'Twas chattering, grinning, mouthing, jabbering all, 250 And Noile and Norton, Brangling and Breval, VARIATIONS. Ver. 241, 242. added fince the first edition. Ver. 257,258. This couplet is an addition. REMARKS. new author, he fell into a great paffion at hearing fome, and cried, "'Sdeath! that is my thunder." Ver. 238. Norton,] See ver. 417. J. Durant Breval, author of a very extraordinary book of travels, and fome poems. See before, note on Ver. 126. Ver. 258. Webster-and Whitfield] [The one the writer of a newspaper called the Weekly Milcellany, the other a field preacher. This thought the only means of advancing religion was by the new-birth of fpiritual madnefs: That by the old death of fire and faggot: and therefore they agreed in this, though in no other earthly thing, to abufe all the fober clergy. From the fmall fuccefs of these two extraordinary perfons, we may learn how little hurtful bigotry and enthusiasm are, while the civil magiftrate prudently forbears to lend his power to the one, in order to the employing it against the other.] Ver. 263. Long Chancery-lane] The place where the offices of Chancery are kept. The long detention of clients in that court, and the difficulty of getting out, is humouroufly allegorized in thefe lines. Ver. 268. Who fings fo loudly, and who fings This labour paft, by Bridewell all defcend, (As morning-prayers and flagellation end) a fo long.] A just character of Sir Richard Blackmore, Knt. who (as Mr. Dryden expresseth it) "Writ to the rumbling of his coach's wheels," and whose indefatigable muse produced no left than fix epic poems: Prince and King Arthur, twenty books; Eliza, ten; Alfred, twelve; the R deemer, fix; befides Job, in folio; the whole book of Pfalms; the Creation, feven books; Nature of Man, three books; and many more. It is in th fenfe he is ftyled afterwards the everlafting Blackfeems affured, more. Notwithstanding all which, Mr. Gildan "that this admirable author dif 66 not think himself upon the fame foot with H"mer." Comp. Art of Poetry, vol. i. p. 108. But how different is the judgment of the auther of Characters of the Times? p. 25. who fays, "Sir Richard Blackmore is unfortunate in hap"pening to mistake his proper talents; and that "he has not for many years been so much as "named, or even thought of among writers.”— Even Mr. Dennis differs greatly from his friend Mr, Gildon:" Blackmore's action (faith he) has "neither unity, nor integrity, nor morality, mor "univerfality; and confequently he can have no "fable, and no heroic poem: His narration is "neither probable, delightful, nor wonderful; "his characters have none of the neceffary qual fications; the things contained in his narration are neither in their own nature delightful, nar numerous enough, nor rightly difpofed, nor furprising, nor pathetic." Nay, he proceeds fo far as to fay Sir Richard has no genius; first laying down, that "genius is caufed by a furious joy "and pride of foul, on the conception of an ex"traordinary hint. Many men (fays he) have "their hints, without these motions of fury and "pride of foul, because they want fire enough to "agitate their fpirits; and these we call cold "writers. Others who have a great deal of fire, "but have not excellent organs, feel the fare"mentioned notions, without the extraordinary "hints; and thefe we call fuftian writers But "he declares that Sir Richard had neither the "hints nor the motions." Remarks on Prince Arthur, octavo, 1696. Preface. This gentleman in his first works abused the character of Mr. Dryden; and in his laft, of Mr. Pope, accufing him in very high terms of profanenefs and immorality (Effay on Polite Writing vol. ii. p. 270.) on a mere report from Edm. Curll, that he was author of a travestie on the first pfalm. Mr. Dennis took up the fame report, but with the addition of what Sir Richard "had" neglected, an argument to prove it; which being very curious, we fhall here tranfcribe. It was he who burlefqued the Pfalms of David. It is apparent to me that pfalm was burlesqued by = "Popish rhymefter. Let rhyming perfons who "have been brought up Proteftants be otherwife " what