Dryden. I agree with you, that whatever leffer wits have rifen fince his death, are but like stars appearing when the fun is fet, that twinkle only in his abfence, and with the rays they have borrowed from him. Our wit (as you call it) is but reflection or imitation, therefore scarce to be called ours. True wit, I believe, may be defined a juftnefs of thought, and a facility of expreffion; or (in the midwives phrafe) a perfect conception, with an eafy delivery. However, this is far from a complete definition; pray help me to a better, as I doubt not you I am, &c.

can.

LETTER II.

Mr. Pope to Mr. Wycherley.

WHE

March 25, 1795.

THEN I write to you, I forefce a long letter, and ought to beg your patience before-hand; for if it proves the longeft, it will be of courfe the worst I have troubled you with. Yet to exprefs my gratitude at large for your obliging letter, is not more my duty than my in. tereft, as fome people will abundantly thank you for one piece of kindness, to put you in mind of beflowing another. The more favourable you are to me, the more diftinctly I fee my faults: fpots and blemithes, you know, are never fo plainly difcovered as in the brighteft funthine. Thus I am mortified by thofe commendations which were defigned to encourage me: for praise to a young wit is like rain to a tender flower; if it be moderately beftowed, it cheers and revives; but if too lavishly, overcharges and depreffes him. Molt men in years, as they are generally difcouragers of youth, are like old trees, that, being past bearing themselves, will fuffer no young plants to flourish beneath them: but, as if it were not enough to have outdone all your coerals in wit, you will excel them in good nature too. As for my green effays, if you find any pleafure in them, i mud be fuch as a man naturally takes in oblerving the first shoots and buddings of a tree which he has raifed himfelt: and it is impoffible they fhould be cfteem ed any otherwife, than as we value fruits for being early, which nevertheless are

11. guftorals, writtin at fixteen years of age.

I

LETTER III.

From the fame to the fame. April 30, 1705. CANNOT Contend with you: you mus give me leave at once to wave all your compliments, and to collect only this in general from them, that your defign is te encourage me. But I feparate from all the reft that paragraph or two in

which

make me fo warin an offer of

you your friendship. Were I poffeffed of that, it would put an end to al! thofe fpeeches with which you now make me blush; and change them to wholefome advices and free fentiments, which might make me wifer and happier. I know it is the general opinion, that friendship is beft contracted betwixt perfons of equal age; I have fo much intereft to be of another mind, that you must pardon me if I carnot forbear telling you a few notions of mine, in oppofition to that opinion.

but

In the first place, it is obfervable, that the love we bear to our friends is gene rally caufed by our finding the fame dif pofitions in them which we feel in our felves. This is but felf-love at the bottom: whereas the affection betwixt peo ple of different ages cannot well be fo, the inclinations of fuch being commonly various. The friendship of two young men is often occafioned by love of pleafure or voluptuoufnefs, each being de firous for his own fake of one to affift or encourage him in the courses he pursues; as that of two old men is frequently on the score of fome profit, lucre, or defiga upon others. Now, as a young man, who is lefs acquainted with the ways of the world, has in all probability lefs of intereft; and an old man, who may be weary of himself, has, or fhould have, lefs of felf-love; fo the friendship between them is the more likely to be true, and unmixed with too much felf-regard.

One may add to this, that fuch a friendfhip is of greater use and advantage to both; for the old man will grow gay and agreeable to pleafe the young one; and the young man more difcreet and prudent by the help of the old one; fo it may prove a cure of thofe epidemical difeafes of age and youth, fournefs and madness. I hope you will not need many arguments to convince you of the poffibility of this; one alone abundantly fatisfies me, and convinces to the heart; which is, that young as I am, and old as you are, I am your entirely affectionate, &c.

I

From the fame to the fame.

June 23, 1705. SHOULD believe myself happy in your good opinion, but that you treat me fo much in a style of compliment. It hath been obferved of women, that they are more fubject in their youth to be touched with vanity than men, on account of their being generally treated this way; but the weakeft women are not more weak than that clafs of men who

are thought to pique themfelves upon their wit. The world is never wanting, when a coxcomb is accomplishing himfelf, to help to give him the finishing

ftroke.

Every man is apt to think his neighbour overstocked with vanity, yet I cannot but fancy there are certain times when most people are in a difpofition of being informed; and it is incredible what a vaft good a little truth might do, fpoken in fuch feasons. A fmall alms will do a great kindness to people in extreme neceffity.

I could name an acquaintance of yours, who would at this time think himself more obliged to you for the information of his faults, than the confirmation of his follies. If you would make thofe the fubject of a letter, it might be as long as I could with your letters always were.

I do not wonder you have hitherto found fome difficulty (as you are pleased to fay) in writing to me, fince you have always chofen the task of commending me: take but the other way, and, I dare engage, you will find none at all.

Mr. Wycherley was at this time about feventy years old, Mr. Pope under feventeen.

