The Religion of their Age and Countries, but did ev'n in that better, than the Philofophers, who by the Fineness of their Reafoning, pretending to thake off Superftition, introduced Atheism. But Plato himfelf gives the highest Praife to Poetry, in his Dialogue of Ion: He himself tells us, that it is an actual Infpiration of Divine Force and Energy, beyond, and above the Wit of Mah. But if Patrons, and Examples of the Disciples of the Mufes would, as certainly they ought, avail us, we have the greatest that ever were in the World: Alexander's, Cafar's, Scipio's: Lelius, call'd the Roman Socrates, was himself a Poet, and affifted Terence in his Plays, as Socrates had done before Euripides. Socrates, ftir'd by the Oracles, the wifeft of Men, put fop's Fables into Veife. Foetry that anciently had Kings, Emperors, Senators, great Captains, fuch as David, Adrian, Germanicus, and a Thousand more, not only to favour it, but to be Poets; and in Times nearer to tis, can present us for her Patrons, Richard I. of England, Robert King of Sicily, and Francis King of France, fuch Cardinals as Bembo and Bibiena, fuch famous Preachers and Teachers, as Beza, Melanthon, and the like; is now not only left without Patrons, but fuch Mafters in the Art, as deferve fuch illuftrious Patrons. That which Martial said, has fome Weight in it, I am apt to believe; for if we had but Mecenas's, I do not doubt but we thould have Virgils arife; fince without any Encouragement, we had a Spencer and a Milton. The Reafon we have not Patrons, is because we have not had any Alexanders, any Scipio's, any Cafars, any Adrians: For tho' we have had many great Captains and Conquerors; yet they have been famous only for vanquishing their Enemies, and not themfelves; and to be a Patron, there must be a Largenefs of Soul not very common in the Heroes of our modern Times. The The true Value of Poefy is indeed generally fo lit tle known, that we fearce ever make a true Judgment of it; for 'tis the Talent of thofe only who are above the common Level, to value it according to its Merit; nor can any one confider, in what Manner the great Men of Antiquity have been affected with it, without conceiving a noble Idea of it. In short, Poetry is the most perfect of all Arts; for the Perfection of other Arts is bounded, this of Poetry has no Limits, and to be excellent in it, a Man must know, almost all things in Nature. He must have a Genius exrtaordinary, great natural Gifts, a Wit juft, fruitful, penetrating, folid, univerfal, an Underftanding clean and diftinct, an Imagination neat and pleafant, and an Elevation of Soul that depends not on Art and Study, and which is purely a Gift of Heaven, and must be fuftain'd by a lively Senfe and Vivacity, a great Judgment to confider wifely of things, and a Livelinefs to exprefs them with that Grace and Abundance which gives them Beauty. But as Judgment withour Wit, is cold and heavy, fo Wit without Judgment, is blind and extravagant; or, as the prefent Duke of Buckingham has it in his Effay on Poetry. As all is Dullness when the Fancy's bad, Reafon is that fubftantial, useful Part, Which gains the Head, while t'other wins the Heart. Thus, I hope, Madam, I have made it out, that neither my Understanding, Senfe, or Religion, are in Danger, by my Favour to the Mufes; fince the End of Poetry is the Praife of God and Virtue, which it teaches in the most pleasing and engaging Manner, of any Science whatfoever; and fince it has been protected and promoted by the wifeft States, and Statesmen, and the greatest Princes and Commanders. When Laudon had thus made an End: This is fuch á Face of Poetry (faid Eufebia) as I never faw before, an Idea of which no Body cou'd ever form from what we daily receive in this Kind from our most taking Wits, who only afford us at moft a fine Simile or two in a Poem, a Smoothness of Verfe, and fometimes a Correctness of Language, which feems the highest of their Ambition, and the Perfection by which they measure the Excellence, of any Performance. How came this noble Art fo to degenerate, to be fo vaftly alter'd, from what it was in its Original Appearance in the World? Efpecially when thofe great Men, who first brought it into Efteem, have left fuch glorious Examples behind them for their Succeffors to follow, at leaft fo far as not to lofe Sight of the Perfections neceffary to a Poet? 2 Alas (faid I) the Caufe has been, in