Again he was dissatisfied,
and thinking he could improve, not only upon the first stanza, but upon
"The Argument" by which it was preceded, he procured the two pages to be
reprinted. It is, however, by no means clear to me that, after all,
Fairfax liked his third experiment better than his two others: had he
liked it better, we should, most probably, have found it in more copies
than the single one I have pointed out.
As your readers and contributors may wish to see "The Argument" and
first stanza as they are given in Mr. Wordsworth's exemplar, I
transcribe them from my note-book, because, before I gave the book away,
I took care to copy them exactly:--
THE ARGUMENT.
"God sends his angell to Tortosa downe:
Godfrey to counsell cals the Christian Peeres,
Where all the Lords and Princes of renowne
Chuse him their general: he straight appeeres
Mustring his royall hoast, and in that stowne
Sends them to Sion, and their hearts upcheeres.
The aged tyrant, Judaies land that guides,
In feare and trouble to resist provides.
"I sing the sacred armies and the knight
That Christ's great tombe enfranchis'd and set free.
Much wrought he by his witte, much by his might,
Much in that glorious conquest suffred hee:
Hell hindered him in vaine: in vaine to fight
Asia's and Affrick's people armed bee;
Heav'n favour'd him: his lords and knights misgone
Under his ensigne he reduc'd in one."
I own that, to my ear and judgment, this is no improvement upon what we
may consider the author's second attempt, although I think that the slip
pasted over some (if not most) copies is better than the first
experiment.
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