Was Mifs, or Madam ; Or whether our Progenitor thought right, To fay Mifs Eve, or Mrs. ADAM: She was a naughty piece of clay; Acted as Priest, There was no marriage worth a farthing And he, to help the farce on, C-t-t. Art. 27. Matrimony, a Tale; with an Apology. 4to. §. 6ů. Exeter printed, by Truman; and fold in London by Payne, &c. 1779. Dr. Doddridge, fpeaking of South's Sermons, fays, fomewhat harshly, that many of them appear to have been written by the infpiration of the devil. The Author of this performance pretends to infpiration, and being Mufe-valiant, founds his high pretenfions on two lines of Horace : "Spiritum Phoebus mihi, Phoebus artem But this poetafter miftakes the fource of his infpiration: the devil Had this performance, indeed, been as witty as it is nonfenfical, its malignity would have precluded us from faying one word in its praife. We remember not to have read a more ridiculous, or a more diabolical piece, notwithstanding the immenfe loads of trash which we have, for fo many years, been compelled to examine and account for to the Public. We do not deliver this opinion of the prefent performance from the flightest refentment which we have conceived at this Author's awkward attempt to difparage and ridicule the judgment of • Meffieurs The periodical Reviewers.' No! in truth for we always count on the hatred of foolish and wretched fcribblers of every clafs; and fhall ever prefer their abufe to their commendation. "Oh! (fays the patient Job, who, by the way, feems to have been admirably qualified for the office of a Re viewer) that my enemy had written a book!"" Utinam male qui mibi volunt, fic fient! TER. B...k. Art. 28. The Religion of the Times; or, a new Mirror for the dignified Clergy. By an Enemy to Tyranny, Perfecution, and Hypocrify. 4to. Is. Wallis. 1780. The power of ridicule (fays this Writer) hath often been found to work miracles, even upon arbitrary difpofitions; and the dread of being araigned at the tribunal of the Public hath had its effect, Rev. Apr. 1780. when when every other.confideration hath been totally rejected.' We be lieve our Readers will give us full credit, when we affure them that we are no enemies to ridicule. We have often been its advocates against those who have decried it through dulnefs: and would equally wish to exert our abilities in refcuing it from the hands of the fpiteful and malignant, who, through prejudice or impudence, prostitute and abufe it. With Mr. Pope (who, like Horace, plays round the heart, and yet gives fatire its full ftrength) we confider ridicule as a facred weapon! But then (as he obferves) it must be used in Truth's defence; and is denied to all but heav'n directed hands. If our Author's ridicule be examined by this test, it will be found deficient in the most effential quality; nor is he fo complete in the fubordinate qualities as to make the flighteft recompence for fuch a defect. He calls himself the Enemy of Tyranny, Perfecution, and Hypocrify and yet the prefent performance bears ftrong marks of a tyrannical-perfecuting-and we think we may fay-bypocritical fpirit. Could a tyrant or a perfecutor exprefs the rancour of his foul in more merciless and invidious language than this Writer hath done in the following paragraph, extracted from the Preface? As to thofe mifcreants, the Methodists, &c. whofe impudence can only be excelled by their ignorance, we would wish them, instead of being. able to avail themfelves of the clemency of the laws, to be fent to the Houfe of Correction till they be brought, by hard labour, to a sense of that duty, which they owe, not only to their own families, but to the community.' This is the Enemy to Perfecution! Out of thine own mouth thou art condemned, thou brat of bloody Bonner! As to this Writer's hypocrify, we think it very obvious from the general defign of this piece; and more efpecially fo from a comparifon of detached paffages. He profeffes himself to be a Friend to the established Church of this kingdom'-and, in the conclufion of his poem, gives a pious charge to minifters, in the language of St. Paul: Exhort, reprove Fight the good fight of Faith, and live to die." Yes! this very Writer becomes a pious monitor of the clergy of his own church, and delivers his admonitions in apoftolic language, who, but a few lines before, had thrown out fome very indecent and profane hints refpecting the love-feafts of the Methodists; and, in the beginning of his poem, had ironically pleaded for. craft, diffimulation, and knavery, on the authority and example of St. Paul: Flatt'ry your highest card is fure to win, And at this game no cheating is a fin. This Writer's poetry may rate well enough with his charity and fincerity. It would fuffer