THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES Ex Libra SIR MICHAEL SADLER ACQUIRED 1948 WITH THE HELP OF ALUMNI OF THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION A D V I C Line. Call. TO A YOUNG REVIEWER, ;&,. WITH A SPECIMEN OF THE ART. OXFORD, SOLD BY J. PARKER, AND J. COOKi; AND BY t. C. AN'D J. KIVIN'frTOy, ST. PAUC*S CHURCH YAKX3, 1807. gwoud, Printer, Oxford. ADVICE TO A YOUNG REVIEWER, &c. A OU are now about to enter on a profession which has the means of doing much good to society, and scarcely any temptation to do harm. You may encourage genius, you may chastise superficial arrogance, expose falsehood, correct error, and guide the taste and opinions of the age in no small degree by the books you praise and recom- mend. All this too may be done without running the risk of making any enemies, or subjecting yourself to be called to account for your criticism, however severe. While your name is unknown, your person is invulnera- ble: at the same time your own aim is sure; for you may take it at your leisure ; and your blows fall heavier than those of any writer whose name is given, or who is sim- ply anonymous. There is a mysterious authority in the plural we, which no single name, whatever may be its re- putation, can acquire ; and, under the sanction of this imposing style, your strictures, your praises, and your dogmas, will command universal attention, and be re- ceived as the fruit of united talents, acting on one com- mon principle as the judgments of a tribunal who decide only on mature deliberation, and who protect the in- terests of literature with unceasing vigilance. Such being the high importance of that office, and such its opportunities, I cannot bestow a few hours of leisure better than in furnishing you with some hints for the more easy and effectual discharge of it : hints which are, I confess, loosely thrown together, but which are the re- sult of long experience, and of frequent reflection and comparison. And if any thing should strike you at first sight as rather equivocal in point of morality, or deficient in liberality and feeling ; I beg you will suppress all such scruples, and consider them as the offspring of a con- tracted education and narrow way of thinking, which a little intercourse with the world and sober reasoning will speedily overcome. Now as in the conduct of life nothing is more to be desired than some governing principle of action, to which all other principles and motives must be made subservi- ent ; so in the art of Reviewing I would lay down as a fundamental position, which you must never lose sight of, and which must be the main spring of all your criti- cisms Write what rcili sell. To this golden rule every minor canon must be subordinate, and must be either immediately deducible from it, or at least be made con- sistent with it. Be not staggered at the sound of a pre- cept, which upon examination will be found as honest and virtuous as it is discreet. I have already sketched out the great services which it is in your power to render mankind; but all your efforts will be unavailing if men did not read what you write. Your utility therefore, it is plain, depends upon your popularity ; and popularity cannot be attained without humouring the taste and in- clinations of men. Be assured that by a similar train of sound and judi- cious reasoning the consciences of thousands in public life are daily quieted. It is better for the state that their party should govern than any other : the good which they can effect by the exercise of power is infinitely greater than any which could arise from a rigid ad- herence to certain subordinate moral precepts, which therefore should be violated without scruple whenever they stand in the way of their leading purpose. He who sticks at these can never act a great part in the world, and is not fit to act it if he could. Such maxims may be very useful in ordinary affairs, and for the guidance of ordinary men ; but when \ve mount .into the sphere of public utility, we must adopt more enlarged principles, and not suffer ourselves to be cramped and fettered by petty notions of right, and moral duty. When you have reconciled yourself to this liberal way of thinking, you will find many inferior advantages re- sulting from it, which at first did not enter into your con- sideration. In particular, it will greatly lighten your labours to follow the public taste, instead of taking upon you to direct it. The task of pleasing is at all times easier than that of instructing : at least it does not stand in need of painful research and preparation; and may be effected in general by a little vivacity of manner, and a dexterous morigeration (as Lord Bacon calls it) to the humours and frailties of men. Your responsibility too is thereby much lessened. Justice and candour can only be required of you so far as they coincide with this main principle ; and a little experience will convince you, that these are not the happiest means of accomplishing your purpose. It has been idly said, that a Reviewer acts in a judicial capacity, and that his conduct should be regulated by the same rules by which the Judge of a civil court is go- verned : that he should rid himself of every bias ; be patient, cautious, sedate, and rigidly impartial ; that he should not seek to shew off himself, and should check every disposition to enter into the case as a partizan. Such is the language of superficial thinkers ; but in reality there is no analogy between the