77 was made by it, every one hated and avoided him as much as they loved his brother, whose manners were diametrically oppofite. The old man refolves to try a contrary behaviour, and takes himself roundly to task, Ego ille agreftis, faevus, triftis, parcus, truculentus, tenax. 16 But how great is the poet's art? Having thus prepared the spectators for a change of manners, you plainly perceive how " aukwardly this new affumed character fits upon the old man; his civility is all forced. 'Tis as when finners turn faints, all is over-acted. Who does not all along fee, that when prince Henry comes to be king, he will affume a character fuitable to his dignity? And this change the audience expect. P. Henry. I know you all, and will a while uphold The unyok'd bumour of your idleness: Yet berein will I imitate the fun, Who doth permit the bafe contagious clouds 15 Mr. Theobald, in a preface to his edition of Shakespeare, blames Terence for this change in the character of Demea than which change nothing more agreeable to the ftrictest decorum was ever imagined. To To fmother up his beauty from the world; The uxorious and jealous Othello is easily wrought to act deeds of violence and murder. You know the haughty Coriolanus will perfevere in his obftinacy and proud contempt of the commons: as well as that the refentful 17 Achilles will never be prevailed on, by any offers from Agamemnon, to return to the field. Angelo fo severe against the common frailty of human nature, never turns his eye on his own character. What morofe bigot, or demure hypocrite ever did? From Hamlet's filial affection, you expect what his future behaviour will be, when the ghost bids him revenge his murder. The philofophical character of Brutus bids you expect confistency and steadiness from his behaviour: he thought the killing of Antony, when Caefar's affaffination was refolved on, would appear too bloody and unjust : Let us be SACRIFICERS, but not butchers : 17 Hom. II. IX. The The hero, therefore; full of this idea of facrificing Caefar to his injured country, after stab bing him in the fenate, tells the Romans to ftoop, and befmear their hands and their fwords in the blood of the facrifice. This was agreeable to an ancient and religious cuftom. So in 18 Aeschylus we read, that the feven captains, who came againft Thebes, facrificed a bull, and dipped their hands in the gore, invoking, at the fame time, the gods of war, and binding themselves with an oath to revenge the cause of Eteocles. And 19 Xenophon tells us, that when the barbarians ratified their treaty with the Greeks, they made a facrifice, and dipped their fpears and fwords in the blood of the victim. By this folemn action Brutus gives the affaffination of Caefar a religious air and turn; and history too informs us, that he marched out of the fenate house, with his bloody hands, proclaiming liberty. As there is nothing pleases the human mind fo much as order, and confiftency; so when the poet has art to paint this uniformity in manners, he not only hinders confusion, but brings the audience acquainted, as it were, with the perfon represented; you fee into his character, 19 Xen. AvaC. C'. 18 Exl. izi OnC. †. 42. &c. know know how he will behave, and what part he will take on any emergency. And Shakespeare's characters are all thus ftrongly marked and manner'd. SECT. XI. A Queftion here arifes, which I fhall leave to the reader's confideration. It being proved that manners are effential to poetry, must not the poet, not only know what morals and manners are, but be himself likewife a moral and honeft man? Or can there be knowledge without practice? 'Tis certain no one can exprefs and paint manners, without knowing what manners are, how they become deformed and monftrous, how natural and beautiful. Nor can he know others without knowing himself ; what he is, what conftitutes his good, and what his ill. But whether fuch an enquiry will be attended with answerable practice, will depend on the fairnefs and fincerity of the enquirer. For there is not that man living, who does not act the hypocrite more with respect to himfelf, than to the reft of the world. But this is a mysterious fubject, too long for this place: and it may be fufficient therefore at prefent, if we have the authorities of a poet or two, with out out being at the trouble of going to the more abstruse philosophers. Let us hear Horace : Qui didicit patriae quid debeat, et quid amicis CUIQUE. CONVENIENTIA And Johnson, in his dedication of his Volpone to the two univerfities: "It is certaine, nor can "it with any fore-head be opposed, that the too much license of poetafters, in this time, "hath much deformed their mistriss; that 66 every day, their manifold and manifeft igno rance, doth stick unnatural reproaches upon "her but for their petulancy, it were an act "of the greatest injuftice, either to let the "learned fuffer; or fo divine a skill (which "fhould not indeed be attempted with uncleane hands) to fall under the least contempt. For, "if men will impartially, and not a-fquint "looke toward the offices, and fanction of a poet, they will eafily conclude to themselves, "the impoffibility of any one man's being the good poet, without first being a good man." Our learned comedian being a great reader of |