ilosopher, a temperate oeconomist, and a pious christian." As to
his genius as a poet, Dryden (than whom a higher authority cannot be
produced) speaking of Homer and Virgil, positively asserts, that our
author exceeded the latter, and stands in competition with the former.

His language, how unintelligible soever it may seem, is almost as
modern as any of his cotemporaries, or of those who followed him at
the distance of 50 or 60 years, as Harding, Skelton and others, and
in some places it is so smooth and beautiful, that Dryden would not
attempt to alter it; I shall now give some account of his works in
the order in which they were written, so far as can be collected from
them, and subjoin a specimen of his poetry, of which profession as he
may justly be called the Morning Star, so as we descend into later
times; we may see the progress of poetry in England from its great
original, Chaucer, to its full blaze, and perfect consummation in
Dryden.

Mr. Philips supposes a greater part of his works to be lost, than what
we have extant of him; of that number may be many a song, and many a
lecherous lay, which perhaps might have been written by him while he
was a student at Cambridge.

The Court of Love, as has been before observed, was written while he
resided at Cambridge in the 18th year of his age.

The Craft Lovers was written in the year of our Lord, 1348, and
probably the Remedy of Love was written about that time, or not long
after.

The Lamentation of Mary Magdalen taken from Origen, was written by him
in his early years, and perhaps Boethius de Consolatione Philosophiae
was translated by him about the same time.

The Romaunt of the Rose, is a translation from the French: this poem
was begun by William de Lerris, and continued by John de Meun, both
famous French poets; it seems to have been translated about the
time of the rise of Wickliffe's Opinions, it consisting of violent
invectives against religious orders.

The Complaint of the Black Knight, during John of Gaunt's courtship
with Blanch is supposed to be written on account of the duke of
Lancaster's marriage.

The poem of Troilus and Creseide was written in the early part of
his life, translated (as he says) from Lollius an historiographer in
Urbane in Italy; he has added several things of his own, and borrowed
from others what he thought proper for the embellishment of this work,
and in this respect was much indebted to his friend Petrarch the
Itali