Quæ nunc Thessalico lunam deducere rhombo [sciet].—Martial,Epigrams, ix. 30.
Quæ nunc Thessalico lunam deducere rhombo [sciet].—Martial,Epigrams, ix. 30.
Rhone of Christian Eloquence(The), St. Hilary (300-367).
Rhone of Latin Eloquence(The). St. Hilary is so called by St. Jerome (300-367).
Rhongomyant, the lance of King Arthur.—The Mabinogion(“Kilhwch and Olwen,” twelfth century).
Rhyming to Death.In 1Henry VI.act i. sc. 1, Thomas Beaufort, duke of Exeter, speaking about the death of Henry V., says, “Must we think that the subtle-witted French conjurors and sorcerers, out of fear of him, ‘by magic verses have contrived his end?’” The notion of killing by incantation was at one time very common.
Irishmen ... will not stick to affirme that they can rime either man or beast to death.—Reg. Scot,Discoverie of Witchcraft(1564).
Irishmen ... will not stick to affirme that they can rime either man or beast to death.—Reg. Scot,Discoverie of Witchcraft(1564).
Ribbon.Theyellowribbon, in France, indicates that the wearer has won amédaille militaire(instituted by Napoleon III.) as a minor decoration of the Legion of Honor.
Theredribbon marks achevalierof the Legion of Honor. Arosetteindicates a higher grade than that ofchevalier.
Ribemont(3syl.), the bravest and noblest of the French host in the battle of Poitiers. He alone dares confess that the English are a brave people. In the battle he is slain by Lord Audley.—Shirley,Edward the Black Prince(1640).
Ribemont(Count), inThe Siege of Calais, by Colman.
Riccar´do, commander of Plymouth fortress, a Puritan to whom Lord Walton has promised his daughter, Elvira, in marriage. Riccardo learns that the lady is in love with Arthur Talbot, and when Arthur is taken prisoner by Cromwell’s soldiers, Riccardo promises to use his efforts to obtain his pardon. This, however, is not needful, for Cromwell, feeling quite secure of his position, orders all the captives of war to be released. Riccardo is the Italian form of Sir Richard Forth.—Bellini,I Puritani(opera, 1834).
Ricciardetto, son of Aymon, and brother of Bradamante.—Ariosto,Orlando Furioso(1516).
Rice.Eating rice with a bodkin.Aminê, the beautiful wife of Sidi Nouman, ate rice with a bodkin, but she was a ghoul. (SeeAmine.)
Richard, a fine, honest lad, by trade a smith. He marries, on New Year’s Day, Meg, the daughter of Toby Veck.—C. Dickens,The Chimes(1844).
Richard(Squire), eldest son of Sir Francis Wronghead, of Bumper Hall. A country bumpkin, wholly ignorant of the world and of literature.—Vanbrugh and Cibber,The Provoked Husband(1727).
Robert Wetherilt [1708-1745] came to Drury Lane a boy, where he showed his rising genius in the part of “Squire Richard.”—Chetwood,History of the Stage.
Robert Wetherilt [1708-1745] came to Drury Lane a boy, where he showed his rising genius in the part of “Squire Richard.”—Chetwood,History of the Stage.
Richard(Prince), eldest son of King Henry II.—Sir W. Scott,The Betrothed(time, Henry II.).
Richard“Cœur de Lion,” introduced in two novels by Sir W. Scott (The TalismanandIvanhoe). In the latter he first appears as “The Black Knight,” at the tournament, and is calledLe Noir Fainéant, or “The Black Sluggard;” also “The Knight of the Fetter-lock.”
Richard a Name of Terror.The name of Richard I., like that of Attila, Bonaparte, Corvīnus, Narses, Sebastian, Talbot, Tamerlane, and other great conquerors, was at one time employedin terroremto disobedient children. (SeeNames of Terror.)
His tremendous name was employed by the Syrian mothers to silence their infants; and if a horse suddenly started from the way, his rider was wont to exclaim, “Dost thou think King Richard is in the bush?”—Gibbon,Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, xi. 146 (1776-88).
His tremendous name was employed by the Syrian mothers to silence their infants; and if a horse suddenly started from the way, his rider was wont to exclaim, “Dost thou think King Richard is in the bush?”—Gibbon,Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, xi. 146 (1776-88).
The Daughters of Richard I.When Richard was in France, Fulco, a priest, told him he ought to beware how he bestowed his daughters in marriage. “I have no daughters,” said the king. “Nay, nay,” replied Fulco, “all the world knows that you have three—Pride, Covetousness and Lechery.” “If these are my daughters,” said the king, “I know well how to bestow them where they will be well cherished. My eldest I give to the Knights Templars, my second to the monks; and my third I cannot bestow better than on yourself, for I am sure she will never be divorced nor neglected.”—Thomas Milles,True Nobility(1610).
The Horse of Richard I., Fennel.
Ah, Fennel, my noble horse, thou bleedest, thou art slain!—Cœur de Lion and His Horse.
Ah, Fennel, my noble horse, thou bleedest, thou art slain!—Cœur de Lion and His Horse.
The Troubadour of Richard I., Bertrand de Born.
Richard Pennyroyal, unhappy man whose weary indifference to his first wife heightens into aversion as she becomes insane. He is relieved when she drowns herself. His second wife, passionately beloved, is unfaithful to him, and loathes him as he drinks more and more to drown disappointment. His rival triumphs over him in a struggle for property, but Richard has his wife still. Straying one night toward the pool in which his first wife drowned herself, he comes upon the false wife and her lover, challenges the latter to a duel then and there, and is shot through the heart. His body is tossed into the pool and never discovered.—Julian Hawthorne,Archibald Malmaison(1878).
