teemed an original and model of perfection in that way of writing. Both in that excellent poem, and the noble hymn upon Caftor and Pollux, he has praifed his gods and his hero with that delicacy and dexterity of addrefs, with thefe fublime and graceful expreffions of devotion and refpect, that in politenefs, fmoothness of turn, and a refined art of praifing without of fence, or appearance of flattery, he has equalled Callimachus: and in loftinefs and flight of thought, fcarce yields to Pindar or Homer.

Blackwall.

§ 144, On HERODOTUS. Herodotus had gained experience by travelling over all his own country, Thrace and Scythia; he travelled likewife to Arabia, Palestine, and Egypt; where he carefully viewed the chief curiofities and moft remarkable places, and converfed with the Egyptian priefts, who informed him of their ancient hiftory, and acquainted him with their customs, facred and civil. Indeed he fpeaks of their religious rites with fuch plainnefs and clearneis in fome cafes, and fuch referve and reverence in others, that I am apt to believe he was initiated into their ceremonies, and confecrated a priest

of fome of their orders.

Thus, being acquainted with the most famous countries, and valuable things, and knowing the most confiderable perfons of the age, he applied himfelf to write the history of the Greeks and Barbarians: and performed the noble work with that judgment, faithfulness, and eloquence, that gained him the approbation and applaufe of the mot auguft affembly in the world at that time, the flower of all Greece, met together at the Olympic games.

His hiftory opens to the reader all the antiquities of Greece, and gives light to all her authors. Ibid.

§ 145. On LIVY.

We do not find that Livy had travelled much, or been employed in military affairs; yet what he might want in experience, was happily fupplied by wonderful parts and eloquence, by fevere ftudy, and unwearied endeavours after knowledge and

information; fo that he defcribes all the countries, towns, feas, and ports, whither the Roman legions and navies came, with near the fame accuracy and perfection (if

See Herodot. Gale's Edition, lib. ii. fect. 3. p. 91. fect. 65. p. 114. fect. 171. p. 156.

poffible) which he could any place in Italy; lays a fiege, draws up an army, with skill and conduct fearce inferior to Cæfar himfelf. Was there as much charm in the con verfation of this extraordinary man, as there is in his writings, the gentleman of Cales would not repent of his long journey, who came from thence only to fee Livy, upon the fame of his incomparable eloquence, and other celebrated abilities; and we have reafon to believe he received fatisfaction, becaufe, after he had feen Livy, and con verfed with him, he had no curiofity to fee Rome, to which he was fo near; and which at that time was, for its magnificence and glories, one of the greatest wonders of the whole earth.

Thefe two princes of Greek and Roman hiftory tell a flory, and make up a defcrip tion, with inexpreffible grace; and fo delicately mix the great and little circumflances, that there is both the utmost dig. nity and pleasure in it.

Ibid.

§ 146. Much of their Beauty arifes fres Variety.

The reader is always entertained with an agreeable variety, both of matter and ftyle, in Herodotus and Livy. And indeed every author that expects to pleafe, mut gratify the reader with variety: that is the univerfal charm, which takes with people of all tatles and complexions. "Tis an appetite planted in us by the Author of our being; and is natural to an human foul, whofe immenfe defires nothing but an infinite good, and unexhausted pleasure, can fully gratify. The moft palatable difh becomes naufeous, if it be always fet before a man: the most mufical and harmonious notes, too often and unfeasonably ftruck, grate the ear like the jarring of the mot harth and hateful difcord.

Thefe authors, and the reft of their fpirit and elevation, were fenfible of this; and therefore you find a continual change, and judicious variation, in their style and

numbers.

One paffage appears to be learned, and carefully laboured; an unstudied eafineis, and becoming negligence, runs through the next. One fentence turns quick and short; and another, immediately following, runs into longer measures, and fpreads itfelf with a fort of elegant and beautiful luxuriancy. They feldom ufe many periods together, confisting of the fame number of members; nor are the members of their pe

riods of equal length, and exact measure, one with another.

The reflections that are made by these noble writers, upon the conduct and humours of mankind, the interests of courts, and the intrigues of parties, are fo curious and in tructive, fo true in their fubftance, and i taking and lively in the manner of eir expreffion, tn it they fatisfy the foundetjugement, and please the moft fprightly magination. From thefe glorious authors we have inftruction without the common formali y and drynefs of precept; and recive the moit edifying advice in the pcaling way of infinuation and furprize.

Blackwall.

$148. On CICERO.

Clafics.

Another excellency of the true claffics is, peripicuity, and clear tyle; which will excufe and cover f veral faults in an author; but the want of it is never to be atoned by ay pretence of loftinefs, caution, or any aflera.ion whatever.

And this is the effect of a clear head, ard vigorous understanding of clofe and regu ar thinking, and the diligence of felect eading. A man thould write with the fine deliga as he speaks, to be understood theafe, and to communicate his mind with pleafure and inftruction. If we felect Xenophon out of the other Greek claffics, whether he writes of the management of family affairs, or the more arduous matters of state and policy; whether he gives an Eccount of the wars of the Grecians, or he morals of Socrates; the ftyle, though fo far varied as to be fuitable to every fubjed, yet is always clear and fignificant, fweet without lusciousness, and elegantly aly.

In this genteel author we have all the politeneis of a ftudied compofition; and yet all the freedom and winning familiarity of elegant converfation.

Here I cannot but particularly mention Xenophon's Sympofium, wherein he has given us an eafy and beautiful defcription o'a very lively and beautiful converfation, The pleafant and ferious are there fo happily mixed and tempered, that the difcourfe is neither too light for the grave, nor too folemn for the gay. There is mirth with dignity and decorum; and philofophy at tended and enlivened by all the graces. Ibid.

