Let Freind affect to fpeak as Terence spoke,
And Alfop never but like Horace joke:
For me, what Virgil, Pliny may deny,
Manilius or Solinus shall supply:

225

230

For Attic Phrase in Plato let them feek,
I poach in Suidas for unlicens'd Greek.
In ancient Senfe if any needs will deal,
Be fure I give them Fragments, not a Meal;
What Gellius or Stobæus hafh'd before,
Or chew'd by blind old Scholiafts o'er and o'er.
The critic Eye, that microscope of Wit,
Sees hairs and pores, examines bit by bit:
How parts relate to parts, or they to whole,
The body's harmony, the beaming foul,
Are things which Kufter, Burman, Wasse shall see,
When Man's whole frame is obvious to a Flea.

NOTES.

235

ita fcripfiffe ne Ciceroni quidem affirmanti crediderim.—Epift. ad Mill. in fin. Frag. Menand. et Phil.

VER. 223, 224. Freind-Alfop] Dr. Robert Freind, master of Westminster school, and canon of Christ-church. Dr. Anthony Alfop, a happy imitator of the Horatian style.

VER. 226. Manilius or Solinus] Some Critics have had it in their choice to comment either on Virgil or Manilius, Pliny or Solinus, and have chofen the worse author, the more freely to display their critical capacity.

VER. 228. &c. Suidas, Gellius, Stobaus] The first a Dictionary-writer, a collector of impertinent facts and barbarous words; the fecond a minute Critic; the third an author, who gave his Common-place book to the public, where we happen to find much Mince-meat of old books.

VER. 232. Or chew'd by blind old Sholiafts o'er and o'er.]

240

Ah, think not, Mistress! more true Dulness lies
In Folly's Cap, than Wisdom's grave difguife.
Like buoys, that never fink into the flood;
On Learning's furface we but lie and nod.
Thine is the genuine head of many a house,
And much Divinity without a Nos.

Nor could a BARROW work on ev'ry block,
Nor has one ATTERBURY fpoil'd the flock.

NOTES.

245

These taking the fame things eternally from the mouth of one another.

VER. 239, 240. Ah, think not, Mistress, &c —in Folly's Cap, &c.] By this it appears the Dunces and Fops, mentioned ✯ 139, 140. had a contention of rivalship for the Goddess's favour on this great day. Those got the start, but these make it up by their Spokefman in the next fpeech. It feems as if Ariftarchus here first saw him advancing with his fair Pupil. SCRIBL.

VER. 244. And much Divinity without a Nes.] A word much affected by the learned Aristarchus in common converfation, to fignify Genius or natural acumen. But this paffage has a farther view: Ne, was the Platonic term for Mind, or the firft caufe, and that fyftem of Divinity is here hinted at which terminates in blind nature without a Nes: fuch as the Poet afterwards defcribes (fpeaking of the dreams of one of these later Platonists)

Or that bright Image to our Fancy draw,
Which Theocles in raptur'd vision saw,

VER. 245, 246. Barrow, Atterbury,] Ifaac Barrow, Mafter of Trinity, Francis Atterbury Dean of Chriftchurch, both great Genius's and eloquent Preachers; one more converfant in the fublime Geometry, the other in claffical Learning; but who equally made it their care to advance the polite Arts in their feveral Societies.

See! ftill thy own, the heavy Canon roll,
And Metaphysic smokes involve the Pole.
For thee we dim the eyes, and stuff the head
With all fuch reading as was never read:

NOTES.

