,illustration3 ,england's ,antiphon ,,england',s ,,antiphon ,,by ,,george ,,macdonald ,,england',s ,,antiphon was originally published in #ahfh ,,preface ,in this book ,i have sought to trace the course of our religious poetry from an early period of our literary history4 ,this could hardly be done without reference to some of the principal phases of the religious history of the nation4 ,to give anything like a full history of the religious feeling of a single county1 would require a large book1 and--not to mention sermons--would involve a thorough acquaintance with the hymns of the country1--a very wide subject1 which ,i have not considered of sufficient importance from a literary point of view to come within the scope of the volume4 ,but if its poetry be the cream of a people's thought1 some true indications of the history of its religious feeling must be found in its religious verse1 and ,i hope ,i have not altogether failed in setting forth these indications4 ,my chief aim1 however1 will show itself to have been the mediating towards an intelligent and cordial sympathy betwixt my readers and the writers from whom ,i have quoted4 ,in this ,i have some confidence of success4 ,heartily do ,i throw this my small pebble at the head of the great ,sabbath-breaker ,schism4 ,,contents ,,introduction4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,sacred ,,lyrics ,,of ,,the ,,thirteenth ,,century4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,the ,,miracle ,,plays1 ,,and ,,other ,,poems ,,of ,,the ,,fourteenth ,,century4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,,the ,,fifteenth ,,century4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,introduction ,,to ,,the ,,elizabethan ,,era4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,,spenser ,,and ,,his ,,friends4 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,,lord ,,bacon ,,and ,,his ,,coevals4 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,,dr4 ,,donne4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,,bishop ,,hall ,,and ,,george ,,sandys4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,a ,,few ,,of ,,the ,,elizabethan ,,dramatists4 ,,chapter ,x4 ,,sir ,,john ,,beaumont ,,and ,,drummond ,,of ,,hawthornden4 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,,the ,,brothers ,,fletcher4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,,wither1 ,,herrick1 ,,and ,,quarles4 ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,,george ,,herbert4 ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,,john ,,milton4 ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,,edmund ,,waller1 ,,thomas ,,brown1 ,,and ,,jeremy ,,taylor4 ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,,henry ,,more ,,and ,,richard ,,baxter4 ,,chapter ,,xvii4 ,,crashaw ,,and ,,marvell4 ,,chapter ,,xviii4 ,a ,,mount ,,of ,,vision--,,henry ,,vaughan4 ,,chapter ,,xix4 ,,the ,,plain4 ,,chapter ,,xx4 ,,the ,,roots ,,of ,,the ,,hills4 ,,chapter ,,xxi4 ,,the ,,new ,,vision4 ,,chapter ,,xxii4 ,,the ,,fervour ,,of ,,the ,,implicit4 ,,insight ,,of ,,the ,,heart4 ,,chapter ,,xxiii4 ,,the ,,questioning ,,fervour4 ,,england',s ,,antiphon4 ,,introduction4 ,if the act of worship be the highest human condition1 it follows that the highest human art must find material in the modes of worship4 ,the first poetry of a nation will not be religious poetry3 the nation must have a history at least before it can possess any material capable of being cast into the mould of religious utterance2 but1 the nation once possessed of this material1 poetry is the first form religious utterance will assume4 ,the earliest form of literature is the ballad1 which is the germ of all subsequent forms of poetry1 for it has in itself all their elements3 the lyric1 for it was first chanted to some stringed instrument2 the epic1 for it tells a tale1 often of solemn and ancient report2 the dramatic1 for its actors are ever ready to start forward into life1 snatch the word from the mouth of the narrator1 and speak in their own persons4 ,all these forms have been used for the utterance of religious thought and feeling4 ,of the lyrical poems of ,england1 religion possesses the most2 of the epic1 the best2 of the dramatic1 the oldest4 ,of each of these ,i shall have occasion to speak2 but1 as the title of the book implies1--for ,antiphon means the responsive song of the parted choir1--,i shall have chiefly to do with the lyric or song form4 ,for song is the speech of feeling4 ,even the prose of emotion always wanders into the rhythmical4 ,hence1 as well as for other reasons belonging to its nature1 it is one chief mode in which men unite to praise ,god2 for in thus praising they hold communion with each other1 and the praise expands and grows4 ,the individual heart1 however1 must first have been uplifted into praiseful song1 before the common ground and form of feeling1 in virtue of which men might thus meet1 could be supplied4 ,but the vocal utterance or the bodily presence is not at all necessary for this communion4 ,when we read rejoicingly the true song-speech of one of our singing brethren1 we hold song-worship with him and with all who have thus at any time shared in his feelings1 even if he have passed centuries ago into the high countries of song4 ,my object is to erect1 as it were1 in this book1 a little auricle1 or spot of concentrated hearing1 where the hearts of my readers may listen1 and join in the song of their country's singing men and singing women4 ,i will build it1 if ,i may1 like a chapel in the great church of ,england's worship1 gathering the sounds of its never-ceasing choir1 heart after heart lifting up itself in the music of speech1 heart after heart responding across the ages4 ,hearing1 we worship with them4 ,for we must not forget that1 although the individual song springs from the heart of the individual1 the song of a country is not merely cumulative3 it is vital in its growth1 and therefore composed of historically dependent members4 ,no man could sing as he has sung1 had not others sung before him4 ,deep answereth unto deep1 face to face1 praise to praise4 ,to the sound of the trumpet the harp returns its own vibrating response--alike1 but how different6 ,the religious song of the country1 ,i say again1 is a growth1 rooted deep in all its story4 ,besides the fact that the lyric chiefly will rouse the devotional feeling1 there is another reason why ,i should principally use it3 ,i wish to make my book valuable in its parts as in itself4 ,the value of a thing depends in large measure upon its unity1 its wholeness4 ,in a work of these limits1 that form of verse alone can be available for its unity which is like the song of the bird--a warble and then a stillness4 ,however valuable an extract may be--and ,i shall not quite eschew such--an entire lyric1 ,i had almost said however inferior1 if worthy of a place at all1 is of greater value1 especially if regarded in relation to the form of setting with which ,i hope to surround it4 ,there is a sense in which ,i may1 without presumption1 adopt the name of ,choragus1 or leader of the chorus1 in relation to these singers3 ,i must take upon me to order who shall sing1 when he shall sing1 and which of his songs he shall sing4 ,but ,i would rather assume the office of master of the hearing1 for my aim shall be to cause the song to be truly heard2 to set forth worthy points in form1 in matter1 and in relation2 to say with regard to the singer himself1 his time1 its modes1 its beliefs1 such things as may help to set the song in its true light--its relation1 namely1 to the source whence it sprung1 which alone can secure its right reception by the heart of the hearer4 ,for my chief aim will be the heart2 seeing that1 although there is no dividing of the one from the other1 the heart can do far more for the intellect than the intellect can do for the heart4 ,we must not now attempt to hear the singers of times so old that their language is unintelligible without labour4 ,for this there is not room1 even if otherwise it were desirable that such should divide the volume4 ,we must leave ,anglo-,saxon behind us4 ,in ,early ,english1 ,i shall give a few valuable lyrics1 but they shall not be so far removed from our present speech but that1 with a reasonable amount of assistance1 the nature and degree of which ,i shall set forth1 they shall not only present themselves to the reader's understanding1 but commend themselves to his imagination and judgment4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,sacred ,,lyrics ,,of ,,the ,,thirteenth ,,century4 ,in the midst of wars and rumours of wars1 the strife of king and barons1 and persistent efforts to subdue neighbouring countries1 the mere effervescence of the life of the nation1 let us think for a moment of that to which the poems ,i am about to present bear good witness--the true life of the people1 growing quietly1 slowly1 unperceived--the leaven hid in the meal4 ,for what is the true life of a nation8 ,that1 ,i answer1 in its modes of thought1 its manners and habits1 which favours the growth within the individual of that kingdom of heaven for the sake only of which the kingdoms of earth exist4 ,the true life of the people1 as distinguished from the nation1 is simply the growth in its individuals of those eternal principles of truth1 in proportion to whose power in them they take rank in the kingdom of heaven1 the only kingdom that can endure1 all others being but as the mimicries of children playing at government4 ,little as they then knew of the relations of the wonderful story on which their faith was built1 to everything human1 the same truth was at work then which is now--poor as the recognition of these relations yet is--slowly setting men free4 ,in the hardest winter the roots are still alive in the frozen ground4 ,in the silence of the monastery1 unnatural as that life was1 germinated much of this deeper life4 ,as we must not judge of the life of the nation by its kings and mighty men1 so we must not judge of the life in the ,church by those who are called ,rabbi4 ,the very notion of the kingdom of heaven implies a secret growth1 secret from no affectation of mystery1 but because its goings-on are in the depths of the human nature where it holds communion with the ,divine4 ,in the ,church1 as in society1 we often find that that which shows itself uppermost is but the froth1 a sign1 it may be1 of life beneath1 but in itself worthless4 ,when the man arises with a servant's heart and a ruler's brain1 then is the summer of the ,church's content4 ,but whether the men who wrote the following songs moved in some shining orbit of rank1 or only knelt in some dim chapel1 and walked in some pale cloister1 we cannot tell1 for they have left no name behind them4 ,my reader will observe that there is little of theory and much of love in these lyrics4 ,the recognition of a living ,master is far more than any notions about him4 ,in the worship of him a thousand truths are working1 unknown and yet active1 which1 embodied in theory1 and dissociated from the living mind that was in ,christ1 will as certainly breed worms as any omer of hoarded manna4 ,holding the skirt of his garment in one hand1 we shall in the other hold the key to all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge4 ,i think almost all the earliest religious poetry is about him and his mother4 ,their longing after his humanity made them idolize his mother4 ,if we forget that only through his humanity can we approach his divinity1 we shall soon forget likewise that his mother is blessed among women4 ,i take the poems from one of the ,percy ,society publications1 edited by ,mr4 ,wright from a manuscript in the ,british ,museum4 ,he adjudges them to the reign of ,edward ,i4 ,perhaps we may find in them a sign or two that in cultivating our intellect we have in some measure neglected our heart4 ,but first as to the mode in which ,i present them to my readers3 ,i have followed these rules3-- #a4 ,wherever a word differs from the modern word only in spelling1 ,i have1 for the sake of readier comprehension1 substituted the modern form1 with the following exception3--,where the spelling indicates a different pronunciation1 necessary for the rhyme or the measure1 ,i retain such part of the older form1 marking with an acute accent any vowel now silent which must be sounded4 #b4 ,where the word used is antique in root1 ,i give the modern synonym in the margin4 ,antique phrases ,i explain in foot-notes4 ,it must be borne in mind that our modern pronunciation can hardly fail in other cases as well to injure the melody of the verses4 ,the modern reader will often find it difficult to get a rhythm out of some of them4 ,this may arise from any of several causes4 ,in the first place many final e's were then sounded which are now silent2 and it is not easy to tell which of them to sound4 ,again1 some words were pronounced as dissyllables which we treat as monosyllables1 and others as monosyllables which we treat as dissyllables4 ,i suspect besides1 that some of the old writers were content to allow a prolonged syllable to stand for two short ones1 a mode not without great beauty when sparingly and judiciously employed4 ,short supernumerary syllables were likewise allowed considerable freedom to come and go4 ,a good deal must1 however1 be put down to the carelessness and presumption of the transcribers1 who may very well have been incapable of detecting their own blunders4 ,one of these ancient mechanics of literature caused ,chaucer endless annoyance with his corruptions1 as a humorous little poem1 the last in his works1 sufficiently indicates4 ,from the same sources no doubt spring as well most of the variations of text in the manuscripts4 ,the first of the poems is chiefly a conversation between the ,lord on the cross and his mother standing at its foot4 ,a few prefatory remarks in explanation of some of its allusions will help my readers to enjoy it4 ,it was at one time a common belief1 and the notion has not yet1 ,i think1 altogether vanished1 that the dying are held back from repose by the love that is unwilling to yield them up4 ,hence1 in the third stanza1 the ,lord prays his mother to let him die4 ,in the fifth1 he reasons against her overwhelming sorrows on the ground of the deliverance his sufferings will bring to the human race4 ,but she can only feel her own misery4 ,to understand the seventh and eighth1 it is necessary to know that1 among other strange things accepted by the early ,church1 it was believed that the mother of ,jesus had no suffering at his birth4 ,this of course rendered her incapable of perfect sympathy with other mothers4 ,it is a lovely invention1 then1 that he should thus commend mothers to his mother1 telling her to judge of the pains of motherhood by those which she now endured4 ,still he fails to turn aside her thoughts4 ,she is thinking still only of her own and her son's suffering1 while he continues bent on making her think of others1 until1 at last1 forth comes her prayer for all women4 ,this seems to me a tenderness grand as exquisite4 ,the outburst of the chorus of the ,faithful in the last stanza but one1-- ,when he rose1 then fell her sorrow1 is as fine as anything ,i know in the region of the lyric4 ,stand well1 mother1 under rood2#a the cross4 ,behold thy son with glad mood2 cheerful4 ,blithe mother mayst thou be4 ,son1 how should ,i blith stand8 ,i see thy feet1 ,i see thy hand ,naild to the hard tree4 ,mother1 do way thy wepynde3 give over thy weeping4 ,i thol death for mankind-- suffer4 ,for my guilt thole ,i none4 ,son1 ,i feel the dede stounde2 death-pang4 ,the sword is at my heart's ground bottom4 ,that me byhet ,simeon4 foreshowed4 ,mother1 mercy6 let me die1 ,for ,adam out of hell buy1 for to buy ,adam4 ,and his kin that is forlore4 lost4 ,son1 what shall me to rede8#b ,my pain paineth me to dede3 death4 ,let me die thee before6 ,mother1 thou rue all of thy bairn2 rue thou2 all is only expletive ,thou wash away the bloody tern2 wash thou2 tears4 ,it doth me worse than my ded4 hurts me more2 death4 ,son1 how may ,i ters werne8 turn aside tears4 ,i see the bloody streams erne flow4 ,from thy heart to my fet4 feet4 ,mother1 now ,i may thee seye1 say to thee4 ,better is that ,i one deye die4 ,than all mankind to hell go4 ,son1 ,i see thy body byswongen1 lashed4 ,feet and hands throughout stongen3 pierced through and through4 ,no wonder though me be woe4 woe be to me4 ,mother1 now ,i shall thee tell1 ,if ,i not die1 thou goest to hell3 ,i thole death for thy sake4 endure4 ,son1 thou art so meek and mynde1 thoughtful4 ,ne wyt me not1 it is my kind#c ,that ,i for thee this sorrow make4 ,mother1 now thou mayst well leren learn4 ,what sorrow have that children beren1 they have2 bear4 ,what sorrow it is with child gon4 to go4 ,sorrow1 ,i wis6 ,i can thee tell6 ,but it be the pain of hell except4 ,more sorrow wot ,i none4 ,mother1 rue of mother-care1 take pity upon4 ,for now thou wost of mother-fare1 knowest4 ,though thou be clean maiden mon4#d ,son1 help at alle need ,all those that to me grede1 cry4 ,maiden1 wife1 and full wymmon4 woman with child4 ,mother1 may ,i no longer dwell2 ,the time is come ,i shall to hell2 ,the third day ,i rise upon4 ,son1 ,i will with thee founden2 set out1 go4 ,i die1 ,i wis1 for thy wounden3 ,so sorrowful death nes never none4 was not never none4 ,when he rose1 then fell her sorrow2 ,her bliss sprung the third morrow3 ,blithe mother wert thou tho6 then4 ,lady1 for that ilk bliss1 same4 ,beseech thy son of sunns lisse3 for sin's release4 ,thou be our shield against our foe4 ,be thou4 ,blessed be thou1 full of bliss6 ,let us never heaven miss1 ,through thy sweet ,sons might6 ,loverd1 for that ilk blood1 ,lord1 ,that thou sheddest on the rood1 ,thou bring us into heaven's light4 ,,amen4 ,i think my readers will not be sorry to have another of a similar character4 ,i sigh when ,i sing ,for sorrow that ,i see1 ,when ,i with weeping ,behold upon the tree1 ,and see ,jesus the sweet ,his heart's blood for-lete yield quite4 ,for the love of me4 ,his wounds waxen wete1 wet4 ,they weepen still and mete3#e ,mary rueth thee4 pitieth4 ,high upon a down1 hill4 ,where all folk it see may1 ,a mile from each town1 ,about the mid-day1 ,the rood is up areard2 ,his friends are afeard1 ,and clingeth so the clay2#f ,the rood stands in stone1 ,mary stands her on1 ,and saith ,welaway6 ,when ,i thee behold ,with eyen bright bo1 eyes bright both4 ,and thy body cold-- ,thy ble waxeth blo1 colour3 livid4 ,thou hangest all of blood bloody4 ,so high upon the rood ,between thieves tuo-- two4 ,who may sigh more8 ,mary weepeth sore1 ,and sees all this woe4 ,the nails be too strong1 ,the smiths are too sly2 skilful4 ,thou bleedest all too long2 ,the tree is all too high2 ,the stones be all wete6 wet4 ,alas1 ,jesu1 the sweet6 ,for now friend hast thou none1 ,but ,saint ,john to-mournynde1 mourning greatly4 ,and ,mary wepynde1 weeping4 ,for pain that thee is on4 ,oft when ,i sike sigh4 ,and makie my moan1 ,well ill though me like1 ,wonder is it none4#g ,when ,i see hang high ,and bitter pains dreye1 dree1 endure4 ,jesu1 my lemmon6 love4 ,his wounds sore smart1 ,the spear all to his heart ,and through his side is gone4 ,oft when ,i syke1 sigh4 ,with care ,i am through-sought2 searched through4 ,when ,i wake ,i wyke2 languish4 ,of sorrow is all my thought4 ,alas6 men be wood mad4 ,that swear by the rood swear by the cross4 ,and sell him for nought ,that bought us out of sin4 ,he bring us to wynne1 may he3 bliss4 ,that hath us dear bought6 ,i add two stanzas of another of like sort4 ,man that is in glory and bliss1 ,and lieth in shame and sin1 ,he is more than unwis unwise4 ,that thereof will not blynne4 cease4 ,all this world it goeth away1 ,me thinketh it nigheth ,doomsday2 ,now man goes to ground3 perishes4 ,jesus ,christ that tholed ded endured death4 ,he may our souls to heaven led lead4 ,within a little stound4 moment4 ,jesus1 that was mild and free1 ,was with spear y-stongen2 stung or pierced4 ,he was naild to the tree1 ,with scourges y-swongen4 lashed4 ,all for man he tholed shame1 endured4 ,withouten guilt1 withouten blame1 ,both day and other#h4 ,man1 full muchel he loved thee1 much4 ,when he wold make thee free1 ,and become thy brother4 ,the simplicity1 the tenderness1 the devotion of these lyrics is to me wonderful4 ,observe their realism1 as1 for instance1 in the words3 ,the stones beoth al wete2 a realism as far removed from the coarseness of a ,rubens as from the irreverence of too many religious teachers1 who will repeat and repeat again the most sacred words for the merest logical ends until the tympanum of the moral ear hears without hearing the sounds that ought to be felt as well as held holiest4 ,they bear strongly1 too1 upon the outcome of feeling in action1 although doubtless there was the same tendency then as there is now to regard the observance of church-ordinances as the service of ,christ1 instead of as a means of gathering strength wherewith to serve him by being in the world as he was in the world4 ,from a poem of forty-eight stanzas ,i choose five1 partly in order to manifest that1 although there is in it an occasional appearance of what we should consider sentimentality1 allied in nature to that worship of the ,virgin which is more a sort of ,french gallantry than a feeling of reverence1 the sense of duty to the ,master keeps pace with the profession of devotedness to him4 ,there is so little continuity of thought in it1 that the stanzas might almost be arranged anyhow4 ,jesu1 thy love be all my thought2 ,of other thing ne reck ,i nought2 reckon4 ,i yearn to have thy will y-wrought1 ,for thou me hast well dear y-bought4 ,jesu1 well may mine heart see ,that mild and meek he must be1 ,all unthews and lusts flee1 bad habits4 ,that feelen will the bliss of thee4 feel4 ,for sinful folk1 sweet ,jesus1 ,thou lightest from the high house2 ,poor and low thou wert for us4 ,thine heart's love thou sendest us4 ,jesu1 therefore beseech ,i thee ,thy sweet love thou grant me2 ,that ,i thereto worthy be1 ,make me worthy that art so free4 thou that art4 ,jesu1 thine help at my ending6 ,and in that dreadful out-wending1 going forth of the spirit4 ,send my soul good weryyng1 guard4 ,that ,i ne dread none evil thing4 ,i shall next present a short lyric1 displaying more of art than this last1 giving it now in the old form1 and afterwards in a new one1 that my reader may see both how it looks in its original dress1 and what it means4 ,wynter wakeneth al my care1 ,nou this leves waxeth bare1 ,ofte y sike ant mourne sare1 sigh2 sore4 ,when hit cometh in my thoht ,of this worldes joie1 how hit goth al to noht4 ,now hit is1 ant now hit nys1 it is not4 ,also hit ner nere y-wys1#i ,that moni mon seith soth hit ys1#aj ,al goth bote ,godes wille1 ,alle we shule deye1 thah us like ylle4 though it pleases us ill4 ,al that gren me graueth grene1#aa ,nou hit faleweth al by-dene2 grows yellow3 speedily4 ,jhesu1 help that hit be sene1 seen4 ,ant shild us from helle2 ,for y not whider y shal1 ne hou longe her duelle4#ab ,i will now give a modern version of it1 in which ,i have spoiled the original of course1 but ,i hope as little as well may be4 ,winter wakeneth all my care2 ,now the trees are waxing bare2 ,oft my sighs my grief declare#ac ,when it comes into my thought ,of this world's joy1 how it goes all to nought4 ,now it is1 and now 'tis not-- ,as it ne'er had been1 ,i wot4 ,hence many say--it is man's lot3 ,all goeth but ,god's will2 ,we all die1 though we like it ill4 ,green about me grows the grain2 ,now it yelloweth all again3 ,jesus1 give us help amain1 ,and shield us from hell2 ,for when or whither ,i go ,i cannot tell ,there were no doubt many religious poems in a certain amount of circulation of a different cast from these2 some a metrical recounting of portions of the ,bible history--a kind unsuited to our ends2 others a setting forth of the doctrines and duties then believed and taught4 ,of the former class is one of the oldest ,anglo-,saxon poems we have1 that of ,caedmon1 and there are many specimens to be found in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries4 ,they could1 however1 have been of little service to the people1 so few of whom could read1 or could have procured manuscripts if they had been able to use them4 ,a long and elaborate composition of the latter class was written in the reign of ,edward ,,ii4 by ,william de ,shoreham1 vicar of ,chart-,sutton in ,kent4 ,he probably taught his own verses to the people at his catechisings4 ,the intention was1 no doubt1 by the aid of measure and rhyme to facilitate the remembrance of the facts and doctrines4 ,it consists of a long poem on the ,seven ,sacraments2 of a shorter1 associating the ,canonical ,hours with the principal events of the close of our ,lord's life2 of an exposition of the ,ten ,commandments1 followed by a kind of treatise on the ,seven ,cardinal ,sins3 the fifth part describes the different joys of the ,virgin2 the sixth1 in praise of the ,virgin1 is perhaps the most poetic2 the last is less easy to characterize4 ,the poem is written in the ,kentish dialect1 and is difficult4 ,i shall now turn into modern verse a part of ,the ,canonical ,hours1 giving its represented foundation of the various acts of worship in the ,romish ,church throughout the day1 from early in the morning to the last service at night4 ,after every fact concerning our ,lord1 follows an apostrophe to his mother1 which ,i omit1 being compelled to choose4 ,father's wisdom lifted high1 ,lord of us aright-- ,god and man taken was1 ,at matin-time by night4 ,the disciples that were his1 ,anon they him forsook2 ,sold to ,jews and betrayed1 ,to torture him took4 ,at the prime ,jesus was led ,in presence of ,pilate1 ,where witnesses1 false and fell1 ,laughed at him for hate4 ,in the neck they him smote1 ,bound his hands of might2 ,spit upon that sweet face ,that heaven and earth did light4 ,crucify him6 crucify6 ,they cried at nine o'clock2 ,a purple cloth they put on him-- ,to stare at him and mock4 ,they upon his sweet head ,stuck a thorny crown2 ,to ,calvary his cross he bears4 ,pitiful1 from the town ,jesus was nailed on the cross ,at the noon-tide2 ,strong thieves they hanged up1 ,one on either side4 ,in his pain1 his strong thirst ,quenched they with gall2 ,so that ,god's holy ,lamb ,from sin washed us all4 ,at the nones ,jesus ,christ ,felt the hard death2 ,he to his father ,eloi6 cried1 ,gan up yield his breath4 ,a soldier with a sharp spear ,pierced his right side2 ,the earth shook1 the sun grew dim1 ,the moment that he died4 ,he was taken off the cross ,at even-song's hour2 ,the strength left and hid in ,god ,of our ,saviour4 ,such death he underwent1 ,of life the medicine6 ,alas6 he was laid adown-- ,the crown of bliss in pine6 ,at complines1 it was borne away ,to the burying1 ,that noble corpse of ,jesus ,christ1 ,hope of life's coming4 ,anointed richly it was1 ,fulfilled his holy book3 ,i pray1 ,lord1 thy passion ,in my mind lock4 ,childlike simplicity1 realism1 and tenderness will be evident in this1 as in preceding poems1 especially in the choice of adjectives4 ,but indeed the combination of certain words had become conventional2 as ,the hard tree1 ,the nails great and strong1 and such like4 ,i know ,i have spoiled the poem in half-translating it thus2 but ,i have rendered it intelligible to all my readers1 have not wandered from the original1 and have retained a degree of antiqueness both in the tone and the expression4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,the ,,miracle ,,plays ,,and ,,other ,,poems ,,of ,,the ,,fourteenth ,,century4 ,the oldest form of regular dramatic representation in ,england was the ,miracle ,plays1 improperly called ,mysteries1 after the ,french4 ,to these plays the people of ,england1 in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries1 owed a very large portion of what religious knowledge they possessed1 for the prayers were in an unknown tongue1 the sermons were very few1 and printing was uninvented4 ,the plays themselves1 introduced into the country by the ,normans1 were1 in the foolish endeavour to make ,normans of ,anglo-,saxons1 represented in ,norman ,french#ad until the year #acch1 when permission was obtained from the ,pope to represent them in ,english4 ,the word ,miracle1 in their case1 means anything recorded in ,scripture4 ,the ,miracle ,plays had for their subjects the chief incidents of ,old and ,new ,testament history2 not merely1 however1 of this history as accepted by the ,reformed ,church1 but of that contained in the ,apocryphal ,gospels as well4 ,an entire series of these ,miracles consisted of short dramatic representations of many single passages of the sacred story4 ,the whole would occupy about three days4 ,it began with the ,creation1 and ended with the ,judgment4 ,that for which the city of ,coventry was famous consists of forty-two subjects1 with a long prologue4 ,composed by ecclesiastics1 the plays would seem to have been first represented by them only1 although afterwards it was not always considered right for the clergy to be concerned with them4 ,the hypocritical ,franciscan friar1 in ,piers ,ploughman's ,creed1 a poem of the close of the same century1 claims as a virtue for his order-- ,at markets and miracles we meddleth us never4 ,they would seem likewise to have been first represented in churches and chapels1 sometimes in churchyards4 ,later1 when the actors chiefly belonged to city-guilds1 they were generally represented in the streets and squares4 ,it must be borne in mind by any who would understand the influence of these plays upon the people1 that much in them appearing to us grotesque1 childish1 absurd1 and even irreverent1 had no such appearance in the eyes of the spectators4 ,a certain amount of the impression of absurdity is simply the consequence of antiquity2 and even that which is rightly regarded as absurd in the present age1 will not at least have produced the discomposing effects of absurdity upon the less developed beholders of that age2 just as the quaint pictures with which their churches were decorated may make us smile1 but were by them regarded with awe and reverence from their infancy4 ,it must be confessed that there is in them even occasional coarseness2 but that the devil for instance should always be represented as a baffled fool1 and made to play the buffoon sometimes after a disgusting fashion1 was to them only the treatment he deserved3 it was their notion of poetic justice2 while most of them were too childish to be shocked at the discord thus introduced1 and many1 we may well hope1 too childlike to lose their reverence for the holy because of the proximity of the ridiculous4 ,there seems to me considerably more of poetic worth scattered through these plays than is generally recognized2 and ,i am glad to be able to do a little to set forth the fact4 ,i cannot doubt that my readers will be interested in such fragments as the scope and design of my book will allow me to offer4 ,had there been no such passages1 ,i might have regarded the plays as but remotely connected with my purpose1 and mentioned them merely as a dramatic form of religious versification4 ,i quote from the ,coventry ,miracles1 better known than either of the other two sets in existence1 the ,chester ,plays and those of ,widkirk ,abbey4 ,the manuscript from which they have been edited by ,mr4 ,halliwell1 one of those students of our early literature to whom we are endlessly indebted for putting valuable things within our reach1 is by no means so old as the plays themselves2 it bears date #adfh1 a hundred and thirty years after they appeared in their ,english dress4 ,their language is considerably modernized1 a process constantly going on where transcription is the means of transmission--not to mention that the actors would of course make many changes to the speech of their own time4 ,i shall modernize it a little further1 but only as far as change of spelling will go4 ,the first of the course is ,the ,creation4 ,god1 and angels1 and ,lucifer appear4 ,that ,god should here utter1 ,i cannot say announce1 the doctrine of the ,trinity1 may be defended on the ground that he does so in a soliloquy2 but when we find afterwards that the same doctrine is one of the subjects upon which the boy ,jesus converses with the doctors in the ,temple1 we cannot help remarking the strange anachronism4 ,two remarkable lines in the said soliloquy are these3 ,and all that ever shall have being ,it is closed in my mind4 ,the next scene is the ,fall of ,man1 which is full of poetic feeling and expression both4 ,i must content myself with a few passages4 ,here is part of ,eve's lamentation1 when she is conscious of the death that has laid hold upon her4 ,alas that ever that speech was spoken ,that the false angel said unto me6 ,alas6 our ,maker's bidding is broken1 ,for ,i have touched his own dear tree4 ,our fleshly eyes are all unlokyn1 unlocked4 ,naked for sin ourself we see2 ,that sorry apple that we have sokyn sucked4 ,to death hath brought my spouse and me4 ,when the voice of ,god is heard1 saying1 ,adam1 that with my hands ,i made1 ,where art thou now8 what hast thou wrought8 ,adam replies1 in two lines1 containing the whole truth of man's spiritual condition ever since3 ,ah1 ,lord6 for sin our flowers do fade3 ,i hear thy voice1 but ,i see thee nought4 ,the vision had vanished1 but the voice remained2 for they that hear shall live1 and to the pure in heart one day the vision shall be restored1 for they shall see ,god4 ,there is something wonderfully touching in the quaint simplicity of the following words of ,god to the woman3 ,unwise woman1 say me why ,that thou hast done this foul folly1 ,and ,i made thee a great lady1 ,in ,paradise for to play8 ,as they leave the gates1 the angel with the flaming sword ends his speech thus3 ,this bliss ,i spere from you right fast2 bar4 ,herein come ye no more1 ,till a child of a maid be born1 ,and upon the rood rent and torn1 ,to save all that ye have forlorn1 lost4 ,your wealth for to restore4 ,eve laments bitterly1 and at length offers her throat to her husband1 praying him to strangle her3 ,now stumble we on stalk and stone2 ,my wit away from me is gone2 ,writhe on to my neck-bone ,with hardness of thine hand4 ,adam replies--not over politely-- ,wife1 thy wit is not worth a rush2 and goes on to make what excuse for themselves he can in a very simple and touching manner3 ,our hap was hard1 our wit was nesche1 soft1 weak1 still in use in ,to ,paradise when we were brought3 some provinces4 ,my weeping shall be long fresh2 ,short liking shall be long bought4 pleasure4 ,the scene ends with these words from ,eve3 ,alas1 that ever we wrought this sin6 ,our bodily sustenance for to win1 ,ye must delve and ,i shall spin1 ,in care to lead our life4 ,cain and ,abel follows2 then ,noah's ,flood1 in which ,god says1 ,they shall not dread the flood's flow2 then ,abraham's ,sacrifice2 then ,moses and the ,two ,tables2 then ,the ,prophets1 each of whom prophesies of the coming ,saviour2 after which we find ourselves in the ,apocryphal ,gospels1 in the midst of much nonsense about ,anna and ,joachim1 the parents of ,mary1 about ,joseph and ,mary and the birth of ,jesus1 till we arrive at ,the ,shepherds and ,the ,magi1 ,the ,purification1 ,the ,slaughter of the ,innocents1 ,the ,disputing in the ,temple1 ,the ,baptism1 ,the ,temptation1 and ,the ,woman taken in ,adultery1 at which point ,i pause for the sake of the remarkable tradition embodied in the scene--that each of the woman's accusers thought ,jesus was writing his individual sins on the ground4 ,while he is writing the second time1 the ,pharisee1 the ,accuser1 and the ,scribe1 who have chiefly sustained the dialogue hitherto1 separate1 each going into a different part of the ,temple1 and soliloquize thus3 ,pharisee4 ,alas6 alas6 ,i am ashamed6 ,i am afeared that ,i shall die2 ,all my sins even properly named ,yon prophet did write before mine eye4 ,if that my fellows that did espy1 ,they will tell it both far and wide2 ,my sinful living if they outcry1 ,i wot not where my head to hide4 ,accuser4 ,alas6 for sorrow mine heart doth bleed1 ,all my sins yon man did write2 ,if that my fellows to them took heed1 ,i cannot me from death acquite4 ,i would ,i were hid somewhere out of sight1 ,that men should me nowhere see nor know2 ,if ,i be taken ,i am aflyght afraid4 ,in mekyl shame ,i shall be throwe4 much4 ,scribe4 ,alas the time that this betyd6 happened4 ,right bitter care doth me embrace4 ,all my sins be now unhid1 ,yon man before me them all doth trace4 ,if ,i were once out of this place1 ,to suffer death great and vengeance able1#ae ,i will never come before his face1 ,though ,i should die in a stable4 ,upon this follows ,the ,raising of ,lazarus2 next ,the ,council of the ,jews1 to which the devil appears as a ,prologue1 dressed in the extreme of the fashion of the day1 which he sets forth minutely enough in his speech also4 ,the ,entry into ,jerusalem2 ,the ,last ,supper2 ,the ,betrayal2 ,king ,herod2 ,the ,trial of ,christ2 ,pilate's ,wife's ,dream come next2 to the subject of the last of which the curious but generally accepted origin is given1 that it was inspired by ,satan1 anxious that ,jesus should not be slain1 because he dreaded the mischief he would work when he entered ,hades or ,hell1 for there is no distinction between them either here or in the ,apocryphal ,gospel whence the ,descent into ,hell is taken4 ,then follow ,the ,crucifixion and ,the ,descent into ,hell--often called the ,harrowing of ,hell--that is1 the making war upon or despoiling of hell1#af for which the authority is a passage in the ,gospel of ,nicodemus1 full of a certain florid ,eastern grandeur4 ,i need hardly remind my readers that the ,apostles' ,creed1 as it now stands1 contains the same legend in the form of an article of faith4 ,the allusions to it are frequent in the early literature of ,christendom4 ,the soul of ,christ comes to the gates of hell1 and says3 ,undo your gates of sorwatorie2 place of sorrow4 ,on man's soul ,i have memorie2 ,there cometh now the king of glory1 ,these gates for to breke6 ,ye devils that are here within1 ,hell gates ye shall unpin2 ,i shall deliver man's kin-- ,from woe ,i will them wreke4 avenge4 99 99 99 99 99 ,against me it were but waste ,to holdyn or to standyn fast2 ,hell-lodge may not last ,against the king of glory4 ,thy dark door down ,i throw2 ,my fair friends now well ,i know2 ,i shall them bring1 reckoned by row1 ,out of their purgatory6 ,the ,burial2 ,the ,resurrection2 ,the ,three ,maries2 ,christ appearing to ,mary2 ,the ,pilgrim of ,emmaus2 ,the ,ascension2 ,the ,descent of the ,holy ,ghost2 ,the ,assumption of the ,virgin2 and ,doomsday1 close the series4 ,i have quoted enough to show that these plays must1 in the condition of the people to whom they were presented1 have had much to do with their religious education4 ,this fourteenth century was a wonderful time of outbursting life4 ,although we cannot claim the ,miracles as entirely ,english products1 being in all probability translations from the ,norman-,french1 yet the fact that they were thus translated is one remarkable amongst many in this dawn of the victory of ,england over her conquerors4 ,from this time1 ,english prospered and ,french decayed4 ,their own language was now1 so far1 authorized as the medium of religious instruction to the people1 while a similar change had passed upon processes at law2 and1 most significant of all1 the greatest poet of the time1 and one of the three greatest poets as yet of all ,english time1 wrote1 although a courtier1 in the language of the people4 ,before selecting some of ,chaucer's religious verses1 however1 ,i must speak of two or three poems by other writers4 ,the first of these is ,the ,vision of ,william concerning ,piers ,plowman1--a poem of great influence in the same direction as the writings of ,wycliffe4 ,it is a vision and an allegory1 wherein the vices of the time1 especially those of the clergy1 are unsparingly dealt with4 ,towards the close it loses itself in a metaphysical allegory concerning ,dowel1 ,dobet1 and ,dobest4#ag ,i do not find much poetry in it4 ,there is more1 to my mind1 in another poem1 written some thirty or forty years later1 the author of which is unknown1 perhaps because he was an imitator of ,william ,langland1 the author of the ,vision4 ,it is called ,pierce the ,plough-man's ,crede4 ,both are written after the fashion of the ,anglo-,saxon poetry1 and not after the fashion of the ,anglo-,norman1 of which distinction a little more presently4 ,its object is to contrast the life and character of the four orders of friars with those of a simple ,christian4 ,there is considerable humour in the working plan of the poem4 ,a certain poor man says he has succeeded in learning his ,a ,b ,c1 his ,paternoster1 and his ,ave ,mary1 but he cannot1 do what he will1 learn his ,creed4 ,he sets out1 therefore1 to find some one whose life1 according with his profession1 may give him a hope that he will teach him his creed aright4 ,he applies to the friars4 ,one after another1 every order abuses the other2 nor this only1 but for money offers either to teach him his creed1 or to absolve him for ignorance of the same4 ,he finds no helper until he falls in with ,pierce the ,ploughman1 of whose poverty he gives a most touching description4 ,i shall1 however1 only quote some lines of ,the ,believe as taught by the ,ploughman1 and this principally to show the nature of the versification3 ,leve thou on our ,lord ,god1 that all the world wrought2 believe4 ,holy heaven upon high wholly he formed2 ,and is almighty himself over all his works2 ,and wrought as his will was1 the world and the heaven2 ,and on gentle ,jesus ,christ1 engendered of himselven1 ,his own only ,son1 ,lord over all y-knowen4 99 99 99 99 99 ,with thorn y-crowned1 crucified1 and on the cross did2 ,and sythen his blessed body was in a stone buried2 after that4 ,and descended adown to the dark hell1 ,and fetched out our forefathers2 and they full fain weren4 glad4 ,the third day readily1 himself rose from death1 ,and on a stone there he stood1 he stey up to heaven4 where3 ascended4 ,here there is no rhyme4 ,there is measure--a dance-movement in the verse2 and likewise1 in most of the lines1 what was essential to ,anglo-,saxon verse--three or more words beginning with the same sound4 ,this is somewhat of the nature of rhyme1 and was all our ,anglo-,saxon forefathers had of the kind4 ,their ,norman conquerors brought in rhyme1 regularity of measure1 and division into stanzas1 with many refinements of versification now regarded1 with some justice and a little more injustice1 as peurilities4 ,strange as it may seem1 the peculiar rhythmic movement of the ,anglo-,saxon verse is even yet the most popular of all measures4 ,its representative is now that kind of verse which is measured not by the number of syllables1 but by the number of accented syllables4 ,the bulk of the nation is yet ,anglo-,saxon in its blind poetic tastes4 ,before taking my leave of this mode1 ,i would give one fine specimen from another poem1 lately printed1 for the first time in full1 from ,bishop ,percy's manuscript4 ,it may chronologically belong to the beginning of the next century3 its proper place in my volume is here4 ,it is called ,death and ,liffe4 ,like ,langland's poem1 it is a vision2 but1 short as it is in comparison1 there is far more poetry in it than in ,piers ,plowman4 ,life is thus described3 ,she was brighter of her blee#ah than was the bright sun2 ,her rudd#ai redder than the rose that on the rise#bj hangeth2 ,meekly smiling with her mouth1 and merry in her looks2 ,ever laughing for love1 as she like would4 ,everything bursts into life and blossom at her presence1 ,and the grass that was grey greened belive4 forthwith4 ,but the finest passage is part of ,life's answer to ,death1 who has been triumphing over her3 ,how didst thou joust at ,jerusalem1 with ,jesu1 my ,lord1 ,where thou deemedst his death in one day's time6 judgedst4 ,there wast thou shamed and shent and stripped for aye6 rebuked4 ,when thou saw the king come with the cross on his shoulder1 ,on the top of ,calvary thou camest him against2 ,like a traitor untrue1 treason thou thought2 ,thou laid upon my liege lord loathful hands1 ,sithen beat him on his body1 and buffeted him rightly1 then4 ,till the railing red blood ran from his sides2 pouring down4 ,sith rent him on the rood with full red wounds3 then4 ,to all the woes that him wasted1 ,i wot not few1 ,then deemedst 7him7 to have been dead1 and dressed for ever4 ,but1 ,death1 how didst thou then1 with all thy derffe words1 fierce4 ,when thou pricked at his pap with the point of a spear1 ,and touched the tabernacle of his true heart1 ,where my bower was bigged to abide for ever8 built4 ,when the glory of his ,godhead glinted in thy face1 ,then wast thou feared of this fare in thy false heart2 affair4 ,then thou hied into hell-hole to hide thee belive2 at once4 ,thy falchion flew out of thy fist1 so fast thou thee hied2 ,thou durst not blush once back1 for better or worse1 look4 ,but drew thee down full in that deep hell1 ,and bade them bar bigly ,belzebub his gates4 greatly1 strongly4 ,then thou told them tidings1 that teened them sore2 grieved4 ,how that king came to kithen his strength1 show4 ,and how she#ba had beaten thee on thy bent1#bb and thy brand taken1 ,with everlasting life that longed him till4 belonged to him4 ,when ,life has ended her speech to ,death1 she turns to her own followers and says3-- ,therefore be not abashed1 my barnes so dear1 children4 ,of her falchion so fierce1 nor of her fell words4 ,she hath no might1 nay1 no means1 no more you to grieve1 ,nor on your comely corses to clap once her hands4 ,i shall look you full lively1 and latch full well1 search for3 ,and keere ye further of this kithe1#bc above lay hold of4 the clear skies4 ,i now turn from those poems of national scope and wide social interest1 bearing their share1 doubtless1 in the growth of the great changes that showed themselves at length more than a century after1 and from the poem ,i have just quoted of a yet wider human interest1 to one of another tone1 springing from the grief that attends love1 and the aspiration born of the grief4 ,it is1 nevertheless1 wide in its scope as the conflict between ,death and ,life1 although dealing with the individual and not with the race4 ,the former poems named of ,pierce ,ploughman are the cry of ,john the ,baptist in the ,english wilderness2 this is the longing of ,hannah at home1 having left her little son in the temple4 ,the latter seems a poorer matter2 but it is an easier thing to utter grand words of just condemnation1 than1 in the silence of the chamber1 or with the well-known household-life around1 forcing upon the consciousness only the law of things seen1 to regard with steadfastness the blank left by a beloved form1 and believe in the unseen1 the marvellous1 the eternal4 ,in the midst of the light of common day1 with all the persistently common things pressing upon the despairing heart1 to hold fast1 after what fashion may be possible1 the vanishing song that has changed its key1 is indeed a victory over the flesh1 however childish the forms in which the faith may embody itself1 however weak the logic with which it may defend its intrenchments4 ,the poem which has led me to make these remarks is in many respects noteworthy4 ,it is very different in style and language from any ,i have yet given4 ,there was little communication to blend the different modes of speech prevailing in different parts of the country4 ,it belongs1#bd according to students of ,english1 to the ,midland dialect of the fourteenth century4 ,the author is beyond conjecture4 ,it is not merely the antiquity of the language that causes its difficulty1 but the accumulated weight of artistically fantastic and puzzling requirements which the writer had laid upon himself in its composition4 ,the nature of these ,i shall be enabled to show by printing the first twelve lines almost as they stand in the manuscript4 ,perle plesaunte to prynces paye1 ,to clanly clos in golde so clere6 ,oute of oryent ,i hardyly saye1 ,ne proued ,i neuer her precios pere2 ,so rounde1 so reken in vche araye1 ,so smal1 so smothe her sydes were6 ,quere-so-euer ,i iugged gemmes gaye1 ,i sette hyr sengeley in synglure3 ,allas6 ,i leste hyr in on erbere1 ,thurh gresse to grounde hit fro me yot2 ,i dewyne for-dolked of luf daungere1 ,of that pryuy perle with-outen spot4 ,here it will be observed that the ,norman mode--that of rhymes--is employed1 and that there is a far more careful measure in the line that is found in the poem last quoted4 ,but the rhyming is carried to such an excess as to involve the necessity of constant invention of phrase to meet its requirements--a fertile source of obscurity4 ,the most difficult form of stanza in respect of rhyme now in use is the ,spenserian1 in which1 consisting of nine lines1 four words rhyme together1 three words1 and two words4 ,but the stanza in the poem before us consists of twelve lines1 six of which1 two of which1 four of which1 rhyme together4 ,this we should count hard enough2 but it does not nearly exhaust the tyranny of the problem the author has undertaken4 ,i have already said that one of the essentials of the poetic form in ,anglo-,saxon was the commencement of three or more words in the line with the same sound3 this peculiarity he has exaggerated3 every line has as many words as possible commencing with the same sound4 ,in the first line1 for instance1--and it must be remembered that the author's line is much shorter than the ,anglo-,saxon line1--there are four words beginning with p2 in the second1 three beginning with cl1 and so on4 ,this1 of course1 necessitates much not merely of circumlocution1 but of contrivance1 involving endless obscurity4 ,he has gone on to exaggerate the peculiarities of ,norman verse as well2 but ,i think it better not to run the risk of wearying my reader by pointing out more of his oddities4 ,i will now betake myself to what is far more interesting as well as valuable4 ,the poem sets forth the grief and consolation of a father who has lost his daughter4 ,it is called ,the ,pearl4 ,here is a literal rendering1 line for line1 into modern ,english words1 not modern ,english speech1 of the stanza which ,i have already given in its original form3 ,pearl pleasant to prince's pleasure1 ,most cleanly closed in gold so clear6 ,out of the ,orient1 ,i boldly say1 ,i never proved her precious equal2 ,so round1 so beautiful in every point6 ,so small1 so smooth1 her sides were6 ,wheresoever ,i judged gemmes gay ,i set her singly in singleness4 ,alas6 ,i lost her in an arbour2 ,through the grass to the ground it from me went4 ,i pine1 sorely wounded by dangerous love ,of that especial pearl without spot4 ,the father calls himself a jeweller2 the pearl is his daughter4 ,he has lost the pearl in the grass2 it has gone to the ground1 and he cannot find it2 that is1 his daughter is dead and buried4 ,perhaps the most touching line is one in which he says to the grave3 ,o moul1 thou marrez a myry mele4 7,o mould1 thou marrest a merry talk47 ,the poet1 who is surely the father himself1 cannot always keep up the allegory2 his heart burns holes in it constantly2 at one time he says she1 at another it1 and1 between the girl and the pearl1 the poem is bewildered4 ,but the allegory helps him out with what he means notwithstanding2 for although the highest aim of poetry is to say the deepest things in the simplest manner1 humanity must turn from mode to mode1 and try a thousand1 ere it finds the best4 ,the individual1 in his new endeavour to make the word cousin to the deed1 must take up the forms his fathers have left him1 and add to them1 if he may1 new forms of his own4 ,in both the great revivals of literature1 the very material of poetry was allegory4 ,the father falls asleep on his child's grave1 and has a dream1 or rather a vision1 of a country where everything--after the childish imagination which invents differences instead of discovering harmonies--is super-naturally beautiful3 rich rocks with a gleaming glory1 crystal cliffs1 woods with blue trunks and leaves of burnished silver1 gravel of precious ,orient pearls1 form the landscape1 in which are delicious fruits1 and birds of flaming colours and sweet songs3 its loveliness no man with a tongue is worthy to describe4 ,he comes to the bank of a river3 ,swinging sweet the water did sweep ,with a whispering speech flowing adown2 7,wyth a rownande rourde raykande aryght7 and the stones at the bottom were shining like stars4 ,it is a noteworthy specimen of the mode in which the imagination works when invention is dissociated from observation and faith4 ,but the sort of way in which some would improve the world now1 if they might1 is not so very far in advance of this would-be glorification of ,nature4 ,the barest heath and sky have lovelinesses infinitely beyond the most gorgeous of such phantasmagoric idealization of her beauties2 and the most wretched condition of humanity struggling for existence contains elements of worth and future development inappreciable by the philanthropy that would elevate them by cultivating their self-love4 ,at the foot of a crystal cliff1 on the opposite side of the river1 which he cannot cross1 he sees a maiden sitting1 clothed and crowned with pearls1 and wearing one pearl of surpassing wonder and spotlessness upon her breast4 ,i now make the spelling and forms of the words as modern as ,i may1 altering the text no further4 ,o pearl1 quoth ,i1 in perls pight1 pitched1 dressed4 ,art thou my pearl that ,i have plained8 mourned4 ,regretted by myn one1 on night8 by myself4 ,much longing have ,i for thee layned hidden4 ,since into grass thou me a-glyghte2 didst glide from me4 ,pensive1 payred1 ,i am for-pained1#be pined away4 ,and thou in a life of liking light bright pleasure4 ,in ,paradise-earth1 of strife unstrained6 untortured with strife4 ,what wyrde hath hither my jewel vayned1 destiny3 carried off4 ,and done me in this del and great danger8 sorrow4 ,fro we in twain were towen and twayned1 since3 pulled3 divided4 ,i have been a joyless jeweller4 ,that jewel then in gemms gente1 gracious4 ,vered up her vyse with even gray1 turned3 face4 ,set on her crown of pearl orient1 ,and soberly after then gan she say3 ,sir1 ye have your tale myse-tente1 mistaken4 ,to say your pearl is all away1 ,that is in coffer so comely clente clenched4 ,as in this garden gracious gay1 ,herein to lenge for ever and play1 abide4 ,there mys nor mourning come never--here1 where3 wrong4 ,here was a forser for thee in faye1 strong-box3 faith4 ,if thou wert a gentle jeweller4 ,but jeweller gente1 if thou shalt lose ,thy joy for a gem that thee was lef1 had left thee4 ,me thinks thee put in a mad purpose1 ,and busiest thee about a reason bref4 poor object4 ,for that thou lostest was but a rose1 ,that flowered and failed as kynd hit gef4 nature gave it4 ,now through kind of the chest that it gan close1 nature4 ,to a pearl of price it is put in pref2#bf ,and thou hast called thy wyrde a thef1 doom1 fate3 theft4 ,that ought of nought has made thee1 clear6 something of nothing4 ,thou blamest the bote of thy mischef3 remedy3 hurt4 ,thou art no kynd jeweller4 natural1 reasonable4 ,when the father pours out his gladness at the sight of her1 she rejoins in these words3 ,i hold that jeweller little to praise ,that loves well that he sees with eye2 ,and much to blame1 and uncortoyse1 uncourteous4 ,that leves our ,lord would make a lie1 believes4 ,that lelly hyghte your life to raise who truly promised4 ,though fortune did your flesh to die2 caused4 ,to set his words full westernays#bg ,that love no thing but ye it syghe6 see4 ,and that is a point of surquedrie1 presumption4 ,that each good man may evil beseem1 ill become4 ,to leve no tale be true to tryghe1 trust in4 ,but that his one skill may deme4#bh ,much conversation follows1 the glorified daughter rebuking and instructing her father4 ,he prays for a sight of the heavenly city of which she has been speaking1 and she tells him to walk along the bank until he comes to a hill4 ,in recording what he saw from the hill1 he follows the description of the ,new ,jerusalem given in the ,book of the ,revelation4 ,he sees the ,lamb and all his company1 and with them again his lost ,pearl4 ,but it was not his prince's pleasure that he should cross the stream2 for when his eyes and ears were so filled with delight that he could no longer restrain the attempt1 he awoke out of his dream4 ,my head upon that hill was laid ,there where my pearl to ground strayed4 ,i wrestled and fell in great affray1 fear4 ,and sighing to myself ,i said1 ,now all be to that prince's paye4 pleasure4 ,after this1 he holds him to that prince's will1 and yearns after no more than he grants him4 ,as in water face is to face1 so the heart of man4 ,out of the far past comes the cry of bereavement mingled with the prayer for hope3 we hear1 and lo6 it is the cry and the prayer of a man like ourselves4 ,from the words of the greatest man of his age1 let me now gather two rich blossoms of utterance1 presenting an embodiment of religious duty and aspiration1 after a very practical fashion4 ,i refer to two