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Retrofpei'f of DomeJIic Literature. — Poetry, 



" Let us wander, wild and free, 



In fport and whimficality, 



Thto'gay Fancy's flowery mare ; ■ 



Nor blame us, tliougli jou fcorn to pralfe." 



Mr. Coxh's " Mijcclla>:eous Poetry 

 requires more room ♦orcri:icilin than we 

 can well allcvv. He lias triid his talent 

 at varieties of vei le ; and th,ugh he may 

 not be as (ii'ce's ul in the epigram as in 

 the fonnet, he is lefpccihible both in his 

 original poetry and in his imitations. Ot 

 the latter, hi* fonnets from Pttr.irch are 

 the bcft. We recommend him mult hear- 

 tfcly lo cultivate his t ilent. 



Mis. Milne's " Sirple Poems on 

 Jimple Subjeds'" dcferve pui titular encjuu 

 raoement ; not fo much, perhaps; for the 

 extraordinary merit of htr poeiry, as en 

 account of the finp,ui,'.r cuciinillances un- 

 der which it appears to have been written. 

 Tht Mtife is jaiely aulpicious lo a life of 

 Kiaiiual labour. 



Mr. Shee's " Rhymes on ArC^ have 

 confiderable merit; though among great 

 beauties we notice occafional defe61s. 

 I'he tribute to the memory of Sir Jolhua 

 Reyiioldi, and the piilure of a true pain- 

 ter, are among the bell psH ges. The 

 tendency of the poem is undoubtedly to 

 encourage the Britilh fchool of painting. 



Among the poe'ry too we may verv 

 pro;)erly infert '' Specimejis of enrly Bnglijh 

 'Metrical Romances chiefly ^urii/e/i during 

 the ecirU Pari of the tourtemth Century ;" 

 to which is prefixed an Hiitorical Intro- 

 iluilion, intended to illuMrate the Rife 

 snd Progrein of Romantic Compofrion in 

 France and England j by George El- 

 i.i.-., Efq. 



Thcle volumes are intended by Mr. 

 ElliS to fupply a chafm in his former 

 woik of '« Specimens of early Engllfli 

 Poets, "" by explnining more tully the pio- 

 gitfs of our ptefry and luiguage (lom ihe 

 early part of the thirteenth to the middle 

 of the leiirtcenlh century; ami exhibiting 

 a general vie* of our romances of chi- 

 valiy in their earlielf and limplelt form. 

 The romances themfelvcs .ire divided into 

 the following chfl'cs : — i. Romances le- 

 lating to King Arthur ; i. Anglo-Saxon 

 romances ; 3. Anglo-Noiman romances ; 

 4. Romances relating to Charlemagne ; 

 J. Romances of Onentid origin ; andT5. 

 IVlicellaneous romances. The genernl 

 outline, and even the Irnalleft incidents of 

 each (iory, are faithfully givtn in pliin 

 prole, but interfpcrled throughout with 

 fuch pallages of the <riginalsas appeared 

 wgrth preltrving either from their poeti- 

 cal merit, the to;recf piftures which they 

 reprelcnt of ancient manners, fiom their 



being charafteriflic of the author's feel- 

 ings, or of thole of his nation. The 

 G>ncral IntrodutS'Hon contains a variety of 

 curi us obfcrvations on the chuiges, pre- 

 fervation, and improvement, of the ro- 

 ttiaiice or French language ; on the origin 

 of romantic ficiion; and the probability 

 that the firll French ro<nances were wii ten 

 ill England ; with a variety of authorities 

 which (u.iport the fupp fitlnn ; and con- 

 cludes with an Inquiiy into the (fate of 

 Wales during the el venth, twelfth, and 

 thirteenth centuries. To give any thing 

 like an outline of even one of the ro- 

 mances here would be impoiribl«. To 

 lome rtjaders they may (eem but old- 

 wives'-lalcs ; but to thofe who have the 

 n chtfft relifh for our ancient literature, 

 they will be highly acceptable. 



" Palmyra, and other Voems ;"' by T. 

 L. Peicock. 



P.ilinyra, which feems the author's fa- 

 vourite, is an irregular ode, in the (fylc 

 which has been ulnally called Pimlaiic. 

 Exclufive of the defect which maiks the 

 generality of fuch od^s, it has confidcrable 

 merit ; and we were n">t dilplcafed with 

 the perufsl of his finailer poems. 



To two authors have we been lately in- 

 debted for poetry on " The Pleofures of 

 Love." From the one, Mr. Stewart, we 

 have received a regular poem, exhibiting 

 the principal cbarailerillics which attend 

 the pifllon. To the oiler, Mr. Frrz- 

 williaM, we are indeb ed for a Cuikc- 

 li'jn, being «' Amatory Poems, Orit;i/ial 

 and Tranf.ated, from the Afiatic and Eu- 

 ropean Languages.''^ With the firif, the 

 a;imi:ers of Dr. Darwin will probably be 

 pleafed, as Mr. Stewart feems a dil'ciple of 

 his fchool. With the fecond, almolt 

 every lover of Englifli poetry will be 

 pleafed. The fe* origina!s which aie in- 

 teif'pericd do Mr. Fitzwilliam's genius as 

 much honour as the feieiliinnshe has made 

 do credit to his judgment. 



" Ballads by William Hayley, 

 Efq , founded on Anecdotes relating to Ani- 

 mals.''' Three words of Horace, fsys 

 Mr, Hayley, may form an introdui5fion 

 to the following pages, the very words 

 which tiiat amiable phyfician and poet 

 the late Dr. Cotton of St. Alban's prefix- 

 ed as a mot o to his elegant and moial 

 little Volume of " Vifions in Verfe" : 

 " Viiginibus, puerifque canto.'" 



or in plain Englifh profe, — the book ij 

 intended for young readers. Thoogh 

 rot equal perhaps to fome of his foi mer 

 compofiticns, the ballads have merit. 

 The very purpole they were written for 

 rendcteii 