they will, let them be rakes, let them be To where Fleet-ditch with disemboguing streams “Here strip, my children! here at once leap in, "And who the most in love of dirt excel, * Or dark dexterity of groping well. "Who flings moft filth, and wide pollutes around VARIATION. Ver. 283. In former edit. great Dennis ftands. REMARKS. *[coundrels, let them be atheists, yet education " has made an invincible impreffion on them in be" half of the facred writings. But a Popith rhyme"fter has been brought up with a contempt for *thofe facred writings; now fhow me another Po"pith rhymefter but he." This manner of argumentation is ufual with Mr. Dennis; he has employed the fame against Sir Richard himself, in a like charge of impiety and irreligion. "All Mr. Blackmore's celeftial machines, as they cannot "be defended fo much as by common received opinion, fo are they directly contrary to the "doctrine of the Church of England; for the vi"fible descent of an angel must be a miracle. Now "it is the doctrine of the Church of England, that "miracles had ceased a long time before Prince "Arthur came into the world. Now, if the doctrine of the Church of England be true, as we " are obliged to believe, then are all the celestial "machines in Prince Arthur unfufferable, as want"ing not only human, but divine probability. But "if the machines are fufferable, that is, if they "have fo much as divine probability, then it fol "lows of neceffity, that the doctrine of the Church "is falfe. So I leave it to every impartial clergy"man to confider," &c.--Preface to the Remarks Prince Arthur. | Then fighing thus, "And am I now threescore? He faid, and climb'd a ftranded lighter's height, Ver. 280. The weekly journals.] Papers of news and scandal, intermixed, on different tides and parties, and frequently shifting from one fide to the other, called the Londen Journal, British Journal, Daily Jonrnal, &c. the concealed writers of which, for fome time, were Oldmixon, Roome, Arnall, Concanen, and others; perfons never feen by our author. Ver. 283. In naked majefty Oldmixon flands.] Mr. John Oldmixon, next to Mr. Dennis, the moft ancient critic of our nation; an unjust cenfurer of Mr. Addison, in his profe Effay on Criticism, whona alfo in his imitation of Bouhours (called the Arts of Logic and Rhetoric) he mifreprefents in plain matter of fact; for in p. 45. he cites the Spectator as abufing Dr. Swift by name, where there is not the least hint of it; and in p. 304. is fo injurious as to fuggeft that Mr. Addison himself writ that Tatler, No. 43.; which fays of his own fimile, that "'Tis as great as ever entered into the mind of man." "In poetry he was not fo happy as "laborious, and therefore characterised by the Tat"ler, No. 62. by the name of Omicron the unbora "poet." Curll, Key, p. 13. " He writ dramatic "works, and a volume of poetry, confifting of he "roic epiftles, &c. fome whereof were very well "done," faid that great judge, Mr. Jacob, in his Lives of Poets, vol. ii. p. 303. ་ In his Effay on Criticism, and the Arts of Logic and Rhetoric, he frequently reflects on our author. But the top of his character was a perverter of Ver. 270. (As morning prayer and flagellation history, in that fcandalous one of the Stuarts, in ad)] It is between eleven and twelve in the morn- folio, and his Critical Hiftory of England, two voing, after church fervice, that the criminals are lumes, 8vo. Being employed by Bishop Kennet in whipt in Bridewell.-This is to mark punctually publishing the hiftorians in his collection, he falfithe time of the day: Homer does it by the cir-fied Daniel's Chronicle in numberlefs places. Yet cumflance of the judges rifing from court, or of the labourers dinner: our author by one very proper, both to the perfons, and the scene of his poem, which we may remember commenced in the evening of the Lord Mayor's day: The first book failed in that night; the next morning the games begin in the Strand, thence along Fleet-ftreet (places inhabited by bookfellers), then they proceed by Pridewell, toward Fleet-ditch; and laftly, hrough Ludgate, to the city and the temple of the