Penny Dreadfuls, 1602 · page 29 of 400
Penny Dreadful Cover — page 29: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of Page from "Albions England" This is a page of running prose poetry in early modern English (not Victorian—this appears to be from an earlier historical work, likely 16th or 17th century based on typography and language). The text recounts a tragic narrative: a king receives an oracle prophecy that his son will eject him from his realm, and in fear, he orders the child's death. The passage describes how this act of violence transforms the king into a melancholy figure (thereafter named "Saturne"), whose servants fear his withdrawn temperament. The text then shifts to the king's wife, sister, and other women lamenting the doomed child, torn between love for the baby and fear of the father's wrath. The emotional core centers on the tension between maternal affection and enforced obedience to paternal authority.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
‘ = ae se oT 7 . rh ‘h A Ve j 4 * 1 ivi wit’ i) a . "Faas ae. PT bo Ag. “4 Tp aa ce ‘ . “<f saw Mi Me oi se ty OS Se CEP cs "% rf A a 7 4 * . eles ; : ; i oe ye eae oP i Da ae 8 wa Thay a - oe 3 or iy) ahh. ' a CRS Soon pane “4 4 ‘> < ar # ALBIONS | ENGLAND. | Both to acquite him of his vow, and fruftrate Deftinie, a For atthe Oracle he had, his wife a fonne fhould beare, a That fhould eie& him from his Realme: his vow therefore andfeare Did haften on(vnwillingly)the {laughter ofhisfonne : For which(his forrowes granting fpeech) his moene he thus begonne, _ And want not ftately crowns their cares? VWVith pompe haue princes — Ah,die he muft,and diehe fhall,els may not Sarwrneraigne. (paine? Yeat,might a Scepters want fuffice,I gladly would refigne: | But {worne by St7x and wreaktull Azars at periuries repine, Then farre be it that they repine,leaft I too late repent: , It doubles finne, if finne by finne wepraGtifetopreuent, —- From this time foorth, Adelanchole,for Surname Saturne had: No mirth could wreft fro him a finile,ech {mile would make him fad, His feruants fearehis folemne fittes,when ifthey oughtdidfay, = H¢ either an{wers not atail,or quite an other way. Cys Vnpeopled roomes and pathleffe waies did fit his humour beft: And then hefighs and fheadeth teares when all things elfe did reft. Who fo could cite a Tragedie was formoft in his cteede, ie Forsbalking pleafaunt company jon forrowes did he feede, - oe Death likes him that miflikes himfelfe: in gefture roabesandall? == - He fhewes himfelfe like to himfelfe :-and hence it doth befall 1a That nen to Melancholy giuen,we Saturnifts do call. iy His Wife and Sifter kifling oft her Nephewe and her Sonne, | (For the his Auntand Mother was) with /es#4a fecke ro (hunne The voted Fathers deadly doome: to kill fo f{weete a Childe _ Their eies and very foules abhorre : who(nothing fo vnmilde) “i Doe weeping kiffe his laughing mouth,in minde the Babeto fauez Howbeit feare of Saturves wroth contrary counfell gaue. _ fom But when in hafte the Babe his heart was fent for byandby, ee. So Saturndwild,fo Cybel/ muft,and Zeffanotdenie, = dee. | Itwasawoetohearetheir woeanddeathtofeethemdie. == | Vahollowed wretch, then Cybell faid,in wombe why did I be po > — , bd . ‘ ® ~ % v6 7 a | + Sah + 22 ae . : ~ ~ > LU ia +. 9h be we . ie, hin 74° A ee ae St ao ‘ a | - — - — SO ee a