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1751
Y. A
Geo: Johnson
Τ Η Ε
WORKS
OF
Alexander Pope Eſq.
VOLUME IV.
CONTAINING HIS
SATIRES, &c.
LONDON,
Printed for J. and P. KNAPTON in Ludgate-ftreet.
MDCCLI.
CONTENTS
OF THE
FOURTH VOL U M E.
PR
ROLOGUE to tbe SATIRES, in an Epiſtle to
Dr. ARBUTHNOT,
5
SATIRES and EPISTLES of HORACE
imitated,
The Second Book of the Satires of Horace, Sat. I.
39
The Second Book of the Satires of Horace, Sat. II. 59
The Firſt Book of the Epiſtles of Horace, Ep. I. 79
The Firſt Book of the Epiſtles of Horace, Ep. VI. 101
The Second Book of the Epiſtles of Horace, Ep. I. 117
The Second Book of the Epiftles of Horace, Ep. II. 161
SATIRES of Dr. John DONNE, Dean of St.
Pauls, verſified.
SATIRE II.
193
Satire IV.
203
EPILOGUE to the Satires,
DIALOGUE I.
231
DIALOGUE II.
245
On receiving from the Right Honourable the Lady
FRANCES SHIRLEY, a ſtandih and two pens, 263
!!
1
7
P
ERRAT A.
AGE 5. 1:5. for Satire r. Satires.
16, Note on Verſe 184. I. 3.. for emprune r. em-
pruntent.
ܕܽ
29. Note on Verſe 381. 1. 10. for Imitation r. Imitatori
62. Note on Verſe 43. 1. 2. for dixerit r. edixerit.
82. lul. for cherarga r, chirarga.
101. Note l. ante penult. for narrower r, narrow.
102. 1. 7. for videt r. vidit.
176. 1. 10. for Argus r. Argis.
194. 1. 16. for Sins all kinds, r. Sins of all kinds.
196. l. 5. for which (alas) r. which was alas.
Ibid. dele the Semicolon.
226. 1. 8. for book r. brook.
248. Verſe 67. for whent r. where. .
260. Note on Verſe 231. l. 2. for ill r. il.
-
I
1
EPIST L E
TO
Dr. ARBUTHNOT.
е в
I
( 3 )
ADVERTISEMENT
TO
The firſt publication of this Epiſile
.
T
HIS paper is a ſort of bill of complaint,
begun many years ſince, and drawn up by
ſnatches, as the ſeveral occafions offered
I had no thoughts of publiſhing it; till it pleaſed ſome
Perſons of Rank and Fortune [the Authors of Ver ſes
to the Imitator of Horace, and of an Epiſtle to a Doc-
tor of Divinity from a Nobleman at Hampton Court]
to attack, in a very extraordinary manner, not only
my Writings (of which, being public, the Public is
judge) but my Perfon, Morals, and Family, where-
of, to thoſe who know me not, a truer information
may be requiſite. Being divided between the necef-
fity to ſay ſomething of myſelf, and my own lazineſs
to undertake ſo aukward a taſk, I thought it the
ſhorteſt way to put the laſt hand to this Epiſtle. If
it have any thing pleaſing, it will be that by which
I am moſt defirous to pleaſe, the Truth and the Scn-
timent; and if any thing offenfive, it will be only to
* B 2
( 4 )
thoſe I am leaſt ſorry to offend, the vicious or the
ungenerous.
Many will know their own pictures in it, there be-
ing not a circumſtance but what is true ; but I have,
for the moſt part, ſpared their Names, and they may
eſcape being laughed at, if they pleaſe.
I would have ſome of them know, it was owing
to the requeſt of the learned and candid Friend to
whom it is inſcribed, that I make not as free uſe of
theirs as they have done of mine. However, I fhall
have this advantage, and honour, on my ſide, that
whereas, by their proceeding, any abuſe may be di-
rected at any man, no injury can poſſibly be done by
mine, fince a nameleſs Character can never be found
out, but by its truth and likeneſs.
P.
$

Plate XII
Vol. IV. facing p.5.
T: Ilavman inv.et del,
Grignion fculp
Shut, shut the Door, good Sohn.fatigud I said
Tye np the Knocker, say I'm sick,Im dead.
Opo:to Arbuthnot.
( 5 )
E PIST L E
E
TO
Dr. ARBUTHNO T.
)
An Apology for himſelf and his Writings.
Being the Prologue to the Satire.
SHUT
HUT, ſhut the door, good John! fatigu’d
I ſaid,
Tye up the knocker, fay I'm ſick, I'm dead.
The Dog-ſtar rages ! nay 'tis paſt a doubt,
All Bedlam, or Parnaſſus, is let out:
Fire in each eye, and papers in each hand,
5
They rave, recite, and madden round the land.
What walls can guard me, or what ſhades can hide?
They pierce my thickets, thro' my Grot they glide,
By land, by water, they renew the charge,
They ſtop the chariot, and they board the barge. 10
No place is facred, not the Church is free,
Ev'n Sunday ſhines no Sabbath-day to me:
Notes.
Ver. 1. Shut, fout the door, good John!] John Searle,
his old and faithful ſervant : whom he has remembered,
under that character, in his Will.
* B 3
6
PROLOGUE
!
Then from the Mint walks forth the Man of rhyme,
Happy! to catch me, juſt at Dinner-time.
Is there a Parfon, much be-mus'd in beer, 15
A maudlin Poeteſs, a rhyming Peer,
A Clerk, foredoom'd his father's foul to croſs,
Who pens a Stanza when he ſhould engroſs?
Is there, who, lock'd from ink and paper, ſcrawls
With deſp'rate charcoal round his darken'd walls ?
All fly to TWIT'NAM, and in humble ſtrain
Apply to me, to keep them mad or vain.
Arthur, whoſe giddy fon neglects the Laws,
Imputes to me and my damn'd works the cauſe:
Poor Cornus ſees his frantic wife elope,
25
And curfes Wit, and Poetry, and Pope.
Friend to my Life! (which did not you prolong,
The world had wanted many an idle ſong)
20
VARIATIONS.
After 20. in the MS.
Is there a bard in durance ? turn them free,
With all their brandish'd reams they run to me:
Is there a Prentice, having ſeen two plays,
Who would do ſomething in his Semptreſs' praiſe-
NOTES.
VER. 13. Mint] A place to which inſolvent debtors
setired, to enjoy an illegal protection they were there fuf-
fered to afford one another, from the perſecution of their
creditors.
VER. 23. Arthur,] Arthur Moore, Eſq.
to the SATIRES.
7
What Drop or Noſtrum can this plague remove ?
Or which muſt end me, a Fool's wrath or love?
30
A dire dilemma! either way I'm ſped,
If foes, they write, if friends, they read me dead.
Seiz'd and ty'd down to judge, how wretched I!
Who can't be filent, and who will not lye:
To laugh, were want of goodneſs and of grace, 35
And to be grave, exceeds all Pow'r of face.
I ſit with ſad civility, I read
With honeſt anguiſh, and an aching head;
And drop at laſt, but in unwilling ears,
39
This ſaving counſel, “ Keep your piece nine years. "
Nine years ! cries he, who high in Drury-lane,
Lull'd by ſoft Zephyrs thro' the broken pane,
Rhymes ere he wakes, and prints before Term ends,
Oblig'd by hunger, and requeſt of friends :
VARIATIONS.
Ver. 29. in the iit Ed.
Dear Doctor, tell me, is not this a curſe ?
Say, is their anger, or their friendſhip worſe?
Nores.
VER, 33. Seiz'd and ty'd down to judge,] Alluding to
the ſcene in the Plain-Dealer, where Oldfux gags, and cies
down the Widow, to hear his well pen'd fianzas.
Ver. 38. honeſt anguiſ,] i.e. undiflembled.
Ibid. an aching head;} Alluding to the diſorder he was
then ſo conſtantly afflicted with.
VER. 43. Rhymes ere be wakes,] A pleaſant allogon to
thoſe words of Milton,
Dietales to me flumb'rinz, or inſpires
Eaſy my unpremeditated Verſe.
B4
8
PROLOGUE
“ The piece, you think, is incorrect? why take it, 45
“ I'm all ſubmiſſion, what you'd have it, make it."
Three things another's modeſt wiſhes bound,
My Friendſhip, and a Prologue, and ten pound.
Pitholeon ſends to me: “ You know his Grace,
6. I want a Patron; aſk him for a Place."
50
Pitholeon libelld mem" but here's a letter
“ Informs you, Sir, 'twas when he knew no better.
“ Dare you refuſe him? Curl invites to dine,
“ He'll write a Journal, or he'll turn Divine.”
Bleſs me! a packet.--"'Tis a ſtranger fues, 55
“ A Virgin Tragedy, an Orphan Muſe."
If I diſlike it, “ Furies, death and rage !"
If I approve, “ Commend it to the Stage.”
There (thank my ſtars) my whole commiffion ends,
The Play’rs and I are, luckily, no friends. 60
VARIATIONS.
VER. 53. in the MS.
If you refuſe, he goes, as fates incline,
To plague Sir Robert, or to turn Divine.
VER. 60. in the former Edd.
Cibber and I are luckily no friends.
Notes.
Ver. 49. Pitholeon) The name taken from a fooliſh
Poet of Rhodes, who pretended much to Greek. Schol.
in Horat. 1. i. Dr. Bentley pretends, that this Pitho-
leon libelled Cæſar alſo. See notes on Hor. Sat. 10. 1. i.
P.
to the SATIRE S.
9
65
Fir'd that the houſe reject him, “'Sdeath I'll print it,
“ And ſhame the fools-Your int'reſt, Sir, with
Lintot.”
Lintot, dull rogue! will think your price too much:
“ Not, Sir, if you reviſe it, and retouch.”
All my demurs but double his attacks;
At laſt he whiſpers, “ Do; and we go ſnacks."
Glad of a quarrel, ſtrait I clap the door,
Sir, let me ſee your works and you no more.
'Tis ſung, when Midas' Ears began to ſpring,
(Midas, a ſacred perſon and a King)
70
His very Miniſter who ſpy'd them firſt,
(Some ſay his Queen) was forc'd to ſpeak, or burſt.
And is not mine, my friend, a ſorer caſe,
When ev'ry coxcomb perks them in my face?
A. Good friend forbear! you deal in dang’rous things.
I'd never name Queens, Miniſters, or Kings; 76
Keep cloſe to Ears, and thoſe let aſſes prick,
'Tis nothing-P. Nothing ? if they bite and kick?
Out with it, DUNCIAD! let the ſecret paſs,
That ſecret to each fool, that he's an Aſs : 80
Notes.
>
VER. 72. Queen] The ſtory is told, by fome, of his
Barber, but by Chaucer of his Queen. See life of Bath's
Tale in Dryden's Fables.
Ver. 80. That ſecret to each fool, that he's ar fifs:]
i. e. chat his ears (his marks of folly) are viſible.
15:)
IO
PROLOGU E
F
+
1
90
The truth once told (and wherefore ſhould we lie ?)
The Queen of Midas ſlept, and ſo may I.
You think this cruel ? take it for a rule,
No creature ſmarts ſo little as a fool.
Let peals of laughter, Codrus! round thee break, 85
Thou unconcern'd canſt hear the mighty crack:
Pit, box, and gall’ry in convulſions hurl'd,
Thou ſtand’ſt unſhook amidſt a burſting world.
Who thames a Scribler? break one cobweb thro',
He ſpins the ſlight, ſelf-pleaſing thread anew :
Deſtroy his fib or ſophiſtry, in vain,
The creature's at his dirty work again,
Thron’d in the centre of his thin deſigns,
Proud of a vaſt extent of Alimzy lines !
Whom have I hurt? has Poet yet, or Peer,
Loft the arch'd eye-brow, or Parnaffian ſneer?
And has not Colly ſtill his lord, and whore?
His butchers Henley, his free-maſons Moor?
Does not one table Bavius ſtill admit?
Still to one Biſhop Philips ſeem a wit?
Notes.
VER. 88. Alluding to Horace,
Si fra£tus illabatur orbis,
Impavidum ferient ruine.
P.
VER. 96. arch'd eye-brown] The eye brow is raiſed in
the expreſſion of infolent contempt.
Ver. 98. free-maſons Moor?] He was of this ſociety,
and frequently headed their proceſſions.
95
100
to the SATIRES.
IIO
Still Sappho---A. Hold! for God-fake-you'll offend,
No Names-be calm--learn prudence of a friend :
I too could write, and I am twice as tall;
But foes like theſe-P. One Flatt'rer's worſe than all.
Of all mad creatures, if the learn'd are right, IOS
It is the ſlaver kills, and not the bite.
A fool quite angry is quite innocent:
Alas! 'tis ten times worſe when they repent.
One dedicates in high heroic proſe,
And ridicules beyond a hundred foes :
One from all Grubſtreet will my fame defend,
And more abuſive, calls himſelf my friend.
This prints my Letters, that expects a bribe,
And others roar aloud, “ Subſcribe, ſubfcribe.''
There are, who to my perſon pay their court: 115
I cough like Horace, and, tho' lean, am ſhort,
Ammon’s great ſon one ſhoulder had too high,
Such Ovid's noſe, and “ Sir! you have an Eye-
Go on, obliging creatures, make me fee
All that diſgrac'd my Betters, met in me.
Say for my comfort, languiſhing in bed,
Juſt ſo immortal Maro held his head :"
VARIATIONS.
Ver. 111. in the MS.
For ſong, for filence ſome expect a bribe ;
And others roar aloud, Subſcribe, ſubſcribe."
Time, praiſe, or money, is the leaſt they crave;
Yet each declares the other fool or knave.
I 20
6
-
។
12
PROLOGUE
And when I die, be ſure you let me know
Great Homer dy'd three thouſand years ago.
Why did I write? what fin to me unknown 125
Dipt me in ink, my parents', or my own?
As yet a child, nor yet a fool to fame,
I liſp'd in numbers, for the numbers came.
I left no calling for this idle trade,
No duty broke, no father diſobey’d.
I 36
The Muſe but ſerv'd to eaſe ſome friend, not Wife,
To help me thro’ this long diſeaſe, my Life,
To fecond, ARBUTHNOT! thy Art and Care,
And teach, the Being you preferv'd, to bear.
But why then publiſh ? Granville the polite, 135
And knowing Walſh, would tell me I could write;
Well-natur'd Garth inflam'd with early praiſe,
And Congreve lov'd, and Swift endur'd my lays;
VARIATIONS.
After x 124. in the MS.
But, Friend, this ſhape, which You and Curl a admire,
Came not from Ammon's ſon, but from my Sire b
And for my head, if you'll the truth excuſe,
I had it from my Mother, not the Muſe.
Happy, if he, in whom theſe frailties join'd,
Had heir'd as well the virtues of the mind.
• Curl ſet up his head for a lign.
• His Father was crooked.
( His mother was much afflicted with head-achs,
to the SATIRE S.
13
The courtly Talbot, Somers, Sheffield read,
Ev'n mitred Rocheſter would nod the head, 140
And St. John's ſelf (great Dryden's friends before)
With open arms receiv'd one Poet more.
Happy my ſtudies, when by theſe approv'd !
Happier their author, when by theſe belov’d!
From theſe the world will judge of men and books,
Not from the Burnets, Oldmixons, and Cooks. 146
Notes.
VER. 139. Talbot, &c.] All theſe were Patrons or Ad-
nirers of Mr. Dryden ; though a ſcandalous libel againſt
him, entitled, Dryden's Satyr to his Mufe, has been printed
in the name of the Lord Somers, of which he was wholly
ignorant.
Theſe are the perſons to whoſe account the Author
charges the publication of his firſt pieces : perſons, with
whom he was converſant (and he adds beloved) at 16 or
17 years of age ; an early period for ſuch acquaintance.
The catalogue might be made yet more illuſtrious, had he
not confined it to that time when he writ the Paſtorals and
Windſor Forefi, on which he paſſes a fort of Cenſure in the
lines following,
While pure Deſcription held the place of Senſe? &c. P.
Ver. 146. Burnets, &c.) Authors of ſecret and ſcan-
dalous Hiſtory.
Ibid. Burnets, Oldmixons, and Cooks. ] By no means Au-
thors of the ſame claſs, though the violence of party might
hurry them into the ſame miſtakes. But if the firſt of-
fended this way, it was only through an honeſt warmth of
temper, that allowed too little to an excellent underſtand-
ing. The other two, with very bad heads, had hearts
fill worſe.
14
PROLOGUE
Soft were my numbers; who could take offence
While pure Deſcription held the place of Senſe?
Like gentle Fanny's was my flow'ry theme,
A painted miſtreſs, or a purling ſtream.
150
Yet then did Gildon draw his venal quill;
I wilh'd the man a dinner, and ſåte ſtill.
Yet then did Dennis rave in furious fret;
I. never anſwer'd, I was not in debt.
If want provok’d, or madneſs made them print, 155
I wag'd no war with Bedlam or the Mint.
Did ſome more fober Critic come abroad;
If wrong, I ſmild; if right, I kiſs’d the rod.
Pains, reading, ſtudy, are their juſt pretence,
And all they want is fpirit, taſte, and ſenſe. 160
Comma's and points they ſet exactly right,
And 'twere a fin to rob them of their mite.
Yet ne'er one ſprig of laurel grac'd theſe ribalds,
From ſlaſhing Bentley down to pidling Tibalds :
Notes,
VER. 150. A painted meadow, or a purling ſtream, is a
verfe of Mr. Addiſon.
P.
Ver. 164. Naſhing Bentley] This great man, with all
his faults, deſerved to be put into better company. The
following words of Cicero deſcribe him not amiſs. “ Ha-
“ buit à natura genus quoddam acuminis, quod etiam arte
" limaverat, quod erat in reprehendendis verbis verſutum
" et follers: fed fæpe ftomachofum, nonnunquam frigi.
dum, interdum etiam facetum.''
to the S A TIRE S.
15
Each wight, who reads not, and but fcans and ſpells,
Each Word-catcher, that lives on fyllables, 166
Ev'n ſuch ſmall Critics fome regard may claim,
Preſerv'd in Milton's or in Shakeſpear's name.
Pretty! in amber to obſerve the forms
169
Of hairs, or ſtraws, or dirt, or grubs, or worms!
The things, we know, are neither rich nor rare,
But wonder how the devil they got there.
Were others
angry:
I excus'd them too;
Well might they rage, I gave them but their due.
As man's true merit 'tis not hard to find;
175
But each man's fecret ſtandard in his mind,
Notes.
Ver. 169. Pretty! in amber to obſerve the forms, &c.]
Our Poet had the full pleaſure of this amuſement ſoon
after the publication of his Shakeſpear. Nor has his Friend
been leſs entertained ſince the appearance of his edition of
the ſame poet. The liquid Amber of whoſe Wit has lately
licked up, and enrolled ſuch a quantity of theſe Infeets,
and of tribes ſo groteſque and various, as would have
puzzled Reaumur to give names to. Two or three of them
it may not be amiſs to preſerve and keep alive. Such as
the Rev. Mr. 7. Upton, Thomas Eduards, Efq; and, to
make up the Triumvirate, their learned Coadjutor, that
very reſpectable perſonage, Mr. THEOPHILUS Cibber.---
As to the poetic imagery of this paſſage, it has been much
and juſtly admired; for the moſt deteſtable things in na-
ture, as a toad, or a beetle, become pleaſing when well
repreſented in a work of Art. But it is no leſs eminent
for the beauty of the thought. For though a ſcribler
exifts by being thus incorporated, yet he exiſts intombed, a
laſting monument of the wrath of the Muſes.
VER. 173. Were others angry:] The Poets.
2
16
PROLOGUE
That Caſting-weight pride adds to emptineſs,
This, who can gratify? for who can gueſs ?
The Bard whom pilfer'd Paſtorals renown,
Who turns a Perſian tale for half a Crown, Iso
Juſt writes to make his barrenneſs appear,
And ſtrains from hard-bound brains, eight lines a year;
He, who ſtill wanting, tho' he lives on theft,
Steals much, ſpends little, yet has nothing left: 184
And He, who now to ſenſe, now nonſenſe leaning,
Means not, but blunders round about a meaning:
And He, whoſe fuftian's ſo ſublimely bad,
It is not Poetry, but proſe run mad:
All theſe, my modeſt Satire bad tranſate,
And own'd that nine fuch Poets made a Tate.
190
How did they fume, and ſtamp, and roar, and chafe!
And ſwear, not ADDISON himſelf was ſafe.
Notes.
VER. 180.-a Perſian tale.] Amb. Philips tranſlated a
Book called the Perſian tales.
P.
VER. 184. Steals much, Spends little, and has nothing
left:] A fine improvement of this line of Boileau,
Qui toujours emprunt, et jamais ne gagne rien.
Ver. 186. Means not, but blunders round about a mean.
ing :] A caſe common both to Poets and Critics of a cer.
sain order ; only with this difference, that the Poet writes
himſelf out of his own meaning ; and the Critic never gets
into another man's. Yet both keep going on, and blun-
dering round about their ſubject, as benighted people are
wont to do, who ſeek for an entrance which they cannot
End.
2.
to the SATIRE S.
17
200
Peace to all ſuch! but were there One whoſe fires
True Genius kindles, and fair Farne inſpires;
Bleft with each talent and each art to pleaſe, 195
And born to write, converſe, and live with eaſe:
Should ſuch a man, too fond to rule alone,
Bear, like the Turk, no brother near the throne,
View him with ſcornful, yet with jealous eyes,
And hate for arts that caus'd himſelf to riſe;
Damn with faint praiſe, aſſent with civil leer,
And without ſneering, teach the reſt to ſneer;
Willing to wound, and yet afraid to ſtrike,
Juſt hint a fault, and heſitate diſlike;
Alike reſery'd to blame, or to commend, 205
A tim'rous foe, and a ſuſpicious friend;
Dreading ev’n fools, by Flatterers beſieg'd,
And ſo obliging, that he ne'er oblig'd;
Notes.
Ver.193. But were there one whole fires, &c ] The ſtrokes
in this Character are highly @niſhed. Atterbury ſo well
underſtood the force of them, that in one of his letters io
Mr. Pope he ſays, “ Since you now know where your
ſtrength lies, I hope you will not ſuffer that talent to
“ lie unemployed.” He did not; and, by that means,
brought ſatiric Poetry to its perfection.
VARIATIONS.
After x 208. in the MS.
Who, if two Wits on rival themes conteſt,
Approves of each, but likes the worſt the beſt.
Alluding to Mr. P.'s and Tickell's Tranſlation of the
firſt Book of the Iliad.
С
* C
18
PROLOGUE
210
Like Cato, give his little Senate laws,
And fit attentive to his own applauſe;
While Wits and Templars ev'ry ſentence raiſe,
And wonder with a fooliſh face of praiſe-
Who but muſt laugh, if ſuch a man there be ?
Who would not weep, if Atticus were he !
What tho'my Name ftood rubric on the walls,
Or plaiſter'd poſts, with claps, in capitals ? 216
Or ſmoaking forth, a hundred hawkers load,
On wings of winds came flying all abroad?
I ſought no homage from the Race that write;
I kept, like Aſian Monarchs, from their fight :
Poems I heeded (now be-rym'd ſo long)
No more than thou, great GEORGE! a birth-day ſong.
I ne'er with wits or witlings paſs'd my days,
To ſpread about the itch of verſe and praiſe ;
220
Notes.
Ver.214. Atticus] It was a great falfhood, which ſome
of the Libels reported, that this Character was written
after the Gentleman's death; which fee refuted in the
Teſtimonies prefixed to the Dunciad. But the occaſion of
writing it was ſuch as he would not make public out of
regard to his memory: and all that could further be done
was to omit the name, in the Edition of his Works, P.
VER. 216. claps, in capitals?] The bills of Quack-
Doctors and Quack Bookſellers being uſually pafted toge-
ther on the ſame poſts.
VER. 218. On wings of winds came Aying all abroad?]
Hopkins, in the ciyth Pfalm.
P.
1
to the SATIRES.
19
Nor like a puppy, daggled thro' the town,
To fetch and carry fing-fong up and down; 225
Nor at Rehearſals ſweat, and mouth'd, and cry'd,
With handkerchief and orange at my fide ;
But fick of fops, and poetry, and prate,
To Bufo left the whole Caftalian ſtate.
230
Proud as Apollo on his forked hill,
Sate full-blown Bufo, puff’d by ev'ry quill;
Fed with ſoft Dedication all day long,
Horace and he went hand in hand in ſong.
His Library (where buſts of Poets dead
235
And a true Pindar ſtood without a head)
Receiv'd of wits an undiſtinguiſh'd race,
Who firſt his judgment aſk'd, and then a place :
Much they extolld his pictures, much his feat,
And flatter'd ev'ry day, and ſome days eat : 240
Till grown more frugal in his riper days,
He paid fome bards with port, and ſome with praiſe,
To fome a dry rehearſal was aſſign'd,
And others (harder ſtill) he paid in kind.
VARIATIONS,
After Ý 234. in the MS.
To Bards reciting he vouchſaf'd a nod,
And ſnuff'd their incenſe like a gracious god.
Notes.
Ver. 236.--a true Pindar food without a head] Ridi.
cules the affectation of Antiquaries, who frequently eshi-
bit the headleſs Trunks and Terms of Statues, for Plato,
Homer, Pindar, &c. Vide Fulu. Urfin. &c.
P.
* C 2
20
PROLOGUE
Dryden alone (what wonder?) came not nigh, 245
Dryden alove eſcap'd this judging eye:
But ſtill the Great have kindneſs in reſerve,
He help'd to bury whom he help'd to ſtarve.
May ſome choice patron bleſs each gray goofe quill!
May ev'ry Bavius have his Bufo ftill!
250
So when a Stateſman wants a day's defence,
Or Envy holds a whole week's war with Senſe,
Or fimple pride for Aatt'ry inakes demands,
May dunce by dunce be whiſtled off my hands!
Bleft be the Great! for thoſe they take away, 255
And thoſe they left me; for they left me GAY;
Left me to fee neglected Genius bloom,
Neglected die, and tell it on his tomb :
Of all thy blameleſs life the ſole return
259
My Verſe, and QUEENSB'R Y Weeping o'er thy urn!
Oh let me live my own, and die fo too!
(To live and die is all I have to do :)
Maintain a Poet's dignity and eaſe,
And ſee what friends, and read what books I pleaſe :
Above a Patron, tho' I condeſcend
265
Sometimes to call a Miniſter my friend.
Notes
Ver. 248. --- help'd to bury] Mr. Dryden, after having
liv'd in exigencies, had a magnificent Funeral beſtow'd up-
on him by the contribution of ſeveral perſons of Quality. P.
Ver. 265.--tho' I condeſcend &c.] He thought it, and
he juſtly thought it, a condeſcenſion in an honeſt Man to
accept the friendſhip of any one, how high foever, whoſe
2
to the SA TIRE S.
21
270
I was not born for Courts or great affairs ;
I pay my debts, believe, and ſay my pray’rs;
Can ſleep without a Poem in my head,
Nor know, if Dennis be alive or dead.
Why am I aſk'd what next ſhall ſee the light ?
Heav'ns! was 1 born for nothing but to write ?
Has Life no joys for me? or (to be grave)
Have I no friend to ſerve, no ſoul to fave? 274
". I found him cloſe with Swift - Indeed ? no doubt
" (Cries prating Balbus) ſomething will come out.
'Tis all in vain, deny it as I will.
“ No, ſuch a Genius never can lie ftill;
VARIATIONS.
After x 270. in the MS.
Friendſhips from youth I fought, and ſeek them ftill:
Fame, like the wind, may breathe where'er it will.
The World I knew, but made it not my School a,
And in a courſe of flatt'ry liv'd ro fool.
a By not making the World his School he means, he did not form his
ſyſtem of morality, on the principles or practice of men in buſineſs.
Notes.
conduct in life was governed only on principles of policy:
for of what miniſters he ſpeaks, may be ſeen by the cha-
racter he gives, in the next line, of the Courts they belong to.
Ver. 271. Why am I aſk'd &c.] This is intended as a
reproof of thoſe impertinent complaints, which were per-
petually made to him by thoſe who called themſelves his
friends, for not entertaining the Town as often as it wanted
amuſement. - A French writer ſays well on this occafion-
Dès qu'on eft auteur, il ſemble qu'on ſoit aux gages d'un tas
de fainéans, pour leur fournir de quoi amuſer leur oiſiveté.
* C 3
22
PROLOGUE
28
285
And then for mine obligingly miſtakes
The firſt Lampoon Sir Will. or Bubo makes.
Poor guiltleſs I! and can I chuſe but ſmile,
When ev'ry Coxcomb knows me by my Style?
Curft be the verſe, how well foe'er it flow,
That tends to make one worthy man my foe,
Give Virtue ſcandal, Innocence a fear,
Or from the ſoft-ey'd Virgin ſteal a tear !
But he who hurts a harmleſs neighbour's peace,
Inſults fall’n worth, or Beauty in diſtreſs,
Who loves a Lye, lame ſlander helps about,
Who writes a Libel, or who copies out:
That Fop, whoſe pride affects a patron's name,
Yet abfent, wounds an author's honeſt fame:
290
VARIATIONS.
After x 282. in the MMS.
P. What if I fing Augustus, great and good ?
A. You did fo lately, was it underſtood ?
P. Be nice no more, but, with a mouth profound,
As rumbling Das or a Norfolk hound;
With GEORGE and FRED'Ric roughen ev'ry verſe,
Then ſmooth up all, and CAROLINE rehearſe."
A. No- the high tak to lift up Kings to Gods
Leave to Court-ſcrmons, and to birth-day Odes.
On themes like theſe, ſuperior far to thine,
Let laurellid Cibber, and great Arnal ſhine.
P. Why write at all :- A. Yes, filence if you keep,
The Town, the Court, the Wits, the Dunces weep.
to the SATIRE S.
23
Who can your merit ſelfiſhly approve,
And ſhow the ſenſe of it without the love;
Who has the vanity to call you friend,
295
Yet wants the honour, injur'd, to defend ;
Who tells whate'er you think, whate'er you ſay,
And, if he lye not, muſt at leaſt betray:
Who to the Dean, and ſilver bell can ſwear,
And ſees at Cannons what was never there;
300
Notes,
Ver. 293. --ſelfiſhly approve,] Becauſe to deny, or pre-
tend not to ſee, a well eſtabliſhed merit, would impeach
his own heart or underſtanding.
Ver. 294. And how the ſenſe of it without the love ;]
i. e. will never ſuffer the admiration of an excellence to
produce any eſteem for him, to whom it belongs.
Ver. 295. Who has the vanity to call you friend, Yes
wants the honour, injur'd, to defend;] When a great Genius,
whoſe writings have afforded the world much pleaſure and
inſtruction, happens to be enviouſly attacked, or falſely
accuſed, it is natural to think, that a ſenſe of gratitude
for ſo agreeable an obligation, or a ſenle of that honour
reſulting to our Country from ſuch a Writer, ſhould raiſe
amongſt thoſe who call themſelves his friends, a pretty
general indignation. But every day's experience ſhews us
the very contrary. Some take a malignant ſatisfaction in
the attack; others a fooliſh pleaſure in a literary conflict;
and the far greater part look on with a ſelfiſh indifference.
Ver. 299. Who to the Dean, and ſilver bell, &c.]
Meaning the man who would have perfuaded the Duke of
Chandos that Mr. P. meant him in thoſe circumſtances
ridiculed in the Epiſtle on Taſte. See Mr. Pope's Letter
to the Earl of Burlington concerning this matter.
3
* C4
24
PROLOGUE
306
Who reads, but with a luſt to miſapply,
Make Satire a Lampoon, and Fiction Lye.
A laſh like mine no honeſt man ſhall dread,
But all ſuch babling blockheads in his ſtead.
Let Sporus tremble--A. What? that thing of filk,
Sporus, that mere white curd of Aſs's milk?
Satire or ſenſe, alas ! can Sporus feel?
Who breaks a butterfly upon a wheel?
P. Yet let me flap this bug with gilded wings,
This painted child of dirt, that ſtinks and ſtings; 310
Whofe buzz the witty and the fair annoys,
Yet wit ne'er taftes, and beauty ne'er enjoys :
So well-bred ſpaniels civilly delight
In mumbling of the game they dare not bite.
Eternal ſmiles his emptineſs betray,
315
As ſhallow ſtreams run dimpling all the way.
Whether in florid impotence he ſpeaks,
And, as the prompter breathes, the puppet ſqueaks ;
Or at the ear of Eve, familiar Toad,
Half froth, half venom, ſpits himſelf abroad, 320
In
puns, or politics, or tales, or lies,
Or ſpite, or ſmut, or rhymes, or blaſphemies.
NOTES.
Ver. 319. See Milton, Book iv. P.
VER. 320. Half froth,] Alluding to thoſe frothy ex-
cretions, called by the people, Toad-Spits, ſeen in ſummer-
tine hanging upon plants, and emitted by young inſects
wluch lichid in the midſt of them, for their preſervation,
wuio in cheis helpleſs ſtate.
1
to the SA TIRE S.-
25
}
326
His wit all ſee-ſaw, between that and this,
Now high, now low, now maſter up, now miſs,
And he himſelf one vile Antitheſis.
Amphibious thing ! that acting either part,
The 'triling head, or the corrupted heart,
Fop at the toilet, flatt'rer at the board,
Now trips a Lady, and now ſtruts a Lord.
Eve's tempter thus the Rabbins have expreft,
330
A Cherub's face, a reptile all the reſt,
Beauty that ſhocks you, parts that none will truſt, ,
Wit that can creep, and pride that licks the duft.
Not Fortune's worſhipper, nor Faſhion's fool,
Not Lucre's madman, nor Ambition's tool, 335
Not proud, nor ſervile; Be one Poet's praiſe,
That, if he pleas'd, he pleas'd by manly ways:
That Flatt’ry, ev'n to Kings, he held a ſhame,
And thought a Lye in verſe or proſe the ſame.
Notes.
VER. 340. That not in Fancy's maze he wander'd long, ]
His inerit in this will appear very great, if we conſider,
that in this walk he had all the advantages which the moſt
poetic Imagination could give to a great Genius. M. Vol-
taire in a MS, letter now before me, writes thus from
England to a friend in Paris. “ I intend to ſend you two
or three poems of Mr. Pope, the beſt poet of England,
os and at preſent of all the world. I hope you are ac-
quainted enough with the Engliſh tongue, to be ſenfi-
" ble of all the charms of his works. For my part, I
“ look upon his poem called the Eſſay on Criticiſm as ſu-
perior to the Art of poetry of Horace; and his Rape
of tbe Lock is, in my opinion, above the Lutrin of Def-
::
.
::
.
26
PROLOGUE
.
That not in Fancy's maze he wander'd long,
340
But ſtoop'd to Truth, and moraliz'd his ſong:
That not for Fame, but Virtue's better end,
He ſtood the furious foe, the timid friend,
The damning critic, half approving wit,
The coxcomb hit, or fearing to be hit;
345
Laugh’d at the loſs of friends he never had,
The dull, the proud, the wicked, and the mad;
The diſtant threats of vengeance on his head,
The blow unfelt, the tear he never ſhed;
The tale reviv'd, the lye ſo oft o’erthrown, 350
Th'imputed traſh, and dulneſs not his own;
Notes,
preaux. I never ſaw ſo amiable an imagination, fo
gentle graces, ſo great variety, ſo much wit, and ſo
“ refined knowledge of the world, as in this little perform-
" ance.” MS. Let. Oet. 15, 1726.
VER. 341. But ftoop'd to Truth). The term is from fal-
conry ; and the alluſion to one of thoſe untamed birds of
fpirit, which ſometimes wantons at large in airy circles be-
forc it regards, or ſtoops to, its prey.
Ver. 350. the lze so oft oe'rthrown] As, that he re-
ceived ſubſcriptions for Shakeſpear, that he ſet his name
to Mr. Broome's verſes, &c. which, tho' publicly diſ.
proved were nevertheleſs ſhameleſsly repeated in the Li-
bels, and even in that called the Nobleman's Epifle. P.
VER. 351. Th' imputed trah] Such as profane Pſalms,
Court-Poeins, and other ſcandalous things, printed in his
Name by Curl and others,
P.
to the SATIRE S.
27
The morals blacken'd when the writings ſcape,
The libeld perſon, and the pictur'd ſhape;
Abuſe, on all he lov'd, or lov'd him, ſpread,
A friend in exile, or a father, dead;
355
The whiſper, that to greatneſs ſtill too near,
Perhaps, yet vibrates on his Sov'REIGN's ear
Welcome for thee, fair Virtue! all the paſt:
For thee, fair Virtue! welcome ev'n the laſt!
A. But why inſult the poor, affront the great? 360
P. A. knave's a knave, to me, in ev'ry ſtate:
Alike my ſcorn, if he ſucceed or fail,
Sporus at court, or Japhet in a jail,
A hireling fcribler, or a hireling peer,
Knight of the poſt corrupt, or of the ſhire; 365
If on a Pillory, or near a Throne,
He gain his Prince's ear, or loſe his own.
Notes.
VER. 354. Abuſe, on all he lov'd, or lov'd him, Spread.]
Namely on the Duke of Buckingham, the Earl of Bur-
lington, Lord Bathurſt, Lord Bolingbroke, Biſhop Atter-
bury, Dr. Swift, Dr. Arbuthnot, Mr. Gay, his Friends,
his Parents, and his very Nurſe, aſperſed in printed pa-
pers, by James Moore, G. Ducket, L. Welfted, Tho.
Bentley, and other obſcure perſons.
P.
VER. 359. For thee, fair Virtue ! welcome ev’n the laſt!]
This line is remarkable for preſenting us with the moſt
amiable image of ſteady Virtue, mixed with a modeſt
concern for his being forced to undergo the ſevereſt proofs
of his love for it, which was the being thought hardly of
by his SOVEREIGN.
:
28
PROLOGUE
Yet ſoft by nature, more a dupe than wit,
Sappho can tell
you
how this man was bit:
This dreaded Sat'rift Dennis will confefs
37
Foe to his pride, but friend to his diſtreſs:
So humble, he has knock'd at Tibbald's door,
Has drunk with Cibber, nay has rhym’d for Moor.
Full ten years ſlander'd, did he once reply?
Three thouſand ſuns went down on Welfted's lye.
VARIATIONS.
Ver. 368. in the MS.
Once, and but once, his heedleſs youth was bit,
And lik'd that dang`rous thing, a female wit:
Safe as he thought, tho' all the prudent chid ;
He writ no Libels, but my Lady did :
Great odds in am'rous or poetic game,
Where Woman's is the ſin, and Man's the ſhame.
NOTES.
VER. 374. ten years] It was ſo long after many libels
before the Author of the Dunciad publiſhed that poem,
till when, he never writ a word in anſwer to the many
fcurrilities and falſehoods concerning him.
P.
Ver. 375. Welſled's Lye ] This man had the impudence
to tell in print, that Mr. P. had occaſioned a Lady's death,
and to name a perſon he never heard of. He alſo pub-
lith'd that he libell'd the Duke of Chandos; with whom
(it was added) that he had lived in familiarity, and re-
ceived from him a preſent of five hundred pounds : the
falſehood of both which is known to his Grace. Mr. P.
never received any preſent, farther than the ſubſcription
for Homer, from him, or from Any great Man whatſo-
ever. P.
1
1
1
to the SATIRE S.
29
376
To pleaſe a Miſtreſs one aſpers’d his life;
He laſh'd him not, but let her be his wife :
Let Budgel charge low Grubſtreet on his quill,
And write whate'er he pleas’d, except his Will;
Let the two Curls of Town and Court, abuſe
His father, mother, body, foul, and muſe.
380
Notes.
Ver. 378. Let Budgel] Budgel, in a weekly pamphlet
called the Bee, beſtowed much abuſe on him, in the ima-
gination that he writ ſome things about the Laſt Will of
Dr. Tindal, in the Grubſtreet Journal; a Paper wherein
he never had the leaſt hand, direction, or ſuperviſal, nor
the leaſt knowledge of its Author.
