And not a stone; a spirit, a soul, and a body: [Exit Face. Sub. This is heathen Greek, to you, This is heathen Greek to you! What are now! And when comes vivification? Face. After mortification. Sub. What's cohobation? Your aqua regis, and then drawing him To the trine circle of the seven spheres. Sub. What's the proper passion of metals? Face. Malleation. you, sir? Ana. Please you, a servant of the exiled brethren, That deal with widows' and with orphans' And make a just account unto the saints: Sub. O, you are sent from Master Your teacher? Ana. From Tribulation Wholsome, Sub. What's your ultimum supplicium Our very zealous pastor. auri? Sub. Good! I have Some orphans' goods to come here. Sub. Pewter and brass, andirons and Metals, that we must use our medicine on: Wherein the brethren may have a pennyworth 1 Ana. All's heathen but the Hebrew.] There is much admirable humour in making this zealous botcher disclaim all knowledge of, and all esteem for, the language of the New Testament. In this, however, the poet has not advanced one step beyond the truth. Some of Luther's followers (the Knipper-dolings and Bockholdts of the time) are thus represented by Erasmus: "Hic tui discipuli palam docebant disciplinas humanas esse venenum pietatis; non esse discendas linguas nisi Hebraicam.' Indeed, the Anabaptists of Munster seriously proposed to burn every book but the Old Testament." This is not forgotten by Bishop Corbet in his Dis-ness, scarcely ever borrows a word from it. tracted Puritan: Cleveland has a similar allusion in his Puritan: "With some small Hebrew, but no Greek, "In the holy tongue of Canaan I placed my chiefest pleasure; With an Hebrew root, That I bled beyond all measure." VOL. II. To find out words, when stuff's to seek," &c. This predilection for "the language of Canaan” continued till the Restoration. To judge from versial writings of the Puritans during the the common discourse, the sermons, and controUsurpation, it might almost be concluded that no such book as the New Testament was in existence; since their language, though interlarded with Scripture phrases, even to profane The Puritans who fled from this country to New England at the beginning of the civil war, carried this prejudice with them; and so deeply was it rooted, that in the rebellion of the colonies a member of that state seriously proposed to Congress the putting down of the English language by law, and decreeing the universal adop ition of the Hebrew in its stead. D egg, And a small paper of pin-dust. Sub. What's your name? That cozened the apostles! Hence, away! Piger Henricus, or what not. Thou wretch! Or the anti-Christian hierarchy shall perish, If they stay threescore minutes: the aqueity, Terreity, and sulphureity Shall run together again, and all be annulled, Thou wicked Ananias! [Exit Ananias.] This will fetch 'em, 1 Both sericon and bufo,] Both the red and the black tincture. These terms are adopted to confound and terrify the simple deacon. In the next line, Jonson little suspected that he was treading on living coals-suppositos cineri doloso. 2 What Baiards have we here?] Alluding to the proverb, "As bold as blind Baiard.' Thus Chaucer: "Ye ben as bold as is bayarde the blind, That blondereth forth, and peril casteth none." Baiardo is the horse of Rinaldo, in Ariosto.WHAL And make them haste towards their gulling more. A man must deal like a rough nurse, and fright Those that are froward, to an appetite. Re-enter Face in his uniform, followed by Drugger. Face. He is busy with his spirits, but Sub. How now! what mates, what Face. I told you he would be furious.— Has brought you another piece of gold to look on: -We must appease him. Give it me,and prays you, You would devise-what is it, Nab? Face. Ay, a good lucky one, a thriving Sub. I was devising now. Face. 'Slight, do not say so, He will repent he gave you any moreWhat say you to his constellation, doctor, The Balance? Sub. No, that way is stale and common. A townsman born in Taurus, gives the bull, Or the bull's head: in Aries, the ram, Striking the senses of the passers-by, That may result upon the party owns it: Face. Nab! Sub. He shall have a bel, that's Abel; And by it standing one whose name is Dee, In a rug gown,3 there's D, and Rug, that's drug: And by it standing one whose name is Dee, In a rug gown,] This is evidently levelled at the celebrated Dr. John Dee, a man of considerable knowledge in the mathematics, and a great pretender to astrology, alchemy, and magic. He began, like most of the fraternity, with being a dupe; but soon turned cheat; connected himself with the notorious Kelley, and rambled over Europe in the ostensible character of a conjuror; but really as a spy. On his return he settled at Mortlake, where he died in extreme poverty, notwithstanding his possession of the philosopher's stone; being, as Lilly says, "enforced many times to sell some And right anenst him a dog snarling er;1 There's Drugger, Abel Drugger. That's his sign. And here's now mystery and hieroglyphic !2 Face. Abel, thou art made. Drug. Sir, I do thank his worship. Face. Six o' thy legs more will not do it, Nab. He has brought you a pipe of tobacco, doctor. Drug. Yes, sir: I have another thing I would impart― Drug. Sir, there is lodged, hard by me, A