"Thou hadst no fame; that which thou didst like good
Was but thy appetite that swayed thy blood
For that time to the best; for as a blast
That through a house comes, usually doth cast
Things out of order, yet by chance may come
And blow some one thing to his proper room,
So did thy appetite, and not thy zeal,
Sway thee by chance to do some one thing well."
FLETCHER'S Faithful Shepherdess.
"The noble hart that harbours vertuous thought
And is with childe of glorious great intent,
Can never rest, until it forth have brought
Th' eternall brood of glorie excellent."
SPENSER, The Faerie Queene.
I had not gone very far before I felt that the turf beneath my feet was
soaked with the rising waters. But I reached the isthmus in safety. It
was rocky, and so much higher than the level of the peninsula, that I
had plenty of time to cross. I saw on each side of me the water rising
rapidly, altogether without wind, or violent motion, or broken waves,
but as if a slow strong fire were glowing beneath it. Ascending a steep
acclivity, I found myself at last in an open, rocky country. After
travelling for some hours, as nearly in a straight line as I could,
I arrived at a lonely tower, built on the top of a little hill, which
overlooked the whole neighbouring country. As I approached, I heard
the clang of an anvil; and so rapid were the blows, that I despaired of
making myself heard till a pause in the work should ensue. It was
some minutes before a cessation took place; but when it did, I knocked
loudly, and had not long to wait; for, a moment after, the door was
partly opened by a noble-looking youth, half-undressed, glowing with
heat, and begrimed with the blackness of the forge. In one hand he held
a sword, so lately from the furnace that it yet shone with a dull fire.
As soon as he saw me, he threw the door wide open, and standing aside,
invited me very cordially to enter. I did so; when he shut and bolted
the door most carefully, and then led the way inwards. He brought me
into a rude hall, which seemed to occupy almost the whole of the ground
floor of the little tower, and which I saw was now being used as a
workshop. A huge fire roared on the hearth, beside which was an anvil.
By the anvil stood, in similar undress, and in a waiting attitude,
hammer in hand, a second youth, tall as the former, but far more
slightly built. Reversing the usual course of perception in such
meetings, I thought them, at first sight, very unlike; and at the second
glance, knew that they were brothers. The former, and apparently the
elder, was muscular and dark, with curling hair, and large hazel eyes,
which sometimes grew wondrously soft. The second was slender and fair,
yet with a countenance like an eagle, and an eye which, though pale
blue, shone with an almost fierce expression. He stood erect, as if
looking from a lofty mountain crag, over a vast plain outstretched
below. As soon as we entered the hall, the elder turned to me, and I saw
that a glow of satisfaction shone on both their faces. To my surprise
and great pleasure, he addressed me thus: