That once was Britain Happy! had the feen 110 No fiercer fons, had Eafter never been. 115 In peace, great Goddefs! ever be ador'd; This fav'rite Ifle, long fever'd from her reign, Now look thro' Fate! behold the fcene fhe draws! REMARKS. VERSE 110. Happy had Eafter never been] Wars in Eng Land anciently, about the right time of celebrating Eafter. vy IMITATIONS. VERSE 110, Happy- had Eafter never been.] Virg. Ecl. 6. VERSE 19, 121. Nama look thro' Fate See all her Progez -&c.] Virg. Æn. 6. Nunc age, Dardaniam prolem qua deinde fequatur VERSE 123. As Berecynthia, &c.) Virg. ib.✨ And Her Parnaffus glancing o'er at once, 30 Behold a hundred fons, and each a dunce. Mark firft the youth who takes the foremost place, And thrufts his perfon fuil into your face. With all thy Father's virtues bleft, be born! And a new Cibber fhall the Stage adorn. 135 A second sée, by meeker manners known, And modeft as the maid that fips alone: From the strong fate of drams if thou get free, Another Durfey, Ward! fhall fing in thee. Thee shall each Alehouse, thee each Gill-house mourn, 140 And anfw'ring Gin-fhops fowrer fighs return! Lo next two flip-fhod Muses traipfe along, In lufty madness, meditating fong, With treffes ftaring from poetic dreams, And never wash'd, but in Caftalia's ftreams: 145 Haywood, Centlivre, Glories of their race! Lo Horneck's fierce, and Roome's funereal face; REMARKS. VERSE 138, Ward.] Vid. Book 1. Ver. 200. VERSE 146. Lo Horneck's fierce and Roome's funereal face.] This tood in one edition And M-s ruful face. But the perfon who fuppos'd himself meant applying to our author in a modeft manner, and with declarations of his innocence, he removed the occafion of his aneafinefs. IMITATIONS. VERSE 131. Mark first the youth, &c. Virg. Æn. 6. Ille vides, purajuvenis qui nititur hafta. VERSE 133. With all thy Father's virtues bleft, be born!] A man? ner of expreffion used by Virgil. Nafcere! praque diem veniens, age Lucifer 'As alfo that of Patriis virtutibus. Ecl. 4. VERSE 137. From the frong fate of drams if thou get free, &c.1 Virg. Æn. 6. -fi qua fata afpera rumpas, Tu Marcellus eris! VERSE 139. For thee each Ale-house, &c.] Virgil again, Ecl. ïd Lo fneering G * * de, half malice and half whim, Jacob, the Scourge of Grammar, mark with awe, Silence, ye Wolves! while Ralph to Cynthia howls, 160 And makes Night hideous-Anfwer him ye Owls! Senfe, fpeech, and measure, living tongues and dead, Let all give way—and Durgen may be read. REMARKS. VERSE 146. Horneck and Roome.] These two are worthily coupl ed, being both virulent Party-writers and one wou'd think prophetically, fince immediately after the publishing of this Piece the former dying, the latter fucceeded him in Honour and Employment. The firft was Philip Horneck, Author of a Billingsgate paper call'd The High German Doctor, in the 2d Vol. of which No. 14. you may fee Edward Roome, Son of an Underthe regard he had for Mr. P. taker for Funerals in Fleet-ftreet, writ fome of the papers call'd Paf quin, and Mr. Ducket others, where by malicious Innuendos, it was endeavour'd to reprefent him guilty of malevolent practices with a great man then under profecution of Parliament. VERSE 147. G** de.] An ill-natur'd Critick who writ a Satire on our Author, yet unprinted, call'd. The mock Æsop. VERSE 149. Jacob, the Scourge of Grammar, mark with awe.] This Gentleman is Son of a confiderable Malfter of Romsey in Southamptonfhire, and bred to the Law under a very eminent Attorney: who, between his more laborious Studies, has diverted himself with Poetry. He is a great admirer of Poets and their works, which has occafion'd him to try his genius that way He has writ in profe the Lives of the Poets, Elfays, and a great many Law-Books, The Accomplish'd Conveyancer, Modern Justice, &c. GILES JACOB of himself, Lives of Poets, Vol. I. IMITATIONS. VERSE 150. Virg. Æn. 6. duo fulmina belli Scipiadas, cladem Lybia? · Flow Welfted, flow! like thine infpirer, Beer, Tho' ftale, not ripe; tho' thin, yet never clear; 165 So fweetly mawkish, and so smoothly dull; Heady, not ftrong, and foaming tho' not full. Ah Dennis! Gildon ah! what ill-ftar'd rage Embrace, embrace my Sons! be foes no more! REMARKS. VERSE ISI. Bond and Foxton.] Two inoffenfive offenders againft dur poet, perfons