Its situation truly sweet! Although it stood in Prospect Row, "Twas luckily the corner house,

With a side-window and a bow:

Next to it was the Milk-man's yard, whose cows When there were neither grains, nor chaff to browse, Under the very casement stood to low.. That was a pleasant window altogether,

It raked the road a mile or more,

And when there was no dust or foggy weather,
The Monument you might explore,
And see, without a glass, the people
Walking round and round its steeple.

Across the road, half down a street,

You caught a field, with hoofs well beaten,

For cattle there were put to eat,

Till they were wanted to be eaten.

Then as for shops, want what you will,
You had'nt twenty steps to go,
There was a Butcher's in the row,

A Tallow Chandler's nearer still;

And as to stages by the door,

Besides the Patent Coach, or Dandy, There were the Mile-End, Stratford, Bow, A dozen in an hour or more,

One dust was never gone before

Another came :-'twas monstrous handy!

Behind, a strip of garden teem'd

With cabbages and kitchen shrubs,

"Twas a good crop when she redeem'd

Half from the worms, and slugs, and grubs.

Beyond these was a brick-kiln, small

But always smoking; she must needs

Confess she liked the smell, and all

Agreed 'twas good for invalids.

In town she always had a teasing
Tightness on her chest and weezing;

Here she was quite a different creature:

Well, let the worldly waste their health
Toiling in dirt and smoke for wealth,

Give her the country air, and nature!

Her cottage front was stuccoed white;
Before it two fine Poplars grew,
Which nearly reach'd the roof, or quite,
And in one corner, painted blue,

Stood a large water tub with wooden spout

(She never put a rag of washing out):

Upon the house-top, on a plaster shell,

"Rose Cottage" was inscribed, its name to dub ;

The green door look'd particularly well

Pick'd out with blue to match the tub.

The children round about were smitten

Whene'er they stopp'd to fix their eye on
The flaming knocker, ('twas a Lion);
Beneath it was a large brass knob,
And on a plate above was written
"MRS. ROSE GROB."

Here she resided free from strife,

Except perpetual scolds with Betty,

For the main objects of her life
Were two-and form'd her daily trade,
To cram herself, and starve her maid-
For one no savings were too petty,
For t'other no tid-bit too nice.

After her dinner, in a trice,

She lock'd the fragments up in towels; She weigh'd out bread, and cheese, and butter, And in all cases show'd an utter

Disregard for Betty's bowels;

As if in penance for her sins

She made her dine on shanks and shins,
(Was ever such a stingy hussey!)
And reckoned it a treat to give her
Half a pound of tripe or liver,

First cutting off a slice for Pussey;-
Nay, of all perquisites the damsel stripping,
She would'nt even let her sell the dripping!

No wonder Betty's unreplenished maw
Vented itself in constant grumbling,

Which was in fact her stomach's rumbling
Reduced to words, and utter'd from her jaw.
But not content with this, the maid

Took all advantages within the law,

(And some without, I am afraid),
So as to balance her forlorn condition,

And get full payment for her inanition.

The washing week approach'd:-an awful question
Now agitated Rose, with pangs inhuman,
How to supply the Mammoth-like digestion

Of that carnivorous beast-a washerwoman!
As camel's paunch for ten days' drink is hollow'd,

So their's takes in at once a ten days' munching; At twelve o'clock you hear them say they've swallowed Nothing to speak of since their second luncheon, And as they will not dine till one,

"Tis time their third lunch were begun.

At length provisions being got-all proper,

And every thing put out, starch, blue, soap, gin,

A fire being duly laid beneath the copper,
The clothes in soak all ready to begin,

Up to her room the industrious Betty goes,

To fetch her sheets, and screams down stairs to Rose, La, goodness me! why here's a job!

You ha'nt put out a second pair. No more I have said Mrs. Grob,

Well, that's a good one, I declare! Sure, I've the most forgetful head

And there's no time to air another! So take one sheet from off your bed,

And make a shift to-night with t'other.

