He glows, he burns: the fair-hair'd Queen of love Descends smooth gliding from the courts of Jove, Gay blooming in full charms: her hand he prest With eager joy, and with a sigh addrest.

Come, my belov'd! and taste the soft delights;
Come, to repose the genial bed invites:
Thy absent spouse, neglectful of thy charms,
Prefers his barb'rous Sintians to thy arms!

Then, nothing loath, th' enamour'd fair he led,
-And sunk transported on the conscious bed.
Down rush'd the toils, inwrapping as they lay,
The careless lovers in their wanton play:
In vain they strive, th' entangling snares deny
(Inextricably firm) the pow'r to fly:"

Warn'd by the God who sheds the golden day,
Stern Vulcan homeward treads the starry way:
Arriv'd, he sees, he grieves, with rage he burns ;
Full horrible he roars, his voice all heaven returns:
O Jove, he cried, oh all ye pow'rs above,
See the lewd dalliance of the Queen of Love!
Me, awkward me, she scorns; and yields her charms
To that fair lecher, the strong God of arms.
If I am lame, that stain my matal hour
By fate impos'd; such me my parent bore:
Why was I born? See how the wanton lies!
O sight tormenting to a husband's eyes!
But yet I trust, this once ev'n Mars would fly
His fair-one's arms-he thinks her, once, too nigh,
But there remain, ye guilty, in my pow'r,

'Till Jove refunds his shameless daughter's dow'r.
Too dear I priz'd a fair enchanting face:
Beauty unchaste is beauty in disgrace.

Meanwhile the Gods the dome of Vulcan throng, Apollo comes, and Neptune comes along, With these gay Hermes trod the starry plain; But modesty withheld the Goddess-train. All heav'n beholds, imprison'd as they lie,

And unextinguish'd laughter shakes the sky.

Then mutual, thus they spoke: Behold on wrong Swift vengeance waits; and art subdues the strong!

Dwells there a God on all th' Olympian brow

More swift than Mars, and more than Vulcan slow?
Yet Vulcan conquers, and the God of arms

Must pay the penalty for lawless charms.

Thus serious they but he who gilds the skies,
The gay Apollo thus to Hermes cries:

Would'st thou enchain'd like Mars, oh Hermes, lie,
And bear the shame like Mars, to share the joy?

O envy'd shame! (the smiling youth rejoin'd)
Add thrice the chains, and thrice more firmly bind;
Gaze all ye Gods, and every Goddess gaze,
Yet eager would I bless the sweet disgrace.

Loud laugh the rest, ev'n Neptune laughs aloud,
Yet sues importunate to loose the God:

And free, he cries, oh Vulcan! free from shame
Thy captives; I ensure the penal claim.

Will Neptune (Vulcan then) the faithless trust?
He suffers who gives surety for the unjust:
But say, if that lewd scandal of the sky
To liberty restor'd, perfidious fly;

Say, wilt thou bear the mulct? He instant cries,
The mulct I bear, if Mars perfidious flies.

To whom appeas'd; No more I urge delay;
When Neptune sues, my part is to obey.
Then to the snares his force the God applies;
They burst; and Mars to Thrace indignant flies:
To the soft Cyprian shores the Goddess moves,
To visit Paphos and her blooming groves,
Where to the Pow'r an hundred altars rise,
And breathing odours scent the balmy skies :
Conceal'd she bathes in consecrated bow'rs,
The Graces unguents shed, ambrosial show'rs,
Unguents that charms the Gods! she last assumes
Her wond'rous robes; and full the Goddess blooms."

POPE'S HOMER'S ODYSSEY.-BOOK VIII.

Oct. 24.

31

Private Theatricals.

MINOR THEATRE.

PIZARRO; AND PAST TEN o'clock.

Rolla was well sustained, generally, but the gentleman who played it shewed too great a disposition to imitation, and in attempting to make a point in the scene with the old blind man and the flying soldiers, completely failed, but on the whole we cannot regard it as a very promising performance. Pizarro was very spiritedly performed by a gentleman who appeared to possess a perfect knowledge of the stage; his exits were good, and the whole of his performance effective, particularly when Elvira enquires Alonzo's fate, and he answers " Death, Death, in lingering torments;" this was given with much expression and animation, and met with great applause. Alonzo whined most delightfully in many of his scenes-in others he was respectable. Orozembo was miserably tame. Las Casas's disagreeable lisp completely marred the effect his conception of the part would have had-but he acquitted himself very credibly in other respects, except a continual hammering with his right hand, as if he was practising how to fib an unfortunate infidel, The Old Blind Man and Almage were both horrible. Valverds was beastly ignorant: he should learn to speak English. A Scotch Sawny grunted through Ataliba in a most melodious manner !-and, with the exception of Cora, all the other characters were most miserably filled. It was highly ludicrous to see Pizarro's chief officers marching about the stage with the sentinel at their head, carrying a fowling-piece on his shoulder, and a large pair of mustachios on his lips. The curtain fell before the after-piece was concluded!