unknown, but by being mention'd by Mr. Curl. VERSE 159. Ralph.] A name inferted after the firft Editions, not known to our Author, till he writ a Swearing-piece call'd Sawney, very abufive of Dr. Swift, Mr. Gay, and himself. Thefe lines allude to a thing of his, intituled Night a Poem. Shakespear, Hamlet. Vifit thus the glimpses of the Moon, Making Night hideous This low writer conftantly attended his own works with Panegyricks in the Journals, and once in particular prais'd himself highly above Mr. Addifon, in wretched remarks upon that Author's Account of English Poets, printed in a London Journal, Sept. 1728. He was wholly illiterate, and knew no Language not even French: Being adwifed to read the Rules of Dramatick Poetry before he began a Play, he fmiled and reply'd, Shakespear writ without Rules. VERSE 162. Ďurgen.] A ridiculous thing of Ward's. · IMITATIONS. VERSE 163. Flow, Welfted, flow! &c.] Parody on Denham, Cooper's Hill. O could I flow like thee, and make thy ftream Tho' deep, yet clear; tho' gentle, yet not dull, Strong, without rage; without overflowing, full VERSE 169. Embrace, embrace my Sons! be foes no more,] Virg En. 6. Ne tanta animis affuefcite bella, Neu patria validae in vifcera vertite vires: $75. Fam'd for good-nature, B✶✶ and for truth; D** for pious paffion to the youth. Equal in wit, and equally polite, Shall this a Pafquin, that a Grumbler write; REMARKS. VERSE 175. Fam'd for good nature B**, &c. D**, For pious passion to the youth.] The firft of thefe was Son of the late Bishop of S. Author of a weekly paper called The Grumbler, as the other was concern'd in another call'd Pafquin, in which Mr, Pope was abufed (particularly with the late Duke of Buckingham and Bishop of Rochefter.) They alfo join'd in a piece against his firft undertaking to tranflate the Iliad, intituled Homerides, by Sir Iliad Dogrel, printed by Wilkins 1715. And Mr. D. writ an Epilogue for Powel's Puppet-show, reflecting on the fame work. Mr. Carl gives us this further account of Mr. B. He did him66 felf write a Letter to the E. of Halifax, informing his Lordship (as he tells him) of what he knew much better before: And he publish'd in his own name feveral political pamphlets, A certain information of a certain difcourfe, A fecond Tale of a Tub, &c. All which it is ftrongly affirmed were written by Colonel Ducket. CURL, Key, p. 17. But the author of the Characters of the Times tells us, thefe poEtical pieces were not approv'd of by his own Father, the Reverend Bishop. Of the other works of thefe Gentlemen, the world has heard no more, than it wou'd of Mr. Pope's, had their united laudible endeavours difcourag'd him from his undertakings. How few good works had ever appear'd'(fince men of true merit are always the leaft prefuming) had there been always fuch champions to ftifle them in their conception? And were it not better for the publick, that a million of monfters came into the world, than that the Serpents fhould have ftrangled one Hercules in his cradle? VERSE 176. for pious paffion to the youth.] The verfe is a literal tranflation of Virgil, Nafus amore pio pueri - and here, as in the original, apply'd to Friendship: That between Nfs and Euryal -- is allow'd to make one of the moft amiable Epifodes in the world, and furely was never interpreted in a perverfe fenfe: But it will aftonish the Reader to hear, that on no other occafion than this line, Dedication was written to this Gentleman to induce him to think Yomething farther. Sir, you are known to have all that affection for the beautiful part of the creation which God and Nature defign'd."Sir, you have a very fine Lady- - and, Sir, you have eight very fine Children, 39 •&c. [Dedic. to Dennis Rem. on the Rape of the Lock The Truth is, the poor Dedicator's brain was turn'd upon this article, he had taken into his head that ever fince fome Books were written against the Stage, and fince the Italian Opera had prevail'd, the nation was infected with a vice not fit to be nam'd. He went fo far as to print upon this fubject, and concludes his argument with this remark, that he cannot help thinking the Obfcenity of Plays excufable at this juncture, fince, when that execrable fin is fpread "fo wide, it may be of use to the reducing mens minds to the na 66 tural |