So fwells each wind-pipe; Afs intones to Afs, 256 There, Webster! peal'd thy voice, and Whitefield ! thine. But REMARK S. VER. 258. Webster-and Whitefield!] The one the writer of a Newspaper called the Weekly Mifcellany; the other a Field-preacher. The Enthufiaft thought the only means of advancing Religion was by the New-birth of fpiritual madness: The Bigot, by the old death of fire and faggot: And therefore they agreed in this, though in no other earthly thing, to abufe all the fober Clergy. From the fmall fuccefs of these two extraordinary persons, we may learn how little hurtful Bigotry and Enthusiasm are, while the Civil Magiftrate prudently forbears to lend his power to the W. one, to be employed against the other. among In a letter, of Warburton, preferved in the British Museum, Dr. Birch's papers, addreft to M. Demaizeux, he fays very pleasantly; "I have feen Whitefield's Journal, and he appears to me to be as mad as ever George Fox the Quaker was. Thefe are very fit Miffionaries, you will fay, to propagate the Christian Faith amongst Infidels. There is another of them, one W. who came over from the fame Miffion: He told a friend of mine, that he had lived moft deliciously the laft fummer in Georgia, fleeping under trees, and feeding on boiled maize, fauced with the ashes of oak leaves; that he will return thither, and then will caft off his English drefs, and wear a dyed fkin, like the favages, the better to ingratiate himself with them. It would be well for virtue and religion, if this humour would lay hold generally of our over-heated bigots, and fend them to cool themselves in the Indian marfhes. I fancy that Ven and Webfter would make a very entertaining as well as proper figure in a couple of bear skins, and marching in this terror of equipage, like the Pagan priests of old. "Jamque facerdotes, primufque Potitius, ibant Pellibus in morem cinétis, flammafque ferebant." But far o'er all, fonorous Blackmore's ftrain; Walls, fteeples, fkies, bray back to him again. 260 In Tot'nam fields, the brethren, with amaze, All hail him victor in both gifts of fong, Who fings fo loudly, and who fings fo long. REMARK S. This VER. 268. Who fings fo loudly, and who fings fo long.] A just character of Sir Richard Blackmore, knight, who (as Mr. Dryden expreffeth it) "Writ to the rumbling of his coach's wheels ;" IMITATIONS. and VER. 260. bray back to him again.] A figure of fpeech taken from Virgil: "Et vox affenfu nemorum ingeminata remugit." Georg. iii. "He hears his num'rous herds low o'er the plain, While neighb'ring hills low back to them again." COWLEY. The poet here celebrated, Sir R. B. delighted much in the word. bray, which he endeavoured to ennoble by applying it to the found of Armour, War, &c. In imitation of him, and strengthened by his authority, our author has here admitted it into Heroic poetry. W. VER. 262. Prick all their ears up, and forget to graze ;] "Immemor herbarum quos eft mirata juvenca." VIRGIL, Ecl. viii. The progrefs of the found from place to place, and the scenery here of the bordering regions, Tottenham-fields, Chancery-lane, the Thames, Westminster-Hall, and Hungerford-ftairs, are imitated from Virgil, Aeneid vii. on the founding the horn of Alecto: "Audiit et Triviae longe lacus, audiit amnis W. This labour paft, by Bridewell all defcend, (As morning pray'r, and flagellation end) 270 REMARKS. To and whofe indefatigable Mufe produced no lefs than fix Epic poems: Prince and King Arthur, twenty books; Eliza, ten; Alfred, twelve; the Redeemer, fix; befides Job, in folio; the whole Book of Pfalms; the Creation, seven books; Nature of Man, three bocks; and many more. 'Tis in this fenfe he is ftyled afterwards the everlasting Blackmore. Notwithstanding all which, Mr. Gildon feems affured, that "this admirable author did not think himself upon the fame foot with Homer." Comp. Art of Poetry, vol. i. p. 108. But how different is the judgment of the author of Characters of the times? p. 25. who fays, "Sir Richard Blackmore is unfortunate in happening to mistake his proper talents; and that he has not for many years been so much as named, or even thought of among writers." Even Mr. Dennis differs greatly from his friend Mr. Gildon: " Blackmore's Action (faith he) has neither unity, nor integrity, nor morality, nor univerfality; and consequently he can have no Fable, and no Heroic Poem: His Narration is neither probable, delightful, nor wonderful; his characters have none of the neceffary qualifications; the things contained in his Narration are neither in their own nature delightful, nor numerous enough, nor rightly difpofed, nor surprising, nor pathetic." -Nay he proceeds fo far as to fay Sir Richard has no Genius; first