תמונות בעמוד
PDF
ePub

poem prefixed to Studley's verfion of Seneca's AGAMEMNON, in 1566. In 1562, In 1562, was licenced "the boke of Perymus and "Thefbye," copied perhaps in the MIDSUMMER NIGHTS DREAM. I suppose a translation from Ovid's fable of Pyramus

and Thisbe 2.

[ocr errors]

The fable of Narciffus had been tranflated, and printed feparately in 1560, by a nameless author, a nameless author, "The fable of Ovid "treting of Narciffus tranflated out of Latin into English mytre, with a moral thereunto, very plefante to rede, Lond. "1560." The tranflator's name was luckily fuppreffed. But at the close of the work are his initials, "Finis. T. H." Annexed to the fable is a moralisation of twice the length

In quarto. Lond. for T. Hackett. Bl. Lett.

REGISTR. STATION. A. fol. 92. a. To William Griffiths. I know not whether the following were regular versions of Ovid, or poems formed from his works now circulating in English. Such as, "the Ballet of Pygmalion," to R. Jones, in 1568. Ibid. fol. 176. a. Afterwards reprinted and a favorite ftory. There is the Ballet of Pygmalion," in 1568. Ibid. fol. 176. a." A ballet intituled the Gol"den Apple," to W. Pickering, in 1568. Ibid. fol. 175. a. "A ballet intituled "Hercules and his Ende," to W. Griffiths, in 1563. Ibid. fol. 102. b. There is also, which yet may be referred to another fource, "A ballet intituled the Hif"tory of Troilus, whoje troth had well "been tryed," to Purfoote, in 1565. Ibid. fol. 134. b. This occurs again in 1581, and 1608. The fame may be said of the History of the tow [two] moofte noble 66 prynces of the worlde Aftionax and Po"lixene [Aftyanax] of Troy," to T. Hackett, in 1565. Ibid. fol. 139. a. Again, in 1567, "the ballet of Acrifious" that' is, Acrifius the father of Danae. Ibid. fol. 177. b. Alfo, "A ballet of the mefy"rable state of king Medas," or Midas, in 1569. Ibid. fol. 185. b. These are a few and early instances out of many. Of the METAMORPHOSIS of PIGMALIONS IMAGE, by Marton, printed 1598, and alluded to VOL. III.

by Shakespeare, [MEAS. MEAS. iii. 2.] more will be faid hereafter.

There is likewife, which may be referred hither, a" booke intitled Procris and Ce"phalus divided into four parts," licen ced Oct. 22, 1598, to J. Wolfe, perhaps a play, and probably ridiculed in the MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, under the title Shefalus and Procrus. REGISTR. STATION. B. fol. 302. a.

[ocr errors]

There is alfo, at leaft originating from the English Ovid, a paftoral play, prefented by the queen's choir-boys, Peele's ARRAIGNEMENT OF PARIS, in 1584. And I have feen a little novel on that fubject, with the fame compliment to the queen, by Dickenson, in 1593. By the way, fome paffages are transferred from that novel into another written by Dickenson, "ARISBAS, Euphues amidft his flumbers, "or Cupid's Iourney to hell, &c. By J. “D. Lond. For T. Creede, 1594. 4to.' One of them, where Pomona falls in love with a beautiful boy named Hyalus, is as follows. Signat. E 3." She, defirous to "winne him with ouer-cloying kindneffe, "fed him with apples, gaue him plumes, "prefented him peares. Having made "this entrance into her future folace, fhe "would vfe oft his company, kiffe him, “coll him, check him, chúcke him, walke "with him, weepe for him, in the fields, neere the fountaines, fit with him, fue to "him, omitting no kindes of dalliance to 3 G

[ocr errors]

" to

in the octave stanza. Almost every narrative was antiently fuppofed or made to be allegorical, and to contain a moral meaning. I have enlarged on this fubject in the DISSERTATION ON THE GESTA ROMANORUM. In the reign of Elifabeth, a popular ballad had no fooner been circulated, than it was converted into a practical instruction, and followed by its MORALISATION. The old registers of the Stationers afford numerous inftances of this cuftom, which was encouraged by the encrease of puritanism'. Hence in Randolph's MUSE'S

[blocks in formation]

I have a ventrous fairy that shall seek
The squirrel's hoard, &c.

