Chapter 15

Virginis os habitumque gerens et virginis arma,Spartanae vel qualis equos Threissa fatigatHarpalyce volucremque fuga praevertitur Eurum.Namque umeris de more habilem suspenderat arcumVenatrix, dederatque comam diffundere ventis,Nuda genu nodoque sinus collecta fluentis.

With a wand of myrtle, etc. Cp. Anacreon, 7 [29]:—

Ὑακινθίνῃ με ῥάβδῳχαλέπως, Ἔρως ῥαπίζων ... εἶπε·Σὺ γὰρ οὐ δύνῃ φιλῆσαι.

146.Upon the Bishop of Lincoln's Imprisonment.John Williams (1582-1650), Bishop of Lincoln, 1621; Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal, 1621-1625; suspended and imprisoned, 1637-1640, on a frivolous charge of having betrayed the king's secrets; Archbishop of York, 1641. Save from this poem and theCarolprinted in the Appendix we know nothing of his relations with Herrick. He had probably stood in the way of the poet's obtaining holy orders or preferment. When Herrick was appointed to the cure of Dean Prior in 1629, Williams had already lost favour at the Court.

147.Cynthius pluck ye by the ear.Cp. Virg.Ecl.vi. 3: Cynthius aurem Vellit et admonuit; and Milton'sLycidas, 77: "Phœbus replied and touched my trembling ears".

The lazy man the most doth love.Cp. Ovid,Remed. Amor.144: Cedit amor rebus: res age, tutus eris. Nott. But Ovid could also write: Qui nolet fieri desidiosus amet (1Am.ix. 46).

149.Sir Thomas Southwell, of Hangleton, Sussex, knighted 1615, died before December 16, 1642.

Those tapers five.Mentioned by Plutarch,Qu. Rom.2. For their significance see Ben Jonson'sMasque of Hymen.

O'er the threshold force her in.The custom of lifting the bride over the threshold, probably to avert an ill-omened stumble, has prevailed among the most diverse races. For the anointing of the doorposts Brand quotes Langley's translation of Polydore Vergil: "The bryde anoynted the poostes of the doores with swynes' grease, because she thought by that meanes to dryve awaye all misfortune, whereof she had her name in Latin 'Uxor ab unguendo'".

To gather nuts.A Roman marriage custom mentioned in Catullus,Carm.lxi. 124-127, theIn Nuptias Juliæ et Manlii, which Herrick keeps in mind all through this ode.

With all lucky birds to side.Bona cum bona nubit alite virgo. Cat.Carm.lxi. 18.

But when ye both can say Come.The wish in this case appears to have been fulfilled, as Lady Southwell administered to her husband's estate, Dec. 16, 1642, and her own estate was administered on the thirtieth of the following January.

Two ripe shocks of corn.Cp. Job v. 26.

153.His wish.From Hor.Epist.I. xviii. 111, 112:—

Sed satis est orare Jovem quæ donat et aufert;Det vitam, det opes; æquum mî animum ipse parabo:

where Herrick seems to have readquiforquæ.

157.No Herbs have power to cure Love.Ovid,Met.i. 523; id.Her.v. 149: Nullis amor est medicabilis herbis. For the 'only one sovereign salve' cp. Seneca,Hippol.1189: Mors amoris una sedamen.

159.The Cruel Maid.Printed inWitts Recreations, 1650, with no other variant than the mistaken omission of "how" in l. 7. I do not think that it has been yet pointed out that the whole poem is a close imitation of Theocritus, xxiii. 19-47:—

Ἄγριε παῖ καὶ στυγνέ, κ.τ.λ.

Possibly Herrick meant to translate the whole poem, which would explain his initialAnd. But cp. Ben Jonson'sEngl. Gram.ch. viii.: "'And' in the beginning of a sentence serveth instead of an admiration".

