himself more a poet than the little we have extant of his poetry seems to import."-Edward Phillips, Theatrum Poetarum," 1675, ii. 233.

66

EDMUND SPENSER.

1. Considering she beareth two persons, the one of a most royal Queen or Empress, the other of a most virtuous and beautiful Lady, this latter part in some places I do express in Belphœbe, fashioning her name according to your own excellent conceit of Cynthia,-Phoebe and Cynthia being both names of Diana."-Letter of the Author's (of the "Faery Queen") to Sir Walter Raleigh, 1590; Spenser's "Works," by Collier, i. 149.

2.

"To thee, that art the summer's nightingale,

Thy sovereign Goddess's most dear delight,
Why do I send this rustic madrigal,

That may thy tuneful ear unseason quite?
Thou only fit this argument to write,

In whose high thoughts pleasure hath built her bower,
And dainty love learned sweetly to indite.

My rhymes I know unsavoury and sour,

To taste the streams that; like a golden shower,
Flow from thy fruitful head, of thy love's praise;
Fitter, perhaps, to thunder martial stower,

When so thee list thy lofty Muse to raise :

Yet, till that thou thy poem wilt make known,

Let thy fair Cynthia's praises be thus rudely shewn."

(Sonnet to Sir Walter Raleigh, printed with the first three books of the "Faery Queen," in 1590; ib. i. 164.)

3.

"But if in living colours and right hue

Thyself thou covet to see pictured,
Who can it do more lively or more true

Than that sweet verse, with nectar sprinkled,
In which a gracious servant pictured

His Cynthia, his heaven's fairest light?

That with his melting sweetness ravished,
And with the wonder of her beams bright,
My senses lulled are in slumber of delight.
"But let that same delicious poet lend
A little leave unto a rustic Muse

To sing his mistress' praise; and let him mend,
If ought amiss her liking may abuse:

Ne let his fairest Cynthia refuse

In mirrors more than one herself to see;
But either Gloriana let her choose,

Or in Belphœbe fashioned to be;

In th' one her rule, in th' other her rare chastity."

"One day,' quoth he, 'I sat, as was my trade,
Under the foot of Mole, that mountain hoar,
Keeping my sheep amongst the coolly shade
Of the green alders by the Mulla's shore:
There a strange shepherd chanced to find me out,
Whether allured with my pipe's delight,
Whose pleasing sound yshrilled far about,

Or thither led by chance, I know not right:
Whom when I asked from what place he came,
And how he hight, himself he did ycleepe
The Shepherd of the Ocean by name,

And said he came far from the main-sea deep. He, sitting me beside in that same shade,

Provoked me to play some pleasant fit; And, when he heard the music which I made, He found himself full greatly pleased at it: Yet, æmuling my pipe, he took in hond

My pipe, before that æmuled of many,

And played thereon, for well that skill he conned,
Himself as skilful in that art as any.

He piped, I sung; and, when he sung, I piped;
By change of turns each making other merry;
Neither envying other, nor envied,

So piped we, until we both were weary."

"His song was all a lamentable lay

Of great unkindness and of usage hard,

Of Cynthia, the Lady of the Sea,

Which from her presence faultless him debarred.

And ever and anon, with singulfs rife,

He cried out, to make his undersong,

Ah, my love's Queen, and Goddess of my life!

Who shall me pity, when thou dost me wrong?""

"And there that Shepherd of the Ocean is,

That spends his wit in love's consuming smart; Full sweetly tempered is that Muse of his,

That can empierce a prince's mighty heart."

("Colin Clout's come home again," 1591; ib. v. 33, 37, 47.)

III. SPECIMENS OF LAMPOONS ON RALEIGH.

1.

"Water thy plants with grace divine,

And hope to live for aye;

Then to thy Saviour Christ incline;

In Him make steadfast stay;

Raw is the reason that doth lie

Within an atheist's head,

Which saith the soul of man doth die,

When that the body's dead.

"Now may you see the sudden fall

;

Of him that thought to climb full high ;-
A man well known unto you all,

Whose state, you see, doth stand Rawly."
&c. &c. &c.