two cases. A Judge is promoted to that office by the authority of the state; a Reviewer by his own. The former is independent of controul, and may therefore freely follow the dictates of his own conscience : the latter depends for his very bread upon the breath of public opinion: the great law of self-preservation therefore points out to him a different line of action. Besides, as we have already observed, if he ceases to please, he is no longer read, and consequently is no longer useful. In a court of justice, too, the part of amusing the bystanders rests with the counsel : in the case of criticism, if the Reviewer himself does not under- take it, who will? Instead of vainly aspiring therefore to the gravity of a magistrate, I would advise him, when he sits down to write, to place himself in the imaginary si- tuation of a cross-examining pleader. He may comment, in a vein of agreeable irony, upon the profession, the manner of life, the look, dress, or even the name of the witness he is examining: when he has raised a contemp- tuous opinion of him in the minds of the court, he may proceed to draw answers from him capable of a ludicrous turn, and he may carve and garble these to his own lik- ing. This mode of proceeding you will find most prac- ticable in Poetry, where the boldness of the image, or the delicacy of thought, for which the reader's mind was pre- pared in the original, will easily be made to appear ex- travagant or affected, if judiciously singled out, and de- tached from the group to which it belongs. Again, since much depends upon the rhythm and the terseness of ex- pression, both of which are sometimes destroyed by dropping a single word, or transposing a phrase, I have known much advantage arise from not quoting in the form of a literal extract, but giving a brief summary in prose of the contents of a poetical passage; and interlard- ing your own language with occasional phrases of the Poem, marked with inverted commas. These, and a thousand other little expedients, by which the arts of quizzing and banter flourish, practice will soon teach you. If it should be necessary to transcribe a dull pas- sage, not very fertile in topics of humour and raillery, you may introduce it as a " favourable specimen of the " Author's manner." Few people are aware of the powerful eilcets of what is philosophically termed Association. Without any po- sitive violation of truth, the whole dignity of a passage may be undermined by contriving to raise some vulgar and ridiculous notions in the mind of the reader : and language teems with examples of words by which the same idea is expressed, with the difference only that one- excites a feeling of respect, the other of contempt. Thus you may call a fit of melancholy " the sulks," resentment " a pet," a steed " a nag," a feast " a junketing," sorrow and affliction " whining and blubbering." By transferring the terms peculiar to one state of society, to analogous situations and characters in another, the same object is attained ; a drill-serjeant or a cat and nine tails in the Trojan war a Lesbos smack put in to the Piraeus the penny-post of Jerusalem, and other combinations of the like nature, which, when you have a little indulged that vein of thought, will readily suggest themselves, never fail to raise a smile, if not immediately at the expence of the Author, yet entirely destructive of that frame of mind which his Poem requires in order to be relished. I have dwelt the longer on this branch of literature, because you are chiefly to look here for materials of fun and irony. Voyages and Travels indeed are no barren ground, and you must seldom let a number of your Re- view go abroad without an article of this description. The charm of this species of writing, so universally felt, arises chiefly from its uniting narrative with information. The interest we take in the Story can only be kept alive by minute incident and occasional detail, which puts us in possession of the traveller's feelings, his hopes, his fears, his disappointments, and his pleasures. At the same time the thirst for knowledge and love of novelty is gratified, by continual information respecting the peo- ple and countries he visits. If you wish therefore to run down the book, you have only to play off these two parts against each other: when the writer's object is to satisfy the firit inclination, you are to thank him for cornmuni- 6 eating to the world such valuable facts as whether he lost his way in the night or sprained his ancle or had no appetite to his dinner. If he is busied about describ- ing the mineralogy, natural history, agriculture, trade, &c. of a country, you may mention a hundred books from whence the same information may be obtained, and deprecate the practice of emptying old musty folios into new quartos, to gratify that sickly taste for a smattering about every thing, which distinguishes the present age. In works of science and recondite learning, the task you have undertaken will not be so difficult as you may imagine. Tables of Contents and Indexes are blessed o helps in the hands of a Reviewer; but, more than all, the Preface is the field from which his richest harvest is to be gathered. In the Preface the Author usually gives a summary of what has been written on the same subject before ; he acknowledges the assistance he has received from different sources, and the reasons of his dissent from former writers ; he confesses that certain parts have been less attentively considered than