Sometimes we see a cloud that's dragonish,
A vapour sometimes like a bear or lion,
A tower'd citadel or pendant rock,

A forked mountain or blue promontory,
. With trees upon't that nod unto the world,

And mock our eyes with air; thou'st seen these signs—
They are black Vesper's pageants.

That which was now a horse, even with a thought,
The rack dislimns, and makes it indistinct,

As water is in water. Anthony and Cleopatra, A. 4. S. 10.

Non tanti aspetti, non tante figure
Soglion le rotte nuvole ben spesso
Formare in cielo nelle notti oscure,
Se piovoso Austro a lor svolazza appresso;
Che or si fan navi, e quelle stesse pure
Or si fanno un gigante, ora un cipresso.

Ricciardetto, C. 12. St. 106,

Lo! in the burning West, the craggy nape
Of a tall Ararat! And thereupon
The ark, her melancholy voyage done!
Yon rampant cloud mimics a lion's shape:
There combats a huge crocodile agape
A golden spear to swallow! and that brown
And massy grove, so near yon blazing town,
Stirs and recedes, destruction to escape!
Yet all is harmless as the Elysian shades,
Where spirits dwell in undisturb'd repose,
Silently disappears, or quickly fades-
Meek Nature's evening comment on the shows
That for oblivion take their daily birth,
From all the fuming vanities of earth.

Wordsworth.

-Nubes facile interdum concrescere in alto Cernimus, et mundi speciem violare serenam, Aera mulcenteis motu: nam sæpe gigantum Ora volare videntur, et umbram ducere late: Interdum magni montes, avolsaque saxa Montibus anteire, et solem succedere præter: Inde alios trahere atque inducere bellua nimbos. Lucretius, L. 4. V. 141. ΣΩΚΡΑΤΗΣ. ἤδη ποτ' αναβλέψας εἶδες νεφέλην Κενταύρῳ ὁμοίαν, ἢ παρδάλει, ἢ λύκῳ, ἢ ταυρῳ;

ΣΤΡΕΨΙΑΔΗΣ.
νὴ Δι' ἔγωγ'. εἶτα τί τοῦτο;
ΣΩΚΡΑΤΗΣ. γίγνονται πάνθ' ὅ τι βούλονται· κατ ̓ ἣν μὲν ἴδωσι κομήτην,
ἄγριόν τινα τῶν λασίων τούτων, οἷον περ τὸν Ξενοφάντου,
σκώπτουσαι τὴν μανίαν αὐτοῦ, Κενταύροις ᾤκασαν αὐτάς.
ΣΤΡΕΨΙΑΔΗΣ. τί δ ̓ ἄρ ̓; ἢν ἅρπαγα τῶν δημοσίων κατίδωσι Σίμωνα, τί δρῶσιν ;
ΣΩΚΡΑΤΗΣ. ἀποφαίνουσαι τὴν φύσιν αὐτοῦ, λύκοι ἐξαίφνης ἐγένοντο.
ΣΤΡΕΨΙΑΔΗΣ. ταῦτ ̓ ἄρα, ταῦτα Κλεώνυμον αὗται τὸν ρίψασπιν χθὲς ἰδοῦσαι,
ὅτι δειλότατον τοῦτον εώρων, ἔλαφοι διὰ τοῦτ ̓ ἐγένοντο.
ΣΩΚΡΑΤΗΣ. καὶ νῦν ὅτι Κλεισθένη εἶδον, ὁρᾷς, διὰ τοῦτ' ἐγένοντο γυναῖκες,
Aristophanes. Νεφέλαι· 355.

Socrates. Hast thou ne'er seen a cloud which thou could'st fancy
Shap'd like a centaur, leopard, wolf, or bull?
Strepsiades. Yea, marry, have I, and what then?
Socrates.

Why then
Clouds can assume what shape they will, believe me ;
For instance; should they spy some hairy clown
Rugged and rough and like the unlick'd cub

And now,

Of Xenophantes, straight they turn to centaurs,

And kick at him for vengeance.
Strepsiades.

Well done, clouds !
But should they spy that peculating knave,

Simon, that public thief, how would they treat him?
Socrates. As wolves-in character most like his own.
Strepsiades. Aye, there it is now, when they saw Cleonymus,

That dastard runaway, they turn'd to hinds

In honour of his cowardice.
Socrates.

Having seen Clisthenes, to mock his lewdness
They change themselves to women.

Cumberland's Translation.
Ainsi dans l'air de mobiles nuages
A l'oeil frappé presentent tour a tour
De mille objets les changeantes images ;
C'est un coursier, un dragon, un vautour;
C'est un clocher, c'est une vielle tour;
C'était un nain, et puis c'est Briarée;
Tableau vivant, vain jouet de Borée,
Où chaque objet, qui passe et se détruit,
Est sans rapport avec l'objet qui suit.

