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ON DRO

By the AUTHOR

A DECLARATION.

WHEREIScertain Haberdashers of Points and Particles, being inftigated by the fpirit of Pride, and affuming to themselves the name of Critics and Reftorers, have taken upon them to adulterate the common and current sense of our Glorious Anceftors, Poets of this Realm, by clipping, coining, d£= facing the images, miring their own base a lap,og otherwife falfifying the fame; which they publish, utter, and vend as genuine: The laid Taberdafhers having no right thereto, as neither heirs, executors, adminiftrators, afsigns, o in any fort related to fuch Poets, to all o2 any of them: Now We, having carefully reviled this our Dunciad, 2 beginning with the words The Mighty Mother,

a Read thus confidently, instead of "beginning with the "word Books, and ending with the word flies," as formerly it stood; Read also, " containing the entire sum of one thousand, Seven hundred, and fifty fix verses," instead of " one thoufand "and twelve lines ;" fuch being the initial and final words, and fuch the true and entire contents of this poem. VOL. VI.

F

and ending with the words buries All, containing the entire fum of One thousand feven hundred and fifty-four verses, declare every wozd, figure, point, and comma of this impression to be authentic: And do therefoze ftriatly enjoin and forbid any perfon or perfons whatsoever, to erase, reverse, put between hooks, 02 by any other means, dis realy oz indireaty, change of mangle any of them. And we do hereby earnestly exhost all our bre thren to follow this our example, which we heartily with our great Predeceffo2s had heretofoze fet, as a remedy and prevention of att fuch abuses. Provided always, that nothing in this Declaration thall be conftrued to limit the lawful and undoubted fight of every subject of this Realm, to judge, cenfure, 02 condemn, in the whole og in part, any Poem oz Poet whatsoever.

Given under our hand at London, this third day of January, in the year of our Lord One thousand, feven hundred, thirty and two.

Declarat' cor' me, JOHN BARBER, Mayor.

Thou art to know, reader! that the first Edition thereof, like that of Milton, was never feen by the Author (though living and not blind :) The Editor himself confefs'd as much in his Preface: And no two poems were ever published in fe arbitrary a manner. The Editor of this, had as boldly fuppreffed whole Påffages, yea the entire last book, as the Editor of Paradife loft, added and augmented. Milton himself gave but ten books, his Editor twelve; this Author gave four books, his Editór only three. But we have happily done justice to both; and presume we shall live, in this our laft labour, as long as in any of our others.

BENTL

APPENDIX.

I.

PREFACE

Prefixed to the five fift imperfect Editions of the DUNCIAD, in three books, printed at DUBLIN and LONDON, in octavo and duodecimo, 1727.

The PUBLISHER a to the READER.

TT will be found a true obfervation, tho' fome

ed against a man of the higheft diftinction and cha

ct

a The Publiber] Who he was is uncertain; but Edward Ward tells us, in his preface to Durgen," that most judges are of opinion this preface is not of English extraction, "but Hibernian," &c. He means it was written by Dr. Swift, who, whether publisher or not, may be faid in a fort to be author of the poem. For when he, toge her with Mr. Pope (for reasons specified in the preface to their Miscellanies) determined to own the most trifling pieces in which they had any hand, and to deftroy all that remained in their power; the first sketch of this poem was fnatched from the fire by Dr. Swift, who perfuaded his friend to proceed in it, and to him it was therefore infcribed. But the occasion of printing it was as follows:

racter, either in the ftate or literature, the public in general afford it a moft quiet reception; and the larger part accept it as favourably as if it were fome kindness done to themselves: whereas if a known fcoundrel or blockhead but chance to be touched upon, a whole legion is up in arms, and it becomes the common cause of all fcriblers, bookfellers, and printers whatsoever..

Not to fearch too deeply into the reason hereof, I

There was published in thofe Mifcellanies, a Treatife of the Bathos, or Art of Sinking in Poetry, in which was a chapter, where the fpecies of bad writers were ranged in claffes, and initial letters of names prefixed, for the most part at random. But fuch was the Number of Poets eminent in that art, that fome one or other took every letter to himself. All fell into fo violent a fury, that for half a year, or more, the common News-papers (in most of which they had some property, as being hired writers) were filled with the most abusive falseHoods and fcurrilities they could poffibly devife; a liberty no ways to be wondered at in those people, and in those papers, that, for many years, during the uncontrolled Licence of the prefs, had afperfed almost all the great characters of the age; and this with impunity, their own persons and names being utterly fecret and obfcure. This gave Mr. Pope the thought, that he had now fome opportunity of doing good, by detecting and dragging into light thefe common Enemies of mankind; fince to invalidate this univerfal flander, it fufficed to fhew what contemptible men were the authors of it. He was not without hopes, that by manifefting the dulnefs of thofe who had only malice to recommend them; either the bookfellers would not find their account in employing them,or the men themfelves, when difcovered, want courage to proceed in fo unlawful an occupation. This it was that gave birth to the Dunciad; and he thought it an happiness, that by the late flood of flander on himself, he had acquired fuch a peculiar right over their Names as was necessary to his design.

will only observe as a fact, that every week for these two months paft, the town has been perfecuted with b pamphlets, advertisements, letters, and weekly effays, not only against the wit and writings, but against the character and person of Mr. Fope. And that of all thofe men who have received pleasure from his works, which by modeft computation may be about a hundred thousand in these kingdoms of England and Ireland; (not to mention Jerfey, Guernfey, the Orcades, thofe in the new world, and foreigners who have tranflated him into their languages) of all this number not a man hath stood up to fay one word in his defence.

d

The only exception is the author of the following poem, who doubtlefs had either a better in

b pamphlets, advertisements, &c.] See the Lift of those anonymous papers, with their dates and authors annexed, inferted before the Poem.

e about a hundred thousand] It is furprising with what stupidity this preface, which is almost a continued irony, was taken by thofe authors. All fuch paffages as these were un derstood by Curl, Cook, Cibber, and others, to be ferious. Hear the Laureate (Letter to Mr. Pope, p. 9.) "Tho' I grant "the Dunciad a better poem of its kind than ever was writ; 66 yet, when I read it with those vain-glorious encumbrances "of Notes and Remarks upon it, etc.---it is amazing, that you, who have writ with fuch masterly spirit upon the " ruling Paffion, should be fo blind a flave to your own, as not to fee how far a low avarice of Praife," etc. (taking it for granted that the notes of Scriblerus and others, were the author's own.)

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d The author of the following poem, etc.] A very plain irony, fpeaking of Mr. Pope himself.

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