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The Galaxy, that milky way,

Which nightly, as a circling zone, thou seest
Powder'd with stars-

*

"The

That ingenious critic thus explains this passage. milky way, which every night appears to you like a circling zone, besprinkled or embroidered with stars." He subjoins, "To the majority of readers, I dare say, powder'd with stars, has ever appeared a very mean, or rather ridiculous metaphor." That this was a signification of the verb powder, in ancient literature, he proves by an allegation of numerous authorities, from Spencer, Jonson, Sydney, Harrington, Chaucer, Sackville, and Sandys. In confirmation of the sense here assigned to the word in question, I shall beg leave, by means of your Miscellany, to add an example or

two.

We find powder, in the sense embroider, latinised (unless it be, that the Latin gave rise to the English word) in Dugdale's Monasticon; in a recital of the relics, vestments, &c. belonging to the chapel of St. George, at Windsor, viz. Under the article Verilla. " Item duo Vexilla poudrata cum armis domini regis Angliæ." " Also two banners embroidered with the arms of our Lord the King of England." Again under the article Velum cum Ridellis." || " Item unum Velum quadragesimale, &c.-Et albi coloris cum garteris, et aquilis auro poudratis."" Also one veil for Lent, &c.-And another white veil with garters and eagles embroidered in gold."§ Again, under the article lape." Et alia de blodio satin pouderato cum arboribus aureis," "And another cope of red satin embroidered with golden trees." Again under the article panni. "Unus de serico pouderato cum diversis avibus et floribus." "One cloth of silk embroidered with diverse birds and flowers."** And in other passages of the same inventory.

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The word likewise occurs in some original MS. collections, which I have lately consulted, relating to the treasury of the college of Stoke, by Clare, in the county of Suffolk, which were drawn from the registers of that college, about

B. vii. v. 579.

Sect, xi. p, 264.

Tom. iii. part 2. Sub. Tit. Ecclesiæ Collegiat. Canonic. Sæcul. Edit, Savoy, Londin. 1673. p. 87,

||Ridellum, is a curtain. Fr. Rideau. Du Fresne, Glossar, Vol. iii, p. 610, P. 85.

P. 81.

** P. 82..

the time of its suppression, by its last dean, the memorable Matthew Parker, afterwards archbishop of Canterbury, viz. "Thirdly, a chesable* of white cloth powder'd with costly images and angels of gold, togidder with orphreyst of gold, having the Trinity in the back, the Holy Ghost being of pearl, and also, divers pearles in the other images, with two tunicles of the same suit powdred, and ecchone with morses. And three albes and amisses with their apparell; the stoll is differing: of the gift of Hen, Longforde, sometime treasurer."

I remember also to have seen this word in Stowe's Chronicle, concerning a robe of Cardinal Wolsey; and in a description of the furniture of a magnificent masque exhibited before the court of Henry VIII.

'I cannot dismiss this subject without recommending the rational and effectual method employed by Mr. Warton in explaining Spencer; which principally consists in examining those books which Spencer had most probably read, and in tracing out his several allusions to the manners and customs which were fashionable and familiar when he composed his poem. Unless this be carefully done in criticising an author of so remote a period, many beauties must necessarily be lost with the object to which they are united, " as the figures vanish, when the canvass has decayed§."

Yours, &c.

1758, Feb.

A. A.

* Casula signifies a priestly vestment covering the whole body. Hence came Cassibula, which signifies the same, and occurs in the will of W. Longspee, Earl of Salisbury, printed by Dug. Monast. Tom. ii. p. 79. He bequeaths among other things, "Cassibulam de rubeo samito, et unam capam chori de rubeo samito.” It is sometimes written Casubule, and is found in Faustus Monachus, in vit. I, Papponis Abbatis, Cap. xiv. No. 58. “ In celebratione missarum, Casubulam qua induebatur lacrymis humectabat." Chasuble is an old French word for a priest's habit, and hence the word Chesable in the text; which is frequently met with in monastic inventories.

+ Orphreys interpreted by Speght, Gloss. to Chaucer, “Frizzelled cloth of gold." But it more properly significs" gold fringe." Lat, Aurifrisium, not the cloth itself, but its appendage. Hence by degrees it came to signify any border in general. Vid. Dugd. Monast. Tom. iii. part 1. « Two copies, having an orphrey of red velvet." p. 296.-" Tunicles with orphreys of needle work. p. 297. A narrow, orphrey of pearles." p. 293. Eccles. Cath. Lincoln.

Morses, Buckles. Lat. Morsus. Buckles were a striking decoration in the sacerdotal apparel. The curious reader may find various sorts of them described among the vestments, &c. of the church at York, Monastic. vol. 3. part 1. p. 173, 174. and of St. Paul, p. 309. And of St. George's chapel at Windsor, part 2, p. 83.

§ Johnson's proposals for a new edition of Shakespeare, p. 4.

