Garth. Mount Athos fhakes the forefts on his brow, Whilft down his wounded fides fresh torrents

flow,

And leaves and limbs of trees o'erspread the vale below.

But now, all order loft promifcuous blows
Confus'diy fall; perplex'd the battle grows.
From Stentor's *) arm a maffy opiat flies,
And straight a deadly fleep clos'd Carus' eyes.
At Colon **) great Sertorius buckthorn flung
Who with fierce gripes, like thofe of death, was
ftung;

But with a dauntless and difdainful mien

Hurl'd back steel pills, and hit him on the spleen.
Chiron ***) attack'd Thaltibius with fuch might,
One pass had paunch'd the huge hydropic knight,
Who ftraight retreated to evade the wound,
But in a flood of apozem was drown'd.

This Pfylas ) faw, and to the victor faid,

Thou shalt not long furvive th' unwieldy dead;
Thy fate fhall follow:" to confirm it, fwore
By th' image of Priapus, which he bore;
And rais'd an eagle-stone ††), invoking loud
An Cynthia, leaning o'er a filver cloud.

Great queen of night and emprefs of the feas! If faithful to thy midnight mysteries,

If ftill obfervant of my early vows,

Thefe hands have eas'd the mourning matron's throes,

„Direct this rais'd avenging arm aright;

So may loud cymbals aid thy lab'ring light."

*) Dr. Goodall against Dr. Tyson.

**) Dr. Birch.

***) Dr. Gill against Dr. Ridley.

+) Dr. Chamberlain.

++) See Pliny.

He

1

He faid, and let the pond'rous fragment fly
At Chiron, but learn'd Hermes put it by.

Tho' the haranguing god furvey'd the war,
That day the Mufes' fons were not his care.
Two friends, adepts, the Trismegifts by name,
Alike their features and alike their flame,

As fimpling near fair Tweed each fung by turn,
The lift'ning river would neglect his urn.
Those lives they fail'd to rescue by their skill,
Their Mufe could make immortal with her
quill;

But learn'd inquiries after Nature's state,
Diffolv'd the league, and kindled a debate.
The one for lofty labours fruitful known,
Fill'd magazines with volumes of his own:
At his once favour'd friend a tome he threw
That from his birth had flept unseen till now;
Stunn'd with the blow the batter'd bard retir'd,
Sunk down, and in a fimile expir'd.

And now the cohorts fhake, the legions ply,
The yielding flanks confefs the victory.
Stentor undaunted ftill, with noble rage
Sprung thro' the battle Querpo to engage.
Fierce was the onfet, the difpute was great;
Both could not vanquish, neither would retreat;
Each combatant his adversary mauls,
With batter'd bed - pans and ftav'd urinals.
On Stentor's creft the ufeful crystal breaks,
And tears of amber gutter'd down his cheeks;
But whilst the champion, as late rumours tell,
Defign'd a fure decifive ftroke, he fell;
And as the victor hov'ring o'er him ftood,
• With arms extended thus the fuppliant fu'd:

n

When honour's loft, 'tis a relief to die; "Death's but a fure retreat from infamy:

"But

Garth.

*) See Taffo.

"

Garth. But to the loft if pity might be shown,
Reflect on young Querpoïdes thy fon;
Then pity mine, for fuch an infant grace
Smiles in his eyes, and flatters in his face;
"If he was near, compaffion he'd create,
Or elfe lament his wretched parent's fate.
Thine is the glory, and the field is thine;
"To thee lov'd Difpens'ry *) I refign."

At this the victors own fuch ecftafies,
As Memphian priefts if their Ofiris fneeze,
Or champions with Olympic clangor fir'd,
Or fimp'ring prudes with sprightly Nantz infpir'd;
Or fultans rais'd from dungeons to a crown;
Or fafting zealots when the fermon's done.

A while the chief the deadly stroke declin'd,
And found compaffion pleading in his mind,
But whilft he view'd with pity the diftreft,
He spy'd Signetur **) writ upon his breast;
Then t'wards the fkies he tofs'd his threat'ning
head,

And, fir'd with more than mortal fury, faid:

"

,,Sooner than I'll from vow'd revenge defift, His Holinefs fhall turn a Quietist, Janfenius and the Jefuits agree,

The Inquifition wink at herefy,

Warm convocations own the church fecure,
And more confult her doctrine than her pow'r."

With that he drew a lancet in his rage,

To puncture the ftill fupplicating fage;

But while his thoughts that fatal ftroke decree,
Apollo interpos'd in form of fee:

*) See the allufion, Virg. Aen.

The

**) Those members of the College that obferve a late ftatute are called by the apothecaries Signetur men.

The chief great Paean's golden treffes knew;
He own'd the god, and his rais'd arm withdrew.

Thus often at the Temple - ftairs we 'ave seen
Two Tritons, of a rough athletic mien,
Sourly dispute fome quarrel of the flood,

With knuckles bruis'd and face befmear'd in blood,
But at the first appearance of a fare

Both quit the fray, and to their oars repair.

The hero fo his enterprise recalls,
His fift unclinches, and the weapon falls.

Garth.

Zacharid.

Zacharia.

Weit glücklicher war er im komischen, als im ernsthaf ten Heldengedichte; und man hat ihm die Einführung dies fer Gattung in unsre neuere Poesie zu verdanken. Pope war darin vornehmlich sein Muster, das er aber freilich nicht ganz erreichte. Doch fehlte es ihm gewiß nicht an feiner satorischer Laune, an treffender Beobachtung und Charakterzeichnung, an Erfindung, und Leichtigkeit des poetischen Vortrages. Sein Renomist, in sechs Gefäns gen, würde mehr gefallen, wenn die Sphäre der Handlung minder fremd und auf Ort und Zeit beschränkt, das Wunz derbare nicht zu gehäuft, und die. Darstellung nicht oft zu niedrig wäre. Mehr Poesie herrscht in den Verwandlungen. Der Phaeton und das Schnupftuch sind wohl unftreitig die vorzüglichsten; so, wie die Lagosiade, Murs ner in der Hölle, und vollends Herzynia, die unbedeus tendsten von den zu zahlreichen komischen Epooden dieses Dichters. Man vergleiche über sie Dusch's Briefe zur Bildung des Geschmacks, B. VI. Br. XV, wo dem Schnupftuche der Vorzug gegeben, und der Inhalt dess felben, mit einem Auszuge der schönsten Stellen, dargelegt wird. Die Rede ist von einem Schnupftuche, welches ein junger Graf einem Fråulein geraubt, und das Kammers mädchen dieser leztern wieder zurückgefodert hat.

Das Schnupftuch; Ges. III

Es hatte kaum Charmant *) das braune Haar

erbaut,

Und das Toppee geprüft, die Locken überschaut;
Als noch einmal der Graf mit finfirer Stirne fragte:
Mar

*) Ein Sylphe, der sich, in Abwesenheit des Kammers dieners den jungen Grafen zu frisiren erbietet, da er zur Frau von Lins kommen foll.