Your temper to comply with my command ; And speaking thus, he gave Emilia's hand. 2426 Smil'd Venus, to behold her own true knight Obtain the conqueft, though he loft the fight; And blefs'd with nuptial bliss the sweet laborious night. Eros, and Anteros, on either fide, 2420 One fir'd the bridegroom, and one warm'd the bride ; And long-attending Hymen from above, All of a tenor was their after-life, grove. No day difcolour'd with domeftic strife ; 2425 Sent him the bleffing he fo dearly bought. And all true lovers find the fame fuccefs. Ver, 2430. So may the Queen] Such was old Chaucer, fuch the placid mien 2431 With cunning hand pourtraying. Though perchance From Blenheim's towers, O ftranger thou art come Dr. Akenfide wrote thefe lines to be placed under a statue of Chaucer, at Woodstock, and they are in the true fimple taste of ancient infcriptions. Dr. J. WARTON. THE COCK AND THE FOX; OR, THE TALE OF THE NUN'S PRIEST. 5 THERE liv'd, as authors tell, in days of yore, 10 The cattle in her homeftead were three fows, An ewe call'd Mally, and three brinded cows. Her parlour-window ftuck with herbs around, 15 Of favoury smell; and rushes ftrew'd the ground. Ver. 15, and three following verses, a deviation from the original. A maple-dreffer in her hall she had, On which full many a flender meal the made; 20 A fparing diet did her health affure ; Ful footy was hire boure, and eke hire halle. This image Dryden has omitted, which is taken from Virgil. -affiduâ poftes fuligine nigri. Ecl. vii. v. 50. But which contains a lively picture of the homely furniture of the widow's cottage. Goldfmith has added many natural strokes: Imagination fondly ftoops to trace And an author who deferves to be better known, Cunningham, has adopted one of thefe images in a little pleafing fong, called Content: Yellow fheaves from rich Ceres her cottage had crown'd, Green rushes were ftrew'd on the floor, Her cafement fweet woodbines crept modeftly round, JOHN WARTON. |