A9. WcCASLAND. JR. 7A.^. ^"W^- — - ■iWo 7L ' *^ ^C^'tCc) fi»S. McCASLAND. JR. o^^ y Ta^^aMiJc^ A N ENaUIRY INTO THE LIFE and WRITINGS O F JJ ME R. \jK)»^^rr.44 /'i^*4XJf'm'i7 A "DFERTIS EMENT. HTH E Notes are intended ofily as Proofs ; and are long in fome places where an In-- dn6iion of Fa6ls luas neceffary. The Tran^ jlations from ancient Authors^ being defigned for the fame purpofe, are almofl literal -, 'which is the Re-afon why they are not ta* ken from more poetical Verfions. Mt "li'--lj[lli i^'^.^rD ^4. >/tn / I. ^' IT is the good-natured Advice of an admired Ancient^ To think over the feveral Virtues and Excellencies of our Acquaintance^ when we have a mind to indulge ourfelves, and be chearful. His Friends, it wou'd feem> were fuicere and conflant, or found it their In- tereft to appear fo ; elfe the Remembrance of good or great Qualities, never to be employed in his Service, cou d not have proved fo enter- taining. Tis however certain, That the Pleafures of rriendihip and mutual Coniidence, are purfu- cd in one fhape or other by Men of all Cha- racers : Neither Bufinefs, nor Divcrfions, nor ii % j4n Enquiry into the Life Learning, can exempt us from the Power of this agreeable Pallion. Even a fancied Prefence afFeds our Minds, and raifes our Spirits both in Thought and Action. The Morahfl's Diredion extends its Influence to every part of Life ; and at this moment I put it in pradice, while I en- deavour to enhvcn a few Thoughts, upon no mean Subjed, by addreffing them to your Lord^np. It is Homer, My Lord^ and the Queftioii which you looked upon as hitherto unrefolved : By "sjhat Fate or ^'tfpojition of things it has happened, that None have equalled him in Epic- Poetry for two thoiifand feven hun- ^^ dred Years ^ the Time fine e he wrote ; Nor *' any^ that we know^ ever fur pajfed him be- " forel' For this is the Man, whofe Works for many Ages, were the Delight of Princes », and the Support of Priefts, as well as the Won- der of the Learned, which they flill continue to be. However unfafe it might be, to have faid fo of old at Smyrna ^, where Homer was dei- fied, or at Chios among his Pofterity S I be- lieve *> Sirabo, fpeaking of Smynm, fays, *£«-< ^ '5 l2ioMe^it>cii j j^ rt 3-«p' uvrtr, 'Of/jy>^Hcy Mvircct. XrpccS. /3t.(Pi(r*i)7a(r» (^ »^ '0/*^p8 Xiix, fx,uf>Tvpt6v ^"Tas'OMHPl A AS and Writings ^y^ H o m e r. j lieve it \vou*d be difficult to perfuade your Lordfhip, That there was a Miracle in the Cafe. That, indeed, wou*d quiclcly put an end to the Qiieflion ; For were we really of the fame Opinion, as the Ancients, that Homer was infpired from Heaven , that he fung, and wrote as the Prophet and Interpreter of the Godss we lliould hardly be apt to wonder : Nor wou'd it furprize us much, to find a Book of an heavenly Origin without an Equal among human Compofitions : to find the Subjed of it equally ufeful and great, the Stile juft, and yet fublime, the Order both fimple and exquifite, to find the Sentiments natural without lownefs, the Manners real, and withal fo extenfive, as to include even the Varieties of the chief Characters of Mankind ; We fhou'd expcd: no lefs, con- fidering whence it came: And That I take to have been the Reafon, why none of the An- cients have attempted to account for this Pro- digy. They acquiefced, it is probable, in the Pretenfions, which the Poet conftantly makes toceleftial Inftrudion, and feem to have been of Tacitus' s Opinion, " That it is more pious and " rcfpeclful to believe, than to enquire into « the Works of the Gods b". But, My Lord^ the happy Change that has been fince wrought upon the face of religious AffairSj gives us liberty to be of the contrary B 2 Opinion; • 'n? (pn'inv o E O'S, ^ him O P * H'THS., HAktah, 'AAxj? («^# ^». ^ Pe Moribus Germanomm. 4- An Enquiry into the Lije Opinion : Tiio' in ancient times it migiit have gone near to banilTi us from Smyrna or Colophon, yet at prefent it is become pertedly harmlels ; and we may any where affert, *' That Horner^ Poems " are of HiimanCompofitionh infpired by no *' other Power tiian his own natural Faculties, ** and the Ciiances of his Education: In a ** word. That a Concourfe of natural Caufes, *' confpired to produce and cultivate that " miehty Genius, and gave him the nobleft " Field to exercife it in, that ever fell to the *' fhare of a Poet." Here, My Lord, there feems to be occa- fion for a little Philofophy, to put us, if pofli- ble, upon the Track of this fuigular Phaenome- non : It has fhone for upwards of two thou- fand Years in xh^Toetick World ; and fo dazzled Men's Eyes, that they have hitherto been more employed in gazing at it, than in inquiring What formed ity or How it came there? And veiy fortunately, the Author of all Antiquity, who feeins to have made the happiefl union of the Courtier and the Scholar^ has determined a Point that might have given us fome trouble. He has laid it down as a Principle, " That *' the greateft Genius cannot excel without *' Culture ; Nor the fineft Education produce " any thing Noble without Natural Endow- " ments'^y Taking this for granted, We may aflure ourfelves that Homer hath been happy in them bothj and niufl now follow the dark Hints « Horat. De Arte Poet. and Writings ^ H o m e R. 5" Hints afforded us by Antiquity, to find out How a hl'mdJirolingBard could come ly them, I DO not choofe to entertain your Lordfhip with the Accidents about his Birth b; tho' fome Naturalifts would reckon them the Begin- nings of his good Fortune. I incline rather to obferve, That he is generally reputed to have been a Native of y4fia the lefs > a Trad: of Ground that for the Temperature of the Climate^ and Qualities of the Soil^ may vye with any in Europe^. It is not fo fat and fruitful as the Plains of Babylon or Banks of the AT//?, to effeminate thelnhabitants,and begetLazinefs and Inadivity : But the Purity and Benignity of the Air, the Varieties of the Fruits and Fields, the Beauty and Number of the Rivers, and the con- ftant Gales from the happy Iflesofthe Weftern Sea, all confptre to bring its Productions of every kind to the highefl Perfedion : They in- . fpire that Mildnefs of Temper, and Flow of Fancy, which favour the moflextenfive Views, and give the finefl Conceptions of Nature and Truth. I N the Divifion commonly made of Cli- mates, the Rough and Cold are obferved to B 3 pro- ** Sw/?-,) THv neCi^ot, ( (>fc'/)T£pc4 'OjM-E»ri'iv 'Ao-'ur, the lovely y^?« ; And Herodotu.', who was acquainted with it, and moft of the fine Countries tiien known, afnrms, (3( 1^4^'' "li5»£(; itT-oj, t j^ to rixnoinot i?\, ^ f^ 'Ov^cci x.- T^ 6 An Enquiry into the Life produce the ftrongeft Bodies, and moil martial Spirits ; the hotter, lazy Bodies with cunning and obilinatc PaiTions ; but the temperate Re- gions, lying under the benign Influences of a genial Sky, have the beft Chance for a fine Pcf"- ception, and a proportioned Eloquence ^ Good Senfe is indeed faid to be the Produd of every Country, and I believe it is ; but the richeft Growths, and faired Shoots of it, fpring, like other •* Left it be thought thatthefe Conftquencesare ftrained, it may- be worth while to fet down the Opinion at length of the Great Hippocrates, in his IVeatife of Air, Water and Situation : B»;io/a«6< i\ Tci. — Tita'AHl' UK 7:/'.i~^ Tu' HB-iiiT kvS'fciTruv yiTTilUTlfX fC iliifjOTipX, To d'l cilTiOV TiiTiUV, if rt y^oiCic, T ilfttkiVj 07 i i ^AjK ci f/ii(ra> t eivxri}>Mv xitrxi zrpo^ 7Y]v «ft!, is" T£ Y^/tpS zycfipuTifa; Tj'jv di uvtriM- fjji' ccTCMTUi, 0K6TXV fjj/)div vj iziy-f»ri\i fiiu'wc^ ac.?