Next th' Adriatick: then the Gulf did span,
Wheare Danus, like a sodaine stoopinge kite,
Up snaught a Venice glasse in surging flight.
Thence, steerd to Rochel for some savorie salt,
Thence crossd to Greece, which did fore criple halt,
Hence to the promontorie Helicon,
From whose greene ribbes cleere Hippocrane rann:
The silver veines whereaof in glasse shee putt,
The which for England, prisoned close gann shutt,
Thence to England wheare snaught water of the rose,
Muske, civet, amber, also did inclose;
That donn, shee Danus higher bidds convaie her,
Into the fierie region, bove all aier,
Wheare flame invisible aie dwells simplie pure,
Discreete, swifte, meeke, of incorrupted powr :
With purest flame, Vipoiaes lillie hand,
Thrice three times fill'd, enshrind in cristal band,
For hott Balneo Mariæ made to ascent,
In which old Helicon's new font shee pent.
Now when Vipoiaes cominge well was known,
And ore all Englandes easterne sea coast flown,
The Ladie Cantabrigia speedelie,
And all her learn'd with greate solemnitie,
Went gravelie dight to entertaine the Dame,
They muchlie lov'd, and honor'd in her name:
To grace whome, Titan flunge his night-gown off,
Havinge his candel burnt untill a snoff,
Now donn'd more glorious robes of maiestie,
And thenn ore spredd with golden canopie.
Vipoio cladd in white, as winter's sno,
Sweete as sweete blossoms on mayes flourish groe,
Was of Dame Cantabrigia deerelie mett,
And greater honor'd, as b' her best witts fett,
Whose Laureate poesies fro' Apollo brought,
And in Minervaes finest samplers wrought,
Orestrewd the grownd, yea hunge each peopled streete :
But that each stranger mote both heere! and seete!
The milke white swannes then strain'd in stile sublime,
Of ornate verse, rich prose, and nervous rime.
In short, to tellen all, doth not behove,
Wheare wellcome, sat weare powr'd in cuppe of love.
Tho after complements wear overpast,
And everie colleage visited in haste,
Vipoio by that licence (call'd her own)
Of ancient privileage, as well is known,
And in the schooles archivis faire enrold,
Which hitherto by no man was controld,
Thus boldlie to Dame Cantabrigea sedd,
Her pupills her shooed waite alive and dead
In those schooles bredd: so sommond them to her!
To doe theire duties to theire visiter.
Don Lidgate! noble Sidney! Spencer diepe !
By her up call'd arose fro deadlie sleepe.
And Hugo Holland, whoe my lines did chide,
For hee ann ill-made verse could near abide.
Whoe comd, shee to Dame Cantabrigia thus,
Sister! my sonnes and yee, shall wend with us,
Our sister deere Oxonia to behold,
Once in our lives before wee waxen old.
Content with all myne hart, Cambrigia said,
And so what likd is, neare is longe delayd.
Danus the pursevaunt first beare the newes,
Which made th' Oxoniens whett theire golden muse,
And quicklie done theire learn'd formalities:
The bringing reverence in theire steddfast eies,
Mustred poesies feilds of endlesse store,
Which soone declard theire treasures never poore.
Tho backe againe swift Danus to them flewe,
To ussher to the schooles this learned crewe.
But Oxon sheene with all her scholy gent,
Beyond th' east gate in goodlie order went.
Wheare when they sawe Vipoio bewteous,
They lowlie lowted her obsequious,
And sweetlie gann embrace (as well became
Theire quicke conceipts) before so rare a dame,
Whoe them accepts of ladie-like deport,
They takinge her swete favr in kindest sort.
The first thinge that shee did which long was wisht,
Shee caus'd that both those learned sisters kisse:
Whome linckinge arme in arme, and hand in hand,
Shee peremptorelie gave this command,
That neither of presum'd antiquitie,
Shoold hencefoorth challenge for prioritie!
But thus demonstrates in a three fold walke,
As they three in one front the walkes end stalke,
Shee, whoe the right hand had (as uppermost)
At theire next turne shoold chaunge for th' neathermoste.
But at next turne, each changd to eithers place,
Much like to th'ay dawnce, by which interlace,
Wittelie spedd, theire mutuall consent,
Inferior yielded saunce disparagement.
By which device, the sisters kinder twind,
And thereto trothe for aye, each other mind.
For which loves knott, Vipoto they invite
Of their magnific Macoasines take a sight!
Danus them ussheringe, so in they went,
Conducted by the bownteous President:
Whoe shewinge th' ample buildinges firme, faire hie,
Gave to demaund applause in everie eie.
Vipoio tho, went to the faire quadrangle,
To reade what embleams kervers arts theare handle!
But first did Samforde call! and Daniel fett!
Twoe sweetlie singinge swannes of Somerset !
Of all which embleames, that shee gann behold,
Wheare a younge man doth wrastel with an old.
