Tis all for silly pride and show, That book worms like thyself may know, And envy thee the bliss; Of such old works rariss: Or what surprise would seize a stranger, possessing neither rhyme nor reason, nor even an incident to afford instruction of any kind, will be knocked down by Messrs. Leigh and Sotheby, &c. &c. for five, ten, or fifteen guineas; yet these are facts that will stand the test of inquiry, and stamp their possessors well worthy the title which the poet has bestowed upon them. * The work above alluded to, gives an account of the several engravings of Englishmen that are extant, as well as Foreigners who have visited this country, to the period of the Revolution, among which are many rare prints mentioned, from the gravers of the artists here adverted to, and among the rest is an engraving of an infamous character, called Mull'd Sake, who not only followed the employ of Or else behold in wooden cut, Or Skelton poet, all as like To human faces, as a pike To postboy's leather breeches. L'ENVOY OF THE POET. The senseless dolt, who buys rare works for show, THE POET'S CHORUS TO FOOLS. Come, trim the boat, row on each Rara Avis, a chimney sweeper, but was also a most notorious cheat and thief. This fellow, who had nothing but his infamy to recommend him, is, however, rendered of infinite consequence to the collectors of Granger portraits; for this simple reason, that print alluded to is supposed to be unique, and on that account alone, the writer very much questions whether if a second impression of the portraiture of this most celebrated character was exposed to public auction, it would not be knocked down for £.50 to some fool of a Collector. * Eleanor Rummin, the keeper of a filthy alehouse in the reign of Henry VIII. has been handed down to the notice of posterity by some wretched, disgusting lines of Skelton, the Poet Laureate of that day, who is another person mentioned above; while Matthew Hopkins, a notorious imposter in the reign of James I. practising on the credulity of that period, pretended to discover witches, by which he made considerable profit, though at the expense of nearly one hundred lives, which were sacrificed to his abominable practices, until he himself being accused of witchcraft, fell at last a victim to the very methods pursued by himself for the discovery of the black art in others. Of these three individuals, woodcuts are extant, which are mentioned by Granger, as likenesses, though scarcely resembling human countenances, notwithstanding which, from their rarity, they are not only sought after with avidity, but, if offered to sale, would be purchased at the most extravagant price. a SECTION XXXI. OF FOOLISH ANTIQUARIES. Vetera extoslimus recentium incuriosi. Lo! here's indeed, a rare collection Whose sapient brain, from modern works, no pleasure knows: Dotes on crack'd urn Etruscan-bust without a nose. Òr now, behold, quite black and crummy, N 3 Or valiant Hector's tooth, beyond denial; Or, if with old late times comparing, Or famous cup‡ of Hardi Knute, sir; * The poet, in this line, has had an eye to the excellent after-piece of Modern Antiques, which cannot be too frequently performed, to expose the false taste of these votaries of folly, of whom we may well say, Tutte le pietre non sono gemino. The writer was well acquainted with a virtuoso, who preserved, with the most scrupulous care, a scrap of the robe, found in the coffin of King John, at Winchester; who was also present at the opening of the vault, containing the remains of Edward the Fourth: on which occasion he tasted the pickle, found in the leaden receptacle of that monarch, in order to discover, if possible, of what liquids it was com posed. Oh, what a relish! The history of this cup must ever excite a smile on the countenance of individuals; who are not enslaved by this extraordinary taste for relics of antiquity; and that the reader, therefore, may not accuse me of selfishness, I will, in as few words as possible, make him acquainted with the fact. Mr. Steevens, who, for some particular reason, did not feel any great predilection for the Antiquarian Society, |