On Rose's part this was a ruse de guerre,
To save th' expense of washing half a pair,—
But as the biter's sometimes bitten,

So in this instance it occurr'd,
For Betty took her at her word,
And, with the bright conception smitten,
Sat
up all night, and with good thrift

Of needle, scissors, thimble, thread,
Cut up one sheet into a shift,

And took the other off the bed!

Next morn when Mrs. Grob, at three o'clock,
Went up to call the maid,

And saw the mischief done by aid
Of scissors, thread, and needle-
There's no describing what a shock
It gave her to behold the sheet in tatters;
And so by way of mending matters,

She call'd her thief, and slut, and jade,
And talk'd of sending for the Beadle!

La! Ma'am, quoth Betty, don't make such a pother,
I've only done exactly what you said,
Taken one sheet from off the bed,
And made a shift to-night with t'other!

H.

THE APOTHEOSIS OF HOMER.

MARBLE, REPRE

AN EXPLANATION OF AN ANCIENT BAS-RELIEF, IN
SENTING THE APOTHEOSIS OF HOMER: COLLECTED FROM THE WRIT-
INGS OF SEVERAL LEARNED AUTHORS AND ANTIQUARIES.

THE wealth of the British Museum in ancient monuments has been of late years daily encreasing :—while the collections of some other countries have been impoverished by the arm of retributive justice, this celebrated repository has been extending its possessions, and adding to its fame by the acquirements of hardy but honest enterprize, and the judicious employment of the means afforded by national opulence. New rules have been adopted for the management of this great institution, all dictated by a liberal, and at the same time thoughtful, regard to the gratification of the public, and the improvement of art and science. Little has been conceded in a temper of mere vanity, or fondness for foolish display: the British Museum has not been thrown open, like a public garden, for all comers of all ranks and descriptions:-but each in whom rational curiosity, or a particular pursuit, begets a wish for admission, find the proper degree of facility in realizing their wish. The forms of admission have nothing about them of unnecessary severity: they are simply calculated to preserve the collection from injury-or rather perhaps, we might say, to protect the student, and the rational observer, from the inconvenience and unpleasantness of ignorant crowds, and stupid starers, in a place where all the associations ought to be favourable to contemplation and feeling.

The subject of this notice, and of the accompanying plate, is one of the late acquisitions made by the Museum. It is an exquisite Bas-relief, of great and undoubted antiquity, which was an hereditary possession of the Colonna family at Rome: but the casualties of unhappy Italy have had a melancholy effect on private fortunes,-and the British Museum had an opportunity of purchasing this curious relic, which its managers did not neglect to improve. The following accurate description will not, we are sure, be thought too minute for the importance of the subject.

it; for he is here the Benignant, not the Terrible, Jove) and the eagle at his feet. Here are the Muses, the symbols of Apollo; in short, here is Apollo himself; here is the whole apparatus of the oracle the bow, quiver, and lyre, his usual symbols;-here is the Cortina at the feet of Apollo. This instrument, resembling a little mound, on which the belts of the quiver are resting, is a vessel, serving as a cover, or top, to the sacred tripod,➡on

which the Priestess sat: its shape is that of half an egg-shell, and it is hollow within. One author says, that the back ground is meant to represent Mount Olympus; another that it is Mount Helicon; but these mountains had no cave that we know of; whereas Parnassus had the Antrum Corycium, as Pausanias tells us. It is therefore Parnassus. In the first division, in the middle of the marble, the subject of the apotheosis of the poet is proposed among the Muses; the first, seated, is Clio, holding a volume in her right hand, denoting history; in her left, a lyre. The second is Urania, standing, and apparently speaking to Clio, and also pointing to a Globe; she may be supposed to be reciting the acts of gods and heroes to her sister muse, of which the poems of Homer relate many. The third, Calliope, leaning on the right side of the cave, and holding also a volume, has been commissioned by the others to propose the subject to Apollo, who seems graciously to assent, as does his Priestess at his left hand. These two last figures have been a stumbling-block to several learned authors, who have written on this subject; they made out the nine Muses, but did not know what to call the two female figures, as they termed them, at the entrance of the cave. The learned and modest Montfauçon durst not even venture a conjecture on them. Though Apollo is in the costume of the Muses, it is easily perceived that about the breast he is not formed like a female; on ancient coins and medals he is frequently represented in this manner, and is then called Apollo Musagetes, or conductor of the muses. In the Towneley gallery, at the British Museum, are two bas reliefs, and an ancient head, in marble, of Apollo, resembling, in the disposition of the hair, and in the character of the face, the head of a Muse. It is clear, therefore, that this figure is no female, but the god himself.

