For tho' good-natur'd all your life.
Averfe to calumny and strife,
Yet Satire's fting you can impart,
Tho' oft good-nature hides the dart:
On thiftles thus foft down we spy,
Yet underneath fharp prickles lie,
In vain the Freeman aid shall bring,
"You're not a bee without a fting;" (p)
Tho' wifely ev'ry sweet you cull,
Of which your apothegms are full. (q)

Your

now living; fuch as the late Duke of Newcastle, Mr. Glover, the late Alderman Beckford, Mr. Langford the auctioneer, Mr. Peter Taylor, and the Rev. Mr. Whitfield. He loft his leg by a providential fall from his horse, in company with his late Royal Highness the Duke of York, at the feat of the Earl of Mexborough, he was taken up much bruifed, and the amputation was performed by Surgeon Bromfield.

(p) "You're not a bee without a fting."]-There is a peculiar felicity (as I am told) in this comparifon of Howard unto a bee, although the Epistle fayeth that he is not a bee," for whereas a bee never resteth upon one bud or flower, but flyeth about in wandering and uncertain angles, from fhrub to fhrub, and from Hollyhock to poppy, and never is content until his bags be filled: fo Howard hath amaffed an ample fortune by different occupations; and alfo hath compleated a volume of apothegms, from the divers rich fpoils of learning which he hath happened to encounter in his poring over books, many of which he hath had accefs to in my fhop in Parliament-street.

(q) Of which your apothegms are full.-Some of the greatest geniufes of antiquity, and the moderns,

Your verse the Irish (r) SHAMROCK faves,
You ftamp your genius on its leaves:

St.

have taken particular delight in collecting all the wife fayings, and brilliant proverbs of the cute obfervers upon men, manners, and things-an excellent collection of this fort is to be found in one of the laft pages of Boyer's French Gentleman's Grammar. But I am informed that the Lord Bacon, Baron Verulam, Viscount St. Albins, and Plutarch, have been more induftrious in this way than any of their cotemporaries, the moderns. Howard, in imitation of these fupernatural wits, is also the author of a compilation of an octavo volume, under the title of Howard's Apothegms, collected from Bacon, Plutarch, Sir John Fielding, Julius Cæfar, The Wit's Vade Mecum, Solon, a Christmas Box for Young Ladies, Taylor's Holy Living and Dying, and the Buck's Companion.

(r) Your verfe the Irish SHAMROCK faves.]This most certainly meaneth the multifarious collection of poems, printed in a thick volume in quarto, at the inftigation of Mr. White, the writingmafter, in Grafton-ftreet, by fubfcription, for his benefit, which confifteth of his pupils, their fathers, grand-mothers, aunts, parents, coufins and other kindred, whofe names are made public for the encouragement of the work.-Said Mr. White further, teacheth, and inftructeth, young mafters, miffes, and other children who are come to their full growth, in the Whole Circle of the Sciences, fuch as Salmon's Gazetteer, aftronomy, the whole fecret of fpelling made eafy to the meanest capacities, the use of their letters to those who cannot read, geography, the true meaning of the globes, history and other branches of the mathematics.The big book of Madregals which he published he ftyleth the SHAMROCK, it being compofed of the

choiceft

St. Patrick with a gracious fmile,
Beholds thee poet of his ifle,

In

choiceft pieces of wit and humour which ever appeared, and doth great honour to the geniuses of this kingdom, it having been wrote altogether by Irishmen, ladies, and other lords of quality fince the revolution.-Here followeth two of the most admired verses in the whole production, one being An Epigram on" a lady employed in the office of blowing a turf fire with her petty coat, for want of a pair of bellows." And the other on faid lady, "who was fo difaftrous as to fpill a difh of tea upon her apron." Which will do for a fample of the reft, they being equal, if not fuperior, to any of the foregoing, or those inferted after.

EPIGRAM. On a cup of tea, spilt in a lady's lap.