Richard II’s Horse, Roan Barbary.—Shakespeare,Richard II.act v. sc. 5 (1597).
Richard III., a tragedy by Shakespeare (1597). At one time parts of Rowe’s tragedy ofJane Shorewere woven in the acting edition, and John Kemble introduced other clap-traps from Colley Cibber. The best actors of this part were David Garrick (1716-1779), Henry Mossop (1729-1773) and Edmund Kean (1787-1833).
Richard III. was only 19 years old at the opening of Shakespeare’s play.—Sharon Turner.
Richard III. was only 19 years old at the opening of Shakespeare’s play.—Sharon Turner.
The Horse of Richard III., White Surrey.—Shakespeare,Richard III.act v. sc. 3 (1597).
Richard’s himself again!These words were interpolated by John Kemble from Colley Cibber.
Richards(Allen). He meets his lately betrothed in a parlor-car, and the dialogue that ensues ends in reconciliation and renewal of vows. They are alone, except when the porter enters from time to time, and a providential detention on the road prolongs the interview.—W. D. Howells,The Parlor Car(a farce, 1876).
Richelieu(Armand), cardinal and chief minister of France. The duke of Orleans (the king’s brother), the count de Baradas (the king’s favorite), and other noblemen, conspired to assassinate Richelieu, dethrone Louis XIII., and make Gaston, duke of Orleans, the regent. The plot was revealed to the cardinal by Marion de Lorme, in whose house the conspirators met. The conspirators were arrested, and several of them put to death, but Gaston, duke of Orleans, turned king’s evidence, and was pardoned.—Lord Lytton,Richelieu(1839).
Richland(Miss), intended for Leontine Croaker, but she gives her hand in marriage to Mr. Honeywood, “the good-natured man,” who promises to abandon his quixotic benevolence, and to make it his study in future “to reserve his pity for real distress, his friendship for true merit, and his love for her who first taught him what it is to be happy.”—Goldsmith,The Good-natured Man(1768).
Richlings(The). Brave young couple who come to New Orleans to make a living.John Richlinghas forfeited the favor of a rich father by marrying the woman of his choice, but never regrets the action. From the outset ill-fortune pursues him. He is willing to work, but work is hard to get. He accepts various employments, more or less menial, and through no fault of his, loses one after another. Nothing is stable exceptMary’slove andDr. Sevier’sfriendship. Just before the war poverty compels him to send Mary to her mother in Milwaukee. There her child is born. He remains in New Orleans, working hard, and steadily failing in health. For three years they are separated by war, the noble wife trying all the while to get to her husband. When she succeeds, it is to find him on his death-bed.
Mary becomes, under Dr. Sevier’s direction a city-missionary. “The work ... seemed to keep John near. Almost, sometimes, he seemed to walk at her side in her errands of mercy, or to spread above her the arms of benediction.”—George W. Cable,Dr. Sevier(1888).
Richmond(The duchess of) wife of Charles Stuart, in the court of Charles II. The line became extinct, and the title was given to the Lennox family.—Sir W. Scott,Perveril of the Peak(time, Charles II.).
Richmond(The earl of), Henry of Lancaster.—Sir W. Scott,Anne of Geierstein(time, Edward IV.).
Richmond Hill(The Lass of), Missl’Anson, of Hill House, Richmond, Yorkshire. Words by M’Nally, music by James Hook, who married the young lady.
The Lass of Richmond Hillis one of the sweetest ballads in the language.—John Bell.
The Lass of Richmond Hillis one of the sweetest ballads in the language.—John Bell.
Richmond(Kate). New England girl, heroine of several sketches in Grace Greenwood’sLeaves. “Aside from her beauty and unfailing cheerfulness, she has a clear, strong intellect, an admirable taste and an earnest truthfulness of character.”—Grace Greenwood,Greenwood Leaves(1850).
Rickets(Mabel), the old nurse of Frank Osbaldistone.—Sir W. Scott,Rob Roy(time, George I.).
Riderhood(Rogue), the villain in Dickens’s novel ofOur Mutual Friend(1864).
Rides on the Tempest and Directs the Storm.Joseph Addison, speaking of the duke of Marlborough and his famous victories, says that he inspired the fainting squadrons, and stood unmoved in the shock of battle:
So when an angel by divine command,With rising tempests shakes a guilty land,Such as of late o’er pale Britannia past,Calm and serene he drives the furious blast;And, pleased th’ Almighty’s orders to perform,Rides on the tempest and directs the storm.The Campaign(1705).
Ridicule(Father of). François Rabelais is so styled by Sir Wm. Temple (1495-1553).
Ridolphus, one of the band of adventurers that joined the crusaders. He was slain by Argantês (bk.vii.)—Tasso,Jerusalem Delivered(1575).
Rienzi(Nicolo Gabrïni) orCola di Rienzi, last of the tribunes, who assumed the name of “Tribune of Liberty, Peace and Justice” (1313-1354).
