What they consum’d, encreast; What gaue, enioyd.
The vse; not the possession of things
Commends their worth, and their encreases springs,
And that vse must haue Influence from his ground
Religion; with which, all his Acts were crownd.
Nor could a man, distinguish twixt his deedes,
And saie; This Act, from Fortitude proceedes,
This from Humanitie; This from Continence.
But each, from all the vertues influence
Had their composure; prouing the decree
The Stoiques made; and we may iustifie;
Each action, that a wise man makes his fruit,
He doth with all the vertues execute.
Some one, the ground-worke laying; All the rest
Flow in as fellowes, with their interest.
What man, not imitating him, can be
Noble, or pious, in the best degree?
Religion seasons all Nobilitie.
Take that euen from the Greatest; you shall see
How lanck he showes in his felicitie;
For his Incharitie, he winnes no loue:
For his Faiths want, to him none faithfull proue:
For his felt ill, he cannot hope for good,
But feare strikes euery shadow through his blood.
What such men want, content with pieties shade,
With that, and her heart, was this Lord, all made.
In Noble being, and making good his place,
Stooping for height, to nothing that was base.
Nobles example haue, and Gentrie may
Affect no Nobles, met with, in that way.
Ignobles (if his worth he will apply,)
May, (though most base) outreach Nobilitie.
Obserue then, after all his high’st command
How equall, and vnchangeable a hand
He bore in thought of it, with things most low,
For that he might, to all example show:
He made not height his end, nor happinesse here,
But, as more high, more good he might appere,
(Height simply, holding no good, much lesse all)
He willingly from all his tops did fall,
And, for Retreat, a Personage made his home;
Where, (neare the Church) he nearer God, did come;
Each weeke day doing his deuotion
With some few Beads-folke; To whom, still was showne
His secret Bedfords hand; Nor would he stay
The Needie asking; but preuent their way
And goe to them, t’enquire, how they could liue,
And, to auoid, euen thanks, where he did giue;
He would their hardly-nourisht Hues supply
With shew of lending; yet, (That industrie
Might not in them be lesned, to relieue
Their states themselues,) He would haue some one giue
His word for the repayment; which (sweet Lord)
He neuer tooke; nor askt a thankefull word.
And therein, truly imitated God,
Who giues vs Lawes to keepe; The Period
Of whose iniunction, points not at his good;
But, knowing, that when they are vnderstood,
Their vnderstanding, by obseruing prou’d,
Would make vs see; that in that Circle mou’d
Our taught felicitie; Nor can we ad
With all our obseruations; what may glad
His still at full state, in the best degree,
Other then this; That as Philosophie
Saies there is euermore proportion
Betwixt the knowing part, and what is knowne
So joynd, that both, are absolutely one;
So when we know God, in things here below,
And truly keepe th’abstracted good we know;
(God being all goodnesse) we with him combine,
And therein shew, the all in all, doth shine:
This briefly, for the life of my blest loue,
Which now combinde is, with the life aboue;
His death (to name which, I abhor to liue,)
O sister, doe you, with your trump achieue.
As Fame addrest to this; The morning came
And burn’d vp all things sacred, with her flame.
When now some Night-birds of the day began
To call, and crie, and gibber, Man to Man;
Swolne fordges puft abroad their windie Ire,
Aire, Earth, and water turnd, and all to Fire;
And in their strife for Chymicall euents
Made transmutation of the Elements.
They blew, and Hammers beat, and euery noise
Was emptying tumult, out of men, and boies.
Bursting the aire with it; and deafning Th’Eare:
The black fumes of whose breaths did all besmeare
And choake the Muses, and such rude Clouds reare,
As all the World, a Dyers furnace were.
Gainst which, Fames Guests, their dores & windows closde;
As their poore labours were in earth opposde.
Explicit Vigilia Prima.
VIGILIAE SECUNDAE. INDUCTIO.
Now to the Nestfull woods, the Broode of Flight
Had on their black wings brought, the zealous Night,
When Fames friends, op’t the windowes they shut in,
To barre Daies worldly light; and Mens rude Din;
In Tumults raisd about their fierce affairs,
That deafen heauen to their distracted prairs,
With all the vertues; Graue Religion
That slept with them all day, to ope begun
Her Eares, and Red Eyes; hearing euery way
The clocks, and knells of Cities, and the Bay
Of Countrie Dogs, that mock mens daily Carck,
And after them, all night, at shadowes barke.
Though all Fames brazen Gates, and windowes stoode
Ope day and night, yet had her tenderd broode
Close in their priuate chambers, their owne fashion,
Silence, and Night, doe best fit Contemplation.
And as Fame said of old, that peacefull night
The Gods chiefe day was, since their chiefe delight
In fixt calme stood; Themselues in quiet still,
Earths cares to pursue, to skale their high hill;
Spend for hereafter, and thereafter thriue.
