John Bartlett (1820–1905). Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. 1919.
Page 175
| Sir Henry Wotton. (1568–1639) (continued) |
| 2025 |
| He first deceased; she for a little tried To live without him, liked it not, and died. |
| Upon the Death of Sir Albert Morton’s Wife. |
| 2026 |
| I am but a gatherer and disposer of other men’s stuff. |
| Preface to the Elements of Architecture. |
| 2027 |
| Hanging was the worst use a man could be put to. |
| The Disparity between Buckingham and Essex. |
| 2028 |
| An ambassador is an honest man sent to lie abroad for the commonwealth. 1 |
| Reliquiæ Wottonianæ |
| 2029 |
| The itch of disputing will prove the scab of churches. 2 |
| A Panegyric to King Charles. |
| Richard Barnfield. (d. 1570) |
| 2030 |
| As it fell upon a day In the merry month of May, Sitting in a pleasant shade Which a grove of myrtles made. |
| Address to the Nightingale. 3 |
| Sir John Davies. (1570–1626) |
| 2031 |
| Much like a subtle spider which doth sit In middle of her web, which spreadeth wide; |
| Note 1. In a letter to Velserus, 1612, Wotton says, “This merry definition of an ambassador I had chanced to set down at my friend’s, Mr. Christopher Fleckamore, in his Album.” [back] |
| Note 2. He directed the stone over his grave to be inscribed:— DISPUTANDI PRURITUS ECCLESIARUM SCABIES. Nomen alias quære (Here lies the author of this phrase: “The itch for disputing is the sore of churches.” Seek his name elsewhere). Izaak Walton: Life of Wotton. [back] |
| Note 3. This song, often attributed to Shakespeare, is now confidently assigned to Barnfield; it is found in his collection of “Poems in Divers Humours,” published in 1598.—Ellis: Specimens, vol. ii. p. 316. [back] |