No tear falls down her cheek; her eyes are fix'd And almost of a piece. Of this tragedy we shall only add, that if Dr. Delap had been affifted by a good critic at the rehearsal, the fault in the plot, that occafioned the downfal of his play, might have been avoided. A Garrick would have ensured fuccess. The prologue and epilogue are both the production of Thomas Vaughan, Efq. In the former he does not seem to have exerted his talents. He thought it, perhaps, one of thofe pieces that might depend upon the execution of a comic actor. The epilogue, fpoken by Mrs. Siddons, feems to be written com amore: It is an allegory well imagined, and in every line confiftent; the expreffion is neat, and the whole fo finished, that we shall prefent it to our readers : At length our bark has reached the wifh'd-for fhore, • Dangers indeed-for who, in times like these, Critics, like monfters, on each fide appear, To feize, to burn, to fink, and to deftroy. • What wond'rous chance our author should furvive, But fond Ambition led the bard along, Your partial favour ftill may fwell his fails, Though Though peppered with fmall fhot, and tempeft tofs'd, M...y ART. XIII. A Political Index to the Hiftories of Great Britain and T HE induftrious compiler of this ufeful work informs us, in his preface, that it is the refult of many years inquiry; that he profecuted it, at firft, without any view to publication, but merely for his own private fatisfaction, being naturally cu rious and inquifitive on fubjects of this kind: and deeming it likewife interefting to fociety. In the course of his refearches, he tells us (and the refpect able character of the Author entitles him to an unlimited credit for whatever he afferts), that he was enabled to detect a variety of mistakes, and to correct many errors that have been published, respecting the peerage, the great officers of frate, the law, naval and military officers, &c. And thefe miftakes and errors having, unfortunately, happened in works of the first merit, which ftand high in the estimation of the world, and which are often confulted and referred to, they have been, confequently, fixed and established, in too many inftances. In most of the Hiftories of Great Britain, fays Mr. Beatfon, and in particular the parliamentary hiftories, when a nobleman may be the fubject etner of panegyric or cenfure, he is only mentioned by his title, and the reader is left in doubt, where titles have fo frequently fluctuated from one family to another, to know the individual meant to be the object of condemnation or applaufe. In like manner, the officers of ftate, of the houfhold, of the Iw, &c. are feldom mentioned in hiftory, but by the name of the office they hold; by which means, in such a rapid fuc cfion of different perfons to the fame office, the individual is lost among the multitudes who have held the appointment. We are further informed, that the fatisfaction which his inquiries afforded him in one branch, induced him to extend them o others; that as he daily experienced their utility himself, he was enabled to rectify the information of his friends, on fuch bjects as he had examined; and that (encouraged by them to proceed) he was led to hope, that his labours might in time produce a very useful publication. Accordingly he has, at length, been induced to offer to the Palic a work, the objects of which are, in the first place, to f a fort of political index to the hiftories of Great Britain and Ireland, where the individuals may be found, and their rank and political connections traced, whofe meafures may be the fubject of hiftorical information: fecondly, to fupply a correct regifter of the great and refpectable body of the peerage of each of the kingdoms, from their original creation; afcertaining and explaining their rife to higher dignities,-when their titles were transferred into other families, when forfeited, or when extinct lastly, to arrange the other numerous official lifts, which the Author has been at great pains to render correct, from the earlieft to the lateft periods, in fuch a manner as, by reference from one to another, to elucidate to the reader of modern hiftory, the æra of every fucceffive adminiftration, and to prefent to his view, the whole group of perfons acting in conjunction with the oftenfible minifter.' With refpect to his materials, the Author profeffes his obligations to Sir W. Dugdale's Summonses to Parliament, to the Hiftorical Regifter, and to a variety of Chronicles and Peerages; and he concludes his preface with an handsome acknowlegement of the very large and respectable subscription with which he has been honoured.'-By way of dedication, his work is inscribed to the learned and ingenious Dr. Adam Smith, whofe approbation of his labours was, it appears, one of his ens couragements to offer the fruit of them to the Public. To those who only read for amufement, a publication of this kind will, perhaps, appear to be a dry, uninviting compilement. It is, indeed, not a work for continued reading, but for reference, and occafional confultation; in which light it will, we doubt not, be found a useful library book. But having faid this, we may,. however, observe, and it will be no more than bare juftice to the Author, that many of his pages are calculated to afford confiderable entertainment, as well as valuable information. We' here have an eye to his details and defcriptions of the nature, importance, duties, and utility of the great departments of govern ment, the law-offices, &c. his explanations of the different degrees of nobility, baronets, ecclefiaftical dignitaries, &c. and his view of the archbishoprics, bishoprics, &c. &c. In bis ac count of the admirals and captains of the navy, mention is made of all the confiderable engagements at fea; in which every English reader will find himself more or lefs interefted. In the divifion comprehending the military department, the fate of every general officer killed in any action, or who otherwife fell * in the fervice of his country, is duly recorded. The hiftory of the orders of the Garter, Thiftle, Bath, and St. Patrick, is another entertaining part of the work; and though not