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A20832
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The owle by Michaell Drayton ...
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Drayton, Michael, 1563-1631.
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1604
(1604)
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STC 7213; ESTC S1539
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20,271
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58
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THE OWLE By Michaell Drayton Esquire Noctuas Athenas PRVDENS NON LOQVAX LONDON Printed by E. A. for E. VVhite and N. Ling. and are to solde neere the little north doore of S. Paules Church at the signc of the Gun 1604. TO THE WORTHY AND MY MOST ESTEEMED Patron Sir VValter Aston Knight of the Honorable Order of the BATH FOr the shril Trumpet and sterne Tragick sounds Objects out-ragious and so full of feare Our Pen late steep'd in English Barons wounds Sent war-like accents to your tune-full eare Our actiue Muse to gentler Morals dight Her slight conceits in humbled tunes doth sing And with the Bird regardlesse of the light Slowely doth moue her late high-mounting wing The wreathe is Iuye that ingirts our browes Where-in this Nights-Bird harboreth all the day We dare not looke at other Crowning boughes But leaue the Lawrell vnto them that may Lowe as the earth though our Inuention moue High yet as heauen to you our spotles loue Michaell Drayton To the Reader REader I thinke it not amisse breefely to let thee know that a yeere is almost now past since this small Poeme was lastly finished At which time it gaue place by my inforcement vndertaking then in the generall joye of the Kingdome and my zeale to his Highnesse to write his Majesties descent in a Poeme gratulatorie And now for that this subject may perhapes seeme idle and worthlesse I might this answere to him that will see in reading or read with vnderstanding that the greatest maisters in this Arte though my selfe not for any affectation of singularitie haue written vpon as sleight matter As the Princes of the Greckes and Latines the first of the Frogges warre the latter of a poore Gnatte and VIDA verie wittilie of the Chest-playe and Silke-worme Besides many other that I could recite of the like kinde By how much immateriall so much the more difficult to handle with any encommiastick defence or passionate comparison as their strong testimonie who can giue vertue her due and by the powrefulnes of witte maintaine vice not viciously Some other likewise in a paradoxicall manner as ISOCRATES Oration in prayse of HELLEN whom al the world dispray seth AGRIPPA'S declamation vponthe vanitie of the Sciences which knowledge all the world admireth Thus leauing thee fauorablie to censure of my poore labours I ende M. DR In Noctuam Draytoni QVae noua Lemniacas deturbant tela Volucres Quis furor aligero perstringit corpore Graios Transfixo proceres Posita Paeantius irâ Contulit Herculeas ad Troïca fata pharetras Fallimur an puro tonuit pater altus Olympo Aut tremuit sonitu Phoebaej Caelifer arcus Novimus augurium tanto Deus ille tumultu Sacrorum exagitat mortalia pectora vatum Hinc furor in syluas Draytouum mittit oberrat Hinc saltus nullo signatos tramite Musa Hinc in aëriam libratur machina gentem Quae ferit immemores iterato verbere reges Proterit Vulgus audaci more profanum Eia age dum crebrò fugiat tremebundus abictu Immitis seruus vitij dece dat aboris Anglorum longè lustratis lampade sancta Cujus conjuncti exultant fulgore Britanni A. GRENEVVAI THE OVVLE WHat time the Sunne by his all-quickning power Giues life and birth to euery plant and flower The strength and feruor of whose pregnant ray Buds euery branche and blossomes euery spray As the frim sap the yeerly course assyg'nde From the full roote doth swell the plenteous rynde The vitall spirits long nourisht at the hart Flye with fresh fier to each exterior parte Which stirres desire in hot and youthfull bloods To breath their deare thoughts to the listning woods With those light flocks the garish fieldes frequent This frolick season luckylie I went And as the rest did did I franckly too Least is he marck'd that doth as most men doo But whether by some casuall defect All Flowers alike the time did not respect Some whose new rootes ne're saw a former May Floorish now faire those withered quite away Into my thoughts that incidently brings Th' inconstant passage of all worldly things The rarest worke whereat wee wonder long Obscur'd by time that enuie could not wrong And what in life can mortall men desier That scarsly comm'n but quickly doth retier The Monarchies had time to grow to head