The opening clouds disclose each work by turns, Rowz'd by the light, old Dulness heav'd the head, Then snatch'd a sheet of Thulè from her bed; 215 Sudden the flies, and whelms it o'er the pyre: Down Link the flames, and with a hiss expire. REMARK S. VERSE 208. Now flames old Memnon, now Rodrigo burns. In one quick flash fee Proferpine expire.] Memnon, a Hero in the Perfian Princefs, very apt to take fire, as appears by these Lines with which he begins the Play. By heav'n it fires my frozen blood with rage; And makes it fcald my aged frunk Rodrigo, the chief perfonage of the Perfidious Brother, a play writ ten between T. and a Watch-maker. The Rape of Proferpine, one of the Farces of this Author, in which Ceres fets fire to a Corn-field, which endangered the burning of the Play-houfe. VERSE 210. And last, his own cold fchylus took fire.] He had been (to ufe an expreffion of our Poet) about Afchylus for ten years, and had received Subfcriptions for the fame, but then went about other Books. The character of this tragic Poet is Fire and Boldnefs in a high degree; but our Author fuppofes it to be very much cooled by the tranflation; Upon fight of a specimen of it, was made this Epigram, Alas! poor fchylus! unlucky Dog! Whom once a Lobfter kill'd, and now a Log. But this is a grievous error, for fchylus was not flain by the fall of a Lobfter on his head, but of a Tortoife, tefte Val. max. l. 9. cap. 12. SCRIBL VERSE 214. Thule.] An unfinished Poem of that name, of which one sheet was printed fifteen Years ago; by A. Ph. a Northern Author. It is an ufual method of putting out a fire, to caft wet fheets upon it. Some Criticks have been of opinion, that this sheet was of the nature of the Asbestos, which cannot be confumed by fire; but Trather think it only an allegorical allufion to the coldnels and bea vinefs of the writing. IMITATIONS. VERSE 200; Now flames old Memnon, &c.] Virg. Æn, 2, Vulcano fuperante, domus, jam proximus ardet Vc, alegon. Her ample prefence fills up all the place; Great in her charms! as when on Shrives and May'rs Afcend, and recognize their native place : 225 Raptur'd, he gazes round the dear retreat, And in sweet numbers celebrates the feat. Here to her Chofen all her works she shows; Profe fwell'd to verfe, Verfe loitring into profe; How random Thoughts now meaning chance to find, 230 Now leave all memory of fense behind: 2 How Prologues into Prefaces decay, And thefe to Notes are fritter'd quite away. £35 How, with lefs reading than makes felons 'scape, Small thanks to France and none to Rome or Greece, REMARKS. VERSE 221. The facred Dome.] The Cave of Poverty abovementioned, where he no fooner enters, but he Reconnoitres the place of his original; as Plato fays the Spirits fhall do, at their entrance into the celeftial Regions. His Dialogue of the Immortality of the Soul was tranflated by T in the familiar modern ftile of Prithee Phado, and For God's fake Socrates: printed for B Lintoit, 1713. VERSE 226. And in sweet numbers celebra es the feat,] He writ a Poem call'd the Cave of Poverty, which concludes with a very extraordinary With," That fome great Genius, or man of diftinguished "merit may be ftarved, in order to celebrate her power, and defcribe her Cave. It was printed in octavo, 1715. IMITATIONS. VERSE 219. Great in her charms! as when on Shrieves and May'rs She looks, and breathes herself into their airs.] Alma parens confeffa Deam; qualifq; videri -Erdutos oculis afflarat honores Virg. Æ. 2. 'Twixt Plautus, Fletcher, Congreve, and Corneille, 240 Can make a Cibber, Johnson, or Ozell. The Goddess then, o'er his anointed head, 245 Perch'd on his crown. All hail! and hail again, Safe, Where no criticks damn, no duns moleft, 250 Where Gildon, Banks, and high-born Howard reft REMARKS" VERSE 240. Can make a Cibber.] Mr. Colly Cibber, an Author andɔ Actor, of a good share of wit, and uncommon vivacity, which are much improved by the converfation he enjoys, which is of the best JACOB Lives of Dram. Poets. p. 38 Befides two Volumes of Plays in 4to, he has made up and tranflated several others. Mr. Jacob omitted to remark, that he is particularly admirable in Tragedy. VERSE 244 Johnfton Charles Johnfton, famous for writing Play every feason, and for being at Button's every day. He had probably thriven better in his Vocation had he been a fmall matter leaner. He may juftly be called a Martyr to obefity, and to have fallen a victim to the rotundity of his parts. CHA. of the TIMES, printed by CURL, p. 19. Some of his Plays are, Love in a Foreft (Shakespear's As you like it) Wife's Relief (Shirley's Gamefter) Victim (Racine's Iphigenia) The Sultanefs (Racine's Bajazet) the prologue to which abufed Dr. Arburthnot, (Mr. Pope, and Mr. Gay:) The Ca bler of Prefton, his own. 66 VERSE 240. And Ozell.] Mr. John Oxell, if we credit Mr. Jacob, did go to School in Leicestershire, where