Curiosities of Literature: And the Literary Character Illustrated |
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actors admirable ambassador amusing anagram ancient anecdote appears Aristotle Bayle beautiful Ben Jonson bishop burlesque called cardinal Cardinal Richelieu celebrated character Charles Charles II Cicero collection comedy composed court critic curious death delight discovered duke Elizabeth England English expression father favour favourite formed France French genius give hand historian holy honour Hudibras humour imagination imitation ingenious invention Italian Italy Jesuit king labour lady learned letters literary literature lived Livy Lord Lord of Misrule majesty manner manuscript marriage ment mind nation nature never observed occasion original party passion person Petrarch philosopher Plato Plutarch poem poet poetical poetry political Pope present preserved prince printed proverbs queen racter reign ridiculous Roman Saint satire says seems singular Spain Spanish spirit Talmud taste thing thou tion translation verses volumes words writer written wrote
Popular passages
Page 206 - With a heart of furious fancies, Whereof I am commander : With a burning spear, And a horse of air, To the wilderness I wander ; With a knight of ghosts and shadows, I summoned am to Tourney : Ten leagues beyond The wide world's end ; Methinks it is no journey...
Page 152 - The birds their quire apply ; airs, vernal airs, Breathing the smell of field and grove, attune The trembling leaves, while universal Pan, Knit with the Graces and the Hours in dance, Led on the eternal Spring.
Page 195 - Wives are young men's mistresses ; companions for middle age; and old men's nurses. So as a man may have a quarrel to marry when he will. But yet he was reputed one of the wise men, that made answer to the question, when a man should marry ?—' A young man not yet, an elder man not at all.
Page 183 - ... appear in print like a puny with his guardian and his censor's hand on the "back of his title to be his bail and surety that he is no idiot or seducer; it cannot be but a dishonour and derogation, to the author, to the book, to the privilege and dignity of learning.
Page 164 - And surely while Britain retains her awful situation among the nations of Europe, the " Sylva" of Evelyn will endure with her triumphant oaks. It was a retired philosopher who aroused the genius of the nation, and who, casting a prophetic eye towards the age in which we live, contributed to secure our sovereignty of the seas. The present navy of Great Britain has been constructed with the oaks which the genius of Evelyn planted!
Page 205 - They could not get it off; they wore about their necks a great horn of an ox in a string or bawdry, which, when they came to a house, they did wind, and they put the drink given to them into this horn, whereto they put a stopple. Since the wars I do not remember to have seen any one of them.
Page 185 - Daniel and reveal was in it, and that was sufficient to satisfy her inspirations. The court attempted to dispossess the spirit from the lady, while the bishops were in vain reasoning the point with her out of the scriptures, to no purpose, she poising text against text : — one 'of the deans of the arches, says Heylin, shot her thorough and thorough with an arrow borrowed from her own quiver : he took a pen, and at last hit upon this excellent anagram : DAME ELEANOR DAVIES.
Page 24 - It was at Rome, on the 15th of October 1764, as I sat musing amidst the ruins of the Capitol, while the bare-footed friars were singing vespers in the temple of Jupiter', that the idea of writing the decline and fall of the city first started to my mind.
Page 168 - ... passion for acquisition, combined in the character of Audley, as in more tremendous conquerors. His partners dreaded the effects of his law-library, and usually relinquished a claim rather than stand a suit against a latent quibble. When one menaced him by showing some money-bags, which he had resolved to empty in law against him, Audley, then in office in the court of wards, with a sarcastic grin, asked "Whether the bags had any bottom?" "Ay!" replied the exulting possessor, striking them.
Page 171 - My prime of youth is but a frost of cares; My feast of joy is but a dish of pain; My crop of corn is but a field of tares, And all my good is but vain hope of gain. The day is fled and yet I saw no sun, And now I live and now my life is done.