Vel quia nil rectum, nifi quod placuit fibi, ducunt; Vel quia turpe putant parere minoribus, et, quae Inberbi didicere, fenes perdenda fateri. 85 Jam Saliare Numae carmen qui laudat, et illud Quod mecum ignorat, folus volt fcire videri; COMMENTARY. from a deluded judgment only, or a much worfe caufe. It could plainly be refolved into no other, than the wilful agency of the malignant affections; which, wherever they prevail, corrupt the fimple and ingenuous fenfe of the mind, either, 1. [line 83] in engendering high conceits of felf, and referring all degrees of excellence to the fuppofed infallible ftandard of every man's own judgment; or, 2. [to line 86] in creating a falfe fhame, and reluctancy in us to be directed by the judgments of others, though feen to be more equitable, whenever they are found in oppofition to our own rooted and preconceived opinions. The bigotry of old men is, especially, for this reason, invincible. They hold themselves upbraided by the fharper fight of their juniors; and regard the adoption of new fentiments, at their years, as so much abfolute lofs on the fide of the dead ftock of their old literary poffeffions. These confiderations are generally of fuch prevalency in grey veteran critics, that [from line 86 to 90] whenever, as in the cafe before us, they pretend an uncommon zeal for antiquity, and their fagacity piques itself on detecting the fuperior value of obfcure rhapfodifts, whom nobody elfe reads, or is able to understand, we may be fure the fecret view of fuch, is, not the generous defence and patronage Ingeniis non ille favet plauditque fepultis, haberet, 90 Quod legeret tereretque viritim publicus ufus? COMMENTARY. patronage of ancient wit, but a low malevolent plea-. fure in decrying the just pretenfions of the modern. Ingeniis non ille favet plauditque fepultis, Noftra fed impugnat, nos noftraque lividus odit. The poet had, now, made appear the unreasonable attachment of his countrymen to the fame of their old writers. He had thoroughly unravelled the fophiftical pretences, on which it affected to justify itfelf; and had even dared to unveil the fecret iniquitous principle, from which it arofe. It was now time to look forward to the effects of it; which were, in truth, very baleful; its poifonous influences being of force to corrupt and wither, as it were, in the bud, every rifing fpecies of excellence, and fatally to check the very hopes and tendencies of true genius. Nothing can be truer than this remark; which he further enforces, and brings home to his adverfaries, by asking a pertinent queftion, to which it concerned them to make a serious reply. They had magnified, line 28, the perfection of the Greek models. But what [to line 93] if the Greeks had conceived the fame averfion to novelties, as the Romans? How then could thofe models have ever been furnished to the public ufe? The question, we fee, infinuates what was before Ut primum pofitis nugari Graecia bellis COMMENTARY. before affirmed to be the truth of the cafe; that the unrivalled excellence of the Greek poets proceeded only from long and vigorous exercise, and a painful uninterrupted application to the arts of verfe. The liberal spirit of that people led them to countenance every new attempt towards fuperior literary excellence; and fo, by the public favour, their writings, from rude eflays, became at length the standard and admiration of fucceeding wits. The Romans had treated their adventurers quite otherwise, and the effect was anfwerable. This is the purport of what to a .common eye may look like a digreffion [from line 93 to 108] in which is delineated the very different genius and practice of the two nations. For the Greeks [to line 102] had applied themselves, in the intervals of their leisure from the toils of war, to the cultivation of every fpecies of elegance, whether in arts, or letters; and loved to cherish the public emulation, by affording a free indulgence to the various and volatile disposition of the times. The activity of these restless spirits was inceflantly attempting fome new and untried form of compofition; and, when that was brought to a due degree of perfection, it turned, in good time, to the cultivation of fome other. 4 Quod Quod cupide petiit, mature plena reliquit. 100 Quid placet, aut odio eft, quod non mutabile credas? Hoc paces habuere bonae, ventique fecundi. COMMENTARY. Quod cupide petiit, mature plena reliquit. So that the very caprice of humour [line 101] affifted, in this libertine country, to advance and help forward the public tafte. Such was the effect of peace and op portunity with them. Hoc paces habuere bonae ventique fecundi. Whereas the Romans [to line 108] by a more compofed temperament and faturnine complexion had devoted their pains to the pursuit of domestic utilities, and a more dextrous management of the arts of gain. The confequence of which was, that when, [to line 117] by the decay of the old frugal fpirit, the neceffary effect of overflowing plenty and ease, they began, at length, to feek out for the elegancies of life; and a fit of verfifying, the first of all liberal amufements, that ufually feizes an idle people, had come upon them; their ignorance of rules, and want of exercise in the art of writing, rendered them wholly unfit to fucceed in it. So that their aukward attempts in poetry were now as difgraceful to their tafte, as their total difregard of it, before, had been to their civility. The root of this mifchief was the idolatrous regard paid to their ancient poets: which unluckily, when the public emulation was fet a going, Majores audire, minori dicere, per quae aegro Non audet, nifi qui didicit, dare: quod medicorum eft, Promittunt medici: tractant fabrilia fabri: COMMENTARY. 115 going, not only checked its progrefs, but gave it a wrong bias; and, instead of helping true genius to outstrip the lame and tardy endeavours of ancient wit, drew it afide into a vicious and unprofitable mimicry of its very imperfections. Whence it had come to pass, that, whereas in other arts, the previous knowledge of rules is required to the practice of them, in this of verfifying, no fuch qualification was deemed neceffary. Scribimus indocti doctique poemata passim. This mifchance was doubly fatal to the Latin poetry. For the ill fuccefs of these blind adventurers had increased the original mischief, by confirming, as it needs muft, the fuperftitious reverence of the old writers; and infenfibly brought, as well the art itself |