ance; But I have heard That, near the sacred houses of your order, Are deem'd the humble partners of your zeal Erm. Aye, such there are; but what availeth this? We must make room now for some of the songs with which Miss Baillie has embellished this pleasing and elegant performand which she has contrived to introduce in such a way as to avoid the common objection of making people sing in situations where such an operation is obviously unnatural. All her songs are introduced (as Shakespeare's are), as being sung by the inferior persons of the drama for the entertainment of the superior;-not as the extemporaneous productions of the chief characters themselves. The following is sung to Aurora by one of her female attendants, and we think has very considerable beauty, though the concluding line of the stanza is both weak and unmelodious. Wish'd-for gales the light vane veering, Ears each feeble rumour catching, Say he existeth still on earthly ground, The absent will return, the long, long lost be found. In the tower the ward-bell ringing, In the court the carols singing; Open'd Open'd arms in haste advancing, Joyful looks thro' blind tears glancing; The gladsome bounding of his aged hound, Say he in truth is here, our long, long lost is found.. Hymned thanks and beedsmen praying, With sheath'd sword the urchin playing; O who can tell each blessed sight and sound, That says, he with us bides, our long, long lost is found. There is the same crowd and condensation following reveillée, with which the piece opens. of images in the Up! quit thy bower, late wears the hour; Up! Lady fair, and braid thy hair, The lulling stream, that sooth'd thy dream, And hours so sweet, so bright, so gay, Will waft good fortune on its way. p. 269. We shall quote but one more, which possesses greater unity of subject, though the description in the latter part is equally brief and beautiful. Where distant billows meet the sky, By turns their fitful, gloomy thoughts pourtray: Some northern streamer's paly light. "Fools!" saith rous'd Hope with gen'rous scorn, "It is the blessed peep of morn, And aid and safety come when comes the day.' And so it is; the gradual shine Spreads o'er heaven's verge its lengthened line; Like floating fire the gleamy billows burn: Far distant on the ruddy tide, A black'ning sail is seen to glide; Their hoisted signal waves on high, 277-8. And life and strength and happy thoughts return. We do not know that these pieces are very lyrical; but they have undoubtedly very great merit, and are more uniformly good, than any passages of equal length in the blank verse of the same writer. We should guess that Miss Baillie writes slowly, and with considerable labour; and the trouble which it probably occasions her to find rhymes, may perhaps be one cause of the goodness of her rhymed poetry. It leads obviously to the great merit of brevity and condensation of sentiment, as well as to the rejection of weak or ordinary images ;—for it is only upon precious materials that a prudent artist will ever bestow his most costly and laborious workmanship. But whatever be the causes of their excellence, it affords us great pleasure to bear testimony to the fact; and it would go far to console us for the determination which Miss Baillie announces, to publish no more plays on the passions during her life, if we could be permitted to hope that she will favour us now and then with a little volume of such verses as those we have just been transcribing. ART. II. The Crisis of the Dispute with America. By a Mer chant of the Old School. 8vo. London, 1811. THIS HIS is a sensible and useful pamphlet, published by a very respectable merchant, who writes on a subject in which he feels the interest of one actually engaged in the affairs he treats of, and suffering severely under the evils of which he coinplains. He has inserted the very admirable letters recently addressed to the Prince Regent by Mr Cobbet, which contain a great variety of arguments, urged with the usual force and effect of that writer; and on a side of the question much more sound, in our apprehension, than that which he used formerly to espouse. Nothing can be more gratifying to those who really love truth, and seek the good of their country, than to see such instances of able and well-informed men meeting on the same ground, after being kept separate by honest differences of opinion and they who brawl against such changes of sentiment, only show themselves equally careless of the interests of the the state and the cause of truth, and incapable of estimating the merits of that candour which acknowledges and retracts air involuntary error. We propose, on this occasion, to offer a few reflections to our readers upon the subject of the disputes with America. Not that it is at all our intention to enter fully into the question of the negotiation now pending with the government of the United States;-but, from a conviction of the rainous consequences of an American war, and the utter worthlessness of the objects for which our rulers are contending, we feel it quite incumbent or us to say a few words on some of the points in issue between the two countries. In truth, there is but one question, in the present times, more important than the American-we mean the Irish; and it seems to be the design of the government, to exercise the patience of the nation, and rouse the alarms of all men of sense and worth, in a pretty equal degree, on bott those momentous topies. The scruples under which his Majes ty's conscience was said to labour, affording no longer any pretence for deferring that act which strict justice, as well as the soundest policy, has so long enjoined towards the sister kingdom,—and the Illustrious person at the head of affairs having heretofore been supposed to feel any thing rather than reluctance to grant the Ca→ olics a participation in the constitution-his Royal Highness being in truth understood to be pledged to the cause by repeated declarations and promises-it is with incredible sorrow and disappointinent, that the country now sees the question of time once more raised-the measure again deferred-and the whole influence of government-of the Prince of Wales's government ! ---exerted to prevent the Catholic question from being carried. However little men of observation, and knowing in the discernment of human character, might have expected from the executive government of the Prince, in other respects-how much soever they might shut their ears to the fairy tales of a goldenage, and a patriot king, wherewithal they had been flattered by more sanguine seers-still we believe the least credulous were unprepared for the strange spectacle with which the new reign has actually opened-the total abandonment of the Irish cause to its avowed enemies and the Prince of Wales ranging himself all at once among the most decided adversaries of the Catholic body. This is disappointment wholly unparalleled in the history of political predictions; it is change of sentiment, more sudden, and more violent, than any in the records of party conduct; it is a departure from a previous system-an exchange of feelings a surrender of antipathies, and shifting of predilections-a new-moulding of political principles, of which the whole annals annals of courts and senates may in vain be searched for a parallel;-and they who viewed, in the Prince's former conduct towards Ireland, only matter of regret-who saw his attachment for the rights of the Catholics with alarm for the safety of the Church, may now congratulate themselves on the most marvellous instance of a total regeneration which the entire range of profane history can furnish. After this wondrous manifestation of the powers of what is called influence, it would be foolish to admire any longer at lesser miracles-to pause over any favour which may be shown to corrupt men and measures inconsistent with reform-or to feel any disappointment at the near prospect of a most lamentable extension of the hostilities which already press upon the resources of the country. But it is good to have our eyes at length opened-to see things, and men, in their real colours and natural proportions-and to know upon whom we can now rely for the salvation of the state, from the only remaining perils which it has yet to encounter. We now must allow, that the people themselves alone can extricate the country from its difficulties; and that it would be idle to seek for a check to the pernicious system of the court and its ministers from any other quarter than the public voice. That voice, if firmly, yet peacefully raised, is, we know, irresistible. It has awed the most undaunted-steadied the most capricious ---and disconcerted the most perfidious of princes. It has been found more than a match for monarchs, whose courage, seconded by the decent regularities of their private life, and upheld by talents of no ordinary description, seemed well fitted to overpower the liberties of their subjects, and to establish a dominion in which the royal will might prevail, uncontrolled by the sentiments or wishes of the community. Even against such an influence we have no doubt that it may still make itself heard with effect; and assuredly it can have nothing to dread from a conflict (if in the course of ages such a conflict should await it) with adversaries of a different description. Let this voice but interfere, and Ireland may yet be saved to the empire; and peace with our brethren in America may still be maintained. With a view to assist the people in considering the questions relating to this last subject, we purpose at present to treat of them in a plain and intelligible shape. They are indeed such as any one may easily understand; and it would be hard to conceive a point more worthy of exercising the attention of the country, or a moment better calculated to rouse them to a view |