La Naissance de la Mode par Maurice Seguier.
I should certainly bave broken out That hight Phantastes by his nature tres,
into a titter at the flatness of this
conclusion, but that Iris's expostula- His chamber was dispainted all within
tion, delivered in something of that With sundry colours, in the which were
termagant tone which she had pro- writ
bably learnt of her mistress when Infinite shapes of things dispersed thin;
rating Jupiter, was still ringing in Some such as in the world were never yit,
my ears; and now resuming in a

Ne can devized be of mortall wit; milder voice, she desired me, since I Some daily seene and knowen by their was so marvellously fond of sky fur- Such as in idle fantasies do flit ;

names, niture, to look up and see where I Infernal hags, centaurs, feendes, hippa I obeyed not without shud

dames, dering; and raising, as I thought, Apes, lyons, eagles, owles, fooles, lovers, my head from my arm (though I had children,

(B. 2. c. 9.) all the while beheld her just as plainly as if I had not continued in that The third limner appeared to me posture) looked round and saw on between the old Grecian and this airy every side of an immense hall an in- being; but some of the pictures he finite assortment of vapours, disposed had been employed on, and especially in the most antic shapes imaginable; two from the Midsummer Night's some painted, some sketched; somé Dream, bore such admirable marks in alto, some in basso relievo; many of diligence in the finishing of them, like rude hints of some future design; that I could not but wonder how others like fragments of a foregone qualities apparently so irreconcileable glory. At a table in the midst of had been thus united, till by one of the hall, there appeared to be seated those sudden revolutions so frequent three painters who were very busily in dreams, fancying that as Iris was employed in copying the strange changed into Titania, so I had myself things about them. Him on the become identified with Bottom the right I immediately knew to be that weaver, I raised my band up to my Theon the Samian, whom Quintilian head to try if it were indeed as hairy speaks of as being most excellent at as it seemed to be in the picture, conceiving visions, which they call when either the exertion or the ludiphantasies (concipiendis visionibus, crousness of the image broke off my quas pavracias vocant, præstantissi- slumber, and I found myself waking mus). Opposite to him was the cun- in a very agreeable fit of laughter. ning artist, spoken of in the Faery Queen:

was.

SPANISH ROMANCES.

No. VI.

Or the fictitious Romances, none matists of Spain, and who has been is so popular as the History of the often happy in his choice of subjects, Count Alarcos; and, though long, has a tragedy founded on this story, I venture to give it entire, intention- entitled El Conde Alarcos; and the ally preserving the desultory spirit “awful tale" has been versified in a of the original, and the unvarying great variety of ways.

I have serhyme, which in the Spanish is re- veral copies of this Romance, and markably harmonious and character, there are slight variations in them. istic. It seems to me full of tragic That I have employed, is one of the situations, pourtrayed with rare reprints, of which tens of thousands simplicity and pathos. Rojas, whom circulate in the southern provinces I take to be one of the finest dra- of the Peninsula.

Essa culpa la infanta

This has been thy fault, infanta ! vuestra era que no mia, Thine the fault, and blame not me; que ya fuerades casada Long ago 1 had espoused thee con el principe de Vngria

With the prince of Hungary; no quesistes escuchar,

But thou turn’dst away disdainful la embaxada que os venia From his suppliant embassy. pues aca en las nuestras cortes Here

among our Spanish Cortes, hija mal recaudo auia,

There was no nobility: porque en todos los mis reynos There was none in all my kingdom vuestro par ygual no auia High enough to wed with theesino era el conde Alarcos Save alone the Count Alarcosque hijos y muger tenia

Who had wife and family. Combidadlo vos el Rey

King ! invite the Count Alarcos al conde Alarcos yn dia

To your table, and from me, y despues que ayays comido

Soon as your repast is over, dezidle de parte mia

Bid him on his fealty, dezidle que se acuerde

Bid him all his vows remember, de la fe que del tenia,

All his pledged sincerity; la qual el me prometio

Tell him of his plighted promiseque yo no sela pedia

Promise never forced by me, de ser siempre mi marido That he would become my husband, y yo que sa muger seria,

And that I his wife should be: yo fuy d'ello muy contenta I was happy then-and never y que no me arrepentia,

From that hour repented mesi caso con la condessa

If he married with the countess, que mirara lo que hazia 'Twas his own foul treachery; que por el no me case

When for him I had rejected con el Principe de Vngria, The young prince of Hungary. si caso con la condessa

And if he espoused the countess, del es culpa que no mia.

Let him blame himself—not me! Perdiera el Rey en oyrla Hardly could the shuddering monarch el sentido que tenia,

Check his rising agony; mas despues en si tornado But his outward thoughts repressing, con enojo respondia,

Thus he answer'd angrily :No son estos los consejos Far, far different were the counsels que vuestra madre os dezis Which thy mother gave to thee, muy mal mirastes infanta And my honour, O infanta ! do estaua la honrra mia,

Thou hast wounded cruelly. si verdad es todo esso

And if this be true, thy honour vuestra honrra ya es perdida Thou hast wreck'd unblushingly ; do podeys vos ser casada For the countess lives

thou never, siendo la condessa biua

Never canst espoused be; si se haze el casamiento Honour, justice, my infanta, por razon o por justicia In such nuptials ne'er agree; en el dezir de las gentes Scorn will wait thee, shame attack thee, por mala sereys tenida

Scorn, and shame, and infamy. dad me vos hija consejo, Give me counsels, I intreat thee, qu'el mio no bastaria

Mine avail me not—and she que ya es muerta vuestra madre She thy mother is departed, a quien consejo pedia.

Who was wont to counsel me.. Pues yo os lo dare buen Rey I will give thee counsel, monarch! deste poco que tenia,

Let thy guide my counsel bemate el conde a la condessa Bid the count destroy the countess, que nadie no lo sabria

No one shall suspect 'twas he; y eche fama que ella es muerta Let it all abroad be bruited de vn cierto mal que tenia

That she died of malady; y tratar se ha el casamiento Then we may arrange our marriage, como cosa no sabida,

As a thing of novelty: desta manera buen Rey And, good king ! my sacred honour mi honrra se guardaria, Shall from every stain be free. de alli se salia el Rey

So the monarch left the infanta, no con plazer que tenia Not, as wonted-cheerfully,