The New Hampshire Gazette Newspaper, March 25, 1757, Page 1

o Thé‘%w-chmpfl?ére Friday, March 25. 17 57“. | BPRTTIUIITLYSIINIVLIRIVIMARANY With the Ere/befi Aduvices Nuwms. 23, CAZEYTTE gebdapriap g b ok fedadadabobrbed - Db P BT T 0 S Foreign and Domeflick. e e i e To the Author ef a Piece in the Broflon-Gazzette of A further Account of ALERED, avbich came to Havd the r4th Inflant, who files himfelf B /z 4 6. 1 _fuddenly took up my Pen, Though not w.ith Intention to - [cold, But only correct you for that, Which none but a D v-1 «will hold. Sermons lately publifh’d in this Province, I had Thoughts of treating you in a ferious Manner ; but on farther Confideration, ima- ; U PON reading your famous Remarks on fome b gin'd-it would be a fraitles Atcempt, and therelore hall take you in your own Way, and fomewhat agre- ble to your own Diale&, which may mortify you Inore, and chaftife yur better, than a different Strain, which would belike cafting Pearl before Swine, and occafion you to return and rend ‘@gain.— You have ‘affum’d that Title, by which it feems as if yon aim’d to juitle the D.v | out of his Kingdom, and taking * 'upon you to be Captain Generalof his Army ; but I fancy, unlefs you alter your Conduét and Sentiments, ‘you will be only onc of his inferior Officers to do his - *‘Dradgery ; for you have even difgraced the D v-1 him(elf in your imaginary wifle Performance—But as 1 do not intend to take up quite 2 Column and half in'a News-Paper, fhall only give youa little Drub- bing, and leave you to the Refletions of your own Mind, if you have nor ftretched fo far in your Wick- .+ ¢ ednefs by a feared Confcience, as to prevent its doing » 1 S its proper Office—TheAuthor you return your Thanks to, I am per{waded will take \no Notice of you, nei- ther have you any Reafon to expedl it, as no Doubt kat Gentleman has long ago caft off bis Allegiance o Be-lz b b ; and befides, you have not fixed upon one fingle Sentence in them, Difcourfes to carp at, that may require an Apfwer, unlefs your detatching a few Words from' their proper Covnelion, be one, and then putting yeur own nonfenfical Conftruflion upon them—After you have wrack’d yourInvention till you have grown giddy, you conclude by faying,— It *¢ would be tedious to enumerate all the Particulars “ thatWre pleafing to you, fiiey 4ré {0 many.”=You are certainly liable to a Profecution for taking upon iyou the Charalter of that Prince, who I am fure will mot thank you for what you have done, tho’ you pre- ° tend to ¥ather your Stuff upon him ; for he 15 not o ignorant, but muft know, that fuch Difcourfes, as you refer to, has a nataral Tendency to deftroy his King dom 1n the Hearts of Men.— For my own Parr, [ fhouid not defire you to {uffer any greater Panithment than to be pablickly known,and appear by Day-light, and as you was a Volunteer in the Service you have engag'd in, no doubt you would have a public Re. ward, and furely you could not be offended, if you was freely complemented with the Title you are fo fond of ;~—but you may depend upon it, you will not be envied your Crown, nor the Homage you may ex- pett to receive.—Thofe Difcourfes will fhine with the ferious and thinking Part of Mankind, when perhaps you und your paliry Performance will be buried in Oblivion— *Tis Pity it ever {aw the Light, though I hope you rewarded the Publithers thereof to théir Satisfaltion for bringing fuch an uwlickt Cub into the World Bat however,uponRecolletion, as I doubt not the D v.1has oaravized himfelf before now, {o I believe you will loafe your avicked Aim ; and whatyou have done with Defign to blacken the ‘Author, and hurt his. Ufefilnes, will only have a Tendency to brighten and eflablith his Charalter, and make his Works more {erviceable, which are egreable to Scrip- ure, and the Sentiments of fome of the wifeft and eft of Men, who have wrote in Defence of true Chrif- tianity ; and fo fhall conclude with only obferving, that you muft not think me uncharitable, if I fay, your dirty Performance could not be the Produét of a good, but wicked Heart ; and I have Reafon to think fome " of them Difcourfes put you into a Strugple at the Thought of fome of your darling Vices, which was the Occafion of this low Satanical Wit of yours—Bat however you muft try your Skill and Dexterity a fe- cond Time, the’ you pretend you had been a long Time wracking all the Wits you had to accomplifth your