rich young widow Face. Good! a bona roba? Drug. But nineteen at the most.3 Drug. Marry, she's not in fashion yet; A hood, but it stands a cop.4 Face. No matter, Abel. Drug. And I do now and then give her Face. What! dost thou deal, Nab? Drug. And physic too, sometime, sir; With all her mind. She's come up here of purpose To learn the fashion. Face. Good (his match too!) - On, Nab. Drug. And she does strangely long to know her fortune. book or other to buy a dinner." Lilly adds, that Dee was excessively vain: and this is confirmed by what he says in one of his lettersthat "if he had found a Mæcenas, Britain would not have been destitute of an Aristotle." In a very dull and prolix introduction to his Treatise on Navigation, Dee observes that the common reports of him were, "that he was not only a conjuror or caller of devils, but a great doer therein, yea, the great conjuror, and so, as some would say, the arche conjuror of this whole kingdom." This, however, the doctor calls "a damnable sklaunder." In the print before one of his books, he appears wrapped up in a rough shaggy gown: to this Jonson alludes. And right anenst him a dog snarling er ;] Anenst is the old word for against, and is frequently found in Chaucer and his contemporaries. It is not yet worn out in Scotland. Er, or R, as Shakspeare says, "is the dog's letter:" "Irritata canis quod homo quàm pleniu' dicit.” And here's now mystery and hieroglyphic!] The ridicule on the taste for rebuses, common at that time, is well placed. Camden, in his Face. Ods lid, Nab, send her to the doctor, hither. Drug. Yes, I have spoke to her of his But she's afraid it will be blown abroad, Face. Hurt it! 'tis the way To heal it, if 'twere hurt; to make it more Followed and sought. Nab, thou shalt tell her this. She'll be more known, more talked of; and your widows Are ne'er of any price till they be famous; Their honour is their multitude of suitors: Send her, it may be thy good fortune. What! Thou dost not know. Drug. No, sir, she'll never marry Under a knight: her brother has made a VOW. Face. What! and dost thou despair, my little Nab, Knowing what the doctor has set down for thee, And seeing so many of the city dubbed? One glass o' thy water, with a madam I know, Will have it done, Nab: what's her brother, a knight? Drug. No, sir, a gentleman newly warm in his land, sir, Scarce cold in his one and twenty, that does govern His sister here; and is a man himself Remains, will help the reader to others of the same kind.-WHAL. It was no uncommon practice in the age of Jonson, when astrology was everywhere in repute, to consult the impudent pretenders to it on the construction of a lucky sign. To this we probably owe the Sun and Whalebone, the Cat and Gridiron, and many others of those anomalous groups which diverted and puzzled the wits of Queen Anne's days: and which the poet so pleasantly exposes. With respect to the string of puns before us, poor as they now appear, they doubtless contributed in no small degree to. the mirth of the audience for whom they were drawn up; as we may be pretty confident that most of these strange combinations conveyed some local or temporary allusion. Jonson surveyed the prevailing follies with a keen and sarcastic glance, and in more instances than can now be discovered, portrayed and ridiculed them. 3 But nineteen at the most.] Abel is very correct. The lady says that she was born in 1591; and this was written in 1610. It It stands a cop.] i.e., conical, terminating in a point. This was the ancient mode. came originally from France, It is the goodest soul !-Abel, about it. Tri. Good brother, we must bend unto all means, Thou shalt know more anon. Away, be That may give furtherance to the holy gone. [Exit Ábel. A miserable rogue, and lives with cheese, And has the worms. That was the cause, indeed, Why he came now: he dealt with me in private, To get a med'cine for them. Sub. And shall, sir. This works. Face. A wife, a wife for one of us, my dear Subtle ! We'll e'en draw lots, and he that fails, shall have The more in goods, the other has in tail. Sub. Rather the less: for she may be so light She may want grains. Face. Ay, or be such a burden, A man would scarce endure her for the whole. Sub. Faith, best let's see her first, and then determine. cause. Furnus acediæ, turris circulatorius.3 Lembec, bolt's-head, retort, and pelican Had all been cinders. Wicked Ananias! Art thou returned? nay, then it goes down yet. Tri. Sir, be appeased; he is come to humble Himself in spirit, and to ask your patience, If too much zeal hath carried him aside From the due path. Sub. Why, this doth qualify! Tri. The brethren had no purpose, verily, To give you the least grievance: but are ready To lend their willing hands to any project The spirit and you direct. Sub. This qualifies more! Tri. And for the orphans' goods, let them be valued, And stand up for the beauteous discipline,]" So the pretended reformation of the Church was at this time affectedly called by the Puritans. See vol. i. p. 456 b. Furnus acedia, turris circulatorius : Furnus àcediæ sive incuria, ubi uno igne et parvo labore diversi furni foventur."-Lex. Alch. Turris circulatorius est vas vitreum, ubi infusus liquor ascendendo et descendendo quasi in circulo rotatur."—Ibid. |