history, is now made, for the first time, to require the soothing of David's minstrelsy. He sings a sort of dull hymn; which serves the purpose, however; and goes home to his father, who sends him to see his brothers in the camp. Here, again, Mr Sotheby makes amends for his great deviations from the original, by exactly copying the language of the Bible, where it is neither grand nor pathetic.

"Thy brethren feek, if, haply, yet alive.

Hafte! to the captain of their thousand, bear
Ten cheeses, newly preft. And for my fons,
Thy brethren, take an ephah of parch'd corn,

And these ten loaves. Hafte to the camp with speed: Note how thy brethren fare, and take their pledge. P. 63. What follows, however, as to his reception of the giant's challenge, is executed with more freedom and effect.

At fight

Of the mail'd challenger, all Ifrael fled;
Fled all, fave Jeffe's fon; whofe fpirit glow'd
Within him, and high confidence in Heav'n.
In vain the elder-born, rebuking, mock'd
His rafhnefs. Loud again from Elah's vale
The taunting of the challenger fent up
To God defiance. To the fhepherd youth
Its found was as the call of one from Heav'n.
Nor David difobey'd. Still in their tents
Lay Ifrael. On the trench, as half-refolv'd,
Th' uplifted lances quivering in their grasp,
Stood Jonathan and Abner:-here and there
Many a chief defpondent. p. 64.

The book ends with a brief versification of the scripture story of the death of Goliah, and the discomfiture of his people. The proem to the fourth book is in exaltation of Great Britain. We can only quote the gratulation for the abolition of the slavetrade-the noblest of all subjects for thanksgiving and joy. The Welt awaits

The long-fufpended fentence. Its decree

Goes forth. The fenate fhall efface the spot
That flain'd thy ermine robes. Man fhall not tempt
The mercy of his Maker on vext feas

That bear him on to blood. Man fhall not yoke
His brother; fhall not goad his kindred flesh,
Till the big fweat falls, tainted with the drop
That nurtur'd life. Man trades no more in man.
And if the groan of Afric yet mount up
To the tribunal of the God of Love,
Accufing human kind, it shall not draw
On Britain condemnation. Then expand,

Albion, thy fails, exultant; and diffufe,
Throughout the race and brotherhood of man,
The birth-right thou haft purchafed with thy blood,
The heritage of freedom. Freight each fea
With burden of thy fleets: from clime to clime
Pour forth on each the gifts of all, and link
The world in bonds of love. Diffuse the light
Of science; teach the Savage arts unknown;
And o'er the nations and lone ifles, that fit
In darkness, and the fhades of death, bring down
The day-fpring of falvation.' p. 78, 79.

The poet then introduces the song of the virgins celebrating the victory. This, we think, is rendered with considerable spirit.

"Daughters of Ifrael! praife the Lord of Hofts!

Break into fong with harp and tabret lift
Your voices up, and weave with joy the dance.
And to your twinkling footsteps, tofs aloft
Your arms and from the flash of cymbals, fhake
Sweet clangor, measuring the giddy maze.

Shout ye! and ye! make anfwer, Saul hath flain
His thoufands; David his ten thoufands flain.

Sing a new fong. I faw them in their rage;
I faw the gleam of fpears, the flash of fwords,
That rang against our gates. The warder's watch
Ceas'd not. Tower anfwer'd tower: a warning voice
Was heard without; the cry of woe within:
The fhriek of virgins, and the wail of her,
The mother, in her anguish, who fore-wept,
Wept at the breaft her babe, as now no more.
Shout ye! and ye! make anfwer, Saul hath flain
His thoufands; David his ten thousands flain.

Sing a new fong. Spake not th' infulting foe?
I will purfue, o'ertake, divide the spoil.
My hand fhall dash their infants on the ftones :
The ploughfhare of my vengeance shall draw out
The furrow, where the tower and fortress rose.
Before my chariot, Ifrael's chiefs fhall clank

Their chains. Each fide, their virgin daughters groan:
Erewhile, to weave my conqueft on their looms.

Shout ye! and ye! make answer, Saul hath flain

His thoufands; David his ten thousands flain.

Thou heard'ft, oh God of battle! Thou, whofe look
Knappeth the fpear in funder. In thy ftrength
A youth, thy chofen, laid their champion low.
Saul, Saul purfues, o'ertakes, divides the spoil :
Wreaths round our necks thefe chains of gold, and robes
Qur limbs with floating crimson. Then rejoice,

Daughter

Daughters of Ifrael! from your cymbals shakė.
Sweet clangor, hymning God, the Lord of Hufts!
Ye! fhout! and ye! make answer, Saul hath flain
His thoufands; David his ten thousands flain. ”
Such the hymn'd harmony, from voices breath'd
Of virgin minstrels, of each Tribe the prime
For beauty, and fine form, and artful touch
Of inftrument, and skill in dance and fong;
Choir anfwering choir, that on to Gibeah led
The victors back in triumph. On each neck
Play'd chains of gold: and, fhadowing their charms
With colour like the blushes of the morn,

Robes, gift of Saul, round their light limbs, in tofs
Of cymbals, and the many-mazed dance,

Floated like rofeate clouds.

