_Whose Wit is but a Tavern-Tympany, The Shavings and the Chips of Poetry._ Indeed such Pedlars to the Muses, whose Verse runs like the Tap, and whose invention ebbs and flows as the Barrel, deserve not the name of Poets, and are justly rejected as the common Scriblers of the times: but for such who fill'd with _Phebean_-fire, deserve to be crowned with a wreath of Stars; for such brave Souls, the darlings of the _Delian_ Deity, for these to be scorn'd, contemn'd, and disregarded, must needs be the fault of the times; I shall only give you one instance of a renowned Poet, out of the same Author. _On_ Butler_, who can think without just rage, The glory and the scandal of the age, Fair stood his hopes, when first he came to Town, Met every where with welcoms of renown, Courted, and lov'd by all, with wonder read, And promises of Princely favour fed: But what reward for all had he at last, After a life in dull expectance pass'd? The wretch at summing up his mispent days, Found nothing left, but poverty, and praise: Of all his gains by Verse he could not save Enough to purchase Flannel, an Thus you see though we have had some comparable to _Homer_ for Heroick Poesie, and to _Euripides_ for Tragedy, yet have they died disregarded, and nothing left of them, but that only once there were such Men and Writings in being. I shall, in the next place, speak something of my Undertakings, in writing the Lives of these Renowned Poets. Two things, I suppose, may be laid to my charge; the one is the omission of some that ought with good reason to have been mentioned; and the other, the mentioning of those which without any injury might have been omitted. For the first, as I have begg'd pardon at the latter end of my Book for their omission, so have I promised, (if God spare me life so long) upon the first opportunity, or second Edition of this Book, to do them right. In the mean time I should think my self much beholding to those persons who would give me any intelligence herein, it being beyond the reading and acquaintance of any one single person to do it of himself. And yet, let me tell ye, that by the Name of Poet, many more of former times might have been brought in than what I have named, as well as those which I have omitted that are now living, namely, Sir _Walter Rawleigh_, Mr. _John Weever_, Dr. _Heylin_, Dr. _Fuller,_ &c. but the Volume growing as big as the Bookseller at present was willing to have it, we shall reserve them to another time, they having already eternized their Names by the never dying Histories which they have wrote.