Charlotte Smith (1749-1806)

Recognized as one of the foremost poets and novelists of her time, Charlotte Smith grew up with every advantage of wealth and social position. The eldest child of Nicholas Turner and his first wife, Anna Towers, she was born on 4 May 1749 in London and spent her infancy at Stoke. Her father, a member of the landed gentry with holdings in Surrey and Sussex, was also a poet; a man of wit and fashion, he was cultured and intellectual and had a love of nature and poetry, which he passed on to his daughter. When Charlotte was three, her mother died from complications during childbirth; not long after­ wards, her unmarried maternal aunt, Lucy Towers, became her foster mother and directed her education. Charlotte first went to school in Chichester and then attended a school in Kensington, London. When Charlotte was ten the family moved to Bignor Park in Sussex, near the river Arun and the South Downs. The landscape captivated her imagina­ tion, and she later recreated it in her sonnets (see especially sonnet v, "To the South Downs") and in "Beachy Head"; she came to associate the happiness and freedom of childhood with this countryside. Charlotte left school at the age of twelve, but she had tutors in music, drawing, dancing, and French and read fiction and poetry voraciously. When the family was in London, she began to attend the theater and the opera with her father, who encouraged her poetry writing and, when she was fourteen, urged her to send some of her verses to the editor of the Lady's Magazine. The poet's happy childhood ended abruptly, however, when she was fif­ teen. Contemplating his own remarriage, on 23 February r765 her father hastily married Charlotte off to Benjamin Smith, second son of Richard Smith, a West Indian merchant and a director of the East India Company. The marriage, in which there was no fondness on either side, was a disaster, and the cause of almost all her future misery. Forced to leave her beloved South Downs for one of the filthiest streets in London, she was now surrounded Charlotte Smith by people who did not share her interests. Their living quarters, over her father-in-law's business, were large and well furnished but sunless. There in 1766 she gave birth to a son, who died one year later, at just about the time when a second son was born. Charlotte was only seventeen. Unable to love her husband, she had loved her child inordinately, and her intense grief at the baby's death endangered her health. Her father-in-law, Richard Smith, who had grown particularly fond of her, granted her request to leave Lon­ don. She moved with her family to Southgate, where her health improved. Charlotte indulged her love of reading and gave birth to two more sons at Southgate; eventually the family moved to Tottenham, within five miles of London where three more children were born. At the age of twenty­ five, Charlotte Smith had been unhappily married for nine years and had six children living, the oldest only seven years old. The care of so many little children, which often included her husband's orphaned nieces and nephews, might have seemed burdensome to some, but children were the only joy in Charlotte Smith's marriage. When the family had grown to ten children the Smiths moved to Lys Farm in Hampshire, near Sussex. There they lived for nine years, and there, away from his father's supervision, Benjamin Smith spent large sums on building projects and experimental farming. His wife had no power to stop his in­ evitable plunge into financial ruin as he squandered the large fortune she had brought into the marriage. Her father-in-law, who had become a close friend and protector, died in October 1776. The intricacies of his will and the machinations of lav,ryers prevented her children from coming into their inheritance for many years and thrust Charlotte Smith, named as a joint ex­ ecutor, into a distressing quagmire of legal dissension. In 1777 her eldest son, ten-year-old Benjamin Berney, an intelligent but sickly child upon whom Smith doted, died. Another blow came in December 1783, when Benjamin Smith's irresponsible spending caught up with him; without his father to bail him out, he was thrown into King's Bench prison for debt. Friends and relatives deserted Charlotte Smith in the face of this humiliation, but her brother, Nicholas Turner, took over the care of her children at Bignor Park when she accompanied her husband to prison. From this time forward Smith supported her husband and family of nine children through authorship. After several rejections of her first book, she sought out William Hayley, whom she had never met but who lived within seven miles of Bignor Park. He encouraged her and gave her advice; she, in turn, dedicated the book to him. To a friend's suggestion that the public might prefer poems of a lively cast, she replied, "'Are grapes gathered from Charlotte Smith thorns, or figs from thistles?' Or can the effect cease, while the cause remains?" 1 Dodsley, in Pall Mall, the most fashionable publisher in London, printed at Smith's own expense Elegiac Sonnets, and Other Essays. The thin, quarto vol­ ume came out on IO May 1784, and its profits temporarily relieved Smith and her family; a second edition was called for within the year. The book sold. well and enjoyed critical success. Smith sparked a con­ troversy by stretching the sonnet form beyond its traditional confines, in­ cluding many irregular as well as Shakespearean sonnets in her collection. This experimental work profoundly influenced the history and development of the sonnet in English.2 The Gentleman's Magazine observed, ''A very tri­ fling compliment is paid Mrs. Smith, when it is observed how much her Sonnets exceed those of Shakespeare and Milton. She has undoubtedly con­ ferred honour on a species of poetry which most of her predecessors in this country have disgraced." 3 Anna Seward was less impressed. She wrote to a friend shortly after reading this review, "Such praise may vie, as an offer­ ing at the shrine of dulness .. .. You say Mrs. Smith's sonnets are pretty:­ so say I; pretty is the proper word; pretty tuneful cantos from our various poets, without anything original. All the lines that are not the lines of others are weak and unimpressive; and these hedge-flowers to be preferred, by a critical dictator, to the roses and amaranths of the first poets the world has produced!!!-It makes me sick." 4 But many believed, as did the reviewer for the Critical Review, that Smith had shown "that a species of poetry, the most artificial, might be rendered natural and pleasing in our language, by taste and judgment." 5 And in his "Essay on the English Sonnet" published in the Universal Magazine, "J.T." defends Smith against the criticism of the Reverend Henry White, a cousin of Anna Seward's, by observing that Smith's sonnets "display a more touching melancholy, a more poetical simplicity, nay I will venture to say, a greater vigour and correctness of genius, than any other English poems I have ever seen, under the same denomination: and I cer­ tainly do not mean to except the sonnets of Milton." 6 For the third edition

r. From Smith's preface to the sixth edition of Elegiac Sonnets (London, 1792), quoted in Florence May Anna Hilbish, Charlotte Smith, Poet and Novelist (1794-1806) (Philadelphia, 1941), I06. 2. See Hilbish, Charlotte Smith, 246-49; and Daniel Robinson, "Reviving the Sonnet: Women Romantic Poets and the Sonnet Claim," European Romantic Review 6 (summer 1995) : 98-123. 3. 56 (April 1786): 334. See also Monthly Review 71 (November 1784): 368. 4. Letters of Anna Seward, 6 vols. (London, l8n), 1 :162-63. 5. 65 (appendix, January-June 1788): 53x. 6. 91 (December 1792), 412-13; Hilbish, Charlotte Smith, 24r. Other enthusiastic reviews ap­ peared in the European Magazine (1789) and in Nathan Drakes's Literary Hours or Sketches Critical Charlotte Smith

Smith shortened the original title to reflect her having included only sonnets and added twenty more. In response to the charge of plagiarism made by Seward and others, she also annotated the sonnets, explicitly acknowledging lines and ideas taken from elsewhere.7 Although Smith remained sensitive to the charge of plagiarism for the rest of her career (see, for example, the extensive notes to Beachy Head), the controversy helped to bring her work to public attention. The fifth edition (1787) included more sonnets and some additional poems as well as five engraved plates. Among the 817 subscribers were Horace Walpole, Henrietta O'Neil, William Hayley, William Cowper, the archbishop of Canterbury, and William Pitt. In 1795, a seventh edition, with more sonnets and other poems, appeared in London. Stothard reissued the fifth edition in 1797 (by subscription for a guinea) along with plates and a new second volume. The ninth edition (1800) includes ninety-two sonnets and twenty-seven additional poems and was the last that Smith personally superintended. But the enduring popularity of Elegiac Sonnets is attested to by its posthumous republication in a tenth edition in r8n and an eleventh edition in l85r. Still, in 1784, the initial profits from Smith's book were not sufficient to protect Smith's husband from creditors. Benjamin Smith left prison on 2 July 1784. Within three months he faced the unhappy choice between further imprisonment and flight. He left for Upper Normandy, renting a dilapidated chateau nine miles from the near­ est town. There, lacking access to fuel to warm the comfortless house, the Smiths suffered during the winter of 1785, and there Charlotte gave birth to another son. She also translated Prevost's Manon L'Escaut from the French. In the spring of 1785, when her youngest child was barely two months old, she returned to England, pacified her husband's creditors, and settled in Sus­ sex. After Cadell published Manon L'Escaut, critic George Stevens attacked Smith for translating an "immoral" work, and she was forced to withdraw the book. In the spring of 1786 her eldest son, William Towers, then seven­ teen or eighteen, received an appointment in Bengal; bitter and depressed, Smith grieved that she might never see him again. Soon after William's de­ parture her second son, Braithwaite, died of a fever, having been ill for only thirty-six hours. In 1787, after twenty-three years of unhappy marriage, Smith obtained an "amicable separation" from her husband. This move subjected her to severe criticism, but her sister, Catherine Ann Dorset, said that those who knew the and Narrative (Sudbury, 1798) and David Rivers's Literary Memoirs of Living Authors of Great Britain (London, 1798). 7. For a discussion of the nature of Smith's borrowings, see Hilbish, Charlotte Smith, 242-46. Charlotte Smith true causes "could only regret that the measure had not been adopted years before." 8 Smith continued to give her husband money, and their relation­ ship remained amicable. Having become involved in fresh troubles, Benjamin Smith tried to persuade the poet to return to him, but when she refused, he left for the Continent. Elizabeth Carter reported that Charlotte Smith "has been obliged to purchase her freedom from a vile husband, by giving up part of the little fortune she had left; so that she has at present little more than a hundred a year to support herself and six or seven children." 9 Still, despite the hardship, Smith could now freely pursue her writing. She translated from the French Les causes celebres, by Francois Gayot de Pitaval, in r787 and published these stories under the title The Romance of Real Life. The book was popular with reviewers and the public alike. She began work on a novel, Emmeline, the Orphan of the Castle, in the summer of r787 and published it eight months later, in the spring of 1788. She had interwoven her own poems into the narrative, and reviewers were enthusiastic. The fifteen hundred copies of the first edition sold so rapidly that the book immediately went into a second edition, and a third edition followed the next year. Walter Scott called it "happily conceived, and told in a most interesting manner. It contained a happy mixture of humour, and of bitter satire mingled with pathos, while the characters, both of sentiment and of manners, were sketched with a firmness of pencil, and liveliness of colouring, which belong to the highest branch of fictitious narrative." 10 Sir Samuel Egerton Brydges recalled, "It displayed such a simple energy of language, such an accurate and lively delineation of character, such a purity of sentiment, and such exquisite scenery of a pictur­ esque and rich, yet most unaffected imagination, as gave it a hold upon all readers of true taste, of a new and most captivating kind." 11 Within a year Smith had written and published her five-volume second novel, Ethelinde, the Recluse of the Lake (1789). A second edition followed the same year, and in r805 Montagne published a French translation. The critic for the Analytical Review noted, "The same quick sensibility which enabled [Smith] to produce such apt similes in her sonnets, led her to catch all those alluring charms of nature, which form such enchanting backgrounds to the historical part of the pictures she displays in these volumes and gives them sentiment and inter­ est." 12 In the next two years Smith produced another novel, Celestina (1791),