by any other comparison. As to wit, we can trace out nothing that bears any refemblance to it :-unlefs, perchance, it be found in the following notice, ftuck up at the back of the preface: The Painter's pictures are now exhibiting for fale: if any one is firuck with his own likeness, he may purchase it at a trifling expence: after it is taken home, should it not be approved of, the painter promifes a retouch, whenever he fhall appear, with his features mended, and his complexion improved.' We would advife this Writer to lay down the pen and take up the hammer. He would make a tolerable auctioneer! B...k. Art. 29. Paradife Regain'd; or, the Battle of Adam and the Fox. * An Heroic Poem. 4to. 2 S. Bew. We must honestly acknowledge that, in endeavouring to flounder through this chaos of half-formed ideas, we have been fairly jaded,, and obliged to defift from our intended journey before we got half way. Art. 30. Seduction: The Spirit of the Times, or Petitions. unmasked, a Poem. Wherein is confidered the dangerous Ten-, dency of Affociations, and Committees of Correspondence, for The Redress of Grievances. By a Real Patriot. 4to. 13. Bee croft. We remember no inftance of a perfon more grofsly miftaking his talents than this honeft, loyal Rhimefter has done, in imagining himself qualified to addrefs the Public by means of the prefs. DRAMATIC. Art. 31. The Deaf Lover, a Farce. In Two Acts; as performed at the Theatre Royal, Covent-Garden. Written by F. Pilon. 8vo. I s. Bowen. 1780. An old jeft of Joe Miller very fuccefsfully wire-drawn into two acts of low humour, though the catastrophe is rather too much precipitated even for a farce. We have no idea neither how the French proverbe dramatique of the Poulet could poffibly have been connected, as the Author informs us it originally was, with the ftory of this farce. But of thefe pieces he feems to think, like Gay's Beggar, of Operas, that " in this kind of drama it is no matter how abfurdly things are brought about." Art. 32. The Reasonable Animals; a fatirical Sketch. As it is performed at the Theatre Royal in the Haymarket. 8vo. 6d. Kearly. 1780. This appears to be a tranfverfion from the French, adapted to an English puppet-thew. The Author has a tolerable knack at doublerhyming. Art. 33. William and Lucy; an Opera of Two Acts. An Attempt to fuit the Style of the Scotch Mufic. 8vo. 1 s. Edinburgh, Creech. 1780. The Author of this little Opera appears to be equal to works of ore importance. In this light drama he has amplified, but not. improved, the pretty Scotch ballad of Auld Robin Gray. NOVELS and MEMOIRS. C.t.t. C. C. C. Art. 34. Letters between Clara and Antonia: In which are interfperfed the interefting Memoirs of Lord Des Lunettes, a Character in real Life. 2 Vols. 12mo. 6 s. bound. Bew. 1779. To those who read merely for amufement, and who look no higher for it than to the novelift, we may recommend the Letters between Duel between Mr. Fox and Mr. Adam, Clara and Antonia. The time that will be bestowed upon them, if not very usefully employed, will, at least, be spent innocently. The Memoirs of Lord Des Lunettes, from the Manner in which they are related, feem, as indeed the title-page imports, to be taken from real life. We are willing, however, to hope that fome part of the picture is overcharged. Ct-t. Art. 35. Sutton Abbey: A Novel. In a Series of Letters founded on Facts. 12mo. 6s. bound. Richardfon and Urquhart. 1779. The generality of novels, being for the most part compofed of the fame materials, bear fo ftrong a refemblance to each other, that it is difficult to characterize them. Their difference is that of the pebbles on the fea fhore; though no two are exactly of the fame figure and dimenfions, yet the naturalift would be puzzled who should undertake to point out their difcriminating peculiarities. In SuttonAbbey we meet with nothing fufficiently excellent or defective to diftinguish it from the common run of fecond rate novels. Art. 36. The Tutor of Truth. By the Author of the Pupil of Pleasure, &c. 12m0. 2 Vols. 6 s. bound. Richardfon and Urquhart. 