XXII.

When that brave honour of the Latine name, Which mear’d* her rule with Africa and Byze**, With Thames inhabitants of noble fame, And they which see the dawning day arize, Her nourslings did with mutinous uprore Harten against her selfe, her conquer’d spoile, Which she had wonne from all the world afore, Of all the world was spoyl’d within a while: So, when the compast course of the universe In sixe and thirtie thousand yeares is ronne, The bands of th’elements shall backe reverse To their first discord, and be quite undonne; The seedes of which all things at first were bred Shall in great Chaos wombe againe be hid. [* _Mear’d_, bounded.] [** _Byze_, Byzantium.]