8. From Dorset's biographical contribution to "Charlotte Smith;' in Walter Scott's Lives ef the Novelists (reprint; London, n.d.) , 32r. 9. Carter to Elizabeth Montague, 30 June 1788, quoted in Hilbish, Charlotte Smith, 128. IO. From Scott's commentary in "Charlotte Smith;' 328. rr. Quoted in Hilbish, Charlotte Smith, r3r. r2. 5 (December 1789): 484. Charlotte Smith

close in style to its predecessors and similarly highly praised. The critic for the Critical Review, confessing that he wept over the novel, remarked, "In the modern school of novel-writers, Mrs. Smith holds a very distinguished rank; and, if not the first, she is so near as scarcely to be styled an inferior. Perhaps, with Miss Burney she may be allowed to hold 'a divided sway': and, though on some occasions below her sister-queen, yet, from the greater number of her works, she seems to possess a more luxuriant imagination, and a more fertile invention." 13 Smith's next novel, Desmond, supported the French revo­ lution, though by 1792, when it was published, feeling against the French was running high. Her aristocratic friends were offended, and the controversial subject matter inspired more negative reviews than had any of Smith's other works of fiction. Even so, a second London edition, along with a Dublin edition, was called for that same year, with a French edition following. Smith spent part of August and September 1792 at William Hayley's home at Eartham as part of a group that included the artist George Romney and the poet William Cowper. She would compose part of the text of The Old Manor House in the mornings and read it to the group in the evenings. Hayley observed, "It was delightful to hear her read what she had just written; for she read as she wrote, with simplicity and grace." 14 Cowper inspired Smith's long poem The Emigrants, published in two books in the summer of 1793· The Monthly Review observed, "The style of the poem is seldom highly poetical, and sometimes is even nearly prosaic; yet the general effect is truly pleasing; and there are passages which do credit to the elegant pen that wrote the justly admired Elegiac Sonnets." 15 When The Old Manor House came out that same year, she won back many of the friends she had alienated with Desmond. But the reviewers were not as forgiving and found little to praise. Walter Scott, however, considered this novel her chef-d'oeuvre and especially admired the character of Mrs. Rayland, whom he thought "without a rival." 16 Anna Letitia Barbauld selected it for her British Novelists series. In September 1793 Smith's favorite daughter, Anna Augusta, married the chevalier de Faville, a French officer to whom the hero of Smith's next novel, The Banished Man, published in August 1794, bears a striking resemblance. Critics considered The Banished Man inferior to her previous fiction. Despite worsening arthritis in her hands, she persisted in what was becoming the physically difficult task of writing, publishing Montalbert in July 1795, only eleven months after she had concluded The Banished Man. Within this short

13. 3 (November 1791): 318-23. 14. As cited in the American Whig Review 9 (June 1849): 628. 15. N.s., 12 (1793): 375-76. 16. Scott, Lives of the Novelists, 330. Charkitte Smith period she also published two other works, the seventh edition of Elegiac Son­ nets, with additional sonnets and other poems, as well as the first of her books for children, Rural Walks: in Dialogues. Intended for the Use of Young Persons, written for her thirteen-year-old daughter, Harriet. Montalbert contains the fewest personal allusions of all her novels, largely because Smith was in great emotional pain. Though grieving for her son Charles Dyer, who had lost a leg in the siege of Dunkirk, and for her favorite daughter, Anna Augusta, who had died shortly after giving birth, she could not afford the luxury of slowing the pace of her publication. In 1796 she brought out another children's book, Rambles Farther: A Continuation of Rural Walks: in Dialogues. Intended for the Use of Young Persons, and a novel, Marchmont. In the previous eight years Smith had produced thirty-two volumes of novels, four volumes of prose for children, and a two-volume poem, as well as additional poems for various editions of Elegiac Sonnets. In 1798 her last novel, The Young Philosopher, appeared. The reviews were more positive than they had been for a long time, but her highly critical portrayal of lawyers was not popular with the reading public. Ironically, this was the same year that Smith and her children first began to collect some of the settlement from Richard Smith's estate. But this legal matter, which harassed her for the last thirty years of her life and deprived her children of the support due them, was not entirely concluded until six months after Charlotte Smith's own death, long after most of her children had reached adulthood. In 1801 she was still forced to write for subsistence. Two .volumes of The Letters of a Solitary Wanderer came out in 1799, and three more followed in the next several years. Though tired and ill, Smith remained feisty. In response to the writer for the Critical Review of May 1801, she replied in her 1802 preface to this novel, "It is observed ... that 'Mrs. Smith is too fond of representing the distress of middle-aged ladies; and has given the same character, under different names, in almost all her novels.' I never imagined, till I read this judicious criticism, that no interest could be excited but by love stories that relate to girls of fifteen." In 1801 her widowed daughter and three children came to live with her, and her son Charles Dyer died in Barbados. Her health failing, Smith moved to Surrey so that she could be buried with her mother and father's family in the parish church at Stoke. There, in great physical pain, she wrote Conversations Introducing Poetry: Chiefly on Subjects of Natural History. For the Use of Children and Young Persons, her most enduring children's book. Her estranged husband, Benjamin Smith, died on 22 February 1806, allowing Smith for the first time to have possession of her own e~rnings and inheritance. But she died not long afterwards, on 28 Octo­ ber 1806, at Tilford House at the age of fifty-seven, having single-handedly Charlotte Smith for nearly two decades supported ten children and later three grandchildren. Six of her twelve children survived her. Obituaries appeared in the leading periodicals, including the Annual Register, the Gentleman's Magazine, the Euro­ pean Magazine, the Monthly Magazine, and the Universal Magazine. Her sister, Catherine Dorset, claimed that "the sweepings of her closet were, without exception, committed to the flames.''1 7 But two works, The Natural History ef Birds, Intended Chiefly for Young Persons (1807) and Smith's tour de force, Beachy Head: With Other Poems (1807), were published posthumously. Accord­ ing to the publisher's advertisement, Smith had delivered the manuscript of the latter book the previous May, but her illness had slowed publication. The Annual Review observed,

It is with a kind of melancholy pleasure that we prepare to pay a tribute of post­ humous applause to the elegant genius of Mrs. Charlotte Smith. On the 28th of October last, the world was deprived of this delightful poet and interesting woman; long a sufferer from pain, sickness, and misfortune. & a descriptive writer, either in verse or prose, she was surpassed by few. Gifted in no ordinary degree, with taste, with fancy, and with feeling she well knew how to select the most striking features from the face of nature; to add the accompaniment and to lay on the tints best suited to the cast of sentiment in which it soothed her to indulge, and to extract from the whole food for a most delicious melancholy.18

MAJOR WORKS: Elegiac Sonnets, and Other Essays (London, 1784); Emmeline, the Orphan ef the Castle, 4 vols. (London, 1788); Ethelinde, the Recluse ef the Lake, 5 vols. (London, 1789); Celestina, a Novel, 4 vols. (London, 1791); Desmond, a Novel, 3 vols. (London, 1792); The Emigrants, a Poem, in Two Books (London, 1793); The Old Manor House: A novel, 4 vols. (London, 1793); The Banished Man. A Novel, 4 vols. (London, 1794); The Wanderings ef Warwick (London, 1794); Montalbert. A Novel, 3 vols. (London, 1795); Rural Walks: in Dialogues. Intended for the Use ef Young Persons, 2 vols. (London, 1795); Marchmont, a Novel, 4 vols. (London, 1796); A Narrative ef the Loss of the Catharine, Venus, and Piedmont Transports, and the Thomas, Golden Grove, and Aeolus Merchant Ships, near Weymouth, on Wednesday the 18th ef November Last (London, 1796); Rambles Farther: A Continuation ef Rural Walks: in Dialogues. Intended for the Use of Young Persons, 2 vols. (London, 1796); Minor Morals, Interspersed with Sketches ef Natural History, Historical Anecdotes, and Original Stories, 2 vols. (London, 1798); The Young Philosopher: a Novel, 4 vols. (London, 1798); The Letters ef a Solitary Wanderer: Containing Narratives ef Vciri­ ous Description, 5 vols. (London, 1800-1802); Conversations Introducing Poetry: Chiefly on Subjects ef Natural History. For the Use of Children and Young Persons, 2 vols. (London, 1804); The History ef England,from the Earliest Records to the Peace ef Amiens. In a Series of Letters to a Young Lady at School, 3 vols. (London, 1806); Beachy Head: With Other Poems

17. From Dorset's biographical contribution to "Charlotte Smith," in ibid., 326. 18. 6 (1807): 536-38. Charlotte Smith

(London, 1807); The Natural History ef Birds, Intended Chief1y for Young Persons, 2 vols. (London, 1807) ; The Poems of Charlotte Smith, ed. Stuart Curran (New York, 1993).

TEXTS USED: Sonnets r and v first appeared in the European Magazine for 1782. The first edition of Charlotte Smith's Elegiac Sonnets, and Other Essays was published in 1784; the texts of all the sonnets printed below are from the fifth edition (1789) with the exception of sonnets LXVII and LXX, from the first edition of volume 2 (1797). Texts of "The Swallow" and "Beachy Head" from Beachy Head: With Other Poems.

Sonnet I The Partial Muse

The partial Muse, has from my earliest hours Smil'd on the rugged path I'm doom'd to tread, And still with sportive hand has snatch'd wild flowers, To weave fantastic garlands for my head: But far, far happier is the lot of those Who never learn'd her dear delusive art; Which, while it decks the head with many a rose, Reserves the thorn, to fester in the heart. For still she bids soft Pity's melting eye Stream o'er the ills she knows not to remove, IO Points every pang, and deepens every sigh Of mourning friendship, or unhappy love. Ah! then, how dear the Muse's favors cost, if those paint so"ow best-who feel it most!

14 If those paint sorrow best-who feel it most!] The well sung woes shall soothe my pensive ghost; He best can paint them, who shall feel them most. Pope's Eloisa to Abelard, 366th line. Smith. 680 Charlotte Smith

Sonnet II Written at the Close of Spring

The garlands• fade that Spring so lately wove, Each simple flower, which she had nurs'd in dew, Anemonies, that spangled every grove, The primrose wan, and hare-bell, mildly blue. No more shall violets linger in the dell, Or purple orchis variegate the plain, Till Spring again shall call forth every bell, And dress with humid hands her wreaths again. - Ah! poor humanity! so frail, so fair, ro Are the fond visions of thy early day, Till tyrant passion, and corrosive care, Bid all thy fairy colours fade away! Another May new buds and flowers shall bring; Ah! why has happiness--no second Spring? (1784)

*Originally this read "garland's;' which was clearly an error; it was corrected in later editions.