As for my verfes, which you praise fo much, I may truly fay they have never been the cause of any vanity in me, except what they gave me when they first occafioned my acquaintance with you, But I have feveral times fince been in danger of this vice; as often, I mean, as I received any letters from you. It is certain, the greatest magnifying glaffes in the world are a man's own eyes, when they look upon his own perfon; yet even in thofe, I cannot fancy myself fo ex? tremely like Alexander the Great, as you would perfuade me. If I must be like him, it is you will make me fo by com plimenting me into a better opinion of myfelf than I deferve: they made him think he was the fon of Jupiter, and you affure me I am a man of parts. But is this all you can fay to my honour? you called me your friend. faid ten times as much before, when you After having

made me believe I poffeffed a fhare in your affection, to treat me with compliments and fweet fayings, is like the proceeding with poor Sancho Pança: they perfuaded him that he enjoyed a great dominion, and then gave him nothing to fubfift upon but wafers and marmalade. In our days the greatest obligation you can lay upon a wit, is to make a fool of curable, wife men give them their way, him. For as when madmen are found incurable, wife men give them their way, and please them as well as they can; fo when thofe incorrigible things, poets, are once irrecoverably be-mufed, the best way both to quiet them, and fecure your felf from the effects of their frenzy, is to feed their vanity; which indeed, for the moft part, is all that is fed in a poet.

You may believe me, I could be heartily glad that all you fay were as true, applied to me, as it would be to yourfelf, for feveral weighty reafons; but for none fo much as that I might be to you what you deferve; whereas I can now be no more than is confiftent with the small though utmost capacity of, &c.

country fools; that the firft are pertly in the wrong, with a little more flourish and gaiety; and the last neither in the right nor the wrong, but confirmed in a stupid fettled medium betwixt both. However,

methinks, thefe are most in the right, who quietly and eafily refign themfelves over to the gentle reign of dulnefs, which the wits must do at laft, though after a great deal of noife and refiftance. Ours are a fort of modelt inoffenfive people, who neither have fenfe, nor pretend to any, but enjoy a jovial fort of dulnefs: they are commonly known in the world by the name of honeft, civil gentlemen: they live, much as they ride, at random; a kind of hunting life, purfuing with earneftness and hazard fomething not worth the catching; never in the way nor out of it. I cannot but prefer folitude to the company of all thefe; for though a man's felf may poflibly be the work fellow to converfe with in the world, yet one would think the company of a perfon whom we have the greatest regard to and affection for, could not be very unpleafant. As a man in love with a miftrefs, defires no converfation but hers, fo a man in love with himfelf (as moft men are) may be beft pleafed with Befides, if the truelt and most uieful knowledge be the knowledge of ourfelves, folitude, conducing moit to make us look into ourselves, fhould be the most inftructive flate of life. We fee nothing more commonly, than men who, for the fake of the circumftantial part and

his own.

mere outfide of life, have been half their days rambling out of their nature, and ought to be fent into folitude to ftudy themfelves over again. People are ufually fpoiled, instead of being taught, at their coming into the world; whereas, by being more converfant with obfcurity, without any pains, they would naturally follow what they were meant for. In a word, if a man be a coxcomb, folitude is his beft fchool; and if he be a fool, it is his best fanctuary.

Thefe are good reafons for my own ftay here, but I wish I could give you any for your coming hither, except that I carnettly invite you. And yet I cannot help faying I have fuffered a great deal of difcontent that you do not come, though I fo little merit that you should.

I must complain of the fhortness of your lat. Those who have most wit,

like thofe who have mot money, are generally molt fparing of either.

LETTER VI.

Mr. Pope to Mr. Wycherley.

April 10, 1706.

BY one of yours of the last month, you

defire me to felect, if poffible, fome things from the firit volume of your Mifcellanies, which may be altered fo as to appear again. I doubted your meaning in this: whether it was to pick out the best of thofe verfes (as thofe on the Idlenefs of bufinefs, on Ignorance, on Laziness, &c.) to make the method and numbers exact, and avoid repetitions? For though (upon reading them on this occafion) I believe they might receive fuch an alteration with advantage; yet they would not be changed fo much, but any one would know them for the fame at first fight. Or if you mean to improve the worst pieces ? which are fuch as, to render them very good, would require great addition, and almoft the entire new writing of them. Or, lailly, if you mean the middle fort, as the Songs and Love-verses? For thefe will need only to be fhortened, to omit repetition; the words remaining very little different from what they were before. Pray let me know your mind in this, for I am utterly at a lofs. Yet I have tried what I could do to fome of the fongs, and the poems on Lazinefs and Ignorance, but cannot (even in my own partial judg ment) think my alterations much to the purpose.

So that I must needs defire you would apply your care wholly at prefent to thofe which are yet unpublithed, of which there are more than enough to make a confiderable volume, of fuil as good ones, nay, I believe, of better than any in Vol. I. which I could with you would defer, at leait till you have finifhed thefe that are yet unprinted.

:

I fend you a fample of fome few of thefe namely, the verses to Mr. Waller in his old age; your new ones on the Duke of Marlborough, and two others, I have done all that I thought could be of advantage to them: fome I have contracted, as we do fun-beams, to improve their energy and force: fome I have

* Printed in folio, in the year 1704.

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take