his support, he left Ferrara, and took up his residence on an estate
belonging to his kinsman Malaguzzo, between Reggio and Rubiera. He has
described this retreat, and the pleasant manner in which he spent his
time during his short residence there, in his fifth Satire; but it is
disputed whether the account alludes to this or an earlier period of
his life:

"'Time was when by sweet solitude inclines
The storied page I fill'd with, ready mind;
Those gentle scenes of Reggio's fair domain,
Our own dear nest, where peace and nature reign;
The lovely villa and the neighbouring Rhone,
Whose banks the Naiads haunt serene and lone;
The lucid pool whence small fresh streams distil
That glad the garden round and turn the mill;
Still memory loves upon these scenes to dwell,
Still sees the vines with fruit delicious swell,
Luxurious meadows blooming spread around,
Low winding vales and hills with turrets crown'd.'


"The Duke Alphonso, seeing him left without a patron, and provided with
so small an income, invited him to return to Ferrara, which he did, and
found no reason, it is said, to regret that he had once more put himself
under the protection of the house of Este. Alphonso, knowing his love of
retirement and the peculiarity of his habits, promised to leave him at
perfect liberty to pursue his studies and live in the way that most
suited his wishes. He kept his promise, and there is reason to believe
that the presents he bestowed on the poet enabled him to build the
cottage in which he resided, with few interruptions, till his death.