Reference  |  Brewer's Readers Guide  |  T  |  Tests of Chastity to Thames

T — Tests of Chastity to Thames (Part 3 of 3)

Thalestris, queen of the Amazons; any bold, heroic woman.

As stout Armida [q.v.], bold Thalestris.
And she [Rodalind, q.v.] that would have been the mistress
Of Gondibert.
   —S. Butler: Hudibras, i. 2 (1663).

In Pope’s Rape of the Lock, “Thalestris” is meant for Mrs. Morley, sister of sir George Brown, called in the poem “sir Plume.”

Thalia, the Muse of pastoral song. She is often represented with a crook in her hand.

Turn to the gentler melodies which suit
Thalia’s harp, or Pan’s Arcadian lute.
   —Campbell: Pleasures of Hope, ii. (1799).

Thaliard, a lord of Antioch.—Shakespeare: Pericles Prince of Tyre (1608).

Thames (Swan of the), John Taylor, the “water-poet.” He never learnt grammar, but wrote four score books in the reigns of James I. and Charles I. (1580–1654).

Taylor, their better Charon, lends an oar,
Once Swan of Thames, tho’ now he sings no more,
   —Pope: The Dunciad, iii. 10 (1723).