Nearly at the top of the rock, Polyhymnia, deputed by the rest, after Apollo's consent has been obtained, makes the same request to Jupiter; she has ceased to speak, and stands in an exulting attitude at hearing Jupiter's approving answer. The Muse behind her is Erato: she has heard the approval of Jpiter, and shows her joy by the haste she makes in dancing down the rock to communicate the happy tidings to her sister Muses. The next is Euterpe, who is sitting, and holding a double flute, her usual emblem, and which she points at an inscription, the purport of which is, that Archelaus, the son of Apollonius, of Briene, is the sculptor of this marble. Terpsichore seems to desire Erato to moderate her joy, in order that they may not

interrupt two others, who are singing the praises of the new divinity; she holds in her left hand a cythara, and with her right hand seems in the act of imposing silence. The two next, who are celebrating the praises of the poet, are Melpomene and Thalia, who preside over theatrical representations; the one with the open book marks time with her right hand.

In the lowest division is the representation of the solemnity. It is in the inside of a temple ornamented with drapery. The capitals of pilasters appear at equal distances; the rest is covered, to increase the sanctity of the place, destined to the future honour of the poet. Homer appears larger in size than usual, agreeably to his present character, and is sitting in a chair of state, a fillet round his head, and a long sceptre in his hand. Close before him stands an altar; which is marked with two letters-A A— the initials of the artists' name. Tellus, or the Earth, and Chronus, or Time, are crowning him; to show that at all times, and at all places, his merit will be known. Two young females support his seat: they are kneeling; the one on his right, with an implement of war, such as the Amazons are said to have made use of, in her hand, represents the Iliad; that on his left has an aplustre, or small streamer of a ship in her hand, and represents the Odyssey. Near the feet of the chair are two mice; some say that these may allude to the Batrachomiomachia, or battle of the frogs and mice, a ludicrous work attributed to Homer;-had the artist meant this, he would surely have been impartial enough to have represented some of each species of the combatants; but this cannot be as the mice are evidently represented gnawing at a volume, or scroll; they must, therefore, be emblematical of Homer's enemies, and those, who, like Zoilus, were envious of his fame. remaining figures do homage to this new deity, and are about to perform a solemn sacrifice to him with the slaughter of a bull, which has a protuberance on his back, and is. thus shown to be of the species of the country of the artist, Ionia. Near the altar stands a youth, in the character of Mythos, or Fable, crowned and attired as a young priest : in one hand he holds a prefericulum, or small pitcher; in the other, a patera. History, represented as a female, sacrifices by throwing something on the altar. The next figure is Poetry, who holds two lighted torches upwards: after this come Tragedy and Comedy; they assist at the sacrifice; they have both benefited by the works of Homer. Tragedy is veiled; she is attired with more dignity than Comedy, because her personages are heroes and persons of

* ΑΡΧΕΛΑΟΣ ΑΠΟΛΛΩΝΙΟΥ
ΕΠΟΙΗΣΕ ΠΡΙΗΝΕΥΣ

The

1821.]

the first quality. This division ends with five figures close together; Nature, Virtue, Memory, Faith or Fidelity, and Wisdom; all these go in company with Homer; these qualities form the merit of his works. Nature is represented by a child which stretches its hand out to Fidelity; Virtue raises her hand towards heaven; Memory is the hindmost of all; Faith holds the finger on the mouth; and Wisdom holds the hand under the chin. All the figures in this division have their names below them.*

