ye se Wonders ben somtime, but I say nat all, Warning of things that after shall fall. Lo of Egypt the king, that hight Pharao, His baker and his butteler also, 3135 Wheder they felt none effect in dremes, Who so woll seke actes in sundrie remes, May rede of dremes a wonder thing, Lo Cresus, which was of Lide king, Mette he not that he sat vpon a tree, Which signified he should honged bee. Lo Andromeda, that was Hector's Wife, That day that Hector should lese his life, She dremed in the same night beforne, How the life of Hector should be lorne 3145 If that day he went vnto battaile: She warned him, but it might not auaile: He went for to fight neuerthelesse, But he was slaine anone of Achilles.

Fables:

The

Cock and the Fox

From Point to Point as after it befel: A l l Circumstances to his Nurse he told, (A Wonder, from a Child of sev'n Years old:) T h e Dream with Horror heard, the good old Wife From Treason counsell'd him to guard his Life: But close to keep the Secret in his Mind, For a Boy's Vision small Belief would find. 870 T h e pious Child, by Promise bound, obey'd, Nor was the fatal Murther long delay'd: By Quenda slain he fell before his time, Made a young Martyr by his Sister's Crime. T h e T a l e is told by venerable Bede, Which, at your better leisure, you may read. Macrobius too relates the Vision sent T o the great Scipio with the fam'd event, Objections makes, but after makes Replies, A n d adds, that Dreams are often Prophecies. 38o

Of Daniel, you may read in Holy Writ, Who, when the King his Vision did forget, Cou'd Word for Word the wond'rous Dream repeat. Nor less of Patriarch Joseph understand W h o by a Dream inslav'd th' Egyptian Land, T h e Years of Plenty and of Dearth foretold, W h e n for their Bread, their Liberty they sold. Nor must th' exalted Buttler be forgot, Nor he whose Dream presag'd his hanging Lot.

A n d did not Croesus the same Death foresee, 890 Rais'd in his Vision on a lofty Tree? T h e Wife of Hector in his utmost Pride, Dreamt of his Death the Night before he dy'd: Well was he warn'd from Battle to refrain, " But Men to Death decreed are warn'd in vain: He dar'd the Dream, and by his fatal Foe was slain. , 389 Cracsus] Crasus F.

309

Poems,

1697-1700

But that tale is to long to tell, And eke it is nigh day, I may nat dwell. Shortly I say, as for conclusion, That I shall haue of this auision Aduersite: and I say farthermore, That I ne tell of laxatiues no store, ai«s For they ben venemous, I wete it wele: I hem defie, I loue hem neuer a dele. But let vs speke of mirthe, and stinte all this, Madame Pertelot, so haue I blis, Of one thing God hath me sent large grace: For when I see the beautie of your face, Ye ben so scarlet reed about your eyen, It maketh al my drede for to dien. For also siker, as In principio Mulier est hominis confusio. ai«5 Madame, the sentence of this latin is Woman is mannes ioye and his blis: For when I fele on night your soft side, Albeit that I may not on you ride, For that our parche is made so narowe alas, I am so full of ioye and of solas That I defie both sweuen and dreme: And with that word he flewe doun fro the beme, For it was day, and eke the hennes all:

Fables: The Cock and the Fox Much more I know, which I forbear to speak, For see the ruddy Day begins to break: Let this suffice, that plainly I foresee My Dream was bad, and bodes Adversity: 400 But neither Pills nor Laxatives I like, They only serve to make a well-man sick: Of these his Gain the sharp Phisician makes, And often gives a Purge, but seldom takes: They not correct, but poyson all the Blood, And ne'er did any but the Doctors good. Their Tribe, Trade, Trinkets, I defy them all, With ev'ry Work of 'Pothecaries Hall. These melancholy Matters I forbear: But let me tell Thee, Partlet mine, and swear, 410 That when I view the Beauties of thy Face, I fear not Death, nor Dangers, nor Disgrace: So may my Soul have Bliss, as when I spy T h e Scarlet Red about thy Partridge Eye, While thou art constant to thy own true Knight, ) While thou art mine, and I am thy delight, / All Sorrows at thy Presence take their flight. ) For true it is, as in Principio,

Mulier est hominis confusio.

Madam, the meaning of this Latin is, 420 That Woman is to Man his Soveraign Bliss. For when by Night I feel your tender Side, Though for the narrow Perch I cannot ride, Yet I have such a Solace in my Mind, That all my boding Cares are cast behind: And ev'n already I forget my Dream; He said, and downward flew from off the Beam. For Day-light now began apace to spring, T h e Thrush to whistle, and the Lark to sing: 407 419

'Pothecaries] 'Pothecary's F. Latin] Latin F.

428

sing:]

F.

3ii

312

Poems,

1697-1700

And with a chuck he gan hem for to call, 3175 For he had found a corne lay in the yerde: Royall he was, and no more aferde: He feddred Pertelot twentie time, And tradde her eke as oft er it was prime. He loketh as it were a grimme lioun, And on his toes he romed vp and doun. Him deened not to set his fete to the ground: He chucked, whan he had a corne yfound, And to him than ran his wiues all. As royal as a prince in his hall, 8186 Leaue I this Chaunteclere in this pasture: And after woll I tell of his aduenture. When the moneth in which the world began, That hight March that God first made man Was complete, and passed were also, Sith March began twenty daies and two, Befill that Chaunteclere in all his pride, His seuen wiues walking him beside, Cast vp his eyen to the bright sunne, That in the signe of Taurus was yrunne 3195 Fourty degrees and one, and somwhat more: He knew by kinde, and by none other lore, That it was prime, and crew with a blissful steuen: T h e sunne he saide is clombe vp to the heuen Fourty degrees and one, and somwhat more ywis, Madame Pertelot, my worldes blisse, Herken how these blisful birdes sing, And see the fresh floures how they gan spring: Full is mine hert of reuel, and solas.

Fables: The Cock and the Fox Then crowing clap'd his Wings, th' appointed call 430 T o chuck his Wives together in the Hall. By this the Widow had unbarr'd the Door, And Chanticleer went strutting out before, With Royal Courage, and with Heart so light, As shew'd he scorn'd the Visions of the Night. Now roaming in the Yard he spurn'd the Ground, And gave to Partlet the first Grain he found. Then often feather'd her with wanton Play, And trod her twenty times e'er prime of Day; And took by turns and gave so much delight, 440 Her Sisters pin'd with Envy at the sight. He chuck'd again, when other Corns he found, And scarcely deign'd to set a Foot to Ground. But swagger'd like a Lord about his Hall, And his sev'n Wives came running at his call. 'Twas now the Month in which the World began, (If March beheld the first created Man:) And since the vernal Equinox, the Sun, In Aries twelve Degrees, or more had run, When casting up his Eyes against the Light, 490 Both Month, and Day, and Hour he measur'd right; And told more truly, than th' Ephemeris, For Art may err, but Nature cannot miss. Thus numb'ring Times, and Seasons in his Breast, His second crowing the third Hour confess'd: Then turning, said to Partlet, See, my Dear, How lavish Nature has adorn'd the Year; How the pale Primrose, and blue Violet spring, And Birds essay their Throats disus'd to sing: All these are ours; and I with pleasure see 460 Man strutting on two Legs, and aping mel 454 confess'd:]

F.

313

Poems,

1697-1700

But sodainly him fell a sorowful caas: 8205 For euer the latter ende of ioy is wo, God wote, worldly ioye is soone ago: And if a rethore coud faire endite, He in a chronicle might safely write As for a soueraine notabilitie. Nowe euery wise man herken to me, This story is al so true I vndertake, As is the booke of Launcelot du lake, T h a t women holden in full great reuerence: Now woll I turne ayen to my sentence. S2i5 A col fox (ful of sleight and iniquitie) T h a t in the groue had wonned yeres three, By high imagination aforne caste, T h e same night, through the hedge braste

Fables: The Cock and the Fox An unfledg'd Creature, of a lumpish frame, Indew'd with fewer Particles of Flame: Our Dame sits couring o'er a Kitchin-fire, I draw fresh Air, and Nature's Works admire: And ev'n this Day, in more delight abound, Than since I was an Egg, I ever found. The time shall come when Chanticleer shall wish His Words unsaid, and hate his boasted Bliss: The crested Bird shall by Experience know, } 470 Jove made not him his Master-piece below; > And learn the latter end of Joy is Woe. ) The Vessel of his Bliss to Dregs is run, And Heav'n will have him tast his other Tun. Ye Wise draw near, and hearken to my Tale, Which proves that oft the Proud by Flatt'ry fall: The Legend is as true I undertake As Tristram is, and Launcelot of the Lake: Which all our Ladies in such rev'rence hold, As if in Book of Martyrs it were told. 480

A Fox full fraught with seeming Sanctity, That fear'd an Oath, but like the Devil, would lie, Who look'd like Lent, and had the holy Leer, And durst not sin before he say'd his Pray'r: This pious Cheat that never suck'd the Blood, ] Nor chaw'd the Flesh of Lambs but when he cou'd, > Has pass'd three Summers in the neighb'ring Wood; j And musing long, whom next to circumvent, On Chanticleer his wicked Fancy bent: And in his high Imagination cast, 490 By Stratagem to gratify his Tast. The Plot contriv'd, before the break of Day, Saint Reynard through the Hedge had made his way; 477

of the Lake] of the Lake F.

315

Poems,

3i6

1697-1700

Into the yerde there Chaunteclere the faire Was wont and eke his wiues to repaire: And in a bedde of wortes still he lay, T i l it was passed vndren of the day, Waiting his time, on Chaunteclere to fall: As gladly done these homicides all, «225 That in a waite lie to murdre men. O false murdrer, rucking in thy den: O new Scariot, and new Ganilion, O False dissimuler, O greke Sinon T h a t broughtest Troy vtterly to sorowe, O Chaunteclere, accursed be the morowe, That thou in thy yerde flew from the bemes: T h o u were ful wel warned by thy dremes, That ilke day was perillous to thee. But what that God afore wote, must nedes bee, 8235 After the opinion of certain clerkes, Witnesse of him, that any clerke is, T h a t in schole is great altercation In this matter, and great disputación And hath ben of an hundred thousand men, But I ne can nat boulte it to the bren, As can the holy doctour saint Austin, Or Boece, or the bishop Bradwardin, Whether that goddes worthy foreweting, Straineth me nedely to do a thing: 3227

Ganilion] Gauilion F.

Fables: The Cock and the Fox The Pale was next, but proudly with a bound He lept the Fence of the forbidden Ground: Yet fearing to be seen, within a Bed Of Colworts he conceal'd his wily Head; There sculk'd till Afternoon, and watch'd his time, (As Murd'rers use) to perpetrate his Crime. 0 Hypocrite, ingenious to destroy, 500 O Traytor, worse than Sinon was to Troy; O vile Subverter of the Gallick Reign, More false than Gano was to Charlemaign! O Chanticleer, in an unhappy Hour Did'st thou forsake the Safety of thy Bow'r: Better for Thee thou had'st believ'd thy Dream, And not that Day descended from the Beam! But here the Doctors eagerly dispute: Some hold Predestination absolute: Some Clerks maintain, that Heav'n at first foresees, 510 And in the virtue of Foresight decrees. If this be so, then Prescience binds the Will, And Mortals are not free to Good or 111: For what he first foresaw, he must ordain, Or its eternal Prescience may be vain: As bad for us as Prescience had not bin: For first, or last, he's Author of the Sin. And who says that, let the blaspheming Man Say worse ev'n of the Devil, if he can. For how can that Eternal Pow'r be just 520 T o punish Man, who Sins because he must? Or, how can He reward a vertuous Deed, Which is not done by us; but first decreed? 1 cannot boult this Matter to the Bran, As Bradwardin and holy Austin can: If Prescience can determine Actions so 498 perpetrate] perpetrare F.

317

3i8

Poems,

169J-1J00

3245 (Nedely clepe I simple necessite) Or if the free choice be graunted me T o do the same thing, or do it nought, Though God forewote it, or it was wrought: Or if his weting straineth neuer a dele, But by necessitie condiciónele, I wol not haue to done of such mattere, My tale is of a cocke, as ye shall here, That toke his counsaile of his wife with sorow, T o walk in the yerde vpon the morow, 8255 That he had met the dreme, as I you tolde. Womens counsailes ben oft ful colde: Womens counsaile brought vs first to wo, And made Adam fro Paradise to go, There as he was ful mery, and well at ease. But for I not whom I might displease, If I counsaile of wemen should blame, Passe ouer, I said it in my game. 5*49 if] of F.

Fables: The Cock and the Fox That we must do, because he did foreknow. Or that foreknowing, yet our choice is free, Not forc'd to Sin by strict necessity: This strict necessity they simple call, S30 Another sort there is conditional. T h e first so binds the Will, that Things foreknown By Spontaneity, not Choice, are done. Thus Galley-Slaves tug willing, at their Oar, \ Consent to work, in prospect of the Shore; > But wou'd not work at all, if not constrain'd before. / That other does not Liberty constrain, But Man may either act, or may refrain. Heav'n made us Agents free to Good or 111, And forc'd it not, tho' he foresaw the Will. 540 Freedom was first bestow'd on human Race, And Prescience only held the second place. If he could make such Agents wholly free, I not dispute; the Point's too high for me; For Heav'n's unfathom'd Pow'r what Man can sound, Or put to his Omnipotence a Bound? He made us to his Image all agree; 1 That Image is the Soul, and that must be, > Or not the Maker's Image, or be free. / But whether it were better Man had been sso By Nature bound to Good, not free to Sin, I wave, for fear of splitting on a Rock, T h e Tale I tell is only of a Cock; Who had not run the hazard of his Life Had he believ'd his Dream, and not his Wife: For Women, with a mischief to their Kind, Pervert, with bad Advice, our better Mind. A Woman's Counsel brought us first to Woe, And made her Man his Paradice forego, Where at Heart's ease he liv'd; and might have bin 560 As free from Sorrow as he was from Sin. For what the Devil had their Sex to do,

319

320

Poems,

1697-ijoo

Redeth authors, where they trete of such mattere, And what they say of women, ye mowe here. 3265 These ben the cockes wordes, and not mine; I can of women no harm deuine. Faire in the sonde to bathe her merely, Lieth Pertelot and all her susters by, Ayenst the sunne, and Chaunteclere so fre, Song merier than the Marmaide in the se, For Phisiologus saith vtterly How that they singen well and merely. And so befell, as he cast his eye Among the wortes on a butterflie, 3275 He was ware of the foxe that laie full lowe, Nothing than list him for to crowe, But cried cocke, cocke, and vp he stert, As one that was afraide in his hert. For naturally beastes desireth to flie Fro her contrarie, if he may it see, T h o he neuer erst had seen it with his eye. This Chaunteclere, when he gan him espie, He would haue fled, but the foxe anone Said: gentle sir, alas, what wol ye done? 3285 Be ye afrayd of me, that am your frende? Now certes I were worse than a fende, If I to you would harme, or villanie: 3265 and] ond F. 3271 Phisiologus . . . vtterly]

...

F.

Fables: The Cock and the Fox That, born to Folly, they presum'd to know, And could not see the Serpent in the Grass? But I my sel£ presume, and let it pass. Silence in times of Suff'ring is the best, 'Tis dang'rous to disturb a Hornet's Nest. In other Authors you may find enough, But all they say of Dames is idle Stuff. Legends of lying Wits together bound, 870 T h e Wife of Bath would throw 'em to the Ground: These are the Words of Chanticleer, not mine, I honour Dames, and think their Sex divine. Now to continue what my Tale begun. Lay Madam Partlet basking in the Sun, Breast-high in Sand: Her Sisters in a row, Enjoy'd the Beams above, the Warmth below. T h e Cock that of his Flesh was ever free, Sung merrier than the Mermaid in the Sea: And so befel, that as he cast his Eye, 580 Among the Colworts on a Butterfly, He saw false Reynard where he lay full low, I need not swear he had no list to Crow: But cry'd Cock, Cock, and gave a suddain start, As sore dismaid and frighted at his Heart. For Birds and Beasts, inform'd by Nature, know Kinds opposite to theirs, and fly their Foe. So, Chanticleer, who never saw a Fox, Yet shun'd him as a Sailor shuns the Rocks. But the false Loon who cou'd not work his Will 590 By open Force, employ'd his flatt'ring Skill; I hope, my Lord, said he, I not offend, Are you afraid of me, that am your Friend? I were a Beast indeed to do you wrong, I, who have lov'd and honour'd you so long: Stay, gentle Sir, nor take a false Alarm, For on my Soul I never meant you harm.

321

322

Poems,

1697-1700

I am not come your counsaile to espie. But truely the cause of my comming Was only to here howe ye sing: For sothly ye haue as mery a steuen, As any angel hath, that is in heuen, Therewith ye haue of musicke more feling, Than had Boece or any that can sing. 3295 My lorde your father, God his soule blesse, And eke your mother of her gentlenesse Haue in my house ben, to my great ease: And certes sir, full faine would I you please. But for men speken of singing, I woll sey, So mote I broken wel mine eyen twey, Saue you, ne herde I neuer man so sing, As did your father in the morning. Certes it was of herte, all that he song, And for to make his voice more strong, 3305 He would so paine him, that with both his eyen He must winke, so loude he must crien, And stonden on his tiptoes therwithall, And stretch forth his neck, long and small.

Fables:

The

Cock and the Fox

I come no Spy, nor as a Traytor press, T o learn the Secrets of your soft Recess: Far be from Reynard so prophane a Thought, «00 But by the sweetness of your Voice was brought: For, as I bid my Beads, by chance I heard, T h e Song as of an Angel in the Yard: A Song that wou'd have charm'd th' infernal Gods, And banish'd Horror from the dark Abodes: Had Orpheus sung it in the neather Sphere, ) So much the Hymn had pleas'd the Tyrant's Ear, > T h e Wife had been detain'd, to keep the Husband there.) My Lord, your Sire familiarly I knew, A Peer deserving such a Son, as you: 6io He, with your Lady-Mother (whom Heav'n rest) Has often grac'd my House, and been my Guest: T o view his living Features does me good, For I am your poor Neighbour in the Wood; A n d in my Cottage shou'd be proud to see T h e worthy Heir of my Friend's Family. But since I speak of Singing let me say, As with an upright Heart I safely may, That, save your self, there breaths not on the Ground, One like your Father for a Silver sound. «20 So sweetly wou'd he wake the Winter-day, ) T h a t Matrons to the Church mistook their way, > A n d thought they heard the merry Organ play. ' A n d he to raise his Voice with artful Care, (What will not Beaux attempt to please the Fair?) On Tiptoe stood to sing with greater Strength, A n d stretch'd his comely Neck at all the length: A n d while he pain'd his Voice to pierce the Skies, As Saints in Raptures use, would shut his Eyes, T h a t the sound striving through the narrow Throat, 630 His winking might avail, to mend the Note. 599 so] to F.

605 Orpheus] Orphans F.

323

324

Poems,

1697-1700

And eke he was of such discreción, That there was no man in no region, That him in songe or wisdome might passe. I haue wel redde dan Burnel the asse Among his verses, how that there was a Cocke, For that a priestes sonne yaue him a knocke 3815 Vpon his legges, while he was yong and nice, He made him for to lese his benefice. But certaine there is no comparison Betwixt the wisedome and discreción Of your father, and of his subtiltie. Now singeth sir, for saint charitie, Let se, can ye your father counterfete? This Chaunteclere his winges gan to bete, As a man that not his treson aspie, So was he rauished with his flaterie. 3325 Alas ye lordes, many a false flatterour Is in your courte, and many a false lesingour, That please you wel more by my faith, Than he that sothfastnesse vnto you saith. Redeth Ecclesiast of flatterie, Beware ye lordes of her trecherie.

Fables: The Cock and the Fox By this, in Song, he never had his Peer, From sweet Cecilia down to Chanticleer; Not Maro's Muse who sung the mighty Man, Nor Pindar's heav'nly Lyre, nor Horace when a Swan. Your Ancestors proceed from Race divine, From Brennus and Belinus is your Line: Who gave to sov'raign Rome such loud Alarms, That ev'n the Priests were not excus'd from Arms. Besides, a famous Monk of modern times, 640 Has left of Cocks recorded in his Rhimes, That of a Parish-Priest the Son and Heir, (When Sons of Priests were from the Proverb clear) Affronted once a Cock of noble Kind, And either lam'd his Legs, or struck him blind; For which the Clerk his Father was disgrac'd, And in his Benefice another plac'd. Now sing, my Lord, if not for love of me, Yet for the sake of sweet Saint Charity; Make Hills, and Dales, and Earth and Heav'n rejoice, «so And emulate your Father's Angel-voice. The Cock was pleas'd to hear him speak so fair, And proud beside, as solar People are: Nor cou'd the Treason from the Truth descry, So was he ravish'd with this Flattery: So much the more as from a little Elf, He had a high Opinion of himself: Though sickly, slender, and not large of Limb, Concluding all the World was made for him. Ye Princes rais'd by Poets to the Gods, 660 And Alexander'd up in lying Odes, Believe not ev'ry flatt'ring Knave's report, There's many a Reynard lurking in the Court; And he shall be receiv'd with more regard And list'ned to, than modest Truth is heard.

325

Poems,

326

1697-1700

T h i s Chaunteclere stode hie vpon his toos Stretching his necke, and held his eyen cloos, A n d gan to crowe loud for the nones: A n d dan Russel the Foxe start vp at ones, 8335 A n d by the gorget hent Chaunteclere, A n d on his backe, toward the wood him bere. For yet was there no man that him sued. O destinie, that maist not be eschued. Alas that Chaunteclere fie we fro the bemes, Alas his wife rought not of dremes: A n d on a Friday fell all this mischaunce. O Venus, that art goddesse of pleasaunce, Sithens that thy seruant was this Chaunteclere, A n d in thy seruice did all his powere, 3345 More for delite than the worlde to multiplie, W h y woldst thou suffer him on thy dai to die? O Gaulfride, dere maister, soueraine, T h a t whan that worthy king Richard was slain With shot, complaindst his deth so sore, W h y ne had I now thy science and thy lore,

The Friday for to chide, as did ye: For on a Friday 3332

shortly slaine was he.

Stretching] Stretchin F.

Fables: The Cock and the Fox This Chanticleer of whom the Story sings, Stood high upon his Toes, and clap'd his Wings; Then stretch'd his Neck, and wink'd with both his Eyes; Ambitious, as he sought th' Olympick Prize. But while he pain'd himself to raise his Note, «70 False Reynard rush'd, and caught him by the Throat. Then on his Back he laid the precious Load, And sought his wonted shelter of the Wood; Swiftly he made his way, the Mischief done, Of all unheeded, and pursu'd by none. Alas, what stay is there in human State, Or who can shun inevitable Fate? The Doom was written, the Decree was past, E'er the Foundations of the World were castl In Aries though the Sun exalted stood, 680 His Patron-Planet to procure his good; Yet Saturn was his mortal Foe, and he In Libra rais'd, oppos'd the same Degree: The Rays both good and bad, of equal Pow'r, Each thwarting other made a mingled Hour. On Friday-mom he dreamt this direful Dream, Cross to the worthy Native, in his Schemel Ah blissful Venus, Goddess of Delight, How cou'd'st thou suffer thy devoted Knight, On thy own Day to fall by Foe oppress'd, eeo The wight of all the World who serv'd thee best? Who true to Love, was all for Recreation, And minded not the Work of Propagation. Gaufride, who could'st so well in Rhime complain, The Death of Richard with an Arrow slain, Why had not I thy Muse, or thou my Heart, T o sing this heavy Dirge with equal Art? That I like thee on Friday might complain; For on that Day was Cœur de Lion slain. 668 sought th' Olympick] 696 Art?] F.

~ Olympick F. 698

Coeur] Ceur F.

3*7

Poems,

328

169J-1700

T h a n wold I shew you how that I coud plaine, For Chaunteclere's drede and for his paine. 3355 Certes such cry ne lamentación Nas neuer of Ladies made, whan that Ilion Was won, and Pirrus with his bright swerde W h a n he hent King Priam by the berde, A n d slough him, (as saieth Eneidos) As made all the hennes in the cloos, W h a n they had loste of Chaunteclere the sight: But souerainly dame Pertelot shright Well louder than did Hasdruballes wife, W h a n that her husbond hath lost his life, 8365 A n d that the Romaines had brent Cartage. She was so full of torment and of rage, T h a t wilfully into the fire she sterte, A n d brent her self with a stedfast herte. O wofull hennes, right so cryed he, As whan that Nero brent the citie Of Rome, cried the Senatours wiues, For that her husbondes should lese her liues, Withouten gilte Nero hath hem slaine. 8375

N o w wol I turne to my tale againe. T h e sely widowe, and her doughters two Herde the hennes crie and make wo, A n d out at the dore sterte they anon, A n d saw the foxe towarde the wood gon, A n d bare vpon his backe the Cocke away: A n d cried out harow and well away: A h a the Foxe, and after hem they ran, A n d eke with staues many another man:

Ran Coll our dogge, Talbot, and eke garlonde, A n d Malkin, with her distaffe in her honde: 3385 Ran Cowe and Calfe, and eke the verie hogges, For they so sore aferde were of the dogges, 3377

And out] And F.

3383

Ran]

F.

Fables:

The Cock and the

Fox

Not louder Cries when Ilium was in Flames, 700 Were sent to Heav'n by woful Trojan Dames, When Pyrrhus toss'd on high his burnish'd Blade, \ And offer'd Priam to his Father's Shade, > T h a n for the Cock the widow'd Poultry made. ) Fair Partlet first, when he was born from sight, With soveraign Shrieks bewail'd her Captive Knight: Far lowder than the Carthaginian Wife, When Asdrubal her Husband lost his Life, When she beheld the smouldring Flames ascend, And all the Punick Glories at an end: 710 Willing into the Fires she plung'd her Head, With greater Ease than others seek their Bed. Not more aghast the Matrons of Renown, When Tyrant Nero burn'd th' Imperial Town, Shriek'd for the downfal in a doleful Cry, For which their guiltless Lords were doom'd to die. Now to my Story I return again, T h e trembling Widow, and her Daughters twain, This woful cackling Cry with Horror heard, Of those distracted Damsels in the Yard; 720 And starting up beheld the heavy Sight, How Reynard to the Forest took his Flight, And cross his Back as in triumphant Scorn, T h e Hope and Pillar of the House was born. T h e Fox, the wicked Fox, was all the Cry, Out from his House ran ev'ry Neighbour nigh: T h e Vicar first, and after him the Crew, With Forks and Staves the Fellon to pursue. Ran Coll our Dog, and Talbot with the Band, And Malkin, with her Distaff in her Hand: 730 Ran Cow and Calf, and Family of Hogs, In Panique Horror of pursuing Dogs, With many a deadly Grunt and doleful Squeak 705 Knight:]

F.

329

Poems,

169J—1J00

And shouting of men and of women eke, They ran so, her hert thought to breke. They yellen as fendes do in hell: The Duckes cried as men would them quell: T h e Geese for feare flewe ouer the trees, Out of the Hiues came the swarme of Bees, So hidous was the noise, a benedicite: Certes Jacke Strawe, ne his meine, 3395 Ne made neuer shoutes halfe so shrill, Whan that they would any Flemming kill, As that daie was made vpon the Foxe. Of brasse they blewe the trompes and of boxe, Of home and bone, in which they blew and pouped And therwith they shriked and shouted: Is seemed as though heauen should fall, Now good men, I pray you herken all. Lo how fortune tourneth sodainly T h e hope and the pride of her enemy. 3405 This Cocke that laie vpon the Foxe backe, In all his drede vnto the Fox he spake, And saied, sir, if I were as ye, Yet should I saie, as wise God help me, Tourneth ayen, ye proud churles all: A very pestilence vpon you fall. Now am I come vnto this woods side, Maugre your hed, the Cocke shall here abide, I woll him eate in faith, and that anon.

Fables: The Cock and the Fox Poor Swine, as if their pretty Hearts would break. T h e Shouts of Men, the Women in dismay, With Shrieks augment the Terror of the Day. T h e Ducks that heard the Proclamation cry'd, And fear'd a Persecution might betide, Full twenty Mile from Town their Voyage take, Obscure in Rushes of the liquid Lake. 740 T h e Geese fly o'er the Barn; the Bees in Arms, Drive headlong from their Waxen Cells in Swarms. Jack Straw at London-stone with all his Rout Struck not the City with so loud a Shout; Not when with English Hate they did pursue A French Man, or an unbelieving Jew: Not when the Welkin rung with One and all; And Echoes bounded back from Fox's Hall; Earth seem'd to sink beneath, and Heav'n above to fall. With Might and Main they chas'd the murd'rous Fox, rso With brazen Trumpets, and inflated Box, T o kindle Mars with military Sounds, Nor wanted Horns t' inspire sagacious Hounds. But see how Fortune can confound the Wise, And when they least expect it, turn the Dice. T h e Captive Cock, who scarce cou'd draw his Breath, And lay within the very Jaws of Death: Yet in this Agony his Fancy wrought And Fear supply'd him with this happy Thought: Yours is the Prize, victorious Prince, said he, 760 T h e Vicar my defeat, and all the Village see. Enjoy your friendly Fortune while you may, And bid the Churls that envy you the Prey, Call back their mungril Curs, and cease their Cry, 1 See Fools, the shelter of the Wood is nigh, > And Chanticleer in your despight shall die. * He shall be pluck'd, and eaten to the Bone. 744 English] English F. 745 French ... Jew] French . . . Jew F. 746 One and all] one and all F.

747 Fox's Hall] Fox's Hall F.

S3»

Poems,

332

169J-1700

The Foxe answered, in faith it shal be don: 3415 And as he spake the word, all sodainly This Cock brake from his mouth deliuerly, And high upon a tree he flewe anon: And whan the Foxe saw that he was gon, Alas (qd. he) O Chaunteclere, alas, I haue (qd. he) doe to you trespas, In as much as I made you aferde, Whan I you hent, and brought out of your yerde. But sir, I did it not in no wicked entent: Come doun, and I shal tel you what I ment, 3425 I shall you say sothe, God helpe me so. Nay than (qd. he) I shrewe vs both two, And first I shrewe my self, both blood and bones, If thou begyle me ofter than ones: Thou shalt no more with thy flaterie Doe me sing with a winking eye. 3414

answered] answred F.

Fables: The Cock and the Fox 'Tis well advis'd, in Faith it shall be done; This Reynard said: but as the Word he spoke, The Pris'ner with a Spring from Prison broke: 770 Then stretch'd his feather'd Fans with all his might, And to the neighb'ring Maple wing'd his flight. Whom when the Traytor safe on Tree beheld, He curs'd the Gods, with Shame and Sorrow fill'd; Shame for his Folly; Sorrow out of time, For Plotting an unprofitable Crime: Yet mast'ring both, th' Artificer of Lies Renews th' Assault, and his last Batt'ry tries. Though I, said he, did ne'er in Thought offend, How justly may my Lord suspect his Friend? 780 T h ' appearance is against me, I confess, Who seemingly have put you in Distress: You, if your Goodness does not plead my Cause, May think I broke all hospitable Laws, T o bear you from your Palace-yard by Might, And put your noble Person in a Fright: This, since you take it ill, I must repent, Though Heav'n can witness with no bad intent, I practis'd it, to make you taste your Cheer, With double Pleasure first prepar'd by fear. 790 So loyal Subjects often seize their Prince, ) Forc'd (for his Good) to seeming Violence, > Yet mean his sacred Person not the least Offence. ) Descend; so help me Jove as you shall find That Reynard comes of no dissembling Kind. Nay, quoth the Cock; but I beshrew us both, If I believe a Saint upon his Oath: An honest Man may take a Knave's Advice, But Idiots only will be couzen'd twice: Once warn'd is well bewar'd: No flatt'ring Lies ) 8oo Shall sooth me more to sing with winking Eyes, / And open Mouth, for fear of catching Flies. )

333

334

Poems, 169 j—1700

For he that winketh when he should see, All wilfully, God let him neuer thee. Naie (qd. the foxe) but God yeue him mischance, That is so indiscrete of gouernaunce 8435 That iangleth, whan that he should haue pees. Lo, such it is for to be recheles And negligent, and trust on flatterie. But ye that holde this tale a lie As of a foxe, of a Cocke, and of a Hen, Taketh the moralitie good men. For Saint Poule saieth, all that written is, T o our doctrine it is written ywis. Taketh the fruit, and let the chaffe be still. Now good God, if that it be thy will, 8445 As saieth my Lorde, so make vs all good men: And bring vs to the high blesse. Amen.

Fables:

The Cock and the Fox

Who Blindfold walks upon a Rivers brim When he should see, has he deserv'd to swim? Better, Sir Cock, let all Contention cease, Come down, said Reynard, let us treat of Peace. A Peace with all my Soul, said Chanticleer; But with your Favour, I will treat it here: And least the Truce with Treason should be mixt, 'Tis my concern to have the Tree betwixt. The MORAL. 8io

In this plain Fable you th' Effect may see Of Negligence, and fond Credulity: And learn besides of Flatt'rers to beware, Then most pernicious when they speak too fair. The Cock and Fox, the Fool and Knave imply; The Truth is moral, though the Tale a Lie. Who spoke in Parables, I dare not say; \ But sure, he knew it was a pleasing way, > Sound Sense, by plain Example, to convey. ) And in a Heathen Author we may find, 820 That Pleasure with Instruction should be join'd: So take the Corn, and leave the Chaff behind.

335

336

Theodore

Poems,

169J—1700

and Honoria, from

Boccace.

O

F all the Cities in Romanian Lands, | T h e chief, and most renown'd Ravenna stands: Adorn'd in ancient Times with Arms and Arts, And rich Inhabitants, with generous Hearts. But Theodore the Brave, above the rest, With Gifts of Fortune, and of Nature bless'd, T h e foremost Place, for Wealth and Honour held, A n d all in Feats of Chivalry excell'd.

This noble Youth to Madness lov'd a Dame, 10 Of high Degree, Honoria was her Name: Fair as the Fairest, but of haughty Mind, And fiercer than became so soft a kind; Proud of her Birth; (for equal she had none;) T h e rest she scorn'd; but hated him alone. His Gifts, his constant Courtship, nothing gain'd; For she, the more he lov'd, the more disdain'd: He liv'd with all the Pomp he cou'd devise, \ A t Tilts and Turnaments obtain'd the Prize, > But found no favour in his Ladies Eyes: ; 20 Relentless as a Rock, the lofty Maid T u r n ' d all to Poyson that he did, or said: N o r Pray'rs, nor Tears, nor offer'd Vows could move; ) T h e Work went backward; and the more he strove > T ' advance his Sute, the farther from her Love. ) Weary'd at length, and wanting Remedy, He doubted oft, and oft resolv'd to die. But Pride stood ready to prevent the Blow, For who would die to gratify a Foe? His generous Mind disdain'd so mean a Fate; Honoria, from Boccace.] half title in F; HONORIA. F.

Fables: Theodore and

Honoria

That pass'd, his next Endeavour was to Hate. But vainer that Relief than all the rest, | The less he hop'd with more Desire possess'd; > Love stood the Siege, and would not yield his Breast. * Change was the next, but change deceiv'd his Care, He sought a Fairer, but found none so Fair. He would have worn her out by slow degrees, \ As Men by Fasting starve th' untam'd Disease: > But present Love requir'd a present Ease. ) Looking he feeds alone his famish'd Eyes, Feeds lingring Death, but looking not he dies. Yet still he chose the longest way to Fate, Wasting at once his Life, and his Estate. His Friends beheld, and pity'd him in vain, For what Advice can ease a Lover's Pain? Absence, the best Expedient they could find Might save the Fortune, if not cure the Mind: This Means they long propos'd, but little gain'd, Yet after much pursuit, at length obtain'd. Hard, you may think it was, to give consent, But, struggling with his own Desires, he went: With large Expence, and with a pompous Train, \ Provided, as to visit France or Spain, > Or for some distant Voyage o'er the Main. / But Love had clipp'd his Wings, and cut him short, Confin'd within the purlieus of his Court: Three Miles he went, nor farther could retreat; His Travels ended at his Country-Seat: T o Chassi's pleasing Plains he took his way, There pitch'd his Tents, and there resolv'd to stay. The Spring was in the Prime; the neighb'ring Grove, Supply'd with Birds, the Choristers of Love: 44

Pain?]

F.

58

Chassi's] Chassis F.

337

Poems,

338

1697-1700

Musick unbought, that minister'd Delight T o Morning-walks, and lull'd his Cares by Night: There he discharg'd his Friends; but not th' Expence Of frequent Treats, and proud Magnificence. He liv'd as Kings retire, though more at large, From publick Business, yet with equal Charge; With House, and Heart still open to receive; As well content, as Love would give him leave: He would have liv'd more free; but many a Guest, Who could forsake the Friend, pursu'd the Feast. It happ'd one Morning, as his Fancy led, Before his usual Hour, he left his Bed; T o walk within a lonely Lawn, that stood On ev'ry side surrounded by the Wood: Alone he walk'd, to please his pensive Mind, And sought the deepest Solitude to find: 'Twas in a Grove of spreading Pines he stray'd; \ The Winds, within the quiv'ring Branches plaid, > And Dancing-Trees a mournful Musick made. / The Place it self was suiting to his Care, Uncouth, and Salvage, as the cruel Fair. He wander'd on, unknowing where he went, Lost in the Wood, and all on Love intent: T h e Day already half his Race had run, \ And summon'd him to due Repast at Noon, > But Love could feel no Hunger but his own. * While list'ning to the murm'ring Leaves he stood, More than a Mile immers'd within the Wood, At once the Wind was laid; the whisp'ring sound Was dumb; a rising Earthquake rock'd the Ground: With deeper Brown the Grove was overspred: ] A suddain Horror seiz'd his giddy Head, / And his Ears tinckled, and his Colour fled. ' Nature was in alarm; some Danger nigh 6«

Delight]

F.

75

side]

F.

Fables: Theodore and Honoria Seem'd threaten'd, though unseen to mortal Eye: Unus'd to fear, he summon'd all his Soul And stood collected in himself, and whole; Not long: For soon a Whirlwind rose around, 100 And from afar he heard a screaming sound, As of a Dame distress'd, who cry'd for Aid, And fill'd with loud Laments the secret Shade. A Thicket close beside the Grove there stood With Breers, and Brambles choak'd, and dwarfish Wood: From thence the Noise: Which now approaching near With more distinguish'd Notes invades his Ear:* He rais'd his Head, and saw a beauteous Maid, With Hair dishevell'd, issuing through the Shade; Stripp'd of her Cloaths, and e'en those Parts reveal'd, no Which modest Nature keeps from Sight conceal'd. Her Face, her Hands, her naked Limbs were torn, With passing through the Brakes, and prickly Thorn: Two Mastiffs gaunt and grim, her Flight pursu'd, And oft their fasten'd Fangs in Blood embru'd: Oft they came up and pinch'd her tender Side, Mercy, O Mercy, Heav'n, she ran, and cry'd; When Heav'n was nam'd they loos'd their Hold again, Then sprung she forth, they follow'd her amain. Not far behind, a Knight of swarthy Face, 120 High on a Coal-black Steed pursu'd the Chace; With flashing Flames his ardent Eyes were fill'd, And in his Hands a naked Sword he held: He chear'd the Dogs to follow her who fled, And vow'd Revenge on her devoted Head. As Theodore was born of noble Kind, The brutal Action rowz'd his manly Mind: Mov'd with unworthy Usage of the Maid, He, though unarm'd, resolv'd to give her Aid. A Saplin Pine he wrench'd from out the Ground, 130 The readiest Weapon that his Fury found.

339

34°

Poems,

1697-1700

Thus furnish'd for Offence, he cross'd the way Betwixt the graceless Villain, and his Prey. The Knight came thund'ring on, but from afar Thus in imperious Tone forbad the War: Cease, Theodore, to proffer vain Relief, Nor stop the vengeance of so just a Grief; But give me leave to seize my destin'd Prey, And let eternal Justice take the way: I but revenge my Fate; disdain'd, betray'd, 140 And suff'ring Death for this ungrateful Maid. He say'd; at once dismounting from the Steed; For now the Hell-hounds with superiour Speed Had reach'd the Dame, and fast'ning on her Side, The Ground with issuing Streams of Purple dy'd. Stood Theodore surpriz'd in deadly Fright, With chatt'ring Teeth and bristling Hair upright; Yet arm'd with inborn Worth, What e'er, said he, Thou art, who know'st me better than I thee; Or prove thy rightful Cause, or be defy'd: lso The Spectre, fiercely staring, thus reply'd. Know, Theodore, thy Ancestry I claim, And Guido Cavalcanti was my Name. One common Sire our Fathers did beget, My Name and Story some remember yet: Thee, then a Boy, within my Arms I laid, When for my Sins I lov'd this haughty Maid; Not less ador'd in Life, nor serv'd by Me, Than proud Honoria now is lov'd by Thee. What did I not her stubborn Heart to gain? 1 i6o But all my Vows were answer'd with Disdain; > She scorn'd my Sorrows, and despis'd my Pain. ' Long time I dragg'd my Days in fruitless Care, Then loathing Life, and plung'd in deep Despair, T o finish my unhappy Life, I fell On this sharp Sword, and now am damn'd in Hell.

Fables:

Theodore

and Honoria

341

Short was her Joy; for soon th' insulting Maid By Heav'n's Decree in the cold Grave was laid, And as in unrepenting Sin she dy'd, Doom'd to the same bad Place, is punish'd for her Pride; 170 Because she deem'd I well deserv'd to die, And made a Merit of her Cruelty. There, then, we met; both try'd and both were cast, And this irrevocable Sentence pass'd; T h a t she whom I so long pursu'd in vain, Should suffer from my Hands a lingring Pain: Renew'd to Life, that she might daily die, I daily doom'd to follow, she to fly; No more a Lover but a mortal Foe, I seek her Life (for Love is none below:) 180 As often as my Dogs with better speed Arrest her Flight, is she to Death decreed. T h e n with this fatal Sword on which I dy'd, I pierce her open'd Back or tender Side, And tear that harden'd Heart from out her Breast, Which, with her Entrails, makes my hungry Hounds a Feast. Nor lies she long, but as her Fates ordain, \ Springs up to Life, and fresh to second Pain, > Is sav'd to Day, to Morrow to be slain. ' This, vers'd in Death, th' infernal Knight relates, 190 And then for Proof fulfill'd their common Fates; Her Heart and Bowels through her Back he drew, And fed the Hounds that help'd him to pursue. Stern look'd the Fiend, as frustrate of his Will, Not half suffic'd, and greedy yet to kill. And now the Soul expiring through the Wound, Had left the Body breathless on the Ground, When thus the grisly Spectre spoke again: Behold the Fruit of ill-rewarded Pain: As many Months as I sustain'd her Hate, 200 So many Years is she condemn'd by Fate 195 Stern .. . Will,] Stern'd ... ~ A F.

342

Poems,

1697-1700

T o daily Death; and ev'ry several Place, Conscious of her Disdain, and my Disgrace, Must witness her just Punishment; and be A Scene of Triumph and Revenge to me. As in this Grove I took my last Farewel, As on this very spot of Earth I fell, As Friday saw me die, so she my Prey Becomes ev'n here, on this revolving Day. Thus while he spoke, the Virgin from the Ground 210 Upstarted fresh, already clos'd the Wound, And unconcern'd for all she felt before Precipitates her Flight along the Shore: The Hell-hounds, as ungorg'd with Flesh and Blood Pursue their Prey, and seek their wonted Food: The Fiend remounts his Courser; mends his Pace, And all the Vision vanish'd from the Place. Long stood the noble Youth oppress'd with Awe, And stupid at the wond'rous Things he saw Surpassing common Faith; transgressing Nature's Law. 220 He would have been asleep, and wish'd to wake, But Dreams, he knew, no long Impression make, Though strong at first: If Vision, to what end, } But such as must his future State portend? > His Love the Damsel, and himself the Fiend. ' But yet reflecting that it could not be From Heav'n, which cannot impious Acts decree, Resolv'd within himself to shun the Snare Which Hell for his Distruction did prepare; And as his better Genius should direct 230 From an ill Cause to draw a good effect. Inspir'd from Heav'n he homeward took his way, Nor pall'd his new Design with long delay: But of his Train a trusty Servant sent; To call his Friends together at his Tent.

Fables:

Theodore

and

Honoria

They came, and, usual Salutations paid, With Words premeditated thus he said: What you have often counsell'd, to remove My vain pursuit of unreguarded Love; By Thrift my sinking Fortune to repair, 240 Tho' late, yet is at last become my Care: My Heart shall be my own; my vast Expence Reduc'd to bounds, by timely Providence: This only I require; invite for me Honoria, with her Father's Family, Her Friends, and mine; the Cause I shall display, On Friday next, for that's th' appointed Day. Well pleas'd were all his Friends, the Task was light; The Father, Mother, Daughter, they invite; Hardly the Dame was drawn to this repast; 250 But yet resolv'd, because it was the last. The Day was come; the Guests invited came, And, with the rest, th' inexorable Dame: A Feast prepar'd with riotous Expence, Much Cost, more Care, and most Magnificence. The Place ordain'd was in that haunted Grove, Where the revenging Ghost pursu'd his Love: The Tables in a proud Pavilion spred, With Flow'rs below, and Tissue overhead: The rest in rank; Honoria chief in place, j 280 Was artfully contriv'd to set her Face / T o front the Thicket, and behold the Chace. ) The Feast was serv'd; the time so well forecast, That just when the Dessert, and Fruits were plac'd, The Fiend's Alarm began; the hollow sound Sung in the Leaves, the Forest shook around, Air blacken'd; rowl'd the Thunder; groan'd the Ground. Nor long before the loud Laments arise, Of one distress'd, and Mastiffs mingled Cries; «35 and,] ~ A F.

343

344

Poems,

1697-1700

And first the Dame came rushing through the Wood, 270 And next the famish'd Hounds that sought their Food And grip'd her Flanks, and oft essay'd their Jaws in Blood. Last came the Fellon on the Sable Steed, Arm'd with his naked Sword, and urg'd his Dogs to speed: She ran, and cry'd; her Flight directly bent, \ (A Guest unbidden) to the fatal Tent, > T h e Scene of Death, and Place ordain'd for Punishment.) Loud was the Noise, aghast was every Guest, The Women shriek'd, the Men forsook the Feast; The Hounds at nearer distance hoarsly bay'd; \ 28« The Hunter close pursu'd the visionary Maid, > She rent the Heav'n with loud Laments, imploring Aid. ) The Gallants to protect the Ladies right, } Their Fauchions brandish'd at the grisly Spright; > High on his Stirups, he provok'd the Fight. ; Then on the Crowd he cast a furious Look, And wither'd all their Strength before he strook: Back on your Lives; let be, said he, my Prey, And let my Vengeance take the destin'd way. Vain are your Arms, and vainer your Defence, 290 Against th' eternal Doom of Providence: Mine is th' ungrateful Maid by Heav'n design'd: Mercy she would not give, nor Mercy shall she find. At this the former Tale again he told With thund'ring Tone, and dreadful to behold: Sunk were their Hearts with Horror of the Crime, Nor needed to be warn'd a second time, But bore each other back; some knew the Face, \ And all had heard the much lamented Case, > Of him who fell for Love, and this the fatal Place.) 800

And now th' infernal Minister advanc'd, Seiz'd the due Victim, and with Fury lanch'd 280 close] clos'd F.

Fables:

Theodore

and

Honoria

345

Her Back, and piercing through her inmost Heart, Drew backward, as before, th' offending part. The reeking Entrails next he tore away, And to his meagre Mastiffs made a Prey: The pale Assistants, on each other star'd With gaping Mouths for issuing Words prepar'd; The still-born sounds upon the Palate hung, And dy'd imperfect on the faltring Tongue. 31« The Fright was general; but the Female Band (A helpless Train) in more Confusion stand; With Horror shuddring, on a heap they run, Sick at the sight of hateful Justice done; For Conscience rung th' Alarm, and made the Case their own. So spread upon a Lake with upward Eye A plump of Fowl, behold their Foe on high, They close their trembling Troop; and all attend On whom the sowsing Eagle will descend. But most the proud Honoria fear'd th' event, 820 And thought to her alone the Vision sent. Her Guilt presents to her distracted Mind \ Heav'ns Justice, Theodore's revengeful Kind, /• And the same Fate to the same Sin assign'd; ) Already sees her self the Monster's Prey, And feels her Heart, and Entrails torn away. 'Twas a mute Scene of Sorrow, mix'd with fear, Still on the Table lay th' unfinish'd Cheer; The Knight, and hungry Mastiffs stood around, The mangled Dame lay breathless on the Ground: 330 When on a suddain reinspired with Breath, Again she rose, again to suffer Death; Nor stay'd the Hell-hounds, nor the Hunter stay'd, But follow'd, as before, the flying Maid: Th' Avenger took from Earth th' avenging Sword, 3*5 feels] feels F.

346

Poems,

iöpj-ijoo

And mounting light as Air, his Sable Steed he spurr'd: T h e Clouds dispell'd, the Sky resum'd her Light, And Nature stood recover'd of her Fright. But Fear, the last of Ills, remain'd behind, And Horror heavy sat on ev'ry Mind, a« Nor Theodore incourag'd more his Feast, But sternly look'd, as hatching in his Breast Some deep Design, which when Honoria view'd, T h e fresh Impulse her former Fright renew'd: She thought her self the trembling Dame who fled, And him the grisly Ghost that spurr'd th' infernal Steed: The more dismay'd, for when the Guests withdrew } Their courteous Host saluting all the Crew, > Regardless pass'd her o'er; nor grac'd with kind adieu.' That Sting infix'd within her haughty Mind, } 350 The downfal of her Empire she divin'd; > And her proud Heart with secret Sorrow p i n ' d . ' Home as they went, the sad Discourse renew'd ) Of the relentless Dame to Death pursu'd, > And of the Sight obscene so lately view'd. ) None durst arraign the righteous Doom she bore, Ev'n they who pity'd most yet blam'd her more: T h e Parallel they needed not to name, But in the Dead they damn'd the living Dame. At ev'ry little Noise she look'd behind, 360 For still the Knight was present to her Mind: And anxious oft she started on the way, And thought the Horseman-Ghost came thundring for his Prey. Return'd, she took her Bed, with little Rest, But in short Slumbers dreamt the Funeral Feast: Awak'd, she turn'd her Side; and slept again, \ The same black Vapors mounted in her Brain, > And the same Dreams Teturn'd with double Pain. ; Now forc'd to wake because afraid to sleep

Fables: Theodore and

Honoria

Her Blood all Fever'd, with a furious Leap 37o She sprung from Bed, distracted in her Mind, And fear'd, at ev'ry Step, a twitching Spright behind. Darkling and desp'rate with a stagg'ring pace, Of Death afraid, and conscious of Disgrace; Fear, Pride, Remorse, at once her Heart assail'd, Pride put Remorse to flight, but Fear prevail'd. Friday, the fatal Day, when next it came, Her Soul forethought the Fiend would change his Game, And her pursue, or Theodore be slain, And two Ghosts join their Packs to hunt her o'er the Plain. 880

This dreadful Image so possess'd her Mind, That desp'rate any Succour else to find, She ceas'd all farther hope; and now began T o make reflection on th* unhappy Man. Rich, Brave, and Young, who past expression lov'd, Proof to Disdain; and not to be remov'd: Of all the Men respected, and admir'd, Of all the Dames, except her self, desir'd. Why not of her? Preferr'd above the rest ^ By him with Knightly Deeds, and open Love profess'd? > 390 So had another been; where he his Vows address'd. ) This quell'd her Pride, yet other Doubts remain'd, That once disdaining she might be disdain'd: The Fear was just, but greater Fear prevail'd, Fear of her Life by hellish Hounds assail'd: He took a low'ring leave; but who can tell, What outward Hate, might inward Love conceal? Her Sexes Arts she knew, and why not then, Might deep dissembling have a place in Men? Here Hope began to dawn; resolv'd to try, \ 400 She fix'd on this her utmost Remedy; > Death was behind, but hard it was to die. ) 'Twas time enough at last on Death to call, 1 The Precipice in sight: A Shrub was all, / That kindly stood betwixt to break the fatal fall. ;

347

Poems, 169J—1700

348

One Maid she had, belov'd above the rest; Secure of her, the Secret she confess'd: And now the chearful Light her Fears dispell'd, She with no winding turns the Truth conceal'd, > But put the Woman off, and stood reveal'd: J 410 With Faults confess'd commission'd her to go, If Pity yet had place, and reconcile her Foe: T h e welcom Message made, was soon receiv'd; 'Twas what he wish'd, and hop'd, but scarce believ'd; Fate seem'd a fair occasion to present, 1 He knew the Sex, and fear'd she might repent, > Should he delay the moment of Consent. ) There yet remain'd to gain her Friends (a Care T h e modesty of Maidens well might spare;) But she with such a Zeal the Cause embrac'd, 420 (As Women where they will, are all in hast) That Father, Mother, and the Kin beside, Were overborn by fury of the Tide: With full consent of all, she chang'd her State, Resistless in her Love, as in her Hate. By her Example warn'd, the rest beware; More Easy, less Imperious, were the Fair; And that one Hunting which the Devil design'd, For one fair Female, lost him half the Kind. 405

rest;]

F.

Fables: Ceyx and

Alcyone

349

Ceyx and Alcyone, Out of the Tenth Book of Ovid's Metamorphoses. Connection of this Fable with the former. Ceyx, the Son of Lucifer, (the Morning Star) and King of Trachin in Thessaly, was married to Alcyone Daughter to iEolus God of the Winds. Both the Husband and the Wife lov'd each other with an entire Affection. Daedalion, the Elder Brother of Ceyx (whom he succeeded) having been turn'd into a Falcon by Apollo, and Chione, Daedalion's Daughter, slain by Diana, Ceyx prepares a Ship to sail to Claros there to consult the Oracle of Apollo, and (as Ovid seems to intimate) to enquire how the Anger of the Gods might be atton'd.

T

Prodigies afflict the pious Prince, But more perplex'd with those that happen'd since, He purposes to seek the Clarian God, } Avoiding Delphos, his more fam'd Abode; > Since Phlegyan Robbers made unsafe the Road. ' Yet cou'd he not from her he lov'd so well T h e fatal Voyage, he resolv'd, conceal; But when she saw her Lord prepar'd to part, A deadly Cold ran shiv'ring to her Heart: 10 Her faded Cheeks are chang'd to Boxen Hue, And in her Eyes the Tears are ever new: She thrice assay'd to Speak; her Accents hung And faltring dy'd unfinish'd on her Tongue, Or vanish'd into Sighs: With long delay Her Voice return'd; and found the wonted way. HESE

Tell me, my Lord, she said, what Fault unknown Thy once belov'd A Icy one has done? Whether, ah whether is thy Kindness gone? Connection:

6 Diana,]

F.

18 gone?]

F.

350

Poems,

7697-/700

Can Ceyx then sustain to leave his Wife, And unconcern'd forsake the Sweets of Life? What can thy Mind to this long Journey move, Or need'st thou absence to renew thy Love? Yet, if thou go'st by Land, tho' Grief possess My Soul ev'n then, my Fears will be the less. But ah! be warn'd to shun the Watry Way, T h e Face is frightful of the stormy Sea. For late I saw a-drift disjointed Planks, And empty Tombs erected on the Banks. Nor let false Hopes to trust betray thy Mind, Because my Sire in Caves constrains the Wind, Can with a Breath their clam'rous Rage appease, They fear his Whistle, and forsake the Seas; Not so, for once indulg'd, they sweep the Main; Deaf to the Call, or hearing hear in vain; But bent on Mischief bear the Waves before, And not content with Seas insult the Shoar, When Ocean, Air, and Earth, at once ingage And rooted Forrests fly before their Rage: At once the clashing Clouds to Battle move, And Lightnings run across the Fields above: I know them well, and mark'd their rude Comport, While yet a Child, within my Father's Court: In times of Tempest they command alone, And he but sits precarious on the Throne: The more I know, the more my Fears augment, And Fears are oft prophetick of th' event. But if not Fears, or Reasons will prevail, If Fate has fix'd thee obstinate to sail, Go not without thy Wife, but let me bear } My part of Danger with an equal share, > And present, what I suffer only fear: ' T h e n o'er the bounding Billows shall we fly, Secure to live together, or to die. These Reasons mov'd her starlike Husband's Heart, But still he held his Purpose to depart:

Fables:

Ceyx and Alcyone

For as he lov'd her equal to his Life, He wou'd not to the Seas expose his Wife; Nor cou'd be wrought his Voyage to refrain, But sought by Arguments to sooth her Pain: Nor these avail'd; at length he lights on one, With which, so difficult a Cause he won: My Love, so short an absence cease to fear, For by my Father's holy Flame, I swear, Before two Moons their Orb with Light adorn, If Heav'n allow me Life, I will return. T h i s Promise of so short a stay prevails; He soon equips the Ship, supplies the Sails, A n d gives the Word to launch; she trembling views T h i s pomp of Death, and parting Tears renews: Last with a Kiss, she took a long farewel, Sigh'd, with a sad Presage, and swooning fell: While Ceyx seeks Delays, the lusty Crew \ Rais'd on their Banks their Oars in order drew > T o their broad Breasts, the Ship with fury flew.) T h e Queen recover'd rears her humid Eyes, A n d first her Husband on the Poop espies Shaking his Hand at distance on the Main; She took the Sign; and shook her Hand again: Still as the Ground recedes, contracts her View With sharpen'd Sight, till she no longer knew T h e much-lov'd Face; that Comfort lost supplies W i t h less, and with the Galley feeds her Eyes; T h e Galley born from view by rising Gales She follow'd with her Sight the flying Sails: W h e n ev'n the flying Sails were seen no more Forsaken of all Sight, she left the Shoar: T h e n on her Bridal-Bed her Body throws, A n d sought in sleep her weary'd Eyes to close: 73 86

drew] Shoar:]

F. 78 again:] «—. F. F (which begins a new paragraph with next line).

351

Poems,

352

ióyj-ijoo

Her Husband's Pillow, and the Widow'd part 90 Which once he press'd, renew'd the former Smart. And now a Breeze from Shoar began to blow, T h e Sailors ship their Oars, and cease to row; Then hoist their Yards a trip, and all their Sails Let fall, to court the Wind, and catch the Gales: By this the Vessel half her Course had run, And as much rested till the rising Sun; Both Shores were lost to Sight, when at the close Of Day, a stiffer Gale at East arose: T h e Sea grew White, the rowling Waves from far 100 Like Heralds first denounce, the Wat'ry War. This seen, the Master soon began to cry, Strike, strike the Top-sail; let the Main-sheet fly, And furl your Sails: T h e Winds repel the sound, And in the Speaker's Mouth the Speech is drown'd. Yet of their own accord, as Danger taught Each in his way, officiously they wrought; Some stow their Oars, or stop the leaky Sides, Another bolder yet the Yard bestrides, And folds the Sails; a fourth with Labour, laves no T h ' intruding Seas, and Waves ejects on Waves. In this Confusion while their Work they ply, T h e Winds augment the Winter of the Sky, And wage intestine Wars; the suff'ring Seas Are toss'd, and mingled as their Tyrants please. T h e Master wou'd command, but in despair Of Safety, stands amaz'd with stupid Care, Nor what to bid, or what forbid he knows, T h ' ungovern'd Tempest to such Fury grows: Vain is his Force, and vainer is his Skill; 120 With such a Concourse comes the Flood of 111: T h e Cries of Men are mix'd with rattling Shrowds; 109 laves]

F.

Fables: Ceyx and Alcyone Seas dash on Seas, and Clouds encounter Clouds: At once from East to West, from Pole to Pole, T h e forky Lightnings flash, the roaring Thunders roul. Now Waves on Waves ascending scale the Skies, And in the Fires above, the Water fries: When yellow Sands are sifted from below, T h e glitt'ring Billows give a golden Show: And when the fouler bottom spews the Black, 130 T h e Stygian Dye the tainted Waters take: Then frothy White appear the flatted Seas, And change their Colour, changing their Disease. Like various Fits the Trachin Vessel finds, And now sublime, she rides upon the Winds; As from a lofty Summet looks from high, And from the Clouds beholds the neather Sky; Now from the depth of Hell they lift their Sight, And at a distance see superiour Light: T h e lashing Billows make a loud report 140 And beat her Sides, as batt'ring Rams, a Fort: Or as a Lyon, bounding in his way With Force augmented bears against his Prey, Sidelong to seize; or unappal'd with fear Springs on the Toils, and rushes on the Spear: So Seas impell'd by Winds with added Pow'r Assault the Sides, and o'er the Hatches tow'r. The Planks (their pitchy Cov'ring wash'd away) Now yield; and now a yawning Breach display: T h e roaring Waters with a hostile Tide iso Rush through the Ruins of her gaping Side. Mean time in Sheets of Rain the Sky descends, And Ocean swell'd with Waters upwards tends, One rising, falling one, the Heav'ns, and Sea Meet at their Confines, in the middle Way: T h e Sails are drunk with Show'rs, and drop with Rain, Sweet Waters mingle with the briny Main. 142

Prey,]

F.

353

354

Poems,

169J-1J00

No Star appears to lend his friendly Light: Darkness and Tempest make a double Night. But flashing Fires disclose the Deep by turns, i6o And while the Light'nings blaze, the Water burns. Now all the Waves, their scatter'd Force unite, And as a Soldier, foremost in the Fight Makes way for others, and an Host alone Still presses on, and urging gains the Town; So while th' invading Billows come a-brest, The Hero tenth advanc'd before the rest, Sweeps all before him with impetuous Sway, And from the Walls descends upon the Prey; Part following enter, part remain without, 170 With Envy hear their Fellows conqu'ring Shout: And mount on others Backs, in hope to share The City, thus become the Seat of War. An universal Cry resounds aloud, T h e Sailors run in heaps, a helpless Crowd; Art fails, and Courage falls, no Succour near; As many Waves, as many Deaths appear; One weeps, and yet despairs of late Relief; One cannot weep, his Fears congeal his Grief, But stupid, with dry Eyes expects his Fate: \ > 180 One with loud Shrieks laments his lost Estate, And calls those happy whom their Funerals wait. ) This Wretch with Pray'rs, and Vows the Gods implores, And ev'n the Skies he cannot see, adores. That other on his Friends his Thoughts bestows, His careful Father, and his faithful Spouse. T h e covetous Worldling in his anxious Mind Thinks only on the Wealth he left behind. All Ceyx his Alcyone employs, For her he grieves, yet in her absence joys: 163 176

others, and] And F. appear;] F.

183

Skies] Sky's F.

Fables: Ceyx and Alcyone ieo His Wife he wishes, and wou'd still be near, Not her with him, but wishes him with her: Now with last Looks he seeks his Native Shoar, Which Fate has destin'd him to see no more; He sought, but in the dark tempestuous Night He knew not whether to direct his Sight. So whirl the Seas, such Darkness blinds the Sky, That the black Night receives a deeper Dye. T h e giddy Ship ran round; the Tempest tore Her Mast, and over-board the Rudder bore. 200 One Billow mounts; and with a scornful Brow Proud of her Conquest gain'd insults the Waves below; Nor lighter falls, than if some Gyant tore Pindus and A thos, with the Freight they bore, And toss'd on Seas; press'd with the pondrous Blow Down sinks the Ship within th' Abyss below: Down with the Vessel sink into the Main T h e many, never more to rise again. Some few on scatter'd Planks with fruitless Care Lay hold, and swim, but while they swim, despair. 210

Ev'n he who late a Scepter did command Now grasps a floating Fragment in his Hand, And while he struggles on the stormy Main, Invokes his Father, and his Wife's, in vain; But yet his Consort is his greatest Care; A Icyone he names amidst his Pray'r, Names as a Charm against the Waves, and Wind; Most in his Mouth, and ever in his Mind: Tir'd with his Toyl, all hopes of Safety past, From Pray'rs to Wishes he descends at last: 220 That his dead Body wafted to the Sands, Might have its Burial from her Friendly Hands. As oft as he can catch a gulp of Air, And peep above the Seas, he names the Fair, 203 Pindus . . . bore,] Pyndus...

F.

355

356

Poems,

169*]-i700

And ev'n when plung'd beneath, on her he raves, Murm'ring Alcyone below the Waves: At last a falling Billow stops his Breath, Breaks o'er his Head, and whelms him underneath. Bright Lucifer unlike himself appears T h a t Night, his heav'nly Form obscur'd with Tears, 230 And since he was forbid to leave the Skies, H e muffled with a Cloud his mournful Eyes. Mean time Alcyone (his Fate unknown) Computes how many Nights he had been gone, Observes the waning Moon with hourly view, Numbers her Age, and wishes for a new; Against the promis'd T i m e provides with care, And hastens in the Woof the Robes he was to wear: And for her Self employs another Loom, New-dress'd to meet her Lord returning home, 240 Flatt'ring her Heart with Joys that never were to come: She f u m ' d the Temples with an odrous Flame, \ And oft before the sacred Altars came, > T o pray for him, who was an empty Name: ) All Pow'rs implor'd, but far above the rest T o Juno she her pious Vows address'd, Her much-Iov'd Lord from Perils to protect And safe o'er Seas his Voyage to direct: T h e n pray'd that she might still possess his Heart, And no pretending Rival share a part; 250 This last Petition heard of all her Pray'r, T h e rest dispers'd by Winds were lost in Air. But she, the Goddess of the Nuptial-Bed, T i r ' d with her vain Devotions for the Dead, Resolv'd the tainted Hand should be repell'd Which Incense offer'd, and her Altar held: T h e n Iris thus bespoke; T h o u faithful Maid By whom thy Queen's Commands are well convey'd, Hast to the House of Sleep, and bid the God 234 view,] ~ A F.

243 Name:]

F.

Fables:

Ceyx and

Alcyone

W h o rules the Night by Visions with a Nod, Prepare a Dream, in Figure and in Form Resembling him who perish'd in the Storm; This Form before A Icy one present, T o make her certain of the sad Event. Indu'd with Robes of various Hew she flies, A n d flying draws an Arch, (a segment of the Skies:) T h e n leaves her bending Bow, and from the steep Descends to search the silent House of Sleep. Near the Cimmerians, in his dark Abode Deep in a Cavern, dwells the drowzy God; Whose gloomy Mansion nor the rising Sun N o r setting, visits, nor the lightsome Noon: But hazy Vapors round the Region fly, Perpetual Twilight, and a doubtful Sky; N o crowing Cock does there his Wings display Nor with his horny Bill provoke the Day: Nor watchful Dogs, nor the more wakeful Geese, Disturb with nightly Noise the sacred Peace: Nor Beast of Nature, nor the T a m e are nigh, Nor Trees with Tempests rock'd, nor human Cry, But safe Repose without an air of Breath Dwells here, and a dumb Quiet next to Death. A n Arm of Lethe with a gentle flow Arising upwards from the Rock below, T h e Palace moats, and o'er the Pebbles creeps A n d with soft Murmers calls the coming Sleeps: Around its Entry nodding Poppies grow, A n d all cool Simples that sweet Rest bestow; Night from the Plants their sleepy Virtue drains, A n d passing sheds it on the silent Plains: N o Door there was th' unguarded House to keep, O n creaking Hinges turn'd, to break his Sleep. «68

Cimmerians] Cymmerians F.

272

hazy] lazy F.

357

358

Poems,

iöyj-ijoo

But in the gloomy Court was rais'd a Bed Stuff'd with black Plumes, and on an Ebon-sted: Black was the Cov'ring too, where lay the God And slept supine, his Limbs display'd abroad: About his Head fantastick Visions fly, Which various Images of Things supply, And mock their Forms; the Leaves on Trees not more, Nor bearded Ears in Fields, nor Sands upon the Shore. 300

The Virgin entring bright indulg'd the Day T o the brown Cave, and brush'd the Dreams away: T h e God disturb'd with this new glare of Light Cast sudden on his Face, unseal'd his Sight, And rais'd his tardy Head, which sunk agen, And sinking on his Bosom knock'd his Chin; At length shook off himself; and ask'd the Dame, (And asking yawn'd) for what intent she came?

T o whom the Goddess thus: O sacred Rest, Sweet pleasing Sleep, of all the Pow'rs the best! 310 O Peace of Mind, repairer of Decay, Whose Balm renews the Limbs to Labours of the Day, Care shuns thy soft approach, and sullen flies away! Adorn a Dream, expressing human Form, The Shape of him who suffer'd in the Storm, And send it flitting to the Trachin Court, T h e Wreck of wretched Ceyx to report: Before his Queen bid the pale Spectre stand, Who begs a vain Relief at Juno's Hand. She said, and scarce awake her Eyes cou'd keep, s2o Unable to support the fumes of Sleep: But fled returning by the way she went, And swerv'd along her Bow with swift ascent. The God uneasy till he slept again Resolv'd at once to rid himself of Pain; 898 Forms; . . . more,]

...

F.

311

Balm] Balms F.

Fables: Ceyx and

Alcyone

859

And tho' against his Custom, call'd aloud, Exciting Morpheus from the sleepy Crowd: Morpheus of all his numerous Train express'd T h e Shape of Man, and imitated best; T h e Walk, the Words, the Gesture cou'd supply, 330 T h e Habit mimick, and the Mien bely; Plays well, but all his Action is confin'd; Extending not beyond our human kind. Another Birds, and Beasts, and Dragons apes, And dreadful Images, and Monster shapes: This Demon, Icelos, in Heav'ns high Hall T h e Gods have nam'd; but Men Phobetor call: A third is Phantasus, whose Actions roul On meaner Thoughts, and Things devoid of Soul; Earth, Fruits and Flow'rs, he represents in Dreams, 340 And solid Rocks unmov'd, and running Streams: These three to Kings, and Chiefs their Scenes display, T h e rest before th' ignoble Commons play: Of these the chosen Morpheus is dispatch'd, Which done, the lazy Monarch overwatch'd Down from his propping Elbow drops his Head, Dissolv'd in Sleep, and shrinks within his Bed. Darkling the Demon glides for Flight prepar'd, So soft that scarce his fanning Wings are heard. T o Trachin, swift as Thought, the flitting Shade 3so Through Air his momentary Journey made: Then lays aside the steerage of his Wings, Forsakes his proper Form, assumes the Kings; And pale as Death despoil'd of his Array ) Into the Queen's Apartment takes his way, > And stands before the Bed at dawn of Day: ) Unmov'd his Eyes, and wet his Beard appears; ^ And shedding vain, but seeming real Tears; > T h e briny Water dropping from his Hairs; ' Then staring on her with a ghastly Look 360 And hollow Voice, he thus the Queen bespoke. 347 Darkling] Darkling F.

35a Kings;]

F.

Poems,

36°

169J-1700

Know'st thou not me? Not yet unhappy Wife? Or are my Features perish'd with my Life? Look once again, and for thy Husband lost, Lo all that's left of him, thy Husband's Ghost I Thy Vows for my return were all in vain; 1 The stormy South o'ertook us in the Main; > And never shalt thou see thy living Lord again.) Bear witness Heav'n I call'd on Thee in Death, And while I call'd, a Billow stop'd my Breath: 370 Think not that flying Fame reports my Fate; I present, I appear, and my own Wreck relate. Rise wretched Widow, rise, nor undeplor'd Permit my Ghost to pass the Stygian Ford: But rise, prepar'd in Black, to mourn thy perish'd Lord. Thus said the Player-God; and adding Art Of Voice and Gesture, so perform'd his part, She thought (so like her Love the Shade appears) That Ceyx spake the Words, and Ceyx shed the Tears: She groan'd, her inward Soul with Grief opprest, 880 She sigh'd, she wept; and sleeping beat her Breast: Then stretch'd her Arms t' embrace his Body bare, Her clasping Arms inclose but empty Air: At this not yet awake she cry'd, O stay, One is our Fate, and common is our way! So dreadful was the Dream, so loud she spoke, That starting sudden up, the Slumber broke: Then cast her Eyes around in hope to view Her vanish'd Lord, and find the Vision true: For now the Maids, who waited her Commands, 390 Ran in with lighted Tapers in their Hands. Tir'd with the Search, not finding what she seeks, With cruel Blows she pounds her blubber'd Cheeks: Then from her beaten Breast the Linnen tare, And cut the golden Caull that bound her Hair. Her Nurse demands the Cause; with louder Cries, She prosecutes her Griefs, and thus replies. 895

Cause;] ~

A

F.

Fables:

Ceyx and

Alcyone

361

No more Alcyone; she sufier'd Death With her lov'd Lord, when Ceyx lost his Breath: No Flatt'ry, no false Comfort, give me none, 400 My Shipwreck'd Ceyx is for ever gone: I saw, I saw him manifest in view, His Voice, his Figure, and his Gestures knew: His Lustre lost, and ev'ry living Grace, Yet I retain'd the Features of his Face; Tho' with pale Cheeks, wet Beard, and dropping Hair, None but my Ceyx cou'd appear so fair: I would have strain'd him with a strict Embrace, But through my Arms he slip'd, and vanish'd from the Place: There, ev'n just there he stood; and as she spoke 410 Where last the Spectre was, she cast her Look: Fain wou'd she hope, and gaz'd upon the Ground If any printed Footsteps might be found. Then sigh'd and said; This I too well foreknew, And, my prophetick Fear presag'd too true: 'Twas what I beg'd when with a bleeding Heart I took my leave, and suffer'd Thee to part; Or I to go along, or Thou to stay, Never, ah never to divide our wayl Happier for me, that all our Hours assign'd 420 Together we had liv'd; e'en not in Death disjoin'd! So had my Ceyx still been living here, Or with my Ceyx I had perish'd there: Now I die absent, in the vast profound; And Me without my Self the Seas have drown'd: T h e Storms were not so cruel; should I strive T o lengthen Life, and such a Grief survive; But neither will I strive, nor wretched Thee In Death forsake, but keep thee Company. If not one common Sepulcher contains 430 Our Bodies, or one Urn, our last Remains, Yet Ceyx and Alcyone shall join, Their Names remember'd in one common Line. No farther Voice her mighty Grief affords, For Sighs come rushing in betwixt her Words,

Poems,

36s

1697-1700

And stop'd her Tongue, but what her Tongue deny'd Soft Tears, and Groans, and dumb Complaints supply'd. 'Twas Morning; to the Port she takes her way, And stands upon the Margin of the Sea: That Place, that very Spot of Ground she sought, 440 Or thither by her Destiny was brought, Where last he stood: And while she sadly said } 'Twas here he left me, lingring here delay'd > His parting Kiss; and there his Anchors weigh'd. / Thus speaking, while her Thoughts past Actions trace, And call to mind admonish'd by the Place, Sharp at her utmost Ken she cast her Eyes, And somewhat floating from afar descries: It seem'd a Corps adrift, to distant Sight, But at a distance who could judge aright? 45a It wafted nearer yet, and then she knew That what before she but surmis'd, was true: A Corps it was, but whose it was, unknown, Yet mov'd, howe'er, she made the Case her own: Took the bad Omen of a shipwreck'd Man, As for a Stranger wept, and thus began. Poor Wretch, on stormy Seas to lose thy Life, Unhappy thou, but more thy widdow'd Wife! At this she paus'd; for now the flowing Tide Had brought the Body nearer to the side: 460 The more she looks, the more her Fears increase, At nearer Sight; and she's her self the less: Now driv'n ashore, and at her Feet it lies, She knows too much, in knowing whom she sees: Her Husband's Corps; at this she loudly shrieks, 'Tis he, 'tis he, she cries, and tears her Cheeks, Her Hair, her Vest, and stooping to the Sands About his Neck she cast her trembling Hands. 440 456

brought,] F. Wretch] Wreth F.

442 465

delay'd] F. 'Tis]ATisF.

Fables: Ceyx and

Alcyone

And is it thus, O dearer than my Life, Thus, thus return'st Thou to thy longing Wife? 470 She said, and to the neighb'ring Mole she strode, (Rais'd there to break th' Incursions of the Flood;) Headlong from hence to plunge her self she springs, But shoots along supported on her Wings, A Bird new-made about the Banks she plies, Not far from Shore; and short Excursions tries; Nor seeks in Air her humble Flight to raise, Content to skim the Surface of the Seas: Her Bill, tho' slender, sends a creaking Noise, And imitates a lamentable Voice: «0 Now lighting where the bloodless Body lies, She with a Funeral Note renews her Cries. At all her stretch her little Wings she spread, And with her feather'd Arms embrac'd the Dead: Then flick'ring to his palid Lips, she strove T o print a Kiss, the last essay of Love: Whether the vital Touch reviv'd the Dead, Or that the moving Waters rais'd his Head T o meet the Kiss, the Vulgar doubt alone; For sure a present Miracle was shown. 490 T h e Gods their Shapes to Winter-Birds translate, But both obnoxious to their former Fate. Their conjugal Affection still is ty'd, And still the mournful Race is multiply'd: They bill, they tread; Alcyone compress'd Sev'n Days sits brooding on her floating Nest: A wintry Queen: Her Sire at length is kind, Calms ev'ry Storm, and hushes ev'ry Wind; Prepares his Empire for his Daughter's Ease, And for his hatching Nephews smooths the Seas. 469 Wife?]

F.

47a

New paragraph in F.

B63

364

Poems,1697-1700

The Floure and the Leafe. As it was written by Geffrey

Chaucer.

The A R G U M E N T . A Gentlewoman out of an Arbor in a Grove, seeth a great company of Knights and Ladies in a Dance upon the green Grass: the which being ended, they all kneel down, and do honour to the Daisie, some to the Flower, and some to the Leaf. Afterward this Gentlewoman learneth by one of these Ladies the meaning hereof, which is this: They which honour the Flower, a thing fading with every Blast, are such as look after Beauty and worldly Pleasure: But they that honour the Leaf, which abideth with the Root, notwithstanding the Frosts and Winter Storms, are they which follow Vertue and during Qualities, without regard of worldly Respects.

W

HEN that Phebus his chaire of gold so hie Had whirled vp the sterrie sky aloft, And in the Boole was entred certainly, "When shoures sweet of raine descended soft, Causing the ground fele times and oft, V p for to giue many an wholsome aire, And euery plaine was clothed faire With new grene, and maketh small flours T o springen here, and there in field and in mede, 10 So very good and wholsome be the shoures, T h a t it reneueth that was old and deede, In winter time and out of euery seede Springeth the hearbe, so that euery wight Of this season wexeth glad and light. 4

soft] o f t F.

Fables:

The Flower and the Leaf

The Flower and the Leaf; Or, The Lady in the Arbour. A Vision.

N

ow turning from the wintry Signs, the Sun His Course exalted through the Ram had run: A n d whirling up the Skies, his Chariot drove Through Taurus, and the lightsome Realms of Love; Where Venus from her Orb descends in Show'rs T o glad the Ground, and paint the Fields with Flow'rs: W h e n first the tender Blades of Grass appear, A n d Buds that yet the blast of Eurus fear, Stand at the door of Life; and doubt to cloath the Year; 10 T i l l gentle Heat, and soft repeated Rains, Make the green Blood to dance within their Veins: T h e n , at their Call, embolden'd out they come, A n d swell the Gems, and burst the narrow Room; Broader and broader yet, their Blooms display, Salute the welcome Sun, and entertain the Day. T h e n from their breathing Souls the Sweets repair T o scent the Skies, and purge th' unwholsome Air: Joy spreads the Heart, and with a general Song, Spring issues out, and leads the jolly Months along. Arbour. A Vision.] half title in F; ARBOUR. F.

365

3

66

Poems,

169J-1J00

And I so glad of the season swete, Was happed thus vpon a certain night, As I lay in my bed, sleepe ful vnmete Was vnto me, but why that I ne might Rest, I ne wist, for there nas earthly wight, As I suppose, had more hearts ease T h e n I, for I nad sicknesse nor disease. Wherefore I meruaile greatly of my selfe, T h a t I so long withouten sleepe lay, And vp I rose three houres after twelfe, About the springing of the day, And on I put my geare and mine array, A n d to a pleasaunt groue I gan passe, Long or the bright sonne vp risen was, In which were Okes great, streight as a line, Vnder the which, the grasse so fresh of hew, Was newly sprong, and an eight foot or nine Euery tree well fro his felow grew, With braunches brode, lade with leues new, T h a t sprongen out ayen the sonne shene, Some very red, and some a glad light grene. Which, as me thought, was right a pleasaunt sight, And eke the birddes song fort here, Would haue reioised any earthly wight, And I that couth not yet in no manere, Heare the Nightingale of all the yere, Full busily herkened with hert and with eare, If I her voice perceiue could any where.

28 was,]

F.

Fables:

The Flower and the Leaf

In that sweet Season, as in Bed I lay, A n d sought in Sleep to pass the Night away, I turn'd my weary Side, but still in vain, T h o ' full of youthful Health, and void of Pain: Cares I had none, to keep me from my Rest, For Love had never enter'd in my Breast; I wanted nothing Fortune could supply, N o r did she Slumber till that hour deny: I wonder'd then, but after found it true, Much Joy had dry'd away the balmy Dew: Seas wou'd be Pools, without the brushing Air, } T o curl the Waves; and sure some little Care > Shou'd weary Nature so, to make her want r e p a i r . ' When Chaunticleer the second Watch had sung, Scorning the Scorner Sleep from Bed I sprung: A n d dressing, by the Moon, in loose Array, \ Pass'd out in open Air, preventing Day, > A n d sought a goodly Grove as Fancy led my w a y . ) Strait as a Line in beauteous Order stood Of Oaks unshorn a venerable Wood; Fresh was the Grass beneath, and ev'ry T r e e A t distance planted in a due degree, T h e i r branching Arms in Air with equal space Stretch'd to their Neighbours with a long Embrace: A n d the new Leaves on ev'ry Bough were seen, Some ruddy-colour'd, some of lighter green. T h e painted Birds, Companions of the Spring, Hopping from Spray to Spray, were heard to sing; Both Eyes and Ears receiv'd a like Delight, Enchanting Musick, and a charming Sight. On Philomel I fix'd my whole Desire; A n d list'n'd for the Queen of all the Quire; Fain would I hear her heav'nly Voice to sing; And wanted yet an Omen to the Spring. 30 Seas] Sea's F.

34

sprung:] — F.

367

Poems,

368

1697-1700

A n d at the last a path of litle breade I found, that greatly had not vsed be, For it forgrowen was with grasse and weede, That well vnneth a wight might it se: Thouzt I this path some whider goth parde, And so I followed, till it me brought T o right a pleasaunt herber well ywrought, T h a t benched was, and with turfes new Freshly turned, whereof the greene gras, So small, so thicke, so short, so fresh of hew, T h a t most like vnto green wel wot I it was, T h e hegge also that yede in compas, And closed in all the green herbere, With sicamour was set and eglatere. Wrethen in fere so wel and cunningly, T h a t euery branch and leafe grew by mesure, Plain as a bord, of an height by and by, I see neuer thing I you ensure, So wel done, for he that tooke the cure It to make ytrow, did all his peine T o make it passe all tho that men haue seyne. And shapen was this herber roofe and all As a prety parlour, and also T h e hegge, as thicke as a castel wall, T h a t who that list without to stond or go, T h o u g h he would all day prien to and fro, He should not see if there were any wight Within or no, but one within well might 63

passe]

F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf Attending long in vain; I took the way, Which through a Path, but scarcely printed, lay; In narrow Mazes oft it seem'd to meet, And look'd, as lightly press'd, by Fairy Feet. Wandring I walk'd alone, for still methought T o some strange End so strange a Path was wrought; At last it led me where an Arbour stood, T h e sacred Receptacle of the Wood: This Place unmark'd though oft I walk'd the Green, In all my Progress I had never seen: And seiz'd at once with Wonder and Delight, Gaz'd all around me, new to the transporting Sight. 'Twas bench'd with T u r f , and goodly to be seen, T h e thick young Grass arose in fresher Green: T h e Mound was newly made, no Sight cou'd pass Betwixt the nice Partitions of the Grass; T h e well-united Sods so closely lay; And all around the Shades defended it from Day. For Sycamours with Eglantine were spread, A Hedge about the Sides, a Covering over Head. And so the fragrant Brier was wove between, T h e Sycamour and Flow'rs were mix'd with Green, That Nature seem'd to vary the Delight; And satisfy'd at once the Smell and Sight. T h e Master Work-man of the Bow'r was known Through Fairy-Lands, and built for Oberonj Who twining Leaves with such Proportion drew, They rose by Measure, and by Rule they grew: No mortal Tongue can half the Beauty tell; For none but Hands divine could work so well. Both Roof and Sides were like a Parlour made, A soft Recess, and a cool Summer shade; The Hedge was set so thick, no Foreign Eye The Persons plac'd within it could espy: But all that pass'd without with Ease was seen, As if nor Fence nor Tree was plac'd between. 65,71

around] arround F.

75

Green,]

F.

369

Poems,1697-1700

37°

Perceiue all tho that yeden there without In the field that was on euery side Couered with corne and grasse, that out of doubt, T h o u g h one would seeke all the world wide, So rich a field could not be espide O n no coast, as of the quantity, For of all good thing there was plenty. And I that all this pleasaunt sight sie, Thought sodainly I felt so sweet an aire Of the eglentere, that certainly There is no heart I deme in such dispaire, Ne with thoughts froward and contraire, So ouerlaid, but it should soone haue bote, If it had ones felt this sauour soote. And as I stood and cast aside mine eie, I was ware of the fairest Medle tre T h a t euer yet in all rny life I sie, As ful of blosomes as it might be, Therein a goldfinch leaping pretile Fro bough to bough, and as him list he eet Here and there of buds and floures sweet. And to the herber side was joyning This faire tree, of which I haue you told, And at the last the brid began to sing, Whan he had eaten what he eat wold, So passing sweetly, that by manifold It was more pleasaunt than I could deuise, A n d when his song was ended in this wise, T h e Nightingale with so merry a note Answered him, that all the wood rong So sodainly, that as it were a sote, I stood astonied, so was I with the song Thorow rauished, that till late and long, 81

dispaire,]

F.

100 Answered] Answred F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf 'Twas border'd with a Field; and some was plain With Grass; and some was sow'd with rising Grain: That (now the Dew with Spangles deck'd the Ground) A sweeter spot of Earth was never found. I look'd, and look'd, and still with new Delight; Such Joy my Soul, such Pleasures fill'd my Sight: And the fresh Eglantine exhal'd a Breath; Whose Odours were of Pow'r to raise from Death: Nor sullen Discontent, nor anxious Care, Ev'n tho' brought thither, could inhabit there: But thence they fled as from their mortal Foe; For this sweet Place cou'd only Pleasure know. Thus, as I mus'd, I cast aside my Eye And saw a Medlar-Tree was planted nigh; T h e spreading Branches made a goodly Show, And full of opening Blooms was ev'ry Bough: A Goldfinch there I saw with gawdy Pride Of painted Plumes, that hopp'd from side to side, Still pecking as she pass'd; and still she drew The Sweets from ev'ry Flow'r, and suck'd the Dew: Suffic'd at length, she warbled in her Throat, And tun'd her Voice to many a merry Note, But indistinct, and neither Sweet nor Clear, Yet such as sooth'd my Soul, and pleas'd my Ear. Her short Performance was no sooner try'd, When she I sought, the Nightingale reply'd: So sweet, so shrill, so variously she sung, That the Grove eccho'd, and the Valleys rung: And I so ravish'd with her heav'nly Note I stood intranc'd, and had no room for Thought, 91 Grain:] F. 119 Thought,] F.

9s Ground)]

F.

371

37*

Poems,

1697-1700

I ne wist in what place I was, ne where, And ayen me thought she song euen by mine ere. Wherefore I waited about busily On euery side, if I her might see, And at the last I gan full well aspy Where she sat in a fresh greene laurey tree, 110 On the further side euen right by me, That gaue so passing a delicious smell, According to the eglentere full well. Whereof I had so inly great pleasure, That as me thought I surely rauished was Into Paradise, where my desire Was for to be, and no ferther passe As for that day, and on the sote grasse I sat me downe for as for mine entent, T h e birds song was more conuenient, 120

And more pleasaunt to me by manyfold, Than meat or drinke, or any other thing, Thereto the herber was so fresh and cold, The wholsome sauours eke so comforting, That as I deemed, sith the beginning Of the world was neuer seen or than So pleasant a ground of none earthly man.

And as I sat, the birds harkening thus, Me thought that I heard voices sodainly, The most sweetest and most delicious That euer any wight I trow trewly lso Heard in their life, for the armony And sweet accord was in so good musike, That the voice to Angels most was like. At the last, out of a groue euen by, That was right goodly, and pleasant to sight,

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf 120 B u t a l l o ' e r - p o w ' r ' d w i t h E x t a s y o f B l i s s , W a s i n a p l e a s i n g D r e a m of P a r a d i c e ; At length I wak'd; and looking round the

Bow'r

Search'd ev'ry T r e e , a n d pry'd on ev'ry Flow'r, If a n y w h e r e b y c h a n c e I m i g h t e s p y T h e r u r a l P o e t of t h e

Melody:

F o r still m e t h o u g h t she s u n g n o t far away; A t last I f o u n d h e r o n a L a w r e l

Spray,

Close b y m y Side she sate, a n d fair i n Sight, Full in a Line, against her opposite; 130 W h e r e s t o o d w i t h E g l a n t i n e t h e L a w r e l

twin'd:

A n d b o t h their native Sweets were well conjoin'd. O n t h e g r e e n B a n k I sat, a n d l i s t e n ' d

long;

(Sitting was m o r e convenient for the SongI) N o r till h e r L a y was e n d e d c o u l d I m o v e , B u t wish'd to dwell for ever in the

Grove.