P.
VER. 379. except his Will] Alluding to Tindal's
Will: by which, and other indirect practices, Budgell,
to the excluſion of the next heir, a nephew, got to him.
ſelf almoſt the whole fortune of a man entirely unrelated
to him,
VER. 381. His father, mother, &c.] In ſome of Curl's
and other pamphlets, Mr. Pope's father was ſaid to be a
Mechanic, a Hatter, a Farmer, nay a Bankrupt. But,
what is ſtranger, a Nobleman (if ſuch a Reflection could
be thought to come from a Nobleman) had dropt an al-
lufion to that pitiful untruth, in a paper called an Epiftle
to a Doctor of Divinity: And the following line,
Hard as thy Heart, and as thy Birth obſcure,
had fallen from a like Courtly pen, in certain V'er fes to the
Imitation of Horace. Mr. Pope's Father was of a Gen-
tleman's Family in Oxfordſhire, the head of which was
the Earl of Downe, whoſe ſole Heireſs married the Ear!
of Lindſey–His mother was the daughter of William
Turnor, Eſq. of York: She had three brothers, one of
whom was killed, another died in the ſervice of King
Charles; the eldeſt following his fortunes, and becoming
30
PROLOGUE
386
Yet why? that Father held it for a rule,
It was a ſin to call our neighbour fool :
That harmleſs Mother thought no wife a whore:
Hear this, and ſpare his family, James Moore !
Unſpotted names, and memorable long !
If there be force in Virtue, or in Song.
Of gentle blood (part ſhed in Honour's cauſe,
While yet in Britain Honour had applauſe)
Each parent ſprung-A. What fortune, pray? --P.
390
And better got, than Beftia's from the throne.
Born to no Pride, inheriting no Strife,
Nor marrying Diſcord in a noble wife,
Stranger to civil and religious rage,
The good man walk'd innoxious thro' his age. 395
Their own,
.
NOTES.
a general officer in Spain, left her what eftate remained
after the ſequeſtrations and forfeitures of her family
Mr. Pope died in 1717, aged 75 ; She in 1733, aged 93,
a very few weeks after this poem was finiſhed. The fol-
lowing inſcription was placed by their ſon on their Monu-
ment in the pariſh of Twickenham, in Middleſex.
D. O. M.
ALEXANDRO, POPE. VIRO. INNOCVO. PROBO. PIO.
QUI. VIXIT. ANNOS. LXXV. OB. MDCCXVII.
ET. EDITHAE. CONIVGI. INCULPABILI.
PIENTISSIMAE. QVAE. VIXIT. ANNOS.
XCIII. OB. MDCCXXXIII.
PARENTIBVS, BENEMERENTIBVS, FILIVS. FECIT.
IT. SIBI.
P,
to the SATIRE S.
31
No Courts he faw, no ſuits would ever try,
Nor dar'd an Oath, nor hazarded a Lye.
Un-learn’d, he knew no ſchoolman's ſubtile art,
No language, but the language of the heart.
By Nature honeſt, by Experience wife,
400
Healthy by temp’rance, and by exerciſe;
His life, tho' long, to fickneſs paft unknown,
His death was inſtant, and without a groan.
0
grant me, thus to live, and thus to die !
404
Who ſprung from Kings ſhall know leſs joy than 1.
O Friend ! may each domeſtic bliſs be thine!
Be no unpleaſing Melancholy mine:
Me, let the tender office long engage,
To rock the cradle of repofing Age,
With lenient arts extend a Mother's breath, 416
Make Langour ſmile, and ſmooth the bed of Death,
Explore the thought, explain the aſking eye,
And keep a while one parent from the ſky!
On cares like theſe if length of days attend,
May Heav'n, to blefs thoſe days, preſerve my friend,
VARIATIONS.
After Ý 405, in the MS.
And of myſelf, too, ſomething muſt I ſay?
Take then this verfe, che trifle of a day.
And if it live, it lives but to commend
The man whoſe heart has ne'er forgot a Friend,
Or head, an Author: Critic, yet polite
And friend to Learning, yet too wiſe to write.
2
32
PROLOGUE, &c.
416
Preſerve him ſocial, chearful, and ſerene,
And juſt as rich as when he ſerv'd a QUEEN.
A. Whether that bleſſing be deny'd or giv'n,
Thus far was right, the reſt belongs to Heav'n.
Notes.
Ver. 417. And juſt as rich as when he ſerv'd a Queen.)
An honeſt compliment to his Friend's real and unaffected
difintereſtedneſs, when he was the favourite Phyfician of
Queen Anne.
Ver. 418. A. Whether this bleſſing, &c.] He makes
his friend cloſe the Dialogue with a ſentiment very ex-
preſſive of that religious reſignation, which was the Cha-
racter both of his temper, and his piety,
7
17.
FITNESS
S A TIRES
A N D
E PIST LES
OF
H ORACE
I MITA T E D.
#
D
ADVERTISEMENT
f
THE
HE Occaſion of publiſhing theſe Imitations
was the Clamour rais'd on ſome of my Epi-
ftles. An Anſwer from Horace was both more full,
and of more Dignity, than any I could have made
in my own perſon; and the Example of much greater
Freedom in ſo eminent a Divine as Dr. Donne, ſeem'd
a proof with what indignation and contempt a Chri-
ſtian may treat Vice or Folly, in ever ſo low, or
ever ſo high a Station. Both theſe Authors were ac-
ceptable to the Princes and Miniſters under whom
they lived. The Satires of Dr. Donne I verſifyed,
at the deſire of the Earl of Oxford while he was
Lord Treaſurer, and of the Duke of Shrewſbury who
had been Secretary of State ; neither of whom look'd
upon a Satire on Vicious Courts as any Reflection on
thofe they ſerv'd in. And indeed there is not in the
world a greater error, than that which Fools are ſo
apt to fall into, and Knaves with good reaſon to en-
courage, the miſtaking a Satiriſt for a Libeller ;
whereas to a true Satiriſt nothing is ſo odious as a
Libeller, for the ſame reaſon as to a man truly vir-
tuous nothing is ſo hateful as a Hypocrite.
Uni aequus Virtuti atque ejus Amicis. P.
D 2
THE
Firſt Satire of the Second Book
OF
H OR A C E
IMIT A T E D.
WHOEVER expects a Paraphrafe of Horace,
or a faithful Copy of his genius, or manner of writ-
ing, in theſe IMITATIONS, will be much diſap-
pointed. Our Author uſes the Roman Poet for little
more than his canvas: And if the old deſign or co-
louring chance to fuit his purpoſe, it is well: if not,
he employs his own, without ſcruple or ceremony.
Hence it is, he is ſo frequently ſerious where Horace
is in jeſt; and at eaſe where Horace is diſturbed. In
a word, he regulates his movements no further on
his Original, than was neceſſary for his concurrence,
in promoting their common plan of Reformation of
manners.
Had it been his purpoſe merely to paraphraſe an
ancient Satirift he had hardly made choice of Horacej
with whom, as a Poet, he held little in common,
( 37 )
beſides a comprehenſive knowledge of life and man-
ners, and a certain curious felicity of expreſſion,
which conſiſts in uſing the fimpleſt language with
dignity, and the moſt ornamented, with eaſe. For
the reft, his harmony and ſtrength of numbers, his
force and ſplendor of colouring, his gravity and ſu-
blime of ſentiment, would have rather led him to
another model. Nor was his temper leſs unlike that
of Horace, than his talents. What Horace would
only ſmile at, Mr. Pope would treat with the grave
ſeverity of Perfius: And what Mr. Pope would ſtrike
with the cauſtic lightening of Juvenal, Horace would
content himſelf in turning into ridicule.
If it be aſked then, why he took any body at all
to imitate, he has informed us in his Advertiſement.
To which we may add, that this ſort of Imitations,
which are of the nature of Parodies, add reflected
grace and ſplendor on original wit. Beſides, he
deem'd it more modeſt to give the name of Imita-
tions to his Satires, than, like Deſpreaux, to give
the name of Satires to Imitations.
* D 3
38
IMITATIONS
Book II
SATIRA PRIM A.
HORATIUS.
TREBATIUS.
HORATIU S.
b
UNT
Legem tendere opus;
ſine nervis altera, quidquid
Compoſui, pars effe putat, fimileſque meorum
Mille die verſus deduci poffe. Trebati,
Quid faciam? praeſcribe.
T. Quiefcas.
H. Ne faciam, inquis,
Omnino verſus!
T. Aio.
H. Peream male, fi non
Optimum erat: verum nequeo dormire.
NOTES.
VER. 3. Scarce to wiſe Peter ---Chartres] It has been
commonly obſerved of the Engliſh, that a Rogue never
gocs to the Gallows without the pity of the Spectators
,
and their parting curſes on the rigour of the Laws that
brought him thither : and this has been as commonly
aſcribed to the good nature of the people. But it is a mil-
take. The true cauſe is their hatred and envy of power.
Their compaſſion for Dunces and Scoundrels (when ex-
poſed by great writers to public contempt, either in juſ-
tice to the age, or in vindication of their own Characters)
has the fame ſource. They cover their envy to a ſuperior
genius, in lamenting the ſeverity of his Pen.

Plate XVI.
Vol. IV. faang P.39.
HORA
F. Harman inv.et del,
C.Grignion fculp
Safe from the Bar, the Palpit and the Throne,
Yjettouchd and shamid by Ridicule alone
:, Part2.
ya
Sat. 1
39
OF HORACE.
S
A T I R E I
To Mr. FORTESCUE.
P.
TH
HERE are (I ſcarce can think it, but am
told)
a There are, to whom my Satire feems too bold:
Scarce to wiſe Peter complaiſant enough,
And ſomething faid of Chartres much too rough.
• The lines are weak, another's pleas'd to ſay, 5
Lord Fanny ſpins a thouſand fuch a day.
Tim'rous by nature, of the Rich in awe,
cI come to Council learned in the Law:
You'll give me, like a friend both fage and free,
Advice; and (as you uſe) without a Fee.
I
F. d I'd write no more.
P. Not write? but then I think,
And for my foul I cannot ſleep a wink.
Nores.
Ver. 7. Tim'rous by nature, of the Rich in awe,] The
delicacy of this does not ſo much lie in the ironical appli-
cation of it to himſelf, as in its ſeriouſly characteriſing the
Perſon for whore advice he applies.
Ver. 12. Not zurite? &c.] He has omitted the moſt
humourous part of the anſwer,
Peream male, fi non
Optimum erat,
and has left the grace, by not imitating the conciſeneſs, of
WEIHm nequeo dormire,
D A
40
Book II.
I MITATIONS
!
T. f Ter uneti
Tranſnanto Tiberim, fomno quibus eft opus alto;
Irriguumve mero ſub noctem corpus habento.
& Aut, fi tantus amor ſcribendi te rapit, aude
CAESARIS invicti res dicere, h multa laborum
Praemia laturus.
H. Cupidum, pater optime, vires
Deficiunt: i neque enim quivis horrentia pilis
Agmina, nec fracta pereuntes cuſpide Gallos,
Aut labentis equo deſcribat vulnera Parthi.
T. k Attamen et juſtum poteras et ſcribere fortem,
Scipiadam ut ſapiens Lucilius.
H. Haud mihi deero,
Cum res ipfa feret : nifi dextro tempore, Flacci
Notes.
For conciſeneſs, when it is clear (as in this place) gives
the higheſt grace to elegance of expreſſion.—But what
follows is as much above the Original, as this falls ſhort
of it.
Ver. 20. Hartſhorn] This was intended as a pleaſantry
on the novelty of the preſcription.
VER. 28. falling Horſe?] The horſe on which his Ma-
jeſty charged at the battle of Oudenard ; when the Pre-
Sat. I.
41
OF HOR AC E.
I nod in company, I wake at night,
Fools ruſh into my head, and ſo I write.
F. You could not do a worſe thing for your life. 15
Why, if the nights ſeem tedious--take a Wife:
f Or rather truly, if your point be reft,
Lettuce and cowflip-wine; Probatum eft.
But talk with Celſus, Celſus will adviſe
Hartſhorn, or ſomething that ſhall cloſe your eyes. 20
& Or, if you needs muſt write, write Caesar's Praiſe,
You'll gain at leaſt a Knighthood, or the Bays.
P. What? like Sir i Richard, rumbling, rough,
and fierce,
With ARMS, and GEORGE, and BRUNSWICK crowd
the verſe,
Rend with tremendous found your ears afunder, 25
With Gun, Drum, Trumpet, Blunderbuſs, and
Thunder?
Or nobly wild, with Budgel's fire and force,
Paint Angels trembling round his falling Horſe?
F. * Then all your Muſe's ſofter art diſplay,
Let CAROLINA ſmooth the tuneful lay,
30
Lull with AMELIA's liquid name the Nine,
And ſweetly flow thro' all the Royal Line.
P. · Alas! few verſes touch their nicer ear;
They ſcarce can bear their Laureate twice a year;
NOTES
tender, and the Princes of the blood of France, fcd be-
fore him.
.
.:
2
42
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Verba per attentam non ibunt Caeſaris aurem :
Cui male fi palpere, recalcitrat undique tutus.
T." Quanto rectius hoc, quam triſti laedere verſu
Pantolabum (curram, Nomentanumve nepotem?
* Cum ſibi quiſque timet, quamquam eſt intactus, et
odit.
H.° Quid faciam? faltat Milonius, ut femel ico
Acceffit fervor capiti, numeruſque lucernis,
P Caftor gaudet equis; ovo prognatus eodem,
Pugnis. quot capitum vivunt, totidem ftudioram
Millia. 9 me pedibus delectat claudere verba,
Notes.
VER. 41. What frould ail them?] Horace hints at one
reaſon, that each fears his own turn may be next ; his imi.
tator gives another, and with more art, a reaſon which
infinuates, that his very lenity, in uſing feigned names,
increaſes the number of his Enemies.
Ver. 50. Like in all elſe, as one Egg to another.] This
has neither the juftnefs nor elegance of
ovo prognatus eodem.
For tho'it may appear odd, that thoſe who come from the
Same Egg ſhould have tempers and purſuits directly con-
trary ; yet there is nothing ſtrange, that two Brothers,
alike in all things elſe, ſhould have different amuſements. -
VER. 52. As downright Shippen, or as old Montagne :]
Sat. I.
43
OF HORACE.
And juſtly CAESAR ſcorns the Poet's lays, 35
It is to Hiſtory he truſts for Praiſe.
F. m Better be Cibber, I'll maintain it ſtill,
Than ridicule all Tafte, blaſpheme Quadrille,
Abuſe the City's beſt good men in metre,
And laugh at Peers that put their truſt in Peter.
40
* Ev’n thoſe you touch not, hate you.
P. What ſhould ail them?
F. A hundred ſmart in Timon and in Balaam :
The fewer ſtill you name, you wound the more ;
Bond is but one, but Harpax is a ſcore.
P.° Each mortal has his pleaſure: none deny 45
Scarſdale his bottle, Darty his Ham-pye;
Ridotta fips and dances, till ſhe ſee
The doubling Luftres dance as faſt as the ;
P Framloves the Senate, Hackley-hole his brother,
Like in all elſe, as one Egg to another.
50
. I love to pour out all my felf, as plain
As downright SHIPPEN, or as old Montagne :
3
Notes.
They had this, indeed, in common, to uſe great liberties
of ſpeech, and to profefs ſaying what they thought.
Montagne had many qualities, that have gained him the
love and efteem of his Readers: The other had one, which
always gain'd him the favourable attention of his Hearers,
For, as a celebrated Roman Orator obſerves, “ Maledi.
“ cit INERUDITUS apertius et faepius, cum periculo eti-
am ſuo. 'Affert et ifta res OPINIONEM, quia libentif-
as fime homines audiunt ea quae dicere ipli noluisſent.'
2
44
IMITATIONS
Book II.
Lucilî ritu, noftrum melioris utroque.
Ille velut fidis arcana ſodalibus olim
Credebat libris ; neque, ſi male gefferat, uſquam
Decurrens alio, neque ſi bene: quo fit, ut omnis
Votiva pateat veluti deſcripta tabella
Vita fenis. fequor hunc, Lucanus an Appulus, an-
ceps:
[Nam venufinus arat finem ſub utrumque colonus,
Miſſus ad hoc, pulſis (vetus eſt ut fama) Sabellis,
Quo ne per vacuum Romano incurreret hoftis ;
Sive quod Appula gens, feu quod Lucania bellum
Incuteret violenta.] s fed hic ſtylus haud petet ultro
Quemquam animantem, et me veluti cuſtodiet enſis
Vagina tectus, quem cur deſtringere coner,
Notes.
VER. 56. the medium muſt be clear.] Alluſion to a foun-
tain of limpid water, thro' which the contents of the bot-
tom are diſcovered. This thought, tho' not very exact,
affifted him in the eaſy and happy change of the metaphor
in the following line.
Ver. 63. My head and heart thus flowing from my quill)
Inferior to the Original :
Ille velut fidis arcana fodalibus olim
Credebat libris, etc.
Sat. I.
45
OF HORACEE.
.
3
In them, as certain to be lov'd as ſeen,
The Soul ſtood forth, nor kept a thought within ;
In me what ſpots (for ſpots I have) appear, 55
Will prove at leaſt the Medium muſt be clear.
In this impartial glaſs, my Muſe intends
Fair to expoſe myſelf, my foes, my friends;
Publiſh the preſent age; but where my text
Is Vice too high, reſerve it for the next :
60
My foes ſhall wiſh my life a longer date,
And ev'ry friend the leſs lament my fate.
My head and heart thus flowing thro' my quill,
Verſe-man or Proſe-man, term me which you will,
Papiſt or Proteſtant, or both between,
65
Like good Eraſmus in an honeſt Mean,
In moderation placing all my glory,
While Tories call me Whig, and Whigs a Tory.
s Satire's my weapon, but I'm too diſcreet
To run a muck, and tilt at all I meet;
70
Nores.
Perſius alluded to this idea, when he ſaid,
Vidi, vidi ipſe, Libelle ! etc.
VER. 64. Verſe-man or Profe-man, term me which you
will, Papiſt 17 Proteftant, etc.] The original thought
(which is very flat, and ſo ill and aukwardly expreſſed, as
to be taken for a monkiſh Addition) is here admirably
imitated, in a lively character of himſelf, and his Writ-
ings.
VER. 69. Saiire's my weapon] In theſe Words, our
Author has happily explained the true Character of Ho-
46
Book it,
IMITATIONS
+ Tutus ab infeſtis latronibus ? v O pater et rex
Jupiter, ut pereat poſitum rubigine telum,
Nec quiſquam noceat w cupido mihi pacis ! at ille,
Qui me commorit, (melius non tangere, clamo)
* Flebit, et inſignis tota cantabitur urbe.
y Cervius iratus leges minitatur et urnam;
Canidia Albuti, quibus eft inimica, venenum;
Grande malum Turius, fi quid fe judice certes :
NOTE:
race’s ironical Apology, which is to this purpose : Na-
ture, ſays he, has given all Creatures the means of of-
fence and defence : The wolf has teeth, the bull has horns,
and my weapon is ſatire. And, at the ſame time that he
vindicates the claim to his natural talent, he thews the
moral uſe of it, by the inſtances of the like natural ta-
lents of Cervius to inform, of Canidia to poiſon, and of
Turius to paſs ſentence. The turn of this ludicrous ar-
gumentation is fine and delicate ; and we find his Imitator
daw the whole force of it.
VER. 71. I only wear it in a land of Hectors, etc.] Su
perior to, tutus ab infeſtis latronibus,
which only carries on the metaphor in
enſis
Vagina toetus,
و
Sat. I.
OF HORACE47
.
.
:
"I only wear it in a land of Hectors,
Thieves, Supercargoes, Sharpers, and Directors.
v Save but our Army! and let Jove incruſt
Swords, pikes, and guns, with everlaſting ruſt!
w Peace is my dear delight-not FLEURY's more: 75
But touch me, and no Miniſter fo fore.
Whoe'er offends, at ſome unlucky time
* Slides into verſe, and hitches in a rhyme,
Sacred to Ridicule his whole life along,
And the fad burthen of ſome merry ſong.
y Slander or Poiſon dread from Delia's rage,
Hard words or hanging, if your Judge be Page.
From furious Sappho ſearce a milder fate,
P-x'd by her love, or libellid by her hate.
Nores.
whereas the imitation does more ; for, along with the
metaphor, it conveys the image of the ſubject, by pre-
ſenting the reader with the ſeveral objects of fatire.
VER. 72. Thieves, Supercargoes,] The names, at that
time, uſually beſtowed on thoſe whom the trading Com-
panies ſent with their Ships, and intruſted with their con-
80
cerns, abroad.
VER. 81-84. Slander-libell'd by her hate.] There
ſeems to be more ſpirit here than in the original. But it
is hard to pronounce with certainty. For tho' one may
be confident there is more force in the 83d and 84th lines
than in
Canidia Albuti, quibus eſt inimica, venenum ;
yet there might be ſomething, for ought we know, in the
Character or Hiſtory of Cervius which might bring up
that line to the ſpirit and poinancy of the 8zd verſe of
the Imitation.
48
Book II.
IMITATIONS
A
z
Ut, quo quiſque valet, ſuſpectos terreat, utque
Imperet hoc Natura potens, fic collige mecum.
Dente lupus, cornu taurus petit; unde, niſi intus
Monftratum? • Scaevae vivacem crede nepoti
Matrem ; nil faciet ſceleris pia dextera (mirum?
Ut neque calce lupus quemquam, neque dente petit
bos)
Sed mala tollet anum vitiato melle cicuta.
• Ne longum faciam : feu me tranquilla ſenectus
Exſpectat, feu mors atris circumvolat alis ;
Dives, inops ; Romae, ſeu fors ita jufferit, exſul;
Quiſquis erit vitae, fcribam, color.
с
1
T.. O puer, ut fis
Vitalis metuo; et majorum ne quis amicus
NOTES.
VER. 85.-90. It's proper power to hurt, etc.) All, ex-
cept the two laſt lines, inferior to the elegance and pre-
ciſion of the Original.
Ver. 93,-96. Whether old age-fhade] The Original
is more finiſhed, and even ſublime. Beſides, the laſt
1
Sat. 1.
49
i
OF HORAC É.
b
- It's proper pow'r to hurt, each creature feels; 85
Bulls aim their horns, and Alles lift their heels;
'Tis a Bear's talent not to kick, but hug;
And no man wonders he's not ftung by Pug.
a So drink with Walters, or with Chartres eat,
They'll never poiſon you, they'll only cheat. 90
Then, learned Sir! (to cut the matter ſhort)
Whate'er my fate, or well or ill at Court,
Whether Old age, with faint but chearful ray,
Attends to gild the Ev’ning of my day,
Or Death's black wing already be diſplay'd, 95
To wrap me in the univerſal ſhade;
Whether the darken'd room to muſe invite,
Or whiten'd wall provoke the ſkew'r to write:
In durance, exile, Bedlam, or the Mint,
· Like Lee or Budgel, I will rhyme and print. TOO
F. 4 Alas young man ! your days can ne'er be long,
In flow'r of age you periſh for a fong!
Plums and Directors, Shylock and his Wife,
Will club their Tefters, now, to take your life!
Notes.
VER. 97:
verſe-To wrap me in the univerſal phade, has a languor
and redundancy unuſual with our author.
Whether the darken'd room Or whitend
avall] This is only a wanton joke upon the terms of
his Original
Quiſquis erit vitae color.
* E
50
IMITATIONS
Book II.
Frigore te feriat.
1
H. Quid ? cum eſt Lucilius aufus
Primus in hunc operis componere carmina morem,
f Detrahere et pellem, nitidus qua quiſque per ora
Cederet, introrſum turpis ; num Laelius, et qui
Duxit ab oppreſſa meritum Carthagine nomen,
Ingenio offenfi? aut laeſo doluere Metello,
Famoſifque Lupo cooperto verſibus ? atqui
Primores populi arripuit populumque tributim;
Scilicet & UNI AEQUUS VIRTUTI ATQUE EJUS AMI-
CIS.
Nores.
VER. 105.-120. What ? arm'd for Virtue, etc.) This
is not only ſuperior to any thing in Horace, but equal to
any thing in himſelf.
Ver. 110. Lights of the Church, or Guardians of the
Laws?] Becauſe juft Satire is an uſeful ſupplement to the
ſanctions of Law and Religion ; and has, therefore, a claim
to the protection of thoſe who preſide in the adminiſtra-
tion of both.
Ibid. Could penſion'd Boileau--Could Laureate Dryden)
It was Horace's purpoſe to compliment the former times,
and therefore he gives the virtuous examples of Scipio
Sat. I.
51
OF HORACE.
P. - What ? arm'd for Virtue when I point the pen,
Brand the bold front of ſhameleſs guilty men ;
106
Dalh the proud Gameſter in his gilded Car;
Bare the mean Heart that lurks beneath a Star;
Can there be wanting, to defend her cauſe,
Lights of the Church, or Guardians of the Laws? 10
Could penſion’d Boileau lalh in boneft ſtrain
Flatt'rers and Bigots ev'n in Louis' reign?
Could Laureate Dryden Pimp and Fry'r engage,
Yet neither Charles nor James be in a rage?
And I not ſtrip the gilding off a Knave, IIS
Unplac’d, unpenſion'd, no man's heir, or ſlave?
I will, or periſh in the gen'rous cauſe:
Hear this, and tremble! you, who 'ſcape the Laws,
Yes, while I live, no rich or noble knave
Shall walk the World, in credit, to his grave.
8 To VIRTUE ONLY and HER FRIENDS A FRIEND,
The World beſide may murmur, or commend.
Know, all the diſtant din that world can keep,
Rolls o'er my Grotto, and but ſooths my ſleep.
Notes.
and Laelius; it was Mr. Pope's, to ſatirize the preſent,
and therefore he gives the vicious examples of Louis,
Charles, and James. Either way the initances are equally
pertinent; but in the latter they have rather greater force,
Only the line,
Uni aequus virtuti atque ejus amicis,
loſes ſomething of its fpirit in the imitation; for the amici,
referred to, were Scipio and Laelius.
I20
* E 2
52
IMITATIONS
Book II.
ha
i
Quin ubi ſe a vulgo et ſcena in ſecreta remorant
Virtus Scipiadae et mitis ſapientia Laeli,
Nugari cum illo, et diſcincti ludere, donec
Decoqueretur olus, ſoliti,
Quidquid fum ego, quamvis
Infra Lucili cenſum, ingeniumque; tamen me
i Cum magnis vixiſe invita fatebitur uſque
Invidia ; et fragili quaerens illidere dentem,
Offendet ſolido :
* niſi quid tu, doete Trebati,
Diffentis.
T. ' Equidem nihil hinc diffingere poſſum.
Sed tamen ut monitus caveas, ne forte negoti
Incutiat tibi quid ſanctarum inſcitia legum :
66 Si mala condiderit in quem quis carmina,
jus eft
Notes.
VER. 129. And He, whoſe lightning, etc.] Charles
Mordaunt Earl of Peterborow, who in the year 1705 took
Barcelona, and in the winter following with only 208
I
Sat. I.
53
OF HORACE.
i
h There, my retreat the beſt Companions grace, 125
Chiefs out of war, and Stateſmen out of place.
There St. John mingles with my friendly bowl
The Feaſt of Reaſon and the Flow of foul:
And He, whoſe lightning pierc'd th' Iberian Lines,
Now forins my Quincunx, and now ranks my Vines,
Or tames the Genius of the ſtubborn plain, 131
Almoſt as quickly as he conquer'd Spain.
Envy muſt own, I live among the Great,
No Pimp of pleaſure, and no Spy of ſtate,
With eyes that pry not, tongue that ne'er repeats, 135
Fond to ſpread ftiendſhips, but to cover heats ;
To help who want, to forward who excel;
This, all who know me, know; who love me, tell;
And who unknown defame me, let them be
Scriblers or Peers, alike are Mob to me.
140
This is my plea, on this I reft my cauſe-
k What ſaith my Council, learned in the laws ?
F. ? Your Plea is good; but ſtill I ſay, beware!
Laws are explain’d by Men--ſo have a care.
It ſtands on record, that in Richard's times 145
A man was hang'd for very honeſt rhymes.
m Conſult the Statute: quart. I think, it is,
Edwardi fext, or prim.. et quint. Eliz.
NOTES,
horſe and goo foot enterprized and accompliſhed the Con-
queit of Valentia.
P.
* E 3
54
IMITATIONS
Book II.
“ Judiciumque."
H. Eſto, fiquis * mala. fed bona fi quis
Judice condiderit laudatus CAESARE? fi quis
Opprobriis dignum laceraverit, integer ipſe ?
T.. Solventur riſu tabulae : tu miffus abibis.
NOTES,
Ver. 150. Libels and Satires ! lawleſs things indeed!
But grave Epiftles, &c.] The legal objeétion is here more
juftly and decently taken off than in the Original. Ho-
race evades the force of it with a quibble,
Efo, fiquis mala ; fed bona fi quis.
But the Imitator's grave Epiſtles Shew the ſatire to be a
ſerious reproof, and therefore juftifiable; which the inte-
ger ipſe of the Original does not: for however this might
plead in mitigation of the offence, nothing but their being
grave Epiftles could juſtify the attack.
F. Indeed ?] Hor.
Solventur riſu tabulae.
VER. 152:
Sat. I.
55
OF HOR A C E.
See Libels, Satires-here you have it-read.
P. - Libels and Satires ! lawleſs things indeed! 150
But grave Epiftles, bringing Vice to light,
Such as a King might read, a Biſhop write,
Such as Sir ROBERT would approve--
F. Indeed?
The Cafe is alter'd-you may then proceed; 155
• In ſuch a cauſe the Plaintiff will be hiſs’d,
My Lords the Judges laugh, and you're diſmiſs’d.
NOTES.
Some Critics tell us, it is want of taſte to put this line in
the mouth of Trebatius. But our Poet confutes this cen-
fure, by ſhewing how well the ſenſe of it agrees to his
Friend's character. The Lawyer is cautious and fearful;
but as ſoon as Sir ROBERT, the Patron both of Law and
Goſpel, is mentioned as approving them, he changes his
note, and, in the language of old Plouden, owns, the Cafe
is altered. Now was it not as natural, when Horace had
given a hint that Auguftus himſelf ſupported him, for
Trebatius, a Court Advocate, who had been long a Client
to him and his Uncle, to confeſs the Cafe was altered?
J
* E4
$
T H E
:
SECOND SATIRE
OF THE
SECOND BOOK
OF
H OR A C E.
7
58
Book II.
IMITATIONS
S A T I R A
II.
* ( Q
UAE virtus et quanta, boni, fit vivere parvo,
(Nec meus hic fermo ; ſed quae praecepit
Ofellus,
Ruſticus, - abnormis Sapiens, craffaque Minerva)
Diſcite, e non inter lances menfaſque nitentes;
Cum ſtupet infanis acies fulgoribus, et cum
Acclinis falſis animus meliora recuſat:
• Verum hic impranſi mecum difquirite. Cur hoc?
Dicam, fi potero. male verum examinat omnis
Corruptus judex. Leporem ſectatus, equove
Laffus ab indomito; vel (fi Romana fatigat
Militia aſſuetum graecari) ſeu pila velox,
Molliter aufterum ftudio fallente laborem ;
Seu te diſcus agit, pete cedentem aera diſco:
Cum labor extulerit faſtidia ; ficcus, inanis,
Sperne cibum vilem : niſi Hymettia mella Falerno,
Ne biberis, diluta. i foris eſt promus, et atrum
Notes.
VER. 5. a gill Buffet's reflected pride Turns you from
found Philoſophy aſide ;) More forcibly and happily expreſſed
than the original, acclinis falſis; tho' that be very elegant.
Sat. II.
59
OF HORACEE.
.
S A T I RE
II.
To Mr. BE THE L.
'W
HAT, and how great, the Virtue and the Art
To live on little with a chearful heart;
(A doctrine fage, but truly none of mine)
Let's talk, my friends, but talk before we dine.
· Not when a gilt Buffet's reflected pride
:5
Turns you from ſound Philoſophy afide ;
Not when from plate to plate your eyeballs roll,
And the brain dances to the mantling bowl.
Hear BETHEL's Sermon, one not vers'd in ſchools,
But ſtrong in ſenſe, and wiſe without the rules.
Go work, hunt, exerciſe ! (he thus began)
Then ſcorn a homely dinner, if you can.
Your wine lock'd up, your Butler ſtrollid abroad,
Or filh deny'd (the river yet unthaw’d)
Nores.
Ver. 9. Bethel.] The ſame to whom ſeveral of Mr.
Pope's Letters are addreſſed.
I
6
IMITATIONS Book II.
}
Defendens piſces hiemat mare: cum fale panis
Latrantem ftomachum bene leniet. unde putas, aut
Quî partum ? non in caro nidore voluptas
Summa, ſed in teipfo eft. tu pulmentaria quaere
Sudando, pinguem vitiis albumque neque oftrea,
Nec ſcarus, aut poterit peregrina juvare lagois.
k Vix tamen eripiam, pofito pavone, velis quin
Hoc potius quam.gallina tergere palatum;
Corruptus vanis rerum : quia veneat auro
Rara avis, et picta pandat ſpectacula cauda:
Tamquam ad rem attineat quidquam. Num veſceris
iſta,
Quam laudas, pluma ? coctove num adeft honor idem?
Carne tamen quamvis diftat nihil hac, magis illa;
Imparibus formis deceptum te patet. eſto.
Unde datum ſentis, lupus hic, Tiberinus, an alto
Captus hiet? ponteſne inter jactatus, an amnis
Oſtia ſub Tuſci? laudas, inſane, trilibrem
Mullum; in fingula quem minuas pulmenta neceffe eft.
Ducit te ſpecies, video. quo pertinet ergo
Proceros odiſſe lupos ? quia ſcilicet illis
Majorem natura modum dedit, his breve pondus.
Jejunus raro ftomachus vulgaria temnit.
m Porre&tum magno magnum ſpectare catino
Villen, ait Harpyiis gula digna rapacibus, at vos
Notes.
VER. 25. Oldfield] This eminent Glutton ran thro' a
Sat. II.
61
OF HORACE.
:
20
If then plain bread and milk will do the feat, 15
The pleaſure lies in you, and not the meat.
k Preach as I pleaſe, I doubt our curious men
Will chuſe a pheaſant ſtill before a hen;
Yet hens of Guinea full as good I hold,
Except you eat the feathers green and gold.
? Of carps and mullets why prefer the great,
(Tho'cut in pieces 'ere my Lord can eat)
Yet for ſmall Turbots ſuch eſteem profeſs?
Becauſe God made theſe large, the other leſs.
m Oldfield with more than Harpy throat endu'd, 25
Cries “ Send me, Gods! a whole Hog barbecu'd !"
:
Notes.
fortune of fifteen hundred pounds a year in the ſimple lux-
ury of good eating.
VER. 26. a whole Hog barbecu'd!] The Poet has here
given a beauty equivalent to that in the Original,
Porrettum magno magnum ſpectare catino,
which, by the flownels of the Syllables, where four ſpon-
dees follow one another, well expreſſes the enormous bulk
of the fiſh which the Glutton pray'd for.
Ibid. Hog barbecu’d, etc.] A Weſt Indian term of glut-
tony, a hog roaſted whole, stuffed with ſpice, and batted
with Madera wine. P.
62
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Praefentes Auftri, coquite horum opſonia: quam-
quam
Putet aper rhombuſque recens, mala copia quando
Aegrum ſollicitat ftomachum ; cum rapula plenus
Atque acidas mavult inulas. necdum omnis abacta
Pauperies epulis regum : nam vilibus ovis
Nigriſque eſt oleis hodie locus. Haud ita pridem
Galloni praeconis erat acipenſere menſa
Infamis. quid ? tum rhombos minus aequora alebant?
P Tutus erat rhombus, tutoque ciconia nido,
Donec vos auctor docuit praetorius. ergo
9 Si quis nunc mergos ſuaves edixerit aſſos,
Parebit pravi docilis Romana juventus.
Sordidus a tenui victus diftabit, Ofello
Judice: nam fruftra vitium vitaveris iſtud,
Si te alio pravus de torſeris. Avidienus,
? Cui Canis ex vero ductum cognomen adhaeret,
S
Notes.
VER. 27. Ob blaſt it, South-winds!) This has not the
force, nor gives us the pleaſant alluſion in the original,
coquite.
VER. 42. Bedford-head;] A famous Eating-houſe. P.
VER. 43. Or evi’n to crack live Crawfiſh] There is
force and humour in dixerit and parebit, which the imita-
tion does not reach.
I
Sat. II.
63
OF HOR AC E.
1
30
Oh blaſt it, South-winds! till a ftench exhale
Rank as the ripeneſs of a rabbit's tail.
By what Criterion do ye eat, d’ye think,
If this is priz'd for ſweetneſs, that for ſtink?
When the tir'd glutton labours thro' a treat,
He finds no reliſh in the ſweeteſt meat,
He calls for ſomething bitter, ſomething four,
And the rich feaſt concludes extremely poor :
• Cheap eggs, and herbs, and olives ſtill we fee; 35
Thus much is left of old Simplicity!
p The Robin-red-breaſt till of late had reft,
And children facred held a Martin's neſt,
Till Becca-ficos fold ſo dev'liſh dear
To one that was, or would have been a Peer.
40
4 Let me extol a Cat, on oyſters fed,
I'll have a party at the Bedford-head;
Or ev'n to crack live Crawfiſh recommend,
I'd never doubt at Court to make a friend.
r 'Tis yet in vain, I own, to keep a pother 45
About one vice, and fall into the other :
Between Exceſs and Famine lies a mean;
Plain, but not ſordid ; tho’not ſplendid, clean.
s Avidien, or his Wife (no matter which,
For him you'll call a' dog, and her a bitch)
Notes.
Ver. 50. For him you'll call a dog, and her a bitch] One
cannot but admire the lively turn here given to the Ori-
ginal.
50
64
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Quinquennes oleas eft, et ſylveſtria corna ;
v Ac, nifi mutatum, parcit defundere vinum ; et
Cujus odorem olei nequeas perferre (licebit
Ille repotia, natales, alioſque dierum
Feftos albatus celebret) cornu ipſe bilibri
Caulibus inftillat, * veteris non parcus aceti.
Quali igitur victu ſapiens utetur, et horum
Utrum imitabitur ? hac urget lupus, hac canis, aiunt.
y Mundus erit, qua non offendat fordibus, atque
In neutram partem cultus miſer. . Hic neque ſervis
Albuti ſenis exemplo, dum munia didit,
Saevus erit; nec fic ut fimplex b Naevius, unetam
Convivis praebebit aquam: vitium hoc quoque ma-
gnúm.
¢ Accipe nunc, victus tenuis quae quantaque fecum
Afferat. In primis valeas bene; nam variae res
Ut noceant homini, credas, memor illius efcae,
Quae fimplex Colim tibi ſederit. at ſimul affis
Miſcueris elixa, fimul conchylia turdis ;
Dulcia ſe in bilem vertent, ftomachoque tumultum
Lenta feret pituita. Vides, ut pallidus omnis
Sat. II.
65
OF HORA C E.
Sell their preſented partridges, and fruits,
And humbly live on rabbits and on roots :
One half pint bottle ſerves them both to dine,
And is at once their vinegar and wine.
But on ſome " lucky day (as when they found 55
A loft Bank-bill, or heard their Son was drown'd)
At ſuch a feaſt, * old vinegar to ſpare,
Is what two ſouls ſo gen'rous cannot bear :
Oyl, tho’ it ſtink, they drop by drop impart,
60
But fowſe the cabbage with a bounteous heart.
y He knows to live, who keeps the middle ſtate,
And neither leans on this ſide, nor on that ;
Nor a ſtops, for one bad cork, his butler's pay,
Swears, like Albutius, a good cook away;
Nor lets, like o Navius, ev'ry error paſs,
The muſty wine, foul cloth, or greaſy glaſs.