And at the height their conquered howers fled And by their wane those latter kingdomes rose That had their age to winne their howers to lose Which with much sorrow brought into my minde Their wretched soules so ignorantly blinde When euen the great'st things in the world vnstable Clyme but to fall and damned for a bable Whil'st thus my thoughts were strongly entertain'd The greatest lampe of heauen his height had gayn'd Seeking some shade might lend content to me Loe neere at hand I spy'd a goodly tree Vnder the'xtenture of whose lordly armes The small Birds warbled their harmonious charmes Where sitting downe to coole the burning heate Through the moist pores euap'rating by sweate Yeelding my pleas'd thought to content by chance Vpon a suddaine drop't into a trance Wherein me thought some God or power deuine Did my cleere knowledge wondrously refine For that amongst those sundry varying notes Which the Birds sent from their Melodious throats Each Siluan sound I truely vnderstood Become a perfect Linguist of the Wood Their flight their song and euery other signe By which the world did anciently deuine As the old Tuskans in that skill profound Which first great Car and wise Tyresias found To me bequeath'd their knowledge to discry The depth and secrets of their Augury One I could heare appoynting with his sweeting A place conuenient for their secret meeting Others when Winter shortly should declyne How they would couple at Saint Valentine Some other Birds that of their Loues for saken To the close desarts had themselues betaken And in the darke Groaues where they made aboad Sang many a sad and mournefull Palinod And euery Bird shew'd in his proper kinde What vertue nature had to him assignde The pretty Turtle and the kissing Doue Their faiths in Wedlock and chast nuptiall Loue The Hens to women sanctitie expresse Hallowing their egges the Swallow clenlinesse Sweeting hir nest and purging it of dong And euery hower is pickiug ofhir yong The Herne by soaring shewes tempestuous showers The princely Cocke bistinguisheth the howers The Kite his traine him guiding in the aire Prescribes the helme instructing how to stere The Crane to labour fearing some rough slawe With sand and grauell burthening his crawe Noted by man which by the same did finde To ballast shippes for steddines in winde And by the forme and order in his flight To march in warre and taught to watch by night The first of house that ere did groundsell lay Which then was homely of rude lome and clay Learn'd of the Martin Philomel in spring Teaching by art her little one to singe By whose cleere voyce sweet musicke first
was found Before Amphyon euer knew a sound Couering with Mosse the deads vnclosed eye The little Red-breast teacheth charitye So many that in sundry things excell Time scarse could serue their properties to tell I cannot iudge if it the place should bee That should present this pretty dreame to mee That neare the Eaues and shelter of a stacke Set to support it at a Beeches backe In a stub'd Ttee with Iuy ouer-growne On whom the sunne had scarsly euer shone A broade-Fac'd Ceature hanging of the wing Was set to sleepe whil'st euery Bird did sing His drowsy head still leaning on his brest For all the sweet tunes Philomel exprest Noe signe of ioy did in his lookes appeere Or euer mou'd his melancholy cheere Ascallaphus that brought into my hed In Ouids changes Metamorphised Or very like but him I read aright Solemne of lookes as he was slowe of sight And to assure me that it was the same The Birds about him strangely woundring came Fye quoth the Lennet tripping on the spray Rowse thee thou sluggish Bird this mirthfull May For shame come forth and leaue thy Luskye nest And haunt these Forrests brauely as the best Take thy delight in yonder goodly Tree Where the sweet Merle and warbling Mauis bee Next quoth the Titmouse which at hand did sit Shake off this moody melancholly fit See the small brooks as through these groues they trauell Sporting for ioy vpon the Siluer grauell Mocke the sweet notes the neighboring Siluans sing With the smooth cadence of their murmuring Each Bee with Hony laden to the thye From Palme to Palme as carelesly they flye Catch the soft winde and him his course bereaues To stay and dally with th'inamored leaues This while the Owle which well himselfe could beare That to their short speech lent a listning eare Begins at length to rowse him in the Beech And to the rest thus frames his reuerend speech O all you feathered Quiresters of nature That mighty power distinguish'd euery creature Gaue seuerall vses vnto euery one As seuerall seedes or things that liue vpon Some as the Larke that takes delight to build Farre from resort