Punctual to the moment of appointment, Mr. Wilmot led his young friends into the gallery; and, after giving them leave to range round it, he begged that they would select a subject for the morning’s entertainment.

“Then, Sir,” said Susan, “I should like to be informed who that wounded officer is, and that poor soldier, who, even whilst drinking with eagerness, seems to fix his eyes so intently on him.”

“That officer,” answered Mr. Wilmot, “is Sir Philip Sidney, one of the brightest ornaments of queen Elizabeth’s court; and whose personal endowments were only equalled by his valour and humanity.

“When, at the battle of Zutphen, in the United Provinces, in which he had distinguished himself, his thigh-bone was broken by a musket-shot, in the agony of his wound he called for water: some was brought him, but, as he was lifting it to his lips, the ghastly looks of a dying soldier met his eye. ‘Take this,’ said he, holding the water to him, ‘thy necessities are yet greater than mine.’ We can better estimate the self-denial of this generous act, when we remember that the wound was mortal, and that, after sixteen days of acute suffering, it terminated his valuable life.

“Thus perished, at the early age of thirty-two, this Marcellus of the English nation; at once the pride and ornament of his time—the theme and favourite of song and story.”

“The beautiful anecdote which I have just related to you, inspires a love and esteem for his virtues, which will be retained as long as the name of Sidney shall exist. He is described by the writers of that age, as the most perfect model of an English gentleman, that could be formed, even in imagination; and when to this we add his amiable disposition, his elegant erudition, his rare talents and dauntless valour, we are prepared to estimate the demonstrations of grief which were expressed for his loss, and the almost unexampled honours paid to his memory. The court went into mourning for him, and his remains received a magnificent funeral in St. Paul’s: the United Provinces having in vain requested permission to inter him at their own expence, promising that he should have as fair a tomb as any prince in Christendom. Elizabeth, who had called him ‘her Philip,’ always spoke of him with affectionate regret. The kings of France and Scotland lamented him in verse. Cambridge and Oxford published three volumes of ‘LachrymÆ’ on his death. Spenser in rhyme, and Camden in prose, commemorated and deplored their patron. Lord Brooke was so proud of his friendship, that he directed it to be part of his epitaph, ‘Here lies Sir Philip Sidney’s friend.’ A crowd of humbler votaries emulously strove who best should paint his excellence and loss; and it would be endless to enumerate the names of those who have, in latter times, celebrated, in various forms, the name of Sidney.

“Envy, for a while, seemed to have expired, whilst foreigners and countrymen alike joined in the tribute of respect offered to his memory. Du Plessis Mornay, a celebrated Hugonot leader, condoled with Walsingham on the loss of his incomparable son-in-law, in terms of the deepest sorrow: Count Hohenloe passionately bewailed his friend and fellow-soldier: and even the obdurate heart of Philip the Second, was touched by the untimely fate of his god-son.

“Henry Sidney, the father of this accomplished young nobleman, was a man endowed with wisdom and talent. Exemplary in his own conduct, he sought to infuse into the mind of his son, the purest and most elevated moral principles. Nor was his laudable conduct—his parental solicitude—disappointed: he saw, in the brilliant career of his beloved son, his warmest wishes anticipated, his fondest hopes realized.

“That Philip Sidney, whilst on his travels, though still very young, conducted himself with prudence, and displayed much soundness and clearness of principle, may be inferred from his obtaining the friendship of Hubert Languet, a celebrated protestant at Frankfort. And, though his character was not faultless, though he partook of some of the errors incident to his age and station, yet, as a man—a high-souled and accomplished man—he had, among his contemporary countrymen, neither equal nor competitor.

“Flattery has long since ceased to spread her meretricious splendour round his name, and the historian can now calmly examine the pretensions to that merit, which not only England, but Europe, attached to his short-lived but brilliant career; and she can, with confidence and complacency, enrol him amongst the noble few, whose example may be held up as a beacon to youth, and still serve to kindle the animating glow of emulation.

“His death was worthy of the best parts of his life: he showed himself, at the last, devout, courageous, and serene. His last words are worthy of remembrance, they were uttered with seriousness and composure: ‘Love my memory; cherish my friends: their fidelity to me, may assure you that they are honest. But, above all, govern your wills and affections by the will and word of your Creator. In me, behold the end of this world and its vanities.’

“His wife, the beautiful daughter of Walsingham; his brother Robert, to whom he had performed the part of an indulgent and anxious parent rather than that of a brother; and many sorrowful friends, surrounded his bed. Their grief was, beyond doubt, sincere and poignant, as well as that of the many persons of letters and of worth, who gloried in his friendship, and flourished by his bountiful patronage. He was the author of a romance, entitled ‘Arcadia,’ now only known to the curious in literature.”

Whilst Mrs. Spencer and Susan were expressing their high admiration of the character of Sir Philip Sidney, Ann was busily examining a picture which hung next to the before-mentioned painting. As soon as the observations on this last subject had ceased, she eagerly enquired whose rustic dwelling it represented.

Mr. Wilmot replied: “That of Edmund Spenser, one of our first genuine poets; whose rich and melodious strains will find their way to the tastes of the real lovers of minstrelsy, as long as inexhaustible fertility of invention, truth, fluency, and vivacity of description, copious learning, and a pure, amiable, and heart-ennobling morality, shall be prized among the students of English literature.

“From the circumstance of Spenser’s being entered as a sizar at Cambridge, it is probable that he sprung from an obscure parentage, and possessed but a slender patrimony. His merit, however, soon dawned through the shades that surrounded him; and his intimacy with Stubbs, a noted character of the day, and still more his friendship with Gabriel Harvey, by whom he was introduced to Sir Philip Sidney, attest the superiority of his mental acquirements.

“The choice of his associates, together with some passages in his ‘Shepherd’s Calendar,’ had given rise to the suspicion that he was inclined towards puritanical sentiments; and possibly had some share in the disappointment of a fellowship, which he had hoped to obtain in 1576. Leaving college on this event, he retired for a time into the north of England; but the friendship of Sidney, who was fully capable of appreciating his genius, drew him again from his retirement; and it was at Penshurst that he composed much of the ‘Shepherd’s Calendar,’ published in 1579, under the signature of Immerito, and dedicated to his accomplished patron.

“This year Spenser was sent by the earl of Leicester (probably at his nephew’s request) to France, on some commission; and, in the following, he obtained the post of secretary to lord Grey, and attended him to Ireland.

“Spenser, though the child of fancy and of the Muse, was yet the man of business; and an excellent paper on the state of Ireland, which he drew up at this time, is still read and valued. He received a considerable tract of land out of the forfeited estates of the earl of Desmond; and also the castle of Kilcoman, which henceforth became his residence, and where he had the pleasure of receiving a first visit from Raleigh.

“Similarity of taste and pursuits must soon have created an intimacy between these candidates for fame; and the barbarism and ignorance which surrounded them, must have cemented their friendship, and heightened the pleasure they must have experienced in each other’s society.

“Nor did the seductive blandishments of a court banish from the affections or remembrance of Raleigh, when he returned to England, the tuneful bard whom he had left behind in the ‘emerald isle.’ He mentioned him to the queen with enthusiasm; obtained for him some favours, or promise of favours; and, on the second visit which he made to Ireland, (probably for the purpose of inspecting some large grants which he had himself obtained,) he insisted upon his friend’s returning with him; and hastened to initiate him into those arts of gaining a fortune, which had proved so prosperous to himself. But neither the taste, nor the retiring temper of the poet, was calculated to combat with the intrigues and treacheries of this heart-sickening scene; nor yet to endure the servile dependence on another’s will, that must be borne by the pursuer of courtly fortune. Bitterly did he regret his learned leisure, and deplore the mistaken kindness which had taught him to forsake retirement and ease, for the ‘solitude of a crowd, where all around were either foes or strangers.’ He has left upon lasting record, in a few brief, energetic lines, his warning to others, his grief and repentance; and, hastening back to obscurity, he prepared to earn that title to immortal fame, which will ever attend the author of the ‘Faery Queen.’ This great work appeared in 1589, with a preface addressed to Raleigh, and a considerable number of recommendatory poems; one of which, a sonnet of great elegance, is marked by the initials of that same patronizing friend.

“The premature death of Spenser, under circumstances of severe distress, now called forth the sympathy and bitter regrets of the friends of English literature. After witnessing the destruction of his whole property, including the plunder of his house, by the Irish rebels, he fled to England for shelter. The fifty pounds per annum, which he enjoyed as her majesty’s poet laureate, being apparently his only resource, he took up his abode in an obscure lodging in London, and pined away in penury and despondence.

“The genius of this great poet, formed on the most approved models of the time, and exercised upon themes peculiarly congenial to its taste, received, in all its plenitude, that homage of contemporary applause, which has sometimes failed to reward the nobler masters of the lyre.

“The adventures of chivalry, and the dim shadowings of moral allegory, were almost equally the delight of a romantic, a serious, and a learned age. It was also a point of loyalty to admire, in ‘Gloriana,’ ‘Queen of Faery,’ or in ‘The Empress Mercilla,’ the avowed types of the graces and virtues of her majesty; and she herself had discernment sufficient to distinguish between the brazen trump of vulgar flattery, with which her ear was sated, and the pastoral reed of antique frame, tuned sweetly to her praise by Colin Clout.

“Spenser was interred with great solemnity in Westminster Abbey, by the side of Chaucer; the generous Essex defraying the expences of the funeral, and walking himself as a mourner. That ostentatious but munificent woman, Ann, countess of Dorset, Pembroke, and Montgomery, erected a handsome monument to his memory, several years afterwards. The brother poets who attended his obsequies, threw elegies and sonnets into the grave; and, of the more distinguished votaries of the Muse in that day, there is scarcely one who has withheld his tribute to the memory of this beautiful author. Shakspeare, in one of his sonnets, had already testified his high delight in his works.

“Joseph Hall, afterwards eminent as a bishop, a preacher, and a polemic, but, at this time, a young student at Emanuel College, has more than one complimentary allusion to the poems of Spenser, in his ‘Toothless Satires,’ printed in 1597.”