O n l y m e t h o u g h t the t i m e too swiftly pass'd, A n d ev'ry N o t e I f e a r ' d w o u ' d b e t h e last. M y Sight, a n d Smell, a n d H e a r i n g were

employ'd,

A n d all three Senses in full G u s t enjoy'd: 140 A n d w h a t a l o n e d i d a l l t h e r e s t s u r p a s s , T h e s w e e t Possession of t h e F a i r y Place; Single, a n d c o n s c i o u s t o m y Self alone, Of Pleasures to th' excluded W o r l d

unknown:

P l e a s u r e s w h i c h n o w h e r e else, w e r e to b e f o u n d , A n d all

Elysium

i n a s p o t of

Ground.

T h u s w h i l e I sat i n t e n t to see a n d hear, A n d d r e w P e r f u m e s of m o r e t h a n v i t a l A i r , All suddenly I heard th' approaching Of vocal Musick, on th' enchanted

sound

Ground:

iso A n H o s t o f S a i n t s i t s e e m ' d , s o f u l l t h e Q u i r e ; \ A s if t h e B l e s s ' d a b o v e d i d a l l c o n s p i r e ,

>

T o j o i n their Voices, a n d neglect the Lyre.

)

A t length there issu'd f r o m the Grove

iso o'er-pow'r'd] o'er-pou'r'd F. 143 unknown:] F.

behind

159 enjoy'd:] — F.

373

Poems,

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I sie where there came singing lustily A world o£ ladies, but to tell aright Their great beauty, it lieth not in my might Ne their aray neuerthelesse I shall i«o T e l l you a part, though I speake not of all. The surcotes white of veluet wele sitting, They were clad, and the semes echone, As it were a maner garnishing, Was set with Emerauds one and one, By and by, but many a rich stone Was set on the purfiles out of dout Of colors, sleues, and traines round about. As great pearles round, and orient, Diamonds fine, and rubies red, 150 And many another stone, of which I went The names now, and euerich on her head, A rich fret of gold, which without dread Was full of stately rich stones set, And euery lady had a chapelet On her head of fresh and grene, So wele wrought, and so meruelously, That it was a noble sight to sene, Some of laurer, and some ful pleasauntly Had chaplets of woodbind, and sadly leo Some of Agnus castus were also Chapelets fresh, but there were many of tho That daunced, and eke song ful soberly, But all they yede in maner of compace, But one there yede in mid the company Soole by her selfe, but all folowed the pace That she kept, whose heauenly figured face So pleasaunt was, and her wele shape person, That of beauty she past hem euerichon. 148

echone] ech one F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf A fair Assembly of the Female Kind: A Train less fair, as ancient Fathers tell, Seduc'd the Sons of Heaven to rebel. I pass their Forms, and ev'ry charming Grace, Less than an Angel wou'd their Worth debase: But their Attire like Liveries of a kind, leo All rich and rare is fresh within my Mind. In Velvet white as Snow the Troop was gown'd, The Seams with sparkling Emeralds, set around; Their Hoods and Sleeves the same: And purfled o'er With Diamonds, Pearls, and all the shining store Of Eastern Pomp: Their long descending Train With Rubies edg'd, and Saphires, swept the Plain: High on their Heads, with Jewels richly set Each Lady wore a radiant Coronet. Beneath the Circles, all the Quire was grac'd 170 With Chaplets green on their fair Foreheads plac'd: Of Lawrel some, of Woodbine many more; And Wreaths of Agnus castus, others bore: These last who with those Virgin Crowns were dress'd, Appear'd in higher Honour than the rest. They danc'd around, but in the midst was seen A Lady of a more majestique Mien; By Stature, and by Beauty mark'd their Sovereign Queen. She in the midst began with sober Grace; Her Servants Eyes were fix'd upon her Face: i8o And as she mov'd or turn'd her Motions view'd, Her Measures kept, and Step by Step pursu'd. Methought she trod the Ground with greater Grace, With more of Godhead shining in her Face; And as in Beauty she surpass'd the Quire, 170 plac'd:]

F.

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And more richly beseene by manyfold 170 She was also in euery maner thing, On her head ful pleasaunt to behold, A crowne of gold rich for any king, A braunch of Agnus castus eke bearing In her hand, and to my sight trewly, She lady was of the company. And she began a roundell lustely, T h a t Suse le foyle de vert rnoy, men call, Seen & mon ioly cuer en dormy,

And than the company answered all, 180 With voice sweet entuned, and so small, That me thought it the sweetest melody That euer I heard in my life soothly. And thus they came dauncing and singing Into the middes of the mede echone, Before the herber where I was sitting, And God wot me thought I was wel bigone, For than I might auise hem one by one, Who fairest was, who coud best dance or sing, Or who most womanly was in all thing. 190

They had not daunced but a little throw, When that I heard not fer of sodainly, So great a noise of thundering trumps blow, As though it should haue departed the skie, And after that within a while I sie, From the same groue where the ladies come out, Of men of armes comming such a rout, As all ye men on earth had ben assembled In that place, wele horsed for the nones, 186 me] my F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf So, nobler than the rest, was her Attire. A Crown of ruddy Gold inclos'd her Brow, Plain without Pomp, and Rich without a Show: A Branch of Agnus castus in her Hand, She bore aloft (her Scepter of Command;) I» Admir'd, ador'd by all the circling Crowd, For wheresoe'er she turn'd her Face, they bow'd: And as she danc'd, a Roundelay she sung, In honour of the Lawrel, ever young: She rais'd her Voice on high, and sung so clear, The Fawns came scudding from the Groves to hear: And all the bending Forest lent an Ear. At ev'ry Close she made, th' attending Throng Reply'd, and bore the Burden of the Song: So just, so small, yet in so sweet a Note, 200 It seem'd the Musick melted in the Throat. Thus dancing on, and singing as they danc'd, They to the middle of the Mead advanc'd: Till round my Arbour, a new Ring they made, And footed it about the secret Shade: O'erjoy'd to see the jolly Troop so near, But somewhat aw'd I shook with holy Fear; Yet not so much, but that I noted well Who did the most in Song, or Dance excel. Not long I had observ'd, when from afar 210 I heard a suddain Symphony of War; The neighing Coursers, and the Soldiers cry, And sounding Trumps that seem'd to tear the Sky: I saw soon after this, behind the Grove From whence the Ladies did in order move, Come issuing out in Arms a Warrior-Train, That like a Deluge pour'd upon the Plain: On barbed Steeds they rode in proud Array, Thick as the College of the Bees in May, When swarming o'er the dusky Fields they fly, 220 New to the Flow'rs, and intercept the Sky.

377

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Stering so fast, that all the earth trembled: 200 But for to speake of riches and stones, And men and horse I trow ye large wones, Of Pretir John, ne all his tresory, Might not vnneth haue bouzt the tenth party. Of their array who so list heare more, I shal rehearse so as I can a lite: Out of the groue that I spake of before, I sie come first all in their clokes white, A company that were for their delite, Chapelets fresh of okes seriall, 210 Newly sprong, and trumpets they were all. On euery trumpe hanging a broad banere Of fine Tartarium were ful richely bete, Euery trumpet his lordes armes bere About their necks with great pearles sete, Colers brode for cost they would not lete, As it would seeme for their scochones echone, Were set about with many a precious stone. Their horse harneis was all white also, And after them next in one company, 220 Came kings of armes and no mo, In clokes of white cloth of gold richely, Chapelets of greene on their heads on hye, The crownes that they on their scochones bere, Were set with pearle, ruby, and Saphere. And eke great Diamonds many one, But all their horse harneis and other geare Was in a sute according euerichone, As ye haue heard the foresaid trumpets were, And by seeming they were nothing to lere, 230 And there guiding, they did so manerely, sog seriall] feriali F. 224 Saphere,J F.

213

bere] here F.

Fables:

The Flower and the Leaf

Sofiercethey drove, their Coursers were so fleet, That the Turf trembled underneath their Feet. To tell their costly Furniture were long, The Summers Day wou'd end before the Song: To purchase but the Tenth of all their Store, Would make the mighty Persian Monarch poor. Yet what I can, I will; before the rest The Trumpets issu'd in white Mantles dress'd: A numerous Troop, and all their Heads around ' 280 With Chaplets green of Cerrial-Oak were crown'd, And at each Trumpet was a Banner bound; , Which waving in the Wind display'd at large Their Master's Coat of Arms, and Knightly Charge. Broad were the Banners, and of snowy Hue, A purer Web the Silk-worm never drew. The chief about their Necks, the Scutcheons wore, With Orient Pearls and Jewels pouder'd o'er: Broad were their Collars too, and ev'ry one Was set about with many a costly Stone.

379

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38O

And after hem came a great company Of heraudes and purseuants eke, Arraied in clothes of white veluet, And hardily they were nothing to seke, How they on hem should the harneis set, And euery man had on a chapelet Scochones and eke horse harneis in dede, They had in sute of hem that before hem yede. Next after hem came in armour bright 240 All saue their heads, seemely knights nine, And euery claspe and naile as to my sight Of their harneis were of red gold fine, With cloth of gold, and furred with ermine Were the trappours of their stedes strong, Wide and large, that to the ground did hong. And euery boose of bridle and paitrell That they had, was worth as I would wene, A thousand pound, and on their heads well Dressed were crownes of laurer grene, 250 T h e best made that euer I had sene, And euery knight had after him riding Three hensh men on him awaiting, Of which euery on a short tronchoun His lords helme bare so richly dight, That the worst was worth the raunsoun Of a king, the second a shield bright Bare at his neck, the thred bare vpright A mighty spheare, ful sharpe ground and kene, 252

awaiting,]

. F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf zto Next these of Kings at Arms a goodly Train, In proud Array came prancing o'er the Plain: Their Cloaks were Cloth of Silver mix'd with Gold, And Garlands green around their Temples roll'd: Rich Crowns were on their royal Scutcheons plac'd With Saphires, Diamonds, and with Rubies grac'd. And as the Trumpets their appearance made, So these in Habits were alike array'd; But with a Pace more sober, and more slow: And twenty, Rank in Rank, they rode a-row. s6o T h e Pursevants came next in number more; And like the Heralds each his Scutcheon bore: Clad in white Velvet all their Troop they led, With each an Oaken Chaplet on his Head. Nine royal Knights in equal Rank succeed, Each Warrior mounted on a fiery Steed: In golden Armour glorious to behold; T h e Rivets of their Arms were nail'd with Gold. Their Surcoats of white Ermin-Fur were made; With Cloth of Gold between that cast a glitt'ring Shade. 260 T h e Trappings of their Steeds were of the same; T h e golden Fringe ev'n set the Ground on flame; And drew a precious Trail: A Crown divine Of Lawrel did about their Temples twine. Three Henchmen were for ev'ry Knight assign'd, All in rich Livery clad, and of a kind: White Velvet, but unshorn, for Cloaks they wore, And each within his Hand a Truncheon bore: The foremost held a Helm of rare Device; A Prince's Ransom wou'd not pay the Price. 270 T h e second bore the Buckler of his Knight, "i T h e third of Cornel-Wood a Spear upright, > Headed with piercing Steel, and polish'd bright.' 243 around] arround F.

3»2

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as» And euery child ware of leaues grene A fresh chapelet vpon his haires bright, And clokes white of fine veluet they were, Their steeds trapped and raied right Without difference as their lords were, And after hem on many a fresh corsere, There came of armed knights such a rout, That they besprad the large field about. And all they ware after their Degrees Chapelets new, made of laurer grene, Some of oke, and some of other trees. 270 Some in their honds bare boughes shene, Some of laurer, and some of okes kene, Some of hauthorne, and some of woodbind, And many mo, which I had not in mind. And so they came their horses freshly stering With bloody sownes of her trompes loud, There sie I many an vncouth disguising In the array of these knights proud, And at the last as euenly as they coud, They took their places in middes of the mede, no And euery knight turned his horse hede T o his fellow, and lightly laid a speare In the rest, and so iustes began On euery part about here and there, Some brake his spere, som drew down hors and man, About the field astray the steeds Tan And to behold their rule and gouernaunce, I you ensure it was a great pleasaunce And so the iustes last an hour and more, But tho that crowned were in laurer grene, xso Wan the prise, their dints were so sore, That there was none ayenst hem might sustene, 867 Degrees] Degree F.

288 an hour] and hour F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf Like to their Lords their Equipage was seen, And all their Foreheads crown'd with Garlands green. And after these came arm'd with Spear and Shield An Host so great, as cover'd all the Field: And all their Foreheads, like the Knights before, With Lawrels ever green were shaded o'er, Or Oak, or other Leaves of lasting kind, 280 Tenacious of the Stem and firm against the Wind. Some in their Hands besides the Lance and Shield, T h e Boughs of Woodbind or of Hauthorn held, Or Branches for their mistique Emblems took, Of Palm, of Lawrel, or of Cerrial Oak. Thus marching to the Trumpets lofty sound \ Drawn in two Lines adverse they wheel'd around, > And in the middle Meadow took their Ground. ) Among themselves the Turney they divide, In equal Squadrons, rang'd on either side: 290 Then turn'd their Horses Heads, and Man to Man, And Steed to Steed oppos'd, the Justs began. They lightly set their Lances in the rest, And, at the Sign, against each other press'd: They met, I sitting at my Ease beheld T h e mix'd Events, and Fortunes of the Field. Some broke their Spears, some tumbled Horse and Man, And round the Fields the lighten'd Coursers ran. An Hour and more like Tides, in equal sway They rush'd, and won by turns, and lost the Day: 800 At length the Nine (who still together held) "1 Their fainting Foes to shameful Flight compell'd, > And with resistless Force, o'er-ran the Field. ) 289 side:] — F. 897 Coursers] Courses F.

301

Flight] Fight F.

383

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And the iusting all was left of clene, And fro their horse the ninth alight anon, And so did all the remnant everichon. And forth they yede togider twain and twain, That to behold it was a worldly sight Toward the ladies on the green plain, That song and daunced as I said now right: The ladies as soone as they goodly might, 300 They brake of both the song and dance, And yede to meet hem with full glad semblance. And every lady took full womanly By the hond a knight, and forth they yede Unto a fair laurer that stood fast by, With leues laid the boughes of great brede, And to my dome there neuer was indede Man, that had seen halfe so faire a tre, For vnderneath there might it wel have be An hundred persons at their own plesance 310 Shadowed fro the heat of Phebus bright, So that they should have felt no greuance Of raine ne haile that hem hurt might, The sauour eke reioice would any wight, That had be sick or melancolius, It was so very good and vertuous. And with great reuerence they enclining low T o the tree so soot and faire of hew, And after that within a little throw They began to sing and daunce of new, 320 Some song of loue, some plaining of vntrew, Enuironing the tree that stood vpright, And euer yede a lady and a knight. And at the last I cast mine eie aside, And was ware of a lusty company

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf Thus, to their Fame, when finish'd was the Fight, The Victors from their lofty Steeds alight: Like them dismounted all the Warlike Train, And two by two proceeded o'er the Plain: Till to the fair Assembly they advanc'd, Who near the secret Arbour sung and danc'd. The Ladies left their Measures at the Sight, 310 T o meet the Chiefs returning from the Fight, And each with open Arms embrac'd her chosen Knight. Amid the Plain a spreading Lawrel stood, The Grace and Ornament of all the Wood: That pleasing Shade they sought, a soft retreat, From suddain April Show'rs, a Shelter from the Heat. Her leavy Arms with such extent were spread, So near the Clouds was her aspiring Head, That Hosts of Birds, that wing the liquid Air, Perch'd in the Boughs, had nightly Lodging there. 320 And Flocks of Sheep beneath the Shade from far Might hear the ratling Hail, and wintry War; From Heav'ns Inclemency here found retreat, Enjoy'd the cool, and shun'd the scorching Heat: A hundred Knights might there at Ease abide; And ev'ry Knight a Lady by his side: The Trunk it self such Odours did bequeath, That a Moluccan Breeze to these was common Breath. The Lords, and Ladies here approaching, paid \ Their Homage, with a low Obeisance made: / 83o And seem'd to venerate the sacred Shade. ) These Rites perform'd, their Pleasures they pursue, With Songs of Love, and mix with Measures new; Around the holy Tree their Dance they frame, And ev'ry Champion leads his chosen Dame. I cast my Sight upon the farther Field, And a fresh Object of Delight beheld: 387

Moluccan]

Moluccan F.

385

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That came roming out of the field wide, Hond in hond a knight and a lady, T h e ladies all in surcotes that richly Purfiled were with many a rich stone, And euery knight of greene ware mantels on. 330

Embrouded well so as the surcotes were, And euerich had a chaplet on her hed, Which did right well upon the shining here, Made of goodly floures white and red, The knights eke that they in hond led In sute of hem ware chapelets euerichone; And before hem went minstrels many one.

As Harpes, Pipes, Lutes, and Sautry All in greene, and on their heads bare Of divers floures made full craftely 340 All in a sute goodly chapelets they ware, And so dauncing into the mede they fare, In mid the which they found a tuft that was All ouersprad with floures in compas. Whereto they enclined euerichon With great reuerence, and that full humbly, And at the last there began anon A lady for to sing right womanly A Bargaret in praising the daisie, For as me thought among her notes swete 350 She said Si douset & la Margarete. Then they all answered her in fere, So passingly well, and so pleasauntly, That it was a blissful noise to here,

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf For from the Region of the West I heard New Musick sound, and a new Troop appear'd; Of Knights, and Ladies mix'd a jolly Band, 340 But all on Foot they march'd, and Hand in Hand. The Ladies dress'd in rich Symarrs were seen \ Of Florence Satten, flow'r'd with White and Green, > And for a Shade betwixt the bloomy Gridelin. ) T h e Borders of their Petticoats below Were guarded thick with Rubies on a row; And ev'ry Damsel wore upon her Head Of Flow'rs a Garland blended White and Red. Attir'd in Mantles all the Knights were seen, That gratify'd the View with chearful Green: 350 Their Chaplets of their Ladies Colours were Compos'd of White and Red to shade their shining Hair. Before the merry Troop the Minstrels play'd, All in their Master's Liveries were array'd: And clad in Green, and on their Temples wore, T h e Chaplets White and Red their Ladies bore. Their Instruments were various in their kind, Some for the Bow, and some for breathing Wind: T h e Sawtry, Pipe, and Hautbois noisy band, And the soft Lute trembling beneath the touching Hand. 3«o A T u f t of Dasies on a flow'ry Lay They saw, and thitherward they bent their way: T o this both Knights and Dames their Homage made, And due Obeisance to the Daisy paid. And then the Band of Flutes began to play, T o which a Lady sung a Virelay; And still at ev'ry close she wou'd repeat T h e Burden of the Song, The Daisy is so sweet. The Daisy is so sweet when she begun, T h e Troop of Knights and Dames continu'd on. 370 T h e Concert and the Voice so charm'd my Ear, And sooth'd my Soul, that it was Heav'n to hear. 345 a row] a-row F. 368 The Daisy is so sweet] The Daisy is so sweet F.

387

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But I not it happed sodainly, As about noone the sonne so fervently Waxe whote, that the prety tender floures Had lost the beauty of her fresh coloures. Forshronke with heat, the ladies eke tobrent, T h a t they ne wist where they hem might bestow, 360 T h e knights swelt for lack of shade nie shent, And after that within a little throw, T h e wind began so sturdily to blow, T h a t down goeth all the floures euerichone. So that in all the mede there laft not one, Saue such as succoured were among the leues, Fro euery storme that might hem assaile, Growing under hegges and thick greues, And after that there came a storm of haile, And raine in feare, so that withouten faile, s7o T h e ladies ne the knights nade o threed Dry on them, so dropping was her weed. And whan the storm was cleane passed away, T h o in white that stood vnder the tre, They felt nothing of the great affray, T h a t they in greene without had in ybe, T o them they yed for routh and pite, T h e m to comfort after their great disease, So faine they were the helplesse for to ease. T h e n I was ware how one of hem in grene 380 Had on a crown rich and well sitting Wherfore I demed wel she was a Quene, A n d tho in grene on her were awaiting, T h e ladies then in white that were coming Toward them, and the knightes in fere Began to comfort hem and make hem chere. 357 363

coloures] colures F. euerichone] euerich one F.

358

tobrent] to brent F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf But soon their Pleasure pass'd: At Noon of Day; The Sun with sultry Beams began to play: Not Sirius shoots a fiercer Flame from high, When with his pois'nous Breath he blasts the Sky: Then droop'd the fading Flow'rs (their Beauty fled) \ And clos'd their sickly Eyes, and hung the Head; > And, rivell'd up with Heat, lay dying in their Bed. ; The Ladies gasp'd, and scarcely could respire; 380 The Breath they drew, no longer Air, but Fire; The fainty Knights were scorch'd; and knew not where T o run for Shelter, for no Shade was near. And after this the gath'ring Clouds amain, Pour'd down a Storm of rattling Hail and Rain. And Lightning flash'd betwixt: The Field, and Flow'rs Burnt up before, were bury'd in the Show'rs. T h e Ladies, and the Knights no Shelter nigh, Bare to the Weather, and the wintry Sky, Were dropping wet, disconsolate and wan, 390 And through their thin Array receiv'd the Rain: While those in White protected by the Tree Saw pass the vain Assault, and stood from Danger free. But as Compassion mov'd their gentle Minds, When ceas'd the Storm, and silent were the Winds, Displeas'd at what, not suff'ring they had seen, They went to chear the Faction of the Green: 374 Sirius] Syrtus F. 390 Rain:) F (which begins a new paragraph with next 393 Same paragraph in F,

line).

389

390

Poems,i6gy~iyoo

The Queen in white, that was of great beauty, Tooke by the hond the queen that was in grene, And said, suster, I have right great pity Of your annoy, and of the troublous tene, 390 Wherein ye and your company have bene So long alas, and if that it you please T o go with me, I shall do you the ease, In all the pleasure that I can or may: Wherof the tother humbly as she might, Thanked her, for in right ill array She was with storm and heat I you behight, And euery lady, then anon right That were in white, one of them took in grene 400 By the hond, which when the Knights had sene, In likewise ech of them took a knight Clad in grene, and forth with hem they fare, T o an hegge, where they anon right T o make these iusts they would not spare Boughes to hew down, and eke trees square, Wherwith they made hem stately fires great, T o dry their clothes that were wringing weat. And after that of hearbs that there grew, They made for blisters of the sonne brenning, Very good and wholsome ointments new, 410 Where that they yede the sick fast anointing, And after that they yede about gadering Pleasaunt salades which they made hem eat, For to refresh their great vnkindly heat. The lady of the leafe then began to pray Her of the floure (for so to my seeming They should be as by their array) T o soupe with her, and eke for any thing, 388 40s

have right] have F. forth with] forthwith F.

39a

the ease] theease F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf

391

The Queen in white Array before her Band, Saluting, took her Rival by the Hand; So did the Knights and Dames, with courtly Grace «0 And with Behaviour sweet their Foes embrace. Then thus the Queen with Lawrel on her Brow, Fair Sister I have suffer'd in your Woe: Nor shall be wanting ought within my Pow'r For your Relief in my refreshing Bow'r. That other answer'd with a lowly Look, And soon the gracious Invitation took: For ill at ease both she and all her Train The scorching Sun had born, and beating Rain. Like Courtesy was us'd by all in White, 410 Each Dame a Dame receiv'd, and ev'ry Knight a Knight. T h e Lawrel-Champions with their Swords invade The neighb'ring Forests where the Justs were made, And Serewood from the rotten Hedges took, And Seeds of Latent-Fire from Flints provoke: A chearful Blaze arose, and by the Fire, They warm'd their frozen Feet, and dry'd their wet Attire. Refresh'd with Heat the Ladies sought around For virtuous Herbs which gather'd from the Ground They squeez'd the Juice; and cooling Ointment made, 00 Which on their Sun-burnt Cheeks, and their chapt Skins they laid: Then sought green Salads which they bad 'em eat, A Soveraign Remedy for inward Heat. The Lady of the Leaf ordain'd a Feast, And made the Lady of the Flow'r her Guest: 411

invade]

F.

392

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That she should with her all her people bring: And she ayen in right goodly manere, 420 Thanketh her of her most friendly cheare, Saying plainly, that she would obay With all her hart all her commaundement, And then anon without lenger delay T h e lady of the Leafe hath one ysent For a palfray after her intent, Araied well and fair in harnais of gold, For nothing lacked, that to him long shold. And after that to all her company She made to puruey horse and euery thing 4so That they needed, and then full lustily, Euen by the herber where I was sitting They passed all so pleasantly singing, That it would have comforted any wight, But then I sie a passing wonder sight. For then the nightingale, that all the day Had in the laurer sete, and did her might The whol seruice to sing longing to May, All sodainly gan to take her flight, And to the lady of the leafe forth right 440 She flew, and set her on her hond softly, Which was a thing I marueled of greatly. T h e goldfinch eke that fro the medill tre Was fled for heat into the bushes cold, Unto the Lady of the Flower gan fle, And on hir hond he set him as he wold, And pleasantly his wings gan to fold, And for to sing they pained hem both as sore, As they had do of all the day before. And so these Ladies rode forth a great pace, 450 And all the rout of knights eke in fere,

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf When lo, a Bow'r ascended on the Plain, With suddain Seats adorn'd, and large for either Train. This Bow'r was near my pleasant Arbour plac'd, That I could hear and see whatever pass'd: T h e Ladies sat, with each a Knight between «0 Distinguish'd by their Colours White and Green: T h e vanquish'd Party with the Victors join'd, Nor wanted sweet Discourse, the Banquet o£ the Mind. Mean time the Minstrels play'd on either side Vain of their Art, and for the Mast'ry vy'd: T h e sweet Contention lasted for an Hour, And reach'd my secret Arbour from the Bow'r. The Sun was set; and Vesper to supply His absent Beams, had lighted up the Sky: When Philomel, officious all the Day 440 T o sing the Service of th' ensuing May, Fled from her Lawrel Shade, and wing'd her Flight Directly to the Queen array'd in White: And hopping sate familiar on her Hand, A new Musitian, and increas'd the Band. T h e Goldfinch, who to shun the scalding Heat, Had chang'd the Medlar for a safer Seat, And hid in Bushes scap'd the bitter Show'r, Now perch'd upon the Lady of the Flow'r; And either Songster holding out their Throats, 460 And folding up their Wings renew'd their Notes: As if all Day, preluding to the Fight, They only had rehears'd, to sing by Night. T h e Banquet ended, and the Battle done, They danc'd by Star-light and the friendly Moon: And when they were to part, the Laureat Queen, Supply'd with Steeds the Lady of the Green; Her, and her Train conducting on the way T h e Moon to follow, and avoid the Day. 457

Vesper] Vesper F.

456 Green;]

F.

393

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And I that had sene all this wonder case, Thought I would assay in some manere, T o know fully the trouth of this matere, And what they were that rode so pleasantly, And when they were the herber passed by, I drest me forth, and happed to mete anon Right a faire Lady I you ensure, And she come riding by hir self alone, All in white, with semblance ful demure. 480 I saluted her, and bad her good auenture Must her befall, as I coud most humbly, And she answered, my doughter gramercy. Madam (qd. I) if that I durst enquere Of you I would faine of that company Wit what they be that past by this arbere, And she ayen answered right friendly: My faire doughter, all tho that passed hereby 459 demure.]

F.

Fables:

The Flower and the Leaf

This when I saw, inquisitive to know 460 T h e secret Moral of the Mystique Show, I started from my Shade in hopes to find Some Nymph to satisfy my longing Mind: And as my fair Adventure fell, I found A Lady all in White with Lawrel crown'd Who clos'd the Rear, and softly pac'd along, Repeating to her self the former Song. With due respect my Body I inclin'd, As to some Being of Superiour Kind, And made my Court, according to the Day, 470 Wishing her Queen and Her a happy May. Great Thanks my Daughter, with a gracious Bow She said; and I who much desir'd to know Of whence she was, yet fearful how to break My Mind, adventur'd humbly thus to speak. Madam, Might I presume and not offend, So may the Stars and shining Moon attend Your Nightly Sports, as you vouchsafe to tell, ) What Nymphs they were who mortal Forms excel, > And what the Knights who fought in listed Fields so well.' 48o

T o this the Dame reply'd, Fair Daughter know That what you saw, was all a Fairy Show: And all those airy Shapes you now behold Were humane Bodies once, and cloath'd with earthly Mold: Our Souls not yet prepar'd for upper Light, T i l l Doomsday wander in the Shades of Night; This only Holiday of all the Year, We priviledg'd in Sun-shine may appear: With Songs and Dance we celebrate the Day, And with due Honours usher in the May. 49o At other Times we reign by Night alone, And posting through the Skies pursue the Moon: But when the Morn arises, none are found; For cruel Demogorgon walks the round, And if he finds a Fairy lag in Light, He drives the Wretch before; and lashes into Night.

395

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In white clothing, be seruants euerichone Vnto the Leafe, and I my self am one. 470

Se ye not her that crowned is (qd. she) All in white? Madame (qd. I) yes: That is Diane, goddes of chastity, And for bicause that she a maiden is, In her hond the braunch she bereth this, That Agnus castus men call properly, And all the ladies in her company

Which ye se of that hearb chaplets weare, Be such as han kepte alway her maidenhede: And all they that of laurer chaplets beare, «so Be such as hardy were and manly indeed, Victorious name which neuer may be dede, And all they were so worthy of ther hond, In her time that none might hem withstond. And tho that weare chapelets on ther hede Of fresh woodbind, be such as neuer were T o loue vntrue in word, thought, ne dede, But aye stedfast, ne for pleasance, ne fere, Thogh that they shuld their harts all to tere, Would neuer flit, but euer were stedfast, 490 Till that their liues there asunder brast. Now faire Madame (qd. I) yet I would pray, Your ladiship if that it might be, That I might know by some maner way, Sith that it hath liked your beaute, The trouth of these ladies for to tell me, What that these knights be in rich armour, And what tho be in greene and weare the flour?

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf

397

All Courteous are by Kind; and ever proud With friendly Offices to help the Good. In every Land we have a larger Space Than what is known to you of mortal Race: BOO Where we with Green adorn our Fairy Bow'rs, And ev'n this Grove unseen before, is ours. Know farther; Ev'ry Lady cloath'd in White, And, crown'd with Oak and Lawrel ev'ry Knight, Are Servants to the Leaf, by Liveries known Of Innocence; and I my self am one. Saw you not Her so graceful to behold In white Attire, and crown'd with Radiant Gold? The Soveraign Lady of our Land is She, Diana call'd, the Queen of Chastity: 610 And, for the spotless Name of Maid she bears, That Agnus castus in her Hand appears: And all her Train with leavy Chaplets crown'd Were for unblam'd Virginity renown'd: But those the chief and highest in Command Who bear those holy Branches in their Hand: The Knights adorn'd with Lawrel-Crowns, are they ^ > Whom Death nor Danger ever cou'd dismay, Victorious Names, who made the World obey: / Who while they liv'd, in Deeds of Arms excell'd, «20 And after Death for Deities were held. But those who wear the Woodbine on their Brow Were Knights of Love, who never broke their Vow: Firm to their plighted Faith, and ever free From Fears and fickle Chance, and Jealousy. T h e Lords and Ladies, who the Woodbine bear, As true as Tristram, and Isotta were. But what are those said I, th' unconquer'd Nine Who crown'd with Lawrel-Wreaths in golden Armour shine? And who the Knights in Green, and what the Train Sao Of Ladies dress'd with Daisies on the Plain? 507 Gold?]

F.

Poems,1697-ijoo

398

And why that some did reuerence to the tre, And some vnto the plot of floures faire: MO With rizt good will my fair doughter (qd. she) Sith youre desire is good and debonaire, T h o nine crowned be very exemplaire, Of all honour longing to chiualry, And those certaine be called the nine worthy, Which ye may se riding all before, That in her time did many a noble dede, And for their worthines ful oft haue bore The crowne of laurer leaues on their hede, As ye may in your old bookes rede, 810 And how that he that was a conquerour, Had by laurer alway his most honour. And tho that beare bowes in their hond Of the precious laurer so notable, Be such as were I woll ye vnderstond, Noble knights of the round table, And eke the douseperis honourable, Which they bare in the signe of victory, It is witnes of their dedes mightily. Eke there be knights old of the Garter, s2o That in her time did right worthily, And the honour they did to the laurer, Is for by they haue their laud wholly, Their Triumph eke and marshall glory, Which vnto them is more parfit riches, Then any wight imagine can or gesse. For one leafe giuen of that noble tre, T o any wight that hath done worthily, And it be done so as it ought to be, Is more honour than any thing earthly, 504

worthy,]

F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf Why both the Bands in Worship disagree, And some adore the Flow'r, and some the Tree? Just is your Suit, fair Daughter, said the Dame, Those lawrell'd Chiefs were Men of mighty Fame; Nine Worthies were they call'd of diff'rent Rites, Three Jews, three Pagans, and three Christian Knights. These, as you see, ride foremost in the Field, \ As they the foremost Rank of Honour held, > / And all in Deeds of Chivalry excell'd: MO Their Temples wreath'd with Leafs, that still renew; For deathless Lawrel is the Victor's due: Who bear the Bows were Knights in Arthur's Reign, Twelve they, and twelve the Peers of Charlemain: For Bows the Strength of brawny Arms imply, Emblems of Valour, and of Victory. Behold an Order yet of newer Date Doubling their Number, equal in their State; Our England's Ornament, the Crown's Defence, In Battle brave, Protectors of their Prince: i5o Unchang'd by Fortune, to their Soveraign true, For which their manly Legs are bound with Blue. These, of the Garter call'd, of Faith unstain'd, \ In fighting Fields the Lawrel have obtain'd, > And well repaid those Honours which they gain'd.; 539

excell'd:]

F.

549

Prince:] — F.

399

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6so Witnes of Rome that founder was truly Of all knighthood and deeds maruelous, Record I take of Titus Liuius. And as for her that crowned is in greene, It is Flora, of these floures goddesse, And all that here on her awaiting beene, It are such that loued idlenes, And not delite of no busines, But for to hunt, and hauke, and pley in medes, And many other such idle dedes. 540

And for the great delite and pleasaunce They haue to the floure, and so reuerently They vnto it do such obeisaunce, As ye may se. Now faire Madame (qd. I) If I durst aske what is the cause, and why, That knightes haue the signe of honour, Rather by the leafe than by the floure?

Sothly doughter (qd. shee) this is the trouth, For knights euer should be perseuering, T o seeke honour without feintise or slouth, 550 Fro wele to better in all maner thing, In signe of which with leaues aye lasting, They be rewarded after their degree, Whose lusty green May, may not appaired be. But aye keping their beauty fresh and greene, For there nis storme that may hem deface, Haile nor snow, wind nor frosts kene, Wherefore they haue this propertie and grace, And for the floure within a little space Woll be lost, so simple of nature 5«o They be, that they no greuance may endure. And euery storme will blow them soone away, 543

se. Now] se now F.

546

floure?]F.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf The And One And

Lawrel-Wreaths were first by Casar worn, still they CCesar's Successors adorn: Leaf of this is Immortality, more of Worth, than all the World can buy.

One Doubt remains, said I, the Dames in Green, sso What were their Qualities, and who their Queen? Flora commands, said she, those Nymphs and Knights, W h o liv'd in slothful Ease, and loose Delights: Who never Acts of Honour durst pursue, T h e Men inglorious Knights, the Ladies all untrue: W h o nurs'd in Idleness, and train'd in Courts, Pass'd all their precious Hours in Plays, and Sports, T i l l Death behind came stalking on, unseen, A n d wither'd (like the Storm) the freshness of their Green. These, and their Mates, enjoy the present Hour, «70 And therefore pay their Homage to the Flow'r. But Knights in Knightly Deeds should persevere, ^ And still continue what at first they were; > Continue, and proceed in Honours fair Career. * N o room for Cowardise, or dull delay; From Good to Better they should urge their way. For this with golden Spurs the Chiefs are grac'd, With pointed Rowels arm'd to mend their haste; For this with lasting Leaves their Brows are bound; For Lawrel is the Sign of Labour crown'd; 580 Which bears the bitter Blast, nor shaken falls to Ground: From Winter-Winds it suffers no decay, For ever fresh and fair, and ev'ry Month is May. Ev'n when the vital Sap retreats below, Ev'n when the hoary Head is hid in Snow; T h e Life is in the Leaf, and still between T h e Fits of falling Snows, appears the streaky Green. Not so the Flow'r which lasts for little space A short-liv'd Good, and an uncertain Grace; This way and that the feeble Stem is driv'n, sso Weak to sustain the Storms, and Injuries of Heav'n.

401

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Ne they last not but for a season, That is their cause the very trouth to say, That they may not by no way of reason Be put to no such occupacion. Madame (qd. I) with all mine whole seruise, I thanke you now in my most humble wise. For now I am acertained throughly Of euery thing I desired to know. 570 I am right glad that I haue said sothly Ought to your pleasure if ye will me trow (Qd. she ayen) but to whom doe you owe Your seruice, and which woll ye honour, Tell me I pray, this year, the leafe or the floure. Madame (qd. I) though I least worthy, Vnto the leafe I owe mine obseruance: That is (qd. she) right well done certainly, And I pray God to honour you auaunce, And kepe you fro the wicked remembraunce 580 Of male bouch and all his crueltie, And all that good and well condicioned be. For here may I no lenger now abide, I must follow the great company That ye may see yonder before you ride. And forth as I couth most humbly, I tooke my leue of her as she gan hie After hem as fast as euer she might, And I drow homeward, for it was nigh night, And put all that I had seen in writing 590 Vnder support of them that lust it to rede. 563 is]i£F. 569 know.] /—, F. 578 she ayen)] she) ayen F.

565 occupacion.] 571 trow] F. 584 ride.] .w, F.

F.

Fables:

The Flower and the Leaf

Prop'd by the Spring, it lifts aloft, the Head, \ But of a sickly Beauty, soon to shed; > In Summer living, and in Winter dead. ; For Things of tender Kind for Pleasure made Shoot u p with swift Increase, and suddain are decay'd. W i t h humble Words, the wisest I could frame, A n d profer'd Service I repaid the Dame: T h a t of her Grace she gave her Maid to know T h e secret meaning of this moral Show. 800 A n d she to prove what Profit I had made, Of mystique Truth, in Fables first convey'd, Demanded, till the next returning May, Whether the Leaf or Flow'r I would obey. I chose the Leaf; she smil'd with sober Chear, A n d wish'd me fair Adventure for the Year: A n d gave me Charms and Sigils, for Defence Against ill Tongues that scandal Innocence: But I, said she, my Fellows must pursue, Already past the Plain, and out of view. eio

W e parted thus; I homeward sped my way, \ Bewilder'd in the Wood till Dawn of Day: > A n d met the merry Crew who danc'd about the May. ) T h e n late refresh'd with Sleep I rose to write T h e visionary Vigils of the Night: 603

obey.]

F.

605 Year:] — F.

403

404

Poems,

1697-1700

O little booke, thou art so vnconning, How darst thou put thy selfe in prees for drede, It is wonder that thou wexest not rede, Sith that thou wost ful lite who shall behold Thy rude langage, ful boistously vnfold.

Fables: The Flower and the Leaf Blush, as thou may'st, my little Book for Shame, Nor hope with homely Verse to purchase Fame; For such thy Maker chose; and so design'd Thy simple Style to sute thy lowly Kind.

405

Poems,

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The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, Wholly Translated. Connection to the End of the Eleventh Book. JLsacus, the Son of Priam, loving a Country-Life, forsakes the Court: Living obscurely, he falls in Love with a Nymph; ivho flying from him, was kill'd by a Serpent; for Grief of this, he wou'd have drown'd himself; but by the pity of the Gods, is turn'd into a Cormorant. Priam, not hearing of jEsacus, believes him to be dead, and raises a Tomb to preserve his Memory. By this Transition, which is one of the finest in all O v i d , the Poet naturally falls into the Story of the T r o j a n War, which is summ'd up, in the present Book, but so very briefly, in many Places, that O v i d seems more short than Virgil, contrary to his usual Style. Yet the House of Fame, which is here describ'd, is one of the most beautiful Pieces in the whole Metamorphoses. The Fight of Achilles and Cygnus, and the Fray betwixt the Lapythae and Centaurs, yield to no other part of this Poet: And particularly the Loves and Death of Cyllarus and Hylonome, the Male and Female Centaur, are wonderfully moving.

P

to w h o m the Story was unknown, A s dead, deplor'd his Metamorphos'd Son: A Cenotaph his N a m e and T i t l e kept, A n d Hector round the T o m b , with all his Brothers wept. RIAM,

T h i s pious Office Paris did not share, Absent alone; and A u t h o r of the W a r , W h i c h , for the Spartan Q u e e n , the Grecians T ' avenge the Rape; and Asia to subdue. Ovid /¡II] half title in F; THE F.

drew

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book XII

407

A thousand Ships were man'd, to sail the Sea: \ Nor had their just Resentments found delay, > Had not the Winds and Waves, oppos'd their way. / A t Aulis, with United Pow'rs they meet, But there, Cross-winds or Calms, detain'd the Fleet. Now, while they raise an Altar on the Shore, A n d Jove with solemn Sacrifice adore; A boding Sign the Priests and People see: A Snake of size immense, ascends a Tree, A n d in the leavy Summet, spy'd a Neast, Which, o'er her Callow young, a Sparrow press'd. Eight were the Birds unfledg'd; their Mother flew; A n d hover'd round her Care; but still in view: T i l l the fierce Reptile first devour'd the Brood; T h e n siez'd the flutt'ring Dam, and drunk her Blood. T h i s dire Ostent, the fearful People view; Calchas alone, by Phcebus taught, foreknew What Heav'n decreed; and with a smiling Glance, T h u s gratulates to Greece her happy Chance. O Argives we shall Conquer: Troy is ours, But long Delays shall first afflict our Pow'rs: Nine Years of Labour, the nine Birds portend; T h e T e n t h shall in the Town's Destruction end. T h e Serpent, who his Maw obscene had fill'd, T h e Branches in his curl'd Embraces held: But, as in Spires he stood, he turn'd to Stone: T h e stony Snake retain'd the Figure still his own. Yet, not for this, the Wind-bound Navy weigh'd, (Slack were their Sails) and Neptune disobey'd. Some thought him loath the T o w n shou'd be destroy'd, Whose Building had his Hands divine employ'd: Not so the Seer; who knew, and known foreshow'd, 17

Tree,] — F.

37

(Slack . . . Sails)]

...

F.

408

Poems,

1697-1700

The Virgin Phoebe, with a Virgin's Blood Must first be reconcil'd; the common Cause Prevail'd; and Pity yielding to the Laws, Fair Iphigenia the devoted Maid Was, by the weeping Priests, in Linnen-Robes array'd; All mourn her Fate; but no Relief appear'd: The Royal Victim bound, the Knife already rear'd: When that offended Pow'r, who caus'd their Woe, Relenting ceas'd her Wrath; and stop'd the coming Blow. A Mist before the Ministers she cast; And, in the Virgin's room, a Hind she plac'd. Th' Oblation slain, and Phoebe reconcil'd, The Storm was hush'd, and dimpled Ocean smil'd: A favourable Gale arose from Shore, Which to the Port desir'd, the Grecian Gallies bore. Full in the midst of this Created Space, Betwixt Heav'n, Earth and Skies; there stands a Place, Confining on all three; with triple Bound; \ Whence all Things, though remote, are view'd around; > And thither bring their Undulating Sound: ) The Palace of loud Fame; her Seat of Pow'r; Plac'd on the Summet of a lofty Tow'r; A thousand winding Entries long and wide, Receive of fresh Reports a flowing Tide. A thousand Crannies in the Walls are made; Nor Gate nor Bars exclude the busy Trade. 'Tis built of Brass the better to diffuse The spreading Sounds, and multiply the News: Where Ecchos, in repeated Ecchos play: A Mart for ever full; and open Night and Day. Nor Silence is within, nor Voice express, But a deaf Noise of Sounds that never cease: Confus'd, and Chiding, like the hollow Roar Of Tides, receding from th' insulted Shore: 41,52 Phoebe] PheebeV, 60 Sound:] F. 69 Ecchos ... Ecchos] Eccho's... Eccho's F. 7a cease:] F. 74 Shore:] F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book XII Or like the broken Thunder, heard from far, When Jove to distance drives the rowling War. The Courts are fill'd with a tumultuous Din Of Crowds, or issuing forth, or entring in: A thorough fare of News: Where some devise so Things never heard; some mingle Truth with Lies: The troubled Air with empty Sounds they beat: Intent to hear; and eager to repeat. Error sits brooding there; with added Train Of vain Credulity; and Joys as vain: Suspicion, with Sedition join'd, are near; And Rumors rais'd, and Murmurs mix'd, and Panique Fear. Fame sits aloft; and sees the subject Ground; And Seas about, and Skies above; enquiring all around. The Goddess gives th' Alarm; and soon is known ao The Grecian Fleet, descending on the Town. Fix'd on Defence the Trojans are not slow T o guard their Shore, from an expected Foe. They meet in Fight: By Hector's fatal Hand Protesilaus falls; and bites the Strand: Which with expence of Blood the Grecians won; And prov'd the Strength unknown of Priam's Son. And to their Cost the Trojan Leaders felt The Grecian Heroes; and what Deaths they dealt. From these first Onsets, the Sigeean Shore 100 Was strew'd with Carcasses; and stain'd with Gore: Neptunian Cygnus, Troops of Greeks had slain; Achilles in his Carr had scow'r'd the Plain, And clear'd the Trojan Ranks: Where e'er he fought, Cygnus, or Hector, through the Fields he sought: Cygnus he found; on him his Force essay'd: For Hector was to the tenth Year delay'd. His white man'd Steeds, that bow'd beneath the Yoke He chear'd to Courage, with a gentle Stroke; 101 Neptunian] Neptuman F.

loa Plain,] c*: F.

409

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Then urg'd his fiery Chariot on the Foe; no And rising, shook his Lance; in act to throw. But first, he cry'd, O Youth be proud to bear Thy Death, enobled, by Pelides Spear. T h e Lance pursu'd the Voice without delay; Nor did th' whizzing Weapon miss the way: But pierc'd his Cuirass, with such Fury sent; And sign'd his Bosom with a Purple dint. At this the Seed of Neptune; Goddess-born, For Ornament, not Use, these Arms are worn; This Helm, and heavy Buckler I can spare; 120 As only Decorations of the War: So Mars is arm'd for Glory, not for Need. 'Tis somewhat more from Neptune to proceed, Than from a Daughter of the Sea to spring: Thy Sire is Mortal; mine is Ocean's King. Secure of Death, I shou'd contemn thy Dart, Tho' naked; and impassible depart: He said, and threw: The trembling Weapon pass'd Through nine Bull-hides, each under other plac'd; On his broad Shield; and stuck within the last. 130 Achilles wrench'd it out; and sent again The hostile Gift: The hostile Gift was vain. He try'd a third, a tough well-chosen Spear; T h ' inviolable Body stood sincere; Though Cygnus then did no Defence provide, But scornful offer'd his unshielded Side. Not otherwise th' impatient Hero far'd, Than as a Bull, incompass'd with a Guard Amid the Circus roars: Provok'd from far By sight of Scarlet, and a sanguine War: 140 They quit their Ground; his bended Horns elude; In vain pursuing, and in vain pursu'd. Before to farther Fight he wou'd advance, He stood considering, and survey'd his Lance: 13s

third,.. . Spear;]

...

F.

143 Lance:]

F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses,

Book XII

Doubts if he wielded not a Wooden Spear Without a Point: He look'd, the Point was there. This is my Hand, and this my Lance he sed; ) By which so many thousand Foes are dead. > 0 whether is their usual Virtue fled? ) 1 had it once; and the Lyrnessian Wall, I» And Tenedos confess'd it in their fall. Thy Streams, Caicus, rowl'd a Crimson-Flood; And Thebes ran Red with her own Natives Blood. Twice Telephus employ'd this piercing Steel, T o wound him first, and afterward to heal. The Vigour of this Arm, was never vain; ) And that my wonted Prowess I retain, > Witness these heaps of Slaughter on the Plain. / He said; and doubtful of his former Deeds; T o some new trial of his Force proceeds, ire He chose Mencetes from among the rest; At him he lanch'd his Spear; and pierc'd his Breast: On the hard Earth, the Lycian knock'd his Head; And lay supine; and forth the Spirit fled. Then thus the Hero; Neither can I blame; The Hand, or Javelin; both are still the same. The same I will employ against this Foe; And wish but with the same Success to throw. So spoke the Chief; and while he spoke he threw; T h e Weapon with unerring Fury flew: 170 At his left Shoulder aim'd: Nor entrance found; But back, as from a Rock, with swift rebound Harmless return'd: A bloody Mark appear'd, Which with false Joy, the flatter'd Hero chear'd. Wound there was none; the Blood that was in view, The Lance before from slain Mencetes drew. 146 sed] se'd F. 148 fled?] F. 160 Mencetes] Menâtes F. 169 flew:] ,—1 F.

151 Caïcus] Caicus F. 164 Neither] neither F. 175 Mencetes] Mencetes F.

4x1

412

Poems,

1697-1700

Headlong he leaps from off his lofty Car, And in close Fight on foot renews the War: Raging with high Disdain, repeats his Blows; Nor Shield nor Armour can their Force oppose; i«o Huge Cantlets of his Buckler strew the Ground, And no Defence in his bor'd Arms is found. But on his Flesh, no Wound or Blood is seen; The Sword it self, is blunted on the Skin. This vain Attempt the Chief no longer bears; But round his hollow Temples and his Ears His Buckler beats: The Son of Neptune, stun'd With these repeated Buffets, quits his Ground; A sickly Sweat succeeds; and Shades of Night: Inverted Nature swims before his Sight: 190 Th' insulting Victor presses on the more, And treads the Steps the vanquish'd trod before: Nor Rest, nor Respite gives: A Stone there lay, Behind his trembling Foe; and stop'd his way. Achilles took th' Advantage which he found, O'er-turn'd, and push'd him backward on the Ground. His Buckler held him under, while he press'd With both his Knees above, his panting Breast: Unlac'd his Helm: About his Chin the Twist He ty'd; and soon the strangled Soul dismiss'd. 200

With eager haste he went to strip the Dead: The vanish'd Body from his Arms was fled. His Sea-God Sire t' immortalize his Fame, Had turn'd it to the Bird, that bears his Name. A Truce succeeds the Labours of this Day, And Arms suspended with a long delay. While Trojan Walls are kept with Watch and Ward; The Greeks before their Trenches, mount the Guard; 177 War:] F. 180 Ground] Gronnd F. 191 before:] F.

188 and] aud F. 197 Breast:] — F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book XII

415

The Feast approach'd; when to the blue-Ey'd Maid \ His Vows for Cygnus slain the Victor paid, > sio And a white Heyfer, on her Altar laid. / The reeking Entrails on the Fire they threw; And to the Gods the grateful Odour flew: Heav'n had its part in Sacrifice: The rest Was broil'd and roasted for the future Feast. The chief invited Guests, were set around: And Hunger first asswag'd, the Bowls were crown'd, Which in deep Draughts, their Cares and Labours drown'd. The mellow Harp did not their Ears employ: And mute was all the Warlike Symphony: 220 Discourse, the Food of Souls, was their Delight, And pleasing Chat, prolong'd the Summers-night: The Subject, Deeds of Arms; and Valour shown Or on the Trojan side, or on their own. Of Dangers undertaken, Fame atchiev'd; They talk'd by turns; the Talk by turns reliev'd. What Things but these, cou'd fierce Achilles tell, Or what cou'd fierce Achilles hear so well? The last great Act perform'd, of Cygnus slain, Did most the Martial Audience entertain: 2so Wondring to find a Body, free by Fate From Steel; and which cou'd ev'n that Steel rebate: Amaz'd, their Admiration they renew; And scarce Pelides cou'd believe it true. Then Nestor, thus: What once this Age has known, In fated Cygnus, and in him alone, These Eyes have seen in Cceneus long before, Whose Body, not a thousand Swords cou'd bore. Cceneus, in Courage, and in Strength excell'd; And still his Othrys with his Fame is fill'd: 240 But what did most his Martial Deeds adorn, (Though since he chang'd his Sex) a Woman born. 221 236

Summers-night:] «V, 1* . These] Those F.

239

Othrys] Othry's, F.

Poems, 1697-1

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joo

A Novelty so strange, and full of Fate, His list'ning Audience ask'd him to relate. Achilles, thus commends their common Sute; O Father, first for Prudence in repute, Tell, with that Eloquence, so much thy own, What thou hast heard, or what of Cceneus known: What was he, whence his change of Sex begun, What Trophies, join'd in Wars with thee, he won? 2so Who conquer'd him, and in what fatal Strife The Youth without a Wound, cou'd lose his Life? Neleides then; Though tardy Age, and Time Have shrunk my Sinews, and decay'd my Prime: Though much I have forgotten of my Store, Yet not exhausted, I remember more. Of all that Arms atchiev'd, or Peace design'd, That Action still is fresher in my Mind Than ought beside. If Reverend Age can give T o Faith a Sanction, in my third I live. 260

'Twas in my second Cent'ry, I survey'd Young Ceenis, then a fair Thessalian Maid: Ccenis the bright, was born to high Command; A Princess; and a Native of thy Land, Divine Achilles; every Tongue proclaim'd Her Beauty; and her Eyes all Hearts inflam'd. Peleus, thy Sire, perhaps had sought her Bed; Among the rest; but he had either led Thy Mother then; or was by Promise ty'd: But she to him, and all alike her Love deny'd.

270

It was her Fortune once, to take her way Along the sandy Margin of the Sea: The Pow'r of Ocean view'd her as she pass'd, And lov'd as soon as seen, by Force embrac'd. 25a

Though] though F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses,

Book XII

415

So Fame reports. Her Virgin-Treasure seiz'd, And his new Joys, the Ravisher so pleas'd, That thus, transported, to the Nymph he cry'd; Ask what thou wilt, no Pray'r shall be deny'd. This also Fame relates: The haughty Fair Who not the Rape, ev'n of a God cou'd bear, 280 This Answer, proud, return'd: To mighty Wrongs A mighty Recompence, of right, belongs. Give me no more to suffer such a Shame; But change the Woman, for a better Name, One Gift for all: She said; and while she spoke, A stern, majestick, manly Tone she took. A Man she was: And as the Godhead swore, T o Cceneus turn'd, who Ccenis was before. T o this the Lover adds without request: No force of Steel shou'd violate his Breast. 290 Glad of the Gift, the new-made Warrior goes: And Arms among the Greeks; and longs for equal Foes. Now brave Perithous, bold Ixion's Son, T h e Love of fair Hippodame had won. The Cloud-begotten Race half Men, half Beast, Invited, came to grace the Nuptial Feast: In a cool Cave's recess, the Treat was made, Whose entrance, Trees with spreading Boughs o'ershade. They sate: And summon'd by the Bridegroom, came T o mix with those the Lapythaan Name: soo Nor wanted I: T h e Roofs with Joy resound: And Hymen, Io Hymen, rung around. Rais'd Altars shone with holy Fires; the Bride, Lovely her self (and lovely by her side A bevy of bright Nimphs, with sober Grace,) Came glitt'ring like a Star; and took her Place. «83 Name,] — F. 303-304 self (and . . . Grace,)] F (corrected state); state).

A

~ ...

F (uncorrected

416

Poems,

169J-1J00

Her heav'nly Form beheld, all wish'd her Joy; And little wanted, but in vain their Wishes all employ. For One, most Brutal, of the Brutal Brood, Or whether Wine or Beauty fir'd his Blood, sio Or both at once; beheld with lustful Eyes T h e Bride; at once resolv'd to make his Prize. Down went the Board; and fastning on her Hair, He seiz'd with sudden Force the frighted Fair. 'Twas Eurytus began: His bestial Kind His Crime pursu'd; and each as pleas'd his Mind, O r her whom Chance presented, took: T h e Feast A n Image of a taken T o w n express'd. T h e Cave resounds with Female Shrieks; we rise, Mad with Revenge, to make a swift Reprise: 920 And Theseus first; What Frenzy has possess'd O Eurytus, he cry'd, thy brutal Breast, T o wrong Perithous, and not him alone, But while I live, two Friends conjoyn'd in one? T o justify his Threat, he thrusts aside T h e Crowd of Centaurs; and redeems the Bride: T h e Monster nought reply'd: For Words were vain; And Deeds cou'd only Deeds unjust maintain: But answers with his Hand; and forward press'd, With Blows redoubled, on his Face and Breast. 330 A n ample Goblet stood, of antick Mold, And rough with Figures of the rising Gold; T h e Hero snatch'd it up: And toss'd in Air, Full at the Front of the foul Ravisher. He falls; and falling vomits forth a Flood Of Wine, and Foam and Brains, and mingled Blood. Half roaring, and half neighing through the Hall, Arms, Arms, the double-form'd with Fury call; F. 37 vain] 320 What] what F. 337 double-form'd] double form'd F.

316 330

her] F. Mold,] F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book XII T o wreak their Brother's death: A Medley-Flight Of Bowls and Jars, at first supply the Fight. 8« Once Instruments of Feasts; but now of Fate; W i n e animates their Rage, and arms their Hate. Bold A mycus, from the robb'd Vestry brings T h e Chalices of Heav'n; and holy Things Of precious Weight: A Sconce, that hung on high, With Tapers fill'd, to light the Sacristy, T o r n from the Cord, with his unhallow'd Hand He threw amid the Lapythaan Band; O n Celadon the Ruin fell; and left His Face of Feature and of Form bereft: aw (As when some brawny Sacrificer knocks Before an Altar led, an offer'd Oxe,) His Eye-balls rooted out, are thrown to Ground; His Nose dismantled, in his Mouth is found; His Jaws, Cheeks, Front, one undistinguish'd Wound. This, Belates, th' Avenger, cou'd not brook; But, by the Foot a Maple-board he took; A n d hurl'd at Amycus; his Chin it bent Against his Chest, and down the Centaur sent: W h o m sputtring bloody Teeth, the second Blow 360 Of his drawn Sword, dispatch'd to Shades below. Gryneus was near; and cast a furious Look O n the side Altar, cens'd with sacred Smoke, And bright with flaming Fires; T h e Gods, he cry'd, Have with their holy Trade, our Hands supply'd: W h y use we not their Gifts? T h e n from the Floor A n Altar-Stone he heav'd, with all the Load it bore: Altar and Altars freight together flew, "j Where thickest throng'd the Lapytheean Crew: > And Broteas, and at once, Orius slew. / 347 353 363

Band;] F. found;] F. The] the F.

350 As] So, F. 361 Gryneus] Grineus F. 369 Orius] Oryus F.

417

4i8

Poems,

1697-1700

are Orius Mother, Mycale, was known Down from her Sphere, to draw the lab'ring Moon. Exadius cry'd, Unpunish'd shall not go This Fact, if Arms are found against the Foe. He look'd about, where on a Pine were spred The votive Horns of a Stags branching Head: At Gryneus these he throws; so just they fly, That the sharp Antlers stuck in either Eye: Breathless and Blind he fell; with Blood besmear'd; His Eye-balls beaten out, hung dangling on his Beard. 380 Fierce Rhcetus, from the Hearth a burning Brand Selects, and whirling waves; till, from his Hand T h e Fire took Flame; then dash'd it from the right, On fair Charaxus Temples; near the Sight: T h e whistling Pest came on; and pierc'd the Bone, And caught the yellow Hair, that shrievel'd while it shone: Caught, like dry Stubble fir'd; or like Seerwood; } Yet from the Wound ensu'd no Purple Flood; > But look'd a bubbling Mass, of frying Blood. ' His blazing Locks, sent forth a crackling Sound; 390 And hiss'd, like red hot Iron, within the Smithy drown*d. T h e wounded Warrior shook his flaming Hair, Then (what a Team of Horse cou'd hardly rear) He heaves the Threshold-Stone; but cou'd not throw; T h e Weight it self, forbad the threaten'd Blow: Which dropping from his lifted Arms, came down, Full on Cometes Head; and crush'd his Crown. Nor Rhcetus then retain'd his Joy; but sed; ^ So by their Fellows may our Foes be sped; > Then, with redoubled Strokes he plies his Head: ' 400 T h e burning Lever, not deludes his Pains; But drives the batter'd Skull, within the Brains. 370 Orius] Oryus F. 372 Unpunish'd] unpunish'd F. 376 Gryneus] Grineus F. 380 Rhcetus . . . Brand] Rhatus . . . T. 385 shone:] F. 394 Blow:] F. 397 Rhcetus . . . sed] Rhatus . . . se'd F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses,

Book XII

Thus flush'd, the Conqueror, with Force renew'd, Evagrus, Dryas, Corythus, pursu'd: First, Corythus, with downy Cheeks, he slew; Whose fall, when fierce Evagrus had in view, He cry'd, What Palm is from a beardless Prey? Rhcetus prevents what more he had to say; And drove within his Mouth the fiery Death, Which enter'd hissing in, and choak'd his Breath. 410 At Dryas next he flew: But weary Chance No longer wou'd the same Success advance. For while he whirl'd in fiery Circles round ) T h e Brand, a sharpen'd Stake strong Dryas found; > And in the Shoulder's Joint inflicts the Wound. / The Weapon stuck; which roaring out with Pain, ) He drew; nor longer durst the Fight maintain, / But turn'd his Back, for fear; and fled amain. ' With him fled Orneus, with like Dread possess'd; Thaumas, and Medon wounded in the Breast; 420 And Mermeros in the late Race renown'd, Now limping ran, and tardy with his Wound. Pholus and Melaneus from Fight withdrew, And Abas maim'd, who Boars encountring slew: And Augur Astylos, whose Art in vain, ) From Fight dissuaded, the four-footed Train; / Now beat the Hoof with Nessus on the Plain; / But to his Fellow cry'd, Be safely slow, Thy Death deferr'd is due to great Alcides Bow. Mean time strong Dryas urg'd his Chance so well, 430 That Lycidas, Areos, Imbreus fell; All, one by one, and fighting Face to Face: Crenceus fled, to fall with more Disgrace: For, fearful, while he look'd behind, he bore Betwixt his Nose and Front, the Blow before. Amid the Noise and Tumult of the Fray, 406 What] what F. 424 Augur] Augur F.

407 Rhcetus] Rhcetus F. 427 Be] be F.

419

420

Poems,

1691-1700

Snoring, and drunk with Wine, Aphidas lay. Ev'n then the Bowl within his Hand he kept: And on a Bear's rough Hide securely slept. Him Phorbas with his flying Dart, transfix'd; 4« Take thy next Draught, with Stygian Waters mix'd, And sleep thy fill, th' insulting Victor cry'd; Surpris'd with Death unfelt, the Centaur dy'd; The ruddy Vomit, as he breath'd his Soul, Repass'd his Throat; and fill'd his empty Bowl. I saw Petrceus Arms, employ'd around A well-grown Oak, to root it from the Ground. This way, and that, he wrench'd the fibrous Bands; T h e Trunk, was like a Sappling in his Hands And still obey'd the Bent: While thus he stood, 450 Perithous Dart drove on; and nail'd him to the Wood. Lycus, and Chromis fell by him oppress'd: Helops and Dictys added to the rest A nobler Palm: Helops through either Ear Transfix'd, receiv'd the penetrating Spear. This, Dictys saw; and seiz'd with suddain Fright Leapt headlong from the Hill of steepy height; And crush'd an Ash beneath, that cou'd not bear his weight. The shatter'd Tree receives his fall; and strikes Within his full-blown Paunch, the sharpen'd Spikes. 460 Strong Aphareus had heav'd a mighty Stone, The Fragment of a Rock; and wou'd have thrown; But Theseus with a Club of harden'd Oak, The Cubit-bone of the bold Centaur broke; And left him maim'd; nor seconded the Stroke: Then leapt on tall Bianor's Back: (Who bore No mortal Burden but his own, before) Press'd with his Knees his Sides; the double Man His speed with Spurs increas'd, unwilling ran. One Hand the Hero fasten'd on his Locks; 470 His other ply'd him with repeated Strokes. 441 fill,] ~ A F. 464 Stroke:] F.

451 466

Chromis] Chromys F. before)] F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book XII T h e Club rung round his Ears, and batter'd Brows; He falls; and lashing up his Heels, his Rider throws. T h e same Herculean Arms, Nedymnus wound; And lay by him Lycotas on the Ground. And Hippasus, whose Beard his Breast invades; And Ripheus, haunter of the Woodland Shades: And Tereus us'd with Mountain-Bears to strive; And from their Dens to draw th' indignant Beasts alive. Demoleon cou'd not bear this hateful Sight, 480 Or the long Fortune of th' Athenian Knight: But pull'd with all his Force, to disengage From Earth a Pine; the Product of an Age: T h e Root stuck fast: The broken Trunk he sent At Theseus: Theseus frustrates his Intent, And leaps aside; by Pallas warn'd, the Blow T o shun: (for so he said; and we believ'd it so.) Yet not in vain, th' enormous Weight was cast; Which Grantor's Body sunder'd at the Waist: Thy Father's Squire, Achilles, and his Care; 490 Whom Conquer'd in the Dolopeian War, Their King, his present Ruin to prevent, A Pledge of Peace implor'd, to Peleus sent. Thy Sire, with grieving Eyes, beheld his Fate; And cry'd, Not long, lov'd Crantor, shalt thou wait Thy vow'd Revenge. At once he said, and threw His Ashen-Spear; which quiver'd as it flew; With all his Force and all his Soul apply'd; T h e sharp Point enter'd in the Centaur's Side: Both Hands, to wrench it out, the Monster join'd; BOO And wrench'd it out; but left the Steel behind. Stuck in his Lungs it stood: Inrag'd he rears His Hoofs, and down to Ground thy Father bears. Thus trampled under Foot, his Shield defends 488 Waist:] F . 491 prevent,] ~ A F.

494 Not] not F.

421

422

Poems,

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His Head; his other Hand the Lance protends. Ev'n while he lay extended on the Dust, He sped the Centaur, with one single Thrust. Two more, his Lance before transfix'd from far; And two, his Sword had slain, in closer War. T o these was added Dorylas: Who spread 510 A Bull's two goring Horns around his Head. With these he push'd; in Blood already dy'd; Him, fearless, I approach'd; and thus defy'd: Now Monster, now, by Proof it shall appear, Whether thy Horns, are sharper or my Spear. At this, I threw: For want of other Ward, He lifted up his Hand, his Front to guard. His Hand it pass'd: And fix'd it to his Brow: Loud Shouts of ours, attend the lucky Blow. Him Peleus finish'd, with a second Wound: } 820 Which through the Navel pierc'd: He reel'd around; ? And drag'd his dangling Bowels on the Ground. ' Trod what he drag'd; and what he trod he crush'd: And to his Mother-Earth, with empty Belly rush'd. Nor cou'd thy Form, O Cyllarus, foreslow Thy Fate; (if Form to Monsters Men allow:) Just bloom'd thy Beard: Thy Beard of golden Hew: Thy Locks in golden Waves, about thy Shoulders flew. Sprightly thy Look: Thy Shapes in ev'ry part So clean as might instruct the Sculptor's Art, 530 As far as Man extended: Where began T h e Beast, the Beast was equal to the Man. Add but a Horses Head and Neck; and he, O Castor, was a CouTser worthy thee: So was his Back proportion'd for the Seat; So rose his brawny Chest; so swiftly mov'd his Feet. Coal-black his Colour, but like Jet it shone; His Legs and flowing Tail, were White alone. Belov'd by many Maidens of his Kind; 529 clean . . . Art,] 536 Colour,. .. shone;]

.. .

F.

F.

533 thee:]

F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book XII But fair Hylonome, possess'd his Mind: MO Hylonome, for Features, and for Face Excelling all the Nymphs of double Race: Nor less her Blandishments, than Beauty move; At once both loving, and confessing Love. For him she dress'd: For him with Female Care She comb'd, and set in Curls, her auborn Hair. Of Roses, Violets, and Lillies mix'd And Sprigs of flowring Rosemary betwixt She form'd the Chaplet, that adorn'd her Front: In Waters of the Pagascean Fount, 550 And in the Streams that from the Fountain play, She wash'd her Face; and bath'd her twice a Day. T h e Scarf of Furs, that hung below her Side, Was Ermin, or the Panther's spotted Pride; Spoils of no common Beast. With equal Flame They lov'd: Their Sylvan Pleasures were the same: All Day they hunted: And when Day expir'd, Together to some shady Cave retir'd: Invited to the Nuptials, both repair: And Side by Side, they both ingage in War. MO

Uncertain from what Hand, a flying Dart At Cyllarus was sent; which pierc'd his Heart. T h e Javelin drawn from out the mortal Wound, He faints with staggring Steps; and seeks the Ground: T h e Fair, within her Arms receiv'd his fall, And strove his wandring Spirits to recal: And while her Hand the streaming Blood oppos'd, Join'd Face to Face, his Lips with hers she clos'd. Stiffled with Kisses, a sweet Death he dies; She fills the Fields with undistinguish'd Cries: 570 At least her Words, were in her Clamour drown'd; For my stun'd Ears receiv'd no vocal Sound. In madness of her Grief, she seiz'd the Dart New-drawn, and reeking from her Lover's Heart; 539 fair] F. 554 Beast.] F.

547 flowring] flowing F. 555 Sylvan] Sylvan F.

423

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Poems,

1697-1700

T o her bare Bosom the sharp Point apply'd; 1 And wounded fell; and falling by his Side, / Embrac'd him in her Arms; and thus embracing, dy'd.) Ev'n still methinks, I see Phceocomes; Strange was his Habit; and as odd his Dress. Six Lions Hides, with Thongs together fast, 580 His upper part defended to his Waist: And where, Man ended, the continued Vest, Spread on his Back, the Houss and Trappings of a Beast. A Stump too heavy for a Team to draw; (It seems a Fable, tho' the Fact I saw;) He threw at Pholon; the descending Blow Divides the Skull, and cleaves his Head in two. The Brains, from Nose and Mouth, and either Ear Came issuing out, as through a Colendar The curdled Milk; or from the Press the Whey 690 Driv'n down by Weights above, is drain'd away. But him, while stooping down to spoil the Slain, Pierc'd through the Paunch, I tumbled on the Plain. Then Chthonius, and Teleboas I slew: A Fork the former arm'd; a Dart his Fellow threw. The Javelin wounded me; (behold the Skar.) Then was my time to seek the Trojan War; Then I was Hector's Match in open Field; But he was then unborn; at least a Child: Now, I am nothing. I forbear to tell 600 By Periphantas how Pyretus fell: The Centaur by the Knight: Nor will I stay On Amphyx, or what Deaths he dealt that Day: What Honour, with a pointless Lance he won, Stuck in the front of a four-footed Man. What Fame young Macareus obtain'd in Fight: Or dwell on Nessus, now return'd from Flight: 579 Lions] Lion's F. 600 fell:] F.

593 Chthonius] Chthonyus F. 606 Flight:] F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book XII How Prophet Mopsus not alone divin'd, Whose Valour equall'd his foreseeing Mind. Already Cceneus, with his conquering Hand, eio Had slaughter'd five the boldest of their Band. Pyrachmus, Helymus, Antimachus, Bromus the Brave, and stronger Stiphelus, Their Names I number'd, and remember well, No Trace remaining, by what Wounds they fell. Latreus, the bulkiest of the double Race Whom the spoil'd Arms of slain Halesus grace, In Years retaining still his Youthful Might, Though his black Hairs were interspers'd with White, Betwixt th' imbattled Ranks, began to prance, 62o Proud of his Helm, and Macedonian Lance; And rode the Ring around; that either Hoast Might hear him, while he made this empty Boast. And from a Strumpet shall we suffer Shame? For Cams still, not Cceneus is thy Name: And still the Native Softness of thy Kind Prevails; and leaves the Woman in thy Mind. Remember what thou wert; what Price was paid T o change thy Sex: T o make thee not a Maid; And but a Man in shew: Go, Card and Spin; 630 And leave the Business of the War to Men. While thus the Boaster exercis'd his Pride, T h e fatal Spear of Cceneus reach'd his Side: Just in the mixture of the Kinds it ran; Betwixt the neather Beast, and upper Man: T h e Monster mad with Rage, and stung with Smart, His Lance directed at the Hero's Heart: It strook: But bounded from his harden'd Breast, 607 Mopsus ... divin'd] 611 Helimus] Helymus F. 6s6 Mind.] F.

. . . devin'd F.

623 Shame?] F. 634 Beast] Breast F.

425

Poems,

426

169J-1J00

Like Hail from Tiles, which the safe House invest. Nor seem'd the Stroke with more effect to come, 640 Than a small Pebble falling on a Drum. He next his Fauchion try'd, in closer Fight; But the keen Fauchion, had no Pow'r to bite. He thrust; the blunted Point return'd again: Since downright Blows, he cry'd, and Thrusts are vain, I'll prove his Side: In strong Embraces held He prov'd his Side; his Side the Sword repell'd: His hollow Belly eccho'd to the Stroke; \ Untouch'd his Body, as a solid Rock; > Aim'd at his Neck at last, the Blade in Shivers broke. ) «so

T h ' Impassive Knight stood Idle, to deride j His Rage, and offer'd oft his naked Side: / At length, Now Monster, in thy turn, he cry'd / Try thou the Strength of Cceneus: At the Word He thrust; and in his Shoulder plung'd the Sword. Then writh'd his Hand; and as he drove it down, Deep in his Breast, made many Wounds in one.

The Centaurs saw inrag'd, th' unhop'd Success; And rushing on, in Crowds, together press; At him, and him alone, their Darts they threw: 660 Repuls'd they from his fated Body flew. Amaz'd they stood; till Monychus began, O Shame, a Nation conquer'd by a Man! A Woman-Man; yet more a Man is He, Than all our Race; and what He was, are We. Now, what avail our Nerves: The united Force, Of two the strongest Creatures, Man and Horse? Nor Goddess-born; nor of Ixion's Seed We seem; (a Lover built for Juno's Bed;) Master'd by this half Man. Whole Mountains throw «70 With Woods at once, and bury him below. 652 665

turn,] ~ A F. Nerves:] F.

666

Horse?]

F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book XII This only way remains. Nor need we doubt T o choak the Soul within; though not to force it out. Heap Weights, instead of Wounds. He chanc'd to see Where Southern Storms had rooted up a Tree; This, rais'd from Earth, against the Foe he threw; T h ' Example shewn, his Fellow-Brutes pursue. With Forest-loads the Warrior they invade; | Othrys and Pelion soon were void of Shade; , And spreading Groves were naked Mountains made. , «so Press'd with the Burden, Cceneus pants for Breath; And on his Shoulders bears the Wooden Death. T o heave th' intolerable Weight he tries; At length it rose above his Mouth and Eyes: Yet still he heaves: And strugling with Despair, Shakes all aside; and gains a gulp of Air: A short Relief, which but prolongs his Pain; He faints by Fits; and then respires again: At last, the Burden only nods above, As when an Earthquake stirs th' Idaan Grove. 69o Doubtful his Death: He suffocated seem'd, T o most; but otherwise our Mopsus deem'd, Who said he saw a yellow Bird arise From out the Pile, and cleave the liquid Skies: I saw it too: With golden Feathers bright; Nor e're before, beheld so strange a Sight: Whom Mopsus viewing, as it soar'd around Our Troop, and heard the Pinions rattling Sound, All hail he cry'd, thy Countries Grace and Love; Once first of Men below; now first of Birds above. 700 Its Author to the Story gave Belief: For us, our Courage was increas'd by Grief: Asham'd to see a single Man, pursu'd With Odds, to sink beneath a Multitude: We push'd the Foe; and forc'd to shameful Flight; Part fell; and part escap'd by favour of the Night. 673 691

Wounds.] deem'd,]

F. F.

681 Wooden] F. 695 Sight:] ~ . F .

427

428

Poems,

169J-1700

This Tale by Nestor told, did much displease Tlepolemus, the Seed of Hercules: For, often he had heard his Father say, } That he himself was present at the Fray; > 710 And more than shar'd the Glories of the Day.) Old Chronicle, he said, among the rest, You might have nam'd Alcides at the least: Is he not worth your Praise? The Pylian Prince Sigh'd e'er he spoke; then made this proud Defence. My former Woes in long Oblivion drown'd, I wou'd have lost; but you renew the Wound: Better to pass him o'er, than to relate The Cause I have your mighty Sire to hate. His Fame has fill'd the World, and reach'd the Sky; wo (Which, Oh, I wish with Truth, I cou'd denyl) We praise not Hector; though his Name, we know Is great in Arms; 'tis hard to praise a Foe. He, your Great Father, levell'd to the Ground Messenia's Tow'rs: Nor better Fortune found Elis, and Pylos; that a neighb'ring State And this my own: Both guiltless of their Fate. T o pass the rest, twelve wanting one, he slew; My Brethren, who their Birth from Neleus drew. All Youths of early Promise, had they liv'd; 780 By him they perish'd: I alone surviv'd. The rest were easy Conquest: But the Fate Of Periclymenos, is wondrous to relate. T o him, our common Grandsire of the Main Had giv'n to change his Form; and chang'd, resume again. Vary'd at Pleasure, every Shape he try'd; And in all Beasts Alcides still defy'd: Vanquish'd on Earth, at length he soar'd above; Chang'd to the Bird, that bears the Bolt of Jove. 733 Main] —, F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses,

Book XII

T h e new-dissembled Eagle, now endu'd 740 With Beak and Pounces, Hercules pursu'd: And cuff'd his manly Cheeks, and tore his Face; Then, safe retir'd, and tour'd in empty space. Alcides bore not long his flying Foe; But bending his inevitable Bow, Reach'd him in Air, suspended as he stood; And in his Pinion fix'd the feather'd Wood. Light was the Wound; but in the Sinew hung T h e Point; and his disabled Wing unstrung. He wheel'd in Air, and stretch'd his Vans in vain; 750 His Vans no longer cou'd his Flight sustain: For while one gather'd Wind, one unsupply'd Hung drooping down; nor pois'd his other Side. He fell: The Shaft that slightly was impress'd, Now from his heavy Fall with weight increas'd, Drove through his Neck, aslant; he spurns the Ground; And the Soul issues through the Weazon's Wound. Now, brave Commander of the Rhodian Seas, What Praise is due from me, to Hercules? Silence is all the Vengeance I decree 760 For my slain Brothers; but 'tis Peace with thee. Thus with a flowing Tongue old Nestor spoke: Then, to full Bowls each other they provoke: At length, with Weariness, and Wine oppress'd; They rise from Table; and withdraw to Rest. The Sire of Cygnus, Monarch of the Main, ) Mean time, laments his Son, in Battle slain: > And vows the Victor's Death; nor vows in vain. ) For nine long Years the smoother'd Pain he bore; (Achilles was not ripe for Fate, before:) 770 Then when he saw the promis'd Hour was near, He thus bespoke the God, that guides the Year. 747 hung]

F.

755 aslant;]

F.

429

430

Poems,

1697-1700

Immortal Offspring of my Brother Jove; My brightest Nephew, and whom best I love, Whose Hands were join'd with mine, to raise the Wall Of tottring Troy, now nodding to her fall, Dost thou not mourn our Pow'r employ'd in vain; And the Defenders of our City slain? T o pass the rest, cou'd noble Hector lie Unpity'd, drag'd around his Native Troy? T80 And yet the Murd'rer lives: Himself by far A greater Plague, than all the wastful War: He lives; the proud Pelides lives to boast Our Town destroy'd, our common Labour lost! O, cou'd I meet him! But I wish too late: T o prove my Trident is not in his Fate! But let him try (for that's allow'd) thy Dart, And pierce his only penetrable Part. Apollo bows to the superiour Throne; And to his Uncle's Anger, adds his own. 790 Then in a Cloud involv'd, he takes his Flight, Where Greeks and Trojans mix'd in mortal Fight; And found out Paris, lurking where he stood, And stain'd his Arrows with plebeyan Blood: Phoebus to him alone the God confess'd, T h e n to the recreant Knight, he thus address'd. Dost thou not blush, to spend thy Shafts in vain On a degenerate, and ignoble Train? If Fame, or better Vengeance be thy Care, There aim: And with one Arrow, end the War. 800

He said; and shew'd from far the blazing Shield And Sword, which but Achilles none cou'd wield; And how he mov'd a God, and mow'd the standing Field. T h e Deity himself directs aright T h ' invenom'd Shaft; and wings the fatal Flight. 791 and] aud F. 793 plebeyan] Plebeyan F.

801 wield] weild F.

Fables: Ovid's Metamorphoses,

Book

XII

Thus fell the foremost of the Grecian Name; And He, the base Adult'rer, boasts the Fame: A Spectacle to glad the Trojan Train; And please old Priam, after Hector slain. If by a Female Hand he had foreseen BIO He was to die, his Wish had rather been T h e Lance and double Axe of the fair Warriour Queen. And now the Terror of the Trojan Field, T h e Grecian Honour, Ornament, and Shield, High on a Pile, th' Unconquer'd Chief is plac'd, T h e God that arm'd him first, consum'd at last. Of all the Mighty Man, the small Remains A little Urn, and scarcely fill'd, contains. Yet great in Homer, still Achilles lives; And equal to himself, himself survives. 820

His Buckler owns its former Lord; and brings New cause of Strife, betwixt contending Kings; Who Worthiest after him, his Sword to wield, Or wear his Armour, or sustain his Shield. Ev'n Diomede sate Mute, with down-cast Eyes; Conscious of wanted Worth to win the Prize: Nor Menelaus presum'd these Arms to claim, Nor He the King of Men, a greater Name. Two Rivals only rose: Laertes Son, And the vast Bulk of Ajax Telamon: 8so T h e King, who cherish'd each, with equal Love, And, from himself all Envy wou'd remove, Left both to be determin'd by the Laws; And to the Grecian Chiefs, transferr'd the Cause. 806 Fame:] — F. 811 Warriour] Warrious F. 82s wield] weild F.

812 Field,] ~ A F. 826 Menelaus] Menelas F.

43*

43 2

Poems,iópj-iyoo

The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, From Ovid's Metamorphoses Book

XIII

HE Chiefs were set; the Soldiers crown'd the Field: T o these the Master of the sevenfold Shield, Upstarted fierce: And kindled with Disdain Eager to speak, unable to contain His boiling Rage, he rowl'd his Eyes around T h e Shore, and Grecian Gallies hall'd a-ground. T h e n stretching out his Hands, O Jove, he cry'd, Must then our Cause before the Fleet be try'd? And dares Ulysses for the Prize contend, 10 In sight of what he durst not once defend: But basely fled that memorable Day, W h e n I from Hector's Hands redeem'd the flaming Prey? So much 'tis safer at the noisy Bar With Words to flourish than ingage in War. By different Methods we maintain our Right, Nor am I made to Talk, nor he to Fight. In bloody Fields I labour to be great; His Arms are a smooth Tongue; and soft Deceit: Nor need I speak my Deeds, for those you see, 20 T h e Sun and Day are Witnesses for me. Let him who fights unseen relate his own, And vouch the silent Stars, and conscious Moon; Great is the Prize demanded, I confess, But such an abject Rival makes it less; T h a t Gift, those Honours, he but hop'd to gain Can leave no room for Ajax to be vain: Losing he wins, because his Name will be Enobled by Defeat, who durst contend with me. Were my known Valour question'd, yet my Blood Ulysses,] F; ULYSSES. F R O M Ovid's Metamorphoses B O O K X I I I . H a t / title in F. 10 defend;] F. 12 P r e y ? ] — F .

Fables: The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses

433

Without that Plea wou'd make my Title good: My Sire was Telamon whose Arms, employ'd With Hercules, these Trojan Walls destroy'd; And who before with Jason, sent from Greece In the first Ship brought home the Golden Fleece: Great Telamon from ALacus derives His Birth (th' Inquisitor of guilty lives In Shades below where Sisyphus whose Son This Thief is thought rouls up the restless heavy Stone.) Just /Eacus the King of Gods, above Begot: Thus Ajax is the third from Jove. Nor shou'd I seek advantage from my Line, Unless (Achilles) it were mix'd with thine: As next of Kin Achilles Arms I claim, This Fellow wou'd ingraft a Foreign Name Upon our Stock, and the Sisyphian Seed By Fraud and Theft asserts his Father's Breed. Then must I lose these Arms, because I came To fight uncall'd, a voluntary Name, Nor shun'd the Cause, but offer'd you my Aid, While he long lurking was to War betray'd? Forc'd to the Field he came, but in the Reer; And feign'd Distraction to conceal his Fear: Till one more cunning caught him in the Snare; (111 for himself) and drag'd him into War. Now let a Hero's Arms a Coward vest, And he who shun'd all Honours, gain the best: And let me stand excluded from my Right Rob'd of my Kinsman's Arms, who first appear'd in Fight. Better for us at home had he remain'd; Had it been true, the Madness which he feign'd, Or so believ'd; the less had been our Shame, The less his counsell'd Crime which brands the Grecian Name; Nor Philoctetes had been left inclos'd In a bare Isle to Wants and Pains expos'd, 37 Sisyphus] Sysiphus F. 45 Sisyphian] Sysiphian F. 50 betray'd?] F.

44 Name] F. 46 Breed.] F. 59 remain'd;] F.

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Where to the Rocks, with solitary Groans His Suff'rings and our Baseness he bemoans; And wishes (so may Heav'n his Wish fulfill) T h e due Reward to him who caus'd his 111. Now he with us to Troy's Destruction sworn Our Brother of the War, by whom are born Alcides Arrows, pent in narrow Bounds With Cold and Hunger pinch'd, and pain'd with Wounds, T o find him Food and Cloathing must employ Against the Birds the Shafts due to the Fate of Troy. Yet still he lives, and lives from Treason free, Because he left Ulysses Company: Poor Palamede might wish, so void of Aid, Rather to have been left, than so to Death betray'd: T h e Coward bore the Man immortal Spight, Who sham'd him out of Madness into Fight: Nor daring otherwise to vent his Hate Accus'd him first of Treason to the State, And then for proof produc'd the golden Store Himself had hidden in his T e n t before: Thus of two Champions he depriv'd our Hoast, By Exile one, and one by Treason lost. Thus fights Ulysses, thus his Fame extends, A formidable Man, but to his Friends: Great, for what Greatness is in Words and Sound, Ev'n faithful Nestor less in both is found: But that he might without a Rival reign, He left this faithful Nestor on the Plain; Forsook his Friend ev'n at his utmost Need, Who tir'd, and tardy with his wounded Steed Cry'd out for Aid, and call'd him by his Name; But Cowardice has neither Ears nor Shame: Thus fled the good old Man, bereft of Aid, And for as much as lay in him, betray'd: T h a t this is not a Fable forg'd by me, Like one of his, an Ulyssean Lie, 83

Store]

F.

Fables: The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses I vouch ev'n Diomede, who tho' his Friend Cannot that Act excuse, much less defend: He call'd him back aloud, and tax'd his Fear; And sure enough he heard, but durst not hear. T h e Gods with equal Eyes on Mortals look, He justly was forsaken, who forsook: Wanted that Succour he refused to lend, Found ev'ry Fellow such another Friend: No wonder, if he roar'd that all might hear; no His Elocution was increas'd by fear: I heard, I ran, I found him out of Breath, Pale, trembling, and half dead, with fear of Death. Though he had judg'd himself by his own Laws, And stood condemn'd, I help'd the common Cause: With my broad Buckler hid him from the Foe; (Ev'n the Shield trembled as he lay below;) And from impending Fate the Coward freed: Good Heav'n forgive me for so bad a Deedl If still he will persist, and urge the Strife, 120 First let him give me back his forfeit Life: Let him return to that opprobrious Field; Again creep under my protecting Shield: Let him lie wounded, let the Foe be near, And let his quiv'ring Heart confess his Fear; There put him in the very Jaws of Fate; And let him plead his Cause in that Estate: And yet when snatch'd from Death, when from below My lifted Shield I loos'd, and let him go: Good Heav'ns how light he rose, with what a bound 130 He sprung from Earth, forgetful of his Wound; How fresh, how eager then his Feet to ply; Who had not Strength to stand, had Speed to fly! Hector came on, and brought the Gods along; Fear seiz'd alike the Feeble and the Strong: 131 ply;]

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Each Greek was an Ulysses; such a Dread T h ' approach, and ev'n the sound of Hector bred: Him, flesh'd with Slaughter, and with Conquest crown'd, I met, and over-turn'd him to the Ground; When, after, matchless as he deem'd, in Might, x4o He challeng'd all our Hoast to single Fight; All Eyes were fix'd on me: T h e Lots were thrown; But for your Champion I was wish'd alone: Your Vows were heard, we Fought, and neither yield; Yet I return'd unvanquish'd from the Field. With Jove to friend th' insulting Trojan came, And menac'd us with Force, our Fleet with Flame: Was it the Strength of this Tongue-valiant Lord, In that black Hour, that sav'd you from the Sword? Or was my Breast expos'd alone, to brave 150 A thousand Swords, a thousand Ships to save; The hopes of your return? And can you yield, For a sav'd Fleet, less than a single Shield? Think it no Boast, O Grecians, if I deem These Arms want Ajax, more than A jax them; Or, I with them an equal Honour share; They honour'd to be worn, and I to wear. Will he compare my Courage with his Slight? As well he may compare the Day with Night. Night is indeed the Province of his Reign: } 160 Yet all his dark Exploits no more contain > Than a Spy taken, and a Sleeper slain, ) A Priest made Pris'ner, Pallas made a Prey, ) But none of all these Actions done by Day: > Nor ought of these was done, and Diomed away. ; If on such petty Merits you confer So vast a Prize, let each his Portion share; Make a just Dividend; and if not all, T h e greater part to Diomed will fall. But why, for Ithacus such Arms as those, 170 Who naked and by Night invades his Foes? 139 When,]~AF. 151 return?] F.

