Thomas Nashe

“ It is a matter of history that Nash sought, and succeeded in obtaining for a time, the patronage of the Earl of Southampton, one of the most liberal men of his day, and a prominent figure in the declining years of Elizabeth. ”

“ In the most unlikely quarters a quarry may yet be found from which the social historian may obtain a valuable sidelight on manners and customs, the philologist a new lection or gloss, or the antiquary a solution to some, as yet, unsolved problem. ”

“ It is surely unlikely that under ordinary circumstances a printer would insert words into a text where there is no apparent omission—words, that is, which make sense and are not traceable to his eye catching some other phrase of the copy. ”

“ Yett Ouids wanton Muse did not offend.
He is the fountaine whence my streames doe flowe— Forgive me if I speake as I was taught,
A lyke to women, utter all I knowe,
As longing to unlade so bad a fraught. ”

“ It is frequently a difficult matter to say whether a change in the text of a book is accidental or not and whether, if intentional, it is due to the author or to the printer, and it is especially difficult when the changes are few in number as here, and when the work, at least in the later editions, is far from carefully printed. In the present case the problem is complicated by the fact that we possess no perfect copy of an edition which shows these variations until some ten years after the author's death. ”

“ Lambs frisk and play, the shepherds pipe all day,
And we hear aye birds tune this merry lay,
⁠Cuckoo, jug-jug, pu-we, to-witta-woo.
The fields breathe sweet, the daisies kiss our feet,
Young lovers meet, old wives a sunning sit. ”

“ Grammarians, who, hauing no more learning in their skull then will serue to take vp a commoditie, nor Art in their braine then was nourished in a seruing mans idlenesse, will take vppon them to be the ironicall Censors of all, when God and Poetrie doth know they are the simplest of all. ”

“ A pot of blew burning ale, with a fiery flaming toste, is as good as Pallas with the nine Muses on Pernassus top: without the which, in vaine they may [139] crie, O thou my Muse, inspire me with some penne, when they want certaine liquid sacrifice to rouze her forth her denne. ”

“ Nor Nilus overflowinge Egipt playne,
as is the balme that all her woombe destreynes.
“Now, oh now,” she trickling moues her lippes,
and often to and fro she lightly startes and skippes:
She yerkes her legges, and fresketh with her heeles:
noe tongue can tell the pleasures that she feeles. ”

“ We are thus driven to rely chiefly on the nature of the changes themselves. These can of course be seen in the collation-notes, but it seems useful to call attention here to some of the more important. ”

“ Let other men (as they please) praise the Mountaine that in seauen yeares bringeth forth a Mouse, or the Italianate penne that, of a packet of pilfries, affords the presse a pamphlet or two in an age, and then in disguised array vaunts Ouids and Plutarchs plumes as theyr owne; but giue me the man whose extemporall veine in any humour will excell our greatest Art-maisters deliberate thoughts; whose inuentions, quicker then his eye, will challenge the prowdest Rhetoritian to the contention of like perfection with like expedition. ”

“ Nashe, always ready to carry any war into the enemy's quarter, boldly ascribes the attacks upon plays to the envy felt by vintners, alewives, and victuallers for more respectable places of entertainment than their own, and to the indifference to greatness of avaricious citizens, who 'know when they are dead they shall not be brought upon the stage for any goodness, but in a merriment of the Usurer and the Diuel, or buying Armes of the Herald'. ”

“ Nash writes in 1593, [3] "the full spring of the Earl's liberality." Record is also made of a visit paid by him to Lord Southampton and Sir George Carey, while the former was Governor, and the latter Captain-General, of the Isle of Wight.
From internal evidence it would seem that this poem was called forth by the Earl's bounty to its author. "My muse devorst from deeper (the Rawl. MS. reads deepest) care, presents thee with a wanton elegie;" and further on, the dedication promises "better lines" which should "ere long" be penned in "honour" of his noble patron. ”

“ She shakes her feete, and waggles with her tongue:
Oh, whoe is able to forbeare so longe?
“I come, I come, sweete Ladye, by thy leaue;”
softely my fingers up theis curtaines heaue,
And send me happye stealing by degrees,
first vnto the feete, and then vnto the knees,
And so ascend vnto her manly thigh—
a pox on lingering, when I come so nighe!
Smocke, climbe apace, that I may see my ioyes,
all earthly pleasures seeme to this but toyes,
Compard be these delightes which I behould,
which well might keepe a man from being olde. ”

