The virgin muse. Being a collection of poems from our most celebrated English poets. [Ed.] by J. Greenwood

To Mrs. EMMA CHILD,

Daughter of the Honourable Sir Richard Child, of Wanfted, Baronet, and Knight of the Shire for the County of Effex.

To Mrs. SUSANNA CHILD,

To Mrs. ANNE CHILD,

Daughters of the Honourable Sir Cefar Child, of

Woodford-Bridge, Baronet.

To Mrs. ELIZABETH HILLERSDON, Daughter of William Hillersdon, Efq; Knight of the Shire for the County of Bedford.

To Mrs. ELIZABETH GODFREY, Daughter of Peter Godfrey, Efq, Member of Parlament for the City of London.

To Mrs. ANNE PERRY,

Daughter of Mr. Richard Perry, of London, Mer;

chant.

Το Mrs. ANNE MILNER,

Daughter of the late Mr. Ifaac Milper, of London, Merchant.

To Mrs. ELIZABETH LINGARD,

Daughter of John Lingard, Efq; one of the

Judges of the Sheriffs-Court.

To Mrs. JUDITH BUTLER,

Daughter of Mr. James Butler, of Camberwell, Merchant.

Young Ladies,

I

Nstruction and Delight being the chief End of Poetry, I believe the following Collection will be judged no improper Present. The Virgin Muse flies therefore to you, Ladies, begging the Protection of your Virtue and Innocence; which,

if you shall be pleased to grant; being so Armed, She may fecurely appear abroad. For, what Ar mour can be brighter or stronger than Virtue? or what fafer than Innocence ?

I shall not undertake to represent so great a Variety of Graces and Accomplishments that are now shining, and increasing in you; I refer my felf to the ingenious Pen of your Favourite Muse, in the following Copy; which I hope will be taken for no Compliment, but a Prophetick Description of each of your Growing Virtues.

May you so daily improve in every Good and Commendable Qualification, that, if each Contending Muse of the Nine should fingle out her Lady to employ their several Excellencies on, they may make choice of your Virtues for their Subject, and your Perfons for their Seat and Residence:

V

I

THE

PREFACE.

Shall make no Apologies for the following Under taking; and if it be found Useful and Enter

taining, it will need nome. A Book of this kind has certainly been wanted, fince you will hardly find any Collection of Poems, that you can prudenty put into the Hands of the Youth of either Sex: For you will meet with something that is either Shocking t Good Manners, Difficult to be Understood, or very Trifling and Silly. I have therefore had great Regard to introduce nothing bere, but what is strictly Modest, and truly Poetical; and as for the difficult Places, they are made very eafie and intelligible, by the Help of Notes, and a Large Index, explaining every hard Word. I have endeavoured to make in a compleat Book for the Teaching to Read Poetry : The Poems confifting of Verses of different Meafures, you have all the chief forts of English Verfification. Two Objections are likely to be started: The one is, That some things may feem Soft and Youthful. على to that the Poems are designed for Youth, whose Age naturally requires what is Chearful and Pleafant, and must have Entertainments and Amusements given them in their own way, provided they be Innocent, and Mannerly. For, after all, (det Perfons,

A 3

Perfons, who have forgot that they were Young, Say what they will to the contrary) there are a great many Allowances to be made to young People, purely because they are Young, and if I was to have inferted nothing here but what is very Grave, they would foon dislike this innocent Food, and apply themselves to worse Diet. The other Objection, likely to be made, is, That I have put in several Poems of Mr. Milton's, which fome will fancy to be above the Capacity of the younger Reader. But, as I have ordered Matters with a View to every Age and Capacity, so there will be nothing (the Index being confulted) but what will become very plain to one Age or other. For as there is a variety of Poetical Dishes, let every one chufe, or let it be chosen for him, what Dish is like to fit easiest with him. As to the Poems in this Collection that were never published before, as namely, that in Page the 31st, being the Translation of Mr. Cowley's Epitaph on himself, it was done by Mr. Sellwood, of Cambridge. That in Page the 95th, Written in a Lady's Waller; and that against Scandal, Page 104, were given by an ingenious Friend, who will not fuffer his Name to be known, not that he need be ashamed of them, but the Reason, I believe, is, because he is some Years older now than when he made them. The Love Verses, and that on a Lady's killing her Lap-Dog, were inferted at the Request of a Friend of the Author's, with an Injuнсtion to conceal his Name. In the Love Verses there are several Turns that declare a true Poetical Genius, and therefore stand not in need of any Recommendation. If I find that what I have here done, meets with the Approbation of the Sober and Judicious, it will encourage me to prefent the Reader with a Set of Reading-Books, beginning even with the first Elements.