Davies of Hereford addressed him as the "alllearned knight," whose health the muse, which he embosomed, drank in Helicon, as to her bel-amour: and Ben Jonson has an animated compliment to him. on his sixtieth birthday, which hails him as "Son to the grave wise keeper of the seal, Sir Richard Steele, in No. 25 of the Guardian, has passed a free and well-founded censure on lord Bacon's History of Henry the Seventh: but he concludes with this liberal consideration in favour of his lordship, that he lived in an age wherein chaste and correct writing was not in fashion, and when pedantry was the mode even at court; so that it is no wonder if the prevalent humour of the times bore down his genius, though superior in force perhaps to any of his countrymen that have either gone before or succeeded him.] 6 Scourge of Folly, p. 193. 7 British Poets, vol. iv. p. 582. THOMAS HOWARD, EARL OF SUFFOLK, 2 [THE naval commander and statesman, who was summoned to parliament by writ, Dec. 7, 1597, is surmised by Mr. Ritson to be the nobleman who composed verses in the Ashmolean MSS. 781 or 60713. In May 1603, according to Dugdale 4, he was made choice of for one of the king's privy council, and July 21, next ensuing, advanced to the dignity of earl of Suffolk; after which he was appointed lord chamberlain of the king's household, and in 1614, lord high treasurer of England, in which great office he continued but few years5. He built the • Bibliographia Poetica, p. 383. 9 Opportunity has not occurred to the editor of procuring any transcript from these manuscripts. * Baronage, tom. iii. p. 279. From Cole's MSS. vol. xxxiii. p. 461, it appears he was high steward of the university of Cambridge in 1600. 5 Weldon says, the earl of Suffolk was turned out of his place for Cranfield the projector. Court of King James, p. 141. But according to Carte, he was accused of having embezzled a great part of the money received from the Dutch for the cautionary towns, which was destined to the payment of the army in Ireland, the fleet, the artillery, and other necessary services; and either for this reason, or because he was father-inlaw to the late favourite (Carr earl of Somerset), was deprived of his post of treasurer. The earl, he adds, was in the general opinion of the world deemed guiltless of any considerable stately mansion called Audley End in Essex, and dying at his house near Charing Cross, May 28, 1626, was buried at Walden. Ben Jonson addressed the following high, encomium "TO THOMAS EARL OF SUFFOLK. "Since men have left to do praise-worthy things, misdemeanor; but his countess (the sister to Elizabeth, countess of Lincoln) had rendered herself very odious by her rapacity in extorting money from all persons who had any matters to be dispatched at the Treasury. They were both confined for a short time in the Tower, and fined £30,000, which was reduced by king James to £7000. Carte's Hist. of England, vol. iv. p. 47. Mr. Lodge thinks that James hoped to appease the popular clamour for the blood of Somerset, by the unjust sacrifice of that favourite's highest connexions; and therefore began with his father-in-law the treasurer; and this conjecture is the more probable, as his fine was afterwards mitigated to a very small sum. Illustr. of Brit. Hist. vol. iii. p. 386. • Epigrams, lib. i. 67. |