Political Satire in the Middle Ages

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All r igh ts r e se r ve d PO LITIC AL SAT IR E

I N

EN G LISH PO ET RY

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forme rly Fo u n da tion Schola r of

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” BEI THE ME BERS PRI! E ESSAY FOR 1 0 8 NG M 9

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I T D B Y J OHN CLAY MA. P R N . E ,

AT THE UN IVERSITY pru ne s . A ITT J . R . T NNER L . D.

IN MEMORY OF

MUCH KINDNESS CON TENTS

CRAP . Prefa ce

t t n a a I . In roduc io : Politic l S tire in the Middle Ages

a : II . S tire under the Despots Development of Modern Verse

The Development of Pa rty- Sa tire

The Sa tiric Age

The Da ys of Fox a n d Pitt

o Pia e d a n d r M ore, the Modern Mocke y Rhyme

a of h VII . The Elev ted Sa tire t e Nineteenth Century

l VIII . Conc usion Index PREFACE

HE following pages were written for th e

’ P of 1 0 Members English Essay rize 9 8 . Besides i separate ed tions of the respective poets, I have

’ P olit used the following collections T . Wright s ica l S on gs of E n gla n d f r om th e r eign of J oh n to

h a t o E dwa r d I I P olitica l P oem s a n d S on s t f , g r e l tin to E n lish H is tor com ose d du r in th e a g g y , p g per iod f r om th e a ccession of E dwa r d I I I to th a t o Rich a r d I I I P olitica l B a lla ds u blish ed f , and p

’ in E n gla n d du r in g th e Com m on we a lth ; Chalmers ’ E n glish P oe ts Percy s R e ligu es ; P oem s on

Af a ir s of S ta te and S ta te - P oem s ; Th e L oy a l ’ l t l Ga r la n d . o i ica l B a la ds o ; W W. Wilkins P f th e 17th a n d 18 th cen tu r ies a n n ota te d ; a n d Th e

r A N e w Wh ig a n d N ew To y Gu ides . mong the critical works consulted I owe a special debt to

’

P Cou r th o e s H is tor P t . rof. p y of E n glish oe r y

to a I also wish record my th nks to Dr J . R. Tanner for a n d his criticisms suggestions .

. P . 0 . C . W

J a n u a r y 19 10.

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION : POLITICAL SATIRE IN THE MIDDLE AGES

From the aesthetic point of view there lies a justiﬁcation of the historical trea tment of litera ture in the fu ller enjoyment of literature which it

a a a gives . Even m sterpieces g in if we are acqu inted

with the surroundings their authors worked in ,

the predecessors whose teaching they bettered, the disciples who endeavoured to make their peculiar

a chievement a common possession . But minor works depend still more for their effect on ou r further knowledge of the society within which they

a o were written . We h ve t use events and social structure and opinions as chemicals to restore the

a faded tints of these less lasting pictures . Yet fter all literature is itself the best guide we have to aid us in reconstituting the conditions among which it

a n d a a grew. Events soci l f cts give us a frame

do v a work, but they not pro ide series of photo gra phic impressions of contemporary ideas and

. f notions That is done by literature, in spite o its

o tendency, the greater the author the more t

O . 2 INTRODUCTION

blend the exceptional and the frequent, past and

a r e present. Thus alone, for the most part, we enabled to ana lyse those shifting currents of the

e national consciousness, an ocean where ach ” n kind Doth straight its own resemblance ﬁ d.

- They form an ever varying complex, which yet in its main elements a n d in the methods of its com position has an aspect of permanence .

of a of From this function liter ture, as a record successive phases of thought and culture, is derived a value of literary history apart from aesthetic

of a reasons . We can trace the growth nation l

a qu lities, and their interaction with the national

Bu t a to fortunes. there is nother side the matter, on which the study of literary works and even of

h a s a ephemeral writings a rem rkable importance .

to to They aid us attain historical perspective, see

“ ” things as they really were . For they show us what was thought by contemporaries of events and opinions that we see only through dissembling

of . a mists time Ideas now grown cl ssic, deeds

a a r e that loom heroically to the im gination , shown to us in the dry light in which their a ctors and

An d a originators saw them . the contr ry holds

r true as well . Sometimes what to ou predecessors

of was full meaning, pregnant with destiny, holding

to to the key the world, has become empty us . The theory has vanished like another : the imagined source of the future has given birth to

of b - a pitiful stream y events. LITERATURE AND POLITICS

The process of such an investiga tion brings its d b u t a isillusions ; , if it takes way from the romance of Pa a the st, it adds to its re lity, and also, though

a n perhaps this is unworthy attraction, to its

a r e to a t s trangeness . We made alive the f c that the Elizabethans wore doublet and hose, that their da ily habits of life and government were s uch and such, and that, in consequence, they ff took for granted a di erent world to ours . If their conclusions appear often unjustiﬁable t o a ff us, it is largely a m tter of their di erent premises .

Thus the study of literature, and in particular of a a a politic l literature, is necessary f ctor in the

’ a r t to of history. How else are we follow Ranke s ma xim a n d narrate events a s they actually hap pened ? How else can we make a n a pproach to fairness in ou r conceptions of former genera tions ? We are to judge the a ctors in politica l and s a do oci l development, as we generals in a c a m

a i n a a a p g , by the qu lities they displ y mong the prepossessions, the doubtful knowledge, the chang ing rumours, which come in to them day by day ; not from ou r own va ntage - ground of complete informa tion as to ea ch momenta ry posture of a ffairs and of preacquaintance with the later course of the war. We m a y subdivide literature in its political bearing into three compartments, which, however, are far from isola ted or even sharply marked off on e

1—2 4 INTRODUCTION [on

from another. There are ﬁrst those writings which professedly discuss state - affairs and the organization of we society in a serious spirit. In this division

’ may include such diverse classics as Rousseau s

’ Con tr a t S ocia l A We a lth , and dam Smith s of

N a tion s of a s , such histories as that Clarendon , well as the inﬁnite number of tracts and articles on political themes . But though the information it they provide is the best and the most exact, suffers from various defects . There is the narrow

of ness view Of the practical man, the sectional

of t exclusiveness strong convictions, and tha tendency to theorize fa r beyond surrounding cir c u m sta n ce s which increases with the genius of th e authors : all defects which serve to distort th e true image of the time, although by comparing on e with another much may be done to give a correct general impression . A partial remedy is also supplied by the second category, the incidental light thrown on politics 1 R c on su m by pure literature . anke showed with ma te skill h ow the literature of the Cinquecento illustrates its politics, even when no political refer

a An d a ence is therein m de. the Victori n novelists, on e t would think, will furnish hereafter the mos rea listic data on ou r society a n d the atmosphere in which ou r formal opinions exist. This possi b ility offers a n ot very cheerful prospect for the

1 H is tor o th P B 1 3 a n d 4 B I V e o e s 1 C a . 1 Se . . y f p , ook . p . cts , ook

S 9 . ect. I ] POLITICAL SATIRE

- historians of the future . But then belles lettres a ppeal to a limited public . They were far from h a ving too wide a n inﬂuence among the cla sses

a which count in politics, even in the aristocr tic a n d a of a n d leisurely d ys the past, their present m of ent, by description or implication, contemporary life is also tinged by that natural preference for

n ot to a the ideal, say the unre l, which characterises works of the imagination . The third ca tegory is formed by direct political s a tire, both that in prose which would include no inconsiderable pa rt of politica l speeches and news

a a paper rticles, and th t in verse which forms the

of N s ubject the present essa y. othing can be m ore obvious than the defects of satire . We

in c om meet with unfairness, untruth, irrelevance,

l n n d p e te e ss a overcharging at every step . It has the misfortune to be ephemeral in its most character istic a forms, for s tires of genius tend to gravitate to the depa rtments either of belles - lettres or of

s . erious discussion Still it possesses great merits .

' wa s m for a It co posed the gener l public . We may thence conclude that its contents lie wholly within th e of ideas the time . It was written to be ff We e ective. may therefore trust its vra isem bla nce a n d a the popularity of its rguments . Its very

or narrowness is that of the man in the street ,

o of ff - to g back to earlier times, the co ee house

a n d P politician the medieval burgess . erhaps it is not too much to say that in reading political sa tires INTRODUCTION [on

we need never be afraid of stumbling on the a n a ch r o

or a of nous the exception l, save course in mere ff technique and execution . In short they o er an admirable means towards reconstructing th e

N o medium in which past politics existed. doubt they are a quite subordinate Object of historical

its inquiry, but one none the less valuable within limitations .

While, however, political satires cast many side - lights on the state - events with which they

th e are concerned, they also have their place in

of m history of literature for its own sake. Most the indeed could hardly hold a lower rank in art than

a they do, but in English at any rate there are

of i r number brill ant exceptions, which by thei intrinsic merit hold a foremost place ; and this is

a fe w specially true of those in verse, which in favoured instances even rise to the level of

a for is poetry. The chief re son this distinction doubtless the high sta te of political development reached by England in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries , which naturally produced

ff b e its e ect in literature. But there would also the inﬂuence of the practical English character

h c to m w i h! ! turned

a n d a n d did n ot 0 events policies, spend itself

i Mt eas il vague theories, which lend them selves to the sim licit assion of verse .

a m a of h But the f ous s tires the best period, wit

a a t their expressions of p rty policy and p r y hatred, I ] EARLY ANTI - CLERICAL SATIRES 7

were led up to by a long development. This is what we might expect . The highly specialized satire of la ter times has been the product of the highly specialized English constitution and its most

- a . peculiar organ, the p rty system What is really m ore rema rkable is the very ea rly a ppearance of portents of this evolution . The process begins with those general c om pla ints of the Evils of the Times which are made

a justly enough a t any epoch . The e rliest preserved

a to a a appe r d te from the reign of King John, very

a natur l period, when we consider that the welding of the English into a self- conscious na tion was nea ring its completion under the unwilling a u

of a a a spices that monarch. Of course s tiric b ll ds

a ll ‘ would exist before in probability, but their preservation shows the interest they now a roused C among the political classes . uriously enough there is something to be said against the citation of these compositions as English politica l balla ds a t all ; for they are written n ot against King or

a Barons, with hits at M gna Carta and the due

a of a a sc le reliefs, but g inst the corruptions of the Church ; and their language is La tin or N orman

. a to French, never English But we h ve take account of the spirit which a nimates them and

of the circumsta nces the time. The Church under Innocent III was the grea test political orga niza tion extant : the educated classes in the yea r 1200 i would blush to write in Engl sh . Then their more I-I THE MIDDLE AGES [C .

la essential characters are y and national . They are invectives against the defects of the political

A of structure of the Middle ges, which the Church

a a formed the most organized p rt. It is the n tional

of P of grievances apal exactions, misused endow

of ments and the ecclesiastical courts, with which

n ot they are concerned, with theological discussions or o heresy and schism . It is amusing t us to read their irate descriptions of those church - Ofﬁc ia ls wh o harassed every - da y life for its peccadilloes ;

of the archdeacon, most hated all, with his little

oo : court for t frequent steps aside the rural dean,

a who, it seems, could make himself very unple sant, “ ” 1 a a d a e te rn a s . t ff insidias n tus S ill to the su erers, wh o were tried under the elaborate Canon La w with its keen cross - examination and its scale of

ﬁnes, it can have been no laughing matter, and the grieva nce was n ot lightened by the gay life which the rigorous and inquisitive clerics sometimes led .

too of The expense, , their procedure with regard to such matters as wills marriages and contracts, which lay within their j urisdiction, was naturally

N or ca n a irksome . we very well blame the s tirists for n ot do seeing as we that the odious courts, which covered the land like a net and intervened

a n d a at the birth, death marri ge of everyone

a mulctable, were raising the standard of ccepted

a v of A morality from the b rbaric le el the Dark ges .

1 On e function of th e rura l d e a n wa s to prese nt ca s e s for the ’ a h e a o rc d c n s court .

THE MIDDLE AGES [OIL

wh o n o orders, were by means segregated from th e

to l a world, even the smal extent a p rson might be . These men n o doubt helped to form the views of

to is their neighbours, but their value us perhaps

a a chieﬂy th t they reﬂect feelings f irly general . There is almost a bourgeois tone to be found in

n o their compositions . At the same time it is t th e f o . austerer side life they suggest Young scholars, P fresh from aris, were not likely to be the most

of regular men . They would often be gay wanderers,

to t living from hand mouth, with a grudge agains staid persons wh o had attained preferment. But it is possible tha t a greater man than th e

a s ruck of Goliards, the less reputable clerks were

At a n called, took up the style . y rate the author of Golia s a a wa s , the most f mous s tire on the clergy,

to a of later supposed be W lter Map, the courtier

a n d a Henry II, other Latin poems, in a simil r vein, “ ” of l ascribed to Golias, the father the Go iards, were thought his . One composition may be quoted, which attacks not the amphibious bishops of the king, but

P u the apal Curia itself. It would be a hazardo s conjecture to say that it had ofﬁcial inspiration ; still

n ot it could have been disagreeable to King John, as it appeared during his quarrel with Rome, when

England lay under the Interdict . Besides, the early Angevin kings were by preference ﬁrm in insisting on the rights of the Crown and of the secular state as against the claims of the Church . Henry II had begun the long contest between the Comm on and I] THE BARONS ’ WAR

the Civil Law over the grea t debatable tract of criminal and civil jurisdiction to which both ecclesiastic a n d secular state made mutually ex

clu sive pretension and the success, which he obta ined in spite of his striking defeat in the Becket

v to controversy, ga e the general tone English policy

N or wa s till the Reformation . the tendency con ﬁned to Engla nd alone the ra pacity of the Curia “ ’ wa s a n d a grievance of Christendom, Golias satire is at most edged by the sha rper English

a ll a of a contest. With its f ults biz rre, infantine art

there is no denying the wit of his invective .

a a sin u los e t sin u lor u m Rom c pit g res g , R m n or u m a o a curi non est nisi forum . ve n a lia a se n a tor u m Ibi sunt iur , E lvi a a a n u m m or u m t so t contr ri copi .

a a ta n im u s a a P p , si rem g , nomen h bet re, h a b e n t a a a Quicquid lii, solus vult p p re ; Ga llic u m a a Vel si verbum vis pocop re, ae a le m ot a P z, P ez, dit , si vis impetr re .

In compa ring this sa tire on the Curia with that

on on e sa the Three Bishops, feels tempted to y that alrea dy the two leading va rieties of English satire

appear in embryo, the popular ballad and the

lea rned invective . Both were to become more

a n d a is in natural more rtistic, as they grew to d t c

of tive forms, but the root the matter is there. The Hudibrastic rhyme a n d the learned mockery of

a Golias have some f int kinship with Butler, as the lighter vein of the a ttack on the Bishops is an

of Pr a e d unconscious predecessor . H THE MIDDLE AGES [O .

The same complaints continue during the shift

of less rule Henry III, with greater cause, but less

merit . Towards the end of the reign, however, the disputes between the King and the Barons give a f hi fresh impetus to satire . One symptom o t s may be seen in the Compla in t of th e Ch u r ch ( 1 25 6) on the taxation raised by the King and Pope Alexa nder IV for their scheme to drive the

Hohenstaufen from Southern Italy.

’ n e a n e a ltr e m e n t Li rois l postolle pensent , Mes a u tol n r a coment clers e t lur o e t lur rgent.

N ow for the ﬁrst time two clearly deﬁned national

parties appear in English history, each with a

political progra mme and conscious ideals . There had been progress in collective national feelin g

a since the da ys of John . The separ tion from the A erstwhile French possessions of the ngevins, the frequent Parliaments since 1 2 1 5 with their more

e ﬂilu x of representative character, and the mere time which allowed the slow inﬂuences of tra de

a ff and government to t ke e ect, all combined

a to incre se and solidify an English patriotism . Thus it is a curious coincidence that the earliest political ballad in English which h a s come down to

’ us is a song of triumph over the Ba rons victory at 12 4 Lewes in 6 . Its excellence presupposes Older

l s b u t n ow bal ad indeed, the guiding classes of the population clea rly felt the a ppeal of the English

How tongue . vigorous it is, may be seen from a

brief quotation . TH E B A TTLE OF LE WE S

lm i n The Kyng of A a g e wende do ful wel, sa is e de l c a a He the mu u for c stel, a a swe r de s r ou n de With h re sh rpe he g the stel, He wende tha t the sa yles were ma ngonel

to helpe Wyn de sor e . a a a Rich rd, th h thou be ever trich rd,

tr ich e n sha lt thou never more .

P of oor Richard Cornwall, the King of Germany

n ot e a so here assailed, did p rh ps deserve severe a

of - scorn, but he shared the fate all cross benchers

n ot and friends of moderate reform . It was to be expected that the party he went a quarter of the way with a n d then deserted would a ppreciate the

a fact th t he wished for good government, and yet

’ n ot a the destruction of his roy l brother s power.

wa s a Besides, he p tron of the hated Jews and

- sha red in their proﬁts . Yet to the thorough going Simon de Montfort both his foreign extraction and

his greed of possessions were forgiven . The taint

a b a of unf irness, already visi le in the ttacks on the

a a a Church, is in f ct ne rly insepar ble from political

n ot satire, which is nothing if it is pointed with

or a ma lice indign tion . A nobler production is the Latin B a ttle of L ewes . It is, however, only partially a satire, being in essence a sobe r statement of the case of the

Pa baronial party. ssages of invective are rare,

th e the description of future Edward I, with its ‘ a to a a a a llusion his rmori l be rings , st nding almost

alone .

1 Th e a h se h F e h b a z r e a s i ut or u s t e r nc l on y of l op rd , not l ons, for th e hi roya l s e ld . THE MIDDLE AGES

Cui c om pa r a b itu r nobilis Edwa r du s ? om in a i u r L o r du s Forte n b t recte e pa . m u Si nomen dividi s leo ﬁt e t pa rdus .

su e r b ia m e t fe r ocita te m Leo per p , Est per in c on sta n tia m e t va rie ta te m a a a e t r om ission e m P rdus, verbum v ri ns p , lli n i n Per pla ce n te m pa a s se locu t o e m . Cum in a rcto fuerit quicquid vis pr om ittit ; m x u t e va s e r it r m issu m dim it i Sed o p o t t. Even here the author quickly turns to an elevated

and unembittered tone.

0 Edwa r de ! ﬁe r i vis rex, sine lege ; Vere forent miseri recti ta li rege ! N a m r c tiu s u a a r e u n tu r quid lege e q cunet g , Et quid iure ve r iu s quo res disc e r n u n tu r ? de side r a s a Si regnum , leges vener re ; a da b it a a a Vi s sper s leges impugn re, Aspera s e t in via s qua e te non pe r du c e n t ; u n a Leges si custodia s t lucer lucent.

a This appeal to law, which perhaps re lly inﬂuenced

Edward and the future through him, strikes a familiar note in English history and surely it has

never been made in a ﬁner spirit. Its moderation

and dignity rest on a foundation of good sense . A la w- a biding habit has been instilled into the race by

the continuity and regu larity of their institutions .

on e wh o Our author was of those , taught by Latin

to theology, helped to raise an habitual preference

of the rank an idea. The same fairness and patriotism run through

s of the re t the poem . We hardly have to deduct

’ the outburst a gainst the King s advisers and foreign friends . a m ta le s u e a Quid si t les iseri , q mend ces, Adh a e r e r e n t a a a l teri princi is, c p ces Totiu s m alitia e fra u dis a ls ita tls , , I ] TH E B A TTLE OF LE WE S 1 5

’ Th e a s too King s case, perhaps, is given purely f a h eud l . W y should the King be fettered in the e of w xercise his rights, when the barons ere n ot of ? in the exercise theirs Yet the writer, t a a a hough somewh t dimly, sees th t kingship is d ff e a i erent thing from f ud l lordship. Only God could rule uncounselled a n d without re strictions : n or does power a mong men mean the free in du l

of a a g ence c price . Then with ﬂash of insight he declares that a ctua l power depends on persona l c a a N o a h r cter. prerogative could m ke the unﬁt lea d .

Durum est diligere se non dilige n te m ; Durum non de spic e r e se de spicie n te m ; Durum non resistere se destituenti ; Con ve n it a la u d r e su s ci i n i pp e se p e t .

Th e evils from ba ronia l tyranny can be remedied b b u t r o y the feudal superior, the King the evils p c e e din g from a n unwise sovran can only be remedied by the community .

Igitur c om m u n ita s regni c on su la tu r ; t u a s e n tia t s cia tu r quid universit s , , l o a a n a Cui eg s propri e m xime sunt ot e . cu n c ti r ovin cia e idiota e Nec p sic sunt , a c a e te r is Quin sci nt plus regni sui mores, r e lin u u n t oste r is Quos q p hii qui sunt priores . The King rules by and under the law which governs a ll a n d to things, the law for men is be found in c a n d w a ustom precedent, to be kno n as loc l rights w of A ere known by the Inquests the ngevins . N othing could be more English than all this, and perha ps the sa me applies to the rather lame con c lu sion ; tha t the King should therefore rule with 1 6 THE MIDDLE AGES

of to the counsel his barons, whose veiled oligarchy “ l the universitas suddenly dwindles . Yet after a l this was as far as the subdivision of authority cou ld

o then proﬁtably g . On the whole the poem leaves

of an impression consistent thought and high ideals .

too to a It is hardly much say th t, curiously groping a s n it is in its medieval way, it strikes the key ote of English political development . It would seem that there is generally a lowering of a a tone, as a gre t politic l change progresses . Details and wa ys and means have to be worked ou t , lesser men join the ﬂowing tide, and a some ff what sordid, but e ective, practicality succeeds the

of O a visions genius . S it has h ppened in the r e

N a n d volutions of the ineteenth Century, the same process is n ot less visible as the despotism of the Angevins changes into the less potent monarchy

A - of . the Edwards gain, party divisions became obscured clear issues dropped ou t of sight under

a the great ﬁrst Edward . We ﬁnd ourselves gain

on of among ballads the evils the times, heavy a m e a t xation Non est lex sana, quod regi sit — lana and corrupt oppressive judges . One Latin skit on the latter is lively enough . Undue inﬂuence of to various kinds, it seems, could be brought bear upon the bench .

a a Sed si qu ed m nobilis, l a a a Pu cr vel m bilis, a cum c pite cornuto, a ir c u m volu to uro c , A c ce da t a d indicium, a H ec expedit negotium , or e suo muto .

18 THE MIDDLE AGES which forms the last line of a quatrain for such

of as are composed in stanzas . The knowledge the medieval writer was a patc hwork of all sorts and

for of a of sizes, but him it was all equal v lue, part

’ the world s accumulated lore . The French and

too of Scottish wars , , produced a new kind satire,

to of the abuse, put it plainly, inimical foreign

to nations, which was be cultivated with greater skill in the reign of Charles II . Four lines on

Ph of h ow ilip France will show bad it can be .

O e r u s Ka r olu s a Olive ru s Deﬁcit g , , Rodl nd, , da t a a a Cor tibi pes leporis, per tibi f ct leporis. In proprio clima t tibi dicit a per cito ch e km a t : e c live r e t a ﬁr e t N dices , lepus es, per est tibi .

The boar wh o plays this exceedingly technical game of chess is of course Edward III . Certainly the new feelin g of national identity deserved a better singer than this satirist.

A popular king and a successful war do not,

for however, present the best environment the growth of politica l satire . The evils Of the decline of Edward III and the misgovernment under

II r e viviﬁe d Richa rd not only the genre of writing, but provided at least one really eminent sa tirist for

English poetry . At this point we are met with the new difﬁculty a s to whether the reviser (B) of P ie r s th e P low m a n in 13 76 be the same a s the origina l author 1 ( or authors) of the poem (A) in 13 6 1 But after

’ 1 h e in th e C a m b r id e H is tor o M. M a J . a S e e Prof. nly s c pt r g y f

ite r a tu r e . II . E n glis h L , Vol I P I E R THE P L OWMAN ] S a ll to it is hardly necessary state an opinion here, for so fa r i , as pol tics are concerned, B adds fervour and detail to the hea ds of an indictment a or A lready formulated implied by , and C, the la test revision (la ter tha n enjoys the beneﬁt of the genius of the former versions . In any case the political side of the poem in all its forms is due to its genera l denunciation of the Evils of the Times, corrupt clergy, corruptjudges, corrupt

r o ministers . It does indeed show us the steady p

a a gress to an rchy the n tion was making, with its development arrested by the French wars and the

a a Black De th, its soci l order decaying and its a la dministration, both y and ecclesiastical, in many

a of respects vex tious . The inspiration of much the poetry need only be alluded to : the politica l

a philosophy contained does not, perh ps, deserve

a a n d a gre t praise, compares unf vourably with that of to the B a ttle of L ewe s . The King is rule as a

a n d a a n d monarch, be guided by Re son Conscience, l so a l . and, this being , will be well The Community

a a m m a to a will gr nt ple e ns such a prince. In f ct,

a n d ou A a Be good y will be happy. s call to

e a a righteousness, the po m t kes a high pl ce but it

to a a belongs prophetic, more th n to politic l litera

a n d e ture, somehow or oth r it does not give that

of a impression intellectu l eminence, which makes the most whimsical schola stic the ology of Dante

a . a to a bear ble But, perh ps, it is ungrateful m ke

de sc r i such a criticism, remembering the vivid p

2— 2 H THE MIDDLE AGES [O .

r tions, the lifelike impersonations, and the peculia

of worthiness the poem . From the historical point of view on e noticeable fact about it is the evidence it gives of th e

- of approaching break down the medieval polity. It is n ot merely that there were grievances ; b u t the very remedies for grievances and the in stitu tions on which medieval society rested had become

a oppressive . In the Church, the courts Christi n were corrupt and a source of petty irritation th e Friars too Often summed up popular vices herm its

of were an odious description rogue, not easily distinguishable from the va liant beggars soon to

a appear in legislation . The law courts g ve decisions

a wa s of for fear or fa vour. L dy Mede the aim both

of i clerk and layman . The meaning th s indictment

a is cle r, when we consider that these institutions represented the progress of civilization and th e means devised to protect the weak against th e strong which were the outcome of two hundred

f f N o o . h e years e fort wonder the author, whether

or e be the traditional Langland another, took refug

a of a like D nte in the idea the good mon rch, though he did not perceive to the degree Dante did th e “ of 7 5 a ) 1) to b e need organizing society, if 65 was obtained . Yet in some ways he is more advanced

on than the Florentine . The stress he lays inward

h a s s religion, it been ju tly remarked, shows the stirrings of the spirit which was to inspire the Re

s formation . Dante is never happy with his deepe t M P I E RS THE P L OW AN

’ ” e L motions, and theyare far deeper than angland s, till he has provided them with a formal classiﬁcation a n d so to f , say, an o ﬁcial channel by which they are ff to take e ect. The second version (B) of P ier s th e P low — m a n was composed in the last year ( 13 76 7) of P Edward III, at a time when the Good arliament had just attempted to correct notorious abuses . A result of its date is seen in the very inartistic interpola tion of the Fa ble of the Rats and Cat

P a s its h ow in the rologue. Blot it is on context, ever, it has considerable vivacity, and contains

a moreover the directest politic l satire in the poem. The Good Parliament is here described as a “ route of ratones a nxious to protect themselves against “ ” - of ill treatment by a cat a courte, Edward III . A raton of renon thereupon advises belling the

o a a of cat. His pr pos l is immedi tely adopted, but

a course none d re perform the operation . Then a w d ise mouse gives them his Opinion, and remin s them of the worse times suffered when the cat is

to - a kitten, an evident allusion the child heir,

Richard . The cat is a useful animal,

For m a y no renke there rest h a ve for ra tones bi n ygh te ; The while he c a cch e th c on yn ge s ' he cove ite th nought owre ca r oyn e But fet h ym al with ve n e sou n a b m def me we y neuere. For better is a litel losse ! a a s or w th n longe e , The ma se a m on ge u s a lle o m ss e a s h r w though we y c e e . 22 THE MIDDLE AGES

For ma ny ma nnus ma lt

we mys wolde destruye, And a lso ye route of ra tones

rende menues clothes, Nere tha t c a t of tha t courte ? tha t c a n yow ou e r le pe ; For h ad ye r a tte s yowr e wille r u l wr s lu e ye couthe nought e e yo e e . I sey for me ! quod the mous 1 a se so mykel fter, Sha l neuer the ca t n o the kitoun ' r e u e d bi my conseille be g , Ne ca r pyn g of this coler o a th t costed me neure. And though it h a d coste me ca tel b ikn owe n it I nolde, ' But su ﬁr e a s h ym se lf wolde o a s h m h to do y liket , Coupled a n d uncoupled to a a m c cche wh t thei owe. For- thi uche a wise wigh te I wa rne h i / wite wel s own e .

’ Thus the fabulist expresses the sense of Stubbs

a a formul , that politic l development had outrun

a . b e administr tive order The remedy, it will

a noticed, is quite element ry, maintain the royal power ; and was applied with success - under the

of a Tudors . The literary merit the f ble is con side r a b le although the author is not a born story

teller like Chaucer, he has humour and the power

of characterization . Of the various poems belonging to the same

a s P ier s th e P lowm a n school , the most striking

’ is the fra gment of a sa tire on Richa rd II s mis

Mu Ri r m ch a d t government, , styled h e P Red e less by rofessor Skea t . Here the political

of t h e views author are outspoken . They are 1] RI CH ARD THE RED E LE SS

a a L ncastri n in tendency, and the character given

of the King does n ot lea n to mercy.

ow a r e de le s N , Rich rd the r e we th on ou y self, Tha t la wless le ddyn youre lyf a n d youre pe ple bothe ; ’ fior thoru the wyles a n d wr on ge n d as t m e a w t in youre y , Ye were lygh tlich ylyfte ' th ou h ! from tha t you leef g te . And from youre willful] we r kis wa s ch a u n id youre will g , And r a fte wa s youre r iott ' a n d flor da ie z rest, youre Weren wikkid th or n youre c u r sid c ou n ce ill a youre k ris weren newed, And c ou e itise ha th cr a sid o ’ youre oronne fior e u e r e !

It is well known how Richa rd was accustomed to insist on his rega lity and the power inherent in

the crown . On this the poet makes apt and sombre

comment .

! for le gia n c e without loue itil h in a va ili h l l t ge t .

’ a a a Besides invective g inst the King s f vourites,

Men m ygh te n a s well ha ue h u n tyd ~ a n a a a h re with t bre, As a ske on y mendis ' ' ﬁor tha t they m ysde de we ﬁnd the stock complaint of a fourteenth century

’ reformer that Richa rd s extravagant court made his revenue in su ﬂic ie n t ;

For where wa s e u e r e on y cristen kyn ge a e u e r e kn e we th t ye , Tha t helde swi ch e a n h ou s e h old o be the ha lf- delle As Richa rd in this r e wm e thoru m yse ru le of other THE MIDDLE AGES

and the best strokes of satire in the whole are aimed at the taxation granted by the servile

P of 13 — arliament 9 7 8 . Its opening is described ;

then come the demands made, and the behaviour

of the packed Commons .

Tha n sa tte summe a s si h r e t a w r m p do h in g y , Tha t n ote th a pla ce a n d no - thing a va ilith ;

And somin e slom b rid a nd sle pte a n d sa id but a lite ;

. And some were so soleyne a n d s a d of wittis her , Tha t er they come to the clos a c om b r id they were, Tha t thei the c on clu c iou n tha n c on str e we n e couthe .

of These are the perennial defects Parliaments, and perhaps are more desirablethan an u nstaunched

’ ﬂow of rhetoric . Earlier in the poem Richard s

dealings with his rivals, his uncle Gloucester and

others, are told . The characters appear under the

of names their badges, the White Hart (the King),

of on the Swan (the Duke Gloucester), and so for the author is well aware how the prevalence of

b e - Livery and Maintenance , and of badged r e

in e r s ta , was destroying internal order. The tone of h a ssumed is that a loyalist, a method w ich in creases th e force of the indictment against the redeless king. Whether the poem had any effect

on e sa at the time, cannot y ; it doe s not appear to have been ﬁnished.

26 L OH THE MIDD E AGES [ .

The moral earnestness of the poems does not show

we e any heretical colouring, although may recogniz an a fﬁnity with the pioneers of later religious “ ” a change. But Langl nd was n o lover of n e w

on a ll things . He looks the evils of his day a s

of corruptions an ideal system, not as the results of the decay of a superannuated on e : the notion

of so recovering a simpler past, notable among the Lolla rds and the revolutionary pea sants of

n ot to to h im the day, does seem much appeal . His ima gination was almost oppressed by the

present . It was as well perhaps that these defects

P ie r s th e P lowm a n existed . Had the style of ,

a even before the last revision, been more m gical,

had the poems been less medieval, their monotonous genius might have competed too successfully with

a of a the inﬁnite v riety and artistic power Ch ucer . It is a case of the survival of the ﬁttest for th e

of fatherhood English literature . Meantime the strea m of sa tire ﬂowed on in

for m a ballads, Latin and English, we y surely rega rd the excessive obscurity of the prophecy which was attributed to John of Bridlington a s an

excuse for passing by that unlyrical work . The

a a or b ll ds are concerned either with strict politics,

with the quasi - political subjects of the Clergy and

la of a the Lol rds. The mixed feelings moder te men during the Villeins ’ Revolt in 13 8 1 are well seen in a clerkly ballad of that date . LOLLARDRY AN D THE CHURCH

Ta x h a s a tenet us lle, a h o va lidor u m prob t c mors tot , a a The kyng thereof h de sm lle, fuit in m a n ib u s cu pidor u m ; a a h on sa lle Hit h de h rde , da ns ca usa m ﬁne dolor u m ; R vr a wn c a e e nede most f lle, ru propter pecca ta m a lo m .

wa e s a Thus hor y th y wente, r a vis r a vos a e m u la n te s p p , To London fro Kent sunt pr e dia de popu la n te s ; wa s a n u ve l Ther covent, a ustra li pa rte va ga ntes ; h e n n e sch e n t Syt they sone were , n qui tunc fu e r a t supera ntes .

’ But Richard s la ter years clearly set his people

a him . Even courtly Ch ucer ventured a “ remonstrance on the lack of stea dfastness in

. a a a a the government The rough, popul r b ll d ag inst his favourites in 13 9 9 has none of the r e te n u e of the foregoing : its vigour recalls the exultation

of Alm a i n e 1 25 over the King g in 6 . The three

a r e of favourites course the Bushey, Greene and

Bagot of Sha kespeare .

Ther is a busch tha t is for gr owe ; a n d Crop hit welle, holde hit lowe, or W elles hit wolle be ilde. a a The long gr s th t is so grene, Hit must be mowe a n d ra ked c le n e ; for r owe n b a th fe llde g hit the .

a a m kille The grete b gge, th t is so y , Hit scha l be ke ttor d an d m a ke d lite lle b oth om n the is y ought . on ch a Hit is so roton y side, n o a b de There nul stych with odur y , a to set theron clout. Such compositions a r e sca rcely literature ; yet they make us see th e stra nge parti - coloured mob on 28 THE MIDDLE AGES ( . which turned to lynch - law in the ﬁrst English

u revol tion .

“ ’ Moral Gower s painstaking Latin attacks on Richard’ s reign only require notice as the last use of Latin in satire to impress the general public they were partly for European consumption and intended to win foreign opinion for the usurper

r u Henry IV. Better w itten than their forer nners under Edward III, they resemble them in metre a n d to to manner. One is glad turn from them an anonymous English distich on the year 13 9 1 which is worthy of Chaucer.

a x wa s a wa s a The sh rpe, the stokke h rde

In the xiiij yere of kyng Richa rde .

During all these years, however, there was also

a raging nother controversy, which produced some w spirited compositions . This was the strife bet een the Lolla rds and the Church . The heresies which the Lollards represented had, perhaps, never been absent from the West ; but the stress they laid,

P ie r s th e P lowm a n on of like , the ethical side

- Christianity, and their anti hierarchal doctrines were strengthened by the enmity which was pr o du e d - c by the defects of the Church machine . The Friars and the ecclesia stical courts and revenues furnished the chief points of attack . Naturally, the best fun that was directed against these comes

’ Ca n te r bu r Ta les of in Chaucer s y , but the satire that master cannot be construed as political or e ven partisan. Lesser men , however, wrote dis DECADEN CE OF METRE

for or aga inst change . The most racy assa ult on the Friars may be quoted.

m a a c on t n a u n ce Men y se by th ir y , T r of e n a u n ce ha t tha i a e men grete p , And a lso tha t tha ir su styn a u n ce

Simple is a n d wa yke . l d e r s I ha ve yve now fourty y , And fa tter men a bout the n e r e s a a r e fr e r s Yit s we I never then these , k In c on tr e ys ther tha i r a y e . Mle r a a e te s a e so megre th i m de, e n a u n ce u tte s h a m o And p so p d un, a ich on e a n - a Th t is hors l de,

When he sha ll tru s s e of toun .

There is a ﬁne humour here, and the attacked churchmen were not slow to reply with both skill

ff of and e ect. Whichever won in the lists satire, they ga ined the temporal victory. Henry IV came a s the cha mpion of the lega l wa y of doing things, and the revolutionary Lollards had not enough responsible support to hold ou t against

Church and State united. With their disa ppear ance and with the triumph of constitutional

n a a a . mo rchy, politic l s tire dies down again We have a rrived a t the decadence of the ﬁfteenth century.

h a s In poetry, it been often shown, this de cadence wa s made more complete by the confusion into which the structure of English verse fell .

a a Sc nsion by syll bic feet, instead of the accentua l

a P ie r s th e P lowm a n be ts of , was still novel in the

C o language, when haucer raised it t a high pitch of a ff perfection, and sc rcely had he e ected his work, when the change in the language, already in THE MIDDLE AGES

Th e in ﬂe xion a l progress, was rapidly accelerated. endings of the nouns were in course of being dropped : dissyllables became monosylla bic and

s o . a forth Had a genius appe red, it would have been hard for h im to have ada pted the new verse

to so . As undecided a change it was, minor poets

’ like Occleve fell into a metrical cha os. Chaucer s a ctual licences, guided as they were by his delicate e a r a r o , were increased by the horrible j ngle p du e d n e w a ll c in him by the pronunciation, and together were sedulously imitated . Meantime the rhythm , which guided the elder accentuated verse was largely lost for the same reason . The stressed t syllables were left jarring toge her, after the sub

n ﬂ xion mergence of the i e s . A worse tha n barbaric

on a night settles down English poetry. B lla ds produced by the untrained a n d unspoilt minstrel represent its best at this time ; but the political

of on ff ones on the Duke Burgundy, Su olk, and on

of a r e too the Wars the Roses poor to quote .

a The True, there is a ﬁne politic l treatise in verse,

L ib el o E n lish P olic n ot f g y , but it is , properly

or . speaking, a satire a poem Inspiration was not

’ a : Mor t d A r th u r a de d the was produced tow rds the close of the Wars of the Roses ; but that great poetical work wa s written in prose. There was left barely metre enough in which a poem could be made. CHAPTER I I

S ATIRE UNDER THE DESPOTS : THE DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN VERSE

Whatever claims the Tudors made to the Crown b y reason of heredity or conquest or Act of Parlia m la a ent, their real security y in their voc tion as

S aviours of Society . The various evils under which Engla nd laboured h a d culminated under

a the unh ppy Sixth Henry. The central authority h a d become powerless in the ha nds of the ha lf i a nsane king ; and, even if Henry had been cap ble, th e odds were aga inst the Crown . The prerogative h a d been prematurely cut short, at the same time a s the forces of loca l disorder had been growing in strength in consequence of the practices of

a Livery and Mainten nce. These latter were largely a result of the a doption of the trad e of

C a wa ondottieri by the gre t nobles under Ed rd III . E ven in pea ce they did not fail to keep up the

a of m wa r b nds retainers , who served under the in , a n d their less powerful neighbours were gla d to rank themselves a n d their servitors in an analogous 3 2 SATIRE UNDER THE DESPOTS [on

1 of position . Thus a kind degenerate feudal system came into being without a code of feuda l

a n morals . Over all the land feudal disorder d

oppression broke ou t. Justice and security were

n ot to . for be had The only course, a country

wa s to h dweller at least, range himself under t e banner of some prepotent lord of the neighbour

a t of hood . The great nobles, the head their

of la w dependents and retainers, made tools the

of and the central power, the local organs which,

S ff of ll heri and justice the peace, they contro ed. Meanwhile the evils complained of in P ier s th e

P lowm a n continued . The law had become slavish

to the prepotent lords as well as corrupt. The Church was losing reverence more and more ; its courts were as of old vexatious its prelates were royal favourites ; the monastic orders were cea sing to fu lﬁl any useful purpose ; and scandal was n o more silent than before on their misdeeds and

those of the secular clergy. Such a state of things might seem favourable for the growth of politica l satire when a revival

e took place. Several circumstances, however, wer

of against any development the kind . The Tudors succeeded in suppressing disorder partly through

- the exhaustion of the faction chiefs . Thus active parties and their disputes, the natural environ

of a a . ment politic l s tire, were wanting Then the

Tudors were popular despots and suspicious withal.

1 i This wa s done b y form a l indentures of se rv ce .

3 4 SATIRE UN DER THE DESPOTS [on

ﬁve, is a shrouded personality . His history is con

e c tu r a l of o j , the nature the man only t be guessed at

from random and perhaps ﬁctitious hints . Butjolly,

ranting Skelton is as real a man as ever was . We know his life and adventures and can make a sketch

n of his opinions . We k ow that he was born about 146 0 , that he was tutor to the future Henry VIII,

of of that he was parson Diss and father a family,

l ou t l 1 5 29 di d that he fe l with Wo sey, that in he e

in sanctuary at Westminster. Fu rthermore his

a of t stes are obvious in his works, his lack the

of or sense beauty form, his learning without judg

v ment, a certain convi ial coarseness and boisterous

a Secondly, he was courtier and satirizes the

on e of court . This is really the new departures

under the Tudors . They were despots ruling

n ot through their council, and they could entrust

to the control Of the central administration men, wh o were either too powerful or too little known

of to them . Hence, like every other race autocrats, they raised up a new ofﬁcial cla ss dependent on themselves and selected in the ﬁrst instance from

c their entourage. The court thus be ame the centre of politics and a scene of emulous intrigue which offered a butt to all the satirists of the

f a a century. Members o the ncient b ronage and

of t a upstarts yes erd y jostled one another there,

a a a ll impotent without the roy l f vour, and all

a a . ﬁlled with a covert mutu l h tred It was these, n ] SKELTON 3 5

his fellow courtiers, and their doings that Skelton Th e B ow e or a ttacked in his ﬁrst satiric poem, g (

n r R a tio s) of Cou t. He wrote this work in the a - j rring pseudo Chaucerian style, for he had neither the ear nor the judgment to perceive what was

of wrong. It may be considered as an exposition a

of political evil the time, similar to Barclay, the

’ of Canon Ely s, contemporary eclogues, with which it compa res favourably in its power of character

of iza tion and ﬁre of verse . The badness the

o metre is common to b th .

’ ke lton s S natural bent and genius, however, do

a not ppear in this decorous production , which could ‘ appeal only to the small cla ss fa milia r with the

- seamy side of the new court life. He ﬁnds his real opportunity in giving voice to the national gr u m b

of old on of ling, so a date, the subject the Church .

on e ca n There was something of the demagogue,

in - not help thinking, the loud tongued parson who

s o own . Colin Clou t ﬁercely assailed his order In ,

a a his chief s tire ag inst the clergy, he uses that broken, doggerel metre, which is named after him, and which seems with its boisterous, clamorous movement to be more ﬁtted for Jack Pudding at

- i a fair than for the courtier laureate. Yet ts short, but variable, rhyming couplets, anarchic though

e a th y be, h ve a real rhythm in them, that marks , a distinct a dva nce on the pedantic discordance of

a contempor ry serious poetry. Here at a n y rate were lines that chanted themselves, though their

3—2 3 6 SATIRE UNDER THE DESPOTS [OIL

l d . too me o y was harsh and rude The matter, , has

its interest, which is increased by its very vulgarity.

on e of We have a chance, imagines, knowing what 20 the v u lga r thought in 15 .

’ s Ske lton s list of enormities is long. He accuse

the secu lars of incontinence and ignorance. He complains of the oppressive wealth of the upper clergy

a a t swe a te Wh t c re hey though Gil , Or Ja cke of the NOke ? The pore people they yoke With sommons a n d cita cyon s e xcom m u n c a c on s And y y , About churches a n d ma rket The b yssh op on his ca rpet

At home full softe dothe syt .

Then the encroachments of the Friars on th e

’ of parsons duties, the poverty and vagabondage

of of the monks, and the nuns dissolved houses

of are made the butt his vituperative style . He insists on the unpopularity of the Church and the l world iness of the prelates . These attacks are all the more interesting because they partly anticipate

to those which were be made later, when the P divorce question and the revolt from the apacy, 1 of u . both as yet undreamed , came p They may

1 h a on i i i a a r i 222—2 Of. a 86 t e tt ck t ppl ng, gnor nt p sons, l nes , ’ wi h C m I i 15 36 6 a n d 7 h a on i t ro well s njunct ons , ; t t s mony — 2 i h h P i i of h m 1 2 29 1 30 C 5 3 Se . vn i e s w t t e et t on t e o mons , ct ; l n

- a b e i h id h i i of th 323 8 . 111 I V t e e (quoted ov ) w t , ; descr pt on “ ” wh o y ge a c a e li a os ta ta a s h monks s n from pl e to pl c , ke p Mwit the Pre a mb le of the Act for the Dissolution of the Lesse r ona s “ te r ie s 15 3 6 a r a i of h r e i e s in h , g e t mult tude t e l gious p rson suc ” h e i a a I t is sma ll ous s to rove a broa d n post sy . SKELTON 3 7 be false or slanderous ; but if the government found it hard to force their utterance on respect a P - to ble arliament men, they were at least ready

of its hand in the talk the people . Skelton did n ot stop at abusing the prelates in

Colin Clou t general . Some of the shafts in are distinctly aimed at their head, Cardinal Wolsey. Wha t ground of quarrel the poet had with a m a n he had formerly ﬂattered is not known . In any case

to a he appeals popul r prejudices . The bishops

r h or r ibile are too secular ; their very tapest ies, dictu a r e , adorned with heathen subjects, such as

o the triumph f Caesar.

th n k n e Nowe truly, to my y y g , Tha t is a spe cu la c yon And a mete m e dita cyon For a of a prel tes est te, Their coura ge to a ba te wa n ton n e sse From worldly , The cha mbres thus to dresse Wit suche pa r fe tn e sse And a ll suche h olyn e sse ; Howbeit they let downe fa ll a a ] Their churches c thedr l . M ’ of a n te n a s We are reminded g series, the

of Triumph Caesar, at Hampton Court. A less Oblique attack on the Cardinal in the same poem brings us to another notable point on which Skelton expresses the feelings of his con

o temp raries. curious tha t Skelton see ms to a ttribute the la st sca nda l to th e a i of th e Bi h in i i a i a ste ie a n d ct on s ops d ssolv ng v r ous mon r s, to ’ a e a t Wols e s i i i 1 5 24 i h h gl nc y pol cy of d ssolut on from on . W t t e “ ” e e e e 1. 989 a u e u e s e ll n e it es th e em r f r nc ( ) to Q y y g , sugg ts po w e 5 2 a s a t lea st re vise d a ft r 1 7 . 3 8 SATIRE UNDER THE DESPOTS [OIL

It is a besy thyn g For on e m a n to rule a kyng a n d a r e ke n n Alone m ke y g, To govern over all And rule a r e a lm e roya ll a w By on e ma nnes verr y yt. The national grievances against Wolsey were

low- four. He was a courtier, a churchman, born,

two e and chief minister. The ﬁrst defects hav

on low- been enough dwelt . That he was born was a crime in itself to Englishmen, although he probably a dded to the offence by using too fully th e

n of his fﬁ mag iﬁcence O ce, much as if a man should wear at the same time collar and ribbon of the

to o of n of is Garter, b th which a k ight the order

B u of entitled. t the prejudice in favour high birth and local inﬂuence wa s too strong to be eradicated even by the sufferings of the past

u w cent ry. Men ished that the nobles should be

n ot wa s tamed, but they would realize that it needful at ﬁrst to ﬁnd other instruments to

n ot govern with, if the baronial prepotency was o c t revive . Indeed the liking for an aristocrati government has been a permanent phenomenon since in English politics .

’ Still more hated wa s Wolse y s position as chief

m u l of . inister, another sec ar bugbear Englishmen

’ N ot only did he bear the burden of Henry VIII s

n ot of th e sins, but it was till the days younger Pitt that the nation would willingly accept a single

‘ of im conﬁdant the Crown . When Skelton, after SKELTON 3 9 y e n ot to Cou r t ? he made this the great point of — his indictment in a rude fury which shows him at his best. He is set so hye In his ie r a r ch y Of fr a n tycke fr e n e sy fol ssh e a a And y f nt sy, Tha t in the Cha mbre of Sta rres All ma ters there he ma rres Cla n on ppy g his rod the borde, 0 m a n a s oke a N d re p worde , For h a th e a ll sa e n e he the y g , Without a n y r e n a ye n ge ; h He rollet in his recordes, a How a ? He s yth, s ye ye, my lordes Is n a t my rea son good ? ! Good evyn, good Robyn Hood sa a n d Some y yes, some Syt styll a s they were dom th wa r t n Thus y g over thom, He ruleth a ll the roste r With b a ggyn ge a n d with b e st.

Then the sca ndal of an upstart hectoring the

of n ow once great lords the realm, impoverished

a a w t to and helpless g inst the Cro n, s irs him fresh objurgations.

Ou r a b rons be so bolde, Into a mouse hole they wolde R ynne a wa y a n d crepe ; a m a n of sh e e Lyke y y p , Da re not loke ou t a t dur For dr e de O m a st ve f the y cur, For dr e de of the b och e rs dogge Wold wyr ry them lyke a n For a n d a this curre do gn r, Th e a a ll a a must st nde f r, a a t b a r To old up their h nde the , a ll b lode For their noble . lu cke s o He p them by the h de, An d a b a sh kes them y the c re, And b r yn ge s them m suche fea re ; b a te th a He y them lyke bere, 40 SATIRE UNDER THE DESPOTS [CIL

Lyke a n oxe or a bu ll Th e r w tte s a a r e u y y , he s ith, d ll ; He sa yth they ha ve n o b r a yn e The a sta te to m a yn ta yn e ; An ma keth them to b ow th e yr kne a e e Before his m j st .

These turbulent lines su rely give us some idea of

to the man and the time . We seem see Skelton leaning over the sanctuary wall and hooting his oppressor as he rides attended by the abject

of baronage . And the vividness the picture makes

ds some amen for the squalor, which is always

’ ke lton s present in S writings, as in his life ; a reminder maybe that the sixteenth - century court had stains and dust enough hidden under its arm s

’ hangings Spenser s half- ruinous palace of Lucifera

n o a was bad im ge of contemporary splendour.

th e a t a l S All hinder p r s, th t few cou d pie,

a n d O b u t a t . Were ruinous ld, p in ed cunningly

From this plebeian rudesby it is necessa ry to turn for a brief space to two other worthies of

’ VIII s of wh o Henry court, men gentle blood these, had undergone the inﬂuence of the Italian Renais sance . They did not indeed write political satire, they hardly wrote social satire : but it was their good fortune to rescue English verse from its

ﬁfteenth century slough . In this way they ﬁxed the conditions under which later English poetry

i off- s existed, includ ng of course its satiric shoot .

n It was o great individual merit perhaps. A man of t birth and breeding, travelled and with a li erary

42 SATIRE UN DER THE DESPOTS [CE

e d. to b come an immense, but shallow, ﬂoo They

do . As not, however, invade the present subject to of th e that, the importance the movement lies in fact that the models of style and canons of taste were n ow chieﬂy to be found in Italian and u ltimately in Latin authors . A certain studious

a s ness and ﬁnesse, as well as a t ste for rhetoric, take f the place o the simple air of Chaucer and a new, more charm ing pedantry supplants his : th e . “ sentence and its application of the Middle Ages

of give way to the allusion . Ideals ornament in phrase change for the better and in more inward qualities on e may Observe that notions of the digniﬁed and the poignant have been revised in

of view the more civilized Italian works. Chaucer

to had, metaphorically speaking, been inclined fall into a kind of goose - step when he wished to be “ ” a to we la we s st tely, and have recourse to y y in

o f order t be a fecting. The Italians moved with

e x e a severe composure, not with such stilted p

n die ts . Yet English literature never surrendered

a its individuality in these days . It ret ined the

a luxuriance which spr ng from the national temper, and a northern burliness and heartiness, very different from the Italian m or bidezza .

In the meantime, it may be noticed, something O f the same process was gone through in Scotland .

There, however, the language was more conser va tive n ot all the in ﬂe xion a l syllables were

d of d. clippe In consequence, the tra ition Chaucer THE SCOTTISH SCHOOL was continued with little adm ixture of foreign

of a ccom m o elements, the later forms words being dated readily enough to the Cha ucerian metres . Am ong the Scottish writers wa s a really a ble satirist on the Protestant side in the Reformation

a 1 49 0 struggle, Sir David Lynds y of the Mount ( A quotation from his Com pla in t of th e

P apyn go will show the old- fashioned excellence

An d a h a s of his verse. though he is in e rnest he caught the bantering tone of his model . The dying

Pa n o a P e py g is pl gued by three clerical birds, the y ,

B la ckm on k or a the Raven or , and the Gled Fri r the Pye comes ﬁrst

a m a Ch a n ou n a I , s id he, one regul re, And of my b r e th e r Pryou r prin cipall; u h te doith a My q y rocket, my elene life decl re ; The bla k bene of the de ith m e m or ia ll; u h a r e for th n k a a ] Q , I y your gudis n tur l Su ld be su b m yttit hole into my cure ;

Ye know I a m a n e h olye crea ture.

The hendecasyllabic line of Chaucer is n ow deca ” syllabic the ﬁnal e s a r e silent : but the ma nner and rhythm follow the master pretty closely, although the shorter words cause some a ppr oxim a

of tion to those the new English metres . The

n ot Italian style does exist for Lyndsay. The strife between the old faith and the n e w ra ged as long and as bitterly in England as in

n ot so or so Scotland, but it did easily soon ﬁnd

u poetical expression . The ca ses of this phenomenon

Pa were various . rtly, the nation was, as we have seen, chieﬂy concerned with practical abuses and 44 SATIRE UNDER THE DESPOTS [c a

of - vexations, the ancestors the famous tithe pig which ou t so prominent a ﬁgure in the days of the

Ra P in to philosophic dicals. artly, it was incl ed

” of follow, somewhat sheepishly, the lead its auto

e r a ts . But the main reason doubtless lay in the

N o autocrats themselves . rulers better understood

of T or the value public opinion than the udors, the

need of securely controlling that demonic force .

Hence, whatever opinion the prince adopted, the

of propaganda its contrary was at once proscribed, while all the Ofﬁcial machinery was employed in its

n ot favour. Such an atmosphere was favourable for productions of laboured art . Who knew what conviction the morrow might bring forth ? And in

of point fact more homely means, sermons, speeches, disputations, and the like were more useful and

of went more speedily the round the country. Among these implements of despotism were the

s of ballad . They had the defect, however, being hard to control . Hence in them we have the statements of the vanquished as well as those of the

. on e victors Edward VI, sees, unloosed theological

- dispute. So the subj ect matter of the ballads is

of changed from that the Old ecclesiastical satires . It is doctrines which engage their attention ; we

of hi hear authority versus individual judgment. T s

b e on e B a lla d o may seen from a Protestant , the f

Lu th e r th e P o e a C r din a l an d a H u s ba , p , a n d m a/n P , written under Edward VI. The ope is made to say : REFORMATION BALLADS

str ve st a a a t Thou y g inst my purg ory, Beca use thou ﬁn de st it not in scripture ; As though I by myne a u ctor itie Mh a on e h on ou r yg t not m ke for myne e . a a Knowest thou not, th t I h ve power To a a n d m a r a a n d m ke , in he ven hell, In ea rth a n d every crea ture ?

Wha tsoever I do it mus t be well .

There is a neat turn of exaggeration here. Good, however, as its humorous irony is, it is surpassed as an imaginative work Of art by the Catholic

Little J oh n N obod ballad of y, as may be seen

t a ? te Little ohn Nobody, quo h I , wh t news Thou soon no a n gtell

a a a a r e m a d. Wh t m ner men thou me ne, thou so ai a a a a He s d, these g y g ll nts, th t will construe the gospel, a a sa d As Solomon the s ge, with sembl nce full ; To discusse divinity they nought a drea d ; ﬁ k More meet it were for them to milk kye a t a e y e . ] l d h a a . T ou liest, quoth I, thou lose , like leud a a He sa id ; he wa s little John Nobody th t durst not spe ke .

a a n d n ot If thou compa ny with them they will currishly c rp, ca re fa n ta c b u t a t a : According to their foolish y, f st will hey n ught Pra yer with them is but pra ting ; therefore they it forbea r a - a n d a Both lms deeds holiness, they h te it in their thought . a a a Therefore pr y we to th t prince, th t with his blood us

bought, Tha t he will mend tha t 18 a miss : for ma ny a m a nfu l fr e yke a Is sorry for these sects, though they s y little or na ught ;

a a a . And th t I , little John Nobody, d re not once spe ke

a n o How h ppily the conservative metre, t far from

’ P ier s th e P lowm a n s rhymed, agrees with the c on se r va tive An d utterance of the poem the refrain, — to be silent was the only alternative to supporting

n o the Tudors . Under these circumstances it is wonder that political poems were not written . P 46 SATIRE UNDER THE DES OTS [OH .

on e On occasion , however, the autocrat herself

helped to ﬁll the blank . Henry VIII, though

to literary, had preferred theology verse ; but his

daughter once and again wooed Melpomene, who,

to tell the truth in Elizabethan phrase, rather ﬂed

’ o at the Amazon s approach . It seems t have been

’ or folk s of just after N plot in favour Mary, Q ueen 1 5 1—2 t Of Scots, in 7 , hat Elizabeth wrote her

in political verses. They must be cited full if only for their authoress

a of t t o The dre d fu ure foes exiles my presen j y, And wit me wa rns to shun such sna res a s threa ten mine

a nnoy . ’ For fa lsehood n ow doth ﬂow a n d subjects fa ith doth ebb ; l n ot a or a Which wou d be if Re son ruled, Wisdom we ved

u of t a a B t clouds toys un ried do clo k spiring minds, Which u m to ra in of la te repent by course of cha nged n Wl ss. to of th e of The p hope supposed root ruth will be, a ll a f e a s t a And fruitless their gr f d guiles, shor ly ye sh ll see. Those da zzled e es with pride which grea t a mbition blinds y , , Sha ll be u n se ald by worthy vvigh ts whose foresight fa ls e

hood ﬁnds . a t Of a e t a The D ugh er Deb t , h t eke discord doth sow, Sha ll rea p no ga in where former rule ha th ta ught still

ace to grow. ’ No or e ign b a n ish d Wight sha ll a nchor in this port ; ’ Ou r a a re lm it brooks no str nger s force, let them elsewhere

resort. Our ru s ty sword with rest sha ll ﬁrst its edge e m plo To o a a a n d a p ll their tops th t seek such ch nge g pe or joy.

f r These are ﬁne, imperious lines o all their distorted

syntax and clumsy metre . It is a born ruler who

speaks, and one who knew the foundations of her power where former rule hath taught still pea ce

o to gr w. Q UEEN ELI! ABETH 47

The rule of the grea t a u tocr a tic h ou se was n ow t o bea r its fruits in the creation of modern England

of a n d of modern English litera ture. The entrance h of n t e spirit the Italia Renaissance, which in this c ountry had its chief predom ina nce after the s eparation from Rome a n d contemporaneously with the further progress of the Reformation, supplied n e w of n e w forms beauty, thoughts, new hopes, new

e desires to be embodied in litera ture. The N w

n ow World lay open to mankind, and the northern

a isl nd, undistracted by religious wars under the s a n tin o trong rule of Elizabeth, undebauched by m ia n ism like Italy, unspoilt by too secure possession P like Spain and ortugal, found at once an outlet for and an extraordinary stimulus to its energies . Of this expansion in enterprise, in thought and in

a ch racter, the Q ueen was the presiding genius.

a With all her f ults, not only did she seek peace and e a nsue it, not only did she protect the norm l

of rf u development her people, but she had a wonde l power of calling ou t la tent force and of inspiring a ] national idea . In a land under a popular autocracy, where the court was all in all , there is no need to dwell on the epoch - making importance of the lead

a k she g ve. There was a ind of fervour of movement in progress : men left the Old restricted paths of hamlet and town,

a fa r a a Some to discover isl nds w y, to Some the studious universities ,

“ a n d on this stir of existence the mortal moon

s a ca t ﬁckle, yet a magic, light. 4s SATIRE UNDER THE DESPOTS [on

n Of the new court literature the g reatest, if ot

of the earliest, name in poetry is that Spenser ( 15 5 2 The feeble tentatives of such men a s Wyatt and Surrey were n ow succeeded by the

d of inspire work a poetic genius, by whom for th e ﬁrst time the thorough melody of verse an d the full resources of style were employed in English . This

n ot to is the place, however, discuss the general

of n h i merits and defects Spenser, movi g through s

’ clouded heaven, With the moon s beauty and the ’ ” t — li i h is moon s sof pace, his de cate lovel ness,

- or on high mindedness, his harmony, , the other h hand, his archaisms, his languid prolixity and is

of want humour. We are concerned only with that small part Of his work which can be interpreted as political satire. Yet in that part his position with regard to later wr itings is much the same as in his

ﬁner compositions . He uses the types of su b se quent methods and styles of satire in a less

- a . specialized form than fter writers Mockery, denunciation and depreciatory narrative are a ll

So too there . , , he is a learned satirist, looking

a to l b ck ear ier poets, and directing the development

of a r for t posterity. The last characteristic is very marked in the

’ S h eph e a r d s Ca le n da r where he combines

the Chaucerian and the Vergilian traditions .

- ff Neither inﬂuence was without its ill e ects . The misread Chaucerian verse makes him often scan

by the four stress - beats in the line of nine or ten him syllables, and though his ear saved from any

5 0 SATIRE UNDER THE DESPOTS [on

n o had elapsed. This is a kind Of fable, in which t

n of of L s o ly the inﬂuence Chaucer, but that ynd ay and of the bea st - tales of Reynard the Fox are to

of be seen . The metre consists the heroic rhymed

to a couplets, which were become the cl ssic medium

’ of for English satire. Spenser s management this verse, though he was almost a pioneer, excels

of . that of most his successors Discreetly varied, avoiding the perpetual isolated couplet with its limited rhythms which was to culminate with

P - ope, but at the same time well knit and far from the straggling and involved composition of most of w his followers, his lines s ing along with a free

. too athletic movement He had much success, ,

h is - with subject matter, and came, perhaps, as near as any on e to using the beast - fable concerning purely human doings with propriety of incident and treatment. Th e Ape and the Fox set ou t to gain their s of living by knavish means, and in the cour e their adventures a good number of social abuses are exposed by the poet. The sturdy rogue, the

of a r e simoniac parson, the baser type courtier all satirized with an ironical humour on e would

For barely expect in Spenser. instance the parson ca nnot read manuscript or write

h a d Of such deep lea rning little he neede, of La tin o n o O Gr e e ke a Ne yet , f , th t breede a n d f of Doubts mongst Divines, di ference texts, i of From whence a rise dive r s tie sects, ’ h a te fu ll of a b h or d And heresies, God a But this good Sir did follow the pl ine word,

Ne medled with their controversies va ine . SPEN SER But besides these general descriptions there is also a chief in cident which savours of a more personal

’ m A e en ity. The p with the Fox s help steals the

’ Lion s skin, and sets up as king with his partner

’ a N ow s prime minister. the Fox s misdeeds are those which might be charged aga inst Lord Bur ff leigh. He provides for his o spring

fa t of a ll He fed his cubs with the soyle, And with the s we a te of others swea ting toyle ; a b e n e fic e s He cr mmed them with crumbs of , And fild their m on th s with meeds Of m a le fic e s cloa th e d a ll a He them with colours, s ve white, lode d w s a n d And them ith lordship with might, SO a s a a much they were ble well to be re, a a Th t with the weight their b cks nigh broken were.

’ He builds as Burleigh did ; he sha res B u r le igh s dislike for wa r a n d unpractica l scholarship

of a h a d a a Of men rmes he but sm ll reg rd, m a n d a But kept the lowe, streigned very h rd. For m e n of lea rning little he esteemed ; wisdom e a a His he bove their le rning deemed.

When we remember that Spenser was a pr otege of

wh o Leicester, never saw eye to eye with the

Treasurer, that he makes similar a llusions u n

doubtedly to Burleigh in later poems, and that

a Burleigh was his const nt enemy, this seems a signiﬁc nt enough, especially a s we only have the last draft of the poem and probably the most

a cautious . The f mous lines on the miseries of a suitor at court are commonly considered a later insertion ; but it is also to be noticed tha t the m e tr iﬁca tion of its couplets is in the regula r a Itali n and French decasyllabic form, wherea s P 5 2 SATIRE UNDER THE DES OTS [OH .

’ when Spenser writes in what he thought Chaucer s

’ S h e he a r d s Ca len da r heroic couplet in the p , he us es the four accents in a nine or ten - syllabled

’ th e r H u bbe r d s Ta le l . Mo ine being a youthful

wa s composition, this fact suggests that the whole rehandled and the lines were ﬁlled up to a regular

l . Fox decasyl abic metre But if Burleigh was the , h who can have been the Ape, the travelled knavis courtier? It is tempting to see in him the French

im ie r wh o 1 5 9 envoy S , in 7 came to court to woo

for of the Q ueen by deputy the Duke Alencon . He was received with great favour ; the match

e on se med decided ; and the Council, including

to Burleigh, resigned themselves supporting it. One can well imagine the indignation of the fa

u r i e v o t Leicester, and we know the fear it excited

of h in the kingdom, lest the Lion were beguiled e r virgin sovranty. In any case the poem was frowned on , and only published, perhaps, as I have hinted,

1 5 9 1 . in a less pungent form, in Spenser did n ot abandon contemporary politics in his later verse, but in the references to state affa irs in the Fa er ie Q u e en e he is always the ardent

of s partisan the royal policy. These reference only appear in the last three books, published in

1 5 9 5 a s , and deal mostly with the great religious w r i then rag ng. The best of them attack Mary Q ueen of of th e Scots under the name Duessa, who in ﬁrst three books had typiﬁed fa lse Christianity and l especial y the Church Of Rome . SPEN SER

wa s a s to a Then there. brought, prisoner the b rre, a of a a a n d a A L die gre t counten nce pl ce, But tha t she it with foule a buse did m a rre a e a r e a b e a u tie a Yet did pp r re in her f ce, a n d a But blotted with condition vile b se, a a ll O Th t her other honour did bscure, And titles of n ob ilitie defa ce : Yet in tha t wretc hed sembla nt she did sure

The peoples grea t compa ssion unto her a llure .

e Me r ill h c a S is tried before Elizabeth, here named ,

n ot a n d accused by ! eal . Her sins are forgotten

Then brought he forth with gr ie sl grim a spect ie kn fe Abhorred Murder, who, with blou y a Yet dropping fresh in h nd, did her detect, And there with gu iltie bloodshed cha rged ryfe ‘ str f Then brought he forth Sedition, breeding y e t a n d u r or e : In troublous wi s, mutinous p of l f Then brought he forth Incontinence y e , Adu lte rie a Even foule her f ce before, I m ie tie a a And lewd p , th t her ccused sore.

Me r cilla suspends judgment till strong constraint

to forces her condemn her rival . There is much e of xcellence art about all this, but few, I think,

would not prefer the less pamphleteering cantos . We ne xt have the revolt of the Dutch against

Ph of Ge r ion ilip II under the names Belgae and e o, ’ then Henry IV s reconciliation to Rome and the c O lose f the French Civil War, then an idealized

’ version of Arthur Lord Grey s campaigns in

All of Ireland . these incidents have their merits

as romantic tales, even if they are n ot among the

Fa r i best in the e e Q u e en e . As satires they are

n ot hopelessly unreal they are pungent, although they do some service in making the side the poet

e spoused attractive. So far as Spenser was c on 4 P OH 5 SATIRE UNDER THE DES OTS [ .

d i e cerne , we feel that these h storic episodes wer

n o h is n t n ot t natural hau s, the

ma gic ca sements opening on the foa m as a a ds Of perilous se in f ery l n forlorn .

Th e dramatists of the age also made incursions into the realm of politics from time to tim e ; but they were usually discreet enough to deal only with

i to the past, and then ch eﬂy with a view dramatic

situations . Magna Carta is never mentioned in

’ n J h n a a Shakespeare s Ki g o . On the other h nd

’ Ma s sa cr e o P a r is piece like Marlowe s f dealing with foreign affairs can be outspoken on the subject

of of . the enemies the English state We might,

’ too l of , put down Shakespeare s de ineations the

m ob to of satire, but they are rather part the social

picture h e gives us. h Indeed, if politics are Of rare occurrence in t e

e o Elizab than and Jacobean p etry, social satire was

h o n ot . w uncommon We have Gascoigne, wrote in L blank verse, Spenser, odge, Drayton , Wither and

i of others, wh le the plays course frequently have

satiric passages . Two authors may be specially

for mentioned their more origina l form . Joseph

1 5 4 of Hall ( 7 Bishop Norwich, published

1 5 9 o o his satires in 7. He claimed t be the ﬁrst t

of i is attempt the kind writing in England, and th s tru e in so far as he was the ﬁrst studiously to

a for imit te the Latin satirists . It is noticeable that his half- rhetorical purpose he ma de his couplets somewhat more epigra mmatic in form the sen SOCIAL SATIRE

te n ce s overﬂow into the next couplet much less ’ a often th n Spenser s . Yet this method of writin g heroic decasyllabics was not so unusual in sente n

Cou r th o e tious passages . Mr p has said that he suffered from the fa ct that there was n ot enough

a reﬁned vice in Engl nd for him to denounce . But — 1 5 75 16; a his rival, Marston ( the pl ywright, overcame this diﬂicu lty by overcharging his pictures

’ with reckless abuse. The latter s mouthing ex a gge r a tion s were ca stigated by his contemporaries yet their virulence of tone and air of lofty im pe c cable indignation were n ot soon to desert English

For satire. himself, he was merely scurrilous the young bloods of 1600 were n ot the equals of their elders . CHAPTER I I I

T HE DEVELOPMENT or PARTY- SATIRE

The “ good obedience which her subjects yielded to Elizabeth began to fall away a fter the

of A defeat the rmada. The nation enjoyed a new sense of security and needed less the guidance of

wa s an autocrat. The Q ueen herself growing Old, and was slowly losing touch with the new genera

a tion. More than all, the people, the cl sses of political importance, had changed. Squire and merchant had been thoroughly drilled in local self government by the Tudors . Their position as crown ofﬁc ia ls , chosen for their local inﬂuence, made them a different political force from either the aristo

or of cracy the bureaucracy France, where the policy of the Crow n was to divorce the nobles from power in their districts and make ofﬁc ia ldom

on solely dependent the central authority. True the Tudors from the beginning had rested, not on a

n o on military force which they did t possess, but the voluntary obedience of the upper classes ;

1 5 00 m ob but in those classes were a frightened ,

5 P OF - H 8 DEVELO MENT PARTY SATIRE [O .

persecuted minority but the advanced reformers ,

to the Puritans, she had found harder check. After her death deﬁnitely Puritan views gained ground among the country - gentry and the towns

1 640 ff of men, till in they could obtain the su rage

of For ou the majority in the House Commons . r special purpose we may omit the more speculative

on ff o points which there were di erences f opinion . In external matters the Puritans were a dvocates of a simpler ceremonial and a new system of church

h for e a n d government. T ey wished presbyt ries

to a n o synods replace episcop cy, and they were

d of a frien s the Royal Supremacy. At the s me time there was a strong minority in Parliament wh ich

would approve the existing ecclesiastical system, though n ot perhaps in favour of all Archbishop

’ - of Laud s innovations . Both these church parties course were for enforcing conformity according to

own for their views in the national church, tolera tion was an idea as yet barely broached in England ; and the question was complicated by the slow rise P u of uritan Sectaries, whose doctrines wo ld be regarded as heretical by either lea ding section of

opinion . As may be supposed, the religious quarrel

embittered every secular dispute, and eventually

exacerbated party- feeling to the extent Of civil

war. While this state of religious and political ten

sion existed in England, Charles quarrelled with the Scots over another form of the same ecclesias THE LONG P ARLIAMENT 5 9

tical controversy, and was worsted in the Second ’ 1640 P Bishops War. In the Long arliament met, and the despotism which Tudors and Stewarts h o P a d exercised came t its end. arliament had

for s the King at its mercy, the victorious Scot were encamped for some months in the North and money had to be supplied according to the Treaty of Ripon in order to furnish monthly pa yments

o t them.

