Literary loves and jealousis were much the same in the ancient and middle ages as the present; but we heat a great deal more of the loves than the reverse; because genius survives and ignorance does not. The ancient philosphers had a delicate way of honouring their favourites, by inscribing treatises with their names. It -is thought a strange thing in Xenophon that he never once mentions Plato. The greater part of the miscellaneous poetry of the Greeks, is lost; or we should doubtless see numerous evidences of the intercourse of their authors. The Greek poets of Sicily, Theocritus and Moschus, are very affectionate in recording the merits of their contemporaries. Varius and Gallus, two eminent Roman poets, scarcely survive but in the panegyrics of Horace, Virgil, and Ovid; all of whom were fond, of paying their tributes of admiration. Dante does the same to his con. temporaries and predecessors. Petrarch and Boccacio publicly honoured, as they privately loved, each other. Tasso, the greatest poet of his time, was also the greatest panegyrist; and so, as might be expected, was Ariosto. Ile has introdaced å host of his friends by name, male and female, at the end of his great work, coming down to the shores of poetry to welcome him home after his voyage. There is a pleasant imitation of it by Gay, applied to Pope's conclusion of Homer. Montaigne, who had the most exalted notions of friendship, which he thought should have every thing in common, took as much zeal in the literary reputation of his friends, as in every thing else that concerned them. The wits of the time of Henry the Fourth, of Louis the 14th, and of Louis the 15th,-Malherbe, Racan, Corneille, Moliere, Racine, Chaulieu, La Fare, D'Alembert, Voltaire, &c. not excepting Boileau, where he knew a writer,--all do honour in this respect to the sociality of their nation. It is the same, we believe, with the German writers; and if the Spanish winced a little under the domination of Lope de Vega, they were chivalrous in giving him perhaps more than his due. Camoens had the admiration of literary friends as poor as himself, if he had nothing else; but this was something. TO CORRESPONDENTS. F. is informed, in answer to his welcome question, that a Title-page and Index to the First Volume of the INDICATOR will appear in the next Number. We regret that we have mislaid some verses which were sent us from Lincoln's Inn, and which, if they were written by a young man, were of considerable promise. The signature, we think, was S. We will take into due consideration the remonstrance offered against our types by J. W., who contrives to niake his rebukes as pleasant as other men's praises. Printed and published by JOSEPH APPLEYARD, No. 19, Catherine-street, Strand. Price 2d.--And sold also by A. GLIDDON, Importer of Snuffs, No. 31, Tavistockstreel, Covent-garden. Orders received at the above places, and by all Booksellers and Newsmen. THE INDICATOR. There he arriving round about doth flie, SPENSER, No. LII.-WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4th, 1820. Index making has been held to be the driest: as well as lowest spe. cies of writing. We shall not dispute the humbleness of it; but since we have had to make an index ourselves, we have discovered that the task need not be so very dry. It is true, our index is made up.out of our own work; and as Indicator, we may reasonably be supposed to point out our own good things with no great unwillingness. But we do not so much allude to the one before us, as to others. Had the thought struck us sooner, we might have turned the former inta something really entertaining. As it is, we have been obliged to cut it down to fit in to our number, till it is worth little or nothing any way. But calling to mind indexes fo general, we found them presenting us a variety of pleasant memories and contrasts. We thought of those to the Spectator, which we used to look at som often at school, for the sake of choosing a paper to abridge. We thought of the index to the Pantheon or Fabulous Histories of the Heathen Gods, which we used to look at oftener. We remember how we imagined we should feel some day, if ever our name should appear in the list of Hs; as thus, Home, Howard, Hume, Huniades, The poets would have been better, but then the names, though more fitting, were not so flattering; as for instance, Halifax, Hammond, Harte, Hughes, , - We did not like to come after Hughes. We have just been looking