The rise of the ballad in the eighteenth century . rOthicmanner which is the delight of all our little wits, whetherwriters or readers, it would not have hit the taste of somany ages, and have pleased the readers of all ranks andconditions* I shall only beg pardon for such a profusionof Latin quotations; which I should not have made useof, but that I feared my own judgment would have lookedTioo singular on such a subject had not I supported it bythe -^practice and authority of Virgil. Again, in the Spectator number 86, for Thursday,June 7, another ballad is discussed. I cant for myheart, leave
The rise of the ballad in the eighteenth century . rOthicmanner which is the delight of all our little wits, whetherwriters or readers, it would not have hit the taste of somany ages, and have pleased the readers of all ranks andconditions* I shall only beg pardon for such a profusionof Latin quotations; which I should not have made useof, but that I feared my own judgment would have lookedTioo singular on such a subject had not I supported it bythe -^practice and authority of Virgil. Again, in the Spectator number 86, for Thursday,June 7, another ballad is discussed. I cant for myheart, leave a room before I have thoroughly studied thewalls of it, and examined the several printed paperswhich are usually pasted upon them. The last piece thatI met with upon this occasion, gave me a most exquisitepleasure. My reader will not think I am serious when Iacquaint him that the piece I am going to speak of wasthe old ballad of the Two Qhildren in the Wood, whichis one of the darling songs of the common people, and —0000— 1. Addisons has been the dolight or most Knglishmen in some part oftheir age. This song is a plain simple copy of Nature,destitute of all the helps and ornaments or art. Thetale of it is a pretty tragical story; and pleases forno other reason, but because it is a copy of nature. Thereis even a despicable simplicity in xhe verse; and yet,because the sentiments appear genuine and unaffected, theyare able to move the mind of the most polite reader withinward meltings of humanity and compassion. The inciaentsgrow out of the subject and are such as are the mostproper to excite pity. For which reason the whole narra-tion has something in it very moving; notwithstanding theauthor of it (whoever he was) has delivered it in suchan abject a phrase and poorness of expression, that thequoting any part of it would look like a design of turn-ing it into ridicule. But though the language is mean,the thoughts, as I have before said, from one end to theother are
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjecttheses, bookyear1911
