Chapter XXV., ends his Book II., the first of his _Description of

England_.

This section[51] is longer than I meant it to be; and it doesn't bring out the religious side of Harrison's character. But I hope it leaves the reader with a kindly impression of the straightforward racy Radwinter parson and Windsor canon. A business-like, God-fearing, truth-seeking, learned, kind-hearted, and humorous fellow, he seems to me; a good gardener, an antiquarian and numismatist, a true lover of his country, a hater of shams, lazy lubbers, and evil-doers; a man that one likes to shake hands with, across the rift of 200 years that separates us.

F. J. FURNIVALL.

3 ST. GEORGE'S SQUARE, PRIMROSE HILL, LONDON, N.W., 13_th July_, 1876.

EDITORIAL NOTE.

"How easy dost thou take all England up: From forth this morsel of dead royalty----"

No book is more quoted and less read than _Holinshed's Chronicles_. Since the original editions of 1577 and 1587 (the latter an expansion of the former), the work has been but once republished. Early in this century a syndicate of the great London booksellers issued an expensive reprint, far more inaccessible to the general reader than are the folios of the time of Elizabeth. Even morsels of the work have never been attempted until the issue by the "New Shakspere Society," a dozen years ago, of Dr. Furnivall's careful condensed edition of Harrison's introduction to _Holinshed_. Now Harrison is the genius of the whole performance. _Holinshed_ is a hodge-podge of many men's endeavours. Remarkable as may be the portions contributed by other men, that of Harrison can be said to be unique. William Harrison is the only man who has ever given a detailed description of England and the English. He had the assistance doubtless of many special informants, directly and indirectly, some of which assistance overloads his ancient utterances with superfluous matter. His own views however are a running rill of delight. When it was only an amputation of interjected details, my task was easy; and Dr. Furnivall (to whom is due all credit of initiative in the publication of the work, and who has kindly accorded valuable suggestions during the rather anxious and difficult process) had already cut off the greater portion of dead issue and dead tissue. The work of disjointing and then rejointing Harrison's own discourse is not so agreeable. Even Harrison's interlarding of his own book-learning in his own inimitable fashion is a rare frolic for the mirthful mind. Badly as I may have finally wriggled through the task, seamy as may be the patchwork, the solace remains that no scrap of Harrison's text lacks its own individual interest. Not without reason may an extract from _Holinshed_ be entitled a

"Morsel of dead royalty."

_Holinshed_ is one of the monarchs and monuments of literature. It filled the channels of thought, and moulded the character of history. Harrison's contribution to _Holinshed_ is not only the most important but the most perfect portion of the work, and it evidently derives its perfect character from being a labour of love, and not written to order. John Harrison the printer doubtless got his country relative the parson to help out the heavy enterprise which tasked such an alliance of master-printers even to partially perfect. Not that William Harrison was a countryman by birth. He was a Cockney of the Cockneys, born right beneath Bow Bells themselves; but when you come to gather the threads of his connections, you seem indeed to

"Take all England up,"

