Spenser's English Rivers. 97 



and dooth so still (whatsoever Gildas talketh hereof, whose books 

 may be corrupted in that behalfe) there is yet evident proofe 

 to be confirmed by experience. For albeit that the river be now 

 growne to be verie small by reason of the ground about it, which 

 is higher than it was in old time; yet it keepeth in maner the 

 old course, and runneth betweene the old citie that was, and the 

 new towne that is standing on Holmehirst crag, as I beheld of 

 late. Those places also which now are medow beneath the 

 abbaie, were sometimes a great lake, mere, or poole ["now I am 

 but weedes and wastfull gras," 42], through which the said 

 river ran, and (as I read) with a verie swift and violent course, 

 wheras at this present it is verie slow, and of no such deapth as 

 of ancient times it hath beene. But heare what mine author 

 saith further of the same. As those aforsaid workemen digged 

 in these mines, they happened oftentimes upon Lempet shels, 

 peeces of iiistie anchors, and keeles of great vessels, whereupon 

 some by and by gathered that either the Thames or some arme 

 of the sea did beat upon that towne, not understanding that 

 these things might aswell happen in great lakes and meres, 

 wherof there was one adjoining to the north side of the citie' (p. 

 323). Spenser seems not only lightly to accept the belief that 

 Thames once passed by Verulam, but contradicts himself by say- 

 ing, in lines 146-7, that it does so no longer, while in the opening 

 of the poem he appears walking along the Thames, 



Nigh where the goodly Verlame stood of yore. 



Holinshed continues : 'This mere (which the Latin copie of the 

 description of Britaine, written of late by Humprey Lhoid our 

 countrie man calleth corruptlie "stagnum exanimum" for "stag- 

 num maximum") at the first belonged to the king, and thereby 

 Offa in his time did reape no small commoditie. It continued 

 also untill the time of Alfrijc the seventh abbat of that house, 

 who bought it outright of the king then living, and by excessive 

 charges drained it so narrowlie, that within a while he left it 

 drie, . . . bicause there was alwaies contention betweene the 

 moonks and the kings servants, which fished on that water unto 

 the kings behoofe.' 



It thus appears that while Spenser is praising Camden as the 

 only worthy commemorator of Verulam, he is really much more 

 indebted to Harrison and Holinshed for what he says of her. 