others, and that information has come to his hands too late to be made use of; he points out many things in the composi- tion of his work which he thinks may provoke animad- version, and endeavours to defend or to palliate his own practice. Here then is a fund of wealth for the Reviewer, lying upon the very surface; if he knows any thins; of his business, he will turn all these materials against the Author; carefully suppressing the source of his inform- ation, and as if drawing from the stores of his own mind, long ago laid up for this very purpose. If the Author's references are correct, a great point is gained ; for by consulting a few passages of the original works, it will be easy to discuss the subject with the air of hav- ing a previous knowledge of the whole. Your chief van- tage-ground is, that you may fasten upon any position in the book you are reviewing, and treat it as principal and essential., when perhaps it is of little weight in the main argument ; but, by allotting a large share of your criticism to it, the reader will naturally be led to give it a proportionate importance, and to consider the merit of the treatise at issue upon that single question. If any body complains that the greater and more valuable parts remain unnoticed, your answer is, that it is impossible to pay attention to all, and that your duty is rather to prevent the propagation of error, than to lavish praises upon that which, if really excellent, will work its way in the world without your help. Indeed, if the plan of your Review admits of selection, you had better not meddle with works of deep research and original speculation, such as have already attracted much notice, and cannot be treated superficially without fear of being found out. The time required for making yourself thoroughl} r mas- ter of the subject is so great, that you may depend upon it they will never pay for the reviewing. They are ge- nerally the fruit of long study, and of talents concen- trated in the steady pursuit of one object; it is not like- iy therefore that you can throw much new light on a question of this nature, or even plausibly combat the Author's positions in the course of a few hours, which is all you can well afford to devote to them. And, without accomplishing one or other of these points, your Review will gain no celebrity, and of course no good will be done. Enough has been said to give you some insight into the facilities with which your new employment abounds : I will only mention one more, because of its extensive and almost universal application to all branches of lite- rature ; the topic, I mean, which by the old Rhetori- cians was called l| Ivnvrlav. That is, when a work excels in one quality, you may blame it for not having the op- posite. For instance, if the biographical sketch of a li- terary character is minute and full of anecdote, you may enlarge on the advantages of philosophical reflection, and the superior mind required to give a judicious ana- B 4 8 lysis of the opinions and works of deceased authors : on the contrary, if the latter method is pursued by the bio-- grapher, you can with equal ease extol the lively colour- ing, and truth, and interest, of exact delineation and de- tail. This topic, you will perceive, enters into style as well as matter ; \vhere many virtues might be named which are incompatible : and whichever the Author has preferred, it will be the signal for you to launch forth on the praises of its opposite, and continually to hold up that to your reader as the model of excellence in this species of writing. You will perhaps wonder why all my instructions are pointed towards the censure, and not the praise of books; but many reasons might be given why it should be so. The chief are, that this part is both easier, and will sell better. Let us hear the words of Mr. Burke on a subject not very dissimilar; " In such cases, "says he," the writer " has a certain fire and alacrity inspired into him by " a consciousness, that, let it fare how it will with the " subject, his ingenuity will be sure of applause ; and 11 this alacrity becomes much greater, if he acts upon the " offensive, by the impetuosity that always accompanies " an attack, and the unfortunate propensity which man- " kind have to the finding and exaggerating faults." Pref. Vindic. Nat. Soc. p. 6. You will perceive that I have on no occasion sanctioned the baser motives of pri- vate pique, envy, revenge, and love of detraction ; at least I have not recommended harsh treatment upon any of these grounds ; I have argued simply on the abstract moral principle which a Reviewer should ever have pre- sent to his mind : but if any of these motives insinuate themselves as secondary springs of action, I would not condemn them : they may come in aid of the grand lead- ing principle, and powerfully second its operation. But it is time to close these tedious precepts, and to furnish you with what speaks plainer than any precept, a specimen of the art itself, in which several of them are embodied. It is hastily done, but it exemplifies well enough what I have said of the poetical department, and exhibits most of those qualities, which disappointed au- thors are fond of railing at, under the names of flippan- cy, arrogance, conceit, misrepresentation, and malevo- lence : reproaches, which you will only regard as so many acknowledgments of success in your undertaking, and infallible tests of an established fame and rapidly in- creasing circulation. L' Allegro, a Poem. By