150 
In vain the fource of woes we feek, 
Of woes which fhun the gazer’s eye, 
The cares that blanch his furrow’d cheek, 
The griefs that prompt the latent igh; 
To all the forms of nature dead, 
And deaf to pity’s melting tone, 
Each fond, each bland, emotion ied— 
«< Poor Joe’s alone ! poor Joe’s alone |”? 
To him, from life’s gay fcenes eftrang’d, 
And all the dear delights of home, 
The world to one vaft wafte is chang’d 
And men the beafts that round it roam 3 
From the Portfolio of a Man of Letters. 
f March 1, 
Ne friend the focial blifs to fhare, 
No wife to make his griefs her own, 
The forrowing victim of defpair— 
‘¢ Poor Joe’s alone ! poor Joe's alone !* 
But, though no cure his grief receives, 
Nor time fubdues his calm defpair, 
Yet fill his hand affuafive leaves 
A mild and quiet afpeé there. . 
Silent he roves the live-long day, 
A wanderer, aged, and unknown 3 
Or pours unfeen this penfive lay— 
‘* Poor Joe’s alone.! poor Joe’s alone !”” 
Exirad from the Port-folio of a Man of Letters. 
MAROT. 
LEMENT MAROT, who may be 
confidered as almof the father of the 
French poetry, was born about the year 
1486. He was, in the earlier part of his 
life, Valet-de-Chambre to Francis If. 
He followed, during fome time, the Pro- 
feffion of Arms, and was wounded and 
made prifoner at the battle of Pavia, fo. 
fatal to his mafter. The Spaniards, into 
whofe hande he was now fallen, imagined 
that they faw in him an enemy to the pu- 
rity of the Catholic Faith, as well.as to 
themfelves, and he was expofed to the per- 
fecutions of their priefts, in addition to 
the common feverities of captivity. From 
the dangers by which he was thus me- 
naced. the proteftion of Francis was able 
¢o refcue him, but the prejudices which 
the Spanifh priefts had conceived, were 
communicated to their brethren in France, 
who,by feizing his books, and other hoftile 
preparations, deterred him from unmedi- 
ately returning tohis country. After va- 
vious wanderings and futferings he fettled 
in Geneva, where the opinions to which 
he was attached fourithed under the au- 
thority of Calvin. Here he was guilty of 
adultery ; a crime which by the laws of 
Geneva, expef-d him to fuffer death —but 
Calvin, anxious to preferve fo iuitrious a 
' convert, prevailed on the magiftrates to 
mitigate punifiment, and coodemn 
him to awhipping. This dilgrace drove 
him euc of Geneva inte Piedmont, where 
he died, ia 3154 The great merit of 
Marot is, that he was che firft who tuned 
the French language——but it is not his 
only merit—he is fearcely lefs diflin- 
guifhed by the delicacy of his expref- 
1 
“na 
whe 
> ‘ 
fions than by the harmony of his numbers 
—and he offered a model of elegance, not 
enly furpefiing whatever had appeared 
before, an excellence 
but difplaying 
vuet Reis a 
eee 
\ 
which his fucceffors, who profited by his 
example, were Jong unable to reach. 
Baillet obferves, that the French poets 
are indebted to him for the rondeau, and 
for the reftoration of the fonnet anid madri- 
gal. He likewife added fome new mea- 
fures to their poetry. The faults of his 
life appear in his works, which not unfre= 
quently breathe a {pirit of grof$ licentiouf- 
nefs. In his works too, as in his life, we 
meet extraordinary contradiétions. ‘The 
difciple of Calvin, who facrificed to his 
religious convictions the faireft profpects 
of fortune, was faved by an act of mercy 
from the gallows ; and the writer of fome 
of the moft obfcene poems in the French 
language, tranflated the Pfalms of David. 
He was not much the favourite of his own 
age or of that which fucceeded. A good 
tafte had not yet become general in France, 
buat the fame of Marot followed wherever 
it was {pread. Fontaine was his admirer, 
and profeffed himielf his fcholar. 
LETTER of OLIVER CROMWELL ‘fo 
OL. st. JOHN, EsQ.—Ex. Bib. Hari, 
DEAR SIR. 3 
We Can tay nothing, but furely theLord our 
4. God is a great and glorious God ; he 
only is worthy to be feared and trufted, 
and his appearances patiently to be waited 
for: he wil] not fail his people: let every 
thing that bath breath praife. the Lord. 
Remember my love to my dear brother 
(3iV); I pray he make not too Jittle, nor T 
too much of outward difpenfations.. God 
preferve us all, that we, in fimplicity of 
our {pirits, may patiently attend upon 
them; and let us all mot be careful what 
ufe men will make of thefe actings. They | 
fai}, will they nill, fulfill the good plea-. 
fure of God, and we fhall ferve our gene- 
rations. Our reft we expect elfewhere— 
that will be durable. . Care we not for to- 
morrow, nor for any thing. This Scrip- 
4 : eure 