Thus thefe came on

In dance and fong: Then, multitudes that fwell'd
The pomp of triumph, and in circles, rang'd
Around the altar of Jehovah, brought

Freely their offerings: and with one accord
Sang, "Glory, and praife, and worship unto God. "
Loud rang the exultation. 'Twas the voice

Of a free people, from impending chains
Redeem'd a people proud, whole bosom beat
With fire of glory, and renown in arms,
Triumphant. Loud the exuitation rang.

There, many a wife, whofe ardent gaze from far
Singled the warrior, whofe glad eye gave back
Her look of love. There, many a grandfire held
A blooming boy aloft, and midst th' array
In triumph, pointing with his ftaff, exclaim'd,
"Lo, my brave fon! I now may die in peace.

There, many a beauteous virgin, blushing deep,
Flung back her veil, and, as the warrior came,
Hail'd her betroth'd. But, chiefly, on one alone
All dwelt. p. 81-84.

Saul is filled with jealousy and envy, and secretly vows the death of the youthful warrior, who, unconscious of his danger, gives God the glory in another hymn.

The second part is introduced with a vision of old Palestine; and proceeds to the description of Saul's obstinate hostility, and the love of Michal and Jonathan towards their young deliverer. In the second book, he wins the hand of Michal by his victo ries over the Philistines; and is again forced to retreat into the wilderness, from the hatred of his father-in-law. Samuel anoints him King of Israel; and he sees, in a pretty tedious vision, the whole line of his descendants, with their exploits, from Solomon to our Redeemer. The idea of this anticipation was probably 03 borrowed

ture of cutting off Saul's skirt. However, the taking away of the spear, and sparing his life at Engeddi, is very well told. Saul's visit to the witch of Endor, is described in the very words of the Bible.

"I entreat thee, at my pray'r, divine By the familiar fpirit, and bring up

Him, whom I name.

"Thou know'ft: what need to tell?

How from the living land Saul has cut off
Such as I am. Com'ft thou to fnare my life?"
Each word the forceress spake, fell on Saul's heart.
At length: "So thou confent, and whom I name
Bring up, I fwear, witness the Lord! for this,
Vengeance fhall not o'ertake thee.”

"Samuel, the prophet."

"Name the man.

And the prophet rofe.

The forcerefs, at his rifing, with loud cry

Shriek'd out, "Thou haft deceiv'd me: thou art Saul. "
"Fear not; declare, what view'ft thou?"

"I behold

Gods out of earth afcending."

"What the form?"

"The form of one in years comes up, with veil O'ermantled. "

Saul perceiv'd it was the Seer,

Stoop'd, and low bow'd his forehead to the ground.
"Why haft thou thus difquieted, and brought
My fpirit from its reft?"

Saul anfwering faid,

"Oh, I am fore diftreft. Philiftia's hoft
Gathers against me. Terror fills the realm,
God is departed from me, nor vouchfafes
Anfwer by dream or prophet. Therefore, Seer,
Thus, I have call'd on thee. "

"Wherefore on me,

If God is clean departed, and become

Thy foe? What God by me foretold, is done,

Thy kingdom from thee rent.

In David's rule

Thy fceptre. For that thou, oh man, didft fcorn
Obedience to Jehovah, thee, and thine,

And Ifrael's army, into hoftile hands

God has deliver'd." p. 183-5.

The catastrophe of Saul, and the song of his successor over him and Jonathan, are in like manner versified almost literally from the Chronicles: and the poem ends with this brief moralization.

*Thou

Thus the Lord

From land to land, throughout the regions, fpread
The fame of his anointed :-and his fear
Fell on all nations.

Man! obey thy God!' p. 190. From the copious extracts which we have given, our readers will be able to judge for themselves of the merits of this performance. There is sweetness and delicacy in many passages; and an air of elegance throughout; but it is deficient in animation, in characters, and in action. Its beauties belong rather to pastoral and lyric poetry, than to epic; and are scarcely calculated to strike with sufficient force to command the attention of this fastidious age. The work, however, is respectable, and cannot be perused without giving us a very pleasing impression of the character and virtues of the author.

ART. XV. The Nature of Things: A Didactic Poem. Tranflated from the Latin of Titus Lucretius Carus, accompanied with the Original Text, and Illuftrated with Notes Philological and Explanatory. By John Mafon Good. 2 vol. 4to. pp. 1185. Longman. London. 1805.

THE

HESE vaft volumes are more like the work of a learned German profeffor, than of an ungraduated Englishman. They dif play extensive erudition, confiderable judgment, and fome tafte; yet, upon the whole, they are extremely heavy and uninterefting, and the leading emotion they excite in the reader, is that of fympathy with the fatigue the author must have undergone in the compilation. They contain, firft of all, a most learned preface, giving an account of all the editions of Lucretius, and all the verfions which have been made of him into modern languages; then a life of this author, dilated by biographical sketches of all his ancestors and famous contemporaries, and of the state of literature in the ancient world, into upwards of eighty clofely printed pagės : and this, again, is followed by an appendix of thirty pages more, containing a long analyfis and defence of the fyftem of Epicurus; a comparative view of all the other ancient fyftems of philosophy; and a fhort deduction from thefe, of all the celebrated theories of modern times, from the nominalism of Abelard, to the transcendentalism of Kant. Then comes the original text of Lucretius, correctly printed from Mr Wakefield's edition, with Mr Good's tranflation in blank verfe on the oppofite page; and underneath, a vast and most indigested mafs of notes, exhibiting not only a copious collection of parallel paffages, and alleged imitations, in

Hebrew,