Mourn not, AMIRA, that to love's abode The warm adventurous ftream prefumed to prefs. Not chance, but fome unfeen admiring God In rapturous ardour fought the sweet recefs : Nor doubt what Deity, fo greatly bold In form unufual thus fhould vifit thee ;

The God, who ravish'd in a fhower of gold Can charm the fair one in IMPERIAL TEA!

EPIGRAM. To a young lady blowing a turf-fire with her petticoat.

Ceafe, ceafe, AMIRA, peerless maid!
Though we delighted gaze,

While artless you excite the flame

We perish in the blaze.

Haply you too provoke your harm
Forgive the bold remark,

Your petticoat may fan the fire
But, O, beware a SPARK.

In bufkin'd dignity you shine,

And

In the fame ftyle and form, and I think more ftinging, I made an Epigram on my Nephew Tom Todd, (which Mr. White promiseth to infert in his next edition of the Shamrock) who is always ftirring and rooting the fire because he thinks he never can be hot enough, fince he was fun-burnt in the Eaft-Indies, it being there dog-days all the year over fummer and winter, as it is with us in the dog-days in Auguft.-Tom Todd, fays I, extempore, You put me to a great fupernumery expence in COALS, which costs me a great deal of COLE.-COLE is cant word among my news-boys and other blackguards, for cash, pounds, fhillings, pence and farthings. This I have briefly expreffed in my excellent Epigram, which is as followeth.

Tom Todd the fire always prokes,
For he's a hearty foul;

His unkle cannot SLACK his jokes,
But always pays the COLE.

a

Mr. Howard was very much enraged because Mr. White did not print fome of his anagrams and acroftics in the body of the work, though he had no juft pretenfion thereto, he not having been one of Mr. White's pupils, nor a subscriber to his book, who to pacify his rage made an Appendix to make room for him.-N. B. The SHAMROCK is a green herb, which groweth and flourisheth among the grafs, in our pleasure gardens and in the open fields on St. Patrick's birth-day, which commonly happeneth on the 17th day of March, and is worn by moft people at home and abroad, especially at court in croffes in honour of the Saint, who was the firft christian bishop of Armagh, and converted the poor infatuated natives of this country from the errors of the church of Rome, by the help of the Shanirock as faid White observeth.-He likewise banish

ed

And prove your claim to Norfolk's line; (f)
That line which pull'd fanatics down,
And always prop'd the church and crown. (s)
You prove what riches tillage yields, (t)
And fmiling plenty crowns our fields;

Sure

ed toads, ferpents, frogs, fnakes, wolves, bears, nightingales, and other venemous creatures, but was pleased to leave us crabs, lobsters, rabbits and other fea fowl.-The common people most commonly get drunk on this day with whiskey, which occafioneth much fighting, quarrelling, maiming, bruifing, bad language, and other accidents.

(f) And prove your claim to Norfolk's line.]-The Duke of Norfolk's name is Howard, from which Gorges Howard is descended in a straight line, his ancestor being the Hon. Mr. Edward Howard, who was alfo reputed a great dunce in the reign of King Charles the IId. and composed several plays and tragedies, such as the British Princes, King Arthur, &c. which fuffered much abuse and provocation, from the witty noblemen of the day, being the Earl of Dorfet, Mr. Dryden, Lord Rochefter, Mr. Butler author of Hudibras, the Duke of Buckingham and others.

(s) And always prop'd the church and crown.]Mr. Howard is church-warden of Mary's church, and was employed as an attorney by the Rev. Mr. Mofes Magill, the curate of the parish to speak against the Prefbyterians, who refused to pay faid Mofes for disturbing them with prayers early in the morning at an unfeasonable hour, though they never attended divine fervice; which Mr. Howard did, to the univerfal fatisfaction of all his parishoners at a veftry. He is likewife folicitor to the crown, for the quit rents, cafual revenue, and other forfeited eftates.

(t) You prove what riches tillage yields.]-Howard