❝ciad than thofe of Mr. Theobald; for he had neither "genius for tragedy nor comedy." Which, whether true or not, it is not eafy to judge, in as much as he had attempted neither; unlefs we will take it for granted, with Mr. Cibber, that his being once very angry at hearing a friend's play abufed, was an infallible proof the play was his own; the faid Mr. Cibber thinking it impoffible for a man to be much concerned for any but himself; Now let any man judge (faith "he) by this concern, who was the true mother of the "❝ child ?"* But from all that hath been said, the difcerning reader will collect, that it little availed our Author to have any candour, fince, when he declared he did not write for others, it was not credited; as little to have any modefty, fince, when he declined writing in any way himself, the presumption of others was imputed to him. If he fingly enterprized one great work, he was taxed of boldness and madness to a prodigy :t if he took affiftants in another, it was complained of, and reprefented as a great injury to the Public. The loftieft heroics, the loweft ballads, treatifes against the state or church, fatires on lords and ladies, raillery on wits and authors, fquabbles with bookfellers, or even full and true accounts of monsters, poisons, and murders; of any hereof was there nothing fo good, nothing fo bad, which had not, at one or other feason, been to him afcribed. If it bore no author's name, then lay he concealed; if it did, he fathered it upon that author to be yet better concealed; if it refembled any of his styles, then was it evident; if it did not, then difguifed he it on fet purpofe. Yea, even direct oppofitions in religion, principles, and politics, have equally been fuppofed in him inherent. Surely a moft rare and fingular character! of which let the reader make what he can. Cibber's Letter to Mr. Pope, P: 19. Doubtless Burnet's Homerides, p. 1. of his tranflation of the Iliad. Doubtless moft commentators would hence take occafion to turn all to their author's advantage, and, from the teftimony of his very enemies, would affirm, that his capacity was boundless as well as his imagination; that he was a perfect master of all styles, and all arguments; and that there was in those times no other writer, in any kind, of any degree of excellence, fave he himself. But as this is not our own fentiment, we fhall determine on nothing; but leave thee, gentle Reader, to steer thy judgment equally between various opinions, and to choofe whether thou wilt incline to the teftimonies of authors avowed, or of authors concealed; of those who knew him, or of those who knew him not. P. MARTINUS SCRIBLERUS OF THE POEM. THIS Poem, as it celebrateth the most grave and ancient of things, Chaos, Night and Dulness, fo is it of the moft grave and ancient kind. Homer (faith Ariftotle) was the firft who gave the form, and (faith Horace) who adapted the measure, to heroic poesy. But even before this, may be rationally prefumed, from what the Ancients have left written, was a piece by Homer, compofed of like nature and matter with this of our Poet; for of epic fort it appeareth to have been, yet of matter furely not unpleasant, witness what is reported of it by the learned Archbishop Euftathius, in Odyffey X. And accordingly Ariftotle, in his Poetic, chap. iv. doth further fet forth, that as the Iliad and Odyssey gave an example to Tragedy, fo did this poem to Comedy its firit idea. From these authors also it should seem that the Hero, or chief perfonage of it, was no less obfcure, and his understanding and fentiments no lefs quaint and strange (if indeed not more so) than any of the actors of our Poem. Margites was the name of this perfonage, whom Antiquity recordeth to have been Dunce the first; and furely, from what we hear of him, not unworthy to be the root of so spreading a tree, and fo numerous a pofterity. posterity. The poem, therefore, celebrating him, was properly and abfolutely a Dunciad; which though now unhappily loft, yet is its nature fufficiently known by the infallible tokens aforefaid. And thus it doth appear that the first Dunciad was the firft epic poem, written by Homer himself, and anterior even to the Iliad or Odyfley. Now forafmuch as our Poet hath translated those two famous works of Homer which are yet left, he did conceive it in fome fort his duty to imitate that allo which was loft; and was therefore induced to bestow on it the fame form which Homer's is reported to have had, namely, that of epic poem, with a title alfo framed after the ancient Greek manner, to wit, that of Dunciad. Wonderful it is that fo few of the Moderns have been ftimulated to attempt fome Dunciad! fince, in the opinion of the multitude, it might coft less pain and toil than an imitation of the Greater Epic. But poffible it is alfo, that, on due reflection, the maker might find it easier to paint a Charlemagne, a Brute, ora Godfrey, with just pomp and dignity heroic, thana