Sonnet III To a Nightingale

Poor melancholy bird--that all night long Tell'st to the Moon thy tale of tender woe; From what sad cause can such sweet sorrow flow, And whence this mournful melody of song?

3 Anemonies] Anemony Nemeroso. The wood Anemony. Smith.

I Poor melancholy bird--that all night long] The idea from the 43rd sonnet of Petrarch. Secondo parte. Que! rosigniuol, che si soave piagne. Smith. [Petrarch's sonnet begins, "That nightingale who so tenderly weeps" (Petrarch, Sonnets and Songs, trans. Anna Maria Armi [New York, 1946], 433). Ed.] Charlotte Smith 681

Thy poet's musing fancy would translate What mean the ~ounds that swell thy little breast, When still at dewy eve thou leav'st thy nest, Thus to the listening night to sing thy fate?

Pale Sorrow's victims wert thou once among, Tho' now releas'd in woodlands wild to rove? IO Say-hast thou felt from friends some cruel wrong, Or died'st thou--martyr of disastrous love? Ah! songstress sad! that such my lot might be, To sigh and sing at liberty--like thee!

Sonnet IV To the Moon

Queen of the silver bow! - by thy pale beam, Alone and pensive, I delight to stray, And watch thy shadow trembling in the stream, Or mark the floating clouds that cross thy way. And while I gaze, thy mild and placid light Sheds a soft calm upon my troubled breast; And oft I think,--fair planet of the night, That in thy orb, the wretched may have rest: The sufferers of the earth perhaps may go, Releas'd by death--to thy benignant sphere, IO And the sad children of despair and woe Forget in thee, their cup of sorrow here. Oh! that I soon may reach thy world serene, Poor wearied pilgrim--in this toiling scene! (1784) 682 Charlotte Smith

Sonnet v To the South Downs

Ah! hills belov'd!--where once, an happy child, Your beechen shades, "your turf, your flowers among," I wove your blue-bells into garlands wild, And woke your echoes with my artless song. Ah! hills belov'd!--your turf, your flow'rs remain; But can they peace to this sad breast restore, For one poor moment soothe the sense of pain, And teach a breaking heart to throb no more? And you, Aruna!--in the vale below, ro As to the sea your limpid waves you bear, Can you one kind Lethean cup bestow, To drink a long oblivion to my care? Ah! no!--when all, e'en Hope's last ray is gone, There's no oblivion--but in death alone!

2 "your turf. your flowers among"] Whose turf. whose shades, whose flowers among. - Gray. Smith. (See Thomas Gray's "Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College," line 8. Ed.] 9 Aruna] The river Arun. Smith . II Lethean cup] Cup of the waters of forgetfulness. In classical mythology, the waters of the river Lethe brought forgetfulness of previous life for souls returning to earth to be reborn. Charlotte Smith

Sonnet vu On the Departure of the Nightingale

Sweet poet of the woods--a long adieu! Farewel, soft minstrel of the early year! Ah! 'twill be long ere thou shalt sing anew, And pour thy music on the "night's dull ear." Whether on Spring thy wandering flights await, Or whether silent in our groves you dwell, The pensive muse shall own thee for her mate, And still protect the song, she loves so well. With cautious step, the love-lorn youth shall glide Thro' the lone brake that shades thy mossy nest; IO And shepherd girls, from eyes profane shall hide The gentle bird, who sings of pity best: For still thy voice shall soft affections move, And still be dear to sorrow, and to love!

4 on the "night's dull ear"] Shakespeare. Smith. (See Shakespeare, King Henry V, act 4, line rr. Ed.] s Spring] Alludes to the supposed migration of the Nightingale. Smith. 7 The pensive muse shall own thee for a mate] Whether the Muse or Love call thee his mate,/ Both them I serve, and of their train am I. - Milton's First Sonnet. Smith. (Smith quotes the final two lines ofJohn Milton's sonnet "O Nightingale!" Ed.] Charlotte Smith

Sonnet VIII To Spring

Again the wood, and long-withdrawing vale, In many a tint of tender green are drest, Where the young leaves unfolding, scarce conceal Beneath their early shade, the half-form'd nest Of finch or wood-lark; and the primrose pale, And lavish cowslip, wildly scatter'd round, Give their sweet spirits to the sighing gale. Ah! season of delight!--could aught be found To soothe awhile the tortur'd bosom's pain, IO Of Sorrow's rankling shaft to cure the wound, And bring life's first delusions once again, 'Twere surely met in thee!--thy prospect fair, Thy sounds of harmony, thy balmy air, Have power to cure all sadness--but despair. (1784)

14 Have power to cure all sadness--but despair] To the heart inspires/ Vernal delight and joy, able to drive/ All sadness but despair. -Paradise Lost, Fourth Book (lines 155-56]. Smith. Charlotte Smith

Sonnet xxr Supposed to Be Written by Werter •

Go! cruel tyrant of the human breast! To other hearts, thy burning arrows bear; Go, where fond hope, and fair illusion rest! Ah! why should love inhabit with despair! Like the poor maniac I linger here, Still haunt the scene, where all my treasure lies; Still seek for flowers, where only thorns appear, "And drink delicious poison from her eyes!" Towards the deep gulph that opens on my sight I hurry forward, passion's helpless slave! IO And scorning reason's mild and sober light, Pursue the path that leads me to the grave! So round the flame the giddy insect flies, And courts the fatal fire, by which it dies! (1784)

• Werter is the sensitive, melancholy artist protagonist in Wolfgang von Goethe's extremely popular novel The Sorrows of Young Werter (r774); Werter eventually com­ mits suicide over his hopeless love for Charlotte, a woman betrothed and then married to someone else.

5 Like the poor maniac] See the Story of the Lunatic. "Is this the destiny of man? Is he only happy before he possesses his reason, or after he has lost it?-Pull of hope you go to gather flowers in Winter, and are grieved not to find any-and do not know why they cannot be found." Sorrows of Werter. Volume Second. Smith. 8 "And drink delicious poison from her eyes!"] "And drink delicious poison from thine eye." Pope. Smith. [Alexander Pope's "Eloisa to Abelard" reads, "Still drink delicious poison from thy eye" (line 22). Ed.] 686 Charlotte Smith

Sonnet xxx1x To Night

I love thee, mournful sober-suited night, When the faint moon, yet lingering in her wane, And veil' d in clouds, with pale uncertain light Hangs o'er the waters of the restless main. In deep depression sunk, the enfeebled mind Will to the deaf, cold elements complain, And tell the embosom'd grief, however vain, To sullen surges and the viewless wind. Tho' no repose on thy dark breast I find, IO I still enjoy thee-cheerless as thou art; For in thy quiet gloom, the exhausted heart Is calm, tho' wretched; hopeless, yet resign'd. While, to the winds and waves its sorrows given, May reach-tho' lost on earth-the ear of Heaven! (1784)

Sonnet xuv Written in the Church-Yard at Middleton in Sussex

Press' d by the Moon, mute arbitress of tides, While the loud equinox its power combines, The sea no more its swelling surge confines, But o'er the shrinking land sublimely rides. The wild blast, rising from the Western cave, Drives the huge billows from their heaving bed; Tears from their grassy tombs the village dead, And breaks the silent sabbath of the grave! With shells and sea-weed mingled, on the shore

7 Tears from their grassy tombs the village dead] Middleton is a village on the margin of the sea in Sussex, containing only two or three houses. There were formerly several acres of ground between its small church and the sea; which now, by its continual encroachments, approaches within a few feet of this half ruined and humble edi£ce. The wall, which once surrounded the church yard, is entirely swept away, many of the graves broken up, and the remains of bodies interred washed into the sea: whence human bones are found among the sand and shingles on the shore. Smith. Charlotte Smith 687

Lo! their bones whiten in the frequent wave; IO But vain to them the winds and waters rave; They hear the warring elements no more: While I am doom'd-by life's long storm opprest, To gaze with envy, on their gloomy rest.

Sonnet LXVII On Passing over a Dreary Tract of Country, and near the Ruins of a Deserted Chapel, during a Tempest·

Swift fleet the billowy clouds along the sky, Earth seems to shudder at the storm aghast; While only beings as forlorn as I, Court the chill horrors of the howling blast. Even round yon crumbling walls, in search of food, The ravenous Owl foregoes his evening flight, And in his cave, within the deepest wood, The Fox eludes the tempest of the night. But to my heart congenial is the gloom Which hides me from a World I wish to shun; IO That scene where Ruin saps the mouldering tomb, Suits with the sadness of a wretch undone. Nor is the deepest shade, the keenest air, Black as my fate, or cold as my despair.

*Printed in (Montalbert]. Smith. 688 Charlotte Smith

Sonnet LXX On Being Cautioned against Walking on an Headland Overlooking the Sea, Because It Was Frequented by a Lunatic

Is there a solitary wretch who hies To the tall cliff, with starting pace or slow, And, measuring, views with wild and hollow eyes Its distance from the waves that chide below; Who, as the sea-born gale with frequent sighs Chills his cold bed upon the mountain turf, With hoarse, half-utter'd lamentation, lies Murmuring responses to the dashing surf? In moody sadness, on the giddy brink, IO I see him more with envy than with fear; He has no nice felicities that shrink From giant horrors; wildly wandering here, He seems (uncursed with reason) not to know The depth or the duration of his woe. (1797)

II He has no nice felicities that shrink] " 'Tis delicate felicity that shrinks/ When rocking winds are loud." - Walpole. Smith. [The lines are from Horace Walpole's The Mysterious Mother, a Tragedy, 2.3.5-6. Ed.] Charlotte Smith

The Swallow

The gorse is yellow on the heath, The banks with speedwell flowers are gay, The oaks are budding; and beneath, The hawthorn soon will bear the wreath, The silver wreath of May.

The welcome guest of settled Spring, The Swallow too is come at last; Just at sun-set, when thrushes sing, I saw her dash with rapid wing, And hail'd her as she pass'd. IO

Come, summer visitant, attach To my reed roof your nest of clay, And let my ear your music catch Low twittering underneath the thatch At the gray dawn of day.

As fables tell, an Indian Sage, The Hindostani woods among, Could in his desert hermitage, As if 'twere mark'd in written page, Translate the wild bird's song. 20

I wish I did his power possess, That I might learn, fleet bird, from thee, What our vain systems only guess, And know from what wide wilderness You came across the sea.

I gorse J The Gorse-Furze. - Ulex Europ~us. Called so in many counties of England. Smith. 2 speedwell flowers] Veronica chamredrys.-This elegant flower, though not celebrated like the Primrose, Cowslip, and Daisy, is in all its varieties one of the most beautiful of our indigenous plants. Smith. 16 As fables tell, an Indian Sage] There are two or three fables that relate the knowledge acquired by some Indian recluse, of the language of birds. Smith. Charlotte Smith

I would a little while restrain Your rapid wing, that I might hear Whether on clouds that bring the rain, You sail'd above the western main, 30 The wind your charioteer.

