Restore, Great Father, Thy instructed son,And in my act may Thy great will be done!
Restore, Great Father, Thy instructed son,And in my act may Thy great will be done!
Restore, Great Father, Thy instructed son,And in my act may Thy great will be done!
Restore, Great Father, Thy instructed son,
And in my act may Thy great will be done!
Solomonis called king of the ginn and fairies. This is probably a mere blunder. The monarch of these spirits was called “suleyman,” and this title of rank has been mistaken for a proper name.
Solomon died standing.Solomon employed the genii in building the Temple, but, perceiving that his end was at hand, prayed God that his death might be concealed from the genii till the work was completed. Accordingly, he died standing, leaning on his staff as if in prayer. The genii, supposing him to be alive, toiled on, and when the Temple was fully built, a worm knawed the staff, and the corpse fell prostrate to the earth. Mahomet refers to this as a fact:
When We [God] had decreed that Solomon should die, nothing discovered his death unto them [the genii] except the creeping thing of the earth, which gnawed his staff. And when his[dead] body fell down, the genii plainly perceived that if they had known that which is secret, they would not have continued in a vile punishment.--Al Korân, xxxiv.
Solomon’s Favorite Wife.Prior, in his epic poem calledSolomon(bk. ii.), makes Abra the favorite.
The apples she had gathered smelt most sweet;The cake she kneaded was the savory meat;All fruits their odor lost and meats their taste,If gentle Abra had not decked the feast;Dishonored did the sparkling goblet stand,Unless received from gentle Abra’s hand; ...Nor could my soul approve the music’s tone,Till all was hushed, and Abra sung alone.
The apples she had gathered smelt most sweet;The cake she kneaded was the savory meat;All fruits their odor lost and meats their taste,If gentle Abra had not decked the feast;Dishonored did the sparkling goblet stand,Unless received from gentle Abra’s hand; ...Nor could my soul approve the music’s tone,Till all was hushed, and Abra sung alone.
The apples she had gathered smelt most sweet;The cake she kneaded was the savory meat;All fruits their odor lost and meats their taste,If gentle Abra had not decked the feast;Dishonored did the sparkling goblet stand,Unless received from gentle Abra’s hand; ...Nor could my soul approve the music’s tone,Till all was hushed, and Abra sung alone.
The apples she had gathered smelt most sweet;
The cake she kneaded was the savory meat;
All fruits their odor lost and meats their taste,
If gentle Abra had not decked the feast;
Dishonored did the sparkling goblet stand,
Unless received from gentle Abra’s hand; ...
Nor could my soul approve the music’s tone,
Till all was hushed, and Abra sung alone.
Al Beidâwi, Jallâlo´ddin, and Abulfeda, give Amīna, daughter of Jerâda, king of Tyre, as his favorite concubine.
Solomon Kills His Horses.Solomon bought a thousand horses, and went to examine them. The examination took him the whole day, so that he omitted the prayers which he ought to have repeated. This neglect came into his mind at sunset, and, by way of atonement, he slew all the horses except a hundred of the best “as an offering to God;” and God, to make him amends for his loss, gave him the dominion of the winds. Mahomet refers to this in the following passage:--
When the horses, standing on three feet, and touching the ground with the edge of the fourth foot, swift in the course, were set in parade before him [Solomon] in the evening, he said, “Verily I have loved the love of earthly good above the remembrance of my Lord; and I have spent the time in viewing these horses till the sun is hidden by the veil of night. Bring the horses back unto me.” And when they were brought back, he began to cut off their legs and their necks.--Al Korân, xxxvii.
Solomon’s Mode of Travelling.Solomon had a carpet of green silk, on which his throne was placed. This carpet was large enough for all his army to stand on. When his soldiers had stationed themselves on his right hand, and the spirits on his left, Solomon commanded the winds to convey him whither he listed. Whereupon the winds buoyed up the carpet, and transported it to the place the king wished to go to, and while passing thus through the air, the birds of heaven hovered overhead forming a canopy with their wings to ward off the heat of the sun. Mahomet takes this legend as an historic fact, for he says in reference to it:
Unto Solomon We subjected the strong wind, and it ran at his command to the land whereon We had bestowed our blessing.--Al Korân, xxi.
And again:
We made the wind subject to him, and it ran gently at his command whithersoever he desired.--Al Korân, xxxviii.
Solomon’s Signet-Ring.The rabbins say that Solomon wore a ring in which was set a chased stone that told him everything he wished to know.
Solomon Loses His Signet-Ring.Solomon’s favorite concubine was Amīna, daughter of Jerâda, king of Tyre, and when he went to bathe, it was to Amina that he entrusted his signet-ring. One day the devil, Sakhar, assumed the likeness of Solomon, and so got possession of the ring, and for forty days reigned in Jerusalem, while Solomon himself was a wanderer living on alms. At the end of the forty days, Sakhar flung the ring into the sea; it was swallowed by a fish, which was given to Solomon. Having thus obtained his ring again, Solomon took Sakhar captive, and cast him into the sea of Galilee.--Al Korân(Sale’s notes, ch. xxxviii.). (SeeJovian.)
⁂ Mahomet, in theKorân, takes this legend as an historic fact, for he says: “We [God], also tried Solomon, and placed on his throne a counterfeit body [i.e.,Sakhar, the Devil].”--Ch. xxxviii.
