25 Beneath her foot-ftool, Science groans in Chains, And Wit dreads Exile, Penalties and Pains. There foam'd rebellious Logic, gagg'd and bound, There, ftript, fair Rhet'ric languifh'd on the ground; His blunted Arms by Sophiftry are born, And shameless Billingsgate her Robes adorn. Morality, by her falfe Guardians drawn, Chicane in Furs, and Cafuiftry in Lawǹ, Gafps, as they ftraiten at each end the cord, 29 And dies, when Dulness gives her Page the word, REMARK S. VER. 21, 22. Beneath her foot-ftool, &c.] We are next prefented with the pictures of those whom the Goddess leads in Captivity. Science is only depreffed and confined fo as to be rendered useless; but Wit or Genius, as a more dangerous and active enemy, punished, or driven away: Dulness being often reconciled in fome degree with Learning. but never upon any terms with Wit. And accordingly it will be feen that fhe admits fomething like each Science, as Cafuiftry, Sophiftry, &c. but nothing like Wit, Opera alone fupplying its place. P. W. VER. 27. by her falfe Guard' ans drawn,] Morality is the Daughter of Aftrea. This alludes to the Mythology of the ancient Poets; who tell us that in the Gold and Silver ages, or in the State of Nature, the Gods cohabited with men here on Earth; but when by reafon of human degeneracy men were forced to have recourfe to a Magiftrate, and that the Ages of Brafs and Iron came on (that is, when Laws were wrote on brazen tablets inforced by the Sword of Juftice) the Celestials foon retired from Earth, and Aftræa laft of all; and then it was fhe left this her Orphan Daughter in the hands of the Guardians aforefaid. SCRIBL. W. VER. 30. gives her Page the word.] There was a Judge of this name, always ready to hang any man that came before him, of which he was fuffered to give a hundred miferable examples Mad Mathefis alone was unconfin'd, Too mad for mere material chains to bind, The dagger wont to pierce the Tyrant's breast And promis'd Vengeance on a barb'rous age. REMARKS. 3 35 40 during a long life, even to his dotage.-Tho' the candid Scribierus imagined Page here to mean no more than a Page or Mute, and to allude to the cuftom of ftrangling State Criminals in Turkey by Mutes or Pages. A practice more decent than that of our Page, who, before he hanged any one, loaded him with reproachful language. SCRIBL. P. W. VER. 31. Mad Mathefis] Alluding to the ftrange Conclufions fome Mathematicians have deduced from their principles, concerning the real Quantity of Matter, the Reality of Space, &c. P. W. VER. 33. pure Space] i. e. pure and defæcated from Matter.-extatic Stare, the action of men who look about with full affurance of feeing what does not exift, fuch as those who expect to find Space a real being. W. VER. 34 running round the Circle, finds it fquare.] Regards the wild and fruitlefs attempts of fquaring the Circle. P.W. VER. 36. Watch'd both by Envy's and by Flatt'ry's eye.] One of the misfortunes falling on Authors, from the Act for fubjecting Plays to the power of a Licenfer, being the falfe reprefentations to which they were expos'd, from fuch as either gratify'd their Envy to Merit, or made their Court to Greatness, by perverting general Reflections against Vice into Libels on particular Perfons. P. W. There funk Thalia, nerveless, cold, and dead, REMARK S. VER. 39. But fober Hiftory] History attends on Tragedy, Satire on Comedy, as their fubftitutes in the discharge of their diftinct functions; the one in high life, recording the crimes and punishments of the great; the other in low, expofing the vices or follies of the common people. But it may be asked, How came History and Satire to be admitted with impunity to minifter comfort to the Mufes, even in the prefence of the Goddefs, and in the midft of all her triumphs? A queftion, fays Scriblerus, which we thus refolve: Hiftory was brought up in her infancy by Dulness herself; but being afterwards espoused into a noble houfe, fhe forgot (as is ufual) the humility of her birth, and the cares of her early friends. This occafioned a long