Now hear what bleſſings Temperance can bring:
(Thus ſaid our Friend, and what he ſaid I fing)
Firſt Health : The ſtomach (cramm'd from ev'ry
diſh,
70
A tomb of boil'd and roaſt, and fleſh and fiſh,
Where bile, and wind, and phlegm, and acid jar,,
And all the man is one inteſtine war)
Remembers ofte the School-boy's fimple fare,
The temp’rate ſleeps, and ſpirits light as air. 75
* How pale, each Worthipful and Rey'rend gueſt
Riſe from a Clergy, or a City feaſt !
Vol. IV.
65
d
* F
66
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Coena defurgat dubia ? quin corpus onuftum
Hefternis vitiis animum quoque praegravat una,
Atque affigit humo divinae particulam aurae.
& Alter, ubi dicto citius curata ſopori
Membra dedit, vegetus praefcripta ad munia ſurgit.
h Hic tamen ad melius poterit tranſcurrere quondam ;
Sive diem feftum rediens advexerit annus,
Seu recreare volet tenuatum corpus : ubique
Accedent anni, et tractari mollius aetas
Imbecilla volet. i Tibi quidnam accedet ad iftam,
Quam puer et validus praeſumis, mollitiem ; feu
Dura valetudo inciderit, feu tarda ſenectus ?
* Rancidum aprum antiqui laudabant : non quia nalus
Illis nullus erat ; ſed, credo, hac mente, quod hofpes
Tardius adveniens vitiatum commodius, quam
Notes.
VER. 8o. The Soul fubfides, and wickedly inclines To
Jeem but mortol, ev’n in jound Divines.] Horace was an
Epicurean, and lauyhed at the immortality of the foul.
He therefore deſcribes that langlior of the mind proceed-
ing from intemperance, oa the idea, and in the terms of
Plato,
afizit humo divinae particulam aurae.
To this lis ridicule is pointed. Our Poet, with more fo
briety and judgment, has turned the ridicule, from the
octrine, which he believ d, upon thoſe Preachers of
whoſe feaits and compotations in Taverns did not edify
Sat. II.
67
OF HORACE.
85
i
What life in all that ample body, ſay?
What heav'nly particle inſpires the clay?
The Soul ſubſides, and wickedly inclines
80
To ſeem but mortal, ev’n in ſound Divines.
On morning wings how active ſprings the Mind
That leaves the load of yeſterday behind ?
How eaſy ev'ry labour it purſues ?
How coming to the Poet ev'ry Muſe?
"Not but we may exceed, ſame holy time,
Or tir'd in ſearch of Truth, or ſearch of Rhyme;
Ill health ſome juſt indulgence may engage,
And more the ſickneſs of long life, Old age;
For fainting Age what cordial drop remains, 95
If our intemp’rate Youth the vefſel drains ?
de Our fathers.prais'd rank Ven'ſon. You ſuppoſe
Perhaps, young men! our fathers had no noſe.
Not ſo: a Buck was then a week's repaſt,
And 'twas their point, I ween, to make it laſt; IQO
More pleas’d to keep it till their friends ſhould come
Than cat the ſweeteſt by themſelves at home.
Notes.
him : and ſo has added ſurprizing humour and ſpirit to the
eaſy elegance of the Original,
Ver. 82. One morning wings etc.] Much happier and
nobler than the Original.
VER. 87. Ortir'd in ſearch of Truth, or ſearch of Rhyme.]
A fine ridicule on the extravagance of human purſuits;
where the moſt trifling and moſt important concerns of life
ſucceed one another, indifferently.
!
* F 2
68
Book II.
I I MITATIONS
Integrum edax dominus conſameret. hos utinam
inter
Heroas natum tellus me prima tuliffet.
Das aliquid famae, quae carmine gratior aurem
Occupet humanam ? grandes rhombi, patinaeque
Grande ferunt una
n
cum
damno dedecus. adde
• Iratum patruum, vicinos, te tibi iniquum,
Et fruſtra mortis cupidum, cum deerit egenti
?? As, laquei pretium.
9 Jure, inquit, Trauſius iſtis
Jurgatur verbis : ego vectigalia magna,
Divitiaſque habeo tribus amplas regibus. * Ergo,
Quod fuperat, non eſt melius quo inſumere poffis ?
Cur eget indignus quiſquam, te divite? quare
s Templa ruunt antiqua Deûm ? cur, improbe, carae
Non aliquid patriae tanto emetiris acervo ?
Uni nimirum tibi recte femper erunt res?
Notes.
Ver. 128. As M**o's was, etc.} I think this light
Aroke of ſatire ill placed ; and hurts the dignity of the
Sat. II. OF HOR AC E. 69
1
ΙΙΟ
Why had not I in thoſe good times my birth,
’Ere coxcómb-pyes or coxcombs were on earth ?
Unworthy he, the voice of Fame to hear, 105
m That ſweeteſt muſic to an honeſt ear;
(For 'faith, Lord Fanny! you are in the wrong,
The world's good word is better than a ſong)
Who has not learn'd, a freſh ſturgeon and ham-pye
Are no rewards for want, and infamy !
When Luxury has lick'd up all thy pelf,
Curs'd be thy neighbours, thy truſtees, thyſelf,
To friends, to fortune, to mankind a ſhame,
Think how pofterity will treat thy name;
And buy a rope, that future times may tell 115
Thou haft at leaſt beftow'd one penny well.
9 “ Right, cries his Lordſhip, for a rogue in need
66 To have a Taſte is inſolence indeed :
« In me 'tis noble, ſuits my birth and ſtate,
" My wealth unwieldy, and my heap too great."
Then, like the Sun, let' Bounty ſpread her ray, 121
And ſhine that ſuperfluity away.
Oh Impudence of wealth! with all thy ſtore,
How dar'ft thou let one worthy man be poor?
Shall half the s new-built churches round thee fall?
Make Keys, build Bridges, or repair White-hall :
Or to thy Country let that heap be lent,
As M**o's was, but not at five per cent.
Notes.
preceding morality. Horace was very ſerious, and pro-
perly ſo, when he ſaid,
F 3
70
Book II.
IMITATIONS
O magnus pofthac inimicis riſus ! uterne
• Ad caſus dubios fidet fibi certius? hic, qui
Pluribus affuerit mentein corpuſque ſuperbum;
An qui contentus parvo metuenſque futuri,
In pace, ut fapiens, aptarit idonea belo?
v Quo magis his credas: puer hunc ego parvus
Ofellum
Integris opibus novi nori latius uſum,
Quam nunc accifis. Videas, metato in agello,
Cum pecore et gnatis, fortem mercede colonum,
Non ego, narrantem, temere edi luce profefta
Quidquam, praeter * olus fumoſae cum pede pernae.
Ac mihi ſeu Y longum poft tempus venerat hoſpes,
Sive operum vacuo gratus conviva per imbrem
Vicinus; bene erat, non piſcibus urbe petitis,
Sed pullo atque hoedo : tum ? penſilis uva fecundas
Notes.
cur, improbe ! carae
Non aliquid patriae tanto emetiris acerve.
He remembered, and hints with juſt indignation, at thoſe
luxurious Patricians of his old party; who, when they had
agreed to eitabliſh a fund in the cauſe of Freedom, under
the conduct of Brutus, could never be perſuaded to with-
draw from their expenſive pleaſures what was ſufficient for
the ſupport of ſo great a cauſe. He had prepared his
Sat. II.
71
OF HORACE.
* Who thinks that fortune cannot change her mind,
Prepares a dreadful jeſt for all mankind.
130
And u who ſtands ſafeſt ? tell me, is it he
That ſpreads and ſwells in puff’d Proſperity,
Or bleſt with little, whoſe preventing care
In peace provides fit arms againſt a war?
Thus Bethel ſpoke, who always ſpeaks his
thought,
135
And always thinks the very thing he ought :
His equal mind I copy what I can,
And as I love, would imitate the Man.
In South-ſea days not happier, when ſurmis'd
The Lord of Thouſands, than if now w Excis'd; 140
In foreſt planted by a Father's hand,
Than in five acres now of rented land.
Content with little, I can piddle here
On brocoli and mutton, round the year;
But y ancient friends (tho' poor, or out of play)
That touch my bell, I cannot turn away.
'Tis true, no 2 Turbots dignify my boards,
But gudgeons, flounders, what my Thames affords:
Notes.
apology for this liberty, in the preceding line, where he
pays a fine compliment to Auguftus:
quare
uare
Templa ruunt antiqua Deum?
which oblique Panegyric the Imitator has very properly
turned into a jult itroke of ſatire.
* F 4
72
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Et nux ornabat menfas, cum duplice ficu.
Poft hoc ludus erat cuppa potare magiſtra :
Ac venerata Ceres, ita culmo furgeret alto,
1
Explicuit vino contractae ſeria frontis.
Saeviat atque novos moveat Fortuna tumultus !
Quantum hinc imminuet ? quanto aut ego parcius,
aut vos,
O pueri, nituiſtis, ut huc novus incola venit ?
Notes.
Ver. 156. And, what's more rare, a Poet ſhall ſay
Grace.] The pleaſantry of this line conſiſts in the ſuppoſed
rarity of a Poet's having a table of his own; or a ſenſe of
gratitude for the bleflings he receives. But it contains,
2
Sat. 11. OF HOR AC E.
73
To Hounſlow-heath I point and Banſted-down,
Thence comes your mutton, and theſe chicks my
own:
150
* From yon old walnut-tree a ſhow'r ſhall fall;
And grapes, long ling'ring on my only wall,
And figs from ſtandard and eſpalier join ;
The dev'l is in you if you cannot dine:
Then chearful healths (your Miftreſs ſhall have place)
And, what's more rare, a Poet ſhall ſay Grace. 156
Fortune not much of humbling me can boaſt;
Tho' double tax'd, how little have I loſt?
My Life's amuſements have been juſt the fame,
Before, and after © Standing Armies came. 160
My lands are ſold, my father's houſe is gone;
I'll hire another's; is not that my own,
And yours, my friends ? thro' whoſe free-opening gate
None comes too early, none departs too late;
(For I, who hold fage Homer's rule the beſt, 165
Welcome the coming, ſpeed the going gueſt.)
Pray heav’n it laſt! (cries SWIFT!) as you go on;
" I wiſh to God this houſe had been your own:
« Pity! to build, without a ſon or wife:
“ Why, you'll enjoy it only all your life.” 170
Well, if the uſe be mine, can it concern one,
Whether the name belong to Pope or Vernon?
Notes.
too, a ſober reproof of People of Condition, for their
unmanly and brutal diſuſe of 10 natural a duty.
74
IMITATIONS Book II.
Nam propriae telluris herum natura neque illum,
Nec me, nec quemquam ftatuit. nos expulit ille;
Illum aut e nequities aut f vafri inſcitia juris,
Poftremum expellet certe 5 vivacior heres.
* Nunc ager Umbreni fub nomine, nuper Ofelli
Dictus erat: nulli proprius; ſed cedit in uſum
Nunc mihi, nunc alii, i quocirca vivite fortes,
Fortiaque adverfis opponite pectora rebus.
Notes.
VER. 183. proud Buckingham's etc.] Villers Duke of
Buckingham. 'P.
VER. 185. Let lands and houſes etc.] The turn of his
sace
Sat. Ik
75
OF HOR A CE.
What's « Property ? dear Swift! you ſee it alter
From you to me, from me to · Peter Walter ;
Or, in a mortgage, prove a Lawyer's ſhare;
175
Or, in a jointure, vaniſh from the heir ;
Or in pure f equity (the caſe not clear)
The Chanc'ry takes your rents for twenty year :
At beft, it falls to fome ungracious ſon,
Who cries, “My father's damn'd, and all's my own.
h Shades, that to Bacon could retreat afford, 181
Become the portion of a booby Lord;
And Hemſley, once proud Buckingham's delight,
Slides to a Scriv'ner or a city Knight.
i Let lands and houſes have what Lords they will,
Let Us be fix’d, and our own maſters ſtill.
Notes.
imitation, in the concluding part, obliged him to diver-
fify the ſentiment. They are equally noble: but Horace's
is expreſſed with the greater force.
Τ Η Ε
FIRST EPISTLE
OF THE
FIRST BOOK
$
OF
HORACE.
78
IMITATIONS Book I.
)
EP IS TO L A I.
RIMA diete mihi, fumma dicende camena,
PRIMA dicke mihi, fumma dicende camena,
• Spectatum ſatis, et donatum jam rude, quaeriss
Maecenas, iterum antiquo me includere ludo.
Non eadem eft aetas, non mens. · Veianius, armis
Herculis ad partem fixis, latet abditus agro;
Ne populum extrema toties exoret arena.
* Eft mihi purgatam crebro qui perſonet aurem;
Solve * ſeneſcentem mature fanus equum, ne
Peccet ad extremum ridendus, et ilia ducat,
Notes.
Ver. 3. Sabbath of my days?] i. e. The 49th year,
the age of the Author.
Ver. 8. Hang their old Trophies o'er the Garden gates,]
An occaſional ſtroke of Satire on ill-placed ornaments. He
has more openly ridiculed them in his Epiftle on Tafe.
Ep. I.
79
OF HORA C E.
E P I S T L E I.
To L. BOLINGBROKE.
T. John, whoſe love indulg'd my labours paft,
Matures my preſent, and ſhall bound my laſt !
Why will you break the Sabbath of my days?
Now fick alike of Envy and of Praiſe.
Public too long, ah let me hide my Age!
$
See Modeft Cibber now has left the Stage :
Our Gen’rals now, retir'd to their Eftates,
Hang their old Trophies o'er the Garden gates,
In Life's cool Ev'ning ſatiate of Applauſe,
Nor e fond of bleeding, ev’n in BRUNSWICK's cauſe.
f A Voice there is, that whiſpers in my ear,
('Tis Reaſon's voice, which ſometimes one can hear)
“ Friend Pope! be prudent, let your s Mufe take
“
breath,
" And never gallop Pegaſus to death;
II
Notes.
“ Load ſome vain Church with old theatric ſtate,
• Turn Arcs of Triumph to a garden gate.
Ver. 10. et'n in Brunſwick's cauſe.] In the former Edi-
tions it was, Britain's cauſe. But the terms are fynony.
mous,
2
80
Book I.
IMITATIONS
Nunc itaque et hverſus, et caetera ludicra pono:
Quid i verum atque decens, curo et rogo, et omnis in
hoc fum:
k Condo, et compono, quae mox depromere poſfim.
1
Ac ne forte roges,
1.
quo me duce, quo Lare tuter:
Nullius addictus jurare in verba magiftri,
* Quo me cunque rapit tempeſtas, deferor bofpes.
Nunc agilis fio, et merfor a civilibus undis,
Virtutis verae cuftos, ºrigiduſque ſatelles :
Nunc in * Ariſtippi P furtim praecepta relabor,
Et mihi res, non me rebus, fubjungere conor.
9 Ut nox longa, quibus mentitur amica ; dieſque
* Omnis Ariſtippum decuit color, et ſtatus, et res.
P.
Notes,
Ver. 16. You limp, like Blackmore on a Lord Mayor's
horſe. The fame of this heavy Poet, however problema-
tical elſewhere, was univerſally received in the City of
London. His verſification is here exactly deſcribed : ſtiff,
Ep. 1.
81
OF HORACE.
20
« Leſt ſtiff, and ſtately, void of fire or force, 15
“ You limp, like Blackmore on a Lord Mayor's
" horſe."
Farewell then - Verſe, and Love, and ev'ry Toy, '
The Rhymes and Rattles of the Man or Boy;
What i right, what true, what fit we juſtly call,
Let this be all my care
for this is All :
To lay this * harveft up, and hoard with hafte
What ev'ry day will want, and moſt, the laſt.
But aſk not, to what 'Doctors I apply?
Sworn to no Mafter, of no Sect am I:
As drives the m ſtorm, at any door I knock: 25
And houſe with Montagne now, or now with Locke.
Sometimes a " Patriot, active in debate,
Mix with the World, and battle for the State,
Free as young Lyttelton, her Caufe purſue,
Still true to Virtue, º and as warm as true: 30
Sometimes with Ariſtippus, or St. Paul,
Indulge my candor, and grow all to all ;
Back to my P native Moderation ſlide,
And win my way by yielding to the tide.
9 Long, as to him who works for debt, the day, 35
Long as the Night to her whofe Love's away,
NOTEs.
and not ſtrong; ſtately and yet dull, like the ſober and
ſlow-paced Animal generally employed to mount the Lord
Mayor: and therefore here humouroully oppoſed to Pe-
gafus. P
* G
82
Book 1
IMITATIONS
Lenta videtur opus debentibus : ut piger annus
Pupillis, quos dura premit cuſtodia matrum:
Sic mihi tarda' fluunt ingrataque tempora, quae ſpem
Confiliumque morantur agendi gnaviter s id, quod
N
Aeque pauperibus prodeft, locupletibus aeque,
Aeque neglectum pueris, ſenibufque nocebit.
t
Reftat, ut his ego me ipſe regam folerque ele-
mentis :
w Non poſfis oculo quantum contendere Lynceus;
Non tamen idcirco contemnas lippus inungi:
Nec, quia deſperes invicti membra Glyconis,
Nodoſa corpus nolis prohibere cheragra.
Eft quadam prodire * tenus, fi non datur ultra.
y Fervet Avaritia, miſeroque cupidine pectus?
Notes.
VER. 45. can no wants endure;] i. e. Can want nothing.
Badly exprefled.
VER.51. I'll do what Mead-] Mr. Pope highly efteemed
and loved this worthy man, whole unaffected humanity and
benevolence have ſtifled much of that envy which his emi-
nence in his profeflion would otherwiſe have drawn out.
Ep. I.
OF HO RA CE.
83
40
45
Long as the Year’sidull circle ſeems to run,
When the briſk Minor pants for twenty-one:
So flow th'' unprofitable moments roll,
That lock up all the Functions of my ſoul;
That keep me from myſelf; and ftill delay
Life's inſtant buſineſs to a future day:
That s talk, which as we follow, or deſpiſe,
The eldeſt is a fool, the youngeſt wife.
Which done, the pooreſt can no wants endure;
And which not done, the richeſt muſt be poor.
+ Late as it is, I put myſelf to ſchool,
And feel fome v comfort, not to be a fool.
w Weak tho' I am of limb, and ſhort of fight,
Far from a Lynx, and not a Giant quite;
I'll do what Mead and Chefelden adviſe,
To keep theſe limbs, and to preſerve theſe eyes.
Not to go back, is ſomewhat to advance,
And men muſt walk at leaſt before they dance.
Say, does thy v blood rebel, thy boſom move
With wretched Av'rice, or as wretched Love?
50
55
Notes.
Speaking of his obligations to this great Phyſician and
others of the Faculty, in a Letter to Mr. Allen, about a
month before his death, he ſays, • There is no end of
my kind treatment írom the Faculty. They are in
general the moſt amiable companions, and the belt
friends, as well as the moſt learned Men I know.''
* G 2
84
Book I.
I MITATIONS
Sunt verba et voces, quibus hunc lenire dolorem
Poſfis, et ? magnam morbi deponere partem.
Laudis amore tumes? ſunt a certa piacula, quae te
Ter pure lecto poterunt recreare libello.
Invidus, iracundus, iners, vinoſus, º amator,
Nemo 4 adeo ferus eft, ut non miteſcere poffit,
Si modo culturae patientem commodet aurem.
• Virtus eft, vitium fugere; et fapientia prima,
Stultitia caruiſſe. vides, quae f maxima credis
Eſſe mala, exiguum cenſum, turpemque repulſam,
Quanto devites animi, capitiſque labore.
Impiger extremos curris mercator ad Indos,
Notes,
VER. 58. Between the fits-] The ſenſe of
magnam morbi deponere partem
is here very happily expreſſed. And
Ter pure lečto etc.
in the following line, as happily varied. But the whole
paffage, which deſcribes the uſe and efficacy of fatire, is
admirably imitated.
Ver. 70. Scar'd at the ſpecirc of pale Poverty!] Tho
Ep. I.
85
OF HORACE.
Know, there are Words, and Spells, which can con-
troll
z Between the Fits this Fever of the ſoul :
Know, there are Rhymes, which • freſh and freſh
apply'd
Will cure the arrant'ſt Puppy of his Pride. 60
Be furious, envious, flothful, mad, or drunk,
• Slave to a Wife, or Vaſſal to a Punk,
A Switz, a High-dutch, or a Low-dutch a Bear;
All that we aſk is but a patient Ear.
e 'Tis the firſt Virtue, Vices to abhor; 65
And the firſt Wiſdom, to be Fool no more.
But to the world no 'bugbear is ſo great,
As want of figure, and a ſmall Eftate.
To either India ſee the Merchant fly,
Scar'd at the ſpectre of pale Poverty !
70
See him, with pains of body, pangs of ſoul,
Burn through the Tropic, freeze beneath the Pole !
Wilt thou do nothing for a nobler end,
Nothing, to make Philoſophy thy friend?
Nores.
this has all the ſpirit, it has not all the imagery of the Ori-
ginal; where Horace makes Poverty purlue, and keep
pace with the Miſer in his flight.
Per mare Pauperiem fugiens, per faxa, per ignes.
But what follows,
Wilt thou do nothing, etc.
far furpafies the Original.
* G 3
86
Book I.
IMITATIONS
Per & mare pauperiem fugiens, per faxa, per ignes :
Ne cures b ea, quae ftulie miraris et optas,
Diſcere, et audire, et meliori credere non vis ?
Quis circum pagos et circum compita pugnax
Magna coronari contemnat Olympia, cui ſpes,
Cui fit conditio dulcis fine pulvere palmae ?
" i Vilius eft auro argentum, virtutibus aurum.
"* O cives, cives! quaerenda pecunia primum eſt;
Virtus poft nummos : haec ? Janus fummus ab imo
Prodocet: haec recinunt juvenes dictata ſeneſque,
m Laevo ſuſpenſi loculos tabulamque lacerto.
Eft , animus tibi, ſunt mores, eft lingua, fideſque:
Notes.
VER. 77. Here, Wiſdom calls : etc.] All from hence to
-110, is a pretty cloſe tranſition: but in general done
with ſo maſterly a ſpirit, that the Original, tho' one of
the moſt finiſhed pairages in Horace, looks only like the
initation of it.
VER. 78. As Gold to Silver, Virtue is to Gold.] This
perhaps is the moſt faulty line in the whole collection.
The Original is,
Vilius eſt auro argentum, virtutibus aurum.
which only ſays, that as Silver is of leſs value than Gold,
jo Gold is of leſs value than Virtue : in which ſimple infe-
riority, and not the proportion of it, is implied. For it
was as contrary to the Author's purpoſe, as it is to com-
mon ſenſe, to fappoſe, that Virtue was but juſt as much
better than gold, as gold is better than ſilver. Yet Mr.
Pope, too attentive to his conſtant object, conciſeneſs, has,
before he was aware, fallen into this meaning.
Ver. 82. From low St. James's up to hig's St. Paul ;]
1
Ep. I.
87
OF HORACE.
To ſtop thy foolith views, thy long deſires, 75
And eaſe thy heart of all that it admires ?
Here, Wiſdom calls: i 6 Seek Virtue firſt, be bold !
“ As Gold to Silver, Virtue is to Gold.”
There, London's voice: k « Get Money, Money ſtill !
" And then let Virtue follow, if ſhe will.” 80
This, this the ſaving doctrine, preach'd to all,
From low St. James's up to high St. Paul;
From him whoſe quills ſtand quiver'd at his ear,
To him who notches ſticks at Weſtminſter.
Barnard in " ſpirit, ſenſe, and truth abounds; 85
" Pray then, what wants he?” Fourſcore thouſand
pounds;
Notes.
i.e. This is a doctrine in which both Whigs and Tories
agree.
Ver. 83. From him whoſe quills fand quiver'd at his
ear,] They who do not take the delicacy of this ſatire,
may think the figure of ſtanding quiver'd, extremely hard
and quaint ; but it has an exquiſite beauty, inſinuating
that the pen of a Scrivener is as ready as the quill of a
porcupine, and as fatal as the ſhafts of a Parthian. ---Qui-
ver'd at his ear, which deſcribes the poſition it is uſually
found in, alludes to the cuſtom of the American canibals,
who make uſe of their hair (ried in a knot on the top of
their heads) for a quiver for their poiſon'd arrows.
VER. 84. notches ſticks] Exchequer Tallies.
VER. 85. Barnard in spirit, ſenſe, and truth abounds;]
Sir John Barnard. It was the Poet's purpoſe to ſay, that
this great man (who does ſo much honour to his Country)
had a fine genius, improved and put in uſe by a true un-
derſtanding; and both, under the guidance of an integrity
* G4
88
Book I.
IMITATIONS
Sed quadringentis ſex feptem millia deſint;
• Plebs eris. P at pueri ludentes, Rex eris, aiunt,
Si recte facies. Hic 9 murus aheneus efto,
Nil conſcire ſibi, nulla palleſcere culpa.
Rofcia, dic fodes, melior lex, an puerorum eſt
Naenia, quae regnum recte facientibus offert,
Et maribus Curiis et decantata Camillis?
+
* Iſne tibi melius fuadet, qui, “ Rem facias; rem,
“ Si poffis, recte ; fi non, quocunque modo rem."
Ut "propius ſpectes lacrymoſa poemata Pupi!
An, qui fortunae te reſponſare ſuperbae
Liberum et erectum, * praeſens hortatur et aptat?
y Quod fi me Populus Romanus forte roget, cur
Noris.
ſuperior to all the temptations of intereſt, honours, or any
meaner paſſion. Many events, ſince the paying this tri-
bute to his virtue, have ſhewn how much, and how para
ticularly it was due to him,
3
Ep. I.
OF HOR A C E. 89
90
A Penfion, or ſuch Harneſs for a flave
As Bug now has, and Dorimant would have.
Barnard, thou art a Cit, with all thy worth;
But Bug and D*l, Their Honours, and ſo forth.
Yct ev'ry P child another ſong will fing,
“ Virtue, brave boys ! 'tis Virtue makes a King.'
True, conſcious Honour is to feel no fin,
He's arm'd without that's innocent within ;
Be this thy 9 Screen, and this thy Wall of Braſs; 95
Compar'd to this, a Miniſter's an Afs.
* And ſay, to which ſhall our applauſe belong,
This new Court jargon, or the good old ſong?
The modern language of corrupted Peers,
Or what was ſpoke at Cressy and Poitiers? 100
+ Who counſels beſt? who whiſpers, “ Be but great,
" With Praiſe or Infamy leave that to fate;
“ Get Płace and Wealth, if poflible, with grace;
“ If not, by any means get Wealth and Place."
For what? to have a Box where Eunuchs fing, 105
And foremoſt in the Circle eye a King.
Or whe, who bids thee face with ſteady view
Proud Fortune, and look ſhallow Greatneſs thro:
And, w while he bids thee, ſets th’ Example too?
If y ſuch a Doctrine, in St. James's air,
Shou'd chance to make the well-dreft Rabble ftare;
Notes.
VER. 97. And ſay, etc.] Theſe four lines greatly ſu-
perior to any thing in the Original.
}
IIO
90
Book I.
I MITATIONS
Non, ut porticibus, fic judiciis fruar iiſdem,
Nec ſequar aut fugiam, quae diligit ipſe vel odit ;
Olim quod a vulpes aegroto cauta leoni
Reſpondit, referam: Quia me veſtigia terrent
Omnia te adverſum ſpectantia, nulla retrorſum.
• Bellua multorum es capitum, nam quid fequar, aut
quem?
;
ti
+
NOTES.
Ver. 117, Full many a Beaft goes in,] This expreflion
is uſed for the joke's ſake; but it hurts his moral , which
is, that they come out beafls. He ſhould here have ſtuck
to the terms of his Original, veftigia omnia te adverſum
Spectantia.
Ver. 118. Adieu to Virtue, etc.] Theſe two lines are
intended for the application or moral of a fable, which
needs no explaining; and, conſequently, they impair the
grace of it, which at beit is inferior to his Original. For
Horace ſpeaks of the common people, Populus Romanus,
to whom one of Æſop's Fables was properly addreſſed :
too ſimple a method of conveying truth to the well-drejt
Rabble of St. James's.
Ver. 124. Alike in nothing but one Luft of Gold, Juſt
balf the land would buy, and half be ſold :] Here the argu-
ment ſuffers a little for the ſake of the fatire. The rea-
Ep. I.
91
OF HORACE.
:
If honeft S*z take ſcandal at a Spark,
That leſs admires the 2 Palace than the Park:
Faith I hall give the anſwer a Reynard gave:
“ I cannot like, dread Sir, your Royal Cave: 115
« Becauſe I fee, by all the tracks about,
“ Full many a Beaſt goes in, but none come out.”
Adieu to Virtue, if you're once a Slave:
Send her to Court, you ſend her to her grave.
Well, if a King's a Lion, at the leaſt 120
The People are a many-headed Beaſt:
Can they direct what meaſures to purſue,
Who know themſelves ſo little what to do?
Alike in nothing but one Luft of Gold,
Juſt half the land would buy, and half be ſold : 125
Notes.
ſon why the People ſhoald not be followed is becauſe
Bellua multorum eft capitum. nam quid ſequar, aut quem?
they are ſo divers in their purſuits (ſays Horace) that one
cannot follow this man without being condemned by that.
The imitator ſays, they all go on one common principle,
the luft of gold. This inaccuracy, tho' Horace has a little
of it, yet he has however artfully diſguiſed it, by ſpeak-
ing of the various objects of this one Paſſion, avarice,
as of ſo many various paſſions,
Pars hominum geſtit conducere publica: ſunt qui, etc.
Cruftis et pomis
Multis occulto, etc.
but his imitator has unwarily drawn them to a point, by
the introductory addition of the lines above,
Alike in nothing, etc.
3
92
I MITATIONS Book I.
Š
Pars hominum geſtit conducere publica : funt qui
• Cruftis et pomis viduas venentur avaras,
Excipiantque ſenes, quos in vivaria mittant:
f
• Multis occulto creſcit res fenore.
verum
Efto, aliis alios rebus ftudiiſque teneri:
Iidem eadem poffunt horam durare probantes ?
& Nullus in orbe finus Baiis praelucet amoenis,
Si dixit dives; h lacus et mare ſentit amorem
Feftinantis heri : cui fi i vitioſa libido
Fecerit auſpicium ; cras ferramenta Teanum
Notes.
VER. 126. Their Country's wealth our mightier Miſers
drain, ] The undertakers for advancing Loans to the Public
on the Funds. They have been commonly accuſed of
making it a job. But in fo corrupt times, the fault is not
always to be imputed to a Miniſtry: it having been found,
on trial, that the wiſeſt and moſt virtuous citizen of this
or any other age, with every requiſite knowledge in ſuch
matters, and ſupported by all the weight an honeſt Admi-
Ep. I. OF HORA CE.
93
Their · Country's wealth our mightier Miſers drain,
Or croſs, to plunder Provinces, the Main;
The reft, fome farm the Poor-box, fome the Pews;
Some keep Aſſemblies, and would keep the Stews;
Some - with fat Bucks on childleſs Dotards fawn ; 130
Some win rich Widows by their Chine and Brawn;
While with the ſilent growth of ten per cent,
In dirt and darkneſs,
e hundreds ſtink content.
Of all theſe ways, if each purſues his own,
Satire be kind, and let the wretch alone: 135
But ſhow me one who has it in his pow'r,
To act conſiſtent with himſelf an hour.
Sir Job & fail'd forth, the ev’ning bright and ſtill,
“ No place on earth (he cry's) like Greenwich hill !"
Up ſtarts a Palace, lo, th' obedient baſe 140
Slopes at its foot, the woods its fides embrace,
The ſilver Thames reflects its marble face.
Now let ſome whimſy, or that i Dev'l within
Which guides all thoſe who know not what they
mean,
But give the Knight (or give his Lady) ſpleen; 145
Notes.
niſtration could afford him, was, they ſay, unable to abo-
liſh this inveterate myſtery of iniquity.
VER. 143. Now let ſome whimſy, etc.] This is very fpi-
rited, but much inferior to the elegance of the Original,
Cui ſi vitiofa Libie's
Fecerit aufpicium
which no modern imitation can reach.
h
**}
94
IMITATIONS Book I.
Tolletis, fabri. k lectus genialis in aula eſt ?
Nil ait effe prius, melius nil coelibe vita :
Si non eft, jurat bene ſolis effe maritis.
Quo teneam vultus mutantem Protea nodo?
Quid " pauper? ride: mutat º coenacula, lectos,
Balnea, P tonfores; conducto navigio aeque
Nauſeat, ac locuples quem ducit priva triremis.
9 Si curatus inaequali tonſore capillos
Occurro; rides. fi forte ſubucula pexae
Trita fubeft tunicae, vel fi toga diffidet impar;
Rides. quid, 'mea Cum pugnat ſententia ſecum ;
Quod petiit, fpernit; repetit quod nuper omifit;
* Aeftuat, et vitae difconvenit ordine toto;
Notes.
Ver. 155. They change their weekly Barber, etc.) Theſe
ſix lines much more ſpirited than the Original. In that,
the inconftancy of temper in the common people is fati-
Ep. I.
95
OF HORA CE.
“ Away, away ! take all your ſcaffolds down,
« For Snug's the word;: My dear! we'll live in Town.”
At am'rous Flavio is the k ſtocken thrown?
That very night he longs to lie alone.
1 The Fool whoſe Wife elopes fome thrice a quarter,
For matrimonial ſolace dies a martyr.
150
Did ever m Proteus, Merlin, any witch,
Transform themſelves ſo ſtrangely as the Rich?
Well, but the "Poor-The Poor have the ſame itch;
They change their º weekly Barber, weekly News,
Prefer a new Japanner to their ſhoes,
156
Diſcharge their Garrets, move their beds, and run
(They know not whither) in a Chaiſe and one;
They P hire their ſculler, and when once aboard,
Grow fick, and damn the climate-like a Lord. 160
9 You laugh, half Beau half Sloven if I ſtand,
My wig all powder, and all ſnuff my band;
You laugh, if coat and breeches ſtrangely vary,
White gloves, and linen worthy Lady Mary!
But when ' no Prelate's Lawn with hair-ſhirt lin'd,
Is half ſo incoherent as my Mind,
166
When (each opinion with the next at ſtrife,
One s ebb and flow of follies all my life)
i
Nores,
1
rized only in a fimple expoſure of the caſe. Here the ri-
dicule on the folly is heightened by a ridiculous reprefen-
tation of each circumſtance that is the object of it.
96
IMITATIONS Book I.
1
Diruit, aedificat, mutat quadrata rotundis ?
v Inſanire putas folennia me, neque rides,
Nec medici credis, nec curatoris egere
A praetore dati ; rerum * tutela mearum
Cum fis, et prave fectum ftomacheris ob unguem,
I
De te pendentis, te reſpicientis amici.
Ad fummam, ſapiens uno y minor eft Jove, dives,
7 Liber, • honoratus, pulcher, rex denique regum;
L.
Praecipue fanus, niſi cum pituita moleſta eſt.
Ep. I.
97
OF HORACE.
I plant, root up; I build, and then confound;
Turn round to ſquare, and ſquare again to round;
v You never change one muſcle of your face, 171
You think this Madneſs but a common caſe,
Nor w
once to Chanc'ry, nor to Hale apply;
Yet hang your lip, to ſee a Seam awry!
Careleſs how ill I with myſelf agree,
175
Kind to my dreſs, my figure, not to Me.
Is this my * Guide, Philoſopher, and Friend?
This, he who loves me, and who ought to mend?
Who ought to make me (what he can, or none,)
That Man divine whom Wiſdom calls her own; 180
Great without Title, without Fortune bleſs'd;
Rich Y ev’n when plunder'd, a honour'd while op-
preſs’d;
Lov'd a without youth, and follow'd without pow'r; ;
At home, tho' exild; free, tho' in the Tower;
In ſhort, that reas’ning, high, immortal Thing, 185
Juſt « leſs than Jove, and a much above a King,
Nay, half in heav'n— except (what's mighty odd)
A Fit of Vapours clouds this Demy-God.
* H
Τ Η Ε
SIXTH EPISTLE
OF THE
FIRST BOOK
OF
HORA CE.
* H 2
100
Book I.
IMITATIONS
E P I S T O L A
VI.
IL admirari, prope res eſt una, Numici,
NII
Solaque quae poflit facere et fervare beatum.
Hunc folem, et ftellas, et decedentia certis
w
Tempora momentis, ſunt qui formidine nulla
Imbuti ſpectent. quid cenſes, munera terrae ?
Quid, maris extremos Arabas • ditantis et Indos?
i
NOTES.
Ver. 3. Dear MURRAY] This piece is the moſt finiſh-
ed of all his imitations, and executed in that high manner
the Italian Painters call con amore. By which they mean,
the exertion of that principle, which puts the faculties on
the ſtretch, and produces the ſupreme degree of excellence.
For the Poet had all the warmth of affection for the great
Lawyer to whom it is addreſſed, and indeed no man ever
more deſerved to have a Poet for his friend. In the obtain-
ing of which as neither vanity, party, or fear had any Mare,
ſo he ſupported his title to it by all the oífices of true
friendſhip,
Ver. 4. Creech)] From whore tranſlation of Horace the
two firſt lines are taken. P.
VER. 8. truſt the Ruler with the skies, To him commit
the hour,] Our Author, in theſe imitations, has been all
along careful to correct the loofe morals, and abſurd divj.
nity of his Original.
...
Ep. VI. OF HORA CE.
101
E P I S T L E
VI.
To Mr. MURRA Y.
1
OT to admire, is all the Art I know,
To make men happy, and to keep them lo.”
(Plain Truth, dear MURRAY, needs no flow'rs of
ſpeech,
So take it in the very words of Creech.)
• This Vault of Air, this congregated Ball, 5
Self-center'd Sun, and Stars that riſe and fall,
There are, my Friend! whoſe philoſophic eyes
Look thro', and truſt the Ruler with his ſkies,
To him commit the hour, the day, the year,
And view < this dreadful All without a fear.
Admire we then what ^ Earth's low entrails hold,
Arabian fhores, or Indian feas infold;
All the mad trade of e Fools and Slaves for Gold ?
Notes.
Ver. 10. And view this dreadful All without a fear.]
He has added this idea to his text ; and it greatly heigh-
tens the dignity of the whole thought. He gives it the
appellation of a dreadful All
, becauſe the immenſity of
God's creation, which modern philofophy has fo infinitely
enlarged, is apt to affect narrow minds, who meaſure the
divine comprehenfion by their own, with dreadful fufpi-
cions of man's being overlooked in this dark and narrower
corner of exiſtence, by a Governor occupied and bufied
with the ſum of things.
$
* H 3
102
IMITATIONS Book I.
Ludicra, quid, ' plauſus, et amici dona Quiritis?
Quo fpectanda modo, & quo ſenſu credis et ore?
b
Qui timet his adverſa, fere miratur eodem
Quo cupiens pacto: pavor eſt utrobique moleſtus:
Improvifa fimul ſpecies exterret utrumque :
i Gaudeat, an doleat; cupiat, metuatne; quid ad rem,
Si, quidquid videt melius pejuſve fua fpe,
Defixis oculis, animoque et corpore torpet ?
* Infani ſapiens nomen ferat, aequus iniqui ;
Ultra quam ſatis eſt, virtutem fi petat ipſam.
I nunc, argentum et marmor m vetus, aeraque
et artes
Suſpice: cum gemmis " Tyrios mirare colores :
Notes.
VER. 21. In either caſe, believe me, we admire ;] i. e.
Theſe objects, in either caſe, affect us, as objects unknown
affect the mind, and conſequently betray us into falle
judgments.
