ore,
To sweep the dust behind the door.

OBE. Through this house give glimmering light,
By the dead and drowsy fire:
Every elf, and fairy sprite,
Hop as light as bird, from brier;
And this ditty after me
Sing, and dance it trippingly."

By the by, one cannot but be struck with the resemblance, in the spirit
and coloring of these lines, to those very similar ones in the Penseroso
of Milton:--

"Far from all resort of mirth,
Save the cricket on the hearth,
Or the bellman's drowsy charm,
To bless the doors from nightly harm;
While glowing embers, through the room,
Teach light to counterfeit a gloom."

I have often noticed how much the first writings of Milton resemble in
their imagery and tone of coloring those of Shakspeare, particularly in
the phraseology and manner of describing flowers. I think, were a
certain number of passages from Lycidas and Comus interspersed with a
certain number from Midsummer Night's Dream, the imagery, tone of
thought, and style of coloring, would be found so nearly identical, that
it would be difficult for one not perfectly familiar to distinguish
them. You may try it.

That Milton read and admired Shakspeare is evident from his allusion to
him in L'Allegro. It is evident, however, that Milton's taste had been
so formed by the Greek models, that he was not entirely aware of all
that was in Shakspeare; he speaks of him as a sweet, fanciful warbler,
and it is exactly in sweetness and fancifulness that he seems to have
derived benefit from him. In his earlier poems, Milton seems, like
Shakspeare, to have let his mind run freely, as a brook warbles over
many-colored pebbles; whereas in his great poem he built after models.
Had he known as little Latin and Greek as Shakspeare, the world, instead
of seeing a well-arranged imitation of the ancient epics from his pen,
would have seen inaugurated a new order of poetry.

An unequalled artist, who should build after the model of a Grecian
temple, would doubtless produce a splendid and effective building,
because a certain originality always inheres in genius, even when
copying; but far greater were it to invent an entirely new style of
architecture, as different as the Gothic from the Grecian. This merit
was Shakspeare's. He was a superb Gothic poet; Milton, a magnificent
imitator of old forms, which by his genius were wrought almost into the
energy of new productions.