Of a' the Bairns, and led thee by the Hand,
Aft to the Tanfy-know or rafhy Strand;
Thou fmiling by my Side--I took Delyte

To pou the Rafhes green, with Roots fae whyte,
Of which, as well as my young Fancy cou'd,
For thee I plet the flow ry Belt and Snood.

Peggy:

When firft thou gade with Shepherds to the Hill,
And I to milk the Ews firft try'd my Skill,
To bear a Leglen was nae Toil to me,
When at the Bought at Even I met with thee.

Patie.

When Corns grew yellow, and the Hether Bells
Bloom'd bonny on the Moor and rifing Fells,
Nae Birns, or Briers, or Whins e'er troubled me;
Gif I could find blae Berries ripe for thee.

Peggy.

When thou didft wrestle, run, or putt the Stane,
And wan the Day, my Heart was flightering fain
At all these Sports thou ftill gave Joy to me;
For nane can wrestle, run, or putt with thee.

Patie.

Jenny fings faft the Broom of Cowden Knows,
And Rofie lilts the Milking of the Ews;
There' nane, like Nanfte, Jenny Nettles fings:
At Turns in Moggy Lawder, Marion dings:
But when my Peggy fings with fweeter Skill
The Boatman, or the Lafs of Patie's Mill;
It is a thoufand Times mair fweet to me,
Tho' they fing well they canna fing like thee.

There is fome fine Moral couch'd under almoft every Speech in the whole Paftoral, and I well with

that

Garland.

that Mr. Pope, who lov'd it fo much, had mark'd out thofe Paffages that pleas'd him beft, whereas we find no Notice but of two Places, difcourfing to a Gentleman at two different Times, when (peaking of those Poets who had wrote for and againft the Marriage State, he mentioned Milton and the northern Dramatift together. Milton fays Hail, and in a folemn Manner addreffes himself to wedded Love, but Mr. Ramfay was only to tune a Reed:

But we'll grow auld togither, and ne'er find The Lofs of Youth, when Love grows on the Mind: Bairns and their Bairns make fure a firmer Tye, Than aught in Love the like of us can spy. See yon twa Elms that grow up Side by Side; [Bride: Suppose them for fome Years fyne Bridegroom and Nearer and nearer ilk a Year they've preft, Till wide their spreading Branches are encreas' And in their Mixture now are fully bleft. This fhields the other frae the Eaftlin Blaft, That in return defends it frae the West. Sic as ftand fingle (a State fo lik'd by you!) Beneath ilk Storm frae every Airth maun bow.

}

This in the Mouth of a young Girl under Promife of Marriage, to one pretending to admire a fingle Life, founds very fweetly.

The other Paffage, which Mr. Pope to the fame Gentleman one Day pointed out, was where the Gentle Shepherd and his Miftrefs exchange Vows:

Speak on!--speak ever thus, and ftill my Grief, But fhort I dare to hope the fond Relief. New Thoughts a gentler Face will foon infpire, That with nice Air fwims round in filk Attire;

M 4

Then

Then I! Poor me !--With Sighs may ban my Fate,
When the young Laird's nae mair my heartfome
Nae mair again to hear fweet Tales expreft, [Pate.
By the blyth Shepherd that excell'd the reft:
Nae mair be envied by the tatling Gang,
When Patte kifs'd me, when I danc'd or fang:
Nae mair, alake! we'll on the Meadow play!
And rin half breathlefs round the Rucks of Hay,
As aftimes I have fled from thee right fain,
And fawn on Purpofe that I might be tane.
Nae mair around the Foggy-Know I'll creep,
To watch and ftare upon thee, while asleep.
But hear my Vow--'twill help to give me Ease,
May fudden Death, or deadly fair Disease,
And warft of Ills attend my wretched Life,
If e'er to ane but you I be a Wife.

Patie.

>

Sure Heav'n approves-and be affur'd of me,
I'll ne'er gang back of what I've fworn to thee:
And Time, tho' Time maun interpose a while,
And I maun leave my Peggy and this Ifle;
Yet Time, nor Distance, nor the fairest Face,
If there's a fairer, e'er fhall fill thy Place.
I'd hate my rifing Fortune, fhould it move
The fair Foundation of our faithful Love.
If at my Foot were Crowns and Sceptres laid,
To bribe my Soul frae thee, delightful Maid;
For thee I'd foon leave thefe inferior Things
To fic as have the Patience to be Kings.

And right worthy Mr. Pope's Approbation it was, and that of all Judges.

Surely if our Youth of folid Learning, good Tafte, and rifing Genius, would attend to the Study of this Paftoral, we should not be long without a paftoral Co

Comedy on this Side of our land. The Subject not worn out, pleafing to every Body, and the Glory certain (if worthily compos'd) to be rank'd with Taffo, Guarini, and our own Countryman, of no lefs Merit: If any Author should hereby be excited to fuch an Attempt, we give as our beft Council, to omit the little Prologues to each Scene, which seem to us not at all neceflary, and rather pall our Curiosity than otherway.

Great was the Expectation of the Town, that Mr. Pope would have fet a Hand to this Work; if he had, he declares it should have been on the Plan of Taffo, whom he fets up a great Way above Guarini, which we cannot fo well do, except in the Singlenefs and Simplicity of the Plot; they are easily compar'd, and every Reader may judge for himself. Taffo's Sylvia is a very young Shepherdefs, who will by no Means be brought to love, to which Daphne, an older and much more experienc'd, would fain perfwade her. The Scene is abundantly prais'd by Mr. Pope; Daphne, after many other Arguments, urges these :

น

Daphne.

Tygers, Lions, Beafts of Prey, Love finds Harbour in their Breast; :; Thou more favage yet than they, To refuse so kind a Gueft.

Lions, Tygers, Beafts of Prey, Strong Senfations all have thefe ;

Great and ftranger Truths to fay, Love has reach'd to Plants and Trees.

-How the Vine does twine and cling! Not a Tree that fills this Grove,

Could, or Beach, or Firr-tree, bring, Without propagating Love.

That

That tall Oak that lifts its Head,
Has its fympathetick Pow'rs;
Different Paths in Love we tread,
They have their's and we have of our's.
Has thy Spirit fuch Allay,

Not to join with Truths like thefe;
Thou haft thrown all Senfe away,
Thou haft lefs than Plants and Trees.

Ah! change thy Carriage, change thy Heart;
Late Repentance caufes Smart;
What a filly Girl thou art.

5

If

Which Way of reafoning, Silvia by no Means feems to comprehend; and makes her, in a careless and infenfible Manner, the following Reppartee:

.

When Sighs from Plants and Trees fhall reach my Amintas then may speak, and I fhall hear. [Ear, Which angers Daphne fo, that the can no longer bear she with this Over-coynefs of Silvia to a Loyer, who, in the Efteem of Daphne, has altogether as much Merit as fhe; infomuch, that she leaves off perfwa*ding of her, and begins to threaten her with Lofs of her Beauty unenjoy'd, and future Punifhment for her Barbarity, in fuch an artful Manner, as makes the young Shepherdefs not quite fo fevere; but notwithftanding this, after afking a Queftion, the flies from Daphne, as perceiving a little Irrefolution coming upon herself: The Scene is wonderful fine. Daphne makes Reply to the two Lines, which Silvia has proudly spoke above:

Foolish, deaf to all Advice,
Are my Reafons but a Jeft?

Thou hadit better hear them twice,
They are Rules might make thee bleft.