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fo much admire in the Works of the Ancients, are forced to hunt after foreign Ornaments, and not to let any Piece of Wit of what Kind foever efcape them. I look upon thefe Writers as Goths in Poetry, who, like those in Architecture, not being able to come up to the beautiful Simplicity of the old Greeks and Romans, have endeavoured to fupply its Place with all the Extravagancies of an irregular Fancy. Mr. Dryden makes a very handfome Obfervation, on Ovid's Writing a Letter from Dido to Eneas, in the following Words. Ovid (fays he, fpeaking of Virgil's Fiction of Dido and Æneas), takes it up ' after him, even in the fame Age, and makes an Ancient Heroine of Virgil's new-created Dido; dictates a Letter for her juft before her Death to the ungrateful Fugitive, and, very unluckily for himself, is for meafuring a Sword with a Man fo much fuperior in Force to him on the fame Subject. I think I may be Judge of this, because I have tranflated both. The famous Author of the Art of Love has nothing of his own; he borrows all from a greater Mafter in his own Profeffion, and, which is worse, improves nothing which he finds: Nature fails him, and being forced to his old Shift, he has Recourfe to Witticifm. This paffes indeed with his foft Admirers, and gives him the Prefe rence to Virgil in their Esteem.

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WERE not I fupported by fo great an Authority as that of Mr. Dryden, I fhould not venture to obferve, That the Taste of most of our English Poets, as well as Readers, is extremely Gothick. He quotes Monfieur Segrais for a threefold Distinction of the Readers of Poetry: In the first of which he comprehends the Rabble of Readers, whom he does not treat as fuch with regard to their Quality, but to their Numbers and the Coarfeness of their Tafte. His Words are as follow: Segrais has di• ftinguished the Readers of Poetry, according to their Capacity of judging, into three Claffes. [Hecht have faid the fame of Writers too, if he had pleafed.] In the lowest Form he places those whom he calls Les Petits Efprits, fuch things as are our Upper-Gallery Audience in a Play-houfe; who like nothing but the Husk and Rind of Wit, prefer a Quibble, a Conceit, an Epigram, before folid Senfe and elegant Expreflion: Thefe L 3

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are Mob Readers. If Virgil and Martial ftood for Parliament-Men, we know already who would carry it. But though they make the greatest Appearance in the Field, and cry the loudeft, the best on't is they are but a fort of French Huguenots, or Dutch Boors, brought ⚫ over in Herds, but not Naturalized; who have not Lands of two Pounds per Annum in Parnaffus, and therefore are not privileged to Poll. Their Authors are of the fame Level, fit to reprefent them on a Mountebank's Stage, or to be Mafters of the Ceremonies in a BearGarden: Yet thefe are they who have the most Admi rers. But it often happens, to their Mortification, that as their Readers improve their Stock of Senfe, (as they may by reading better Books, and by Converfation with Men of Judgment) they foon forfake them.

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I must not difmifs this Subject without obferving, that as Mr. Lock in the Paffage above-mentioned has difcovered the most fruitful Source of Wit, fo there is another of a quite contrary Nature to it, which does likewife branch it felf out into feveral Kinds. For not only the Refemblance but the Oppofition of Ideas does very often produce Wit; as I could fhew in feveral little Points, Turns, and Antithefes, that I may poffibly enlarge upon in fome future Speculation.

N 63.

Saturday, May 12.

Humano capiti cervicem pictor equinam
Jungere fi velit, & varias inducere plumas
Undique collatis membris, ut turpiter atrum
Definat in pifcem mulier formofå Supernè;
Spectatum admiffi rifum teneatis amici?
Credite, Pifonis ifti tabula, fore librum
Perfimilem, cujus, velut agri fomnia, vana
Finguntur Species

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Hor.

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T is very hard for the Mind to difengage it self from a Subject in which it has been long employed. The Thoughts will be rifing of themselves from time to time, tho we give them no Encouragement;_as_the

Toffings.

Toffings and Fluctuations of the Sea continue feveral Hours after the Winds are laid.

IT is to this that I impute my laft Night's Dream or Vision, which formed into one continued Allegory the feveral Schemes of Wit, whether Falfe, Mixed, or True, that have been the Subject of my late Papers.