amid the Vastie field The Pellican in desarts farre abrode Her deare-lou'd issue safely doth vnload The Sparrowe and the Robinet agen To liue neare to the Mansion place of men And nature wisely which hath each thing taught This Place best fitting my content fore-thought Though not presuming in the statly Trees Yet where fore-sight lesse threatning danger sees The tempest thrilling from the troubled ayre Strikes not the shrub the place of my repayre The Fowlers snares in Ambush neuer lay'd T' intrap my steps which often you betrayd A silent sleepe my gentle fellow Birds By day a calme of sweet content affords By night I tower the heauen deuoy'd of feare Nor dread the Griphon to surprise me theare And into many a secret place I peep And see strange things whilst you securelye sleep Wonder not Birds although my heauie eies By daie seeme dim to see those vanities Happie 's that sight the secret'st thinges can spye By seeming blinde vnto communitie And blest are they that to their owne content See that by night that some by day repent Did not mine nyes seeme dim to others sight Without suspect they could not see so right O sillie creatures happie is the state Thatwayes not pittie nor respecteth hate Better 's that place though homely and obscure Where we repose in safety and secure Then where great Birdes with Lordly tallants seaze Not what they ought but what their fancies please And by their power preuailing in this sorte To rob the poore account it but a sporte Therfore of two I chose the lesser euill Better sit still then rise to meete the deuill Thus the poore Owle vnhappily could preach Some that came neere in compasse of his reach Taking this Item with a generall eare A guilty conscience feeles continuall feare Soone to their sorrow secretly do finde Some that had winck'd not altogether blinde And finding now which they before had heard Wisdome not all in euery garish Bird Shrewdly suspect that breuyting by night Vnder pretence that he was ill of sight Slylie had seene which secretly not kept Simply they wak'd he subtilly had slept The enuious Crow that is so full of spight The hatefull Buzzard and the rauenous Kite The greedy Rauen that for death doth call Spoyling poore Lambs as from their Dams they fall That picketh out the dying creatures eye The theeuish Dawe and the dissembling Pye That onely liue vpon the poorers spoyle That feede on Dung-hilles by thelothsome foyle The Woodpecker whose hardned beake hath broke And perc'd the hart of many a sollid Oke That where the Kingly Eagle wont to pray In the calme shade in heate of Summers day Of thousand of faire Trees there stands not one For him to pearch or set his foote vpon And now they see they safely had him here T' eschew th' effect of euery future feare Vppon the suddaine all these murdrous fowle Fasten together on the harmeles Owle The cruell Kite because his clawes were keene Vpon his broad-face wreaks his angry teene His weasant next the rauenous Rauen plyes The Pye and Buzzard tugging at his eyes The Crow is digging at his brest amaine The sharp-nebd Hecco stabbing at his brayne That had the Falcon not by chance bene neere That lou'd the Owle and held him onely deere Come to his rescue at the present tyde The honest Owle vndoubtedly had dyde And whilst the gentle Bird doth yet pursue The ryot done by this rebellious crue The lesser Birds that keep the lower spring There-at much greeue with wofull murmuring Yet wanting power to remedy his wrongs Who tooke their liues restrained not their tonguest The Larke the Lennet and the gentler sorte Those sweete Musitions with whose shrill reporte The senceles woods and the obdurate rocke Haue oft bene moou'd the warbling Throstle Cocke The Ousell and the Nightingale among That charmes the night calme by her powerfull song In Phaebus Lawrell that do take delight Whom Ioues fearce thunder hath no Power to smite Iustice say they ah whether art thou fled Or this vyle world hast thou abandoned O why fayre vertue wer 't thou made in vaine Freedome is lost and libertie is slayne Whylst some whose power restrained not their rage Loudly exclame vpon the enuyous age That rockes for pettie doe resume them eares The earth so wette with plentie of their teares But thus it haps in heat of all these things As Kings rules realms God rules the harts of Kings The Princely Eagle leauing his abode Was from his Court stolne secretly abrode And from the couert closely where he stood To finde how things were censur'd in the wood Farre in the thickets might a chattring heare To which soone lending an officious eare With a still flight his easie course doth make Towards where the sound he perfectly doth take At euery stroke with his