A a t ﬁrst there was a fairly gener l agreement.

’ Few desired a renewal of Charles ab solute govern P ment. The extensions of the rerogative under the Tudors went by the board. But when Parlia to t ment came deal with religious matters, a spli

t wh o occurred. Besides a cer ain number, supported the Church’s system and doctrines as understood

Ar a by chbishop L ud, there was a large party of moderate men wh o were by n o mea ns anxious to abolish the bishops completely and establish P undiluted resbyterianism. They were barely outnumbered by the thorough - going Purita ns in the Commons, and with them as supporters the

King had a considerable party. As event followed

of 1641—2 event through the winter , it was these a s a n d men, such Falkland Hyde, who were content with the work the Long Parliament had already done and resisted the P u rita n majority which

b - wished to go further, oth in church matters and in restricting the royal power. So when the Civil

War that had so long been brewing began, the 6 0 DEVELOPMENT OF PARTY- SATIRE [GEL opposing parties were formed largely on religious

of grounds . The lines civil and ecclesiastical divi s ion had become identical . It was King and Bishops against Parliament and Presbyteries and the lesser sections of opinion were either absorbed

or by grouped around these protagonists . A good deal of Puritan feeling during these eventful years may be gathered from two Puritan poets, Milton and the lesser light, Wither, just as the episcopalian, Cavalier side is taken by Cleve ’ r land. Milton s contribution to the dispute, howeve , was almost wholly made in prose and falls outside

of the limits the present essay. In his poetry we have only the reference in Ly cida s to the Laudian

A d of clergy and on e sonnet. bout Ly ci a s it is c o ourse impossible t say anything new. Like

’ Spenser s Ca le n da r its satire is handicapped by the

’ pastoral convention but the magic of Milton s

a of style, exceeding th t any other English poet, the beauty of the several images a n d the moral grandeur of the conceptions, make us forget all inconsistency a n d incongruity St Peter among gods and learned shepherds is still impressive. After all, perhaps, there wa s an artistic harmony governing the bizarre pastoral world and Milton found it . 16 46 The poet, however, by had gone further in his views than the majority of Parlia mentary

P u of ritans . He had become the champion free

a of thought and a free press, and, himself sectary, P a toleration in religion . arliament, to ple se its MILTON AND WITHER 6 1

n of th e Scotch allies, had e forced the taking

a n d l on Covenant, was sti l eagerly intent exacting to a Calvinistic conformity . Milton does not seem

of d have despaired the Commons, but with regar to his theological opponents his wrath knew n o

ou t t bounds . He breaks in a famous sonnet agains

on e of the Presbyterian divines, the few written

in English after the satiric coda to model . One

for . tyranny had been exchanged another, he says

O t a New presbyter is but ld pries writ l rge. One must admit that however ﬁne the rugged

of l vigour this sonnet may be, it is a very smal

stone beside the others in his diadem . — — Far more in h is lower world is the same kind of criticism true of Wither ( 1 5 86 An

of on n author charming lyric poems, his conversio to P u ritanism he took to writing continual verse on

political subjects . He started with an immense

’ a B r ita in s Rem em br a n cer 1628 rhymed tr ct, , in ,

on on r the sins of the nation and maundered , poo

for a man , some thirty years with b rely a break on

N o the same su bject. t a public event could pass without renewing the visitation of this ca coe th es

r iben di h is of sc , and in character a chosen vessel his utterances were of course mainly concerned with

s o to Y reproof, and a certain extent satiric. e t

a n - t this crank was honest, fair minded man, mos unma licious in temperament ; and by a fortunate consequence his lucubrations have much less to do

ou r wa s with subject than might be expected. He 6 2 DEVELOPMENT OF PARTY- SATIRE [on for toleration and moderate counsels, a sober

Cromwellian . And he writes sound sense amid his

e ternal preaching. Here is his comment (Wh a t

P e a ce to th e Wicke d 1648 A in , when rmy,

P of arliament, King Scots, were all at loggerheads .

The war, rooting up Old landmarks as it did, had favoured t h e formation of an immense variety of

of opinions in all departments life and polity. It

had also created the professional soldier.

a t u al wa s a If w s e Jer s em m de, Who therein but three fa ctions h a d ; a h ow m a This Isl nd, y we deplore, Wherein a r e three times three or more ? Some with the Pa rlia ment pa rta ke ; a a a Some with the King p rty m ke, a n d a As he is King ; some, th t he A Tyra nt might become to be ; Some wou ld a Popula r Esta te ; a a : Some, Aristocr cy cre te a r e a a Some, f ction for the Pope , Some to m a inta in the Prela tes hope ; Some for the Presbyteri a ns vote ; Some Independency promote ; a n d for t a Some strive for this some h t, n or a for a Some neither know c re wh t, a on a n d m a So w rs go , get they y a a n d P a . Free Qu rter, Plunder their y

of At the end this composition he writes, Take this ” of a n d consider it till more comes . More came .

t a Even af er the Restoration he addressed tract, only

to Vow vu l i recently published, Clarendon, g (j ust what it was not) and here again we ha v e a doggerel m s er on , with sound sense at bottom and once or

of twice a ﬂash life in its style . He reproves the intolerant Cavalier Parliament CLEVELAN D

a r e such

- a a s a Quick witted things, we he r, h ve not been In a n y British Pa rlia ment yet seen ; a a For, where s they consumed much time in st ting a wa s a n d a Wh t to them proposed in deb ting, You a t ﬁrst hea ring could without dispute All a rguments with noise a lone confute And a bsolute ly be resol ved too In ha rdest ma tters tha t ye list to do

In Spite of rea son .

The sermon, however, passed unheeded, like his o a n d to thers, it would not be easy ﬁnd an a uthor who h a d less effect on his times or in literature . His very life was spared, when captured

’ a on : by the Roy lists, Denham s mocking plea

n ot While Wither lived, he could be the worst ” poet in Engla nd . In his literary aspect Wither was a man of the 1 6 13 —5 Old world. John Cleveland ( 8) helped to bring about a new. The situa tion after 16 40 with its clea rly ma rked issues cried for a pa rty

a n d satirist in verse, but Milton Wither stood aloof f a A rom strict p rties . swarm of ballad writers ﬁlled the ga p ; yet they were feeble and vulga r for the most pa rt : a n d Clevela nd stands pre emine nt as a sa tirist of real distinction a n d o a of rigin lity, the founder a new depa rtment n i English literature . He is the ﬁrst English

t a writer of par is n verse, purely political in his a ims, and devoting his compositions to a studious a ttack on the other party in the state .

A a C mbridge Fellow, he early took up with the

a n d a - P a a n Royalist nti resbyteri n side, d one of 64 L P N P - OH DEVE O ME T OF ARTY SATIRE [ .

his most amusing sallies is on the subject of th e

E t ca e ter a hated oath to maintain Episcopacy, which there was a n ' attempt to enforce on the clergy 1 640 Two ! and universities in . ealots discuss th e matter and on e declares

’ sa to E t ca e te r a t l st I y the , hou y , Thou a r t the curled look of Antichrist ; Rubbish of Ba bel ; for wh o will not sa y Tongues a r e confounded in E t ca ete r a ? a E t ca e te r a a a t a t Who swe rs , swe rs more o hs once a ou t of t Th n Cerberus his riple sconce . Wh o views it well with the sa me eye beholds O a t The ld, f lse serpen in his numerous folds .

of l We have here the main characteristics C eveland,

the somewhat harsh verse, the whimsical learning h which approaches the obscure, and above all t e

of rapid volley abusive wit, increasing the ridicule

of by the very jostling the images . Thus Cleveland “ ” and his school obtained a higher power of that contrast of incongruities and that surprise which go s o far to make up wit. As time went on Cleveland was ejected from

his fellowship and joined the King at Oxford. His tone became bitterer as may b e seen in the H u e

r a n d Cr y after S ir J oh n P r esby te .

a al Ph r e n z th e a Wh t ze ous y did Sen te seize, Tha t tore the rochet to such ra gs a s these ? Episcopa cy minced ; reforming Tweed ’ Has u s of . sent runts, even her Church s breed

’ a a s a Sure they re the ntic he d , which, pl ced without do a a n d a : The Church, g e disembogue spout ’ ’ Like them a bout t e Commons House t ha ve been

O a r e e . S long without, now both gott n in

There is a kind of triumphant scorn in this, such

P P - OH 66 DEVELO MENT OF ARTY SATIRE [ .

Nor is it a ll the na tion h a th these spots ; a a s a s of There is Church well Kirk Scots, As in a picture where the squinting pa int 1 on a n d on a a Shows fiend this side th t side s int . ’ a s a w a r a He th t Hell in s mel ncholy d e m, ’ And in the twilight of his fa ncy s theme a a Sc red from his sins, repented in fright, ’ ’ Ha d i a h a d v e w d t . he Scotl nd, turu d prosely e A la nd where one m a y pra y with curst intent 0 m a y they never suffer ba nishment ! Ha d a a a C in been Scot, God would h ve ch nged his doom, a Not forced him w nder, but confined him home. a a n d as Like Jews they spre d infection fly, h As if the Devil a d ubiquity . ’ Hen ce tis they live a t rovers a n d defy f a a a a o . This or th t pl ce, r gs geogr phy ’ ’ ’ ’ 0 th a ll a ll They re citizens world, they re in ; ’ a Scotla nd s a n a tion epidemic l .

Wa s a it for this you left your le ner soil, ’ Thus to la rd Isra el with Egypt m spoil ? ’ They a r e the Gospel s Life - gua rd ; but for them (The ga rrison of new Jerusa lem) Wha t would the Brethren do ? The Ca u s e ! The Ca u se ! Sa ck - possets a n d the funda menta l la ws !

2 It h a s been said that the compression of a separate scoff into almost every couplet produces a strained effect yet the style after a ll n eeds this

n ot rapid movement, the individual witticisms being substantial enough to stand alone. It is with n o surprise we hear that Cleveland was a witty companion . His verses sound like a string

to of repartees, and trace their origin Biron in

’ ’ L ove s L a bou r L s ost. The man is pretty obvious in his rhymes . We have the student from the

of - a University with his medley quaint, ill ssorted

1 Pi u r e on a e b a h wi a iffe e h e a ct groov d o rd, s o ng d r nt d a i to wh he it is e a t h e or i h ccord ng et r look d from t e l ft r g t, not

m in N h I a a i e tc . unco mon ort t ly for s nts , 2 B Pr Cou r t o e . y of. h p BALLADS 67

“ lea rning, scholastic and Biblical . These were the

a da ys before speci lization, but nevertheless, what

- a richly furnished learning ﬂourished then, when

r im u s in ter a r es ! h ow Milton was p p Cleveland,

e a a . ver, can h rdly be called a gre t writer He had

or for ve ry little artistic power ear verse . His

a a n ot f to im gin tion did su ﬁce complete any image . It would be useless to look for reasoning or thought in him . In wit he was quite inferior to

or a h is his successors, Butler M rvell sarcasms are m a ere s vage quips . But he set the fashion a n d has made himself a na me.

a n d so iff Both Cleveland Wither, d erent in

a a n d h a d on e ch racter writings, common peculi a r it of y. They belonged to special sections society, a n d are a lmost too typical and pronounced in t mental fea ure to represent England at large, although the circumstance does n ot detract much

For from their inﬂuence . more usual ways of

a n d thought we must look elsewhere, fortunately, as far as politics go, we have various satiric

ou r o balla ds to hand. The authors f these c om positions were Often men of some celebrity— Cleve

a a — land himself wrote b ll ds, but they were meant

a to for street corners and ppeal solely the vulgar. Two cha racters ma rk them off at once from serious

a a n d satire. First, their tone, m nner feeling, some

a a r e co rseness excepted, less archaic to us than

of those more digniﬁed contemporary works. The genera l temperament of Englishmen h a s been a more 68 DEVELOPMENT OF PARTY- SATIRE [OIL

constant factor than the ﬁnest fruits of their genius under the special training of each age wou ld lead u s

to . believe Secondly, while the religious contro ve r sy is all in all for Cleveland in his more literary

do n ot h vein at least, in the ballads we hear muc

of . e even high politics Q uite early, it is true, ther are some wretched ballads ( 16 25 —8 ) directed against

’ Buckingham s ascendency over Charles I, but when we come to the ﬁnal contest it is such subjects a s taxes, the hated excise, governmental corruption,

’ of th e the conﬁscation the Cavaliers estates, and

of P t suppression the familiar Common rayer, tha

we ﬁnd most satirized under the Commonwealth,

’ and as Cromwell s rule wears ou t and the Resto

in of s ration is sight, the loathing the army break

ou t more a n d more .

The best Of the ballad - writers is Alexander

16 20 e Brome ( He chieﬂy, however, wrot Bacchanalian songs with a slight Cavalier quali

tion to i e ﬁca added the wine, someth ng in the styl

’ l ke of Wi dr a in Scott s Woods tock. Only every

a n d On e n ow then he becomes m ore political .

’ occasion was furnished him in 1648 - 9 by the King s execution and the establishment of the Common

of its wealth. The Lower House was purged P P resbyterian members by Colonel ryde, King

a and Lords were abolished, and the sectari n Rump of the Commons started to govern with the support A of th e rmy. These revolutionary proceedings

’ L eveller s Ra n t were satirized by Brome in his , in III] BROME 69 which the Cavalier p oet ch Ose to identify the a - Ofﬁc e rs a rmy in power with the extremer f natics , th e Levellers .

a l to a To the h l, the h ll, a For justice we c ll, a n d rf a a n d On the King his powe ul dherents friends, ’ a e n de a vou r d 0 still h ve , but we work their ends . ’ ’ a a a Tis we th t pull down wh te er is bove us, to a a And m a ke them fe r us th t never did love us . ’ We ll level the prou d a n d ma ke every degree a To ou r roy lty bow the knee . ’ Tis no less tha n trea son ’ Ga inst freedom a n d rea son a For our brethren to be higher th n we .

First the thing ca lled a king

To judgment we bring, a of a r a And the sp wn the court, th t we e prouder th n he And next the two houses unite d sha ll b e I t does to the Romish religion inveigle, a to - a a - a For the st te be two he ded like the spre d e gle . ’ We ll purge the superﬂuous members a wa y ; a r e too a i a They m ny k ngs to sw y, a s a ll a And we te ch, ’ ou r a !Tis liberty s bre ch , - a For the free born S ints to obey.

Not a cla w in the la w ’ Sh a ll ke e p us in a we ’ ’ a - c u ﬁe r s to u s We ll h ve no cushion tell of Hell, a r e a ll i a s For we gifted to do t well . ’ Tis freedom tha t we do hold forth to the n ation To enjoy our fellow- crea tures a s a t the crea tion ’ ar a a r e of The c n l men s wives for men the Spirit, Their wea lth is ou r own by merit ; For h a a we, t t h ve right ’ la w c a lld By the might, Are the Sa ints tha t mus t judge a n d inherit

It will be seen h ow much nea rer than Th e R e bel S cot is this j ov1al burlesque to the political squibs

f r An d . o ou . own day it is very good, with its a rushing swing and r cy humour. N or is it so 0 L ME F - 7 DEVE OP NT O PARTY SATIRE [c a

on e exaggerated as would think. The genuine Levellers were communists ; and there was always a certain antinomy among the Sectarians in general between a reign of democracy and a reign of the

e of Saints, the Saints b ing course themselves .

’ l s Few, if any, of the other bal ad equal Brome s, t but still there is humour and wit in plenty, tha 4 n ot . to 16 8 even now are . quite stale Up the Committe e of the Commons which directed the

a a administr tion is the chief butt. It was exaspe r

i a s ting everybody w th taxation and corruption, “ well as by its endeavour s to purge the Church ” of a n d and wicked State . Then the death Charles the fall of the Presbyterians made Cromwell and the soldiers the bugbear of the nation . One poor, stagy ballad expresses a common feeling. The ” “ people address King Charles :

Mea ntime (thou glory of the ea rth) We la nguishing do die : - a t Excise doth give free u rter bir h, qtl l While soldiers mu p y. da Our lives we forfeit every y, Our money cuts ou r throa ts a a r e a a a a The l ws t ken cle n w y, ’ Or shrunk to tra itors votes .

Cromwell answers on the throne

Like a mules resolve to be a r Vp ’ htaiteenetr we sha ll impose. Your lives a n d goods on need n ot fea r ; ’ e n ot . We ll prove your nds, foes

We, the elected ones, must guide A thousa nd yea rs this la nd ; You must be props unto ou r pride

And sla ves to ou r comm a nd. BALLADS 7 1

In spite of the miserable qua lity of these lines they express pretty fairly the questions at issue .

Of course Cromwell was a monster to the Royalists .

a a Events, however, were t king a turn unf vourable to satire. In a few years the Rump itself shared

of the fate the purged members, and Cromwell

’ ruled as Protector to carry out the Army s policy . The military government which was necessary to

n ow a keep down the unwilling kingdom, lmost

a for a a a un nimous Restor tion of Charles II, m de his rule hated still more. But it was becoming dangerous to speak under Cromwell ’s Major

a a Gener ls . Cleveland, though in an ttractive

a a a n incident he m int ined honourable frankness,

l a - was si ent and ball d writing died down . Besides, there was less to satirize in the proceedings of the new government which was efﬁcient and successful at home and abroad, although its ways were stern .

’ Cromwell s dea th and the fa ll of the Protectorate both allowed sa tire to be published and gave it

a a . n o on opportune m teri l The Rump, which e

to a a a respected, was soon restored uthority g in, A ’ but subject in its exercise to the rmy s whims. We c a n see how bitter Royalist feeling was from the following extracts, written in a then frequent form

e a n d From diss mbling presbyters their plots, a s From English forty times worse th n Scot , a a e a From those th t for our est t s c st lots, a n os Liber , Domine ! 2 L P - H 7 DEVE O MENT OF PARTY SATIRE [O .

t a a ta t From the City mili i th t s re like Hec ors, r a s a r e ta t - F om such the s e projectors, r a s a a n d F om t xe , redco ts collectors, a n os ! Liber , Domine

a n d - From dissembling sects their goggle eyes, of From believing the printed lies, a n d r e - From rogues from publique spies, a n os ! Liber , Domine

The ordinary Englishman h a d come to loathe the

w s a Commonwealth, ith its exaction , its milit ry

i s . tyranny, its relig ous busybodies, its in tability “ ” From a Rump insatiate as the sea, says another “ L ita n L e n os y , ib ra , Domine

Re Better times were coming, and with the stor a tion comes also a chang e Of subject. First we

a on have the jubil tion over the vanquished, ballads

i ﬁfth - regicides, d scharged redcoats, and monarchy

: men but soon a note of discord enters . Ballads a r e now directed against the Court, and there is the due counter- attack on the Country - party by the other side, both steadily growing bitterer as i the strife becomes that of Whig and Tory. St ll n o new genre is created ; the old forms of Common

a we lth satire continue . Indeed the whole species of writing is cast somewhat into the shade by the

of more literary form satire, which drew its origin

a - from Cleveland . The best ball d writer, Marvell, made his mark chieﬂy in the more ambitious style .

a There is a cert in dreariness, I think, in these

- e of fourth rate compositions, in spit their impor ta nce when we try to gauge popular feeling. Still

74 DEVELOPMENT OF PARTY- SATIRE [OIL

e diff a v ry erent thing after the Restoration . This

’ was par tly due to the way in which Charles II s return came about. Episcopalians and Presby te r ia n s combined to go ba ck to the sta tus of 16 41

before the Civil War, accepting as legal all that

o was legally done, and trying t resolder tradition

h a s and present practice . This resolution, whic ,

on e c a n a much as event , has m de England the land

of h a d r precedent and slow development, two furthe

of results the ﬁrst importance. The monarchy

n ot of t restored was that the Tudors, but tha resulting from the Acts passed by the Long Parlia ment and accepted by Charles I in 1 641 ; and as th e

two to parties united restore it, there could not but

two of be readings the constitution . True, political privilege was conﬁned to Anglicans by the Cavalier P arliament, but, what with conforming and laxity, the quondam Presbyterians retained their footing

in public life. Each side might be anathematized

n ot a ll by its rival, but it could be expelled from

inﬂuence on the govern ment as in past times . A weighty Pa rliamentary Opposition became a per

manent factor in English politics . Nor were the combatants silent in the recess of Parliament in

of - a spite a stringent press law, squibs, s tires , pas

u in a de s q , and the heavier artillery of pamphlets

kept up a desultory conﬂict. There were men

about town , there were merchants, to meet in the

new institution of coffee - houses a n d form an alert

- ff n public opinion on state a airs, which had bee III] FREN CH INFLUEN CE 75

of - impossible in the days gild festivities and slow,

Th e - a n d compa ct national feeling. news writers pamphleteers sprea d the rumours of the City among the coun try - squires wh o held the chief

a t power in the st te . In consequence, the grea

n ot a satires of the date are mere illustr tions, they were potent causes of events ; a n d the highest

on genius was willing to spend itself them . The litera ry environment of the time was n o less

a a of h favourable . Ch rles II her lded a ﬂood Frenc

a t of th e f shions, and among them the imi ation

a to polished French style of writing, just bout

' o o e reach its zenith under the R i Soleil . F r som such movement English literature was ready ; th e gorgeous and rather lawless originality of th e

n dramatic era had been written out. Englishme

- were not the full blooded race they had been,

wa s freshly awakened to their new world, nor there a n y longer the single audience of noble and

’ a prentice . That nation l solidarity had vanished

oo even before the Civil War. So t the schools of ” far- fetched wit were dying down their agonized sea rch for originality had too often found obs cure ba thos . Men wanted something perspicuous a n d correct, to which they could subscribe in their

. a so wa s sober senses Im gination, much abused, N ow at a certain discount . French literature wa s admirably adapte d to be a model for purveyors to the new taste, and that especially on its more satiric side . French delicacy and ﬁnesse and that douce 76 DEVELOPMENT OF PARTY- SATIRE [on m iddle - aged charm of French sentiment are hard to c ome at in the English tongue . But French direct n ess and point, French precision in art and thought

. ou r c ould be imitated Thus the heroic couplet,

o d ou t metre nearest t the French alexan rine, drives o to l thers, and itself tends become stil more than formerly a succession of epigrams in a strictly

N ot r egular and limited scheme of melody. every

' e ﬂe ct of s o on e can enjoy the this metre, used,

for on most subjects for poetry ; but satire, what form of verse could be better than such a succession of vigorous strokes guided by sound sense ? The movements I have indicated took some time

f r on e . o their completion, especially the literary

’ For the ﬁrst twenty years of Charles reign we have indeed a progressive political satire but the

a a n d inﬂuence of Cleveland is still predomin nt, the

c hief satiric authors are unmistakably his disciples, though they gradually free themselves and are n ot

s ervile imitators at worst. One of the earliest of these was Sir Willia m

a - b e s on of 1606 Daven nt, the would Shakespeare

of ff Like most other poets the time, he o ered a gushing series of pa negyrics to the restored

a of l a King, and amid his pr ises the roya policy m de

a or two on a a n ttack its victims, the Sect ries

a a n d nonconforming Presbyte rians . The l tter are

n ff a pu gent enough and o er us smoother, feebler

e . C lev land The Sectaries , he says, DAVENAN T AN D DEN HAM

of O to a pinion love ch nge, And think their own the best for being own a a Their , if it were l sting, they would h te ; ’ Yet ca ll it conscience when tis obstina te .

A greater m a n tha n this insipid rhymer wa s Sir John Denham ( 16 1 5 who in his poem of

’ Cooper s H ill introduced pure descriptive poetry

a s on into England. In that poem, in the ﬁne lines

’ Stra ffor d s of a a n d trial, he is the disciple W ller belongs to the new school of French leanings ;

- a e but in his post Restoration s tires, he is much mor

of t under the inﬂuence Cleveland. Each couple

a a a cont ins conceit, rather th n the , polished, anti

a old a thetical epigr m, and he keeps the Jacobe n — tradition tha t sa tire should be rugged his lines in

e fact are halting. The chief importance of his vers is to show when the new country - party lost patience

’ a with Charles Il s court and government. Irrit tion a t A m r th e the persecuting cts passed by the ajo ity, pers ona l unpopularity of Lord Chancellor Cla r e n don for A , both enforcing those cts and for rigidly ’ ma intaining the Crown s sphere of action inde

of P pendent arliament, and the known corruption of a a ll the royal administr tion, tended to ma ke the new members wh o came in at bye- elections m hostile to the inisters and court . They coalesced with the origina l semi - presbyterian minority a n d became more and more formida ble . The Court wa s only able to thwart them by bribing th e

a wh o a for origin l members, thus g ined the assem

of P P bly th e name the ension arliament. 8 P PA T - OH 7 DEVELO MENT OF R Y SATIRE [ . The smouldering indignation broke into ﬂame

in the second Dutch war, when the country heard th e astounding news that the enemy had entered

h e of t Medway and burnt the ships war, which with

to a curious folly, due the misappropriation of ﬁ s u n tte d . fund , were left at anchor While the

s hame was fresh, the satirists attacked the Court w ith all their power. A handle was given by the panegyrics on some earlier and none too complete

v A ictories in the war. mong these the then famous

W of aller had won in the race adulation, and it was his I n str u ction s to a P a in ter which were now c ontinued by the Opposition writers . Denham

’ ﬁ a rst had the happy ide , mingling Waller s with

’ wa s Cleveland s style. The London among the lost s hips the City had burnt the year before

t a Nex let the fl ming London come in view, ’ to Like Nero s Rome, burnt rebuild it new . Wha t lesser sa crifice tha n this wa s meet To Offer for the sa fety of th e fleet ?

Th is was stinging ; but Denham went on to a f personal attack on the Duke o York . He had

: wr ongs to avenge the Duke had seduced his wife , a n d it was said that the jealous Duchess had poisoned her. But he did not spare lesser captains e ither. The Duchess the Duke’s person recommends To a n d r Brunker, Pen Coventry, her f iends, To Pen much, Brunker more, most Coventry ;

For a a a . they, she knew, were more fr id th n he h a d a Of flying fishes one s ved the fin , ’ And hoped by this he thro the a ir might spin MARVELL

The other thought he mi ht a void the knell By the invention of the ivin g -bell ’ h a d a n d a fﬁr m d a a A third tried it, c ble ’ Coild round a bout him was impenetra ble.

But these the Duke rejected, only chose fa r Off To keep ; let others interpose.

Th e lines a r e not very good ; yet they a r e among the

’ a n d a best in the poem, Denh m s further attempts

A a n d were much poorer. second third continua tion owe wha t merit they ha ve to the excellent

opportunity for satire presented by the Court .

to a A He also gave the cue greater man, ndrew — Ma rvell ( 1621 7 The cha rm of that friend of Milton in his s erious poems is s o grea t that we turn with r e lu c “ ta nce from their witty delica cy to the coarse

- of hurly burly his satires . How could the same

man , we wonder, have written both ? Was he of a

a to ch meleon nature change his style, which is

a of perh ps the most inward quality a poet, with

? Th e his environment man, however, shows the

’ s a a a a e a s ame du l ch r cter, ccus d he was of sea man s

’ to language, and undoubtedly tutor Lord Fairfax s

daughter. He never varied in political consistency ;

wa s En lish t but that consistency of a peculiarly g ype . Little a ttached to the theoretical political opinions of the kind that found favour with the Levellers

- and Divine Right men, he was willing to work with any Protestant government that was honest a n d

e fﬁ too cient and not tyrannical. N o enemy of

a n o diﬂic u lt Ch rles I , he made y at taking service

t a under Cromwell, and af erw rds promoted the 8 0 DEVELOPMENT OF PARTY- SATIRE [OIL

’ Restoration . It speaks ill for Charles II s Court and government that Marvell gradually came into It permanent opposition . can only have been a conviction that they were injuring the country. He could have had place and pension for his vote any day .

’ We have then in criticising Marvell s satires to

two remember things . As an artist, he followed

’ n in Clevela d s footsteps, adopting a rough, abusive a ff style, where the strain fter e ect forms the only

As link with the conceits of his lyric verse. a

ol to in di p itician, his business was rouse public g nation against a shameless Court and this was not At to b e done by delicate reserve . the same time it must be a dmitted tha t he goes ou t of his way for i obscene rid cule .

a of O His earliest political s tire, however, is lder

Th e Ch a r a cter o date than the Restoration . f

ll n d of H o a , written during the ﬁrst Dutch war

’

16 5 3 Of . , is redolent Cleveland s manner It is a

l cot second edition of Th e R e be S , turned with more rollicking humour and les s real bitterness against a completely foreign foe ; and like its predecessor looks back somewhat to the attacks on Scot and Frenchma n under the Edwards . He describes the origin of Holland by the toil of its

, inhabitants excellently well .

Gla d then a s miners tha t ha ve found the ore, ’ They with m a d la bour ﬁsh d the la nd to shore, And dived a s despera tely for ea ch piece ’ a a s t h a d of a m b e r r ls Of e rth, if been g ,

- 8 2 DEVELOPMENT OF PARTY SATIRE [CH .

is m modiﬁed more and ore into wrathful narrative,

the secret history of the day being brutally declared. N ow and then there is a more pleasant humour

h H ll d Th e recalling The C a r a cter of o a n . best specimen is the description of the way a scapegoat was found by the Court-party for the disasters of

the war. Sound sense is hid in the burlesque.

to After this loss, relish discontent, on e a u a a Some must be cc sed by P rli ment . All ou r misca rria ges on Pett must fa ll ;

His n a me a lone seems ﬁt to a nswer a ll. Whose counsels ﬁrst did this m a d wa r beget ?

Who a ll comma nds sold through the na vy ? Pett. Who would not follow when the Dutch were bea t ? a Who tre ted out the time a t Bergen ? Pett. Who the Dutch fleet with storms disa bled met ? iflin r ? . And, g prizes, them neglected Pett Who with fa lse news r e ve n te d the Ga zette ? The fleet divided ? rit for Rupert ? Pett Who a ll our sea men chea ted of their debt ? ll ou r h a w o a ? et . And prizes, did sw llow P t Who did a dvise no n a vy out to set ?

And who the forts left unprepa red ? Pett. Who to supply with po wder did forget

La n u a r d a a n d U n or ? . g , Sheerness, Gr vesend, p Pett Who a ll ou r ships exposed in Cha tha m net ? Wh o should it be but the fa na tic Pett ? s e a - a a Pett, the rchitect, in m king ships, Wa s the ﬁrst ca use of a ll these na va l slips ; Ha d O a h a d he not built, none f these f ults been ; n o a t h a d If cre tion , here been no sin ; a on e a a a But his gre t crime, bo t w y he sent,

Tha t lost ou r ﬂeet a n d did ou r ﬂight prevent.

There could n ot be a better climax to the mock reasoning. But Marvell never tried to make the whole piece a work of art. His satire rambles

n or with events, is his wit by itself, good though it f b e a a . , su ﬁcient to plead g inst Oblivion

a As noted bove, Marvell was the best ballad MARVELL

writer of h is day, and indeed his short satiric A pieces have much to recommend them . short ’ epigra m on Colonel Blood, written in Cleveland s manner, need only be mentioned ; but the ballad ’ on the Statue in Stock s Market (1672) deserves

f a quotation . This e ﬁgy Of Ch rles II stood long

a a wh o dr ped, before it was ltered from Sobieski was origina lly represented. Marvell jibes

1 But Sir Robert a fﬁrms tha t we do him much wrong ; ’ ’ a t Tis the gra ver work, to reform him, so long ; a a ! a a t But, l s he will never rrive his end,

For it is such a king a s no chisel c a n mend . l But with a l his errors restore us our King, If ever you hope in December for Spring ; ’ a a For tho a ll the world c nnot show such nother, ’ t a h is Ye we d ra ther ha ve him th n bigoted brother.

J a m c s had become a Roman Catholic by this time

a and Charles evidently greed with the satirist.

’ 0 to a of N one, he replied his brother s w rnings ” a a w to ssassin tion , ill ever kill me make you king.

a a ] a i T king leave of M rvel , one c nnot but th nk tha t he could ha ve been a grea ter satirist than he

a n d was . He had wit humour, energy, conviction

of and power argument. He could wield both

a - f ra pier and qu rter sta f. But he chose to be a

a m a n d a for p phleteer in verse, prob bly his ends he knew his business best. He helped to create the

P a a arli ment ry Opposition, and we may gladly dispense with the crude la urels of satire for the

of a r d n B er m u d author Th e G e and a s .

’ So fa r we ha ve tra ced Clevela nd s spiritua l

1 D o of th e s a t nor t ue . 8 4 P N P - A H DEVELO ME T OF ARTY S TIRE [O .

a n descend nts amo g the Opposition . The greatest of of them, however, was a champion the Court,

a n ot but a champion, perh ps, fashioned after its 16 12— desire. Samuel Butler ( 8 1 ) was a man of th e of elder generation, a friend Cleveland, a

of contemporary Milton . He passed the prime of his life during the Civil War and Commonwealth.

- The Restoration found him ripe and middle aged, and his famous H u dibr a s was partly composed of

of do the jottings earlier years . Hence we not s o

of much ﬁnd in him the tendencies the new school . French ease and classical simplicity are strange to

him . do old What we ﬁnd is the , loaded English

a n d a style, with its conceits super bundant learning of a e the schools, disturbed from its f nciful leisur P by the Civil Wars and uritan tyranny, and em ployed by a seldom poetic student whose wit

o of H amounted t genius . The nature u dibr a s partly accounts for the miserable fa ilure of a ll attempts to imitate it . All the excellence of its form and manner was Old and belonged to an age that was passing away . Its learning is the scho la sticism Of the Middle Ages its wit reminds us of

Golia s ; its jogging metre of a twelfth - century

. P romance In it the decrepit ast, its beauty w to ou r ithered, rises perform an antic dance for

e of . b neﬁt, and leaves us with an odour mortality

a r e a Here s nds, ignoble things, ’ Dropt from the r u in d sides of kings .

