the picture does not quite compensate for the loss of a little brilliancy of colouring, enough of the romantic to satisfy any reasonable appetite. that no to In a preface, which upon the whole is ably written, Mr. Black enumerates various circumstances which concur impart peculiar interest to the life of Tasso; and contends man ever afforded a subject more eminently fitted for biographical detail. After enlarging upon the poetical merits of Tasso, and adverting to a concurrence of favourable circumstances, which are represented as having aided the atchievements and swelled the triumph of his genius, he thus continues: Combining the advantages while he shunned the defects of either, this poet united the Gothic splendour and variety, with the classical graces of order and regularity. He adorned a most happy subject with the most sublime and pathetic beauties; with the most vivid delineations of character; with the most delightful combination of events; with the noblest style, and the most brilliant images. Love, heroism, and enchantment, whatever fascinates the imagination, kindles the soul, or soothes the heart, contribute to the embellishment of his wonderful poem; and no other production of the human mind is calculated to awaken more powerfully the sweetest and most generous sympathies of our nature. Tasso, in short, has raised himself to the number of those few fortunate writers, whose works are necessary in the libraries of the learned and elegant in every nation, who have become, as it were, citizens of the world, and who excite the interest, and flatter the pride, not merely of a single people, but of civilized man.' Pref. p. 5. The author then proceeds to shew that the life of Tasso is not less interesting on account of his vicissitudes as a man, than his eminence as a writer. "The story of Tasso has all the interest which geníus, virtue, and misery can inspire, and no other destiny presents so strongly a contrast of humiliation and of glory, of the strength of the human mind, and of its weakness. The habits of those who have distinguished themselves by their literary talents, have, in very modern times, been so uniform and retired, that it has been established as a kind of adage, that the history of their writings is the history of their lives. It was different at a period when the author was to seek his reward, not from the fa vour of the public, but from the caprice of some patron; when, to the exertions of genius, he was forced to unite the intrigues of a courtier, when his rivals were not, as now, scattered in society, and only remotely, and in a small degree, injured by his reputation, but when they lived in the same petty court, and found the success of an opponent a continual sting to their envy, or a barrier to their interests. If, in such a situation, we place a man with a most powerful imagination, and with a warm and feeling heart; if we consider him as possessed of that morbid sensibility, which often accompanies genius for the arts, and is increased by their exercise; if born and educated amidst misfortunes, the violent sea sibility and melancholy of such a person has been increased by the perpe tual contrast between a noble birth and a needy condition; between the dependence of a courtier to a petty prince, and the pride of an exalted soul; if we add to this an astonishing activity of genius, a devouring thirst, and impatience for renown, irritated at once by the obstacles which nature opposes to all men, by the glory which has been conferred on a late predecessor in the same career, and by the barriers which envy and hatred are placing in his way; if we consider all these circumstances, we shall perceive that such a life may have been full of bitterness, and fer. tile in events.' Pref. p. 6. We hasten to lay before our readers a brief sketch of the principal incidents in the life of this celebrated poet. Torquato Tasso was descended from an ancient and honourable family of Bergamo, in which city some of its descendants. still reside. His father Bernardo Tasso, who was himself a poet of some eminence, adopted, according to the custom f literary men of narrow fortunes in Italy, during that period, the dependent life of a courtier; and after wandering for many years from court to court, now patronised by one petty prince, now by another, at length entered into the service of Ferrante Sanseverino, prince of Salerno, who employed him in the capacity of secretary. He now resolved to marry, and in 1539, when in the 46th year of his age, was united to Portia Rossi, a lady of a noble family settled at Naples. A few years afterwards, being desirous of devoting himself to his studies, and having obtained permission to withdraw from court, he retired, for a while, to Sorrento, near Naples: where his son Torquato was born March 11th, 1544. Of the childhood of Tasso many miraculous stories are related. Bees did not indeed swarm about his lips ; but when six months old, he spoke, clearly and distinctly; nay reasoned, and returned pertinent replies; rarely wept, and never laughed; and, in short, demeaned himself with such grave sagacity, as to announce from the dawn of life, that he was destined for some great design.' About this time the Prince of Salerno having rendered himself obnoxious to Don Pedro di Toledo, viceroy of Naples, under the emperor Charles V., resolved to quit the. country. He therefore renounced his allegiance to the emperor, and fled to France; and Bernardo, who had faithfully served him for 22 years, was the companion of his flight. Previous to his departure however he had removed his family to Naples, in order to place them near his wife's relations, who resided in that city, and facilitate the education of his son. Torquato, now in the seventh year of his age, was sent to a school founded by the Jesuits. Such was the ardour with which he studied, that his mother found it necessary for In the sake of quiet, to send him frequently to his master be fore day-break, with a lanthorn before him to shew him the road. During the three years that he continued under the tuition of those fathers, the young Tasso perfected himself in the Latin tongue, made a good progress in Greek, and had attended with such diligence to rhetoric and poetry, that, in the tenth year of his age, he recited in public, orations and verses which were heard with admiration.' 