Defign, before you will be admitted even one of the Privy-Council of B./z-5-'s Kingdom, but I don’t doubt you have Smur encugh, which you will < no more beé able to rub off than the Etbigpiag can change his Skin, Ergalige : Since what was publifs’d in lofp Week’s Paper, to- gether with a Prologue, [fpoken by Mr. Hamiiton, Jor the young Gentlemen who acled Alfred (¢, awhich Sketch of the Difign of that Performance in its pre- fent occafional Nodel, aill perbaps be agreable. —The DRAMS& includes in it all the warious Species of Oratory. In ir the Grave and the Gay ; the Simple and the more Ornamented ; 2be Pathetic and the Sublime, llend their feveral Beauties, and charm by Turzs 5 fo that any Perfon awho can modulate bis Vsice, and form bis Gcflure ko a juft Expreffion of that Groupe of Faffions incident, to any bigher dramatic Chara&ter, «wi/l alfo bawve it in bis Power to excel in any of thofe particular Kinds of Oratory, avhich are Jfitted to the Pulpit, the Bar or the Senate— would be needlefs to obferve, that ALFrED was one of the greateft. Princes that ever fat upon the Throne. He was the glorious Founder of the Arts and Sciences among us, a warm Promoter of the Chrifiian Faith then in its Infancy, and the Framer of many of thofe «w//e Laws by which Englifb LiserTY has been fo long preferved. He was the firft who gave an effe@nal Check to che fre- quent Invafions of the Danes ; who began to think of Naval Strength for the Protection of our Shores, and the Extenfion of Commerce ; who divided the King- dom into proper Diltrits ; and, in.a Word, who fet- tled the Conftitution and drew the great Out Lines of that noble Frame of Government, under which Eng- Jifmen have fo long been happy and flourithing ! This is the Character of the Prince who is the Hero of this Reprefentation ; a Man great in Profperity, and doubly fo in his Adverfity. As {uch he is accord- ingly drawn by the very ingenious Authors of the Per- formance above mentioned. They take him in his Advetfity, during the T'ime of one of thofe cruel Inva- fions of the Danes, deferted by his Subjeés, and the miferable Spe&ator of his Couairy’s Defolation and Diftrefs. This gives the Au:iors an Opportunity to put intn his Mouth-the moft $eroic and pisvs Senti. ments, {uch as cannot fail to be an exalted and in- ftruftive Leflon to Youth. In the firft A&, ALFrED appears in the little Ile of Arkelney, in' Somerfet/bire (which was encombered T O thofe who knew the Hillory of England, it *with Woods and of fecure Retreat) where accompa- nied only by the Earl of Diwon, be is found weeping over the Miferies of his People with 2 Father’s Con- cern. Here, difguifed in the Habit of a Peafant, he proje@s their Delivery from the Cruelties of the In- vaders, and fends Déwon on an Expedition for that Purpofe, which he himf{elf is to {fecond and fupport. While Dewon is gone to prepare Matters for the At- tack, Avrreo is left alone, and during this fhort Re- cefs, meets with a Hermit, who, infpired from Hea- ven, knows and encourages him in bis glorious Defign, and gives him many wife and facred Councils for his future Conduét, fhould he ever be {o happy as to redeem his Country, and re afcend the Throne. He is further encouraged by the Appearance of the Ge- nius of Britain, and other celeftial Natures. ALFRED gratefully receives all thefe kind Favours, and enters into the moft pious Refolutions to go forth in the Strength of the LORD of Hofis, and either reftore his Country to Peace, Freedom and Glory, or nobly fall in the Patriot Attempt.— Then, in the Name of that infpiring Power, Whofe Depaty I am, who fends me forth His Minifter of Vengeance, on I go To Viflory or Death—r—— But juft as he is fetting out,' a Shepherd who knew him, by over-hearing hisConverfation with the Hermit, comes running to acquaint him that his Life was in Danger from three Danes, juft approaching. Thefe prove to be Iyar Prince of Denmark, and two of his Attendants, in Purfuic of Avrrep’s Children, who bad fled from the Convent where they were placed, to avoid being murdered by the Enemy. Juft as they »difcover the Children, and are about to flay them,’ ALrRED and.the Shepherd appear to kill the Murder- ers, which produces a tender Scene of meeting, while ALFRED is immediately obliged to leave his Children to the Hermit's Cdre, and uncertain if ever he fhall fee them again, gives the moft beautiful Charge for their