This vantage yet; These haue of men aliue,
(These liuing dead to this life,) That as they
Studying this world in chiefe, on this world prey
When they haue praid; more then these fed with prayrs;
So these that studie here, to be heauens heyrs,
(Vertue and skill pursuing, in chiefe end)
More thriftie therein are; and their oiles spend
More chearfully; and finde Truth more with ease;
For these are in the way: The couetous Prease
Of Truths Professors, (in by-waies perplext)
March like those marginall Notes that spoile the Text.
These thirsting Fames report of this Lords death,
The curious Dame, that weighs and locks vp breath,
Formd in fit words (as God doth euen our thoughts
That nothing of good men, may come to noughts)
Addrest her to be ecchoe to his words
Which (though not many) yet may teach all Lords;
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
And neither strange, nor eloquent, nor new,
Doctrine that toucheth soules, or saues, or kils,
A good man dying, vtters Oracles.
And now was Fame, aduanc’t past sight vpon
A hill of brasse, that farre the sunne outshone;
Day, and night shining; neuer going downe:
Her browes encompast, with a triple crowne:
Each chac’t with Iewels, vallewd past mens liues.
Her trumpet then she sounded, that reuiues
Men long since b
uried: to whose clanges sing
All the afflicted virtues, conquering
All their afllicters, her triumphe brauer bore
The arts (for armes) of all mens worth before;
Disparag’d worths, shew’d there, the perfect things;
And beggers worthy arts were blasd with kings:
Desert fin des meanes to vtter: Fame to holde
Both arts, and words, most secret, and most olde:
Nor doe they euer their existence leaue
Nor any that their virtues loue, deceaue.
Fame hauing summond fit attention:
And all her guests into expectance blowne:
Like the morne’s trumpe: when day is neere inflam’d:
She clapt her goulden wings, and thus proclaimd.
VIRGILIAE SECUNDAE.
When by diuine presage, this god-like Lord
Felt health decline: and knew she gaue the word,
Through all his powrs; to make a guard, for death,
Frends helthfull (sleighting still what followeth)
Nobly perswaded (as themselues would be
Toucht with the like effects of maladie,)
That his conceipt of weakenesse was too strong.
He askt them, why they wisht him to prolong
His needefull resolution to die;
As if t’were fit to feare felicitie;
Or that he doubted it; And all the chere
The hearty Scriptures did inuite to, were
Serud vp in painted dishes; and to make
(Onely for fashion) sicke men, sit, and take,
And seeme to eate to; though but as their banes,
Onely to die accounted Christians.
Hungry, to heauens feast come, and cheerefully
Eate what you wish; He teach ye all to die:
If ye beleeue, expresse it in your Hues
That best appeare in death; gainst whom who striues
Would, faithlesse, and most reasonlesse denie
‘All lawes of Nature, and Necessitie.
No fraile thing, simply is; No Flesh nor blood
Pertakes with Essence; All the flitting flood
[Of natures mortall; Birth and death doe tosse
Vpwards and downewards, euer at a losse;
Humaine Births euer are, and neuer stay,
Still in mutation; we die euery day:
Ridiculous are we then, in one death flying,
That dead so often are; and euer dying.
Ye feare your owne shades; they are fooles that make
Deaths forme so ougelie, and remembrance take
Of their dissoluing by so foule a sight,
When death presents the faire of heauenly light.
The ghostly forme, that in this world we leaue.
When death dissolues vs; wise men should conceiue
Showes well, what life is; farre from figuring death:
Am I this truncke? It is my painted sheath:
As braue young men, thinke they are, what they weare;
So these, encourage men, with what they feare.
Make death an Angell, skaling, of a heauen
And croune him with the Asterisme of seauen
To show he is the death of deadly sinnes:
A rich spring make his Robe, since he begins
Our endlesse Summer: let his shoulders spring
Both the sweete Cupids, for his either wing,
Since loue, and ioy in death, to heauen vs bring:
Hang on the Iuorie Brawne of his right arme,
A bunch of goulden keis; his left a swarme
Of thriftie Bees, in token we haue done
The yeare, our lifes toile, and our fruites haue shone
In hoonnie of our good workes, labord here:
Before his flaming bosome, let him weare
A shining Christall; since through him we see
The louely forms of our felicitie.
His thighes make, both the heauen-supporting Poles,
Since he sustaines heauen, storing it, with soules.
His left hand, let a plenties home extend:
His right, a booke to contemplate our end:
This forme, conceaue death beares, since truely this
In his effects, informes vs, what he is.
Who, in life, flies not, to inheritance giuen?
And, why not then, in death, t’inherit heauen?
Wrastlers for games, know they shall neuer be,
(Till their strife end, and they haue victorie)
Cround with their garlands, nor receiue their game,
And in our heauens strife, know not we the same?
