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ART. V. Obfervations on the Night Thoughts of Dr. Young; with occafional Remarks on the Beauties of Poetical Compofition. By Courtney Melmoth. 8vo. 4s. Richardfon and Urquhart.

The Poet's eye, in a fine phrenzy rolling,

Doth glance from Heaven to Earth, from Earth to Heaven.

SHAKESPEAR.

How rich! how poor! how abject! how auguft! YOUNG.

Mr. Courtney Melmoth, author of the Tears of Genius, an elegy on the death of Dr. Goldsmith, and of Liberal Opinions, an account of which was given in the first volume of our Review, hath here prefented the public with a fpecimen of his talents for criticifm. To preclude the fuppofition, however, that the countenance, he has met with as a writer, encouraged him to fet up for a critic, he has entered the following caveat, in a dedication and introduction; which, on account of their pertinence and brevity, we shall quote.

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MADAM,

To Mrs. MONT A G U.

Among the many fenfible ftrictures, which have been made, of late years, on our beft Enlish poets, it would be as impertinent to intrude the following fheets, as it would be to affect to thelter them under the patronage of the author of the moft diftinguished of thofe happy illustrations, "Obfervations on the Writings and Genius of Shakespear."

"This, madam, is by no means my intention, unless there fhould be merit enough in thefe juvenile reflections, to render them infenfibly worthy your diftinguifhing approbation.

I am, madam, your obliged, humble fervant,
COURTNEY MELMOTH.

INTRODUCTION.

"It is faid of Shakespear, by one of his most celebrated editors, that he who tries to recommend him by felect quotations, will fucceed like the Pedant in Hierocles, who, when he offered his houfe to fale, carried a brick in his pocket as a specimen.

"Perhaps the reverfe of this may be obferved of the well known work, which is the object of the following theets; fince it is from the beauty of particular paffages, and the fplendor of felect fentiments only, that the poetical reader can hope to derive any high degree of fatisfaction. The book is much read, much cenfured, and much applauded; but I believe either way with little delicacy of difcrimination.

"It may be deemed arrogant, indeed, in fo young a writer, to fet up for a critic; efpecially if we reflect on the following remark of Pope, on the writers of his times,

Some have for wits at firft, then poets paft,

Turn'd critics next, then prov'd plain fools at last. "That I may not, at least, be thought to proceed in that regular gradation, I muft beg leave to declare to thofe gentlemen, the hypercritics, that the following obfervations were actually written fome

years

years ago to a friend, whofe fimilarity of age, and perhaps congeniality of fentiments, have induced him to prevail on me to publish them."

Trite and hacknied as is this excufe for publication, long fince ill naturedly ridiculed by the poet,

"Tho prefs'd by hunger, 'tis th' advice of friends."

It may fometimes be true; at least though not true in the prefent cafe; it is the beft apology that can be made, for what might otherwife be deemed an unadvised publication. Not but that we think the fcholiaft pretty nearly on a par with the author; the glaring puerilitics, that abound in the text, being fully fufficient to keep any that are in the comment in countenance. It is indeed, with fingular propriety, the commentator has characterifed the author of the Night Thoughts, in the lines he has chofen for his motto; particularly the last from Dr. Young himself.

How rich! how poor! how abject! how auguft!

Mr. Melmoth affects to be furprized,

"That, in this age of criticism and commentary, fo remarkable a work hath escaped annotation. The more efpecially, as no compofition can be more favourable to literary fcrutiny; nor any, boaft a greater number of readers. Many indeed read who do not admire it; and perhaps, more affect to admire, who little anderftand it. There are few (and indeed I know not any production) more unequally written nor is there, probably, in the world of letters, a greater mixture of bad and of good. There are fome, who speak of this work with enthusiasm; others, deem it beneath obfervation. From these vague extremes, fays he, let us defcend fairly into particulars, and, depend upon it, we fhall find much to displease, and much to delight: nor can we fail to be agreeably paid, upon the whole, for reading him with an occafional note of illustration."

From these notes of illuftration we shall select a few famples. "And first, as the writer fays, a word or two of our author, in general.

