him during his first disorder. Under these feelings, he dictated from his sick-bed, the following version from Ovid's Tristia, which seems to have been intended for the object of his affection, and is probably the last of his productions:

Since trembling illness has unnerv'd my own,

I must address thee in a hand unknown.
'Midst savage strangers in a foreign land,
On life's extreamest verge aghast I stand;
'Midst cruel climes and people more unkind,
What objects, think you, occupy my mind?
Here, gloomy clouds the cheerless landscape load,
And air and earth proclaim the unus'd abode.
Stretch'd, sick and unregarded, here I lie,
And wildly cast around an hopeless eye:
No friendly face, with cheering smile, appears,
No eye balls stream with sympathetic tears;
No voice of music bids my pangs retire,
Rekindling in my breast th' accustom'd fire;
No gentle accents through the tedious day,
Recite sweet tales to cheat the time away,
In all I feel or hear a foe I find,

And ev'ry object round me seems unkind;
With mingled thorns offends the bed of down,
And in the hangings angry demons frown.

Here as I pine all friendless and remote,

The pleasing past o'erwhelms my laboring thought,—
By turns lost pleasures pass in sad review,
And all those pleasures yield by turns to you;
To you my feeble voice incessant cries,—
I see your phantom with deluded eyes;
And when a thousand tender things I've said,
I blame the silence of th' unanswering shade;
And then thy friendship is esteemed a cheat,-
I curse the name my lips so oft repeat!
But if the damps of death my brow bedew'd,
And to the roof my palsied tongue were glued,
And skill were pos'd and remedies were vain,
Thy soft approach would vanquish all my pain;
Thy healing voice would all my strength replace,
And I should rise in health to thy embrace.-

While dire disease my feeble frame destroys,
Borne round the giddy whirl of thoughtless joys,
Dost thou forget thy lover's faithful name?
Or glows thy bosom with another flame?
Oh, no! too sure, while I remain unblest,
All joys are strangers to thy anxious breast.

Soon shall the gods resume the life they gave,
Nor can thy prayers thy parting lover save;—
But sure the gods might grant this small demand,
At least to perish in my native land,

Where pious hands my cold remains might burn,
And seal my ashes in th' unconscious urn,—
"Twere better than in foreign lands alone
To perish thus, a fugitive unknown,
Had death at once th' unerring weapon cast,
And one misfortune been my first and last!
Not death itself can now afford relief,
And life is lengthen'd to prolong my grief;
Yet well I know the last, sad, closing day,
With all its horrors, is not far away,
And I must die upon a foreign shore,
Nor see that face, nor press that bosom more;
Give up my spirit on this lonely bed,
No friendly arm beneath my languid head;
Nor with my closing eye's last trembling beam,
Behold the tears of sorrow round me stream;
Nor pour my latest sighs, with faltering sound,
In blessings, on my sobbing friends around;
And when, at last, my soul reluctant flies,
No hand to close my sunk and sightless eyes,
Vultures and wolves shall on my body prey,
And my bones whiten in the blaze of day!

At the sad news I see thy frenzied air,
Thy hands outstretched to Heav'n in fruitless pray'r;
I hear thee call my name and tell our loves,
Wild rushing through resounding vales and groves;
But, ah! to wound that snowy breast forbear,

Nor scatter to the winds that flowing hair;
And think scarce less from other each was torn,
When my first absence thou wert doom'd to mourn;

"Twas death itself to wander far from thee,

And more, far more than this, a death to me!
But that I knew thy breast could ne'er obey,
I could command thy fruitless griefs away;
Nay, bid thee joy that all my ills are o'er,
And grief, disease and exile, vex no more.
At least, with firmness meet relentless fate,
Nor sink at once beneath a lessening weight;
With patient meekness all thy woes endure,
Which time may soften, though it cannot cure!

In August, 1797, Johnson was prevailed upon to return to New York, and thence he went over to Jamaica, on Long Island. Here his old friends again flocked around him. Joseph Osborn and his brother, Charles Osborn, were unremitting in their attentions. "In my acquaintance with the world," observed he, "I have seen no parallel to their friendship and generosity." Of his southern friends, he spoke with enthusiasm to the last; and especially of the frank and liberal treatment he met with in every respect from his partner, Dr. Brownfield. His eyes, it is believed, were closed by

Joseph Osborn, in whose hand-writing, there is the following simple inscription upon a page of a manuscript book which had been the property of his friend: "Wm. M. Johnson died at Jamaica, L. I., Tuesday morning, five o'clock, the twenty-first of September, 1797." His tomb stone may still be seen in a gave yard at Jamaica, His age did not exceed six and twenty.