The pageant of the centuries has doffed its cloth BUTLER 8 5

to of . gold, and turns a squalid harlequinade Its spectral enthusia sms travesty their former

of pomp . The casket its secrets is opened to disclose a little dust.

n o It was accident, therefore, which made

Butler choose Cervantes as his model . There was f a strong bond o kinship in their themes . Both

a for satirized, with a cert in sympathy them, the

a a of a superannu ted f shions former d ys, both some of contemporary follies and both were led into a vein of musing upon life and its fortunes which does not lose its application with the course of time. But there the resemblance ends. Cervantes h a d an innate kindness for humanity : the chief actors in his romance are living and loveable person alities ; the satire and the humour with which fact and fa ncy collide are a lmost a protes t

i n aga nst Fate . But the E glishman is before all

a things scholar, ﬁlled with annoyance at the reign of the fanta stic busybodies of the Commonwealth . Hence his cha racters are paltry stalking horses Hudibras lea ves us without a glint of information on the Sir Samuel Luke he aped ; Ra lph o is a

a ph ntom secta ry . Their adventures are tediousness

. a a itself It is wh t they say, and Butler s ys in

a . to person, th t interests us It is, use Matthew

’ A s a of rnold s phra e, criticism life, past, present

to a wit. and come, couched in unf ding

of Unimportant as it is, the plot the poem may

a i be brieﬂy expl ined . Hud bras is a Presbyte rian 8 6 DEVELOPMENT OF PARTYS ATIRE [CPL

wh o ou t knight, under the Commonwealth sallies

to reform the neighbourhood of its pleasant vices,

Ra l h o attended by his squire p , a representative

of P ta the sectaries . The uri ns, we remember, had acquired a very unenviable reputation as foes of

- to merry making. His ﬁrst exploit is disperse a

crowd intent on bear - baiting ; but fortune soon

m ob deserts him, and the rallied are victorious

and place Knight and Squire in the stocks . Hence

to or they are rescued by a widow, whom rather

to whose jointure the Knight makes his addresses . The condition of his release is that he should

f o o s o t d . scourge him elf, which course he fails They next get worsted by a crowd who are carting a truculent female ; then quarrel with the as tro

idr o h e l S . loger, p , whom they consult Such are the

of two of 1 662 1 4 contents the ﬁrst parts and 66 . The third which appeared in 1678 is occupied with

a goblin - masquerade to which they are treated by

of the indignant widow, followed by an account the fall of the Rump in 1 660 and a legal scheme of the

to - Knight get the better of his lady love.

It will be seen what a miserable story this is.

’ Its ineptitude needs a ll Butler s wit to redeem it and even that would not sufﬁce if it dealt only with P uritan eccentricities . But its scope is universal,

as its nature is most varied. He has more than

of the rapid play and learning his master Cleveland . Unsuspected resemblances are revealed by the odd

of Th e juxtaposition ideas . doggerel verse is used BUTLER 8 7 to increase the ridicule, and extraordinary rhymes

for a to to are employed, not their e se, but add the

An d surprise of the wit. all through there runs a

of vein unambitious, disillusioned wisdom, without which a ll the glitter of his quips a n d cranks would

T of l . o soon have pal ed us, the most living part is

’ course the satire of oddities not conﬁn ed to Butler s

’ on time, like that Hudibras language

For u l rhetoric, he co d not ope ou t ﬂe w a His mouth, but there trope ; And when he ha ppened to brea k off ’ ’ 1 th of middle his speech, or cough , ’ h a d a to H h rd words rea d show why, And tell wha t rules he id it by ; a a rt Else, when with gre test he spoke, ’ ’ You ld think he ta lk d like other folk ’ For a ll a rhetoricia n s rules

Tea ch nothing but to na me his tools . a a of His ordin ry r te speech, I n wa s loftiness of sound, rich ; a a A B bylonish di lect, Which lea rned peda nts much a ffect ; ’ It wa s a pa rt - c olou r d dress ’ Of pa tch d a n pieba ld la ngua ges ; ’ Twa s English cut on Greek a n d La tin Like fu s tia n heretofore on sa tin ; h a d a n It odd promiscuous tone, ’ ’ h a d a a on e As if h t lk d three p rts in , a a Which m de some think, when he did g bble, ’ Th h a d hea rd three la bourers of Ba bel Or Cerberus himself pronounce , a of a a a t — . I 1 1 1 4 . 8 . A le sh l ngu ges once . 0

Nevertheless, some strictly conte mporary satire

a s is almost more brilliant, that on the two Puritan

’ types of religion . Hudibra s comes ﬁrst

For w his religion, it as ﬁt To ma tc h his lea rning a n d his wit " ‘ l was Presbyteri a n true - blue ; For he was of tha t stubborn crew - 8 8 DEVELOPMENT OF PARTY SATIRE [OH .

Of a a a ll a t err nt s ints , whom men gr n To be the true Church Milita nt ; Such a s do build their fa ith upon The holy text of pike a n d gun ; Decide a ll controversies by Infa llible a rtillery ; And prove their doctrine orthodox By Apostolic blows a n d knocks ; Ca ll fire a n d sword a n d desola tion a A godly, thorough Reform tion, a a a on Which lw ys must be c rried , i And st ll be doing, never done ; As if Religion were intended For nothing else but to be mended A sect whose chief devotion lies In odd perverse a ntipa thies ; In falling out with tha t or this And finding somewha t still a miss ; a n d More peevish, cross, splenetic, Tha n do distra ct or monkey sick ; Tha t wit more ca re kee holy da y a wa The wrong, th n others t e right y ; ou n d for a r e to Com sins they inclined , By a m n in g those they ha ve no mind to ; n Still so perverse a d opposite , ’ As if they wor sh ippd God for s ite The self- sa me thing they will a b or wa a n d a for : One y, long nother w di a Free will they on e a y s vow, a : Another, nothing else llow All piety consists therein a ll In them, in other men sin a a a R ther th n f il, they will defy Tha t which they love most tenderly ; a - a n d a a Qu rrel with mince pies, disp r ge a n d a - Their best de rest friend, plum porridge ; Fa t a n d pig goose its elf oppose, a And bl spheme custa rd through the nose. ’ a ostle s O Th f this fierce religion , ’ a h om e t s a ss a n d Like , were widgeon, To a t whom our Knight, by f st instinc ’ a n d wa s Of wit temper, so link d, As if hypocrisy a n d nonsense —2 Ha d 36 . got the a dvowson of his conscience.

s This pa sage deserves its fame, come down from the time when the crowning mercy of Worcester

9 0 DE VELOPMENT OF PARTY- SATIRE [OIL

T e a a a al h mouse tr p men l id s ve ls by, ’ And ga inst Evil Counsellors did cry ; t O Botchers lef ld clothes in the lurch, And fell to turn a n d pa tch the Church ; Some cried the Covena nt inste a d - a n d a Of pudding pies gingerbre d ,

a a r i I a A str nge, h mon ous nclin tion ll — a to a . I. 2 5 39 5 4 Of degrees Reform tion . .

This is comic more than witty, but sometimes he

two ff a s combines the e ects, in the following

to on passage, the last there is space quote, the

c on ﬁsca tion s a n d P Roundhead taxes . The uritans

a a a a Could tr nsubst nti te, met morphose, a of a And ch rm whole herds be sts, like Orpheus ’ ’ a a n d a Ench nt the King s Church s l nds, ’ “ ” a n d a T obey follow their comm nds, on a And settle new freehold, As Ma roly - hill h a d done of Old ’ Could turn the Cov n a n t a n d tra nsla te The Gospel into spoons a n d pla te ; ’ a ll a a Expound upon merch nts c shes, ’ And open th in tr ic a te st pla ces ; a a m - Could c techise oney box, And prove a ll pouches orthodox ; a a a a Until the C use bec me D mon, t as a III 2 1 123 - 3 . . 6 . And Py he the wicked M mmon .

The brilliance of H u dib r a s speaks for itself ; it is perhaps the wittiest book ever written in i Engl sh . Of its defects some have been mentioned f a . of o alre dy The utter lack coherence, character

a of and of proportion, make it h rdly a work art

- we read it as we should a jest book, and perpetual

’ e a disconnect d wit becomes tedious. Butler s le rn ing and abundance also were pitfalls to him : he becomes obscure and heaps conceit upon conceit .

too Though his style is pithy, he becomes lengthy BUTLER 9 1

1 ’ of . v through a plethora ideas Besides this, a De il s advoca te might say that his was an ungrateful — ofﬁce to render old romance and lofty a ims in a sordid dress . But he makes amends by his

of extraordinary wit, by force which he became or l ln a l g , although he was not absolutely the ﬁrst

or a His too in his style Hudibr stic metre . wit, , has the saving qua lity of underlying good sense : it

a s a a h l is f nta tic in ppe rance only. T us it can sti l reach posterity, while the unreal gibe perishes .

Herein it was aided by its wide range. Butler could not conﬁne himself to mere pa rty - verse ; and he h a s been rewarded for his breadth of interest by becoming a cla ssic of the older English literature, even though he is something like a

Court- J ester bringing up the rear and mocking

of a the solemnities procession .

1 Hume . CHAPTER IV

THE SATIRIC A

’ The ﬁrst eighteen years of Charles II s reign saw a gradually increasing discontent ; but the subjects of complaint were not yet uniﬁed There wa s a mism nagement, there was corruption, there were absolutist a n d papistical tendencies but Charles adroitly tided over the moments of ex c e tion a l of p strain, although at the cost some P P concessions even to the ension arliament. But i a w despread anger was rising in the nation, and these partial irritations were precipitated into a wholesale indignation by the fa ble of the Popish

Plot . The people had been worked up into a justiﬁable state Of chronic suspicion by the half

n of Ob k own events the reign . There was an

v iou s movement in France, coupled with obscure

intrigues in England, to enforce a universal

i a n in Cathol cism . So it is little wonder that v e n tive kn ave was found to make his proﬁt ou t

of Ou t of u the public credulity. this gr esome

two episode, with its sordid villainy, the great

THE SATIRIC AGE [c a

sweet. There is nothing like the charm of so many Restoration lyrics in them .

But as a satirist he was original . He introduced into English the sustained general denunciation of ’ n o the Latin satirists . He does t give rapid ta unts or lists of misdeeds like his predecessors : as “ ” of he says Charles IX, he scorns retail . And

ff too In his generalized vituperation is e ective . credible blood and thunder ﬁll the scene ; but

a t ll they least make a real clamour and sme raw.

a He is not following a f shion in invective . One is inclined to think him a genuine fa natic ; his

of indignation is real . He conceives the Jesuits

of . as the dread antitheses good There, however,

n o of r his merits end. He had sense irony o drama tic ﬁtness . Hence he places his objurgations

m on th s in Jesuit , with an extraordinary mixture

of . triumphant, conscious wickedness and bigotry The Jesuit Garnet ’s Ghost gloats over murder “ ’ ” as Hell s most proud exploit, and exhorts his successors to ha ve only will

a n d to a n d a c t . Like Hell me, covet ill Yet these conscious ﬁends are somehow occupied “ ” in ﬁghting heretics and saving the Church.

Th e l mudd e is inextricable, as the sentiments are

of Hi r on im o worthy e . Wh at redeems his defects is the ﬁne energy of exaggeration , which exalts a passage like the

1 r h o e . Prof. Cou t p I v] OLDHAM 9 5

’ following on Cha rles IX and St Bartholomew 8 day.

’ He sc orn d like common murderers to dea l ’ By pa rcels a n d piecemea l ; he sc or n d reta il a of a a a In the tr de de th ; whole myri ds died by the gre t, n so a Soon as o e single life ; quick their f te, n d a too a Their very pra yers a wishes c me l te.

The la st lines make us forgive much bad verse and

d o oo own b a . S t rhyme , , when in his person he “ atta cks the Jesuit principle of doing ill th at good ” a a may come, his ex gger tions throw a lurid light on of the rea l meaning the decorous phrase.

’ And yet twere well, were their foul guilt but thought ’ a own B se sin ; tis something even to a fa ult . But here the boldest ﬂights of wickedness d for a a n a . Are st mped religion, current p ss a k l da m n e dst The bl c est, ug iest, horridest, deed, a a For which hell ﬂ mes, the schools title need,

If done for Holy Church is sa nctiﬁed . a a n d This consecr tes the blessed work tool, ’ Nor must we ever a fter think em foul . a a a To undo re lms, kill pe s nts, murder kings, triﬂe s a Are thus but petty , veni l things, a n a a e a Not worth confessor ; y, He v n sh ll be a Itself invoked to bet the impiety.

As a may be seen here, Oldh m was a master of the

of a art leading up to clima x . It was more delicate

a . to powers that he l cked In consequence, pile up th e a wa s gony his only means for effect. The

of a r t wa s for economy true impossible him .

N a evertheless, he begins line of denunciator y wh o satirists, like him generalize their pictures a n d a charge the sh dows in them, while they try to a a a n d void his artistic f ults, fail to atta in his vigour. THE SATIRIC AGE Very different from this Protestant ﬂail was

a a the next writer to ppe r upon the scene . The storm raised by the legend of the Popish Plot was

to so - of quick die down, but not the ground swell

f r the agita tion o the Exclusion Bill . Shaftesbury

a n d P organized his party in the country arliament,

’ and nearly succeeded in forcing the King s hand . P Three new arliaments were elected in succession, and each of them was hostile to Ja mes. But Charles was an adept at reading the signs of the times . He gave his opponents, Whigs as they

r c e t were now deﬁnitely styled, p wai ed till their violence discredited them waited till the dread of another civil wa r could have its full effect ; waited till men were ashamed of the cruel pa nic of the Plot ; waited till the natural loya lty of the nation resented the ignominious treatment of its l P m royal house . Then he dissolved his ast arlia ent

1 a - n in 168 at Oxford, where no h lf nonco formist

- ob for l city m would riot Shaftesbury. Sti l even with his French pension and with the possession

of a wa s to the dministration, he only just able to keep down the Whigs . It was necessary attack their inﬂuence among the educated classes of th e

for towns, and this purpose Charles had the happy

of on to thought calling his laureate , Dryden,

- satirize the Whigs and their Exclusion Bill . — Dryden ( 163 1 1 700) was the apostle of the

of to new school poetry. This is as much as say that he was the poet of greatest genius among

THE SATIRIC AGE [c a

u . wa s of s ccession There talk his legitimacy, but on the whole the scheme appeared in its true light

a s la w a departure from and precedent, and as an

’ u to wh o inj stice James daughters, were undoubted

Protestants . On this weak point Dryden launched

c his atta k, describing the Whig proceedings under

a Th n mes taken from Biblical history. e device

n ot ‘ was quite original with him, but his was the

a whole excellence of plan and execution . He r ised l o di n it of a satire t epic g y . In spite the oblig tion V of to follow actual events, the poem is a work art. The lack of a plot is skilfully disguised in the

f Ar orderly movement o the poem . rangement

a of d takes the pl ce adventures . Unnecessary etails

’ - o d r a e of a n d day s w n e s g elimin ated. In a series

n - sk a Whi s a r e brillia t character etches the le ding g , , brought on the scene the seduction of Absalom (Monmouth) by Achitophel (Shaftesbury) is de

in a scribed masterly speeches, followed by pa y f . r o of the action they took Then c omes a se ies . Tory portraits and we are deluded into thinking we have reached a ﬁnale in a n arrative by an

’ improved version of Charles speech from the 16 1 throne in 8 .

Th e chara cter- sketches are the chief glory of

the poem , and, hackneyed though they be, it is

to two a r e necessary quote the best, since they the

r greatest satiric descriptions in English lite ature . One is that of Shafte sbury 1 f Cou r th o e . Pro . p f DRY N v‘ D Jfib E‘" ' h wa s Of these the false Achitopel first, A na me to a ll succeeding a ges curst : For close designs a n d crooked counsels fit, ‘ a a a n d of S g cious, bold turbulent wit, ’ R u n fix d a n d a estless, in principles pl ce, a a of dis ra c In power unple sed, imp tient g e u ou t wa A fi ry so l, which working its y,

a A d ring pilot in extremity, a Plea sed with the da nger when the w ves went high, for a a He sought the storms ; but, c lm unﬁt,

Would steer too nigh the sa nds to boa st his wit. Grea t wits e ra su re to m a dn e ss n e a r a llie d do r m pa rtitions thei bounds divide , l a a n d Else, why shou d he, with we lth honours blest, Refuse his a ge the needful hours of rest ? a a Punish body which he could not ple se, a a of a ? B nkrupt of life, yet prodig l e se

Dryden had found his vocation, though so late ;

a s a he never wrote better poetry, as well s tire,

a of th n these famous lines . The human ‘ fa te sounds mufﬂed in them like r u n n i g water g - ~x v on a behind ro k. Those Buckingh m are also a ” p n e e

‘ m ode lfo f invective, but, if their wit is even greater,

ﬁn their poetic quality is not so e .

a O ! a In the first r nk f these did imri st nd, ’ A m a n so va rious tha t he se e m d to be ’ N ot on e a ll a , but m nkind s epitome : f a a Sti f in opinions, lw ys in the wrong, Was everything by sta rts ~ a nd nothing long ; But in the course of on e revolving moon s h m t fiddle r a a a n d f Wa g y isfi , w h st tesm n bu foon ; ‘ a ll for n aintifi r h m in Then wome , p gT y g, drinking, te n a a a Besides thous nd fre ks th t died in thinking. a a Blest m dm n, who could every hour employ With something new to wish or to enjoy ! a a n d a a R iling pr ising were his usu l themes,

And both, to show his judgment, in extremes SO over violent or over civil Tha t every ' m a n with him wa s God or Devil THE SATIRIC AGE

pecu lia r a r t ;

desert. too a t l e,

on the ﬁnish of this pa ssage it would have been so eas y to be obscene l l or b u dge on y over Buckingham . , “ t o

" I should like to quote more e i a n iple s of

’ s i e i e Dryden s sa rcasms and humorou nv ct v , such

i h for ant t etic epigrams , instance, as

But fa r more numerous wa s the herd of such Wh o too a n d wh o a oo think little t lk t much, but I must conﬁne myself to his libel on th e

l of h m pu s s c or n . English people, fu l y eg as it is

a a s i a The Jews, he d trong, moody, murmur ng r ce, As ever tried the extent a n d stretch of grac e ; ’ ’ ’ a m e r d de b a u ch d a God s p p people, whom, with e se , 0 u n or a N king co ld govern, no God could ple se ; Gods they h a d tried of every sha pe a n d size Tha t godsm ith s could produce or priests devise ; a - too a These Ad m wits, fortun tely free, Bega n to dr ea m they wa nted liberty ; n o n o wa s And when rule, precedent found a a n d x b ou n d Of men by l ws less circumscribed , The led their wild desires to woods a n d ca ves a all a An thought th t but sa va ges were sl ves .

Dryden has been lauded for the high plane of i his satire, but this must be taken w th some

w e . a s qualiﬁcation He but a ling aft r all, and ~hire

f - praised or blamed as the court wind blew. We need look for n o scruple as to th e subject or object

s of hi attacks, save a certain poetic conscience, which m ade him anxious to do the thing a s well

of a s it could be done. Thus his ﬂaws taste are

of . far fewer than those his predecessors, and there

102 THE SATIRIC AGE [OIL

”

rs . At Reli io bu t at this the same time, the g L a ici , his defence of the Church of England in 1 68 2 , shows, I think, that Catholicism would come easily to him he was already perplexed by the fact tha t the original text of the Bible was n ot to be had and those were th e days of literal

I n P inspiration the rotestant churches.

n o However this may be, he lost time in putting his faculties at the service of his new

For - faith . it he wrote the semi sa tiric fable of

Th e H in d an d th e ‘P a n th e r 1 , in 68 7. Unfortunately the royal policy a change

during its execution . For some after h is

e a accession James II hoped to secure l g l toleration,

a and in practice much more, for the C tholics from

a o the Church and Tory p rty. The end f h is

’ brother s reign had been devoted to placing the

a n d latter in power in the corporations, in con ’ ' sequence James Parliament was enthusia stica lly A loyal . But it was also enthusiastically nglican,

n ot a and James asked the one thing it would gr nt,

a l of a f the r e pe the Test Acts. The b ﬂed King fell

on of P ba ck those stretches the rerogative, the

on e dispensing and suspending powers, which in L for m or a nother h ad a lways been in use. ike a

a a true Stewart, however, he gave them gener l

ff a application, very di erent from the particul r use

of of them by the Tudors, while the theories succession by Divine Right and of indefeasible Prerogative made it really impossible to come to DRYDEN 103

a i a n d terms with him, all b rga ns between King

for subjects being invalid. Still James looked a a to llies mong his people, and hoped ﬁnd them in th e N on c on for m ists , whom he therefore set about h restoring to power in the corporations. W at

do n ot Dryden thought of this we know, unless his dislike of Father Petre The Martin is inspired by dislike for the policy which the priest supported .

to His pliant Muse, at ﬁrst gracious the Anglicans a n d of contemptuous the sects, becomes by the end of a to a n d du lciﬁe d the poem cerb the former, is

a a a by an apologetic pref ce tow rds the l tter, who

’ were to proﬁt by the King s Decla ra tion of In

n du lge ce .

Th e H in d a n d th e P a n th e r 168 ff too ( 7) su ers, ,

a r iﬁ ia li Of by the absurd t c ty its plot. Lyndsay and Spenser had used the a nimals of the medieval

- a for to beast f ble types of persons, whom the a ttribution of huma n learning and professions only

’ a a . a r e dded qu intness Dryden s institutions, the n P Hi d being the Roman, the anther the Anglica n

a n d s o on Church and, what with a mixture of

a history, personiﬁc tion and theological argument,

— of there results a hopeless mingle mangle tropes,

a a l ﬁgures, f cts and l egories . The treatment of the details, however, shows all his sober colouring and poetic skill . The easy, unembarrassed verse sha pes itself to its theme ; but its serious pa rts a r e a ll too to o ff after open ridicule t be e ective . It is when Dryden towards the end diverges into 104 THE SATIRIC AGE [on

subsidiary fables in his sa tire of the Church of

Th e l to . England, that he rises his best c ergy and

his special adversary, Bishop Burnet, are mocked ﬁ with a ght sardonic humour, unequalled in English l verse elsewhere. The parsons, it shou d be said,

of are represented as a breed amatory pigeons, the

a n ot C tholic priests, quite happily from the celibate

of v u l point iew, as domestic po try. The Doves are indignant at their rivals ’ favour

And much they grieved to see so nigh their hall ’ The bird tha t wa r n d St Peter of his fa ll ; a a on Th t he should r ise his mitred crest high, And cla p his wings a n d ca ll his fa mily To sa cred rites ; a n d vex the etheri a l powers With midnight ma tins a t uncivil hours ; N a y more, his quiet neighbours should molest, of Just in the sweetness their morning rest . a of a Be st bird , supinely when he might a n d ! Lie snug sleep, to rise before the light a l a a Wh t if his du l foref thers used th t cry, Could he not let a b a d exa mple die ? The world wa s fa llen to a n ea sier wa y ; a This a ge knew better tha n to fa st a n d pr y . Good sense in sa cred worship would a ppea r

SO to begin a s they might end the yea r. Such fea ts in former times h a d wrought the fa lls ’ i a loiste r d a Of crow ng Ch nticleers in c w lls . ’ Ex e lld for a n d a d p this for their l n s, the ﬂed, t a And sis er P rtlet, with her hooded he W b oote d a - a s a . hence, bec use she would not pra y bed “ The wa y to win the r e stiﬁ world to God Wa s la to y by the disciplining rod, a a a a n d m of Unn tur l f sts , foreign for s pra yer a Religion frights us with mien severe . ” ‘ I is a prudence to reform her into e se, to a And put her in undress, m ke her plea se ; a a a A lively f ith will be r loft the mind, a a of And le ve the lugg ge good works be hind.

This sportive irony, ingeniously turning the tables

103 THE SATIRIC AGE [a n

1 a n die aw y. In o e we see the disgust felt when Algernon Sidney was done to death partly on the

of strength an undivulged treatise, composed many years before. Algernon Sidney a d Of Commonwe lth ki ney, ’ a da m n d a a wa s Composed libel ( y, m rry, it), Writ to occa sion Ill- a blood in the n tion, i a ll And therefore dispersed t over his closet.

At that time, however, the Whigs were muzzled

of n politically by the remodelling the Corporatio s, and it is not easy to see where the Crown would

a n have been vulner ble, had not James by his a ti ‘ A o Hc wa s nglican policy estranged the Tories to . n ot content with obtaining a civil equa lity by the use of his dispensing power : he began to force

Catholics into Anglican preferments, while his army with its Catholic ofﬁcers camped ominously

to on Hounslow Heath . His belated attempt conciliate the Dissenters did not improve his position he only helped to replace the Whigs in power in their corporation strongholds. Finally, even his Declaration of Indulgence relieved the Dissenters of their disabilities at a price that in

to general they were unwilling give, the acknow ledgment Of an unfettered prerogative . Mean time the mass of Englishmen rallied to the national

i a - wa church, which none could th nk a h lf y house

or o to Rome a slave t prerogative, when the royal

1 T s 1 683 . A N e w S on g of th e im e , I v ] BALLADS 107

on satirist was whistled to attack it , and the Seven Bishops were persecuted for refusing to

a read a Declara tion contrary to law. The n tion wa s determined to give up n o safegua rd a ga inst Catholicism (and the Huguenots were ﬂeeing then

a ff a t a of from Fr nce), and sco ed the very ide an

a A 1 68 8 equiv lent. ballad of gives the popular

o view f the Test .

la w h s a A politic w ich Recu nts did doom, Tha t into ou r Sena te they never might come ; a l But equ iv en t soon wa s proposed in its room .

a a . Sing hey, br ve Popery, ho, r re Popery a ! O fine Popery, O d inty Popery ho As if a true friend should in kindn ess dema nd a a A tooth in my he d, which firmly doth st nd, ’ To give for t a nother he h a d in his ha nd. a a Sing hey, br ve Po ery, ho, r re Popery, a in t ! O fine Popery, O y Popery ho

of n ot Such a state public feeling could last long. The birth of the Prince of Wa les made even Tories desperate at the prospect of a nother legitimate

Ca tholic king. Both parties combined to declare the child supposititious . The Prince of Ora nge

- was invited over there was a rapid scene shifting, and Divine Right a n d indefeasible Prerogative were banished from English public law .

Yet they were not easily banished from opinion . The exile of the Stewarts created a new party

a c ob ite s of from the extreme Tories, the J romance. To men of the time they formed a very prosaic

a a and r ther underh nd opposition . The Re volution pla ced Whigs and Tories in a less deﬁned position than before. They had clear principles to guide 10 H 8 THE SATIRIC AGE [O . them : on e party was for Parliament and toleration of Dissent, the other for Royal authority and the

Church . But their practical policy for the moment was bound to be much the same they both s upported, as grudgingly as might be, their de

live r e r . on , William III He his side had no notion of party - government he chose his own ministers once or twice they were all of on e political c om plexion— and had no reason to be otherwise than f vexed at the continuance o Whigs and Tories . l Neverthe ess, they remained, and steadily grew more cohesive under the leadership of the great fam ilies through this reign and the next. The permanence of Parli a ment in the new order aided

a in establishing their solid rity. It sat for some

n months every year, and the members were c o tin u a lly acting in concert. The main interest of

of the sessions was course ﬁnancial, though the whole administration was n ow regularly checked by Parliament and it was on its ﬁnancial side that the government of King William was most

of L susceptible criticism. iberty was expensive . The Revolution made England perforce leader f o the league against prepotent France, which wa s the model of despotism and of encroaching

’ Catholicism for Europe . William s intervention in En gland had been but a move in the inter

to national game, and, if England wished keep

ou t James II , she must also resist the supremacy

of Louis XIV.

THE SATIRIC AGE

ministration . The Whigs appeared to hold power

s of n ot as the friend the favourite, and the Tories,

n ot openly cashiered, could deny that whatever f aults the general had, Louis XIV would never

II IOI ' O a t Notre Da me

Te Deum sing in quiet.

But the wrath of the Tories slowly grew. The trial of Dr Sacheverell showed h ow strong their

of A tenets royal power and nglicanism, however

stu ltiﬁe d the ﬁrst was by the Revolution, were in

of the country. Marlborough became the object

libels and squibs, and very wretched ones they

were .

n ot P Yet it was the Tory arty, but the Q ueen ,

Pa wh o drove Marlborough from power. rliament was not for years to claim a voice in the a ppoint

to ment of ministers . It had not even come the stage of compe lling their resignation, if it disliked

t e a them . So when h new female f vourite, Mrs

s s Masham, ou ted Marlborough and his Duches , the angry Whigs turned on her and her Tory mistress . One ballad goes

Whena s Queen Anne of grea t renown ’ ’ a a wa d Gre t Brit in s sceptre s y , Besides the Church she dea rly loved di a a A rty ch mberm id.

! a a wa s a O Abig il, th t her n me, ’ ’ She sta r ch d a n d s titc h d fu ll well ; But h ow she pierced this roya l hea rt

NO morta l m a n c a n tell .

It is an interesting fa ct that the greater number SWIFT 1 1 1 of English party - sa tires have proceeded from the

a Opposition . The Outs not only have nger and a mbition to spur them on but they ha ve much m ore of a ta ngible na ture to criticize the ministers a r e obliged to act a n d therefore err. Thus the c onclusion of the Pea ce of Utrecht evoked a storm of a a b llads, which did not recognize th t, if it were

wa s . inglorious, it also proﬁtable But the Tories

to ﬁ nd were now a skilful defender in that light, u ndress verse which is needed for da y - to - day bickerings . — Jona than Swift ( 166 7 1 745 ) ﬁnally threw in

a of 1 10 his lot with the Tories in the utumn 7 , and became their indispensable pa mphleteer. In his

a verses a r ther glum humour a ppea rs . One point of Tory policy was to keep the Dissenters ou t of political power by preventing the practice of occasional conformity, by which they evaded the

a Corporation Act. The De n ironically defends the Whigs For if it be not stra nge a a Th t religion should ch nge, As Often a s clima tes a n d fa shions ; ’ a Then sure there s no h rm, a on e Th t should conform, To a serve their own priv te occa sions .

’ He comments on Sa cheverell s prosecution same tone

’ The subject s most loya l a t a a Th h tes the blood roy l, a And they for employments h ve merit, Who swea r queen a n d steeple a Were m de by the people, a to And neither h ve right inherit. THE SATIRIC AGE

’ ’ a ﬁx d The mon rchy s , ’ ’ a O ix d By m king n t m , ’ And by n on - resista nce o e r th r own And prea ching obedience ou r a l a Destroys l egi nce, h And thus the Whigs prop up t e throne .

The argumentative power of these verses is very remote from the ways of most ballads but Swift could portray and denounce as well . He assails Marlborough on his fa ll with extraordinary a n d perhaps deserved bitterness .

r a While he his utmost st ength pplied, a To swim a ga inst this popul r tide, The golden spoils ﬂew Off a pa ce ; a a a Here fell pension, there pl ce The torrent merciless imbibes a n d e Commissions, perquisites brib s ; By their own weight sunk to the bottom ; ’ ’ Much good ma y t do them tha t ha ve ca ught em ! a a And Mid s now neglected st nds, ’ With a sses ea rs a n d dirty ha nds. Perhaps the direct vigour here marks the nearest

o approach of Swift t poetical feeling. Truth to

to . Too e say, his verses are hard relish often ther

a S of is dry brutality about them, in pite their undoubted power . Even his rollicking moods

’ of have not the geniality other men s, as may be seen from a later piece of his on the Iris h im broglio f ’ o Wood s Halfpence .

’ a r e o e r com e t a When foes , we preserve hem from sl ughter, To of a n d a Of a be hewers wood dr wers w ter. N a a a ow, lthough to dr w w ter is not very good, a ll f Yet we should rejoice to be hewers o Wood.

a a h a d a The He thens, we re d, gods m de of wood, Wh o n a could do them o h rm, if they did them no good ; But this idol Wood m a y do us grea t evil ; ds of ou r Their go were wood, but Wood is the Devil.

1 14 THE SATIRIC AGE collapsed miserably : and the Whigs rejoiced insultingly over the ﬂight of James III . The

on e m a belief in his spurious birth, y remark, was more important to the dying Tory creed of Divine

to Right, than theirs

Twa s when the sea s were roa ring a of With bl sts northern wind, Young Perkin la y deploring a a n On w rming p reclined .

’ Wide o er the roa ring billows a a a He c st dism l look, ’ And sh ive r d like the willows ’ 1 a Th t tremble o er the brook .

It was to increase the national dislike of and contempt for the Highla n ders that Thomas Ticke ll wrote his I m ita tion of th e P r oph e cy of N er eu s .

Ma r As his round one morning took, a e a r ] a n d a (Whom some c ll , some c ll duke) a And his new brethren of the bl de, ’ a a n d su r ve d Shivering with fe r frost, y , ’ On Perth s blea k hills he cha nced to spy a a An ged wiz rd six foot high, a a n d a With bristled h ir vis ge blighted, ’ - - - a a h a u n ch d a n d t . W ll eyed, b re second sigh ed The grizzly sa ge in thought profound

Beheld the chief with ba ck so round, ’ Then r olld his eyeba lls to a n d fr o ’ a a of O er his p tern l hills snow, And into these tremendous speeches

Broke forth the prophet without breeches . “ ’ a b e tr a d Into wh t ills y by thee, This a ncient kingdom do I see ! Her rea lms unpeopled a n d forlorn ! ’ Wa e s me ! tha t ever thou wert born ! ’ Proud English loons (our cl a ns o e r com e ) On Scottish pa ds sha ll a mble home ; ’ I see them dr e ss d in bonnets blue (The spoils of thy rebellious crew) ;

1 T i h C a r ic a tu r e H is tor o th Ge or es . . Wr g t , y f e g TICKELL

I a a a a see the t rget c st w y, ’ h e u e r d a And c q pl id become their prey, ’ The ch e qu e r d pla id to ma ke a gown

For ma ny a la ss in London town . “ In vain thy hungry mounta ineers a ll a a Come forth in their w rlike ge rs, a n d a The shield, the pistol, durk d gger, a a In which they d ily wont to sw gger, And oft ha ve sa llied ou t to pilla ge of a a The henroosts some pe ceful vill ge, a Or while their neighbours were sleep, a H a ve ca rried off a lowl nd sheep . “ a a Wh t boots thy highborn host of begg rs, a a a a n d a M cle ns, M ckenzies, M cgregors, a r u ffia n s With popish cutthro ts , perjured , ’ And Foster s troop of r a ga m u fiin s ? “ a a a a In v in thy l ds bout thee b ndy, I n fl d a a n d a a m e with b gpipes with br ndy.

a The rest is pr ise of the Scottish Whigs . This

a m sterpiece of light verse, with its echoes of

’ a v h a s a i M r ell s serious style, almost politic l m porta nce as an illustration of that English good humour which h a s ma de Pa rliamentary institutions

a possible it also, one must dmit, exempliﬁes that som ewha t coa rse contempt of Englishmen for the

h a s - Keltic fringe, which been a part cause of so

a diﬂic u ltie s for many l ter the United Kingdom . While ineffectua l Rom a nce was thus fading in

N a the orth, momentous, prosaic revolution was

a t taking place the centre of politics . The a bsence of i George I from the meetings of his m nisters,

a a due to his ignor nce of the English l nguage, combined with the fa ct that ministers were all of a party to give the Ca bine t more deﬁnition than

N a heretofore. obody could doubt th t the group of men wh o met in that informa l council held the

8 —2 1 1 6 THE SATIRIC AGE

’ of King s conﬁdence and the reins government. The legislation which h a d been directed against

’ its existence in Q ueen Anne s day could n ot be f o too . repeated. The need it was Obvious The further need of a permanent president to direct

for its deliberations and be factotum a monarch, wh o even when in Engla nd was something of an

wa s to f absentee, almost immediately make itsel

for b to felt, although years the stub orn fact was

For be resisted . the moment, however, the main

of to aim Whig statesmen was enter the Cabinet, and every event was made the subject of intrigu es

of 1 19 for that end. There is a capital squib 7 occasioned by the efforts of seven of them to regain their pla ces by currying fa vour with the

of wh o a a i Prince Wales, in Georgi n f sh on was his

’ oo n ot to father s enemy. It is t good quote at some length

To Richmond these Seven Wise Men went, ’ ’ a a a G ll W lpole s b rge it bore em, o e Our Hope his course t meet them b nt, ’ Six footmen m a r c h d before him : ’ In his e m b r oide r d coa t they found him ,

With a ll his strutting dwa rfs a round him .