short lyrics1 little noted1 although full of wisdom and truth4 ,they must be accepted as the conclusions of as large a knowledge of life in diversified mode as ever fell to the lot of man4 ,,good ,,counsel ,,of ,,chaucer4 ,fly from the press1 and dwell with soothfastness2 truthfulness4 ,suffice#bi unto thy good1 though it be small2 ,for hoard hath hate1 and climbing tickleness2#cj ,praise hath envy1 and weal is blent over all4#ca ,savour#cb no more than thee behov shall4 ,rede well thyself that other folk shall rede2 counsel4 ,and truth thee shall deliver--it is no drede4 there is no doubt4 ,paine thee not each crooked to redress1 every crooked thing4 ,in trust of her that turneth as a ball3 ,fortune4 ,great rest standeth in little busi-ness4 ,beware also to spurn against a nail2 nail--to kick against ,strive not as doth a crock with a wall4 the pricks4 ,dem thyself that demest others' deed2 judge4 ,and truth thee shall deliver--it is no drede4 ,that thee is sent receive in buxomness3 submission ,the wrestling of this world asketh a fall4 tempts destruction ,here is no home1 here is but wilderness3 ,forth1 pilgrim1 forth6--beast1 out of thy stall6 ,look up on high1 and thank ,god of#cc all4 ,waiv thy lusts1 and let thy ghost#cd thee lead1 ,and truth thee shall deliver--it is no drede4 ,this needs no comment4 ,even the remark that every line is worth meditation may well appear superfluous4 ,one little fact only with regard to the rhymes1 common to this and the next poem1 and usual enough in ,norman verse1 may be pointed out1 namely1 that every line in the stanza ends with the same rhyme-sound as the corresponding line in each of the other stanzas4 ,a reference to either of the poems will at once show what ,i mean4 ,the second is superior1 inasmuch as it carries one thought through the three stanzas4 ,it is entitled ,a ,balade made by ,chaucer1 teaching what is gentilnesse1 or whom is worthy to be called gentill4 ,the first stock-father of gentleness-- ancestor of the race ,what man desireth gentle for to be of the gentle4 ,must follow his trace1 and all his witts dress track1 footsteps3 ,virtue to love and vices for to flee2 apply4 ,for unto virtue longeth dignity1 belongeth4 ,and not the reverse falsely dare ,i deem1#ce ,all wear he mitre1 crown1 or diadem4 although he wear4 ,the first stock was full of righteousness2 the progenitor4 ,true of his word1 sober1 piteous1 and free2 ,clean of his ghost1 and loved busi-ness1 pure in his spirit4 ,against the vice of sloth in honesty2 ,and but his heir love virtue as did he1 except4 ,he is not gentle1 though he rich seem1 ,all wear he mitre1 crown1 or diadem4 ,vicesse may well be heir to old ,richesse1 ,vice3 ,riches4 ,but there may no man1 as men may well see1 ,bequeath his heir his virtue's nobleness2 ,that is appropried unto no degree1 rank4 ,but to the first father in majesty1 ,that maketh his heirs them that him queme1 please him4 ,all wear he mitre1 crown1 or diadem4 ,i can come to no other conclusion than that by the first stock-father ,chaucer means our ,lord ,jesus4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,,the ,,fifteenth ,,century4 ,after the birth of a ,chaucer1 a ,shakspere1 or a ,milton1 it is long before the genial force of a nation can again culminate in such a triumph3 time is required for the growth of the conditions4 ,between the birth of ,chaucer and the birth of ,shakspere1 his sole equal1 a period of more than two centuries had to elapse4 ,it is but small compensation for this1 that the more original1 that is simple1 natural1 and true to his own nature a man is1 the more certain is he to have a crowd of imitators4 ,i do not say that such are of no use in the world4 ,they do not indeed advance art1 but they widen the sphere of its operation2 for many will talk with the man who know nothing of the master4 ,too often intending but their own glory1 they point the way to the source of it1 and are straightway themselves forgotten4 ,very little of the poetry of the fifteenth century is worthy of a different fate from that which has befallen it4 ,possibly the ,wars of the ,roses may in some measure account for the barrenness of the time2 but ,i do not think they will explain it4 ,in the midst of the commotions of the seventeenth century we find ,milton1 the only ,english poet of whom we are yet sure as worthy of being named with ,chaucer and ,shakspere4 ,it is in quality1 however1 and not in quantity that the period is deficient4 ,it had a good many writers of poetry1 some of them prolific4 ,john ,lydgate1 the monk of ,bury1 a great imitator of ,chaucer1 was the principal of these1 and wrote an enormous quantity of verse4 ,we shall find for our use enough as it were to keep us alive in passing through this desert to the ,paradise of the sixteenth century--a land indeed flowing with milk and honey4 ,for even in the desert of the fifteenth are spots luxuriant with the rich grass of language1 although they greet the eye with few flowers of individual thought or graphic speech4 ,rather than give portions of several of ,lydgate's poems1 ,i will give one entire--the best ,i know4 ,it is entitled1 ,thonke ,god of alle4#cf ,,thank ,,god ,,for ,,all4 ,by a way wandering as ,i went1 ,well sore ,i sorrowed1 for sighing sad2 ,of hard haps that ,i had hent ,mourning me made almost mad2#cg ,till a letter all one me lad#ch1 ,that well was written on a wall1 ,a blissful word that on ,i rad#ci1 ,that alway said1 ',thank ,god for#dj all4' ,and yet ,i read furthermore#da-- ,full good intent ,i took there till#db3 ,christ may well your state restore2 ,nought is to strive against his will2 it is useless4 ,he may us spare and also spill3 ,think right well we be his thrall4 slaves4 ,what sorrow we suffer1 loud or still1 ,alway thank ,god for all4 ,though thou be both blind and lame1 ,or any sickness be on thee set1 ,thou think right well it is no shame-- think thou4 ,the grace of ,god it hath thee gret#dc4 ,in sorrow or care though ye be knit1 snared4 ,and worlds weal be from thee fall1 fallen4 ,i cannot say thou mayst do bet1 better4 ,but alway thank ,god for all4 ,though thou wield this world's good1 ,and royally lead thy life in rest1 ,well shaped of bone and blood1 ,none the like by east nor west2 ,think ,god thee sent as him lest2 as it pleased him4 ,riches turneth as a ball2 ,in all manner it is the best in every condition4 ,alway to thank ,god for all4 ,if thy good beginneth to pass1 ,and thou wax a poor man1 ,take good comfort and bear good face1 ,and think on him that all good wan2 did win4 ,christ himself forsooth began-- ,he may renew both bower and hall3 ,no better counsel ,i ne kan am capable of4 ,but alway thank ,god for all4 ,think on ,job that was so rich2 ,he waxed poor from day to day2 ,his beasts died in each ditch2 ,his cattle vanished all away2 ,he was put in poor array1 ,neither in purple nor in pall1 ,but in simple weed1 as clerkes say1 clothes3 learned men4 ,and alway he thanked ,god for all4 ,for ,christs love so do we2#dd ,he may both give and take2 ,in what mischief that we in be1 whatever trouble we ,he is mighty enough our sorrow to slake4 be in4 ,full good amends he will us make1 ,and we to him cry or call3 if4 ,what grief or woe that do thee thrall1#de ,yet alway thank ,god for all4 ,though thou be in prison cast1 ,or any distress men do thee bede1 offer4 ,for ,christs love yet be steadfast1 ,and ever have mind on thy creed2 ,think he faileth us never at need1 ,the dearworth duke that deem us shall2#df ,when thou art sorry1 thereof take heed1#dg ,and alway thank ,god for all4 ,though thy friendes from thee fail1 ,and death by rene hend#dh their life1 ,why shouldest thou then weep or wail8 ,it is nought against ,god to strive3 it is useless4 ,himself maked both man and wife-- ,to his bliss he bring us all3 may he bring4 ,however thou thole or thrive1 suffer4 ,alway thank ,god for all4 ,what diverse sonde#di that ,god thee send1 ,here or in any other place1 ,take it with good intent2 ,the sooner ,god will send his grace4 ,though thy body be brought full base1 low4 ,let not thy heart adown fall1 ,but think that ,god is where he was1 ,and alway thank ,god for all4 ,though thy neighbour have world at will1 ,and thou far'st not so well as he1 ,be not so mad to think him ill1 wish4 787 ,for his wealth envious to be3 ,the king of heaven himself can see ,who takes his sonde1#ej great or small2 ,thus each man in his degree1 ,i rede thank ,god for all4 counsel4 ,for ,crists love1 be not so wild1 ,but rule thee by reason within and without2 ,and take in good heart and mind ,the sonde that ,god sent all about2 the gospel4 787 ,then dare ,i say withouten doubt1 ,that in heaven is made thy stall4 place1 seat1 room4 ,rich and poor that low will lowte1 bow4 ,alway thank ,god for all4 ,i cannot say there is much poetry in this1 but there is much truth and wisdom4 ,there is the finest poetry1 however1 too1 in the line--,i give it now letter for letter3-- ,but think that ,god ys ther he was4 ,there is poetry too in the line1 if ,i interpret it rightly as intending the gospel-- ,the sonde that ,god sent al abowte4 ,i shall now make a few extracts from poems of the same century whose authors are unknown4#ea ,a good many such are extant4 ,with regard to the similarity of those ,i choose1 ,i would remark1 that not only will the poems of the same period necessarily resemble each other1 but1 where the preservation of any has depended upon the choice and transcription of one person1 these will in all probability resemble each other yet more4 ,here are a few verses from a hymn headed ,the ,sweetness of ,jesus3-- ,if ,i for kindness should love my kin1 for natural reasons4 ,then me thinketh in my thought ,kind is nature1 ,by kindly skill ,i should begin by natural judgment4 ,at him that hath me made of nought2 ,his likeness he set my soul within1 ,and all this world for me hath wrought2 ,as father he fondid my love to win1 set about4 ,for to heaven he hath me brought4 ,our brother and sister he is by skill1 reason4 ,for he so said1 and lerid us that lore1 taught4 ,that whoso wrought his ,father's will1 ,brethren and sisters to him they wore4 were4 ,my kind also he took ther-tille2 my nature also he took ,full truly trust ,i him therefore for that purpose4 ,that he will never let me spill1 perish4 ,but with his mercy salve my sore4 ,with lovely lore his works to fill1 fulfil4 ,well ought ,i1 wretch1 if ,i were kind-- natural4 ,night and day to work his will1 ,and ever have that ,lord in mind4 ,but ghostly foes grieve me ill1 spiritual4 ,and my frail flesh maketh me blind2 ,therefore his mercy ,i take me till1 betake me to4 ,for better bote can ,i none find4 aid4 ,in my choice of stanzas ,i have to keep in view some measure of completeness in the result4 ,these poems1 however1 are mostly very loose in structure4 ,this1 while it renders choice easy1 renders closeness of unity impossible4 ,from a poem headed--again from the last line of each stanza--,be my comfort1 ,christ ,jesus1 ,i choose the following four1 each possessing some remarkable flavour1 tone1 or single touch4 ,note the alliteration in the lovely line1 beginning ,bairn y-born4 ,the whole of the stanza in which we find it1 sounds so strangely fresh in the midst of its antiquated tones1 that we can hardly help asking whether it can be only the quaintness of the expression that makes the feeling appear more real1 or whether in very truth men were not in those days nearer in heart1 as well as in time1 to the marvel of the ,nativity4 ,in the next stanza1 how oddly the writer forgets that ,jesus himself was a ,jew1 when1 embodying the detestation of ,christian centuries in one line1 he says1 ,and tormented with many a ,jew6 ,in the third stanza1 ,i consider the middle quatrain1 that is1 the four lines beginning ,out of this world1 perfectly grand4 ,the oddness of the last line but one of the fourth stanza is redeemed by the wonderful reality it gives to the faith of the speaker3 ,see my sorrow1 and say ,ho6 stopping it as one would call after a man and stop him4 ,jesus1 thou art wisdom of wit1 understanding4 ,of thy ,father full of might6 ,man's soul--to save it1 ,in poor apparel thou wert pight4 pitched1 placed1 ,jesus1 thou wert in cradle knit1 dressed4 ,in weed wrapped both day and night2 originally1 dress of ,in ,bethlehem born1 as the gospel writ1 any kind4 ,with angels' song1 and heaven-light4 ,bairn y-born of a beerde bright1#eb ,full courteous was thy comely cus3 kiss4 ,through virtue of that sweet light1 ,so be my comfort1 ,christ ,jesus4 ,jesus1 that wert of yearis young1 ,fair and fresh of hide and hue1 ,when thou wert in thraldom throng1 driven4 ,and tormented with many a ,jew1 ,when blood and water were out-wrung1 ,for beating was thy body blue2 ,as a clot of clay thou wert for-clong1 shrunk4 ,so dead in trough then men thee threw4 coffin4 ,but grace from thy grave grew3 ,thou rose up quick comfort to us4 living4 ,for her love that this counsel knew1 ,so be my comfort1 ,christ ,jesus4 ,jesus1 soothfast ,god and man1 ,two kinds knit in one person1 ,the wonder-work that thou began ,thou hast fulfilled in flesh and bone4 ,out of this world wightly thou wan1 thou didst win1 or make ,lifting up thyself alone2 thy way1 powerfully4 ,for mightily thou rose and ran ,straight unto thy ,father on throne4 ,now dare man make no more moan-- ,for man it is thou wroughtest thus1 ,and ,god with man is made at one2 ,so be my comfort1 ,christ ,jesus4 ,jesu1 my sovereign ,saviour1 ,almighty ,god1 there ben no mo3 there are no more--thou ,christ1 thou be my governor2 art all in all4787 ,thy faith let me not fallen fro4 from ,jesu1 my joy and my succour1 ,in my body and soul also1 ,god1 thou be my strongest food1 the rhyme fails here4 ,and wisse thou me when me is woe4 think on me4 ,lord1 thou makest friend of foe1 ,let me not live in languor thus1 ,but see my sorrow1 and say now ,ho1 ,and be my comfort1 ,christ ,jesus4 ,of fourteen stanzas called ,richard de ,castre's ,prayer to ,jesus1 ,i choose five from the latter half1 where the prayer passes from his own spiritual necessities1 very tenderly embodied1 to those of others4 ,it does our hearts good to see the clouded sun of prayer for oneself break forth in the gladness of blessed entreaty for all men1 for them that make ,him angry1 for saints in trouble1 for the country torn by war1 for the whole body of ,christ and its unity4 ,after the stanza-- ,jesus1 for the deadly tears ,that thou sheddest for my guilt1 ,hear and speed my prayrs ,and spare me that ,i be not spilt2 the best that is in the suppliant shines out thus ,jesu1 for them ,i thee beseech ,that wrathen thee in any wise2 ,withhold from them thy hand of wreche1 vengeance4 ,and let them live in thy service4 ,jesu1 most comfort for to see ,of thy saintis every one1 ,comfort them that careful be1 ,and help them that be woe-begone4 ,jesu1 keep them that be good1 ,and amend them that have grieved thee2 ,and send them fruits of earthly food1 ,as each man needeth in his degree4 ,jesu1 that art1 withouten lees1 lies4 ,almighty ,god in trinity1 ,cease these wars1 and send us peace1 ,with lasting love and charity4 ,jesu1 that art the ghostly stone spiritual4 ,of all holy church in middle-erde1 the world4 ,bring thy folds and flocks in one1 ,and rule them rightly with one herd4 ,we now approach the second revival of literature1 preceded in ,england by the arrival of the art of printing2 after which we find ourselves walking in a morning twilight1 knowing something of the authors as well as of their work4 ,i have little more to offer from this century4 ,there are a few religious poems by ,john ,skelton1 who was tutor to ,henry ,,viii4 ,but such poetry1 though he was a clergyman1 was not much in ,skelton's manner of mind4 ,we have far better of a similar sort already4 ,a new sort of dramatic representation had by this time greatly encroached upon the old ,miracle ,plays4 ,the fresh growth was called ,morals or ,moral ,plays4 ,in them we see the losing victory of invention over the imagination that works with given facts4 ,no doubt in the ,moral ,plays there is more exercise of intellect as well as of ingenuity2 for they consist of metaphysical facts turned into individual existences by personification1 and their relations then dramatized by allegory4 ,but their poetry is greatly inferior both in character and execution to that of the ,miracles4 ,they have a religious tendency1 as everything moral must have1 and sometimes they go even farther1 as in one1 for instance1 called ,the ,castle of ,perseverance1 in which we have all the cardinal virtues and all the cardinal sins contending for the possession of ,humanum ,genus1 the ,human ,race being presented as a new-born child1 who grows old and dies in the course of the play2 but it was a great stride in art when human nature and human history began again to be exemplified after a simple human fashion1 in the story1 that is1 of real men and women1 instead of by allegorical personifications of the analysed and abstracted constituents of them4 ,allegory has her place1 and a lofty one1 in literature2 but when her plants cover the garden and run to seed1 ,allegory herself is ashamed of her children3 the loveliest among them are despised for the general obtrusiveness of the family4 ,imitation not only brings the thing imitated into disrepute1 but tends to destroy what original faculty the imitator may have possessed4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,introduction ,,to ,,the ,,elizabethan ,,era4 ,poets now began to write more smoothly--not a great virtue1 but indicative of a growing desire for finish1 which1 in any art1 is a great virtue4 ,no doubt smoothness is often confounded with1 and mistaken for finish2 but you might have a mirror-like polish on the surface of a statue1 for instance1 and yet the marble be full of inanity1 or vagueness1 or even vulgarity of result--irrespective altogether of its idea4 ,the influence of ,italian poetry reviving once more in the country1 roused such men as ,wyat and ,surrey to polish the sound of their verses2 but smoothness1 ,i repeat1 is not melody1 and where the attention paid to the outside of the form results in flatness1 and1 still worse1 in obscurity1 as is the case with both of these poets1 little is gained and much is lost4 ,each has paraphrased portions of ,scripture1 but with results of little value2 and there is nothing of a religious nature ,i care to quote from either1 except these five lines from an epistle of ,sir ,thomas ,wyat's3 ,thyself content with that is thee assigned1 ,and use it well that is to thee allotted2 ,then seek no more out of thyself to find ,the thing that thou hast sought so long before1 ,for thou shalt feel it sticking in thy mind4 ,students of versification will allow me to remark that ,sir ,thomas was the first ,english poet1 so far as ,i know1 who used the terza rima1 ,dante's chief mode of rhyming3 the above is too small a fragment to show that it belongs to a poem in that manner4 ,it has never been popular in ,england1 although to my mind it is the finest form of continuous rhyme in any language4 ,again1 we owe his friend ,surrey far more for being the first to write ,english blank verse1 whether invented by himself or not1 than for any matter he has left us in poetic shape4 ,this period is somewhat barren of such poetry as we want4 ,here is a portion of the ,fifty-first ,psalm1 translated amongst others into ,english verse by ,john ,croke1 ,master in ,chancery1 in the reign of ,henry ,,viii4 ,open my lips first to confess ,my sin conceived inwardly2 ,and my mouth after shall express ,thy laud and praises outwardly4 ,if ,i should offer for my sin1 ,or sacrifice do unto thee ,of beast or fowl1 ,i should begin ,to stir thy wrath more towards me4 ,offer we must for sacrifice ,a troubled mind with sorrow's smart3 ,canst thou refuse8 ,nay1 nor despise ,the humble and the contrite heart4 ,to us of ,sion that be born1 ,if thou thy favour wilt renew1 ,the broken sowle1 the temple torn1 threshold4 ,the walls and all shall be made new4 ,the sacrifice then shall we make ,of justice and of pure intent2 ,and all things else thou wilt well take ,that we shall offer or present4 ,in the works of ,george ,gascoigne ,i find one poem fit for quoting here4 ,he is not an interesting writer1 and1 although his verse is very good1 there is little likelihood of its ever being read more than it is now4 ,the date of his birth is unknown1 but probably he was in his teens when ,surrey was beheaded in the year #aedg4 ,he is the only poet whose style reminds me of his1 although the wherefore will hardly be evident from my quotation4 ,it is equally flat1 but more articulate4 ,i need not detain my reader with remarks upon him4 ,the fact is1 ,i am glad to have something1 if not a cart-load of wholesome instructions1 to cast into this ,slough of ,despond1 should it be only to see it vanish4 ,the poem is called ,,gascoigne',s ,,good ,,morrow4 ,you that have spent the silent night ,in sleep and quiet rest1 ,and joy to see the cheerful light ,that riseth in the east2 ,now clear your voice1 now cheer your heart2 ,come help me now to sing2 ,each willing wight come bear a part1 ,to praise the heavenly ,king4 ,and you whom care in prison keeps1 ,or sickness doth suppress1 ,or secret sorrow breaks your sleeps1 ,or dolours do distress2 ,yet bear a part in doleful wise2 ,yea1 think it good accord1 ,and acceptable sacrifice1 ,each sprite to praise the ,lord4 ,the dreadful night with darksomeness ,had overspread the light1 ,and sluggish sleep with drowsiness ,had overpressed our might3 ,a glass wherein you may behold ,each storm that stops our breath1 ,our bed the grave1 our clothes like mould1 ,and sleep like dreadful death4 ,yet as this deadly night did last ,but for a little space1 ,and heavenly day1 now night is past1 ,doth shew his pleasant face2 ,so must we hope to see ,god's face ,at last in heaven on high1 ,when we have changed this mortal place ,for immortality4 ,this is not so bad1 but it is enough4 ,there are six stanzas more of it4 ,i transcribe yet another1 that my reader may enjoy a smile in passing4 ,he is moralizing the aspects of morning3 ,the carrion crow1 that loathsome beast1 ,which cries against the rain1 ,both for his hue and for the rest1 ,the ,devil resembleth plain2 ,and as with guns we kill the crow1 ,for spoiling our relief1 ,the ,devil so must we overthrow1 ,with gunshot of belief4 ,so fares the wit1 when it walks abroad to do its business without the heart that should inspire it4 ,here is one good stanza from his ,de ,profundis3 ,but thou art good1 and hast of mercy store2 ,thou not delight'st to see a sinner fall2 ,thou hearkenest first1 before we come to call2 ,thine ears are set wide open evermore2 ,before we knock thou comest to the door4 ,thou art more prest to hear a sinner cry1 ready4 ,than he is quick to climb to thee on high4 ,thy mighty name be praised then alway3 ,let faith and fear ,true witness bear ,how fast they stand which on thy mercy stay4 ,here follow two of unknown authorship1 belonging apparently to the same period4 ,,that ,,each ,,thing ,,is ,,hurt ,,of ,,itself4 ,why fearest thou the outward foe1 ,when thou thyself thy harm dost feed8 ,of grief or hurt1 of pain or woe1 ,within each thing is sown the seed4 ,so fine was never yet the cloth1 ,no smith so hard his iron did beat1 ,but th' one consumd was with moth1 ,th' other with canker all to-freate4 fretted away4 ,the knotty oak and wainscot old ,within doth eat the silly worm2#ec ,even so a mind in envy rolled ,always within it self doth burn4 ,thus every thing that nature wrought1 ,within itself his hurt doth bear6 ,no outward harm need to be sought1 ,where enemies be within so near4 ,lest this poem should appear to any one hardly religious enough for the purpose of this book1 ,i would remark that it reminds me of what our ,lord says about the true source of defilement3 it is what is bred in the man that denies him4 ,our ,lord himself taught a divine morality1 which is as it were the body of love1 and is as different from mere morality asthe living body is from the dead4 ,,totus ,,mundus ,,in ,,maligno ,,positus4 ,the whole world lieth in the ,evil ,one4 ,complain we may2 much is amiss2 ,hope is nigh gone to have redress2 ,these days are ill1 nothing sure is2 ,kind heart is wrapt in heaviness4 ,the stern is broke1 the sail is rent1 helm or rudder--the ,the ship is given to wind and wave2 thing to steer with4 ,all help is gone1 the rock present1 ,that will be lost1 what man can save8 that which will be lost4 ,when power lacks care and forceth not1 careth4 ,when care is feeble and may not1 is not able4 ,when might is slothful and will not1 ,weeds may grow where good herbs cannot4 ,wily is witty1 brainsick is wise2 wiliness is counted ,truth is folly1 and might is right2 prudence4 ,words are reason1 and reason is lies2 ,the bad is good1 darkness is light4 ,order is broke in things of weight3 ,measure and mean who doth nor flee8 who does not avoid ,two things prevail1 money and sleight2 moderation8 ,to seem is better than to be4 ,folly and falsehood prate apace2 ,truth under bushel is fain to creep2 ,flattery is treble1 pride sings the bass1 ,the mean1 the best part1 scant doth peep4 ,with floods and storms thus be we tost3 ,awake1 good ,lord1 to thee we cry2 ,our ship is almost sunk and lost2 ,thy mercy help our misery4 ,man's strength is weak2 man's wit is dull2 ,man's reason is blind these things t'amend3 ,thy hand1 ,o ,lord1 of might is full-- ,awake betimes1 and help us send4 ,in thee we trust1 and in no wight2 ,save us1 as chickens under the hen2 ,our crookedness thou canst make right-- ,glory to thee for aye4 ,amen4 ,the apprehensions of the wiser part of the nation have generally been ahead of its hopes4 ,every age is born with an ideal2 but instead of beholding that ideal in the future where it lies1 it throws it into the past4 ,hence the lapse of the nation must appear tremendous1 even when she is making her best progress4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,,spenser ,,and ,,his ,,friends4 ,we have now arrived at the period of ,english history in every way fullest of marvel--the period of ,elizabeth4 ,as in a northern summer the whole region bursts into blossom at once1 so with the thought and feeling of ,england in this glorious era4 ,the special development of the national mind with which we are now concerned1 however1 did not by any means arrive at its largest and clearest result until the following century4 ,still its progress is sufficiently remarkable4 ,for1 while everything that bore upon the mental development of the nation must bear upon its poetry1 the fresh vigour given by the doctrines of the ,reformation to the sense of personal responsibility1 and of immediate relation to ,god1 with the grand influences1 both literary and spiritual1 of the translated1 printed1 and studied ,bible1 operated more immediately upon its devotional utterance4 ,towards the close of the sixteenth century1 we begin to find such verse as ,i shall now present to my readers4 ,only ,i must first make a few remarks upon the great poem of the period3 ,i mean1 of course1 ,the ,faerie ,queen4 ,i dare not begin to set forth after any fashion the profound religious truth contained in this poem2 for it would require a volume larger than this to set forth even that of the first book adequately4 ,in this case it is well to remember that the beginning of comment1 as well as of strife1 is like the letting out of water4 ,the direction in which the wonderful allegory of the latter moves may be gathered from the following stanza1 the first of the eighth canto3 ,ay me6 how many perils do enfold ,the righteous man to make him daily fail2 ,were not that heavenly grace doth him uphold1 it understood4 ,and steadfast ,truth acquit him out of all6 ,her love is firm1 her care continual1 ,so oft as he1 through his own foolish pride ,or weakness1 is to sinful bands made thrall3 ,else should this ,redcross ,knight in bands have died1 ,for whose deliverance she this ,prince doth thither guide4 ,nor do ,i judge it good to spend much of my space upon remarks personal to those who have not been especially writers of sacred verse4 ,when we come to the masters of such song1 we cannot speak of their words without speaking of themselves2 but when in the midst of many words those of the kind we seek are few1 the life of the writer does not justify more than a passing notice here4 ,we know but little of ,spenser's history3 if we might know all1 ,i do not fear that we should find anything to destroy the impression made by his verse--that he was a ,christian gentleman1 a noble and pure-minded man1 of highest purposes and aims4 ,his style is injured by the artistic falsehood of producing antique effects in the midst of modern feeling4#ed ,it was scarcely more justifiable1 for instance1 in ,spenser's time than it would be in ours to use glitterand for glittering2 or to return to a large use of alliteration1 three1 four1 sometimes even five words in the same line beginning with the same consonant sound4 ,everything should look like what it is3 prose or verse should be written in the language of its own era4 ,no doubt the wide-spreading roots of poetry gather to it more variety of expression than prose can employ2 and the very nature of verse will make it free of times and seasons1 harmonizing many opposites4 ,hence1 through its mediation1 without discord1 many fine old words1 by the loss of which the language has grown poorer and feebler1 might be honourably enticed to return even into our prose4 ,but nothing ought to be brought back because it is old4 ,that it is out of use is a presumptive argument that it ought to remain out of use3 good reasons must be at hand to support its reappearance4 ,i must not1 however1 enlarge upon this wide-reaching question2 for of the two portions of ,spenser's verse which ,i shall quote1 one of them is not at all1 the other not so much as his great poem1 affected with this whim4 ,the first ,i give is a sonnet1 one of eighty-eight which he wrote to his wife before their marriage4 ,apparently disappointed in early youth1 he did not fall in love again1--at least there is no sign of it that ,i know1--till he was middle-aged4 ,but then--woman was never more grandly wooed than was his ,elizabeth4 ,i know of no marriage-present worthy to be compared with the ,epithalamion which he gave her in lieu of many ornaments1--one of the most stately1 melodious1 and tender poems in the world1 ,i fully believe4 ,but now for the sonnet--the sixty-eighth of the ,amoretti3 ,most glorious ,lord of ,life6 that1 on this day1 ,didst make thy triumph over death and sin1 ,and having harrowed hell1 didst bring away ,captivity thence captive1 us to win3 ,this joyous day1 dear ,lord1 with joy begin2 ,and grant that we1 for whom thou diddest die1 ,being with thy dear blood clean washed from sin1 ,may live for ever in felicity6 ,and that thy love we weighing worthily1 ,may likewise love thee for the same again2 ,and for thy sake1 that all like dear didst buy1 ,with love may one another entertain4 ,so let us love1 dear love1 like as we ought3 ,love is the lesson which the ,lord us taught4 ,those who have never felt the need of the divine1 entering by the channel of will and choice and prayer1 for the upholding1 purifying1 and glorifying of that which itself first created human1 will consider this poem untrue1 having its origin in religious affectation4 ,others will think otherwise4 ,the greater part of what ,i shall next quote is tolerably known even to those who have made little study of our earlier literature1 yet it may not be omitted here4 ,it is from ,an ,hymne of ,heavenly ,love1 consisting of forty-one stanzas1 written in what was called ,rime ,royal--a favourite with ,milton1 and1 next to the ,spenserian1 in my opinion the finest of stanzas4 ,its construction will reveal itself4 ,i take two stanzas from the beginning of the hymn1 then one from the heart of it1 and the rest from the close4 ,it gives no feeling of an outburst of song1 but rather of a brooding chant1 most quiet in virtue of the depth of its thoughtfulness4 ,indeed1 all his rhythm is like the melodies of water1 and ,i could quote at least three passages in which he speaks of rhythmic movements and watery progressions together4 ,his thoughts1 and hence his words1 flow like a full1 peaceful stream1 diffuse1 with plenteousness unrestrained4 ,,an ,,hymn ,,of ,,heavenly ,,love4 ,before this world's great frame1 in which all things ,are now contained1 found any being place1 ,ere flitting ,time could wag his eyas#ee wings ,about that mighty bound which doth embrace ,the rolling spheres1 and parts their hours by space1 ,that high eternal power1 which now doth move ,in all these things1 moved in itself by love4 ,it loved itself1 because itself was fair1 ,for fair is loved2 and of itself begot ,like to itself his eldest son and heir1 ,eternal1 pure1 and void of sinful blot1 ,the firstling of his joy1 in whom no jot ,of love's dislike or pride was to be found1 ,whom he therefore with equal honour crowned4 99 99 99 99 99 ,out of the bosom of eternal bliss1 ,in which he reignd with his glorious ,sire1 ,he down descended1 like a most demisse humble4 ,and abject thrall1 in flesh's frail attire1 ,that he for him might pay sin's deadly hire1 ,and him restore unto that happy state ,in which he stood before his hapless fate4 99 99 99 99 99 ,o blessed well of love6 ,o flower of grace6 ,o glorious ,morning-,star6 ,o ,lamp of ,light6 ,most lively image of thy ,father's face6 ,eternal ,king of ,glory1 ,lord of might6 ,meek ,lamb of ,god1 before all worlds behight6 promised4 ,how can we thee requite for all this good8 ,or what can prize that thy most precious blood8 equal in value4 ,yet nought thou ask'st in lieu of all this love ,but love of us for guerdon of thy pain3 ,ay me6 what can us less than that behove8#ef ,had he required life of#eg us again1 ,had it been wrong to ask his own with gain8 ,he gave us life1 he it restored lost2 ,then life were least1 that us so little cost4 ,but he our life hath left unto us free-- ,free that was thrall1 and blessed that was banned2 enslaved2 cursed4 ,nor aught demands but that we loving be1 ,as he himself hath loved us aforehand1 ,and bound thereto with an eternal band-- ,him first to love that us#eh so dearly bought1 ,and next our brethren1 to his image wrought4 ,him first to love great right and reason is1 ,who first to us our life and being gave1 ,and after1 when we fard had amiss1 ,us wretches from the second death did save2 ,and last1 the food of life1 which now we have1 ,even he himself1 in his dear sacrament1 ,to feed our hungry souls1 unto us lent4 ,then next1 to love our brethren that were made ,of that self mould1 and that self ,maker's hand1 ,that#ei we1 and to the same again shall fade1 ,where they shall have like heritage of land1 the same grave-room4 ,however here on higher steps we stand2 ,which also were with selfsame price redeemed1 ,that we1 however1 of us light esteemed4 as4 ,and were they not1 yet since that loving ,lord ,commanded us to love them for his sake1 ,even for his sake1 and for his sacred word1 ,which in his last bequest he to us spake1 ,we should them love1 and with their needs partake2 share their ,knowing that1 whatsoe'er to them we give1 needs4 ,we give to him by whom we all do live4 ,such mercy he by his most holy rede instruction4 ,unto us taught1 and to approve it true1 ,ensampled it by his most righteous deed1 ,shewing us mercy1 miserable crew6 ,that we the like should to the wretches#fj shew1 ,and love our brethren2 thereby to approve ,how much himself that loved us we love4 ,then rouse thyself1 ,o earth6 out of thy soil1 ,in which thou wallowest like to filthy swine1 ,and dost thy mind in dirty pleasures moyle1 defile4 ,unmindful of that dearest ,lord of thine2 ,lift up to him thy heavy clouded eyne1 ,that thou this sovereign bounty mayst behold1 ,and read through love his mercies manifold4 ,begin from first1 where he encradled was ,in simple cratch1 wrapt in a wad of hay1 a rack or crib4 ,between the toilful ox and humble ass2 ,and in what rags1 and in what base array ,the glory of our heavenly riches lay1 ,when him the silly#fa shepherds came to see1 ,whom greatest princes sought on lowest knee4 ,from thence read on the story of his life1 ,his humble carriage1 his unfaulty ways1 ,his cankered foes1 his fights1 his toil1 his strife1 ,his pains1 his poverty1 his sharp assays1 temptations or trials4 ,through which he passed his miserable days1 ,offending none1 and doing good to all1 ,yet being maliced both by great and small4 ,and look at last1 how of most wretched wights ,he taken was1 betrayed1 and false accused2 ,how with most scornful taunts and fell despites ,he was reviled1 disgraced1 and foul abused2 ,how scourged1 how crowned1 how buffeted1 how bruised2 ,and1 lastly1 how 'twixt robbers crucified1 ,with bitter wounds through hands1 through feet1 and side6 99 99 99 99 99 ,with sense whereof whilst so thy softened spirit ,is inly touched1 and humbled with meek zeal ,through meditation of his endless merit1 ,lift up thy mind to th' author of thy weal1 ,and to his sovereign mercy do appeal2 ,learn him to love that lovd thee so dear1 ,and in thy breast his blessed image bear4 ,with all thy heart1 with all thy soul and mind1 ,thou must him love1 and his behests embrace2 commands4 ,all other loves with which the world doth blind ,weak fancies1 and stir up affections base1 ,thou must renounce and utterly displace1 ,and give thyself unto him full and free1 ,that full and freely gave himself to thee4 99 99 99 99 99 ,thenceforth all world's desire will in thee die1 ,and all earth's glory1 on which men do gaze1 ,seem dust and dross in thy pure-sighted eye1 ,compared to that celestial beauty's blaze1 ,whose glorious beams all fleshly sense do daze ,with admiration of their passing light1 ,blinding the eyes and lumining the sprite4 ,then shalt thy ravished soul inspird be ,with heavenly thoughts far above human skill1 reason4 ,and thy bright radiant eyes shall plainly see ,the ,idea of his pure glory present still ,before thy face1 that all thy spirits shall fill ,with sweet enragement of celestial love1 ,kindled through sight of those fair things above4 ,there is a companion to the poem of which these verses are a portion1 called ,an ,hymne of ,heavenly ,beautie1 filled like this1 and like two others on ,beauty and ,love1 with ,platonic forms both of thought and expression2 but ,i have preferred quoting a longer part of the former to giving portions of both4 ,my reader will recognize in the extract a fuller force of intellect brought to bear on duty2 although it would be unwise to take a mind like ,spenser's for a type of more than the highest class of the age4 ,doubtless the division in the country with regard to many of the ,church's doctrines had its part in bringing out and strengthening this tendency to reasoning which is so essential to progress4 ,where religion itself is not the most important thing with the individual1 all reasoning upon it must indeed degenerate into strifes of words1 vermiculate questions1 as ,lord ,bacon calls them--such1 namely1 as like the hoarded manna reveal the character of the owner by breeding of worms--yet on no questions may the light of the candle of the ,lord1 that is1 the human understanding1 be cast with greater hope of discovery than on those of religion1 those1 namely1 that bear upon man's relation to ,god and to his fellow4 ,the most partial illumination of this region1 the very cause of whose mystery is the height and depth of its truth1 is of more awful value to the human being than perfect knowledge1 if such were possible1 concerning everything else in the universe2 while1 in fact1 in this very region1 discovery may bring with it a higher kind of conviction than can accompany the results of investigation in any other direction4 ,in these grandest of all thinkings1 the great men of this time showed a grandeur of thought worthy of their surpassing excellence in other noblest fields of human labour4 ,they thought greatly because they aspired greatly4 ,sir ,walter ,raleigh was a personal friend of ,edmund ,spenser4 ,they were almost of the same age1 the former born in #aeeb1 the latter in the following year4 ,a writer of magnificent prose1 itself full of religion and poetry both in thought and expression1 he has not distinguished himself greatly in verse4 ,there is1 however1 one remarkable poem fit for my purpose1 which ,i can hardly doubt to be his4 ,it is called ,sir ,walter ,raleigh's ,pilgrimage4 ,the probability is that it was written just after his condemnation in #afjc--;although many years passed before his sentence was carried into execution4 ,give me my scallop-shell#fb of ,quiet2 ,my staff of ,faith to walk upon2 ,my scrip of ,joy1 immortal diet2 ,my bottle of ,salvation2 ,my gown of ,glory1 hope's true gage2 ,and thus ,i'll take my pilgrimage4 ,blood must be my body's balmer1-- ,no other balm will there be given-- ,whilst my soul1 like quiet palmer1 ,travelleth towards the land of ,heaven2 ,over the silver mountains1 ,where spring the nectar fountains-- ,there will ,i kiss ,the bowl of ,bliss1 ,and drink mine everlasting fill ,upon every milken hill3 ,my soul will be a-dry before1 ,but after1 it will thirst no more4 ,then by that happy blissful day1 ,more peaceful pilgrims ,i shall see1 ,that have cast off their rags of clay1 ,and walk apparelled fresh like me3 ,i'll take them first1 ,to quench their thirst1 ,and taste of nectar's suckets1 sweet things--things to suck4 ,at those clear wells ,where sweetness dwells1 ,drawn up by saints in crystal buckets4 ,and when our bottles and all we ,are filled with immortality1 ,then the blessed paths we'll travel1 ,strowed with rubies thick as gravel4 ,ceilings of diamonds6 sapphire floors6 ,high walls of coral1 and pearly bowers6-- ,from thence to ,heaven's bribeless hall1 ,where no corrupted voices brawl2 ,no conscience molten into gold2 ,no forged accuser bought or sold2 ,no cause deferred2 no vain-spent journey2 ,for there ,christ is the ,king's ,attorney1 ,who pleads for all without degrees1 irrespective of rank4 ,and he hath angels1 but no fees4 ,and when the grand twelve million jury ,of our sins1 with direful fury1 ',gainst our souls black verdicts give1 ,christ pleads his death1 and then we live4 ,be thou my speaker1 taintless ,pleader1 ,unblotted ,lawyer1 true ,proceeder6 ,thou giv'st salvation even for alms1-- ,not with a bribd lawyer's palms4 ,and this is my eternal plea ,to him that made heaven1 earth1 and sea1 ,that1 since my flesh must die so soon1 ,and want a head to dine next noon1-- ,just at the stroke1 when my veins start and spread1 ,set on my soul an everlasting head3 ,then am ,i ready1 like a palmer fit1 ,to tread those blest paths which before ,i writ4 ,of death and judgment1 heaven and hell ,who oft doth think1 must needs die well4 ,this poem is a somewhat strange medley1 with a confusion of figure1 and a repeated failure in dignity1 which is very far indeed from being worthy of ,raleigh's prose4 ,but it is very remarkable how wretchedly some men will show1 who1 doing their own work well1 attempt that for which practice has not--to use a word of the time--enabled them4 ,there is real power in the poem1 however1 and the confusion is far more indicative of the pleased success of an unaccustomed hand than of incapacity for harmonious work4 ,some of the imagery1 especially the crystal buckets1 will suggest those grotesque drawings called ,emblems1 which were much in use before and after this period1 and1 indeed1 were only a putting into visible shape of such metaphors and similes as some of the most popular poets of the time1 especially ,doctor ,donne1 indulged in2 while the profusion of earthly riches attributed to the heavenly paths and the places of repose on the journey1 may well recall ,raleigh's own descriptions of ,south ,american glories4 ,englishmen of that era believed in an earthly ,paradise beyond the ,atlantic1 the wonderful reports of whose magnificence had no doubt a share in lifting the imaginations and hopes of the people to the height at which they now stood4 ,there may be an appearance of irreverence in the way in which he contrasts the bribeless ,hall of ,heaven with the proceedings at his own trial1 where he was browbeaten1 abused1 and1 from the very commencement1 treated as a guilty man by ,sir ,edward ,coke1 the king's attorney4 ,he even puns with the words angels and fees4 ,burning from a sense of injustice1 however1 and with the solemnity of death before him1 he could not be guilty of conscious irreverence1 at least4 ,but there is another remark ,i have to make with regard to the matter1 which will bear upon much of the literature of the time3 even the great writers of that period had such a delight in words1 and such a command over them1 that like their skilful horsemen1 who enjoyed making their steeds show off the fantastic paces they had taught them1 they played with the words as they passed through their hands1 tossing them about as a juggler might his balls4 ,but even herein the true master of speech showed his masterdom3 his play must not be by-play2 it must contribute to the truth of the idea which was taking form in those words4 ,we shall see this more plainly when we come to transcribe some of ,sir ,philip ,sidney's work4 ,there is no irreverence in it4 ,nor can ,i take it as any sign of hardness that ,raleigh should treat the visual image of his own anticipated death with so much coolness1 if the writer of a little elegy on his execution1 when ,raleigh was fourteen years older than at the presumed date of the foregoing verses1 describes him truly when he says3 ,i saw in every stander-by ,pale death1 life only in thy eye4 ,the following hymn is also attributed to ,raleigh4 ,if it has less brilliance of fancy1 it has none of the faults of the preceding1 and is far more artistic in construction and finish1 notwithstanding a degree of irregularity4 ,rise1 oh my soul1 with thy desires to heaven2 ,and with divinest contemplation use ,thy time1 where time's eternity is given2 ,and let vain thoughts no more thy thoughts abuse1 ,but down in darkness let them lie3 ,so live thy better1 let thy worse thoughts die6 ,and thou1 my soul1 inspired with holy flame1 ,view and review1 with most regardful eye1 ,that holy cross1 whence thy salvation came1 ,on which thy ,saviour and thy sin did die6 ,for in that sacred object is much pleasure1 ,and in that ,saviour is my life1 my treasure4 ,to thee1 ,o ,jesus1 ,i direct my eyes2 ,to thee my hands1 to thee my humble knees1 ,to thee my heart shall offer sacrifice2 ,to thee my thoughts1 who my thoughts only sees-- ,to thee myself1--myself and all ,i give2 ,to thee ,i die2 to thee ,i only live6 ,see what an effect of stately composure quiet artistic care produces1 and how it leaves the ear of the mind in a satisfied peace6 ,there are a few fine lines in the poem4 ,the last two lines of the first stanza are admirable2 the last two of the second very weak4 ,the last stanza is good throughout4 ,but it would be very unfair to judge ,sir ,walter by his verse4 ,his prose is infinitely better1 and equally displays the devout tendency of his mind--a tendency common to all the great men of that age4 ,the worst ,i know of him is the selfishly prudent advice he left behind for his son4 ,no doubt he had his faults1 but we must not judge a man even by what he says in an over-anxiety for the prosperity of his child4 ,another remarkable fact in the history of those great men is that they were all men of affairs4 ,raleigh was a soldier1 a sailor1 a discoverer1 a politician1 as well as an author4 ,his friend ,spenser was first secretary to ,lord ,grey when he was ,governor of ,ireland1 and afterwards ,sheriff of ,cork4 ,he has written a large treatise on the state of ,ireland4 ,but of all the men of the age no one was more variously gifted1 or exercised those gifts in more differing directions1 than the man who of them all was most in favour with queen1 court1 and people--,philip ,sidney4 ,i could write much to set forth the greatness1 culture1 balance1 and scope of this wonderful man4 ,renowned over ,europe for his person1 for his dress1 for his carriage1 for his speech1 for his skill in arms1 for his horsemanship1 for his soldiership1 for his statesmanship1 for his learning1 he was beloved for his friendship1 his generosity1 his steadfastness1 his simplicity1 his conscientiousness1 his religion4 ,amongst the lamentations over his death printed in ,spenser's works1 there is one poem by ,matthew ,roydon1 a few verses of which ,i shall quote1 being no vain eulogy4 ,describing his personal appearance1 he says3 ,a sweet1 attractive kind of grace1 ,a full assurance given by looks1 ,continual comfort in a face1 ,the lineaments of ,gospel books6-- ,i trow1 that countenance cannot lie ,whose thoughts are legible in the eye4 ,was ever eye did see that face1 ,was ever ear did hear that tongue1 ,was ever mind did mind his grace ,that ever thought the travel long8 ,but eyes and ears1 and every thought1 ,were with his sweet perfections caught4 ,his ,arcadia is a book full of wisdom and beauty4 ,none of his writings were printed in his lifetime2 but the ,arcadia was for many years after his death one of the most popular books in the country4 ,his prose1 as prose1 is not equal to his friend ,raleigh's1 being less condensed and stately4 ,it is too full of fancy in thought and freak in rhetoric to find now-a-days more than a very limited number of readers2 and a good deal of the verse that is set in it1 is obscure and uninteresting1 partly from some false notions of poetic composition which he and his friend ,spenser entertained when young2 but there is often an exquisite art in his other poems4 ,the first ,i shall transcribe is a sonnet1 to which the ,latin words printed below it might be prefixed as a title3 ,splendidis longum valedico nugis4 ,a ,,long ,,farewell ,,to ,,glittering ,,trifles4 ,leave me1 ,o love1 which reachest but to dust2 ,and thou1 my mind1 aspire to higher things2 ,grow rich in that which never taketh rust3 ,what ever fades but fading pleasure brings4 ,draw in thy beams1 and humble all thy might ,to that sweet yoke where lasting freedoms be2 ,which breaks the clouds1 and opens forth the light ,that doth both shine and give us sight to see4 ,oh take fast hold2 let that light be thy guide1 ,in this small course which birth draws out to death2 ,and think how evil#fc becometh him to slide ,who seeketh heaven1 and comes of heavenly breath4 ,then farewell1 world2 thy uttermost ,i see3 ,eternal love1 maintain thy life in me4 ,before turning to the treasury of his noblest verse1 ,i shall give six lines from a poem in the ,arcadia--chiefly for the sake of instancing what great questions those mighty men delighted in3 ,what essence destiny hath2 if fortune be or no2 ,whence our immortal souls to mortal earth do stow#fd3 ,what life it is1 and how that all these lives do gather1 ,with outward maker's force1 or like an inward father4 ,such thoughts1 me thought1 ,i thought1 and strained my single mind1 ,then void of nearer cares1 the depth of things to find4 ,lord ,bacon was not the only one1 in such an age1 to think upon the mighty relations of physics and metaphysics1 or1 as ,sidney would say1 of naturall and supernaturall philosophic4 ,for a man to do his best1 he must be upheld1 even in his speculations1 by those around him4 ,in the specimen just given1 we find that our religious poetry has gone down into the deeps4 ,there are indications of such a tendency in the older times1 but neither then were the questions so articulate1 nor were the questioners so troubled for an answer4 ,the alternative expressed in the middle couplet seems to me the most imperative of all questions--both for the individual and for the church3 ,is man fashioned by the hands of ,god1 as a potter fashioneth his vessel2 or do we indeed come forth from his heart8 ,is power or love the making might of the universe8 ,he who answers this question aright possesses the key to all righteous questions4 ,sir ,philip and his sister ,mary1 ,countess of ,pembroke1 made between them a metrical translation of the ,psalms of ,david4 ,it cannot be determined which are hers and which are his2 but if ,i may conclude anything from a poem by the sister1 to which ,i shall by and by refer1 ,i take those ,i now give for the brother's work4 ,the souls of the following psalms have1 in the version ,i present1 transmigrated into fairer forms than ,i have found them occupy elsewhere4 ,here is a grand hymn for the whole world3 ,sing unto the ,lord4 ,,psalm ,,xcvi4 ,sing1 and let your song be new1 ,unto him that never endeth2 ,sing all earth1 and all in you-- ,sing to ,god1 and bless his name4 ,of the help1 the health he sendeth1 ,day by day new ditties frame4 ,make each country know his worth3 ,of his acts the wondered story ,paint unto each people forth4 ,for ,jehovah great alone1 ,all the gods1 for awe and glory1 ,far above doth hold his throne4 ,for but idols1 what are they ,whom besides mad earth adoreth8 ,he the skies in frame did lay4 ,grace and honour are his guides2 ,majesty his temple storeth2 ,might in guard about him bides4 ,kindreds come6 ,jehovah give-- ,o give ,jehovah all together1 ,force and fame whereso you live4 ,give his name the glory fit3 ,take your off'rings1 get you thither1 ,where he doth enshrined sit4 ,go1 adore him in the place ,where his pomp is most displayed4 ,earth1 ,o go with quaking pace1 ,go proclaim ,jehovah king3 ,stayless world shall now be stayed2 ,righteous doom his rule shall bring4 ,starry roof and earthy floor1 ,sea1 and all thy wideness yieldeth1 ,now rejoice1 and leap1 and roar4 ,leafy infants of the wood1 ,fields1 and all that on you feedeth1 ,dance1 ,o dance1 at such a good6 ,for ,jehovah cometh1 lo6 ,lo to reign ,jehovah cometh6 ,under whom you all shall go4 ,he the world shall rightly guide-- ,truly1 as a king becometh1 ,for the people's weal provide4 ,attempting to give an ascending scale of excellence--,i do not mean in subject but in execution--,i now turn to the national hymn1 ,god is our ,refuge4 ,,psalm ,,xliv4 ,god gives us strength1 and keeps us sound-- ,a present help when dangers call2 ,then fear not we1 let quake the ground1 ,and into seas let mountains fall2 ,yea so let seas withal ,in watery hills arise1 ,as may the earthly hills appal ,with dread and dashing cries4 ,for lo1 a river1 streaming joy1 ,with purling murmur safely slides1 ,that city washing from annoy1 ,in holy shrine where ,god resides4 ,god in her centre bides3 ,what can this city shake8 ,god early aids and ever guides3 ,who can this city take8 ,when nations go against her bent1 ,and kings with siege her walls enround2 ,the void of air his voice doth rent1 ,earth fails their feet with melting ground4 ,to strength and keep us sound1 ,the ,god of armies arms2 ,our rock on ,jacob's ,god we found1 ,above the reach of harms4 ,o come with me1 ,o come1 and view ,the trophies of ,jehovah's hand6 ,what wrecks from him our foes pursue6 ,how clearly he hath purged our land6 ,by him wars silent stand3 ,he brake the archer's bow1 ,made chariot's wheel a fiery brand1 ,and spear to shivers go4 ,be still1 saith he2 know1 ,god am ,i2 ,know ,i will be with conquest crowned ,above all nations--raisd high1 ,high raised above this earthly round4 ,to strength and keep us sound1 ,the ,god of armies arms2 ,our rock on ,jacob's ,god we found1 ,above the reach of harms4 ,the ,god of armies arms is a grand line4 ,now let us have a hymn of ,nature--a far finer1 ,i think1 than either of the preceding3 ,praise waiteth for thee4 ,,psalm ,,lxv4 ,sion it is where thou art praisd1 ,sion1 ,o ,god1 where vows they pay thee3 ,there all men's prayers to thee raisd1 ,return possessed of what they pray thee4 ,there thou my sins1 prevailing to my shame1 ,dost turn to smoke of sacrificing flame4 ,oh6 he of bliss is not deceivd1 disappointed4 ,whom chosen thou unto thee takest2 ,and whom into thy court receivd1 ,thou of thy checkrole#fe number makest3 ,the dainty viands of thy sacred store ,shall feed him so he shall not hunger more4 ,from thence it is thy threat'ning thunder-- ,lest we by wrong should be disgracd-- ,doth strike our foes with fear and wonder1 ,o thou on whom their hopes are placd1 ,whom either earth doth stedfastly sustain1 ,or cradle rocks the restless wavy plain4 ,thy virtue stays the mighty mountains1 power4 ,girded with power1 with strength abounding4 ,the roaring dam of watery fountains the dam of fountains ,thy beck doth make surcease her sounding4 is the ocean4 ,when stormy uproars toss the people's brain1 ,that civil sea to calm thou bring'st again4 political1 as opposed to natural4 ,where earth doth end with endless ending1 ,all such as dwell1 thy signs affright them2 ,and in thy praise their voices spending1 ,both houses of the sun delight them--- ,both whence he comes1 when early he awakes1 ,and where he goes1 when evening rest he takes4 ,thy eye from heaven this land beholdeth1 ,such fruitful dews down on it raining1 ,that storehouse-like her lap enfoldeth ,assurd hope of ploughman's gaining3 ,thy flowing streams her drought doth temper so1 ,that buried seed through yielding grave doth grow4 ,drunk is each ridge of thy cup drinking2 ,each clod relenteth