The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1866-07-10 00:00:00

Literature.

KM) ALIRSD'S POEMS (now first turned into
1.:41mb metres by Martin F. Tupper, D.C. L , F. E. S.,
auth,r " l'roverbial Philosophy.") This curious
wol really pleasing and amusing production of the
It iron,' author is, he tells us, in the nature of • pilot
balloon. It had been intended to bring out 'Jubilee
Edition of King Alfred's complete works, but in
ilder to impart to it the splendour, care, and
iruning doe to the royal founder of the Anglo-
Sixon race, time is essential, and the present publi•
ration is offered as "a small and perhaps a popular
lad. of King Alfred's mind." We confess ourselves
taken by surprise, for although the Latin original
of lioethies had furnished some notion of the
merits of the poems themselves, nothing approach-
ing the spirit and simplicity of King Alfred's Saxes
translation could be hoped for in that stately and
collocated Latin, involved as its prose structure is,
not to speak of its verse. With quaint simplicity
we are told "Alfred, King, was the translator of
this book: and from Book• Latin turned it into
English as it is now done, Awhile be put word for
; awhile sense for mow He learned this
hick, and turned it from Latin to the English prose,
30d made it again into wing, so se it is now done."
This unique specimen of King Alfred's poetic powers
opens the most curious chapter we can conceive in
English literature, and we are indebted for it to the
analog and thoroughly English genius of Dr.
Tupper, who has here rendered • singular service to
the history of the Anglo.ffaxon tongue, besides
performiug a rhythmical feat, of which we shall
speak presently, and reproducing almost literally a
most enchanting little volume of early English.
Boetbius, • Roman Consul, and yet • Christian
writer of the sth cautery, having stood up %mania
the usurpations of the Emperor Theodoric, was by
that monarch met into prison and °emoted; during
his six months imprisonment he wrote the prom and
eerie of his "Consolations of Philosophy." King
Alfred translated them both into Anglo-Baton; but
the poetry alone is here translated or rather para-
phrased m it was by Alfred; for he sometimes instead
of following strictly an Ode of Hoethins has taken only
and amplified the two first Latin lines as any one
who knows bow pregnant the dead languages are of
meaning may be aware there is • natural tendency
to do in modern translations, for example, in that
inimitable "Crib" Madame Dealer's French prom of
the odes of Homo.. Dr. Tupper, in following King
Alfred's version, has however been under no such
necessity, and he has done exactly the reverse of
this. He has stuck closely to his text, and rather
gloried in Alfred's paraphrastic deviations as indica-
tors). of Salmi originality. "It really is a pity,"
he says, "to rob Alfred of his originality by repre.
smiting any or all of them poems as translations or
even paraphrases. The truth is a good deal of in.
genuity, is required to discover in many cases •
resemblance stall. Alfred has taken up the tune of
.ethius and begins • theme in the key-note of the
Latin, but is SOnn burned away by the rapidly re-
curring alliterations of his own free harp and tongue
and so becomes original." This example memo only
to have incited the fidelity of Dr. Tupper to his
Vit instead of tempting to deviate from it, and,
whilst at the outset of two given renderings of
Alfred's poetic preface, his prefers, perhaps, the leas
attractive of the two because in the batter version
be had not been World enough and had for the
metre's sake been obliged to interpolate two lines;
ci in the progress of his performance we find him
exulting over the retention of nearly 40 words in a
short poem of 120 in the Royal Minstrel's Anglo.
Sinop. As a pleasant example of the general (+area-
t-r of Dr. Topper's task we may cite simply the
o,ening of King Alfred'. Twelfth Ode on the" Dees
of Adversity.'

"Qui mere iIIeDUIIII3 vole! Krona,
Liberia arm prise fmtleibits, ko." Bottling&
S. the will* wyrsau
Wasetmlwere load, ka."—A f /red.
Whose wills to tills field
Well to bear a fruitful yield,
Let him first pluck op and burn
Thorns and (hind, a, fume and fern,
Which are wont clean wheat to hurt,
Lying lifeless In the dirt.
dut of the power sod grandeur of Alfred's mind,
the height and sublimity of his Christian aspirations
another example expanded by the King, from 29
lines of &edges Into a magnificent psalm worthy of
the Christian post and philosopher, is possibly the
most fittipg illustration. It thus concludes
F.arglat now. Ryer Good! and give to us
Tirit ar. our minds we may apex,. to thee,
. . . .

Mob, of all thinp threu-gh 'thaw troublOtta wings;
I from amidst these buoy Mop of life,
. • oder Father Wlrldrir of the *odd,
. .

e .nie unto Thee, sad then through thy good speed
tt'i•h the mind's eye well woad v.ll mwy 511
TII.• welling spring of Good, that Good Thyself
0 Lord, the God of Olory I Then mask* whole
. . .

11).. ever of our understanding, so that
Fstbsi of snarls, &stem them on Thee

Dri.ve away this 'thick wit.whioh lone while now

With hang' before oar mind's eye, he:Ty sod —jerk.
Enlighten now Owes minds' oyee with Thy light,
Master of life ; For thou, 0 tender Father,
Art very brightness of true light Thyself;
Thyself Almighty pion, the sere rest

Of all Thy fia and true ones ; winningly
Thou *Merest it that Thou may see Thyself.
Thou art al all things origin rd

43-LFord nl—alll men ; Father of angels', Thou
1"..111 blatant thinp without toil,
. . .

-. .
Thnu art Thyself tlntiray •nd leader too
....

, .
Of every one that lives, and the pure place
That the way teed' to : all men from this soil
Throughout, the breadth of being yearn to Thee."
Milton might have written this palm if with his
!alai's& habits he oould have preserved it. Scion
simplicity. Well may Dr. Tupper eictaim, "It is
strangely in advance m.fi only of his own age but
positively !of ours." On* word more respecting
the metres adopted by Dr. Topper. The foregoing
ie, we think, the only instance in which he has re-
sorted to blank verve, and it eminently accords with
tbo sublimity of the theme But perhaps the
singularity of hie present performance after all is
that every one of the remaining thirty metres die.
tisictly differs from another. The whole work is •
study of pure Elasoo and skilful rhyming.