A beauty of that clear and sparkling light, And turn the blackest sorrows to bright joys; All taste of bitterness, and makes the air A body so harmoniously composed, All her best symmetry in that one feature! Who could be false to? chiefly, when he knows The wealthy treasure of her love on him; In the full flood of her admired perfection? Would not be fearful to offend a dame Much more a noble, and right generous mind, That knows the weight of guilt;1 he will refrain And to his sense object this sentence ever, "Man may securely sin, but safely never." 1 That knows the weight of guilt, &c.] This is from Seneca, the tragedian : Quid pæna presens consciæ mentis pavor, XII. EPISTLE TO ELIZABETH COUNTESS OF RUTLAND.2 MADAM, HILST that for which all virtue now is sold, W That which, to boot with hell, is thought And for it, life, conscience, yea souls are given, Just to the weight their this day's presents bear; The truth of times, was once of more esteem, 2 Elizabeth countess of Rutland.] The lady to whom the 79th epigram is addressed, daughter of sir Philip Sidney, and wife of Roger Manners, fifth earl of Rutland. She died before the appearance of this volume, as did her husband. Were yet unfound, and better placed in earth,3 store The world hath seen, which all these had in trust, And now lie lost in their forgotten dust. It is the Muse alone, can raise to heaven, And at her strong arm's end, hold up, and even, That bred them, graves: when they were born they died, That had no muse to make their fame abide. Have beauty known, yet none so famous seen? Or, in an army's head, that lock'd in brass Were yet unfound, and better placed in earth, &c.] "Aurum irrepertum et sic melius situm Quàm cogere humanos in usus Omne sacrum rapiente dextra." HOR. Gave killing strokes. There were brave men before That Homer brought to Troy; yet none so live, But only poets, rapt with rage divine? And such, or my hopes fail, shall make you shine. Of all Lucina's train, Lucy the bright;" Ajax, or Idomen.] The sentiment is from Horace, lib. iv. 9. Multi; sed omnes illacrymabiles Nocte, carent quia vate sacro. You, and that other star, that purest light WHAL. Of all Lucina's train, Lucy the bright.] This, I presume, was Lucy countess of Bedford, to whom our author hath addressed some epigrams, and who was particularly celebrated by Dr. Donne. If what follows in the succeeding lines must be applied to him, one would imagine some little misunderstanding was then subsisting between him and the poet; though from the verses which Donne and Jonson have mutually wrote to each other, it appears there was always a very friendly correspondence between them. WHAL. No doubt of it: but Whalley is mistaken in the person here meant, who is not Donne but Daniel. There is no necessity for wantonly stirring up new enmities, since Jonson is already charged with more than he ever felt; and it is certain that he was at this time, and continued to the end of his life, the affectionate friend and admirer of Donne. That there was no cordiality between our poet and Daniel seems probable, and he here gives the reason of it. Daniel "envied " him. A little retrospect into his history may shew, perhaps, that the assertion (setting aside the undoubted veracity of Jonson) has nothing improbable in it. Daniel was born in 1562. At the age Than which a nobler heaven itself knows not; of seventeen he was admitted a commoner of Magdalen Hall, Oxford, where he continued three years. In 1582 he came to London, and was recommended to the court through the interest of his brother-in-law, "the resolute John Florio." On the death of Spenser, in 1599, he succeeded to the Laureatship; in other words, he became the court poet, and as such, was called on to furnish the complimentary poems, pageants, masques, &c., incidental to the situation. He seems, therefore, not unnaturally, to have experienced some uneasiness when, soon after the accession of James I., Jonson was called upon to prepare the Masques of that gay period. This appears to be the very head and front of our poet's offending, unless it be added, that though he always thought and called Daniel a good and honest man," he entertained no very lofty opinion of his style of poetry. Daniel, however, numbered among his friends and patrons, the most distinguished characters of both sexes; and it appears that he was not wanting in remonstrating against the attempt to supersede him, nor in using the interest which his talents and virtues had procured, to be permitted to resume what he probably considered as the duties of his office. In the dedication of the Vision of the Twelve Goddesses, 1604, to the countess of Bedford, he expresses his thankfulness "for her preferring him to the queen, for this employment." The dedication is, in itself, sufficiently captious and querulous, and seems pointed, in some measure, at our poet. He was also called on to assist in the solemnity of creating Henry, prince of Wales; when he wrote the masque or rather pageant of Tethys Festival.* But Daniel's spirits were wounded, and he could not apparently brook the rising favour of his younger competitor. About a year * I take the earliest opportunity of correcting a mistake respecting this "Solemnitie." It is stated, vol. vii. p. 148, that the Masque of Oberon was performed before the prince on the 5th of June, 1610. I have since been enabled to ascertain, by the kindness of Mr. Cohen, that the masque performed on that day was the Tethys of Daniel, to which therefore the description of the Master of the Ceremonies must be referred. The Masque of Oberon was probably presented, as it is printed, after the Barriers, on the sixth day, or Thursday. The machinery of Tethys was furnished by Inigo Jones, and the accompaniments must have been very splendid. The poet's part was the least important, and consisted of little more than some pretty songs. |