Whether the contest between the faults of the Ladies and those of the Gentlemen is or is not concluded we do not know, but we have some pleasant lines to Incognita upon her renouncing the last word by 1810 in which he remonstrates with the fair Lady for giving up her sex’s privilege which has been acknowledged their right from time immemorial. He properly observes that were the custom general they would lose that valuable franchise of enraging and vexing from morn to night, and from night to morn again, as well as their powers of pleasing by the sweet sounds of their melodious voices. We recommend this to Incognita for her serious consideration.
The Address of Lothario to Eborina appears to be written by a love not insensible to the faults though fascinated by the charms of the Ladies, and some of the lines are very much in the spirit of Lysander. The author of “What You Will” [filed under Meeting 25] promises something, seems to intimate something, and that he is gone or going somewhere, but at the same time is so wondrous close that we neither know what nor where.
We think the translation from the Greek of Alcaeus will please those who are genuine lovers of their country and who delight in the poetry of the Greeks, which was generally inspired by the great actions and splendid achievements of the heroes of that country. The Riddle appears to us to contain almost as many contradictions as the one that appeared in a former number of which as well as of the excellent Charade that was read in our last. We must again request our correspondents will favour us with solutions.
We hail with unfeigned pleasure the very elegant address from Moth to Stella, and hope that succeeding numbers will more fully gratify the wish that we formerly expressed of frequently expressing the pleasing duty of returning thanks to so meritorious a correspondent for her favours.
On the Verses from Damon to Delia we have not time to expatiate but we sincerely hope that the recovery of the lady crown’d the wishes of the gentleman.
We have received from an unknown correspondent a very excellent caricature of the reformers of the present day which we have no doubt will excite the mirth of our audience. The gentleman certainly makes a very respectable appearance.
The Invocation to Sleep from Narcatus we hope will procure him the desired nap, but we earnestly entreat Somnus not to mistake the call and fling his poppies upon the eyes of our hearers, or render their ears insensible to the harmony of the Muses. We are the more afraid of this phenomenon as it must be acknowledged this poem is a sleepy production.
We have to present our friends with a song from the widowed Dido to Ictinus, from which we find that he, like his prototype Eneas, has left this unhappy lady to lament the faults and inconstancy of the gentleman while he is banishing her memory in the smiles of some damsel probably destined ere long to experience the same fate. Indeed we have so frequently heard complaints of this gentleman from various quarters that we begin to suspect all the faults of his sex are centered in him alone and that his politeness, learning, &c. by rendering him the more agreeable only make him the more dangerous. This song is evidently written on the model of a very beautiful one in the “Lady of the Lake”, which poem has also given rise to an extremely beautiful song signed “Malcom Graeme” and apparently intended to be substituted for the Lay of the Imprisoned Huntsman which it is no compliment to say it evidently surpasses. It is unnecessary to praise it as we think its merits must be felt by all who hear it.
The little Fairy Tale of Philomel and Rose will we think give the explanation so long wished for by the lovers of oriental literature: why the Rose and Nightingale are always represented by the Persian poets as enamoured of each other. It will also explain the reason why the fairies never appear on earth after sunrise. We shall conclude this number with some beautiful lines written by Mr Roseve.