164.To a Gentlewoman objecting to him his gray hairs.Mr. Hazlitt quotes an early MS. copy headed: "An old man to his younge Mrs.". The variants, as he observes, are mostly for the worse. The poem may have been suggested to Herrick by Anacreon, 6 [11]:—

Λέγουσιν αἱ γυναῖκες,Ἀνακρέων, γέρων εἶ·λαβὼν ἔσοπτρον ἄθρεικόμας μὲν οὐκέτ' οὔσας κ.τ.λ.

168.Jos. Lo. Bishop of Exeter.Joseph Hall, 1574-1656, author of the satires.

169.The Countess of Carlisle.Lucy, the second wife of James, first Earl of Carlisle, the Lady Carlisle of Browning'sStrafford.

170.I fear no earthly powers.Probably suggested by Anacreon [36], beginning:τί με τοὺς νόμους διδάσκεις; Cp. also 7 [15]:Οὔ μοι μέλει τὰ Γύγεω.

172.A Ring presented to Julia.Printed without variation inWitts Recreations, 1650, under the title: "With aOto Julia".

174.Still thou reply'st: The Dead.Cp. Martial, VIII. lxix. 1, 2:—

Miraris veteres, Vacerra, solosNec laudas nisi mortuos poetas.

178.Corinna's going a-Maying.Herrick's poem is a charming expansion of Chaucer's theme: "For May wol have no slogardye a night". The account of May-day customs in Brand (vol. i. pp. 212-234) is unusually full, and all Herrick's allusions can be illustrated from it. Dr. Nott compares the last stanza to Catullus,Carm.v.; but parallels from the classic poets could be multiplied indefinitely.

The God unshornof l. 2 is from Hor. I.Od. xxi. 2: Intonsum pueri dicite Cynthium.

181.A dialogue between Horace and Lydia.Hor. III.Od.ix.

Ramsey.Organist of Trinity College, Cambridge, 1628-1634. Some of his music still exists in MS.

185.An Ode to Master Endymion Porter, upon his brother's death.Endymion Porter is said to have had an only brother, Giles, who died in the king's service at Oxford,i.e., between 1642 and 1646, and it has been taken for granted that this ode refers to his death. The supposition is possibly right, but if so, the ode, despite its beauty, is so gratingly and extraordinarily selfish that we may wonder if the dead brother is not the William Herrick of the next poem. The first verse is, of course, a soliloquy of Herrick's, not, as Dr. Grosart suggests, addressed to him by Porter. Dr. Nott again parallels Catullus,Carm. v.

186.To his dying brother, Master William Herrick.According to Dr. Grosart and Mr. Hazlitt thepoet had an elder brother, William, baptized at St. Vedast's, Foster Lane, Nov. 24, 1585 (he must have been born some months earlier, if this date be right, for his sister Martha was baptized in the following January), and alive in 1629, when he acted as one of the executors of his mother's will. But, it is said, there was also another brother named William, born in 1593, after his father's death, "at Harry Campion's house at Hampton". I have not been able to find the authority for this last statement, which, as it asserts the co-existence of two brothers, of the same name, is certainly surprising. According to Dr. Grosart, it is the younger William who "died young" and was addressed in this poem, but I must own to feeling some doubt in the matter.

193.The Lily in a Crystal.The poem may be taken as an expansion of Martial, VIII. lxviii. 5-8:—

Condita perspicuâ vivit vindemia gemmâEt tegitur felix, nec tamen uva latet:Femineum lucet sic per bombycina corpus,Calculus in nitidâ sic numeratur aquâ.

197.The Welcome to Sack.Two MSS. at the British Museum (Harl. 6931 and Add. 19,268) contain copies of this important poem. These copies differ considerably from the printed version, are proved by small variations to be independent of each other, and at the same time agree in all important points. We may conclude, therefore, that they represent an earlier version of the poem, subsequently revised by Herrick before the issue ofHesperides. In the subjoined copy, in which the two MSS. are correctedfrom each other, italics show the variations, asterisks mark lines omitted inHesperides, and a dagger the absence of lines subsequently added.

