Page:A study of Ben Jonson (IA studyofbenjonson00swinrich).pdf/104

 Explorata, or Discoveries, would yet retain a seat among English prose-writers beside the author of Bacon's Essays: the author of The Gull's Hornbook and The Bachelors Banquet would still stand high in the foremost rank of English humourists.

The book of epigrams published by Jonson in the collected edition of his select works up to the date of the year 1616 is by no means an attractive introduction or an alluring prelude to the voluminous collection of miscellanies which in all modern editions it precedes. 'It is to be lamented', in Gifford's opinion, 'on many accounts,' that the author has not left us 'a further selection.' It is in my opinion to be deplored that he should have left us so large a selection—if that be the proper term—as he has seen fit to bequeath to a naturally and happily limited set of readers. 'Sunt bona, sunt quædam mediocria, sunt mala plura': and the worst are so bad, so foul if not so dull, so stupid if not so filthy, that the student stands aghast with astonishment at the self-deceiving capacity of a writer who could prefix to such a collection the vaunt that his book was 'not covetous of least self-fame'—'much less' prone to indulgence in 'beastly phrase' No man can ever have been less