Salust of France, and Tuscan Ariost! * B. 1. s. 4. These satires [the three first books] were first printed by T. Creed, for R. Dexter, Lond. 1597. 12mo. The three last books appeared in an edi tion, entitled, "Virgidemiarum, The three last bookes of byting Satyres, Anon. Lond. printed by R. Bradocke, for R. Dexter, &c. 1598." 12mo. It begins with sat. 1. of lib. 4. The next edition [of the whole] is, "Virgidemiarum, The three last [in reality all the six] bookes of the byting Satyres, corrected and amended, with some additions, by J. H. Lond. for R. Dexter, &c. 1599." 12mo. In a copy I have seen of this last edition, at the end are bound up, "Certaine worthye manuscript poems of great antiquitie, reserved long in the studie of a Northfolke Gentleman, now first published by J. S. Lond. R. D. 1597.” 12mo. The poems are, "The stately Tragedy of Guiscard and Sismond." In two books, in the seven-lined stanza. It is Dryden's story, and seems about the age of Henry vii. "The Northern Mother's Blessing, written nine yeares before the death of G. Chaucer." "The Way to Thrift." They are dedicated to the worthiest poet Maister Ed. Spencer. SECT. V. Of Spenser's Imitations from Chaucer. IT has been before observed in general, that Spenser copied the language of Chaucer: and it is evident, that in many passages he has imitated Chaucer's sentiment. It is frequently true, that parallelists mistake resemblances for thefts. But this doctrine by no means affects the instances which I shall give, in this section, of Spenser's imitations from Chaucer, and which I shall produce in the next, of the passages he has copied from Ariosto: Spenser is universally acknowledged to have been an attentive reader, and a professed admirer of both these poets. His imitations from the former are most commonly literal, couched in the expressions of the original. What he has drawn from Ariosto are artificial fictions, which consisting of unnatural combinations, could not, on account of their singularity, bę fallen upon by both poets accidentally, as natural appearances might be, which lie exposed and obvious to all, at all times. We may therefore safely pronounce the resemblances in the sections here mentioned, to have been intended. But I proceed to collect some specimens of Spenser's imitations from Chaucer, both of language and sentiment. B. i. c. i. s. viii. Much can they praise the trees so straight and high, The sayling pine, the cedar proud and tall, The vine-prop elme, the poplar never dry, The builder oake, sole king of forests all, ix. The laurell, meed of mighty conquerours, And poets sage; the firre that weepeth still, The willow, worne of forlorne paramours, The eugh, obedient to the bender's will, The birch for shafts, the sallow for the mill, The myrrhe sweet-bleeding in the bitter wound. The warlike beech, the ash for nothing ill, The fruitfull olive, and the platane round, The carver holme, the maple sildom inward sound. Ovid*, Senecat, Lucant, Statius §, and Claudian, have all left us a description of trees; but Spenser, in this before us, seems more immediately to have had his favourite Chaucer in his eye; he has, however, müch improved upon the brevity and simplicity of The builder oake, and eke the hardie ashe; In Chaucer's Complaint of the Blacke Knight we meet with another description of trees, from which Spenser seems to have collected and added one or two circumstances. The mirre also that weepeth ever' of kinde: Spenser, perhaps, in this minute and particular enumeration of various trees, has incurred less censure than some of the Roman authors mentioned above. In some of those, indeed, such a description will be found superfluous and impertinent; but, upon this * The Assemble of Fowles, v. 176. + Ver. 66. |