at thy dressing2 groweth soft4 ,thy cloud-borne waters inly sinking1 ,fair spring sprouts forth1 blest with thy blessing4 ,the fertile year is with thy bounty crowned2 ,and where thou go'st1 thy goings fat the ground4 ,plenty bedews the desert places2 ,a hedge of mirth the hills encloseth2 ,the fields with flocks have hid their faces2 ,a robe of corn the valleys clotheth4 ,deserts1 and hills1 and fields1 and valleys all1 ,rejoice1 shout1 sing1 and on thy name do call4 ,the first stanza seems to me very fine1 especially the verse1 ,return possessed of what they pray thee4 ,the third stanza might have been written after the ,spanish ,philip's ,armada1 but both ,king ,david and ,sir ,philip ,sidney were dead before ,god brake that archer's bow4#ff ,the fourth line of the next stanza is a noteworthy instance of the sense gathering to itself the sound1 and is in lovely contrast with the closing line of the same stanza4 ,one of the most remarkable specimens ,i know of the play with words of which ,i have already spoken as common even in the serious writings of this century1 is to be found in the next line3 ,where earth doth end with endless ending4 ,david1 regarding the world as a flat disc1 speaks of the ends of the earth3 ,sidney1 knowing it to be a globe1 uses the word of the ,psalmist1 but re-moulds and changes the form of it1 with a power fantastic1 almost capricious in its wilfulness1 yet causing it to express the fact with a marvel of precision4 ,we see that the earth ends2 we cannot reach the end we see2 therefore the earth doth end with endless ending4 ,it is a case of that contradiction in the form of the words used1 which brings out a truth in another plane as it were2--a paradox in words1 not in meaning1 for the words can bear no meaning but the one which reveals its own reality4 ,the following little psalm1 ,the ,lord reigneth1 is a thunderous organ-blast of praise4 ,the repetition of words in the beginning of the second stanza produces a remarkably fine effect4 ,,psalm ,,xciii4 ,clothed with state1 and girt with might1 ,monarch-like ,jehovah reigns2 ,he who earth's foundation pight-- pitched4 ,pight at first1 and yet sustains2 ,he whose stable throne disdains ,motion's shock and age's flight2 ,he who endless one remains ,one1 the same1 in changeless plight4 ,rivers--yea1 though rivers roar1 ,roaring though sea-billows rise1 ,vex the deep1 and break the shore-- ,stronger art thou1 ,lord of skies6 ,firm and true thy promise lies ,now and still as heretofore3 ,holy worship never dies ,in thy house where we adore4 ,i close my selections from ,sidney with one which ,i consider the best of all3 it is the first half of ,lord1 thou hast searched me4 ,,psalm ,,cxxxix4 ,o ,lord1 in me there lieth nought ,but to thy search revealed lies2 ,for when ,i sit ,thou markest it2 ,no less thou notest when ,i rise3 ,yea1 closest closet of my thought ,hath open windows to thine eyes4 ,thou walkest with me when ,i walk ,when to my bed for rest ,i go1 ,i find thee there1 ,and every where3 ,not youngest thought in me doth grow1 ,no1 not one word ,i cast to talk ,but1 yet unuttered1 thou dost know4 ,if forth ,i march1 thou goest before2 ,if back ,i turn1 thou com'st behind3 ,so forth nor back ,thy guard ,i lack2 ,nay1 on me too thy hand ,i find4 ,well ,i thy wisdom may adore1 ,but never reach with earthy mind4 ,to shun thy notice1 leave thine eye1 ,o whither might ,i take my way8 ,to starry sphere8 ,thy throne is there4 ,to dead men's undelightsome stay8 ,there is thy walk1 and there to lie ,unknown1 in vain ,i should assay4 ,o sun1 whom light nor flight can match6 ,suppose thy lightful flightful wings ,thou lend to me1 ,and ,i could flee ,as far as thee the evening brings3 ,ev'n led to west he would me catch1 ,nor should ,i lurk with western things4 ,do thou thy best1 ,o secret night1 ,in sable veil to cover me3 ,thy sable veil ,shall vainly fail3 ,with day unmasked my night shall be2 ,for night is day1 and darkness light1 ,o father of all lights1 to thee4 ,note the most musical play with the words light and flight in the fifth stanza4 ,there is hardly a line that is not delightful4 ,they were a wonderful family those ,sidneys4 ,mary1 for whom ,philip wrote his chief work1 thence called ,the ,countess of ,pembroke's ,arcadia1 was a woman of rare gifts4 ,the chief poem known to be hers is called ,our ,saviour's ,passion4 ,it is full of the faults of the age4 ,sir ,philip's sport with words is so graceful and ordered as to subserve the utterance of the thought3 his sister's fanciful convolutions appear to be there for their own sake--certainly are there to the obscuration of the sense4 ,the difficulty of the poem arises in part1 ,i believe1 from corruption1 but chiefly from a certain fantastic way of dealing with thought as well as word of which ,i shall have occasion to say more when we descend a little further4 ,it is1 in the main1 a lamentation over our ,saviour's sufferings1 in which the countess is largely guilty of the very feminine fault of seeking to convey the intensity of her emotions by forcing words1 accumulating forms1 and exaggerating descriptions4 ,this may indeed convince as to the presence of feeling1 but cannot communicate the feeling itself4 ,the right word will at once generate a sympathy of which all agonies of utterance will only render the willing mind more and more incapable4 ,the poem is likewise very diffuse--again a common fault with women of power2 for indeed the faculty of compressing thought into crystalline form is one of the rarest gifts of artistic genius4 ,it consists of a hundred and ten stanzas1 from which ,i shall gather and arrange a few4 ,he placed all rest1 and had no resting place2 ,he healed each pain1 yet lived in sore distress2 ,deserved all good1 yet lived in great disgrace2 ,gave all hearts joy1 himself in heaviness2 ,suffered them live1 by whom himself was slain3 ,lord1 who can live to see such love again8 ,whose mansion heaven1 yet lay within a manger2 ,who gave all food1 yet sucked a virgin's breast2 ,who could have killed1 yet fled a threatening danger2 ,who sought all quiet by his own unrest2 ,who died for them that highly did offend him1 ,and lives for them that cannot comprehend him4 ,who came no further than his ,father sent him1 ,and did fulfil but what he did command him2 ,who prayed for them that proudly did torment him ,for telling truly of what they did demand him2 ,who did all good that humbly did intreat him1 ,and bare their blows1 that did unkindly beat him4 ,had ,i but seen him as his servants did1 ,at sea1 at land1 in city1 or in field1 ,though in himself he had his glory hid1 ,that in his grace the light of glory held1 ,then might my sorrow somewhat be appeasd1 ,that once my soul had in his sight been pleasd4 ,no6 ,i have run the way of wickedness1 ,forgetting what my faith should follow most2 ,i did not think upon thy holiness1 ,nor by my sins what sweetness ,i have lost4 ,oh sin6 for sin hath compassed me about1 ,that1 ,lord1 ,i know not where to find thee out4 ,where he that sits on the supernal throne1 ,in majesty most glorious to behold1 ,and holds the sceptre of the world alone1 ,hath not his garments of imbroidered gold1 ,but he is clothed with truth and righteousness1 ,where angels all do sing with joyfulness1 ,where heavenly love is cause of holy life1 ,and holy life increaseth heavenly love2 ,where peace established without fear or strife1 ,doth prove the blessing of the soul's behove2#fg ,where thirst nor hunger1 grief nor sorrow dwelleth1 ,but peace in joy1 and joy in peace excelleth4 ,had all the poem been like these stanzas1 ,i should not have spoken so strongly concerning its faults4 ,there are a few more such in it4 ,it closes with a very fantastic use of musical terms1 following upon a curious category of the works of nature as praising ,god1 to which ,i refer for the sake of one stanza1 or rather of one line in the stanza3 ,to see the greyhound course1 the hound in chase1 ,whilst little dormouse sleepeth out her eyne2 ,the lambs and rabbits sweetly run at base1#fh ,whilst highest trees the little squirrels climb1 ,the crawling worms out creeping in the showers1 ,and how the snails do climb the lofty towers4 ,what a love of animated nature there is in the lovely lady6 ,i am all but confident1 however1 that second line came to her from watching her children asleep4 ,she had one child at least3 that ,william ,herbert1 who is generally1 and with weight1 believed the ,w4,h4 of ,shakspere's ,sonnets1 a grander honour than the earldom of ,pembroke1 or even the having ,philip ,sidney to his uncle3 ,i will not say grander than having ,mary ,sidney to his mother4 ,let me now turn to ,sidney's friend1 ,sir ,fulk ,grevill1 ,lord ,brooke1 who afterwards wrote his life1 as an intended preface to all his ,monuments to the memory of ,sir ,philip ,sidney1 the said monuments being ,lord ,brooke's own poems4 ,my extract is from ,a ,treatise of ,religion1 in which1 if the reader do not find much of poetic form1 he will find at least some grand spiritual philosophy1 the stuff whereof all highest poetry is fashioned4 ,it is one of the first poems in which the philosophy of religion1 and not either its doctrine1 feeling1 or history1 predominates4 ,it is1 as a whole1 poor1 chiefly from its being so loosely written4 ,there are men1 and men whose thoughts are of great worth1 to whom it never seems to occur that they may utter very largely and convey very little2 that what is clear to themselves is in their speech obscure as a late twilight4 ,their utterance is rarely articulate3 their spiritual mouth talks with but half-movements of its lips2 it does not model their thoughts into clear-cut shapes1 such as the spiritual ear can distinguish as they enter it4 ,of such is ,lord ,brooke4 ,these few stanzas1 however1 my readers will be glad to have3 ,what is the chain which draws us back again1 ,and lifts man up unto his first creation8 ,nothing in him his own heart can restrain2 ,his reason lives a captive to temptation2 ,example is corrupt2 precepts are mixed2 ,all fleshly knowledge frail1 and never fixed4 ,it is a light1 a gift1 a grace inspired2 ,a spark of power1 a goodness of the ,good2 ,desire in him1 that never is desired2 ,an unity1 where desolation stood2 ,in us1 not of us1 a ,spirit not of earth1 ,fashioning the mortal to immortal birth4 99 99 99 99 99 ,sense of this ,god1 by fear1 the sensual have1 ,distressd ,nature crying unto ,grace2 ,for sovereign reason then becomes a slave1 ,and yields to servile sense her sovereign place1 ,when more or other she affects to be ,than seat or shrine of this ,eternity4 ,yea1 ,prince of ,earth let ,man assume to be1 ,nay more--of ,man let ,man himself be ,god1 ,yet without ,god1 a slave of slaves is he2 ,to others1 wonder2 to himself1 a rod2 ,restless despair1 desire1 and desolation2 ,the more secure1 the more abomination4 ,then by affecting power1 we cannot know him4 ,by knowing all things else1 we know him less4 ,nature contains him not4 ,art cannot show him4 ,opinions idols1 and not ,god1 express4 ,without1 in power1 we see him everywhere2 ,within1 we rest not1 till we find him there4 ,then seek we must2 that course is natural-- ,for ownd souls to find their owner out4 ,our free remorses when our natures fall-- ,when we do well1 our hearts made free from doubt-- ,prove service due to one ,omnipotence1 ,and ,nature of religion to have sense4 ,questions again1 which in our hearts arise-- ,since loving knowledge1 not humility-- ,though they be curious1 godless1 and unwise1 ,yet prove our nature feels a ,deity2 ,for if these strifes rose out of other grounds1 ,man were to ,god as deafness is to sounds4 99 99 99 99 99 ,yet in this strife1 this natural remorse1 ,if we could bend the force of power and wit ,to work upon the heart1 and make divorce ,there from the evil which preventeth it1 ,in judgment of the truth we should not doubt ,good life would find a good religion out4 ,if a fair proportion of it were equal to this1 the poem would be a fine one1 not for its poetry1 but for its spiritual metaphysics4 ,i think the fourth and fifth of the stanzas ,i have given1 profound in truth1 and excellent in utterance4 ,they are worth pondering4 ,we now descend a decade of the century1 to find another group of names within the immediate threshold of the sixties4 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,,lord ,,bacon ,,and ,,his ,,coevals4 ,except it be ,milton's1 there is not any prose fuller of grand poetic embodiments than ,lord ,bacon's4 ,yet he always writes contemptuously of poetry1 having in his eye no doubt the commonplace kinds of it1 which will always occupy more bulk1 and hence be more obtrusive1 than that which is true in its nature and rare in its workmanship4 ,towards the latter end of his life1 however1 being in ill health at the time1 he translated seven of the ,psalms of ,david into verse1 dedicating them to ,george ,herbert4 ,the best of them is ,psalm civ4--just the one upon which we might suppose1 from his love to the laws of ,nature1 he would dwell with the greatest sympathy4 ,partly from the wish to hear his voice amongst the rest of our singers1 partly for the merits of the version itself1 which has some remarkable lines1 ,i have resolved to include it here4 ,it is the first specimen ,i have given in the heroic couplet4 ,father and ,king of ,powers both high and low1 ,whose sounding fame all creatures serve to blow2 ,my soul shall with the rest strike up thy praise1 ,and carol of thy works1 and wondrous ways4 ,but who can blaze thy beauties1 ,lord1 aright8 ,they turn the brittle beams of mortal sight4 ,upon thy head thou wear'st a glorious crown1 ,all set with virtues1 polished with renown3 ,thence round about a silver veil doth fall ,of crystal light1 mother of colours all4 ,the compass1 heaven1 smooth without grain or fold1 ,all set with spangs of glittering stars untold1 ,and striped with golden beams of power unpent1 ,is raisd up for a removing tent ,vaulted and archd are his chamber beams ,upon the seas1 the waters1 and the streams2 ,the clouds as chariots swift do scour the sky2 ,the stormy winds upon their wings do fly ,his angels spirits are1 that wait his will2 ,as flames of fire his anger they fulfil4 ,in the beginning1 with a mighty hand1 ,he made the earth by counterpoise to stand1 ,never to move1 but to be fixed still2 ,yet hath no pillars but his sacred will4 ,this earth1 as with a veil1 once covered was2 ,the waters overflowd all the mass2 ,but upon his rebuke away they fled1 ,and then the hills began to show their head2 ,the vales their hollow bosoms opened plain1 ,the streams ran trembling down the vales again2 ,and that the earth no more might drowned be1 ,he set the sea his bounds of liberty2 ,and though his waves resound and beat the shore1 ,yet it is bridled by his holy lore4 ,then did the rivers seek their proper places1 ,and found their heads1 their issues1 and their races2 ,the springs do feed the rivers all the way1 ,and so the tribute to the sea repay3 ,running along through many a pleasant field1 ,much fruitfulness unto the earth they yield2 ,that know the beasts and cattle feeding by1 ,which for to slake their thirst do thither hie4 ,nay1 desert grounds the streams do not forsake1 ,but through the unknown ways their journey take2 ,the asses wild that hide in wilderness1 ,do thither come1 their thirst for to refresh4 ,the shady trees along their banks do spring1 ,in which the birds do build1 and sit1 and sing1 ,stroking the gentle air with pleasant notes1 ,plaining or chirping through their warbling throats4 ,the higher grounds1 where waters cannot rise1 ,by rain and dews are watered from the skies1 ,causing the earth put forth the grass for beasts1 ,and garden-herbs1 served at the greatest feasts1 ,and bread that is all viands' firmament1 ,and gives a firm and solid nourishment2 ,and wine man's spirits for to recreate1 ,and oil his face for to exhilarate4 ,the sappy cedars1 tall like stately towers1 ,high flying birds do harbour in their bowers2 ,the holy storks that are the travellers1 ,choose for to dwell and build within the firs2 ,the climbing goats hang on steep mountains' side2 ,the digging conies in the rocks do bide4 ,the moon1 so constant in inconstancy1 ,doth rule the monthly seasons orderly2 ,the sun1 eye of the world1 doth know his race1 ,and when to show1 and when to hide his face4 ,thou makest darkness1 that it may be night1 ,whenas the savage beasts that fly the light1 ,as conscious of man's hatred1 leave their den1 ,and range abroad1 secured from sight of men4 ,then do the forests ring of lions roaring1 ,that ask their meat of ,god1 their strength restoring2 ,but when the day appears1 they back do fly1 ,and in their dens again do lurking lie2 ,then man goes forth to labour in the field1 ,whereby his grounds more rich increase may yield4 ,o ,lord1 thy providence sufficeth all2 ,thy goodness not restrained but general ,over thy creatures1 the whole earth doth flow ,with thy great largeness poured forth here below4 ,nor is it earth alone exalts thy name1 ,but seas and streams likewise do spread the same4 ,the rolling seas unto the lot do fall ,of beasts innumerable1 great and small2 ,there do the stately ships plough up the floods2 ,the greater navies look like walking woods2 ,the fishes there far voyages do make1 ,to divers shores their journey they do take2 ,there hast thou set the great leviathan1 ,that makes the seas to seethe like boiling pan3 ,all these do ask of thee their meat to live1 ,which in due season thou to them dost give3 ,ope thou thy hand1 and then they have good fare2 ,shut thou thy hand1 and then they troubled are4 ,all life and spirit from thy breath proceed1 ,thy word doth all things generate and feed3 ,if thou withdraw'st it1 then they cease to be1 ,and straight return to dust and vanity2 ,but when thy breath thou dost send forth again1 ,then all things do renew1 and spring amain1 ,so that the earth but lately desolate ,doth now return unto the former state4 ,the glorious majesty of ,god above ,shall ever reign1 in mercy and in love2 ,god shall rejoice all his fair works to see1 ,for1 as they come from him1 all perfect be4 ,the earth shall quake1 if aught his wrath provoke2 ,let him but touch the mountains1 they shall smoke4 ,as long as life doth last1 ,i hymns will sing1 ,with cheerful voice1 to the ,eternal ,king2 ,as long as ,i have being1 ,i will praise ,the works of ,god1 and all his wondrous ways4 ,i know that he my words will not despise3 ,thanksgiving is to him a sacrifice4 ,but as for sinners1 they shall be destroyed ,from off the earth--their places shall be void4 ,let all his works praise him with one accord6 ,oh praise the ,lord1 my soul6 ,praise ye the ,lord6 ,his ,hundred and ,forty-ninth ,psalm is likewise good2 but ,i have given enough of ,lord ,bacon's verse1 and proceed to call up one who was a poet indeed1 although little known as such1 being a ,roman ,catholic1 a ,jesuit even1 and therefore1 in ,elizabeth's reign1 a traitor1 and subject to the penalties according4 ,robert ,southwell1 thirteen times most cruelly tortured1 could not be induced to confess anything1 not even the colour of the horse whereon on a certain day he rode1 lest from such indication his adversaries might conjecture in what house1 or in company of what ,catholics1 he that day was4 ,i quote these words of ,lord ,burleigh1 lest any of my readers1 discovering weakness in his verse1 should attribute weakness to the man himself4 ,it was no doubt on political grounds that these tortures1 and the death that followed them1 were inflicted4 ,but it was for the truth as he saw it1 that is1 for the sake of duty1 that ,southwell thus endured4 ,we must not impute all the evils of a system to every individual who holds by it4 ,it may be found that a man has1 for the sole sake of self-abnegation1 yielded homage1 where1 if his object had been personal aggrandizement1 he might have wielded authority4 ,southwell1 if that which comes from within a man may be taken as the test of his character1 was a devout and humble ,christian4 ,in the choir of our singers we only ask3 ,dost thou lift up thine heart8 ,southwell's song answers for him3 ,i lift it up unto the ,lord4 ,his chief poem is called ,st4 ,peter's ,complaint4 ,it is of considerable length--a hundred and thirty-two stanzas4 ,it reminds us of the ,countess of ,pembroke's poem1 but is far more articulate and far superior in versification4 ,perhaps its chief fault is that the pauses are so measured with the lines as to make every line almost a sentence1 the effect of which is a considerable degree of monotony4 ,like all writers of the time1 he is1 of course1 fond of antithesis1 and abounds in conceits and fancies2 whence he attributes a multitude of expressions to ,st4 ,peter of which never possibly could the substantial ideas have entered the ,apostle's mind1 or probably any other than ,southwell's own4 ,there is also a good deal of sentimentalism in the poem1 a fault from which ,i fear modern ,catholic verse is rarely free4 ,probably the ,italian poetry with which he must have been familiar in his youth1 during his residence in ,rome1 accustomed him to such irreverences of expression as this sentimentalism gives occasion to1 and which are very far from indicating a correspondent state of feeling4 ,sentiment is a poor ape of love2 but the love is true notwithstanding4 ,here are a few stanzas from ,st4 ,peter's ,complaint3 ,titles ,i make untruths3 am ,i a rock1 ,that with so soft a gale was overthrown8 ,am ,i fit pastor for the faithful flock ,to guide their souls that murdered thus mine own8 ,a rock of ruin1 not a rest to stay2 ,a pastor1--not to feed1 but to betray4 ,parting from ,christ my fainting force declined2 ,with lingering foot ,i followed him aloof2 ,base fear out of my heart his love unshrined1 ,huge in high words1 but impotent in proof4 ,my vaunts did seem hatched under ,samson's locks1 ,yet woman's words did give me murdering knocks 99 99 99 99 99 ,at ,sorrow's door ,i knocked3 they craved my name ,i answered1 ,one unworthy to be known4 ,what one8 say they4 ,one worthiest of blame4 ,but who8 ,a wretch not ,god's1 nor yet his own4 ,a man8 ,oh1 no6 ,a beast8 ,much worse4 ,what creature8 ,a rock4 ,how called8 ,the rock of scandal1 ,peter4 99 99 99 99 99 ,christ6 health of fevered soul1 heaven of the mind1 ,force of the feeble1 nurse of infant loves1 ,guide to the wandering foot1 light to the blind1 ,whom weeping wins1 repentant sorrow moves6 ,father in care1 mother in tender heart1 ,revive and save me1 slain with sinful dart6 ,if ,king ,manasseh1 sunk in depth of sin1 ,with plaints and tears recovered grace and crown1 ,a worthless worm some mild regard may win1 ,and lowly creep where flying threw it down4 ,a poor desire ,i have to mend my ill2 ,i should1 ,i would1 ,i dare not say ,i will4 ,i dare not say ,i will1 but wish ,i may2 ,my pride is checked3 high words the speaker spilt4 ,my good1 ,o ,lord1 thy gift--thy strength1 my stay-- ,give what thou bidst1 and then bid what thou wilt4 ,work with me what of me thou dost request2 ,then will ,i dare the worst and love the best4 ,here1 from another poem1 are two little stanzas worth preserving3 ,yet ,god's must ,i remain1 ,by death1 by wrong1 by shame2 ,i cannot blot out of my heart ,that grace wrought in his name4 ,i cannot set at nought1 ,whom ,i have held so dear2 ,i cannot make ,him seem afar ,that is indeed so near4 ,the following poem1 in style almost as simple as a ballad1 is at once of the quaintest and truest4 ,common minds1 which must always associate a certain conventional respectability with the forms of religion1 will think it irreverent4 ,i judge its reverence profound1 and such none the less that it is pervaded by a sweet and delicate tone of holy humour4 ,the very title has a glimmer of the glowing heart of ,christianity3 ,,new ,,prince1 ,,new ,,pomp4 ,behold a silly1#fi tender babe1 ,in freezing winter night1 ,in homely manger trembling lies2 ,alas6 a piteous sight4 ,the inns are full2 no man will yield ,this little pilgrim bed2 ,but forced he is with silly beasts ,in crib to shroud his head4 ,despise him not for lying there2 ,first what he is inquire3 ,an orient pearl is often found ,in depth of dirty mire4 ,weigh not his crib1 his wooden dish1 ,nor beasts that by him feed2 ,weigh not his mother's poor attire1 ,nor ,joseph's simple weed4 ,this stable is a prince's court1 ,the crib his chair of state2 ,the beasts are parcel of his pomp1 ,the wooden dish his plate4 ,the persons in that poor attire ,his royal liveries wear2 ,the ,prince himself is come from heaven3 ,this pomp is praised there4 ,with joy approach1 ,o ,christian wight2 ,do homage to thy ,king2 ,and highly praise this humble pomp1 ,which he from heaven doth bring4 ,another1 on the same subject1 he calls ,new ,heaven1 ,new ,war4 ,it is fantastic to a degree4 ,one stanza1 however1 ,i like much3 ,this little babe1 so few days old1 ,is come to rifle ,satan's fold2 ,all hell doth at his presence quake1 ,though he himself for cold do shake2 ,for in this weak1 unarmed wise1 ,the gates of hell he will surprise4 ,there is profoundest truth in the symbolism of this4 ,here is the latter half of a poem called ,st4 ,peters ,remorse3 ,did mercy spin the thread ,to weave injustice' loom8 ,wert then a father to conclude ,with dreadful judge's doom8 ,it is a small relief ,to say ,i was thy child1 ,if1 as an ill-deserving foe1 ,from grace ,i am exiled4 ,i was1 ,i had1 ,i could-- ,all words importing want2 ,they are but dust of dead supplies1 ,where needful helps are scant4 ,once to have been in bliss ,that hardly can return1 ,doth but bewray from whence ,i fell1 ,and wherefore now ,i mourn4 ,all thoughts of passed hopes ,increase my present cross2 ,like ruins of decayed joys1 ,they still upbraid my loss4 ,o mild and mighty ,lord6 ,amend that is amiss2 ,my sin my sore1 thy love my salve1 ,thy cure my comfort is4 ,confirm thy former deed2 ,reform that is defiled2 ,i was1 ,i am1 ,i will remain ,thy charge1 thy choice1 thy child4 ,here are some neat stanzas from a poem he calls ,,content ,,and ,,rich4 ,my conscience is my crown1 ,contented thoughts my rest2 ,my heart is happy in itself1 ,my bliss is in my breast4 ,my wishes are but few1 ,all easy to fulfil2 ,i make the limits of my power ,the bounds unto my will4 ,sith sails of largest size ,the storm doth soonest tear1 ,i bear so small and low a sail ,as freeth me from fear4 ,and taught with often proof1 ,a tempered calm ,i find ,to be most solace to itself1 ,best cure for angry mind4 ,no chance of ,fortune's calms ,can cast my comforts down2 ,when ,fortune smiles ,i smile to think ,how quickly she will frown4 ,and when in froward mood ,she proves an angry foe3 ,small gain ,i found to let her come1 ,less loss to let her go4 ,there is just one stanza in a poem of ,daniel1 who belongs by birth to this group1 which ,i should like to print by itself1 if it were only for the love ,coleridge had to the last two lines of it4 ,it needs little stretch of scheme to let it show itself amongst religious poems4 ,it occurs in a fine epistle to the ,countess of ,cumberland4 ,daniel's writing is full of the practical wisdom of the inner life1 and the stanza which ,i quote has a certain ,wordsworthian flavour about it4 ,it will not make a complete sentence1 but must yet stand by itself3 ,knowing the heart of man is set to be ,the centre of this world1 about the which ,these revolutions of disturbances ,still roll2 where all th' aspects of misery ,predominate2 whose strong effects are such ,as he must bear1 being powerless to redress2 ,and that unless above himself he can ,erect himself1 how poor a thing is man6 ,later in the decade1 comes ,sir ,henry ,wotton4 ,it will be seen that ,i have arranged my singers with reference to their birth1 not to the point of time at which this or that poem was written or published4 ,the poetic influences which work on the shaping fantasy are chiefly felt in youth1 and hence the predominant mode of a poet's utterance will be determined by what and where and amongst whom he was during that season4 ,the kinds of the various poems will therefore probably fall into natural sequence rather after the dates of the youth of the writers than after the years in which they were written4 ,wotton was better known in his day as a politician than as a poet1 and chiefly in ours as the subject of one of ,izaak ,walton's biographies4 ,something of artistic instinct1 rather than finish1 is evident in his verses4 ,here is the best and the best-known of the few poems recognized as his3 ,,the ,,character ,,of ,a ,,happy ,,life4 ,how happy is he born and taught1 ,that serveth not another's will2 ,whose armour is his honest thought1 ,and silly truth his highest skill2 ,whose passions not his masters are2 ,whose soul is still prepared for death1 ,untid to the world with care ,of prince's grace or vulgar breath2 ,who hath his life from humours freed2 ,whose conscience is his strong retreat2 ,whose state can neither flatterers feed1 ,nor ruin make accusers great2 ,who envieth none whom chance doth raise ,or vice2 who never understood ,how swords give slighter wounds than praise4 ,nor rules of state1 but rules of good2 ,who ,god doth late and early pray ,more of his grace than gifts to lend2 ,and entertains the harmless day ,with a well-chosen book or friend4 ,this man is free from servile bands ,of hope to rise1 or fear to fall3 ,lord of himself1 though not of lands ,and having nothing1 yet hath all4 ,some of my readers will observe that in many places ,i have given a reading different from that in the best-known copy of the poem4 ,i have followed a manuscript in the handwriting of ,ben ,jonson4#gj ,i cannot tell whether ,jonson has put the master's hand to the amateur's work1 but in every case ,i find his reading the best4 ,sir ,john ,davies must have been about fifteen years younger than ,sir ,fulk ,grevill4 ,he was born in #aegj1 was bred a barrister1 and rose to high position through the favour of ,james ,i4--gained1 it is said1 by the poem which the author called ,nosce ,teipsum1#ga but which is generally entitled ,on the ,immortality of the ,soul1 intending by immortality the spiritual nature of the soul1 resulting in continuity of existence4 ,it is a wonderful instance of what can be done for metaphysics in verse1 and by means of imagination or poetic embodiment generally4 ,argumentation cannot of course naturally belong to the region of poetry1 however well it may comport itself when there naturalized2 and consequently1 although there are most poetic no less than profound passages in the treatise1 a light scruple arises whether its constituent matter can properly be called poetry4 ,at all events1 however1 certain of the more prosaic measures and stanzas lend themselves readily1 and with much favour1 to some of the more complex of logical necessities4 ,and it must be remembered that in human speech1 as in the human mind1 there are no absolute divisions3 power shades off into feeling2 and the driest logic may find the heroic couplet render it good service4 ,sir ,john ,davies's treatise is not only far more poetic in image and utterance than that of ,lord ,brooke1 but is far more clear in argument and firm in expression as well4 ,here is a fine invocation3 ,o ,light1 which mak'st the light which makes the day6 ,which sett'st the eye without1 and mind within2 ,lighten my spirit with one clear heavenly ray1 ,which now to view itself doth first begin4 99 99 99 99 99 ,thou1 like the sun1 dost1 with an equal ray1 ,into the palace and the cottage shine2 ,and show'st the soul both to the clerk and lay1 learned and ,by the clear lamp of th' oracle divine4 unlearned ,he is puzzled enough to get the theology of his time into harmony with his philosophy1 and ,i cannot say that he is always triumphant in the attempt2 but here at least is good argument in justification of the freedom of man to sin4 ,if by ,his word he had the current stayed ,of ,adam's will1 which was by nature free1 ,it had been one as if his word had said1 ,i will henceforth that ,man no ,man shall be4 99 99 99 99 99 ,for what is ,man without a moving mind1 ,which hath a judging wit1 and choosing will8 ,now1 if ,god's pow'r should her election bind1 ,her motions then would cease1 and stand all still4 99 99 99 99 99 ,so that if ,man would be unvariable1 ,he must be ,god1 or like a rock or tree2 ,for ev'n the perfect angels were not stable1 ,but had a fall more desperate than we4 ,the poem contains much excellent argument in mental science as well as in religion and metaphysics2 but with that department ,i have nothing to do4 ,i shall now give an outlook from the highest peak of the poem--to any who are willing to take the trouble necessary for seeing what another would show them4 ,the section from which ,i have gathered the following stanzas is devoted to the more immediate proof of the soul's immortality4 ,her only end is never-ending bliss1 ,which is the eternal face of ,god to see1 ,who last of ends and first of causes is2 ,and to do this1 she must eternal be4 ,again1 how can she but immortal be1 ,when with the motions of both will and wit1 ,she still aspireth to eternity1 ,and never rests till she attains to it8 ,water in conduit-pipes can rise no higher ,than the well-head from whence it first doth spring2 ,then since to eternal ,god she doth aspire1 ,she cannot but be an eternal thing4 ,at first her mother-earth she holdeth dear1 ,and doth embrace the world and worldly things2 ,she flies close by the ground1 and hovers here1 ,and mounts not up with her celestial wings4 ,yet under heaven she cannot light on ought ,that with her heavenly nature doth agree ,she cannot rest1 she cannot fix her thought1 ,she cannot in this world contented be4 ,for who did ever yet1 in honour1 wealth1 ,or pleasure of the sense1 contentment find8 ,whoever ceased to wish1 when he had health ,or having wisdom1 was not vexed in mind ,then as a bee1 which among weeds doth fall1 ,which seem sweet flowers1 with lustre fresh and gay-- ,she lights on that1 and this1 and tasteth all1 ,but1 pleased with none1 doth rise1 and soar away2 ,so1 when the soul finds here no true content1 ,and1 like ,noah's dove1 can no sure footing take1 ,she doth return from whence she first was sent1 ,and flies to him that first her wings did make4 ,wit1 seeking truth1 from cause to cause ascends1 ,and never rests till it the first attain2 ,will1 seeking good1 finds many middle ends1 ,but never stays till it the last do gain4 ,now ,god the truth1 and first of causes is2 ,god is the last good end1 which lasteth still2 ,being ,alpha and ,omega named for this3 ,alpha to wit1 ,omega to the will4 ,since then her heavenly kind she doth display ,in that to ,god she doth directly move1 ,and on no mortal thing can make her stay1 ,she cannot be from hence1 but from above4 ,one passage more1 the conclusion and practical summing up of the whole3 ,o ignorant poor man6 what dost thou bear1 ,locked up within the casket of thy breast8 ,what jewels and what riches hast thou there6 ,what heavenly treasure in so weak a chest6 ,think of her worth1 and think that ,god did mean ,this worthy mind should worthy things embrace3 ,blot not her beauties with thy thoughts unclean1 ,nor her dishonour with thy passion base4 ,kill not her quickening power with surfeitings2 ,mar not her sense with sensuality2 ,cast not her serious wit on idle things2 ,make not her free-will slave to vanity4 ,and when thou think'st of her eternity1 ,think not that death against our nature is2 ,think it a birth2 and when thou go'st to die1 ,sing like a swan1 as if thou went'st to bliss4 ,and if thou1 like a child1 didst fear before1 ,being in the dark where thou didst nothing see2 ,now ,i have brought thee torch-light1 fear no more2 ,now when thou diest thou canst not hood-wink'd be4 ,and thou1 my soul1 which turn'st with curious eye ,to view the beams of thine own form divine1 ,know1 that thou canst know nothing perfectly1 ,while thou art clouded with this flesh of mine4 ,take heed of over-weening1 and compare ,thy peacock's feet with thy gay peacock's train3 ,study the best and highest things that are1 ,but of thyself an humble thought retain4 ,cast down thyself1 and only strive to raise ,the story of thy ,maker's sacred name3 ,use all thy powers that blessed ,power to praise1 ,which gives the power to be1 and use the same4 ,in looking back over our path from the point we have now reached1 the first thought that suggests itself is--,how much the reflective has supplanted the emotional6 ,i do not mean for a moment that the earliest poems were without thought1 or that the latest are without emotion2 but in the former there is more of the skin1 as it were--in the latter1 more of the bones of worship2 not that in the one the worship is but skin-deep1 or that in the other the bones are dry4 ,to look at the change a little more closely3 we find in the earliest time1 feeling working on historic fact and on what was received as such1 and the result simple aspiration after goodness4 ,the next stage is good doctrine--,i use the word1 as ,st4 ,paul uses it1 for instruction in righteousness--chiefly by means of allegory1 all attempts at analysis being made through personification of qualities4 ,here the general form is frequently more poetic than the matter4 ,after this we have a period principally of imitation1 sometimes good1 sometimes indifferent4 ,next1 with the ,reformation and the revival of literature together1 come more of art and more of philosophy1 to the detriment of the lyrical expression4 ,people cannot think and sing3 they can only feel and sing4 ,but the philosophy goes farther in this direction1 even to the putting in abeyance of that from which song takes its rise1--namely1 feeling itself4 ,as to the former1 amongst the verse of the period ,i have given1 there is hardly anything to be called song but ,sir ,philip ,sidney's ,psalms1 and for them we are more indebted to ,king ,david than to ,sir ,philip4 ,as to the latter1 even in the case of that most mournful poem of the ,countess of ,pembroke1 it is1 to quite an unhealthy degree1 occupied with the attempt to work upon her own feelings by the contemplation of them1 instead of with the utterance of those aroused by the contemplation of truth4 ,in her case the metaphysics have begun to prey upon and consume the emotions4 ,besides1 that age was essentially a dramatic age1 as even its command of language1 especially as shown in the pranks it plays with it1 would almost indicate2 and the dramatic impulse is less favourable1 though not at all opposed1 to lyrical utterance4 ,in the cases of ,sir ,fulk ,grevill and ,sir ,john ,davies1 the feeling is assuredly profound2 but in form and expression the philosophy has quite the upper hand4 ,we must not therefore suppose1 however1 that the cause of religious poetry has been a losing one4 ,the last wave must sink that the next may rise1 and the whole tide flow shorewards4 ,the man must awake through all his soul1 all his strength1 all his mind1 that he may worship ,god in unity1 in the one harmonious utterance of his being3 his heart must be united to fear his name4 ,and for this final perfection of the individual the race must awake4 ,at this season and that season1 this power or that power must be chiefly developed in her elect2 and for its sake the growth of others must for a season be delayed4 ,but the next generation will inherit all that has gone before2 and its elect1 if they be themselves pure in heart1 and individual1 that is original1 in mind1 will1 more or less thoroughly1 embody the result1 in subservience to some new development1 essential in its turn to further progress4 ,even the fallow times1 which we are so ready to call barren1 must have their share in working the one needful work4 ,they may be to the nation that which sickness so often is to the man--a time of refreshing from the ,lord4 ,a nation's life does not lie in its utterance any more than in the things which it possesses3 it lies in its action4 ,the utterance is a result1 and therefore a sign1 of life2 but there may be life without any such sign4 ,to do justice1 to love mercy1 to walk humbly with ,god1 is the highest life of a nation as of an individual2 and when the time for speech comes1 it will be such life alone that causes the speech to be strong at once and harmonious4 ,when at last there are not ten righteous men in ,sodom1 ,sodom can neither think1 act1 nor say1 and her destruction is at hand4 ,while the wave of the dramatic was sinking1 the wave of the lyric was growing in force and rising in height4 ,especially as regards religious poetry we are as yet only approaching the lyrical jubilee4 ,fact and faith1 self-consciousness and metaphysics1 all are needful to the lyric of love4 ,modesty and art find their grandest1 simplest labour in rightly subordinating each of those to the others4 ,how could we have a ,george ,herbert without metaphysics8 ,in those poems ,i have just given1 the way of metaphysics was prepared for him4 ,that which overcolours one age to the injury of its harmony1 will1 in the next or the next1 fall into its own place in the seven-chorded rainbow of truth4 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,,dr4 ,,donne4 ,we now come to ,dr4 ,john ,donne1 a man of justly great respect and authority1 who1 born in the year #aegc1 the fifteenth of ,queen ,elizabeth1 died ,dean of ,st4 ,paul's in the year #afcf4 ,but1 although even ,ben ,jonson addresses him as the delight of ,phoebus and each ,muse1 we are too far beyond the power of his social presence and the influence of his public utterances to feel that admiration of his poems which was so largely expressed during his lifetime4 ,of many of those that were written in his youth1 ,izaak ,walton says ,dr4 ,donne wished that his own eyes had witnessed their funerals4 ,faulty as they are1 however1 they are not the less the work of a great and earnest man4 ,bred to the law1 but never having practised it1 he lost his secretaryship to the ,lord ,chancellor ,ellesmere through the revenge of ,sir ,george ,more1 whose daughter ,donne had married in secret because of her father's opposition4 ,dependent thereafter for years on the generous kindness of unrelated friends1 he yet for conscience' sake refused to take orders when a good living was offered him2 and it was only after prolonged thought that he yielded to the importunity of ,king ,james1 who was so convinced of his surpassing fitness for the church that he would speed him towards no other goal4 ,when at length he dared hope that ,god might have called him to the high office1 never man gave himself to its duties with more of whole-heartedness and devotion1 and none have proved themselves more clean of the sacrilege of serving at the altar for the sake of the things offered thereon4 ,he is represented by ,dr4 ,johnson as one of the chief examples of that school of poets called by himself the metaphysical1 an epithet which1 as a definition1 is almost false4 ,true it is that ,donne and his followers were always ready to deal with metaphysical subjects1 but it was from their mode1 and not their subjects1 that ,dr4 ,johnson classed them4 ,what this mode was we shall see presently1 for ,i shall be justified in setting forth its strangeness1 even absurdity1 by the fact that ,dr4 ,donne was the dear friend of ,george ,herbert1 and had much to do with the formation of his poetic habits4 ,just twenty years older than ,herbert1 and the valued and intimate friend of his mother1 ,donne was in precisely that relation of age and circumstance to influence the other in the highest degree4 ,the central thought of ,dr4 ,donne is nearly sure to be just3 the subordinate thoughts by means of which he unfolds it are often grotesque1 and so wildly associated as to remind one of the lawlessness of a dream1 wherein mere suggestion without choice or fitness rules the sequence4 ,as some of the writers of whom ,i have last spoken would play with words1 ,dr4 ,donne would sport with ideas1 and with the visual images or embodiments of them4 ,certainly in his case much knowledge reveals itself in the association of his ideas1 and great facility in the management and utterance of them4 ,true likewise1 he says nothing unrelated to the main idea of the poem2 but not the less certainly does the whole resemble the speech of a child of active imagination1 to whom judgment as to the character of his suggestions is impossible1 his taste being equally gratified with a lovely image and a brilliant absurdity3 a butterfly and a shining potsherd are to him similarly desirable4 ,whatever wild thing starts from the thicket of thought1 all is worthy game to the hunting intellect of ,dr4 ,donne1 and is followed without question of tone1 keeping1 or harmony4 ,in his play with words1 ,sir ,philip ,sidney kept good heed that even that should serve the end in view2 in his play with ideas1 ,dr4 ,john ,donne1 so far from serving the end1 sometimes obscures it almost hopelessly3 the hart escapes while he follows the squirrels and weasels and bats4 ,it is not surprising that1 their author being so inartistic with regard to their object1 his verses themselves should be harsh and unmusical beyond the worst that one would imagine fit to be called verse4 ,he enjoys the unenviable distinction of having no rival in ruggedness of metric movement and associated sounds4 ,this is clearly the result of indifference2 an indifference1 however1 which grows very strange to us when we find that he can write a lovely verse and even an exquisite stanza4 ,greatly for its own sake1 partly for the sake of illustration1 ,i quote a poem containing at once his best and his worst1 the result being such an incongruity that we wonder whether it might not be called his best and his worst1 because we cannot determine which4 ,he calls it ,hymn to ,god1 my ,god1 in my ,sickness4 ,the first stanza is worthy of ,george ,herbert in his best mood4 ,since ,i am coming to that holy room1 ,where with the choir of saints for evermore ,i shall be made thy music1 as ,i come ,i tune the instrument here at the door1 ,and what ,i must do then1 think here before4 ,to recognize its beauty1 leaving aside the depth and truth of the phrase1 ,where ,i shall be made thy music1 we must recall the custom of those days to send out for a noise of musicians4 ,hence he imagines that he has been summoned as one of a band already gone in to play before the king of ,the ,high ,countries3 he is now at the door1 where he is listening to catch the tone1 that he may have his instrument tuned and ready before he enters4 ,but with what a jar the next stanza breaks on heart1 mind1 and ear6 ,whilst my physicians by their love are grown ,cosmographers1 and ,i#gb their map1 who lie ,flat on this bed1 that by them may be shown ,that this is my south-west discovery1 ,per fretum febris--by these straits to die2-- ,here1 in the midst of comparing himself to a map1 and his physicians to cosmographers consulting the map1 he changes without warning into a navigator whom they are trying to follow upon the map as he passes through certain straits--namely1 those of the fever--towards his south-west discovery1 ,death4 ,grotesque as this is1 the absurdity deepens in the end of the next stanza by a return to the former idea4 ,he is alternately a map and a man sailing on the map of himself4 ,but the first half of the stanza is lovely3 my reader must remember that the region of the ,west was at that time the ,land of ,promise to ,england4 ,i joy that in these straits ,i see my ,west2 ,for though those currents yield return to none1 ,what shall my ,west hurt me8 ,as west and east ,in all flat maps 7and ,i am one7 are one1 ,so death doth touch the resurrection4 ,it is hardly worth while1 except for the strangeness of the phenomenon1 to spend any time in elucidating this4 ,once more a map1 he is that of the two hemispheres1 in which the east of the one touches the west of the other4 ,could anything be much more unmusical than the line1 ,in all flat maps 7and ,i am one7 are one8 ,but the next stanza is worse4 ,is the ,pacific sea my home8 ,or are ,the eastern riches8 ,is ,jerusalem8 ,anvan1 and ,magellan1 and ,gibraltar8 ,all straits1 and none but straits are ways to them1 ,whether where ,japhet dwelt1 or ,cham1 or ,sem4 ,the meaning of the stanza is this3 there is no earthly home3 all these places are only straits that lead home1 just as they themselves cannot be reached but through straits4 ,let my reader now forget all but the first stanza1 and take it along with the following1 the last two3 ,we think that ,paradise and ,calvary1 ,christ's cross and ,adam's tree1 stood in one place3 ,look1 ,lord1 and find both ,adams met in me2 ,as the first ,adam's sweat surrounds my face1 ,may the last ,adam's blood my soul embrace4 ,so1 in his purple wrapped1 receive me1 ,lord2 ,by these his thorns give me his other crown2 ,and as to others' souls ,i preached thy word1 ,be this my text1 my sermon to mine own3 ,therefore1 that he may raise1 the ,lord throws down4 ,surely these are very fine1 especially the middle verse of the former and the first verse of the latter stanza4 ,the three stanzas together make us lovingly regret that ,dr4 ,donne should have ridden his ,pegasus over quarry and housetop1 instead of teaching him his paces4 ,the next ,i quote is artistic throughout4 ,perhaps the fact1 of which we are informed by ,izaak ,walton1 that he caused it to be set to a grave and solemn tune1 and to be often sung to the organ by the choristers of ,st4 ,paul's church in his own hearing1 especially at the evening service1 may have something to do with its degree of perfection4 ,there is no sign of his usual haste about it4 ,it is even elaborately rhymed after ,norman fashion1 the rhymes in each stanza being consonant with the rhymes in every stanza4 ,a ,,hymn ,,to ,,god ,,the ,,father4 ,wilt thou forgive that sin where ,i begun1 ,which was my sin1 though it were done before8#gc ,wilt thou forgive that sin1 through which ,i run1#gd ,and do run still1 though still ,i do deplore8-- ,when thou hast done1 thou hast not done2 ,for ,i have more4 ,wilt thou forgive that sin which ,i have won ,others to sin1 and made my sins their door8#ge ,wilt thou forgive that sin which ,i did shun ,a year or two1 but wallowed in a score8-- ,when thou hast done1 thou hast not done2 ,for ,i have more4 ,i have a sin of fear1 that when ,i've spun ,my last thread1 ,i shall perish on the shore2 ,but swear by thyself1 that at my death thy ,son ,shall shine1 as he shines now and heretofore2 ,and having done that1 thou hast done3 ,i fear no more4 ,in those days even a pun might be a serious thing3 witness the play in the last stanza on the words son and sun--not a mere pun1 for the ,son of the ,father is the ,sun of ,righteousness3 he is ,life and ,light4 ,what the ,doctor himself says concerning the hymn1 appears to me not only interesting but of practical value4 ,he did occasionally say to a friend1 ',the words of this hymn have restored to me the same thoughts of joy that possessed my soul in my sickness1 when ,i composed it4' ,what a help it would be to many1 if in their more gloomy times they would but recall the visions of truth they had1 and were assured of1 in better moments6 ,here is a somewhat strange hymn1 which yet possesses1 rightly understood1 a real grandeur3 ,a ,,hymn ,,to ,,christ ,at the ,author's last going into ,germany4#gf ,in what torn ship soever ,i embark1 ,that ship shall be my emblem of thy ark2 ,what sea soever swallow me1 that flood ,shall be to me an emblem of thy blood4 ,though thou with clouds of anger do disguise ,thy face1 yet through that mask ,i know those eyes1 ,which1 though they turn away sometimes-- ,they never will despise4 ,i sacrifice this island unto thee1 ,and all whom ,i love here and who love me3 ,when ,i have put this flood 'twixt them and me1 ,put thou thy blood betwixt my sins and thee4 ,as the tree's sap doth seek the root below ,in winter1 in my winter#gg now ,i go ,where none but thee1 the eternal root ,of true love1 ,i may know4 ,nor thou1 nor thy religion1 dost control ,the amorousness of an harmonious soul2 ,but thou wouldst have that love thyself3 as thou ,art jealous1 ,lord1 so ,i am jealous now4 ,thou lov'st not1 till from loving more thou free ,my soul3 who ever gives1 takes liberty3 ,oh1 if thou car'st not whom ,i love1 ,alas1 thou lov'st not me6 ,seal then this bill of my divorce to all ,on whom those fainter beams of love did fall2 ,marry those loves1 which in youth scattered be ,on face1 wit1 hopes1 7false mistresses71 to thee4 ,churches are best for prayer that have least light3 ,to see ,god only1 ,i go out of sight2 ,and1 to 'scape stormy days1 ,i choose ,an everlasting night ,to do justice to this poem1 the reader must take some trouble to enter into the poet's mood4 ,it is in a measure distressing that1 while ,i grant with all my heart the claim of his ,muse's white sincerity1 the taste in--,i do not say of--some of his best poems should be such that ,i will not present them4 ,out of twenty-three ,holy ,sonnets1 every one of which1 ,i should almost say1 possesses something remarkable1 ,i choose three4 ,rhymed after the true ,petrarchian fashion1 their rhythm is often as bad as it can be to be called rhythm at all4 ,yet these are very fine4 ,thou hast made me1 and shall thy work decay8 ,repair me now1 for now mine end doth haste2 ,i run to death1 and death meets me as fast1 ,and all my pleasures are like yesterday4 ,i dare not move my dim eyes any way1 ,despair behind1 and death before doth cast ,such terror2 and my feeble flesh doth waste ,by sin in it1 which it towards hell doth weigh4 ,only them art above1 and when towards thee ,by thy leave ,i can look1 ,i rise again2 ,but our old subtle foe so tempteth me1 ,that not one hour myself ,i can sustain3 ,thy grace may wing me to prevent his art1 ,and thou like adamant draw mine iron heart4 ,if faithful souls be alike glorified ,as angels1 then my father's soul doth see1 ,and adds this even to full felicity1 ,that valiantly ,i hell's wide mouth o'erstride3 ,but if our minds to these souls be descried ,by circumstances and by signs that be ,apparent in us--not immediately#gh-- ,how shall my mind's white truth by them be tried8 ,they see idolatrous lovers weep and mourn1 ,and1 style blasphemous1 conjurors to call ,on ,jesu's name1 and pharisaical ,dissemblers feign devotin4 ,then turn1 ,o pensive soul1 to ,god2 for he knows best ,thy grief1 for he put it into my breast4 ,death1 be not proud1 though some have calld thee ,mighty and dreadful1 for thou art not so2 ,for those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow1 ,die not1 poor ,death2 nor yet canst thou kill me4 ,from rest and sleep1 which but thy picture be1 ,much pleasure1 then from thee much more must flow2 ,and soonest#gi our best men with thee do go1 ,rest of their bones1 and soul's delivery6 ,thou'rt slave to fate1 chance1 kings1 and desperate men1 ,and dost with poison1 war1 and sickness dwell2 ,and poppy or charms can make us sleep as well1 ,and better than thy stroke4 ,why swell'st#hj thou then8 ,one short sleep past1 we wake eternally1 ,and death shall be no more3 ,death1 thou shalt die4 ,in a poem called ,the ,cross1 full of fantastic conceits1 we find the following remarkable lines1 embodying the profoundest truth4 ,as perchance carvers do not faces make1 ,but that away1 which hid them there1 do take3 ,let crosses so take what hid ,christ in thee1 ,and be his image1 or not his1 but he4 ,one more1 and we shall take our leave of ,dr4 ,donne4 ,it is called a fragment2 but it seems to me complete4 ,it will serve as a specimen of his best and at the same time of his most characteristic mode of presenting fine thoughts grotesquely attired4 ,,resurrection4 ,sleep1 sleep1 old sun2 thou canst not have re-past#ha ,as yet the wound thou took'st on ,friday last4 ,sleep then1 and rest3 the world may bear thy stay2 ,a better sun rose before thee to-day2 ,who1 not content to enlighten all that dwell ,on the earth's face as thou1 enlightened hell1 ,and made the dark fires languish in that vale1 ,as at thy presence here our fires grow pale2 ,whose body1 having walked on earth and now ,hastening to heaven1 would1 that he might allow ,himself unto all stations and fill all1 ,for these three days become a mineral4 ,he was all gold when he lay down1 but rose ,all tincture2 and doth not alone dispose ,leaden and iron wills to good1 but is ,of power to make even sinful flesh like his4 ,had one of those1 whose credulous piety ,thought that a soul one might discern and see ,go from a body1 at this sepulchre been1 ,and issuing from the sheet this body seen1 ,he would have justly thought this body a soul1 ,if not of any man1 yet of the whole4 ,what a strange mode of saying that he is our head1 the captain of our salvation1 the perfect humanity in which our life is hid6 ,yet it has its dignity4 ,when one has got over the oddity of these last six lines1 the figure contained in them shows itself almost grand4 ,as an individual specimen of the grotesque form holding a fine sense1 regard for a moment the words1 ,he was all gold when he lay down1 but rose ,all tincture2 which means1 that1 entirely good when he died1 he was something yet greater when he rose1 for he had gained the power of making others good3 the tincture intended here was a substance whose