Joys of my age! in true wisdom delight; LESSON CCXXXVII. AUGUST THE TWENTY-FIFTH. Chatterton. On this day, in 1770, expired, by poison administered by his own hand, Thomas Chatterton, whose early and extraordinary talents and tragical end have rendered him an object of much interest and curiosity. He went to London, in hopes of advancing his fortune by his pen, but was completely disappointed; on which, being reduced to the most extreme indigence, in a fit of despair he took the fatal dose. Chatterton is the supposed author of the poems published under the name of Rowley; concerning the authenticity of which, that is, whether they were really written by a person of that name, or were only, what they are now generally believed to be, the forgeries of Chatterton, there long existed a mighty controversy among the most able critics. On the death of Chatterton, Dyer has the following apostrophe: "O! Genius, art thou to be envied or pitied? Doomed to form expectations the most sanguine, and to meet with disappointments the most mortifying? To indulge towards others the most generous wishes, to receive thyself the most illiberal treatment? To be applauded, admired, and neglected? To be a friend to all, befriended often by none? O! thou creative, discriminating power, source of inexpressible delights, and nurse of unknown sensibilities, that perpetuate distress; Fancy shall embody thy form, and often visit the grave of Chatterton, to drop the tear of sympathy over that ingenious, unfriended, and unfortunate youth!" Chatterton was not eighteen years of age when he died. He was "No vulgar boy; THE COMBATS OF THE ALPHABET. 339 The neighbours stared and sigh'd, yet bless'd the lad; Some deem'd him wondrous wise, and some believed him mad." 1. Who expired on this day, in 1770 ? 2. Of what is Chatterton the supposed author? LESSON CCXXXVIII. -AUGUST THE TWENTY-SIXTH. The Combats of the Alphabet, or the Origin of A GREAT many years ago, in those days of learning which I fear are fled, like solemn visions never to return, a very violent warfare broke out among the letters which compose the English alphabet. Many very ingenious and fabulous accounts are given of the origin of this quarrel; and, if we had time and room, we should, in imitation of our comical brother historians, set our poor brains to work, and produce a number of marvellous tales which everybody will allow to be very pretty, though nobody will allow that they are very true. The grand foundation, then, of this contest originated in the partiality of many celebrated authors and orators of the day to particular and favourite letters, in expunging some, and thrusting others in violently by the head and shoulders, without the least apparent symptom of necessity or provocation. The injured letters thinking themselves a very respectable corps, rose, vi et armis, against this formidable attack on their credit and validity. The war I am about to describe will have an evident advantage over many other recorded contests. For instance, the war of Troy, the battles of the frogs and mice, and the combats of the cranes and the pigmies may (be it spoken with all due reverence) be termed poetical wars; now, my war is literal, in every sense of the word. In this contest, the ever-renowned great A was the most formidable leader of one party, and the truly magnanimous great H was the most distinguished hero in the ranks of the enemy. Both these warriors had suffered many hardships, having been most barbarously hacked and mangled by the different orators of the day: besides this, they were spurred on by daily and violent encroachments on the rights of each other. Their several partisans were equally violent and vindictive; each side contemptuously rejecting or adding its favourite or neglected letter. For instance, if the animal or building of their several names were to be mentioned, the enemy of H would talk of his orse, or his ouse, and so forth. In some particular circumstances, (as is pretty much the case among the leaders of all parties and factions,) there was a set of men who did not scruple to drop a small portion of their H-onesty. The admirers of H, equally vigilant on the other side, would always repair any loss or damage he sustained this way, by placing him before his antagonist, without rhyme or reason; they were resolved to have their H-oxen, their H-altars, and their H-ornaments. V and W stood exactly in the same predicament. They were subalterns in the two opposite factions, and, like two noisy little flies, were so fond of their finery, and so jealous of each other, that the whole army was pestered with their janglings. V, partial to himself, (as those in the army who have the least pretensions are most apt to be) was always asking W V-y he V-as so foolish as to compare with him, V-en he knew it V-as all in vain? W had his reply ready, and would often answer that it was W-ery W-exatious, but that W-irtue would W-anquish: that V was a W-ile W-arlet, and as