goddrfs. YOL VIIL this very man, in the preface to the first of these books, advanced a particular fact, to change three eminent perfons of falfifying the Lord Clarendon's Hiftory; which fact has been difproved by Dr. Atterbury, late Bishop of Rochefter, then the only furvivor of them; and the particular part he pretended to be falfified, produced fince, after almoft ninety years, in that noble author's original manufcript. He was all his life a virulent party-writer for hire, and received his reward in a fmall place, which he enjoyed to his death. Afk ye their names! I could as foon difclofe The names of these blind puppies as of those 310 Faft by, like Niobe (her children gone) 300 Sits Mother Ofborne, ftupify'd to tone! And monumental brass this record bears, "These are-ah no! these were the gazetteers." Not fo, bold Arnall; with a weight of skull, Furious he dives, precipitately dull. Whirlpools and storms his circling arm invest, With all the might of gravitation bleft. No crab more active in the dirty dance, Downward to climb, and backward to advance, He bears no tokens of the fabler streams, 319 VARIATIONS. After ver. 298. in the first edit. followed thefe : For worfe unhappy Dr fucceeds, He fearch'd for coral, but he gather'd weeds. Ver. 305.314. Not in former edit. REMARKS. Ver. 291. Next Smedley div'd.] In the furreptitious editions, this whole epifode was applied to an initial letter E-, by whom, if they meant the laureat, nothing was more abfurd, no part agreeing with his character. The allegory evidently demands a perfon dipped in fcandal, and deeply immerfed in dirty work; whereas Mr. Eufden's writings rarely offended but by their length and multitude; and accordingly are taxed of nothing elfe in book i. ver. 102. But the perfon here mentioned, an Irishman, was author and publisher of many fcurrilous pieces, a weekly Whitehall Journal, in the year 1722, in the name of Sir James Baker; and particularly whole volumes of Billingsgate against Dr. Swift and Mr. Pope, called Gulliveriana and Alexandriana, printed in 8vo, 1728. Ver. 295. Then * * essay'd.] A gentleman of genius and fpirit, who was fecretly dipt in fome papers of this kind, on whom our poet bestows a panegyric instead of a fatire, as deferving to be better employed than in party-quarrels, and perfonal invectives. Ver. 299. Concanen.] Matthew Concanen, an Irishman, bred to the law. Smedley (one of his brethren in enmity to Swift) in his Metamorphofis of Scriblerus, p. 7. accuses him of "having "boasted of what he had not written, but others "had revised and done for him." He was author of feveral dull and dead fcurrilities in the British and London Journals, and in a paper called the Speculatift. In a pamphlet, called a Supplement to the Profound, he dealt very unfairly with our poet, not only frequently imputing to him Mr. Broome's verfes (for which he might indeed feem in fome degree accountable, having corrected what that gentleman did) but those of the Duke of Buckingham, and others: To this rare piece fomebody humorously caused him to take for his motto, "De profundis clamavi." He was fince a hired fcribler in the Daily Courant, where he poured forth much Billingfgate against the Lord Bolingbroke, and others; after which this man was furprifingly promoted to adminifter juftice and law in Jamaica. Ver. 306, 307. With each a fickly brother at his back-Sons of a day, &c.] These were daily papers, a number of which, to leffen the expence, were printed one on the back of another. Ver. 312. Ofborne.] A name affumed by the eldest and gravest of these writers, who at laft being afhamed of his pupils, gave his paper over, and in his age remained filent. Ver. 314. Gazetteers.] We ought not to fuppofe that a modern critic here taxeth the poct with an anachronifm, affirming these gazetteers not to have lived within the time of his poem, and challenging us to produce any fuch paper of that date. But we may with equal affurance affert thefe gazetteers not to have lived fince, and challenge all the learned world to produce one fuch paper at this day. Surely, therefore, where the point is fo obfcure, our