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slave, a base calumniator, and a furious bigot. We must add that he has not the defence of being a fool. He leans sadly the other way. He has very respectable poetical talents, and his poem is superior in merit to the generality of political libels.

The Lash; a Satire without Notes.

8vo. pp. 48.

THERE is more good intention than talent displayed in this satire. The versification is frequently harsh, and the language prosaic. Such awkward ridicule as we find in "The Lash" is not likely either to touch or shame the offenders against whom it is directed.

The O-Paiad; a Satire. By a Mad Bull. 8vo. pp. 16.

THE writer of the O-Pœiad is undoubtedly as mad as indignation can make him, and he writes with that hurried manner and want of connection which are indicative of madness. He is, however, not a fool; and we are disposed to think that in his sane moments he is capable of writing better verses than are to be found in his present hasty production.

The Knight of Walcheren; a Hudibrastic Poem. Written in Commemoration of the late Expedition to the Scheldt. 8vo. pp. 42.

66

THIS is a tolerably laughable poem, the hero of which is a certain biscuit-baking baronet, who, should he chance to see it, will perhaps, speedily and soon" be very angry. We really think, however, that his anger would be unreasonable; as the writer has bestowed on him a more liberal portion of sense and courage than many other less candid bards would have done.

The Penitentiary, or the Battles of Pentonville; a mock Heroic Poem. 8vo. pp. 31.

For the threshing which this author has given to the two pharisees, Mr. Hale and Mr. Thomas, we return him our hearty thanks! He has contrived to make them superlatively ridiculous, though that, indeed, was scarcely necessary, as they were quite able to accomplish that object themselves. Whoever may be this champion of The Penitentiary he is indisputably a man of wit, and writes verse and prose with equal spirit.

Town Fashions, or Modern Manners delineated; a Satirical Dialogue; with James and Mary, a Rural Tale. 12mo. pp. 86.

THE Town Fashions satirized in this dialogue are those of Edinburgh, where, as the author complains, all ranks have a foolish desire of aping the style of living which belongs to their superiors. We fear that this disease is not confined to the capital of Scotland. The author of Town Fashions seems a man of sound sense and benevolence; but we do not think that satire is his forte. He wants vigour. The Rural Tale is far superior to the satirical part of the poem; it has many natural and pleasing passages.

The Ass on Parnassus; and from Scotland, Ge Ho!! comes Roderigh Vich Neddy Dhu, Ho! Ieroe !!! Cantos I. II. of a Foem, entitled What are Scot's Collops? A Prophetic Tale; written in Imitation of The Lady of the Lake. By Jeremiah Quiz. 4to. pp. 36.

"Which, read and read, you raise your eyes in doubt,
And gravely wonder what it is about."

WE could not help muttering these lines to ourselves, as we perused the two cantos before us. All

we could understand of them was, that they were intended to abuse and burlesque Walter Scott. More of the meaning than this, we protest that we could not discover. Recollecting the advice which Garrick gave to a person who could not find any sense in some recently-published odes, we read the cantos backward like a witch's prayer. But, though this did them no harm, it did not afford us a clue to their meaning. All that we, therefore, can say of them is, that they contain a great deal about Neddy, and Cook Handy, and Apollo, and Mrs. Handy, and the Muses, and Cambridge, and other subjects equally incomprehensible. Rebellion in Bath: or, the Battle of the Upper Rooms; an heroico-odico-tragico-comico Poem, in two Cantos. By the late Peter Paul Pallet. Canto the First edited by his Nephew, Timothy Goosequill; to which is added, a Vindication of the Glorious Revolution in 1688, from Aspersions cast on it in a Sermon preached by the Rev. Henry Phillpots, Vicar of Kilmersden, Somerset, before the University of Oxford. By Tom Type. 4to. pp. 74. The Restoration, being the Second and last Canto of Rebellion in Bath. By the late Peter Paul Pallet, deceased; with an Apology for the Poem, and numerous Notes, Anecdotes, &c. By Timothy Goosequill. pp. 88.

4to.

LOCAL and individual satire very seldom gains more than a brief existence. We fear, therefore, that these two poems will soon be forgotten. Yet their author is manifestly a person of considerable talents. It is a pity that he should have thrown away so much good satire, wit, and humour, upon a subject in which so few readers can feel any interest. He is capable of producing a more permanent work.

Heroical Epistle from Death to Benjamin Mosely, M. D. on Vaccination; with a Postscript on some collateral Subjects. 4to. pp. 39.

NEVER did any person better deserve the severest lash of satire than the notorious M. D. who is the ob

ject of this satirist's scourge. We rejoice that he has fallen into such good hands. This Heroical Epistle has an abundance of point and spirit, and the poetry is above mediocrity.

The Modern Minerva; or, the Bat's Seminary for Young Ladies. A Satire on Female Education. By Queen Mab. 4to. pp. 22.

We do not recollect that Shakspeare, Drayton, Herrick, or any other bard who has most largely descanted upon Fairies, and their customs, has mentioned the Queen of the Fairies, or any one of her subjects, as being a poet. It appears, however, that her Fairy majesty is a poet. At least here is an author who asserts herself to be Queen Mab. We hope that the Fairies will not take it so much in dudgeon, as to pinch and plague us if we say that, though their sovereign writes tolerably pretty verses, which are even not without spirit, and though she may rank high among royal authors, we cannot, in conscience, assign her a very elevated station among the poetical tribe. The Fantoccini; or, The Great Public Puppet Show, as exhibited by Signior Tintaroboloso. Described in a Poetical Epistle from Griffith Llewellyn, to his Cousin, Rice ap Shenkins. With illustrative Notes, historical and critical. By the Curate of Aberistwith 12mo. pp. 91.

THE veil which this writer has thrown over his characters is perfectly transparent. It is impossible not

immediately to perceive who are the pretended Romans and Grecians whom the poem satirizes. Augustus, Alcibiades, Mark Anthony, &c. &c. will be translated into proper English names, before the reader has perused ten lines. The idea is, however, well conceived, and is kept up with spirit. The author's satire is not misapplied, nor does it want point; and the verse is sufficiently flowing and correct.

REPUBLICATIONS OF ANCIENT ENGLISH POETRY.

Old Ballads, Historical and Narrative, with some of modern Date; collected from rare Copies and MSS. By Thomas Evans. A new Edition, revised and considerably enlarged from public and private Collections, by his Son, R. H. Evans. In four Volumes. Crown 8vo. pp.

1479.

EVANS'S collection of old ballads had long been out of print, and a new edition was much wanted. We receive, therefore, with much pleasure the present edition. Mr. R. H. Evans has executed his task in a manner which cannot fail to be satisfactory to all lovers of poetry. He has, in truth, rendered his edition more valuable than the original work.

The Legend of Mary, Queen of Scots, and other ancient Poems; now first published from MSS. of the sixteenth Century. With an Introduction, Notes, and an Appen8vo. pp. 177.

dix.

THERE is little poetry in this Legend, or in the other ancient poems, which compose the remainder of the

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