Uffan, the sage, saw Solomon asleep, and wishing to take off his signet-ring, gave three arrows to Aboutaleb, saying,“When the serpent springs upon me, and strikes me dead, shoot one of these arrows at me, and I shall instantly come to life again.” Uffan tugged at the ring, was stung to death, but, being struck by one of the arrows, revived. This happened twice. After the third attempt, the heavens grew so black, and the thunder was so alarming, that Aboutaleb was afraid to shoot, and throwing down the bow and arrow, fled with precipitation from the dreadful place.--Comte de Caylus,Oriental Tales(“History of Aboutaleb,” 1743).
Solomon(The Second), James I. of England (1566, 1603-1625).
The French king (Henri IV.) said, in the presence of Lord Sanquhar, to one that called Jamesa second Solomon. “I hope he is not the son of David the fiddler” [David Rizzio].--Osborne,Secret History, i. 231.
Sully called him “The Wisest Fool in Christendom.”
Solomon, a tedious, consequential, old butler, in the service of Count Wintersen. He has two idiosyncrasies: One is that he receives letters of confidential importance from all parts of the civilized world, but “has received no communication from abroad to tell him who Mrs. Haller is.” One letter “from Constantinople” turns out to be from his nephew, Tim Twist, the tailor, about a waistcoat, which had been turned three times. In regard to the other idiosyncrasy, he boasts of his cellar of wine, provided in a “most frugal and provident way,” and of his alterations in the park, “all done with the most economical economy.” He is very proud of his son, Peter, a half-witted lad, and thinks Mrs. Haller “casts eyes at him.”--Benj. Thompson,The Stranger(1797).
Solomon Daisy, parish clerk and bellringer, of Chigwell. He had little, round, black, shiny eyes like beads; wore rusty black breeches, a rusty black coat, and a long-flapped waistcoat, with little queer buttons like his eyes. As he sat in the firelight, he seemed all eyes, from head to foot.--C. Dickens,Barnaby Rudge(1841).
Solomon of China(The), Taetsong I., whose real name was Lee-chemen. He reformed the calendar, founded a very extensive library, established schools in his palace, built places of worship for the Nestorian Christians, and was noted for his wise maxims (*, 618-626).
Solomon of England(The), Henry VII. (1457, 1485-1509). (SeeSolomon the Second.)
Solomon of France(The), Charles V.le Sage(1337, 1364-1380).
⁂ Louis IX. (i.e., St. Louis) is also called “The Solomon of France” (1215, 1226-1270).
Solon of French Prose(The), Balzac (1596-1655).
Solon of Parnassus(The). Boileau is so called by Voltaire, in allusion to hisArt of Poetry(1636-1711).
Solsgrace(Master Nehemiah), a Presbyterian pastor.--Sir W. Scott,Peveril of the Peak(time, Charles II.).
Solus, an old bachelor, who greatly wished to be a married man. When he saw the bright sides of domestic life, he resolved he would marry; but when he saw the reverse sides, he determined to remain single. Ultimately, he takes to the altar Miss Spinster.--Inchbald,Every One has His Fault(1794).
Solymæan Rout(The), the London rabble and rebels. Solymæa was an ancient name of Jerusalem, subsequently called Hiero-solyma, that is “sacred Solyma.” As Charles II. is called “David,” and London “Jerusalem,” the London rebels are called “the Solymæan rout,” or the rabble of Jerusalem.
The Solymæan rout, well versed of old,In godly faction, and in treason bold, ...Saw with disdain an Ethnic plot [popish plot] begun,And scorned by Jebusites [papists] to be outdone.Dryden,Absalom and Achitophel, i. (1681).
The Solymæan rout, well versed of old,In godly faction, and in treason bold, ...Saw with disdain an Ethnic plot [popish plot] begun,And scorned by Jebusites [papists] to be outdone.Dryden,Absalom and Achitophel, i. (1681).
The Solymæan rout, well versed of old,In godly faction, and in treason bold, ...Saw with disdain an Ethnic plot [popish plot] begun,And scorned by Jebusites [papists] to be outdone.Dryden,Absalom and Achitophel, i. (1681).
The Solymæan rout, well versed of old,
In godly faction, and in treason bold, ...
Saw with disdain an Ethnic plot [popish plot] begun,
And scorned by Jebusites [papists] to be outdone.
Dryden,Absalom and Achitophel, i. (1681).
Sol´yman, king of the Saracens, whose capital was Nice. Being driven from his kingdom, he fled to Egypt, and was there appointed leader of the Arabs (bk. ix.). Solyman and Argantês were by far the most doughty of the pagan knights. The former was slain by Rinaldo (bk. xx.), and the latter by Tancred.--Tasso,Jerusalem Delivered(1575).
Somnambulus.Sir W. Scott so signsThe Visionary(political satires, 1819).--Olphar Hamst [Ralph Thomas],Handbook of Fictitious Names.
Somo Sala(Like the Father of), a dreamer of air-castles, like the milkmaid Perrette, in Lafontaine. (SeeCount not, etc.)
Son of Be´lial(A), a wicked person, a rebel, an infidel.
Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial: they knew not [i.e.,acknowledged not] the Lord.--1 Sam.ii. 12.
Son of Consolation, St. Barnabas of Cyprus (first century).--Actsiv. 36.
Son of Perdition(The), Judas Iscariot.--Johnxvii. 12.
Son of Perdition, Antichrist.--2 Thess.ii. 3.