In Afric, does the sultry gale Thro' spicy bower, and palmy grove, Bear the repeated Cuckoo's tale? Dwells there a time, the wandering Rail Or the itinerant Dove?

Were you in Asia? 0 relate, If there your fabled sister's woes She seem'd in sorrow to narrate; Or sings she but to celebrate 40 Her nuptials with the rose?

I would enquire how journeying long, The vast and pathless ocean o'er, You ply again those pinions strong, And come to build anew among The scenes you left before;

But if, as colder breezes blow, Prophetic of the waning year, You hide, tho' none know when or how, In the cliff's excavated brow, 50 And linger torpid here;

33-35 Cuckoo's tale ... the itinerant Dove) The Cuckoo, the Rail, and many species of Doves, are all emigrants. Smith. 37-40 fabled sister's woes ... nuptials with the rose?] Alluding to the Ovidian fable of the Metamorphosis of Procne and Philomela into the Swallow and the Nightingale; and to the oriental story of the Loves of the Nightingale and the Rose; which is told with such elegant extravagance in the Botanic Garden. Smith. [For the story of Procne and Philomela, see Ovid's Metamorphoses 6.428-674; on the loves of the nightingale and the rose, see Erasmus Darwin's Botanic Garden, pt. 2 ("The Loves of the Plants"), canto 4, lines 305-20. Ed.] 44 And come to build anew] Accurate observers have remarked, that an equal number of these birds return every year to build in the places they frequented before; and that each pair set immediately about repairing a particular nest. Smith. 49 In the cliff's excavated brow] Many persons have supported the idea, that the Hirundines linger concealed among rocks and hollows in a torpid state, and that all do not emigrate. Smith. Charl.otte Smith

Thus lost to life, what favouring dream Bids you to happier hours awake; And tells, that dancing in the beam, The light gnat hovers o'er the stream, The May-fly on the lake?

Or if, by instinct taught to know Approaching dearth of insect food; To isles and willowy aits you go, And crouding on the pliant bough, Sink in the dimpling flood: 60

How learn ye, while the cold waves boom Your deep and ouzy couch above, The time when flowers of promise bloom, And call you from your transient tomb, To light, and life, and love?

Alas! how little can be known, Her sacred veil where Nature draws; Let baffled Science humbly own, Her mysteries understood alone, By Him who gives her laws. 70 (1807)

58 To isles and willowy aits you go] Another opinion is, that the Swallows, at the time they disappear, assemble about rivers and ponds, and a number of them settling on the pliant boughs of willow and osier, sink by their weight into the water; at the bottom of which they remain torpid till the ensuing spring. For the foundation of these various theories, see "White's History of Selbourne." Smith. [An ait is an islet or small island, especially in a river. Smith refers here to English naturalist Gilbert White's Natural History and Antiquities of Selbourne (1789). White (1720-93) was known especially for his knowledge of birds. Ed.] Charlotte Smith

Beachy Head*

On thy stupendous summit, rock sublime! That o'er the channel rear'd, half way at sea The mariner at early morning hails, I would recline; while Fancy should go forth, And represent the strange and awful hour Of vast concussion; when the Omnipotent Stretch'd forth his arm, and rent the solid hills, Bidding the impetuous main flood rush between The rifted shores, and from the continent IO Eternally divided this green isle. Imperial lord of the high southern coast! From thy projecting head-land I would mark Far in the east the shades of night disperse, Melting and thinned, as from the dark blue wave Emerging, brilliant rays of arrowy light Dart from the horizon; when the glorious sun Just lifts above it his resplendent orb. Advances now, with feathery silver touched, The rippling tide of flood; glisten the sands, 20 While, inmates of the chalky clefts that scar Thy sides precipitous, with shrill harsh cry, Their white wings glancing in the level beam, The terns, and gulls, and tarrocks, seek their food, And thy rough hollows echo to the voice Of the gray choughs, and ever restless daws, With clamour, not unlike the chiding hounds,

1-3 stupendous summit ... The mariner at early morning hails] In crossing the Channel from the coast of France, Beachy-Head is the first land made. Smith. 5-6 the strange and awful hour/ Ofvast concussion] Alluding to an idea that this Island was once joined to the continent of Europe, and torn from it by some convulsion of Nature. I con­ fess I never could trace the resemblance between the two countries. Yet the cliffs about Dieppe, resemble the chalk cliffs on the Southern coast. But Normandy has no likeness whatever to the part of England opposite to it. Smith. 23 The terns, and gulls, and tarrocks) Terns.-Sterna hirundo, or Sea Swallow. Gulls.­ Lams canus. Tarrocks. - Larus tridactylus. Smith. 25 gray choughs] Gray Choughs. -Corvus Graculus, Cornish Choughs, or, as these birds are called by the Sussex people, Saddle-backed Crows, build in great numbers on this coast. Smith. Chark>tte Smith

While the lone shepherd, and his baying dog, Drive to thy turfy crest his bleating flock.

The high meridian of the day is past, And Ocean now, reflecting the calm Heaven, 30 Is of cerulean hue; and murmurs low The tide of ebb, upon the level sands. The sloop, her angular canvas shifting still, Catches the light and variable airs That but a little crisp the summer sea, Dimpling its tranquil surface.

Afar off, And just emerging from the arch immense Where seem to part the elements, a fleet Of fishing vessels stretch their lesser sails; While more remote, and like a dubious spot Just hanging in the horizon, laden deep, The ship of commerce richly freighted, makes Her slower progress, on her distant voyage, Bound to the orient climates, where the sun Matures the spice within its odorous shell, And, rivalling the gray worm's filmy toil, Bursts from its pod the vegetable down; Which in long turban'd wreaths, from torrid heat Defends the brows of Asia's countless casts. 50 There the Earth hides within her glowing breast The beamy adamant, and the round pearl Enchased in rugged covering; which the slave, With perilous and breathless toil, tears off From the rough sea-rock, deep beneath the waves. These are the toys of Nature; and her sport Of little estimate in Reason's eye:

48 the vegetable down] Cotton. (Gossypium herbaceum.) Smith. 52 The beamy adamant] Diamonds, the hardest and most valuable of precious stones. For the extraordinary exertions of the Indians in diving for the pearl oysters, see the account of the Pearl Fisheries in Percival's View of Ceylon. Smith. [Robert Percival (1765-1826) published An Account of Ceylon, with the journal of an Embassy to the Court of Candy (1803). Beamy means emitting beams of light; radiant. Ed.] Charlotte Smith

And they who reason, with abhorrence see Man, for such gaudes and baubles, violate 60 The sacred freedom of his fellow man - Erroneous estimate! As Heaven's pure air, Fresh as it blows on this aerial height, Or sound of seas upon the stony strand, Or inland, the gay harmony of birds, And winds that wander in the leafy woods; Are to the unadulterate taste more worth Than the elaborate harmony, brought out From fretted stop, or modulated airs Of vocal science. -So the brightest gems, 70 Glancing resplendent on the regal crown, Or trembling in the high born beauty's ear, Are poor and paltry, to the lovely light Of the fair star, that as the day declines, Attendant on her queen, the crescent moon, Bathes her bright tresses in the eastern wave. For now the sun is verging to the sea, And as he westward sinks, the floating clouds Suspended, move upon the evening gale, And gathering round his orb, as if to shade 80 The insufferable brightness, they resign Their gauzy whiteness; and more warm'd, assume All hues of purple. There, transparent gold Mingles with ruby tints, and sapphire gleams, And colours, such as Nature through her works Shews only in the ethereal canopy. Thither aspiring Fancy fondly soars, Wandering sublime thro' visionary vales, Where bright pavilions rise, and trophies, fann'd By airs celestial; and adorn'd with wreaths Of flowers that bloom amid elysian bowers. Now bright, and brighter still the colours glow, Till half the lustrous orb within the flood Seems to retire: the flood reflecting still Its splendor, and in mimic glory drest; Till the last ray shot upward, fires the clouds

59 gaudes] Playthings; something gaudy; finery. Charlotte Smith

With blazing crimson; then in paler light, Long lines of tenderer radiance, lingering yield To partial darkness; and on the opposing side The early moon distinctly rising, throws Her pearly brilliance on the trembling tide. roo

The fishermen, who at set seasons pass Many a league off at sea their toiling night, Now hail their comrades, from their daily task Returning; and make ready for their own, With the night tide commencing:-The night tide Bears a dark vessel on, whose hull and sails Mark her a coaster from the north. Her keel Now ploughs the sand; and sidelong now she leans, While with loud clamours her athletic crew Unload her; and resounds the busy hum IIO Along the wave-worn rocks. Yet more remote, Where the rough cliff hangs beetling o'er its base, All breathes repose; the water's rippling sound Scarce heard; but now and then the sea-snipe's cry Just tells that something living is abroad; And sometimes crossing on the moonbright line, Glimmers the skiff, faintly discern'd awhile, Then lost in shadow.

Contemplation here, High on her throne of rock, aloof may sit, I20 And bid recording Memory unfold Her scroll voluminous-bid her retrace The period, when from Neustria's hostile shore The Norman launch'd his galleys, and the bay O'er which that mass of ruin frowns even now

II2 Where the rough cliff hangs beetling o'er its base) Beetling refers to lowered, scowling eyebrows. It can also mean the prominent brow of a mountain; thus, Smith personifies the cliff while naming it. II4 the sea-snipe's cry) In crossing the channel this bird is heard at night, uttering a short cry, and flitting along near the surface of the waves. The sailors call it the Sea Snipe; but I can find no species of sea bird of which this is the vulgar name. A bird so called inhabits the Lake of Geneva. Smith. 123 Neustria's hostile shore] Normandy. 125 that mass of ruin] Pcvensey Castle. Smith. Charlotte Smith

In vain and sullen menace, then received The new invaders; a proud martial race, Of Scandinavia the undaunted sons,

