« 
a 
~ 
202 
‘one halfvof the poem (from Canto iii. to 
Canto x.) becomes infipid! Nay, almoft 
the whole of it lofes its intereft; for, at 
‘the very departure of Sir Huon on his jour- 
riey to Bagdad, Oberon prefents him with 
an ivory horn ef no inferior potency, and 
thus acquaints him with its virtue: 
Does but its f{nail-like fpiral hollow fing 
A lovely note, foft {well’d with gentle breath, 
Tho’ thoufand warriors threaten inftant death, 
And with advancing weapons round@nring ; 
Then, as thou late haft feen, in reftlefs dance 
All, all muf fpin, and ev'ry {word aad lance 
Fall with th’ exhaufted warriors to the ground. 
But if thou peal it with impatient found, 
I, at thy cali, appear more fwift than light- 
ning glance. 
Yt appears, therefore, that the Analytical 
Reviewer’s objection lies againft the greater 
part of the poem, on the general and par- 
ticular merits of which, notwithfanding, 
he {peaks in terms d]moft of rapturous en- 
comium. ‘To fay the truth, Tam half in- 
clined to fufpect that he well knew the ex- 
tent of his obje€tion, but rather wifhed that 
it might be dete&ted by fome other perfon 
than acknowledge it himfelf. 
I am fo little acquainted with the laws 
of the epic, that I feel aware of the pre- 
fumption in offering an opinion on the 
prefent fubject: I muft, however, confefs, 
that it appears to mea little ovfré for the 
hero of the poem to be invulnerable—aye 
at the very heel—and fa kwow that -he is 
under the guardianfhip of a god, whofe 
tutelary prefence, in cafe of danger, he 
eould command “* more {wift than light- 
ming glance.” 
«© All the ingenuity of united Parnaffus 
(fays an elegant writer in your Magazine*) 
has not been able to bring into confiftent- 
action beings poffeffed of iuch difpropor- 
tionate powers as mortal man and fuper- 
natural exiftencies ; beings of {uch totally 
unequal power cannot be introduced as 
acting either in unifon, or oppofition, with- 
out palpabie abfurdity. Mere man muft 
aét by natural means; if he be oppofed by 
a being aided by fupernatural means, there 
is but one way for the conteft to termi- 
nate ; and if he be aided by fuch a being, 
his own action is totally unneceffary.”’ 
Where, I with to learn, where was the 
difficulty of carrying to the emperor four 
grinders from the ealiph’s jaws, and a lock 
of hair from his quadruple chin, if Obe- 
* he authof of fome ingenious critical 
remarks on the principal Italian poets. Per- 
haps ke will favouf us with his opinion on 
the fubject of the prefent article, 
Objervations on Oberoite 
-fApril 1, 
ron prefents’Sir Huon with the one, and 
himielf {nips off the other as the tipfy ful- 
tan finks upon his fofa, exhaufted with the 
dance which the ivory horn of Oberon had 
excited? How fhould the caliph,-his emirs 
and grandees, oppofe the power of Oberon? 
In the ftories of the ** Arabian Nights,’” 
the power of one fairy is oppofed by the 
power of another: their difputes are con- 
ducted, and their battles fought, with fuch 
preternatural dexterity om doth fides, that 
the fcales of viétory hang even, or keep in 
perpetual libration, till the end of the tale. © 
But when the heathens befet Sir Huon, the 
-faithful Sherafmin “< fets to his lip the horn 
and loudly blows ;”” and the no lefs faithful 
Oberon defcends into the hall of feafting, 
and fhakes the caftle with his thunders : 
Loud rings the caftle with re-bellowing fhocks 5 
Night, tenfold mid-night,fwallows up the day; 
Ghofts, to and fro, like gleams of lightning 
lay, * ye 
The Find bake of the turret rocks! 
Terrors unknown the heathen race confound ! 
Sight, hearing, loft, they flagger drunk witk 
fear ; . ‘ 
Drops from each nervelefs hand the fword and 
{pear, 
And ftiff upon the fpot all lie in groups a- 
round, ; 
One cannot wonder that the poor fellows 
were fadly frightened ! 
bufinefs, Obzron, while the enchanted pa- 
gans lie fenfelefs on the ground, hurries 
‘into a fairy chariot the zzirepid Huon and 
the lovely Rezia, who are wafted-through 
the pathlefs regions of the air, and fafely 
feated on the fhore of Afkalon. The ma- 
gic ring of Angulaffer faves Sir Huon from: 
deftruétion in his conteft with the lion 
which had feized prince Babekan’s courfer, 
(Canto iv. ftar. 25) 3 and, indeed, it proved 
an invaluable friend to him on many peri-. 
lous occafions. Some one better acquaint- 
ed with the laws of epic than I am, may 
decide how far fuch preternatural affiftance. 
againft mortal enemies is legitimate. 
T.8.N. 
ea 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
BR motive for a defign frequently 
occurs with me, as with many other 
perfons, very long before I can find lei- 
fure, cr even inclination, for its “execu- 
tion; and, perhaps, no defcription of men 
are more liable to interruptions, than they 
who would be thought the couffant corre- 
Jpendents of a periodical work. I fully 
intended to have addrefied you on the fub-— 
jo 
‘To complete the - 
