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actly the fame with that in his own; in which no one will pretend, that there is the leaft appearance of that rhapfodical, detached form, which made the character of the old fatire. But, principally, becaufe, on any other fuppofition, it does not appear, what could give Lucilius a claim to that high appellation of INVENTOR of this poem. That he was the first, who copied the manner of the old comedy in fatire, could newer be fufficient for this purpofe. For all, that he derived into it from thence, was, as Quinctilian fpeaks, libertas atque inde acerbitas et abunde falis. It fharpened his invective, and polished his wit, that is, it improved the air, but did not alter the form of the fatire. As little can a right to this title be pleaded from the uniformity of measure, which he introduced into it. For this, without an unity of defign, is fo far from being an alteration for the better, that it even heightens the abfurdity; it being furely more reafonable to adapt different meafures to different fubjects, than to treat a number of inconnected and quite different fubjects in the fame measure. When therefore Horace tells us, that Lucilius was the Inventor of the fatire, it muft needs be understood, that he was the FIRST, who, from its former confufed ftate, reduced it into a regular confiftent poem, refpecting one main end, as well as obferving one measure. Little now A 4 remained

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remained for HORACE but to polish and refine, His only material alteration was, that he appropriated to the fatire ONE, that is the heroic

inetre.

From this fhort hiftory of the fatire we collect, 1. that its defign was one: And, 2. we learn, what was the general form of its compofition. For, arifing out of a loose, disjointed, mifcellany, its method, when moft regular, would be free and unconftrained; nature demanding fome chain of connexion, and a refpect to its origin requiring that connexion to be flight and fomewhat concealed. But its aim, as well as origin, exacted this careless method. For being, as Diomedes obferves, archæa comoedia charactere compofitum, "profeffedly written after "the manner of the old comedy," it was of courfe to admit the familiarity of the comic mufe; whofe genius is averfe from all constraint of order, fave that only which a natural, fucceffive train of thinking unavoidably draws along with it. And this, by the way, accounts for the dialogue air, fo frequent in the Roman fatire, as likewife for the loofer numbers which appeared fo effential to the grace of it. It was in learned allufion to this comic genius of the fatire, that Mr. Pope hath juftly characterized it in the following manner:

"Horace

"Horace ftill charms with graceful negligence, "And, without method, TALKS us into sense." 2. It being now feen, what was the real form of the fatire, nothing, it is plain, was wanting, but the application of a particular address, to conftitute the didactic epiftle: the structure of this poem, as prescribed by the laws of nature and good sense, being in nothing different from that of the other. For here, 1. an unity of fubject or defign is indifpenfably neceffary, the freedom of a mifcellaneous matter being permitted only to the familiar letter. And, 2. not profeffing formally to inftruct (which alone juftifies the severity of strict method) but, when of the gravest kind, in the way of addrefs only to infinuate instruction, it naturally takes an air of negligence and inconnexion, fuch as we have before seen effential to the fatire. All which is greatly confirmed by the teftimony of one, who could not be uninformed in these matters. addreffing his friend on the object of his studies, he fays, i

five

In

Liventem fatiram nigra rubigine turpes, Seu tua NON ALIA splendescat epistola CURA. [Stat. lib. i. Sylv. Tiburt. M. V.] plainly intimating, that the rules and labour of compofition were exactly the fame in these two poems. Though the critics on Statius, not ap

prehending

prehending this identity, or exact correspondence between the fatire and epiftle, have unneceffarily, and without warrant, altered the text, in this place, from ALIA into ALTA.

3. The general form and ftructure of this epiftle being thus clearly understood, it will now be eafy, in few words, to deduce the peculiar laws of its compofition.

And, 1. it cannot wholly divest itself of all method: For, having only one point in view, it muft of courfe pursue it by fome kind of connexion. The progrefs of the mind in rational thinking requires, that the chain be never broken entirely, even in its freeft excurfions.

2. As there muft needs be a connexion, fo that connexion will beft anfwer its end and the purpose of the writer, which, whilft it leads, by a fure train of thinking, to the conclufion in view, conceals itself all the while, and leaves to the reader the fatisfaction of fupplying the intermediate links, and joining together, in his own mind, what is left in a sfeeming posture of neglect and inconnexion. The art of furnishing this gratification, fo refpectful to the fagacity of the reader, without putting him to the trouble of a painful inveftigation, is what conftitutes the fupreme charm and beauty of EPISTOLARY METHOD.

II. What

II. What hath hitherto been advanced refpects chiefly the didactic form. It remains to fay fomething of that other Species of the epistle, the ELEGIAC; which, as I obferved, had quite another original. For this apparently fprung up from what is properly called the Elegy: a poem of very ancient Greek extraction: naturally arifing from the plaintive, querulous humour of mankind; which, under the preffure of any grief, is impatient to break forth into wailings, and tender expoftulations, and finds a kind of relief in indulging and giving a loose to that flow of forrow, which it hath not strength or refolution wholly [c] to restrain. This is the account of the Elegy in its proper Greek form; a negligent, inconnected, abrupt fpecies of writing, perfectly fuited to an indolent disposition. and paffionate heart. Such was OVID's; who, taking advantage of this character of the elegy, contrived [d] a new kind of poetry without the expence of much invention, or labour to him. felf. For collecting, as it were, those scattered:

[c] Marorem minui, fays Tully, grieving for the lofs of his daughter; dolorem nec potui, nec, fi poffem, VELLEM. [Ep. ad Att. xii, 28.] A ftriking picture of real grief!

[d] Vel tibi compofita cantetur EPISTOLA voce;

IGNOTUM HOC ALIIS ILLE NOVAVIT OPUS. ART. AMAT. lib. iii. 345. hints,

A

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