128 Scandinavia] The Scandinavians (Scandinavia. - Modem Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Lapland, &c.J. and other inhabitants of the north, began towards the end of the 8th century, to leave their inhospitable climate in search of the produce of more fortunate countries. The North-men made inroads on the coasts of France; and carrying back immense booty, excited their compatriots to engage in the same piratical voyages: and they were afterwards joined by numbers of necessitous and daring adventurers from the coasts of Provence and Sicily. In 844, these wandering innovators had a great number of vessels at sea; and again visiting the coasts of France, Spain, and England, the following year they penetrated even to Paris: and the unfortunate Charles the Bald, king of France, purchased at a high price, the retreat of the banditti he had no other means of repelling. These successful expeditions continued for some time; till Rollo, otherwise Raoul, as­ sembled a number of followers, and after a descent on England, crossed the channel, and made himself master of Rauen, which he fortified. Charles the Simple, unable to contend with Rollo, offered to resign to him some of the northern provinces, and to give him his daughter in marriage. Neustria, since called Normandy, was granted to him, and afterwards Brittany. He added the more solid virtues of the legislator to the fierce valour of the conqueror-converted to Christianity, he established j.ustice, and repressed the excesses of his Danish subjects, till then accustomed to live only by plunder. His name became the signal for pursuing those who violated the laws; as well as the cry of Haro, still so usual in Normandy. The Danes and Francs produced a race of men celebrated for their valour; and it was a small party of these that in 983, having been on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, arrived on their return at Salerno, and found the town surrounded by Mahometans, whom the Salernians were bribing to leave their coast. The Normans represented to them the baseness and cowardice of such submission; and notwith­ standing the inequality of their numbers, they boldly attacked the Saracen camp, and drove the infidels to their ships. The prince of Salerno, astonished at their successful audacity, would have loaded them with the marks of his gratitude; but refusing every reward, they returned to their own country, from whence, however, other bodies of Normans passed into Sicily (anciently called Trinacria.]; and many of them entered into the service of the emperor of the East, others of the Pope, and the duke of Naples was happy to engage a small party of them in defence of his newly founded dutchy. Soon afterwards three brothers of Coutance, the sons of Tancred de Hauteville, Guillaume Fier-a-bras, Dragon, and Hurnfroi, joining the Normans established at Aversa, became masters of the fertile island of Sicily; and Robert Guiscard joining them, the Normans became sovereigns both of Sicily and Naples [Parthenope]. How William, the natural son of Robert, duke of Normandy, possessed himself of England, is too well known to be repeated here. William sailing from St. Valori, landed in the bay of Pevensey; and at the place now called Battle, met the English forces under Harold: an esquire (ecuyer) called Taillefer, mounted on an armed horse, led on the Normans, singing in a thundering tone the war song of Rollo. He threw himself among the English, and was killed on the first onset. In a marsh not far from Hastings, the skeletons of an armed man and horse were found a few years since, which are believed to have belonged to the Normans, as a party of their horse, deceived in the nature of the ground, perished in the morass. Smith. (Charles I (823-77), king of France from 843 to 877, was called Charles II as Western (Holy Roman) Emperor from 875 to 877. Rollo, also known as Rudolph, duke of Burgundy, was king of France from 923 to 936. His reign was little more than an unending series of battles. Charles III (879-929) was the only surviving grandson Charlotte Smith

Whom Dogan, Fier-a-bras, and Humfroi led To conquest: while Trinacria to their power 130 Yielded her wheaten garland; and when thou, Parthenope! within thy fertile bay Receiv'd the victors -

In the mailed ranks Of Normans landing on the British coast Rode Taillefer; and with astounding voice Thunder'd the war song daring Roland sang First in the fierce contention: vainly brave, One not inglorious struggle England made­ But failing, saw the Saxon heptarchy 140 Finish for ever.--Then the holy pile, Yet seen upon the field of conquest, rose, Where to appease heaven's wrath for so much blood, The conqueror bade unceasing prayers ascend, And requiems for the slayers and the slain. But let not modern Gallia form from hence Presumptuous hopes, that ever thou again, Queen of the isles! shalt crouch to foreign arms. The enervate sons of Italy may yield; And the Iberian, all his trophies torn 150 And wrapp'd in Superstition's monkish weed, May shelter his abasement, and put on Degrading fetters. Never, never thou! of Charles the Bald, so he had a claim to the French throne. He was crowned king of France in 893. Tancred (d. n94) was king of Sicily from u90. As a natural son of King Roger II's son Roger, duke of Apulia, he was of the Norman dynasty of Hauteville. He was a petty Norman noble who held a fief of ten men-at-arms at Hauteville-la-Guicharde, near Coutances. Robert Guiscard (d. 1085), a son of Tancred, was duke of Apulia from 1059. In southern Italy Guiscard led the life of a robber chief and was known for his violence. William I the Conquerer (c. 1028- 87) was duke of Normandy and king of England. He was also referred to as "the Bastard," since he was the illegitimate son of Duke Robert I of Normandy. Ed.] 129 Dogon] Probably Drogo, the second son of Tancred by his first wife, Murialla. In 1048 he was recognized as leader of the Apulian Normans. 129 Hurnfroi] Probably Humphrey, another son of Tancred and Murialla. 137 daring Roland] Roland was the most famous of the "Paladins of Charlemagne." 141 Then the holy pile] Battle Abbey was raised by the Conqueror, and endowed with an ample revenue, that masses might be said night and day for the souls of those who perished in battle. Smith. Charlotte Smith

Imperial mistress of the obedient sea; But thou, in thy integrity secure, Shalt now undaunted meet a world in arms.

England! 'twas where this promontory rears Its rugged brow above the channel wave, Parting the hostile nations, that thy fame, 160 Thy naval fame was tarnish'd, at what time Thou, leagued with the Batavian, gavest to France One day of triumph-triumph the more loud, Because even then so rare. Oh! well redeem'd, Since, by a series of illustrious men, Such as no other country ever rear'd, To vindicate her cause. It is a list Which, as Fame echoes it, blanches the cheek Of bold Ambition; while the despot feels The extorted sceptre tremble in his grasp.

From even the proudest roll by glory fill'd, How gladly the reflecting mind returns To simple scenes of peace and industry,

161-62 gavest to France/ One day of triumph] In 1690, King William being then in Ireland, Tourville, the French admiral, arrived on the coast of England. His fleet consisted of seventy­ eight large ships, and twenty-two fire-ships. Lord Torrington, the English admiral, lay at St. Helens, with only forty English and a few Dutch ships; and conscious of the disadvantage under which he should give battle, he ran up between the enemy's fleet and the coast, to protect it. The queen's council, dictated to by Russel, persuaded her to order Torrington to venture a battle. The orders Torrington appears to have obeyed reluctantly: his fleet now consisted of twenty-two Dutch and thirty-four English ships. Evertsen, the Dutch admiral, was eager to obtain glory; Torrington, more cautious, reflected on the importance of the stake. The con­ sequence was, that the Dutch rashly sailing on were surrounded, and Torrington, solicitous to recover this false step, placed himself with difficulty between the Dutch and French;- but three Dutch ships were burnt, two of their admirals killed, and almost all their ships disabled. The English and Dutch declining a second engagement, retired towards the mouth of the Thames. The French, from ignorance of the coast, and misunderstanding among each other, failed to take all the advantage they might have done of this victory. Smith. [Anne Hilarion de Co tentin, Tourville (1642-1701), was the French admiral who commanded the French fleet of more than seventy ships in the battle of Beachy Head in 1690. Arthur Herbert Torrington (1647-1716) was the English admiral who commanded the Anglo-Dutch fleet. During the battle, Torrington retreated into the Thames, for which he was tried by court martial. He was acquitted on the de­ fense that he had maintained his "fleet in being," so that no invasion could be attempted while it remained intact. Edward Russell (1653 - 1727) was admiral of the British fleet . C. Evertzen commanded the Dutch fleet. Ed.] Charlotte Smith

Where, bosom'd in some valley of the hills Stands the lone farm; its gate with tawny ricks Surrounded, and with granaries and sheds, Roof'd with green mosses, and by elms and ash Partially shaded; and not far remov'd The hut of sea-flints built; the humble home Of one, who sometimes watches on the heights, When hid in the cold mist of passing clouds, 180 The flock, with dripping fleeces, are dispers'd O'er the wide down; then from some ridged point That overlooks the sea, his eager eye Watches the bark that for his signal waits To land its merchandize:-Quitting for this Clandestine traffic his more honest toil, The crook abandoning, he braves himself The heaviest snow-storm of December's night, When with conflicting winds the ocean raves, And on the tossing boat, unfearing mounts To meet the partners of the perilous trade, And share their hazard. Well it were for him, If no such commerce of destruction known, He were content with what the earth affords To human labour; even where she seems Reluctant most. More happy is the hind, Who, with his own hands rears on some black moor, Or turbary, his independent hut Cover'd with heather, whence the slow white smoke Of smouldering peat arises--A few sheep, 200 His best possession, with his children share The rugged shed when wintry tempests blow; But, when with Spring's return the green blades rise

179 one, who sometimes watches on the heights] The shepherds and labourers of this tract of country, a hardy and athletic race of men, are almost universally engaged in the contraband trade, carried on for the coarsest and most destructive spirits, with the opposite coast. When no other vessel will venture to sea, these men hazard their lives to elude the watchfulness of the Revenue officers, and to secure their cargoes. Smith. 186 Clandestine traffic] Smuggling in England during the eighteenth century threatened the very structure of finance and government. From the coast of Sussex gangs left for London to sell contraband more frequently and more regularly than the stagecoaches. 196 hind] Farm servant, for whom a cottage is provided; rustic. 198 turbary] Peat bog. 700 Charlotte Smith

Amid the russet heath, the household live Joint tenants of the waste throughout the day, And often, from her nest, among the swamps, Where the gemm'd sun-dew grows, or fring'd buck-bean, They scare the plover, that with plaintive cries Flutters, as sorely wounded, down the wind. 210 Rude, and but just remov'd from savage life Is the rough dweller among scenes like these, (Scenes all unlike the poet's fabling dreams Describing Arcady)-But he is free; The dread that follows on illegal acts He never feels; and his industrious mate Shares in his labour. Where the brook is traced By crouding osiers, and the black coot hides Among the plashy reeds, her diving brood, The matron wades; gathering the long green rush 220 That well prepar'd hereafter lends its light To her poor cottage, dark and cheerless else Thro' the drear hours of Winter. Otherwhile She leads her infant group where charlock grows "Unprofitably gay," or to the fields, Where congregate the linnet and the finch, That on the thistles, so profusely spread, Feast in the desert; the poor family Early resort, extirpating with care These, and the gaudier mischief of the ground; 230 Then flames the high rais'd heap; seen afar off Like hostile war-fires fl.ashing to the sky. Another task is theirs: On fields that shew As angry Heaven had rain'd sterility, Stony and cold, and hostile to the plough,

207-8 the gemm'd sun-dew ... the plover] Sun-dew. - Drosera rotundifolia. Buck-bean. - Menyanthes trifoliatum. Plover. -Tringa vanellus. Smith. 217 osiers] A species of willow. 217 coot] Coot. - Fulica aterrima. Smith. 224 "Unprofitably gay"] "With blossom'd furze, unprofitably gay." Goldsmith. Smith. [Oliver Goldsmith, The Deserted Village, line 194· Ed.] 231 Like hostile war-fires] The Beacons formerly lighted up on the hills to give notice of the approach of an enemy. These signals would still be used in case of alarm, if the Telegraph now substituted could not be distinguished on account of fog or darkness. Smith. Charlotte Smith 701

Where clamouring loud, the evening curlew runs And drops her spotted eggs among the flints; The mother and the children pile the stones In rugged pyramids;-and all this toil They patiently encounter; well content On their flock bed to slumber undisturb'd 240 Beneath the smoky roof they call their own. Oh! little knows the sturdy hind, who stands Gazing, with looks where envy and contempt Are often strangely mingled, on the car Where prosperous Fortune sits; what secret care Or sick satiety is often hid, Beneath the splendid outside: He knows not How frequently the child of Luxury Enjoying nothing, flies from place to place In chase of pleasure that eludes his grasp; And that content is e'en less found by him, Than by the labourer, whose pick-axe smooths The road before his chariot; and who doffs What was an hat; and as the train pass on, Thinks how one day's expenditure, like this, Would cheer him for long months, when to his toil The frozen earth closes her marble breast.

