to have been very popular, and had a second and
third part, not now extant, but is by no means as much to modern taste as
some of the others. Indeed both Day and Tourneur, despite the dates of
their pieces, which, as far as known, are later, belong in more ways than
one to the early school, and show how its traditions survived alongside of
the more perfect work of the greater masters. Day himself is certainly not
a great master--indeed masterpieces would have been impossible, if they
would not have been superfluous, in the brisk purveying of theatrical
matter which, from Henslowe's accounts, we see that he kept up. He had
fancy, a good deal of wit, considerable versatility, and something of the
same sunshiny temper, with less of the pathos, that has been noticed in
Heywood. If he wrote _The Maid's Metamorphosis_ (also ascribed
conjecturally to Lyly), he did something less dramatically good, but
perhaps poetically better, than his other work; and if, as has sometimes
been thought,[56] _The Return from Parnassus_ is his, he is richer still.
But even without these, his existing poetical baggage (the least part of
the work which we know he accomplished) is more than respectable, and shows
more perhaps than that of any other distinctly minor writer the vast amount
of loose talent--of miscellaneous inspiration--which was afloat in the air
of his time.

[56] I agree with Professor Hales in thinking it very improbable.

CHAPTER VIII

THE SCHOOL OF SPENSER AND THE TRIBE OF BEN

The reign of James I. is not, in mere poetry, quite such a brilliant period
as it is in drama. The full influence of Donne and of Jonson, which
combined to produce the exquisite if not extraordinarily strong school of
Caroline poets, did not work in it. Of its own bards the best, such as
Jonson himself and Drayton, were survivals of the Elizabethan school, and
have accordingly been anticipated here. Nevertheless, there were not a few
verse-writers of mark who may be most conveniently assigned to this time,
though, as was the case with so many of their contemporaries, they had
sometimes produced work of note before the accession of the British
Solomon, and sometimes continued to produce it until far into the reign of
his son. Especially there are some of much mark who fall to be noticed
here, because their work is not, strictly speaking, of the schools that
flourished under Elizabeth, or of the schools that flourished under
Charles. We shall not