Son of a Star(The), Barcochebas, or Barchochab, who gave himself out to be the “star” predicted by Balaam (diedA.D.135).
There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.--Numb.xxiv. 17.
Son of the Last Man.Charles II. was so called by the parliamentarians. His father, Charles I., was called by them “The Last Man.”
Son of the Rock, echo.
She went. She called on Armar. Nought answered but the son of the rock.--Ossian,The Songs of Selma.
Sons of Phidias, sculptors.
Sons of Thunder, orBoanerges, James and John, sons of Zebedee.--Markiii. 17.
Sonderby(John), a school-teacher who, after dallying with an evil temptation all through one summer, shakes himself free of it, and resolves “to make a man of himself, to go where human life is thick and the push keen and strong, to earn a place there by using the talent given him, and to work with hope, courage and belief, with a heart open to his humankind.”--Bliss Perry,The Broughton House(1890).
Song.The Father of Modern French Songs, C. F. Panard (1691-1765).
Song.What! all this for a song?So said William Cecil, Lord Burghley, when Queen Elizabeth ordered him to give Edmund Spenser £100 as an expression ofher pleasure at some verses he had presented to her. When a pension of £50 a year was settled on the poet, Lord Burghley did all in his power to oppose the grant. To this Spenser alludes in the lines following:--
O, grief of griefs! O, gall of all good hearts!To see that virtue should despisèd beOf him that first was raised for virtuous parts;And now, broad-spreading like an aged tree,Lets none shoot up that nigh him planted be.Oh, let the man of whom the Muse is scorned,Alive nor dead be of the Muse adorned!Spenser,The Ruins of Time(1591).
O, grief of griefs! O, gall of all good hearts!To see that virtue should despisèd beOf him that first was raised for virtuous parts;And now, broad-spreading like an aged tree,Lets none shoot up that nigh him planted be.Oh, let the man of whom the Muse is scorned,Alive nor dead be of the Muse adorned!Spenser,The Ruins of Time(1591).
O, grief of griefs! O, gall of all good hearts!To see that virtue should despisèd beOf him that first was raised for virtuous parts;And now, broad-spreading like an aged tree,Lets none shoot up that nigh him planted be.Oh, let the man of whom the Muse is scorned,Alive nor dead be of the Muse adorned!Spenser,The Ruins of Time(1591).
O, grief of griefs! O, gall of all good hearts!
To see that virtue should despisèd be
Of him that first was raised for virtuous parts;
And now, broad-spreading like an aged tree,
Lets none shoot up that nigh him planted be.
Oh, let the man of whom the Muse is scorned,
Alive nor dead be of the Muse adorned!
Spenser,The Ruins of Time(1591).
Sonnam´bula(La), Ami´na, the miller’s daughter. She was betrothed to Elvi´no, a rich young farmer, but the night before the wedding was discovered in the bed of Conte Rodolpho. This very ugly circumstance made the farmer break off the match and promise marriage to Lisa, the innkeeper’s daughter. The count now interfered, and assured Elvino that the miller’s daughter was a sleep-walker, and while they were still talking she was seen walking on the edge of the mill-roof, while the huge mill-wheel was turning rapidly. She then crossed a crazy old bridge, and came into the midst of the assembly, when she woke and ran to the arms of her lover. Elvino, convinced of her innocence, married her, and Lisa was resigned to Alessio, whose paramour she was.--Bellini’s opera,La Sonnambula(1831).
(Taken from a melodrama by Romani, and adapted as a libretto by Scribe.)
Sophi, in Arabic, means “pure,” and therefore one of the pure or true faith. As a royal title it is tantamount to “Catholic,” or “most Christian.”--Selden,Titles of Honor, vi, 76-7 (1614).
Sophi´a, mother of Rollo and Otto, dukes of Normandy. Rollo is the “bloody brother.”--Beaumont and Fletcher,The Bloody Brother(1639).
Sophia, wife of Mathīas, a Bohemian knight. When Mathias went to take service with King Ladislaus of Bohemia, the queen, Honoria, fell in love with him, and sent Ubaldo and Ricardo to tempt Sophia to infidelity. But immediately Sophia perceived their purpose she had them confined in separate chambers, and compelled them to earn their living by spinning.
Sophia’s Picture.When Mathias left, Sophia gave him a magic picture, which turnedyellowif she were tempted, and black if she yielded to the temptation.--Massinger,The Picture(1629).
Sophia(St.) orAgia[Aya]Sofi´a, the most celebrated mosque of Constantinople, once a Christian church, but now a Mohammedan jamih. It is 260 feet long and 230 feet broad. Its dome is supported on pillars of marble, granite, and green jasper, said to have belonged to the temple of Diana at Ephesus.
Sophia’s cupola with golden gleam.Byron,Don Juan, v. 3 (1820).
Sophia’s cupola with golden gleam.Byron,Don Juan, v. 3 (1820).
Sophia’s cupola with golden gleam.Byron,Don Juan, v. 3 (1820).
Sophia’s cupola with golden gleam.
Byron,Don Juan, v. 3 (1820).
Sophia(The princess), only child of the old king of Lombardy, in love with Paladore, a Briton, who saved her life by killing a boar which had gored her horse to death. She was unjustly accused of wantonness by Duke Birēno, whom the king wished her to marry, but whom she rejected. By the law of Lombardy, this offence was punishable by death, but the accuser was bound to support his charge by single combat, if any champion chose to fight in her defence. Paladorechallengedchallengedthe duke, and slew him. The whole villainy of the charge was then exposed, the character of the princess was cleared, and her marriage with Paladoreconcludes the play.--Robert Jephson,The Law of Lombardy(1779).
