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And if fhe deign one charming fmile,
The bleft reward of all my labours,
I'll never grudge my pains, or toil,

But pity the dull 'Squires, my neighbours.

This piece is followed by one of inferior merit. Gray's celebrated Elegy has given birth to more parodies than perhaps any other poem in the English language. Of these, the Elegy written in a College Library, which makes a part of the prefent collection, is not the most happy. The following little piece of eight lines is worth the whole of it:

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If in that breast, fo good, so pure,
Compaffion ever lov'd to dwell,

Pity the forrows I endure,

The caufe-I must not-dare not tell.

The grief that on my quiet preys

That rends my heart-that checks my tongue

I fear will last me all my days,

But feel it will not last me long.

All the pieces of this collection are not of the fame caft with thofe already taken notice of: there are others in various ftyles, and of different merit. The fober elegiac Mufe has been cultivated, and not unsuccessfully, particularly in

THE DEBTOR.

Children of affluence, hear a poor man's pray'r!
O hafte, and free me from this dungeon's gloom;
Let not the hand of comfortless despair

Sink my grey hairs with forrow to the tomb!
Unus'd compaffion's tribute to demand,

With clamorous din wake Charity's dull ear,
Wring the flow aid from Pity's loitering hand,
Weave the feign'd tale, or drop the ready tear.
Far different thoughts employ'd my early hours,
To views of bliss, to scenes of affluence born;
The hand of pleasure strewed my path with flow'rs,
And every bleffing hail'd my youthful morn.
But ah, how quick the change! the morning gleam,
That cheer'd my fancy with her magic ray,
Fled like the gairish pageant of a dream,
And forrow clos'd the evening of my day.

Such is the lot of human blifs below;

Fond hope a-while the trembling flow'ret rears;
Till unforeseen defcends the blight of woe,
And withers in an hour the pride of years.

In evil hour, to fpecious wiles a prey,
I trusted:-(who from faults is always free?)
And the fhort progrefs of one fatal day

Was all the space 'twixt wealth and poverty.
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Where

Where could I feek for comfort, or for aid?

To whom the ruins of my state commend?
Left to myfelf, abandon'd, and betray'd,

Too late I found the wretched have no friend!
E'en he amid the reft, the favour'd youth,

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Whofe vows had met the tendereft warm return,
Forgot his oaths of conftancy and truth,
And left my child in folitude to mourn.
Pity in vain ftretch'd forth her feeble hand

To guard the facred wreaths by Hymen wove;
While pale-eyed avarice, from his fordid ftand,
Scowled o'er the ruins of neglected love.
Though deeply hurt, yet fwayed by decent pride,
She hufh'd her forrows with becoming art,
And faintly ftrove, with fickly fmiles, to hide
The canker worm that prey'd upon her heart.
Nor blam'd his cruelty-nor wish'd to hate
Whom once the lov'd-but pitied, and forgave:
Then unrepining yielded to her fate,

And funk in filent anguish to the grave.

Children of affluence, hear a poor man's prayer,

O hafte, and free me from this dungeon's gloom!
Let not the hand of comfortless defpair

Sink my grey hairs with forrow to the tomb!

The whole is clofed with an humorous Palinode to the Re viewers. We muft ingenuoufly confefs, to make use of Mr. Gray's expreffion, fpeaking of fome odes in which he and his friend Mr. Mafon had been burlesqued, he makes very good fun of us. He begins,

I who of late, in many a flanderous ditty,

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Burlefqued your profe, and parodied your verses,

With tears and trembling fupplicate your pity;'

Accept my penitence, forgive my curfes.

Good, piteous Gentlemen, reprefs your rigour,
Untwist your bowels of commiferation,
Think on my tender years, and till I'm bigger,
Sufpend the terrors of your dire damnation.
Long time with harmless Elegy content,

Pleas'd in that pretty path, I pac'd no further *,
Happy to catch fome straggling fentiment,

And fing in fimple file of love, and murther.
Till lur'd by wicked wits, indeed 'tis truth,

In luckless hour lifted beneath their banners,
To fatire's thorny ways they led my youth,-
Evil communication fpoils good manners.

Doricè for farther.

Dear

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Dear Doctor Langhorne, you were ever good,
Mild as young Nithifdale, or Lady Ellen †,
Can you excufe my frantic, furious mood,
'Gainft wisdom, and your fage decrees rebelling!
O foften then your angry colleagues' fury 1,

My works, I fear, will quickly fall before 'em,
Alas! they'll hang me without judge or jury,

Or tomahawk, and fcalp me in terrorem !

We apprehend the Gentleman, whom he mentions in the last ftanza but one that we have quoted, died fince this poem was printed, as we think too well of the generofity of our entertaining Bard to fuppofe he would attack where there was no power to retaliate.

+ Vide Owen of Carron, a poem by the Doctor.

Mr. Griffiths, &c. &c. &c.

ART. X A View of Society and Manners in France, Switzerland, and Germany: With Anecdotes relating to fome eminent Characters. By a Gentleman who refided feveral Years in thefe Countries. 8vo. 2 Vols. 10 s. Boards. Cadell. 1779.

