Shakespeare's England . went intoWestminster Abbey to visit the grave of Casaubon, hescratched his initials on the scholars monument, wherethe record, I. W., 1658, may still be read by thestroller in Poets Corner. One might well wish to followthat example, and even thus to associate his name withthe great cathedral. And not in pride but in humblereverence! Here if anywhere on earth self-assertionis rebuked and human eminence set at nought. Amongall the impressions that crowd upon the mind in thiswonderful place that which oftenest recurs and longestremains is the impression of mans individual
Shakespeare's England . went intoWestminster Abbey to visit the grave of Casaubon, hescratched his initials on the scholars monument, wherethe record, I. W., 1658, may still be read by thestroller in Poets Corner. One might well wish to followthat example, and even thus to associate his name withthe great cathedral. And not in pride but in humblereverence! Here if anywhere on earth self-assertionis rebuked and human eminence set at nought. Amongall the impressions that crowd upon the mind in thiswonderful place that which oftenest recurs and longestremains is the impression of mans individual insignifi-cance. This is salutary, but it is also dark. Therecan be no enjoyment of the Abbey till, after muchcommunion with the spirit of the place, your soul issoothed by its beauty rather than overwhelmed by itsmajesty, and your mind ceases from the vain effort tograsp and interpret its tremendous meaning. You can-not long endure, and you never can express, the senseof grandeur that is inspired by Westminster Abbey;. 108 SHAKESPEARES ENGLAND chap. but, when at length its shrines and tombs and statuesbecome familiar, when its chapels, aisles, arches, andcloisters are grown companionable, and you can strolland dream undismayed through rows of warriors andthrough walks of kings, there is no limit to the pensivememories they awaken and the poetic fancies theyprompt. In this church are buried, among generationsof their nobles and courtiers, fourteen monarchs ofEngland — beginning with the Saxon Sebert and end-ing with George the Second. Fourteen queens resthere, and many children of the royal blood who nevercame to the throne. Here, confronted in a haughtyrivalry of solemn pomp, rise the equal tombs of Eliza-beth Tudor and Mary Stuart. Queen Eleanors dustis here, and here, too, is the dust of the grim QueenMary. In one little chapel you may pace, with buthalf a dozen steps, across the graves of Charles theSecond, William and Mary, and Queen Anne and herconsort Prince George. At
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectshakespearewilliam15
