ANNE,

COUNTESS OF WINCHELSEA,

An esteemed poetess, is recorded, with some of her poems, in the General Dictionary. Her

"Poem on the Spleen"

was printed in Gildon's Miscellany, 1701, 8vo. Rowe addressed one2 to her on the sight of it. Her

"Poems"

were printed at London, 1713, 8vo.; with a tragedy never acted, called

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"Aristomenes; or, The Royal Shepherd." A copy of her verses to Mr. Pope is printed before the old edition of his works; and two others of his and hers are in the General Dictionary. Another little poem in Prior's Post

2 [Entitled, " An Epistle to Flavia, on the sight of two Pindaric Odes on the Spleen and Vanity, written by a Lady to her Friend."]

In the miscellany, vol. ii. called "Buckingham's Works," I find a very silly poem ascribed to a lady Sandwich. This should be the lady lately deceased at Paris, daughter of the celebrated earl of Rochester; but she inherited too much wit to have written so ill. [The poem here referred to by lord Orford neither Mr. Reed nor myself have been able to find.]

4

humous works. She wrote too, "An Epilogue to Jane Shore ;"" To the Countess sf Hertford," with her Poems; "The Prodigy, a Poem," written at Tunbridge, 1706. A great number of her poems are said to be extant in manuscript."

[Lady Winchelsea was the daughter of sir William Kingsmill, of Sidmonton, in the county of Southampton. She was maid of honour to the duchess of York, and married the hon. Heneage Finch 6, second son of Heneage, earl of Winchelsea; to which title he succeeded, upon the death of his nephew Charles. She died without issue, Aug. 5. 1720.7

Her ladyship's effusions, consisting chiefly of fables and occasional verses, were published under the title of

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Miscellany Poems on several Occasions, written by a Lady." Lond. 1713, 8vo.8

+ Vol. i. p. 20. See also Cibber's Lives, vol. iii. p. 325., and Biographium Fæmineum, vol. ii.

5 Gen. Dict. vol. x. Ballard, p.431.

6 One of Dean Swift's most happy and beautiful effusions is addressed to the hon. Mrs. Finch, under her poetic name of Ardelia. See Sharpe's Cabinet Poets, part 51. p. 58.

8 A selection from these was printed among "Poems by the most eminent Ladies of Great Britain and Ireland," in 2 vols. 1773, and afterwards.

The following is as pleasing a specimen as the vo

lume produced:

"LIFE'S PROGRESS.

"How gayly is at first begun

Our life's uncertain race!

Whilst yet that sprightly morning-sun,
With which we just set out to run,
Enlightens all the place.

"How smiling the world's prospect lies,
How tempting to go through!
Not Canaan, to the prophet's eyes,
From Pisgah, with a sweet surprise,
Did more inviting shew.

"How soft the first ideas prove

Which wander through our minds!
How full the joys, how free the love
Which does that early season move,
As flow'rs the western winds!

"Our sighs are then but vernal air,
But April-drops our tears,
Which swiftly passing, all grows fair,
Whilst beauty compensates our care,
And youth each vapour clears.

"But, oh! too soon, alas! we climb,
Scarce feeling we ascend,

The gently-rising hill of Time,

From whence with grief we see that prime,

"The die now cast, our station known,
Fond expectation past;

The thorns which former days had sown,
To crops of late repentance grown,
Through which we toil at last.

"Whilst ev'ry care's a driving harm,

That helps to bear us down;

Which faded smiles no more can charm,
But ev'ry tear 's a winter storm,

And ev'ry look's a frown!"

Lady Winchelsea is principally known as a poetess from her moral apologue of "The Atheist and Acorn," which, with a "Nocturnal Reverie," was printed in Ritson's English Anthology, vol. ii.

Her ladyship obtained the good will of Pope, who addressed a copy of verses to her, which drew forth an elegant replication, printed in Cibber's Lives of the poets, vol. iii. See also Duncombe's Feminead, in Bell's Fugitive Poetry, vol. iv. p. 6.]