For whose sweete sake that glorious badge he wore,
And dead as living ever him ador'd:

Upon his shield the like was also scor'd,

For soveraine hope which in his helpe he had :
Right faithfull true he was in deede and word,
But of his cheere did seem too solemne sad;
Yet nothing did he dread but ever was ydrad.

3. Upon a great adventure he was bond,

That greatest Gloriana to him gave,
That greatest glorious Queene of Faërie lond,
To winne him worship, and her grace to have,
Which of all earthly things he most did crave;
And ever as he rode, his hart did earne
To prove his puissance in battell brave
Upon his foe, and his new force to learne;
Upon his foe a dragon, horrible and stearne.

4. A lovely ladie rode him faire beside,

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20

25

Upon a lowly asse more white then snow,

Yet she much whiter, but the same did hide
Under a vele, that wimpled was full low,
And over all a black stole she did throw,
As one that inly mournd: so was she sad,
And heavie sat upon her palfrey slow:
Seemed in heart some hidden care she had,
And by her in a line, a milk white lambe she lad.

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35

5. So pure and innocent, as that same lambe She was in life and every vertuous lore, And by descent, from royall lynage came Of ancient kings and queenes, that had of yore Their scepters stretcht from east to westerne shore,

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44

And all the world in their subjection held;
Till that infernal feend with foule uprore
Forwasted all their land and them expeld;
Whom to avenge she had, this knight from far com-
peld.

1. What were some of the characteristics of " gentle knighthood" in days of old? (Line 1.)

2. What does "pricking" mean, and what does it come from? (Line 1.)

3. What does "jolly" here mean, and what is its derivation? (Line 8.)

4. What were "giusts?" (Line 9.)

5. What was the cross the sign of in days of knighthood? (Line 10.)

6. To what does "dead" here refer? (Line 13.) 7. What part of speech is "right" here? (Line 16.) 8. Explain "ydrad." (Line 18.) What part of the verb is it, and of what is the letter "y" the sign? 9. Explain" bond." (Line 19.)

10. Who was " Gloriana," and what were some of the real adventures undertaken in her time by those who probably considered themselves her knights? (Line 20.)

11. What is the meaning of "earne"? (Line 24.) 12. What part of speech is "faire," in line 28 ? 13. To what does "the same refer? (Line 30.) 14. What is "wimpled"? (Line 31.)

15. Explain "heavie" in line 34.

16. What word is understood, in line 35.

17. Explain "lad." (Line 36.)

18. Explain the force of the prefix "for" in "forwasted." (Line 44.) Have we now any words of the same kind?

19. Explain line 45.

LESSON IV.

SLEEP.

BY WILLIAM SHAKSPERE.

(From Henry IV., Pt. II., Act III., Scene 1.)

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.

1. WILLIAM SHAKSPERE, the greatest dramatist, and one of the greatest poets the world has ever seen, was born in April (exact day not known, supposed to be the 23rd), in the year 1564. His birthplace was a small town in Warwickshire, called by the pretty Englishsounding name of Stratford-on-Avon. Warwickshire is itself a thoroughly rural English-looking county, leafy and green and studded with old-world villages, where the houses are built of wood, curiously gabled and crossed with timbers black and white. His father was a well-to-do tradesman, and but little is known of Shakspere's childhood.

2. In the year 1586, when he was twenty-two years of age, having married four years before, and being already the father of three children, Shakspere went to seek his fortune in London, and joined a company of actors. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth, though the people were very fond of dramatic representations, there were often great difficulties attending the performances of plays,-actors and play-writers were very keenly watched, and sometimes imprisoned when their inventions did not suit the fastidious taste of the Court or the patrons of the different companies. Acting was also a very different thing from what it is now; the theatres were inconvenient,-one, at which Shakspere acted, was open to the sky, and on the stage a great deal was left to the imagination of the audience. All

the parts for women were acted by boys, and indeed there were plays which were acted entirely by children. The requisite illusion and gratification which are supplied now by clever scene-painting, splendid dresses, and magnificent" properties," were produced then solely by the beauty of the poetry and interest of the story. The robust imaginations of the people did all the rest. To this company, called the Lord Chamberlain's, Shakspere belonged, beginning by acting and adapting the plays of others, and ending by producing a series of dramas, historical, tragical, and imaginative, which the world has never seen equalled.

3. For eighteen years, varied, it is to be supposed, by occasional visits to his home and family, Shakspere continued in London, connected with the same company and removing with them to the different theatres they built or acted in. After that he was able to return to his native place, and retire not only on a competence, but with a degree of wealth which enabled him to purchase property, and provide for his parents, who had fallen into poverty. Here he occupied himself with completing his splendid series of dramatic representations, and died on April 23rd (supposed to be his birthday), 1616, aged fifty-two years. His wife's name was Anne Hathaway, and his children were Susanna, and Judith and Hamnet, who were twins. The daughters married, but the boy died at twelve years of age.

4. William Shakspere is chiefly a dramatic poet, that is, his principal works were plays, intended to be acted on a stage. Their beauty lies, not only in their poetry, which belongs to the most splendid form of dramatic blank verse, but in their depth of thought, their knowledge of the world, their power of moving men's minds with terror and pity, and, above all, their wonderful delineation of character. It is not intended in a little work like the present either to give the list and history of the plays, or to point out examples in them of what has just been remarked; it is enough to point out to the pupil that the portions of plays he will have to

C

study are fair specimens of the poet's style. The thought lies deep, and is therefore sometimes involved and difficult to unravel. But let the pupil endeavour to understand and remark the imagery, the pathos, and the earnestness of these short passages now, and he will be better prepared to study the great dramas, of which they form a portion, hereafter.

SLEEP.

How many thousand of my poorest subjects
Are at this hour asleep! Sleep, gentle Sleep,
Nature's soft nurse, how have I frighted thee,
That thou no more wilt weigh my eyelids down,
And steep my senses in forgetfulness?
Why rather, Sleep, liest thou in smoky cribs,
Upon uneasy pallets stretching thee,

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5

And hush'd with buzzing night-flies to thy slumber;

Than in the perfumed chambers of the great,
Under the canopies of costly state,

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And lull'd with sounds of sweetest melody?

Oh, thou dull god, why liest thou with the vile, In loathsome beds; and leav'st the kingly couch, A watchcase, or a common 'larum-bell?

Wilt thou upon the high and giddy mast

Seal up the ship-boy's eyes, and rock his brains
In cradle of the rude imperious surge;

And in the visitation of the winds,

Who take the ruffian billows by the top,

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Curling their monstrous heads, and hanging them 20 With deaf'ning clamours in the slippery clouds,

That, with the hurly, Death itself awakes?

Canst thou, oh partial Sleep! give thy repose