[52] Browning is very obscure, and neither on authority nor principle a first-rate poet; but he is a strong thinker, and dear to those who have taken the pains to dig out the nuggets of gold. Canon Farrar puts him among the three living authors whose works he would be most anxious to save from the flames. Mrs. Browning has more imagination than her husband, and is perhaps his equal in other respects. (Eng., 19th cent.)
[53] Read Young's "Night Thoughts."
[54] Jonson, on account of his noble aims, comparative purity, and classic style, stands next to Shakspeare in the history of English drama. Read "The Alchemist," "Catiline," "The Devil as an Ass," "Cynthia's Revels," and "The Silent Woman." The plot of the latter is very humorous. (Eng., 1700.)
[55] The dramas of Beaumont and Fletcher are poetically the best in the language except those of Shakspeare. Read "Philaster," "The Fair Maid of the Inn," "Thierry and Theodoret," "The Maid's Tragedy." (Eng., 17th cent.)
[56] Marlowe's "Mighty Line" is known to all lovers of poetry who have made a wide hunt. His energy is intense. Read "The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus," based on that wonderfully fascinating story of the doctor who offered his soul to hell in exchange for a short term of power and pleasure, on which Goethe expended the flower of his genius, and around which grew hundreds of plays all over Europe. (Eng., 17th cent.)
[57] For whimsical and ludicrous situations and a rapid fire of witticisms, Sheridan's plays have no equals. Read "The School for Scandal" and "The Rivals." (Eng., 18th cent.)
[58] Carleton's poetry is not of a lofty order, but exceedingly enjoyable. Read his "Farm Ballads." (Amer., 19th cent.)
[60] Virgil is the greatest name in Roman literature. His "Æneid" is the national poem of Rome. His poetry is of great purity and elegance, and for variety, harmony, and power second in epic verse only to his great model, Homer. (Rome, 1st cent. b. c.) Read Dryden's translation if you cannot read the original.
[61] The Odes of Horace combine wit, grace, sense, fire, and affection in a perfection of form never attained by any other writer. He is untranslatable; but Martin's version and commentary will give some idea of this most interesting man, "the most modern and most familiar of the ancients." (Rome, 1st cent. b. c.)