XXVIII. Chaucer's Description of the Sleep of Plants.

MR. URBAN,

THE botanists pretend to have made a new discovery, which they call by a very pretty metaphorical name, the sleep of plants. I, Sir, who am no botanist in the least, have been long impressed with a notion that plants, some more and some less, are naturally contracted in their petals and leaves, by the coldness of the evening air, and on the contrary are expanded again by the return of the genial warmth of the sun. That this is so, is agreeable to nature and matter of fact, and that it should be so, is as consonant to reason. The fact is remarkably observable in the daisy, which towards the evening always erects and brings close its petals, and in the day time as constantly displays them. And this observation, concerning this flower, is as old as the time of Jeffrey Chaucer, who in the proeme to the Legende of good women, has the following lines.

59. There lovith no wight hartyer alyve,
And whan that it is evyn I rynne belyve,
As sone as the sone ginneth to west,
To see this floure, how it woll go to rest,
For fere of night, so hatith the darkenes,
Her chere is plainly spread in brightnesse
Of the sonne for then it will unclose:

I have a MS. of this part of the author, from whence, to spare the trouble of reporting various readings, I have transcribed the above passage literatim. Those who are curious may compare it, if they please, with the printed copies of Chaucer, since there are some variations, which I think preferable to what at present are read in Mr. Urry; however there are none that concern the subject of this letter. I proceed therefore to remark, 1st. That the shutting and opening of the flower is very plainly noticed. 2dly, That the poet has even pre-occupied the metaphor now used upon this occasion, going to rest, expressing very fully the modern term of the sleep of plants. 3dly. That this appearance is ascribed, by the author, to the flower's hating darkness and loving light, and not to the chilling cold of the evening and the warmth of the sun in the day. For darkness here is to be understood literally; the author having a

particular notion of his own in this respect, as is plain from the etymology which he afterwards gives of its name. But before I transcribe that, I would note, that the author mentions again the opening of the flower in the morning, at v. 110, where he calls it its resurrection, and again at v. 117 and 123. Now, Sir, as to the etymon; he thinks it was called the daisy, quasi, the day's eye, oculus Diei; for so he writes at v. 180. as in my MS.

it

The longe daie I shope me to abide
For nothing ells, and I shall nat lie,
But for to looke upon the daisie,
That well by reson men it call maie
The dayes ye, or els the ye of the daie.

I doubt the author is not right in his conjecture, for the word daisy comes rather, according to Dr. Skinner, from the French dais or daiz, a canopy; this flower having something of a resemblance to a canopy of state. But this is of no consequence in the present case, since the author deduces very well for his purpose, which was to express in it. an abhorrence of darkness and a love of light. However, the figure of a canopy, or crown, is so obvious in this flower, that this author could not avoid taking notice of it, though he gives to the word a different etymology, hence he writes, v. 212, as it is in the MS.

And fro me farre came walking in the mede
The God of love, and on his hande a quene,
And she was clad in a roiall habite grene,
A fret of golde she had next her here,
And upon that a white crowne she bere
With floures small, and I shall not lie,
For all the world right as a daisie
I crounid is, with white levis lite,
So were the floures of her crowne white,
And of perle fyne and oryentall

Her white crowne was markidall,

For the which the white crowne above the
Made her like a daisie for to sene,

Considderith eke her fret of gold above.

grene,

Mr. Urry here has considered, which is certainly better. Chaucer again alludes to the same resemblance, v. 527. seg.

I will detain you no longer with transcripts, but leave you and the reader to consult the passage at leisure.

1758, June.

Yours, &c.

PAUL GEMSEGE.

XXIX. Critique on a Passage in Horace.

MR. URBAN,

A VERY elegant author, in his treatise de Arte Poetica, lays down amongst his other rules, the following maxim :

Cui lecta potenter erit res,

Nec facundia deseret hunc, nec lucidus ordo.

HOR. A. P. 40.

He says, that if the future poet would always chuse a subject, that should be within his compass, he would never either be deficient in method or diction. It is evidently the author's intention to say this, for the maxim immediately follows this precept,

Sumite materiam vestris, qui scribitis, æquam
Viribus; et versate diu, quid ferre recusent,
Quid valeant humeri.-

and the old commentator accordingly explains potenter legere, by secundum quod potest. But, Sir, this expression can never signify to chuse modestly, within one's compass, or, in proportion to our abilities, but rather the contrary, to wit secundum quod non potest, for the adverbs formed from the participles sapiens, potens, prudens, &c. do not express proportion, as when we say, in proportion to, but quality. Thus sapienter means wisely, or in a wise manner; potenter, powerfully, or in a powerful manner; and prudenter, prudently, or in a prudent manner; consequently potenter legere will signify to chuse boldly, rather than modestly, which is directly opposite to the author's intention. Now it appears from the old commentator above cited, that the reading here, notwithstanding this inconsistency, is ancient, but still I would submit it to the critics, to judge, whether Horace did not write,

-Cui lecta pudenter erit res,

Nec facundia deseret hunc, nec lucidus ordo.

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