That is, queen Elizabeth, whom in another place he calls a PEERLESSE POETESSE *, Again, And hath he skill to MAKE fo excellent, The author of the Arte of English Poefie generally uses MAKER for POET, ПOIнTHE, and if we believe Sir J. Harrington, it was that author who first brought this expreffion, the fignificancy of which is much commended by Sir P. Sydney, and Jonson, into fashion about the age of queen Elizabeth. " Nor to dispute "how high and supernatural the name of a MAKER “is, so christned in English, by that unknowne god"father, that this last year fave one, viz. 1589, fet "forth a booke called the Arte of English Poefie ‡.” His name is Puttenham. B. i. c. vii. f. xxxiii. But all of diamond perfect pure and cleene. Mr. Upton proposes to read sheene inftead of CLEENE. But if this alteration is neceffary here, is it not likewife equally fo in the following verses ? Colin Clout, &c. + Aprill. Apology for Poefie, before Ariofto. And And that bright towre all built of cryftall CLEENE. Again, 1. 1. 58. From whence the riuer DEE, as filver CLEENE His tumbling billows rolls. And in Sonnet xlv. Leave lady in your glaffe of crystal CLEENE. 1.9.4. Harrington, in a translation of an epigram of James I*. on Sir Philip Sydney's death, uses CLEAN, as an epithet to Venus's carknet, i. e. necklace. She threw away her rings and carknet cleene †. In Chaucer, CLEAN is attributed to fun-beams. The golden treffid Phœbus high on lofte The fnowis molte §. B. v. c. vii. f. xiv. And fwearing faith to eyther on his blade. * The latin epigram was first printed in the Cambridge collection, on Sydney's death; published by Alexander Nevill. 1578. † Notes on B. 37. Orl. Fur. The printed copies read CLERE. CLENE, to make out the rhyme with But the poet marifeftly wrote grene, and quenes CLENE is the reading in a manufcript of Troilus and Creffida, formerly belonging to Sir H. Spelman, Tr. and Cr. b. 5. v. 9. M 2 Mr. Mr. Upton obferves, that we have here an instance of Spenfer's learning, and that he makes his knights fwear by their swords, agreeably to fuch a custom practiced among the Goths and Hunns, and related by Jornandes, and Ammianus Marcellinus. But I am inclined to believe, that our author drew this circumstance from books that he was probably much better acquainted with, old romances *. In MORTE ARTHUR we have frequent instances of knights fwearing in this manner. The fame ceremony occurs again, In another place, one of the knights swears by his knighthood; an oath which we likewife frequently meet with in romance. As he did on his knighthood fweare. 6. 3. 18. B. ii. c. vi. f. v. More swift than fwallow SHERES the liquid sky. *Mr. Upton, [Letter to G. Weft, pag. 17. 19.] while he is profeffedly speaking of Spenfer's imitations from the romance writers, by specifying only fuch romance writers as Heliodorus and Sydney, did not appear, at that time, to have had any notion of the SPECIES of romances in which Spenfer was principally converfant, and which he chiefly copied I mean the romances of the dark ages, founded on Saraeen fuperftitions, and filled with giants, dwarfs, damfels and enchanters. Mr. : Mr. Upton produces the expreffion of fheres the liquid sky, as one of Spenfer's latinisms, from RADIT iter liquidum; and adds, that Milton has likewise used the fame latin metaphor; I suppose the passage hinted at by Mr. Upton, is, where Satan, SHAVES With level wings the deep*. But fhave and fhear are perhaps as different as rado and tondeo. And TONDET iter liquidum would, I believe, be hardly allowed as fynonymous to RADIT iter liquidum. My opinion is therefore, that Spenfer here intended no metaphor, but that he used SHERE for fbare, to cut or divide, as he has manifeftly in this inftance. Cymocles fword on Guyons fhield yglaunft 2.6. 31. "cut away nigh one quarter." And in the following inftances, for the reason above affigned, we ought to interpret SHEARE [fhere] to cut, or divide. Which with their finny oars the fwelling fea did SHEARE. And thro' the brackish waves their paffage SHEARE. 3. 4. 33. 3.4. 42. So Milton, of Michael's fword. Paradise Loft. b. 2. v. 34. Deep Deep-entering SHAR'D All his right fide*. Again, in the fame fenfe in Spenfer. Each on the other flew And fhields did SHARE. 4. 2. 17. In Colin Clout it is literally used for divided. Firft into manie partes his ftreame he SHAR'D. In the Ruins of Rome, for cut. So foone as fates their vital thread had SHORNE. And in Skelton. In time of harveft men their corne SHERE t. So in Gower. And manie [herbs] with a knife she SHERETH I. Hence fhare is ufed fubftantively, in the fame fense. Hence too, SHARD, aliquid divifum, exfectum, as in FOTSHARD, Pf. 2. v. 9. and our author, 6. 1. 37. *Paradife Loft, b. 6. ver. 326. ‡ Confeffio Amantis, lib. 5. fol. 105. edit. Berthelette, 1554. fol. The |