Druidical Remains in Anglesey. XIII. Llangolen; this ftands as a frontispiece to the defcriptive poem bearing that title.

The following lines may be regarded as a juft tribute to the merits of the humble architect of Pont-y-prid:

the lofty bridge
Burfts on the fight amid the lowly glen,
Like fome ftupendous work the pilgrim views
O'er Balbec's waste, or defert foil

Of Palmyrene. Great architect! illum'd
By Nature's light, thy daring genius fcorn'd
An imitative grace; no fculptur'd form,
Triton, or Nereid, or wrought river-god,
With meretricious ornament difturb
The fimple grandeur of thy bold defign.
Impatient of its bondage, twice the flood
Ruth'd o'er the ruin'd bridge; again thy hand
The indignant torrent yok'd, and rear'd the work
Triumphant, that amid the waves fhall fland
Secure, while TIME by GENius turn'd afide,
Shall fpare (long may he fpare!) th' unrival'd arch.'

Art. 48. The Infant Vifion of Shakspeare; an Apoftrophe to the Im-
mortal Bard, and other Poems. By Mr. Harrison.
4to. 1s. 6d.
Harrison, Paternofter-row. 1794*
Although this compliment to the genius and memory of Shakspeare
cannot add to the fame of the Prince of English poets, it will give re-
putation to the author; of whofe poetic turn and tafte it is a promifing
fpecimen. There is confiderable merit alfo in fome of the fmaller
poems annexed to the Vifion which ranks as the principal perform-

ance.

Tay. Art. 49. Two State Papers: with a Preface, by a Whig, and a Commentary, by a Tory. 12mo. 6d. Owen. 1794

A burlesque verfion of Citizen Harrison's famous Letter to Mr.Grey, and of Barrere's still more famous Report to the Convention, respecting the great Victory obtained, on the memorable first of June, by the French fleet over that of England under the command of Lord Howe. The verfes feem to have been intended in imitation of the celebrated letters from Simpkin the Second to his Dear Brother in Wales:" but Simpkin is not out, Simpkin'd in the prefent performance. The author, like Janus, wears two faces; he is, however, really the TORY, while he pretends to be a WHIG and he is very fevere indeed on the Liberty Boys-whether French or English,-writers or fighters,-legiflators or preachers.

Art. 50. The Hero. A Poctical Epiftle.

Refpectfully addreffed to
Marquis Cornwallis. 4to. Is. 6d. Deighton. 1794.

The ingenious felf-taught architect had the mortification to fee his first bridge, of three arches, carried away by a violent flood. His fecond effort, on the plan of a fingle arch, was fruftrated in a fomewhat fimilar manner; yet, not daunted, he made a third attempt, and completely fucceeded. Monthly Review, vol. lxi. p. 11.

From

From the exuberance of unappropriate praife here lavished on an excellent individual, we might fuppofe that the author had studied the art of panegyric under fome French journalist. We transcribe page 1. When Virtues great alike in War and Peace

Outvie the mighty tales of ROME and GREECE;
Valour that CASAR might have wish'd to own,
And Juftice ARISTIDES knew alone;

When, from the fatal forfeit freed, we find,
Propitious grant! in one vaft foul combin'd,
Deeds that EPAMINONDAS' breast had fir'd,
Stern CATO prais'd, and dying WOLFE admir'd ;'

Bye and bye comes

Purfue, Great Chief! the omen, and be more
Than ever Man, than Hero was before!
And hark! again, thy BRITAIN's other pride,
The gallant MOIRA claims thee at his fide;
At thy approach fhall GALLIA's ruffians fly,
And BRITONS act fresh wonders in thine eye;
The Crifis for a new ACHILLES calls,

And foon fhall HECTOR feek proud TROY's devoted walls.' Highly favour'd by the Mufe is he who unites the characters of a good poet and a good prophet!

