Curiosities of literature. (Repr. of the 7th ed.).

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John Murray, 1824 - Literature
 

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Page 486 - Comedy will (I think) by nobody be blamed, and much less of the high and excellent Tragedy, that openeth the greatest wounds, and showeth forth the ulcers that are covered with tissue...
Page 476 - Far, far aloof th' affrighted ravens sail ; The famish'd eagle screams, and passes by. Dear lost companions of my tuneful art, Dear as the light that visits these sad eyes, Dear as the ruddy drops that warm my heart, Ye died amidst your dying country's cries — No more I weep.
Page 481 - Full many a gem of purest ray serene The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean bear : Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, And waste its sweetness on the desert air. Some village Hampden, that with dauntless breast The little tyrant of his fields withstood, Some mute inglorious Milton here may rest, Some Cromwell, guiltless of his country's blood. Th...
Page 477 - On a rock whose haughty brow Frowns o'er old Conway's foaming flood, Robed in the sable garb of woe, With haggard eyes the poet stood (Loose his beard, and hoary hair Streamed like a meteor to the troubled air), And with a master's hand, and prophet's fire, Struck the deep sorrows of his lyre.
Page 415 - Sogni e favole io fingo; e pure in carte Mentre favole e sogni orno e disegno, In lor, folle ch'io son, prendo tal parte, Che del mal che inventai piango e mi sdegno.
Page 484 - Oh ! had he been content to serve the crown With virtues only proper to the gown, Or had the rankness of the soil been freed From cockle that oppressed the noble seed, David for him his tuneful harp had strung And Heaven had wanted one immortal song.
Page 494 - ... human, angel, man, Beast, bird, fish, insect, what no eye can see, No glass can reach; from Infinite to thee, From thee to nothing. On superior...
Page 480 - There has of late arisen a practice of giving to adjectives, derived from substantives, the termination of participles ; such as the cultured plain, the daisied bank ; but I was sorry to see, in the lines of a scholar like Gray, the honied spring.
Page 239 - Là, content du succès que le mérite donne, Par d'illustres avis je n'éblouis personne ; Je satisfais ensemble et peuple et courtisans , Et mes vers en tous lieux sont mes seuls partisans : Par leur seule beauté ma plume est estimée : Je ne dois qu'à moi seul toute ma renommée; Et pense toutefois n'avoir point de rival A qui je fasse tort en le traitant d'égal.
Page 151 - Master Jonson (like the former) was built far higher in learning ; solid, but slow in his performances. Shakespeare with the English man-ofwar, lesser in bulk, but lighter in sailing, could turn with all tides, tack about and take advantage of all winds, by the quickness of his wit and invention.

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