150 save;] 161 slain,]

F. F.

Fables: The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses T h e glitt'ring Helm by Moonlight will proclaim T h e latent Robber, and prevent his Game: Nor cou'd he hold his tott'ring Head upright Beneath that Morion, or sustain the Weight; Nor that right Arm cou'd toss the beamy Lance; Much less the left that ampler Shield advance; Pond'rous with precious Weight, and rough with Cost Of the round World in rising Gold emboss'd. That Orb would ill become his Hand to wield, 180 And look as for the Gold he stole the Shield; Which, shou'd your error on the Wretch bestow, It would not frighten, but allure the Foe: Why asks he, what avails him not in Fight, And wou'd but cumber and retard his Flight, In which his only Excellence is plac'd? You give him Death, that intercept his hast. Add, that his own is yet a Maiden-Shield, Nor the least Dint has suffer'd in the Field, Guiltless of Fight: Mine batter'd, hew'd, and bor'd, 190 Worn out of Service, must forsake his Lord. What farther need of Words our Right to scan? My Arguments are Deeds, let Action speak the Man! Since from a Champion's Arms the Strife arose, So cast the glorious Prize amid the Foes: Then send us to redeem both Arms and Shield, And let him wear who wins 'em in the Field. He said: A Murmur from the Multitude, Or somewhat like a stiffled Shout ensu'd: Till from his Seat arose Laertes Son, 200 Look'd down awhile, and paus'd e'er he begun; Then to th' expecting Audience rais'd his Look, And not without prepar'd Attention spoke: Soft was his Tone, and sober was his Face; Action his Words, and Words his Action grace. 174 Morion] Motion F. 186 hast.] ~ ? F. 192 Man!] F.

185 plac'd?] 191 scan?] 198 ensu'd:]

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If Heav'n, my Lords, had heard our common Pray'r, These Arms had caus'd no Quarrel for an Heir; Still great Achilles had his own possess'd, And we with great Achilles had been bless'd; But since hard Fate, and Heav'ns severe Decree 210 Have ravish'd him away from you and me, (At this he sigh'd, and wip'd his Eyes, and drew Or seem'd to draw some Drops of kindly Dew) Who better can succeed Achilles lost, Than He who gave Achilles to your Hoast? This only I request, that neither He May gain, by being what he seems to be, A stupid Thing, nor I may lose the Prize, By having Sense, which Heav'n to him denies: Since, great or small, the Talent I enjoy'd 220 Was ever in the common Cause employ'd: Nor let my Wit, and wonted Eloquence Which often has been us'd in your Defence And in my own, this only time be brought To bear against my self, and deem'd a Fault. Make not a Crime, where Nature made it none; For ev'ry Man may freely use his own. The Deeds of long descended Ancestors Are but by grace of Imputation ours, Theirs in effect; but since he draws his Line 230 From Jove, and seems to plead a Right Divine, From Jove, like him, I claim my Pedigree; And am descended in the same degree: My Sire Laertes was Arcesius Heir, Arcesius was the Son of Jupiter: No Paricide, no banish'd Man is known, In all my Line: Let him excuse his own. Hermes ennobles too my Mother's Side, By both my Parents to the Gods ally'd; But not because that on the Female Part 240 My Blood is better, dare I claim Desert, Or that my Sire from Paricide is free; 837 too]

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Fables: The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses But judge by Merit betwixt Him and Me: T h e Prize be to the best; provided yet, That Ajax for awhile his Kin forget; And his great Sire, and greater Uncles, Name, T o fortify by them his feeble Claim: Be Kindred and Relation laid aside, And Honours Cause by Laws of Honour try'd: For if he plead Proximity of Blood; T h a t empty Title is with Ease withstood. Peleus, the Hero's Sire, more nigh than he, And Pyrrhus, his undoubted Progeny, Inherit first these Trophies of the Field; T o Scyros, or to Phthia, send the Shield: And Teucer has an Uncle's Right: yet he Waves his Pretensions, nor contends with me. Then since the Cause on pure Desert is plac'd, Whence shall I take my rise, what reckon last? I not presume on ev'ry Act to dwell, But take these few, in order as they fell. Thetis, who knew the Fates, apply'd her Care T o keep Achilles in disguise from War; And till the threat'ning Influence were past, A Woman's Habit on the Hero cast: All Eyes were couzen'd by the borrow'd Vest, And Ajax (never wiser than the rest) Found no Pelides there: At length I came With proffer'd Wares to this pretended Dame, She not discover'd by her Mien or Voice, Betray'd her Manhood by her manly Choice; And while on Female Toys her Fellows look, ) Grasp'd in her Warlike Hand, a Javelin shook, / Whom by this Act reveal'd I thus bespoke: / O Goddess born! resist not Heav'ns Decree, T h e fall of Ilium, is reserv'd for Thee; Then seiz'd him, and produc'd in open Light, «51 he,]

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254 Phthia] Pthya F.

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Sent blushing to the Field the fatal Knight. Mine then are all his Actions of the War, Great Telephus was conquer'd by my Spear 2M And after cur'd: T o me the Thebans owe, Lesbos, and Tenedos, their overthrow; Scyros and Cylla! Not on all to dwell, By me Lyrnesus, and strong Chrysa fell: And since I sent the Man who Hector slew: T o me the noble Hector's Death is due: Those Arms I put into his living Hand, Those Arms, Pelides dead, I now demand. When Greece was injur'd in the Spartan Prince, And met at Aulis to revenge th' Offence, 29o 'Twas a dead Calm, or adverse Blasts that reign'd, And in the Port the Wind-bound Fleet detain'd: Bad Signs were seen, and Oracles severe Were daily thunder'd in our General's Ear; That by his Daughter's Blood we must appease Diana's kindled Wrath, and free the Seas. Affection, Int'rest, Fame, his Heart assail'd; But soon the Father o'er the King prevail'd: Bold, on himself he took the pious Crime, As angry with the Gods as they with him. 300 No Subject cou'd sustain their Sov'raign's Look, Till this hard Enterprize I undertook: I only durst th' Imperial Pow'r controul, And undermin'd the Parent in his Soul; Forc'd him t' exert the King for common Good, And pay our Ransom with his Daughters Blood. Never was Cause more difficult to plead, Than where the Judge against himself decreed: Yet this I won by dint of Argument; ) T h e Wrongs his injur'd Brother underwent; > 310 And his own Office sham'd him to consent. ' »78

W a r ] W a t F.

a8s

S r y r o i ] Syros

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299

Gods]

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Fables: The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses

441

'Twas harder yet to move the Mother's Mind, And to this heavy Task was I design'd: Reasons against her Love I knew were vain; I circumvented whom I could not gain: Had Ajax been employ'd, our slacken'd Sails Had still at Aulis waited happy Gales. Arriv'd at Troy, your choice was fix'd on me A fearless Envoy, fit for a bold Embassy: Secure, I enter'd through the hostile Court, Sao Glitt'ring with Steel, and crowded with Resort: There, in the midst of Arms, I plead our Cause, Urge the foul Rape, and violated Laws; Accuse the Foes, as Authors of the Strife, Reproach the Ravisher, demand the Wife. Priam, A ntenor, and the wiser few I mov'd; but Paris and his lawless Crew Scarce held their Hands, and lifted Swords: But stood In Act to quench their impious Thirst of Blood: This Menelaus knows; expos'd to share 330 With me the rough Preludium of the War. Endless it were to tell what I have done, In Arms, or Council, since the Siege begun: T h e first Encounters past, the Foe repell'd, They skulk'd within the Town, we kept the Field. War seem'd asleep for nine long Years, at length Both Sides resolv'd to push, we try'd our Strength. Now what did Ajax while our Arms took Breath, Vers'd only in the gross mechanick Trade of Death? If you require my Deeds, with ambush'd Arms 840 I trap'd the Foe, or tir'd with false Alarms; Secur'd the Ships, drew Lines along the Plain, T h e Fainting chear'd, chastis'd the Rebel-train, Provided Forage, our spent Arms renew'd, Employ'd at home, or sent abroad, the common Cause pursu'd. 333

Encounters] Encounter's F.

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T h e King, deluded in a Dream by Jove, Despair'd to take the Town, and order'd to remove. What Subject durst arraign the Pow'r supreme, Producing Jove to justify his Dream? Ajax might wish the Soldiers to retain 350 From shameful Flight, but Wishes were in vain: As wanting of effect had been his Words, Such as of course his thundring Tongue affords. But did this Boaster threaten, did he pray, \ Or by his own Example urge their stay? > None, none of these, but ran himself away. ' I saw him run, and was asham'd to see; Who ply'd his Feet so fast to get aboard as He? Then speeding through the Place, I made a stand, } And loudly cry'd, O base, degenerate Band, / 8flo T o leave a Town already in your Hand! ' After so long expence of Blood, for Fame, T o bring home nothing but perpetual Shame! These Words, or what I have forgotten since, (For Grief inspir'd me then with Eloquence) Reduc'd their Minds, they leave the crowded Port, And to their late forsaken Camp resort: Dismay'd the Council met: This Man was there, But mute, and not recover'd of his Fear. Thersites tax'd the King, and loudly rail'd, 370 But his wide opening Mouth with Blows I seal'd. Then rising I excite their Souls to Fame, And kindle sleeping Virtue into Flame. From thence, whatever he perform'd in Fight Is justly mine, who drew him back from Flight. Which of the Grecian Chiefs consorts with Thee? But Diomede desires my Company, And still communicates his Praise with me. As guided by a God, secure he goes, Arm'd with my Fellowship amid the Foes; 375 Thee?] 376 Diomede]

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Fables: The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses 38o And sure no little Merit I may boast, Whom such a Man selects from such an Hoast; Unforc'd by Lots I went without affright, T o dare with him the Dangers of the Night: On the same Errand sent, we met the Spy Of Hector, double-tongu'd, and us'd to lie; Him I dispatch'd, but not till undermin'd, I drew him first to tell what treacherous Troy design'd: My Task perform'd, with Praise I had retir'd, But not content with this, to greater Praise aspir'd: 89o Invaded Rhcesus, and his Thracian Crew, And him, and his, in their own Strength I slew: Return'd a Victor all my Vows compleat, With the King's Chariot, in his Royal Seat: Refuse me now his Arms, whose fiery Steeds Were promis'd to the Spy for his Nocturnal Deeds: And let dull Ajax bear away my Right, When all his Days out-ballance this one Night. Nor fought I Darkling still: The Sun beheld With slaughter'd Lycians when I strew'd the Field: 400 You saw, and counted as I pass'd along, Alastor, Cromius, Coeranos the Strong, A Icander, Prytanis, and Halius, Noemon, Charopes, and Ennomus; Choon, Chersidamas; and five beside Men of obscure Descent, but Courage try'd: All these this Hand laid breathless on the Ground; Nor want I Proofs of many a manly Wound: All honest, all before: Believe not me, Words may deceive, but credit what you see. 410

At this he bar'd his Breast, and show'd his Scars, As of a furrow'd Field, well plough'd with Wars; Nor is this Part unexercis'd, said he; That Gyant-bulk of his from Wounds is free: 384 401

Spy] F. 389 Cromius, Cœranos] Cromyus, Ceranos F.

aspir'd:]

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Safe in his Shield he fears no Foe to try, And better manages his Blood than I: But this avails me not; our Boaster strove Not with our Foes alone, but partial Jove, T o save the Fleet: This I confess is true, ) (Nor will I take from any Man his due:) / 420 But thus assuming all, he robs from you.) Some part of Honour to your share will fall, He did the best indeed, but did not all. Patroclus in Achilles Arms, and thought The Chief he seem'd, with equal Ardour fought; Preserv'd the Fleet, repell'd the raging Fire, And forc'd the fearful Trojans to retire. But Ajax boasts, that he was only thought A Match for Hector, who the Combat sought: Sure he forgets the King, the Chiefs, and Me: «0 All were as eager for the Fight as He: He but the ninth, and not by publick Voice, Or ours preferr'd, was only Fortunes choice: They fought; nor can our Hero boast the Event, For Hector from the Field, unwounded went. Why am I forc'd to name that fatal Day, That snatch'd the Prop and Pride of Greece away? I saw Pelides sink, with pious Grief, And ran in vain, alas, to his Relief; For the brave Soul was fled: Full of my Friend 440 I rush'd amid the War his Relicks to defend: Nor ceas'd my Toil till I redeem'd the Prey, And loaded with Achilles, march'd away: Those Arms, which on these Shoulders then I bore, 'Tis just you to these Shoulders should restore. You see I want not Nerves, who cou'd sustain T h e pond'rous Ruins of so great a Man: 437

sink, with]

With F.

Fables: The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses Or if in others equal Force you find, None is endu'd with a more grateful Mind. Did Thetis then, ambitious in her Care, 450 These Arms thus labour'd for her Son prepare; That Ajax after him the heav'nly Gift shou'd wear: For that dull Soul to stare with stupid Eyes, On the learn'd unintelligible Prize? What are to him the Sculptures of the Shield, Heav'ns Planets, Earth, and Oceans watry Field? The Pleiads, Hyads; less, and greater Bear, Undipp'd in Seas; Orion's angry Star, Two diff'ring Cities, grav'd on either Hand; Would he wear Arms he cannot understand? MO

Beside, what wise Objections he prepares Against my late accession to the Wars! Does not the Fool perceive his Argument Is with more force against Achilles bent? For if Dissembling be so great a Crime, The Fault is common, and the same in him: And if he taxes both of long delay, My Guilt is less who sooner came away. His pious Mother anxious for his Life, Detain'd her Son, and me, my pious Wife. 470 T o them the Blossoms of our Youth were due, Our riper Manhood we reserv'd for you. But grant me guilty, 'tis not much my care, When with so great a Man my Guilt I share: My Wit to War the matchless Hero brought, But by this Fool I never had been caught. Nor need I wonder, that on me he threw Such foul Aspersions, when he spares not you: If Palamede unjustly fell by me, Your Honour suffer'd in th' unjust Decree: 451 453

wear:] Prize?]

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461

Wars!]

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•so I but accus'd, you doom'd: And yet he dy'd, Convinc'd of Treason, and was fairly try'd: You heard not he was false; your Eyes beheld T h e Traytor manifest; the Bribe reveal'd. That Philoctetes is on Lemnos left Wounded, forlorn, of human Aid bereft, Is not my Crime, or not my Crime alone, Defend your Justice, for the Fact's your own: 'Tis true, th' Advice was mine; that staying there He might his weary Limbs with rest repair,

And never hope to see the nightly Train: ) In vain the Dairy now with Mints is dress'd, ) The Dairy-Maid expects no Fairy Guest, > T o skim the Bowls and after pay the Feast. / She sighs and shakes her empty Shoes in vain, No Silver Penny to reward her Pain: For Priests with Pray'rs, and other godly Geer, Have made the merry Goblins disappear; And where they plaid their merry Pranks before, Have sprinkled Holy Water on the Floor: And Fry'rs that through the wealthy Regions run Thick as the Motes, that twinkle in the Sun; Resort to Farmers rich, and bless their Halls 8 Phoebe] Phabe F.

451

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870 Citees, borowes, castelles, and hie toures, Thropes, bernes, shepens, and deiries, This maketh, that there been no fairies: For there as wont to walke was an Elfe, There walketh now the limitour himselfe In vndermeles, and in mornynges, And saieth his Mattins and his holy thinges As he goeth in his limitacioun: Women may go safely vp and doun In euery bush, and vnder euery tre, 880 There nis none other Incubus but he, And he ne will doen hem no dishonour. And so fell it, that this kyng Artour Had in his house a lusty batcheler, That on a day come riding fro the riuer: And happed, that alone as he was borne, He saw a maid walkyng him biforne, Of which maid anon, maugre her hed, (By very force) he biraft her maidenhed: For which oppression was such clamour, 890 And soch pursute vnto king Artour, That dampned was this knight to be dedde By course of law, and should haue lost his hed. Perauenture soch was the statute tho:

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale A n d exorcise the Beds, and cross the Walls: T h i s makes the Fairy Quires forsake the Place, W h e n once 'tis hallow'd with the Rites of Grace: But in the Walks where wicked Elves have been, \ T h e Learning of the Parish now is seen, > T h e Midnight Parson posting o'er the Green ) W i t h Gown tuck'd up to Wakes; for Sunday next, i With humming Ale encouraging his T e x t ; > Nor wants the holy Leer to Country-Girl betwixt. ' From Fiends and Imps he sets the Village free, There haunts not any Incubus, but He. T h e Maids and Women need no Danger fear T o walk by Night, and Sanctity so near: For by some Haycock or some shady T h o r n He bids his Beads both Even-song and Morn. It so befel in this King Arthur's Reign, } A lusty Knight was pricking o'er the Plain; / A Batchelor he was, and of the courtly T r a i n . ' It happen'd as he rode, a Damsel gay In Russet-Robes to Market took her way; Soon on the Girl he cast an amorous Eye, So strait she walk'd, and on her Pasterns high: If seeing her behind he lik'd her Pace, Now turning short he better lik'd her Face: He lights in hast, and full of Youthful Fire, By Force accomplish'd his obscene Desire: T h i s done away he rode, not unespy'd, For swarming at his Back the Country cry'd; And once in view they never lost the Sight, But seiz'd, and pinion'd brought to court the Knight. T h e n Courts of Kings were held in high Renown, E'er made the common Brothels of the T o w n : There, Virgins honourable Vows receiv'd, But chast as Maids in Monasteries liv'd: 36 Green]

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But that the Quene, and other ladies mo So long praiden the king of grace, Till he his life graunted in that place, And yaue him to the quene, all at her will T o chese where that she would him saue or spill. The quene thanketh the king with all her might, 900 And after this thus spake she to the knight, Whan she sey her time on a day: Thou standeth yet (qd. she) in such aray, That of thy life yet hast thou no suerte: I graunt thee thy life, if that thou canst telle me What thing is it that women most desiren:

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale T h e King himself to Nuptial Ties a Slave, N o bad Example to his Poets gave: A n d they not bad, but in a vicious Age, Had not to please the Prince debauch'd the Stage. Now what shou'd Arthur do? He lov'd the Knight, But Soveraign Monarchs are the Source of Right: Mov'd by the Damsels Tears and common Cry, He doom'd the brutal Ravisher to die. But fair Geneura rose in his Defence, A n d pray'd so hard for Mercy from the Prince; T h a t to his Queen the King th' Offender gave, A n d left it in her Pow'r to Kill or Save: T h i s gracious Act the Ladies all approve, W h o thought it much a Man should die for Love: A n d with their Mistress join'd in close Debate, \ (Covering their Kindness with dissembled Hate;) > If not to free him, to prolong his Fate. ) A t last agreed they call'd him by consent Before the Queen and Female Parliament. A n d the fair Speaker rising from her Chair, Did thus the Judgment of the House declare. Sir Knight, tho' I have ask'd thy Life, yet still T h y Destiny depends upon my Will: Nor hast thou other Surety than the Grace Not due to thee from our offended Race. But as our Kind is of a softer Mold, A n d cannot Blood without a Sigh behold, I grant thee Life; reserving still the Pow'r T o take the Forfeit when I see my Hour: Unless thy Answer to my next Demand Shall set T h e e free from our avenging Hand; T h e Question, whose Solution I require, Is What the Sex of Women most desire? 67 78

Age,] ~ A F. Love:] F.

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Is What] Is what F.

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Poems,

1697-1700

Beware and kepe thy necke bone from yren. And if thou canst not tell it me anon, Yet wol I yeue thee leue for to gon A twelue moneth and a day to seke and lere 910 An answere sufficient in this matere. And suertie wol I haue er that thou passe, Thy body for to yelde in this place. W o was the knight, and sorowfully he siketh: But what? he may not don al as him liketh. And at last he chese him for to wende, And come ayen right at the yeres ende With such answer as God wold him puruay: And taketh his leue, and wendeth forth his way. He seketh euery house and euery place, 920 Where as he hopeth for to finde grace, T o lerne what thing women louen most: But he ne couth ariuen in no cost, Where as he might find in this matere Two creatures according yfere. Some said women loued best richesse, Some said honour, some said iolynesse, Some said riche aray, some said lust a bed, And ofte time to ben widowe and wed. Some said, that our herte is most y esed 930 Whan that we ben flattered and y plesed.

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale In this Dispute thy Judges are at Strife; Beware; for on thy Wit depends thy Life. 100 Yet (lest surpriz'd, unknowing what to say Thou damn thy self) we give thee farther Day: A Year is thine to wander at thy Will; And learn from others if thou want'st the Skill. But, not to hold our Proffering in Scorn, Good Sureties will we have for thy return; That at the time prefix'd thou shalt obey, And at thy Pledges Peril keep thy Day. Woe was the Knight at this severe Command I But well he knew 'twas bootless to withstand: no The Terms accepted as the Fair ordain, He put in Bail for his return again: And promis'd Answer at the Day assign'd, T h e best, with Heav'ns Assistance, he could find. His Leave thus taken, on his Way he went With heavy Heart, and full of Discontent, > Misdoubting much, and fearful of th' Event. ) 'Twas hard the Truth of such a Point to find, As was not yet agreed among the Kind. Thus on he went; still anxious more and more, 120 Ask'd all he met; and knock'd at ev'ry Door; Enquir'd of Men; but made his chief Request T o learn from Women what they lov'd the best. They answer'd each according to her Mind; T o please her self, not all the Female Kind. One was for Wealth, another was for Place: Crones old and ugly, wish'd a better Face. T h e Widow's Wish was oftentimes to Wed; The wanton Maids were all for Sport a Bed. Some said the Sex were pleas'd with handsom Lies, wo And some gross Flatt'ry lov'd without disguise: Truth is, says one, he seldom fails to win 104 Proffering] Proffer F.

111

again:]

F.

457

Poems,1697-1700

45»

He goeth full nye the sothe, I wol not lye, A man shall winne vs best with flaterye, And with attendaunce, and with businesse Ben we ilymed both more and lesse. And some men sain, how that we loven best For to ben fre, and do right as vs lest: And that no man repreue vs of our vice, But say that we be wise and nothing nice. For trewly there nis none of vs all, 940 If any wight wol clawe vs on the gall, That we nil kike, for that he saith vs sothe: Assaye, and he shal finde it, that so dothe. For we be neuer so vicious within, We woll be holden wise and cleane of sin. And some men sain, that gret delite haue we For to ben holde stable and eke secre, And in o purpose stedfastly to dwell, And nat bewray thing that men vs tell. But that tale is not worth a rake stele, 950 Parde we women can nothing hele, Witnesse of Midas, woll ye here the tale? Ouide, among other things small Said, Midas had vnder his long heeres Growing on his heed, two asses eeres: The which vice he hidde, as he best might, Ful subtelly from euery mannes sight: That saue his wife, there wiste of it no mo, 935

sain] fain F.

94a

Assaye] Astaye F.

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale Who Flatters well, for that's our darling Sin. But long Attendance, and a duteous Mind, Will work ev'n with the wisest of the Kind. One thought the Sexes prime Felicity Was from the Bonds of Wedlock to be free: Their Pleasures, Hours, and Actions all their own, And uncontroll'd to give Account to none. Some wish a Husband-Fool; but such are curst, 140 For Fools perverse, of Husbands are the worst: All Women wou'd be counted Chast and Wise, Nor should our Spouses see, but with our Eyes; For Fools will prate; and tho' they want the Wit T o find close Faults, yet open Blots will hit: Tho' better for their Ease to hold their Tongue, For Womankind was never in the Wrong. So Noise ensues, and Quarrels last for Life; T h e Wife abhors the Fool, the Fool the Wife. And some Men say that great Delight have we, iso T o be for Truth extoll'd, and Secrecy: And constant in one Purpose still to dwell; And not our Husband's Counsels to reveal. But that's a Fable; for our Sex is frail, Inventing rather than not tell a Tale. Like leaky Sives no Secrets we can hold: Witness the famous Tale that Ovid told. Midas the King, as in his Book appears, By Phoebus was endow'd with Asses Ears, Which under his long Locks, he well conceal'd, 160 (As Monarchs Vices must not be reveal'd) For fear the People have 'em in the Wind, Who long ago were neither Dumb nor Blind; Nor apt to think from Heav'n their Title springs, Since Jove and Mars left off begetting Kings. This Midas knew; and durst communicate T o none but to his Wife, his Ears of State: 160

Monarchs] Monarch's F.

459

Poems,

460

iöyj-ijoo

He loued her most, and trusted her also, He praied her that to no creature so« She nolde teilen of his disfigure. She swore him nat for all the world to win, She nolde do that villanie, ne that sin, T o maken her husbonde haue so foule a name: She nold nat tell it for her owne shame. But natheles, her thought that she dide, That she so long should a counsaile hide, Her thought it swol so sore about her hert, That nedely some word she must astert: And sith she durst teilen it to no man, »70 Doun to a marris fast by she ran, T i l she came there, her hert was on a fyre: And as a bittour bumbeth in the myre, She laid her mouth vnto the water adoun. Bewray me not thou water with thy soun Qd. she, to thee I tell it and to no mo, My husbonde hath long asses eres two. Now is myn hert al hole, now it is out, I might no lenger kepe it out of dout. Here mowe ye se, though we a time abide, «so Yet out it mote, we can no counsaile hide. T h e remnaunt of the tale if ye will here, Redeth Ouide, and there ye may it lere. 968

astert] a stert F.

973

vnto] vnto to F.

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale O n e m u s t b e t r u s t e d , a n d h e t h o u g h t h e r fit, As passing p r u d e n t ; a n d a parlous W i t . T o this sagacious Confessor he went, 170 A n d t o l d h e r w h a t a G i f t t h e G o d s h a d s e n t : B u t told it u n d e r M a t r i m o n i a l Seal, W i t h strict I n j u n c t i o n never to reveal. T h e Secret h e a r d she plighted h i m her T r o t h , ( A n d s a c r e d s u r e is e v e r y W o m a n ' s O a t h ) T h e royal M a l a d y s h o u l d rest u n k n o w n Both for her Husband's H o n o u r and her own: B u t ne'ertheless she p i n ' d with Discontent; T h e C o u n s e l r u m b l e d till it found a vent. T h e T h i n g s h e k n e w s h e was o b l i g ' d t o h i d e ; } wo B y I n t ' r e s t a n d b y O a t h t h e W i f e was t y ' d ;

/

B u t if she told it n o t t h e W o m a n dy'd.

/

L o a t h to betray a H u s b a n d a n d a Prince,

)

B u t she m u s t burst, o r b l a b ; a n d n o pretence

>

O f H o n o u r ty'd h e r T o n g u e from Self-defence. ' A m a r s h y G r o u n d c o m m o d i o u s l y was n e a r , T h i t h e r she ran, a n d h e l d h e r B r e a t h for fear, L e s t if a W o r d she spoke of any T h i n g , T h a t W o r d might be the Secret of the King. T h u s full of Counsel to the F e n she went, 190 G r i p ' d a l l t h e w a y , a n d l o n g i n g f o r a v e n t : Arriv'd, by pure Necessity compell'd, O n h e r m a j e s t i c k m a r y - b o n e s she k n e e l ' d : T h e n t o t h e W a t e r s - b r i n k she l a i d h e r H e a d , A n d , as a B i t t o u r b u m p s w i t h i n a R e e d , T o t h e e a l o n e , O L a k e , s h e said, I t e l l ( A n d as t h y Q u e e n c o m m a n d t h e e t o c o n c e a l ) B e n e a t h his Locks the K i n g m y H u s b a n d wears A g o o d l y R o y a l p a i r o f Asses E a r s : N o w I h a v e eas'd m y B o s o m o f the P a i n 200 T i l l t h e n e x t l o n g i n g F i t r e t u r n a g a i n ! T h u s t h r o u g h a W o m a n was t h e S e c r e t k n o w n ; T e l l us, a n d i n effect y o u tell the T o w n :

461

462

Poems, 1697-1700

This knight, of which my tale is specially, Whan that he sawe he might not come therby, This is to say, what women louen moste: Within his herte sorowful was his goste. But home he goth, he might not soiourne, T h e day was come, he must home returne. And in his way it happed him to ride 890 In al his care vnder a forest side, Where he sawe vpon a daunce go Of ladies foure and twenty, and yet mo: Toward the daunce he drowe him, and that yerne, In hope that some wisdome should be lerne. But certainly er that he came fully there, Vanished was the daunce, he nist not where, No creature saw he that bare life, Saue in the grene, he saw sitting an olde wife: A fouler wight there may no man deuise. 1000 Againe the knight the olde wife gan arise, And said, sir knight, here forth lieth no way, T e l l me what ye seken by your fay, Peraduenture it may the better be: This olde folke conne much thing (qd. she.)

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale But to my Tale: The Knight with heavy Cheer, Wandring in vain had now consum'd the Year: One Day was only left to solve the Doubt, Yet knew no more than when he first set out. But home he must: And as th' Award had been Yield up his Body Captive to the Queen. In this despairing State he hap'd to ride sio As Fortune led him, by a Forest-side: Lonely the Vale, and full of Horror stood Brown with the shade of a religious Wood: When full before him at the Noon of night, (The Moon was u p and shot a gleamy Light) H e saw a Quire of Ladies in a round, That featly footing seem'd to skim the Ground: Thus dancing Hand in Hand, so light they were, He knew not where they trod, on Earth or Air. At speed he drove, and came a suddain Guest, ) 220 In hope where many Women were, at least, > Some one by chance might answer his Request J But faster than his Horse the Ladies flew, And in a trice were vanish'd out of view. One only Hag remain'd: But fowler far Than Grandame Apes in Indian Forests are: Against a wither'd Oak she lean'd her weight, \ Prop'd on her trusty Staff, not half upright, / And drop'd an awkard Court'sy to the Knight:) Then said, What make you Sir so late abroad 230 Without a Guide, and this no beaten Road? Or want you ought that here you hope to find, Or travel for some Trouble in your Mind? T h e last I guess; and, if I read aright, Those of our Sex are bound to serve a Knight: Perhaps good Counsel may your Grief asswage; Then tell your Pain: For Wisdom is in Age. 2*8

Knight:]

F.

229 abroad] abtoad F.

463

464

Poems,

1697-1700

My lefe mother (qd. this knight) certaine, I nam but dede, but if that I can saine, What thing it is that women most desire: Coud ye me wisse, I wold quite well your hire. Plight me thy trouth here in my hand (qd. she) 1010 The next thing that I require of the Thou shalt it do, if it be in thy might, And I woll tell it you, or it be night. Haue here my trought (qd. the knizt) I graunt. Than (qd. she) I may me wel auaunt, T h y life is safe, for I wol stond therby, Vpon my life the quene will say as I: Let se, which is the proudest of hem all That weareth on a kerchefe or a call, That dare nay say, of that I shall you teche, 1020 Let vs go forth without lenger speche. T h o rowned she a pistell in his ere, And bad him to be glad and haue no fere. Whan they ben comen to the court, this knizt Said, he had hold his day, as he had hight, And redy was his answere as he said: Full many a noble wife, and many a maid And many a widow, for that they be wise,

Fables: The Wife of Bath her

Tale

T o this the Knight: Good Mother, wou'd you know T h e secret Cause and Spring of all my Woe? My Life must with to Morrow's Light expire, 240 Unless I tell, what Women most desire: Now cou'd you help me at this hard Essay, Or for your inborn Goodness, or for Pay: Yours is my Life, redeem'd by your Advice, Ask what you please, and I will pay the Price. Plight me thy Faith, quoth she: That what I ask Thy Danger over, and perform'd the Task, That shalt thou give for Hire of thy Demand; Here take thy Oath; and seal it on my Hand; I warrant thee on Peril of my Life, 250 Thy Words shall please both Widow, Maid and Wife. T h e proudest Kerchief of the Court shall rest Well satisfy'd of what they love the best. More Words there needed not to move the Knight T o take her Offer, and his Truth to plight. With that she spread her Mantle on the Ground, And first enquiring whether he was bound, Bade him not fear, tho' long and rough the Way, At Court he should arrive e'er break of Day: His Horse should find the way without a Guide, \ 2so She said: With Fury they began to ride, > He in the midst, the Beldam at his Side. ' T h e Horse, what Devil drove I cannot tell, But only this, they sped their Journey well: And all the way the Crone inform'd the Knight, How he should answer the Demand aright. T o Court they came: The News was quickly spread Of his returning to redeem his Head. T h e Female Senate was assembled soon, With all the Mob of Women in the Town: «44 Price.] F. 847 Demand;] F. 855 Ground] Gronnd F.

246 Task,] F. 251-252 Follow line 244 in F. 261 in] on F.

465

466

Poems,

169J-1J00

(The quene her selfe sitting as a iustise) Assembled ben his answere for to here, loso And afterward this knight was bode apere. T o euery wight commaunded was silence, And that the knight should tell in audience, What thing that worldly women loued best, This knight ne stode not still as doth a best, But to his question anon answerd With manly voice, that all the court it herd. My liege lady, generally (qd. he) Women desiren to haue souerainte As well ouer her husbonds as her loue, 1040 And for to ben in maistry hem aboue. This is your most desire, though ye me kill, Doth as you list, I am here at your will. In all the court nas there wife ne maid Ne widow, that contraried that he said, But said, he was worthy han his life. And with that word, vp stert the old wife, Which that the knight fond sitting on the grene: Mercy (qd. she) my soueraine lady quene, Er that your court depart, do me right: 1050 I taught this answere vnto this knight, For which he plight me his trouth there, T h e first thing I would of him requere, He wold it do, if it lay in his might:

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale 270 T h e Queen sate Lord Chief Justice of the Hall, And bad the Cryer cite the Criminal. T h e Knight appear'd; and Silence they proclaim, Then first the Culprit answer'd to his Name: And after Forms of Laws, was last requir'd T o name the Thing that Women most desir'd. T h ' Offender, taught his Lesson by the way, And by his Counsel order'd what to say, Thus bold began; My Lady Liege, said he, What all your Sex desire is Soveraignty. 280 T h e Wife affects her Husband to command, All must be hers, both Mony, House, and Land. T h e Maids are Mistresses ev'n in their Name; And of their Servants full Dominion claim. This, at the Peril of my Head, I say \ A blunt plain Truth, the Sex aspires to sway, / You to rule all; while we, like Slaves, obey. ) There was not one or Widow, Maid, or Wife, But said the Knight had well deserv'd his Life. Ev'n fair Geneura, with a Blush confess'd, 290 T h e Man had found what Women love the best. Upstarts the Beldam, who was there unseen, And Reverence made, accosted thus the Queen. My Liege, said she, before the Court arise, May I poor Wretch find Favour in your Eyes T o grant my just Request: 'Twas I who taught T h e Knight this Answer, and inspir'd his Thought. None but a Woman could a Man direct T o tell us Women, what we most affect. But first I swore him on his Knightly Troth, 300 (And here demand performance of his Oath) T o grant the Boon that next I should desire; He gave his Faith, and I expect my Hire: 273

Culprit] Culprit F.

294 Eyes]

F.

467

468

Poems,

iöyj-ijoo

Before the court than pray I the, sir knight, (Qd. she) that thou me take vnto thy wife, For well thou woost, that I haue kept thy life: If I say false, say nay vpon thy fay. This knight answerd, alas and welaway: I wot right well that such was my behest, loeo For Goddes loue chese a new request: Take all my good, and let my body go. Nay (qd. she) than I shrewe vs both two. For though that I be foule, olde, and pore, I nolde for al the metall ne the ore, That under yerth is graue, or lithe aboue, But if I thy wife were and thy loue. My loue (qd. he) nay my dampnacion: Alas that any of my nacion Should ever so foule disparaged be. 1070 But al for nought, the ende is this, that he Constrained was, that nedes must he her wed, And taketh this olde wife, and goeth to bed.

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale My Promise is fulfill'd: I sav'd his Life, And claim his Debt to take me for his Wife. The Knight was ask'd, nor cou'd his Oath deny, But hop'd they would not force him to comply. The Women, who would rather wrest the Laws, Than let a Sister-Plaintiff lose the Cause, (As Judges on the Bench more gracious are, 310 And more attent to Brothers of the Bar) Cry'd one, and all, the Suppliant should have Right, And to the Grandame-Hag adjudg'd the Knight. In vain he sigh'd, and oft with Tears desir'd, Some reasonable Sute, might be requir'd. But still the Crone was constant to her Note; The more he spoke, the more she stretch'd her Throat. In vain he proffer'd all his Goods, to save His Body, destin'd to that living Grave. The liquorish Hag rejects the Pelf with scorn: 820 And nothing but the Man would serve her turn. Not all the Wealth of Eastern Kings, said she, Have Pow'r to part my plighted Love, and me: And Old, and Ugly as I am, and Poor; Yet never will I break the Faith I swore; For mine thou art by Promise, during Life, And I thy loving and obedient Wife. My Love! Nay rather my Damnation Thou, Said he: Nor am I bound to keep my Vow: The Fiend thy Sire has sent thee from below, «so Else how cou'dst thou my secret Sorrows know? Avaunt old Witch, for I renounce thy Bed: ) The Queen may take the Forfeit of my Head, > E'er any of my Race so foul a Crone shall wed. ' Both heard, the Judge pronounc'd against the Knight; So was he Marry'd in his own despight; And all Day after hid him as an Owl, Not able to sustain a Sight so foul.

469

470

Poems,

1697-1700

Now wolden some men say perauenture That for my negligence, I do no cure To tellen you the ioy and the array, That at the feast was that ilke day. To the which thing answere shortly I shall: I say there was no ioy ne feest at all, There nas but heuinesse and much sorowe: 1080 For priuely he wedded her on a morowe, And al day after hid him as an oule. So wo was him his wife loked so foule. Gret was the sorow the knizt had in his thouzt, Whan he was with his wife a bedde ibrought, He waloweth, and turneth to and fro. His olde wife lay smiling euermo, And said, O dere husbonde, O benedicite, Fareth euery knight thus as ye? Is this the lawe of king Artours house? 1090 Is euery knight of his loue so daungerouse? I am your own loue, and eke your wife, I am she, which that saued hath your life, And certes yet did I neuer you vnright. Why fare ye thus with me the first night? Ye faren like a man that had loste his wit. Fy, what is my gilt? for gods loue tell me it, And it shal be amended if I may. Amended (qd. this knight) alas nay nay: That woll not ben amended neuer mo, 1100 Thou art so lothly, and so olde also, And therto comen of so lowe a kinde, That litle wonder is thouz I walow and winde,

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale Perhaps the Reader thinks I do him wrong T o pass the Marriage-Feast, and Nuptial Song: 84o Mirth there was none, the Man was a-la-mort: And little Courage had to make his Court. T o Bed they went, the Bridegroom and the Bride: Was never such an ill-pair'd Couple ty'd. Restless he toss'd and tumbled to and fro, And rowl'd, and wriggled further off; for Woe. T h e good old Wife lay smiling by his Side, And caught him in her quiv'ring Arms, and cry'd, When you my ravish'd Predecessor saw, You were not then become this Man of Straw; 850 Had you been such, you might have scap'd the Law. Is this the Custom of King Arthur's Court? Are all Round-Table Knights of such a sort? Remember I am she who sav'd your Life, Your loving, lawful, and complying Wife: Not thus you swore in your unhappy Hour, Nor I for this return employ'd my Pow'r. In time of Need I was your faithful Friend; Nor did I since, nor ever will offend. Believe me my lov'd Lord, 'tis much unkind; 860 What Fury has possess'd your alter'd Mind? Thus on my Wedding-night— Without PretenceCome turn this way, or tell me my Offence. If not your Wife, let Reasons Rule persuade, Name but my Fault, amends shall soon be made. Amends I Nay that's impossible, said he, What change of Age, or Ugliness can be? Or, could Medea's Magick mend thy Face, Thou art descended from so mean a Race, That never Knight was match'd with such Disgrace. 870 What wonder, Madam, if I move my Side, When if I turn, I turn to such a Bride? 566 beî]

F.

471

Poems,

472

1697-ijoo

So w o u l d g o d (qd. he) m i n h e r t w o u l d brest. I s t h i s ( q d . s h e ) t h e c a u s e of y o u r v n r e s t ? Ye certainly (qd. he) n o w o n d e r nis. N o w sir (qd. she) I c o u t h a m e n d all this, If t h a t m e list, e r it w e r e daies t h r e e , So w e l ye m i g h t b e a r e y o u v n t o m e . B u t f o r ye s p e k e of s u c h g e n t i l n e s s e , m o A s is d i s c e n d e d o u t o f o l d e r i c h e s s e , T h a t therfore shullen ye b e g e n t i l m e n : S u c h e r r o g a u n c e is n o t w o r t h e a n h e n . L o w h o t h a t is m o s t e v e r t u o u s a l w a y , P r e u y a n d aperte, a n d most e n t e n d e t h aye T o do t h e gentil dedes that h e can, T a k e h i m for the greatest gentilman. C h r i s t w u l d w e c l a i m e d of h i m o u r g e n t i l n e s s e , N o t of o u r e l d e r s , f o r o u r o l d richesse. F o r t h o u g h t h e y y e u e vs a l l h e r h e r i t a g e , 1120 F o r w h i c h w e d a y m e n t o b e n o f h i e p a r a g e , Yet m a y they not byqueth, for nothing, T o n o n e o f vs, h e r v e r t u o u s l i u i n g , T h a t m a d e h e m g e n t i l m e n icalled be, A n d b a d vs f o l l o w e n h e m i n s u c h d e g r e .

W e l can t h e wise p o e t e of T h a t hight

Daunte,

Florence,

speke in this sentence:

L o i n s u c h m a n e r r i m e is Daunte's

tale.

Ful selde v p riseth by his b r a u n c h e s smale P r o w e s s e o f m a n : f o r G o d of h i s g o o d n e s s e 1130 W o l t h a t w e c l a i m o f h i m o u r g e n t i l n e s s e : F o r of o u r e l d e r s m a y w e n o t h i n g c l a i m e But temporal thing that m e n may hurt and maime. E k e e u e r y w i g h t w o t t h i s as w e l as I , If g e n t i l n e s w e r e p l a n t e d n a t u r a l l y V n t o a certain linage d o u n the line, »103 brest] brezt F.

Fables: The

Wife of Bath her Tale

And is this all that troubles you so sore? And what the Devil cou'dst thou wish me more? A h Benedicite, reply'd the Crone: Then cause of just Complaining have you none. T h e Remedy to this were soon apply'd, Wou'd you be like the Bridegroom to the Bride. But, for you say a long descended Race, A n d Wealth, and Dignity, and Pow'r, and Place, 880 Make Gentlemen, and that your high Degree Is much disparag'd to be match'd with me; Know this, my Lord, Nobility of Blood Is but a glitt'ring, and fallacious Good: T h e Nobleman is he whose noble Mind Is fill'd with inborn Worth, unborrow'd from his Kind. T h e King of Heav'n was in a Manger laid; And took his Earth but from an humble Maid: T h e n what can Birth, or mortal Men bestow, Since Floods no higher than their Fountains flow? 89o W e who for Name, and empty Honour strive, Our true Nobility from him derive. Your Ancestors who puff your Mind with Pride, And vast Estates to mighty Titles ty'd, Did not your Honour, but their own advance, For Virtue comes not by Inheritance. If you tralineate from your Father's Mind, What are you else but of a Bastard-kind? Do, as your great Progenitors have done, And by their Virtues prove your self their Son. «w No Father can infuse, or Wit, or Grace, A Mother comes across, and marrs the Race. A Grandsire, or a Grandame taints the Blood; And seldom three Descents continue Good. Were Virtue by Descent, a noble Name 37g sore?] 374

F.

Not indented in F.

389flow?]— F.

473

474

Poems,

iß^-i^oo

Preuy and aperte, than wold they neuer fine T o done of gentilnesse the fair office, They might don no vilany ne vice. Take fire and beare it into the derkest hous ii4o Bitwixt this and the mount Caucasus, And let men shitte the dores, and go thenne, Yet wol the fire as fayre lye and brenne As twentie thousand men might it beholde: His office naturall ay wol it holde Vp peril of my life, till that it dye. Here may ye se well how that gentrye Is not annexed to possession, Sithen folke don not her operacion Alway as doth the fire lo in his kinder liso For God it wot men may ful often finde A lordes sonne done shame and vilany. And he that wol haue prise of his gentry, For he was born of a gentil house, And had his elders noble and vertuouse, And nil him selfe don no gentil dedes, Ne folow his gentle auncetre that deed is, He nis not gentil, be he duke or erle. Fye villaines, sinful dedes maketh a cherle.

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale Cou'd never villanize his Father's Fame: But as the first the last of all the Line, Wou'd like the Sun ev'n in Descending shine. Take Fire; and bear it to the darkest House, Betwixt King Arthur's Court and Caucasus, 4w If you depart, the Flame shall still remain, And the bright Blaze enlighten all the Plain: Nor, till the Fewel perish, can decay, By Nature form'd on Things combustible to prey. Such is not Man, who mixing better Seed With worse, begets a base, degenerate Breed: T h e Bad corrupts the Good, and leaves behind No trace of all the great Begetter's Mind. T h e Father sinks within his Son, we see; And often rises in the third Degree, 420 If better Luck, a better Mother give: Chance gave us being, and by Chance we live. Such as our Atoms were, ev'n such are we, \ Or call it Chance, or strong Necessity. > Thus, loaded with dead weight, the Will is free.; And thus it needs must be: For Seed conjoin'd Lets into Nature's Work th' imperfect Kind: But Fire, th' enliv'ner of the general Frame Is one, its Operation still the same. Its Principle is in it self: While ours 430 Works as Confederates War, with mingled Pow'rs: Or Man, or Woman, which soever fails: And, oft, the Vigour of the Worse prevails. .¿Ether with Sulphur blended, alters hue, And casts a dusky gleam of Sodom blue. Thus in a Brute, their ancient Honour ends, And the fair Mermaid in a Fish descends: T h e Line is gone; no longer Duke or Earl; But by himself degraded turns a Churl. 418 see;] F. 419 Degree,] F. 430 Confederates] Confederate's F.

426 Lets] Let's F. 433 ¿Ether] ALther F.

475

Poems,

476

1697-1joo

For gentilnesse nis but the renomie Of thine aunceters, for her high bountie, Which is a Strang thing to thy persone: T h e gentilnesse commeth fro God alone. Than cometh our very gentilnesse of grace, It was nothing biqueth vs with our place. Thinketh how noble, as saith Valerius, Was thilke Tullius Hostilius, That out of pouertie rose to hie noblesse: Redeth Seneck, and redeth eke Boece, There shall ye seen expresse, no drede is, 1170 That he is gentile, that doth gentile dedis. And therefore dere husbond I thus conclude, A1 were it that mine aunceters were rude, Yet may that hie god, and so hope I, Graunt me grace to liue vertously: Than am I gentil, whan I beginne T o liue vertuously, and leuen sinne. And there as ye of pouertie me repreue, T h e hie God on whom that we bileue, In wilful pouerte chese to lede his life: 1180 And certes euery man, maide, and wife May vnderstond, Jesu heuen king Ne would not chese a viciouse liuing. Glad pouerte is an honest thing certain, This wol Seneck and other clerkes saine: Who so would holde him paide of his pouert, I holde him riche, all had he not a shert. He that coueiteth is a full poore wight, For he wold han, that is not in his might. But he that nought hath ne conceiteth to haue, ii9o Is rich, although ye hold him but a knaue. Very pouerte is sinne properly. Juuenal saith of pouert merily: T h e poore man, whan he goeth by the way Biforne theues he may sing and play. Pouert is hatefull good: and as I gesse,

lieo

1161

Strang] strong F.

1186

a shert] shert F.

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale Nobility of Blood is but Renown 440 Of thy great Fathers by their Virtue known, And a long trail of Light, to thee descending down. If in thy Smoke it ends: Their Glories shine; But Infamy and Villanage are thine. Then what I said before, is plainly show'd, T h a t true Nobility proceeds from God: Not left us by Inheritance, but giv'n By Bounty of our Stars, and Grace of Heav'n. Thus from a Captive Servius Tullius rose, Whom for his Virtues, the first Romans chose: 450 Fabricius from their Walls repell'd the Foe, Whose noble Hands had exercis'd the Plough. From hence, my Lord, and Love, I thus conclude, T h a t tho' my homely Ancestors, were rude, Mean as I am, yet I may have the Grace, T o make you Father of a generous Race: And Noble then am I, when I begin In Virtue cloath'd, to cast the Rags of Sin: If Poverty be my upbraided Crime, And you believe in Heav'n; there was a time, 460 When He, the great Controller of our Fate Deign'd to be Man; and liv'd in low Estate: Which he who had the World at his dispose, If Poverty were Vice, wou'd never choose. Philosophers have said, and Poets sing, That a glad Poverty's an honest Thing. Content is Wealth, the Riches of the Mind; And happy He who can that Treasure find. But the base Miser starves amidst his Store, ) Broods on his Gold, and griping still at more / 470 Sits sadly pining, and believes he's Poor. ) T h e ragged Beggar, tho' he wants Relief, Has not to lose, and sings before the Thief. Want is a bitter, and a hateful Good, Because its Virtues are not understood: 448 Tullius] Tullus F.

450 Fabricius] Fabritius F.

477

Poems,

47«

169J—1J00

A full great bringer out of businesse: A great amender eke of sapience, T o him that taketh it in pacience. Pouert is, although it seme elenge, 1200 Possession, that no wight wol challenge. Pouerte ful often whan a man is lowe, Maketh his god, and eke himselfe to knowe. Pouert a spectacle is, as thinketh me, Through which one may his very trends se. And therefore sin that I you not greue, Of my pouert, no more me repreue. Now sir, eke of elde ye repreued me: And certes sir, though none autorite Were in no boke, ye gentils of honour 1210 Saine, that men shuld an old wight honour, And clepe hem father for her gentilnesse. And autours shal I finde as I gesse. Now there as ye sain, that I am foule and olde, Than drede you not to ben a coke wolde. For filthe, elthe, and foule, also mote I the, Ben great wardeins vpon chastite. But natheles, sin I know your delite, I shal fulfill your worldly appetite: Chese now (qd. she) one of these things twey, 1220 T o haue me foule and olde, til that I dey, And be to you a trewe humble wife, And neuer you displease in al my life: Or els wol you haue me yong and faire, And take your auenture of the repaire That shal come to your house, bicause of me, Or in some other place, may well be? Now chese your seluen whether that you liketh. »209 honour]

F.

1219

Chese] These F.

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale Yet many Things impossible to Thought Have been by Need to full Perfection brought: The daring of the Soul proceeds from thence, Sharpness of Wit, and active Diligence: Prudence at once, and Fortitude it gives, 480 And if in patience taken mends our Lives; For ev'n that Indigence that brings me low Makes me my self; and Him above to know: A Good which none would challenge, few would choose, A fair Possession, which Mankind refuse. If we from Wealth to Poverty descend, Want gives to know the Flatt'rer from the Friend. If I am Old, and Ugly, well for you, No leud Adult'rer will my Love pursue. Nor Jealousy the Bane of marry'd Life, 490 Shall haunt you, for a wither'd homely Wife: For Age, and Ugliness, as all agree, Are the best Guards of Female Chastity. Yet since I see your Mind is Worldly bent, I'll do my best to further your Content. And therefore of two Gifts in my dispose, Think e'er you speak, I grant you leave to choose: Wou'd you I should be still Deform'd, and Old, Nauseous to Touch, and Loathsome to Behold; On this Condition, to remain for Life eoo A careful, tender and obedient Wife, In all I can contribute to your Ease, And not in Deed or Word, or Thought displease? Or would you rather have me Young and Fair, And take the Chance that happens to your share? Temptations are in Beauty, and in Youth, And how can you depend upon my Truth? Now weigh the Danger, with the doubtful Bliss, And thank your self, if ought should fall amiss. 48s know:]

F.

479

480

Poems,

1697-iyoo

This knight auiseth him, and sore siketh, But at the last he saith in manere: liso My lady, and my loue, and wife so dere, I put me in your wise gouernaunce, Cheseth your selfe, which may be more plesaunce And most honour to you and me also, I do no force whether of the two: For as you liketh it suffiseth me. Than haue I gote of you the mastry (qd. she) Sin I may chese, and gouerne as my liste: Ye certes wife (qd. he) I hold it for the beste. Kisse me (qd. she) we be no lenger wrothe: 1240 For by my trueth I wol be to you bothe, This is to say, to be bothe faire and good. I pray to God that I mote sterue wood, But I to you be also good and trewe, As euer was wife, sithen the world was newer And but I be to morow as faire to sene, As any Lady, Empresse or Quene, That is between Est and eke the West, Doth with my life right as you lest. Cast vp the courteine, and loke how it is. 1250 And when this knight sawe all this, That she so faire was, and so yong therto, For ioye he hent her in his armes two: His herte bathed in a bathe of blisse, A thousand times a rowe he gan her kisse: And she obeyed him in euery thing, That mought done him pleasure or liking. And thus they liued vnto her liues ende In parfite ioye, and Jesu Christ vs sende Husbondes meke, yong, and fresh a bedde,

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale Sore sigh'd the Knight, who this long Sermon heard, MO At length considering all, his Heart he chear'd: And thus reply'd, My Lady, and my Wife, T o your wise Conduct I resign my Life: Choose you for me, for well you understand The future Good and III, on either Hand: But if an humble Husband may request, Provide, and order all Things for the best; Your's be the Care to profit, and to please: And let your Subject-Servant take his Ease. Then thus in Peace, quoth she, concludes the Strife, 620 Since I am turn'd the Husband, you the Wife: The Matrimonial Victory is mine, Which having fairly gain'd, I will resign; Forgive, if I have said, or done amiss, And seal the Bargain with a Friendly Kiss: I promis'd you but one Content to share, But now I will become both Good, and Fair. No Nuptial Quarrel shall disturb your Ease, The Business of my Life shall be to please: And for my Beauty that, as Time shall try; 530 But draw the Curtain first, and cast your Eye. He look'd, and saw a Creature heav'nly Fair, In bloom of Youth, and of a charming Air. With Joy he turn'd, and seiz'd her Iv'ry Arm; And like Pygmalion found the Statue warm. Small Arguments there needed to prevail, A Storm of Kisses pour'd as thick as Hail. Thus long in mutual Bliss they lay embrac'd, And their first Love continu'd to the last: One Sun-shine was their Life; no Cloud between; 540 Nor ever was a kinder Couple seen. And so may all our Lives like their's be led; Heav'n send the Maids young Husbands, fresh in Bed:

481

482

Poems,

1697-1700

i2«o And grace to ouerliue hem that we wedde. And I pray to God to shorte her liues, That will not be gouerned by her wiues. And olde, and angry nigardes of dispence, God send hem sone a very pestilence.

Fables: The Wife of Bath her Tale May Widows Wed as often as they can, And ever for the better change their Man. And some devouring Plague pursue their Lives, Who will not well be govern'd by their Wives. 543

as often as] F (corrected state); as often F (uncorrected state).

483

484

Poems,

iöyj-ijoo

Of the Pythagorean Philosophy From Ovid's Metamorphoses Book

XV

The Fourteenth Book concludes with the Death and Deification of Romulus: The Fifteenth begins with the Election of Numa to the Crown of Rome. On this Occasion, Ovid following the Opinion of some Authors, makes Numa the Schollarof Pythagoras; and to have begun his Acquaintance with that Philosopher at Crotona, a Town in Italy; from thence he makes a Digression to the Moral and Natural Philosophy of Pythagoras: On both which our Author enlarges; and which are, the most learned and beautiful Parts of the whole Metamorphoses.

A

King is sought to guide the growing State, } One able to support the Publick Weight, / And fill the Throne where Romulus had sate. ) Renown, which oft bespeaks the Publick Voice, Had recommended Numa to their choice: A peaceful, pious Prince; who not content T o know the Sabine Rites, his Study bent T o cultivate his Mind: T o learn the Laws Of Nature, and explore their hidden Cause. 10 Urg'd by this Care, his Country he forsook, And to Crotona thence, his Journey took. Arriv'd, he first enquir'd the Founder's Name, Of this new Colony; and whence he came. T h e n thus a Senior of the Place replies, (Well read, and curious of Antiquities) 'Tis said A Icides hither took his way, From Spain, and drove along his conquer'd Prey; T h e n leaving in the Fields his grazing Cows, Philosophy . . . XF] Half title in F (PHILOSOPHY.); PHILOSOPHY. F. Connection: 9 Metamorphoses] Metamorphoses F. 3 sate] sat F. 16 said] F.

Fables: Of the Pythagorean

Philosophy

He sought himself some hospitable House: Good Croton entertain'd his Godlike Guest; While he repair'd his weary Limbs with rest. T h e Hero, thence departing, bless'd the Place; And here, he said, in Times revolving Race A rising Town shall take his Name from thee; Revolving Time fulfill'd the Prophecy: For Myscelos, the justest Man on Earth, A lemon's Son, at Argos had his Birth: Him Hercules, arm'd with his Club of Oak O'ershadow'd in a Dream, and thus bespoke; Go, leave thy Native Soil, and make Abode j Where /Esaris rowls down his rapid Flood; / He said; and Sleep forsook him, and the God. ' Trembling he wak'd, and rose with anxious Heart; His Country Laws, forbad him to depart; What shou'd he do? 'Twas Death to go away, And the God menac'd if he dar'd to stay: All Day he doubted, and when Night came on, Sleep, and the same forewarning Dream begun: Once more the God stood threatning o'er his Head; With added Curses if he disobey'd. Twice warn'd, he study'd Flight; but wou'd convey At once his Person, and his Wealth away: Thus while he linger'd, his Design was heard; A speedy Process form'd, and Death declar'd. Witness there needed none of his Offence, Against himself the Wretch was Evidence: Condemn'd, and destitute of human Aid, T o him, for whom he suffer'd, thus he pray'd. O Pow'r who hast deserv'd in Heav'n a Throne Not giv'n, but by thy Labours made thy own, Pity thy Suppliant, and protect his Cause, Whom thou hast made obnoxious to the Laws. A Custom was of old, and still remains; Which Life or Death by Suffrages ordains;

485

486

Poems,

i697-1700

White Stones and Black within an Urn are cast, The first absolve, but Fate is in the last. The Judges to the common Urn bequeath Their Votes, and drop the Sable Signs of Death; The Box receives all Black, but pour'd from thence The Stones came candid forth: The Hue of Innocence. Thus Alemonides his Safety won, Preserv'd from Death by Alcumena's Son: Then to his Kinsman-God his Vows he pays, And cuts with prosp'rous Gales th' Ionian Seas: He leaves Tarentum favour'd by the Wind, And Thurine Bays, and Temises behind; Soft Sybaris, and all the Capes that stand Along the Shore, he makes in sight of Land; Still doubling, and still coasting, till he found The Mouth of /Esaris, and promis'd Ground, Then saw where on the Margin of the Flood The Tomb, that held the Bones of Croton stood: Here, by the God's Command, he built and wall'd The Place predicted; and Crotona call'd: Thus Fame from time to time delivers down The sure Tradition of th' Italian Town. Here dwelt the Man divine whom Samos bore, But now Self-banish'd from his Native Shore, Because he hated Tyrants, nor cou'd bear The Chains which none but servile Souls will wear: He, tho' from Heav'n remote, to Heav'n cou'd move, With Strength of Mind, and tread th' Abyss above; And penetrate with his interiour Light Those upper Depths, which Nature hid from Sight: And what he had observ'd, and learnt from thence, Lov'd in familiar Language to dispence. The Crowd with silent Admiration stand And heard him, as they heard their God's Command; While he discours'd of Heav'ns mysterious Laws, The World's Original, and Nature's Cause; And what was God, and why the fleecy Snows

Fables: Of the Pythagorean

Philosophy

In silence fell, and rattling Winds arose; What shook the stedfast Earth, and whence begun T h e dance of Planets round the radiant Sun; If Thunder was the Voice of angry Jove, Or Clouds with Nitre pregnant burst above: Of these, and Things beyond the common reach He spoke, and charm'd his Audience with his Speech. He first the tast of Flesh from Tables drove, IOO And argu'd well, if Arguments cou'd move. O Mortalsl from your Fellows Blood abstain, Nor taint your Bodies with a Food profane: While Corn and Pulse by Nature are bestow'd, And planted Orchards bend their willing Load; While labour'd Gardens wholsom Herbs produce, And teeming Vines afford their generous Juice: Nor tardier Fruits of cruder Kind are lost, But tam'd with Fire, or mellow'd by the Frost: While Kine to Pails distended Udders bring, 110 And Bees their Hony redolent of Spring: While Earth not only can your Needs supply, But lavish of her Store, provides for Luxury; A guiltless Feast administers with Ease, And without Blood is prodigal to please. Wild Beasts their Maws with their slain Brethren fill; And yet not all, for some refuse to kill: Sheep, Goats, and Oxen, and the nobler Steed On Browze and Corn, and flow'ry Meadows feed. Bears, Tygers, Wolves, the Lion's angry Brood, 120 Whom Heav'n endu'd with Principles of Blood, He wisely sundred from the rest, to yell In Forests, and in lonely Caves to dwell, Where stronger Beasts oppress the weak by Might, And all in Prey, and Purple Feasts delight. O impious usel to Nature's Laws oppos'd, Where Bowels are in other Bowels clos'd: 101

Fellows] Fellow's F.

118

Browze] Browz F.

487

Poems,

488

1697-1700

Where fatten'd by their Fellows Fat they thrive; Maintain'd by Murder, and by Death they live. 'Tis then for nought that Mother Earth provides is« The Stores of all she shows, and all she hides, If Men with fleshy Morsels must be fed, And chaw with bloody Teeth the breathing Bread: What else is this but to devour our Guests, And barb'rously renew Cyclopean Feasts! We, by destroying Life, our Life sustain; And gorge th' ungodly Maw with Meats obscene. Not so the Golden Age, who fed on Fruit, Nor durst with bloody Meals their Mouths pollute. Then Birds in airy space might safely move, 1« And timerous Hares on Heaths securely rove: Nor needed Fish the guileful Hooks to fear, For all was peaceful; and that Peace sincere. Whoever was the Wretch (and curs'd be He) That envy'd first our Food's simplicity; T h ' essay of bloody Feasts on Bruits began, And after forg'd the Sword to murther Man: Had he the sharpen'd Steel alone employ'd On Beasts of Prey that other Beasts destroy'd, Or Man invaded with their Fangs and Paws, wo This had been justify'd by Nature's Laws, And Self-defence: But who did Feasts begin Of Flesh, he stretch'd Necessity to Sin. T o kill Man-killers, Man has lawful Pow'r, But not th' extended Licence, to devour. Ill Habits gather by unseen degrees, As Brooks make Rivers, Rivers run to Seas. T h e Sow, with her broad Snout for rooting up \ T h ' intrusted Seed, was judg'd to spoil the Crop, > And intercept the sweating Farmer's hope: ) wo T h e cov'tous Churl of unforgiving kind, 127 147

Fellows] Fellow's F. employ'd] F.

146 Man:] F. 160 cov'tous] covet'ous F.

Fables: Of the Pythagorean Philosophy T h ' Offender to the bloody Priest resign'd: Her Hunger was no Plea: For that she dy'd. T h e Goat came next in order, to be try'd: T h e Goat had cropt the tendrills of the Vine: ) In vengeance Laity, and Clergy join, / Where one had lost his Profit, one his Wine. ' Here was at least, some shadow of Offence: 1 T h e Sheep was sacrific'd on no pretence, / But meek, and unresisting Innocence: ' A patient, useful Creature, born to bear T h e warm and woolly Fleece, that cloath'd her Murderer, And daily to give down the Milk she bred, A Tribute for the Grass on which she fed. Living, both Food and Rayment she supplies, And is of least advantage when she dies. How did the toiling Oxe his Death deserve, A downright simple Drudge, and born to serve? O Tyrant! with what Justice can'st thou hope T h e promise of the Year, a plenteous Crop; When thou destroy'st thy lab'ring Steer, who till'd, And plough'd with Pains, thy else ungrateful Field? From his yet reeking Neck to draw the Yoke, T h a t Neck, with which the surly Clods he broke; And to the Hatchet yield thy Husband-Man, Who finish'd Autumn and the Spring began I Nor this alonel but Heav'n it self to bribe, W e to the Gods our impious Acts ascribe: First recompence with Death their Creatures Toil, Then call the Bless'd above to share the Spoil: T h e fairest Victim must the Pow'rs appease, (So fatal 'tis sometimes too much to please!) A purple Fillet his broad Brows adorns, With flow'ry Garlands crown'd, and gilded Horns: He hears the murd'rous Pray'r the Priest prefers, 169

Innocence:]

F.

170

bear]

F.

489

490

Poems,

169J—1700

But understands not, 'tis his Doom he hears: Beholds the Meal betwixt his Temples cast, (The Fruit and Product of his Labours past;) And in the Water views perhaps the Knife Uplifted, to deprive him of his Life; 200 Then broken up alive his Entrails sees, Torn out for Priests t' inspect the God's Decrees. From whence, O mortal Men, this gust of Blood Have you deriv'd, and interdicted Food? Be taught by me this dire Delight to shun, Warn'd by my Precepts, by my Practice won: And when you eat the well deserving Beast, Think, on the Lab'rer of your Field, you feast I Now since the God inspires me to proceed, Be that, whate'er inspiring Pow'r, obey'd. 210 For I will sing of mighty Mysteries, ) Of Truths conceal'd before, from human Eyes, > Dark Oracles unveil, and open all the Skies: ' Pleas'd as I am to walk along the Sphere Of shining Stars, and travel with the Year, T o leave the heavy Earth, and scale the height Of Atlas, who supports the heav'nly weight; T o look from upper Light, and thence survey Mistaken Mortals wandring from the way, And wanting Wisdom, fearful for the state 220 Of future Things, and trembling at their Fate I Those I would teach; and by right Reason bring T o think of Death, as but an idle Thing. Why thus affrighted at an empty Name, A Dream of Darkness, and fictitious Flame; Vain Themes of Wit, which but in Poems pass, And Fables of a World, that never was? aia Skies:] F. 224 Flame;] F.

826 was?]

F.

Fables: Of the Pythagorean

Philosophy

What feels the Body when the Soul expires, By time corrupted, or consum'd by Fires? Nor dies the Spirit, but new Life repeats 230 In other Forms, and only changes Seats. Ev'n I, who these mysterious Truths declare, Was once Euphorbus in the Trojan War; My Name and Lineage I remember well, And how in Fight by Sparta's King I fell. In Argive Juno's Fane I late beheld My Buckler hung on high, and own'd my former Shield. Then, Death, so call'd, is but old Matter dress'd In some new Figure, and a vary'd Vest: Thus all Things are but alter'd, nothing dies; 240 And here and there th' unbodied Spirit flies, By Time, or Force, or Sickness dispossest, And lodges, where it lights, in Man or Beast; Or hunts without, till ready Limbs it find, And actuates those according to their kind; From Tenement to Tenement is toss'd; The Soul is still the same, the Figure only lost: And, as the soften'd Wax new Seals receives, This Face assumes, and that Impression leaves; Now call'd by one, now by another Name; 250 The Form is only chang'd, the Wax is still the same: So Death, so call'd, can but the Form deface, ) T h ' immortal Soul flies out in empty space; ? T o seek her Fortune in some other Place. ) Then let not Piety be put to flight, T o please the tast of Glutton-Appetite; But suffer inmate Souls secure to dwell, Lest from their Seats your Parents you expel; With rabid Hunger feed upon your kind, Or from a Beast dislodge a Brother's Mind. «35 beheld]

F.

491

492

Poems,

169J-1J00

260

And since, like Tiphys parting from the Shore, I n ample Seas I sail, and Depths untry'd before, T h i s let me further add, that Nature knows N o stedfast Station, but, or Ebbs, or Flows: Ever in motion; she destroys her old, And casts new Figures in another Mold. Ev'n T i m e s are in perpetual F l u x ; and r u n L i k e Rivers from their Fountain rowling on; F o r T i m e no more than Streams, is at a stay: T h e flying H o u r is ever on her way; 270 A n d as the Fountain still supplies her store, T h e Wave behind impels the W a v e before; T h u s in successive Course the Minutes run, A n d urge their Predecessor Minutes on, Still moving, ever new: F o r former T h i n g s Are set aside, like abdicated Kings: And every moment alters what is done, And innovates some Act till then unknown. Darkness we see emerges into Light, A n d shining Suns descend to Sable Night; 280 Ev'n Heav'n it self receives another die, W h e n weari'd Animals in Slumbers lie, O f Midnight Ease: Another when the gray O f Morn preludes the Splendor of the Day. T h e disk of Phoebus when he climbs on high, Appears at first b u t as a bloodshot Eye; A n d when his Chariot downward drives to Bed, His B a l l is with the same Suffusion red; B u t mounted high in his Meridian R a c e All bright he shines, and with a better Face: 2»o F o r there, pure Particles of .¿Ether flow, Far from th' Infection of the W o r l d below. Nor equal Light th' unequal M o o n adorns, O r in her wexing or her waning Horns. «90 iEther] /Ether F.

Fables: Of the Pythagorean

Philosophy

For ev'ry Day she wanes, her Face is less, But gath'ring into Globe, she fattens at increase. Perceiv'st thou not the process of the Year, ) How the four Seasons in four Forms appear, > Resembling human Life in ev'ry Shape they wear? ) Spring first, like Infancy, shoots out her Head, ) / 8oo With milky Juice requiring to be fed: Helpless, tho' fresh, and wanting to be led. ) T h e green Stem grows in Stature and in Size, But only feeds with hope the Farmer's Eyes; Then laughs the childish Year with Flourets crown'd, And lavishly perfumes the Fields around, But no substantial Nourishment receives, Infirm the Stalks, unsolid are the Leaves. Proceeding onward whence the Year began T h e Summer grows adult, and ripens into Man. sio This Season, as in Men, is most repleat, With kindly Moisture, and prolifick Heat. Autumn succeeds, a sober tepid Age, Not froze with Fear, nor boiling into Rage; More than mature, and tending to decay, When our brown Locks repine to mix with odious Grey. Last Winter creeps along with tardy pace, Sour is his Front, and furrow'd is his Face; His Scalp if not dishonour'd quite of Hair, T h e ragged Fleece is thin, and thin is worse than bare. 820

Ev'n our own Bodies daily change receive, Some part of what was theirs before, they leave; Nor are to Day what Yesterday they were; Nor the whole same to Morrow will appear. T i m e was, when we were sow'd, and just began From some few fruitful Drops, the promise of a Man;

493

Poems, J1697—1700

494

Then Nature's Hand (fermented as it was) Moulded to Shape the soft, coagulated Mass; And when the little Man was fully form'd, The breathless Embryo with a Spirit warm'd; 330 But when the Mothers Throws begin to come, The Creature, pent within the narrow Room, Breaks his blind Prison, pushing to repair His stiffied Breath, and draw the living Air; Cast on the Margin of the World he lies, A helpless Babe, but by Instinct he cries. He next essays to walk, but downward press'd On four Feet imitates his Brother Beast: By slow degrees he gathers from the Ground His Legs, and to the rowling Chair is bound; 340 Then walks alone; a Horseman now become He rides a Stick, and travels round the Room: In time he vaunts among his youthful Peers, Strong-bon'd, and strung with Nerves, in pride of Years; He runs with Mettle his first merry Stage, Maintains the next abated of his Rage, > But manages his Strength, and spares his Age. / Heavy the third, and stiff, he sinks apace, And tho' 'tis down-hill all, but creeps along the Race. Now sapless on the verge of Death he stands, 350 Contemplating his former Feet, and Hands; And Milo-like, his slacken'd Sinews sees, ) And wither'd Arms, once fit to cope with Hercules, > Unable now to shake, much less to tear the Trees. / So Helen wept when her too faithful Glass Reflected to her Eyes the ruins of her Face: Wondring what Charms her Ravishers cou'd spy, T o force her twice, or ev'n but once enjoy I Thy Teeth, devouring Time, thine, envious Age, On Things below still exercise your Rage:

343 Years;]

F.

Fables: Of the Pythagorean

Philosophy

s6o With venom'd Grinders you corrupt your Meat, And then at lingring Meals, the Morsels eat. Nor those, which Elements we call, abide, Nor to this Figure, nor to that are ty'd: For this eternal World is said of Old But four prolifick Principles to hold, Four different Bodies; two to Heaven ascend, And other two down to the Center tend: Fire first with Wings expanded mounts on high, Pure, void of weight, and dwells in upper Sky; 870 Then Air, because unclogg'd in empty space Flies after Fire, and claims the second Place: But weighty Water as her Nature guides, Lies on the lap of Earth; and Mother Earth subsides. All Things are mix'd of these, which all contain, And into these are all resolv'd again: Earth rarifies to Dew; expanded more, T h e subtil Dew in Air begins to soar; Spreads as she flies, and weary of her Name Extenuates still, and changes into Flame; 8») Thus having by degrees Perfection won, Restless they soon untwist the Web they spun, And Fire begins to lose her radiant Hue, Mix'd with gross Air, and Air descends to Dew: And Dew condensing, does her Form forego, And sinks, a heavy lump of Earth below. Thus are their Figures never at a stand, But chang'd by Nature's innovating Hand; All Things are alter'd, nothing is destroy'd, The shifted Scene, for some new Show employ'd. 890

Then to be born, is to begin to be Some other Thing we were not formerly: 376 Dew;]

F.

495

Poems, 1697-1

496

joo

And what we call to Die, is not t' appear, Or be the Thing that formerly we were. Those very Elements which we partake, Alive, when Dead some other Bodies make: Translated grow, have Sense, or can Discourse, But Death on deathless Substance has no force. That Forms are chang'd I grant; that nothing can Continue in the Figure it began: 400 The Golden Age, to Silver was debas'd: T o Copper that; our Mettal came at last. The Face of Places, and their Forms decay; And that is solid Earth, that once was Sea: Seas in their turn retreating from the Shore, Make solid Land, what Ocean was before; And far from Strands are Shells of Fishes found, And rusty Anchors fix'd on Mountain-Ground: And what were Fields before, now wash'd and worn By falling Floods from high, to Valleys turn, 410 And crumbling still descend to level Lands; And Lakes, and trembling Bogs are barren Sands: And the parch'd Desart floats in Streams unknown; Wondring to drink of Waters not her own. Here Nature living Fountains opes; and there Seals up the Wombs where living Fountains were; Or Earthquakes stop their ancient Course, and bring Diverted Streams to feed a distant Spring. So Lycus, swallow'd up, is seen no more, But far from thence knocks out another Door. 420 Thus Erasinus dives; and blind in Earth Runs on, and gropes his way to second Birth, Starts up in Argos Meads, and shakes his Locks, Around the Fields, and fattens all the Flocks. So Mysus by another way is led, 414

opes] ope's F.

419

another] anorher F.

Fables: Of the Pythagorean

Philosophy

And, grown a River now disdains his Head: Forgets his humble Birth, his Name forsakes, And the proud Title of Caicus takes. Large Amenane, impure with yellow Sands, Runs rapid often, and as often stands, 430 And here he threats the drunken Fields to drown; And there his Dugs deny to give their Liquor down. Anigros once did wholsome Draughts afford, But now his deadly Waters are abhorr'd: Since, hurt by Hercules, as Fame resounds, T h e Centaurs, in his current wash'd their Wounds. T h e Streams of Hypanis are sweet no more, But brackish lose the tast they had before. Antissa, Pharos, Tyre, in Seas were pent, Once Isles, but now increase the Continent; 440 While the Leucadian Coast, main Land before, By rushing Seas is sever'd from the Shore. So Zancle to th' Italian Earth was ty'd, And Men once walk'd where Ships at Anchor ride: Till Neptune overlook'd the narrow way, And in disdain pour'd in the conqu'ring Sea. Two Cities that adorn'd th' Achaian Ground, \ Buris and Helice, no more are found, / But whelm'd beneath a Lake are sunk and drown'd; ' And Boatsmen through the Chrystal Water show 450 T o wond'ring Passengers the Walls below. Near Trcezen stands a Hill, expos'd in Air T o Winter-Winds, of leafy Shadows bare: This once was level Ground: But (strange to tell) T h ' included Vapors, that in Caverns dwell, Lab'ring with Cholick Pangs, and close confin'd, In vain sought issue for the rumbling Wind: Yet still they heav'd for vent, and heaving still Inlarg'd the Concave, and shot up the Hill; 443

ride:]

F.

451

Trcezen]

TrazenT.

497

498

Poems,

1697-1700

As Breath extends a Bladder, or the Skins 46o Of Goats are blown t' inclose the hoarded Wines: The Mountain yet retains a Mountain's Face, And gather'd Rubbish heals the hollow space. Of many Wonders, which I heard or knew, Retrenching most, I will relate but few: What, are not Springs with Qualities oppos'd, Endu'd at Seasons, and at Seasons lost? Thrice in a Day thine, Ammon, change their Form, Cold at high Noon, at Morn and Evening warm: Thine, Athaman, will kindle Wood, if thrown 470 On the pil'd Earth, and in the waning Moon. The Thracians have a Stream, if any try The tast, his harden'd Bowels petrify; Whate'er it touches it converts to Stones, And makes a Marble Pavement where it runs. Crathis, and Sybaris her Sister Flood, That slide through our Calabrian Neighbour Wood, With Gold and Amber die the shining Hair, And thither Youth resort; (for who wou'd not be Fair?) But stranger Virtues yet in Streams we find, 48o Some change not only Bodies, but the Mind: Who has not heard of Salmacis obscene, Whose Waters into Women soften Men? Or /Ethiopian Lakes which turn the Brain T o Madness, or in heavy Sleep constrain? Clitorian Streams the love of Wine expel, (Such is the Virtue of th' abstemious Well;) Whether the colder Nymph that rules the Flood Extinguishes, and balks the drunken God; Or that Melampus (so have some assur'd) 490 When the mad Proe tides with Charms he cur'd, 483 ¿Ethiopian] /Ethyopian F. 485 Clitorian] Clytorian F.

490 cur'd,]

F.

Fables:

Of the Pythagorean

Philosophy

499

And pow'rful Herbs; both Charms and Simples cast Into th' sober Spring, where still their Virtues last. Unlike Effects Lyncestis will produce, W h o drinks his Waters, tho' with moderate use, Reels as with Wine, and sees with double Sight: His Heels too heavy, and his Head too light. Ladon, once Pheneos, an Arcadian Stream, (Ambiguous in th' Effects, as in the Name) By Day is wholsom Bev'rage; but is thought soo By Night infected, and a deadly Draught. T h u s running Rivers, and the standing Lake Now of these Virtues, now of those partake: T i m e was (and all Things T i m e and Fate obey) W h e n fast Ortygia floated on the Sea: Such were Cyanean Isles, when Tiphys steer'd Betwixt their Streights and their Collision fear'd; T h e y swam where now they sit; and firmly join'd Secure of rooting up, resist the Wind. Nor /Etna vomiting sulphureous Fire sio W i l l ever belch; for Sulphur will expire, (The Veins exhausted of the liquid Store:) T i m e was she cast no Flames; in time will cast no more. For whether Earth's an Animal, and Air Imbibes; her Lungs with coolness to repair, A n d what she sucks remits; she still requires Inlets for Air, and Outlets for her Fires; W h e n tortur'd with convulsive Fits she shakes, T h a t motion choaks the vent till other vent she makes: Or when the Winds in hollow Caves are clos'd, 52o A n d subtil Spirits find that way oppos'd, T h e y toss up Flints in Air; the Flints that hide T h e Seeds of Fire, thus toss'd in Air, collide, Kindling the Sulphur, till the Fewel spent 491 505

Herbs;] F. Tiphys] Typhis F.

509 sulphureous] sulphuerous F.

Poems,169J-1J00

5°°

The Cave is cool'd, and the fierce Winds relent: Or whether Sulphur, catching Fire, feeds on Its unctuous Parts, till all the Matter gone The Flames no more ascend; for Earth supplies The Fat that feeds them; and when Earth denies That Food, by length of Time consum'd, the Fire 530 Famish'd for want of Fewel must expire. A Race of Men there are, as Fame has told, Who shiv'ring suffer Hyperborean Cold, Till nine times bathing in Minerva's Lake, Soft Feathers, to defend their naked Sides, they take. 'Tis said, the Scythian Wives (believe who will) Transform themselves to Birds by Magick Skill; Smear'd over with an Oil of wond'rous Might, That adds new Pinions to their airy Flight. But this by sure Experiment we know 540 That living Creatures from Corruption grow: Hide in a hollow Pit a slaughter'd Steer, Bees from his putrid Bowels will appear; Who like their Parents haunt the Fields, and bring Their Hony-Harvest home, and hope another Spring. The Warlike Steed is multiply'd we find, T o Wasps and Hornets of the Warrior Kind. Cut from a Crab his crooked Claws, and hide The rest in Earth, a Scorpion thence will glide And shoot his Sting, his Tail in Circles toss'd 550 Refers the Limbs his backward Father lost. And Worms, that stretch on Leaves their filmy Loom, - Crawl from their Bags, and Butterflies become. Ev'n Slime begets the Frog's loquacious Race: Short of their Feet at first, in little space With Arms and Legs endu'd, long leaps they take, Rais'd on their hinder part, and swim the Lake, 524 541

relent:] F. hollow] hallow F.

545

Warlike Steed] Warlike-Steed F.

Fables: Of the Pythagorean Philosophy And Waves repel: For Nature gives their Kind T o that intent, a length of Legs behind. The Cubs of Bears, a living lump appear, Sao When whelp'd, and no determin'd Figure wear. Their Mother licks 'em into Shape, and gives As much of Form, as she her self receives. The Grubs from their sexangular abode Crawl out unfinish'd, like the Maggot's Brood: Trunks without Limbs; till time at leisure brings The Thighs they wanted, and their tardy Wings. T h e Bird who draws the Carr of Juno, vain Of her crown'd Head, and of her Starry Train; And he that bears th' Artillery of Jove, 570 The strong-pounc'd Eagle, and the billing Dove; And all the feather'd Kind, who cou'd suppose | (But that from sight the surest Sense he knows) > They from th' included Yolk, not ambient White arose? / There are who think the Marrow of a Man, Which in the Spine, while he was living ran; When dead, the Pith corrupted will become A Snake, and hiss within the hollow Tomb. All these receive their Birth from other Things; But from himself the Phoenix only springs: 580 Self-born, begotten by the Parent Flame In which he burn'd, another and the same; Who not by Corn or Herbs his Life sustains, But the sweet Essence of Amomum drains: And watches the rich Gums Arabia bears, While yet in tender Dew they drop their Tears. He, (his five Centuries of Life fulfill'd) 573 583

arose?] — F. Amomum] Amomum F.

579 Phoenix] Phoenix F. 586 Centuries] Cent'ries F.

501

502

Poems,

1697-1700

His Nest on Oaken Boughs begins to build, Or trembling tops of Palm, and first he draws The Plan with his broad Bill, and crooked Claws, «so Nature's Artificers; on this the Pile Is form'd, and rises round, then with the Spoil Of Casia, Cynamon, and Stems of Nard, (For softness strew'd beneath,) his Fun'ral Bed is rear'd: Fun'ral and Bridal both; and all around T h e Borders with corruptless Myrrh are crown'd; On this incumbent, till aetherial Flame First catches, then consumes the costly Frame: Consumes him too, as on the Pile he lies; He liv'd on Odours, and in Odours dies. eoo

An Infant-Phcenix from the former springs His Father's Heir, and from his tender Wings Shakes off his Parent Dust, his Method he pursues, And the same Lease of Life on the same Terms renews. When grown to Manhood he begins his reign, And with stiff Pinions can his Flight sustain, He lightens of its Load, the Tree that bore His Father's Royal Sepulcher before, And his own Cradle: This with pious Care Plac'd on his Back, he cuts the buxome Air, eio Seeks the Sun's City, and his sacred Church, And decently lays down his Burden in the Porch. A Wonder more amazing wou'd we find? T h ' Hyaena shows it, of a double kind, Varying the Sexes in alternate Years, In one begets, and in another bears. The thin Camelion fed with Air, receives T h e colour of the Thing to which he cleaves. 592 Casia, Cynamon . . . Nard] Casia, Cynamon .. . Nard F. 595 crown'd;] F. 596 incumbent,] —; F. 600 Infant-Phcenix] Infant-P/icent'x F. 608 with] F. 609 Back,] F. 613 Hyaena] Hyana F. 616 Camelion] Camelion F.

Fables: Of the Pythagorean Philosophy India when conquer'd, on the conqu'ring God For planted Vines the sharp-ey'd Lynx bestow'd, ezo Whose Urine shed, before it touches Earth, Congeals in Air, and gives to Gems their Birth. So Coral soft, and white in Oceans Bed, Comes harden'd up in Air, and glows with Red. A l l changing Species should my Song recite; Before I ceas'd, wou'd change the Day to Night. Nations and Empires flourish, and decay, By turns command, and in their turns obey; T i m e softens hardy People, Time again Hardens to War a soft, unwarlike Train, eso Thus Troy for ten long Years her Foes withstood, And daily bleeding bore th' expence of Blood: Now for thick Streets it shows an empty space, 1 Or only fill'd with Tombs of her own perish'd Race, / Her self becomes the Sepulcher of what she was. / Mycene, Sparta, Thebes of mighty Fame, Are vanish'd out of Substance into Name. And Dardan Rome that just begins to rise, On Tiber's Banks, in time shall mate the Skies; Widening her Bounds, and working on her way; 64o Ev'n now she meditates Imperial Sway: Yet this is change, but she by changing thrives, Like Moons new-born, and in her Cradle strives T o fill her Infant-Horns; an Hour shall come When the round World shall be contain'd in Rome. For thus old Saws foretel, and Helenus Anchises drooping Son enliven'd thus; When Ilium now was in a sinking State; And he was doubtful of his future Fate: O Goddess born, with thy hard Fortune strive, eso Troy never can be lost, and thou alive. 619 6so

Lynx] Lynx F. Urine shed,] ~ A F.

622

Coral] Coral F.

503

504

Poems,169J-1J00

Thy Passage thou shalt free through Fire and Sword, And Troy in Foreign Lands shall be restor'd. In happier Fields a rising Town I see, Greater than what e'er was, or is, or e'er shall be: And Heav'n yet owes the World a Race deriv'd from Thee. Sages, and Chiefs of other Lineage born The City shall extend, extended shall adorn: But from lulus he must draw his Birth, By whom thy Rome shall rule the conquer'd Earth: 660 Whom Heav'n will lend Mankind on Earth to reign, And late require the precious Pledge again. This Helenus to great /Eneas told, Which I retain, e'er since in other Mould My Soul was cloath'd; and now rejoice to view My Country Walls rebuilt, and Troy reviv'd anew, Rais'd by the fall: Decreed by Loss to Gain; Enslav'd but to be free, and conquer'd but to reign. 'Tis time my hard mouth'd Coursers to controul, Apt to run Riot, and transgress the Goal: 670 And therefore I conclude, whatever lies In Earth, or flits in Air, or fills the Skies, All suffer change, and Ave, that are of Soul And Body mix'd, are Members of the whole. Then, when our Sires, or Grandsires shall forsake The Forms of Men, and brutal Figures take, Thus hous'd, securely let their Spirits rest, Nor violate thy Father in the Beast. Thy Friend, thy Brother, any of thy Kin, If none of these, yet there's a Man within: 680 O spare to make a Thyestcean Meal, T* inclose his Body, and his Soul expel. Ill Customs by degrees to Habits rise, 111 Habits soon become exalted Vice: What more advance can Mortals make in Sin 658 lulus . . . Birth] 663 Mould] F.

Julus ...

Breath F.

670 lies]

F.

Fables: Of the Pythagorean Philosophy So near Perfection, who with Blood begin? Deaf to the Calf that lies beneath the Knife, Looks up, and from her Butcher begs her Life: Deaf to the harmless Kid, that e'er he dies \ All Methods to procure thy Mercy tries, > «90 And imitates in vain thy Children's Cries. ) Where will he stop, who feeds with Houshold Bread, Then eats the Poultry which before he fed? Let plough thy Steers; that when they lose their Breath T o Nature, not to thee they may impute their Death. Let Goats for Food their loaded Udders lend, And Sheep from Winter-cold thy Sides defend; But neither Sprindges, Nets, nor Snares employ, And be no more Ingenious to destroy. Free as in Air, let Birds on Earth remain, 700 Nor let insidious Glue their Wings constrain; Nor opening Hounds the trembling Stag affright, Nor purple Feathers intercept his Flight: Nor Hooks conceal'd in Baits for Fish prepare, Nor Lines to heave 'em twinkling up in Air. Take not away the Life you cannot give: For all Things have an equal right to live. Kill noxious Creatures, where 'tis Sin to save; This only just Prerogative we have: But nourish Life with vegetable Food, 710 And shun the sacrilegious tast of Blood. These Precepts by the Samian Sage were taught, Which Godlike Numa to the Sabines brought, And thence transferr'd to Rome, by Gift his own: A willing People, and an offer'd Throne. O happy Monarch, sent by Heav'n to bless A Salvage Nation with soft Arts of Peace, T o teach Religion, Rapine to restrain, Give Laws to Lust, and Sacrifice ordain: Himself a Saint, a Goddess was his Bride, 720 And all the Muses o'er his Acts preside.

