"Yet alas! my fair flower, that bloom will decay, "And all thy fine beauties foon wither away; "Tho' pluck'd by HER hand, to whose touch thou must own, "Harsh and rough is the cygnet's moft delicate down: "Thou too, fnowy hand;-nay, I mean not to preach; "But the ROSE, lovely moralift! fuffer to teach."

"Extol not, fond maiden, thy beauties o'er mine, "They too are short-liv'd, and they too muft decline; "And small in conclufion, the difference appears "In the bloom of few days, or the bloom of few years! "But remember a virtue, the ROSE hath to boast,

66

-Its Fragrance remains, when its beauties are loft." The fubfequent part of this volume contains fix moral paftorals, viz. I. The fon. II. The good old woman. III. The servant. IV. The mother. V. The husband and wife. VI. The benevolent man.

In these pieces the characters are drawn from nature and rural life, and the morality is unexceptionably good; but in feveral paffages there is not the leaft fpark of poetry: witness the following lines.

Alas, good WILLIAM! 'tis a grief to fee,

That whiteft virtue cannot cenfure flee:

'Tis nothing strange, that Devils God fhou'd hate:
But that frail creatures, in the self-same state,

Alike dependant, form'd alike to share

The fad viciffitude of grief and care;
That mortal men in enmity should swell
'Gainst those in deeds of mercy who excell;
Who ftrive, with pure benevolence refin❜d,
To soften all the fufferings of their kind:
This fure is strange-and stranger still, to view,
What late example here has prov'd too true ;-
Those who the common bounty need, and share,
So mutually malicious and fevere.'

Befides these fix, there are two paftorals upon the common plan, and an eclogue entitled, The Parfons. With the last of these we shall conclude this article.

• A small neat houfe, and little fpot of ground,
Where herbs and fruits, and kitchen stuff were found,
The humble vicar of NORTH-WILFORD blefs'd,
Small was his living-but his heart at reft :
Unfeen, unblam'd, he pafs'd his time away,

He fmoak'd or rode, or mus'd, or walk'd all day:
Thro' all the year no anxious cares he knew,
But juft at Eafter, when he claim'd his due;

And then the furly rufticks churlish pride
His well earn'd tythes difputed or denied.
The vicar, ftill preferring want to ftrife,
Gave up his dues to lead a peaceful life.
His garden once in penfive mood he fought,
His pipe attended as a friend to thought;
And while the smoke in eddies round him play'd,
A neighb❜ring vicar ent'ring he furvey'd :
One like himself, a downright honest priest,
Whofe love of peace his fcanty dues decreas'd.
Suppofe the little ceremonies done,

And all the rites of lighting pipes begun ;
Suppose the whiffs in fober fort flow round,
And both in mufing very deeply drown'd;
For fo it was 'till thus the first good man,
Fetch'd a deep whiff, and anxiously began.

-

FIRST PARSO N.

Wou'd God, my friend! his goodness had affign'd
Some lot more fuited to my feeling mind:
Lefs tho' my income, if from torture free,
Content would well fupply the lofs to me:
For all the PENCE, the little dues I glean,
Or raise my scorn, my pity, or my spleen.
I'll tell thee-but e'en now a neighbour came,
Pale want diffus'd o'er all his meagre frame;
Fire pence the fùm, he gave a shilling o'er,
Kind fhook his head, and wifh'd he cou'd do more:
I turn'd away, nor cou'd from tears refrain;
'Twas death to take it,—to refuse it vain.

SECOND PARS O.N.

Such gentle manners more affect the mind
Than the rough rudeness of the bafer kind:
Juft ere I came, a ruftic braggart elf,
Proud of his purfe, and glorying in his pelf,
Approach'd, and bold demanded what to pay,
"What claims the priest, whom we maintain to pray?"
Th' account he gave me of his stock, I knew
Was half curtail'd, and scarce one number true;
Howe'er my filence favour'd the deceit,

And, fond of quiet, I conceal'd the cheat:
Yet when the fmall, the half-demand I made,
He bullied, fwore, and damn'd the preaching trade;
All God's good houfhold with irreverence curs'd,
And me with foul abuse as far the worst!
Thou know'ft, my friend, what agonizing smart,
Such brutal outrage gives the tender heart.

FIRST PARSO N.

Too well, alas! too fatally I know-
From whence these complicated evils flow;
From tythes, from tythes, the clergy's woes arife,
They mar religion, nay, they rob the skies.

Would God our monarch's ever-gracious hand
In this wou'd deign to bless the wretched land:
Wou'd God, the tythes, like taxes might be paid,
A fix'd revenue by fome ftatute made:

How then wou'd blest religion rear her head!
How thro' each village kindly virtue spread!
What fouls with heav'nly comforts would be bleft!
How happy, then, parishioners and priest!

Thus of true grievances the priests repin'd,
And with their own spoke all their brethren's mind.
When toll'd the bell, and to the church flow move
Six virgins, bearing one who died for love.
The grave debate was filenc'd by the bell;
The vicars rofe, and kindly took farewell.
The first his fermon seeks, and haftes away
The last sad duties to the dead to pay:

From love he much advis'd the youthful throng,
Drew tears from all, and pleas'd, tho' preaching long:
While flow his brother on his easy pad,

Pac'd home full grave, and ruminating fad.'