“ a n d Welcome, my lords gentlemen , ’ I m gla d to see your fa ces ; a a a n d First kis s my roy l h nd, then Wa lk in a n d ta ke your pla ces : a on a Set me my ch ir, either h nd

I give you Wise Men lea ve to sta nd.

n1 Quoth Robi next in mighty glee,

Of whom it is much doubt,

1 i a e . S r R . W lpol

1 18 THE SATIRIC AGE divided at home by bitter factions but both were

a to profoundly unpopular. Walpole in v in tried disguise the fact that the other ministers were his

too subordinates . It was patent that a dissentient

or - b for would e rival the royal ear had to resign . Then his severe discipline over his partisan s in

Pa s rliament was notorious . It is true that vote

n in the Commons, growi g as it was more and more the centre of the state, had long been bought and sold but n ow a disobedient vote was at once punished by loss of place or pension . Even in

- i that corrupt age, when borough own ng was easily condoned, such a complete system aroused criticism . h The discontented W igs and the Tories, calling

‘ P th e ir d n u n i themselves atriots, were loud in e c a

of a m wh o tions the tyr nnical, corrupt inister, kept

o them from the sweets f ofﬁce. In Parliament and in the country they kept up a vigorous , and occasionally successful opposition . They were fortunate, mainly through their connection with the literary Tory, Bolingbroke, in having allies in

of P some of the leading writers the day. ope aided them with more exalted verse, while John Gay

— - ( 168 5 173 2) joined in with Side hits in a lighter vein .

’ Gay s ﬁrst attack on the Minister was in h is . a Th e comic piece, preluding Gilbert and Sulliv n,

’ a r s O ér a of B egg p , where the character the high wa s for wayman, Macheath, palpably intended

n a to him. The gover ment ctually thought it best f P ll to prohibit the performance o o y , the sequel

the dangerous mockery of the opera. They could

of not, however, prevent the publication his second

of Fa bles posthumous volume , in which various

’ a a sly llusions, all in Gay s e sy, unexalted manner,

a to a . o r were m de W lpole C r uption, it seems, is

va - pre lent in the beast world .

A tempting turnip’s silver skin Drew a ba se hog through thick a n d thin ’ a Bought with a sta g s delicious h unch, The mercena ry wolf wa s sta unch : a a n d a The convert fox grew w rm he rty, ’ A pullet ga in d him to the pa rty

The golden pippin in his ﬁst, ’ a A ch ttering monkey j oin d the list. Elsewhere the discipline enforced is the grievance

All consciences must bend a n d ply ; You mu st vote on a n d not know why Through thick a n d thin you must go on ;

One scruple a n d your pla ce is gone .

Th ere has been a revolution in Opinion since these

T n e ve rth e lines were written . hey are evidence,

of a a less , how reluctantly Engl nd found salv tion in

a - p rty government. Of better quality are the lines

a P att cking the rime Ministership, which was a

a gre ter novelty and inspired more real aversion .

a of a a n d a A be r sh g m nners rough,

At climbing trees expert enough, ’ For a n d a a dext rously, s fe from h rm, ’ Yea r a fter yea r he r ob b d the swa rm

Thus thriving on industrious toil, ’ ilf r He gloried in his p e d spoil . ﬁll’d This trick so him with conceit, too a He thought no enter rise gre t. a n a Alike in sciences rts, He boa sted universa l pa rts ; THE SATIRIC AGE

a a Pr gm tic, busy, bustling, bold, ’ His a rroga nce was u n con tr olld : a a And thus he m de his p rty good,

And grew dicta tor of the wood . a a a a The be sts with dmir tion st re, a a And think him prodigious Be r. a n Were y common booty got, ’ Twa s his ea ch portion to a llot For ? why he found there might be picking, ’ a a Ev n in the c rving of chicken .

Intruding thus, he by degrees ’ ’

Cla im d a . , too, the butcher s l rger fees And now his overweening pride ’ In ev ry province will preside . No ta sk too difﬁcult wa s found

His blundering nose mislea ds the hound . a a a n d a In str t gems subtle rts, ’ a He overrules the fox s p rts . We have fallen a long way from Dryden ’s Hind

P . wa s and anther here Gay, however, but an under ling and the press - campa ign in the Cr a ftsm a n against the Minister was carried on by more dis

o tin gu ish e d pens . S formidable did the Opposition become that Walpole sought to silence it with the

of La w- aid the courts . His task was the ea sier as the then conception of libel included most criticism

on . i the government However, in th s particular case the defendants got off on another debatable

a question in law . The Judges as rule held that the Jury could only decide in a libel case on the fa ct

of a a ll- o public tion , and must leave the imp rtant decision as to whether the incr iminated statement was a libel or n ot to them for that they said was

of of a a question Law, which they lone were the

h ow exponents . It can be imagined fatal the

minister - appointed Judges were to opponents of

THE SATIRIC AGE

of wh o grudging, the thickheaded squirearchy, were n ot easily disturbed by cries of a sub verted

on a constitution, when everything went as usu l,

own and their ascendency was unimpaired. But the squirearchy were susceptible on questions of

o the national honour, and the moneyed men n questions of trade and both saw their gods over

’ turned by Walpole s anxiety to keep the peace

ou with Spain . His policy, indeed, was growing t of date, and it may be said that the nation was wiser than he. Fortune varies in her procedure, says Machiavelli somewhere, and men fail through n ot too varying their methods with her. Then, , a

wa s public opinion growing outside the House .

i a Grow ng wealth , political camp igns, religious movements, and, we may add, the long line of

a n ot satires and politic l ballads, had been without their effects. The nation outside the political classes possessed of power began to have opinions on current politics ; and those opinions were largely formed by the middle - class of manu

fa ctu r e rs . A , traders and professional men lrea dy

a ff a n d they ected elections had a leader, the elder

P . itt, in the Commons Here at last was a born

wh o n ot wh o ruler, could be bribed, and rested,

on or a n ot royal support f mily connection, but on

a na tional opinion . If W lpole supplied one element

‘ of the Prime Ministership in being pa rty - leader

’ of i P a n d possessor the K ng s conﬁdence, itt intro

a o du c e d another in appe ling t popular support . BALLADS 1 23

The ﬁrst result of this new force was the fa ll of

1 2 i to Wa lpole in 74 . The K ng was obliged part

n o a with him, now he could longer m nage the P Commons. Walpole and ulteney retired together to the Lords, and a new ministry was formed . It seems Lord Carteret wa s the leading spirit in its

a construction , and some verses full of a vineg ry P ’ humour, written by ope s Sporns, Lord Hervey,

of h give us a glimpse his procedure. T ey unveil,

wa s 1 42 what still hidden from vulgar eyes in 7 , the decadence of the monarchy, which had been steadily yielding real control to the Whig oligarchy and its leaders

h a a W om they ple sed they put in, whom they ple sed they ou t put , ’ 1 And just like a top they a ll la sh d him a bout ; a to a Whilst he, like p, with murmuring noise, ’ to to u a Seemed grumble, but turu d these r de, l shing boys .

Further on Carteret speaks

a a a a sk a All th t we thercock Pulteney sh ll , we must gr nt, For to ma ke him a grea t noble nothing I wa nt ; to a a m a n a a ll a And che t such dem nds my rts, ’ ’ For a a a though he s fool, he s fool with gre t pa rts .

a s o a Clodiu s And p ul r , the Pulteney of Rome, a lo a From no , for ower did plebei n become, Clodiu s be a a a a So this to P trici n sh ll choose, T a on e a a ill wh t got by ch nging, the other sh ll lose. ’ ﬂa tte r d a n d a n d a a t a ll Thus courted g zed by , a a a da a a Like Ph eton , r ised for he sh ll f ll, a a a n S Put the world in ﬂ me, how he did strive ’ ’ a a a To get reins in his h nd, though tis pl in he c n t drive .

a S a As these dmirable lines how, W lpole had made

a on e history in more w ys than . When Q ueen

1 Th Ki e ng . 1 24 THE SATIRIC AGE [on

n o Anne died, statesman could be banished from the opportunities of power by being promoted to

L N ow P the ords. the eers were chieﬂy powerful a s - great landlords and as borough owners . Of course Walpole was not the ultimate cause of the

change, but he promoted it by his early recognition of the tendency and by basing his position largely on f the support o the Commons .

i too The succeed ng ministers found, , their s - to ong writer attack them, Sir Charles Hanbury

Williams. It is, however, only necessary to mention

i l wh o on that triv a writer, carried the succession of light verse composition with n o more than a facu lty for glib rhymes and a complete knowledge of of the scandals the day . The current of light verse turns and eddies

o a with the changes in politics from day t d y. Save

of in connection with the events which it tells, it is little worth remembering ; yet for that reason

n ot s or it is the aptest, if the true t most impressive ,

on comment them . We are not confused by any power of genius to see below the surface or to

ion s of ennoble its theme in the tr a n sﬁgu r a t art. Thus it has seemed best to give the commonplace productions of party - c on ﬂict in their order before proce eding to the series of more ambitious works which lead up to its satiric masterpiece.

’ Dryden s effect on his contemporaries in the

- s o a t rhyming trade was tremendous, that they

in tacked him his own words and metre, barely

126 THE SATIRIC AGE

’ of J u r e D ivin o Defoe s dreary imitation Dryden , ,

for e t written the Whigs. Much b t er is the epigram of Ga rth (1 66 1 this time actually on the

on Tory Q ueen . He addresses France the peace f o Utrecht.

for a a ? For thee, thee lone, wh t could she more ’ She lost the honour she h a d ga in d before ; Lost a ll the trophies which her a rms h a d won ’ a a (Such C es r never knew, nor Philip s son) ; ’ ’ Re si n d of a e a g the glories ten y rs reign, ’ And such a s none but Ma rlborough s a rm could ga in ; ’ For thee in a nnals she s content to shine a of a Like other mon rchs the Stu rt line .

The crushing mildness of this climax wa s a ﬁt f harbinger o the Ha noverians . The lesser men under the early Georges are

Ticke ll hardly worth referring to . showed that

a s a n in heroic couplets he could be as dull y . Thompson in the stodgy blank verse of his

' B r ita n n ia contrived to be both matter- of- fa ct

a t and unreasonable the same time, when he attacked Walpole over the Spa nish maltrea tment

of the British mercantile marine . Young, fol

in of lowing his footsteps, gave a model the

forcible - feeble style in his comments on the Young P retender.

S a a - a a And h ll pope bred princeling cr wl shore, a Replete with venom , guiltless of sting, But it would be absurd to rake over these dead [ ’ h S ta te D u n ce s any further. W itehead s Shows a little more polish of form and a virulenc e of personal invective pursued se r ia tim ; I v ] POPE 1 27 but his exiguous merit is due to imita tion of the

r a A a P . eigning liter ry king, lex nder ope

’ One of Dryden s misfortunes wa s to be the forerunner of Pope ( 168 8 who outdid him

a a n in his own me sure d ambitions . If Dryden wa s a P lucid, easy, epigramm tic and correct, ope

u u l r u a li ie s rea ched the n e pl s t a of these q t . v a a a e P Dryden was liter ry dict tor for few y ars , ope for a a on sever l gener tions . Dryden carried the reform of the heroic couplet, making it sustained, P even a n d perha ps monotonous . ope went still u a n d f rther in the rigidity of his verse, in the

of a perpetual coincidence the metric l framework, n ow to a n d limited orthodoxy, the syntax licences disappea r ; the

n e j a/m bem en t. At the a m m of a s e ti e, in the content the verse, the l ter

a French cl ssicism, with its tinsel mythology, its s e a n d a ir tilt d expressions, its of decorous good i A breed ng, comes into full vogue . crass, prosaic

wa s e to wax it , which render d men deaf the voices, which one would think irresistible, of the older

a a a n tion l liter ture . N evertheless in the pa rticula r department of

a a P a - politic l s tire, ope b rely comes into competi q a tion with Dryden . His he lth and ha bits made

a a n d him somewhat of recluse, he was bred a

. a Catholic It followed th t the more noisy, active

of e a part lif , and especi lly politics, were beyond

a his reach . Besides, the gener lizing tendencies of 1 28 THE SATIRIC AGE

his school led him to satirize universa l follies and

of n ot to in natural whims character, make an discriminate assault on all of a different way of

thinking. Then the delica cy of his wit and imagi n a tion would have been ou t of place on the wo h in for w - W u st gs . He wrote chieﬂy the dra ing room

Thus although he so inﬂuenced the style of

a on e . politic l satirists, he was scarcely himself

of Obviously, some his victims, like Lord Hervey,

w a for ere s tirized partly political motives, but

ou politics themselves are kept t of sight . Only at the end of his career does he treat of public

ffa a n d a irs , , as might be expected from the friend

of m Bolingbroke, allows hi self an ironical thrust or so at Sir Robert Wa lpole and his pea ce policy

a of and a t the prevailing corruption . The cme these a ttacks was reached in the I m ita tion of

’ e A 1 3 H or a ce s Epis tl to u g u s tu s in 7 7. In words of u n forge ta b le mocking adulation Pope celebrated

’ a the King and his minister s policy . It is a h ppy

’ to thing, perhaps, that George s insensibility the

' ’ Muses prevented his realizing the effect of Pope s

la corrosive lines, when b tant denunciations would

have been long forgotten .

! u a a Oh could I mo nt on the M eoni n wing, a a ! Your rms, your ctions, your repose to sing h a a ou a a n d a ou ! W t se s y tr versed, wh t ﬁelds y fought ’ a oft h ow a ! Your country s pe ce, how , de rly bought w a a a t Ho b rb rous ra ge subsided your word, ’ ’ ! An d n a tions won de r d while they dr oppd the sword ’ How on o e r a a n d , when nodded, the l nd deep, ’ a a n d wr a d . Pe ce stole er wing, pp the world in sleep

13 0 THE SATIRIC AGE

them while they held together and there was n o

c on alternative. Still George II could ﬁnd some “ ’ I n ff kick d solation foreign a airs . Though and ff’d ” c u ff. here, he could there kick and cu The

of 1 5 6 to diplomatic revolution 7 , which led up

’ the Seven Yea rs War was partly caused by his

to anxiety safeguard Hanover . Then the Seven

’ Years Wa r itself provided an unprecedented series

of conquests for England . Her naval supremacy

wa s established . In America and the East Indies

Sh e of 1 60 wa s was dominant. The tide victory in 7 still ﬂowing and still being celebrated in patriotic

ballads, when George II died and was succeeded

a by his gr ndson George III . George III ca me to the throne resolved to be

N ot a - r v l a king. th t any reversion to pre e o u tion a r y days was intended by the phrase, but he

to wished recover the position held by William III, which had been gradually lost by succeeding sovrans and more particularly by George II . N ow .

’ circumstances h a d changed again in the Crown s

’ l o ob i i m a 45 favour. The col apse f Ja c t s fter the freed the Tories from any disloya l tendency ; and

a ll in after their strength the country, although it

of wa s a had long been a passive kind, greater th n

of i that the Wh gs . Then the Whig ascendency largely depended on a Pa rliamenta ry combination

a a of gre t f milies . It was their solidarity which h a d humiliated George II in 1746 . The whole

of P to career, however, the elder itt tended sap the GEORGE III 13 1 founda tions of tha t Parliamenta ry oligarchy by awa kening public opinion outside and b e further ma de a beginning in the introduction of a n ideal of n ot ff public purity, which could but a ect a

- party machinery dependent on corru ption . Add to wa s - this, that George III native born and

a a popul r, not odious and Germ n, and it will be seen that his position was very strong. P For the movement initiated by itt, however, the new King had little sympathy. He proposed to resume the patronage of the Crown himself, and to bea t the Whigs at their own methods .

of a L With the aid his f vourite, ord Bute, he rapidly undermined the Whig Cabinet he inherited. P P itt was soon resigning, and the titular rime

o Minister, Newcastle, was shortly compelled t A follow. Bute Cabinet, directed by the King

a m a person lly, then entered for lly upon its ex iste n c e with Tory principles, being supported in

’ o the Comm ns by the new party of King s Friends, wa s which held together by places and pensions, while it advoca ted the avowable and Old principle

’ tha t the King s Minister should be voted with if

a re sonably possible. But George III h a d made a t ' least three capital

a mist kes . He missed the support of the better u P p blic morality fostered by itt, which was out raged to see the King bribing constituencies a n d carrying corruption as far as ever. He espoused

- a peace policy, and soon gave the nation reason to THE SATIRIC AGE

An d regret the glorious times just pa st . he made

his f P a Scot avourite and rime Minister, thereby arousing a ll the ancient dislikes of his English

subjects . The lead in opposition to the Court wa s

wh o taken by the notorious Wilkes, succeeded in extending Whiggism to cover a group of new

on of doctrines the sovranty the people, partly derived from the theories of the French ph ilo

so h es a p , but also st nding in some connection with

- . N ow e native grown public opinion Wilkes, whil

N or th B r iton assaulting Bute in his paper, the ,

for in prose, looked about a poetical ally ; and

u fo nd what he sought in Charles Churchill . — Churchill ( 173 1 64) had taken Orders for a

b u cklike livelihood, but a loud, personage such a s

he was, even in the lax eighteenth century, was n ot

’ for ﬁtted a clergyman s life, and his unfortunate i calling brought him nothing but discredit . H s

o - call t write eighteenth century poetry, however, d was quite genuine. He had a masculine, rapi

style, with vigorous antitheses and strong move di t ment. Of course he stu ed Pope ; he though ,

‘

too . h e , he outdid his predecessor But in truth fell hopelessly behind both Pope and Dryden in wit and in humour. Then the charm and imagina tion of higher poetry are absent in him . Neither

’ had he the poet s judgment or skill to mix h is

. B u t colours . There is a blatant air about him

is n th e he cutti g, and hits hard and straight at

h e objects of his satire . In Short he was just t

13 4 THE SATIRIC AGE Scotch poverty and Scotland ’s barrenness form the

to staple Of the poem, but wealthy England is be placed at their service by Bute’s “ boundless

power, beyond example great.

’ to Once he began write, Churchill s pen was

in never long idle. Hogarth about this time

- off of a cluded a take Wilkes in a political c ricature,

n ot getting the likeness, it seems, in the most

delicate manner. Churchill thereupon took up the cudgels for his patron in an Epistle to the

of ff painter. Some his most e ective lines describe

’ the incoming of Bute s administration .

Through every pa nnel let thy virtue tell ’ How r e va ild a n d ! Bute p , how Pitt Temple fell ’ a to How Engl nd s sons (whom they conspired bless, a ou r l Ag inst wi l, with insolent success) a a n d a Approve their f ll, with ddresses run, How God ai ? got, knows, to h l the Scottish sun ’ ou t ou r a wa r a h u r ld Point f me in , when venge nce a r m of From the strong Justice, shook the world ; ’ a n d a Thine, thy country s honour to incre se, Point ou t the honours of succeeding pea ce ; Ou r a a - a moder tion, Christi n like, displ y, a a n d a a a a Shew, wh t we got, wh t we g ve w y ; a n d a a s a In colours, dull he vy the t le, Let a sta te - cha os through the whole preva il

wa Churchill had truth to help him here. He s

so Th e n ot . always fortunate His next satire,

D u e llist on , was a long, virulent attack a minor

of wh o member the administration, had been grossly insulted by Wilkes, and had wounded the

u latter in the consequent duel . It is more n balanced in its overcharged invective tha n the other satires . Of Bishop Warburton he says MASON AND FALCONER

r n e a of a a a N o did o sp rk gr ce ppe r, N ot on e a dull, dim sp rk in his soul ; ’ ri osse ss d Vice, glo ous vice p the whole, a And, in her service truly w rm,

He wa s in sin most uniform .

a of It w s an age savage criticism, Warburton being an offender too but this is ridiculous

’ n or surely. However, Churchill s energy is there, does it much ﬂa g in his succeeding productions . But they grow less and less political in the con

a cluding months of his life. His extraordin ry fertility continued ; even though his works, as

- a a . Johnson s id, were only cr b apples By the side

a of of the gre t satirists, course, he cuts a poor ﬁgure ; but he is a burly giant beside his puny

of of rivals in the politics the early reign George III . Such rivals and imitators were Mason ( 1724

9 1 3 2 on e 7 and Falconer ( 7 a Whig, the other

. a O a Tory M son, an insipid writer of eclogues, des and tragedies, veiled his personality under the

of Ma r or pseudonym Malcolm c G e g for the purpose

a n o of politic l vitupera tion, but was t less feeble for the change of name . Falconer would be

of did equally unworthy quotation, not some lines

’ of his summarize the defects of Pitt s oratory a s they seemed to the Vere de Veres of the day. Methinks I hea r the bellowing dema g ogue - de cla m a tiorrs Dumb sounding disembogue, of im m e a s u r e a b le Expressions length, Where pompous j a rgon ﬁlls the pla ce of strength ; a m Where fulmin ting, ru bling eloquence a a a With loud, the tric r g e bomb rds the sense ; ’ s - r a n k d in a a And word , deep horrible rr y, Exas pera ted meta phors convey ! As verse or prose this extract is below criticism . H THE SATIRIC AGE [O . IV

2 too Chatterton ( 175 , tried his versatile pen at political satire . In his serious style he is merely a weaker Churchill ; but some genius, I

C n su lia d think, appears in his o , a description in spirited burlesque of a ﬁght supposed to take 1 0 place over a ministerial banquet in 77 .

The ﬁght is genera l ; fowl repulses fowl ; ’ u ish d a n d va n . The victors thunder, the q howl a a a ll of St rs, g rters, the implements show, ’

a dc ck d a a . Th t the powers bove, disgr ced below N or a a swords, nor mightier we pons did they dr w,

ll - la w For a were well a cqua inted with the .

But on the whole we have arrived at the u n honoured senility of a once great satiric style .

Verse applied to practical, aristocratic life had

of done its utmost, and the truer poets the day,

Gray and Collins, were returning by however trim and box - edged paths to regions more of the ima gi nation . Eclogue and didactic poem, Chloris and

Lydia and their beribboned swains, were indeed to

of outlast the century, but none the less the Age

n o Chi a and Gilt gave tokens f its approaching fall .

13 8 THE DAYS OF FOX AN D PITT [OIL

for Opposition was the revolted Colonists, whose

own principles had a close resemblance to their . But they only be came of ﬁrst importance in the

of later years the war, when it was clear that the mother- country had lost in the contest and was in

- b e P danger, and that the would atriot King had brought disaster on the state. Amid the vicissitudes of political events which

’ L l of followed ord North s fal , two achievements the

ou Whigs stand t from the rest . The ﬁrst consisted in the Statutes passed by the Rockingham ministry against the corrupt inﬂuence of the Crown in P arliament and in the constituencies . With regard to Parliament they almost commenced a new era the grosser forms of corruption were put an end to n ot so ff . The constituencies were much a ected, as borough - owning and private bribery still con tinned. In the second place a ministry was twice

on forced the King by the majority in the Commons . Thus the question which had been in a gitation since 1746 seemed settled by 178 3 in a sense adverse to P ’ the King. The Ministry were arliament s servants, not his ; and at the same time his means of in ﬂu e n cin g Parliament were much diminished But

n of George III had o notion surrender. He bent all his efforts towards expelling from ofﬁce the P ’ ortland Ministry, made up of a coalition of Fox s

’ - Whigs and North s ex Tories . Their unpopular bill for the Government of India offered him his

Opportunity. By ﬂagrant interference he induced v ] TH E R OLLI AD

L to the ords throw it out, dismissed the Coalition , P and appointed the younger itt Prime Minister. Contrary to expecta tion the youthful sta tesman of twenty - ﬁve held his own in Parliament against the Coalition : and during the debates a fu rther c on

i ion a l to st tu t problem came the front. Did the ultimate decision in a dispute between the branches of or the legislature lie with the constituencies, did they give full powers to their representatives with ou t a ? P appe l itt held by the former doctrine, and the General Election of 178 4 conﬁrmed it by turning decisively for the King against the Parlia mentary majority which he had deﬁed There was

of i u a s a host unseated Wh gs, known for the f ture

’ Fox s Martyrs . The supremacy of the constituencies wa for s established good. The royal prerogative of choosing the ministry wa s to be lost another day.

of It was the wrath the defeated Whigs, which ga ve birth to the series of satires kn own a s the

Rollia d a and its successors, which appe red in the 1 4 1 5 course of 78 and 78 . These compositions mark a brea k in the development of English political poetry. They were published in the issues of a

a daily paper, and the f ct itself reveals the greater organization of politics and their grea ter interest for the general public. Other changes follow this one .

a The old, form l literary satire with its prolonged

for invective is submerged the time. The new style is lively, short and broken it has adopted some of 1 40 P C H THE DAYS OF FOX AND ITT [ .

of - T of the features ballad satires. hen discussion principles is gone too : the writers of the R ollia d

a conﬁne themselves to person lities, and the latter are a s malicious and often as dirty as any of those employed by their predecessors . The ﬁne decorum, which on the wh ole m a r ks Dryden and Pope and even Churchill, is lost by these active politicians . Their lower tone has been ascribed to the absence of of principle and unscrupulousness the time. It is said politics had becom e fa ction s . But it may be advanced in defence of the authors of the

R ollia d ff , that the di erence in principles existing between the Whigs and Tories was very clear. It

: wh o or was was to appoint the ministry, King Parliament ? N ow the nation had decided for the

to King, and the Whigs were reduced showing his

for incompetence the responsibility, which they could only do by showing the incompetence of the f persons o his choice . Hence came a series of

a on ofﬁce - person l attacks each and every holder. That their a ssaults are often unjust is incidental to

’ ’ an Opposition s profession, ever since Walpole s

a n d time at least. That they were often indecent

a a to m lignantly person l, is doubtless partly due

of to the rage defeat, but also may be put down the licence of the eighteenth and all preceding

a centuries, which generally appears in worse light

- w of in second rate authors, such as the riters the

R llia d . o , with all their brilliance, were It seems that a group Of lesser Whigs were the

1 42 THE DAYS OF FOX AND PITT [OIL

e of to anc stor Mr Rolle, and from time time the

of Mor n i P ost literary enthusiasm the Wh ig n g

placed excerpts from the work, with criticisms,

As before its readers . may be supposed, the events

of 1 8 4- 5 to 7 necessitated additions the epic, which

were forthwith chronicled and praised . These political passages were quoted from its Sixth book for the R ollia d carefully follows the Aen e id where Rollo beholds his descendant in Pa rliament ; but they soon had to be supplemented by the pro “ ph e cy of the dying drummer (slain at Hastings) which deals more especially with the House of

Lords .

This was the method . The execution is often

o ff admirable . Its mocking fun (s di erent from the

tragedy - a irs of Churchill) may be seen in the

of P of character itt, the marvellous boy politics.

It is attributed to Ellis .

i a Pert without ﬁre, w thout experience s ge, ’ a t a le a n d a e Young with more rts h n Shelburne g from g , ’ ilfe r d a Too proud from p gre tness to descend, a a Too humble not to c ll Dund s his friend, a n d a In solemn dignity sullen st te, This new Octa vius rises to deba te ! Mild a n d more mild he sees ea ch pla cid row Of Country Gentlemen with ra pture glow ; He sees convulsed with sympa thetic throbs Apprentice - peers a n d deputy- Na bobs ! N or - ac Rum contr tors think his speech too long, a ! While words, like tre cle, trickle from his tongue

’ i - The M nister s peer creating propensities, really a

for substitute pensions and the like, were evidently A known already. S a criticism on his oratory this v ] THE R OLLI AD passage is much excelled by a prose comment elsewhere .

a s a n Longinus, the le r ed well know, reckons the ﬁgure a of a s a mpliﬁca tion a mongst the princip l sources the sublime, does Quintilia n a mongst the lea ding requisites of rhetoric . a u of Th t it constitutes the very so l eloquence, is demon str a b le from the exa mple of tha t sublimest of all ora tors a n d

a ll a a . profoundest of st tesmen, Mr Willi m Pitt If no expedient h a d s a m e a been devised, by the help of which the ide could s a a n d t a s be invested in a thou nd different glit ering h biliment , by which on e sma ll spa rk of mea ning could be inﬂa ted into a a of a a a bl ze elocution, how m ny delect ble speeches would h ve been lost to the Sena te of Grea t Brita in How severe a n injury ” would ha ve been susta ined to the litera ry estima tion ofthe a ge ?

As m a y be seen from this specimen the prose of the R ollia d must be taken into account in judging of its merits ; for it is not infrequently better

a th n the verse.

a a a P Besides set ch r cters like th t of itt, the R ollia d abounds in shorter squibs at the expense of his supporters . Some of these are clownish

’ on Gr e n ville s a enough, like that he d but there is

’ in on P an artistic venom the assault Dundas, itt s intimate friend

Whose exa lted soul of N0 bonds vulga r prejudice control . a s a Of sh me unconsciou in his bold c reer, He spurns tha t honour which the wea k revere ; ’ a a For true to public Virtue s p triot pl n, t n d M Min is e r a a n He loves the not the . Then it is hard to say whether poor Mr Secretary Orde or Lord Mu lgrave had crueller measure meted ou t to him . The former is described thus

a a n d a a n d a T ll erect, unme ning, mute p le, ’ a a a of O er his bl nk f ce no gle ms thought preva il. 144 THE DAYS OF FO! AND PITT [en

’ while as to the latter s speech

with irr his la bouring a a t The shrill shriek struggles with the h rsh ho rse no e .

The metrical comedy of the last line 1s due to th e

on e learned George Ellis, as might expect.

P of art the satire is retrospective, and refers to the personal pressure the King exercised on the

’ L o ords t make them reject Fox s India Bill . The

of ] l Marquess Buckingham, then Ear Temp e, had been the King’ s envoy and adviser at the decisive moment ; and the decorous Whig satirist (Ellis) assigns him an even more important part than he played in fact.

th e a da a a On gre t y, when Buckingh m by p irs ’ — ’ a - im e lld K s b a cks ta i Ascended, He ven p , the ’ a a str a in d And p nting, bre thless, his lungs to Show ’ From Fox s Bill wha t mighty ills would ﬂow ’ a its s ou r ce cor r u t O in ion s th r e a d Th t soon, p , p On I n dia d e le te r io u s s tr ea m s wou ld sh ed ; 1 h a a Mu n n a t T H stings, y Begum , Scott must f ll, 2 And Pitt a n d Je rrkin son a n d Le a de n h a ll ; l a s ta Stil with sta mmering tongue he told his le, ’ Unus ua l terrors Brunswick s hea rt a ssa il ; a al e a r Wide st rts his white wig from his roy , a a a f a And e ch p rticula r ha ir st nds sti f with fe r.

For ironic mock - heroics it would be difﬁcult to

R ol on e beat the lia d . Of its humour would think

’ to wh o the apostrophe (Fitzpatrick s) the Bishops,

e . voted steadily Tory, is the b st instance

You a in of a reverend prel tes, robed sleeves l wn, Too to a n d too a n meek murmur, roud to f w , ’ l t a n od Who, sti l submissive to heir ker s , t a a n d Adore heir Sovr n, respect their God ; a ood ! a ll And w it, men worldly things forgot, ’ In humble ope Of Enoc h s ha ppy lot.

1 ’ 2 ’ Ha i a e L a e Of Ki F i . st ngs g nt. e d r ng s r ends

1 46 THE DAYS OF FO! AN D PITT [on

ff of Rollia d- c Th e P r oba tion a r e ort the lique, y

Odes or th e L a u r ea tesh i f p , which just then

happe ned to be vaca ted . That attributed to P ’ M. Major John Scott, . , Hastings agent, is one of the more playful

’ a — Gr nd is thy form, bout ﬁve feet ten,

- Thou well built, worthiest, best of men ! Th a a y chest is stout, thy b ck is bro d, Thy pa ges view thee a n d a r e a wed ! Lo ! h ow thy white eyes roll ! Thy whiter eyebrows sta re ! Honest soul ! ’ ’ Th ou r a s h u a t witty, t o rt f ir ! It must be admitted that this was a mild revenge

’ to a for its author, Townshend, t ke for George s

for intrigues ; but it was none the less deadly, it pointed the criticism : was Farmer George ﬁt to govern England ?

A ode nother , purporting to be written by

Mou n m or t r e s b Viscount , really y Fitzpatrick, reminds us of the elder Ticke ll on the High l a nders . There is the same pleasantry and the same contempt for the Kelt, this time the Irish

Volunteers .

Full ﬁfty thousa nd men we show ou r a a ad All in Irish m nuf ctures cl , a a o to a n d Wh ling, m n euvring fro, a d And m a rching up a n d down like m . ’ Fr a dorn s a th e a a n d a In holy c use bellow, r nt r ve, And scorn tlre m s ilve s to know wha t they th e m szlve s would ha ve

The Ode s practically close the satires connected

Rollia d for n ot with the , we need delay over the

Mi lla n i s . m ore trivial and viler sce e The whole PETER PIN DAR 1 47

t series holds a peculia r position . In poli ical

a n d ﬂi a n t literature they sta rted a new pp style, a n d we have every reason to be thankful that

- - a n d S they drove sham solemnity, sham virtue ham

ff a heroics o the stage. But politic lly they were th e most ineffectual of productions . The King a n d Minister rema ined in power. In essence they

m i o were only a protest against a f a it a cco pl . S for their own da y they were n o better tha n brilliant ﬁreworks, and in ours they are ﬁreworks

a extinguished. The reason p rtly lies in their

a i r a m lign scurr lity. The g e t minister they a t tacked stands cold in marble beneath the coloured

a a light in the Guildhall . Wh t do we w nt with the refu se that was ﬂung at him by angry rivals ? In

a n d his subordinates we feel little interest, we are inclined to disbelieve the slanders of political

a a . a of w rf re To conclude, the f te the Rollia d shows once more the disadva ntage in literature of a k of lac magnanimity . Alth ough the circle tha t produced the R ollia d

a a fell asunder, sm ll shred of their mantle fell on a

a succeeding unitary b rd. The Rev . John Wolcott ( 173 8 better known by his pseudonym of

P P fa r eter indar, was a man more discreditable

’ to P his cloth than honest Churchill was . eter s

to a a object in life was make comfort ble living,

low . a and his tastes in life were However, fter “ ” oil many attempts he struck . He was a born humourist a n d the very best of English carica

10— 2 1 43 THE DAYS on FO! AN D PITT [ca tu r i sts in verse . He found his talent in a satire

A of r on the Royal cademicians his time, and f om that theme was easily led on to scoff at their patron, the King. To do him justice, it cannot be

a of denied that he was good judge painting, and

on e that the King was not. Perhaps he took his — from the R ollia d it was in 1 78 5 that b e fastened — on his royal victim for on e or two pieces in that

S of collection how a similar vein parody. But if so he bettered his model . His motive seems merely to have been the fact that there was a

for on good sale squibs royalty, especially among III ’ . too s the indignant Whigs Then, , George oddities of speech and action furnished a tempting

o P opportunity. S eter set to work a n d joyfully exploited the echoes of the servants ’ hall at

Windsor.

L ou sia d His ﬁrst attempt, the , is a rather

- Ode u on de wearisome mock heroic poem, but p O ,

’ a counterblast to the Laureate s yearly per for m a n c e S , hows him at his best in sportive, yet ungenial caricature. One passage is justly celebrated

1 a a a so a To whom cert in s ge e rnest cried, “ ’ — ’ — Don t mind don t mind the rogues their a im ha ve ’ m iss d ’ a a a m Don t fe r your pl ce, whilst I well su lied

of pp. But mind, mind poverty the Civil ist — ’ Swea r tha t no K g s so poor upon the globe ; — a a to J ob . Comp re me yes, comp re me poor di — I The House will cre t thee know the ninnies, a An d wife a n d I a r e fond Of ba gs of guine s . 1 t Pit .