"Soswiftstreams meet, so springs with gladder smilesMeet after long divorcementmade byisles:When love (the child of likeness) urgeth onTheir crystalwatersto an union.So meet stol'n kisses when the moonienightCalls forth fierce lovers to their wishtdelight:So kings and queens meet, when desire convincesAll thoughts,save those that tend togetting princes.As I meet thee, Soul of my life and fame!Eternal Lamp of Love, whose radiant flameOut-dartsthe heaven's Osiris; and thygemsDarkenthe splendour of his mid-day beams.Welcome, O welcome, my illustrious spouse!Welcome as are the ends unto my vows:Nay, far more welcome than the happy soilThe sea-scourged merchant, after all his toil,Salutes with tears of joy, when firesdisplayThesmokingchimneys of his Ithaca.Where hast thou been so long from my embraces,Poor pitied exile? Tell me, did thy GracesFly discontented hence, and for a timeChoose rather forto blesssomeother clime?†*Oh, then, not longer let my sweet defer*Her buxom smiles from me, her worshipper!Whyhave those amberlooks, the which have beenTime-past so fragrant, sickly nowcall'dinLike a dull twilight? Tell me, *hath my soul*Prophaned in speech or done an act that is foul*Against thy purer essence?For thatfaultI'll expiate with sulphur, hair and salt:And with the crystal humour of the springPurge hence the guilt, and killthequarrelling.Wiltthou not smile,nortell me what's amiss?Have I been cold to hug thee, too remiss,Too temperate in embracing? Tell me, has desireTo-thee-ward died in the embers, and no fireLeft intheraked-upashes, as a markTo testify the glowing of a spark?†I mustconfess I left thee, and appeal'Twas done by me more toincreasemy zeal,And double my affection[†]; as do thoseWhose love grows more inflamed by beingfroze.But to forsake thee, [†] could thereeverbeA thought of such-like possibility?Whenall the world may know that vinesshall lackGrapes, before HerrickleaveCanary sack.*Sack is my life, my leaven, salt to all*My dearest dainties, nay, 'tis the principal*Fire unto all my functions, gives me blood,*An active spirit, full marrow, and, what is good,Sack makesmesprightful, airyto be borne,Like Iphyclus, upon the tops of corn.Sack makesme nimble, as the wingèd hours,To dance and capero'er the topsof flowers,And ride the sunbeams. Can there be a thingUnder thecope of heaventhat can bringMorejoyunto mysoul, or can presentMy Genius with a fuller blandishment?Illustrious Idol!Canthe Egyptians seekHelp from the garlick, onion and the leek,And pay no vows to thee, whoart thebestGod, and far moretranscendingthan the rest?Had Cassius, that weak water-drinker, knownThee intheVine, or had but tasted oneSmall chalice of thynectar, he, evenheAs the wise Cato had approved of thee.Had not Jove's son, therashTyrinthian swain(Invited to the Thesbian banquet), ta'neFull goblets of thy [†] blood; his *lustfulspriteHad notkept heat for fifty maids that night.†As Queens meet Queens,so let sack come tomeOras CleopatrauntoAnthonie,When her highvisagedid at once presentTo the Triumvir love and wonderment.Swell up myfeeble sinews, let my blood†Fill each part full of fire,*let all my goodParts be encouraged, active to doWhat thy commanding soul shall putmeto,And till I turn apostate to thy love,Which here I vow to serve,neverremoveThyblessingfrom me; but Apollo's curseBlastall mineactions; or, a thing that's worse,When these circumstantshave the fateto seeThe timewhenI prevaricate from thee,Call me the Son of Beer, and then confineMe to the tap, the toast, the turf; let wineNe'er shine upon me;letmyversesallHasteto a sudden death and funeral:And last,dear Spouse, when I theedisavow,May ne'erprophetic Daphne crown my brow."

Certainly this manuscript version is in every wayinferior to that printed in theHesperides, and Herrick must be reckoned among the poets who are able to revise their own work.

