"men of good understanding value him for his rhymes." And (p. 17.) "that he has got, like Mr. Bays in the "Rehearsal, (that is, like Mr. Dryden) a notable "knack at rhyming, and writing smooth verfe."

Of his Effay on Man, numerous were the praises beftowed by his avowed enemies, in the imagination that the fame was not written by him, as it was printed anonymously.

Thus fang of it even

BEZALEEL MORRIS. "Aufpicious bard! while all admire thy ftrain, "All but the selfish, ignorant, and vain ; " I, whom no bribe to servile flatt'ry drew, "Muft pay the tribute to thy merit due : "Thy Mufe fublime, fignificant, and clear, "Alike informs the Soul, and charms the Ear," etc. And

1

Mr. LEONARD WELSTED thus wrote a to the unknown author, on the first publication of the faid Effay: "I must own, after the re

ception which the vileft and most immoral ribaldry "hath lately met with, I was furprised to see what I had long-despaired, a performance deferving the name "of a poet. Such, Sir, is your work. It is, indeed, "above all commendation, and ought to have been "published in an age and country more worthy of it. "If my teftimony be of weight any where, you are "fure to have it in the ampleft manner," etc. etc, ets. Thus we fee every one of his works hath been extolled by one or other of his most inveterate Enemies;

"Now is it not plain, that any one who sends such compliments "to another, has not been used to write in partnership with him "to whom he fends them?" Dennis, Remarks on the Dunc. p. 50. Mr. Dennis is therefore welcome to take this piece to himself.

In a Letter under his own hand, dated March 12, 1733.

and to the fuccefs of them all they do unanimously give teftimony. Bat it is fufficient, inftar omnium, to behold the great critic, Mr. Dennis, forely lamenting it, even from the Effay on Criticism to this day of the Dunciad!" A most notorious inftance (quoth he) of "the depravity of genius and tafte, the approbation this Effay meets with ".-I can fafely affirm, that I never attacked any of these writings, unless they had fuccefs infinitely beyond their merit. This, though an empty, has been a popular fcribbler. The "epidemic madness of the times has given him reputa

tion.-If, after the cruel treatment fo many extra"ordinary men (Spenfer, Lord Bacon, Ben Johnson, "Milton, Butler, Otway, and others) have received

from this country, for thefe laft hundred years, I fhould fhift the fcene, and fhew all that penury

changed at once to riot and profufeness; and more fquandered away upon one object, than would have "fatisfied the greater part of those extraordinary men ; "the reader to whom this one creature fhould be un"known, would fancy him a prodigy of art and nature, "would believe that all the great qualities of these

perfons were centered in him alone. But if I fhould "venture to affure him, that the PEOPLE OF ENG" LAND had made fuch a choice-the reader would "either believe me a malicious enemy, and flanderer;

or that the reign of the laft (Queen Anne's) Miniftry "was defigned by fate to encourage Fools .'

d

But it happens, that this our Poet never had any Place, Penfion, or Gratuity, in any fhape, from the faid glorious Queen, or any of her Minifters. All he owed, in the whole courfe of his life, to any court, was

b Dennis, Pref. to his Reflect. on the Effay on Criticism. Preface to his Remarks on Homer.

Rem. on Homer, p. 8, 9.

a fubfcription for his Homer, of 2001. from King George I. and 1oal from the Prince and Princess.

However, left we imagine our Author's fuccefs was conftant and univerfal, they acquaint us of certain works in a lefs degree of repute, whereof, although owned by others, yet do they affure us he is the writer. Of this fort Mr. DENNIS afcribes e to him two Farces, whofe names he does not tell, but affures us that there is not one jeft in them: And an imitation of Horace, whofe title he does not mention, but affures us it is much more execrable than all his works. The DAILY JOURNAL, May 11, 1728, affures us, "He is below "Tom Durfey in the Drama, because (as that writer "thinks) the Marriage-Hater Matched, and the "Boarding School, are better than the What-d'ye-call"it" which is not Mr. P.'s but Mr. Gay's. Mr. GILDON affures us, in his New Rehearsal, p. 48. "That he was writing a play of the Lady Jane Grey;" but it afterwards proved to be Mr. Rowe's. affured by another, "He wrote a pamphlet called Dr. "Andrew Tripe &;" which proved to be one Dr. Wagstaff's. Mr. THEOBALD affures us, in Mist of the 27th of April, "That the treatife of the Profound "is very dull, and that Mr. Pope is the author of it." The writer of Gulliveriana is of another opinion; and fays, "the whole, or greatest part, of the merit of "this treatise must and can only be ascribed to Gul"liver h." [Here, gentle reader! cannot I but smile at the ftrange blindness and positiveness of men ; knowing the faid treatise to appertain to none other but to me, Martinus Scriblerus.]

We are

We are affured, in Mist of June 8, "That his own "Plays and Farces would better have adorned the "Dunciad, than those of Mr. Theobald; for he had

e Rem. on Homer, p. 8.
Ibid.' p. 6.

f Character of Mr. Pope, p. 7. à Gulliv. p. 336.

"neither genius far Tragedy nor Comedy." Which whether true or not, it is not eafy to judge; in as much as he had attempted neither. Unless we will take it for granted, with Mr. Cibber, that his being once very angry at hearing a friend's Play abufed, was an infallible proof the Play was his own; the faid Mr. Cibber thinking it impoffible for a man to be much concerned for any but himself: "Now let any man

judge (faith he) by this concern, who was the true "mother of the child i "

But from all that hath been faid, the difcerning reader will collect, that it little availed our Author to have any Candour, fince, when he declared he did not write for others, it was not credited; as little to have any Modefty, fince, when he declined writing in any way himself, the prefumption of others was imputed to him. If he fingly enterprised one great work, he was taxed of Boldness and Madness to a prodigy k :: If he took affiftants in another, it was complained of, and reprefented as a great injury to the Public 1. The loftieft heroics, the loweft ballads, treatises against the fate or church, fatires on lords and ladies, raillery on wits and authors, fquabbles with bookfellers, or even full and true accounts of monfters, poisons, and murders; of any hereof was there nothing fo good, nothing fo bad, which hath not at one or other feason been to him afcribed. If it bore no author's name,. then lay he concealed; if it did, he fathered it upon that author to be yet better concealed: If it refembled. any of his ftyles, then was it evident; if it did not, then disguised he it on fet purpose. Yea, even direct... oppofitions in religion, principles, and politics, have:

i Cibber's Letter to Mr. P. p. 19..

k Burnet's Homerides, p. 1. of his tranflation of the Iliad.

I The London and Mift's Journals, on his undertaking, the: Odyffey.

equally been fuppofed in him inherent. Surely a moft rare and fingular character! Of which let the reader make what he can.

Doubtless most Commentators would hence take occafion to turn all to their Author's advantage, and from the teftimony of his very Enemies would affirm, That his Capacity was boundless, as well as his Imagination; that he was a perfect master of all Styles, and all Arguments; and that there was in thofe times no other Writer, in any kind, of any degree of excellence, fave he himself. But as this is not our own fentiment, we shall determine on nothing; but leave thee, gentle reader, to fteer thy judgment equally between various opinions, and to chufe whether thou wilt incline to the Teftimonies of Authors avowed, or of Authors concealed; of thofe who knew him, or of those who knew him not.