Today | News | Books | Recipes Adventure | Science Fiction | Ghost stories | Poetry | Children | History Book. i. 17. Fig. 11. Rough sketch of the position of the 'Rete' in Astrol. ii. 3 (first part). Denticle opposite C, and first point of Aries opposite X; 9 a.m. Fig. 12. Rough sketch of the position of the 'Rete' in Astrol. ii. 3 (second part). Denticle near O; first point of Aries near H; 8h. 8m. p.m. Fig. 13. Diagram of the Elevation of the Pole; Astrol. ii. 23. The arc AN is 56°; A'N is 48°; A'P is 4°; and PN is 52°. A, A' are two positions of the Pole-star. Plate VI. Fig. 14. A 'Table' or disc shewing the twelve astrological 'Houses'; Astrol. ii. 36 and 37. Fig. 15. Diagram shewing how to ascertain the meridional line from two shadows of an upright gnomon; Astrol. ii. 38. Fig. 16. Diagram illustrating the use of the Umbra Recta; Astrol. ii. 41, 41_a_, and 41_b_. Fig. 17. Diagram of the use of the Umbra Versa, at two observations; Astrol. ii. 42, 42_a_, and 42_b_. Fig. 18. Use of the Umbra Recta, at two observations; Astrol. ii. 43 and 43_a_. [Illustration: FIG. 1. BACK OF THE 'ASTROLABE.'] [Illustration: FIG. 2. FRONT OF THE 'ASTROLABE.'] [Illustration: FIG. 3. LABEL. FIG. 4. PIN. FIG. 5. PLATE FOR A CLIMATE. FIG. 6. RULE.] [Illustration: FIG. 7. WEDGE AND HORSE (from a MS.). FIG. 8. DIAGRAM FOR A PROPOSITION. FIG. 9. STAR-POINTS.] [Illustration: FIG. 10. NINE SPHERES. FIGS. 11, 12, 13. PROBLEMS.] [Illustration: FIG. 14. HOUSES. FIGS. 15-18. UMBRA RECTA AND UMBRA VERSA.] THE HOUS OF FAME. BOOK I. God turne us every dreem to gode! For hit is wonder, by the rode, To my wit, what causeth swevenes Either on morwes, or on evenes; And why the effect folweth of somme, 5 And of somme hit shal never come; Why that is an avisioun, And this a revelacioun; Why this a dreem, why that a sweven, And nat to every man liche even; 10 Why this a fantom, these oracles, I noot; but who-so of these miracles The causes knoweth bet than I, Devyne he; for I certeinly Ne can hem noght, ne never thinke 15 To besily my wit to swinke, To knowe of hir signifiaunce The gendres, neither the distaunce Of tymes of hem, ne the causes For-why this more than that cause is; 20 As if folkes complexiouns Make hem dreme of reflexiouns; Or elles thus, as other sayn, For to greet feblenesse of brayn, By abstinence, or by seeknesse, 25 Prison, stewe, or greet distresse; Or elles by disordinaunce Of naturel acustomaunce, That som man is to curious In studie, or melancolious, 30 Or thus, so inly ful of drede, That no man may him bote bede; Or elles, that devocioun Of somme, and contemplacioun Causeth swiche dremes ofte; 35 Or that the cruel lyf unsofte Which these ilke lovers leden That hopen over muche or dreden, That purely hir impressiouns Causeth hem avisiouns; 40 Or if that spirits have the might To make folk to dreme a-night Or if the soule, of propre kinde, Be so parfit, as men finde, That hit forwot that is to come, 45 And that hit warneth alle and somme Of everiche of hir aventures By avisiouns, or by figures, But that our flesh ne hath no might To understonden hit aright, 50 For hit is warned to derkly;-- But why the cause is, noght wot I. Wel worthe, of this thing, grete clerkes, That trete of this and other werkes; For I of noon opinioun 55 Nil as now make mencioun, But only that the holy rode Turne us every dreem to gode! For never, sith that I was born, Ne no man elles, me biforn, 60 Mette, I trowe stedfastly, So wonderful a dreem as I The tenthe day [dide] of Decembre, The which, as I can now remembre, I wol yow tellen every del. 65 _The Invocation._ But at my ginning, trusteth wel, I wol make invocacioun, With special devocioun, Unto the god of slepe anoon, That dwelleth in a cave of stoon 70 Upon a streem that comth fro Lete, That is a flood of helle unswete; Besyde a folk men clepe Cimerie, Ther slepeth ay this god unmerie With his slepy thousand sones 75 That alway for to slepe hir wone is-- And to this god, that I of rede, Preye I, that he wol me spede My sweven for to telle aright, If every dreem stonde in his might. 80 And he, that mover is of al That is and was, and ever shal, So yive hem Ioye that hit here Of alle that they dreme to-yere, And for to stonden alle in grace 85 Of hir loves, or in what place That hem wer levest for to stonde, And shelde hem fro povert and shonde, And fro unhappe and ech disese, And sende hem al that may hem plese, 90 That take hit wel, and scorne hit noght, Ne hit misdemen in her thoght Through malicious entencioun. And who-so, through presumpcioun, Or hate or scorne, or through envye, 95 Dispyt, or Iape, or vilanye, Misdeme hit, preye I Iesus god That (dreme he barfoot, dreme he shod), That every harm that any man Hath had, sith [that] the world began, 100 Befalle him therof, or he sterve, And graunte he mote hit ful deserve, Lo! with swich a conclusioun As had of his avisioun Cresus, that was king of Lyde, 105 That high upon a gebet dyde! This prayer shal he have of me; I am no bet in charite! Now herkneth, as I have you seyd, What that I mette, or I abreyd. 110 _The Dream._ Of Decembre the tenthe day, Whan hit was night, to slepe I lay Right ther as I was wont to done, And fil on slepe wonder sone, As he that wery was for-go 115 On pilgrimage myles two To the corseynt Leonard, To make lythe of that was hard. But as I sleep, me mette I was Within a temple y-mad of glas; 120 In whiche ther were mo images Of gold, stondinge in sondry stages, And mo riche tabernacles, And with perre mo pinacles, And mo curious portreytures, 125 And queynte maner of figures Of olde werke, then I saw ever. For certeynly, I niste never Wher that I was, but wel wiste I, Hit was of Venus redely, 130 The temple; for, in portreyture, I saw anoon-right hir figure Naked fletinge in a see. And also on hir heed, parde, Hir rose-garlond whyt and reed, 135 And hir comb to kembe hir heed, Hir dowves, and daun Cupido, Hir blinde sone, and Vulcano, That in his face was ful broun. But as I romed up and doun, 140 I fond that on a wal ther was Thus writen, on a table of bras: 'I wol now singe, if that I can, The armes, and al-so the man, That first cam, through his destinee, 145 Fugitif of Troye contree, In Itaile, with ful moche pyne, Unto the strondes of Lavyne.' And tho began the story anoon, As I shal telle yow echoon. 150 First saw I the destruccioun Of Troye, through the Greek Sinoun, [That] with his false forsweringe, And his chere and his lesinge Made the hors broght into Troye, 155 Thorgh which Troyens loste al hir Ioye. And after this was grave, allas! How Ilioun assailed was And wonne, and king Priam y-slayn, And Polites his sone, certayn, 160 Dispitously, of dan Pirrus. And next that saw I how Venus, Whan that she saw the castel brende, Doun fro the hevene gan descende, And bad hir sone Eneas flee; 165 And how he fledde, and how that he Escaped was from al the pres, And took his fader, Anchises |