THE Wife of Bath is the other piece of Chaucer which Pope ser lected to imitate. One cannot but wonder at his choice, which perhaps nothing but his youth could excuse. Dryden, who is known not to be nicely scrupulous, informs us, that he would not versify it on account of its indecency. Pope, however, has omitted or softened the grosser and more offensive passages. Chaucer afforded him many subjects of a more sublime and serious species; and it were to be wished Pope had exercised his pencil on the pathetic story of the patience of Grisilda, or Troilus and Cressida, or the Complaint of the Black Knight; or, above all, on Cambuscan and Canace. From the accidental circumstance of Dryden and Pope's having copied the gay and ludicrous parts of Chaucer, the common notion seems to have arisen, that Chaucer's vein of poetry was chiefly turned to the light and the ridiculous. But they who look into Chaucer will soon be convinced of this prevailing prejudice, and will find his comic vein, like that of Shakespear, to be only like one of mercury, imperceptibly mingled with a mine of gold.

Mr. Hughes withdrew his contributions to a volume of Miscellaneous Poems, published by Steele, because this prologue was to be inserted in it.

"The want of a few lines," says Mr. Tyrwhitt, "to introduce The Wife of Bath's Prologue, is perhaps one of those defects which Chaucer would have supplied, if he had lived to finish his work. The extraordinary length of it, as well as the vein of pleasantry that runs through it, is very suitable to the character of the speaker. The greatest part must have been of Chaucer's own invention, though one may plainly see that he had been reading the popular invectives against marriage, and women in general; such as the Roman de la Rose, Valerius ad Rufinum de non ducendâ uxore, and particularly Hieronymus contra Jovinianum. The holy Father, by way of recommending celibacy, has exerted all his learning and eloquence (and he certainly was not deficient in either) to collect together and aggravate whatever he could find to the prejudice of the female sex. Among other things he has inserted his own translation (probably) of a long extract from what he calls, Liber aureolus Theophrasti de nuptiis. Next to him in order of

time was the treatise, entitled, Epistola Valerii ad Rufinum de non ducendâ uxore, ns. Reg. 12. D. iii. It has been printed (for the similarity of its sentiments I suppose) among the works of St. Jerome, though it is evidently of a much later date. Tanner (from Wood's MSS. Collection) attributes it to Walter Map. (Bib. Brit. v. Map.) I should not believe it to be older; as John of Salisbury, who has treated of the same subject in his Polycrat. 1. viii. c. xi. does not appear to have seen it. To these two books Jean de Meun has been obliged for some of the severest strokes in his Roman de la Rose; and Chaucer has transfused the quintessence of all the three works (upon the subject of matrimony) into his Wife of Bath's Prologue and Merchant's Tale." Warton.

THE WIFE OF BATH.

FROM CHAUCER.

BEHOLD the woes of matrimonial life,
And hear with rev'rence an experienc'd wife!
To dear-bought wisdom give the credit due,
And think for once, a woman tells you true.
In all these trials I have borne a part,
I was myself the scourge that caus'd the smart;

NOTES.

5

*I have a curious book, entitled, A Commentary upon the Two Tales of our ancient, renowned, and ever-living Poet, Sir JEFFREY CHAUCER, Knight; who, for his rich fancy, pregnant invention, and present composure, deserved the countenance of a Prince, and of his laureat honours: THE MILLER'S TALE; and THE WIFE OF BATH. Printed by William Godbid, and to be sold by Peter Dring at the Sun, in the Poultry, near the Rose 1665.

tavern.

The Author in the Dedication signs himself R. B.; and in the advertisement says,

"This comment was an essay whereto the author was importuned by persons of quality, to compleat with brief, pithy, and proper illustrations, suitable to the subject!"

It appears from it, that the character of Chaucer was not well understood by the age in which this book was written; as it ap pears the Comment was undertaken to point out the humourous and truly comic talent of our ancient bard, which was not at the time appreciated. A short specimen will suffice:

"Of five husbands scolynge am I

Welcome the sixth whenever he shall dy.

"The