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ways excites conviction of its own abfurdity; they may produce effects, but cannot conduct actions; when the phantom is put in motion, it diffolves: thus Difcord may raise a mutiny; but Difcord cannot conduct a march, nor befiege a town. Pope brought into view a new race of Beings, with powers and pafpas fions proportionate to their operation. The Sylphs and Gnomes act at the toilet and the tea-table; what more terrifick and more powerful phantoms perform on the stormy ocean, or the field of battle, they give their proper help, and do their proper mischief.

Pope is faid, by an objector, not to have been the inventer of this petty nation; a charge which might with more juftice have been brought against the author of the Iliad, who doubtlefs adopted the religious fyftem of his country; for what is there but the names of his agents which Pope has, not invented? Has he not affigned them characters and operations never heard of before? Has he not, at least, given them their first poetical existence? If this is not fufficient to denominate his work original, nothing original ever can be

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In this work are exhibited, in a very high degree, the two moft engaging powers of an author. New things are made familiar, and familiar things are made new. A race of aerial people, never heard of before, is prefented to us in a manner fo clear and eafy, that the reader feeks for no further information, but immediately mingles with his new acquaintance, adopts their interefts, and attends their purfuits, loves a Sylph, and detefts a Gnome.

That familiar things are made new, every paragraph will prove. The fubject of the poem is an event below the common incidents of common life;

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nothing real is introduced that is not feen fo often as to be no longer regarded; yet the whole detail of a female-day is here brought before us invefted with fo much art of decoration, that, though nothing is dif guifed, every thing is ftriking, and we feel all the appetite of curiofity for that from which we have a. taoufand times turned faftidiously away.

The purpose of the poet is, as he tells us, to laugh at the litile unguarded follies of the female fex. It is therefore without juftice that Dennis charges the Rape of the Lock with the want of a moral, and for that reafon fets it below the Lutrin, which exposes the pride and difcord of the clergy. Perhaps neither Pope nor Boileau has made the world much better than he found it; but, if they had both fucceeded, it were eafy to tell who would have deferved most from publick gratitude. The freaks, and humours, and fpleen, and vanity of women, as they embroil families in difcord, and fill houfes with difquiet, do more to obftruct the happinefs of life in a year than the ambition of the clergy in many centuries. It has been well obferved, that the mifery of man proceeds not from any fingle crush of overwhelming evil, but from finall vexations continually repeated.

It is remarked by Dennis likewife, that the machinery is fuperfluous; that, by all the buftle of preternatural operation, the main event is neither haf tened nor retarded. To this charge an efficacious anfwer is not easily made. The Sylphs cannot be faid to help or to oppofe; and it must be allowed to imply fome want of art, that their power has not been fufficiently intermingled with the action. Other parts may likewife be charged with want of connection; the game at ombre might be spared, but if the Lady had

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loft her hair while fhe was intent upon her cards, it might have been inferred that those who are too fond of play will be in danger of neglecting more important interefts. Those perhaps are faults; but what are fuch faults to fo much excellence!

The Epiftle of Eloife to Abelard is one of the most, happy productions of human wit: the fubject is fo judiciously chofen, that it would be difficult, in turning over the annals of the world, to find another which fo many circumftances concur to recommend. We regularly intereft ourselves most in the fortune of those who moft deferve our notice. Abelard and Eloife were confpicuous in their days for eminence of merit. The heart naturally loves truth. The adventures and misfortunes of this illuftrious pair are known from undisputed history. Their fate does not leave the mind in hopeless dejection; for they both found quiet and confolation in retirement and piety. So new and fo affecting is their story, that it fuperfedes invention, and imagination ranges at full liberty without ftraggling into fcenes of fable.

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The ftory, thus fkilfully adopted, has been diligently improved. Pope has left nothing behind him, which feems more the effect of studious perfeverance and laborious revifal. Here is particularly obfervable the curiofa felicitas, a fruitful foil, and careful cultivation. Here is no crudeness of fenfe, nor afperity of language.

The fources from which fentiments, which have fo much vigour and efficacy, have been drawn, are fhewn to be the mystick writers by the learned author of the Effay on the Life and Writings of Pope; a book which teaches how the brow of Criticifin may be smoothed,

fmoothed, and how fhe may be enabled, with all her feverity, to attract and to delight.

The train of my difquifition has now conducted me to that poetical wonder, the tranflation of the Iliad; a performance which no age or nation can pretend to equal. To the Greeks tranflation was almost unknown; it was totally unknown to the inhabitants of Greece. They had no recourfe to the Barbarians for poetical beauties, but fought for every thing in Homer, where, indeed, there is but little which they might not find.

The Italians have been very diligent tranflators ; but I can hear of no verfion, unless perhaps Anguillara's Ovid may be excepted, which is read with eagernefs. The Iliad of Salvini every reader may difcover to be punctilioufly exact; but it seems to be the work of a linguist skilfully pedantick; and his countrymen, the proper judges of its power to pleafe, reject it. with difguft.

Their predeceffors the Romans have left fome fpecimens of translation behind them, and that employment must have had fome credit in which Tully and Germanicus engaged; but unless we fuppofe, what is perhaps true, that the plays of Terence were verfions of Menander, nothing tranflated feems ever to have rifen to high reputation. The French, in the meridian hour of their learning, were very laudably industrious to enrich their own language with the wifdom of the ancients; but found themselves reduced, by whatever neceffity, to turn the Greek and Roman poetry into profe. Whoever could read an author, could tranflate him. From fuch rivals little can be feared.

The chief help of Pope in this arduous undertaking was drawn from the versions of Dryden. Virgil had borrowed much of his imagery from Homer; and part of the debt was now paid by his tranflator. Pope fearched the pages of Dryden for happy combinations of heroic diction; but it will not be denied that he added much to what he found. He cultivated our language with fo much diligence and art, that he has left in his Homer a treafure of poetical elegances to pofterity. His verfion may be faid to have tuned the English tongue; for fince its appearance no writer, however deficient in other powers, has wanted melody. Such a series of lines fo elaborately corrected, and fo fweetly modulated, took poffeffion of the publick ear; the vulgar was enamoured of the poem, and the learned wondered at the tranflation.

But in the most general applaufe difcordant voices will always be heard. It has been objected by some, who wish to be numbered among the fons of learning, that Pope's verfion of Homer is not Homerical; that it exhibits no resemblance of the original and characteristick manner of the Father of Poetry, as it wants his awful fimplicity, his artlefs grandeur, his unaffected majesty *. This cannot be totally denied; but it must be remembered that neceffitas quod cogit defendit;

* Bentley was one of thefe. He and Pope, foon after the publication of Homer, met at Dr. Mead's at dinner; when Pope, defirous of his opinion of the tranflation, addreffed him thus: "Dr. Bent"ley, I ordered my bookfeller to fend you your books; I hope you "received them." Bentley, who had purpofely avoided faying any thing about Homer, pretended not to understand him, and asked, Books! books! what books?' My Homer,' replied Pope, which 'you did me the honour to fubfcribe for.'-' Oh,' faid Bentley, ay, now I recollect-your tranflation:-it is a pretty poem, Mr. Pope; but you must not call it Homer.'

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