Dec. 8.

GUY MANNERING: AMATEURS AND ACTORS.

Dominie Sampson was very respectable-Dirk Hattoralck middling-but Dandie Dinmont execrable. The same person who we have before alluded to, as performing the sentinel in Pizarro, thought this a good opportunity of again displaying his mustachics, and met with the contempt he deserved. The Dance of Highlanders was very well got up. Amateurs and Actors went off pretty well, with the exception of Mr. Stupid Whiskerchops,

who again stuck himself up as a mark for the derision of the spectators in Geoffrey Muffincap. O. P. Bustle was well performed, and Wing pretty decent. The rest of the characters in the usual style.

Dec. 8.

THE FOUNDLING OF THE FOREST.-MOUNTAINEERS.

A gang of bakers butchered these pieces in the most cruel manner: the only difficulty in judging of the performers was thiswhich was the worst-they were all horrible.

BERWICK STREET THEATRE.

MACBETH.-BOMBASTES FURIOSO. AMATEURS AND ACTORS. Macduff and Banquo were shocking-but Macbeth worse. The whole of the performance was of the very worst description.A combat of three was introduced (for the first time we presume) between the Weird Sisters, in which two of them beat and kicked the third off the stage: the broad-sword combat was very bad. In Bombastes Furioso, we understand (for ́ we were absent at the time) several of the characters introduced a turnip fight, and pelted each other to their great satisfaction, and the great edification of the spectators. Wing, in Amateurs and Actors, was despicable, and all the others nearly as bad-if not quite.

Dec. 18.

RAWSTONE PLACE THEATRE.

FOUNDLING OF THE FOREST.-MILLER AND HIS MEN.

De Valmont was miserable: Florian and Bertrand barely respectable. Longueville and Le Clair both very good. Eugenia Geraldine pretty fair. An apology was made for Rosabelle and Gaspard, who read their parts, and got on as well as could be expected. In the Miller and his Men, Grindorff and Lothair were very good-Karl and Kelmar respectable but Friberg very bad. The mill was blown up long before the time, and all effect completely destroyed. The scenery and dresses at this theatre are excellent.

33

Anecdotes, Jeux d'Esprits, Bon Mots, &c.

A curious dialogue between Lady Fy and her present man Thomas, at the time of his hiring.

LADY F. Well, and so you came out of Norfolk?

THOMAS. Yes, and please your ladyship, I comes from Norfolk. LADY F. How long have you been in London?

THOMAS. Why, and please your ladyship, just a week.

LADY F. Pray, now, what might be the reason of your quitting the country?

THOMAS. Please you, my lady, I was desirous of seeing this town in hopes of bettering myself?

LADY F. Are you sure that was the only reason? [Thomas blushes, and hangs down his head.]

LADY F. Come, come, own the truth-there was a sweetheart in the case?

THOMAS. My lady, I does not know how to tell stories.

LADY F. (aside, Then I am sure you will not do for my service-but I shall soon cure you of this prejudice of education) That's right, tell the truth.

THOMAS. As the deuce would have it but I'm asham'd.

LADY F. Oh, do not be ashamed-what, a child, I supposewell, well I shan't like you the worse for it.

THOMAS. Why your ladyship is a conjuror, I believe.

LADY F. I thought there was something of that at the bottomnever mind-it is a very natural cause, and a robust young man like you cannot avoid giving way to the calls of nature. [Thomas blushes again.] Well, but who was your sweetheart.

THOMAS. Nancy Williams, and please you.

LADY F. What you were very fond of her, I suppose; promised her marriage?

THOMAS. No, in troth, I had no more thoughts of her till that very afternoon than of my dying day. She came into the field as I was a mowing, and so

LADY F. I won't put you to the blush-I can guess the rest. But do you think you can do my business, as you only understand mowing, and such like work.

THOMAS. I hopes to learn, and please you, my lady. I'll do any thing I'm bid; and should be very proud in serving your ladyship in any capacity, as a body may say.

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