Mind all the poetical beauties of thefe verfes, Hẹ fuppofes the founds of the ftrings, when the touches them to be the expreffion of their joy for kiffing her fingers. Then he compares the trembling of the frings to the trembling of a lover, who is fuppofed to tremble with joy and awe when touched by the perfon he loves. He reprefents Love (who, you know, is defcribed as a little boy, with a bow, arrows, and a quiver) as ftanding by her, and shooting his arrows at people's hearts, while her mufic foftens and difarms them. Then he concludes with that fine fimile of Nero, a very cruel Roman emperor, who fet Rome on fire, and played on the harp all the while it was burning; for, as Love is reprefented by the poets as fire and flames; fo fhe, while people were burning for love of her, played, as Nero did while Rome, which he had fet on fife, was burning. Pray get thefe verfes by heart against I fee you. Adieu! MY DEAR CHILD, LETTER X. Bath, October the 29th, MODESTY is a very good quality, and which gen crally accompanies true merit; it cngages and captivates the minds of people; as, on the other hand, nothing is more fhocking and difguftful than prefumption and impudence. We cannot like a man who is always commending and fpeaking well of himself, and who is the hero of his own ftory. On the contrary, a man who endeavours to conceal his own merit; who fets that of other people in its true light; who fpeaks but little of himself, and with modefty: Such a man makes a favourable impreffion upon the underftanding of his hearers, and acquires their love and efteem. There is, however, a great difference between modety and an awkward bathfulness, which is as ridiculous as true modefty is commendable. It is as abfurd to be a fimpleton as to be an impudent fellow; and or ought to know how to come into a room, fpeak to people, and anfwer them, without being out of counte nance, or without embarrafiment. A mean fellow, or a country bumpkin, is afhamed when he comes into good company; he appears embarraffed, does not know what to do with his hands, is difconcerted when spoken to, anfwers with difficulty, and almost stammers. Whereas a gentleman, who is ufed to the world, comes into company with a graceful and proper affurance, fpeaks even to people he does not know without embarraffment, and in a natural and eafy manner.This is called ufage of the world and good breeding; a moft neceffary and important knowledge in the inter-. courfe of life. It frequently happens that a man with a great deal of fenfe, but with little ufage of the world, is not fo well received as one of inferior parts, but with a gentleman-like behaviour. There are matters worthy your attention; reflect on them, and unite modeft to a polite and eafy behaviour. Adieu ! DEAR SOY, LET ET us return to oratory, or the art of fpeaking well; which fhould never be entirely out of your thoughts, fince it is fo useful in every part of life, and fo abfolutely neceflary in moft. A man tan make no figure without it, in parliament, in the church, or in the law; and even in common converfation, a man that has acquired an eafy and habitual eloquence, who ipeaks properly and accurately, will have a great advantage over those who speak incorrectly and inelegantly. The business of oratory, as I have told you before, is to perfuade people; and you eafily feel, that to please people is a great ftep towards perfuading them. You must then, confeaxently, be fenfible how advantageous it is for a man, who fpeaks in public, whether it be in parliament, in the pulpit, or at the bar (that is, in the courts of law) to please his hearers fo much as to gain their attention; which he can never do without the help of oratory. It is not enough to fpeak the language he speaks in, in its utmoft purity, and according to the rules of grammar; but he muft fpeak it elegantly; that is, he must choose the best and most exprelive words, and put them in the beft order. He fhould likewife adorn what he fays by proper metaphors, fimilies, and other figures of rhetoric; and he fhould enliven it, if he can, by quick and sprightly turns of wit. For example, fuppofe you had a mind to perfuade Mr. Maittaire to give you a holiday, would you bluntly fay to him, Give me a holiday? That would certainly not be the way to perfuade him to it. But you fhould endeavour firft to pleafe him, and gain his attention by telling him, that your experience of his goodness and indulgence encouraged you to ask a favour of him; that, if he should not think proper to grant it, at leaft you hoped he would not take it ill that you afked it. Then you fhould tell him what it was that you wanted; that it was a holiday; for which you should give your reafons; as, that you had fuch or fuch a thing to do, or fuch a place to go to. might urge fome arguments why he fhould not refufe you; as, that you have feldom afked that fayour, and that you feldom will; and that the mind may fometimes require a little reft from labour, as well as the body. This you may illuftrate by a fimile, and fay, that, as the bow is the ftronger for being fometimes unftrung and unbent, fo the mind will be capable of more attention for being now and then easy and Then relaxed. This is a little oration, fit for fuch a little orator as you; but, however, it will make you understand what is meant by oratory and eloquence; which is to perfuade. I hope you will have that talent hereafter in greater matters. DEAR BOY, LETTER XII. Poetry and Metre. Tunbridge, July the 19th. SINCE you are fo ready at the measure of Greek and Latin verfes, as Mr. Maittaire writes me word you are, he will poffibly, before it is very long, try your invention a little, and fet you to make fome of your own compofition; you should therefore begin to confider not only the measure of the verfes you read, but likewife the thoughts of the poet, and the fimilies, metaphors, and allufions, which are the ornaments of poetry, and raise it above the profe; and diftinguish it from profe as much as the measure does. This attentionto the thoughts and diction of other poets will fuggeft both matter, and the manner of expreffing it, to you, when you come to invent yourself. Thoughts are the fame in every language, and a good thought in one language is a good one in every other; thus, if you attend to the thoughts and images in French or Eng -lith poetry, they will be of use to you when you com-pofe in Latin or Greek. I have met lately with a very pretty copy of English verfes, which I here fend you to learn by heart; but firft, I will give you the thought. in profe, that you may obferve how it is expreffed, and adorned by poetical diction. The poet tells his miftrefs, Florella, that he is fo 1 unkind to him, fhe will not even fuffer him to look at Ther; that, to avoid her cruelty, he addreffes himself to other women who receive him kindly; but that, notwithstanding this, his heart always returns to her, ihough the ufes him fo ill; and then he concludes with this beautiful and apt fimilie, in which he comtares his fate to that of exiles (that is, people who are fanifhed from their own country) who, though they yire pitied in whatever country they go to, yet long to eturn to their own, where they are fure to be used ill, yind punished. Why will Florella, when I gaze, And hide from them the only face To fhun her fcorn, and cafe my care, But O! how faint is every joy, So reftlefs exiles, doom'd to roam, Yet languish for their native home, Though death attends them there. The fimilie. You will obferve that thefe verfes have alternate rhymes; that is, the third line rhymes to the firft, and the fourth line to the fecond; the firft and third lines having four feet each; and the fecond and fourth having but three feet each. A foot, in English verfe, is moft commonly two fyllables. To use your ear a little to English verfe, and to make you attend to the fenfe too, I have tranfpofed the words of the following lines; which I would have you put in their proper order, and fend me in your next. Life confider cheat a when tis all I Hope with fool'd, deceit men yet with favour Hope new fome poffeis'd cuts off with we what. LETTER XIII. Adieu ! DEAK BOY, Poetical Licences. Tunbridge, Auguft the 14th, I AM very glad to hear from Mr. Maittaire, that you are fo ready at fcanning both Greek and Latin verfes; but I hope you mind the fenfe of the words, as well as the quantities. The great advantage of knowing many languages, confifts in understanding the fenfe of thofe nations, and authors, who fpeak and write thofe languages; but not being able to repeat the words like a parrot, without knowing their true force |