N° 86.

Friday, June 19.

➡Cui mens divinior, atque os

Magna fonaturum

Hor, Sat. 4. l. I. v. 43.

Who writes

With fancy high, and bold and daring flights. Creech.

TO NESTOR IRON SIDE, Efq;

SIR,

Oxford, June 16. 1713.

HE claffical writers, according to your advice, are

The writer, by me, while I pursue any

fludies in divinity. I am perfuaded, that they are foun tains of good fenfe and eloquence; and that it is abfo lutely neceffary for a young mind to form itself upon fuch models: for, by a careful study of their ftyle and manner, we shall at leaft avoid thofe faults into which a youthful imagination is apt to hurry us; fuch as luxu riance of fancy, licentioufnefs of ftyle, redundancy of thought, and false ornaments. As I have been flattered by my friends, that I have fome genius for poetry, I fometimes turn my thoughts that way; and with pleas fure reflect, that I have got over that childish part of life which delights in points and turns of wit; and that I can take a manly and rational fatisfaction in that which is called painting and poetry. Whether it be, that in thefe copyings of nature, the object is placed in fuch lights and circumstances as ftrike the fancy agreeably ; or whether we are surprised to find objects that are ab fent, placed before our eyes; or whether it be our admiration of the author's art and dexterity; or whether we amufe ourselves with comparing the picture and the original; or rather, which is molt probable, because all thele reafons concur to affect us, we are wonderfully charmed with thefe drawings after the life, this magic that raifes apparitions in the fancy,

Landskips, or ftill life, work much less upon us, than reprefentations of the poftures or paffions of living creatures. Again, thofe paflions or poltures ftrike us more

or lefs, in proportion to the ease or violence of their motions. An horfe grafing moves us less than one ftretching in a race, and a racer lefs than one in the fury of a battle. It is very difficult, I believe, to exprefs violent motions, which are very fleeting and tranfitory, either in colours or words. In poetry, it requires great fpirit in thought, and energy in ftyle; which we find more of in the eastern poetry, than either the Greek or Roman. The great Creator, who accommodated himself to thofe he vouchfafed to fpeak to, hath put into the mouths of his prophets fuch fublime fentiments and exalted language, as muft abafh the pride and wit of man. In the book of Job, the most ancient poem in the world, we have fuch paintings and defcriptions as I have fpoken of, in great variety. I fhall at prefent make fome remarks on the celebrated defcription of the horfe in that holy book, and compare it with thofe drawn by Homer and Virgil.

Homer hath the following fimilitude of an horfe twice over in the Iliad; which Virgil hath copied from him; at least he hath deviated lefs from Homer than Mr Dryden hath done from him.

Freed from his keepers, thus with broken reins,
The wanton courfer prances o'er the plains ;
Or in the pride of youth a'erleaps the mounds,
And fnuffs the females in forbidden grounds:
Or feeks his watʼring in the well known flood,
To quench his thirst, and cool his fiery blood:
He fwims luxuriant in the liquid plain,

And o'er his fhoulders flows his waving mane; He neighs, he fnorts, he bears his head on high, • Before his ample chest the frothy waters fly.

Virgil's defcription is much fuller than the foregoing which, as I faid, is only a fimile; whereas Virgil pros feffes to treat of the nature of the horfe. It is thus admirably tranflated.

The fiery courfer, when he hears from far

The Sprightly trumpets, and the fhouts of war, Pricks up his ears, and trembling with delight, • Shifts pace, and paws; and hopes the promis'd fight.

• On his right fhoulder his thick mane reclin'd, Ruffles at speed, and dances in the wind.

His horny hoofs are jetty black, and round; • His chine is double; starting, with a bound 'He turns the turf, and shakes the folid ground. Fire from his eyes, clouds from his noftrils flow; He bears his rider headlong on the foe.