>i,x 7ru.vT(^ i(ro- f/joipivi cvtotf/j'^, ' t.^4 ^'i x-xroi rnv 'Atrtw « tixvjx)!^ o/t^o/o)?, xXt.x ccx w,'J 'i' JC^'fiXi ov iMio-a/x.iirxt S ^ii'iJi'5 J^ ^ '\'^/C?^i uvrvi fOfi iv- ■nxjiZiroTUTii is'iy y^ tvS^n^xTtif y^ ivi'i.^ficrxT^, y^ uS'cta-i, uuxXirx Kt- ^finrxi, rcTtri ts oupuvioia-i y^ Toitrt hai ioiKoc, i-jinQxi, o>co(rx rs 'i>bn> asri^f/txr&iv, \u oyJatrx ocvttj v, -/v, xixMoX i^ioy fijiTx- (pvTievrUg Tx T£ c^v-rpiip'of^JfiX xtijvsoc fv^u-/i £K-p£^i;'l' XaJ^^tf «. TuC, T( ' AvB-^illTTiSi; iVTfXCplTi iivxi, J^ TX iic'ix x.<»^iV»?5 >^ uiiysS^i) fJjiyWuc , y^ viKti-x S'iXii *5 TXTi ii^ix xvrav i^ tx f/jiyt^ix, 'EiyJoi; ts tjjv X'^'f''''^ TxvTii* ■srfo^ TO tl/jTTCtCV, J^ TO B'Vf/joioic, CVJC til OViXITO on TOiXOTtf ; it,'<^X Ti]il WOVyiV XpXTi'iv, 'l7r~0KpuliK'^S^ TOTtZv, &C. To the fame Purpofe the Philofopher, 'H ©s«5 {'Ai/.vx) -r^oTipysi wM/5? KXToiKi^i'/, iKMixfJjfy) T ToTtov CUD o) ysys'vjjc&t. Till/ 'Ev>cpxP O N I M O T A'TO r S xvS'pxi, La-i, UKxTm(^ T/> Jlotle ftay'd for many Years. Me tr odor us, the great Friend of Epi- /c'/«, the Heir of Arijlotles Library, was of Scepjis. Thefe, and Xenocrates the Platonick, Arcefilas the Academick, Protarchus the Epicurean, and Eudoxus the Mathematician, Plato 6 Friend (all great Names in Philofophy) drew their firft Breath on the fame Coall : As did likewife Hippocrates, Simus, Erajijlratus, Afclepiades, Apollonius, the greatelt Mailers of Medicine. It is alfo obfervable, tliat of the fe'ven early Sages, called the ivif Men of Greece, four belonged to phis Climate : Pittacus of Mitylene, Bias of Priene, Cleobulus the hindian, and the abovemcntioaed Milefian Thales. t Hecataus and Pherecydes, the two oldeft Hiftorians the Greekt had, was the one of Miletus, and the other of the little Ifland Syros. Hellanicus was of Lejbus, Theopcmpus of Chios : The old Scylax was of Caryanda. Ephorus, the great Hiltorian, was of Cuma ; Ctefias, Phyfician to Artaxerxes King of Perfa, and a great Writer of Wonders, was of Gtiidus : 'Yo whom if you join the inimitable Plerodotus, you will have the Names of the cliief Hiltorians among the Greeks, excepting the tfio Athenians, Thucy- dides and Xenophon. 8 An Enquiry into the Life and Toets \ were Natives of tlu A,7atick Coafl:, and adjacent Iflands. And after an In- terval of Slavery, when the Influences of the Roman Freedom, and of their mild Govern- ment, had reached that happy Country, it re- paid them, not only with the Delicacies of their Fields and Gardens, but with the more valua- ble Produdions of Men of Virtue and Learn- ing^, and in fuch Numbers, as to fill their Schools, '' Hejiod^ near Hamer's own Days, was of Cumee ; Mimnermus of Colophor', Archilochus of Paros, Tyrtaus of Miletus ; ThaleSy the Poet and Law-giver, and Epimenides, the Charmer, were of Crete. Anacreon was a Teian^ Simonides a Cean, Arion and Ter- fander were Lejbians : And not to mention the particular Places of efvery one's Birth, The admired Sappho, her Lover Alco'us, Bachylli- des, Chierilus (not Alexanders), Phocylides, Bion, Si/nmias, PhiletaSf Ion the Tragedian, Philetnon Me)iander\ Rival, Hegcmon Epami- vondass Panegyrift, and the Afeonomick Poet Aratus, were all born in this Poetical Region. It had alfo the Honour of producing the Erythraean Sihl, and another infpired Lady, Athendis, under Alexander. But what is by far the moll remarkable upon this Ar- ticle is. That the famous Five, who diltinguifhed themfelves in Epick-Poetry, were all Natives of this very Climate. Hear the Tellimony of the learned Tzf/x^j : liyatxa-i oithtuv t noinrav t 'Evix-iv ) uv^fi^ ovofAtci^oi vivTi ; 'O/Jijy.soc o ■xcn.Xu.iO';, Auri/Xici^©^ h KeXo^ain^ , T1civvic(rn, nsi«r«i'^|®- o ICasf/^^^sy;, )C^ »t;^ o 'Heri- 6!o^, 'lux'j, T(^sTi^))5 lie, 'lltriuooi. Pifander was of Rhodes, and, of great Reputation, niltrxv^p©^ 6 ^\cc(ry]i/jnT»i(^ nenjrik, K«- f/jiaug ht '^ri onus the Dialeftick, Archidamus, Jntipater, Nejlory Stoicks ; with many others, whom fee in Setieca the Father, his Confro- rjer. iS Suafor. where he relates the Sentences of the Grecian Mailers. * Theophanes the Hiftorian, Pofnpeyh great Friend and Counfellor, was of Mitylene : His Son was afterwards Prefedl of AJia. Ari- Jiodemus of Ny/a had been Pompefs Mailer ; and his Coufin-Ger- man of the fame Name, was entrufted with the Education of the Children of that great Man His younger Son Sextus Pompey, when he was Lord of the Seas, had Dionyjlus the Halicar7iajfean among his Friends, the celebrated Hiilorian and Critick. Theo- pompus of Gnidus, and his Son, were botli Favourites of Jid'ius CJfar ; and the Father had a great hand in his ihort Adminiltra- tion. ApoHonius Molo was Cicero's Mailer. Pompey going to his Eaftern Expedition, paid Pojldoiiius a Vifit in his School at Rhodes, and humbled his Fafces at the Gate as they ufed to do to a Superior : When he was about to take leave, Pompey alked his Commands, and this courtly Philofopher bid him, in a line of Homer, ' Hiu ^pi^ lunv >^ x}aiifio;(^of ''■•tjf/^j^.. 'k>\uv', Al'iicays excel a7id Ihine aboue the reji y the thing in the World he moft wanted to do. Hyhreas tJie fineil Speaker in his time, was in high Favour with Marc Antony ; and the Care of j^«|-K/?«/s Marmers was committed by C^efar his Onclc, toApollodore the Pergamenian. The elder Athe-nodore needs no other Proot of his Virtue and Merit, than that he lived and died with '' a :us Cato. The younger held a high Place in AugKJlush Favour, grew dearer to him the longer he lived, got great Honour ; and ^ jn weary of the Court, returned with abfolute Power from the ■ ' i^e to reform and g?'';ern his native City. He was fucceeded in J ^vovr and Honour by Nejior the Academick, who was ch^irged wit:, uie Education of the noble ManelluSy O^avia's Son, and apparent; fLeix of the Empire. JO An Enquiry into the Life been the firft or fecond Generation, after the Tranfplantation or rather the final Settlement of this Colony, from the rocky Morea to thefe happy Lands: A Situation, in which Nature is obferved to make the moft vigorous Efforts, and to be moft profufe of her genial Treafure. The Curious in Horfes, are concerned to have a mixed Breed, a Remove or two from the fo- reign Parent 5 and what Influence it might have here, will belong to the Curious in Mankind to determine. If Homer then, came into the World, in fuch a Country, and under fo frop'tUous an Af- peft of Nature, we muft next enquire, what Reception he met with upon his Arrival ; in what Condition he found things, and what Dif- pofitions they muft produce in an exalted Qtf nius, and comprehenfive Mind. This is a dif- ficult Speculation, and I fhou*d be under no fmall Apprehenfions how to get thro' it, if I did not know that Men moving, like your Lordfliip, in the higher Spheres of Life, are well acquainted with the EfFeds of Culture and Edu- cation. They know the Changes they are able to produce ; and are not furprized to find them, as it were, new-moulding human Creatures, and transforming them more than Urganda or Circe. The Influence of Example and Difci- pline is, in effcd, fo extenfive, that fome very acute Writers have miftaken it for the only Source and Writings ^/ H o m e r. i i Source of our Morals ^ : the' their Root lies deeper, and is more interwoven with our Ori- ginal Frame. However, as we have at prefent only to do with Homer, in his Poetical Capa- city, we need give ourfelves no further Trouble in confidering the Tenour of his Life, than as ic ferved to raifc him to be the Prince of his Pro- feflion. In this Search, we mull: remember that young Minds are apt to