Herring," 4to, 1599; and his "Summers Last Will and Testament," 4to, 1608; and to many other circumstances and customs of an interesting nature. It is, indeed, most unusual for so small a tract to contain so large a number of interesting allusions. Some of these mentioned illustrate the plays of Shakespeare, as the notice of Bankes' Horse-the Dancing-horse of Love's Labour Lost.

The title of the book is printed in white letters on a black ground. This is followed by "The Epistle to the Reader, or, The true Character of this Booke," signed by the initials T. M.; then come four pages of verse, consisting of seventy-one lines, entitled "A Morall. Lucifer ascending. Prologue to his owne Play," which begins thus:

Now is Hell landed here vpon the Earth,
When Lucifer in limbes of burning gold
Ascends this dustie Theater of the world,

To ioyne his powers: and were it numbred well,
There are more Diuells on Earth then are in Hell.
Hence springs my damned ioy, my tortur'de spleene
Melts into mirthfull Humour at this Fate,
That heauen is hung so high, drawne vp so farre,
And made so fast, naylde vp with many a Starre.
And Hell the very shop-borr'd of the Earth,

Where when I cut out soules, I throw the shreds
And the white linings of a new-soyld Spirit,

Pawnde to luxurious and adulterous merit.

The following lines are powerfully descriptive and striking, and much resemble Middleton's style in his Plays:

Euery Tearme-time I come vp, to sowe

Dissention betwixt Plough-men, that should sowe
The Fields vast wome, and make the haruest growe :
So comes it oft to passe deare yeares befall,
When Plough-men leaue the Field to till the Hall;
Thus Famine and bleake Dearth do greet the Land,
When the Plough's held betweene a Lawyer's hand.
I fat with ioy to see how the poore Swaines
Do boxe their Country-thyes, carrying their Packets
Of writings, yet can neither reade nor write,
They're like to Candles if they had no light:
For they're darke within, in sence and iudgement,
As is the Hole at Newgate, and their thoughts
Are like the men that lye there without spirit,
This strikes my black soule into rauishing Musicke.

To see Swaynes plod and shake their ignorant skuls :
For they are nought but skul, their braine but Burre,
Wanting wits marrowe and the sap of Iudgement;
And how they grate with their hard nayly soales

The stones in Fleet-streete, and strike fire in Powles:
Nay, with their heauie Trot, and yron-stalke,

They haue worne off the brasse in the mid-walke.

The work, which is in prose, and in black letter, then commences, and towards the close is, "The last Will and Testament of Lawrence Lucifer, the old Bachiler of Limbo, alias, Dicke Deuill-Barne, the griping Farmer of Kent." At the end, on the last page, is the following Postcript of the Author:

Now Syr, what is your censure now? You haue read me I am sure: am I blacke ynough thinke you, drest vp in a lasting suite of Incke? Do I deserue my darke and pitchy Tytle? Sticke I close ynough to a villaines Ribs? Is not Lucifer liberall to his Nephewes, in this his last Will and Testament? Meethinkes I heare you say nothing and therefore I knowe you are pleasde and agree to all: for Qui tacit consentire videtur: And I allow you wise, and truly iudicious, because you keep your Censure to yourselfe.

See the Bibl. Ang. Poet., No. 35, where a copy of this very rare tract is priced at 257. Bindley's copy, which had formerly belonged to Steevens, and which was sold at his sale in 1820, pt. i, No. 897, for 67. 8s. 6d., was purchased by Mr. Hibbert, and at his sale in 1829, No. 1177, was sold for 71. 78. Od. Mr. Hibbert had also another copy, No. 1178, which sold for 51. 7s. 6d., and was afterwards in the choice library of Mr. Jolley. This we believe to have been Reed's copy, No. 1779, sold to Mr. Hill for 4l. 148. 6d., and the same which was in the Bibl. Ang. Poet., and was afterwards sold in Midgley's sale in 1818. No. 82, to Mr. Hibbert for 77. 17s. 6d. Mr. Heber had also two copies of this work one sold, pt. iv, No. 1398, to Mr. Payne Collier and the other, which is the present one from pt. ix, No. 1768, and pt. xii, No. 1640.

The Blacke Booke has been reprinted in Mr. Dyce's edition of Middleton's works, vol. v.

Bound by C. Lewis.

In Black Morocco, gilt leaves.

MANLEY, (THOMAS.)- Veni; Vidi; Vici. The Triumphs of the Most Excellent and Illustrious Oliver Cromwell, &c. Set forth in a Panegyricke. Written originally in Latine, and

faithfully done into English Heroicall Verse, by T: M: Jun. Esq. Whereto is added an Elegy upon the death of the late Lord Deputy of Ireland, the much lamented Henry Ireton,

Esq.

London Printed for Iohn Tey, at the White Lion in the Strand, near the new Exchange. 1652. Sm. 8vo, pp. 136.

Opposite to the title-page is a rare portrait of Oliver Cromwell in armour with a truncheon in his hand, and an attendant page tying on his scarf. On the plate is a motto.

