[Sidenote: Pleonasmus, or
Too ful speech.]
The first surplusage the Greekes call Pleonasmus,
I call him [too much speech] and is no great
fault, as if one should say, I heard it with mine
eares, and saw it with mine eyes, as if a man could
heare with his heeles, or see with his nose.
We our selues vsed this superfluous speech in a verse
written of our mistresse, neuertheles, not much to
be misliked, for euen a vice sometime being seasonably
vsed, hath a pretie grace,
For euer may my true loue liue and
neuer die
And that mine eyes may see her crownde
a Queene.
As, if she liued euer, she could euer die, or that one might see her crowned without his eyes.
[Sidenote: Macrologia, or Long language.] Another part of surplusage is called Macrologia, or long language, when we vse large clauses or sentences more than is requisite to the matter: it is also named by the Greeks Perissologia, as he that said, the Ambassadours after they had receiued this answere at the kings hands, they tooke their leaue and returned home into their countrey from whence they came.
So said another of our rimers, meaning to shew the
great annoy and
difficultie of those warres of Troy, caused for Helenas
sake.
Nor Menelaus was vnwise,
Or troupe of Troians mad,
When he with them and they with him,
For her such combat had.
The clauses (he with them and they with him) are surpluage, and one of them very impertinent, because it could not otherwise be intended, but that Menelaus, fighting with the Troians, the Troians must of necessitie fight with him.
[Sidenote: Periergia, or Ouerlabor,
otherwise called the curious.] Another point of surplusage
lieth not so much in superfluitie of your words, as
of your trauaile to describe the matter which yee take
in hand, and that ye ouer-labour your selfe in your
businesse. And therefore the Greekes call it
Periergia, we call it ouer-labor, iumpe with
the originall: or rather [the curious]
for his ouermuch curiositie and studie to shew himselfe
fine in a light matter, as one of our late makers,
who in most of his things wrote very well, in this
(to mine opinion) more curiously than needed, the
matter being ripely considered: yet is his verse
very good, and his meetre cleanly. His intent
was to declare how vpon the tenth day of March he
crossed the riuer of Thames, to walke in Saint Georges
field, the matter was not as great as ye may suppose.
The tenth of March when Aries receiued
Dan Phoebus raies into his horned head,
And I my selfe by learned lore perceiued
That Ver approcht and frosty winter fled
I crost the Thames to take the cheerefull
aire,
In open fields, the weather was so faire.


