ON RECEIVING FROM THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE LADY FRANCES SHIRLEY A STANDISH AND TWO PENS. YES, I beheld th' Athenian Queen Defcend in all her fober charms; "And take (fhe faid, and fmil'd ferene) "Take at this hand celeftial arms : "Secure the radiant weapons wield; 5 "And NOTES. The Lady Frances Shirley] A Lady whofe great Merit Mr. Pope took a real pleasure in celebrating. WARBURTON. VER. 1. Yes, I beheld, &c.] To enter into the spirit of this Addrefs, it is neceffary to premise, that the Poet was threatened with a profecution in the House of Lords, for the two foregoing Poems, the Epilogue to the Satires. On which, with great refentment against his enemies, for not being willing to diftinguish be tween Grave Epifles bringing Vise to light, and licentious Libels, he began a third Dialogue, more severe and fublime than the first and fecond; which being no fecret, matters were foon compromised. His enemies agreed to drop the prosecution, and he promised to leave the third Dialogue unfinished and fuppreffed. This affair occafioned this little beautiful poem, to which it alludes throughout, but more efpecially in the four laft ftanzas. WARBURTON "And if a Vice dares keep the field, Aw'd, on my bended knees I fell, "What Well? what Weapon? (Flavia cries) "But, Friend, take heed whom you attack; your ears. "You'd write as fmooth again on glass, "Nor stop at Flattery or Fib. "Athenian Queen! and fober charms! NOTES. VER. 15. Bertrand's,] A famous toy-fhop at Bath. IG 15 20 25 " 'Tis WARBURTON. WARBURTON. VER. 23. fool or afs,] The Dunciad. VER. 24. Flattery or Fib.] The Epifile to Dr. Arbuthnot. WARBURTON. "'Tis Venus, Venus gives thefe arms; "In Dryden's Virgil fee the print. "Come, if you'll be a quiet foul, "That dares tell neither Truth nor Lies, "I'll lift you in the harmless roll "Of thofe that fing of these poor eyes. NOTES. VIR 27. thefe arms;] Such toys being the ufual prefents from lovers to their mistreffes. WARBURTON. 39 VER. 28 fee the print.] When the delivers Æneas a fuit of heavenly armour. WARBURTON. VER. 30. neither Truth nor Lies,] i. e. If you have neither the courage to write Satire, nor the application to attempt an Epic Poem. He was then meditating on such a work. "When Fanny blooming fair, Firft met my ravish'd fight, WARBURTON. VER. 32. Of those that fing of thefe poor eyes.] Among the many fwains who fung of " thefe poor eyes," was Lord Chefterfield, in his well known Ballad :— year This beautiful Lady was fourth daughter of Earl Ferrers, who had at that time a house at Twickenham. Notwithstanding her numerous admirers, fhe died at Bath, unmarried, in the 1762. At Clarendon Park, near Salisbury, the feat of her Sifter's Son, Henry Bathurst efq., there is a full length painting, by Sir Godfrey Kneller; and if fhe was as handfome as she is there represented, Lord Chefterfield's paffionate address might be easily accounted for. The writer of this note had looked at it for fome time with admiration, without knowing whofe portrait it was, when the hofpitable and benevolent Owner of the manfion faid, “That is the celebrated Fanny blooming fair." Her fister, married to Mr. Bathurst's father, is painted at full length in the fame room. Lady Lady Frances is dreffed in a Turkish habit, probably introduced by Lady M. W. Montagu to England at the time, as she lived at Twickenham. The drefs is beautiful, and gives great effect to the attitude and countenance. The sketch of Earl Ferrers' House and Gardens is in the back ground. I shall here present the Reader with a valuable Literary Curio. fity, a Fragment of an unpublished Satire of Popè, intitled, ONE THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED AND FORTY; communicated to me by the kindness of the learned and worthy Dr. Wilson, formerly fellow and librarian of Trinity College, Dublin; who (peaks of the Fragment in the following terms: "This Poem I transcribed from a rough draft in Pope's own hand. He left many blanks for fear of the Argus Eye of those who, if they cannot find, can fabricate treason; yet, spite of his precaution, it fell into the hands of his enemies. To the hieroglyphics, there are direct allusions, I think in fome of the notes on the Dunciad. It was lent me by a grandson of Lord Chetwynd, an intimate friend of the famous Lord Bolingbroke, who gratified his curiofity by a boxful of the rubbish and sweepings of Pope's ftudy, whofe executor he was, in conjunction with Lord Marchmont." WARTON. |