And in the Legende of Ariadne, v. 50. And of his childe he must a prefente make To Minos, for to fave him or to spill. The poet leaves Una in the higheft diftrefs: and returns to her again, C. 6. St. 2. Her defender is flain, and fhe is in the hands of lawleffe luft. See what has been faid already in the notes on St. 9. and on St. 18. This defender of the faith, I think naturally leads us (as kingdoms and kings are imaged by their arms) to England or our English kings. Una is forfaken by her proper protector, and takes up in her unfettled ftate, with the lion. Chriftian Truth was in a very unfettled ftate during the reigns of K. Henry VIII, and of K. Edward VI. But after their death fhe was entirely in the will is her redemption referved? For the prince, and power of the lawlesffe victor. And for whom who fights under the aufpices of the Fairy Queen.-Does not the allegory all appear plain? and is not this delightful poem continued allegory, with hiftorical allufions to his own country?

CA

Argument.

To finfull bous of pryde Dueffa

Guides the faithfull knight.

Our poet intended that the arguments prefixed to each book should be metre, but humbled down to the loweft profe: we must therefore read thus,

To finfull boufe of pryde Dueff

A guides the faithfull knight.

Pindarum quifquis ftudet aemulari, I

ule, ceratis ope Daedalea

Nititur pennis

Hor. L. iv. Od. 2.

IV.

The witch creates a fnowy Lady like to Florimell.

one

So these paffages are to be measured: Others
of like nature will be taken notice of in their
proper places.
IV.

That pureft fkye with brightness they difmaid] So
Statius in the defcription of the house of Mars.
Laeditur adverfum Phoebi jubar, ipfaque fedem
Lux timet, et dirus contriftat fidera fulgor.
-Solemque refulgens,
Theb. vii. 45.
TERRITAT. Theb. vi. 666.

V.

For on a fandie hill-] In allufion to the fool, who built his house upon the fand, Matt. vii. 26. To this house of Pride there is a broad high way; for what path more frequented? befide the path of pride is the path of deftruction, and the fcripture tells us that broad is the way that leadeth thither. With the description of this house of Pride, the reader at his leifure may compare the houfe of Alcina, in Orland. Fur. vi. 59. And the house of Fame in Chaucer.

VI.

a very elegant figure which our poet here uses, to correct himself with a repetition of the fame words. He had compared Pride to Titan or to the Sun; correcting himself he adds, or rather this emblem of the world's vanity is to be compared to Phaeton, the Sun's false representative. Exceeding fhone:

Exceeding fhone, like Phoebus fayreft childe.
He uses the fame figure in other places,

Then turning to his lady, dead with feare her fownd:
Her feeming dead he fownd with feigned feare.
B. i. C. 2. St. 44, 45.

So below, B. ii. C. 12. St. 53.
Till that he came unto another gate;
No gate, but like one-

See note on B. iii. C. 2. St. 16, 17.

X.

Great Junoes golden chayre.] The chaire or chariot of Juno, was famous among poets: hence Vir

XI.

For to the highest she did ftill afpyre,

her chaire. Spenser says golden chaire: Homer describes it chiefly of gold, Il. . 720. But every thing belonging to the gods was of gold: and golden and beautiful are fynonymous

on he alludes perhaps to Homer's expreffion, θαῦμα ιδέσθαι.

When she does ride

To Jove's high hous, through heavens bras-paved way.
Bras-paved, i. e. firm and durable as brass.
Καὶ τότ ̓ ἔπειτά τοι ἔιμι Διὸς ποτὶ χαλκοβατὲς δῶ.
Et tunc poftea vadam Jovis ad ære fundatam domum.

Hom. II. á. 426. II. . 173.

Schol. χαλκοβατές.] ἰσχυρῶς βεβηκός, σερεόν. And nearer ftill to Spenfer is the expreffion of Pindar, Ifth. vii. 62. xanxómedor de gar. This way, Milton calls Star-paved, iv. 976. in allufion to the milky way, which leads to Jove's high house, according to Ovid i. 169. Eft via fublimis-Lactea nomen habetHàc iter eft fuperis ad magni tecta Tonantis. Drawne of fayre pecocks

Habili Saturnia curru Ingreditur liquidum pavonibus aëra pictis.