VER. 22. Whether we joy or grieve, tbe ſame the curſe,
Surpriz'd at better, or ſurpriz'd at worſe.] The elegance
of this is ſuperior to the Original. The curſe is the ſame
Ep. VI.
103
OF HORACE.
20
2
Orf Popularity? or Stars and Strings?
The Mob's applauſes, or the gifts of Kings? IS
Say with what & eyes we ought at Courts to gaze,
And pay the Great our homage of Amaze?
If weak the h pleaſure that from theſe can ſpring,
The fear to want them is as weak a thing:
Whether we dread, or whether we defire,
In either caſe, believe me, we admire;
Whether we ' joy or grieve, the ſame the curſe,
Surpriz'd at better, or ſurpriz'd at worſe.
Thus good or bad, to one extreme betray
Th' unbalanc'd Mind, and ſnatch the Man away;
For k Virtue's ſelf may too much zeal be had; 25
The worſt of Madmen is a Saint run mad.
i Go then, and if you can, admire the ſtate
Of beaming diamonds, and reflected plate;
Procure a Taste to double the ſurprize,
30
And
m Parian Charms with learned eyes :
Be ſtruck with bright · Brocade, or Tyrian Dye,
Our Birth-day Nobles' ſplendid Livery.
gaze on
Notes.
(ſays he) whether we joy or grieve. Why ſo ? Becauſe,
in either caſe, the man is ſurprized, hurried of, and led
away captive.
(The good or bad to one extreme betray
Th' unbalanc'd Mind, and inatch the Man away.)
This happy advantage, in the imitation, ariſes from the
ambiguity of the word ſurprise.
H 4
104
Book I.
IMITATIONS
Gaude, quod ſpectant oculi te mille loquentem:
.
Gnavus P mane forum, et veſpertinus pete tectum;
" Ne plus frumenti dotalibus emetat agris
Mutus et (indignum ; quod fit pejoribus ortus)
Hic tibi fit potius, quam tu mirabilis illi.
Quicquid ſub terra eft, in apricum proferet aetas;
Defodiet, condetque nitentia. ' cum bene notum
>
Porticus Agrippae, et via te conſpexerit Appi;
Ire tamen reſtat, Nuina ' quo devenit et Ancus.
* Si latus aut renes morbo tentantur acuto,
2
Ep. VI.
105
OF HORA CE.
If not ſo pleas'd, at ° Council-board rejoice,
To ſee their judgments hang upon thy Voice; 35
From P morn to night, at Senate, Rolls, and Hall,
Plead much, read more, dine late, or not at all.
But wherefore all this labour, all this ſtrife?
For 9 Fame, for Riches, for a noble Wife?
Shall - One whom Nature, Learning, Birth, con-
fpir'd
41
To form, not to admire but be admir'd,
Sigh, while his Chloe blind to Wit and Worth
Weds the rich Dulneſs of ſome Son of earth?
Yet" Time ennobles, or degrades each Line;
It brighten'd CRAGGs's, and may darken thine: 45
And what is Fame? the Meaneſt have their day,
The Greateſt can but blaze, and paſs away.
Grac'd as thou art, with all the Pow'r of Words,
So known, ſo honour'd, at the Houſe of Lords;
Conſpicuous Scene! another yet is nigh,
50
(More filent far) where Kings and Poets lie;
Where MURRAY (long enough his Country's pride)
Shall be no more than Tully, or than Hyde!
* Rack'd with Sciatics, martyr'd with the Stone,
Will any mortal let himſelf alone?
55
See Ward by batter'd Beaus invited over,
And deſp’rate Miſery lays hold on Dover.
The caſe is eaſier in the Mind's diſeaſe;
There all Men may be cur’d, whene'er they pleaſe.
106
IMITATIONS Book I.
Quaere fugain morbi. * vis recte vivere? quis non?
Si virtus hoc una poteft dare, fortis omiffis
Hoc age deliciis. ,
Y virtutem verba putes, et
Lucum ligna ? ? cave ne portus occupet alter :
N
Ne Cibyratica, ne Bithyna negotia perdas :
• Mille talenta rotundentur, totidem altera, porro et
Tertia ſuccedant, et quae pars quadret acervum.
Scilicet 6 uxorem cum dote, fidemque, et amicos,
Et genus, et formam, regina Pecunia donat;
Ac bene nummatum decorat Saudela, Venufque.
Mancipiis locuples, egit aeris · Cappadocum rex.
Notes.
VER. 65. W'bo l'irtue and a Church alike diſowns. ] The
Ep. VI.
107
OF HORACE.
:}
Would ye be * bleft? deſpiſe low Joys, low Gains;
Diſdain whatever CORNBURY diſdains;
61
Be virtuous, and be happy for your pains.
y But art thou one, whom new opinions (way,
One who believes as Tindal leads the way,
Who Virtue and a Church alike diſowns,
65
Thinks that but words, and this but brick and ſtones?
Fly 2 then, on all the wings of wild defire,
Admire whate'er the maddeſt can admire:
Is Wealth thy paffion? Hence! from Pole to Pole,
Where winds can carry, or where waves can roll, 170
For Indian ſpices, for Peruvian Gold,
Prevent the greedy, and out-bid the bold :
a Advance thy golden Mountain to the ſkies;
On the broad baſe of fifty thouſand riſe,
Add one round hundred, and (if that's not fair)
75
Add fifty more, and bring it to a ſquare.
For, mark th' advantage ; juſt ſo many ſcore
• Wife with half as many more,
Procure her beauty, make that beauty chaſte,
And then ſuch - Friends-as cannot fail to laſt. 80
A Man of wealth is dubb'd a Man of worth,
Venus ſhall give him Form, and Anſtis Birth.
(Believe me, many a German Prince is worſe,
Who proud of Pedigree, is poor of Purſe)
Nores.
one appears from his party pamphlets; the other, from
his Rights of the Chrifiian Churchi.
Will gain a
108
Book I.
I MITATIONS
Ne fueris hic tu. f chlamydes Lucullus, ut aiunt,
Si poffet centum ſcenae praebere rogatus,
Quî poffum tot? ait : tamen et quaeram, et quot
habebo
Mittam: poft paulo ſcribit, ſibi millia quinque
Effe domi chlamydum: partem, vel tolleret omnes.
& Exilis domus eſt, ubi non et multa ſuperſunt,
Et dominum fallunt, et profunt furibus. - ergo,
Si res fola poteft facere et fervare beatum,
Hoc primus repetas opus, hoc poftremus omittas.
i Si fortunatum fpecies et gratia praeftat,
k Mercemur fervum, qui dictet nomina, laevum
Qui fodicet latus, et ' cogat trans pondera dextram
Porrigere: m Hic multum in Fabia valet, ille Velina :
Cui libet, is faſces dabit ; eripietque curule,
NOTES.
VER. 86. Or if three Ladies like a luckleſs Play,] The
common reader, I am ſenſible, will be always more foli.
citous about the names of thele three Ladies, the unlucky
Play, and every other trilling circumſtance that attended
this piece of gallantry, than for the explanation of our
Author's ſenſe, or the illuſtration of his poetry ; even
where he is moſt moral and ſublime. But had it been in
Mr. Pope's purpoſe to indulge ſo impertinent a curioſity,
he had ſought elſewhere for a commentator on his writ-
ings.
Ep. VI.
109
OF HOR A CE.
His Wealth brave' Timon gloriouſly confounds; 85
Aſk'd for a groat, he gives a hundred pounds;
Or if three Ladies like a luckleſs Play,
Takes the whole Houſe upon the Poet's day.
Now, in ſuch exigencies not to need,
Upon my word, you muſt be rich indeed;
90
A noble ſuperfluity it craves,
Not for yourſelf, but for your Fools and Knaves;
Something, which for your Honour they may cheat,
And which it much becomes you to forget.
* If Wealth alone then make and keep us bleſt, 95
Still, ſtill be getting, never, never reft.
i But if to Pow'r and Place your paſſion lie,
If in the Pomp of Life conſiſt the joy ;
Then * hire a Slave, or (if you will) a Lord
To do the Honours, and to give the Word;
Tell at your Levee, as the Crouds approach,
To whom to nod, whom take into your Coach,
Whom honour with your hand : to make remarks,
Who m rules in Cornwall, or who rules in Berks :
« This may be troubleſome, is near the Chair: 106
“ That makes three Members, this can chuſe a
“ May'r."
Notes.
Ver. 91. A noble ſuperfluity, etc.] Theſe four lines are
an admirable paraphraſe on
Exilis domus eſt, ubi non et multa ſuperfunt,
Et dominum fallunt, et proſunt furibus.
Іоо
110
Book I.
IMITATIONS
Cui volet, importunus ebur: "Frater, Pater, adde:
Ut cuique eſt aetas, ita quemque ' facetus adopta.
Si P bene qui coenat, bene vivit: lucet, eamus
Quo ducit gula: piſcemur, venemur, ut 9 olim
Gargilius: qui mane plagas, venabula, ſervos,
Differtum tranfire forum populumque jubebat,
Unus ut e multis populo ſpectante referret
Emtum mulus aprum. ' crudi, tumidique lavemur,
Quid deceat, quid non, obliti ; Caerite cera
Digni: s remigium vitiofum Ithacenſis Ulyſſei;
Cui potior é patria fuit interdicta voluptas.
Si, Mimnermus uti cenſet, fine amore jociſque
Nil eſt jucundum ; vivas in amore jociſque.
Vive, vale. fi quid noviſti re&ius iſtis,
1
Candidus imperti : fi non, his utere mecum.
Notes,
Ver. 127. Wilmor] Earl of Rocheſter.
Ep. VI.
III
OF HORACE.
1
}
III
121
Inſtructed thus, you bow, embrace, proteft,
Adopt him "Son, or Couſin at the leaſt,
Then turn about, and º laugh at your own Jeft.
Or if your life be one continu’d Treat,
If P to live well means nothing but to eat;
Up, up! cries Gluttony, 'tis break of day,
Go drive the Deer, and drag the finny-prey;
With hounds and horns go hunt an Appetite 115
So 9 Ruſſel did, but could not eat at night,
Call's happy Dog! the Beggar at his door,
And envy'd Thirſt and Hunger to the Poor.
Or ſhall we 'ev'ry Decency confound,
Thro' Taverns, Stews, and Bagnio's take our round,
Go dine with Chartres, in each Vice out-do
s K-l's lewd Cargo, or Ty-y's Crew,
From Latian Syrens, French Circæan Feafts,
Return well travell’d, and transform’d to Beaſts,
Or for a Titled Punk, or foreign Flame, 125
Renounce our Country, and degrade our Name?
If, after all, we muſt with " Wilmot own,
The Cordial Drop of Life is Love alone,
And Swift cry wiſely, “ Vive la Bagatelle !"
The Man that loves and laughs, muſt ſure do well.
w Adieu - if this advice appear the worſt, 131
E'en take the Counſel which I gave you firſt:
Or better precepts if you can impart,
Why do, I'll follow them with all my heart.
3
T H E
FIRST EPIST LE
OF THE
SECOND BOOK
OF
HORACE.
&
ADVERTISEMENT.
TH
HE Reflections of Horace, and the Judgments
paſt in his Epiſtle to Auguftus, ſeem'd ſo fea-
ſonable to the preſent Times, that I could not help
applying them to the uſe of my own Country. The
Author thought them conſiderable enough to addreſs
them to his Prince; whom he paints with all the
great and good qualities of a Monarch, upon whom
the Romans depended for the Encreaſe of an Abſolute
Empire. But to make the Poem entirely Engliſh, I
was willing to add one or two of thoſe which contri-
bute to the Happineſs of a Free People, and are more
conſiſtent with the Welfare of our Neighbours.
This Epiſtle will ſhow the learned World to have
fallen into Two miſtakes: one, that Auguſtus was a
Patron of Poets in general; whereas he not only pro-
hibited all but the Beſt Writers to name him, but
recommended that Care even to the Civil Magiſtrate:
Admonebat Praetores, ne paterentur Nomen ſuum obfo-
lefieri, etc. The other, that this Piece was only a
general Diſcourſe of Poetry; whereas it was an Apo-
logy for the Poets, in order to render Auguftus more
their Patron. Horace here pleads the Cauſe of his
Cotemporaries, firſt againſt the Taſte of the Town,
whoſe humour it was to magnify the Authors of the
preceding Age; fecondly againſt the Court and Nobi.
ADVERTISEMENT.
lity, who encouraged only the Writers for the Thea-
tre; and laſtly againſt the Emperor himſelf, who had
conceived them of little Uſe to the Government. He
ſhews (by a view of the Progreſs of Learning, and
the Change of Taſte among the Romans) that the
Introduction of the Polite Arts of Greece had given
the Writers of his Time great advantages over their
Predeceſſors; that their Morals were much improved,
and the Licence of thoſe ancient Poets reſtrained :
that Satire and Comedy were become more juft and
uſeful; that whatever extravagancies were left on the
Stage, were owing to the Ill Taſte of the Nobility;
that Poets, under due Regulations, were in many
reſpects uſeful to the State, and concludes, that it
was upon them the Emperor himſelf muſt depend, for
his Fame with Pofterity.
We may farther learn from this Epiſtle, that Ho-
race made his Court to this Great Prince by writing
with a decent Freedom toward him, with a juſt Con-
tempt of his low Flatterers, and with a manly Re-
gard to his own Character. P.
1
1 2
116
Book II.
IMITATIONS
I.
E PISTOL A
Ad AUGUST U M.
Cho Teatas armis tuteris, moribus ornes,
с
UM tot a ſuſtineas et tanta negotia folus,
Res Italas armis tuteris, moribus ornes,
Legibus emendes ; in publica commoda peccem,
Si longo ſermone morer tua tempora, Caeſar.
Romulus, et Liber pater, et cum Caftore Pollux,
Poſt ingentia facta, « Deorum in templa recepti,
Dum terras hominumque colunt genus, aſpera bella
Componunt, agros adſignant, eppida condunt;
e Ploravere fuis non reſpondere favorem
Speratum meritis. diram qui contudit Hydram,
Notaque fatali portenta labore fubegit,
Comperit f invidiam ſupremo fine domari.
Notes.
Book ii. Epift. 1.] The Poet always riſes with his ori-
ginal; and very often, without. This whole Imitation is
extremely noble and ſublime.
Ver. 7. Edward and Henry, etc.] Romulus, et Liber
Pater, etc. Horace very judiciouſly praiſes Auguftus for
the colonies he founded, not for the victories he won;
and therefore compares him, not to thoſe who deſolated,
1
<
1
Ep. I.
OF HORACE.
Ε Ρ Ι S S T L E
1.
To A E G U S T U S.
W
I ©
Hile you, great Patron of Mankind ! a ſuſtain
The balanc'd World, and open all the Main;
Your Country, chief, in Arms abroad defend,
At home, with Morals, Arts, and Laws amend;
» How ſhall the Muſe, from ſuch a Monarch, ſteal 5.
An hour, and not defraud the Public Weal!
c Edward and Henry, now the Boaſt of Fame,
And virtuous Alfred, a more d ſacred Name,
After a Life of gen'rous Toils endur'd,
The Gaul ſubdu'd, or Property ſecur’d,
Ambition humbled, mighty Cities ſtorm'd,
Or Laws eſtabliſh'd, and the world reform'd;
e Clos'd their long Glories with a ſigh, to find
Th' unwilling Gratitude of baſe markind!
All human Virtue, to its lateſt breath,
15
f Finds Envy never conquer'd, but by Death.
Nores,
but to thoſe who civilized mankind. The imitation wants
this grace : and, for a very obvious reaſon, could not aim
at it.
Ver. 13. Clas’d their long Glories with a fiz!,] The
expreſſion is extremely beautiful ; and the floravere judi-
cioufly placed
VER, 16. Finds envy never conquer’d, etc.] It hath been
* ] 3
I 18
IMITATIONS Book II.
Urit enim fulgore ſuo, qui praegravat artes
Infra ſe poſitas: extinctus amabitur idem.
Praeſenti tibi maturos largimur honores,
រ
Jurandaſque tuum per numen ponimus aras,
* Nil oriturum alias, nil ortum tale fatentes.
Sed tuus hoc populus ſapiens et juſtus in uno,
* Te noftris ducibus, te Graiis anteferendo,
Caetera nequaquam fimili ratione modoque
Notes.
the common practice of thoſe amongſt us, who have di-
ftinguiſhed theinſelves in the learned world, to aſcribe the
ill treatment they meet with, from thoſe they endeavour
to oblige, to ſo bad a cauſe as envy. But ſurely without
reaſon ; for we find our Countrymen of the ſame candid
diſpoſition which Socrates, in the Euthyphro of Plato,
aſcribes to the Athenians of his time, They are well con-
tent (ſays be) to allow the Pretenſions of reputed eminence ;
it is only when a man will write, and preſume to give a
proof of it, that they begin to grow angry. And how rea-
dily do we allow the reputation of eminence, in all the
Arts, to thoſe whoſe modeſty has made them decline
giving us a ſpecimen of it in any.
in any. A temper ſurely very
diſtant from envy. We ought not then to aſcribe that
violent ferment good men are apt to work themſelves in-
10, and the ſtruggle they make to ſuppreſs the reputation
Ep. I.
OF HOR A C E.
119
20
The great Alcides, ev'ry Labour paſt,
Had ſtill this Monſter to ſubdue at laſt.
& Sure fate of all, beneath whoſe riſing ray
Each ſtar of meaner merit fades away!
Oppreſs'd we feel the beam directly beat,
Thoſe Suns of Glory pleaſe not till they ſet.
To thee, the World its preſent homage pays,
The Harveſt early, “but mature the praiſe :
Great Friend of Liberty! in Kings a Name
Above all Greek, above all Roman Fame*:
Whoſe Word is Truth, as facred and rever'd,
i As Heav'n's own Oracles from Altars heard.
Wonder of Kings ! like whom, to mortal eyes
k None e'er has riſen, and none e'er ſhall riſe.
Juſt in one inſtance, be it yet confeft
Your People, Sir, are partial in the reſt :
25
30
Notes.
of him who pretends to give a proof of what they are ſo
willing to take for granted, to any thing but an eager
concern for the public welfare. This, nothing better ſe-
cures than the early damping that dangerous thing, Po.
pularity ; which when joined to what is as eaſily abuſed,
great Talents, may be productive of, one does not know
what, miſchief. Scribl.
Ver. 17. The great Alcides,] This inſtance has not the
ſame grace here as in the original, where it comes in well
after thoſe of Romulus, Bacchus, Caftor, and Pollux, tho'
aukwardly after Edward and Henry. But it was for the
ſake of the beautiful thought in the next line ; which, yet,
does not equal the force of his original.
* I 4
120
Book II.
IMITATIONS,
Aeſtimat; et, nifi quae terris ſemota ſuiſque
Temporibus defuncta videt, faftidit et odit:
Sic fautor veterum, ut tabulas peccare vetantes
Quas bis quinque viri fanxerunt, foedera regum,
Vel Gabiis vel cum rigidis aequata Sabinis,
Pontificum libros, annoſa volumina Vatum,
m Dictitet Albano Mufas in monte locutas.
Si, quia Graecorum funt antiquiffima quaeque
Scripta vel optima, Romani penfantur eadem
Scriptores trutina ; non eft quod multa loquamur:
Nil intra eſt oleam, nil extra eſt in ruce duri.
Venimus ad ſummum fortunae: pingimus, atque
Pſallimus, et p lu&tamur Achivis do&tius unctis.
Si 9 meliora dies, ut vina, poemata reddit;
Scire velim, chartis pretium quotus arroget annus.
Scriptor ab hinc annos centum qui decidit, inter
Perfectos vetereſque referri debet, an inter
Viles atque novos ? excludat jurgia finis.
NOTES.
VER. 38. And beaſtly Skelton, etc.) Skelton, Poet Lav-
reat to Hen. VIII, a volume of whoſe verſes has been
Jately reprinted, confifting almoft wholly of ribaldry, ob-
{cenity, and fcurrilous langeage. P.
Ep. I. OF HOR A C E.
I 21
}
Foes to all living worth except your own,
And Advocates for folly dead and gone.
Authors, like coins, grow dear as they grow old; 35
It is the ruſt we value, not the gold.
Chaucer's worſt ribaldry is learn'd by rote,
And beaſtly Skelton Heads of houſes quote:
One likes no language but the Faery Queen;
A Scot will fight for Chriſt's Kirk o'the Green; 4.0
And each true Briton is to Ben ſo civil,
1 He ſwears the Muſes met him at the Devil.
Tho' juſtly " Greece her eldeſt fons admires,
Why ſhould not We be wiſer than our fires ?
In ev'ry Public virtue we excell;
45
We build, we paint, we fing, we dance as well,
And P learned Athens to our art muſt ſtoop,
Could ſhe behold us tumbling thro' a hoop.
If 9 Time improve our Wit as well as Wine,
Say at what age a Poet grows divine ?
50
Shall we, or ſhall we not, account him ſo,
Who dy'd, perhaps, an hundred years ago Ş
End all diſpute; and fix the year preciſe
When Britiſh bards begin t'immortalize?
NOTES.
VER. 40. Chriſt's Kirk o'the Green ;] A Ballad made
by a King of Scotland. P.
VER.
42. met him at the Devil] The Devil Taver,
where Ben Johnſon held his Poetical Club. P.
!
I 22
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Eft vetus atque probus, 'centum qui perficit annos. ..
Quid? qui deperiit minor uno menſe vel anno,
Inter
quos
referendus erit ? s vetereſne poetas,
An quos et praeſens et poſtera reſpuat aetas ?
Iſte quidem veteres inter ponetur honeſte,
Qui vel menſe brevi, vel toto eſt junior anno.
Utor permiſſo, caudaeque pilos ut ' equinae
Paulatim vello: et demo unum, demo et item unum;
Dum cadat elufus ratione ruentis acervi,
Qui redit in * faftos, et virtutem aeſtimat annis,
Miraturque nihil, niſi quod y Libitina facravit.
2 Ennius et ſapiens, et fortis, et alter Homerus,
Ut critici dicunt, leviter curare videtur
Quo * promiſa cadant, et fomnia Pythagorea.
NOTES.
Ver. 69. Shakeſpear.] Shakeſpear and Ben Johnſon
may truly be ſaid not much to have thought of this Im-
mortality, the one in many pieces compoſed in hafte for
the Stages the other in his latter works in general, which
Dryden call'd his Dotages. P.
Ibid. and ev'ry Playhouſe bill] A ridicule on thoſe who
talk of Shakeſpear, becauſe he is in faſhion ; who, if they
;
Ep. I. OF HORACE.
123
« Who laſts a' century can have no flaw,
" I hold that Wit a Claſſic, good in law.
Suppoſe he wants a year, will you compound?
And ſhall we deem him Ancient, right and ſound,
Or damn to all eternity at once,
At ninety nine, a Modern and a Dunce? 60
“ We ſhall not quarrel for a year or two;
“ By courteſy of England, he may do. .
Then, by the rule that made the Horſe-tail bare,
I pluck out year by year, as hair by hair,
And melt w down Ancients like a heap of ſnow: 65
While you, to meaſure merits, look in * Stowe,
And eſtimating authors by the year,
Beſtow a Garland only on a y Bier.
z Shakeſpear (whom you and ev'ry Play-houſe bill
Style the divine, the matchleſs, what you will)
70
For gain, not glory, wing'd his roving flight,
And grew Immortal in his own deſpight.
Ben, old and poor, as little ſeem'd to heed
* The Life to come, in ev'ry Poet's Creed.
Notes.
dared to do juſtice, either to their talte or their conſci-
ence, would own they liked Durfey better.
VER. 74. The life to come, in ev'ry Poet's Creed.]
Quo promila cadant, et fomnia Pythagorea.
The beauty of this ariſes from a circumſtance in Ennius's
Rory. But as this could not be imitated, our Poet endea.
voured to equal it; and has ſucceeded.
124
Book II.
IMITATIONS
• Naevius in manibus non eft ; atº mentibus haeret
Pene recens:
d
adeo fanctum eſt vetus omne poema.
Ambigitur quoties, uter utro ſit prior; aufert
Pacuvius docti famam ſenis, Accius alti :
Dicitur Afranî toga conveniffe Menandro;
Plautus ad exemplar Siculi properare Epicharmi
Vincere Caecilius gravitate, Terentius arte.
Hos ediſcit, et hòs areto ftipata theatro
Spectat Roma potens; 'habet hos numeratque poetas
Ad noftrum tempus, Livî ſcriptoris ab aevo.
. Interdum vulgus rectum videt : eſt ubi peccat.
Si veteres ita miratur laudatque poetas,
Notes,
Ver. 77. Pindaric Art,) which has much more merit
than his Epic, but very unlike the Character, as well as
Numbers, of Pindar. P.
VER. 81. In all debates etc.] The Poet has here put
the bald cant of women and boys into extreme fine verſe.
This is in ſtrict imitation of his Original, where the farme
impertinent and gratuitous criticiſm is admirably ridiculcd.
VER. 85. Shadwell haſty, Wycherly «vas flow.] No-
thing was leſs true than this particular : But the whole
paragraph has a mixture of Irony, and muſt not altoge-
ther be taken for Horace's own Judgment, only the com.
Ep. I.
123
OF HORA Ć E.
Who now reads b Cowley ? if he pleaſes yet, 75
His Moral pleaſes, not his pointed wit;
Forgot his Epic, nay Pindaric Art,
But ſtill • I love the language of his heart.
" Yet ſurely, d ſurely, theſe were famous men!
" What boy but hears the ſayings of old Ben? 80
« In alle debates where Critics bear a part,
" Not one but nods, and talks of Johnſon's Art,
" Of Shakeſpear's Nature, and of Cowley's Wit;
" How Beaumont's judgment check'd what Fletcher
" writ;
85
« How Shadwell haſty, Wycherly was ſlow;
“ But, for the Paſſions, Southern ſure and Rowe.
“ Theſe, f only theſe, ſupport the crouded ftage,
« From eldeft Heywood down to Cibber's age.
All this may be; the People's Voice is odd,
It is, and it is not, the voice of God.
Ton Gammer Gurton if it give the bays,
And yet deny the Careleſs Huſband praiſe,
'
90
Notes.
inon Chat of the pretenders to Criticiſm ; in ſome things
right, in others, wrong ; as he tells us in his anſwer,
Interdum vulgus reftum videt : eſt ubi peccat. P.
hafty Shadwell and how Wycherkey, is a line of Wil-
mot, Earl of Rocheſter, the ſenſe of which ſeems to have
been generally miſtaken. It gives to each his epithet,
not to deſign the difference of their talents, but the number
of their productions.
Ver.g1. Gammer Gurton] A piece of very low hu-
4
126
IMITATIONS Book II.
Ut nihil anteferat, nihil illis comparet ; errat :
Si quaedam nimis i antique, ſi pleraque k dure
Dicere cedit eos, 'ignave multa fatetur ;
Et fapit, et mecum facit, et Jove judicat aequo.
7
Non equidem inſector, delendaque carmina Livi
Efe reor, memini quae" plagofum º mihi parva
Orbilium dictare;
fed emendata videri
Pulchraque, et exactis minimum diftantia, miror:
Notes.
r
mour, one of the firſt printed Plays in Engliſh, and there.
fore much valued by ſome Antiquaries. P.
Ibid. To Gammer Gurton, And yet deny, etc.] i. e. If
they give the bays to one play becauſe it is old, and deny
it to another as good, becauſe it is new; why then, I ſay,
the Public acts a very fooliſh part.
VER. 97. Spencer himſelf affects the Obſolete,] This is
certainly true ; he extended, beyond all reaſon, that pre-
cept of Horace,
Obſcurata diu populo bonus eruet, atque
Proferat in lucem specioſa vocebula rerum. etc.
Ep. 1.
OF HORACE.
127
Or ſay our Fathers never broke a rule;
Why then, I ſay, the Public is a fool.
But let them own, that greater Faults than we 95
They had, and greater Virtues, I'll agree.
Spenſer himſelf affects the Obſolete,
And Sydney's verſe halts ill on * Roman feet:
Milton's ſtrong pinion now not Heav'n can bound,
Now Serpent-like, in 'proſe he ſweeps the ground,
In Quibbles, Angel and Archangel join,
And God the Father turns a School-divine.
m Not that I'd lop the Beauties from his book,
Like " flaſhing Bentley with his deſp'rate hook,
Or damn all Shakeſpear, like th' affected Fool 105
At court, who hates whate'er he º read at ſchool.
But for the Wits of either Charles's days,
The Mob of Gentlemen who wrote with Eaſe;
Sprat, Carew, Sedley, and a hundred more,
(Like twinkling ſtars the Miſcellanies o'er)
IOI
LI
Notes.
VER. 98. And Sydney's verſe halts ill on Roman feet :)
Sir Philip Sidney. He attempted to introduce the Roman
hexameter and pentameter meaſure into Engliſh verſe.
Baif, a french poet in the time of their Hen. Il. had at-
tempted the ſame thing before him, and with the ſame
ſucceſs.
VER. 104. his deſprate hook] Alluding to the ſeveral
paſſages of Milton, which Bentley has reprobated, by in-
cluding within hooks, ſome with judgment, and ſoine
without.
128
Book It.
IMITATIONS
1
Inter quae P verbum emicuit fi forte decorum,
Si 9 verſus paulo concinnior unus et alter;
Injuſte totum ducit venitque poema.
Indignor quidquam reprehendi, non quia craſſe
Compofitum, illepideve putetur, fed quia nuper ;
Nec veniam antiquis, fed honorem et praemia. pofci.
s Recte necne crocum floreſque perambulet Attae
Fabula, fi dubitem; clamant periiſſe pudorem
Cuncti pene patres : ea cum reprehendere coner,
Quae · gravis Aeſopus, quae doctus Roſcius egit.
Vel quia nil v rectum, niſi quod placuit fibi, ducunt;
Vel quia turpe putant parere minoribus, et, quae
Imberbi didicere, fenes perdenda fateri.
Notes.
Ver. 113. gleams thro' many a page,] The image is
taken from half-formed unripe lightening, which ſtreams
adong the ſky, and is juſt ſufficient to ſhew the deformity
of thoſe black vapours to which it ſerves (as Milton ex-
preſſes it) for a ſilver lining.
VER. 119. Or Avon's bank,] At Stratford in War-
wickſhire, where Shakeſpear had his birth. The thought
of the Original is here infinitely improved. Perambulet
is a low alluſion to the name and imperfections of Atta.
VER. 121. One Tragic fentence if I dare deride,] When
writers of our Author's rank have once effectually ex-
pared turgid expreſſion, and reduced it to its juſt value,
Ep. I.
129
OF HORACE,
115
One Simile, that P ſolitary ſhines
In the dry defert of a thouſand lines,
Or a lengthen's Thought that gleams through many a
page,
Has fanctify'd whole poems for an age.
* I loſe my patience, and I own it too,
When works are cenſur'd, not as bad but new;
While if our Elders break all reaſon's laws,
Theſe fools demand not pardon, but Applauſe.
s On Avon's bank, where flow'rs eternal blow,
If I but aſk, if any weed can grow?
I20
One Tragic fentence if I dare deride
Which · Betterton's grave action dignify’d,
Or well-mouth'd Booth with emphaſis proclaims,
(Tho' but, perhaps, a mufter-roll of Names)
How will our Fathers riſe up in a cge,
125
And ſwear, all ſhame is loſt in George's Age!
You'd think v no Fools diſgrac'd the former reign,
Did not ſome grave Examples yet remain,
Notes.
which, hitherto, the ſmall critics had miſtaken for the
ſublime, theſe latter are now apt to ſuſpect all they do not
underſtand, to be bombaſt: like the Idiot in Cervantes,
who having been beat for not diſtinguiſhing between a Cur
and a Greyhound, imagined every dog he met, to be a
Cur-dog
Ver. 124. A mufter roll of Names, ) An abſurd cuſtom
of ſeveral Actors, to pronounce with emphaſis the meer
Proper Names of Greeks or Romans, which (as they call
it) fill the mouth of the Player. P.
K
130
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Jam Saliare Numae carmen qui laudat, et illud,
Quod mecum ignorat, folus vult fcire videri ;
Ingeniis non ille favet plauditque fepultis,
Noſtra ſed impugnat, nos noftraque lividus odit.
Quod fi tam Graecis novitas inviſa fuiſſet,
Quam nobis; quid nunc eſſet vetus ? aut quid haberet,
Quod legeret tereretque viritim publicus uſus ?
y Ut primum pofitis nugari Graecia bellis
Coepit, et in vitium fortuna labier aequa ;
Nunc athletarum ftudiis, nunc arſit 2 equorum;
Notes.
VER. 129-130.] Much inferior to the original.
VER. 138. By learned Critics, of the mighty Dead?] A
ridicule on the tribe of learned Critics, who think all wri.
ters but the ancient unworthy their care and attention.
This came properly into a ſatire, whoſe ſubject is the un-
reaſonable fondu.efs for antiquity in general.
Ver. 140. with Charles reſtor'd;] He ſays, reſtored,
becauſe the luxury he brought in, was only the revival of
that practiſed in the reigns of his Father and Grandfather.
VER. 142. A Verſe of the Lord Lanſdown. P.
VER. 143. In Horſemanſhip t'excell, And ev'ry flow'ry
Courtier writ Romance.) The Duke of Newcaſtic's book
of Horſemanſhip: the Romance of Parthenilla, by the
3
Ep. I.
131
OF HO RA C E.
Who ſcorn a Lad ſhould teach his father ſkill,
And, having once been wrong, will be ſo ſtill. 130
He, who to ſeem more deep than you or I,
Extols old Bards, w or Merlin's Prophecy,
Miſtake him not; he envies, not admires,
And to debaſe the Sons, exalts the Sires.
* Had ancient times conſpir'd to dif-allow
135
What then was new, what had been ancient now?
Or what remain’d, fo worthy to be read
By learned Critics, of the mighty Dead?
y In Days of Eaſe, when now the weary Sword
Was ſheath'd, and Luxury with Charles reſtor'd; 140
In ev'ry taſte of foreign Courts improv'd,
" All, by the King's Example, liy'd and lov’d"
Then Peers grew proud in 2 Horſemanſhip t'excell,
New-market's Glory roſe, as Britain's fell ;
The Soldier breath’d the Gallantries of France, 145
And ev'ry flow'ry Courtier writ Romance.
Notes,
Earl of Orrery, and moſt of the French Romances trana
ſlated by Perſons of Quality. P.
VER. 146. And ev'ry flow'ry Courtier writ Romance.]
A kind of heroical Romances, whoſe ſubject was ſome
celebrated ſtory of antiquity. In theſe voluminous ex-
travagancies, love and honour ſupplied the place of life
and manners, which were ſcarce ever thought of till Mr.
De Marivaux in France, and Mr. Fielding in England
introduced this ſpecies of fable : and, by inriching it with
the best part of the comic art, may be ſaid to have brought
i to perfection.
o
* Ka
132
IMITATIONS Book II.
• Marmoris aut eboris fabros aut aeris amavit;
Suſpendit pida vultum mentemque tabella;
Nunc tibicinibus, nunc eft gaviſa tragoedis :
Sub nutrice puella velut fi luderet infans,
Quod cupide petiit, mature plena reliquit.
Quid placet, aut odio eft, quod non mutabile credas?
Hoc paces habuere bonae, ventique fecundi.
e Romae dulce diu fuit et ſolemne, recluſa
Mane domo vigilare, clienti promere jura;
Scriptos 5 nominibus rectis expendere nummos;
f Majores audire, minori dicere, per quae
Creſcere res poflet, minui damnofa libido.
Notes.
VER. 149. Lely on animated Canvas stole The ſleepy Eve,
etc.] This was the Characteriſtic of this excellent Co-
louriſt's expreffion ; who was an exceſſive Maniereft.
VER. 153. On each enervate fring, etc.] The Siege of
Rhodes by Sir William Davenant, the firſt Opera ſung in
England. P.
Ep. I.
133
OF HOR AC E.
Then : Marble, ſoften'd into life, grew warm,
And yielding Metal Aow'd to human form:
Lely on animated Canvas ſtole
The ſleepy Eye, that ſpoke the melting ſoul. 150
No wonder then, when all was Love and ſport,
The willing Muſes were debauch'd at Court:
On each enervate ſtring they taught the note
To pant, or tremble thro' an Eunuch's throat.
But • Britain, changeful as a Child at play, 155
Now calls in Princes, and now turns away.
Now Whig, now Tory, what we lov'd we hate;
Now all for Pleaſure, now for Church and State;
Now for Prerogative, and now for Laws;
Effects unhappy! from a Noble Cauſe.
160
e Time was, a ſober Engliſhman wou'd knock
His ſervants up, and riſe by five o'clock,
Inſtruct his Family in ev'ry rule,
And ſend his Wife to church, his Son to ſchool.
To ? worſhip like his Fathers, was his care ; 165
To teach their frugal Virtues to his Heir;
To prove, that Luxury could never hold;
And place, on good & Security, his Gold. |
Notes,
Ver. 158. Now all for Pleaſure, now for Church and
Stare ;] The firſt half of Charles the Second's Reign was
paſſed in an abandoned diffoluteneſs of manners; the other
half, in factioas diſputes about popih plots and French
prerogative.
# K3
-
134
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Mutavit mentem populus levis, * et calet uno
Scribendi ſtudio: puerique patreſque ſeveri
Fronde comas vincti coenant, et carmina dictant.
Ipſe ego, qui nullos me affirmó fcribere verſus,
Invenior i Parthis mendacior ; et prius orto
Sole vigil, calamum et chartas et ſcrinia poſco.
k Navem agere ignarus navis timet: abrotonum aegro
Non audet, niſi qui didicit, dare: quod medicorum eſt,
Promittunt medici: tractant fabrilia fabri:
m Scribimus indoćti doétique poemata paffim.
* Hic error tamen et levis haec inſania, quantas
NOTES.
Ver. 180. to Mew our Wit.] The force of this con-
fifts in the ambiguity.—To fhew how conttant we are to
our reſolutions-or, to ſhew what fine verſes we can make.
VER. 181. He ſerv'd etc.] To the ſimple elegance of
the original, the Poet has here added great ſpirit and vi-
Ep. I. OF HORACE.
135
ܝܐ
Now times are chang'd, and one Poetic Itch
Has ſeiz'd the Court and City, poor and rich : 170
Sons, Sires, and Grandſires, all will wear the bays, .
Our Wives read Milton, and our Daughters Plays,
To Theatres, and to Rehearſals throng,
And all our Grace at table is a Song.
1, who fo oft renounce the Muſes, ilye,
175
Not ~'s ſelf e'er tells more Fibs than I;
When fick of Muſe, our follies we deplore,
And promiſe our beſt Friends to rhyme no more;
We wake next morning in a raging fit,
And call for pen and ink to ſhow our Wit. 180
k He ſerv'd a 'Prenticelhip, who ſets up (hop;
Ward try'd on Puppies, and the Poor, his Drop;
Ev'n 'Radcliff's Doctors travel firft to France,
Nor dare to practiſe till they've learn'd to dance.
Who builds a Bridge that never drove a pile?
185
(Should Ripley venture, all the world would ſmile)
But " thoſe who cannot write, and thoſe who can,
All rhyme, and ſcrawl, and ſcribble, to a man.
Yet, Sir, reflect, the miſchief is not great ;
Theſe Madmen never hurt the Church or State: 190
Notes.
vacity, without departing from the fidelity of a tranſla-
tion.
VER. 182. Ward) A famous Empiric, whoſe Pill and
Drop had ſeveral ſurprizing effects, and were one of the
principal ſubjects of writing and converſation at this
time.
P.
* K 4
136
IMITATIONS Book II.
Virtutes habeat, fic collige : vatis º avarus
Non temere eft animus : P verſus amat, hoc ftudet
unum;
Detrimenta, 9 fugas fervorum, incendia ridet;
Non' fraudem focio, puerove incogitat ullam
Pupillo; vivit filiquis, et pane ſecundo s;
* Militiae quanquam piger et malus, utilis urbi ;
Si das hoc, parvis quoque rebus magna juvari.
v Os tenerum pueri balbumque poeta figurat :
Notes.
