"the Great." The book here mentioned is Ægidius Romanus de REGIMINE PRINCIPIUM, which yet retained its reputation. and popularity from the middle age. I ought to have obferved before, that Forrest tranflated into English metre fifty of David's Pfalms, in 1551, which are dedicated to the duke of Somerset, the Protector. Hence we are led to fufpect, that our author could accommodate his faith to the reigning powers. Many more of his manuscript pieces both in profe and verse, all profeffional and of the religious kind, were in the hands of Robert earl of Ailesbury. Forrest, who must have been living at Oxford, as appears from his poem on queen Catharine, fo early as the year 1530, was in reception of an annual pention of fix pounds from Chrift-church in that university, in the year 1555'. He was eminently skilled in mufic: and with much diligence and expence, he collected the works of the most excellent English composers, that were his cotemporaries. These, being the choiceft compofitions, of John Taverner of Bofton, organist of Cardinal-college now Chrift-church at Oxford, John Merbeck who first digested our present church-service from the notes of the Roman miffal, Fairfax, Tye, Sheppard, Norman, and others, falling after Forreft's death into the poffeffion of doctor William Hether, founder of the mufical praxis and profefforship at 4to. Another to Andrew Chertsey's PAS- h Wood, ATH. Oxon. i. 124. Fox fays, that he paraphrased the PATER NOSTER in English verfe, Pr. "Our Father "which in heaven doth fit." Alfo the TE DEUM, as a thanksgiving hymn for queen Mary, Pr. "O God thy name we magnifie." Fox, MART. p. 1139. edit. 66 vet. 1 MSS. Le Neve. From a long chapter in his KATHARINE, about the building of Chrift-church and the regimen of it, he appears to have been of that college. at Oxford in 1623, are now fortunately preferved at Oxford, in the archives of the mufic-school affigned to that institution. In the year 1554, a poem of two fheets, in the spirit and stanza of Sternhold, was printed under the title, “The VN"GODLINESSE OF THE HETHNICKE GODDES, or The Downfall of Diana of the Ephefians, by J. D. an exile for the "word, late a minifter in London, MDLIV *.” I presume it was printed at Geneva, and imported into England with other books of the fame tendency, and which were afterwards fuppreffed by a proclamation. The writer, whofe arguments are as weak as his poetry, attempts to prove, that the customary mode of training youths in the Roman poets encouraged idolatry and pagan fuperftition. This was a topic much laboured by the puritans. Prynne, in that chapter of his HISTRIOMASTIX, where he expofes "the obfcenity, ribaldry, amoroufneffe, HEA"THENISHNESSE, and prophaneffe, of most play-bookes, Ar"cadias, and fained hiftories that are now fo much in admira"tion," acquaints us, that the infallible leaders of the puritan perfuafion in the reign of queen Elifabeth, among which are two bishops, have folemnly prohibited all chriftians, "to pen, "to print, to fell, to read, or school-mafters and others to "teach, any amorous wanton Play-bookes, Histories, or Heathen authors, especially Ovid's wanton Epiftles and Bookes of love, Catullus, Tibullus, Propertius, Martiall, the Comedies "of Plautus, Terence, and other fuch amorous bookes, favoring "either of Pagan Gods, of Ethnicke rites and ceremonies, of દ fcurrility, amoroufneffe, and prophaneffe'." But the claffics were at length condemned by a much higher authority. In the year 1582, one Chriftopher Ocland, a schoolmaster of Cheltenham, published two poems in Latin hexameters, one entitled ANGLORUM PRALIA, the other ELIZABETHA". To these Bl. Lett. 12mo. Londini. Apud Rad. Neubery ex affignatione Henrici Bynneman typographi. Anno 1582. Cum priv. 12mo. The whole title is this," ANGLORUM PRÆLIA ab A. "D. 1327, anno nimirum primo inclytif"fimi principis Edwardi eius nominis "tertii, ufque ad A. D. 1558, carmine "fummatim perftricta. ITEM De pacatif • fimo poems, which are written in a low ftyle of Latin verfification, is prefixed an edict from the lords of privy council, figned, among others, by Cowper bishop of Lincoln, Lord Warwick, Lord Leicester, fir Francis Knollys, fir Christopher Hatton, and fir Francis Walfingham, and directed to the queen's ecclefiaftical commiffioners, containing the following paffage. "For"afmuche as the fubject or matter of this booke is fuch, as is "worthie to be read of all men, and especially in common "fchooles, where diuers HEATHEN POETS are ordinarily read " and taught, from which the youth of the realme doth rather "receiue infection in manners, than aduancement in uertue : "in place of fome of which poets, we thinke this Booke fit to "read and taught in the grammar fchooles: we haue therefore 66 thought, as wel for the encouraging the faid Ocklande and "others that are learned, to beftowe