his monftrous enimy With furdie fteps came ftalking in his fight, At laft with creeping, crooked pace, forth came Homer describes the warrior, manga Givre, grandibus gradibus gradientem: So Milton of Satan. vi. 109. Satan with vaft and haughtie ftrides advanc'd, But Milton has a paffage nearer ftill to our poet, whom both in the expreffion, and in the iteration of the letters he plainly imitates; ii. 676. The monster moving onward came as faft Ποσσῖν ὑπ ̓ ἀθανάτοισι Ποσειδάωνος ἰάος. Which defcription of Neptune highly took the fancy of Longinus. Mr. Pope's tranflation is fuch, as might be expected from one, who fo well knew the art of verfification; Fierce as he past the lofty mountains nod, The forefts fhake, earth trembled as he trode, And felt the footsteps of th' immortal God. But as I have mentioned the correspondency of the verse to the thing described, it might not his monstrous enimy With Sturdie steps came ftalking in his fight, An hideous giant, horrible and hye. B. i. C. 7. St. 8. You fee and hear the tree tumbling down from the mountain top: The mighty trunk half rent, with ragged rift By the break of the verse you hear the snapping afunder of the speare. The Steely head fuck fast fill in his flesh, B. i. C. ii. St. 22. His alexandrine verfes are often well adapted to the defcription, long, dragging, immeasured. Like a difcoloured fnake, whofe hidden fnares, Through the greene grafs his long bright burnight back declares. B. iii. C. 11. St. 28. Mighty monoceros with immeafüred tayles. B. ii. C. 12. St. 23. He expreffes mean and low fubjects by the meanness of his verse: as Virg. G. i. 181. -Saepe exiguus mus. The mifer threw himself as an offal. B. ii. C. 3. St. 8. Whom he hath vowd to dub a fayre cucquold. B. iii. C. 10. St. II. Picturefque images, to paint them strong and full, he exprefles by many adjectives: as Virg. iii. 658. Monftrum horrendum, informe, ingens. Mof Moft lothfome, filthie, foule and full of vile difdaine. And smote, and bit, and kickt, and scratcht and rent. And fwims, or finks, or wades, or creeps, or flies. E taglia, e fende, e fere, e fora, e tronca. Orl. Fur. xxiii. 61. -or by many verbs heaped together unconnectively ouders. Ex. gr. Abiit, evafit, erupit, Cicer. in Catal. He rav'd, he wept, he ftampt, he lewd did cry. Urta, apre, caccia, atterra, taglia, e fende, giant Orgoglio, as THAT MAN OF SIN, who oppofeth and EXALTETH himself above all that is called God, &c. 2 Theff. ii. 3. This is the tyrant, or wild beaft, to whom it was given to make war with the faints, and OVERCOME THEM; [as here our Christian knight to his forrow finds] whe was to continue forty and two months; [till Arthur conquers him] fo that all should worship him. Revel. xiii. 5. 7. This is the beast in Daniel, vii. Whofe mouth spake very great things, and whofe look was more flout than his fellows, ver. 28. [All other powers he did fcorn, St. 10.] He made war with the faints, and prevailed against them, 21. of dayes came, &c. ver. 22. [The power of God 25. [exemplifyed in St. George] Until the ancient is fhewn in prince Arthur] I am apt to believe that Spenfer when he fays, in St. 8. that his ftatue did exceed The hight of three the tallest fonnes of mortall feed His living like faw never living eye, Daniel, fhall be diverfe from all others. Spenfer, Orl. Fur. xviii. 57. ful. Puft up with empty wind, i. e. Spiritual O'er bog, o'er fteep; through strait, rough, denfe, or rare. Or fleep, as the editions of Milton read, is here infufferable, as Dr. Bentley very truly saw. IX. The greatest Earth his uncouth mother was-] Hefiod, in Theog. ver. 116. Says the giants were born of Heaven and Earth, and calls this brood UIIEPHOANA TEKNA. Hyginus, nearer still to our purpose, Ex Aethere et Terra, SUPERBIA: which anfwers to this giant's name Orgoglio. Ital. Orgoglio. Gall. Orgueil. the etymology of which, according to Menage is, igyáw, tumeo, Orgalium, Orgolium, orgueil. And to this etymology Spenfer feems to allude when he fays, Puft up with winde; and likewife by fo elegantly departing from the ancient mythologifts, who make Pride the offfpring of Heaven and Earth: for Aether in Hyginus is Heaven. whether