“ M. Phaer likewise is not to be forgot, in regard of his famous Virgill, whose heauenly verse had it not beene blemished by his hautie thoughts, England might haue long insulted in his wit, and corrigat qui potest haue been subscribed to his works. But Fortune, the Mistrisse of change, with a pittying compassion respecting Maister Stanihursts praise, would that Phaer should fall that hee might rise, whose heroicall poetry, infired, I should say inspired, with an hexameter furie, recalled to life what euer hissed Barbarisme hath been buried this C. yeere ”

“ Hir ratling silkes my sences doe confound [77] .
"Oh, I am rauisht: voide the chamber streight [78] ;
80 For I must neede's upon hir [79] with my weight."
"My Tomalin," quoth shee, and then she smilde [80] .
"I, I," quoth I, "soe more men are beguild [81]
With smiles, with flatt'ring wordes, and fained cheere [82] ,
84 When in their deedes their falsehood doeth appeare [83] ." ”

“ It is a common practise now a dayes amongst a sort of shifting companions, that runne through euery Art and thriue by none, to leaue the trade of Nouerint, whereto they were borne, and busie themselues with the indeuours of Art, that could scarcely Latinize their neck verse if they should haue neede ”

“ How is it then such bungling practitioners in principles should euer profit the Common-wealth by their negligent paines, who haue no more cunning in Logicke or dialogue | Latine then appertaines to the literall construction of either? neuerthelesse, it is daily apparant to our domestical eyes that there is none so forward to publish their imperfectiõs, either in the trade of glose or translations, as those that are more vnlearned then ignorance, and lesse conceiuing than infants. ”

“ It is curious to note that while Shakspeare and Nash both promise "graver work" and "better lines," they alike select amatory themes for their first offerings. The promise in Shakspeare's case was redeemed by the dedication to Southampton of "The Rape of Lucreece," while it may be assumed, as aforesaid, that Nash followed suit with "The Unfortunate Traveller."
Nash, however, for some cause or other failed to retain the Earl's interest; "indeed," says Mr. Sidney Lee, "he did not retain the favour of any patron long." ”

“ In the first place, it appears to have been dedicated to the Earl of Southampton, the generous patron of letters, and friend of Shakspeare; and second, it is probably the only example extant of the kind of hackwork to which Nash was frequently reduced by "the keenest pangs of poverty." [2] He confesses he was often obliged "to pen unedifying toys for gentlemen." ”

“ I know not almost any of late dayes that hath shewed himselfe singuler in any speciall Latine Poeme ; whose Amintas, and translated Antigone, may march in equippage of honour with any of our ancient Poets. I will not say but we had a Haddon, whose penne would haue challenged the Lawrell from Homer, together with Car, that came as neere him as Virgill to Theocritus. ”

“ Absurdities may acquaint you ere long with my skill in surgery, wherein the diseases of Art more merrily discouered may make our maimed Poets put together their blankes vnto the building of an Hospitall. ”

“ But the hunger of our vnsatiate humorists, beeing such as it is, ready to swallow all draffe without difference, that insinuates it selfe to their sences vnder the name of delights, imploies oft-times many thredbare wits, to emptie their inuention of their apish deuices, and talke most superficially of Policie, as those that neuer ware gowne in the Vniuersitie ”

“ But how euer their dissentious iudgements should decree in their after noone sessions of an sit, the priuate truth of my discoue-|red Creede in this controuersie is this, that as that beast was thought scarce worthy to be sacrificed to the Egyptian Epaphus, who had not some or other blacke spot on his skin: so I deeme him farre vnworthy the [127] name of a scholer, and so, consequently, to sacrifice his endeuours to Art, that is not a Poet, either in whole or in part. ”

“ In [62] the forefront of whom I cannot but place that aged father Erasmus, that inuested most of our Greeke writers in the robes of the ancient Romanes [63] ; in whose traces Philip Melancthon, Sadolet, Plantine, and many other reuerent Germaines insisting, haue reedified the ruines of our decayed Libraries, and maruellously enriched the Latine tongue with the expence of their toyle. Not long after, their emulation being transported into England [64] , euerie priuate scholer, William Turner, and who not, beganne to vant [65] their smattering of Latine in English impressions. ”