Sophia[Freelove], daughter of the Widow Warren by her first husband. She is a lovely, innocent girl, passionately attached to Harry Dornton, the baker’s son, to whom ultimately she is married.--T. Holcroft,The Road to Ruin(1792).
Sophia[Primrose], the younger daughter of the vicar of Wakefield; soft, modest, and alluring. Being thrown from her horse into a deep stream, she was rescued by Sir William ThornhillaliasMr. Burchell. Being abducted, she was again rescued by him, and finally married him.--Goldsmith,Vicar of Wakefield(1766).
Sophia[Sprightly], a young lady of high spirits and up to fun. Tukely loves her sincerely, and knowing her partiality for the Hon. Mr. Daffodil, exposes him as a “male coquette,” of mean spirit and without manly courage; after which she rejects him with scorn, and gives her hand and heart to Tukely.--Garrick,The Male Coquette(1758).
Sophonis´ba, daughter of Asdrubal, and reared to detest Rome. She was affianced to Masinissa, king of the Numidians, but married Syphax. InB.C.203 she fell into the hands of Lelius and Masinissa, and, to prevent being made a captive, married the Numidian prince. This subject and that of Cleopatra have furnished more dramas than any other whatsoever.
French:J. Mairet,Sophonisbe(1630); Pierre Corneille; Lagrange-Chancel; rewritten by Voltaire.Italian:Trissino (1514); Alfieri (1749-1863).English:John Marston,The Wonder of Women, orthe Tragedy of Sophonisba(1605); James Thomson,Sophonisba(1729).
(In Thomson’s tragedy occurs the line, “Oh, Sophonisba! Sophonisba, oh!” and a wit set all the town laughing with “Oh, Jemmy Thomson! Jemmy Thomson, oh!”)
Sophronia, a young lady who was taught Greek, and to hate men who were not scholars. Her wisdom taught her to gauge the wisdom of her suitors, and to discover their shortcomings. She never found one up to the mark, and now she is wrinkled with age, and talks about the “beauties of the mind.”--Goldsmith,A Citizen of the World, xxviii. (1759).
Sophronia.(SeeSofronia.)
Sophros´yne(4syl.), one of Logistilla’s handmaids, noted for her purity. Sophrosynê was sent with Andronīca to conduct Astolpho safely from India to Arabia.--Ariosto,Orlando Furioso(1516).
Sophy, the eldest of a large family. She is engaged to Traddles, and is always spoken of by him as “the dearest girl in the world.”--C. Dickens,David Copperfield(1849).
Sora´no, a Neapolitan noble, brother of Evanthe (3syl.) “the wife for a month,” and the infamous instrument of Frederick, the licentious brother of Alphonso, king of Naples.--Beaumont and Fletcher,A Wife for a Month(1624).
Sordello, a Provençal poet, whom Dantê meets in purgatory, sitting apart. On seeing Virgil, Sordello springs forward to embrace him.
⁂ R. Browning has a poem calledSordello, and makes Sordello typical of liberty and human perfectibility.
Sorel(Agnes), surnamedLa dame de Beauté, not from her personal beauty, butfrom the “château de Beauté,” on the banks of the Marne, given to her by Charles VII. (1409-1450).
Sorento(in Naples), the birthplace of Torquato Tasso, the Italian poet.
Sorrows of Werther, a mawkish, sentimental novel by Goethe (1774), once extremely popular. Werther, the hero of the story, loves a married woman, and becomes disgusted with life because Charlotte [Lotte] is the wife of his friend, Kestner.
Werther, infusing itself into the core and whole spirit of literature, gave birth to a race of sentimentalists, who raged and wailed in every part of the world till better light dawned on them, or, at any rate, till exhausted nature laid itself to sleep, and it was discovered that lamenting was an unproductive labor.--Carlyle.
Sosia(in Molière,Sosie), the slave of Amphitryon. When Mercury assumes the form of Sosia, and Jupiter that of Amphitryon, the mistakes and confusion which arise resemble those of the brothers Antiph´olus and their servants, the brothers Dromio, in Shakespeare’sComedy of Errors.--Plautus, Molière (1668), and Dryden (1690),Amphitryon.
His first name ... looks out upon him like another Sosia, or as if a man should suddenly encounter his own duplicate.--C. Lamb.
Sosii, brothers, the name of two booksellers at Rome, referred to by Horace.
So´tenville(Mon. le baron de), father of Angélique, and father-in-law of George Dandin. His wife was of the house of Prudoterie, and both boasted that in 300 years no one of their distinguished lines ever swerved from virtue.“La bravoure n’y est pas plus hérdéitaire aux mâles que la chasteté aux femelles.”They lived with their son-in-law, who was allowed the honor of paying their debts, and receiving a snubbing every time he opened his mouth, that he might be taught the mysteries of thehaut monde.--Molière,George Dandin(1668).
Soulis(Lord William), a man of prodigious strength, cruelty, avarice and treachery. Old Redcap gave him a charmed life, which nothing could affect “till threefold ropes of sand were twisted round his body.” Lord Soulis waylaid May, the lady-love of the heir of Branxholm, and kept her in durance till she promised to become his bride. Walter, the brother of the young heir, raised his father’s liegemen, and invested the castle. Lord Soulis having fallen into the hands of the liegemen, “they wrapped him in lead, and flung him into a caldron, till lead, bones, and all were melted.”--John Leyden (1802).