receive fuch ftrong Im- preflions from the Circumftances of the Coun- try where they are born and bred, that they contrad a mutual kind of Likenefsto thofe Cir- cumftances, and bear the Marks of the Courfe of Life thro' which they have paffed. A Man who has had great Misfortunes, is eafiiy diftin- guifhed from one who has lived all his Days in high Profperity ; and a Perfon bred to Bufinefs, has a very different Appearance from, another brought up in Sloth and Pleafure : Both our Un- derftanding and Behaviour receive a Stamp from our Station and Adventures ; and as a liberal Education forms a Gentleman, and the contrary a Clown, in the fame manner, if we take things a little deeper, are our Thoughts and Manners influenced by the Strain of our Lives. In this view, the Circumftances that may be reafona- bly thought to have the greatefl EfFedt upon us, may perhaps be reduced to thefe following : Hrft, The State of the Country where a Per- fon ' Monf. Moihe k Vaytr, &c. IX An Enquiry into the Life fon is born and bred 5 in which I include the common Manners of the Inhabitants, their Conft'tttitton civil and reUgious, with its Caufes and Confequences : Their Manners are ittn in the Ordinary way of living, as it hap- pens to be polite or barbarous, luxurious or iimple. Next, the Manners of the TimeSy or the prevalent Humours and Profeflions in vogue : Thefe two are publick, and have a com- mon efFeft on the whole Generation . O f a more confined Nature is, firft, ^Private Education ; and after that, the particular way of Life we choofe and purfiie, with our Fortunes in it. From thefe Accidents, My Lordy Men in every Country may be juftly faid to draw their Character, and derive their Manners. They make us what we are^ in fo far as they reach our Sentiments, and give us a peculiar Turn and Ap- pearance : A Change in any one of them makes an Alteration upon Ush and taken together, we muft confider them as the Moulds that form us into thofe Habits and Difpofitions, which fway our Conduft and diftinguilh our Adions, SECT. rUings o/R o M e R. i j THERE is, My Lord, a thing, which, tho' it has happened in all Ages and Na- tions, is yet very hard to defcribe. Few Peo- ple are capable of obferving it, and therefore Terms have not been contrived to exprefs a Per- ception that is taken from the wideft Views of Human Affairs. It may be called a ^rogrejVon of Manners -, and depends for the moft part up- on our Fortunes : As they flourifh or decline, fo we live and are affedled ; and the greateft Revo- lutions in them produce the moft confpicuous Alterations in the other ; For the Alanners of a I People 14- An Enquiry Into the Life People feldom ftand ftill, but are either polifli- ing or fpoiling. In Nations, where for many Years no confiderable Changes of Fortune hap- pen, the various Rifes and Fails in their moral Character are the lefs obferved : But when by an Invafion and Conqueft the Face of things is wholly changed ; or when the original Planters of a Country, from a State of Ignorance and Barbarity, advance by Policy and Order, to Wealth and Power, it is then^ that the Steps of the Progreflion become obfervable : We can fee every thing on the growing Hand, and the very Soul and Genius of the People rifing to higher Attempts, and a more liberal Manner , From the Accounts left us of the State of ancient Greece^ by the moll accurate of their Hiftorians=^, wc may perceive three Periods in their Affairs. The jirft, from the dark Ages, of which they had little or no Knowledge ^, to the tim e of the Trojan War. The fecond, from the taking of Troy, to the ^erjian Invafion un- der Xerxes. The thirdy from that time, to the lofs of their Liberty, firil by the Macedonians, and then by the Romans, Greece v^zs peopled in the Firft ; Ihe grew, and the Conflitution was fettled in the Second ^ Jhe enjoyed it in the Third, and was in all her Glory. From the two M * ThucydUes, Lib. i. ^ Cur fupera Bellum Thebanum & Funera Troja-, Non alias alii quoque res cecinere Poets ? Quo tot fafta Virum toties cecidere ? Nee ufauani, iEtemis fam« jMonuraentis kiita fiorent ? T. Lucret* and Writings of Howe r. ly frft Periods, Homer drew his Imagery and Manners, learned his Language, and took his Suhje5f^ which makes it neceflary for us to re- view them. What is properly called Greece y is but a rough Country : It boafts indeed, as well it may in fuch an Extent, many a fine Vale, and deli- cious Field ; but taking it together, the Soil is not rich or inviting. It was anciently but thin- ly inhabited, and thefe Inhabitants were expo- led to the greateft Hardfhips : They had no conftant nor fixed Pofiefilons ; but there were frequent Removes, one Nation or Tribe ex- pelling another, and poflefiing themfelves of their Seats ^ : This was then look*d upon to be a Calamity, but not near fo grievous as we ima- gine it now, or indeed as they themfelves thought it afterwards : For there being no Traf- fick among them, or fecure Intercourfe, they had but the bare Neceffaries of Life : They plan- ted no Lands, acquired no Superfluities, and built only Shelters from the Weather <* : Expc« rience made them fenfible of the Uncertainty of • ^''E^.etS » ifctXu) /SiSectUi oiKUfSfit}, i»« [AiTUyeir«(rii ret ir^'oTt^ee, ^ Nee robuftus erat curvi Moderator Aratri Quifquam ; nee fcibat ferro moUirier Arva j Nee nova defodere in terram Virgulta ; nee altis Arboribus, veteres deeidere faleibu' ramos. Quod Sol atque Imbres dederant, quod Terra crearat Sponte fua, fatis id plaeabat Peftora donum : (.ilandiferas imer curabant Corpora (i^ereus. T. Lucret. Lib. 5**. i6 An Enquiry into the Life of their Pofleflions; and as they knew not how foon a fuperior Force might fpoil them of their Lands, fo they were fure of finding in any Country fuch a fcanty Subfiftance as they then enjoyed 5 and therefore, without much Oppofi- tion, they quitted their forry Dwellings, and made room for an Invader. O F a piece with this way of living at Land, was their Manner at Sea^ as foon as they began to build Ships, and ventured to vifit foreign Coafls : They turned themfelves wholly to Pi- racy ; and were fo far from thinking it bafe^ that the living by Plunder gave a Reputation for Spirit and Bravery. This Pradice continued long in Greece-, not among the meaner fort of People only ; but the moft powerful of the Tribe failed out with thofe under their Command, took what Ships they met, and if they thought their Numbers fufficient, they often fell upon the Villages along the Coaft, killed the Men, and carried the Women and Goods to their Ship ^ Thucydides fays, that even in his time there were feveral uncivilized Countries in Greece, that lived both by Sea and Land after the old barbarous manner C These o-zranv vS?. Strabo Geograph. Lib. 17. *" Thucydides, Lib. i. Kci\ /a/£;%jj* t«<5s zsre^.'ci t^ '£»k«(?\^ rd "AjtdftfvSw?, y; Tj";./ 7xuTii"iiwiei>v, See aUb Plutarch, m the Life of T, Q^Flaminius. * and Writings <9/Homeii. 