fome meafure already obferv'd, but fince a farther Difquifition of it may compleat the Hiftory of this Art down to our Times, with the Permiflion of the Company, I will endeavour to give the best Account I can of it, from the moft judicious, who have touch'd upon this Subject. I believe that Laudon has agreeably to Truth and Juftice already fix'd the Origin of Poetry to be of a much more ancient Date, than that of any other Art or Learning; to which I may add, that Poetry, in many, if not moft Nations, preceeded the Knowledge and Ufe of Letters: At least it is certain, that on the Arrival of the Spaniards in America, they met with, and tranflated many Pieces of Poetry made by the Natives before they had any Letters among them. We may may reafonably believe the fame of the Scythians, Grecians, and Germans; to the laft of which Tacitus allows no other Annals, and Records of Things, but what were in Verfe. But tho' we cannot come at the Time when Poetry began even in Greece; yet Pliny fpeaks it as a thing known in his Time, that Pherecides was the firft who writ in Profe in the Greek Tongue, and he liv'd about the Time of Cyrus, where as Homer, and Hefiod liv'd fome Hundreds of Years before that Age, and Orpheus, Linus, Mufeus, fome Hundreds of Years before them. Solon and Pythagoras, we are affur'd, writ all in Verfe, and they were fomething elder than Cyrus; and before them were Archilochus, Simonides, Tyrtaus, Sappho, Steficorus, and feveral other Poets famous in their Times. The fame is reported of the Chaldeans, Syrians, and Chinefe. And, to come nearer our felves, among the Western Gothis (our Ancestors) the Runnic Poetry feems to have been as old as their Letters; and that their Laws, Moral Precepts, Records, Religious Rites, Charms and Incantations were all in Verfe. The Book of Job, whether a Tranflation out of the Chaldean Tongue or not, the learned have allow'd to be the most ancient Writing among the Hebrews; and I think it is not controverted, but that it was written Originally in Verfe, and was a Poem upon the Subject of the Juftice and Power of God, in Vindication of his Providence against the common Arguments of Atheistical Men. The Spanish Tranflation of it by the Jews of Ferrara, which pretends to render the Hebrew (as Sir William Temple tells us) Word for Word, gives us the two firft Chapters, and the laft from the Seventh Verfe, in Profe, as an Historical Introduction, and Conclufion of the Work, and all the reft in Verfe, except the Tranflations from one Part or Perfon of this Sacred Dialogue to another. The Book of Genefis has been lately difcover'd by a learned Frenchman to be written in Verfe, which with the Song of Mofes, after paffing the Red-Sea, must be of the next Antiquity to Job. I cann't here omit Sir William Temple's Reflection on the Precedence of Poetry to Profe, in the Ufage of Mankind. It may feem ftrange, I confefs (fays he) upon the first Thought, that a fort of Stile fo regular, and fo difficult, fhou'd have grown in Ufe, before the other fo eafie and fo loofe. But if we confider what the first End of Writing was, it will appear probable from Reafon, as well as Experience; for the true and general End was but the help of Memory, in preferving that of Words and Actions, which wou'd otherwife have been loft, and foon vanish away with the tranfitory Paffages of Human Breath and Life. Before the Difcourfes and Difputes of the Philofophers began to bufie or amufe the Grecian Wits, there was nothing written in Profe, but either Laws, fome fhort Sayings of wife Men, or fome Riddles, Parables, or Fables, wherein were couch'd, by the Ancients, many Strains of natural and moral Wifdom and Knowledge; and befides thefe, fome Thort Memorials of Perfons, Actions, and of Times. Now is obvious enough to conceive, how much eafier all fuch Writings fhou'd be learn'd, and remember'd in Verfe, than in Profe, not only by the Pleafure of Measures, and of Senfes, which gives a great Impreflion to the Memory; but by the Order of Feet, which makes a great Facility of tracing one Word after another, by knowing what fort of Foot or Quantity, nuft neceffarily have preceeded or follow'd the Words we retain and defire to make up. This made Poetry (continues Sir William) fo neceffary before Letters were invented, and fo convenient afterwards; and fhews that the great Homour, and great Request wherein it has always been, has |