an analogy to fomething in any other, be comes the occafion of comparison betwixt them; and the fancy, which is ever, in a great genius, quick at espying these traits of resemblance, and delights to furvey them, lets flip no opportunity of fetting them over against each other, and producing them to obfervation.

But whatever be the causes, which affociate the ideas of the poet, and how fantaftic foever, or even cafual, may sometimes appear to be the ground of fuch affociation, yet, in refpect of the greater works of genius, there will still be found the most exact uniformity of allufion, the fame ideas and afpects of things conftantly admonishing the poet of the fame refemblances and relations. I fay, in the greater works of genius, which must be attended to; for the folly of taking resemblances for imitations, in this province of allufion, hath arisen from hence; that the poet is believed to have all art and nature before him, and to be at liberty to fetch his hints of fimilitude and correfpondence from every diftant and ob fcure corner of the univerfe. That is, the

genius of the epic, dramatic, and univerfally, of the greater, poetry hath not been comprehended, nor their diftinct laws and characters diftinguifhed from thofe of an inferior fpecies.

The mutual habitudes and relations (at leaft what the mind is capable of regarding as fuch), fubfifting between thofe innumerable objects of thought and fenfe, which make up the entire natural and intellectual world, are indeed infinite; and if the poet be allowed to affociate and bring together all thofe ideas, wherein the ingenuity of the mind can perceive any remote fign or glimpfe of refemblance, it were truly wonderful, that, in any number of images and allufions, there fhould be found a clofe conformity of them with thofe of any other writer. But this is far from be- 3 ing the cafe. For 1: the more auguft poetry difclaims, as unfuited to its state and dignity, that inquifitive and anxious diligence, which pries into nature's retirements; and fearches through all her fecret and hidden haunts, to detect a forbidden commerce, and expofe to light fome strange

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DISCOURSE ONL unexpected conjunction of ideas. This quaint combination of remote, uhallied Imagery, conftitutes a fpecies of entertain ment, which, for its novelty, may amufe and divert the mind in other compofitions; but is wholly inconsistent with the referve and folemnity of the graver forms. There is too much curiofity of art, too folicitous an affectation of pleafing, in thefe ingenious exercifes of the fancy, to fuit with the fimple majefty of the epos or drama; which difclaims to caft about for forced and tortured allufions, and aims only to expofe, in the faireft light, fuch, as are most obvious and natural. And here, by the way, it may be worth obferving, in honour of a great Poet of the last century, I mean Dr. DONNE, that, though agreeably to the turn of his genius, and taste of his age, he was fonder, than ever poet was, of thefe fecret and hidden ways in his leffer poetry; yet when he had projected his great work " On

the progrefs of the Soul" (of which we have only the beginning) his good fenfe brought him out into the freer Spaces of nature and open day-light.

Largior

Largior hic compos æther, et lumine veftit... Purpureo folemque fuum, fua fidera norunt. In this, the Author of GONDIBERT, and another writer of credit, a contemporary of DONNE, Sir FULK GREVIL, were not fo happy. 2. This work of indirect imagery is intended, not fo much to illustrate and enforce the original thought, to which it is applied, as to amufe and entertain the fancy, by holding up to view, in thefe oo cafional digreffive representations, the pictures of pleasing fcenes and objects. But this end of allufion (which is principal in the fublimer works of genius) reftrains the poetsto the ufe of a few felect images, for the most part taken from obvious common nature; thefe being always moft illuftrious in themfelves, and therefore most apt to feize and captivate the imagination of the reader. Thus is the poet confined, by the very nature of his work, to a very moderate compass of allufion, on both these accounts; firft, as he muft employ the caftest and most apparent refemblances: and fecondly, of thefe, fuch as imprefs the most delightful images on the fancy. H 2

This

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This being the cafe, it cannot but happen, that the allufions of different poets, of the higher clafs, though writing without any communication with each other, will, of course, be much the fame on fimilar, occafions. There are fixed and real analogies between different material objects; between thefe objects, and the inward workings of the mind; and, again, between thefe, and the external figns of them. Such, on every occafion, do not fo properly offer themfelves.to the fearching eye of the poet, as force themselves upon him; fo that, if he fubmit to be guided by the moft natural views of things, he cannot avoid a very remarkable correfpondence of imagery with his predeceffors. And we find this conclufion verified in fact; as appears not only from comparing together the great and modern writers, who are known to have held an intimate correfpondence with each other, but thofe, who cannot be fu fpected of this commerce. Several critics, I obferved, have taken great pains to illuftrate the fentiments of Homer from fimilar instances in the facred writers. The fame

antient