with the elegy of a nightingale; of which the following are a few ftanzas, I. II. III. IV. V. VII. For Elufino loft, -renew the ftrain, Sore was the time-ill fated was the hour, 'Twas when the peafant fought his twilight reft, VIII. And the curs'd form of man appear'd in view. Explor'd our haunt, and thunder'd at the place. Oft' as at eve his homeward fteps he bent, Could not the blameless leffons of thy fire Reftrain thy barb'rous hand, from crimes like these ?' A fucceffion of epifodes, in a style of novelty, leads us at length to the Legend of Benignus, which is the principal fub-. ject of the work. The ftory of this perfonage, whom various difafters have driven into retirement, is related by himfelf. He is reprefented to be a youth of an ingenuous and virtuous difpofition, who, from an early age, governed his conduct by the invariable principle, that To be good is to be happy.' The fcene in which he is firft introduced is at school, where his hiftory is enlivened with entertaining incidents. From school, the young hero enters upon the theatre of the world, where the natural generofity of his difpofition, improved by the benevolent fentiments of philofophy, involve him in a series of perplexity and distress, amidst which he is frequently placed in fuch ludicrous fituations, that while he at attracts compaffion, he at the fame time excites rifibility. Soon after, he fets off from the country for London, in a ftage-coach; from the narrative of his journey we shall prefent our readers with an extract. - • Our fociety confifted of three perfons befides myself, und all were men; one was dreffed in a fuit of plain light brown with buttons of the fame-the brims of his hat were of immenfe circumference, and there was a primitive nicety in the tie of his neck-cloth that fpoke his character. Another had a fuit of black, fomewhat faded; and the third, who was habited in a coat of snuff-colour, with waistcoat and breeches of black velvet, had the air of a shop about him fo palpable, that I could almoft have fworn to his trade at the first glance. When the heart is happy and fatisfied, the tongue is generally voluble and communicative. About the third dish we became fociable, and at the entrance of the fecond plate of toast, we knew of what we were each in purfuit of. The man in black. indeed was extremely referved, faid little, and fipped his tea, or rather played with his tea-fpoon, as if he thought fociety an interruption. The gentleman in brown was of the number of people called quakers, travelling upwards, to attend a folemn meeting of friends upon the marriage of a preacher: the man in fnuff-colour, was an inhabitant of the market-town from whence we came, and was going to vifit his daughter, The most difficult matter remained, and that was to disclose my bufinefs in the capital. I told them that mine was a business of benevolence, and that I was actually upon the road to London in fearch of happiness. The paffengers looked upon each other, and fmiled, but every fmile was different. The coachman came now to acquaint us our half hour was expired, and the horses were ready; and after paffing through the ufual ceremonies with the hoftler (who infifted on his cuftomary fix pence notwithstanding his idleness in being found in bed) and fomething for Mrs. Betty (for the trouble of rifing up when she was called) we again fet forward on our journey-as foon as we were pretty well fettled, the quaker open'd the converfation. -I could not help fmiling friend (faid he, looking sagaciously at the broad flaps of his beaver) to hear thee fay thou wert journeying towards the great city, in fearch of happiness, and yet, I, as well as thou, and thefe other good brethren at our fide as well as we---and indeed all the fellow-men upon the earth, are engaged in the like vain purfuit; we are all travellers bound for the fame place, though, peradventure, we take different roads thereto; and yet, fuch is the frail nature of the flesh, that we are for ever jogging onward, and shift about from place to place, diffatisfied with our road---difgufted with our journey, till we put off the old man, and reach the gloomy gate that leads to the city of the Saviour --Vanity of vanities, faith the preacher wifely, all is vanity. Here Here the quaker fpread his chin upon his cheft (upos which it defcended to the fourth button of his waistcoat) and, twirling one thumb round the other with his fingers folded together, communed with the fpirit about the vanity of searching for happiness in a world where happiness was not to be found. Surely, fir, (faid I) there is a great deal of happiness in the world notwithstanding this---the quaker groan'd inwardly--Happiness!--cried the grocer (for fuch was the calling of the man whofe exteriors fmelt fo ftrong of the counter)---happiness in the world---aye, certainly there is-- -I'll answer for that, and a great deal of happiness too---I am the happiest man upon earth myself;---if any man fays he's happier, I fay he's---no matter for that the Quaker lifted up the ball of one eye to furvey him-I am worth five thousand pounds every morning I rife, aye, and more money---I have got every fhilling by my own industry---I have a fet of good cuftomers to my back-.-my wife knows how to turn the penny in the fhop when I have a mind to smoke my pipe in the parlour; and I make it a rule never to lend a fix pence nor borrow a fix pence. For what wert thou born, friend, faid the quaker, drily? Born! why to live---aye and to die too, faid the quaker---pish! replied the grocer, who does not know that; but what does that there argufy, if I can but live merrily and bring up my family honeftly, keep the wolf from the door, and pay every body their own? I have only one child, and her I'm now going to fee; the's 'prentice to a mantua-maker in the city. If the behaves well, and marries to my thinking--(and I have a warm man in my eye for her) why fo---If fhe's head-ftrong, and thinks proper to pleafe berfelf rather than please me, why the may beg or ftarve for what I care. > Good God! (exclaimed I with vehemence) and is it poffible -do'nt fwear, interrupted the quaker, young man---then turning his head deliberately round towards the