Such was the obscure career of one of the earliest of our neglected poets. That he was a poet born' there can be no doubt, on a consideration of his character and temperament as evinced by his life, and attested by those who knew him, and of the genius manifested in those of his writings, which a happy chance has preserved and placed in my possession. Notwithstanding the difference of fashion in poetry between our day and that of the subject of this memoir, all readers, capable of appreciating that essential spirit of poetry which is independent of the exterior fashion of phrase and style, will recognize, even in some of the specimens which I have quoted, a delicacy of sentiment, combined with a passionate ardor, an enthusiasm for natural beauty, with that deep yearning after the good, the true and lovely in moral nature which most strongly characterizes spirits of the highest order,-with, at the same time, a melody of language, and graceful ease of style, united to strength and directness,-abundantly sufficient to establish his claim to a high place among the poets of our country. His writings have never been published, and his name is an unknown sound to the present generation. His life was passed in obscurity, and that perpetual and exhausting struggle with penury, which has so often and so sadly withered the noble promise of young genius; and by the time that his superior talents and excellence of character had raised him to a social position, which promised a more prosperous future career, we see him sinking beneath a premature blight of disease. In the preceding sketch, I have attempted to make the narrative tell at once the story of Johnson's genius and qualities of character. To render him justice, in both points of view, his attainments and conduct must be compared with his chances; and when we consider his nameless origin, the desultory scraps of education which his early circumstances permitted him, the many temptations which he was subjected, both from his poverty and the society into which he was necessarily often cast, the former must be acknowledged to have been such as to entitle his memory at least to this slight and tardy attempt to rescue it from oblivion.

RETROSPECTIVE VIEW OF THE SOUTH-AMERICAN STATES.

(Continued from page 380.)

At the conclusion of our last number, we stated that the Spanish power in the northern sections of South America, having been materially reduced by the defeat of the Royalists at Carabobo, on the 24th of June, 1821, was afterwards completely extinguished before the end of 1823; and that those two sections having been united under a Republican Constitution into one State called Colombia, had resolved to employ their forces in the liberation of Quito and Peru.

For this purpose, General Sucre was despatched in 1822 by Bolivar, at the head of a Colombian army, into Quito, where he had several engagements doubtful in their issue with the Royalist forces, commanded by the President, Samano, and General CruzMurgeon. He was, however, soon after reinforced by Bolivar at the head of fresh troops, and the Royalists were vanquished successively at Bombona and Pichincha; after the latter action, the Spaniards capitulated, and having been suffered to withdraw from Quito, that section was completely occupied by the Colombians. Sucre entered the city of Quito on the 22d of May, 1822, and having recruited his troops, pressed his course southward towards Upper Peru, a region east of the Andes, which formed the northwest portion of the Viceroyalty of La Plata, and was then entirely occupied by the Spaniards. Bolivar traversed the country near the Pacific, and established his head-quarters at Guayaquil, a large seaport town belonging to Peru. In the mean time, the Chilian forces acting also for the liberation of Peru, under Lord Cochrane and General San Martin, had succeeded in establishing themselves at Pisco, on the coast of that country, not far from Lima, where they received in the fall of 1820, propositions for accommodation, made by the Viceroy Pezuela, agreeably to the general orders of the Spanish Cortes. These propositions were rejected, and the people of Peru aroused by the successes of the independents, began to exhibit signs of insubordination; the important city of Guayaquil had already declared in favor of the patriots, and Lima appeared to be on the eve of an insurrection.

In January, 1821, Pezuela was removed from the Viceregal authority by his own officers, and General La Serna was placed in his stead; this measure is supposed to have been occasioned, by the known attachment of Pezuela to the cause of absolutism, whereas La Serna was devoted to constitutional principles, which were also professed by the majority of the Spanish army in Peru. The change however produced no good effects to the Royalists in that country, and the disaffection of the people daily increasing, the new Viceroy found it necessary to evacuate Lima, which was, in consequence, occupied by the Chilian forces on the 8th of July. San Martin immediately assumed the title of Supreme Protector of Peru, in which character he summoned constituent and legislative assemblies, levied taxes, confiscated property, caused persons to be arrested and executed, instituted orders of nobility and knighthood, and committed numberless other acts of folly, injustice, and violence. Cochrane, a mild man, took no new titles, and killed nobody; contenting himself with filling his coffers in the most unobtrusive manner.