"The genius of Young was ftrongly, and originally marked. You will be able to difcover little or no fimplicity, either in his profe or poetry; yet both have uncommon energy, as to language, and vaft reach, as to conception. There is indeed more appearance of labour in him than in Thomfon; and the reader is frequently tempted to exclaim, hic labor, hoc opus eft: but in real truth, this is nature, and not affectation. I dare fay, he could no more have equalled the Paftorals of Shenftone, than Shenftone could have equalled the Ethics of Night Thoughts. I have fometimes imagined it poffible to trace a resemblance, betwixt Dr. Young's poetry, and Dr. Johnfon's profe, I mean as to the characteristic of each; the fame folid, ferious, and forcible manner of expreffing, reflections, equally pious and poetical, (for the profe of the Rambler is unmeasured poetry) diftinguifh both. There is a nerve in their writings, which gives them in ftrength, what they may be thought to require in harmony;

and

*

and if the one appears deftitute of the ease of Addifon, or the other of the smoothness of Pope, there are not wanting many, who think this deficiency compenfated by fuperior power. I, however, am biaffed neither by partiality nor prejudice-He was indeed a favourite author from my childhood: I ftill think him, by parts, an ornament to this country; and I will do my beft, that you may distinguish, in what he excelled, and in what he failed; for there, perhaps, never was a writer, whofe reputation fuffered more by confidering him in the grofs, and few who may boast a more splendid character by selection of particular paffages.

Of Mr. Melmoth's manner of commenting on the work itself, let the following extract from his obfervations, on the first night, fuffice.

"Our author, having examin'd the feverer state of others, prefents us with fome very fine, focial reflections; a liberal heart, and chriftian fenfibility, fpeak in these verses;

What then am I, who forrow for myself?

In age, in infancy, from others aid
Is all our hope; to teach us to be kind.
That, nature's firft, laft leffon to mankind;
The felfish heart deferves the pain it feels,
More gen'rous forrow, while it finks, exalts;
And confcious virtue mitigates the pang.

"Soon after this, you meet with the poet's first addrefs to Lorenzo; but as it is by no means equal to many that follow, I fhall país it over without obfervation. You will find nothing remarkably ftriking, (except a little panning about the words, or rather, as he has made them, the perfonages, of perhaps, and peradventure,) till you come to these two lines,

Of human ills the laft extreme beware,

Beware, Lorenzo! a flow-fudden death.

"This is an admirable piece of advice; the flow-fudden, is here an epithet of extenfive meaning, and what he afterwards very well explains by calling it a deliberate furprife. It is indeed poffible for a perfon to leave the world fuddenly, in point of preparation, and fitness to leave it, though frequent fickneffes, and impairing anxieties afford him a thousand warnings. † I have already told you (and by this

The author of the notes to the Earl of Rofcommon's translation of Horace's Art of Poetry, fays, a poet, if all the other parts of his poem be fine, will be an ill poet if he offends against fimplicity, &c. See the Comment on

Quam pravo vivere Nafo.

But this is contradicted by various experience. Not to step out of our own language, Thomson and Young are almoft utterly deftitute of fimplicity, and yet are by no means ill poets.

How pathetically this idea is illuftrated by the moral Mr. Mason, in his elegy on the death of a lady, whofe beauty hath been univerfally celebrated. The opportunity of introducing the paffage is too fair to be neglected.

Think of her fate! Revere the heav'nly hand

That led her hence, tho' foon, by steps fo flow.
Long at her couch death took his patient ftand,

And menac'd oft, and oft witheld the blow.

MASON's Elegies. time,

time, I dare fay, you are convinced) that the fentiment of Dr. Young, is for the most part excellent: His genius was indeed truly amiable; and, (when not involv'd in verbal perplexities,) there are few writers in our language who have more effectually, or more elegantly promoted the caufe of morality. Nor do I believe, I could have chofen any work with greater propriety, to ferve my prefent purpose, of pointing out the beauties and blemishes of a compofition, than The Night Thoughts; becaufe, (as has been noted above) they are remarkable for both; and however, fome have affected to despise the sombre talents of our poet, they very frequently command our admiration. There is a very just feverity in this paffage:

At thirty, man fujpects himself a fool;

Knows it, at forty, and reforms his plan ;
At fifty, chides his infamous delay;
Pushes his prudent purpose, to resolve :
In all the magnanimity of thought