505

506

Poems,

1697-ijoo

The Character of a Good Parson; Imitated from Chaucer, and Inlarg'd

A

Parish-Priest, was of the Pilgrim-Train: An Awful, Reverend, and Religious Man. His Eyes diffus'd a venerable Grace, And Charity it self was in his Face. Rich was his Soul, though his Attire was poor; \ (As God had cloath'd his own Embassador;) / For such, on Earth, his bless'd Redeemer bore. ) Of Sixty Years he seem'd; and well might last T o Sixty more, but that he liv'd too fast; Refin'd himself to Soul, to curb the Sense; And made almost a Sin of Abstinence. Yet, had his Aspect nothing of severe, But such a Face as promis'd him sincere. Nothing reserv'd or sullen was to see: ) But sweet Regards; and pleasing Sanctity:/ Mild was his Accent, and his Action free. / With Eloquence innate his Tongue was arm'd; Tho' harsh the Precept, yet the Preacher charm'd. For, letting down the golden Chain from high, He drew his Audience upward to the Sky: And oft, with holy Hymns, he charm'd their Ears: (A Musick more melodious than the Spheres.) For David left him, when he went to rest, His Lyre; and after him, he sung the best. He bore his great Commission in his Look: But sweetly temper'd Awe; and soften'd all he spoke. He preach'd the Joys of Heav'n, and Pains of Hell; \ And warn'd the Sinner with becoming Zeal; > But on Eternal Mercy lov'd to dwell. He taught the Gospel rather than the Law: And forc'd himself to drive; but lov'd to draw.

)

Fables: The Character of a Good Parson For Fear but freezes Minds; but Love, like Heat, Exhales the Soul sublime, to seek her Native Seat. T o Threats, the stubborn Sinner oft is hard: Wrap'd in his Crimes, against the Storm prepar'd; But, when the milder Beams of Mercy play, He melts, and throws his cumb'rous Cloak away. Lightnings and T h u n d e r (Heav'ns Artillery) As Harbingers before th' Almighty fly: Those, but proclaim his Stile, and disappear; T h e stiller Sound succeeds; and God is there. T h e Tythes, his Parish freely paid, he took; But never Su'd; or Curs'd with Bell and Book: With Patience bearing wrong; but off'ring none: Since every Man is free to lose his own. T h e Country-Churles, according to their Kind, (Who grudge their Dues, and love to be behind,) T h e less he sought his Off'rings, pinch'd the more; A n d prais'd a Priest, contented to be Poor. Yet, of his little, he had some to spare, T o feed the Famish'd, and to cloath the Bare: For Mortify'd he was, to that degree, A poorer than himself, he wou'd not see. T r u e Priests, he said, and Preachers of the Word, Were only Stewards of their Soveraign Lord; Nothing was theirs; but all the publick Store: Intrusted Riches, to relieve the Poor: Who, shou'd they steal, for want of his Relief, He judg'd himself Accomplice with the T h i e f . Wide was his Parish; not contracted close In Streets, but here and there a straggling House; 43 Book:]

F.

57

Poor:]~.F.

507

5

O8

Poems,

löpy-iyoo

Yet still he was at Hand, without Request T o serve the Sick; to succour the Distress'd: Tempting, on Foot, alone, without affright, T h e Dangers of a dark, tempestuous Night. A l l this, the good old Man, perform'd alone, Nor spar'd his Pains; for Curate he had none. Nor durst he trust another with his Care; Nor rode himself to Paul's, the publick Fair, T o chaffer for Preferment with his Gold, Where Bishopricks, and sine Cures are sold: But duly watch'd his Flock, by Night and Day; \ A n d from the prowling Wolf, redeem'd the Prey; > And hungry sent the wily Fox away. ) T h e Proud he tam'd, the Penitent he chear'd: Nor to rebuke the rich Offender fear'd. His Preaching much, but more his Practice wrought; (A living Sermon of the Truths he taught;) For this by Rules severe his Life he squar'd: T h a t all might see the Doctrin which they heard. For Priests, he said, are Patterns for the rest: (The Gold of Heav'n, who bear the God Impress'd:) But when the precious Coin is kept unclean, T h e Soveraign's Image is no longer seen. If they be foul, on whom the People trust, W e l l may the baser Brass, contract a Rust. T h e Prelate, for his Holy Life he priz'd; T h e worldly Pomp of Prelacy despis'd. His Saviour came not with a gawdy Show; Nor was his Kingdom of the World below. Patience in Want, and Poverty of Mind, These Marks of Church and Churchmen he design'd, And living taught; and dying left behind. T h e Crown he wore was of the pointed Thorn: 69

Paul's] Pauls F.

71

sold:]

F.

Fables: The Character of a Good Parson In Purple he was Crucify'd, not born. They who contend for Place and high Degree, Are not his Sons, but those of Zebedee. Not, but he knew the Signs of Earthly Pow'r Might well become St. Peter's Successor: The Holy Father holds a double Reign, The Prince may keep his Pomp; the Fisher must be plain. Such was the Saint; who shone with every Grace: Reflecting, Mcwes-like, his Maker's Face. God, saw his Image lively was express'd; And his own Work, as in Creation bless'd. The Tempter saw him too, with envious Eye; And, as on Job, demanded leave to try. He took the time when Richard was depos'd: And High and Low, with happy Harry clos'd. This Prince, tho' great in Arms, the Priest withstood: Near tho' he was, yet not the next of Blood. Had Richard unconstrain'd, resign'd the Throne: } A King can give no more than is his own: > The Title stood entail'd, had Richard had a Son. ) Conquest, an odious Name, was laid aside, Where all submitted; none the Battle try'd. The senseless Plea of Right by Providence, Was, by a flatt'ring Priest, invented since: And lasts no longer than the present sway; But justifies the next who comes in play. The People's Right remains; let those who dare Dispute their Pow'r, when they the Judges are. He join'd not in their Choice; because he knew Worse might, and often did from Change ensue. 97 Zebedee] Zebadee F.

509

Poems,

5io

1697-1700

Much to himself he thought; but little spoke: And, Undepriv'd, his Benefice forsook. Now, through the Land, his Cure of Souls he stretch'd: And like a Primitive Apostle preach'd: Still Chearful; ever Constant to his Call; 130 By many follow'd; Lov'd by most, Admir'd by All. With what he beg'd, his Brethren he reliev'd; And gave the Charities himself receiv'd: Gave, while he Taught; and Edify'd the more, Because he shew'd by Proof, 'twas easy to be Poor. He went not, with the Crowd, to see a Shrine; But fed us by the way, with Food divine. In deference to his Virtues, I forbear To shew you, what the rest in Orders were: This Brillant, is so Spotless, and so Bright, 140 He needs no Foyl: But shines by his own proper Light. 128 preach'd:]

F.

132 receiv'd:]

F.

Fables: The Monument of a Fair Maiden Lady

The Monument of a Fair Maiden Lady, Who dy'd at Bath, and is there Interr'd

B

this Marble Monument, is laid All that Heav'n wants of this Celestial Maid. Preserve, O sacred Tomb, thy Trust consign'd: The Mold was made on purpose for the Mind: And she wou'd lose, if at the latter Day One Atom cou'd be mix'd, of other Clay. Such were the Features of her heav'nly Face, Her Limbs were form'd with such harmonious Grace, So faultless was the Frame, as if the Whole Had been an Emanation of the Soul; Which her own inward Symmetry reveal'd; And like a Picture shone, in Glass Anneal'd: Or like the Sun eclips'd, with shaded Light; Too piercing, else, to be sustain'd by Sight. Each Thought was visible that rowl'd within: As through a Crystal Case, the figur'd Hours are seen. And Heav'n did this transparent Veil provide, Because she had no guilty Thought to hide. All white, a Virgin-Saint, she sought the Skies: For Marriage, tho' it sullies not, it dies. High tho' her Wit, yet Humble was her Mind; } As if she cou'd not, or she wou'd not find > How much her Worth transcended all her Kind.) Yet she had learn'd so much of Heav'n below, That when arriv'd, she scarce had more to know: But only to refresh the former Hint; And read her Maker in a fairer Print. So Pious, as she had no time to spare For human Thoughts, but was confin'd to Pray'r: Yet in such Charities she pass'd the Day, ELOW

is Anneal'd:] I; F. 13 Light;] I; F.

29 Pray'r:]

F, I.

511

512

Poems, 1697-1700

'Twas wond'rous how she found an Hour to Pray: A Soul so calm, it knew not Ebbs or Flows, Which Passion cou'd but curl; not discompose: A Female Softness, with a manly Mind: "J A Daughter duteous, and a Sister kind: / In Sickness patient; and in Death resign'd.' 31 Pray:]~.F,I.

33 discompose:]

F; ~ A I.

Fables: Cymon and

Cymon

and Iphigenia,

from

Iphigenia

513

Boccace

Poeta loquitur,

O

LD as I am, for Ladies Love unfit, The Pow'r of Beauty I remember yet, Which once inflam'd my Soul, and still inspires my Wit. If Love be Folly, the severe Divine Has felt that Folly, tho' he censures mine; Pollutes the Pleasures of a chast Embrace, \ Acts what I write, and propagates in Grace > With riotous Excess, a Priestly Race: ; Suppose him free, and that I forge th* Offence, He shew'd the way, perverting first my Sense: In Malice witty, and with Venom fraught, He makes me speak the Things I never thought. Compute the Gains of his ungovern'd Zeal; 111 sutes his Cloth the Praise of Railing well I The World will think that what we loosly write, Tho' now arraign'd, he read with some delight; Because he seems to chew the Cud again, When his broad Comment makes the Text too plain: And teaches more in one explaining Page, Than all the double Meanings of the Stage.

What needs he Paraphrase on what we mean? We were at worst but Wanton; he's Obscene. I, nor my Fellows, nor my Self excuse; But Love's the Subject of the Comick Muse: Nor can we write without it, nor would you A Tale of only dry Instruction view; Nor Love is always of a vicious Kind, But oft to virtuous Acts inflames the Mind, 28 Mind,],— F.

5H

Poems,

1697-1700

Awakes the sleepy Vigour of the Soul, And, brushing o'er, adds Motion to the Pool. Love, studious how to please, improves our Parts, With polish'd Manners, and adorns with Arts. Love first invented Verse, and form'd the Rhime, T h e Motion measur'd, harmoniz'd the Chime; T o lib'ral Acts inlarg'd the narrow-Soul'd: Soften'd the Fierce, and made the Coward Bold: T h e World when wast, he Peopled with increase, And warring Nations reconcil'd in Peace. Ormond, the first, and all the Fair may find In this one Legend to their Fame design'd, W h e n Beauty fires the Blood, how Love exalts the Mind.

I

N that sweet Isle, where Venus keeps her Court, And ev'ry Grace, and all the Loves resort; Where either Sex is form'd of softer Earth, And takes the bent of Pleasure from their Birth; There liv'd a Cyprian Lord, above the rest, Wise, Wealthy, with a num'rous Issue blest: But as no Gift of Fortune is sincere, Was only wanting in a worthy Heir. His eldest Born a goodly Youth to view Excell'd the rest in Shape, and outward Shew; Fair, Tall, his Limbs with due Proportion join'd, But of a heavy, dull, degenerate Mind. His Soul bely'd the Features of his Face; Beauty was there, but Beauty in disgrace: A clownish Mien, a Voice with rustick sound, And stupid Eyes, that ever lov'd the Ground. He look'd like Nature's Error; as the Mind } And Body were not of a Piece design'd, > But made for two, and by mistake in one were join'd./ 47 blest:] F (which begins a new paragraph with next line). 49 Heir.] F. 50 Same paragraph in F. 55 disgrace:] , — F.

Fables: Cymon and Iphigenia T h e ruling Rod, the Father's forming Care, Were exercis'd in vain, on Wit's despair; The more inform'd the less he understood, And deeper sunk by flound'ring in the Mud. Now scorn'd of all, and grown the publick Shame, The People from Galesus chang'd his Name, And Cymon call'd, which signifies a Brute; So well his Name did with his Nature sute. His Father, when he found his Labour lost, And Care employ'd, that answer'd not the Cost, Chose an ungrateful Object to remove, And loath'd to see what Nature made him love; So to his Country-Farm the Fool confin'd: Rude Work well suted with a rustick Mind. Thus to the Wilds the sturdy Cymon went, A Squire among the Swains, and pleas'd with Banishment. His Corn, and Cattle, were his only Care, And his supreme Delight a Country-Fair. It happen'd on a Summers Holiday, That to the Greenwood-shade he took his way; For Cymon shun'd the Church, and us'd not much to Pray. His Quarter-Staff, which he cou'd ne'er forsake, Hung half before, and half behind his Back. He trudg'd along unknowing what he sought, And whistled as he went, for want of Thought. By Chance conducted, or by Thirst constrain'd, The deep Recesses of the Grove he gain'd; Where in a Plain, defended by the Wood, } Crept through the matted Grass a Chrystal Flood, > By which an Alablaster Fountain stood: ; And on the Margin of the Fount was laid (Attended by her Slaves) a sleeping Maid: 9s

Maid:]

F.

515

Poems,

5i6

169J-1700

Like Dian, and her Nymphs, when tir'd with Sport, T o rest by cool Eurotas they resort. The Dame herself the Goddess well express'd, Not more distinguish'd by her Purple Vest, Than by the charming Features of her Face, And ev'n in Slumber a superiour Grace: Her comely Limbs compos'd with decent Care,} 100 Her Body shaded with a slight Cymarr; > Her Bosom to the view was only bare: ' Where two beginning Paps were scarcely spy'd, For yet their Places were but signify'd: The fanning Wind upon her Bosom blows, T o meet the fanning Wind the Bosom rose; The fanning Wind, and purling Streams continue her repose. The Fool of Nature, stood with stupid Eyes And gaping Mouth, that testify'd Surprize, Fix'd on her Face, nor cou'd remove his Sight, 110 New as he was to Love, and Novice in Delight: Long mute he stood, and leaning on his Staff, His Wonder witness'd with an Ideot laugh; Then would have spoke, but by his glimmering Sense First found his want of Words, and fear'd Offence: Doubted for what he was he should be known, By his Clown-Accent, and his Country-Tone. Through the rude Chaos thus the running Light Shot the first Ray that pierc'd the Native Night: Then Day and Darkness in the Mass were mix'd, 120 Till gather'd in a Globe, the Beams were fix'd: Last shon the Sun who radiant in his Sphere Illumin'd Heav'n, and Earth, and rowl'd around the Year. So Reason in this Brutal Soul began: Love made him first suspect he was a Man; Love made him doubt his broad barbarian Sound, By Love his want of Words, and Wit he found: 94 resort.]

F.

128

disclos'd] discols'd F.

Fables: Cymon and Iphigenia That sense of want prepar'd the future way T o Knowledge, and disclos'd the promise of a Day. What not his Father's Care, nor Tutor's Art lso Cou'd plant with Pains in his unpolish'd Heart, T h e best Instructor Love at once inspir'd, As barren Grounds to Fruitfulness are fir'd: Love taught him Shame, and Shame with Love at Strife Soon taught the sweet Civilities of Life; His gross material Soul at once could find Somewhat in her excelling all her Kind: Exciting a Desire till then unknown, Somewhat unfound, or found in her alone. This made the first Impression in his Mind, 140 Above, but just above the Brutal Kind. For Beasts can like, but not distinguish too, Nor their own liking by reflection know; Nor why they like or this, or t' other Face, Or judge of this or that peculiar Grace, But love in gross, and stupidly admire; As Flies allur'd by Light, approach the Fire. Thus our Man-Beast advancing by degrees First likes the whole, then sep'rates what he sees; On sev'ral Parts a sev'ral Praise bestows, 150 T h e ruby Lips, the well-proportion'd Nose, T h e snowy Skin, the Raven-glossy Hair, T h e dimpled Cheek, the Forehead rising fair, And ev'n in Sleep it self a smiling Air. From thence his Eyes descending view'd the rest, Her plump round Arms, white Hands, and heaving Breast. Long on the last he dwelt, though ev'ry part A pointed Arrow sped to pierce his Heart. Thus in a trice a Judge of Beauty grown, (A Judge erected from a Country-Clown) 160 He long'd to see her Eyes in Slumber hid; 148

then] than F.

517

5i8

Poems,

1697-1700

And wish'd his own cou'd pierce within the Lid: He wou'd have wak'd her, but restrain'd his Thought, And Love new-born the first good Manners taught. An awful Fear his ardent Wish withstood, Nor durst disturb the Goddess of the Wood; For such she seem'd by her celestial Face, Excelling all the rest of human Race: And Things divine by common Sense he knew, Must be devoutly seen at distant view: So checking his Desire, with trembling Heart Gazing he stood, nor would, nor could depart; Fix'd as a Pilgrim wilder'd in his way, Who dares not stir by Night for fear to stray, But stands with awful Eyes to watch the dawn of Day. At length awaking, Iphigene the Fair (So was the Beauty call'd who caus'd his Care) Unclos'd her Eyes, and double Day reveal'd, While those of all her Slaves in Sleep were seal'd. The slavering Cudden prop'd upon his Staff, Stood ready gaping with a grinning Laugh, To welcome her awake, nor durst begin To speak, but wisely kept the Fool within. Then she; What make you Cymon here alone? (For Cymon's Name was round the Country known Because descended of a noble Race, And for a Soul ill sorted with his Face.) But still the Sot stood silent with Surprize, With fix'd regard on her new open'd Eyes, And in his Breast receiv'd th' invenom'd Dart, A tickling Pain that pleas'd amid the Smart. But conscious of her Form, with quick distrust She saw his sparkling Eyes, and fear'd his brutal Lust: This to prevent she wak'd her sleepy Crew, And rising hasty took a short Adieu.

Fables: Cymon and Iphigenia Then Cymon first his rustick Voice essay'd, With proffer'd Service to the parting Maid T o see her safe; his Hand she long deny'd, But took at length, asham'd of such a Guide. So Cymon led her home, and leaving there 200 No more wou'd to his Country Clowns repair, But sought his Father's House with better Mind, Refusing in the Farm to be confin'd. The Father wonder'd at the Son's return, And knew not whether to rejoice or mourn; But doubtfully receiv'd, expecting still T o learn the secret Causes of his alter'd Will. Nor was he long delay'd; the first Request ) He made, was, like his Brothers to be dress'd, > And, as his Birth requir'd, above the rest. ) 210

With ease his Sute was granted by his Syre, Distinguishing his Heir by rich Attire: His Body thus adorn'd, he next design'd With lib'ral Arts to cultivate his Mind: He sought a Tutor of his own accord, And study'd Lessons he before abhorr'd.

Thus the Man-Child advanc'd, and learn'd so fast, That in short time his Equals he surpass'd: His brutal Manners from his Breast exil'd, His Mien he fashion'd, and his Tongue he fil'd; «20 In ev'ry Exercise of all admir'd, He seem'd, nor only seem'd, but was inspir'd: Inspir'd by Love, whose Business is to please; He Rode, he Fenc'd, he mov'd with graceful Ease, More fam'd for Sense, for courtly Carriage more, Than for his brutal Folly known before. What then of alter'd Cymon shall we say, But that the Fire which choak'd in Ashes lay,

519

520

Poems,

1697-1700

A Load too heavy for his Soul to move, Was upward blown below, and brush'd away by Love? 230 Love made an active Progress through his Mind, The dusky Parts he clear'd, the gross refin'd; The drowsy wak'd; and as he went impress'd The Maker's Image on the human Beast. Thus was the Man amended by Desire, And tho' he lov'd perhaps with too much Fire, His Father all his Faults with Reason scan'd, And lik'd an error of the better Hand; Excus'd th' excess of Passion in his Mind, By Flames too fierce, perhaps too much refin'd: 240 So Cymon, since his Sire indulg'd his Will, Impetuous lov'd, and would be Cymon still; Galesus he disown'd, and chose to bear The Name of Fool, confirm'd and Bishop'd by the Fair. T o Cipseus by his Friends his Sute he mov'd, Cipseus the Father of the Fair he lov'd: But he was pre-ingag'd by former Ties, While Cymon was endeav'ring to be wise: And Iphigene oblig'd by former Vows, Had giv'n her Faith to wed a Foreign Spouse: 2so Her Sire and She to Rhodian Pasimond, Tho' both repenting, were by Promise bound, Nor could retract; and thus, as Fate decreed, Tho' better lov'd, he spoke too late to speed. The Doom was past, the Ship already sent, Did all his tardy Diligence prevent: Sigh'd to herself the fair unhappy Maid, While stormy Cymon thus in secret said: The time is come for Iphigene to find The Miracle she wrought upon my Mind: 280 Her Charms have made me Man, her ravish'd Love In rank shall place me with the Bless'd above. 243 Fool, confirm'd]

F.

Fables: Cymon and Iphigenia For mine by Love, by Force she shall be mine, Or Death, if Force should fail, shall finish my Design. Resolv'd he said: And rigg'd with speedy Care A Vessel strong, and well equipp'd for War. The secret Ship with chosen Friends he stor'd; And bent to die, or conquer, went aboard. Ambush'd he lay behind the Cyprian Shore, Waiting the Sail that all his Wishes bore; 270 Nor long expected, for the following Tide Sent out the hostile Ship and beauteous Bride. T o Rhodes the Rival Bark directly steer'd, When Cymon sudden at her Back appear'd, And stop'd her Flight: Then standing on his Prow In haughty Terms he thus defy'd the Foe, Or strike your Sails at Summons, or prepare T o prove the last Extremities of War. Thus warn'd, the Rhodians for the Fight provide; ) Already were the Vessels Side by Side, > 280 These obstinate to save, and those to seize the Bride.; But Cymon soon his crooked Grapples cast, Which with tenacious hold his Foes embrac'd, And arm'd with Sword and Shield, amid the Press he pass'd. Fierce was the Fight, but hast'ning to his Prey, By force the furious Lover freed his way: Himself alone dispers'd the Rhodian Crew, The Weak disdain'd, the Valiant overthrew; Cheap Conquest for his following Friends remain'd, He reap'd the Field, and they but only glean'd. 290

His Victory confess'd the Foes retreat, And cast their Weapons at the Victor's Feet; Whom thus he chear'd: O Rhodian Youth, I fought For Love alone, nor other Booty sought; Your Lives are safe; your Vessel I resign, «91

Feet;] —

F.

521

Poems, 1697—1700

522

Yours be your own, restoring what is mine: In Iphigene I claim my rightful Due, Rob'd by my Rival, and detain'd by you: Your Pasimond a lawless Bargain drove, The Parent could not sell the Daughters Love; 300 Or if he cou'd, my Love disdains the Laws, And like a King by Conquest gains his Cause: Where Arms take place, all other Pleas are vain, Love taught me Force, and Force shall Love maintain. You, what by Strength you could not keep, release, And at an easy Ransom buy your Peace. Fear on the conquer'd Side soon sign'd th' Accord, And Iphigene to Cymon was restor'd: While to his Arms the blushing Bride he took; T o seeming Sadness she compos'd her Look; 310 As if by Force subjected to his Will, Tho' pleas'd, dissembling, and a Woman still. And, for she wept, he wip'd her falling Tears, And pray'd her to dismiss her empty Fears; For yours I am, he said, and have deserv'd Your Love much better whom so long I serv'd, Than he to whom your formal Father ty'd Your Vows; and sold a Slave, not sent a Bride. Thus while he spoke he seiz'd the willing Prey, As Paris bore the Spartan Spouse away: 820 Faintly she scream'd, and ev'n her Eyes confess'd She rather would be thought, than was Distress'd. Who now exults but Cymon in his Mind? } Vain hopes, and empty Joys of human Kind, > Proud of the present, to the future blind! / Secure of Fate while Cymon plows the Sea, And steers to Candy with his conquer'd Prey; Scarce the third Glass of measur'd Hours was run, 32g Mind?]

F.

326 Prey;]

F.

Fables: Cymon and Iphigenia When like a fiery Meteor sunk the Sun; The Promise of a Storm; the shifting Gales 330 Forsake by Fits, and fill the flagging Sails: Hoarse Murmurs of the Main from far were heard, And Night came on, not by degrees prepar'd, But all at once; at once the Winds arise, The Thunders roul, the forky Lightning flies: In vain the Master issues out Commands, In vain the trembling Sailors ply their Hands: The Tempest unforeseen prevents their Care, And from the first they labour in despair. The giddy Ship betwixt the Winds and Tides 340 Forc'd back and forwards, in a Circle rides, Stun'd with the diff'rent Blows; then shoots amain Till counterbuff'd she stops, and sleeps again. Not more aghast the proud Archangel fell, Plung'd from the height of Heav'n to deepest Hell, Than stood the Lover of his Love possess'd Now curs'd, the more, the more he had been bless'd, More anxious for her Danger than his own, Death he defies; but would be lost alone. Sad Iphigene to Womanish Complaints 8so Adds pious Pray'rs, and wearies all the Saints; Ev'n, if she could, her Love she would repent, But since she cannot, dreads the Punishment: Her forfeit Faith, and Pasimond betray'd, Are ever present, and her Crime upbraid. She blames herself, nor blames her Lover less, Augments her Anger as her Fears increase; From her own Back the Burden would remove, And lays the Load on his ungovern'd Love, Which interposing durst in Heav'n's despight 3«o Invade, and violate another's Right: T h e Pow'rs incens'd awhile deferr'd his Pain, 340 back and forwards,]

.~/- T h e Fool enlightens, and the Wise he blinds. ) This Youth proposing to possess, and scape, Began in Murder, to conclude in Rape: Unprais'd by me, tho' Heav'n sometime may bless 470 An impious Act with undeserv'd Success: The Great, it seems, are priviledg'd alone T o punish all Injustice but their own. But here I stop, not daring to proceed, ) Yet blush to flatter an unrighteous Deed: / For Crimes are but permitted, not decreed. ) Resolv'd on Force, his Wit the Pretor bent, T o find the Means that might secure th' event; Not long he labour'd, for his lucky Thought In Captive Cymon found the Friend he sought;

Let both resolve to die, or each redeem a Bride. ' 520

Right I have none, nor hast thou much to plead; 'Tis Force when done must justify the Deed: Our Task perform'd we next prepare for Flight; And let the Losers talk in vain of Right: We with the Fair will sail before the Wind, If they are griev'd, I leave the Laws behind. Speak thy Resolves; if now thy Courage droop, Despair in Prison, and abandon Hope; But if thou dar'st in Arms thy Love regain, (For Liberty without thy Love were vain:) 530 Then second my Design to seize the Prey, Or lead to second Rape, for well thou know'st the way.

Fables: Cymon and

Iphigenia

529

Said Cymon overjoy'd, Do thou propose T h e Means to Fight, and only shew the Foes; For from the first, when Love had fir'd my Mind, Resolv'd I left the Care of Life behind. T o this the bold Lysymachus reply'd, Let Heav'n be neuter, and the Sword decide: T h e Spousals are prepar'd, already play T h e Minstrels, and provoke the tardy Day: 640 By this the Brides are wak'd, their Grooms are dress'd; "j A l l Rhodes is summon'd to the Nuptial Feast, , All but my self the sole unbidden Guest. J Unbidden though I am, I will be there, And, join'd by thee, intend to joy the Fair. Now hear the rest; when Day resigns the Light, A n d chearful Torches guild the jolly Night; Be ready at my Call, my chosen few With Arms administer'd shall aid thy Crew. Then entring unexpected will we seize 55o Our destin'd Prey, from Men dissolv'd in ease; By Wine disabled, unprepar'd for Fight; And hast'ning to the seas suborn our Flight: T h e Seas are ours, for I command the Fort, A Ship well man'd, expects us in the Port: If they, or if their Friends the Prize contest, Death shall attend the Man who dares resist. It pleas'd! T h e Pris'ner to his Hold retir'd, His Troop with equal Emulation fir'd, A l l fix'd to Fight, and all their wonted Work requir'd. 560

T h e Sun arose; the Streets were throng'd around, T h e Palace open'd, and the Posts were crown'd: T h e double Bridegroom at the Door attends T h ' expected Spouse, and entertains the Friends: 53s

Do thou] do Thou F.

562

attends]

F.

Poems,

53°

1697-1700

They meet, they lead to Church; the Priests invoke T h e Pow'rs, and feed the Flames with fragrant Smoke: This done they Feast, and at the close of Night By kindled Torches vary their Delight, These lead the lively Dance, and those the brimming Bowls invite. Now at th' appointed Place and Hour assign'd, 570 With Souls resolv'd the Ravishers were join'd: Three Bands are form'd: T h e first is sent before T o favour the Retreat, and guard the Shore: T h e second at the Palace-gate is plac'd, And up the lofty Stairs ascend the last: A peaceful Troop they seem with shining Vests, But Coats of Maile beneath secure their Breasts. Dauntless they enter, Cymon at their Head, And find the Feast renew'd, the Table spread: Sweet Voices mix'd with instrumental Sounds «so Ascend the vaulted Roof, the vaulted Roof rebounds. When like the Harpies rushing through the Hall T h e suddain Troop appears, the Tables fall, Their smoaking Load is on the Pavement thrown; Each Ravisher prepares to seize his own: T h e Brides invaded with a rude Embrace Shreek out for Aid, Confusion fills the Place: Quick to redeem the Prey their plighted Lords Advance, the Palace gleams with shining Swords. But late is all Defence; and Succour vain, 590 T h e Rape is made, the Ravishers remain: Two sturdy Slaves were only sent before T o bear the purchas'd Prize in Safety to the Shore. T h e Troop retires, the Lovers close the rear, With forward Faces not confessing Fear: 576

Maile] Male F.

Fables: Cymon and Iphigenia Backward they move, but scorn their Pace to mend, Then seek the Stairs, and with slow hast descend. Fierce Pasimond their passage to prevent, \ Thrust full on Cymon's Back in his descent, > The Blade return'd unbath'd, and to the Handle bent:' 800 Stout Cymon soon remounts, and cleft in two His Rival's Head with one descending Blow: And as the next in rank Ormisda stood, He turn'd the Point: The Sword inur'd to Blood, Bor'd his unguarded Breast, which pour'd a purple Flood. With vow'd Revenge the gath'ring Crowd pursues, The Ravishers turn Head, the Fight renews; The Hall is heap'd with Corps; the sprinkled Gore Besmears the Walls, and floats the Marble Floor. Dispers'd at length the drunken Squadron flies, ) eio The Victors to their Vessel bear the Prize; > And hear behind loud Groans, and lamentable Cries.' The Crew with merry Shouts their Anchors weigh ) Then ply their Oars, and brush the buxom Sea, / While Troops of gather'd Rhodians croud the Key. / What should the People do, when left alone? The Governor, and Government are gone: The publick Wealth to Foreign Parts convey'd; Some Troops disbanded, and the rest unpaid. Rhodes is the Soveraign of the Sea no more; 62« Their Ships unrigg'd, and spent their Naval Store; They neither could defend, nor can pursue, But grind their Teeth, and cast a helpless view: In vain with Darts a distant War they try, Short, and more short the missive Weapons fly. Mean while the Ravishers their Crimes enjoy, And flying Sails, and sweeping Oars employ; 616 gone:] — F.

623 grind] grin'd F.

531

532

Poems,

169J-1700

The Cliffs of Rhodes in little space are lost, Jove's Isle they seek; nor Jove denies his Coast. In safety landed on the Candian Shore, «30 With generous Wines their Spirits they restore; There Cymon with his Rhodian Friend resides, Both Court, and Wed at once the willing Brides. A War ensues, the Cretans own their Cause, Stiff to defend their hospitable Laws: Both Parties lose by turns; and neither wins, 'Till Peace propounded by a Truce begins. The Kindred of the Slain forgive the Deed, But a short Exile must for Show precede; The Term expir'd, from Candia they remove; 640 And happy each at Home, enjoys his Love.

535

Prologue to Julius Caesar

Prologue to Julius Caesar

I

N Country Beauties as we often see, Something that takes in their simplicity; Yet while they charm, they know not they are fair, A n d take without their spreading of the snare; Such Artless beauty lies in Shakespear's wit, 'Twas well in spight of him what ere he writ. His Excellencies came and were not sought, His words like casual Atoms made a thought: Drew up themselves in Rank and File, and writ, He wondring how the Devil it were such wit. T h u s like the drunken Tinker, in his Play, He grew a Prince, and never knew which way. He did not know what trope or Figure meant, But to perswade is to be eloquent, So in this Caesar which this day you see, Tully ne'r spoke as he makes Anthony. Those then that tax his Learning are too blame, He knew the thing, but did not know the Name: Great Iohnson did that Ignorance adore, And though he envi'd much, admir'd him more; T h e faultless Iohnson equally writ well, Shakespear made faults; but then did more excel. One close at Guard like some old Fencer lay, T ' other more open, but he shew'd more play. In Imitation Iohnson's wit was shown, Heaven made his men but Shakespear made his own. Wise Iohnson's talent in observing lay, But others follies still made up his play. He drew the like in each elaborate line, But Shakespear like a Master did design. Iohnson with skill dissected humane kind, s simplicity;] Ch-s. 24 T ' other] Tother O i - s .

so

more;]

Oi-g.

536

Poems,

1697-1700

And show'd their faults that they their faults might find. But then as all Anatomists must do, He to the meanest of mankind did go, And took from Gibbets such as he would show. Both are so great that he must boldly dare, Who both of 'em does judge and both compare. If amongst Poets one more bold there be, The man that dare attempt in either way, is he.

Epitaphs

537

Epitaphs In Obitum

Johannis

Smithii

In Obitum Viri pientiss: Literatiss: M rl Johis: Smith Coll: Regin: Socii. Carmen Lapidarium. Adsis Viator, sed eruditus, Adsis Lector, sed Academicus, uterq; vel per Sympathiam Illacrymabilis Cineribus doctis et Academicis. Forma ossea, Corpus incorporeum, naturale Cajmiterium, Hie jacet Johannes Smithius una recubat Socius Collegii Reginalis una Academias Praelector Mathematicus: Misera Mortalitas Assidue Cadavera confitetur Rarius Skeleton. Diu versatus in Geometria Tandem (proh dolor) inchoavit geodaesiam Archimedes alter. Encyclopaedias Peripheriam aeq; calluit Ac Probitatis Quadraturam. Tam bene in uranometriá exercitatus ut vel inde colligeres Cognationem aliquam dudum habuisse Cum Supernis Sedibus. Hoc unico deficiens Quod cum Orbis ambitum figura ac Spatio concluderei, Suae Doctrinae Cancellos ac Dimensiones nesciret Quippe infinitos. Talem simul Pietatem et Indolem Lenta, sed nimium propera Pthysis abstulit. Quis melius potuit de Fabro ominarier,

Poems, 169J-1700

538

Quam Morbus in Pulmonum folles inciderei. Tantum (scilicet) profecerat in Theologià, ut Carnem domaret consumendo, et priusquam exueret, subjugaret. Praelusit etiam ad Occasum novissimum Quotidianä Apoplexia. A b i viator, et Praelectorem Mathematicum Guttis lugeas Arithmetice diffluentibus Sed innumeris, et dicas nepotibus Cantabrigiam, abruptä hac vita: lineà Amisisse figuram Academiae. Jo: Dryden e Coll: T r i n .

On the Monument

of the Marquis

of

Winchester

H

E, who in impious times vntainted stood, And mid'st Rebellion durst be just and good; Whose Armes asserted, and whose sufferings more Confirm'd the cause for which he fought before, Rests here, rewarded by an Heav'nly Prince For what his Earthly could not recompence. Pray (Reader) that sutch times no more appeare, Or, if they happen, learn true Honour here. Ark of thy Age's faith and Loyalty, Which (to preserve them) Heav'n confind in thee, Few Subjects could a King like thine deserve, A n d fewer such a King so well could serve. Blest King, blest Subject, whose exalted state By suffrings rose, and gave the law to fate. Such Soules are rare: but mighty patterns given T o Earth, were meant for ornaments to Heaven. By John Dryden, Poet Laureat. Title is from O; I has no title. 5 Heav'nly] I; Heavenly O.

1 vntainted] I; undaunted O. 17 omitted by O.

Epitaphs

Epitaph

on Sir Palmes

539

Fairborne

Y

EE sacred reliques which your marble keepe, Heere undisturb'd by warrs, in quiet sleepe: Discharge the trust which when it was below Fairborne's undaunted soul did undergoe: And be the towns Palladium from the foe. Alive and dead these walls he will defend: Great actions great examples must attend. T h e Candian siege his early valour knew; Where Turkish blood did his Young hands imbrew. 10 From thence returning with deserv'd applause, ) Against ye Moores his well flesh'd Sword he draws / T h e same the courage, and the same ye cause. ; His youth and age, his life and death combine: ) As in some great and regular design, / A l l of a piece, throughout, and all divine. ' Still neerer heaven his vertues shone more bright) Like rising flames expanding in their height; / T h e Martyrs glory crown'd ye souldiers fight. ) More bravely British Generall never fell: 20 Nor Generall's death was 'ere reveng'd so well; Which his pleas'd eyes beheld before their close, Follow'd by thousand Victims of his foes. T o his lamented losse for time to come, His pious Widowe consecrates this tomb. For title see textual notes. 5 Palladium] O1-2; Balladium I. 9 imbrew.] O2; I; ~ A O l . 19 British] O1-2; british I. 23 time] O2; times I.

3 6 16 20

when] O1-2; I. Alive] O1-2; A live I. vertues] O i - a ; vertue I. well;] O i ; I; Oa.

540

Upon

Poems,

Young Mr. Rogers

169J-1J00

of

Glocestershire

O

F gentle Blood, his Parents only Treasure, Their lasting Sorrow, and their vanish'd Pleasure, Adorn'd with Features, Virtues, Wit and Grace, A large Provision for so short a Race; More mod'rate Gifts might have prolong'd his Date, Too early fitted for a better State; But, knowing Heav'n his Home, to shun Delay, He leap'd o'er Age, and took the shortest Way.

Epitaph on Mrs. Margaret of Barningham in Norfolk

S

Paston

o fair, so young, so innocent, so sweet; So ripe a Judgment, and so rare a Wit, Require at least an Age, in One to meet. In her they met; but long they cou'd not stay, 'Twas Gold too fine to fix without Allay: Heav'ns Image was in her so well exprest, Her very Sight upbraided all the rest. Too justly ravish'd from an Age like this; Now she is gone, the World is of a Piece.

Epitaphs

Epitaph on Erasmus Lawton

S

TAY Stranger Stay and drop one Tear; She allways weeps that layd him Here: And will do, till her Race is Run: His Fathers fifth, her only Son.

I has no end-of-line

punctuation.

541

Poems,

542

169J-1700

Impromptus Epigram on Jacob

Tonson

W

TH leering Looks, Bullfac'd, and Freckled fair, With two left Legs, and Judas-colour'd Hair, With Frowzy Pores, that taint the ambient Air,

Lines to Mrs. Elizabeth

S

Creed

o much religion in your name doth dwell, Your soul must needs in piety excell. Thus names, like pictures drawn in small, of old, Their owners' nature and their story told. Your name but half expresses; for in you Belief and practice do together go. My prayers shall be, while this short life endures, These may go hand in hand, in you and yours; Till faith hereafter be in vision drown'd, xo And practice is with endless glory crown'd.

The Fair Stranger

The Fair Stranger

H

and free, securely blest, No Beauty cou'd disturb my Rest; My Amorous Heart was in Despair T o find a new Victorious Fair. 'Till you descending on our Plains, With Forrain Force renew'd my Chains. Where now you rule without Controul, The mighty Soveraign of my Soul. Your Smiles have more of Conquering Charms, 10 Than all your Native Countries Arms; Their Troops we can expel with Ease Who vanquish only when we please. But in your Eyes, oh! there's the spell Who can behold 'em and Rebell? You make us Captives by your stay, Yet kill us if you go away. APPY

6 renew'd] M, Q; renew O. 14 behold 'em and] M; see them, and not O; different text in Q.

543

544

On the Death of A Pastoral Elegy

T

Poems,

169J-1700

Amyntas:

WAS on a Joyless and a Gloomy Morn, Wet was the Grass, and hung with Pearls the Thorn; When Damon, who design'd to pass the Day With Hounds and Horns, and chase the flying Prey, Rose early from his Bed; but soon he found } The Welkin pitch'd with sullen Clouds around, > An Eastern Wind, and Dew upon the Ground. ) Thus while he stood, and sighing did survey The Fields, and curs'd th' ill Omens of the Day, He saw Menalcas come with heavy pace; Wet were his Eyes, and chearless was his Face: He wrung his Hands, distracted with his Care, And sent his Voice before him from afar. Return, he cry'd, return unhappy Swain, The spungy Clouds are fill'd with gath'ring Rain; The Promise of the Day not only cross'd, But ev'n the Spring, the Spring it self is lost. Amyntas, Oh! He cou'd not speak the rest, Nor needed, for presaging Damon guess'd. Equal with Heav'n young Damon lov'd the Boy; The boast of Nature, both his Parents Joy. His graceful Form revolving in his Mind; So great a Genius, and a Soul so kind, Gave sad assurance that his Fears were true; Too well the Envy of the Gods he knew: For when their Gifts too lavishly are plac'd, Soon they repent, and will not make them last. For, sure, it was too bountiful a Dole, The Mother's Features, and the Father's Soul. Then thus he cry'd, The Morn bespoke the News, 18 He] he O.

On the Death of

Amyntas

545

T h e Morning did her chearful Light diffuse; But see how suddenly she chang'd her Face, 1 And brought on Clouds and Rains, the Day's disgrace; > Just such, Amyntas, was thy promis'd Race! / What Charms adorn'd thy Youth where Nature smil'd, And more than Man was giv'n us in a Child. His Infancy was ripe: a Soul sublime In Years so tender that prevented time: Heav'n gave him all at once; then snatch'd away, \ E're Mortals all his Beauties cou'd survey: / Just like the Flow'r that buds and withers in a day. ) MENALCAS. The Mother Lovely, tho' with Grief opprest, Reclin'd his dying Head upon her Breast. The mournful Family stood all around; One Groan was heard, one Universal Sound: All were in Floods of Tears and endless Sorrow drown'd. So dire a Sadness sate on ev'ry Look, Ev'n Death repented he had giv'n the Stroke. He griev'd his fatal Work had been ordain'd, But promis'd length of Life to those who yet remain'd. The Mother's and her Eldest Daughter's Grace, It seems had brib'd him to prolong their space; T h e Father bore it with undaunted Soul, Like one who durst his Destiny controul: Yet with becoming Grief he bore his part, Resign'd his Son, but not resign'd his Heart: Patient as Job; and may he live to see, \ Like him, a new increasing Family. ' DAMON. ( Such is my Wish, and such my Prophesie. / For yet, my Friend, the Beauteous Mold remains, Long may she exercise her fruitful Pains: But, ah! with better hap, and bring a Race More lasting, and endu'd with equal Grace: Equal she may, but farther none can go;

40 survey:] O. 56 Heart:] — O.

58 Family.]

O.

546

Poems,

i6pj-iyoo

For he was all that was exact below. MENALCAS. Damon, behold, yon breaking Purple Cloud; Hear'st thou not Hymns and Songs Divinely loud? There mounts Amyntas; the young Cherubs play About their Godlike Mate; and Sing him on his way. TO He cleaves the liquid Air, behold he Flies, And every Moment gains upon the Skies; The new come Guest admires th' iEtherial State, The Saphir Portal, and the Golden Gate; And now admitted in the shining Throng, He shows the Passport which he brought along; His Passport is his Innocence and Grace, Well known to all the Natives of the Place. Now Sing ye joyful Angels, and admire Your Brother's Voice that comes to mend your Quire: so Sing you, while endless Tears our Eyes bestow; For like Amyntas none is left below. 73 Saphir . . . Golden] Saphyr . . . Golden O. 78 ye] yee O.

A Song

A Song I. AIR, sweet and young, receive a Prize Reserv'd for your Victorious Eyes: From Crowds, whom at your Feet you see, O pity, and distinguish me; As I from thousand Beauties more Distinguish you, and only you adore. II. Your Face for Conquest was design'd, Your ev'ry Motion charms my Mind; Angels, when you your Silence break, 10 Forget their Hymns to hear you speak; But when at once they hear and view, Are loath to mount, and long to stay with you. III. No Graces can your Form improve, But all are lost unless you love; While that sweet Passion you disdain, Your Veil and Beauty are in vain. In pity then prevent my Fate, For after dying all Reprives too late.

F

547

Poems,

548

jEsacus transformed

169J-1700

into a

Cormorant

T

some old Man sees wanton in the Air, And praises the unhappy constant Pair: Then to his Friend the long-neck'd Corm'rant shows, The former Tale reviving others Woes: That sable Bird, he cries, which cuts the Flood With slender Legs, was once of Royal Blood; His Ancestors from mighty Tros proceed, The brave Laomedon and Ganymede, (Whose Beauty tempted Jove to steal the Boy) And Priam, hapless Prince! who fell with Troy. Himself was Hector's Brother, and (had Fate But giv'n his hopeful Youth a longer Date) Perhaps had rival'd warlike Hector's Worth, Tho' on the Mother's Side of meaner Birth; Fair Alyxothoe, a Country Maid, Bare ¿Esacus by stealth in Ida's Shade. He fled the noisy Town and pompous Court, } Lov'd the lone Hills and simple rural Sport, > And seldom to the City would resort. ) Yet he no rustick Clownishness profest, Nor was soft Love a Stranger to his Breast: The Youth had long the Nymph Hesperie woo'd, Oft thro' the Thicket or the Mead pursu'd: Her haply on her Father's Bank he spy'd, While fearless she her silver Tresses dry'd; Away she fled: Not Stags with half such Speed, Before the prowling Wolf, scud o'er the Mead; Not Ducks, when they the safer Flood forsake, Pursu'd by Hawks, so swift regain the Lake. HESE

a Pair:] — F. 15 Alyxothoi] Alyxothoe

F.

22

Hesperie] Hesperie F.

Msacus Transform'd

into a

Cormorant

As fast he follow'd in the hot Career; Desire the Lover wing'd, the Virgin Fear. A Snake unseen now pierc'd her heedless Foot, ) Quick thro' the Veins the venom'd Juices shoot: / She fell, and 'scap'd by Death his fierce Pursuit. ) Her lifeless Body, frighted, he embrac'd, And cry'd, Not this I dreaded, but thy Haste: O had my Love been less, or less thy Fear! The Victory, thus bought, is far too dear. Accursed Snakel Yet I more curs'd than hel He gave the Wound; the Cause was giv'n by me. Yet none shall say that unreveng'd you dy'd. He spoke; then climb'd a Cliff's o'er-hanging Side, And, resolute, leap'd on the foaming Tide. Tethys receiv'd him gently on the Wave; The Death he sought deny'd, and Feathers gave. Debarr'd the surest Remedy of Grief, And forc'd to live, he curst th' unask'd Relief. Then on his airy Pinions upward flies, \ And at a second Fall successless tries; / The downy Plume a quick Descent denies. / Enrag'd, he often dives beneath the Wave, And there in vain expects to find a Grave. His ceaseless Sorrow for th' unhappy Maid, Meager'd his Look, and on his Spirits prey'd. Still near the sounding Deep he lives; his Name From frequent Diving and Emerging came.

549

Abbreviated

List of Abbreviated

References

553

References

Burnet: Gilbert Burnet, History of His Own Time, ed. M. J. Routh, Oxford, 1833 Christie: The Poetical Works of John Dryden, ed. W. D. Christie, New York, 1886 Day: The Songs of John Dryden, ed. Cyrus L. Day, New York, 1967 DNB: Dictionary of National Biography EDD: English Dialect Dictionary EIC: Essays in Criticism ELN: English Language Notes Enc. Br.: Encyclopaedia Britannka, 1961 ed. unless otherwise specified Evelyn: The Diary of John Evelyn, ed. E. S. De Beer, Oxford, 1955 Freind: P. Ovidii Nasonis, Metamorphoseon, ed. John Freind, Oxford, 1696 Gautruche: Pierre Gautruche, The Poetical Histories, London, 1671 (facs. repr., New York, 1976) GEC: George Edward Cokayne, Complete Peerage, rev. ed., 1910-1959 Golding: The .xv. Bookes of P. Ouidius Naso, entytuled Metamorphosis, trans. Arthur Golding, 1567 (repr. Shakespeare's Ovid, ed. W. H. D. Rouse, Carbondale, IL, 1961) Haeckel: Willi Haeckel, Das Sprichtwort bei Chaucer, Erlanger Beitrage zur englischen Philologie, VIII, Erlangen, 1890 Harpers' LD: Harpers' Latin Dictionary, 1907 HLB: Huntington Library Bulletin Ker: Essays of John Dryden, ed. W. P. Ker, Oxford, 1926 Kinsley: The Poems of John Dryden, ed. James Kinsley, Oxford, 1958 Lattimore: Homer, The Iliad, trans. Richmond Lattimore, Chicago, I L [W] Lewis and Short: Charlton T . Lewis and Charles Short, A Latin Dictionary, Oxford, 1969 Liddell-Scott-Jones-McKenzie: Henry George Liddell and Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, rev. Henry Stuart Jones and Roderick McKenzie, Oxford, 1966 Loeb: The Loeb Classical Library. Quotations from Ovid's Metamorphoses are from the Frank Justus Miller ed., 1976 London Stage: The London Stage, 1660-1800, Carbondale, IL, 1960-1968 Luttrell: Narcissus Luttrell, A Brief Historical Relation of State Affairs from September I6J8 to April 1714, Oxford, 1857 Macaulay: Thomas Babington Macaulay, The History of England from the Accession of James II, ed. C. H. Firth, 1913-1915 Macdonald: Hugh Macdonald, John Dryden: A Bibliography of Early Editions and Drydeniana, Oxford, 1939 Malone: Critical and Miscellaneous Prose Works of John Dryden, ed. Edmund Malone, 1800 Mason: John R. Mason, " T o Milton through Dryden and Pope," unpublished Cambridge University dissertation, 1987

554

Abbreviated

References

MLQ: Modern Language Quarterly MLR: Modern Language Review N&Q: Notes and Queries Noyes: Poetical Works of John Dryden, ed. George R. Noyes, rev. ed., Cambridge, MA, 1950 OCD: Oxford Classical Dictionary ODP: Oxford Dictionary of English Proverbs, 3d ed. Oxford, 1970 OED: Oxford English Dictionary OLD: Oxford Latin Dictionary Osborn: James M. Osborn, John Dryden: Some Biographical Facts and Problems, rev. ed., Gainesville, FL, 1965 Oxford History of Britain, ed. Kenneth O. Morgan, Oxford, 1988 Payne-Singleton: Giovanni Boccaccio, Decameron, tr. John Payne, rev. and ed. Charles S. Singleton, Berkeley, CA, 1982 Pepys, Diary: The Diary of Samuel Pepys, ed. Robert Latham and William Matthews, 1970-1983 POAS: Poems on Affairs of State, ed. George DeF. Lord et al., New Haven, 1963-1975 PQ: Philological Quarterly RECTR: Restoration and 18th Century Theatre Research RES: Review of English Studies Robinson: The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, ed. F. N. Robinson, 2d ed., Boston, MA, 1957 Rosenberg: Albert Rosenberg, Sir Richard Blackmore, Lincoln, NE, 1953 Sandys: George Sandys, Ovid's Metamorphoses English'd, Mythologtfd and Represented in Figures, rev. ed., 1632 (repr. ed. Karl K. Hulley and Stanley T. Vandershall, Lincoln, NE, 1970) SCD: A Shorter Classical Dictionary, ed. E. H. Blakeney, 2d ed., 1910 Sea-man's Grammar: see Smith Skeat: W. W. Skeat, Early English Proverbs, Oxford, 1910 Smith: Smith, John, A Sea Grammar, 1627 ( l a t e r editions titled The Seaman's Grammar) Speght, Speght 1602: The Workes of G. Chaucer, ed. Thomas Speght, 1598, 1602 S-S: The Works of John Dryden, ed. Sir Walter Scott and George Saintsbury, 1882-1893 Strype: John Stow, A Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster, rev. and enl. by John Strype, 1720 Tilley: Morris P. Tilley, A Dictionary of the Proverbs in England in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries, Ann Arbor, 1950 TLS: [London] Times Literary Supplement Ward, Letters: The Letters of John Dryden, ed. Charles E. Ward, Durham, NC, 1942 Watson: John Dryden, Of Dramatic Poesy and Other Critical Essays, ed. George Watson, 1962 White: The White Latin Dictionary, ed. John T. White, Chicago, 1933 Winn: James A. Winn, John Dryden and His World, New Haven, 1987 Works: Dryden's works in the present edition

Alexander's

Poems Alexander's

Feast

555

i6p7-1699 Feast

In a letter of 3 September 1697 Dryden told his sons: "I am writeing a Song for St Cecilia's feast, who you know is the Patroness of Musique. This is troublesome, 8c no way beneficiall [because he was planning to revise Sir Robert Howard's Conquest of China, at the author's request, which "will cost me six weeks study, with the probable benefit of an hunderd pounds"]: but I coud not deny the Stewards of the feast, who came in a body to me, to desire that kindness; one of them being Mr [Orlando] Bridgman, whose parents are your Mothers friends" (Ward, Letters, p. 93). Bridgman's name appears in the list of stewards on the verso of the half title of the first edition. The notice there says: "Perform'd at Stationers-Hall, on MONDAY, November 22. 1697." Alexander's Feast was subsequently performed on 9 December at Thomas Hickford's dancing school in Panton Street, and on 16 December in York Buildings in the Strand (Malone, I, i, 296-297; London Stage, Part I, p. 489). The "stewards of the feast" were officials of the Musical Society, a group of professionals and amateurs, who had begun about 1683 to arrange for its members, normally each year, a sermon on music, followed by performance of an ode for music, followed by a banquet. (For a fuller discussion of these observances, see Works, III, 459-460; Malone, I, i, 261-298; and William Henry Husk, An Account of the Musical Celebrations on St. Cecilia's Day in the Sixteenth, Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries [1857]. Ruth Smith, "The Argument and Contexts of Dryden's Alexander's Feast," SEL, XVIII [1978], 480-484, adds an analysis of the sermons over the years.) In response to an earlier request by the stewards, Dryden had written A Song for St. Cecilia's Day in 1687 (Works, III, 201-203), for which Giovanni Battista Draghi had provided the music. The stewards chose one of their number, Jeremiah Clarke, to compose the music for Alexander's Feast. The music has not survived. According to Malone, "It seems to have been a common practice to perform the Ode for St. Cecilia's day in the Musick-room in York-Buildings, after the original performance at Stationers' Hall." Be it remembered that the publishers of the odes were members of the Stationers' Company. The examples Malone cites suggest that the better odes passed into the general repertory and might be performed at any date, but no such performance of Alexander's Feast is known. The first edition is dated 1697. Dryden also included the poem in his Fables (1700), between The Flower and the Leaf and The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, Wholly Translated. Henry St. John Lord Bolingbroke told Alexander Pope, who told Gilbert West, who told Richard Berenger, who told Joseph Warton, that Dryden had said he completed Alexander's Feast in one long overnight sitting. When Bolingbroke happened to call the next morning, Dryden told him, according to Warton, "I have been so struck with the subject which occurred

556

Commentary

to me, that I could not leave it till I had completed it" (Joseph Warton, An Essay on the Writings and Genius of Pope [1756-1782], II, 20, quoted by Malone, I, i, 285-286). Again in Warton's words, Bolingbroke found Dryden "in unusual agitation of spirits" that morning, "even to trembling." O n e can imagine the emotion, and would like to believe the story genuine. Dryden apparently wrote to Richard Graham who told Thomas Birch that he "was almost a fortnight in composing and correcting it," and Malone, noting also Dryden's language in the letter to his sons (quoted above), "I am writeing," concluded that this second account was the correct one (Malone, I, i, 286-287; for a manuscript addition by Malone to p. 287 see Osborn, p. 152). W e can reconcile the two accounts if we recognize that Dryden had some research to do for the poem. Once the research was completed, he may indeed have written at white heat. Part of Malone's evidence was negative, namely, that Joseph Spence had not recorded Bolingbroke's story among the anecdotes Pope related to him. Spence did record Pope's telling him that at this period Dryden usually wrote in a front room on the ground floor of his house in Gerrard Street, the fifth house at the east end on the south side (Joseph Spence, Observations, Anecdotes, and Characters of Books and Men, ed. James M. Osborn [1966], I, 25; the exact location of the house on the street comes from one of Dryden's letters [Ward, Letters, p. 103]). Samuel Derrick reported on the authority of Walter Moyle that Dryden received forty pounds for the poem from the Musical Society (Dryden's Miscellaneous Works, ed. Samuel Derrick, 1760, I, xxviii, quoted by Osborn, John Dryden, p. 18). A t this time, Malone calculated, Jacob Tonson was paying Dryden only 50 guineas for about 1,500 lines (Malone, I, i, 456). A series of undated letters from Dryden to Tonson, who published Alexander's Feast, describes its progress through the press and its reception by the public. "Remember in the Copy of Verses for St. Cecilia, to alter the name of Lais, w e h is twice there, for Thais; those two Ladyes were Contemporaryes, w c h caused that small mistake" (Ward, Letters, p. 96). "Dr. [Knightly] Chetwood claims my promise of the Ode on St. Cecilia's Day; which I desire you to send him (according to the parliament phrase) forthwith" (ibid., p. 97). "I am glad to heare from all Hands, that my Ode is esteemd the best of all my poetry, by all the T o w n : I thought so my self when I writ it but being old, I mistrusted my own Judgment. I hope it has done you service, & will do more" (ibid., p. 98). T h e son of Lord Chief Justice Anthony Marlay told Malone that his father when a young man had spoken to Dryden in Will's Coffee House, praising Alexander's Feast as the finest and noblest ode ever written in any language, and that Dryden had replied, "You are right, young gentleman, a nobler Ode never was produced, nor ever will" (Malone, I, i, 476-477). From such heights the path of critical assessment could only descend, though the grade was gentle. Three quarters of a century expired before Samuel Johnson said he preferred Dryden's ode on Mrs. Killigrew (see Works, III, 109-115 for the poem and Johnson's Lives of the English Poets, ed. George Birkbeck Hill, Oxford, 1905,1, 439), and another three quarters

Alexander's

Feast

557

before Walter Savage Landor said, "Alexander's Feast smells of gin at second-hand, with true Briton fiddlers full of native talent in the orchestra" —perhaps on the day he defenestrated his cook (the remark is sandwiched between discussions of L'Allegro and II Penseroso in the second of the "Imaginary Conversations" with Robert Southey as arranged in the final edition of 1846; see Landor, Works, 1846, II, 165; 1876, IV, 502-503). Yet as late as 1848 Thomas Babington Macaulay was still calling Alexander's Feast "the noblest ode in our language" (Macaulay, I, 392). Other nineteenth-century critics chose to take the moral high ground from which they looked down on Dryden's Alexander and his creator. Twentiethcentury critics put Dryden on the mount with themselves and interpreted the poem as an ironic, parodic, or satiric attack on heroes, heroism, and heroic literature. (For surveys of critical opinion, see George N. Shuster, The English Ode from Milton to Keats, 1940, pp. 146-185; Robert M. Myers, "Neo-Classical Criticism of the Ode for Music," PMLA, L X I I [1947], pp. 412-419, and his Handel, Dryden, & Milton [1956], pp. 34-42; William A. Mcintosh, "Handel and the Muse," Cithara, XII:2 [May 1973], pp. 26-27; Smith, "Dryden's Alexander's Feast," p. 467, n4; Irvin Ehrenpreis, "Continuity and Coruscation: Dryden's Poetic Instincts," in John Dryden II, 1978, pp. 1 1 - 1 2 ; Robert P. Maccubbin, "The Ironies of Dryden's 'Alexander's Feast; or the Power of Musique': Texts and Contexts," Mosaic [Winnipeg, Manitoba], XVIII:4 [Fall 1985], pp. 33-47 and notes; and Cedric D. Reverand II, Dryden's Final Poetic Mode: The Fables, 1988, pp. 126-138 and notes). Among essays primarily devoted to special aspects of the general subject, see Thomas H. Fujimura, "The Personal Element in Dryden's Poetry," PMLA, L X X X I X (1974), 1007-1023, where we read that Timotheus represents Dryden himself, "assured of his place in history and victorious after a last strenuous effort [translating Virgil] that absorbed his energies for three whole years" (p. 1019; a view accepted by Reverand, p. 132); Bessie Proffitt, "Political Satire in Dryden's Alexander's Feast," Texas Studies in Literature and Language, X I (1969-70), 1307-1316, where we read, not for the first time (cf. Fujimura, p. 1020), that Alexander represents an unlikable William III and his rival Darius, a mourned-for James; and John Dawson Carl Buck, "The Ascetic's Banquet: T h e Morality of Alexander's Feast," Texas Studies in Literature and Language, X V I I (1975-76). 573-589, where we read (p. 587) that Dryden's inclusion of the poem in his Fables was part of his reply in that volume to Jeremy Collier's attacks on him as immoral, an unspoken proof that he could see greater moral value in the story than Collier had in his essay "Of Musick" in his Essays upon Several Moral Subjects (Smith's views, "Dryden's Alexander's Feast," pp. 488-490, resemble Buck's). In 1 7 1 1 Richard Steele and the composer Thomas Clayton prevailed on John Hughes to adjust Dryden's text for Clayton to set. Hughes eventually published his libretto, but Clayton's music has vanished (Richard Steele, Correspondence, ed. Rae Blanchard, 1941, pp. 44-46; John Hughes, Poems on Several Occasions, 1735, II, 71-78, reprinted in Myers, Handel, pp. 89-94). Hughes omitted Dryden's choruses and divided the rest into recitatives, airs, and duettos, one of the last being his own invention. His other alterations are relatively minor. In Italy in 1720 an Italian translation,

55«

Commentary

Timoteo, by Antonio Conti, was set to music by Benedetto Marcello (Myers, Handel, p. 30). T h e n in 1736 Newburgh Hamilton provided a new adjustment of the English text for Handel to set, and in this form it has lived on in the concert repertoire and acquired a body of commentary that need not concern us here (Alexander's Feast; or, The Power of Musick. . . . Set to Musick by Mr. Handel, 1736; reprinted in Myers, Handel, pp. 32, 97104). Hamilton divided Dryden's text into recitatives, airs, and choruses, occasionally making Dryden's choruses into something else and parts of Dryden's verses into choruses, and repeating some parts. He divided the whole into two acts, omitted the couplet in which Alexander falls asleep, which would otherwise have ended the first act, and added a final chorus of his own. T h e first performance, on 19 February, drew an audience of the Prince and Princess of Wales and 1,300 other people (London Stage, Part III, I, 553; p. xlvi gives a lively account of how Handel put Alexander's Feast to use in 1737 when plays were forbidden on Wednesdays and Fridays in Lent). Prior to 1687 the odes commissioned by the Musical Society had been working toward a fuller statement of the powers of music. Christopher Fishburn's words to the first ode (1683) have been preserved with Henry Purcell's music (see the Purcell Society's edition of Purcell's Works, X , 1-35). John Oldham and Nahum T a t e wrote the odes in 1684 and 1685. Ernest Brennecke, Jr., "Dryden's Odes and Draghi's Music," PMLA, X L I X (1934), pp. 3-6, gives sufficient quotations from all three, and Husk, Account, pp. 143-148, gives the full texts. Dryden's Song for St. Cecilia's Day established the principle that the odes should give the composers a full opportunity to express the varied emotions music could display and arouse. Henry Pettit has described Alexander's Feast as "a simple lyrical exposition of the role of sensation in controlling the association of ideas, moods and actions," perhaps dependant on Hobbes' psychology and epistemology (" 'The Pleasing Paths of Sense': T h e Subject Matter of Augustan Literature," in Literature and Science, 1955, p. 170). Alexander's Feast exceeds the Song in ingenuity by telling a story, and not merely a story but a heroic story. Perhaps that is why Dryden said a nobler ode would never be written. T h e narrative is an imaginative head-to-tail linking of three events so well-known as to be almost commonplaces, two in the life of Alexander the Great and one in the life of St. Cecilia, in successive arcs of emotional intensity. In the first arc Timotheus of Boeotia by his music rouses Alexander to a fighting mood and then calms him again. In the second and more complex modulation Timotheus arouses Alexander to burn the Persian royal palace at Persepolis, after which a discourse on the power of the organ to produce a sense of divine everpresence and ministering love tells of a better kind of inspiration. T h e discourse, brief though it is, gains its full force by its exact repetition in the final "grand chorus." Musically and emotionally the effect is extraordinary. With the words "Let old Timotheus yield the Prize" the bass line disappears until the final sforzando, "She drew an Angel down." Listen to the sinuous descent of the vowel sounds in that closing line. T h e technique and effect are almost exactly those of Marcel Duprd's Final to his Sixth Magnificat two centuries later. In creating his pattern Dryden alternately followed and deviated from

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history, or at least history as recorded by the classical historians. Thus Alexander's mother was said to have been impregnated by Zeus in the form of a serpent (see 11. 25-33), Alexander demanded recognition as a god (11. 34-41), and the Athenian courtesan Thais was in his company (11. 9-11). On the other hand, whenever it was that Timotheus roused and calmed Alexander it was not on the night he burned the palace, it was not Timotheus but Thais who led him to do so and not by music but by a flattering speech (cf. 11. 131-147), and Darius the Persian king was not dead but in flight at that time (cf. 11. 75-83). The possible sources for Dryden's knowledge of Alexander are so many and various that they cannot be sorted out. One small touch in 1. 97 suggests as noted below that Dryden read the story of Timotheus in E.K.'s gloss on Spenser's "October," 1. 27, in The Shepheardes Calender. Dryden had read "inimitable Spencer" as a boy, and earlier in 1697 he had written, "The Shepherd's Kalendar of Spencer, is not to be match'd in any Modern Language" (Works, XIV, 101; V, 6). The most likely sources for Dryden's other information about Alexander are the Philippic History of Justin (Marcus Junianus Justinus), which he studied and sometimes versified in Latin every Monday in the third and fourth forms at Westminster School and again on Friday afternoons in the fifth and sixth forms; and Plutarch's Lives, which he read in the library of his college at Cambridge (Winn, p. 524; Works, XVII, 269). In 1683 he contributed a Life of Plutarch to the edition of Plutarch's Lives in which the Life of Alexander (in volume IV, 1685) was translated by the son and namesake of his friend John Evelyn the diarist (see Works, XVII, 429-430). As noted above, Jeremy Collier had given a brief account of Timotheus and Alexander in his Blssays upon Several Moral Subjects (2d ed., 1697, Pt. II, pp. 21-22). The first edition of this popular volume came out shortly before Dryden commenced work on Alexander's Feast and the second shortly after he had done so. John Robert Moore therefore proposed that Collier had given Dryden the germinal idea for his poem ("Alexander's Feast; A Possible Chronology of Development," PQ, X X X V I I [1958], 495498). If so, Collier only tickled Dryden's memory. T h e earliest account of Timotheus and Alexander seems to be the one in the Suidas Lexicon, which two generations of English musicians, professional and amateur, had read in John Playford's translation, having taught or been taught from his Introduction to the Skill of Mustek (1st ed., 1654, 13th ed., 1697): "Suidas (in litera T) writes of Timotheus, a skilful Musician, that when Alexander the Great was much dejected in his Mind, and loth to take up Arms, he with his Phrygian Flute expressed such excellent Sounds and varieties of Musick, that the King's Passions were immediately stirred to War, and ran presently and took up Arms" (11th ed„ 1687, p. 51). Subsequent accounts of the incident add that Timotheus then calmed Alexander, according to E.K. by shifting from the Phrygian to the Lydian and Ionic modes. But it was not just musicians who were familiar with the story. As Abraham Cowley said, "That Timotheus by Musick enflamed and appeased Alexander to what degrees he pleased . . . is well known to all men conversant among Authors" (Davideis, I, n32, in Poems, 1656). T h e story had been translated into or retold in French, Italian, and German. In English, besides those accounts

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already mentioned, there were versions in The Praise of Musiche (1586), sometimes attributed to John Case, p. 21; in Robert Burton's Anatomy of Melancholy, 2.2.6.3 (various editions from 1621 to 1676); and in Peter Motteux' The Gentleman's Journal for January 1691/2, p. 6. Dryden may have read The Praise of Musiche (see note to The First Book of Homer's Ilias, I. 803, p. 766 below). He probably read the Journal issue, because it refers to a song he had sent to the editor (p. 36). T h e Timotheus story, told only briefly in any of Dryden's possible sources, had come down independently of the other accounts of Alexander, to which latter he had to turn in order to flesh out the narrative for his own purposes. T h e earliest surviving account of Thais and Alexander is that of Athenaeus whose Deipnosophists Dryden might have read in the French translation of 1680 (Noyes, p. 1022, translates the story in Athenaeus, 576d). More likely, Dryden did not read Athenaeus, whose references to Alexander are scattered drops in a sea of miscellaneous information, but agreed with him occasionally only by accident. He is also likely, besides refreshing his memory of Justin and Plutarch, to have looked into Diodorus Siculus, History, 17.72; Quintus Curtius Rufus, History of Alexander, 5.7; or Arrian, Anabasis of Alexander, 3.18.11-12; all of which he could have read in recent or recently reprinted English or French translations had he wished to: Englishmen had been reading Curtius in one translation or another since 1553. Or Dryden may have turned to Observations upon the Lives of Alexander, Caesar, Scipio (1602), translated from the Italian of Giovanni Botero, or Judgment on Alexander and Caesar (1672), translated from the French of René Rapin, either of which, of course, he was perfectly capable of reading in the original. Or he may have read Samuel Clarke's The Life and Death of Alexander the Great (1665). So familiar was the story of Alexander and Thais that in 1680 Dryden could insert a six-word reference to it in The Kind Keeper, IV, i, 138-139, knowing that the literate part of his audience would remember the whole story ("like Alexander, when he burnt Persepolis," Works, XIV, 61). T h e sources of general information about Alexander disagree among themselves a good deal as to his character and even the events in his life, so that Dryden was not only free but obliged to make choices among them as he worked out his own picture, which extends from Alexander's conception to the death of the Persian king Darius. If Joseph Warton correctly recorded what Dryden said to Bolingbroke, viz., "the subject . . . occurred to me," then the inspiration to connect the stories about Timotheus and Thais was Dryden's own. Even so, it is possible that he remembered an account of Timotheus in Franchino Gafori's De Harmoni-a Musicorum Instrumentorum (1518), which is immediately followed by an account of a drunken youth who was inspired by music to burn down a house (p. lxxxvii, quoted in John M. Steadman, "Timotheus in Dryden, E.K., and Gafori," TLS, 16 December i960, p. 819). It has been speculated that when Dryden heard his Song for St. Cecilia's Day performed in 1687 he recognized that he had not given the composer sufficient opportunity for effects that might give additional value to the music, and specifically for repetition of words and phrases, for vocal polyphony, for antiphony, and for musical sequences, and that he therefore

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undertook to do better in Alexander's Feast (Brennecke, "Dryden's Odes," pp. 34-35; the Song is in Works, III, 201-203). Brennecke defines vocal polyphony as "one or two lines . . . assigned to voices that enter successively and whose sense may survive being thus scrambled," as for instance, in Alexander's Feast, "With ravish'd Ears / The Monarch hears" (11. 37-38). He defines antiphony as "two lines . . . hurled back and forth alternately between two groups of singers without distortion of meaning or poetic effect," as for instance, "Rich the Treasure, / Sweet the Pleasure" (11. 58-59). And he defines musical sequence as "two or more lines . . . assigned to similar musical phrases or motives that follow one another in different registers or tonalities," as for instance, "Flush'd with a purple Grace / He shews his honest Face" (11. 51-52). In the theory of the time, music had been said to have three effects, to enlarge the soul, to contract it, and to tranquilize it (Kinsley, "Dryden and the Encomium Musicae," RES, n.s., IV [1953], 265). These effects were said to be attained by use of appropriate musical modes, as we see from line 97 of the poem, "Softly sweet, in Lydian Measures." As noted above, Timotheus was said to have roused Alexander by music in the Phrygian mode and to have calmed him with the Hypophrygian (Gafori, p. lxxxvii) or the Lydian and Ionic (E. K.). See also James E. Phillips, "Poetry and Music in the Seventeenth Century," in Stuart and Georgian Moments, ed. Earl Miner (1972), pp. 1 - 2 1 . Various rhythms were also thought of as appropriate to different emotions (see Isaac Vossius, De Poematum Cantu et Viribus Rhythmi, 1673, pp. 73-74, quoted and translated by Dean T . Mace, "Musical Humanism, the Doctrine of Rhythmus, and the Saint Cecilia Odes of Dryden," Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes, X X V I I [1964], 264), and accordingly both the Song and Alexander's Feast include passages in trochaic and triple rhythms. In all these matters Alexander's Feast may be said to offer more opportunities to the composer than the Song, but it must be observed first, that the former is three times as long as the latter; second, that Draghi, who composed the original music for the Song, introduced into it all the kinds of effects just described; third, that identifying these opportunities as more explicitly prepared or called for in Alexander's Feast is very much a matter of opinion; and last, that Dryden's practice in his songs, masques and operas, and his remarks on the latter, suggest on the one hand that he had nothing to learn from hearing Draghi's music, and on the other that if he had had something to learn, he would have refused to learn it. T h e music to his songs reproduced by Day had included repetition of words (p. 8), antiphony (pp. 15-16), and sequence (p. 39). Day gives no examples of choruses and thus no examples of polyphony, but see, for instance, the choruses in Albion and Albanius and King Arthur. In the preface to Albion and Albanius (1685), Dryden had said that on occasion he had had to write "as if I had not serv'd out my time in Poetry, but was bound 'Prentice to some doggrel Rhymer, who makes Songs to Tunes, and sings them for a lively-hood. 'Tis true, I have not been often put to this drudgery; but where I have, the Words will sufficiently show, that I was then a Slave to the composition, which I will never be again" (Works, XV, 10). And his remarks on his opera King Arthur (1691) show that he had been a slave again in spite of his vow and was no more satisfied than before: "in many places I have been oblig*d to cramp my Verses, and make them rugged to the Reader, that they may

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be harmonious to the Hearer" (Works, X V I , 6). A lengthy examination of the ode as libretto may be found in John Hollander, The Untuning of the Sky: Ideas of Music in English Poetry 1500-1700 (1961), pp. 411-422, some remarks in which may have led Maccubbin ("Ironies," pp. 42-43) and others to regard the work as a masque. It is not surprising that so fine a poem as Alexander's Feast has attracted considerable attention to its nonmusical aspects. After many readings, Samuel Johnson noticed that some of the lines did not rhyme, a "defect" he attributed to "the enthusiasm of the writer" (Lives, I, 457). Johnson's view was repeated in the biographical sketch prefixed to Dryden's Poetical Works (1854) in Robert Bell's Annotated Edition of the English Poets series (I, 9-96). T h e matter was further discussed in Ni?Q_, 4th ser., I (1868), 238 (14 March) and 378 (18 April). W e cannot tell whether Johnson's remark is a tribute to the general musicality of the poem or whether he was unable to keep the form of the long Cowleian Pindaric stanzas in mind as he read; he objected, for instance, to Gray's Pindarics as making it impossible to recognize their rhymes (Lives, III, 438-439). For Dryden's remarks on the Pindaric see the preface to Sylvce (Works, III, 17-18), and Ward, Letters (p. 72). Johnson also objected to the last stanza of the poem as "vicious" in its division of the "Crown" for music between that which only metaphorically "rais'd a Mortal to the Skies" and that which really "drew an Angel down." In the nineteenth century a different questioning of the last stanza appears, possibly stirred by Dryden's own objections to the presence of heathen deities in Christian epics (see Works, XII, 97): why should he have coupled Timotheus and St. Cecilia in an ode designed to celebrate her, and why did he illustrate the power of pagan music much more fully than that of Christian? Scott remarked, "It is true, that the praise of St. Cecilia is rather abruptly introduced, . . . and it is also true that the comparison [of her with Timotheus] is inaccurate . . . . But, while we stoop to such criticism, we seek for blots in the sun" (S-S, I, 409-410). In " A T a l k about Odes," Blackwood's Magazine, C X X I X (1881), 788, the question is put, "Does not the pure, holy Cecilia . . . come in rather oddly at the end of that very pagan poem?" And the answer is given, "We cannot deny that, while unrivaled as depicting the power of music in earthly things, Dryden's venal muse could not go far in delineating its higher uses." In more recent times, the answer has been that he does not couple Timotheus and Cecilia but contrasts them (e.g., Fujimura, "Personal Element in Dryden's Poetry," p. 1021; Maccubbin, "Ironies," p. 44; Winn, pp. 494-495; Reverand, pp. 135138). Norman Maclean ("From Action to Image: Theories of the Lyric in the Eighteenth Century," in Critics and Criticism, ed. R. S. Crane, [1952], pp. 434-436) says that stanzas 1-6 are "praise by indirection," so that stanza 7 is "psychologically and artistically . . . in balance" with its predecessors. W e have given our own analysis above, but are content to let the poem speak for itself. 1 Persia won. In the spring of 334 B.C. Alexander crossed the Hellespont into the Persian empire and defeated a Persian army at the river Granicus in what is now northwest Turkey. In 333 he defeated the Persian king Darius at Issus on the border of Syria. He marched south to Egypt in 332, •where, in 331, he founded the city of Alexandria and was recognized by the

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priests of Jupiter Ammon as the god's son. Turning north again, he put Darius to flight at Gaugamela; thereafter he met no effective resistance from the Persians. When Persepolis, the capital, surrendered at his approach he let his soldiers slaughter the inhabitants and share their riches. After wintering there he burned the palace before setting out after Darius once more. He was twenty five years old. 3 Aloft. Some readers have supposed that this word together with "on high" in 1. 20 and other graphic details indicate that Dryden intended the ode to be staged and acted as a masque. These readers seem also to understand that the "scaffoldings" erected in Stationers' Hall for performances there of the St. Cecilia odes were stages with various levels; Husk, on the contrary, supposed they were for the orchestra (see Husk, Account, p. 33). More likely, Dryden remembered that when Alexander sat on Darius' throne (1. 5) his feet could not reach the ground, so that one of his attendants brought him one of Darius' small tables for a footstool (see Clarke, Life of Alexander, pp. 33-34). 4 sate. T h e meaning might be supposed to be "reclined," as in Dryden's translation of Virgil, where at Dido's banquet for Aeneas, she "sate / . . . / High on a Golden Bed" (Aeneid, I, 977-979; Works, V, 375). Plutarch, also, says (Alexander, 55.1) that Hermolaus was reported to have incited a young man to murder Alexander, bidding him "not be aw'd by his golden Bed, but remember, Alexander was a Man equally infirm and vulnerable as another" (Evelyn's translation, p. 364). Reclining was indeed more normal than sitting at ancient banquets, but as it happens Athenaeus (Deipnosophists, i7f-i8a) transmits reports that Alexander's court sometimes sat to eat and that by custom the Macedonians (Alexander's nation) always sat until such time as they had speared a wild boar without first trammeling it in a net. 6 Peers. Athenaeus (Deiphnosophists, 146c) transmits a report that Alexander's feasts included sixty or seventy of his friends. 7 Although wearing garlands was more or less standard at feasts in Greek and Roman antiquity, Plutarch does mention that Alexander wore one at this feast (see note to 11. 146-150). 9 Thais. Plutarch speaks of her as the mistress of Alexander's general Ptolemy (see Alexander, 38.1), but Athenaeus says she was Alexander's mistress and married Ptolemy after his death (see Deipnosophists, 576d-e). 25-33 According to Justin (History, 12.16), Alexander's mother Olympias (1. go), on the night she conceived him, dreamed that a huge serpent had visited her. According to Plutarch, the night before she married his father Philip (1. 2), she dreamed that she heard thunder and that lightning struck her womb and started a fire, that is, that Zeus had come to her; and later Philip saw Zeus in the form of a serpent lying next to her as she slept in her bed (see Alexander, 2.2-3.1). Therefore "Dragon" in 1. 28 means "snake," as in Greek, Latin, and at first and still in Dryden's day in English (the snake Philip saw is called a "Dragon" on p. 259 of Evelyn's translation of Plutarch and a "Serpent" on p. 260), and therefore its "fiery Form" does not breathe fire but shines with divine fire. Various modern historians are willing to suppose that Olympias really thought Zeus had impregnated her in a snake's form. Kinsley (IV, 2058) notes other references to Alexander's

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supposed divine origin in To My Honoured Kinsman, 11. 160-163, and The Cock and the Fox, 11. 659-660 (see pp. 201, 325 above). 29 Spires. See note to The State of Innocence, IV, ii, 12 (Works, XII, 373). 30 Olympia. Saintsbury (S-S, XI, 187) says, " I do not know why Dryden did not write Olympias, unless it was to avoid too much sibillation." It seems likely that the error, like Lais for Thais (see above, p. 556) was a failure of memory owing to similarity of sound, aided by a common punctuation, to us a mispunctuation, of the possessive, as in "Olympia's dream" (Rapin, Judgment, p. 6). 35-39 In 324 B.C. Alexander demanded that the Greeks acknowledge him as a god, in which demand they acquiesced officially after some debate and with individual reservations. Athenaeus (Deiphnosophists, 251b) has an oblique reference to the Greek response to Alexander's demands. Dryden seems rather to parallel Athenaeus' examples of how Alexander's toadies alluded to his divinity (Deipnosophists, 25of), and Plutarch's hints (Alexander, 54.2-4) and others' accounts of how some of Alexander's flatterers adopted the Persian custom of prostrating themselves before a ruler, a practice that the Greeks and Macedonians normally reserved for honoring a god and that, according to Justin (History, 12.7) Alexander then required. See also Clarke, Life, p. 64, summarizing Alexander's character: "He grew so proud and insolent, that he suffered his Souldiers to fall down and worship him like a God. Yea, he commanded his servants, and slaves to do so." 40-41 nod, j And . . . shake. Nodding was the characteristic of Jupiter by which he made his words law; it caused Olympus to quake. See The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 11. 705-712 (p. 282 above), Virgil's Aeneid in Dryden's translation, X, 171-175 (Works, VI, 684), and The State of Innocence, note to III, i, 33 (Works, XII, 364). 50 Sound the Trumpets. Henry Purcell had composed a song with this title and opening words (see Purcell, Orpheus Britannicus [1678-1702], II. 73)51 purple Grace. Because grapes are "purple"; see The State of Innocence, note to II, i, 70-82 (Works, XII, 360). For this sense of grace, "something that imparts beauty," OED cites The Flower and the Leaf, 1. 313 (p. 385 above). 52 honest Face. As noted by Noyes (p. 1008) the original language thus describing Bacchus is Virgil's caput . . . honestum, in Georgics, II, 39«, "comely face" (Loeb), "honest face" (Dryden, 1. 540, Works, V, 199). Kinsley (IV, 2058) prefers "glorious" as the meaning of "honest" here. 66 Sooth'd. Pleased, flattered (OED). This meaning having become obsolete in British English by 1711, Hughes (Poems on Several Occasions, II, 73) emended here to "Fir'd," but left 1. 98 unchanged (see headnote, p. 557 above). 75-83 In fact, Darius was not yet dead when Alexander burned the palace at Persepolis. "At the beginning of 330 Alexander marched from Persepolis into Media, in pursuit of Darius, whom he followed into Parthia, where the unfortunate king was murdered by Bessus, satrap of Bactria" (SCD). 75 Great. See note to 11. 82-88. 75 Good. The ancient historians give "universal testimony . . . to the

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mildness a n d excellence of his character" (William Smith, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology [1849], I, 943). His last words, as recorded at length by Justin (History, 11.15), are particularly noble, a n d , as noted above, the schoolboy Dryden may well have been required to t u r n t h e m into Latin verse. Moderns, however, reassess b o t h Alexander a n d Darius according to the standards of the minute. Both committed what would be called war crimes today (see, e.g., note to 11. 138-140). At this writing, there is a growing willingness to halt war crimes that inclines us to look down on Dryden's acceptance of the age-old idea that such acts are more or less inevitable a n d may even be just visitations. 82-88 Darius was still breathing when the first Macedonians came u p o n h i m but was dead when Alexander arrived on the scene. Plutarch says " h e was sensibly toucli'd at the u n f o r t u n a t e End of so Great a Man, a n d pulling off his own Coat, threw it u p o n the Body to cover it" ( A l e x a n d e r , 43.3; Evelyn, p. 342). J u s t i n (History, 11.15) s a y s Alexander contemplated t h e death with tears (mortem lacrimis prosecutus est). 97 Lydian. " T h e Lydian Mood was used to grave solemn Musick, t h e Descant or Composition being of slow T i m e , fitted to Sacred H y m n s a n d Anthems, or Spiritual Songs, . . . whereby the M i n d is lifted u p f r o m t h e regard of Earthly T h i n g s to those Celestial Joys above. T h i s Mood has its derivation f r o m the famous River in Lydia called Pactolus," whose windings back o n itself are like the repetitions in music (Playford, Introduction, 11th ed., p. 50). T h e foregoing technical account of the m o d e a n d M i l t o n ' s more famous description of it in L'Allegro, 11. 135-150, suggest that Dryden may have intended the knowing listener to recognize that T i m o t h e u s , using t h e m o d e to soothe Alexander's soul to the pleasures of love (11. 98-106), was really misusing it, particularly in contrast to St. Cecilia's organ playing, which by adding length to solemn sounds (1. 165) caused a n angel to mistake earth for heaven (see note to 1. 170). 98 sooth'd. See note to 1. 66. 107 Many. Noyes (p. 1029) suggests that D r y d e n m a y be t h i n k i n g of "meiny," retinue; see note to Palamon and Arcite, I I I , 545 (p. 654 below). 107 rend the Skies. Noyes (p. 1022) notes the occurrence of the phrase i n Palamon and Arcite, I I I , 665 (p. 167 above). Dryden began using it in h i s translation of the Aeneid, II, 653, 668; V, 184, 602, 671; X, 1288; X I , 52, 221; XII, 681, 1344 {Works, V, 399, 495, 507, 510; VI, 717, 722, 727, 785, 804), translating various phrases of Virgil and twice in his own insertions in the original. H e h a d some excuse for making it a commonplace, because Virgil, although more varied in his expressions, tends to speak of "clamor going to the skies." Dryden also h a d synonymous expressions; see, e.g., Aeneid, V, 294 (Works, V, 496) a n d Palamon and Arcite, III, 524-525 (p. 159 above). 114 with . . . Wine . . . oppress'd. Plutarch describes the feast as " a n E n t e r t a i n m e n t of Drinking" (Alexander, 38:1; Evelyn, p. 331). Curtius says Alexander was drunk, T h a i s was drunk, and so was everyone else (see History, 5.7.1-5). Athenaeus quotes evidence t h a t a t feasts Macedonians became d r u n k before they h a d finished eating a n d so could n o t enjoy their food (see Deipnosophists, i2od-e). B u t ancient a n d m o d e r n historians d i v i d e over whether Alexander was an alcoholic. Plutarch, saying that A l e x a n d e r

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"was less addicted to wine than was generally believed," managed to present both sides at once (Alexander, 23.1; Loeb). 131—145 Plutarch (Alexander, 38.1-2) says Thais "sometimes cunningly prais'd Alexander, sometimes play'd upon him and rally'd him, and all the while drank so freely, that at last she fell to talk extravagantly, . . . She said it was indeed some recompence for the pains she had taken in following the Camp all over Asia, that she was that day Treated in, and could insult over the Stately Palace of the Persian Monarchs: But she added, it would please her much better, if while the King look'd on, she might in sport, with her own hands, set fire to Xerxes his Court, who reduc'd the City of Athens to Ashes [in 480 B.C. one hundred fifty years earlier; she was an Athenian]; that it might be recorded to Posterity, that the Women who follow'd Alexander, had taken a sharper revenge on the Persians for the Sufferings and Affronts of Greece, than all his Commanders could do by Sea or Land" (Evelyn, p. 331). Dryden's phrasing in 1. 145 may have come from Diodorus Siculus, who says "someone . . . urged all to take vengeance for the destruction of the Greek temples" (History, 17.72.3; Loeb), or from Arrian, who says Alexander "proposed to punish the Persians in recompense for what they had done in their invasion of Greece; for their wrecking of Athens, their burning of the temples, and for all the other cruel things they had done to the Greeks" (Anabasis of Alexander, 3.18.12; Loeb). 133-134 Snakes . . . in their Hair. T h e Furies, Dirae, Eumenides, or Erinyes "are represented as . . . fearful winged maidens, with serpents twined in their hair, and with blood dripping from their eyes" (SCD). See Albion and Albanius, II, i, 73-74 (Works, XV, 33). 135 Sparkles. See Gautruche, I, 73, "their eyes did sparkle as the lightning." 138-140 T h e first residents of Persepolis to come to Alexander as he approached the city were Greek mercenaries who had been mutilated by the Persians (see Justin, History, 11.14). Some have supposed that Alexander sought revenge for them as much as for his other reasons. 146-150 Plutarch (Alexander, 38.3-4): "What she [Thais] said was receiv'd with such universal liking, and murmurs of Applause, and so seconded by the incouragement and eagerness of the Company, that the King himself, perswaded to be of the Party [hence Dryden's excuse for saying that Timotheus persuaded him], started from his Seat, and with a Chaplet of Flowers on his Head, and a lighted Torch in his Hand, led them the way." T h e noise of the banqueters roused the soldiery to join in "the burning and destruction of the Royal Palace," which they hoped meant that Alexander "look'd homeward" and would lead them back to Europe. Plutarch concludes, "Thus some Writers give an account of this Action, and others say it was done deliberately; however all agree that he soon repented of it, and gave order to put out the fire" (Evelyn, pp. 331-332). 150 Reminiscent of Christopher Marlowe's "Was this the face that launch'd a thousand ships / A n d burnt the topless towers of Ilium," the line may rather have been suggested by Virgil's Eclogues, IV, 35, erunt etiam altera bella, "there will even be a second warfare," which Dryden had translated as "Another Helen [will] other Wars create" (1. 43; Works, V, 96). S. R. Swaminathan, in N&Q, 217 (1972), 328-330, noted the parallel.