fomebody left him fomething to live on, when he should retire from bufinels, He was defigned to be fent to Cambridge in order for Priefthood, bus "chofe rather to be placed in an Office of accounts in the City, being. "qualified for the fame by his skill in Arithmetick, and writing the "neceffary hands. He has obliged the world with many tranflations. "of French Plays. JACOB Lives of Dram. Poets, p. 198. VERSE 244. A∙H- r] Aftrange Bird from Switzerland VERSE 250. Where Gildon, Banks, and high-born Howard ref.1 Charles Gildon, a writer of criticisms and libels of the laft age: He published Blount's blafphemous books against the Divinity of Chrift the Oracles of reafon, &c. He fignalized himself as a Critic, having written fome very bad plays; abufed Mr. P. very fcandaloufly in am anonymous Pamphlet of the Life of Mr. Wycherly printed by Curl, in another called the New Rehearsal printed in 1714, in a third entitled the compleat Art of English Poetry, in 2 Volumes, and others. VERSE 250.- Banks.] Was author of the play of the Earl of Effex, Ann Boleyn, &. He followed the law as a follicisor, like Tibbalds H I fee a King! who leads my chofen fons To lands, that flow with clenches and with puns ;. 'Till each fam'd Theatre my empire own, *Till Albion, as Hibernia, bless my throne ! 255 I fee! I fee! Then rapt, fhe fpoke no more. So when Jove's block defcended from on high, (As fings thy great fore-father, Ogilby,) Loud thunder to its bottom shook the bog, 260 And the hoarfe nation croak'd, God fave King Log!: REMAR K S. VERSE 250. Hon. Edward Howard, Author of the Britiffi Princes, and a great number of wonderful pieces, celebrated by the late Earls of Dorfet and Rochefter, Duke of Buckingham, Mr. Wallers &c. VERSE 258. As fings thy great fore-father Ogilby See his fop Fab. where this excellent hemyftic is to be found. Our author hows here and elsewhere, a prodigious Tenderness for a bad writer. We fee he felects the only good paffage perhaps in all that ever Ogilby writ, which shows how candid and patient a reader he must have been. What can be more kind and affectionate than thefe words in the preface to his Poems 48. 1717. where he labours to call up all our humanity and forgiveness toward them, by the moft moderate reprefentation of their cafe that has ever been given by any Author! Much may be faid to extenuate the fault of bad Poets: What we call a Genius is hard to be diftinguished, by a man himself, from a prevalent inclination: And if it be never to great, he can at firft difcover it no other way, than by that ftrong propenfity, which renders him the more liable to be mistaken. He has no other me "thod but to make the experiment by writing, and fo appealing to the judgment of others: And if he happens to write ill (which is certainly no fin in itself) he is immediately made the Object of Ridicule! I wish we had the humanity to reflect, that even the worst. Authors might endeavour to pleafe us, and in that endeavour, deferve fomething at our hands. We have no caufe to quarrel with. them, but for their obftinacy in perfifting, and even that may admit of alleviating circumftances: For their particular friends may be either ignorant, or unfincere; and the reft of the world too well-bred, to fhock them with a truth, which generally their Book ellers are the firft that inform them of End of the First Bock. [91] THE DUNCIA D. BOOK the SECOND. "IGH on a gorgeous feat, that far outshone Henley's gilt Tub, or Fleckno's Irish Throne H REMARKS on Book the SECOND Two things there are, upon which the very Bafis of all verbal Cri ticifin is founded and fupported: The firft, that the Author could never fail to ufe the very beft word, on every occafion: The fecond,, that the Critick cannot chuse but know, which it is? This being granted, whenever any doth not fully content us, we take upon us to conclude, firft that the author could never have ufed it, And fecondly, that he must have used That very one which we conjecture in its ftead. We cannot therefore enough admire the learned Scriblerus, for his alteration of the Text in the two last verses of the preceding book, which in all former editions ftood thus. Hoarfe Thunder to its bottom shook the bog, And the loud nation croak'd, God fave K. Log! He has with great judgment tranfpofed thefe two epithets, putting hoarfe to the Nation, and loud to the Thunder: And this being evi dently the true reading, he vouchfafed not fo much as to mention the former, For which affertion of the juft right of a Critick, he merits the acknowledgement of all found Commentators. VERSE 2. Henley's gilt Tub.] The pulpit of a Diffenter is ufually called a Tub, but thit of Mr. Orator Henley was covered with velvet, and adorned with gold. He had alfo a fair altar, and over it this extraordinary infcription, The Primitive Eucharift. See the hiftory of this perfon, book 3. verse 167. |