MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 
| that is fcarcely fuitable to the dig- 
nity of the higher drama, and which 
difgufts us _ its appearance. The 
Marwood of Leffing is introduced in 
fuch a manner as to heighten that 
difguft. The amiable female of the 
piece, Sara Samjon, is no exception 
from the general defect of female 
character in this collection. And 
her father, who is placed in the ten- 
der fituation of which feveral au- 
thors have made fo affecting a ufe, 
- the parent of a child feduced fiom 
honour, though ftill alive to virtue, 
is infipidly drawn, and awkwardly 
introduced. In this tragedy, is an 
incident, of which Lefling feems to 
be fond, as he has repeated it with 
very little variation in another tra- 
gedy called L’E/prit Fort, a dream, 
related by the heroine, predictive 
of the cataftrophe. This, as it an- 
ticipates the conclufion, is always 
faulty. No part of the condué of 
a play is more nice and difficult 
than that degree of information 
which the author is to give the audi- 
€nce in the courfe of it. In gene- 
ral, he fhould certainly not foreftal 
their expectations, by opening his 
plot too foon. But tiere is an ad- 
mirable theatrical effeét which of- 
ten refults from letting the audience 
_know what the ‘perfons of the drama 
are ignorant of, which ftretches, ii 
_I may ufe the expreflion, the cords 
of fear, anxiety and hope in the 
ta to the higheft pitch, 
‘through fcenes which otherwife 
would produce thefe feelings in an 
inferior, as well as in a momentary 
degrce. 
_ audience, of Merope’s fori, while the, 
in ignorance of his perfon, is on the 
point of putting him to death, is 
* one of the moft interefting fituations: 
which dramatic invention has ever 
produced; and there is nothing on 
mf 
This knowledge in the. 
117 
the French ‘ftage which equals the 
horror of that feene of Crebillon’s 
Atree et Thyefte, where the devoted 
brother attempts to difguife himfelf 
from Afreus, while the terrified 
fpectators know him all the while, 
and tremble at every look and word 
which they think will difcover him. 
Next to Leffing, in point of 
name, is Goethé, the author of 
two tragedies in this collection, 
cetz. de. Berliching and Clavidgo, 
and of a drame entitled Sre//a. 'The 
firft-I have already mentioned as 
highly irregular in its plan, being 
a life thrown into dialogue rather 
than a tragedy. The cofume of the 
age in which the events are fup- 
pofed to have happened, is very well 
preferved. The fimpie manners, 
the fidelity, the valour and the ge- 
‘nerefity of a German knight, are 
pourtrayed in a variety of natural 
{cenes. This national quality, I 
prefume, has been the caufe of its 
high fame in Germany, to which it 
feems to me to have otherwife not 
a perfectly adequate claim. His 
Clavidgo is founded on an incident 
which happened to the celebrated 
Caron de Beaumarchais in Spain, 
who is introducad as a perfon of 
the drama, under the name of Ro- 
nac, an-anagram of Caron, with the 
letters alittle tranfpofed. The dif- 
trefs of the play arifes from the 
falfehood of a lover, who leaves his 
miftrefs: after being engaged to 
marry her. Neither the delineation 
of the characters, nor the manage- 
ment of the plot in the fir two 
atts, is entitled to much applaute; 
but the lah at, which pafies in 
fight of the, corpfe of Maria, "is 
wrought up with uncommon force, 
and muft, on the ftage, be produc- 
tive of high effect. His third per- 
formance, Sredla, is ftrongly marked 
Ivg with 
