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 virtuous country-maiden, who was attached to a shepherd, was brought into Solomon's harem, and there tempted by the king with flatteries and promises to transfer her affections; but she, armed by the power of virtue, resisted all his allurements, and remained faithful to her shepherd, to whom she was afterwards re-united.

Though it cannot be said that either Clarke or Boothroyd in any way elucidated the design of this book, yet they have done great service by their rejection of the allegorical interpretation.

1825. We must, however, not suppose that the allegorisers, though considerably diminished in number, had exhausted their inventive faculties. Kaiser maintains that "the bride" is a new colony near the Jordan, and the bridegroom represents Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah; and that ''the Song celebrates their restoration of the Jewish constitution in the province of Judah''.

1826. The little band, who struggled hard for the defence of the true design of this book, could now rejoice at the accession of a mighty leader to their ranks. The celebrated Ewald showed in a masterly manner that ''this poem celebrates chaste, virtuous, and sincere love, which no splendour is able to dazzle, nor flattery to seduce''."

1829. Döpke, in his elaborate philologico-critical commentary, though not espousing this view, materially aided the combatants for the literal interpretation.

1830. It is surprising that the sharp-sighted Rosenmüller, who could not follow the allegorical interpretation of the church, instead of adhering to the obvious sense of the poem,