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Dryden's implication that Alexander and his crew set fire to the whole city may rest on statements to that effect by others, e.g., Clarke (pp. 34-35), "he caused the most sumtuous, and goodly Castle and City of Persepolis to be consumed with fire," and Nathaniel Lee, The Rival Queens (1667) II, i, 342-344, "Nor griev'd I less for that which I had done, / Than when at Thais suit, enrag'd with Wine, / I set the fam'd Persepolis on Fire." For Dryden's statement in The Kind. Keeper that "Alexander . . . burnt Persepolis" see headnote (p. 560 above). 162 Frame. Machine, i.e., the organ. Kinsley (IV, 1991) says: " T h e association of St. Cecilia with organ music seems to be a renaissance development of the legend." 170 She drew an Angel down. See A Song for St. Cecilia's Day, 11. 5 1 - 5 4 (Works, III, 203), and notes thereto (pp. 465-466).

To Mr. Granville George Granville (1667-1735), elevated to the peerage in 1 7 1 1 as Baron Lansdowne, was a younger son of a grand nephew of the Earl of Bath. He had wished to fight for King James both in 1685 and 1688 (DNB), a desire which, though his father would not accede to it, would have recommended him to Dryden. Malone (III, 564 n3) speculated that he was the author of Amor Omnibus Idem in Examen Poeticum (1693), pp. 335-342, which Dryden praised in the postscript to his translation of Virgil and drew upon in his text (see Works, VI, 810, 930-932); but inasmuch as Granville contributed commendatory verses to the Virgil (ibid., V, 63-64) whereas Dryden said he did not know the author of Amor we may conclude that Malone was wrong. In the later 1690s Granville was living modestly and supplementing his small income with his pen. Heroick Love: A Tragedy, first performed at Lincoln's Inn Fields at the end of 1697 or the beginning of 1698, was his second play (London Stage, Part I, p. 490). Its publication was advertised in the London Gazette, 17-21 February 1698 (idem). Subscription copies of the Virgil were sent out about July 1697 and the rest were probably on sale by August (Works, VI, 846). It would therefore appear that To Mr. Granville was at least in part a return for To Mr. Dryden on his Translations (cf. To Mr. Lee, 11. 1-4, Works, I, 106). Subsequently Granville became an early patron of Alexander Pope (see Epistle to Dr. Arbutknot, 11. 155-136), who praised Granville's verse in several of his own poems. In 1695 the so-called United Company of actors, which had been formed out of the old King's and Duke's Companies in 1682, split in two once more when Thomas Betterton led a revolt against Christopher Rich's management that had been simmering for some time (London Stage, Part I, p. 439). Betterton's Company acted Heroick Love (ibid., p. 490). Rich's Company had recently performed Dryden's tragedies The Conquest of Granada and Don Sebastian, one or both with cuts that produced what Dryden in the poem calls a "mangled" play that reflected on his reputation as a playwright (see 11. 23-28). Dryden's complaints led George Powell, a member of Rich's

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Company, to reply in the preface to the anonymous tragedy The Fatal Discovery (1698), from which we learn that this company had also performed Dryden's comedies Secret Love and Marriage A-la-Mode, his opera King Arthur, "fee." (see Malone, I, i, 311 n6). Powell also refers to the fact that Dryden was by then having to use crutches. 2 I must commend. London Stage (Part I, p. 490) quotes two other estimates, John Downes, Roscius Anglicanus (1708), p. 44, "Superlatively Writ; a very good Tragedy, well Acted, and mightily pleas'd the Court and City"; and A Comparison Between the Two Stages (1702), p. 20, "The Language is very correct: But . . . his Fable is not well chosen; there's too little Business i n ' t . " Presumably Dryden did not feel Granville's plot too thin, for at about this time he wrote in his commendatory poem to Peter Motteux' Beauty in Distress that on the one hand Motteux had perhaps too many incidents, and that on the other French plays had too little (see 11. 36-41, p. 13 above). Looking back from a greater distance, Samuel Johnson wrote of Heroick Love: "It is a mythological tragedy [see note to 1. 40 Homer] .. . and therefore easily sunk into neglect" (Lives of the Poets, ed. George Birkbeck Hill [Oxford, 1905], I, 290). 5-6 With less regret . . . thine. George Powell noted that Dryden had previously "given away his Lawrels" in To my Dear Friend Mr. Congreve (Works, IV, 432-434). He also said, wrongly, that Dryden had done the same thing in To Mr. Southerne (Works, III, 227-228). 10 like Hannibal. Having sworn on the altar at the age of nine to be ever hostile to Rome, Hannibal shortly thereafter began his well-known military career. In 221 B.C., when he was twenty six, he became commander in chief of the troops of Carthage. From the words "venture all his Fortunes at a Cast" in the preceding line, we see that Dryden is thinking of Hannibal's final battle near Zama in Africa, to which he had been recalled by his people from the mountain fastnesses of Italy in a last desperate effort to beat off the enemy (202 B.C.). He had himself never been beaten in battle before. In 193 B.C. he found himself out of favor not only with Rome but with many Carthaginians and fled to the Near East, where about 183 B.C. he took poison rather than be handed over to the Romans (OCD). 19-22 Noyes (p. 1023) quotes Downes' Roscius Anglicanus (1708), p. 46, "In the space of Ten Years past, Mr. Betterton to gratify the desires and Fancies of the Nobility and Gentry; procur'd from Abroad the best Dances and Singers, as, Monsieur L'Abbe, Madam Sublini, Monsieur Balon, Margarita Delpine, Maria Gallia and divers others; who being Exorbitantly Expensive, produe'd small Profit to him and his Company, but vast Gain to themselves." Noyes also cites the epilogue to George Farquhar's Love and a Bottle (1699) a s showing that Rich's Company "adopted similar devices to win favor." 19 Sharp to. Wise in the ways of (OED). 21-22 Kinsley (IV, 2059) refers to To Mr. Southerne, 11. 11-12 (Works, III, 227). 23 jog on. In Dryden's usage there is an implication of drudgery in the phrase; see prologue to Fletcher's Pilgrim, 1. 26 (Works, XVI, 263). It appears in his vocabulary after his labors on Virgil.

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24 Murd'ring Plays, which they miseri Reviving. Powell replied that he doubted whether Dryden had visited Drury Lane "since the division of the Companies." Be that as it may, Dryden knew from common report what went on there, as we see from a letter of his to his cousin Mrs. Steward, explaining a lampoon he had sent to her that told of "two factions of ladyes, for the two play-houses" (Ward, Letters, p. 133; the date is 23 February [1700]). 29-30 There are several versions of the story. According to Ovid's Metamorphoses (VI, 424-674), Tereus, king of Thrace, wed Procne, who bore him Itys. But when Tereus met Procne's sister Philomela, he took his first opportunity to rape her and then cut out her tongue. When nevertheless Philomela managed to communicate to Procne what had happened, Procne killed Itys and cooked parts of his body for Tereus. When he learned what he had eaten, he sought to kill the sisters, but they were all three changed to birds. 32 Kinsley (IV, 2059) refers to The Hind and the Panther, I, 77 (Works, III, .25). 35 Their Setting Sun. "Mr. Betterton's Company in Lincolns-Inn Fields" (note in Granville's Genuine Works in Verse and Prose, »732, p. 298). T h e actors in Betterton's Company were older than those in Rich's. 38 the Neighb'ring Coast. "Drury Lane Play-House" (note in Granville's Genuine Works, p. 298). "Crab-Vintage" in this line combines the traditional idea of vinous inspiration (see, e.g.. To my Friend [Peter Motteux], 11. 7-8, p. 12 above) with cider, in England an intoxicating drink, supposing it made from sourtasting crab-apples. In short, the crab vintage of the neighboring coast is the unsatisfactory work of Rich's Company. 40 Homer. Granville's play is based on the story of Brise'is in the first book of the Iliad (see Dryden's translation, 11. 1-486, pp. 260-275 above). 40 they Copy thee. Dryden supposes that Rich's Company commissioned The Fatal Discovery, whose author is unknown, after Granville's similar play was a success. T h e dates of the premières are not known, but may be deduced from the advertisements of the respective first editions, the sequence being Granville's première, the other première. Granville's first edition, with Dryden's poem, the other first edition, with Powell's reply to Dryden (see London Stage, Part I, pp. 490-491). T h e London Stage lists no other new tragedy between the première and the first edition of Granville's play.

To my Friend, the Author [Peter

Motteux]

Dryden's friendship with Peter Anthony Motteux (1660-1718), a Huguenot who moved to England in 1685, dates from about 1692. At any rate, Motteux began including notices of Dryden's literary activities in the first issue of his monthly periodical the Gentleman's Journal (Jan. i6g2-Oct./Nov. 1694), and by April they were of such a sort as to suggest personal acquaintance. To my Friend, the Author appeared in Motteux' fifth play. Beauty in Distress, advertised in the London Gazette for 16-20 J u n e 1698 (Macdon-

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aid, p. 62). Besides giving a typically frank analysis of Motteux' plot Dryden took occasion to reply to Jeremy Collier's Short View of the Immorality and Profaneness of the English Stage, which had appeared earlier in 1698 and had singled him out for condemnation. His motive might be thought to be disinterested, since he had announced four years previously that Love Triumphant was his last work for the stage (see Works, XVI, 169, 173) and had returned to translating, which now gave him most of his income. O n the other hand, any attack on his morals, whether he had exhibited them in his plays or his poems, was still an attack on his livelihood and might be thought to need a reply. I n 1695 he had written to his publisher Jacob Tonson, "[I] feare to loose my own Credit, 8c to hazard your profit" (Ward, Letters, p. 76). At that time his concern was for his credit as a translator of Virgil, but credit is credit, and Dryden was coming under increasing attack for immorality (see headnote to the Fables, p. 578 below). Perhaps he meant to reassert his study of the Scriptures by the several biblical allusions in the first part of To my Friend. 4 Moses* two "songs" are Exodus 15:1-18 and Deuteronomy 32:1-43. Solomon wrote Psalms 72 and 127, according to their superscriptions. 7-8 "I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit" (John 15:1-2). 9-18 For a full list of passages in which the same argument appears see notes to 11. 146-147 and 431 in the preface to the Fables (pp. 614, 623 below). 19 Rebellion, worse than Witchcraft. A stronger statement even than Samuel's words, "rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft" (1 Sam. 15:23). 22 fields. T h e battles of the Civil Wars. 24 Teachers. A double meaning; Dryden, like Ned Ward, for example, thought that "teacher" was the proper Puritan term for "preacher"; see The Kind Keeper, III, ii, 59 (Works, XIV, 55, and note, p. 408). Collier's Short View "had a great and salutary influence on the morals of the English stage; Dryden seeks to confuse the issue by likening him to the Puritans, who in 1642 had suppressed the theater entirely. Collier himself was a Tory, an High Churchman, and a fanatical adherent of James I I " (Noyes, p. 1023). 25 Desk. OED, sb.2, explains that formerly the pulpit was above the reading desk and the clerk's desk was below it. 35 his tripled Unity. See Discours des Trois Unitez, d'Action, de Jour, et de Lieu, in Corneille's Théâtre, ed. Alphonse Pauly [1881], V, 5-33; in the edition of 1682 the Discours opens the third part. According to OED, Dryden's summary of Corneille's Discours in An Essay of Dramatick Poesie (1668; Works, XVII, 17-20) introduced this sense of the word unity into English. 36-39 For similarly even-handed analyses of J o h n Oldham's satires, Thomas Southerne's The Wives' Excuse, and Nathaniel Lee's commendatory poem in The State of Innocence, see Works, II, 175; III, 227-228; and XII, 86. 41 Dryden had animadverted on "the barrenness of the French Plots" in An Essay of Dramatick Poesie (1668; Works, XVII, 46). 44 Their Tongue infeebled, is refin'd so much. Dryden had written in

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the preface to Albion and Albanius (1685) that the French "have reform'd their Tongue, and brought both their Prose and Poetry to a Standard: the Sweetness as well as the Purity is much improv'd, by throwing off the unnecessary Consonants, which made their Spelling tedious, and their pronunciation harsh." He added on the one hand that "neither can the natural harshness of the French, or their perpetual ill Accent, be ever refin'd into perfect Harmony," and on the other that "the Effeminacy of our pronunciation, (a defect common to us, and to the Danes) . . . [has] left the advantage [in some kinds] of musical composition . . . to our neighbors" (Works, XV, 7). But in the dedication of the Aeneis, Dryden had written that the French had "found their Tongue too weak to support their Epick Poetry, without [twelve-syllable lines], . . . Their Language is not strung with Sinews like our English. . . . T h e French have set up Purity for the Standard of their Language; and a Masculine Vigour is that of ours. . . . [T]he affected purity of the French, has unsinew'd their Heroick Verse" (Works, V, 322, 331). In these later remarks Dryden had agreed with Thomas Rymer's view in his preface to René Rapin's Reflections on Aristotle's Treatise of Poesie (1674), " T h e French now onely use the long Alexandrins, and would make up in length what they want in strength and substance; yet are they too faint and languishing, and attain not that numerosity which the dignity of Heroick Verse requires, and which is ordinary in an English Verse of ten syllables" (A6). Kinsley (IV, 2045, 2059) noted the parallel with Rymer. It might be supposed that Dryden intended here some reference to Motteux' work as a translator of contemporary French authors, but inasmuch as Beauty in Distress is a tragedy in blank verse it seems more likely that the reference is a comparison with French drama only.

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Fables Ancient and Modern I n the p r e f a c e to the Fables, D r y d e n e x p l a i n s t h a t the v o l u m e h a d its i n c e p t i o n w h e n h e translated The First Book of Homer's llias as a s a m p l e of w h a t he c o u l d d o w i t h the w h o l e a n d t h e n w e n t o n to The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses a n d the first p a r t of the t h i r t e e n t h b o o k , because they all tell of the T r o j a n W a r . 1 W e m a y a d d that O v i d ' s B o o k X I I also describes at l e n g t h the b a t t l e w i t h the Centaurs, t o w h i c h N e s t o r refers i n H o m e r ' s B o o k I. N e x t , says D r y d e n , he translated Of the Pythagorean Philosophy f r o m the first p a r t of O v i d ' s f i f t e e n t h b o o k . F i n d i n g t h e n that h e h a d almost e n o u g h m a t e r i a l for a v o l u m e , h e sketched o u t a p l a n f o r it. H i s first t h o u g h t , a p p a r e n t l y , was to i n c l u d e selections f r o m earlier b o o k s of the Metamorphoses. T h i n k i n g a b o u t these stories l e d h i m to t h i n k a b o u t translating some of The Canterbury Tales i n t o m o d e r n verse. 2 A n d t h i n k i n g a b o u t Chaucer's stories led h i m to t h i n k a b o u t t r a n s l a t i n g some o f those i n Boccaccio's Decameron,s O n 2 F e b r u a r y 1699 h e w r o t e to his cousin Mrs. Steward: " I pass m y time sometimes w i t h O v i d , a n d sometimes w i t h o u r o l d E n g l i s h poet, C h a u c e r . " T h e letter goes o n , "[I] i n t e n d . . . to a d d somew h a t of m y o w n . " 4 D r y d e n m a y h a v e b e g u n t r a n s l a t i n g B o c c a c c i o b e f o r e h e finished w i t h C h a u c e r , b u t the p r e f a c e to the Fables tells us that a sufficient interval passed b e t w e e n his translations of The Wife of Bath her Tale a n d Sigismonda and Guiscardo f o r h i m to h a v e f o r g o t t e n t h e t h e m e of the former. 5 O n 14 J u l y h e w r o t e to S a m u e l P e p y s that, besides fables f r o m O v i d a n d tales f r o m C h a u c e r , h e h a d translated some " N o v i l l s f r o m B o c c a c e " a n d h a d w r i t t e n a p o e m based o n " t h e C h a r a c t e r of C h a u c e r ' s G o o d P a r s o n " i n the General Prologue to The Canterbury Talesfi I n Octob e r 1699 D r y d e n enclosed a c o p y of his o r i g i n a l p o e m To My Honoui'd Kinsman i n a letter to C h a r l e s M o n t a g u e , asking for his comments.? A n d finally, o n 7 N o v e m b e r , h e w r o t e to Mrs. Steward that his f r i e n d s w e r e d e b a t i n g w h e t h e r To My Honour'd Kinsman or To Her Grace the Dutchess of Ormond, a n o t h e r p o e m to b e i n c l u d e d i n his v o l u m e , was the best h e h a d ever written. 8 A t some time, also, h e d e c i d e d to i n c l u d e his e p i t a p h o n M a r y F r a m p t o n a n d a r e p r i n t of Alexander's Feast. B y 20 M a r c h 1699 D r y d e n h a d c o m p l e t e d a b o u t 7,500 lines a n d c o u l d foresee a final total of 10,000.® A c c o r d i n g l y , J a c o b T o n s o n o n that d a t e 1 See p. 24 above. Dryden's statement that Ovid told the whole story of the T r o j a n War in abbreviated form in his Book X I I is not quite correct; see note to preface, 11. 14-15 Ending (p. 611 below). 2 See p. 24 above, s See p. 25 above. 4 Ward, Letters, p. log. Mrs. Steward was a poetess (p. 113). 5 See p. 43 above. • Ward, Letters, p. 115. 1 Ibid., pp. 120-121. 8 Ibid., p. 123. 9 As Christie observes (p. 488), the total turned out to be 12,500.

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agreed to pay him 250 guineas in advance on 25 March and to bring the total to £300, paid to him or his heirs, when a second edition was called for. Dryden's receipt for the first payment is dated 24 March, the receipt for the second, signed by his niece A n n Sylvius as his administratrix, is dated 11 June 1713. 1 0 T h e volume was in press by the middle of December and still in press at the turn of the year. 11 It was advertised in the Flying Post for 5-7 March 1700, but Dryden did not receive a copy until 12 March. 1 2 T h e signatures of the first edition indicate that the preface was printed last, and we may guess that it was likewise written last. A t the end of the preface Dryden attacks Sir Richard Blackmore, b u t without mentioning his Paraphrase of Job, which was advertised in the London Gazette of 26-29 February 1700. 13 As Dryden had denigrated Blackmore's Job in his prologue for a revival of John Fletcher's The Pilgrim at the end of April, 1 4 w e may probably conclude that he had not seen the Job when he wrote the preface to the Fables and deduce then that he had finished work on the volume, except perhaps for some proofreading, by the turn of the year. T o the question of Dryden's motives in writing the Fables no simple answer can be given. He certainly had a financial motive, for his pen produced most of his income. T h e Duke of Ormonde, who accepted the dedication of the volume, was immensely wealthy, and his duchess, w h o accepted the dedication of Palamon and Arcite in the volume, is said to have given Dryden £500. 15 It is safe to accept Dryden's statements in his preface that he intended both to amuse and to instruct his readers. 18 His letters show that he expressed some of his ideals, insofar as his prepublication readers would approve, in To My Honour'd Kinsman and The Character of a

1 0 Ann Sylvius, the widow of Sir Gabriel Sylvius, a prominent diplomat, was Elizabeth Dryden's niece (Malone, I, i, 396ns Christie, p. 488). Dryden refers to her in the dedication of Cleomenes (Works, XVI, 75). Samuel Derrick first printed the agreement of 1699, Samuel Johnson first printed Dryden's receipt, and Malone first printed Ann Sylvius' receipt. Dryden's receipt is for 268 pounds, 15 shillings, which is 250 guineas at 2» shillings, 6 pence, per guinea. The value of the guinea was not finally set at 21 shillings until the eighteenth century. For the documents see App. A (pp. 753-754). 1 1 Ward, Letters, pp. 130,132. 1 2 Macdonald, p. 62; Ward, letters, p. 134. 1 3 See pp. 45-46 above, and also Albert Rosenberg, Sir Richard Blackmore (1953), pp. 54-55. 1 4 See Works, XVI, 263-264; London Stage, Part I, pp. 527-528. Derrick (in Dryden's Miscellaneous Works, 1760, p. xxviii) reported the duchess' gift, on the authority of a member of the Dryden family. Malone (I, i, 328) thought the true amount was probably £100. 16 Amusement: see, e.g., "besides many of the Learn'd, Ovid has almost all the Beaux, and the whole Fair Sex his declar'd Patrons" (p. 25). Instruction: see, e.g., "I have endeavour'd to chuse such Fables, both Ancient and Modem, as contain in each of them some instructive Moral" (p. 27). Dryden added a "moral" at the end of The Cock and the Fox (p. 335 above). In addition, almost the whole of the preface to the Fables conveys information of one kind or another, most notably the order in which the poems were written, notes about the authors translated and their style, and, as also at the beginning of Cymon and Iphigenia (pp. 513-514 above), replies to his detractors.

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Good ParsonA? Lastly w e k n o w that he intended to show off his poetical powers. T h u s he reprinted Alexander's Feast, which he had said was the noblest ode that w o u l d ever be written, 1 8 and, as w e have seen, h e told his cousin that some readers valued To Her Grace the Dutchess of Ormond and To My Honour'd Kinsman even higher. A s w e have also seen, he intended his translation of the first b o o k of the Iliad to stimulate public support for a translation of the w h o l e epic. Finally, we must recognize that the preface presents all his translations as evidence that he could, w h e n occasion allowed, surpass his originals. 1 9 i W t ) In the years 1698 and 1699, d u r i n g which Dryden apparently did the bulk of the translating that appears in the Fables, he was living " i n Gerard Street, the fifth door o n the left hand, comeing from N e w p o r t Street." 2 0 A c c o r d i n g to A l e x a n d e r Pope, Dryden usually did his writing in a room o n the ground floor, facing the street. 21 His familiar correspondence d u r i n g these years shows that he was living a normal life for a person like himself. In the first days of 1698 he may have been finishing the revisions for the second edition of his translation of Virgil. 2 2 In the summer he received from J o h n Caryll, a prominent Catholic and later one of Pope's principal friends, a gift of venison together with an invitation to visit Caryll's estate in Sussex; Dryden replied that he w o u l d like to come the next year if he could. 2 3 In the fall of 1698 h e was in Northamptonshire o n business presumably connected with his property at Tichmarsh, and visiting his relatives the Stewards at Cotterstock and J o h n Driden, his " h o n o u r ' d kinsman," at Chesterton. His son Charles was with him. 2 4 Dryden returned to L o n d o n in ill health and took to his bed. T h r e e weeks later, however, he was well enough " t o go abroad in the A f t e r n o o n , " and h e then wrote Mrs. Steward an account of his indisposition that reveals his discomfort and throws light o n his pictures of women in the Fables: A f t e r I had lost the happiness of your C o m p a n y , I cou'd expect n o other than the loss of my health, which follow'd, according to the proverb, that Misfortunes seldome come alone. I had no w o m a n to visite, but the Parson's wife; & she who was intended by Nature, as a help meet for a deaf Husband, was somewhat of the loudest, for my Conversation; & for other things, I will say no more, than that she is just your Contrary: and an Epitome of her o w n Country. M y Journey to L o n d o n , was yet more unpleasant 17 Ward, Letters, pp. 115, 120. is See headnote to Alexander's Feast (p. 556 above). 19 See p. 42 above. 20 Ward, Letters, p. 103. T h e site is now No. 44 Gerrard Street (tablet on No. 43), and the street, from which traffic is now excluded, is the heart of London's Chinatown. 21 Joseph Spence, Observations, Anecdotes, and Characters of Books and Men, ed. James M. Osborn (1966), I, 25. 2 2 See letter of December 1697 in Ward, Letters, pp. 98-100. 23 Ibid., p. 100. 24 Ibid., pp. 101-102.

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than my abode at Tichmarsh: for the C o a c h was C r o w d e d u p with an o l d woman, fatter than any of m y Hostesses o n the R o d e . I must confess she was for the most part Silent, unless it were, that sometimes her backside talkd; & that discourse was not over savoury to the Nose. H e r weight made the Horses travell very heavily; but to give them a breathing time, she wou'd often stop us; & p l e a d some necessity of Nature, & tell us we were all flesh and blood: but she did this so frequently, that at last we conspird against her; & that she might not be inconvenienc'd by staying in the Coach, turnd her out in a very dirty place, where she was to wade u p to the Anckles, before she cou'd reach the next hedge. W h e n I was ridd of her, I came sick home. 2 5 Autres temps, autres moevrs. C o n a n Doyle knocked his son d o w n for m a k i n g a Drydenesque remark about an o l d woman. 2 8 Mozart's letters g o b e y o n d D r y d e n in the other direction. 2 7 A t the b e g i n n i n g of February 1699, Dryden was occasionally suffering pain severe enough to interrupt his translating. 2 8 A week later he wrote about another interruption: " w e had a violent wind, w c h blew d o w n three of my chimneys, & dismantled all one side of my House, by throwing d o w n the tiles." 2 9 In the summer h e went again with Charles to N o r t h a m p t o n shire. His health appears to have been better, and his account of his return journey displays n o n e of the irritation expressed earlier. 3 0 H a v i n g t w o handsome y o u n g women with them in the coach may have h a d something to do with his better spirits. A t the very end of 1699, however, inflammation in his legs was so severe that he could not stand, a disability he refers to also in the preface to the Fables.31 T h e disease was to carry h i m off in a few months, but he himself was looking forward to translating the Iliad rather than to death. O t h e r letters of 1699 show that Dryden did not simply divide his attention between business and literature. T h e flow of life in w h i c h he was enisled at this time is too varied in fact and in significance to be compassed in a page or two, but a glance at some matters of national a n d international politics may not be amiss. 32 25 Ward, Letters, pp. 104-105. 26 When Adrian Conan Doyle said that she was ugly, his father replied: " N o woman is ugly" (The Quest for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, ed. Jon L. Lellenberg [1987], p. xi). 2 7 In a letter of 22 August 1781 Mozart wrote of a pianist who was seeking his attentions: "She . . . perspires so that you feel inclined to vomit, . . . loathsome, dirty, and horrible" (quoted in Louis Biancolli, The Mozart Handbook [1954], p. 67). 28 Ward, Letters, p. 109. 29 Ibid., p. 111. Ibid., p. 118. 31 Ibid., p. 13s. See also p. 26 above. 3 2 For Dryden's writing for and general concern with the stage at this time see headnote to his contributions to The Pilgrim (Works, XVI, 419-420). For political matters I have depended principally on Luttrell and Macaulay.

Commentary

576

T h e year 1697 closed with the celebration of the Peace of Ryswick, ending the Nine Years' W a r with France. T h e thanksgiving day in London was 2 December. 33 T h e next day King William opened his fourth parliament with a speech in which he voiced his conviction that England needed a standing army to guarantee its freedom from further wars. 34 Parliament, however, insisted on major reductions in the land forces, and on 2 February 1699 the king signed an act limiting the army in England to 7000 men, all to be native Englishmen, so that the king had to disband his Dutch guards. 35 T h e navy, however, was maintained in greater strength. 36 Dryden's satisfaction with the peace and his approval of parliament's response to it are had long celebrated the to be seen in To My Honour'd KinsmanHe navy's victories and protecting power, and he had been at some pains to learn how sea fights were conducted and to pick up some nautical jargon. 38 His knowledge of seamanship and sea fights appears in the Fables in The First Book of Homer's Ilias, Ceyx and Alcyone, and Cymon and Iphigenia?* Dryden makes no reference to the hardship that fell on discharged soldiers and sailors throughout Europe with their sudden release into an economy unprepared to absorb them, probably because England discharged only soldiers in any number and because to "encourage them" the House of Commons made them "free of such corporations as they please." 40 T h e Nine Years' War had left the treasury in considerable debt, but parliament felt it could reduce the land tax to 8 percent. T h e reduction must have gratified Dryden because he was a landholder; as he wrote on 14 December 1699, " T h e best News I heare, is, that the Land, will not be chargd very deep this yeare." 4 1 O n the other hand, William had granted crown lands to his Dutch courtiers, who therefore paid no tax, and Dryden undoubtedly mourned the failure in February 1698 of a parliamentary attempt to tax them. 42 He may be speaking as a disgruntled taxpayer in the preface to the Fables 43 He disliked the Dutch in any event, and satirized their bravery in his original version of To My Honour'd Kinsman.** Having dissolved parliament in July 1698, William left England to spend five months in Holland, a visit Dryden mentions in a letter to the Duchess of Ormonde. 45 While the king was abroad, a new parliament was elected, 33

Luttrell, IV, 313.

34

Ibid., p . 314.

35

10 William III, ch. 1; Luttrell, pp. 317, 319.

Ibid., p p . 320,322. 37 See To My Honour'd Kinsman, 11. 142-159 ( p p . 200-201 above). 33 See Annus Mirabilis (Works, I, 52, 59-91); The Tempest (Works, X , 9-14); Amboyna (Works, X I I , 40-41). 39 See notes to The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 11. 597-599, a n d t o Cymon and 36

Iphigenia, 1. 279 (pp. 757, 912 below). « Luttrell, IV, 318. 41 Ibid., IV, 362. C f . W a r d , Letters, p . 131.

42 Macaulay, VI, 2754-2758. 43 See p. 31 above. 44 Ward, Letters, p. 120. For a survey of Dryden's attitude toward the Dutch see headnote to Amboyna (Works, XII, 265-268). See also our "Dutch courage." « L u t t r e l l , IV, 400, 403 (19 Jul), 453 (6 Dec); Ward, Letters, p. 107. Ward's identification of the letter's recipient as the Duke of Ormonde is in error.

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which sat until u A p r i l 1700 and was dissolved o n 19 December. 4 8 O n 8 A p r i l 1699 a by-election returned John Driden of Chesterton to this parliament, and he continued to sit in subsequent parliaments until his death in 1708. H e had also been an M P in 1690-1695. 47 It is partly as a n experienced parliamentarian that Dryden addresses him in To My Honoufd Kinsman. A s a Jacobite himself, D r y d e n would have welcomed the return of numerous Jacobites from France at war's end. B u t in 1696 James in his exile in St. Germains h a d instructed some of his followers to return secretly to E n g l a n d and b r i n g about William's assassination. T h a t attempt o n W i l liam's life h a d been foiled, but, to reduce the danger that there w o u l d be more assassins a m o n g the new returnees, parliament passed a n act forbidd i n g English subjects to have any contact with James a n d refusing residence in England to anyone who had visited France w i t h o u t William's or Mary's permission d u r i n g the war or who h a d fought against E n g l a n d in the war. 4 8 Dryden's sons had gone to R o m e toward the end of the war, at a time w h e n Dryden was h o p i n g for James's return. 4 9 H e must have been relieved that the k i n g was empowered to override the general provisions of the act i n particular cases and that he did so for most of those w h o promised to live peaceably. Dryden's uneasy situation may further be illustrated not only by a statement in one of his letters that he had difficulty in dissembling his feelings, 5 0 but also by such occurrences as the sentencing to prison o n 13 M a y 1699 of a schoolmaster at Wandsworth w h o h a d wagered £50 that James w o u l d be o n the throne by Michaelmas (29 September). 5 1 A s a Catholic, Dryden had been watching with concern still another segment of the political spectrum. W r i t i n g to Mrs. Steward o n 4 M a r c h 1699, he said he feared that a severe proclamation against Catholics w o u l d soon appear. 5 2 It had in fact appeared two days before, or at least it is so dated. A l l Popish recusants were to return to their places of abode. Officers were to enforce the law requiring all Papists to leave L o n d o n and surrender their arms. Officers were also to administer the oaths of allegiance and supremacy to all suspects and to proceed against those who refused to take them. 5 3 I n his letter to Mrs. Steward, Dryden went o n to say that Catholics " a t the same time are satisfyed, that the K i n g is very U n w i l l i n g to persecute us; considering us to be but a n handfull, & those disarmd." A n d in fact the proclamation was not strictly enforced. It was issued again on 8 February 1700, 54 but again was not enforced against Dryden. H e died in his o w n L o n d o n bed o n 1 May. W r i t i n g to Mrs. Steward o n i s M a r c h 1700, the day he received his copies of the Fables, he cried out against the passage of the « Luttrell, IV, 405ft, 63a, 7*8. 4 7 Great Britain, Parliament, House of Commons, Return of Members of Parliament (1878-1891; photo, repr. 1989), Pt. I, pp. 566, 581, 588, 595, 60«; Pt. II, p. 3. « 9 William III, ch. 1. « See Ward, Letters, pp. 85-86, 92-96. so Ibid., p. 93. si Luttrell, IV, 515-516. 52 Ward, Letters, p. 112. 53 Robert Steele, A Bibliography of Royal Proclamations . . . 1485-1714, Vol. I, England and Wales (Bibliotheca Lindesiana, Vol. V, Oxford, 1910), nos. 4260-4262. 5* Ibid., nos. 4274,4275.

578

Commentary

Act for the Further Preventing the Growth of Popery, which, besides its provisions for fining and imprisoning Catholic clergy, required lay Catholics above the age of eighteen to take the oaths or forfeit their right to buy or inherit property. 55 The last day for unquestioned purchase of land was 10 April and for inheritance, 29 September. A Protestant relative would inherit if a Catholic could not. 58 Dryden purchased no land, and he died before his son had to take the oaths. On 7 November 1699 Dryden wrote to Mrs. Steward that he was negotiating for a government office of some sort, "& perhaps they think I will advance, as they go backward: in which they will be much deceivd: for I can never go an Inch beyond my Conscience & my Honour. If they will consider me as a Man, who have done my best to improve the Language, & Especially the Poetry, & will be content with my acquiescence under the present Government, & forbearing satire on it, that I can promise, because I can perform it: but I can neither take the Oaths [of allegiance and supremacy], nor forsake my Religion, because I know not what Church to go to, if I leave the Catholique; they are all so divided amongst them selves in matters of faith, necessary to Salvation: & yet all assumeing the name of Protestants." 57 Dryden might indeed have taken the oath of supremacy, as it was an oath that one was a Christian, except for the fact that it was always coupled with the oath of allegiance to William. He seems to refer to his refusal in the preface to the Fables when he says that his enemies will not allow him to be a Christian. 58 Perhaps his protestation to Mrs. Steward is a little disingenuous, for his poems To My Honour"d Kinsman and The Character of a Good Parson were then being printed. From the former, as said above, he had deleted a satire on the Dutch only at the request of the person to whom it was addressed, who feared it might damage his political prospects.59 In the latter poem, some scholars believe, Dryden interlarded Chaucer's picture of his Parson with details from the life of a prominent bishop who had refused to take the oath of allegiance.60 (TV»«^ In his letter to Mrs. Steward of 4 March 1699 Dryden called the then projected Fables "a Book of Miscellanyes." 61 Investigations as to how Dryden could with justice adopt Fables as its title should not overlook the fact that the title is not merely Fables but Fables Ancient and Modern; Translated into Verse, from Homer, Ovid, Boccace, ir Chaucer: With Original Poems, quite an exact description of the contents. Should we wonder whether Of the Pythagorean Philosophy can list under fables, we shall see on examination that the geography and anthropology which figure so prominently in it are fabulous in the everyday sense, and that most of its "facts" 55 Ward, Letters, p. 134. The act is 11 & is William III, ch. 4. See the royal proclamation of the act in Steele, Bibliography, no. 4278. 57 Ward, Letters, p. 123. 58 See p. 38 above. 59 Ward, Letters, p. 120. 6" For the identification of Dryden's Parson with Bishop Thomas Ken, see p. 899 below. «1 Ward, Letters, p. 113. 56

Fables

579

concern metamorphoses, a few of which have more elaborate narratives behind them, some found elsewhere in Ovid's poem. Should we doubt that The Character of a Good Parson can list under fables, we may instead, since it is an imitation, not a translation or even a much-expanded translation like Theodore and Honoria, count it with the original poems. T h e Fables is, then, a miscellany, just as Dryden had said. He had edited four miscellanies already, and it is instructive to observe how he organized their contents. T h e first, Miscellany Poems (1684), opens with (1) reprints of Mac Flecknoe, Absalom and Achitophel, and The Medall. T h e n come (2) some translations of Ovid's Amores by other hands; (3) three other translations and two poems commendatory of Religio Laid; (4) translations of some of Horace's Odes and of his Epode I; (5) miscellaneous translations with two original letters in verse in the middle and To Caelia, also an original poem, at the end; (6) a series of Dryden's prologues and epilogues; (7) two poems by Richard Duke and The Tears of Amynta by Dryden; and (8) translations of Virgil and Horace and a prologue, by various hands, ending with all of Virgil's Eclogues. T h e major subdivision is by author, and the miscellaneous translations in section 5 tend to be grouped according to the authors of the originals. T h e translations of all the Eclogues, with separate title page, signatures, and paging, but listed in the table of contents, closes the volume with a major work. Dryden's second miscellany, Sylva (1685) opens with (1) selections from Virgil's Aeneid, translated by Dryden. Then come translations from (2) Lucretius, (3) Theocritus, and (4) Horace, all but one by Dryden; (5) miscellaneous translations from the classics with an original prologue thrown in; and (6) An Ode Sung Before the King, Upon the . . . Translation of Pere Simon's Critical History, a Latin poem by Charles Dryden and two songs by his father, On the Death of Mr. Oldham, On the Kings-House Now Building at Winchester, and a final translation, The Episode of the Death of Camilla, from Virgil's Aeneid, Book XI. T h e arrangement in sections 1-4 is by author, but Dryden arranged his selections from Virgil so as to have The Speech of Venus to Vulcan immediately precede his translation of the opening of Lucretius' De Rerum Natura, because both had the same subject and had been compared by Montaigne. 62 Section 5 consists of translations, with one exception, and section 6, of original poetry, with one exception. In sections 5 and 6 the arrangement is mostly either for contrast or at random. T h e return to Virgil's Aeneid at the end forms a frame around the other contents. Dryden's third miscellany, Examen Poeticum (1693), opens with his translations of Ovid's Metamorphoses: the whole of Book I; The Fable of Iphis and Ianthe from Book IX, and The Fables of Acis, Polyphemus, and Galatea from Book XIII. Following these comes an enormous number of intermixed translations and original poems by other hands, arranged partly to make sequences by genre (e.g., songs), subject (e.g., death), or author (e.g., William Congreve), partly for contrast ("A Hymn to the Morning" followed by " A Hymn to Darkness," both by Thomas Yalden), or for no observable reason. 62 See Ward, Letters, p. 23, and Montaigne's Essays, III, v, On Some Verses of Virgil (Complete Essays, trans. Donald M. Frame [1958], pp. 664-665).

58O

Commentary

Dryden's fourth miscellany, The Annual Miscellany: for the Year 1694, again opens with a major work by himself, The Third. Book of Virgil's Georgicks, intended as a sample of his forthcoming translation of all Virgil's works.63 Next comes A Translation of all Virgil's 4th Georgick, except the Story of Aristeus, by Joseph Addison, and next, To Sir Godfrey Kneller, by Dryden. Thereafter we find a series of original poems and translations by various hands that is shorter than in the third miscellany but arranged on the same principles of contrast and continuity with an element of randomness, e.g., consecutive poems on St. Cecilia's Day by Yalden and Addison, or an imitation of Cornelius Gallus followed by an imitation of Ovid, both by "my Lord R.," or A Song followed by An Epistle. One of the poems is by Charles Dryden. At the end, as a kind of summary, is Addison's Account of the Greatest English Poets. Also of interest in connection with Dryden's sense of what a miscellany ought to contain is his remark at this time on a rival volume, A Collection of Poems on Several Occasions (1694): "they are almost all old, as I am informd; & have been most of them printed before. . . . No body vallues them; . . . as my Friends tell me." 6 4 T h e first four of Dryden's miscellanies all begin with a major poem by himself. In the Fables, he began once more with a major work, Palamon and Arcite, and followed it with what he himself felt was the finest original poem in the volume, To My Honour'd Kinsman.65 For Palamon and Arcite and the last work in the volume, Cymon and Iphigenia, he provided introductions, the former set out as a separate dedicatory poem, To Her Grace the Dutchess of Ormond, with a half title showing the linkage. The introduction to Cymon and Iphigenia also mentions the Duchess. Thus Dryden again made an envelope or frame for the rest of the contents, as he had in Miscellany Poems and Sylva.66 Lastly we may note that Sylvte and Examen Poeticum have prefaces by Dryden that rank high among his works of criticism. So does the Fables. Inasmuch as Dryden wrote the whole of his new miscellany himself, he had special opportunities to bring out connections and contrasts between its poems. Observation of these connections and contrasts and speculation about them can give hours of harmless pleasure. Let us suppose, for example, that when Dryden had finished his translations of Ovid and had arranged them in the order of the Latin he made them his tree Yggdrasil and began grafting branches into it. One can imagine him saying to himself, The First Book of Homer's Ilias will go well before The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses because the former begins the epic story of the Trojan War and Ovid summarizes the whole of it. But the Homer would better precede Ceyx and Alcyone to provide a break in the Trojan story on the one hand. «3 See Ward, Letters, p. 64. 64 Ibid., p. 56. es Ibid., p. 135. 66 Another, perhaps accidental, connection between Palamon and Arcite at the beginning o£ the volume and Cymon and Iphigenia at the end is that both have essentially the same line: I, 12, in the former and 1. 518 in the latter (pp. 55, 528 above).

Fables and on the other, because both the Greeks at T r o y and the family of Ceyx had suffered at the hands of an angry Apollo. In reverie one can see Dryden then turning to Chaucer and deciding that Palamon and Arcite should precede Meleager and Atalanta not only because of its length but because both poems tell of Meleager, Atalanta, Theseus, and Pirithous. The Cock and the Fox, perhaps he said to himself, can well follow The First Book of Homer's Ilias because both teach the folly of negligence. The Flower and the Leaf should go after Ceyx and Alcyone because both praise constancy. The Wife of Bath her Tale should follow The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses because both tell of raw power overcome by wise eloquence. Suppose he turned then to Boccaccio and reasoned that Sigismonda and Guhcardo ought to follow Meleager and Atalanta because both tell of a parent's bringing about the death of a child. That Theodore and Honoria should follow Ceyx and Alcyone because a ghost gives decisive messages in both. T h a t because Of the Pythagorean Philosophy begins with an account of Numa, a king who cultivated his mind, Cymon and Iphigenia could well follow it because Cymon, after a bad start, also cultivated his mind. A n d if he turned finally to his original poems, may he not have recognized that To My Honou^d Kinsman could be hooked to Palamon and Arcite by making the word "bless" significant at the beginning of the one and end of the other. T h a t the reprinted Alexander's Feast had a hook to The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses because he had likened Thais to Helen and the burning of the palace of Persepolis to the burning of Troy. A n d at last that The Character of a Good Parson and The Monument of a Fair Maiden Lady could effectively precede Cymon and Iphigenia because both, like the first forty one lines of Cymon, were he himself speaking once more for himself. Such repeated engrafting would leave many sequences purely random, as indeed they are, and as no poem is exactly like any other there is plenty of additional variety. Dryden also added all sorts of connections between the poems in addition to those that were already there by accident, repeating words, phrases, images, and whole lines from poem to poem, sometimes by further accident, sometimes because certain words and phrases had become habitual during his translation of Virgil or even earlier. T h e most interesting of these additions are the words habitually added to make pentameters, such as "ample(r)" before "shield(s)," "rolled" or "rolling" before "eyes," and "degenerate" after "base" and before "race" or "line." Sometimes, too, the connections tickle the reader who has a very long memory or who reads the book twice, for they allude to poems that a first-time consecutive reader will not yet have come to. T h e notes to lines point out a number of these connections, but turning of the pages of a concordance will reward the searcher with others. W e have observed a tendency in some commentators to remark on the repetition of single words within the corpus but to object that single-word matches in Paradise Lost are meaningless. Having made Paradise Lost more or less his own by dramatizing it as The State of Innocence, Dryden was perhaps as likely to repeat Milton as himself and in much the same ways. As noted above, Dryden asserted in the preface to the Fables that every

582

Commentary

poem had "some instructive Moral," 6 7 which might be thought a unifying element in the volume. Also, characters in one poem sometimes turn up again after an interval, and events alluded to in one poem are sometimes described more fully in another further along.68 Finally, all but two of the poems in the Fables deal in some way with male-female interaction, including that between a very human cock and hen, or noninteraction in the cases of To My Honour'd Kinsman, which praises bachelorhood, and The Monument of a Fair Maiden Lady, which praises maidenhood. T h e Trojan War and Achilles' part in it, told in The First Book of Homer's Ilias, The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, and The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, are outstanding examples of the effects that male-female relationships may have. Just before The Monument of a Fair Maiden Lady, which is the penultimate work, in the volume, come Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, which gives principles for an ascetic life, and The Character of a Good Parson, which describes a life lived according to ascetic principles. In the works dealing with male-female interaction or noninteraction, the major proposition, in spite of the fact that most of them are love stories, is that woman, having no attractive quality beyond beauty, brings man sorrow, contention, war, and death, a proposition that men of today are only beginning to recognize as slandering womankind. Of course, like many of those today, male and female, who agree with Dryden that woman's life is and should be largely inferior or subservient to man's, he has exceptions to his general view. He praises the Duchess of Ormonde for the good effects of her beauty and for her role as wife and mother. He praises Mary Frampton for her beauty and her good works.69 In the narratives he chose to translate, love for Emily, who regards men as tyrants over women and, given her choice, would not marry, brings about Arcite's death, but results in a happy marriage for Palamon. Love for Iphigenia and Cassandra, two passive young women and the former not even grateful, brings about the death of Pasimond, Ormisda, and many of their friends, but results in happy marriages for Cymon and Lysymachus. The hag turned beauty in The Wife of Bath her Tale gives the knight a happy marriage after he promises to let her have her own way in all things. Baucis and Philemon have always obeyed one another and they love each other so much that neither wishes to die last. Sigismonda, Alcyone, and Hylonome commit suicide for love, and Dryden specifically praises Hylonome for so doing. Sigismonda speaks out against her father's murder of her husband, and she and the hag in The Wife of Bath her Tale defend virtuous poverty.70 But scattered through the fictions are statements, most of them insertions by Dryden without basis in what he is translating, in which we hear again his words in a letter to George Etherege, "women are still the same Bitches," written thirteen years before. 71 « 7 P. 27 above. See, e.g., The Cock and the Fox, 11. 570, 660; The Flower and the Leaf, 1. 33; The Wife of Bath her Tale, 1. 534 (pp. 321, 325, 367, 481 above). 69 See pp. 48-53 and 511-512 above. to See pp. 55-195, 513-53«. 450-483. 238-843. 215-837. 349-363. 4°6. and 423-424 above. 7 1 The full sentence is: "ask me not of Love, for every man hates every man

Fables

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Granted the unifying elements in the Fables, the arrangement of the poems between To My Honour'd Kinsman and The Monument of a Fair Maiden Lady is principally that of contrast and variety or randomness. T h e selections from Ovid are the only ones arranged in their original order, and the only ones in which two poems by the same author are in sequence. 72 As noted above, Dryden says he would not have translated both The Wife of Bath her Tale and Sigismonda and Guiscardo if he had recognized how similar their themes were, and he kept them well separated in the volume. 73 Many of the poems, also, are long enough and rich enough to include such lesser themes as loyalty to the king, types of leadership, and the power of music (if we lump together the first two of these lesser themes we may say that they have considerable prominence), and many have descriptions or discussions of hunting, one of the national pastimes. T h u s Dryden's last experiment in arranging a miscellany is less mechanical than his first two, less of a ragbag than his next two, and an improvement on all four. T h e consecutive reader finds as much variety as the dipper and skipper, and while the latter may miss such connections and unities as there are, both will find gifts for the serendipitous, those who have the faculty of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for.

Homer and Ovid Dryden had studied in school. Their works had been the common possession of every educated European ever since the invention of printing. T h e editio princeps of Homer, superintended by Demetrius Chalcondylas and Giovanni Acciaiuoli, dates from 1488; the extended commentary on Homer by Eustathius, archbishop of Thessalonika, had its first perfectly, & women are still the same Bitches." Dryden then excepts himself with respect to Etheredge. See also a letter to William Walsh of 12 December [1693]: " T h e women thinke he [William Wycherley in The Plain Dealer] has exposd their Bitchery too much" (Ward, Letters, pp. 27, 63). Cf. "Her Sexes Arts she knew"; "She . . . put the Woman off [and told the truth]"; "He knew the Sex, and fear'd she might repent [change her mind]"; "Women where they will, are all in hast [set maiden modesty aside and cannot be resisted]" (Theodore and Honoria, 11. 397, 408-409, 415, 420, pp. 347-348 above). Also "Tho' pleas'd, dissembling, and a Woman still"; "impotent of Mind . . . Sex to the last" (Cymon and Jphigenia, 11. 311, 366, 368, pp. 522, 524 above). Women of the time, it may be thought, were so used to such remarks that they were not much, if at all, p u t off by what they read in the book. At any rate, Dryden was able to write, as noted above, that the London ladies liked it the best of all his works (Ward, ibid., p. 135). 72 What Earl Miner calls connections between each piece and the next are sometimes contrasts (see Dryden's Poetry, 1967, pp. 296-300). It goes without saying that one's sense of relative order or disorder in so complex a volume is largely personal. Dryden did indeed give the title "Connection" to some of his headnotes to the translations from Ovid, but their primary purpose is not for continuity within the Fables but to provide a sense of how Ovid linked the episodes in the Metamorphoses. Ovid was famous for his transitions from fable to fable, and the "Connections" Dryden supplied allow us to see more of that excellence, or occasional lack of it, than we could otherwise. We must remember that in his preface (p. 24 above) Dryden boasted of the fullness with which he had represented Ovid's style. T h e "Connections" are part of that fullness. 73 See pp. 43-44, 216-237, and 450-483 above.

Commentary

584

edition in 1542. T h e first and partial translation of Homer into-English (Iliad, I-X), made from French by Arthur Hall, appeared in 1581, ten years before the first English edition of the Greek (Iliad only). George Chapman's translation of the Iliad and the Odyssey appeared in installments from 1598 to about 1616. T h e n in 1648 a stream of editions of the Greek began to flow from Cambridge, and in 1676 from Oxford. John Ogilby's translation appeared in 1660 (Iliad) and 1665 (Odyssey), and Thomas Hobbes's in 1675 (Odyssey) and 1676 (Iliad). W e do not know for certain which edition of the Greek Dryden used. He said he was dissatisfied with the translations by Chapman, Ogilby, and Hobbes, 74 but he consulted, or remembered. Chapman when making his own translations. He published The Last Parting of Hector and Andromache from Book VI of the Iliad in Examen Poeticum (>6 93 ). 75 Aside from his translations, Dryden drew on Homer very little. In Annus Mirabilis (1667) he alluded to the death of Protesilaus, told in the second book of the Iliad.76 In Oedipus (1679) he perhaps drew on Homer for some details in the description of the plague in Act I and in the offering of the sacrifice in Act III. 7 7 Trotius and Cressida (1679) had Homer in its distant background. In Albion and Albanius (1685) Dryden included in full a wellknown Homeric phrase, "Rosy-finger'd Morn," which in translating Book I of the Iliad he reduced to "rosy Morn." 7 8 In To Mr. Northleigh (1685) he referred to Achilles' sevenfold shield. 79 In Britannia Rediviva (1688) he alluded to two giants told of in the eleventh book of the Odyssey.80 His great debt to Homer came in The Conquest of Granada (1672): he not only modeled the character of Almanzor, his hero of heroes, on Achilles but drew the moral of the play from Homer as well. 81 He repeated Homer's moral, that an army needs discipline in all ranks, in the dedication of the Aeneis (I6 9 7)- 82 Most of Dryden's earlier comments on Homer come in relatively routine and expected comparisons with Virgil. In Lines on Milton (1688) he says Homer's loftiness is unsurpassed, as is Virgil's majesty. 83 In the dedication of Examen Poeticum (1693) he says that Homer surpasses Virgil in arousing "Admiration," but "is somewhat too Talkative, and more than somewhat too digressive," in which latter respect he has perhaps translated him too 74

For Ogilby, see preface to Sylvee, (Works, III, 4); for Chapman, see dedication

of Examen Poeticum

(Works, I V , 374); a n d f o r H o b b e s , see p . 29 a b o v e .

75 Works, IV, 425-431, 739-742. Dryden had earlier refused to undertake such a t r a n s l a t i o n f o r Sylva (1685); see W a r d , Letters, p p . ¡¡3, 153. re See Works, I, 62 (11. 83-84). 77

See ibid., XIII, 473, 475. Ibid., XV, 39 (1. 123), and p. 280 above (1. 650). 79 Works, III, 108 (1.11). 78

80 Ibid.,

Ill, 217 (1. 237).

Ibid., XI, 14-15, where the only quotations from Homer in Greek appear; XI, 131, where Abenamar says, "I found him [Almanzor], like Achilles on the shore"; and XIII, 234. 81

a Ibid., V, 277. 88 Ibid., I l l , 208.

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literally; and that Homer "can move rage better than he can pity." 8 4 I n A Parallel betwixt Painting and Poetry (1695) Dryden says that although Homer comes next to Virgil in expression, his fire has little smoke (pomposity), and his invention and design are supreme. 85 T h e next year he reversed himself, saying in the unpublished Heads of an Answer to Rymer that Homer excels Virgil in diction. 86 Similar comparisons with Virgil appear in the dedication of the Aeneis (1697), but there Dryden treats Homer more fully. Aristotle, he says, based his rules for imitating nature o n Homer, the Greek tragedians amplified his narrative, Virgil imitated h i m in the whole structure of his epic and many of its incidents and "machines" (divine interventions), and Horace followed him in depicting Achilles. Homer is justly praised for making his hero a man of his o w n country, a n d he gave his countrymen useful principles of action, to wit, the need for union of purpose, mutual understanding, and discipline. B u t Aeneas mourns for lost Creusa more nobly than Achilles does for Briséis. A n d sometimes, says Dryden, alluding to Horace's famous remark, Homer nods. 87 B u t Dryden's remarks o n Homer in the preface to the Fables and elsewhere must bow before Pope's preface to his translation of the Iliad. Indeed, Pope allows us to understand Dryden's translation better than Dryden does himself. Like Pope, Dryden values Homer for his "fire," which, like Pope, he explains as the result of Homer's incomparable flow of " i n v e n t i o n . " 8 8 B u t P o p e helps us to see why we may have trouble recognizing the fire h e and Dryden attribute to Homer as we read Dryden's translation of the first book of the Iliad. " ' T i s . . . remarkable," Pope writes of Homer, "that his Fancy, which is every where vigorous, is not discover'd immediately at the beginning of his Poem in its fullest Splendor: It grows in the Progress both upon himself and others, and becomes on Fire, like a Chariot-Wheel, by its own Rapidity." 8 9 Pope also helps us to see the qualities in Homer's language that Dryden may have sought to imitate: "Sweetness, Variety, and Majesty of Sound," beautifully fitted to the sense, together with the great rapidity Dryden himself remarks on, an equally great smoothness, a n d "so much Force and inspiriting Vigour" that the lines "awaken and raise us like the Sound of a Trumpet."«» T h e editio princeps of Ovid came in 1471, and the first separate edition of the Metamorphoses perhaps the next year. Thereafter both the Opera and the Metamorphoses were kept in print, with a succession of editors providing notes and improving the text. T h e Metamorphoses takes its n a m e from the transformations it recounts, usually of people into animals or birds, in a survey that extends from the creation of the world to the time o f Augustus; but by various transitions, which were much admired, O v i d in84 Works, IV, 372-374. 85 Ibid., XX, 45, 72. 86 Ibid., XVII, 190. 87 Ibid., V, 267-271,277-278, 282, 287-292, 298,304-306, 309, 313,332,340. 88 Ward, Letters, p. 121. See p. 28 above, and Pope, The Twickenham Edition of the Poems, ed. John Butt et al. (1939-1969), VII, 4. 89 Pope, Poems, VII, 4. 00 ibid., VII, 11.

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eluded many other stories of the past. 91 His work so far excelled the legends o n which it rested that it became the standard recourse for poets and painters who wished to depict the stories it contained. " N o single work of literature has done more to transmit the riches of the Greek imagination to posterity." 9 2 Confusingly, the first printing of the Metamorphoses in England (1570) happened to be titled Opera. Subsequent editions published in England under the proper title drew entirely on continental editors for their annotations, except for those of T h o m a s Farnaby (1636) and John Freind (1696). Farnaby is regularly cited in the notes to Borchard Cnipping's edition of the Opera (1670), which Dryden had used for his earlier translations. Freind reworked an edition of the Opera by Daniel Crispinus the elder (1689). Various details of Dryden's translations from Ovid in the Fables show that he now used Freind's edition. William Caxton made the first known English translation of the Metamorphoses (the last six books, from the French) but did not publish it. T h e first published translation was that of Arthur Golding (1567 [the first four books, 1565]); the next was that of George Sandys (1626 [the first five books, 1621], revised and enlarged in 1632; fourth and an unnumbered edition in 1656). Ovid's Metamorphoses Translated Grammatically, by John Brinsley (1618; an "eighth" edition in 1690), includes only part of Book I. T h e episode of Cinyras and Myrrha in Book VIII, which Dryden translated, was translated by William Barksted in Myrrha the Mother of Adonis. Whereunto are Added Certain Eglogs (1607); by H[enry] Afustin] as The Scourge of Venus (1613, 1614, 1620); by James Gresham as The Picture of Incest (1626); and by C[harles] H[opkins] in The History of Love (1695). Although Dryden said in the dedication oiExamen Poeticum that Sandys's translation was too literal, and that he had not read it since boyhood, he made use of it in his own translation of Ovid's first book in that volume, 9 3 and in the Fables he made use of it almost, if not entirely, to the exclusion of any other translation. Perhaps he borrowed his friend John Evelyn's copy of the 1640 edition, now in the British Library. 8 4 Ovid played a larger part in Dryden's thought and practice than Homer, probably because, though Dryden said Homer's "fire" was congenial to him, Ovid's "turns" (rhetorical figures) were still more so, so much that he once or twice translated Virgil in an Ovidian manner (for which he apologized), and in the Fables he does the same with Boccaccio and Chaucer. 9 5 In the preface to the Fables, he says that Ovid "particularly excels all Poets" in "the T u r n of Words." 9 6 Also, he thought that Ovid, of all the ancients, had " a Genius most proper for the Stage," for he could "stir up a pleasing 91 Dryden remarks on the transitions in his headnotes, with dispraise in Meleager and Atalanta (p. 203 above) but with praise in The Twelfth Book of Ovid in his Metamorphoses (p. 406). 92 Edward John Kennedy, Enc. Br., 16:975. 83 Works, IV, 370. For Dryden's use of Sandys in Examen Poeticum, see pp. 705-734 passim. 94 Eve.b.54. 96 Works, III, 9; see also pp. 600-601 below. 96 See p. 33 above.

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admiration and concernment, which are the objects of a Tragedy," and that Ovid* was unsurpassed in showing a conflict of emotions, especially in the torments of love, taking care "to prepare [for] it, and not to rush upon it all at once." 9 7 Dryden had published translations of Canace to Macareus, Helen to Paris, and Dido to Aeneas from Ovid's Heroides in Ovid's Epistles (1680), together with a critical preface to the whole volume. 98 He had published a translation of Book II, Elegy xix, of the Amores in Miscellany Poems (1684)." In Examen Poeticum (1693) he had published his translations of Book I and selections from Books I X and XIII of the Metamorphoses, concerning which he provided critical observations in the dedication of the volume. 100 His translations of Book I, Elegies i and iv, of the Amores, of Book I of the Ars Amatoria, and of /Esacus Transform'd into a Cormorant appeared after his death in Poetical Miscellanies: The Fifth Part (1704), in Ovid's Art of Love (1709), and in Ovid's Metamorphoses (1717), respectively. 101 In mere bulk his translations of Ovid, including those in the Fables, amount to over eight thousand lines. Most of Dryden's own draughts on Ovid are allusions to narratives in the Metamorphoses, whether directly or from some compendium of classical mythology such as Alexander Ross's Mystagogus Poeticus or Pierre Gautruche's Poetical Histories.102 In addition, he seems to have combined details from Ovid and the Bible when describing the creation of the world. 103 Dryden's remarks in the preface to Ovid's Epistles and the dedication of Examen Poeticum had dealt particularly with the translations in those volumes. He had compared Ovid and Virgil in his first published literary criticism, the Account of the Ensuing Poem prefixed to Annus Mirabilis (1667), again in the Discourse of Satire (1693), and still again in the dedication of the Aeneis (1697). 104 In several of his essays he had repeated an observation made, as he himself notes, by Seneca, that Ovid did not know when to dam up his Homeric flow of witty inventions. 105 T h e remarks in 97 Works,

I, 54; XIII, 242-243; XVII, go.

98 Jbid., 1,109-138. 99 Ibid.,

II, 158-159.

100 Ibid., IV, 363-420. i f i ibid., IV; 475-506, and pp. 547-548 above. 102 E.g., Works, I, 5 (phoenix), 91 (end of the universe in fire, with a glance at the phoenix); II, 174 (Prometheus); III, 134 (Minotaur), 155 (giants' war), j8o (Cadmus), 225 (Triptolemus); V, 333 (generation of life from Nile mud); X , 113 (Orpheus); XIII, 353 (Phaeton); X V , 117 (Cadmus), 131 (gorgon), 138 (the birth of Bacchus), 157 (Leda), 232 (Jupiter's amours), 306 (gorgon); X V I , 121 (generation of life from Nile mud). Allusions or possible allusions to the accounts of semilegendary or real people in Ovid's Book X V are to be found in Works, HI, 106 (Numa); XV, 51, 11. 214-216, and see p. 379 (character of Augustus), 215, 1. 675, and see p. 458 (vegetarianism of Pythagoras). Finally, Dryden's descriptions of sacrifices (e.g., in Works, XIII, 163-165) may owe something to similar descriptions in Ovid. 10 3

E.g., Works,

VIII, 1, and XIII, 4. He was not alone in so doing, of course.

Thomas Burnet did the same in Telluris Theoria Sacra: . . . Libri duo priores (1681), p. 297. 104 Works, I, 53-55; IV, 85-86; V, 300. 105

First in the preface to Ovid's Epistles, 1680 (Works, I, 112).

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the preface to the Fables are only the most witty of his representations of the fact. 106 The other characteristic that Dryden dwells on most often is the sweetness and smoothness of Ovid's verse, which, however, he treats mostly with reference to the presence of "open" vowels, that is, two vowels in succession, one at the end of a word and the other at the beginning of the next. 107 Having always made it his goal in translation to transfuse an author's "Language" and "his particular turn of Thoughts, and of Expression, which are the Characters that distinguish, and as it were individuate him from all other writers," 108 he was presumably aware of Ovid's considerable alliteration and assonance, his use of sonorous vowels, and his avoidance of harsh consonants. Though Dryden says nothing specifically about alliteration, and so on, perhaps he included them in his thinking under the general terms of sweetness and smoothness. He did say there was not enough variety and majesty in Ovid's smoothness.109 In thoroughness, Dryden's remarks on Ovid cannot compare with Samuel Garth's preface when reprinting and supplementing Dryden's translations in a complete Ovid's Metamorphoses (1717), but they have a deliberate casualness and ease of expression that make them pleasanter reading.

Boccaccio and Chaucer, in contrast to Homer and Ovid, represent a new departure for Dryden. Until he undertook the Fables he had shown no interest in them, and hardly any knowledge of them. Their works, however, had been kept in print from earliest times, and Dryden would have found little difficulty in obtaining texts to translate. T h e editio princeps of Boccaccio's Decameron came in 1471. Editions with glossaries began to appear in 1538, editions with glossaries and biographies in 1546. No edition in Italian had been printed in England by Dryden's time, or at least none has survived, 110 but a number of translations had appeared. Verse translations of selected tales had begun to appear in 153a. Those of interest with respect to Dryden were Guystarde and Sygysmonde, translated by William Walter (1532); A pleasant and delightfull History, of Galesus Cymon and Iphigenia, translated by T . C. (c. 1565); A notable Historye of Nastagio and Trauersari, by C. T . (1569), for which Dryden's title is Theodore and Honoria; and Guistard and Sismond, in Certaine Worthye Manuscript Poems of great Antiquitie, edited by J. S. [perhaps John Stow] (1597). 111 Prose translations of selected tales began See pp. 32-33,40 above. 107 E.g., Works, I, 118-119; III, 7; V, 319-321. 108/6id.,1,118. 109 Ibid., Ill, 6-7. 110 "An edition of the Decameron in Italian was licensed to John Wolfe on 13 September 1587, though no copy is at present known" (Herbert G. Wright, Boccaccio in England from Chaucer to Tennyson [1957], p. 115). 111 For versions that remained in manuscript see Early English Versions of the Tales of Guiscardo and Ghismonda and Titus and Gisippus from the Decameron, ed. Herbert G. Wright (1937), Early English Text Society, Vol. 805. For other verse translations see Wright, Boccaccio in England, pp. 149-156.

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•with one in Sir T h o m a s Elyot's The Boke Named the Gouernour (1531). 1 1 2 W i l l i a m Painter included " T a n c r e d and Ghismonda" in his Palace of Pleasure (1566, 1567). Robert Greene included a version of what Dryden calls Cymon and Iphigenia in Morando, the Tritameron of Love (1584). T h e translation of the whole Decameron into prose (1620), perhaps by J o h n Florio, seems to have satisfied demand during the rest of the century (fifth edition, 1684). 113 Its title page describes Boccaccio as the "first Refiner of Italian Prose," a sentiment Dryden echoes in the preface to the Fables.11* A new translation of the Decameron was to appear in 1702. In 1694, W a l t e r Pope concluded his Select Novels, mostly translations from Cervantes' Novelas Ejemplares, with a version of Patient Grissil (the last tale in the Decameron), which he said Boccaccio had translated from Petrarch, thus leading Dryden to say the same in the preface to the Fables.115 I n fact, Petrarch had translated Boccaccio's tale into Latin. Dryden translated from some edition of the Italian, without reference to any preceding translation, unless he obtained hints for some of his additions from the complete prose version of 162o. 118 Dryden's acquaintance with Boccaccio appears to have been limited to the Decameron. A t any rate, his remarks on Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde in the preface to his play by that title (1679) show that he did not know the Filostrato, and his remarks on The Knight's Tale in the preface to the Fables show that he did not know the Filocolo or the Teseida,117 H e may have come upon the Decameron early in his reading, for in The Wild Gallant, first performed in 1663 but not published until it had been rewritten (1669), Lord Nonsuch fancies himself pregnant, a device Dryden may have drawn from the third tale of the ninth day. 1 1 8 In the dedication of Troilus and Cressida he remarks that Italian has changed little since Boccaccio's day, a remark he qualifies in the preface to the Fables.119 W e cannot tell whether Dryden had not read the Decameron in Italian in 1679 o r whether he changed his mind when he set himself to translating it for the public. In the dedication of the Aeneis (1697) he quotes a response Boccaccio made in defense of the Decameron,12" a quotation which suggests that he had been reading an edition with a biography. 112 Wright, Boccaccio in England, pp. 156-188, lists additional prose translations as well as stripped-down versions in jestbooks and ballads, and dramatizations. lia Herbert G. Wright, The First Translation of the Decameron (Upsala, 1953), argues that the translator was John Florio. Wright (pp. 169-188) observes that Florio worked partly from the Italian and partly from the French translation by Antoine le Maçon (1545). 114 Noted by Kinsley (IV, 2073). See p. 26 above. 1 1 5 See p. 26 above. iifi The parallels between Sigismonda and Guiscardo and an episode in William Chamberlayne's Pharonnida (1659) do not seem convincing; they are set out in Kinsley, IV, 2072-2073, and Cedric D. Reverand II, Dryden's Final Poetic Mode: The Fables (1988), pp. 142-143. 117 See Works, XIII, 225, and p. 31 above. U8 Works, VIII, 235. us Ibid., XIII, 223, and p. 26 above. 120 Works, V, 333.

59°

Commentary

William Caxton, the first English printer, undertook to produce editions of the major works of medieval English literature, including The Canterbury Tales (1477, 1483) and others of Chaucer's compositions, and these works were kept in print by Caxton's successors. T h e first collected Works of Chaucer, edited by W i l l i a m T h y n n e , appeared in 1532 and was reprinted in 1542 and in about 1550. T h e next, edited by the antiquary John Stow, appeared in 1561. A n d the next, with a preface, notes, and glossary by T h o m a s Speght, appeared in 1598. Stow's edition was more inclusive than Thynne's, and Speght's was more inclusive than Stow's. The Flower and the Leaf, for example, one of the poems Dryden translated, appeared first in Speght. Speght was called on as editor after much of the text he was to edit had been printed, with the result that a number of his notes are corrections to the text. H e was able to adjust the text and modify his notes accordingly in an edition of 1602, which served the public until it was reprinted in 1687. T h e next edition of the Works was John Urry's of 1721. Meanwhile, Dryden had printed at the end of the Fables the originals of the pieces he translated. His texts and his quotation from Chaucer in his preface 1 2 1 are from Speght's edition of 1598. In the preface to the Fables, as noted above, Dryden says that his translating of Ovid called Chaucer to his mind. 1 2 2 Perhaps he made the connection from the one to the other by way of Sandys and Spenser. H e remarks that Sandys's versification of Ovid could not match the poetry of Spenser, and that "Spencer more than once insinuates, that the Soul of Chaucer was transfus'd into his B o d y . " 1 2 3 H o w Dryden became acquainted with Chaucer in the first place is also a matter of speculation. A b o u t 1673 he undertook a serious study of the works of Sir John Denham, Edmund Waller, Milton, and Spenser in a search for "Beautiful T u r n s of Words and T h o u g h t s , " 1 2 4 and perhaps it was the admiration of Chaucer he found in Denham as well as in Spenser which turned him to the older writer. O r perhaps he was drawn to Chaucer by his friends Philip Sidney, third Earl of Leicester, and Samuel Pepys and Pepys's friend Sir John Mennes w h o enjoyed Chaucer and could quote him. 1 2 5 Be that as it may, Chaucer was not to play any notable part in Dryden's writing until he undertook the Fables. In the dedication of Troilus and Cressida (1679) he refers to Chaucer's poem of that name, though he based his play on Shakespeare's, a n d in the preface he says that Chaucer's English is now unreadable without a dictionary. 1 2 6 H e mentions Chaucer's use of astrology in The Vindication 1 2 1 See pp. 38-39 above. 122 Sec p. 25 above. 1 2 3 See p. 25 above. 124 Works, IV, 84-85. 125 For a survey of the authors and readers through whom Dryden might have learned of Chaucer, see the first volume of Chaucer: The Critical Heritage, comp, Derek Brewer [1978], and of Five Hundred Years 0/ Chaucer Criticism and Allusion, comp. Caroline F. E. Spurgeon (1925; repr. i960). See also Earl Miner, "Chaucer in Dryden's Fables," in Studies in Criticism and Aesthetics, 1660-1800 [1967], pp. 58-72. 126 Works, XIII, 223, 225.

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of The Duke of Guise (1683). 127 T h e r e is perhaps some evidence in The Hind and the Panther (1687) that Dryden had read The Canterbury Tales.126 In the preface to the Fables he says that he had considered translating Chaucer some years before the Earl of Leicester's death in 1698. 129 In the postscript to his translation of Virgil (1697) Dryden calls Chaucer "our English Ennius," that is, the father of English poetry. 1 3 0 In the preface to the Fables Dryden set critical appreciation of Chaucer on a new tack. In thoroughness of critical treatment he had only one predecessor, or rather one group of predecessors, the contributors to the preliminary matter in Speght's edition. T h a t volume includes a reprint of T h y n n e ' s dedication of his edition to Henry VIII (written, in fact, not by T h y n n e but by Sir Brian Tuke), together with Speght's life records of Chaucer and an address to Speght by Francis Beaumont (not the dramatist) in commendation of Chaucer and of Speght's editing. In bulk these pieces rival Dryden's analysis of Chaucer, but they use the terms of medieval rather than neoclassical rhetoric. A sentence or two from T u k e will show the difference from Dryden's approach: "[I] haue taken great delectacyon / . . . to rede and here the bokes of that noble & famous clerke Geffray Chaucer / in whose workes is so manyfest comprobacion of his excellent lernyng in all kyndes of doctrynes and sciences / such frutefulnesse in wordes / wel accordynge to the mater and purpose / so swete and pleasaunt sentences / such perfectyon in metre / the composycion so adapted / suche fresshnesse of inuencion / compendyousnesse in narration / such sensyble and open style / lackyng neither maieste ne mediocrite couenable in disposycion / and suche sharpnesse or quycknesse in conclusyon / that it is moche to be marueyled / howe in his tyme / whan doutlesse all good letters were layde a slepe throughout the worlde / [he should] haue framed a tonge before so rude and imperfite / to suche a swete ornature & composycion / [and] to haue brought it vnto a full and fynall perfection." 1 3 1 Beaumont begins by answering two objections: "first that many of his wordes (as it were with ouerlong lying) are growne too hard and vnpleasant, a n d next that hee is somewhat too broad in some of his speeches." H e concludes by comparing Chaucer with other poets. In The Canterbury Tales, 127 Works, XIV, 350. 128 See Noyes, pp. 991, 1026. There are references to "fairy rounds" in The Hind and the Panther, I, 212 (Works, III, 129), and The Wife of Bath's Tale, III, 857861, 991-992 (pp. 450, 462 above; there is another in Atng Arthur, IV, ii, 80-81, in Works, XVI, 53). There are references to truth in dreams in The Hind and the Panther, III, 511-512 (Works, III, 176), and in The Nun's Priest's Tale, VII, 2960-3156 (pp. 296-310 above; there is another in The Spanish Fryar, III, iii, 33, in Works, XIV, 150). The phrase "Who but . . . now" in The Hind and the Panther, III, 566 (Works, III, 178) occurs in Chaucer's Knight's Tale, I, 1870, 265a (pp. 112, 164 above), but, to Noyes's knowledge, nowhere else in Dryden except in his translations of these passages in Chaucer and in one other place in Palamon and Arcite: I, 381 (p. 77 above). 129 See p. 41 above. . i?o See Works, VI, 807. isi Reprinted in Brewer, comp., Chaucer, I, 88.

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Commentary

he says, the style is low, like that of the Latin comedies, but the subject matter is completely original: "His drift is to touch all sortes of men, and to discouer all vices of that Age, and that he doth in such sort, as he neuer failes to hit euery marke he leuels at." In other works of Chaucer, Beaumont says, his style matches that of Homer and Virgil: "for the sweetnesse of his Poetrie . . . may Chaucer bee rightly called. T h e pith and sinewes of eloquence, and the verie life itselfe of all mirth and pleasant writing: besides, one gifte hee hath aboue other Authours, and that is, by the excellencie of his descriptions to possesse his Readers with a stronger imagination of seeing that done before their eyes, which they reade, than any other that euer writ in any tongue." 1 3 2 Dryden, too, found it helpful to compare Chaucer with other writers, but as his categories unfold we see that they differ from those of his predecessors. "With Ovid ended the Golden Age of the Roman Tongue: From Chaucer the Purity of the English Tongue began. . . . Both of them were well-bred, well-natur'd, amorous, and Libertine, at least in their Writings . . . . Their Studies were the same. Philosophy, and Philology. Both of them were knowing in Astronomy . . . . Both writ with wonderful Facility and Clearness; neither were great Inventors: . . . Both of them understood the Manners; under which Name I comprehend the Passions, and, in a larger Sense, the Descriptions of Persons, and their very Habits: . . . T h e Thoughts and Words remain to be consider'd . . . . T h e Words are given up as a Post not to be defended in our Poet, because he wanted the Modern Art of Fortifying. T h e Thoughts remain to be consider'd: And they are to be measur'd only by their Propriety; that is, as they flow more or less naturally from the Persons describ'd, on such and such Occasions. T h e Vulgar Judges, . . . who call Conceits and Jingles Wit, . . . will think me little less than mad for preferring the Englishman to the Roman:... As for the T u r n of Words, . . . Chaucer writ with more Simplicity, and follow'd Nature more closely, than to use them." 1 3 3 T h e categories of fable, manners, thoughts, and words are of course Aristotle's, the ones Dryden had enumerated in Heads of an Answer to Rymer, had used in such essays as The Grounds of Criticism in Tragedy, and had used earlier in the preface when comparing Homer and Virgil. 1 3 4 Like Beaumont, Dryden discusses the "broadness" of some of Chaucer's speeches, together with some of Boccaccio's. Like Beaumont, he says Chaucer "must have been a Man of a most wonderful comprehensive Nature, because, as it has been truly observ'd of him, he has taken into the Compass of his Canterbury Tales the various Manners and Humours (as we now call them) of the whole English Nation in his Age." And, again like Beaumont, he says: " I see . . . all the Pilgrims in the Canterbury Tales, their Humours, their Features, and their very Dress, as distinctly as if I had supp'd with them at the Tabard in Southwark."13S Brewer, comp., Chaucer, I, 136, 138-139. 133 See pp. 30-33 above. Chaucer's French contemporary Eustache Deschamps addressed him in a poem as Ovides grans en ta poeterie, "great Ovid in your poetry" (Brewer, comp., Chaucer, 1,41), but Dryden can hardly have known of him. 134 Works, XVII, 190; XIII, 229-248; pp. 28-30 above. 135 See pp. 38,37,31-32 above.

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I n o t h e r places, D r y d e n seems to h a v e had T u k e u n d e r his eye. " [ C h a u c e r ] is a p e r p e t u a l F o u n t a i n of g o o d Sense; learn'd i n a l l Sciences; a n d t h e r e f o r e speaks p r o p e r l y o n all Subjects: A s h e k n e w w h a t to say, so h e k n o w s also w h e n to l e a v e off." I n w r i t i n g d e a t h b e d speeches, O v i d m a d e use of a thous a n d u n n a t u r a l conceits, " w h i c h Chaucer r e j e c t e d as b e l o w the D i g n i t y o f the S u b j e c t . " "Chaucer f o l l o w ' d N a t u r e every w h e r e ; b u t w a s n e v e r so b o l d t o g o b e y o n d h e r . " B u t w h e n D r y d e n speaks f o r himself as o n e w h o i n his translations has h a d t o consider every detail of 2,000 lines of C h a u c e r , h e says instead that " l i v i n g in o u r early Days of Poetry, h e writes n o t always o f a piece; b u t sometimes mingles trivial T h i n g s w i t h those of greater M o m e n t . Sometimes also, t h o u g h n o t o f t e n , h e runs riot, like Ovid, a n d k n o w s n o t w h e n he has said e n o u g h . " 1 3 6 T h e b i o g r a p h i c a l i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t C h a u c e r i n the p r e f a c e D r y d e n d r e w f r o m Speght, mistakes a n d all, w i t h perhaps sufficient a c k n o w l e d g m e n t , b u t h e took u p arms against Speght, as is well k n o w n , o n the m a t t e r of C h a u cer's metrics. W h e n T u k e a l o n e is in his m i n d D r y d e n writes m o r e g e n t l y : " T h e Verse of Chaucer, I confess, is not H a r m o n i o u s to us; . . . T h e y w h o l i v ' d w i t h him, a n d some time after him, thought it M u s i c a l ; a n d it continues so e v e n in o u r J u d g m e n t , if c o m p a r ' d w i t h t h e N u m b e r s of Lidgate a n d Gower his C o n t e m p o r a r i e s : T h e r e is the r u d e Sweetness of a Scotch T u n e i n it, w h i c h is n a t u r a l a n d pleasing, t h o u g h n o t p e r f e c t . " B u t h e at o n c e goes o n : " I c a n n o t g o so far as h e w h o p u b l i s h ' d the last E d i t i o n of h i m ; for h e w o u l d m a k e us believe the F a u l t is i n o u r Ears, a n d that t h e r e w e r e really T e n Syllables in a Verse where we find b u t N i n e : . . . I t w e r e a n easie M a t t e r to p r o d u c e some thousands of his Verses, w h i c h are l a m e f o r w a n t of half a Foot, a n d sometimes a w h o l e o n e , a n d w h i c h n o Pron u n c i a t i o n c a n m a k e otherwise." A n d D r y d e n t h e n seeks to p r o v e his p o i n t b y q u o t a t i o n s f r o m Speght's o w n t e x t . 1 3 ' O n e last aspect of D r y d e n as a critic appears i n his discussion of C h a u c e r b e t t e r t h a n i n a n y o t h e r p l a c e i n the preface o r o u t of it; n a m e l y t h a t D r y d e n was a t e x t u a l as well as a literary critic, a r o l e f o r c e d u p o n h i m t o some e x t e n t as a translator. H e h a d offered an occasional e m e n d a t i o n elsew h e r e , b u t i n the p r e f a c e h e writes at l e n g t h a n d w i t h o b v i o u s satisfaction a b o u t his e m e n d a t o r y tasks. 1 3 8 ( T W i Discussion of D r y d e n ' s translations in the Fables m u s t i n c l u d e awareness that h e b e g a n this k i n d of literary w o r k i n the classroom, t r a n s l a t i n g t h e classics f r o m o n e l a n g u a g e to another, n o d o u b t w i t h some a i d f r o m surr e p t i t i o u s r e a d i n g i n the E n g l i s h translations of the p r e c e d i n g age. A s w e h a v e seen, h e m e n t i o n s specifically h a v i n g read Sandys's t r a n s l a t i o n of t h e Metamorphoses as a boy. W e discover, as already n o t e d , that, w h e r e a s h e is® See pp. 33-34,40 above. 137 See pp. 34, 38-39 above. Speght's remarks appeared in the editions of 160« and 1687. T h e quotations and texts of Chaucer in the Fables follow the edition of 1598. Pepys's copy of Speght was the 160« edition (Brewer, comp., Chaucer, I, 154) and perhaps he had lent it to Dryden or quoted it to him. 13® E.g., a proposed emendation of Aristotle, in Works, XIII, «41-242. Cf. p. 40 above.

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often remarked on the failures of those who had translated Homer and Ovid before him, he still more often included in his own work lines from theirs. T h e practice of including in one's own translation bits of another's was normal—its greatest monument is the King James Version of the Bible— but one would like to know how Dryden went about it. His lifelong dependence on his memory makes it difficult to determine whether he composed his own versions first and then consulted others, or whether he simply remembered vivid passages as he wrote. In general, the more thick-sown the borrowings, the more likely they are to reflect very recent rereading. Thus, if we ask how " T h e n hoist their Yards a-trip, and all their Sails," a line from Sandys, got into Ceyx and Alcyone,139 the answer will have to consider the many other parallels to Sandys in that poem, even in passages that supplement rather than translate the Latin. Dryden's remarks on his methods of translating are scattered through his works. Like much of his other self-analysis, they are after the fact, occasional, alternately defensive and self-promotional, and somewhat inconsistent. One particularly observes his balancing of, or wavering between, being a learned translator and a popular one. He knew he would be assailed by a vociferous group of detractors if he failed in learning and would be greeted with indifference by a much larger group if he failed in poetry. In either event he would lose respect and the income dependent on it. His theory of translation and its historical setting is summarized in Works, VI, 853-858; here a brief review of matters particularly relevant to the Fables is sufficient. In the preface to Ovid's Epistles (1680), Dryden's first and best-known discussion of translating, he distinguished three kinds of translation, metaphrase, paraphrase, and imitation, terms partly adopted from earlier theorists and meaning, respectively, literal translation, close translation, and loose translation or parallel. A t that time he urged the middle road as the only one by which to arrive at a poem that was both faithful to and as fine as its original. 140 Subsequently he announced that he had sometimes produced something between metaphrase and paraphrase 141 and sometimes something between paraphrase and imitation, 142 thus reducing his tripartite scheme to a spectrum along which he freely moved both within and between poems. Dryden also said in 1680 that a translator must be sensitive to the nuances of both his source and target languages if he is to transmit not merely his author's meaning but his style and spirit. In pursuing this goal, he must walk a fine line. If an expression in one language is inelegant in the other, he should substitute an effective expression of his own that preserves the original meaning. But if, for example, his author is sometimes redundant, he must preserve the redundancies. 143 139 See 1.93 (p. 35s above). 140 Works,

I, 114-115.

1 « I b i d . , V , 330. 1 4 2 Ibid., I V , 87. 143 ibid., I, 118. D r y d e n wrote similarly in The Authors Apology for Heroique Poetry: " ' T i s true, there are limits to be set b e t w i x t the boldness and rashness o f a

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In the preface to Sylvce (1685), Dryden said of his translations in the volume that he had both added and omitted, and even sometimes interpreted. "For, after all, a Translator is to make his A u t h o r appear as charmi n g as possibly he can, provided he maintains his Character, and makes him not unlike himself." 1 4 4 A n d with respect to the proviso, which reexpresses one of the goals he had set himself in 1680, he apologized, as noted above, for having once or twice made Virgil sound like Ovid. 1 4 5 In the Discourse of Satire, prefixed to The Satires of Juvenal and Persius (1693), Dryden said at first that he and his fellow translators had attempted a " N e w W a y of Version," 1 4 6 but when he finally came to giving details, he showed that he meant paraphrase, "or somewhat which is yet more loose, betwixt a Paraphrase and Imitation." T h e translators' reason, once more, was that they wrote not for scholars but for the entertainment of educated readers of English. T h e y sought to make Juvenal "speak that k i n d of English, which he wou'd have spoken had he liv'd in England, and h a d Written to this A g e . " Consequently they sometimes substituted English manners and customs for R o m a n ones instead of relying always o n explanatory notes. 147 In the dedication of Examen Poeticum (later in 1693), Dryden said that in following his usual middle way of translating he had managed to transmit all kinds of detail in Ovid's style, including his faults. T h a t is, he had kept his attention focused o n the "sweetness, easiness, and smoothness" of Ovid's versification, and on his metaphors and other rhetorical devices, even though some of these devices were unworthy of the subject matter and even though Ovid was sometimes redundant. 1 4 8 T h e most recent of Dryden's discussions had appeared in his translation of The Works of Virgil (1697), particularly in the dedication of the Aeneis. Here once more he said he had endeavored to copy Virgil "in his Numbers, his choice of Words, and his placing them for the sweetness of the sound." In so doing, he felt that he had sometimes to import into English words from other languages that would suitably enrich it. 1 4 9 T h e genius of English has generally rejected Dryden's importations, with the result that an annotator finds more words to explain in Dryden's additions to or variations from his originals than in his more literal renderings, as our notes to lines show. Because Dryden cast his net so widely in the Fables, his practice of translation therein is more varied than in his other volumes. In his translation of Homer, all things considered, his concern was not to translate very closely, owing in part to Homer's copiousness, much of which he felt was Poet; but he must understand those limits who pretends to judge, as well as he who undertakes to write: and he who has 110 liking to the whole, ought in reason to be excluded from censuring of the parts" (ibid., XII, 90). Hi ibid., Ill, 4. 145 ibid., III, 9. 146 ibid., IV, 26. 147 Ibid., IV, 87-89. 148 Ibid., IV, 369-372. 149 Ibid., V, 318-340.

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distracting, but owing more to a desire to bring out Homer's "fire," which h e responded to with equal warmth. 150 In his translations of Ovid, he followed his text more closely, in accordance with his earlier translations of the same author. In his translations of Boccaccio and Chaucer he regularly verged on or passed into imitation when he was not making large additions, and he often substituted his own meaning for theirs in matters large and small. His omissions from Homer, Ovid, and Boccaccio are relatively small and almost always by way of condensation. His omissions from Chaucer are much larger, but they are usually part of his paraphrasing, not for the purpose of altering the narratives. Dryden's normal and foundational procedure, however, is always to translate more or less word for word, even though he called that procedure slave work in the dedication of the Aeneis.151 Almost at once, of course, the demands of rhythm and rhyme drive the procedure off course. T h e first line may need an adjustment for rhythm's sake, and the second line certainly needs a rhyme. Adjustments for rhythm's sake usually comprise only a word or two, whether substitution, addition, or omission. T h e demands of rhyme, however, often lead to considerable original composition. Usually, the first addition in a passage comes in the second line of a couplet, and repeats what has just been said or depends in some way on an earlier or later place in the source. Thereafter, until the source takes u p a new idea, more and more original composition appears, ending often in several lines completely original though in theory developing the thought of the source or at least reflecting its style. Some readers will wish to think of the more synonymous repetitions as double translations, but our notes always refer to them as additions. Adjustment for rhyme is not a mechanical process—for example, sometimes the original content comes in the first line of a couplet instead of the second 152 —but in general the procedure reflects the normal operation of the human mind. T h e initial impulse in translation is to represent the source accurately, an impulse that cannot always be sustained in a poetical rendition. Although the notes to lines provide the evidence upon which the foregoing generalizations have been based, it may be well to give a few examples here. Above each line of translation in the following passages appears a line in italics giving a literal translation of the source, but one in which Dryden's words and syntax have been used where possible. We begin with two passages from The First Book of Homer's Ilias because Dryden began his translations for the volume with this poem. T h e first is his 11. 126-134, Homer's I, 84-91. Achilles is addressing Calchas. 84 To him swift footed Achilles replying said: 126 T o this the stern Achilles made Reply: 85 Be very bold, 127 Be bold; and on my plighted Faith rely, 85-87 speak what, praying to Phcebus, you know 128 T o speak what Phoebus has inspir'd thy Soul 150 See Works, IV, 373, where Dryden also Temarks that he may there have translated Homer too literally, and Ward, Letters, p. 121.

!51 Works, V, 334. 152 See, e.g., notes to Meleager and Atalanta, 11. 30-31, 32 (p. 672 below).

