44 t'STHONUN POETRY* 



An excellent woman rocked thy cradle, 

 And happy he that has married thee. 



I have given what I collected, while I was among 

 thefe people, without pretending, as I faid at fir:ft ? to 

 equal them with the fongs of the deathlefs bards. Ne- 

 verthelefs, the unprejudiced reader will difcover feveral 

 artlefs beauties in one or other of them, and the in- 

 veftigator of mankind will get an infight into the ge- 

 nius of the nation. 



For fuch as can difcern no traces of delicate fenti- 

 ment in them, for fuch as have obferved no poignant 

 Uxokes of farcafm in thefe fpecimens of national poefy; 

 for fuch as do not conclude from them, that, with 

 better ufage, greater culture, and a little allowance of 

 liberty, we might expedt this nation to produce beau- 

 tiful pieces in the various departments of poetry ; and 

 that then the delightful and melodious language of this 

 people, by a greater cultivation and a freer fcope, 

 would be rendered more and more melodious and de- 

 lightful — for thern I did not write down thefe fpeci- 

 mens, either in their original or in a tranflatioi. , The 

 feeming harfhnefs of feveral vowels ftriking on one 

 another in this language, entirely vanifhes when heard 

 with all its nuances from the mouth of an Efthonian. 



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OF : 



