We concur in Mr. Headley's opinion, that

"There seems to be more nature and real poetry in Fletcher's describing him as but starting at the sight of his arms, than in Spenser, who on the same occasion represents him as absolutely "flying fast away;" but perhaps Spenser has heightened the image by making him equally terrified with the sound of them as the sight; this is omitted in Fletcher."

To these observations may be added, that there is great propriety in the bewildered air which Spenser gives him in the last line.

The following stanza possesses considerable merit.

But ah! what liveth long in happiness?
Grief, of a heavy nature, steady lies,
And cannot be remov'd for weightiness;
But joy, of lighter presence, eas❜ly flies,
And seldom comes, and soon away will go :
Some secret pow'r here all things orders so,
That for a sunshine day, follows an age of woe.
These lines are beautiful and harmonious,

So have I often seen a purple flow'r,

Fainting through heat, hang down her drooping head,
But soon refreshed with a welcome show'r,

Begins again her lively beauties spread,

And with new pride her silken leaves display;
And, while the sun doth now more gently play,

Lays out her swelling bosom to the smiling day.

The conception of Thumos, or Wrath, is forcible, and his attributes appropriate.

Thumos the fourth, a dire, revengeful swain;

Whose soul was made of flames, whose flesh of fire,

Wrath in his heart, hate, rage, and fury reign!
Fierce was his look, when clad in sparkling tire;
But when dead paleness in his cheek took seizure,
And all the blood in's boiling heart did treasure,
Then, in his wild revenge, kept he nor mean nor measure.

For in his face, red heat and ashy cold

Strove which should paint revenge in proper colours:
That, like consuming fire, most dreadful roll'd;
This, liker death, threatens all deadly dolours:
His trembling hand a dagger still embrac'd,
Which in his friend he rashly oft encas'd:

His shield's device, fresh blood with foulest stain defac'd.

We have omitted the intermediate stanza in the above description, but shall quote it in this place, for the purpose of shewing the singular skill with which the poet has availed himself of a very mean image, and which he has indeed elevated into something like dignity. It is, in plain prose, nothing more than a comparison of the rage of Thumos to a kettle, full of boiling water, on the fire.

Like as when waters, wall'd with brazen wreath,

Are sieg'd with crackling flames, their common foe;
The angry seas 'gin foam and hotly breathe,

Then swell, rise, rave, and still more furious grow;

Nor can be held; but forc'd with fires below,

Tossing their waves, break out, and all o'erflow:
So boil'd his rising blood, and dash'd his angry brow.

Upon the whole, we think we have adduced sufficient specimens to shew that, although Fletcher had not much originality of invention or power of combination, he possessed a luxuriant fancy, and a pleasing vein of poetry.

ART. XII. A true discourse of Sir Anthony Sherley's Travele into Persia, what accidents did happen in the waye, both goeinge thither and returning backe, with the businesse he was employed in, from the Sophie. Written by George Manwaring, gentleman, who attended on Sir Anthony all the jorneye.-MS.

Sir Anthony Sherley, the history of whose singular journey into Persia, the manuscript which stands at the head of this article professes to record, was the second son of Sir Thomas Sherley, of Wiston, in Sussex, and was born in 1565. He had two brothers, Sir Thomas Sherley, his elder, and Mr. Robert Sherley, his younger brother, all distinguished for their adventurous and romantic dispositions. It is, however, with Sir Anthony that we have chiefly to do in this article, although we shall have occasion to notice incidentally his two brothers, and especially Mr. Robert Sherley, his companion in this extraordinary enterprize. On Sir Anthony, his friends bestowed "those learnings which were fit for a gentleman's ornament;" and after having taken his degree at Oxford, he entered into the service of his sovereign, in which he ran many courses of divers fortune, according to the condition of the wars."-He first joined

the English forces in Holland,* and was subsequently one of those gallant adventurers, who, in 1596, went to annoy the Spaniards in their West India settlements. With a brave, but small, band of two hundred and eighty men, he took the town of St. Jago, of which he kept possession two days and nights, against three thousand Portuguese, in which service eighty of his men were wounded. On his return to England, Sir Anthony received the honour of knighthood. As the model of his civil life, Sir Anthony selected his friend and patron, the famous Earl of Essex, who, in the true nobleness of his nature, gave him literally the best treasures of his mind in counselling him, and his care and fortune to help him forward.

Early in the year 1599, Sir Anthony Sherley left England with twenty-five followers, most of them gentlemen, for the purpose of joining the Duke of Ferrara in his wars with the Pope; but, learning on his arrival at Augusta, that the wars were terminated, he proceeded to Venice, and, from that place, communicated his disappointment to the Earl, by whose advice the enterprize had been undertaken. It seems, that some expectation had been formed of the exploits of this small band of gentlemen, and it suited neither the inclination of the Earl, nor Sir Anthony, that it should end in nothing. It was therefore concerted between them, that Sir Anthony should undertake a journey into Persia, the object of which was, in the first place, to endeavour to prevail upon the king to unite with the Christian princes against the Turks; or, if this should fail, to establish a commercial intercourse betwixt this country and the East; with these grand objects, Sir Anthony mixed some private designs of his own for the improvement of his fortune. Such were the inducements to this undertaking, as avowed by Sherley in the History of his Travels, penned by himself a publication in which statesman-like views and acute reflexions are mingled with pompous argumentation, and tedious ethical declamationand in which he has purposely omitted what, though of less interest to him, is of most to posterity. Manwaring's discourse, on the contrary, possesses considerable interest-he describes not what he thought, but what he saw-and that in the most naïve and engaging manner. He relates many traits of the character of Sir Anthony, and the sovereign whom he visited, that are not to be found in Sherley's publication, which was, in all probabi