1 5 0 AND P ' H THE DAYS OF FOX ITT [O . giving through a kind of sympathy the secret of

’ a th t monarch s popularity . ’ — As for John Dr yden s Cha rles tha t King Indeed wa s never a n y mighty thing He merited few honours from the pen e t wa s a a And y he devilish he rty fellow, — Enjoyed his girl a n d bottle a n d got mellow m in d— a And kept comp ny with gentlemen . The last stab at George III comes with a witty

surprise ; but it has, and this is frequent with

a of Wolcott, more the substance th n the form wit. You must know the surrounding circumstances to

O o appreciate it . N one was s good at conveying a gesture in words as Peter ; but a gesture in itself

f a s is a mere contortion . He could , however, sco f

a smartly as a Restoration wit. The following is

a t specially good, if rather le rned instance, the shor last line enforcing the climax :

’ r h a s a a But p p loft on his imperi l throne, SO a ds on e dist nt, O ye Go , from every ; a a r e a a a The roy l virtues , like m ny st r, From this our pigmy system ra ther fa r ; a t Whose light, though ﬂying ever since cre ion, ’ u r a H a th not yet pitch d upon o n tion .

Even here the general conception, so skilfully brought ou t by on e or two sly colloquial words

m ots n obles among the Of the eighteenth century,

’ P P s is what we most laugh at, and eter indar

a political masterpiece is, I think, to be found in — of piece broad comedy, Gillray in verse, the King at Whitbread ’s brewery

ow a did a N Mr Whitbre d, serious, decl re, a a To ma ke the Majesty of Engl nd st re, a h a d Th t he butts enough, he knew,

a a a to . Pl ced side by side, would re ch long Kew PETER PIN DAR

w On which the King with wonder s iftly cried, a a Wh t if they re ch to Kew then , side by side, a l a a a ? Wh t wou d they do, wh t, wh t, pl ced end to end a la To whom, with knitted, c lcu ting brow, Ma n f o The Beer most solemnly did vow, Almost to Windsor tha t they would extend ; won der in On which the King with g mien, won de r in u Repea ted it unto the g Q een .

From these mock- heroics on the inan ity of c on

- P s versation making, eter proceed to a rollicking imitation (parody was hardly needed) of the royal manner

Now did his Majesty so gra cious sa y To a wa Mr Whitbre d in his ﬂying y, ’ a a a n d ? Whitbre d, d ye nick the excisem n now then ’ Ha e a a off a ? , Whitbre d, when d ye think to le ve tr de ’ Ha e a ? a a a a a ? , wh t Miss Whitbre d s still m id, m id ’ a a a ? Wh t, wh t s the m tter with the men “ ’ —h a e ? ou a r e too O D ye hunt , hunt No, no, y ld ’ — You ll be Lord M a yor Lord M a yor one da y ’ ’ a so — Yes, yes, I ve he rd , yes, yes, so I m told : ’ ’ a Don t, don t the ﬁne for sheriff p y ’ ou a m a n a I ll prick every ye r, , I decl re ; — a — ou a a Yes, Whit re d yes, yes, y sh ll be Lord M yor. “ ’ h a ke e a a or ob a W itbre d, d ye p co ch j one, pr y ? ’ ’ ’ J ob ob a a — a a j , th t s che pest yes, th t s best, th t s be st , — You u t your liveries on your dra ymen h a e ? ’ Ha e W a —You a fe a th e r d , hitbre d h ve well your nest ? a n ow h a e a ll Wh t is the price, , , of your stock ? ’ ’ ’ ’ W a a a a But, hitbre d, wh t s o clock, pr y, wh t s o clock ?

It would seem tha t no reverence or popularity

a of cou ld survive such storm ridicule, and indeed

’ the King s were dama ged for a time and Wolcott r efused a pension which wa s proffered to buy him

off. But he overshot the mark . He added dull

invective to his fun . The very success of his satire made the King more careful in offending public

a n d opinion, the tide quite turned on the occasion 1 5 2 THE DAYS OF FO! AN D PITT [on of 1 An his madness in 78 8 . excuse was thus pro vide d h for his eccentricities, w ile the conduct, then,

a a before and after, of the Prince of W les m de the W n ation disgusted with the hope of the higs .

’ Peter Pindar s forecast lost verisimilitude .

Behold ! the sceptre young Augustus swa ys ; I hea r the mingled pra ise of millions rise ; I see upra ised to Hea ven their a rdent eyes ;

Tha t for their mona rch a sk a length of da ys .

George III was at least a decent man, with

i . pr nciples, who took life seriously Then his choice of to a Prime Minister was proved be good by events . For the ﬁrst time a Hanoverian monarch had

u l achieved a real and overwhelming pop arity.

Wolcott, it is true, recommenced his attacks at a

- later date, after a fresh break down in a negotiation

ff ou t for a pension ; but he was ﬁnally snu ed . by

of An ti- J b the mightier satire the a co in .

f of It would be di ﬁcult to ﬁnd a period years , which could n ot with some justice be named an

e r a of . transition The new is always appearing, developing and supplanting the old But the close of the eighteenth a n d the beginning of the nine te e n th centuries have an unusual claim to the

a appell tion . The older framework of society did

a a indeed bre k up over a large p rt of Europe, and new was substituted ; n or could any amount of

a restoration lter the fact. The great engine in this work of destruction and renovation was the

French Revolution . Even in England, where the

Industria l Revolution h a d ~ more immediate pr a c ti

15 4 A P C H THE D YS OF FOX AND ITT [ .

l Second y, that propaganda made some converts in

Great Britain . Thus England was forced into hos tilitie s in self- defence and found herself troubled

di s rrsion with internal s e s . It goes without saying that the Whigs only approved of part of the

’ Ja c ob in s proceedings but there were also under

- lings, crack brained theorists, industrial agitators, wh o adm ired every step of the Revolution and advoc ated its literal repetition in England without even the excuses that can be made for the Reign

of wo wa s of Terror. The net result these t causes ’ l that England s resistance, a so , to the Revolution,

i - a w thin and without, had a semi religious emotion l

tendency. Law, established order, national tra dition and institutions n ow found their devotees ;

a n d in England these were aristocratic traditions,

a of tinged with monarchism . The greater p rt the

English oligarchy, the great families, the country i P squ res, even the merchants, rallied round itt,

o prepared to resist t the uttermost. It is perhaps

’ P to itt s greatest merit, that he rose the occasion, a n d held ou t for only such a peace as would b e permanent for Europe and secure the national i growth of England on national l nes . — — But in this very unlike their opponents the

English squires were mostly voiceless, and the merit of creating a voice for them is mostly ’ 1 P Canning s ( 770 the future rime Minister, i then a brill ant henchman of Pitt. There was the

d to of Rollia point the way, and the lively variety THE A N TI - J A COB I N many writers of talent might in a journalistic age

’ a of a ﬁll the pl ce genius such as Dryden s . This was a ll the more necessary as politica l wa rfare wa s itself be coming more a n d more a matter of rapid P thrust and parry in arliament and in the country . Thus the method devised for the propaganda of the new Toryism wa s the foundation of a weekly

A - Th e i J a obin . newspaper, n t c Besides the usual

a contents of journal, the new publication was especially to be devoted to the contradiction of

a n d to a statements by the other side, the system tic ridicule of a n y prominent person a ffected to the

on e new views, to the new heresy, perhaps should

A n ti- J obin a say. In consequence the a c sh res some

a characteristics of theological writings. Its s tire a n d polemic are ra ised to a nobler plane by the conviction tha t the holiest possessions and the happiness of mankind depend on the success of the cause it represents . With this is linked the belief that its opponents a r e crimina ls or madmen whom good men must oppose on a n y subject and on s any ground, however remote from those in di pute . We detect in reading it a certain bigotry a n d a certain moral fervour unknown to the ma licious Rollia d .

ff a a Its editor was Gi ord, fterw rds editor of the Q u a r ter ly Revie w and already known as a success ful literary satirist but its mainsta y wa s Canning

wh o fa r of himself, contributed by the best the

of weekly incidental verse, the only portion the 1 5 6 THE DAYS OF FOX AND PITT [OH . contents which falls within the scope of the pre sent essay . His most brilliant lieutenants were B John ookham Frere and George Ellis, the latter of whom had been a contributor to the R ollia d before he became a supporter of Pitt in the Wh ig

of 1 9 4 All of secession 7 . these four were happy writers of correct verse all of them had wit and sense and conviction and the ﬁghting instinct. The latter quality was by n o means the least

for 1 9 . necessary, the times of 7 7 were critical Cash payments had been suspended at the Bank

of w f of England . It a s the year o the Mutiny the N seamen at the ore . Ireland was seething with

discontent, and to crown all the French arms were

on e on gaining success after another the Continent.

N or d ever was there greater need, it must be sai greater opportunity to rally patriotic opinion and

to hearten the national resistance .

’ Th e ﬁrst victim s of the A n ti- J a cobin s poetical

of . satire were the members the Lake School Most,

n ot of if all, these had been ardent Revolutionaries, and were at that very time in process of disillusion

An ti- J a cobin i for ment. But the cared l ttle their

of change views, if it knew of the fact, and, besides, even when converted they were constant enemies

of P itt, who had warred with and, as they thought,

wa rped the development of their beloved republic. In the same year Coleridge wrote of the Prime

Fir e Minister in a ﬁerce, denunciatory eclogue, , Fa m in e a n d S la u gh ter

1 5 3 THE DAYS OF FO! AND PITT [on

of better, and the whole turn the verse harmonizes

of delightfully with the satiric humour the sense . Southey was not substantial enough to furnish a

u f ll subject for a parody, and Canning wisely took the opportunity to ridicule a ll the favourite phil

a of So anthropic declam tions the Revolutionaries. famous a composition must be given in full in

S of of pite its familiarity. The Friend Humanity addresses the Knife - grinder

Needy Knife - grinder ! Whither a r e you going ? a ou t of Rough is the ro d, your wheel is order ’ a a h a t h a s a Ble k blows the bl st ; your got hole in t, SO h a ve your breeches !

a - ! We ry Knife grinder little think the proud ones, Who in their coa ches roll a long the turnpike ’ “ a a a a ll da a n d Ro d, wh t h rd work tis crying y Knives Scissors to grind O

- h ow a to r ? Tell me, Knife grinder, you c me g ind knives Did some rich m a n tyra rm ica lly use you ? Was it the squire ? or pa rson of the pa rish ? Or the a ttorney ?

Wa s for O a or it the squire, killing f his g me ? a a Covetous p rson, for his tithes distr ining ? a a Or roguish l wyer, m de you lose your little All in a la wsu it ?

a of Ma n T a om a ? (H ve you not re d the Ri hts , by P ine ) of a tr e m b on s Drops comp ssion e my eyelid , a a a s a s a t Re dy to f ll, soon you h ve old your

Pitiful story .

The Knife - grinder replies

! ou ! a to l Story God bless y I h ve none tel , sir, a t a - a t Only l st nigh drinking the Chequers, old h a t a n d a s This poor breeches, you see, were

Torn in a scufﬂe. Consta bles ca me up for to ta ke me into Custody ; they took me before the Justice ; Jus tice Oldm ixon put me in the pa rish Stocks for a va gra nt v ] THE AN TI - J A OGB I N

’ I should be gla d to drink your Honour s hea lth in A ot of ou p beer, if y will give me Sixpence But for pa rt I never love to meddle

W . ith politics. sir

Friend of Huma nity

’ I give thee Sixpence ! I will see thee da m n d ﬁr st Wretch ! whom no sense of wrongs c a n rouse to vengea nce a a Sordid, unfeeling, reprob te, degr ded, Spiritless outc a st !

- a n d [Kicks the Knife grinder, overturns his wheel, exit in a tra nsport of Republica n enthusia sm a n d universa l phila n th r o py. ]

The humour of the N ee dy K n ife - gr in der is of tha t ﬁne variety which does not depend on pla ce and time ; yet I think it owes some of its present charm to the aroma of old - fashioned scholarship

of that lingers round it, suggestive the bare mahogany and conversation over “ the walnuts and the wine . But such playful scorn was not the habitua l

- i temper of the An ti J a cob n . Its more permanent

’ attitude is well shown in Lord Morpeth s transla tion of some ﬁne Latin hexameters on France by the future Marquess Wellesley.

’ h a a a a W ere er her b nners ﬂo t in b rb rous pride, ’ a Where er her conquest rolls its s nguine tide, ’ a a of e sta blish d la w There the f ir f bric , e a a n d i a we Ther soci l order, relig ous , Sink in the genera l wreck ; indigna nt there Honour a n d Virtue ﬂy the ta inted a ir ; Fly the m ild duties of domestic life a a a a Th t cheer the p rent, th t ende r the wife, a of a a The lin ering p ngs kindred grief ssu ge, o Or soot e the sorrows f declining a ge .

These lines are spirited and felt, if they have n ot

e . the terseness of th ir original . 160 THE DAYS OF FO! AND PITT [on

The purpose of the A n ti- J a cobin wa s far fr om

to being conﬁned a merely political satire . The social a nd literary theories which went along with the Revolutionary tendency were equally attacked L P by it. The English ake oets, as we have seen , ff ’ su ered in Southey s person . But much more obnoxious to the defenders of the old order were

a P h iloso h es the English Revolution ry p , such as

P wh o ayne Knight, pursued a very pallid light of

- Reason among tame eighteenth century couplets,

- and the German proto Romanticists, like Goethe,

wh o Schiller and their followers, , freeing themselves from classic French conventions and traditions, indulged occasionally in works, the moral and artistic principles of which bordered on the fan

of ta stic . The inﬂuence the German Romanticists,

- for a epoch making Europe as it was, bec me indeed

l for most fruitfu good in English literature later, when it had passed through the work of Scott with its peculiar moral sanity, and when it had combined with the thoroughly national movement of the Lake

Poets . But those developments were still to come

’ in 179 7 ; a n d Canning s verses Th e P r ogr ess of

’ Ma n P , which ridiculed ayne Knight s didactic style,

of Th e Rover s ff of and the play , o spring several fﬁ hands, which performed the same o ce for the

of wilder German drama, will gain the sympathy

of most readers poetry. Canning laments, some what after Rousseau, the way Man has deserted “ ” of his state nature.

H 1 6 2 THE DAYS OF FOX AND PITT [O . the Terror and might well ask if any good thing could come from France. Th e extravaganza of Th e R over s indu lges in a

a a lighter r illery, all the bsurdities of the German

a dram being heaped together skilfully enough, but Goethe and Schiller have an interest with us which

n ot n ot to Darwin has , and it is so easy sympathize perfectly With the derisive and not wholly u nj u s tiﬁa b le jeers with which they were greeted by the

A ti- J obi n a c n . That journal, however, was near its end in its original form . Its work was aecom li h s e d. p Its personalities and licence, though in

R ollia d the verse they are far less than those of the , ff thirteen years before, were giving o ence. It was as well too spa rkling for a rising English states P m a n to be connected with . itt saw the time had

to a n d a come discontinue it, it accordingly ce sed to exist as a ministerial production .

s Before its career closed, Canning and his friend Th li di e N e w Mor a t . scharged a ﬁnal broadside in y

Unlike its predecessors, this piece is a set satire in

a of the m nner Pope and Churchill . Of course it is

’ to inferior the former s productions, and it is in

’ a l ge ner more prosa ic than the latter s . Yet it has a wit a n d humour and ardour of conviction tha t ra ise it a bove such compositions as Churchill and his followers could achieve . What a telling scorn

a for l wh o is th t expressed those Whigs, ike Fox, were little disturbed by patriotic bias 1 TH E AN TI - J A COB I N

— ’ N 0 na rrow bigot h e ; h is r e as on d view E n la n d a P e r u ! Thy interests, g , r nks with thine, h e a Fr a n ce a t ou r doors, sees no d nger nigh, ’ ’ But hea ves for Tu r key s woes th impa rtia l sigh ; f a A stea dy pa triot o the world lone, — The friend of every country but his own . Even this is excelled by the triumphant scorn poured on the La ke Poets and their sensibility, while perhaps the most famous lines of a ll are those which describe the crossbencher and the impartia l historian .

“ — a ! a Much m a y be sa id on both sides . H rk I he r - a e a r A well known voice th t murmurs in my , a — a ! a The voice of C ndour. H il most solemn s ge, t of a a e Thou drivelling vir ue this mor l g , ’

a a a a . C ndour, which softens p rty s he dlong r ge ’ — a — C a ndour, which sp res its foes ; nor e er descends a With bigot zea l to comb t for its friends . - sa w a Ca ndour, which loves in see str in to tell a ctin oolish l m ea n in well Of g f y , but g ; a a a Too nice to pr ise by wholes le, or to bl me, ’ Convinced tha t a ll men s m otives a r e the sa me ; a And ﬁnds with keen, discrimin ting sight, ’ s o a — s o ver Bla ck s not bl ck nor white y white . “ wa s a n d : Fox, to be sure, vehement wrong ’ ’ d own r a th e r . But then , Pitt s wor s, you ll , were strong ’ ’ a a r don d a Both must be bl med, both p ; tw s just so With Fox a n d Pitt full forty yea rs a go ! a — a a ll So W lpole, Pulteney ; f ctions in times a h a d H ve their follies, ministers their crimes . ’ ’ th a th a Give me vowed, erect, the m nly foe — , Bold I ca n meet perha ps m a y turn his blow ; of a ll a a a c a n But pl gues, good He ven , thy wr th send, a a ! a a ! S ve, s ve, oh s ve me from the C ndid Friend “ a a a a B rr s loves plunder, Merlin t kes bribe, — Wha t then Sha ll Ca ndour these good men proscribe ? N ! - a o ere we join the loud ccusing throng, — — a a th e th ou h t th e m wr on Prove, not the f cts, but th t y g g . “ ’ Wh a O u i le —He m a n y h ng Q g y , misguided , ’ I n sober thought his cou ntry s wea l m igh t pla n ’ - w a s a d And while his deep rought Tre son pp the throne, Mi h t t t n a ct a s i m or a ls a ll o g from e , his wn .

’ N o a one, I think, would deny th t Canning s Muse

1 1— 2 164 THE DAYS OF FO! AN D PITT [on

was robust, and perhaps he pronounces the general judgment of men on the half- hearted a n d those wh o attempt the thankless task of disturbing Truth in

a her lonely meditations . The lines were long

common - place and fu rnished the subject for a

- - l famous passage a t arms between Peel a n d Disrae i . But on e likes to think of Canning in connection .

ou of is with feelings and views more t date . He on e of those men wh o gain by being strictly kept

of amid the surroundings their time . As we have

n o i seen, there was philosoph c detachment in him ;

of s he was full insular patrioti m, and gives noble expression to it in the concluding lines of Th e N ew

Gua rd we but ou r own Hea rts : with consta nt view a a a a To ncient mor ls, ncient m nners true ; a a s True to the m nlier virtues, such nerved ’ a a a n d Our f thers bre sts , this proud Isle preserved For ma ny a rugged a ge : a n d scorn the while ’ E a ch philosophic a theist s specious guile ;

The soft seductions, the reﬁnements nice, Of ga y Mora lity a n d ea sy Vice ; ’ ’ ’ So sha ll we bra ve the storm ; ou r sta b lish d powr

u h a . Thy ref ge, Europe, in some ppier hour in h ea r t V ou r But French , though ictory crown brow, a t ou r a a Low feet though prostr te n tions bow, a ou r We lth gild cities, Commerce crowd our shore, o m a a L ndon y shine, but Engl nd is no more !

’ A n ti- J a cobin Though Canning s ceased, there was a continuance of Tory productions of the same

To kind for some yea rs . judge from the specimens 1 given by Mr Edmonds , they were written with an

a of ever incre sing vulgarity and virulence bigotry. English politics were coming under the guidan ce

1 Th e P oe tr e n - hir i i 1 o th A ti J a c obin e 890. y f , t d d t on ,

CHAPTER VI

PRAED MOORE , AND THE MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME

In the year 18 1 1 the prospects of the Whigs

n o seemed suddenly to brighten . This was t due to

or u of public feeling to the co rse the war. The

- nation remained stubbornly anti Napoleonic, and the monarchic Tories remained ﬁrm in its favour

v An d and in that of the King. if the Continental system of the French Emperor put a severe strain

’ on England s resources, her ﬂeet was supreme on

of P the seas, and the series eninsular victories had 1 1 1 already commenced . But in 8 George III ﬁnally

P of wa s lost his reason, and the Whig rince Wales

to soon have the full royal authority as Regent. It was expected that he would place his friends of the Opposition in power, and that they would have an opportunity of governing the country on

a principles, both freer and more progressive th n

of to b those the Tories in general . Great was e P their disappointment. The rince Regent had probably never had any sincere political principles THE REGEN CY 1 67

18 1 1—2 wa s n ot a at all, and his position in favour ble for a radical change of national policy . He was locum tenens for his father, and George III had alrea dy twice recovered from atta cks of insanity.

’ Then N a poleon s power was beginning to wane and

of a the rule of the Tories, in spite v rious blunders, was being more and more justiﬁed by success . Under these circumsta nces the Prince ma de a feeble

a a tent tive. In letter to his brother, the Duke of

a of a a York, he proposed the form tion co lition f a o . C binet both parties But he forgot, if he had

r a a h a d ever e lized the f ct, that the Whigs grounds of for f a n d principle desiring o ﬁce, just expectations

a of obt ining it from him . Since the Union with Irela nd RomanEmancipation had become a pressing

a n d a a question, in spite of thef ct th t some inﬂuential Tories were in favour of the mea sure it was on the whole opposed by ministers a n d supported by the

. W a Opposition In consequence, the hig le ders would be stu ltiﬁe d by entering an a dministration of dilated Toryism and as the former political c on ﬁda n ts of P the rince Regent, they felt insulted

ff n oﬂi or wo by the o er of a c e t . The ﬁnal result wa s that Lord Liverpool beca me Prime Minister in

18 12 a a a at the he d of purely Tory C binet.

’ Thus the Prince Regent s action only served to

- accentua te party divisions . The Whigs h a d ma de another step towa rds modern Liberalism theTories were more identiﬁed with a rea ctiona ry policy under the leadership of Liverpool a n d Castlerea gh 168 MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME [OIL

than they had been . It might be expected that party- warfare would become brisker and that there would be greater powers displayed in satiric

o An d so comp sitions . it happened The Whigs had obtained a new poet in the person of Thomas Moore ( 1779 Moore was an Irish Catholic

of liberal tendencies, and already a celebrated

- song writer. He was therefore a very ﬁt person,

both by convictions and talent, to avenge the Whigs

on their quondam patron . Very wisely he delivered most of his attacks in various lyric metres of which

or he was a master, in comic octosyllabics, recalling

’ Ti ke ll s P r o h e c h c p y , w ich admirably suited his

f r iﬁa style o witty pe s ge . When he attempted

of more serious denunciation in the style Churchill ,

u a he was less successf l . His talent lay in a gay n d

n ot a P very sav ge mockery, a cross between eter

P a n d of An ti- J indar the lighter moods the a cobin . It might seem ineffective at ﬁrst sight but it was

written in the spirit of a gentleman, and conformed

Th e to the new standard of decency . victim found himself covered with a ridicule which could seldom

- or be denounced for ill taste malignity. Moore P was fortunate, too, in his ﬁrst subject. The rince

’ or of had n o man s respect liking. The truth the parody Moore put into his mouth was too well

known .

I a m proud to decla re I ha ve no predilections ; ’ a a sc a tte r d a f My he rt is sieve, where some fections a a a or Are just d nced bout for moment two,

An d a r e . , the ﬁner they , the more sure to run through

1 70 MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME [GIL

plank to their party - platform by the Treaties of 1 1 Vienna in 8 5 . The arbitrary territorial arrange ments made by the Four Great Powers which had conquered Napoleon were devised in complete dis regard of the wishes of the populations concerned ; and n ow the English Opposition came forward a s champion of the rights of nationalities as well a s

of popular government . There is an amusing Tory skit on their objections to the annexation by

of of England the Danish island Heligoland .

But sca rcely less vile tha n the seizure of Pola nd Has been ou r ba se conduct to poor Heligola nd ; a a a Th t innocent isle we h ve stolen from the D nes, a ou r a a n d r a And it gro ns with the weight of tr de ou ch ins. a a a a o On th t h ppy str nd, not two lustres g , The thistle was free in luxuria nce to grow ; ’ The people a t liberty sta Iv e d a n d e nj oy d l ’ a a u n c o d . Their n tur l freedom, by riches y But now a ll this primitive virtue is ﬂed ; a a a r e a Rum, sug r, tob cco, come in its ste d ; ’ de b a u ch d ou r r oﬂi a te And, by p g commerce, we see - a a n d te a This much injured r ce drinking porter , a a - a And d mning, h lf fuddled, (I tell it with p in)

a n d a a t a . Their true legitim te m s er, the D ne

We might be reading in these lines a satire . at th e close of the last century Malta and Cyprus recur

to a . to the memory, not mention other inst nces Each side now kept up an unremitting ﬁre of

squibs . These productions, some of which were

i Tor Gu ides published later in the Wh g and y , are

mostly ﬂat. Their main characteristic is their preference for a light and mocking style in place i of d rect denunciation . Herein Moore reigned

1 8 1 s h supreme. It was in 7 that he publi hed is MOORE 1 71

Th e Fu d e Fa m il in P a r is best satire g y , a new L of ve r siﬁe d . series letters ord Castlereagh, the

a P Foreign Secret ry, had succeeded the rince

‘ et ir for Regent as b e n o e the Whigs . The Q uad ruple Alliance had soon declined from their

of a 18 13 . professions Liber lism, made in More and more they were a ctuated by the desire to “ a a to maint in whatever leg lly existed, and resist any popula r movement whether for Libera lism or N ationality. They further often construed “ “ mainta in a s meaning restore and they used

a of h a d a the dict torship Europe, which they cquired

N to a a n d o r from apoleon, exercise a gener l pp e s sive surveillance over the minor states . This was coupled With a specia l anxiety to hold down the

Revolutionary element in France, whence they

N ow a always feared an explosion . Engl nd was a

a A a member of the Q u druple lli nce, and though Castlereagh by n o means sympathised altogether with the la ter pha se of that association consisting of m Al a its three eastern me bers , the Holy li nce as

wa s wa s it called, he fully at one with his partners

sta tu s u o a n d in maintaining the q , especially the

Bourbons in France . The Whigs thoroughly

of disapproved his policy as far as they knew it, and believed it to be more in accord with that of P the three despotic owers than it really was . P Moore, therefore, makes hilip Fudge, one of his

a of correspondents, tool Castlereagh, wh o visits

P to . i aris and reports his chief Castlereagh, t 1 72 N ME I MODER MOCKERY IN RHY [O L s l hould be mentioned, was a peculiar y bad spe aker and provided unending jokes for his opponents, a s m a y be seen in L e tter I I .

th a At leng , my Lord, I h ve the bliss To da te to you a line from this “ ” Demora lized metropolis ; Where by plebeia ns low a n d scurvy wa s t - The throne urned quite topsy turvy, a And Kingship, tumbled from its se t, “ ” ’ Stood prostra te a t the people s feet ; Where (still to use your Lordship’s tropes) The leve l of obedience slopes a a n d a d a s s tr ea m Upw rd downw r , the

Of h ydr a fa ction kicks th e be a m . Where the poor pa la ce cha n ges ma ste rs a a a Quicker th n sn ke its skin, ’ r olld ou t on a And Louis is c stors, ’ While Boney s borne on shoulders in a But where, in every ch nge, no doubt, One specia l good your Lordship tra ce ’ a K in s al ou t Th t tiMs the g one turn , n i t The i s er s still keep their pla ces .

’ Ca stle r e a gh s own term of ofﬁce had been of

the longest. He was already Chief Secretary for Ireland during the suppression of the rebellion of

1 9 8 . 7 , a fact which Moore refers to subsequently

a n d a n d But time ink run short, now, ’ sa i a n d e a (As thou would st y, my gu de t cher, In these ga y meta phoric frin ges) I must em ba r k into the f e a tu r e On which this letter chieﬂy h in ges ; a My Book, the Book th t is to prove will a And , (so help, ye Sprites bove, a on a s a a s Th t sit clouds, gr ve judges, Wa tching the la bours of the Fudges !) Will a a ll a t prove th t the world, present, Is in a sta te extremely plea s a nt ; a a a Th t Europe, th nks to roy l swords ’ a a n d a i And b yonets the Duke s comm nd ng, ’ a a Enjoys pe ce which , like the Lord s, Pa sseth a ll huma n un dersta nding ;

1 74 MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME [om

Al ou t of though the Whigs were power, the stars in their courses were ﬁghting for them . The Tories were outliving the credit they had gained i in the war. They met the d stress caused by the progress of the Industrial Revolution and the

of burdens the war by mere repression, and steadily refused to see that times were changing or that

S h ow novelty pelt anything but ruin . They were,

for f ever, scarcely to blame one di ﬁculty, the

of P character George IV, as the rince Regent

2 e became in 18 0. That worthless debauchee insist d on t their under aking a prosecution against his wife ,

o which cost them much f their popularity. But

wa s - the Q ueen an ill patron saint for the Whigs . Even Theodore Hook’s vulgar pasquinades were effectual against her ; and the enthusiasm for her died down completely when she took a pension a n d the ofﬁcial persecution ceased . The only result was to leave the King deprived of prestige and respect. The then Whig mockery of Pr a e d ex

a a Ki o th pressed really gener l opinion . The n g f e S a n thvich I sla n ds pa sses his time

building ca rria ges a n d boa ts a n d a a n d a And streets ch pels p vilions, And regula ting a ll the coa ts a ll of And the principles millions, a n d And drinking homilies gin, a n d a a And chewing pork dul tion, a a And looking b ckw rd upon sin,

And looking forwa rd to sa lva tion .

so The King, enervate and contemptible, had little chance of resisting the increasing demand for v x] PRAE D 1 75

Catholic Emancipation . For a time, indeed, the

of wh o power his Tory Ministers, were either

a against the measure or nxious to humour him, was buoyed up by a series of brilliant achievements in foreign affa irs under Canning and of very respectable ones in ﬁnance under Huskisson . The

a deb te was fervid throughout the country. When the contest grew to fever - hea t about the time of

’ a C nning s death, the Whigs were decidedly better

a N ot provided with politic l satirists. only had

a they Moore, but they lso numbered among them

r d the rising genius of P a e .

- - Well connected, well educated, typically well

Pr a e d 1 8 02 bred, Winthrop Mackworth ( with

a to his n rrow but concentrated genius, was mark an epoch in English Satire. This was due partly to his time : he lived at the beginning of recent history. But it was also due to his qualities . He wa s in a sma ll way Horatian : he a tta ined the

Golden Mean in a manner of perfect ﬁnish . There

ou tr or - was nothing eccentric, e even over fashion able in this public - school boy ; nothing to offend

a a the ch nging t ste of subsequent generations . Only the cha rm of his work h a s somewha t dis appeared . By his poems Pr a e d m a y be regarded as ﬁna lly dividing political satiric verse into two genres, the

a gaily , sardonic, lyric l style he cultivated being

for da to da t reserved y y poli ics, while grea ter issues a r e left for a more elevated poetry and a 1 76 MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME [OIL

old more literary audience. The rough and ready ballads had become extinct during the Great Wa r ;

Pr a e d u and , like Moore and his fellows, took p their succession as well a s that of the R ollia d and

A - n on e the lighter side of the n ti J a cobi . In way

n he differs from h is forerunners . Indecency is ot

n or of found in his verse, are those lampoons private life which h a s n ot made itself public in the

- th e law courts . In this cleanliness he represents

of culmination a development, though a very

n irregular o e . Coarseness and personalities had always been the bane of English satire from

’ on P h Cleveland s time . erhaps it is at its worst in t e

- S mid reign of Charles II, and lowly improves after h wards . But there are relapses, and I think t e most famous writers a r e usually a shade better than their contemporaries . A steadier improve ment be gins after the writers in the R ollia d campaign had disgraced themselves by their licence and Pr a e d may be said to inaugurate th e

unexceptionable era.

’ Formal perfection seems to have been Pr a e d s

ideal, and with that he combined a mental alertness, which enabled him to compose in a style of anti thetic wit a string of allusions to the opinions and

of n o oddities his victims . Though t virulent in h i the old sense, he could be severe enough, as s Retr ospect of Lord Chancellor Eldon may show

wa s - a -da ! When Pitt Premier, well y a t a a I ch n ed Io P e ns,

1 78 MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME [OIL

a m Why then incre se the Ar y List, And shoot th e most a uda cious !

a h a r e a a n d But , the times ch nged, now, old Repenting oppressions, Majorities a r e bound to bow In fa vour of concessions ;

Yet I will still consistent be, a a n d Intoler nt Tory, And go down to posterity a n d In pure perfect glory.

It is characteristic of Pr a e d that his satires require quoting at length, partly because their constructive

s art need to be shown, partly because their wit t is commonly somewhat diluted . It is the tou en s em ble that strikes us . Gra dually a caricature is evolved as on e stanza of delicate humour follows another. On Pr a e d the enactment of Catholic Eman c i a tion n ot p had a curious, but unprecedented, effect. His reforming ardour began thenceforward to abate . The injustice which impressed him was abolished, and his natural instincts, which were d aristocratic and fastidious, drew him rapi ly over

o h t the Tory side. W en the Reform agitation

e grew gr at, he was its convinced opponent, and the Tories lost power a n d found their satirist almost at

of e e c u the same moment. His gift urban raillery p

ﬁtte dh im to l a lia r ly ridicule popu ar enthusi sms . He treats them with a contemptuous composure which displays more than it hides the disgust within .

’ 1 We re sick of this distressing sta te Of order a n d repose ;

1 Th e e w de r o Th in s D e c 1 8 3 0 . n Or f g , . PRAED

We h a ve n ot h a d enough of la te Of blunders or of blows ; ’ We ca n t endure to pa ss ou r life In such a humdrum wa y ; a a a a We w nt little ple s nt strife, The Whigs a r e in to- da y ! Our worthy fa thers were content ’ With a ll the world s a ppla use ; h a d a a a They thought they P rli ment, a And liberty a n d l ws . ’ ’ It s no such thing ; we ve wept a n d groa ned ’ Benea th a despot s swa y ; ’ a ll d a n d a d a n d We ve been whippe , st rve , stoned The Whigs a r e in to da y ! It’s time for us to see the things Which other folk ha ve seen ; ’ a ou r It s time we should c shier kings, And build ou r guillotine ; ’ a a a n d We ll brog te Police Peers, And vote the Church a wa y ; ’ We ll ha ng the pa rish overseers The Whigs a r e in to - da y !

‘ Th e a of repetition of the l st line , or a phrase of it,

’ was a favourite trick of Pr a e d s ; but not often does he succeed in bringing it in with such

a va ria tions of exultant folly s here. The year

2 a 18 3 seemed indeed full of str nge portents . It

of was a period wild hopes . Corruption had

a A received staggering blow. better world was

S o too wa s a of coming. , , it period wild fears .

a Sansculottism was rampant . Ignor nce, rapacity

l o and fo ly were t rule the roast. It was not the ﬁrst time that Englishmen attributed to themselves

a t a a an unpr ctical, hys eric l temper th t was n ot

a s theirs . Scarcely w the Reformed Parliament

a met, th n tradition resumed its sway and the new

a House of Commons, led by the tr ditional circle of

12 - 2 18 0 MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME [OIL

of h Whig families, set itself in the ancient spirit t e

’ e ﬂe r v race to sober and cautious reform. The e sc e n c e of the less - trained classes in the country was calmly repressed, and the new Ministry showed itself quite aware how far it could go. It was not to be expected that this cha stened

to wisdom should appeal the Tories . They drew sa rdonic parallels on the different attitudes of the Whigs to the m ob before and after Re form

Pr a e d for and , them, celebrated the change in some of - Thir t his most witty and wrong headed lines, y

- r two a n d Th ir ty th e e .

old a Of , when long petitions c me o a n d a n d a Fr m Tom Dick, who brew b ke, We used to hea r the press procla im a a ll wa s a a Th t the n a tion w ke. a n d Tom a a n d If Dick , who b ke brew, To- da y petition to be free, ” a a - The n tion ro red in Thirty two, ’ - It s just the mob in Thirty three . Our Pyms a n d Ha m pde n s m a de their b ow T or ad o millions, to myri s, then ; But Lord ! they only ba bble n ow

- - To ha lf a score of drunken men . Then nothing into numbers grew ; N ow numbers into nothing ﬂee ; For on e w - a s ten in Thirty two,

- And te n a r e on e in Thirty three .

