"Nor are thofe things much more abfurd; which, flowing from the poet's tongue, have done mifchief even by the sweetness of his expreflion. The poets have introduced gods inflamed with anger, and enraged with luft; and even produced before our eyes, their wars, their wrangling, their duels, and their wounds. They have expofed befides, their antipathies, animofities, and diffenfions; their origin and death; their complaints and lamentations; their appetites indulged to all manner of excels, their adulteries, their fetters, their amorous commerce with the human fpecies; and from immortal parents derived a mortal offspring."

day was compofed in the most fublime fpecies of poetry, fuch as the ode or hymn; the fubfequent altercation was carried on in Iambics, and gave rife to fatire. We are told by the Stagy:ite, that the higheft fpecies of poetry was employed in celebrating great actions; but the humbler fort ufed in this kind of contention *; and that in the ages of antiquity, there were fome bards that profeffed heroics; and fome that pretended to Iambics only. Oi per npaixão, oi de To these rude ἰάμβων ποιηται. beginnings we not only owe the birth of fatire, but likewife the origin of dramatic poetry. Tragedy herself, which afterwards attained to As the feftivals of the Gods ne- fuch dignity as to rival the Epic mufe, was at firft no other than a ceffarily produced good cheer, which was often carried to riot and de- trial of Crambo or lambics, bebauchery, mirth of confequence tween two peafants, and a goat was prevailed; and this was always at- the prize, as Horace calls it, wila eertamen ob hircum; "A mean contended with buffoonery. Taunts Hence the and jokes, and raillery and repartee, teft for a he-goat." would neceffarily enfue; and indi- name Tpayadia, fignifying the градов viduals would contend for the vic-goat-fong, from bircus, and Thefe @n carmen. tory in wit and genius. contefts would in time be reduced to fome regulations, for the entertainment of the people thus affembled, and fome prize would be decreed to him who was judged to excel his rivals. The candidates for fame and profit being thus ftimulated, would tafk their talents, and naturally recommend thefe alternate recriminations to the audience, by cloathing them with a kind of poetical meafure, which fhould bear a near resemblance to profe. Thus, as the folemn fervice of the

1

Carmine qui tragico vilem certavit eb bircum,
Mox ctiam agreftes fatyros mudavit, & afper·
Incolumi gravitate jocum tentavit: eo quod
Illecebris erat, & grata novitate morandus.
Spectator, fun&ufque facris, & potus.
exlex.

Hor.

The tragic bard, a goat his humble prize,
Bade fatyrs naked and uncouth arise z
His mufe fevere, fecure and undismay'd,
The ruftic joke in folemn ftrain convey'd;
For novelty alone he knew could charm
A lawless croud, with wine and feafting

warm.

- Satire then was originally a clownish dialogue in loofe lambics, fo called becaufe the actors were

Οἱ μεν γαρ σεμνότεροί, τας καλας εμιμούντο πραξεις-οἱ δὲ ευΤελετέροι, τας των φαύλων, πρῶτον ψόγοις ποιύντες.

difguifed

, who not only recited the praifes of Bacchus, or fome other deity; but interfperfed their hymns with farcaftic jokes and altercation. Of this kind is the Cyclop of Euripides, in which Ulyffes is the principal actor. mans alfo had their Atellane or inThe Roterludes of the fame nature, fo called from the city of Atella, where they were firft acted: but thefe were highly polished in comparifon of the original entertainment, which was altogether rude and indecent. Indeed the Cyclop itself, though compofed by the accomplished Euripides, abounds with fuch impurity, as ought not to appear on the frage of any civilized nation. It is very remarkable that the Atellana, which were in effect tragic comedies, grew into fuch esteem among the Romans, that the performers in thefe pieces enjoyed feveral privileges, which were refufed to the ordinary actors. They were not obliged to unmark like the other players, when their action was difagreeable to the audience. They were admitted into the army, and enjoyed the privileges of free citizens, without incurring that difgrace which was affixed to the characters of other actors *.

to the

The

1

The fame enter

morfels of antiquity. Tragedy and
comedy flowed from the fame foun-
tain, though their ftreams were
foon divided.
tainment, which, under the name
of Tragedy, was rudely exhibited by
fome rural altar of Bacchus, af
clowns, for the prize of a goat, by
fumed the appellation of Comedy,
when it was transferred into cities,
and reprefented with a little more
decorum, in a cart or waggon, that
trolled from street to ftreet, as the
name xaundia implies, being de-
rived from awun a street, and win?
poem.
ludes in these lines.
To this origin Horace al-