+
Ver. 201. Of little uſe, etc.) There is a poignancy in
the following verſes, which the original did not aim at,
nor affect.
VER. 204. And (tho' no Soldier)] Horace had not ac-
quitted himſelf much to his credit
in this capacity (non
bene reli&ta parmula) in the battle of Philippi. It is ma-
nifeft he alludes to himſelf, in this whole account of a
Poet's character ; but with an intermixture of irony : Vi-
Ep. I.
137
OF HORACE.
.
:
200
Sometimes the Folly benefits mankind;
And rarely. Ay'rice taints the tuneful mind.
Allow him but his plaything of a Pen,
He ne'er rebels, or plots, like other men:
9 Flight of Caſhiers, or Mobs, he'll never mind; 195
And knows no loſſes while the Muſe is kind.
To'cheat a Friend, or Ward, he leaves to Peter;
The good man heaps up nothing but mere metre,
Enjoys his Garden and his book in quiet;
And then- a perfect Hermit in hiss diet.
Of little uſe the Man you may ſuppoſe,
Who ſays in verſe what others ſay in proſe;
Yet let me ſhow, a Poet's of ſome weight,
And (tho' no Soldier) uſeful to the State.
v What will a Child learn ſooner than a ſong ? 205
What better teach a Foreigner the tongue ?
What's long or ſhort, each accent where to place,
And ſpeak in public with ſome ſort of grace.
I ſcarce can think him ſuch a worthleſs thing,
Unleſs he praiſe ſome Monſter of a King;
Notes.
vit filiquis et pane ſecundo has a relation to his Epicuriſm ;
Os tenerum pueri, is ridicule : The nobler office of a Poet
follows, Torquet ab ob/coenis - Mox etiam pectus — Reete
facta refert, etc. which the Imitator has apply'd where
he thinks it more due than to himſelf. He hopes to be
pardoned, if, as he is fincerely inclined to praiſe what
deſerves to be praiſed, he arraigns what deſerves to be ar-
aigned, in the 210, 211, and 2121h Verſes. P.
:
210
138
I MITATIONS Book II.
Torquet w ab obſcuenis jam nunc fermonibus aurem;
Mox etiam pectus praeceptis forinat amicis,
Afperitatis, et invidiae corrector, et irae;
Recte facta refert; * orientia tempora notis
Inftruit exemplis ; y inopem folatur et aegrum.
Caftis cum pueris ignara puella mariti
Notes.
VER. 226. the Idiot and the Poor.) A foundation for
the maintenance of Idiots, and a fund for aſlifting the Poor,
by lending ſmall ſums of money on demand. P.
VER. 229. Not but there are, etc.] Nothing can be
more truly humourous or witry chan all that follows to
Ý 240. Yet the noble fobriety of the original, or, at
leaſt
, the appearance of fobriety, which is the ſame thing
here, is of a tatie vaitly ſuperior to it.
1
Ep. I.
139
OF HORA CE.
220
Or Virtue, or Religion turn to ſport,
To pleaſe a lewd, or unbelieving Court.
Unhappy Dryden !-In all Charles's days,
Roſcommon only boaſts unſpotted bays ;
And in our own (excuſe ſome Courtly ſtains) 215
No whiter page than Addiſon remains.
He, w from the taſte obſcene reclaims our youth,
And ſets the Paffions on the ſide of Truth,
Forms the ſoft bofom with the gentleſt art,
And pours each buman Virtue in the heart.
Let Ireland tell, how Wit upheld her cauſe,
Her Trade ſupported, and ſupplied her Laws;
And leave on Swift this grateful verſe ingrav’d,
The Rights a Court attack'd, a Poet fav’d.
Behold the hand that wrought a Nation's cure,
225
Stretch'd to y' relieve the Idiot and the Poor,
Proud Vice to brand, or injur's Worth adorn,
And * ftretch the Ray to Ages yet unborn.
Not but there are, who merit other palms;
Hopkins and Sternhold glad the heart with a Pſalms :
The · Boys and Girls whom charity maintains, 231
Implore your help in theſe pathetic ſtrains :
Notes.
VER. 230. Sternhold.] One of the verſifiers of the old
ſinging plalins. He was a Courtier, anda Groom of the
Robes to Hen. VIII. and of the Bedchamber to Edward vi.
Füller, in his Church lliſory, ſays he was esteemed an ex-
scilant Port,
1
140
IMITATIONS Book II.
1
Diceret unde preces, vatem ni Muſa dediffet?
Poſcit opem chorus, et praeſentia numina ſentit;
Coeleſtes implorat aquas, docta prece blandus;
Avertit morbos, e metuenda pericula pellit;
Impetrat et pacem, et locupletem frugibus annum.
a Carmine Dî ſuperi placantur, carmine Manes.
• Agricolae priſci, fortes, parvoque beati,
Condita poft frumenta, levantes tempore feſto
Corpus et ipſum animum ſpe finis dura ferentem,
Cum ſociis operum pueris et conjuge fida,
Tellurem porco, Silvanum lacte piabant,
Floribus et vino Genium memorem brevis aevi.
Feſcennina per hunc inventa licentia morem
f Verſibus alternis opprobria ruſtica fudit;
Libertaſque recurrentes accepta per annos
Lufit amabiliter : 8 donec jam ſaevus apertam
In rabiem coepit verti jocus, et per honeſtas
Ire domos impune minax. doluere cruento
?
1
1
1
Dente laceſſiti: fuit intactis quoque cura
Notes.
VIR. 241. Our rural Anceſtors, etc.) This is almoſt li-
teral; and ſhews, that the beauty and ſpiritp ſo much ad-
Ep. I.
141
OF HOR A C E.
How could Devotion 6 touch the country pews,
Unleſs the Gods beſtow'd a proper Muſe?
Verſe chears their leiſure, Verſe affifts their work, 235
Verſe prays for peace, or fings down · Pope and Turk.
The Glenc'd Preacher yields to potent ſtrain,
And feels that grace his pray'r befought in vain;
The bleſſing thrills thro' all the lab'ring throng,
And Heav'n is won by Violence of Song. 240
Our e rural Anceſtors, with little bleſt,
Patient of labour when the end was reſt,
Indulg'd the day that hous'd their annual grain,
With feaſts, and off'rings, and a thankful ſtrain :
The joy their wives, their ſons, and ſervants ſhare,
Eaſe of their toil, and part'ners of their care : 246
The laugh, the jeſt, attendants on the bowl,
Smooth'd ev'ry brow, and open'd ev'ry ſoul:
With growing years the pleaſing Licence grew,
And Taunts alternate innocently few.
250
But Times corrupt, and & Nature, ill-inclin'd,
Produc'd the point that left a fting behind;
Till friend with friend, and families at ſtrife,
Triumphant Malice rag'd thro' private life.
Who felt the wrong, or fear'd it, took th' alarm, 255
Appeal'd to Law, and Juſtice lent her arm.
NOTES,
mired in theſe Poems, owe leſs to the liberty of imitating,
than to the ſuperior genius of the imitator,
3
142
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Conditione fuper communi: quin etiam lex
Poenaque lata, malo quae nollet carmine quemquam
Defcribi. vertere modum, formidine fuftis
Ad i bene dicendum, dele&tandumque redacti.
k Graecia capta ferum victorem cepit, et artes
Intulit agreſti Latio. fic horridus ille
Defluxit ' numerus Saturnius, et grave virus
Munditiae pepulere: ſed in longum tamen aevum
!
Manferunt, hodieque manent, m veftigia ruris, .
1
Serus enim Graecis admovit acumina chartis;
Et poft » Punica bella quietus quaerere coepit,
ز
Notes.
VER. 259. Moſt warp'd to Flatt'ry's fide, etc.] Theſe
two lines (notwithſtanding the reference) are an addition
to the Original. They ſeemed neceſſary to compleat the
Hiſtory of the riſe and progreſs of Wit; and, if attended
to, will be ſeen to make much for the argument the Poet
is
upon,
viz. the recommendation of Poetry to the protec-
tion of the Magiſtrate. And is, therefore, what Horace
would have choſen to ſay, had he reflected on it.
Ver. 263. We conquer'd France, etc.] The inſtance the
Poet here gives, to anſwer that in the Original, is not ſo
happy. However, it might be ſaid with truth, that our
Ep. I.
143
OF HORACE.
At length, by wholſome h dread of ſtatutes bound,
The Poets learn'd to pleaſe, and not to wound:
Moſt warp'd to i Flatt'ry's ſide; but fome, more nice,
Preſervd the freedom, and forbore the vice. 260
Hence Satire roſe, that juſt the medium hit,
And heals with Morals what it hurts with Wit.
* We conquer'd France, but felt our Captive's
charms;
Her Arts victorious triumph'd o'er our Arms;
Britain to ſoft refinements leſs a foe,
265
Wit grew polite, and Numbers learn'd to flow.
Waller was ſmooth ; but Dryden taught to join
The varying verſe, the full-reſounding line,
The long majeſtic March, and Energy divine.
Tho' ſtill ſome traces of our m ruftic vein
270
And ſplay-foot verſe, remain'd, and will remain.
Late, very late, correctneſs grew our care,
When the tir'd Nation breath'd from civil war.
NOTES.
Intrigues on the Continent brought us acquainted with the
provincial Poets, and produced Chaucer. Only I wonder,
when he had ſuch an example before him, of a Bard who
ſo greatly poliſhed the ruiticity of his age, he did not uſe
it to paraphraſe the ſenſe of
Defluxit numerus Saturnius, et grave virus
Munditiae pepulere :
Ver. 267. Waller was ſmooth ;] Mr. Waller, about
this time with the Earl of Dorſet, Mr. Godolphin, and
others, tranſlated the Pompey of Corneille ; and the more
correct French Poets began to be in reputation, P.
144
IMITATIONS Book 11.
Quid Sophocles et Theſpis et Acſchylus utile fer-
rent :
Tentavit quoque rem, fi digne vertere poſſet :
Et placuit fibi, natura ſublimis et acer :
Nam P ſpiraț tragicum fatis, et feliciter audet:
Sed 1 turpem putat inſcite metuitque lituram.
Creditur, ex' medio quia res arceffit, habere
Sudoris minimum; fed habet Comoedia tanto
Plus oneris, quanto veniae minus, & afpice, Plautus
Quo pacto partes tutetur amantis ephebi,
Ut patris attenti, lenonis ut infidiofi :
|
Quantus fit Doſlennus ' edacibus in paraſitis;
Quam non aftri&to percurrat pulpita focco.
Geſtit enim ' nummum in loculos demittere; poft hoc
Securus, cadat an recto ftet fabula talo.
Quem tulit ad ſcenam ' ventoſo gloria curru,
Notes.
Ver. 290. Aftræa,] A Name taken by Mrs. Behn, Au-
thoreſs of ſeveral obſcene Plays, etc. P.
Ibid. The fage how looſely does Airæa tread,] The fine.
1
Ep. I.
OF HOR A C E.
145
7
Exact Racine, and Corneille's noble fire,
Show'd us that France had ſomething to admire. 275
Not but the ? Tragic ſpirit was our own,
And full in Shakeſpear, fair in Otway ſhone:
But Otway fail'd to poliſh or refine,
And 9 fluent Shakeſpear ſcarce effac'd a line.
Ev'n copious Dryden wanted, or forgot,
280
The laſt and greateſt Art, the Art to blot.
Some doubt, if equal pains, or equal fire
The ' humbler Muſe of Comedy require.
But in known Images of life, I gueſs
The labour greater, as th' indulgence leſs . 285
Obſerve how feldom ev'n the beſt ſucceed :
Tell me if Congreve's Fools are Fools indeed ?
What pert, low Dialogue has Farqu'ar writ!
How Van wants grace, who never wanted wit!
The ſtage how looſely does Aftræa tread, 290
Who fairly puts all Characters to bed!
And idle Cibber, how he breaks the laws,
To make poor Pinky Weat with vaſt applauſe !
But fill their * purſe, our Poet's work is done,
Alike to them, by Pathos or by Pun.
295
O you! whom Vanity's light bark conveys
On Fame's mad voyage by the wind of praiſe,
Notes.
metaphor of non aftri£to, greatly improved by the happy
ambiguity of the word looſely
VER. 296, O you! whom Vanity's light bark conveys, 1
* L
146
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Exanimat lentus ſpectator, fedulus inflat:
Sic leve, fic parvum eft, animum quod laudis avarum
Subruit, ac reficit: 2 valeat res ludicra, fi me
Palma negata macrum, donata reducit opimum.
* Saepe etiam audacem fugat hoc terretque poetam ;
Quod numero plures, virtute et honore minores,
Indocti, ftolidique, et b depugnare parati
Si diſcordet eques, media inter carmina poſcunt
Aut urfum aut pugiles : his nam plebecula gaudet.
Verum equitis quoque jam migravit ab aure voluptas
Omnis, ad incertos oculos, et gaudia vana.
Quatuor aut plures aulaea premuntur in horas;
Dum fugiunt e equitum turmae, peditumque catervae:
Mox trahitur manibus regum fortuna retortis;
Notes.
The metaphor is fine, but inferior to the Original, in many
reſpects.
ventojo gloria curry,
has a happy air of ridicule heightened by its alluſion @
the Roman Triumph. It has a great beauty too, taken
in a more ſerious light, as repreienting the Poet a Slave
to Fame or Glory,
Quem tulit ad ſcenam---Gloria.
2
Ep. I.
147
OF HORACE.
&
With what a ſhifting gale your courſe you ply,
For ever funk too low, ar born too high!
Who pants for glory finds but ſhort repoſe, 300
A breath revives him, or a breath o'erthrows.
2 Farewell the ſtage ! if juſt as thrives the play,
The filly bard grows fat, or falls away.
· There ſtill remains, to mortify a Wit,
The many-headed Monſter of the Pit:
305
A ſenſeleſs, worthleſs, and unhonour'd croud;
Who, to diſturb their betters mighty proud,
Clatt'ring their ſticks before ten lines are ſpoke,
Call for the Farce, the Bear, or the Black-joke.
What dear delight to Britons Farce affords!
310
Ever the taſte of Mobs, but now d of Lords;
(Tafte, that eternal wanderer, which flies
From heads to ears, and now from ears to eyes.)
The Play ſtands fill; damn action and diſcourſe,
Back fly the ſcenes, and enter foot and horſe; 315
Pageants on pageants, in long order drawn,
Peers, Heralds, Bithops, Ermin, Gold and Lawn;
Notes.
as was the cuſtom in their triumphs. In other reſpe&ts it
has the preference. It is more juſt. For a Poet makes
his first entrance on the ſtage not, immediately, to Triumph,
but to try his Fortune. However,
Who pants for Glory, etc.
is much ſuperior to the Original.
VER. 313. From heads to ears, and now from ears to eyes.]
From Plays to Operas, and trom Operas to Pantomines.
* L a
148
IMITATIONS Book II.
1
Effeda feſtinant, pilenta, petorrita, naves;
Captivum portatur ebur, captiva Corinthus.
* Si foret in terris, rideret Democritus ; feu
Diverſum confuſa genus panthera camelo,
Sive & elephas albus vulgi converteret ora.
Spectaret populum ludis attentius ipfis,
Ut fibi praebentem mimo ſpectacula plura:
Scriptores autem narrare putaret a fello
Fabellam furdo. nam quae i pervincere voces
Evaluere fonum, referunt quem noftra theatra?
* Garganum mugire putes nemus, aut mare Tuſcum.
Tanto cum ftrepitu ludi ſpectantur, et artes,
| Divitiaeque peregrinae : quibus m oblitus actor
Cum ſtetit in ſcena, concurrit dextera laevae.
Dixit adhuc aliquid ? nil fare. Quid placet ergo?
* Lana Tarentino violas imitata veneno.
Ac ne forte putes me, quae facere ipfe recuſem,
Cum recte tractent alii, laudare maligne;
Notes,
VER. 319. Old Edward's Armour beams on Cibber's
breaft.) The Coronation of Henry vill. and Queen Anne
Boleyn, in which the Playhouſes vied with each other to
sepreſent all the pomp of a Coronation. In this noble
Ep. I.
149
OF HORACE.
The Champion too! and, to complete the jeſt,
Old Edward's Armour beams on Cibber's breaſt.
With laughter ſure Democritus had dy'd, 320
Had he beheld an Audience gape ſo wide.
Lct Bear or 8 Elephant be e'er ſo white,
The people, ſure, the people are the ſight!
Ah luckleſs - Poet! ſtretch thy lungs and roar,
That Bear or Elephant ſhall heed thee more; 325
While all its i throats the Gallery extends,
And all the Thunder of the Pit aſcends!
Loud as the Wolves, on k Orcas' ſtormy ſteep,
Howl to the roarings of the Northern deep.
Such is the ſhout, the long-applauding note, 330
At Quin's high plume, or Oldfield's ' petticoat;
Or when from Court a birth-day fuit beſtow'd,
Sinks the m loft Actor in the tawdry load.
Booth enters-hark! the Univerſal peal!
“ But has he ſpoken?” Not a ſyllable.
335
What ſhook the ſtage, and made the people ſtare ?
» Cato's long Wig, flow'r'd gown, and lacquer'd chair.
Yet leſt you think I railly more than teach, ,
Or praiſe malignly Arts I cannot reach,
Nores.
contention, the Armour of one of the Kings of England
was borrowed from the Tower, to dreſs the Champion. P.
VER. 328. Orcas' ſtormy ſteep.] The fartheſt Northern
Promontory of Scotland, oppoſite to the Orcades. P.
* L 3
150
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Ille per extentum funem mihi poffe videtur
Ire poeta ; ° meum qui pectus inaniter angit,
Irritat, mulcet, falſis terroribus implet,
Ut magus; et modo me Thebis, modo ponit Athenis.
? Verum age, et his, qui ſe le&tori credere malunt,
Quam ſpectatoris faſtidia ferre ſuperbi,
Curam impende brevem: fi 9 munus Apolline dignum
Vis complere libris; et vatibus addere calcar,
Ut ſtudio majore petant Helicona virentem.
Multa quidem nobis facimus mala faepe poetac,
(Ut vineta egomet caedam mea) cum tibi librum
* Solicito damus, aut felo: cum laedimur, . unum
1
NOTES.
VER. 347. To Thebes, to Athens, etc.] i. e. is equally
knowing in the manners of the moſt different people ; and
has the ſkill to employ thoſe manners with decorum.
Ep. 1.
151
OF HORACE.
Let me for once preſume t'inſtruct the times,
340
To know the Poet from the Man of rhymes:
'Tis he, who gives my breaſt a thouſand pains,
Can make me feel each Paſſion that he feigns;
Inrage, compoſe, with more than magic Art,
With Pity, and with Terror, tear my heart; 345
And ſnatch me, o'er the earth, or thro' the air,
To Thebes, to Athens, when he will, and where.
P But not this part of the Poetic ſtate
Alone, deſerves the favour of the Great:
Think of thoſe Authors, Sir, who would rely 350
More on a Reader's ſenſe, than Gazer's eye.
Or who ſhall wander where the Muſes fing?
Who climb their mountain, or who taſte their ſpring?
How ſhall we fill ? a Library with Wit,
When Merlin's Cave is half unfurniſh'd yet? 355
My Liege! why Writers little claim your thought,
I gueſs; and, with their leave, will tell the fault:
We Poets are (upon a Poet's word)
Of all mankind, the creatures moſt abſurd :
The s ſeaſon, when to come, and when to go, 360
To fing, or ceaſe to fing, we never know;
Notes.
VER. 354. a Library] Munus Apolline dignum. The P2.
latine Library then building by Auguitus. P.
Ver. 355. Merlin's Cave] A Building in the Royal Gar-
den of Richmond, where is a ſmall, but choice Collection
of Books. P.
*
I 4
I
vera -
$
}
1
>
1
1
1
1
t
152
I MITATIONS Book II.
Si quis amicorum eſt auſus reprendere verfum :
Cum loca jam 'recitata revolvimus irrevocati :
Cum " lamentamur non apparere labores
Noftros, et tenui deducta poemata filo;
Cum * ſperamus eo rem venturam, ut, ſimul atque
Carr.ina reſcieris nos fingere, commodus ultro
Arcelas, et egere vetes, et ſcribere cogas.
Sed tamen eſt y operae precium cognoſcere, quales
Aedituos habeat belli ſpectata domique
Virtus, ? indigno non committenda poetae.
a Gratus Alexandro regi IIagno fuit ille
Choerilus, incultis qui verſibus et male natis
Rettulit acceptos, regale numiſma, Philippos.
Sed veluti tractata notam labemquc remittunt
Atramenta, fere ſcriptores carmine foedo
Splendida facta linunt. idem rex ille, poema
Qui tam ridiculum tam care prodigus emit,
Edi&to vetuit, ne quis fe praeter Apellem
Pingeret, aut alius Lyfippo duceret aera
Fortis Alexandri vultum fimulantia. quod fi
Judicium ſubtile videndis artibus illud
Ad libros et ad haec Muſarum dona vocares;
e Boeotum in craſſo jurares aere natum.
2
Ep. I.
153
OF HOR AC E.
And if we will recite nine hours in ten,
You loſe your patience, juſt like other men.
Then too we hurt ourſelves, when to defend
A ſingle verſe, we quarrel with a friend;
365
Repeat" unaſk'd ; lament, the " Wit's too fine
For vulgar eyes, and point out ev'ry line.
But moſt, when ſtraining with too weak a wing,
We needs will write Epiſtles to the King;
And * from the moment we oblige the town),
370
Expect a place, or penſion from the Crown;
Or dubb’d Hiftorians by expreſs command,
T'enroll your triumphs o’er the feas and land,
Be call'd to Court to plan ſome work divine,
As once for LOUIS, Boileau and Racine.
375
Yet y think, great Sir! (ſo many Virtues ſhown)
Ah think, what Poet beſt may make them known?
Or chuſe at leaſt fome Miniſter of Grace,
Fit to beſtow the ? Laureat's weighty place.
* Charles, to late times to be tranſmitted fair, 38
Affign'd his figure to Bernini's care;
And great Naſſau to Kneller's hand decreed
To fix him graceful on the bounding Steed;
So well in paint and ſtone they judg'd of merit:
But Kings in Wit may want diſcerning Spirit. 385
The Hero William, and the Martyr Charles,
One knighted Blackmore, and one penſion'd Quarles;
Which made old Ben, and furly Dennis ſwear,
“ No Lord's anointed, but a Ruffian Bear.
15+
IMITATIONS Book II.
[At neque dedecorant tua de fe judicia, atque
Munera, quae multa dantis cum laude tulerunt,
Dileiti tibi Virgilius Variuſque poetae ;]
Nec magis expreflid vultus per ahenea ſigna,
Quam per yatis opus mores animique virorum
Clarorum apparent. nec ſermones ego mallem
Repentes per humum, quam res componere geftas,
Terrarumque f fitus et flumina dicere, et arces
Montibus impoſitas, et & barbara regna, tuiſque
Auſpiciis totum confe&ta duella per orbem,
Clauſtraque " cuſtodem pacis cohibentia Janum,
Et formidatam Parthis, te principe, Romam:
Si quantum cuperem, poffem quoque. ſed neque par-
vum
Carmen majeſtas recipit tua; nec meus audet
Rem tentare pudor, quem vires ferre recufant.
a
16 it.
Notes.
VER. 405. And I'm not us’d to Panegyric frains ;] Arch-
biſhop Tillct fon hath ſaid, " That ſatire and invective were
" the eaſielt kind of wit, becauſe almoſt any degree of it
" will ſerve to abuſe and find fault. For wit (ſays he) is
keen inftrument, and every one can cut and gaſh with
But to carve a beautiful image and polish it, re-
" quires great art and dexterity. To praile any thing
well, is an argument of much more wit than to abuſe;
a little wit, and a great deal of ill-nature, will furniſh
a man for fatire, but the greateſt initance of wit is to
*" commend well. Thus far this candid Prelate. And
I, in my turn, might as well ſay, that Satire was the most
difficult, and Panegyric the eaſieſt thing in nature; for
Ep. I.
155
OF HORA C E.
Not with ſuch d majeſty, ſuch bold relief, 390
The Forms auguft, of King, or conqu’ring Chief,
E'er ſwell’d on marble; as in verſe have ſhin'd
(In polith'd verſe) the Manners and the Mind.
Oh! could I mount on the Mæonian wing,
Your e Arms, your Actions, your Repoſe to fing! 395
What' ſeas you travers'd, and what fields you fought!
Your Country's Peace, how oft, how dearly bought!
How & barb'rous rage ſubſided at your word,
And Nations wonder'd while they dropp'd the ſword !
How, when you nodded, o'er the land and deep, 400
* Peace ſtole her wing, and wrapt the world in ſleep;
'Till earth's extremes your mediation own,
And Afia's Tyrants tremble at your Throne-
But * Verſe, alas ! your Majeſty diſdains;
And I'm not us’d to Panegyric ftrains :
405
NOTES.
that any barber-ſurgeon can curl and ſhave, and give cof-
metic-waſhes for the ſkin ; but it requires the abilities of
an Anatomiſt to diffect and lay open the whole interior of
the human frame. But the truth is, theſe fimilitudes prove
nothing, but the good fancy, or the ill judgment of the
uſer. The one is juſt as eaſy to do ill, and as difficult to
do well as the other. In our Author's Elay on the Cka-
ratters of Men, the Encomium on Lord Cobham, and the
ſatire on Lord Wharton, are the equal efforts of the fame
great genius. There is one advantage indeed in Satire
over Panegyric, which every body has taken notice of,
that it is more readily received; but this does not ſhew that
it is more eaſily written.
156 IMITATIONS Book II.
Sedulitas autem'ſulte, quem diligit, urget ;
Praecipue cum ſe numeris commendat et arte.
Diſcit enim citius, meminitque libentius illud
Quod quis is deridet, quam quod probat et veneratur.
Nil moror officium, quod me gravat: ac neque ficto
In" pejus vultu proponi cereus uſquam,
Nec prave factis decorari verfibus opto:
Ne P rubeam pingui donatus munere, et una
Cum 9 fcriptore meo capfa porrectus aperta,
Deferar in vicum vendentem thus et odores,
Et piper, et quicquid chartis amicitur ineptis.
Ep. I.
157
OF HORA CE.
5
The Zeal of Fools offends at any time,
But moft of all, the Zeal of Fools in rhyme.
Beſides, á fate attends on all I write,
That when I aim at praiſe, they ſay " I bite.
A vile · Encomium doubly ridicules:
410
There's nothing blackens like the ink of fools.
If true, a ºwoful likeneſs; and if lyes,
" Praiſe undeſerv'd is ſcandal in diſguiſe:”
Well may hep bluſh, who gives it, or receives;
And when I flatter, let my dirty leaves
415
(Like 9 Journals, Odes, and ſuch forgotten things
As Euſden, Philips, Settle, writ of Kings)
Cloath ſpice, line trunks, or futt'ring in a row,
Befringe the rails of Bedlam and Soho.
T H E
SECOND EPISTLE
OF THE
SECOND BOOK
0 F
HORACE.
Ludentis fpeciem dabit, et torquebitur. HOR.
160
Book II.
IMITATIONS
>
E P I S T O L A II.
FO
LORE, bono claroque fidelis amice Neroni,
Si quis forte velit puerum tibi vendere natum
Tibure vel Gabiis, et tecum fic agat:
6 Hic et
“ Candidus, et talos a vertice pulcher ad imos,
“ Fiet eritque tuus nummorum millibus octo;
" Verna miniſteriis ad nutus aptus heriles;
« Litterulis Graecis imbutus, idoneus arti
“ Cuilibet: argilla quidvis imitaberis uda:
“ Quin etiam canet indoctum, fed dulce bibenti.
« Multa fidem promiffa levant, ubi plenius aequo
“ Laudat venales, qui vult extrudere, merces.
“ Res urget me nulla : meo ſum paupere in aere.
“ Nemo hoc mangonum faceret tibi: non temere a
me
Nores. ,
Ver. 4. This Lad, Sir, is of Blois :) A Town in Beauce,
where the French tongue is ſpoken in great purity.
VER. 15. But, Sir, to you, with what would I not part?]
Ep. II.
161
OF HORA CE.
.
E PIS T L E II.
DE
.
II
EAŘ Coľnel, COBĦAM's and your country's
Friend!
You love a Verſe, take ſuch as I can ſend.
• A Frenchman comes, preſents you with his Boy,
Bows and begins-" This Lad, Sir, is of Blois :
“ Obſerve his ſhape how clean! his locks how curld!
My only ſon, I'd have him ſee the world: 6
“ His French is pure; his voice too-you ſhall hear.
“ Sir, he's your ſlave, for twenty pound a year.
“ Mere wax as yet, you faſhion him with eaſe,
6 Your Barber, Cook, Upholft'rer, what you pleafe:
" A perfect genius at an Opera-ſong-
“ To ſay too much, might do my honour wrong.
.
“ Take him with all his virtues, on my word;
" His wholė anibition was to ſerve a Lord;
" But, Sir, to you, with what would I not part? 15
« Tho' faith, I fear, 'twill break his Mother's heart.
“ Once (and but once) I caught him in a lye,
" And then, unwhipp'd, he had the grace to cry:
" The fault he has I fairly ſhall reveal,
“ (Cou'd you o'erlook but that) it is, to ſteal.
Notes.
The numbers well expreſs the unwillingneſs of parting
with what one can ill ſpare.
M
20
* M
162
IMITATIONS Book II.
Quivis ferret idem : ſemel hic ceffavit, et (ut fit)
“ In fcalis latuit metuens pendentis habenae :
“ Des nummos, excepta nihil te fi fuga laedit.
Ille ferat pretium, poenae ſecurus, opinor.
Prudens emifti vitiofum: dicta tibi eft lex.
Inſequeris tamen hunc, et lite moraris iniqua.
a Dixi me pigrum proficiſenti tibi, dixi
Talibus officiis prope mancum ; ne mea faevus
Jurgares ad te quod epiſtola nulla veniret.
Quid tum profeci, mecum facientia jura
Si tamen attentas? quereris ſuper hoc etiam, quod
Exfpectata tibi non mittam carmina mendax.
• Luculli miles collecta viatica multis
Aerumnis, laſſus dum noctu ſtertit, ad affem
Perdiderat : poft hoc vehemens lupus, et ſibi et hoſti
Iratus pariter, jejunis dentibus acer,
Praeſidium regale loco dejecit, ut aiunt,
Nores.
VER. 24. I think Sir Godfrey] An eminent Juſtice of
Peace, who decided much in the manner of Sancho Pan-
cha. P. Sir Godfrey Kneller.
Ver. 33. In Anna's Wars, etc.) Many parts of this
ſtory are well told ; but, on the whole, it is much infe.
sior to the original.
3
Ep. II.
OF HOR AC E. 163
C
:
If, after this, you took the graceleſs lad,
Cou'd you complain, my Friend, he prov'd ſo bad?
Faith, in ſuch caſe, if you ſhould proſecute,
I think Sir Godfrey ſhould decide the ſuit;
Who ſent the Thief that ſtole the Caſh, away, 25
And puniſh'd him that put it in his way.
• Conſider then, and judge me in this light;
I told you when I went, I could not write;
You ſaid the ſame; and are you diſcontent
With Laws, to which you gave your own affent? 30
Nay worſe, to aſk for Verſe at ſuch a time!
D'ye think me good for nothing but to rhime?
e In Anna's Wars, a Soldier poor and old
Had dearly earn'd a little purſe of golde:
Tir'd with a tedious march, one luckleſs night, 35
He ſlept, poor dog! and loſt it, to a doit.
This put the man in ſuch a deſp’rate mind,
Between revenge, and grief, and hunger join'd
Againſt the foe, himſelf, and all mankind,
He leap'd the trenches, ſcald a Caftle-wall,
40
Tore down a Standard, took the Fort and all
.
:
}
:
Notes.
VER. 37. This put the man, etc.) Greatly below the Oxi-
ginal,
Poft hoc vehemens lupus, et fibi et bofti
Iratus pariter, jejunis dentibus acer.
The ball words are particularly elegant and humourous,
* M 2
164
I MITATIONS Book II.
Summe munito, et multarum divite rerum.
Clarus ob id factum, donis ornatur honeſtis,
Accipit et bis dena ſuper ſeſtertia nummûm.
Forte fub hoc tempus caftellum evertere praetor
Neſcio quod cupiens, hortari coepit eundem
Verbis, quae timido quoque poffent addere mentem:
I, bone, quo virtus tua te vocat: i pede fauſto,
Grandia laturus meritorum praemia: quid ſtas?
Poft haec ille catus, quantumvis ruſticus,
“ Ibit eo, quo vis, qui zonam perdidit, inquit.
f Romae nutriri mihi contigit, atque doceri,
Iratus Graiis quantum rocuiſſet Achilles.
Adjecere bonae paulo plus artis Athenae:
Scilicet ut poffem curvo dignoſcere rectum,
Atque inter filvas Academi quaerere verum.
« Ibit,
Nores.
VER. 43. Gave him much praiſe, and ſome reward be-
fide.] For the ſake of a ſtroke of ſatire, he has here
weakened that circumitance, on which the turn of the
ſtory depends. Horace avoided it, tho' the avaricious
character of Lucullus was a tempting occaſion to indulge
his raillery.
Ver. 51. Let him take caſtles who has ne'er a groat.]
This has neither the force nor the juftneſs of the original.
Horace makes his Soldier ſay,
Ibit,
Ibit eo, quo vis, qui zonam perdidit.
for it was not his poverty, but his lofs, that puſhed him
upon danger ; many being cqual to the firſt, who cannot
Ep. II.
OF HORACE. . 165
I
50
Prodigious well ;” his great Commander cry'd,
Gave him much praiſe, and ſome reward beſide.
Next pleas’d his Excellence a town to batter;
(Its name I know not, and it's no great matter) 45
“ Go on, my Friend (he cry’d) ſee yonder walls !
« Advance and conquer ! go where glory calls !
“ More honours, more rewards, attend the brave."
Don't you remember what reply he gave?
“D'ye think me, noble Gen'ral, ſuch a Sot?
" Let him take caſtles who has ne'er a groat."
* Bred up at home, full early I begun
To read in Greek the wrath of Peleus' fon.
Beſides, my Father taught me from a lad,
The better art to know the good from bad: 55
(And little ſure imported to remove,
To hunt for Truth in Maudlin's learned grove.)
But knottier points we knew not half ſo well,
Depriv'd us foon of our paternal Cell;
Notes.
bear the other. What betray'd our poet into this inac-
curacy of expreſſion was it's ſuiting better with the appli.
cation. But in a great writer we pardon nothing. And
ſuch an one ſhould never forget, that the expreſſion is not
perfect, but when the ideas it conveys fit both the tale
and the application : for fo, they reflect a mutual light
upon one another.
VER. 53. To read in Greek the wrath of Peleus' fon.]
This circumftance has a happier application in the imita-
sion than in the original ; and properly introduces the 6876
verſe.
* M 3
166
IMITATIONS Book II.
Dura ſed emovere loco me tempora grato;
Civiliſque rudem belli tulit aeſtus in arma,
Caeſaris Auguſti non reſponſura lacertis.
Unde fimul primum me dimiſere Philippi,
Deciſis humilem pennis, inopemque paterni
Et laris et fundi, paupertas impulit audax
Ut verſus facerem : fed, quod non deſit, habentem,
Quae poterunt unquam fatis expurgare cicutae,
+
Ni melius dormire putem, quam ſcribere verſus ?
% Singula de nobis anni praedantur euntes;
Eripuere jocos, venerem, convivia, ludum;
Tendunt extorquere poemata. quid faciam vis?
h
Denique non omnes eadem mirantur amantque.
Notes.
VER. 69. Indebted to no Prince or Peer alive,) For it
would be very hard upon Authors, if the ſubſcribing for
a Book, which does honour to one's Age and Country,
and conſequently reflects back part of it on the Sublini.
bers, ſhould be eſteemed a debt or obligation.
Ep. II.
167
OF HORA CE.
E
:
:
:
And certain Laws, by fuff'rers thought unjuſt,
60
Deny'd all pofts of profit or of truft:
Hopes after hopes of pious Papiſts fail'd,
While mighty WILLIAM's thund’ring arm prevail’d.
For Right Hereditary tax'd and fin'd,
He ſtuck to poverty with peace of mind; 65
And me, the Muſes help'd to undergo it;
Convict a Papiſt he, and I a Poet.
But (thanks to Homer) ſince I live and thrive,
Indebted to no Prince or Peer alive,
Sure I'lhould want the care of ten Monroes,
70
If I would ſcribble, rather than repoſe.
2 Years foll' wing years, ſteal fomething ev'ry day.
At laſt they ſteal us from ourſelves away;
In one our Frolics, one Amuſements end,
In one a Miſtreſs drops, in one a Friend :
75
This ſubtle Thief of life, this paltry Time,
What will it leave me, if it ſnatch my rhime?
If ev'ry wheel of that unweary'd Mill
That turn'd ten thouſand verſes, now ſtands ſtill.
But after all, what wou'd you have me do? 80
When out of twenty I can pleaſe not two;
Notes.
VER. 70. Monroes,] Dr. Monroe, Phyſician to Bed-
lam-Hoſpital. P.
Ver. 73. At laſt they steal us from ourſelves azuay ;]
i. e. Time changes all our paſſions, appetites, and inclina-
:
;
tions.
* M4
168
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Carmine tu gaudes : hic delectatur iambis ;
Ille Bioneis ſermonibus, et fale nigro.
>
Tres mihi convivae prope difſentire videntur,
Poſcentes vario multum diverſa palato.
Quid dem? quid non dem? renuis quod tu, jubet
alter :
Quod petis, id fane eſt inviſum acidumque duobus.
i Praeter caetera me Romaene poemata cenſes
Scribere poffe, inter tot curas tótğue labores?
Hic ſponſum vocat, hic auditum ſcripta, relictis
Omnibus officiis : cubat hic in colle Quirini,
Hic extremo in Aventino; viſendus uterque.
Intervalla vides humane commoda.
" Verum
56 Purae ſunt plateae, nihil ut meditantibus obftet."
Feftinat calidus mulis geruliſque redemtor:
Torquet nunc lapidem, nunc ingens machina tignum:
NOTES.
Ver. 87. Oldfield - Dartineuf ] Two celebrated Glut.
tons. This inftarce adds a beauty to the whole paſſage,
Ep. II.
OF HORACE. 169
1
85
When this Heroics only deigns to praiſe,
Sharp Satire that, and that Pindaric lays ?
One likes the Pheaſant's wing, and one the leg;
The vulgar boil, the learned roaſt an egg ;
Hard talk! to hit the palate of ſuch gueſts,
When Oldfield loves, what Dartineuf derefts.
But grant I may relapſe, for want of grace,
Again to rhime; can London be the place?
Who there his Muſe, or felf, or ſoul attends,
90
In crouds, and courts, law, buſineſs, feaſts, and
friends?
My counſel ſends to execute a deed:
A Poet begs me, I will hear him read:
In Palace-yard at nine you'll find me there-
At ten for certain, Sir, in Bloomſb'ry ſquare 95
Before the Lords at twelve my Cauſe comes on
There's a Rehearſal, Sir, exact at one. --
“Oh but a Wit can ſtudy in the ſtreets,
" And raiſe his mind above the mob he meets."
Not quite ſo well however as one ought ;
100
A hackney coach may chance to ſpoil a thought;
And then a nodding beam, or pig of lead,
God knows, may hurt the very ableft head.
1
Notes,
as intimating that the demand for verſe is only a ſpecies
of luxury.
170
IMITATIONS
Book II.
Triſtia robuſtis luctantur funera plauftris :
Hac rabioſa fugit canis, hac lutulenta ruit ſus.
