but of the Art which was capable of imitating thofe Actions with fuch a happy Succefs. The fame holds in Poetry; we are pleas'd with the Defcriptions of thofe things which we could not look on as they' are in Nature.

The Reason of this is, that not only the Wife have a Defire to learn, but the fame Propenfity is found in all Men, to Knowledge, tho' not the fame Capacity. For Men being endow'd with Reason, and naturally loving Arts, take a peculiar Delight in feeing any thing that is made by Art and Reason, and both thefe are concern'd in all Imitations. And for this Reason, it has the Advantage over Truth it felf, which appears fimple, ordinary, and common; whereas, Subtilty, and Industry are join'd to Truth in an exact and lucky Imitation. That gives to the Mind an Occafion of Reasoning, and making Reflections: For the Pleafure we have in feeing a curious Imitation, does not arife from the Beauty of the Original, which is the Subject of the Imitation, but from this, that the Mind by this, finds Means to confider, and to inform it felf, by looking on them. For Example, (as Ariftotle remarks, when we fee the Picture of a Man whom we know, we presently declare, This is fuch a one. But if the Portraict be of one we never faw, the Pleasure which that Picture gives, does not proceed from the Exactness of the Imitation, but from the Art, or the Mixture or Vivacity of the Colours: For no Man can judge of the Exactness of an Imitation, who does not know the Original. The Pleasure, therefore, that arifes on this Occafion, muft be, as the Critic obferves, from the Beauty of the Piece, or from the Vivacity and Mixture of the Colours, or from the Choice of the Action, or from the Posture of the Persons, or fomething elfe that draws the Eyes upon it, and exer cifes and inftructs the Mind, whilft it diverts it.

If Imitation be thus natural to us, as I hope it is. now made out to be, in my Opinion, Number and

HAT

Harmony are not lefs fo. This is the fecond Caufe of Poetry. For whatever Inclination Men may have to Imitation, yet had that never given Rife to Poetry, if they had not been as much inclin'd to Number and Harmony; that is, Cadence and Song. Under Number, fays Ariftotle, I comprehend Verfe, which is evidently one Part of it; for indeed there can be no Verfe without Numbers, tho' there may be Numbers in their various and proper Pofitions, without Verfe; for there are Numbers proper to Profe, efpecially in the Greek and the Latin. For those who had the greatest Genius for thefe, gave Poefy Birth by Degrees, by Extempore Effays. Imitation without Number and Harmony, or thofe without the former, could never have produc'd Poetry. This Art being produc'd in the Affemblies which the primitive Inhabitants of the Earth, who were either Shepherds, or Labourers) had after their Vintage, in Honour of the Gods, it could not be the Effect of Study, but of Nature exerted by Joy and Wine. In short, the first rough Draughts of Poefy were certainly ex tempore.

But it foon chang'd its Form, according to the feveral Inclinations of the Poets. That is, Poetry confifted, at first, in fome Off-Hand Pieces, in which Satire, and Praife were mix'd, and blended together; but it was foon divided into two diftinct Kinds: Thofe who had the largeft and moft exalted Capacities, fung. the Praifes of Gods and Heroes; those who had lefs, amufed themselves, with Pieces of Raillery and Satire.

This is the Opinion of Ariftotle, on the Rife of Poe try; but it is delivered with that Modesty and Deference, as is worthy of fo great a Man, who would not Dogmatically decide on a thing of fuch Antiquity and Uncertainty, that nothing pofitive could, with any Kind of Justice, be afferted. And the Conjectures on this Head, as well as upon all obfcure Sub

jects

jects, may happen to be true, yet they do not always lead us to Truth.

