PURITAN AND BEAR

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 144, 21 June 1930, Page 21

PURITAN AND BEAR

MA^AUL^S MISLEApiNG ■V;^t ?/§: EPIGRAM/;// £0^

■'^G^I)Y^qYNARCTO]iL4CH|^

(By^Ajax.?');;;

••'': My nptps';iast'week (Concluded .with tho first; hi' the .':twp well-known sehtences of-Maeanlay about the attitude Of the Puritan's, to.•bear-'baiting:-^ '. :■'-

■V.The, Puritan;'-hated bear-baiting, : not because; it. gave pain; t6c the .bear, but because it. gave-pleasure ?to /the spectators. Indeed, :he generally, contrived to,^enjoy the , double pleasure.' of tormenting both spectators, and .-''bear..' y ' : : . ■ '[ >. '■

The! first '-'_■ of 'these -.sentences., is neat enough; and contains perhaps !as much; truth' as we have any vright to expect in an epigrami ;- The second'is ■so outrageously unjust..that it" is;'not ■supported by either of the ;tivo -instances whiehiMacaulay; adduces; for .the purpose, in a note. ■'::/- '■-:■■■ :■/.-': ■•■'":%■ ,'■

' ; How, - little compassion for tKe :■ ■ bear had tp;do withj.the matter.-is, he. says, sufficiently proved by the> following •extractfrom.a paper:entitled "A Perfect ■Diurnalofeome passages of .Parliament/ and from' other-parts of the Kingdom" *from Mondays July 24th, to Monday, ; 31st: July, 1643.. ■ : • ■ :;-.'■■'(■■ ) ■:■■:.' ■

Tho extract is as folldws:—

Upon/the Queen's coming: from Holland, ■ilie brpught with her, besides a company of savage rufiians, a. :<:ompany> 'of /savage bears; to; what.-:pirepope. you may- ; judge, iy, -the' sequel. „ Thpse .bears were left about .Newark, and. were brought' ;intp country towns constantly on-.the-'." ; Lprd's Day to, be; baiten J (such is the" ; religion these- here ■related. would f settle, 'amphgstus) and, if about; to .hinder, or but speak against 'their damnable^ pro-fa-nationff, ■ they: ,wefe: presently /rioted.', as Eoiiridheads and Puritans,-and- sure-to be plundered • for t it. v But: some .of'iCplohel Chromwll's forces'.coniing,;by. aceident^''in'to' TJppirighani r Town,; .in- 1 Rutland; i otii_ ihe Lord's" I Day",, '.found, these', .bear.B.;playing ..there'in 'the/usual'niahuer,.. and^;'.;in/ the height 'of,.their ;*sport,"caiisedj;them,:,io,.lip seized ■up(jnj:'tied'.'tp';a.':| tree', : and.shqt.v.' ./ 'Sueh,'"'.:then'^ as;'; the- strongestsevideuce '.ih'at ■•Macaulay.'is-ablei.', to 'cite in support of Ms, enarg'e .that the: Pui-itani; in. sup--, pressing bear-baiting*,'^generally ;;cpu- : triyed to/enjoy.; the; double pleasure -of tormenting: spectators and. bear.": .Yet it is .peri'ectJy clear,.that.'tbito .■ quotationgiv'es:,no; support--whatever to.either of tlie. "charges. .It.is. outrageous to; suggest';that to.have v a bear tied to a tree arid:shot' is. t.p.'tprment ito; ;..'lf, is- cyen more,absurd, tp suggest that, to, deprive thq'spe'etafiors of ,the. pleasure:of seeing a:.bear' tormpntedas:to. torment' them.: /

■.■■;•;.■ V.'-»'. ••■ r.*\ '■:"•-■'■■■..'■*. r:'*::;':"-.'.'i':'- - --:'\--DeciaTihg^THat;'ythis.Was".np'v'-]neans-a' Bolita'ry instance,," Macaulay/ adds one nibfe:—r,-.''..''.'/'::'-/ ~r-l:.:. •'••■•■''.••:.• --:-tv"; - ■■'■