touch would turn the basest metal into gold4 ,through his poems are scattered many fine passages2 but not even his large influence on the better poets who followed is sufficient to justify our listening to him longer now4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,,bishop ,,hall ,,and ,,george ,,sandys4 ,joseph ,hall1 born in #aegd1 a year after ,dr4 ,donne1 bishop1 first of ,exeter1 next of ,norwich1 is best known by his satires4 ,it is not for such that ,i can mention him3 the most honest satire can claim no place amongst religious poems4 ,it is doubtful if satire ever did any good4 ,its very language is that of the half-brute from which it is well named4 ,here are three poems1 however1 which the bishop wrote for his choir4 ,,anthem ,,for ,,the ,,cathedral ,,of ,,exeter4 ,lord1 what am ,i8 ,a worm1 dust1 vapour1 nothing6 ,what is my life8 ,a dream1 a daily dying6 ,what is my flesh8 ,my soul's uneasy clothing6 ,what is my time8 ,a minute ever flying3 ,my time1 my flesh1 my life1 and ,i1 ,what are we1 ,lord1 but vanity8 ,where am ,i1 ,lord8 ,down in a vale of death4 ,what is my trade8 ,sin1 my dear ,god offending2 ,my sport sin too1 my stay a puff of breath4 ,what end of sin8 ,hell's horror never ending3 ,my way1 my trade1 sport1 stay1 and place1 ,help to make up my doleful case4 ,lord1 what art thou8 ,pure life1 power1 beauty1 bliss4 ,where dwell'st thou8 ,up above in perfect light4 ,what is thy time8 ,eternity it is4 ,what state8 ,attendance of each glorious sprite3 ,thyself1 thy place1 thy days1 thy state ,pass all the thoughts of powers create4 ,how shall ,i reach thee1 ,lord8 ,oh1 soar above1 ,ambitious soul4 ,but which way should ,i fly8 ,thou1 ,lord1 art way and end4 ,what wings have ,i8 ,aspiring thoughts--of faith1 of hope1 of love3 ,oh1 let these wings1 that way alone ,present me to thy blissful throne4 ,,for ,,christmas-,,day4 ,immortal babe1 who this dear day ,didst change thine heaven for our clay1 ,and didst with flesh thy ,godhead veil1 ,eternal ,son of ,god1 all hail6 ,shine1 happy star6 ,ye angels1 sing ,glory on high to heaven's king6 ,run1 shepherds1 leave your nightly watch6 ,see heaven come down to ,bethlehem's cratch6 manger4 ,worship1 ye sages of the east1 ,the king of gods in meanness drest6 ,o blessed maid1 smile1 and adore ,the ,god thy womb and arms have bore6 ,star1 angels1 shepherds1 and wise sages6 ,thou virgin-glory of all ages6 ,restored frame of heaven and earth6 ,joy in your dear ,redeemer's birth4 99 99 99 99 99 ,leave1 ,o my soul1 this baser world below2 ,o leave this doleful dungen of woe2 ,and soar aloft to that supernal rest ,that maketh all the saints and angels blest3 ,lo1 there the ,godhead's radiant throne1 ,like to ten thousand suns in one6 ,lo1 there thy ,saviour dear1 in glory dight1 dressed4 ,adored of all the powers of heavens bright6 ,lo1 where that head that bled with thorny wound1 ,shines ever with celestal honour crowned6 ,that hand that held the scornful reed ,makes all the fiends infernal dread4 ,that back and side that ran with bloody streams ,daunt angels' eyes with their majestic beams2 ,those feet1 once fastened to the cursed tree1 ,trample on ,death and ,hell1 in glorious glee4 ,those lips1 once drenched with gall1 do make ,with their dread doom the world to quake4 ,behold those joys thou never canst behold2 ,those precious gates of pearl1 those streets of gold1 ,those streams of life1 those trees of ,paradise ,that never can be seen by mortal eyes6 ,and when thou seest this state divine1 ,think that it is or shall be thine4 ,see there the happy troops of purest sprites ,that live above in endless true delights6 ,and see where once thyself shalt rangd be1 ,and look and long for immortality6 ,and now beforehand help to sing ,hallelujahs to heaven's king4 ,polished as these are in comparison to those of ,dr4 ,donne1 and fine1 too1 as they are intrinsically1 there are single phrases in his that are worth them all--except1 indeed1 that one splendid line1 ,trample on ,death and ,hell in glorious glee4 ,george ,sandys1 the son of an archbishop of ,york1 and born in #aegg1 is better known by his travels in the east than by his poetry4 ,but his version of the ,psalms is in good and various verse1 not unfrequently graceful1 sometimes fine4 ,the following is not only in a popular rhythm1 but is neat and melodious as well4 ,,psalm ,,xcii4 ,thou who art enthroned above1 ,thou by whom we live and move1 ,o how sweet1 how excellent ,is't with tongue and heart's consent1 ,thankful hearts and joyful tongues1 ,to renown thy name in songs6 ,when the morning paints the skies1 ,when the sparkling stars arise1 ,thy high favours to rehearse1 ,thy firm faith1 in grateful verse6 ,take the lute and violin1 ,let the solemn harp begin1 ,instruments strung with ten strings1 ,while the silver cymbal rings4 ,from thy works my joy proceeds2 ,how ,i triumph in thy deeds6 ,who thy wonders can express8 ,all thy thoughts are fathomless-- ,hid from men in knowledge blind1 ,hid from fools to vice inclined4 ,who that tyrant sin obey1 ,though they spring like flowers in ,may-- ,parched with heat1 and nipt with frost1 ,soon shall fade1 for ever lost4 ,lord1 thou art most great1 most high2 ,such from all eternity4 ,perish shall thy enemies1 ,rebels that against thee rise4 ,all who in their sins delight1 ,shall be scattered by thy might ,but thou shall exalt my horn ,like a youthful unicorn1 ,fresh and fragrant odours shed ,on thy crowned prophet's head4 ,i shall see my foes' defeat1 ,shortly hear of their retreat2 ,but the just like palms shall flourish ,which the plains of ,judah nourish1 ,like tall cedars mounted on ,cloud-ascending ,lebanon4 ,plants set in thy court1 below ,spread their roots1 and upwards grow2 ,fruit in their old age shall bring1 ,ever fat and flourishing4 ,this ,god's justice celebrates3 ,he1 my rock1 injustice hates4 ,,psalm ,,cxxiii4 ,thou mover of the rolling spheres1 ,i1 through the glasses of my tears1 ,to thee my eyes erect4 ,as servants mark their master's hands1 ,as maids their mistress's commands1 ,and liberty expect1 ,so we1 depressed by enemies ,and growing troubles1 fix our eyes ,on ,god1 who sits on high2 ,till he in mercy shall descend1 ,to give our miseries an end1 ,and turn our tears to joy4 ,o save us1 ,lord1 by all forlorn1 ,the subject of contempt and scorn3 ,defend us from their pride ,who live in fluency and ease1 ,who with our woes their malice please1 ,and miseries deride4 ,here is a part of the #ffth ,psalm1 which makes a complete little song of itself3 ,bless the ,lord4 ,his praise be sung ,while an ear can hear a tongue4 ,he our feet establisheth2 ,he our souls redeems from death4 ,lord1 as silver purified1 ,thou hast with affliction tried1 ,thou hast driven into the net1 ,burdens on our shoulders set4 ,trod on by their horses' hooves1 ,theirs whom pity never moves1 ,we through fire1 with flames embraced1 ,we through raging floods have passed1 ,yet by thy conducting hand1 ,brought into a wealthy land4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,a ,,few ,,of ,,the ,,elizabethan ,,dramatists4 ,from the nature of their adopted mode1 we cannot look for much poetry of a devotional kind from the dramatists4 ,that mode admitting of no utterance personal to the author1 and requiring the scope of a play to bring out the intended truth1 it is no wonder that1 even in the dramas of ,shakspere1 profound as is the teaching they contain1 we should find nothing immediately suitable to our purpose2 while neither has he left anything in other form approaching in kind what we seek4 ,ben ,jonson1 however1 born in #aegd1 who may be regarded as the sole representative of learning in the class1 has left1 amongst a large number of small pieces1 three ,poems of ,devotion1 whose merit may not indeed be great1 but whose feeling is1 ,i think1 genuine4 ,whatever were his faults1 and they were not few1 hypocrisy was not one of them4 ,his nature was fierce and honest4 ,he might boast1 but he could not pretend4 ,his oscillation between the reformed and the ,romish church can hardly have had other cause than a vacillating conviction4 ,it could not have served any prudential end that we can see1 to turn catholic in the reign of ,elizabeth1 while in prison for killing in a duel a player who had challenged him4 ,,the ,,sinner',s ,,sacrifice4 #a4--,,to ,,the ,,holy ,,trinity4 ,o holy1 blessed1 glorious ,trinity ,of persons1 still one ,god in ,unity1 ,the faithful man's believed mystery1 ,help1 help to lift ,myself up to thee1 harrowed1 torn1 and bruised ,by sin and ,satan1 and my flesh misused4 ,as my heart lies--in pieces1 all confused-- ,o take my gift4 ,all-gracious ,god1 the sinner's sacrifice1 ,a broken heart1 thou wert not wont despise1 ,but1 'bove the fat of rams or bulls1 to prize ,an offering meet ,for thy acceptance3 ,oh1 behold me right1 ,and take compassion on my grievous plight6 ,what odour can be1 than a heart contrite1 ,to thee more sweet8 ,eternal ,father1 ,god1 who didst create ,this ,all of nothing1 gav'st it form and fate1 ,and breath'st into it life and light1 with state ,to worship thee6 ,eternal ,god the ,son1 who not deniedst ,to take our nature1 becam'st man1 and diedst1 ,to pay our debts1 upon thy cross1 and criedst ,all's done in me6 ,eternal ,spirit1 ,god from both proceeding1 ,father and ,son--the ,comforter1 in breeding ,pure thoughts in man1 with fiery zeal them feeding ,for acts of grace6 ,increase those acts1 ,o glorious ,trinity ,of persons1 still one ,god in ,unity1 ,till ,i attain the longed-for mystery ,of seeing your face1 ,beholding one in three1 and three in one1 ,a ,trinity1 to shine in ,union-- ,the gladdest light1 dark man can think upon-- ,o grant it me1 ,father1 and ,son1 and ,holy ,ghost1 you three1 ,all co-eternal in your majesty1 ,distinct in persons1 yet in unity ,one ,god to see2 ,my ,maker1 ,saviour1 and my ,sanctifier1 ,to hear1 to mediate1#hb sweeten my desire1 ,with grace1 with love1 with cherishing entire6 ,o then1 how blest ,among thy saints elected to abide1 ,and with thy angels placd1 side by side6 ,but in thy presence truly glorified1 ,shall ,i there rest6 #b4--;,,an ,,hymn ,,to ,,god ,,the ,,father4 ,hear me1 ,o ,god6 ,a broken heart ,is my best part3 ,use still thy rod1 ,that ,i may prove ,therein thy love4 ,if thou hadst not ,been stern to me1 ,but left me free1 ,i had forgot ,myself and thee4 ,for sin's so sweet ,as minds ill bent that4 ,rarely repent ,until they meet ,their punishment4 ,who more can crave ,than thou hast done8 ,thou gay'st a ,son ,to free a slave1 ,first made of nought1 ,with all since bought4 ,sin1 death1 and hell ,his glorious name ,quite overcame2 ,yet ,i rebel1 ,and slight the same4 ,but ,i'll come in ,before my loss ,me farther toss1 ,as sure to win ,under his cross4 #c4--;,,an ,,hymn ,,on ,,the ,,nativity ,,of ,,my ,,saviour4 ,i sing the birth was born to-night1 ,the author both of life and light2 ,the angels so did sound it4 ,and like the ravished shepherds said1 ,who saw the light1 and were afraid1 ,yet searched1 and true they found it4 ,the ,son of ,god1 the eternal ,king1 ,that did us all salvation bring1 ,and freed the soul from danger2 ,he whom the whole world could not take1 ,the ,word which heaven and earth did make1 ,was now laid in a manger4 ,the ,father's wisdom willed it so2 ,the ,son's obedience knew no ,no2 ,both wills were in one stature2 ,and1 as that wisdom had decreed1 ,the ,word was now made flesh indeed1 ,and took on him our nature4 ,what comfort by him do we win1 ,who made himself the price of sin1 ,to make us heirs of glory6 ,to see this babe1 all innocence1 ,a martyr born in our defence6-- ,can man forget this story8 ,somewhat formal and artificial1 no doubt2 rugged at the same time1 like him who wrote them4 ,when a man would utter that concerning which he has only felt1 not thought1 he can express himself only in the forms he has been taught1 conventional or traditional4 ,let his powers be ever so much developed in respect of other things1 here1 where he has not meditated1 he must understand as a child1 think as a child1 speak as a child4 ,he can as yet generate no sufficing or worthy form natural to himself4 ,but the utterance is not therefore untrue4 ,there was no professional bias to cause the stream of ,ben ,jonson's verses to flow in that channel4 ,indeed1 feeling without thought1 and the consequent combination of impulse to speak with lack of matter1 is the cause of much of that common-place utterance concerning things of religion which is so wearisome1 but which therefore it is not always fair to despise as cant4 ,about the same age as ,ben ,jonson1 though the date of his birth is unknown1 ,i now come to mention ,thomas ,heywood1 a most voluminous writer of plays1 who wrote also a book1 chiefly in verse1 called ,the ,hierarchy of the ,blessed ,angels1 a strange work1 in which1 amongst much that is far from poetic1 occur the following remarkable metaphysico-religious verses4 ,he had strong ,platonic tendencies1 interesting himself chiefly however in those questions afterwards pursued by ,dr4 ,henry ,more1 concerning witches and such like subjects1 which may be called the shadow of ,platonism4 ,i have wandered like a sheep that's lost1 ,to find ,thee out in every coast3 ,without ,i have long seeking bin1 been4 ,whilst thou1 the while1 abid'st within4 ,through every broad street and strait lane ,of this world's city1 but in vain1 ,i have enquired4 ,the reason why8 ,i sought thee ill3 for how could ,i ,find thee abroad1 when thou1 mean space1 ,hadst made within thy dwelling-place8 ,i sent my messengers about1 ,to try if they could find thee out2 ,but all was to no purpose still1 ,because indeed they sought thee ill3 ,for how could they discover thee ,that saw not when thou entered'st me8 ,mine eyes could tell me8 ,if he were1 ,not coloured1 sure he came not there4 ,if not by sound1 my ears could say ,he doubtless did not pass my way4 ,my nose could nothing of him tell1 ,because my ,god he did not smell4 ,none such ,i relished1 said my taste1 ,and therefore me he never passed4 ,my feeling told me that none such ,there entered1 for he none did touch4 ,resolved by them how should ,i be1 ,since none of all these are in thee1 ,in thee1 my ,god8 ,thou hast no hue ,that man's frail optic sense can view2 ,no sound the ear hears2 odour none ,the smell attracts2 all taste is gone ,at thy appearance2 where doth fail ,a body1 how can touch prevail8 ,what even the brute beasts comprehend-- ,to think thee such1 ,i should offend4 ,yet when ,i seek my ,god1 ,i enquire ,for light than sun and moon much higher1 ,more clear and splendrous1 'bove all light ,which the eye receives not1 'tis so bright4 ,i seek a voice beyond degree ,of all melodious harmony3 ,the ear conceives it not2 a smell ,which doth all other scents excel3 ,no flower so sweet1 no myrrh1 no nard1 ,or alos1 with it compared2 ,of which the brain not sensible is4 ,i seek a sweetness--such a bliss ,as hath all other sweets surpassed1 ,and never palate yet could taste4 ,i seek that to contain and hold ,no touch can feel1 no embrace enfold4 ,so far this light the rays extends1 ,as that no place it comprehends4 ,so deep this sound1 that though it speak ,it cannot by a sense so weak ,be entertained4 ,a redolent grace ,the air blows not from place to place4 ,a pleasant taste1 of that delight ,it doth confound all appetite4 ,a strict embrace1 not felt1 yet leaves ,that virtue1 where it takes it cleaves4 ,this light1 this sound1 this savouring grace1 ,this tasteful sweet1 this strict embrace1 ,no place contains1 no eye can see1 ,my ,god is1 and there's none but he4 ,very remarkable verses from a dramatist6 ,they indicate substratum enough for any art if only the art be there4 ,even those who cannot enter into the philosophy of them1 which ranks him among the mystics of whom ,i have yet to speak1 will understand a good deal of it symbolically3 for how could he be expected to keep his poetry and his philosophy distinct when of themselves they were so ready to run into one2 or in verse to define carefully betwixt degree and kind1 when kinds themselves may rise by degrees8 ,to distinguish without separating2 to be able to see that what in their effects upon us are quite different1 may yet be a grand flight of ascending steps1 to stop--no record hath told where1 belongs to the philosopher who is not born mutilated1 but is a poet as well4 ,john ,fletcher1 likewise a dramatist1 the author of the following poem1 was two years younger than ,ben ,jonson4 ,it is1 so far as ,i am aware1 the sole non-dramatic voice he has left behind him4 ,its opening is an indignant apostrophe to certain men of pretended science1 who in his time were much consulted--the ,astrologers4 ,,upon ,,an ,,honest ,,man',s ,,fortune4 ,you that can look through heaven1 and tell the stars2 ,observe their kind conjunctions1 and their wars2 ,find out new lights1 and give them where you please-- ,to those men honours1 pleasures1 to those ease2 ,you that are ,god's surveyors1 and can show ,how far1 and when1 and why the wind doth blow2 ,know all the charges of the dreadful thunder1 ,and when it will shoot over1 or fall under2 ,tell me--by all your art ,i conjure ye-- ,yes1 and by truth--what shall become of me4 ,find out my star1 if each one1 as you say1 ,have his peculiar angel1 and his way2 ,observe my fate2 next fall into your dreams2 ,sweep clean your houses1 and new-line your schemes2#hc ,then say your worst4 ,or have ,i none at all8 ,or is it burnt out lately8 or did fall8 ,or am ,i poor8 not able8 no full flame8 ,my star1 like me1 unworthy of a name8 ,is it your art can only work on those ,that deal with dangers1 dignities1 and clothes1 ,with love1 or new opinions8 ,you all lie3 ,a fishwife hath a fate1 and so have ,i-- ,but far above your finding4 ,he that gives1 ,out of his providence1 to all that lives-- ,and no man knows his treasure1 no1 not you2-- 99 99 99 99 99 ,he that made all the stars you daily read1 ,and from them filch a knowledge how to feed1 ,hath hid this from you4 ,your conjectures all ,are drunken things1 not how1 but when they fall3 ,man is his own star1 and the soul that can ,render an honest1 and a perfect man1 ,commands all light1 all influence1 all fate2 ,nothing to him falls early1 or too late4 ,our acts our angels are1 or good or ill1 ,our fatal shadows that walk by us still2 ,and when the stars are labouring1 we believe ,it is not that they govern1 but they grieve ,for stubborn ignorance4 ,all things that are ,made for our general uses1 are at war-- ,even we among ourselves2 and from the strife ,your first unlike opinions got a life4 ,oh man6 thou image of thy ,maker's good1 ,what canst thou fear1 when breathed into thy blood ,his spirit is that built thee8 ,what dull sense ,makes thee suspect1 in need1 that ,providence8 ,who made the morning1 and who placed the light ,guide to thy labours8 ,who called up the night1 ,and bid her fall upon thee like sweet showers ,in hollow murmurs1 to lock up thy powers8 ,who gave thee knowledge8 ,who so trusted thee1 ,to let thee grow so near himself1 the ,tree8#hd ,must he then be distrusted8 ,shall his frame ,discourse with him why thus and thus ,i am8 ,he made the angels thine1 thy fellows all2 ,nay1 even thy servants1 when devotions call4 ,oh6 canst thou be so stupid then1 so dim1 ,to seek a saving influence1 and lose him8 ,can stars protect thee8 ,or can poverty1 ,which is the light to heaven1 put out his eye8 ,he is my star2 in him all truth ,i find1 ,all influence1 all fate2 and when my mind ,is furnished with his fulness1 my poor story ,shall outlive all their age1 and all their glory4 ,the hand of danger cannot fall amiss ,when ,i know what1 and in whose power it is2 ,nor want1 the cause#he of man1 shall make me groan3 ,a holy hermit is a mind alone4#hf ,doth not experience teach us1 all we can1 ,to work ourselves into a glorious man8 99 99 99 99 99 ,my mistress then be knowledge and fair truth2 ,so ,i enjoy all beauty and all youth6 99 99 99 99 99 ,affliction1 when ,i know it1 is but this-- ,a deep alloy1 whereby man tougher is ,to bear the hammer2 and the deeper still1 ,we still arise more image of his will2 ,sickness1 an humorous cloud 'twixt us and light2 ,and death1 at longest1 but another night1 ,man is his own star1 and that soul that can ,be honest1 is the only perfect man4 ,there is a tone of contempt in the verses which is not religious2 but they express a true philosophy and a triumph of faith in ,god4 ,the word honest is here equivalent to true4 ,i am not certain whether ,i may not now be calling up a singer whose song will appear hardly to justify his presence in the choir4 ,but its teaching is of high import1 namely1 of content and cheerfulness and courage1 and being both worthy and melodious1 it gravitates heavenward4 ,the singer is yet another dramatist3 ,i presume him to be ,thomas ,dekker4 ,i cannot be certain1 because others were concerned with him in the writing of the drama from which ,i take it4 ,he it is who1 in an often-quoted passage1 styles our ,lord ,the first true gentleman that ever breathed2 just as ,chaucer1 in a poem ,i have given1 calls him ,the first stock-father of gentleness4 ,we may call the little lyric ,a ,,song ,,of ,,labour4 ,art thou poor1 yet hast thou golden slumbers8 ,oh1 sweet content6 ,art thou rich1 yet is thy mind perplexed8 ,oh1 punishment6 ,dost thou laugh to see how fools are vexed ,to add to golden numbers1 golden numbers8 ,oh1 sweet content6 ,chorus4--,work apace1 apace1 apace1 apace2 ,honest labour bears a lovely face4 ,canst drink the waters of the crispd spring8 ,oh1 sweet content6 ,swimm'st thou in wealth1 yet sink'st in thine own tears8 ,oh1 punishment6 ,then he that patiently want's burden bears1 ,no burden bears1 but is a king1 a king6 ,oh1 sweet content6 ,chorus4--,work apace1 apace1 apace1 apace2 ,honest labour bears a lovely face4 ,it is a song of the poor in spirit1 whose is the kingdom of heaven4 ,but if my co-listeners prefer1 we will call it the voice1 not of one who sings in the choir1 but of one who tunes his instrument at the door4 ,,chapter ,x4 ,,sir ,,john ,,beaumont ,,and ,,drummond ,,of ,,hawthornden4 ,sir ,john ,beaumont1 born in #aehb1 elder brother to the dramatist who wrote along with ,fletcher1 has left amongst his poems a few fine religious ones4 ,from them ,i choose the following3 ,,of ,,the ,,epiphany4 ,fair eastern star1 that art ordained to run ,before the sages1 to the rising sun1 ,here cease thy course1 and wonder that the cloud ,of this poor stable can thy ,maker shroud3 ,ye1 heavenly bodies1 glory to be bright1 ,and are esteemed as ye are rich in light2 ,but here on earth is taught a different way1 ,since under this low roof the highest lay4 ,jerusalem erects her stately towers1 ,displays her windows1 and adorns her bowers2 ,yet there thou must not cast a trembling spark3 ,let ,herod's palace still continue dark2 ,each school and synagogue thy force repels1 ,there ,pride1 enthroned in misty errors1 dwells2 ,the temple1 where the priests maintain their choir1 ,shall taste no beam of thy celestial fire1 ,while this weak cottage all thy splendour takes3 ,a joyful gate of every chink it makes4 ,here shines no golden roof1 no ivory stair1 ,no king exalted in a stately chair1 ,girt with attendants1 or by heralds styled1 ,but straw and hay enwrap a speechless child2 ,yet ,sabae's lords before this babe unfold ,their treasures1 offering incense1 myrrh1 and gold4 ,the crib becomes an altar3 therefore dies ,no ox nor sheep2 for in their fodder lies ,the ,prince of ,peace1 who1 thankful for his bed1 ,destroys those rites in which their blood was shed3 ,the quintessence of earth he takes and#hg fees1 ,and precious gums distilled from weeping trees2 ,rich metals and sweet odours now declare ,the glorious blessings which his laws prepare1 ,to clear us from the base and loathsome flood ,of sense1 and make us fit for angels' food1 ,who lift to ,god for us the holy smoke ,of fervent prayers with which we him invoke1 ,and try our actions in that searching fire1 ,by which the seraphims our lips inspire3 ,no muddy dross pure minerals shall infect1 ,we shall exhale our vapours up direct3 ,no storms shall cross1 nor glittering lights deface ,perpetual sighs which seek a happy place4 ,the creatures1 no longer offered on his altar1 standing around the ,prince of ,life1 to whom they have given a bed1 is a lovely idea4 ,the end is hardly worthy of the rest1 though there is fine thought involved in it4 ,the following contains an utterance of personal experience1 the truth of which will be recognized by all to whom heavenly aspiration and needful disappointment are not unknown4 ,,in ,,desolation4 ,o thou who sweetly bend'st my stubborn will1 ,who send'st thy stripes to teach and not to kill6 ,thy cheerful face from me no longer hide2 ,withdraw these clouds1 the scourges of my pride2 ,i sink to hell1 if ,i be lower thrown3 ,i see what man is1 being left alone4 ,my substance1 which from nothing did begin1 ,is worse than nothing by the weight of sin3 ,i see myself in such a wretched state ,as neither thoughts conceive1 nor words relate4 ,how great a distance parts us6 for in thee ,is endless good1 and boundless ill in me4 ,all creatures prove me abject1 but how low ,thou only know'st1 and teachest me to know4 ,to paint this baseness1 nature is too base2 ,this darkness yields not but to beams of grace4 ,where shall ,i then this piercing splendour find8 ,or found1 how shall it guide me1 being blind8 ,grace is a taste of bliss1 a glorious gift1 ,which can the soul to heavenly comforts lift3 ,it will not shine to me1 whose mind is drowned ,in sorrows1 and with worldly troubles bound2 ,it will not deign within that house to dwell1 ,where dryness reigns1 and proud distractions swell4 ,perhaps it sought me in those lightsome days ,of my first fervour1 when few winds did raise ,the waves1 and ere they could full strength obtain1 ,some whispering gale straight charmed them down again2 ,when all seemed calm1 and yet the ,virgin's child ,on my devotions in his manger smiled2 ,while then ,i simply walked1 nor heed could take ,of complacence1 that sly1 deceitful snake2 ,when yet ,i had not dangerously refused ,so many calls to virtue1 nor abused ,the spring of life1 which ,i so oft enjoyed1 ,nor made so many good intentions void1 ,deserving thus that grace should quite depart1 ,and dreadful hardness should possess my heart3 ,yet in that state this only good ,i found1 ,that fewer spots did then my conscience wound2 ,though who can censure whether1 in those times1 judg ,the want of feeling seemed the want of crimes8 ,if solid virtues dwell not but in pain1 ,i will not wish that golden age again ,because it flowed with sensible delights ,of heavenly things3 ,god hath created nights ,as well as days1 to deck the varied globe2 ,grace comes as oft clad in the dusky robe ,of desolation1 as in white attire1 ,which better fits the bright celestial choir4 ,some in foul seasons perish through despair1 ,but more through boldness when the days are fair4 ,this then must be the medicine for my woes-- ,to yield to what my ,saviour shall dispose2 ,to glory in my baseness2 to rejoice ,in mine afflictions2 to obey his voice1 ,as well when threatenings my defects reprove1 ,as when ,i cherished am with words of love2 ,to say to him1 in every time and place1 ,withdraw thy comforts1 so thou leave thy grace4 ,surely this is as genuine an utterance1 whatever its merits as a poem--and those ,i judge not small--as ever flowed from ,christian heart6 ,chiefly for the sake of its beauty1 ,i give the last passage of a poem written upon occasion of the feasts of the ,annunciation and the ,resurrection falling on the same day4 ,let faithful souls this double feast attend ,in two processions4 ,let the first descend ,the temple's stairs1 and with a downcast eye ,upon the lowest pavement prostrate lie3 ,in creeping violets1 white lilies1 shine ,their humble thoughts and every pure design4 ,the other troop shall climb1 with sacred heat1 ,the rich degrees of ,solomon's bright seat3 steps ,in glowing roses fervent zeal they bear1 ,and in the azure flower-de-lis appear ,celestial contemplations1 which aspire ,above the sky1 up to the immortal choir4 ,william ,drummond of ,hawthornden1 a ,scotchman1 born in #aehe1 may almost be looked upon as the harbinger of a fresh outburst of word-music4 ,no doubt all the great poets have now and then broken forth in lyrical jubilation4 ,ponderous ,ben ,jonson himself1 when he takes to song1 will sing in the joy of the very sound2 but great men have always so much graver work to do1 that they comparatively seldom indulge in this kind of melody4 ,drummond excels in madrigals1 or canzonets--baby-odes or songs--which have more of wing and less of thought than sonnets4 ,through the greater part of his verse we hear a certain muffled tone of the sweetest1 like the music that ever threatens to break out clear from the brook1 from the pines1 from the rain-shower1--never does break out clear1 but remains a suggested1 etherially vanishing tone4 ,his is a voix voile1 or veiled voice of song4 ,it is true that in the time we are now approaching far more attention was paid not merely to the smoothness but to the melody of verse than any except the great masters had paid before2 but some are at the door1 who1 not being great masters1 yet do their inferior part nearly as well as they their higher1 uttering a music of marvellous and individual sweetness1 which no mere musical care could secure1 but which springs essentially from music in the thought gathering to itself musical words in melodious division1 and thus fashioning for itself a fitting body4 ,the melody of their verse is all their own--as original as the greatest art-forms of the masters4 ,of ,drummond1 then1 here are two sonnets on the ,nativity2 the first spoken by the angels1 the second by the shepherds4 ,the ,angels4 ,run1 shepherds1 run where ,bethlehem blest appears4 ,we bring the best of news2 be not dismayed3 ,a ,saviour there is born more old than years1 ,amidst heaven's rolling height this earth who stayed4 ,in a poor cottage inned1 a virgin maid ,a weakling did him bear1 who all upbears2 ,there is he poorly swaddled1 in manger laid1 ,to whom too narrow swaddlings are our spheres3 ,run1 shepherds1 run1 and solemnize his birth4 ,this is that night--no1 day1 grown great with bliss1 ,in which the power of ,satan broken is3 ,in heaven be glory1 peace unto the earth6 ,thus singing1 through the air the angels swam1 ,and cope of stars re-echod the same4 ,the ,shepherds4 ,o than the fairest day1 thrice fairer night6 ,night to best days1 in which a sun doth rise ,of which that golden eye which clears the skies ,is but a sparkling ray1 a shadow-light6 ,and blessed ye1 in silly pastors' sight1 simple4 ,mild creatures1 in whose warm#hh crib now lies ,that heaven-sent youngling1 holy-maid-born wight1 ,midst1 end1 beginning of our prophecies6 ,blest cottage that hath flowers in winter spread6 ,though withered--blessed grass1 that hath the grace ,to deck and be a carpet to that place6 ,thus sang1 unto the sounds of oaten reed1 ,before the babe1 the shepherds bowed on knees2 ,and springs ran nectar1 honey dropped from trees4 ,no doubt there is a touch of the conventional in these4 ,especially in the close of the last there is an attempt to glorify the true by the homage of the false4 ,but verses which make us feel the marvel afresh--the marvel visible and credible by the depth of its heart of glory--make us at the same time easily forget the discord in themselves4 ,the following1 not a sonnet1 although it looks like one1 measuring the lawful fourteen lines1 is the closing paragraph of a poem he calls ,a ,hymn to the ,fairest ,fair4 ,o king1 whose greatness none can comprehend1 ,whose boundless goodness doth to all extend6 ,light of all beauty6 ocean without ground1 ,that standing flowest1 giving dost abound6 ,rich palace1 and indweller ever blest1 ,never not working1 ever yet in rest6 ,what wit cannot conceive1 words say of thee1 ,here1 where1 as in a mirror1 we but see ,shadows of shadows1 atoms of thy might1 ,still owly-eyed while staring on thy light1 ,grant that1 released from this earthly jail1 ,and freed of clouds which here our knowledge veil1 ,in heaven's high temples1 where thy praises ring1 ,i may in sweeter notes hear angels sing4 ,that is1 ,may ,i in heaven hear angels sing what wit cannot conceive here4 ,drummond excels in nobility of speech1 and especially in the fine line and phrase1 so justly but disproportionately prized in the present day4 ,i give an instance of each3 ,here do seraphim ,burn with immortal love2 there cherubim ,with other noble people of the light1 ,as eaglets in the sun1 delight their sight4 99 99 99 99 99 ,like to a lightning through the welkin hurled1 ,that scores with flames the way1 and every eye ,with terror dazzles as it swimmeth by4 ,here are six fine verses1 in the heroic couplet1 from ,an ,hymn of the ,resurrection4 ,so a small seed that in the earth lies hid ,and dies--reviving bursts her cloddy side2 ,adorned with yellow locks1 of new is born1 ,and doth become a mother great with corn2 ,of grains bring hundreds with it1 which when old ,enrich the furrows with a sea of gold4 ,but ,i must content myself now with a little madrigal1 the only one fit for my purpose4 ,those which would best support what ,i have said of his music are not of the kind we want4 ,unfortunately1 the end of this one is not equal to the beginning4 ,,change ,,should ,,breed ,,change4 ,new doth the sun appear2 ,the mountains' snows decay2 ,crowned with frail flowers comes forth the baby year4 ,my soul1 time posts away2 ,and thou yet in that frost1 ,which flower and fruit hath lost1 ,as if all here immortal were1 dost stay6 ,for shame6 thy powers awake2 ,look to that heaven which never night makes black2 ,and there1 at that immortal sun's bright rays1 ,deck thee with flowers which fear not rage of days4 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,,the ,,brothers ,,fletcher4 ,i now come to make mention of two gifted brothers1 ,giles and ,phineas ,fletcher1 both clergymen1 the sons of a clergyman and nephews to the ,bishop of ,bristol1 therefore the cousins of ,fletcher the dramatist1 a poem by whom ,i have already given ,giles1 the eldest1 is supposed to have been born in #aehh4 ,from his poem ,christ's ,victory and ,triumph1 ,i select three passages4 ,to understand the first1 it is necessary to explain that while ,christ is on earth a dispute between ,justice and ,mercy1 such as is often represented by the theologians1 takes place in heaven4 ,we must allow the unsuitable fiction attributing distraction to the divine ,unity1 for the sake of the words in which ,mercy overthrows the arguments of ,justice4 ,for the poet unintentionally nullifies the symbolism of the theologian1 representing ,justice as defeated4 ,he forgets that the grandest exercise of justice is mercy4 ,the confusion comes from the fancy that justice means vengeance upon sin1 and not the doing of what is right4 ,justice can be at no strife with mercy1 for not to do what is just would be most unmerciful4 ,mercy first sums up the arguments ,justice has been employing against her1 in the following stanza3 ,he was but dust2 why feared he not to fall8 ,and being fallen how can he hope to live8 ,cannot the hand destroy him that made all8 ,could he not take away as well as give8 ,should man deprave1 and should not ,god deprive8 ,was it not all the world's deceiving spirit 7,that1 bladdered up with pride of his own merit1 ,fell in his rise7 that him of heaven did disinherit8 ,to these she then proceeds to make reply3 ,he was but dust3 how could he stand before him8 ,and being fallen1 why should he fear to die8 ,cannot the hand that made him first1 restore him8 ,depraved of sin1 should he deprivd lie ,of grace8 ,can he not find infirmity ,that gave him strength8--,unworthy the forsaking ,he is1 whoever weighs 7without mistaking7 ,or maker of the man or manner of his making4#hi ,who shall thy temple incense any more1 ,or to thy altar crown the sacrifice1 ,or strew with idle flowers the hallowed floor8 ,or what should prayer deck with herbs and spice1 why4 ,her vials breathing orisons of price1 ,if all must pay that which all cannot pay8 ,o first begin with me1 and ,mercy slay1 ,and thy thrice honoured ,son1 that now beneath doth stray4 ,but if or he or ,i may live and speak1 ,and heaven can joy to see a sinner weep1 ,oh6 let not ,justice' iron sceptre break ,a heart already broke1 that low doth creep1 ,and with prone humbless her feet's dust doth sweep4 ,must all go by desert8 ,is nothing free8 ,ah6 if but those that only worthy be1 ,none should thee ever see6 none should thee ever see6 ,what hath man done that man shall not undo ,since ,god to him is grown so near akin8 ,did his foe slay him8 ,he shall slay his foe4 ,hath he lost all8 ,he all again shall win4 ,is sin his master8 ,he shall master sin4 ,too hardy soul1 with sin the field to try6 ,the only way to conquer was to fly2 ,but thus long death hath lived1 and now death's self shall die4 ,he is a path1 if any be misled2 ,he is a robe1 if any naked be2 ,if any chance to hunger1 he is bread2 ,if any be a bondman1 he is free2 ,if any be but weak1 how strong is he6 ,to dead men life he is1 to sick men health1 ,to blind men sight1 and to the needy wealth2 ,a pleasure without loss1 a treasure without stealth4 ,who can forget--never to be forgot-- ,the time that all the world in slumber lies1 ,when like the stars the singing angels shot ,to earth1 and heaven awakd all his eyes ,to see another sun at midnight rise8 ,on earth was never sight of peril fame2 pareil3 equal4 ,for ,god before man like himself did frame1 ,but ,god himself now like a mortal man became4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the angels carolled loud their song of peace2 ,the cursed oracles were stricken dumb2 ,to see their ,shepherd the poor shepherds press2 ,to see their ,king1 the kingly ,sophies come2 ,and them to guide unto his master's home1 ,a star comes dancing up the orient1 ,that springs for joy over the strawy tent1 ,where gold1 to make their prince a crown1 they all present4 ,no doubt there are here touches of execrable taste1 such as the punning trick with man and manners1 suggesting a false antithesis2 or the opposition of the words deprave and deprive2 but we have in them only an instance of how the meretricious may co-exist with the lovely4 ,the passage is fine and powerful1 notwithstanding its faults and obscurities4 ,here is another yet more beautiful3 ,so down the silver streams of ,eridan1#ij ,on either side banked with a lily wall1 ,whiter than both1 rides the triumphant swan1 ,and sings his dirge1 and prophesies his fall1 ,diving into his watery funeral6 ,but ,eridan to ,cedron must submit ,his flowery shore2 nor can he envy it1 ,if1 when ,apollo sings1 his swans do silent sit4#ia ,that heavenly voice ,i more delight to hear ,than gentle airs to breathe2 or swelling waves ,against the sounding rocks their bosoms tear2#ib ,or whistling reeds that rutty#ic ,jordan laves1 ,and with their verdure his white head embraves2 adorns4 ,to chide the winds2 or hiving bees that fly ,about the laughing blossoms#id of sallowy1#ie ,rocking asleep the idle grooms#if that lazy lie4 ,and yet how can ,i hear thee singing go1 ,when men1 incensed with hate1 thy death foreset8 ,or else1 why do ,i hear thee sighing so1 ,when thou1 inflamed with love1 their life dost get1#ig ,that love and hate1 and sighs and songs are met8 ,but thus1 and only thus1 thy love did crave ,to send thee singing for us to thy grave1 ,while we sought thee to kill1 and thou sought'st us to save4 ,when ,i remember ,christ our burden bears1 ,i look for glory1 but find misery2 ,i look for joy1 but find a sea of tears2 ,i look that we should live1 and find him die2 ,i look for angels' songs1 and hear him cry3 ,thus what ,i look1 ,i cannot find so well2 ,or rather1 what ,i find ,i cannot tell1 ,these banks so narrow are1 those streams so highly swell4 ,we would gladly eliminate the few common-place allusions2 but we must take them with the rest of the passage4 ,besides far higher merits1 it is to my ear most melodious4 ,one more passage of two stanzas from ,giles ,fletcher1 concerning the glories of heaven3 ,i quote them for the sake of earth1 not of heaven4 ,gaze but upon the house where man embowers3 ,with flowers and rushes pavd is his way2 ,where all the creatures are his servitours3 ,the winds do sweep his chambers every day1 ,and clouds do wash his rooms2 the ceiling gay1 ,starrd aloft1 the gilded knobs embrave3 ,if such a house ,god to another gave1 ,how shine those glittering courts he for himself will have6 ,and if a sullen cloud1 as sad as night1 ,in which the sun may seem embodid1 ,depured of all his dross1 we see so white1 ,burning in melted gold his watery head1 ,or round with ivory edges silvered2 ,what lustre super-excellent will he ,lighten on those that shall his sunshine see ,in that all-glorious court in which all glories be6 ,these brothers were intense admirers of ,spenser4 ,to be like him ,phineas must write an allegory2 and such an allegory6 ,of all the strange poems in existence1 surely this is the strangest4 ,the ,purple ,island is man1 whose body is anatomically described after the allegory of a city1 which is then peopled with all the human faculties personified1 each set in motion by itself4 ,they say the anatomy is correct3 the metaphysics are certainly good4 ,the action of the poem is just another form of the ,holy ,war of ,john ,bunyan--all the good and bad powers fighting for the possession of the ,purple ,island4 ,what renders the conception yet more amazing is the fact that the whole ponderous mass of anatomy and metaphysics1 nearly as long as the ,paradise ,lost1 is put as a song1 in a succession of twelve cantos1 in the mouth of a shepherd1 who begins a canto every morning to the shepherds and shepherdesses of the neighbourhood1 and finishes it by folding-time in the evening4 ,and yet the poem is full of poetry4 ,he triumphs over his difficulties partly by audacity1 partly by seriousness1 partly by the enchantment of song4 ,but the poem will never be read through except by students of ,english literature4 ,it is a whole2 its members are well-fitted2 it is full of beauties--in parts they swarm like fire-flies2 and yet it is not a good poem4 ,it is like a well-shaped house1 built of mud1 and stuck full of precious stones4 ,i do not care1 in my limited space1 to quote from it4 ,never was there a more incongruous dragon of allegory4 ,both brothers were injured1 not by their worship of ,spenser1 but by the form that worship took--imitation4 ,they seem more pleased to produce a line or stanza that shall recall a line or stanza of ,spenser1 than to produce a fine original of their own4 ,they even copy lines almost word for word from their great master4 ,this is pure homage3 it was their delight that such adaptations should be recognized--just as it was ,spenser's hope1 when he inserted translated stanzas from ,tasso's ,jerusalem ,delivered in ,the ,fairy ,queen1 to gain the honour of a true reproduction4 ,yet1 strange fate for imitators6 both1 but ,giles especially1 were imitated by a greater than their worship--even by ,milton4 ,they make ,spenser's worse2 ,milton makes theirs better4 ,they imitate ,spenser1 faults and all2 ,milton glorifies their beauties4 ,from the smaller poems of ,phineas1 ,i choose the following version of ,,psalm ,,cxxx4 ,from the deeps of grief and fear1 ,o ,lord1 to thee my soul repairs3 ,from thy heaven bow down thine ear2 ,let thy mercy meet my prayers4 ,oh6 if thou mark'st what's done amiss1 ,what soul so pure can see thy bliss8 ,but with thee sweet ,mercy stands1 ,sealing pardons1 working fear4 ,wait1 my soul1 wait on his hands2 ,wait1 mine eye2 oh6 wait1 mine ear3 ,if he his eye or tongue affords1 ,watch all his looks1 catch all his words4 ,as a watchman waits for day1 ,and looks for light1 and looks again3 ,when the night grows old and gray1 ,to be relieved he calls amain3 ,so look1 so wait1 so long1 mine eyes1 ,to see my ,lord1 my sun1 arise4 ,wait1 ye saints1 wait on our ,lord1 ,for from his tongue sweet mercy flows2 ,wait on his cross1 wait on his word2 ,upon that tree redemption grows3 ,he will redeem his ,israel ,from sin and wrath1 from death and hell4 ,i shall now give two stanzas of his version of the #abgth ,psalm4 ,if ,god build not the house1 and lay ,the groundwork sure--whoever build1 ,it cannot stand one stormy day4 ,if ,god be not the city's shield1 ,if he be not their bars and wall1 ,in vain is watch-tower1 men1 and all4 ,though then thou wak'st when others rest1 ,though rising thou prevent'st the sun1 ,though with lean care thou daily feast1 ,thy labour's lost1 and thou undone2 ,but ,god his child will feed and keep1 ,and draw the curtains to his sleep4 ,compare this with a version of the same portion by ,dr4 ,henry ,king1 ,bishop of ,chichester1 who1 no great poet1 has written some good verse4 ,he was about the same age as ,phineas ,fletcher4 ,except the ,lord the house sustain1 ,the builder's labour is in vain2 ,except the city he defend1 ,and to the dwellers safety send1 ,in vain are sentinels prepared1 ,or armd watchmen for the guard4 ,you vainly with the early light ,arise1 or sit up late at night ,to find support1 and daily eat ,your bread with sorrow earned and sweat2 ,when ,god1 who his beloved keeps1 ,this plenty gives with quiet sleeps4 ,what difference do we find8 ,that the former has the more poetic touch1 the latter the greater truth4 ,the former has just lost the one precious thing in the psalm2 the latter has kept it3 that care is as useless as painful1 for ,god gives us while we sleep1 and not while we labour4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,,wither1 ,,herrick1 ,,and ,,quarles4 ,george ,wither1 born in #aehh1 therefore about the same age as ,giles ,fletcher1 was a very different sort of writer indeed4 ,there could hardly be a greater contrast4 ,fancy1 and all her motley train1 were scarcely known to ,wither1 save by the hearing of the ears4 ,he became an eager ,puritan towards the close of his life1 but his poetry chiefly belongs to the earlier part of it4 ,throughout it is distinguished by a certain straightforward simplicity of good ,english thought and ,english word4 ,his hymns remind me1 in the form of their speech1 of ,gascoigne4 ,i shall quote but little2 for1 although there is a sweet calm and a great justice of reflection and feeling1 there is hardly anything of that warming glow1 that rousing force1 that impressive weight in his verse1 which is the chief virtue of the lofty rhyme4 ,the best in a volume of ninety ,hymns and ,songs of the ,church1 is1 ,i think1 ,the ,author's ,hymn at the close1 of which ,i give three stanzas4 ,they manifest the simplicity and truth of the man1 reflecting in their very tone his faithful1 contented1 trustful nature4 ,by thy grace1 those passions1 troubles1 ,and those wants that me opprest1 ,have appeared as water-bubbles1 ,or as dreams1 and things in jest3 ,for1 thy leisure still attending1 ,i with pleasure saw their ending4 ,those afflictions and those terrors1 ,which to others grim appear1 ,did but show me where my errors ,and my imperfections were2 ,but distrustful could not make me ,of thy love1 nor fright nor shake me4 ,those base hopes that would possess me1 ,and those thoughts of vain repute ,which do now and then oppress me1 ,do not1 ,lord1 to me impute2 ,and though part they will not from me1 ,let them never overcome me4 ,he has written another similar volume1 but much larger1 and of a somewhat extraordinary character4 ,it consists of no fewer than two hundred and thirty-three hymns1 mostly long1 upon an incredible variety of subjects1 comprehending one for every season of nature and of the church1 and one for every occurrence in life of which the author could think as likely to confront man or woman4 ,of these subjects ,i quote a few of the more remarkable1 but even from them my reader can have little conception of the variety in the book3 ,a ,hymn whilst we are washing2 ,in a clear starry ,night2 ,a ,hymn for a ,house-warming2 ,after a great ,frost or ,snow2 ,for one whose ,beauty is much praised2 ,for one upbraided with ,deformity2 ,for a ,widower or a ,widow delivered from a troublesome ,yokefellow2 ,for a ,cripple2 ,for a ,jailor2 ,for a ,poet4 ,here is a portion of one which ,i hope may be helpful to some of my readers4 ,,when ,,we ,,cannot ,,sleep4 ,what ails my heart1 that in my breast ,it thus unquiet lies2 ,and that it now of needful rest ,deprives my tird eyes8 ,let not vain hopes1 griefs1 doubts1 or fears1 ,distemper so my mind2 ,but cast on ,god thy thoughtful cares1 ,and comfort thou shalt find4 ,in vain that soul attempteth ought1 ,and spends her thoughts in vain1 ,who by or in herself hath sought ,desird peace to gain4 ,on thee1 ,o ,lord1 on thee therefore1 ,my musings now ,i place2 ,thy free remission ,i implore1 ,and thy refreshing grace4 ,forgive thou me1 that when my mind ,oppressed began to be1 ,i sought elsewhere my peace to find1 ,before ,i came to thee4 ,and1 gracious ,god1 vouchsafe to grant1 ,unworthy though ,i am1 ,the needful rest which now ,i want1 ,that ,i may praise thy name4 ,before examining the volume1 one would say that no man could write so many hymns without frequent and signal failure4 ,but the marvel here is1 that the hymns are all so very far from bad4 ,he can never have written in other than a gentle mood4 ,there must have been a fine harmony in his nature1 that kept him1 as it were4 ,this peacefulness makes him interesting in spite of his comparative flatness4 ,i must restrain remark1 however1 and give five out of twelve stanzas of another of his hymns4 ,a ,,rocking ,,hymn4 ,sweet baby1 sleep2 what ails my dear8 ,what ails my darling thus to cry8 ,be still1 my child1 and lend thine ear ,to hear me sing thy lullaby4 ,my pretty lamb1 forbear to weep2 ,be still1 my dear2 sweet baby1 sleep4 ,whilst thus thy lullaby ,i sing1 ,for thee great blessings ripening be2 ,thine eldest brother is a king1 ,and hath a kingdom bought for thee4 ,sweet baby1 then forbear to weep2 ,be still1 my babe2 sweet baby1 sleep4 ,a little infant once was he1 ,and strength in weakness then was laid ,upon his virgin mother's knee1 ,that power to thee might be conveyed4 ,sweet baby1 then forbear to weep2 ,be still1 my babe2 sweet baby1 sleep4 ,within a manger lodged thy ,lord1 ,where oxen lay1 and asses fed2 ,warm rooms we do to thee afford1 ,an easy cradle or a bed4 ,sweet baby1 then forbear to weep2 ,be still1 my babe2 sweet baby1 sleep4 ,thou hast1 yet more to perfect this1 ,a promise and an earnest got1 ,of gaining everlasting bliss1 ,though thou1 my babe1 perceiv'st it not4 ,sweet baby1 then forbear to weep2 ,be still1 my babe2 sweet baby1 sleep4 ,i think ,george ,wither's verses will grow upon the reader of them1 tame as they are sure to appear at first4 ,his ,hallelujah1 or ,britain's ,second ,remembrancer1 from which ,i have been quoting1 is well worth possessing1 and can be procured without difficulty4 ,we now come to a new sort1 both of man and poet--still a clergyman4 ,it is an especial pleasure to write the name of ,robert ,herrick amongst the poets of religion1 for the very act records that the jolly1 careless ,anacreon of the church1 with his head and heart crowded with pleasures1 threw down at length his wine-cup1 tore the roses from his head1 and knelt in the dust4 ,nothing bears ,herrick's name so unrefined as the things ,dr4 ,donne wrote in his youth2 but the impression made by his earlier poems is of a man of far shallower nature1 and greatly more absorbed in the delights of the passing hour4 ,in the year #afdh1 when he was fifty-seven years of age1 being prominent as a ,royalist1 he was ejected from his living by the dominant ,puritans2 and in that same year he published his poems1 of which the latter part and later written is his ,noble ,numbers1 or religious poems4 ,we may wonder at his publishing the ,hesperides along with them1 but we must not forget that1 while the manners of a time are never to be taken as a justification of what is wrong1 the judgment of men concerning what is wrong will be greatly influenced by those manners--not necessarily on the side of laxity4 ,it is but fair to receive his own testimony concerning himself1 offered in these two lines printed at the close of his ,hesperides3 ,to his book's end this last line he'd have placed3 ,jocund his muse was1 but his life was chaste4 ,we find the same artist in the ,noble ,numbers as in the ,hesperides1 but hardly the same man4 ,however far he may have been from the model of a clergyman in the earlier period of his history1 partly no doubt from the society to which his power of song made him acceptable1 ,i cannot believe that these later poems are the results of mood1 still less the results of mere professional bias1 or even sense of professional duty4 ,in a good many of his poems he touches the heart of truth2 in others1 even those of epigrammatic form1 he must be allowed to fail in point as well as in meaning4 ,as to his art-forms1 he is guilty of great offences1 the result of the same passion for lawless figures and similitudes which ,dr4 ,donne so freely indulged4 ,but his verses are brightened by a certain almost childishly quaint and innocent humour2 while the tenderness of some of them rises on the reader like the aurora of the coming sun of ,george ,herbert4 ,i do not forget that1 even if some of his poems were printed in #afci1 years before that ,george ,herbert had done his work and gone home3 my figure stands in relation to the order ,i have adopted4 ,some of his verse is homelier than even ,george ,herbert's homeliest4 ,one of its most remarkable traits is a quaint thanksgiving for the commonest things by name--not the less real that it is sometimes even queer4 ,for instance3 ,god gives not only corn for need1 ,but likewise superabundant seed2 ,bread for our service1 bread for show2 ,meat for our meals1 and fragments too3 ,he gives not poorly1 taking some ,between the finger and the thumb1 ,but for our glut1 and for our store1 ,fine flour pressed down1 and running o'er4 ,here is another1 delightful in its oddity4 ,we can fancy the merry yet gracious poet chuckling over the vision of the child and the fancy of his words4 ,a ,,grace ,,for ,a ,,child4 ,here a little child ,i stand1 ,heaving up my either hand2 ,cold as paddocks though they be1 frogs4 ,here ,i lift them up to thee1 ,for a benison to fall ,on our meat1 and on us all4 ,amen4 ,i shall now give two or three of his longer poems1 which are not long1 and then a few of his short ones4 ,the best known is the following1 but it is not so well known that ,i must therefore omit it4 ,,his ,,litany ,,to ,,the ,,holy ,,spirit4 ,in the hour of my distress1 ,when temptations me oppress1 ,and when ,i my sins confess1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when ,i lie within my bed1 ,sick in heart1 and sick in head1 ,and with doubts discomforted1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when the house doth sigh and weep1 ,and the world is drowned in sleep1 ,yet mine eyes the watch do keep1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when the artless doctor sees without skill4 ,no one hope1 but of his fees1 ,and his skill runs on the lees1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when his potion and his pill1 ,his or none or little skill1 ,meet for nothing but to kill1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when the passing-bell doth toll1 ,and the furies in a shoal ,come to fright a parting soul1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when the tapers now burn blue1 ,and the comforters are few1 ,and that number more than true1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when the priest his last hath prayed1 ,and ,i nod to what is said1 ',cause my speech is now decayed1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when ,god knows ,i'm tossed about1 ,either with despair or doubt1 ,yet1 before the glass be out1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when the tempter me pursu'th ,with the sins of all my youth1 ,and half damns me with untruth1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when the flames and hellish cries ,fright mine ears and fright mine eyes1 ,and all terrors me surprise1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,when the judgment is revealed1 ,and that opened which was sealed2 ,when to thee ,i have appealed1 ,sweet ,spirit1 comfort me4 ,,the ,,white ,,island1 ,,or ,,place ,,of ,,the ,,blest4 ,in this world1 the ,isle of ,dreams1 ,while we sit by sorrow's streams1 ,tears and terrors are our themes1 ,reciting2 ,but when once from hence we fly1 ,more and more approaching nigh ,unto young eternity1 ,uniting2 ,in that whiter island1 where ,things are evermore sincere2 ,candour here and lustre there1 ,delighting3 ,there no monstrous fancies shall ,out of hell an horror call1 ,to create1 or cause at all1 ,affrighting4 ,there1 in calm and cooling sleep ,we our eyes shall never steep1 ,but eternal watch shall keep1 ,attending ,pleasures such as shall pursue ,me immortalized and you2 ,and fresh joys1 as never too ,have ending4 ,,to ,,death4 ,thou bid'st me come away2 ,and ,i'll no longer stay ,than for to shed some tears ,for faults of former years2 ,and to repent some crimes ,done in the present times2 ,and next1 to take a bit ,of bread1 and wine with it2 ,to don my robes of love1 ,fit for the place above2 ,to gird my loins about ,with charity throughout1 ,and so to travel hence ,with feet of innocence3 ,these done1 ,i'll only cry1 ,god1 mercy6 and so die4 ,,eternity4 ,o years and age1 farewell6 ,behold ,i go ,where ,i do know ,infinity to dwell4 ,and these mine eyes shall see ,all times1 how they ,are lost i' th' sea ,of vast eternity1 ,where never moon shall sway ,the stars2 but she ,and night shall be ,drowned in one endless day4 ,,the ,,goodness ,,of ,,his ,,god4 ,when winds and seas do rage1 ,and threaten to undo me1 ,thou dost their wrath assuage1 ,if ,i but call unto thee4 ,a mighty storm last night ,did seek my soul to swallow2 ,but by the peep of light ,a gentle calm did follow4 ,what need ,i then despair ,though ills stand round about me2 ,since mischiefs neither dare ,to bark or bite without thee8 ,,to ,,god4 ,lord1 ,i am like to mistletoe1 ,which has no root1 and cannot grow ,or prosper1 but by that same tree ,it clings about3 so ,i by thee4 ,what need ,i then to fear at all ,so long as ,i about thee crawl8 ,but if that tree should fall and die1 ,tumble shall heaven1 and down will ,i4 ,here are now a few chosen from many that--to borrow a term from ,crashaw--might be called ,,divine ,,epigrams4 ,god1 when he's angry here with any one1 ,his wrath is free from perturbation2 ,and when we think his looks are sour and grim1 ,the alteration is in us1 not him4 99 99 99 99 99 ,god can't be wrathful2 but we may conclude ,wrathful he may be by similitude3 ,god's wrathful said to be when he doth do ,that without wrath1 which wrath doth force us to4 99 99 99 99 99 ',tis hard to find ,god2 but to comprehend ,him as he is1 is labour without end4 99 99 99 99 99 ,god's rod doth watch while men do sleep1 and then ,the rod doth sleep while vigilant are men4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a man's trangression ,god does then remit1 ,when man he makes a penitent for it4 99 99 99 99 99 ,god1 when he takes my goods and chattels hence1 ,gives me a portion1 giving patience3 ,what is in ,god is ,god3 if so it be ,he patience gives1 he gives himself to me4 99 99 99 99 99 ,humble we must be1 if to heaven we go2 ,high is the roof there1 but the gate is low4 99 99 99 99 99 ,god who's in heaven1 will hear from thence1 ,if not to the sound1 yet to the sense4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the same who crowns the conqueror1 will be ,a coadjutor in the agony4 99 99 99 99 99 ,god is so potent1 as his power can that4 ,draw out of bad a sovereign good to man4 99 99 99 99 99 ,paradise is1 as from the learn'd ,i gather1 ,a choir of blest souls circling in the ,father4 99 99 99 99 99 ,heaven is not given for our good works here2 ,yet it is given to the labourer4 99 99 99 99 99 ,one more for the sake of ,martha1 smiled at by so many because they are incapable either of her blame or her sister's praise4 ,the repetition of the name1 made known ,no other than ,christ's full affection4 ,and so farewell to the very lovable ,robert ,herrick4 ,francis ,quarles was born in #aeib4 ,i have not much to say about him1 popular as he was in his own day1 for a large portion of his writing takes the shape of satire1 which ,i consider only an active form of negation4 ,i doubt much if mere opposition to the false is of any benefit4 ,convince a man by argument that the thing he has been taught is false1 and you leave his house empty1 swept1 and garnished2 but the expulsion of the falsehood is no protection against its re-entrance in another mask1 with seven worse than itself in its company4 ,the right effort of the teacher is to give the positive--to present1 as he may1 the vision of reality1 for the perception of which1 and not for the discovery of falsehood1 is man created4 ,this will not only cast out the demon1 but so people the house that he will not dare return4 ,if a man might disprove all the untruths in creation1 he would hardly be a hair's breadth nearer the end of his own making4 ,it is better to hold honestly one fragment of truth in the midst of immeasurable error1 than to sit alone1 if that were possible1 in the midst of an absolute vision1 clear as the hyaline1 but only repellent of falsehood1 not receptive of truth4 ,it is the positive by which a man shall live4 ,truth is his life4 ,the refusal of the false is not the reception of the true4 ,a man may deny himself into a spiritual lethargy1 without denying one truth1 simply by spending his strength for that which is not bread1 until he has none left wherewith to search for the truth1 which alone can feed him4 ,only when subjected to the positive does the negative find its true vocation4 ,i am jealous of the living force cast into the slough of satire4 ,no doubt1 either indignant or loving rebuke has its end and does its work1 but ,i fear that wit1 while rousing the admiration of the spiteful or the like witty1 comes in only to destroy its dignity4 ,at the same time1 ,i am not sure whether there might not be such a judicious combination of the elements as to render my remarks inapplicable4 ,at all events1 poetry favours the positive1 and from the ,emblems named of ,quarles ,i shall choose one in which it fully predominates4 ,there is something in it remarkably fine4 ,,phosphor1 ,,bring ,,the ,,day4 ,will't ne'er be morning8 ,will that promised light ,ne'er break1 and clear those clouds of night8 ,sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day1 ,whose conquering ray ,may chase these fogs3 sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day4 ,how long1 how long shall these benighted eyes ,languish in shades1 like feeble flies ,expecting spring8 ,how long shall darkness soil ,the face of earth1 and thus beguile ,our souls of sprightful action8 ,when1 when will day ,begin to dawn1 whose new-born ray ,may gild the weathercocks of our devotion1 ,and give our unsouled souls new motion8 ,sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day3 ,the light will fray ,these horrid mists3 sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day4 99 99 99 99 99 ,let those whose eyes1 like owls1 abhor the light-- ,let those have night that love the night3 ,sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day4 ,how sad delay ,afflicts dull hopes6 ,sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day4 ,alas6 my light-in-vain-expecting eyes ,can find no objects but what rise ,from this poor mortal blaze1 a dying spark ,of ,vulcan's forge1 whose flames are dark1-- ,a dangerous1 dull1 blue-burning light1 ,as melancholy as the night3 ,here's all the suns that glister in the sphere ,of earth3 ,ah me6 what comfort's here6 ,sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day4 ,haste1 haste away ,heaven's loitering lamp3 sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day4 ,blow1 ,ignorance4 ,o thou1 whose idle knee ,rocks earth into a lethargy1 ,and with thy sooty fingers hast benight ,the world's fair cheeks1 blow1 blow thy spite2 ,since thou hast puffed our greater taper1 do ,puff on1 and out the lesser too4 ,if e'er that breath-exiled flame return1 ,thou hast not blown as it will burn4 ,sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day3 ,light will repay ,the wrongs of night3 sweet ,phosphor1 bring the day4 ,with honoured1 thrice honoured ,george ,herbert waiting at the door1 ,i cannot ask ,francis ,quarles to remain longer3 ,i can part with him without regret1 worthy man and fair poet as he is4 ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,,george ,,herbert4 ,but1 with my hand on the lock1 ,i shrink from opening the door4 ,here comes a poet indeed6 and how am ,i to show him due honour8 ,with his book humbly1 doubtfully offered1 with the ashes of the poems of his youth fluttering in the wind of his priestly garments1 he crosses the threshold4 ,or rather1 for ,i had forgotten the symbol of my book1 let us all go from our chapel to the choir1 and humbly ask him to sing that he may make us worthy of his song4 ,in ,george ,herbert there is poetry enough and to spare3 it is the household bread of his being4 ,if ,i begin with that which first in the nature of things ought to be demanded of a poet1 namely1 ,truth1 ,revelation--,george ,herbert offers us measure pressed down and running over4 ,but let me speak first of that which first in time or order of appearance we demand of a poet1 namely music4 ,for inasmuch as verse is for the ear1 not for the eye1 we demand a good hearing first4 ,let no one undervalue it4 ,the heart of poetry is indeed truth1 but its garments are music1 and the garments come first in the process of revelation4 ,the music of a poem is its meaning in sound as distinguished from word--its meaning in solution1 as it were1 uncrystallized by articulation4 ,the music goes before the fuller revelation1 preparing its way4 ,the sound of a verse is the harbinger of the truth contained therein4 ,if it be a right poem1 this will be true4 ,herein ,herbert excels4 ,it will be found impossible to separate the music of his words from the music of the thought which takes shape in their sound4 ,i got me flowers to strow thy way1 ,i got me boughs off many a tree2 ,but thou wast up by break of day1 ,and brought'st thy sweets along with thee4 ,and the gift it enwraps at once and reveals is1 ,i have said1 truth of the deepest4 ,hear this song of divine service4 ,in every song he sings a spiritual fact will be found its fundamental life1 although ,i may quote this or that merely to illustrate some peculiarity of mode4 ,the ,elixir was an imagined liquid sought by the old physical investigators1 in order that by its means they might turn every common metal into gold1 a pursuit not quite so absurd as it has since appeared4 ,they called this something1 when regarded as a solid1 the ,philosopher's ,stone4 ,in the poem it is also called a tincture4 ,,the ,,elixir4 ,teach me1 my ,god and ,king1 ,in all things thee to see2 ,and what ,i do in anything1 ,to do it as for thee2 ,not rudely1 as a beast1 ,to run into an action2 ,but still to make thee prepossest1 ,and give it his perfection4 its4 ,a man that looks on glass1 ,on it may stay his eye2 ,or1 if he pleaseth1 through it pass1 ,and then the heaven spy4 ,all may of thee partake3 ,nothing can be so mean1 ,which with his tincture--for thy sake-- its4 ,will not grow bright and clean4 ,a servant with this clause ,makes drudgery divine3 ,who sweeps a room as for thy laws1 ,makes that and the action fine4 ,this is the famous stone ,that turneth all to gold2 ,for that which ,god doth touch and own ,cannot for less be told4 ,with a conscience tender as a child's1 almost diseased in its tenderness1 and a heart loving as a woman's1 his intellect is none the less powerful4 ,its movements are as the sword-play of an alert1 poised1 well-knit1 strong-wristed fencer with the rapier1 in which the skill impresses one more than the force1 while without the force the skill would be valueless1 even hurtful1 to its possessor4 ,there is a graceful humour with it occasionally1 even in his most serious poems adding much to their charm4 ,to illustrate all this1 take the following1 the title of which means ,the ,retort4 ,,the ,,quip4 ,the merry ,world did on a day ,with his train-bands and mates agree ,to meet together where ,i lay1 ,and all in sport to jeer at me4 ,first ,beauty crept into a rose2 ,which when ,i plucked not--,sir1 said she1 ,tell me1 ,i pray1 whose hands are those8#ih ,but thou shall answer1 ,lord1 for me4 ,then ,money came1 and1 chinking still-- ,what tune is this1 poor man8 said he3 ,i heard in music you had skill4 ,but thou shall answer1 ,lord1 for me4 ,then came brave ,glory puffing by ,in silks that whistled--who but he8 ,he scarce allowed me half an eye2 ,but thou shall answer1 ,lord1 for me4 ,then came quick ,wit-and-,conversation1 ,and he would needs a comfort be1 ,and1 to be short1 make an oration3 ,but thou shalt answer1 ,lord1 for me4 ,yet when the hour of thy design ,to answer these fine things1 shall come1 ,speak not at large--say ,i am thine2 ,and then they have their answer home4 ,here is another instance of his humour4 ,it is the first stanza of a poem to ,death4 ,he is glorying over ,death as personified in a skeleton4 ,death1 thou wast once an uncouth1 hideous thing-- ,nothing but bones1 ,the sad effect of sadder groans3 ,thy mouth was open1 but thou couldst not sing4 ,no writer before him has shown such a love to ,god1 such a childlike confidence in him4 ,the love is like the love of those whose verses came first in my volume4 ,but the nation had learned to think more1 and new difficulties had consequently arisen4 ,these1 again1 had to be undermined by deeper thought1 and the discovery of yet deeper truth had been the reward4 ,hence1 the love itself1 if it had not strengthened1 had at least grown deeper4 ,and ,george ,herbert had had difficulty enough in himself2 for1 born of high family1 by nature fitted to shine in that society where elegance of mind1 person1 carriage1 and utterance is most appreciated1 and having indeed enjoyed something of the life of a courtier1 he had forsaken all in obedience to the voice of his higher nature4 ,hence the struggle between his tastes and his duties would come and come again1 augmented probably by such austere notions as every conscientious man must entertain in proportion to his inability to find ,god in that in which he might find him4 ,from this inability1 inseparable in its varying degrees from the very nature of growth1 springs all the asceticism of good men1 whose love to ,god will be the greater as their growing insight reveals him in his world1 and their growing faith approaches to the giving of thanks in everything4 ,when we have discovered the truth that whatsoever is not of faith is sin1 the way to meet it is not to forsake the human law1 but so to obey it as to thank ,god for it4 ,to leave the world and go into the desert is not thus to give thanks3 it may have been the only way for this or that man1 in his blameless blindness1 to take4 ,the divine mind of ,george ,herbert1 however1 was in the main bent upon discovering ,god everywhere4 ,the poem ,i give next1 powerfully sets forth the struggle between liking and duty of which ,i have spoken4 ,it is at the same time an instance of wonderful art in construction1 all the force of the germinal thought kept in reserve1 to burst forth at the last4 ,he calls it--meaning by the word1 ,god's ,restraint-- ,,the ,,collar4 ,i struck the board1 and cried ,no more6-- ,i will abroad4 ,what6 shall ,i ever sigh and pine8 ,my lines and life are free--free as the road1 ,loose as the wind1 as large as store4 ,shall ,i be still in suit8 ,have ,i no harvest but a thorn ,to let me blood1 and not restore ,what ,i have lost with cordial fruit8 ,sure there was wine ,before my sighs did dry it6 ,there was corn ,before my tears did drown it6 ,is the year only lost to me8 ,have ,i no bays to crown it8 ,no flowers1 no garlands gay8 ,all blasted8 ,all wasted8 ,not so1 my heart2 but there is fruit1 ,and thou hast hands4 ,recover all thy sigh-blown age ,on double pleasures4 ,leave thy cold dispute ,of what is fit1 and not4 ,forsake thy cage1 ,thy rope of sands1 ,which petty thoughts have made--and made to thee ,good cable1 to enforce and draw1 ,and be thy law1 ,while thou didst wink and wouldst not see4 ,away6 ,take heed-- ,i will abroad4 ,call in thy death's-head there4 ,tie up thy fears4 ,he that forbears ,to suit and serve his need1 ,deserves his load4 ,but as ,i raved1 and grew more fierce and wild ,at every word1 ,methought ,i heard one calling ,child6 ,and ,i replied1 ,my ,lord6 ,coming now to speak of his art1 let me say something first about his use of homeliest imagery for highest thought4 ,this1 ,i think1 is in itself enough to class him with the highest kind of poets4 ,if my reader will refer to ,the ,elixir1 he will see an instance in the third stanza1 ,you may look at the glass1 or at the sky3 ,you may regard your action only1 or that action as the will of ,god4 ,again1 let him listen to the pathos and simplicity of this one stanza1 from a poem he calls ,the ,flower4 ,he has been in trouble2 his times have been evil2 he has felt a spiritual old age creeping upon him2 but he is once more awake4 ,and now in age#ii ,i bud again2 ,after so many deaths ,i live and write2 ,i once more smell the dew and rain1 ,and relish versing4 ,o my only light1 ,it cannot be ,that ,i am he ,on whom thy tempests fell all night6 ,again3 ,some may dream merrily1 but when they wake ,they dress themselves and come to thee4 ,he has an exquisite feeling of lyrical art4 ,not only does he keep to one idea in it1 but he finishes the poem like a cameo4 ,here is an instance wherein he outdoes the elaboration of a ,norman trouvre2 for not merely does each line in each stanza end with the same sound as the corresponding line in every other stanza1 but it ends with the very same word4 ,i shall hardly care to defend this if my reader chooses to call it a whim2 but ,i do say that a large degree of the peculiar musical effect of the poem--subservient to the thought1 keeping it dimly chiming in the head until it breaks out clear and triumphant like a silver bell in the last--is owing to this use of the same column of words at the line-ends of every stanza4 ,let him who doubts it1 read the poem aloud4 ,,aaron4 ,holiness on the head2 ,light and perfections on the breast2 ,harmonious bells below1 raising the dead1 ,to lead them unto life and rest-- ,thus are true ,aarons drest4 ,profaneness in my head2 ,defects and darkness in my breast2 ,a noise of passions ringing me for dead ,unto a place where is no rest-- ,poor priest1 thus am ,i drest6 ,only another head ,i have1 another heart and breast1 ,another music1 making live1 not dead1 ,without whom ,i could have no rest-- ,in him ,i am well drest4 ,christ is my only head1 ,my alone only heart and breast1 ,my only music1 striking me even dead1 ,that to the old man ,i may rest1 ,and be in him new drest4 ,so1 holy in my head1 ,perfect and light in my dear breast1 ,my doctrine turned by ,christ1 who is not dead1 ,but lives in me while ,i do rest-- ,come1 people3 ,aaron's drest4 ,note the flow and the ebb of the lines of each stanza--from six to eight to ten syllables1 and back through eight to six1 the number of stanzas corresponding to the number of lines in each2 only the poem itself begins with the ebb1 and ends with a full spring-flow of energy4 ,note also the perfect antithesis in their parts between the first and second stanzas1 and how the last line of the poem clenches the whole in revealing its idea--that for the sake of which it was written4 ,in a word1 note the unity4 ,born in #aeic1 notwithstanding his exquisite art1 he could not escape being influenced by the faulty tendencies of his age1 borne in upon his youth by the example of his mother's friend1 ,dr4 ,donne4 ,a man must be a giant like ,shakspere or ,milton to cast off his age's faults4 ,indeed no man has more of the quips and cranks and wanton wiles of the poetic spirit of his time than ,george ,herbert1 but with this difference from the rest of ,dr4 ,donne's school1 that such is the indwelling potency that it causes even these to shine with a radiance such that we wish them still to burn and not be consumed4 ,his muse is seldom other than graceful1 even when her motions are grotesque1 and he is always a gentleman1 which cannot be said of his master4 ,we could not bear to part with his most fantastic oddities1 they are so interpenetrated with his genius as well as his art4 ,in relation to the use he makes of these faulty forms1 and to show that even herein he has exercised a refraining judgment1 though indeed fancying he has quite discarded in only somewhat reforming it1 ,i recommend the study of two poems1 each of which he calls ,jordan1 though why ,i have not yet with certainty discovered4 ,it is possible that not many of his readers have observed the following instances of the freakish in his rhyming art1 which however result well4 ,when ,i say so1 ,i would not be supposed to approve of the freak1 but only to acknowledge the success of the poet in his immediate intent4 ,they are related to a certain tendency to mechanical contrivance not seldom associated with a love of art3 it is art operating in the physical understanding4 ,in the poem called ,home1 every stanza is perfectly finished till the last3 in it1 with an access of art or artfulness1 he destroys the rhyme4 ,i shall not quarrel with my reader if he calls it the latter1 and regards it as art run to seed4 ,and yet--and yet--,i confess ,i have a latent liking for the trick4 ,i shall give one or two stanzas out of the rather long poem1 to lead up to the change in the last4 ,come1 ,lord2 my head doth burn1 my heart is sick1 ,while thou dost ever1 ever stay2 ,thy long deferrings wound me to the quick2 ,my spirit gaspeth night and day4 ,o show thyself to me1 ,or take me up to thee4 ,nothing but drought and dearth1 but bush and brake1 ,which way soe'er ,i look ,i see3 ,some may dream merrily1 but when they wake ,they dress themselves and come to thee4 ,o show thyself to me1 ,or take me up to thee4 ,come1 dearest ,lord1 pass not this holy season1 ,my flesh and bones and joints do pray2 ,and even my verse1 when by the rhyme and reason ,the word is stay1#ajj says ever come4 ,o show thyself to me1 ,or take me up to thee4 ,balancing this1 my second instance is of the converse4 ,in all the stanzas but the last1 the last line in each hangs unrhymed3 in the last the rhyming is fulfilled4 ,the poem is called ,denial4 ,i give only a part of it4 ,when my devotions could not pierce ,thy silent ears1 ,then was my heart broken as was my verse2 ,my breast was full of fears ,and disorder4 ,o that thou shouldst give dust a tongue ,to cry to thee1 ,and then not hear it crying6 ,all day long ,my heart was in my knee3 ,but no hearing6 ,therefore my soul lay out of sight1 ,untuned1 unstrung2 ,my feeble spirit1 unable to look right1 ,like a nipt blossom1 hung ,discontented4 ,o cheer and tune my heartless breast-- ,defer no time2 ,that so thy favours granting my request1 ,they and my mind may chime1 ,and mend my rhyme4 ,it had been hardly worth the space to point out these1 were not the matter itself precious4 ,before making further remark on ,george ,herbert1 let me present one of his poems in which the oddity of the visual fancy is only equalled by the beauty of the result4 ,,the ,,pulley4 ,when ,god at first made man1 ,having a glass of blessing standing by1 ,let us1 said he1 pour on him all we can3 ,let the world's riches1 which dispersd lie1 ,contract into a span4 ,so strength first made a way2 ,then beauty flowed2 then wisdom1 honour1 pleasure4 ,when almost all was out1 ,god made a stay1 ,perceiving that1 alone of all his treasure1 ,rest in the bottom lay4 ,for if ,i should1 said he1 ,bestow this jewel also on my creature1 ,he would adore my gifts instead of me1 ,and rest in nature1 not the ,god of nature3 ,so both should losers be4 ,yet let him keep the rest-- ,but keep them with repining restlessness3 ,let him be rich and weary1 that1 at least1 ,if goodness lead him not1 yet weariness ,may toss him to my breast4 ,is it not the story of the world written with the point of a diamond8 ,there can hardly be a doubt that his tendency to unnatural forms was encouraged by the increase of respect to symbol and ceremony shown at this period by some of the external powers of the church--,bishop ,laud in particular4 ,had all1 however1 who delight in symbols1 a power1 like ,george ,herbert's1 of setting even within the horn-lanterns of the more arbitrary of them1 such a light of poetry and devotion that their dull sides vanish in its piercing shine1 and we forget the symbol utterly in the truth which it cannot obscure1 then indeed our part would be to take and be thankful4 ,but there never has been even a living true symbol which the dulness of those who will see the truth only in the symbol has not degraded into the very cockatrice-egg of sectarianism4 ,the symbol is by such always more or less idolized1 and the light within more or less patronized4 ,if the truth1 for the sake of which all symbols exist1 were indeed the delight of those who claim it1 the sectarianism of the church would vanish4 ,but men on all sides call that the truth which is but its form or outward sign--material or verbal1 true or arbitrary1 it matters not which--and hence come strifes and divisions4 ,although ,george ,herbert1 however1 could thus illumine all with his divine inspiration1 we cannot help wondering whether1 if he had betaken himself yet more to vital and less to half artificial symbols1 the change would not have been a breaking of the pitcher and an outshining of the lamp4 ,for a symbol may remind us of the truth1 and at the same time obscure it--present it1 and dull its effect4 ,it is the temple of nature and not the temple of the church1 the things made by the hands of ,god and not the things made by the hands of man1 that afford the truest symbols of truth4 ,i am anxious to be understood4 ,the chief symbol of our faith1 the ,cross1 it may be said1 is not one of these natural symbols4 ,i answer--,no2 but neither is it an arbitrary symbol4 ,it is not a symbol of a truth at all1 but of a fact1 of the infinitely grandest fact in the universe1 which is itself the outcome and symbol of the grandest ,truth4 ,the ,cross is an historical sign1 not properly a symbol1 except through the facts it reminds us of4 ,on the other hand1 baptism and the eucharist are symbols of the loftiest and profoundest kind1 true to nature and all its meanings1 as well as to the facts of which they remind us4 ,they are in themselves symbols of the truths involved in the facts they commemorate4 ,of ,nature's symbols ,george ,herbert has made large use2 but he would have been yet a greater poet if he had made a larger use of them still4 ,then at least we might have got rid of such oddities as the stanzas for steps up to the church-door1 the first at the bottom of the page2 of the lines shaped into ugly altar-form2 and of the absurd ,easter wings1 made of ever lengthening lines4 ,this would not have been much1 ,i confess1 nor the gain by their loss great2 but not to mention the larger supply of images graceful with the grace of ,god1 who when he had made them said they were good1 it would have led to the further purification of his taste1 perhaps even to the casting out of all that could untimely move our mirth2 until possibly 7for illustration71 instead of this lovely stanza1 he would have given us even a lovelier3 ,listen1 sweet dove1 unto my song1 ,and spread thy golden wings on me2 ,hatching my tender heart so long1 ,till it get wing1 and fly away with thee4 ,the stanza is indeed lovely1 and true and tender and clever as well2 yet who can help smiling at the notion of the incubation of the heart-egg1 although what the poet means is so good that the smile almost vanishes in a sigh8 ,there is no doubt that the works of man's hands will also afford many true symbols2 but ,i do think that1 in proportion as a man gives himself to those instead of studying ,truth's wardrobe of forms in nature1 so will he decline from the high calling of the poet4 ,george ,herbert was too great to be himself much injured by the narrowness of the field whence he gathered his symbols2 but his song will be the worse for it in the ears of all but those who1 having lost sight of or having never beheld the oneness of the ,god whose creation exists in virtue of his redemption1 feel safer in a low-browed crypt than under the high embowed roof4 ,when the desire after system or order degenerates from a need into a passion1 or ruling idea1 it closes1 as may be seen in many women who are especial house-keepers1 like an unyielding skin over the mind1 to the death of all development from impulse and aspiration4 ,the same thing holds in the church3 anxiety about order and system will kill the life4 ,this did not go near to being the result with ,george ,herbert3 his life was hid with ,christ in ,god2 but the influence of his profession1 as distinguished from his work1 was hurtful to his calling as a poet4 ,he of all men would scorn to claim social rank for spiritual service2 he of all men would not commit the blunder of supposing that prayer and praise are that service of ,god3 they are prayer and praise1 not service2 he knew that ,god can be served only through loving ministration to his sons and daughters1 all needy of commonest human help3 but1 as the most devout of clergymen will be the readiest to confess1 there is even a danger to their souls in the unvarying recurrence of the outward obligations of their service2 and1 in like manner1 the poet will fare ill if the conventions from which the holiest system is not free send him soaring with sealed eyes4 ,george ,herbert's were but a little blinded thus2 yet something1 we must allow1 his poetry was injured by his profession4 ,all that ,i say on this point1 however1 so far from diminishing his praise1 adds thereto1 setting forth only that he was such a poet as might have been greater yet1 had the divine gift had free course4 ,but again ,i rebuke myself and say1 ,thank ,god for ,george ,herbert4 ,to rid our spiritual palates of the clinging flavour of criticism1 let me choose another song from his precious legacy--one less read1 ,i presume1 than many4 ,it shows his tendency to asceticism--the fancy of forsaking ,god's world in order to serve him2 it has besides many of the faults of the age1 even to that of punning2 yet it is a lovely bit of art as well as a rich embodiment of tenderness4 ,,the ,,thanksgiving4 ,oh ,king of grief6 a title strange yet true1 ,to thee of all kings only due6 ,oh ,king of wounds6 how shall ,i grieve for thee1 ,who in all grief preventest me8 goest before me4 ,shall ,i weep blood8 ,why1 thou hast wept such store1 ,that all thy body was one gore4 ,shall ,i be scourgd1 flouted1 boxd1 sold8 ',tis but to tell the tale is told4 ,my ,god1 my ,god1 why dost thou part from me8 ,was such a grief as cannot be4 ,shall ,i then sing1 skipping thy doleful story1 ,and side with thy triumphant glory8 ,shall thy strokes be my stroking8 thorns my flower8 ,thy rod1 my posy8#aja cross1 my bower8 ,but how then shall ,i imitate thee1 and ,copy thy fair1 though bloody hand8 ,surely ,i will revenge me on thy love1 ,and try who shall victorious prove4 ,if thou dost give me wealth1 ,i will restore ,all back unto thee by the poor4 ,if thou dost give me honour1 men shall see ,the honour doth belong to thee4 ,i will not marry2 or if she be mine1 ,she and her children shall be thine4 ,my bosom-friend1 if he blaspheme thy name1 ,i will tear thence his love and fame4 ,one half of me being gone1 the rest ,i give ,unto some chapel--die or live4 ,as for my ,passion#ajb--;,but of that anon1 ,when with the other ,i have done4 ,for thy ,predestination1 ,i'll contrive ,that1 three years hence1 if ,i survive1#ajc ,i'll build a spital1 or mend common ways1 ,but mend my own without delays4 ,then ,i will use the works of thy creation1 ,as if ,i used them but for fashion4 ,the world and ,i will quarrel2 and the year ,shall not perceive that ,i am here4 ,my music shall find thee1 and every string ,shall have his attribute to sing1 its4 ,that all together may accord in thee1 ,and prove one ,god1 one harmony4 ,if thou shall give me wit1 it shall appear2 ,if thou hast given it me1 'tis here4 ,nay1 ,i will read thy book1#ajd and never move ,till ,i have found therein thy love-- ,thy art of love1 which ,i'll turn back on thee3 ,o my dear ,saviour1 ,victory6 ,then for my ,passion--,i will do for that-- ,alas1 my ,god6 ,i know not what4 ,with the preceding must be taken the following1 which comes immediately after it4 ,,the ,,reprisal4 ,i have considered it1 and find ,there is no dealing with thy mighty ,passion2 ,for though ,i die for thee1 ,i am behind3 ,my sins deserve the condemnation4 ,o make me innocent1 that ,i ,may give a disentangled state and free2 ,and yet thy wounds still my attempts defy1 ,for by thy death ,i die for thee4 ,ah6 was it not enough that thou ,by thy eternal glory didst outgo me8 ,couldst thou not grief's sad conquest me allow1 ,but in all victories overthrow me8 ,yet by confession will ,i come ,into the conquest3 though ,i can do nought ,against thee1 in thee ,i will overcome ,the man who once against thee fought4 ,even embracing the feet of ,jesus1 ,mary ,magdalene or ,george ,herbert must rise and go forth to do his will4 ,it will be observed how much ,george ,herbert goes beyond all that have preceded him1 in the expression of feeling as it flows from individual conditions1 in the analysis of his own moods1 in the logic of worship1 if ,i may say so4 ,his utterance is not merely of personal love and grief1 but of the peculiar love and grief in the heart of ,george ,herbert4 ,there may be disease in such a mind2 but1 if there be1 it is a disease that will burn itself out4 ,such disease is1 for men constituted like him1 the only path to health4 ,by health ,i mean that simple regard to the truth1 to the will of ,god1 which will turn away a man's eyes from his own conditions1 and leave ,god free to work his perfection in him--free1 that is1 of the interference of the man's self-consciousness and anxiety4 ,to this perfection ,st4 ,paul had come when he no longer cried out against the body of his death1 no more judged his own self1 but left all to the ,father1 caring only to do his will4 ,it was enough to him then that ,god should judge him1 for his will is the one good thing securing all good things4 ,amongst the keener delights of the life which is at the door1 ,i look for the face of ,george ,herbert1 with whom to talk humbly would be in bliss a higher bliss4 ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,,john ,,milton4 ,john ,milton1 born in #afjh1 was twenty-four years of age when ,george ,herbert died4 ,hardly might two good men present a greater contrast than these4 ,in power and size1 ,milton greatly excels4 ,if ,george ,herbert's utterance is like the sword-play of one skilful with the rapier1 that of ,milton is like the sword-play of an old knight1 flashing his huge but keen-cutting blade in lightnings about his head4 ,compared with ,herbert1 ,milton was a man in health4 ,he never shows1 at least1 any diseased regard of himself4 ,his eye is fixed on the truth1 and he knows of no ill-faring4 ,while a man looks thitherward1 all the movements of his spirit reveal themselves only in peace4 ,everything conspired1 or1 should ,i not rather say8 everything was freely given1 to make ,milton a great poet4 ,leaving the original seed of melody1 the primordial song in the soul which all his life was an effort to utter1 let us regard for a moment the circumstances that favoured its development4 ,illustration3 ,his volant touch ,fied and pursued transverse the resonant fugue4 ,from childhood he had listened to the sounds of the organ2 doubtless himself often gave breath to the soundboard with his hands on the lever of the bellows1 while his father's volant touch1 ,instinct through all proportions low and high1 ,fled and pursued transverse the resonant fugue2 and the father's organ-harmony we yet hear in the son's verse as in none but his4 ,those organ-sounds he has taken for the very breath of his speech1 and articulated them4 ,he had education and leisure1 freedom to think1 to travel1 to observe3 he was more than thirty before he had to earn a mouthful of bread by his own labour4 ,rushing at length into freedom's battle1 he stood in its storm with his hand on the wheel of the nation's rudder1 shouting many a bold word for ,god and the ,truth1 until1 fulfilled of experience as of knowledge1 ,god set up before him a canvas of utter darkness3 he had to fill it with creatures of radiance4 ,god blinded him with his hand1 that1 like the nightingale1 he might sing darkling4 ,beyond all1 his life was pure from his childhood1 without which such poetry as his could never have come to the birth4 ,it is the pure in heart who shall see ,god at length2 the pure in heart who now hear his harmonies4 ,more than all yet1 he devoted himself from the first to the will of ,god1 and his prayer that he might write a great poem was heard4 ,the unity of his being is the strength of ,milton4 ,he is harmony1 sweet and bold1 throughout4 ,not ,philip ,sidney1 not ,george ,herbert loved words and their melodies more than he2 while in their use he is more serious than either1 and harder to please1 uttering a music they have rarely approached4 ,yet even when speaking with most miraculous organ1 with a grandeur never heard till then1 he overflows in speech more like that of other men than theirs--he utters himself more simply1 straightforwardly1 dignifiedly1 than they4 ,his modes are larger and more human1 more near to the forms of primary thought4 ,faithful and obedient to his art1 he spends his power in no diversions4 ,like ,shakspere1 he can be silent1 never hesitating to sweep away the finest lines should they mar the intent1 progress1 and flow of his poem4 ,even while he sings most abandonedly1 it is ever with a care of his speech1 it is ever with ordered words3 not one shall dull the clarity of his verse by unlicensed1 that is1 needless presence4 ,but let not my reader fancy that this implies laborious utterance and strained endeavour4 ,it is weakness only which by the agony of visible effort enhances the magnitude of victory4 ,the trained athlete will move with the grace of a child1 for he has not to seek how to effect that which he means to perform4 ,milton has only to take good heed1 and with no greater effort than it costs the ordinary man to avoid talking like a fool1 he sings like an archangel4 ,but ,i must not enlarge my remarks1 for of his verse even ,i can find room for only a few lyrics4 ,in them1 however1 we shall still find the simplest truth1 the absolute of life1 the poet's aim4 ,he is ever soaring towards the region beyond perturbation1 the true condition of soul2 that is1 wherein a man shall see things even as ,god would have him see them4 ,he has no time to droop his pinions1 and sit moody even on the highest pine3 the sun is above him2 he must fly upwards4 ,the youth who at three-and-twenty could write the following sonnet1 might well at five-and-forty be capable of writing the one that follows3 ,how soon hath ,time1 the subtle thief of youth1 ,stolen on his wing my three-and-twentieth year6 ,my hasting days fly on with full career1 ,but my late spring no bud or blossom shew'th4 ,perhaps my semblance might deceive the truth ,that ,i to manhood am arrived so near2 ,and inward ripeness doth much less appear1 ,that some more timely happy spirits endu'th4 ,yet be it less or more1 or soon or slow1 ,it shall be still in strictest measure even ,to that same lot1 however mean or high1 ,toward which time leads me and the will of heaven3 ,all is--if ,i have grace to use it so ,as ever in my great ,task-master's eye4 ,the ,it which is the subject of the last six lines is his ,ripeness3 it will keep pace with his approaching lot2 when it arrives he will be ready for it1 whatever it may be4 ,the will of heaven is his happy fate4 ,even at three-and-twenty1 he that believeth shall not make haste4 ,calm and open-eyed1 he works to be ripe1 and waits for the work that shall follow4 ,at forty-five1 then1 he writes thus concerning his blindness3 ,when ,i consider how my life is spent ,ere half my days in this dark world and wide1 ,and that one talent1 which is death to hide1 ,lodged with me useless1 though my soul more bent ,to serve therewith my ,maker1 and present ,my true account1 lest he1 returning1 chide-- ,doth ,god exact day-labour1 light denied8 ,i fondly ask4 ,but ,patience1 to prevent foolishly4 ,that murmur1 soon replies3 ,god doth not need ,either man's work or his own gifts3 who best ,bear his mild yoke1 they serve him best3 his state ,is kingly3 thousands at his bidding speed1 ,and post o'er land and ocean without rest3 ,they also serve who only stand and wait4 ,that is1 stand and wait1 ready to go when they are called4 ,everybody knows the sonnet1 but how could ,i omit it8 ,both sonnets will grow more and more luminous as they are regarded4 ,the following ,i incline to think the finest of his short poems1 certainly the grandest of them4 ,it is a little ode1 written to be set on a clock-case4 ,,on ,,time4 ,fly1 envious ,time1 till thou run out thy race4 ,call on the lazy leaden-stepping hours1 ,whose speed is but the heavy plummet's pace1 ,and glut thyself with what thy womb devours-- ,which is no more than what is false and vain1 ,and merely mortal dross3 ,so little is our loss6 ,so little is thy gain6 ,for whenas each thing bad thou hast entombed1 ,and last of all thy greedy self consumed1 ,then long eternity shall greet our bliss ,with an individual kiss2 that cannot be divided-- ,and joy shall overtake us as a flood2 eternal4 ,when everything that is sincerely good1 ,and perfectly divine ,with truth and peace and love1 shall ever shine ,about the supreme throne ,of him to whose happy-making sight alone ,when once our heavenly-guided soul shall climb1 ,then1 all this earthy grossness quit1 ,attired with stars1 we shall for ever sit ,triumphing over ,death and ,chance and thee1 ,o ,time4 ,the next ,i give is likewise an ode--a more beautiful one4 ,observe in both the fine effect of the short lines1 essential to the nature of the ode1 being that which gives its solemnity the character yet of a song1 or rather1 perhaps1 of a chant4 ,in this he calls upon ,voice and ,verse to rouse and raise our imagination until we hear the choral song of heaven1 and hearing become able to sing in tuneful response4 ,,at ,a ,,solemn ,,music4 ,blest pair of sirens1 pledges of heaven's joy ,sphere-born harmonious sisters1 ,voice and ,verse1 ,wed your divine sounds1 and mixed power employ-- ,dead things with inbreathed sense able to pierce-- ,and to our high-raised phantasy present ,that undisturbed song of pure concent#aje ,aye sung before the sapphire-coloured throne ,to him that sits thereon1 ,with saintly shout1 and solemn jubilee2 ,where the bright seraphim1 in burning row1 ,their loud uplifted angel trumpets blow2 ,and the cherubic host in thousand choirs1 ,touch their immortal harps of golden wires1 ,with those just spirits that wear victorious palms1 ,hymns devout and holy psalms ,singing everlastingly2 ,that we on earth1 with undiscording voice1 ,may rightly answer that melodious noise-- ,as once we did1 till disproportioned#ajf ,sin ,jarred against ,nature's chime1 and with harsh din ,broke the fair music that all creatures made ,to their great ,lord1 whose love their motion swayed ,in perfect diapason1#ajg whilst they stood ,in first obedience and their state of good4 ,o may we soon again renew that song1 ,and keep in tune with heaven1 till ,god ere long ,to his celestial consort#ajh us unite1 ,to live with him1 and sing in endless morn of light6 ,music was the symbol of all ,truth to ,milton4 ,he would count it falsehood to write an unmusical verse4 ,i allow that some of his blank lines may appear unrhythmical2 but ,experience1 especially if she bring with her a knowledge of ,dante1 will elucidate all their movements4 ,i exhort my younger friends to read ,milton aloud when they are alone1 and thus learn the worth of word-sounds4 ,they will find him even in this an educating force4 ,the last ode ought to be thus read for the magnificent dance-march of its motion1 as well as for its melody4 ,show me one who delights in the ,hymn on the ,nativity1 and ,i will show you one who may never indeed be a singer in this world1 but who is already a listener to the best4 ,but how different it is from anything of ,george ,herbert's6 ,it sets forth no feeling peculiar to ,milton2 it is an outburst of the gladness of the company of believers4 ,every one has at least read the glorious poem2 but were ,i to leave it out ,i should have lost1 not the sapphire of aspiration1 not the topaz of praise1 not the emerald of holiness1 but the carbuncle of delight from the high priest's breast-plate4 ,and ,i must give the introduction too3 it is the cloudy grove of an overture1 whence rushes the torrent of song4 ,,on ,,the ,,morning ,,of ,,christ',s ,,nativity4 ,this is the month1 and this the happy morn1 ,wherein the son of heaven's eternal king1 ,of wedded maid and virgin mother born1 ,our great redemption from above did bring2 ,for so the holy sages once did sing1 ,that he our deadly forfeit should release1 ,and with his ,father work us a perpetual peace4 ,that glorious form1 that light insufferable1 ,and that far-beaming blaze of majesty1 ,wherewith he wont#aji at heaven's high council-table ,to sit the midst of trinal unity1 ,he laid aside1 and here with us to be1 ,forsook the courts of everlasting day1 ,and chose with us a darksome house of mortal clay4 ,say1 heavenly ,muse1 shall not thy sacred vein ,afford a present to the infant ,god8 ,hast thou no verse1 no hymn1 or solemn strain ,to welcome him to this his new abode1 ,now while the heaven1 by the sun's team untrod1 ,hath took no print of the approaching light1 ,and all the spangled host keep watch in squadrons bright8 ,see how1 from far upon the eastern road1 ,the star-led wizards haste with odours sweet6 ,o run1 prevent them with thy humble ode1 ,and lay it lowly at his blessed feet2 ,have thou the honour first thy ,lord to greet2 ,and join thy voice unto the angel choir1 ,from out his secret altar touched with hallowed fire4 ,,the ,,hymn4 ,it was the winter wild ,while the heaven-born child ,all meanly wrapt in the rude manger lies2 ,nature1 in awe to him1 ,had doffed her gaudy trim1 ,with her great master so to sympathize3 ,it was no season then for her ,to wanton with the sun1 her lusty paramour4 ,only with speeches fair ,she woos the gentle air ,to hide her guilty front with innocent snow2 ,and on her naked shame1 ,pollute with sinful blame1 ,the saintly veil of maiden white to throw2 ,confounded that her maker's eyes ,should look so near upon her foul deformities4 ,but he1 her fears to cease1 ,sent down the meek-eyed ,peace4 ,she1 crowned with olive green1 came softly sliding ,down through the turning sphere1 ,his ready harbinger1 ,with turtle wing the amorous clouds dividing2 ,and waving wide her myrtle wand1 ,she strikes a universal peace through sea and land4 ,no war1 or battle's sound1 ,was heard the world around2 ,the idle spear and shield were high uphung2 ,the hookd chariot stood ,unstained with hostile blood2 ,the trumpet spake not to the armd throng2 ,and kings sat still with awful eye1 awe-filled4 ,as if they surely knew their sovereign ,lord was by4 ,but peaceful was the night ,wherein the ,prince of ,light ,his reign of peace upon the earth began2 ,the winds1 with wonder whist1 silent4 ,smoothly the water kissed1 ,whispering new joys to the mild ,ocen1 ,who now hath quite forgot to rave1 ,while birds of calm#aaj sit brooding on the charmd wave4 ,the stars with deep amaze ,stand fixed in stedfast gaze1 ,bending one way their precious influence2 ,and will not take their flight ,for all the morning light1 ,or ,lucifer1#aaa that often warned them thence2 ,but in their glimmering orbs did glow ,until their ,lord himself bespake1 and bid them go4 ,and though the shady gloom ,had given day her room1 ,the sun himself withheld his wonted speed1 ,and hid his head for shame1 ,as his inferior flame ,the new enlightened world no more should need3 ,he saw a greater sun appear ,than his bright throne or burning axle-tree could bear4 ,the shepherds on the lawn1 ,or e'er the point of dawn1 ere ever4 ,sat simply chatting in a rustic row3 ,full little thought they than then4 ,that the mighty ,pan#aab ,was kindly come to live with them below2 ,perhaps their loves1 or else their sheep1 ,was all that did their silly thoughts so busy keep4 ,when such music sweet ,their hearts and ears did greet ,as never was by mortal finger strook-- ,divinely warbled voice ,answering the stringd noise1 ,as all their souls in blissful rapture took3 ,the air1 such pleasure loath to lose1 ,with thousand echoes still prolongs each heavenly close4 ,nature1 that heard such sound1 ,beneath the hollow round ,of ,cynthia's seat#aac the airy region thrilling1 ,now was almost won ,to think her part was done1 ,and that her reign had here its last fulfilling3 ,she knew such harmony alone ,could hold all heaven and earth in happier union4 ,at last surrounds their sight ,a globe of circular light1 ,that with long beams the shame-faced night arrayed2 ,the helmd cherubim ,and sworded seraphim ,are seen in glittering ranks with wings displayed1 ,harping in loud and solemn choir1 ,with unexpressive#aad notes to heaven's new-born heir4 ,such music1 as 'tis said1 ,before was never made1 ,but when of old the sons of morning sung1 ,while the ,creator great ,his constellations set1 ,and the well-balanced world on hinges hung1#aae ,and cast the dark foundations deep1 ,and bid the weltering waves their oozy channel keep4 ,ring out1 ye crystal spheres2 ,once bless our human ears-- ,if ye have power to touch our senses so2#aaf ,and let your silver chime ,move in melodious time2 ,and let the bass of heaven's deep organ blow2 ,and1 with your ninefold harmony1 ,make up full consort#aag to the angelic symphony4#aah ,for if such holy song ,enwrap our fancy long1 ,time will run back and fetch the age of gold2 ,and speckled vanity ,will sicken soon and die2#aai ,and leprous sin will melt from earthly mould2 ,and hell itself will pass away1 ,and leave her dolorous mansions to the peering day4 ,yea1 truth and justice then ,will down return to men1 ,orbed in a rainbow2 and1 like glories wearing1 ,mercy will sit between1 ,throned in celestial sheen1 ,with radiant feet the tissued clouds down steering2 ,and heaven1 as at some festival1 ,will open wide the gates of her high palace-hall4 ,but wisest ,fate says ,no2 ,this must not yet be so4 ,the babe lies yet in smiling infancy1 ,that on the bitter cross ,must redeem our loss1 ,so both himself and us to glorify4 ,yet first1 to those y-chained in sleep1 ,the wakeful trump of doom must thunder through the deep1 ,with such a horrid clang ,as on ,mount ,sinai rang1 ,while the red fire and smouldering clouds outbrake3 ,the agd earth1 aghast ,with terror of that blast1 ,shall from the surface to the centre shake1 ,when1 at the world's last sessin1 ,the dreadful ,judge in middle air shall spread his throne4 ,and then at last our bliss ,full and perfect is3 ,but now begins2 for from this happy day1 ,the old dragon1 under ground ,in straiter limits bound1 ,not half so far casts his usurped sway2 ,and1 wroth to see his kingdom fail1 ,swinges#abj the scaly horror of his folded tail4#aba ,the oracles are dumb3#abb ,no voice or hideous hum ,runs through the archd roof in words deceiving2 ,apollo from his shrine ,can no more divine1 ,with hollow shriek the steep of ,delphos leaving2 ,no nightly trance1 or breathed spell1 ,inspires the pale-eyed priest from the prophetic cell4 ,the lonely mountains o'er1 ,and the resounding shore1 ,a voice of weeping heard and loud lament2 ,from haunted spring and dale1 ,edged with poplar pale1 ,the parting genius#abc is with sighing sent2 ,with flower-inwoven tresses torn1 ,the nymphs in twilight shade of tangled thickets mourn4 ,in consecrated earth1 ,and on the holy hearth1 ,the ,lars and ,lemures#abd moan with midnight plaint2 ,in urns and altars round1 ,a drear and dying sound ,affrights the flamens#abe at their service quaint2 ,and the chill marble seems to sweat1 ,while each peculiar power foregoes his wonted seat4 ,peor and ,balim ,forsake their temples dim1 ,with that twice-battered god of ,palestine2 ,and moond ,ashtaroth1 the ,assyrian ,venus4 ,heaven's queen and mother both1 ,now sits not girt with tapers' holy shine2 ,the ,lybic ,hammon shrinks his horn2#abf ,in vain the ,tyrian maids their wounded ,thammuz#abg mourn4 ,and sullen ,moloch1 fled1 ,hath left in shadows dread ,his burning idol1 all of blackest hue3 ,in vain with cymbals' ring ,they call the grisly#abh king1 ,in dismal dance about the furnace blue4 ,the brutish gods of ,nile as fast-- ,isis and ,orus and the dog ,anubis--haste4 ,nor is ,osiris#abi seen ,in ,memphian grove or green1 ,trampling the unshowered#acj grass with lowings loud2 ,nor can he be at rest ,within his sacred chest2 ,nought but profoundest hell can be his shroud2 ,in vain1 with timbrelled anthems dark1 ,the sable-stold sorcerers bear his worshipped ark3 ,he feels1 from ,judah's land1 ,the dreaded infant's hand2 ,the rays of ,bethlehem blind his dusky eyn4 ,nor all the gods beside ,longer dare abide-- ,not ,typhon huge1 ending in snaky twine3 ,our babe1 to show his ,godhead true1 ,can in his swaddling bands control the damnd crew4 ,so1 when the sun in bed1 ,curtained with cloudy red1 ,pillows his chin upon an orient wave1 ,the flocking shadows pale ,troop to the infernal jail-- ,each fettered ghost slips to his several grave2 ,and the yellow-skirted fays ,fly after the night-steeds1 leaving their moon-loved maze4 ,but see1 the ,virgin blest ,hath laid her babe to rest3 ,time is our tedious song should here have ending2 ,heaven's youngest-teemed star#aca ,hath fixed her polished car1 ,her sleeping ,lord with handmaid lamp attending2 ,and all about the courtly stable ,bright-harnessed#acb angels sit1 in order serviceable4#acc ,if my reader should think some of the rhymes bad1 and some of the words oddly used1 ,i would remind him that both pronunciations and meanings have altered since3 the probability is1 that the older forms in both are the better4 ,milton will not use a wrong word or a bad rhyme4 ,with regard to the form of the poem1 let him observe the variety of length of line in the stanza1 and how skilfully the varied lines are associated--two of six syllables and one of ten2 then the same repeated2 then one of eight and one of twelve--no two1 except of the shortest1 coming together of the same length4 ,its stanza is its own3 ,i do not know another poem written in the same2 and its music is exquisite4 ,the probability is that1 if the reader note any fact in the poem1 however trifling it might seem to the careless eye1 it will repay him by unfolding both individual and related beauty4 ,then let him ponder the pictures given3 the sudden arraying of the shame-faced night in long beams2 the amazed kings silent on their thrones2 the birds brooding on the sea3 he will find many such4 ,let him consider the clear-cut epithets1 so full of meaning4 ,a true poet may be at once known by the justice and force of the adjectives he uses1 especially when he compounds them1--that is1 makes one out of two4 ,here are some examples3 meek-eyed ,peace2 pale-eyed priest2 speckled vanity2 smouldering clouds2 hideous hum2 dismal dance2 dusky eyne3 there are many such1 each almost a poem in itself4 ,the whole is a succession of pictures set in the loveliest music for the utterance of grandest thoughts4 ,no doubt there are in the poem instances of such faults in style as were common in the age in which his verse was rooted3 for my own part1 ,i never liked the first two stanzas of the hymn4 ,but such instances are few2 while for a right feeling of the marvel of this poem and of the two preceding it1 we must remember that ,milton was only twenty-one when he wrote them4 ,apparently to make one of a set with the ,nativity1 he began to write an ode on the ,passion1 but1 finding the subject above the years he had when he wrote it1 and nothing satisfied with what was begun1 left it unfinished4 ,the fragment is full of unworthy1 though skilful1 and1 for such1 powerful conceits1 but is especially interesting as showing how even ,milton1 trying to write about what he felt1 but without yet having generated thoughts enow concerning the subject itself1 could only fall back on conventionalities4 ,happy the young poet the wisdom of whose earliest years was such that he recognized his mistake almost at the outset1 and dropped the attempt6 ,amongst the stanzas there is1 however1 one of exceeding loveliness3 ,he1 sovereign priest1 stooping his regal head1 ,that dropped with odorous oil down his fair eyes1 ,poor fleshly tabernacle enterd1 ,his starry front low-roofed beneath the skies4 ,oh what a masque was there6 what a disguise6 ,yet more6 the stroke of death he must abide2 ,then lies him meekly down fast by his brethren's side4 ,in this it will be seen that he has left the jubilant measure of the ,hymn1 and returned to the more stately and solemn rhyme-royal of its overture1 as more suited to his subject4 ,milton could not be wrong in his music1 even when he found the quarry of his thought too hard to work4 ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,,edmund ,,waller1 ,,thomas ,,brown1 ,,and ,,jeremy ,,taylor4 ,edmund ,waller1 born in #afje1 was three years older than ,milton2 but ,i had a fancy for not dividing ,herbert and ,milton4 ,as a poet he had a high reputation for many years1 gained chiefly1 ,i think1 by a regard to literary proprieties1 combined with wit4 ,he is graceful sometimes2 but what in his writings would with many pass for grace1 is only smoothness and the absence of faults4 ,his horses were not difficult to drive4 ,he dares little and succeeds in proportion--occasionally1 however1 flashing