“I think you mentioned, Sir,” said Mrs. Spencer, “that it was in Ireland Sir Walter Raleigh first became acquainted with the illustrious bard. Did Sir Walter spend much of his time there? Perhaps you will oblige us by some account of him.”

“Willingly,” answered Mr. Wilmot. “Ireland, in particular, was the scene of several of the early exploits of that brilliant and extraordinary genius, Walter Raleigh; and it was out of his service in this country, that an occasion arose for his appearing at court, which he had the talent so to improve, as to make it the origin of all his favour and advancement.

“Raleigh was the poor youngest son, of a decayed but ancient family in Devonshire. His education at Oxford was yet incomplete, when the ardour of his disposition encouraged him to join a band of a hundred volunteers, led by his relation, Henry Champernon, in 1569, to the aid of the French protestants. Here he served a six years’ apprenticeship to the art of war; after which, returning to his own country, he gave himself for awhile to the more tranquil pursuits of literature; for ‘both Minervas claim’d him as their own.’

“In 1578 he resumed his arms, under general Norris, commander of the English forces in the Netherlands. The next year, ambitious of a new kind of glory, he accompanied that gallant navigator, Sir Humphrey Gilbert, his half-brother, in a voyage to Newfoundland. This expedition proving unfortunate, he obtained, in 1580, a captain’s commission in the Irish service; and, recommended by his vigour and capacity, rose to be governor of Cork.

“A quarrel with lord Grey put a stop to his promotion in Ireland; and, on following this nobleman to England, their difference was brought to a hearing before the privy council, when the great talents, and uncommon flow of eloquence, exhibited by Raleigh in pleading his own cause, by raising the admiration of all present, proved the means of introducing him to the presence of the queen. His comely person, fine address, and prompt proficiency in the arts of a courtier, did all the rest; and he rapidly rose to such a height of favour, as to inspire with jealousy even him who had long stood foremost in the good graces of his sovereign.

“It is recorded of Raleigh, during the early days of his court attendance, when a few handsome suits of clothes formed almost the sum total of his worldly wealth, that, as he was accompanying the queen in one of her daily walks, she arrived at a miry spot, and stood in perplexity how to pass. With an adroit presence of mind, the courtier pulled off his cloak, and threw it on the ground to serve her for a foot-cloth. She accepted with pleasure an attention which flattered her; and it was afterwards quaintly said, that the spoiling of a cloak had gained him many good suits.

“As a soldier, a statesman, and a scholar, Raleigh was eminently distinguished through the whole reign of Elizabeth. He rendered her many important services; and she not only acknowledged them, but protected and encouraged him in the enterprises which he projected. He was the discoverer of Virginia, and took effectual measures for promoting its prosperity. His active enterprises against the Spaniards, both in Europe and South America, excited the particular enmity of the court of Spain, which used every means to effect his destruction. During the reign of Elizabeth, these machinations were fruitless; but, on the accession of James the First, Sir Walter lost his interest at court, was stripped of his employments, and unjustly accused and condemned for a plot against the king. He was afterwards trusted by James with a commission of considerable importance, and thus virtually pardoned for all supposed offences. The malice of his enemies at last prevailed against him; and he was pusillanimously sacrificed to appease the Spaniards, who, whilst Raleigh lived, thought every part of their dominions in danger.

“He was executed in Old Palace-yard, in the sixty-sixth year of his age. His behaviour on the scaffold was manly, unaffected, and even cheerful. Being asked by the executioner which way he would lay his head, he answered: ‘So the heart be right, it is no matter which way the head lies.’

“During his imprisonment, he wrote the following affecting letter to his son; and, as it contains many solemn and affecting admonitions, and testifies the influence of religion on his mind, I shall read it to you.

“‘My son, let my experienced advice and fatherly instructions sink deep into thy heart. Seek not riches basely, nor attain them by evil means: destroy no man for his wealth, nor take any thing from the poor; for the cry thereof will pierce the heavens; and it is most detestable before God, and most dishonourable before worthy men. Nor wrest any thing from the laborious and needy soul: God will never prosper thee, if thou offendest therein. Use thy poor neighbours and tenants well: have compassion on the poor and afflicted, and God will bless thee for it. Make not the hungry soul sorrowful; for if he curse thee in the bitterness of his spirit, his prayer shall be heard of him that made thee.

“‘Now for the world, dear child: I know it too well to persuade thee to dive into the practices of it: rather stand upon thy guard against all those that tempt thee to it, or may practise upon thee, thy conscience, thy reputation, or thy estate. Be assured, that no man is wise or safe, but he that is honest. Serve God, commend all thy endeavours to him, who will either wither or prosper them. Please him with prayer; lest, if he frown, he confound all thy fortune and labour, like the drops of rain upon the sandy ground. May God direct thee in all thy ways, and fill thy heart with his grace!’

“He also wrote a letter of consolation, and filled with pious sentiments, to his wife; but the specimen I have given you, will serve to exemplify the prepared state of his mind, previous to the solemn event.

“An engagement this morning,” said Mr. Wilmot, “obliges me now to conclude; and we will, therefore, quit the gallery.”