RHETO

IV. AN excellent RICK wou'd be far more valuable than a Grammar, or any other Project that tends only to bring a Language to greater Perfection. He who wou'd undertake this Work, fhou'd collect into it all the finest Precepts of ARISTOTLE, CICERO, QUINTILIAN, LUCIAN, LONGINUS, and other famous Authors. The Paffages he might quote from them, wou'd be the Ornaments of his Work. By taking only the choicest Parts of the pureft Antiquity, he wou'd make a fhort, curious, delicate Treatife.

I am very far from preferring the Genius of the ancient Orators, to that of the Moderns, in all Refpects. I think the Comparison that has been lately made on this Subject is very juft. For, as P 3 Trees

* Nor wou'd I have this new ENGLISH ACADEMY confin'd only to the weighing Words, and Letters: there may be alfo greater Works found out for it. By many Signs we may guess that the Wits of our Nation are not inferiour to any other; and that they have an excellent Mixture of the Spirit of the French, and the Spaniard : and I am confident that we only want a few more standing Examples, and a little more Familiarity with the Antients to excel all the Moderns. Now the best Means that can be devis'd to bring that about, is to fettle a fixt and impartial COURT of ELOQUENCE; according to whofe Cenfure all Books, or Authors, fhou'd either ftand, or fall -The ROYAL SOCIETY is so far from being like to put a ftop to fuch a Business, that I know many of its ME MBERS who are as able as any others to affift in the bringing it into Practice.

History of the Royal Society, p. 42, 43.

Trees have now the fame Form, and bear the fame kind of Fruit, that they had a thousand Years ago; fo Men continue to produce the fame Thoughts. But there are two Things I must here take the Freedom to fuggeft, The firft is, that fome Climates are more happy than others, for fome particular Talents, as well as for certain kinds of Fruit. For inftance, Languedoc and Provence produce Raifins and Figs of a better Tafte, than Normandy, or the Netherlands. So the Arcadians had a Genius fitter for polite Arts than the Scythians. The Sicilians have a better Taste of Mufick than the Laplanders. We find likewife that the Athenians had a more quick and fprightly Wit than the Beotians. The fecond Thing I obferve, is, that the Greeks had a kind of long Tradition that we want. Eloquence was more cultivated among them, than it can be in our Nation. Among the Greeks all Things depended on the People: and the People were influenced by Haranguing. In their Form of Government, Fortune, Reputation, and Authority, were obtain'd by perfwading the People. Artful vehement Declaimers

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Athenis tenue cœlum, ex quo acutiores etiam putantur Attici; craffum Thebis Cic. de Fato. §. 4.

Beotum in craffo jurares aëre natum.

HOR.

Declaimers fway'd them as they pleas'd: and Oratory was the great Spring of Affairs both in Peace, and War. Hence come those numerous Harangues mention'd in Hiftory, which we reckon incredible; because they are fo intirely different from our Manners. DIODORUS the Sicilian tells us that NICOLAUS and GYSIPPUS by turns influenc'd the Syracufians. The one prevail'd with them at firft to pardon fome Athenian Prifoners: and the next Moment, the other perfwaded them to put those very Prisoners to death.

RHETORICK has no fuch Influence now among us. Publick Affemblys meet only for Shows, and Cereinonys. We have fcarce any Remains of a powerful Eloquence, either of our Old Parliaments, or our General States, or our Affemblys of * Chief Persons. Every thing is determin'd fecretly in Cabinet-Councils, or in fome particular Negotiation. So that our People have no Encouragement to use fuch Application as the Greeks did, to raise themselves by the Art of Perswasion. The publick Ufe of Eloquence is now almoft confin'd to the Pulpit, and the Bar.

The Warmth of our Lawyers to gain a Cause relating to the Eftate of a private Perfon, cannot equal the Ambition that the Greek Orators had to poffefs themfelves of the fupreme Authority in a Commonwealth. A Lawyer lofes nothing nay he gets his Fee, tho' he lose the Cause he undertook. Is he young? he applys himself to plead elegantly, that he may acquire fome Reputation, without having ever study'd either the Grounds of the Law, or the great Models of Antiquity. Has he establish't his Character? he leaves-off pleading, and enriches himself by Chamber-Practice. The most valuable Lawyers are those who set Facts in a clear Light; who recur to fome fixt Principle of Law; and anfwer all Objections according to it. But where are those who have the Art of forcing the Affent, and moving the Hearts of a whole People?

Shall I prefume to speak with the fame Freedom, concerning Preachers? GOD knows how much I reverence the Minifters of his Word. But I cannot offend any particular Perfon among them, by obferving in general, that they are not all equally humble and difinterested. Young Men who have little Reputation are too forward in Preaching. People fancy they fee that those seek their own Glory, more

than

than Go D's: and that they are more earnest about making their Fortune, than for the Salvation of Souls. They talk like fparkling Orators, rather than like Minifters of CHRIST, and Stewards of his Myfterys. It was not with this vain Pomp of Words that S. PETER preach't the Crucify'd JESUS in those Sermons that converted fo many thousand People.

Wou'd we learn the Rules of a serious effectual Eloquence from S. AUSTIN? He follows CICERO in diftinguishing three different kinds of speaking. He fays we must speak † fubmiffively, in an † submissè humble familiar way: mildly, in an ‡temperatè engaging, foft, infinuating manner, to make People love the Truth: and || nobly, grandi that is, in a lofty vehement Strain, when ter we wou'd captivate Men, and rescue them from the Dominion of their Paflions. He adds, that the only Reafon for using fuch Expreffions as may please People, is, because there are few Men reasonable enough to relish such Truths in a Difcourfe as are quite dry and naked. As for the fublime and vehement kind, he wou'd not have it florid; nor embellish't " with

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* Non tam verborum ornatibus comtum eft, quam violentum animi affectibus Fertur quippe impetu fuo, & elocutionis pulchritudinem, fi occurrerit, vi rerum rapit, non cura decoris affumit.

AUG. de Doft. Chr. L. IV.