' -.: Colonel /Pride; .when Sheriff qf' Surrey,ordereel ..the... beasts: ■'; in fthe ■' bear :' garden of ' Soutliwark ;to;-*be' ; , killed.; He is; . represented'; .■■by 1 ;'-. aX-.;loyalrv satirist as: tlefen'ding..:';.tnC;.:, 'act X', thus:,- -rThe first thing that is upon niy spirits is- the killing of the ib'eai-Sj for; which; the people hate- me, and [call- me all ;the,names in the rainbow. Biit did not -iDayid- kill ."a t bear? - Did not the Lord Deputy Iretbn ; 'kill a bear? . Did not' another :16rd of ours "kill five bears?"— Last speech and dying words of '.Thomas Pride. '; '> .' i

.V.The^']irccßdeiifell)y^.VliibV^■■CoiOTi^Prlde■■ is;supposed to justify■himselfiarc. fuiiny enough, but %Yhat have they to do \yith Macaulay's point? ■ He/ accuses' the Puritans;'of taking pleasure inJ the tormenting/ of -bears, cites two 'cases in . which ' they • kiled ■'■ bears- without.• tor- ... .menting > them,;(aiid; then:' changes 'the subject.' 1 . :Perhaps it was just as :.well lie did, for 200.- ;of , such irrelevances w.ould- have;.c'arried^the...argumcnt:.:no ■' further, than two."' '■',"■' ■;.... '--.; ■.•':' ":*''■/:'::/;

'.The/ first ■,df,,,Macaulay's.';;qubtati6ns will.be. found-set out'at greater'length in; Dr: .: Zachary--•',Grey's/Snbte{/;on VHudibras/'^ 1.1. 751-2:— '■■■{■ ;,f ;^'^/:: ?. ''• '■'■■ ;'• That go.me;Oecult.pesig^:aoth.ly-.y.|. '.;-:-'•:-'■•.In- bloucly- Cynarctbriiachy;;/-;;,/^/. Grey, explains .that ~_ :O^'.-^:<:':^'':'- '-;;Xr "Cynarctbmachy";:imeans/n'otniiig, in1.,-the' lirorld-bufc.a-fightibefcwe.en:dogs:and ,bears,-, though- both , thel'-lparned and:, ignorant agree that in'such- words1- very.great;Kno.w-^, ledge;is; contained^js\../;:;■/'. /' v :i--'^- x '- L"\ and: the " Oxford Dictionary'''calls)it aK* nonce word, "'to", be found-only; in

■this«passage./yV.'v'-/ V':- ; V V' ■"':// r'-v"v 'Grey follows ''-up the- quotation from the, "Perfect Diurna:i" of/1643/vrith some lines from "The'Eunip IJMant, Cpllection of Loyal■ Spngs^'' ■; qbyiously. put';into ; ; the';mouth '-of :thc ; -Puritan oppressors:—';;. ~', /''.-: ■:.':'/ -■ ;./'/ ; '■'-'-'.-;■■.

'-We.robb'd— /f : .■:,., '..-.'.,! ././/'■„., '.The whole,of food to pamper up the•£ew,- '"■■:■'■: Excised'your wares, :/; ■ '/,' And tai'd you round, sixpence the pound, ..-'' And' massacred your, bears. " : ;; \: -.- .*-.'■■ ■- ■•■>'•,■ * ;./.'-: .-* ./.. ■■'/'-.

Grey's- note "proceeds;as follows:—:

