Category: FANCIES

¹

The waves like ridges of plowed land are² high,
Whereat the ship³ oft stumbling⁴ down doth lie.
But in a calm, level as meadows seem,⁵
And by⁶ its saltness makes it look as green.
When ships thereon a slow, soft pace do⁷ walk,                   5
Then mariners, as shepherds, sing and talk.
Some whistle, and some on their pipes do play,
And thus with mirth they⁸ pass their time away.
And every mast is like a maypole high,
Round which they dance, though not so merrily                 10
As shepherds do when they their lasses bring
Garlands to maypoles,⁹ tied with silken string.¹⁰
Instead of garlands, they hang on their mast¹¹
Huge sails, and ropes to tie these¹² garlands fast;¹³
Instead of lasses they do dance with Death,                          15
And for their music they have Boreas’s breath;
Instead of wine and wassails, drink salt tears,
And for their meat they feed on nought but fears.
For flocks of sheep, great shoals of herrings swim;
The whales as ravenous wolves¹⁴ do feed on them.            20
As sportful kids skip over hillocks green,
So dancing dolphins on the waves are seen.
The porpoise, like their watchful dog, espies,
And gives them warning when great winds will rise.
Instead of barking, he his head doth¹⁵ show                         25
Above the waters when they roughly¹⁶ flow,
And like as men in time of show’ring rain¹⁷
And wind do not in open fields remain,¹⁸
But quickly run for shelter to a tree,¹⁹
So ships at anchor lie upon the sea.                                         30

²⁰

The sea’s like deserts, which²¹ are wide and long,
Where ships as horses run, whose breath is strong.
The sternman holds the reins, thereby to guide
The sturdy steed on foamy seas to ride.
The wind’s his whip, to make²² it forward run,²³                5
And on each²⁴ side, as²⁵ stirrups, serves a²⁶ gun.
The sails, as saddles, spread upon the back;
The ropes, as girts, which in a storm will crack;
The pump, the breech, where excrements come out;
The needle, as the eye, guides it about.                               10

²⁷

Imaginations high like cedars show,
Where leaves of new invention²⁸ thick do grow,
Which thoughts, as gentle winds, do blow about,
And contemplation makes those leaves to sprout,²⁹
And pleasures,³⁰ with delight, as birds, do sing                     5
On every bough, to think what fame they bring.

³¹

Thoughts as a pen do write upon the brain.
The letters which wise thoughts do write, are plain.
Fools scribble, scrabble, and³² make many a blot,
Which makes them nonsense³³ speak—they know not what.
Some³⁴ thoughts, like pencils, draw still to the life,³⁵                  5
And fancies mixed, as colors, give delight.
The sadder³⁶ thoughts are for the³⁷ shadows placed,
By which the lighter fancies are more graced.
Like as³⁸ through dark³⁹ and wat’ry clouds,⁴⁰ more bright
The sun breaks forth with his resplendent light,                      10
Or like to⁴¹ night’s black mantle, where each star
Doth clearer seem, so lighter fancies are.
Some like to⁴² rainbows various colors show;
So round the brain fantastic fancies grow.

⁴³

Standing upon⁴⁴ a hill of fancies high,
And viewing round⁴⁵ with curiosities eye,
Under my thoughts saw⁴⁶ several landscapes lie.⁴⁷

Some champains⁴⁸ of delights⁴⁹ I saw,⁵⁰ did feed
Pleasures, as wethers fat, and ewes to breed.                         5
And cows of probability, which went⁵¹
In hope’s green pastures, gave milk of content.⁵²
Some fields, though plowed with care, unsowed did lie,
Wanting the fruitful seed of industry;⁵³
In other fields, full crops of joys there growed,                      10
Where some ripe joys⁵⁴ fruition down had mowed;⁵⁵
Some blasted with ill accidents looked black,⁵⁶
Others, blown down with sorrow strong, lay flat.⁵⁷⁵⁸

