and decency, require the total abolition of parsons? When Jeremy thus attacked Dryden, Congreve, and Vanbrugh, the latter did not bear it tamely, but Dryden pleaded guilty, and professed his repentance. Which will be the Dryden amongst our wits, we are at a loss to guess. We have here most of the old arguments against scenic exhibitions. It is true that Mr. T.'s "solemn protest" is not quite so ridiculous as those of many of his persuasion, and he is also rather more temperate in his language, until the end, when he breaks out in quotations from Wilberforce and Tertullian. All this, were we inclined to waste time and paper, we might rebut with the old force, but it is the best answer to every objection of this nature to observe, that heads as wise and pious, directed by hearts as virtuous and as good as any that the complainants can boast of, have, in their mature judgment, thought it right to sanction the present management of our public entertainments. That they made their choice on this principle; "of two evils choose the least," we are ready to admit, but we can adinit no more. Theatres have their evil, and what of human invention is without? Saving the blind zeal of its doctrine, this pamphlet is not badly written. Some passages at p. 23, and elsewhere, deserve consideration. The Sports of the Genii. By Mrs. J. Hunter. 4to. Plates. 10s. 6d. Payne. Pp. 16. Ir is rather an Hibernian mode of proceeding to manage matters so as to let the warning follow the trap. It was certainly difficult to read the epilogue to a book, without first possessing it; therefore, after paying ten and sixpence, we found ourselves cautioned not to be such fools. "Critics sharp, with brow severe, The pretty little boys with wings were drawn by the deceased daughter of Lord Chief Baron Macdonald, and are creditable to her pencil. The pretty little poems are by Mrs. Hunter. Description of the Island of St. Helena; containing Observations on its singular Structure and Formation; and an Account of its Climate, Natural History, and Inhabitants. 8vo. 6s. Phillips. 1805. WHAT this volume professes, it will be found to perform in an able and satisfactory manner. The description of a little colony speaking the language of England, in a remote island of the Æthiopic Ocean, is naturally interesting. The Triumph of Music; a Poem, in six Cantos. By William Hayley, Esq. 4to. 10s. 6d. Payne. "The satirical rogue says, that old men have grey beards; that their faces are wrinkled; their eyes purging thick amber and plumtree gum; and that they have a plentiful lack of wit," and, consequently, Hamlet might have added, write very sorry poetry. Mr. Hayley's publisher reminds us of Erskine's pun on Mrs. Payne, “He never knew pleasure, who never knew PAIN." But however true this may be as it respects Mr. H. it is entirely false, as it relates to our acquaintance with his bookseller on this occasion. Our author has at last, from a respectable poetical station, succeeded in writing himself down to the level of a complete proser in verse. War in Disguise; or, the Frauds of the Neutral Flags. 8vo. pp. 215. Hatchard. 1805. The facts here stated are for the most part derived from the records of our courts of prize; and it is by no means so clear as the writer would wish it to appear that he is not himself a practitioner in these courts. To suppose that no man exerts himself in a national cause from a public motive, if a private one can possibly be suspected, is certainly an ungenerous supposition, but is it not generally true? The pamphlet is well written, but we knew of the wound before. Where is, at present, the safe cure? A World without Souls. 12mo. pp. 135. 2s. 6d. 1805. Hatchard. THE object of the ingenious author of this little tract is to shew the inconsistency of the present race of civilized beings, who, in their professions, would seem to have souls, but in their actions none. The idea is managed with considerable cleverness, and may be read seriously with advantage. There are certain sentences which, as Seneca observes, "nihil ampliùs quàm sonant," such are the "florida et nimis dulces" that occasionally disfigure our author's style. The Count de Valmont; or, Errors of Reason. Translated from the French. 3 Vols. 12s. Hatchard. We sincerely recommend this work, as affording, with much interest and amusement, a very powerful antidote to the baneful reasoning and impious infidelity so widely disseminated by the prostituted talents of the pseudo-philosophers of the day. The Rustic, a Poem, in 4 Cantos. By Ewan Clark. 12mo. Ostell. 1805. VIRGIL found a Pollio, of whom he could say, amat nostram, quamvis est rustica, Musam," but we suspect that Mr. Clark, out of a certain limited sphere, will not find any one inclined to extend the respect which they may pay to his "three score years and ten," to his Rustic poem. We understood, from Mr. Moore, that Mr. Thomas Little had died aged one and twenty, but he is here familiarly called Tom Little, and represented as so much alive and merry, that he is capering and dancing from morning to night. He probably found poetry to be, as Pope describes it, an “idle trade,” and wishing for a more active life, wisely chose that of a dancing master. The Sorrows of Seduction, in eight Delineations, with other Poems. Gordon. 1806. 