grocer and fo thou art very happy friend, art thou? Never was man more fo-quoth the grocer; fo that if you are looking for merriment and heart's-eafe, come to the Sugar-loaf, I'm your man- here he begun to hum the fag end of a ballad For who is fo happy, fo happy as I."Thy fort of happiness, friend (returned the quaker) I fhall never envy-thou art happy without either grace or good works to make thee foGood works, faid the grocer, what do you mean by that? I don't owe a penny in the world I pay lot and fcot-1 go to church every other Sunday, and I never did a wrongful thing in my life. Thee may't be very unserviceable in thy generation for all that, faid the quaker---I am afraid by thy own account, thou takest too much care in cherishing thy outward man, yet art flow to cherish thy poor brethren. Why in what pray does thy happinefs confift?" fays the grocer archly-In turning the wanderer into the right way, rejoin'd the quaker-in feeding the hungry penitent with the the milk of brotherly love, and in cloathing the naked foul with the comfortable raiment of righteoufnefs. Phaw! cries the grocer; you had better feed the poor devils with a pennyworth of my plumbs. How many pennyworth of plumbs may'ft thou give away yearly in thy parifh? (faid the quaker,) I tell thee, faid the grocer, I never pretend to give away any thing--things are too dear, and taxes are too heavy for that---befides, about seventen years ago, I was poor myself, and wanted a dinner as much as any body---but I never found folk fo ready to give me any thing---no, not fo much as a bit of bread-not fo much as this, fnapping his fingers.' The ftory of Mr. Greaves and his unfortunate daughter, Almeria, is related in an affecting manner; and though we cannot confider the epifode of this fair penitent as entirely original, the author has embellished the narrative with a confiderable degree of poetical description and energy. We afterwards meet with an Ode to a School fellow, which is likewise not void of merit. Thefe volumes conclude with moral inferences, drawn from the various objects represented in the course of the work; and from the abrupt manner in which the Legend of Benignus is broke off, there is reafon for prefuming that Mr. Melmoth intends to continue the narrative, on fome future occafion. V. The Triumph of Truth; or, Memoirs of Mr. De La Villette. Tranflated from the French by R. Roberts. Two Vols. Small 8vo. 55. ferved. Cadell. THE HIS inftructive novel, which was originally written by a lady, and is translated by a person of the fame sex, is a production of the moral and fentimental kind, in which the powers of the human understanding are ingeniously developed, and natural and revealed religion established on the obvious principles of reafon. M. De La Villette, whofe Memoirs are here related, was one of three young gentlemen, who united in a fociety of pleasure, and having large fortunes, refolved to indulge themselves in the gratification of every appetite. Confidering religion as a restraint upon the courfe in which they were engaged, they endeavoured to diveft themselves of all its influence, and now viewed it in no other light than as a matter of prejudice, boldly maintaining, that whatever is, is the effect of chance.' During this course of intoxication, M. De La Villette is invited by a lady, who lived in the country, and to whom he was related, to spend some days at her feat. There was at that time in the family a fifter of her husband, extremely beautiful, and who, to an elevated genius, added exemplary piety. This lady, whofe name was Emilia, was now about thirty years of age, and had refused many advantageous offers of marriage, which had been made to her. M. De La Villette was ftruck with her extraordinary endowments, and immediately became her fuitor, notwithstanding the great attachment fhe discovered to the duties of religion, which he hoped gradually to extinguish. His perfon being amiable, her heart was foon interested in his favour, but for fome time the declined the propofal of their alliance, till Providence, we are told, who intended to ufe her as an inftrument of Villette's converfion, fortified her affection, against her fears, and the confented to an union which might afford her an opportu nity of cultivating thofe latent feeds of virtue fhe perceived in his mind, though they had been prevented from expanding, by the vicious habits he had formed. Soon after their marriage, M De La Villette propofed to his lady that they fhould retire for the autumn to an estate which he had at fome leagues diftance, where they might enjoy the pleasures of folitude. Emilia accepted with joy a propofal which would give her the opportunity fhe wanted of endeavouring to correct his erroneous principles. In this flattering hope, however, the was foon undeceived. M. De La Villette, after attempting in vain to bring her over to his opinion, enjoined her an abfolute filence on religious subjects." She obeyed his command, and finding all her endeavours for his converfion prove ineffectual, determined to address herself to God alone, for obtaining the event which the fo much defired. In this rural retreat M: De La Villette paffed his time with the partner of his affection in the most profound tranquillity. By her good fenfe, and the sweetness of her temper, his heart was infenfibly alienated from his diffolute companions, and for the fake of avoiding the danger of renewing their acquaintance, he propofed a longer ftay in the country. In a little time M. De La Villette became penfive. The great truths with which he had been impreffed in his infancy, now returned to his mind. At first he imagined that it was entirely the effect of early prejudice; but afterwards, in conversation with Emilia, he confeffed he was doubtful, whether his anxiety proceeded from a motion of the Divinity, or the prejudice of education. She afferted that religious impreffions would be equally ftrong in a child, who had never received the leaft intimation of a Superior Being. She was at this time pregnant, and propofed to convince M. De La Villette experimentally, of the truth of her affertion, by his educating the child himself, without communicating the leaft 2 know |