is worthy of a more Elaborate Effay the Reader will judge for Himself; 'Tis evident I thought it was, and I flatter my self it will appear 'twas not without Reason; And as many Gentlemen pique themselves of having fome fhare of this kind of Knowledge, and Value themselves upon it; that is, as many as pretend to judge of what Hand a Picture is, or that 'tis an Original, or not, one muft fuppofe that all these think as I do in this Particular.

In a Word, as this is the only Book extant on the Subject, in any Language that I know of, and the Laft that I am like to Write, I have endeavour'd to lay together. in as good a Method as I was able all my Thoughts on thefe Matters; Which together with what I have done in my former Difcourfe is All that I can recollect as Ma

terial on the Theory of Painting And thus to my Power I have acquitted My-felf to my Country, to the Art, and to the Lovers of it.

Of the Goodness of a Picture,

W

&c.

Herefore calleft thou meĠood, there is none Good but One, that is God? Said the Son of God to the young Man who prefac'd a Noble Question with that Complement. This is that Goodness that is Perfect, Simple, and Properly fo call'd, 'tis what is Peculiar to the Deity, and fo to be found no where else. But there is another Improper, Imperfect, Comparative Goodness, and no other than this is to be had in the Works

of Men, and this admits of various Degrees. This Diftinction well confider'd, and apply'd to all the Occurences of Life would contribute very much to the Improvement of our Happiness here; it would teach us to Enjoy the Good before us, and not reject it upon account of the 'difagreeable Companion which is infeperable from it; But the ufe I now would make of it is only to fhow that a Picture, Drawing, or Print may be Good tho' it has feveral Faults; To fay otherwise is as abfurd as to deny a thing is what 'tis faid to be, because it has properties which are Effential to it.

In one of the Tatlers there is fine Reasoning to this purpose; "The HeathenWorld had fo little "Notion that Perfection was to be แ expected amongst Men, that among them any one Quality

or Endowment in an Heroick Degree made a God. Hercules "had Strength, but it was never objected to him that he wanted "Wit. Apollo prefided over Wit, " and it was never ask'd whether "the had Strength. We hear no "Exceptions against the Beauty "of Minerva, or the Wisdom of " Venus. These wife Heathens were glad to Immortalize any one ferviceable Gift, and over"look all Imperfections in the "Perfon that had it.

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If in a Picture the Story be well chofen, and finely Told (at least) if not Improv'd, if it fill the Mind with Noble, and Inftructive Ideas, I will not fcruple to say 'tis an excellent Picture, tho' the Drawing be as Incorrect as that of Correggio, Titian, or Rubens; the Colouring as Difagreeable as that of Polidore, Battifta Franco, or Michael Angelo.

Angelo. Nay, tho' there is no other Good but that of the Colouring, and the Pencil, I will dare to pronounce it a Good Picture; that is, that 'tis Good in thofe Refpects. In the first Instance here is a fine Story artfully communicated to my Imagination,not by Speech, nor Writing, but in a manner preferable to either of them; In the other there is a Beautiful, and Delightful Object, and a fine piece of Workmanship, to say no more of it.

There never was a Picture in the World without fome Faults, And very rarely is there one to be found which is not notoriously Defective in fome of the Parts of Painting. In judging of it's Goodness as a Connoiffeur, one fhould pronounce it fuch in proportion to the Number of the Good Qualities it has, and