Still green with bays each ancient Altar ftands, See from each clime the learn'd their incenfe bring! In praise so just let ev'ry voice be join'd, Whofe honours with increase of ages grow, As ftreams roll down, enlarging as they flow; COMMENTARY, 186 190 VER. 181. Still green with bays, etc.] But now fired with the name of Homer, and tranfported with the contemplation of those beauties which a cold Critic can neither fee nor conceive, the Poet [from ver. 180 to 201.] breaks out into a rapturous exclamation on the rare felicity of those few Ancients who have rifen fuperior over time and accidents and difdaining, as it were, any longer to reason with his Critics, offers this as the fureft confutation of their cenfures. Then with the humility of a Suppliant at the fhrine of Immortals, and the fublimity of a Poet participating of their fire, he turns again to thefe ancient worthies, and apoftrophifes their Manes; "Hail, Bards triumphant! etc. NOTES. VER. 183. Secure from Flames, from Envy's fiercer rage, Deftructive War, and all-involving Age.] The Poet here alludes to the four great causes of the ravage amongst ancient writings: The destruction of the Alexandrine and Palatine libraries by fire; the fiercer rage of Zoilus, Marvius, and their followers, againft Wit; the irruption of the Barbarians into the Empire; and the long reign of ignorance and fuperftition in the Cloisters. Nations unborn your mighty names fhall found, 195 The laft, the meanest of your fons inspire. Of all the causes which conspire to blind Man's erring judgment, and mifguide the mind,. COMMENTARY. 200 VER. 200. Tadmire fuperior fenfe, and doubt their own!] This line concludes the first divifion of the Poem; in which we fee the fubject of the first and second part, and likewife the connexion they have with one another. It ferves likewife to introduce the fecond. The effect of ftudying the Ancients, as here recommended, would be the admiration of their fuperior fenfe; which, if it will not of itfelf difpofe Moderns to a diffidence of their own (one of the great ufes, as well as natural fruits of that ftudy) our author, to help forward their modefty, in his fecond part fhews them (in a regular deduction of the caufes and effects of wrong Judgment) their own bright image and amiable turn of mind. VER. 201. Of all the causes, etc.]- Having, in the first part, delivered Rules for perfecting the Art of Criticism, the fecond is employ'd in explaining the Impediments to it. The order of the two parts was well adjufted. For the caufes of wrong Judgment being Pride, fuperficial Learning, a bounded Capacity, and Partiality; They to whom this part is principally addrefied, would not readily be brought either to see the malignity of the causes, or to own themfelves concerned in the effects, had not the author previoufly both enlightened and convicted them, by the foregoing obfervations, on the vastness of Art and narrowness What the weak head with strongest bias rules, COMMENTARY. 205 of Wit; the extenfive fudy of human Nature and Antiquity; and the Characters of ancient Poetry and Criticism; the natural remedies to the four epidemic disorders he is now endeavouring to redrefs." Ibid. Of all the causes, etc.] The firft caufe of wrong Judgment is PRIDE. He judiciously begins with this, [from ver. 200 to 215.] as on other accounts, fo on this, that it is the very thing which gives modern Criticism its character; whofe complexion is abuse and cenfure. He calls it the vice of Fools, by which is not meant, those to whom Nature has given no Judgment (for he is here fpeaking of what misleads the Judgment) but thofe in whom education and ftudy has made no improvement; as appears from the happy fimilitude of an ill nourished body; where the fame words which exprefs the cause, exprefs likewife the nature of PRIDE: "For as in bodies, thus in fouls, we find "What wants in blood and spirits, fwell'd with wind; 'Tis the business of Reason, he tells us, to dispell the cloud which pride throws over the mind: But the mischief is that the rays of reafon, diverted by felf-love, fometimes gild this cloud, inftead of diffipating it. So that the Judg ment, by falfe lights reflected back upon itself, is ftill apt to be a little dazzled, and to mistake its object. He there. fore advises to call in ftill more helps : "Truft not yourself; but your defects to know, "Make ufe of ev'ry Friend-and ev'ry Foe.~ Both the beginning and conclufion of this precept, are remarkThe question is, of the means to fubdue Pride : able. Pride, where Wit fails, fteps in to our defence, A little learning is a dang❜rous thing; COMMENTARY. 210 215 He directs the Critic to begin in a difruft of himself and this is Modefly, the firft mortification of Pride: And then to feek the affiftance of others, and make use even of an Enemy; and this is Humility, the laft mortification of Pride: For when a man can once bring himself to fubmit to profit by an enemy, he has either already quite fubdued his Vanity, or is in a fair way of fo doing. VER. 215. Alittle learning, etc.] We muft here remark the Poet's fkill in his difpofition of the causes obftructing true Judgment. Each general caufe which is laid down firft, has its own particular caufe in that which follows, 66 NOTES. VER. 209. Pride, where Wit fails, fteps in to our defence And fills up all the mighty Void of fense.] A very fenfible French writer makes the following remark on this fpecies of pride. "Un homme qui fçait plufieurs Langues, qui entend les Auteurs Grecs et Latins, qui s'eleve même jufqu'à la dignité de SCHOLIASTE; fi cet "homme venoit à pefer fon véritable mérite, il trouveroit "fouvent qu'il fe réduit, avoir eu des yeux et de la mémoire, "il fe garderoit bien de donner le nom refpectable de science "à une erudition fans lumiere. Il y a une grande difference "entre s'enrichir des mots ou des chofes, entre alleguer "des autoritez ou des raifons. Si un homme pouvoit fe "furprendre à n'avoir que cette forte de mérite, il en ff rougiroit plûtôt que d'en être vain." There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain, Fir'd at first fight with what the Muse imparts, Short views we take, nor fee the lengths behind ; And the firft clouds and mountains feem the laft: The growing labours of the lengthen'd way, VER. 225. VARIATIONS. So pleas'd at first the tow'ring Alps to try, 225 239 The Traveller beholds with chearful eyes COMMENTARY, Thus, the fecond caufe of wrong Judgment, SUPERFICIAL LEARNING, is what occafions that critical Pride, which he places firft. VER. 216. Drink deep, etc.] Nature and Learning are the pole stars of all true Criticism: But Pride obftructs the view of Nature; and a smattering of letters makes us infenfible of our ignorance. To avoid this ridiculous fituation, the Poet [from ver. 214 to 233.] advises, either to drink deep, or not to drink at all; for the least taste at this fountain is enough to make a bad Critic, while even a moderate draught can never make a good on And |