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gards myfelf, as I am far lefs ambitious of being thought a Poet, than of deserying the name of an ufeful provincial Phyfician; I fhall not be at all chagrined, if the compliment he is pleased to pay me in the former capacity proves merely ironical; and fball confole myfelf, under any imputed poetical delinquency, in reflecting with Martial,

Non nobis licet effe tam difertis, Qui Mufas colimus feveriores. Clericus poffeffes some worth, and many virtues, at least if we are to believe what ipfe dixi," Thefe, however, it feems, remain as yet unrewarded; and his cafe reminds the reader of that of Capt. Cormorant in the Bath Guide, "He himself thinks he ought to be better preferred."

I am only apprehenfive he does not go the readieft way about it,

Mr. Urban, in the affair of Mr.

Henderson of Oxford, fince deceafed, you have received hints, from more correfpondents than one, as to the impropriety of bringing forward living charters to public view by name. I beg leave to add (with due deference) that all ludicrous and difrefpectful allufons to individuals by name, in profe, or verte, fhould find no place in "The Gentleman's Magazine."-Hoping that nothing of the kind,

Nec qui detrectat præfentia liver, for the future may appear in it, I remain, Yours, &c. JOHN CRANE.

NOT

Mr. URBAN, Oxford, Sept. 14. TOT having obferved in your valuable Obituary any notice of the late learned Mr. Falconer, who died laft year at Chefer, and whofe edition of Strabo + bas been long expected from the Clarendon prefs; I now communicate to you the following epitaph, in

fcribed on a mural monument of white

marble, erected to his memory in St. John's Church in that city by his bro ther Dr. William Falconer, an eminent phyfician at Bath, whofe various publications are well known.

Yours, &c. ACADEMICUS.

M. S.

THOME FALCONER, Armigeri, Filii natu maximi Gulielmi Falconer, Arm. Qui per plures annos officium

* Which Mr. Henderfon himself treated with the gre. teft pleafantry. EDIT. See page 66, col. 2. .

Proprætoris hujus urbis

gerebat, et Elizæ filiæ Ranulphi Wilbraham de Townsend, in comitatu Ceftriæ, conjugis ejus. Vir fuit literarum elegantiis et morum comitate egregie ornatus, Memoria præditus vix credibili, et industria, quæ nec labori nec ægritudini diuturnæ fuccubuit. Maxima autem laus eft, quod benevolentia, vitæ integritate, et erga Deum pietate, nemini fuit impar.

Obiit 4to die Septembris A. D. 1792.
Etatis fuæ LVI.
Vale,
Vir summe,

Pietatis pariter ac literarum exemplar, Valé.
Frater tui amantiffimus hocce
exiguum quamvis
Cenotaphium Virtutibus tuis facrum
Pofuit.

Mr. URBAN, Brighton Camp, Aug.22.

F I had been progreffive, I fhould have mentioned in my laft, p. 685, that on the 4th a string of orders came our relative to the next day's march to Afhdown Foreft. The general was to beat at morning-gun fire, instead of the reveillie. So brifk were the men at the thoughts of quitting Waterdown, they were up before the morn, and welcomed the gun with noify approbation; the tents were ftruck in an inftant, the tentpoles tied to their mufquets, and the cooking-kettles faftened behind them. Thus newly accoutred, in addition to knapfacks and canteens, they remained under arms till 10 o'clock (the hour of march). During this languid period, a volume of orders were read; and in proportion as the first efforts of the morning had been active, every other part was flow; but to those who know how to make allowance for the progress of artillery and of baggage over irre gular roads, and the order with which the whole was conducted, fuch may not be furprifed that the troops were not upon their ground before half past one o'clock. It was the length of time they had been under arms which had fagged the men fo much; and yet, as they were pitching their tents, there was a chearfulness upon their countenances, that could only be attributed to their having left Waterdown. When the encampment was formed, it helped to fill up fome fine profpects, perhaps more beautiful by the ground not allowing the whole in one line; the right wing was upon the fide of a hill to the

