In the poet's address to Humour in this ode there is one image of singular beauty and propriety. The ornaments in the hair of Wit are of such a nature, and disposed in such a manner, as to be perfectly symbolical and characteristic: "Me too amidst thy band admit, There where the young-eyed healthful Wit, (Whose jewels in his crisped hair Are placed each other's beams to share, Whom no delights from thee divide) In laughter loosed, attends thy side." Nothing could be more expressive of wit, which consists in a happy collision of comparative and relative images, than this reciprocal reflection of light from the disposition of the jewels. "O Humour, thou whose name is known To Britain's favour'd isle alone." The author could only mean to apply this to the time when he wrote, since other nations had produced works of great humour, as he himself acknowledges afterwards. "By old Miletus," &c. "By all you taught the Tuscan maids," &c. The Milesian and Tuscan romances were by no means distinguished for humour; but as they were the models of that species of writing in which humour was afterwards employed, they are, probably for that reason only, mentioned here. THE PASSIONS. AN ODE FOR MUSIC. If the music which was composed for this ode had equal merit with the ode itself, it must have been the most excellent performance of the kind in which poetry and music have, in modern times, united. Other pieces of the same nature have derived their greatest reputation from the perfection of the music that accompanied them, having in themselves little more merit than that of an ordinary ballad: but in this we have the whole soul and power of poetry--expression that, even without the aid of music, strikes to the heart; and imagery of power enough to transport the attention, without the forceful alliance of corresponding sounds! what, then, must have been the effect of these united! It is very observable, that though the measure is the same, in which the musical efforts of Fear, Anger, and Despair are described, yet, by the variation of the cadence, the character and operation of each is strongly expressed: thus particularly of Despair: "With woful measures wan Despair-- Low, sullen sounds his grief beguiled, A solemn, strange, and mingled air, 'Twas sad by fits, by starts 'twas wild." He must be a very unskilful composer who could not catch the power of imitative harmony from these lines! The picture of Hope that follows this is beautiful almost beyond imitation. By the united powers of imagery and harmony, that delightful being is exhibited with all the charms and graces that pleasure and fancy have appropriated to her: Relegat, qui semel percurrit; Qui nunquam legit, legat.