Sydney Smith, 1771-1845. . . 418| Thomas Chalmers, 1780-1847. 434 340. The Joy of Good, and the Misery of 332. From “The Letters of Peter Plymley." The Force of Christian Evidence strengthened by the Christianity of Charles Lamb, 1775-1834. 425 Thomas Babington Macaulay, 334. From the “Dissertation upon Roast 341. Fallacious Distrust of Liberty. 342. Evils of the Reign of Terror. 336. Blessedness of a Virtuous Character. 343. The Future History of Man upon the 337. Evils produced by the Spirit of Chiv- alry. Jeremy Bentham, 1748-1832. • 439 344. Jargon of the English Law. 338. Influence of the Translation of the 345. Impossibility of a Knowledge of the Sir William Hamilton, 1788– Richard Whateley, 1787–1856. 440 433 346. Civilization favorable to Morality. 839. Mathematical Study an insufficient Discipline. 438 468 347. William Pitt, Earl of 359. From his Speech against Warren Has- :ings in Westminster Hall, June 3, 348. From his “Speech on Conciliation with America," March 22, 1775. 360. From his Speech on the Trial of Archi- 349. Character of Lord Chatham's Second Adininistration, and of Charles Townshend, 1774. 450 1832. . 351. Speech in Reply to the Duke of Grafton. 362. From his Speech in Defence of Peltier for a Libel on the First Consul of 451 Thomas, Lord Erskine, 1750- 352. From his Speech on the Abolition of the Slave Trade, April 2, 1792. 363. Principles of the Law of Libel. Charles James Fox, 1749–1806. 454 364. From his Speech on the Trial of 353. From his Speech on the Address on the George Canning, 1770-1827. 472 354. From his Speech on the Overtures of Peace from the First Consul, Feb. 3, 365. From his Speech on Parliamentary Re- 1800. form, 355. Character of Mr. Fox and Mr. Pitt. 366. Speech at Plymouth in the Year 1823, with the Freedom of that Town. 357. Speech against Napoleon, May 25, 1815. 367. Peril of denying Just Reforms. Richard Brinsley Sheridan, 368. Slavery opposed to the Law of Nature. 369. The Object of Miracles. tings in the House of Commons, Feb. 370. Anticipation of a Future World of 7, 1787 Glory. INDEX OF AUTHORS. 18, 19 35 . Page 83 85 86 41 49 . 89 Page 232 287 53 93 208 .-156 439 242 282 240 213 474 150 142 408 73 197 272, 444 215 315 98 182 230 339 17 363 142 48 434 270, 442 310 29-36 149 377 286 Crabbe, George. John. 130 73 26 87 295, 412 . . . . 139 92 40 . 436 . Herrick, Robert. Rogers, Samuel.. 393 285 212 44 418 46 152 38 45 308 36 52 CHOICE SPECIMENS OF ENGLISH LITERATURE. CHAPTER 1. ANGLO-SAXON, SEMI-SAXON, AND OLD ENGLISH LITERATURE. A. -ANGLO-SAXON. 1.- CAEDMON, A. D.650. The Creation. (Manual, p. 26.) (From Guest's English Rhythms, vol. ii. p. 32.) Ne wæs her tha giet, nymthe heol- Ne had there here as yet, save the ster-sceado, vault-shadow, Wiht geworden; ac thes wida Aught existed ; but this wide grund abyss Stod deop and dim drihtne Stood deep and dim - strange to fremde, its Lord, Idel ? and únnyt. Idle? and useless. On it with eyes glanc'd Stith-frihth cining, and tha stowe The stalwart king, and the place beheold beheld Dreama lease. Geseah deorc ges- All joyless. He saw dark cloud weorc Semian 3 sinnihte, sweart under Lour with lasting night, swart roderum, under heaven, Wonn* and weste; oth that.theos Wan 4 and waste; till this world's woruld-gesceaft creation Thurh word gewearth wuldor- Rose through the word of the cyninges. glory-King Her ærest gesceop éce drihten Here first shap'd the eternal Lord (Helm eall-wihta!) heofon and (Head of all things !) heaven and eorthan; earth; Rodor arærde, and this rume land Sky he rear'd, and this wide land Gestathelode - strangum mihtum, He 'stablish'd - by his strong might, Frea almihtig! Lord Almighty! Earth was not as yet Græs-úngrene; gár-secg theahte, Green with grass; ocean cover'd, 1 Fremde has a double ending in the nominative-one vowel, the other consonantal. 