1554 he was removed to Rome, to meet his father, who, though still an exile from Naples, had obtained permission to revisit Italy. His mother, however, still remained at Naples. Her own relations, after the departure of her husband, had treated her with the greatest unkindness, and now refused to permit her to join him. She died about two years afterwards; and Bernardo was tormented with the suspicion that she had been poisoned by her inhuman relations for the sake of her dowry, which they had constantly withheld. The distress which Tasso endured or witnessed in his youth, his biographer thinks, greatly contributed to increase his constitutional melancholy. After continuing about two years at Rome, Bernardo was taken under the protection of the duke of Urbino; and after about two years inore he removed with his son to Venice. Meanwhile, the young Torquato, we are informed, pursued his studies with intense avidity, and made rapid strides in the acquisition of knowledge. His mind was stimulated to literature by the example of his father, and his father's friends; and from his most early years he had been led to associate poetry with glory, and glory with happiness. He was now an excellent classical scholar, and besides his skill in the two ancient languages, had paid particular attention to the Italian writers, both in prose and verse.' Poor Bernardo, who had not much reason to boast of his good fortune, either as a courtier or a poet, resolved that his son should seek independence in another way; and ac cordingly sent him, in 1560, when 16 years of age, to Padua, to study Law. The result of this experiment may be easily conjectured. Torquato had fallen so deeply in love with the Muses, that far from curing his passion, all impediments to its gratification served only to inflame it the more. Instead therefore of poring over the pandects of Justinian, he applied himself in secret to the composition of his Rinaldo-a heroic poem, divided into twelve books, the subject of which is the exploits of the young Paladin Rinaldo, atchieved for the love of Clarice. His father finding, to use his own words, that to oppose his impetuous desire, which as a mighty torrent hastened to its end, would be a vain attempt,' resolved, though with regret, to permit him to follow his inclination; and Torquato, immediately giving up the pretence of studying law, applied himself with transport to philosophy and poetry. The Rinaldo was published in 1562, and gained the young poet much applause. Indeed, if we consider the youth of the author, and that it was composed, amid the distraction of other studies, in the short space of ten months, it is certainly a wonderful performance. After prosecuting his studies at Padua for two years, Tasso went to reside at Bologna, having received a very flattering invitation from that university. It was at this period, it is supposed that he first formed the design of writing the Jerusalem Delivered. He left Bologna, after residing there rather more than a year, in high indignation at being suspected, probably without foundation, of writing several pasquinades, in which different members of the university were severely satirized. He soon afterwards returned to Padua. P Interest was now made with the Cardinal Lewis of Este, brother to Alphonso II., duke of Ferrara, that the young poet should have some appointment in his service. The application proyed successful: and in October, 1565, Tasso arrived at Ferrara, in the midst of the rejoicings on account of the nuptials of Alphonso. Concerning Tasso's reception there Mr. Black indulges us with various conjectures. In the first place we are told that probably it was favourable, as the cardinal his patron was uncommonly affable: then, that it is probable he met with little attention during the bustle and tumult, and that the pageantry he witnessed perhaps gave him little pleasure: and again, that the young poet was probably an object of attention, and, perhaps very much delighted with what he beheld. Now, were we to venture an opinion upon so delicate a point, it would be that as Tasso appears to have been always very fond of fine sights and gay amusements, even when oppressed with sickness and sorrow, it is not likely he would feel less relish for such scenes in the hey-day of youth, and the sunshine of for tune. Alphonso had two sisters, Lucretia and Leonora, who resided at his court. The first was thirty-one, the other thirty years of age, but they were still, we are told, extremely lovely; and moreover, very studious, accomplished, and condescending, and very fond of learned men, especially poets. Of Leonora, it would appear, Tasso became enamoured. • Even that blest day when first thy angel mien I saw ; and gazed upon thy look serenė; Even then with double death my heart had died, Each frozen sense, and half the statue warm'd.' But our poet was very far from confining his passion to one object; and indeed appears to have been quite a general lover. To divers ladies, fair and brown, canzoni and sonnets innumerable were addressed, breathing the most ardent devotion. Most of these amatory effusions, however, like the love-verses of Cowley, may be considered as the language of gallantry rather than of passion-expressive of the admiration of the poet rather than the lover; and though we must not bastily conclude that love played about the imagination without ever warming the heart, it would be difficult to point out, among the various subjects of compliment, any favoured individual who inspired a genuine and paramount, affection. Was it Leonora of Este? Though generally asserted, this is by no means proved, and is per haps, not very probable. Still less probable is it, that the distraction of the poet and his confinement by Alphonso, were owing to his attachment to that princess. Tasso now resumed, under very favourable circumstances, his Jerusalem, which had been laid aside for two years; and encouraged by the favour of the duke, but especially by the more sweet and flattering kindness of the two princesses, composed his epic with such diligence and felicity, that in the space of a few months, he had completed five entire cantos.' In 1569 the father of our poet died at Ostia, on the Po, of which place he had been made governor by the duke of Mantua. Of Bernardo Tasso the author remarks that he was perhaps the most illustrious poet of his time. His principal work, the Amadigi, a heroic poem founded on the popular romance of Amadis de Gaul, has, however, sunk into oblivion, in company with many other romantic poems written by distinguished authors of that period. The year following Tasso accompanied his patron, the cardinal of Este, to France, and was introduced by him to the court of his cousin Charles IX. From some cause or other, however, which is not clearly explained, a coolness arose between the cardinal and our poet, who received permission to return to Italy. On this occasion Mr. Black gets sadly out of humour with the cardinal; and though he had before described that prince as being very affable in his disposition, he now finds it suit his purpose better to call him proud and pompous.' Tasso, he says was proud also, and possessed of that candour and simplicity of character, which leads to the |