"mighty train of hopes, joys and difquiets. Be"fides this amorous tenderness, I know not how "in every copy there is fomething of more "ufeful knowledge gracefully infinuated; and "every where there is fomething feigned to in"form the minds of wife men, as well as to move the hearts of young men or women."

Our author's comedy, named the Guardian, he afterwards altered, and published under the title of the Cutter of Coleman-Street. Langbaine fays, notwithstanding Mr. Cowley's modeft opinion of this play, it was acted not only at Cambridge, but feveral times afterwards privately, during the prohibition of the stage, and after the King's return publickly at Dublin; and always with applaufe. It was this probably that put the author upon revifing it; after which he permitted it to appear publickly on the ftage under a new title, at his royal highness the Duke of York's theatre. It met with oppofition at first from fome who envied the author's unfhaken loyalty; but afterwards it was acted with general applause, and was esteemed by the critics an excellent comedy.

In the year 1656 it was judged proper by those on whom Mr. Cowley depended, that he fhould come over into England, and under pretence of privacy and retirement, give notice of the fituation of affairs in this nation. Upon his return he published a new edition of all his poems, confifting of four parts, viz.

1. Mifcellanies.

2. The Mistress ; or feveral copies of love

verfes.

3. Pindarique Odes, written in imitation of the ftile and manner of Pindar.

4. Davedeis, a facred poem cf the troubles of David in four books.

"Which,

"Which, fays Dr. Sprat, was written in fo young an age, that if we fhall reflect on the "vaftness of the argument, and his manner of

handling it, he may feem like one of the "miracles that he there adorns; like a boy attempting Goliah. This perhaps, may be the reafon, that in fome places, there may be more youthfulness and redundance of fancy, than his riper judgement would have allowed. But for "the main of it I will affirm, that it is a bet"ter inftance and beginning of a divine poem, "than ever I yet faw in any language. The "contrivance is perfectly ancient, which is cer

tainly the true form of an heroic poem, and "fuch as was never yet done by any new de"vices of modern wits. The fubject was tru

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ly divine, even according to God's own heart. "The matters of his invention, all the treasures "of knowledge and hiftories of the bible. The "model of it comprehended all the learning of "the Eaft. The characters lofty and various; "the numbers firm and powerful; the digref"fions beautiful and proportionable. The defign, to fubmit mortal wit to heavenly truths. "In all, there is an admirable mixture of human virtues and paffions with religious raptures. "The truth is, continues Dr. Sprat, methinks

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in other matters his wit exceeded all other "men's, but in his moral and divine works it “out-did itself; and no doubt it proceeded from "this caufe, that in the lighter kinds of poetry "he chiefly reprefented the humours and affecti"ons of others; but in thefe he fat to himself, "and drew the figure of his own mind. We

have the firft book of the Davideis tranflated "out of English into very elegant Latin by Mr. Cowley himself." Dr. Sprat fays of his Latin poetry, "that he has expreffed to admiration all the numbers of verfe and figures of poetry,

3

that.

that are scattered up and down amongst the "ancients; and that there is hardly to be found "in them any good fashion of fpeech, or colour

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of meafure; but he has comprehended it, and "given instances of it, according as his feveral arguments required either a majestic fpirit, or "paffionate, or pleasant. This he obferves, is "the more extraordinary, in that it was never "yet performed by any fingle poet of the an. "cient Romans themselves.

The fame author has told us, that the occafion of Mr. Cowley's falling on the pindarique way of writing, was his accidentally meeting with Pindar's works in a place where he had no other books to direct him. Having thus confidered at leifure the heighth of his invention, and the majefty of his ftile, he tried immediately to imitate it in English, and he performed it, fays the Dr. without the danger that Horace prefaged to the man that should attempt it. Two of our greatest poets, after allowing Mr. Cowley to have been a fuccefsful imitator of Pindar, yet find fault with his numbers. Mr. Dryden having told us, that our author brought Pindaric verfe as near perfection as poffible in fo fhort a time, adds, But if I may be allowed to speak my "mind modeftly, and without injury, to his facred "afhes, fomewhat of the purity of English, fome"what of more sweetness in the numbers, in a "word, somewhat of a finer turn and more ly"rical verfe is yet wanting;" and Mr. Congreve having excepted against the irregularity of the measure of the English Pindaric odes, yet observes, "that the beauty of Mr. Cowley's verfes are an "attonement for the irregularity of his ftanzas ; “and tho' he did not imitate Pindar in the ftrict

nefs of his numbers, he has very often happily "copied him in the force of his figures, and fublimity of his ftile and fentiments. VOL. II. N° 6. Ꭰ

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Soon

Soon after his return to England, he was feized upon thro' mistake; the fearch being intended after another gentleman of confiderable note in the King's party. The Republicans, who were fenfible how much they needed the affistance and coalition of good men, endeavoured sometimes by promifes, and fometimes by threatning, to bring our author over to their intereft; but all their at-tempts proving fruitless, he was committed to a fevere confinement, and with fome difficulty at faft obtained his liberty, after giving a thousand pounds bail, which Dr. Scarborough in a friendly manner took upon himself. Under thefe bonds he continued till Cromwell's death, when he ventured back into France, and there remained, as Dr. Sprat fays, in the fame fituation as before, till near the time of the King's return. This account is a fuffici. ent vindication of Mr. Cowley's unfhaken loyalty, which fome called in queftion; and as this is a material circumftance in the life of Cowley, we fhall give an account of it in the words of the elegant writer of his life just now mentioned, as *it is impoffible to fet it in a fairer, or more ftriking light than is already done by that excellent prelate. "The cause of his loyalty being called in queflion, he tells us, was a few lires in a preface to one of his books; the objection, fays he, I muft not país in filence, "becaufe it was the only part of his life that was liable to mifinterpretation, even by the confeffion of thofe that envied his fame.

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In this cafe it were enough to alledge for " him to men of moderate minds, that what he there faid was published before a book of poetry; and fo ought rather to be efteemed as a problem of his fancy and invention, than as a ical image of his judgement; but his de"fe ce in this matter may be laid on a furer

"foundation.

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" foundation. This is the true reafon to be given of his delivering that opinion: Upon "his coming over he found the state of the royal party very defperate. He perceived the ftrength of their enemies fo united, that till it fhould begin to break within itself, all endea vours against it were like to prove unfuccefs"ful. On the other fide 'he beheld their zeal "for his Majefty's caufe to be still fo active,

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that often hurried them into inevitable ruin. "He faw this with much grief; and tho' he approved their conftancy as much as any man living, yet he found their unreasonable shew"ing it, did only disable themselves, and give "their adverfaries great advantages of riches and ftrength by their defeats. He therefore, believed "it would be a meritorious fervice to the King, "if any man who was known to have follow"ed his intereft, could infinuate into the Ufur

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per's minds, that men of his principles were "now willing to be quiet, and could perfuade the poor oppreffed Royalifts to conceal their af"fections for better occafions. And as for his 66 own particular, he was a clofe prisoner when he writ that against which the exception is "made fo that he faw it was impoflible for "him to purfue the ends for which he came "hither, if he did not make fome kind of de"claration of his peaceable intentions. This

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;

was then his opinon; and the fuccefs of the "thing feems to prove that it was not ill-grounded. "For certainly it was one of the greatest helps to the King's affairs about the latter end of "that tyranny, that many of his best friends "diffembled their counfels, and acted the fame defigns under the difguifes and names of other *parties. The prelate concludes this account "with obferving, that, that life muft needs be very

unblameable