(The caldron is still shown in the Skelfhill, at Ninestane Rig, part of the range of hills which separates Liddesdale and Teviotdale.)
South(Squire), the Archduke Charles of Austria.--Arbuthnot,History of John Bull(1712).
Southampton(The earl of), the friend of the earl of Essex, and involved with him in the charge of treason, but pardoned.--Henry Jones,The Earl of Essex(1745).
Sovereigns of England(Mortual Days of the).
Sunday:six, viz., Henry I., Edward III., James I., William III., Anne, George I.
Monday:six, viz., Stephen, Henry IV., Henry V., Richard III., Elizabeth, Mary II. (Richard II.deposed).
Tuesday:four, viz., Richard I., Charles I., Charles II., William IV. (Edward II.resigned, and James II.abdicated).
Wednesday:four, viz., John, Henry III., Edward IV., Edward V. (Henry VI.deposed).
Thursday:five, viz., William I., William II., Henry II., Edward VI., Mary I.
Friday:three, viz., Edward I., Henry VIII., Cromwell.
Saturday:four, viz., Henry VII., George II., George III., George IV.
That is, 6 Sunday and Monday; 5 Thursday; 4 Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday; and 3 Friday.
Anne, August 1 (Old Style), August 12 (New Style), 1714.
Charles I., January 30, 1648-9;Charles II.February 6, 1684-5;Cromwelldied September 3, 1658; burnt at Tyburn, January 30, 1661.
Edward I., July 7, 1307;Edward III., June 21, 1377;Edward IV., April 9, 1483;Edward V., June 25, 1483;Edward VI., July 6, 1553;Elizabeth, March 24, 1602-3.
George I., June 11, 1727;George II., October 25, 1760;George III., January 29, 1820;George IV., June 26, 1830.
Henry I., December 1, 1135;Henry II., July 6, 1189;Henry III., November 16, 1272;Henry IV., March 20, 1412-3;Henry V., August 31, 1422;Henry VI.,deposedMarch 4, 1460-1;Henry VII., April 21, 1509;Henry VIII., January 28, 1546-7.
James I., March 27, 1625;James II.,abdicatedDecember 11, 1688;John, October 19, 1216.
Mary I., November 17, 1558;Mary II., December 27, 1694.
Richard I., April 6, 1199;Richard II.deposedSeptember 29, 1399;Richard III., August 22, 1485.
Stephen, October 25, 1154.
William I., September 9, 1087;William II., August 2, 1100;William III., March 8, 1701-2;William IV., June 20, 1837.
⁂ Edward II.resignedTuesday, January 20, 1327, and wasmurderedMonday, September 21, 1327. Henry VI.deposedWednesday, March 4, 1461, again Sunday, April 14, 1471, anddiedWednesday, May 22, 1471. James II.abdicatedTuesday, December 11, 1688, anddiedat St. Germain’s, 1701. Richard II.deposedMonday, September 29, 1399,diedthe last week in February, 1400; but his death was not announced till Friday, March 12, 1400, when a dead body was exhibited said to be that of the deceased king.
Of the sovereigns, eight have died between the ages of 60 and 70, two between 70 and 80, and one has exceeded 80 years of age.
William I. 60, Henry I. 67, Henry III. 65, Edward I. 68, Edward III. 65, Elizabeth 69, George I. 69, George IV. 68.
George II. 77. William IV. 72. George III. 82.
Length of reign.Five have reigned between 20 and 30 years, seven between 30 and 40 years, one between 40 and 50 years, and three above 50 years.
William I., 20 years 8 months 16 days; Richard II., 22 years 3 months 8 days; Henry VII., 23 years 8 months; James I., 22 years 4 days; Charles I., 23 years 10 months 4 days.
Henry I., 35 years 3 months 27 days; Henry II., 34 years 6 months 17 days; Edward I., 34 years 7 months 18 days; Henry VI., 38 years 6 months and 4 days; Henry VIII., 37 years 9 months 7 days; Charles II. + Cromwell, 36 years 8 days; George II., 33 years 4 months 15 days.
Elizabeth, 44 years 4 months 8 days.
Henry III., 56 years 20 days; Edward III., 50 years 4 months 28 days; George III., 59 years 3 months 4 days.
Sow(A), a machine of war. It was a wooden shed which went on wheels, the roof being ridged like a hog’s back. Being thrust close to the wall of a place besieged, it served to protect the besieging party from the arrows hurled against them from the walls. When the countess of March (called “Black Agnes”), in 1335, saw one of those engines advancing towards her castle, she called out to the earl of Salisbury, who commanded the engineers:
Beware Montagow,For farrow shall thy sow;
Beware Montagow,For farrow shall thy sow;
Beware Montagow,For farrow shall thy sow;
Beware Montagow,
For farrow shall thy sow;
and then had such a huge fragment of rock rolled on the engine that it dashed it to pieces. When she saw the English soldiers running away, the countesscalled out, “Lo! lo! the litter of English pigs!”
Sow of Dallweir, named “Henwen,” went burrowing through Wales, and leaving in one place a grain of barley, in another a little pig, a few bees, a grain or two of wheat, and so on, and these made the places celebrated for the particular produce ever after.