author ought not to be cenfured too rafhly. SCRIBL, Notwithstanding this affected ignorance of the good Scriblerus, the Daily Gazetteer was a title given very properly to certain papers, each of which lafted but a day. Into this, as a common fink, was received all the trash, which had been before difperfed in feveral journals, and circulated at the public expence of the nation. The authors were the fame obfcure men: though sometimes relieved by occafional effays from statesmen, cour tiers, bishops, deans, and doctors. The meaner fort were rewarded with money; others with places or benefices, from an hundred to a thoufand a-year. It appears from the report of the fecret committee for inquiring into the conduct of R. Earl of O. "That no lefs than fifty thoufand "feventy-feven pounds eighteen fhillings, were "paid to authors and printers of newspapers, fuch "as Free Britons, Daily Courants, Corn Cutter's "Journals, Gazetteers, and other political papers, "between Feb. 10, 1731, and Feb. 10, 1741." Which shows the benevolence of one minifter, to have expended, for the current dulness of ten years in Britain, double the fum which gained Louis XIV. fo much honour, in annual penfions to learned men all over Europe. In which, and in a much longer time, not a penfion at court, nor pre ferment in the church or univerfities, of any confideration, was bestowed on any man distinguished or his learning feparately from party merit, or pamphlet-writing. It is worth a reflection, that of all the panegyrics bestowed by these writers on this great minifer, not one is at this day extant or remembered, cot even so much credit done to his personal character by all they have written, as by one short ocdional compliment of our author: Seen him I have; but in his happier hour Of focial pleasure, ill exchang'd for power! Seen him, uncumber'd by the venal tribe, Smile without art, and win without a bribe.". Ver. 315 Arnall] WILLIAM ARNALL, bred an torney, was a perfect genius in this fort of work. He began under twenty with furious party papers; hen fucceeded Concanen in the British Journal. it the first publication of the Dunciad, he prealled on the author not to give him his due place it, by a letter profeffing his deteftation of such radices as his predeceffors. But fince, by the oft unexampled infolence, and perfonal abuse of veral great men, the poet's particular friends, he Loft amply deferved a niche in the Temple of famy: witness a paper, called the Free Briton, dedication intituled, To the Genuine Blunderer, 132. and many others. He writ for hire, and alued himself upon it; not indeed without cause, appearing by the aforesaid REPORT, that he ceived for Free Britons, and other writings, in the space of four years, no less than ten thousand nine hundred and ninety-feven pounds fix fhilLngs and eight-pence, out of the Freafury." ut frequently, through his fury or folly, he exeded all the bounds of his commiffion, and oblid his honourable patron to disavow his fcurrili Ver. 323. The plunging prelate, &c.] It having en invidiously infinuated that by this title was eant a truly great prelate, as refpectable for his nce of the prefent balance of power in the civil titution, as for his oppofition to the fcheme of power at all, in the religious; I owe so much to e memory of my deceafed friend as to declare, at when, a little before his death, I informed m of this infinuation, he called it vile and malius, as any candid man, he said, might underind, by his having paid a willing compliment to it very prelate in another part of the poem. [maids, Shaking the horrors of his fable brows, Ver. 343-351. In firft edit. thus: Pours into Thames: each city bowl is full Uf the mixt wave, and all who drink grow dull. Here to the banks, where bards departed dofe, They led him foft; here all the bards arose; Taylor, fweet bird of Thames, majestic bows, And Shadwell nods the poppy on his brows; While Milbourne there, deputed by the reft, Gave him the caffock, furcingle, and veft; And Take" (he faid), &c. Ver 355-362. Not in the first edit. where, inftead of ver. 365.