But mutual wants this Happiness increase; 55 peace. All Nature's diff'rence keeps all Nature's VARIATION S. After VER. 66. in the MS. 'Tis peace of mind alone is at a stay; All other blifs by accident's debar'd; In hardest trials operates the best, And more is relifh'd as the more diftreft. COMMENTARY. 60 65 2. To prevent perpetual discord amongst men equal in power, which an equal distribution of external goods would neceffarily occafion. From hence he concludes, that, as external goods were not given for the reward of Virtue, but for many different purposes, God could not, if he intended Happiness for all, place it in the Enjoyment of Externals. VER. 67. Fortune her gifts may variously difpofe,] His fecond But Heav'n's just balance equal will appear, While those are plac'd in Hope, and these in Fear: Not prefent good or ill, the joy or curse, But future views of better, or of worse. 71 Oh fons of earth! attempt ye ftill to rife, By mountains pil'd on mountains, to the skies? Heav'n still with laughter the vain toil surveys, 75 And buries madmen in the heaps they raise. Know, all the good that individuals find, Or God and Nature meant to mere Mankind, COMMENTARY. argument (from ỷ 66 to 73) against the popular error of Happiness being placed in Externals, is, that the Poffeffion of them is infeparably attended with Fear; the want of them with Hope; which directly croffing all their pretenfions to making happy, evidently fhews that God had placed Happiness elsewhere. And hence, in concluding this argument, he takes occafion (from 72 to 77) to upbraid the defperate folly and impiety of thofe, who, in fpite of God and Nature, will yet attempt to place Happiness in Externals : Oh fons of earth! attempt ye fill to rife, By mountains pil'd on mountains, to the skies? VER. 77. Know, all the good &c.] The Poet having thus con futed the two errors concerning Happiness, Philofophical and Popular; and proved that true Happiness was neither folitary and partial, nor yet placed in externals; goes on (from 76 to 83) to fhew in what it doth confift. He had before faid in general, and repeated it, that Happinefs lay in common to the whole fpecies. He now brings us better acquainted with it, in a more explicite account of its nature; and tells us, it is all contained in Health, Peace, and Competence; but that there are 81 Reason's whole pleasure, all the joys of Senfe, COMMENTARY. to be gained only by VIRTUE, namely, by Temperance, Innocence, and Industry. VER. 83. The good or bad, &c.] But hitherto the poet hath only confidered Health and Peace: But Health confifts with Temperance alone; And Peace, oh Virtue! Peace is all thy own. One head yet remained to be fpoken to, namely, Competence. In the purfuit of Health and Peace there is no danger of running into excefs; but the cafe is different with regard to Compe tence here Wealth and Affluence would be too apt to be miftaken for it, in Mens paffionate pursuit after external goods. To obviate this mistake therefore, the poet fhews (from 82 to 93) that, as exorbitant wealth adds nothing to the Happiness arifing from a Competence; fo, as it is generally ill-gotten, it is Say, in pursuit of profit or delight, 85 Who risk the most, that take wrong means, or right? below, Who fancy Bliss to Vice, to Virtue Woe! VARIATIONS. After VER. 92. in the MS. Let fober Moralifts correct their speech, COMMENTARY. 90 94 attended with circumftances that weaken another part of this triple chord, namely Peace: Reafon's whole pleasure, all the joys of Senfe, Lie in three words, Health, Peace, and Competence. And Peace, oh Virtue! Peace is all thy own. VER. 93. Ob blind to truth, &c.] Our author having thus largely confuted the mistake of Happiness's confifting in externals, proceeds to expose the terrible confequences of fuch an opinion on the fentiments and practice of all forts of men, making the Diffolute impious and atheistical; the Religious uncharitable and intolerant; and the Good reftlefs and difcontent. For when it is once taken for granted, that Happiness consists in ex Who fees and follows that great scheme the best, Best knows the bleffing, and will most be blest. But fools, the Good alone, unhappy call, For ills or accidents that chance to all. See FALKLAND dies, the virtuous and the just! See god-like TURENNE proftrate on the duft! 100 COMMENTARY. ternals, it is immediately feen that ill men are often more happy than good; which fets all conditions on objecting to the ways of Providence; and fome even on rafhly attempting to rectify its difpenfations, though by the violation of all Law, divine and human. Now this being the moft momentous part of the subject under confideration, is deservedly treated moft at large. And here it will be proper to take notice of the art of the poet in making this confutation ferve, at the fame time, for a full folution of all objections which might he made to his main propofition, that Happiness confifts not in externals. I. He begins, first of all with the Atheistical complainers, and pursues their impiety, from 93 to 131 Oh! blind to truth, and God's whole fcheme below, &c. VER. 97. But fools the Good alone unhappy call, &c.] He exposes their folly even on their own notions of external goods, 1. By examples (from 98 to 111) where he fhews, firft, that if good men have been untimely cut off, this is not to be ascribed to their Virtues, but to a contempt of life that hur NOTES. VER. 100. See god-like Tu- | traordinary, that his chief purrenne] This epithet has a pecu- pofe in taking on himself the liar juftnefs; the great man to command of armies, feems to whom it is applied not being have been the Prefervation of diftinguished, from other ge- Mankind. In this god-like care nerals, for any of his fuperior he was more distinguishably qualities fo much as for his pro- employed throughout the whole vidential care of those whom he courfe of that famous campaign led to war; which was fo ex- in which he loft his life. |