***Cola di Rienzi is the hero of a novel by Lord Bulwer Lytton, entitledRienzi, orThe Last of the Tribunes(1849).
Rienzi, an opera by Wagner (1841). It opens with a number of the Orsini breaking into Rienzi’s house, in order to abduct his sister, Irēnê, but in this they are foiled by the arrival of the Colonna and his followers. The outrage provokes a general insurrection, and Rienzi is appointed leader. The nobles are worsted, and Rienzi becomes a senator; but the aristocracy hate him, and Paolo Orsini seeks to assassinate him, but without success. By the machinations of the German emperor and the Colonna, Rienzi is excommunicated and deserted by all his adherents. He is ultimately fired on by the populace and killed on the steps of the capitol.—Libretto by J. P. Jackson.
Rienzi(The English), William with the Long Beard,aliasFitzosbert (*-1196).
Rigaud(Mons.), a Belgian, 35 years of age, confined in a villainous prison at Marseilles, for murdering his wife. He has a hooked nose, handsome after its kind, but too high between the eyes, and his eyes, though sharp, were too near to one another. He was, however, a large, tall man, with thin lips, and a goodly quantity of dry hair shot with red. When he spoke, his moustache went up under his nose, and his nose came down over his moustache. After his liberation from prison, he first took the name of Lagnier, and then of Blandois, his name being Rigaud Lagnier Blandois.—Charles Dickens,Little Dorrit(1857).
Rigdum-Funnidos, a courtier in thepalace of King Chrononhotonthologos. After the death of the king, the widowed queen is advised to marry again, and Rigdum Funnidos is proposed to her as “a very proper man.” At this Aldiborontephoscophornio takes umbrage, and the queen says, “Well, gentlemen, to make matters easy, I’ll have you both.”—H. Carey,Chrononhotonthologos(1734).
***John Ballantyne, the publisher, was so called by Sir W. Scott. He was “a quick, active, intrepid little fellow, full of fun and merriment ... all over quaintness and humorous mimicry.”
Right-Hitting Brand, one of the companions of Robin Hood, mentioned by Mundy.
Rig´olette(3syl.), a grisette and courtezan.—Eugène Sue,Mysteries of Paris(1842-3).
Rigoletto, an opera, describing the agony of a father obliged to witness the violation of his own daughter.—Verdi,Rigoletto(1852).
***The libretto of this opera is borrowed from Victor Hugo’s dramaLe Roi s’Amuse.
Rimegap(Joe), one of the miners of Sir GeoffreyPerverilof the Peak.—Sir W. Scott,Peveril of the Peak(time, Charles II.).
Rimini(Francesca di), a woman of extraordinary beauty, daughter of the lord of Ravenna. She was married to Lanciotto Malatesta, signore of Rimini, a man of great bravery, but deformed. His brother, Paolo, was extremely handsome, and with him Francesca fell in love. Lanciotto, detecting them in criminal intercourse, killed them both (1389).
This tale forms one of the episodes of Dantê’sInferno; is the subject of a tragedy calledFrancesca di Rimini, by Silvio Pellico (1819); and Leigh Hunt, about the same time, published hisStory of Rimini, in verse.
Rimmon, seventh in order of the hierarchy of Hell: (1) Satan, (2) Beëlzebub, (3) Moloch, (4) Chemos, (5) Thammuz, (6) Dagon, (7) Rimmon, whose chief temple was at Damascus (2Kingsv. 18).
Him [Dagon] followed Rimmon, whose delightful seatWas fair Damascus on the fertile banksOf A´bana and Pharpar, lucid streams.Milton,Paradise Lost, i. 467, etc. (1665).
Rinaldo, son of the fourth Marquis d’Estê, cousin of Orlando, and nephew of Charlemagne. He was the rival of Orlando in his love for Angelica, but Angelica detested him. Rinaldo brought an auxiliary force of English and Scotch to Charlemagne, which “Silence” conducted safely into Paris.—Ariosto,Orlando Furioso(1516).
Rinaldo, the Achillês of the Christian army in the siege of Jerusalem. He was the son of Bertoldo and Sophia, but was brought up by Matilda. Rinaldo joined the crusaders at the age of 15. Being summoned to a public trial for the death of Gernando, he went into voluntary exile.—Tasso,Jerusalem Delivered(1575).
***Pulci introduces the same character in his burlesque poem entitledMorgantê Maggiorê, which holds up to ridicule the romances of chivalry.
Rinaldo, steward to the countess of Rousillon—Shakespeare,All’s Well that Ends Well(1598).
Rinaldo of Montalban, a knight whohad the “honor” of being a public plunderer. His great exploit was stealing the golden idol of Mahomet.
In this sameMirror of Knighthoodwe meet with Rinaldo de Montalban and his companions, with the twelve peers of France, and Turpin, the historian.... Rinaldo had a broad face, and a pair of large rolling eyes; his complexion was ruddy, and his disposition choleric. He was, besides, naturally profligate, and a great encourager of vagrants.—Cervantes,Don Quixote, I. i. 1, 6 (1605).
In this sameMirror of Knighthoodwe meet with Rinaldo de Montalban and his companions, with the twelve peers of France, and Turpin, the historian.... Rinaldo had a broad face, and a pair of large rolling eyes; his complexion was ruddy, and his disposition choleric. He was, besides, naturally profligate, and a great encourager of vagrants.—Cervantes,Don Quixote, I. i. 1, 6 (1605).
Ring(Dame Liŏnês’s), a ring given by Dame Lionês to Sir Gareth, during a tournament.
“That ring,” said Dame Lionês, “increaseth my beauty much more than it is of itself; and this is the virtue of my ring: that which is green it will turn to red, and that which is red it will turn green; that which is blue it will turn white, and that which is white it will turn blue; and so with all other colors. Also, whoever beareth my ring can never lose blood.”—Sir T. Malory,History of Prince Arthur, i. 146 (1470).
