Wit and Mirth: or Pills to Purge Melancholy, Vol. 6 of 6

In Short

Compiled by Thomas D'Urfey, this final installment of a six-volume anthology brings together popular English songs, satirical verse, and theatrical airs from the turn of the eighteenth century. Across dozens of printed scores and broadside lyrics, the volume captures the musical landscape of London—from royal toasts and theatrical comedies to tavern drinking songs, bawdy street ballads, and political satires. It has endured as an irreplaceable cultural artifact, preserving the unvarnished humor, vernacular language, and irreverent spirit of Restoration and Augustan popular culture.

The Story

Rather than following a single dramatic storyline, the book presents a continuous sequence of short-form musical and poetic narratives. The collection opens with theatrical airs and pastoral romance songs featuring classic poetic figures like Amoret, Thyrsis, Corinna, and Belinda. These early selections alternate between declarations of grand passion and pragmatic warnings about the fleeting nature of youth and beauty, advising readers that desires return in vain once youth has passed.

As the anthology progresses, the setting shifts from idealized arcadian bowers to the crowded streets, taverns, and playhouses of London. theatrical numbers sung by noted performers of the era—such as Mrs. Bracegirdle and Mrs. Willis—explore the entanglements of courtly love, jealousy, and deceit. These polished dramatic pieces quickly give way to rowdy tavern anthems and drinking songs that celebrate the virtues of wine and regional ales, including Hull, Lambeth, and Epsom brews, while poking fun at political factions, Low-church figures, and foreign powers.

The middle movement of the volume leans heavily into vernacular farce, trade humor, and broadside satire. Craftspeople, sailors, grocers, tailors, and tinkers take center stage. Narratives recount cunning trickery: a young grocer is tricked into marrying an expectant maid, a group of travelers pays their innkeeper's bill without spending a single coin, and a tinker turns his trade into a series of double-entendres. Interspersed among these comic tales are sharp theatrical lampoons, such as a satire targeting the composer "Monsieur Grabeau" and the theatrical production of Albion and Albanius, detailing the frustration of actors and backers whose elaborate mechanical stage props failed to save a dull script.

In its closing selections, the volume moves toward celebratory social gatherings and grand narrative ballads. Political anthems toasted to Queen Anne and the military victories of the Duke of Marlborough sit beside vibrant country-wedding ballads. The volume culminates in an exuberant, dialect-filled account of a massive rural wedding feast, listing dozens of eccentric local guests, outlandish dishes, and lively dances, ending on a triumphant note of communal revelry.

How It Unfolds

The songbook opens Pastoral lovers declare their passions, plead for mercy, and weigh the fleeting nature of youth against the pain of unrequited affection.

The stage takes center Airs composed by John Eccles, Daniel Purcell, and Henry Purcell present theatrical meditations on love, jealousy, and the pursuit of pleasure.

The tavern calls Brimming bumpers, regional ales, and pipes of tobacco replace courtly rhetoric as topers toast to good health, peace of mind, and freedom from state affairs.

The town tells its jokes Bawdy tradesmen, clever maidens, and traveling companions engage in humorous encounters, riddle-songs, and mock-heroic competitions like a "Ligg of good Noses."

The lampoon bites Satirical verses mock theatrical failures, bad poets, and foreign musicians, targeting figures like "Monsieur Grabeau" and disappointed playhouse managers.

The country celebrates A sprawling, dialect-rich wedding ballad gathers a vast cast of eccentric villagers to feast, drink, and dance until dawn.

The People

Because the book is a verse anthology, its characters are the recurring archetypes of Augustan musical satire and theatrical comedy:

• The Pastoral Lovers (Amoret, Corinna, Belinda, and Amintor) want affection, devotion, or immediate surrender, but they are constantly blocked by coy disdain, financial motives, or the fear of betrayal.
• The Jolly Toper wants nothing more than a full tankard, a pipe of tobacco, and freedom from political cares; he achieves total contentment by drowning his worries in ale.
• The Clever Maid wants to navigate the advances of suitors on her own terms; she routinely outwits prospective husbands, tradesmen, and lovers to secure her own independence or marriage.
• Monsieur Grabeau and the Playwrights seek theatrical glory and public applause, but their costly stage machinery, elaborate peacocks, and dull scripts end in financial loss and biting satirical ridicule.

In Its Own Voice

"Aurelia now one Moment lost, / A thousand Sighs may after cost; / Desires may oft return in vain, / But Youth will ne'er return again." A pastoral lyric warns a hesitant maiden that time moves quickly and youth cannot be recovered.

"There's no body cares for your puffing, / You're mistaken in me; / Nay prithee, prithee, prithee pish, / We'll try who's the best at a huffing." A rejected suitor drops his polite tone to match his lady's bluster in a lively comic duet.

"With clouds of Tobacco we'll make our Noddles clear, / We'll be as great as Princes, when our Heads are full of Beer." A drinking song celebrates the democratic equality and simple comfort found inside a crowded tavern.

What It's Really About

Beneath its catchy tunes and comic verses, the anthology presents a vivid folk-portrait of early eighteenth-century English life. It contrasts the idealized, aristocratic conventions of courtly love with the pragmatic, ribald reality of working-class existence. At its core, the collection champions communal joy, physical pleasure, and skeptical humor over political anxiety, social pretension, and solemn hypocrisy. It asks how ordinary people cope with uncertainty, war, and hardship, offering a clear answer: through laughter, song, fellowship, and a full glass of ale.

Why Read It Today

Wit and Mirth: or Pills to Purge Melancholy offers an unedited, high-spirited window into the popular entertainment of the Restoration and early Augustan eras. Readers interested in social history, theatre, musicology, or historical dialects will find it an incredible resource.

Reading the collection feels like stepping into a crowded 1700s coffeehouse or street theater. The verse moves with a driving, foot-tapping momentum, full of earthy humor and sharp observational wit that feels surprisingly modern.

It is not without its reading hurdles. The volume relies heavily on period phonetic spellings, regional Scots dialect, obsolete trades, and immediate political references to Queen Anne's reign and the War of the Spanish Succession. Modern readers must also navigate the era's uninhibited, sometimes harsh bawdiness and coarse double-entendres. Yet for those willing to lean into its rhythmic cadences and historic vocabulary, the book remains a uniquely entertaining record of human nature at its most candid and exuberant.

<ElicitationsGroup message="Where would you like to go next with this volume?">

<Elicitation label="Explore the musical settings and famous composers in this collection" query="Can you detail the notable composers, like Purcell and Eccles, featured in Volume 6 of Wit and Mirth and how their music reflects the Restoration theater?"/>

<Elicitation label="Analyze the historical dialects and regional slang used in the text" query="Analyze the use of Scots dialect and 18th-century English vernacular slang in the lyrics from Wit and Mirth Vol. 6."/>

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