John Milton. No Printer's name. IT has become a practice of late with a certain descrip- tion of people, who have no visible means of subsistence, to string together a few trite images of rural scenery, in- terspersed with vulgarisms in dialect, and traits of vul- gar manners ; to dress up these materials in a sing-song jingle, and to offer them for sale as a Poem. According to the most approved recipes, something about the hea- then gods and goddesses, and the schoolboy topics of Styx and Cerberus, and Elysium, is occasionally thrown in, and the composition is complete. The stock in trade of these adventurers is in general scanty enough, and their art therefore consists in disposing it to the best ad- vantage. But if such be the aim of the writer, it is the O * Critic's business to detect and defeat the imposture; to warn the public against the purchase of shop-worn goods, and tinsel wares ; to protect the fair trader, by exposing the tricks of needy quacks and mountebanks ; and to chastise that forward and noisy importunity, with which they present themselves to the public notice. How far Mr. Milton is amenable to this discipline, will best appear from a brief analysis of the Poem before us. In the very opening he assumes a tone of authority, which might better suit some veteran bard than a raw 10 candidate for the Delphic bays : for, before he proceeds to the regular process of Invocation, he clears the way by driving from his presence, with sundry hard names and bitter reproaches on her father, mother, and all the family, a venerable personage, whose age at least, and *taid matron-like appearance, might have entitled her to more civil language. Hence, loathed Melancholy ; Of Cerberus and blackest midnight born, In Stygian cave forlorn, &c. There is no giving rules, however, in these matters, without a knowledge of the case. Perhaps the old lady had been frequently warned off before, and provoked this violence by continuing still to lurk about the Poet's dwelling. And, to say the truth, the reader will have but too good reason to remark, before he gets through the Poem, that it is one thing to tell the spirit of dulness to depart, and another to get rid of her in reality. Like Glendower's spirits, any one may order them away, " but " will they go, when you do order them r" But let us suppose for a moment that the Parnassian decree is obeyed, and according to the letter of the order, which is as precise and wordy as if Justice Shallow him- self had drawn it, that the obnoxious female is sent back to the place of her birth, " 'Mongst horrid shapes, shrieks, sights," &c. at which we beg our fair readers not to be alarmed, for we can assure them they are only words of course in all poetical instruments of this nature, and mean no more than the " force and arms," and " instigation of the " Devil" in a common indictment. This nuisance then being abated, we are left at liberty to contemplate a cha- racter of a different complexion, " buxom, blithe, and " debonair," one, who although evidently a great favourite of the Poet's, and therefore to be received with all due courtesy, is notwithstanding introduced under the suspi- cious description of an alias. 11 In heaven yelep'd Euphrosyne, And by men, heart-easing Mirth. Judging indeed from the light and easy deportment of this gay nymph, one might guess there were good rea- sons for a change of name, as she changed her residence. But of all vices there is none we abhor more than that of slanderous insinuation ; we shall therefore confine our moral strictures to the nymph's mother, in whose defence the Poet has little to say himself. Here too, as in the case of the name, there is some doubt : for the uncertain- ty of descent on the father's side having become trite to a proverb, the Author, scorning that beaten track, has left us to choose between two mothers for his favourite : and without much to guide our choice ; for, whichever we fix upon, it is plain she was no better than she should be. As he seems, however, himself inclined to the latter of the two, we will even suppose it so to be Or whether (as some sager sing) The frolic wind that breathes the spring, Zephyr with Aurora playing, As lie met her once a Mai/ing- ; There ou beds of violets blue, And fresh-blown roses wash'd in dew, &c. Some dull people might imagine, that the wind was more like the breath of spring, than spring the breath of the wind ; but we are more disposed to question the Author's Ethics than his Physics, and accordingly cannot dismiss these May gambols without some observations. In the first place, Mr. M. seems to have higher notions of the antiquity of the May-pole than we have been ac- customed to attach to it. Or perhaps he thought to shel- ter the equivocal nature of this affair under that sanction. To us however, who can hardly subscribe to the doctrine that " vice loses half its evil by losing all its grossness," neither the remoteness of time, nor the gaiety of the sea- son, furnishes a sufficient palliation. " Violets blue," and " fresh-blown roses," are to be sure more agreeable ob- 12 jects of the imagination than a gin-shop in Wapping, or a booth in Bartholomew Fair; but in point of morality, these are distinctions without a difference: or, it may be, the cultivation of mind, which teaches us to reject and nauseate these latter objects, aggravates the case, if our improvement in taste be not accompanied by a propor- tionate improvement of morals. If the reader can reconcile himself to