LIII.

HE Indian immediately started back, whilst the lion rose

THE

with a spring and leaped towards him. Being wholly destitute of weapons he stooped down to take a stone in his hand; but to his surprise grasped nothing, and found the supposed stone to be only the apparition of one. If he was disappointed on this side, he was as much pleased on the other, when he found the lion, which had seized on his left shoulder, had no power to hurt him, and was only the ghost of that ravenous creature which it appeared to be. He no sooner got rid of his impotent enemy, but he marched up to the wood, and after having surveyed it for some time, endeavoured to press into one part of it that was a little thinner than the rest: when again, to his great surprise, he found the bushes made no resistance, but that he walked through briars and brambles with the same ease as through the open air.

Τ

LIV.

HERE were two families which from the beginning of the world were as opposite to each other as light and darkness. The one of them lived in heaven, and the other in hell. The youngest descendant of the first family was Pleasure, who was the daughter of Happiness, who was the child. of Virtue, who was the offspring of the gods. These, as I said before, had their habitation in heaven. The youngest of the opposite family was Pain, who was the son of Misery, who was the child of Vice, who was the offspring of the Furies. The habitation of this race of beings was in hell. The middle station of nature between these two opposite extremes was the earth, which was inhabited by creatures of a middle kind,

neither so virtuous as the one, nor so vicious as the other, but partaking of the good and bad qualities of these two families.

Xenophon, Mem. ii. 1. 21.

TH

LV.

HEY had to dig fifty fathoms before they reached the chamber of the dead. Into this Gest descended by a rope, holding a sword in one hand, and a taper in the other. He saw below a great dragon-ship, in which sat five hundred men, champions of the old king, who were buried with him. They did not stir, but gazed with blank eyes at the taper flame, and snorted vapour from their nostrils. Gest despoiled the old king of all his gold and armour, and was about to rob him of his sword when the taper expired. Then at once the five hundred rose from the dragon-ship, and the dæmon king rushed at him; they grappled and fought. In his need, Gest invoked St. Olaf, who appeared with light streaming from his body, and illumining the interior of the cairn. Before this light the power of the dead men failed, and Gest completed his work in the vault.

Plato, Repub. 359, D. 8qq.; 514, 89%.

IT

may

LVI.

be laid down as an almost universal rule that good poets are bad critics. Their minds are under the tyranny of ten thousand associations imperceptible to others. The worst writer may easily happen to touch a spring which is connected in their minds with a long succession of beautiful images. They are like the gigantic slaves of Aladdin, gifted with matchless power, but bound by spells so mighty, that when a child, whom they could have crushed, touched a talis

man, of whose secret he was ignorant, they immediately became his vassals. It has more than once happened to me to see minds, graceful and majestic as Titania, bewitched by the charms of an ass's head, bestowing on it the fondest caresses, and crowning it with the sweetest flowers. I need only mention the poems attributed to Ossian. They are utterly worthless, except as an edifying instance of the success of a story without evidence, and of a book without merit. They are a chaos of words which present no image, of images which have no archetype: they are without form and void: and darkness is upon the face of them. Yet how many men of genius have panegyrized and imitated them!

Plato, Ion. 533, D., 534, $qq.

ST

LVII.

TEPHEN had to all appearance died in Constantinople, but, as the embalmer could not be found, he was left unburied the whole night. During that time he went down into hell, where he saw many things which he had not before believed. But when he came before the Judge, the Judge said, 'I did not send for this man, but for Stephen the smith.' Stephen was too happy to get back, and on his return found his neighbour Stephen the smith dead. But Stephen learned not wisdom from his escape. He died of the plague in Rome, and with him appeared to die a soldier, who returned to reveal more of these fearful secrets of the other world, and the fate of Stephen. The soldier passed a bridge, beneath it flowed a river, from which rose vapours, dark, dismal, and noisome. Beyond the bridge spread beautiful, flowery, and fragrant meadows, peopled by spirits clothed in white. In these were many mansions, vast and full of light. Above all rose a palace of golden bricks; to whom it belonged he could

not read. On the bridge he recognised Stephen, whose foot slipped as he endeavoured to pass. His lower limbs were immediately seized by frightful forms, who strove to drag him. to the foetid dwellings below. But white and beautiful beings caught his arms, and there was a long struggle between the conflicting powers. The soldier did not see the issue of the conflict.

BUT

Plato, Repub. 614-621; Gorgias, 523.

LVIII.

UT the Divine Revenge overtooke not long after those proud Enterprises. For within lesse than the space of one Hundred Yeares the great Atlantes was utterly lost and destroyed not by a great Earthquake, as your man saith; (for that whole tract is little subject to Earthquakes ;) but by a particular Deluge or Inundation; those Countries having at this day far greater Rivers and far higher Mountaines, to poure downe Waters than any part of the Old World. But it is true that the same Inundation was not deepe: Not past fortie feet, in most places, from the Ground; so that although it destroyed Man and Beast generally, yet some few wild inhabitants of the Wood escaped. Birds also were saved by flying to the high Trees and Woods. For as for men, although they had buildings in many places higher than the Depth of the Water; yet that Inundation, though it were shallow, had a long Continuance; whereby they of the Vale that were not drowned perished for want of Food, and other things necessary.

Plato, Timæus, 25.

IV. IN THE STYLE OF HERODOTUS.

A

I.

FTRE that, is another Yle, where that Wômen maken gret Sorwe, whan hire Children ben y born: and whan thei dyen, thei maken gret Feste and gret Joye and Revelle, and thanne thei caften hem into a gret Fuyr brennynge. And tho that loven wel hire Husbondes, gif hire Husbondes ben dede, thei casten hem also in the Fuyr, with hire Children and brennen hem. And thei feyn, that the Fuyr schalle clensen hem of alle filthes and of alle Vices, and thei schulle gon pured and clene in to another World, to hire Husbondes, and thei fchulle leden hire Children with hem. And the cause whi that they wepen, when hire Children ben born, is this, For whan thei comen into this World, thei comen to labour, forwe, and hevyneffe: And whi thei maken ioye and gladnesse at hire dyenge, is be caufe that, as thei feyn, thanne thei gon to Paradys, where the Ryveres rennen Mylk and Hony, where that men seen hem in ioye and in habundance of Godes, with outen sorwe and labour.

Herodotus, v. 4-6; i. 216; iii. 99.

II.

N the isle of Roha grow the trees that yield camphor.

hundred men may easily sit under its shade. The juice, of