17 These, My Lordy were the Manners in Homers Days, and fitch we find them in his Writings. Ulyjfes returning in difguife to liis own Country, was received by his Servant Ettm£nSj as a poor old Man, into his Cottage ; and being queliioncd '■ji'ho zx\diwhence he was, tells this plaufible Tale ; " That he was of *^ Crete, a natural Son of the renowned Ca- ^^ Jfor^ and much beloved by his Father while " he lived ; but at his Death, his Brothers drove '' him out of the Houfe, and defrauded him ''' of hisfharc oftheParrimony : That however, " his Worth and Bravery had procured him a " rich and honourable Match :" Then he bids him judge of the Ear by the Stalk 5 expatiates a little upon his own martial Charader, and adds, T0I02 E* EM nOAEMQ EPFON AE MOl or OIAON E^KEN. Such in the War ; I fcorned Country Toils And Houjhold Cares, and bringing up of Children : But Shipsi2)ith Sails and Oars rejoicdmy Souh Battles, and bttrnipfd Arms, and glitfring Spears^ Things that to others Terror brings andT)read, Were my delight s\ fo Godhadfor?ndmy Heart. Here is plainly a Man who profejfes Pi- racy ; and accordingly he tells, that in nine fe- veral Courfes he gained fo much Wealth,that he C was 1 8 An Enquiry into the Life was held in great Eftecmamong his Countrymen, ■ AI^ A A' OIROS C0HAAETO, &c. My Hoiife "ii^ds foonadvani -, andafterirard I Re'verence had and A'jje among the Cretans. And \7hcn U/yJfes, in his turn, comes to en- quire into the Fortunes of Etimaus, he choofes this Suppofition, as the moil natural he could make : Btit come, and tell me truly 'ujkat I ask ; Whether the fpacious To-wn ^-juaspilhged^ In which thy Father, and thy Mother livd? Or whether Men came unaware-: upon tbee^ Leftfingle with the Oxen, or the Sheep, jind dragging thee aboard, failed over hither To this Mans TTwelling ? ^ Thefe being the Manners of the Times, we need not wonder at Homer's reorefenting the good NeJior^'dS entertaining Telemadms and his Company very honourably in hl<^ Houfe, and af- ter the RepaO:, asking them. Whether they were Merchants ■ H MA^IAIQX AAAAHSBE, OIA TE AHaTHPE2 ? ——Or doyou rove uncertainy As beiiig Robbers ? Nor was Homers own Country behind-hand with the reft of the Greeks, We learn from Hero* 8 'O^wOT. er. and Writings of FI o m e r . 19 Herodotus^ ihsitLatonds Oracle mBoutoo had allured 'Pfarnmetichus (one of the twelve Kings, when Egypt was broken into petty Govern- ments) 1 hat brazen Men would come to his Alliftance : They were no other, fays the Hi- ftorian, than 'imi ni>iX(r'/coii K* (ptAov, kJ t KxvKataVf x^ Ai>iiyuv ''Eifcrm ^' or] no>!f!.o(,y^v ^ 'Evf,a>^iii Itv'/X'^''^ ts jra- Xxm irXx^cdM^ot., uTtsf ^aiit roP, Tfucri .C16 J TJvfyacruv t' ; tTTii i fd^ uvvpycvTov y' s^tWMTO Hetiiujit iVPV)^eft}> QytZlt/j^ K^xTiiu TVi? ioirt, 'Oeao^. P«Y«*^ ^, In the V-iKvoiittnuu. 14- ^^^ Enquiry into the Life great Parent of Invention, NeceJJity-, in its young and untaught Ellays. The Importance of tiiis good Fortune will beil: appear, if your Lordlliip refleds on the Pleafure which we receive from a Reprefenta- tion of natural and firnple Matmers : It is ir- refiflible and incbanting j they beft fhew hu- man Wants and FeeUngs; they give us back the Emotions of an artlefs Mind, and the plain Methods we fall upon to indulge them : Good- nefs and Honefty have their Share m the De- light 5 for we begin to like the Men, and wou'd rather have to do with them, than with more refined but double Charaders. Thus the vari- ous Works necelTary for building a Houfe, or a Ship ; for planting a Field, or forging a Wea- pon, if dcfcribed with an Eye to the Sentiments and Attention of the Man fo employed, give us great Pleafure, becaufe 'uue fiel the fame. In- .nocence, we fay, is beautiful j and the Sketches of it, wherever they are truly hit off", never fail to charm : Witnefs the few Strokes of that Na- ture in Mr. ^ryden^ConqueJi oi Mexico j and the Inchanted Ifland. Accordingly, My Lord-, wc find Ho- mer defcribing very minutely the Houfes, Ta- bles, and Way of living of the Ancients 5 and we read thefe Defcriptions with pleafure. But on the contrary, when we confider our own Cuftpms, we find that our fiifl Bufinefs, when we fit down to poetize in the higher Strains, is to and Writings of Ho mbr. if to unlearn our daily way of Life 5 to forget our manner of Sleeping, Eating and Diverfions : We are obliged to adopt a Set of more natural Manners, which however are foreign to us 5 and mufl be like Plants raifed up in Hot-Beds or Green- Houfes, in comparifon of thofe which grow in Soils fitted by Nature for fuch Produc- tions. Nay, fo far are we from enriching Po- etry with new linages drawn from Nature, that we find it difficult to underftand the old. We live within Doors, covered, as it were, from Na- ture's Face ; and pafling our Days fupinely ig- norant of her Beauties, we are apt to think the Similies taken from her lowy and the ancient Manners mean^ or abfurd. But let us be in- genuous. My Lord, and confefs, that while the Moderns admire nothing but Pomp, and can think nothing Great or Beautiful, but what is the Produce of Wealth, they exclude them- felves from the pleafanteft and moft natural Images that adorned the old Poetry. State and Form difguifeMan j and Wealth and Luxury dif- guile Nature. Their EfFeds in Writing are an- fwerable : A Lord-Mayor's Show, or grand Pro- ceflion of any kind, is not very delicious Reading, if defcribed minutely, and at length ; and great Ceremony is at leaft equally tirefomein a Poem, as in ordinary Converfation. It has been an old Complaint, that we love to difguife every thing, and moft Ourfelves. All pur Titles andDiftin(5tions have been reprcfcntcd as i6 An Enquiry into the Life as Coverings, and Additions of Grandeur to what Nature gave us "J: Happy indeed for the bed of Ends, I mean the pubhck Tranquilhty and good Order J but incapable of giving delight inFidtion or Poetry. B y this time your Lordfhip fees I am in the cafe of a noble Hiftorian, who having related the conftant Superiority his Greeks had over the Inhabitants of the j-lfjyrian Vales, con- cludes *' That it has not been given by the '' Gods, to one and the fame Country, to pro- *' duce rich Crops and warlike Men ': *' Nei- ther indeed does it feem to be given to one and the fame Kingdom, to be throughly civilized, and afford proper Subjcd:s for Poetry. The Marvellous zndlVonderful is the Nerve of the Epic Strain : But what marvellous Things hap- pen in a well ordered State? We can hardly be furprized j We know the Springs and Method of ading ; Every thing happens in Order, and ac- cording to Cuftom or Law. But in a wide Country, not under a regular Government, or fplit into many, whofe inhabitants live fcat- tered, and ignorant of Laws and Difcipline ; In fuch a Country, the Manners are funple, and Accidents ^ Quel fuon faftofo e vano. Quel inutil Sogetto Di I-ufinghe, di Titole e d' Inganno ; Ch.^ Ho?ior dal volgo infano Indegnamente e detto, Non era anco:' degli Animi Tiranno. Paitor Fido, Choro deli* Atto 4-* ' Jisrodatus, and Writings (?