this latitude of principle, the anachronism will not long stand in his way. Much indeed may be said in favour of this union of an- cient mythology with modern notions and manners. It is a sort of chronological metaphor an artificial analogy, by which ideas, widely remote and heterogeneous, are brought into contact, and the mind is delighted by this unexpected assemblage, as it is by the combinations of figurative language. Thus in that elegant interlude, which the pen of Ben Johnson has transmitted to us, of the loves of Hero and Leander : Gentles, that no longer your expectations may wander, Behold our chief actor, amorous Leander, With a great deal of cloth, lapp'd about him like a scarf, For he yet serves his father, a dyer in Puddle-Wharf ; Which place we'll make bold with, to call it our Abydus, As the bank-side is our Sestos, and let it not be denied us. And far be it from us to deny the use of so reasonable a liberty; especially if the request be backed (as it is in the case of Mr. M.) by the craving and imperious necessities of rhyme. What man who has ever bestrode Pegasus but for an hour, will be insensible to such a claim ? Haud ignara mali miseris succurrere disco. We are next favoured with an enumeration of the attend- ants of this " debonair" nymph, in all the minuteness of a German dramatis persona?,or a rope-dancer's hand-bill: Haste thee, nymph, and bring with thee Jest, and youthful Jollity ; equips, and cranks, and wanton wiles, Nods, and becks, and wreathed smiles, 13 Such as hang on Hebe's cheek, And love to live in dimple sleek ; Sport that wrinkled Care derides, And Laughter, holding both his sides. The Author, to prove himself worthy of being admitted of the crew, skips and capers about upon " the light fan- " tastic toe," that there is no following him. He scam- pers through all the categories, in search of his imaginary beings, from Substance to Quality, and back again ; from thence to Action, Passion, Habit, &,c. with incredi- ble celerity. Who, for instance, would have expected cranks, nods, becks, and wreathed smiles, as part of a group, in which Jest, Jollity, Sport, and Laughter figure away as full-formed entire personages ? The family like- ness is certainly very strong in the two last, and if we had not been told, we should perhaps have thought the act of deriding as appropriate to Laughter as to Sport. But how are we to understand the stage directions ? Come, and trip it as you go. Are the words used svnonvmously ? Or is it meant that %/ / / this airy gentry shall come in at a minuet step, and go. off in a jig ? The phenomenon of a tripping crank is in- deed novel, and would doubtless attract numerous specta- tors. But it is difficult to guess to whom among this jolly company the Poet addresses himself, for immediate- Jy after the plural appellative [you], he proceeds, And in thy right hand lead with tJiee The mountain nymph, sweet Liberty. No sooner is this fair damsel introduced, but Mr. M. with most unbecoming levity, falls in love with her, and makes a request of her companion, which is rather greedy, that he may live with both of them: To live with her, and live with thee. Even the gay libertine who sung, " How happy could I " be with either," did not go so far as this. But we have already had occasion to remark on the laxity of Mr. M.'s amatory notions. 14 The Poet, intoxicated with the charms of his mistress, now rapidly runs over the pleasures which he proposes to himself in the enjoyment of her society. But though he has the advantage of being his own caterer, either his palate is of a peculiar structure, or he has not made the most judicious selection. To hegin the day well, he will have the sky-lark to come in spite nf snrrou', And at his window bid good morrow. The sky-lark, if we know any thing of the nature of that bird, must come in spite of something else as well as of sorrow, to the performance of this office. In his next image the natural history is better preserved, and as the thoughts are appropriate to the time of the day, we will venture to transcribe the passage, as a favourable speci- men of the author's manner : While the Cock with lively din Scatters the rear of darkness thin, And to the stack, or the barn-door, Stoutly struts his dames before ; Oft listening 1 how the hounds and horn CJheerly rouse the slumbering morn, From the side of some hoar hill, Through the high wood echoing shrill. Is it not lamentable that, after all, whether it is the Cock or the Poet that listens, should be left entirely to the reader's conjecture? Perhaps also his embarrassment may be increased by a slight resemblance of character in these two illustrious personages, at least as far as relates to the extent and numbers of their seraglio. After &Jtaming description of sunrise, on which occa- sion the clouds attend in their very best liveries, the bill of fare for the day proceeds in the usual manner. Whist- ling ploughmen, singing milkmaids, and sentimental shep- herds are always to be had at a. moment's notice, and, if well grouped, serve to (ill up the landscape agreeably enough. Oil this part of the Poem we have only to re- 15 mark, that if Mr. John Milton proposeth to make him- self merry with Russet lawns, and fallows Where the nibbling flocks do stray ; Mountains on whose barren breast The labouring clouds do often rest, Meadows trim with daisies pied, Shallow brooks, and rivers wide, Towers and battlements, &c. &c. &c. he will either find himself egregiously disappointed, or