general fcale, what I have before publifhed, as the only Hiftory of the Rife of English Jacobiniim, may be found an useful Supple ment to Barruel and Profeffor Robifon, and with them contribute, to preferve the public mind from the machinations of frantic and ambitious men, who can rife to no eminence but from the general debalement of mankind and the degradation of the fpecies.

W. HAMILTON REID.

POETRY.

THE OLD ENGLISH GENTLEMAN.-CANTO THE THIRD.

5...

(Continued from P. 233.)

The RUNNING MATCH.

STRAIT at his

beck as all drew near the knight,
He bade, his bofom bounding at the fight,
The buxom troop their wonted fports renew,
Or "Hunt the Slipper," or "the ball" purfue;
At Blindman's Buff" along the verdure play,
Or "drop the Handkerchief," in quaint array;
Till now, to crown the whole with festal grace,
Sir Humphrey to the girls propos'd a race,
And, for the damfel who outrun the reft,
Nam'd the fair prize, and ey'd each eager
A prize that Allan's felf would foon beftow,
Enough to fet their bofoms in a glow.

breast

"A chaplet fweet (he cried) no maid would miss,
And mark, ye dainty girls! a fweeter kifs!"
The garland, tho' it told October fear

In each dim floret of the waning year ;

Yet, beaming thro' the cornflower's modeft blue,
And the pale panfy of a fainter hue,

The marigold's intenfer flame display'd;

So (cried the Knight) fhall burn the Victor-maid!”
Gay from the porch, to meet the rustic troop,
Advanc'd the ladies in a motley groupe.

There, madam Squintall ponder'd o'er the show;

* Her daughter tripping on fantastic toe;

And lo, her eyeballs ftern on Juliet nail'd,
Prue ftood, as in her mother carth dovetail'd.
Now all on tiptoe, fingled out by lot,
Appear'd four laffes on the appointed spot;
One, for the match, perhaps, too tightly lac'd
As taper'd, like the inverted cone, her waist,
Who struggling to be crown'd, it feems, the firft,
Had, ere the ftarted, ali her braces burst-
More politic and wife, another maid.
Inazure bedgown" airily array'd,

Its flowings by a fash of pink represt,

Her bashful cheek low-bent upon her breast;

Her cheek, by which the Bard would deem outdone,
The melting peach, "its fide against the sun."-
Another, neat at every pretty point,

And fupple at each lubricated joint,
With features larger from a cap round-ear'd,
And "hining elbows" that fo plump appear'd,
With lovely feet fo famous at the fair,

That drew, where'er fhe stepp'd, the ruftic stare;
And ankles that, fo delicate and smooth,
Won vaft applaufe from every buzzing booth-
The laft, attracting to her eafy mien,
Her native elegance, each eye, I ween,
Adorning, by her fimple grace, a gown
Though nicely-needled, plain and ruffet-brown,
With 'kerchief fnowy-white, without a flaw,
And light upon her head a hat of straw
Tied with a purple ribbon, whose bright hue
O'er her young bloom a kindling luftre threw,
Where gleam'd fome funny freckles fprinkled thin,
To give new richness to her lucid skin :

Thus, o'er the thorn, amidst the vernal beam,
Thin-fprent at first, its earlier bloffoms gleam.
And quaintly lurk'd beneath her eye, a mole
Whence her dark orbs an arch effulgence ftole;
Whilft, heaving as fweet Emma's bofom heav'd,
A ringlet's golden glow her kerchief's white reliev'd.

"Strait at the fignal, started "bedgown blue," And, as on airy pinion, Emma flew ;

And burfted boddice" feem'd to mock the wind
In fpeed, and "fbining elbows" puff'd behind.

Hot was the race. Now" burfted ftays" befide,
With ftrong exertion e'en with Emma vied:
Now" bedgown blue" had Emma far outftripp'd;
And now "blue bedgown" on a sudden flipp'd,
And, half-recovering, flided off, as fhod
With glafs, and tumbled on the fhaven fod;
When Emma pafs'd, and, diftancing the reft,
Sprung to the gaol, the victor-girl, confeft.

The flowery garland Allan wav'd in air,
With eager tranfport feiz'd the panting fair;
Deep as the blufh'd, her hat of ftraw unbound,
And with the wreath her starting treffes crown'd,
And, haftening to confer a brighter palm,
Breath'd o'er her lips, and ftole ambrofial balm,”

Death

Death of the OLD ROAN HORSE.

"He paus'd; when, fudden, from behind the trees, A clattering noise came wafted on the breeze. And now, distinct, the sound of hoofs was heard, 'Tho' neither horfeman's form, nor horfe appear'd ; Till, wheeling round the foreft-fkirts, was feen The poor old Roany on the level green; Who, galloping towards his mafter, fped, And oft, with feeble efforts, rais'd his head Expanding his wide noftrils as for air, Whilft each dim eye-ball caft a tranfient glare; Then, as his mafter he effay'd to greet, Stagger'd, and, falling at Sir Humphrey's feet, Neigh'd, with the triumph of a moment fir'd, And faintly neigh'd again, and strait expir'd. "Alas! (Sir Humphrey cried) my generous Roan! "Faithful for thrice ten years! for ever gone! "How often hath thy back, from jocund morn "To clofing eve thy grateful mafter borne ! "How proud wert thou, with purple houfings deck'd, "And prancing too impatient to be check'd, "When, Sheriff to the county-town I rode ;"Yes! with thy mafter's pomp, thy fpirit glow'd. "And old, my Roany, we together grew, "To the first vows of youthful friendship true. "Yes! thou wert true, tho' ftruggling in the grafp "Of death, yet faithful at thy lateft gafp!"

