fummate Critic of the Age, and at the fame time a Poet of the first Magnitude, purpos'd the Publishing a Complete Body of Criticifm in Poetry, he got not above feventy Guineas Subfcription: When Labeo propos'da Subfcription for an abominable Tranflation, he got above 3000l. fubfcrib'd. In my Time, who you know am no Young Man, I knew a Nobleman who threw away a matter of 1500 7. a Year on worthless Fidlers, and the like, who yet had taken a Refolution of encouraging no Poet who ask'd not his leave to mention his Name, how improper and ridiculous foever that might be to the Subject; this very Nobleman was not fo averfe to Rhime, but that he fubfcrib'd forty Guineas to a moft worthlefs Poem.

In short, I know the Tafte and Humour of our great Men too well, to place the leaft Hope in their Favour.

I remember an Account a Nobleman of Parts gave me more than once of a Converfation between King James II. and Ifaac Voffius a Prebendary of Windfor, who with all the reft of his Fraternity came to welcome that King to the Caftle. How comes it, faid the King, that the Greeks and the Romans had better Poets, Orators, and Hiftorians than we have? And it please your Majefty, return'd the Prebendary, with an honeft Bluntnefs, Greece and Rome were Common-wealths, but Monarchy never encourage thofe fine Arts. The King, faid the Nobleman, turn'd fhort upon him and made him no Anfwer, tacitly owning the Accufation; but I could have told that Nobleman, that it was not the Fault of the Monarchs, but their Minifters, who did not recommend thofe Arts and their Mafters. We find every day Footmen and Valets des Chambres, &c. find fo much Favour with their Lords and Mafters, as by their Intereft to get into Pofts of fuch Profit as fhall foon fet them up for Gentlemen, and make them rich Men too; but give me one Inftance of any of their doing fuch Favours for the Sons of the Mufes, and then I will allow that Addreffes to them, and their Praise, may not be look'd on as Flattery.

Otway

Otway died in an Alehouse, Lee in the Streets, Butler and Spenjer ftarv'd; Milton never got a Penny from any one of them, tho' fawning Poetafters have found their Account in their Addreffes.

Since you find I know this, I hope you will not think what I have fiid proceeds from any thing but my impartial Judgment; for I promise you I fhall never make any Application ev'n to this Nobleman, who has deferv'd fo well from the Art of Poetry, tho' I have the Honour to be known to him, and have had the Favour of perusing a Performance of his much fuperior to the Effay as being of a higher and more noble kind.. This I hope is enough to remove your Sufpicion, that what I have faid of the Effay is not the Effect of my Judgment, but Complaifance for his great Quality.

Here my Friend Crites ended this day's Converfation; what follow'd, I shall give you in my next.

The End of the third Dialogue:

THE

Art of POETRY.

DIALOGUE IV.

Of TRAGEDY and COMEDY, how to draw the Plot and form the Characters, &c. of both.

AVING in the laft Dialogue given you an Account (judicious CRITES) of what was deliver'd on the Rules of fo many Parts of Poetry from the EPI GRAM to the Drama; I now come to a Task, much more agreeable to my Tafte, the Rules by which our Play-Writers, whether of Tragedy or Comedy, ought to direct themselves in their Performances of that kind, Tho' the promifcuous Mob of Scribblers have frequently invaded all the foregoing Partsjand daily pefter us with their Productions in fome one of them, without the Helps of either Art or Nature; yet for my own part, I cou'd willingly compound with them, if they would be fatisfied with Epigram, Paftoral, Satire, and Songs, and not prefume to attempt the greater and moft valuable Province of Poefy, the Dra

ma.

But alas! while fuch have the Direction of the

Stage,

Stage, who are entirely ignorant of the Divine Art, and by Confequence admit, nay and often cry up the worst Efforts that way, it is in vain to expect that the Poetaflers will forbear thrufting their wonderful-SCRIPTIONS upon us, fince they derive the Advantage of a third Day from their Infolence. To difcourage fuch, and infpire those to whom Nature has given a Genius, I publish thefe Rules, which if the Managers of the House cou'd underhand, and would ftudy, we might hope to fee a glorious Stage.

We were no fooner met this Day, and set, but MANILIA with a fmiling Countenance thus begun.

I hope now I fhall please you when I bring the Spectator to juftify your Opinion of Tragedy; for how erroneus foever you will have him in other Things, in this I am confident you will allow his Juftice.

As a perfect Tragedy (fays he Num. 39.) is the nobleft Production of Humane Nature, fo it is capable of gi ving the Mind, one of the most delightful and improving Entertainments. A virtuous Man (fays Seneca) frugling with Misfortunes, is such a Spectacle, as Gods might look upon with Pleasure. And fucha Pleafure it is which one meets with in the Reprefentation of a well written Tragedy. Diverfions of this kind wear out of our Thoughts avery Thing, that is mean and little. They cherish and cultivate that Humanity, which is the Ornament of our Nature. They foften Infolence, footh Affliction, and fubdue the Mind to the Difpenfations of Providence.

It is no wonder therefore that in all polite Nations of the World, this Part of the Drama has met with public Encouragement.

1. The modern Tragedy excels that of Greece and Rome in the Intricacy and Difpofition of the Fable; but what a Chriftian Writer fhou'd be afham'd to own, falls infinitely Short of it in the Moral Part of the Performance.

I am the SPECTATOR'S moft humble Servant (faid LAUDON) for acknowledging a Truth once in his

Reign, which all the World agrees in; and yet upon viewing the Contexture, I am afraid that this worthy Author is not perfectly appriz'd of what a perfect Tragedy is. Nor fhou'd I much wonder at it, fince he had fo corrupted his Tafte by the Approbation of Opera's, that he might very well be to feek in the Nature of juft Tragedy, å Poem, which is in reality the nobleft and moft ufetul Production of Humane Nature. My Reason for this Opinion, is, his Quotation from Seneca, that a virtuous Man, frugling with Misfortunes, is fuch a Spectacle, as Gods might look on with Pleasure; for he adds, and fuch a Pleasure one meets with in the Reprefentation of a well written Tragedy.

'Tis true that a virtuous Man may be introduc'd into a well written Tragedy ftrugling with Misfortunes; but then this virtuous Man muft be victorious over those Misfortunes before, or in the Conclufion of the Drama. But first, this is not the moft perfect fort of Tragedy, either in its Ufe or Pleasure, fince a Tragedy with an unfortunate Cataftrophe is more delightful and more inftructive; for, first, it is more full of the Paffions whofe Motion caufes Pleasure; and then it strikes us with the Punishment of the Hero neither fovereignly good, nor profligately evil, for not checking his Paffions in their Rife, but yielding to their Impulfe, till they had hurried him to Mischiefs he might otherwife have efcap'd.

But next, I am afraid the SPECTATOR aims not even at the first of thefe; he is for feeing a Man fovereignly virtuous, miferable, and perishing in his Miseries, and this he fuppofes will give an improving Pleasure. But how he will make that out I confefs I cannot difcover; nor has hè any where endeavoured to do it.. It must certainly create Horrour, Difdain, and all the painful and difgufiful Paffions, without any manner of Improvement.

Diverfions of this kind (fays he) wear out of our Thoughts every Thing that is mean and little; they cherish and cultivate that Humanity which is the Orna

ment