Weft;

Weft; and the left upon another hill in a direction Eaft and by South. The Commander in Chief and the horse artillery were in a valley extending to the feparation of wings, with fome ftraggling trees in their rear, which were very useful to the horfes picqueted under them. When the weather was clear, we had a fight of the fea, and over the Weald of Suffex could plainly obferve Lewes Caftle, partly encompaffed by the South Downs; Eaft Grinsted was a good object on the right; Maresfield Church, and feveral fpires were before us; and the contraft of the different foreft-downs, with the plentiful crops of corn and meadow land, was a proud fight to the land-owners, and to every man that is delighted to fee plenty scattered over the earth; and, "though laft, not leaft, in love," the infantry forming in their freets preparative to a field-day, and the artillery yoking their horses, was as animated a fight as could be, and made the varied fcene worthy the pencil of the firft painter extant.

Amongst the orders given out at Ahhdown Foreft, there was one in cafe of hearing three guns fired rapidly: the men were to put on their knapfacks and prepare to march; this was not put in execution, and, it is fince thought, it was only given out to keep up the ufual euftom of obliging the officers to remain conftantly in quarters, and as well as the men, to be always ready. This order was near throwing "every corps into confufion," for, one evening a man fired several mufquets in defence of his potatoe property part of the Camp thought it the knapsack-fignal, and torned out. The reafon given was, that the cannon had fo fmall an allowance of powder on a field-day, they could not (particularly when aroufed from fleep) tell the diftinction of found between them and mufquets.

Our week's duty on the Foreft was pleafant, comparative to our goings-on at Waterdown. We had only one day that approached to fatigue. On Saturday the line was ordered out at feven; but our good friend General Rain countermanded it. As fymptoms of fair weather approached, fymptoms of the field-day kept pace with it. The men were ordered to cook their dinners; and at one the troops fell in. We purfued our route towards Uckfield, paff ing over fome temporary bridges Crown over a fmall steep-banked brook. The hills we went over muft, at fome time,

have compofed part of the foreft, as we observed the roots of many noble-fized trees. Though I was in the character of a foldier, I could not help thinking as a man. The land we were upon would have continued to deferve the name of foreft, if the owner had replanted fome fresh oaks. And when it is known what ground contributes the beft to its growth, the public-fpirited fhould never, for the fake of a few annual guineas, deny themfelves the fatisfaction of feeing the favoured timber of their country growing on their natal foil for the advantage of pofterity.

But to return to the foldier. We refted on our arms in a rabbit-warren. At this period feveral of the inhabitants, in attempting to avoid danger, ran into it, and were either received by afturdy foot, or the butt-end of a fire lock. The foldiers could neither be charged with cruelty or theft; as it was understood, if the enemy came under their feet, they were lawful "belly-timber;" but they were on no account to quit their ranks in purfuit of fo ignoble a foe. After remaining for a confiderable time under arms, whilft the fuc cefsful foldiers were glarying in their fpoil, and telling how it became a vic tim to a kick, we were ordered to change pofition, and either advanced or retreated (I do not know which) from hill to hill, every now and then taking a peep at our more diftant encampment. The fun was declining very fast, and we were beginning to think we were to perform vefpers-far from our canvals home-bur, on gaining a bleaky fummit, there were luckily no more eminences in front. After refting long enough to be fufficiently chilled, we were rejoiced to hear the found of the

66

merry merry drum," and the chearful bands; a fignal that has the fame meaning in modern tatticks with that formerly made ufe of by the Ifraelites, viz. "To your tents," &c. Between eight and nine we reached camp, and concluded our duty by eating double dinner allowance and good-humour.

