fome holy infpired perfon; or probably, as the author is unknown, the book was actually fent from heaven, when I have known the garret from whence they came to pay the author's Christmas bills, or I have been ins formed from undoubted authority, that the devil fetch'd them from Tottenham-Court, that the DOCTOR's horfes might have hay and corn, when the charity of the faints was rather too cold. Nor does it lefs excite my laughter to hear in what manner many young ladies, when they read, or talk of the elegies, epiftles, and love poems, fpeak of the authors of thefe performances; with one he is a charming foul, with another he's a great creature; this calls him cæleftial, that divine, infomuch that one would imagine they confidered the GREYS, MASONS, and WHITEHEADS, as fo many Sylphs, Gnomes, and Salamanders; whilft we all know that if the ladies were to be in company with these aerials, they would find them to be full as good men, as they are poets. How many would expect to find CHURCHILL a fower, morofe, fneering, referv'd companion, while every man who knows him (however he may diflike fatire) will apply the character which one of the wits of the laft age gives to the famous DORSET, that he is

The best good man, with the wofft-natur'd Mufe.

One would hardly imagine (what indeed is faid to be true) that Mr. ADDISON wrote his paper upon fobriety, when he was, what is call'd half-feas over; and fir RICHARD STEELE, we are told, wrote his paper against keeping a miftrefs, while his Dulcinea was at his elbow. Could any man believe, while he is reading, that the author of the Christian Hero should ever become a captive to bum-bailiffs, any more than that he, who penn'd the character of the faithful AEDIEL, fhould abet and vindicate the murder of his

fo

fovereign? Every one would naturally suppose the author of a treatise against the use of fnuff, would almost faint at the fight of a box, and I call'd upon a friend fome time ago, whom I found deeply intent upon this subject, with his snuff-box half emptied before him while he was writing. How many love poets have we, who dwell for ever on a subject which they never felt and have we not more inftances than one, of a Monody on the death of a Lucy, being scarce fold, before the difconfolate author married a Chloe, that he might not lie alone? How all this happens, may per haps be the fubject of a future page.

I am, &c.

A-B, Y-Z.

GAMING made Game of to a LADY, paffionately fond of CARDS.

TH

SHOU, whom at length inceffant gaming dubs, Thrice honourable title! Queen of CLUBS, Say what vaft joys each winning card imparts, And that, too juftly, call'd the King of HEARTS? Say, when you mourn of cash and jewels spoil'd, May not the thief be knave of DIAMONDS ftil'd? One friend, howe'er, when deep remorfe invades, Awaits thee, lady- 'tis the Ace of SPADES.

X. Y.

Extract

Extract of a Letter from a CANTAB. to his Friend

t

in the Country.

ONDAY, July 10. At fix o'clock in the morning made a forced march to Chapelfdorff, proceeded foon after to Teabutterfbreadtz, from whence. I made a detachment from the rear-guard of my corps, and proceeded to Puzzlewitz. About one o'clock arriv'd at Commonfbadt, where we fell in with a detachment du Mutton, which was foon cut to pieces, without any lofs on our fide; from hence march'd to Dockrelhaufen, where I feiz'd several MAGAZINES, at fix was oblig❜d to return to Chapelsdorff, from thence to Supperville and Puzzlewitz, and about ten at night fell back to Snortinau,

P. W.

The PROPHECY of FAMINE.

A SCOTS PASTORAL. By C. CHURCHILL.

T is the misfortune of moft writers, who amuse

in the poetical way, that they form in their minds fome model of real or fancied excellence, which they continually work after, without having even the hopes of equalling, much lefs the profane ambition of furpaffing their original. An imitation of MILTON, of SPENSER, or of POPE (an author who, notwithstanding his own fuperior excellence, has made the mechanifm of numbers fo plain, that it is impoffible for VOL. I. Y y a rhy

a rhymift to mifs refemblance) is the utmost of their aim, and provided their pieces are allowed not to be totally deftitute of all likenefs, they hug themfelves in their own abilities, and tofs about their poetical dictums, quafi EX CATHEDRA.

How many idle poems, full of trite imagery, and affected perfonification, have the ALLEGRO and PENSEROSO given birth to ? and how many cantos of unintelligible allegories in imitation of SPENSER, have fent the reader to his dictionary for an explanation of the words, without ever coming at the fentiment? What a deal of found morality and dull profe has been ftretch'd, fqueez'd, and par'd into verfe, and at length "walk'd the town a while," as Effays after the manner of POPE? There is fcarce a fatire in HORACE, which has not undergone, what they call Imitation, nor a moral virtue which has not run the gauntlope of an Ethic Epifle. In short, the fuccefs of one real genius, produces a thousand miferable copyifts; and pedantry never makes herself more notoriously ridiculous, than by fondly imitating what the implicitly admires, and half understands.

Our author, indeed, feems by no means willing to enlift himself into the clafs of admirers, and difdains to court a comparative reputation. Strong in himself, he bows to no modern idol of fantaftical TASTE, and fcorns to bend

To fashion, and obey the rules

Impos'd at firft, and fince obferv'd by fools."

Almoft all other modern authors have their prototypes, one writes with the antithetical poignancy of YOUNGE, another with the familiar ease of a PRIOR, &c. whilst our poet, with the elegant and spirited Dr. AKENSID, feem to feel themselves; and fully poffefs'd of their subject, their imitations come rather by accident than defign,

and

and have therefore all the grace of propriety, without the ftiffness of labour.

Of all the poems this gentleman has offer'd to the public, The PROPHECY of FAMINE is the most perfect, whether we confider the invention, difpofition, numbers, or expreffion. Paftoral, we know, can fometimes admit of fatire, and the celebrated line

Qui Bavium non odit, amet tua carmina Mævi, must occur to the memory of every reader. DRYDEN, indeed, has fomewhere obferv'd from this and another paffage in the Eclogues, that VIRGIL, had he been difpos'd to indulge himself in that fpecies of poetry, would probably have been as great a fatyrift, as an epic writer. Non tu in triviis, indocte folebas?

Stridenti miferum ftipulâ difperdere carmen ?

What would he have faid, had he seen the whole Scors PASTORAL? or rather what would he have felt from fo formidable a rival?

From the meek title of paftoral, a reader would naturally expect to meet with the ufual abundance of pure defcription in the place of fenfe, and a deal of harmonious verfification upon ftale worn-out fentiments. For the adage,

Nil dictum quod non dictum prius,

is no where more applicable than to this fort of writing. From VIRGIL to CALPURNIUS and NEMESIANUS, from SPENSER to POPE, PHILLIPS and GAY, 'tis but the ftanding difh of THEOCRITUS, ferved up, over and over and over again.

The poem before us begins with a fhort and humorous hiftory of the origin of modern paftoral writing, which is generally the amufement of the promifing genius of fixteen, when fmitten by "his miftrefs's eyebrow." So, as the poet fays, in love with his Amaryllis and his Mufe at the fame time,