out into true song4 ,in politics he had no character--let us hope from weakness rather than from selfishness2 yet1 towards the close of his life1 he wrote some poems which reveal a man not unaccustomed to ponder sacred things1 and able to express his thoughts concerning them with force and justice4 ,from a poem called ,of ,divine ,love1 ,i gather the following very remarkable passages3 ,i wish they had been enforced by greater nobility of character4 ,still they are in themselves true4 ,even where we have no proof of repentance1 we may see plentiful signs of a growth towards it4 ,we cannot tell how long the truth may of necessity require to interpenetrate the ramifications of a man's nature4 ,by slow degrees he discovers that here it is not1 and there it is not4 ,again and again1 and yet again1 a man finds that he must be born with a new birth4 ,the fear of hell1 or aiming to be blest1 ,savours too much of private interest3 ,this moved not ,moses1 nor the zealous ,paul1 ,who for their friends abandoned soul and all2 ,a greater yet from heaven to hell descends1 ,to save and make his enemies his friends4 99 99 99 99 99 ,that early love of creatures yet unmade1 ,to frame the world the ,almighty did persuade4 ,for love it was that first created light1 ,moved on the waters1 chased away the night ,from the rude chaos2 and bestowed new grace ,on things disposed of to their proper place-- ,some to rest here1 and some to shine above3 ,earth1 sea1 and heaven1 were all the effects of love4 99 99 99 99 99 ,not willing terror should his image move1 ,he gives a pattern of eternal love3 ,his son descends1 to treat a peace with those ,which were1 and must have ever been1 his foes4 ,poor he became1 and left his glorious seat1 ,to make us humble1 and to make us great2 ,his business here was happiness to give ,to those whose malice could not let him live4 99 99 99 99 99 ,he to proud potentates would not be known3 ,of those that loved him1 he was hid from none4 ,till love appear1 we live in anxious doubt2 ,but smoke will vanish when that flame breaks out3 ,this is the fire that would consume our dross1 ,refine1 and make us richer by the loss4 99 99 99 99 99 ,who for himself no miracle would make1 ,dispensed with#acd several for the people's sake4 ,he that1 long-fasting1 would no wonder show1 ,made loaves and fishes1 as they eat them1 grow4 ,of all his power1 which boundless was above1 ,here he used none but to express his love2 ,and such a love would make our joy exceed1 ,not when our own1 but others' mouths we feed4 99 99 99 99 99 ,love as he loved6 ,a love so unconfined ,with arms extended would embrace mankind4 ,self-love would cease1 or be dilated1 when ,we should behold as many selfs as men2 ,all of one family1 in blood allied1 ,his precious blood that for our ransom died4 99 99 99 99 99 ,amazed at once and comforted1 to find ,a boundless power so infinitely kind1 ,the soul contending to that light to fly ,from her dark cell1 we practise how to die1 ,employing thus the poet's wingd art ,to reach this love1 and grave it in our heart4 ,joy so complete1 so solid1 and severe1 ,would leave no place for meaner pleasures there3 ,pale they would look1 as stars that must be gone ,when from the east the rising sun comes on4 99 99 99 99 99 ,to that and some other poems he adds the following--a kind of epilogue4 ,,on ,,the ,,foregoing ,,divine ,,poems4 ,when we for age could neither read nor write1 ,the subject made us able to indite3 ,the soul with nobler resolutions decked1 ,the body stooping1 does herself erect3 ,no mortal parts are requisite to raise ,her that unbodied can her ,maker praise4 ,the seas are quiet when the winds give o'er3 ,so calm are we when passions are no more2 ,for then we know how vain it was to boast ,of fleeting things1 so certain to be lost4 ,clouds of affection from our younger eyes passion4 ,conceal that emptiness which age descries4 ,the soul's dark cottage1 battered and decayed1 ,lets in new light1 through chinks that time has made3 ,stronger by weakness1 wiser men become1 ,as they draw near to their eternal home4 ,leaving the old1 both worlds at once they view ,that stand upon the threshold of the new4 ,it would be a poor victory where age was the sole conqueror4 ,but ,i doubt if age ever gains the victory alone4 ,let ,waller1 however1 have this praise3 his song soars with his subject4 ,it is a true praise4 ,there are men who write well until they try the noble1 and then they fare like the falling star1 which1 when sought where it fell1 is1 according to an old fancy1 discovered a poor jelly4 ,sir ,thomas ,brown1 a physician1 whose prose writings are as peculiar as they are valuable1 was of the same age as ,waller4 ,he partakes to a considerable degree of the mysticism which was so much followed in his day1 only in his case it influences his literature most--his mode of utterance more than his mode of thought4 ,his ,true ,christian ,morals is a very valuable book1 notwithstanding the obscurity that sometimes arises in that1 as in all his writings1 from his fondness for ,latin words4 ,the following fine hymn occurs in his ,religio ,medici1 in which he gives an account of his opinions4 ,i am not aware of anything else that he has published in verse1 though he must probably have written more to be able to write this so well4 ,it occurs in the midst of prose1 as the prayer he says every night before he yields to the death of sleep4 ,i follow it with the succeeding sentence of the prose4 ,the night is come4 ,like to the day1 ,depart not thou1 great ,god1 away4 ,let not my sins1 black as the night1 ,eclipse the lustre of thy light4 ,keep still in my horizon1 for to me ,the sun makes not the day but thee4 ,thou whose nature cannot sleep1 ,on my temples sentry keep2 ,guard me 'gainst those watchful foes ,whose eyes are open while mine close4 ,let no dreams my head infest ,but such as ,jacob's temples blest4 ,while ,i do rest1 my soul advance2 ,make my sleep a holy trance1 ,that ,i may1 my rest being wroughtt ,awake into some holy thought1 ,and with as active vigour run ,my course as doth the nimble sun4 ,sleep is a death3 ,o make me try ,by sleeping what it is to die1 ,and as gently lay my head ,on my grave1 as now my bed4 ,howe'er ,i rest1 great ,god1 let me ,awake again at least with thee4 ,and thus assured1 behold ,i lie ,securely1 or to wake or die4 ,these are my drowsy days3 in vain ,i do now wake to sleep again3 ,o come that hour when ,i shall never ,sleep again1 but wake for ever4 ,this is the dormitive ,i take to bedward4 ,i need no other laudanum than this to make me sleep2 after which ,i close mine eyes in security1 content to take my leave of the sun1 and sleep unto the resurrection4 ,jeremy ,taylor1 born in #afac1 was the most poetic of ,english prose-writers3 if he had written verse equal to his prose1 he would have had a lofty place amongst poets as well as amongst preachers4 ,taking the opposite side from ,milton1 than whom he was five years younger1 he was1 like him1 conscientious and consistent1 suffering while ,milton's cause prospered1 and advanced to one of the bishoprics hated of ,milton's soul when the scales of ,england's politics turned in the other direction4 ,such men1 however1 are divided only by their intellects4 ,when men say1 ,i must or ,i must not1 for it is right or it is not right1 then are they in reality so bound together1 even should they not acknowledge it themselves1 that no opposing opinions1 no conflicting theories concerning what is or is not right1 can really part them4 ,it was not wonderful that a mind like that of ,jeremy ,taylor1 best fitted for worshipping the beauty of holiness1 should mourn over the disrupted order of his church1 or that a mind like ,milton's1 best fitted for the law of life1 should demand that every part of that order which had ceased to vibrate responsive to every throb of the eternal heart of truth1 should fall into the ruin which its death had preceded4 ,the church was hardly dealt with1 but the rulers of the church have to bear the blame4 ,here are those ,i judge the best of the bishop's ,festival ,hymns1 printed as part of his ,golden ,grove1 or ,gide to ,devotion4 ,in the first there is a little confusion of imagery2 and in others of them will be found a little obscurity4 ,they bear marks of the careless impatience of rhythm and rhyme of one who though ever bursting into a natural trill of song1 sometimes with more rhymes apparently than he intended1 would yet rather let his thoughts pour themselves out in that unmeasured chant1 that poetry in solution1 which is the natural speech of the prophet-orator4 ,he is like a full river that must flow1 which rejoices in a flood1 and rebels against the constraint of mole or conduit4 ,he exults in utterance itself1 caring little for the mode1 which1 however1 the law of his indwelling melody guides though never compels4 ,charmingly diffuse in his prose1 his verse ever sounds as if it would overflow the banks of its self-imposed restraints4 ,,the ,,second ,,hymn ,,for ,,advent2 ,,or1 ,,christ',s ,,coming ,,to ,,jerusalem ,,in ,,triumph4 ,lord1 come away2 ,why dost thou stay8 ,thy road is ready2 and thy paths made straight ,with longing expectation wait ,the consecration of thy beauteous feet4 ,ride on triumphantly3 behold we lay ,our lusts and proud wills in thy way4 ,hosanna6 welcome to our hearts6 ,lord1 here ,thou hast a temple too1 and full as dear ,as that of ,sion1 and as full of sin3 ,nothing but thieves and robbers dwell therein4 ,enter1 and chase them forth1 and cleanse the floor2 ,crucify them1 that they may never more ,profane that holy place ,where thou hast chose to set thy face4 ,and then if our stiff tongues shall be ,mute in the praises of thy deity1 ,the stones out of the temple-wall ,shall cry aloud and call ,hosanna6 and thy glorious footsteps greet4 ,,hymn ,,for ,,christmas-,,day2 ,,being ,a ,,dialogue ,,between ,,three ,,shepherds4 #a4 ,where is this blessed babe ,that hath made ,all the world so full of joy ,and expectation2 ,that glorious boy ,that crowns each nation ,with a triumphant wreath of blessedness8 #b4 ,where should he be but in the throng1 ,and among ,his angel ministers that sing ,and take wing ,just as may echo to his voice1 ,and rejoice1 ,when wing and tongue and all ,may so procure their happiness8 #c4 ,but he hath other waiters now3 ,a poor cow ,an ox and mule stand and behold1 ,and wonder ,that a stable should enfold ,him that can thunder4 ,chorus4 ,o what a gracious ,god have we6 ,how good8 ,how great8 ,even as our misery4 ,a ,,hymn ,,for ,,christmas-,,day4 ,awake1 my soul1 and come away2 ,put on thy best array1 ,lest if thou longer stay1 ,thou lose some minutes of so blest a day4 ,go run1 ,and bid good-morrow to the sun2 ,welcome his safe return ,to ,capricorn1 ,and that great morn ,wherein a ,god was born1 ,whose story none can tell ,but he whose every word's a miracle4 ,to-day ,almightiness grew weak2 ,the ,word itself was mute1 and could not speak4 ,that ,jacob's star which made the sun ,to dazzle if he durst look on1 ,now mantled o'er in ,bethlehem's night1 ,borrowed a star to show him light4 ,he that begirt each zone1 ,to whom both poles are one1 ,who grasped the zodiac in his hand1 ,and made it move or stand1 ,is now by nature man1 ,by stature but a span2 ,eternity is now grown short2 ,a king is born without a court2 ,the water thirsts2 the fountain's dry2 ,and life1 being born1 made apt to die4 ,chorus4 ,then let our praises emulate and vie ,with his humility6 ,since he's exiled from skies ,that we might rise1-- ,from low estate of men ,let's sing him up again6 ,each man wind up his heart ,to bear a part ,in that angelic choir1 and show ,his glory high1 as he was low4 ,let's sing towards men goodwill and charity1 ,peace upon earth1 glory to ,god on high6 ,hallelujah6 ,hallelujah6 ,,the ,,prayer4 ,my soul doth pant towards thee1 ,my ,god1 source of eternal life4 ,flesh fights with me3 ,oh end the strife1 ,and part us1 that in peace ,i may ,unclay ,my wearied spirit1 and take ,my flight to thy eternal spring1 ,where1 for his sake ,who is my king1 ,i may wash all my tears away1 ,that day4 ,thou conqueror of death1 ,glorious triumpher o'er the grave1 ,whose holy breath ,was spent to save ,lost mankind1 make me to be styled ,thy child1 ,and take me when ,i die ,and go unto my dust2 my soul ,above the sky ,with saints enrol1 ,that in thy arms1 for ever1 ,i ,may lie4 ,this last is quite regular1 that is1 the second stanza is arranged precisely as the first1 though such will not appear to be the case without examination3 the disposition of the lines1 so various in length1 is confusing though not confused4 ,in these poems will be found that love of homeliness which is characteristic of all true poets--and orators too1 in as far as they are poets4 ,the meeting of the homely and the grand is heaven4 ,one more4 ,a ,,prayer ,,for ,,charity4 ,full of mercy1 full of love1 ,look upon us from above2 ,thou who taught'st the blind man's night ,to entertain a double light1 ,thine and the day's--and that thine too3 ,the lame away his crutches threw2 ,the parchd crust of leprosy ,returned unto its infancy2 ,the dumb amazd was to hear ,his own unchain'd tongue strike his ear2 ,thy powerful mercy did even chase ,the devil from his usurpd place1 ,where thou thyself shouldst dwell1 not he3 ,oh let thy love our pattern be2 ,let thy mercy teach one brother ,to forgive and love another2 ,that copying thy mercy here1 ,thy goodness may hereafter rear ,our souls unto thy glory1 when ,our dust shall cease to be with men4 ,amen4 ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,,henry ,,more ,,and ,,richard ,,baxter4 ,dr4 ,henry ,more was born in the year #afad4 ,chiefly known for his mystical philosophy1 which he cultivated in retirement at ,cambridge1 and taught not only in prose1 but in an elaborate1 occasionally poetic poem1 of somewhere about a thousand ,spenserian stanzas1 called ,a ,platonic ,song of the ,soul1 he has left some smaller poems1 from which ,i shall gather good store for my readers4 ,whatever may be thought of his theories1 they belong at least to the highest order of philosophy2 and it will be seen from the poems ,i give that they must have borne their part in lifting the soul of the man towards a lofty spiritual condition of faith and fearlessness4 ,the mystical philosophy seems to me safe enough in the hands of a poet3 with others it may degenerate into dank and dusty materialism4 ,,resolution4 ,where's now the objects of thy fears1 ,needless sighs1 and fruitless tears8 ,they be all gone like idle dream ,suggested from the body's steam4 99 99 99 99 99 ,what's plague and prison8 ,loss of friends8 ,war1 dearth1 and death that all things ends8 ,mere bugbears for the childish mind2 ,pure panic terrors of the blind4 ,collect thy soul unto one sphere ,of light1 and 'bove the earth it rear2 ,those wild scattered thoughts that erst ,lay loosely in the world dispersed1 ,call in3--thy spirit thus knit in one ,fair lucid orb1 those fears be gone ,like vain impostures of the night1 ,that fly before the morning bright4 ,then with pure eyes thou shalt behold ,how the first goodness doth infold ,all things in loving tender arms2 ,that deemd mischiefs are no harms1 ,but sovereign salves and skilful cures ,of greater woes the world endures2 ,that man's stout soul may win a state ,far raised above the reach of fate4 ,then wilt thou say1 ,god rules the world1 ,though mountain over mountain hurled ,be pitched amid the foaming main ,which busy winds to wrath constrain2 99 99 99 99 99 ,though pitchy blasts from hell up-born ,stop the outgoings of the morn1 ,and ,nature play her fiery games ,in this forced night1 with fulgurant flames3 99 99 99 99 99 ,all this confusion cannot move ,the purgd mind1 freed from the love ,of commerce with her body dear1 ,cell of sad thoughts1 sole spring of fear4 ,whate'er ,i feel or hear or see ,threats but these parts that mortal be4 ,nought can the honest heart dismay ,unless the love of living clay1 ,and long acquaintance with the light ,of this outworld1 and what to sight ,those two officious beams#ace discover ,of forms that round about us hover4 ,power1 wisdom1 goodness1 sure did frame ,this universe1 and still guide the same4 ,but thoughts from passions sprung1 deceive ,vain mortals4 ,no man can contrive ,a better course than what's been run ,since the first circuit of the sun4 ,he that beholds all from on high ,knows better what to do than ,i4 ,i'm not mine own3 should ,i repine ,if he dispose of what's not mine8 ,purge but thy soul of blind self-will1 ,thou straight shall see ,god doth no ill4 ,the world he fills with the bright rays ,of his free goodness4 ,he displays ,himself throughout4 ,like common air ,that spirit of life through all doth fare1 ,sucked in by them as vital breath ,that willingly embrace not death4 ,but those that with that living law ,be unacquainted1 cares do gnaw2 ,mistrust of ,god's good providence ,doth daily vex their wearied sense4 ,now place me on the ,libyan soil1 ,with scorching sun and sands to toil1 ,far from the view of spring or tree1 ,where neither man nor house ,i see2 99 99 99 99 99 ,commit me at my next remove ,to icy ,hyperborean ove2 ,confine me to the arctic pole1 ,where the numb'd heavens do slowly roll2 ,to lands where cold raw heavy mist ,sol's kindly warmth and light resists2 ,where lowering clouds full fraught with snow ,do sternly scowl2 where winds do blow ,with bitter blasts1 and pierce the skin1 ,forcing the vital spirits in1 ,which leave the body thus ill bested1 ,in this chill plight at least half-dead2 ,yet by an antiperistasis#acf ,my inward heat more kindled is2 ,and while this flesh her breath expires1 ,my spirit shall suck celestial fires ,by deep-fetched sighs and pure devotion4 ,thus waxen hot with holy motion1 ,at once ,i'll break forth in a flame2 ,above this world and worthless fame ,i'll take my flight1 careless that men ,know not how1 where ,i die1 or when4 ,yea1 though the soul should mortal prove1 ,so be ,god's life but in me move ,to my last breath--,i'm satisfied ,a lonesome mortal ,god to have died4 ,this last paragraph is magnificent as any single passage ,i know in literature4 ,is it lawful1 after reading this1 to wonder whether ,henry ,more1 the retired1 and so far untried1 student of ,cambridge1 would have been able thus to meet the alternations of suffering which he imagines8 ,it is one thing to see reasonableness1 another to be reasonable when objects have become circumstances4 ,would he1 then1 by spiritual might1 have risen indeed above bodily torture8 ,it is possible for a man to arrive at this perfection2 it is absolutely necessary that a man should some day or other reach it2 and ,i think the wise doctor would have proved the truth of his principles4 ,but there are many who would gladly part with their whole bodies rather than offend1 and could not yet so rise above the invasions of the senses4 ,here1 as in less important things1 our business is not to speculate what we would do in other circumstances1 but to perform the duty of the moment1 the one true preparation for the duty to come4 ,possibly1 however1 the right development of our human relations in the world may be a more difficult and more important task still than this condition of divine alienation4 ,to find ,god in others is better than to grow solely in the discovery of him in ourselves1 if indeed the latter were possible4 ,,devotion4 ,good ,god1 when them thy inward grace dost shower ,into my breast1 ,how full of light and lively power ,is then my soul6 ,how am ,i blest6 ,how can ,i then all difficulties devour6 ,thy might1 ,thy spright1 ,with ease my cumbrous enemy control4 ,if thou once turn away thy face and hide ,thy cheerful look1 ,my feeble flesh may not abide ,that dreadful stound2 hour4 ,i cannot brook ,thy absence4 ,my heart1 with care and grief then gride1 ,doth fail1 ,doth quail2 ,my life steals from me at that hidden wound4 ,my fancy's then a burden to my mind2 ,mine anxious thought ,betrays my reason1 makes me blind2 ,near dangers drad dreaded4 ,make me distraught2 ,surprised with fear my senses all ,i find3 ,in hell ,i dwell1 ,oppressed with horror1 pain1 and sorrow sad4 ,my former resolutions all are fled-- ,slipped over my tongue2 ,my faith1 my hope1 and joy are dead4 ,assist my heart1 ,rather than my song1 ,my ,god1 my ,saviour6 ,when ,i'm ill-bested4 ,stand by1 ,and ,i ,shall bear with courage undeservd smart4 ,,the ,,philosopher',s ,,devotion4 ,sing aloud6--,his praise rehearse ,who hath made the universe4 ,he the boundless heavens has spread1 ,all the vital orbs has kned1 kneaded4 ,he that on ,olympus high ,tends his flocks with watchful eye1 ,and this eye has multiplied suns1 as centres of systems4 ,midst each flock for to reside4 ,thus1 as round about they stray1 ,toucheth#acg each with outstretched ray2 ,nimble they hold on their way1 ,shaping out their night and day4 ,summer1 winter1 autumn1 spring1 ,their inclined axes bring4 ,never slack they2 none respires1 ,dancing round their central fires4 ,in due order as they move1 ,echoes sweet be gently drove ,thorough heaven's vast hollowness1 ,which unto all corners press3 ,music that the heart of ,jove ,moves to joy and sportful love2 ,fills the listening sailers' ears ,riding on the wandering spheres3 ,neither speech nor language is ,where their voice is not transmiss4 ,god is good1 is wise1 is strong1 ,witness all the creature throng1 ,is confessed by every tongue2 ,all things back from whence they sprung1 go back--a verb4 ,as the thankful rivers pay ,what they borrowed of the sea4 ,now myself ,i do resign3 ,take me whole3 ,i all am thine4 ,save me1 ,god1 from self-desire-- ,death's pit1 dark hell's raging fire--#ach ,envy1 hatred1 vengeance1 ire2 ,let not lust my soul bemire4 ,quit from these1 thy praise ,i'll sing1 ,loudly sweep the trembling string4 ,bear a part1 ,o ,wisdom's sons1 ,freed from vain religons6 ,lo6 from far ,i you salute1 ,sweetly warbling on my lute-- ,india1 ,egypt1 ,araby1 ,asia1 ,greece1 and ,tartary1 ,carmel-tracts1 and ,lebanon1 ,with the ,mountains of the ,moon1 ,from whence muddy ,nile doth run1 ,or wherever else you won3 dwell4 ,breathing in one vital air1 ,one we are though distant far4 ,rise at once2--let's sacrifice3 ,odours sweet perfume the skies2 ,see how heavenly lightning fires ,hearts inflamed with high aspires6 ,all the substance of our souls ,up in clouds of incense rolls4 ,leave we nothing to ourselves ,save a voice--what need we else6 ,or an hand to wear and tire ,on the thankful lute or lyre6 ,sing aloud6--,his praise rehearse ,who hath made the universe4 ,in this ,philosopher's ,devotion he has clearly imitated one of those psalms of ,george ,sandys which ,i have given4 ,,charity ,,and ,,humility4 ,far have ,i clambered in my mind1 ,but nought so great as love ,i find3 ,deep-searching wit1 mount-moving might1 ,are nought compared to that good sprite4 ,life of delight and soul of bliss6 ,sure source of lasting happiness6 ,higher than heaven6 lower than hell6 ,what is thy tent8 ,where may'st thou dwell8 ,my mansion hight ,humility1 is named4 ,heaven's vastest capability4 ,the further it doth downward tend1 ,the higher up it doth ascend2 ,if it go down to utmost nought1 ,it shall return with that it sought4 ,lord1 stretch thy tent in my strait breast2 ,enlarge it downward1 that sure rest ,may there be pight for that pure fire pitched4 ,wherewith thou wontest to inspire ,all self-dead souls3 my life is gone2 ,sad solitude's my irksome won2 dwelling4 ,cut off from men and all this world1 ,in ,lethe's lonesome ditch ,i'm hurled2 ,nor might nor sight doth ought me move1 ,nor do ,i care to be above4 ,o feeble rays of mental light1 ,that best be seen in this dark night1 ,what are you8 ,what is any strength ,if it be not laid in one length ,with pride or love8 ,i nought desire ,but a new life1 or quite to expire4 ,could ,i demolish with mine eye ,strong towers1 stop the fleet stars in sky1 ,bring down to earth the pale-faced moon1 ,or turn black midnight to bright noon2 ,though all things were put in my hand-- ,as parched1 as dry as the ,libyan sand ,would be my life1 if charity ,were wanting4 ,but humility ,is more than my poor soul durst crave ,that lies entombed in lowly grave2 ,but if 'twere lawful up to send ,my voice to heaven1 this should it rend3 ,lord1 thrust me deeper into dust1 ,that thou may'st raise me with the just4 ,there are strange things and worth pondering in all these4 ,an occasional classical allusion seems to us quite out of place1 but such things we must pass4 ,the poems are quite different from any we have had before4 ,there has been only a few of such writers in our nation1 but ,i suspect those have had a good deal more influence upon the religious life of it than many thinkers suppose4 ,they are in closest sympathy with the deeper forms of truth employed by ,st4 ,paul and ,st4 ,john4 ,this last poem1 concerning humility as the house in which charity dwells1 is very truth4 ,a repentant sinner feels that he is making himself little when he prays to be made humble3 the ,christian philosopher sees such a glory and spiritual wealth in humility that it appears to him almost too much to pray for4 ,the very essence of these mystical writers seems to me to be poetry4 ,they use the largest figures for the largest spiritual ideas--light for good1 darkness for evil4 ,such symbols are the true bodies of the true ideas4 ,for this service mainly what we term nature was called into being1 namely1 to furnish forms for truths1 for without form truth cannot be uttered4 ,having found their symbols1 these writers next proceed to use them logically2 and here begins the peculiar danger4 ,when the logic leaves the poetry behind1 it grows first presumptuous1 then hard1 then narrow and untrue to the original breadth of the symbol2 the glory of the symbol vanishes2 and the final result is a worship of the symbol1 which has withered into an apple of ,sodom4 ,witness some of the writings of the ,european master of the order--,swedenborg3 the highest of them are rich in truth2 the lowest are poverty-stricken indeed4 ,in #afae was born ,richard ,baxter1 one of the purest and wisest and devoutest of men--and no mean poet either4 ,if ever a man sought between contending parties to do his duty1 siding with each as each appeared right1 opposing each as each appeared wrong1 surely that man was ,baxter4 ,hence he fared as all men too wise to be partisans must fare--he pleased neither ,royalists nor ,puritans4 ,dull of heart and sadly unlike a mother was the ,church when1 by the ,act of ,uniformity of ,charles ,,ii41 she drove from her bosom such a son1 with his two thousand brethren of the clergy6 ,he has left us a good deal of verse--too much1 perhaps1 if we consider the length of the poems and the value of condensation4 ,there is in many of them a delightful fervour of the simplest love to ,god1 uttered with a plain half poetic1 half logical strength1 from which sometimes the poetry breaks out clear and fine4 ,much that he writes is of death1 from the dread of which he evidently suffered--a good thing when it drives a man to renew his confidence in his ,saviour's presence4 ,it has with him a very different origin from the vulgar fancy that to talk about death is religious4 ,it was refuge from the fear of death he sought1 and that is the part of every man who would not be a slave4 ,the door of death of which he so often speaks is to him a door out of the fear of death4 ,the poem from which the following excerpt is made was evidently written in view of some imminent suffering for conscience-sake1 probably when the ,act of ,uniformity was passed3 twenty years after1 he was imprisoned at the age of sixty-seven1 and lay nearly a year and a half4--,i omit many verses4 ,,the ,,resolution4 ,it's no great matter what men deem1 ,whether they count me good or bad3 ,in their applause and best esteem1 ,there's no contentment to be had4 ,thy steps1 ,lord1 in this dirt ,i see2 ,and lest my soul from ,god should stray1 ,i'll bear my cross and follow thee3 ,let others choose the fairer way4 ,my face is meeter for the spit2 ,i am more suitable to shame1 ,and to the taunts of scornful wit3 ,it's no great matter for my name4 ,my ,lord hath taught me how to want ,a place wherein to put my head3 ,while he is mine1 ,i'll be content ,to beg or lack my daily bread4 ,must ,i forsake the soil and air ,where first ,i drew my vital breath8 ,that way may be as near and fair3 ,thence ,i may come to thee by death4 ,all countries are my ,father's lands2 ,thy sun1 thy love1 doth shine on all2 ,we may in all lift up pure hands1 ,and with acceptance on thee call4 ,what if in prison ,i must dwell8 ,may ,i not there converse with thee8 ,save me from sin1 thy wrath1 and hell1 ,call me thy child1 and ,i am free4 ,no walls or bars can keep thee out2 ,none can confine a holy soul2 ,the streets of heaven it walks about2 ,none can its liberty control4 ,this flesh hath drawn my soul to sin3 ,if it must smart1 thy will be done6 ,o fill me with thy joys within1 ,and then ,i'll let it grieve alone4 ,frail1 sinful flesh is loath to die2 ,sense to the unseen world is strange2 ,the doubting soul dreads the ,most ,high1 ,and trembleth at so great a change4 ,o let me not be strange at home1 ,strange to the sun and life of souls1 ,choosing this low and darkened room1 ,familiar with worms and moles6 ,am ,i the first that go this way8 ,how many saints are gone before6 ,how many enter every day ,into thy kingdom by this door6 ,christ was once dead1 and in a grave2 ,yet conquered death1 and rose again2 ,and by this method he will save ,his servants that with him shall reign4 ,the strangeness will be quickly over1 ,when once the heaven-born soul is there3 ,one sight of ,god will it recover ,from all this backwardness and fear4 ,to us1 ,christ's lowest parts1 his feet1 ,union and faith must yet suffice ,to guide and comfort us3 it's meet ,we trust our head who hath our eyes4 ,we see here that faith in the ,lord leads ,richard ,baxter to the same conclusions immediately to which his faithful philosophy led ,henry ,more4 ,there is much in ,baxter's poems that ,i would gladly quote1 but must leave with regret4 ,here is a curious1 skilful1 and1 in a homely way1 poetic ballad1 embodying a good parable4 ,i give only a few of the stanzas4 ,,the ,,return4 ,who was it that ,i left behind ,when ,i went last from home1 ,that now ,i all disordered find ,when to myself ,i come8 ,i left it light1 but now all's dark1 ,and ,i am fain to grope3 ,were it not for one little spark ,i should be out of hope4 ,my ,gospel-book ,i open left1 ,where ,i the promise saw2 ,but now ,i doubt it's lost by theft3 ,i find none but the ,law4 ,the stormy rain an entrance hath ,through the uncovered top3 ,how should ,i rest when showers of wrath ,upon my conscience drop8 ,i locked my jewel in my chest2 ,i'll search lest that be gone3-- ,if this one guest had quit my breast1 ,i had been quite undone4 ,my treacherous ,flesh had played its part1 ,and opened ,sin the door2 ,and they have spoiled and robbed my heart1 ,and left it sad and poor4 ,yet have ,i one great trusty friend ,that will procure my peace1 ,and all this loss and ruin mend1 ,and purchase my release4 ,the bellows ,i'll yet take in hand1 ,till this small spark shall flame3 ,love shall my heart and tongue command ,to praise ,god's holy name4 ,i'll mend the roof2 ,i'll watch the door1 ,and better keep the key2 ,i'll trust my treacherous flesh no more1 ,but force it to obey4 ,what have ,i said8 ,that ,i'll do this ,that am so false and weak1 ,and have so often done amiss1 ,and did my covenants break8 ,i mean1 ,lord--all this shall be done ,if thou my heart wilt raise2 ,and as the work must be thine own1 ,so also shall the praise4 ,the allegory is so good that one is absolutely sorry when it breaks down1 and the poem says in plain words that which is the subject of the figures1 bringing truths unmasked into the midst of the maskers who represent truths--thus interrupting the pleasure of the artistic sense in the transparent illusion4 ,the command of metrical form in ,baxter is somewhat remarkable4 ,he has not much melody1 but he keeps good time in a variety of measures4 ,,chapter ,,xvii4 ,,crashaw ,,and ,,marvell4 ,i come now to one of the loveliest of our angel-birds1 ,richard ,crashaw4 ,indeed he was like a bird in more senses than one2 for he belongs to that class of men who seem hardly ever to get foot-hold of this world1 but are ever floating in the upper air of it4 ,what ,i said of a peculiar olian word-music in ,william ,drummond applies with equal truth to ,crashaw2 while of our own poets1 somehow or other1 he reminds me of ,shelley1 in the silvery shine and bell-like melody both of his verse and his imagery2 and in one of his poems1 ,music's ,duel1 the fineness of his phrase reminds me of ,keats4 ,but ,i must not forget that it is only with his sacred1 his best poems too1 that ,i am now concerned4 ,the date of his birth is not known with certainty1 but it is judged about #afaf1 the year of ,shakspere's death4 ,he was the son of a ,protestant clergyman zealous even to controversy4 ,by a not unnatural reaction ,crashaw1 by that time1 it is said1 a popular preacher1 when expelled from ,oxford in #afdd by the ,puritan ,parliament because of his refusal to sign their ,covenant1 became a ,roman ,catholic4 ,he died about the age of thirty-four1 a canon of the ,church of ,loretto4 ,there is much in his verses of that sentimentalism which1 ,i have already said in speaking of ,southwell1 is rife in modern ,catholic poetry4 ,i will give from ,crashaw a specimen of the kind of it4 ,avoiding a more sacred object1 one stanza from a poem of thirty-one1 most musical1 and full of lovely speech concerning the tears of ,mary ,magdalen1 will suit my purpose4 ,hail1 sister springs1 ,parents of silver-footed rills6 ,ever-bubbling things6 ,thawing crystal6 ,snowy hills1 ,still spending1 never spent6--,i mean ,thy fair eyes1 sweet ,magdalene6 ,the poem is called ,the ,weeper1 and is radiant of delicate fancy4 ,but surely such tones are not worthy of flitting moth-like about the holy sorrow of a repentant woman6 ,fantastically beautiful1 they but play with her grief4 ,sorrow herself would put her shoes off her feet in approaching the weeping ,magdalene4 ,they make much of her indeed1 but they show her little reverence4 ,there is in them1 notwithstanding their fervour of amorous words1 a coldness like that which dwells in the ghostly beauty of icicles shining in the moon4 ,but ,i almost reproach myself for introducing ,crashaw thus4 ,i had to point out the fact1 and now having done with it1 ,i could heartily wish ,i had room to expatiate on his loveliness even in such poems as ,the ,weeper4 ,his ,divine ,epigrams are not the most beautiful1 but they are to me the most valuable of his verses1 inasmuch as they make us feel afresh the truth which he sets forth anew4 ,in them some of the facts of our ,lord's life and teaching look out upon us as from clear windows of the past4 ,as epigrams1 too1 they are excellent--pointed as a lance4 ,upon the ,sepulchre of our ,lord4 ,here1 where our ,lord once laid his head1 ,now the grave lies burid4 ,the ,widow's ,mites4 ,two mites1 two drops1 yet all her house and land1 ,fall from a steady heart1 though trembling hand2 ,the other's wanton wealth foams high and brave3 ,the other cast away--she only gave4 ,on the ,prodigal4 ,tell me1 bright boy6 tell me1 my golden lad6 ,whither away so frolic8 ,why so glad8 ,what6 all thy wealth in council8 all thy state8 ,are husks so dear8 ,troth1 'tis a mighty rate6 ,i value the following as a lovely parable4 ,mary is not contented3 to see the place is little comfort4 ,the church itself1 with all its memories of the ,lord1 the gospel-story1 and all theory about him1 is but his tomb until we find himself4 ,come1 see the place-where the ,lord lay4 ,show me himself1 himself1 bright sir6 ,oh show ,which way my poor tears to himself may go4 ,were it enough to show the place1 and say1 ,look1 ,mary2 here see where thy ,lord once lay2 ,then could ,i show these arms of mine1 and say1 ,look1 ,mary2 here see where thy ,lord once lay4 ,from one of eight lines1 on the ,mother ,mary looking on her child in her lap1 ,i take the last two1 complete in themselves1 and ,i think best alone4 ,this new guest to her eyes new laws hath given3 ',twas once look up1 'tis now look down to heaven4 ,and here is perhaps his best4 ,two went up into the ,temple to pray4 ,two went to pray8 ,oh rather say1 ,one went to brag1 the other to pray4 ,one stands up close1 and treads on high1 ,where the other dares not lend his eye4 ,one nearer to ,god's altar trod2 ,the other to the altar's ,god4 ,this appears to me perfect4 ,here is the true relation between the forms and the end of religion4 ,the priesthood1 the altar and all its ceremonies1 must vanish from between the sinner and his ,god4 ,when the priest forgets his mediation of a servant1 his duty of a door-keeper to the temple of truth1 and takes upon him the office of an intercessor1 he stands between man and ,god1 and is a ,satan1 an adversary4 ,artistically considered1 the poem could hardly be improved4 ,here is another containing a similar lesson4 ,i am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof4 ,thy ,god was making haste into thy roof2 ,thy humble faith and fear keeps him aloof4 ,he'll be thy guest3 because he may not be1 ,he'll come--into thy house8 ,no2 into thee4 ,the following is a world-wide intercession for them that know not what they do4 ,of those that reject the truth1 who can be said ever to have truly seen it8 ,a man must be good to see truth4 ,it is a thought suggested by our ,lord's words1 not an irreverent opposition to the truth of them4 ,but now they have seen and hated4 ,seen8 and yet hated thee8 ,they did not see-- ,they saw thee not1 that saw and hated thee6 ,no1 no2 they saw thee not1 ,o ,life6 ,o ,love6 ,who saw aught in thee that their hate could move4 ,we must not be too ready to quarrel with every oddity3 an oddity will sometimes just give the start to an outbreak of song4 ,the strangeness of the following hymn rises almost into grandeur4 ,,easter ,,day4 ,rise1 heir of fresh eternity1 ,from thy virgin-tomb2 ,rise1 mighty man of wonders1 and thy world with thee2 ,thy tomb1 the universal ,east-- ,nature's new womb2 ,thy tomb--fair ,immortality's perfumed nest4 ,of all the glories#aci make noon gay ,this is the morn2 ,this rock buds forth the fountain of the streams of day2 ,in joy's white annals lives this hour1 ,when life was born1 ,no cloud-scowl on his radiant lids1 no tempest-lower4 ,life1 by this light's nativity1 ,all creatures have2 ,death only by this day's just doom is forced to die4 ,nor is death forced2 for1 may he lie ,throned in thy grave1 ,death will on this condition be content to die4 ,when we come1 in the writings of one who has revealed masterdom1 upon any passage that seems commonplace1 or any figure that suggests nothing true1 the part of wisdom is to brood over that point2 for the probability is that the barrenness lies in us1 two factors being necessary for the result of sight--the thing to be seen and the eye to see it4 ,no doubt the expression may be inadequate1 but if we can compensate the deficiency by adding more vision1 so much the better for us4 ,in the second stanza there is a strange combination of images3 the rock buds2 and buds a fountain2 the fountain is light4 ,but the images are so much one at the root1 that they slide gracefully into each other1 and there is no confusion or incongruity3 the result is an inclined plane of development4 ,i now come to the most musical and most graceful1 therefore most lyrical1 of his poems4 ,i have left out just three stanzas1 because of the sentimentalism of which ,i have spoken3 ,i would have left out more if ,i could have done so without spoiling the symmetry of the poem4 ,my reader must be friendly enough to one who is so friendly to him1 to let his peculiarities pass unquestioned--amongst the rest his conceits1 as well as the trifling discord that the shepherds should be called1 after the classical fashion--ill agreeing1 from its associations1 with ,christian song--,tityrus and ,thyrsis4 ,a ,,hymn ,,of ,,the ,,nativity ,,sung ,,by ,,the ,,shepherds4 ,chorus4 ,come1 we shepherds1 whose blest sight ,hath met love's noon in nature's night2 ,come1 lift we up our loftier song1 ,and wake the sun that lies too long4 ,to all our world of well-stolen#adj joy ,he slept1 and dreamed of no such thing1 ,while we found out heaven's fairer eye1 ,and kissed the cradle of our king3 ,tell him he rises now too late ,to show us aught worth looking at4 ,tell him we now can show him more ,than he e'er showed to mortal sight-- ,than he himself e'er saw before1 ,which to be seen needs not his light3 ,tell him1 ,tityrus1 where thou hast been2 ,tell him1 ,thyrsis1 what thou hast seen4 ,tityrus4 ,gloomy night embraced the place ,where the noble infant lay3 ,the babe looked up and showed his face3 ,in spite of darkness it was day4 ,it was thy day1 sweet1 and did rise ,not from the east1 but from thy eyes4 ,chorus4 ,it was thy day1 sweet1 c4 ,thyrsis4 ,winter chid aloud1 and sent ,the angry north to wage his wars3 ,the north forgot his fierce intent1 ,and left perfumes instead of scars4 ,by those sweet eyes' persuasive powers1 ,where he meant frosts1 he scattered flowers4 ,chorus4 ,by those sweet eyes'1 c4 ,both4 ,we saw thee in thy balmy nest1 ,young dawn of our eternal day2 ,we saw thine eyes break from the east1 ,and chase the trembling shades away4 ,we saw thee1 and we blessed the sight2 ,we saw thee by thine own sweet light4 ,chorus4 ,we saw thee1 c4 ,tityrus4 ,poor world1 said ,i1 what wilt thou do ,to entertain this starry stranger8 ,is this the best thou canst bestow-- ,a cold and not too cleanly manger8 ,contend1 the powers of heaven and earth1 ,to fit a bed for this huge birth4 ,chorus4 ,contend1 the powers1 c4 ,thyrsis4 ,proud world1 said ,i1 cease your contest1 ,and let the mighty babe alone3 ,the phoenix builds the phoenix' nest-- ,love's architecture is his own4 ,the babe1 whose birth embraves this morn1 ,made his own bed ere he was born4 ,chorus4 ,the babe1 whose birth1 c4 ,tityrus4 ,i saw the curl'd drops1 soft and slow1 ,come hovering o'er the place's head1 ,offering their whitest sheets of snow ,to furnish the fair infant's bed3 ,forbear1 said ,i2 be not too bold3 ,your fleece is white1 but 'tis too cold4 ,chorus4 ,forbear1 said ,i1 c4 ,thyrsis4 ,i saw the obsequious seraphim ,their rosy fleece of fire bestow2 ,for well they now can spare their wings1 ,since heaven itself lies here below4 ,well done1 said ,i2 but are you sure ,your down1 so warm1 will pass for pure8 ,chorus4 ,well done1 said ,i1 c4 99 99 99 99 99 ,full ,chorus4 ,welcome all wonders in one sight6 ,eternity shut in a span6 ,summer in winter6 day in night6 ,heaven in earth1 and ,god in man6 ,great little one1 whose all-embracing birth ,lifts earth to heaven1 stoops heaven to earth6 99 99 99 99 99 ,welcome--though not to those gay flies ,gilded i' th' beams of earthly kings-- ,slippery souls in smiling eyes-- ,but to poor shepherds1 homespun things1 ,whose wealth's their flocks1 whose wit's to be ,well read in their simplicity4 ,yet when young ,april's husband showers ,shall bless the fruitful ,maia's bed1 ,we'll bring the firstborn of her flowers ,to kiss thy feet1 and crown thy head3 ,to thee1 dear ,lamb6 whose love must keep ,the shepherds while they feed their sheep4 ,to thee1 meek ,majesty1 soft king ,of simple graces and sweet loves1 ,each of us his lamb will bring1 ,each his pair of silver doves4 ,at last1 in fire of thy fair eyes1 ,ourselves become our own best sacrifice4 ,a splendid line to end with6 too good for the preceding one4 ,all temples and altars1 all priesthoods and prayers1 must vanish in this one and only sacrifice4 ,exquisite1 however1 as the poem is1 we cannot help wishing it looked less heathenish4 ,its decorations are certainly meretricious4 ,from a few religious poems of ,sir ,edward ,sherburne1 another ,roman ,catholic1 and a firm adherent of ,charles ,i41 ,i choose the following--the only one ,i care for4 ,,and ,,they ,,laid ,,him ,,in ,a ,,manger4 ,happy crib1 that wert1 alone1 ,to my ,god1 bed1 cradle1 throne6 ,whilst thy glorious vileness ,i ,view with divine fancy's eye1 ,sordid filth seems all the cost1 ,state1 and splendour1 crowns do boast4 ,see heaven's sacred majesty ,humbled beneath poverty2 ,swaddled up in homely rags1 ,on a bed of straw and flags6 ,he whose hands the heavens displayed1 ,and the world's foundations laid1 ,from the world's almost exiled1 ,of all ornaments despoiled4 ,perfumes bathe him not1 new-born2 ,persian mantles not adorn2 ,nor do the rich roofs look bright ,with the jasper's orient light4 ,where1 ,o royal infant1 be ,the ensigns of thy majesty2 ,thy ,sire's equalizing state2 ,and thy sceptre that rules fate8 ,where's thy angel-guarded throne1 ,whence thy laws thou didst make known-- ,laws which heaven1 earth1 hell obeyed8 ,these1 ah6 these aside he laid2 ,would the emblem be--of pride ,by humility outvied4 ,i pass by ,abraham ,cowley1 mighty reputation as he has had1 without further remark than that he is too vulgar to be admired more than occasionally1 and too artificial almost to be1 as a poet1 loved at all4 ,andrew ,marvell1 member of ,parliament for ,hull both before and after the ,restoration1 was twelve years younger than his friend ,milton4 ,any one of some half-dozen of his few poems is to my mind worth all the verse that ,cowley ever made4 ,it is a pity he wrote so little2 but his was a life as diligent1 ,i presume1 as it was honourable4 ,,on ,a ,,drop ,,of ,,dew4 ,see how the orient dew1 ,shed from the bosom of the morn ,into the blowing roses1 ,yet careless of its mansion new ,for the clear region where 'twas born1 ,round in itself encloses1 used intransitively4 ,and in its little globe's extent1 ,frames as it can its native element4 ,how it the purple flower does slight1 ,scarce touching where it lies1 ,but gazing back upon the skies1 ,shines with a mournful light1 ,like its own tear1 ,because so long divided from the sphere3 ,restless it rolls1 and unsecure1 ,trembling lest it grow impure1 ,till the warm sun pity its pain1 ,and to the skies exhale it back again4 ,so the soul1 that drop1 that ray ,of the clear fountain of eternal day1 ,could it within the human flower be seen1 ,remembering still its former height1 ,shuns the sweet leaves and blossoms green2 ,and1 recollecting its own light1 ,does1 in its pure and circling thoughts1 express ,the greater heaven in an heaven less4 ,in how coy a figure wound1 ,every way it turns away1 ,so the world excluding round1 ,yet receiving in the day2 ,dark beneath but bright above1 ,here disdaining1 there in love4 ,how loose and easy hence to go6 ,how girt and ready to ascend6 ,moving but on a point below1 ,it all about does upwards bend4 ,such did the manna's sacred dew distil-- ,white and entire1#ada though congealed and chill-- ,congealed on earth1 but does1 dissolving1 run ,into the glories of the almighty sun4 ,surely a lovely fancy of resemblance1 exquisitely wrought out2 an instance of the lighter play of the mystical mind1 which yet shadows forth truth4 ,,the ,,coronet4 ,when for the thorns with which ,i long too long1 ,with many a piercing wound1 ,my ,saviour's head have crowned1 ,i seek with garlands to redress that wrong1 ,through every garden1 every mead ,i gather flowers--my fruits are only flowers-- ,dismantling all the fragrant towers ,that once adorned my shepherdess's head2 ,and now1 when ,i have summed up all my store1 ,thinking--so ,i myself deceive-- ,so rich a chaplet thence to weave ,as never yet the ,king of glory wore2 ,alas6 ,i find the serpent old1 ,that1 twining in his speckled breast1 ,about the flowers disguised does fold1 ,with wreaths of fame and interest4 ,ah1 foolish man that wouldst debase with them ,and mortal glory1 heaven's diadem6 ,but thou who only couldst the serpent tame1 ,either his slippery knots at once untie1 ,and disentangle all his winding snare1 ,or shatter too with him my curious frame1#adb ,and let these wither1 that so he may die1 ,though set with skill1 and chosen out with care2 ,that they1 while thou on both their spoils dost tread1 ,may crown thy feet that could not crown thy head4 ,a true sacrifice of worship1 if not a garland of praise6 ,the disciple would have his works tried by the fire1 not only that the gold and the precious stones may emerge relucent1 but that the wood and hay and stubble may perish4 ,the will of ,god alone1 not what we may have effected1 deserves our care4 ,in the perishing of our deeds they fall at his feet3 in our willing their loss we crown his head4 ,,chapter ,,xviii4 ,a ,,mount ,,of ,,vision--,,henry ,,vaughan4 ,we have now arrived at the borders of a long1 dreary tract1 which1 happily for my readers1 ,i can shorten for them in this my retrospect4 ,from the heights of ,henry ,vaughan's verse1 ,i look across a stony region1 with a few feeble oases scattered over it1 and a hazy green in the distance4 ,it does not soften the dreariness that its stones are all laid in order1 that the spaces which should be meadows are skilfully paved4 ,henry ,vaughan belongs to the mystical school1 but his poetry rules his theories4 ,you find no more of the mystic than the poet can easily govern2 in fact1 scarcely more than is necessary to the highest poetry4 ,he develops his mysticism upwards1 with relation to his higher nature alone3 it blossoms into poetry4 ,his twin-brother ,thomas developed his mysticism downwards in the direction of the material sciences--a true effort still1 but one in which the danger of ceasing to be true increases with increasing ratio the further it is carried4 ,they were born in ,south ,wales in the year #afba4 ,thomas was a clergyman2 ,henry a doctor of medicine4 ,both were ,royalists1 and both suffered in the cause--,thomas by expulsion from his living1 ,henry by imprisonment4 ,thomas died soon after the ,restoration2 ,henry outlived the ,revolution4 ,henry ,vaughan was then nearly thirty years younger than ,george ,herbert1 whom he consciously and intentionally imitates4 ,his art is not comparable to that of ,herbert3 hence ,herbert remains the master2 for it is not the thought that makes the poet2 it is the utterance of that thought in worthy presence of speech4 ,he is careless and somewhat rugged4 ,if he can get his thought dressed1 and thus made visible1 he does not mind the dress fitting awkwardly1 or even being a little out at elbows4 ,and yet he has grander lines and phrases than any in ,herbert4 ,he has occasionally a daring success that strikes one with astonishment4 ,in a word1 he says more splendid things than ,herbert1 though he writes inferior poems4 ,his thought is profound and just2 the harmonies in his soul are true2 its artistic and musical ear is defective4 ,his movements are sometimes grand1 sometimes awkward4 ,herbert is always gracious--,i use the word as meaning much more than graceful4 ,the following poem will instance ,vaughan's fine mysticism and odd embodiment3 ,,cock-,,crowing4 ,father of lights6 what sunny seed1 ,what glance of day hast thou confined ,into this bird8 ,to all the breed ,this busy ray thou hast assigned2 ,their magnetism works all night1 ,and dreams of ,paradise and light4 ,their eyes watch for the morning hue2 ,their little grain1#adc expelling night1 ,so shines and sings1 as if it knew ,the path unto the house of light3 ,it seems their candle1 howe'er done1 ,was tined#add and lighted at the sun4 ,if such a tincture1 such a touch1 ,so firm a longing can empower1 ,shall thy own image think it much ,to watch for thy appearing hour8 ,if a mere blast so fill the sail1 ,shall not the breath of ,god prevail8 ,o thou immortal ,light and ,heat1 ,whose hand so shines through all this frame1 ,that by the beauty of the seat1 ,we plainly see who made the same6 ,seeing thy seed abides in me1 ,dwell thou in it1 and ,i in thee4 ,to sleep without thee is to die2 ,yea1 'tis a death partakes of hell2 ,for where thou dost not close the eye1 ,it never opens1 ,i can tell3 ,in such a dark1 ,egyptian border ,the shades of death dwell and disorder ,its joys and hopes and earnest throws1 ,and hearts whose pulse beats still for light1 ,are given to birds1 who but thee knows ,a love-sick soul's exalted flight8 ,can souls be tracked by any eye ,but his who gave them wings to fly8 ,only this veil1 which thou hast broke1 ,and must be broken yet in me2 ,this veil1 ,i say1 is all the cloak ,and cloud which shadows me from thee4 ,this veil thy full-eyed love denies1 ,and only gleams and fractions spies4 ,o take it off4 ,make no delay1 ,but brush me with thy light1 that ,i ,may shine unto a perfect day1 ,and warm me at thy glorious eye4 ,o take it off2 or1 till it flee1 ,though with no lily1 stay with me4 ,i have no room for poems often quoted1 therefore not for that lovely one beginning ,they are all gone into the world of light2 but ,i must not omit ,the ,retreat1 for besides its worth1 ,i have another reason for presenting it4 ,,the ,,retreat4 ,happy those early days when ,i ,shined in my angel-infancy6 ,before ,i understood this place ,appointed for my second race1 ,or taught my soul to fancy ought ,but a white1 celestial thought2 ,when yet ,i had not walked above ,a mile or two from my first love1 ,and1 looking back1 at that short space ,could see a glimpse of his bright face2 ,when on some gilded cloud or flower ,my gazing soul would dwell an hour1 ,and in those weaker glories spy ,some shadows of eternity2 ,before ,i taught my tongue to wound ,my conscience with a sinful sound1 ,or had the black art to dispense ,a several sin to every sense2 ,but felt through all this fleshly dress ,bright shoots of everlastingness4 ,o how ,i long to travel back1 ,and tread again that ancient track6 ,that ,i might once more reach that plain ,where first ,i left my glorious train1 ,from whence the enlightened spirit sees ,that shady city of palm-trees4 ,but ah6 my soul with too much stay ,is drunk1 and staggers in the way6 ,some men a forward motion love1 ,but ,i by backward steps would move2 ,and when this dust falls to the urn1 ,in that state ,i came return4 ,let any one who is well acquainted with ,wordsworth's grand ode--that on the ,intimations of ,immortality--turn his mind to a comparison between that and this3 he will find the resemblance remarkable4 ,whether ,the ,retreat suggested the form of the ,ode is not of much consequence1 for the ,ode is the outcome at once and essence of all ,wordsworth's theories2 and whatever he may have drawn from ,the ,retreat is glorified in the ,ode4 ,still it is interesting to compare them4 ,vaughan believes with ,wordsworth and some other great men that this is not our first stage of existence2 that we are haunted by dim memories of a former state4 ,this belief is not necessary1 however1 to sympathy with the poem1 for whether the present be our first life or no1 we have come from ,god1 and bring from him conscience and a thousand godlike gifts4--,happy those early days1 ,vaughan begins3 ,there was a time1 begins ,wordsworth1 when the earth seemed apparelled in celestial light4 ,before ,i understood this place1 continues ,vaughan3 ,blank misgivings of a creature moving about in worlds not realized1 says ,wordsworth4 ,a white celestial thought1 says ,vaughan3 ,heaven lies about us in our infancy1 says ,wordsworth4 ,a mile or two off1 ,i could see his face1 says ,vaughan3 ,trailing clouds of glory do we come1 says ,wordsworth4 ,on some gilded cloud or flower1 my gazing soul would dwell an hour1 says ,vaughan3 ,the hour of splendour in the grass1 of glory in the flower1 says ,wordsworth4 ,wordsworth's poem is the profounder in its philosophy1 as well as far the grander and lovelier in its poetry2 but in the moral relation1 ,vaughan's poem is the more definite of the two1 and gives us in its close1 poor as that is compared with the rest of it1 just what we feel is wanting in ,wordsworth's--the hope of return to the bliss of childhood4 ,we may be comforted for what we lose by what we gain2 but that is not a recompense large enough to be divine3 we want both4 ,vaughan will be a child again4 ,for the movements of man's life are in spirals3 we go back whence we came1 ever returning on our former traces1 only upon a higher level1 on the next upward coil of the spiral1 so that it is a going back and a going forward ever and both at once4 ,life is1 as it were1 a constant repentance1 or thinking of it again3 the childhood of the kingdom takes the place of the childhood of the brain1 but comprises all that was lovely in the former delight4 ,the heavenly children will subdue kingdoms1 work righteousness1 wax valiant in fight1 rout the armies of the aliens1 merry of heart as when in the nursery of this world they fought their fancied frigates1 and defended their toy-battlements4 ,here are the beginning and end of another of similar purport3 ,,childhood4 ,i cannot reach it2 and my striving eye ,dazzles at it1 as at eternity4 ,were now that chronicle alive1 ,those white designs which children drive1 ,and the thoughts of each harmless hour1 ,with their content too in my power1 ,quickly would ,i make my path even1 ,and by mere playing go to heaven4 99 99 99 99 99 ,an age of mysteries6 which he ,must live twice