The man, who is at the pains of making indexes, is really to be pitied; but of their great utility there is no need to fay any thing, when feveral perfons, who pass in the world for profound fcholars, know little more of books than title-pages and indexes, but never catch the fpirit of an author, which is fure always to evaporate or die in fuch hands. The former of these indexes, if not drawn up by Mr. Tickell, was I think first inferted in his quarto edition of Milton's poetical works printed in 1720; and for the latter, which was much more laborious, it was compofed at the defire and encouragement of Mr. Auditor Benson by Mr. Cruden, who hath also published a very useful Concordance to the Bible.

THE

LIFE OF MILTON.

I

T is agreed among all writers, that the family of Milton came originally from Milton in Oxfordfhire; but from which of the Miltons is not altogether fo certain. Some fay, and particularly Mr. Philips, that the family was of Milton near Abington in Oxfordshire, where it had been a long time feated, as appears by the monuments ftill to be feen in Milton-church. But that Milton is not in Oxfordshire, but in Barkshire; and upon inquiry I find, that there are no fuch monuments in that church, nor any remains of them. It is more probable therefore that the family came, as Mr. Wood fays, from Milton near Halton and Thame in Oxfordshire: where it florished several years, till at last the estate was fequefter'd, one of the family having taken the unfortunate fide in the civil wars between the houses of York and Lancaster. John Milton, the poet's grand-father, was, according to Mr. Wood, an under-ranger or keeper of the foreft of Shotover near Halton in Oxfordihire; he was of the religion of Rome, and fuch a bigot that he difinherited his fon only for being a proteftant. Upon this the fon, the poet's father, named likewife John Milton, fettled in London, and became a fcrivener by the advice of a friend eminent in that profeffion: but he was not fo devoted to gain and to business, as to lose all taste of the politer arts, and was particularly skilled in mufic, in which he was not only a fine performer,

but

but is alfo celebrated for several pieces of his compofition: and yet on the other hand he was not fo fond of his mufic and amusements, as in the leaft to neglect his bufinefs, but by his diligence and œconomy acquired a competent eftate, which enabled him afterwards to retire, and live in the country. He was by all accounts a very worthy man; and married an excellent woman, Sarah of the ancient family of the Bradshaws, fays Mr. Wood; but Mr. Philips, our author's nephew, who was more likely to know, fays, of the family of the Caftons derived originally from Wales. Whoever she was, fhe is faid to have been a woman of incomparable virtue and goodness; and by her her husband had two fons and a daughter.

The elder of the fons was our famous poet, who was born in the year of our Lord 1608, on the 9th of December in the morning between 6 and 7 o'clock, in Bread-street London, where his father lived at the fign of the fpread eagle, which was also the coat of arms of the family. He was named John, as his father and grand-father had been before him; and from the beginning discovering the marks of an uncommon genius, he was defigned for a fcholar, and had his education partly under private tutors, and partly at a public fchool. It has been often controverted whether a public or private education is beft, but young Milton was fo happy as to fhare the advantages of both. It appears from the fourth of his Latin elegies, and from the firft and fourth of his familiar epiftles, that Mr. Thomas Young, who was afterwards paftor of the company of English merchants refiding at Hamburg, was one of his private preceptors: and when he had made good progrefs

in his ftudies at home, he was fent to St. Paul's school, to be fitted for the univerfity under the care of Mr. Gill, who was the mafter at that time, and to whose son are addreffed fome of his familiar epistles. In this early time of his life fuch was his love of learning, and fo great was his ambition to furpafs his equals, that from his twelfth year he commonly continued his ftudies till midnight, which (as he fays himself in his fecond Defenfe) was the firft ruin of his eyes, to whofe natural debility were added too frequent head-akes: but all could not extinguish or abate his laudable paffion for letters. It is very feldom feen, that fuch application and such a genius meet in the fame perfon. The force of either is great, but both together muft perform wonders.

He was now in the 17th year of his age, and was a very good claffical scholar and mafter of feveral languages, when he was fent to the univerfity of Cambridge, and admitted at Chrift's College (as appears from the register) on the 12th of February 1624-5, under the tuition of Mr. William Chappel, afterwards Bishop of Cork and Rofs in Ireland. He continued above seven years at the univerfity, and took two degrees, that of Bachelor of Arts in 1628-9, and that of Master in 1632. It is fomewhat remarkable, that tho' the merits of both our univerfities are perhaps equally great, and tho' poetical exercises are rather more encouraged at Oxford, yet most of our greatest poets have been bred at Cambridge, as Spenfer, Cowley, Waller, Dryden, Prior, not to mention any of the leffer ones, when there is a greater than all, Milton. He had given early proofs of his poetic genius before he went to the univerfity,

and