I nunc, et verſus tecum meditare canoros.
Scriptorum chorus omnis amat nemus, et fugit urbes,
Rite cliens Bacchi, fomno gaudentis et umbra.
Tu me inter ftrepitus nocturnos atque diurnos
Vis canere, et contracta ſequi veſtigia vatum?
1
Ingenium, fibi quod vacuas deſumſit Athenas,
Et ftudiis annos ſeptem dedit, inſenuitque
Libris et curis, ftatua taciturnius exit
Plerumque, et riſu populum quatit: hic ego rerum
Fluctibus in mediis, et tempeſtatibus urbis,
}
Notes.
VER. 104. Have you not ſeen, etc.] The ſatirical plea-
ſantry of this image, and the humourous manner of re-
preſenting it, raiſes the imitation, in this place, far above
the original.
VER. 113. Would drink and dozó, etc.] This has not the
delicacy, or elegant ambiguity of,
Rite cliens Bacchi, Somno gaudentis et obra,
Ep. II.
171
OF HORACE.
Have you not ſeen, at Guild-hall's narrow paſs,
Two Aldermen diſpute it with an Aſs?
IQ5
And Peers give way, exalted as they are
Ev'n to their own S-r-V--nce in a Car?
k Go, lofty Poet! and in ſuch a croud,
Sing thy fonorous verſe - but not aloud.
Alas! to Grotto's and to Groves we run,
IIO
To eaſe and filence, ev'ry Muſe's fon :
Blackmore himſelf, for any grand effort,
Would drink and doze at Tooting or Earl's-Court.
How ſhall I rhime in this eternal roar ?
How match the bards whom none e'er match'd before?
The Man, who, ſtretch'd in Ifis' calm retreat, 116
To books and ſtudy gives ſev'n years cumpleat,
See! ftrow'd with learned duſt, his night-cap on,
He walks, an object new beneath the ſun!
The boys flock round him, and the people ſtare:
So ftiff, fo mute! ſome ſtatue you would ſwear,
Stept from its pedeſtal to take the air !
And here, while town, and court, and city roars,
With mobs, and duns, and ſoldiers, at their doors;
Notes.
where the intemperance of Poets is not the obvious, but the
ſecret meaning. For Bacchus was the patron of the Drama
as well as of the Bottle; and Jeep was courted for inſpira-
tion, as well as to relieve a debauch.
Ibid. Tooting---Earl's Court) Two villages within a
few miles of London. P.
VER. 124. With mobs, and duns, and soldiers at their
}
1
172
IMITATIONS Book II.
Verba lyrae motura ſonum connectere digner?
in Frater erat Romae conſulti rhetor ; ut alter
Alterius fermone meros audiret honorés :
Gracchus ut hic illi foret, huic ut Mucius ille.
Qui minus argutos vexat furor ifte poetas ?
Carmina compono, hic elegos; mirabile viſu,
Caelatumque novem Mufis opus. aſpiće primum,
Quanto cum faſtu, quanto molimine circum-
ſpectemus vacuam Romanis vatibus aedem,
1
Mox etiam (fi forte vacas) fequere, et procul audi,
Quid ferat, et quare fibi nectat uterque coronam.
Caedimur, et totidem plagis confumimus hoftem,
Notes.
doors ;] The licence, luxury, and mutiny of an opulent
city are not ill deſcribed
VER. 132. And ſhook his head at Murray, as a Wit.] It
is the filly conſolation of blockheads in all profeſſions,
that he, whom Nature has formed to excell, does it not
by his ſuperior knowledge, but his wit; and ſo they keep
themſelves in countenance as not fairly outdone, but only
920-witted,
Ep. II.
173
OF HORACE.
Shall I, in London, act this idle part?
125
Compoſing ſongs, for Fools to get by heart?
* The Temple late two brother Serjeants faw,
Who deem'd each other Oracles of Law;
With equal talents, theſe congenial ſouls
One lull'd th’ Exchequer, and one ſtunn'd the Rolls;
Each had a gravity would make you ſplit,
IZ!
And ſhook his head at Murray, as a Wit.
“ 'Twas, Sir, your law"--and - Sir, your eloquence”
“ Yours, Cowper's manner ---and yours, Talbot's
66 ſenſe.
n Thus we diſpoſe of all poetic merit,
135
Yours Milcon's genius, and mine Homer's ſpirit.
Call Tibbald Shakeſpear, and he'll ſwear the Nine,
Dear Cibber! never match'd one Ode of thine.
Lord ! how we ſtrut thro' Merlin's Cave, to fee
No Poets there, but Stephen, you, and me. 140
Walk with reſpect behind, while we at eaſe
Weave laurel Crowns, and take what names we pleaſe.
“ My dear Tibullus !” if that will not do,
« Let me be Horace, and be Ovid you:
Notes.
Ver. 139. Mirlin's Cave,] In the Royal Gardens at
Richmond. By this it ſhould ſeem as if the collection of
poetry, in that place, was not to our Author's tafe.
VER. 140. But Stephen] Mr. Stephen Duck, a modeſt
and worthy man, who had the honour (which many, who
thought themſelves his betters in poetry, had not) of be-
ing elteemed by Mr. Pope.
2
174
Book ll.
I MITATIONS
ve-
Lento Samnites ad lumina prima düello.
Diſcedo Alcaeus puncto illius ; ille meo quis ?
Quis, nifi Callimachus ? fi plus adpofcere viſus;
Fit Mimnermus, et optivo cognomine creſcit.
Multa fero, ut placem genus irritabile vatum,
Cum ſcribo, et ſupplex populi ſuffragia capto :
Idem, finitis ftudiis, et mente recepta,
Obturem patulas impune legentibus aures.
• Ridentur mala qui componunt carmina :
rum
Gaudent ſcribentes, et ſe venerantur, et ultro,
Si taceas, laudant; quidquid ſcripfere, beati.
At qui legitimum cupiet feciffe poema,
Cum tabulis animum cenforis ſumet honefti:
Audebit quaecunque parem ſplendoris habebunt,
Et ſine pondere erunt, et honore indigna ferentur,
Verba movere loco; quamvis invita recedant,
Et verſentur adhuc intra penetralia Veſtae :
P Obſcurata diu populo bonus eruet, atque
Proferet in lucem fpeciofa vocabula rerum,
Quae priſcis memorata Catonibus atque Cethegis,
Nunc fitus informis premit et deferta vetuſtas :
NOTES.
Ver. 167. Command old words, that long have ſlept, ro
wake] The imagery is here very ſublime. It turns tlie
Poet to a Magician evoking the dead from their ſepul-
chres,
Ep. II.
175
OF HOR AC E.
“ Or, I'm content, allow me Dryden's ſtrains, 145
“ And you ſhall riſe up Otway for your pains."
Much do I ſuffer, much, to keep in peace
This jealous, walpith, wrong-head, rhiming race;
And much muſt flatter, if the wbim ſhould bite
To court applauſe by printing what I write :
150
But let the Fit paſs o'er, I'm wiſe enough,
To ſtop my ears to their confounded ſtuff.
• In vain, bad Rhimers all mankind reject,
They treat themſelves with moſt profound reſpect;
'Tis to ſmall purpoſe that you hold your tongue, 155
Each prais'd within, is happy all day long,
But how ſeverely with themſelves proceed
The men, who write ſuch Verſe as we can read ?
Their own ſtrict Judges, not a word they ſpare
That wants or force, or light, or weight, or care, 160
Howe'er unwillingly it quits its place,
Nay tho' at Court (perhaps) it
grace:
Such they'll degrade; and ſometimes, in its ſtead,
p In downright charity revive the dead;
Mark where a bold expreſſive phraſe appears, 165
Bright thro' the rubbiſha of ſome hundred years;
Command old words that long have ſlept, to wake,
Words, that wife Bacon, or brave Rawleigh (pake;
Notes.
Er mugire ſolum, manrsque exire Sepulchris.
Horace has not the ſame force,
Proferet in lucem Speciola vocabula rerum.
may find
176
IMITATIONS Book II.
Adſciſcet nova, quae genitor produxerit ufus :
Vehemens et liquidus, puroque fimillimus amni,
Fundet opes, Latiumque beabit divite lingua :
Luxuriantia .compeſcet: nimis aſpera ſano
Levabit cultu, virtute carentia tollet:
Ludentis fpeciem dabit, et torquebitur, ut qui
Nunc Satyrum, nunc agreſtem Cyclopa movetur.
2 Praetulerim ſcriptor delirus inerſque videri,
Dum mea delectent mala me, vel denique fallant,
Quam ſapere, et ringi. Fuit haud ignobilis Argus,
Qui ſe credebat miros audire tragoedos,
Notes.
VER. 170. For Uſe will father what's begot by Senſe]
A very fine and happy improvement on the exprellion, it
not on the thought, of his original.
VER. 175. But ſhow no mercy to an empty line ;] To
ſuch, our Poet was always inexorable. Unleſs
Unleſs it was
once, when in the full blaze of his glory, he choſe to fa-
crifice to envy, in that devoted and execrable line, in one
of the beſt tranſlated books of the Odyſſey,
Cloſe to the Cliff with both his hands he clung,
“ And Auck adherent, and ſuſpended hung:
The ſmall critics could never have ſupported chemſelves
without the conſolation of ſuch a verſe; to which indeed
ever ſince the whole tribe of Scriblers
with both their hands have clung,
And fuck adherent, and ſuſpended hung.
Ep. II.
177
OF HO RACE.
}
Or bid the new be Engliſh, ages hence,
(For Uſe will father what's begot by Senſe) 170
Pour the full tide of eloquence along,
Serenely pure, and yet divinely ſtrong,
Rich with the treaſures of each foreign tongue;
Prune the luxuriant, the uncouth refine,
But ſhow no mercy to an empty
line:
175
Then poliſh all, with ſo much life and eaſe,
You think 'tis. Nature, and a knack to pleaſe :
" But eaſe in writing flows from Art, not chance
" As thoſe move eaſieſt who have learn'd to dance.
4 If ſuch the plague and pains to write by rule, 180
Better (ſay I) be pleas’d, and play the fool;
Call, if you will, bad rhiming a diſeaſe,
It gives men happineſs, or leaves them eaſe.
Notes,
But there is a ſet of Aill lower Creatures than theſe, at the
tail of which is one EDWARDS, who can make ſhift to
fubfift even on a Printer's blunder. The late Editor of
Shakeſpear gave order to the corrector of the preſs, that
all Mr. Pope's notes ſhould be printed in their places. In
one of theſe there was mention made, as they ſay, of
ſome Italian novels (I forget whoſe) in which Dec, and
Nov. were printed thus contractedly. Bat the printers of
the late edition lengthend them into December and No-
vember, and, in this condition, they are charged upon the
Editor by.this Edwards. Now, was the man ſuch a
Dunce to make his criticiſm with good faith, he is much
to be pitied ; was he ſuch a Knave to make it without,
he is much more to be pitied.
* N
+
178
IMITATIONS Book II.
I
In vacuo laetus feffor plauſorque theatro:
Caetera qui vitae fervaret munia reato
More; bonus fane vicinus, amabilis hofpes,
Comis in uxorem ; pollet qui ignoſcere ſervis,
Et figno laefo non inſanire lagenae :
Pollet qui rupem, et puteum vitare patentem.
Hic ubi cognatorum opibus curiſque refectus,
Expulit elleboro morbum bilemque meraco,
Et redit ad fefe : Pol me occidiftis, amici,
Non fervaftis, ait; cui fic extorta voluptas,
Et demtus per vim mentis gratiffirnus error.
* Nimirum fapere eft abjectis utile nugis,
Et tempeſtivum pueris concedere ludum;
Notes.
Ver. 184. There liv'd in primo Georgii, etc.] The imi-
tation of this ſtory of the Madman is as much luperior te
his original, in the fine and eaſy manner of telling, as that
of Lucullus's Soldier comes thort of it. It is true the turn
3
Ep. II.
179
OF HORACE.
?
There liv’d in primo Georgii (they record)
A worthy member, no ſmall fool, a Lord; 185
Who, tho' the Houſe was up, delighted ſate,
Heard, noted, anſwer'd, as in full debate :
In all but this, a man of ſober life,
Fond of his Friend, and civil to his Wife;
Not quite a mad-man, tho' a paſty fell,
190
And much too wiſe to walk into a well.
Him, the damn'd Doctors and his Friends immur'd,
They bled, they cupp'd, they purg'd; in ſhort, they
cur'd:
Whereat the gentleman began to ſtare-
My Friends ! he cry'd, p- take you for your care !
That from a Patriot of diftinguiſh'd note, 196
Have bled and purg'd me to a ſimple Vote.
Well, on the whole, plain Proſe muſt be my fate:
Wiſdom (curſe on it) will come foon or late.
There is a time when Poets will grow dull:
I'll e'en leave verſes to the boys at ſchool :
To rules of Poetry no more confin’d,
I learn to ſmooth and harmonize my Mind,
Teach ev'ry thought within its bounds to roll,
And keep the equal meaſure of the Soul.
205
r
200
.
Notes.
Horace's madman took, agrees better with the ſubject of
his Epiſtle, which is Poetry; and doubtleſs there were
other beauties in it, which time has deprived us. of
* N 2
180
IMIT A TIONS Book II.
* Ac non verba fequi fidibus modulanda Latinis,
Sed verae numeroſque modo que ediſcere vitae.
Quocirca mecum loquor haec, tacitufque recordor:
Si tibi nulla fitim finiret copia lymphac,
Narrares medicis: quod quanto plura paraſti,
Tanto plura cupis, nulline faterier audes?
v Si vulnus tibi monſtrata radice vel herba
Non fieret levius, fugeres radice vel herba
Proficiente nihil curarier: audieras, cui
Rem Dî donarint, illi decedere pravam
Stultitiam ; et, cum fis nihilo fapientior, ex quo
Plenior es, tamen uteris monitoribus îſdem?
At fi divitiae prudentem reddere poffent,
Si cupidum timidumque minus te; nempe ruberes,
Viveret in terris te fi quis avarior uno.
Notes.
Ver. 218. When golden Angels, etc ] This illuftration
is much happier than that employed in his original; as by
raiſing pecuniary ideas, it prepares the mind for that mo-
sality it is brought to illustrate.
2
Ep. II. OF HOR A C E. 181
21
s soon as I enter at my country door,
My mind reſumes the thread it dropt before;
Thoughts, which at Hyde-park-corner I forgot,
Meet and rejoin me, in the penfive Grot.
There all alone, and compliments apart,
I aſk theſe fober queſtions of my heart. .
* If, when the more you drink, the more you crave,
You tell the Doctor ; when the more you have,
The more you want, why not with equal eaſe
Confeſs as well your Folly, as Diſeaſe?
215
The heart refolves this matter in a trice,
“ Men only feel the Smart, but not the Vice."
v When golden Angels ceaſe to cure the Evil,
You give all royal Witchcraft to the Devil:
When ſervile Chaplains cry, that birth and place 220
Indue a Peer with honour, truth, and grace,
Look in that breaſt, moſt dirty D-! be fair,
Say, can you find out one ſuch lodger there?
Yet ſtill, not heeding what your heart can teach,
You go to church to hear theſe Flatt'rers preach. 225
Indeed, could wealth beſtow or wit or merit,
A grain of courage, or a ſpark of ſpirit,
The wiſeft man might bluſh, I muſt agree,
If D*** lov'd fixpence, more than he.
Notes.
Ver. 2 20. When ſervile Chaplains cry,] Dr. Ken-t.
VER. 229. lov'd fixpence,] Avarice, and the contempt
of it, is well expreſſed in theſe words,
* N 3
182
IMITATIONS Book II.
* Si proprium eft, quod quis libra mercatus et aere
eſt,
Quaedam (fi credis conſultis) mancipat ufus :
Qui te paſcit ager, tuus eft; et villicus Orbi,
Cum ſegetes occat tibi mox frumenta daturas,
Te dominum ſentit.
* das nummos; accipis uvam,
Pullos, ova, cadum temeti: nempe modo iſto
Paulatim mercaris agrum, fortafle trecentis,
Aut etiam ſupra nummorum millibus emtum.
Quid refert, vivas numerato nuper, an olim?
y Emtor Aricini quondam, Veientis et arvi,
Emtum coenat olus, quamvis aliter putat; emtis
Sub noctem gelidam lignis calefactat ahenum.
Sed vocat ufque fuum, qua populus adſita certis
Limitibus vicina refigit jurgia : tanquam
2 Sit proprium quidquam, puncto quod mobilis korae,
Nunc prece, nunc pretio, nunc vi, nunc morte ſu-
prema,
Permutet dominos, et cedat in altera jura.
Sic, quia perpetuus nulli datur ufus, et haeres
Haeredem alterius, velut unda fupervenit undam:
Notes.
VI2. 232. delig?tful sbs.court] A farm over-againſt
Hamp:on-Court
VER. 248. bang in Fortune's pow'r, Looſe on the point
Ep. II.
183
OF HORA CE.
w If there be truth in Law, and Uſe can give 230
A Property, that's yours on which you live.
Delightful Abs-court, if its fields afford
Their fruits to you, confeſſes you its lord :
All * Worldly's hens, nay partridge, fold to town,
His Ven’ſon too, a guinea makes your own : 235
He bought at thouſands, what with better wit
You purchaſe as you want, and bit by bit ;
Now, or long ſince, what diff'rence will be found?
You pay a penny, and he paid a pound.
y Heathcote himſelf, and ſuch large-acred men, 240
Lords of fat E’ſham, or of Lincoln fen,
Buy every ſtick of wood that lends them heat,
Buy every Pullet they afford to eat. .
Yet theſe are Wights, who fondly call their own
Half that the Dev'lo'erlooks from Lincoln town. 245
The Laws of God, as well as of the land,
Abhor, a perpetuity ſhould ſtand :
Eſtates have wings, and hang in Fortune's pow'r
z Loofe on the point of ev'ry wav'ring hour,
Ready, by force, or of your own accord, 250
By ſale, at leaſt by death, to change their lord.
Man? and for ever? wretch ! what wou'dft thou have?
Heir urges heir, like wave impelling wave.
Notes.
of ev'ry wav'ring hour.] A modern idea (the magnetic
needle) here ſupplied the Imitator with expreſſion much
fuperior to his Original.
Vol. IV.
* N4
184
Book II.
IMITATIONS
1
Quid vici proſunt, aut horrea? quidve Calabris
Saltibus adjecti Lucani; fi metit Orcus
Grandia cum parvis, non exorabilis auro ?
a Gemmas, marmor, ebur, Tyrrhena ſigilla, ta-
bellas,
Argentum, veftes Gaetulo murice tinctas,
Sunt qui non habeant; eſt qui non curat habere.
• Cur alter fratrum ceſare, et ludere, et ungi
Praeferat Herodis palmetis pinguibus ; alter
Dives et importunus, ad umbram lucis ab ortu
Silveſtrem flammis et ferro mitiget agrum :
Notes.
Ver. 273 All Townſhend's Turnips.] Lord Townſhend,
Secretary of State to George the Firſt and Second.
When this great Stateſman retired from buſineſs, he amuſed
Ep. II.
185
OF HORACE.
All vaſt poſſeſſions (juſt the ſame the caſe
Whether you call them Villa, Park, or Chace) 255
Alas, my BATHURST! what will they avail ?
Join Cotſwood hills to Saperton's fair dale,
Let riſing Granaries and Temples here,
There mingled farms and pyramids appear,
Link towns to towns with avenues of oak, 260
Encloſc whole downs in walls, 'tis all a joke!
Inexorable Death ſhall level all,
And trees, and ſtones, and farms, and farmer fall.
Gold, Silver, Iv'ry, Vaſes ſculptur'd high,
Paint, Marble, Gems, and robes of Perſian dye, 265
There are who have not-and thank heav'n there are,
Who, if they have not, think not worth their care.
Talk what you will of Taſte, my friend, you'll
find,
Two of a face, as ſoon as of a mind.
Why, of two brothers, rich and reſtleſs one
270
Plows, burns, manures, and toils from ſun to ſun;
The other flights, for women, ſports, and wines,
All Townſhend's Turnips, and all Grovenor's mines :
Why one like Bu-- with pay and fcorn content,
Bows and votes on, in Court and Parliament;
275
b
2
}
Notes.
himſelf in Huſbandry; and was particularly fond of that
kind of rural improvement which ariſes from Turnips ;
it was the favourite ſubject of his converſation.
186
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Scit Genius, natale comes qui temperat aftrum:
NATURAE DEUS HUMANAE, mortalis in unum-
Quodque caput, vultu mutabilis, albus, et ater.
• Utar, et ex modico, quantum res pofcet, acervo
Tollam: nec metuam, quid de me judicet haeres,
Quod non plura datis invenerit. et tamen idem
Scire volam, quantum ſimplex hilariſque nepoti
Diſcrepet, et quantum diſcordet parcus avaro.
Diftat enim, fpargas tua prodigus, an neque fumtum
Invitus facias, nec plura parare labores;
Ac potius, puer ut feſtis Quinquatribus olim,
Exiguo gratoque fruaris tempore raptim.
* Pauperies immunda procul procul abſit : ego, utrum
Nave ferar magna an parva; ferar unus et idem.
Notes.
VER. 297. fly, like Oglethorpe,) Employed in ſettling
the Colony of Georgia.
Ver. 280. That God of Nature, etc ] Here our Poet
had an opportunity of illuſtrating his own Philoſophy ;
and thereby giving a much better ſenſe to his Original;
and correcting both the naturaliſm and the fate of Horace,
wbich are covertly conveyed in theſe words,
Ep. II.
OF HORACE. 187
One, driv'n by ſtrong Benevolence of foul,
Shall fly, like Oglethorpe, from pole to pole:
Is known alone to that Directing Pow'r,
Who forms the Genius in the natal hour;
That God of Nature, who, within us ſtill, 280
Inclines our action, not conſtrains our will;
Various of temper, as of face or frame,
Each individual: His great End the ſame.
• Yes, Sir, how ſmall foever be my heap,
A part I will enjoy, as well as keep.
285
My heir may figh, and think it want of grace
A man ſo poor would live without a place :
But ſure no ſtatute in his favour ſays,
How free, or frugal, I ſhall paſs my days:
I, who at ſome times ſpend, at others ſpare, 290
Divided between careleſneſs and care.
'Tis one thing madly to diſperſe my ſtore;
Another, not to heed to treaſure more;
Glad, like a Boy, to ſnatch the firſt good day,
And pleas'd, if fordid want be far away. 295
f What is’t to me (a paſſenger God wot)
Whether my veſſel be firſt-rate or not?
The Ship itſelf may make a better figure,
But I that fail, am neither leſs nor bigger.
Notes.
Scit Genius, natale comes qui temperat aftrum,
NATURAE DEUS HUMANAE.
VER. 288. But ſure no flatute] Alluding to the ſta-
tutes made in England and Ireland, to regulate the Suc-
ceſſion of Papiſts, etc.
:
188
Book II.
IMITATIONS
Non agimur tumidis velis Aquilone fecundo:
Non tamen adverfis aetatem ducimus Auftris.
Viribus, ingenio, ſpecie, virtute, loco, re,
Extremi primorum, extremis uſque priores.
& Non es avarus: abi. quid ? caetera jam fimul iſto
Cum vitio fugere? caret tibi pectus inani
Ambitione ? caret mortis formidine et ira?
Somnia, terrores magicos, miracula, fagas,
Nocturnos lemures, portentaque Theffala rides?
Natales grate numeras ? ignofcis amicis ?
Lenior et melior fis accedente ſenecta?
Quid te exemta levat fpinis de pluribus una ?
# Vivere fi recte neſcis, decede peritis.
Luliſti ſatis, ediſti ſatis, atque bibiſti:
Tempus abire tibi eft: ne potum largius aequo
Rideat, et pulſet laſciva decentius actas.
Nores.
Ver. 312. Survey both worlds] It is obſervable with
what ſobriety he has corrected the licentiouſneſs of his
Original, which made the expectation of another world a
part of that ſuperſtition, he would explode; whereas his
Ep. II.
1.99
OF HO RACE.
I neither ſtrut with ev'ry fav’ring breath, 300
Nor ſtrive with all the tempeſt in my teeth.
In pow'r, wit, figure, virtue, fortune, plac'd
Behind the foremoſt, and before the laſt.
& “ But why all this of Av’rice? I have none."
I wiſh you joy, Sir, of a Tyrant gone;
305
But does no other lord it at this hour,
As wild and mad ? the Avarice of pow'r?
Does neither Rage inflame, nor Fear appall?
Not the black fear of death, that faddens all ?
With terrors round, can Reaſon hold her throne, 310
Deſpiſe the known, nor tremble at th' unknown?
Survey both worlds, intrepid and entire,
In ſpight of witches, devils, dreams, and fire?
Pleas'd to look forward, pleas'd to look behind,
And count each birth-day with a grateful mind? 315
Has life no fourneſs, drawn ſo near its end?
Can'ſt thou endure a foe, forgive a friend?
Has age but melted the rough parts away,
As winter-fruits grow mild e'er they decay?
Or will you think, my friend, your buſineſs done, 320
When, of a hundred thorns, you pull out one?
h Learn to live well, or fairly make your will;
You've play'd, and lov’d, and eat, and drank your fill :
Walk fober off; before a ſprightlier age
Comes titt'ring on, and ſhoves you from the ſtage:
Leave ſuch to trifle with more grace and eaſe,
326
Whom Folly pleaſes, and whoſe Follies pleaſe.
Notes.
Imilator is only for removing the falſe terrors from the
world of ſpirits, ſuch as the diablerie of witchcraft and
purgatory.
1
THE
SATIRES
OF
Dr. JOHN DONNE,
Dean of St. PAUL's,
VERSIFIE D:
Quid vetat et nofmet Lucili fcripta legentes
Quaerere, num illius, num rerum dura negarit
Verficulos natura magis factos, et euntes
Molius?
HOR.
192
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. II.
S A T I R
T I R E II.
SIR
IR; though (I thank God for it) I do hate
Perfectly all this town; yet there's one ſtate
In all ill things ſo excellently beſt,
That hate towards them, breeds pity towards the reſt.
Though Poetry, indeed, be ſuch a ſin,
As, I think, that brings dearth and Spaniards in :
Though like the peſtilence, and old-faſhion'd love,
Ridlingly it catch men, and doth remove
Never, till it be ſtarv'd out; yet their ſtate
Is poor, diſarm’d, like Papiſts, not worth hate.
One (like a wretch, which at barre judg'd as dead,
Yet prompts him which ſtands next, and cannot read,
And ſaves his life) gives Idiot Actors means,
(Starving himſelf) to live by's labour'd ſcenes.
As in ſome Organs, Puppits dance above
And bellows pant bellow, which them do move.
One would move love by rythmes; but witchcraft's
charms
Bring not now their old fears, nor their old harms ;
Sat. I1.
193
VERSIFIED.
S AT IR E II.
Y y
$
10
ES; thank my ſtars! as early as I knew
This Town, I had the ſenſe to hate it too:
Yet here, as ev’n in Hell, there muſt be ſtill
One Giant-Vice, fo excellently ill,
That all beſide, one pities, not abhors;
As who knows Sapho, ſmiles at other whores,
I grant that Poetry's a crying ſin;
It brought (no doubt) th' Exciſe and Army in :
Catch'd like the Plague, or Love, the Lord knows
how,
But that the cure is ſtarving, all allow.
Yet like the Papiſt's, is the Poet's ſtate,
Poor and diſarm'd, and hardly worth your hate !
Here a lean Bard, whoſe wit could never give
Himſelf a dinner, makes an Actor live:
The Thief condemn’d, in law already dead, IS
So prompts, and ſaves a rogue who cannot read.
Thus as the pipes of ſome carv'd Organ move,
The gilded puppets dance and mount above.
Heav'd by the breath th' inſpiring bellows blow :
Th' inſpiring bellows lie and pant below.
One fings the Fair ; but ſongs no longer move;
No rat is rhym'd to death, nor maid to love:
* O
20
194
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. U.
Rams, and flings now are filly battery,
Piſtolets are the beſt artillery,
And they who write to Lords, rewards to get,
Are they not like fingers at doors for meat ?
And they who write, becauſe all write, have ſtill
That 'ſcuſe for writing, and for writing ill.
But he is worſt, who beggarly doth chaw
Others wits fruits, and in his ravenous maw
Rankly digeſted, doth thoſe things out-ſpue,
As his own things; and they're his own, 'tis true,
For if one eat my meat, though it be known,
The meat was mine, the excrement's his own.
But theſe do me no karm, nor they which uſe,
to out-uſure Jews,
T'out-drink the ſea, t'out-ſwear the Letanie,
Who with fins all kinds as familiar be
As Confeffors, and for whole finful fake
Schoolmen new tenements in hell muſt make;
Whoſe ſtrange ſins Canoniſts could hardly tell
In which Commandment's large receit they dwell.
Notes.
VER. 44. In what Commandment's large contents they
drvell.] The Original is more humourous,
In vwhat Corrmandment's large recent they dwell.
As if the Ten Commandments were ſo wide, as to ſtand ready
4
Sat. II.
195
V E R S IF I E D.
In love's, in nature's ſpite, the ſiege they hold,
And ſcorn the fleſh, the dev’l, and all but gold.
Theſe write to Lords, ſome mean reward to get,
As needy beggars ſing at doors for meat.
26
Thoſe write becauſe all write, and fo have ſtill
Excuſe for writing, and for writing ill.
Wretched indeed! but far more wretched yet
Is he who makes his meal on others wit:
30
'Tis chang'd, no doubt, from what it was before,
His rank digeſtion makes it wit no more:
Senſe, paſt thro' him, no longer is the ſame;
For food digeſted takes another name.
I paſs o'er all thoſe Confeſſors and Martyrs, 35
Who live like S-tt-n, or who die like Chartres,
Out-cant old Efdras, or out-drink his heir,
Out-uſure Jews, or Iriſhmen out-fwear;
Wicked as Pages, who in early years
Adt ſins which Priſca's Confeffor ſcarce hears.
40
Ev’n thoſe I pardon, for whoſe ſinful fake
Schoolmen new tenements in hell muſt make;
Of whoſe ſtrange crimes no Canoniſt can tell
In what Commandment's large contents they dwell.
Notes.
to receive every thing within thein, that either the Law
Of Nature or che Gospel commands. A just ridicule on
thoſe practical Commentators, as they are called, who in-
clude all moral and religious Duties within them.
i
* 0 2
196 SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. II.
But theſe puniſh themſelves. The infolence
Of Cofcus, only, breeds my juft offence,
Whom time (which rots all, and makes botches pox,
And plodding on, muſt make a calf an ox)
Hath made a Lawyer; which (alas) of late;
But ſcarce a Poet: jollier of this ſtate,
Than are new-benefic'd Minifters, he throws
Like nets or lime-twigs wherefoe'er he goes
His title of Barriſter on ev'ry wench,
And wooes in language of the Pleas and Bench.**
Words, words which would tear
The tender labyrinth of a Maid's ſoft car:
More, more than ten Sclavonians ſcolding, more
Than when winds in our ruin'd Abbyes roar.
Then fick with Poetry, and poſſeft with Muſe
Thou waſt, and mad I hop'd; but men which chufe
Law practice for meer gain ; bold ſoul repute
Worſe than imbrothel'd ſtrumpets proſtitute.
Now like an owl-like watchman he muſt walk,
His hand ſtill at a bill, now he muſt talk
Sat. II.
197
V ERSI FIE D.
One, one man only breeds my juft offence;
45
Whom crimes gave wealth, and wealth gave Impudence:
Time, that at laſt matures a clap to pox,
Whoſe gentle progreſs makes a calf an ox,
And brings all natural events to paſs,
Hath made him an Attorney of an Aſs.
50
No
young divine, new-benefic’d, can be
More pert, more proud, more poſitive than he.
What further could I wiſh the fop to do,
But turn a wit, and ſcribble verſes too;
Pierce the ſoft lab’rinth of a Lady's ear
55
With rhymes of this per cent, and that per year?
Or court a Wife, ſpread out his wily parts,
Like nets or lime-twigs, for rich Widows hearts;
Call himſelf Barriſter to ev'ry wench,
And wooe in language of the Pleas and Bench?
Language, which Boreas might to Aufter hold
More rough than forty Germans when they ſcold.
Curs'd be the wretch, fo venal and ſo vain :
Paltry and proud, as drabs in Drury-lane.
'Tis ſuch a bounty as was never known,
If Peter deigns to help you to your own :
What thanks, what praiſe, if Peter but fupplies,
And what a ſolemn face if he denies !
Grave, as when pris’ners thake the head and ſwear
'Twas only Suretiſhip that brought 'em there.
70
His Office keeps your Parchment fates entirc,
He ſtarves with cold to ſave them from the fire;
60
65
* O3
198
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. II.
Idly, like priſoners, which whole months will ſwear,
That only ſuretyſhip hath brought them there,
And to every ſuitor lye in every thing,
Like a King's Favourite-or like a King.
Like a wedge in a block", wring to the barre,
,
Bearing like afſes, and more ſhamelefs farre
Than carted whores, lye to the grave Judge; for
Baſtardy abounds not in King's titles, nor
Simony and Sodomy in Church-men's lives,
As theſe things do in him; by theſe he thrives.
Shortly (as th' ſea) he'll compaſs all the land,
From Scots to IVight, from Mount to Dover ſtrand.
And ſpying heirs melting with Luxury,
Satan will not joy at their ſins as he:
For (as a thrifty wench ſcrapes kitchen-ſtuffe,
And barrelling the droppings, and the ſnuffe
Of waſting candles, which in thirty year,
Reliquely kept, perchance buys wedding chear)
Piecemeal he gets lands, and ſpends as much time
Wringing each acre, as maids pulling prime.
In parchment then, large as the fields, he draws
Aſſurances, big as gloſs'd civil laws,
So huge that men (in our times forwardneſs)
Are Fathers of the Church for writing leſs.
Theſe he writes not; nor for theſe written payes,
Therefore ſpares no length, (as in thoſe firſt dayes
Nores.
• His comparing Advocates inforcing the Law to the
Eench, to a wedge in a block, our Author juftly thought
too licentious to be imitated.
Sat. II.
199
VERSIFIE D.
i
For you he walks the ſtreets thro' rain or duſt,
For not in Chariots Peter puts his truſt;
For you he ſweats and labours at the laws,
Takes God to witneſs he affects your cauſe, 75
And lies to ev'ry Lord in ev'ry thing,
Like a King's Favourite —or like a King.
Theſe arc the talents that adorn them all,
From wicked Waters ev'n to godly **
Not more of Simony beneath black gowns, 80
Nor more of baſtardy in heirs to Crowns.
In ſhillings and in pence at firſt they deal ;
And ſteal ſo little, few perceive they ſteal ;
Till, like the Sea, they compaſs all the land,
From Scots to IVight, from Mount to Dover ſtrand: 85
And when rank Widows purchaſe luſcious nights,
Or when a Duke to Janſen punts at White's,
Or City-heir in mortgage melts away;
Satan himſelf feels far leſs joy than they.
Piccemeal they win this acre firſt, then that, 90
Glean on, and gather up the whole eſtate.
Then ſtrongly fencing ill-gọt wealth by law,
Indentures, Cov'nants, Articles they draw,
Large as the fields themſelves, and larger far
Than Civil Codes, with all their Gloſſes, are; 95
So vaſt, our new. Divines, we muſt confeſs,
Are Fathers of the Church for writing leſs.
But let them write for you, each rogue impairs .
The deeds, and dextrouſly omits, ſes heires :
* O 4
200
SATIRES or Dr. DONNE Sat. II.
When Luther was profeſt, he did defire
Short Pater-nofters, ſaying as a Fryer
Each day his Beads; but having left thoſe laws,
Adds to Chriſt's prayer, the power and glory clauſe)
But when he ſells or changes land, h'impaires
The writings, and (unwatch'd) leaves out, ſes heires,
As flily as any Commenter goes by
Hard words, or ſenſe; or, in Divinity
As controverters in vouch'd Texts, leave out
Shrewd words, which might againſt them clear the
doubt.
Where are theſe ſpread woods which cloath'd here-
tofore
Thoſe bought lands? not built, not burnt within
door.
Where the old landlords troops, and almes? In halls
Carthufian Faſts, and fulſome Bacchanals
Equally I hate. Mean’s bleſt. In rich men's homes
I bid kill ſome beaſts, but no hecatombs ;
None ſtarve, none ſurfeit fo. But (oh) we allow
Good works as good, but out of faſhion now,
Like old rich wardrobes. But my words none draws
Within the vaft reach of th' huge ſtatutes jawes.
Notes.
Ver. 127. Treafon, or the Law.] By the Law is here
meant the Lauyers,
Sat. II.
201
VERSIFIED.
IOO
II
No Commentator can more flily paſs
O'er a learn’d, unintelligible place;
Or, in quotation, ſhrewd Divines leave put
Thoſe words, that would againſt them clear the doubt.
So Luther thought the Pater-nofter long,
When doom'd to ſay his beads and Even fong; 105
But having caſt his cowle, and left thoſe laws,
Adds to Chriſt's pray’r, the Pow'r and Glory clauſe.
The lands are bought; but where are to be found
Thoſe ancient woods, that ſhaded all the ground?
We ſee no new-built palaces aſpire,
No kitchens emulate the veftal fire.
Where are thoſe troops of Poor, that throng'd of yore
The good old landlord's hoſpitable door?
Well, I could wiſh, that ſtill in lordly domes II+
Some beaſts were kill'd, tho' not whole hecatombs;
That both extremes were baniſh'd from their walls,
Carthufian faſts, and fulſome Bacchanals;
And all mankind might that juft Mean obſerve,
In which none e'er could ſurfeit, none could ſtarve.
Theſe as good works, 'tis true, we all allow;
But oh! theſe works are not in faſhion now:
Like rich old wardrobes, things extremely rare,
Extremely fine, but what no man will wear.
Thus much I've ſaid, I truſt, without offence;
Let no Court Sycophant pervert my ſenſe, 125
Norfly Informer watch theſe words to draw
Within the reach of Treaſon, or the Law.
120
202
SATIRES or DR, DONNE Sat. IV.
S A TI
T I RE
IV.
WELI
ELL; I may now receive, and die. My fin
Indeed is great, but yet I have been in
A Purgatory, ſuch as fear'd hell is
A recreation, and fcant map of this.
My mind, neither with pride's itch, nor hath been
Poyſon'd with love to ſee or to be ſeen,
I had no ſuit there, nor new ſuit to ſhow,
Yet went to Court; but as Glare which did
go
To Maſs in jeſt, catch'd, was fain to diſburſe
Two hundred markes, which is the Statutes ourſe,
NOTES,
Ver. 1. Il'ell, if it be ctc.] Donne ſays,
Well; Incy now receive and die..
which is very indecent language on fo ludicrous an occa-
(100
Ver. 3. I die in charity with fool and knav,] We ve-
rily think he did. But of the immediate cause of his de-
parture hence there is ſome ſmall difference bcoween his
Friends and Enemies. His family ſuggeſts that a general
decay of nature, which had been long coming on, ended
with a Dropſy in the breaſt, enough to have killed Her-
cules. The Gentlemen of the Dunciad maintain, that be
Sat. IV.
203
VERSIFIED.
SATIRE IV.
WELL, if it be my time to quit the fage,
IO
ELL, if it be my time to quit the ſtage,
Adieu to all the follies of the age !
I die in charity with fool and knave,
Secure of peace at leaſt beyond the grave.
I've had my Purgatory here betimes,
5
And paid for all my fatires, all my rhymes.
The Poet's hell, its tortures, fiends, and flames,
"To this were trifles, toys and empty names.
With fooliſh pride my heart was never fir’d,
Nor the vain itch t'admire, or be admir'd;
I hop'd for no commiſſion from his Grace;
1 bought no benefice, I begg’d no place;
Had no new verſes, nor new fuit to ſhow;
Yet went to Court !-the Dey'l would have it ſo.