that would ,god's face see2 ,which angels guard1 and with it play-- ,angels which foul men drive away4 ,how do ,i study now1 and scan ,thee more than e'er ,i studied man1 ,and only see1 through a long night1 ,thy edges and thy bordering light6 ,o for thy centre and mid-day6 ,for sure that is the narrow way6 ,many a true thought comes out by the help of a fancy or half-playful exercise of the thinking power4 ,there is a good deal of such fancy in the following poem1 but in the end it rises to the height of the purest and best mysticism4 ,we must not forget that the deepest man can utter1 will be but the type or symbol of a something deeper yet1 of which he can perceive only a doubtful glimmer4 ,this will serve for general remark upon the mystical mode1 as well as for comment explanatory of the close of the poem4 ,,the ,,night4 ,,john iii4 #b4 ,through that pure virgin-shrine1 ,that sacred veil#ade drawn o'er thy glorious noon1 ,that men might look and live1 as glowworms shine1 ,and face the moon1 ,wise ,nicodemus saw such light ,as made him know his ,god by night4 ,most blest believer he1 ,who in that land of darkness and blind eyes1 ,thy long-expected healing wings could see ,when thou didst rise6 ,and1 what can never more be done1 ,did at midnight speak with the sun6 ,o who will tell me where ,he found thee at that dead and silent hour8 ,what hallowed solitary ground did bear ,so rare a flower1 ,within whose sacred leaves did lie ,the fulness of the ,deity8 ,no mercy-seat of gold1 ,no dead and dusty cherub1 nor carved stone1 ,but his own living works did my ,lord hold ,and lodge alone1 ,where trees and herbs did watch and peep ,and wonder1 while the ,jews did sleep4 ,dear night6 this world's defeat2 ,the stop to busy fools2 care's check and curb1 ,the day of spirits2 my soul's calm retreat ,which none disturb6 ,christ's progress1 and his prayer time1#adf ,the hours to which high heaven doth chime6#adg ,god's silent1 searching flight2#adh ,when my ,lord's head is filled with dew1 and all ,his locks are wet with the clear drops of night1 ,his still1 soft call2 ,his knocking time2#adi the soul's dumb watch1 ,when spirits their fair kindred catch4 ,were all my loud1 evil#aej days ,calm and unhaunted as is thy dark tent1 ,whose peace but by some angel's wing or voice ,is seldom rent1 ,then ,i in heaven all the long year ,would keep1 and never wander here4 ,but living where the sun ,doth all things wake1 and where all mix and tire ,themselves and others1 ,i consent and run ,to every mire2 ,and by this world's ill guiding light1 ,err more than ,i can do by night ,there is in ,god1 some say1 ,a deep but dazzling darkness2 as men here ,say it is late and dusky1 because they ,see not all clear3 ,o for that night6 where ,i in him ,might live invisible and dim6 ,this is glorious2 and its lesson of quiet and retirement we need more than ever in these hurried days upon which we have fallen4 ,if men would but be still enough in themselves to hear1 through all the noises of the busy light1 the voice that is ever talking on in the dusky chambers of their hearts6 ,look at his love for ,nature1 too2 and read the fourth stanza in connexion with my previous remarks upon symbolism4 ,i think this poem grander than any of ,george ,herbert's4 ,i use the word with intended precision4 ,here is one1 the end of which is not so good1 poetically considered1 as the magnificent beginning1 but which contains striking lines throughout3-- ,,the ,,dawning4 ,ah6 what time wilt thou come8 ,when shall that cry1 ,the ,bridegroom's coming1 fill the sky8 ,shall it in the evening run ,when our words and works are done8 ,or will thy all-surprising light ,break at midnight1 ,when either sleep or some dark pleasure ,possesseth mad man without measure8 ,or shail these early1 fragrant hours ,unlock thy bowers1#aea ,and with their blush of light descry ,thy locks crowned with eternity8 ,indeed1 it is the only time ,that with thy glory doth best chime3 ,all now are stirring2 every field ,full hymns doth yield2 ,the whole creation shakes off night1 ,and for thy shadow looks the light2#aeb ,stars now vanish without number2 ,sleepy planets set and slumber2 ,the pursy clouds disband and scatter2-- ,all expect some sudden matter2 ,not one beam triumphs1 but1 from far1 ,that morning-star4 ,o1 at what time soever thou1 ,unknown to us1 the heavens wilt bow1 ,and1 with thy angels in the van1 ,descend to judge poor careless man1 ,grant ,i may not like puddle lie ,in a corrupt security1 ,where1 if a traveller water crave1 ,he finds it dead1 and in a grave2 ,but as this restless1 vocal spring ,all day and night doth run and sing1 ,and though here born1 yet is acquainted ,elsewhere1 and1 flowing1 keeps untainted1 ,so let me all my busy age ,in thy free services engage2 ,and though1 while here1 of force1#aec ,i must ,have commerce sometimes with poor dust1#aed ,and in my flesh1 though vile and low1 ,as this doth in her channel1 flow1 ,yet let my course1 my aim1 my love1 ,and chief acquaintance be above4 ,so when that day and hour shall come1 ,in which thyself will be the sun1 ,thou'lt find me drest and on my way1 ,watching the break of thy great day4 ,i do not think that description of the dawn has ever been surpassed4 ,the verse ,all expect some sudden matter1 is wondrously fine4 ,the water dead and in a grave1 because stagnant1 is a true fancy2 and the acquainted elsewhere of the running stream1 is a masterly phrase4 ,i need not point out the symbolism of the poem4 ,i do not know a writer1 ,wordsworth not excepted1 who reveals more delight in the visions of ,nature than ,henry ,vaughan4 ,he is a true forerunner of ,wordsworth1 inasmuch as the latter sets forth with only greater profundity and more art than he1 the relations between ,nature and ,human ,nature2 while1 on the other hand1 he is the forerunner as well of some one that must yet do what ,wordsworth has left almost unattempted1 namely--set forth the sympathy of ,nature with the aspirations of the spirit that is born of ,god1 born again1 ,i mean1 in the recognition of the child's relation to the ,father4 ,both ,herbert and ,vaughan have thus read ,nature1 the latter turning many leaves which few besides have turned4 ,in this he has struck upon a deeper and richer lode than even ,wordsworth1 although he has not wrought it with half his skill4 ,in any history of the development of the love of the present age for ,nature1 ,vaughan1 although ,i fear his influence would be found to have been small as yet1 must be represented as the ,phosphor of coming dawn4 ,beside him1 ,thomson is cold1 artistic1 and gray3 although larger in scope1 he is not to be compared with him in sympathetic sight4 ,it is this insight that makes ,vaughan a mystic4 ,he can see one thing everywhere1 and all things the same--yet each with a thousand sides that radiate crossing lights1 even as the airy particles around us4 ,for him everything is the expression of1 and points back to1 some fact in the ,divine ,thought4 ,along the line of every ray he looks towards its radiating centre--the heart of the ,maker4 ,i could give many instances of ,vaughan's power in reading the heart of ,nature1 but ,i may not dwell upon this phase4 ,almost all the poems ,i give and have given will afford such4 ,i walked the other day1 to spend my hour1 ,into a field1 ,where ,i sometimes had seen the soil to yield ,a gallant flower2 ,but winter now had ruffled all the bower ,and curious store ,i knew there heretofore4 ,yet ,i whose search loved not to peep and peer ,i' th' face of things1 ,thought with myself1 there might be other springs ,besides this here1 ,which1 like cold friends1 sees us but once a year2 ,and so the flower ,might have some other bower4 ,then taking up what ,i could nearest spy1 ,i digged about ,that place where ,i had seen him to grow out2 ,and by and by ,i saw the warm recluse alone to lie1 ,where fresh and green ,he lived of us unseen4 ,many a question intricate and rare ,did ,i there strow2 ,but all ,i could extort was1 that he now ,did there repair ,such losses as befell him in this air1 ,and would ere long ,come forth most fair and young4 ,this past1 ,i threw the clothes quite o'er his head2 ,and1 stung with fear ,of my own frailty1 dropped down many a tear ,upon his bed2 ,then sighing1 whispered1 ,happy are the dead6 ,what peace doth now ,rock him asleep below6 ,and yet1 how few believe such doctrine springs ,from a poor root ,which all the winter sleeps here under foot1 ,and hath no wings ,to raise it to the truth and light of things1 ,but is still trod ,by every wandering clod6 ,o thou1 whose spirit did at first inflame ,and warm the dead6 ,and by a sacred incubation fed ,with life this frame1 ,which once had neither being1 form1 nor name6 ,grant ,i may so ,thy steps track here below1 ,that in these masks and shadows ,i may see ,thy sacred way2 ,and by those hid ascents climb to that day ,which breaks from thee1 ,who art in all things1 though invisibly3 ,show me thy peace1 ,thy mercy1 love1 and ease4 ,and from this care1 where dreams and sorrows reign1 ,lead me above1 ,where light1 joy1 leisure1 and true comforts move ,without all pain3 ,there1 hid in thee1 show me his life again ,at whose dumb urn ,thus all the year ,i mourn4 ,there are several amongst his poems lamenting1 like this1 the death of some dear friend--perhaps his twin-brother1 whom he outlived thirty years4 ,according to what a man is capable of seeing in nature1 he becomes either a man of appliance1 a man of science1 a mystic1 or a poet4 ,i must now give two that are simple in thought1 construction1 and music4 ,the latter ought to be popular1 from the nature of its rhythmic movement1 and the holy merriment it carries4 ,but in the former1 note how the major key of gladness changes in the third stanza to the minor key of aspiration1 which has always some sadness in it2 a sadness which deepens to grief in the next stanza at the consciousness of unfitness for ,christ's company1 but is lifted by hope almost again to gladness in the last4 ,,christ',s ,,nativity4 ,awake1 glad heart6 ,get up1 and sing6 ,it is the birthday of thy king6 ,awake6 awake6 ,the sun doth shake ,light from his locks1 and1 all the way ,breathing perfumes1 doth spice the day4 ,awake6 awake6 ,hark how the wood rings ,winds whisper1 and the busy springs ,a concert make3 ,awake6 awake6 ,man is their high-priest1 and should rise ,to offer up the sacrifice4 ,i would ,i were some bird or star1 ,fluttering in woods1 or lifted far ,above this inn ,and road of sin6 ,then either star or bird should be ,shining or singing still to thee4 ,i would ,i had in my best part ,fit rooms for thee6 or that my heart ,were so clean as ,thy manger was6 ,but ,i am all filth1 and obscene2 ,yet1 if thou wilt1 thou canst make clean4 ,sweet ,jesu6 will then4 ,let no more ,this leper haunt and soil thy door4 ,cure him1 ease him2 ,o release him6 ,and let once more1 by mystic birth1 ,the ,lord of life be born in earth4 ,the fitting companion to this is his ,,easter ,,hymn4 ,death and darkness1 get you packing3 ,nothing now to man is lacking4 ,all your triumphs now are ended1 ,and what ,adam marred is mended4 ,graves are beds now for the weary2 ,death a nap1 to wake more merry2 ,youth now1 full of pious duty1 ,seeks in thee for perfect beauty2 ,the weak and aged1 tired with length ,of days1 from thee look for new strength2 ,and infants with thy pangs contest1 ,as pleasant as if with the breast4 ,then unto him who thus hath thrown ,even to contempt thy kingdom down1 ,and by his blood did us advance ,unto his own inheritance-- ,to him be glory1 power1 praise1 ,from this unto the last of days6 ,we must now descend from this height of true utterance into the ,valley of ,humiliation1 and cannot do better than console ourselves by listening to the boy in mean clothes1 of the fresh and well-favoured countenance1 whom ,christiana and her fellow-pilgrims hear singing in that valley4 ,he that is down1 needs fear no fall2 ,he that is low1 no pride2 ,he that is humble ever shall ,have ,god to be his guide4 ,i am content with what ,i have1 ,little be it or much2 ,and1 ,lord1 contentment still ,i crave1 ,because thou savest#aee such4 ,fulness to such a burden is ,that go on pilgrimage2 ,here little1 and hereafter bliss1 ,is best from age to age4 ,i could not have my book without one word in it of ,john ,bunyan1 the tinker1 probably the gipsy1 who although born only and not made a poet1 like his great brother1 ,john ,milton1 has uttered in prose a wealth of poetic thought4 ,he was born in #afbh1 twenty years after ,milton4 ,i must not1 however1 remark on this noble ,bohemian of literature and prophecy2 but leaving at length these flowery hills and meadows behind me1 step on my way across the desert4--,england had now fallen under the influence of ,france instead of ,italy1 and that influence has never been for good to our literature1 at least4 ,thence its chief aim grew to be a desirable trimness of speech and logical arrangement of matter--good external qualities purchased at a fearful price with the loss of all that makes poetry precious4 ,the poets of ,england1 with ,john ,dryden at their head1 ceased almost for a time to deal with the truths of humanity1 and gave themselves to the facts and relations of society4 ,the nation which could recall the family of the ,stuarts must necessarily fall into such a decay of spiritual life as should render its literature only respectable at the best1 and its religious utterances essentially vulgar4 ,but the decay is gradual4 ,bishop ,ken1 born in #afcg1 is known chiefly by his hymns for the morning and evening1 deservedly popular4 ,he has1 however1 written a great many besides--too many1 indeed1 for variety or excellence4 ,he seems to have set himself to write them as acts of worship4 ,they present many signs of a perversion of taste which1 though not in them so remarkable1 rose to a height before long4 ,he annoys us besides by the constant recurrence of certain phrases1 one or two of which are not admirable1 and by using1 in the midst of a simple style1 odd ,latin words4 ,here are portions of1 ,i think1 one of his best1 and good it is4 ,,first ,,sunday ,,after ,,christmas4 99 99 99 99 99 ,lord1 'tis thyself who hast impressed ,in native light on human breast1 ,that their ,creator all ,mankind should ,father call3 ,a father's love all mortals know1 ,and the love filial which they owe4 ,our ,father gives us heavenly light1 ,and to be happy1 ghostly sight2 ,he blesses1 guides1 sustains2 ,he eases us in pains2 ,abatements for our weakness makes1 ,and never a true child forsakes4 ,he waits till the hard heart relents2 ,our self-damnation he laments2 ,he sweetly them invites ,to share in heaven's delights2 ,his arms he opens to receive ,all who for past transgressions grieve4 ,my ,father6 ,o that name is sweet ,to sinners mourning in retreat4 ,god's heart paternal yearns ,when he a change discerns2 ,he to his favour them restores2 ,he heals their most inveterate sores4 99 99 99 99 99 ,religious honour1 humble awe2 ,obedience to our ,father's law2 ,a lively grateful sense ,of tenderness immense2 ,full trust on ,god's paternal cares2 ,submission which chastisement bears2 ,grief1 when his goodness we offend2 ,zeal1 to his likeness to ascend2 ,will1 from the world refined1 ,to his sole will resigned3 ,these graces in ,god's children shine1 ,reflections of the love divine4 99 99 99 99 99 ,god's ,son co-equal taught us all ,in prayer his ,father ours to call3 ,with confidence in need1 ,we to our ,father speed3 ,of his own ,son the language dear ,intenerates the ,father's ear4 makes tender4 ,thou ,father art1 though to my shame1 ,i often forfeit that dear name2 ,but since for sin ,i grieve1 ,me father-like receive2 ,o melt me into filial tears1 ,to pay of love my vast arrears4 99 99 99 99 99 ,o ,spirit of ,adoption6 spread ,thy wings enamouring o'er my head2 ,o ,filial love immense6 ,raise me to love intense2 ,o ,father1 source of love divine1 ,my powers to love and hymn incline6 ,while ,god my ,father ,i revere1 ,nor all hell powers1 nor death ,i fear2 ,i am my ,father's care2 ,his succours present are4 ,all comes from my loved ,father's will1 ,and that sweet name intends no ill4 ,god's ,son his soul1 when life he closed1 ,in his dear ,father's hands reposed3 ,i'll1 when my last ,i breathe1 ,my soul to ,god bequeath2 ,and panting for the joys on high1 ,invoking ,love ,paternal1 die4 ,born in #afeg1 one of the later ,english ,platonists1 ,john ,norris1 who1 with how many incumbents between ,i do not know1 succeeded ,george ,herbert in the cure of ,bemerton1 has left a few poems1 which would have been better if he had not been possessed with the common admiration for the rough-shod rhythms of ,abraham ,cowley4 ,here is one in which the peculiarities of his theories show themselves very prominently4 ,there is a constant tendency in such to wander into the region half-spiritual1 half-material4 ,,the ,,aspiration4 ,how long1 great ,god1 how long must ,i ,immured in this dark prison lie2 ,my soul must watch to have intelligence2 ,where at the grates and avenues of sense ,where but faint gleams of thee salute my sight1 ,like doubtful moonshine in a cloudy night8 ,when shall ,i leave this magic sphere1 ,and be all mind1 all eye1 all ear8 ,how cold this clime6 ,and yet my sense ,perceives even here thy influence4 ,even here thy strong magnetic charms ,i feel1 ,and pant and tremble like the amorous steel4 ,to lower good1 and beauties less divine1 ,sometimes my erroneous needle does decline1 ,but yet1 so strong the sympathy1 ,it turns1 and points again to thee4 ,i long to see this excellence ,which at such distance strikes my sense4 ,my impatient soul struggles to disengage ,her wings from the confinement of her cage4 ,wouldst thou1 great ,love1 this prisoner once set free1 ,how would she hasten to be linked to thee6 ,she'd for no angels' conduct stay1 ,but fly1 and love on all the way4 ,,the ,,return4 ,dear ,contemplation6 my divinest joy6 ,when ,i thy sacred mount ascend1 ,what heavenly sweets my soul employ6 ,why can't ,i there my days for ever spend8 ,when ,i have conquered thy steep heights with pain1 ,what pity 'tis that ,i must down again6 ,and yet ,i must3 my passions would rebel ,should ,i too long continue here3 ,no1 here ,i must not think to dwell1 ,but mind the duties of my proper sphere4 ,so angels1 though they heaven's glories know1 ,forget not to attend their charge below4 ,the old hermits thought to overcome their impulses by retiring from the world3 our ,platonist has discovered for himself that the world of duty is the only sphere in which they can be combated4 ,never perhaps is a saint more in danger of giving way to impulse1 let it be anger or what it may1 than in the moment when he has just descended from this mount of contemplation4 ,we find ourselves now in the zone of hymn-writing4 ,from this period1 that is1 from towards the close of the seventeenth century1 a large amount of the fervour of the country finds vent in hymns3 they are innumerable4 ,with them the scope of my book would not permit me to deal1 even had ,i inclination thitherward1 and knowledge enough to undertake their history4 ,but ,i am not therefore precluded from presenting any hymn whose literary excellence makes it worthy4 ,it is with especial pleasure that ,i refer to a little book which was once a household treasure in a multitude of families1#aef the ,spiritual ,songs of ,john ,mason1 a clergyman in the county of ,buckingham4 ,the date of his birth does not appear to be known1 but the first edition of these songs#aeg was published in #afhc4 ,dr4 ,watts was very fond of them3 would that he had written with similar modesty of style6 ,a few of them are still popular in congregational singing4 ,here is the first in the book3 ,a ,,general ,,song ,,of ,,praise ,,to ,,almighty ,,god4 ,how shall ,i sing that ,majesty ,which angels do admire8 ,let dust in dust and silence lie2 ,sing1 sing1 ye heavenly choir4 ,thousands of thousands stand around ,thy throne1 ,o ,god most high2 ,ten thousand times ten thousand sound ,thy praise2 but who am ,i8 ,thy brightness unto them appears1 ,whilst ,i thy footsteps trace2 ,a sound of ,god comes to my ears2 ,but they behold thy face4 ,they sing because thou art their sun3 ,lord1 send a beam on me2 ,for where heaven is but once begun1 ,there hallelujahs be4 ,enlighten with faith's light my heart2 ,enflame it with love's fire2 ,then shall ,i sing and bear a part ,with that celestial choir4 ,i shall1 ,i fear1 be dark and cold1 ,with all my fire and light2 ,yet when thou dost accept their gold1 ,lord1 treasure up my mite4 ,how great a being1 ,lord1 is thine4 ,which doth all beings keep6 ,thy knowledge is the only line ,to sound so vast a deep4 ,thou art a sea without a shore1 ,a sun without a sphere2 ,thy time is now and evermore1 ,thy place is everywhere4 ,how good art thou1 whose goodness is ,our parent1 nurse1 and guide6 ,whose streams do water ,paradise1 ,and all the earth beside6 ,thine upper and thy nether springs ,make both thy worlds to thrive2 ,under thy warm and sheltering wings ,thou keep'st two broods alive4 ,thy arm of might1 most mighty king ,both rocks and hearts doth break3 ,my ,god1 thou canst do everything ,but what should show thee weak4 ,thou canst not cross thyself1 or be ,less than thyself1 or poor2 ,but whatsoever pleaseth thee1 ,that canst thou do1 and more4 ,who would not fear thy searching eye1 ,witness to all that's true6 ,dark ,hell1 and deep ,hypocrisy ,lie plain before its view4 ,motions and thoughts before they grow1 ,thy knowledge doth espy2 ,what unborn ages are to do1 ,is done before thine eye4 ,thy wisdom which both makes and mends1 ,we ever much admire3 ,creation all our wit transcends2 ,redemption rises higher4 ,thy wisdom guides strayed sinners home1 ',twill make the dead world rise1 ,and bring those prisoners to their doom3 ,its paths are mysteries4 ,great is thy truth1 and shall prevail ,to unbelievers' shame3 ,thy truth and years do never fail2 ,thou ever art the same4 ,unbelief is a raging wave ,dashing against a rock3 ,if ,god doth not his ,israel save1 ,then let ,egyptians mock4 ,most pure and holy are thine eyes1 ,most holy is thy name2 ,thy saints1 and laws1 and penalties1 ,thy holiness proclaim4 ,this is the devil's scourge and sting1 ,this is the angels' song1 ,who holy1 holy1 holy sing1 ,in heavenly ,canaan's tongue4 ,mercy1 that shining attribute1 ,the sinner's hope and plea6 ,huge hosts of sins in their pursuit1 ,are drowned in thy ,red ,sea4 ,mercy is ,god's memorial1 ,and in all ages praised3 ,my ,god1 thine only ,son did fall1 ,that ,mercy might be raised4 ,thy bright back-parts1 ,o ,god of grace1 ,i humbly here adore3 ,show me thy glory and thy face1 ,that ,i may praise thee more4 ,since none can see thy face and live1 ,for me to die is best3 ,through ,jordan's streams who would not dive1 ,to land at ,canaan's rest8 ,to these ,songs of ,praise is appended another series called ,penitential ,cries1 by the ,rev4 ,thomas ,shepherd1 who1 for a short time a clergyman in ,buckinghamshire1 became the minister of the ,congregational church at ,northampton1 afterwards under the care of ,doddridge4 ,although he was an imitator of ,mason1 some of his hymns are admirable4 ,the following ,i think one of the best3-- ,,for ,,communion ,,with ,,god4 ,alas1 my ,god1 that we should be ,such strangers to each other6 ,o that as friends we might agree1 ,and walk and talk together6 ,thou know'st my soul does dearly love ,the place of thine abode2 ,no music drops so sweet a sound ,as these two words1 ,my ,god4 99 99 99 99 99 ,may ,i taste that communion1 ,lord1 ,thy people have with thee8 ,thy spirit daily talks with them1 ,o let it talk with me6 ,like ,enoch1 let me walk with ,god1 ,and thus walk out my day1 ,attended with the heavenly guards1 ,upon the king's highway4 ,when wilt thou come unto me1 ,lord8 ,o come1 my ,lord most dear6 ,come near1 come nearer1 nearer still3 ,i'm well when thou art near4 99 99 99 99 99 ,when wilt thou come unto me1 ,lord8 ,for1 till thou dost appear1 ,i count each moment for a day1 ,each minute for a year4 99 99 99 99 99 ,there's no such thing as pleasure here2 ,my ,jesus is my all3 ,as thou dost shine or disappear1 ,my pleasures rise and fall4 ,come1 spread thy savour on my frame-- ,no sweetness is so sweet2 ,till ,i get up to sing thy name ,where all thy singers meet4 ,in the writings of both we recognize a straight-forwardness of expression equal to that of ,wither1 and a quaint simplicity of thought and form like that of ,herrick2 while the very charm of some of the best lines is their spontaneity4 ,the men have just enough mysticism to afford them homeliest figures for deepest feelings4 ,i turn to the accomplished ,joseph ,addison4 ,he was born in #afgb4 ,his religious poems are so well known1 and are for the greater part so ordinary in everything but their simplicity of composition1 that ,i should hardly have cared to choose one1 had it not been that we owe him much gratitude for what he did1 in the reigns of ,anne and ,george ,i41 to purify the moral taste of the ,english people at a time when the influence of the clergy was not for elevation1 and to teach the love of a higher literature when ,milton was little known and less esteemed4 ,especially are we indebted to him for his modest and admirable criticism of the ,paradise ,lost in the ,spectator4 ,of those few poems to which ,i have referred1 ,i choose the best known1 because it is the best4 ,it has to me a charm for which ,i can hardly account4 ,yet ,i imagine ,i see in it a sign of the poetic times3 a flatness of spirit1 arising from the evanishment of the mystical element1 begins to result in a worship of power4 ,neither power nor wisdom1 though infinite both1 could constitute a ,god worthy of the worship of a human soul2 and the worship of such a ,god must sink to the level of that fancied divinity4 ,small wonder is it then that the lyric should now droop its wings and moult the feathers of its praise4 ,i do not say that ,god's more glorious attributes are already forgotten1 but that the tendency of the ,christian lyric is now to laudation of power--and knowledge1 a form of the same--as the essential of ,godhead4 ,this indicates no recalling of metaphysical questions1 such as we have met in foregoing verse1 but a decline towards system2 a rising passion--if anything so cold may be called a passion--for the reduction of all things to the forms of the understanding1 a declension which has prepared the way for the present worship of science1 and its refusal1 if not denial1 of all that cannot be proved in forms of the intellect4 ,the hymn which has led to these remarks is still good1 although1 like the loveliness of the red and lowering west1 it gives sign of a gray and cheerless dawn1 under whose dreariness the child will first doubt if his father loves him1 and next doubt if he has a father at all1 and is not a mere foundling that ,nature has lifted from her path4 ,the spacious firmament on high1 ,with all the blue etherial sky1 ,and spangled heavens1 a shining frame1 ,their great ,original proclaim4 ,the unwearied sun from day to day ,does his ,creator's power display2 ,and publishes to every land ,the work of an almighty hand4 ,soon as the evening shades prevail1 ,the moon takes up the wondrous tale2 ,and nightly to the listening earth ,repeats the story of her birth2 ,whilst all the stars that round her burn1 ,and all the planets1 in their turn1 ,confirm the tidings as they roll1 ,and spread the truth from pole to pole4 ,what though in solemn silence all ,move round the dark terrestrial ball8 ,what though no real voice nor sound ,amidst their radiant orbs be found8 ,in reason's ear they all rejoice1 ,and utter forth a glorious voice1 ,for ever singing as they shine3 ,the hand that made us is divine4 ,the very use of the words spangled and frame seems--to my fancy only1 it may be--to indicate a tendency towards the unworthy and theatrical4 ,yet the second stanza is lovely beyond a doubt2 and the whole is most artistic1 although after a tame fashion4 ,whether indeed the heavenly bodies teach what he says1 or whether we should read divinity worthy of the name in them at all1 without the human revelation which healed men1 ,i doubt much4 ,that divinity is there--,yes2 that we could read it there without having seen the face of the ,son of ,man first1 ,i think--,no4 ,i do not therefore dare imagine that no revelation dimly leading towards such result glimmered in the hearts of ,god's chosen amongst ,jews and ,gentiles before he came4 ,what ,i say is1 that power and order1 although of ,god1 and preparing the way for him1 are not his revealers unto men4 ,no doubt ,king ,david compares the perfection of ,god's law to the glory of the heavens1 but he did not learn that perfection from the heavens1 but from the law itself1 revealed in his own heart through the life-teaching of ,god4 ,when he had learned it he saw that the heavens were like it4 ,to unveil ,god1 only manhood like our own will serve4 ,and he has taken the form of man that he might reveal the manhood in him from awful eternity4 ,,chapter ,,xix4 ,,the ,,plain4 ,but ,addison's tameness is wonderfully lovely beside the fervours of a man of honoured name1--,dr4 ,isaac ,watts1 born in #afgd4 ,the result must be dreadful where fervour will poetize without the aidful restraints of art and modesty4 ,if any man would look upon absurdity in the garb of sobriety1 let him search ,dryden's ,annus ,mirabilis3 ,dr4 ,watts's ,lyrics are as bad2 they are fantastic to utter folly4 ,an admiration of the incomparable ,mr4 ,cowley did the sense of them more injury than the imitation of his rough-cantering ode could do their rhythm4 ,the sentimentalities of ,roman ,catholic writers towards our ,lord and his mother1 are not half so offensive as the courtier-like flatteries ,dr4 ,watts offers to the ,most ,high4 ,to say nothing of the irreverence1 the vulgarity is offensive4 ,he affords another instance amongst thousands how little the form in which feeling is expressed has to do with the feeling itself4 ,in him the thought is true1 the form of its utterance false2 the feeling lovely1 the word1 often to a degree1 repulsive4 ,the ugly web is crossed now and then by a fine line1 and even damasked with an occasional good poem3 ,i have found two1 and only two1 in the whole of his seventy-five ,lyrics sacred to ,devotion4 ,his objectivity and boldness of thought1 and his freedom of utterance1 cause us ever and anon to lament that he had not the humility and faith of an artist as well as of a ,christian4 ,almost all his symbols indicate a worship of power and of outward show4 ,i give the best of the two good poems ,i have mentioned1 and very good it is4 ,,happy ,,frailty4 ,how meanly dwells the immortal mind6 ,how vile these bodies are6 ,why was a clod of earth designed ,to enclose a heavenly star8 ,weak cottage where our souls reside6 ,this flesh a tottering wall6 ,with frightful breaches gaping wide1 ,the building bends to fall4 ,all round it storms of trouble blow1 ,and waves of sorrow roll2 ,cold waves and winter storms beat through1 ,and pain the tenant-soul4 ,alas1 how frail our state6 said ,i1 ,and thus went mourning on2 ,till sudden from the cleaving sky ,a gleam of glory shone4 ,my soul all felt the glory come1 ,and breathed her native air2 ,then she remembered heaven her home1 ,and she a prisoner here4 ,straight she began to change her key2 ,and1 joyful in her pains1 ,she sang the frailty of her clay ,in pleasurable strains4 ,how weak the prison is where ,i dwell6 ,flesh but a tottering wall6 ,the breaches cheerfully foretell ,the house must shortly fall4 ,no more1 my friends1 shall ,i complain1 ,though all my heart-strings ache2 ,welcome disease1 and every pain ,that makes the cottage shake6 ,now let the tempest blow all round1 ,now swell the surges high1 ,and beat this house of bondage down ,to let the stranger fly6 ,i have a mansion built above ,by the eternal hand2 ,and should the earth's old basis move1 ,my heavenly house must stand4 ,yes1 for 'tis there my ,saviour reigns-- ,i long to see the ,god-- ,and his immortal strength sustains ,the courts that cost him blood4 ,hark6 from on high my ,saviour calls3 ,i come1 my ,lord1 my ,love6 ,devotion breaks the prison-walls1 ,and speeds my last remove4 ,his psalms and hymns are immeasurably better than his lyrics4 ,dreadful some of them are2 and ,i doubt if there is one from which we would not wish stanzas1 lines1 and words absent4 ,but some are very fine4 ,the man who could write such verses as these ought not to have written as he has written3-- ,had ,i a glance of thee1 my ,god1 ,kingdoms and men would vanish soon2 ,vanish as though ,i saw them not1 ,as a dim candle dies at noon4 ,then they might fight and rage and rave3 ,i should perceive the noise no more ,than we can hear a shaking leaf ,while rattling thunders round us roar4 ,some of his hymns will be sung1 ,i fancy1 so long as men praise ,god together2 for most heartily do ,i grant that of all hymns ,i know he has produced the best for public use2 but these bear a very small proportion indeed to the mass of his labour4 ,we cannot help wishing that he had written about the twentieth part4 ,we could not have too much of his best1 such as this3 ,be earth with all her scenes withdrawn2 ,let noise and vanity begone3 ,in secret silence of the mind ,my heaven1 and there my ,god1 ,i find2 but there is no occasion for the best to be so plentiful3 a little of it will go a great way4 ,and as our best moments are so few1 how could any man write six hundred religious poems1 and produce quality in proportion to quantity save in an inverse ratio8 ,dr4 ,thomas ,parnell1 the well-known poet1 a clergyman1 born in ,dublin in #afgi1 has written a few religious verses4 ,the following have a certain touch of imagination and consequent grace1 which distinguishes them above the swampy level of the time4 ,,hymn ,,for ,,evening4 ,the beam-repelling mists arise1 ,and evening spreads obscurer skies2 ,the twilight will the night forerun1 ,and night itself be soon begun4 ,upon thy knees devoutly bow1 ,and pray the ,lord of glory now ,to fill thy breast1 or deadly sin ,may cause a blinder night within4 ,and whether pleasing vapours rise1 ,which gently dim the closing eyes1 ,which make the weary members blest ,with sweet refreshment in their rest2 ,or whether spirits#aeh in the brain ,dispel their soft embrace again1 ,and on my watchful bed ,i stay1 ,forsook by sleep1 and waiting day2 ,be ,god for ever in my view1 ,and never he forsake me too2 ,but still as day concludes in night1 ,to break again with new-born light1 ,his wondrous bounty let me find ,with still a more enlightened mind4 99 99 99 99 99 ,thou that hast thy palace far ,above the moon and every star2 ,thou that sittest on a throne ,to which the night was never known1 ,regard my voice1 and make me blest ,by kindly granting its request4 ,if thoughts on thee my soul employ1 ,my darkness will afford me joy1 ,till thou shalt call and ,i shall soar1 ,and part with darkness evermore4 ,many long and elaborate religious poems ,i have not even mentioned1 because ,i cannot favour extracts1 especially in heroic couplets or blank verse4 ,they would only make my book heavy1 and destroy the song-idea4 ,i must here pass by one of the best of such poems1 ,the ,complaint1 or ,night ,thoughts of ,dr4 ,young2 nor is there anything else of his ,i care to quote4 ,i must give just one poem of ,pope1 born in #afhh1 the year of the ,revolution4 ,the flamboyant style of his ,messiah is to me detestable3 nothing can be more unlike the simplicity of ,christianity4 ,all such1 equally with those by whatever hand that would be religious by being miserable1 ,i reject at once1 along with all that are merely commonplace religious exercises4 ,but this at least is very unlike the rest of ,pope's compositions3 it is as simple in utterance as it is large in scope and practical in bearing4 ,the name ,jove may be unpleasant to some ears3 it is to mine--not because it is the name given to their deity by men who had had little outward revelation1 but because of the associations which the wanton poets1 not the good philosophers1 have gathered about it4 ,here let it stand1 as ,pope meant it1 for one of the names of the ,unknown ,god4 ,,the ,,universal ,,prayer4 ,father of all6 in every age1 ,in every clime adored1 ,by saint1 by savage1 and by sage1 ,jehovah1 ,jove1 or ,lord6 ,thou great ,first ,cause1 least understood6 ,who all my sense confined ,to know but this1 that thou art good1 ,and that myself am blind ,yet gave me1 in this dark estate1 ,to see the good from ill2 ,and1 binding ,nature fast in ,fate1 ,left free the human will3 ,what ,conscience dictates to be done1 ,or warns me not to do-- ,this1 teach me more than hell to shun1 ,that1 more than heaven pursue4 ,what blessings thy free bounty gives1 ,let me not cast away2 ,for ,god is paid when man receives3 ,to enjoy is to obey4 ,yet not to earth's contracted span ,thy goodness let me bound1 ,or think thee ,lord alone of man1 ,when thousand worlds are round4 ,let not this weak1 unknowing hand ,presume thy bolts to throw1 ,and deal damnation round the land ,on each ,i judge thy foe4 ,if ,i am right1 thy grace impart ,still in the right to stay2 ,if ,i am wrong1 ,o teach my heart ,to find that better way4 ,save me alike from foolish pride ,or impious discontent1 ,at aught thy wisdom has denied1 ,or aught thy goodness lent4 ,teach me to feel another's woe1 ,to hide the fault ,i see3 ,that mercy ,i to others show1 ,that mercy show to me4 ,mean though ,i am--not wholly so1 ,since quickened by thy breath3-- ,o lead me wheresoe'er ,i go1 ,through this day's life or death4 ,this day1 be bread and peace my lot3 ,all else beneath the sun ,thou know'st if best bestowed or not1 ,and let thy will be done4 ,to thee1 whose temple is all space1 ,whose altar1 earth1 sea1 skies1 ,one chorus let all being raise6 ,all ,nature's incense rise6 ,and now we come upon a strange little well in the desert4 ,few flowers indeed shine upon its brink1 and it flows with a somewhat unmusical ripple3 it is a well of the water of life notwithstanding1 for its song tells of the love and truth which are the grand power of ,god4 ,john ,byrom1 born in ,manchester in the year #afia1 a man whose strength of thought and perception of truth greatly surpassed his poetic gifts1 yet delighted so entirely in the poetic form that he wrote much and chiefly in it4 ,after leaving ,cambridge1 he gained his livelihood for some time by teaching a shorthand of his own invention1 but was so distinguished as a man of learning generally that he was chosen an ,f4,r4,s4 in #agbc4 ,coming under the influence1 probably through ,william ,law1 of the writings of ,jacob ,bhme1 the marvellous shoemaker of ,grlitz in ,silesia1 who lived in the time of our ,shakspere1 and heartily adopting many of his views1 he has left us a number of religious poems1 which are seldom so sweet in music as they are profound in the metaphysics of religion4 ,here we have yet again a mystical thread running radiant athwart both warp and woof of our poetic web3 the mystical thinker will ever be found the reviver of religious poetry2 and although some of the seed had come from afar both in time and space1 ,byrom's verse is of indigenous growth4 ,much of the thought of the present day will be found in his verses4 ,here is a specimen of his metrical argumentation4 ,it is taken from a series of ,meditations for every ,day in ,passion ,week4 ,,wednesday4 ,christ satisfieth the justice of ,god by fulfilling all righteousness4 ,justice demandeth satisfaction--yes2 ,and ought to have it where injustice is3 ,but there is none in ,god--it cannot mean ,demand of justice where it has full reign3 ,to dwell in man it rightfully demands1 ,such as he came from his ,creator's hands4 ,man had departed from a righteous state1 ,which he at first must have1 if ,god create3 ',tis therefore called ,god's righteousness1 and must ,be satisfied by man's becoming just2 ,must exercise good vengeance upon men1 ,till it regain its rights in them again4 ,this was the justice for which ,christ became ,a man to satisfy its righteous claim2 ,became ,redeemer of the human race1 ,that sin in them to justice might give place3 ,to satisfy a just and righteous will1 ,is neither more nor less than to fulfil4 99 99 99 99 99 ,here are two stanzas of one of more mystical reflection3 ,a ,,penitential ,,soliloquy4 ,what though no objects strike upon the sight6 ,thy sacred presence is an inward light4 ,what though no sounds shall penetrate the ear6 ,to listening thought the voice of truth is clear4 ,sincere devotion needs no outward shrine2 ,the centre of an humble soul is thine4 ,there may ,i worship6 and there mayst thou place ,thy seat of mercy1 and thy throne of grace6 ,yea1 fix1 if ,christ my advocate appear1 ,the dread tribunal of thy justice there6 ,let each vain thought1 let each impure desire ,meet in thy wrath with a consuming fire4 ,and here are two of more lyrical favour4 ,,the ,,soul',s ,,tendency ,,towards ,,its ,,true ,,centre4 ,stones towards the earth descend2 ,rivers to the ocean roll2 ,every motion has some end3 ,what is thine1 beloved soul8 ,mine is1 where my ,saviour is2 ,there with him ,i hope to dwell3 ,jesu is the central bliss2 ,love the force that doth impel4 ,truly thou hast answered right3 ,now may heaven's attractive grace ,towards the source of thy delight ,speed along thy quickening pace6 ,thank thee for thy generous care3 ,heaven1 that did the wish inspire1 ,through thy instrumental prayer1 ,plumes the wings of my desire4 ,now1 methinks1 aloft ,i fly2 ,now with angels bear a part3 ,glory be to ,god on high6 ,peace to every ,christian heart6 ,,the ,,answer ,,to ,,the ,,desponding ,,soul4 ,cheer up1 desponding soul2 ,thy longing pleased ,i see3 ',tis part of that great whole ,wherewith ,i longed for thee4 ,wherewith ,i longed for thee1 ,and left my ,father's throne1 ,from death to set thee free1 ,to claim thee for my own4 ,to claim thee for my own1 ,i suffered on the cross3 ,o6 were my love but known1 ,no soul could fear its loss4 ,no soul could fear its loss1 ,but1 filled with love divine1 ,would die on its own cross1 ,and rise for ever mine4 ,surely there is poetry as well as truth in this4 ,but1 certainly in general1 his thought is far in excess of his poetry4 ,here are a few verses which ,i shall once more entitle ,,divine ,,epigrams4 ,with peaceful mind thy race of duty run ,god nothing does1 or suffers to be done1 ,but what thou wouldst thyself1 if thou couldst see ,through all events of things as well as he4 99 99 99 99 99 ,think1 and be careful what thou art within1 ,for there is sin in the desire of sin3 ,think and be thankful1 in a different case1 ,for there is grace in the desire of grace4 99 99 99 99 99 ,an heated fancy or imagination ,may be mistaken for an inspiration2 ,true2 but is this conclusion fair to make-- ,that inspiration must be all mistake8 ,a pebble-stone is not a diamond3 true2 ,but must a diamond be a pebble too8 ,to own a ,god who does not speak to men1 ,is first to own1 and then disown again2 ,of all idolatry the total sum ,is having gods that are both deaf and dumb4 99 99 99 99 99 ,what is more tender than a mother's love ,to the sweet infant fondling in her arms8 ,what arguments need her compassion move ,to hear its cries1 and help it in its harms8 ,now1 if the tenderest mother were possessed ,of all the love within her single breast ,of all the mothers since the world began1 ',tis nothing to the love of ,god to man4 99 99 99 99 99 ,faith1 ,hope1 and ,love were questioned what they thought ,of future glory which ,religion taught3 ,now ,faith believed it firmly to be true1 ,and ,hope expected so to find it too3 ,love answered1 smiling with a conscious glow1 ,believe8 ,expect8 ,i know it to be so4 ,,chapter ,,xx4 ,,the ,,roots ,,of ,,the ,,hills4 ,in the poems of ,james ,thomson1 we find two hymns to the ,god of ,creation--one in blank verse1 the other in stanzas4 ,they are of the kind which from him we should look for4 ,the one in blank verse1 which is as an epilogue to his great poem1 ,the ,seasons1 ,i prefer4 ,we owe much to ,thomson4 ,born 7in ,scotland7 in the year #agjj1 he is the leading priest in a solemn procession to find ,god--not in the laws by which he has ordered his creation1 but in the beauty which is the outcome of those laws4 ,i do not say there is much of the relation of man to nature in his writing2 but thitherward it tends4 ,he is true about the outsides of ,god2 and in ,thomson we begin to feel that the revelation of ,god as meaning and therefore being the loveliness of nature1 is about to be recognized4 ,i do not say--to change my simile--that he is the first visible root in our literature whence we can follow the outburst of the flowers and foliage of our delight in nature3 ,i could show a hundred fibres leading from the depths of our old literature up to the great root4 ,nor is it surprising that1 with his age about him1 he too should be found tending to magnify1 not ,god's ,word1 but his works1 above all his name3 we have beauty for loveliness2 beneficence for tenderness4 ,i have wondered whether one great part of ,napoleon's mission was not to wake people from this idolatry of the power of ,god to the adoration of his love4 ,the ,hymn holds a kind of middle place between the ,morning ,hymn in the #eth ,book of the ,paradise ,lost and the ,hymn in the ,vale of ,chamouni4 ,it would be interesting and instructive to compare the three2 but we have not time4 ,thomson has been influenced by ,milton1 and ,coleridge by both4 ,we have delight in ,milton2 art in ,thomson2 heart1 including both1 in ,coleridge4 ,,hymn4 ,these1 as they change1 ,almighty ,father1 these ,are but the varied ,god4 ,the rolling year ,is full of thee4 ,forth in the pleasing ,spring ,thy beauty walks1 thy tenderness and love4 ,wide flush the fields2 the softening air is balm2 ,echo the mountains round2 the forest smiles2 ,and every sense and every heart is joy4 ,then comes thy glory in the ,summer months1 ,with light and heat refulgent4 ,then thy sun ,shoots full perfection through the swelling year ,and oft thy voice in dreadful thunder speaks1 ,and oft at dawn1 deep noon1 or falling eve1 ,by brooks and groves1 in hollow-whispering gales4#aei ,a yellow-floating pomp1 thy bounty shines ,in ,autumn unconfined4 ,thrown from thy lap1 ,profuse o'er nature1 falls the lucid shower ,of beamy fruits2 and1 in a radiant stream1 ,into the stores of sterile ,winter pours4 ,in winter awful thou6 with clouds and storms ,around thee thrown--tempest o'er tempest rolled4 ,majestic darkness6 on the whirlwind's wing ,riding sublime1 thou bidst the world adore1#afj ,and humblest nature with thy northern blast4 ,mysterious round6 what skill1 what force divine ,deep felt1 in these appear6 a simple train1 ,yet so delightful mixed1 with such kind art1 ,such beauty and beneficence combined6 ,shade unperceived so softening into shade6 ,and all so forming an harmonious whole1 ,that1 as they still succeed1 they ravish still4 99 99 99 99 99 ,nature attend6 ,join1 every living soul1 ,beneath the spacious temple of the sky-- ,in adoration join2 and1 ardent1 raise ,one general song6 ,to him1 ye vocal gales1 ,breathe soft1 whose spirit in your freshness breathes2 ,oh6 talk of him in solitary glooms1 ,where1 o'er the rock1 the scarcely waving pine ,fills the brown shade with a religious awe2 ,and ye1 whose bolder note is heard afar1 ,who shake the astonished world1 lift high to heaven ,the impetuous song1 and say from whom you rage4 ,his praise1 ye brooks1 attune1--ye trembling rills1 ,and let me catch it as ,i muse along4 ,ye headlong torrents1 rapid and profound2 ,ye softer floods1 that lead the humid maze ,along the vale2 and thou1 majestic main1 ,a secret world of wonders in thyself1 ,sound his stupendous praise1 whose greater voice ,or bids you roar1 or bids your roarings fall4 ,soft roll your incense1 herbs1 and fruits1 and flowers1 ,in mingled clouds to him whose sun exalts1 ,whose breath perfumes you1 and whose pencil paints4 ,ye forests1 bend1 ye harvests1 wave to him2 ,breathe your still song into the reaper's heart1 ,as home he goes beneath the joyous moon4 99 99 99 99 99 ,bleat out afresh1 ye hills6 ye mossy rocks1 ,retain the sound2 the broad responsive low1 ,ye valleys raise2 for the great ,shepherd reigns1 ,and his unsuffering kingdom yet will come4 99 99 99 99 99 ,ye chief1 for whom the whole creation smiles1 ,at once the head1 the heart1 and tongue of all1 ,crown the great hymn6 in swarming cities vast1 ,assembled men1 to the deep organ join ,the long-resounding voice1 oft breaking clear1 ,at solemn pauses1 through the swelling base2 ,and1 as each mingling flame increases each1 ,in one united ardour rise to heaven4 99 99 99 99 99 ,should fate command me to the farthest verge ,of the green earth1 to distant barbarous climes1 ,rivers unknown to song1 where first the sun ,gilds ,indian mountains1 or his setting beam ,flames on the ,atlantic isles1 'tis nought to me1 ,since ,god is ever present1 ever felt1 ,in the void waste as in the city full2 ,and where he vital breathes there must be joy4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the worship of intellectual power in laws and inventions is the main delight of the song2 not the living presence of creative love1 which never sings its own praises1 but spends itself in giving4 ,still1 although there has passed away a glory from the world of song1 although the fervour of childlike worship has vanished for a season1 there are signs in these verses of a new dawn of devotion4 ,even the exclusive and therefore blind worship of science will1 when it has turned the coil of the ascending spiral1 result in a new song to him that made heaven and earth and the sea and the fountains of waters4 ,but first1 for a long time1 the worship of power will go on4 ,there is one sonnet by ,kirke ,white1 eighty-five years younger than ,thomson1 which is quite pagan in its mode of glorifying the power of the ,deity4 ,but about the same time when ,thomson's ,seasons was published1 which was in #agcj1 the third year of ,george ,,ii41 that life which had burned on in the hidden corners of the church in spite of the worldliness and sensuality of its rulers1 began to show a flame destined to enlarge and spread until it should have lighted up the mass with an outburst of ,christian faith and hope4 ,i refer to the movement called ,methodism1 in the midst of which1 at an early stage of its history1 arose the directing energies of ,john ,wesley1 a man sent of ,god to deepen at once and purify its motive influences4 ,what he and his friends taught1 would1 ,i presume1 in its essence1 amount mainly to this3 that acquiescence in the doctrines of the church is no fulfilment of duty--or anything1 indeed1 short of an obedient recognition of personal relation to ,god1 who has sent every man the message of present salvation in his ,son4 ,a new life began to bud and blossom from the dry stem of the church4 ,the spirit moved upon the waters of feeling1 and the new undulation broke on the shores of thought in an outburst of new song4 ,for while ,john ,wesley roused the hearts of the people to sing1 his brother ,charles put songs in their mouths4 ,i do not say that many of these songs possess much literary merit1 but many of them are real lyrics3 they have that essential element1 song1 in them4 ,the following1 however1 is a very fine poem4 ,that certain expressions in it may not seem offensive1 it is necessary to keep the allegory of ,jacob and the ,angel in full view--even better in view1 perhaps1 than the writer does himself4 ,,wrestling ,,jacob4 ,come1 ,o thou traveller unknown1 ,whom still ,i hold1 but cannot see6 ,my company before is gone1 ,and ,i am left alone with thee6 ,with thee all night ,i mean to stay1 ,and wrestle till the break of day6 ,i need not tell thee who ,i am1 ,my misery or sin declare2 ,thyself hast called me by my name3 ,look on my hands1 and read it there6 ,but who1 ,i ask thee1 who art thou8 ,tell me thy name1 and tell me now4 ,in vain thou struggles6 to get free3 ,i never will unloose my hold4 ,art thou the man that died for me8 ,the secret of thy love unfold4 ,wrestling1 ,i will not let thee go ,till ,i thy name1 thy nature know4 99 99 99 99 99 ,what though my sinking flesh complain1 ,and murmur to contend so long6 ,i rise superior to my pain3 ,when ,i am weak1 then ,i am strong2 ,and when my all of strength shall fail1 ,i shall with the ,god-man prevail4 ,my strength is gone2 my nature dies2 ,i sink beneath thy weighty hand3 ,faint to revive1 and fall to rise2 ,i fall1 and yet by faith ,i stand-- ,i stand1 and will not let thee go ,till ,i thy name1 thy nature know4 ,yield to me now1 for ,i am weak1 ,but confident in self-despair2 ,speak to my heart1 in blessings speak2 ,be conquered by my instant#afa prayer4 ,speak1 or thou never hence shalt move1 ,and tell me if thy name is ,love4 ',tis ,love6 'tis ,love6 ,thou diedst for me6 ,i hear thy whisper in my heart6 ,the morning breaks2 the shadows flee3 ,pure universal ,love thou art6 ,to me1 to all1 thy bowels move3 ,thy nature and thy name is ,love6 ,my prayer hath power with ,god2 the grace ,unspeakable ,i now receive2 ,through faith ,i see thee face to face-- ,i see thee face to face1 and live3 ,in vain ,i have not wept and strove2 ,thy nature and thy name is ,love4 ,i know thee1 ,saviour--who thou art-- ,jesus1 the feeble sinner's friend6 ,nor wilt thou with the night depart1 ,but stay and love me to the end6 ,thy mercies never shall remove3 ,thy nature and thy name is ,love6 99 99 99 99 99 ,contented now1 upon my thigh ,i halt till life's short journey end2 ,all helplessness1 all weakness1 ,i ,on thee alone for strength depend2 ,nor have ,i power from thee to move3 ,thy nature and thy name is ,love4 ,lame as ,i am1 ,i take the prey2 ,hell1 earth1 and sin1 with ease o'ercome2 ,i leap for joy1 pursue my way1 ,and as a bounding hart fly home2 ,through all eternity to prove ,thy nature and thy name is ,love4 ,it seems to me that the art with which his very difficult end in the management of the allegory is reached1 is admirable4 ,i have omitted three stanzas4 ,i cannot give much from ,william ,cowper4 ,his poems--graceful always1 and often devout even when playful--have few amongst them that are expressly religious1 while the best of his hymns are known to every reader of such4 ,born in #agca1 he was greatly influenced by the narrow theology that prevailed in his circle2 and most of his hymns are marred by the exclusiveness which belonged to the system and not to the man4 ,there is little of it in the following3-- ,far from the world1 ,o ,lord1 ,i flee1 ,from strife and tumult far2 ,from scenes where ,satan wages still ,his most successful war4 ,the calm retreat1 the silent shade1 ,with prayer and praise agree1 ,and seem by thy sweet bounty made ,for those who follow thee4 ,there if thy spirit touch the soul1 ,and grace her mean abode1 ,oh with what peace1 and joy1 and love1 ,she communes with her ,god6 ,there1 like the nightingale1 she pours ,her solitary lays1 ,nor asks a witness of her song1 ,nor thirsts for human praise4 ,author and guardian of my life1 ,sweet source of light divine1 ,and--all harmonious names in one-- ,my ,saviour1 thou art mine6 ,what thanks ,i owe thee1 and what love-- ,a boundless1 endless store-- ,shall echo through the realms above ,when time shall be no more4 ,sad as was ,cowper's history1 with the vapours of a low insanity1 if not always filling his garden1 yet ever brooding on the hill-tops of his horizon1 he was1 through his faith in ,god1 however darkened by the introversions of a neat1 poverty-stricken theology1 yet able to lead his life to the end4 ,it is delightful to discover that1 when science1 which is the anatomy of nature1 had poisoned the theology of the country1 in creating a demand for clean-cut theory in infinite affairs1 the loveliness and truth of the countenance of living nature could calm the mind which this theology had irritated to the very borders of madness1 and give a peace and hope which the man was altogether right in attributing to the ,spirit of ,god4 ,how many have been thus comforted1 who knew not1 like ,wordsworth1 the immediate channel of their comfort2 or even1 with ,cowper1 recognized its source6 ,god gives while men sleep4 ,,chapter ,,xxi4 ,,the ,,new ,,vision4 ,william ,blake1 the painter of many strange and fantastic but often powerful--sometimes very beautiful pictures--wrote poems of an equally remarkable kind4 ,some of them are as lovely as they are careless1 while many present a curious contrast in the apparent incoherence of the simplest language4 ,he was born in #ageg1 towards the close of the reign of ,george ,,ii4 ,possibly if he had been sent to an age more capable of understanding him1 his genius would not have been tempted to utter itself with such a wildness as appears to indicate hopeless indifference to being understood4 ,we cannot tell sometimes whether to attribute the bewilderment the poems cause in us to a mysticism run wild1 or to regard it as the reflex of madness in the writer4 ,here is a lyrical gem1 however1 although not cut with mathematical precision4 ,,daybreak4 ,to find the western path1 ,right through the gates of wrath ,i urge my way2 ,sweet morning