He is always copious, but never runs into a faulty luxuriance, nor tires his reader: and though he fays almoft every thing that can be faid upon his fubject, yet you will fcarce ever think he fays too much. Ibid.

§ 149. On the Obfcurities in the Claffics.

Thofe few obfcurities which are in the beft authors, do not proceed from haste and confufion of thought, or ambiguous expreffions, from a long crowd of parenthefes, or perplexed periods; but either the places continue the fame as they were in the original, and are not intelligible to us only by reafon of our ignorance of fome cuftoms of thofe times and countries; or the paffages are altered and spoiled by the prefumption and bufy impertinence of foolish tranfcribers and conceited critics. Which plainly appears from this, that fince we have had more accurate accounts of the Greek and Roman antiquities, and old manufcripts have been fearched and compared by able and diligent hands, innumerable errors have been rectified, and corruptions which have crept into the text, purged out: a various reading happily dif covered, the removal of a verfe, or a point of diftin&tion out of the wrong into the right place, or the adding a fmall mark where it was left out, has given clear light to many paffages, which for ages had lain overfpread with an error, that had obfcured the fenfe of the author, and quite confounded all the commentators. The latter part of the thirty-fecond verfe of the hymn of Callimachus on Apollo was in the first editions thus, Taga Dorbor άído; "who can fing of Phoebus in the mountains?" which was neither fenfe of itself, nor had any connection with what went before. But Stephens's amendment

of

king of Macedon. The fmoothness of his compofition, his excellency in dramatic poetry, the foundnefs of his morals, conveyed in the fweetest numbers, were fo univerfally admired, and his glory fo far spread, that the Athenians, who were taken prifoners in the fatal overthrow under Nicias, were preferved from perpetual exile and ruin, by the astonishing refpe&t that the Sicilians, enemies and ftrangers, paid to the wit and fame of their illustrious countryman. As many as could repeat any of Euripides's verfes, were rewarded with their liberty, and generously fent home with marks of honour.

Plato, by his father's fide, fprung from Codrus, the celebrated king of Athens; and by his mother's from Solon, their no leis celebrated law-giver. To gain experience, and enlarge his knowledge, he travelled into Italy, Sicily, and Egypt. He wis courted and honoured by the greatest men of the age wherein he lived; and will be ftudied and admired by men of taste and judgment in all fucceeding ages. In his works, are inestimable treafures of the best learning. In short, as a learned gentleman fays, he writ with all the ftrength of human reafon, and all the charm of human eloquence.

Anacreon lived familiarly with Polycrates king of Samos: and his fprightly mufe, naturally flowing with innumerable pleafares and graces, muft improve in delicacy and fweetnefs by the gaiety and refined converfation of that flourishing court.

The bold and exalted genius of Pindar was encouraged and heightened by the honours he received from the champions and princes of his age; and his converfation with the heroes qualified him to fing their praifes with more advantage. The conquerors at the Olympic games fcarce valeed their garlands of honour, and wreaths of victory, if they were not crowned with his never-fading laurels, and immortalized by his celeftial fong. The noble Hiero of Syracufe was his generous friend and patron; and the most powerful and polite State of all Greece efteemed a line of his in praife of their glorious city, worth public acknowledgments, and a flatue. Most of the genuine and valuable Latin Clafics had the fame advantages of fortune, and improving converfation, the fame encouragements with thefe and the other celebrated Grecians.

Terence gained fuch a wonderful infight into the characters and manners of man

kind, fuch an elegant choice of words, and fluency of ftyle, fuch judgment in the conduct of his plot, and tuch delicate and charming turns, chiefly by the conversation of Scipio and Lælius, the greatest men, and moft refined wits, of their age. So much did this judicious writer, and clean fcholar, improve by his diligent applica-tion to ftudy, and their genteel and learned converfation; that it was charged upon him by those who envied his fuperior excellencies, that he published their compofitions under his own name. His enemies had a mind that the world fhould believe thofe noblemen wrote his plays, but fearce believed it themselves; and the poet very prudently and genteely flighted their ma lice, and made his great patrons the finest compliment in the world, by efteeming the accufation as an honour, rather than making any formal defence against it.

Salluft, fo famous for his neat expreffive brevity and quick turns, for truth of fact and clearness of ftyle, for the accuracy of his characters, and his piercing view into the mysteries of policy and motives of action, cultivated his rich abitities, and made his acquired learning fo ufeful to the world, and fo honourable to himself, by bearing the chief offices in the Roman government, and having in the important councils and debates of the fenate.

Cæfar had a prodigious wit, and univerfal learning; was noble by birth, a confummate flatefman, a brave and wife general, and a most heroic prince. His prudence and modefty in fpeaking of himself, the truth and clearnefs of his defcriptions, the inimitable purity and perfpicuity of his ftyle, distinguish him with advantage from all other writers. None bears a nearer re. femblance to him in more inftances than the admirable Xenophon. What useful and entertaining accounts might reasonably be expected from fuch a writer, who gives you the geography and hiftory of those coun tries and nations, which he himself conquer ed, and the defcription of thofe military en gines, bridges, and encampments, which he himfelf contrived and marked out!

The best authors in the reign of Auguftus, as Horace, Virgil, Tibullus, Propertius, &c. enjoyed happy times, and plentiful circumstances. That was the golden age of learning. They flourished under the favours and bounty of the richest and moft generous court in the world; and the

* See Prologue to Adelphi, v. 15—22.

beam.