/ Homer. x7 Accidents will happen every Day: Expofition and lofs of Infants, Encounters, Efcapcs, Ref- cues, and every other thing that can inflame the human Paflions while adling, or awake rliem when defcribed, and recalled by Imitation. These are not to be found in a well-governed State, except itbe in a Civil IVar ; which, with all the Diforder and Mifery that attends it, is a fitterSubjed for an Epic Poem,thanthe moft glo- rious Campaign that ever was made in Flanders. Even the Things that give the greateft Luftrein a regular Government 5 the greateft Honours and highefh Trufls, will fcarcely bear Poetry : The Mufe refufes to beftow her Embellifhmentsona Luke's Patent, or a Generars Commiilion. They can neither raife our Wonder, nor gain our Heart : For Peace, Harmony and good Or- der, which make the happinefs of a People, are the Bane of a Poem that fubfifts by Wonder and Surprize. T o B E convinced of this, we need only fup- pofc that the Greeks, at the time of the Trojan War, had been a Nation eminent for Loyalty and Difcipline : that Commiflions in due Form had been iflued out, Regiments raifed. Arms and Horics bought up, and a compleat Army fet on Foot. Let us fuppofc that all Succefs had attended them in their Expedition ; that every Officer had vyed with another in Bravery againft the Foe, and in Submiffioii to his General. That in a 8 An Enquiry into the Life inconfequencc of thefe Preparations, and of this good Order, they had at firft Onfet routed the Trojans-, and driven them into the Town: Sup- pofe this, and think, Wiiat will become of the glorious Il'tad ? The Wrath of Achilles, the Wifdom of Neftor^ the Bravery of ^Diomedes, and the Craft of UlyJJes will vaniih in a mo- ment. But Matters are managed quite other- wife 5 Seditione, T^olis, Scelere at que Libidine & Ira, Iliacos intra Muros peccattir^ (ir extra. I T is thus that a Peoples Felicity clips the Wings of their Verfe : It affords few Materials for Admiration or Pity 5 and tho' the Pleafure arifing from a Tafle of the fublimer kinds of Writing, may make your Lordjhip regret the Silence of the Mules, yet 1 am perfuaded you will join in the Wifh, That vjc may never be 'a proper SubjeB of an Heroic Poem, But now that I have ventured fo far, I begin to apprehend, My Lord, that I ihall be de- ferted. The Habit of reconciling Extremes when a publick Concern calls for Attention, is become fo natural to your Lord/hip, that it muft incline you to wilh our Epic Affairs not fo de- fperare 5 and your Knowledge of the Poetical Privilege, will immediately fuggeft, ** That Our ' " private Manners jWs pofTiblcadmit not fuch *' Reprefentation 5 nor will our mercenary * " Wars, and Writings ^H o M E R. 19 " Wars, and State Intrigues, receive the Stamp " oi Simplicity and Heroifm : "But why may not a Poet feign ? Can t he counterfeit Man- ners, and contrive Accidents as he fees good? Is he not intituled to fhift Scenes, and introduce Perfons and Characters at pleafure? Let him but exercifc iiis Prerogative, and all will be well : Our Manners need be no Impediment; he may give his new-raifed Generation what Turn and Caji he pleales. T HO* this feems to promife fair, yet in the end, I am afraid, it will not hold good. Your Lordfhip will judge whether my Fears are jufl, when relying on that Penetration which at- tends your Opinions, I venture to affirm, *' That *' a Poetdefcribes nothing fo happily, as what he *' has leen ; nor talks mafterly, but in his native •' Language, and proper Idiom 5 nor mimicks '' truly other Manners, than thofe whofeOrigi- *' nalshc has praclifed and known*. This Maxim will, no doubt, appear fe- vere ; and yet, I believe, it will hold true in fad. If we caft an Eye backward upon Antiquity, it will be found that none of the great original Writers have excelled, but where they fpoke of the Things they were moft converfant with, and in the Language and Dialed they conftant- ly ufed^ The fa ty rical buffoonifh Temper of Archtlochus * Seethe Note, pag. 33. • As for the Poets in particular, fays Cer-vantes, En refolucion, todos los Poetas antiguos efcrivieron en la Lengua que mamaron en la Leche ; y no fueron d, bufcar las eftrangeras para declarar la alteza defus Conceptos. Don^ixote, Pane H. lib, 5. c. 16. 30 An 'Enquiry into the Life Archllochus is well known j nor is it a Secret, that he indulged his PafTions, which were nei- ther weak nor few. The Sententious JVrittms of Euripides J and Menander's polite Pidtures of Life, reprefented their daily Converlation. *Plato's admired Dialogues are but correded Tranfcripts of what pafled in the Acadeyny : And Luciliusj preferred by fome Romans to all that ever wrote v, wrotehimfelf juft ashe fpoke. Herodotus'^ Hiftory ihows the Traveller, Thit- cydidessthzVolitician, T>io7iyJius''s the Scholar, Xenophon\ the Captain and the ^hilofopherj as truly as they acted thele Charaders in their Lives : Nor con'd thole Heroes have excelled each in his different Way, had they done other- wife. But the Truth of this Maxim will beft ap- pear, if we obferve its Influence in Converfation and Behaviour. The Man who affects no other than his natural Manners, has abetter chance to excel, than if he Ihou'd attempt to copy another Man's Way, tho' perhaps preferable both in Language and Gefture to his ov^/n. It is a fmall Circle of Acquaintance, which does not afford fome diverting; Proofs of this common Miftake: And if it was not a difagreeable Occupation, to blame and find fault, 'twere eafy to produce ma- ny Inftances of the fame mifcarriage in Writing, I will only put your Lordjhip in mind of two great ^ Lucllius quofdam ita deditos fibi habet Amatores, ut eum om- nibus Poetis praefcrre non dubitent, Quintil. de Satyr. and JVritings who filled his Court with learned Men, and had a true judgment in fuch things him- felf. Bembo was made Secretary for the J^po- Jiolick Briefs i and, after two Succeffions to the Pontificate was railed to the Dignity of the Turple-, chiefly for his Reputation in Literature: And indeed his Learning and Abilities are un- queflionable. But at the fame time, this great Man admiring only the Ro?j^an Eloquence and Manners, wrotea Hiflory of his own Country, fo much upon the Model of a Latin Aunal, that not only the Caft of the Work isfervilely copied, but the Peculiarities of their Style, their Com- putation of Miles and Time, and the Forms oi their Religion and Government, are with infinite labour wrought into a Venetian Story. The efted: of it is, to enervate and deaden his Work, which a Writer of half his Knowledge andAc- complilhments, would have told better without his Affe^ation* ^ A LITTLE jx An Enquiry into the Life A LITTLE yoLin!;er than the Cardinal ^2&Gio^ vanni Giorgio Trijjino, a Native o^Vicenza. He was look'd upon as one ot tlic ^rcateft Maftcrs of ancient Learning,both Greek and Roman, of his Age 5 and, which rarely happens, was bleft at the fame time with a Flow of 7"///?/^;^ Eloquence. A Man fo qualified, eafily faw the Faults of his con- temporary Writers ; and thought it not impofll- ble, with his Talents and judgment, To produce juch aToem in Italian, asV\oi\\Qic had done in Greek. H E s E T about it, and placed this great Model before his Eyes : He abandoned the ufe of Rhyme, followed the natural Run of Speech in his Verf e ; and endeavoured to adapt his Inventions to the State andTemper of his Age and Nation. He took Italy for the Subject of his Poem, as Homer had Greece : He has Champions of the fame Country, zsHomer has Grm^^w Heroes : He u^cs, Angels for his Divinities, and fupplies the ancient Furies with modern'Z)^i;i/j : In his Geography, r.s//^- w^^rdefcribed Gr^rr^, and chiefly TheJJdly ••> Trip fino defcribes Italy ^ and dwells on Lombardy. He has even attempted Fable ^ and interwoven al- legorical Stories of Life andMorals,with the Body of the Narration. But after all, the native Ita^ lian Manners are loft j and the high Spirit and fecret Force which bewitches a Reader, and dazzles his Eyes, that he can fee no Faults in ^ante and Ariofioy is here crufli'd by Imitation. Its Fate has been anfwerable : The Italia li- berata and Writings ^Homer. gg herata ( for fo he called his Poem ) being no more read or known, than Chapelains Tu- celle wou'd be without Boileau, or Sir i? * * *'s yf * * V without the *Z) * * *. TriJJino owes his Fame to his Tragedy of Sophonishdy and to his Mifcellanies ; and the Cardinal is preferved from Oblivion by his Letters and Love-Verfes 5 and there too, the fame hiclination to copy has made him check his natural Fire, that he might attain Cicero's Elegance in the one, and ^e- trarchds Purity and Softnefs in the other. To confefs the Truth, My Lordy we are born but with narrow Capacities ; We feem not able to mafler two Sets of Manners, or compre- hend with facility different ways of Lifc^. Our Company, Education and Circumftances make deep Impreflions, and form us into a Charac- ter, of which we can hardly divcfl ourfelves af- terwards. The Manners not only of the Age in which we live, but of our City and Family, flick clofely to us, and betray us at every turn, when we try to diflemble, and wou'd pafs for Foreigners. Thefe we underftand, and can paint to Perfedion ; and there is no one fo undifcern- ing, as not to fee, that we have wonderfully fuc- ceeded in defcribing thofe Parts of modern Life we have undertaken. Was there ever a more natural Pidure than x\\zWay of the World? D Or sivTX Ixitvoc, zreecTlivj a> ^u >^ t«J ^lUjyi^XTCt, tV» oiOof.tetaif/jcciX, 2 n>ii»!of. 