There! was an "Ordinance o£ Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament";, for suppressing of public play-houses, dancing on' the ropes, aiid bear-baiting* (die Sabbati, 17 Julii, 1647)1 and-'twas an-article'in | their instructiohs^to the Major - Generals afterwards, in-the year 1655, amongst oilier- unlawful sports (as . they : called them) to -suppress bear-baitings:. "Jlercurius Ppliticus" 2so. 289,.p. 53..; .' .. _ That probably might be deemed a malignant bear;-which,.was.forced uponVold Mr. Jones, ' '■■■■ Vicar'-■' 6i -V; : ,;in Northamptonshire, by Lieutenant Grimes, a' desperate" Brownist; which running' between; his legs took him upon her back, and;laying aside the.untractableness of her nature^.gitew patient> of; her burthen; but whehV'tbe rebels (dismounted him,-; and/one' of their • ringleaders'.<b'estrid the;' bear.'.she dismounted her'.^ider;, and? as if she had been'robbed of her whelps, did so mangle, rend,;and tear him with her- teeth and paws, that'the;presumptuous/wretch, died of 'his wounds/soon after."/ "Mercurius Rusticus.";■ No::^'V- 9*v/ox';';'/'■': "':'■: ;-■

: Though it has.-but a nominal/connection with ,my subject, ;I' cannofc resist. the .'pleasure. qf: transscribing; another of Grey's ; notes.'"•-■-vThef K J:text ']'■ via Hudibras," LI. ;S97 : ?:^-;:.1;,; ;• [". ;In northern clinics a val'rous knight .'. Did kill his bear in ifight, . And woimd a fiddler. ■' '\. . V . ' On ihis.'Gfe'y'coinvrie.n.t's as follows:— "•' ■■ . ■VVhetber- this- is true' histdry;; or-fiction, I reiilly' cannot tell, though ._. in... .both romance /and vliistbry' there are instances <>f Knights'.: killing of.v bears. .1.-;' See.''-.the "History.' of Fdi-tunatus" (who killed. !'a wild bear) chapter 8. "Vtilgaria," .vol.; 3 No. 3 Biblioth.r Pepysian. , "Amadis-of Greece, or the Knight «f the Barning Swbr«l,"- chap, t, p. 2. SL 4to. ■ "Ilnglisli Lover*, a Romance," ,1662, part' 2, .o; 2, p. 170, and "EobinsorL Crusoe." An' accotiht of1 the'remarkable defeat of"-a wild,.bear in the presence (of':Basilides > (Basilowitz), Tyrant .pi Muscovy ("Rer. Musco,viticar. Comment.^^ Sigismundj,";etc:,-1600, p.-318;) and. a later instance of 'the: King /of Sweden's hunting and killing wild bears with- only a forked-stick in his hand; "Military 'Hist of- Charles 3^11., King of Swedenj". by Gustavusi Alderfeld, 1740; ■ TpL.i,;pV.2i.v'','-.'V,.: v .-.,-■■•..; :;';-:.■■ ■■■■'■'■:•.'■; ;•'•■

, After his1 quarrel with Grey, Warburton', who was, a,-very.good hater, said that he doubted .whether -:; "':'. V .'•'-. ... :

sto execrable a heap o£ nonsense had ever appeared*:'",!!}.- } anj; ( -!,epi'nedv Janguage/-. as (Jfey?s's6mmentaries °on/3"Hu'dib:ra's." : 'might' perhaps hay© referred

to such 'a note'as this.in support of tiis vicious and stupid judgment. The world may not. be grea.tly.concerned tp::kn6w, whether the valorous Knight who/ killed' a' bear and ■ founded . a fiddler; ivas a real character^or not. But it is nevertheless, a ,trea*t^to;see a man who. is so.:thorough 'atrliis; job, and, if for;no other, reason,1 Greyi's .list of ,the passages in forgptten: and .inaccessiblebooks,.where:knights, real>or./fictitious, and,,Avhether- with 'or.;'.without \> the. aid of a.forked-stick, are represented as killing : bears, would / give -.me"' great pleasure.-; ■';■,,■;/■ -'?'.■<: ■ ■■:■'■. '■'' /;/: /'"///:";:

: DiseuTsive, irrelevant, and grossly partisan; as Grey's notes : often are, they: make on'; tho whole delightful reading, ;and' they doubtless have .a thousand readers to-day'"for every one that -ever v inside " The s Divine Legation 'of •■ Moses." :T& me the con: tinuous reading of"','Hudibras" has never.been- an easy matter,;but I have never had time enough to get tired of reading- a ' commentary-.which! must bo at leastvten>timeß.as large as the test.