Ah! who is happy? Happiness! a word That like false fire, from marsh effiuvia born, Misleads the wanderer, destin' d to contend 260 In the world's wilderness, with want or woe­ Yet they are happy, who have never ask'd What good or evil means. The boy That on the river's margin gaily plays, Has heard that Death is there-He knows not Death, And therefore fears it not; and venturing in He gains a bullrush, or a minnow-then, At certain peril, for a worthless prize, A crow's, or raven's nest, he climbs the boll Of some tall pine; and of his prowess proud,

235 curlew) Curlew. -Charadrius oedicnemus. Smith. 269 boll] Trunk. 702 Charlotte Smith

Is for a moment happy. Are your cares, Ye who despise him, never worse applied? The village girl is happy, who sets forth To distant fair, gay in her Sunday suit, With cherry colour'd knots, and flourish'd shawl, And bonnet newly purchas'd. So is he Her little brother, who his mimic drum Beats, till he drowns her rural lovers' oaths Of constant faith, and still increasing love; 280 Ah! yet a while, and half those oaths believ'd, Her happiness is vanish'd; and the boy While yet a stripling, finds the sound he lov'd Has led him on, till he has given up His freedom, and his happiness together. I once was happy, when while yet a child, I learn'd to love these upland solitudes, And, when elastic as the mountain air, To my light spirit, care was yet unknown And evil unforeseen: - Early it came, And childhood scarcely passed, I was condemned, A guiltless exile, silently to sigh, While Memory, with faithful pencil, drew The contrast; and regretting, I compar'd With the polluted smoky atmosphere And dark and stifling streets, the southern hills That to the setting Sun, their graceful heads Rearing, o'erlook the frith, where Vecta breaks With her white rocks, the strong impetuous tide, ~'hen western winds the vast Atlantic urge 300 To thunder on the coast-Haunts of my youth! Scenes of fond day dreams, I behold ye yet! Where 'twas so pleasant by thy northern slopes To climb the winding sheep-path, aided oft By scatter'd thorns: whose spiny branches bore Small woolly tufts, spoils of the vagrant lamb There seeking shelter from the noon-day sun;

297 Vecta] The Isle of Wight, which breaks the force of the waves when they are driven by south-west winds against this long and open coast. It is somewhere described as "Vecta shouldering the Western Waves." Smith. Charlotte Smith

And pleasant, seated on the short soft turf, To look beneath upon the hollow way While heavily upward mov'd the labouring wain, And stalking slowly by, the sturdy hind 310 To ease his panting team, stopp'd with a stone The grating wheel.

Advancing higher still The prospect widens, and the village church But little, o'er the lowly roofs around Rears its gray belfry, and its simple vane; Those lowly roofs of thatch are half conceal'd By the rude arms of trees, lovely in spring, When on each bough, the rosy-tinctur' d bloom Sits thick, and promises autumnal plenty. 320 For even those orchards round the Norman farms, Which, as their owners mark the promis'd fruit, Console them for the vineyards of the south, Surpass not these.

Where woods of ash, and beech, And partial copses, fringe the green hill foot, The upland shepherd rears his modest home, There wanders by, a little nameless stream That from the hill wells forth, bright now and clear, Or after rain with chalky mixture gray, 330 But still refreshing in its shallow course, The cottage garden; most for use design'd, Yet not of beauty destitute. The vine Mantles the little casement; yet the briar Drops fragrant dew among the July flowers; And pansies rayed, and freak'd and mottled pinks Grow among balm, and rosemary and rue: There honeysuckles flaunt, and roses blow Almost uncultured: Some with dark green leaves

318 By the rude arms of trees, lovely in spring] Every cottage in this country has its orchard; and I imagine that not even those of Herefordshire, or Worcestershire, exhibit a more beau­ tiful prospect, when the trees are in bloom, and the "Primavera cand.ida e vermiglia," is every where so enchanting. Smith. ["Primavera candida e vermiglia," or "Pure and rosy spring," is from Petrarch, sonnet 310, line 4. Ed.] Charlotte Smith

340 Contrast their flowers of pure unsullied white; Others, like velvet robes of regal state Of richest crimson, while in thorny moss Enshrined and cradled, the most lovely, wear The hues of youthful beauty's glowing cheek. - With fond regret I recollect e'en now In Spring and Summer, what delight I felt Among these cottage gardens, and how much Such artless nosegays, knotted with a rush By village housewife or her ruddy maid, 350 Were welcome to me; soon and simply pleas'd.

An early worshipper at Nature's shrine, I loved her rudest scenes-warrens, and heaths, And yellow commons, and birch-shaded hollows, And hedge rows, bordering unfrequented lanes Bowered with wild roses, and the clasping woodbine Where purple tassels of the tangling vetch With bittersweet, and bryony inweave, And the dew fills the silver bindweed's cups­ I loved to trace the brooks whose humid banks Nourish the harebell, and the freckled pagil; And stroll among o'ershadowing woods of beech, Lending in Summer, from the heats of noon A whispering shade; while haply there reclines Some pensive lover of uncultur'd flowers, Who, from the tumps with bright green mosses clad, Plucks the wood sorrel, with its light thin leaves, Heart-shaped, and triply folded; and its root Creeping like beaded coral; or who there Gathers, the copse's pride, anemones,

356 vetch] Vetch. - Vicia sylvatica. Smith. 357 bittersweet, and bryony] Bittersweet.-Solanum dulcamara. Bryony.-Bryonia alba. Smith. 358 bindweed's cups] Bindweed.-Convolvulus sepium. Smith. 360 the harebell, and the freckled pagil] Harebell. - Hyacinthus non scriptus. Pagil. - Primula veris. Smith. 365 tumps] Hill or mound; sometimes a clump of trees, shrubs, or grass. 366 wood sorrel] Oxalis acetosella. Smith. 369 anemones] Anemone nemorosa. -It appears to be settled on late and excellent authori­ ties, that this word should not be accented on the second syllable, but on the penultima. I have Charlotte Smith

With rays like golden studs on ivory laid 370 Most delicate: but touch'd with purple clouds, Fit crown for April's fair but changeful brow.

Ah! hills so early loved! in fancy still I breathe your pure keen air; and still behold Those widely spreading v!ews, mocking alike The Poet and the Painter's utmost art. And still, observing objects more minute, Wondering remark the strange and foreign forms Of sea-shells; with the pale calcareous soil Mingled, and seeming of resembling substance. Tho' surely the blue Ocean (from the heights Where the downs westward trend, but dimly seen) Here never roll'd its surge. Does Nature then Mimic, in wanton mood, fantastic shapes Of bivalves, and inwreathed volutes, that cling To the dark sea-rock of the wat'ry world? Or did this range of chalky mountains, once Form a vast bason, where the Ocean waves Swell'd fathomless? What time these fossil shells, Buoy'd on their native element, were thrown 390 Among the imbedding calx: when the huge hill Its giant bulk heaved, and in strange ferment Grew up a guardian barrier, 'twixt the sea And the green level of the sylvan weald. however ventured the more known accentuation, as more generally used, and suiting better the nature of my verse. Smith. 379 calcareous] Chalky. 379-80 Of sea-shells; ... seeming of resembling substance] Among the crumbling chalk I have often found shells, some quite in a fossil state and hardly distinguishable from chalk. Others appeared more recent; cockles, muscles, and periwinkles, I well remember, were among the number; and some whose names I do not know. A great number were like those of small land snails. It is now many years since I made these observations. The appearance of sea-shells so far from the sea excited my surprise, though I then knew nothing of natural history. I have never read any of the late theories of the earth, nor was I ever satisfied with the attempts to explain many of the phenomena which call forth conjecture in those books I happened to have had access to on this subject. Smith. 387 Or did this range of chalky mountains] The theory here slightly hinted at, is taken from an idea started by Mr. White. Smith. [Gilbert White, the English naturalist. Ed.] 388 bason] Variation of basin. 391 calx] Chalk, limestone. Charlotte Smith

Ah! very vain is Science' proudest boast, And but a little light its flame yet lends To its most ardent votaries; since from whence These fossil forms are seen, is but conjecture, Food for vague theories, or vain dispute, 400 While to his daily task the peasant goes, Unheeding such inquiry; with no care But that the kindly change of sun and shower, Fit for his toil the earth he cultivates. As little reeks the herdsman of the hill, Who on some turfy knoll, idly reclined, Watches his wether flock; that deep beneath Rest the remains of men, of whom is left No traces in the records of mankind, Save what these half obliterated mounds 410 And half fill'd trenches doubtfully impart To some lone antiquary; who on times remote, Since which two thousand years have roll'd away, Loves to contemplate. He perhaps may trace, Or fancy he can trace, the oblong square Where the mail'd legions, under Claudius, rear'd The rampire, or excavated fosse delved; What time the huge unwieldy Elephant

406 wether] Male sheep, ram; especially a castrated ram. 407 remains of men] These Downs are not only marked with traces of encampments, which from their forms are called Roman or Danish; but there are numerous tumuli [sepulchral mounds] among them. Some of which having been opened a few years ago, were supposed by a learned antiquary to contain the remains of the original natives of the country. Smith. 415 the mail'd legions, under Claudius] That the legions of Claudius [10 B.C.-A.D. 54] were in this part of Britain appears certain. Since this emperor received the submission of Cantii, Atrebates, Irenobates, and Regni, in which latter denomination were included the people of Sussex .. Smith. 416 rampire] Rampart, barrier. 416 fosse] Trench, ditch. 417 What time the huge unwieldy Elephant] In the year 1740, some workmen digging in the park at Burton in Sussex, discovered, nine feet below the surface, the teeth and bones of an elephant; two of the former were seven feet eight inches in length. There were besides these, tusks, one of which broke in removing it, a grinder not at all decayed, and a part of the jaw­ bone, with bones of the knee and thigh, and several others. Some of them remained very lately at Burton House, the seat ofJohn Biddulph, Esq. Others were in possession of the Rev. Dr. Lan­ grish, minister of Petworth at that period, who was present when some of these bones were taken up, and gave it as his opinion, that they had remained there since the universal deluge. The Romans under the Emperor Claudius probably brought elephants into Britain. Milton, Charlotte Smith

Auxiliary reluctant, hither led, From Afric's forest glooms and tawny sands, First felt the Northern blast, and his vast frame 420 Sunk useless; whence in after ages found, The wondering hinds, on those enormous bones Gaz'd; and in giants dwelling on the hills Believed and marvell'd-

