"The Beggar Boy," appeared, in 1804. The success of this little poem encouraged her to proceed, and she continued to publish occasional miscellaneous pieces in prose and verse; the principal of which were "Original Poems for Infant Minds," and "Rhymes for the Nursery." In 1815, she published a prose composition of higher pretensions, called "Display," which was very successful. Her last and principal work, published while she was living, consists of "Essays in Rhymes, on Morals and Manners." The latter part of her life was passed principally at Ongar, where her family had resided since 1810. She died of an affection of the lungs, in April, 1823. After her decease, her prose writings, consisting of "Contributions of Q. Q. to a Periodical," and her "Correspondence," consisting chiefly of letters to her intimate friends. were collected and published. No one who reads her works, and those of Cowper, but must, we think, notice the likeness in the character of their minds. Miss Taylor possessed, like Cowper, a vein of playful humour, that often gave point and vividness to the most sombre sentiment, and usually animated the strains she sung for children; but still, there was often over her fancy, as over his, a deep shade of pensiveness,—"morbid humility," she sometimes calls it,—and no phrase could better express the state of feeling which frequently oppressed her heart. The kind and soothing domestic influences which were always around her path in life, prevented the sad and despairing tone of her mind from ever acquiring the predominence, so as to unfit her for her duties; in this respect she was much more favoured than the bard of Olney. But we are inclined to think that, had she met with severe trials and misfortunes, the character of her poetry would have been more elevated, and her language more glowing. The retiring sensitiveness of her disposition kept down, usually, that energy of thought and elevation of sentiment, which, from a few specimens of her later writings, she seemed gifted to sustain, could she only have been incited to the effort. Her piety was deep and most humble: diffidence was usually in all things the prevailing mood of her mind; and this often clouded her religious enjoyment. But she triumphed in the closing scene; those "unreal fears" were in a great measure removed, and she went down to the "cold dark grave" with that firm trust in her Redeemer which disarmed death of its terrors.
TELESILLA.
A noble poetess of Argos, who being advised by the oracle, which she had consulted respecting her health, to the study of the muses, soon attained such excellence, as to animate by her poetry the Argive women to repel, under her command, Cleomenes, the Spartan king, and afterwards King Demaratus, from the siege of Parophiliacum, with great loss.
TEMPEST, MISS,
Of the Grange, near Ackworth, sister to Sir Charies Tempest, Bart., of Broughton Hall, in the county of York, has been appointed overseer of the poor for the parish of Ackworth, together with John Hagues, cow-leech, also of the parish of Ackworth. The appointment was made at Wentbridge on the 26th. ultimo, and it endorsed by "two of her majesty's justices of the peace."
Such is the announcement in the Gloucester Chronicle of 1849