he must possess a disposition to merriment, which even De- mocritus himself might envy. To such a pitch indeed does this solemn indication of joy sometimes rise, that we are inclined to give him credit for a literal adherence to the Apostolic precept, " Is any merry, let him sing psalms." At length however he hies away at the sound of hell- ringing, and seems for some time to enjoy the tippling and fiddling and dancing of a village wake: but his fancy is soon haunted again by spectres and goblins, a set of beings not in general esteemed the companions or in- spirers of mirth. With stories told of many a feat, How fairy Mab the junkets eat ; She was piuch'd, and pull'd, she said; And he, by friar's lanthern led, Tells how the drudging goblin sweat To earn his cream-bowl duly set ; When in one night, ere glimpse of morn, His shadowy flail hath thresh'd the corn, That ten day-labourers could not end; Then lies him down the lubbar fiend, And, stretch'd out all the chimney's length, Basks at the fire his hairy strength -, And crop-full out of door he flings, Ere the first cock his matin rings. Mr. M. seems indeed to have a turn for this species of nursery tales and prattling lullabies; and if he will stu- diously cultivate his talent, he need not despair of fi- guring in a conspicuous corner of Mr. Newbury's shop- window ; unless indeed Mrs. Trimmer should think fit to 16 proscribe those empty levities and idle superstitions, by which the world has been too long abused. From these rustic fictions we are transported to An- other species of hum. Tower' d cities please us then, And the busy hum of men, Where throng?, of knights and b.irons bold In weeds of peace high triumphs hold, With store of ladies, whose bright eyes Rain influence, and judge the prize Of wit or arms, while both contend To win her grace, whom all commend. To talk of the bright eyes of ladies judging the prize of \vit is indeed with the poets a legitimate species of hum- ming: but would not, we may ask, the rain from these ladies' bright eyes rather tend to dim their lustre ? Or is there any quality in a shower of influence, which, instead of deadening, serves only to brighten and exhilarate ? Whatever the case may be, we would advise Mr. M. by all means to keep out of the way of these knights and barons bold ; for, if he has nothing but his wit to trust to, we will venture to predict, that without a large share of most undue influence, he must be content to sec the prize adjudged to his competitors. Of the latter part of the Poem little need be said. The Author does seem somewhat more at home when he gets among the actors and musicians, though his head is still running upon Orpheus and Eurydice, and I'luto, and other sombre gentry, who are ever thrusting them- selves in where we least expect them, and who chill every rising emotion of mirth and gaiety. He appears however to be so ravished with this sketch of festive pleasures, or perhaps with himself for having sketched them so well, that he closes with a couplet, which would not have disgraced a Sternhold : These delights if thou canst give, Mirth, with thee 1 mean to live, Of Mr. jVI.'s good intentions there can be no doubt; but 17 we beg leave to remind him, that in every compact of this nature there are two opinions to be consulted. He pre- sumes perhaps upon the poetical powers he has displayed, and considers them as irresistible ; for every one must observe in how different a strain he avows his attachment now and at the opening of the Poem. Then it was, If I give thee honour due, Mirth, admit me of thy crew. But having, it should seem, established his pretensions, he now thinks it sufficient to give notice, that he means to live with her, because he likes her. Upon the whole, Mr. Milton seems to be possessed of some fancy and talent for rhyming; two most dangerous endowments, which often unfit men for acting an useful part in life, without qualifying them for that which is great and brilliant. If it be true, as we have heard, that he has declined advantageous prospects in business, for the sake of indulging his poetical humour, we hope it is not yet too late to prevail upon him to retract his resolu- tion. With the help of Cocker and common industry he may become a respectable scrivener ; but it is not all the Zephyrs, and Auroras, and Corydons, and Thyrsis's, aye, nor his junketing Queen Mab, and drudging Goblins, that will ever make him a Poet. THE EXAMINER EXAMINED, OR LOGIC VINDICATED. v- ADDRESSED TO THE JUNIOR STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD. BY A GRADUATE. Aut haec in nostros fabricata est manhina muros, Aut a.liquis latet error. Equo no credite, Teucri. OXFORD, PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR : And sold by J. COOKE, J. PARKER, M. and R. RLISS, and J. MCNDAY ; and by J. MACKIXLAY, Strand, London. 