A Maidens Dreame. Vpon the death of the Right Honorable Sir Christopher Hatton, Knight, late Lord Chancelor of England. By Robert Green, Master of Arts. Imprinted at London by Thomas Scarlet for Thomas Nelson. 1591. 4to. A transcript of this poem was communicated to The Shakespeare Society's Papers, 1815, vol. ii. p. 127, by the possessor of the only copy known.-In the present reprint the text has been corrected throughout. TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPFUL, BOUNTIFUL, AND VIRTUOUS LADY, THE LADY ELIZABETH HATTON, WIFE TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPFUL SIR WILLIAM HATTON,* KNIGHT, INCREASE OF ALL HONOURABLE VIRTUES. MOURNING as well as many, right worshipful lady, for the loss of the right honourable your deceased uncle, whose death, being the common prejudice of thet present age, was lamented of most, if not all, and I among the rest sorrowing that my country was deprived of him that lived not for himself but for his country, I began to call to mind what a subject was ministered to the excellent wits of both universities to work upon, when so worthy a knight and so virtuous a justiciar had by his death left many memorable actions performed in his life deserving highly by some rare pent to be registered. Passing over many days in this muse, at last I perceived men's humours slept, that love of many followed friends§ no further than their graves, that art was grown idle, and either choice scholars feared to write of so high a subject as his virtues, or else they dated their devotions no further than his life. While thus I debated with myself, I might see, to the great disgrace of the poets of our time, some mechanical wits blow up mountains and bring forth mice, who with their follies did rather disparage his honours than decipher his virtues : beside, as virtutis comes est invidia, so base report, who hath her tongue blistered by slanderous envy, began, as far as she durst, now after his death, to murmur, who in his life-time durst not once mutter. Whereupon, touched with a zealous jealousy over his wonderful virtues, I could not, whatsoever discredit I reaped by my presumption, although I did tenui avena meditari, but discover the honourable qualities of so worthy a counsellor, not for any private benefit I ever had of him which should induce me favourably to flatter his worthy parts, but only that I shame[d] to let slip with silence the virtues and honours of so worthy a knight, whose deserts had been so many and so great towards all. Therefore, right worshipful lady, I drew a fiction called ▲ Maiden's Dream, which as it was enigmatical, so it is not without some special and considerate reasons. Whose slender Muse I present unto your ladyship, induced thereunto, first, that I know you are partaker of your husband's sorrows for the death of his honourable uncle, and desire to hear his honours put in memory after his death, as you wished his advancement in virtues to be great in his life; as also that I am your ladyship's poor countryman, and have long time desired to gratify your right worshipful father with something worthy of himself. Which because I could not to my content perform, I have now taken opportunity to show my duty to him in his daughter, although the gift be far too mean for so worshipful and virtuous a lady. Yet, hoping your ladyship will with courtesy favour my presuming follies, and in gracious acceptance vouch of my well-meant labours, I humbly take my leave. Your ladyship's humbly at command, ⚫the Lady Elizabeth Hatton, wife to the right worshipful Sir William Hatton] "Sir Christopher Hatton [who died Nov. 20th, 1591] did not leave a Will. He had settled his estates upon his nephew Sir William Newport, alias Hatton, and the heirs male of his body; failing which, on his Godson and collateral heir-male Sir Christopher Hatton. Sir William succeeded accordingly to Holdenby and Kirby, and all the Chancellor's other property. He married first in June 1589, Elizabeth, daughter and heiress of Sir Francis Gawdy, Justice of the King's Bench," &c. Sir H. Nicolas's Memoirs of Sir C. Hatton, p. 502. |