adventures, wherein they neither please nor affect: Mr. Toldervy speaks of this performance in one place, as if compiled by more writers * than one; and by the respected manner in which he makes mention of one Mr. Rolt †, from whom he quotes fome miferable lines on Sir Iatkin Williams Wynne's death, we fhould be apt to think the aforefaid Mr. Rolt, was one of his coadjutors. Here follow a few of the lines in proof of our affertion: "From lords of commotes, to the hind who tends "Their Watkins welcome; o'er the nectar bowl, 6.6 Imperfect accents in the loud acclaim! Here's grammar, fenfe, and poetry for you, not, perhaps, to be eafily matched! but for a tafte of our novel writer's talents of humor, and his great delicacy, accept the following paffage: On the Sunday afternoon, which happened last before this period, the parfon, as was his cuftom, in a field near the church, was engaged with an expert fellow at cudgels: the bells had rung for a confiderable time, and Mrs. Honeyflower being come, his clerk ftepped up to him, and pulling him by the fleeve, faid in a low tone, "Sir, the ladies are come;" but the parfon having met with his match at play, did not take notice of the clerk, who after a fhort pause stepped up to him again, repeating the fame words; when the priest turning to him, faid, "Well, prithee don't be in a hurry, I'll come "when the next bout is out." He did fo when that period came, and proceeded through divine fervice tolerably well, 'till he came to expartate on the second divifion in his fermon; when a poor woman happening to have a child which cried, a little, he ftopped on a fudden, and called out aloud in these words, "D'ye hear? if you don't take that child away, I "fhall leave off preaching :" on this another woman answered him to this purpofe, Sir, I have fpoke to his mother two or "three times, and the fays that fhe will not take it away." The 'parfon immediately turned about, took down his hat, pro'nounced Vol. I. page 89. 23 nounced the 14th ver. from the 14th ch, of the fecond epiftle to the Corinthians, and inftantly left the pulpit, church, and congregation behind him. "We now fhall return to blind Jack's, where the excifeman proposed having, what in that country is called butter'dale, which the parfon agreed to, and each had a pint-full made hot. Rhombus ftripp'd off his cloaths, and was furnished with others, at least till his own were dried; for which purpose they made up a good peat fire; and the latter, after drinking his liquor, was fomewhat better. The parfon too drank his 'fhare, but his ftomach being refractory, it foon returned; he 'catched it in the veffel, and drank it again: but his ftomach continuing obftinate, it returned a fecond time, and he as care⚫ fully received it in the pint as before, holding it in his hand, ' when he became quite fick: at this inftant, a fellow came by 'following of horses, which were laden with coals, "Here, 66 my lad, faid the parfon, doft love butter'd ale ?" "Yes, fir, "God bless you," cried the fellow;" "Here then, returned the parfon, drink it up, my lad, for thou art very welcome to "it." The follow took off his hat with his thumb and the first finger of his right-hand, and dropping his hat a little behind, fcratched his head with the other three fingers, as is customary * in that country; and taking the pint from the parson, drank the liquor off; gave the pot to the parfon again, who, fetting his hands to his fides, faid, "Well, my lad, how doft like it? "does it lay well on thy ftomach?" "Yes, very well, I "thank you, fir," replied the follow: "B-G-d" (for he 'could not fwear) cried the Parfon, "I am glad of it, much "good may do thee; for it has been twice already in my fto"mach, but it would not stay there at all." In an instant the man grew pale; he was feized with a trembling, threw that into the road, which Mr. Drill had been fo careful to fave, and departed, curfing the parfon for a nafty fon of a b―h.' It is not long fince Mr. Toldervy, in conjunction with fome other proficients in the Bathos, difobliged the world with a collection of old epitaphs, and infcriptions upon tomb-ftones; this is a point of learning in which he is deeply skilled, as he has fhewn in the Orphans; where, by way of novelty, we find many monumental infcriptions; together with feveral fongs, lugged lugged in without rhime or reason; and fet to mufic; nor can we fay much for the compofition, except the epithalamic ode at the end of the 4th volume; in which Mr. W. Howard has manifefted fome genius. We fhall quote the words of one of the fongs, and fo close this article; it is an humble imitation of Sternhold. "There I right well will fleep and fing, "Welcome thou fweet returning fpring, "And beft, and moft, will love my friends, "But men of mean finifter ends "Will hate both all and fome." ART. VII. The MONITOR: Or, British Freeholder. From August 9, 1755, to July 31, 1756, both inclufive. Pro Rege et Grege. 