In this state, Peru remained for more than a year. The Viceroy established himself at Cuzco, on the eastern side of the Andes; Generals Canterac and Valdes, who commanded the Spanish forces near the Pacific, maintained the Royal cause in some districts, and occasionally, by approaching Lima, aroused San Martin to action. At length, the Colombians having conquered Quito, appeared on the frontiers of Peru, and Bolivar, invited the Protector to confer with him at Guayaquil. The call was obeyed by San Martin, and the two Chiefs met at the place indicated, on the 25th of July, 1822. What passed at this interview is not known; its immediate

results were the union of Quito and Guayaquil to the Colombian Republic, and the engagement, on the part of the latter, by a solemn treaty to employ all its efforts in the liberation of Peru. San Martin, after his return to Lima, on the 20th of September, abdicated his powers, and withdrew to Chili, where he in like manner surrendered his command in the service of that country; Lord Cochrane also shortly after retired from the Pacific, and lent his aid to the Brazilians in expelling the Europeans from their country.

The entrance of the Colombians into Peru gave regularity and consistency to the efforts of the Independents, whose forces were by the impulse thus given increased in numbers, and improved in discipline. The Spaniards, however, maintained their ground with their usual bravery and perseverance, and, under Canterac and Valdes, completely defeated a portion of the liberating army commanded by General Alvarado, on the 21st of January, 1823; many smaller actions subsequently took place between them and the insurgents, in consequence of which, Lima was occupied by each party in succession. Bolivar at last established himself in that capital, and having been invested with all the powers of Government by the Peruvians, employed them with great skill and discretion, in restoring order and in rendering available the resources of the country. In Upper Peru, Sucre was at the same time exhibiting great energy and talent, in organizing the means of offence, for the purpose of striking a decisive blow at the Spanish power in that region; and the respect which the two Colombian chiefs thus secured for themselves and their followers, gave strong assurances of the ultimate success of their efforts.

In this manner the year 1823, and part of 1824, passed, without any determination of the question. The Spaniards received no assistance from Europe, and their numbers were daily diminishing, while the efficacy of their movements was paralysed by dissensions among their chiefs; it has even be asserted, that after the restoration of the absolute power of the King of Spain in 1823, the Viceroy La Serna proposed to the Independent Chiefs to unite with him, in converting Peru into a constitutional monarchy, with a Spanish Prince on its throne. If such a proposition were made, there is no reason to believe that it was considered with any favor by Bolivar, who appears to have been at all times bent upon expelling the Europeans.

On the 6th of August, 1824, Bolivar brought the Royal forces, opposed to him, under Canterac to a general action near Junin, where the latter were signally defeated, and forced to retire into Upper Peru; the only important position afterwards held by them, between the Andes and the Pacific, being the fortress of Callao.. Sucre likewise having collected a sufficient body of troops determined to risk an action with his opponents in Upper Peru; and they having been reinforced by the remains of Canterac's division from the lower country, showed no disposition to avoid it. The two parties after some time spent in manoeuvring and in petty actions, at length met on the 9th of December, on the plain of Ayacucho, near the town of Guamanga, where the Spanish forces were totally overthrown, and the Viceroy La Serna was made prisoner. Canterac who then assumed the command of the defeated troops, proposed a capitulation, by the terms of which all the Royalist forces were to quit America; these propositions having been accepted by Sucre, the Spaniards were conducted to Arica, and thence sent in British vessels to Europe. Generals Olaneta and Rodil, who were at the head of the Royalists remaining in Lower Peru, however, refused to submit to the provisions of this treaty, and continued for some time afterwards to maintain a fruitless opposition to the independence of this country; Olaneta was at last defeated and killed, and the troops under his command dispersed on the 2d of April, 1825; and Rodil having held out the fortress of Callao until he and his men were reduced to the utmost misery by famine, finally surrendered his post, by capitulation, on the 23d of January, 1826. A few Royalist troops who had retained possession of the Island of Chiloe, near Chili, about the same time evacuated the country, and every sign of the subsistence of the Spanish authority thus disappeared from South America.

The victory of Ayacucho secured the independence of Upper Peru. The people