3 Idel, A. S., barren, idle. Deserts idle. - Othello. Ile pebbles. - Lear. 3 Seman is the active verb; semian, I believe, is always neuter. In Caedmon 4. 4 Wan, in the sense of dismal, was long known to our poetry: Vin is the drenching in the sea so wan. - Chaucer, Knightes Tale. Sweart synnihte, side and wide, Swart with lasting night, wide and far, Wonne wægas. Wan pathways. Then glory-bright, Heofon-weardes gast ofer hólm Was the spirit of Heaven's-Guard boren, o'er the water borne, Miclum spedum. With mighty speed. Bade the Angel-maker, (Lifes brytta) leoht forth cuman (The Life-dispenser) light to come forth Ofer rumne grúnd. Rathe wæs O'er the wide abyss. Quick was gefylled fulfill'd Heah-cininges has him wæs The high King's hest-round him halig leoht, was holy light, Ofer wéstenne, swa se wyrhta be- Over the waste, as the Maker bead. bade. 2. KING ALFRED. Ohther's Narrative, in Translation of Boëthius. (Manual, p. 28.) (From Marsh's Origin and History of the English Language, pp. 125–128.) Fela spella him sædon tha Beor Many things him told the Beormas, ægther ge of hyra agenummas, both of their own land and of lande ge of thæm lande the ymb the land that around them about hy utan wæron; ac he nyste hwæt were; but he wist-not what (of-) thæs sothes wær, forthæm he hit the sooth was, for-that he it self sylf ne geseah. Tha Finnas him not saw. The Finns him thought, thuhte, and tha Beormas spræcon and the Beormas spoke nigh one neah an getheode. Swithost he language. Chiefliest he fared thifor thyder, to-eacan thæs landes ther, besides the land's seeing, for sceawunge, for thæm hors-hwæl- the horse-whales, for-that they um, forthæm hi habbath swythe have very noble bones in their æthele ban on hyra tothum, tha teeth, these teeth they brought teth hy brohton sume thæm cy- some (to-) the king: and their hide nincge: and hyra hyd bith swythe is very good for ship-ropes. This god to scip-rapum. Se hwæl bith whale is much less that other micle læssa thonne othre hwalas, whales, not is he longer than seven ne bith he lengra thonne syfan ells long; but in his own land is elna lang; ac on his agnum lande i the best whale-hunting, they are is se betsta hwæl-huntath, tha beoth eight and forty ells long, and the eahta and feowertiges elna lange, largest fifty ells long; (of-) these and tha mæstan fiftiges elna lange; he said that he (of-) six some slew thara he seede thæt he syxa sum sixty in two days. He was (a) ofsloge syxtig on twam dagum. very wealthy man in the ownings He was swythe spedig man on that their wealth in is, that is in thæm æhtum the heora speda on wild-deer. He had yet, when he beoth, thæt is on wild-deorum. the king sought, (of-) tame deer He hæfde tha-gyt, tha he thone unsold six hundred. These deer cyningc sohte, tamra deora unbe- they hight reins, (of-) them were bohtra syx hund. Tha deor hi six stale-reins, these are very dear hatath hranas, thara wäron syx with (the) Finns, for-that they stæl-hranas, tha beoth swythe dyre catch the wild reins with (them). mid Finnum, for-thæm hy fod tha wildan hranas mid. |