THE POEMS OF DAVID MALLET Esq. OF VERBAL CRITICISM. 10 | Pride of his own, and wonder of this age, MONG the numerous fools, by fate defign'd Oft to disturb, and oft divert, mankind, The Reading Coxcomb is of fspecial note, By rule a Poet, and a Judge by rote: Grave fon of idle Industry aud Pride, Whom learning but perverts, and books mifguide, O fam'd for judging, as for writing well, That rare ft fcience, where fo few excel; Whofe life, feverely feann'd, tranfcends thy lays, For wit fupreme is but thy fecond praife: 'Tis thine, O Pope, who chufe the better part, To tell how falfe, how vain, the Scholiaft's art, Which nor to tafte, nor genius has pretence, And, if 'tis learning, is not common fenfe. In error obftinate, in wrangling loud, For trifles eager, pofitive, and proud; Deep in the darkness of dull authors bred, With all their refufe lumber'd in his head, What every dunce from every dunghill drew Of literary offals, old or new, Forth fteps at laft the felf-applauding wight, Of points and letters, chaff and ftraws to write : Sagely refolv'd to fwell each bulky piece With venerable toys, from Rome and Greece; How oft, in Homer, Paris curl'd his hair; If Ariftotle's cap were round or fquare; If in the cave, where Dido firft was fpel, To Tyre fhe turn'd her heels, to Troy her head. Such the choice anecdotes, profound and vain, That ftore a Bently's and a Burman's brain: Hence, Plato quoted, or the Stagyrite, To prove that flame afcends, and fnow is white : Hence much hard ftudy, without fenfe or breeding, And all the grave impertinence of reading, If Shakespeare fays, the noon-day fun is bright, His Scholiaft will remark, it then was light; Turn Caxton, Winkin, each old Goth and Hun, To rectify the reading of a pun. Thus, nicely trifling, accurately dull, How one may toil, and toil-to be a fool! 20 25 30: 35 40 But is there then no honour due to age? No reverence to great Shakespear's noble page? And he, who half a life has read him o'er, His mangled points and commas to restore, Meets he fuch flight regard in nameless lays, 45 Whom Bufo treats, and Lady Would-be pays? VOL. VII. takes; The big ftage thunders, and the foul awakes: 56 Such was the Poet: next the Scholiaft view; none: His brother book-worm fo, in shelf or ftally 75 Bleft genius! who beflows his oil and pains On each dull paffage, each dull book contains; 8 The toil more grateful, as the task more low: So carrion is the quarry of a crow. Where his fam'd author's page is flat and poor, There, molt exact the reading to restore; By dint of plodding, and by fweat of face, A bull to change, a blunder to replace: Whate'er is refufe critically gleaning, And mending nonfenfe into doubtful meaning. For this dread Dennis (and who can forbear. Dunce or not Dunce, relating it, to ftare?) Ff 85 His head though jealous, and his years fourscore, Ev'n Dennis praifes, who ne'er prais'd before! For this, the Scholiaft claims his fhare of fame, And, modeft, prints his own with Shakespeare's name: How juftly, Pope, in this fhort ftory view; 95 Which may be dull, and therefore fhould be true. A Prelate, fam'd for clearing each dark text, Who fenfe with found, and truth with rhetoric mixt, Once, as his moving theme to rapture warm'd, Infpir'd himself, his happy hearers charm'd. 100 The fermon o'er, the croud remain'd behind, And freely, man or woman, fpoke their mind: All faid they lik'd the lecture from their foul, And cach, remembering fomething, prais'd the whole. 