’ Of course on e must not underrate Pr a e d s reason i Y . e t ing. The Chartist agitation was com ng on the main point the Whigs were right. The excitement of Thirty- three was a pale reﬂex of

- that in Thirty two . Besides these general assaults Pr a e d also made

’ of s use an Opposition s stock themes . Minister

18 2 IN OH MODERN MOCKERY RHYME [ .

’ ’ n a a a w A tion s sneer, n tion s fro n, a we a n Ob le Might , might fire, mind ; Pitt would ha ve flung his office down ! a h a s n o Lord P lmerston t resigned.

Th is pigmy was soon to become the Grand Old

of 18 60 dwa r ﬁn Man , g his degenerate successors .

Pr a e d But died long before, even before the

o Conservatives returned t power under Peel . In his short career he had laid down the laws for

of future satirists the gay and witty sort . N o longer the bludgeon was to be employed for passing

- S o ridicule, but neat rapier thrusts . the cumbrous tales of ou r forefathers gave way to the credible

of events Tha ckerayan novels . It is a disappointment n ot to ﬁnd a worthy

to Pr a e d successor , though he had imitators in

on e a for abundance . It makes c st about a special

n of reaso , when perhaps the general vicissitudes

f to literature are su ﬁcient account for the fact.

Pr a e d e of , it may be said, died young st the great “ h early Victorian writers . T us he left an

observable gap in their ranks . Then the very excellence and reﬁnement of his style made him

f to to di ﬁcult follow, as also happened Tennyson

on e Fitz Ge r a ld later. Yet imitator, , wrote with

a ll much skill in his vein . After , perhaps the

wo a main reasons were t . S tire in elevated poetry tended to devote itself to subjects of European and foreign interest which had little local applica

in a 18 48 tion England. The Revolution ry year saw n o revolution here. Secondly, the foundation and VI] THACKERAY extraordinary success of P wn eh directed sa tiric ability more and more for the time a t least towards gibes a t society a n d the doings of the

’ n wa s P u n h s ordinary m a . It c cartoons which

a dealt with politics . On the l tter Calverley does

n ot to . a appear have touched Of Thacker y, so ﬁt for é the m tier, there are, to be sure, the whimsical

r Ch r is tm a s Wa its of 1 8 48 verses on the th ee ,

P ff of A a Louis hilippe, King Co ee sh nti and Smith

’ O B r ie n u , who led a b rlesque revolt in the West

’ f a o Ireland. The Saxon troops resisted the l tter s

- attack, and he surrendered in a kitchen garden .

Our people they deﬁed, ’ a t a a They shot em like s v ges, Their bloody guns they plied With sa nguina ry ra va ges ;

Hide, blushing glory, hide a Tha t da y a mong the ca bb ges .

Disraeli a ttem pte d to revive a vigorous pa rty sa tire in his at ta ck on the Coa lition of Libera ls and Peelites in 1 8 5 4 ; but the effort was not a

a successful one . Squibs enough ppea red in a

S a P r ess a a pecial newsp per, the , and were fterw rds i republished in the Coa lition Gu de . N one of

a of them, however, re ched a high standard wit or humour. The spirits would not come when he did

for call them .

of a One genre s tiric verse, which appeared from time to tim e a mong the political squibs of

P u n ch wa s a on e , very old in its essence. This

a was the p rody . In elder times a chief requisite 1 8 4 MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME [OIL for a successful political ballad had been a good and

- familiar tune . Hence from the Civil War onwards there appeared swarms of songs in the form of a “ Litany or with such a refrain as Which nobody can deny. These compositions died ou t gradually with the vogue of the old a irs ; while the parody

’ prope r of a political adversary s composition is to be found coming into use in the P r ob a tion a r y

ow P u h u l Ode s . N n c , however, wo d take a popular song and turn it into a squib much in

f o wa . o the earlier y Such a light kind par dy, of course, could not stand by itself. But it was admirably suited for its purpose of emphasizing

m a of the or l the immortal cartoons it accompanied . Other work of a more brilliant nature a ppeared

o P e from time t time . erhaps Sir George Tr velyan enjoys a celebrity from h is youthful squibs more enduring than that he acquired on the dusty ways

L a die i n P a r lia m of . s en t practical politics The , 18 66 which he wrote in , contains some verses

to lu s u n o er en n e sa ee l which deserve live p p o.

’ ’ Russell s and Gladstone s Reform Bill of that year had just been abandoned owing to the revolt of those dissentient Liberal members known a s the Cave of Adullam . The references which the Liberal sa tirist makes to them and the Conserva tive s are n ot very striking ; but he describes the good old times with a mixture of irony and

i n o admir ng humour which has t yet lost its savour.

Aristophanes found a worthy imitator.

E I H 18 6 MODERN MOCK RY N RHYME [O .

a a a a a Bec use he would not c ll m in , nor sh ke the midnight b ox , Nor i a ll a a Fox ﬂirt w th the pretty girls like g ll nt Cha rley . B u t n ow h a s a a n d in the press sque mish grown , thinks ve ctive ra s h ; ’ And telling hits no longer lurk nea th a sterisk a n d da sh ; e ts al a s a s And de in epithets soft skeins of silk, ’ N r a of a a of a o re m c lling silly lords curd ss s milk . a a rt to on al And s tirists conﬁne their cutting jokes Be es, ’ Or sna p a ngry puppies round a mightier tribune s heellsi:ke Discussing whether he c a n sca n a n d understa nd the line s of a n d a n d About the wooden Horse Troy, when where he dines : Though gentlemen should blush to ta lk a s if they ca red a button Beca use on e night in Chesha m Pla ce he a te his slice of 1 mutton .

’ Tr e v e lya n s method of accounting for thepoverty

of party - satire in his day has some truth in it n o

to doubt. A laugh was harder raise under the new conditions of restraint in subject and manner but

to l . this penalty applied mediocrity on y Lines,

’ like Tr e ve lya n s own on

those pa trons of their ra ce - m a n h is Who like the honest working , but like him in a pl ce,

to of rise superior the restrictions modern manners, and after all the best of what he admired in the past will generally conform to later notions of

propriety. Still as a whole the satiric verses of the middle

n o A Victorian period are t inspiring . whimsical

of s jubilation by F. D . over the resignation Glad tone

1 In th e London se a son of 18 66 the re wa s much gossip over f L a i Mr r i a the fa ct o ord J ohn Russe ll ha vin g entert ne d B ght t ’ i . Tr e ve l a n s n ote d nner y . VI] RECENT SATIRE 18 7

4 of in 18 7 has some merit, but a rather exiguous kind. It describes the last Cabinet Council.

a n d a Poor G . midst the weeping w iling, e a Attempt d their feelings to c lm, a a a And promote return to pl in s iling,

By lea ding the tone to a psa lm . — But the words in his throttle they stuck stuck, ’ And besides he d forgotten the tune, a s — Put out, it were, by the Buck Buck ’

Buckingha mshire B u ﬂoon .

It is not ea sy to say whether the greater interest of more recent satire is due to its intrinsic merit or to the still warm political sympathies to

A m r or o a . e a which it appe ls p , but a secure

’ judgment is impossible, when one s prepossessions

so a are likely to be eng ged, and while the atmo sphere of the time continues to be s o sympathetic to too the squibs themselves . We know well the

e o feelings they xpress t be impartial . One lively writer on the Conservative side

a employs an airy, unm licious fun which is very

N o a on e attractive . Radic l, would think, would be much a nnoyed at such a description of the Newca stle Programme a s the following :

Ea ch evil to its gha stly root a a ll I tr ce with unclouded ken,

See women hungering to be men, And ploughboys for a villa ge - moot ; a a a t And n ught my energies sh ll d un , a a a to R tep ying m tters not me, Till everything they do not wa nt t a — r e Is furnished o the m sses f e .

to Pr a e d to The true successor , however, is be

a a found in Mr Owen Se m n . In both there is the

a a of s me ze l for form, and a kindred delicacy wit. 1 8 N IN OH 8 MODER MOCKERY RHYME [ . Mr Seaman is in some ways more varied than his forerunner. He uses many metres . He makes

excursions into parody for his political ends . More, too Pr a e d , than he cultivates a conversational i f negl gence o phrase. But in essentials the resem P blance is close. olitics are introduced by them a s on e of among other aspects social life . Of this

’ a good example is Mr Seaman s E n tr e N oel e t le

’ J u r An of 18 9 4 o d e l . The events are fresh in ’ A everyone s recollection . mong them was that unfortunate phrase of Lord Rosebery ’s about the

of m r need converting the predo inant pa tner,

to England, Irish Home Rule, before the latter

o could become possible, words which had t be interpreted afterwa rds under pressure from his

Irish supporters .

’ Entre Noel e t le Jour de lAn The ora cles a r e mostly dumb ; s a a a Still is the hu tings r t pl n , ’ And still the stumpe r s hideous hum ; to e a t a n d The time invites drink, r a And in the inte v ls to think .

’ The sta tesma n s studied repa rtee Is lightly la id u n the Shelf; Even the E a rl of ose b e r y Refuses to commit himself ; a i sa And, h v ng nothin new to y, in a a Has nothing to exp a w y .

It is noticeable tha t a classical ﬂa vour in verse has a pensive effect in these days : eighty years

Pe a s ago it was a cheerfu l inﬂuence . rh p the change is due to the progress of democratic feeling n ow ; the big drum drowns both the antique ﬂute

1 9 0 MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME [C H

wa s if it really seriously intended, was never ful

ﬁlled.

N o o t always, however, is Mr Seaman s purely

R esi ti n conservative in sympathy as in gn a o . Often he expresses an opinion generally held by members

An m of both parties. ad irable instance in point is furnished by his verses on the last stage of the

celebrated Fashoda incident. Recent international cordialities have tended to make us forget the simmering vexation felt in England over that

of T curious adventure speculative diplomacy. h e H u r t th a t H on ou r f e e ls is a scornfu l answer to the arguments a n d n ot very reasonable complaints of the French press .

Th a t m a n is surely in the wrong a a h im And lets his ngry p ssions blind , a a Who, when person comes long

Behind him, And hits him ha rd upon the cheek t t (One whom he ook to be his bro her), Declines to turn a n d let him twea k

The other.

It should be his immedia te ca re By delica te a n d ta ctful dealings ’ To ea se the striker s pa in a n d spa re His feelings ; N or S u l a ho d he, for his priv te ends, Ma ke a n y person a l a llusion ’ Tending to a ggra va te his friend s u Conf sion .

For there a r e people built this wa y They m a y ha ve scra tched your fa ce or bent a Yet, if you re son with them, they Resent it !

Their honour, quickly rendered sore, a a f Dem nds th t you should su fer mutely, MR SEAMAN Lest they should feel it even more

Acutely .

Thus Engla nd should not ta ke oﬁe n ce

When, from behind, they jump upon her ; She must not hurt their lively sense

Of honour . For a pl in opinions, put in speech, a Might le d to blows , which might be bloody, A lesson which the Press should tea ch And study !

h a s a This mordant satire grave air enough, and n o one would question its justice to the north of i the Channel, but poss bly it is surpassed by a

’ simpler piece of Mr Sea man s dealing with de lin

u n cie s o q e nearer home . It is to thorny a subject to express a n opinion on here yet perhaps the jester

a to a has a cl im serious he ring, when he criticizes the attitude of English parties in their attempts to h l k remould primary education . In S y oc a n d th e P ou n d of S ou l he addresses the person most concerned, the English Child .

It lies, I trust, outside your ken a Th t nightly, till the senses reel, Six hundred hea ted Chri stia n men a Wrestle for your immort l wea l . ’ a a a Yes, when on He ven s n me they c ll ’ a ﬂa t And knock e ch other s doctrines , You a r e their object ; it is a ll ou r a a On y ccount, unconscious br t ! ’ a a n d a Summer will p ss, Winter s h nd a Of dying Autumn t ke his toll, a And still, like Shylocks, they will st nd, a a o l Cl iming their punctu l p und of sou .

I wonder, should you come to know a a a d The f cts bout this de dly feu , Whether your little h ea rt would go And burst with speechless gra titude ; H VI 19 2 MODERN MOCKERY IN RHYME [O .

a a a a Or r ther, being m de w re a a to a Wh t me ns they used g in their ends, You would compose a tiny pra yer To be delivered from your friends ; And cra ve pe rmission Of the sta r a on t a Th t your recen dvent smiled, Just to continue wha t you a r e A i a simple, bound ng, he then child . The fact is that a purely mirthful spirit barely exists in English literature . A serious application

so will appear among the wit, even in specialized

Pr e d a light verse as that initiated by a .

19 4 LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [OIL

derived both from the conscientious policy of the philosophic despots of the age before and from the

levelling humanita rianism of the French Revolution . With the Liberals it took the form of a movement

d of towar s democracy and the abolition privilege, with the Reactionaries that of material improve ments and of an anxious surveillance of religion

of and European peace . One side saw that Europe was still bleeding from the subv ersive wars of the

Revolution, the other that the popular gains had b e en small and had been diminished by the circum

of A stances the subsequent peace . lthough England was n ot exactly in line with the despotic powers of

of c on the Continent, the inﬂuence the Reactionary dition s under which the peace of Europe had been

attained was strongly m arked on her government . The Tories in power largely sympa thized with their absolutist allies : their own methods retained in peace too much of the arbitrary chara cter adopted during the war : they were nervously anxious at any sign of change or of increased independence a mong the non - privileged classes they were deter m ined to maintain intact the mingled oligarchy

n and mona rchy as they stood . Thus inter ational conditions aided the new interna tiona l sympathy to ma ke a purely local satire or literature im pos

of s o s ible. The kinship national ideas , which had

long been growing up in Europe, had increased too

m uch to allow tha t to be the case. It wa s to internationa l action that the dominant m ] THE REAOTION IN EUROPE 1 9 5

A Conservatives, led by Metternich and lexander I ,

Th e to . looked enforce their ideas latter, as well as the policy pursued, embraced discordant elements . There was the fanciful document of the Holy

A a to lliance, which soon g ve a useful name the

of a closer union the three despotic powers, Russi ,

A P a a ustria and russi . It expressed f irly well in a

a whimsic l , hyperbolic way the notions of religion and Divine Right which formed pa rt of the

h wa s a absolutist creed. T ere the sentiment l

a a A Liber lism, person l to Tzar lexander, which ﬁrst excited the hopes of the Liberals, and then, as it

a - faded aw y under a mixture of common sense,

a despotic feeling and a desire for pe ce, created

f a a o . among them bitter sense betr yal Finally, there was the control of Europe exercised by the four victorious Powers as a pa rt of the spoils

wa s a t a wrested from Napoleon . It the s me time conserva tive in its efforts to ma inta in the s ta tu s

u o a n d a n d q , disruptive owing to the unlikeness the

of diverse interests its members, England being specia lly divergent from the rest.

ff of In this state of a airs the policy the Liberals,

a of c a n a if trend opinion be c lled a policy, was

a almost prescribed for them . In Engl nd they were bound tosupport the old Whig doctrine as to the

’ mona rchy and to oppose the government s measures of As ffa of repression . to foreign a irs, the treaties Vienna a n d the Holy Alliance were the objects of their bitter hatred for the ﬁrst contained the

13—2 LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [on n of n egation ational aspirations, and in the second lay the guarantee of the organized system of t despotism and stagnation throughou Europe. Simultaneously with this international phase of politics came an analogous phenomenon in litera

of of ture. Great champions either cause arose, European inﬂuence as well as reputation : and both sides together combine to form the Romantic

of on e to school literature, if may venture group the various movements in different countries in so i to on e . deﬁnite a relationsh p another The .Con se r va tive protagonists in the years following 18 15

o were Chateaubriand and Scott. Equal t them

on in inﬂuence, but the Liberal side, was Byron ( 178 8

’ The greater part of Byron s work served the cause of Liberalism more by its tendencies tha n by any direct support . He represented the destruo tive forces which were breaking up the older

of fabric society. He abandons the discreet, aristocratic reserve of men under the Ancien

Re im e d . g , and is un isguisedly egotistic Their t hackneyed phrases are par ly rejuvenated in a rich, coloured verse . Their narrowness, which reduced all characters and times to an unreal pattern of

to contemporary manners, gives way dramatic sympa thies showing themselves in vivid local colour f A and in a sense of the perspective o history. crowd of wild composite passions succeed the abstract phantoms which had suited the stiff

1 9 8 L L OH ATER E EVATED SATIRE [ .

of a ff in the classic school, sparing det il and e ect as

l e w n the att r a s. Its varied harmo y was destroyed

‘ in the attempt to produce the equable ﬂow of

on French verse . And the French insistence rules

i u n and pr nciples damped an irreg lar, but glowi g

P - inspiration . edantry in verse making is perhaps

foe to the deadliest poetry. Now Byron, like

of Milton and many the Elizabethans, was a student

’ of s o a ﬂe cte d Italian literature, and, far as he was by foreign models, they were chieﬂy Italian . Thus the revolt from an uncongenial authority was followed by the admission of a subtle persuasive

n ot too o a inﬂuence. Perhaps it is much t say th t the results of his phil - Italic leanings were mainly

. of good The masterpieces Italian literature,

of though redolent the soil from which they sprang, were less apart from the unbia ssed English taste

of than were those France . They belonged mostly to the Middle Ages and Renaissance, before the literary ideals of the European nations had become either so divergent or so Fr e n ch iﬁe d as later was

s o or the case. Their conventions were obsolete local as n ot to be a possible false guide to an admirer of them : and while their essentially classical spirit was familiar to and easily appreciated by Englishmen owing to their education, it had n ot come under a rigid code of ceremonia l court

As rules like that of France. a consequence, I

a n d think, its inﬂuence can be seen in Byron Shelley a s a restraining mould for the northern BYRON 19 9

Roma ntic fancy with its wild world of mist and woodland.

Byron, besides owed Italy a particular debt in

a a Ir i o his speciﬁc lly s t c manner. N other literature h a d so marvellously combined the grave and gay.

’ Often in Ar iosto s light irony we hardly know on which aspect the poet insists most . He diverts

a s o do A himself there is nothing else left t . Spirit of mockery pervaded the air of Italy in the

Renaissance. Foreigners, despots and ecclesiastics

n ot could be done away with, but they could be scoffed at with s o delica te a raillery that they could barely resent it : and the courtly poets of the age vied with one a nother in the evasive bitter

n . a ess of their allusions It was this It lian style, so so s o - a light, gay, worldly wise and so poetic l with

a ll n it , that Byron employed to reinvigorate E glish

of A sa tire. The witty simplicity Pulci and riosto

’ a of took the pl ce Churchill s tirades . But Byron

of own added a strength and courage his , herein unlike the Italia ns : a n d his spirit is profoundly P tragic. ity and fear mingle with our admiration

f f of o his wit and o the scorn his invective . There

b ow comes a terrible clangour from the silver . His ﬁrst great political satire had its origin

of pa rtly in accident. The death George III after years of insanity was celebrated as in duty bound

n ow P by Southey, a strong Tory and oet Laureate . That excellent man could not avoid his “ odeons task ; but in its irksome performance he certainly 200 L L H ATER E EVATED SATIRE [O .

m f o laid hi sel open t criticism . Undeterred by the

’ fate of his Sapphics and Dactylics at Canning s e hands, he chose Hexameters for his m tre. And the plan of his Vision of J u dgm en t was marred

of l both by bigotry and by want humour. The sou of to for George III is borne heaven admission . The “ Fiend m a n yh e a de d and monstrous ? Democracy) enters a claim for his possession and backs it by the evidence of Wilkes and Junius of letter- writing fame. But they are both bad witnesses, the former,

of A v cause the merican re olt, says Southey, having become gloomy as well since his residence in the

a Infernal Regions . The King is received mong the Blest, and is welcomed by the murdered P P rime Minister erceval , for Southey could never forgive the greater Pitt his anti - French policy of 1 79 2 and the poem ends with scenes of heavenly triumph . This was a dangerous work to publish while any satirist lived . But Southey further stirred up enmity by the passa ge on the Sa tanic school in

a his pref ce . In words as weighty as ﬁne prose and zeal for the purity of litera ture could make them he denounced the libertinism and irreligion of the new Romanticists, of whom Byron and

To of Shelley were the chief. us the force the

’ attack may b e somewhat lessened by Southey s

a ll or conviction that deviations, theoretic other

of wise, from the accepted code which he was become an adherent implied a fathomless moral

LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [OIL

under Napoleon and made the present more bitter. One can only wish the attack on Southey had been

to limited the last line . w However, Southey struck a heavy counterblo , 18 2 1 and now in Byron prepared his retort . It,

Th e Vision o J u d m en t wa s likewise named f g , a

’ parody of Southey s poem wr itten in the otta va

r im a i of wh ch Byron was a master. In these splendid stanzas all the weapons of satire are

on e a employed fter another, jibing, irony, humour, invective and contempt ; and they alterna te with

f a passages o a tempestuous im gination . Through

ou t n e Ve r or they are prosaic, pompous halting, and it would be difﬁcult to ﬁnd a satire which keeps s o

a n d sustained high a level of pure poetry . Byron hims elf is an attractive ﬁgure in it with all his

a of A f ults vulgar fury and cynicism . fter the pettifogging satirists of the last century and their

to mean skirmishes, he comes the lists like Tristram

Th e L a s t Tou r n a m e n t to in , and lesser men shrink

the bounds before him . Byron follows pretty faithfully the pla n of

’ a t Southey s hexameters . His opening scene the

of of gates Heaven burlesques that his foe, and is

o even fuller f moral judgments . St Pete r s a t by the celestial ga te a n d look wa s His keys were rusty, the dull, SO little trouble h a d been given of la te : N ot a a a n a wa s th t the pl ce by y me ns full, “ ” But since the Ga llic e r a eighty- eight ’ h a d a a The Devils t en longer, stronger pull, “ ” a a a s sa And pull ltogether, they y At se a — a wa which drew most souls nother y . BYRON

a ll ou t of t The Angels were singing une, a a to do And ho rse with h ving little else , a n d Excepting to wind up the sun moon, a a a a or Or curb run w y young st r two, of a too Or wild colt comet, which soon ’ of o e r a Broke out bounds the ethere l blue, a a a Splitting some pl net with its pl yful t il, a a r a a a As bo ts e sometimes by w nton wh le .

Th e a a a h a d on Gu rdi n Ser phs retired high, Finding their cha rges pa st a ll ca re below ; Terrestria l bu siness ﬁlled nought in the sky ’ Sa ve the Recording Angel s bla ck burea u ; Wh o a found, indeed, the f cts to multiply a a n d With such r pidity of vice woe, ’ a h a d stri d off s Th t he pp both his wings in quill , wa s a of a And ye t in a rre r hum n ills .

a of a a His business so ugmented l te ye rs, a wa s a a w Th t he forced, g inst his ill, no doubt, a (Just like those cherubs, e rthly ministers), For to a some resource turn himself bout, a of a And cl im the help his celesti l peers, To a id him ere he should be quite worn ou t By the increa sed dema nd for his rema rks : a n d a a s Six Angels twelve S ints were n med his clerk . — This wa s a h a ndsome boa rd a t lea st for Hea ven ; h a d to And yet they even then enough do, ’ SO a a a m ny Conquerors c rs were d ily driven, So m a ny kingdoms ﬁtted u p a new ; a da too a or E ch y, , slew its thous nds six seven , a t n a a a e Till the crow ing c rn ge, W t rloo, They threw their pens down in divine disgust ’ a wa s b e sm e a r d a n d The p ge so with blood dust.

’ The rushing energy of Byron s verse is n o less

’ ready to deal with the sublime. As in Southey s poem George III is conveyed towards Heaven by

of A to a band ngels, and Satan appears make his

But bringing u p the rea r of this bright host A spirit of a different a spect wa ved - a a His wings, like thunder clouds bove some co st Whose ba rren bea ch with frequent wrecks is pa ved ; LATER ELEVATED SATIRE (CH:

’ His brow wa s like the deep when tempe st - toss d ; Fierce a n d u nfa thoma ble thoughts engra ved a a on a a Etern l wr th his immort l f ce, a a And wh e r e he g zed a gloom perv ded spa ce .

It is noticeable that the usual argument advanced a gainst the employment of the otta va

r im a c ou le t ' h a s in serious poetry, that the ﬁnal p

too ff a l epigrammatic an e ect, does not seem to ppy

’ to even Byron s satiric verse . The last couplet is

s o for ff never isolated unless it is designedly e ect .

’ At the same time the stanza s slipping, rapid movement must be admitted to require moving

for or accident its theme. It cannot pause reﬂect for long ; and I imagine this is on e reason for the

of crowding notions, details and illustrations in

’ Byron s use of it. The verse needs some substitute

to for action when it stays think. But no doubt the avoidance of real meditation wa s congenia l to

’ “ Byron s genius. The moment he reﬂects, he is a

child, Goethe said .

To A l resume the story, the rchangel Michae

o comes forward t defend the King from Satan, and the latter is invited to state his case . Two or three

of for stanzas it must be quoted, Satan is in politics

a sublimer Whig.

old m a d a When this , blind, , helpless, we k, poor worm ’ a n d to Beg n in youth s first bloom a flush reign , n d a ff The world a he both wore di erent form, And much of ea r th a n d a ll the wa tery pla in ’ Of Ocea n c a lld him king : through ma ny a storm His isles h a d floa ted on the a byss of Time ; For the rough virtues chose them for their clime.

206 LATER ELEVATED SATIRE But now the demon Asmodeus creates a diversion

of by haling up Southey himself, on a charge con tempt by anticipating the verdict of the court in hi Vi of s sion . To the horror the assembly the

L a a aure te prepares to re d his poem .

a a A gener l bustle spre d throughout the throng, ’ Which s e e m d to hold a ll verse in detesta tion ; The Angels h a d of course enough of song When upon service ; a n d the genera tion h a d a i Of ghosts he rd too much in l fe, not long to a a Before, proﬁt by new occ sion ’ “ a e xcla im d a ! The Mon rch, mute till then, , Wh t — ” P y e come a ga in ? No more no more Of tha t !

The tumult grew ; a n universa l cough u a s a a Conv lsed the skies, during deb te, When Ca stlerea gh h a s been up long enough wa s of a (Before he ﬁrst minister st te, ‘ a - s la ve s h ea r n ow Off Off I me n the ) ; some cried , a t a a a As f rce ; till , grown quite desper te, ’ a r a d The B rd St Peter p y to interpose. a n a (Himself uthor) only for his prose.

to Southey is at length allowed plead ; he is,

on he says, an author by profession all subjects .

He h a d written pra ises of a Regicide ; He h a d written pra ises of a ll Kings wha tever ; h a d fa r a n d He written for republics wide, And then a ga inst them bitterer tha n ever ; For pa ntisocra cy he once h a d cried ’ a a a a Aloud, scheme less mor l th n tw s clever ; Then grew a hea rty a nti -j a cobin ’ ’ Ha d tu r n d a — a n d a tu rn d his co t would h ve his skin .

’ a wa s a Byron s r iling bitter and unf ir, but telling to say the least ; a n d the la st words he puts in

’

Southey s mouth had some truth at bottom .

a all — — u a Now you sh ll judge, people yes yo sh ll Judge with my judgment ! a n d by my de cisI on a e a r a Be guided who sh ll ent r he ven o f ll . BYRON

ll I settle a these things by intuition, a — a — — a nd a ll Times present, p st, to come He ven Hell ,

Like King Alfonso . When I thus see double, ” I sa ve the Deity some worlds of trouble.

’ Southey s fault was indeed this calm conviction of “ N ow a ll rectitude , said my heavenly Teacher,

a a a is cle r, is a ch r cteristic line of his, with which perha ps we have less sympa thy than his

a contemporaries showed. With Byron himself haunting doubt seems ever present, but none the less he rides forward to test the event . When a t last we reach the disc om ﬁtu r e of the La ureate a t the ha nds of St Peter a n d Th e Vision o J u d m en t a in S f g closes, we feel , I think, th t, pite of his persona l virulence towards the n ow reverend

of ﬁgure Southey, Byron was ﬁghting for a cause and for principles . Liberalism in politics and

- of m thought gives the key note the poe . He

- opposes the narrow, self righteous dogmatism of

old the school, which had been hardened almost into obscura ntism by its succe ssfu l resistance to the

’ a c ob in s a n d a J by the latters disreg rd of history,

- o experience and common sense . N w Byron wa s

to on of able improve those predecessors his , insomuch as he possessed the historical sense in a

a high degree. It w s only by that quality that theoretic Liberalism could ﬁnd feet to go upon in

a a A a the ctu l world. mor l sense, Byron, whose own wa s a a not gre tly ctive, could not aid in

a n d developing in others, a moral standard he

For barely possessed. both those necessaries the LATE R ELEVATED SATIRE [OIL movement was indebted to purer heroes of its own or of its Opponents . It is tempting to dwell on The Vision of J u dg m en t owing to its superiority to all English sa tires

For succeeding those of Pope. a poetical equal

’ to o to Absa lom a n d Ach ito h l we have g Dryden s p e .

n ot to . It is easy, however, compare the two In

- humanity, in good breeding and in convincing h . f power Dryden is, I think, far superior S a te s

’ bury s character has never quite recovered from

to his aspersions. He remains us the turbulent demagogue wh o could n ot have legalized revolution

of 1 68 9 . like the men If this is an unjust view,

of Dryden has the credit warping history if true, he had an admirable insight into the course of politics . But in poetry and imagination, in variety

f of o powers and in force ideas, Byron much surpasses him . If only he could have compas sion ated the senseless clay !

’ Byron s second long political poem was Th e

A e o B r on ze 18 22—3 g f , written in , just after the of Congress of Verona. An outburst Liberalism

1 8 20. had occurred in First, the Spanish Liberals had forced an extreme democratic constitution on

o a wh o the restored Bourb n, Ferdin nd VII, had

i e wear ed his subjects by p rsistent misgovernment.

Then the Neapolitans had followed suit. Elsewhere revolutionary unrest was prevalent among the middle class es while in Greece a revolt broke ou t a u m gainst the T rks, ostly caused by religious

L A H ATER ELEV TED SATIRE [O .

h a d at best, they the Church and peasantry against them ; and very soon Spain was in a condition of

anarchy. It was chieﬂy to consider the Spanish question that the Congress of Verona met : a n d the result of its deliberations was that France should inter vene to restore despotism in Spain with the moral “ ” support of the Holy Alliance . But not with that

of England. Canning, just come to power, objected,

of like Castlereagh, to the establishment a Directory for Europe. He feared for English interests, if

France became predominant in Spain . Then he was too English and too great a Parliamentarian to sympathize with despotism . In result, he broke openly with the Holy Alliance ” and with the principle of maintaining the sovrans of 1 8 15 in their possessions and by recognizing the revolted Ameri

of can colonies Spain as independent, he deprived France of her greatest chance of gain and limited “ a of A the suprem cy the Holy lliance to Europe . 1 22 Thus in Dec. 8 the issue was clear, and it was an obvious move on the part of the Liberals “ ” to write down the Holy Alliance and the system of Congress - government of Europe ; and Byron attempted the tas k in Th e Age of B r on ze . The poem cannot compete with Th e Vision of J u dgm en t N for ﬁre and genius . evertheless it has great

- of merits . It is over rhetorical in the school

Churchill yet the rhetoric has life in it. He begins by a lengthy retrospect of the great days of II N .V ] BYRO

Napoleon, and then celebrates the Liberal Move

to ment which is regenerate Europe. Then he A turns to the llies .

’ But 10 ! a Congress ! Wha t !Mtha t ha llow d na me Which freed the Atla ntic ! a y we hope the sa me For outworn Europe ?

Who now a ssemble a t the holy ca ll ? a a a r e a ll! The blest Alli nce, which s ys three An ea rthly Tr inity ! which wea rs the sha pe ’ ’ a a s m a n im ic k d a m e . Of He ven s, is by the p A pious Unity ! in purpose one TO melt three fools to a Na poleon .

So he continues to describe the members of the Europea n Alliance one by one the

a coxcomb Cz r . O to With no bjection true Liberty, Except tha t it would ma ke the na tions free ;

“ ” then good cla ssic Louis on his uneasy throne ;

a and lastly England. Canning extorts his pr ise, though he sees well enough what an insecure hold

a the Minister h a d on his pa rty . But for that p rty a n d indeed for the Whigs too he reserves only a bitter contempt.

a a See these inglorious Cincinn ti sw rm, a m of wa r a of a F r ers , dict tors the f rm ; T a wa s a h e ir ploughsh re the sword in hireling h nds, Th e ir ﬁelds m a nured by gore of other l a nds ; Sa fe in their ba rns these Sa bine tillers sent , — Their brethren out to ba ttle why ? for rent ! t Yea r a fter yea r they voted cent . per cen , — d a a n d a - ? ! Bloo , swe t te r wrung millions why for rent ’ r oa r d a a They , they dined, they dr nk, they swore they me nt — — To die for Engla nd why then live for rent ! The pea ce h as ma de on e genera l ma lcontent Of these high - ma rket pa triots ; wa r wa s rent ! a ll Their love of country, millions misspent, How reconcile ? by reconciling rent !

14 - 2 LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [OHL

And will they n ot repa y th e trea sures lent ? n Wi a n d ! dow th everything, up with rent a a o or t Their good, ill, he lth, we lth, j y discon ent, a im —r en t— r e n t—r e n t ! Being, end, , religion

All the meaner part of contemporary Toryism

An d stands pilloried here. certainly the attempt to keep up war- prices for food - stuffs by means of f enormous protective duties is hard to de end. As poetry there is too much declamation in the piece yet at its worst there is a genius denied to Ch urchill in it ; and taken as a political mani

’ r m on festo, By on s practical sagacity ade him seize

for real points criticism, and press them home in i h a statesmanl ke spirit. W at a contrast there is in the va guer satires of Shelley ! We hardly do

’ do n ot justice to Byron s genius, if we reckon him a mong those few modern poets who could treat

‘ of ff a airs, and not decline into prose.

to ffa a It was a irs th t he ﬁnally turned. He had always sympa thized with the Greeks in their

n ow struggle for independence. He took an active

to part in it, and sailed Hellas . He could do but

Too little, but that was done well . soon he was

18 24 . stricken down by fever, and in April he died

’ r e r e t st ? If thou g thy youth, why live The la nd of honoura ble dea th z—u a n d v Is here p to the ﬁeld, gi e Awa y thy brea th ! There is a gulf between Byron and Shelley “ ( 179 2 his fellow - poet of the Satanic school. Byron never loses hold of reality . Shelley is a dreamer wh o sees mankind like the spectre of

LATER ELEVATED SATIRE

All were fa t ; a n d well they might a a Be in dmir ble plight, For on e on e a n d two two by , by , He tossed them huma n hea rts to chew a Which from his wide clo k he drew.

And ma ny more Destruction s pla yed a a a In this gh stly m squer de, d to All disguise , even the eyes,

a or . Like Bishops, l wyers, peers spies La st ca me Ana rchy : he rode a On a white horse, spl shed with blood ; wa s a to He p le even the lips,

Like Dea th in the Apoca lypse. And he wore a kingly crown ; And in his gra sp a sceptre shone ; On his brow this ma rk I sa w “ ! ” I AM GOD, AND KING, AND LAW

a a n d a L wyers priests , motley crowd, To the ea rth their pa le brows bowed ; a b ad a Like pr yer not over loud, “ — a rt La w a n d Whispering Thou God .

The beauty of these lines needs n o Comment;

n l and their tech ical negligence very ittle defence. What might surprise us perhaps is the remarkable amount of common - sense concealed in the baseless ” of ou t . fabric this vision . He points where the

of strength the demos lay.

