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One day, whiles that my daylie cares did sleepe 536

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377 PENELOPE, for her Ulisses sake 193

LACKYNG my love, I go from place to place
Leave, lady! in your glasse of cristall clene
Let not one sparke of filthy lustre fyre
Like as a ship, that through the Ocean wyde.
Like as a ship with dreadfull storm long tost.
Like as an Hynd forth singled from the heard
Like as the gentle hart it selfe bewrayes.
Lo! Collin, here the place whose plesaunt syte 463
Lo! I, the Man whose Muse whylome did maske
Loe! I have made a Calender for every yeare.
Long languishing in double malady
Long-while I sought to what I might compare
Love lift me up upon thy golden wings.
Love, that long since hast to thy mighty powre 592
Lyke as a huntsman after weary chace
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Lyke as a ship, that through the Ocean wyde. 578
Lyke as the Culver, on the bared bough. 586

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RAPT with the rage of mine own ravisht
thought.
Receive, most noble Lord, a simple taste
Receive, most Noble Lord, in gentle gree
Redoubted Knights, and honorable Dames
Redoubted Lord, in whose corageous mind
Rehearse to me, ye sacred Sisters Nine
Remembrance of that most Heroicke spirit
Renowmed Lord, that for your worthinesse
Retourne agayne, my forces late dismayd
Right well I wote, most mighty Soveraine
Rudely thou wrongest my deare harts desire.

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That conning Architect of cancred guyle
That Mantuane Poetes incompared spirit
The antique Babel, Empresse of the East
The Chian Peincter, when he was requirde
The doubt which ye misdeeme, fayre love, is

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The famous Briton Prince and Faery Knight
The famous warriors of anticke world
The gentle shepheard satte beside a springe
The glorious image of the Maker's beautie
The glorious pourtraict of that Angels face
The joyes of love, if they should ever last
The laurel-leafe, which you this day doe weare
The love which me so cruelly tormenteth
The merry Cuckow, messenger of Spring
The morow next, so soone as Phoebus Lamp.
The noble hart that harbours vertuous thought
The Panther, knowing that his spotted hyde.
The paynefull smith, with force of fervent
heat

9 Upon a day, as Love lay sweetly slumbring

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The soverayne beauty which I doo admire The waies, through which my weary steps guyde

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The weary yeare his race now having run
The world that cannot deeme of worthy things
They, that in the course of heavenly spheares
are skild

This holy season, fit to fast and pray

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What warre so cruel, or what siege so sore
When I behold that beauties wonderment
When I bethinke me on that speech whyleare 436
When my abodes prefixed time is spent
When stout Achilles heard of Helen's rape
When those renoumed noble Peres of Greece
Where is the Antique glory now become
Wherefore doth vaine antiquitie so vaunt
Who ever doth to temperance apply

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582 YE gentle Ladies, in whose soveraine powre.

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THE LIFE Of SPENSER is wrapt in a similar obscurity to that which hides from us his great predecessor Chaucer, and his still greater contemporary Shakspere. As in the case of Chaucer, our principal external authorities are a few meagre entries in certain official documents, and such facts as may be gathered from his works. The birth-year of each poet is determined by inference. The circumstances in which each died are a matter of controversy. What sure information we have of the intervening events of the life of each one is scanty and interrupted. So far as our knowledge goes, it shows some slight positive resemblance between their lives. They were both connected with the highest society of their times; both enjoyed court favour, and enjoyed it in the substantial shape of pensions. They were both men of remarkable learning. They were both natives of London. They both died in the close vicinity of Westminster Abbey, and lie buried near each other in that splendid cemetery. Their geniuses were eminently different: that of Chaucer was of the active type, Spenser's of the contemplative; Chaucer was dramatic, Spenser philosophical; Chaucer objective, Spenser subjective; but in the external circumstances, so far as we know them, amidst which these great poets moved, and in the mist which for the most part enfolds those circumstances, there is considerable likeness.

Spenser is frequently alluded to by his contemporaries; they most ardently recognised in him, as we shall see, a great poet, and one that might justly be associated with the one supreme poet whom this country had then produced-with Chaucer, and they paid him constant tributes of respect and admiration; but these mentions of him do not generally supply any biographical details.

The earliest notice of him that may in any sense be termed biographical occurs in a sort of handbook to the monuments of Westminster Abbey, published by Camden in 1606. Amongst the 'Reges, Reginæ, Nobiles, et alij in Ecclesia Collegiata B. Petri

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