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Father Thames, and the transformation of Lodona. Addifon had in his Campaign derided the Rivers that rife from their oozy beds to tell ftories of heroes, and it is therefore ftrange that Pope fhould adopt a fiction not only unnatural but lately cenfured. The story of Lodona is told with great fweetnefs; but a new metamorphofis is a ready and puerile expedient; nothing is eafier than to tell how a flower was once a blooming virgin, or a rock an obdurate tyrant.

The Temple of Fame has, as Steele warmly declared, a thousand beauties. Every part is fplendid; there is great luxuriance of ornaments; the original vifion of Chaucer was never denied to be much improved; the allegory is

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very fkilfully continued, the imagery is properly felected, and learnedly dif played yet, with all this comprehenfion of excellence, as its fcene is laid in remote ages, and its fentiments, if the concluding paragraph be excepted, have little relation to general manners or common life, it seems never to have obtained much notice, but is turned filently over, and feldom quoted or mentioned with either praise or blame..

That the Meffiab excels the Pollio is no great praife, if it be confidered from what original the improvements are derived.

The Verfes on the unfortunate Lady have drawn much attention by the illaudable fingularity of treating fuicide

with refpect; and they must be allowed to be written in fome parts with vigorous animation, and in others with gentle tenderness; nor has Pope produced any poem in which the fenfe predominates more over the diction. But the tale is not fkilfully told; it is not eafy to difcover the character of either the Lady or her Guardian. Hiftory relates that the was about to difparage herself by a marriage with an inferior; Pope praises her for the dignity of ambition, and yet condemns the unkle to deteftation for his pride; though the ambitious love of a niece. may be oppofed by the intereft, malice, or envy of an unkle, but never by his pride. On fuch an occafion a poet may be

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allowed

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allowed to be obfcure, but inconfiftency

never can be right.

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The Ode for St. Cecilia's Day was undertaken at the defire of Steele in this the author is generally confeffed to have mifcarried, yet he has mifcarried only as compared with Dryden; for he has far outgone other competitors. Dryden's plan is better chofen; hiftory will always take ftronger hold of the attention than fable: the paffions excited by Dryden are the pleafures and pains of real life, the fcene of Pope is laid in imaginary existence; Pope is read with calm acquiefcence, Dryden with turbu lent delight; Pope hangs upon the ear, and Dryden finds the paffes of the mind.

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Both the odes want the effential conftituent of metrical compofitions, the ftated recurrence of fettled numbers. It may be alleged, that Pindar is faid by Horace to have written numeris lege folutis; but as no fuch lax performances have been tranfmitted to us, the meaning of that expreffion cannot be fixed; and perhaps the like return might properly be made to a modern Pindarist, as Mr. Cobb received from Bentley, who, when he found his criticisms upon a Greek Exercife, which Cobb had prefented, refuted one after another by Pindar's authority, cried out at last, Pindar was a bold fellow, but thou art an impudent one.

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