'S^ noAfl. y. 34 -^^ Enquiry into the Life Or can any thing in its kind furpafs the Rape of the Lock ? The Authors, doubtlefs, per- fedly knew the Life and Manners they were painting, and have fucceeded accordingly. Here then was Homers fir ft Happi- nefs 5 He took his plain natural Images from Life : He faw Warriors^ and Shepherds y and ^ enfant s^ fuch as he drew ; and was daily converfant among fuch People as he intended to reprefent : The Manners ufed in the Trojan Times were not difufed in his own : The fame way of living in private, and the fame Purfuits in publick were ftill prevalent, and gave him a Model for his Defign, which wou'd not allow him to exceed the Truth in his Draught- By fre- quently and freely looking it over, he cou'd difcern what Parts of it were fit to be repre- fented, and what to be palled over y. F o R s o unaffected and fimple were the Man- ners of thofe Times, that the Folds and Wind- dings of the human Brcaft lay open to the Eye ; nor were People afhamed to avow Paflions and Inclinations, which were entirely void of Art and Defign ^. This was Homers Happinefs, with refped to Mankind, and the living Part of his Poetry ; as for the other Parts, and what a Painter y it Et qucG Defperat traftata nitefcere pofle, relinquit. Horat. * Bold Homer durft not fo great Virtue feign In his beft Pattern : Of Patroclus flain. With fuch Amazement as weak Mothers ufe. And frantick Geilure, he receives the News. WalleRi. and Writings ^ H o m E R. 3 5* Painter wou'd call St ill- It fe, he cou'd have little Advantage : For we are not to imagine, that he cou'd difcovcr the entertaining Profpeds, or rare Productions of a Country better than we can. 216^/ is a Subjed ft ill remaining to us, if we will quit our Towns, and look upon it : We find it accordingly, nobly executed by ma- ny of the Moderns, and the moft illuftrious Inftance of ir, within thefe few Years, doing Ho- nour to the Britipj Poetry *. In s h o r t, it may be faid of Homer, and of every ^oet who has wrote well, Th2itwhathQ felt and faw, that he defcribed 5 and that Ho- mer had the good Fortune to fee and learn the Grecian Manners,at their true Pitch and happiefl Temper for Verfe : Had he been born much foon- er, he would have feen nothing but Nakednels and Barbarity : Had he come much later, he had fallen in the Times either of wide Policy and Peace, or of General Wars, when private Paf- iions are buried in the common Order, and eftablifhed Difcipline. * The Seasons, by Mr. Thomfon, D a SECT, %^^^^^^ J4f?^ . Xtf€-/^ /av^-O^ irvi^ SECT III. WHOEVER refleas upon the Rife and Fall of States, will find, that along with their Manners, their Language too accompa- nies them both in their Growth and Decay. Language is the Conveyance of our Thoughts , and as they are noble, free and undifturbed, our Difcourfe will keep pace with them both in its Cafland Materials. By this Means a Conven- tion of Men of Spirit and Underflanding, who have the Bufinels of a City or State to ma- nage (if they have not their Orders to receive in iUence from a Superior) will naturally pro- duce and Writings ^Homer. 37 duce Speakers and Eloquence. The fame Men, if they quit their Town and look abror-d, will fpcak of tiie Objeds prciented to them by Nature's Face, with the fame Freedom and Happinefs of Exprellion : And if, in a wide CpL' ntry, there are many fuch Societies, fpeak- •j^'iie fame Tongue, but in different Dialed:sj 'SBLanguage will reap the Benefit, and be en- rarficd with new Words, Phrafes, and Meta- . according to the Temper and Genius of tnce icveral People : While each approve their own, becaufe it is ufed by their Governors in their own independent State. Your Lordship very well knows, what a dcfpicable Figure the Beginnings of the human Race make in the Pictures drawn of them by the Ancients : Cum prorepferiint^ primis Anlmalla TerriSy Mutum & turpe TecuSj glandem atque cu- b'tlia propter Unguibus & 'Pngnisy dein Fujlibus^ atque it a porro ^ugnabantArmis^quapojlfabricaverat ufus ; ^onec Verba^ quibus voces feftfufqi notdrentj Nominaque invenere. "" They thought, it fhou*d feem, that Language was the firit Tamer of Men ^, and its Origin to have D 3 been = Horat. Sat. 3. Lib. \. 58 An Enquiry into the Life been certain rude accidental Sounds, which that naked Company of fcrambling Mortals emitted by Chance ^ U PON this Suppofition, it will follow, that atfirftthey uttered thefe Sounds in a much high- er Note than we do our Words now 5 occafioij^ ed, perhaps, by their falling on them unqlr fome Paflion, Fear, Wonder or Pain ^ 5 and then ufing the fame Sound, either when ttee- Objed: or Accident recurred, or when tli*^, ■wanted to defcribe it by what they felt : Nei-' ther the Syllables, nor the Tone could be af- certained ; but when they put feveral of thefe ^ocal Marks together, they wou'd feem tojing. Hence ATAAEIN fignified at firft fimply to fpeak or utter the Voice, which now, with a fmall Abbreviation (A A E I N) %nifics to fing : And hence came the ancient Opinion, " That *' Poetry was before Profe." The Geographer Strabo, a wife Man, and well acquainted with Antiquity, tells us, that Cadmus y Tberecydes, and Hecataus firft took the Numbers, and the Meafure from Speech, and reduced that to Profe which had always been "f Ti /2oroiv>>i Tjv 7r^ocry!'>i?-ciTi'Jj, f^ rsJ5 uvTOf/jUTHi otJro T dtvo^U)/ iWo 5" (rv[j!j(pi^ov>(^ ^i^cca-Ko/j^'ni^ TiJ? (pum ^ 'A 2 H M O Y y^ ZYTKEXTMENHS aV.}?, eW g* x«1' oAty*" ^ I A P P O Y N ra!? Xil{c,. Aiohf. S(xtA. (iicXioB-. a. ^ Kit} ^ h^ct, uv^^uzisi; EN X P E I ^ >ioyii to u^arev y^ one Word or Sound, according to its Analogy TO different Ideas, wou'd ftand for them ail ; a Quality we often miftake for Strength and Ex- preffion, while it is a real Defed. But let us take another Step, and fuppofe the Affairs of the rude Community to be a lit- tle advanced^ that they begin to underftandtheir own Gibber i^^ live in tolerable Security, and are at liberty to look about them : hi that cafe,. Admiration and Wonder will fuccecd. Won- der is the proper Paflion of raw and unexperien- ced Mortals when rid of Fear. The great Cri- tick among the Ancients has alTigned it tojoimg Men: A witty Modern of the laft Age gives it to the Ladies i and one of the finefl Pieces written in our Language confines it to Fools. *T I s certain, that in the Infancy of States,, the Men generally refemblethe publick Confti- tution : They have only that Turn which the rough Culture of Accidents, perhaps difmal enough, thro' which they have palled, cou'd give them: They are ignorant and undefigning^ go- ^ Nam fuit quoddam tempus, cum in agris Homines paflim Beflia- Tum more vagabantur, Sc fibi vidu ferino Vitam propagabant : Necratione Animi quicquam, fedpleraque Viribus Corporis admi- niftrabant. Nondum divinae Religionis, non humani Officij ratio colebatur: Nemolegitimas videratNuptias ; non certos quifquam infpexerat Liberos : Non jus a;quabile, quid utilitatis hafaeret, ac- ceperat. Ita propter errorem atque infcitiam, csca ac temeraria dominatrix Animi Cupiditas, ad fe explendam viribus Corporis abutebatiir, perniciofiffimis Satellitibus. M. T. Ciceronis de inventione Lib, i. and Writings e?