“Peace, friend Sancho,” answered Don Quixote; “for matters of war are, of all others, most subject to continual change. Now I verily believe, and it is most certainly the fact, that the sage Freston, who stole away my chamber and books, has metamorphosed these giants into windmills, on purpose to deprive me of the glory of vanquishing them, so great is the enmity he bears me! But his wicked arts will finally avail but little against the goodness of my sword.” “God grant it!” answered Sancho Panza. Then, helping him to rise, he mounted him again upon his steed, which was almost disjointed.--_Don Quixote._ THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY Though still serious-minded in the main, the world at the beginning of the Seventeenth century recognized and appreciated humor. And, growing with what it fed upon the vein of humor became more marked and more important in literature. Wherefore our outline must from now on be less comprehensive and more discriminating. The field is getting too wide, the harvest too bountiful for gleaning, even for general reaping; we can now only pluck spears of ripened grain. An Outline can touch only the high spots, and though many wonderful flashes of wit and humor occur in the works of the most serious writers space cannot be given to such, it must be conserved for the definitely and intentionally humorous writers. This is greatly to be regretted, for not infrequently the jests of the serious-minded are more intrinsically witty than those of professed humorists. As an example may be mentioned George Herbert, the famous clergyman who was called Holy George Herbert. His religious writings are interspersed with flashes of exquisite wit. “God gave thy soul brave wings; put not those feathers Into a bed to sleep out all ill weathers,” is a most graceful bit of word play. And so with scores, even hundreds of worthy writers, among whose pages brilliant shafts of wit are found. Such excursions we have no room for, and must abide by the inexorable laws of limitation. Nor can such a matter as the Ballads be touched upon. The historical ballads of this time were narrative poems of exceeding great length and usually, of exceeding great dulness. Fun they show, here and there, but the bulk of them are destitute of mirth-provoking lines. Not so the Ballad Literature intended for social diversion and lovers of ribaldry. These, in large numbers, were put forth, and were oftener than not, founded on the old Jest Books, the Merry Tales, and even the Gesta and Fabliaux of earlier days. Collections of these include the effusions of the balladists from the short stanzas, mere epigrams, to the intolerably long tales based on political or religious matters. Yet it is at this juncture we must mention the name of Thomas Hobbes, the Malmesbury Philosopher, and a most important figure of the seventeenth century. Not because of his own wit or humor, but of his understanding and valuation of it.