Grant the only boon I crave,
Hear me, Venus! Hear thy flave!

Blefs

my

fond foul with beauty's charms, And give me Flavia to my arms (8).

Just as I was finishing this piece of mufick, old Mr. Noel came into the parlour, in.

(8) As this fong is a short imitation of the 19th Ode of the firft book of Horace, it is worth your while, Reader, to fee how Mr. Francis has done the whole. I will here fet down a few lines:

Urit me Glyceræ nitor

Splendentis pario marmore purius:
Urit grata protervitas,

Et vultus nimium lubricus afpici.

Which lines are imitated in the firft verfe of the above fong, and a part of the second; and the ingenious Mr. Francis renders them in the following manner

Again for Glycera I burn,

And all my long forgotten flames return.

As Parian marble pure and bright,

The shining maid my bofom warms;

Her face too dazling for the fight,

Her fweet coquetting-how it charms!

In me tota ruens Venus
Cyprum deferuit-

Of which the third verfe of the song is an imitation:
Mr. Francis translates in the following manner

Whole Venus rufhing through my veins,
No longer in her favourite Cyprus reigns.

And

in his wonted good humour, and feemed very greatly pleafed with me and my inftrument. He told me, I was the young man he wanted to be acquainted with, and that if it was no detriment to me, I should not leave him this month to come. Come, Sir, (continued this fine old gentleman) let me hear another piece of mufick your vocal or inftrumental - as you will, for I fuppofe you fing as well as you play. Both you fhall have, Sir, (I replied), to the best of my abilities, and by way of change, I will give you first a fong, called the Solitude.

And

Hic vivum mihi cefpitem, hic
Verbenas, pueri, ponite thuraque
Bimi cum patera meri :

Mactatâ veniet lænior hoftiâ:

Which lines are imitated in the fourth verfe of the fong-Mr. Francis tranflates as follows

Here let the living altar rife,

Adorn'd with every herb and flower;

Here flame the incenfe to the skies,

And pureft wines libation pour;

Due honours to the Goddefs paid,

Soft finks to willing love the yielding maid.

You fee in this the difference between a tranflation and an imitation.

A

YE

A SONG called the Solitude.

I.

E lofty mountains, whose eternal snows Like Atlas feem to prop the distant skies; While fhelter'd by your high and ample

brows

All nature's beauties feaft my ravish'd eyes: And far beneath me o'er the diftant plain The thunders break, and ratling tempefts reign.

II.

Here, when Aurora with her chearful beam
And rofy blushes marks approaching day;
Oft do I walk along the purling ftream,
And see the bleating flocks around me
ftray:

The woods, the rocks, each charm that strikes my fight,

Fills my whole breast with innocent delight.

III.

Here gaily dancing on the flow'ry ground The cheatful Shepherds join their flute and

voice;

While thro' the groves the woodland fongs refound,

And fill th' untroubled mind with peace

ful joys.

Mufick and love infpire the vocal plain,
Alone the turtle tunes her plaintive strain.

IV.

Here the green turf invites my wearied head
On nature's lap, to undisturb'd repofe;
Here gently laid to rest — each care is fled;
Peace and content my happy eye-lids close.
Ye golden flattering dreams of state adieu!
As bright my flumbers are, more foft than
you.

V.

Here free from all the tempefts of the Great,
Craft and ambition can deceive no more!
Beneath these shades I find a blest retreat,
From Envy's rage fecure, and Fortune's
pow'r :

Here call the actions of paft ages o'er,
Or truth's immortal fource alone explore.

VI.

Here far from all the bufy world's alarms,

I prove in peace the Mufe's facred leisure : No cares within, no distant found of arms, Break my repofe, or interrupt my pleasure. Fortune and Fame! Deceitful forms! Adieu ! The world's a trifle far beneath my view.

This fong delighted the old gentleman to a great degree. He told me, he was charm

ed

12.

ed with it, not only for the fine musick I made of it, but the morality of it, and liked me fo much, that I was moft heartily welcome to make his folitary retreat my home, as often and as long as I pleased. And indeed I did fo, and continued to behave in fuch a manner, that in two months time, I gained fo intirely his affections, and fo totally the heart of his admirable daughter, that I might have her in wedlock when I pleased, after the expiration of that current year, which was the young lady's request, and be fecured of his eftate at his death ; befide a large fortune to be immediately paid down; and this, tho' my father should reore fuse to settle any thing on me, or Mifs Noel, my wife. This was generous and charming as my heart could defire. I thought my self the happiest of men. Every week I went to Eden-Park, one time or other, to fee my dear Mifs Noel, and pay my respects to her worthy father. We were while I stayed a moft happy family, and enjoyed fuch fatisfactions as few I believe have experienced in this tempeftuous hemisphere. Mr. Noel was paffionately fond of his daughter, and he could not regard me more if I had been his own fon. I loved my Harriot with a fondness beyond description, and that glorious girl had all the esteem I could wish the had for me. Our mutual felicity could

at