On the Monday, whatever misjakes (if commanders can make any) had prolonged the order of march from Waterdown, they were removed, and the line reached Chailey in good time. With equal glee and regularity they fet off the next morning for Brighton; about four miles before they arrived on their ground, their regiments were formed in battalions, in which order they moved,

keeping

keeping good wheeling diftance. The irregularity of the Downs frequently gave an opportunity of feeing every regiment with a coup d'oiel. Numbers of people came out to meet us. The town, with the fea, and the mufic, and the univerfal animation around, fomewhat diffipated the fatigue of a long march. Confpicuous amongst the fpectators was the Prince of Wales, in the honourable garb of his regiment, looking both the Soldier and the Prince. We marched by his Royal Highnefs by divifions; officers faluting; and then wheeled round the town to our new ground, which appeared a little Paradife in comparison.

The water at our former ftations has too much chalybeate in it to be pleafant. On Chailey common it was good; and on our arrival here we had the luxury of finding it could not be better., This neceffary part of the comforts of life, with the delightful ground we are encamped upon, a full advantage of the fea-breeze, and the lively fcene continually paffing and repaffing in our front, make us hope we fhall have more opportunities of frequenting the Steine parade than we had of vifiting Tunbridge-Wells. Befides, the Commander in Chief wonderfully gave us an overflaugh from Wednelday until Monday; on which day we were out fix hours and a half; five of the hours dragged on with the ufual having nothing to do. We then began to form columns and lines. This intention was by way of drilling in the new fyftem. General Dundas, the modeller of it, gave his perfonal affiftance; and I could not help remarking how gracefully and expeditiously he moved his fun-burnt hand, explanatory of his formation of the divifions into battalion. I dare fay, when we have brought his theory to practical perfection, we shall never be a hair's breadth out. Old officers, that have been accustomed to fight after the old school, and great fault with many parts of this celebrated fyftem. I be fore faid I was no judge of Generalfhip. With equal propriety, I fhall not prefume to fay any thing upon this head until I understand it.

I find myfelf fo jocular in confequence of having had fome days to look about me, that I forgot to mention we were vifited by a molt tremendous gale of wind on Saturday night; fome tents were blown down; but the generality

rode as fnugly through the ftorm, as a man of war does that has lowered her top-mafts; the next morning when I put just as much of my head through the whiftling canvafs as would fhow me how my neighbours went on, I tacked about, and hugged myself in the boot of my tent, which was every way as fnug, and let in as much rain, as the favoured corner in the old manfion of the late Mr. Elwes.

This day, it is underflood, we are to bid adieu to our respite; horfe, foot, and artillery, are to make a proud appearance in the neighbourhood of a place called "the Devil's Ditch." Our. expectations are raifed very high, as the name gives us reafon to think there will be fomething extraordinary. The men are to take provifions and canteens of water; a good hint for the officers to be careful of themselves; and as the foldiers in fome of our field days have had time enough to fleep foundly, let us hope, we fhall have time enough to eat heartily; and I will be bound the dinner manœuvre will not require any camp colours, to mark out the line of march; exercife and hunger are the favourites of health and of mountains; and in profpect they promife to be equally fo with us; as we are not likely to have the empty honour of dining with his Grace-" Duke Humphrey." Yours, &c. A RAMBLER.

I

Mr. URBAN,

Sept. 14. AM forry to fee fo inaccurate a copy of the infcription on the Countess of Pomfret in p. 719; and hope that you will infert in your next the following neceffary corrections: In line 2, read "viduai;” 1. 5, “piæ prudenti venerabili domifeda" 1. 15, "pietatis;" 1. 16, "faciundum curavere." If the report at the time of the erection of the monument in St. Mary's church may be credited, this infcription was written by the very learned editor of Demofthenes, Dr. John Taylor, of Cambridge. When will that Univerfity complete bis fine edition of that orator? Who can be more eminently qualified for the work than the prefent Greek Profeffor there?

The two magnificent candelabra" in the Radcliffe library, noticed in the fame page, were the truly liberal donation of Sir Roger Newdigate, bart, to the University; of which he was one of the reprefentatives in parliament from 1750 to 1780. OXONIENSIS.

Mr.

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