1809- Collintrvvood auJ Co. TABLE OF CONTENTS. I Page NTRODUCTORY ADDRESS _ i General, but imperfect, list of errors in Logic made easy 6' Absurdities pointed out in Mr. Kett's Introduction 9 Strange notion of the use of the First Operation of the Mind 10 Pseudo-syllogism, given by Mr. K. as a Pattern 11 Snrne remarks on the nature of the Syllogism 12 Extraordinary errors of Mr. K. respecting- the Logical distinction of Categories and Predicables confounded by Mr. & 14 Mr. K.'s illustration of the Predicates in comparing Man and Horse, examined* 15 Subaltern Genera and Species, miscalled by Mr. K. i 16 Mr. K.'s Definitions examined ik. Mr. K.'s notion of a Proposition 13 Mr. K.'s way of making Logic easy, exemplified 19 Meaning of the word Distributed ib. Conversion of Propositions. Mr. K. ignorant of the force of the tech- nical line he produces 20 Opposition of Propositions. Gross errors 21 Mr. K.'s definition of Reasoning, with his first examples of that pro- cess of the mind ib. Crowd of blunders about Major, Minor, and Middle term 22, 23 Aldrich, mutilated and misunderstood. Mr. K. wrong wherever he departs from him 23 Errors, which would endanger a candidate for the degree of B. A. ib. Syllogi iins of the Cracker kind 25 REDUCTION. Mr. K. ignorant both of its use and practice >b. HYPOTHETICAL REASONING. More Crackers. False principle 27 Mr. K.'s first Enthymem examined 28 Enthymematie sentence, made by Mr. K. not Enthymematie 30 Remarks on the importance of the right use of words 31 * N. B. The words [p. IS. 1. 28.] " which is impossible" are introduced, because by prnprium is always meant siwcific prourium, unless generic is expressly aJdfd. In giving examples of the Predicables, which i what Mr. K. is upon, p. 23. it is always so understood. TABLE OF CONTENTS. Remarks on the Enthymem _____ 35 INDUCTION. Subject considered at some length ib. General Summary of the Ariststelic system 42 ON FALLACIES 4.'i Almost the whole of Mr. K.'s chapter on Fallacies erroneous 45 Curious examples how things may be made easy 48 Mr. K.'s notion of Logic 49 Cursory account of the remainder of Mr. K.'s book 50 Some opinions of the author concerning Logic 40, to the end. ERRATUM. P. 15. 1. 18./or p. 25. read p. 2.1. MY FRIENDS AND FELLOW STUDENTS, ANXIETY for your good, and for the credit of our University, which is now assailed on every side, and by every poisoned weapon the press can discharge, are the sole motives which lead me to call your attention by this address. It may be thought presumption in me, who have no titles or trophies of former exploits to display, to enter the lists with an antagonist, whose whole life seems to have been spent among you who has served some of the most efficient offices in the place whose works are so numerous, that the bare catalogue of them fatigues the reader; and so much esteemed, that every year produces its harvest, perhaps its double harvest, of new editions. The motives above assigned might, I confess, have called forth some one superior in rank, and age, and re- putation to myself ; or they might, perhaps, have justi- fied the exercise of AUTHORITY in the case now before us. But as I do not hear that any such champion is preparing for the field, or that any such interposition is intended, and as the case is urgent, I scruple not to ad- vance, in the confidence which truth inspires; and if what I say is tried by the test of truth, I have no fears for the event. I will not be content with Laocob'n, to hurl a single javelin at the monster which is thus insidi- ously brought within our walls I will not merely raise a sounding echo from his hollow sides the whole mass of lurking mischief shall be dragged from its hiding-place, and exposed in the face of day. I only entreat of you patient and impartial attention. Take the book I am ex- amining, and compare it with my book, page by page. If B I accuse the writer falsely in a single instance, read no v O farther, but cast my book into the iire, and condemn it to eternal infamy. If I make good my accusations, do not let false pity, and that mawkish plea, of atje and 1 / - 1 * O services and good intentions, shield the accused from justice, or even mitigate his sentence. When first I saw the advertisement of Logic made O easy, it was accompanied by a long list of books from the same author. Of these books I have certainly read but few. What I have read appeared to me to contain nothing sound or useful in them. If any thing was true, it was a feeble expansion of what had been better said elsewhere. In general, the conceptions were indistinct and confused; the information scanty and unconnected; the remarks superficial; the errors, beyond all bearing, abundant and disgraceful; the language turgid, frothy, and impotent. Over all of them indeed was thrown a dress, in the very worst taste of modern millinery : not the gor- geous embroidery of Parr not the stout buckram of Johnson not the whalebone and point-lace of Gibbon but a cheap, thin, tawdry, second-hand, threadbare cloak, in cut and colour just what schoolboys call shabby genteel, and so flimsy withal in its texture, that it would not bear the handling. Indeed, I am per- suaded that there is not a single page in those works, which, in point of style, will stand the test of rigid criticism. Still, if the world liked them, it was no con- cern of mine, nor of any one else in this place. Pro- vided they did not affect our character, nor tend to corrupt our studies, he was welcome to pocket his pro- fits, and to laugh, if he pleased, at the credulity of his customers. There was one indeed of these works, which could not be forgiven so easily. A\\ intimation was thrown out in the preface, that it would be serviceable in the course of study recommended here lor our degrees. Many people, as well as myself, were astonished at the effrontery of this pretension. As for myself, I was too young when it first canie out, to think of warning the world against it; and since that, the folly and inanity of the book have heen exposed by a critic, whose only fault is, that he has passed over too lightly the offence of sporting with the credit of the University