Now follows that in the book of Job; which, under all the disadvantages of having been written in a language little understood, of being expreffed in phrases peculiar to a part of the world whofe manner of thinking and fpeaking feems to us very uncouth, and above all of appearing in a profe translation, is nevertheless fo tranfcendently above the Heathen defcriptions, that hereby we may perceive how faint and languid the ima ges are which are formed by mortal authors, when compared with that which is figured, as it were, just as it appears in the eyes of the Creator. God fpeaking to Job, asks him,

He

Haft thou given the horse strength? haft thou cloth'ed his neck with thunder? Canft thou make him afraid as a grafhopper? the glory of his noftrils is ter rible. He paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in his ftrength: he goeth on to meet the armed men. mocketh at fear, and is not affrighted; neither turn eth he back from the fword The quiver rattleth against him, the glittering fpear and the fhield. He 'fwalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage: nei. 'ther believeth he that it is the found of the trumpet. 'He faith among the trumpets, Ha, ha; and he fmel'leth the battle afar off, the thunder of the captains, and the fhouting.'

Here are all the great and fprightly images that thought can form of this generous beaft, expreffed in fuch force and vigour of style, as would have given the great wits of antiquity new laws for the fublime, had they been acquainted with thefe writings. I cannot but particularly obferve, that whereas the claffical poets chiefly endeavour to paint the outward figure, lineaments, and motions; the facred poet makes all the beauties to flow from an inward principle in the creature he describes, and thereby gives great fpirit and vivacity to his defcription.

The following phrafes and circumftances feem fingularly remarkable.

• Haft thou cloathed his neck with thunder?' Homer and Virgil mention nothing about the neck of the hørfe, but his mane. The facred author, by the bold figure of thunder, not only expreffes the thaking of that remarkable beauty in the horfe, and the flakes of hair which naturally fuggeft the idea of lightning; but likewife the violent agitation and force of the neck, which in the oriental tongues had been flatly expreffed by a metaphor lefs than this.

Canft thou make him afraid as a grafhopper?' There is a twofold beauty in this expreffion; which not only marks the courage of this beat, by asking, if he can be scared? but likewife raifes a noble image of his fwiftnefs, by infinuating, that if he could be frighted, he would bound away with the nimbleness of a grafhopper.

The glory of his noftrils is terrible.' This is more ffrong and concife than that of Virgil, which yet is the noblest line that ever was written without infpiration. Collectumque premens volvit fub naribus ignem. Georg. 3. v. 85.

And in his noftrils rolls collected fire.

are

He rejoiceth in his ftrength-He mocketh at fear, • neither believeth he that it is the found of the trumpet-He faith among the trumpets, Ha, ha figns of courage, as I said before, flowing from an inward principle. There is a peculiar beauty in his not believing it is the found of the trumpet; that is, he can not believe it for joy: but when he is fare of it, and is amongst the trumpets, he faith, Ha, ha; he neighs, he rejoices. His docility is elegantly painted, in his being anmoved at the rattling quiver, the glittering fpear and the shield; and is well imitated by Oppian (who undoubtedly read Job as well as Virgil) in his poem upon hunting.

How firm the manag'd war horfe keeps his ground,
Nor breaks his order, though the trumpets found!
• With fearless eye the glitt'ring holt furveys,
And glares directly at the helmet's blaze:

• The mafter's word, the laws of war he knows, And when to top, and when to charge the focs.

He swalloweth the ground,' is an expression of prodigious fwiftnefs, in ufe among the Arabians, Job's countrymen, at this day. The Latins have fomething like it.

Latumque fuga confumere campum. Nemefian. In flight th' extended champaign to confume.

Carpere prata fuga.

In flight to crop the meads.

Virg. Georg. 3. v. 142.

campumque volatu

Cum rapuere, pedum veftigia quæras,

Sil. Ital.

When in their flight the champaign they have fnatch'd, No track is left behind.

It is indeed the boldest and noblest of images for fwifenefs; nor have I met with any thing that comes so near it, as Mr Pope's in Windíor forelt.

Th' impatient courfer pants in every vein, And pawing, feems to beat the dittant plain ; Hills, vales, and floods, appear already croit, • And ere he starts, a thousand steps are lost.. He fmelleth the battle afar off,' and what follows about the fhouting, is a circumftance expreffed with great fpirit by Lucan.

So when the ring with joyful fhouts rebounds, • With rage

and pride th' imprifon'd courfer bounds:

He frets, he foams, he reads his idle rein;

Springs o'er the fence, and headlong fecks the plain.