250

VER. 247. the heavy Canon] Canon here, if spoken of Artillery, is in the plural number; if of the Canons of the Houfe, in the fingular, and meant only of one: in which cafe I fufpect the Pole to be a falfe reading, and that it fhould be the Poll, or Head of that Canon. It may be objected, that this is a mere Paranomafia or Pun. But what of that? Is any figure of Speech more appofite to our gentle Goddess, or more frequently used by her and her Children, especially of the Univerfity Doubtless it better fuits the Character of Dulnefs, yea of a Doctor, than that of an Angel; yet Milton fear'd not to put a confiderable quantity into the mouths of his. It hath indeed been obferved, that they were the Devil's Angels, as if he did it to fuggeft the Devil was the Author as well of falfe Wit, as of falfe Religion, and that the Father of Lies was alfo the Father of Puns. But this is idle: It must be own'd a Chriftian practice, used in the primitive times. by fome of the Fathers, and in later by most of the Sons of the Church; till the debauch'd reign of Charles the fecond, when the shameful Paffion for Wit overthrew every thing and even then the best Writers admitted it, provided it was obscene, under the name of the Double entendre. SCRIBL.

VER. 248. And Metaphyfic smokes, &c.] Here the learned Ariftarchus ending the first member of his harangue in behalf of Words; and entering on the other half, which regards the teaching of Things; very artfully connects the two parts in an encomium on METAPHYSICS, a kind of Middle nature between words and things: communicating, in its obfcurity, with Subftance, and, in its emptiness, with Names.

SCRIBL

For thee explain a thing till all men doubt it,
And write about it, Goddess, and about it:
So fpins the filk-worm small its flender store,
And labours till it clouds itself all o'er.

What tho' we let fome better fort of fool
Thrid ev'ry science, run thro' ev'ry school?
Never by tumbler thro' the hoops was shown
Such skill in paffing all, and touching none.
He may indeed (if fober all this time)

255

Plague with Difpute, or persecute with Rhyme. 260 We only furnish what we cannot use,

Or wed to what he must divorce, a Muse:

Full in the midst of Euclid dip at once,
And petrify a Genius to a Dunce:
Or fet on Metaphyfic ground to prance,
Show all his paces, not a step advance,
With the fame CEMENT, ever fure to bind,
We bring to one dead level ev'ry mind.
Then take him to devellop, if you can,

265

And hew the Block off, and get out the Man. 270

NOTES.

VER. 264. petrify a Genius] Those who have no Genius, employ'd in works of imagination; those who have, in abftract fciences.

VER. 270. And bew the Block off,] A notion of Aristotle, that there was originally in every block of marble, a Statue, which would appear on the removal of the superfluous parts.

VER. 272. lac'd Governor] Why lac'd? Because Gold and Silver are neceflary trimming to denote the drefs of a perfon of rank, and the Governor must be fuppofed fo in foreign countries, to be admitted into courts and other

But wherefore wafte I words? I fee advance
Whore, Pupil, and lac'd Governor from France.
Walker! our hat-nor more he deign'd to fay,
But, ftern as Ajax' fpectre, ftrode away.

275

In flow'd at once a gay embroider'd race, And titt'ring pufh'd the Pedants off the place : Some would have spoken, but the voice was drown'd By the French horn, or by the op'ning hound.

NOTES.

places of fair reception. But how comes Ariftarchus to know at fight that this Governor came from France ? Know? Why, by the laced coat. SCRIBL.

Ibid. Whore, Pupil, and lac'd Governor] Some Critics have objected to the order here, being of opinion that the Governor fhould have the precedence before the Whore, if not before the Pupil. But were he fo placed, it might be thought to infinuate that the Governor led the Pupil to the Whore: and were the Pupil placed firft, he might be fuppofed to lead the Governor to her. But our impartial Poet, as he is drawing their picture, reprefents them in the order in which they are generally feen; namely, the Pupil between the Whore and the Governor; but placeth the Whore first, as the ufually governs both the other.

VER. 274. ftern as Ajcx' spectre, firode away.] See Homer Odyff. xi. where the Ghost of Ajax turns fullenly from Ulyffes the Traveller, who had fucceeded against him in the difpute for the arms of Achilles. There had been the fame contention between the Travelling, and the Univerfity tutor, for the fpoils of our young heroes, and fashion adjudged it to the former; fo that this might well occafion the fullen dignity in departure, which Longinus fo much admired. SCRIBL.

VER. 276. And titt’ring push'd, &'c.] Hor.

Rideat & pulfet lasciva decentius ætas.