their trauell and ftu"dies to fo good purposes, as alfo for the benefit of the "youth and the removing of such lafciuious poets as are com 66 monly read and taught in the faide grammar-schooles (the "matter of this booke being heroicall and of good inftruction) "to praye and require you vpon the fight hereof, as by our fpecial order, to write your letters vnto al the Bishops through"out this realme, requiring them to giue commaundement, "that in al the gramer and free schooles within their feuerall "dioceffes, the faid Booke de ANGLORUM PRÆLIIS, and "fimo Angliæ ftatu, imperante Elizabetha, compendiofa Narratio. Authore CHRISTOPHORO OCLANDO, primo Schola "Southwarkienfis prope Londinum, dein "Cheltennamenfis, quæ funt a fereniffi. "ma fua majeftate fundatæ, moderatore. "Hæc duo poemata, tam ob argumenti gra"uitatem, quam carminis facilitatem, nobi"liffimi regia majeftatis confiliarii in omnibus "regni fcholis prælegenda pueris præfcripferunt. Hijs Alexandri Neuilli KETTUM, tum "propter argumenti fimilitudinem, tum propter orationis elegantiam, adiunxi“mus. Londini, &c." Prefixed to the ANGLORUM PRÆLIA is a Latin elegiac copy by Thomas Newton of Chefhire: to the ELIZABETHA, which is dedicated by the author to the learned lady Mildred Burleigh, two more; one by Richard. Mulcafter the celebrated mafter of Merchanttaylor's school, the other by Thomas Watfon an elegant writer of fonnets. Our author was a very old man, as appears by the last of these copies. Whence, fays bifhop Hall, SAT. iii. B. iv. Or cite olde Ocland's verse, how they did wield The wars, in Turwin or in Turney field. peaceable Gouernment of hir majestic, [the ELIZABETHA,] may be in place of fome of the heathen poets receyued, and publiquely read and taught by the fcholemasters "." With such abundant circumfpection and folemnity, did these profound and pious politicians, not suspecting that they were acting in oppofition to their own principles and intentions, exert their endeavours to bring back barbarifin, and to obstruct the progress of truth and good fenfe. Hollingshead mentions Lucas Shepherd of Colchester, as an eminent poet of queen Mary's reign". I do not pretend to any great talents for decyphering; but I prefume, that this is the fame person who is called by Bale, from a most injudicious affectation of Latinity, Lucas OPILIO. Bale affirms, that his cotemporary, Opilio, was a very facetious poet and means to pay him a still higher compliment in pronouncing him not inferior even to Skelton for his rhimes". It is unlucky, that Bale, by difguifing his name, fhould have contributed to conceal this writer fo long from the notice of pofterity, and even to counteract his own partiality. Lucas Shepherd, however, appears to have been nothing more than a petty pamphleteer in the cause of Calvinism, and to have acquired the character of a poet from a metrical tranflation of fome of David's Pfalms about the year 1554. Bale's narrow prejudices are well known. The puritans never fufpected that they were greater bigots than the papists. I believe one or two of Shepherd's pieces in profe are among bishop Tanner's books at Oxford. Bale alfo mentions metrical English verfions of ECCLESIASTES, of the hiftories of ESTHER, SUSANNAH, JUDITH, and of the TESTAMENT OF THE TWELVE PATRIARCHS, printed and written about this period, by John Pullaine, one of the original students of Chrift-church at Oxford, and at length archdeacon of Colchester. He was chaplain to the duchess of "Signat. A. ij. Then follows an order from the ecclefiaftical commiffioners to all the bishops for this purpose. See fupr. vol. ii. 461. Par. poft. p. 109. Suffolk; Suffolk; and, either by choice or compulfion, imbibed ideas of reformation at Geneva. I have seen the name of John Pullayne, affixed in manufcript to a copy of an anonymous verfion of Solomon's Song, or "Salomon's balads in metre," abovementioned, in which is this ftanza. She is fo young in Chriftes truth, There were numerous verfions of Solomon's SONG before the year 1600 and perhaps no portion of scripture was selected with more propriety to be cloathed in verfe. Befide those I have mentioned, there is, "The SONG OF SONGS, that is the most "excellent Song which was Solomon's, tranflated out of the "Hebrue into Englishe meater with as little libertie in depart ing from the wordes as anie plaine translation in profe can vse, " and interpreted by a fhort commentarie." For Richard Schilders, printer to the ftates of Zealand, I fuppofe at Middleburgh, 1587, in duodecimo. Nor have I yet mentioned Solomon's Song, tranflated from English profe into English verfe by Robert Fletcher, a native of Warwickshire, and a member of Merton college, printed at London, with notes, in 1586. The CANTICLES in English verfe are among the loft poems of Spenfer ". Bishop Hall, in his nervous and elegant fatires |