But, as the Fool that in reforming days
IS
Wou'd go to Maſs in jeſt (as ſtory ſays)
Notes.
fell by the keen pen of our redoubtable Laureat. We
ourſelves ſhould be inclined to this latter opinion, for the
ſake of ornamenting his ſtory; for it would be a fine thing
for his Hiſtorian to be able to ſay, that he died, like his
immortal nameſake, Alexander the Great, by a drug of ſo
deadly cold a nature, that, as Plutarch and other grave
writers tell us, it could be contained in nothing but the
Scull of an Aſs.
SCRIBL.
Ver. 7. The Poet's bell] He has here with great pru.
dence corrected the licentious expreſſion of his Original.
1
204
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. IV.
Before he ſcap'd ; ſo it pleas'd my deſtiny
(Guilty of my fin of going) to think me
As prone to all ill, and of good as forget-
full, as proud, luſtfull, and as much in debt,
As vain, as witleſs, and as falſe, as they
Which dwell in Court, for once going that way.
Therefore I ſuffer'd this; towards me did run
A thing more ſtrange, than on Nile's ſlime the Sun
E’er bred, or all which into Noah's Ark came:
A thing which would have pos'd Adam to name:
Stranger than ſeven Antiquaries ſtudies,
Than Africk Monſters, Guianaes rarities,
Stranger than ſtrangers * : one who, for a Dane,
In the Danes Maſſacre had ſure been flain,
If he had liv'd then; and without help dies,
When next the Prentices 'gainſt ſtrangers rife;
One whom the watch at noon lets ſcarce go by;
One, to whom the examining Juſtice fure would cry,
Sir, by your Prieſthood tell me what you are?
His cloaths were ſtrange, tho' coarſe, and black,
though bare,
Sleeveleſs his jerkin was, and it had been
Velvet, but 'twas now (ſo much ground was ſeen)
Become Tufftaffaty; and our children ſhall
See it plain rafh a while, then nought at all
Notes.
a This is ill expreſſed, for it only means, he would be
more stared at than Strangers are.
Sat. IV.
205
VERSIFIED.
}
Could not but think, to pay his fine was odd,
Since 'twas no form’d deſign of ſerving God;
So was I puniſh'd, as if full as proud
As prone to ill, as negligent of good,
20
As deep in debt, without a thought to pay,
As vain, as idle, and as falſe, as they
Who live at Court, for going once that way!
Scarce was I enter'd, when, behold! there-came
A thing which Adam had been pos'd to name; 25
Noah had refus'd it lodging in his Ark,
Where all the Race of Reptiles might embark:
A verier monſter, than on Africk's ſhore
The ſun e'er got, or ſlimy Nilus bore,
Or Sloane or Woodward's wondrous ſhelves cantain,
Nay, all that lying Travellers can feign.
31
The watch would hardly let him pafs at noon,
At night, wou'd ſwear him dropt out of the Moon.
One whom the mob, when next we find or make
A popiſh plot, ſhall for a Jeſuit take,
35
And the wiſe Juſtice ſtarting from his chair
Cry, By your Prieſthood tell me what you are?
Such was the wight: Th' apparel on his back
Tho' coarſe, was rev’rend, and tho' bare, was black:
The ſuit, if by the faſhion one might gueſs,
40
Was velvet in the youth of good Queen Beſs,
But mere tuff-taffety what now remain'd;
So Time, that changes all things, had ordain'd!
206
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. IV.
The thing hath travail'd, and, faith, ſpeaks all
tongues,
And only knoweth what to all States belongs,
Made of th' accents, and beſt phraſe of all theſe,
He ſpeaks one language. If ſtrange meats diſpleaſe,
Art can deceive, or hunger force my taft;
But pedants motly tongue, ſouldiers bumbaſt,
Mountebanks drug-tongue, nor the termes of law,
Are ftrong enough preparatives to draw
Me to hear this, yet I muſt be content
With his tongue, in his tongue callid Complement:
In which he can win widows, and pay ſcores,
Make men ſpeak treaſon, couzen ſubtleft whores,
Out-fatter favourites, or out-lie either
Jovius, or Surius, or both together.
He names me, and comes to me; I whiſper, God,
How have I finn'd, that thy wrath's furious Rod,
This fellow, chuſeth me! He faith, Sir,
I love your judgment, whom do you prefer
For the beſt Linguiſt ? and I feelily
Said that I thought Calepines Dictionary.
1
Sat. IV.
207
VERSIFIED.
Our fons ſhall ſee it leiſurely decay,
Firſt turn plain raſh, then vaniſh quite away. 45
This thing has traveld, ſpeaks each language too,
And knows what's fit for every ſtate to do;
Of whoſe beſt phraſe and courtly accent join'd,
He forms one tongue, exotic and refin'd.
Talkers I've learn'd to bear; Motteux I knew, 50
Henley himſelf I've heard, and Budgel too.
The Doctor's Wormwood ſtyle, the Haſh of tongues
A Pedant makes, the ſtorm of Gonfon's lungs,
The whole Artill’ry of the terms of War,
And all thoſe plagues in one) the bawling Bar: 55
Theſe I cou'd bear; but not a rogue ſo civil,
Whoſe tongue will compliment you to the devil.
A tongue, that can cheat widows, cancel ſcores,
Make Scots ſpeak treaſon, cozen ſubtleſt whores,
With royal Favourites in flatt’ry vie,
60
And Oldmixon and Burnet both out-lie.
He ſpies me out, I whiſper, Gracious God!
What fin of mine could merit ſuch a rod?
That all the ſhot of dulneſs now muſt be
From this thy blunderbuſs diſcharg'd on me!
Permit (he cries) no ſtranger to your fame
To crave your ſentiment, if-'s your name.
What Speech eſteem you moſt? “ The King's, ſaid L.”
But the beſt words?_66 ( Sir, the Dictionary.”
ง
+
65
208
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. II.
Nay, but of men, moſt ſweet Sir? Beza then,
Some Jeſuits, and two reverend men
Of our two academies I nam’d: here
He ſtopt me, and ſaid, Nay your Apoſtles were
Good pretty Linguiſts; fo Panurgus was,
Yet a poor Gentleman; all theſe may paſs
By travail. Then, as if he would have ſold
His tongue, he prais'd it, and ſuch wonders told,
That I was fain to ſay, If you had liv’d, Sir,
Time enough to have been Interpreter
To Babels Bricklayers, ſure the Tower had ſtood.
He adds, If of Court life you knew the good,
You would leave loneneſs.
I ſaid, Not alone
My loneneſs is; but Spartanes faſhion
Notes.
Ver. 78. Yet theſe were all poor Gentlemen!] Our Poet
has here added to the humour of his original. Donne
makes his thread-bare Traveller content himſelf under his
Sat. IV.
209
V E R S IF I E D.
You miſs my aim; I mean the moſt acute 70
And perfect Speaker?
- “ Onſlow, paſt diſpute.”
But, Sir, of writers ? “ Swift; for cloſer ſtyle,
" But Ho**y for a period of a mile.”
Why yes, 'tis granted, there indeed may paſs :
Good common linguiſts, and ſo Panurge was ; 75
Nay troth th' Apoſtles (tho' perhaps too rough)
Had once a pretty gift of Tongues enough:
Yet theſe were all poor Gentlemen! I dare
Affirm, 'twas Travel made them what they were.
Thus others talents having nicely ſhown,
80
He came by ſure tranſition to his own:
Till I cry'd out, You prove yourſelf ſo able,
Pity! you was not Druggerman at Babel ;
For had they found a linguiſt half ſo good,
I make no queſtion but the Tow'r had ſtood.
85
“ Obliging Sir! for Courts you ſure were made :
" Why then for ever bury'd in the ſhade?
“ Spirits like you, ſhould ſee and ſhould be ſeen,
" The King would ſmile on you--at leaſt the Queen.
Ah gentle Sir! you Courtiers ſo cajol us- go
But Tully has it, Nunquam minus folus ;
And as for Courts, forgive me, if I ſay
No leffons bow are taught the Spartan way:
NOTES.
poverty with the reflection that Panurge himſelf, the great
Traveller and Linguift in Rabelais, weat a begging.
* P
210
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. IV.
To teach by painting drunkards doth not laſt
Now, Aretines pictures have made few chaſte;
No more can Princes Courts (though there be few
Better pictures of vice) teach me virtue.
He like to a high-ſtretchț Lute-ſtring ſqueaks, O
Sir,
'Tis ſweet to talk of Kings. At Weſtminſter,
Said I, the man that keeps the Abby tombs,
And for his price, doth with whoever comes
Of all our Harrys, and our Edwards talk,
From King to King, and all their kin can walk :
Your ears ſhall hear nought but Kings; your eyes
meet
Kings only: The way to it is Kings-ſtreet.
He ſmack'd, and cry’d, He's baſe, mechanique,
courſe,
So are all your Engliſhmen in their diſcourſe.
Are not your Frenchmen neat? Mine, as you ſee,
I have but one, Sir, look, he follows me.
Certes they are neatly cloath'd. I of this mind am,
Your only wearing is your Grogaram.
NOTES.
VER. 104. He ev'ry day from King to King can walk, ]
There is ſomething humourous enough in the words of
the Original. The way to it is Kings-fireet. But the Imi.
Sat. IV.
211
VERSIFIED.
Tho' in his pictures Luſt be full diſplay'd,
Few are the Converts Aretine has made;
95
And tho' the Court Chow Vice exceeding clear,
None ſhould, by my advice, learn Virtue there.
At this entranc'd, he lifts his hands and eyes,
Squeaks like a high-ſtretch'd luteſtring, and replies:
" Oh 'tis the ſweeteſt of all earthly things
TOO
“ To gaze on Princes, and to talk of Kings!
Then, happy Man who ſhows the Tombs ! faid I,
He dwells amidſt the royal Family;
He ev'ry day, from King to King can walk,
Of all our Harries, all our Edwards talk,
105
And get by ſpeaking truth of monarchs dead,
What few can of the living, Eaſe and Bread.
" Lord, Sir, a meer Mechanic! ſtrangely low,
66 And coarſe of phraſe, --your Engliſh all are ſo.
6 How elegant your Frenchmen?” Mine, d'ye mean?
I have but one, I hope the fellow's clean,
III
• Oh! Sir, politely fo! nay, let me die,
6. Your only wearing is your Padua-ſoy."
Not, Sir, my only, I have better ftill,
And this
you
fee is but
my
dilhabille
ITS
Wild to get looſe, his Patience I provoke,
Miſtake, confound, object at all he ſpoke.
Nores,
tator has given us more than an equivalent in that fine
troke of moral Satire in the 106 and 1071h lines.
* P 2
212
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. II.
Not ſo, Sir, I have more.
Under this pitch
He would not fly; I chaf’d him: but as Itch
Scratch'd into ſmart, and as blunt Iron ground
Into an edge, hurts worſe : So, I (fool) found,
Croſſing hurt me. To fit my ſullenneſs,
He to another key his ſtyle doth dreſs;
And aſks what news; I tell him of new playes,
He takes my hand, and as a Still which ſtayes
A Sembrief, 'twixt each drop, he niggardly,
As loth to inrich me, ſo tells many a ly.
More than ten Hollenſheads, or Halls, or Stows,
Of trivial houfhold traſh : He know, he knows
When the Queen frown'd or ſmild, and he knows what
A ſubtle Stateſman may gather of that;
He knows who loves whom ; and who by poiſon
Hafts to an Offices reverfion;
Who waſtes in meat, in clothes, in horſe, he notes,
Who loves whores
He knows who hath ſold his land, and now doth beg
A licence, old iron, boots, ſhoes, and egge-
Shells to tranſport;
7
Sat. IV: VERSIFIE D. 213
I 20
But as coarſe iron, ſharpen’d, mangles more,
And itch moft hurts when anger'd to a fore;
So when you plague a fool, 'tis ſtill the curſe,
You only make the matter worſe and worſe.
He paſt it o'er; affects an eaſy ſmile
At all my peeviſhneſs, and turns his ſtyle.
He alks, is What News ? I tell him of new Plays,
New Eunuchs, Harlequins, and Operas. 125
He hears, and as a Still with ſimples in it
Between each drop it gives, ſtays half a minute,
Loth to enrich me with too quick replies,
By little, and by little, drops his lies.
129
Meer houſhold traſh! of birth-nights, balls, and ſhows,
Mcre than ten Hollingſheads, or Halls, or Stows.
When the Queen frown'd, or ſmild, he knows; and
what
A ſubtle Miniſter may make of that:
Who fins with whom: who got his Penſion rug,
Or quicken'd a Reverſion by a drug:
135
Whoſe place is quarter'd out, three parts in four,
And whether to a Biſhop, or a Whore:
Who having loſt his credit, pawn'd his rent,
Is therefore fit to have a Government:
Who in the ſecret, deals in Stocks ſecure,
140
And cheats th' unknowing Widow and the Poor:
Who makes a Truſt or Charity a Job,
And gets an Act of Parliament to rob:
1
* P 3
214
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. II.
ſhortly boys ſhall not play
At ſpan-counter, or blow-point, but ſhall pay
Toll to ſome Courtier; and wiſer than all us,
He knows what Lady is not painted. Thus
He with home meats cloyes me. I belch, fpue, ſpit,
Look pale and fickly, like a Patient, yet
He thruſts on more, and as he had undertook,
To ſay Gallo-Belgicus without book,
Speaks of all States and deeds that have been fince
The Spaniards came to th' loſs of Amyens.
Like a big wife, at ſight of loathed meat,
Ready to travail: ſo I ſigh, and ſweat
To hear this a Makaron talk : in vain, for yet,
Either my humour, or his own to fit,
He like a privileg'd ſpie, whom nothing can
Diſcredit, libels now'gainſt each great man.
He names the price of ev'ry office paid ;
He ſaith our wars thrive ill becauſe delaid ;
Nores.
a Whom we call an Aſs, the Italians ſtyle Maccheroni.
VER. 151. What Lady's face etc.] The Original is here
very humourous. This torrent of Tcandal concludes thus,
And wiſer than all us
He knows what Lady
the reader expects it will conclude..what Lady is painted.
No, juſt the contrary,
what Lady is not painted,
ſatirically infinuating, that that is a better Proof of the
goodneſs of bis intelligence than the other. The Reader
3
Sat. II.
215
V E R S IF I E D.
Why Turnpikes riſe, and now no Cit nor clown
Can gratis ſee the country, or the town:
145
Shortly no lad ſhall chuck, or lady vole,
But ſome exciſing Courtier will have toll.
He tells what ſtrumpet places ſells for life,
What 'Squire his lands, what citizen his wife:
And laſt (which proves him wiſer ſtill than all) 150
What Lady's face is not a whited wall.
As one of Woodward's patients, ſick, and fore,
I puke, I nauſeate,----yet he thruſts in more:
Trim’s Europe's balance, tops the ſtateſman's part,
And talks Gazettes and Poft-boys o'er by heart.
Like a big wife at ſight of loathſome meat
Ready to caft, I yawn, I ſigh, and ſweat.
Then as a licens'd ſpy, whom nothing can
Silence or hurt, he libels the great Man;
Swears ev'ry place entail'd for years to come,
160
In fure ſucceſſion to the day of doom :
He names the price for ev'ry office paid,
And ſays our wars thrive ill, becauſe delay'd :
NOTES.
ſees there is greater force in the uſe of theſe plain words,
than in thoſe which the Imitator employs. And the rea-
ſon is, becauſe the ſatire does not turn upon the odiouſneſs
of painting ; in which caſe the terms of a painted wall
had given force to the expreſſion ; but upon the frequency
of it, which required only the fimple mention of the
thing.
VER. 152. As one of Woodward's patients,] Alluding
to the effects of his uſe of oils in bilious diſorders.
* P4
216
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. II.
That Offices are intail'd, and that there are
Perpetuities of them, laſting as far
As the laſt day, and that great
Officers
Do with the Spaniards ſhare, and Dunkirkers.
I more amaz'd than Circes priſoners, when
They felt themſelves turn beaſts, felt myſelf then
Becoming Traytor, and methought I ſaw
One of our Giant Statutes ope his jaw,
To fuck me in for hearing him: I found
That as burnt venemous Leachers do grow ſound
By giving others their fores, I might grow
Guilty, and he free : Therefore I did ſhow
All ſigns of loathing; but ſince I am in,
I muſt pay mine, and my forefathers fin
To the laſt farthing. Therefore to my power
Toughly and ſtubbornly I bear ; but th’ hower
Of mercy now was come : he tries to bring
Me to pay a fine to 'ſcape a torturing,
And ſays, Sir, can you ſpare me--? I ſaid, Willingly ;
Nay, Sir, can you ſpare me a crown? Thankfully I
Gave it, as ranſom; but as fidlers, ſtill,
Though they be paid to be gone, yet needs will
Thruſt one more jigg upon you : ſo did he
With his long complimental thanks vex me.
But he is gone, thanks to his needy want,
And the Prerogative of my Crown; ſcant
His thanks were ended, when I (which did ſee
All the Court fill'd with more ſtrange things than he)
Notes.
VER. 167. fall endlong] The ſudden effe&t of the tranf-
formation is ſtrongly and finely painted to the imagina--
Sat IV. VERSIFIED 217
Nay hints, 'tis by connivance of the Court,
That Spain robs on, and Dunkirk's ſtill a Port. 165
Not more amazement ſeiz'd on Circe's gueſts,
To ſee themſelves fall endlong into beaſts,
Than mine, to find a ſubject ſtay'd and wiſe
Already half turn'd traytor by ſurprize.
I felt th' infection ſlide from him to me,
170
As in the pox, ſome give it to get free;
And quick to ſwallow me, methought I ſaw
One of our Giant Statutes ope its jaw.
In that nice moment, as another Lye
Stood juſt a-tilt, the Miniſter came by.
175
To him he flies, and bows, and bows again,
Then, cloſe as Umbra, joins the dirty train.
Not Fannius' ſelf more impudently near,
When half his noſe is in his Prince's ear.
I quakd at heart; and ſtill afraid, to fee
180
All the Court fill’d with ſtranger things than he,
Ran out as faſt, as one that pays his bail
And dreads more actions, hurries from a jail.
Bear me, fome God! oh quickly bear me hence
To wholſome Solitude, the nurſe of fenſe: 185
Where Contemplation prunes her ruffled wings,
And the free foul looks down to pity Kings !
Notes.
tion, not in the ſound, but in the ſenſe of theſe two words.
VER, 184. Bear me,] Theſe four lines are wonderfully
X
1
218
SATIRES OF DR: DONNE Sat. IV.
Ran from thence with ſuch, or more haſt than one
Who fears more actions, doth haft from priſon.
At home in wholeſome ſolitarineſs
My piteous ſoul began the wretchedneſs
Of ſuiters at court to mourn, and a trance
Like his, who dreamt he ſaw hell, did advance
It ſelf o'er me : ſuch men as he ſaw there
I ſaw at court, and worſe and more. Low fear
Becomes the guilty, not th' accuſer : Then,
Shall I, none's ſlave, of high-born or rais'd men
Fear frowns; and my miſtreſs truth, betray thee
For th' huffing, bragart, puft nobility ?
No, no, thou which ſince yeſterday haſt been,
Almoſt about the whole world, haſt thou ſeen,
O fun, in all thy journey, vanity,
Such as ſwells the bladder of our court? I
Think he which made your Waxen garden, and
Tranſported it from Italy, to ſtand
With us at London, fouts our Courtiers ; for
Juſt ſuch gay painted things, which no ſap, nor
Nores.
ſublime. His impatience in this region of vice, is like
that of Virgil, in the region of heat. They both call
out as if they were half itined by the ſuiphury air of the
place,
O qui me gelidis -
O quickly bear me hence.
b A Show of the Italian Gardens in Waxwork, in the
time of King James the Firſt. P.
Sat. IV.
219
VERSIFIED.
200
There ſober thought purſu'd th' amuſing theme,
Till Fancy colour'd it, and form'd a Dream.
A Vifion hermits can to Hell tranſport,
190
And forc'd ev’n me to ſee the damn'd at Court.
Not Dante dreaming all th' infernal ſtate,
Beheld ſuch ſcenes of envy, fin, and hate.
Baſe Fear becomes the guilty, not the free;
Suits Tyrants, Plunderers, but ſuits not me:
195
Shall I, the Terror of this finful town,
Care, if a liv'ry'd Lord or ſmile or frown?
Who cannot flatter, and deteſt who can,
Tremble before a noble Serving-man?
O
my
fair miſtreſs, Truth ! ſhall I quit thee
For huffing, braggart, puft Nobility ?
Thou, who ſince yeſterday haft rollid o'er all
The buſy, idle blockheads of the ball,
Haſt thou, oh Sun beheld an emptier ſort,
Than ſuch as ſwell this bladder of a court?
205
Now pox on thoſe who ſhew a Court in wax!
It ought to bring all courtiers on their backs:
Such painted puppets ! ſuch a varniſh'd race
Of hollow gew-gaws, only dreſs and face !
Notes.
Ver. 188. There fober thought] Theſe two lines are
remarkable for the delicacy and propriety of the expreſ
fion.
VER. 194. Baſe Fear] Theſe four admirable lines be-
come the high office he had aſſumed, and lo nobly ſuf-
tained.
220
SATIRES or Dr. DONNE Sat. IV.
Taft have in them, ours are ; and natural
Some of the ſtocks are ; their fruits baſtard all.
'Tis ten a Clock and paſt; all whom the mues,
Baloun, or tennis, diet, or the ſtews
Had all the morning held, now the ſecond
Time made ready, that day, in filocks are found
In the Preſence, and I (God pardon me)
As freſh and ſweet their Apparels be, as be
Their fields they ſold to buy them. For a king
Thoſe hoſe are, cry the flatterers: and bring
Them next week to the theatre to ſell.
Wants reach all ſtates : me ſeems they do as well
At ftage, as courts; all are players. Whoe’er looks,
(For themſelves dare not go) o'er Cheapfide books,
Shall find their wardrobes inventory. Now
The Ladies come. As pirates (which do know
That there came weak ſhips fraught with Cutchanel)
The men board them; and praiſe (as they think) well,
!
Notes.
« That is, of wood.
VER. 206. Court in wax!] A famous fhow of the
Court of Françe, in Wax-work. P.
VER. 213. At Fig's, at White's,] White's was a noted
Sat. IV.
221
VERSIFIED.
220
Such waxen noſes, ſtately ſtaring things- 210
No wonder ſome folks bow, and think them Kings.
See! where the Britiſh youth, engag'd no more
At Fig's, at White's, with felons, or a whore,
Pay their laſt duty to the Court, and come
All freſh and fragrant, to the drawing-room; 215
In hues as gay, and odours as divine,
As the fair fields they ſold to look fo fine.
“ That's velvet for a King !” the flatt'rer ſwears;
'Tis true, for ten days hence 'twill be King Lear’s.
Our Court may juſtly to our ſtage give rules,
That helps it both to fools-coats and to fools.
And why not players ftrut in courtiers cloaths ?
For theſe are actors too, as well as thoſe :
Wants reach all ſtates; they beg but better dreſt,
And all is ſplendid poverty at beſt.
225
Painted for ſight, and eſſenc'd for the ſmell,
Like frigates fraught with ſpice and cochine'l,
Sail in the Ladies : how each pyrate eyes
So weak a veffel, and ſo rich a prize!
Top-gallant he, and the in all her trim,
230
He boarding her, ſhe ſtriking fail to him :
Vores.
gaming-houſe: Fig's, a Prize fighter's Academy, where
the young Nobility receiv'd inſtruction in thoſe days : Ic
was alſo cuſtomary for the nobility and gentry to viſit the
condemned criminals in Newgate. P.
VER. 220. our flage give rules,] Alluding to the Cham-
berlain's Authority
222
SATIRES OF .
DR. DONNE Sat. II.
Their beauties; they the mens wits ; both are bought.
Why good wits ne'er wear ſcarlet gowns ", I thought
This cauſe, Theſe men, mens wits for ſpeeches buy,
And women buy all red which ſcarlets dye.
He call'd her beauty lime-twigs, her hair net:
She fears her drugs ill lay'd, her hair looſe fete.
Would not Heraclitus laugh to ſee Macrine
From hat to ſhoe, himſelf at door refine,
As if the Preſence were a Moſch: and lift
His ſkirts and hoſe, and call his clothes to ſhrift,
Making them confefs not only mortal
Great ſtains and holes in them, but venial
Feathers and duſt, wherewith they fornicate:
And then by Durer's rules ſurvey the itate
Of his cach limb, and with ſtrings the odds tries
Of his neck to his leg, and waste to thighs.
So in immaculate clothes, and Symmetry
Perfect as Circles', with ſuch nicety
As a young Preacher at his firſt time goes
To preach, he enters, and a lady which owes
Him not ſo much as good will, he arreſts,
And unto her proteſts, proteſts, proteſts,
Notes.
d i. e. Arrive to worſhip and magiſtracy. The reaſon
he gives is, that thoſe who have wit are forced to ſell their
ftock, initead of trading with it. This thought, tho' not
arnils, our Poet has not paraphraſed. It is obſcurely ex-
preſled, and poſſibly it eſcaped him.
Sa t.IV. VERSIF I E D.
223
“ Dear Counteſs! you have charms all hearts to hit!”
And “ Sweet Sir Fopling! you have ſo much wit !!!
Such wits and beauties are not prais'd for nought,
For both the beauty and the wit are bought. 235
Twou'd burſt ev’n Heraclitus with the ſpleen,
To ſee thoſe anticks, Fopling and Courtin:
The Preſence ſeems, with things ſo richly odd,
The Moſque of Mahound, or ſome queer Pa-god.
See them ſurvey their limbs by Durer's rules, 2.40
Of all beau-kind the beſt proportion's fools!
Adjuſt their cloaths, and to confeſſion draw
Thoſe venial fins, an atom, or a ſtraw
But oh! what terrors muſt diítract the foul
Convicted of that mortal crime, a hole ;
245
Or ſhould one pound of powder leſs beſpread
Thoſe monkey tails that wag behind their head.
Thus finith'd, and corrected to a hair,
They march, to prate their hour before the Fair,
So firſt to preach a white-glov'd Chaplain goes,
With band of Lilly, and with cheek of Roſe,
Notes.
ei.e. Conſcious that both her complexion and her hair
are borrowed, the ſuſpects that, when, in the common
cant of flatterers, he calls her beauty lime-twigs, and her
hair a net to catch lovers, he means to infinuate that her
colours are coarſely laid on, and her borrowed hair looſely
woven.
f Becauſe all the lines drawn from the centre to the cir-
curAference are equal.
Ver. 240. Durer's rules,] Albert Durer,
224
SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. IV.
So much as at Rome would ſerve to have thrown
Ten Cardinals into the Inquiſition ;
And whiſpers by Feſu ſo oft, that a
Purſuevant would have raviſh'd him away
For ſaying our Ladies Pſalter. But 'tis fit
That they each other plague, they merit it.
But here comes Glorious that will plague them both,
Who in the other extreme only doth
Call a rough careleſneſs, good faſhion :
Whoſe cloak his ſpurs tear, or whom he ſpits on,
He cares not, he. His ill words do no harm
To him; he ruſhes in, as if Arm, arm,
1
He meant to cry; and though his face be as ill
As theirs which in old hangings whip Chrift, ſtill
He ſtrives to look worſe; he keeps all in awe ;
Jeſts like a licens'd fool, commands like law.
Týr'd, now I leave this place, and but pleas'd lo
As men from goals to execution go,
Go, through the great chamber (why is it hung
With the ſeven deadly fins ?) being among
Sat. IV.
225
VERSIFIED.
Sweeter than Sharon, in immac'late trim,
Neatneſs itſelf impertinent in him.
Let but the Ladies ſmile, and they are bleſt:
Prodigious ! how the things proteſt, proteſt : 255
Peace, fools, or Gonſon will for Papiſts ſeize you,
If once he catch you at your Hefu! Jeſu!
Nature made ev'ry Fop to plague his brother,
Juſt as one Beauty mortifies another.
But here's the Captain that will plague them both, 260
Whoſe air cries Arm ! whoſe very look's an oath :
The Captain's honeſt, Sirs, and that's enough,
Tho' his ſoul's bullet, and his body buff.
He ſpits fore-right; his haughty cheſt before,
Like batt'ring rams, beats open ev'ry door:
265
And with a face as red, and as awry,
As Herod's hang-dogs in old Tapeſtry,
Scarecrow to boys, the breeding woman's curſe,
Has yet a ſtrange ambition to look worſe ;
Confounds the civil, keeps the rude in awe, 270
Jeſts like a licens'd fool, commands like law.
Frighted, I quit the room, but leave it fo
As men from Jayls to execution go ;
For hung with deadly fins I ſee the wall,
And lin'd with Giants deadlier than 'em all :
275
Note.
VER. 274. For hung with deadly fins] The Room hung
with od Tapestry, repreſenting the leven deadly fins. P.
X
}
*
226 SATIRES OF DR. DONNE Sat. IV.
Thoſe Aſkaparts , men big enough to throw
Charing-Croſs for a bar, men that do know
No token of worth, but Queens man, and fine
Living ; barrels of beef, flaggons of wine.
I ſhook like a ſpied Spie-Preachers which are
Seas of Wit and Arts, you can, then dare,
Drown the ſins of this place, but as for me
Which am but a ſcant book, enough ſhall be
To waſh the ſtains away : Although I yet
(With Maccabees modeſty) the known merit
Of my work lefſen, yet ſome wiſe men ſhall,
I hope, eſteem my Writs Canonical.
Note.
A Giant famous in Romances. P.
Sat. IV.
227
VERSIFIED:
Each man an Aſkapart, of ſtrength to toſs
For Quoits, both Temple-bar and Charing-croſs.
Scar’d at the grizly forms, I ſweat, I fly,
And ſhake all o'er, like a diſcovered ſpy. 279
Courts are too much for wits ſo weak as mine:
Charge them with Heaven's Artillery, bold Divine !
From ſuch alone the Great rebukes endure,
Whoſe Satire's facred, and whoſe rage ſecure :
'Tis mine to waſh a few light ſtains, but theirs
To deluge fin, and drown a Court in tears. 285
Howe'er what's now Apocrypha, my Wit,
In time to come, may paſs for holy writ.
R 2
EPILOGUE
TO THE
SA TIRES,
In Two DIALOGUES,
Written in MDCCXXXVIII.
Q3

Plate XVII.
Vd. IV. facing p. 231,
THayman inv.et del.
Grignim Scalp.
O sacred Weapon, left for Truthi Defence,
Sole Dread of Folly, Vice and Insolence!
To all but Heaven-directed Hands denied,
thee, but the
Gods must gaude;
The Muse
may
give thee, but the
y Sat
( 231 )
EPILOGUE
TO THE
SAT I RE S
Written in MDCCXXXVIII.
DIALOGUE 1,
NOT
i
FR. TOT twice a twelve-month you appear in
Print,
And when it comes, the Court fee nothing in't.
VARIATIONS.
After x 2. in the MS.
You don't, I hope, pretend to quit the trade,
Becauſe
you
think your reputation made :
Like good
** of whom ſo much was faid,
That when his name was up, he lay' a-bed.
Come, come, refreſh us with a livelier ſong,
Or like ** you'll lie a-bed too long.
Notes.
VER. I. Not twice a twelve-month etc.) Theſe two lines
are from Horace; and the only lines that are ſo in the
whole Poem ; being meant to give a handle to that which
follows in the character of an impertinent Cenſurer,
'Tis all from Horace ; etc. P.
Ver. 2. the Court Sie izothing in't.) He choſe this ex-
preſſion for the ſake of its elegant and ſatiric ambiguity.
His writings abound in them.
3
Q4
232
EPILOGUE Dial. I.
You grow correct, that once, with Rapture writ,
And are, beſides, too moral for a Wit.
Decay of Parts, alas ! we all muſt feel ---
5
Why now, this moment, don't I ſee you ſteal ?
'Tis all from Horace; Horace long before ye
Said, “ Tories call'd him Whig, and Whigs a Tory;"
And taught his Romans, in much better metre,
" To laugh at Fools who put their truſt in Peter.” 10
But Horace, Sir, was delicate, was nice;
Bubo obſerves, he laſh'd no fort of Vice :
Horace would ſay, Sir Billy ſerv'd the Crown,
Blunt could do Bus'neſs, H-ggins knew the Town;
In Sappho touch the Failing of the Sex,
In rev'rend Biſhops note ſome ſmall NegleEtsy
And own, the Spaniard did a waggiſh thing,
Who cropt our Ears, and ſent them to the King.
VARIATIONS
P. Sir, what I write, ſhould be correctly writ.
F. Correct ! 'tis what no genius can admit.
Beſides, you grow too moral for a Wit.
15
Nores.
VER. 12. Bubo obſerves,] Some guilty pefon very fond
of making ſuch an obſervation. P.
VER. 14. H-ggins) Formerly Jaylar of the Fleet pri-
fon, enriched himſelf by many exactions, for which he
was tried and expelled. P.
VER. 18. Who cropt our Ears,] Said to be executed by
the Captain of a Spaniſh ſhip on one Jenkins a Captain of
Dial. I. TO THE SATIRES.
233
1
21
His lly, polite, inſinuating ſtyle
Could pleaſe at Court, and make AUGUSTUS ſmile:
An artful Manager, that crept between
His Friend and Shame, and was a kind of Screen.
But 'faith your very Friends will ſoon be fore;
Patriots there are, who wiſh you'd jeſt no more
And where's the Glory ; 'twill be only thought 25
The Great man never offer'd you a groat.
Go ſee Sir ROBERT
P. See Sir ROBERT !--- hum
And never laugh for all my life to come?
Seen him I have, but in his happier hour
Of Social Pleaſure, ill-exchang'd for Pow'r ;
30
Seen him, uncumber'd with the Venal tribe,
Smile without Art, and win without a Bribe.
Notes.
an Engliſh one. He cut off his ears, and bid him carry
them to the King his maſter. P.
VER. 22. Screen.)
Omne vafer vitium ridenti Flaccus amico
Tangit, et admillus circum præcordia ludit. Perſ. P.
Ibid. Screen.) A metaphor peculiarly appropriated to a
certain perſon in power. P.
VER. 24. Patriots there are, &c.] This appellation was
generally given to thoſe in oppoſition to the Court. Though
fome of them (which our author hints at) had views too
mean and intereſted to deſerve that nanie. P.
Ver. 26. The Great man] A phraſe, by common uſe,
appropriated to the firſt miniſter. P.
VER. 31. Seen him, uncumber'd] Theſe two verſes were
234
EPILOGUE Dial. I.
:
Would he oblige me? let me only find,
He does not think me what he thinks mankind,
Come, come, at all I laugh he laughs, no doubt; 35
The only diff'rence is, I dare laugh out.
F. Why yes: with Scripture ſtill you may be free;
A Horſe laugh, if you pleaſe, at Honeſty ;
A Joke on Jekyl, or fome odd Old Whig
Who never chang's his Principle, or Wig:
40
A Patriot is a Fool in ev'ry age,
Whom all Lord Chamberlains allow the Stage :
Theſe nothing hurts; they keep their Faſhion ſtill,
And wear their ſtrange old Virtue, as they will.
If any aſk you,
66 Who's the Man, ſo near 45
“ His Prince, that writés in Verſe, and has his ear?"
Why, anſwer, LYTTLETON, and I'll engage
The worthy Youth ſhall ne'er be in a rage :
Nores.
originally in the poem, though omitted in all the first edi-
tions. P.
VER. 37. Why yes : with Scripture fill you may be free ;]
Thus the Man commonly called Mother Oſborn, who was
in the Miniſter's pay, and wrote Journals ; for one Paper
in behalf of Sir Robert, had frequently two againſt J. C.
VER. 39. A Joke on Jekyl,] Sir Joſeph Jekyl, Mafter
of the Rolls, a true Whig in his principles, and a man
of the utmoſt probity. He ſometimes voted againſt the
Court, which drew upon him the laugh here deicribed of
One who beſtowed it equally upon Religion and Honeſty.
He died a few months after the publication of this poem. P.
Ver. 43. Theſe nothing hurts ;] i, e, offends.
VER. 47. Iby, anſwer, Lyttleton,] George Lyttelton,
Dial. I.
235
TO THE SATIRES.
But were his Verſes vile, his Whiſper baſe,
You'd quickly find him in Lord Fanny's caſe.
50
Sejanus, Wolſey, hurt not honeſt FLEURY,
But well may put ſome Stateſman in a fury.
Laugh then at any, but at Fools or Foes ;
Theſe
you but anger, and you
mend not thoſe.
Laugh at your friends, and, if your Friends are fore,
So much the better, you may laugh the more.
To Vice and Folly to confine the jeſt,
Sets half the world, God knows, againſt the reſt;
Did not the Sneer of more impartial men
At Senſe and Virtue, balance all agen.
бо
Judicious Wits ſpread wide the Ridicule,
And charitably comfort Knave and Fool.
P. Dear Sir, forgive the Prejudice of Youth:
Adieu Diſtinction, Satire, Warmth, and Truth!
56
.
Notes.
Secretary to the Prince of Wales, diſtinguiſhed both for
his writings and ſpeeches in the ſpirit of Liberiy. P.
VER. 51. Sejanus, Wolſey, ] The one the wicked mini-
Iter of Tiberius ; the other, of Henry VIII. The wri-
ters againſt the Court ulually beſtowed theſe and other
odious names on the Miniſter, without diſtinction, and in
the moſt injurious manner.
See Dial. IL. * 137. P.
Ibid. Fleury,] Cardinal: and Miniſter to Louis XV, It
was a Patriot faſhion, at that time, to cry up his wiſdom
and honeſty. P.
23.6 E PILG G U E Dial. I.
Come, harmleſs Characters that no one hit; 65
Come, Henley's Oratory, Oſborn's Wit!
The Honey dropping from Favonio's tongue,
The Flow’rs of Bubo, and the Flow of Y--Ag!
The gracious Due of Pulpit Eloquence,
And all the well-whipt Cream of Courtly Senſe, 70
That Firſt was H-vy's, F-'s next, and then
The S-te's, and then H-vy's once agen.
O come, that eaſy Ciceronian ſtyle,
So Latin, yet ſo Engliſh all the while,
As, tho' the Pride of Middleton and Bland,
75
All Boys may read, and Girls may underſtand!
Then might I ſing, without the leaſt offence,
And all I ſung ſhould be the Nation's Senſe ;
Or teach the melancholy Muſe to mourn,
Hang the fad Verfe on CAROLINA's Urn, 80
Notes.
Ver. 66. Henley -- Ofoorn,] See them in their places in
the Dunciad, P.
VER. 69. The gracious Dew] Alludes to ſome court
fermons, and florid panegyrical ipeeches ; particularly one
very full of puerilities and flatteries ; which afterwards
got into an addreſs in the ſame pretty ſtyle ; and was laſtly
ferved up in an Epitaph, between Latin and Engliſh, pub-
lithed by its author. P.
VER. 76. All Boys may read, and Girls may underſtand! ]
i, e. full of ſchool-book phraſes and Angliciſms.
VER. 78, Nation's Senſe;] The cant of Politics at that
time.
VBR. 89. Carolina] Queen confort to King George II.
Dial. I.
237
TO THE SATIRES.
And hail her paſſage to the Realms of Reſt,
All Parts perform’d, and all her Children bleſt !
So - Satire is no more - I feel it die
No Gazetteer more innocent than I
And let, a God's-name, ev'ry Fool and Knave 85
Be grac'd thro' Life, and flatter'd in his Grave.
F. Why fo? if Satire knows its Time and Place,
You ſtill may laſh the greateſt- in Diſgrace :
For Merit will by turns forſake them all;
Would you know when ! exactly when they fall. 90
But let all Satire in all Changes ſpare
Immortal S-k, and grave De
re.
Notes,
She died in 1737. Her death gave occaſion, as is ob-
ſerved above, to many indiſcreet and mean performances
unworthy of her memory, whole laſt moments manifeſted
the utmoſt courage and reſolution. P.
