chamber, who had been brought up with him; and they evince no less sweetness of temper than excellence of understanding.3

The following short epistles, addressed at an earlier period to his step-mother, and sister, convey pleasing denotations of an amiable mind: the originals are preserved in Harl. MS. 6986.

tres.

"A la tres noble et tres excellente Roine.

"Je vous mercie, tres noble et tres excellente Roine, de voz lettres lesquelles vous m'envoiastes dernierement non seulement pour la beaute de voz lettres, mais aussy pour l'invention des mesmes letCar quand je vous vostre belle escriture et l'excellence de vostre engin grandement precedant mon invention je nausois, vous escrire. Mais quand je pensois que votre nature estoit si bonne, que toute chose procedant d'un bon esprit et vouloir s[oit] acceptable, je vous ay escrit ceste lettre cy.

"De ma maison de Hampton-court.

"Charissimæ meæ Sorori Mariæ.

"EDWARD."

"Una hæc epistola ad duas res valet, charissima soror, tùm ad agendas tibi pro strena tua gratias, tùm ad explendum studium meum scribendi ad te. Strena tua talis est, ut mihi necesse sit eam plurimi facere ob dignitatem rei, et multùm probare ob donantis

amorem.

3 These letters were reprinted at Strawberry Hill, in 1772. + Voiois, MS.

"Studium meum ad te scribendi tantum est, ut quanquàm me te brevi visurum sperem, tamen cum mihi sit otium vix queam mihi ipsi satis facere nisi ad te scripseram. Non possum enim te non vehementer amare à qua sentio me plurimum diligi. Dominus Jesus te servet incolumem.

5

"Hartfordiæ, decimo Januarii.

"Amantissimus tui Frater

" EDOUARDUS Princeps."

Concerning the person of this prince, sir John Hayward informs us that he was in body beautiful ; of a sweet aspect, and especially in his eyes, which seemed to have a starry liveliness, and lustre in them. This description, Mr. Lodge thinks, is fully justified by the sketch of his portrait in the Holbein collection.

Baldwin, the original editor of the Mirror for Magistrates, closes his elegiac poem entitled "The Funeralles of King Edward VI." with the following "Death-playnt or Life-prayse of this most noble and vertuous Prince."

The noble hart which feare might never moove,
Wherin a minde with vertue fraught did rest,

A face, whose chere allured unto loove

All hartes, through tyes which pity whole possest:

The brayne, which wit and wisedome made their chest,
Fulfyld with all good giftes that man may have,
Rest with a princely carkas here in grave:

5 Scripsero, MS.

6 Transcribed from a copy of this rare tract in the possession of my friend William Fillingham, Esq. of the Inner Temple.

Whose vertuous giftes immixed with the minde,
As godly feare, with constant zeale to truth,
Such skill of tounges, and artes of every kinde,
Such manhode, prudens, justice joynd with ruth,
As age seeld hath, though here they greed with youth,
Are from their wemles undefiled hoast

Goen hence to heaven with their godly goast,

Of which two partes, belinkt in lace of life,
It pleased the Lord to lend us late a king:
But out, alas! our sins they wer so rife,
And we, so unworthy of so good a thing,
That Atropos did knap in two the string,

Before her sisters sixtene whurles had spun,

Or we the gayne of seven yeres rayne through wun.

Another printed epitaph on this prince is recorded by Herbert, which begins

Adewe, pleasure!

Gone is our treasure,

Morning' maie be our mirth:

For Edward our king,

That rose did spring,

Is vaded and lyeth in earth.8]

7 i.c. Mourning.

8 Typog. Antiquities, vol.ii. p. 1102.

QUEEN MARY.

A FEW devout pieces of her composition are preserved. At the desire of queen Catharine Parr, she began to translate Erasmus's Paraphrase on St. John; "but being cast into sickness, partly by over much study in this work, after she had made some progress therein, she left the doing of the rest to Dr. Mallet," her chaplain. This was in the reign of her brother. The good queen dowager was at the expence of procuring a translation and edition of Erasmus's Paraphrase upon the Four Gospels and the Acts, for the helping of the ignorant multitude towards more knowledge of the holy scriptures; and probably had an eye to the conversion of the princess Mary :-sufficient reason for her to relinquish it." She would not so

2 Vide Lewis's Hist. of the Translations of the Bible, p. 164. 3 Strype, vol. ii. p. 28.

4 Soon after her accession, a proclamation was issued for calling in, and suppressing this very book. Vide Fox's Acts and Monum. p. 1450, 1451.

5 [A letter from queen Katharine to the princess Mary, in Cotton MS. Vesp. F. xiii. recommends the latter to persevere in cultivating her Latin and her calligraphy; and seems to intimate that Katharine had been her earlier instructress.

"As

In the Coll" of Alex" Hendras Sutherland Efq

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