Margites, a Codrus, or a Fleckno. We fhall next declare the occafion and the cause which moved our Poet to this particular work. He lived in thofe days when (after Providence had permitted the invention of Printing as a fcourge for the fins of the learned) paper also became fo cheap, and printers fo numerous, that a deluge of authors covered the land; whereby not only the peace of the honest unwriting fubject was daily molefted, but unmerciful demands were made of his applaufe, yea of his money, by fuch as would neither eain the one nor deserve the other. At the fame time the licence of the Prefs was such, that it grew dangerous to refuse them either; for they would forthwith publifh flanders unpunished, the authors being anonymous, and fkulking under the wings of publishers, a fet of men who never fcrupled to vend either calumny or blafphemy, as long as the Town would call for it. Now Now our Author, living in thofe times, did conceive it an endeavour well worthy an honest satirift, to diffuade the dull, and punish the wicked, the only way there was left. In that public fpirited view he laid the plan of this Poem, as the greatest service he was capable (without much hurt, or being flain) to render his dear country. Firft, taking things from their original, he confidereth the causes creative of fuch authors, namely, dulnefs and poverty; the one born with them, the other contracted by neglect of their proper talents, through felf-conceit of greater abilities. This truth he wrappeth in an allegory † (as the construction of epic poefy requireth) and feigns that one of thefe goddeffes had taken up her abode with the other, and that they jointly infpired all fuch writers and fuch works.‡ He proceedeth to thew the qualities they beftow on thefe authors, and the effects they produce:|| then the materials, or ftock, with which they furnish them ;** and (above all) that felf-opinion t† which caufeth it to feem to them!elves vaftly greater than it is, and is the prime motive of their fetting up in this fad and forry merchandise. The great power of these goddeffes act-ing in alliance (whereof as the one is the mother of induftry, fo is the other of plodding) was to be exemplified in fome one great and remarkable action :‡‡ and none could be more fo than that which our Poet hath chofen, viz. the restoration of the reign of Chaos and Night, by the miniftry of Dulness their daughter, in the removal of her imperial feat from the City to the polite World; as the action of the Æneid is the reftoration of the empire of Troy, by the removal of the race from thence to Latium. But as Homer finging only the wrath of Achilles, yet includes in his poem the whole hiftory of the Trojan war; in like manner our Author hath drawn into this fingle action the whole history of Dulness and her children. Vide Boffu, Du Poeme Epique, chap. viii. Boffu, chap. vii A perfon Book I. ver. 32. &c. ** Ver. 57, to 77.. tt Ver. 80. Boffu, chap. vii, viii. A perfon must next be fixed upon to fupport this action. This phantom, in the poet's mind, must have ; and he becomes of * a name. He finds it to be courfe the Hero of the Poem. The fable being thus, according to the beft example, one and entire, as contained in the propofition, the machinery is a continued chain of allegories, fetting forth the whole power, miniftry, and empire of Dul. nefs, extended through her fubordinate inftruments, in all her various operations. This is branched into episodes, each of which hath its moral apart, though all conducive to the main end. The crowd assembled in the Second Book demonstrates the design to be more extenfive than to bad poets only, and that we may expect other epifodes of the patrons, encouragers, or paymasters, of fuch authors, as occafion fhall bring them forth. And the Third Book, if well confidered, feemeth to embrace the whole world. Each of the Games relateth to fome or other vile clafs of writers. The first concerneth the plagiary, to whom he giveth the name of Moore; the fecond the libellous Novelift, whom he ftyleth Eliza; the third, the flattering Dedicator; the fourth, the bawling Critic, or noify Poet; the fifth, the dark and dirty Party-writer; and fo of the reft; affigning to each fome proper name or other, fuch as he could find. As for the Characters, the Public hath already acknowledged how justly they are drawn. The Manners are fo depicted, and the Sentiments fo peculiar to those to whom applied, that furely to transfer them to any other or wifer perfonages would be exceeding difficult: and certain it is, that every perfon concerned, being confulted apart, hath readily owned the refemblance of every portrait, his own excepted. So Mr. Cibber calls them "a parcel of poor wretches, fo many filly "flies;" but adds, "our Author's wit is remarka"bly more bare and barren whenever it would fall "foul on Cibber than upon any other perfon whatever." The Boffu, chap. viii. Vide Ariftot. Poetic. cap. ix, |