Spencer interprets Hyginus, and the mythologists right, is not now the question, 'tis fufficient if he has applied them to his purpofe; and has acted the poet, not the fervile imitator. But I would now, turn our reader to the allegory, which is finely preferved throughout. Confider then this proud VOL. II. power. Haply of thy race In future days, if malice fhould abound, Some one intent on mischief, or infpired With dev'lifh machination, might devije Like inftrument to plague the fons of men. And afterwards defcribing the making of gunpowder, which Spenfer fays is made of fulphur and nitre; he mentions not charcoal; for the word is too mean for a poet, though an effential ingredient in the compofition. The three ingredients are, brimftone, fuddenly to catch the flame of fire; pulverized charcoal, to continue the fire and ftop the flame, which would otherwife confume its ftrength; and falt-petre, which occafions a windy exhalation. Though all thefe ingredients are neceffary for a maker of gunpowder, they are not neceffary for poetical manufacture: neither Milton nor Spenfer mention charcoal, as too low for poetry: Sulphurous and nitrous foam They found, they mingled, and with fubtle art Concocted and adufted, they reduc'd To blackest grain. These verses Dr. Bentley would alter, and introduce that very word, which induftriously both Spenfer and Milton avoided, for inftead of, with fubtle art, he reads with footy chark. Which great Alcides in Stremona flew,] Strymon is a city and a river in Thrace, and fometimes ufed for Thrace itfelf: 'tis ufual for Spenfer, as well as other writers, to use proper names in the oblique cafes: Now as Thrace was remarkable for its feditions, and facred to the ravaging god of war, the Hydra, foftered in Lerne (the proper emblem of fedition) might well be faid to have made its abode in Thrace.-STRYMONIS impia ftagna. Statius Theb. IX. 435. Some perhaps may think that Spenser has confounded the places of Hercules' labours: or inftead of AMYMONE, that either he, or fome romance-writer whom he might follow, wrote STRYMONE Corruptedly. This fnake ufed to barbour παρὰ τὰς πηγὰς τῆς Αμυμώνης, Apollod. p. 102. where this adventure of Hercules is re- And with extorted powre, and borrow'd firength, And in proud rebellious arms And with lies Drew after him the third part of heav'ns hoft. Milton you fee plainly interprets the prophetical. ftyle, in which the ftars are put for fubordinate interpreted; nor does he mean the whole hoft and officers and thus Spenfer is to be princes of heaven by the ever-burning lamps, though he expreffes himself indefinitely. Fairfax in his moft elegant tranflation of Taffo iv. 4. leaves. his original, and adds, speaking of the devils, And fome their forked tailes ftretch forth on hie, And teare the twinkling ftars from trembling fkie. By extorted power and borrowed ftrength, he feems to allude to the unjust acquifitions of the papal vii. 7. After this, I faw-a fourth beaf, dreadful He has plainly likewise Daniel in view, and terrible, and ftrong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and ftamped the refulue with the feet of it: with this verfe compare the following, And underneath his filthy feet did tread The facred things power. AN YRON BREST and back of fialy bras— I could have wifhed our poet had followed the prophet, and that he had written, For feven great heads out of his body grew, WITH YRON TEETH; his breft and back of bras. To fhew his tyranny and greedinefs, as well as his ftrength and power. The allufion of the feven heads wants no interpretation, -rerum facta eft pulcherrima Roma, Septemque una fibi muro circumdedit arces. Virg. G. ii. 535. His mightie armour,-] See note on C. 1. St. 3. He had not travaild long, when on the way He wofull Una (wofull lady!) met XXI. -dead was his hart within;] This is a phrase in fcripture. I Sam. xxv. 37. fpeaking of Nabal, his heart died within him, and he became as a ftone. Ibid. To chaufe her chin,] her face. 