Demaunds he Poetes what theareof befel!
But they had all forgott, or could not tell.
Wherefore shee th' poets idelnes did blame,
For not recordinge th' art so full of fame,
Which bears the prototype of sovereigntie
Of England over France in misterie:
Which thinge they feare, as thinges of prophecie,
Catch theire designe unwares yet certainelie.
This English Burrel hight, a Cornish man,
To the late Henry th'eight a gardian,
Beinge in daringe yoath esteem'd so stronge
As that great Kinge, to trie his force did longe.
Whome Burrel spar'd because hee was the Kinge,
Ne (wrestlinge with him) woold not cast, or wringe;
Which caus'd the Kinge thus saie, Burrel, I heard
That thow the strongest weart of all my gard;
I doe not find yt so; whereat some said,
Hee knowes it is the Kinge with whome hee plaid:
Ells mote yoe quicklie feele him verefie,
That this is Cornish Burrel certainlie.
So, at the next concert Kinge Henry feeles,
Burrel had strength, but not so many weeles.
Long after this, (Kinge Henry dead and gone)
And his brown daughter Marie in his throne,
And Burrel strooken old, yet of her gard,
And Philip weddinge her, becom her ward,
Hither hee brought a Frenchman, goodlie, younge,
Whoe in the feates of wrastlinge, prov'd so stronge
As foil'd, or cast downe all, or most her gard,
And no man fownd (as yet) coold him discard.
In so much that King Philip joid as much,
As Marie at her gards reproch did grutch.
Which urg'd old Burrel make a suite to her,
That he mote trie Kinge Philipes wrasteler.
Ha, quod the Queene, thine age hath thee dispoild, Ells I presume hee shoold not scape unfoild.
But when before the princes in they came,
In manner naked (as in thold embleame)
With baggs calld collers on theire showlders plact,
And to the concert either graplinge fast,
Old Burrel aged neere three score yeeres and tenn,
Rowzd his stiff jointes, and Cornish stratagem:
Wheare thus befell, that Burrel at the last,
Tore out the Frenches showlder blead, and cast,
So as the man was carried from the place,
Quite vanquish'd, whereof died in litle space.
Lo! heere theire embleam in this monument,
The rest depends on future contingent.
This storie by Vipoio thus reviv'd,
Which ells had by olivion binn depriv'd;
Shee Danus willd to lead waie to Saint Maries,
Wheare oft thus chiden tu prævaricaris,
From thence hee ledd to the greate librarie,
Thence ore the schooles to the large gallerie;
Which place at first invites her to content,
As solitarines in it was pent:
But soone that turn'd to this consideration,
That manie witts mote breed braines inundation,
Sith manie heads as manie senses breede,
As manie purposes as sowen seede,
Wheareof some good, some badd (lock'd in one cell)
Witts modells through theire visnomies to spell.
The search shee made through the Vatican rowt,
For Lidgate! Spencer! Daniel! quite left out,
Though so ringe on that high ideal spirit,
Which none of them send Germanists inherit :
Which urg'd her sweare, and confidentlie frett,
Never was Germaniste sownd poet yett,
Though Camden takes one plaienge Furæfar,
Prints twice as own, a poet of Exeter;
Whence, shee the painters pensills did accuse,
Sith knewe not good to chouse, ne badd refuse:
Wherefore down flunge them (meere Pieridistes)
Void of ideal light, dull skulld Lanists,
But Chaucer shee bidds com down off his spheare!
And 'mongst the Laureat poets waite on her!"
Mr. Knight conjectures that Shakespeare alludes to the death of Robert Greene, who deceased in 1592, in a condition that might truly be called beggary. There is much reason in this, although the
Midsummer Night's Dream was not written till two years afterwards; for in the year 1594 was published Greene's Funeralls, from which Mr. Collier quotes the following passage:
"For judgement Jove, for learning deepe he still Apollo seemde;
For floent tongue, for eloquence, men Mercury him deemde ;
For curtesie suppose him Guy, or Guyons somewhat lesse.
His life and manners, though I would, I cannot halfe express:
Nor mouth, nor minde, nor Muse can halfe declare,
His life, his love, his laude, so excellent they were."
In the year 1594 was also published Greene's last work, written in conjunction with Thomas Lodge, entitled The Looking Glass for London and England. Chalmers has dwelt upon an animosity which is said to have existed between Lodge and Shakespeare: and, if this were the case, we may perhaps be justified in conjecturing that the "thrice three Muses" mourned, or rather were intended to mourn, on the last production of a famous writer which was wholly unworthy of his pen. The abovementioned work is, indeed, very poor; and, as far as Greene was concerned, the productions of his learning might then be truly said to be "late deceased in beggary." This conjecture will also bear out the apprehension of Theseus :
"That is some satire, keen and critical,
Not sorting with the nuptial ceremony."
It is scarcely necessary to observe, that the term critical is here used in the sense of censuring.
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