ll hardly be set downe with inke;
Shall scorch and blast, so as his could, where he,
Would inflict vengeance, and be it said of thee,
_Shakespeare_, thou hadst as smooth a Comicke vaine,
Fitting the socke, and in thy naturall braine, 120
As strong conception, and as Cleere a rage,
As any one that trafiqu'd with the stage.
Amongst these _Samuel Daniel_, whom if I
May spake of, but to sensure doe denie,
Onely haue heard some wisemen him rehearse,
To be too much _Historian_ in verse;
His rimes were smooth, his meeters well did close
But yet his maner better fitted prose:
Next these, learn'd _Johnson_, in this List I bring,
Who had drunke deepe of the _Pierian_ spring, 130
Whose knowledge did him worthily prefer,
And long was Lord here of the Theater,
Who in opinion made our learn'st to sticke,
Whether in Poems rightly dramatique,
Strong _Seneca_ or _Plautus_, he or they,
Should beare the Buskin, or the Socke away.
Others againe here liued in my dayes,
That haue of vs deserued no lesse praise
For their translations, then the daintiest wit
That on _Parnassus_ thinks, he highst doth sit, 140
And for a chaire may mongst the Muses call,
As the most curious maker of them all;
As reuerent _Chapman_, who hath brought to vs,
_Musaeus_, _Homer_ and _Hesiodus_
Out of the Greeke; and by his skill hath reard
Them to that height, and to our tongue endear'd,
That were those Poets at this day aliue,
To see their bookes thus with vs to suruiue,
They would think, hauing neglected them so long,
They had bin written in the _English_ tongue. 150
And _Siluester_ who from the _French_ more weake,
Made _Bartas_ of his sixe dayes labour speake
In naturall _English_, who, had he there stayd,
He had done well, and neuer had bewraid
His owne inuention, to haue bin so poore
Who still wrote lesse, in striuing to write more.
Then dainty _Sands_ that hath to _English_ done,
Smooth sliding _Ouid_, and hath made him run
With so much sweetnesse and vnusuall grace,
As though the neatnesse of the _English_ pace, 160
Should tell the Ietting _Lattine_ that it came
But slowly after, as though stiff and lame.
So _Scotland_ sent vs hither, for our owne
That man, whose