165 At laft an honeft fexton join'd the throng 115 120 Horace, whom all the Graces taught to pleafe, Mix'd mirth with morals, eloquence with eafe; His genius focial, as his judgement clear; When frolic, prudent; fmiling when fevere; Secure, each temper, and each tafte to hit, His was the curious happiness of wit. Skill'd in that nobleft Science, How to live; Which Learning may direct, but Heaven muft give; 125 130 Grave with Agrippa, with Mecenas gay; And, but by books, acquainted with mankind, Nor are their graves a refuge for the dead. 145 150 Great eldeft-born of Dullnefs, blind and bold! 160 Yet be his merits, with his faults confeft: Fair-dealing, as the plaineft, is the best. Long lay the Critic's work, with trifles ftord, Admir'd in Latin, but in Greek ador❜d. Men, fo well read, who confidently wrote, 165 Their readers could have fworn, were men of note : To pafs upon the croud for great or rare, But what can cure our vanity of mind, Deaf to reproof, and to discovery blind? Let Crooke, a Brother-Scholiaft Shakespeare call, Tibbald, to Hefiod-Cooke returns the ball. 176 So runs the circle still: in this, we fee The lackies of the Great and Learn'd agree. If Britain's nobles mix in high debate, Whence Europe, in fufpence, attends her fate; 180 In mimic feffion their grave footmen meet, Reduce an army, or equip a fleet: And, rivaling the critic's lofty ftile, Mere Tom and Dick are Stanhope and Argyll. Yet thofe, whom pride and dulnefs join to blind, To narrow cares and narrow space confin'd, 186 Though with big titles each his fellow greets, Are but to wits, as fcavengers to streets: The humble black-guards of a Pope or Gay, To brush off duft, and wipe their spots away. 190 Or, if not trivial, harmful is their art; Fume to the head, or poifon to the heart. Where ancient Authors hint at things obfcene, The Scholiaft fpeaks out broadly what they mean. Difclong each dark vice, well loft to fame, And adding fuel to redundant flame, He, fober pimp to lechery, explains, What Capra's Ifle, or V's Alcove contains: Why Paulus, for his fordid temper known, Was lavish, to his father's wife alone: Why thofe fond female vifits duly paid To tuneful Incuba; and what her trade: How modern love has made fo many martyrs, And which keeps ofteneft, Lady €, or Chartres. 195 200 But who their various follies can explain? 205 The tale is infinite, the taik were vain. 'Twere to read new-year odes in fearch of thought; To fum the libels Pryn or Withers wrote; To guess, ere one epiftle faw the light, How many dunces met, and club'd their mite; 210 To vouch for truth what Welfted prints of Pope, Or from the brother-boobies fteal a trope. 220 Too doubtful to direct, to poor to please. VERSES 226 PRESENTED TO THE PRINCE OF ORANGE, 1 ON HIS VISITING OXFORD, IN THE YEAR M,DCC,XXXIV. Ch, born to glad and animate our Isle! For thee, our heavens look pleas'd, our feafons fmile : For thee, late object of our tender fears, Sought thofe * fam'd fprings, where, each affiictive bour, Difeafe, and age, and pain, invoke her power: She came; and, while to thee the current flows, Pour'd all herself, and in thy cup arofe. Hence, to thy cheek, that inftant bloom deriv'd: Hence, with thy health, the weeping world reviv'd! Proceed to emulate thy race divine: Think what the world may claim, and thou muit do: The honours, that already grace thy name, RECEIVE, lov'd prince, the tribute of our Infpires thee what to feek and what to fhun: praife, This hafty welcome, in unfinish'd lays. At beft, the pomp of fong, the paint of art, Such Naffau is, the faireft, gentleft mind, Our nobler youth will learn of thee to please: Nor deem this verfe from venal art proceeds, From laurel'd heroes, and from warrior-kings, Terough that high feries, we, delighted, trace The friends of liberty, and human race! Rich in all outward grace, th' exalted fair VERSE S OCCASIONED BY DR. FRASER'S REBUILDING PART OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN. IN times long paft, ere Wealth was Learning's And dar'd defpife the worth he would not know; Now, dire reverfe! impair'd by lapse of years, A falling wafte the Mufes' feat appears. *Bath. O'er her grey roofs, with baneful ivy bound, Beheld the Mufes ftretch the wing to fly; came Mild Charity, ev'n there the foremost name. Swift Pity flew before her, foftly bright; At whofe felt influence, Nature fmil'd with light. "Hear, and rejoice!