This little poem, we are told, was written at the request of the author's father, a worthy country clergyman, who felt much from the evil of which the vicars complain.

IX. Mifcellanies, in Verfe and Profe: Containing original Poems, Tranflations, Imitations, and Plays. To which is added, Three Latin Orations before the University of Cambridge. By George Jeffreys, Efq; 4to. Pr. 10s. 6d. Otridge.

TH

fale.

HIS work was published by subscription in 1754; but, if we are rightly informed, was not then advertised for Since that time it has lain in obscurity; and would have quietly funk into oblivion, if a bookseller had not again brought it to light, and offered it to the public under a new Title.

This volume contains, Verfes on the death of the duke of Gloucefter, written in the year 1700.-An Ode on the battle of Ramillies, 1706.-The hiftory of Theodofius and Conftantia, in verse.-Chefs, tranflated from Vida.- -The story of Phaeton, from Ovid. A poetic verfion of the firft, and the

13th book of Vaniere's Country Farm, fome parts of Lucan's Pharfalia, and feveral of Horace's odes.The tragedies of Edwin and Merope. The triumph of truth, an oratorio.

-And many other inferior pieces.

The celebrated ode which is preserved among the fragments of Sappho, is thus tranflated by Mr. Jeffreys:

Happy man, the Gods excelling,
He, who close by you appears!
He who, on your Graces dwelling,
Drinks them deep at eyes and ears!

When your words, in music flowing,
Silent ecftafy impart ;

When your fmiles, divinely glowing,
Fire the dancing, ravish'd heart,

In a moment, thro' your lover,
Warm, the soft infection flies;
My tongue trips, I fhake all over,
Ring my ears, and swim my eyes.
Cold sweat trickles; fpeech forfakes me;
Blood and fenfe at once retire;
Gentle faintnefs overtakes me:

Now I pant! O! now expire.'

This gentleman, we find, was the author of those anonymous verses which are affixed to Mr. Addison's Cato, and of the following epigram which has appeared in the miscellanies of Teveral other bards.

Extempore; on seeing a dance.

How ill the motion with the mufic fuits!

So once play'd Orpheus; but fo danc'd the brutes.'
In Latin, by a friend.

*A motu quantum modulatio discrepat! Orpheus
Sic olim lufit; fic faluêre feræ.'

By another hand.

Harmoniæ motus malè convenit: Orphea credas
Sic ebur, at torram fic pepuliffe feras.'

The pieces of profe in this volume are three Latin orations, and fhort reflections on several subjects.

There are undoubtedly fome tolerable compofitions in this collection; but none perhaps which will diftinguish the writer from the ordinary class of poets.

X. The

X. The Memoirs of George Tudor, wrote originally by feveral Hands, but revifed, and fet in Order, wholly by himself. Two Vols. 8vo. Pr. 55.

TH

Pridden.

HIS Mr. Tudor writes in character, for neither his ftile nor manner rife above the rank he affumes, viz. a common foldier in a marching regiment. But however defpicable his performance is, and however contemptible his efforts at free-thinking are (of which he feems to be an aukward profeffor) we are forry to say, that many of his facts relating to the barbarities inflicted upon, and injuftice done to, the private centinels of the army, feem to be too well founded.

The preamble to the mutiny-bill acknowledges a standing army within England to be unconftitutional, and therefore it is furprising, that our military establishment was not, as much as poffible, affimilated to the civil. The defect of this is the real ground of all Mr. Tudor's hardships and complaints. Why (fays he) when a poor foldier is unjustly flogged, robbed, and oppreffed by his officer, fhould that very officer, or those who are guilty of the fame or like misdemeanors, be one of the judges who is to try him? What juftice muft the poor foldier, in fuch a cafe, expect? But Mr. Tudor fhall speak more fully for himself; and if the reader should think the quotation too long, he ought to confider, that it pleads the caufe of above forty thousand brave fellows (our countrymen) who are in the like miferable circumftances with Mr. Tudor and his friends.

• I have already given a small account, how recruits are impofed upon by recruiting parties in general; and in particular, what I myself suffered, and the trouble I had at Dublin to get along with ferjeant Bland. I fhall now begin to look a little deeper into military corruption; beginning at queen Anne's war, which was fome years before my time, and fo continue the account during the time of my own fervice, which was 26 years and upwards.

• In the aforefaid war, our regiment was a long while prifoner in Spain: during which time, they received no pay from the crown of England, nor any thing but prisoner's allowance, which they got from the Spaniards. The particulars of this affair, were fresh in the regiment when I went to it; because many of the men, who had been in the Spanish war with the regiment, were yet remaining with us."

At the end of the war, they were called home, and the government cleared off the Spanish arrears (as the debt was called). Soon after, the commiffion officers were reckoned with, and received their fhares. But ferjeants, corporals, drums, and private men, got nothing.