8vo. Pr. 6 s. Scott. HIS volume, compofed of detached papers, which were TH nourable and worthy members of the house of commons, who voted in the laft feffions of parliament against addreffing his majefty to bring over the Hanoverian forces into this kingdom. The dedicator tells us the work was originally planned by Richard Beckford, Efq; late member for Bristol, and alderman. of the ward of Farringdon without, in London. This poor unhappy nation derives fome comfort from the labours of fuch worthy patriots. If they cannot prevent her ruin, they at leaft fympathize with her in her affliction; though the worthy alderman is now no more, thank heaven all his family is not extinct. We can ftill fay with Virgil, when he talks of the golden fruit-uno avulfo non deficit alter. Jamaica, that Hefperian garden, has produced more than one pine-apple of public virtue; and we fincerely congratulate our country on the improvement of that important colony, which not only furnishes Britain with rum, fugar, coffee, and cotton; but also fupplies it with patriots and politicians. We are made acquainted with the plan of the Monitor, in the following apostrophe. In this paper, O'gentle reader ! think not yourself difappointed, if you meet with no farcafti'cal reflections upon majefty; no feeds of difaffection fown; no imputations to perfons, without evident facts, or strong probabilities to fupport them : here are no attempts to weaken the hands of government; no wilful mifreprefentations of men or measures, or the leaft defign to impofe upon the underftanding of the people. On the contrary, you will find a du⚫tiful regard fhewn to the prince upon the throne, without fulfome and foolish flattery; a true zeal for a proteftant fucceffion, and for a religious obfervance of the act of fettlement; a manly reprehenfion of minifters, when they do amifs; a modeft panegyric upon them, when they act wifely; which proves, the controverfy is not about men, but measures, and that party was intirely out of the defign. And as we are always ready to offer the proper incenfe of praise to able and honeft men, who prefide at the head of affairs; fo weak or wicked ones muft not hope to escape our notice; for the Moniter will not fail to give the people the alarm in time; that, if poffible, they may prevent their final ruin.'. How far the authors of this paper are qualified for the task they have affumed, will appear from a few fpecimens of their capacity, on the different heads of writing; political fagacity, hiftorical knowledge, poetry, and wit, The Monitor has fuch a redundancy of figures in writing, that in the first number we find him a goadfman to fimulate his lethargic countrymen; a furgeon, to fearch and cure the wounds of the nation; an exorcift, to deftroy the delufive effects of magic founds; a bricklayer, to rẹ pair the breaches within our walls; a folderer, to unite our divided countrymen; a reformer, to restore the integrity of government; a gardener, to root up corruption which, from a plant, becomes all of a fudden a fource or fountain from whence all our domeftic evils have fprung; and then is as fuddenly metamorphofed into a ministerial fyftem; but this fyftem reverts into a tree producing baneful fruit. He is a jailor, to emancipate the king from the fhackles of an arbitrary adminiftration; a commiffioner for the turnpikes, to open thofe roads that lead to glory; a beef-eater, to guard his fellow-citizens against the incroachments of power; and an anatomift, to dif fect the views of thofe zealots of party, who impudently call themselves the friends of the government, whilft they act in орт pofition to the principles of it.-The Monitor's politics are generally found; though we imagine he is a little mistaken in his principles, when in number 5, he infifts upon our detaching ourselves altogether from the affairs of the continent; and affirms, that it is neither the intereft nor the intention of France to poffefs the Low-countries. The conqueft of Flanders would neceffarily be attended with the fubjection of Holland, in which cafe France would undoubtedly become the greatest maritime power in Chriftendom. The reflections, however, are juft in the main; but they are at the fame time trite and hackneyed, fo as to have loft all effect upon the public, and the ftile is for the moft part infipid and verbofe: inflated with gigan tic metaphors jumbled together in the utmost confufion and impropriety; With respect to his hiftorical knowledge, we cannot fay much in his commendation. He affirms (N. 12.) that Julius Cæfar only peeped into Britain, and was driven off with confiderable lofs, and that he did not conquer one county. Whereas in fact Cafar penetrated into the heart of the country, defeated the Britons in feveral engagements, vanquished Caffivelaunus, plundered his town, compelled him to fubmit and pay tribute, and returned to the continent unmolested. Nor is he more fortunate in afferting, that the Britons baffled the Romans for three hundred years, and that these last never gained one decifive battle in Britain. Befides the great victories obtained by Julius Cæfar, Aulus Plautius, the lieutenant of Claudius |