Ovid Met. i. 722. ii. 530.

Her gaudy peacocks drew her through the skies,
Their tailes were fpotted with a thousand eyes,
The
eyes of Argus-Addison.
XVIII.

On which her fix fage counsellours did ryde.] The moral allegory hints at the Seven deadly fins, as A a a they

they are called. The chief of all is Pride. She with her Six fage counfellours make up the number. See the Parfon's Tale, (or rather Sermon) in Chaucer. pag. 197. Urry's Edit.

Ibid.

IDLENESSE] He calls Idleneffe, the nourfe of Sin, and fo Chaucer, in the fecond Nonnes prologue,

v. i. p. 115.

The minifter and norice unto vices

He is pictured as an idle monk, arayed in a black gown and amis; in his hand he has his porteffe: [for the meaning of thefe words confult the Gloffary.] Scarce could he once uphold his heavy head--So Chaucer in the character of the monk, v. 200.

He was a lord full fat, and in gode point :
His eyin fepe, and rolling in his bed,
That femid as a furneis of led.

This lord fhould be toord; fo Spencer B. 3. C.
vii. St. 12. a lazy loord. Chaucer's expreffion,
and in good point is literally from the French, en
bon point.
XX.

For everie work he chalenged effoyne For contemplations fake.] Notwithstanding this is the reading of the 2d quarto, and fubfequent editions; yet the reader will plainly perceive that For in the 2d line caught the printer's eye, and occafioned his erring from the 1ft quarto, which plainly reads, From everie worke-i. e. He did efloyne, withdraw himself from cares, and from every work he pleaded excufe for non appearance. In his lufileffe limbs, fo the old Englifh; we should now write liftleffe.

XXI.

GLUTTONY,] Gluttony is one of the feven deadly Sins, and here introduced as a Perfon, refembling the old drunken god Silenus: His belly was upblowne with luxury,

Inflatum heferno venas, ut femper, Faccho.

And on his head an yvie girland had; Virgil fupposes this girland just fallen off, whilst he flept, Serta procul tantum capiti delapfa jacebant.

The bouzing can, likewife, is his never failing companion,

Et gravis attritâ pendebat cantharus ansâ.

Of which he fupt fo oft, that on his feat,
His dronken corfe he scarfe upholden can:

Excepting that he here rides on a filthie fwine; a fit emblem of his hoggifh qualities, and his uncleannefs, and of his frequent relapfing into his vices, like the fow that is washed, which goes again to wallow in the mire, 2 Pet. ii. 22. And as Spencer never looses fight of the Scripture, in all this first book, fo likewife is that very picturefque image taken from the pfalmist, And eke with fatneffe fwollen were his eyne,

Pf. lxxiii. 7. Their eyes ftand out with fatnesse.But the image, which follows, And like a crane his necke was long-is from the account which Ariftotle in his Ethicks, has given of one Philoxenus, who wifhed that he had the neck of a crane, ὡς ἡδόμενος τῇ ἀφῇ, ut qui taliu maximam capiebat voluptatem. L. iii. C. 10. The same story is mentioned by Athenæus, L. i. C. 6. XXIII.

And a DRY dropfie through his flesh did flow.] I fhould have endeavoured to explain, rather than correct, this paffage, did not I know very well, how Spenfer loves to imitate claffical epithets, Crefcit indulgens fibi DIRUS HYDROPS.

Befide, a dry dropfie is a tympany, which cannot flow through his flesh: the ambiguity of the expreffion is not taken away, by explaining dry to fignify caufing of drought: I can hardly doubt therefore but our poet wrote,

And a DIRE dropfie through his flesh did flow.
XXIV.

LECHERY] After Glotonie cometh Lecherie, for these two finnes ben fo nigh cofins, that oft time thei wol nat depart. Chaucer in the Parfons Tale, pag. 207.-Spencer is beholden to our old bard for part of this picture: He is rough and black—and in a greene gowne

And there befide, within a bay windowe Stood one in grene ful large of bredth and length, His berd was black as fethirs of a crow, His name was Luft. Notwithstanding he was fo unfeemly a man to pleafe, yet he was loved of ladies, fays Spenfer: and what wonder, if all women fhould love those who love all women?