'Tis a hard mat- (Turpe) folum tetigere mento. When darknesse he in deepest dongeon drove.] If Mundumque enixa nitentem, Fugit in infernas Caligo pulfa tenebras. And hence Milton, i. 712. At his fecond bidding Darknesse fled. XXIV. Pointing to the armour of the red-croffe knight Who hath endur'd the whole, can beare eche part.] Solent fuprema facere fecuros mala. XXVI. Was never lady loved dearer day,] Spenfer has i. e. thy own image. i. e. too long. Or elfe, what other dismal day i. e. What other misfortune. B. 5. C. 4. St. 26. I formerly wrote on the margin of my book, i. e. more judiciously; for day in our old writers That in no wife he brekin will his daie. The which thefe reliques fad prefent unto mine eye.] tion to the reader's determination. D dd 2 XXIX. XXIX. At laft fhe chaunced by good hap to meet A goodly knight,-] This is the first time that the Briton prince makes his appearance; [fee the Introduction St. 2. and the note.] and that his image might well be imprefied on the reader's mind; he is defcribed at large, and takes up nine whole ftanzas. Sublimity and grandeur require room to fhew themfelves and to expatiate at large. And this is exactly after the manner of the great Grecian mafter, who often paints his heroes at full length. See likewife the magnificent figure he makes! for he is Magnificence itself. He is attended with a Squire; like the knights in romance writers: not fo the Chriftian knight; he and Una have only a dwarf betwixt them to carry their need That beautiful baldrick of Pallas, fo fatal to Turnus, is well known. But among the pretious ftones which ornamented this belt, there was one in the midft, fhapt like a ladies head: meaning the Fairy queen; by whom every one knows who is reprefented.-Spenfer departs from Jeffry of Monmouth, and the more romance hiftory of prince Arthur; and indeed from all the ftories of our old English writers, in many of the circumftances relating to this British prince, that he might make a heroe for his poem, and not a poem for his heroe. They tell you that his fhield was named Pridwen; his fword Caliburn or Excalibur (Spenfer, Mordure) and his fpear Roan. They fay likewife that on Arthur's fhield was painted the image of the Virgin Mary. And from these old story books Nic. Uptonus, has blazoned the arms of Arthur and his father Uter. Speaking of Uterpendragon (de Milit. Off. L. iv.) Il port d'or deux dragons verds corronez de gewlez, les dors encontre lex dors-Quae infuper arma, tàm priora, quàm ifta, portavit rex ille inclitiffimus Arthurus filius et fucceffor dicti Uterpendragon, ufque ad finem vitae fuae. Affumpfit tamen praefatus Arthurus, vifo quodam miraculo apud Glafconiam, alia arma ad laudem crucifixi: viz. unam crucem argenteam, in cujus brachio dextro erat quaedam imago beatae Mariae Virginis cum filio fuo in brachio dextro fedente in campo viridi. XXXI. His haughtie helmet, horrid all with gold,—] This is according to Jeffry of Monmouth, B. ix. C. 4. who tells us prince Arthur wore a helmet of gold, and on the creft was the figure of a dragon. This agreement of our poet in fome circumftances with hiftory, gives a kind of veracity to his fairy tale. It might be added too that Arthur's father Uther, was hence named Pendragon from the figure of a dragon which he wore on his creft: and fome hiftorians write that Uther and Arthur are the fame perfons. The truth is, that very little credit is to be given to the whole hiftory of Arthur; but it follows not therefore that the story is improper for poetical imagination. Spenfer's expreffions are worth dwelling on :-horrid with gold: is very poetical, Ipfe dehinc auro fqualentem alboque crichalco Inalza d'oro fquallido fquamofe Virg. xii. 87. Taffo xv. 48. Per tunicam fqualentem auro latus haurit apertum. Virg. x. 314. -Permiftoque afperat auro. Silius Ital. Lib. v. This expreffion of Virgil offended fome nicer ears, tanquam fi non conveniret dicere, auro fqualentem; quoniam nitoribus fplendoribufque auri fqualloris illuvies fit contraria. A. Gellius, ii. 6. But fee his anfwer-Squallere dictum eft à fquamarum crebritate afperitateque, &c. In the fame manner, fámque adeo rutilum thoraca indutus ahënis HORREBAT fquamis: Virg. xi. 488. Of borfes led, and groomes befmeard with gold- Spenfer had Virgil, or Taffo in view, ix. 25. where he defcribes the Soldan's helmet: Galea |