“That ring,” said Dame Lionês, “increaseth my beauty much more than it is of itself; and this is the virtue of my ring: that which is green it will turn to red, and that which is red it will turn green; that which is blue it will turn white, and that which is white it will turn blue; and so with all other colors. Also, whoever beareth my ring can never lose blood.”—Sir T. Malory,History of Prince Arthur, i. 146 (1470).
Ring(Luned’s). This ring rendered the wearer invisible. Luned or Lynet gave it to Owain, one of King Arthur’s knights. Consequently, when men were sent to kill him he was nowhere to be found, for he was invisible.
Take this ring, and put it on thy finger, with the stone inside thy hand; and close thy hand upon the stone; and as long as thou concealest it, it will conceal thee.—The Mabinogion(“Lady of the Fountain,” twelfth century).
Take this ring, and put it on thy finger, with the stone inside thy hand; and close thy hand upon the stone; and as long as thou concealest it, it will conceal thee.—The Mabinogion(“Lady of the Fountain,” twelfth century).
Ring(The Steel), made by Siedel-Beckir. This ring enabled the wearer to read the secrets of another’s heart.—Comte de Caylus,Oriental Tales(“The Four Talismans,” 1743).
Ring(The Talking), a ring given by Tartaro, the Basque Cyclops, to a girl whom he wished to marry. Immediately she put it on, it kept incessantly saying, “You there, and I here;” so, to get rid of the nuisance, she cut off her finger and threw both ring and finger into a pond.—Rev. W. Webster,Basque Legends, 4 (1876).
The same story appears in Campbell’sPopular Tales of the West Highlands, i. 111, and in Grimm’s tale ofThe Robber and His Sons. When the robber put on the ring, it incessantly cried out, “Here I am;” so he bit off his finger, and threw it from him.
Ring(The Virgin’s Wedding Ring), kept in the Duomo of Perugia, under fourteen locks.
Ring and the Book(The), an idyllic epic, by Robert Browning, founded on acause célèbreof Italian history in 1698. The case was this: Guido Franceschini, a Florentine count of shattered fortune, married Pompilia, thinking her to be an heiress. When the young bride discovered that she had been married for her money only, she told her husband she was no heiress at all, but was only the supposititious child of Pietro (2syl.), supplied by one Violantê, for the sake of keeping in his hands certain entailed property. The count now treated Pompilia so brutally that she ran away from home, under the protection of Caponsacchi, a young priest, and being arrested at Rome, a legal separation took place. Pompilia sued for a divorce, but, pending the suit, gave birth to a son. The count now murdered Pietro, Violantê, and Pompilia, but being taken red-handed, was brought to trial, found guilty, and executed.
Ring the Bells Backwards(To), to ring a muffled peal, to lament. Thus, John Cleveland, wishing to show his abhorrence of the Scotch, says:
How! Providence! and yet a Scottish crew!...Ring the bells backwards. I am all on fire;Not all the buckets in a country quireShall quench my rage.The Rebel Scot(1613-1659).
Ringdove(The Swarthy). The responses of the oracle of Dodōna, in Epīros, were made by old women called “pigeons,” who derived their answers from the cooing of certain doves, the bubbling of a spring, a rustling of the sacred oak [orbeech], and the tinkling of a gong or bell hung in the tree. The women were called pigeons by a play on the wordpelīæ, which means “old women” as well as “pigeons;” and as they came from Libya they wereswarthy.
According to the fable, Zeus gave his daughter, Thēbê, two black doves endowed with the gift of human speech; one of them flew into Libya, and the other into Dodona. The former gave the responses in the temple of Ammon, and the latter in the oracle of Dodona.
... beach or lime,Or that Thessalian growth,In which the swarthy ringdove sat,And mystic sentence spoke.Tennyson.
Ringhorse(Sir Robert), a magistrate at Old St. Ronan’s.—Sir W. Scott,St. Ronan’s Well(time, George III.).
Ringwood, a young Templar.—Sir W. Scott,Fortunes of Nigel(time, James I.).
Rintherout(Jenny), a servant at Monkbarns to Mr. Jonathan Oldbuck, the antiquary.—Sir W. Scott,The Antiquary(time, George III.).
Riou(Captain), called by Nelson “The Gallant and the Good;” fell in the battle of the Baltic.
Brave hearts! to Britain’s prideOnce so faithful and so true,On the deck of fame that died,With the gallant, good Riou.Campbell,Battle of the Baltic(1777-1844).
Rip van Winkleslept twenty years in the Catskill Mountains, of North America. (SeeWinkle.)
Epimenĭdês, the Gnostic, slept for fifty-seven years.
Gyneth slept 500 years, by the enchantment of Merlin.
The seven sleepers slept for 250 years in Mount Celion.
St. David slept for seven years. (SeeOrmandine.)
(The following are not dead, but only sleep till the fulness of their respective times:—Elijah, Endymion, Merlin, King Arthur, Charlemagne, Frederick Barbarossa and his knights, the three Tells, Desmond of Kilmallock, Thomas of Erceldoune, Boabdil el Chico, Brian Boroimhe, Knez Lazar, King Sebastian of Portugal, Olaf Tryggvason, the French slain in the Sicilian Vespers, and one or two others.)