“ I am not ignorant how eloquent our gowned age is grown of late; so that euery mechanicall mate abhorreth the English he was borne too, and plucks, with a solemne periphrasis, his vt vales from the inke-horne: which I impute, not so much to the perfection of Arts, as to the seruile imitation of vaine glorious Tragedians, who contend not so seriously to excell in action, as to embowell the cloudes in a speech of comparison, thinking themselues more then initiated in Poets immortality, if they but once get Boreas by the beard and the heauenly Bull by the deaw-lap. ”

“ A prettye rising wombe without a wenne,
that shine [s] as bright as any christell gemme,
And beares out like the riseing of a hill,
at whose decline the [r] runnes a fountayne still,
That hath her mouth besett with rugged briers,
resembling much a duskye nett of wires:
A lusty buttock, barrd with azure vaines,
whose comely swellinge, when my hand restraines,
Or harmles checketh with a wanton gripe,
it makes the fruite thereof too soone be ripe,
A pleasure pluckt to tymely from his springe
it is, dyes e’re it can enioye the vsed thinge. ”

“ I come! sweete death, rocke mee.↑ entombed, intombe me.↑ my deare, my dearest saint, my deare, and dearest she.↑ For, from us yett, thy spirit maie, from us two (yett) this pleasure must.↑ Untill, Vntill; channels, Chambers.↑ Without their source, Withould themselues; imprisoned, newe prisoned.↑ will we, we will; com too, come soe.↑ whilst, whilest; speake, speke; is fleeting, in stealing.↑ fleshie, earthly.↑ but an houre, but one houre; an houre is, one houre is; so, soe↑ But, nay; if that, and if.↑ Maie be alightned with a little pause, Maye now be lengthened by a litle pawse.↑ awaie, awaye ”

“ He is a youth almost two handfulles high;
straight, round, and plump, and having but one eye,
Wherein the rheume soe fervently doth raine,
the Stigian gulfe can scarce his teares conteyne;
Running sometymes in thicke congealed glasse,
where he more like, downe into hell would passe:
An arme strong guider stedfastly him guides;
Vpon a chariot of fiue wheeles he rides,
Attird in white velvet or in silke,
And norisht with warme water or with milke,
And often alters pace as wayes growe deepe;
for whoe, in places vynknowne, one pace can keepe? ”

“ But [79] how ill their precepts haue prospered with our idle age, that leaue the fountaines of Sciences, to follow the riuers of Knowledge, their ouer-fraught studies with trifling compendiaries may testifie: for I know not how it commeth [80] to passe, by the doting practise of our Diuinitie Dunces, that striue to make their pupills pulpit-men before they are reconciled to Priscian; but those yeares which should bee imployed in Aristotle are expired in Epitomies [81] , and well too, they may haue so much Catechisme vacation, to rake [82] vp a little refuse philosophy. ”

“ Tolossa [172] hath forgotten [173] that it was sometime sacked, and beggars that euer they carried their fardels on foot-back: and in truth no maruaile [174] , when as the deserued reputation of one Roscius is of force to enrich a rabble of counterfeits. Yet [175] let subiects for all their insolence dedicate a De profundis euery morning to the preseruation of their Cæsar, lest [176] their increasing indignities returne them ere long to their [177] iugling [178] to mediocrity, and they bewaile in weeping blankes the wane of their Monarchie. ”

“ Which their dagger drunkennesse, although it might be excused with tam Marti, quàm Mercurio, yet will I couer it as well as I may with that prouerbiall fœcundicalices, that might well haue beene doore-keeper to the kanne of Silenus, when, nodding on his Asse trapped with Iuie, he made his moist nose-cloth the pausing intermedium twixt euery nappe. Let frugall scholers and fine fingered nouices take their drinke by the ounce and their wine by the halfe penny worths, but it is for a Poet to examine the pottle pots, and gage the bottome of whole gallons ”

“ Hir armes are spread, and I am all unarm'd [121] ,
124 Lyke one with Ouid's cursed hemlocke charm'd [122] ;
So are my Limms unwealdlie for the fight [123]
That spend their strength in thought of hir [124] delight.
What shall I doe to shewe my self a man?
128 It will not be for ought that beawtie can [125] .
I kisse, I clap, I feele [126] , I view at will,
Yett dead he lyes [127] , not thinking good or ill.
"Unhappie me," quoth shee, "and wilt' not stand? [128]
132 Com, lett me rubb and chafe [129] it with my hand! ”