Perhaps a mother's anguish adds its woe; Oft as by winding Nith, I musing, wait The sober eve, or hail the cheerful dawn, I'll miss thee sporting o'er the dewy lawn, And curse the ruthless wretch, and mourn thy hapless fate. I Let me know how you like my poem. am doubtful whether it would not be an improvement to keep out the last stanza but one altogether. C― is a glorious production of the author of man. You, he, and the noble Colonel of the "Dear as the ruddy drops which warm my breast." I have a good mind to make verses on you all, to the tune of "Three gude fellows ayont the glen." No. No. LXXIV. THE poem in the preceding letter had also been sent by our Bard to Dr. Gregory for his criticism. The folowing is that gentleman's reply. From DR. GREGORY, Edinburgh, 2d June, 1789. DEAR SIR, I TAKE the first leisure hour I could command, to thank you for your letter, and the copy of verses inclosed in it. As there is real poetic merit, I mean both fancy and tenderness, and some happy expressions, in them, I think they will deserve that you should revise them carefully, and polish them to the utmost. This I am sure you can do if you please, for you you have great command both of expression and of rhymes: and you may judge from the two last pieces of Mrs. Hunter's poetry, that I gave you, how much correctness and high polish enhance the value of such compositions. As you desire it, I shall, with great freedom, give you my most rigorous criticisms on your verses. I wish you would give me another edition of them, much amended, and I will send it to Mrs. Hunter, who I am sure will have much pleasure in reading it. Pray give me likewise for myself, and her too, a copy (as much amended as you please) of the Water Fowl on Loch Turit. The Wounded Hare is a pretty good subject; but the measure or stanza you have chosen for it, is not a good one; is does not flow well; and the rhyme of the fourth line is almost lost by its distance from the first, and the two interposed, close rhymes. If I were you, I would put it into a different stanza yet. Stanza 1. The execrations in the first two lines are too strong or coarse; but they may pass. Murder-aiming" is a bad compound epithet, and not very intelligible. "Bloodstained," in stanza iii. line 4, has the same fault: Bleeding bosom is infinitely better. You have accustomed accustomed yourself to such epithets, and have no notion how stiff and quaint they appear to others, and how incongruous with poetic fancy and tender sentiments. Suppose Pope had written, "Why that blood-stained bosom gored," how would you have liked it? Form is neither a poetic, nor a dignified, nor a plain common word: it is a mere sportman's word; unsuitable to pathetic or serious poetry. 66 Mangled" is a coarse word. "Innocent," in this scene, is a nursery word but both may pass. Stanza 4. "Who will now provide that life a mother only can bestow?" will not do at all: it is not grammar-it is not intelligible. Do you mean," provide for that life which the mother had bestowed and used to provide for ?" There was a ridiculous slip of the pen, "Feeling" (I suppose) for "Fellow," in the title of your copy of verses: but even fellow would be wrong; it is but a colloquial and vulgar word, unsuitable to your sentiments. "Shot" is improper too.-On seeing a person (or sportsman) wound a hare; it is needless to add with what weapon: but if you think otherwise, otherwise, you should say, with a fowlingpiece. Let me see you when you come to town, and I will shew you some more of Mrs. Hunter's poems.* *It must be admitted, that this criticism is not more distinguished by its good sense, than by its freedom from ceremony. It is impossible not to smile at the manner in which the poet may be supposed to have received it. In fact it appears, as the sailors say, to have thrown him quite aback. In a letter which he wrote soon after, he says, "Dr G- is a good man, but he crucifies me.". And again, “I believe in the iron justice of Dr. G— ; but, like the devils, "I believe and tremble." However, he profited by these criticisms, as the reader will find by comparing this first edition of the poem with that published, vol. iii. p. 335, E. No. |