Claud lib. de laud. Stil:
"Similem Quæ protulit ætas
Consilio vel Marte VIRUM,"

And at the top the following inscription, "The most excellent Oliver Cromwell Lord Gen" of Greate Brittayne-Chancellor of ye Vniversity of Oxford, and Ld Cheife Gover of Ireland &c." This poem in praise of the Protector is preceded by an "Epistle Dedicatory" to him in prose, signed "Thomas Manley Junior Jan: 30. 1652." followed by some verses To my Honoured Friend Mr Thomas Manley on his accurate Translation," &c., by Samuel Sheppard, twenty-two lines, in which, alluding to the original poem in Latin by Payne Fisher, of which Manley's work is a translation, he says:

Then follows a Table of Errata, and a long Dedication of the Poem "to the Lord President Bradshaw, and the rest of the Right Honble the Councell of State, &c.," whose names are all enumerated. In this Dedication there is an allusion made to the celebrated treatise of Milton, "Defensio pro Populo anglicano contra Claudii Salmasii Defensionem Regiam 1650."

"But if your enemies are yet so stubborn that they will not be convinced thereby, let them peruse that excellent peece with a little seriousness, that cleerly declares the Prerogative of Kings, and evidently defends the Priviledges and liberty of the people."

The principal Poem is entitled "A Gratulatory Song of Peace, or, A Triumphall Canto for the Victories of the Most Illustrious and Right Honble Oliver Comwell," &c. At the end of this is one page of prose, called "An Animadversion," in which the author states his intention of not forgetting "those truly worthy and honourable men Monke and Overton, whose famous acts rather challenge a volume then the narrow scantling of a page:" and of setting "forth in their lively colours the whole series of all things done (as far as Poesy can) to adorn a second book, taking its beginning from the rendition of S. Johnstown." There is next an Ode of twelve pages "To the Most Excellent, The Lord Generall of Great Brittayne, Oliver Cromwell," another of six pages "To the most accomplished Gentleman Edmund Ludlow, the Most Noble Deputy-Governour of Ireland, when he set forward on his journey thither." An Ode "wishing health." And the volume is closed by an "Elegy of four pages to Henry Ireton, late Lord Deputy of Ireland," &c., "at whose Tombe, and to whose Memory this Funerall Elegy is offered and wept by T. M. Junior."

See an account of this volume in the Bibl. Ang. Poet., No. 483, and in Fry's Bibliogr. Memoranda, art. 57, p. 233. As very long and copious extracts are there given from the poem, we shall content ourselves with only a short quotation addressed to the Councell of State:

And You who of the Councell of our State
Members at present are, or were of late,
Who by the supreme Senate are decreed
The first in changed courses to succeed
GOD make you all unanimous, and bless
You with eternall growing happiness:

And, as Attendants, make the stars to waite
Upon your high atchievements for the State;
That pure Religion undefil'd may be
Increasing with revived piety,

Whose sweet perfume will to the heav'ns arise
A gratefull and accepted sacrifice.

Then peace and truth will kiss, and all that sinke
Of horrid blasphemies to Hell will shrinke.
Concord will grow, and all divisions cease,
And all things whisper to the Brittaines peace.

Go on graue Fathers therefore, and imprint
These secrets in the heart from sacred hint:
That the first honour of your counsels may
To God redound, the next that peace may sway
In all our Regions, while there is a day.
And thou, most honour'd Bradshaw by consent
The parent of our State and President.
(Although thy innate modesty wont beare
All thy deserved praises but to heare;

And though with patience thou dost hardly know
The burden of thy honour t'undergoe)

Yet give me leave, thy vertue and thy fame
Moves me a little to extoll thy name.

The Vindicator of our Liberty,

And sharpe revenger of our slavery ;

When first thy stretched hand did strongly break
The cruell chains from off the Britaines neck,

Like faithfull Palinurus, without feare,
You undertooke a weighty taske, to steere
A raging boyst'rous people, and procure
Through unknown swelling waves a haven sure.
You mindfull of your Countries good, uphold
The Common-wealth, resembling Atlas bold.
Free from the cares of a dissembling brest
The publike you prefer to private rest.
Hence your unwearied pious zeale and paines
A glad remembrance to all Ages gaines:
But if your actions here have no reward
Worthy their merits, 'tis not worth regard :
All earthly things thy vertue doth surpasse,
And will in heaven have their deserved place;
Mean while to heaven these are our dayly prayers,
Methusalem's or aged Nestor's years,

That you may reach to make us English blest,
And that at last freed from this world's unrest,
With more content you may, as old in this,
Preside new Councells in a State of Bliss.

The Portrait belonging to this volume is seldom met with, and when in a perfect state is extremely prized. The present copy has a good impression of it, and formerly belonged to Mr. Bindley, at whose sale in January 1819, it was purchased by Mr. Heber for 2l. 8s., and was procured from that gentleman's collection in 1834. A copy without the Portrait is marked in the Bibl. Ang. Poet. at 1l. 11s. 6d.

Bound in Calf, neat.