the laws in execution against a thief or impoftor.The fame will hold in the republic of letters, if the critics and judges will let every ignorant pretender to fcribbling pafs on the world.

THEOBALD, Letter to Mift, June 22, 1728.

ATTACKS may be levelled, either against failures in genius, or against the pretensions of writing without one.

CONCANEN, Ded. to the Author of the DUNCIAD.

A Satire upon Dulness is a thing that has been ufed and allowed in all ages.

Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, wicked Scribbler!

TESTIMONIES

OF

AUTHORS

CONCERNING

OUR POET AND HIS WORKS.

M. SCRIBLERUS LECTORI S.

EFORE we present thee with our exercitations on

Bthis moft delectable Poem (drawn from the many

volumes of our adverfaria on modern authors) we fhall here, according to the laudable usage of editors, collect the various judgments of the learned concerning our Poet: various indeed, not only of different authors, but of the fame author at different seasons. Nor shall we gather only the testimonies of fuch eminent wits, as would of courfe defcend to pofterity, and confequently be read without our collection; but we fhall likewife with incredible labour feek out for divers others, which, but for this our diligence, could never, at the diftance of a few months, appear to the eye of the most curious. Hereby thou mayeft not only receive the delectation of variety, but also arrive at a more certain judg

ment, by a grave and circumfpect comparison of the witneffes with each other, or of each with himself. Hence alfo thou wilt be enabled to draw reflections, not only of a critical, but a moral nature, by being let into many particulars of the perfon as well as genius, and of the fortune as well as merit, of our Author in which if I relate fome things of little concern peradventure to thee, and fome of as little even to him; I entreat thee to confider how minutely all true critics and commentators are wont to infift upon fuch, and how material they feem to themfelves, if to none other. Forgive me, gentle reader, if (following learned example) I ever and anon become tedious: allow me to take the fame pains to find whether my Author were good or bad, well or ill-natured, modeft or arrogant; as another, whether his author was fair or brown, fhort or tall, or whether he wore a coat or a caffock.

:

We proposed to begin with his life, parentage, and education but as to thefe, even his contemporaries do exceedingly differ. One faith, he was educated at home ; another, that he was bred at St. Omer's, by Jefuits; a third, not at St. Omer's, but at Oxford ! a fourth, that he had no univerfity education at all. Thofe who allow him to be bred at home, differ as much concerning his tutor : one faith, he was kept

a Giles Jacob's Lives of the Poets, vol. ii. in his Life. b Dennis's Reflections on the Effay on Crit. c Dunciad diffected, p. 4. Guardian, N° 40. e Jacob's Lives,

&c. vol. ii.

by his father on purpofe; a fecond, that he was an itinerant priest; a third, that he was a parfon; one h calleth him a fecular clergyman of the church of Rome; another i, a monk. As little do they agree about his father, whom one k fuppofeth, like the father of Hefiod, a tradesman or merchant; another1, a husbandman; another ", a hatter, &c. Nor has an author been wanting to give our Poet such a father as Apuleius hath to Plato, Jamblichus to Pythagoras, and divers to Homer, namely a dæmon: for thus Mr. Gildon":"Certain it is, that his original is not from "Adam, but the Devil; and that he wanteth no66 thing but horns and tail to be the exact resemblance "of his infernal father." Finding, therefore, fuch contrariety of opinions, and (whatever be ours of this fort of generation) not being fond to enter into controverfy, we fhall defer writing the Life of our Poet, till authors can determine among themfelves what parents or education he had, or whether he had any education or parents at all.

f Dunciad diffected,

h Dunciad diffected.

4. g Farmer P. and his fon. Characters of the times, p. 45.

k Female Dunciad, p. ult. 1 Dunciad diffected. m Roome, Paraphrafe on the ivth of Genefis, printed 1729. n Character of Mr. P. and his Writings, in a Letter to a Friend, printed for S. Popping, 1716, p. 10. Curll, in his Key to the Dunciad (firft edit. faid to be printed for A. Dodd) in the 10th page, declared Gildon to be the author of that libel; though in the fubfequent editions of his key he left out this affertion, and affirmed (in the Curliad, p. 4. and 8.) that it was written by Dennis only.

Proceed we to what is more certain, his Works, though not lefs uncertain the judgments concerning them; beginning with his ESSAY on CRITICISM, of which hear first the most ancient of critics,

Mr. JOHN DENNIS.

"His precepts are false or trivial, or both; his "thoughts are crude and abortive, his expreffions "abfurd, his numbers harsh and unmufical, his rhymes trivial and common;-inftead of majesty,

we have something that is very mean; instead of "gravity, fomething that is very boyish; and inftead of perfpicuity and lucid order, we have but "too often obfcurity and confufion." And in another place: "What rare numbers are here! Would

not one swear that this youngster had espoused "fome antiquated Mufe, who had fued out a di

vorce from fome fuperannuated finner, upon ac"count of impotence, and who, being poxed by "the former spouse, has got the gout in her decrepid "age, which makes her hobble fo damnably ⚫." No less peremptory is the cenfure of our hypercritical hiftorian

Mr. OLD MIXON.

"I dare not say any thing of the Effay on Criti"cifm in verfe; but if any more curious reader has "discovered in it fomething new, which is not in

Dryden's prefaces, dedications, and his effsay on "dramatic poetry, not to mention the French critics,

• Reflections critical and fatirical on a Rhapsody, called, An Effay on Criticism. Printed for Bernard Lintot, octavo.