It may be worth while to mention, that Sir Anthony and Sir Nicholas Clifford were created, by the French king, knights of the order of St. Michael; but Queen Elizabeth took it so ill, that they should accept it without her leave, that she deprived them of it. Sandford's Geneal. Hist. of the Kings and Queens of England.

lity, to serve some particular purpose, independent of the mere narration of his journey. Sir Anthony, without disclosing his intentions to his followers, or to any one, except the Earl of Essex, set sail from Venice on the 20th May, 1599. We shall, without farther preface, proceed to give the relation of this adventure in the words of George Manwaring himself, premising that we have taken a few liberties with his orthography, which very bad even for the time in which he lived: and the length of the manuscript has also compelled us to omit such parts of it as possess less interest than the rest.

is

"The first attempt of the voyage was this, Sir Anthony understandinge of warr like to have happened betweene the Duke of Ferrara and the Pope, and hearinge the Duke to be a gallant man, and further he had notice that the Duke had sent unto the French King for some good commanders, thought he could not spend his time better then to go and ayde the Duke with his service in the warr; and for this cause did take his leave of England for a time.

*

*

"On our coming to Augusta, we had newes that the Duke of Ferrara had submitted himselfe to the Pope, and the wars were ended, yet Sir Anthony did encourage us with comfortable words, ashuringe us, that if we would followe him, and arme ourselves to take the adventure which he did purpose, we should all gayne honour, and greatly enrich ourselves. From Augusta we tooke post horses to Venice, where we did solace ourselves allmost three monthes, in which time Sir Anthony did sende his brother, Mr. Robert Sherlye, of some bussinesse to the Duke of Florence, who used him very honourablye, givinge him a chayne of gould, valued to the worthe of 1600 French crownes; and in that time we lay in Venice, Sir Anthony did fall in some conversation with a Persian marchant, which did traffick in Venice for the Kinge of Persia, for such commodities as were wantynge in his owne contrey, which was English cloth, both woollen and linene. This marchant tould Sir Anthony of the Royalltie of the Sophie his King, which pleased Sir Anthony very well; yet not resolved to go thither, but to take his voyage another way; but in the same cittie of Venice, it was his fortune to hear of a great traveler, newly come to Venice from the Sophie's court, whose name was Angelo, born in Turkie, but a good Christian, who had travelled 16 years, and did speake 24 kinde of languages. This Angelo did likewise acquaint Sir Anthony of the worthynes of the King of Persia, that he was a gallant souldier, very bountifull to strangers, and what entertainement he had at his Court; ashuringe Sir Anthony, that if he would go thither, it would be greatly for his advancement; and more over, that he would be his guide, and attend on him thither, which Sir Anthony did consent unto, yet kept it very close, for fear it should be known in Turkie, becase we must passe through that countrey, and the greate Turke and the Kinge of Persia beinge not greate friends, but only for a league for three yeares, which was all expired. So we left Venice and went to Malemocko, some five miles from Venice, where we found divers shipes; amongst the rest there

was an Argosie, bound for Scanderoune, where we did imbarke ourselves, paying a large price for our passage; but the winde was contrarye, that we were 24 days in sayling to Zant, which was not half the waye, where, if the winde had served us, we might have been at Scanderoune in that time; but in the waye before we came to Zant, there was a passinger in the ship which used some disgracefull wordes against our late Queene, whereupone Sir Anthony caused one of his meanest sort of men to give him the bastinadoe, which he did very soundly. Whereupone he made such a terrible crye, that the captaine of the shipe, with the passingers and the seafaring men, rose up in armes against us, they beinge to the number of 250, and all our companie not above 26, yet we did withstande, neither was there any hurt done, by reason of three Armenian marchants, which did stande betweene us, and entreated a peace, which the Italians did first consent unto; in the end we arrived at Zant, where Sir Anthony and all we of his companie went ashore for vittailes, in regard all our provision was spent. When we were departed forth of the ship, they sent after us those thinges we had left behind, and mounted their ordnance against us, swearinge, if we did offer to come abord the ship any more, they would sink us. Whereupon Sir Anthony complained to the Governore of the place, but could have no remedie; so we lost our passage, and were constrained to stay in Zant ten dayes for shipping, with great hinderance to our voyage and expenses; but that the English marchants did use us somewhat kindlye. After we had passed awaye the time for ten days space, we imbarked in a small ship, and we tooke our leaves of Zant, where the next day after, we being not well stored with fresh water, we did put into an island to fill our vesselles with water; because in the iland of Zant water was very scarce. I will show you a reason why. One day, beinge in Zant, I was extreme drye, and beinge in a marchant's house, I desired a cup of water to drinke of one of his servants; the marchant hearing me, tould me I should drink wine so much as I would, for his water was dearer unto him than his wine. I thought it a verie strange thinge. Well, nowe to the ilande where we went for fresh water, a place worthe the notinge: it is a small thinge, but a verye pleasant littill village for corne, yet verye frutefull of alle thinges else, as apricockes, oranges, lemonds, pomgranates, grapes of all sorts, with manye other frutes; there is but an only castele in the iland, which is inhabited with no other kind of men but priestes and friers, all Greekes; they did entertaine us lovingly, givinge us of their frutes, for the which wee did proffer them money, but they would not take anie; in all our traveles I did not see a more plesanter place, for I could have found in my harte to have lived there allwayes: it is calde by the name of the Iland of Preestes. From thence we departed, and sayled towards the Isle of Candie, where within three dayes we were in the harbore, havinge no bussines there but only to see the place; we went all a-shore, not thinkinge to stay any longer than one night, but our shipe had a mischance; for we had not been out of her two houres but one of the gallies of Candie cominge from the sea, in a rough wind, did run herselfe against the rudder of our shipe, and tooke it cleane away; besides that, she was bulged in two places,