laying down," that Genius is caused by a furious joy and pride of foul, on the conception of an extraordinary Hint. Many men, (fays he) have their Hints, without thefe motions of fury and pride of foul, because they want fire enough to agitate their spirits; and these we call cold writers. Others who have a great deal of fire, but have not excellent organs, feel the forementioned emotions without the extraordinary hints; and these we call fuftian writers. But he declares that Sir Richard had neither the Hints, nor the Motions." Remarks on Prince Arthur, octavo, 1696. Preface. This gentleman, in his first works, abused the character of Mr. Dryden; and in his laft, of Mr. Pope, accufing him in very high and fober terms of profanenefs and immorality (Effay on Polite Writing, vol. ii. p. 270.) on a mere report from Edm. Curl, that he was author of a Travestie on the first Pfalm. Mr. Dennis took up the fame report, but with the addition of what To where Fleet-ditch with disemboguing streams REMARKS. The Sir Richard had neglected, an Argument to prove it; which being very curious, we fhall here tranfcribe. "It was he who burlefqued the Pfalm of David. It is apparent to me that Pfalm was burlesqued by a Popish rhymefter. Let rhyming perfons who have been brought up Proteflants be otherwife what they will, let them be rakes, let them be fccundrels, let them be Atheists, yet education has made an invincible impreffion on them in behalf of the facred writings. But a Popish rhymefler has been brought up with a contempt for thofe facred writings; now fhew me another Popish rhymefter but he." This manner of argumentation is usual with Mr. Dennis; he has employed the fame against Sir Richard himfelf, in a like charge of Impiety and Irreligion. “All Mr. Blackmore's celeftial Machines, as they cannot be defended fo much as by common received opinion, fo are they directly contrary to the doctrine of the church of England; for the visible defcent of an angel must be a miracle. Now it is the doctrine of the church of England, that miracles had ceafed a long time before Prince Arthur came into the world. Now if the doctrine of the church of England be true, as we are obliged to believe, then are all the celestial machines in Prince Arthur unfufferable, as wanting not only human, but divine probability. But if the machines are fufferable, that is, if they have fo much as divine probability, then it follows of neceffity that the doctrine of the Church is falfe. So I leave it to every impartial Clergyman to confider," etc. Preface to the Remarks on Prince Arthur. W. dinner VER. 270. As morning pray'r, and flagellation end.] It is between eleven and twelve in the morning, after church service, that the criminals are whipped in Bridewell.-This is to mark punctually the time of the day: Homer does it by the circumftance of the Judges rifing from court, or of the Labourers ; our author by one very proper both to the Perfons and the Scene of his poem, which we may remember commenced in the evening of the Lord-mayor's day: The firft book paffed in that night; the next morning the games begin in the Strand, thence along Fleet-ftreet (places inhabited by Bookfellers), then they proceed by Bridewell towards Fleet-ditch, and lastly through Ludgate to the City and the Temple of the Goddess. W. The King of dykes! than whom no fluice of mud "Here ftrip, my children! here at once leap in, 274 Here prove who best can dash through thick and thin, And who the most in love of dirt excel, Or dark dexterity of groping well. Who flings moft filth, and wide pollutes around A peck of coals apiece fhall glad the rest." REMARKS. In VER. 276, 277, 278. -Dash through thick and thin-love of dirt -dark dexterity] The three chief qualifications of Party-writers: to flick at nothing, to delight in flinging dirt, and to flander in the dark by guefs. W. VER. 280. the Weekly Journals] Papers of news and fcandal intermixed, on different fides and parties, and frequently shifting from one fide to the other, called the London Journal, British Journal, Daily Journal, etc. the concealed writers of which for fome time were Oldmixon, Roome, Arnall, Concanen, and others: perfons never feen by our author. W. VER. 281. Who dives the beft;] The idea of this Game is evidently taken from Lord Dorfet's fine verses on Howard. I wonder Swift in his Rhapfody on Poetry would venture on the same subject and idea of diving, after Pope had fucceeded so well : "For inftance; when you rafhly think No Rhymer can like Welfted fink, Folio, Ver. 392. 1733. Little IMITATIONS. VER. 273. The king of dykes, etc.] "Fluviorum rex Eridanus, quo non alius, per pinguia culta, In mare purpureum violentior influit amnis." VIRG. W. |