From Covent Garden crowds promifcuous go,
Whom the Muse knows not, nor defires to know:
Vet'rans they feem'd, but knew of arms no more
Than if, till that time, arms they never bore:
Like Westminster militia, train'd to fight,

620

They scarcely knew the left hand from the right:
Afham'd among fuch troops to fhew the head,
Their chiefs were scatter'd, and their heroes fied.

Sparks, at his glass fat comfortably down,

625

To fep'rate frown from fmile, and fmile from frown.

Smith, the genteel, the airy, and the fmart,

Smith was just gone to school to fay his part.
Rofs (a misfortune which we often meet)
Was fast asleep at dear Statira's feet;

630

Statira, with her hero to agree,

Stood on her feet as faft afleep as he.

Macklin, who largely deals in half-form'd founds,

Who wantonly tranfgreffes Nature's bounds,

Whose acting's hard, affected, and constrain❜d.

635

Whose features, as each other they disdain'd,
At variance fet, inflexible and coarse,
Ne'er know the workings of united force,
Ne'er kindly foften to each other's aid,

Nor fhew the mingled pow'rs of light and shade;
No longer for a thankless stage concern'd,
To worthier thoughts his mighty genius turn'd,
Harangu'd, gave lectures, made each fimple elf
Almost as good a speaker as himself;

640

Whilft the whole town, mad with mistaken zeal,

645

An aukward rage for elocution feel,

Dull cits and grave divines his praise proclaim,

And join with Sheridan's, their Macklin's name.
Shuter, who never car'd a single pin,

Whether he left out nonfenfe, or put in;

650

Who aim'd at wit, tho' levell'd in the dark,

The random arrow feldom hit the mark,

At

At Islington, all by the placid ftream,

Where city fwains in lap of dulnefs dream;

Where quiet as her strains their strains do flow,
That all the patron by the bards may know;
Secret as night, with Rolt's experienc'd aid,
The plan of future operations laid,
Projected schemes the fummer months to chear,
And fpin out happy folly thro' the year.

But think not, tho' these daftard chiefs are fled,
That Covent Garden troops fhall want a head:
Harlequin comes, their chief!-See, from afar,
The hero feated in fantastick car!

655

660

Wedded to Novelty, his only arms

656

Are wooden fwords, wands, talifmans, and charms :

On one fide Folly fits, by fome call'd Fun;
And, on the other, his arch patron, Lun;
Behind, for liberty athirst in vain,

Senfe, helpless captive! drags the galling chain;
Six rude mis-shapen beafts the chariot draw,
Whom Reafon loaths, and Nature never faw!
Monsters with tails of ice, and heads of fire,
Gorgons and Hydras, and Chymæras dire.
Each was beftrode by full as monftrous wight,
Giant, Dwarf, Genius, Elf, Hermaphrodite.
The town, as ufual, met him in full cry;
The town, as ufual, knew no reason why:
But fashion fo directs, and moderns raise,

670

675

On fashion's mould'ring bafe, their tranfient praife.
Next, to the field a band of females draw

680

Their force, for Britain owns no Salique law :
Juft to their worth, we female rights admit,
Nor bar their claim to empire, or to wit.

First, giggling, plotting chamber-maids arrive,
Hoydons and romps, led on by Gen'ral Clive;
In spite of outward blemishes fhe fhone,

685

For humour fam'd, and humour all her own:

Eafy,

Eafy, as if at home, the ftage fhe trod,

Nor fought the critick's praise, nor fear'd his rod :

690

Original in spirit, and in ease,

She pleas'd, by hiding all attempts to please:

No comick actress ever yet could raise,

Qn humour's base, more merit or more praise.

695

With all the native vigour of fixteen,
Among the merry troop confpicuous feen,
See lively Pope advance in jig, and trip
Corinna, Cherry, Honeycomb, and Snip;
Not without art, but yet to Nature true,

She charms the town with humour juft, yet new:
Chear'd by her promise, we the lefs deplore
The fatal time when Clive fhall be no more.