The smoky chimneys of his Ithaca.Ovid, I.de Ponto, ix. 265:—

Non dubia est Ithaci prudentia sed tamen optatFumum de patriis posse videre focis.

Upon the tops of corn.Virgil (Æn.vii. 808-9) uses the same comparison of Camilla: Illa vel intactae segetis per summa volaret Gramina, nec teneras cursu laesisset aristas.

Could the Egyptians seek Help from the garlick, onion and the leek.Cp. Numbers xi. 5, and Juv., xi. 9-11.

Cassius, that weak water-drinker.Not, as Dr. Grosart queries: "Cassius Iatrosophista, or Cassius Felix?" but C. Cassius Longinus, the murderer of Cæsar. Cp. Montaigne, II. 2, and Seneca,Ep.83: "Cassius totâ vitâ aquam bibit" there quoted.

201.To trust to good verses.Carminibus confide bonis. Ovid,Am.III. ix. 39.

The Golden Pomp is come.Aurea pompa venit, Ovid,Am.III. ii. 44. "Now reigns the rose" (nunc regnat rosa) is a common phrase in Martial and elsewhere. For the "Arabian dew," cp. Ovid,Sappho to Phaon, 98: Arabo noster rore capillus olet.

A text ... Behold Tibullus lies.Jacet ecce Tibullus: Vix manet e tanto parva quod urna capit. Ovid,Am.III. ix. 39.

203.Lips Tongueless.Dr. Nott parallels Catullus,Carm.lii. (lv.):—

Si linguam clauso tenes in ore,Fructus projicies amoris omnes:Verbosa gaudet Venus loquela.

208.Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.Set to music by William Lawes in Playford's second book of "Ayres," 1652. Printed inWitts Recreations, 1654, with the variants: "GatheryourRosebuds" in l. 1; l. 4,mayforwill; l. 6,he is gettingforhe's a-getting; l. 8,nearer to his settingfornearer he's to setting. The opening lines are from Ausonius, ccclxi. 49, 50 (quoted by Burton,Anat. Mel.III. 2, 5 § 5):—

Collige, virgo, rosas, dum flos novus, et nova pubes,Et memor esto aevum sic properare tuum:

cp. also l. 43:—

Quam longa una dies, ætas tam longa rosarum.

209.Has not whence to sink at all.Seneca,Ep.xx.: Redige te ad parva ex quibus cadere non possis. Cp. Alain Delisle: Qui decumbit humi non habet unde cadat.

211.His poetry his pillar.A variation upon the Horatian theme:—

"Exegi monumentum aere perenniusRegalique situ pyramidum altius".(III.Od.xxx.)

212.What though the sea be calm.Almost literally translated from Seneca,Ep.iv.: Noli huic tranquillitati confidere: momento mare evertitur: eodem die ubi luserunt navigia sorbentur.

213.At noon of day was seen a silver star."King Charles the First went to St. Paul's Church the 30th day of May, 1630, to give praise for the birth of his son, attended with all his Peers and a most royal Train, where a bright star appeared at High Noon in the sight of all." (Stella Meridiana, 1661.)

213.And all most sweet, yet all less sweet than he.It is characteristic of Herrick that in hisNoble Numbers("The New-Year's Gift") he repeats this line, applying it to Christ.

The swiftest grace is best.Ὠκεῖαι χάριτες γλυκερώτεραι. Anth. Pal. x. 30.

214.Know thy when.So inThe Star-songHerrick sings: "Thou canst clear All doubts and manifest the where".

219.Lord Bernard Stewart, fourth son of Esme, third Duke of Lennox, and himself created Earl of Lichfield by Charles I. He commanded the king's troop of guards, and was killed at the battle of Rowton Heath, outside Chester, Sept. 24, 1645.

Clarendon (History of the Rebellion, ix. 19) thus records his death and character: "Here fell many gentlemen and officers of name, with the brave Earl of Litchfield, who was the third brother of that illustrious family that sacrificed his life in this quarrel. He was a very faultless young man, of a most gentle, courteous, and affable nature, and of a spirit and courage invincible; whose loss all men lamented, and the king bore it with extraordinary grief."

