lefs for this confideration, that when the Royal Bounty was lately extended to a rural genius, care was taken to fettle it upon him for life. And it hath been the practice of our Princes, never to remove from the ftation of Poet Laureate any man who bath once been chofen, tho' never so much greater Genius's might arife in his time. A noble inftance, how much the charity of our monarchs hath exceeded their love of fame.

reate.

To come now to the intent of this paper. We have here the whole ancient ceremonial of the LauIn the first place the crown is to be mixed with vine-leaves, as the vine is the plant of Bacchus, and full as effential to the honour, as the butt of fack to the falary.

Secondly, the braffica must be made ufe of as a qualifier of the former. It seems the cabbage was anciently accounted a remedy for drunkenness; a power the French now afcribe to the onion, and ftyle a foup made of it, foupe d'Yvrogne. I would recommend a large mixture of the braffica, if Mr. Dennis be chofen; but if Mr. Tibbald, it is not fo neceffary, unless the cabbage be supposed to fignify the fame thing with refpect to poets as to taylars, viz. ftealing. I fhould judge it not amifs to add another plant to this garland, to wit, ivy: Not only as it anciently belonged to poets in general; but as it is emblematical of the three virtues of a court poet in particular; it is creeping, dirty, and dangling.

In the next place, a canticle must be compofed and fung in laud and praise of the new Poet. If Mr. CIBBER be laureated, it is my opinion no man can write this but himself: And no man, I am fure, can fing it fo affectingly. But what this canticle fhould be, either in his or the other candidate's cafe, I shall not pretend to determine.

Thirdly,

Thirdly, there ought to be a publick how, or entry of the poet: To fettle the order or procef fion of which, Mr. Anftis and Mr. DENNIS ought to have a conference. I apprehend here two difficulties: One, of procuring an elephant; the other of teaching the poet to ride him: Therefore I fhould imagine the next animal in fize or dignity would do beft; either a mule or a large afs; particularly if that noble one could be had, whofe portraiture makes fo great an ornament of the Dunciad, and which (unless I am mifinformed) is yet in the park of a nobleman near this city:-Unless Mr. CIBBER be the man; who may, with great propriety and beauty, ride on a dragon, if he goes by land; or if he choose the water, upon one of his own fwans from Cæfar in Egypt.

We have spoken fufficiently of the ceremony; let us now speak of the qualifications and privileges of the Laureate. First, we see he must be able to make verses extempore, and to pour forth innumerable, if required. In this I doubt Mr. TIBBALD. Secondly, he ought to fing, and intrepidly, patulo ore: Here, I confefs the excellency of Mr. CIBBER. Thirdly, he ought to carry a lyre about with him: If a large one be thought too cumbersome, a fmall one may be contrived to hang about the neck, like an order; and be very much a grace to the perfon. Fourthly, he ought to have a good ftomach, to eat and drink whatever his betters think fit; and therefore it is in this high office as in many others, no puny conftitution can discharge it. I do not think CIBBER or TIBBALD here fo happy: but rather a ftanch, vigorous, feafon'd, and dry old gentleman, whom I have in my eye.

I could also wifh at this juncture, fuch a perfon as is truly jealous of the honour and dignity of poetry; no joker, or trifler; but a bard in good

S

earnest ;

earneft; nay, not amiss if a critic, and the better if a little obftinate. For when we confider what great privileges have been loft from this office (as we fee from the fore-cited authentick record of

Jovius) namely thofe of feeding from the prince's table, drinking out of his own flaggon, becoming even his domeftick and companion; it requires a man warm and refolute, to be able to claim and obtain the restoring of these high honours. I have cause to fear, moft of the candidates would be liable, either through the influence of minifters, or for rewards or favours, to give up the glorious rights of the Laureate: Yet I am not without hopes, there is one, from whom a ferious and teddy affertion of these privileges may be expected; and, if there be fuch a one, I must do him the juftice to fay, it is Mr. DENNIS the worthy prefident of our fociety.

GUARDIANS.

GUARDIANS.

N° 4.

TH

March 16, 1713.

HOUGH most things which are wrong in their own nature are at once confeffed and abfolved in that fingle word, the Cuftom; yet there are fome, which as they have a dangerous tendency, a thinking man will the lefs excufe on that very account. Among thefe I cannot but reckon the common practice of Dedications, which is of fo much the worfe confequence as 'tis generally ufed by people of politeness, and whom a learned education for the moft part ought to have inspired with nobler and jufter fentiments. This proftitution of Praise is not only a deceit upon the grofs of mankind, who take their notion of characters from the Learned; but also the better fort must by this means lose some part at least of that defire of Fame which is the incentive to generous actions, when they find it promifcuoufly beftowed on the meritorious and undeferving. Nay, the author himself, let him be supposed to have ever so true a value for the patron, can find no terms to exprefs it, but what have been already used, and ren. dered fufpected by flatterers. Even Truth itself in a Dedication is like an honeft man in a disguise or Vizor-Mafque, and will appear a Cheat by being dreft fo like one. Tho' the merit of the perfon is beyond difpute, I fee no reason, that, because one man is eminent, therefore another has a right

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to

to be impertinent, and throw praises in his face. "Tis juft the reverfe of the practice of the ancient Romans, when a perfon was advanced to triumph for his fervices: they hired people to rail at him in that Circumftance, to make him as humble as they could; and we have fellows to flatter him, and make him as proud as they can. Suppofing the writer not to be mercenary, yet the great man is no more in reafon obliged to thank him for his picture in a Dedication, than to thank the painter for that on a fign-poft; except it be a lefs injury to touch the moft facred part of him, his character, than to make free with his countenance only. I should think nothing juftified me in this point, but the patron's permiffion beforehand, that I fhould draw him as like as I could; whereas moft authors proceed in this affair just as a dawber I have heard of, who, not being able to draw portraits after the life, was used to paint faces at random, and look out afterwards for people whom he might perfuade to be like them. To express my notion of the thing in a word: to fay more to a man than one thinks, with a profpect of intereft, is dishonest; and without it, foolifh. And whoever has had fuccefs in fuch an undertaking, muft of neceffity at once think himself in his heart a knave for having done it, and his patron a fool for having believed it.

I have fometimes been entertained with confidering Dedications in no very common light. By obferving what qualities our writers think it will be moft pleafing to others to compliment them with, one may form fome judgment which are moft fo to themfelves; and, in confequence, what fort of people they are. Without this view one can read very few Dedications, but will give us caufe to wonder, either how fuch things came to be faid at all, or how they were said to fuch per

fons.