It is supposed that the sow was really a ship, and that the keeper of the sow, named Coll ab Collfrewi, was the captain of the vessel.--Welsh Triads, lvi.
Sowerberry, the parochial undertaker, to whom Oliver Twist is bound when he quits the workhouse. Sowerberry was not a badly disposed man, and he treated Oliver with a certain measure of kindness and consideration; but Oliver was ill-treated by Mrs. Sowerberry, and bullied by a big boy called Noah Claypole. Being one day greatly exasperated by the bully, Oliver gave him a thorough “drubbing,” whereupon Charlotte, the maidservant, set upon him like a fury, scratched his face, and held him fast till Noah Claypole had pummelled him within an inch of his life. Three against one was too much for the lad, so he ran away.--C. Dickens,Oliver Twist(1837).
Sowerberry, a misanthrope.--W. Brough,A Phenomenon in a Smock Frock.
Sowerbrowst(Mr.), the maltster.--Sir W. Scott,St. Ronan’s Well(time, George III.).
Soyer(Alexis), a celebrated cook, appointed, in 1837,chef de cuisineto the Reform Club, London, was the author of several useful works, asThe Gastronomic Regenerator,The Poor Man’s Regenerator,The Modern Housewife, etc. (died 1858).
Spado, an impudent rascal, in the band of Don Cæsar (called “Captain Ramirez”), who tricks every one, and delights in mischief.--O’Keefe,Castle of Andalusia(1798).
Quick’s great parts were “Isaac,” “Tony Lumpkin,” “Spado,” and “Sir Christopher Curry.”--Records of a Stage Veteran.
(“Isaac,” in theDuenna, by Sheridan; “Tony Lumpkin,” inShe Stoops to Conquer, by Goldsmith; “Sir Christopher Curry,” inInkle and Yarico, by G. Colman.)
Spahis, native Algerian cavalry, officered by Frenchmen. The infantry are calledTurcos.
Spanish Brutus(The), Alfonso Perez de Guzman, governor of Tarifa, in 1293. Here he was besieged by the infant, Don Juan, who had Guzman’s son in his power, and threatened to kill him unless Tarifa was given up. Alfonso replied, “Sooner than be guilty of such treason, I will lend Juan a dagger to carry out his threat;” and so saying, he tossed his dagger over the wall. Juan, unable to appreciate this patriotism, slew the young man without remorse.
⁂ Lopê de Vega has dramatized this incident.
Spanish Curate(The), Lopez.--Beaumont and Fletcher,The Spanish Curate(1622).
Spanish Fryar(The), a drama by Dryden (1680). It contains two plots, wholly independent of each other. The seriouselement is this: Leonora, the usurping queen of Aragon, is promised in marriage to Duke Bertran, a prince of the blood; but is in love with Torrismond, general of the army, who turns out to be the son and heir of King Sancho, supposed to be dead. Sancho is restored to his throne, and Leonora marries Torrismond. The comic element is the illicit love of Colonel Lorenzo for Elvīra, the wife of Gomez, a rich old banker. Dominick (the Spanish fryar) helps on this scandalous amour, but it turns out that Lorenzo and Elvira are brother and sister.
Spanish Lady(The), a ballad contained in Percy’sReliques, ii. 23. A Spanish lady fell in love with Captain Popham, whose prisoner she was. A command being sent to set all the prisoners free, the lady prayed the gallant captain to make her his wife. The Englishman replied that he could not do so, as he was married already. On hearing this the Spanish lady gave him a chain of gold and a pearl bracelet to take to his wife, and told him that she should retire to a nunnery and spend the rest of her life praying for their happiness.
It will be stuck up with the ballad ofMargaret’s Ghost[q.v.] and theSpanish Lady, against the walls of every cottage in the country.--Isaac Bickerstaff,Love in a Village(1763).
Spanish Tragedy(The), by T. Kyd (1597). Horatio (son of Hieronimo) is murdered while he is sitting in an arbor with Belimperia. Balthazar, the rival of Horatio, commits the murder, assisted by Belimperia’s brother, Lorenzo. The murderers hang the dead body on a tree in the garden, where Hieronimo, roused by the cries of Belimperia, discovers it, and goes raving mad.
Spanker(Lady Gay), inLondon Assurance, by D. Boucicault (1841).
Dazzle and Lady Gay Spanker “act themselves,” and will never be dropped out of the list of acting plays.--Percy Fitzgerald.
Sparabel´la, a shepherdess, in love with D’Urfey, but D’Urfey loves Clum´silis, “the fairest shepherd wooed the foulest lass.” Sparabella resolves to kill herself; but how? Shall she cut her windpipe with a penknife? “No,” she says, “squeaking pigs die so.” Shall she suspend herself to a tree? “No,” she says, “dogs die in that fashion.” Shall she drown herself in a pool? “No,” she says, “scolding queans die so.” And while in doubt how to kill herself, the sun goes down, and
The prudent maiden deemed it then too late,And till to-morrow came deferred her fate.Gay,Pastoral, iii. (1714).
The prudent maiden deemed it then too late,And till to-morrow came deferred her fate.Gay,Pastoral, iii. (1714).
The prudent maiden deemed it then too late,And till to-morrow came deferred her fate.Gay,Pastoral, iii. (1714).
The prudent maiden deemed it then too late,
And till to-morrow came deferred her fate.