Trentall.Properly a set of thirty masses for the repose of a dead man's soul. Here and elsewhereHerrick uses the word as an equivalent for dirge, but Sidney distinguished them: "Let dirige be sung and trentalls rightly read. For love is dead," etc. "Hence, hence profane," is the Latin,procul o procul este profaniof Virg.Æn.vi. 258, where "profane" is only equivalent to uninitiated.

223.The Fairy Temple.For a brief note on Herrick's fairy poems, see Appendix. On the dedication to Mr. John Merrifield, Counsellor-at-Law, Dr. Grosart remarks: "Nothing seems to be now known of Merrifield. It is just possible that—as throughout the poem—the name was an invented one, 'Merry Field'." But the records of the Inner Temple show that the Merrifields were a legal family from Woolmiston, near Crewkerne, Somersetshire. John (son of Richard) Merrifield, the father, was admitted to the Inner Temple in 1581, and John, the son, in 1611. This latter must be Herrick's Counsellor. He rose to be a Master of the Bench in 1638 and Sergeant-at-Law in 1660. He died October, 1666, aged 75, at Crewkerne. On the other hand, it can hardly be doubted that Dr. Grosart is right in regarding the names of the fairy saints as quite imaginary. He nevertheless suggests SS. Titus, Neot, Idus, Ida, Fridian or Fridolin, Trypho, Felan and Felix as the possible prototypes of "SaintTit, SaintNit, SaintIs," etc. It should be noted that "Tit and Nit" occur with "Wap and Win" and other obviously made-up names, in Drayton'sNymphidia.

229.Upon Cupid.Taken from Anacreon, 5 [59].

Στέφος πλέκων ποθ' εὗρονἐν τοῖς ῥόδοις Ἔρωτα·καὶ τῶν πτερῶν κατασχώνἐβάπτισ' εἰς τὸν οἶνον·λαβὼν δ' ἔπινον αὐτόν,καὶ νῦν ἔσω μελῶν μουπτεροῖσι γαργαλίζει.

234.Care will make a face.Ovid,Ar. Am.iii. 105: Cura dabit faciem, facies neglecta peribit.

235.Upon Himself.Printed inWitts Recreations, 1654, under the title:On an old Batchelor, and with the variants,marriedforwedded, l. 3,oneforain l. 4, andRather than mend me, blind me quitein l. 6.

238.To the Rose.Printed inWitts Recreations, 1654, with the variantspeevishforflowingin l. 4,say, if she frets, that I have bondsin l. 6,that can tame although not killin l. 10, andnowforthusin l. 11. The opening couplet is from Martial, VII. lxxxix.:—

I, felix rosa, mollibusque sertisNostri cinge comas Apollinaris.

241.Upon a painted Gentlewoman.Printed inWitts Recreations, 1650, under the title,On a painted madame.

250.Mildmay, Earl of Westmoreland.See Note to112. According to the date of the earl's succession, this poem must have been written after 1628.

253.He that will not love, etc. Ovid,Rem. Am.15, 16:—

Si quis male fert indignae regna puellae,Ne pereat nostrae sentiat artis opem.

How she is her own least part.Ib.344: Pars minima est ipsa puella sui, quoted by Bacon, Burton, Lyly, and Montaigne.

Printed inWitts Recreations, 1654, with the variants, 'freezingcolds andfieryheats,' and 'and how she isin everypart'.

256.Had Lesbia, etc. See Catullus,Carm. iii.

260.How violets came blue.Printed inWitts Recreations, 1654, asHow the violets came blue. The first two lines read:—

"The violets, as poets tell,With Venus wrangling went".

Other variants aredidforsho'din l. 3;GirlforGirls;youforye;dofordare.

264.That verse, etc. Herrick repeats this assurance in a different context in the second of hisNoble Numbers,His Prayer for Absolution.