jumping at once to the heart of Westmoreland fells, and traversing every shire in England and Wales for his cousinry. It was a stirring age, and great human upheavals made sudden shiftings and scatterings of kindred. It was this very factor which made such works as _Holinshed_ possible. The complete _Holinshed_ was issued one year before the Armada year, two years before Shakspere's first play was printed. Harrison was old enough to have stood on Tower Hill and seen with infant eyes the author of _Utopia_ (the "most perfect of Englishmen," as Harrison himself allows) lay down his life for truth. Harrison's own life just spans that stormy period which settled the destiny of the English race, and left the race the masters of the earth. The part played in this mighty struggle by the printer boys of Aldersgate is something beyond all exaggeration. They made and unmade men and measures, and uprooted empires as well as recorded their histories. Above all else, these printers kept their own secrets; for life and death were in every utterance. They furnished of their own ranks the pioneers of daring brain and varied knowledge who led the English race far to east and far to west. We can well imagine that these Aldersgate printers took delight in clubbing together to produce such a work as _Holinshed_, giving the story of the England they loved so well. _Holinshed_ was eminently a printer's book, produced out of the fulness of their hearts. Harrison himself belonged to a family of printers. Yet it is a remarkable fact that this present volume is the first attempt ever made to use any portion of _Holinshed_ as a popular text-book, and to bring its text into familiar relations with modern eyes as regards orthography and typography. As to the diction, it would be impertinence to modify the work of such masters of our mother-tongue as William Harrison. The writers of his day make rules for us, not we for them. Their English is the only English which future ages will know, and their successors will be measured by their standard. In compiling this work, the end sought by me has been as much variety and as much Elizabethan England as possible, throwing aside matter however instructive which was not especially allied to the days of Elizabeth, making of most of Harrison's second, some of his third, and a bit of his first book one concise story. Harrison's Description of England is in three books, the second and third of which were reprinted by Dr. Furnivall, along with extracts from the first. An account of these books and their relation to _Holinshed_ will be found in the Doctor's "Forewords." Using Dr. Furnivall's text, his excellent and generally exhaustive notes have been inserted. As for my own follies, sprinkled here and there, they are as occasional relief for frivolous readers from the classical height of Harrison and the scholarly depth of the Doctor. There was no particular sacrilege in rearranging Harrison's fragments in a new and compact fashion; for he varied his two editions in evident indifference. It has had to be cut to measure, and the difficulty has been to make a new garment out of odd cuttings. Suffice to say, well or ill jointed, the story here told plucks the heart out of the mystery of the cradle of the English race at the exact period of Shakspere's youthful manhood. But this story no more than Shakspere's own work is the exclusive property of the residents of one particular spot. England is not merely a matter of political arrangement. Race after race have swept over the island home and left lasting impression upon the soil. England is not a matter of bounds and barriers; it is a human fabric like Rome and Greece, living in distant climes, an inheritance of all who speak the English tongue and inherit the boundless treasures of English thought, far surpassing the known accomplishment of any other people. By far the greater portion of these treasures of the mind were worked out in the England of Harrison. It was the outcome of a young giant's strength. The full realisation of the earth's existence, the full grasp of man's true relation to the footstool beneath him, produced this startling activity of mind, and this sudden leap to perfection. Such another epoch will never occur until we poor crawling mites on this rolling ball discover the socket it rolls in and once again feel ourselves masters of all knowledge and devoid of all doubts.

L. W.

HARRISON'S PREFACE.

To the Right Honourable, and his singular good Lord and Master, Sir William Brooke, Knight, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, and Baron of Cobham, all increase of the fear and knowledge of God, firm obedience towards his Prince, infallible love to the commonwealth, and commendable renown here in this world, and in the world to come life everlasting.