1779. The Pupil of Pleafure" having been cenfared for the glowing colours in which the vices of its hero are exhibited, Mr. Courtney Melmoth, who poffeffes that happy verfatility which qualifies him to be in utrumque paratus, here atones for his offence, by delineating a character in all respects the reverfe of the former; and he prefaces the narrative with a laboured attempt to point out a fyftematic relation between the two pieces, and to deduce an instructive moral from the contrafted characters. Though this piece is, perhaps, more inoffenfive than any of the former productions of this Writer, it must alfo be faid, that it is lefs entertaining. In the humorous characters which are introduced, we ..difcover little of the true comic. The wit of thefe characters confifts almost entirely in the falfe pronunciation or fpelling of words, or in the ufe of vulgar or pedantic language. Some of the characters are exceedingly unnatural. We can conceive a Mal-volie fancying his mistress in love with his yellow ftockings and croffed garters; but we cannot fuppofe a lover fo much a fool as to imagine a lady to be his contracted fpoufe," without any preliminary advances on either fide. We alfo find fome difficulty, even in this age of gallantry, in fuppofing it probable that a married woman would entertain fo romantic a paffion, as to follow from one country to another, a youth who, inftead of feducing her, has treated her with perfect indifference, and whe, from principle, has difcouraged every advance towards an illicit amour. MISCELLANEOUS. E. •Art. 37. Remarks on General Burgoyne's State of the Expedition from Canada. 8vo. is. Wilkie. In our laft month's catalogue we bellowed the commendation on General Burgoyne's fate of the northern expedition, which we thought due to fo elaborate and important a performance.—As a litesary compofition, this remarker has little or nothing to fay to it nor does he object to the accuracy or authenticity of the fplendid engravings by which the General's defence is illuftrated. The great point in difpute is, the real innocence or delinquency of the unfortu nate commander, with regard to those movements and measures (entirely and confessedly his own) which were directly, perhaps natu. rally, attended by the abfolute overthrow of the enterprize, and the total lofs of the army. We have obferved, in our mention of The State, &c. that Mr. B. tells his story well. He certainly does fo; but this Writer contends, that the General has nevertheless rejected the folid basis of fact, and refted his defence on equivocation; confequently, that the fuperAructure, however finished and decorated, must fall, and bury his reputation under its ruins, or ftand only to perpetuate his infamy.' The whole of Mr. B.'s defence is, therefore, brought to reft folely on this question-Did he, as he ftrenuously urges, fail in his enter. prize, merely in confequence of his difappointed expectation with refpect to the co-operation of General Howe, in order to form a junc tion of the armies? This remarker fets himself to prove, from authentic correfpondence, that Mr. B. actually experienced no fuch difappointment; that the northern colonies had as powerful charms for bim as the fouthern colonies had for Sir W. Howe; and that, in their Atate of mutual repulfion, the latter propofed, and the former heartily acquiefced in, their carrying on their operations entirely in dependent of each other.' On this ground both the Generals are totally condemned, we might have faid damned, by their prefent fcrutineer; and the MINISTRY, who well and wifely planned the Canada expedition, are pronounced to Rand' fully and for ever acquitted,' which was, probably, the main object of this close and acute investigation. Art. 38. The Matrimonial Infolvent Act: or the Particulars of the Act intended to be brought into Parliament this Seffion by a celebrated Commoner, under Promise of the zealous Concurrence of a very great Majority of both Houfes, for the Triennial Diffolution, by those who choose it, with or without mutual Confent, of their unprolific and difcordant matrimonial Engagements. Des dicated to the Bishop of Llandaff. 8vo. Is. Millan. 1780. This is the production of a wag, who fo well knows how to keep his countenance, and has digefted his fcheme fo methodically, as to give it a becoming gravity of appearance. In the course of his prefatory obfervations and comments on the feveral claufes of his bill, he throws out many fhrewd remarks, fuggefted by the prefent relaxed ftate of matrimonial connections, and by the principle on which his plan is founded, which is briefly conveyed in the following words; Matrimony, moft affuredly, is a co-partnership bufinefs, that requires a joint ftock of fidelity, affection, &c. to carry it fuccessfully on, in which to be deficient is to be infolvent, and a species of infolvency that has a much greater claim to legislative commiferation and indulgence than that which proceeds from pecuniary mishaps, N. Art. 39. Confiderations Libres fur le Divorce, &c. Free Confiderations on Divorce, fubmitted to the Tribunal of the impartial Public. 8vo. Spilfbury. 1780. Thefe Confiderations are better entitled to the epithet of licentious than to that of free. They are dedicated to the Ladies of England and written, if we believe the dedication, by a French woman of condition, Y 3 |