-367. were originally these lines: slow moves the goddefs from the fable flood, (Her prieft preceding) through the gates of Lud. Her critics there the fummons, and proclaims A gentler exercile to clofe the games. Here you, in whofe grave heads, &c. REMARKS. Ver. 349 And Milbourne] Luke Milbourne, a clergyman, the fairest of critics; who, when he wrote against Mr. Dryden's Virgil, did him juftice in printing at the fame time his own tranflations of him, which were intolerable. His manner of writing has a great refemblance with that of the gentlemen of the Dunciad against our author, as will be seen in the parallel of Mr. Dryden and him. Append. Prompt or to guard or ftab, to faint or damn, Heaven's Swifs, who fight for any God, or man. Through Lud's fani'd gates, along the wellknown Fleet, 359 Rolls the black troop, and overshades the street, Ye critics! in whofe heads, as equal fcales, "I weigh what author's heaviness prevails: "Which most conduce to footh the foul in flumbers, C6 My Henley's periods, or my Blackmore's num«bers, 370 "Attend the trial we propofe to make: "If there be man, who o'er fuch works can wake, "Sleep's all-fubduing charms who dares defy, "And boafts Ulyffes' car with Argus' eye; "To him we grant our ampleft powers, to fit "Judge of all prefent, paft, and future wit; "To cavil, cenfure, dictate, right or wrong, "Full and eternal privilege of tongue." Three college fophs and three pert templars 379 came, The fame their talents, and their taftes the fame; VARIATION. Ver. 379. In first edit. Three Cambridge fophs. REMARKS. Ver. 255. Around him wide, &c.] It is to be hoped that the fatire in these lines will be underfood in the confined fenfe in which the author meant it, of fuch only of the clergy, who, though folemnly engaged in the fervice of religion, dedicate themfelves for venal and corrupt ends to that of minifters or factions; and though educated under an entire ignorance of the world, afpire to interfere in the government of it, and confequently to difturb and diforder it; in which they fall fhort of their predeceffors only by being invested with much lefs of that power and authority, which they employed indifferently (as is hinted at in the lines above) either in fupporting arbitrary power, or in exciting rébellion, ifi canonizing the vices of tyrants, or in blackening the virtues of patriots; in corrupt ing religion by fuperftition, or betraying it by libertiifm, as either was thought beft to ferve the eas of policy, or flatter the follies of the great. And now to this fide, now to that they nod, VARIATIONS. Ver. 399. in the first edit. it was, Collins and Tindal, prompt at priests to jeer. Ver. 413, in the first edit. it was, Boyer the state, and Law the ftage gave o'er, Nor Motteux talk'd, nor Nalo whisper'd more. REMARKS. Ver 397. Thrice Budgel aim'd to speak," Fi mous for his fpeeches on many occafions about the South Sea fcheme, &c. "He is a very ingen a gentleman, and hath written fome excellent epe logues to plays, and one fmall piece on Love, "which is very pretty." Jacob, Lives of Poets, vol. ii. p. 289. But this gentleman fince mar himself much more eminent, and perfonally wel known to the greateil ftatesmen of all parties, as well as to all the courts of law in this nation. Ver. 399. Toland and Tindal,] Two perfow not fo happy as to be obfcure, who writ agar the religion of their country. Toland, the author of the Atheist's Liturgy, called Pantheitlicon, wa a fpy, in pay to Lord Oxford. Tindal was author of the rights of the Chriftian Church, and Christi anity as old as the Creation: He also wrote all abufive pamphlet against Earl S- which was fupe preffed while yet in MS. by an eminent perfo then out of the miniftry, to whom he showed it, expecting his approbation: This Doctor afterwards publifhed the fame piece, mutatis mutandis, again that very person. Ver. 4co. Chrift's no kingdom, &c.] This is faid by Curll, Key to Danc. to allude to a ferma of a reverend bishop. Ver. 411. Centlivre] Mrs. Sufanna Centlivre, wife to Mr. Centlivre, yeoman of the mouth re his Majefty. She writ inany plays, and a loc (lays Mr. Jacob, vol. i. p. 32.) before the was |