See also, Acт ii. Sc. i. In the ARRAIGNE-
MENT OF PARIS juft mentioned, we have
the fame fubject and language.

Playes with Amyntas lufty boye, and coyes him in the dales.

To return. There is, to omit later inftances, "A proper ballet dialogue-wife

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

between Troylus and Creffida," Jun. 23, in 1581. REGISTR, STATION. B. fol. 180. b. "Endimion and Phebe," a booke, to John Bufbye, April 12, 1595. Ibid. fol. 131. b. A ballad, "a mirror meete for wanton and infolent dames by example "of Medufa kinge of Phorcius his daugh"ter." Feb. 13, 1577. Ibid. fol. 145. b. "The Hiftory of Glaucus and Scylla,' to R. Jones, Sept. 22, 1589. Ibid fol. 248. b. Narciffus and Phaeton were turned into plays before 1610. See Heywood's ApoLOG. ACTORS. Lilly's SAPPHO and PHAO, ENDIMION, and MIDAS, are almost too well known to be enumerated here. The two last, with his GALATHEA, were licenced to T. Man, Oct. 1, 1590. [But fee

fupr. p. 406.] Of PENELOPES WEBBE, unlefs Greene's, I can fay nothing, licenced to E. Aggas, Jun. 26, 1587. Ibid. fol. 219. b. Among Harrington's EPIGRAMS, is one entitled, "Cuid's Confeffion tran"flated into English for General Norreyes, "1593." EPIGR. 85. lib. iii. Of this Í know no more. The fubject of this note might be much further illuftrated.

As, "Maukin was a Coventry mayde," moralised in 1563. REGISTR. A. fol. 102. a. With a thousand others. I have seen other moralisations of Ovid's stories by the puritans. One by W. K. or William Kethe, a Scotch divine, no unready rhymer, mentioned above, p. 305. In our fingingpfalms, the pfalms 70, 104, 122, 125, 134, are fignatured with W. K. or William Kethe. Thefe initials have been hitherto undecyphered. At the end of Knox's ApPELLATION to the Scotch bishops, printed at Geneva in 1558, is pfalm 93, turned into metre by W. Kethe. 12mo. He wrote, about the fame time, A ballad on the fall of the whore of Babylon, called "Tye the "mare Tom-boy." See fupr. p. 170. n. And Strype, ANN. REF. vol. ii. B. i. ch. 11. pag. 102. edit. 1725. Another is by J. K. or John Kepyer, mentioned above as another coadjutor of Sternhold and Hopkins, (fee fupr. p. 186.) and who occurs in "The ARBOR OF AMITIE, wherein is comprised plefaunt poems and pretie poefies, fet foorth by Thomas Howell "gentleman, anno 1568." Imprinted at London, J. H. Denham, 12mo. Bl. Lett. Dedicated to ladie Anne Talbot. Among the recommendatory copies is one figned, "John

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

LOOKING-GLASS, where two puritans are made spectators of a play, a player, to reconcile them in fome degree to a theatre, promises to moralife the plot: and one of them answers,

[ocr errors]
[blocks in formation]

Ovid's IBIS was tranflated, and illuftrated with annotations, by Thomas Underdowne, born, and I fuppofe educated, at Oxford. It was printed at London in 1569, with a dedication to Thomas Sackville, lord Buckhurst, the author of GORDOBUC, and entitled, "Ouid his inuective against Ibis Tranflated into meeter, whereunto is added by the translator a short draught "of all the stories and tales contayned therein uery pleasant to "read. Imprinted at London by T. Eaft and H. Middleton, "Anno Domini 1569." The notes are large and hiftorical. There was a second edition by Binneman in 1577. This is the first stanza.

[blocks in formation]

The fame author opened a new field of romance, and which seems partly to have fuggefted fir Philip Sydney's ARCADIA, in translating into English profe the ten books of Heliodorus's Ethiopic hiftory, in 1577'. This work, the beginning of

And

"John Keeper, ftudent." See also " J.
"A to his friend H." fol. 27. a.
"H. to K." ibid. Again, fol. 33. b. 34.
a. and 38, 39, &c.

