of ingenuity, to exhibit these maxims in the course of a narrative, enlivened by facts and circumstances. It certainly was susceptible of humour and invention. Heywood's largest and most laboured performance is the SPIDER AND THE FLIE, with wooden cuts, printed at London by Thomas Powell, in 1556. It is a very long poem in the octave stanza, containing ninety-eight chapters. Perhaps there never was so dull, so tedious, and trifling an apologue: without fancy, meaning, or moral. A long tale of fictitious manners will always be tiresome, unless the design be burlesque : and then the ridiculous, arising from the contrast between the solemn and the light, must be ingeniously supported. Our author seems to have intended a fable on the burlesque construction: but we know not when he would be serious and when witty, whether he means to make the reader laugh, or to give him advice. We must indeed acknowledge, that the age was not yet sufficiently refined, either to relish or to produce burlesque poetry. Harrison, the author of the DESCRIPTION OF b In quarto. [Mr. Ellis, in his Historical Sketch of English Poetry, &c. chap. xvi. has pronounced this parabolic tale "utterly contemptible:" but he has extracted two specimens from the First Centuryof Heywood's Epigrams, which certainly possess more true epigrammatic point than those selected by Mr. Warton. The following lines afford the most favorable instance of his versification. ON MEASURE. Measure is a merry meane, Which filde with noppy drinke Measure is a merry meane, But I meane measures gret, Measure is a merry meane, Thou wouldst not change the state. Measure is a merry meane In volewmes full or flat, That thou appliest like that. [Herbert says "We are to consider the author here, as he really was, a catholic; partial in vindicating the catholic cause and the administration by queen Mary, whom he characterises by the maid, with her broom (the civil sword), executing the commands of her master (Christ) and her mistress (holy church). tholics; and by the spiders, the proBy the flies are to be understood the catestants. How justly the characters are supported I have neither leisure nor inclination to examine." MS. note.PARK.] But I must not forget Chaucer's SIR THOPAS and that among the Cotton manuscripts, there is an anonymous poem, perhaps coeval with Chaucer, in the style of allegorical burlesque, which describes the power of money, with great BRITAINE, prefixed to Hollinshed's Chronicle, has left a sensible criticism on this poem. “One hath made a booke of the Spider and the FLIE, wherein he dealeth so profoundlie, and humour, and in no common vein of satire. The hero of the piece is SIR PENNY. MSS. Cott. Galba E. 9. INCIPIT NARRACIO DE DNO DENARIO. In erth it es a littill thing, Papes, kinges, and emperoures, SIR PENI chaunges man's mode, Vnto that litill swaine. In kinges court es it no bote, With PENY may men wemen till " So oft may it be sene, are. He may lese 13 and he may bind. Whare he cumes in place. And waik 15 that bald has bene. All ye nedes ful sone er sped 16, Bath withowten borgh and wed", Whare PENI gase bitwene 18. The domes men 19 he mase 20 so blind That he may noght the right find Ne the suth to se. For to gif dometham es ful lath "3, Tharwith to mak SIA PENI wrath, Ful dere with tham es he. Thare strif was PENI makes pese 25, Of all angers he may relese, In land whare he will lende, Of fase 26 may he mak frendes sad, Of counsail thar tham neuer be rad", That may haue him to frende. That SIRE es set on high dese*, And serued with mani riche mese' At the high burde 0. 31 The more he es to men plente, 29 Thaire bales 33 for to blin". All that he will in erth haue done, 1 as. * old. agains, before. 8 3 unto. use. ⚫ dispute. 5 ready. in buy. makes, causes, compels. 10 approach, gain. 11 make them walk. [He may enable them to wear long sweeping dresses. A "trayl-syde gown," says Dr. Jamieson, "is so long as to trail upon the ground."] 13 loose. 14 meddle. 15 weak. 16 all you want is soon done. 17 borrowing or pledging. [surety and pledge.] goes between. 19 judges. 20 makes. 