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8y to the Danaans. 129 For common Good; and speak without controul. 86 By him, dear to Zeus, [/ swear 130 His Godhead I invoke, by him I swear, 88 that] while I live, 131 T h a t while my Nostrils draw this vital Air, 88-89 »one shall 13a None shall presume to violate those Bands; 89 place on thee heavy hands, 133 Or touch thy Person with unhallow'd Hands: 90-91 even not Agamemnon that declares himself best by far of the Achaeans. 134 Ev'n not the King of Men that all commands. Dryden has thus given Homer's sense, even though he has not followed Homer's syntax very closely (less closely even than shown in the italicized text). He has replaced one of Homer's epithets, "swift footed," and given u p another, "dear to Zeus," but for "Agamemnon" he has substituted Homer's own normal substitution, "King of Men," thus sufficiently preserving a well-known characteristic of Homer's language. Besides the smaller omissions shown above, Dryden has omitted "and have sight of the earth" after "I live" in line 88; "beside the hollow ships" after "hands" in line 89; and "no one of the whole army of the Danaans" before "even not" in line 90. None of the omitted material is necessary to the main sense of the passage. It constitutes what Dryden calls Homer's copiousness, 183 which h e may be said to have represented to a sufficient extent by his own additions to his source. We see then both the mechanical process of translation here and Dryden's conformity to his principle that his work should represent faithfully the character of its original. T h e second passage, 11. 403-410, corresponding to Homer's I, 285-291, starts with a much-expanded transition from one speaker to the next, b u t then settles down to a close and effective rendering. 2S5 Lord Agamemnon answering 403 Thus Nestor said, and ceas'd: Atrides broke 385 him spoke, 404 His Silence next; but ponder'd e'er he spoke. »86 You have said rightly, 405 Wise are thy Words, and glad I would obey, 287 but this man wishes to be over all others, 406 But this proud Man affects Imperial Sway. 288 he wishes to control all and to rule over all 407 Controlling Kings, and trampling on our State 289 and to give orders to all. 408 His Will is Law; and what he wills is Fate. 290 The gods have made him a warrior, but do they 409 T h e Gods have giv'n him Strength: But whence the Style, 291 license him to revile? 410 Of lawless Pow'r assum'd, or License to revile? 153 See p. 28 above.

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"Atrides," meaning son of Atreus, is one of Homer's common substitutions for "Agamemnon." Besides the smaller omissions, Dryden has omitted "yea, verily, old man, all these things" before " Y o u have said" in line 286, "which one, I think, will not obey" after "orders to a l l " in line 289, and "that live forever" after "gods" in line 290. T h e " o n e who will not obey" is of course Agamemnon himself. T h u s once more we may say that Dryden has omitted nothing of substance. W e may also notice that Dryden's redundant addition in 1. 408 to provide a rhyme comes from Paradise Lost, V I I , 173, " a n d what I will is F a t e . " 1 3 4 Not unnaturally, Dryden drew more on Milton when translating Homer than when rendering the other authors in the Fables. T u r n i n g now to matters of sound, we note that the first line in the first passage above, " T o this the stern Achilles made Reply," has two of the canine " r " sounds and that "stern" appears instead of some smoother word, such as "swift." Dryden thus makes the sound echo the sense. T h e Greek here is Tdv S' Avatiupintvos TTpotThfat viSat ¿«6s 'AxiXAsus.165 W e note the alliteration of pi, mu, and kappa/chi, the assonance or repetition of alpha, epsilon, omicron and upsilon, and of epsilon-iota with eta or iota. Dryden has " p , " " m , " and " k " but has his own pattern of alliteration. H e has long " a , " corresponding to eta, and repeats the schwa, short " i , " and long " e , " corresponding to upsilon and iota, but he has his own pattern of assonance. I n short, he represents Homer's "music" very well. Coming next to Ovid, we take two passages that illustrate looser translation. First, Baucis and Philemon, 11. 130-141, a passage Dryden said he could visualize clearly. 1 5 8 T h e L a t i n is Metamorphoses, V I I I , 684-688. 684 One goose there was, 130 O n e Goose they had, ('twas all they cou'd allow) 684 guardian of the little villa, 131 A wakeful Cent'ry, and on Duty now, 685 whom for the divine guests they wished to kill. 132 W h o m to the Gods for Sacrifice they vow; 133 Her, with malicious Zeal, the Couple view'd; 686 Quick of wing she tired them slowed by age 134 She ran for Life, and limping they pursu'd: 135 Full well the Fowl perceiv'd their bad intent, 687 And long eluded her masters, 136 And wou'd not make her Masters Compliment; 154 M a s o n , p . 769. 155 W e c a n g e t s o m e i d e a o f h o w D r y d e n p r o n o u n c e d G r e e k from t h e f o l l o w i n g r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f E n g l i s h i n G r e e k l e t t e r s i n Le Chef D'Oeuvre d'un Inconnu ( 1 7 1 4 ) , A2V. I t m u s t b e r e m e m b e r e d t h a t d o u b l e g a m m a is p r o n o u n c e d " n g " a n d t h a t i n m o d e r n G r e e k b e t a is p r o n o u n c e d " v . "

Mop X 6 7 7 815 aravS OVVTOV^T TiX vovpfilKTUpiOVS&I>B Aid 4>po[i ts i)8 Sis yap\avS Pep Bar vov ovirov lop Civ i>ou ovijp 'A TapXavd /ii]S 6 8 abyr It) ( ovvrpoSev o i i j s As via fiavs renireXs rjfi Sid kpair 2jj/3 Sis ypyr Udops and lop Siv. Qts oSvkvovv

i s s S e e p . 31 a b o v e .

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687-689 and finally to the very gods she seemed to fly. 137 But persecuted, to the Pow'rs she flies, j 38 And close between the Legs of Jove she lies: 139 He with a gracious Ear the Suppliant heard, 68y The gods told them not to kill [her]. 140 And sav'd her Life; . . . Here Dryden has omitted almost nothing but has made large additions so that we see the event more clearly, or at any rate we have less to visualize for ourselves. He has also introduced an allusion to the story of how geese saved Rome, to which he was guided by a note in Freind's edition, if he did not think of it himself. 137 T h e greater visualization and the allusion make the humor of the incident more obvious, and taking more words to describe it emphasizes the joke. We might say that Ovid's picture is like Sir J o h n Tenniel's illustrations for Alice in Wonderland, and that Dryden's is like Walt Disney's film version of the book. T h e first four words in this passage, "One Goose they had," are also to be found in Sandys's translation (VIII, 766), but doubtless only by coincidence because both writers render the Latin literally, as expected at the beginning of any such passage. T h e first, second, and fourth lines of original composition are the first in their couplets and the third is the second in its couplet, so that we have two original lines in succession but in different couplets. In line 137, "But persecuted, to the Pow'rs she flies" translates tandemque est visus ad ipsos / Confugisse Deos. We see that Dryden parallels Ovid's alliteration, and achieves the same fluidity and speed—sound echoing s e n s e in the same way, with many "s" sounds. T h e second example, from The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, 11. 503-508, comes from a passage in which Dryden felt Ovid had been particularly adept in developing the emotions of the speakers, in this instance Ulysses, who is defending his reputation for daring. 158 Philoctetes has reason to hate him, Ulysses says, but he, Ulysses, is willing to meet him. T h e Latin is Metamorphoses, XIII, 328-333. In both the Latin and English Ulysses speaks as though he were confronting Philoctetes, who had in fact been left behind by the Greeks on Ulysses' advice. An oracle having said that Philoctetes must rejoin the Greeks if they are to conquer the Trojans, Ulysses announces that he is willing to go back for him. 328 Hard Philoctetes, you have leave to hate 503 Hard Philoctetes, exercise thy Spleen, 328 thy fellows, and the king; 504 Against thy Fellows, and the King of Men; 329-330 curse my devoted head, without end, 505 Curse my devoted Head, above the rest, 330-332 and wish to do to me what I did to you. 506 And wish in Arms to meet me Breast to Breast: !S7 See Freind's edition, p. 246, which cites Plutarch, i.e., Life of Camillus, XXVII, 2-3. The story is also in Livy, V, xlvii, 4. Were it not for the familiarity of the story, one might conclude alternatively that Dryden remembered a later passage in Ovid; see note to Ceyx and Alcyone, I. 276 (p. 798 below). " 8 See Works, XIII, 242-243.

Goo

Commentary

33} Yet I will undertake 507 Yet I the dang'rous Task will undertake and strive to bring thee back with me. 508 And either die my self, or bring thee back. Here the additions are smaller than the omissions, for Ovid says not just "wish" in lines 330-332 but "long in your misery to have me in your power, to drink my blood, and pray" (Loeb). Dryden may be thought, then, to have done less than he might have in helping us to visualize Philoctetes' hate. "King of Men" he introduced from Homer. T h e words " w i l l . . . bring thee back" are also to be found in Sandys's translation (XIII, 373), but again perhaps by accident, as the translation is literal. T h e preceding two selections afford no striking examples of Ovid's figures of speech, but the second gives some sense of how Dryden could parallel them. "Curse my devoted Head" in line 505 is in the original "curse me and devote my head." Since "devote" means "curse," Dryden has turned Ovid's tautology by synecdoche into a more pointed tautology by a kind of polyptoton. In the preface to the Fables, Dryden says he could not undertake to r e p resent either the antique words or the broken rhythms he encountered in Chaucer's text (as he understood it), 159 and in general he felt freer to vary from Chaucer than from Homer or Ovid. As we have arranged Chaucer's and Dryden's texts on facing pages, readers may observe for themselves how Dryden proceeded, though why he proceeded as he did may evade explanation. Take, for example, Palamon and Arcite, III, 786-789, which corresponds to The Knight's Tale, I, 2771-2773, part of the passage to which Dryden refers in the preface when contrasting Arcite's last words as Chaucer gives them with how Ovid would have rendered the same sentiments.160 786 How I have lov'd, excuse my faltring Tongue, 2771 Alas the wo, alas my paines strong, 787 My Spirits feeble, and my Paines are strong: 2773 Alas the dethe, 788 This I may say, I only grieve to die 2773 alas myn Emely, 789 Because I lose my charming Emily: Chaucer's line 2772, "That I for you haue suffered, and so long," does not appear in Dryden's verses. It may be doubted whether the character of Chaucer's poetry, of which Dryden was fully aware, comes through in such a loose version. Why a poet who had written "O Leonora! Oh!" should have been unwilling here to be more plain and literal is hard to fathom. 161 Perhaps Dryden felt that because he could not rely on a fine actor to give emotion to the words, he had better try to do so by circumlocutions that had an aura of their own in the poetic language of his day. In translating Boccaccio's rather leisurely prose, Dryden had to supply almost all the emotional intensity required to lift his rhymes into the realm of poetry. One method of so doing was simply to include long passages of 159 See pp. 41, 39 above. 16 See pp. 32-33 above. 1«1 See The Spanish Fryar, V. i, 136 (Works, XIV, 185).

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his own. Let us look, though, at two renderings in which he worked on a smaller scale but with equal effectiveness. The first is Theodore and Honoria, 11. 119-124. The corresponding passage is Decameron, V, viii, about twofifths of the way through the tale. 162 Theodore sees the ghost of Guido Cavalcanti hunting down the ghost of Honoria, who in life had rejected him and in death has followed him to hell. And he saw behind, a knight, brown, 119 Not far behind, a Knight of swarthy Face, black steed come after her, on a 180 High on a Coal-black Steed pursu'd the Chace; very angry of face, 121 With flashing Flames his ardent Eyes were fill'd, with in his hands a rapier, 182 And in his Hands a naked Sword he held: 123 He chear'd the Dogs to follow her who fled, threatening her with death with terrible and cruel words. 124 And vow'd Revenge on her devoted Head. In this instance Dryden omitted none of the original sense and almost none of the original words. "Swarthy" in line 119 represents Boccaccio's bruno, "brown," i.e., Dryden had to decide whether the adjective applied to the knight's face or to his dress. Whether Dryden did justice to Boccaccio's last words may be questioned, but he did as well as the nineteenth-century translator who rendered them, "loading her with the bitterest imprecations." The appearance of "devoted Head" here as well as in the passage from The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses is an example of Dryden's repetitions that, whatever his reasons for them, provide linkages between the poems on the one hand, and on the other sometimes break his rule that each translated author should have his own voice. Boccaccio should not sound like Ovid. Our final example comes from the last part of Sigismonda and Guiscardo, where Dryden at first followed Boccaccio more closely than elsewhere but then felt that he must change and add much if he was to raise a commonplace idea to the level of poetry. T h e passage, 11. 557-562, corresponds to Decameron, IV, i, about the middle. 163 Sigismonda is speaking to her father, who has murdered her lover of low degree. Many kings, great princes many, were formerly poor, 557 Ev'n mighty Monarchs oft are meanly born, and many of those who dig with the mattock and mind sheep were formerly very rich. 558 And Kings by Birth, to lowest Rank return; 559 All subject to the Pow'r of giddy Chance, 560 For Fortune can depress, or can advance: 561 But true Nobility, is of the Mind, 562 Not giv'n by Chance, and not to Chance resign'd. Sigismonda is repeating an idea she had cast in different words earlier in 162 Payne-Singleton, p. 422. Our translation is, as usual, adjusted to Dryden's English. 163 Payne-Singleton, pp. 300-301.

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Commentary

this speech, so Dryden's further repetition gives something of the spirit and method of his source, even though his last line is Ovidian in phrasing. T h e alliteration in his first line mirrors that in Boccaccio's Molti re, molti gran principi furon già poveri. Such detailed analysis of Dryden's translations will not be found in the notes to lines in our edition, full as they are. Readers may then wish to make their own comparisons, to observe every choice Dryden made in writing, to sit beside him mentally and observe his poetic process, to write his translations for themselves, so to speak, to "be Dryden," as Boswell might have said, for in a translation's patterns of thought and expression every conformity to or deviation from the original, both in sense and in sound, is a key to the translator's mind and heart at work. And it may well be then also that these readers will rejoice to see reasons and effects and significances that have escaped our notice. Close comparison of Dryden's sources with his versions also discloses influences and purposes beyond the exigencies of translation. Of course he had to trim or pad to obtain his rhythm and rhyme, but he will sometimes, for example, pad the source into a triplet where a couplet would do. We know he regarded a triplet as useful for rounding out a thought. 184 Some of the extra lines may mirror the wealth of fancy he found in Homer and Ovid, but some, surely, are his own overflow of emotion and delight in his ability. For example, no reader would have felt a lack in The Flower and the Leaf at the place where Dryden expanded the description of spring.18® Sometimes, too, fellow feeling for his authors as thinkers takes over, most noticeably in his reworking of Chaucer's astrology.168 As noted earlier, where Dryden is translating closely he sometimes draws upon preceding translators whom he had publicly condemned, and in passages where he is adding to his originals he sometimes draws upon Milton. Many other additions, and many omissions also, make the poetry more consistently powerful. Excessive words are trimmed away; needed emphases, allusions, or metaphors are provided. Several times, Dryden could visualize a scene more clearly than his source had done, and accordingly added details, as in the selection from Baucis and Philemon given above. He knew more about seamanship than did Ovid or Boccaccio, and more about women, or so he thought, than Boccaccio or Chaucer did. Several times, also, his translation clarifies an expression or an allusion in its source. He almost never resorted to footnotes. Sometimes, too, Dryden's looser translation verges on or passes into editing his texts. Then it is not always easy to decide his motive or combination of motives. No great harm results from supposing that he did most of his editing for his readers' pleasure. For example, his chivalry is that of his own age, not that of Homer's or Chaucer's. He tells us elsewhere that one of his former patrons, the Duchess of Monmouth, enjoyed the "Fairy kind of writing." 187 It may be that he had the duchess and others like her in mind 164 H-Wis, V, 331. W5 See 11. 5-19 (p. 365 above). 188 See, e.g., The Cock and the Fox, 11.177-180,445-448 (pp. 297,313 above). 187 Dedication o£ King Arthur {Works, XVI, 7).

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when he increased the magical elements in The Wife of Bath her Tale and The Flower and the Z,ea/.18* But often enough we must recognize that Dryden's purpose was to inform, to instruct. T h e n we dwarf his stature as a moralist and as a learned man if we suppose his every observation was inspired by and directed to some political, religious, or social problem of his own day, and nothing more. Did he not wish us to look out through his moral telescope upon the universe in order to discern and avoid its rocks and shallows? If we look backward through the instrument we see only his "I," and we further reduce him to mere quaintness or to active dishonesty if we say, for example, that his every objection to cowardice, venality, corruption, and tyranny in rulers was opposition to William III, not only because William was a brave, honest, wise, and constitutional monarch, but also because history had provided Dryden with so many real examples. I have remarked elsewhere on the assertion that all the characteristics of the fictional rulers Dryden creates had a contemporary political meaning. 1 6 9 In the works written in Stuart times, it has been asserted, all the good characteristics of the rulers are praises of Charles II or James II as the case may be, and all the bad characteristics are friendly warnings. In the Fables, as I have just hinted, it has been asserted that all the bad characteristics of the rulers depicted are covert attacks on William III and all the good characteristics are calls or guides for his improvement. T h e general and the more specific assertions seeming equally dubious to me, I have either avoided repeating them in the notes to lines or have answered those I have quoted. For the same reason, it seems to me wrong to look for political meaning in every fictional soldier or civilian who serves or opposes a ruler. Although Dryden gave free rein to his political views in To My Honour's. Kinsman and to his religious views in The Character of a Good Parson, both poems original or largely original, he did not therefore feel that he must refrain from doing so in his translations. His Achilles cries out against tyranny more loudly than Homer's. A t the end of Homer's description of an atoning sacrifice followed by a feast Dryden adds his own ironic comment: "Holy Debauch!" 1 7 0 And so on. In short, if one looks for reasons why Dryden did not always translate closely, one finds, as he said of Chaucer, "God's plenty." 1 7 1 What did those who first opened the Fables in 1700 expect to find in the volume, and what would lead them to buy it? T h e y would have expected to find more of the best poetry of the age, and this they certainly found in the original poems therein. As for the translations of the classics, they would have expected, if they were knowledgeable in the ancient languages, to find a religious laxity and moral earnestness, the gods treated with a familiarity 168 See, e.g., The Wife of Bath her Tale, 11. 853-263, and The Flower and the Leaf, 11. 481-501 (pp. 465, 395-397 above). 169 See Works, X I I , 397-398.

I7» See 1.647 (p. 280 above), " i See p. 37 above.

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Commentary

bordering on disrespect but narratives from which one could draw all sorts of guidance toward a nobler life. 172 As for the translations of Boccaccio and Chaucer, those who knew the Italian and Middle English would divide according to their moral views. Both authors were well known to have painted vivid pictures of all kinds of vice, and both had been said by their defenders to have provided corrective commentary to accompany these pictures.173 Those who knew Dryden could expect that he would repeat on his own behalf the apologies of his authors and their various defenders. They could also expect, if they knew Dryden's previous work, a sufficient budget of poetry adjusted to the taste of the age in form and content to satisfy their sense of what was elevated in tone and elegant in finish, with an interweaving of ironic or passionate comment on their own time or all time, as though the different authors were still alive—all prefaced with a highly readable guide to the writer's workshop, well informed, even learned, as to his materials, and friendly, not to say confidential, in its remarks on his craft. Reading the preface, they would feel in their own time somewhat like Charles Lamb in a London street with Coleridge holding him by the coat button. And it may be added that these first browsers found and buyers purchased exactly what they expected. The last of Dryden's surviving letters to Mrs. Steward, written n April 1700, begins: "The Ladies of the Town have infected you at a distance: they are all of your Opinion; 8c like my last Book of Poems, better than any thing they have formerly seen of mine. I always thought my Verses to my Cousin Driden were the best of the whole; & to my comfort the Town thinks them so; 8c He, which pleases me most is of the same Judgment as appears by a noble present he has sent me, which surprisd me, because I did not in the least expect it." 1 7 4 The Fables immediately took their place in editions of Dryden's Works or of his Poems. Copies of the first edition of the Fables were included as one of the four volumes of the Works (1701). Most of the contents were thereafter included in editions of his Poems, starting with Thomas Broughton's (published by the Tonsons) in 1743. In subsequent more complete 172 T h e prefaces a n d notes to George Sandys's a n d Samuel G a r t h ' s translations of t h e Metamorphoses, a n d Pope's introduction to his translation of t h e Iliad, treat these matters a t length. 173 See dedication of t h e English prose translation of t h e Decameron (1620) a n d preliminaries in T h o m a s Speght's Chaucer (1598), quoted in p a r t on p p . 591-598 above. It has been asserted, e.g., by J e a n H . Hagstrum in Sex and Sensibility: Ideal and Erotic Love from Milton to Mozart [1980], p. 52-55, t h a t Dryden's translations sometimes exceed their originals in titillation. In Fables, however, the case is different. It sometimes takes Dryden more words to describe sex acts or t h e n u d e female body, b u t with one exception h e adds no details to his sources (see headnote to Pygmalion and the Statue, p. 715 below). I n o n e instance, too, by failing to add a detail, h e allows readers to assume what is not in evidence, namely, by failing to say clearly whether o r not Guiscardo took off his leather suit before entering his wife's bed, lie allows readers to speculate a b o u t the scene, even to its sounds (see pp. 220-221 above). But whether Dryden's silence here was deliberate is at least debatable. 174 W a r d , Letters, p. 135. For speculations as to what t h e "noble present" was, see p. 659 below. In short, what Dryden h a d said in his preface (p. 26 above) was true; h e was "as vigorous as ever in the Faculties of [his] Soul."

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editions the poems were not kept together until the twentieth century, w h e n Noyes and Kinsley put all b u t the volume's one reprint, Alexander's Feast, in their original sequence. 1 7 5 Jacob T o n s o n and his successors in the business published five more editions of the Fables (1713, 1721, 1734, 1745, 1755). T h e Foulis brothers in Edinburgh published four more (1750, 1752, 1771. 1776). T h e remaining editions in the later century all have some connection with Samuel Johnson. His friend T h o m a s Davies and associates published two (1773, 1774) in their English Poets series because a group of Edinburgh publishers had produced one (1773) in their British Poets series. T h e English Poets series had prefixed Lives by Johnson. A n d Lady Diana, the wife of Johnson's friend T o p h a m Beauclerk, illustrated an edition of selections (1797). Other editions of selections followed in the nineteenth century. Editions of the whole appeared in 1901,1910, 1912, and 1928. A facsimile of the first edition, with an introduction by James Kinsley, appeared in 1973. Cymon and Iphigenia, the translation of Boccaccio that closed the volume, was reprinted in the third edition of Sylv in the 1598 ed.] . . . . T h e identity of Chaucer's wife is in fact mysterious" (Watson, II, 282). 402 by Succession. I.e., by right of succession (see note to 1. 404). 404 Mortimer. Edmund de Mortimer, third Earl of March (1351-1391), married a daughter of Lionel, Duke of Clarence, third son of Edward III. Richard II, who had no son, named Mortimer's son Roger heir-presumptive in 1385, and his grandson, also Edmund, heir-presumptive in 1398. When Henry IV, who was the son of John of Gaunt, fourth son of Edward III, took the throne in 1399, he did not harm the boy Edmund. 405 I say. See note to 1. 191.

Notes to Pages 34-37

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412 Byas towards . . . Wickliff. "There is no evidence that Chaucer was a follower of Wiclif (Watson, II, 282); see notes to 11. 397-398, 413-414. 412-413 John of Ghant his Patron. In 1374 Chaucer received an annuity of ten pounds from John (Robinson, pp. xx-xxi). It is not known how long it was paid, but John (1340-1399) was almost exactly Chaucer's contemporary. 413-414 Piers Plowman. Attributed to William Langland in two manuscripts, an attribution now generally accepted, but on no other grounds. 418 his Contemporary Boccace. Boccaccio's dates are 1313-1375; see note to 1. 372. 420-421 the Scandal which is given by particular Priests, reflects not on the Sacred Function. Noyes (p. 1026) points out that Dryden had said just the opposite in Absalom and Achitophel, 1. 99: "Priests of all Religions are the same" (Works, II, 8). 426-427 the Corruption of the Best, becomes the Worst. Tilley C668 (first citation 1630). Watson (II, 282) notes Dryden's variation on the theme in A Defence of an Essay of Dramatique Poesie, "The corruption of a Poet is the Generation of a Statesman," a pejorative word (Works, IX, 10). 431 they will tell us. Dryden means primarily Jeremy Collier. Luke Milbourne, a clergyman to whom Dryden returns in 11. 596-598, 735-767, had objected that Dryden "never spar'd a Clergyman" (quoted by Kinsley, IV, 2064). Collier several times took the full position Dryden mentions here, in his Short View of the Immorality and Profaneness of the English Stage (1698). 435 Scandalum Magnatum. "Scandal, i.e., libel, of magnates." Dryden means recourse to the act of 2 Richard II, stat. 1, c. 5, which provided penalties for the offense (OED). 446-447 a King of England and an Archbishop. Henry II and Thomas Becket. "Deliberately tactless, in view of William Ill's staunch Protestantism and his refusal to establish the Episcopacy in Scotland" (Watson, II, 283). 451 Dr. Drake. James Drake is accepted as the author of a reply to Collier, The Ancient and Modern Stages Survey'd (1699). 456 Prior lasit. "He hit me first." The words reversed from Terence's Eunuchus, Prologue, 1. 6. 468-469 He must have been ... Nature. As Watson notes (II, 284), Dryden finds in Chaucer what he had previously found in Shakespeare; see An Essay of Dramatick Poesie (Works, XVII, 55-56). 475 Baptista Porta. "Giambattista della Porta (1540-1615), the immensely versatile Neapolitan physician. In his De humana pkysi-ognomia (1586), he had systematically examined the influence of emotions on the human face" (Watson, II, 284). Kinsley (IV, 2063) notes that the book was the standard treatise on physiognomy. 479-480 improper in any other Mouth. Modern scholars disagree with respect to the Shipman's Tale: "It is clear from 11. 12-19 that the Shipman's Tale was written for a woman, presumably for the Wife of Bath" (Robinson, p. 732). And it has been argued that the Tale of Melibee, which Chaucer assigned to himself as a member of the company, was originally intended for the Man of Law (ibid., p. 690).

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490 There is such a Variety of Game. Watson (II, 284) sees Dryden as running a variation on his earlier use of a well-known simile comparing the imagination to a spaniel out hunting (see Works, VIII, 101; I, 53, 272). 491 Choice. Kinsley (IV, 2063) records Nicol Smith's suggestion that the true reading is "Chace." 492-493 here is God's Plenty. Cf. Tilley G207, "God never sends mouth but he sends meat" (first citation 1546). Tilley cites John Ray's note (1670): "This Proverb is much in the mouth of poor people: who get children, but take no care to maintain them." 497-498 Mankind is ever the same, and nothing lost out of Nature. See Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 11. 251-253, 386-389 (pp. 491, 495 above). Also Tilley N49, citation of 1576 (George Pettie, A Petite Pallace of Pettie his Pleasure): "the nature of nothing may be altered: that which nature hath given, cannot be taken away." 499-502 since ... Man. Repeats what Dryden had written to John Dennis about March 1694: "we poor Poets Militant (to use Mr. Cowley's Expression) are at the Mercy of Wretched Scribblers: And when they cannot fasten upon our Verses, they fall upon our Morals, our Principles of State and Religion" (Ward, Letters, p. 72). Besides Collier, Blackmore, and Milbourne, whom Dryden specifically mentions in this preface, several other writers, not all known to us by name, had also attacked him (see Winn, pp. 460-465, 472-473)510-511 my loose Writings. Watson (II, 285) believes Dryden admitted here to worse than he need have and suggests that the passage reflects a sense of approaching death. See note to 11. 137-149. 514 Totum hoc indictum volo. "I wish all this were unsaid." 515 Boccace. In the "Conclusione dell' Autore" at the end of the Decameron. 519 Novels. See note to 1. 68. 520-537 From the General Prologue, I, 725-742. The quotations here and below come from Speght's edition of 1598. 545-546 mention'd before. In 11. 367-392. 550-551 From The Miller's Tale, I, 3263-3264. 556 receiving. Scott-Saintsbury, Ker, and Noyes emend to "reviving"; Watson and Kinsley do not. 557 the late Earl of Leicester. Philip Sidney, third earl (1619-1698), the dedicatee of Don Sebastian and a neighbor of Dryden's in London (see Works, XV, 408-409). 564 a rough Diamond. Tilley D322, first citation 1624. 565-569 1 deny not .. . said enough. See note to 11. 345-347. 574-580 I have . . . Language. See headnote (pp. 594-603 above) for a general survey. 579-580 want of Words. Lack of the "easie and significant words" the use of which, Dryden felt, had been introduced into English poetry only in the generation preceding his own; see An Essay of Dramatick Poesie (Works, XVII, 14). 587 Errors of the Press. Note that Dryden will not accept this as an explanation of Chaucer's irregular meter as his text was then published (see note to 1. 375).

Notes to Pages

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589 all the Editions. Dryden presumably did not look beyond Speght's three editions of 1598, 1602, and 1687. 591-593 From The Knight's Tale, I, 2062-2064 (p. 124 above). 595 Peneus. Most manuscripts have "Penneus" instead of "Venus." 596-598 some future Milbourn . . . not. See note to 1. 431. 600-601 They suppose. As Kinsley notes (IV, 2063), Dryden had raised the same objection in the Postscript to the Reader in his translation of Virgil (1697; Works, VI, 807). 607 whom I mention'd. In 1. 557. 610 his Death. See note to 1. 557. 615-617 Multa renascuntur . . . loquendi. "Many terms that have fallen out of use are born again, and those shall fall that are now in repute, if Usage so will it, in whose hands lies the judgment, the right and the rule of speech" (Horace, Ars Poetica, 11. 70-72; Loeb, adjusted). 619 Veneration. As Kinsley (IV, 2063) points out, Dryden had said as much in the Discourse of Satire (Works, IV, 15): "Obsolete Words may then be laudably reviv'd, when either they are more Sounding, or more Significant than those in practice." 633 some old Saxon Friends. We do not know who these were. T h e leading medievalists at Oxford were George Hickes, Edward Thwaites, and Edmund Gibson, but as Kinsley points out (IV, 2063), we know of no connection between their group and Dryden. Dryden may mean Philip Sidney, third Earl of Leicester, Samuel Pepys, and Sir John Mennes (see 1. 607, and headnote, pp. 41, 590 above). Ker (II, 312) believes that Dryden was probably also thinking of Thomas Rymer, but Kinsley demurs. 644 Grandam Gold. Dryden used the expression first in The Wild Gallant, IV, i, 247 (Works, VIII, 62), then in The Hind and the Panther, III, 149 (Works, III, 165). 651 Facile est inventis addere. In Dryden's own English, "it is an easy thing to add to what already is invented" (Works, XI, 10). What comes next is an anacoluthon. Perhaps we should read "so addere is no great Commendation." 654 A Lady. Unknown, but in any event her information was false, as far as we know. 656 Mademoiselle de Scudiry. " T h e famous French writer of chivalric romances (1607-1701)" (Noyes, p. 1027). 657 as old as Sibyl, and inspired like her. Mile, de Scud6ry was in her nineties. Dryden has in mind the Cumean Sibyl as portrayed by Virgil in the sixth book of the Aeneid. In 11. 321 and 628 Virgil calls her longaeva sacerdos, "the aged priestess" (Loeb). At these places Dryden has only "Sybil" and "she" (11. 442, 861; Works, V, 542, 557), but he has "venerable Maid" earlier (1. 13, p. 527) where Virgil does not have the adjective. Virgil's account of how the Sybil spoke under Apollo's inspiration. 11. 42-101, may be found translated in Works, V, 528-531. 659-660 old Provenfall. I.e., Old French; see note to 11. 78-79. 661 I know not. A careless remark. Mile, de Scudiry would have used an edition with a glossary, just as Dryden did. 667-670 Boccace . . . Mother-Tongue. Repeating 11. 66-68, 72-73 (pp. 25-26 above).

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Commentary

675 borrow'd many Tales. Repeating 11. 253-255 (p. 31 above). 676-677 not generally of his own making. Dryden could have learned of the sources of the Decameron from one of the editions with a biography. 705 Let the Reader weigh them both. T h e passages in question are on p p . 230-232 a n d 473-479 a b o v e .

714-715 Aristotle .. . Action. Poetics, V, 8, "epic is unlimited in point of time" (Loeb). 718-719 whose Laurel. . . I have worn. See note to 1. 56. 723-724 his Mistress ... Naples. This information Dryden picked u p from a n edition of the Decameron with a biography. Modern scholars reject the story, first because there are inconsistencies in Boccaccio's various accounts of the romance, and second because "there is no documentary proof that this Maria [the supposed mistress] ever existed" (Umberto Bosco, Enc. Br., 3:767)725-726 Dioneo e Fiametta ... Palamone. "Dioneo and Fiametta together told a long tale of Arcita and Palemone" to wit, the Teseida (Decameron, VII, x, epilogue; Watson). 726-727 written before the time of Boccace. Because the tale told by Dioneo and Fiametta must have been Boccaccio's own Teseida, obviously Dryden did not know that The Knight's Tale was based on it, as he did not know that Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde was based on Boccaccio's Filostrato (see note to 1. 261). 731—732 The Flower and the Leaf. Included in Chaucer's works by Speght, the tale's language suggests that it belongs to the fifteenth century, and it is no longer accepted into the canon. 737 one M > or one B . Luke Milbourne and Sir Richard Blackmore. For the former, see note to 1. 431; for latter see To My Honour"d Kinsman, 11. 83-87 and notes (pp. 198, 665-666) and notes to the prologue to The Pilgrim (Works, XVI, 428-429). 745-746 Translations of Virgil. The First Book of Virgils /Eneis (1687) a n d the first Georgia in Notes on Dryden's Virgil in a Letter to a Friend (1698). In the latter Milbourne attacked Dryden's translation of 1697. Samuel Johnson's estimate of Milbourne's strictures is that "His outrages seem to be the ebullitions of a mind agitated by stronger resentment than bad poetry can excite, and previously resolved not to be pleased" (quoted by Kinsley, IV, 2064). One is reminded by Dryden's words here of the story of Alexander Pope, who, reading attacks upon himself, said they diverted him but betrayed the contrary in his face (see Joseph Spence, Observations, Anecdotes, and Characters of Books and Men, ed. James M. Osborn [1966], I, 42, quoting Johnson's Life of Pope, par. 239). 746-747 as they say, he has declared in Print. For a similar reliance on hearsay see Ward, Letters, p. 59. Dryden had been told that the queen had ordered Rymer to attack him, a rumor that proved to be false. T h e present rumor appears to be false also; at least, we have been unable to confirm it. 749 Ogilby. John Ogilby translated Virgil in 1649 and went on to translate the Iliad in 1660 and the Odyssey in 1665. T h e r e had been eight editions of the Virgil, the most recent in 1684. Dryden had already spoken slightingly of Ogilby in Mac Flecknoe, 1. 102, and in the preface to Sylva (Works, II, 56; III, 4, 8). Nevertheless, "many words and phrases" passed

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from Ogilby's Virgil to Dryden's (Works, VI, 863, and see notes to lines passim). So, incidentally, did the illustrative plates. 761-762 If I had taken to the Church as he affirms. "Taken to" means "entered," "sought subsistence in" (OED, sense 74 of verb). In the dedication of the Aeneis Dryden had written that making the cause of religion a cause for rebellion was an invention of the Christian priesthood (Works, V, 278). Milbourne had said of this passage that it was "malicious enough, and would have been an Invention becoming Mr. Dryden's Wit, had he been unhappily admitted into Holy Orders" (Notes on Dryden's Virgil, p. 9). A few pages later Milbourne said that Dryden had been refused Holy Orders (p. 19). Both passages are quoted by Winn, p. 499. 762-763 which was never in my Thoughts. Not quite true, perhaps, for Winn (pp. 270-271) points out that in 1674 and 1676 Dryden was angling for a place at Oxford, which would normally have entailed his taking Holy Orders (see Works, I, 153, 156, and note, p. 350). Noyes (pp. 1003, 1027) observes that Elkanah Settle had said Dryden had been refused Holy Orders in Absalom Senior (1682) and that Dryden added some fuel to the fire by saying in the dedication of Examen Poeticum (1693): " T h e same Parts and Application, which have made me a Poet, might have rais'd me to any Honours of the Gown" (Works, IV, 363). 763-765 I should have . . . my Parishioners. Apparently Dryden refers to a satire called Ostia (i.e., the seaport), that Milbourne wrote and circulated when he was rector at Yarmouth, and that his associate, Rowland Davies, read in 1689 (see Davies, Journal, ed. Richard Caulfield [1857; Camden Society Publications no. 68], pp. 41, 66). Davies was lecturer at Yarmouth from July 1689 to February 1690, regularly exchanging the tasks of reading and preaching with Milbourne and visiting him in his home. None of the many brief references to Milbourne in Davies' journal suggests that the parishioners had taken offense at the satire, however, so Dryden may allude to some similar unpublished work. 774 Manes. "The deified souls of departed ancestors" (OED, citing 1 Conquest of Granada, IV, ii, 219). The word appears several times in Dryden, e.g., in the dedications of Examen Poeticum and of An Evenings Love (Works, IV, 365; X, 200), and indeed it can be found in almost any desk dictionary today. 774 Arthurs. Prince Arthur (1695) and King Arthur (1697). 775-776 the Plan . . . Juvenal. See Discourse of Satire (Works, IV, 22). 776-777 The Guardian Angels . . . Machines. See Discourse of Satire (Works, IV, 19-22) and note to 1. 230 above. 778 Dares. In Virgil's Aeneid, V, 362-408. What Dryden here and in his translation of the Georgics, III, 30, calls whirl-bats, he calls "Gauntlets" and "Gloves of Death" in his translation of the Aeneid, V, 88-645 passim. (Works, V, 210, 489-509). Virgil's word is caestus. Dryden had previously translated caestus as "Whirlbatts" in a note to his translation of Persius (ibid., IV, 321). In the plate illustrating the combat of Dares and Entellus (ibid, V, 506) the weapons are represented as bludgeons or sandbags about three feet long, but they are today considered to have been gloves or wrappings for the hands and arms weighted with metal. See OED, whirlbat, citing this passage and the translation of the Georgics.

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7 8 4 - 8 2 9 I shall say . . . cathedras. See notes to 11. 1 3 7 - 1 4 9 , 456, and headnote to To my Friend, the Author (pp. 5 6 9 - 5 7 0 above). 7 9 2 - 7 9 3 perverted my Meaning. See note to 11. 1 4 6 - 1 4 7 . 796 a Dictatour from the Plough. Referring to Lucius Quintius Cincinnatus, "called from the plough to the dictatorship" (SCD) in 458 B.C. After sixteen days in office, having defeated the Aequians in the meantime, he returned to his farm. Cincinnatus was not, however, noted for horseplay but was revered as a model of frugality, integrity, humility, and authority. See Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities, X, xvii-xix, xxiii-xxv; Livy, III, xix-xxi, xxvi-xxix. 797 The Zeal . . . up. T h e immediate reference is to J o h n 2:17, where we are told that after Jesus drove the sellers of animals and the money changers from the outer court of the temple in Jerusalem his disciples remembered and applied to him the words of Psalm 69:9, "the zeal of thine [God's] house hath eaten me up." 8 0 5 - 8 0 6 he read them not without some Pleasure. A dirty dig. Dryden had studied Plautus and Aristophanes at Westminster School (Winn, p. 524) and we may assume that Collier had come to know them in school also. But Dryden is not the only public penitent to have objected to a holier than thou attitude in others. 813 often acted . . . in my remembrance. Presumably Dryden would not make a claim his readers would recognize as unfounded. We have here, then, an indication of the gaps in our records of theatrical performances. T h e London Stage knows of only two performances, 2 January and 1 August 1667, and the assignment of the play to the King's Company in 1 6 6 9 (Part I, pp. 100, n o , 1 5 1 - 1 5 2 ) . 817 some of them. Notably William Congreve in Amendments of Mr. Collier's False and Imperfect Citations (1698) and Sir J o h n Vanbrugh in A Short Vindication of The Relapse (1698). Collier answered them in turn in A Defence of the Short View (1699). See also note to 1. 4 5 1 . 821 the Prince of Condi at the Battle of Senneph. " T h e battle of Senef[fe], in Flanders [between Charleroi and Mons in modern Belgium], in which the Prince of Condi was opposed to the Prince of Orange [afterward William III], was fought on the 1 ith of August, 1674. Condi, not content with having defeated the rear-guard of the enemy, in attempting to destroy the remainder of the Prince of Orange's army, who had left his flank exposed as he decamped, lost a great number of men" (Malone, III, 652). According to Sir William Temple in his Memoirs of What Past in Christendom, from . . . 1672 to . . . 1679 (1692), pp. 4 8 - 5 2 , William was withdrawing from an attempt to engage Condi in battle, and when attacked faced about and met the enemy. Malone adds: "The contest was so bloody, that in a circumference of six miles, twenty-seven thousand dead bodies were buried. Each of the Generals claimed the honour of the victory." 822-823 abusu . . . consequentia. "A logician's tag: 'abuses need not lead to proper uses'" (Watson, II, 294). 8 2 8 - 8 2 9 Demetri . . . cathedras. "You, Demetrius, and you, Tigellus, I bid you go whine amidst the easy chairs of your pupils in petticoats" (Horace, Satires, I, x, 9 0 - 9 1 ; Loeb). Noyes (p. 1 0 2 7 ) notes that Blackmore had once been a schoolmaster.

To Her Grace the Dutchess of Ormond

629

To Her Grace the Dutchess of Ormond T h e extravagant strain of compliment that Dryden felt was appropriate for women whom he especially wished to please appears throughout his writing, literally from first to last. T h e first example is his letter to his cousin Honor Dryden, the first of his surviving letters (Works, I, 8-g). T h e last example is this tribute to the Duchess of Ormonde in the last volume he saw through the press. Between the two come the Prologue to [Mary Beatrice] the Duchess [of York] on her Return from Scotland, the dedication to her of The State of Innocence, and similar addresses to lesser individuals (see Works, II, 195-196; XII, 81-85; etc.). As it happens, Dryden wrote to the duchess of the present poem a letter that is of much interest to students of his poetic method because it bears the same relation to the poem that the fourth chapter of the Book, of Judges bears to the Song of Deborah in chapter five, that is, it says in prose what the other says in verse. Ward misidentifies the letter as written to the duchess' husband (Ward, Letters, p. 107). It is as follows: T h e first day of Winter, 1698. May it please y r Grace What Ireland was before y r coming Thither I cannot tell, but I am sure you have brought over one manufacture thither w c h is not of y e growth of y e country, and that is beauty [poem, 11. 7-10, etc.]. But at the same time, you have impoverished y r Native Land [England] by taking more away y n you have left behind. W e Jacobites have no more reason to thank you than we have our present King who has enriched Holland w t h the wealth of England. If this be all the effect of his going over the water for a whole Summer together and of y r Graces leaving us for a much longer time, we have reason to complain if not of both, yet at least of one of you for the Sun has never Shone on us since you went into Eclipse on Ireland, and if we have another Such a yeare we shall have a famine of Beauty as well as Bread, for if the last be the Staff of Life to the rest of the World the first is so to the Nation of Poets; who feed only at the eyes. But you Plantagenets [poem, 1. 30], never think of these mean Concernm ts ; the whole race of you have been given to make voyages into y® Holy Land to Conquer Infidells or at least to Subdue France without caring w ' becomes of y r naturall subjects y® poor English. I think we must remonstrate to you y' we can no longer live without you [poem, 1. g8]: For so our Ancestours have done to some of y r Family w n they have been too long abroad And besides who knows but God who can do all things w«h seem impossible to us may raise up another beauty in y r Absence who may dispute y r Kingdome with you for thus also has y r Predecessour Richard Coeur de Leon been servd when his B r John whose christned name I bear while he was takeing Jerusalem from y® Turks was likely to have Usurpd Eng 4 from

630

Commentary him And I cannot promise for y® fidelity of a Country which is not over famous for that vertue. T h e product o[f] Ireland will onely serve to warm my Body as it does this Winter by y r Graces favour to me but I cannot beare to be cold at heart and the older I am the more need I have of the Sun to comfort me for w c h reason I humbly advise you to returne next Spring [poem, 11. 63, 90-95] w t h the first Swallow though you falsifie the Proverb for then one Swallow will make a Spring at least to him who is Y r Graces most Obliged and most Obedient Servant J o h n Dryden.

W e may note with respect to both letter a n d poem that in the preface to the Fables Dryden told his readers they might see signs of failing powers in the volume, although he himself found his faculties little impaired by age (see p. 26 above). W e may also note that the duchess found the poem so much to her liking that she gave Dryden £500 (see headnote to the Fables, p. 573, where there are other remarks on the poem). 1 who first adorn'd our Native Tongue. See preface: "Chaucer . . . first adorn'd and amplified our barren T o n g u e " (p. 26 above). 3-4 Christie (p. 507) noted the source of these lines, Juvenal, Satires, XI, 180-181: " T h e bard of the Iliad will be sung, and the lays of the lofty-toned Maro that make the palm doubtful [dubiatn . . . palmam]," i.e., make it doubtful whether the palm of victory should be given to Homer or to Virgil (Loeb, adjusted). 6 Of Love. A matter of special interest to Dryden, not only because love is a major theme in the Fables but also because, in thinking over Thomas Rymer's criticisms of contemporary tragedy, he had come to the conclusion that motivation by love was a considerable advance over the range of motives available to classical dramatists (see Heads of an Answer to Rymer, in Works, XVII, 190-191). 6 sung . . . of Arms. Alluding particularly to the opening words of the Aeneid, Arma virumque cano. 7-10 See letter quoted in headnote. 10 T h e hexameter emphasizes the compliment. Dryden repeats the device at lines 29, 37, 39, 53, 79, 95, 114, 130, 145 and 156. He says of the hexameter in the dedication of the Aeneis: "It adds a certain Majesty to the Verse, when 'tis us'd with Judgment, and stops the sense from overflowing into another Line" (Works, V, 322). 11-18 LI. 11-13 set out a hypothesis and 11. 14-18 set out a deduction from the hypothesis. T h e person deduced is Joan, Countess of Kent and Princess of Wales (1328-1385), the former title inherited from her father, whose heir she was, and the latter acquired by her marriage to Edward the Black Prince. Dryden could have supported his hypothesis by observing that Chaucer addressed his Complaint of Venus to a princess (see the Envoy). As for the deduction, Joan was a Plantagenet, the granddaughter of Edward I. T h e chronicler Jean Froissart, who knew her, declared her the most beautiful woman in England. Various men might be identified as the "three contending Princes" of "Rival-Nations" whom she "rul'd with heT Eyes," for "Princes," of course, merely means heads of government. Perhaps Dryden

Notes to Pages

48-49

631

means the Black Prince, whom she married in 1361, a n d two m e n w h o came to their court at Bordeaux in 1366, Peter IV of Castile, who h a d been driven f r o m his throne by his older but bastard brother H e n r y II, a n d James, the rightful heir to the throne of Majorca. All these matters Dryden could have read about in Froissart's Chronicles. T h e r e h e would also have read a story that might have led h i m to think of the three princes as h e r husband's father Edward III, her husband, and their second son Richard I I (her fifth child). Richard was born in 1367 on E p i p h a n y , the feast of the three kings who came to see the child Jesus, w h e r e u p o n R i c h a r d de P u n chardoun, marshal of Aquitaine, told Froissart that the child would be a k i n g because he was the grandson of a k i n g and the son of a prince (her first son by the prince later died in childhood). J o a n h a d attracted the attentions of Edward I I I before she became his daughter-in-law. She was o n e of Richard's principal advisors after the death of her h u s b a n d in 1376. Edward I I I a n d Richard I I styled themselves King of E n g l a n d a n d France, rival nations in Dryden's day, a n d the Prince of Wales was also Prince of A q u i t a i n e a n d Gascony. B u t perhaps more likely to have been in Dryden's m i n d were Joan's three husbands, all of whom she h a d k n o w n since childhood a n d all of whom were a m o n g the original Knights of the Garter. Knights of the Garter carry staffs as part of their regalia, for which reason Dryden h a d called them "Sceptr'd Subjects" of the k i n g (Works, XVI, 65, 341). J o a n married William Earl of Salisbury when she was still married to T h o m a s Holland, a marriage by which Holland h a d become Earl of Kent (she was 13 years old at the time of the second marriage, of which H o l l a n d , who was fighting abroad at the time, later obtained an a n n u l m e n t ) . Salisbury was still alive when J o a n married Prince Edward. A m o n g her "Imm o r t a l T r o p h i e s " Dryden might have counted the t o m b of the Black Prince i n C a n t e r b u r y Cathedral a n d the t o m b of his mother Q u e e n P h i l i p p a i n Westminster Abbey. Because the prince a n d J o a n were cousins a n d he h a d stood godfather to two of her sons by T h o m a s Holland, h e h a d to o b t a i n p a p a l permission for the marriage, in gratitude for which he rebuilt a n d furnished p a r t of the N o r m a n crypt of Canterbury Cathedral including T h e Black Prince's Chantry a n d perhaps the stone screen in the a d j o i n i n g C h a p e l of O u r Lady Undercroft; the woman's face represented in the screen m a y be Joan's. H e r arms impaled with those of the prince are displayed o n t h e n o r t h side of Q u e e n Philippa's tomb. A n d lastly, according to p o p u l a r u n d e r s t a n d i n g in Dryden's day, J o a n ' s loss of a garter at a dance led E d w a r d I I I to give T h e Most Noble Order of the Garter its n a m e (see 1. 18). T h e order is m e n t i o n e d in The Flower and the Leaf, 1. 552 (see p. 399 above). See also Albion and Albanitis, III, ii, s.d., a n d notes to King Arthur, V, ii, 1 9 6 + s.d., etc. (Works, XV, 52; XVI, 340-342). 19 of equal Kindred. Equally a relation, not equally related; see notes t o U. 14, 30. 2 1 - 2 5 Describing the "Platonick Year" (1. 29), a concept of some a n c i e n t astronomers and, in 1700, still of use in poetry. 27 Dance. R h y t h m i c advance a n d turning. 29 Platonick Year. See note to 11. 21-25. 30 Plantagenet. T h e duchess' father, H e n r y Somerset, first D u k e of Beaufort, was a descendant of Charles Somerset, Earl of Worcester, the bastard

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Commentary

son of H e n r y Beaufort, third D u k e of Somerset, who was a descendant of J o h n of Gaunt, D u k e of Lancaster, f o u r t h son of Edward I I I ( D N B ) . See letter quoted in headnote. 3 1 fatal. Destined (OED), by God (see "Divine" in 1. 30). 33 Emily. T h e princess in Paiamoti and Arcite. 35 I.e., you would have chosen your husband. I n the poem, Palamon, a prince of Thebes, has to fight his cousin Arcite for the h a n d of Emily, the sister-in-law of Theseus, king of Athens. P a l a m o n loses the battle, b u t Arcite immediately suffers a fatal accident, a n d a f t e r a decent interval Theseus gives Emily to P a l a m o n (see pp. 112-193 above). I n the convoluted m e t a p h o r here, Palamon represents the Duke of O r m o n d e ; Theseus, William I I I ; a n d Thebes, Ireland. 40-63 T h e duchess went to Ireland in April 1697; the duke joined her in October (Luttrell, IV, 214, 288). 42 Westward. T o Ireland. 44 Blue. Because T r i t o n was a sea god. See The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 1. 552, "his blue Brother of the Seas" (p. 277 above), translating Homer's "Poseidon." 46 Etesian. Blowing steadily, strictly r e f e r r i n g to a northwest wind in the M e d i t e r r a n e a n that blows steadily for about 40 days (OED). OED, citation of 1684, shows the term applied to east winds, which is Dryden's meaning. 48 Portunus. A sea god who in the Aeneid (V, 241-242; Dryden's 11. 3 1 4 315, in Works, V, 497) pushed forward the ship of Cloanthus. 5 1 - 5 2 Christie (p. 509) observes that Dryden was repeating a conceit in Astraea Redux, 11. 252-253 (Works, I, 2g). Kinsley (IV, 2065) notes that when " t h e duchess a n d her daughters [see 1.164] paid their first visit to the [Butler] family seat at K i l k e n n y , . . . they were welcomed with the enthusiasm which Dryden celebrates." 54-55 T h e figure of a "Pledge . . . D u e " occurs again in 11. 164-166 with a different m e a n i n g (see notes to t h a t passage). 56 See dedication of the Fables, 11. 4 - 6 a n d notes (pp. 17, 607 above). 58 Kerns. Irish foot-soldiers. 59 Nor hear the Reins. Christie (p. 509) recognized the source, Virgil's Georgics, I, 514: neque audit currus habenas, "the team does n o t hear the reins." H e added, ' " T h e horse's ear,' said Horace, 'is in his bridled m o u t h ' " : Equi frenato est auris in ore (Epistles, I, xv, 13). 59 Foreign Hand. William III, who h a d to p u t d o w n a rebellion in Ireland that h a d begun in support of James I I a n d c o n t i n u e d after James h a d again fled to France. See the following lines. 60-89 T h e s e lines bear a considerable resemblance to Verses to Her Highness the Dutchess [of York], 11. 19-30 (Works, I, 58). 62 As Ormond's Harbinger. See note to 11. 40-63 above. 63 Venus. T h e m o r n i n g star. See letter q u o t e d in headnote. 63 Sun. Cf. 11. 42-43 a n d 94-95. 64 Civil Wars. Six m o n t h s of fighting between Protestants a n d Catholics before a n English army l a n d e d in August »689. 65 Pales. A R o m a n god of flocks a n d shepherds, to w h o m Virgil addressed the third Geòrgie (see Works, V, 209, 224). Dryden associates the god's n a m e with Ceres' in Meleager and Atalanta, 11. 7 - 8 (p. 203 above) a n d h a d d o n e

Notes to Pages

40-50

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so in his translation of Persius' fourth Satire, 11. 65-66 (Works, IV, 317), neither time with any authority in the Latin. 67 three Campaigns. By the English army in 1689-1691 (fighting went on only in the summer), ending with the treaty of Limerick in October 1691. 68 Rapines, Massacres. The Irish rebels headquartered at Limerick had to live off the country because James and the French sent them no aid. At the battle of Aughrim soon afterward, the English victors killed all but 400 of their opponents, and at the battle of Thomond Bridge they killed 680 of 800 defenders (Macaulay, IV, 174-175, 192-193, 198). 70-74 Gen. 8:11. T h e biblical narrative merely says that "the dove came in to" Noah. Christie (p. 509) observed that Dryden had used the story in a similar way in the Prologue to The Unhappy Favourite (Works, II, 181). 72 secure. A very common word with Dryden in this Latinate sense of "sure." See note to Ceyx and Alcyone, 1. 20 (p. 787 below). 77 advanc'd. Raised (OED). 78 Peace. T h e rainbow is God's reminder to himself that he has promised not to destroy the world again by a flood (Gen. 9:16). 79 The Saints. The nonconformist Irish, presumably, settled there by Cromwell. It is hard to be sure of Dryden's tone here, as elsewhere in the poem. 80-95 Kinsley (IV, 2065) compares this passage to Dryden's Prologue to the Dutchess [of York], 11. 26-46 (Works, II, 195-196). 80 second Coming. T o Ireland. The visit referred to in 11. 42ff. was the duchess' first. Dryden sails close to the wind here as he did in the original version of The Kind Keeper, which included the words "very punk of very punk" (see Works, XIV, 365-366). 81 Millenary. T h e second coming of Christ will bring in the millennium, but St. John gives no idea of what the earth will be like during that thousand years (Rev. 20:1-6). 82-83 Taken either from Virgil's fourth Eclogue, 11. 18-20, "But for thee, child [probably the infant son of C. Asinius Pollio], shall the earth unfilled pour forth, as her first pretty gifts, straggling ivy with foxglove everywhere, and the Egyptian bean blended with the smiling acanthus" (Loeb), or from Ovid, Metamorphoses, I, 101-102, "The earth herself, without compulsion, untouched by hoe or plowshare, of herself gave all things needful" in the Golden Age (Loeb). 84 the circling Ocean smile. See preceding note. Mason (p. 750) notes that Milton had made the ocean smile at the scent blown to sea from the spice trees of Arabia (Paradise Lost, IV, 161-165). 85 Holy Isle. I.e., a return to the days of St. Patrick. T h e English Holy Island is Lindisfarne, oil the coast of Northumberland. 87 never. The first reference to Ireland's freedom from snakes is in the Collectanea of Caius Julius Solinus (3d century?): "There are no snakes [there]" (Arthur Golding's translation, 1587, sig. P2w). Bede's Ecclesiastical History (eighth century), ch. i, adds that snakes shipped to Ireland die at sea as soon as they smell the offshore breezes. Dryden said he read Bede when doing research for King Arthur (Works, XVI, 6). 89 Poyson. The "poison" is the duchess' "killing glances," i.e., she was a "basilisk" or a "cockatrice," like the heroines of the subplots in The Spanish

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Fryar and Love Triumphant (see note to III, i, 36, of the latter in Works, XVI, 410). 90-95 See letter quoted in headnote. 91 T h e Duke of Ormonde was back in London by 21 March 1698 (Luttrell, IV, 358), but the duchess stayed in Ireland until May 1699 (introductory memoir in Great Britain, Historical Manuscripts Commission, The Manuscripts of the Marquis of Ormonde, n.s., VIII, cited by Kinsley, IV, 2065). 96 Vanquish'd Isle. I.e., conquered by the duchess' beauty, as well as pacified by the English army. 98 See letter quoted in headnote. 99-100 Gen. 8:8-13. 102 her Sickness. See note to 11. 122-126. 109-110 William Ill's indispositions were increasing but it does not appear that they had yet hindered his annual travels to Flanders to take command of his armies there. Dryden may have in mind William's arrival in Holland in January 1691, when dense fog kept his yacht off the shore and he insisted on reaching it in an open boat, even though he was tired out by five days at sea (Macaulay, IV, 1968-1969). 117 Ingredients. Either the elements or the humors. 119 Kinsley (IV, 2065) notes that Dryden here quotes Donne's Of The Progres of the Soule, 11. 222-223, "a soule might well be pleas'd to passe / An Age in her," and that "imprison'd" in 1. 118 echoes "prison" in Donne's 1. 221. 122-126 It would appear that the duchess had been struck down by a fever as she was recovering from some other sickness. 125 young Vespasian. Titus, the son of Vespasian, who followed his father as Roman emperor (the family name was Vespasianus). Left by his father in command of the army that captured Jerusalem, Titus tried in vain to restrain the soldiers from setting ablaze its temple of God (Josephus, Jewish War, VI, iv, 7). 130 Table. T h e Romans wrote their vows on tablets (Christie, p. 510, cites Horace, Odes, I, v, 13-14, and Satires, II, i, 33; see also Persius Satires, I, 32-33 in Works, IV, 352-353). Dryden appears to have amalgamated this fact with another, namely, that those who had been shipwrecked hung pictures of their experience in temples of the sea gods (Christie, pp. 510-511, cites Cicero, Ad Atticum XII, 43; Kinsley, IV, 3065, adds Juvenal, Satires, XII, 26-28). 131 Angel. Guardian angel. 131 Morley. Christopher Love Morley, M.D. Leyden 1679. 133 the Macedon. Alexander the Great. Ptolemy (1. 134) was one of his generals, not yet ruler of Egypt. Noyes (p. 1028) points out that the story is told by Quintus Curtius, IX, 8, and by others; and Kinsley (IV, 2065) observes that Dryden had referred to it in note 6 to his translation of Persius, Satires, II (Works, IV, 290). Note that Alexander's Feast was reprinted in the Fables following The Flower and the Leaf (pp. 365-405 above). 139 middle Science. Intervening or mediating knowledge, foreknowledge. 140 great contingent Good. I.e., a son; see 1. 145. 142 Mould. Body. See The Monument of a Fair Maiden Lady, 1. 4, and On the Death of Amyntas, 1. 60 (pp. 511, 544 above).

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144 meditated. Planned (OED). 145 failing Kind. Family with no son to continue the name. T h e duke a n d duchess had had a son who had died. T h e y were not to have another. 151-152 Daughter of the Rose — Red and White. T h e duchess" mother's father's mother was the daughter of Sir Edward Montagu of Broughton, whose family claimed descent from the earls of Salisbury (DNB). O n the death of Thomas Montagu, the fourth earl, the title passed to his son-in-law Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick and Salisbury, "the kingmaker," who took the Yorkist side in the Wars of the Roses. T h e white rose was the emblem of the Yorkists, the red, of the Lancastrians (see note to 1. 30 for the duchess' descent through her father from J o h n of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster). 155-156 Vivian de Sola Pinto, in NirQ, CXCII (1947), 389, identified the probable source of these lines, Thomas Shipman's " T h e Virgin," in Carolina: or, Loyal Poems (1683), p. 176: "Her Looks, at Sin a n d Lust incens'd, / Like Cherubim her Eden fenc'd." God put cherubim o n duty to prevent h u m a n access to the tree of life in the garden of Eden (Gen. 3:24). T h e duchess' "Cherubin" would in other eyes have been called "babies" (Tilley B8). 158 Penelope. Pressed by suitors when Ulysses did not r e t u r n from T r o y after six years, his faithful wife Penelope said she would marry again when she finished a robe in which to bury his father Laertes. I n the fourth year of her work on the robe the suitors discovered that she was unraveling at night what she had woven during the day (Odyssey, II, 85-128; XIX, 1 2 3 162). She was uncertain whether she could hold out longer, when Ulysses returned. From time to time. Homer mentions her tears for her husband. 160 curious. Expert (OED). 162 Elisa. T h e alternate name in the Aeneid for Dido, queen of Carthage; Virgil, however, says nothing of her making a garment for Aeneas' son Ascanius. 163 Recesses. Withdrawals, times spent in private. 164-166 T h e figure of "Pledges . . . owe[d]" has occurred in 11. 54-55 with a different meaning; see following notes. 164 Three. Only two of the girls survived infancy, Mary and Elizabeth, who were about ten or eleven in 1700. Mary married J o h n Ashburnham, subsequently first Earl of Ashburnham. 164 Pledges of .. . Love. In Latin usage children are called pledges, i.e., of love; see note to Meleager and Atalanta, 11. 306-309 (p. 684 below). 165 Pious. In the Latin sense of pius, which with respect to women means "loving." Cf. Cinyras and Myrrha, 1. 61 (p. 250 above). 167 See 11. 145, 147. 168 See 1. 18.

Palamon

and

Arcite

Palamon and Arcite is a translation of Chaucer's Knight's Tale (I, 8593108). For its position in Dryden's volume see headnote (p. 581 above). As in

Notes to Pages

50-53

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144 meditated. Planned (OED). 145 failing Kind. Family with no son to continue the name. T h e duke a n d duchess had had a son who had died. T h e y were not to have another. 151-152 Daughter of the Rose — Red and White. T h e duchess" mother's father's mother was the daughter of Sir Edward Montagu of Broughton, whose family claimed descent from the earls of Salisbury (DNB). O n the death of Thomas Montagu, the fourth earl, the title passed to his son-in-law Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick and Salisbury, "the kingmaker," who took the Yorkist side in the Wars of the Roses. T h e white rose was the emblem of the Yorkists, the red, of the Lancastrians (see note to 1. 30 for the duchess' descent through her father from J o h n of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster). 155-156 Vivian de Sola Pinto, in NirQ, CXCII (1947), 389, identified the probable source of these lines, Thomas Shipman's " T h e Virgin," in Carolina: or, Loyal Poems (1683), p. 176: "Her Looks, at Sin a n d Lust incens'd, / Like Cherubim her Eden fenc'd." God put cherubim o n duty to prevent h u m a n access to the tree of life in the garden of Eden (Gen. 3:24). T h e duchess' "Cherubin" would in other eyes have been called "babies" (Tilley B8). 158 Penelope. Pressed by suitors when Ulysses did not r e t u r n from T r o y after six years, his faithful wife Penelope said she would marry again when she finished a robe in which to bury his father Laertes. I n the fourth year of her work on the robe the suitors discovered that she was unraveling at night what she had woven during the day (Odyssey, II, 85-128; XIX, 1 2 3 162). She was uncertain whether she could hold out longer, when Ulysses returned. From time to time. Homer mentions her tears for her husband. 160 curious. Expert (OED). 162 Elisa. T h e alternate name in the Aeneid for Dido, queen of Carthage; Virgil, however, says nothing of her making a garment for Aeneas' son Ascanius. 163 Recesses. Withdrawals, times spent in private. 164-166 T h e figure of "Pledges . . . owe[d]" has occurred in 11. 54-55 with a different meaning; see following notes. 164 Three. Only two of the girls survived infancy, Mary and Elizabeth, who were about ten or eleven in 1700. Mary married J o h n Ashburnham, subsequently first Earl of Ashburnham. 164 Pledges of .. . Love. In Latin usage children are called pledges, i.e., of love; see note to Meleager and Atalanta, 11. 306-309 (p. 684 below). 165 Pious. In the Latin sense of pius, which with respect to women means "loving." Cf. Cinyras and Myrrha, 1. 61 (p. 250 above). 167 See 11. 145, 147. 168 See 1. 18.

Palamon

and

Arcite

Palamon and Arcite is a translation of Chaucer's Knight's Tale (I, 8593108). For its position in Dryden's volume see headnote (p. 581 above). As in

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his other translations of Chaucer, Dryden normally gives the sense of his original but seldom as much as a line of its exact words. A n d even when he follows Chaucer fairly closely, he often finds it expedient, as in all his translations, to add a word, usually of two syllables and usually an adjective or an adverb, to obtain a pentameter. Sometimes too, as in his other translations, he has to throw in a whole line of his own to make a rhyme. Exceptions to the rule are worth special study. For example, some lines Dryden added in Palamon and Arcite, such as I, 12, and II, 66 and 149, turn perfectly acceptable couplets into triplets. Here perhaps he was varying from the steady march of Chaucer's couplets in order to "bound the Sense," as he says in the dedication of the Aeneis (Works, V, 331). Examples of large-scale additions in Palamon and Arcite are II, 54-61, on the month of May, and III, 846-853, opposing the Athanasian Creed. W e may accept such additions as Dryden's self expression, whether emotional or intellectual. So, perhaps, may be inserted passages based on other authors, such as III, 129-144, based on Lucretius, and III, 1066-1077, based on Ovid. Elsewhere in Palamon and Arcite Dryden varies so widely from his source that he may be said to be rewriting it, as in II, 471-523, where the temple of Venus is described, and III, 443-463, describing preparations on the morning of the tournament. These rewritings and certain smaller changes, such as the substitution of "Charioteer" for "Carter" and "Armourer" for "Barbour" (II, 593, 598), give the impression that Dryden has in mind his readers' expectations as to what was chivalric, but it is equally possible that he himself felt he was improving on his original. As the headnote to the Fables points out (p. 595 above), Dryden prided himself on giving a sense of the style of the authors he translated. In translating Chaucer, he kept some words that had become antique by his time, such as "starve" in the sense of "die" (I, 441) and "quaint" in the sense of "elegant" (III, 454; "quaint" in Aeneid, XI, 698, in Works, VI, 743, has the sense of "plotting," for which OED cites Thomas Otway's Orphan, 1680, III, iv, 864). Dryden also adopted one or two of Chaucer's constructions for himself, such as " W h o but" in I, 381 (cf. Chaucer's I, 1454-1455; when the construction occurs in II, 426, and III, 654, the words are Chaucer's in I, 1870 and 2652). Recognizing Chaucer's use of proverbs, Dryden introduced one or two of his own (e.g., II, 373). A n d he saw in Chaucer a fellow astrologer, to whose lines he could occasionally add something of the same kind (e.g., II, 616), though on other occasions he obscured the nature of his source (e.g.. I l l , 119-121). O n the other hand, he also recognized that Chaucer was a fairly straightforward writer, and he therefore very seldom introduced rhetorical figures that were out of character. As Scott notes (S-S, XI, 271), lines like I, 515, "Beholds whate're he wou'd, but what he wou'd behold," and III, 1145, "One fir'd the Bridegroom, and one warm'd the Bride," sound like Ovid, but Chaucer is not entirely void of witty lines, e.g., " V p rose the sunne, and vp rose Emelye" (I, 2273). Less Chaucerian are a number of passages pointed to by Mason where Dryden drew upon Milton's more formal language in Paradise Lost and (once) in Paradise Regained. T h e notes to lines give the correspondences. Generally speaking, Dryden felt free to omit what seemed inessential to

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him. Sometimes, also, he substituted his own expressions for Chaucer's in ways that his usual method of translation did not require. In the latter places, our favor will incline now to Chaucer, now to Dryden. T h u s Dryden writes (III, 329-330), A n d she I love, or laughs at all my Pain, Or knows her Worth too well; and pays me with Disdain. Chaucer had written (I, 2397) that Emily Ne retcheth neuer where I sinke or flete. As Sir Roger remarked, "There is much to be said on both sides." "The Knight's Tale is a free adaptation of the Teseida of Boccaccio" (Robinson, p. 669). Chaucer's other sources were Statius' Thebaid, the Roman de Thebes, and Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy (ibid., p. 670). Although the tale is supposedly of happenings before the T r o j a n War, as Dryden points out in an aside (III, 870), Chaucer's heroes are medieval knights, not Grecian warriors. Dryden in turn updated Chaucer in details. For example, Chaucer calls Theseus a duke, Dryden first calls him a prince (by which he means the head of government) and later a king (the term we would use today). Dryden used Thomas Speght's 1598 edition of Chaucer's Works and reprinted relevant excerpts from it at the end of his own volume. His friend Samuel Pepys owned a copy of Speght's edition of 1602 in which there was, besides a revised text and a larger glossary, a discussion of Chaucer's metrics that Dryden undertook to refute (see pp. 34, 39 above). Dryden's compositor did not follow the 1598 Chaucer in every respect. He varied from its spelling occasionally, sometimes becoming more antique than his copy, and supplied a good deal of end-of-line punctuation, the 1598 edition having almost none. Recognizing also that in the 1598 edition the same character was used for yogh and for z, he sometimes used z for the former (the 1602 edition respells the words that have yogh in 1598, e.g., "knight" instead of "knizt"). Finally, the particular copy of the 1598 edition that Dryden sent to the press had become illegible in places in the lower part of the inner column of C4V (I, 2984-3006), and the text was reconstituted as necessary from a copy of the 1602 edition. Because we print Dryden's text of Chaucer facing his translation, there is no necessity for the kind of detail we have provided in the notes to his other translations. But we have, however, felt that we must provide a glossary to the Middle English texts, which we have taken where possible from Speght's editions of 1598 and 1602 to clarify the helps available to Dryden (see pp. 955-968 below). Book I 7 According to various Greek legends (and selecting among them), the Amazons, who had moved from the Caucasus to modern Turkey, invaded Greece under Hippolyte and were defeated in battle by Theseus. Scythia is the land north of the Black Sea. 12 Cf. Cymon and Iphigenia, 1. 518, and Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 1. 149 (pp. 528, 220 above). Dryden's addition, turning a couplet into a triplet, is unusual in that it is the second rather than the third of the three lines.

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16-24 The rhetorical figure is occupatio, a device Chaucer often employs in the tale, sometimes because he is omitting something in Boccaccio. 31-33 Dryden's changes, bringing out more clearly the agreement the pilgrims had made at the end of the General Prologue to The Canterbury Tales, serve the same purpose as the "Connections" he provided for his translations of Ovid (e.g., p. 203 above). 44 held their Hands on high. See also Hands upheld in I, 91, another of Dryden's additions. T h e posture is fitting, since Chaucer represents Arcite praying thus to Mars (I, 2428). 64 For the effect of the hexameter see note to To Her Grace the Dutchess, I. 10 (p. 630 above). Dryden repeats the device in this book of the poem in II. 80, 142, 144, 150, 160, 165, 177, 250, 279, 334, 336, 441, 463, 515, and 550; in Book II in 11. 40, 58, 155, 209, 213, 230, 288, 323, 420, 431, 461, 476, 487, 533- 54». 555» 579. 59»< 622, a n d 654; and in Book III in 11. 21, 50, 52, 61, 65, 73, 87, ioo, 104, 134, 174, 182, 188, 196, 206, 218, 222, 231, 264, 266, 282, 284, «93- «95. 33°. 342. 372- 374, 433, 437, 463, 467, 497, 535, 539, 545, 553, 575, 606, 626, 635, 651, 661, 676,728, 750, 763, 765, 767, 843,886,921, 946,956,970, 972. 995. 997. 999. »015- i ° 2 i . 1029, and 1065. 67 giddy Chance. See Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 1. 559 (p. 232 above). 77 Zeus killed Capaneus with a thunderbolt (see Statius, Thebaid, X, ad fin.). 81 Creon. The brother of Jocasta who succeeded Oedipus as king of Thebes. Dryden's Oedipus tells Creon's story differently from Sophocles' (see Works, X I I I , 459-460), but gives him the same character that Capaneus' wife does here. 109 Field. Surface, the heraldic meaning. 116 The Minotaur was the offspring of Pasiphae, queen of Crete, who had mated with a bull; half man, half bull, it inhabited a labyrinth made by Daedalus, where it ate seven youths and seven maidens a year. Minos, the husband of Pasiphae, forced the Athenians to contribute the young people. When Theseus came to kill the Minotaur, Minos' daughter Ariadne gave him some thread which he played out behind him to guide his steps out of the labyrinth. He and Ariadne then fled (see Ovid's Metamorphoses, VIII, 136-175). 117 generous Rage. Brave enthusiasm or indignation (OED, rage, sense 9 of noun, citing this passage). 178 kindly. Natural, or excellent, or favorable to growth, or pleasant (OED). 186-187 Aurora . . . purpl'd o'er the Sky. Mason (p. 751) notes "Morn / Purples the East" in Paradise Lost, VII, 29-30. 199 Philomel forgot to sing. Kinsley (IV, 2066) notes the same conceit in Sir Francis Kynaston's Cynthiades: To Cynthia On Concealment of her Beauty, 1. 20 (Minor Poets of the Caroline Period, ed. George Saintsbury [Oxford, 1905-1921], II, 160). Dryden could have regarded the nightingale as Chaucerian, having found it in The Flower and the Leaf, ME 11. 40 and 435 (PP- 3 6 6, 392 above). 204 Partition. Part (OED). 214-215 Temples crown d / With golden Spires. Mason (p. 751) notes "Temple . . . top't with golden Spires" in Paradise Regained, IV, 546, 548.

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222 shady Walks between. Noyes (p. 1028) notes "shade / . . . and walks between" in Paradise Lost, IX, 1106-1107. 223 finth Arms across. The conventional posture of melancholy. See also Threnodia Augustalis, 1. 193, and The Spanish Fryar, IV, ii, 54 (Works, III, 97; XIV, 168). 235-236 Dryden takes Chaucer's "blent" (I, 1078) in two meanings given in Speght's glossary, "blind" and "turn back." 240 Cheer. Not an archaism. See The Hind and the Panther, III, 437 (Works, III, 174). 246 Dungeon. "Here 'Dungeon' may mean simply [but metaphorically] 'tower'; but Dryden may have known the old astrological use," i.e., for "house" (Kinsley, IV, 2066, citing John Lydgate, The Fall of Princes [1494], VIII, 3103). The word may also mean habitation or mansion (see OED), and another meaning, "a deep dark vault," also seems possible; cf. "abyss of light," The Hind and the Panther, I, 66 (Works, III, 125). 258 Actaeon. While out hunting stags, he accidentally saw Diana bathing. She turned him into a stag and his own dogs killed him. See II, 627-630 (p. 125 above), and Ovid's Metamorphoses, III, 138-252. The line is not strictly an addition, for Chaucer has a similar brief reference to Actaeon in I, 2303, at which place Dryden substitutes the story of Niobe and her daughters (III, 221-222; see pp. 140-141 above). 274-275 Almost exactly Chaucer's words, and the largest example of the phenomenon. 278-279 Dryden refers to the basilisk or cockatrice, to which he had compared beautiful women in The Spanish Fryar, II, iv, 32, and V, ii, 80-81 (Works, XIV, 136, 190), The Duke of Guise, IV, iii, 70 (Works, XIV, 267), and Love Triumphant, III, i, 36, and IV, i, 66 (Works, XVI, 208, 228). 299 on the Plain. The phrase means the same as Chaucer's "certain" (I. 1139)300 Appeach. Dryden had used the word in a Conquest of Granada, V, ii, 44 (Works, XI, 182). 309 Eldership. I.e., he saw her first. 312 haughty Language thus reply'd. Mason (p. 751) notes "haughty thus repli'd" in Paradise Lost, V, 852. 326 Chaucer drew his line (I, 1164) from Boethius, Consolation of Philosophy, Bk. Ill, m. 12, 11. 47-48. Speght (sig. 4B3V) quotes the Latin, Quis legem dat amantibus? / Maior lex amor est sibi. In the form "love is free" (Chaucer's I, 1606) or Dryden's "no law is made for love" the saying became proverbial (Haeckel, nos. 3-5, pp. 1-2; Tilley L508). 332 the Common Cause. See headnote to To My Honour'd Kinsman (p. 660 below). 342 Kinsley (IV, 2066) notes that Dryden begins a new paragraph here because Speght does; Arcite continues to speak. 342-345 Tilley D545 (first citation c. 1560). Dryden was not the first to suppose that the story was an Aesopic fable; see Arden of Feuersham (1592), sig. F2. The fable is practically the same as The Lion and the Bear, Fabulae Aesopica, ed. Karl Halm (Leipzig, 1854), no. 247. "The source of Chaucer's, version is unknown" (Robinson, p. 672).

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346-347 Chaucer's I, 1182, "Eche man for him selfe," is proverbial: Skeat, no. 213 (pp. 89-90). 358 Perithous. H e was the king of the Lapithae in Thessaly; see The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 11. 292-705 (pp. 415-427 above). H e and Theseus also appear in Meleager and Atalanta, 1. 50 (p. 204 above). Their presence in the several poems helps to tie Dryden's volume together. 362-364 Robinson (p. 672) says that Chaucer probably follows the Roman de la Rose, ed. Ernest Langlois (Paris, 1914-1924), 81480. H e adds that Plutarch, Life of Theseus, XXXI, says Theseus and Perithous went together looking for Proserpina. 380 At his own Peril. Scil., "to return." 381 Who now but. As we have observed in the headnote to the Fables (p. 591 nis8), Noyes identifies the use of "who b u t . . . now" in The Hind and the Panther as evidence of Dryden's earlier reading of Chaucer. It occurs in The Knight's Tale in I, 1454-1455, 1870, and 2652. 400 turn'd the Dice. A common figure in medieval literature (Robinson, p. 672). 404 Love's extreamest Line. Kinsley (IV, 2066-2067) notes that W. H . Williams, in MLR, VI (1911), 386, points to the origin of Dryden's phrase in Terence's Eunuchus, 11. 640-641, "certainly it is not nothing to love at the extreme line," defined by White (s.v. lineus) as to "love at the furthest boundary, i.e., to see the beloved object at a great distance off, and be unable to address a word to her." Noyes (p. 1071) accepted this explanation instead of his original proposal (p. 1028) that Dryden may have been thinking of the earthly poles where no sun is visible for half the year. Kinsley says both explanations are correct. 408 Proverbial. Chaucer's "fortune is changeable," (I, 1242) is Haeckel, no. 16 (p. 5). 421 Of Fortune, Fate, or Providence. Kinsley (IV, 2067) believes Dryden's nouns are not fully synonymous; he cites Boethius, Consolation, Bk. IV, pr. 6, where we read, in Chaucer's translation, of "the purueighance of God, and . . . the order of destinie, & of the sodain happe" (Speght's text; cf. Robinson, p. 367). Boethius says providence is God's purpose in general, fate is God's purpose as it appears in particular circumstances, and fortune is what happens to humans on earth. 422-423 Matt. 6:8 combined with Eph. 3:20. 427 guilty of. "Bound to the performance of," a latinism (OED, citing this passage). 431 Romans 8:26 (noted by Robinson, p. 672). 432 Chaucer's simile (I, 1261) is common in Middle English literature (Robinson, p. 672). 441 starve. Die. An archaism; see Chaucer's I, 933, 1249, etc. 449 Dryden may be thinking of Luke's account of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, when "being in an agony . . . his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground," but, as Professor Reverand has pointed out to us, Dryden's own suffering at this time in his life (see headnote, p. 575) may have given him an immediate example. 493 forelays. Waylays (OED).

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499 J u n o hated Palamon's "race" of Thebans because Jove had taken two of them, Semele (the mother of Bacchus) and Alcmena (the mother of Hercules), as mistresses. See Statius, Thebaid, I, is, 251-257, and Ovid, Metamorphoses, III, 253-309; IV, 416-603; and IX, «80-325. 500 Quartile. Planets in a quartile aspect are at go degrees from each other and have an unfavorable influence (OED, quartile, A, citation of 1647, B, citation of 1621). Perhaps Dryden adds Mars because Arcite worships him (see pp. 144-149 above). 515 Scott (S-S, XI, 271) called attention to the Ovidian quality of this line, but see headnote (p. 636 above). 538 deaf Murmurs. Dryden is fond of such figures, which he found in Ovid. See "a deaf Murmur" and "blind Contagion" in Meleager and Atalanta, 11. 221 and 348 (pp. 210, 213 above); "the blind Grot," "the jarring Grate / Rung deaf," and "A mute Revenge, and blind" in Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 11. 112, 227-228, 593 (pp. 219, 222, 233 above); "a dumb Quiet" and "dumb Complaints" in Ceyx and Alcyone, 11. 281 and 436 (pp. 357, 362 above); "a deaf Noise of Sounds" in The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 1. 72 (p. 408 above); and "blind Prison" in Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 1. 332 (p. 494 above). "Blind" in II, 549 (p. 121 above) is similar. See also "a murmuring hollow sound, / Like the deaf Chimes of Bells in Steeples touch'd," in The Duke of Guise, IV, ii, 74-75 (Works, XIV, 264). 546 Dryden added the parenthesis to take advantage of the superstition that dreams at break of day are true (see Summers, V, 447, and Ceyx and Alcyone, 1. 355, p. 359 above). H e did the same thing in The Cock and the Fox, 1. 205 (p. 299 above). See also The Spanish Fryar, III, iii, 33 (Works, XIV, 150), and Don Sebastian, IV, i, 133 (Works, XV, 159). 551-552 Mercury charmed the thousand-eyed Argus to sleep with the caduceus and then killed him, so as to free Io. See Ovid, Metamorphoses, I, 568-721 (Dryden's translation, 11. 769-1001, in Works, IV, 396-405). 581 So. I.e., It so. 587-588 See Josh. 9:21, 23, 27. 594 blown. A Chaucerian word (see I, 2241, p. 136 above), used by Dryden in The Wife of Bath her Tale, 1. 2 (p. 451 above). Book II 3 six. Changed to seven in II, 368 (p. 111 above). 10 T h e sun enters Gemini on 21 May, 11 May in Dryden's time. H a d Dryden kept Chaucer's "third night" (I, 1463) he could have made a connection between Palamon and Arcite and The Cock and the Fox, for as Robinson points out (p. 754) May 3 was the day on which the fox seized Chanticleer. 11-12 Destiny, / Which forms in Causes first whate'er shall be. For first causes see notes to The State of Innocence, IV, i, 11-120 (Works, XII, 369371). See also the discussion of necessity in The Cock and the Fox, 11. 5 3 1 548 (p. 319 above). 12 Chaucer's formulation of the idea (I, 1466) is more clearly proverbial; Skeat, no. 215 (p. 90).

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16 Of Wine and Honey mix'd. Speght's definition of Chaucer's "clarrie" (1,1471) is "wine and honey mingled," but see also note to The Kind Keeper, IV, i, 206 {Works, XIV, 413). 27 brown Shadows. See note to "the brown horrour" in The Hind and the Panther, II, 659 (Works, III, 406); also "Brown with the shade" in The Wife of Bath her Tale, 1. 212 (p. 463 above), and "Shades, and a brown Horror" in Dryden's translation oi Virgil's Aeneid, VII, 41, "brown horrors" in Don Sebastian, II, i, 6, and "brown Horrour" in Love Triumphant, IV, i, 320 (Works, VI, 572; XV, 102; XVI, 236). 34 turn our Style. Change to another subject (OED, style, citing this passage). 40 Horizon. T h e sky as seen from one's position on earth. 42 licks. Kinsley (IV, 2067) notes the same metaphor in Andrew Marvell's Damon the Mower, 11. 45-46. 55 the Graces lead the dancing Hours. Mason (p. 751) notes "Pan / Knit with the Graces and the Hours in dance / Led on th' Eternal Spring" in Paradise Lost, IV, 266-268. 56 Pencil. Paintbrush. For the same meaning in Chaucer, see I, 2049 (p. 124 above). 58 The sultry Tropick. T h e tropic (turning place) is where the sun is farthest from the equator and seems to turn back toward it. " T h e sultry Tropick" is the one it reaches in summer, i.e., for the northern hemisphere, the tropic of Capricorn. T h e sun's apparent north-south movement slows as it changes direction. 60 venom'd Teeth. Similarly, Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 1. 360 (p. 495 above), Time's "venom'd Grinders," where "venom'd" is once more Dryden's addition. OED cites the latter under the meaning "poisonous," but Dryden's use is metaphorical, meaning "death-dealing." 72 T h e proverb is Skeat, no. 216 (pp. 90-91). 74 T h e negative form of the proverb in The Cock and the Fox, 1. 799 (p. 333 above). Chaucer's proverb here (I, 1524) is Skeat, no. 217 (p. 91). 82 as Buckets in a Well. Skeat, no. 218 (p. 91-92). 83 her Day. Vendredi, Friday. See The Cock and the Fox, 11. 685-690 (p. 327 above). 83 Cheer. See note to I, 240 (p. 639 above). 84 T h e superstition lives today (Robinson, p. 673). 89-90 As Noyes (p. 1028) observes, Joseph Warton pointed out that Dryden draws on Job's famous curse (see Job 3:1, 3, 6). 93 Cadmus. T h e father of Semele, for whom see note to I, 499 (p. 641 above). Chaucer links him here (I, 1546) with Amphion, who captured Thebes, and built its wall by playing so beautifully on a lyre Hermes had given him that the stones danced into position. He was the husband of Niobe, for whom see note to III, 221 (p. 651 below). 95 Cadmus Doom. T h e fate of the house of Cadmus, not of the man himself. At his own wish Cadmus was changed by the gods into a serpent (see Ovid, Metamorphoses, IV, 563-589). 102 Perhaps Dryden omitted Chaucer's proverb (I, 1558) "not worth a mite" (Tilley M1026), which in his own day had been replaced by "not worth a flea" (Tilley F353), as not fitting a knight's tongue.

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103 That Side of Heav'n. Mars and Juno in opposition to other gods. 104 Mars ruin'd Thebes; his Mother. The assault of "the Seven against Thebes" was a failure, but their descendants, "the Epigoni," razed the city to the ground under the protection of Mars, the son of Juno and Jupiter. 115-116 As Noyes (p. 1028) observes, Warton recognized Dryden's quotation here of the conclusion of Thomas Carew's A cruell Mistris, (Carew has "times leave" instead of "Time leaves" and "That burnt" instead of "Who burn'd"). 119-120 Kinsley (IV, 2067) notes that the source of Dryden's additions here is Lucretius, De Rerum Natura, III, 153-156. 148 See note to I, 326 (p. 639 above). Tilley L508, "Love is lawless," cites the present passage. 149 Christie (p. 528) recognized that Dryden was translating Tibullus, III, vi, 49, Jupiter ex alto perjuria ridet amantum. Noyes (p. 1028) points instead to Ovid's Ars A ma torin, I, 635-636 (Dryden's 11. 714-715; Works, IV, 501). 165 pawn. Pledge (OED, citing Cleomenes, III, i, 166). 166-168 "Out of Seneca [Agamemnon, 1. 259]: Nec regna sociurn ferre, nec tede solent. And Ouid [Ars Amatoria, III, 564]: Non bene cum sociis regna Venusque manent" (Speght, sig. 4B3V). But Chaucer found the proverb in his source, Boccaccio's Teseida, V, 13 (Robinson, p. 675). See also Skeat, no. 220 (pp. 92-93) and Haeckel, no. 7 (p. 2). 182 hopes. Expects. 188 gen'rous. A word much used by Dryden in various senses; see notes to I, 117, and III, 443 (pp. 638 above and 653 below). In the present context it probably means "brave" and is a necessary qualification because "Chilness" is also a mark of fear; cf. "blood ran cold." 193 Foe profest. T h e same phrase occurs at III, 158 (p. 137 above). See also Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 1. 733, and Theodore and Honoria, 1. 389 (pp. 287. 347 above). 196 foin. The word was going out of use in Dryden's time. OED, citing Dryden's II, 196, allows only the meaning "thrust"; Robinson allows the meaning "parry" as well. 196 pass. A synonym of "foin" in the sense either of "thrust" or of "parry," i.e., a stroke that evades or beats aside the opponent's weapon (OED). 196 bore. Strike through; see The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 1. 237 (p. 413 above), and Dryden's translation of Virgil's Aeneid, IX, 558, and XI, 17 (Works, VI, 659, 721). 216-217 Chaucer found the proverb in his source, Boccaccio's Teseida (Robinson, p. 675). See also Skeat, no. 221 (p. 93). 220-221 Dryden correctly represents Chaucer here as he had correctly represented Milton's opposing view in The State of Innocence, IV, i, 53-62 (Works, XII, 124). There Adam asks Raphael whether God's knowledge does not imply foreordination, and he is told that it does not. In III, 1036, "Will is free" is an addition to Chaucer, but again a correct analysis (see p. 187 above). 229 Horns. Chaucer's "hunt" (I, 1678) means "huntsman." For the title "the common hunt," i.e., huntsman, in Dryden's day see note to The Kind Keeper, IV, i, 258 (Works, XIV, 414).