Court of Love, v. 1058.

XXV.

AND fortunes tell, and read in loving bookes,

AND thousand other waies to bait his fleshly hookes] Perhaps, With thousand other waies-The re

Met. iv. 26.

Quique fenex ferulâ titubantes ebrius artus

Suftinet, et pando non fortiter haeret [afello.]

unless the reader chooses to fupply the verb (which makes the conftruction however hard) from fome of the above lines.

XXVII.

Fol. xxiii.

And than came Covetis, can I him not difcrive,
So hungerly and hollowe, fo fternely be loked;
He was bittlebrowed, and baberlypped alfo,
Wyth two blered eyen-

A more full description the reader may see in the Romance of the Rofe, v. 180. where is defcribed both Covetife and Avarice.-That expreffion,

-Whofe plenty made him poor.

Envy is likewife of the male gender, in Chaucer's Court of Love, v. 1256. pag. 570.-His garment is here, ypainted full of eyes and Virgil paints the monster Fame, full of eyes and eares and tongues.

And in his bofome fecretly there lay

An hatefull fnake, the which his tale upties
In many folds, and mortall fting IMPLIES.
Implies. i. e. intangles, infixes his fting in his

XXVIII.

Unto himself unknown.] Ignorant of himself and his real happiness. To, radi caurov, xj Ti, Ewogóves, Γνῶθι σαυτὸν, καὶ Σωφρόνει, Tautóv. Plato in Charmid. p. 164.

XXX.

ENVY.] Let us read the courtly Sydney's defcription of Envy, or the envious man; Whofe eyes could not looke right upon any happy man, nor eares beare the burthen of any bodies praife; contrary to the natures of all other plagues, plagued with others well being; making happineffe the ground of his unhappiness, and good news the argument of his forrow: in fumm, a man whofe favour no 'man could winne, but by being miferable.' Arcad. L. ii. pag. 130. Chauc. in the Rom. of the Rofe, pag. 217. after characterising Avarice, defcribes Envy that never laugh,

But if he either fawe or herde
Some grete mifchaunce-

Ovid fays very prettily, according to his ufual elegance, of this female hag; (for in Latin the word is feminine :)

Vixque tenet lacrymas; quia nil lacrymabile cernit. Met. ii. 796. Spenfer has given his verfe the fame Ovidian

turn,

And wept that cause of weeping none he had.

Ovid fays Envy was found chawing of vipers: Spenfer, and fill did chaw a venomous toad: for toads and frogs are faid to fwell with envy, according to the fable to which Horace alludes, 2. Sat, iii. 314. Let us fee the drefs of Envy,

All in a kirtle of difcoloured fay

He clothed was, ypainted full of eyesPierce Plowman, Fol. xxi. 2. defcribing Envy,

to carry snakes in their bofom. Ψυχρὸν ὃς ἐν κόλπῳ ποικίλῳ ἔιχες ὄφιν.

Theog. v. 601. Compare a defcription of Envy, B. v. C. 12. St. 31. Nor let it offend the reader that this infernal imp is of both genders, for fuch imps and fuch impure fpirits can affume what fex they please. XXXI.

Still as he rode, he gnafht his teeth to fee
Thofe heapes of gold with griple Covetyfe.] I met
with this word in Golding's tranflation of Ovid
Met. vii. 466.

Mutata eft in avem, quae nunc quoque diligit aurum,
Nigra pedem, nigris velata monedula pernis.
Was turned to a bird, which yet is gripple still,
And is as blacke as anie cole both fethers feete and bill.
Where I would read with one of the commen-
tators, Rubra pedem. For Ovid paints the most
beautiful of its kind; and the Cornish Chough,
or Daw, has beautiful red legs, and a red bill.
The learned bishop of Scotland likewife in his
translation of Virgil ufes it,

And thare fixit faft
Amang the grippill rutis faft haldand.

Speaking of the fpear of Aeneas fixed in the
roots, which he ftrove to difengage, lenta in ra-
dice tenebat. xii. 773. The gripple roots, i. e. tena-
cious: it comes from
gripan, to gripe.