195 217 MISCELLANEOUS POEMS. - Prologue spoken by Mr. Garrick, at the opening of the Theatre-Royal Drury-Lane, 1747 Prologue spoken by Mr. Garrick, Apr. 5, 1750, before the Mafque of Comus, acted at Drury-Lane Theatre, for the benefit of Milton's grand-daughter Prologue to the comedy of The Good-Natured Man, 1769 To Mifs *****, on her giving the Author a gold and filk net-work purfe, of her own weaving On the death of Mr. Robert Levet, a practifer in phyfick 365 Paraphrafe of Proverbs, chap. vi. verfes 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 Horace, lib. iv. ode vii. tranflated Lines written in ridicule of certain poems, published in 1777 375 dary Tales. An Impromptu Tranflation of the two firft ftanzas of the fong "Rio verde, Tranflation of fome lines at the end of Baretti's Easy Improvifo. Tranflation of a Diftich on the Duke of Mo- dena's running away from the Comet in 1742 or 1743 To Mrs. Thrale, on her completing her thirty-fifth year. THE HISTORY OF RASS EL A S, PRINCE OF ABISSINIA. CHAP. I. DESCRIPTION OF A PALACE IN A VALLEY. YE E who liften with credulity to the whispers of fancy, and perfue with eagerness the phantoms of hope; who expect that age will perform the promises of youth, and that the deficiencies of the prefent day will be fupplied by the morrow; attend to the hiftory of Raffelas prince of Abiffinia. Raffelas was the fourth fon of the mighty emperour, in whofe dominions the Father of Waters begins his courfe; whofe bounty pours down the ftreams of plenty, and scatters over half the world the harvests of Egypt. According to the custom which has defcended from age to age among the monarchs of the torrid zone, Raffelas was confined in a private palace, with the other fons and daughters of Abiffinian royalty, till the order of fucceffion fhould call him to the throne. The place, which the wifdom or policy of antiquity had deftined for the refidence of the AbissiVOL. XI. B nian nian princes, was a fpacious valley in the kingdom of Amhara, furrounded on every fide by mountains, of which the fummits overhang the middle part. The only paffage, by which it could be entered, was a cavern that paffed under a rock, of which it has long been difputed whether it was the work of nature or of human induftry. The outlet of the cavern was concealed by a thick wood, and the mouth which opened into the valley was clofed with gates of iron, forged by the artificers of ancient days, fo maffy that no man could without the help of engines open or fhut them. From the mountains on every fide, rivulets defcended that filled all the valley with verdure and fertility, and formed a lake in the middle inhabited by fifh of every fpecies, and frequented by every fowl whom nature has taught to dip the wing in water. This lake difcharged its fuperfluities by a fream which entered a dark cleft of the mountain on the northern fide, and fell with dreadful noise from precipice to precipice till it was heard no more. The fides of the mountains were covered with trees, the banks of the brooks were diverfified with flowers; every blaft hook fpices from the rocks, and every month dropped fruits upon the ground. All animals that bite the grafs, or brouse the thrub, whether wild or tame, wandered in this extenfive circuit, fecured from beafts of prey by the mountains which confined them. On one part were flocks and herds feeding in the paftures, on another all the beafts of chafe frifking in the lawns; the fprightly kid was bounding on the rocks, the fubtle monkey frolicking in the trees, and the folemn folemn elephant repofing in the fhade. All the diversities of the world were brought together, the bleffings of nature were collected, and its evils extracted and excluded. The valley, wide and fruitful, fupplied its inhabitants with the neceffaries of life, and all delights and fuperfluities were added at the annual vifit which the emperour paid his children, when the iron gate was opened to the found of mufick; and during eight days every one that refided in the valley was required to propofe whatever might contribute to make feclufion pleafant, to fill up the vacancies of attention, and leffen the tediousness of time. Every defire was immediately granted. All the artificers of pleasure were called to gladden the feftivity; the muficians exerted the power of harmony, and the dancers fhewed their activity before the princes, in hope that they fhould pass their lives in this blifsful captivity, to which thofe only were admitted whofe performance was thought able to add novelty to luxury. Such was the appearance of fecurity and delight which this retirement afforded, that they, to whom it was new, always defired that it might be perpetual; and as thofe, on whom the iron gate had once closed, were never suffered to return, the effect of longer experience could not be known. Thus every year produced new fchemes of delight, and new competitors for imprisonment. The palace ftood on an eminence raised about thirty paces above the furface of the lake. It was divided into many fquares or courts, built with greater or lefs magnificence, according to the rank |