a thousand verses each. Into this piece, he confeffed, though with a ridicule on the attempt, that he had thrown all his learning, as Milton has done with too much profufion, in his Paradise Loft. This Alcander was chiefly an imitative poem, in which Mr. POPE had collected the feveral beauties of all the epic writers he was then acquainted with*.

It is the characteristic of a great genius to make early efforts far beyond its ftrength. Our poet, however, was fenfible of the weakness of this attempt, and speaks of it with the most amiable franknefs, in a paffage restored to the excellent preface before his works. "I con

fefs," fays he, "there was a time when I was in love with myself, and my first productions were the children of felf-love upon innocence, I had made an epic poem, and panegyrics on all the princes of Europe, and I thought myself the greateft genius that ever was. I cannot but regret thefe delightful vifions of my childhood, which, like the fine colours we fee when our eyes are fhut, are vanished for ever."

the virtues of fuffering, like Ulyffes, and all the courage of Eneas. Apollo, as the patron of Rhodes, was Alcander's great protector; and Cibele was his great enemy, as being patronefs of Deucalion and Crete. She raifes a ftorm against him, as Juno does against Eneas: he is caft away, and fwims to fhore, as Ulyffes did, to the island of Phæacia.

* Among other propofals, which Betterton made him to write for the ftage, he ftrongly preffed him to turn this Alcander into a tragedy; but no importunity could prevail on Mr. POPE to engage in fuch an undertaking.

Atter

Atterbury, the Bishop of Rochester, a little before he left England, advised him to burn it, which he did*, though as he confeffed with fome regret.

The bishop, on this occafion, in one of his letters to Mr. POPE, expreffes himself thus"I am not forry your Alcander is burnt; had I known your intentions, I would have interceeded for the first page, and put it, with your leave, among my curiofities." As a proof,

however, that this early piece was deeply imprinted in his memory, and that he was not partial to its imperfections, he took a pleasure in laughing at the childish extravagances in this poem, and in mentioning them to his friends, Among thefe, was a defcription of a Scythian hero, who contemned a pillow, though of fnow, as luxury and effeminacy. Some of these extravagances, are pleasantly produced for examples in the art of finking in poetry, under the title of verses by an Anonymous. He must be a writer of true genius, who has the virtue to ridicule his own defects.

The ridicule, however, of this juvenile attempt, did not difcourage him from once more attempting this fpecies of compofition; for, in his riper years, he formed a defign of writing an epic poem, founded on a ftory recorded in the old annalist

*It may not be immaterial to add, that the dramatic pieces above spoken of, fhared the fame fate.

Geoffrey

Geoffrey of Monmouth, concerning the arrival of Brutus the fuppofed grandson of Eneas into our island, and the fettlement of the first foundations of the British monarchy, of which more hereafter.

Mr. POPE's next poetical effay, after this epic piece of Alcander, was his Paftorals, which he wrote at the age of fixteen: and he used to fay pleafantly, that herein he literally followed the paffage in Virgil, where he fays,

"Cum canerem reges et praelia," &c.

Being now come to fuch part of his works, as have undergone the trials of criticism; it remains agreeably to the plan proposed, to examine the several pieces refpectively, in the order they ftand in the octavo edition.

This examination, however, will not be made with the partial bias of a panegyrist, in order to rescue his writings from juft cenfure; but to meafure them by the fcale of candid criticism, the better to ascertain the nature, force and extent of his genius.

The name of a critic, being generally received in an ill fenfe, is become odious, becaufe the office hath been abused by half learned or envious witlings; who have been curious to detect blemishes, forgetting the other and more pleafing task of a critic, which is to point out beauties.

Many

Many of those who have occafionally criti cifed on our poet, have written only to expofe their ignorance or their ill nature. Peace to the

remains of futility and envy!

There is one however, (the author of An Effay on the genius and writings of Pope) who* has undertaken the office in form; and has, fo far as he has gone, executed it, at least with politenefs and elegance. If I am inclined to dispute fome of his principles, and cannot always fubscribe to the propriety of his applications, I fhall at leaft, wherever I diffent from him, endeavour to exprefs myself with the fame temper, and with the fame decorum. Perfuaded as I am, that the learned writer meant

* This work is anonymous, but the name of the author is well known to the learned world. As he has himself, however, thought proper to conceal it from the public, I do not think myself at liberty to proclaim it: for though the merit of the work is fuch, as, upon the whole, might do credit to any name, yet it is but decent to allow every writer to be the best judge of what conduces to his own interest and reputation. At the fame time, I will be free to obferve, that though this effay is evidently the work of an elegant critic and polite fcholar; yet it by no means answers to the title. Paffages are frequently cited from Mr. POPE, without the leaft remark upon them; and only ferve to introduce a ftring of anecdotes and quotations concerning foreign writers, or perhaps foreign fubjects. This method, it is true, is extremely entertaining to readers of a certain clafs; but it is rather too mifcellaneous and digreffive: and, let it be faid, without envy or ill-manners, that it favours too much of a lavish difplay of erudition, to which a writer, of fuch approved learning, might have deemed himself fuperior.

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to fix the true merit of our poet, and to ferve the cause of literature; and being conscious that I am influenced by the fame motives, I fhall freely animadvert on the errors and inaccuracies of the critic, and as candidly admit the juftice of his cenfure, and the propriety of his corrections. In this critique, however, I fhall purfue a different method from the author of the Effay for before he enters into any exa→ mination of our poet's writings, he, in his dedication to Dr. Young, and in other places, more than hints his opinion of the nature and extent of our poet's genius. But I propose first to analyze Mr. POPE's writings, and from thence fhall attempt to afcertain the nature and force of his genius for as I fhould blush to mislead, fo I equally scorn to prepoffefs the reader.

The paftorals are the first pieces which fall under the examination of our critic; and with respect to thefe, he obferves in the very opening, "that it is fomewhat ftrange that in the

paftorals of a young poet, there should not be “found a single rural image that is new." As the effayift, in the courfe of his criticifms, frequently objects a barrennefs of invention to Mr. POPE, it is to be wished that he had previously defined what invention is, or at leaft what he intended by the use of that word. As he has omitted it however, an attempt will be made in its proper place, to afcertain the meaning of invention, the better to determine how far the want of it may be imputed to Mr. PopF.

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