minately to signify poetry; and though we at present consider such expressions as figurative, there is no doubt but they were originally natural. The sacred name of song was not then prostituted to a succession of unmeaning sounds tortured into music through the odious pipe of an equivocal mutilated animal; it was a ge neral term to express all that the sister Muses of poetry and melody could combine to delight the ear, and ravish the heart. This enchanting union is now in great measure dissolved, yet I will venture to assert that it was not poetry, but her less sentimental companion music who began the separation. The luxury of artificial harmony, taking place of the simple graces of melody, rendered instrumental music chiefly sought after, and the assistance of poetry in consequence unnecessary. The present age is characterised by a languid, sensual indolence, averse even in its pleasures to any thing that requires attention of the mind. The ear, instead of being an avenue to the heart, expects to be gratified merely as an organ of sense, and the heroine, poetry, must give place to the harlot, music. And when the latter has deigned to borrow the vehicle of words, she has shown by her choice that she has regarded poetry rather as a burden upon her exertions than an assistant. The term song may therefore be considered in a double sense-if the idea of music prevails, it signifies no more than a set of words calculated for adaptation to a tune: if poetry be the principal object, it is a species of poetical composition regulated by peculiar laws, and susceptible of a certain definition; still however retaining so much of the musical idea, as to make it an essential circumstance, that by a regularly returning measure it be capable of being set to a tune. A song, as a poetical composition, may be defined, a short piece, divided into returning portions of measure, and formed upon a single incident, thought, or sentiment. Under this definition the general subject from which the particular topic is taken is not restricted; but it has been found that emotions of tenderness and gaiety are peculiarly adapted to songwriting. Custom therefore has almost solely confined the general subject of songs to love and wine, and it must be acknowledged that the nature of the composition, and the assistance of music, contribute to give these subjects a peculiar air of gracefulness and propriety. A number of distinctions have been formed in modern poetry from trifling particularities in the versification of these pieces, such as the number of lines composing a stanza, the repetition of a line at regular distances, the ordonnance of the rhyme, and the like. The laborious Baron Bielfield, in his Elements of universal Erudition, has thought it worth while to particularize a great variety of these distinctions in French poetry, such as the Sonnet, the Rondeau, the Vaudeville, &c. I cannot but consider these petty diversities as very unessential to the poetical character of any composition; this cursory mention is therefore all the notice I shall bestow on them. If we examine the poetical remains of antiquity, we shall find various examples of pieces which come under the foregoing description of a song. That beautiful relique of Sappho, which is well known to the English reader, by Mr. Phillips's excellent translation, 66 Blest as the immortal Gods is he," &c. is an exact model of song-writing. The poems of the gay and sprightly Anacreon are almost all songs in every respect, except the measure, which instead of being divided into returning stanzas, is uniform. Yet this would not necessarily disqualify it for musical adaptation, and there is no doubt but they were really sung and accompanied with instrumental music. The Odes of Horace contain many beautiful specimens of the song complete in every circumstance. All these pieces are handed down to us under the denomination of Lyric poetry, the nature of which, as intimately connected with our subject, it will be proper to examine with some attention. The union of music and poety among the ancients was very strict. It would seem that they had no idea of the music of sounds without words, and they appear seldom or never to have used vocal music without accompaniment with instrumental. The lyre was the favourite instrument for this purpose, and hence that species of poetry designed to be sung to music acquired the denomination of Lyric. Yet we have variety of proof that this term is applied with equal propriety to poetry accompanied with any other instrument. Horace abounds with such instances-it will be sufficient to refer to his first ode si neque tibias Euterpe cohibet, nec Polyhymnia Immediately after, to fix the class of poets to which he belongs, he says |