very Under this head' accidents are noticed: for inftance, "Lieutenant General STANWIX drowned in 1766, in his passage from Ireland 10 England." REV. July 1786. F new, new, as to matter of information, would naturally have been expected in fuch a compilation. In brief, the Public are certainly obliged to the Author, for the compilement and publication of fo useful a work: a work produced at the expence of much time and great labour, and (we believe) executed with ftrict fidelity. With refpect to its accuracy, indeed, we can only fpeak on prefumption, from appearances: for it cannot be expected that we should take upon us to examine this very large volume, with minuteness, and particular attention to dates, fucceffions, and the vast variety of other particulars contained in a production of this multifarious kind, G. MONTHLY CATALOGUE, For JULY, 1786. DRAMATIC. Art. 14. The Fool; a Farce. In two Acts. As performed at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden. By Edward Topham, Efq. 8vo. is. Strahan, in the Strand. 1786. TH HIS farce is dedicated by the Author to Mrs. Wells, from whofe invention the happiest parts of the piece are said to have fprung. That the publication of it will give that prolonged life which the Author promifes himself, we cannot venture to pronounce. It seems to be a trifle written to oblige a favourite actress, who, we may conjecture, thinks that fhe plays the fool with a becoming grace. A Fool, therefore, was to be introduced at all events; and Laura, lately married to Beaufort, in Portugal, is made to pafs herself upon her husband for an ideot, and for this notable reason, because in the hours of courtship Beaufort told her, that an excess of fondness was preferable even to better fenfe in the character of a wife. An Abbé comes over in the fame fhip, and wants to feduce her affections; but no humour arifes from his character. Pepper, her godfather, happens to be at Brighton, and is aftonished to find that she is a fool. Pepper goes into a bathing machine with a fervant maid; but this incident has the luck of being indecent, without producing, or even tending to, any thing like the vis comica. The dialogue is in a few places Jively, but the whole is of little value. The prologue, by M. P. Andrews, Efq. is not void of merit. M.. Art. 15. The Bum-brusher; a Farce. Intended to be translated into Latin, and performed before the Masters and Fellows of Colleges in Cambridge. 8vo. 1s. Bell. 1686. An attempt, as it should feem, under the name of Dr. Rhombus, a inathematician, to ridicule fome private character at Cambridge. But the Author is not a mafter of ridicule. The whole pleafantry confifts in the marriage of the Doctor (whoever he be) with Mrs. Loveman, who thinks and talks in the true fpirit of a widow. Upon a fubject of delicacy her language is coarfe, and her meaning too plain. The piece is dedicated to Mr. Colman; but that gentleman, with with his ufual judgment, leaves it to be acted before the University of Cambridge. MArt. 16. The Peruvian; a Comic Opera ; in three Acts. As y performed at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden. By a Lady. The Mufic chiefly compofed by Mr. Hook. 8vo. 1s. 6d. Bell. 1786. As this piece is founded on Marmontel's tale of Coralie, cu L'Amitié a L'Epreuve, it were needlefs to prefent the fable in detail. It will be fufficient to obferve that Coraly (which by the way is an illchofen name for the English style) is in love with Belville: for the fake of his peace and the tranquillity of his family, fhe is going to embark for Peru, her native country, when BLANDFORD, just returned from a voyage, lands on the beach. In the courfe of the dialogue it appears that Blandford had left Coraly in the care of his friend Belville, with intent, on his return from fea, to make her his wife. Belville has beheld her charms with fenfibility, but love itfelf could not prevail upon him to do what might be deemed a violation of friendship. He refigns his truft, and with an aching heart confents to fee the perfon, whom he loves to an excess of tenderness, wedded to Blandford. The diftrefs of Coraly, upon this occafion, is interesting, and even pathetic. Her fentiments are elegant, and expreffed with delicacy. She acknowledges her obligations to Blandford; he was her deliverer, the guardian of her innocence; but she adds, "I reverence him as a parent: I refpect Blandford-but I love Belville." she tells the latter, "I am refolved not to deceive: were I to give my hand to Blandford, my heart would ftill be your's." Belville argues against himself, and the thought of having robbed his friend of her affections fills him with horror. Her answer is the language of the heart: "What (fays fhe) have you robbed him of? My heart was free, and I had a right to difpofe of it. Blandford never won it by fuch delicate attention as your's. His generous kindnefs to me was ever STRIKING, but your's was INTERESTING. He is all GOODNESS, you all GRACIOUSNESS." Notwithstanding this avowal of her affections, the yields to the perfuafive reafoning of the man the loves, and is at length upon the point of giving her hand to Blandford. Here the fable takes an unexpected turn. Blandford finds that her heart is fixed upon Belville. In this fituation, with a generofity that graces his character, he renounces his pretenfions in favour of his friend. The comic characters of Sir Gregory Craveall and Sir Harry Cripplegait give no additional beauty to the piece. The truth is, buffoonery ill fuits with that vein of delicacy which runs through every part of the fable that relates to the amiable Coraly. The fongs, in general, grow out of the occafion, and many of them are written with taste and delicacy of fentiment. M y Art. 17. An Effay on the Pre-eminence of Comic Genius. With Obfervations on the feveral Characters Mrs. Jordan has appeared in. Small 8vo. IS Becket., 1786. The Public never fuffers eminent merit to be without a rival. The maxim is of antient date, and the experience of ages has proved it to be founded in truth. We do not, therefore, wonder at an attempt to place Mrs. Jordan in competition with Mrs. Siddons. The F 2 Author |