CHARACTERS. 
idea of excellence with his name, 
that it grew. in common conversa. 
tion to signify any thing perfect 
‘ 
in its kind ; and a Lope diamond, 
a Lope day, or a Lope woman, be- 
came fashionable and familiar modes 
of expressing their good qualities. 
His poetry was as advantageous to 
his a as to his fame : the king 
enriched him with pensions and 
_ chaplaincies ; the pope honoured him 
with dignities and. preferments ; 
_ valuable presents. 
and every nobleman at court aspired 
to the character of his Mecenas, by 
conferring upon him frequent and 
His annual in- 
' come was not less than 1500 ducats, 
exclusive of the price of his plays, 
which” Cervantes insinuates that he 
was never inclined to forego, and 
Montalvan estimates at 80,000. He 
received in presents from individuals 
as much as 10,500 more. His ap- 
plication of these sums partook of 
More than usually oppressed 
the spirit of the nation from which 
he drew them. Improvident and 
indiscriminate charity ran away with 
these gains, immense as they were, 
and rendered his life unprofitable 
to his friends, and uncomfortabie to 
himself.” 
‘‘ He continued to publish plays 
and poems, and to receive every 
remuneration, that adulation and 
generosity could bestow, till the 
year 1635, when religious thoughts 
had rendered him so hypochondriac 
that he couid hardly be considered 
as in full possession of his under- 
‘standing. On the 22d of August, 
which was Friday, he felt himself 
in 
Spirits and weak with age; but 
he was so much more anxious about 
the health of his soul than of his 
* Montalvan. 
Vor, XLVIII. 
849 
body, that he would not avail hime 
self of the privilege to which his in- 
firmities entitled him, of eating 
meat; and even resumed the fla 
gellation *, to which he had accus- 
tomed himself, with more than asual 
severity. This discipline is suppos- 
ed to have hastened his death. He fell 
ill on that night, and having passed 
the necessary ceremonies with exces- 
sive devotion, he expired on Mon- 
day the 25th of August 1635. 
‘¢ The sensation produced by his 
death, was, if possible, more asto- 
nishing than the reverence in which 
he was held while living. The splen- 
dour of his funeral, which was con- 
ducted at the charge of the most 
munificent of his patrons, the duke 
of Sese, the number and language 
of the sermons on that occasion, the 
competition of poets of all countries 
in celebrating his genius and lament. 
ing his loss, are unparalleled in the 
annals of poetry, and. perhaps 
scarcely equalled in those of roy- 
alty itself. ‘The ceremonies attend- 
ing his interment continued for nine 
days. 
‘¢ The. priests+ described him asa 
saint in his life, and represented his 
Superiority over the classics in poc- 
try as great as that of the religion 
which he professed was over the 
heathen. ‘The writings which were 
selected from the multitude produced 
on the occasion fill more than two 
large volumes.” 
Yet Lope de Vega was not con- 
tented either with his fame or his 
profits ? and actually complained of 
neglect, envy and poverty ! 
‘¢ Asan author heis most known, 
as indeed he is most wonderful, for 
the prodigious number of his writ- 
ings. 
+ See Funeral Sermons. Ay Spaeens edit. of Lope. 
3 
