The King of the Beasts. 21 



Thoroughly consonant with this theory of the occasional 

 gentleness of *' the terror of the wood," is the poet's cheer- 

 fulness in endorsing its amiable familiarity with the lamb. 

 Ever}'body, probably, remembers the astonishment of the 

 Seven Champions of Christendom, even though they were 

 accustomed to " untamed lions " laying their heads in the 

 laps of Angelicas, when they saw lions and lambs together. 

 But the poets are not to be surprised by such trifles. The 

 Orpheus and Amphion myths redound to the credit of the 

 muse,^ and it is not therefore altogether unnatural that lions 

 "by tuneful magic tamed," "by verses charmed," and "led 

 by the ear," should now and then be found "dandling the 

 kid," or "gambolling with the bounding roe." They write, 

 however, on a point of a high prescription. We read in 

 Howe's " Chronicles " how King James had a lamb lowered 

 into the Tower lions' den, the company expecting to behold 

 a thrilling murder. On the contrary, " Being come to the 

 ground, the lamb lay upon his knees, and both the lions stood 

 in their former places and only beheld the lamb. Presently 

 the lamb rose up and went unto the lions, who very gently 

 looked upon and smelled on him, without any hurt Then 

 the lamb was softly drawa up again, in as good plight as 

 he was let down." In the earliest past, as we know from 

 Holy Writ, " the lion gambolled with the kid " in Spenser's 

 Paradise — 



" The lyon there did with the lambe consort, 

 And eke the dove sate by the faulcon's side ; 

 Ne each of other feared fraud or tort, 

 But did in safe securitie abide, 

 Wiihouten perill of the stronger pride." 



We can also surmise, from sacred promises of a future of 

 universal peace and idyllic amiabihty, what Shelley, dream- 

 ing of the hereafter, foresees — 



^ Poets claim both as of their craft : also Arion. 