leads me on3 ,with soft repentant moan1 ,i see the break of day ,the war of swords and spears1 ,melted by dewy tears1 ,exhales on high2 ,the sun is freed from fears1 ,and with soft grateful tears1 ,ascends the sky4 ,the following is full of truth most quaintly expressed1 with a homeliness of phrase quite delicious4 ,it is one of the ,songs of ,innocence1 published1 as we learn from ,gilchrist's ,life of ,blake1 in the year #aghi4 ,they were engraved on copper with illustrations by ,blake1 and printed and bound by his wife4 ,when we consider them in respect of the time when they were produced1 we find them marvellous for their originality and simplicity4 ,,on ,,another',s ,,sorrow4 ,can ,i see another's woe1 ,and not be in sorrow too8 ,can ,i see another's grief1 ,and not seek for kind relief8 ,can ,i see a falling tear1 ,and not feel my sorrow's share8 ,can a father see his child ,weep1 nor be with sorrow filled8 ,can a mother sit and hear ,an infant groan1 an infant fear8 ,no1 no2 never can it be6 ,never1 never can it be6 ,and can he1 who smiles on all1 ,hear the wren1 with sorrows small-- ,hear the small bird's grief and care1 ,hear the woes that infants bear1 ,and not sit beside the nest1 ,pouring pity in their breast8 ,and not sit the cradle near1 ,weeping tear on infant's tear8 ,and not sit both night and day1 ,wiping all our tears away8 ,oh1 no6 never can it be6 ,never1 never can it be6 ,he doth give his joy to all2 ,he becomes an infant small2 ,he becomes a man of woe2 ,he doth feel the sorrow too4 ,think not thou canst sigh a sigh1 ,and thy ,maker is not by2 ,think not thou canst weep a tear1 ,and thy ,maker is not near4 ,oh6 he gives to us his joy1 ,that our grief he may destroy3 ,till our grief is fled and gone1 ,he doth sit by us and moan4 ,there is our mystic yet again leading the way4 ,a supreme regard for science1 and the worship of power1 go hand in hand3 that knowledge is power has been esteemed the grandest incitement to study4 ,yet the antidote to the disproportionate cultivation of science1 is simply power in its crude form--breaking out1 that is1 as brute force4 ,when science1 isolated and glorified1 has produced a contempt1 not only for vulgar errors1 but for the truths which are incapable of scientific proof1 then1 as we see in the ,french ,revolution1 the wild beast in man breaks from its den1 and chaos returns4 ,but all the noblest minds in ,europe looked for grand things in the aurora of this uprising of the people4 ,to the terrible disappointment that followed1 we are indebted for the training of ,wordsworth to the priesthood of nature's temple4 ,so was he possessed with the hope of a coming deliverance for the nations1 that he spent many months in ,france during the ,revolution4 ,at length he was forced to seek safety at home4 ,dejected even to hopelessness for a time1 he believed in nothing4 ,how could there be a ,god that ruled in the earth when such a rising sun of promise was permitted to set in such a sea6 ,but for man to worship himself is a far more terrible thing than that blood should flow like water3 the righteous plague of ,god allowed things to go as they would for a time4 ,but the power of ,god came upon ,wordsworth--,i cannot say as it had never come before1 but with an added insight which made him recognize in the fresh gift all that he had known and felt of such in the past4 ,to him1 as to ,cowper1 the benignities of nature restored peace and calmness and hope--sufficient to enable him to look back and gather wisdom4 ,he was first troubled1 then quieted1 and then taught4 ,such presence of the ,father has been an infinitely more active power in the redemption of men than men have yet become capable of perceiving4 ,the divine expressions of ,nature1 that is1 the face of the ,father therein visible1 began to heal the plague which the worship of knowledge had bred4 ,and the power of her teaching grew from comfort to prayer1 as will be seen in the poem ,i shall give4 ,higher than all that ,nature can do in the way of direct lessoning1 is the production of such holy moods as result in hope1 conscience of duty1 and supplication4 ,those who have never felt it have to be told there is in her such a power--yielding to which1 the meek inherit the earth4 ,,ninth ,,evening ,,voluntary4 ,composed upon an evening of extraordinary splendour and beauty4 ,i4 ,had this effulgence disappeared ,with flying haste1 ,i might have sent ,among the speechless clouds a look ,of blank astonishment2 ,but 'tis endued with power to stay1 ,and sanctify one closing day1 ,that frail ,mortality may see-- ,what is8--ah no1 but what can be6 ,time was when field and watery cove ,with modulated echoes rang1 ,while choirs of fervent angels sang ,their vespers in the grove2 ,or1 crowning1 star-like1 each some sovereign height1 ,warbled1 for heaven above and earth below1 ,strains suitable to both4--,such holy rite1 ,methinks1 if audibly repeated now ,from hill or valley could not move ,sublimer transport1 purer love1 ,than doth this silent spectacle--the gleam-- ,the shadow--and the peace supreme6 ,,ii4 ,no sound is uttered1--but a deep ,and solemn harmony pervades ,the hollow vale from steep to steep1 ,and penetrates the glades4 ,far distant images draw nigh1 ,called forth by wondrous potency ,of beamy radiance1 that imbues ,whate'er it strikes with gem-like hues4 ,in vision exquisitely clear1 ,herds range along the mountain side1 ,and glistening antlers are descried1 ,and gilded flocks appear4 ,thine is the tranquil hour1 purpureal ,eve6 ,but long as godlike wish or hope divine ,informs my spirit1 ne'er can ,i believe ,that this magnificence is wholly thine6 ,from worlds nor quickened by the sun ,a portion of the gift is won2 ,an intermingling of heaven's pomp is spread ,on ground which ,british shepherds tread6 ,,iii4 ,and if there be whom broken ties ,afflict1 or injuries assail1 ,yon hazy ridges to their eyes ,present a glorious scale#afb ,climbing suffused with sunny air1 ,to stop--no record hath told where2 ,and tempting ,fancy to ascend1 ,and with immortal spirits blend6 --,wings at my shoulders seem to play6 ,but1 rooted here1 ,i stand and gaze ,on those bright steps that heavenward raise ,their practicable way4 ,come forth1 ye drooping old men1 look abroad1 ,and see to what fair countries ye are bound6 ,and if some traveller1 weary of his road1 ,hath slept since noontide on the grassy ground1 ,ye genii1 to his covert speed1 ,and wake him with such gentle heed ,as may attune his soul to meet the dower ,bestowed on this transcendent hour4 ,,iv4 ,such hues from their celestial urn ,were wont to stream before mine eye ,where'er it wandered in the morn ,of blissful infancy4 ,this glimpse of glory1 why renewed8 ,nay1 rather speak with gratitude2 ,for1 if a vestige of those gleams ,survived1 'twas only in my dreams4 ,dread ,power6 whom peace and calmness serve ,no less than nature's threatening voice1 ,if aught unworthy be my choice1 ,from ,,thee if ,i would swerve2 ,oh1 let thy grace remind me of the light ,full early lost1 and fruitlessly deplored2 ,which1 at this moment1 on my waking sight ,appears to shine1 by miracle restored3 ,my soul1 though yet confined to earth1 ,rejoices in a second birth6 --',tis past2 the visionary splendour fades2 ,and night approaches with her shades4 ,although ,i have mentioned ,wordsworth before ,coleridge because he was two years older1 yet ,coleridge had much to do with the opening of ,wordsworth's eyes to such visions2 as1 indeed1 more than any man in our times1 he has opened the eyes of the ,english people to see wonderful things4 ,there is little of a directly religious kind in his poetry2 yet we find in him what we miss in ,wordsworth1 an inclined plane from the revelation in nature to the culminating revelation in the ,son of ,man4 ,somehow1 ,i say1 perhaps because we find it in his prose1 we feel more of this in ,coleridge's verse4 ,coleridge is a sage1 and ,wordsworth is a seer2 yet when the sage sees1 that is1 when1 like the son of ,beor1 he falls into a trance having his eyes open1 or1 when feeling and sight are one and philosophy is in abeyance1 the ecstasy is even loftier in ,coleridge than in ,wordsworth4 ,in their highest moods they seem almost to change places--,wordsworth to become sage1 and ,coleridge seer4 ,perhaps the grandest hymn of praise which man1 the mouth-piece of ,nature1 utters for her1 is the hymn of ,mont ,blanc4 ,,hymn ,before sunrise1 in the ,vale of ,chamouni4 ,hast thou a charm to stay the morning star ,in his steep course--so long he seems to pause ,on thy bald awful head1 ,o sovran ,blanc8 ,the ,arve and ,arveiron at thy base ,rave ceaselessly2 but thou1 most awful ,form6 ,risest from forth thy silent sea of pines1 ,how silently6 ,around thee and above ,deep is the air and dark1 substantial1 black1 ,an ebon mass3 methinks thou piercest it ,as with a wedge6 ,but when ,i look again1 ,it is thine own calm home1 thy crystal shrine1 ,thy habitation from eternity6 ,o dread and silent ,mount6 ,i gazed upon thee ,till thou1 still present to the bodily sense1 ,didst vanish from my thought3 entranced in prayer ,i worshipped the ,invisible alone4 ,yet1 like some sweet beguiling melody1 ,so sweet1 we know not we are listening to it1 ,thou1 the meanwhile1 wast blending with my thought1 ,yea1 with my life and life's own secret joy2 ,till the dilating soul1 enwrapt1 transfused1 ,into the mighty vision passing--there ,as in her natural form1 swelled vast to ,heaven6 ,awake1 my soul6 ,not only passive praise ,thou owest6 ,not alone these swelling tears1 ,mute thanks and secret ecstasy6 ,awake1 ,voice of sweet song6 ,awake1 my heart1 awake6 ,green vales and icy cliffs1 all join my hymn4 ,thou first and chief1 sole sovran#afc of the ,vale6 ,o struggling with the darkness all the night1 ,and visited all night by troops of stars1#afd ,or when they climb the sky or when they sink6 ,companion of the morning-star at dawn1 ,thyself earth's rosy star1 and of the dawn#afe ,co-herald6 wake1 ,o wake1 and utter praise6 ,who sank thy sunless pillars deep in earth8 ,who filled thy countenance with rosy light8 ,who made thee parent of perpetual streams8 ,and you1 ye five wild torrents fiercely glad6 ,who called you forth from night and utter death1 ,from dark and icy caverns called you forth1#aff ,down those precipitous1 black1 jagged rocks1 ,for ever shattered1 and the same for ever8 ,who gave you your invulnerable life1 ,your strength1 your speed1 your fury1 and your joy1 ,unceasing thunder1 and eternal foam8 ,and who commanded--and the silence came-- ,here let the billows stiffen1 and have rest8#afg ,ye ice-falls6 ye that from the mountain's brow ,adown enormous ravines slope amain-- ,torrents1 methinks1 that heard a mighty voice1 ,and stopped at once amid their maddest plunge6-- ,motionless torrents6 silent cataracts6 ,who made you glorious as the gates of heaven ,beneath the keen full moon8 ,who bade the sun ,clothe you with rainbows8 ,who1 with living flowers ,of loveliest blue1 spread garlands at your feet8-- ,god6 let the torrents1 like a shout of nations1 ,answer6 and let the ice-plains echo1 ,god6 ,god6 sing1 ye meadow-streams1 with gladsome voice6 ,ye pine-groves1 with your soft and soul-like sounds6 ,and they too have a voice1 yon piles of snow1 ,and in their perilous fall shall thunder1 ,god6 ,ye living flowers that skirt the eternal frost6 ,ye wild goats sporting round the eagle's nest6 ,ye eagles1 playmates of the mountain-storm6 ,ye lightnings1 the dread arrows of the clouds6 ,ye signs and wonders of the element6 ,utter forth ,god1 and fill the hills with praise4 ,thou too1 hoar ,mount6 with thy sky-pointing peaks1 ,oft from whose#afh feet the avalanche1 unheard1 ,shoots downward1 glittering through the pure serene ,into the depth of clouds that veil thy breast-- ,thou too again1 stupendous ,mountain6 thou ,that1 as ,i raise my head1 awhile bowed low ,in adoration--upward from thy base ,slow-travelling with dim eyes suffused with tears-- ,solemnly seemest1 like a vapoury cloud1 ,to rise before me6 rise1 ,o ever rise2 ,rise like a cloud of incense from the earth6 ,thou kingly spirit throned among the hills6 ,thou dread ambassador from earth to heaven6 ,great hierarch6 tell thou the silent sky1 ,and tell the stars1 and tell yon rising sun1 ,earth1 with her thousand voices1 praises ,god4 ,here is one little poem ,i think most valuable1 both from its fulness of meaning1 and the form1 as clear as condensed1 in which that is embodied4 ,,on ,,an ,,infant ,which died before baptism4 ,be rather than be called a child of ,god1 ,death whispered4 ,with assenting nod1 ,its head upon its mother's breast ,the baby bowed without demur-- ,of the kingdom of the blest ,possessor1 not inheritor4 ,next the father let me place the gifted son1 ,hartley ,coleridge4 ,he was born in #agif1 and died in #ahdi4 ,strange1 wayward1 and in one respect faulty1 as his life was1 his poetry--strange1 and exceedingly wayward too--is often very lovely4 ,the following sonnet is all ,i can find room for3-- ,,she ,,loved ,,much4 ,she sat and wept beside his feet4 ,the weight ,of sin oppressed her heart2 for all the blame1 ,and the poor malice of the worldly shame1 ,to her was past1 extinct1 and out of date2 ,only the sin remained--the leprous state4 ,she would be melted by the heat of love1 ,by fires far fiercer than are blown to prove ,and purge the silver ore adulterate4 ,she sat and wept1 and with her untressed hair ,still wiped the feet she was so blest to touch2 ,and he wiped off the soiling of despair ,from her sweet soul1 because she loved so much4 ,i am a sinner1 full of doubts and fears3 ,make me a humble thing of love and tears4 ,,chapter ,,xxii4 ,,the ,,fervour ,,of ,,the ,,implicit4 ,,insight ,,of ,,the ,,heart4 ,the late ,dean ,milman1 born in #agia1 best known by his very valuable labours in history1 may be taken as representing a class of writers in whom the poetic fire is ever on the point1 and only on the point1 of breaking into a flame4 ,his composition is admirable--refined1 scholarly1 sometimes rich and even gorgeous in expression--yet lacking that radiance of the unutterable to which the loftiest words owe their grandest power4 ,perhaps the best representative of his style is the hymn on the ,incarnation1 in his dramatic poem1 ,the ,fall of ,jerusulem4 ,but as an extract it is tolerably known4 ,i prefer giving one from his few ,hymns for ,church ,service4 ,,eighteenth ,,sunday ,,after ,,trinity4 ,when ,god came down from heaven--the living ,god-- ,what signs and wonders marked his stately way8 ,brake out the winds in music where he trod8 ,shone o'er the heavens a brighter1 softer day8 ,the dumb began to speak1 the blind to see1 ,and the lame leaped1 and pain and paleness fled2 ,the mourner's sunken eye grew bright with glee1 ,and from the tomb awoke the wondering dead4 ,when ,god went back to heaven--the living ,god-- ,rode he the heavens upon a fiery car8 ,waved seraph-wings along his glorious road8 ,stood still to wonder each bright wandering star8 ,upon the cross he hung1 and bowed his head1 ,and prayed for them that smote1 and them that curst2 ,and1 drop by drop1 his slow life-blood was shed1 ,and his last hour of suffering was his worst4 ,the ,christian ,year of the ,rev4 ,john ,keble 7born in #ahjj7 is perhaps better known in ,england than any other work of similar church character4 ,i must confess ,i have never been able to enter into the enthusiasm of its admirers4 ,excellent1 both in regard of their literary and religious merits1 true in feeling and thorough in finish1 the poems always remind me of ,berlin work in iron--hard and delicate4 ,here is a portion of one of the best of them4 ,,st4 ,,matthew4 ,ye hermits blest1 ye holy maids1 ,the nearest heaven on earth1 ,who talk with ,god in shadowy glades1 ,free from rude care and mirth2 ,to whom some viewless teacher brings ,the secret lore of rural things1 ,the moral of each fleeting cloud and gale1 ,the whispers from above1 that haunt the twilight vale3 ,say1 when in pity ye have gazed ,on the wreath'd smoke afar1 ,that o'er some town1 like mist upraised1 ,hung hiding sun and star2 ,then as ye turned your weary eye ,to the green earth and open sky1 ,were ye not fain to doubt how ,faith could dwell ,amid that dreary glare1 in this world's citadel8 ,but ,love's a flower that will not die ,for lack of leafy screen1 ,and ,christian ,hope can cheer the eye ,that ne'er saw vernal green3 ,then be ye sure that ,love can bless ,even in this crowded loneliness1 ,where ever-moving myriads seem to say1 ,go--thou art nought to us1 nor we to thee--away6 ,there are in this loud stunning tide ,of human care and crime1 ,with whom the melodies abide ,of the everlasting chime2 ,who carry music in their heart ,through dusky lane and wrangling mart1 ,plying their daily task with busier feet1 ,because their secret souls a holy strain repeat4 ,there are here some indications of that strong reaction of the present century towards ancient forms of church life4 ,this reaction seems to me a further consequence of that admiration of power of which ,i have spoken4 ,for1 finding the progress of discovery in the laws of nature constantly bring an assurance most satisfactory to the intellect1 men began to demand a similar assurance in other matters2 and whatever department of human thought could not be subjected to experiment or did not admit of logical proof began to be regarded with suspicion4 ,the highest realms of human thought--where indeed only grand conviction1 and that the result not of research1 but of obedience to the voice within1 can be had--came to be by such regarded as regions where1 no scientific assurance being procurable1 it was only to his loss that a man should go wandering3 the whole affair was unworthy of him4 ,and if there be no guide of humanity but the intellect1 and nothing worthy of its regard but what that intellect can isolate and describe in the forms peculiar to its operations1--that is1 if a man has relations to nothing beyond his definition1 is not a creature of the immeasurable1--then these men are right4 ,but there have appeared along with them other thinkers who could not thus be satisfied--men who had in their souls a hunger which the neatest laws of nature could not content1 who could not live on chemistry1 or mathematics1 or even on geology1 without the primal law of their many dim-dawning wonders--that is1 the ,being1 if such there might be1 who thought their laws first and then embodied them in a world of aeonian growth4 ,these indeed seek law likewise1 but a perfect law--a law they can believe perfect beyond the comprehension of powers of whose imperfection they are too painfully conscious4 ,they feel in their highest moments a helplessness that drives them to search after some ,power with a heart deeper than his power1 who cares for the troubled creatures he has made4 ,but still under the influence of that faithless hunger for intellectual certainty1 they look about and divide into two parties3 both would gladly receive the reported revelation in ,jesus1 the one if they could have evidence enough from without1 the other if they could only get rid of the difficulties it raises within4 ,i am aware that ,i distinguish in the mass1 and that both sides would be found more or less influenced by the same difficulties--but more and less1 and therefore thus classified by the driving predominance4 ,those of the one party1 then1 finding no proof to be had but that in testimony1 and anxious to have all they can--delighting too in a certain holy wilfulness of intellectual self-immolation1 accept the testimony in the mass1 and become ,roman ,catholics4 ,nor is it difficult to see how they then find rest4 ,it is not the dogma1 but the contact with ,christ the truth1 with ,christ the man1 which the dogma1 in pacifying the troubles of the intellect--if only by a soporific1 has aided them in reaching1 that gives them peace3 it is the truth itself that makes them free4 ,the worshippers of science will themselves allow1 that when they cannot gain observations enough to satisfy them upon any point in which a law of nature is involved1 they must1 if possible1 institute experiments4 ,i say therefore to those whose observation has not satisfied them concerning the phenomenon ,christianity1--,where is your experiment8 ,why do you not thus try the utterance claiming to be the law of life8 ,call it a hypothesis1 and experiment upon it4 ,carry into practice1 well justified of your conscience1 the words which the ,man spoke1 for therein he says himself lies the possibility of your acceptance of his mission2 and if1 after reasonable time thus spent1 you are not yet convinced enough to give testimony--,i will not annoy you by saying to facts1 but--to conviction1 ,i think neither will you be ready to abandon the continuous experiment4 ,these ,roman ,catholics have thus met with ,jesus1 come into personal contact with him3 by the doing of what he tells us1 and by nothing else1 are they blessed4 ,what if their theories show to me like a burning of the temple and a looking for the god in the ashes8 ,they know in whom they have believed4 ,and if some of us think we have a more excellent way1 we shall be blessed indeed if the result be no less excellent than in such men as ,faber1 ,newman1 and ,aubrey de ,vere4 ,no man needs be afraid that to speak the truth concerning such will hasten the dominance of alien and oppressive powers2 the truth is free1 and to be just is to be strong4 ,should the time come again when ,liberty is in danger1 those who have defended the truth even in her adversaries1 if such there be1 will be found the readiest to draw the sword for her1 and1 hating not1 yet smite for the liberty to do even them justice4 ,to give the justice we claim for ourselves is1 if there be a ,christ1 the law of ,christ1 to obey which is eternally better than truest theory4 ,i should like to give many of the hymns of ,dr4 ,faber4 ,some of them are grand1 others very lovely1 and some1 of course1 to my mind considerably repulsive4 ,he seems to me to go wrong nowhere in originating--he produces nothing unworthy except when he reproduces what he never could have entertained but for the pressure of acknowledged authority4 ,even such things1 however1 he has enclosed in pearls1 as the oyster its incommoding sand-grains4 ,his hymn on ,the ,greatness of ,god is profound2 that on ,the ,will of ,god is very wise2 that to ,the ,god of my ,childhood is full of quite womanly tenderness3 all are most simple in speech1 reminding us in this respect of ,john ,mason4 ,in him1 no doubt1 as in all of his class1 we find traces of that sentimentalism in the use of epithets--small words1 as distinguished from homely1 applied to great things--of which ,i have spoken more than once2 but criticism is not to be indulged in the reception of great gifts--of such a gift as this1 for instance3-- ,,the ,,eternity ,,of ,,god4 ,o ,lord6 my heart is sick1 ,sick of this everlasting change2 ,and life runs tediously quick ,through its unresting race and varied range3 ,change finds no likeness to itself in ,thee1 ,and wakes no echo in ,thy mute eternity4 ,dear ,lord6 my heart is sick ,of this perpetual lapsing time1 ,so slow in grief1 in joy so quick1 ,yet ever casting shadows so sublime3 ,time of all creatures is least like to ,thee1 ,and yet it is our share of ,thine eternity4 ,oh change and time are storms ,for lives so thin and frail as ours2 ,for change the work of grace deforms ,with love that soils1 and help that overpowers2 ,and time is strong1 and1 like some chafing sea1 ,it seems to fret the shores of ,thine eternity4 ,weak1 weak1 for ever weak6 ,we cannot hold what we possess2 ,youth cannot find1 age will not seek1-- ,oh weakness is the heart's worst weariness3 ,but weakest hearts can lift their thoughts to ,thee2 ,it makes us strong to think of ,thine eternity4 ,thou hadst no youth1 great ,god6 ,an ,unbeginning ,end ,thou art2 ,thy glory in itself abode1 ,and still abides in its own tranquil heart3 ,no age can heap its outward years on ,thee3 ,dear ,god6 ,thou art ,thyself ,thine own eternity6 ,without an end or bound ,thy life lies all outspread in light2 ,our lives feel ,thy life all around1 ,making our weakness strong1 our darkness bright2 ,yet is it neither wilderness nor sea1 ,but the calm gladness of a full eternity4 ,oh ,thou art very great ,to set ,thyself so far above6 ,but we partake of ,thine estate1 ,established in ,thy strength and in ,thy love3 ,that love hath made eternal room for me ,in the sweet vastness of its own eternity4 ,oh ,thou art very meek ,to overshade ,thy creatures thus6 ,thy grandeur is the shade we seek2 ,to be eternal is ,thy use to us3 ,ah1 ,blessed ,god6 what joy it is to me ,to lose all thought of self in ,thine eternity4 ,self-wearied1 ,lord6 ,i come2 ,for ,i have lived my life too fast3 ,now that years bring me nearer home ,grace must be slowly used to make it last2 ,when my heart beats too quick ,i think of ,thee1 ,and of the leisure of ,thy long eternity4 ,farewell1 vain joys of earth6 ,farewell1 all love that it not ,his6 ,dear ,god6 be ,thou my only mirth1 ,thy majesty my single timid bliss6 ,oh in the bosom of eternity ,thou dost not weary of ,thyself1 nor we of ,thee6 ,how easily his words flow1 even when he is saying the deepest things6 ,the poem is full of the elements of the finest mystical metaphysics1 and yet there is no effort in their expression4 ,the tendency to find ,god beyond1 rather than in our daily human conditions1 is discernible2 but only as a tendency4 ,what a pity that the sects are so slow to become acquainted with the grand best in each other6 ,i do not find in ,dr4 ,newman either a depth or a precision equal to that of ,dr4 ,faber4 ,his earlier poems indicate a less healthy condition of mind4 ,his ,dream of ,gerontius is1 however1 a finer1 as more ambitious poem than any of ,faber's4 ,in my judgment there are weak passages in it1 with others of real grandeur4 ,but ,i am perfectly aware of the difficulty1 almost impossibility1 of doing justice to men from some of whose forms of thought ,i am greatly repelled1 who creep from the sunshine into every ruined archway1 attracted by the brilliance with which the light from its loophole glows in its caverned gloom1 and the hope of discovering within it the first steps of a stair winding up into the blue heaven4 ,i apologize for the unavoidable rudeness of a critic who would fain be honest if he might2 and ,i humbly thank all such as ,dr4 ,newman1 whose verses1 revealing their saintship1 make us long to be holier men4 ,of his1 as of ,faber's1 ,i have room for no more than one4 ,it was written off ,sardinia4 ,,desolation4 ,o say not thou art left of ,god1 ,because ,his tokens in the sky ,thou canst not read3 this earth ,he trod ,to teach thee ,he was ever nigh4 ,he sees1 beneath the fig-tree green1 ,nathaniel con ,his sacred lore2 ,shouldst thou thy chamber seek1 unseen ,he enters through the unopened door4 ,and when thou liest1 by slumber bound1 ,outwearied in the ,christian fight1 ,in glory1 girt with saints around1 ,he stands above thee through the night4 ,when friends to ,emmaus bend their course1 ,he joins1 although ,he holds their eyes3 ,or1 shouldst thou feel some fever's force1 ,he takes thy hand1 ,he bids thee rise4 ,or on a voyage1 when calms prevail1 ,and prison thee upon the sea1 ,he walks the waves1 ,he wings the sail1 ,the shore is gained1 and thou art free4 ,sir ,aubrey de ,vere is a poet profound in feeling1 and gracefully tender in utterance4 ,i give one short poem and one sonnet4 ,,reality4 ,love thy ,god1 and love ,him only3 ,and thy breast will ne'er be lonely4 ,in that one great ,spirit meet ,all things mighty1 grave1 and sweet4 ,vainly strives the soul to mingle ,with a being of our kind3 ,vainly hearts with hearts are twined3 ,for the deepest still is single4 ,an impalpable resistance ,holds like natures still at distance4 ,mortal6 love that ,holy ,one6 ,or dwell for aye alone4 ,i respond most heartily to the last two lines2 but ,i venture to add1 with regard to the preceding six1 ,love that holy ,one1 and the impalpable resistance will vanish2 for when thou seest him enter to sup with thy neighbour1 thou wilt love that neighbour as thyself4 ,,sonnet4 ,ye praise the humble3 of the meek ye say1 ,happy they live among their lowly bowers2 ,the mountains1 and the mountain-storms are ours4 ,thus1 self-deceivers1 filled with pride alway1 ,reluctant homage to the good ye pay1 ,mingled with scorn like poison sucked from flowers-- ,revere the humble2 godlike are their powers3 ,no mendicants for praise of men are they4 ,the child who prays in faith ,thy will be done ,is blended with that ,will ,supreme which moves ,a wilderness of worlds by ,thought untrod2 ,he shares the starry sceptre1 and the throne3 ,the man who as himself his neighbour loves ,looks down on all things with the eyes of ,god6 ,is it a fancy that1 in the midst of all this devotion and lovely thought1 ,i hear the mingled mournful tone of such as have cut off a right hand and plucked out a right eye1 which had not caused them to offend8 ,this is tenfold better than to have spared offending members2 but the true ,christian ambition is to fill the divine scheme of humanity--abridging nothing1 ignoring nothing1 denying nothing1 calling nothing unclean1 but burning everything a thank-offering in the flame of life upon the altar of absolute devotion to the ,father and ,saviour of men4 ,we must not throw away half his gifts1 that we may carry the other half in both hands to his altar4 ,but sacred fervour is confined to no sect4 ,here it is of the profoundest1 and uttered with a homely tenderness equal to that of the earliest writers4 ,mrs4 ,browning1 the princess of poets1 was no partisan4 ,if my work were mainly critical1 ,i should feel bound to remark upon her false theory of ,english rhyme1 and her use of strange words4 ,that she is careless too in her general utterance ,i cannot deny2 but in idea she is noble1 and in phrase magnificent4 ,some of her sonnets are worthy of being ranged with the best in our language--those of ,milton and ,wordsworth4 ,,bereavement4 ,when some ,beloveds1 'neath whose eyelids lay ,the sweet lights of my childhood1 one by one ,did leave me dark before the natural sun1 ,and ,i astonied fell1 and could not pray1 ,a thought within me to myself did say1 ,is ,god less ,god that thou art left undone8 ,rise1 worship1 bless ,him6 in this sackcloth spun1 ,as in that purple6--,but ,i answer1 ,nay6 ,what child his filial heart in words can loose1 ,if he behold his tender father raise ,the hand that chastens sorely8 ,can he choose ,but sob in silence with an upward gaze8 ,and my great ,father1 thinking fit to bruise1 ,discerns in speechless tears both prayer and praise4 ,,comfort4 ,speak low to me1 my ,saviour1 low and sweet1 ,from out the hallelujahs sweet and low1 ,lest ,i should fear and fall1 and miss thee so1 ,who art not missed by any that entreat4 ,speak to me as to ,mary at thy feet-- ,and if no precious gums my hands bestow1 ,let my tears drop like amber1 while ,i go ,in reach of thy divinest voice complete ,in humanest affection--thus1 in sooth ,to lose the sense of losing6 ,as a child1 ,whose song-bird seeks the wood for evermore1 ,is sung to in its stead by mother's mouth2 ,till sinking on her breast1 love-reconciled1 ,he sleeps the faster that he wept before4 ,gladly would ,i next give myself to the exposition of several of the poems of her husband1 ,robert ,browning1 especially the ,christmas ,eve and ,easter ,day2 in the first of which he sets forth in marvellous rhymes the necessity both for widest sympathy with the varied forms of ,christianity1 and for individual choice in regard to communion2 in the latter1 what it is to choose the world and lose the life4 ,but this would take many pages1 and would be inconsistent with the plan of my book4 ,when ,i have given two precious stanzas1 most wise as well as most lyrical and lovely1 from the poems of our honoured ,charles ,kingsley1 ,i shall turn to the other of the classes into which the devout thinkers of the day have divided4 ,a ,,farewell4 ,my fairest child1 ,i have no song to give you2 ,no lark could pipe to skies so dull and grey2 ,yet1 ere we part1 one lesson ,i can leave you ,for every day4 ,be good1 sweet maid1 and let who will be clever2 ,do noble things1 not dream them1 all day long2 ,and so make life1 death1 and that vast for-ever ,one grand1 sweet song4 ,surely these last1 who have not accepted tradition in the mass1 who believe that we must1 as our ,lord demanded of the ,jews1 of our own selves judge what is right1 because therein his spirit works with our spirit1--worship the ,truth not less devotedly than they who rejoice in holy tyranny over their intellects4 ,,chapter ,,xxiii4 ,,the ,,questioning ,,fervour4 ,and now ,i turn to the other class--that which1 while the former has fled to tradition for refuge from doubt1 sets its face towards the spiritual east1 and in prayer and sorrow and hope looks for a dawn--the noble band of reverent doubters--as unlike those of the last century who scoffed1 as those of the present who pass on the other side4 ,they too would know2 but they know enough already to know further1 that it is from the hills and not from the mines their aid must come4 ,they know that a perfect intellectual proof would leave them doubting all the same2 that their high questions cannot be answered to the intellect alone1 for their whole nature is the questioner2 that the answers can only come as questioners and their questions grow towards them4 ,hence1 growing hope1 blossoming ever and anon into the white flower of confidence1 is their answer as yet2 their hope--the ,beatific ,vision--the happy-making sight1 as ,milton renders the word of the mystics4 ,it is strange how gentle a certain large class of the priesthood will be with those who1 believing there is a ,god1 find it hard to trust him1 and how fierce with those who1 unable1 from the lack of harmony around and in them1 to say they are sure there is a ,god1 would yet1 could they find him1 trust him indeed4 ,ah1 but1 answer such of the clergy and their followers1 you want a ,god of your own making4 ,certainly1 the doubters reply1 we do not want a ,god of your making3 that would be to turn the universe into a hell1 and you into its torturing demons4 ,we want a ,god like that man whose name is so often on your lips1 but whose spirit you understand so little--so like him that he shall be the bread of life to all our hunger--not that hunger only already satisfied in you1 who take the limit of your present consciousness for that of the race1 and say1 ',this is all the world needs3' we know the bitterness of our own hearts1 and your incapacity for intermeddling with its joy4 ,we have another mountain-range1 from whence ,bursteth a sun unutterably bright2 nor for us only1 but for you also1 who will not have the truth except it come to you in a system authorized of man4 ,i have attributed a general utterance to these men1 widely different from each other as ,i know they are4 ,here is a voice from one of them1 ,arthur ,hugh ,clough1 who died in #ahfa1 well beloved4 ,it follows upon two fine poems1 called ,the ,questioning ,spirit1 and ,bethesda1 in which is represented the condition of many of the finest minds of the present century4 ,let us receive it as spoken by one in the foremost ranks of these doubters1 men reviled by their brethren who dare not doubt for fear of offending the ,god to whom they attribute their own jealousy4 ,but ,god is assuredly pleased with those who will neither lie for him1 quench their dim vision of himself1 nor count that his mind which they would despise in a man of his making4 ,across the sea1 along the shore1 ,in numbers more and ever more1 ,from lonely hut and busy town1 ,the valley through1 the mountain down1 ,what was it ye went out to see1 ,ye silly folk of ,galilee8 ,the reed that in the wind doth shake8 ,the weed that washes in the lake8 ,the reeds that waver1 the weeds that float8-- young man preaching in a boat4 ,what was it ye went out to hear ,by sea and land1 from far and near8 ,a teacher8 ,rather seek the feet ,of those who sit in ,moses' seat4 ,go humbly seek1 and bow to them1 ,far off in great ,jerusalem4 ,from them that in her courts ye saw1 ,her perfect doctors of the law1 ,what is it came ye here to note8-- ,a young man preaching in a boat ,a prophet6 ,boys and women weak6 ,declare1 or cease to rave3 ,whence is it he hath learned to speak8 ,say1 who his doctrine gave8 ,a prophet8 ,prophet wherefore he ,of all in ,israel tribes8-- ,he teacheth with authority1 ,and not as do the ,scribes4 ,here is another from one who will not be offended if ,i class him with this school--the finest of critics as one of the most finished of poets--,matthew ,arnold4 ,only my reader must remember that of none of my poets am ,i free to choose that which is most characteristic3 ,i have the scope of my volume to restrain me4 ,,the ,,good ,,shepherd ,,with ,,the ,,kid4 ,he saves the sheep2 the goats he doth not save6 ,so rang ,tertullian's sentence1 on the side ,of that unpitying ,phrygian sect which cried3 ,him can no fount of fresh forgiveness lave1 ,who sins1 once washed by the baptismal wave6 ,so spake the fierce ,tertullian4 ,but she sighed1 ,the infant ,church3 of love she felt the tide ,stream on her from her ,lord's yet recent grave4 ,and then she smiled1 and in the ,catacombs1 ,with eye suffused but heart inspired true1 ,on those walls subterranean1 where she hid ,her head in ignominy1 death1 and tombs1 ,she her ,good ,shepherd's hasty image drew2 ,and on his shoulders1 not a lamb1 a kid4 ,of these writers1 ,tennyson is the foremost3 he has written the poem of the hoping doubters1 the poem of our age1 the grand minor organ-fugue of ,in ,memoriam4 ,it is the cry of the bereaved ,psyche into the dark infinite after the vanished ,love4 ,his friend is nowhere in his sight1 and ,god is silent4 ,death1 ,god's final compulsion to prayer1 in its dread1 its gloom1 its utter stillness1 its apparent nothingness1 urges the cry4 ,meanings over the dead are mingled with profoundest questionings of philosophy1 the signs of nature1 and the story of ,jesus1 while now and then the star of the morning1 bright ,phosphor1 flashes a few rays through the shifting cloudy dark4 ,and if the sun has not arisen on the close of the book1 yet the ,aurora of the coming dawn gives light enough to make the onward journey possible and hopeful3 who dares say that he walks in the full light8 that the counsels of ,god are to him not a matter of faith1 but of vision8 ,bewildered in the perplexities of nature's enigmas1 and driven by an awful pain of need1 ,tennyson betakes himself to the ,god of nature1 thus3 ,,liv4 ,the wish1 that of the living whole ,no life may fail beyond the grave2 ,derives it not from what we have ,the likest ,god within the soul8 ,are ,god and ,nature then at strife1 ,that ,nature lends such evil dreams1 ,so careful of the type she seems1 ,so careless of the single life2 ,that ,i1 considering everywhere ,her secret meaning in her deeds1 ,and finding that of fifty seeds ,she often brings but one to bear2 ,i falter where ,i firmly trod1 ,and falling with my weight of cares ,upon the great world's altar-stairs ,that slope thro' darkness up to ,god2 ,i stretch lame hands of faith1 and grope1 ,and gather dust and chaff1 and call ,to what ,i feel is ,lord of all1 ,and faintly trust the larger hope4 ,illustration3 444 he was dead1 and there he sits1 ,and he that brought him back is there4 ,once more1 this is how he uses the gospel-tale3 ,mary has returned home from the sepulchre1 with ,lazarus so late its prey1 and her sister and ,jesus3-- ,,xxxii4 ,her eyes are homes of silent prayer1 ,nor other thought her mind admits ,but1 he was dead1 and there he sits1 ,and he that brought him back is there4 ,then one deep love doth supersede ,all other1 when her ardent gaze ,roves from the living brother's face1 ,and rests upon the ,life indeed4 ,all subtle thought1 all curious fears1 ,borne down by gladness so complete1 ,she bows1 she bathes the ,saviour's feet ,with costly spikenard and with tears4 ,thrice blest whose lives are faithful prayers1 ,whose loves in higher love endure2 ,what souls possess themselves so pure1 ,or is there blessedness like theirs8 99 99 99 99 99 ,i have thus traced--how slightly6--the course of the religious poetry of ,england1 from simple song1 lovingly regardful of sacred story and legend1 through the chant of philosophy1 to the full-toned lyric of adoration4 ,i have shown how the stream sinks in the sands of an evil taste generated by the worship of power and knowledge1 and that a new growth of the love of nature--beauty counteracting not contradicting science--has led it by a fair channel back to the simplicities of faith in some1 and to a holy questioning in others2 the one class having for its faith1 the other for its hope1 that the heart of the ,father is a heart like ours1 a heart that will receive into its noon the song that ascends from the twilighted hearts of his children4 ,gladly would ,i have prayed for the voices of many more of the singers of our country's psalms4 ,especially do ,i regret the arrival of the hour1 because of the voices of living men and women4 ,but the time is over and gone4 ,the twilight has already embrowned the gray glooms of the cathedral arches1 and is driving us forth to part at the door4 ,but the singers will yet sing on to him that hath ears to hear4 ,when he returns to seek them1 the shadowy door will open to his touch1 the long-drawn aisles receding will guide his eye to the carven choir1 and there they still stand1 the sweet singers1 content to repeat ancient psalm and new song to the prayer of the humblest whose heart would join in ,england's ,antiphon4 ,,the ,,end4 #a ,the rhymes of the first and second and of the fourth and fifth lines throughout the stanzas1 are all1 ,i think1 what the ,french call feminine rhymes1 as in the words sleeping1 weeping4 ,this ,i think it better not to attempt retaining1 because the final unaccented syllable is generally one of those e's which1 having first become mute1 have since been dropped from our spelling altogether4 #b ,for the grammatical interpretation of this line1 ,i am indebted to ,mr4 ,richard ,morris4 ,shall is here used1 as it often is1 in the sense of must1 and rede is a noun2 the paraphrase of the whole being1 ,son1 what must be to me for counsel8 ,what counsel must ,i follow8 #c ,do not blame me1 it is my nature4 #d ,mon is used for man or woman3 human being4 ,it is so used in ,lancashire still3 they say mon to a woman4 #e ,they weep quietly and becomingly4 ,i think there must be in this word something of the sense of gently1-uncomplainingly4 #f ,and are shrunken 7clung with fear7 like the clay4 ,so here is the same as as4 ,for this interpretation ,i am indebted to ,mr4 ,morris4 #g ,it is no wonder though it pleases me very ill4 #h ,i think the poet1 wisely anxious to keep his last line just what it is1 was perplexed for a rhyme1 and fell on the odd device of saying1 for both day and night1 both day and the other4 #i ,all as if it were not never1 ,i wis4 #aj ,so that many men say--,true it is1 all goeth but ,god's will4 #aa ,i conjecture ,all that grain 7me7 groweth green4 #ab ,not is a contraction for ne wat1 know not4 ,for ,i know not whither ,i must go1 nor how long here ,i dwell4 ,i think y is omitted by mistake before duelle4 #ac ,this is very poor compared with the original4 #ad ,i owe almost all my information on the history of these plays to ,mr4 ,collier's well-known work on ,english ,dramatic ,poetry4 #ae ,able to suffer1 deserving1 subject to1 obnoxious to1 liable to death and vengeance4 #af ,the word harry is still used in ,scotland1 but only in regard to a bird's nest4 #ag ,do-well1 ,do-better1 and ,do-best4 #ah ,complexion4 #ai ,ruddiness--complexion4 #bj ,twig4 #ba ,life 7874--,i think she should be he4 #bb ,field4 #bc ,carry you beyond this region4 #bd ,for the knowledge of this poem ,i am indebted to the ,early ,english ,text ,society1 now printing so many valuable manuscripts4 #be ,the for here is only an intensive4 #bf ,pref is proof4 ,put in pref seems to stand for something more than being tested4 ,might it not mean proved to be a pearl of price8 #bg ,a word acknowledged to be obscure4 ,mr4 ,morris suggests on the left hand1 as unbelieved4 #bh ,except that which his sole wit may judge4 #bi ,be equal to thy possessions3 fit thy desires to thy means4 #cj ,ambition has uncertainty4 ,we use the word ticklish still4 #ca ,is mingled everywhere4 #cb ,to relish1 to like4 ,desire no more than is fitting for thee4 #cc ,for4 #cd ,let thy spiritual and not thine animal nature guide thee4 #ce ,and ,i dare not falsely judge the reverse4 #cf ,a poem so like this that it may have been written immediately after reading it1 is attributed to ,robert ,henryson1 the ,scotch poet4 ,it has the same refrain to every verse as ,lydgate's4 #cg ,mourning for mishaps that ,i had caught made me almost mad4 #ch ,led me all one3 brought me back to peace1 unity1 harmony4 787 #ci ,that ,i read on 7it74 #dj ,of in the original1 as in the title4 #da ,does this mean by contemplation on it8 #db ,i paid good attention to it4 #dc ,greeted thee--in the very affliction4 #dd ,for ,christ's love let us do the same4 #de ,whatever grief or woe enslaves thee4 ,but thrall is a blunder1 for the word ought to have rhymed with make4 #df ,the precious leader that shall judge us4 #dg ,when thou art in sorry plight1 think of this4 #dh ,and death1 beyond renewal1 lay hold upon their life4 #di ,sending1 message3 whatever varying decree ,god sends thee4 #ej ,receives his message2 accepts his will4 #ea ,recently published by the ,early ,english ,text ,society4 ,s4,l4 ,,iv4 #eb ,child born of a bright lady4 ,bird1 berd1 brid1 burd1 means lady originally3 thence comes our bride4 #ec ,in ,chalmers' ,english ,poets1 from which ,i quote1 it is selly-worme2 but ,i think this must be a mistake4 ,silly would here mean weak4 #ed ,the first poem he wrote1 a very fine one1 ,the ,shepheard's ,calender1 is so full of old and provincial words1 that the educated people of his own time required a glossary to assist them in the reading of it4 #ee ,eyas is a young hawk1 whose wings are not fully fledged4 #ef ,what less than that is fitting8 #eg ,for1 even in ,collier's edition1 but certainly a blunder4 #eh ,was1 in the editions2 clearly wrong4 #ei ,of the same mould and hand as we4 #fj ,there was no contempt in the use of this word then4 #fa ,simple-hearted1 therefore blessed2 like the ,german selig4 #fb ,a shell plentiful on the coast of ,palestine1 and worn by pilgrims to show that they had visited that country4 #fc ,evil was pronounced almost as a monosyllable1 and was at last contracted to ill4 #fd ,come to find a place4 ,the transitive verb stow means to put in a place3 here it is used intransitively4 #fe ,the list of servants then kept in large houses1 the number of such being far greater than it is now4 #ff ,there has been some blundering in the transcription of the last two lines of this stanza4 ,in the former of the two ,i have substituted doth for dost1 evidently wrong4 ,in the latter1 the word cradle is doubtful4 ,i suggest cradled1 but am not satisfied with it4 ,the meaning is1 however1 plain enough4 #fg ,the very blessing the soul needed4 #fh ,an old ,english game1 still in use in ,scotland and ,america1 but vanishing before cricket4 #fi ,silly means innocent1 and therefore blessed2 ignorant of evil1 and in so far helpless4 ,it is easy to see how affection came to apply it to idiots4 ,it is applied to the ox and ass in the next stanza1 and is often an epithet of shepherds4 #gj ,see ,poems by ,sir ,henry ,wotton and others4 ,edited by the ,rev4 ,john ,hannah4 #ga ,know thyself4 #gb ,and ,i have grown their map4 #gc ,the guilt of ,adam's first sin1 supposed by the theologians of ,dr4 ,donne's time to be imputed to ,adam's descendants4 #gd ,the past tense3 ran4 #ge ,their door to enter into sin--by his example4 #gf ,he was sent by ,james ,i4 to assist an embassy to the ,elector ,palatine1 who had married his daughter ,elizabeth4 #gg ,he had lately lost his wife1 for whom he had a rare love4 #gh ,if they know us not by intuition1 but by judging from circumstances and signs4 #gi ,with most willingness4 #hj ,art proud4 #ha ,a strange use of the word2 but it evidently means recovered1 and has some analogy with the ,french repasser4 #hb ,to understood3 to sweeten4 #hc ,he plays upon the astrological terms1 houses and schemes4 ,the astrologers divided the heavens into twelve houses2 and the diagrams by which they represented the relative positions of the heavenly bodies1 they called schemes4 #hd ,the tree of knowledge4 #he ,dyce1 following ,seward1 substitutes curse4 #hf ,a glimmer of that ,platonism of which1 happily1 we have so much more in the seventeenth century4 #hg ,should this be in fees2 that is1 in acknowledgment of his feudal sovereignty8 #hh ,warm is here elongated1 almost treated as a dissyllable4 #hi ,he ought not to be forsaken3 whoever weighs the matter rightly1 will come to this conclusion4 #ij ,the ,eridan is the ,po4--,as regards classical allusions in connexion with sacred things1 ,i would remind my reader of the great reverence our ancestors had for the classics1 from the influence they had had in reviving the literature of the country4--,i need hardly remind him of the commonly-received fancy that the swan does sing once--just as his death draws nigh4 ,does this come from the legend of ,cycnus changed into a swan while lamenting the death of his friend ,phaeton8 or was that legend founded on the yet older fancy8 ,the glorious bird looks as if he ought to sing4 #ia ,the poet refers to the singing of the hymn before our ,lord went to the garden by the brook ,cedron4 #ib ,the construction is obscure just from the insertion of the to before breathe1 where it ought not to be after the verb hear4 ,the poet does not mean that he delights to hear that voice more than to breathe gentle airs1 but more than to hear gentle airs 7to7 breathe4 ,to hear1 understood1 governs all the infinitives that follow2 among the rest1 the winds 7to7 chide4 #ic ,rut is used for the sound of the tide in ,cheshire4 7,see ,halliwell's ,dictionary47 ,does rutty mean roaring8 or does it describe the deep1 rugged shores of the ,jordan8 #id ,a monosyllable1 contracted afterwards into bloom4 #ie ,willows4 #if ,groom originally means just a man4 ,it was a word much used when pastoral poetry was the fashion4 ,spenser has herd-grooms in his ,shepherd's ,calendar4 ,this last is what it means here3 shepherds4 #ig ,obtain1 save4 #ih ,equivalent to ,what are those hands of yours for8 #ii ,he was but thirty-nine when he died4 #ajj ,to rhyme with pray in the second line4 #aja ,bunch of flowers4 ,he was thinking of ,aaron's rod1 perhaps4 #ajb ,to correspond to that of ,christ4 #ajc ,again a touch of holy humour3 to match his ,master's predestination1 he will contrive something three years beforehand1 with an if4 #ajd ,the here in the preceding line means his book2 hence the thy book is antithetical4 #aje ,concent is a singing together1 or harmoniously4 #ajf ,music depends all on proportions4 #ajg ,the diapason is the octave4 ,therefore all notes true4 ,see note #b1 p4 #bje4 #ajh ,an intransitive verb3 he was wont4 #aji ,the birds called halcyons were said to build their nests on the water1 and1 while they were brooding1 to keep it calm4 #aaj ,the morning star4 #aaa ,the ,god of shepherds especially1 but the ,god of all nature--the ,all in all1 for ,pan means the ,all4 #aab ,milton here uses the old ,ptolemaic theory of a succession of solid crystal concentric spheres1 in which the heavenly bodies were fixed1 and which revolving carried these with them4 ,the lowest or innermost of these spheres was that of the moon4 ,the hollow round of ,cynthia's seat is1 therefore1 this sphere in which the moon sits4 #aac ,that cannot be expressed or described4 #aad ,by hinges he means the axis of the earth1 on which it turns as on a hinge4 ,the origin of hinge is hang4 ,it is what anything hangs on4 #aae ,this is an apostrophe to the nine spheres 7see former note71 which were believed by the ancients to send forth in their revolutions a grand harmony1 too loud for mortals to hear4 ,but no music of the lower region can make up full harmony without the bass of heaven's organ4 ,the music of the spheres was to ,milton the embodiment of the theory of the universe4 ,he uses the symbol often4 #aaf ,consort is the right word scientifically4 ,it means the fitting together of sounds according to their nature4 ,concert1 however1 is not wrong4 ,it is even more poetic than consort1 for it means a striving together1 which is the idea of all peace3 the strife is together1 and not of one against the other4 ,all harmony is an ordered1 a divine strife4 ,in the contest of music1 every tone restrains its foot and bows its head to the rest in holy dance4 #aag ,symphony is here used for chorus1 and quite correctly2 for symphony is a voicing together4 ,to this symphony of the angels the spheres and the heavenly organ are the accompaniment4 #aah ,die of the music4 #aai ,not merely swings1 but lashes about4 #abj ,full of folds or coils4 #aba ,the legend concerning this cessation of the oracles associates it with the ,crucifixion4 ,milton in ,the ,nativity represents it as the consequence of the very presence of the infant ,saviour4 ,war and lying are banished together4 #abb ,the genius is the local god1 the god of the place as a place4 #abc ,the ,lars were the protecting spirits of the ancestors of the family2 the ,lemures were evil spirits1 spectres1 or bad ghosts4 ,but the notions were somewhat indefinite4 #abd ,flamen was the word used for priest when the ,romans spoke of the priest of any particular divinity4 ,hence the peculiar power in the last line of the stanza4 #abe ,jupiter ,ammon1 worshipped in ,libya1 in the north of ,africa1 under the form of a goat4 ,he draws in his horn4 #abf ,the ,syrian ,adonis4 #abg ,frightful1 horrible1 as1 a grisly bear4 #abh ,isis1 ,orus1 ,anubis1 and ,osiris1 all ,egyptian divinities--the last worshipped in the form of a bull4 #abi ,no rain falls in ,egypt4 #acj ,last-born3 the star in the east4 #aca ,bright-armoured4 #acb ,ready for what service may arise4 #acc ,the with we should now omit1 for when we use it we mean the opposite of what is meant here4 #acd ,it is the light of the soul going out from the eyes1 as certainly as the light of the world coming in at the eyes that makes things seen4 #ace ,the action by which a body attacked collects force by opposition4 #acf ,cut roughly through4 #acg ,intransitively used4 ,they touch each other4 #ach ,self-desire1 which is death's pit1 c4 #aci ,which understood4 #adj ,how unpleasant conceit can become4 ,the joy of seeing the ,saviour was stolen because they gained it in the absence of the sun6 #ada ,a trisyllable4 #adb ,his garland4 #adc ,the sunny seed in their hearts4 #add ,from tine or tind1 to set on fire4 ,hence tinder4 #ade ,the body of ,jesus4 #adf ,mark i4 #ce2 ,luke xxi4 #cg4 ,the word time must be associated both with progress and prayer--his walking-time and prayer-time4 #adg ,this is an allusion to the sphere-music3 the great heavens is a clock whose hours are those when ,jesus retires to his ,father2 and to these hours the sphere-music gives the chime4 #adh ,he continues his poetic synonyms for the night4 #adi ,behold ,i stand at the door and knock4 #aej ,a monosyllable4 #aea ,often used for chambers4 #aeb ,the creation looks for the light1 thy shadow8 ,or1 ,the light looks for thy shadow1 the sun8 #aec ,perforce3 of necessity4 #aed ,he does not mean his fellows1 but his bodily nature4 #aee ,savourest8 #aef ,the first ,i ever saw of its hymns was on a broad-sheet of ,christmas ,carols1 with coloured pictures1 printed in ,seven ,dials4 #aeg ,they passed through twenty editions1 not to mention one lately published 7by ,daniel ,sedgwick1 of #ha1 ,sun-street1 ,bishopsgate1 a man who1 concerning hymns and their writers1 knows more than any other man ,i have met71 from which1 carefully edited1 ,i have gathered all my information1 although ,i had known the book itself for many years4 #aeh ,the animal spirits of the old physiologists4 #aei ,in the following five lines ,i have adopted the reading of the first edition1 which1 although a little florid1 ,i prefer to the scanty two lines of the later4 #afj ,false in feeling1 nor like ,god at all1 although a ready pagan representation of him4 ,there is much of the pagan left in many ,christians--poets too4 #afa ,insisting--persistent4 #afb ,great cloudy ridges1 one rising above the other1 like a grand stair up to the heavens4 ,see ,wordsworth's note4 #afc ,the mountain4 #afd ,these two lines are just the symbol for the life of their author4 #afe ,from the rose-light on the snow of its peak4 #aff ,they all flow from under the glaciers1 fed by their constant melting4 #afg ,turning for contrast to the glaciers1 which he apostrophizes in the next line4 #afh ,antecedent1 peaks4 ,transcriber's ,note3 ,in this electronic edition1 the footnotes have been numbered and relocated to the end of the work4 ,in chapter #ad1 the word ,iris1 which appears in our print copy1 seems to be a misprint for ,isis and was corrected as such4