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232 the Goddess of the Silver Bow. See The Secular Masque, 1. 26 (Works, XVI, 268). 235 Laund. Defined by Speght as "a plaine between trees." Dryden uses the word again in III, 898 (cited by OED). Judging from the citations in OED it then disappeared from literary usage until 1891. 238 Harbour. "The covert or place of retreat of wild animals" (OED). 240 the Crystal Flood. See note to Cymon and Iphigenia, 11. 89-90 (p. 908 below). 241 looking underneath the Sun. By simply adopting Chaucer's words (I, 1697) as his own Dryden avoids explaining what they mean, but, as no one else knows what they mean, he may be excused. 243 mortal. Fierce (OED, sense 10 of adjective). 305 Law. Punishment. 332 Probably most readers of today would prefer Chaucer's "For pitee renneth soone is gentil herte" (I, 1761). Chaucer was partial to it himself: Robinson (p. 675) notes that he has almost the same line in The Merchant's Tale, IV, ig86, The Squire's Tale, V, 479, and the prologue to The Legend of Good Women, F text, 1. 503; and that the same idea appears in The Man of Law's Tale, II, 660. 340 look'd under. Looked down (OED, sense 44 of verb, citing this passage only). 348 Look serene. Mason (p. 348) notes that the phrase occurs in Paradise Lost, X, 1094. 352 an awful Nod. The awe-inspiring nod belongs strictly to Zeus (see The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 11. 705-710, and Alexander's Feast, 11. 39-40, pp. 282, 4 above), but Dryden attributes it also to God (see Absalom and Achitophel, 1. 1026 in Works, II, 36, and The State of Innocence, III, i, 33, in Works, XII, 114). 364-365 Dryden puts the proverb in one of the forms given by Speght, amare et sapere vix deo conceditur, which Speght quotes from Seneca; (see also Tilley L558, citing Publilius Syrus, no. 22). 373 Love is Love's Reward. Tilley L515, first citation c. 1523. 414 the Bars. "The palisades of the lists" (Scott, S-S, XI, 288). OED, which cites this passage, is less specific, "barriers." 474 that smoak'd. I.e., you could see the vapor. 475 hot Desires, the Lover's Hell. Mason (p. 752) notes "jealousy / . . . the injur'd Lover's Hell" in Paradise Lost, V, 449-450. 483 Sigils fram'd in Planetary Hours. Occult signs or devices made in the twelve parts of the day or of the night astrologically governed by the planets and supposed to have mysterious powers (OED, sigil, planetary). Chaucer calls these hours by their alternate name, "unequal hours" (I, 2271, p. 138 above), meaning that they are of different lengths at different times of the year. See also The Flower and the Leaf, 1. 606 (p. 403 above). 489 Down-look'd. "With a downcast glance" (Noyes, p. 1028). 489 Cuckow. Symbol of cuckoldry because it lays its eggs in other birds' nests. 495 Acts, and Monuments. The title of John Foxe's "Book of Martyrs"; cf. note to The Cock and the Fox, 1. 479 (p. 772 below). 498 Idalian Mount, and Citheron. Cf. "the Mount of Cytheron" in III,

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145 (p. 137 below). These were places on Cyprus where Venus was worshipped; cf. Virgil's Aeneid, X, 51-5«, "Amathus is mine, mine high Paphus and Cythera, and Idalia's shrine" (Loeb). Gautruche (I, 52) says all are mountains; all are or were also towns. For Paphus or Paphos see the last line of Pygmalion and the Statue (p. 247 above). 503 Samson. Samson was undone both by his wife and, because he was a slow learner, by Delilah (Judg. 14, 16). His name replaces Chaucer's Hercules (I, 1943), whose fate was similar. Hercules' wife Deianeira unwittingly gave him a poisoned shirt. He had rescued her from the centaur Nessus, whom he shot with a poisoned arrow. Before Nessus died he told Deineira to keep his blood as it would preserve Hercules' love for her. Hercules sent to her for a shirt at a time when she suspected he might fall in love with someone else. Accordingly, she steeped it in Nessus' blood before sending it to him. Nessus' death is referred to in The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 1. 428 (p. 419 above). 503 wiser Solomon. Solomon had a thousand wives and concubines, whose religions he began to practice. Dryden calls him wiser than Samson because by a quick change of heart he managed to make peace with an angry God and so died of natural causes, although he lost the power to leave his son a peaceful kingdom (I Kings 11). 505 Medea's Charms. Medea, a celebrated magician, helped Jason obtain the Golden Fleece and then married him. When he abandoned her for Glauce, the daughter of Creon, king of Thebes, she killed the two children she had had by him and sent Glauce a garment that burned her to death when she put it on; the palace burned down also and Creon died in the fire. 505 Circean Feasts. Circe was Medea's aunt, and another celebrated magician. When Ulysses came to her island of Aeaea, she gave his companions a drink that turned them into pigs. Ulysses, warned by the one companion who had not drunk, forced her to restore the rest. He stayed with her a year, and had a child by her. She then helped him sail to the realm of the dead (Odyssey, X - X I ) . Presumably Dryden omitted Chaucer's Turnus and Croesus (1,1945, 1946) because they had more obscure connections with Venus. Turnus was betrothed to Lavinia, daughter of Latinus, king of Latium, until Aeneas appeared on the scene; his death at Aeneas' hand closes the Aeneid (see Works, VI, 573-806). Chaucer seems to refer to the story of how Croesus, king of Lydia in what is now Turkey, was captured and condemned to death by Cyrus the Persian but was then reprieved. T h e version of the story at the end of The Monk's Tale and in Boethius, Consolation of Philosophy, Bk. II, pr. 2 (see Robinson, pp. 198, 331), says that a heavy rain put out the fire in which Croesus was to have died. For Venus as the bringer of rain see Chaucer's I, 1534-1537 and The Flower and the Leaf, 1. 5 (pp. 94, 365 above). 5 1 3 Venus is said by some poets to have sprung from the foam of the sea, because her name in Greek, Aphrodite, means "born from aphros, foam." She was said to have come to life near the island of Cythera, south of the Peloponnesus. 515 Venus was treading water (as she rose), bare (at the moment depicted) lower than her breast.

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519 fann'd the buxom Air. Mason (p. 752) notes "Fan / Winows the buxom Air" in Paradise Lost, V, 269-270. "Buxom" means "yielding, unresisting" (OED, citing this passage in Dryden). See Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 1. 609, "the buxome Air," as here, and Cymon and Iphigenia, 1. 613, "the buxom Sea" (pp. 502, 531 above). 524-616 See Statius, Thebaid, VII, 34-73. 541 standing. Constant (OED, sense 13 of participial adjective). 542 Such was the Face without. T h e appearance of the landscape (see II, 530) was such that. See OED, face, sense 9 of noun, and for the grammatical construction without "that" see OED, such, demonstrative adjective and pronoun, sense 13, citing II, 324-327 (p. 107 above). 544 on. A possible meaning of Chaucer's "under" (I, 1981), i.e., on the side of. 549 Blind. Presumably "windowless," like the building (see II, 553), but possibly "secret," and so on (OED). T h e word appears also in Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 1. 112 (p. 219 above), with a similar range of possible meanings. See also note to I, 538 (p. 641 above). 552 a Northern Light. "Probably suggested [to Chaucer, I, 1987] by Statius, Thebaid, vii, 45 ('aduersum Phoebi iubar'). T h e reference would then not be to the Aurora Borealis" (Robinson, p. 677). 564-566 Dryden's expansion of Chaucer's "smiler, with the knife vnder the cloke" (I, 1999), reflects his usual dislike of the clergy; he has in mind the assassination of Henry III of France by the monk Jacques Clement. See The Vindication of the Duke of Guise (Works, XIV, 316, 335). 572 Lawn. Cloth worn by bishops. 578-579 T h e corresponding lines in Chaucer (I, 2007-2008) probably refer, as Robinson notes (p. 677), to Jael's killing Sisera by driving a nail through his temples (Judg. 5:26-27). 583 arm'd Complaint on Theft. Armed men shouting "Stop thief." See The Cock and the Fox, 11. 724-727 (p. 329 above). 595 intercepts. See note to Meleager and A talanta, 1.33 (pp. 672-673 below). 598 Armourer. Robinson (p. 677) notes that Thomas Tyrwhitt adopted Dryden's emendation into his text of Chaucer (»775-1778), and substituted "bowyer" for "Botcher" (I, 2025) also. 600 Conquest. I.e., a picture of Conquest personified. 602-603 Robinson notes (p. 677) that the "figure of the sword of Damocles was probably suggested to Chaucer by Boethius, Consolation, Bk. I l l , pr. 5, where it is also brought into connection with conquest." Dryden leaves his readers to make the association. 606 The last Triumvirs. Galba, Otho, and Vitellius. Nero (I, 2032) took his own life so as not to be captured by their followers. Galba succeeded Nero as emperor, Otho succeeded Galba, and Vitellius succeeded Otho. All died violently. 607 Antony. For the death of Mark Antony see All for Love (Works, XIII, 104-106). Dryden works in a reference to the play, the subtitle of which is The World Well Lost. 610 copied from the Heav'ns. Shown by the positions of the stars. 611 the Red Star. Mars.

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612 Mars high on a Chariot. Mason (p. 752) notes "High . . . as a God / . . . in . . . his Chariot" in Paradise Lost, VI, 99-100. 614 Geomantick. Geomancy, in the sense here, is divination by figures, making and interpreting arrangements of dots; see next note. 615-616 side note. Puella and Rubeus are figures made by putting down four rows of dots hastily without counting them, and then for each row setting out, this time in a column, a single dot if the row has an odd number of dots and otherwise two dots. Sixteen columnar patterns are possible, of which Rubeus (two dots, one dot, two dots, two dots) is one and Puella (one dot, two dots, one dot, one dot) is another. Authorities on geomancy differ as to whether the figure given above for Puella is correct. T h e y also differ over which planets the figures are dedicated to, but J o h n Matthews Manley found a medieval manuscript which assigns both Puella and Rubeus to Mars (Robinson, pp. 677). 616 Direct. Speght's note on Rubeus and Puella (sig. 4B4), quoted by Noyes (p. 1029), sa Y s 'hat Rubeus represents Mars when the planet is "direct," moving in the same direction as the sun with reference to the stars, and Puella represents the planet when it is "retrograde," moving in the opposite direction (see OED, direct). Noyes and Kinsley (IV, 2068), who regard Speght's note as misleading, were unaware of Manley's finding with respect to Puella (see preceding note). 619-620 Mason (p. 752) notes that Dryden's picture and some of its words come from Paradise Lost, IV, 139-141: "Ceder, and Pine, and Fir, and branching Palm, / A Sylvan Scene, and as the ranks ascend / Shade above shade, a woody Theatre." 623 Calisto. T h e same as Chaucer's "Calistope" (I, 2056). Robinson (pp. 677-678) explains that Chaucer is apparently following an account like that in Boccaccio's De Genealogia Deorum, V, 49, which says that Calisto is Ursa Minor (in which is the pole star), and her son Areas is Ursa Major. 623 manifest of. Kinsley (IV, 2069, 1885) remarks that the construction occurs in Absalom and Achitophel, 1. 204 (Works, II, 11), and that it is a latinism found, for example, in Sallust, Bellum Iugurthinum, xxxv, 8 (manifestus tanti sceleris, "manifest of such wickedness"), as Christie noted (pp. 538, 97). 627-630 See note to I, 258 (p. 639 above). 631-632 For Dryden's comments on this passage in Speght's text (I, 2062-2064) see preface to the Fables (p. 40 above). 631 Peneian. Daughter of Peneus. Dryden had translated the story of Daphne as told by Ovid, Metamorphoses, I, 452-567 (Dryden's 11. 606-768 in Works, IV, 3 9 4 - 3 9 8 ) . 632 his Tree. T h e laurel, sacred to Apollo. 633 Th' adjoining Fane. Dryden apparently means the next chapel within the temple: see Chaucer's "a littel ferthermore" (I, 2069). 633 express'd. See The Character of a Good Parson, 1. 104 (p. 509 above). 634-636 See Meleager and Atalanta, 11. 1-241 (pp. 203-210 above). 635 Oenides. T h e son of Oeneus, i.e., Meleager. 637 For the story of Diana and Actaeon as told at length by Chaucer (I, 2065-2068) see Ovid, Metamorphoses, III, 138-152.

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Commentary

638 T h e mother is Althaea, the son is Meleager. See Meleager and Atalanta, 11. 222-363 (pp. 210-214 above). 639 The Volscian Queen. Camilla, whose story is told in Virgil's Aeneid, VII, 803-817 (Dryden's 11. 1094-1113), and XI, 532-867 (Dryden's 11. 7531256); see Works, VI, 606, 744-760. Alexander Pope's allusion to "swift Camilla" in An Essay on Criticism, II, 172-173, makes the first passage more memorable to us, but Dryden here thinks rather of the second. 640 Traytor. Arruns, called traitor in Dryden's translation of the Aeneid, XI, 1237, but not by Virgil. T h e meaning in both places is "a treacherous person" (see OED, treason), and in the translation of the Aeneid it may have been suggested by Virgil's insidiis, "[striking] from ambush" (XI, 783). Arruns managed to strike Camilla with his spear while her attention was fastened on pursuit of Chloreus. At Diana's order, Opis, a nymph of Thrace, killed Arruns for having killed Camilla. 647 Silver Bow. See note to II, 232 (p. 644 above). 649 wexing. See The Secular Masque, 1. 30 (Works, XVI, 268, and note, P- 432)649-650 wane, j And drinking borrow'd Light, be fiU'd. Mason (p. 752) notes that Milton, in Paradise Lost, retelling the creation, in which there was light before there was sun or moon (see Gen. 1:3, 16), speaks of the sun as "drinkfing] the liquid Light" and of the moon as "borrowing her Light" (VII, 362, 377), as well as saying that the moon "With borrow'd light her countenance . . . fills and empties" (III, 730-731). 652 As Diana she was queen of the moon; as Proserpina she was queen of the underworld. 654 Lucina. Diana's name as goddess of childbirth; it probably means "she who brings to light." 656 Pencil. See note to II, 56 (p. 642 above). Book III 8-9 Chiefs . . . Champions. Either Palamon and Arcite or the kings Lycurgus and Emetrius. "Champions" has a more general meaning in III, 343, but "Champion" means Arcite in III, 357 (pp. 147, 149 above). 8 each an Army seem'd alone. Christie (p. 539) notes that Dryden's source is Virgil's Aeneid, VII, 707, magnique ipse agminis instar, which he had translated in his 1. 975 as "And in himself alone, an Army" (Works, VI, 601). See also note to Ceyx and Alcyone, 1. 163 (p. 794 below). 17 Kinsley (IV, 2068) points to King Arthur, V, ii, 150-151, "Fairest Isle, all Isles Excelling, / Seat of Pleasures, and of Loves" (Works, XVI, 63). Cf. also To Her Grace the Dutchess, 1. 6 (p. 48 above). 24-25 These lines apparently interpret ME I, 2125, for which see Eccles. 1:9-10, already a proverb in Chaucer's time (Skeat, no. 222, p. 93). 26-27 Speght defines Chaucer's "habergeon" (I, 2119) as a "coat of mail." A coat of mail may be made of either rings or scales; Dryden's "Coatarmour," however, is strictly a padded short-sleeved vest or short coat with armorial bearings, not scale armor, on it. 27 stubborn. Unyielding. 32 Poleax. Battle ax (OED).

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35 Jambeux. Kinsley (IV, 2068) believes Dryden was led to this addition to Chaucer by Spenser's Faerie Queene, II, vi, 29, describing Guion and Cymochles as wearing "giambeux." 39 Lycurgus. Famous for his attempt to drive the worship of Dionysus from Thrace (SCD). 51 Surcoat. T h e same as "coat-armor"; see note to III, 26-27. 51 Bear-skin. Chaucer's description of the bear's nails (I, 2141) "refers to the ancient practice of gilding an animal's claws when its hide was worn as a cloak. Cf. Boccaccio's Teseida, vi, 36. Chaucer may also have had in mind the description of a tiger's skin in Statius' Thebaid, vi, 722(1." (Robinson, p. 678). 56 Chair. Chariot; see The Flower and the Leaf, 1. 3 and M E I. 1 (pp. 364-365 above). Here Dryden needed the word for his rhyme. Perhaps his readers were not misled, but the earliest citation in OED for "chair" meaning a wheeled vehicle (sense 11, chaise) is 1753. 56 A hexameter in the second as well as in the third line of a triplet is very rare in the Fables. 63 Emetrius. Nothing more is known of this person in fact or fiction, but see Robinson (p. 678-679) for various speculations. 65 barb'rous Gold. Kinsley (IV, 2068) notes that Dryden took the adjective from Virgil, Aeneid, II, 504, barbarico . . . auro, which Dryden had represented by "plated Gold" (1. 687; Works, V, 400). "Barb'rous" then means "barbaric" (OED, citing this passage only). Professor Reverand has pointed out to us "Barbaric . . . Gold" in Paradise Lost, II, 4. 67 Surcoat. See note to III, 51. 67 Thrace. Chaucer's "Trace" (I, 2160) should rhyme with "Mars." Accordingly, modern texts have "Tars," a word of uncertain meaning, though Kinsley (IV, 2068) suggests Tarsia or Tarsus. 68 Orient. Also a Chaucerian word, defined by Speght in 1602 as meaning "bright, beautiful." Dryden uses it often to describe pearls, because pearls from the Orient were the most lustrous, and, in The Cock and the Fox, 1. 52 (p. 289 above), to describe Chanticleer's feet. 74 blue. Kinsley (IV, 2068) notes that W . C. Curry (Chaucer and the Medieval Sciences [1926], pp. lsoff.) identifies Emetrius as a "Saturnalian" man from the description of such men in medieval astrology as having, e.g., yellow eyes and freckles. Robinson (p. 679) says "Mr. Curry's theory deserves serious consideration." Dryden obscured Chaucer's astrology, if Curry is correct in so identifying it, for though he kept the freckles (III, 76) he changed the color of the eyes. See also note to III, 119-121. 89 Apparently a Bonelli's eagle (E. fasciatus), common in Emetrius' country of India, which appears white when perched and seen from the front. Eagles are large hawks and may be trained for hawking. "Reclaim'd" means "called back from flight" (OED). 99 Bacchus' conquest of India is mentioned in passing in Ovid's Metamorphoses, IV, 20-21, 605-606, and X V , 413. 100 Gambols frisk'd. Mason (pp. 753-754) notes that "frisking" and "Gamboll'd" occur in Milton's picture of the animals (including "the L i o n " and "Pards") around Adam and Eve (Paradise Lost, IV, 340-345). 100 honest. Once more Dryden interpolates from Virgil, this time from

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Commentary

Georgics, II, 392, where Bacchus' face is called honestum, "comely" (Loeb). In his own translation, 1. 540 (Works, V, 199), Dryden merely transliterates, "honest," but the word then means "comely" (see OED). See also Alexander's Feast, 1. 52 (p. 4 above). 1 0 3 Prime. A Chaucerian word (see ME I, 2 5 7 6 ) , meaning originally 6 A.M., then 6-9, then g, and not yet obsolete in Dryden's day, 104 Flow'rs the Posts adorn. In support of the emendation of "Pots" to "Posts," i.e., "door posts," Kinsley (IV, 2 0 6 8 ) cites the Roman custom of decorating house doors with wreaths and clusters or branches of greenery at weddings and other times of celebration (see Works, IV, 1 5 2 - 1 5 3 and 1 6 6 1 6 7 , for the Latin of Juvenal's Satires, VI, 5 1 - 5 2 and 2 2 7 - 2 2 8 , together with Dryden's translation, 11. 75, 321; also Works, IV, 398, The First Book of Ovid's Metamorphoses, 1. 761, where "Posts" is a transliteration of postibus [I, 562], "door posts"). Noyes (p. 1029) cites Cymon and Iphigenia, 1. 561 (p. 529 above). 108 grac"d. Honored (OED). 113 Who first, who last. Mason (p. 754) notes the same words in Paradise Lost, I, 376. 118 their Vigils. I.e., Palamon's, Emily's, and Arcite's devotions and watchings for omens. 1 1 9 - 1 2 1 Dryden somewhat obscures Chaucer's careful timing of Palamon's, Emily's, and Arcite's visits to the three temples in the lists. T h e planetary hours (see note to II, 483, p. 644 above) were matched to the planets (and by Chaucer to the gods) in the sequence Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon [Diana] (Robinson, p. 679). In The Knight's Tale, Palamon goes to sacrifice in an hour belonging to Venus, to wit, approximately 4-5 A.M ON a Monday, Emily goes in an hour belonging to Diana, 6-7 A.M., and Arcite in an hour belonging to Mars, 9-10 A.M. 120 Phospher. "The morning star; the planet Venus when appearing before sunrise" (OED). 1 2 3 flick'ring. Kinsley (IV, 2 0 6 8 ) notes Chaucer's similar word "flittering" (I. 1962). 129 Genial. Presiding, conducive, enlivening, kindly, or natural (OED). 1 2 9 - 1 4 4 Saintsbury (S-S, XI, 3 0 2 ) notes that in making this major addition to Chaucer Dryden remembered a passage in Lucretius which he had translated in somewhat similar words, De Rerttm Natura, I, 1-20 (see Dryden's 11. 1-25 in Works, III, 44). 1 3 0 - 1 3 2 Cf. "The ioy of Gods and men, that vnder skie / Doest fayrest shine, and most adorne thy place" (The Faerie Queene, IV, x, 44), noted by Kinsley (IV, 2 0 6 8 - 2 0 6 9 ) . 134 Thy Month. "The month of April, as the beginning of spring, was thought to be peculiarly sacred to the goddess of love" (SCD, s.v. Venus). 1 3 8 - 1 4 7 Cf. "The Lyons r o r e , . . . / T h e raging Buls rebellow through the wood, / And . . . tempt the deepest flood" (The Faerie Queene, IV, x, 46), noted by Kinsley (IV, 2 0 6 8 - 2 0 6 9 ) . 144 Thou mad'st the World. Not Venus, who was created later (see 1. 1 4 6 ) , but Love (see Aristophanes, Birds, 11. 6 9 3 - 7 0 2 ) . Dryden had used Aristophanes before in King Arthur, III, ii, 2 9 6 - 2 9 8 (Works, XVI, 4 6 ) . 145 the Mount of Cytheron. See note to II, 4 9 8 (pp. 6 4 4 - 6 4 5 above). 146 Increase of Jove. Christie (p. 543) points out that Dryden had called Minerva "Joves Increase" in Britannia Redtviva, 1. 208 (Works, III, 217).

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1 4 7 See Ovid, Metamorphoses, X , 5 1 9 - 7 3 9 . and note to Cinyras and Myrrha, 1. 582 The Babe (p. 789 below). 1 5 2 Christie (p. 543) thinks Dryden may have remembered Seneca's Hippoly tus, 1. 607, Curae leves locuntur, ingentes stupent, " L i g h t troubles speak; the weighty are struck dumb" (Loeb). 1 5 8 A Foe profest. See note to II, 1 9 3 (p. 643 above). 168 fifth Orb. T h e first four are the moon, the sun, Mercury and Mars. Although Dryden was an astrologer, he knew that the planets did not move in orbs about the earth. H e is here writing as though he were Chaucer, a different procedure from his adoption, following Milton, of the Ptolemaic system in The State of Innocence. 1 8 1 - 1 8 2 T h e addition imagines what Chaucer leaves vague, namely, the nature of the sign. 1 8 5 tardy. I.e., not fulfilled at once; see III, 188. 189 Mason (p. 754) notes " M o r n her rosy steps" in Paradise Lost, V, 1, and "ere . . . Morning streak the East" in IV, 623, but "rosy" traces back to Homer (see note to The First Book of Hornet's Mas, 1. 650, p. 759 below). 1 9 1 early. Chaucer's more specific lines (I, 2 2 7 1 - 2 2 7 2 ) mean the second planetary hour after Palamon had gone to worship Venus, i.e., approximately 6 - 7 A.M. This hour was governed by Diana; see note to III, 1 1 9 - 1 2 1 (p. 650 above). 194 od'rous Gums. Mason (p. 754) notes the phrase in Paradise Lost, I V , 248.

194 cover'd. Dryden adds the adjective in III, 950, also (p. 1 8 3 above). 1 9 5 crown. Fill to the brim. See note to The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 1. 644 fill'd (p. 759 below). 198 living. Flowing. Dryden understood Chaucer's " w e l l " (I, 2283) to mean "spring," as in " a well of waters, springing u p " (John 4 : 1 4 ) . 200 unlawful to reveal. Mason (p. 754) notes " N o t lawful to reveal" in Paradise Lost, V, 570. 206 Silence is the best. As good an interpretation as any of Chaucer's line (I, 2288): "Either 'it is well for a man to be unhampered in his story,' or 'it is well for a man to preserve his freedom (to keep out of prison).' T h e purport of the whole passage is doubtful. T h e Knight may mean that he is restrained by modesty from continuing the description. Yet what he actually omits of Boccaccio's text is the detailed account of the rites after washing. Professor [Francis James] Child used to suggest that the Knight thought it best not to seem to know too much about heathen religion" (Robinson, p. 6 7 9 ) . 208 Mastless. Without acorns ( O E D , citing this passage only). T h e T u r k e y oak (see Middle English Glossary s.v. unseriall) has smaller acorns than English oaks. 2 1 2 Statius, Thebaid (IV, 455FT.), but Chaucer found the reference in his source, Boccaccio. 2 1 7 Queen of the nether Skies. See note to II, 652 (p. 648 above). 2 2 1 - 2 2 2 N o doubt Dryden replaced Chaucer's reference to Actaeon (I, 2303) because he had given Chaucer's version of the story in II, 6 2 7 - 6 3 0 , and before that had introduced a reference of his own to Actaeon in I, 2 5 8 (see above, pp. 1 2 5 , 69). Because Niobe had deemed herself better than Leto, the mother of Diana and Apollo, the latter two shot her fourteen children and killed all but one. See Ovid's Metamorphoses, V I , 1 6 5 - 3 1 2 .

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221 devoted. "Consigned to destruction, doomed" (OED). 229-231 Dryden here emphasizes the treatment of male-female relations, the main thread in the whole volume. 232 triple Shape. Luna (or Cynthia), Diana, and Proserpina. 270 Cornel. Made of wood from the cornelian cherry tree, "celebrated for its hardness and toughness" (OED). "Cornel" is a standard descriptor with Dryden for spears, and it is handy for fleshing out a line. He inserted it twice in this poem (see III, 934) and once in The Flower and the Leaf, 1. 271 (p. 381 above). He got it from Ovid's Metamorphoses, VIII, 408 (see note to Meleager and Atalanta, 1. 185, p. 680 below), and from Virgil's Georgics, II, 447-448 (1. 628 in his translation), and Aeneid, V, 557 (his line 728), IX, 695 (his 1. 948), and XII, 267 (his 1. 406). See Works, V, 201, 511; VI, 671, 777. 272 attentive hear. Mason (p. 755) notes "Attentive . . . heard" in Paradise Lost, V, 545-546, and "heard attentive" in VII, 51. 277 the Thund'rer. See note to The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 1. 579 (p. 756 below). 290-291 Planetary Hour / Of Mars. See note to III, 119-121 (p. 650 above). 291 Heptarchy. R u l e by seven, i.e., by the planets. 293 Armipotent. See Chaucer's I, 1982, and Dryden's II, 545 (pp. 120-121 above). 297 Hyperborean. See note to Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 1. 532 (p. 891 below). Dryden may have translated the two poems about the same time; see headnote (p. 572 above). 298 Scythian. See note to I, 7 (p. 637 above). 298 Coast. Region. W e retain this meaning in the phrase "the coast is clear," used by Dryden in Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 1. 255 (p. 223 above). See also II, 528-547 (pp. 119, 121 above). 303 withers ev'n the Strong. Mason (p. 755) notes "wither'd all thir strength" in Paradise Lost, VI, 850. 315-322 Speght (sig. 4B4) refers to Homer's Odyssey, VIII, 266-366 for the story. "Aphrodite proved faithless to her husband, and was in love with Ares, the god of war; but Helios (the Sun) disclosed their amours to Hephaestus, who caught the guilty pair in an invisible net, and exposed them to the laughter of the assembled gods" (SCD, Hephaestus). 328 strugling in the snare. Dryden links "struggle" and "snare" again in To My Honour"d Kinsman, 1. 33 (p. 197 above), as he had in The Hind and the Panther, II, 7-8 (Works, III, 140). 353 Guiltless of. Untouched by; see Dryden's translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses, I, 132, " T h e teeming Earth, yet guiltless [intacta, untouched (Loeb)] of the Plough" (Works, IV, 379). Mason (p. 755) notes the expression in Paradise Lost, IX, 392. See also note to The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, 11. 188-189 (p. 851 below). 357 Close. Probably environs of the temple rather than conclusion of the prayer. 360 jarring Sound, and harshly. Mason (p. 755) notes "jarring sound" and "Harsh" in Paradise Lost, II, 880 and 882. 374 Perhaps because Dryden did not recognize that "faine" (I, 2437) was in Speght's glossary ("faw, glad") he omits Chaucer's proverbial expression, Skeat, no. 223 (p. 94).

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379-380 This contradiction of Chaucer was presumably to form a link to The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 11. 697-704 (p. 28a above), where, however, Jove is not afraid of his wife but knows she will raise objections. 381 Leaden. Lead was Saturn's metal. Chaucer's "colde" (I, 2443) gives Saturn's aspect in astrology. 387-388 Skeat, no. 195 (p. 81); "out rede" (Chaucer's I, 2449), an expression not in Speght's glossary though "rede" is there, means "advise better," not "outride." 389 Trin'd. Apart 120 degrees in the zodiac, working together in their astrological effect (OED, citing this passage). See "Trines" in Annus Mirabilis, 1. 1165, and "in Trine" in To Mrs. Anne Killigrew, 1. 43 (Works, I, 103; III, 110). 391 Abode. Astrological house, zodiacal sign. 401-402 in a Watry Sign; j And in an Earthy. T h e signs of the zodiac had various of the four humors associated with them. See The Flower and the Leaf, ME 1. 4 (p. 364 above). 408 Robinson (p. 680) says, "doubtless an allusion to the Peasants' Revolt of 1381." 410-415 "For then is Saturne in his detriment, and in opposition to his owne house" (Speght, sig. 4B4). 4 1 1 Scott, Noyes, and Kinsley all see this line as an allusion to the Revolution of 1688. It may instead (for example) allude to the activities of Dryden's "Munster"; see notes to To My Honour'd Kinsman, 11. 140, 141 (p. 667 below). 413 ungrateful. See note to Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 1. 181 (p. 879 below). 416 Samson. Judg. 16:23-30. 420 Grandsire's. Saturn was the father of Jove, who was the father of Venus. 426 Cronos. Saturn's. 441-442 Christie (p. 549) notes that in this addition Dryden was more or less repeating what he had written in Astraea Redux, 11. 153-154, and Kinsley (IV, 2069) adds Annus Mirabilis, 11. 61-64 (Works, I, 26, 62). 443 gen'rous. Of good stock, or spirited (OED). 452 Morions. Strictly speaking an anachronism, but morions were similar to ancient helmets. See also note to The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, 1. 174 (p. 850 below). 454 quaint. Elegant; apparently obsolete in Dryden's time as applied to clothes but not to persons (OED). 468 in the midst. (Now) inside (the palace yard). 480 double-biting Ax. In Meleager and Atalanta, 1. 166, and in The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 1. 811 (pp. 208, 431 above), Dryden translated bipennis as "double-biting Ax" and "double Axe." Note that in the latter place he added "Lance and" as here. Here the addition may have been suggested by Speght's definition of "sparth" (ME I, 2520) as "a double axe, a speare." 480 beamy. See note to The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, 1. 175 (p. 850 below).

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490 smil'd . . . with superiour Look. Mason (p. 756) notes "Smil'd with superior Love" in Paradise Lost, V, 499. 493 his high Decree. Mason (p. 756) notes that the phrase occurs in Paradise Lost, V, 717, together with "the high Decree" in III, 126, and "high Decrees" in X, 953. 502 rebate. Blunt. See note to The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 1. 231 (p. 820 below). Christie (p. 550) notes the word in the preface to Absalom and Achitophel (Works, II, 3:22-23). 516 at Mischief. In evil plight (OED). Dryden's use of the phrase is an archaism, as was Spenser's in The Shepheardes Calender, September, 1. 10 (see the gloss thereto). 516 on the Ground. Engaged in a duel (OED, sense 14 of noun). 525 With loud Acclaims. Mason (p. 756) notes "with loud acclaim" in Paradise Lost, III, 397, "loud acclaim" in II, 520, "acclamations loud" in VI, 23, and "loud was th' acclaim" in X, 455. See also III, 665 (p. 167 above) and note thereto below. 537 either. Speght's text has "euery" (I, 2570), but his note (sig. 4B4) says "Read, Either." 543 Prime. See note to III, 103 (p. 650 above). 545 Many. OED cites this passage as its latest example of this spelling of "meinie," retinue. 556 the Car. Cf. II, 612 (p. 125 above). 572 for the last. Perhaps, "as his last duty." See Dryden's addition of "last" in III, 578. 576 Tale. Tally. 593-598 Scott (S-S, XI, 317) thought Dryden must have modeled his description on a passage in Sir Philip Sidney's Arcadia (ed. Victor Skretkowicz, Oxford, 1987, pp. 340-341). 604 spins. Issues, gushes (OED). 636-637 Chaucer's phrasing (I, 2636) is more proverbial; Skeat, no. 224 (p. 94), Haeckel no. 106 (p. 32), Tilley E120. 629-635 Dryden's variation on his I, 342-345 (p. 75 above; see also notes, p. 639 above). 665 Christie (p. 553) points out that Dryden is essentially repeating Alexander's Feast, 1. 107 (p. 6 above; see also second note to that line, p. 565 above). 669 the rightful Titan. Saturn. " H e was dethroned by his three sons (Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto, who shared his kingdom by lot among themselves) and sent to Tartara" (Ovid, Metamorphoses, index to Loeb ed., II, 490). T h e last detail, from Ovid's I, 113, Chaucer ignores, as had Boccaccio before him. 672 Standing Army. Scott (S-S, XI, 320) notes that Dryden concludes his addition here by making a political point. After much debate parliament funded a permanent force in January 1698. On 1 February 1699 its size was set at 7,000 men, all to be English. Dryden and others who would have preferred a militia still felt that the army was too expensive and might be an agent of tyranny, and he and his fellow Jacobites also still felt that the army reduced the chances of restoring James II. Palamon and Arcite was

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written between late 1698 and mid 1699 (see headnote to the Fables, p. 57s above). 675 which grieves a Woman most. Although Dryden added these words, he found the sentiment stated positively in The Wife of Bath's Tale, III, 1038-1040 (p. 466 above). 689 popularly low he bow'd. See "bowing popularly low," Absalom and Achitophel, 1. 689 (Works, II, 26). 691 endlong. Straight through (OED, citing this passage). 698 Dryden omits Chaucer's I, 2683, perhaps because its meaning is in doubt: "Probably to be understood (with Skeat): 'she was all his delight, as regarded his heart'" (Robinson, p. 681). 701 startling. Taken from Chaucer's 1,1502 (p. 90 above), where the word means "skittish" (Robinson). 742 Force is of Brutes. See "Force is the Law of Brutes" in Cleomenes, V, ii, 153 (Works, XVI, 150). 757-758, 766-767 Noyes (p. 1029) believes that the use of the same rhyme words in such close proximity indicates haste in writing. Note that where Chaucer uses the same rhymes in close proximity (e.g., I, 2775-2776 and 2795-2796, pp. 172, 174 above) Dryden usually avoids one or both (e.g., Ill, 814-815, p. 175 above). 766 By inserting "batter'd, and" Dryden reminds one of Edmund Waller's fine couplet in his last poem, T h e Soul's dark Cottage, batter'd and decay'd, Lets in new Light through Chinks that Time has made. 767 Chaucer's lines (I, 2759-2760) are closer to the proverb, "If physic does not work prepare for the kirk" (Tilley P259, only citation 1678). 785 officious. See note to Baucis and Philemon, 1. 46 (p. 709 below). 839 Sense fled before him. Speght's text (I, 2803) has "Saue onely the intellect" but his note to "Saue only" (sig. 4B4) says "Read, And also." 844-853 Noyes (p. 1029) points to Religio Laid, 11. 186-211 (Works, II, 115), Dryden's earlier objection to this provision in the Athanasian Creed, and observes that Dryden's conversion to Catholicism did not change his thinking about the creed. 895 The Face of Things is changed. Mason (pp. 756-757) notes "the face of things quite chang'd" in Paradise Lost, XI, 712, together with "the face of things" in V, 43, and "this . . . face of things" in VII, 636. 881 Skeat, no. 225 (p. 95). 884 sincere. See note to Qymon and Iphigenia, 1. 48 (p. 907 below). 887-888 Heb. 11:13-16. 898 conscious Lawnd. In such contexts, "conscious" means "aware of what went on in it." Cf. Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 1. 231, Cinyras and Myrrha, 1. 212, and The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, 1. 22 (pp. 222, 254, 432 above). For "Lawnd" see note to II, 235 (p. 644 above). 905 Sere. Dry, withered (OED). Dryden uses the word only in the Fables; see note to III, 974. 905 doddefd. "A word conventionally used (? after Dryden) as an attribute of old o a k s . . . ; app. originally meaning: Having lost the top or branches, esp. through age and decay; hence, remaining as a decayed stump" (OED,

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Commentary

citing this passage and Dryden's translation of Virgil's Pastorals, IX, 9, and Aeneid, II, 703). Kinsley (IV, 2069) adds Dryden's translation of Persius, Satires, V, 80. I n view of the fact that Dryden may have invented the word, the etymology suggested by OED is of interest: "app. originally a deriv. of DOD V.1 to poll or take the top off (a tree)" with an explanatory paragraph suggesting that it may simply be a misspelling of dotard or dottard, a more or less decayed trunk. 924-925 See III, 351-354 (p. 149 above). 927 Mourning Bride. Dryden introduces the title of William Congreve's tragedy (1697) in compliment to his friend. 931 trapp'd. Armored. 932 Atchievements. "Escutcheons or ensigns armorial, granted in memory of some achievement, or distinguished feat" (OED). 934 Cornel-wood. See note to III, 270 (p. 652 above). 940 Master-Street. Although OED (master, sense 23a of first noun) cites only Chaucer's I, 2902 for "master street," Dryden was not archaizing when he kept the phrase; the citations in OED show similar constructions to the middle of the nineteenth century. 950 cover'd. See note to III, 194 cover'd (p. 651 above). 953 Parthian. Parthians (Iranians) were noted archers in antiquity, but rather for their tactic of shooting while riding away from their targets. 958 Sulphur and Bitumen. T a k e n from notes in the edition of Ovid's Metamorphoses that Dryden used; see note to Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 11. 522-523 (pp. 890-891 below). 959-964 As Kinsley notes (IV, 2069), Dryden draws on Statius' Thebaid, or more likely on Spenser's Faerie Queen, I, i, 8-9 ("builder Oak"), and on Virgil's Georgics, I, 136, alnos . . . fluvii sensere cavatas, which Dryden had translated "on Seas the hollow'd Alder swam" (1. 207; Works, V, 161). 959 unctuous. Oily. 965 rank'd. Placed (OED). 974 Sere-wood. Dry wood. T h e word occurs also in The Flower and the Leaf, 1. 413, and in The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 1. 386 (pp. 391, 418 above). See also note to III, 905 sere. 994 Hail, and Farewell. From Dryden's knowledge of Roman practice, e.g., ave atque vale in Catullus' memorial poem for his brother. Dryden had used "hail and farewell" in To Mr. Oldham, 1. 22 (Works, II, 175). 995-997 Christie (p. 560) notes that Dryden follows Virgil, Aeneid, XI, 188-196 (Dryden's 11. 288-299, in Works, VI, 687). 1001 Gantlets. Boxing gloves. 1001 the Foil. Defeat (OED). 1025 Golden. Dryden's addition links Chaucer's allegory more obviously to its source in the Iliad, VIII, 18-26. Earth hangs from heaven by "a golden Chain" in Paradise Lost, II, 1051 (noted by Mason, p. 757). 1027 jarring Seeds. Lucretius' theory, using his word for atoms. 1029 the new Creation crown'd. Mason (p. 757) notes "this new Creation r o u n d " in Paradise Lost, III, 661. 1036 Will is free. See note to II, 220-221 (p. 643 above). 1039 subborn. See note to The State of Innocence, V, iv, 190 (Works, XII, 380).

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1066-1077 Dryden's substitution for Chaucer's I, 3027-3030 comes from Ovid; see Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 11. 324-353 (pp. 493-494 above). Perhaps Dryden was inspired to look in the classics by Speght's note (sig. 4B4), which says I, 3030 is "like to" passages in Horace, Seneca, and Homer. 1066 Drop. See also Cinyras and Myrrha, 1. 384, and Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 1. 325 (pp. 258, 493 above), both being Dryden's additions to Ovid. 1074 Retchless. A seventeenth- as well as a fourteenth-century spelling (see Chaucer's I, 2245 and 2397, pp. 136, 146 above). 1077 Three Souls. Kinsley (IV, 2069) cites Aristotle, De Anima, ii, 3ft., and Robert Burton's Anatomy of Melancholy, I, i, II, v (which calls it "the common division of the Soul," and refers to Aristotle). 1084 ordain'd to die. Chaucer's words "al thing mote deie" (I, 3034) are closer to the proverb, Haeckel, no. 150 (p. 44). Cf. Eccles. 3:20, quoted in note to To My Honour'd Kinsman, 11. 207-209 (p. 670 below). 1085 Skeat, no. 199 (pp. 83-84), Tilley V73. Robinson (pp. 682-683) notes that the proverb is as old as Jerome, Against Rufinus, III, 2. 1 1 1 0 offends. Attacks, harms. Not an anachronism. 1 1 1 0 Ghost. Chaucer's "soule" (I, 3065) shows that Dryden uses "ghost" in its basic meaning. 1112 Vicissitude. Change. 1133-1134 Chaucer's I, 3089, is a proverb, Skeat, no. 184 (p. 77). 1143 laborious. Dryden regularly speaks of the sexual act as work. See note to The Kind Keeper, II, i, 14 (Works, XIV, 395). 1144 Eros, and Anteros. Eros is the god of sensual love; Anteros, of reciprocal love. Kinsley (IV, 2070) notes that they also appear in Ben Jonson's wedding masque A Challenge at Tilt. 1147 Idalian. See note to II, 498 (pp. 644-645 above). 1154-1155 Dryden again emphasizes his volume's central theme of malefemale relationships. By his use of the word "bless" he makes a link to the first line of the next poem and underlines the moral that happiness can be found both by a true lover and by one who is content to be without a wife.

To My Honour'd

Kinsman, John

Driden

This John Driden (1635-1708) was the poet's cousin, their fathers being brothers. Driden's father was the elder of the brothers, but Driden himself was his father's second surviving son by his third marriage. He appears first in Dryden's letters on 4 March 1689 (Ward, Letters, p. 112), but only because very few of Dryden's earlier letters are preserved and almost none of them is family correspondence. In the letter of 4 March Dryden says his change of religion has not interrupted his friendship with his cousin, who had sent him produce from his estate at Chesterton. Winn (p. 477) records a tradition that Dryden wrote the first lines of his translation of Virgil with a diamond on a windowpane at his cousin's house there. Driden's Chesterton is four miles west southwest of Peterborough on the A605 motorway where the Ai(T) crosses it, in what is now Cambridgeshire but was then Huntingdon-

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1066-1077 Dryden's substitution for Chaucer's I, 3027-3030 comes from Ovid; see Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 11. 324-353 (pp. 493-494 above). Perhaps Dryden was inspired to look in the classics by Speght's note (sig. 4B4), which says I, 3030 is "like to" passages in Horace, Seneca, and Homer. 1066 Drop. See also Cinyras and Myrrha, 1. 384, and Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 1. 325 (pp. 258, 493 above), both being Dryden's additions to Ovid. 1074 Retchless. A seventeenth- as well as a fourteenth-century spelling (see Chaucer's I, 2245 and 2397, pp. 136, 146 above). 1077 Three Souls. Kinsley (IV, 2069) cites Aristotle, De Anima, ii, 3ft., and Robert Burton's Anatomy of Melancholy, I, i, II, v (which calls it "the common division of the Soul," and refers to Aristotle). 1084 ordain'd to die. Chaucer's words "al thing mote deie" (I, 3034) are closer to the proverb, Haeckel, no. 150 (p. 44). Cf. Eccles. 3:20, quoted in note to To My Honour'd Kinsman, 11. 207-209 (p. 670 below). 1085 Skeat, no. 199 (pp. 83-84), Tilley V73. Robinson (pp. 682-683) notes that the proverb is as old as Jerome, Against Rufinus, III, 2. 1 1 1 0 offends. Attacks, harms. Not an anachronism. 1 1 1 0 Ghost. Chaucer's "soule" (I, 3065) shows that Dryden uses "ghost" in its basic meaning. 1112 Vicissitude. Change. 1133-1134 Chaucer's I, 3089, is a proverb, Skeat, no. 184 (p. 77). 1143 laborious. Dryden regularly speaks of the sexual act as work. See note to The Kind Keeper, II, i, 14 (Works, XIV, 395). 1144 Eros, and Anteros. Eros is the god of sensual love; Anteros, of reciprocal love. Kinsley (IV, 2070) notes that they also appear in Ben Jonson's wedding masque A Challenge at Tilt. 1147 Idalian. See note to II, 498 (pp. 644-645 above). 1154-1155 Dryden again emphasizes his volume's central theme of malefemale relationships. By his use of the word "bless" he makes a link to the first line of the next poem and underlines the moral that happiness can be found both by a true lover and by one who is content to be without a wife.

To My Honour'd

Kinsman, John

Driden

This John Driden (1635-1708) was the poet's cousin, their fathers being brothers. Driden's father was the elder of the brothers, but Driden himself was his father's second surviving son by his third marriage. He appears first in Dryden's letters on 4 March 1689 (Ward, Letters, p. 112), but only because very few of Dryden's earlier letters are preserved and almost none of them is family correspondence. In the letter of 4 March Dryden says his change of religion has not interrupted his friendship with his cousin, who had sent him produce from his estate at Chesterton. Winn (p. 477) records a tradition that Dryden wrote the first lines of his translation of Virgil with a diamond on a windowpane at his cousin's house there. Driden's Chesterton is four miles west southwest of Peterborough on the A605 motorway where the Ai(T) crosses it, in what is now Cambridgeshire but was then Huntingdon-

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shire. Because D r i d e n h a d been M P for H u n t i n g d o n s h i r e in 1690-1695 a n d h a d been r e t u r n e d again in a by-election in April 1699 (he then sat until his d e a t h in 1708), it was especially a p p r o p r i a t e for his cousin to discuss politics in a p o e m addressed to him. T h e p a r l i a m e n t of 1690-1695 h a d supported William III, a n d the parliament of 1698-1700 h a d finished its o n e controversy with the king, over the size of the peacetime army, before D r i d e n took his seat. As usual, Dryden looked for advice f r o m others with respect to this poem. I n October 1699 h e enclosed a copy of it in a letter to Charles Montague, the Lord Treasurer, saying, " T h e s e verses h a d waited o n you with the former [ T o Her Grace the Dutchess of Ormond]; b u t they t h e n wanted that Correction, which I have since given them, that they may the better e n d u r e the Sight of so great a J u d g e & Poet. I a m now in feare that I have purgd them o u t of their Spirit; as our Master Busby, usd to w h i p a Boy so long, till h e m a d e him a Confirmd Blockhead. My Cousin Driden saw them in the Country; & the greatest Exception H e made to them, was a Satire against the Dutch valour, in the late W a r r . H e desir'd me to o m i t it, (to use his O w n words) out of the respect H e h a d to his Soveraign. I obeyd his Commands; & left onely the praises, which I think are d u e to the gallantry of my own C o u n t r y m e n . In the description which I have m a d e of a Parliament Man, I think I have not onely drawn the features of my worthy Kinsman, b u t have also given my Own opinion, of what an Englishman in Parliament oughto be; & deliver it as a Memorial of my own Principles to all Posterity. I have consulted the J u d g m e n t of my Unbyassd friends, who have some of them the h o n o u r to be known to you; & they think there is n o t h i n g which can justly give offence, in that part of the Poem. I say n o t this, to cast a b l i n d o n your J u d g m e n t (which I cou'd not do, if I endeavourd it) but to assure you, that n o t h i n g relateing to the publique shall stand, without your permission. For it were to want C o m m o n sence, to desire your patronage [for a translation of all of Homer], & resolve to disoblige you: a n d as I will not hazard my hopes of your protection by refusing to obey you in any thing, which I can p e r f o r m with my conscience, or my h o n o u r ; So I am very confident you will never impose any other terms o n m e " (Ward, Letters, p p . 120-121). Noyes (p. 1029) believes that the description of Driden's politics in 11. 127-134 is continued in 11. 171-194 a n d that both passages show h i m not such a firm supporter of the king as Montague. If so, M o n t a g u e either r e a d the poem hastily or did not object to the lines, or Dryden inserted t h e m later. In any event, the letter warns us not to look in the poem for a full a n d clear statement of the poet's politics. In a letter to a more distant cousin, Mrs. Elizabeth Steward, Dryden said that "the Earl of Dorsett, & your Cousin Montague have both seen the two Poems, to the Duchess of O r m o n d , 8c my worthy Cousin Driden: A n d are of o p i n i o n that I never writt better. My other friends, are divided in their J u d g m e n t s which to preferr: b u t the greater part are for those to my dear Kinsman; which I have Corrected with so much care, that they will now be worthy of his Sight: 8c do neither of us any dishonour after our d e a t h " (Ward, Letters, p p . 123-124). Finally, in a n o t h e r letter to Mrs. Steward, Dryden wrote: " T h e Ladies of the T o w n have infected you at a distance:

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they are all of your O p i n i o n ; & like my last Book of Poems, better t h a n any t h i n g they have formerly seen of mine. I always t h o u g h t my Verses to my Cousin Driden were the best of the whole; & to my comfort the T o w n thinks them so; 3c He, which pleases me most is of the same J u d g m e n t as appears by a noble present he has sent me, which surprisd me, because I did not in the least expect it" (ibid., p. 135). Malone (I, i, 325-327) recorded a tradition, about which he was doubtful, that the present was £500. Possibly the tradition rests o n the u n d o u b t e d fact that Driden of Chesterton left a bequest of the same a m o u n t to Charles Dryden, the poet's son (Ward, Letters, p. 182). I n the letter of 4 March 1699, Dryden calls his cousin "so noble a Benefactour" for having sent him a present of poultry (ibid., p. 112). Except for Dryden a n d his cousin, these early valuers were probably more concerned with the f o r m of To My Honour1 d Kinsman t h a n with its content. Dryden was aware of tensions between form a n d content a n d between desire a n d possibility in the matter of content, as we have seen in his letter to Montague. B u t we cannot tell, when he says he fears that in responding to prepublication criticism he has purged his verses o u t of their "spirit," whether "spirit" means purpose (content) or fire (form) or both. Subsequent interest in the poem has tended to focus o n its content, particularly on its reflection "through a glass darkly" of his views of life, a n d especially of his politics. T h a t is, to most commentators the poem has seemed more interesting as autobiography than as art. T h o u g h Dryden had, he says, a serious purpose in writing the poem, its lightness of tone is noteworthy, a n d contributes considerably to our enjoyment. Possibly even its misogyny is a joke. A n o t h e r source of e n j o y m e n t may be its repetition of central words a n d its variations on central metaphors, so that even though the p o e m shifts its focus from local to national affairs (starting in 1.117), its texture of language a n d imagery unifies its effect (see Alan Roper, Dryden's Poetic Kingdoms [1965], p p . 124-135). A final source of enjoyment may be tracing the poem's connections to the others in the volume. Its first line, for example, echoes the last couplet of Palamon and Arcite. T h e notes to lines call attention to some but by n o means all of the poem's texture of language a n d imagery. Readers with long memories or with a willingness to spend much time with a concordance will find m a n y o t h e r interconnections, verbal a n d thematic, among the sections of the poem, of which there may be said to be ten. T h e y will t h e n be able to sink their knowledge i n t o its proper place among the other awarenesses they b r i n g to the poem as they respond to it. T h e following notes merely suggest what such a search can bring to a later reading of the poem in which all its qualities work in harmony u p o n mind and heart a n d ear. T h e first section of To My Honour'd Kinsman (11. 1-6) is a general introduction that sets the poem in a particular tradition of celebrative verse by parallels to the first Psalm a n d to Horace's second Epode. I t at once introduces the themes of peace as a desired state and of love earned by love. T h e o p e n i n g words, " H o w Bless'd is He," t u r n out, by a process of modulation, to be part of the second theme, for in 1. 45 we read, "ever be you bless'd, who live to bless." T h e two themes find their climactic expression in 1. 178, "our bless'd Abode," England. T h u s the poem progresses f r o m what at first might seem to be a narrow view of existence, " H o w Bless'd is

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He, who leads a Country Life," to a national view that embraces also Driden's work, and potential work, for peace, the first theme of the poem. T h a t theme develops thereafter from a diminuendo in the second section of the poem, which praises Driden's work in settling disputes among his neighbors, through the fifth, where the foxes that Driden hunts are likened to felons, to a grand crescendo in the eighth and ninth sections, where he is envisioned as taking his place in parliament once more to work for his country's abstention from war and for the individual's freedom under law. T h e word "Country" reappears, then, in 11. 120, 128, and 171. T h e second section of the poem (11. 7-16) concerns Driden's activities in resolving quarrels in his locality, whether as a justice of the peace or as an unofficial but respected ombudsman. T h e "Cause[s]" that come before him (1. 10) become, in the crescendo just described, the "Common Cause" of parliamentary restraint upon the royal prerogative (1. 190). Other key words are "Doom" (1. 8; cf. 11. 78, 192), "Foes" (1. 9; cf. 11. 131, 142), and "Laws" (1. 11; cf. 11. 173, 186, 191). T h e last line of the second section modulates into the next, and there in addition Dryden's praise of his cousin's "Soul" introduces the subject of the human soul, the overarching motif of the poem, subsumed in its last lines (207-209). In the interval, we find the word "Soul" in 11. 87 (in a contrasting mode) and 197. T h e third section of the poem (11. 17-35) praises Driden for having never married. Thus, as the headnote to the Fables points out (p. 582 above), this section carries on one of the major themes in the volume. It stands as a kind of digression in the poem itself, but the words "Wife" (1. 18) and "Trusting" (1. 35) tie it to the sixth section (cf. 11. 98, 87). In 1. 22, also, Dryden begins the Edenic imagery in the poem. T h e fourth section (11. 36-49) praises Driden for his generosity. As noted above, this section develops the theme of reciprocal love (1. 45). It also introduces the subject of what the generous man of wealth will do for others, here for what Isaac Watts called the "sons of want," and in the eighth section for his country (11. 127-130). T h e fifth section of the poem (11. 50-70) describes Driden the huntsman and introduces the theme of his ancestry (1. 50). Not only is he the quintessential Englishman in his love of field sports, but he is also English of the English, a man of "ancient Race" among them. As noted above, this section presents Driden once more, this time metaphorically, as an upholder of the laws, for he treats foxes like felons (11. 54-57). T h e section opens into a wider view still, concluding with a veiled comparison of the Chesterton hunter and fox to James II, hunted from his throne and now hunting in the forest of St. Germain (11. 67-70). T h e image is an unusually complicated one, for Dryden not only compares James to Driden but represents James as comparing himself to other hunters and foxes. T h e word "Princes" in 1. 67 looks forward to repeated use of the word in later sections (cf. 11. 175,181, 189). T h e sixth section of the poem (11. 71-116), which at first appears to be a digression on physicians and apothecaries, dispraising them both as groups and as individuals, is in fact the pivot between Driden the private man and Driden the public individual, linked by the parallel between the human body and the body politic (see Roper, Dryden's Poetic Kingdoms, p. 125).

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Kinsman

In dispraising medicine and its practitioners, Dryden neglects neither his literary enemy Sir Richard Blackmore (in 1. 87) nor his literary enemy Luke Milbourne, thereby touching on ground covered in the preface to the Fables (pp. 44-47 above) and to be covered again in the opening passage of the last poem in the volume (pp. 513-514 above) and helping to unify the whole. In this pivotal section Dryden included an unusual number of key words, among them "Trade" (1. 74), "Doom" (1. 78), "Trust" and "Soul" (1. 87), "Chace" (1. 88), "Health" (1. 92), and "Grandsire" and "Wife" (1. 98). In 1. 96 the Edenic imagery in the poem once again becomes explicit. "Our Grandsire" (Adam) seen in connection with Driden's "Grandsire" Sir Erasmus Dryden (1. 188) has an overtone of humor. One remembers the great Earl of Chesterfield, who added to his family portraits two he labeled Adam de Stanhope and Eve de Stanhope. T h e seventh section of the poem (11. 117-126) begins the discussion of how a healthy, wise, and wealthy man can aid his country. T h e word "Health," with which the section begins, looks back to the preceding section, as also does the word "Wit" (1. 124; cf. 1. 94, " T h e Wise"); between them, the word "Senates" (1. 121) looks forward and promises the wider view to come. T h e eighth section (11. 127-179) moves quickly from its opening words, "Well-born, and Wealthy," to its principal subject, the public need for continued surcease from war. T h u s we hear the notes of Driden's ancestry and generosity struck once more, and the note of peace, the two latter now ringing out beyond Chesterton to the whole of England as generosity will ring out in the ninth section. War, we are told, is simply too expensive. W e might expect Dryden to approach the matter of expense from the point of view of one overtaxed landholder speaking to another, but instead he takes a tradesman's view of peace. T h e word "Trade" (1. 132) and its conduct (1. 138) recall the sixth section (cf. 1. 74), incidentally with no elevation of the theme. But buying and selling (11. 138, 140, 159) also have connections to the preservation of the rule of law, on both national and local levels. "Senators" (1. 135) carries us back to 1. 121, and "undone" (1. 164), all t h e way back to 1. 13. T h e theme of law and lawfulness carries us forward also. T h e ninth section of the poem (11. 180-194) urges Driden to assume a n active role as a member of parliament in protecting the rights of the people from royal incursion. "Peace" and "War" (1. 181) connect this section to the eighth, heralding a last expression of the first of the opening themes of the poem. T h e word "Grandsire" (1. 188) links the ninth section with the sixth (1. 98), and "Patriots" (1. 184) links it with both the eighth and the tenth sections (cf. 11. 171, 195). T h e words "Lawless" and "Laws" (11. 186, 191) link it with another oft-repeated theme; "give," "grant," and " W a n t " (11. 187-189) carry back thematically to Driden's generosity at home as expressed in the fourth section (11. 38-39). T h e tenth and last section of the poem (11. 195-209) is linked by its opening apostrophe, "O true Descendent of a Patriot Line," both to the n i n t h section and to the first words of the eighth, "Well-born, and Wealthy" (1. 127). Its last lines reiterate the theme of Driden's great soul and they end the poem on a plane even above the national: the poet lifts our view from, earth to heaven, from the temporal to the eternal, and so concludes his

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work oil the grandest note of all. Dryden tended to think well of his works, but we can agree that he was right to think well of this one. 1 - 6 Although this type of opening may be found in the first Psalm, "Blessed is the man t h a t . . . a n d elsewhere in the Bible, Dryden's readers would have thought also of Horace's Epodes, II, "How happy . . . is he, W h o leads a quiet country life" (Dryden's translation, Works, III, 85-88), and would have enjoyed comparing the rest of Horace's picture with Dryden's. For its function here see note to Palamon and Arcite, III, 1 1 5 4 - 1 1 5 5 (p. 657 above). 2 void of Strife. T h e same words occur in 1. 4 of Dryden's translation of Horace. 3 studying Peace. Here we may think of peace simply as personal freedom from care, but Dryden soon establishes it as his cousin's goal for his community (11. 15, 17) and then makes it his main theme when he comes to national affairs in the second half of the poem (11. 141-143, 155, 159, 170, 181, 184). See Roper, Dryden's Poetic Kingdoms, p. 125. 3 shunning Civil Rage. As Roper points out (ibid., p. 127), "shun" is another word found significantly throughout the poem (see 11. 33, 34, 122). T h e "Civil Rage" shunned by Driden of Chesterton, who was born in 1635, would have been the Civil Wars of 1642-1651, the Popish Plot a n d the Exclusion Crisis of 1678-1680, Monmouth's Rebellion of 1685, a n d the Glorious Revolution of 1688. 6 For the hexameter see note to To Her Grace the Dutchess, 1. 10 (p. 630 above). Dryden repeats the device in this poem at 11. 26, 87, 116, 134, 163, and 179. 8 your Award. Perhaps as justice of the peace, perhaps more informally as a kind of unofficial ombudsman. 11 Cf. Ward, Letters, p. 52: " I am u p to the Eares in law; & have been for six weekes together. I have been cousend of fifty pounds, & more, by one whom I thought my Friend: & am affrayd that at the long run, I will rather loose it, & let him go, whom I have arrested, than prosecute him in the tedious court of Chancery; to do which I must pass through a tedious course of Common Law" (9 or 10 May [1693]). As Ward notes (p. 163), Dryden appears to have abandoned his claim; the person in question is unknown. Horace's happy man shuns the "clamours of contentious Law" (11. 14-15). 12 travers'd. Gone through (see in note to 1. 11 "I must pass through a tedious course of Common Law"). 13 For the same idea at the national level see 1. 164 (p. 201 above). Roper points out (Dryden's Poetic Kingdoms, p. 125) that both lines have the same rhyme word. 15 Sanction. By the date of the poem, the legal use of the word included both rewards (remunerative sanctions) and punishments (vindicatory or punitive sanctions); see OED. 18 Horace's happy man was free from "love," but he might have a wife a n d family (11. 56-66). St, Paul was the first Christian writer to exalt the single life, and for quite a different reason than Dryden will now give,

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namely, because " H e that is unmarried careth for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please the Lord: but he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife" (1 Cor. 7:32-33). 19-22 Kinsley (IV, 2070) compares Donne's Loves Alchymie, 11. 11—izff.: "So, lovers dreame a rich and long delight, / But get a winter-seeming summers night," etc. 23 in one. Gen. 22:4, Matt. 19:5-6. 25 1 Cor. 11:7-8, "he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man," i.e.. Eve was taken from Adam's rib. Mason (p. 758) notes that the idea is repeated in Paradise Lost, IV, 299: "Hee for God only, shee for God in him." 31-33 This triplet is unusual in having both the second and third lines hexameters. 33 struggle in the Snare. See note to Palamon and Arcite, III, 328 (p. 652 above). 35 Fate. Probably divine will rather than chance, in the light of 11. 38 (where Dryden says "For God . . . gave the Riches"), 40 (where he says "Heav'n" has given man the impulse and capability to do good), and 80 (where "Fate" means God-ordained death). In the dedication of The Rival Ladies, Dryden had said there is no free will, but in The State of Innocence he had made angels argue that there is (Works, VIII, 97; XII, 123-126). See also Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 1. 509 (p. 230 above). 38 Riches. Horace's happy man, on the contrary, was not rich (11. 2, 72). T h e Bible is hardly consistent in what it says about wealth and the wealthy, but it makes clear that many people believed wealth was a reward for righteousness. Thus when Jesus tells his apostles that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God they ask, "Who then can be saved?" (Matt. 19:24-25). 39 Probably alluding to Hebrew sacrifices, in which the entire offering was holy even though only part of it was presented to the deity; see e.g., Lev. 6:14-18. But note 1 Peter 4:8, "charity shall cover the multitude of sins." 40 Cf. Phil. 2:13: "it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." 41 Second Son. See headnote. 41 Blessing. See note to 1. 43. 43 T h e allusion is complex and not entirely exact. John Driden inherited his mother's property. Jacob, Isaac's second son, was his mother Rebekah's favorite, and she had helped him trick Isaac into giving his blessing to Jacob instead of to his elder brother Esau. But Jacob had to flee from Esau and make his own way in the world (Gen. 35:21-34, 26:34-28:5, etc.). W i n n (p. 504) thinks Dryden may be alluding also to his own differences with his cousin Sir Robert Dryden of Canons Ashby, John Driden's elder brother. 46 While Ceres was searching for Proserpina she forbade grain to come to harvest, but afterward she "yoked her two dragons to her car, curbing their mouths with the bit, and rode away through the air midway between heaven and earth, until she came at last to Pallas' city [Athens]. Here she

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gave her fleet car to Triptolemus, a n d bade h i m scatter the seeds of grain she gave, p a r t in the untitled earth a n d part in fields that h a d long lain fallow" (Ovid, Metamorphoses, V, 642-647; Loeb). 47 the Bread of Dew. Exod. 16:13-15: "in the m o r n i n g the dew lay r o u n d a b o u t the host. A n d when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, u p o n the face of the wilderness there lay a small r o u n d thing, as small as the h o a r frost o n the ground. A n d w h e n the children of Israel saw it, they said to o n e another, It is m a n n a . " 48 to Relations. See headnote. 50-57 Horace's h a p p y m a n h u n t e d boars a n d hares a n d t r a p p e d birds in winter (11. 45-53). 50 ancient Race. T h e Drydens could trace their ancestry at least to the beginning of the sixteenth century, a span of 200 years, because the J o h n Dryden who died in 1584 h a d a grandfather, W i l l i a m Dryden, who lived in C u m b r i a (Winn, p. 2 a n d following p. 12). Perhaps family traditions traced the lineage even f u r t h e r back. At any rate, we may assume that the poet was o n occasion one of the crowd of family members who h u n t e d with his cousin, t h o u g h perhaps only as a n onlooker. H e himself appears in his poems a n d letters rather as a fisherman. 51 Champian-Sports, or Sylvan-Chace. H u n t i n g hares with greyhounds in fields (see 1. 62) or h u n t i n g foxes with beagles through fields a n d woods (11. 52-57)53 industrious of. Christie (p. 325) notes that the same construction occurs in The Hind and the Panther, II, 571 (Works, III, 156). 53 Common Good. Dryden omits the damage done to standing grain by h u n t e r s riding through it. " C o m m o n Good," "Common Care" (1. 121), a n d " C o m m o n Cause" (1. 190) are phrases almost never seen before in Dryden's poetry b u t very evident in the Fables. " C o m m o n good" h a d a p p e a r e d in The Hind and the Panther, III, 365 {Works, III, 181); it appears in Palamon and Arcite, I, 292, Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 1. 552, The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 1. 129, a n d The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, 1. 304 (pp. 71, 232, 264, 440 above). "Common Cause" appears in The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 1. 42, a n d in The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, 11. 114, 220, a n d 344 (pp. 408, 435, 438, 441 above). 55 the Firstlings of the Flocks. Gen. 4:4: " A n d Abel, he also b r o u g h t of the firstlings of his flock." Cain killed Abel because God "had respect" for Abel's firstlings a n d not for his own offering of "the f r u i t of the g r o u n d . " 57 Like Felons. Dryden presumably has in m i n d the eight regicides who were executed at C h a r i n g Cross, at the n o r t h end of Whitehall, in sight, then, of Charles I's place of execution in f r o n t of the B a n q u e t i n g House i n that street. H e may also be thinking of the gibbeting of corpses beside roads. It may be that Dryden alludes to his cousin's service as justice of the peace, if indeed he was o n e (see 1. 8 a n d note). Death sentences are p r o n o u n c e d only in assize courts, b u t a justice of the peace may commit a n accused for trial there. See also The Cock and the Fox, 1. 727 (p. 329 above). 63 Humane Life. As viewed, for example, by the a u t h o r of Ecclesiastes; see note to 11. 207-209. 65 ends where he begun. Hares surprised n e a r their burrows t e n d to circle back to them.

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69-70 An allusion to James II in particular. T h e second line means that these princes in exile find their joy in hunting lessened by the thought that they have been hunted from their thrones. James II used to hunt in the forest of St. Germain. (See A. W. Verrall, Lectures on Dryden [1914, 1963], p. 44.) Presumably Dryden does not mean that James, hunted from his throne, sought to win it back by sending assassins to kill William (their original plan was to shoot the king as he was on his way to hunt in Richmond Park; see Macaulay, V, 2584-2615). 71-116 In this passage Roper (Dryden's Poetical Kingdoms, pp. 124-125) sees Dryden laying the groundwork for a parallel between the human body and the body of the state. Dryden develops the commonplace in a fresh way, for he never makes the parallel explicit but lets alert readers recognize it when they come to the following lines. T h e transition between the two "bodies" comes in 11. 117-118. 72 the Weekly Bill. Also called the bill of mortality, it "began to be published weekly by the London Company of Parish Clerks in 1592 for 109 parishes in and around London" (OED, sense 10 of third noun). 73 A commonplace idea Dryden could have found in Ecclus. 37:29-38:15 and in Horace's picture of the happy man (11. 73-85). 75 Pity. "It is a pity that" (Christie, p. 326). For "gen'rous" see note to 1. 188. 76 a Sin to know. Dryden makes his meaning clearer in 11. 77-78 and 95-97. He leaves his readers to recognize the Edenic imagery in the first passage but makes it explicit in the second. Mason (pp. 758-759) notes that "can it be sin to know, / Can it be death?" occurs in Paradise Lost, IV, 517-518 (Satan wondering about the tree of knowledge). 78 pronounc'd by God. Gen. 3:19. 79 Leech. In view of "fastens" in the next line, probably the word has two meanings here. 80 Fate. See note to 1. 35. 80 vindicates. Claims (OED, citing Dryden's preface to Ovid's Epistles). 82 Guibbons. William Gibbons, MD (1649-1728). Dryden speaks of him as the ultimate physician in his translation of Persius' Satires, III, 126 (Works, IV, 303), and in the Postscript to the Reader in his translation of Virgil (ibid., VI, 810) he says that Gibbons had, with God's help, brought him back to health after he had overworked himself in translating. Kinsley (IV, 2071) observes that Sir Samuel Garth had satirized Gibbons in The Dispensary (1699), making him say, "I oft dispatch'd [i.e., killed] the patient in a Day" (IV, 57). For Dryden's estimate of Garth see 1. 107. 83 Maurus. Sir Richard Blackmore, MD. See preface to the Fables (pp. 45-46 above) and notes to the prologue to The Pilgrim (Works, XVI, 428429). Saintsbury (S-S, XI, 76) notes that the line is a fourteener, saying " T h e sweep of the verse is as vast as that of Maurus." 85 Maro's Muse. Maro is Virgil, and his muse, says Kingsley (IV, 2070), is the muse of epic. Blackmore's Arthur poems are epics. But it is perhaps more likely that what Dryden is objecting to is how Blackmore had constructed his epics; see preface to the Fables (pp. 45-46 above). 86 perish whole. Have your soul die in hell. 87 M—lb—rn. Luke Milbourne, a clergyman who had attacked Dryden's

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translation of Virgil. See preface to the Fables, II. 745-746 and note (pp. 45, 626 above). 88 Dryden alludes particularly to Nimrod, who was "a mighty hunter" (Gen. 10:8-9) a n d lived, according to the Bible, when life spans of more than a hundred years were common. 89 strung the Nerves. Tightened the muscles. The same language occurs in Dryden's translation of Persius' Satires, II, 75 (Works, IV, 287) and in Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 1. 343 (see p. 494 above). 91 threescore Years and ten. The limit set by Psalm 90:10. 92 The idea is present in Horace, whose happy man hunts, and eats temperately of "unbought dainties" (1. 72). 95 Cf. Isa. 45:9: "Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! . . . Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it. What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands?" 96-97 Gen. 2:16-17, S : 2 _ 3- There are, of course, many similar passages in Paradise Lost. Mason (p. 759) notes I, 2: "that Forbidden Tree"; IV, 423: "not to taste that only Tree"; IV, 514-515: "One fatal Tree . . . of Knowledge . . . / Forbidden . . . to taste"; IX, 750-752: "forbids . . . the Tree / Of Knowledge"; and IX, 925: "to taste it under ban." 99 the better Plant of Life. "The tree of life . . . in the midst of the garden" of Eden (Gen. 2:9), from which Adam and Eve were free to eat (2:16). They did not do so before they ate of the tree of knowledge and were then shut out of the garden lest they "take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever" (3:22). There is therefore a special irony in Dryden's line. Roper (Dryden's Poetic Kingdoms, p. 127) sees a parallel between Eden and England or, more specifically, Driden's estate at Chesterton. ioi the Bark. "The bark of various species of the Cinchona tree, from which quinine is procured, formerly ground into powder and taken as a febrifuge" (OED). 107 Sir Samuel Garth, MD (1661-1719), had established a free clinic for the poor. He had also written a poem, The Dispensary (1699), satirizing the apothecaries who had opposed the clinic. Dryden's embalmed body lay in state at the College of Physicians, where Garth spoke a Latin oration over it on 13 May, the day it was taken to Westminster Abbey (Macdonald, pp. 292-293). For "Garth's Ovid" see headnote (p. 588 above). 109-110 A complex image. It is the apothecaries who issue from medicine. Noyes (p. 1030) quotes Joshua Sylvester's translation of Bartas his Divine Weekes and Workes (First Week, Sixth Day, 11. 250-251): Thou mak'st th' ingratefull Viper (at his birth) His dying Mother's belly to gnaw forth. Sylvester's Du Bartas was among Dryden's favorite reading as a boy (Works, XIV, 101). He may also have had in mind the proverb, "A serpent must eat another serpent before he can become a dragon" (Tilley S228; first citation in English 1598). 112 double Bribe. T o physician and apothecary. See The Spanish Fryar, IV, i, 99-101: "Dom. I find then, I must bring a Doctor. Gom. And he'll bring an Apothecary with a chargeable long bill of Ana's," charges for filling the prescription the second and following times (Works, XIV, 161). 114 bloody Bill. Prescription written in red ink; cf. "bloody Bills," posters

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printed in red ink, in Prologue to Arviragus Reviv'd, 1. 7 (Works, I, 145). 117-118 See note to 11. 71-116. 121 Senates. I.e., the parliaments in which Driden had sat and was then sitting. 121 Common Care. See note to 1. 53 Common Good. 122 shuns. Out of modesty, not out of sloth or selfishness; see note to 1. 3, shunning Civil Rage. 128 the Country and the Court. T h e political parties of the time were so called. What Dryden says here of his cousin he repeats at more length when describing "Good Senators" and "Patriots" (11. 135-187). W e do not have sufficient information about Driden's parliamentary career to tell how much of what his cousin says here is praise and how much is exhortation. T h e poet speaks as a trimmer like the Marquis of Halifax to whom he had dedicated King Arthur in 1691. Dryden had attacked trimmers in The Vindication of The Duke of Guise (1683) and in the postscript to The History of the League (1684) (see Works, XIV, 330-332; XVIII, 408-409) but it may be that we see the germs if not the genetic code of a mediating position on his part in his stretching out a hand to the Duke of Monmouth and the Earl of Shaftesbury, at the same time as he warned them, in Absalom and Achitophel (1680). 131 As the parliamentary debates in i6go make clear, a "Fund" is a part of government expenditure guaranteed ["left," in Dryden's terminology] by parliament in a limited amount and foT a limited time and purpose (see The Parliamentary History of England, 1806-1820, Vol. V, cols. 552-574). Dryden refers here to appropriations for an army to defend the country, including Ireland, but not to campaign in Europe. 132 roll. "Drive onward" (OED, citing Dryden's translation of Virgil's Georgics, III, 544). Both king and parliament recognized that the navy fostered the country's foreign trade by maintaining cruisers and ships on station and by providing convoys. Peace with France still left the need to protect the Smyrna fleet from Turkish and Algerian pirates, and the West Indian trade from the likes of Captain Kidd (hanged 1701). 133 Canaan's happy Land. I.e., the "land of milk and honey" (see Num. 13:23-27, 14:7-8). "Happy" also echoes "Blesx'd" in 1. 1. 134 Alluding to the "sabbatical year" in which the land was to be left fallow (Exod. 23:10-11, Lev. 25:1-7). 138 Foreign Aids. Both mercenaries and allies. 139 Alluding to the disbanding of William's Dutch Guards at parliament's insistence. In 1699 the House of Commons, over the king's strong objections, had reduced the army in England to 7,000 men, all of whom had to be English (10 William III, ch. i; see Luttrell, IV, 319). 140 Munster. Christoph Bernhard von Galen, Prince-Bishop of Munster. In 1665, in the Second Dutch War, the English induced him by promise of reward to attack the Dutch province of Guelderland. Dryden also refers to Munster in Annus Mirabilis, 1. 145 (Works, I, 65) and in The Kind Keeper, I, i, 46-48 (Works, XIV, 10). See notes to these passages. 141 A general remark, perhaps. Von Galen was not bought off; the English, as Pepys says, failed to pay up (Diary, 7 and 22 April 1666). In 1698 the country owed him £149,997 (The Parliamentary History of England, Vol. V, col. 1170).

668

Commentary

142-149 For the politics of these lines see headnote to the Fables (p. 576 above); for Dryden's long interest in foreign trade see headnote to King Arthur (Works, XVI, 297). 147 The Sea is ours. Though the strength of the army had been severely reduced after the Peace of Ryswick, the navy had been maintained at 10,000 men (see Luttrell, IV, 322). See also King Arthur (1691), V, ii, 105-106, "Round thy Coasts, Fair Nymph of Britain, j For thy Guard our Waters flow" (Works, XVI, 61). 150 the War. See note to 1. 157. 1 2 5 ~'53 The second line corrects the first, but both exaggerate the English share in the capture of the town and the castle at Namur, Belgium, in July and August 1695. William III led what Luttrell calls "the confederate army" (III, 490) of Brandenburgers, Lifegois, and Bavarians besides the Dutch serving in the English army. Eight foreign regiments joined fourteen battalions of English and Scots in the first assault on the town. First estimates set English and Scottish losses at about 440 and Dutch at about 160 (ibid., p. 498). This first attack breached the town's wall and subsequent cannonading widened the opening in preparation for a general assault (ibid., pp. 499, 501). The town then surrendered, with the proviso that the defenders be allowed to withdraw to the castle after an exchange of prisoners (ibid., p. 505). In the assault on the castle, the English attacking force lost nearly a third of its men and "the elector of Bavarias guards suffer'd extreamly" (ibid., p. 518). Kinsley (IV, 2071) quotes Burnet (II, 153) as saying that the taking of Namur was "reckoned one of the greatest actions of the King's life, and indeed, one of the greatest that is in the whole History of War." As Christie observes (p. 328), it was no doubt at this point in the poem that Dryden had at one time included "a Satire against the Dutch valour, in the late Warr" (see headnote, p. 658 above). 156 one sole Treaty. The Peace of Ryswick, 1697, was really three treaties, between France and England, France and Spain, and France and Holland. France agreed to give Lorraine its independence, to return Catalonia, Belgium, and Luxembourg to Spain, and to acknowledge William as the lawful king of England. England and France agreed to return to each other any foreign possessions they had captured, and France agreed to return to William the sovereignty of the French province of Orange. 157 Twenty. Required for the rhythm. The French had been fighting the Spanish and the Dutch in Belgium and Holland since 1667, and in 1672-1674 the English had fought on the French side. From the English point of view the conflict of 1672-1674 was the Third Dutch War, in support of which Dryden wrote Amboyna. He is thinking here, however, of more recent events. Upon the accession of William III, the English joined the Dutch and the Spanish against the French. From the English point of view, this new conflict was the Nine Years' War (1688-1697), ended by the Peace of Ryswick. 158 for Europe. I.e., for the European allies against France. 160-163 As Kinsley notes (IV, 2071), Dryden's information about mutiny in Alexander's army and the Egyptian priests' assertion that Alexander was the son of Amun (Jove in the Roman pantheon) may be found in Plutarch (Life of Alexander, III, 1-2; LXII, 1). For Alexander's mother's assertion

Notes to Pages

200-201

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that Jove was his father see note to Alexander's Feast, 11. 25-33 (p. 563 above). Because Alexander's Feast was reprinted in the Fables following The Flower and the Leaf, this allusion helps to unify the volume; see also To Her Grace the Dutchess, 1. 133 (p. 52 above). 164 For the same idea at the local level see 1. 13 (p. 196 above). 165-166 T h e story of Hannibal's recall from Italy to Carthage, too late to save the city from the Romans, may be found in Plutarch (Comparison of Aristides with Marcus Cato, V, 2, and Life of Fabius Maximus, XXVXXVII). 169 uncertain of Success. T h e words may seem to contradict 11. 150-151, but the English had lost all three, or at least had not won any, of their wars with the Dutch earlier in the century. 170 Umpires. Arbitrators, "honest brokers" in more recent language, and as such, according to Dryden, entitled to fees. His argument here is not very heroic, but at the time this note was written President George Bush had recently said that the United States' interest in restoring the independence of Kuwait was "jobs." 171-187 Dryden's concept of the mediating work of patriots is not a simple one. Sometimes patriots mediate between the parliamentary parties (see I. 128 and note), sometimes they mediate between king and parliament, both of which are potentially dangerous to the people (11. 175-177). T h e ideas are not clarified by Dryden's use of "Country" (1. 171) in one meaning and "Land" and "our . . . Abode" (11. 177, 178) in another; and "People" (11. 181, 184) in two meanings. 172 Prerogative, and Privilege. Royal prerogative and parliamentary privilege, specifically that of the House of Commons. Our royalist author rejects the doctrine that parliament has rights by inheritance from Saxon times, not just privileges granted by the Normans and their successors. See headnote to King Arthur (IWorks, XVI, 288). 174 T h e beginning of a mixed metaphor. Most agricultural land suffers when its rivers run dry but fenlands suffer when their rivers overflow. In II. 175-177 the vehicle of the metaphor is the fenlands of Cambridgeshire and its bordering counties to the north and east; in 11. 178-179 the vehicle is farmland in other parts of England. 175 Dryden thinks of the people as like the Hundred Foot Washes between the Old Bedford River and the New, in the fenlands. By 1700 the drained land had sunk and the rivers ran between banks above the ground level; windmills pumped water from lower drains to higher and into the rivers. 176 Barriers of the State. Corresponding to the banks of the fenland rivers. See note to 1. 175. 179 Gen. 2:10: "And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads." In the opening stage direction in The State of Innocence, IV, ii, Dryden says the "four Rivers meet" in the garden (Works, XII, 129). Mason (p. 179) notes Paradise Lost, IV, 208-209: "Paradise / Of God the Garden was." This line concludes the Edenic imagery in Dryden's poem, but not the biblical (see note to 11. 207-209).

670

Commentary

1 8 0 - 1 9 1 T h i s passage is Locke's doctrine as set forth in Two Treatises of Government (1690), II, xii. 1 8 2 - 1 8 3 D u r i n g the life of the R o m a n republic, the chief officials were two elected consuls, who held office for a year. O n e of the earliest of them, P. Valerius Publicóla, h a d signified by certain ceremonies that the consuls were servants of the people (for Publicóla see n o t e to dedication of the Fables, 1. 58, p. 607 above). Consuls normally led the R o m a n s in war, b u t in great emergencies dictators with absolute powers were a p p o i n t e d for short terms. A consul might fight the Gauls, as did Caius Flaminius; a dictator might fight other enemies, as did Cincinnatus. (For the latter see n o t e to preface to the Fables, 1. 796, p. 628 above.) 187 lend. Give (OED). See also 11. 130, 191. 188 your gen'rous Grandsire. Very likely Dryden packs three meanings i n t o "gen'rous": "Well-born" (1. 127), "gallant" a n d "munificent" (OED). T h e grandsire was his a n d his cousin's common grandfather, Sir Erasmus Dryden (1553-1632), M P for B a n b u r y in Oxfordshire in 1624-1625 ( R e t u r n of Members of Parliament [1878-1891; photo, rept. 1989], Pt. I, p. 459). 190 Common Cause. See note to 1. 53, Common Good. 191 lend. I.e., pay ship money, "used to build a fleet f r o m 1634 onwards" (Oxford History of Britain, p. 356). See also next note. 193 In Bonds. As a private individual Sir Erasmus Dryden was imprisoned in 1604-05 for his efforts in behalf of P u r i t a n preachers (Winn, p. 4), a n d in 1627-28 for his refusal to pay ship money (John Rushworth, Historical Collections, 1659, p. 473, where the n a m e is spelled Draiton; cited by Christie, p. 329). 193 Birthright Liberty. See "birth-right skyes" in The State of Innocence, III, i, 99 (Works, XII, i i 6 ) . 206 Cf. Virgil, Eclogues, IV, 53-59 (11- 6 4 - 7 1 in Dryden's translation, Works, V, 97). 207-209 Eccles. 3:20, "all are of the dust, a n d all t u r n to dust again," a n d 12:7, " T h e n shall the dust r e t u r n to the earth as it was: a n d the spirit shall r e t u r n to God who gave it"; Horace, Odes, I I I , xxx, 1, "a m o n u m e n t more lasting than bronze."

Meleager and

Atalanta

Although Meleager and Atalanta comes first in Dryden's selections f r o m Ovid in the Fables, it was n o t the first of t h e m that he translated. As he explains in the preface to the volume (p. 24 above), he began by translating all of Book X I I of the Metamorphoses a n d went on to selections from Books X I I I a n d X V before t u r n i n g back to earlier episodes. It may be that Meleager and Atalanta was the first of these earlier episodes h e undertook, for m a n y of the people in it are to be f o u n d in the translations f r o m Books X I I a n d X I I I . I n d u e course he arranged his translations f r o m the Metamorphoses in the order in which they occur in the original, the only selections in the Fables that he treated in this way. Meleager and Atalanta is a translation of Metamorphoses, Bk. VIII, 11. 270-545 in Freind's edition, 11.

670

Commentary

1 8 0 - 1 9 1 T h i s passage is Locke's doctrine as set forth in Two Treatises of Government (1690), II, xii. 1 8 2 - 1 8 3 D u r i n g the life of the R o m a n republic, the chief officials were two elected consuls, who held office for a year. O n e of the earliest of them, P. Valerius Publicóla, h a d signified by certain ceremonies that the consuls were servants of the people (for Publicóla see n o t e to dedication of the Fables, 1. 58, p. 607 above). Consuls normally led the R o m a n s in war, b u t in great emergencies dictators with absolute powers were a p p o i n t e d for short terms. A consul might fight the Gauls, as did Caius Flaminius; a dictator might fight other enemies, as did Cincinnatus. (For the latter see n o t e to preface to the Fables, 1. 796, p. 628 above.) 187 lend. Give (OED). See also 11. 130, 191. 188 your gen'rous Grandsire. Very likely Dryden packs three meanings i n t o "gen'rous": "Well-born" (1. 127), "gallant" a n d "munificent" (OED). T h e grandsire was his a n d his cousin's common grandfather, Sir Erasmus Dryden (1553-1632), M P for B a n b u r y in Oxfordshire in 1624-1625 ( R e t u r n of Members of Parliament [1878-1891; photo, rept. 1989], Pt. I, p. 459). 190 Common Cause. See note to 1. 53, Common Good. 191 lend. I.e., pay ship money, "used to build a fleet f r o m 1634 onwards" (Oxford History of Britain, p. 356). See also next note. 193 In Bonds. As a private individual Sir Erasmus Dryden was imprisoned in 1604-05 for his efforts in behalf of P u r i t a n preachers (Winn, p. 4), a n d in 1627-28 for his refusal to pay ship money (John Rushworth, Historical Collections, 1659, p. 473, where the n a m e is spelled Draiton; cited by Christie, p. 329). 193 Birthright Liberty. See "birth-right skyes" in The State of Innocence, III, i, 99 (Works, XII, i i 6 ) . 206 Cf. Virgil, Eclogues, IV, 53-59 (11- 6 4 - 7 1 in Dryden's translation, Works, V, 97). 207-209 Eccles. 3:20, "all are of the dust, a n d all t u r n to dust again," a n d 12:7, " T h e n shall the dust r e t u r n to the earth as it was: a n d the spirit shall r e t u r n to God who gave it"; Horace, Odes, I I I , xxx, 1, "a m o n u m e n t more lasting than bronze."

Meleager and

Atalanta

Although Meleager and Atalanta comes first in Dryden's selections f r o m Ovid in the Fables, it was n o t the first of t h e m that he translated. As he explains in the preface to the volume (p. 24 above), he began by translating all of Book X I I of the Metamorphoses a n d went on to selections from Books X I I I a n d X V before t u r n i n g back to earlier episodes. It may be that Meleager and Atalanta was the first of these earlier episodes h e undertook, for m a n y of the people in it are to be f o u n d in the translations f r o m Books X I I a n d X I I I . I n d u e course he arranged his translations f r o m the Metamorphoses in the order in which they occur in the original, the only selections in the Fables that he treated in this way. Meleager and Atalanta is a translation of Metamorphoses, Bk. VIII, 11. 270-545 in Freind's edition, 11.