eftrangement between her and Dulnefs. At length, in procefs of time, they met together in a Monk's Cell, were reconciled, and became better friends than ever. After this they had a second quarrel, but it held not long, and are now again on reafonable terms, and so are like to continue. This accounts for the connivance fhewn to History on this occafion. But the boldness of SATIRE fprings from a very different caufe; for the reader ou ht to know, that fhe alone of all the fifters is unconquerable, never to be filenced, when truly inspired and animated (as should fe-m) from above, for this very purpose, to oppose the kingdom of Dulness to her last breath. W. VER. 43. Nor cou'd'ft thou, &c.] This Noble Perfon in the year 1737. when the Act aforefaid was brought into the House of Lords, opposed it in an excellent fpeech (fays Mr. Cibber) "with a lively fpirit, and uncommon eloquence." This fpeech had the honour to be answered by the faid Mr. Cibber, with a lively spirit also, and in a manner very uncommon, in the 8th Chapter of his Life and Manners. And here, gentle Reader, would I gladly infert the other fpeech, whereby thou mightcft judge between them: but I must defer it on account of fome When lo! a Harlot form foft fliding by, 45 With mincing step, small voice, and languid eye: She tripp'd and laugh'd, too pretty much to stand; O Cara! Cara! filence all that train: Joy to great Chaos! let Division reign : REMARKS. differences not yet adjusted between the noble Author and myfelf, concerning the True Reading of certain paffages. BENT. P. W. VER 45. When lo! a Harlet form] The Attitude given to this Phantom reprefents the nature and genius of the Italian Opera; its affected airs, its effeminate founds, and the practice of patching up thefe Operas with favourite Songs, incoherently put together. These things were fupported by the fubfcriptions of the Nobility. This circumstance that OPERA fhould prepare for the opening of the grand Seffions, was prophefied of in Book iii. ver. 304. Already Opera prepares the way The fure fore-runner of her gentle fway. - P. W. VER. 54. let Divifion reign:] Alluding to the falfe tafte of playing tricks in Mufic with numberless divifions, to the neglect of that harmony which conforms to the Senfe, and applies to the Paffions. Mr. Handel had introduced a great number of IMITATIONS. VER. 54. Joy to great Chaos!] Joy to great Cefar-The beginning of a famous old Song. Chromatic tortures foon fhall drive them hence, 55 Break all their nerves, and fritter all their fenfe: One Trill shall harmonife joy, grief, and rage, Wake the dull Church, and lull the ranting Stage; To the fame notes thy fons fhall hum, or snore, - And all thy yawning daughters cry, encore. Another Phœbus, thy own Phoebus, reigns, Joys in my jigs, and dances in my chains. But foon, ah foon, Rebellion will commence, If Mufic meanly borrows aid from Sense: REMARK S. 60 Hands, and more variety of Inftruments into the Orchestra, and employed even Drums and Cannon to make a fuller Chorus; which prov'd so much too manly for the fine Gentlemen of his age, that he was obliged to remove his Mufic into Ireland. After which they were reduced, for want of Composers, to practise the patch-work above-mentioned. P. W. VER 55. Chromatic tortures] That fpecies of the ancient mufic called the Chromatic was a variation and embellishment, in odd irregularities, of the Diatonic kind. They say it was invented about the time of Alexander, and that the Spartans forbad the use of it, as languid and effeminate. W. VER. 58. Wake the dull Church, and lull the ranting Stage ;] i. e. Diffipate the devotion of the one by light and wanton airs; and fubdue the Pathos of the other by recitative and fingfong. VER. . 59. Thy own Phoebus reigns, Tuus jam regnat Apollo. W. Virg. Not the ancient Phoebus, the God of Harmony, but a modern Phoebus of French extraction, married to the Princess Galimathia, one of the handmaids of Dulness, and an affiftant to Opera. Of whom fee Boubours, and other Critics of that nation. SCRIBL. P. W. |