MA

ANY valuable and uncommon qualities are requifite to form the character of an accomplished traveller : a comprehenfive knowledge of men and manners, an accurate difcrimination of characters, a total exemption from prejudices, the curiofity of youth directed by the experience of age, and the rare talent of patient obfervation, combined with a happy pliancy of temper, that can adapt itself to all the various forms of polished life. The prefent work is distinguished and adorned by several of these qualities, in a very eminent degree; and we will venture to pronounce, that the more accurate information any man has attained concerning the continent of Europe, and the more he has feen and examined the state of fociety and manners in France, Switzerland, and Germany, the more fincerely and warmly will he approve the industry, candour, discernment, and ability of this ingenious Author. His obfervations are chiefly confined to the fubjects announced in the title : but the Reader will be agreeably entertained and instructed by many interefting details concerning the arts, commerce, government, revenue, military ftrength, &c. of the countries here defcribed. Thefe objects are clofely connected with each other, as well as with the general manners of fociety; and it is no small merit in the prefent performance, that the Author has fuccessfully diftinguished, and analyfed, the various causes and circumstances, which confpire to form the durable impreffions of national character.

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In delineating this character, he enters into no abftract dif quifitions concerning the different systems of policy; he defcribes not with prolix exaggeration the capricious fingularities of a few individuals; but he paints mankind in groupes, as they appear in camps and courts, affemblies and theatres, and by prefenting a continual fcene of action to the eye, enables the mind of his reader to anticipate his juft and natural, though by no means obvious reflections. A work, executed according to this judicious plan, is well adapted to convey a general, and, as far as it extends, a correct knowledge of the manners of foreign countries; and, by presenting a faithful and exact historical picture, it helps to deftroy the effect of those wretched caricatures which amufe the giddy and malicious, by flattering the illiberal prejudices of national vanity. Few writers, indeed, will be found more untainted by prejudices of any kind than this agreeable Traveller; and, on this account, his teftimony is the more valuable in favour of the customs and inftitutions of his native country. We fhall felect a paffage on this fubject, as a fpecimen of the natural unaffected elegance with which thefe letters are written.

I feel as much indignation as you poffibly can, against those who endeavour to hurt the peace of families by malignant publications, and I enter fully into Lord -'s on fo unmerited

an attack. Yet I fhould be heartily forry to fee these evils remedied by any restriction on the freedom of the prefs; because I am every day more and more convinced that its unrestrained productions, the licentious news-papers themselves not excepted, have conveyed to every corner of Great Britain, along with much impertinence and fcurrility, fuch a regard for the conftitution, such a sense of the rights of the subject, and fuch a degree of general knowledge, as never were fo univerfally diffused over any other nation. Such a law as your friend propofes might, no doubt, protect individuals from unjust attacks in print but it would at the fame time remove one great means of clearing their innocence, and making known their wrongs, when injured in a more effential manner. It would limit the right which every Briton has of publicly addreffing his countrymen, when he finds himself injured or oppreffed by the perverfion of law, or the infolence of office.

• Examples might be given of men of great integrity being attacked in the most cruel and ungenerous manner by people high in office and guarded by power. Such men had no other means of redress than that of appealing to the candour and good fenfe of the Public, which they ufed with fuccefs. Every man's obfervation may fuggeft to him many kinds of injuftice and oppreffion which the rich, the infidious, or the powerful, can

commit in spite of law, or perhaps by the aid of law, againė the poor, the unfufpecting, and the friendless.—Marx, wo can filence confcience and evade law, tremble at the thoughts of their injustice being published; and nothing is, nothing can be, a greater check to the wantonnels of power, than the pri vilege of unfolding private grievances at the bar of the Public For thus the caufe of individuais is made a public concern, and the general indignation which their wrongs excite, forms at once one of the severeft punishments which can be infcted on the oppreffor, and one of the frongeft bulwarks that can be raifed in defence of the unprotected.

• By this means alfo the most speedy and effectual alarm is given over all the nation when any great public miconduct happens, or upon any appearance of a defign again the comftitution; and many evils are detected and prevented, which otherwise might have been uncbferved, till they had become too ftrong for remedy. And though this liberty produces much filly advice, and malignant ceniors without zamber, it cele opens the door to fome of a different character, who give Lieful hints to minifters, which would have been lot without the freedom of anonymous publication.

The temporary and partial diforders, which are the comfequences of public freedom, bave been greatly exaggerated by some people, and reprefented as more than equivalent to a the advantages refulting from a free government. But if fact perfons had opportunities of observing the nature of toe ens which spring up in abfolute governments, they would foon be convinced of their error.

• The greatest evil that can are from the Dories which accompanies civil liberty is, that people may rally Lice a dislike to liberty herfelf, from the taxing in pertinence and abfurdity of fome of her real or at work;-a a man might become less fond of the company of a set freut, if he found him always attended by a frappit our, WILL WILL-out provocation was always growling and rang

But to prove the weakness of fict condit, we have only to call to mind that the ftream of londonbeh perap sever rose higher than it did fome years face is Engate - his wist were the mighty evils that followed ?-Many refpeftalje cize racters were grofsly mirepresented is proses puserosCertain daring fcribblers evaded the pan fame they deferies: -Many windows were broken, and the chariors of i iw orabers of parliament were begattend was on by the soWhat are thefe frivolous diforders when compared to de Loony regularity produced by defpot in wit me are ou get to the most painful circumfpeétion in all their atoms are ad

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