III., and taken down by George IV. in 1825, to make way for the present royal palace.] WHEN HEN simple Macer, now of high renown, 10 So some coarse country wench, almost decay'd, 15 Thought wondrous honest, though of mean degree, In a translated suit, then tries the town, 20 With borrow'd pins, and patches not her own: And in four months a batter'd harridan. Now nothing left, but wither'd, pale, and shrunk, 25 [When first published in the Miscellanies the piece had the following note attached:-"He requested, by public advertisements, the aid of the ingenious to make up a Miscellany in 1713." Ambrose Philips seems to be the person satirized. On the accession of George I., when the Whigs obtained power, Philips was put into the commission of the peace, and appointed a Commissioner of the Lottery. He afterwards went to Ireland with Dr. Boulter, Primate of Ireland, and was made Registrar of the Prerogative Court at Dublin. The "borrowed play" was the "Distrest Mother," from Racine, which was highly successful. The allusion to "simplicity" is no doubt intended to refer to Philips's Pastorals, and that to the "translated suit" to his Persian Tales, translated for Tonson. The next piece, "Umbra," refers also to Philips, or to James Moore Smythe, the "phantom Moore" of the Dunciad. As Philips was a regular frequenter of Button's Coffee-house, and intimate with Steele, Addison, Tickell, &c., he was most likely the party.] Your slave," and exit; but returns with Rowe: UMBRA. LOSE to the best-known author Umbra sits, CLOSE The constant index to old Button's wits. "Who's here?" cries Umbra: "only Johnson,"-—“ O ! "Dear Rowe, let's sit and talk of tragedies:" 5 Ere long Pope enters, and to Pope he flies. Then up comes Steele: he turns upon his heel, 10 Says Addison to Steele, ""Tis time to go;" E'en sits him down and writes to honest Tickell. 15 SANDYS' GHOST; OR A PROPER NEW BALLAD ON THE NEW OVID'S METAMORPHOSIS: AS IT WAS INTENDED TO BE TRANSLATED BY PERSONS OF QUALITY. [The last literary labour of Sir Samuel Garth, before his death in 1718, was engaging several " ingenious gentlemen," as he calls them, to undertake a translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses. Among these were Mainwaring, Croxall, Ozell, Vernon, Harvey, Leonard Welsted, &c. Garth himself translated the fourteenth book and part of the fifteenth, besides contributing a preface.] YE Lords and Commons, men of wit, And pleasure about town; Read this ere you translate one bit Beware of Latin authors all! Nor think your verses sterling, Though with a golden pen you scrawl, For not the desk with silver nails, Nor standish well japann'd, avails To writing of good sense. Hear how a ghost in dead of night, With saucer eyes of fire. In woful wise did sore affright Rare imp of Phoebus, hopeful youth! To fetch and carry, in his mouth, The works of all the Muses. Ah! why did he write poetry, To rhyming and the devil? A desk he had of curious work, Now as he scratch'd to fetch up thought, With whiskers, band, and pantaloon, Ho, Master Sam, quoth Sandys' sprite, I hear the beat of Jacob's drums,2 Then lords and lordlings, 'squires and knights, Garth at St. James's, and at White's, Beats up for volunteers. What Fenton will not do, nor Gay, 1 [Sandys (whom Dryden terms "the best versifier of the last age") pub. lished his translation of Ovid in 1627.] 2 [Jacob Tonson, the publisher.] 3 [The Earl of Pembroke.] 4 [Tom Burnet.] If Justice Philips' costive head Some frigid rhymes disburses; They shall like Persian tales be read, Let W-rw-k's muse with Ash-t join,5 And P- pe translate with Jervas. A metamorphosis more strange Than all his books can vapour; "To what (quoth 'squire) shall Ovid change?" 5 [Lord Warwick and Dr. Ashurst.] 6 Pope. 7 Lord Lansdowne. 8 [Philip Frowde, a dramatic writer and fine scholar, a friend of Addison's.] 9 [Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. Some of Lady Mary's Town Eclogues were published in 1716.] |