The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-01-30
LORD BACON AS A POET.

LORD BACON AS A POET.
To the Editor of The Times:
The Rev. DIR. Bristol. in his sermon last
Sunday evening on Solomon and Shakes
peare, said. as reported in The Times
Bacon could no more write poetry than
| could" The late James SPEEDING, Ba-
cons most complete biographer, says:
He could imagine like a poet" And
again: Bacon vas not without the fine
frenzy of the poet" and he adds that IL
his genius had taken that direction lit
would have carried him to a place among
the great poets
Speeding also tells us that as early as
1884,. which was four years before any
printed play appeared credited to
Shakespeare, Bacon composed -MasqGes.'
which were essentially plays performed
by young men of the aristocracy. In one
of these Mosques the speaker recites the
following lines:
Seated between the Old World and the New
A land there Is no other land may touch;
There reigns a queen in peace and honor true,
Stories and fables do describe such.
Never did Atlas such a burden bear
As she in holding up the world opprest;
Supplying with her virtue everywhere
Weakness of friends Of servants best.
No nation breeds warmer blood for war,
No age hath ever wits refined 30 far
And vet she Gains them By her policy
To her thy son must make his sacrifice
If he would have the morning OF his eyes.
Shakespeare scholars will recognize
phrases in the above that are repeated in
the plays. Compare it with he speech OF
John Gaunt, in Richard II. Act II. scene /:
This royal of kings, this seeptred isle
This earth OF majesty, this seat Of Mars.
This happy breed OF men. this little world,
This precious stone set in silver sea.
And Act ", scene /
forbid it, God
That in Christian climate. souls refined
Should shew 50 heinous, black, obscene a deed.
And in this seat of peace
And IN Third Henry vi. Act V. scene l:
Tho, arr no Atlas for 50 great weight.
Anti in las. You Like It," Act III,
scene 2;
shall thy virtue witnessed everywhere.
And lastly. note the singular express
sion, morning OF his eyes repeated in
the plays
Modest as morning when She coldly eyes
The youthful phoebus.
-ITOiius and Cressida g.
Yon grey is not the mornings eve
Romeo and Juliet. iii;j
The composition of all these plays was
of later date than the "Masque"
Fifteen years ago identified a score of
little poems signed 'Ignoto." published
from 1883 to 1860, as Bacons. They had
been yariously ascribed to other poets
The first OF them is found in the tributes
to Sponsors -Faery Queen" published as
early as 1890, if not little sooner. An
other appeared in The Passionate Pill
GRIM published in 1889 and credited to
Marlowe In the following year the same
was republished, amended. and enlarged
in England's Helicon;" and though stu
signed Chr. Marlowe." who had been
dead seven years it is followed by reply
signed 'Ignoto." The reply is an ampIi-
fication of the single stanza in the "Fas-
sionate Pilgrim, supposed to have been
written by Shakespeare, to six stanz. s. |
now quote the first stanza of the song
credited to Marlowe as amended in Eng
lands Helicon:"
Come live with me and be my love
And We will all the pleasures prove
That valleys. groves Oind) hills and fields.
Woods and the steepie mountains yields
This song is entitled THE Passionate
Shepherd to his Love- The Nympb's
Reply follows by "Ignoto;" then another
song by 'Ignoto'' entitled Another of the
Same Nature Made Since 1t begins thus:
Come live with me and De my dear.
And we will reve all tile year
In plains and groves. on hills and dales
Where fragrant air breeds sweetest gales.
This one is equal in merit to that
credited to Marlowe. For example, take
this couplet
Where silver sands and pebbles sing
Eternal ditties with the spring.
Or this:
Ten thousand glow-worms shall attend
And all their sparkling lights shall spend
Compare this with a line in Merry
Wives OF Windsor" V. 5;
Twenty slow-w worms shall our lanterns be-
But to confirm the fact that Bacon was
the great poet of his time there was
brought to light by Dr. George Cantor of
the University of Hulle Wittenburg. in
1895, thirty-two Latin elegiss, ITO the in
COMPARABLE Francis of Verulam." several
of which concede to Bacon poetic talent
of the highest order. one calling him
"Quirinus," j. e. Spear Shaker. or Shake
The keynote OF these elegies.
saws Dr.. Cantor, is this: mo other poet
could he compared to Francis of Veru-
lam. Not alone the greatest. he was the
only great poet Of his age. He taught
others: he taught the Muses. themselves"
"Ignoto" means by the unknown" In
1896. Bacon wrote to Sir Fulke Greville
saying: For poets / commend none. be-
ing resolved to be ever stranger TO
item
and to John Davies in 1903. he ended |
a letter with these words: so, desiring |
you TO be good TO concealed poets, | con-
Roth Greville and Davies were poets.
Narlowe was ore OF Bacons masks
W II. BURR.