METHOUGHTS I was tranfported into a Country that was filled with Prodigies and Enchantments, governed by the Goddefs of FALSEHOOD, and entitled the Region of falfe Wit. There was nothing in the Fields, the Woods, and the Rivers, that appeared natural. Several of the Trees bloffomed in Leaf-Gold, fome of them produced Bone-Lace, and fome of them precious Stones. The Fountains bubbled in an Opera Tune, and were filled with Stags, Wild-Boars, and Mermaids, that lived among the Waters; at the fame time that Dolphins and several kinds of Fish played upon the Banks, or took their Pastime in the Meadows. The Birds had many of them golden Beaks, and human Voices. The Flowers perfumed the Air with Smells of Incenfe, Amber-greefe, and Pulvillio's; and were fo interwoven with one another, that they grew up in Pieces of Embroidery. The Winds were filled with Sighs and Meffages of diftant Lovers. As I was walking to and fro in this enchanted Wilderness, I could not forbear breaking out into Soliloquies upon feveral Wonders which lay before me, when to my great ́ Surprize, I found there were artificial Echoes in every Walk, that by Repetitions of certain Words which I fpoke, agreed with me, or contradicted me, in every thing I faid. In the midst of my Conversation with these invifible Companions, I difcovered in the Center of a very dark Grove a monftrous Fabrick built after the Gothick manner, and covered with innumerable Devices in that barbarous kind of Sculpture. I immediately went up to it, and found it to be a kind of Heathen Temple confecrated to the God of Dullness. Upon my Entrance I faw the Deity of the Place dreffed in the Habit of a Monk, with a Book in one Hand and a Rattle in the other. Upon his right Hand was Industry, with a Lamp burning before her; and on his left Caprice, with a Monkey fitting on her Shoulder. Before his Feet there ftood an Altar of a very odd Make, which, as I afterwards found, was shaped

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in that manner to comply with the Infcription that furrounded it. Upon the Altar there lay feveral Offerings of Axes, Wings, and Eggs, cut in Paper, and infcribed with Verfes. The Temple was filled with Votaries, who applied themfelves to different Diverfions, as their Fancies directed them. In one part of it I faw a Regiment of Anagrams, who were continually in motion, turning to the Right or to the Left, facing about, doubling their Ranks, fhifting their Stations, and throwing themselves into all the Figures, and Counter-marches of the most changeable and perplexed Exercise.

NOT far from thefe was a Body of Acrofticks, made up of very difproportioned Perfons. It was difpofed into three Columns, the Officers planting themselves in a Line on the left Hand of each Column. The Officers were all of them at least Six Foot high, and made three Rows of very proper Men; but the Common Soldiers, who filled up the Spaces between the Officers were fuch Dwarfs, Cripples, and Scarecrows, that one could hardly look upon them without laughing. There were behind the Acrofticks two or three Files of Chronograms, which differed only from the former, as their Officers were equipped (like the Figure of Time) with an Hour-glafs in one Hand, and a Scythe in the other, and took their Posts promifcuously among the private Men whom they commanded.

IN the Body of the Temple, and before the very Face of the Deity, methoughts I faw the Phantom of Trypbiodorus the Lipogrammatift, engaged in a Ball with four and twenty Perfons, who purfued him by turns thro' all the Intricacies and Labyrinths of a Country Dance, without being able to overtake him.

OBSERVING feveral to be very bufie at the Weftern End of the Temple, I enquired into what they were doing, and found there was in that Quarter the great Magazine of Rebus's. These were feveral Things of the most different Natures tied up in Bundles, and thrown upon one another in heaps like Faggots. You might behold an Anchor, a Night-rail, and a Hobby-houfe bound up together. One of the Workmen feeing me very much furprifed, told me, there was an infinite deal of Wit in feveral of thofe Bundles, and that he would explain them,

to

to me if I pleased: I thanked him for his Civility, but told him I was in very great hafte at that time. As I was going out of the Temple, I obferved in one Corner of it a Clufter of Men and Women laughing very heartily, and diverting themfelves at a Game of Crambo. I heard feveral double Rhymes as I paffed by them, which raifed à great deal of Mirth.

NOT far from these was another Set of merry Peo ple engag'd at a Diverfion, in which the whole Jeft was to miftake one Perfon for another. To give Occafion for thefe ludicrous Miftakes, they were divided into Pairs, every Pair being covered from Head to Foot with the fame kind of Drefs, though perhaps there was not the leaft Refemblance in their Faces. By this means an old Man was fometimes miftaken for a Boy, a Woman for a Man, and a Black-a-moor for an European, which very often produced great Peals of Laughter. Thefe I gueffed to be a Party of Punns. But being very defirous to get out of this World of Magick, which had almoft turned my Brain, I left the Temple, and croffed over the Fields that lay about it with all the Speed I could make. I was not gone far before I heard the Sound of Trumpets and Alarms, which feemed to proclaim the March of an Enemy; and, as I afterwards found, was in reality what I apprehended it. There appeared at a great Diftance a very fhining Light, and in the midst of it a Perfon of a moft beauiful Afpect, her Name was TRUTH. On her right Hand there marched a Male Deity, who bore feveral Quivers On his Shoulders, and grafped feveral Arrows in his Hand, His Name was Wit. The Approach of these two Enemies filled all the Territories of Falfe Wit with an unfpeakable Confternation, infomuch that the Goddess of thofe Regions appeared in Perfon upon her Frontiers, with the feveral inferiour Deities, and the different Bodies of Forces which I had before feen in the Temple, who were now drawn up in Array, and prepared to give their Foes a warm Reception. As the March of the Enemy was very flow, it gave time to the feveral Inhabitants who bordered upon the Regions of FALSEHOOD to draw their Forces into a Body, with a Defign to ftand upon their Guard as Neuters, and attend the Iffue of the Combat.

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