—the gracious Power "begun "Already, fir'd by me thy favourite fon, "This ruin'd feene remarks with filial eyes; "And, from its fall, bids fairer fabrics rife. "Ev'n now, behold! where crumbling frag❝ments grey, "In duft deep-bury'd, loft te memory lay, "The column fwells, the well-knit arches bend, "The round dome widens, and the roofs afcend! "Nor ends the bounty thus: by him bettow'd, "Here, Science fhall her richeft ftores unload. "To wits unborn the wanted fuccours give, "And fire the Bard, whom Genius means to << live. "But, teach thy fons the gentle laws of peace; "Let low Self-love and pedant-Difcord ceafe: "Their object Truth, Utility their aim, One focjal fpirit reign, in all the fame. "Thus aided arts fhall with fresh vigour hoot; "Thei ltur'd bloffoms ripen into fruit; "Thy faded ftar difpenfe a brighter ray, "And each glad Mufe renew her nobleft lay," PROLOGUE TO THE SEIGE OF DAMASCUS SPOKEN BY LORD SANDWICH. Or to the laurel'd grove, at times, retire, There, woo the Mufe, and wake the moving lyre. As fair examples, like afcending morn, Rough nature foften'd into grace and eafe; And now, while Spring extends her fmiling reign, Green on the mountain, flowery in the plain; T EPILOGUE TO THE BROTHERS, A TRAGEDY, BY DR. YOUNG. Our Bard, without-I wish he would appear- Good Sir! quoth I-and curtfey'd'as I fpokeOur pit, you know, expects and loves a joke'Twere fit to humour them: for, right or wrong, True Britons never like the fame thing long. To-day is fair-they ftrut, huff, fwear, harangue; To-morrow's foul--they fneak afide, and hang. Isere a war-peace! peace! is all their cry: WHEN arts and arms, beneath Eliza's fimile, The peace is made then, blood! they'll fight Spread wide their influence o'er this happy ifle; and die. Gallants, in talking thus, I meant no treason; I would have brought, you fee, the man to reafon. But with fome folks, 'tis labour loft to ftrive: Cry'd, I muft preach to you his moral scheme. 1 ON A LADY, WHO HAD PASSED SOME TIME IN PLAYING WITH A VERY YOUNG CHILD. THY, on this leaft of little Miffes, WHY Did Celia wafte fo many kiffes? Quoth Love, who stood behind and fmil'd, She kifs'd the father in the child. PROLOGUE EPIGRAM, ON SEEING TWO PERSONS PASS BY IN то MR. THOMSON's AGAMEMNON. WHEN WHEN this decifive night, at length, ap- The night of every author's hopes and fears, Nor poorly fearful, nor fecurely vain, Ours would, by honeft ways, that grace obtain ; Would, as a free-born wit, be fairly try'd: And then let candor, fairly too, decide. He courts no friend, who blindly comes to praise; He dreads no foe-but whom his faults may raife. By fcenes, fo wrought, as may applaufe com mand Important is the moral we would teachOh may this inland practife what we preachVice in its firft approach with care to fhun; The wretch, who once engages, is undone. A SIMILE IN PRIOR, APPLIED TO THE SAME PERSON. EAR Thomas, didft thou never pop Crimes lead to greater crimes, and link fo ftraight, Dy head into a tin-man's fhop! What first was accident, at laft is fate : "Our judges, here at leaf-from influence free: "One place, unbias'd yet by party-rage, "Where only honour votes-the British ftage. "We ask for juftice, for indulgence fue : "Our laft beit licence muft proceed from you." There, Thomas, didft thou never fee'Tis but by way of fimile A fquirrel fpend its little rage, In jumping round a rolling cage? |