269.The Gods to Kings the judgment give to sway.From Tacitus,Ann.vi. 8 (M. Terentius to Tiberius): Tibi summum rerum judicium dii dedere; nobis obsequi gloria relicta est.

270.He that may sin, sins least.Ovid,Amor.III. iv. 9, 10:—

Cui peccare licet, peccat minus: ipsa potestasSemina nequitiae languidiora facit.

271.Upon a maid that died the day she was married.Cp. Meleager, Anth. Pal. vii. 182:

Οὐ γάμον ἀλλ' Ἀίδαν ἐπινυμφίδιον Κλεαρίσταδέξατο παρθενίας ἅμματα λυομένα·Ἄρτι γὰρ ἑσπέριοι νύμφας ἐπὶ δικλίσιν ἄχευνλωτοί, καὶ θαλάμων ἐπλαταγεῦντο θύραι·Ἠῷοι δ' ὀλολυγμὸν ἀνέκραγον, ἐκ δ' Ὑμέναιοςσιγαθεὶς γοερὸν φθέγμα μεθαρμόσατο,Αἱ δ' αὐταὶ καὶ φέγγος ἐδᾳδούχουν παρὰ παστῷπεῦκαι καὶ φθιμένᾳ νέρθεν ἔφαινον ὁδόν.

278.To his Household Gods.Obviously written at the time of his ejection from his living.

283.A Nuptial Song on Sir Clipseby Crew.Of this Epithalamium (written in 1625 for the marriage of Sir Clipseby Crew, knighted by James I. at Theobald's in 1620, with Jane, daughter of Sir John Pulteney), two manuscript versions, substantially agreeing, are preserved at the British Museum (Harl. MS. 6917, and Add. 25, 303). Seven verses are transcribed in these manuscripts which Herrick afterwards saw fit to omit, and almost every verse contains variants of importance. It is impossible to convey the effect of the earlier version by a mere collation, and I therefore transcribe it in full, despite its length. As before, variants and additions are printed in italics. The numbers in brackets are those of the later version, as given inHesperides. The marginal readings are variants of Add. 25, 303, from the Harleian manuscript.

1 [1]."What's that we see from far? the spring of DayBloom'd from the East, or fairenamell'dMayBlown out of April; or some newStar fill'd with glory to our view,Reaching at Heaven,To add a nobler Planet to the seven?Say or do we not descrySome Goddess in a Cloud of TiffanyTo move, or rather theEmergingVenus from the sea?

1 [1].

"What's that we see from far? the spring of DayBloom'd from the East, or fairenamell'dMayBlown out of April; or some newStar fill'd with glory to our view,Reaching at Heaven,To add a nobler Planet to the seven?Say or do we not descrySome Goddess in a Cloud of TiffanyTo move, or rather theEmergingVenus from the sea?

2 [2]."'Tis she! 'tis she! or else some more DivineEnlightened substance; mark how from the shrineOf holy Saints she paces onThrowing aboutVermilionAnd Amber: spice-ing the chafte-air with fumes of Paradise.Then come on, come on, and yieldA savour like unto a blessed field,When the bedabbled mornWashes the golden ears of corn.

2 [2].

"'Tis she! 'tis she! or else some more DivineEnlightened substance; mark how from the shrineOf holy Saints she paces onThrowing aboutVermilionAnd Amber: spice-ing the chafte-air with fumes of Paradise.Then come on, come on, and yieldA savour like unto a blessed field,When the bedabbled mornWashes the golden ears of corn.

3."Lead on fair paranymphs, the while her eyes,Guilty of somewhat, ripe the strawberriesAnd cherries in her cheeks, there's creamAlready spilt, her rays must gleamGently thereon,And so beget lust and temptationTo surfeit and to hunger.Help on her pace; and, though she lag, yet stirHer homewards; well she knowsHer heart's at home, howe'er she goes.