sour as W-inegar. U, another inveterate enemy to great A, took every opportunity of stepping into his place, and perpetually talked of his veng-u-nce, and his defi-u-nce. U, during the whole war, continued to make stolen marches on the united troops of A and I, because he said he was cert-u-n they were two vill-u-ns. É and R, a couple of turbulent letters, like pert swaggerers as they were, whenever they could thrust their noses in any place, never had the good manners to wait for an invitation, and propriety was very much shocked at the improp-er-iety of their conduct. The modern orators, anxious as they were, with the aid of all the authors, to put an end to these perplexing disputes, instead of appeasing, added fresh fuel to the flames of discord; each letter insisting that he could produce an equal number of authorities in his favour, to those his antagonist boasted himself able to bring forward. The ladies divided their favours so impartially among them all, one day adopting one side, and changing their minds the next, that most learned philosophers were inadequate to name the parties they either countenanced or rejected. The more fashionable, the more were both sexes in confusion; but the critics increased that confusion into a confusion worse confounded." 66 Now, in describing this ever-memorable battle, it is essential that, like other heroic writers, I should inform my readers what was said and done by the gods and goddesses on this occasion. Well, then, the "immortals" began wrangling and fighting like so many imps; Envy, Malice, and Spleen were divided between both parties: Wisdom was for neither. Jove, weary of this jar about nothing, called a council of all the wits and critics in heaven. ; He flatly told the wits they were a pack of fools they murmured, but Truth, touching them with her wand, confirmed the decree. He pronounced the same sentence against the critics, who immediately began to revenge themselves by finding fault with his works, maintaining he knew nothing of what was the effect of his own invention; that light was darkness, and darkness light. Naturally enraged at this, Jove told them they were as pert as jackdaws, as vain as peacocks, and as stupid as owls. To which Truth cried, Amen! He then sentenced the rebellious critics to tear each other to pieces: they immediately fell eagerly to work, and have continued the practice to the present day. As for the contending letters, they were sent into banishment to various provinces, where they have remained ever since, and established a wide extended empire of provincial barbarism. 1. How did the literal war originate? 2. Who were the most formidable leaders in this contest ? 3. What did V ask W? and what was W's reply? 4. What was done with the contending letters ? LESSON CCXXXIX. AUGUST THE TWENTY-SEVENTH. James Thomson. On this day, in 1748, expired, at his favourite residence of Richmond, in Surrey, James Thomson, the charming "Poet of the Seasons." The reader of the "Seasons" wonders that he never saw before what Thomson shows him, and that he never yet has felt what Thomson impresses. His is one of the works in which blank verse seems properly used; Thomson's wide expansion of general views, and his enumeration of circumstantial varieties, would have been obstructed and embarrassed by the frequent interruptions of the sense, which are the necessary effects of rhyme. His descriptions of extended scenes and general effects bring before us the whole magnificence of nature, whether pleasing or dreadful. The gaiety of Spring, the splendour of Summer, the tranquillity of Autumn, and the horror of Winter, take in their turns possession of the mind. The poet leads us through the appearances of things as they are successively varied by the vicissitudes of the year, and imparts to us so much of his own enthusiasm, that our thoughts expand with his imagery, and kindle with his sentiments. "Ah, what avails the largest gifts of heaven, And exercise of health. In proof of this, While he whom toil has braced, or manly play, Yet what but high-strung health this dancing pleasure breeds?” An inexhaustible mine of ancient curiosities exists in the ruins of Herculaneum, a city lying between Naples and Mount Vesuvius, which, in the first years of the reign of Titus, was overwhelmed by a stream of lava from the neighbouring volcano. This lava is now of a consistency which renders it extremely difficult to be removed; being composed of bituminous particles, mixed with cinders, minerals, and vitrified substances, which all together form a close and ponderous mass. In the revolution of many ages, the spot it stood upon was entirely forgotten; but in the year 1713 it was accidentally discovered by some labourers, who in digging a well, struck upon a statue on the benches of the theatre. Several curiosities were dug out and sent to France, but the search was soon discontinued; and Herculaneum remained in obscurity till the year 1736, when the King of |