Why striue we; not being certaine to obtaine
If we doe conquer? and because we gaine
Conquest in faith, why faint we? since therein
We lose both strife, and conquest? who will winne
Must lose in this strife; in deaths easie lists
Who yelds, subdues, he’s conquerd, that resists.
Each morning, setting forth to your affaires,
These things commend ye, to our God in praiers:
Direct me, God, in all this daies expence
As thy necessitie of prouidence
Thinks fit for me: what euer way you leade
And point out for me; I will gladly tread;
So being, thy sonne, and pious; sticke, and goe
Compeld as slaue, and my impietie slow.
And how most wretchedly shall those that beare
Authority, and swimme in riches here,
(Resisting death for them) be forc’t in feare
To goe with him; when all they can oppose,
They insolent, and impotently lose?
None of those men, that most spent oile and blood,
With studie for ioies fullest tast in good
In this life, euer could their longings fill,
Their reasons strayning through their bodies stil
Watrish and troubl’d; as through clouds and mists;
And wrestler like, rusht euer on their lists;
Too streight; and choak’t with prease to comprehend
The strugling contemplation of their end.
He that with God did wrestle, all in night;
Figurd our strife with truth here, for his light;
Which seene, through death, being but a touch ith thigh
Blessing both vs and our posteritie,
Who would not wish death? touching feare to die
For my estates disposure (whose cares lie
Heauie on some mens hearts) my sure hope is
My sonne will make, my disposition, his:
Acquiting me of any cause to feare.
And (sonne) what of my constant hopes you heare
Make spurs to proue; that what I hope, you are,
I shall leaue something worthy of your care:
Nor wast, nor labor the encrease too much,
Nor let your pleasure in their vse be such,
As at their most, their too much ioy may breede:
For you must suffer, the same naturall neede
Of parting from them, that you now beholde
Makes all my ioy in them, so deadly colde.
Let nothing seeme to you so full of merit,
As may inflame you with the greater spirit,
Nor no aduerse chance, stoope their height a haire,
But in the height and depth of ech affaire,
Be still the same, and hold your owne entire,
Like heauen, in cloudes, or finest gould, in fire.
To rise and fall, for water is, and winde:
A man, all Center is, all stay, all minde,
The bodie onely, made her instrument:
And to her ends, in all acts must consent,
Without which order, all this life hath none,
But breeds the other lifes confusion.
Respect to things without vs, hinder this
Inward consent of our soules faculties.
Thi
ngs outward therefore, thinke no further yours
Then they yeelde homage, to your inward powers,
In their obedience to your reasons vse,
Which for their order, deitie did infuse.
For when the happiest outside man, on earth
Weighs all his haps together, such a dearth
He shall finde in their plenty, euery way,
That if with solid iudgement he suruay
Their goodliest presence, he will one thought call
Of God, and a good conscience worth it all.
Nor doth th’imagind good, of ill so please
As that the best, and sweetest Images
Faind to himselfe thereof: he can make end
In any true ioy, but doe euer tend
To ioy, and grieue at once: what most doth please
Ends in sence bodilie, or mindes disease.
Why then should ill, be chusd by policie,
When no where, he can finde vacuitie
Of cares, or labors? no where rests content
With his meere selfe? at no time findes vnbent,
No, nor, vndrawne, euen compassé, his rackt minde,
His bloody arrowes to, in euery kinde
Tugg’d to the head, and ceaselesse shot away,
At flying obiects, that make flight their stay?
Horde gould, heape honors vp, build towers to heauen,
Get Capps, and knees, make your obseruance euen
With and aboue Gods (as most great ones doe)
Vnlesse you settle, your affections to,
And to insatiate appetite impose
A glutted end, your selfe, from feares, and woes
Manfully freeing, as to men that pine
And burne with feuers, you fill cups of wine,
The cholérique, honie giue, and fulsome meate
On sicke men force, that at the daintiest sweate.
Who yet, their hurtfull tempers turnd to good,
Milde spirits generate, and gentle blood,
With restitution of their naturall heate;
Euen cheese and water cresses they will eate
With tast enough: so make but strong your minde,
With her fit rule; and cates of humblest kinde
You tast with height of pleasure, turning all
Perticular to the pleasure generall.
Learne to loue truely, good, and honest things,
And you shall finde there, wealth, and honors springs
Enabling you a priuate path to treade,
As well as life, in prease of Empire leade.
Those deedes become, one greatly Noble best,
That doe most good, and pinch his greatnesse lest,
That sore not high, nor yet their fethers pull;
Neuer superfluous, euer yet at full,
That to eternall ends, in chiefe aspire,
And nothing fit, without themselues require.
The Complete Poetical Works of George Chapman Page 31