Thus fpoke the Knight; and weeping, like a child,
Thro' many a tear, with confcious pleasure fmil'd;
As memory, viewing time's unruffled course,
Trac'd back his fondness for his aged horse.”

Funeral of Sir HUMPHREY.

"Tho' death! thy every feature chill the foul, Yet, lo! thy herfes, more terrific, roll!

*

"How lengthen'd to the view the Andarton-glooms, When thy pale fteeds high fhook their fable plumes; When, at the waving of thy lurid torch,

Where, hung above the little woodbin'd porch,
Thy hatchment feem'd to tremble in the glare,
How darken'd round the deep nocturnal air!

"But whilst thy herfe, in long proceffion drawn,
Difplay'd its dreadful trappings down the lawn,
Whilft good Sir Humphrey's venerable coach
Made to the churchyard-ftile its flow approach,

*

"Pompa mortis magis terret, quam mers ipfa.”

How

How teem'd, as fancy all her vifions brought,
With grief and terror every paufe of thought!
"Yet Allan, as the whole impaffion'd croud;
Or wept in filent woe, or fobb'd`aloud,
Drew from the funeral fob, the funeral tear,
The joy of grief that scatter'd every fear.'

"

"The vault now left, amidst the charnel air, One folitary mourner linger'd there

One

poor

domeftic breath'd the unnotic'd moan, And, with cold nofe, ftill prefs'd the dripping ftone,"

"Oft, whilst his Lord was ill, the butler faid Poor Cato howl'd, and fadly droop'd his head."Then, weeks ago, while fhudder'd every limb, "I faw the fount o'erflow its rocky brim "And, where fo late it caft the limpid gleam, "Swell round its moffy beech, a puddle ftream.

;

"And O! the moment when the Knight was dead The tenants knew; for all the rooks were fled.”

"Alas! whilft grief and fear furvey the tomb,
All nature wears a fympathetic gloom.
Hence, ere the valued friend hath clos'd his eyes,
From every breeze we fteal prefaging fighs;
See, cold and fallow, the forfaken grove,
And hear lorn fountains wail o'er thofe we love!"

To the Author of the Epistle to PETER Pindar.
IFFORD, to thy impreffive lines belong,
The proud diftinctions of superior song!
The lash thou mak'ft the HARDENED WRETCH endure,
Though it cuts deeply-only "cuts to cure;"
For all thy writings to these objects tend,
To prove thyself the mufe, and virtue's friend!
Proceed, great poet! fcourge a vicious age,
Drive vice and folly from the world's wide stage,
'Gainft impious ribaldry thy faulchion wield,
And o'er each timid virtue spread thy fhield!
Be this thy fatire's character and praise;
The ftrength of JuYENAL, in purer lays!
July, 20th 1800.

F.

HISTORY.

476

HISTORY.

SUMMARY OF POLITICS.

No circumftance has occurred during the prefent month to enable us to form any decifive opinion refpecting the renewal of hoftilities, or the probable termination of this momentous conteft; on the contrary, the state of Europe exhibits fuch a variety of contradictory fymptoms, that reafon is baffled in the vain attempt to appreciate them, and that oppofite conclufions might be drawn from them, with equal plausiveness, and almoft with an equal chance of justification by future events. One thing is, however, unfortunately, clear; that the French have reaped, and ftill continue to reap, every poffible advantage from the fatal Convention concluded by General Melas. In violation of, what we have always understood to be, its formal ftipu. lations, they have greatly reinforced their army in Italy, have filled the conquered countries with their licentious hordes, and have levied enormous contributions, and even raised troops, in States, the independence of which they had formally proclaimed. In Germany, too, in virtue of the late Convention, they have reaped all the benefit of fuccefsful warfare, without any of its concomitant risks. Nearly the whole of the Republican force has been fubfifting, for some time past, on the plunder of the neighbouring countries.

men.

The fiat of Bonaparte has produced another Revolution, in the free State of Switzerland, on the laft French model. The hardy mountaineers, ftill retaining fome portion of their native character, vented their indignation in words; but fubmiffion enfued. An attempt has been made by the firft Conful to intimidate the Court of Portugal into a compliance with his demand of 1,250,000£. and of a breach of its treaty with this country; the threatened confequence of a refufal is the invafion of Portugal, with an army of 60,0000 This is nothing more than the revival of an old project of the Directory, firft, indeed, conceived by their predeceffors, the Briffotins and the Robespierreans; who early determined to fend a French Army into Spain, with a view, firft, to fubjugate and revolutionize Portugal, and afterwards to plunder and republicanize Spain herfelf. Naples has also been threatened with a fresh invafion. But the execution of this threat must entirely depend on the conduct of the other powers. Ruffia is bound, by treaty, to defend the kingdom of Naples, against every affailant. As the views of Bonaparte proceed to unfold themselves, the truth of all our obfervations refpecting him is manifested; and the folly of thole fapient politicians who infifted on the determined enmity of their favourite to Jacobinical principles, expofed. In fhort, we defy any man to fhew in what the policy of Bonaparte, relpecting foreign ftates, differs from that of Brillot and of Robelpierre. The object of every fucceffive Ufurper, from the murder of the King to the fubmiffion of his fubjects to a Corfican adventurer, has been the fame, though a change of circumftances has compelled them to vary, in a certain degree, their means of attaining it.

Yet