Gay,Pastoral, iii. (1714).
Sparkish, “the prince of coxcombs,” a fashionable fool, and “a cuckold before marriage.” Sparkish is engaged to Alithēa Moody, but introduces to her his friend, Harcourt, allows him to make love to her before his face, and, of course, is jilted.--The Country Girl(Garrick, altered from Wycherly’sCountry Wife, 1675).
Sparkler(Edmund), son of Mrs. Merdle by her first husband. He married Fanny, sister of Little Dorrit. Edmund Sparkler was a very large man, called in his own regiment “Quinbus Flestrin, junior, or the Young Man-Mountain.”
Mrs. Sparkler, Edmund’s wife. She was very pretty, very self-willed, and snubbed her husband in most approved fashion.--C. Dickens,Little Dorrit(1857).
Sparrowgrass, pen-name of Frederic S. Cozzens, under which he depicted the blunders and mishaps of a pair of city-bred people, who set up their Lares and Penates in Yonkers, N.Y.--Frederic SwartwoutCozzens,The Sparrowgrass Papers(1856).
Sparsit(Mrs.), housekeeper to Josiah Bounderby, banker and mill-owner at Coketown. Mrs. Sparsit is a “highly connected lady,” being the great-niece of Lady Scadgers. She had a “Coriolanian nose and dense black eyebrows,” was much believed in by her master, who, when he married, made her “keeper of the bank.” Mrs. Sparsit, in collusion with the light porter, Bitzer, then acted the spy on Mr. Bounderby and his young wife.--C. Dickens,Hard Times(1854).
Spasmodic School(The), certain authors of the nineteenth century, whose writings abound in spasmodic phrases, startling expressions, and words used out of their common acceptation. Carlyle, noted for his Germanic English, is the chief of this school. Others are Bailey, author ofFestus, Sydney Dobell, Gilfillan, and Alexander Smith.
⁂ Professor Aytoun has gibbeted this class of writers in hisFirmilian, aSpasmodic Tragedy(1854).
Spear of Achillês.Telĕphos, son-in-law of Priam, opposed the Greeks in their voyage to Troy. A severe contest ensued, and Achillês, with his spear, wounded the Mysian king severely. He was told by an oracle that the wound could be cured only by the instrument which gave it; so he sent to Achillês to effect his cure. The surly Greek replied he was no physician, and would have dismissed the messengers with scant courtesy, but Ulysses whispered in his ear that the aid of Telephos was required to direct them on their way to Troy. Achillês now scraped some rust from his spear, which, being applied to the wound, healed it. This so conciliated Telephos that he conducted the fleet to Troy, and even took part in the war against his father-in-law.
Achillês’ and his father’s javelin causedPain first, and then the boon of health restored.Dantê,Hell, xxxi. (1300).
Achillês’ and his father’s javelin causedPain first, and then the boon of health restored.Dantê,Hell, xxxi. (1300).
Achillês’ and his father’s javelin causedPain first, and then the boon of health restored.Dantê,Hell, xxxi. (1300).
Achillês’ and his father’s javelin caused
Pain first, and then the boon of health restored.
Dantê,Hell, xxxi. (1300).
And fell in speche of Telephus, the king,And of Achilles for his queinte spere,For he coude with it both hele and dere (i.e., wound).Chaucer,Canterbury Tales(“The Squire’s Tale”).
And fell in speche of Telephus, the king,And of Achilles for his queinte spere,For he coude with it both hele and dere (i.e., wound).Chaucer,Canterbury Tales(“The Squire’s Tale”).
And fell in speche of Telephus, the king,And of Achilles for his queinte spere,For he coude with it both hele and dere (i.e., wound).Chaucer,Canterbury Tales(“The Squire’s Tale”).
And fell in speche of Telephus, the king,
And of Achilles for his queinte spere,
For he coude with it both hele and dere (i.e., wound).
Chaucer,Canterbury Tales(“The Squire’s Tale”).
Whose smile and frown, like to Achillês’ spear,Is able with the change to kill and cure.Shakespeare,2 Henry VI.act v. sc. 1 (1591).
Whose smile and frown, like to Achillês’ spear,Is able with the change to kill and cure.Shakespeare,2 Henry VI.act v. sc. 1 (1591).
Whose smile and frown, like to Achillês’ spear,Is able with the change to kill and cure.Shakespeare,2 Henry VI.act v. sc. 1 (1591).
Whose smile and frown, like to Achillês’ spear,
Is able with the change to kill and cure.
Shakespeare,2 Henry VI.act v. sc. 1 (1591).
⁂ The plant milfoil or yarrow, called by the old herbalists,Achilles, is still used in medicine as a tonic. The leaves were at one time much used for healing wounds, and are still employed for this purpose in Scotland, Germany, France, and other countries.
Spearman(Rosanna). Housemaid in the employ of Lady Verinder, and a reformed thief. She is infatuated with Franklin Blake, who is quite ignorant of her passion. Learning, accidentally, that he has, as a sleep-walker, stolen the diamond, she tries to use the knowledge to establish a hold upon him. Failing in this, she drowns herself in a quicksand, leaving behind her a confession of her hopeless love and the means she had used to avert suspicion from him.--Wilkie Collins,The Moonstone.
Spears of Spyinghow(The Three), in the troop of Fitzurse.--Sir W. Scott,Ivanhoe(time, Richard I.).
