the whole tale of Geneura, written likewife by Mr. Turbervill, and from which h our Shakespeare has made a Play, is imitated in the Second Book, Canto IV. and fe the tale of the Squire of Dames in the Faery Queen is imaged from the Hoft's tale in Orlando Furiofo. From Tao's inchanted Island to which Rinaldo arrives, is taken the defcription of the floating ifland [B. 2. C. 6.] And more particularly Acrafia's bower [Cantor2] That paffage of Spenfer where Sir Gyon overthrows the bowl of wine, and breaks (2.12.49) the ftaffe of Pleafure's porter, is imitated by Milton in Comus. X My time will not permit me to fhew his imitations from the Romance writers: tho' one paffage of our poet from Heliodorus I cannot pafs over, and that is where Sir Satyrane's education is defcribed, B. I. c. 6. ft. 24. "And eke wyld roring bulls he would him make "To tame, and ryde their backes not made to bear. How ftrange will it appear to many a reader, to find a young prince taught to tame and to ride upon the backs of wild bulls? But in the tenth book of Heliodorus, you will find that Theagenes both tamed and rode on the back of a wild bull. We have at Oxford now a very valuable monument of this ftrange kind of fport, of which I here fend you an engraving. ΤΑΥΡΟΚΑΘΑΨΙΩΝ ΗΜΕΡ This was a sport, to inure the youth to warlike exercises, ufual at Theffaly, and by Caefar brought to Rome. But as Dr. Prideaux has already treated of this fubject in his differtations upon the Arundel marbles, I fhall only add that the modern Bull Feasts in Spain feem plainly to be derived from this strange exercise and fport, first begun by the Centaurs, who from thus hunting and driving away the herds of their neighbours had their original names; then a publick pastime among the Theffalians, afterwards among the Romans; and at laft ending in a Spanish Bull feaft. If you ask me why I think that Spenser had this exercise for his young heroe from Heliodorus, and not rather from Pliny or fome of the Roman hiftorians, my reason is because he was a great reader of this Romance writer, as well as his patron Sir Philip Sydney, and both of them great imitators of him; and the exercises and education of the Heroe of the Romance, would appear not improper, for a Knight in Faery land. Spenfer made himself mafter of ancient mythology, and confulted fuch kind of writings as was proper for his allegorical poem. But does he conftrue always right? In his description of the Giant Orgoglio, i. e. Pride, he adds, D "The i "The greatest Earth his uncouth mother was, 6. And bluftring Aeolus his boafted Sire. B. I. C. 7. ft. 9. Hyginus fays, Ex Aethere et Terra SUPERBIA. Spenfer conftrues then Aether, air, wind, Acolus. Hefied tells us [Theog. y. 147.] the Giants were born of Heaven and earth; and calls this brood regńpava réxva, Superba proles. But what Spenser's interpretation was I can't fo eafily determine, as that he has very elegantly applied it to his own purpofe, which is fufficient for a poet. THE daughters of old Nereus are mentioned by Homer, Hefiod, Virgil, and the mythological writers. Spenfer mentions them too, [fee B. 4. C. 11. ft. 48.] but he kept his eye on Hefiod, where, tho 'tis faid that Nereus had fifty daughters: yet in the edition of Hefiod which Spenfer used, there was two of the number wanting, for Пpwrw is mentioned twice, and fome other name should be inferted: and Tköz, who has a being in Homer, Il. o'. 40. Νησαίη, Σπειώ τε, Θόη 9', 'Αλίη τε βοώπις, is dwindled down to a meer epithet in Hefiod, [Theog. . 245.] Κυμοθόη, Σπείω τε θοή, Θαλίη τ' ἐρόεσσα Light-foote Cymothoe, fays Spenfer; and mentions not Thöe. But his creative faculty makes two, Phao and Poris, and thus compleats the number. I know the verfe in Hefiod may be altered by pointing; and I know too that Thalia is a Nereid in Virgil, Neface, Spioque, THALIAQUE, Cymodoseque But you will give me leave to propofe my thoughts: and that is Thalia the Mufe, was made a Nereid by a corrupt reading in Hefiod: but the corruption was older than the times of Virgil, and 'tis no wonder the Mythologists should err, when they erred in fuch good company: for I hardly doubt but Hefiod wrote, Κυμοθόη, Σπειώ τε, Θόη θ', 'Αλίη τε βοώπις 1 But as these letters were not all invented in his time, we will fuppofe they flood thus, ΚΥΜΟΤΗΟΕ ΣΠΕΟ ΤΕ THOE THAΛΙΕ ΤΕ ΒΟΟΠΙΣ. Thus you fee not a letter changed. And fhall Virgil's authority countenance the old writing? Yet Virgil would not say Thalia: Nor is Thalia mentioned as one of the daughters of Nereus by Apollodorus, L. I. C. II. Pray think not the worfe of my modefty for accufing Virgil of a blunder. I can affure you I had rather you accufed my learning. However, to go on with a little more confidence be pleafed not to lay your Homer out of your hand, nor your Hefiod, 'till you have made fome other alterations : ΝΗΜΕΡΤΗΣ τε καὶ ΑΠΣΕΥΔΗΣ Should be, ΝΗΜΕΡΤΙΣ τε καὶ ΑΠΣΕΥΔΙΣ. II.. 38. And And in Hefiod [Theog. . 