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121

Or fhall we 41 ev'ry Decency confound,
Thro' Taverns, Stews, and Bagnio's take our round,
Go dine with Chartres, in each Vice out-do
42 Kl's lewd Cargo, or Tyy's Crew,
From Latian Syrens, French Circaan Feasts,
Return well travell'd, and transform'd to Beasts,
Or for a Titled Punk, or foreign Flame,
Renounce our 43 Country, and degrade our Name?
If, after all, we must with 44 Wilmot own,
The Cordial Drop of Life is Love alone,
And Swift cry wifely, "Vive la Bagatelle !

The Man that loves and laughs, muft fure do well.
45 Adieu-
if this advice appear the worst,
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.

41 Crudi, tumidique lavemur,

125

Quid deceat, quid non, obliti: Cerite cera Digni, 42 remigium vitiofum Ithacenfis Ulyffei, Cui potior 43 patria fuit interdita voluptas. 44 Si (Mimnermus ati cenfet) fine amore jocifque, Nil eft jucundum; vivas in amore, jocifque. 45 Vive, vale! fi quid novifti rectius iftis, Candidus imperti: fi non, his utere mecum.

THE

:

THE

FIRST EPISTLE

OF THE

SECOND BOOK

O F

HORACE

HOBYCK

ADVERTISEMENT.

T

HE Reflections of Horace and the Judgments paft in his Epistle to Auguftus, feem'd fo feafonable to the prefent Times, that I could not help applying them to the ufe of my own Country. The Author thought them confiderable 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 Encreafe of an Abfolute Empire. But to make the Poem entirely English, I was willing to add one or two of thofe Virtues which contribute to the Happiness of a Free-People, and are more confiftent with the Welfare of our Neighbours.

This Epiftle will show the Learned World to have fallen into Two mistakes: one, that Auguftus was a Patron of Poets in general; whereas he not only prohibited all but the Best Writers to name him, but recommended that Care even to the Civil Magiftrate: Admonebat Prætores, ne paterentur Nomen fuum obfolefieri, &c. The other, that this Piece was only a general Difcourfe of Poetry; whereas it was an Apology for the Poets, in order to render Auguftus more their Patron. Horace here pleads the Caufe of his Cotemporaries, first against the Taste of

the

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