One more figure remains to be noticed; it is left for this place, as it is in a manner a subject by itself. It is the figure of an old man in a philosopher's habit, standing on a pedestal, at the left side of the cave. The learned have puzzled themselves, and their readers, much, in endeavouring to discover whom this figure is meant to represent; one says that it is an Egyptian priest, and preceptor to Homer; another, that it is Hesiod; a third, that it is Linus; a fourth, that it is Pisistratus, the Athenian Tyrant, who collected and compiled the, till then, scattered works of Homer; a fifth says that it is Lycurgus; &c. &c. &c. A learned Doctor says, with Millin, that it is Olen of Lycia, the institutor of the Delphic oracle, who flourished prior to Homer; Spanheim and Schott say that this figure is meant to represent Bias, of Priene, one of the seven sages of Greece, and town's-man of the artist; that the instrument behind (about which so much has been written and said) is a tripod, with the Cortina, or cover, on it. They seek to confirm this last explanation by the relation of the story of the Ionian fishermen, who, having found a golden tripod, and applied to the oracle to know to whom to give it; received for answer, to the wisest; and it was ac

cordingly given to Bias; Bias sent it to Thales; he sent it to another, and so on, till at last it was returned to Bias; and he sent it to the Temple of Apollo, at Delphos. It seems very probable that this figure represents one of the two latter personages, Olen or Bias. A learned antiquarian says that this beautiful piece of sculpture was executed at Smyrna.

Kircher says that this marble was found,. towards the middle of the 17th century, about ten miles from Rome, near the Ap pian Way, at a place now called Frattochio, in the Agro Frerentino of the ancients. There, it is said, stood both the Villa and Temple of the Emperor Claudius. Suetonius tells us, in the life of that Emperor, that he was fond of Greek literature, and that he frequently quoted Homer, both in the Senate and on the Tribunal of Justice. It is well known that the villas of the Romans were full of the works of Grecian artists; this bas relief may probably have been brought from Ionia, or from Greece, to Italy, ready executed; and perhaps obtained in a similar manner as the works of art were obtained in our time in Italy. This bas relief was many years in the family of Prince Colonna, at Rome; it was brought to England about fifteen years ago, and is now placed in the third room of the Towneley gallery at the British Museum. December, 1820.

J. CONRATH.

The names of authors who have written on the subject of this bas relief:Kircher, Fabretti engraved it at Rome, Cuper, Heinsius, Spanheim, Gronovius, Wetstein, Kuster, Fabricius, Winkelmann, Schott, Montfauçon, Addison, D'Hancarville, Millin;-it is also mentioned in the Admiranda, and in the Museo Cle

mentino.

THE DRAMA.
No. XII.

of well awakes from his summer sleep,
and kills his good uncle, in order
that apprentices, and boys "from
school," may not come to
timely end. Now tragedy rears up
her gorgeous head jewelled, and
crowned, and

CHRISTMAS.. -The managers the winter Theatres have opened (as the phrase goes,) the "Christmas campaign." This is the season, indeed, for the patentees and pastry cooks to thrive in. Pantomimes and cakes abound, and one gaudy night is succeeded by another, and another, and another, till we almost grow tired of feasting, and late hours, and jokes, and the company of children.

Now is the time when business is but a name, and drollery is the order of the day. Now George Barn

an un

with sceptered pall comes sweeping byto the delight and astonishment of the ignorant. Now Farce is languidly approved, and Comedy is set at nought; whilst Harlequin is welcomed, and Columbine admired: and

* ΚΟΥΜΕΝΗ ΧΡΟΝΟΣ. ΙΛΙΑΣ. ΟΔΥΣΣΕΙΑ ΟΜΗΡΟΣ, ΜΥΘΟΣ. ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ. ΠΟΙΗΣΙΣ. ΤΡΑΓΩΔΙΑ. ΚΩΜΩΔΙΑ ΦΥΣΙΣ, ΑΡΕΤΗ, ΜΝΗΜΗ, ΠΙΣΤΙΣ, ΣΟΦΙΑ,