EXPLANATORY NOTES and OBSERVATIONS ON DOCTOR GOLDSMITH's POEM, ENTITLED RETALIATION.

"IF our landlord supplies us with beef and with fish," page 1, line 3] The master of the St. James's coffee-house, where the Doctor, and the friends he has charac|terised in this Poem, held an occasional club.

"That Ridge is anchovy," page 6, line 10] Counsellor John Ridge, a gentleman belonging to the Irish bar, the relish of whose agreeable and pointed conversation, is ad|mitted by all his acquaintance, to be very properly compared to the above sauce.

Page  18"Here lies the good Dean," page 7, line 5] Dr. Ber|nard, Dean of Derry, in Ireland, author of many ingenious pieces, particularly a reply to Macpherson's Antiquities of Great Britain and Ireland.

"Here lies our good Edmund," page 7, line 11] Mr. Edmund Burke.

"To persuade Tommy Townshend to lend him a vote," page 8, line 2] Mr. T. Townshend Junior, Member for Whitchurch, Hampshire.

"Here lies honest William, page 8, line 11] Mr. Wil|liam Burke, late Secretary to General Conway, and Mem|ber for Bedwin, Wiltshire.

"Here lies honest Richard," page 9, line 5] Mr. Richard Burke, Collector of Granada, no less remarkable in the walks of wit and humour, than his brother Mr. Edmund Burke is justly distinguished in all the branches of useful and polite literature.

"Now breaking a jest, and now breaking a limb," page 9, line 8] the above Gentleman having slightly fractured one of his arms and legs, at different times, the Doctor has rallied him on those accidents, as a kind of retributive justice for breaking his jests upon other people.

"Here Cumberland lies," page 10, line 1] Doctor Richard Cumberland, author of the West Indian, Fashion|able Lover, the Brothers, and other dramatic pieces.

—page 11, lines 5 and 6] Doctor Douglas, an ingenious Scotch gentleman, who has no less distinguished himself as a Citizen of the World, than a sound Critic, in detecting several lite|rary mistakes (or rather forgeries) of his countrymen; par|ticularly Lauder on Milton, and Bowyer's History of the Popes.

"Macpherson writes bombast, and calls it a style, p. 11, line 13] David Macpherson, Esq who lately, from the mere force of his style, wrote down the first poet of all antiquity.

"Here lies David Garrick," page 12, line 5] David Garrick, Esq joint Patentee and acting Manager of the Theatre-Royal, Drury-lane. For the other parts of his character, vide the Poem.

"Here Hickey reclines," page 14, line 9] A gentleman whose hospitality and good-humour have acquired him, in this Club, the title of 'honest Tom Hickey.' His profes|sion, the Doctor tells us, is that of an attorney, but whe|ther he meant the words an echo to the sense or not, he has told us so in, perhaps, the only indifferent couplet of the whole Poem. To soften this censure, however, in some re|spect, the English Reader is to be told, that the phrase of "burn ye," in the 5th line of the 15th page, tho' it may seem forced to rhyme to "attorney," is a familiar method of salutation in Ireland amongst the lower classes of the people.

Page  20"He shifted his Trumpet and only took snuff," page the last, line the last] Sir Joshua Reynolds, on whom this observation was made, is so remarkably deaf as to be under the necessity of using an ear trumpet mostly in company; he is, at the same time, equally remarkable for using a great quantity of snuff; his manner in both of which, taken in the point of time described, must be allowed, by those who have been witnesses of such a scene, to be as happily given upon Paper, as that great Artist himself, perhaps, could exhibit upon Canvass.