witticisms, of which Spenser has much fewer than might be expected from the taste of his age. It's manner is like that of Fletcher's Purple Island. I suspect it to have been written in imitation of Shakespeare's Veņus and Adonis *. The author, whoever he was, certainly lived about the latter end of Eliza beth, or the beginning of James I.

Our author's Pastorals are written in professed imitation of Chaucer's style. This he tells us expressly in the beginning of Colin Clout's Come Home Again.

The shepherd's boy, best knowen by that name,
That after Tityrus† first sung his lay.

The first Edition of which was printed, London, for William Leake, 1602, 12mo.

+ Milton, in imitation of our author, styles Chaucer Tityrus, where he hints at Chaucer's having travelled into Italy.

Quin et in has quondam pervenit Tityrus oras.-
Mansus, v. 34.

And the tale of the Oak and Brier, in the Eclogue of Februarie, is more peculiarly modelled after Chaucer's manner, and is accordingly thus introduced.

A tale of truth

Which I cond of Tityrus in my youth.

And in another pastoral he hints at his having copied Chaucer.

That Colin hight which well could pipe and sing,
For he of Tityrus his song did lere.

In the Pastorals he likewise appears to have attempted an imitation of the Visions of Pierce Plowman; for, after exhorting his muse not to contend with Chaucer, he adds,

Nor with the Plowman that the pilgrim playde awhile*.

Epilogue to Shep. Kalend.

And besides, that his Pastorals might, in every respect, have the air of a work in old English, he has adopted and given them the title of an old book, called the Shepheard's Kalender*, first printed by Wynkin de Worde, and reprinted about twenty years before he published these Pastorals, viz. 1559. This is what E. K. means, where he says in his epistle prefixed, "He tearmeth it the Shepheard's Kalender, applying an old name to a new work." One of Spenser's reasons for using so much ancient phraseology in these Pastorals, was undoubtedly the obvious one of cloathing rural characters in the dress of doric simplicity; but the principal reason is, most probably, that which is delivered by

• Hearne calls this piece ८४ a comical odd book, of which I have an imperfect copy, and look upon it as a great Curiosity." Not. ad Gul. Neubrig. vol. iii.

pag. 749.

his friend and commentator, E. K. who was "privie to all his designs :"-" In myne opinion, it is one especial prayse of many which are due to this poet, that he hath laboured to restore, as to their rightful heritage, such good and natural English words, as have been long time out of use, and almost cleane disherited; which is the only cause that our mother-tongue, which truly of itselfe is both full enough for prose, and stately enough for verse, hath long time beene counted most bare and barren of both; which default, when as some have endeavoured to salve and recure, they patched up the holes with peeces and ragges of other languages; borrowing here of the French, there of the Italian, and every where of the Latine; not weighing how ill those tongues

* Some have thought that his name was Kerke. I suppose, because Spenser, in his letters to Harvey, mentions his lodging with one Mrs. Kerke, and, in the same, sends E. K.'s compliments to Harvey.

accord with themselves, but much worse with ours; so now they have made our Eng lishe tongue a gallimaufrey, or hodge-podge of all other speeches," Thus that which induced Spenser to adopt so much obsolete language in the Pastorals, induced him likewise to do the same in the Fairy Queen. Hence too it appears, that he was disgusted with the practice of his cotemporary writers, who had adulterated, according to his judgment, the purity of the English tongue by various innovations from the Spanish, French, Latin, and Italian. And that this was a prevailing affectation in the age of Queen Elizabeth, may be concluded from the following passages.