of the piece; and as the criticisms were generally just, all appreciated the merit of the author, and awarded him the full measure of applause. The actors, it is true, were not altogether pleased.-Some of them were weak enough to express their resentment, but the public only the more enjoyed their distress. In general the poem was regarded as a pleasant and reasonable retaliation for the mirth which the stage had continually excited by the representation of the follies and frailties of mankind; but, as humanity would wish that no set of men should be made ridiculous or contemptible, by a profession from which they must draw their subsistence, the public saw with approbation that the author had not confined himself entirely to satire. Garrick was commended in the highest terms of praise, and the various and peculiar excellencies of Mrs. Pritchard, Mrs. Cibber, and Mrs. Clive, were celebrated with equal warmth and justice. Some of the players overlooked the satire which was levelled at them, and others wisely endeavoured to profit by the strictures bestowed upon their faults. Foote alone was outrageously offended, and meant to have retaliated in a prose satire which he wrote, but which he was afterwards persuaded not to print. Though the Rosciad has all the faults which distinguish the general satires of its author, in the roughness, vehemence, and coarseness of its spirit, which too much gratifies the vindictive and irascible passions, it is, nevertheless, an admirable poem, and justly deserves to be considered as a second "Dunciad." Real accuracy of observation, a happy vein of humour, considerable elevation of thought, and much force of expression, are its peculiar excellencies. The character of Mr. Fitzpatrick, The thing without a name, near the beginning, is drawn with uncommon severity and spirit. The lines in which he asserts that genius is of no country, are written with great energy. His praises of Garrick, Mrs. Cibber, and others, have uncommon merit. And his character of Shakspeare is drawn with the hand of a master. While the British Drama and the stage survive, therefore, the Rosciad w will continue to be read and admired. RETALIATION. The origin of this exquisite Jeu d'esprit, is so well known that it is almost superfluous to repeat it. One evening in the famous Literary Club, of which Dr. Johnson, Sir Joshua Reynolds, and Mr. Burke, were the original founders, and where wit sparkled sometimes at the expense of good nature, it was proposed to write Epitaphs on Goldsmith-his country, his dialect, and his person, to be the subjects of witticism. Various epitaphs were accordingly produced by the members, and the Doctor being called upon for a similar exercise of his powers upon them, at their next meeting he produced Retaliation. Like the goodnatured Doctor himself, this poem abounds with wit, free from even the slightest tincture of gall, and with that admirable discrimination which he displayed in every thing that came from his pen, the characteristics of the parties are equally pointed and just. If any of the epitaphs are entitled to the praise of greater accuracy than the rest, is undoubtedly those upon Garrick and Mr. Burke. That upon Garrick is perhaps the most masterly of the whole. THE STATE DUNCES. Among poetical Satires the State Dunces has always held a respectable if not a very elevated rank. Whitehead was a political partizan, who came into life as an author, at a time when the reputation and success of Pope had raised the character of a satirist much beyond its true standard. He chose Pope, therefore, as a model, and gloried in the imitation. It must be confessed, however, that he followed him, haud passibus æquis, at least in his poetical career, and the success attending it. Of this he complains pathetically in one of his poems. Pope writes unhurt-but know, 'tis diff'rent quite, The great, and particularly courtiers, are always the object of the spirited satirist. Hence, as the persons then in power were whigs, Whitehead of course took the side of the tories, Hence, also, his terrible aversion, at that time, to courts and drawing rooms, And yet, when the patrons to whom a congeniality of sentiment had recommended him, had, by a similar congeniality, recommended themselves to royal patronage, it was not found that either the secondary patron, or the poet, entertained an antipathy to courts or courtiers any longer. Whatever, however, may have been the tergiversation of this author as a politician, his merit as a poet was very considerable, The State Dunces sufficiently show that he possessed a manly strength of thought, and a rich vein of poetical expression, ADVICE AND REPROOF. All the essentials for satirical writing, were conspicuous in the genius and temper of Smollett, and it is much to be regretted that these productions are the only poetical specimene of his talents in that line which he ever gays to the world. It is true, every line of them bears testimony to the poetical and literary prejudices of their author, but they abound in manly sentiments and indignant satire, expressed in the most forcible and elegant language. In 1746 Smollett began his literary career by publishing Advice, without his name, in 4to. In this performance he attacks, with all the severity of Juvenal, several individuals of rank and fortune, who were suspected of some of the most odious vices of the times; and indulges his ironical vein with no small degree of freedom, in pointing out, to the scorn and reproach of the nation, the most powerful persons at that time in the administration of Government. As a first attempt it was deemed exceedingly imprudent by his friends; because from its peculiar acrimony, it was far more calculated to injure his own happiness by raising him powerful enemies, than to advance his reputation by the display of his satirical powers. Smollett was aware of the danger, and oblo lashed with an unsparing hand; and those, whom fashion sometimes raises to the rank of wits, without any solid quality to support the spurious promotion, are treated with equal severity. It must be confessed, however, that though in general there is displayed great vigour of thought and expression in this poem, there is little harmony in the numbers, and the subject is not nearly so well treated as it has been by others. Pope had already shone in precisely the same line, and with so fine an example before him, Armstrong should have done better. As it is, the piece merely rises above mediocrity. The satire is good, but the poem is unworthy of the author of The Art of Preserving Health. A DAY. In this production, as in the poem of Taste, there is a spirited conciseness, a lively representation of characters, and a certain sprightliness and turn of wit, which gives pleasure to the reader; but at the same time there is a great want of harmony and polish in the verse; a circumstance which can only be ascribed to carelessness in the author; for no poet, in his higher efforts, ever exhibited a finer ear for smooth and harmonious versification. His poem entitled "The Art of Preserving Health," is in this respect, beyond all praise. That poem, as a didactic composition, it is well known, ranks with the productions of Lucretius, Horace, Virgil, Vida, and Boileau; while, for the elegance and harmony of its language, it is not surpassed by any piece of blank verse in the English language. But no other poet, perhaps, exhibits greater irregularities than Armstrong. While some of his compositions bear the stamp of perfection in every line, others can hardly be deemed superior to the productions of mediocrity. ON POETRY-A RHAPSODY. Of all the efforts of the celebrated Dean of St. Patrick's muse, this production is allowed to possess the highest merit, and to exhibit the most sustained flight of poetical expression. What renders this the more re |