a commendable Continence! and fuch as Scipio himself must have applauded. For how much Self-denial was exerted not to covet his neighbour's whore? and what disorders must the coveting her have occafioned in that Society, where (according to this political calculator) nine in ten of all ages have their concubines! We have now, as briefly as we could devife, gone through the three conftituent qualities of either Hero. But it is not in any, nor in all of these, that Heroifm properly or essentially refideth. It is a lucky refult rather from the collifion of thefe lively qualities against one another. Thus, as from Wifdom, Bravery, and Love, arifeth Magnanimity, the object of Admiration, which is the aim of the greater Epic; fo from Vanity, Impudence, and Debauchery, springeth Buffoonry, the fource of Ridicule, that " laughing ornament," as he well termeth ith, of the little-Epic. He is not afhamed (God forbid he ever fhould be afhamed!) of this character; who deemeth, that not Reafon but Rifibility diftinguisheth the human fpecies from the brutal. As Nature (faith this profound philofopher) 66 diftinguished our fpecies from the mute creation by our "Rifibility, her defign muft have been by that faculty. "as evidently to raife our happiness, as by our Os fublime, OUR ERECTED FACES, to lift the dignity of our form above them i." All this confidered, how complete a Hero must he be, as well as how happy a Man, whose Rifibility lieth not barely in his muscles, as in the common fort, but (as himself informeth us) in his very spirits? And whofe Os fublime is not fimply an ERECT FACE, but a brazen head; as fhould feem by his preferring it to one of Iron, faid to belong to the late king of Sweden k. But whatever perfonal qualities a Hero may have, the examples of Achilles and Æneas fhew us, that all these are of small avail, without the conftant affiftance of the GODS: for the fubverfion and erection of Empires have k Letter, h Letter to Mr. P. p. 31. page 8. i Life, p. 23, 24. never been adjudged the work of Man. How greatly foever then may we efteem of his high talents, we can hardly conceive his perfonal prowess alone fufficient to reftore the decayed empire of DULNESS. So weighty an atchievement must require the particular favour and protection of the GREAT; who being the natural patrons and fupporters of Letters, as the ancient Gods were of Troy, must first be drawn off, and engaged in another Intereft, before the total fubversion of them can be accomplifhed. To furmount, therefore, this laft and greatest difficulty, we have, in this excellent man, a profeífed Favourite and Intimado of the GREAT. And look, of what force ancient piety was to draw the Gods into the party of Æneas, that, and much ftronger is modern Incenfe, to engage the Great in the party of Dulness. Thus have we effayed to pourtray or fhadow out this noble Imp of Fame. But now the impatient reader will be apt to fay, if so many and various graces go to the making up a Hero, what mortal thall fuffice to bear his character? Ill hath he read, who feeth not, in every trace of this picture, that individual, ALL-ACCOMPLISHED PERSON, in whom these rare virtues and lucky circumftances have agreed to meet and concentre, with the frongeft luftre and fullest harmony. The good Scriblerus indeed, nay the World itfelf might be impofed on, in the late fpurious editions, by I can't tell what Sham Hero, or Phantom: But it was not fo easy to impofe on HIM whom this egregious error moft of all concerned. For no fooner had the fourth book laid open the high and swelling fcene, but he recognized his own heroic Acts: And when he came to the words, Soft on her lap her Laureat fon reclines, (though Laureat imply no more than one crowned with laurel, as befitteth any affociate or Confort in Empire) he loudly refented this indignity to violated Majefty. Indeed not without caufe, he being there reprefented as faft afleep; fo mifbefeeming the Eye of Empire, which, like that of Jove, fhould never doze nor flumber. 66 Hah! faith he) fast afleep, it feems! that's a little too ftrong. Pert and dull at least you might have allowed me, but as feldom afleep as any fool 1. However, the injured Hero may comfort himself with this reflexion, that tho' it be a fleep, yet it is not the fleep of Death, but of immortality. Here he will m live at least, tho' not awake; and in no worfe condition than many an enchanted Warrior before him. The famous Durandarte, for instance, was, like him, caft into a long flumber by Merlin the British Bard and Necromancer: and his example, for fubmitting to it with a good grace, might be of fervice to our Hero. For that difaftrous knight being forely preffed or driven to make his anfwer by feveral perfons of Quality, only replied with a figh, Patience, and Shuffle the cards n. But