Art. 51. War. A Poem. 4to. PP. 54: 25. Johnfon. 1794.
This poem is dedicated to Earl Stanhope, but addreffed to the Rt.
Hon. Charles James Fox. It has the merit of fimplicity and truth,
and of pleading the cause of peace, humanity, and liberty: but of
highly-wrought pathos or impreffive fublimity there is not enough to
ftamp the writer a poet. It may, however, produce a more import-
ant effect than that of immortalizing its author, by turning the at-
tention of the people towards their real and permanent interests.
How little do the thoughtless world,

Immur'd within their habitations calm,
Taste of the bitterness by war produced,

Or feel the pangs, thefe fcenes of Death create.
-Bleft with the varied gifts which bounteous flow
From the high fource of all that's great and good,
With lovely peace and fmiling plenty crown'd
They plead for war as if it were a sport;
A very paftime to divert mankind:
As if it were a good to be defir'd,
With no appendages of rival ill :
As if it were fulfilling heav'n's laws :

As though kings held the fceptre of man's fate,
And were the keepers of the book of life:
As if to fill the earth with Death and Woe,
Were the commands of Duty and of God.

Could men thofe fcenes of mifery review,
Where nought but death and fell difquiet reign,
Could they but journey o'er the ghaftly field,

Where

Tay.

Where late the fatal tragic fight was won :
Could they the pallid fallen corfes view:
The heroes, who in battle nobly fell.
Could they but liften to the dying groans,
The difmal labours of expiring life:

The mournful cries, the dolorous complaints,
The bitter curfes which are hurried down,

On those who first feduced them from their homes,
And those whofe quarrel taught them how to fight.
-Could they but fee the anguifh which prevails:
The frantic rage, the anxious painful grief,
Which harrow up the foul, and yield despair :
Then would perchance the myrmidons of Kings
Compaffion feel, and feel regret, that they
At first the public mind debauch'd, with tales
Form'd to create averfion and disgust,

'Gainft fome more profperous and envied state;
And then fend forth their armies to the field:
An immolation to offended pride!'

Tay.

Art. 52. Three Pindaric Elays. Fitzwalter, the Birth of Democracy, and the Calamities of France. 4to. pp. 22. 25. Owen. 1794. It might probably be difficult for a philofophical critic to affign a good reafon for many of Pindar's apparent eccentricities, and to thew that they tend to illuftrate his fubject, or are connected by effential affociations with his theme: it might be difficult to prove the aptnefs of many of his complex epithets and daring tropes, and to evince that they have any higher propriety in their refpective fituations than would belong to many other words of equal length and equal novelty but it would be utterly impoffible to affign a rational motive for the fine epithets, fine phrafes, fine images, and fine perfonifications huftled together in the poetical cornucopia now before us. The whole is perfectly in the fpirit of the modern English ode. We fhall copy a ftanza from each poem: which will connect fully as well as if we had tranfcribed without interruption.

Why Discord trembled then thy languid wing?
Why faintly flew'ft thou? Thro' thy heavy way,
Mutt'ring forth thy blafting fighs

Alas, thy hell-born influence droop'd-thy fubject legion fled,
Shrieking thrill unheeded cries.

And lo, thro' night burfts fwift a dazzling ray,
Attendant Seraphim their flow'rets bring,
(Flow'rets that on the rainbow grow)

And as before her steps their wreaths they fling,
Matilda's form defcends to heal a Father's woe.'
Torn was her auburn hair, her ruddy veft,
When by infernal force in Hell compreft,
Fair Freedom's womb conceiv'd à direful birth:
Yet as the forrowing fat on Satan's throne,
The proftrate dæmons bending round,
Caught fwect repentance from her moan:

In her fad cries, they heard a fecret found,
Sweet as the murm'ring of a willow'd stream:
They hear'd-they feiz'd their arms-
Arms that caft a fulphur'd gleam:

While Satan, 'midft his feftive mirth,

Felt fore alarms :

He fhook his maffy lance and dread destructive frown'd.
All Hell fubmiffive bent,
Applauding trembling-as he fent

His dang'rous miftrefs banish'd to the earth.'
Yelling, fee them quick defcend,

Yon ivy'd tower, lo, they rend,

And join the frighten'd fereech-owl's woeful fcream.
And as they fan the air with tainting wing,
The spreading beech-the lofty pine-
And knotted oaks their blafting influence feel.
Then perching mirthful on the wreathing vine,
They prefs the purple fruit :

And as they ftrike dire notes upon th' Avernian lute,
Dancing around in bacchanalian reel,

They shake their raven plumes with lurid gleam,

And 'mid all Nature's tortures, hell-framed numbers fing.'