"Lead on fair paranymphs, the while her eyes,Guilty of somewhat, ripe the strawberriesAnd cherries in her cheeks, there's creamAlready spilt, her rays must gleamGently thereon,And so beget lust and temptationTo surfeit and to hunger.Help on her pace; and, though she lag, yet stirHer homewards; well she knowsHer heart's at home, howe'er she goes.

4 [3]."See where she comes; and smell how all the streetBreathes Vine-yards and Pomegranates: O how sweet,As a fir'd Altar, is each stoneSpirting forthpounded Cinnamon.The Phœnix nest,Built up of odours, burneth in her breast.Whowould not thenconsumeash-heaps]His soul toashesin that rich perfume?Bestroking Fate the whileHe burns to embers on the Pile.

4 [3].

"See where she comes; and smell how all the streetBreathes Vine-yards and Pomegranates: O how sweet,As a fir'd Altar, is each stoneSpirting forthpounded Cinnamon.The Phœnix nest,Built up of odours, burneth in her breast.Whowould not thenconsumeash-heaps]His soul toashesin that rich perfume?Bestroking Fate the whileHe burns to embers on the Pile.

5 [4].ground]"Hymen, O Hymen! tread the sacredroundShew thy white feet, and head with Marjoram crowned:Mount up thy flames, and let thy TorchDisplaythyBridegroom in the porchIn his desiresdisparkling]More towering, morebesparklingthan thy fires:Shew her how his eyes do turnAnd roll about, and in their motions burnTheir balls to cinders: hasteOr,like a firebrand, he will waste.

5 [4].

ground]"Hymen, O Hymen! tread the sacredroundShew thy white feet, and head with Marjoram crowned:Mount up thy flames, and let thy TorchDisplaythyBridegroom in the porchIn his desiresdisparkling]More towering, morebesparklingthan thy fires:Shew her how his eyes do turnAnd roll about, and in their motions burnTheir balls to cinders: hasteOr,like a firebrand, he will waste.

6."See how he waves his hand, and through his eyesShoots forth his jealous soul, for to surpriseAnd ravish you his Bride, do youNot now perceive the soul of C[lipseby] C[rew],Your mayden knight,With kisses to inspireYou with his just and holy ire.

"See how he waves his hand, and through his eyesShoots forth his jealous soul, for to surpriseAnd ravish you his Bride, do youNot now perceive the soul of C[lipseby] C[rew],Your mayden knight,With kisses to inspireYou with his just and holy ire.

7 [5]."If so, glide through the ranks of Virgins, passThe Showers of Roses, lucky four-leaved grass:The while the cloud of younglings sing,And drownyouwith a flowery spring:While some repeatYour praise, and bless you, sprinkling you with Wheat,While that others do divine,'Blest is the Bride on whom the Sun doth shine';And thousands gladly wishYou multiply asdo thefish.

7 [5].

"If so, glide through the ranks of Virgins, passThe Showers of Roses, lucky four-leaved grass:The while the cloud of younglings sing,And drownyouwith a flowery spring:While some repeatYour praise, and bless you, sprinkling you with Wheat,While that others do divine,'Blest is the Bride on whom the Sun doth shine';And thousands gladly wishYou multiply asdo thefish.

8."Why then go forward, sweet Auspicious Bride,And come upon your Bridegroom like a TideBearing down Time before you; hyeSwell, mix, and loose your souls; implyLike streams which flowEncurled together, and no difference showIn their [most] silver waters; runInto your selves like wool together spun.Or blend so as the sightOf two makes one Hermaphrodite.

"Why then go forward, sweet Auspicious Bride,And come upon your Bridegroom like a TideBearing down Time before you; hyeSwell, mix, and loose your souls; implyLike streams which flowEncurled together, and no difference showIn their [most] silver waters; runInto your selves like wool together spun.Or blend so as the sightOf two makes one Hermaphrodite.

9 [6]."And, beauteous Bride, we do confessyouare wisedoling]On drawingforththosebashful jealousiesIn love's name, do so; and a priceSet on yourself by being nice.But yet take heedWhat now you seem be not the same indeed,And turn Apostata: Love willPart of the way be met, or sit stone still;On them, and thoughy'are slowIn goingyet, howsoever go.

