Their soul of sense through infinite delight, In which they see such admirable things, And hear such heavenly notes and carolings Ne from thenceforth doth any fleshy sense But all that earst seem'd sweet seems now offence, And all that pleased earst now seems to pain: And that fair lampe which useth to inflame So full their eyes are of that glorious sight, Which they have written in their inward eye; Ah, then, my hungry soul! which long hast fed On idle fancies of thy foolish thought, And, with false beautie's flattring bait misled, And looke at last up to that Soveraine Light, 1 Proof. SIR JOHN DAVIES. BORN 1570; DIED 1626. SIR JOHN DAVIES was an eminent lawyer in the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and James I. His chief literary production is entitled "Nosce Teipsum, or the Soul of Man and the Immortality thereof." From this poem the ensuing extracts are taken. It is remarkable for the clear and logical conduct of the argument; and, among the productions of that age, for the smooth and equable flow of its verse. |