Hither, Ambition, come! Come and behold the nothingness of all For which you carry thro' the oppressed Earth, War, and its train of horrors-see where tread The innumerous hoofs of flocks above the works By which the warrior sought to register 430 His glory, and immortalize his name - The pirate Dane, who from his circular camp Bore in destructive robbery, fire and sword Down thro' the vale, sleeps unremember'd here; And here, beneath the green sward, rests alike The savage native, who his acorn meal Shar'd with the herds, that ranged the pathless woods; in the Second Book of his History, in speaking of the expedition, says that "He like a great eastern king, with armed elephants, marched through Gallia." This is given on the authority of Dion Cassius, in his Life of the Emperor Claudius. It has therefore been conjectured, that the bones found at Burton might have been those of one of these elephants, who perished there soon after its landing; or dying on the high downs, one of which, called Duncton Hill, rises immediately above Burton Park, the bones might have been washed down by the torrents of rain, and buried deep in the soil. They were not found together, but scattered at some distance from each other. The two tusks were twenty feet apart. I had often heard of the elephant's bones at Burton, but never saw them; and I have no books to refer to. I think I saw, in what is now called the National Museum at Paris, the very large bones of an elephant, which were found in North America: though it is certain that this enormous animal is never seen in its natural state, but in the countries under the torrid zone of the old world. I have, since making this note, been told that the bones of the rhinoceros and hippopotamus have been found in America. Smith. [Claudius I invaded Britain in A.D. 43 . Ed.] 423 in giants] The peasants believe that the large bones sometimes found belonged to giants, who formerly lived on the hills. The devil also has a great deal to do with the remarkable forms of hill and vale: the Devil's Punch Bowl, the Devil's Leaps, and the Devil's Dyke, are names given to deep hollows, or high and abrupt ridges, in this and the neighbouring county. Smith. 432 The pirate Dane] The incursions of the Danes were for many ages the scourge of this island. Smith. 436 The savage native] The Aborigines of this country lived in woods, unsheltered but by trees and caves; and were probably as truly savage as any of those who are now termed so. Smith. Charlotte Smith

And the centurion, who on these wide hills Encamping, planted the Imperial Eagle. 440 All, with the lapse of Time, have passed away, Even as the clouds, with dark and dragon shapes, Or like vast promontories crown'd with towers, Cast their broad shadows on the downs: then sail Far to the northward, and their transient gloom Is soon forgotten.

But from thoughts like these, By human crimes suggested, let us turn To where a more attractive study courts The wanderer of the hills; while shepherd girls 450 Will from among the fescue bring him flowers, Of wonderous mockery; some resembling bees In velvet vest, intent on their sweet toil, While others mimic flies, that lightly sport In the green shade, or float along the pool, But here seem perch'd upon the slender stalk, And gathering honey dew. While in the breeze That wafts the thistle's plumed seed along, Blue bells wave tremulous. The mountain thyme Purples the hassock of the heaving mole, And the short turf is gay with tormentil,

450 fescue] The grass called Sheep's Fescue, (Festuca ovina,) clothes these Downs with the softest turf. Smith. 451 some resembling bees] Ophrys apifera, Bee Ophrys, or Orchis found plentifully on the hills, as well as the next. Smiih. 453 While others mimic flies] Ophrys muscifera. - Fly Orchis. Linn;eus, misled by the varia­ tions to which some of this tribe are really subject, has perhaps too rashly esteemed all those which resemble insects, as forming only one species, which he terms Ophrys insectifera. See English Botany. Smith. 458 Blue bells] (Campanula rotundifolia.) The mountain thyme] Thymus serpyllum. "It is a common notion, that the flesh of sheep which feed upon aromatic plants, particularly wild thyme, is superior in flavour to other mutton. The truth is, that sheep do not crop these aro­ matic plants, unless now and then by accident, or when they are first turned on hungry to downs, heaths, or commons; but the soil and situations favourable to aromatic plants, produce a short sweet pasturage, best adapted to feeding sheep, whom nature designed for mountains, and not for turnip grounds and rich meadows. The attachment of bees to this, and other aro­ matic plants, is well known." Martyn's Miller. Smith. [Quotation from Thomas Martyn, The Gardener's and Botanist's Dictionary . . . by the late Philip Miller . .. To Which Are Now Added a Complete Enumeration and Description of All Plants (1797-1807). Ed.] 460 tormentil] Tormentilla reptans. Smith. Charlotte Smith

And bird's foot trefoil, and the lesser tribes Of hawkweed; spangling it with fringed stars. - Near where a richer tract of cultur'd land Slopes to the south; and burnished by the sun, Bend in the gale of August, floods of corn; The guardian of the flock, with watchful care, Repels by voice and dog the encroaching sheep­ While his boy visits every wired trap That scars the turf; and from the pit-falls takes The timid migrants, who from distant wilds, 470 Warrens, and stone quarries, are destined thus To lose their short existence. But unsought By Luxury yet, the Shepherd still protects The social bird, who from his native haunts Of willowy current, or the rushy pool, Follows the fleecy croud, and flirts and skims, In fellowship among them.

Where the knoll More elevated takes the changeful winds, The windmill rears its vanes; and thitherward With his white load, the master travelling, Scares the rooks rising slow on whispering wings, While o'er his head, before the summer sun Lights up the blue expanse, heard more than seen, The lark sings matins; and above the clouds Floating, embathes his spotted breast in dew.

461-62 And bird's foot trefoil, and the lesser tribes of hawkweed) Bird's foot trefoil.­ Trifolium ornithopoides. Hawkweed. - Hieracium, many sorts. Smith. 466 The guardian of the flock, with watchful care) The downs, especially to the south, where they are less abrupt, are in many places under the plough; and the attention of the shepherds is there particularly required to keep the flocks from trespassing. Smith. 468 every wired trap] Square holes cut in the turf, into which a 'wire noose is fixed, to catch Wheatears. Mr. White says, that these birds (Motacilla oenanthe) are never taken beyond the river Adur, and Beding Hill; but this is certainly a mistake. Smith. 470 The timid migrants] These birds are extremely fearful, and on the slightest appearance of a cloud, run for shelter to the first rut, or heap of stones, that they see. Smith. 474 The social bird] The YellowWagtail.-Motacilla flava . It frequents the banks of rivulets in winter, making its nest in meadows and com-fields. But after the breeding season is over, it haunts downs and sheepwalks, and is seen constantly among the flocks, probably for the sake of the insects it picks up. In France the shepherds call it La Bergeronette, and say it often gives them, by its cry, notice of approaching danger. Smith. 710 Charlotte Smith

Beneath the shadow of a gnarled thorn, Bent by the sea blast, from a seat of turf With fairy nosegays strewn, how wide the view! 490 Till in the distant north it melts away, And mingles indiscriminate with clouds: But if the eye could reach so far, the mart Of England's capital, its domes and spires Might be perceived-Yet hence the distant range Of Kentish hills, appear in purple haze; And nearer, undulate the wooded heights, And airy summits, that above the mole Rise in green beauty; and the beacon'd ridge Of Black-down shagg'd with heath, and swelling rude 500 Like a dark island from the vale; its brow Catching the last rays of the evening sun That gleam between the nearer park's old oaks, Then lighten up the river, and make prominent The portal, and the ruin'd battlements Of that dismantled fortress; rais'd what time The Conqueror's successors fiercely fought, Tearing with civil feuds the desolate land.

488 Bent by the sea blast] The strong winds from the south-west occasion almost all the trees, which on these hills are exposed to it, to grow the other way. Smith. 489 how wide the view!] So extensive are some of the views from these hills, that only the want of power in the human eye to travel so far, prevents London itself being discerned. Description falls so infinitely short of the reality, that only here and there, distinct features can be given. Smith. 494-95 the distant range/ Of Kentish hills] A scar of chalk in a hill beyond Sevenoaks in Kent, is very distinctly seen of a clear day. Smith. 497 And airy summits] The hills about Dorking in Surry; over almost the whole extent of which county the prospect extends. Smith. 498-99 and the beacon'd ridge . .. shagg'd with heath] This is an high ridge, extending between Sussex and Surry. It is covered with heath, and has almost always a dark appearance. On it is a telegraph. Smith. 504 and the ruin'd battlements] In this country there are several of the fortresses or castles built by Stephen of Blois, in his contention for the kingdom, with the daughter of Henry the First, the empress Matilda. Some of these are now converted into farm houses. Smith. [Stephen, king of England from n35 to rr54, was the third son of Stephen, count of Blois and Chartres. In n27 and again in u33 Stephen and other English magnates were persuaded or forced by Henry I to take oaths of fealty to his daughter, the empress Matilda, as heir to the throne and to recognize the hereditary right of her son Henry of Anjou, the future Henry II. These oaths were later forsaken, which led to a civil war in n39 over the crown between Matilda and her half-brother Robert of Gloucester, on the one hand, and Stephen. Ed.] Charlotte Smith 711

But now a tiller of the soil dwells there, And of the turret's loop'd and rafter'd halls Has made an humbler homestead-Where he sees, 510 Instead of armed foemen, herds that graze Along his yellow meadows; or his flocks At evening from the upland driv'n to fold-

In such a castellated mansion once A stranger chose his home; and where hard by In rude disorder fallen, and hid with brushwood Lay fragments gray of towers and buttresses, Among the ruins, often he would muse - His rustic meal soon ended, he was wont To wander forth, listening the evening sounds 520 Of rushing rnilldam, or the distant team, Or night-jar, chasing fern-flies: the tir'd hind Pass'd him at nightfall, wondering he should sit On the hill top so late: they from the coast Who sought bye paths with their clandestine load, Saw with suspicious doubt, the lonely man Cross on their way: but village maidens thought His senses injur'd; and with pity say That he, poor youth! must have been cross'd in love­ For often, stretch'd upon the mountain turf 530

522 chasing fem-flies] Dr. Aikin remarks, I believe, in his essay "On the Application of Natural History to the Purposes of Poetry," how many of our best poets have noticed the same circumstance, the hum of the Dor Beetle (Scaraboeus stercorarius,) among the sounds heard by the evening wanderer. I remember only one instance in which the more remarkable, though by no means uncommon noise, of the Fern Owl, or Goatsucker, is mentioned. It is called the Night Hawk, the Jar Bird, the Churn Owl, and the Fern Owl, from its feeding on the Scaia­ boeus solstitialis, or Fern Chafer, which it catches while on the wing with its claws, the middle toe of which is long and curiously serrated, on purpose to hold them. It was this bird that was intended to be described in the Forty-second Sonnet (Smith's Sonnets). I was mistaken in supposing it as visible in November; it is a migrant, and leaves this country in August. I had often seen and heard it, but I did not then know its name or history. It is called Goatsucker (Caprimulgus), from a strange prejudice taken against it by the Italians, who assert that it sucks their goats; and the peasants of England still believe that a disease in the backs of their cattle, occasioned by a fly, which deposits its egg under the skin, and raises a boil, sometimes fatal to calves, is the work of this bird, which they call a Puckeridge. Nothing can convince them that their beasts are not injured by this bird, which they therefore hold in abhorrence. Smith. [John Aikin (r747-1822), father of Lucy Aikin and brother of Anna Letitia Barbauld, wrote An Essay on the Application of Natural History to Poetry (1777). Ed.] 712 Charlotte Smith

With folded arms, and eyes intently fix'd Where ancient elms and firs obscured a grange, Some little space within the vale below, They heard him, as complaining of his fate, And to the murmuring wind, of cold neglect And baffled hope he told. - The peasant girls These plaintive sounds remember, and even now Among them may be heard the stranger's songs.

