SIR WALTER RALEIGH 187 ately, that in half a day the mind of all the company was changed from the extremest hate to the extremest pity." The sentence of death thus unfairly and disgracefully obtained was not im- mediately carried into execution. James was not satisfied with the evidence adduced on the trial ; and believing at the same time that Raleigh had been plot ting against him, he set his royal wit to dive into the mystery. Of the singular scene which the British Solomon devised it is not necessary to speak, since Ra- leigh was not an actor in it. But as no more evidence could be obtained against him, even by the King's sagacity, he was reprieved, and remanded to the Tower, where the next twelve years of his life were spent in confinement. Fortunately, he had never ceased to cultivate literature with a zeal not often found in the sol- dier and politician, and he now beguiled the tedium of his lot by an entire devo- tion to those studies which before had only served to diversify his more active and engrossing pursuits. Of his poetical talents we have already made short mention ; to the end of life he continued the practice of pouring out his mind in verse, and there are several well-known and beautiful pieces expressive of his feelings in prison, and in the anticipation of immediate death ; especially " The Lie," and the beautiful little poem called "The Pilgrimage." He also possessed a strong turn for mathematics, and studied them with much success in the soci- ety and under the guidance of his friend, Thomas Hariot, one of the most accomplished mathematicians of the age. Chemistry was another favorite pur- suit, in which, according to the standard of his contemporaries, he made great progress. But the most important occupation of his imprisonment was the com- position of the " History of the World." The work extends from the creation to the end of the second Macedonian war. Raleigh meant to bring it down to modern times ; but the untimely death of Henry, Prince of Wales, for whose use it was composed, deprived him of the spirit to proceed with so laborious an undertaking. He enjoyed the confidence of that generous youth in a remark- able degree, and maintained a close correspondence with him on civil, military, and naval subjects. Several discourses on these topics, addressed to the prince, will be found in the editions of Raleigh's works. Henry repaid these services with sincere friendship and admiration ; and we may presume that his adviser looked forward to that friendship, not only for a cessation of misfortune, but for a more brilliant period of favor and power than he had yet enjoyed. Fortu- nately, however, his patron's death was preceded by that of his arch-enemy, Cecil ; and through the mediation of the Duke of Buckingham, Raleigh was re- leased from the Tower in March, 1615 ; and obtained permission to follow up his long-cherished scheme of establishing a colony in Guiana, and working a gold mine, of which he had ascertained the existence and situation. The results of this disastrous voyage must be shortly given. Raleigh sailed March 28, 1617, and reached the coast of Guiana in November following. Be ing himself disabled by sickness from proceeding farther, he despatched a party to the mine under the command of Captain Keymis, an officer who had served in the former voyage to Guiana. But during the interval which had elapsed