Then I enclosures viewed, which close did⁵⁹ lie,
Hearts hedged about with thoughts of secrecy.                      15
Meadows of youth did pleasant show, and green;⁶⁰
Innocency, as cowslips, grew therein.
Some ready with old age to cut for hay,
Some hay cocked high for Death to take away.
Clear rivulets of health ran here and there;                            20
No sign⁶¹ of sickness in them did appear;
No stones or gravel stopped their passage free,
No weeds of pain, or slimy gouts could see.
Woods did present my view on the left side,
With⁶² trees of high ambition and⁶³ great pride.                   25
There shades of envy were made of dark spite,
Which did eclipse the fame of honor’s light.
Faults stood so close, that but few⁶⁴ beams of praise
Could enter in; spite⁶⁵ stopped up all the ways.
But leaves of prattling tongues, which ne’er lie still,⁶⁶         30
Sometimes speak truth, although most lies they tell.⁶⁷

Then did I⁶⁸ a garden of⁶⁹ beauty view,
Where sweet complexions,⁷⁰ rose and lily,⁷¹ grew.
And on the banks of breasts most perfect there⁷²
Did violets of azure veins appear;⁷³                                          35
Lips of fresh gillyflowers grew up high,
Which oft the sun did kiss as he passed by;
Hands of narcissus showed most perfect white,⁷⁴
Whose palms,⁷⁵ fine tulips, were streaked with delight.⁷⁶

Close by this gard’n⁷⁷ a lovely orchard stood,                         40
Wherein grew⁷⁸ fruit of pleasure rare and good.
All colored eyes grew there, as bullace gray,
And damsons black, which do taste best, some say.
Others there were of the pure bluest grape,
And pear-plum faces, of an oval shape,                                    45
And cheeks⁷⁹ of apricots made red with heat,
And cherry lips, which most delight to eat.
When I had⁸⁰ viewed this landscape round about,
I fell from⁸¹ fancy’s hill, and so wit’s⁸² sight went out.

⁸³
Once at imagination’s windows I,⁸⁴
Standing, a prospect in the mind did spy,⁸⁵
Shutting the ignorant eye as close may be,⁸⁶
Because the eye of knowledge clear might see,⁸⁷
Drawing a circle round of fine conceits,⁸⁸                            5
Speeches extravagant contracting straight.⁸⁹
The more I viewed, my eye the farther went,
Till understanding’s sight was almost spent.
An aisle of thoughts within a church I viewed;⁹⁰⁹¹
Filled full of fancy’s light to me it showed.⁹²                      10
Pillars of judgments thick stood on a row,
And in this aisle Motion walked to and fro.
Fear, love, humility kneeled down to pray;
Desires begged⁹³ of all that passed that way;
Poor doubts did shake as if they had some harm,⁹⁴         15
Yet mantles of good hope did keep them warm.⁹⁵
Generous⁹⁶ Faith seemed bountiful and free;
She gave to all that asked her charity.
All sorts of sects⁹⁷ in pulpits seemed to preach;
Fables for truth, no doubt, did many teach.⁹⁸                    20
Not that I heard⁹⁹ what their opinions were,
For prospect’s in the eye, not in the ear.¹⁰⁰

¹⁰¹
The mind’s a merchant, trafficking about
The ocean of the brain to find¹⁰² opinions out.
Remembrance is the warehouse where are laid¹⁰³
Goods, by imagination’s ships conveyed,¹⁰⁴
Which every¹⁰⁵ tradesman of belief still buys,                   5
Gaining by truth, but losing all¹⁰⁶ by lies.
Thoughts, as the journeymen and prentice boys,
Do help to sort the wares and sell the toys.

¹⁰⁷

Birds from the cedars tall do¹⁰⁸ take a flight
On stretchèd wings, to bear their bodies light.
As ships do sail over the ocean wide,
So birds do¹⁰⁹ sail, and through the air do¹¹⁰ glide.
Their bodies are¹¹¹ the keel; feet, cable rope;¹¹²                             5
The head, the steersman¹¹³ which doth guide the poop.
Their wings, as sails, with wind are stretched out wide,
But hard it is¹¹⁴ to fly against the tide.
For when the clouds do flow¹¹⁵ against their breast,
They¹¹⁶ weary grow, and on a bough¹¹⁷ do¹¹⁸ rest.                      10

