"armed yourself with your double con 66 caves, you shall see, in the piece be"fore you, first of all, come in, as in Mu"sic---the Subject; which is afterwards "to come in, as the Return. This sub"ject you shall see to be taken from the "department of Love; viz. " the pain "of parting;" which subject, Beattie, if you find him in the humour, will pour 66 66 66 away to you, with his usual sensibili"ty mutatis mutandis, in the charac"ter of Polly Peachum. Well then, the subject drawing to a close, you shall "see us nick the time, and prepare the "last cadence, so as to lead in what seems to be a new subject, but is no 66 66 thing but a modification of the old "this is the first departure; which must "be so managed as to preserve, at the "close of it, a ready lead in to the re Beggar's Opera. "Oh what pain it is to part," &c. "turn,-which now makes its appear"ance again,-shews away a little,-and "then---leads off to the second depar"ture. This must be, at once, a diver"sification of the subject, and of the first 66 departure; it may contain a more la;-it "boured air, and greater changes of key; σε or, &c.—we must not, however, keep "long upon it: for lo! cometh the Re“ turn anew ;---then, lead we off to the "third departure, with a very learned " modulation, plying in so, at the end, 66 66 however, as to admit the Return, a "fourth time. Now for the great trial "of skill, in leading off to the last de"parture, which is to be a MINORE; and "must, if it is to be worth a farthing, "be connected, at the expence of some 66 pains, with the closing cadence of the "Return that precedes it. Then warble 66 away at the minore itself; which must 66 repay the favour, and make way, cour 66 66 on teously, for the said Return; which Re"turn now comes in, once more, to claim her first occupancy, and remain "mistress of the premises. Thus far Theory,---now enter Practice." 66 POETICAL RONDEAU. First to love, and then to part,— Leave, and lose it-oh! the pain ! Some have loved, and loved (they say) away; Some have loved, to pass the time; Some have just but felt the flame, But, when once the potent dart, Late to find it,—and, again, Leave, and lose it-oh! the pain! . "Nous voilà----and now for my friend "Bentley, to do me off nicely the de H "vice; being two faithful hearts, that "shall appear both two and one; so 66 66 closely seem they hasped together with "a true love dart: the barb holding fast "the one, and the grey goose wing that "is thereon' the other. Take notice, 66 though---the other is the female heart : "take notice of the emblem, too. It is 66 66 only kept on by the feather. A light puff will make it slip off." Thus far the letter, and its illustration. To him who is not an adept in any art, it is a matter of difficulty to ascertain whether he has apprehended aright the import of the technical terms and phrases used in the language of that art. But, if I have attained a proper conception of what is aimed at in the levity now inserted, the idea itself is not so novel, as the manner of stating it seems to make it. Of the ancient Dithyrambick Odes, whose chief excellence seems to have been their obscurity and affectation, (qualities in which they might find ma |