21 truth. judgement. 23 loth. sect. [the dais. 29 mess. 30 high-table. eyes. [miseries.] blind. [stop.] 18 25 24 where. peace. 26 foes. n void. 31 coveted. despise, quit. [lose.] wholly. love. 37 never cease. beyond all measure of skill, that neither he himselfe that made it, neither anie one that readeth it, can reach unto the meaning thereof." It is a proof of the unpopularity* of this poem, that it never was reprinted. Our author's EPIGRAMs, and the poem of PROVERBS, were in high vogue, and had numerous editions before the year 1598+. The most lively part of the He may both lene and gyf; PENI es a gude felaw, Men welcums him in dede and saw "1. 43 How so euer they betyde ". SIR PENY gers, in riche wede, In ilka" gamin and ilka play, To PENY, for his pride. SIR PENY Over all gettes the gre 49, In castell and in towre. And stalworthest in stowre 51. In ilka place, the suth es sene 52, SIR PENI es ouer-al bidene, Maister most in mode. SIR PENY mai ful mekill availe 54 He lenkithes 56 life and saues fro ded ". If thou have happ tresore to win, Ne nything thareof be, God grante vs grace with hert and will, Wele and wisely to spend. And so oure liues here for to lede, An old Scotch poem called SIR PENNY has been formed from this, printed in ANTIENT SCOTTISH POEMS, p. 158. Edinb. 1770. [See supr. vol. i. 9.] DESCRIPT. BRIT. p. 226. Hollinsh. CHRON. tom. i. sea and land. [wood and hill.] 43 under any difficulty. 44 whatever happens. every. degree, pre-eminence. 51 stoutest in battle. 58 truth is seen. causes many to ride, &c. 50 either. 54 be of much power. judicature, or, in passing sentence. money not too much, I advise. 47 56 lengthens. 59 covetousness. nyding. Be not too careless [niggardly] of it. 55 48 SPIDER AND FLIE is perhaps the mock-fight between the spiders and flies, an awkward imitation of Homer's BATRACHOMUOMACHY. The preparations for this bloody and eventful engagement, on the part of the spiders, in their cobweb-castle, are thus described. Behold! the battilments in every loope: How th' ordinance lieth, flies far and nere to fach: Se th' enprenabill fort, in every border, The beginning of all this confusion is owing to a fly entering the poet's window, not through a broken pane, as might be presumed, but through the lattice, where it is suddenly entangled in a cobweb. The cobweb, however, will be allowed to be sufficiently descriptive of the poet's apartment. But I mention this circumstance as a probable proof, that windows of lattice, and not of glass, were now the common fashion.1 John Heywood died at Mechlin in Brabant about the year 1565*. He was inflexibly attached to the catholic cause, and on the death of queen Mary quitted the kingdom. Antony Wood remarks, with his usual acrimony, that it was a matter of wonder with many, that, considering the great and usual want of principle in the profession, a poet should become a voluntary exile for the sake of religion. among. Art thou Heywood that would be made mery now? Yea, sir, helpe me to it now I beseech yow. In the CONCLUSION to the SPIDER AND FLIE, Heywood mentions queen Mary and king Philip'. But as most of his pieces seem to have been written some time before, I have placed him under Henry the Eighth. [The following doubtless was composed on the spousals of Philip and Mary: "A balade specifienge partly the maner, partly the matter, in the most excellent meetyng and lyke mariage betwene our soveraigne Lord and our soveraigne Lady, the kynges and queenes highnes. Pende by John Heywood." Herb. p. 800. Oldys says he had seen 1 Worthies of Fuller speaks of a book written by Hey- [An epilogue or conclusion to the works of Heywood in 1587, by Thomas Newton the Cheshire poet, thus notices his decease: This author Haywood dead and gone, and shrinde in tombe of clay, Bifore his death by penned workes did carefully assay To builde himselfe a lasting tombe, not m ATH. OXON. i. 150. [Mr. Warton must have read the Conclusion of Heywood very cursorily, says Herbert, or he would not have been at such a loss for the intention of his poem of the Spider and the Flie.-PARK.] |