Speech ascribed to Dumb Animals.Al Borak, the animal which conveyed Mahomet to the seventh heaven; Arīon, the wonderful horse which Herculês gaveto Adrastos; Balaam’s ass (Numb.xxii. 28-30); the black pigeons of Dodōna; Comrade, Fortunio’s horse; Katmîr, the dog of the Seven Sleepers; Sâleh’s camel; Temliha, king of the serpents; Xanthos, the horse of Achillês. Frithjof’s ship,Ellīda, could not speak, but it understood what was said to it.
Speech given to Conceal Thought.La parole a été donnée a l’homme pour déguiser la pensée or pour l’aider à cacher sa pensée.Talleyrand is usually credited with this sentence, but Captain Gronow, in hisRecollections and Anecdotes, asserts that the words were those of Count Montrond, a wit and poet, called “the most agreeable scoundrel and most pleasant reprobate in the court of Marie Antoinette.”
Voltaire, inLe Chapon et la Poularde, says:“Ils n’employent les paroles que pour déguiser leurspensées.”pensées.”
Goldsmith, inThe Bee, iii. (October 20, 1759), has borrowed the same thought: “the true use of speech is not so much to express our wants as to conceal them.”
Speech-Makers(Bad).
Addisoncould not make a speech. He attempted one in the House of Commons, and said, “Mr. Speaker, I conceive--I conceive, sir--sir, I conceive----” Whereupon a member exclaimed, “The right honorable secretary of state has conceived thrice, and brought forth nothing.”
Campbell(Thomas), once tried to make a speech, but so stuttered and stammered, that the whole table was convulsed with laughter.
Cicero, the great orator, never got over his nervous terror till he warmed to his subject.
Irving(Washington), even with a speech written out, and laid before him, could not deliver it without a breakdown. In fact, he could hardly utter a word in public without trembling.
Moore(Thomas) could never make a speech.
(Dickens and Prince Albert always spoke well and fluently.)
Speed, an inveterate punster, and the clownish servant of Valentine, one of the two “gentlemen of Verona.”--Shakespeare,The Two Gentlemen of Verona(1594).
Speed the Plough, a comedy by Thomas Morton (1798). Farmer Ashfield brings up a boy named Henry, greatly beloved by every one. This Henry is in reality the son of “Morrington,” younger brother of Sir Philip Blandford. The two brothers fixed their love on the same lady, but the younger married her, whereupon Sir Philip stabbed him to the heart, and fully thought him to be dead, but after twenty years, the wounded man reappeared, and claimed his son. Henry marries his cousin, Emma Blandford; and the farmer’s daughter, Susan, marries Robert, only son of Sir Abel Handy.
Spenlow(Mr.), father of Dora (q.v.). He was a proctor, to whom David Copperfield was articled. Mr. Spenlow was killed in a carriage accident.
Misses LaviniaandClarissa Spenlow, two spinster aunts of Dora Spenlow, with whom she lived at the death of her father.
They were not unlike birds altogether, having a sharp, brisk, sudden manner, and a little, short, spruce way of adjusting themselves, like canaries.--C. Dickens,David Copperfield, xli. (1849).
Spens(Sir Patrick), a Scotch hero, sent, in the winter-time, on a mission to Norway.His ship, in its home passage, was wrecked off the coast of Aberdeen, and every one on board was lost. The incident has furnished the subject of a spirited Scotch ballad by Lady Lindsay.
Spenser.The Spenser of English Prose Writers, Jeremy Taylor (1613-1667).
Spenser.From Spenser to Flecknoe, that is, from the top to the bottom of all poetry; from the sublime to the ridiculous.--Dryden,Comment on Spenser, etc.
Spenser’s Monument, in Westminster Abbey, was erected by Anne Clifford, countess of Dorset.
Spider’s Net(A). When Mahomet fled from Mecca, he hid in a cave, and a spider wove its net over the entrance. When the Koreishites came thither, they passed on, being fully persuaded that no one had entered the cave, because the cobweb was not broken.
In theTalmud, we are told that David, in his flight, hid himself in the cave of Adullam, and a spider spun its net over the opening. When Saul came up and saw the cobweb, he passed on, under the same persuasion.
Spindle(Jack), the son of a man of fortune. Having wasted his money in riotous living, he went to a friend to borrow £100. “Let me see, you want £100, Mr. Spindle; let me see, would not £50 do for the present?” “Well,” said Jack, “if you have not £100, I must be contented with £50.” “Dear me, Mr. Spindle!” said the friend, “I find I have but £20 about me.” “Never mind,” said Jack, “I must borrow the other £30 of some other friend.” “Just so, Mr. Spindle, just so. By-the-by would it not be far better to borrow the whole of that friend, and then one note of hand will serve for the whole sum? Good morning, Mr. Spindle; delighted to see you! Tom, see the gentleman down.”--Goldsmith,The Bee, iii. (1759).
Spirit of the Cape(The), Adamastor, a hideous phantom, of unearthly pallor, “erect his hair uprose of withered red,” his lips were black, his teeth blue and disjointed, his beard haggard, his face scarred by lightning, his eyes “shot livid fire,” his voice roared. The sailors trembled at the sight of him, and the fiend demanded how they dared to trespass “where never hero braved his rage before?” He then told them “that every year the shipwrecked should be made to deplore their foolhardiness.” According to Barreto the “Spirit of the Cape” was one of the giants who stormed heaven.--Camoens,The Lusiad(1572).