/ H o m e r. 43 lKr>N noIHMATrzN, y^ rsi wcc^ia-w/of^^ee, XXTce. T«5 TiXiTci^, 'czc< tim i S-sVi; tc7<; ufAviiren l^e^w roi kutoI, jiAi^©-. /3»?. y. Which plainly fhe'.vs tl^e Natwe and Tendency ©f the 0;;/'/^»V4 Rites, and Writings efpecially while the Docflrine flouriihes, and ap- pears in Bloom : For your Lordlhip knows, that thefe things, among the Ancients, had their Spring and Summer as well as natural Growths ; and after a certain time, like a lupcrannuated Plant, they turned fcrubby and lifelefs, were difregarded by degrees, and at lall vanilhed. What further Advantages Poetry might reap from a Religion fo framed, will appear afterwards: Let us now confider the Manners of the Times s by which I mean the Profeffions and Studies that are in vogtie^ and bring moft Honour to thofe that pollefs them in an eminent degree. They likewife follow the Fortunes of a Kation : In the ^ProgreJJion abovementioned, the Arts of the greateft Ufe in Life, I mean thofe that fupply our natural Wants, and fe- cure our Perfons and Properties, are the Jirji that ennoble their Inventors ; and in procefs of time, when Wealth has made its Entrance, the Refiners ofPleafure, and Contrivers of Mag* Jiiiicence draw our Attention. From and Writings ^Homer. 5-3 F R o M T H E Accounts already given of the State of Greece-, it is cafy to conclude, that ihcfirft muft be flill prevalent when Homer lived ; a piece of good Fortune that exempted him from the two Vices^ to whofe charge the admired Longinus lays the Fall of Poetry : An infatiable Delne of Riches, and what he calls a mean d'tfpiritmg ^ajjion, (a^/^rg^'TDr rian^^) the Love of Plealure ^, I N efFe(fV, Arms at that time was the ho- noured Profelllon, and a fiihltck Spirit the courted Charadcr : There was a Neceihty for them both. The Man who had bravely de- fended his City, enlarged its Dominion, or died in its Caufe, was revered like a God i Love of Liberty, Contempt of Death, Honour, Probity and Temperance, were Realities. There was, as I faid, a Neceihty for thofe Virtues^ : No Safety to Life or Fortune with- out them ; while every State, that is to fay, almoft every City was necellitated either to defend itfelf againft its warlike Neighbour, or fhamefuUy fubmit to Oppreflion and Sla- very. Ai)d no wonder if the Man who learns E 3 thefe « 'o <^ ^.) vf"®- i>cut(^, (die Age of Vjejeus, a little before the Trojan War) >t.i/«f» i»i^j4iT»c, y.i^m ^ tfyotc, x^ fccj^ui, skx^^t f 4- -^^ Enquiry into the Life thefe Virtues from Neccflity, and the Things rhemfclves, knows them better than Schools and Syftems can inftrud: him ; and that the Reprefentations of fuch genuine Charaders bear the Marks of Truths and far outfhine thofe taken from counterfeit Worth, or fainter Patterns. Thus your Lordfhip fees, that the Fortunes^ the Manners, and tiie Language of a People are all linked together, andneceflarily influence .one another. Men take their Sentiments from their Fortunes 5 if they are low, it is their con- flant Concern ho'-ju to mend them 5 if they are eafy, how to enjoy them: And according to this Bent they turn both their Condud, and their Converfation ; and afllime the Language, Air, and Garb peculiar to the Manner of the different Charaders. In moft of the Greek Cities, Policy and Laws were but juft a form- ing, when Homer came into the World f. The firfl Sketches of them were extremely fuii- ple^ j generally Prohibitions from Violence, or fuch Regulations of Manners as we fhould think unneceflary or barbarous. The Tribes were but beginning to live fecure within the Walls of their new fenced Towns, and had as yet neither f They had>noweII Jlgefied Body of Laws, or Plan of a Civil Conftituticn, befftre Onomacritus. So Arijlotle, 'Ovo/a«x:j;t5 -ygvo- and Writings ^ H o m e R. SS neither Time nor Skill to frame a Domeftick Policy, or Municipal Laws 5 and far lefs to think of publick Methods of training up their Citizens : They lived naturally, and were go* verned by the natural Toife of the Paffions, as it is fettled in every human Breaft. This made them fpeak and adl, without other Re- ftraint than their own native Apprehenfions of G^^^and Evily Jujt and Unjufty each as he was prompted from 'wtthin. Thefe Manners afford the mofl natural Pidures, and proper Words to paint them. They have a peculiar Effcd: upontheLan- guage, not only as they are natural, but as they are ingenuous and ^^^/ While a Nation con- tinues fimple and fincere, whatever they fay has a Weight from Truth : Their Sentiments are ftrong and honeft 5 which always produce fit Words to exprefs theml^ : Their Paflions are found and genuine, not adulterated or difguifed, and break out in their ov/n artlefs Phrafe and unaifc6ted Stile. They arc not accuflomed to thc^rattle, and little pretty Forms that ener- vate a polifhed Speech ; nor over-run with ^itbble and Sheer- IVit, which makes its Ap- pearance late, and in Greece came long after the Trojan Times. And this I take to be the Rea- fon, " Why moft Nations arc fo delighted with E 4 ** their ^ Qain Ipfe (Tiberius) compofitus alias, & veliit eluftantium V^'e.rborum, Jhlutius promptimque eloquebatur quotiens fubveniret. Tacitus, S6 jin Enquiry into the Life^ &c. *' their ancient Poets' :" Before they arcpolifh- pd in ■> Flattery andFaHhood, we feel the Force of their IVords, and the Truth of their Thoughts, In common Life, no doubt, the witty facetious Man is now the prefprable Charafter ; But lie is only a middling Pcrfon, and no He. ro ^\ bearing a Perfonage for which there is hard- ly an Inch of room in an Epic ^oem. To be witty in a Matter of Confequence, where the l^ifque is high, and the Execution requires Caution or Boldnefs, is Impertinence and Bujfoonry, VI RG I L knew well the Importance of this Imitation of ancient Manners ; and bor- rowed from Ennius his antiquated Terms, and the ftrongobfolete Turn of his Sentences. Nay, he has adopted as many of the old Forms ufed at Sacrifices, Games, Confecrations, and even Forms of Law, as the Emergencies of his admi» red Toem wou d permit. - Grsecorum {\intantiquijjtmn quaeque Horat. ad Auguftum. Ep. i . Ljb. 2. Scripta vel Optima k Bellus Homo, ic Magnui vis idem, Cotta, videri : Sed a7igers, and unwearied hy Toils ? If it is nor, the focial Pallions, and noblefl Affedions niuft prevail in an Epic- ^oem. They may vary indeed, and fhew them^' felves very differently in different Charadters : They may likewife have their own Shades^ and muft be fometimes drawn upon dark Grounds, to raife and give them a Reliefs but ftill they muft be the principal Figures in the Piece, if it is meant to give real and lafting Plea- fure. But, My Lord, there is another Conclufi- on offers itfelf, and appears fo odd^ that one does not know what to make of it : For does it not found fcmething like Treafon in j^polld^ Court, to fay that a poUjhed Language is not fit for a great Poet ? And yet, if the Maxim be true, *^ That no Man defcribes well but what *' he has feen, nor talks withEafe and Maftery, '^ but in the Language and Idiom he has been ** uled to," I apprehend wc mufl affent to it. Your