Nor fuffers Horace more in wrong Translations 665 670 Thee, bold Longinus! all the Nine infpire, 675 And bless their Critic with a Poet's fire. An ardent Judge, who zealous in his truft, Thus long fucceeding Critics juftly reign'd, 680 Licenfe reprefs'd, and useful laws ordain'd. VER. 665. See Dionyfius] Of Halicarnaffus. VARIATION S. Between ver. 690 and 691. the Author omitted these two: When none but Saints had licenfe to be proud. A fecond deluge Learning thus o'er-run, At length Erafmus, that great injur’d name, 695 But fee! each Mufe, in LEO's golden days, Stones leap'd to form, and rocks began to live; 705 But foon by impious arms from Latium chas'd, Their ancient bounds the banish'd Mufes pafs'd; 710 Thence Arts o'er all the northern world advance, But Critic-learning flourish'd most in France: The rules a nation, born to ferve, obeys; But we, brave Britons, foreign laws defpis'd, 715 And kept unconquer'd, and unciviliz'd; Fierce for the liberties of wit, and bold, We ftill defy'd the Romans, as of old. Yet fome there were, among the founder few 720 Who durft affert the jufter ancient cause, Such was the Mufe, whofe rules and practice tell, "Nature's chief Mafter-piece is writing well." VER. 723. Such was the Muse]—Essay on Poetry by the Duke of Buckingham. Our Poet is not the only one of his time whe Such was Rofcommon, not more learn'd than good, With manners gen'rous as his noble blood; 726 To him the wit of Greece and Rome was known, 730 This praise at leaft a grateful Mufe may give : Not free from faults, nor yet too vain to mend. 740 complimented this Effay, and its noble Author. Mr. Dryden had done it very largely in the Dedication to his Tranflation of the Eneid; and Dr. Garth, in the first edition of his Difpenfary, fays, The Tyber now no courtly Gallus fees, But smiling Thames enjoys his Normanbys. Tho' afterwards omitted, when parties were carried fo high in the reign of Queen Anne, as to allow no commendation to an oppofite in Politics. The Duke was all his life a fteady adherent to the Church of England Party, yet an enemy to the extravagant meafures of the Court in the reign of Charles II. On which account, after having ftrongly patronized Mr. Dryden, a coolness fucceeded between them on that poet's abfolute attachment to the Court, which carried him some lengths beyond what the Duke could approve of. This Nobleman's true character had been very well marked by Mr. Dryden before, The Mufe's friend, Himself a Mufe. In Sanadrin's debate True to his Prince, but not a flaye of ftate. Abf. and Achit. Our Author was more happy, he was honour'd very young with his friendship, and it continued till his death in all the circumRances uf familiar esteem, |