How highly our Poet thought of that truly great perfo-
nage may be ſeen by one of his letters to Mr. Allen, writ-
ten at that time; in which, amongit others, equally ref-
pectful, are the following words: “The Queen thewed,
by the confeſſion of all about her, the utmoſt firmneſs
" and temper to her laſt moments, and through the courſe
“ of great torments. What character hiſtorians will al-
“ low her, I do not know; but all her domeſtic ſervants,
" and thoſe neareſt her, give her the beſt teftimony, that
4 of ſincere tears.'
VER. 92. Immortal Sk, and grave Demate!] A title
given that Lord by King James II. He was of the Bed.
chamber to King William ; he was ſo to King George I.
he was fo to King George II. This Lord was very kilful
3
238
Dial. I.
EPILOGUE
Silent and ſoft, as Saints remove to Heav'n,
All Tyes diffolv'd, and ev'ry Sin forgiv'n,
Theſe may ſome gentle miniſterial Wing
95
Receive, and place for ever near a King !
There, where no Paſſion, Pride, or Shame tranſport,
Lull’d with the ſweet Nepenthe of a Court;
Notes.
in all the forms of the Houſe, in which he diſcharged
himſelf with great gravity. P.
VEŘ. 97. There, where 110 Paffon, etc.] The excellent
writer De l'Eſprit des Loix gives the following character
of the Spirit of Courts, and the Principle of Monarchies :
Qu'on liſe ce que les Hiſtoriens de tous les tems ont dit
" ſur la Cour des Monarques ; qu'on ſe rapelle les con-
66 verſations des hommes de tous les Païs ſur le miſerable
“ caractère des COURTISANS; ce ne ſont point des choſes
“ de ſpeculation, mais d'une triſte expérience. L'ambi-
6. tion dans l'oiſiveté, la baſſeſſe dans l'orgueil, le defir de
s'enrichir ſans travail, l'averfion pour la vérité ; la fla-
terie, la trahiſon, la perfidie, l'abandon de tous ſes
" engagemens, le mepris des devoirs du Citoyen, la crainte
“ de la vertu du Prince, l'eſperance de ſes foibleſſes, et
plus, que tout cela, LE RIDICULE PERPETUEL JETTE
SUR LA VERTU, font, je crois, le Caractère de la plu.
part des Courtiſans marqué dans tous les lieux et dans
tous les tems. Or il eſt très mal-aiſé que les Principaux
"s d'un Etat ſoient malhonnêtes-gens, et que les inferieurs
ſoient gens-de-bien, que ceux-là ſoyent trompeurs, &
" que ceux-ci conſentent à n'être que dupes. Que fi dans
"lé Peuple il ſe trouve quelque malheureux honnête-
homme, le Cardinal de Richelieu dans ſon Teſtament
politique infinue, qu'un Monarque doit ſe garder de s'en
“ Tervir. Tant-il est vrai que la Vertu n'eſt pas le reſſort
“ de ce Gouvernment."
2
Dial. I.
239
TO THE SATIRES
ro
IOI
There, where no Father's, Brother's Friend's diſgrace
Once break their reſt, or ſtir them from their Place:
But paſt the Senſe of human Miſeries,
All Tears are wip'd for ever from all eyes ;
No cheek is known to bluſh, no heart to throb,
Save when they loſe a Queſtion, or a Job.
P. Good Heav'n forbid, that I ſhould blaft their
glory,
105
Who know how like Whig Miniſters to Tory,
And when three Sov'reigns dy'd, could ſcarce be vext,
Confid'ring what a gracious Prince was next.
Have I, in ſilent wonder feen ſuch things
As Pride in Slaves, and Avarice in Kings;
And at a Peer or Peereſs, ſhall I fret,
Who ſtarves a Siſter, or forſwears a Debt?
Virtue, I grant you, is an empty boaſt ;
But ſhall the Dignity of Vice be loſt?
Ye Gods! ſhall Cibber's Son, without rebuke, 115
Swear like a Lord, or Rich out-whore a Duke ;
II
VARIATIONS.
VER. 11 2. in ſome editions,
Who Itarves a Mother,
Notes.
VER. 108. gracious Prince] The ſtyle of Addreſſes on
an acceſſion.
Ver. 115. Cibber's Son, --- Rich] Two Players : look
for them in the Dunciud. P.
24.0
Bial. I.
EPILOGUE
}
A Fav'rite's Porter with his Maſter vie,
Be brib'd as often, and as often lie?
Shall Ward draw Contracts with a Stateſman's ſkill?
Or Japhet pocket, like his Grace, a Will ? 120
Is it for Bond, or Peter, (paltry things)
To pay their Debts, or keep their Faith, like Kings?
If Blount diſpatch'd himſelf he play'd the man,
And ſo may'ſt thou, illuſtrious Paſſeran !
But ſhall a Printer, weary of his life,
125
Learn, from their Books, to hang himſelf and Wife?
This, this, my Friend, I cannot, muſt not bear;
Vice thus abus’d, demands a Nation's care :
This calls the Church to deprecate our Sin,
And hurls the Thunder of the Laws on Gin.
130
Nores.
Ver. 123. If Blount] Author of an impious and fooliſh
book called the Oracles of Reaſon, who being in love with
a near kinſwoman of his, and rejected, gave himſelf a
ſtab in the arm, as pretending to kill himſelf, of the con-
ſequence of which he really died. P.
Ver. 124. Paſſeran!] Author of another book of the
ſame ſtamp, called A philoſophical diſcourſe on death, being
a defence of ſuicide.
VER. 125. But mall a Printer, etc.) A Fact that hap-
pened in London a few years paſt. The unhappy man
left behind him a paper juſtifying his action by the rea-
ſonings of ſome of theſe authors. P.
VER. 129. This calls the Church to deprecate our Sin,]
Alluding to the forms of prayer, compoſed in the tinies
of public calamity; where the fault is generally laid upon
the People.
Ver. 130. Gin.) A ſpirituous liquor, the exorbitant
Dial. I.
241
TO THE SATIRES.
Let modeſt Foster, if he will, excell
Ten Metropolitans in preaching well;
A fimple Quaker, or a Quaker's Wife,
Out-do Landaffe in Doctrine,--yea in Life:
Let humble ALLEN, with an aukward Shame,
Do good by ſtealth, and bluſh to find it Fame.
135
Notes.
uſe of which had almoſt deſtroyed the loweſt rank of the
People till it was reſtrained by an act of Parliainent in
1736. P.
VER. 135. Let modeft Foster,] This confirms an ob-
ſervation which Mr. Hobbes made long ago, That there
be very few Bijbops that azt a ſermon ſo well, as divers
Preſbyterians and fanatic Preachers can do. Hilt. of Civ,
Wars. p. 62. SCRIBL.
VER. 134. Landaffe] A poor Biſhoprick in Wales, as
poorly ſupplied. P.
VER. 135. Let humble ALLEN with an aukward Shame,
Do good by ſtealth, and bluſh to find i: Fame.] The true
Character of our Author's moral pieces, coniidered as a
Supplement to human laws (the force of which they have
defurvedly obtained) is, that his praiſe is always delicate,
and his reproof never miſplaced : and therefore the firſt
not reaching the head, and the latter too ſenſibly touching
the heart of his vulgar readers, have made himn cenſured
as a cold Panegyriſt, and a cauſtic Satirist; whereas, in-
deed, he was the warmeſt friend, and the moit placable
enemy.
The lines above have been commonly given as an in-
ftance of this ungenerous backwardneſs in doing juſtice
to merit. And, indeed, if fairly given, would bear hard
upon the Author, who believed the perſon here celebrated
to be one of the greateſt characters in private life that
ever was; and known by him to be, in fact, all, and
* R
}
242
Dial. 1.
EPILOGUE
1
Virtue may chuſe the high or low Degree,
'Tis juft alike to Virtue, and to me;
Notes.
much more than he had feigned in the imaginary virtaes
of the man of Rofs. One, who, whether he be conſidered
in his civil, ſocial, domeftic, or religious character, is, in
all theſe views, an ornament to human nature.
And, indeed, we ſhall fee, that what is here ſaid of
hin agrees only with ſuch a Character. But as both the
thought and the expreſſion have been cenſured, we ſhall
conſider them in their order.
Let humble Allen, with an aukward Shame,
Do good by Realth --
This encomium has been called obfcure (as well as penu-
rious.) It may be ſo; not from any defect in the concep-
tion, but from the deepneſs of the ſenſe ; and, what may
ſeem more ſtrange, (as we ſhall ſee afterwards) from the
elegance of phraſe, and exactneſs of expreſſion. We are
ſo abſolutely governed by cuſtom, that to act contrary to
it, creates even in virtuous men, who are ever modeſt, a
kind of diffidence, which is the parent of Shame. But
when, to this, there is joined a conſciouſneſs that, in for-
ſaking cuſtom, you follow truth and reaſon, the indigna-
tion ariſing from ſuch a conſcious virtue, mixing with
Mame, produces that amiable aukwardneſs, in going out
of the faſhion, which the Poet, here, celebrates.
and bluſh to find it Fame.
i. e. He bluſhed at the degeneracy of his times, which,
at beſt, gave his goodneſs its due commendation (the
thing he never aimed at) inſtead of following and imitat-
ing his example, which was the reaſon why ſome acts of
it were not done by ſtealth, but more openly.
So far as to the thought: but it will be ſaid,
tantamne rem tam negligenter?
And this will lead us to ſay ſomething concerning the ex-
Dial. I.
243
TO THE SATIRES.
1
Dwell in a Monk, or light upon a King,
She's ſtill the ſame, belov’d, contented thing. 140
Vice is undone, if ſhe forgets her Birth,
And ſtoops from Angels to the Dregs of Earth :
But 'tis the Fall degrades her to a Whore ;
Let Greatneſs own her, and ſhe's mean no more, 144
Her Birth, her Beauty, Crowds and Courts confeſs,
Chafte Matrons praiſe her, and grave Biſhops bleſs ;
In golden Chains the willing World ſhe draws,
And hers the Goſpel is, and hers the Laws,
Mounts the Tribunal, lifts her ſcarlet head,
And ſees pale Virtue carted in her ſtead.
150
Lo! at the wheels of her Triumphal Car,
Old England's Genius, rough with many a Scar,
Dragg'd in the Duft! his arms hang idly round,
His Flag inverted trails along the ground !
Our Youth, all livery'd o'er with foreign Gold, 155
Before her dance : behind her, crawl the Old !
See thronging Millions to the Pagod run,
And offer Country, Parent, Wife, or Son!
Notes.
prelion, which will clear up what remains of the difficulty.
in theſe lines, and in chole which precede and follow
them, are contained an ironical negleži of Virtue, and an
ironical concern and care for Vice. So that the Poet's
elegant correctneſs of compoſition required, that his lan-
guage, in the firſt caſe ſhould preſent foinething of negli-
gence and cenſure ; which is admirably implied in the ex.
presion of the thought.
:
* R 2
244
E PILOGUE Dial. 1.
Hear her black Trumpet thro’ the Land proclaim,
That NOT TO BE CORRUPTED IS THE SHAME, 160.
In Soldier, Churchman, Patriot, Man in Pow'r,
'Tis Av'rice all, Ambition is no more !
See, all our Nobles begging to be Slaves !
See, all our Fools aſpiring to be Knayes !
The Wit of Cheats, the Courage of a Whore, 165
Are what ten thouſand envy and adore :
All, all look up, with reverential Awe,
At Crimes that 'ſcape, or triumph o'er the Law :
While Truth, Worth, Wiſdom, daily they decry-
“ Nothing is Sacred now but Villainy." 170
Yet may this Verſe (if ſuch a Verſe remain)
Show, there was one who held it in diſdain.
( 245 )
E P I L OG U E
TO THE
S A T I RE S.
Written in MDCCXXXVIII.
DIALOGUE II.
'T
FR.
IS all a Libel - Paxton (Sir) will ſay
P. Not yet, my Friend ! to morrow faith
it may ;
And for that very cauſe I print to day.
How ſhould I fret to mangle ev'ry line,
In rev'rence to the Sins of Thirty-nine !
5
Vice, with ſuch Giant ſtrides comes on amain,
Invention ſtrives to be before in vain;
Feign what I will, and paint it e'er ſo ſtrong,
Some riſing Genius fins up to my Song
F. Yet none but you by Name the guilty laſh; 10
Ev'n Guthry ſaves half Newgate by a Dalh.
Notes.
Ver. 1. Paxton.] Late ſollicitor to the Treaſury.
Ver. 11. Eu'n Guthry.) The Ordinary of Newgate,
VOL. IV.
* R 3
|
246
Dial. II.
EPILOGUE
20
Spare then the Perſon, and expoſe the Vice.
P. How, Sir! not damn the Sharper, but the Dice?
Come on then, Satire ! gen'ral, unconfin’d,
Spread thy broad wing, and fouce on all the kind. 15
Ye Stateſmen, Prieſts, of one Religion all !
Ye Tradeſmen, vile, in Army, Court, or Hall !
Ye Rev'rend Atheiſts. F. Scandal! name them, Who?
P. Why that's the thing you bid me not to do.
Who ſtarv'd a Siſter, who forſwore a Debt,
I never nam'd; the Town's enquiring yet.
The pois'ning Dame - F. You mean - P. I don't.
F. You do.
P. See, now I keep the Secret, and not you!
The bribing Stateſman-F. Hold, too high you go. 24
P. The brib'd Elector--F. There you ſtoop too low.
P. I fain would pleaſe you, if I knew with what ;
Tell me, which Knave is lawful Game, which not?
Muft great Offenders, once eſcap'd the Crown,
Like Royal Harts be never more run down?
Admit your Law to ſpare the Knight requires,
30
As Beaſts of Nature may we hunt the Squires ?
Suppoſe I cenſure-you know what I mean
To fave a Biſhop, may I name a Dean?
1
Notes.
who publiſhes the memoirs of the Malefactors, and is often
prevailed upon to be lo tender of their reputation, as to
ſet down no more than the initials of their name. P.
Dial. II.
247
TO THE SATIRES
F. A Dean, Sir? no: his Fortune is not made,
You hurt a man that's riſing in the Trade. 35
P. If not the Tradeſman who ſet up to day,
Much leſs the 'Prentice who to morrow may.
Down, down, proud Satire ! tho’a Realm be ſpoil de
Arraign no mightier Thief than wretched Wild;
Or, if a Court or Country's made a job,
40
Go drench a Pick-pocket, and join the Mob.
But, Sir, I beg you (for the Love of Vice !
The matter's weighty, pray conſider twice;
Have you lefs pity for the needy Cheat,
The poor and friendleſs Villain, than the Great? 45
Alas! the ſmall Diſcredit of a Bribe
Scarce hurts the Lawyer, but undoes the Scribe.
Then better fure it Charity becomes
To'tax Directors, who (thank God) have Plums;
Still better, Miniſters; or, if the thing
May pinch ev'n there--why lay it on a King.
50
Notes.
VER. 35. You hurt a man that's riſing in the Trade.]
For, as the reaſonable De la Bruyere obſerves, Qui ne
“ fáit être un Erasme, doit penſer à être Evéque."
SCRIBL.
VER. 39. Wretched Wild] Jonathan Wild, à famous
Thief, and Thief-Impeacher, who was at laſt caught in
his own train and hanged. P.
VER. 42. for the love of Vice] We muſt conſider the Poet
as here directing his diſcourſe to a follower of the new ſyf-
tem of Politics, That private vices are public benefits SCRIBL.
1
* R 4
248
Dial. II.
EPILOGUE
56
F. Stop ! ftop !
P. Muſt Satire, then, nor riſe nor fall?
Speak out, and bid me blame no Rogues at all.
F. Yes, ſtrike that Wild, I'll juſtify the blow.
P. Strike? why the man was hang'd ten years ago :
Who now that obfolete Example fears?
Ev'n Peter trembles only for his Ears.
F. What always Peter ? Peter thinks you mad,
You make men deſp’rate if they once are bad :
Elſe might he take to Virtue ſome years hence --- 60
P. As S---k, if he lives, will love the PRINCE.
F. Strange ſpleen to S---k!
P. Do I wrong the Man?
God knows, I praiſe a Courtier where I can.
When I confefs, there is who feels for Fame, 64
And melts to Goodneſs, need I SCARB'ROW name?
Pleas'd let me own, in Eſher's peaceful Grove
(Whent Kent and Nature vye for PELHAM's Love)
Nores.
VER. 57. Ev’n Peter trembles only for his ears,] Peter
had, the year before this, narrowly eſcaped the Pillory
for forgery : and got off with a ſevere rebuke only from
the bench. P.
VER. 65. Scarb'row] Earl of; and Knight of the Gar-
ter, whoſe perſonal attachments to the King appeared from
his Iteddy adherence to the royal intereit, after his reſig-
nation of his great employment of Maſter of the Horſe;
and whoſe known honour and virtue made him eſteemed
by all parties. P.
Ver. 66. Ejber's peaceful grove,] The houſe and gar.
Dial. II.
249
TO THE SATIRES.
70
The Scene, the Maſter, opening to my view,
I ſit and dream I ſee my CRAGGs anew!
Ev’n in a Biſhop I can ſpy Deſert;
Secker is decent, Rundel has a Heart,
Manners with Candour are to Benſon giv'n,
To Berkley, ev'ry Virtue under Heav'n.
But does the Court a worthy Man remove ?
That inſtanț, I declare, he has my Love:
75
NOTES.
dens of Eſher in Surry, belonging to the Honourable Mr.
Pelham, Brother of the Duke of Newcaſtle. The author
could not have given a more amiable idea of his Character
than in comparing him to Mr. Craggs. P.
VER. 67. Kent and Nature] Means no more than art and
nature. And in this conſiſts the compliment to the Artiſt.
VER. 71. Secker is decent] Theſe words (like thoſe
135. of the firſt Dialogue) are another inſtance of the ma-
lignity of the public judgment. The Poet thought, and
not without reaſon, that they conveyed a very high idea
of the worthy perſon to whom they are applied ; to be
DECENT (or to become every itation of life in which a man
is placed) being the nobleſt encomium on his wiſdom and
virtue. It is the very topic he employs in ſpeaking of a
· favourite friend, one he moſt eſteemed and loved,
Noble and young, who ſtrikes the heart,
With ev'ry Sprightly, ev'ry DECENT part.
The word in both places implying every endowment of the
heart. As in that celebrated verſe of Horace, from whence
the expreſſion was taken, aud which no one has a better
right to apply to himſelf than this excellent prelate :
Quid verum atque DECENs curo et rogo, et omnis in hoc fum.
So that to be decent is to excell in the moral character.
250
EPILOGUE Dial. II.
I fhun his Zenith, court his mild Decline;
Thus SOMMERS once, and HALIFAX, were mine.
Oft, in the clear, ftill Mirrour of Retreat,
I ftudy'd SHREWSBURY, the wiſe and great :
CARLETON's calm Senſe, and STANHOPE's noble
Flame,
80
Compar'd, and knew their gen'rous End the fame :
How pleaſing ATTERBURY's ſofter hour !
How ſhin'd the Soul, unconquer'd in the Tow'r !
NOTES.
He was
VER. 77: Sommers] John Lord Sommers died in 1716.
He had been Lord Keeper in the reign of William III.
who took from him the ſeals in 1700. The author had
the honour of knowing him in 1706. A faithful, able,
and incorrupt miniſter; who, to the qualities of a conſum-
mate ſtateſman, added thoſe of a man of Learning and
Politeneſs. P.
Ibid Halifax] A peer, no leſs diſtinguiſhed by his
love of letters than his abilities in Parliament.
diſgraced in 1710, on the Change of Q. Anne's miniſtry. P.
VER. 79. Shrewſbury,] Charles Talbot, Duke of
Shrewſbury, had been Secretary of Atate, Embaſſador in
France, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord Chamberlain,
and Lord Treaſurer. He ſeveral times quitted his employ-
ments, and was often recalled. He died in 1718. P.
Ver. 80. Carleton] Hen. Boyle, Lord Carleton (ne.
phew of the famous Robert Boyle) who was Secretary of
itate under William Ill. and Preſident of the Council under
Q. Anne. P.
Ibid. Stanhope] James Earl Stanhope. A Nobleman of
equal courage, spirit, and learning General in Spain,
and Secretary of itate. P.
Dial. II.
251
TO THE SATIRES.
89
How can I PULT'NEY, CHESTERFIELD forget,
While Roman Spirit charms, and Attic Wit: 85
ARGyll, the State's whole Thunder born to wield,
And ſhake alike the Senate and the Field :
Or WYNDHAM, juſt to Freedom and the Throne,
The Maſter of our Paſſions, and his own.
Names, which I long have lov’d, nor lov'd in vain,
Rank'd with their Friends, not number'd with their
Train;
And if yet higher the proud Liſt ſhould end,
Still let me ſay! No Follower, but a Friend.
Yet think not, Friendſhip only prompts my lays ;
I follow Virtue; where ſhe ſhines, I praiſe :
95
Point The to Prieſt or Elder, Whig or Tory,
Or round a Quaker's Beaver caſt a Glory.
Notes.
Ver. 84. Cheſterfield] Philip Earl of Cheſterfield, com-
monly given by Writers of all Parties for an EXAMPLE to
the Age he lives in, of ſuperior talents, and public Virtue.
VER. 88. Wyndham) Sir William Wyndham, Chancellor
of the Exchequer under Queen Anne, made early a con-
ſiderable figure; but ſince a much greater both by his a-
bility and eloquence, joined with the utmoſt judgment and
temper. P.
Ver. 92. And if yet higher, etc.] He was at this time
honoured with the eſteem and favour of his Royal High-
neſs the Prince.
Ver. 93. Still let me fay! No Follower, but a Friend.]
i. e. Unrelated to their parties, and attached only to their
perfons.
252
Dial. 11.
EPILOGUE
I never (to my ſorrow I declare)
Din'd with the Man of Ross, or my LORD MAY'R.
Some, in their choice of Friends (nay look not grave)
Have ſtill a ſecret Byaſs to a Knave :
101
To find an honeſt man I beat about,
And love him, court him, praiſe him, in or out.
F. Then why ſo few commended ?
P. Not fo fierce;
Find you the Virtue, and I'll find the Verſe.
105
But random Praiſe the taſk can ne'er be done;
Each Mother aſks it for her booby Son,
Each Widow aſks it for the Beſt of Men,
For him ſhe weeps, and him ſhe weds agen.
Praiſe cannot ſtoop, like Satire, to the ground;
The Number may be hang'd, but not be crown'd.
Enough for half the Greateſt of theſe days,
To 'ſcape my Cenſure, not expect my Praiſe.
Are they not rich? what more can they pretend ?
Dare they to hope a Poet for their Friend?
115
II
Notes.
VER. 99. my Lord May'r] Sir John Barnard, Lord Mayor
in the year of the Poem, 1738. A Citizen eminent for
his virtue, public Spirit, and great talents in Parliament.
An excellent Man, Magiſtrate, and Senator. In the year
1747, the City of London, in memory of his many and
fignal ſervices to his Country, erected a Statue to him.
But his image had been placed long before in the heart of
every good Man.
Dial: II. TO THE SATIRES.
253
I20
What RICHLIEU wanted, Lours ſcarce could gain,
And what young AMMON with'd, but with'd in vain.
No Pow'r the Muſe's Friendſhip can command ;
No Pow'r, when Virtue claims it, can withſtand:
To Cato, Virgil pay'd one honeſt line;
Olet my Country's Friends illumin mine!
What are you thinking? F. Faith the thought's na
fin,
I think your Friends are out and would be in.
P. If merely to come in, Sir, they go out,
The way they take is ſtrangely round about.
125
F. They too may be corrupted, you'll allow?
P. I only call thoſe Knařes who are fo now.
Is that too little ? Come then, I'll comply-
Spirit of Arnall! aid me while I lye.
NOTES.
Ver. 116. Louis ſcarce could gain.] By this expreſſion
finely inſinuating, that the great Boileau always falls below
himſelf in thoſe paſſages where he flatters his Maſter. OF
which flattery he gives an inttance in x 231. where the
topic of adulation is exceeding childiſh and extravagant.
VER. 127. I only call thoſe Knaves who are ſo now.] He
left it to Time to tell them,
Cato is as great a Rogue as you.
not the Cato of Virgil, but the Cato of Mr. Pope. See the
Ep. on Riches,
Ver. 129. Spirit of Arnall!] Look for him in his
place. Dunc. B. ii. * 315.
S
254
Dial. II:
EPILOGUE
COBHAM's a Coward, POLWARTH is a Slave, 130
And LYTTLETON a dark, deſigning Knave,
ST. JOHN has ever been a wealthy Fool---
But let me add, Sir ROBERT's mighty dull,
Has never made a Friend in private life,
And was, beſides, a Tyrant to his Wife. 135
But pray, when others praiſe him, do I blame?
Call Verres, Wolſey, any odious name?
Why rail they then, if but a Wreath of mine,
Oh AH-accompliſh'd St. John! deck thy fhrine ?
What? ſhall each ſpurgall’d Hackney of the day,
When Paxton gives him double Pots and Pay, 141
Or each new-penſion’d Sycophant, pretend
To break my Windows if I treat a Friend?
Then wiſely plead, to me they meant no hurt,
But 'twas my Gueſt at whom they threw the dirt ?
Notes.
VER. 130. Polwarth.] The Hon. Hugh Hume, Son
of Alexander Earl of Marchmont, Grandſon of Patric Earl
of Marchmont, and diſtinguiſhed, like them, in the cauſe
of Liberiy. P.
VER. 136. do I blame? Call Verres, Wolley, any odious
name?] The Leaders of Parties, be they as Horid as they
will, generally do their buſineſs by compendium: A lin-
gle rule of Rhetoric, which they may have learnt of Quin-
tilian, or perhaps of a much older Sophift, does their bu-
fineſs, si nibil, quod nos adjuvet, erit, quæramus quid Ad.
Zerfarium lædar.
SCRIB.
VER. 141. When Paxton gives him double pots and pay,)
If this band of Penſioners were ſo offenſive while embodied
Dial. II. TO THE SATIRES.
255
Sure, if I ſpare the Miniſter, no.rules
146
Of Honour bind me, not to maul his Tools;
Sure, if they cannot cut, it may be ſaid
His Saws are toothleſs, and his Hatchets Lead.
It anger'd TURENNE, once upon a day, 150
To ſee a Footman kick'd that took his pay :
But when he heard th' Affront the Fellow gave,
Knew one a Man of honour, one a Knave;
The prudent Gen'ral turn'd it to a jeſt,
And begg'd, he'd take the pains to kick the reſt : 155
Which not at preſent having time to do---
F. Hold Sir! for God's-fake where's th' Affront to
you?
16
Againſt your worſhip when had S---k writ?
Or P---ge pour'd forth the Torrent of his Wit?
Or grant the Bard whoſe diftich all commend
(In Pow'r a Servant, out of Pow'r a friend]
To W-.-le guilty of ſome venial fin;
What's that to you who ne'er was out nor in?
Notes.
and under diſcipline, what muſt we think of their diſor.
ders ſince they were diſbanded and become free-booters ?
No virtue nor merit hath eſcaped them. They have made
a great City in the South, too much reſemble another in
the North, where the products of night and darkneſs are
diſcharged from Garrets on every honeſt man that comes
within their reach.
Ver. 160. the Bard] A verſe taken out of a poem to
Sir R. W. P.
256 EPILOGUE Dial. II.
i
The Prieſt whoſe Flattery be-dropt the Crown,
How hurt he you? he only ſtain'd the Gown. 165
And how did, pray, the florid Youth offend,
Whoſe Speech you took, and gave it to a Friend?
P. Faith, it imports not much from whom it came;
Whoever borrow'd, could not be to blaine,
Since the whole Houfe did afterwards the fame.
Let Courtly Wits to Wits afford ſupply, 171
As Hog to Hog in huts of Weſtphaly ;
If one, thro' Nature's Bounty or his Lord's,
Has what the frugal, dirty ſoil affords,
From him the next receives it, thick or thin, 175
As pure a meſs almoſt as it came in;
The bleſſed benefit, not there confin'd,
Drops to the third, who nuzzles cloſe behind;
From tail to mouth, they feed and they carouſe:
The laſt full fairly gives it to the Houſe.
180
F. This filthy fimile, this beaſtly line
Quite turns my ſtomach-
P. So does Flatt'ry mine;
And all your courtly Civet-cats can vent,
Perfume to you, to me is Excrement.
;
Notes.
Ver. 164. The Prieſt etc.] Spoken not of any particular
prieſt, but of many prieſts. P.
VER, 166. And how did, etc.] This ſeems to allude to a
complaint made * 71. of the preceding Dialogue, P.
2
Dial. II.
257
TO THE SATIRES.
But hear me further – Japhet, 'tis agreed,
185
Writ not, and Chartres ſcarce could write or read,
In all the Courts of Pindus guiltleſs quite ;
But Pens can forge, my Friend, that cannot write ;
And muſt no Egg in Japhet's face be thrown,
Becauſe the Deed he forg'd was not my own? 190
Muſt never Patriot then declaim at Gin,
Unleſs, good man ! he has been fairly in?
No zealous Paftor blame a failing Spouſe,
Without a ſtaring Reaſon on his brows?
And each Blaſphemer quite eſcape the rod, 195
Becauſe the inſult's not on Man, but God ?
Aſk you what Provocation I have had ?
The ſtrong Antipathy of Good to Bad.
When Truth or Virtue an Affront endures,
Th' Affront is mine, my friend, and ſhould be yours.
Mine, as a Foe profeſs'd to falſe Pretence,
201
Who think a Coxcomb's Honour like his Senſe;
Mine, as a Friend to ev'ry worthy mind;
And mine as Man, who feel for all mankind.
VARIATIONS,
VER. 185. in the MS.
I grant it, Sir ; and further, 'tis agreed,
Japhet writ not, and Chartres ſcarce could read.
Notes.
Ver. 185; Japhet -- Chartres] See the Epiſtle to Lord
Bathurſt. P.
VER, 204. And mine as Man, who feel for all mankind.
* S
258
Dial. II.
EPILOGUE
F. You're ſtrangely proud
P. So proud, I am no Slave :
So impudent, I own myſelf no Knave : 206
So odd, my country's Ruin makes me grave.
Yes, I am proud ; I muſt be proud to ſee
Men not afraid of God, afraid of me:
Safe from the Bar, the Pulpit, and the Throne, 210
Yet touch'd and ſham'd by Ridicule alone.
O facred weapon ! left for Truth's defence,
Sole Dread of Folly, Vice, and Infolence !
To all but Heav'n-directed hands deny’d,
The Muſe may give thee, but the Gods muſt guide :
Notes.
From Terence : “ Homo ſum : humani nihil a me alienum
“ puto.” P.
208. Yes, I am proud; etc.) In this ironical exulo.
ation the Poet infinuates a ſubject of the dcepelt humiliation,
Ver. 211. Yel touch'd and ſham'd by Ridicule alone.) The
Paſſions are given us to awake and ſupport Virtue. But
they frequently betray their truſt, and go over to the inte,
reſts of Vice. Ridicule, when employed in the cauſe of
Virtue, ſhames and brings them back to their duty.
Hence the uſe and importance of Satire.
VER. 214. To all but Heav’n-directed bands]
“ Citizen (ſays Plato, in his fifth book of Laws) who does
no injury to any one, without queſtion, merits our ef-
He, who, not content with being barely juſt
¢ himſelf, oppoſes the courſe of injuſtice, by proſecuting
“ it before the Magiltrate, merits our eſteem vaſtly more.
" The firft diſcharges the duty of a ſingle Citizen ; but
" the other does the office of a Body. But he whoſe zeal
" ftops not here, but proceeds to ASSIST THE MAGISTRATE
VER.
" The
66 teem.
Dial. II. TO THE SATIRES
269
Rev'rent I touch thee! but with honeſt zcal; 116
To rouſe the Watchmen of the public Weal,
To Virtue's work provoke the tardy Hall,
And goad the Prelate ſlumb'ring in his Stall.
Ye tinſel Infects! whom a Court maintains, 2220
That counts your Beauties only by your Stains,
Spin all your Cobwebs o'er the Eye of Day!
The Muſe's wing Thall brulh you all away:
NOTE-S.
" IN PUNIHING is the moprecious bleſſing of Society.
« This is the PERFECT CITIZEN, to whom we ſhould
“ adjudge the prize of Virtus."
Ver. 220. Ye Inſeets-The Muſe's quing mall brulh yox
all away :] This it did very effe&tually; and the memory
of them had been now forgotten, had not the Poet's cha-
sity, for a while, protracted their miſerable Being. There
is now in his library a complete collection of all the horrid
Libels written and publiſhed againſt him ;
The tale reviv'd, the lye fo oft o'erthrown,
Th' imputed traſh, and dulneſs not his own;
The morals blacken'd, when the writings 'ſcape,
The libell'd Perfon, and the pi&tur'd ſhape.
Theſe he had bound up in ſeveral volumes, according to
their various ſizes, from folios down to duodecimos ; and
to each of them hath affixed this motto out of the book of
Job :
Behold, my deſire is, that mine adverſary should write a
book. Surely I ſhould take it upon my poulder, and bind it
as a crown to me. Ch. xxxi. x 35, 36.
VER. 222. Cobwebs] Weak and night ſophiſtry againſt
virtue and honour. Thin colours over vice, as unable to
hide the light of Truth, as cobwebs to fhade the fun. P.
* S 2
260 EPILOGUE Dial. II.
All his Grace preaches, all his Lordſhip fings, 224
All that makes Saints of Queens, and Gods of Kings.
All, all but Truth, drops dead-born from the Preſs,
Like the laſt Gazette, or the laſt Addreſs.
When black Ambition ſtains a public Cauſe,
A Monarch's ſword when mad Vain-glory draws,
Not Waller's Wreath can hide the Nation's Scar,
Nor Boileau turn the Feather to a Star.
231
Not ſo, when diadem'd with rays divine,
Touch'd with the Flame that breaks from Virtue's
Shrine,
VARIATIONS,
After x 227. in the MS.
Where's now the Star that lighted Charles to riſe?
-With that which follow'd Julius to the ſkies,
Angels, that watch'd the Royal Oak ſo well,
Haw chanc'd ye nod, when luckleſs Sorel fell?
Hence, lying miracles ! reduc'd ſo low
As to the regal-touch, and papal-toe;
Hence haughty Edgar's title to the Main,
Britain's to France, and thine to India, Spain !
Notes.
or ill a
VER. 228. When black Ambition etc.] The caſe of Crom-
well in the civil war of England; and (x 229.), of Louis
XIV. in his conqueſt of the Low Countries. Þ.
Ver. 231. Nor Boileau turn the Feather to a Star.) See
his Ode on Namur; where (to uſe his own words)
« fait un Aftre de la Plume blanche que le Roy porte or-
“ dinairement à ſon Chapeau, et qui eſt en effet une eſpece
"de Comete, fatale à nos ennemis." P.
2.
Dial. II.
261
TO THE SATIRES.
**
Her Prieſteſs Mufe forbids the Good to die,
And opes the Temple of Eternity.
235
There, other Trophies deck the truly brave,
Than ſuch as Anſtis cafts into the Grave;
Far other Stars than * and
wear,
And may defcend to Mordington from STAIR :
(Such as on Hough's unfully'd Mitre ſhine, 240
Or beam, good Digby, from a heart like thine)
Let Envy howl, while Heav'n's whole Chorus fings,
And bark at Honour not confer'a by Kings;
Let Flatt'ry fickening fce the Incenſe riſe,
Sweet to the World, and grateful to the Skies : 245
Truth guards the Poet, ſanctifies the line,
And makes immortal, Verſe as mean as mine,
Yes, the laft Pen for Freedom let me draw,
When Truth ſtands trembling on the edge of Law;
Notes.
VER. 237. Anjlis] The chief Herald at Arms. It is the
cuſtom, at the funeral of great peers, to caft into the grave
the broken ſtaves and enligns of honour. P.
Ver. 239. Stair;] John Dalrymple Earl of Stair, Knight
of the Thiſtle ; ſerved in all the wars under the Duke
of Marlborough; and afterwards as Embaſſador in France.
P.
Ver. 240, 241. Hough and Digby] Dr. John Hough
Biſhop of Worcefter, and the Lord Digby. The one an
affertor of the Church of England in oppoſition to the falſe
meaſures of King James II. The other as firmly attached
to the cauſe of that King. Both acting out of principle,
and equally men of honour and virtue. P.
VER. 249. on the edge of Late': ] From the ſummit af
262
E PILOGUE etc. Dial. II.
Here, Laſt of Britons ! let your Names be read; 250
Are none, none living ? let me praiſe the Dead,
And for that Cauſe which made your Fathers ſhine,
Fall by the Votes of their degen'rate Line.
Fr. Alas! alas! pray end what you began,
And write next winter more Elays on Man. 255
VARIATIONS.
Ver. 255. in the MS.
Quit, quit theſe themes, and write Eſſays on Man.
Notes.
law is a dreadful precipice, which may well make Truth
herſelf tremble. And from thence came the common pro-
verb, Summum jus, ſumma injuria. SCRIBL.
Ver. ult.] This was the laſt poem of the kind printed by
our author, with a reſolution to publiſh no more ; but to
enter thus, in the moſt plain and folemn manner he could,
a ſort of Protest againſt that inſuperable corruption and
depravity of manners, which he had been ſo unhappy as
to live to ſee. Could he have hoped to have amended
any, he had continued thoſe attacks ; but bad men were
grown ſo ſhameleſs and ſo powerful, that Ridicule was be.
come as unſafe as it was ineffectual. The Poem raiſed him,
as he knew it would, ſome enemies; but he had reaſon
to be ſatisfied with the approbation of good men, and
the teſtimony of his own conſcience. Po
( 263 )
ON
Receiving from the Right Hon. the Lady
FRANCES SHIRLE Y
A STANDISH and Two Pens.
Y
si
ES, I beheld the Athenian Queen
Deſcend in all her ſober charms
« And take (ſhe faid, and ſmild ſerene)
• Take at this hand celeftial arms :
« Secure the radiant weapons wield;
“ The golden lance ſhall guard Deſert,
« And if a Vice dares keep the field,
" This ſteel ſhall ſtab it to the heart."
Aw'd, on my bended knees I fell,
Receiv'd the weapons of the ſky;
And dipt them in the fable Well,
The fount of Fame or Infamy.
" What well? what weapon? (Flavia cries)
" A ſtandiſh, ſteel and golden pen ;
" It came from Bertrand's e, not the ſkies :
“ I gave it you to write again. .
Notes.
The Lady Frances Shirley) a Lady whoſe great Merit Mr.
Pope took a real pleaſure in celebrating.
* A famous toy-Shop at Bath,
( 264 )
1
K But, Friend, take heed whom you attack;
" You'll bring a Houſe (I mean of Peers)
« Red, Blue, and Green, nay white and black,
“ Land all about your ears.
66 You'd write as ſmooth again on glaſs,
“ And run, on ivory, ſo glib,
" As not to ſtick at fool or afs b,
« Nor ſtop at Flattery or Fibe.
" Athenian Queen! and ſober charms !
“ I tell ye, fool. there's nothing in't:
“s 'Tis Venus, Venus gives theſe arms“
“ In Dryden's Virgil ſee the print“.
;
" Come, if you'll be a quiet ſoul,
" That dares tell neither Truth ner Lies'
" I'll liſt you in the harmleſs roll
« Of thofe that ſing of theſe poor eyes."
d
NOTES.
6 The Dunciad.
• The Epiffle to Dr. Arliset hnot.
Such toys being the uſual preſents from lovers to their
miltreffes.
• When ſhe delivers Æneas a ſuit of heavenly armour.
fi. e. If you have neither the courage to write Satire;
nor the application to attempt an Epic poem.---He was then
meditating on ſuch a work.
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