(The first eight lines printed in four as Raleigh's own composition, in the Oxford edition of his works, viii. 732, with the title "Moral Advice." They were taken from MS. Ashm. 781, p. 163, where they are signed "Sr. Wa. Raleigh." Also printed with a continuation, of which the above specimen will be sufficient, among Mr. Halliwell's "Poetical Miscellanies" from MSS.; Percy Society, vol. xv. p. 14. The Oxford editors failed to observe the pun on Raleigh's name, to which James I. also condescended on a famous occasion.)

1

2.

"Watt, I wot well thy overweening wit,

Led by ambitious humours, wrought thy fall,"

"I pity that the summer's nightingale,'

&c. &c. &c.

Immortal Cynthia's sometime dear delight,

That used to sing so sweet a madrigal,

Should like an owl go wanderer in the night,

Quoted from Spenser's "Sonnet," above, p. xxii. The phrase was also adopted by Drayton; see Collier's "Bibl. Cat." i. 224-5; and note on Spenser.

Hated of all, but pitied of none,

Though swanlike now he makes his dying moan.'

(Extracted from a long piece in Mr. Halliwell's "Poetical Miscellanies," as above, pp. 15, 16. The last line is important, as proving that Raleigh was believed to have written verses shortly before his death.)

3.

"The Nightingale will scarce be tame,
No company keep he can;

He dare not show his face for shame;
He feareth the look of man:
But Robin like a man can look,
And doth shun no place;
He will sing in every nook,

And stare you in the face."

(Extracted from a piece published from Gough's MSS. in the "Camden Society's Miscellany," iii. 22; and interpreted of the quarrel between Raleigh and Essex in Collier's "Life of Spenser," p. lxix.)

4.

"To whom shall cursed I my case complain,
To move some pity of my wretched state?
For though no other comfort doth remain
Yet pity would my grief extenuate :
For I towards God and man myself abused,
And therefore am of God and man refused.
"To Heaven I dare not lift my wretched eyes,
Nor ask for pardon for my wretched deeds;

For I His word and service did despise,

Esteeming them of no more worth than weeds: [From] which most vile conceits these woes proceeds; For now I find, and, finding, fear to rue,

There is a God who is both just and true," &c.

(From "The despairing Complaint of wretched Raleigh for his treacheries wrought against the worthy Essex;" MS. Ashm. 36, p. 11. The piece contains forty-one stanzas, each of seven lines except the first.)

5.

"I speak to such, if any such there be,

Who are possessed, through their Prince's grace,

With swelling pride and scornful insolency,
Haughty disdaining and abuse or place:
To such I say, if any such there be,

Come, see these vices punished in me!" &c.

(From "Raleigh's Caveat to secure Courtiers;" following the above in the same MS.; thirty-eight stanzas of six lines each.)

IV.

ANSWERS TO "THE LIE;" CHIEFLY SUCH AS CONNECT RALEIGH WITH THAT POEM.

1.

Go, echo of the mind, a careless truth protest;
Make answer that rude Rawly no stomach can digest:
For why? The lie's descent is over base to tell;
To us it came from Italy; to them it came from hell.

What reason proves, confess; what slander saith, deny : Let no untruth with triumph pass; but never give the lie! Confess, in glittering court all are not gold that shine; Yet say one pearl and much fine gold g[1]ows in the prince's mind.

Confess that many [weeds] do overgrow the ground; Yet say, within the field of God good corn is to be found. Confess, some judge unjust the widow's right delay; Yet say there are some Samuels that never say her nay. Admit, some man of state do pitch his thoughts too high; Is that a rule for all the rest, their loyal hearts to try? Your wits are in the wane; your autumn in the bud; You argue from particulars; your reason is not good.

And still that men may see less reason to commend you, I marvel most, amongst the rest, how schools and arts offend you.

But why pursue I thus the witless words of wind? The more the crab doth seek to creep, the more she is behind. In church and commonwealth, in court and country both, What! nothing good? but all [s]o bad that every man doth loathe?

The further that you range, your error is the wider; The bee sometimes doth honey suck, but sure you are a

spider!

And so my counsel is, for that you want a name,

To seek some corner in the dark to hide yourself from shame. There wrap the silly fly within your spiteful web;