Comus (The Masque at Ludlow Castle) · chunk 5 of 15
Milton, John · published 1637 · first performed or written 1634 [Sep 29] (Annals) pastoral; masque T22 Shepherds, flocks and Pan typicality 0.77 · 502 words
Marked words are the most distinguishing words of T22: shepherd, pan, shepherds, love, sheep, flocks, fair, shepherdess, swain, away.
What chance good Lady hath bereft you thus? Dim darkness, and this leafy Labyrinth. Could that divide you from near-ushering guides? They left me weary on a grassy turf. By falsehood, or discourtesy, or why? To seek i'th' valley some cool friendly Spring. And left your fair side all unguarded Lady? They were but twain, & purposed quick return. Perhaps forestalling night prevented them. How easy my misfortune is to hit! Imports their loss, beside the present need? No less than if I should my brothers lose. Were they of manly prime, or youthful bloom? As smooth as Hebe's their unrazored lips. Two such I saw, what time the laboured Ox In his loose traces from the furrow came, And the swinked hedger at his Supper sat; I saw them under a green mantling vine That crawls along the side of yond small hill, Plucking ripe clusters from the tender shoots, Their port was more than humane; as they stood, I took it for a fairy vision Of some gay creatures of the element That in the colours of the Rainbow live And play i'th' plighted clouds, I was awe-struck, And as I passed, I worshipped; if those you seek It were a journey like the path to heaven To help you find them. Gentle villager What readiest way would bring me to that place? Due west it rises from this shrubby point. To find out that good shepherd I suppose In such a scant allowance of star light Would overtask the best land-pilots art Without the sure guess of well-practiced feet. I know each lane, and every alley green Dingle, or bushy dell of this wild wood, And every bosky bourn from side to side My day lie walks and ancient neighbourhood, And if your stray attendance be yet lodged Or shroud within these limits, I shall know Ere morrow wake, or the low-roosted lark From her thatched palate rouse, if otherwise I can conduct you Lady to a low But loyal cottage, where you may be safe Till further quest. Shepherd I take thy word, And trust thy honest offered courtesy, Which oft is sooner found in lowly sheds With smoky rafters, then in tapestry halls, And courts of Princes, where it first was named, And yet is most pretended: in a place Less warranted than this, or less secure I cannot be, that I should fear to change it, Eye me blessed Providence, and square my trial To my proportioned strength. Shepheard lead on.— Unmuffle ye faint stars, and thou fair moon That wontst to love the travellers benison Stoop thy pale visage through an amber cloud And disinherit Chaos, that reigns here In double night of darkness, and of shades; Or if your influence be quite damned up With black usurping mists, some gentle taper Though a rush candle from the wicker hole Of some clay habitation visit us With thy long leveled rule of streaming light And thou shalt be our star of Arcady Or Tyrian Cynosure.
nodes 276–343 (positions in the processed text, not lines of the printed book) · chunk 5 of 15 in this edition
Length
502 words · 650 tokens
Topic (seed 42)
T22 — Shepherds, flocks and Pancross-work theme (confirmed, in the genre comparison) · typicality 0.769 (cosine to the topic centroid)
Other seeds
seed 43: T24 · seed 44: T25 — topic numbers are assigned independently in each run; equal or different numbers say nothing by themselves
Original spelling (EEBO-TCP, unregularized)
What chance good Ladie hath bereft you thus? Dim darknesse, and this leavie Labyrinth. Could that divide you from neere-ushering guides? They left me weary on a grassie terfe. By falshood, or discourtesie, or why? To seeke i'th val'y some coole friendly Spring. And left your faire side all unguarded Ladie? They were but twain, & purpos'd quick return. Perhaps fore-stalling night praevented them. How easie my misfortune is to hit! Impors their losse, beside the praesent need? No lesse then if I should my brothers lose. Were they of manly prime, or youthful bloom? As smooth as Hebe's their unrazord lips. Two such I saw, what time the labour'd Oxe In his loose traces from the furrow came, And the swink't hedger at his Supper sate; I saw them under a greene mantling vine That crawls along the side of yon small hill, Plucking ripe clusters from the tender shoots, Their port was more then humaine; as they stood, I tooke it for a faërie vision Of some gay creatures of the element That in the colours of the Rainbow live And play i'th plighted clouds, I was aw-strooke, And as I past, I worshipt; if those you seeke It were a journy like the path to heav'n To helpe you find them. Gentle villager What readiest way would bring me to that place? Due west it rises from this shrubbie point. To find out that good shepheard I suppose In such a scant allowance of starre light Would overtask the best land-pilots art Without the sure guesse of well-practiz'd feet. I know each lane, and every alley greene Dingle, or bushie dell of this wild wood, And every boskie bourne from side to side My day lie walks and ancient neighbourhood, And if your stray attendance be yet lodg'd Or shroud within these limits, I shall know Ere morrow wake, or the low-roosted larke From her thach't palate rowse, if otherwise I can conduct you Ladie to a low But loyall cottage, where you may be safe Till further quest. Shepheard I take thy word, And trust thy honest offer'd courtesie, Which oft is sooner found in lowly sheds With smoakie rafters, then in tapstrie halls, And courts of Princes, where it first was nam'd, And yet is most paeended: in a place Lesse warranted then this, or lesse secure I cannot be, that I should feare to change it, Eye me blest Providence, and square my triall To my proportion'd strength. Shepheard lead on.— Vnmuffle yee faint stars, and thou fair moon That wontst to love the travailers benizon Stoope thy pale visage through an amber cloud And disinherit Chaos, that raigns here In double night of darknesse, and of shades; Or if your influence be quite dmm'd up With black usurping mists, some gentle taper Though a ush candle from the wicker hole Of some clay habitation visit us With thy long levell'd rule of streaming light And thou shalt be our starre of Arcadie Or Tyrian Cynosure.