263.] we must read NHMEPTIE Correct likewise your Hyginus, Nemertis, Apfeudis: with the fame termination as Augis, Oris, &c. For none of the ladies of antiquity (amongst whom I ever made any acquaintance) had their names ending in HZ.I am certain you will applaud my juftice to the fair fex, who am very careful, as you fee, left they fhould be called out of their proper names. I omit Spenfer's imitations of his friend and patron, Sir Philip Sydney's Arcadia, and will just mention the learned Bishop of Dunkeld, the tranflator of Virgil: who in numberless places ufes tan for gan, began: Chaucer but feldom, as in the Court of Love, $, 224. "Yet half for drede I can my visage hide. In the Scotifh dialect warr is worse: war and war, worse and worfe: Septimber B. 4. C. 8. ft. 31. So in his pastorals, December. Aegl. IX. Fot. 1611, P. 39 -2° Cel⋅ line 9. IT would be altogether unpardonable in an editor, fhould he overlook the peculiarities of his author, and the manner of expreffion borrowed from other languages. Such are I. Grecisms, as "Or who fhall let me now "On this vile body from to wreak my wrong. B. 2. C. 8. ft. 28. i. e. who shall hinder me from revenging, &c. from to wreck, anò të Tícadas. "Where both awhile would covered remaine, B. 2. C. 12. ft. 64. "Be "Be fure that nought may fave thee from to dy. From to dye, ἀπὸ τὰ θανεῖν. B. 3. C. 12. ft. 35. THERE is no reader of Homer, who is ignorant that pixes often means no more than fuus: fo piros viòs, fuus filius: Qian walpida, fuam patriam. After the same manner Spenfer ufes dear, "That blind old woman and her daughter dear. B. I. C. 3. ft. 22. i. e. her own daughter. Hence I am apt to imagine that a kind of Glofs, or doubtlefs, as it seems to me, a corruption, is gotten into a paffage, where he is fpeaking of Agave, who with the rest of that mad rout tore her fon Pentheus in pieces for flighting the rites of Bacchus : "Like raging Ino, when with knife in hand "She threw her husband's murdred infant out: "Of Bacchus priefts, her owNE DEAR fleh did teare B. 5. I would read, "Or as that madding mother, mongst the rout "Of Bacchus priests, her sONS DEAR flesh did teare▬▬▬ i. e. her own son's flesh. Spenser in his translation of Virgil's Culex, says, "to which of yore "Came the BAD daughter of old Cadmus brood, "Cruel Agave. Jt.22. That inftead of BAD daughter we should read MAD daughter, with a very little variation, no one can doubt that knows the story, and will turn to the original, Vita furore AG AVE. So above madding mother. UNDER this article of Grecifms, I will mention an imitation of a paffage in Sophocles: the tragedian himself runs the hazard of a far-fetch'd expreffion; what then fhall be faid of his imitators ? Όσα τὸν δύσηνον ἐμὸν θρηνῶ Πατέρ ̓, ὃν κατὰ μὲν βάρβαρον διαν Φόινιος ̓́Αρης ἐκ ΕΞΈΙΝΙΣΕ. Quantopere miferum meum lugeo Electr. . 94. Patrem, quem in barbara terra The poet Archilocus called blood and flaughter, "ApEos Eívia. ftrange that an editor fhould propofe here fo frigid a reading as, 'Tis no more vure, confecit, dispatcht; dispatcht; than in our english Sophocles to find his bold, hazardous, phrases often brought down to the plain idiom of tame poets. Virgil is very fond of excipere in the fame fenfe, as I think; tho' the commentators give it a different turn; as among many other places, you may see in Aen. X, 385. Nam Pallas ante ruentem, Dum furit, incautum crudeli morte fodalis, And again, Aen. XI, 517. Tu Tyrrhenum equitem conlatis excipe fignis. It requires no very great learning to know what commentators have already faid; however, leaving them, I would tranflate, excipere, to entertain, to welcome, in the fenfe of Sophocles, and in the fenfe of Spenfer, whom I am first to thank for giving me an infight into this beautiful, tho' bold, expreffion : "Who foone as fhe him faw approaching neare "But Calidore in th' entry close did stand, II. Latinifms: as, "But now seem'd beft the person to put on B. 4. C. 6. ft. 10. B. 6. C. 11. ft. 46. B. I. C. 2. ft. 11. To put on the perfon, perfonam induere.But several of these kind of Latinims have been taken notice of by the learned author of The Remarks. XTo these Latinifms then I refer all fuch expreffions, as "brufhing the fea with oars." Caerula verrunt. Virg. III, 208. or of a bird's" fhearing the liquid fkye" Radit iter liquidum. V, 217. which Milton has imitated. |