[THE allusion in the first stanza of this piece, to the noonday planet which appeared at the birth of Charles II. (May 29: 1630) has been sufficiently illustrated elsewhere.* Besides Wotton and King, it was commemorated in verse, directly or indirectly, by Corbet, Cleveland, and Herrick at the time; and again, after the Restoration, by Cowley and Waller. The figure of a star is found on some of the medals of Charles II.

The twelfth linet seems to have been a favourite with

* See notes to Bp. Henry King's Poems (1843) pp. 206.7. (Add, Herrick's Hesp. p. 250, as well as p. 96, 1648: and Cleveland, p. 74, ed. 1677.)

+ Perhaps Wotton here alludes to the circumstance, that the mother of the new-born English Prince had been a French Princess; as Quarles, (Ded. of Divine Fancies, 1632:) "Let the English Rose and the French Lilly flourish in thy lovely cheeke." But the passages are not exactly parallel. Compare Jonson, viii. 457, line 3.

Wotton, as it is repeated, with a slight alteration, in the next piece," His Roses and His Lilies [blowne];”—the imagery is common also with Jonson;

"See how with roses and with lilies shine

Lilies and roses, flowers of either sex"

and again, on the Christening of James II;—

"At land she triumphs in the triple shade,

Her rose and lily inter-twined have made."*

But it is by no means so peculiar as to form any evidence that Jonson wrote either of the pieces. It was the ordinary language of the time.]

[5]

OU that on Stars do look,
Arrest not there your sight,
Though Nature's fairest Book,
And signed with propitious light;

Our Blessing now is more Divine
Than Planets that at Noon did shine.

To thee alone be praise,

From whom our Joy descends,

Thou Chearer of our Days,

[10] Of Causes first, and last of Ends:†

To thee this May we sing, by whom

Our Roses from the Lilies bloom.

Upon this Royal Flower,

Sprung from the chastest Bed,

Gifford's Jonson, ix. 37, 53.

+ Compare Wotton's Medit. on Gen. xxii. "Thou then (Eternal maker and Mover, whose Will is the first of Causes, and whose Glory is the last of Ends) direct my Feet," &c. (Rel. Wotton. p. 269.)

In ed. 1651, misprinted Chastesse'-. Corrected in ed. 1654. The signature in both those editions is 'H. W.'

How deepest Wounds are given by praise ;-
Nor Rules of State, but Rules of good;

Who hath his Life from Rumours freed; Whose Conscience is his strong retreat; [15] Whose State can neither Flatterers feed, Nor Ruine make Oppressors great;

Who God doth late and early pray
More of his Grace than Gifts to lend;
And entertains the harmless day

[20] With a Religious Book, or Friend!

This man is freed from servile [b]ands
Of hope to rise, or fear to fall:—
Lord of himself, though not of Lands,
And having nothing, yet hath all.

H. WOTTON.

[VARIATIONS. 1.' or taught'-BCE F.-4. And silly truth his highest skill'-A D. It is highest skill' also in B CEF.-5. Master'-E.-7. Untied to the world with care'-A. 'with care' also in B C E F, and in E F the line begins, 'Not ty'd unto'-. 8. All the copies but Rel. Wotton. have 'vulgar breath'-, but they vary in the commencement of the line. Thus; 'Of princes grace'-A C. 'Of Princes Loue'-B. 'Of princes ear’—E F:— In C, the third stanza is omitted altogether; and in A B E F, the third and fourth stanzas are transposed. In D, the same transposition was intended; but lines 7, 8, 13, and 14 are accidentally omitted.-9. Who envieth none whome chance'-A B. 'whom' also in F. In D, the line runs, 'Whoe envieth not that shame'. 10. The punctuation and reading are adopted from the other copies, except that A D F have 'Or vice;' and D,

'and neuer'-. In Rel. Wotton. it stands thus:- Nor Vice hath ever understood;'—. 11. How swordes give sleighter wounds than prayse'-A. 'How desperate woundes are giuen with prayse'-B. 'That.... with'-D E.

12. Not rules'-E.-13. 'humors'-A E. mor'-C. The text is doubtless right.

with' also in F.

rumour'-B. 'huThe words were fre

quently confused.-15. 'fauours doth not'-C.-16. ' accusers great-all but F and Rel. Wotton.-17. 'Who late & early doth God pray'-C.-18. 'to send'-B C D. "His graces more then gifts to lend'-E.-20. well-chosen book'-all but Rel. Wotton.-21. 'This man is free from servile bandes'-A B C D. "free. .... band'-E. It is 'bands' in Rel. Wotton. 1651 and 1654; but in ed. 1672 is misprinted 'hands'-. 23. 'though' omitted in B.-' land'-E.]

[THIS piece is inserted in Walton's Angler, (pp. 60, 61, ed. 1655,) with some introductory remarks, which I shall quote at length. "My next and last example shall be that undervaluer of money,* the late Provost of Eton Colledg, Sir Henry Wotton, (a man with whom I have often fish'd and convers'd) a man whose forraign Imployments in the service of this Nation, and whose experience, learning, wit, and

* See Walton's Lives, pp. 159, 177, ed. 1796. A curious anecdote to the same effect occurs in Walton's Letter to Fulman about John Hales (Fulman's MSS. C. C. C. Oxford, vol. xii. fol. 80):-" he [Hales] was not good at any continuance to get or saue mony for him selfe; yet he vndertoke to doe it for his freind Sr H: Wotton, who was a neclecter of mony, and Mr Ha. told me he had got 3007. together at the time of his deth, a some to which Sr H. had long beine a stranger, and wood euer hane beine if he had manag'd his owne mony-buissines: it was hapily got together to bury him, and inable him to doe some offices of honor, and Justice, and gratitude, and charitie."-Wotton's saying about Angling is more briefly given in his Life; p. 164.