6? 



To return. The firft romances, like the firft hiftorles of the world, 

 delivered in rythm to fix the morals and ftrengthen the polity of favage 

 man, were compofed in metre, impreffed with the rh'mie, and fung at 

 feftivals to the harp ; like the odes and hymns of the Grecian bards, 

 or the fongs and melodies of the Hebrews for the fervice of the Temple. 

 After this manner the original romances of all Europe were compofed and 

 fung ; and from what obfervations I have been able to make, it does not 

 appear that any one nation borrowed the cuflom of the other; which induces 

 a ftrong fuppofition that the minftrel part of the ceremony had an higher 

 origin than the fafliion of the day ; and that probably the Celts had given 

 it birth. For all nations appear to have fung their poetry to the Harp, 

 nor was their union feparated in Greece till about the time of Ariltotle. 

 (See his Polit. L. 8. c. 5.) From this period however the rhime feems 

 to have become a neceffary appendage to European verfe; and indeed 

 the genius of the French poetry had now taken that turn, which did not 

 admit oi profe mefuree, as they very properly call blank-verfe ; and furely 

 no language was ever lefs adapted to it ! He that is curious to trace 

 the progrefs of the French rhime, may confult MelTrs. Fauchet, Baillet, 

 and De La Rue, of whofe work Mr. Ellis has very properly availed 

 himfelf ; and whofe enquiries to purfue in this place would be only a 

 repetition of what that gentleman has fo ingenioufly written. 



Yet fomething mull be obferved on that fource, from which the French 

 are faid to have derived their rhime. 



Mr. Ellis quotes Fauchet, for faying that his countrymen claim the 

 honor of its application to their poetry from the Monk Otfrid, A. 870 : 

 but, fays Mr. Ellis, fucceeding antiquarians have afcribed its invention 

 to the Latin rhimes of the fixth century. As the argument of thefe gen- 

 tlemen applies equally to the rhimes of Italy and Spain, our own rhimes, 

 and thofe of poliflied Europe in general, the fame anfwer will ferve 

 them all. 



I do not think it material to the prefent queftion, when it was that 

 the monks began to torture the Latin tongue, or firft twilled its inflexions 

 into rhime: neither is it worth the enquiry} for with great deference to 



I 2 Mr. 