Having had just occasion, Right Honourable, to remain in London during the time of Trinity term last passed, and being earnestly required of divers my friends to set down some brief discourse of parcel of those things which I had observed in the reading of such manifold antiquities as I had perused towards the furniture of a Chronology[52] which I have yet in hand; I was at the first very loth to yield to their desires: first, for that I thought myself unable for want of skill and judgment so suddenly and with so hasty speed to take such a charge upon me; secondly, because the dealing therein might prove an hindrance and impeachment unto mine own Treatise; and, finally, for that I had given over all earnest study of histories, as judging the time spent about the same to be an hindrance unto my more necessary dealings in that vocation and function whereunto I am called in the ministry. But, when they were so importunate with me that no reasonable excuse could serve to put by this travel, I condescended at the length unto their irksome suit, promising that I would spend such void time, as I had to spare, whilest I should be enforced to tarry in the city, upon some thing or other that should satisfy their request and stand in lieu of a description of my Country. For their parts also, they assured me of such helps as they could purchase: and thus with hope of good, although no gay success, I went in hand withal, then almost as one leaning altogether unto memory, since my books and I were parted by forty miles in sunder. In this order also I spent a part of Michaelmas and Hilary terms insuing, being enforced thereto, I say, by other businesses which compelled me to keep in the city, and absent myself from my charge, though in the mean season I had some repair unto my poor library, but not so great as the dignity of the matter required, and yet far greater than the Printer's haste would suffer. One help, and none of the smallest that I obtained herein, was by such commentaries as Leland had some time collected of the state of Britain, books utterly mangled, defaced with wet and weather, and finally imperfect through want of sundry volumes; secondly, I gat some knowledge of things by letters and pamphlets, from sundry places and shires of England, but so discordant now and then amongst themselves, especially in the names and courses of rivers and situation of towns, that I had oft greater trouble to reconcile them one with another than orderly to pen the whole discourse of such points as they contained; the third aid did grow by conference with divers, either at the table or secretly alone, wherein I marked in what things the talkers did agree, and wherein they impugned each other, choosing in the end the former, and rejecting the latter, as one desirous to set forth the truth absolutely, or such things indeed as were most likely to be true. The last comfort arose by mine own reading of such writers as have heretofore made mention of the condition of our country, in speaking whereof, if I should make account of the success and extraordinary coming by sundry treatises not supposed to be extant, I should but seem to pronounce more than may well be said with modesty, and say further of myself than this treatise can bear witness of. Howbeit, I refer not this success wholly unto my purpose about this Description, but rather give notice thereof to come to pass in the penning of my Chronology, whose crumbs as it were fell out very well in the framing of this pamphlet. In the process therefore of this book, if your Honour regard the substance of that which is here declared, I must needs confess that it is none of mine own; but, if your Lordship have consideration of the barbarous composition shewed herein, that I may boldly claim and challenge for mine own, since there is no man of any so slender skill that will defraud me of that reproach which is due unto me for the mere negligence, disorder, and evil disposition of matter comprehended in the same. Certes I protest before God and your Honour that I never made any choice of style, or words, neither regarded to handle this treatise in such precise order and method as many other would have done, thinking it sufficient, truly and plainly to set forth such things as I minded to intreat of, rather than with vain affectation of eloquence to paint out a rotten sepulchre, a thing neither commendable in a writer nor profitable to the reader. How other affairs troubled me in the writing hereof, many know, and peradventure the slackness shewed herein can better testify; but, howsoever it be done, and whatsoever I have done, I have had an especial eye unto the truth of things, and, for the rest, I hope that this foul frizzled treatise of mine will prove a spur to others better learned, more skilful in chorography, and of greater judgment in choice of matter to handle the selfsame argument. As for faults escaped herein, as there are divers I must needs confess both in the penning and printing, so I have to crave pardon of your Honour and of all the learned readers. For such was my shortness of time allowed in the writing, and so great the speed made in printing, that I could seldom with any deliberation peruse, or almost with any judgment deliberate exactly upon, such notes as were to be inserted. Sometimes indeed their leisure gave me liberty, but that I applied in following my vocation; many times their expedition abridged my perusal; and by this latter it came to pass that most of this book was no sooner penned than printed, neither well conveyed, before it came to writing. But it is now too late to excuse the manner of doing.[53] It is possible also that your Honour will mislike hereof for that I have not by mine own travel and eyesight viewed such things as I do here intreat of. Indeed I must needs confess that until now of late, except it were from the parish where I dwell unto your Honour in Kent, or out of London where I was born unto Oxford and Cambridge where I have been brought up, I never travelled forty miles forthright and at one journey in all my life; nevertheless in my report of these things I use their authorities who either have performed in their persons or left in writing upon sufficient ground (as I said before) whatsoever is wanting in mine. It may be in like sort that your Honour will take offence at my rash and retchless behaviour used in the composition of this volume, and much more than that, being scrambled up after this manner, I dare presume to make tender of the protection thereof unto your Lordship's hands. But, when I consider the singular affection that your Honour doth bear to those that in anywise will travel to set forth such profitable things as lie hidden of their country without regard of fine and eloquent handling, and thereunto do weigh on my own behalf my bounden duty and grateful mind to such a one as hath so many and sundry ways benefited me that otherwise can make no recompense, I cannot but cut off all such occasion of doubt, and thereupon exhibit it, such as it is, and so penned as it is, unto your Lordship's tuition, unto whom if it may seem in any wise acceptable I have my whole desire. And as I am the first that (notwithstanding the great repugnance to be seen among our writers) hath taken upon him so particularly to describe this Isle of Britain, so I hope the learned and godly will bear withal, and reform with charity where I do tread amiss. As for the curious, and such as can rather evil-favouredly espy than skilfully correct an error, and sooner carp at another man's doings than publish anything of their own (keeping themselves close with an obscure admiration of learning and knowledge among the common sort), I force not what they say hereof; for, whether it do please or displease them, all is one to me, since I refer my whole travel in the gratification of your Honour, and such as are of experience to consider of my travel and the large scope of things purposed in this treatise, of whom my service in this behalf may be taken in good part: that I will repute for my full recompense and large guerdon of my labours. The Almighty God preserve your Lordship in continual health, wealth, and prosperity, with my good Lady your wife, your Honour's children (whom God hath indued with a singular towardness unto all virtue and learning) and the rest of your reformed family, unto whom I wish farder increase of his holy spirit, understanding of his word, augmentation of honour, and continuance of zeal to follow his commandments.

Your Lordship's humble servant and household chaplain, W. H.

ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND.