No More Learning

331. _To his honoured kinsman, Sir William Soame. _ The second son of Sir
Stephen Soame, Lord Mayor of London in 1598. Herrick's father and Sir
Stephen married sisters.

_As benjamin and storax when they meet. _ Instances of the use of
"Benjamin" for gum benzoin will be found in the Dictionaries. Dr.
Grosart's gloss, "_Benjamin_, the favourite youngest son of the
Patriarch," is unfortunate.

336. _His Age: dedicated to . . . M. John Wickes under the name of
Posthumus. _ There is an important version of this poem in Egerton MS.
,
2725, where it is entitled _Mr. Herrick's Old Age to Mr. Weekes_. I do
not think it has been collated before. Stanzas i. -vi. contain few
variants; ii. 6 reads: "Dislikes to care for what's behind"; iii. 6:
"Like a lost maidenhead," for "Like to a lily lost"; v. 8: "With the
best and whitest stone"; vi. 1: "We'll not be poor". After this we have
two stanzas omitted in 1648:--

"We have no vineyards which do bear
Their lustful clusters all the year,
Nor odoriferous
Orchards, like to Alcinous;
Nor gall the seas
Our witty appetites to please
With mullet, turbot, gilt-head bought
At a high rate and further brought.

"Nor can we glory of a great
And stuffed magazine of wheat;
We have no bath
Of oil, but only rich in faith
O'er which the hand
Of fortune can have no command,
But what she gives not, she not takes,
But of her own a spoil she makes. "

Stanza vii. , l. 2, has "close" for "both"; l.