for the sake of private gain. The author ought to have been thankful for this le- nity : he ought to have felt the kind forbearance, which many others in this place, whose indignation was deep and well known, practised towards him. But, instead of taking this moderate correction and indulgence in good part, he has become hardened in folly he has not ceased to weary the press with fresh absurdity, till there is no hope of silencing him by gentle means. Our patience has been tried to the uttermost already : the cup has been long full; and let him not wonder if this last drop has made the waters of bitterness to overflow. If indeed he had confined himself to that class of writings, with which Oxford, as a place of education, is not concerned, we might have suffered them to pass in silence. I, at least, for one, should not have interrupted him in the enchanting occupation of rearing an accom- plished female from the nursery, as I do not pretend to any knowledge or experience in those matters. I might perhaps have pitied the poor motherless Emily, who, without any fault of hers, and believing firmly her gal- lant father that the Porte was so called from its conve- nient harbour, should go and seek for Constantinople in the broad and azure Hellespont ; who should expect to find Geneva and Lausanne on different lakes, and to see Gla- ciers towering over her head. All these mistakes might be inconvenient to a traveller ; but as most well-educated females remain at home, no great harm would have been done to the world, But when an elementary book of in- B 2 4 struetion is studiously recommended to the young and unwary, containing errors Thick as autumnal leaves that strew the vales In Vallombrosa when every art of book-making chicanery is tried, by advertisement, by title-page and preface, to gain a lodg- ment for this fabric of imposture within our walls, can we be too loud or too forward in resisting such a design ? At the captivating sound of things made casi/, a crowd of half-witted, half-educated parents hail the welcome guest, and receive him to their bosoms. These we may despise, for they ought to know and have the means of knowing better; but the unsuspecting innocence of youth it is painful to s one surely would wish to check or to disparage this spe- cies of improvement. But I must be allowed to doubt whether the writer of Logic made easy was formed for carrying on this, one of the noblest processes of nature whether his stomach is furnished with that paucrcnlic juice, which is able to reduce the heterogeneous mixture 9 gathered into it to one character, and extract from its various parts wholesome aliment, and new life for the body. It is now time to enter upon a more particular en- quiry. I will only premise, that personal hostility has no share in the present undertaking ; that the author is at- tacked simply as an author; and that this pamphlet doc.* not contain a single phrase or word, from beginning to end, zchich would not have been applicable to any other man, who, nn-der the same circumstances, had written the same works. There will, I doubt not, be found reviewers enough to charge me with malice, and pique, and envy, and a long list of sins: but I firmly believe there will not be found even a British Critic hardy enough to say, that Mr. Kett is now attacked for having, in an eminently useful book, committed a. few mistakes *. INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER. SECT. l. I have so much to do in the body of the work, that I shall not stop long here. It is a puerile declamation on the use of Loic, containing some nonsense, and some false- O ' O J hood. E.g. \>.3. "By studying the distinctions that pre- " tail with respect to propositions, he is enabled to qua- " tify Ids assertions, and to measure them by the stand- " ard of consistency." Nonsense. Again: "When he " advances to that part of Logic which relates to syllo- " gistic reasoning, he learns the agreement and disagree- " ment of ideas with each other." Ib. Falsehood. Other mistakes there arc of little moment. For instance, that Logic puts us on our guard against the language of error; that "all Cicero's most celebrated Orations are charac- " terized by the copiousness of his expressions, for the " sake of conveying his ideas with exactness, and by the " variety and condusiveness of his arguments." I*. 5. * Vid. Brit. Grit, on Kett's Elements and Davison's Remarks. C 10 Towards the end are four lines from a noble passage In Horace, Ep. ii. 2. 120. suitable, as Mr. Kett tells us, to those to whom they arc suitable. I know somebody, to whom two lines not far off are suitable. Praetulerim scrijitor defirus inersque vkh-ri, Dum mea delectent mala me, vel deuiqu't fallant. But enough of this. In SECTION 2. we have tlve History of Logic, in which Mr. K. abuses the Schoolmen very liberally: but for what? because, forsooth, they made " subtle and useless distinctions be- " tvveen one word and another," and that too as "fancy " suggested." Poor Bonaventura! But there was a worse fault behind. " Their bulky " volumes filled every library, and exercised, or rather " fettered, the understanding of every student who aspired l< to distinction in the universities, or preferment in the " church." At this passage is a reference in the margin to Elements of General Knowledge. Query. Was this iinger-post put there by design, or accident t PART!. CUM-. I. "The operations of tiie mind arc three: 1. Simple " Apprehension ; 2. Judgment ; J. Reasoning. The