700

Lo! Vincent comes-with fimple grace array'd,. She laughs at paltry arts, and fcorns paradę:

Nature thro' her is by reflection shown,

705

Whilst Gay once more knows Polly for his own.
Talk not to me of diffidence and fear-
I fee it all, but must forgive it here;
Defects like thefe, which modeft terrors cause,

From impudence itself extort applause.
Candour and Reason still take Virtue's part;
We love e'en foibles in so good a heart.

710

Let Tommy Arne, with ufual pomp of style,

Whofe chief, whose only merit's to compile,

715

Who, meanly pilf'ring here and there a bit,
Deals mufick out, as Murphy deals out wit,
Publish proposals, laws for tafte prescribe,
And chaunt the praise of an Italian tribe;
Let him reverse kind Nature's first decrees,

And teach e'en Brent a method not to please;

720

But never shall a truly British age

Bear a vile race of eunuchs on the stage:

The boasted work's call'd National in vain,

If one Italian voice pollutes the strain.

Where

Where tyrants rule, and flaves with joy obey,
Let flavish minstrels pour th' enervate lay;
To Britons far more noble pleasures spring,

175725

In native notes whilft Beard and Vincent fing.
Might figure give a title unto fame, :
What rival should with Yates difpute her claim?
But justice may not partial trophies raise,
Nor fink the actrefs in the woman's praise.

7.30

Still hand in hand her words and actions go,
And the heart feels more than the features show;
For thro' the regions of that beauteous face
We no variety of paffions trace;
Dead to the foft emotions of the heart,
No kindred softness can thofe eyes impart :
The brow, ftill fix'd in forrow's fullen frame,
Void of distinction, marks all parts the fame.

What's a fine perfon, or a beauteous face,
Unless deportment gives them decent grace
Blefs'd with all other requifites to please,
Some want the ftriking elegance of eafe ;

The curious eye their aukward movement tires;

745

They seem like puppets led about by wires:

Others, like statues, in one pofture ftill,

Give great ideas of the workman's skill;

Wond'ring, his art we praise the more we view,

And only grieve he gave not motion too.

750

Weak, of themselves, are what we beauties call;

It is the manner which gives strength to all:

This teaches ev'ry beauty to unite,

And brings them forward in the nobleft light.

Happy in this, behold, amidst the throng,

755

With tranfient gleam of grace, Hart fweeps along.

If all the wonders of eternal grace,

A perfon finely turn'd, a mould of face,

Where, union rare, Expreffion's lively force
With Beauty's fofteft magick holds difcourfe,

760 Attract

Attract the eye; if feelings, void of art,
Rouze the quick paffions, and inflame the heart;
If mufick fweetly breathing from the tongue,
Captives the ear, Bride must not pass unfung.

When fear, which rank ill-nature terms conceit,

By time and cuftom conquer'd, shall retreat;
When judgment, tutor'd by experience fage,
Shall fhoot abroad, and gather ftrength from age;
When Heav'n in mercy fhall the stage release
From the dull flumbers of a still-life piece;
When some stale flow'r, difgraceful to the walk,
Which long hath hung, tho' wither'd, on the stalk,
Shall kindly drop, then Bride fhall make her way,
And merit find a paffage to the day;

765

770

Brought into action, the at once shall raise,

Her own renown, and justify our praise.

Form'd for the tragick fcene, to grace the stage
With rival excellence of love and rage,
Mistress of each soft art, with matchless skill
To turn and wind the paffions as the will
To melt the heart with fympathetick woe,
Awake the figh, and teach the tear to flow;
To put on frenzy's wild diftracted glare,
And freeze the foul with horror and despair;
With just defert enroll'd in endless fame,
Conscious of worth fuperior, Cibber came.

775

780

785

When poor Alicia's madd'ning brains are rack'd,
And strongly imag'd griefs her mind distract,
Struck with her grief, I catch the madness too,

My brain turns round, the headless trunk I view !

790

The roof cracks, shakes, and falls !-new horrors rise,

And Reafon bury'd in the ruin lies.

Nobly difdainful of each flavish art,

She makes her first attack upon the heart;

Pleas'd with the fummons, it receives her laws,

795

And all is filence, fympathy, applaufe.

F.

But