Notes

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»70-546 in the Loeb edition (see headnote, p. 586, for Freind's edition and note to 1. 363, p. 686 below, for the differences in lineation from Loeb). A few of Dryden's phrases come from Sandys's Ovid and from Paradise Lost. In the notes to lines, the Latin is cited from Freind's edition. Differences between it and modern editions are seldom noted, even when a reader working from a modern text might suppose that Dryden had varied from the text he was using. T h e English translations in the notes, however, are often taken from the Loeb edition, sometimes with small and unacknowledged alterations. T h e translations do not necessarily match the syntax of the Latin that precedes them, and affixed que ("and") is sometimes ignored; those who can read the original will see in these mismatches additional evidence of Dryden's rephrasing of Ovid's thoughts. T h e notes are reasonably detailed, but the line between what ought to be observed and what may be neglected cannot be drawn to everyone's satisfaction, or even to one's own. For example, in Dryden's lines 147-150, the notes point out that "sprawling on the Ground" translates Ovid's Promts, "prone," but they neglect to mention that "Telamon rush'd in, and happ'd to meet / A rising Root, that held his fastned Feet" translates Persequitur Telamon: studioque incautus eundi.. .ab arborea ... radice retentus, "Telamon pursued, and, careless of where he went in his eagerness, he was held fast by a tree root." Anyone who has undertaken to annotate in this way a translation of Dryden's kind will sympathize. T h e lemmas in the notes often give only the first and last words of the passages in the English text to which the notes apply; ellipses in the citations of the Latin, however, always indicate omissions of words that are n o t apropos. For other English translations see p. 586 above. 1 Relief. Ovid (VIII, 271) adds Sollicita... prece, "with solicitous prayer." 2 valiant . . . Chief. Ovid (VIII, 270), Meleagron haberet, "it [Calydon} had Meleager." 3 who . .. near. Dryden's addition. 4 Cynthia. Diana, as Ovid says (VIII, 272). 5 Oeneus. T h e king of Calydon, a city in Aetolia, in west central Greece, on the river Evenus (see note to 1. 367). 6 This line brings out the full meaning of a single word in Ovid, libasse (VIII, 275), "made a libation." 7 Cull'd Sheafs. Ovid (VIII, 274), Primitias frugum, "the first-fruits of the grain" (Loeb). 7 Lyceus. So Ovid (VIII, 274). Bacchus. 8 Dryden's addition. For Pales see note to To Her Grace the Dutchess,. 1. 65 (pp. 632-633 above). 9 Fat of Olives. Ovid (VIII, 275), Palladios . . . latices, "Palladian fluid." As the olive was sacred to Pallas Athena, whom the Romans called Minerva, the fluid is olive oil. T h e date of OED's earliest citation for "fat" in the sense of oil is 1731. 9 Minerva's. Ovid (VIII, 275), flavae . . . Minervae, "golden-haired Minerva's" (Loeb). 10-11 his Hand / Was lib'ral. Ovid (VIII, 276-277), pervenit • . . / Invidiosus honos, "the desired honor came." See note to 11. 12-13.

Commentary 1 2 - 1 3 Ovid (VIII, 277-878), solas sine thure relictas \ Praeteritae cessasse ferunt Latoidos aras, "they say that the only other altars without incense which ceased [to have it] belonged to the overlooked daughter of Latona," a sufficiently knotty sentence from the English point of view. Diana was the daughter of Latona (see also note to The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 1. 11). For the source of "invidious Honour" see note to 11. 1 0 - n . The Latin irwidiosus may have either a good or bad meaning, "desired" or "detested," so, although Dryden's "invidious Honour" is a transliteration, still, if he intended "invidious" to have its English meaning, we must suppose that "invidious Honour" means an honor causing dislike or envy in those to whom it is not given. 13 For the hexameter see note to To Her Grace the Dutchess, 1. 10 (p. 630 above). Dryden repeats the device at 11. 33, 60, 67, 82, 112, 128, 132, 134, 146, 156, 176, 195, 197, 209, 223, 231, 260, 321, 339, 341, 345, 351, 363, 372, 390, and 402. 1 4 - 1 5 the Queen ... Right. Dryden's addition. 17 that . . . be. Dryden's addition. 18 Swift as the Word, she. Ovid (VIII, 281), spreta, "the scorned [goddess]." 18 Boar. Ovid (VIII, 281-282), ultorem . . . aprum, "the avenger boar." 19 devoted. Ovid (VIII, 281), "Oenus'." "Devoted" means "cursed," or "doomed," as it does everywhere in the Fables except The Cock and the Fox, 1. 688 (p. 327 above). 20 jEgyptian. Ovid (VIII, 283), habet Epiros, "which Epirus has." Presumably Dryden felt that his readers would be more familiar with the Apis bulls of Egypt, which he had introduced into his Cleomenes (see Works, XVI, 121-122), than with animals from northwestern Greece. 23 Neck. Ovid adds riget horrida (VIII, 284), "was stiff and bristled." 24-25 Freind's text has VIII, 286, which is moved to a footnote in the Loeb edition. 26 Froth fills his Chaps. Ovid (VIII, 287-288), Fervida . . . latos . . . per armos / Spuma fluit, which Dryden seems to have taken to mean "hot froth poured through the broad sides [of his head]." Others, including Freind (see the prose version in the margin of p. 232), understand the words to mean "poured over his broad flanks." 27 Dryden's addition. 28 with ... strove. Ovid (VIII, 288), aequantur .. . Indis, "compared with the Indians," but obviously, and as a note in Freind's edition says (p. 232), Indian elephants are what is meant. 29 Jove's own Thunder. Ovid (VIII, 289), Fulmen, "a thunderbolt"; hence "Thunder" means "thunderbolt," and "Jove's own" was added to make the meaning clear, Jove being the god who hurls the thunderbolt (see note to Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 11. 95-96, p. 876 below). 30-31 the scorching ... Blades. Dryden's addition, synonymous with what precedes. 32 Dryden's addition, synonymous with what follows. 33 Ovid (VIII, 292), Cererem in spicis intercipit, "cut off [Loeb: trampled down] Ceres [i.e., the grain] when the spikes had formed." "Spike" means "ear of grain" (OED); Dryden uses the word once more in Cinyras and Myrrha, 1. 241 (p. 255 above). "And intercepts the Year" resembles Ovid's

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words in Metamorphoses, XV, 113, spemque interceperit anni, "and has intercepted the year's hope," translated by Dryden as "And intercept the sweating Farmer's hope" in Of the Pythagorean Philosophy, 1. 159 (p. 488 above). Dryden omits the difficult line Nec matura metit fteturi vota coloni (VIII, 291), which the prose version in the margin of Freind's edition, as supplemented by a note (p. 232), renders "and mowed the promised crops of the farmer who will mourn that they did not mature," after he realizes that he has lost his harvest. 34 Ovid (VIII, 293), frtistra expectant promissas horrea messes. Sandys (VIII, 329) also translates horrea as "The Barns" and frtistra expectant as "expect in vain." Messes is more literally "harvest." 35 Dryden's addition. 37 Dryden's addition. 38 Olives. Ovid (VIII, 295) specifies Baccaque cum ramis, "berry and branch." 39 Ovid (VIII, 294), gravidi longo cum palmite foetus, "heavy offspring with long vine-branches," i.e., heavy bunches of grapes with long branches. Dryden's "gen'rous Blood" may be thought a substitute for Ovid's figure and one more intelligible to English readers. "Generous" with respect to human blood means "brave" (see To Roscomon, 1. 45, in Works, II, 173, The Duke of Guise, IV, i, 78, in Works, XIV, 260) and note to Palamon and Arcite, II, 188 (p. 643 above); with respect to the "blood" of grapes it means "fullbodied," etc., and here perhaps especially "of good stock" (OED). 40 Fold. As the Latin shows, "Fold" means "sheep," not "sheepfold." Ovid's word is pecudes (VIII, 296), which in Virgil means neither "cattle" nor, more specifically, "small cattle," but very specifically "sheep" (Aeneid, III, 642, lanigeras . .. pecudes, "fleecy flocks" [Loeb]). 40-41 nor . . . keep. Ovid (VIII, 296-297), Non has pastorve canesve, / Non armenta truces possunt defendere tauri, "neither herdman nor dog can defend them, fierce bulls cannot defend their herds." 42-43 Ovid (VIII, 298-299), Diffugiunt populi: nec se, nisi moenibus urbis, J Esse putant tutos, " T h e people scatter, nor do they think themselves safe unless [they are] within the city's walls." 45 Contemn the Danger. Dryden's addition. 46 FairLeda's Twins. Ovid (Vf.II, 301), Tyndaridae gemini, "the twins of Tyndareus' wife." They were Castor and Pollux. 46 in ... decreed. Dryden's addition, derived from a later line in Ovid; see 1. 141 (p. 207 above). 47 fought on Foot. Ovid (VIII, 301), spectatus cestibus, "famed for his boxing gloves." See also note to preface, 1. 778 (p. 627 above). 47 curb'd the fiery Steed. Ovid (VIII, 302), equo, "[famed] for his horse." Mason (p. 760) observes that Dryden's words come from Paradise Lost, II, 531, "curb thir fiery Steeds." 49 foremost. First. Ovid speaks of the Argo here (VIII, 302) and in the last line of Book VI as the first ship ever built. 50 bold. Dryden's addition. 50 Perithous. Noyes (p. 1028) says "Dryden seems always to use this form in place of the correct Pirithous." Correct for Ovid, perhaps, but Perithous is the Homeric spelling (see note to The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 11.

674

Commentary

377-378, p. 748 below), and it crept into Daniel Crispinus' text of Ovid here (but not into his accompanying prose version or his note to this place). Dryden found it also in Chaucer's Knight's Tale I, 1191-1227 passim (pp. 74, 76 above). 51 Ovid (VIII, 303), felix concordia, "a happy friendship." 52 The Thestian Sons. T h e sons of Thestius (see 1. 304, p. 212 above). They were Plexippus and Toxeus, Meleager's maternal uncles (see 11. 237238, p. 210 above). 53 Ceeneus. For his story see The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses," 11. 234-291, 609-705 (pp. 413-415, 425-427 above). 54 with Eagles Eyes, and Lions Heart. Dryden's addition. Ovid simply says that Lynceus was Idas' brother; Dryden took his character from Pindar, Nemean Odes, X, 61-72. 55-56 Leucippus, with his never-erring Dart; / Acastus. Ovid (VIII, 306), Leucippusque ferox, jaculoque insignis Acastus, "and warlike Leucippus, and Acastus, famed for his javelin" (Loeb). 56-57 Dryden omits several of Ovid's names and one or two adjectives attached to the names he included; for these latter omissions his additions may be said to compensate. 58 Phocus Son. Panopeus. Ovid gives his name (VIII, 312) but not his father's. Dryden nevertheless writes in Ovid's manner here, for in VIII, 315, Ovid has "the father-in-law of Penelope" instead of Laertes (1. 61), and in VIII, 316, he has "Amphicus' son" instead of Mopsus (1. 62). 60 twice old. Dryden's addition, based, as Kinsley (IV, 2072) notes, on Metamorphoses, IX, 398-401, where Ovid says that Hebe, Juno's daughter, restored Iolaus to youth at the request of her husband, that is, of Hercules, now a god. Iolaus had been Hercules' faithful companion. We have emended the first edition's spelling of Iolaus, without intending that it be pronounced as a trisyllable. 61 active and bold. Dryden's additions. 62 Mopsus the Sage.Ovid (VIII, 316),Ampycidesque sagax, "and Ampycus' son, the wise." Perhaps, then, "Sage" should not have been capitalized. See also note to 1. 58. 63 yet by his Wife unsold. Ovid (VIII, 316), adhuc i conjuge tutus, "as yet unharmed by his wife." Dryden's "unsold" reflects the way Amphiaraus came to die. He was one of the Seven against Thebes, but unwillingly because he foreknew he would die there. He and Adrastus. the first of the Seven, agreed to let Eriphile, Amphiaraus' wife, decide the matter. Polynices, Adrastus' son-in-law, another of the Seven and the one whom they hoped to put on the Theban throne, bribed Eriphile to say Amphiaraus should go. 63n Dryden needed his footnote because in the text he followed Ovid closely. 64 Dryden's addition. Ovid names only half a dozen persons whom Dryden does not mention, but he does speak of quos Hippocoon antiquis misit Amyclis (VIII, 314), "those whom Hippocoon sent from ancient Amycla," a city in Laconia in the southern Peloponnesus, thus allowing Dryden his hyperbole. 65-66 Among . . . Woods. Ovid (VIII, 317), nemorisque decus Tegeaea

Notes

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204-206

675

Lycaei, "and the girl from Tegea, grace of the Lycaean woods," both places in Arcadia in central Peloponnesus. 66 Diamond. Ovid (VIII, 318), Rasilis, "polished" (Loeb). 67 behind. Ovid (VIII, 318), summam, "at the top." 67-68 that.. . bare. Dryden's addition. 69 Native Ornament of. Dryden's addition. His additions entail also the addition of "But for" in this line and "Which" in the next. 71 Dryden's addition. 73 One Hand a Dart. Dryden's addition. In Ovid (VIII, 320-321), the arrows are in the quiver, (eburnea . . . / Telorum custos), the quiver is on her left shoulder (humero . . . laevo), and the bow is in her left hand (laeva). 74-76 as . . . Maid. Ovid (VIII, 322-323), dicere verb / Virgineam in puero, puerilem in virgine posses, "you could truly call it maidenly in a boy, boyish in a maiden." Sandys (VIII, 366-367) had rhymed "displayed" and "maid." 77 Chief. Ovid (VIII, 324), heros, "hero." 78 the Flame. Ovid (VIII, 325), flammasque latentes, "subtle flames." Ovid's language is reminiscent of Sappho's famous poem; Dryden's is only a commonplace of his time. 79 With Heav'ns averse. T h e meaning is that of Ovid's renuente Deo (VIII, 325), "God forbidding it." 80 Ovid (VIII, 326-327), si quem dignabitur . . . / Ista virum, "if ever that maiden shall deem any man worthy" (Loeb). Readers interested in Dryden's attitude toward women may find his alternate rendering significant. 81 He sigh'd. Dryden's addition, and a common one (see, e.g.. The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 1. 714, p. 428 above, and The First Book of Homer's Ilias, 11. 570, 696, pp. 278, 281 above), yet in the spirit of both Ovid and Homer (see notes to 1. 356 and to Homer's Ilias, 1. 503, p. 753 below). No doubt it was classical influence that led Dryden to introduce sighs also into Palamon and Arcite, I, 95, 216, etc., and Sigismonda and Guiscardo, 1. 366, etc. (see pp. 59, 67, 226 above). 82-83 Combining Ovid's pudorque (VIII, 327), "sense of what is right," a sense which also stood in the way of Meleager's saying more to Atalanta, and majus opus magni certaminis urget, "the greater task of the mighty conflict urged him" (Loeb). 83 This line is essentially an addition that turns a couplet into a triplet (see headnote, p. 602 above). 84 on a Mountains Brow. Ovid (VIII, 330), Incipit a piano, "it rose from a plain." 85 shaded Plains. Ovid (VIII, 330), devexaque . . . arva, "sloping fields," which would seem to be equally vivid words and to have in English the required number of syllables. For the source of "Plains" see note to 1. 84. 86-87 Ovid (VIII, 329), quam nulla ceciderat aetas, "which no past age had felled." 88 Heroes. Ovid (VIII, 331), viri, "men"; for the source of "Heroes" see note to 1. 77. Loeb also translates viri here by "heroes." 90 faithful. Dryden's addition. 91-92 Ovid (VIII, 333), cupiuntque suum reperire periclum, "and they were eager to find their peril," i.e., their dangerous enemy.

676

Commentary

93 common. Dryden's addition; see note to 1. 94. 94 Waters . . . and . . . Rain. Ovid (VIII, 334-335). rivi / . . . pluvialis aquae, "streams of rainwater." 96-98 Dryden's arranging the plants in concentric circles (he omits thTee of Ovid's varieties) apparently depends on Ovid's saying (VIII, 337) that the reeds were sub, "under," the rest. Loeb takes sub to mean that the reeds were undergrowth; Freind sees no need for interpretation or remark. 97 knotty. Ovid (VIII, 337), longa, "long" or (Loeb) "tall." 98 trembling. Apparently representing Ovid's parvae (VIII, 337), "humble," or (Loeb) "small." 100 Lightning. Ovid (VIII, 339) adds excussis elisi nubibus, "struck out from the clashing clouds" (Loeb). 101 shakes the Ground. Dryden's addition. 103 and . . . around. Dryden's addition; synonymous with what precedes, whence we deduce that Dryden wished to make a triplet to "bound the sense" (see headnote, p. 602 above). 104 protended Spears. Ovid (VIII, 341-342), praetentaque forti / Tela ... dextra, "spears protended with strong right hand." See also note to The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 1. 504 his other (p. 830 below). 105 Steel. Ovid (VIII, 342), ferro, "iron." Although Latin and Greek have a word for "steel," chalybs (xiXiy . . . if«to, "he spoke, and sat." 101 Homer (I, 68-69), roio-t S' ¿vtb-i) /K4Xx Si paS' oyt irpir \01n0C0 jSaptios x«pas ¿4>Qa, "nor will he sooner remove his heavy hand from the plague"; the text translated by Murray and Lattimore reads differently. 146 fair Slave. Homer (I, 98), 4Xu«iirtSa Kabpi\v. T h e second word means "maiden," the first, according to the Latin translation in the 1689 edition, means nigra oculis, "black-eyed" and the note has MeXovixtfciknov. ¿0' oS, tbvptrT}, "black-eyed, hence comely." In short, Dryden translates from the note or what he had otherwise been taught about the meaning of this often recurring epithet. 147 his Abode. Homer (I, 100), Chrysa. 148 Sacrifice. Homer (I, 99), Upiiv iKarinfav, "sacred hecatomb" (see note to 1. 94). 150 justly . . . Peace. Dryden's addition. 152 Upstarting from his Throne. Dryden's addition, echoing Homer's I, 68-69 (see note to 1.101).

Commentary 152 the King of Men. Homer (I, 102), "the hero Atrides, wide-ruling (tbpvKptluv) Agamemnon." For the meaning of "hero," see note to 11. 3-4. 153 Breast. In the sense of "heart"; Homer (I, 103) says it was all black (&nini\atvai). 153 Fire. Homer (I, 104) says it was blazing (XanirtTiuvn). 154 Homer (I, 105), KäX^ayra TrpüiTtOTa KOK' otrodptvos irpoaitnrt, "First of all he eyed Calchas bitterly and spoke to him" (Lattimore). 158 or pass'd unwillingly. Homer (I, 108), oiS' iriXaraas, "neither have you brought it to pass." 159 thou . . . invade. Homer (I, 109), iv Aaraolm Beoirpovkuv ayoptvas, "you speak prophesying among the Danaans." In Homer, Agamemnon never explicitly accuses Calchas of lying. 160-162 Dryden's addition, a line needed to provide a rhyme, followed by a wholly gratuitous couplet. T h e same kind of addition occurs at 11. 1 7 9 - 1 8 1 , 226-228, a n d elsewhere.

161 Obtending. T o obtend is "to put forward as a statement, reason, etc.; to pretend, allege, maintain" (OED, citing this passage). 163 Now. I.e., "You say that now." 163 Phoebus, Homer (I, no), iKijßoXos, "the far-shooter." 165-166 Homer (I, 111-112), "because I for the sake of the girl Chryse'is would not take / the shining ransom" (Lattimore). For "the shining ransom" see note to 1. 36. 167-170 Homer (I, 113-115), "since I like her better than Clytemnestra / my own wife, for in truth she is no way inferior, / neither in build nor stature nor wit, not in accomplishment" (Lattimore). 170 various. Referring either to the running back and forth of the weft or to the different patterns so made (see OED, sense IC. citation of 1725, and sense 1a, citation of ante 1676). 1 7 1 - 1 7 2 Homer (I, 1 1 2 - 1 1 3 ) , iirü iroXü ßouXo/nai abrifv / OUoi ?x«"> "and indeed I wish greatly to have her / in my own house" (Lattimore). "Nuptial Bow'r" appears more naturally on the tongues of Adam and Eve in The State of Innocence, III, i, 36, and V, iv, 254 (Works, X I I , 114, 146), and its source, Paradise Lost (VIII, 510; X I , 280). 1 7 3 - 1 7 4 since . . . withstood. Homer (I, 1 1 6 ) , tl r&y' ipavov, "if such is the best way" (Lattimore). 175 Homer (I, 117), Bob\op' ty¿1 \a&v abov ipiptvax, ij i.iroXka9ai,"l myself desire that the people stay safe rather than die." Dryden has forgotten that the people are dying of a plague, not from real arrows. 177 for your sakes alone. Dryden's addition. 1 7 9 - 1 8 1 See note to 11. 1 6 0 - 1 6 2 . Homer (I, 1 2 0 ) has instead, Atbaam yip rbyt 7r(Wf5, 6 ¡toi yipas ipxeroi fiXXj, "for you all see this, that my prize goes from me otherwhere" (Murray). 182 the fierce Thessalian Prince. Homer (I, 121), iroSApxijs iloi "swift-footed godlike Achilles" (see note to 1. 84). Achilles' home was Phthia in Thessaly (see note to 11. 231-235). 1 8 3 - 1 8 4 Homer (I, 1 2 2 ) , 'Arptlilt KiSurrt, i\oKTeavwTar( xavrwc, "Most glorious Atrides, most covetous of all men" (Murray). 186 the Prizes . . . before. Homer (I, 123), yipat, " a prize."

Notes

to Pages

265-267

741

1 9 1 Dryden's substitution for Homer's 'AXXA v, "though you are good." The Latin translation in the 1689 edition has "quamvis sis fortis," "although (you are) strong," and the note to iyaBis here is xabot yipvaios ixipxav, "probably 'being high-born.'" Thus Dryden translates the note here and the Latin in 1. 1 9 8 ("mighty Man"). See also note to 11. 3 8 9 - 3 9 0 . 1 9 8 - 1 9 9 "Pretend" and "Controll'd" represent three verbs in Homer, kXfcrre, "cheat," Tapf\tixnai, "outwit," and xettreis, "persuade" in the sense here of "mislead" (I, 132); "that what is mine" and "I . . . shou'd resign" come from Homer's I, 1 3 3 - 1 3 4 ; "tamely" is Dryden's addition. Homer has "do not intentionally cheat in this way, for you shall not outwit nor mislead me. . . . You really intended by this for me to be deprived, didn't you?" (I, i3»->34)1 9 8 mighty Man. Homer (I, 131) ScoeUtX" 'AxiXXeD, "godlike Achilles." See notes to 1. 8 Thetis and 11. 1 9 6 - 1 9 7 . 2 0 0 - 2 0 1 "Shall I release the Prize" repeats "what is mine / . . . I . . . shou'd resign" in 11. 1 9 8 - 1 9 9 (see note there). The rest of the couplet is Dryden's addition. 202 Homer (I, 134), «cXtot 6k m« ™> j> i' ¿n-oimWi; "and do you order me to give her back?" 2 0 4 - 2 0 5 Resolve . .. mine. Dryden's addition. 205 give. In Homer (I, 135) the subject of the verb is peyaevfiot 'Axotoi, "the great-hearted Achaeans" (Lattimore). 206 assure . . . Right. Dryden's addition. 207 in thy own Despight. Strictly speaking, an addition, as it is in 1. 279. 208 stout. Dryden's addition, apparently because of its connotation, for "or will from Ajax" would give the same rhythm. 209 "Prize" comes from Homer's I, 138, but the rest of the line comes from his I, 136. 210-211 Homer, 6 Si xtv KexoXmcrerai gy Uaficu (I, 139), "and he to whom I come will be angry." 213 Dryden's addition. 214 sacred. Homer (I, 141), Siap. Homer uses this adjective several times to modify "Achilles," and Dryden translates it in that context by "God-like"

742

Commentary

(see note to 1. 8 Thetis). T h e Latin translation in the 1689 edition has vastum, "vast," but the note has Stiav, j) Sav^aariiv, "divine or wonderful." 215 Proud in her Trim. Dryden's addition. 215 the Fair. Homer (I, 143), XpwnjtSa «aXXiTrdpjjov, "the fair-cheeked daughter of Chryses" (Murray); see notes to 11. 4 3 3 - 4 3 4 , 5 1 2 - Homer applies die epithet to Brisei's also (see note to 1. 281). 216 Homer (I, 142), a hecatomb (see note to 1. 94). 218 Ajax. Homer (1,144-145), /SouXij^opos... / "H Alas, "a counsellor, either Ajax." 219 Creta's King. Homer (I, 145), Idomeneus. 2 1 9 Ithacus. Homer (I, 1 4 5 ) , godlike (6Ios) Odysseus, or, as Dryden would say, Ulysses (see note to 1. 11). Ovid calls Ulysses Ithacus (see The Speeches of Ajax and Ulysses, 1. 169, p. 436 above, and note, p. 850 below). He was king of the island of Ithaca in the Adriatic. 219 if I please. Dryden's addition. 219 Thee. Homer (I, 146), Pelides. 2 2 0 - 2 2 1 Homer (I, 1 4 6 ) , iKwayMrar', "most dread." 222 Phcebus. Homer (I, 147), initpyov, "the far-worker," that is, by his far-reaching arrows. 223 Achilles. Homer (I, 148), "swift-footed Achilles" (see note to 1. 84). 224 askant. Askance (Homer [I, 148], vroSpa, askance, grimly). 225 regardful of thy own. Homer (I, 149) «pSaXeo^pox, which the Latin translation in the 1689 edition renders by lucri studiose, and the note by KpSalvtir povS>v, both meaning "intent on profit." 2 2 6 - 2 2 8 Dryden's addition (cf. note to 11. 1 6 0 - 1 6 2 ) . 2 2 9 Dryden omits Homer's following words (I, 1 5 0 - 1 5 1 ) : irpkfrpav . . . / "H ¿6ov ixeiiitvai, 7j, "with a ready heart either to go on a journey or." 230 the Trojan. Dryden's addition. 2 3 1 - 2 3 5 Very loosely translated. Homer (I, 1 5 2 - 1 5 7 ) , "I for my part did not come here for the sake of the Trojan / spearmen to fight against them, since to me they have done nothing. / Never yet have they driven away my cattle or my horses, / never in Phthia where the soil is rich and men grow great did they / spoil my harvest, since indeed there is much that lies between us, / the shadowy mountains and the echoing sea" (Lattimore). 236 frontless. Shameless (OED). 237 Dryden's addition. 2 3 8 - 2 4 0 ours . . . Fight. Dryden's addition. He omits Homer's amira (I, 159) "you with the dog's eyes" (Lattimore). 241 Thy baffled Brother. Homer (I, 159), Menelaus (see note to 1. 24). For "baffled" see note to The Cock and the Fox, 1. 134 (p. 768 below), but Scott and Saintsbury gloss it as "insulted" (S-S, XII, 383). 2 4 1 not . . . Greece. Homer (I, 1 6 0 ) , IIpos Tpa>wx, "from the Trojans" (Lattimore). Dryden omits Homer's following words, tup oBrt ¡1/era.Tpiiro oW 4Xt7tffis, "You forget all this or else you care nothing" (Lattimore). 243 Dryden's addition. 245 common Suffrage. Homer (I, 162), vies 'AxaiSx, "the sons of the Achaeans" (Lattimore); see note to 1. 392 public. In 1. 541 Dryden translates the same words in Homer (I, 392) in the same way. 245 confirm'd by Lot. Dryden's addition.

Notes to Pages 267-269

743

246 thine. Homer (I, 163-164) adds, "when the Achaeans sack a wellpeopled citadel of the Trojans" (Murray). 246-247 For still . . . best. Dryden's addition, reflecting the fact that Homer's Agamemnon objects to losing not just Chrysei's but the ransom her father had offered to pay (see "Ransom-free" in Dryden's 1. 147). 248-249 Homer (I, 165-166), "nay, the brunt of tumultuous war do my hands bear" (Murray). 250-251 Homer (I, 166-168), "but when the time comes to distribute the booty / yours is far the greater reward, and I with some small thing / yet dear to me go back to my ships when I am weary with fighting" (Lattimore). 252-253 Dryden's addition. 254 Homer continues (I, 170), vt>ml nopoviaiv, "with my curved (Lattimore) or beaked (Murray) ships." T h e Latin translation in the edition of 1689 renders Kopurlair by nigris, "black," and the note has 'Eiruta^7rcls rasixpas ixoixras. S 4a>os *oI TXOVTOV ib£eiv, "and pile u p your wealth and your luxury" (Lattimore). 257 Homer (I, 172), "the king of men, Agamemnon." 258 Dryden's addition. 259 stern. Dryden's addition, as also in 1. 751 (p. 283 above); in 1. 126 it is his substitution for "swift-footed" (see headnote, p. 596). In all these places, "stern" describes an answer or an answerer, as indeed it may be said to do in 1. 10 (p. 261 above). In 1. 259 the language is particularly close to Paradise Lost, IV, 924, "thus answer'd frowning stern" (noted by Mason, p. 259). 260 Homer (I, 173-174), oihk a' iyuye / Kicaopai & vac' ipelo pivuv, "I will not / entreat you to stay here for my sake" (Lattimore). 261 follow me in Fight. Homer (I, 175), pe r^aouai, "will honor me," 262 Homer (I, 175) niXurra&k nitrUraldis, "and especially Zeus the counsellor." 263 his Care belotv. Homer's syntax makes it clear that Dryden's parenthesis modifies "Kings," not "thou." T h e most familiar statement of the idea in English is in Hamlet, IV, v, 123-125. Dryden introduced it also in Aureng-Zebe, V, i, 343 (Works, XII, 238), and in The Spanish Fryar, III, iii, 254 (Works, XIV, 156, and note, pp. 463-464). 264 least at my Command. Dryden's addition. 266-267 Dryden's addition. With "Strength is of Brutes" compare "Force is of Brutes" in Palamon and Arcite, III, 742 (p. 171 above), and "Force is the Law of Brutes" in Cleomenes, V, ii, 153 (Works, X V I , 150). 268 At least. A reasonable translation of Homer's irov (I, 178); thus the Latin translation in the 1689 edition has certi and the note has Si), both meaning "surely."

Commentary

744

269 ill-manner'd. Homer (I, 179), avv vr¡val re ofc, xal trots irhpoiai, "with your ships and your men" (Murray). 270 Ant-born. Dryden's addition, based on Ovid's Metamorphoses, VII, 615-660, explains the meaning of Homer's "Myrmidons" (I, 180). He omits Homer's following words, aiDtv 6' iy¿> OÍK iXeylfa, / 064' SSofiiu «or«Jiros (I, 180181), "I care nothing about you, / and I take no account of your anger" (Lattimore). 272 My black-ey'd Maid. Homer (I, 182), XpwijtSa, "the daughter of Chryses." Dryden takes Homer's epithet for her from I, 98, ¿XutámSa (see note to 1. 146). 272 the Pow'rs divine. Homer (I, 182), Phoebus Apollo. 273 well-rigg'd. Dryden's addition. 275-276 Homer (I, 183-184), Ti}v . . . / n W » > "her I will send back." Dryden's couplet here is based on his 1. 148, Homer's I, 99. 277-278 Homer (I, 184), H "but." 279 From . . . Tent. Homer (I, 185), K\iv 7¿pas, "your prize" (Lattimore). 281 Briséis. Homer (1,184), "fair-cheeked Briséis" (see notes to 11. 449-450, 482). Homer applies the epithet to Chrysei's also (see note to 1. 215 the Fair). 282 awful. Dryden's addition, here probably a mere intensive rather than "awe-inspiring," but see note to 1. 617. 284-294 Expanding and in many small ways misrepresenting Homer's (I, 188-192), "So he spoke. And the anger came on Peleus' son, and within / his shaggy breast the heart was divided two ways, pondering j whether to draw from beside his thigh the sharp sword, driving / away all those who stood between and kill Atrides, / or else to check the spleen within and keep down his anger" (Lattimore). 288-289 These lines may have been suggested by Ogilby's translation of the passage: "Whilst thus his Reason combated with Rage" (I, 208). 295 Homer (I, 194), "EX«ro 6' he koXcolo nkya (í4>os, "he was drawing from its scabbard the great sword" (Lattimore). 295 Faulchion. Here and in 1. 423 simply a sword; a £14os (see preceding note) was straight, a falchion in the strict sense has a curved edge. 296 In that nice moment.

H o m e r (I, 193), "Ews ó roM' üpfiaivt *ara Siol&raetfi&avOfv). Cf. the dreadful sound of Apollo's bow (note to 1. 70

Bow). 306 and ardent Look. Dryden's addition.

307 The Virgin-Warrior. Homer (I, 200), Pallas Athena. 308-309 Much condensing Homer's I, 201-205, " H e uttered winged words and addressed her: 'Why have you come now, / o child of Zeus of the aegis, once more? Is it that you may see / the insolence of Agamemnon Atrides? / Yet will I tell you this thing, and I think it shall be accomplished. / By such acts of arrogance he may even lose his own life.'" (Lattimore). For "insolence," Homer's ifoiv, the Latin translation in the 1689 edition has in-

juriam, "wrong, violence," and the note has t6v 4>6pov, ij m£XXo^ ti)? ¿.\a£oveiav, "murder, or rather imposture," i.e. Dryden follows the Latin.

308 Celestial. The word occurs as an apostrophe in Paradise Lost, XI, 296 (noted by Mason, p. 768). 3 1 0 blue-ey'd Goddess. Homer (I, 206) names her, Athena, and calls her tXoukSitis, a word now thought to have been "orig. without any notion of colour" (Liddell-Scott-Jones-McKenzie, s.v. y'havKos, •yXauiaoiris), but the Latin translation in the 1689 edition has caesiis-oculis, "with blue-grey eyes," and the note has y\avKois Kal KartnrXTjjcTiKous auras ?x°" (I, 242), "man-slaughtering" (Lattimore), evidently under the influence of the Latin translation in the 1689 edition, which has homicida here (the note has ro\eniKov, "warlike, hostile").

748

Commentary

to . . . Arms. Dryden's addition. and . . . redress. Homer (I, 2 4 3 - 2 4 4 ) , "And then you will eat out the heart within you / in sorrow, that you did no honour to the best of the Achaeans" (Lattimore). 358 with ... view. Dryden's addition. 359 g^den. Homer (I, 246), Xptia-eiois ijXoiai rtirapiiivor, "studded with golden nails" (Lattimore). 360 boiling. Dryden's addition. 361 Dryden's addition. 3 6 2 the Pylian Prince. Homer (I, 2 4 7 - 2 4 8 ) , "Nestor / the fair-spoken rose up, the lucid speaker of Pylos" (Lattimore). Three towns on the west coast of Peloponnesus were named Pylos. Homer does not say specifically that Nestor was king of Pylos until I, 252 (as usual with Dryden, "Prince" means "ruler"). 363 Dryden's addition. 364 sweet as. Homer (I, 249), 1uiXiros, "sweeter than." 365 Centuries. Homer (I, 250), ytvtal, "generations." "Centuries" comes from later writers, e.g., Ovid, Metamorphoses, XII, 1 8 7 - 1 8 8 (Dryden's 1. 260, p. 414 above). 3 6 6 - 3 6 7 unbroken ... great. Dryden's addition, but the first half of 1. 3 6 7 is based on what follows and the second half on what has preceded (see note to 1. 3 6 2 ) . 3 6 8 - 4 0 2 Dryden gives roughly the same number of lines to Nestor's speech that Homer does (I, 2 5 4 - 2 8 4 ) , but because Homer's dactylic hexameters are longer than his own iambic pentameters, he in fact omits much. Perhaps he thought the speech too rambling to fit Homer's description of Nestor's words as sweeter than honey, at least as English ears would hear it if he gave it at full length. 3 6 8 - 3 7 1 Condensing Homer's I, 2 5 4 - 2 5 8 , without using any of his words. 3 6 9 the Phrygian Foe. Homer ( I , 2 5 5 - 2 5 6 ) , Xlpiinoib rt irotits, / "AXX01 r c Tpwes, "the sons of Priam, and the rest of the Trojans" (Murray), whom however, Homer often calls Phrygians. Phrygia is the country or region in Asia Minor where Troy was located. 3 7 2 - 3 7 3 Homer (I, 2 5 9 ) , 'AXA A irldtuS', "but listen." 3 7 3 Cf. Chapman's "repell / These young men's passions" (I, 2 5 4 - 2 5 5 ) . 376 dim. Dryden's addition. 3 7 7 - 3 7 8 Dryden substitutes Caeneus for Homer's Perithous, omits Homer's Exadius and all his epithets, and ranks the men to suit himself (cf. I, 2 6 3 - 2 6 5 ) . As Noyes notes (p. 1 0 3 1 ) , Caeneus's story is told in The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 11. 2 3 4 - 2 9 1 , 6 0 9 - 7 0 5 (pp. 4 1 3 - 4 1 5 , 4 2 5 427 above), and he is referred to also in Meleager and Atalanta, 1. 53 (p. 205 above) and in Book VI of the Aeneid, 11. 6 0 8 - 6 0 9 i n Dryden's translation (Works, V, 549). Except in the Aeneid, the names of Dryas and Theseus appear with that of Caeneus. 3 7 9 - 3 8 0 a Brother . .. share. Homer (I, 2 6 9 - 2 7 0 ) , "coming from Pylos, / a long way from a distant land, since they had summoned me" (Lattimore). 3 8 2 - 3 8 3 When . . . subdu'd. Representing two passages in Homer, I, 2 6 6 - 2 6 8 , in which Nestor says that Perithous and the rest were the mightiest men on earth and that they destroyed the mightiest of other creatures, the 354-355 356-357

Notes to Pages 2 7 1 - 2 7 3

749

centaurs (Dryden's "salvage Beasts," for which see The Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, 11. 892-705, pp. 415-427 above), and I, 2 7 1 - 2 7 2 , in which Nestor says that no man now on earth could fight them. 384 pow'rful. Dryden's addition. 385-388 Homer (I, 274), 'AXXà irlBtaBt nal ¡¡ipts, irà irtitìtaOat Ì/iuvov, "But do you also obey, since to be persuaded is better" (Lattimore). 386 young. In comparison with himself; the comparable word in Homer comes in Dryden's 1. 374. 389-390 Homer (I, 275), Mi¡TT ai TóvS', àyaBòs ircp i¿>v, iiroalpco Kotpr¡r, "You, great man that you are, yet do not take the girl away" (Lattimore). T h e Latin translation of àyaBós in the edition of 1689 is potens, "powerful," and the note to àyaBós wtp ¿ÜJV is fcairoi fiaaiXevs irápxuv. f¡ àya&òs ttjv yv&fiqv. àfuivwv, KptÍTTuv, "probably 'you are king'; or 'good' may mean 'better/ 'best.'" See also note to 11. 196-197. 392 Atchiev'd in Arms. Dryden's addition. 392 publick Voice. Homer (I, 276), "the sons of the Achaeans" (see note to 1. 245). 393 brave Champion. Homer (I, 277), Pelides. 394 Combining two passages in Homer, I, 278-279, "since never equal with the rest is the portion of honour / of the sceptred king to whom Zeus gives magnificence," and I, 281, "who is lord over more than you rule" {Lattimore). 395 This vivid line is Dryden's addition. 396 Matchless thy Force. Homer (I, 280), El Si ai xaprtpós tirai, StàSi atytívo.ro rírnp, "though you are the stronger (or more courageous), and a goddess mother bore you." 397 Homer (I, 282), 'ArpelSy, ai Si nave tìòk fiivos, "you, Atrides, restrain your anger." 398-399 Dryden's addition. 400 Homer (I, 282-283), aírráp iyoiyt / AWoji' • • • M«®^» X^of, "still I beg you to give up your anger." 401-402 Homer (I, 283-284), "Achilles, who is for all the Achaeans a mighty bulwark of evil war" (Murray). 401 Rampire. "A thing or person resembling or comparable to a rampart" (OED, citing this passage). 403-410 See headnote (pp. 597-598 above) for a detailed exposition of this passage. 412 Dryden's addition. 414 Such haughty Insolence. Dryden's addition (see note to 11. 335-336). 414 tamely. Dryden's addition. 415 Slaves. Homer (I, 295), "AXXoio-ti-, "others." Dryden omits some of Homer's following words (I, 295-296), mì yàp tpotyc / Síjua«-', "for you are not to order me." 4 1 5 - 4 1 6 My .. . Reins. Homer (I, 296), ob yàp lyuy' in aol ireiaeaBai òtto, "for I shall not be persuaded by you again." 416 restiff. "Resisting control, intractable, refractory" (OED). 417 Take this along. Homer (I, 297), "AXXo Sí TOI ipiu, ai 5' ivi [p«ri] (SáXXeo »ó« (the missing word is supplied in the errata in the 1689 edition), "And put away in your thoughts this other thing I tell you" (Lattimore).

750

Commentary

418 Homer (I, 899), hrd. p.' &t\«r$i ye Sivrts "since you take her away who gave her" (Lattimore). 4 1 9 - 4 2 2 Dryden reverses the sense of Homer's lines (I, 3 0 0 - 3 0 2 ) , "But of all the other things that are mine beside my fast black / ship, you shall take nothing away against my pleasure. / Come, then, only try it, that these others may see also" (Lattimore). 4 2 3 - 4 2 4 Homer (I, 3 0 3 ) , Atya. TOI alfta KtXaivop ipu-qtru mpi Soup!, "forthwith shall your dark blood flow forth about my spear" (Murray). 423 Fauchion. See note to 1. 295 Faulchion. 4 2 5 He ... first. Homer (I, 3 0 4 - 3 0 5 ) , "So these two after battling in words of contention / stood up" (Lattimore). 4 2 6 Homer (I, 3 0 5 ) , xapd vnwir "AX, "forth stepped also the daughter of Chryses from the sea-faring ship" (Murray). This is the last of four consecutive lines beginning 'Ex oi. Dryden makes no attempt to reproduce Homer's figure of anaphora here or lesser examples elsewhere, but see 11. 510-511. 602 holy Fire. Dryden's addition; "holy" was suggested by Homer's usual epithet for the hecatomb (see notes to 11. 595 Sacrifices, 606, 613). 603 Ulysses. Homer (I, 440) prefixes his usual epithet, xoXu^rts, "muchscheming" (see note to 11. 433-434). He also says that Ulysses put Chryse'is in her father's hands, which Dryden might well omit because Homer says the same thing a few lines later, where Dryden translates it (I, 446; 1. 610). 604 Homer (I, 442), Chryses. 605 King of Men. So Homer here (I, 442), adding "Agamemnon." 606 Presents... Pray'r. Homer (1,443-444). Upr/v iKarinpriv / ... inrip Acwa&v "a holy hecatomb on the Danaans' behalf (Murray). See notes to 11. 595 Sacrifices, 602 holy, 613. 608 at thy Sute. Dryden's addition. 609 Homer (I, 445), *Os ruv 'Apydotn mMarova K-qSe' 'trbrjKtv, "who has heaped unhappiness and tears on the Argives" (Lattimore). 610 her Father's. Greek syntax allows Homer to omit these words. 611 her, free from servile Bands. Homer (I, 447), nlv, "held in their hands the fivepronged forks" (Murray). 638 Broachers. Saintsbury glosses as "spits" (S-S, X I I , 396). 640 in . . . Fillets. Dryden's addition. 641 drawn. I.e., from the spits. Homer adds Ivd Taiaavro rivov (I, 467), "when they had ceased from their labour" (Murray). 64a With sav'ry Meat. Homer (I, 468), Utris itmis, "the equal feast" (Murray), i.e., shared equally, hence "a fair portion" (Lattimore). T h e Latin translation in the 1689 edition is literal, like Murray's, and the note gives the same explanation as Lattimore. The phrase occurs again in Homer at I, 602 (see note to 1. 807). Dryden's "sav'ry Meat" echoes the language of Gen. 2 7 : 4 , 7 , etc. 643 Eating. Homer (I, 469), nwios KOXtfijrfoi,"drinking and eating" (Lattimore). 644 generous. Perhaps "copious," perhaps "rich and of full strength; invigorating" (OED). Dryden's addition. 644 fill'd. Homer (I, 470) has iTttrrtyarro, "crowned," a word still in use in Dryden's time with the same meaning, "filled to the brim" (see note to 1. 7 8 4 crown'd). Homer adds ( 1 , 4 7 1 ) , Nii^aav s' &po ran», "and then distributed to all." 645 Libations. Pourings. It was customary in antiquity to pour some of one's wine as an offering to the gods before pouring it down one's throat. 646 Genial. "Festive" (OED, citing Dryden's translation of Virgil's Pastorals, V, 111). Dryden's addition. 647 Holy Debauch! Dryden's addition. T o the present generation the phrase sounds like something from Batman and Robin, or, looking a little higher and farther back, Bob Acres' sentimental swearing. It replaces Homer's *o0poi 'Axcuuv (I, 473), "the youths of the Achaeans." 648 the Bowyer King. Dryden had used the phrase in 1. 138 (p. 265 above). Homer merely says &eiv, "the god" (I, 472), but see note to 1. 143. Dryden omits & St piva ripmr' dicoW (I, 474), "and his heart was glad, as he heard" (Murray). 649 Sun-set. Homer (I, 475) adds *ai M Kv'e\yyepiTa Zeis, "Zeus the cloud-compeller" (see also notes to 11. 544, 689, and 751 the Thund'rer). 696 sighing, first. Dryden's addition, and a characteristic one (see note to 1. 503, p. 753 above). 698 stun'd. Angered. Homer (I, 519), n' . . . trie*™, "she shall anger me" (Murray). Not quite a nonce meaning in Dryden; he had previously used "Stun'd" to translate Juvenal's Vexatus (I, 2 ) ; see Works, IV, 9 2 - 9 3 .

Commentary

762 700 Dryden's addition. 702 alienate

from

Greece.

Dryden's addition.

702 Aid. Homer (I, 521) adds: nixo, "in battle" (Lattimore). 703 jealous. Dryden's addition. 704 Pelides. Dryden's addition (see note to 1. 1, p. 732 above). 7 0 6 he bows the Sky. Dryden's addition. C£. "Bow thy heavens, O L O R D " (Ps. 1 4 4 : 5 ) . T h e meaning of "bows" (and "Bow") is uncertain, but probably has nothing to do with rainbows. 709 Homer (I, 528), *H, . . . Kpoviur, "He spoke, the son of Cronos" (Lattimore). 7 1 0 Homer (I, 5 2 8 ) , xal *vaviv, "Hollow above and below," and Liddell-Scott-Jones-McKenzie explains that it had a top that could also serve as a cup, but Chapman (I, 566) and Lattimore say it had two handles. 784 unbid. Dryden's addition. 785 Nectar. See note to Argument, 1. 26, Nectar (p. 73a above). 786 her. Homer (I, 585), Mijrpi 7. 7 6 5. 857, 909, 913, 914 Threnodia Augustalis, 639 To Her Grace the Dutchess, 629-625, 638, 648, 658, 662, 669, 671, 672, 692, 708, 714, 716, 722, 733, 755, 768, 781, 792, 807, 808, 810, 811, 844, 861, 867, 870, 873, 875, 900, 904, 905, 907, 93» To Mr. Granville, 567-569 To Mr. Lee, 567 To Mr. Northleigh, 584 To Mr. Oldham, 656 To Mr. Southerne, 568 To Mrs. Anne Killigrew, 556,612,614, 653, 868, 904-905, 915, 921, 932

Index To my Dear Friend Mr. Congreve, 568,613 To my Friend, the Author [Peter Motteux], 568-571, 614, 628, 868, 906 To My Honour'd Kinsman, 564, 572574, 576-578,580-583, 603,604, 610, 6*6,639, 652, 653, 657-670, 658-659, 701, 767, 769, 775, 856, 904 To Sir Godfrey Kneller, 580 To the Earl of Roscomon, 610, 673 Troilus and Cressida, 584, 843, 927; dedication of, 589, 590; preface to, 589, 590, 61s, 617 Twelfth Book of Ovid his Metamorphoses, The, 555, 57s, 580-582, 58611, 640, 641, 643, 645, 653, 654, 656,664,670, 675,676,683,708, 733, 745,748, 749,754,780,787,800, 810844, 846, 847, 850, 851,855, 859, 863, 865, 872,873, 887, 890, 893, 896, 907, 913, 915, connection, 688, 93s Tyrannick Love, 695, 844 Upon Young Mr. Rogers of Gloucestershire, 926, 931 Upon the Death of Lord Hastings, 905.921 Verses to Her Highness the Dutchess [of York], 63s Vindication of The Duke of Guise, The, 590-591, 617, 646, 667, 772 Virgil, translations of: 567, 568, 570, 581, 726; plans for translating, 574, 575, 614; publication of, 567, 927; second edition of, 574: Aeneid, 563565. 579- 610, 625-627, 632,636, 642, 643, 648, 649, 652,656, 657,676, 678, 692, 712, 745, 747, 748, 758, 762, 769, 772, 775, 783, 788, 792,800, 802, 812, 819,829, 837, 839, 841, 850, 851, 863, 873, 896, 897, 913, 919, 926; dedication of Aeneis, 571, 584, 585, 587, 589.595.59®' 6°7.612,615,616,619622, 627, 630, 636, 870, 933, 935; Georgics, 564, 580, 617, 627, 650, 652, 656, 667, 695, 710, 758, 768, 785, 788, 809, 814, 877, 884, 891, 908,909, 914; dedication of Georgics, 611; Pastorals, 566, 617, 656, 670, 759, 769, 9'4> 920. 928, 930-932; Postscript to the Reader, 567, 591, 620, 625, 665; Speech of Venus to Vulcan, The, 579; Third Book of Virgil's Georgicks, Englished, The, 580 Wife of Bath her Tale, The, 572, 581583, 603, 641, 642, 702, 715, 723, 753,

979

767, 768, 773, 809, 867-871, 910 Wild Gallant, The, 589, 625 Dryden, John, the poet's great grandfather, 664 Dryden, John, the poet's son, 577 Dryden, Mary Pickering, the poet's mother, 929 Dryden, Sir Robert, 663 Dryden, William, 664 Dublin University, 608-609 Dublin, 608 Duke, Richard contribution to Miscellany Poems, 579 Dulichion, 850 Dupré, Marcel, 558 East Indies, 619 Edward I, 607, 630, 776 Edward III, 622, 631, 632, 810 Edward the Black Prince, 630-631, 768 Egypt, 562, 634, 672, 770, 888, 894 Elijah, 901 Elis, Greece, 838, 887 Ely, Cambridgeshire, 922 Elyot, Sir Thomas Book Named the Governour, The, 589. 924 Emmanuel College, Cambridge, 922 Emathia, Greece, 834 England, 609; common interests of people of, 661; manufactures and trade, 618-619, 667; fenlands, 669; Frenchmen and Jews in, 776; Exclusion Crisis of 1678-1680, 662, 925; Glorious Revolution of 1688, 662; Knights of the Round Table, 810; Knights of the Garter, 631, 810; Popish Plot, 662, 925; Royal Society, 618 England, armed forces of, 576, 619, 632-634, 654, 658, 667-668, 703; militia, 915 England, laws and statutes of: 576-578, 623; Act for the Further Preventing the Growth of Popery, An, 578; Jacobites not allowed to return from France, 577; oath of allegiance, 578, 614; oath of supremacy, 577' 578: royal proclamations, 577, 578; royal prerogatives, 669 England, Parliament of: 576, 622, 654, 658, 667, 669, 903, 904; House of Commons, 576, 924

g8o

Index

England, treaties of: Peace of Ryswick, 576, 668; Treaty of Limerick, 633 England, finances: Treasury, 576; land tax, 576; wealth of, 629; ship money, 670; national debt, 619; Bank of England, 619 England, wars of: Wars of the Roses, 635; Peasants' Revolt of 1381, 653; Civil Wars (1642-1651), 570, 662; Irish rebellion (1689-1691), 633; First Dutch War (1652-1654), 669; Second Dutch War (1665-1667), 607, 667, 669; Third Dutch War (16721674), 607, 668, 669; Monmouth's Rebellion of 1685, 662; Nine Years' War (1688-1697), 576, 577, 609, 668; undeclared trade wars with Portugal, 930 Englefield, Berkshire, 924 Ennius, 591, 620 Epirus, 672, 889 Episode of the Death of Camilla, 579 Erakleion, Crete, 926 Erasmus River. See Kaphalari Esau, 663 Etherege, Sir George letter from Dryden, 582 Man of Mode, The, 901 Ethiopia, 808 Euboea, 845, 853, 855 Euripedes, 812, 841, 844 Iphigeneia in Taurica, 856 Europe, 667 Eurotas River, Greece, 908 Eustathius, archbishop of Thessalonika commentary on Homer, 583-584 Evelyn, John: friend of Dryden, 559; owned a copy of the 1640 edition of Sandys's translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses, 586; friend of Thomas Butler, Earl of Ossory. 607 Diary, 785 Evelyn, John, J r . translation of Plutarch's Life of Alexander, 559, 563, 565 Evenus River, Greece, 671, 686 Fabricius, Caius, 871 Fairborne, Lady Margaret Devereux, 925 Fairborne, Sir Palmes, 925-926 Fairfax, Brian Life of Buckingham, 611

Fairfax, Edward Godfrey of Bulloigne, 612, 696 Farnaby, Thomas edition of Ovid's Metamorphoses, 586, 710, 721 Farquhar, George Love and a Bottle, epilogue to, 568 Fatal Discovery, The, 568, 569 Fielding, Henry Joseph Andrews, 736 Fishburn, Christopher Musical Entertainment Perform'd on November xxii, A, 558 Flaminius, Caius, 670 Flanders, 609, 628, 634 Fletcher, John Pilgrim, The, 568, 573, 613, 614, 868 Florio, John. See Boccaccio, Giovanni, Decameron, translation of 1620 Flower and the Leaf, The, 581, 590, 602,603, 626, 638, 645, 649, 653, 656, 767, 806-810 Flying Post, 573 Four Days' Fight (Second Dutch War), 607 Foxe, John Acts and Monuments, 644, 772 Frampton, Mary, 572, 582, 904-905, 931 France, 576, 577, 606, 608, 619, 629, 631, 632, 667, 668 Freind, John edition of Ovid's Metamorphoses, 586, 599, 671-673, 676-680, 682, 686, 687, 708, 710-712, 714, 716, 718, 719, 721, 722, 724-728, 736, 786, 788, 789, 791, 793. 795. 79 6 - 79 8 . 799- 810, 8 1 1 , 814-816, 830-823, 828-830, 832-835, 837-840,842-843,845-848,850, 852853. 855. 857-860, 863,867, 873, 877881, 884, 886-887, 889-895, 898-899, 934-935 Fresnoy, C. A. du De Arte Graphica, Froissart, Jean, 630 Chronicles, 631 Fuller, Isaac, 844

927

Gafori, Franchino De Harmonia Musicorum torum, 560, 561 Galba, 646, 703 Galen, 768 Galilee, 719 Gallia, Maria, 568

Instrumen-

Index Ganelon, 77a Garth, Sir Samuel oration over Dryden's body, 666 Dispensary, The, 665, 666 translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses, 6o4n, 93a; preface to, 588, 605, 843 Gascony, France, 631 Gaugamela, Iraq, 563 Gautruche, Pierre Poetical Histories, The, 566, 587 Geoffrey de Vinsauf Poetria Nova, 774-775 Geoffrey of Monmouth Historia Britonum, 774 George I, 606 George William, Prince of Wales, 558 Georgia, 844 Germany, 619 Gethsemane, Garden of, 640, 777 Gibbons, William, 665 Gibson, Edmund, 625 Gindicello River, Sicily, 887 Golding, Arthur translation of Julius Solinus, 633 translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses, 586, 680, 710, 711, 715-718,7*8-783, 786, 787, 791, 795, 800, 803, 933 Goliath, 850 Gorboduc, 613 Gower, John, 593, 621 Graham, Richard, 556 Granicus River, 568 Gray, Thomas Pindaric odes, 56a Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, 6«7 Greece, 566, 637, 671, 67a, 676, 687, 73a, 746, 754, 76a, 786, 788, 796, 816, 850, 856, 888, 889 Greek tragedians, 585 Greene, Robert Morando, the Tritameron of Love, 589 Gresham, James Picture of Incest, The, 586, 718, 719, 7*4 Grotius, Hugo Christ's Passion, 611 Guelderland, Germany, 667 Guistard and Sismond, 588, 690 Hadrian, 771 Halifax, George Savile, Marquis of, 667 Hall, Arthur translation of Iliad I-X, 584

Hamilton, Newburgh revision of Alexander's Feast, 558 Hammonium. See Siwah Handel, George Frederick, 558 Hannay, Patrick Happy Husband, A, 907 Hannibal, 568, 669, 770, 775 Hardy, Thomas, 906 Haresfield, Gloucestershire, ga6 Harington, Sir John translation of Ariosto's Orlando Furioso, 6aa Hasdrubal, 775 Hassan, Muley, or Mulai Ismail, emperor of Morocco, 925, 926 Heinsius, Nicholas, 891 Helicon, Mt., Greece, 686 Heliopolis. See On Hellespont, Greece, 562, 788 Henry II, 623 Henry II of Castile, 631 Henry III of France, 646 Henry IV, 622, 903, 904 Henry VI, 776 Henry VIII, 591, 768, 984 Heraclea, Italy, 87a Hermolaus, 563 Herringman, Henry, 621 Hertfordshire, 618 Hickes, George knowledge of Old English, 625 Vindication of Some among Our Selves against the False Principles of Dr. Sherlock, A, 917 Hickford, Thomas, 555 Hillel, 900 Hindmarsh, Joseph, 927 Hippocrcne Spring, Greece, 686 Hobbes, Thomas, 558, 615 Leviathan, 612 translations of Homer, 584, 615, 731; preface to, 615 Holland, 576, 609, 619, 629, 634, 668 Holmes, Sir Robert, 607 Holy Isle. See Lindisfarne Holy Land, 629 Homer compared with Chaucer, 592, 657, with Ovid, 850, with Virgil, 584, 585, 615, 630; Dryden's knowledge of and references to, 583-586; his plans to translate, 574, 575, 614; earlier editions and translations, 583-584, 594; emotions aroused by, 585; his "fire," 615

982

Index

Iliad moral of, 584; Book I, and Dryden's translation thereof, 569, 572, 595598, 600, 602, 603,632,664, 673-675, 726, 732-766,769,773,790, 802, 815, 817, 855, 863; other books, 607, 608, 616, 656, 730-731,744-746. 754. 756, 770, 772, 811, 816,818, 841-842, 845, 847-849, 851, 859, 861, 864,865, 880, 884; edition of 1689, 731, 735-739, 742-747. 749. 75°. 752.754. 756-76». 763-765 Odyssey, 635, 645, 652, 817 Homily Against Disobedience and Wilful Rebellion, An, 904 Honiton, Devonshire, 618 Hopkins, Charles History of Love, The, 586, 715, 718, 720, 786, 793 Horace similarity to in Chaucer's Knight's Tale, 657 Ars Poetica, 585, 614,616, 625, 777, 870 Carmen Seculare, 617 Epistles, 632, 774 Epodes, 579, 659, 662-666 Odes, 579, 634, 670, 714 Satires, 622, 628, 634 Howard, Sir Robert Conquest of China, The, 555 Hughes, John libretto for Alexander's Feast in Poems on Several Occasions, 557, 564 Huntingdonshire, 657-658 H j gin us Fabulae, 845

Ida, M t „ T u r k e y , 837 Idalia, Cyprus, 644-645 India, 649, 895 Iolcus, Greece, 680 Iran, 808 Ireland, 606, 607, 609, 629, 630, 632, 667 Isaac, 663 Ismarus, Mt., Greece, 719 Issus, T u r k e y , battle of, 562 Ismarus, Mt., Greece, 719 Issus, T u r k e y , battle of, 562 Italy, 568, 618, 619, 669, 777, 867, 871, 872, 875, 896; condottieri in, 703 Ithaca, 742, 850

Jacob, 663 Jael, 646 James II, 557, 567, 570, 577, 603, 607, 608,610, 619, 632, 633,654,660, 665, 810, 903, 930 James prince of Majorca, 631 James, son of Zebedee, 902 Jamestown, Virginia, 611 Jerome, St. Against Jovinian, 775 Against Rufinus, 657 Jerusalem, 628, 629, 634 Jesus, 570, 628, 631, 633, 640, 663, 708, 709. 778. 776-777. 808. 828, 838, 871, 900-903 [oan, Countess of Kent and Princess of Wales, 630-631 John, K i n g of England, 629, 774 John, son of Zebedee, 633, 90s John the Baptist, 900 Johnson, Samuel Dictionary, 803 Lives of the English Poets Dryden, 556, 562,573n, 605, 626, 921 Granville, 568 Gray, 562 Pope, 626 Jonson, Ben Dryden's praise of, 921 Bartholomew Fair, 620 Challenge at Tilt, A, 657 To the Memory of . . . Mr. William Shakespeare, 921 Joseph, 610, 770 Josephus, Flavius Jewish War, 634, 719 Julius Solinus, Caius Collectanea, 633 Justin us, Marcus Junianus Philippic History, 559, 560, 563-566 Juvenal Satires, 595, 610, 622, 630, 634, 650, 761, 871

K., E. glosses to Spenser's Shepheardes Calendar, 559, 561, 654 Kaphalari River, Greece, 886 Katherine of Aragon, 768 Keats, John, 606, 620, 696 Ken, T h o m a s , 578, 899 Kenelm, 769-770 Kent, T h o m a s Holland, Earl of, 631

Index Kidd, Capt. William, 667 Kilkenny Castle, Ireland, 608 Kilkenny, Ireland, 638 Kneller, Sir Godfrey, 927-948 Kynaston, Sir Francis Cynthiades: To Cynthia on Concealment of her Beauty, 638

L'Abbé, Anthony, 568 Lacinia, Italy, 873 Laconia, Greece, 674 Ladon River, Greece, 890 Lamb, Charles, 604 Lancaster, John of Gaunt, Duke of, 622, 623, 632, 635 Landen, Belgium, battle of, 608, 610 Landor, Walter Savage, 557 Langland, William Piers Plowman, 623 Lansdowne, George Granville, Baron, 567 Genuine Works of, The, 569 Heroick Love: A Tragedy, 567, 569 To Mr. Dryden on his Translations, 567 Latin comedies, compared with Chaucer, 591-592 Latium, Italy, 645 Lavater, Ludwig De Spectris, 867 Lawes, Henry, 611 Lawton family, memorial to, 905 Lawton, Erasmus, 927 Lawton, John, 927 Lawton, Rose Dryden, 927 Lee, Nathaniel Duke of Guise, The, his share in, 794 Rival Queens, The, 567 To Mr. Dryden, on his Poem of Paradice, 570 Leeds, West Yorkshire, 618 Leicester, Philip Sidney, 3rd Earl of, 590, 591, 624, 625, 635 Lemnos, 766, 846, 862 Lesbos, 746, 855, 887, 888 Levkas or Leucas, 888 Libya, 888, 891 Liege, Belgium, 610 Limerick, Ireland, 633 Lindisfarne, 633 Livy History of Rome, 59gn, 607, 628, 774, 872, 899

983

Lloyd, William Discourse of God's Ways of Disposing of Kingdoms, A, 916 Locke, John Two Treatises of Government, 670 Lollius, 617-618 London and environs: thanksgiving day in, 576; papists required to leave, 577; Coleridge and Lamb meet in, 604; battle of Landon reported at, 610; trade and manufacture, 618, 619; Company of Parish Clerks, 665; fire of London, 775; blitz, 776; Apothecaries' Hall, 771; Bank of China, 776; Blackfriars Lane, 771; Blackfriars Railway Station, 771; Borough High Street, 620; Canon Street Railway Station, 776; Charing Cross, 664; College of Physicians, 666; Gerrard Street, 556, 574; Gray's Inn, 614; Guy's Hospital, 620; Holborn Viaduct Railway Station, 771; Lambeth, 776; Londonstone, 775-776; Ludgate Hill, 771; Mortlake, 618; Newport Street, 574; Panton Street, 555; Queen Victoria Street, 771; Richmond Park, 665; St. James's Palace, 761; St. Paul's Cathedral, 902; St. Swithin's Church, 775-776; St. Thomas Street, 620; Southwark, 592, 776; Stationers' Company, 555; Stationers' Hall, 555, 563; Strand, The, 555; Tabard or Talbot Inn, 592, 620; Talbot Yard, 620; Thames River, 776; Vauxhall, 776; Wandsworth, 577; Westminster Abbey, 606, 631, 666, 925; Westminster School, 559, 628; Whitehall, 610, 664, Banqueting House in, 664; Will's Coffee House, 556; York Buildings, 555 London Gazette, 567, 569, 573, 926 London theaters: Betterton's Company, 567-569; Drury Lane, 569; Duke's Company, 567; King's Company, 567, 628, 844; Lincoln's Inn Fields, 567, 569; Rich's Company, 567-569; United Company, 567 Longchamp, William, 774 Longinus On the Sublime, 616 Lorraine, France, 668 Lot, 710, 712 Louis XIV, 610, 776

9»4

Index

Lucan Civil War, The, 6s>i Lucian Parliament of the Gods, The, 920 Lucilius, Caius, 622 Lucretius De Rerum Natura, 579, 636, 643, 650, 656, 696, 870 Lucullus, 609 Luxembourg, 668 Lycaea, Greece, 675 Lycia, Turkey, 818, 860 Lycurgus, 649 Lycus River. See Menderes Lydgate, John dates, 621; metrics, 593 Fall of Princes, The, 639; prologue to, 617 Lydia, Turkey, 565, 645, 770, 889 Lyrnessus, Turkey, 817, 818, 855 Macaulay, Thomas Babington History of England, The, 557, 605 Macedonia, Greece, 796, 834, 889, 891 Macky, John Memoirs, 606 Madori, Antoine le French translation of Boccaccio's Decameron, 58gn Macrobius Aurelius commentary on Cicero's Somnium Scipionis, 770 Magna Grecia, Italy, 875 Magnus, Olaus Iiistoria de Gentibus Septentrionales, 867-868 Majorca, 631 Malines (Mechlen), Belgium, 618 Maluku Islands, 8og Manchester, England, 618 Manilius Astronomica, 617 Marcello, Benedetto, 558 March, Edmund de Mortimer, 3rd Earl of, 62 s Marlay, Anthony, 556 Marlowe, Christopher Doctor Faustus, 566 Martha, 709 Martial Epigrams, 621, ga8 Maritza River, Greece, 889 Marvell, Andrew

Damon the Mower, 642 Mary Beatrice of Modena, 930 Mary I, 772 Mary II, 577, 626 Mauropotamus, Greece, 887 Media, 564 Mediterranean Sea, 632, 896 Megara, Greece, 769 Menderes River, Turkey, 886 Mennes, Sir John, 590, 625 Merton College, Oxford, 773 Messenia, Greece, 837 Messina, Sicily, 888 Metapontum, Greece, 872 Milbourne, Luke controversy with Dryden, 623, 624, 661, 665-666, 906 First Book of Virgil's /Eneis, The, 626 Notes on Dryden's Virgil in a Letter to a Friend, 626, 627 Ostia, 627 Milton, John Dryden's study of, 590, and remark on his poetical ancestry, 611 Comus, 688, 692 Epitaph on the Marchioness of Winchester, An, 924 History of Britain, The, 770 II Penseroso, 557 L'Allegro, 557, 565 Lycidas, 930, 931 Paradise Lost, 581, 598, 602, 633, 636, 638, 639, 642-644, 646-652, 654-656, 663,665, 666, 669, 671, 673, 684, 688, 692-694,696, 698-699, 705, 707, 7 1 1 713, 718, 727, 731, 733,735, 736, 738, 740, 743- 745.746. 755- 756, 758.759» 762-765, 767, 772, 773,775, 776,779, 780,784, 785, 787, 796,803, 808, 809, 814, 822, 825,851, 864, 873, 876, 882, 883, 885-886, 894, 898,900,903, 909, 9M> 9'9 Paradise Regained, 636, 638 Samson Agonistes, 697 Miscellaneous Poems and Translations, 924. 9«6 Mithridates, 609 Modena, Italy, 930 Monmouth, Anne Scott, Duchess of, 602 Monmouth, James Scott, Duke of, 608, 667 Mons, Belgium, 607, 628 Montagu of Broughton, Sir Edward, 635

Index Montague, Charles, letter from Dryden, 57a, 614-615, 658 Montaigne, Michel de Essays, 579, 619 Morley, Christopher Love, 634 Mortimer, Edmund de, 622 Mortimer, Roger de, 622 Moses, 570, 900, 903 Motteux, Peter Anthony Dryden's acquaintance with, 569; exception to Dryden's dislike of French, 776 Beauty in Distress, Dryden's commendatory poem on, 568-571 Gentleman's Journal, The, 560, 569 Moyle, Walter, 556 Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 575 Mulgrave, John Sheffield, Earl of sent to Tangier, 925; dislike of Duchess of Portsmouth, 930 Essay upon Satire, An, 746-747, 930 Munster, Christoph Bernhard von Galen, Prince Bishop of, 653, 667 Musical Society, 555, 556, 558 Mycenae, Greece, 734, 735, 895 Mysia, Turkey, 817, 818, 887 Mysus River, Turkey, 887

Namur, Belgium, 610, 668 Naples, Italy, 689 Near East, 568 Neaethus River. See Neto Nebuchadnezzar, 770 Necete River, Italy, 874 Nero, 646 Netherlands, 609 Neto River, Italy, 875 New Bedford River, Cambridgeshire, 669 Nezu Collection of Original Poems on Several Occasions, A, 929 New Collection of Poems on Several Occasions, A, 929 New Miscellany of Original Poems on Several Occasions, A, 929 Noah, 633 Nonacris, Greece, 681 Norfolk, 927 Norfolk, Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of, 9*4 North Africa, 808 Northampton, John de, 622 Northamptonshire, 574, 575, 922

985

Northumberland, 633 Norwich, Norfolk, 618 Numa, 581, 872, 898-899

Ode Sung before the King, An, 579 Ogilby, John translation of Homer's Iliad, 584, 626, 73i. 733-735. 737. 744. 758 translation of Virgil, 626-627 Old Bedford River, Cambridgeshire, 669 Oldham, John Ode for an Anniversary of Musick on S. Cecilia's Day, An, 558 satires, 570 Olympias, 559, 563, 564, 668-669 Olympus, Mt., Greece, 564, 746,754, 756, 760-762, 796 On (Heliopolis), Egypt, 894 On the Death of Mr. Oldham, 579 On the Kings-House Now Building at Winchester, 579 Onesimus, 677 Orange, France, 668 Ormonde, Anne Hyde Butler, Duchess of, 606 Ormonde, James Butler, 1st Duke of, 606,607,610 Ormonde, James Butler, 2d Duke of, 573> 5761. 606, 608-610, 629, 632, 634,810,870 Ormonde, James Butler, 1st Earl of, 607 Ormonde, Mary Somerset Butler, Duchess of, 573, 580, 582, 606, 629-635, 906; letter from Dryden, 576 Orosius, 775 Ossa, Mt., 828 Ossory, Thomas Butler, Earl of, 607, 610 Otho, 646, 703 Othrys, Mt., Greece, 821, 836 Otway, Thomas Orphan, The, 636 Ovid compared with Chaucer, 592, and Virgil, 587, 620; Dryden's knowledge and use of, 583, 586, 587, 616; Dryden knows more seamanship than, 602; Dryden's methods of translating, 596; imitation of by "my Lord R „ " 580; influence on Dryden's translations of Boccaccio, 601, Chaucer, 636, 641, Homer, 731, 753, and Virgil, 595; occasional sim-

986

Index

ilarity to Chaucer, 593; open vowels in, 933 Opera, first edition of, 585; 1689 edition of, 686 A mores, 587 Ars Amatoria, 587, 643, 718, 906 Fasti, 617, 816 Heroldes, 587 Metamorphoses editions of, 585-586, 656; see also Farnaby, Thomas, and Freind, John; translations of, 587, 594, 93a; leads Dryden to think of translating Chaucer, 590, 612; Dryden's progress in translating, 612; Book I, 579, 620, 633,641, 647, 650, 65z, 654, 795, 851; Book II, 839; Book III, 639, 641, 647; Book IV, 64a, 649, 889, 895; Book VI, 569, 651, 673; Book VII, 744, 839, 869-870, 907; Book VIII, 598-599; 638, 652, 670-687, 707-714; Book IX, 579,663-674,827, 837,932; Book X, 650, 715, 718-739; Book XI, 786-806, 813, 817, 869; Book XII, 607, 670, 736, 748, 753; Book XIII, 579, 599-600, 611, 670, 747, 782; Book XIV, 617; Book XV, 616, 617, 649, 670, 673, 745, 872-899 Owen, John Latine Epigrams English'd, 621 Oxford, 625, 627, 773 Oxfordshire, 670 Oxford University, 608-609

Pactolus River, Turkey, 565 Padua, Italy, 617 Pagasa, Greece, 676, 686, 832, 844 Painter, William Palace of Pleasure, The, 589 Pallene or Phthegra, Greece, 891 Paphos, Cyprus, 645, 718 Parthia, 564 Paston, Edward, 926 Paston, Margaret, 926-927 Patrick, St., 633 Patrick, Simon, 924 Funeral Sermon Preached at Burial of John Smith, A, 922 Paul, 662-663, 677, 777, 904, 905 Pausanias Description of Greece, 881, 890 Peace of Ryswick, 576, 668 Pelion, Mt., Greece, 816, 836, 850 Pella, Greece, 825

Peloponnesus, Greece, 645,674,675, 734, 748, 812, 837-839, 853, 873, 887-889, 895, 908 Peneus River, Greece, 822 Pepys, Samuel correspondence with Dryden, 572, 612, 899; enjoyed Chaucer, 590; knowledge of Middle English, 625; owned a copy of Speght's 1602 edition of Chaucer, 593n. 637 Diary, 667, 929 Persepolis, Persia, 558,563, 564, 566, 567, 581 Persia, 610, 808 Persius Satires, 617, 622, 634, 714, 809 Peru,608 Peter IV of Castile, 631 Peter the apostle, 903 Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, 657 Petrarch 589, 612, 617 Pettie, George Petite Pallace of Pettie his Pleasure, A, 624 Pharaoh, 770. See also Ptolemy Pharos, 888 Pheneos, Greece, 889 Philemon, 677 Philip of Macedon, 563 Philippa, Queen of England, 631 Phrygia, Turkey, 708, 714, 748 Plithia, Greece, 740, 742, 853 Phyllus, Greece, 835 Pickering, John, 929 Pickering, Sir Gilbert, 929 Pickering, Susannah Dryden, 929 Pilate, 902 Pindar virtuoso harpist, 773 Nemean Odes, 674 Pindus Mts., Greece, 796, 816, 820, 889 Pirates, 667 Plato, 771-772 Plautus, 628 Playford, John Introduction to the Skill of Mustek,

the

559. 5 6 5

Pliny Natural History, 889-890, 892, 895 Plutarch Moralia Of Virtue and Vice, 871 Parallel Lives Alexander, 559-560, 563-566, 668 Camillus, 5ggn

Index Cicero, 608-609 Comparison of Aristides with Marcus Cato, 669 Fabius Maximus, 66g Publicola, 608 Theseus, 640 Po River, Italy, 777 Poetical Miscellanies: The Fifth Part, 587, 926, 930, 932 Poetical Recreations . . . Part II, 985 Pollio, C. Asinius, 633 Pontus, Turkey, 6og, 841 Pope, Alexander information about Dryden, 555,556, 574; sensitive to criticism, 626; ed. Miscellaneous Poems and Translations, 924 Adriani Morientis ad Animam, 8gs Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot, An, 567 Essay on Criticism, An, 648, 687, 900 translation of Homer's Iliad, 730, 746, 763; Essay on Homer, An, 6o4n; preface to, 585, 6o4n Pope, Walter Select Novels, 589 Poplicola or Publicola, Publius Valerius, 607-608, 670 Porta, Giambattista della De Humana Physiognomia, 683 Portsmouth, Louise de Keroualle, Duchess of, 930 Portugal, undeclared trade wars with England, 930 Powell, George Preface to The Fatal Discovery, 567569 Powys, Richard, 927-988 Prester John, 808 Prior, Matthew letter from Richard Powys to, 927928 Adriani Morientis ad Animam Suam. Imitated, 892 Pseudo-Hadrian Animula vagula, 892 Ptolemy, Alexander's general, 563, 634 Ptolemy VI, Philometor, 768 Ptolemy VII, Euergetes, 768 Ptolemy XII, 768 Publicola. See Poplicola Punchardoun, Richard de, 631 Purcell, Henry Musical Entertainment Perform'd on November xxii, A, 558 Orpheus Britannicus, 564

987

Pylos, Greece, 678, 748, 837, 838 Pyrrhus, 871 Pythagoras, 872, 876 Queens' College, Cambridge, 928 Quenedreda, or Quendrid, 769-770 Quintillian Institutio Oratorio, 852 R., My Lord, 580 Rapin, René Judgement on Alexander and Caesar, 560,564 Reflections on Aristotle's Treatise of Poesie, 571 Ravenna, Italy, 777, 779, 783 Ray, John, 624 Rebekah, 663 Rhodes, 837, 905, 914, gso Rich, Christopher, 567 Richard I, 629, 774~775 Richard II, 622, 623, 631, 903 Robin Hood and Alan a Dale, ballad of, 780 Rochester, John Wilmot, 8d Earl of quoted by Dryden, 621 Allusion to Horace Tenth Satyr of the First Book, An, 613 Rochester, Lawrence Hyde, 1st Earl of, 606 Rogers, John, 926, 931 Rogers, William, 927 Roland, 772, 810 Romagna, Italy, 777 Roman de Thebes, Le, 637 Roman de la Rose, Le, 640, 770 Rome, 568. 577, 599, 774, 775, 871, 878, 898; Praetorian guards, 703 Romulus, 898 Roncesvalles, Spain, battle of, 772 Ross, Alexander Mystagogus Poeticus, 587 Rowe, Nicholas Ulysses, 909 Russia, 619 Rymer, Thomas Dryden's "friend," 612-613; Dryden's answers to, 585, 592; knowledge of Old English, 625; supposed to be preparing an attack on Dryden, 626 Edgar, 613

988

Index

Preface to Rapin's Reflections on Aristotle's Treatise of Poesie, 571 Short View of Tragedy, A, 612, 613, 630 Tragedies of the Last Age Consider'd, The, 613, 630 S., J . [perhaps John Stow], ed. Certaine Worthye Manuscript Poems of Great Antiquity, 588 Sackville, Col., g26 St. Germain, Forest of, France, 660, 665 St. Germaine, France, 577 St. Michael (ship), 607 Salamis, 788 Salerno, Italy, 689, 707 Salisbury, Thomas Montagu, 4th Earl of, 635 Salisbury, William, Earl of. 631 Sail us t Bellum Iugurthinum, 647 Salmacis Spring, Turkey, 812, 889 Samos, 876 Samson, 645 Samuel, 570 Sandys, George Paraphrase upon the Psalms, A, including a paraphrase of Job, 611 translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses, 586, 590, 593, 599, 600, 6o4n, 611, 620, 671, 675, 680, 682-684, 707-719, 721-729,787- 793,795-806, 810,816, 820, 821, 823-825,827,828, 833, 834, 842-860, 863, 864, 87a, 876, 880, 881, 883-887, 889-891, 893-896, 933-935 translation of Hugo Grotius' Christ's Passion, 611 Sappho, 675 Saronic Gulf, Greece, 888 Scandinavia, 619 Scipio Africanus, 770 Scipio Africanus Minor, 770 Scotland, 623 Scott, Sir Walter, 562, 616, 688 Scudery, Madeleine de, 625 Scyros, 853, 855 Scythia, Ukraine, 637, 871 Secundus, 771, 871 Seneca, L. Annaeus remarks on Ovid, 587; resemblance to in Chaucer, 657 Agamemnon, 643, 644 Hippo lytus, 651 Moral Epistles, 871

Moral Essays, 871 Naturales Quaestiones, 620 Seneffe, Belgium, battle of, 628 Septimus Severus, 703 Servius Tullius, 870-871 Settle, Elkanah Absalom Senior, 627 Shad well, Thomas, 613 Shaftesbury, Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of, 667 Shakespeare, William Thomas Rymer's strictures on, 613; Dryden's praise of, 623, 921; Jacob Tonson's copyright of, 927 All's Well That Ends Well, 869 Hamlet, 743 Henry V, 676 2 Henry VI, 776 King Lear, 606 Love's Labour's Lost, 914 Midsummer Night's Dream, A, 868 Richard II, 697, 903 Taming of the Shrew, The, 901, 920 Tempest, The, 869 Troilus and Cressida, 590 Two Gentlemen of Verona, 913 Sheffield, West Yorkshire, 618 Sheridan, Richard Brinsley Rivals, The, 759 Sherlock, William Case of the Allegiance Due to Sovereign Powers, The, 904, gi6 Shipman, Thomas Virgin, The, 635 Shippen, William Faction Displayed, 928 Sicilies, Kingdom of the Two, 689 Sicily, 871, 888 Sidney, Sir Philip citation of in Johnson's Dictionary, 803 Arcadia, 654 Sidra, Gulf of, Libya, 891 Sigeum, Turkey, 815, 843 Simois River, Turkey, 863 Simonides, 769 Sinai, Mt., Egypt, 901, 903 Sisera, 646 Siwah (Hammonium), Libya, 888 Sminthe, Turkey, 736 Smith, John, the Cambridge Platonist, 921-924 Smyrna, Turkey, 667, 786 Sodom, 870

Index Sole (Southwold) Bay, Suffolk, battle of, 607 Solomon, 570, 645 Somerset, Henry Beaufort, 3rd Duke of, 632 Sophocles Antigone, 638 Philoctetes, 846, 847 Southerne, Thomas Wives' Excuse, The, 570 Southey, Robert, 557 Spain, 606, 6ig, 668 Sparta, 734, 81 j, 867, 880, 884, 895, 908, 9*3 Spcght, Thomas 1598 edition of Chaucer's Works, 526, 590, 591, 593, 6o4n, 617, 622, 624, 625, 637, 639, 642-644, 647, 649, 652-655, 657, 767-772. 775. 871; Argument of The Flower and the Leaf in, 807; glossary in, 902 other editions, 593n, 6o4n, 621-622, 625; remarks on Chaucer's metrics in, 621-622 Spence, Joseph Observations, Anecdotes, and Characters of Books and Men, 556 Spenser, Edmund Dryden's reading and estimate of, 559- 59°. 611 Faerie Queene, The, 606, 61s, 616, 649, 650, 656,681, 692, 782, 868, 870, 908 Shepheardes Calender, The, 559, 654; E. K.'s gloss on "October," 1. 27, 559 Spice Islands. See Maluku Islands Squillace, Bay of, Italy, 873 Stafford, Staffordshire, 930 Stafford, William Howard, Viscount, 924 Statius Achilleid, 854 Thebaid, 621, 637, 638, 641, 646, 649, 651, 656 Steele, Richard, 557 Steinkerk (Steenkerke), Belgium, battle of, 608 Sterne, Lawrence, 906 Steward, Elizabeth, 569, 929; letters from Dryden, 572, 574-575. 577. 578, 604, 658-659 Steward family, 574 Stow, John. See also S., J. edition of Chaucer's Works, 590

989

Strabo Geography, 677, 884 Straw, Jack, 775-776 Stuart, Charles, the Young Pretender, 606 Stuart, James, the Old Pretender, 606 Subligny, Marie Thérèse Perdou de, 568 Suetonius Lives of the Caesars Caesar, 810 Claudius, 608 Suidas Lexicon, 559 Swift, Jonathan annotation in John Macky's Memoirs, 606 Baucis and Philemon, 707 Sybaris, Italy, 875, 889 Sybaris River, Italy, 889 Sylvester, Joshua Bartas his Divine Weekes and Workes, 666 Sylvius, Lady Ann, 573 Sylvius, Sir Gabriel, 5730 Symplegades, 890 Syria, 562 T „ C. Notable Historye of Nastagio and Traversari, A, 588 Tacitus Dialogus de Oratoribus, 621 Tacred and Gismund, 688 Talmud, 900 Tancred, 689 Tangier, Morocco, 925, 926 Taranto, Italy, 867, 871, 875 Taranto, Bay of, Italy, 873 Tarquinius Priscus, 870-871 Tasso, Torquato Jerusalemme Liberata, 612 Tate, Nahum Song for St. Cecilia's Day, A, 558 Tauris, Ukraine, 856 Tegea, Greece, 675 Temisa, Italy, 875 Temple, Sir William Memoirs of What Past in Christendome, 628 Tenedos, 736, 817, 818, 855 Tenniel, Sir John, 599 Tennyson, Alfred, Lord comparison of Dryden and Pope in translating Homer's Iliad, 746

990

Index

Ulysses, 730 Terence Eunuchus, 623, 640 Texel, Netherlands, battle of the, 607 Thais, 556, 559, 560, 563-566, 581 Thebe or Thebes, Turkey, 754, 817, 818, 855 Thebes, Boeotia, 632, 638, 64s, 643, 645, 674, 839, 842 Theocritus Idylls, 871, 930 Thermaic Gulf, Greece, 891 Thermodon River, Turkey, 841 Thermopylae, Greece, 786, 788 Thcssalonike, Greece, 891 Thessaly, Greece, 640, 676, 680, 732, 740, 786, 796, 816, 820-822, 825, 828, 830, 832, 834, 835, 853 Thomas, Elizabeth, letters from Dryden, 613, 614 Thomond Bridge, Ireland, battle of, 633 Thorpe Achurch, Northamptonshire, 922 Thrace (Ukraine), 648, 649, 719 Thwai tes, Edward, 625 Thynne, Francis, 617 Thynne, William edition of Chaucer's Works, 590; dedication of, 591 Tiber River, Italy, 887 Tibullus, 643 Tichmarsh, Northamptonshire, 574; parish church, 929 Timotheus of Boeotia, 558-562,565, 566 Tiryns, Greece, 839 Titus, 634 Tixall Hall, Staffordshire, 930 To Caelia, 579 Tonson, Jacob, 572-573, 604-605, 621, 927-928; letters from Dryden, 556, 57° Torre del Lupi. See Temisa Trachin or Trachis, Greece, 786, 792, 799 Treaty of Limerick, 633 Trent River, England, 610 Trithemius, Johannes Liber Octo Questionum, 867 Triton River and Lake, Libya, 891 Troad, The, Turkey, 843 Troezen, Greece, 888 Troy, 581. 635, 734, 736, 738, 741, 748, 752, 812, 813, 815, 817, 818,837, 840, 845, 846-847, 850, 854-858, 863, 864, 866, 867, 896, 897, 925, 934

Tuke, Sir Brian, 591, 593, 616 Turkey, 562, 619, 637, 645, 708, 736, 748, 754.77°. 7 8 6. 788, 817,818, 841,860, 886,887, 889, 934 Tuscany, Italy, 618 Tyana, Turkey, 714 Tyler, Wat, 775 Tyre, Lebanon, 817, 888 Tyrwhitt, Thomas edition of Chaucer's Works, 646

Ukraine, 887 Upon the . . . Translation of Pere Simon's Critical History, 579 Urry, John edition of Chaucer's Works, 590 Usk, Thomas Testament of Love, The, 622 Valerius Maximus De Factis Dictisque Memorabilibus Libri IX, 769 Vanbrugh, Sir John friendship with Jacob Tonson, 928; revision of The Pilgrim. See Fletcher, John Short Vindication of The Relapse, A, 628 Vega, Garsilaso de la Royal Commentaries of the Incas and General History of Peru, 608 Venice, 618 Vespasian, 634 Victory (ship), 607 Vincent of Beauvais Speculum Hisioriale, 771, 871 Virgil compared with Chaucer, 592, with Homer, 584, 585, 615, with Ovid, 587, 620; open vowels in, 933; self depiction, 930-931 Aeneid, 563-565, 579, 585, 610, 614616, 620, 621, 625,627,630,632, 635, 645, 648, 649, 652, 656, 665,673, 676, 680,684, 692, 712,726, 745, 747,748, 762, 768, 769, 773,775, 783, 788,794, 797, 800, 802, 812, 829, 837, 839, 841, 844, 850,873,880,896,897,913,925926 Eclogues, 566, 579, 617, 633, 670, 769, 914, 930-932 Georgics, 564, 580, 609, 617, 632, 649650, 652, 656, 726, 891, 909

Index Virginia, 611 Vitellius, 646, 703 Vossius, Isaac De Poematum Rhythmì, 561

Cantu

et

Viribus

Wace Roman de Brut, Le, 868 Waller, Edmund Dryden's knowledge of his poetry, 590, 622 Of the Last Verses in the Book, 655 Walsh, William, letter from Dryden, 583" Walter, William Guystarde and Sygysmonde, 588, 688, 690. 699. 7°3 Ward, Edward London Spy, The, 570, 915 Warton, Joseph Essay on the Genius and Writings of Pope, An, 555-556, 560 Warwick and Salisbury, Richard Neville, Earl of, 635 Watts, Isaac, 660 Whichcote, Benjamin, 92g White River. See Achelous William III, 557, 576-578, 603, 606-609. 614, 619, 623,628,629, 632, 634,658, 665, 667, 668, 703, 810, 903, 904; proclamations, 577-578 Wilton, Wiltshire, 618 Winchester, Hampshire, 579

991

Winchester, Isabella Howard Paulet, Marchioness of, 924 Winchester, Jane Paulet, Marchioness of, 924 Winchester, John Paulet, 5th Marquis of, 924-925 Wireker, Nigel Speculum Stultorum, 774 Wolfe, John, 588n Worcester, Charles Somerset, Earl of, 631-632 Wordsworth, William, 616, 688,695 Worthington, John, 922 Wycherley, William Plain Dealer, The, 5830 Wycliff, John, 623

Xanthus River, Turkey, 863 Xerxes, 566, 788 Yalden, Thomas Ode on St. Cecilia's Day, An, 580 Hymn to Darkness, A, 579 Hymn to the Morning, A, 579 Yarmouth. See Great Yarmouth Yemen, 719, 728 York, Mary Beatrice, Duchess of, 629

Zakkai, Johanan ben, goo Zama, Algeria, 568 Zancle. See Messina