5s. WE have already given our opinion of this poem in its first edition. To the present the author has added two new delineations. The lovers of simplicity will find the whole a treat. Our hint respecting Maria's dog Tray has been taken, and in the engraving he no longer speaks, nor does she forget her lover, and "musing eye her Tray." P. 28. DRAMATIC. The Weathercock; a Farce in two Acts, as performed at the Theatre Royal Drury-Lane. By John Till Allingham. 1s. 6d. Lackington, 1805. Dr. Johnson describes a farce to be a dramatic representation, written without regularity, and stuffed with wild and ludicrous conceits." Mr. Allingham, who is confessedly the best farce writer of the present day, enters perfectly into this definition, and, though The Weathercock may seem to defy criticism, yet, as it is every thing that it pretends to be, it merits all the praise that honest criticism can bestow on it. "Sunt quibus in plures jus est transire figuras ; Proteu!" F-VOL. XXI. 4 So may we address Tristram Fickle, the Proteus of this farce, who is all things by turns, and nothing long. The idea is excellent, but in this, as in other cases, we could wish Mr. A. to bestow a little more time on the perfecting what he so well imagines. However, it is perhaps inherent in the nature of those who are happy in farcical ideas, not to be over-patient in bearing delay and trouble. The irresistible humour of Bannister in young Fickle leaves us no doubt that this Weathercock will, to use Pope's language, "rust to a point, and fix at last”—that is—become a stock piece. The Delinquent; or, Secing Company, a Comedy in fixe Acts, as performed at the Theatre Royal Covent Garden. Reynolds. pp. 73. 2s. 6d. Longman and Co. By Frederick 1805. IN the department of our miscellany devoted to theatrical criticisms, The Delinquent has received that praise in acting, to which its merits so justly entitled it; and if, on perusing it in our closet, we cannot say that Mr. Reynolds' Muse vires aquirit eundo, yet it is much to be able to affirm, that after having produced such a numerous progeny, scarcely lying fallow for a single year, she is as happy in her fruitfulness as ever. We have heard the school of Reynolds talked of with disrespect; but the injustice of such remarks, as they affect him, is obvious, since is it equitable to blame a man for the sins of his followers? As well might we contemn the styles of Rousseau, Gibbon, and Johnson, because their imitators have, in their attempts to copy them, rendered them ridiculous. The originals of all these have their merit; and they alike appear to have this quality, that they will admit of no imitation. Had Reynolds been allowed to keep the circle which he had made, we should have heard no complaints of satiety, but when his many followers broke in upon him, it was then, and not till then, that our cars were saluted, from certain quarters, with "something too much of this." We do not advance this invidiously, with respect to imitators, but merely as we feel it a justice due to him. logue he tells us that he is "Us'd to the smiles of an indulgent town." any of his In his pro He has deserved these smiles, and possesses, in the stores of his inventive genius, that which will long command them. THE BRITISH STAGE. Imitatio vite, speculum consuetudinis, imago veritatis. Cicero The Imitation of Life---The Mirror of Manners---The Representation of Truth. ANECDOTES OF THE FRENCH STAGE. ADELAIDE DU GUESELIN. A tragedy, by M. de Voltaire, 1734. Voltaire recast this piece under the title of the Duke of Foix, but afterwards he had it played under its first title. In its original state there was a character called Coucy, to whom another of the characters said, emphatically, after a long speech, Art thou content, Coucy? The pit echoed the actor, by exclaiming, Coussi, Coussi, (so, so) This piece of wit raised a laugh, a circumstance very often fatal to a tragedy, and was nearly the cause of this play being condemned. ADELA OF PONTHIEU. A tragedy, by M. de Place, 1757. This tragedy was presented to the comedians, read, and received by these gentlemen with marks of general approbation, but through the treachery of some of the actors, and the secret influence of an author very well known, often accused of the same tricks, M. de Place was kept in suspense for more than ten months. At last he was under the necessity of imploring the interference of persons of the first consequence, to cause it to be acted. The Duke de Richlieu, who had just taken Minorca, gave such positive orders, that Adela was soon afterwards represented, but was badly performed, because the actors did their duty unwillingly. It was, contrary to their expectations, well received by the public, and after the first representation, the author thanked the conqueror of Minorca in the following impromptu : Ton oncle conquit la Rochelle, Combla les arts de bienfaits éclatants, Tu pris Minorque, & fis jouer Adele. THE BROTHERS. A comedy in five acts, in verse, by Baron, attributed to the Jesuit Father de la Rue, 1705. A few days before this piece was intended for representation, M. de Roquelaure said to the author, " Baron, when will you shew me your new piece? You know I have heard of it. I have invited three ladies, who are lovers of literature, to dine with me; come and |