Riquet with the Tuft, the beau-ideal of ugliness, but with the power of bestowing wit and intelligence on the person he loved best. Riquet fell in love with a most beautiful woman, as stupid as he was ugly, but possessing the power of giving beauty to the person she loved best. The two married, whereupon Riquet gave his bride wit, and she bestowed on him beauty.—Charles Perrault,Contes des Fées(“Riquet à la Houppe,” 1697).
***This tale is borrowed from theNightsof Straparola. It is imitated by Mde. Villeneuve in herBeauty and the Beast.
Risingham(Bertram), the vassal of Philip of Mortham. Oswald Wycliffe induced him to shoot his lord at MarstonMoor; and for this deed the vassal demanded all the gold and movables of his late master. Oswald, being a villain, tried to outwit Bertram, and even to murder him; but it turned out that Philip ofMortham,was not killed, neither was Oswald Wycliffe, his heir, for Redmond O’Neale (Rokeby’s page) was found to be the son and heir of Philip of Mortham.—Sir W. Scott,Rokeby(1812).
RithoorRython, a giant who had made himself furs of the beards of kings killed by him. He sent to King Arthur, to meet him on Mount Aravius, or else to send his beard to him without delay. Arthur met him, slew him, and took “fur” as a spoil. Drayton says it was this Rython who carried off Helĕna, the niece of Duke Hoel; but Geoffrey of Monmouth says that King Arthur, having killed the Spanish giant, told his army “he had found none so great in strengthsincehe killed the giant Ritho;” by which it seems that the Spanish giant and Ritho are different persons, although it must be confessed the scope of the chronicle seems to favor their identity.—Geoffrey,British History, x. 3 (1142).
As how great Rython’s self he [Arthur] slew ...Who ravished Howell’s niece, young Helena, the fair.Drayton,Polyolbion, iv. (1612).
Rival Queens(The), Stati´ra and Roxa´na. Statīra was the daughter of Darīus, and wife of Alexander the Great. Roxana was the daughter of Oxyartês, the Bactrian; her, also, Alexander married. Roxana stabbed Statira, and killed her.—N. Lee,Alexander the Great, orThe Rival Queens(1678).
Rivals(The), a comedy by Sheridan (1775). The rivals are Bob Acres and Ensign Beverley (aliasCaptain Absolute), and Lydia Languish is the lady they contend for. Bob Acres tells Captain Absolute that Ensign Beverley is a booby; and if he could find him out, he’d teach him his place. He sends a challenge to the unknown, by Sir Lucius O’Trigger, but objects to forty yards, and thinks thirty-eight would suffice. When he finds that Ensign Beverley is Captain Absolute, he declines to quarrel with his friend; and when his second calls him a coward, he fires up and exclaims, “Coward! Mind, gentlemen, he calls me a ‘coward,’ coward by my valor!” and when dared by Sir Lucius, he replies, “I don’t mind the word ‘coward;’ ‘coward’ may be said in a joke; but if he called me ‘poltroon,’ ods, daggers and balls——” “Well, sir, what then?” “Why,” rejoined Bob Acres, “I should certainly think him very ill-bred.” Of course, he resigns all claim to the lady’s hand.
River of Juvenescence.Prester John, in his letter to Manuel Comnēnus, emperor of Constantinople, says there is a spring at the foot of Mount Olympus, which changes its flavor hour by hour, both night and day. Whoever tastes thrice of its waters, will never know fatigue or the infirmities of age.
River of Paradise, St. Bernard, abbot of Clairvaux (1091-1153).
Rivers Arise....In thisVacation Exercise, George Rivers (son of Sir John Rivers of Westerham, in Kent), with nine other freshmen, took the part of the ten “Predicaments,” while Milton himself performed the part of “Ens.” Without a doubt, the pun suggested the idea in Milton’sVacation Exercise(1627):
Rivers arise; whether thou be the sonOf utmost Tweed, or Ouse, or gulpy Don,Or Trent, who, like some earthborn giant, spreadsHis thirty arms along the indented meads,Or sullen Mole that runneth underneath,Or Severn swift, guilty of maiden’s death,Or rocky Avon, or of sedgy Lee,Or cooly Tyne, or ancient hallowed Dee,Or Humber loud that keeps the Scythian’s name,Or Medway smooth, or royal towered Thame.
Rivulet Controversy(The) arose against Rev. T. T. Lynch, a Congregationalist, who, in 1853, had expressed neologian views inThe Rivulet, a book of poems.
Rizzio(David), the private secretary of Marie Stuart, queen of the Scots, and reputed by her enemies to be her favored lover. He was murdered in her presence by a gang of conspirators, led by Henry Darnley, her husband. Poets and musicians have made lavish use of this episode in the life of the unhappy queen.
Road to Ruin, a comedy by Thomas Holcroft (1792). Harry Dornton and his friend, Jack Milford, are on “the road to ruin,” by their extravagance. The former brings his father to the eve of bankruptcy; and the latter, having spent his private fortune, is cast into prison for debt. Sulky, a partner in the bank, comes forward to save Mr. Dornton from ruin; Harry advances £6000 to pay his friend’s debts, and thus saves Milford from ruin; and the father restores the money advanced by Widow Warren to his son, to save Harry from the ruin of marrying a designing widow instead of Sophia Freelove, her innocent and charming daughter.
Roads(The king of), John Loudon Macadam, the improver of roads (1756-1836).
Roan Barbary, the charger of Richard II., which would eat from his master’s hand.
Oh, how it yearned my heart when I beheldIn London streets, that coronation day,When Bolingbroke rode on Roan Barbary!That horse that thou so often hast bestrid;That horse that I so carefully have dressed!Shakespeare,Richard II.act v. sc. 5 (1597).