Dicitur & plauftris vexifle poemata Thefpis,
Qui
canerent agerentque, perun&i facibas tra,
Thefpis, inventor of dramatic art,
High o'er the crowd, the mimic tribe ap
Convey'd his vagrant actors in a cart:
pear'd,
And play'd, and fung, with lees of wine
[befmear'd,

the dramatic art, because he railed
the fubject from clownish alterca
Thefpis is called the inventor of
of fome hero: he improved the
tion to the character and exploits
language and verfification, and re-
lieved the chorus by the dialogue
of two actors. This was the first
advance towards that confumma-
ftitutes what is now called a per
fect tragedy. The next great im
tion of genius and art, which con-
prover was Æfchylus, of whom the
fame critic fays.

poet Laberius, who was of equeftrian
order, being preffed by Julius Cæ
far to act a part in his own per-
formance, complied with great re-
luctance, and complained of the
difhonour he had incurred, in his Poft bune, perfonæ, Pallæque reperter bonestæ
prologue preferved by Macrobius,ebylus & medicis infiravit pulpita tignis,
which is one of the most elegant
Et decuit magnumque loqui, nitique Corburne,

* Cum artem ludicram, fcenamque totam probro ducerent, genus
id hominum non modo honore civium reliquorum carere,
tribu moveri notatione cenforia voluerunt.

Civit. Dei.

fed etiam

Cic. apud S. Aug. is

Then

In language more fublime two actors rage, And in the graceful buskin tread the ftage. The dialogue, which Thefpis introduced, was called the Episode, because it was an addition to the former fubject, namely the praifes of Bacchus; fo that now tragedy confifted of two diftinct parts, independent of each other, the old recitative, which was the Chorus, fung in honour of the gods; and the Episode, which turned upon the adventures of fome hero. This Epifode being found very agreeable to the people, Æfchylus, who lived about half a century after Thefpis, ftill improved the drama, united the chorus to the episode, fo as to make them both parts or members of one fable; multiplied the actors, contrived the ftage, and introduced the decorations of the

theatre; fo that Sophocles, who fucceeded Æfchylus, had but one step to furmount in order to bring the drama to perfection. Thus tragedy was gradually detached from its original inftitution, which was entirely religious. The priests of Bacchus loudly complained of this innovation, by means of the episode, which was foreign to the intention of the chorus, and hence arofe the proverb of Nihil ad Dionyfium; nothing to the purpose. Plutarch himself mentions the episode as a perverfion of tragedy, from the honour of the Gods to the paffions of men: but, notwithstanding all oppofition, the new tragedy fucceeded to admiration; because it was found the moft pleafing vehicle of conveying moral truths, of meliorating the heart, and extending the interefts of humanity.

[To be continued.] Page 36

tett text t

A Genealogical Account of Brydges, Duke of Chandos.

ANtiquaries differ about the origin of

the noble houfe of Chandos, whofe furname has been written differently, Brugge, Bruges, Brigge, Brydges, &c. fome alledging that its founder was a native of Bruges, alias Brugge, in Flanders, who accompanied the Norman conqueror into England, A. D. 1066 ; and having affumed his furname from the place of his birth, conveyed it to his pofterity: whilft others are of opinion, that the furname was derived from the caftle of Brugge, in Shropshire, part of the vaft poffeffions granted to Roger de Montgomery, earl of Arundel and Shrewsbury, by his kinfman, the above-mentioned conqueror, whom he attended in his expedition into England; and that the duke of Chandos is lineally defcended from Arnulph, a younger fon of the faid earl, and progenitor of the Carews, by his wifeDecember, 1761,

Lafracoth, daughter to one of the kings of

Ireland. Which-ever of these be the cafe, it afcertains the antiquity of a family eminent in the cabinet and field, and renowned for munificence and hofpitality.

The first confpicuous perfon of it, on record, was Sir Simon de Brugge, or Bruges, whofe lands were, in 1265, con fifcated to the crown for his adherence to Simon Montfort, earl of Leicester, and the other barons in arms against Henry III. and granted to Roger lord Clifford ; but were restored, next year, by the Dictum de Kenilworth. He married the heiress of the family of Solers (whofe lands have fince had the name of Bruge-Solers, or Bridge-Solers) in Herefordshire, and by her had four fons, John, Hugh, Giles, and Walter, and a daughter named Eleanor. John, the eldest fon, was the first nam

4N

ed