at worthily typical
representatives of the race must be sought. The former class, under the
designation of "great men," are then (after a parenthetical comparison
with cedars waxing amidst tempests) likened to statuaries who are
satisfied if the exterior of the Colossus they are creating is
sufficiently imposing; they are then (by an awkward transition of the
imagery) likened to the statues themselves (l. 15) "heroique" in form
but "morter, flint, and lead" within. Chapman's meaning is here obvious
enough, but it is a singular canon of aesthetics that estimates the worth
of a statue by the materials out of which it is made. In l. 18 a new
thought is started, that of the transitoriness of life, and the
perishable nature of its gifts, and as the ocean-voyager needs a
stay-at-home pilot to steer him safely into port, so the adventurer in
"the waves of glassie glory" (ll. 29-30) is bidden look to "vertue" for
guidance to his desired haven--not exactly the conclusion to be expected
from the opening lines of the speech.
=6=, 23. =To put a girdle . . . world.= The editors all compare _Mid.
Night's Dream_, I, 1, 175, which Chapman probably had in mind.
=7=, 34. =in numerous state.= A play of words, apparently, on two senses
of the phrase: (1) the series of numbers, (2) a populous kingdom.
=8=, 59. =gurmundist.= The _N. E. D._ quotes no other example of the
form "gurmundist" for "gurmond" = "gourmand."
=9=, 86-87. =set my looks In an eternall brake:= keep my countenance
perpetually immoveable. A "brake" is a piece of framework for holding
something steady.
=15=, 187. =I am a poet.= This is historically true. A poem of some
length, _Stances faictes par M. de Bussy_, is quoted by Joubert in his
_Bussy D'Amboise_, pp. 205-09.
=15=, 194-95. =chaine And velvet jacket:= the symbols of a steward's
office.
=16=, 207. =his woodden dagger.= The Elizabethan jester carried the
wooden dagger or sword, which was often one of the properties of the
"Vice" in the later Moralities and the Interludes.
=17=, =Pyra.= Though this character is mentioned here and elsewhere
among the _Dramatis Personae_, she takes no part in the dialogue.
=17=, 2. _that English virgin:_ apparently Annable, who is the Duchess
of Guise's lady-in-waiting (cf. III, 2, 234-40).
=18=, 15. =what's that to:= what has that to do with.
=18=, 16-27. =Assure you . . . confusion to it.= With this encomium on
Elizabeth and her Court compare Crequi's account of
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