at the indexes to the Tatler and Spectator, and never were more forcibly struck with the feeling we formerly expressed about a man's being better pleased with other writers than himself. Our index seems the poorest and most second-hand thing in the world after theirs : but let any one read theirs, and then call an index a dry thing if he can. As there is a soul of goodness in things evil," so there is a soul of humour in things dry, and in things dry by profession. Lawyers know this, as well as index-makers, or they would die of sheer thirst and aridity. But as grapes, ready to burst with wine, issue out of the most stony places, like jolly fellows bringing burgundy out of a cellar; so an Index, like the Tatler's, often gives us a taste of the quintessence of his humour. For instance, ing Bickerstaff, Mr. account of his ancestors, 141. How his race was improved, 142. Not in partnership with Lillie, 250. Catched writ. 47. Dead men, who are to be so açcóunted, 147. 1: Sometimes he has a stroke of pathos, as touching in its brevity as the account it refers to; as, Love-letters between Mr. Bickerstaff and Maria, 184—186. Found in a grave, 289. Sometimes he is simply moral and graceful; as, Tenderness and humanity inspåred by the Muses, 258. No true greatness of mind without it, ibid. At another, he says perhaps more than he intended; as, Laura, her perfections and excellent character, 19, Despised by her husband, ibid. The Index to Cotton's Montaigne, probably written by the translator himself, is often pithy and amusing. Thus in Volume 2d, Anger is pleased with, and flatters itself, 618. Sometimes we meet with graver quaintnesses and curious relations, as in the index to Sandys's Ovid ; : : ' T ..? Jo'ralab. Diana, no virgin, scoft:at by Lucian, po:55: ibis illis cu. Divarfes, at Italian Dwarfe carried about in a parrot's cage, p.113. Eccho, at Twilleries in Paris, Heard to repeat a verse without: fail. ing in one syllable, p. 58. Its Ship of the Tyrrhenians miraculously stucki fast in the sea, p. 63. A Historie of a Bristol ship stuck fast in the deeple Sea by Witchcraft: for which twentie-five Witches were executed, ibid. i 1 Bnt this subject, we find, will furnish ample materials for a sepa. rate article ; and therefore we stop here for the present. We have still a notion upon us, that because we have been making an index, we are bound to be very business-like and unamusing.! it US ERRATA. Page 387. For it is not knowledge that makes us happy, as we grow up,” read "There are many smaller errors scattered throogh the volumes which are owing to the hurry in which the Editor has often written, and are not be laid to theaca come of the Printer. The Reader, if he thinks it worth while, will be good enooghi 10 correct them with his pen as he meets with them. They may be safely left in his hands. Should the Work be reprinted, the Editor will lake care to see them al; tered. 1 1036 -01: 91 . :) pir, lo TO CORRESPONDENTS.Toto' The Letter of T. R. was extremely welcome and gratifying, onesery decount. Acquaintance, link of personal, traeed up from the present times to Shakspeare, 41. tical matters are decided, 269... ligion. ton, 45 – Their tendency to passive obedience, 46-A case put to them. Ib. Quere, whether they would catch shirieking fish, 2700 !!! translated, 376. pared with Dryden's version, 290.. youth and innocence, 203—Ilow men should be as oliildren, 204-Further Re- See Lamb. inferior in spirit to the others—ib. See Now. Despot, a sleepiug one held up, 107. 136-See Stories. .69') doors. Great instructors and little enjoyérs, 58--Nothing greater than their evil, 390. 1 Hands, two errors in the custom of shaking them, 314. empire, 68—-Fond of things remote, 69– tion, 32. lows at Christ's Hospital, 72. the other sex, ib. to be enjoyed even in foggy weather,.58. dies of, kb. 56-Different in their extremest cases from madness, properly so called, 53—Nature of, mental and physical, ib. haunt of Cephalus, ditio, 215. ting under a laurel, translated, 316-Ode to the Fountain of Vaucluse, Irap- slated, 318. Heaven andlearth should petition to pass away rather than a single being should 226, 227-Butler, 50, 104-Catullus, 40, 79_Chalicer, 108, 71, 192, 219, 228, 230, 250-Codrington, 407—Coleridge, 68, 75-Collins, 200-Coston, 46--Cra- Fletcher, 276-Ford, 255-Gay, 24-Ben Jonsan, 44, 191, 404Keats, 337, &c. 221. supposed, 115-Modern, the refuge it takes in words, and its compromise with Mammon, 116. |