Were I a Shepherd on the hill 540 And ever as the mists withdrew Could see the willows of the rill Shading the footway to the mill Where once I walk'd with you -

And as away Night's shadows sail, And sounds of birds and brooks arise, Believe, that from the woody vale I hear your voice upon the gale In soothing melodies;

And viewing from the Alpine height, 550 The prospect dress'd in hues of air, Could say, while transient colours bright Touch'd the fair scene with dewy light, 'Tis, that her eyes are there!

I think, I could endure my lot And linger on a few short years, And then, by all but you forgot, Sleep, where the turf that clothes the spot May claim some pitying tears.

For 'tis not easy to forget 560 One, who thro' life has lov'd you still, And you, however late, might yet With sighs to Memory giv'n, regret The Shepherd of the Hill. Charlotte Smith

Yet otherwhile it seem'd as if young Hope Her flattering pencil gave to Fancy's hand, And in his wanderings, rear'd to sooth his soul Ideal bowers of pleasure-Then, of Solitude And of his hermit life, still more enamour'd, His home was in the forest; and wild fruits And bread sustain'd him. There in early spring 570 The Barkmen found him, e'er the sun arose; There at their daily toil, the Wedgecutters Beheld him thro' the distant thicket move. The shaggy dog following the truffle hunter, Bark'd at the loiterer; and perchance at night Belated villagers from fair or wake, While the fresh night-wind let the moonbeams in Between the swaying boughs, just saw him pass, And then in silence, gliding like a ghost He vanish'd! Lost among the deepening gloom.- 580 But near one ancient tree, whose wreathed roots Form'd a rude couch, love-songs and scatter'd rhymes, Unfinish'd sentences, or half erased, And rhapsodies like this, were sometimes found-

Let us to woodland wilds repair While yet the glittering night-dews seem To wait the freshly-breathing air, Precursive of the morning beam, That rising with advancing day, Scatters the silver drops away. 590

An elm, uprooted by the storm, The trunk with mosses gray and green, Shall make for us a rustic form, Where lighter grows the forest scene;

571 The Barkmen] As soon as the sap begins to rise, the trees intended for felling are cut and barked. At which time the men who are employed in that business pass whole days in the woods. Smith. 572 the Wedgecutters] The wedges used in ship-building are made of beech wood, and great numbers are cut every year in the woods near the Downs. Smith. 574 the truffie hunter] Truffies are found under the beech woods, by means of small dogs trained to hunt them by the scent. Smith. Charlotte Smith

And far among the bowery shades, Are ferny lawns and grassy glades.

Retiring May to lovely June Her latest garland now resigns; The banks with cuckoo-flowers are strewn, 600 The woodwalks blue with columbines, And with its reeds, the wandering stream Reflects the flag-flower's golden gleam.

There, feathering down the turf to meet, Their shadowy arms the beeches spread, While high above our sylvan seat, Lifts the light ash its airy head; And later leaved, the oaks between Extend their boughs of vernal green.

The slender birch its paper rind 610 Seems offering to divided love, And shuddering even without a wind Aspins, their paler foliage move, As if some spirit of the air Breath'd a low sigh in passing there.

The Squirrel in his frolic mood, Will fearless bound among the boughs; Yaflils laugh loudly thro' the wood, And murmuring ring-doves tell their vows; While we, as sweetest woodscents rise, 620 Listen to woodland melodies.

And I'll contrive a sylvan room Against the time of summer heat,

599 cuckoo-flowers] Lychnis dioica. Smith. 600 columbines] Aquilegia vulgaris. Shakespeare describes the Cuckoo buds as being yel­ low. He probably meant the numerous Ranunculi, or March marigolds (Caltha palustris,) which so gild the meadows in Spring; but poets have never been botanists. The Cuckoo flower is the Lychnis floscuculi. Smith. [See Love's Labour's Lost 5.2.894. Ed.] 602 flag-flower's] Flag-flower. -Iris pseudacorus. Smith. 617 Yaflils] Yaflils.-Woodpeckers (Picus): three or four species in Britain. Smith. Charlotte Smith

Where leaves, inwoven in Nature's loom, Shall canopy our green retreat; And gales that "close the eye of day" Shall linger, e'er they die away.

And when a sear and sallow hue From early frost the bower receives, I'll dress the sand rock cave for you, And strew the floor with heath and leaves, That you, against the autumnal air May find securer shelter there.

The Nightingale will then have ceas'd To sing her moonlight serenade; But the gay bird with blushing breast, And Woodlarks still will haunt the shade, And by the borders of the spring Reed-wrens will yet be carolling.

The forest hermit's lonely cave None but such soothing sounds shall reach, Or hardly heard, the distant wave Slow breaking on the stony beach; Or winds, that now sigh soft and low, Now make wild music as they blow.

And then, before the chilling North The tawny foliage falling light, Seems, as it flits along the earth, The footfall of the busy Sprite, Who wrapt in pale autumnal gloom, Calls up the mist-born Mushroom.

624 And gales that "close the eye of day") "And (Thy) liquid notes that close the eye of day." Milton . The idea here meant to be conveyed is of the evening wind, so welcome after a hot day of Summer, and which appears to sooth and lull all nature into tranquillity. Smith. (Milton's sonnet I, "O Nightingale," line 5. Ed.] 635 the gay bird with blushing breast) The Robin, (Motacilla rubecula,) which is always heard after other songsters have ceased to sing. Smith. 636 Woodlarks] The Woodlark, (Alauda nemorosa,) sings very late. Smith. 638 Reed-wrens) Reed-wrens, (Motacilla arundinacea,) sing all the summer and autumn, and are often heard during the night. Smith. Charlotte Smith

Oh! could I hear your soft voice there, And see you in the forest green All beauteous as you are, more fair You'ld look, amid the sylvan scene, And in a wood-girl's simple guise, Be still more lovely in mine eyes.

Ye phantoms of unreal delight, Visions of fond delirium born! Rise not on my deluded sight, 660 Then leave me drooping and forlorn To know, such bliss can never be, Unless Amanda loved like me.

The visionary, nursing dreams like these, Is not indeed unhappy. Summer woods Wave over him, and whisper as they wave, Some future blessings he may yet enjoy. And as above him sail the silver clouds, He follows them in thought to distant climes, Where, far from the cold policy of this, Dividing him from her he fondly loves, He, in some island of the southern sea, May haply build his cane-constructed bower Beneath the bread-fruit, or aspiring palm, With long green foliage rippling in the gale. Oh! let him cherish his ideal bliss- For what is life, when Hope has ceas' d to strew Her fragile flowers along its thorny way? And sad and gloomy are his days, who lives Of Hope abandon'd!

671 in some island of the southern sea] An allusion to the visionary delights of the new[ly] discovered islands, where it was at first believed men lived in a state of simplicity and happiness; but where, as later enquiries have ascertained, that exemption from toil, which the fertility of their country gives chem, produces the grossest vices; and a degree of corruption that late navigators think will end in the extirpation of the whole people in a few years. Smith. [Dur­ ing the eighteenth century British explorers competed with the French to chart the islands of Polynesia. In 1767 the British captain Samuel Wallis discovered the island now known as Tahiti. Ed.] Charlotte Smith 717

Just beneath the rock 680 Where Beachy overpeers the channel wave, Within a cavern mined by wintry tides Dwelt one; who long disgusted with the world And all its ways, appear'd to suffer life Rather than live; the soul-reviving gale, Fanning the bean-field, or the thymy heath, Had not for many summers breathed on him; And nothing mark'd to him the season's change, Save that more gently rose the placid sea, And that the birds which winter on the coast 690 Gave place to other migrants; save that the fog, Hovering no more above the beetling cliffs Betray'd not then the little careless sheep On the brink grazing, while their headlong fall Near the lone Hermit's flint-surrounded home, Claim'd unavailing pity; for his heart Was feelingly alive to all that breath'd; And outraged as he was, in sanguine youth, By human crimes, he still acutely felt For human misery. 700

Wandering on the beach, He learn'd to augur from the clouds of heaven, And from the changing colours of the sea, And sullen murmurs of the hollow cliffs, Or the dark porpoises, that near the shore Gambol'd and sported on the level brine When tempests were approaching: then at night He listen'd to the wind; and as it drove

682-83 Within a cavern . .. /Dwelt one] In a cavern almost immediately under the cliff called Beachy Head, there lived, as the people of the country believed, a man of the name of Darby, who for many years had no other abode than this cave, and subsisted almost entirely on shell-fish. He had often administered assistance to ship-wrecked mariners; but venturing into the sea on this charitable mission during a violent equinoctial storm, he himself perished. As it is above thirty years since I heard this tradition of Parson Darby (for so I think he was called): it may now perhaps be forgotten. Smith. 691-93 the fog . .. betray'd not then the little careless sheep) Sometimes in thick weather the sheep feeding on the summit of the cliff, miss their footing, and are killed by the fall. Smith. 705 Or the dark porpoises] Delphinus phocc:ena. Smith. Charlotte Smith

The billows with o'erwhelming vehemence 7rn He, starting from his rugged couch, went forth And hazarding a life, too valueless, He waded thro' the waves, with plank or pole Towards where the mariner in conflict dread Was buffeting for life the roaring surge; And now just seen, now lost in foaming gulphs, The dismal gleaming of the clouded moon Shew'd the dire peril. Often he had snatch'd From the wild billows, some unhappy man Who liv'd to bless the hermit of the rocks. 720 But if his generous cares were all in vain, And with slow swell the tide of morning bore Some blue swol'n cor'se to land; the pale recluse Dug in the chalk a sepulchre - above Where the dank sea-wrack mark'd the utmost tide, And with his prayers perform'd the obsequies For the poor helpless stranger.

One dark night The equinoctial wind blew south by west, Fierce on the shore;-the bellowing cliffs were shook 730 Even to their stony base, and fragments fell Flashing and thundering on the angry flood. At day-break, anxious for the lonely man, His cave the mountain shepherds visited, Tho' sand and banks of weeds had choak'd their way­ He was not in it; but his drowned cor'se By the waves wafted, near his former home Receiv'd the rites of burial. Those who read Chisel'd within the rock, these mournful lines, Memorials of his sufferings, did not grieve, 740 That dying in the cause of charity His spirit, from its earthly bondage freed, Had to some better region fled for ever.

*Beachy Head is a promontory on the southern coast of Sussex, three miles southwest of Eastbourne.