Lordlhip is fo well acquainted with what pafles for Politencfs of Stile, that I need be at no pains to make out the Confequence. Let me only obferve, that what we call Wolifbing dimi- and Writings ^/ H o M e R. T9 diminifhes a Language ; it makes many Words obfolete ; it coops a Man up in a Corner, al- lows him but one Set of Phrafes, and deprives him of many fignificant Terms, and ftrong beautiful Expreflions, which he muft venture upon, \\kt Virgil, at the hazard of appearing antiquated and homely. A Language throughly polifhed in the modern Senfc, will not defcend to the Simpli- city of Manners abfolutely neceffary in E^pic- "Poetry : And if we feign the Manners, we muft likewile endeavour to imitate the Stile. I have already fhewn how little Succefs we can exped: in the Attempt ; and 'twere eafy to give Proof in Fad, that no Learning or Genius is fuf- ficient to fecure us from a Mifcarriage in this Particular. But the Task is unpleafant : Let us therefore choofe an Example where we may ra- ther praife than blame. T H E N A M E of Fenelon calls up the Image of a Man diftinguilhed by every amiable Quality: Like feme powerful Charm, it makes real Vir- tue, princely Science, andSweetnefs of Manners, rife to our Imagination. His perfed Know- ledge of Antiquity, and flowing Fancy, fcem- ed to qualify him to write the Sequel of the inftrudive and fimple Odyjfey. And yet your Lordfhip knows, his enchanting Work has not efcaped Criticifm "" ; and that only fuch Parrs ^ Critique des Jt'aniures de Telemaque. A Piece equally cruel and nnjull ; without other Handle in fad, than wiiat arifes from the Glow of an elevated Fancy, and the Incompatibility of Manners. ^o An Enquiry into the Life Parts of it lie expofed, as attempt a Mixture of ancient and modern Manners j that is, when he wou'd reconcile old Heroifm with ^ol/tifksy apd make Poetry preach Renfons of State. It m a y be thought (uperfluous after this to obferve, That an abfolute Court muil have a pernicious Influence both on tiie Variety of Characters in a Nation, and the Extent of their Dialed : We need but look around us to fee many of the finefl: Countries in Europe^ groan- ing under baffled Laws and an arbitrary Sway, and giving difmal Proofs of the Trudi of this Remark. In fuch Governments not only Mat- ters of Confequence are over-ruled at pieafure, but in the moft indifferent Circumftances of Life, all muft conform to the Court- ModeL Example hath the Force of Command 5 and no fufpicious Word is allowed to reach the Ears of the miftaken Great. By this means, many things muft lofe their Names, and be foftncd into tnfignificant Appellations j and where thep cannot be had, Circumlocutions are called in, to witnefs our Dread of offend- ing by fpeaking plain Truth ^ Bes ID ES, *" When the Cardinal Richelieu had obliged the French Academy to cenfure the Cid, a Piece of the celebrated Corneille\^ the Aii- thor wrote a Letter to the Cardinal's favourite M. de Boifrobert, where he tells him, " J'attens avec beaucoup d'Impatience les Senti- " mens de I'Academie, afin d'apprendre ce quedorefenavant je dois " fuivre : Jufques la, je ne puis travailler qu' avec defiance, i r.'ofe *• employer on Mot en fcurete. P, PelilTon. Hifl. de TAcad. Fianjoife. and Writings (P/^Homer. 6\ Besides, it is odds but that in fuch a Country, there 2ixc formal Reftraints upon Wri- ting, which muft iiave yet a worfe EfFed. What a lamentable Sight are thofe Countries at this day, which were formerly the Tarents oi Learning and Ingenuity? While with Joy we may view our native iQe, the happy Inftance of the Connexion between Liberty and Learn^ ing. We find our Language mafculine and no- ble J of vaft Extent, and capable of greater Va- riety of Stile and Charadter than any modern Tongue. We fee our Arts improving, our Sciences advancing, Life underftood, and the whole animated with a Spirit fo generous and free, as gives the trueft Proof of the Happinefs of our Conftitution. Forgive me. My Lord, if a Thought fo pleafant, and which Tou have fo great a Hand in making fuch, has drawn me from a melancholy Subject. One cannot, without Compaflion, think of a poor Poet writing un* der the Terror of the Inquifition. He knows not but fuch a Verfe may give umbrage to a Right Reverend Father Inquijitor j another to a Reve- rend Father l^rior Infpe6ior ; this Simile may ftartle the Father ^Deputy Revifor, and that Allufion feem dangerous to the Vicar him- felf. NowoNDERif the frighted Author, haunt- ed with fuch fable Spe^res inflead of Mufes, is delivered of a diftortcd Produdion. Their A Ghoilly 6% An Enquiry into the Life Ghoftly Appearance muft damp every liberal Thought. The Mind dares not exert itfelf, but crouches under the Panick of a Cenfure^ backed with the Secular Arm to inforce it. And can we expedl: any Grace or Spirit in a Work that is conceived and fafhioned in fuch piteous Circumflanccs ? No furely, nor in a little time any Works at all : For the Fathers generally obtain their End ; and in a Nation where they are too much encouraged, in a lit- tle time fo order Matters, that fia ce any one ^writes but thcmfelves^. But thefe things have been the Subjeft of many a Treatife : I only mention them, to point out the Reafon of the Antipathy between them and the fub- limer Kinds of Writing. To expatiate upon the baneful Influences of Tyranny, wouM be needlefs, when the befl: regulated Government moulds a Man too much to its Manners^ to let him excel in that original and unlimited. Draught of Mankind, Epic-Toetry. In ' A Book in Spain muft pafs through fix Courts befcre it is publifhed. I. It is examined by the Examinador Synodal of the Archbifhoprick, commillioned by the Vicario. II. It goes to the Recorder of the Kingdom where it is to be publifhed, Chronifia de CaJliUa, Arragon, Valencia, &C. III. If approved by them, it is licenfed by the Vicario himlelf, attefted by a 'Notario. IV. The Privilege mull be had from his M/?}' ; and a 5'<'f '•f.'fl■r^' countei"- figiis V. After it is printed, it goes to the Corrector General for fu Ma%eJ}ad, who compares it with the licenfed Co^y, left any* thing i.'C inferted or altered. And VI. Tiie Lords of the Council tax it a'c fo much a Sheet. In Portugal, a Book has feven Reviews to pafs before Publication. I have Imiled at iome of their T'itle- Pagss, bearing for the greater Security of the Buyer, Com todas af licen^as necejfarias* % and Writings ^ H o m e r . 6\ I N Oppofition to thefe Opinions, it may be advanced by fuch as are acquainted with the Progrefs and Periods of Literature, That the Interval between the high Liberty and Enflavement of a State, has been obferved to fhew the World fome noble Produdions. ' The Fa6i is unqueftionable , and to difcover the Caufes of it, we need only confider the Steps by which a Government falls from its Rights, to be at the Mercy of "^i Jingle ^er- fon. In general this Difaftcr is laid to the Door of Corruption, and very juftly : Am- bition and Luxury feldom fail, when they have attained their full Grofwrh, to throw a State into Convulfions, and make it ripe for a Mafter. They difpofe Men to give and takC) upon certain Confiderations, which in time grow weighty enough to afFed the Pub- lick : But at the fame time there is no Scafou on Earth when Men arefo throughly known. When the Offers are tempting, and Bribes run high'', it is then that Men difcover what' they *. Biduo, per umim fervum, & eum ex gladiatorio ludo, con- fecit totum negotium : Accerfivit ad fe, promint, interccffit, dedit. Jam vero, O Dii boni Rem perdita'm ! etiam l