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lands of Parnaffus, the flourishing ftate of our Trade, and the plenty of our Manufacture; there are two reflections which adminifter great cccafion of furprize: The one, that all dignities and honours should be bestowed upon the exceeding few meager inhabitants of the Top of the mountain; the other, that our own nation fhould have arrived to that pitch of greatness it now poffeffes, without any regular Syftem of Laws. As to the firft, it is with great pleasure I have observed of late the gradual decay of Delicacy and Refinement among mankind, who are become too reafonable to require that we should labour with infinite pains to come up to the taste of these Mountaineers, when they without any may condefcend to ours. But as we have now an unquestionable Majority on our fide, I doubt not but we fhall fhortly be able to level the Highlanders, and procure a farther vent for our own product, which is already so much relifhed, encouraged, and rewarded, by the Nobility and Gentry of Great Britain.

Therefore to supply our former defect. I purpofe to collect the scattered Rules of our Art into regular Institutes, from the example and practice of the deep Genius's of our nation; imitating herein my predeceffors the Mafter of Alexander, and the Secretary of the renowned Zenobia. And in this my undertaking I am the more animated, as I expect more fuccefs than has attended even those great Critics; fince their Laws (tho' they might be good) have ever been flackly executed, and their Precepts (however ftrict) obey'd only by fits, and by a very small number.

At the fame time I intend to do juftice upon our neighbours, inhabitants of the upper Parnaffus; who, taking advantage of the rifing ground, are perpetually throwing down rubbish, dirt and ftones upon us, never fuffering us to live in peace.

2

Thefe

These men, while they enjoy the cryftal ftream
of Helicon, envy us our common water, which
(thank our ftars) tho' it is somewhat muddy, flows
in much greater abundance. Nor is this the

greatest injustice that we have to complain of; for
though it is evident that we never made the least
attempt or inrode into Their territories, but lived
contented in our native fens; they have often not
only committed Petty Larcenies upon our borders,
but driven the country, and carried off at once
whole Cart-loads of our manufacture; to reclaim
some of which stolen goods is part of the defign of
this Treatife.

For we fhall fee in the course of this work, that
our greatest Adverfaries have sometimes defcended
towards us; and doubtless might now and then
have arrived at the Bathos itself, had it not been
for that mistaken opinion they all entertained, that
the Rules of the Ancients were equally neceffary to
the Moderns; than which there cannot be a more
grievous Error, as will be amply proved in the fol-
lowing discourse.

And indeed when any of these have gone so far, as by the light of their own Genius to attempt new Models, it is wonderful to obferve, how nearly they have approached us in those particular pieces; though in their others they differ'd toto colo from us.

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CHA P. II.

That the Bathos, or Profund, is the na tural Taste of Man, and in particular, of the prefent Age.

TH

HE Taste of the Bathos is implanted by Nature itself in the foul of man; till, perverted by cuftom or example, he is taught, or rather compelled, to relifh the Sublime. Accordingly, we fee the unprejudiced minds of Children delight only in fuch productions, and in fuch images, as our true modern writers fet before them. I have observed how faft the general Tafte is returning to this firft Simplicity and Innocence: and if the intent of all Poetry be to divert and inftruct, certainly that kind which diverts and inftructs the greatest number, is to be preferred. Let us look round among the Admirers of Poetry, we fhall find those who have a taste of the Sublime to be very few; but the Profund ftrikes univerfally, and is adapted to every capacity. 'Tis a fruitless undertaking to write for men of a nice and foppish Gufto, whom after all it is almost impoffible to please; and 'tis ftill more chimerical to write for Pofterity, of whofe Tafte we cannot make any judgment, and whose Applause we can never enjoy. It must be confeffed our wiser authors have a prefent end,

Et prodeffe volunt et delectare Poeta.

Their true defign is Profit or Gain; in order to acquire which, 'tis neceffary to procure applaufe by adminiftring pleasure to the reader: From whence it follows demonftrably, that their productions must be fuited to the prefent Tafte. And

I

I cannot but congratulate our age on this peculiar felicity, that though we have made indeed great progrefs in all other branches of Luxury, we are not yet debauched with any high Relish in Poetry, but are in this one Tafte less nice than our ancestors. If an Art is to be estimated by its fuccefs, I appeal to experience whether there have not been, in proportion to their number, as many ftarving good Poets, as bad ones.

Nevertheless, in making Gain the principal end of our Art, far be it from me to exclude any great Genius's of Rank or Fortune from diverting themfelves this way. They ought to be praifed no lefs than thofe Princes, who pafs their vacant hours in some ingenious mechanical or manual Art. And to such as these, it would be ingratitude not to own, that our Art has been often infinitely indebted.

CHAP. III.

The Neceffity of the Bathos, phyfically confidered.

F

Arthermore, it were great cruelty and injuftice, if all fuch Authors as cannot write in the other way, were prohibited from writing at all. Against this I draw an argument from what feems to me an undoubted phyfical Maxim, That Poetry is a natural or morbid Secretion from the Brain. As I would not fuddenly ftop a cold in the head, or dry up my neighbour's Iffue, I would as little hinder him from neceffary writing. It may be affirmed with great truth, that there is hardly any human creature paft childhood, but at one time or other has had fome Poetical Evacuation, and, no

question,

queftion, was much the better for it in his health; fo true is the faying, Nafcimur Poeta. Therefore is the Defire of Writing properly term'd Pruritus, the Titillation of the Generative Faculty of the "Brain," and the Perfon is faid to conceive; now fuch as conceive must bring forth. I have known a man thoughtful, melancholy and raving for divers days, who forthwith grew wonderfully easy, lightfome, and cheerful, upon a discharge of the peccant humour, in exceeding purulent Metre. Nor can I queftion, but abundance of untimely deaths are occafioned for want of this laudable vent of unruly paffions: yea, perhaps, in poor wretches, (which is very lamentable) for mere want of pen, ink, and paper! From hence it follows, that a fuppreffion of the very worst Poetry is of dangerous confequence to the State. We find by experience, that the fame humours which vent themselves in fummer in Ballads and Sonnets, are condenfed by the winter's cold into Pamphlets and Speeches for and against the Miniftry: Nay, I know not but many times a piece of Poetry may be the most in. nocent compofition of a Minifter himself.

It is therefore manifeft that Mediocrity ought to be allowed, yea indulged, to the good Subjects of England. Nor can I conceive how the world has fwallowed the contrary as a Maxim, upon the fingle authority of that * Horace? Why fhould the golden Mean, and quinteffence of all Virtues, be deemed fo offenfive in this Art? or Coolness or Mediocrity be fo amiable a quality in a Man, and fo deteftable in a Poet?

However, far be it from me to compare these Writers with thofe great Spirits, who are born with a Vivacité de fefanteur, or (as an English

*Mediocribus effe foetis Non dii, non homines, etc.

Hor. P.

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