ACT i. Sc. ii. edit. Oxf. 1638. 4to.
Again, Mrs. Flowerdew fays, "Pray, fir,
"continue the MORALIZING." ACT iii.
Sc. i.

4 See REGISTR. STATION. A. fol. 177. b.

Both are in octavo. Salmacis and Hermaphroditus was tranflated by F. Beau

mont, 1602. He also tranflated part of Ovid's REMEDY OF LOVE. As did fir T. Overbury the whole foon afterwards, Lond. 1620. 8vo. But I believe there is a former edition, no date. 8vo.

f Bl Lett. Lond. 4to A fecond edition appeared in 1587. But in 1568-9, there is an entry to Francis Coldocke to print a boke entit. the end of the xth boke" of Heliodorus's Ethiopics. REGISTR. STATION. A. fol. 178. b.

3 G 2

[ocr errors]

which

which was afterwards verfified by Abraham Fraunce in 1591, is dedicated to Edward earl of Oxford. The knights and dames of chivalry, fir Triftram and Bel Ifoulde, now began to give place to new lovers and intrigues: and our author published the Excellent hiftorie of Thefeus and Ariadne, moft probably suggested by Ovid, which was printed at London in 1566.

The ELEGIES of Ovid, which convey the obscenities of the brothel in elegant language, but are feldom tinctured with the fentiments of a serious and melancholy love, were translated by Christopher Marlowe belowmentioned, and printed at Middleburgh without date. This book was ordered to be burnt at Stationers hall, in 1599, by command of the archbishop of Canterbury and the bishop of London'.

Ovid's REMEDY OF LOVE had an anonymous translator, in 1599'. But this verfion was printed the next year under the title of "Ovidius Nafo his REMEDIE OF LOVE, tranflated and "entituled to the youth of England, by F. L. London 1600*.”

The HEROICAL EPISTLES of Ovid, with Sabinus's Anfwers, were fet out and tranflated by Thomas Turberville, a celebrated writer of poems in the reign of queen Elisabeth, and of whom more will be said in his proper place'. This version was printed in 1567, and followed by two editions". It is dedicated to Thomas Howard vifcount Byndon ". Six of the Epiftles are

[merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][ocr errors][merged small]

rendered in blank verfe. The reft in four-lined ftanzas. The printer is John Charlewood, who appears to have been printer to the family of Howard, and probably was retained as a domestic for that liberal purpose in Arundel-house, the seat of elegance and literature till Cromwell's ufurpation. Turberville was a polite scholar, and fome of the paffages are not unhappily turned. From Penelope to Ulyffes.

To thee that lingrest all too long

Thy wife, Vlyffes, fends:

'Gaine write not, but by quicke returne

For abfence make amendes.

O that the furging feas had drencht
That hatefull letcher tho',

When he to Lacedæmon came

Inbarkt, and wrought our woe!

I add here, that Mantuan, who had acquired the rank of a claffic, was alfo verfified by Turberville in 1594 o.

Coxeter fays, that he had feen one of Ovid's Epistles tranflated by Robert earl of Effex. This I have never feen; and, if it could be recovered, I trust it would only be valued as a curiofity. A few of his fonnets are in the Ashmolean Museum, which have no marks of poetic genius. He is a vigorous and elegant writer of profe. But if Effex was no poet, few noblemen of his age were more courted by poets. From Spenfer to the lowest rhymer he was the subject of numerous fonnets, or popular ballads. I will not except Sydney. I could produce evidence to prove, that he scarce ever went out of England, or even left London, on the most frivolous enterprise, without a pastoral in his praise, or a panegyric in metre, which were fold and fung in

In the Defenfative against the poyson of fuppofed prophefies, written by Henry Ho ward, afterwards earl of Northampton and lord privy-feal, and printed (4to.) in 183, the printer, John Charlewood, ftyles himfelf printer to Philip earl of Arundel. And in many others of his books, he calls him felf printer to lord Arundel. Otherwife,

he lived in Barbican, at the fign of the Half eagle and Key.

P The four firft Eclogues of Mantuan, I fuppofe in English, were entered to Binneman in 1566. REGISTR. STATION. A. fol. 151. b. And "the rest of the eg"loggs of Mantuan," to the fame, in 1566. Ibid. fol. 154. b.

the

« הקודםהמשך »