arrangement, the following plan was adopted as most correspondent with the editor's ideas. enige abdeavras Hom adf The first place is allotted to Pastoral Songs, and a few of those compositions termed Ballads, which, in their manner and subject, have the greatest affinity with the pieces composing the body of the collection. } Of Songs more properly so called, the first division consists of the Moral and Miscellaneous. Of the former of these, such have been chosen as inculcate a kind of calm and reasonable philosophy, not so severe as to be inconsistent with the cheerfulness of vocal music in society, and corresponding with some of the sober strains of the Horatian lyre. Avery scanty assortment of Convivial Songs succeeds, dedicated to the festak board, and imitating the gaiety and freedom of the Anacreontic lays. It was impossible possible altogether to omit a class so tiniversally received into Song-collections'; but as I feel no ambition to be regarded as a priest of Bacchus, I have limited my choice to a small specimen of those which have been inspired by wit and poetry, as well as by wine. The great bulk of the volume is com posed of Amatory Songs, which so much exceed all others in number, that Cupid may be regarded as the peculiar deity of song-writers. In these will be found every kind of expression of the passion of love,' and the circumstances attending it; with the exception of such as would give just offence to delicacy. It has already been intimated that there have been two prevailing manners of treating on this affec tion by the authors of these compositions -the passionate and descriptive, and the witty and ingenious. Yet as they are fre quently blended, so as to render it doubtful to to which class a piece could with most propriety be referred, no absolute division into two classes has been attempted, but they have been arranged on the general idea of proceeding from the purely passionate to the purely ingenious, leaving a large intermediate space for those of dubious or complex character. If I were to pronounce in what class of those compositions our English songwriters have displayed the greatest degree of excellence, I should say, in that which contains the tender and ardent expression of the amorous passion; and particularly in those which describe the symptoms and indications of love a topic originally derived from Sappho's celebrated ode, but dwelt upon with much additional detail of circumstances in several of the pieces here inserted. I am mistaken if more truth and delicacy of representation can be met with in the amatory poets of any d other 1 AN ESSAY ON SONG-WRITING. other language, ancient and modern; and it is pleasing to observe that many of the best specimens are distinguished by an air of sincerity and faithful attachment, equally remote from licentious heat and from frivolous gallantry. Notes have been occasionally annexed to particular compositions by way of critical remark or information. The assignment of pieces to their respective authors has been made as correctly as my inquiries would enable me to do it; but there are still some of disputable property, and too many, even of the best, entirely anony mous. I doubt not that every reader will be gratified by my concluding this Essay with the following piece from Mrs. Barbauld's Poems, addressed to me as the author of the work which was the predecessor of the present volume. THE ORIGIN OF SONG.WRITING. To vurm hol? 371 Illic Jic indocto primum se exercuit arcu; WHEN Cupid, wanton boy, was young, And hid his bow in wreaths of flowers; Of |