future Education. : This is the Purport of the fecond A&. The third contains ALFRED’s Succefs, his triumphant Retura e, . W —— from the total Overthrow of the Enemy, the Captivity of their King,w ho befides hisown Lofs has the Death of his Son Zvar to lament. After this follow the Deli- berations of ALFRED * and the H:»'mit,how to fecure Peace and Happinefs to the Nation, improve ufeful Arts, and promote Religion and Virtue, The Per- formance then concludes with the Hermit's Predi@ions and Typifications of the futare Glory and naval Great- nels of England 5 to which, among fome other Alte- rations, is now added, oa the Hermit’s Plan, a Typi- fication or Reprefentation of the Settlement of thefe Colonies, and the Bxteafion of Briti/s Freedom to the remoter Parts of the Earch. Thro’ the whole of this Work there is 2 Sublimity of Sentiment, a Love of Liberty, and Concern for the commercial Glory of Great- Britain, fcarce equalled by any Thing in our Language. Added to this, the Situation of Exgland under the Danifp Invafion, is an exalt Reprefentation of our prefent State and Condition under the Outrages of a Savage Enemy. After this Account, it would be needlefs to add any Thing further concerning the Choice made of this. Piece as an oratorial Exercife for the Youth of the College of this City. The Defign is fufficiently ob- vious, and will be more fo from the following Pro- logue and Epilogue, made forthe Occafion ; efpecially from the Epilogue ], to which it ought to be acknow- ledged, the ingenious young Orator who fpoke it, did ample Juftice, and was a principal Means of that fa- vourable Reception which it met with during feveral crowded Reprefentations, Occafional PR O LO G UE for the young Gentlemen of the College of Philadelphia, awho for their Improwe- ment in Oratory, alted ALFRED in January 1757. Spokenby W. HAMIL T O N, entering bafiily, and interrupting the Mufick. PEACE with yourFiddling there—It fhall be fpoke: A Play without a Prologue isa Joke. : As well might pradent Portiu leave her Fan That hides her from the nauzhty Creature—Man, As well might €blog drefs without her Watch ; Or bright ey’d Myra quit her fav’rite Patch ; Or Sporas dock his formidabie Whiz ; Or dapper Dick forget to be a Prig. So thinks your Servant—But thefe Men behind— A Book.worm Race—profefs another Mind. Fooli’d by their Wi{dom, ignorant with Reading; More vers'd inGreek, than Manners or good Breeding ; Look back, they cry, leok back to better Times— [Mr. 8. Caew, who atted the Danith King, en- - ters hafiily in a Studeat’s Garb, and driving him off, {peaks the Remainder.*] Hence with your Satyr, and your flippant Rhimes ; 1il do they fuit our fober moral Scene ; You cen{ure Matters far above your Ken. Still, ftill, we cry, /look back to better Days Great Sophocles, the Pride of Greece, had Plays ; Yet he, chafte Bard ! no fulfom Prologues draws; To flatter vicious Taite and court Applaufe. Boldly, at once, he ftrikes his glorious Theme 3 And, but by Merit, {corns to raife a Name. Hence il his Drama all the Bofom fires ; His Joy diffolves us, and his Rage inipires : His God-like Thunder every Paflion wakes, Now melts to' Pity, now with Terror-fhakes. Sure, then, T'o night, without mifpending Time; By vain Preambles, Pows and Legs in Rhime, Our Britifb Scene will Briti/b Judgments firike ; The Praife and Blame of Fools we fcorn alike. S Ll 1 Avsrep the Great, King of England, awho died in the Year oo, awas a comely Prince, of graceful Bebawvi - our,ready Wit and Memory, a Lover of good Men, a great Encouroger of Learning. The Mufes, long before banih'd Sfrom Oxford, be recalled, where be founded Univerfiry College, Ho awas very careful in providing gosd Laws, amofe of achich are yet extant. In fhort, Fuftice did nut only flourifb, but even triumphed in his Days, infomuch that be cauledChainsof Gold to be bung in the High- roads, daring, as it were,the boldefi Thiewes to take them away. He awas a great Soldier, and may be juftly fliled the Foun- der of our Laws and Liberties. 1 The Epilogue was inferted in lafp Week's Paper, ® 4s the wbole Piece is grave and moral, theje Lines in the Beginning of the Prologue avere only imbroduced to give us an Opportunity of dilapproving fuch lighter Strains asen fuch Qccafions. ferwe too commaonly to wipe zg' the wirtuous Impreffion, which the chafle and Jobes ragpa wosld otberwife leave on the Mind, : ) Peace