Who scorn a Lad fhould teach his father skill,
And, having once been wrong, will be so still. 130
He, who to feem more deep than you or I,
Extols old Bards, " or Merlin's Prophecy,
Miftake him not; he envies, not admires,
And to debase the Sons, exalts the Sires.
* Had ancient times conspir’d to dif-allow 135
What then was new, what had been ancient now?
Or what remain'd, so worthy to be read
By learned Critics, of the mighty Dead?
y In Days of Ease, when now the weary

Sword
Was saeath'd, and Luxury with Charles restor’d; 140
In ev'ry taste of foreign Courts improv’d,
“ All, by the King's Example, liv'd and lov'd."
Then Peers grew proud in Horsemanship t'excell,
New-market's Glory rofe, as Britain's fell;
The Soldier breath'd the Gallantries of France, 145
And ev'ry flow'ry Courtier writ Romance.

NOTES. Earl of Orrery, and most of the French Romances translated by Perfors of Quality. P.

Ver. 146. And ev'ry flow'ry Courtier writ Romance.) A kind of heroical Romances, whose subject was some celebrated story of antiquity. In these voluminous extravagancies, love and honour supplied the place of life and manners, which were scarce ever thought of till Mr. De Marivaux in France, and Mr. Fielding in England introduced this fpecies of fable : and, by inriching it with the best part of the comic art, may be said to have brought it so perfection.

- Marmoris aut eboris fabros aut aeris amavit ;

Suspendit picta vultum mentemque tabella ;

Nunc tibicinibus, nunc eft gavisa tragoedis :

Sub nutrice puella velut fi luderet infans,

Quod cupide petiit, mature plena reliquit.

Quid placet, aut odio eft, quod non mutabile credas?

Hoc paces habuere bonae, ventique fecundi.

• Romae dulce diu fuit et solemne, reclusa

Mane domo vigilare, clienti promere jura;

Scriptos 5 nominibus rectis expendere nummos ;

f Majores audire, minori dicere, per quae

Crescere res poffet, minui damnosa libido.

Notes. Ver. 149. Lely on animated Canvas stole The sleepy Eye, etc.] This was the Characteristic of this excellent Colourist's expression ; who was an excessive Maniereft.

Ver. 153. On each enervate firing, etc.) The Siege of Rhodes by Sir William Davenant, the first Opera sung in England. P.

Then - Marble, soften'd into life, grew warm,
And yielding Metal flow'd to human form:
Lely on animated Canvas stole
The sleepy Eye, that spoke the melting soul. 15
No wonder then, when all was Love and sport,
The willing Muses were debauch'd at Court:
On each enervate string they taught the note
To pant, or tremble thro' an Eunuch's throat.

But Britain, changeful as a Child at play, 155
Now calls in Princes, and now turns away.
Now Whig, now Tory, what we lov'd we hate;
Now all for Pleasure, now for Church and State;
Now for Prerogative, and now for Laws;
Effects unhappy! from a Noble Cause.

160 e Time was, a sober Englishman wou'd knock His servants up, and rise by five o'clock, Instruct his Family in ev'ry rule, And send his Wife to church, his Son to school. Tof worship like his Fathers, was his care ; 165 To teach their frugal Virtues to his Heir; To prove, that Luxury could never hold; And place, on good & Security, his Gold. I

NOTES. Ver. 158. Now all for Pleasure, now for Church and Stare;] The first half of Charles the Second's Reign was passed in an abandoned diffoluteness of manners; the other half, in factioas disputes about popish plots and French prerogative.

Mutavit mentem populus levis, het calet uno

Scribendi studio: puerique patresque feveri

Fronde comas vineti coenant, et carmina di&tant.

Ipfe ego, qui nullos me affirmo fcribere verfus,

Invenior i Parthis mendacior ; et prius orto

Sole vigil, calamum et chartas et fcrinia posco.

* Navem agere ignarus navis timet: abrotonum aegro

Non audet, nisi qui didicit, dare : quod medicorum est,

Promittunt 'medici : tractant fabrilia fabri:

Scribimus indocti doctique poemata passim.

Hic error tamen et levis haec insania, quantas

Notes.

VER. 180. to few our Wit.] The force of this confifts in the ambiguity.-To fhew how constant we are to our resolutions or, to shew what fine verses we can make.

VER. 181. He ferw'd etc.) To the simple elegance of the original, the Poet has here added great spirit and vi.

170

Now times are chang'd, and one · Poetic Itch
Has seiz'd the Court and City, poor and rich :
Sons, Sires, and Grandfires, all will wear the bays,
Our Wives read Milton, and our Daughters Plays,
To Theatres, and to Rehearsals throng,
And all our Grace at table is a Song.
1, who fo oft renounce the Muses, i lye, 175
Not 's self e'er tells more Fibs than I;
When fick of Muse, our follies we deplore,
And promise our beft Friends to rhyme no more;
We wake next morning in a raging fit,
And call for pen and ink to show our Wit. 180

k He serv'd a 'Prenticeship, who sets up Chop;
Ward try'd on Puppies, and the Poor, his Drop;
Ev'n' Radcliff's Doctors travel first to France,
Nor dare to practise till they've learn’d to dance.
Who builds a Bridge that never drove a pile ? 185
(Should Ripley venture, all the world would smile)
But m those who cannot write, and those who can,
All rhyme, and scrawl, and scribble, to a man.

Yet, Sir, "reflect, the mischief is not great; These Madmen never hurt the Church or State: 190

Notes. vacity, without departing from the fidelity of a tranflation.

V&R. 182. Ward) A famous Empiric, whose Pill and Drop had several surprizing effects, and were one of the principal subjects of writing and conversation at this time.

P.