Pindarum quifquis ftudet amulari.

Tay

Art. 53. The Volunteer Laureate or Fall of Peter Pindar. Containing Odes to Lord Howe, Mr. Pitt, and the Swinish Multitude. By Archilochus, Jun. 4to. pp. 26. Eaton. 1794.

Of the spirit and powers of this would-be Archilochus, a fhort extract will give an adequate idea:

"When mad Philofophy's deftructive lore

Taught France to hate what Europe should adore;
When Baftilles fell, when priests with nobles filed,
And poor Capet lay fhorter by the head,
When for democracy folks 'gan to hanker,
(Ere Reeves had yet fet up at Crown and Anchor,
Ere Burke had yet difplay'd the Gallic dagger,
Ere placeless whigs had yet begun to stagger *,)
Pitt wifely faw, what no one else could fee,
That war alone would make a nation free
Affuage its parties, change the guilty fcene,
Reftore an orphan, and releafe a Queen.
Hence brilliant triumphs crown the tinking year,
And York and Cobourg fill all France with fear-
Our navies + ride unconquer'd at Toulon ‡,

And even Dunkirk were all but our own.

;

All which circumftances, especially the timely difplay of Mr. Burke's dagger, have very much tended to preferve the internal harmony of this country.'

+ Errat. pro ride lege rode.'

An infignificant town on the coaft of the Mediterranean-lately evacuated by the English, on account of its extreme unimportance.'

At

Tay.

At home John Bull exults with loud applaufe,
Proud to be bankrupt in an Emperor's caufe.-'

Art. 54. Netley Abbey, an Operatic Farce, in Two Acts. As peri
formed at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden. Written by
Mr. Pearce, Author of Hartford Bridge, &c. 8vo. Is. Long-

man.

The title, Netley Abbey,' is derived from a part of the scenery, here exhibited, being laid at and near that noble piece of ruins.Some Jack-tar humour is introduced with good effect; and an Irish barber alfo contributes to render this farce fomething more than tolerable which is all that we ufually require in compofitions of this clafs.-The following detail of an engagement between two frigates, the one English, the other French, as given by Gunnel an Heartof oak failor, if not too plenteously over-charg'd, will afford fome entertainment to fuch of our readers as are acquainted with fea

terms:

Gunnel. Why d'ye fee, it was blowing ftrong, and we were loping of it-forecastle under, in Portland Road, when a fail hove in fight in the offing, ftanding right over from Cherbourg-We faw with half an eye fhe was an enemy's cruizer, ftemming right for us; better she cou'dn't come! we turn'd the hands up, and drew the fplice off the best bower.

Oakland. Beft bower! what is all this about?'

• M'Scrape. O whack! leave him to himself.

Gunnel. Mounfeer twigg'd us; and not liking the cut of our gib, hove in ftays-all hands make fail! away flew the cable, end for end; and before you'd say peas, we had her under double reef'd top fails, and top-gallant fails.

M'Scrape. Well faid, little Oakhum!

Gunnel. Away we fcudded! but no fooner had we opened the Bill, ftanding thro' the tail of the Race, than, by the holy, I thought she'd a-tip't all nine-pigs and live lumber were all afloat in the lee scuppers!

Oakland. Pigs and live lumber?

M'Scrape. Ay, ay-get on, little one; its as fmooth as day.

Gunnel. Damn the inch did we ftart: but fprung our luff, gave her a 'Mudians reef, bowfed in the lee-guns, and found she'd just as much canvas as she cou'd stagger under-The chace was a head with a clean rap full.

M'Scrape. O bravo! well, and what then?

Gunnel. My eyes, how he walk'd! licking whole green feas in, at the weather chefs tree, and canting it over the lee-yard-arm! but we overhaul'd her, and stood well up under our canvas while Jacky Frenchman was crabbing to it-nigh on his beam ends; and about feven bells, began playing at long bowls, with his ftern chafersfteering damn'd wild.

Oakland. Seven bells and long bowls!

MScrape. O nothing cou'd be better-get on, my tight fellow. Gunnel. Steering damn'd wild!-While old Trufty, our quartermafter, as good a heimfman as ever took spoke in hand, kept feady,

Steady!