Refolves, and re-refolves; then dies the fame:

"We have here poetry, morality, and fatire beautifully blended, and the concatenation of the fenfe (if you will allow me fo fyftematic a word in a familiar epiftle) is well preferved from the first line to the laft; a matter of great moment in compofition. But ftill, Archibald, these verses, render feveral others totally unneceffary: and indeed, (being better) makes them abfolutely expletive. Carry in mind the fenfe of what is juft recited as you run your eye over what follows: As on a rock of adamant we build

Our mountain hopes; Spin out eternal schemes,
As we the fatal fifters would out fpin,
And, big with life's futurities, expire.

See page 14, fmall edit.

Be wife to day; 'tis madnefs to defer ;
Next day the fatal precedent will plead ;
Thus on, till wildom is pub'd out of life.
*Procraftination is the thief of time;
Year after year it fteals, till all are fled,
And to the mercies of a moment leaves
The vast concerns of an eternal scene.
Of man's miraculous mistakes, this bears

The palm, "That all men are about to live."

Page 15

"There is no end of tranfcribing this writer's iterations; from hence there are fifteen verfes more, running out of the very fame idea, and expatiating upon the fame fact. The doctor himself, I think, Archibald, merits in this place the application of his own expreffion: for he

Spins out his eternal theme

As he the fatal fifters would out-fpin.

"Your taste will alfo be difgufted, at his building a mountain of hope upon a rock of adamant. Incongruous terms, and inconfitent

* Among these verfes, however, one deferves particular diftinction. Perhaps the human mind never conceived a finer or more moral idea than is expreffed in this line: Precraftination is the thief of time.

metaphors

metaphors blended together, without judgement (as in this case) ever hurt à critical and elegant obferver: Whatever favour and indulgence we may thew to poetry, we can never license palpable abfurdities. One. of the fureft ways to become accurate in your ftile, is to read every thing analytically; to take every fentiment to pieces, and to examine it's confiftency. By thefe means only it is, you will be able to detect literary impofture; by thefe means you will be able to know a book of mere words, from a book of real meaning and sterling fenfe. There are, my young friend, an infinite quantity of volumes (and fome of them fwelling into folios) which while they fparkle prettily on the fancy, and amuse the ear, are in fact nothing more than a ring of changes upon the alphabet; a kind of verbal nonentities, fporting with the fancy, but never reaching the heart. Of these, (were not the undertaking extremely invidious), I could give you various examples; aye, and fome of them, Archibald, extracted from performances, that have acquir'd, with a certain fet of readers, no mean fhare of popularity. But enough; be fatisfied with fuch hints as fall, in our way. Young himself is a full and fair mark for critical inAruction.

"There is a particular beauty in breaking off the fubject abruptly, when it cannot be fufficiently expreft: As here,

Can I forget Philander? that were strange!

O my full heart!-but fhould I give it vent.

"If he had attempted to go on, he might have fail'd; but, by thus giving up the point in defpair, he at once fhews the greatnefs. of his grief, and the impoffibility of defcribing it. Of this kind is the celebrated line,

Then he would talk-good Gods! how he would talk ;

"A fimilar beauty is to be found in the-I had almost called them -Garden Pieces, of Shenstone-I must refer you to his celebrated love ballads:

I.

And when her bright form fhall appear,

Each bird fhall harmoniously join;

In a concert fo foft and fo clear,

As-fhe may not be fond to refign.
II.

In ringlets he dreffes his hair,

And his crook is beftudded around;
And his pipe-O may Phillis beware

Of a magic there is in the found.

The thoughts of the first night conclude extremely modeft; and the compliment to Milton, and to Pope, are very agreeably introduced. 'Tis a little ftrange, however, that Pope, who knew fo well

To be taken with fuch trafh, however, can happen only to very fuperficial and unexperienced readers, who, like children, are

"Pleafed with a rattle, tickled with a firaw."

I am glad to know, that you neither purchafe or perufe a book for the frippery of its external or internal gilding; and I am fure you will continue to defpife every day, more and more, the catchpenny artifices of the mere beak-maker, as well as bank-binder. + The fet above alluded to.

- VOL. II.

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