9 [6].

"And, beauteous Bride, we do confessyouare wisedoling]On drawingforththosebashful jealousiesIn love's name, do so; and a priceSet on yourself by being nice.But yet take heedWhat now you seem be not the same indeed,And turn Apostata: Love willPart of the way be met, or sit stone still;On them, and thoughy'are slowIn goingyet, howsoever go.

10."How long, soft Bride, shall your dear C[lipseby] makeLove to your welcome with the mystic cake,How long, oh pardon, shall the houseAnd the smooth Handmaids pay their vowsWith oil and wineFor your approach, yet see their Altars pine?How long shall the page to pleaseYou stand for to surrender up the keysOf the glad house? Come, come,Or Lar will freeze to death at home.

10.

"How long, soft Bride, shall your dear C[lipseby] makeLove to your welcome with the mystic cake,How long, oh pardon, shall the houseAnd the smooth Handmaids pay their vowsWith oil and wineFor your approach, yet see their Altars pine?How long shall the page to pleaseYou stand for to surrender up the keysOf the glad house? Come, come,Or Lar will freeze to death at home.

11."Welcome at last unto the Threshold, TimeThroned in a saffron evening, seems to chimeAll in, kiss and so enter. IfA prayer must be said, be brief,The easy GodsFor such neglect have only myrtle rodsTo stroke, not strike; fear youNot more, mild Nymph, than they would have you do;But dread that you do more offendIn that you do begin than end.

11.

"Welcome at last unto the Threshold, TimeThroned in a saffron evening, seems to chimeAll in, kiss and so enter. IfA prayer must be said, be brief,The easy GodsFor such neglect have only myrtle rodsTo stroke, not strike; fear youNot more, mild Nymph, than they would have you do;But dread that you do more offendIn that you do begin than end.

12 [7]."And now y'are entered, see the coddled cookRuns from his Torrid Zone to pry and lookAnd bless his dainty mistress; seeHowth' aged point out: 'This is sheWho now must swayUs(and Godshield her) with her yea and nay,'And the smirk Butler thinks itSin inhisnap'ry not t' express his wit;Each striving to deviseSome gin wherewith to catchhereyes.

12 [7].

"And now y'are entered, see the coddled cookRuns from his Torrid Zone to pry and lookAnd bless his dainty mistress; seeHowth' aged point out: 'This is sheWho now must swayUs(and Godshield her) with her yea and nay,'And the smirk Butler thinks itSin inhisnap'ry not t' express his wit;Each striving to deviseSome gin wherewith to catchhereyes.

13."What though your laden Altar now has wonThe credit from the table of the SunFor earth and sea; this costOn you is altogether lostBecause you feedNot on the flesh of beasts, but on the seedOf contemplation: your,Your eyes are they, wherewith you draw the pureElixir to the mindWhich sees the body fed, yet pined.

13.

"What though your laden Altar now has wonThe credit from the table of the SunFor earth and sea; this costOn you is altogether lostBecause you feedNot on the flesh of beasts, but on the seedOf contemplation: your,Your eyes are they, wherewith you draw the pureElixir to the mindWhich sees the body fed, yet pined.

14 [14]."Ifyou must needsfor ceremonie's sakeBless a sack posset, Luck go withyou, takeThe night charm quickly; you have spellsAnd magic for to end, and HellsTo pass, but suchAnd of such torture as noGodwould grutchTo live therein for ever: fry,Ayeand consume, and grow again to die,And live, and in that casethe]Love thedamnationofthatplace.

14 [14].

"Ifyou must needsfor ceremonie's sakeBless a sack posset, Luck go withyou, takeThe night charm quickly; you have spellsAnd magic for to end, and HellsTo pass, but suchAnd of such torture as noGodwould grutchTo live therein for ever: fry,Ayeand consume, and grow again to die,And live, and in that casethe]Love thedamnationofthatplace.

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