According to this Source of Poetry, we find that the fame Critic has determin'd, that all Sorts of Poetry are nothing but Imitations. The Heroic, or Narvative Poem, Tragedy, Comedy, and the Dithyrambic, fays he, are only pure Imitations. Nay, he extends it farther, to Mufic it felf; for he fays, moft Part of the Airs for the Flute, and Leffons for the Harp, are the fame. Thus he determines, that Poefy in general is an Imitation; fo that under this general Head are ins cluded all the particular Parts of this Art, which by the fame Reafons must be Imitations,

I think, no Man that knows any thing of the Matter, can doubt, but that the Heroic Poem, Tragedy, and Comedy, are really pure Imitations; but that Dythirambics, which was only a Poem fung in the Honour of Bacchus, fhould be fo, may perhaps feem more difficult to prove. There is a Difference between a perfect and an imperfect Imitation. The firft is vifible in the Heroic, Tragic, and Comic Poems, as the latter is in all Narrations, or Songs of Praife, or any other of the Leffer Poetry. For Example, all that Homer makes Chryfes fpeak in the firft Book of the Iliads, is in exact Imitation, because he lays afide the Perfon of the Poet, and puts on that of an Actor, which he imitates when he acts and speaks. But if, instead of making Chryfes appear, he had only related his Words, and told us, that Chryfes defired the Argives to fend back bis Daughter, &c. it had been a fimple Narration, without that exact Imitation which is the Life of Tragedy. But altho? this had been a Narration, yet fhould we not have fail'd of finding Imitation in it; fince every Narration has always fome Object in View which it fuppofes to imitate and make known, and by Confequence is an Imitation indirectly indeed, but 'tis an Imitation; and this Way are Dythirambics contain'd under this Kind, fince they contain'd the Praife of the Actions of Bac

chus,

chus, and all Mens Actions are Imitations, in the Opinion of both Ariftotle and Plato.

1

I will not detain you with any farther Difcourfe on Imitation, and prove with Ariftotle, that Actions only are the Objects of it; I will take it for granted, fince it is plain from all the great Writers of Antiquity. What I have faid is fufficient to fhew, that as Poetry is an Imitation, fo Imitation was the Caufe and Rife of Poetry; and that there can be nothing worthy the Name of a Poem, where there is no Imitation. This being admitted, I think it will be pretty plain, that the Lofs of Poetry, or at leaft, its very great Degeneracy, has proceeded from the Neglect of the Writers in this Particular of Imitation. How few Pieces have we had for fome Hundreds of Years, which have a Claim to be true and exact Imitations? Nor was there ever an Age, in which this Effential was fo much neglected, as at prefent, which is the Reafon, that our Verfes having retain'd nothing of the Original Cause of Poetry, but Number and Harmony, are fuch lame and imperfect Performances. And this proceeding from the Ignorance of the Writers, as well as of them who give Vogue and Reputation, muft render Poetry fearce the Shadow of what it was, when it produc'd Works which have transported all Nations, and all Ages.

Tho' Number and Harmony have been allow'd likewife one of the Caufes of Poetry, yet Imitation is the moft valuable Part; for there may be juft Imitations, that is, true Poems, without that most known Kind of Number and Harmony, which we call Verfe. This is allow'd by Ariftotle, and all but Voffius and Sir Wil liam Temple; tho, if I mistake not, Sir William does, in fome Measure, allow it, at the fame time that he condemns it, and fixes it as one of the Caufes of the Decay and Lofs of this Art.

I beg the Company's Pardon for detaining them with my crude Conjectures; but if what I have faid, have any Foundation in Reason, I fhall be fatisfy'd.

I could

I could have made it more plain by giving Inftances from fome of our most taking Poems published in thefe Days, but I was afraid of incurring the Imputation of Envy: of which I hope and believe my Ñature incapable; and for that Reafon, I have rather chofen to deprive my self of fome Proofs which I cou'd have brought to confirm my Pofition.

Here Laudon having made an End, the Company feparated; and after a Glass or two by our felves, I bid him Good Night, being highly fatisfy'd with what he had before, and did after, fay in the Conclufion of the Difcourfe.