Rob Roy, published in 1818, excellent for its bold sketches of Highland scenery. The character of Bailie Nicol Jarvie is one of Scott’s happiest conceptions; and the carrying of him to the wild mountains among outlaws and desperadoes is exquisitely comic. The hero, Frank Osbaldistone, is no hero at all. Dramatized by I. Pocock.
Rob Roy M’Gregor,i.e.“Robert the Red,” whose surname was MacGregor. He was an outlaw who assumed the name of Campbell in 1662. He may be termed the Robin Hood of Scotland. The hero of the novel is Frank Osbaldistone, who gets into divers troubles, from which he is rescued by Rob Roy. The last service is to kill Rashleigh Osbaldistone, whereby Frank’s great enemy is removed; and Frank then marries Diana Vernon.—Sir W. Scott,Rob Roy(time, George I.).
Rather beneath the middle size than above it, his limbs were formed upon the very strongest model that is consistent with agility.... Two points in his person interfered with the rules of symmetry: his shoulders were too broad ... and his arms (though round, sinewy and strong) were so very long as to be rather a deformity.—Ch. xxiii.
Rather beneath the middle size than above it, his limbs were formed upon the very strongest model that is consistent with agility.... Two points in his person interfered with the rules of symmetry: his shoulders were too broad ... and his arms (though round, sinewy and strong) were so very long as to be rather a deformity.—Ch. xxiii.
Rob Tally-ho, Esq., cousin of the Hon. Tom Dashall, the two blades whose rambles and adventures through the metropolis are related by Pierce Egan (1821-2).
Rob the Rambler, the comrade of Willie Steenson, the blind fiddler.—Sir W. Scott,Redgauntlet(time, George III.).
Robb(Duncan), the grocer near Ellangowan.—Sir W. Scott,Guy Mannering(time, George II.).
Robber(Alexander’s). The pirate who told Alexander he was the greater robber of the two, was Dionĭdês. (SeeEvenings at Home, art. “Alexander and the Robber.”) The tale is from Cicero:
Nam quum quæreretur ex eo, quo scelere impulsus mare haberet infestum uno myoparone: eodem, inquit, quo tu orbem terræ.—De Repub., iii. 14 sc. 24.
Nam quum quæreretur ex eo, quo scelere impulsus mare haberet infestum uno myoparone: eodem, inquit, quo tu orbem terræ.—De Repub., iii. 14 sc. 24.
Robber(Edward the). Edward IV. was so called by the Scotch.
Robert, father of Marian. He had been a wrecker, and still hankered after the old occupation. One night a storm arose, and Robert went to the coast to see what would fall into his hands. A body was washed ashore, and he rifled it. Marian followed, with the hope of restraining her father, and saw in the dusk some one strike a dagger into a prostrate body. She thought it was her father, and when Robert was on his trial he was condemned to death on his daughter’s evidence. Black Norris, the real murderer, told her he would save her father if she would consent to be his wife; she consented, and Robert was acquitted. On the wedding day her lover, Edward, returned to claim her hand, Norris was seized as a murderer, and Marian was saved.—S. Knowles,The Daughter(1836).
Robert, a servant of Sir Arthur Wardour, at Knockwinnock Castle.—Sir W. Scott,The Antiquary(time, George III.).
Robert(Mons.), a neighbor of Sganarelle. Hearing the screams of Mde. Martine (Sganarelle’s wife), he steps over to make peace between them, whereupon Madame calls him an impertinent fool, and says if she chooses to be beaten by her husband it is no affair of his; and Sganarelle says, “Je la veux battre, si je le veux; et ne la veux pas battre, si je ne le veux pas;” and beats M. Robert again.—Molière,Le Médecin Malgré Lui(1666).
Robert Kent.Weak, vicious husband of Margaret Kent. Causes trouble all his life and dies of yellow fever.—Ellen Olney Kirk,The Story of Margaret Kent(1886).
Robert Macaire, a bluff, free-living libertine. His accomplice is Bertrand, a simpleton and a villain.—Daumier,L’Auberge des Adrets.
Robert, duke of Albany, brother of Robert III. of Scotland.—Sir W. Scott,Fair Maid of Perth(time, HenryIV.)
Robert, duke of Normandy, sold his dominions to Rufus for 10,000 marks, to furnish him with ready money for the crusade, which he joined at the head of 1000 heavy-armed horse and 1000 light-armed Normans.—Tasso,Jerusalem Delivered(1575).
Robert III.of Scotland, introduced by Sir W. Scott in theFair Maid of Perth(time, Henry IV.).
Robert le Diable, son of Bertha and Bertramo. Bertha was the daughter of Robert, duke of Normandy, and Bertramo was a fiend in the guise of a knight. The opera shows the struggle in Robert between the virtue inherited from his mother and the vice inherited from his father. His father allures him to gamble till he loses everything, and then claims his soul, but his foster-sister, Alice, counterplotsthe fiend, and rescues Robert by reading to him his mother’s will.—Meyerbeer,Roberto il Diavolo(libretto by Scribe, 1831).
***Robert le Diable was the hero of an old French metrical romance (thirteenth century). This romance in the next century was thrown into prose. There is a miracle-play on the same subject.
Robert of Paris(Count), one of the crusading princes. The chief hero of this novel is Hereward (3syl.), one of the Varangian guard of the Emperor Alexius Comnēnus. He and the count fight a single combat with battle-axes; after which Hereward enlists under the count’s banner, and marries Bertha, also called Agatha.—Sir W. Scott,Count Robert of Paris(time, Rufus).
