Page:Omniana 2.djvu/168

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158
OMNIANA.

which is facilitated by their chiming in. But philosophy set to tune only serves to puzzle the composer, without assisting the student. There is only one way of adapting it to the nature of poetry, which is, by allegorizing it: Henry More attempted this in a small part of his song, and the success of this attempt is not such as to induce a wish that he had extended it. Mr. Todd's praise is ill founded. The allegory in Spenser is the worst part of his poem, but the worst allegory in Spenser is far better than the best in Henry More. This the following specimen will convince. Old Mnemon is relating his journey from Beiron (the brutish life) into Dizoia, or double-livedness as he explains it.

So having got experience enough
Of this ill land, for nothing there was new,
My purpose I held on, and rode quite rough
That middle way, and did the extremes eschew.
When I came near the end there was in view