now, as nothing in this world, no not the most facred or perfect things either of Religion or Government, can efcape the fting of Envy, methinks I already hear these carpers objecting to the clearness of our Hero's title. It would never (fay they) have been esteemed sufficient to make an Hero for the Iliad or Eneis, that Achilles was brave enough to overturn one Empire, or Æneas pious enough to raise another, had they not been Goddefs-born, and Princes bred. What then did this Author mean, by erecting a Player instead of one of his Patrons, (a perfon "never a Hero even on the stageo,") to this dignity of Collegue in the empire of Dulnefs; and Atchiever of a work that neither old Omar, Attila, nor John of Leiden could entirely bring to pass. To all this we have, as we conceive, a fufficient anfwer from the roman hiftorian, Fabrum effe fuæ quemque fortune: That every man is the Carver of his own fortune. The politic Florentine, Nicholas Machiavel, goeth fill farther, and affirmeth that a man needeth but to believe 1 Letter, p. 53: Book i.ch. 22. m Ibid. p. I. n Don Quixote, Part ii, bimfelf a Hero to be one of the worthieft that ever lived. "Let him (faith he) but fancy himself capable of the highest things, and he will of courfe be able to atchieve "them." From this principle it followeth, that nothing can exceed our Hero's prowefs; as nothing ever equalled the greatnefs of his conceptions. Hear how he conftantly paragons himself; at one time, to ALEXANDER the Great and CHARLES the XII. of SWEDEN, for the excess and delicacy of his Ambition P; to HENRY the IV. of FRANCE, for honest POLICY 9; to the first BRUTUS, for love of liberty r; to Sir ROBERT WALPOLE, for good Government while in powerf: At another time, to the godlike SOCRATES, for his Diversions and Amusements t; to HORACE, MONTAIGNE, and Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, for an elegant vanity that maketh them for ever read and admired v; to Two Lord CHANCELLORS, for Law, from whom, when confederate against him at the bar, he carried away the prize of Eloquence w; and, to say all in a word, to the right reverend the Lord BISHOP OF LONDON himself, in the art of writing Paftoral letters*. Nor did his Actions fall fhort of the fublimity of his Conceit. In his early youth, he met the Revolution y face to face in Nottingham; at a time when his Betters contented themselves with following her. It was here he got acquainted with Old Battle-array, of whom he hath made fo honourable mention in one of his immortal Odes. But he fhone in Courts as well as Camps: He was called up when the Nation fell in labour of this Revolution z: and was a goffip at her chriftening, with the Bishop and the Ladies a. As to his Birth, it is true he pretendeth to no relation either to heathen God or Goddefs; but, what is as good, he was defcended from a Maker of both b. And that he did not pass himself on the world for a Hero, as well by birth as education, was his own fault: For, his lineage he bringeth into his life as an Anecdote, and is fenfible he had it in his power to be thought no body's fon at all c: And what is that but coming into the world a Hero? But be it, (the punctilious Laws of Epic Poefy fo requiring, that a Hero of more than mortal birth muft needs be had; even for this we have a remedy. We can easily derive our Hero's pedigree from a Goddess of no fmall power and authority amongft men; and legitimate and install him after the right claffical and authentic fashion: For, like as the ancient Sages found a fon of Mars in a mighty warrior; a fon of Neptune in a skilful feaman; a fon of Phoebus in a harmonious poet; fo have we here, if need be, a fon of FORTUNE in an artful Gamefter. And who fitter than the Offspring of Chance, to affilt in reftoring the Empire of Night and Chaos. 64 There is in truth, another objection of greater weight, namely, "That this Hero ftill exifteth, and hath not yet finished his earthly course. For if Solon faid well, "that no man could be called happy till his death, furely "much lefs can any one, till then, be pronounced a "Hero: this fpecies of men being far more fubject than "others to the caprices of Fortune and Humour." But to this also we have an answer, which will (we hope) be deemed decifive. It cometh from himself; who, to cut this matter fhort, hath folemnly protested that he will never change or amend. With regard to his Vanity, he declareth that nothing shall ever part them. "Nature (faith he) hath amply fupplied me in Vanity; a pleasure which neither the "pertnefs of Wit, nor the gravity of Wisdom, will ever "perfuade me to part with d." Our poet had charitably endeavoured to adminifter a cure to it: But he telleth us plainly, My fuperiors perhaps may be mended by him; but for my part I own myself incorrigible. I look up. |