Robert Penfold.Hero of Foul Play, by Charles Reade. He is foully wronged by Arthur Wardlaw, who forges his father’s name on a note with Penfold’s endorsement. Penfold is found guilty and imprisoned. After his release, he takes passage in the ship with Helen Rolleston, Wardlaw’s betrothed. Penfold also loves her, but hopelessly. They are wrecked and cast upon an island in company, and for several months are the only residents. After their rescue and return home, the truth is made manifest, Robert is vindicated, and marries Helen. His aliases are James Seaton and John Hazel.
Robert the Devil, orRobert the Magnificent, Robert I., duke of Normandy, father of William “the Conqueror” (*, 1028-1035).
Robert François Damiens, who tried to assassinate Louis XV., was popularly so called (*, 1714-1757).
Robert of Lincoln.The saucy songster is an especial favorite with American poets. Bryant does not disdain to write a long poem that has him as the theme.
“Merrily singing on briar and reed,Near to the nest of his little dame,Over the mountain-side or mead,Robert of Lincoln is telling his name:‘Bob-o’-link, bob-o’-link!Spink, spank, spink!Snug and safe is that nest of ours,Hidden among the summer flowers,Cha! cha! cha!’”William Cullen Bryant,Poems.
Roberts, cash-keeper of Master George Heriot, the king’s goldsmith.—Sir W. Scott,Fortunes of Nigel(time, James I.).
Roberts(John), a smuggler.—Sir W. Scott,Redgauntlet(time, George III.).
Robespierre’s Weavers, the fish-fags and their rabble female followers of the very lowest class, partisans of Robespierre in the first French Revolution.
Robin, the page of Sir John Falstaff.—Shakespeare,Merry Wives of Windsor(1601).
Robin, servant of Captain Rovewell, whom he helps in his love adventure with Arethusa, daughter of Argus.—Carey,Contrivances(1715).
Robin, brother-in-law of Farmer Crop, of Cornwall. Having lost his property through the villainy of Lawyer Endless, he emigrates, and in three years returns. The ship is wrecked off the coast of Cornwall and Robin saves Frederick, the young squire. On landing, he meets his old sweetheart, Margaretta, at Crop’s house, and the acquaintance is renewed bymutual consent.—P. Hoare,No Song no Supper(1790).
Robin, a young gardener, fond of the minor theatres, where he has picked up a taste for sentimental fustian, but all his rhapsodies bear upon his trade. Thus, when Wilhelmina asks why he wishes to dance with her, he replies:
Ask the plants why they love a shower; ask the sunflower why it loves the sun; ask the snowdrop why it is white; ask the violet why it is blue; ask the trees why they blossom; the cabbages why they grow. ’Tis all because they can’t help it; no more can I help my love for you.—C. Didbin,The Waterman, i. (1774).
Ask the plants why they love a shower; ask the sunflower why it loves the sun; ask the snowdrop why it is white; ask the violet why it is blue; ask the trees why they blossom; the cabbages why they grow. ’Tis all because they can’t help it; no more can I help my love for you.—C. Didbin,The Waterman, i. (1774).
Robin(Old), butler to old Mr. Ralph Morton, of Milnwood.—Sir W. Scott,Old Mortality(time, Charles II.).
Robin Bluestring.Sir Robert Walpole was so called, in allusion to his blue ribbon as a knight of the garter (1676-1745).
Robin des Bois.Mysterious rover of the woods inFreischütz, also in Eugène Sue’s novels—“a bug-a-boo!”
Robin Gray(Auld). The words of this song are by Lady Anne Lindsay, daughter of the earl of Balcarres; she was afterwards Lady Barnard. The song was written, in 1772, to an old Scotch tune calledThe Bridegroom Grat when the Sun gaed Down. (SeeGray.)
Robin Hoodwas born at Locksley, in Notts., in the reign of Henry II. (1160). His real name was Fitzooth, and it is commonly said that he was the earl of Huntingdon. Having outrun his fortune, and being outlawed, he lived as a freebooter in Barnsdale (Yorkshire), Sherwood (Notts.), and Plompton Park (Cumberland). His chief companions were Little John (whose name wasNailor), William Scadlock (orScarlet), George Green, the pinder (or pound-keeper) of Wakefield, Much, a miller’s son, and Tuck, a friar, with one woman, Maid Marian. His company at one time consisted of a hundred archers. He was bled to death in his old age by his sister, the Prioress of Kirkley’s Nunnery, in Yorkshire, November 18, 1247, aged 87 years.
***An excellent sketch of Robin Hood is given by Drayton in hisPolyolbion, xxvi. Sir W. Scott introduces him in two novels—IvanhoeandThe Talisman. In the former he first appears as Locksley, the archer, at the tournament. He is also called “Dickon Bend-the-Bow.”
The following dramatic pieces have the famous outlaw for the hero:Robin Hood, i. (1597), Munday;Robin Hood, ii. (1598), Chettle;Robin Hood(1741), an opera, by Dr. Arne and Burney;Robin Hood(1787), an opera by O’Keefe, music by Shield;Robin Hood, by Macnally (before 1820).
Major tells us that this famous robber took away the goods of rich men only; never killed any person except in self-defence; never plundered the poor, but charitably fed them; and adds, “he was the most humane and the prince of all robbers.”—Britanniæ Historia, 128 (1740).