Rise like Lions a fter slumber a In unva nquish ble number, a to a de w Sha ke your ch ins e rth like , Which in sleep h a d fallen on you — Ye a r e ma ny they a r e few.

He has been much laughed at on the count of describing liberty as something to eat. — No in countries tha t a r e free Such sta rva tion ca nnot be As in Engla nd n ow we see. v n ] SHELLEY 21 5

But after all the acquisition of political rights by

’ the artisa n clas s since Shelley s time has been followed by their use of them to improve their

L - economic status . Corn aws and anti Combination Laws could hardly have existed with an enfranch iz of e d labouring population . Shelley course was n ot conducting a careful argument. But surely he was right in sa ying that liber ty was only imper fe ctl of 18 20 y in being in the oligarchic England ,

d a h r a n t e t e e . th t . might be known by its fruits

His underlying logic wa s sound . Shelley’s inﬂuence began after his death during ff his life he was ine ectual, and it is characteristic

Th e Ma sk o A n a r h that f c y was not published till 1 3 2 8 . His other really political poems were like

of wise posthumous . The best them is the sonnet,

E n la n d in 181 9 a r a a s g , with all its ex gge tion, such in the line “ — ’ a a t a . A Sen te , Time s worst st tu e unrepe led

a S well oot th e T r a n t His comic s tires, such as f y ,

wa s are drea ry fa ilures. He only at home in

i of a a h gher realms the im gin tion, where he himself “ ” seems to move, a glorious phantom, among the dreams he created . With Byron’s death we emerge from the fervent period of the English Romantic movement. Keats and Shelley were already gone. Wordsworth, the

of leader the other Revolutionary school, and

wh o a Coleridge, sh red the tendencies of both, .were silent. Only Scott remained of those authors we LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [OIL

ll to now think great. There was still Campbe

on P l of 18 3 0 write ﬁne verse the o ish revolt , but

he was a satirist in a past taste. Many lesser men,

on however, like Moore and Hood carried the traditions of the Romanticists and Lake Poets

- of and the early Victorian poets, all them their

to true spiritual descendants, were soon come to

the fore. di Political con tions were rapidly changing. If 18 3 4 ’ we take the year , ten years after Byron s

to death, we ﬁnd England handed over the Middle Classes and in full tide of reform ; France freed

soi- disa n t L from Divine Right, and a iberal P ower ; Greece and Belgium independent, and P Spain and ortugal constitutional monarchies, rocking m iserably to and fr o in the attempt to

tr iu m progress . On the other side Metternich is P d phant in Germany and Italy, while oland is crushe

by Russian despotism . Yet even in Central Europe “ of there was ground for hope. The party Young

Italy, led by Mazzini, was creating a new public

for l of opinion the peninsu a, and in spite Metternich a steady drift to Liberalism was taking place

among the German bourgeois.

a . The ctual outbreak, however, was sudden By 18 48 th e French were weary of the sham Libe r a lis m of the Monarchy of July ; and Louis

’ Philippe s throne was overturned with astonishing

h e of ease . T news of the establishment the Second

u l Rep b ic was a signal to the Liberals elsewhere.

LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [c m

wa s n l repose . Her only outward gain a constitutio a P government in iedmont. It was the striking series of events I have just rehearsed which reawoke the spirit of international

r o- satire in England. The p Italian sympathies of Byron were inherited by the next generation of

o wo p ets, and were given their expression by the t

w 18 02- 6 1 Brownings . In Mrs Bro ning ( ) sympathy

of took the form directly political poetry, which naturally often conta ined satiric passages . Her husband and she made their chief residence in

Sh e Florence, and was ﬁrst a hopeful, then an

of of indignant spectator the course the Revolution .

Oa sa Gu idi Win dows , the ﬁrst part written in

18 48 18 5 1 of , the second in , is the record her

P o . t impressions The First art, belonging the age of hope, as may be supposed, has little that is satirical about it. Yet even then she saw the rocks

of ahead. The irresponsible character the people, ivh o thought the word Liberty a charm to bring

l n ot all things right, cou d but strike her and she declares that a Libe ral Pope is a contradiction in terms.

He is good a n d grea t Accor din to the deeds a pope c a n do ; a a a f a Most liber , s ve those bonds ; fection te, m a a n d a s a r e As princes y be, , priests , true ; s a But only the ninth Piu fter eight, ’ a d a e . a n h o e fu lle st When ll s pr is d most At best p , ’ o a a m a n ! a a a He s p we w nt His he rt be ts w rm, a a But, ike the prince ench nted to the w ist, n d a a a He sits in stone, a h rdens by ch rm a of r - Into the m rble his th one high pla ced . MRS BROWN IN G

a a a r m Mild benediction, w ves his s intly ’ So ! a a a m a n , good but wh t we w nt s perfect , Complete a n d a ll a live : ha lf tra vertine

al ou r a n d ou r a . H f suits need, ill subserves pl n A devil’s advocate might say that here we have Robert Browning ma de perspicuous and certainly Mrs Browning h a s changed much from the Eliza

beth Barrett who wrote the B r own R osa r y . But “ ” perfu me of style little a grees with a gra ve

a n d a political poem workaday subject. Mrs

Browning began, like Tennyson, as a classicizing

Romanticist, taking form from one tendency, and feeling and sometimes theme from the other. She was now, like Browning, a Romanticist still, but full of subtle present- da y thought like her husband

a P she looks back continu lly to the ast, without

- ever forgetting the nineteenth century standpoint.

a n d of For the rest, the excellence of the verse the

a style goes without s ying.

m Or e a P Her forebodings were th n realized. ius was indeed a broken reed. In her continuation she says of the future

Wha tsoever deeds they be

Pope Pius will be gloriﬁed in none .

to Yet he was witness great ecclesiastical triumphs, although those of Italy were the theme of his

’ lamentation . Mrs Browning s disillusionment on the sta ying powers of the Tuscan Liberals was

e : bitt rer,for she had less expected it Like them,

of she had overrated the power ideas, without

~ a to of m w h bit back them, patriotis ithout drill . 220 LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [OIL

P of erhaps, too, she underrated the wonder What

l s was accomp ished amid all drawback . But her

on a i comment wh t she saw is true in its sever ty.

Long live th e people ! How they lived ! a n d boiled And bubbled in the ca uldron of the street ! How n or old the young blustered, the recoiled, An d wha t a thunderous stir of tongues a n d feet ﬂa t a ta t a n d Trod the p lpi ing bells, foiled o - of a it ! The j y guns their echo, sh ttering ’ How down they pulled th e Duke s a rms everywhere ! How u a e- n p they set new c f sig s, to show Where pa triots might sip ices in pur e a ir (The fresh pa int smelling somewha t) ! To a n d fr o a u a a n d to a How m rched the civic g rd, stopped st re When boys broke windows in a civic glow ! How to al rebel songs were sung loy tunes, s a And bishop cursed in ecclesi stic metres .

N o wonder the Grand Duke soon came ba ck again : and yet the year or so of revolution did

ot o something. N only did it give birth t far more practical programmes and greater solida rity of

v feeling between pro ince and province, and class

of 18 20 and class, than the tentatives but it also sifted ou t of the ruck of speakers the really capable

n me wh o could lead . Meantime the prospect was

a of very dark. There was pe ce course.

' u I loa the to ta ke its n a me pon my tongue . ’ ’ n owis a f Tis tis tre son, sti f with doom, a n d a a in rticul te wrong, (1 , stiﬂed Rome, ’ a a a a a D zed N ples, Hung ry f inting ne th the thong, And Au s tria wea ring a smooth Olive - lea f a ou t On her brute forehe d, while her hoofs ress a a in The life from these It li n souls, brie

Strong words the unmalleable ter za r im a becomes pliable under the heat of her emotion and few,

of A t i pe rhaps, would contest her condemnation us r a

LATER ELEVATED SATIRE

But consider h ow little he shook At thought of bomba rding your city ! a a a i And, b l ncing th t w th this, The Christia n rule is pla in for us ; ’ the Holy Fa ther s Swiss a u ia a for l H ve shot his Per g ns in v in u s . ’ a a a You ll c ll b ck the Gr nd Duke.

a a Pra y ta ke b ck your Gr nd Duke. - 1 too a f , , h ve su fered persua sion . a a n d All Europe, r ven rook, a t a a Screeched me rmed for your n tion .

’ You ll ta ke ba ck your Gra nd Duke ? ’ on e Observe, there s no to force it, a a a Unless the M donn , S int Luke - ou Drew for y , choose to endorse it . I ch a rge you by grea t Sa int Ma rtino o And pr digies quickened by wrong, Remembe r your dea d on Ticino ; a Be worthy, be const nt, be strong. — — B a h ! Ca ll ba ck the Gra nd Duke !

The perplexing question of the rights and

’ wrongs of N apoleon III s policy called forth also his only true political satire from the king of

a 18 09 Victori n literature, Tennyson ( As

n a rule, on political and social themes he conﬁ ed

- himself to casting side lights only, as he does in

of The P r in ce ss of the fanciful tale , full sociology At as it is . other times he states political maxims, ” a as in the be utiful lines Love thou thy land, but

a in a most unsatiric str in . He made, however, a

a n o deﬁnite politic l attack, although even then t a

F b r 1 5 on e Th e Th ir d o e r u a 8 2. N a o party , in f y p leon III had reached his throne by a n inglorious P route of treachery and violence. Elected resident

of the Republic, he aimed at becoming a despotic

1 S a of P ia 1 85 9 ck erug , . y I I ] 223

e . Emp ror His opponents were dangerous, and , he

’ ’ ta t 1 8 5 1 crushed them by the cou p d e of December .

a of of P There was a t le dead in the streets aris, and the Republican leaders who could n ot take ﬂight

to . were transported Cayenne It was necessary, of to course, for England recognize a government accepted by Frenchmen but the English press

a was loud in its condemnation of N poleon . N ot unnaturally responsible statesmen deprecated such

of o outspoken criticism a neighb uring government, and their vi ew wa s made clear in a debate in the

a on Lords . Tennyson gives the c se the other side

i a a a r ch and mellow voice s alw ys .

of We love not this French God, the child Hell, Wa r a Wild , who bre ks the converse of the wise ; a But though we love kind Pe ce so well, ’ We da re not ev n by silence sa nction lies . It might b e sa fe ou r censures to withdra w ; n ot a la w And yet, my Lords, well ; there is higher .

a s a a As long we rem in, we must spe k free, ’ Tho a ll the storm of Europe on us brea k ; 0 a a a r e N little Germ n st te we, But the one voice in Europe : we m u s t spea k ; a - ou r a a Th t if to night gre tness were struck de d, of a There might be left some record the things we s id.

on a If be fe rful, then must we be bold . ’ u r a a a a a Brit in c nnot s lve tyr nt o er. ’ Better the wa ste Atla ntic r olld a n d a n d On her us ours for evermore. a ! a ou r Wh t h ve we fought for Freedom from prime, At las t to dodge a n d pa lter with a public crime ?

The fa ult of self- righteous criticism of foreign n a a to tions is so e sy condemn, that it is as well to remember th at there is a moral sense to be shocked by wicked a ctions . Indeed on e ca nnot but admire 224 LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [C PL

“ the tact with which Tennyson takes his stand on

n ot e . principle, even if the poem is among his b st

n ow Things of course have changed , and England possesses n o longer the sole free public opinion in L ’ Europe. ater in life the poet s chief political utterances were concerned with the dangers of

so Democracy. But he was a Democrat far as he

of a l was a politician at all, and the few lines politic reﬂection which occur among his social criticisms

e can hardly be called satire, esp cially as they are

in r o r ia e r son a n ot delivered p p p , but through the gloomy medium of L ocksley H a ll S ix ty Yea r s

Aﬂ er .

’ t t a in d a to to S ep y s ep we g freedom known Europe, known all ’ to a t — t Step by step we rose gre ness, thro the onguesters a we m a y f ll . — You a woo th e s t old a th t Voice tell hem experience is fool, ’ Tea ch your ﬂa tte r d kings tha t only those who ca nnot rea d l ca n ru e.

a b u t n o Pluck the mighty from their se t, set meek ones in their pla ce ; a t t u f a a Pillory Wisdom in your m rke s, pel yo r o f l in her f ce.

Th e dramatic monologue no doubt gives only a

of of mood Tennyson at most, but the expressions

ou r his moods are worth hearing. Of recent poets he seems preeminently sage ; both his verse and

of l his thought show a mature balance the facu ties, characteristic perhaps of the ripe Revolutionary

era . 18 12— 9 Curiously enough, Robert Browning ( 8 )

of also dealt with the career Napoleon III . Are

LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [C PL

was either s o clear- Sighted or s o strong as the

great mental analyst represents him .

From the ph iIOSOph ic calm of the great early

Victorian poets, we descend in recent times among

a more excitable generation . It is true that men like Byron or Shelley could use unmeasured

u o l lang age, but we always seem t fee a certain

in ou r inner composure their works . In days the rapid communication of news and of Opinions

to appears have produced more surging, if less

on lasting, emotions all topics and I cannot help

ou r too of thinking that literature, , shows signs a m ob - To like enthusiasm. be living it must reﬂect

t e of h temper the time, and

a a a if we h ve little we kness, ’ a a a of o Tis p ssion for ﬂight thunderb lts .

Algernon Swinburne (18 3 7— 19 09 ) was perhaps

u the ﬁrst great poet to show this g sty, emotional

wa s tendency, as he the most sustained in passion A and noblest in form of the new school . fervent

n ow t republican and nationalist, although lef some

of ou r wa s way behind by the progress opinions, he a n ardent opponent of the Temporal Pa pacy and

of of the Second French Empire, both which 18 0 powers fell in the last Revolutionary year 7 .

on P l Al P o u le m i His sonnet the apa locution , p , ” qu id tibif e ci ? is almost too ra geful in manner ;

but clerical sanctimoniousness is hard to bear. VII] SWINBURN E 227

“ a a a a n d a n ot Thou h st w shed thy h nds mouth, s ying, Am I ” a ? oo a n d wa s Cle n And thy lips were bl dy, there none e a m a n a a on e To sp k for g inst thee, no, not ; a a This h st thou done to us, Isc riot.

A n a on e livi g foe may expect he vy blows, but

’ wishes tha t Swinburne had not made N a poleon III S d a f a e th a subject or exult tion . Of course he was ﬁghting tra dition and fea red perha ps there might a a a wh o g in be Moder tes converted, like those

to m 1 0 rallied the E pire in 8 7 . There is a ﬁne

of on to sonnet his these latter, traitors, he says,

a Fr nce . Then she took a a n d In her bruised h nds their broken pledge , eyed These men so la te so loud upon her side a a n d a With one inevit ble te rless look, Tha t they might see her fa ce whom they forsook ; d a n d a h a . And they beheld wh t they left, died A carping critic might say that the rhyme a little damages the thought in the last line ; the “ in ta b e sca n tqu e from which it is imitated is s o

a much more real phrase. Swinburne seems fra nkly to have accepted the taint of unfa irness which clings to a ll satire ; but n o on e can deny f the stirring quality o his verse. In the attacks on the House of Lords dur ing the agitation over 1 8 8 3 the Third Reform Bill in , he took a formida ble

a of p rt, lending, besides the irony and scorn which

wa s a of he m ster, a kind romance to the cause of

a a s Cle a r th e wa novelty in such poem y .

a a ll a r e a ll u Now th t these things rotten, their gold is r st, i a a a n Quenched the pr de they lived by, de d the f ith d cold

the lust, Sha ll their herita ge not also turn a ga in to dust ?

15 — 2 A H LATER ELEV TED SATIRE [O .

But Swinburne was an Imperialist a s well as a

L N o on h a s iberal . e written ﬁe r ie r verse in support of the N avy or more fervently declared h for the Union with Ireland . One poem , T e

Com m on we a l on th e , the Home Rule movement, is

f of per ection wrathful, stinging rhetoric .

Wh a t a r e these th a t howl a n d hiss a cross the stra it of westwa rd wa ter ? Wha t is he wh o ﬂoods ou r ea rs with speech in ﬂood ? See the long tongue lick the dri pping h a nd tha t smokes a n d reeks of sla ughter ! See the m a n of words embra ce the m a n of blood !

t wh o t a of th e t Old men eloquen ruckle to the tr itors ime, Love not Ofﬁce wer is no desire of theirs Wha t if yesterda y t eir hea rts recoiled from blood a n d fra ud a n d crime ? i s — n - Cons cience erred a error which to da y repa irs .

t of a Conscience only now convinces hem str nge, though tra nsient error ; ’ Only now they see how fa ir is trea son s fa ce ; a s th e a n d a is See how true the f lsehood, ju t theft, bl meless

the terror,

Which repla ces just a n d bla meless men in pla ce .

i One wonders what poster ty will think of these lines when the ashesof the Home Rule controversy have at length grown cold . If it condemns them ,

on e of it will also record, would think, the reign crime in Ireland which gave rise to their in dig

’ e m otion s a r e nation . The same expressed in a less transcendental v ein by Mr Kipling in his lines on the result of the Parnell Commission .

a ac of a l a a Cle red in the f e l m nkind bene th the winking skies, Like Phoenixes from Phoenix Pa rk (a n d wha t la y there ?) they u se — to Go shout it to the emera ld seas ive word Erin now, g — Her honoura ble gentlemen a r e clea red a n d this is h ow :

23 0 ‘ H LATER ELEVATED SATIRE [O .

l To s rhetorical skil . him Empire over other race does not present itself in a praiseworthy light . In

a God the drama, his Satan ddresses his thus

N a a y, thou dost not he r, Or thou h a dst loos ed thy ha nd like lightning in the clea r a a a To smite their rib ld lips with p lsy, these f lse priests, s a t a id a t a The e Lords who bo st hine their high civic fe sts, of The ignoble shouting crowds, the prophets their Press, a of a - Pouring their d ily ﬂood b ld self righteousness, “ ” f a Their poets who write big o the White Burden . Tr sh ! ’

t a of a . The Whi e M n s Burden, Lord, is the burden his c sh

s Thu each side continues the old satiric warfare .

s They are hearty combatants, and their censure

o are unreserved. S did the greater genius of

Dryden turn and rend his insulting opponents, i Shadwell and Settle, in the ﬁrst days of Wh g and

Tory . Yet it is pleasant to turn from the clamour and

of on e of dust to the work the most poetic of poets,

a Mr William W tson . Mr Watson is so emphatically

to a scholar, that it is hard to say what modern poetical tendency he belongs . The forms of many

Pe r h h r schools are blended in him . a ps e most e

n u s of of mi ds the equable, lucid sadness Matthew

’ a n d Arnold, but Tennyson s rich imagination

’ Words worth s recluse musings have their pa rt in

a a him . His s tire has certain aloofness about it, on e might say an unworldliness, which makes it

a - c on ﬂic ts hard to associate with p rty , though I imagine his general point of view would be that of a e a ke tch o a Lib ral. How admir ble is the S f P olitica l P er son a g e 1 885 ! The grave couplets VII] MR WATSON

a of in se a r skilfully void the air smartness, almost p f able from the imitation o Pope . One can only

o object t the odd fourth line.

a a a l C st in this fortun te Olympi n mou d, The a dmira ble [Ha rtingt on ?] behold ; a a or a Whom n ught could d zzle misle d, unless ’ Twere the wild light of fa ta l ca utiousness ; Wh o never ta kes a step from his own door a a But he looks b ckw rd ere he looks before, ’ a a to s a When once he st rts, twere r sh indeed y Tha t he will tra vel fa r upon his wa y : a But this is sure, he will not turn side, ’ a t f O Or the beck o Ja ck La nthorn ride . ﬂi a n t a n d a The pp deem him dull s turnine, The summed - u p phlegm of a whole duca l line ; Others a dmire tha t sober ma s s a n d weight A a a simple Doric pill r of the St te, So inha rmonious with the ba ser style m a Of neighbouring colu ns gr fted on the pile, a n d a a n d So proud imperturb ble chill, a n d a Chosen m tched so excellently ill, a a He seems monument of pensive gr ce, a a ou t of a ! Ah, how m jestic lly pl ce Would tha t some ca ll he could n ot choose but hee d Of priva te pa ssion or of public need At a a l l st might sting to life th t slothfu power, And sna re him into grea tness for a n hour !

’ Mr Wa tson s chief contributions to political

a satire, however, have been his ssaults on the

Sulta n of Turkey during the Armenia n massacres .

a He did well to be angry at th t atrocious fact but,

a a n ot to his perh ps, ﬁery indign tion is best suited

u r h somewhat chill Muse . I may quote E ope a t t e P la y a s being probably the ﬁnest of these poems

a of his. It is written in staider mood th n the rest

a and, if present events in Turkey le ve us wondering whether we were deluded in 1 8 9 6 or a r e dreaming

’ a now, Europe s ttitude is consistent still . LATER ELEVATED SATIRE VI I

a a m e t O l nguid udience, to see The la st a ct of the tra gedy a a a a On th t terriﬁc st ge f r, t t a r e Where burning towns the foo ligh s , O da da listless Europe, y by y Ca llously sitting ou t the pla y !

a t t a n d Perch nce, in empes in blight, too a a th e ! On Europe, , sh ll f ll night

She sees the victim overborne, a By worse th n ra vening lions torn . a She sees, she he rs, with soul unstirred, a a n d a And lifts no h nd, spe ks no word, But va unts a brow like theirs who deem ’ ’ a a Men s wrongs a phr se, men s rights drea m . a a a too a Yet h ply she sh ll le rn , l te, a of a t In some blind hurric ne F e, How ﬁe r ily a live the things ’ a s a She held fool s im ginings, a n d And, though circuitous obscure, h ow u The feet of Nemesis s re . It is hard to draw general conclusions from history ; but perhaps this last couplet has claims on ou r acceptance .

H CONCLUSION [O .

of consciousness rottenness at home . The ﬁner

of side its life, the chivalry, tenderness and grace of for it, are preserved us in Chaucer, but Chaucer

n o was satirist in politics . So he gives us the charm of the Cisalpine and French inﬂuences

n ot n under Richard II, the hollow ess of that

’ n or of P premature culture, the misery the easants

of Revolt . Yet these cankers are the theme rougher verse, which, with its theological squabbles and jagged metres, heralds the political and literary decadence of the Fifteenth Century. Then comes the nursing despotism of the

Tudors, which fostered the national growth , which welcomed the Reform ation and the Renaissa nce to

1 stimulate it, which silenced political critic sm, and

o r h t A t . gave full play T us satire, save in furtive i l s a . s ba lad , takes social form The age , it seems , much in fault, but its rulers are wise and good .

We of have also the nobler satire national foes, but even that is transferred to the dreamland of

Fa e r ie u e en e - of the Q , or the make believe the

- play house .

old We next ﬁnd despotism growing , and the two religious and political parties a t strife : and

of in satire there commences a hail witticisms,

’ r a c ti diluted by Wither s endless harangues . But p cal political argument is only met with in a few

a l b llads, which, found ings as they were, involved n o to risk their parents . Then even these weak ’ voices die away under Cromwell s tyranny. VIII] STAGES IN POLITICAL SATIRE 23 5

True political satire, like the steady current of

a . English political life, begins with the Restor tion

wa s e It then, if ever, that Englishmen chos

n o evolution, t revolution, for the national watch

a word, Charles II himself, with all his ch rm and

to i his vices, being but the straw show wh ch way

N ow s the wind was blowing. we have the satire

a s which deal with pr ctical policy, and with the fact of old political life . The imaginative literary

a of models, the witty, but unprecise, buse Cleve

e a land, b c me less and less suitable for the new needs . Poets f ound their guide in the contem

or a r p y French classics , with their sense of form , their good sense, and their epigrammatic reasoning. This practical School of poetry reaches its zenith

’ in the veiled history of Dryden s Absa lom a n d

A chito h l A e . p fter Dryden, the inﬂuence of the La tins and the French tendency to abstraction combine to withdraw the best poets from political

a l warf re, which often lends on y an increased

n For bitter ess to their moral satires . current politics up to 176 0 we must turn largely to ballads

n and so gs, which express such wider public opinion as still existed under the oligarchy. Great men did homage to their importance by writing them . A m R new era co mences with the ollia d .

P wa s P a ublic Opinion now awake, arli mentary war a a n d - f re party discipline were become habits. There began the fa miliar struggle to capture the public for one side or the other. Scurrilous in the 23 6 N H CO CLUSION [O .

R ollia d An ti- J a cobin , lofty and zealous in the , poetical sa tire grew to be a powerful weapon in di m i the contest . With Byron it becomes a sse

of l to nator new ideas, and appea s a European

Th e of Th Vi i n o J u d m n t audience . author e s o f g e

for ranks with Dryden, in satire he was the chief of the great Romantic movement, which expressed

s of An d the ideal the time. the Romantic move

i n ot n ment was a vivify ng, a regulati g force, like

Classicism . The stream then divides Pr a e d accommodates

of s to the lighter satire, descendant the ballad ,

modern manners . Mrs Browning works the inter

national vein of Byron in the same spirit . And the succession of both of these continues to the

present day. It is evident from the foregoing that English

' poetical satire is preeminently English in character.

It admits foreign inﬂuence, but its motives, purposes

and ideals are drawn from national circumstances . It developed in close connection with the develop

- of . ment the party system . Its temper is English True the rich imagination we are accustomed to in w English literature cannot well sho itself in satire,

though the feat was accomplished by Byron . Satire deals too much with the humdrum and

f r of prosaic o that. But more everyday qualities

Englishmen are largely represented . Of humour, l wit and good sense it is ful . I have endeavoured to select such passages as illustrations which bring

23 8 CONCLUSION

Allied to the lack of gaiety is the roughness of a ll i but the latest English satire. Mere rid cule

f To does n ot su ﬁce it . know its adversary is

a mort lly wounded it must see him disembowelled .

S o to a bludgeon is preferred the rapier. Too often this has given an opportunity to brutal malice ; at its best there is an unspiteful humour

i n o u n - in the sport wh ch is t engaging. It would be hard to ﬁx on any particular genre

of for poetry political satire, as it has employed practically all : but notice that the two best satires in narr atives . Partly doubtless this is due to the ” M greater s c o e for va ed b t l? b e i Also, perhaps, the narrative form may u i to more s table for a nation, not prone reﬂective N

It has abundantly appeared h ow powerful a weapon politica l satire is . At the worst it could

always catch the ear of the educated public, and

’ 1a m even at times of the uneducated. Marvell s

to - P a n d poons helped solidify the Country arty,

l n ot form the future Whig po icy . Dryden only

performed a like service for the Tories, but it may be questioned whether he has n ot inﬂuenced unduly t ou r view of the events he describes . Shaf esbury “ ” remains for us for crooked counsels ﬁt . Byron

a ag in, besides his enormous contemporaryinﬂuence , has coloured our estimate of the causes striving

for victory during the European Restoration .

of These instances show the power satire, but v m] USES OF POLITICAL SATIRE

do they show its utility taken by itself ? All parties

— or can use it, and if we approve of the party creed

of laud the results some conﬂict, we shall think

the satires, that aided the consummation, of good

ff b u t e ect. Yet this beneﬁt lies not in the satires,

' in wa s the cause. They were weapons, their use

to decry a n d to defame. They were rooted in

unfairness . We are agreeably surprised when

they scourge in just terms a real, undoubted vice .

Often they attempt deliberately to mislead . N o doubt on e m ight say that the very evils of satire help to produce a kind of natural selection

among sta tesmen . They increase the severity of

the test a would - b e ruler must undergo : they make him the more careful of his behaviour public

and private . To this ﬁerce merit we might add the milder on e of its function in keeping public interest a live amon g the tiresome deta ils and remote contin

e n cie s g which must compose much of politics .

’ Swift could ma ke even Wood s Ha lfpence a burning question ; and what had the ordina ry Englishman to do with Italy in 18 48 ? Then a gain great sa tires a r e writte n by men

of genius, and, though they might misuse their

n ot a a talent, such men could void l ying stress

on th e higher side of the party - doctrine they

wa represent. In this y they not only helped to

a own elev te the tone of politics in their time, ’

but also enriched their time s legacy to the future . 240 N OH III CONCLUSIO [ . V F inally, there is another service political satires

to render, which is peculiarly necessary a govern

of ment based on discussion . One the greatest evils in such a state is the prevalence of mere

of Pe ck n iﬂi n words and phrases, and the vague s a

ow o a r virtues. N t satire cant and humbug e

proper game. It brings ﬁne professions down to

fact, points the contrast between the commonplace

o reality and its tinsel dress, and by the dread f

of - ridicule raises the standard plain dealing. Other means of criticism as well act as a check on more o pprobrious faults in public life . But satire is the

for best agent to keep us free from . taking words substance .

242 IN DEX

E D 18 6— I n s tr u cti n s to a P a in te r , 7 o , Fa e r ie u ee n e Th e 5 2—4 78—9 8 1—2 Q , , , a 13 5 ta a on F lconer, I li n influence English t 29 —30 40—2 19 8—9 Fif eenth Century, The, , poetry, , 3 1—2 FitzGe r a ld 18 2 a 5 , J mes I , 7 — Fi z P k R. 14 1 144 a 1 1 t a tric . 0 , Gen , , , J mes II, 7 14 5 —6 9 10 John, King, 7, , Fr ench influence on English 5 —6 9 1 9 7—8 a d 228 - 9 poetry, 7 , 7, Kipling, Mr Rudy r , 15 2—3 French Revolution, F H La di in P m n t Th e r . 1 5 8 es a r ia e ere, J . , l , , Fu d e Fa m il in P a r is Th e 1 8 4—6 g y , , 1 1—3 Lia r s Th e 145 7 , , a 18 15 —20 19 3—6 Liber lism , a 126 a a a G rth, Liter ture, Historic l v lue Ga 1 18 —20 o 1— y, fi 7 o 1 13—18 Little J oh n N obod 45 Ge rge I , y , 123 128—30 r a n d a a 24 George II , , Live y M inten nce, , 1 30—2 13 —9 144 3 1- 2 George III, , 7 , —5 a s 28— Loll rd , 9 166—7 174 L oves th e Tr ia n les Th e George IV, , of g , , f 15 5 16 1—2 Gi ford, — 228 s a — a 18 4 1 8 6 D . 42 3 Gl dstone, , 7, Lynd y, Sir , “ ” a 10—1 1 Goli s, MF a c lec/cn oe 101 125 M , , a Gr or a Wm . 18 9 c e a H rcourt, Sir , g , M lcolm, 10—1 1 a Henry II, M son — Ma — 12 16 a e 10 1 1 Henry III , p, W lt r, 29 a 5 4 Henry IV, M rlowe , 3 1 a 9—8 3 Henry VI , M rvell, 7 Mo 33 a sk A n a r ch Th 21 Henry VII, f y , e, 3 34 3 8 40 46 1 5 Henry VIII, , , , 123 a 135 Hervey, Lord, M son, Hin d n Me a d th e P a n th er Th da l Th e 101 , e, , , 102—5 60—1 Milton , a 1 1 1 9 5 Holy Alli nce, The, 7 , , 209—1 1 168— 3 Moore, 7 2 16 15 9 Hood, Morpeth, Lord, ’ Mt - 1 4 o h e r H u bbe r d s Ta le 49 5 2 Hook, Theodore, 7 , H u dibr a s 4— , 8 9 1 N eed K n e- r in de r Th e y if g , , ’ — I m ita tion of H or a ce s Ep is tle 15 7 9 to A u u stu s — Mo it T — 128 N e w r a l h e 1 62 4 g , 9 y , , I m ita tion th e P r o h ec o N ewca s tle P r r a m m e Th e of p y f og , , N e r e u s 1 14—1 5 , 1 8 7 IN DEX

a 9 3—5 Rollia d Th e 1 39—4 7 Oldh m, , a 125 1 88 Otw y, Rosebery, Lord, R over s Th e 162 , , a 1 8 1—2 P lmerston, e a 147 - 5 2 1 66 165 Pet r Pind r, Scott, , — P ier s th e lowm a n 18—26 a a 18 9 2 P , Se m n , Mr Owen, 7 a 1 25 Pind r, see Peter Pin Settle, 122 129—3 1 a 125 Pitt, The elder, , Sh dwell, —3 212—1 5 Pitt, The younger, , Shelley, ’ 145 — — 162 S h e h e a r d s Ca le n da r The 7, 7, , p , , 165 48 9 a a a 5 4 S h loc/c a n d th e P ou n d o Pl ys, Eliz beth n , y f P olitica l E c lo u es 145 S 0 u l 1 9 1—2 g , , a a 38 - 40 Politic l S tire in English Skelton, — a a Ske tch o a P olitica l P er son verse historic l v lue of, f — — 5 a 236- 8 a e 230 1 7 qu lities of, ; g , a of 233 - 6 ; Socia lSa tir e , st ges , uses of, under the Tudors, 23 8—4 0 5 4—5 127—9 15 —8 19 9—202 206— Pope, Southey, 7 , , 7 9 2 48 5 4 Popish Plot, Spenser, Por da e 125 S ta te D a n ces Th e 126— g , , , 7 Pr a e d a of 4 1 , Surrey, E rl , 1 13—14 1 1 1 12 Pretender, The Old Swift, — P r in ce H oh e n s tie l- S ch wa n 226 8 Swinburne, a u 225 —6 g , P r oba tion a r Od s 14 a 125 y e , 6 T te, r r s M 22— P o e s o a n Th e 160 1 2 4 g f , Tennyson, P r o h e c o Fa m in e Th e 13 3 a a 18 3 p y f , , Th cker y, u a of a 12 1 126 P lteney, [E rl B th] , Thompson , P u n ch 18 3—4 Ticke ll 1 13 , , u a 5 — 2 9 3 102 106—8 1 10—14 P rit ns, The, 7 7 Tories, , , , 1 1 8 130—1 1 66— 1 —5 , , 7, 74 a 1 8 15 —23 1 69 1 78—9 Re ction , The, — — 73 19 3 6 208 10 J . 14 1 146 , , Townshend, Lord , , R ebel S c ot Th e 65 —6 r a 1 8 4 , , T evely n, 6 a 42—5 3 1—3 3 4 43—4 Reform tion, The, Tudors, The, , , , a a 3 3 40—2 4 47 5 6—7 Ren iss nce, The, , , 7 , a 72—5 Two en n P os tba Th e 16 Restor tion , The, p y g , , 9 R e tr os e c t Th 1 6—8 p , e, 7 of 18 20 208 Ve r siﬁca tion - a of Revolutions , The, dec dence , 10 29 —30 40—1 ; reform of, ; e 1848 216 a 25 76 12 R volutions of , The, ch nges in, , , 7 2 1 Vis ion o J u d m en t Th f g , e, a 2 1—4 2 —8 1 9 9 —208 Rich rd II , , 7 a a of a 13 Rich rd , E rl Cornw ll, Rich a r d th e R e de less 22—4 a 77—8 9 , W ller, , 7 244 INDEX

— — a . 1 18 23 a 126 W lpole, Sir Robt , , Whitehe d, 7 126 128 h , W y com e y e n ot to Cou r t ? Wa Ed — w. 10 rd, , 9 38 40 a W 2 — — m . 30 2 a 10 9 W tson, Mr , Willi m III , 7 a 1 5 9 6 1—3 6 Wellesley, M rquess, Wither, , 7 9 3 9 6 1 —18 J 07 . . t r Whigs, , , , Wolcott, Rev , see Pe e 1 5 4 15 6 1 66—7 1 1 74—5 a , , , , Pind r 1 80 a a 3 —40 contest with George Wolsey, C rdin l, 7 123—4 12 —30 T 4 1 9 a . II, , ; contest Wy tt, Sir , 1 30—2 with George III , , 13 7—9 147 126 , Young,

CORRIGENDA

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. . 14 for a p 77, l keeps re d keeps up .

AMB . C RID G : PRIN T D B Y J OHN CLAY MA AT THE UN IV R I TY PR E E , . . E S ESS