[ ^9 ] 



priety and the rules of good writing — ^Novelty — Novelty — Sur- 

 prife — Surprife — are their darling Cleopatras ; the idols of a falfe 

 ambition, to which we may trace moft of their peculiarities and 

 abfurditief. 



This ambitious fpirit of the German writers occafions, in all 

 their productions, another trait of family refemblance, which is 

 excefs ; a ftraining at fomething fuperlative, an attempt to furpafs 

 nature, that produces only contorfion and grimace. Their inci- 

 dents are in excefs, of horror, and of burlefque, that exhibit re- 

 volting fpedacles or contemptible farces. Their perfonages arc 

 alfo in excefs ; there is nothing of the juft fize or proportion of na- 

 ture, but all are giants or dwarfs. There is no true delineation 

 of charader. All the lines are aggravated, all the features arc 

 over-charged into caricature. Their heroes and heroines are bed- 

 lamites 5 their comic charadlers merry Andrews and cinder wenches. 

 When they would depid paffion, excefs^ excefs ftill predominates. 

 They want the keeping, the referve, the chaftity of manner infe- 

 parable from probability and nature. Their virtues attempt to 

 rife to fomething fuper-human, and fall into their contraries; 

 they are loft in the clouds of romance and extravagance, or in- 

 volved in the mazes of chimerical and unintelligible refinement. 

 Their dramatic exhibitions of vice are monfters redeemed by no 

 virtue 5 they carry their malignity and guilt to an excefs unex- 

 ampled 