The abbot of St. Mary’s, in York, and the sheriff at Nottingham were hisbêtês noires. Munday and Chettle wrote a popular play in 1601, entitledThe Death of Robert, Earl of Huntington.
Epitaph of Robin Hood.
Hear undernead dis laitl steanLaiz robert earl of Huntingtun.Near arcir ver az hie sa geud,An pipl kauld im robin heud.Sick utlawz az hi an iz menVil england nivr si agen.Obiit 24 (? 14) kal dekembris, 1247.Dr. Gale (dean of York).
Robin Hood’s Fat Friarwas Friar Tuck.
Robin Hood’s Men, outlaws, freebooters.
There came sodainly twelve men all appareled in short cotes of Kentish Kendal [green] ... every one of them ... like outlaws or Robyn Hodes men.—Hall (fo.lvi.b).
There came sodainly twelve men all appareled in short cotes of Kentish Kendal [green] ... every one of them ... like outlaws or Robyn Hodes men.—Hall (fo.lvi.b).
Robin Redbreast.One tradition is that the robin pecked a thorn out of the crown of thorns when Christ was on His way to Calvary, and the blood which issued from the wound, falling on the bird, dyed its breast red.
Another tradition is that it carries in its bill dew to those shut up in the burning lake, and its breast is red from being scorched by the fire of Gehenna.
He brings cool dew in his little bill,And lets it fall on the souls of sin;You can see the mark on his red breast still,Of fires that scorch as he drops it in.J. G. Whittier,The Robin.
Robin Redbreasts, Bow Street officers. So called from their red vests.
Robin Roughhead, a poor cottager and farm laborer, the son of Lord Lackwit. On the death of his lordship, Robin Roughhead comes into the title and estates. This brings out the best qualities of his heart—liberality, benevolence and honesty. He marries Dolly, to whom he was already engaged, and becomes the good genius of the peasantry on his estate.—Allingham,Fortune’s Frolic.
Robin and Makyne(2syl.), an old Scotch pastoral. Robin is a shepherd, for whom Makyne sighs, but he turns a deaf ear to her, and she goes home to weep. In time, Robin sighs for Makyne, but she replies, “He who wills not when he may, when he wills he shall have nay.”—Percy,Reliques, etc., II.
Robin of Bagshot,aliasGordon,aliasBluff Bob,aliasCarbuncle,aliasBob Booty, one of Macheath’s gang of thieves, and a favorite of Mrs. Peachum’s.—Gay,The Beggar’s Opera(1727).
Robins(Zerubbabel), in Cromwell’s troop.—Sir W. Scott,Woodstock(time, Commonwealth).
Robinson Cru´soe(2syl.), a tale by Daniel Defoe. Robinson Crusoe ran away from home, and went to sea. Being wrecked, he led for many years a solitary existence on an uninhabited island of the tropics, and relieved the weariness of life by numberless contrivances. At length he met a human being, a young Indian, whom he saved from death on a Friday. He called him his “man Friday,” and made him his companion and servant.
Defoe founded this story on the adventures of Alexander Selkirk, sailing-master of theCinque Ports Galley, who was left by Captain Stradling on the desolate island of Juan Fernandez for four years and four months (1704-1709), when he was rescued by Captain Woodes Rogers and brought to England.
Robsart(Amy), countess of Leicester. She was betrothed to Edmund Tressilian. When the earl falls into disgrace at court for marrying Amy, Richard Varney loosens a trap-door at Cumnor Place; and Amy, rushing forward to greet her husband, falls into the abyss and is killed.
Sir Hugh Robsart, of Lidcote Hall, father of Amy.—Sir W. Scott,Kenilworth(time, Elizabeth).
Roc, a white bird of enormous size. Its strength is such that it will lift up an elephant from the ground and carry it to its mountain nest, where it will devour it.In theArabian Nights’ Entertainments, it was a roc which carried Sindbad the sailor from the island on which he had been deserted by his companions (“Second Voyage”). And it was a roc which carried Agib from the castle grounds of the ten young men who had lost their right eyes (“The Third Calender’s Story”). Sindbad says one claw of the roc is as “big as the trunk of a large tree,” and its egg is “fifty paces [150 feet] in circumference.”
***The “rukh” of Madagascar, lays an egg equal to 148 hen’s eggs.—Comptes Rendus, etc., xxxii. 101 (1851).
Rocco, the jailer sent with Fidelio (Leonora) to dig the grave of Fernando Florestan(q.v.)—Beethoven,Fidelio(1791).
Roch´dale(Sir Simon), of the manor-house. He is a J.P., but refuses to give justice to Job Thornberry, the old brazier, who demands that his son, Frank Rochdale, should marry Mary [Thornberry], whom he has seduced. At this crisis, Peregrine appears, and tells Sir Simon he is the elder brother, and, as such, is heir to the title and estates.
Frank Rochdale, son of the baronet, who has promised to marry Mary Thornberry, but Sir Simon wants him to marry Lady Caroline Braymore, who has £4000 a year. Lady Caroline marries the Hon. Tom Shuffleton, and Frank makes the best reparation he can by marrying Mary.—G. Colman, Jr.,John Bull(1805).
Roche’s Bird(Sir Boyle), which was “in two places at the same time.” The tale is that Sir Boyle Roche said in the House of Commons, “Mr. Speaker, it is impossible I could have been in two places at once, unless I were a bird.” This is a quotation from Jevon’s play,The Devil of a Wife(seventeenth century).