¹¹⁸

The airy clouds do swiftly run a race,
Each other following as¹¹⁹ in a chase.
Like horses, some are sprightful, nimbl’and¹²⁰ fleet,
Others swelled big with wat’ry spavined feet.
Some¹²¹ lag behind, as tired in¹²² midway,                                     5
And some,¹²³ like resty jades, stock-still will stay.
They all of¹²⁴ several shapes and colors be,
Of several tempers, seldom well agree.
And as those horses which are¹²⁵ highly fed
Do proudly snort—their eyes look fiery red—                         10
So clouds exhaled, fed by the hot sun,¹²⁶
With sulphur and saltpetre fierce become,¹²⁷
Flash out fire when they on each other light,¹²⁸
And with those flames the¹²⁹ world with terror fright;
Meeting each other,¹³⁰ they encounters make,                          15
And do with strong assaults each other¹³¹ break,
Falling upon each other’s head and back,
Ne’er parted are, but by a¹³² thunder crack.¹³³
Then pouring down some show’rs of rain they do¹³⁴
Strong gusts of wind with their long breath out blow.¹³⁵        20
Then Boreas whips¹³⁶ them up, and makes them run
Till all their breath is spent, and spirits¹³⁷ gone.
Apollo breaks and backs them fit to ride,
Bridling with his hot beams their strengths¹³⁸ to guide;
He¹³⁹ gives them heats until they foam and sweat,                   25
Then¹⁴⁰ wipes them dry, lest they a cold should get,
Leads them into the middle-region stable,
Where are all sorts: dull, quick, weak, and¹⁴¹ able.
But when they loose do get, having no fears,
They fall together all out¹⁴² by the ears.                                      30

¹⁴³

There were two hearts an hundred acres wide,
Hedged round about,¹⁴⁴ and ditched on every side.
The one was very rich and fertile ground,
The other barren, where small good was found.

In pasture,¹⁴⁵ grass of virtue grew up high,                         5
Where noble thoughts did feed continually.
Some grew like horses, nimble, strong, and¹⁴⁶ large,
Fit for the manage, or in war to charge.
Others, like kine, did¹⁴⁷ give the milk of wit,
And cream of wisdom for grave counsels fit.                   10
The sheep of patience had wool¹⁴⁸ thick and long
Upon their backs and sides, to keep out wrong.
Rich meadows, where the hay of faith doth¹⁴⁹ grow,
Which with the scythes of reason down we¹⁵⁰ mow;
Devotion¹⁵¹ stacked it up on haycocks high,                        15
Lest in the wint’r of¹⁵² death the soul should die.

The barren ground nothing but weeds did bear.¹⁵³
No fruit, no corn, no seed that’s good grew there,¹⁵⁴
But sour rye of ill nature up did spring,¹⁵⁵
Which doth the colic of displeasure bring,¹⁵⁶                     20
And cruel hempseed, hanging ropes to make,
And treacherous linseed, little birds¹⁵⁷ to take,
And many such like seeds this ground doth bear,¹⁵⁸
As coal black brank, and melancholy tare.
Nay, some parts so insipid were, and¹⁵⁹ dry,                       25
That neither furse nor ling would¹⁶⁰ grow, but die.
The rich ground, by¹⁶¹ good education plowed,
Deep furrows of discretion had¹⁶² allowed,
And several sorts of seeds about did sow,¹⁶³
Where crops of actions good in full ears¹⁶⁴ grow:             30
First,¹⁶⁵ wheat of charity, a fruitful seed—
It makes¹⁶⁶ the bread of life the poor to feed—
Barley, whose spirits strong do¹⁶⁷ courage make,
For he that drinks them¹⁶⁸ no affront will take;
And hospitable pease¹⁶⁹ firm friendship breeds;¹⁷⁰           35
And grateful oats, restoring still good deeds.¹⁷¹
This corn by fame’s sharp scythe is reaped¹⁷² and cut,
And into large great barns of honor put.
Where Truth doth thresh it out from gross abuse,
And¹⁷³ Honesty doth grind it fit for use.                              40