Birds upon his Shoulder; and, as I was wondring with my felf what Ufe he would put them to, he was met very luckily by an Acquaintance, who had the fame Curiofity. Upon his asking him what he had upon his Shoulder, he told him that he had been buying Sparrows for the Opera. Sparrows for the Opera, fays his Friend, licking his Lips, What are they to be roasted? -No, no, fays the other, they are to enter towards the End of the first Act, and to fly about the Stage.

THIS ftrange Dialogue awakened my Curiofity fo far, that I immediately bought the Opera, by which means I perceived the Sparrows were to act the part of Singing Birds in a delightful Grove; though upon a nearer Enquiry I found the Sparrows put the fame Trick upon the Audience, that Sir Martin Mar-all practifed upon his Mistress; for though they flew in Sight, the Mufick proceeded from a Confort of Flagellets and Bird-calls which were planted behind the Scenes. At the fame time I made this Difcovery, I found by the Difcourfe of the Actors, that there were great Defigns on foot for the Improvement of the Opera; VOL. I.

C

that

that it had been proposed to break down a part of the Wall, and to furprize the Audience with a Party of a hundred Horfe; and that there was actually a Project of bringing the New-River into the House, to be employed in Jetteaus and Water-works. This Project, as I have fince heard, is post-poned 'till the Summer-Seafon, when 'tis thought the Coolness that proceeds from Fountains and Cascades will be more acceptable and refreshing to People of Quality. In the mean time, to find out a more agreeable Entertainment for the Winter-Seafon, the Opera of Rinaldo is filled with Thunder and Lightning, Illuminations and Fire-works; which the Audience may look upon without catching Cold, and indeed without much Danger of being burnt; for there are feveral Engines filled with Water, and ready to play at a Minute's Warning, in cafe any fuch Accident fhould happen. However, as I have a very great Friendship for the Owner of this Thet re, I hope that he has been wife enough to insure his Houfe before he would let this Opera be acted in it.

IT is no wonder, that those Scenes should be very furprizing, which were

contri

contrived by two Poets of different Nations, and raised by two Magicians of different Sexes. Armida (as we are told in the Argument) was an Amazoninian Enchantrefs, and poor Signior Caffani (as we learn from the Perfons reprefented) a Christian Conjurer (Mago Chriftiano.) I must confefs I am very much puzzled to find how an Amazon should be verfed in the Black Art, or how a good Chriftian, for fuch is the Part of the Magician, fhould deal with the Devil.

.

TO confider the Poet after the Conjurers, I fhall give you a Taste of the Italian, from the firft Lines of his Preface. Eccoti, benigno Lettore, un Parto di poche Sere, che fe ben nato di Notte, non è però aborto di Tenebre, mà fi farà conofcere Figilio d'Apollo con qualche Raggio di Parnaffe. Behold, gentle Reader, the Birth of a few Evenings, which tho' it be the Offspring of the Night, is not the Abortive of Darkness, but will make it felf known to be the Son of Apollo, with a certain Ray of Parnaffus. He afterwards proceeds to call Mynheer Hendel the Orpheus of our Age, and to acquaint us, in the fame Sublimity of Stile, that he composed this Opera in

a Fortnight. Such are the Wits, to whofe Taftes we fo ambitioufly conform our felves. The Truth of it is, the finest Writers among the Modern Italians express themselves in fuch a florid Form of Words,and fuch tedious Circumlocutions, as are ufed by none but Pedants in our own Country; and at the fame time fill their Writings with fuch poor Imaginations and Conceits, as our Youths are afhamed of before they have been two Years at the University. Some may be apt to think that it is the Difference of Genius which produces this Difference in the Works of the two Nations; but to fhew there is nothing in this, if we look into the Writings of the old Italians, fuch as Cicero and Virgil, we fhall find that the English Writers, in their way of thinking and expreffing themselves, resemble thofe Authors much more than the Modern Italians pretend to do. And as for the Poet himself, from whom the Dreams of this Opera are taken, I must entirely agree with Monfieur Boileau, that one Verfe in Virgil is worth all the Clincant or Tinfel of Taffo.

BUT to return to the Sparrows; 'there have been fo many Flights of

them

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them let loose in this Opera, that it is feared the Houfe will never get rid of them; and that in other Plays they may make their Entrance in very wrong and improper Scenes, fo as to be seen flying in a Lady's Bed-Chamber, or pearching upon a King's Throne; befides the Inconveniences which the Heads of the Audience may fometimes fuffer from them. I am credibly informed, that there was once a Defign of cafting into an Opera the Story of Whittington and his Cat, and that in order to it there had been got together a great Quantity of Mice: but Mr. Rich, the Proprietor of the Playhoufe, very prudently confidered that it would be impoffible for the Cat to kill them all, and that confequently the Princes of the Stage might be as much infefted with Mice, as the Prince of the Inland was before the Cat's Arrival upon it; for which Reafon he would not permit it to be Acted in his House. And indeed I cannot blame him: For as he said very well upon that Occafion, I do not hear that any of the Performers in our Opera pretend to equal the famous Pied Piper, who made all the Mice of a great Town in Germany C 3 follow

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