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"of pofterity, till time hath ftampt a kind of "facredness upon it, which it would now be a

literary impiety to blafpheme. There are «fome amongst thofe, whom their advocate "hath named, I cannot fpeak or think of but "with a reverence only fhort of idolatry. Not "this nation only but all Europe hath been en<< lightened by their labours: The great princi"ple of nature, the very law, upon which the << whole fyftem of the universe moves and gras "vitates, hath been developed and demon"ftrated by the penetrating, I had almost said "the præternatural, powers of our immortal "Newton. The prefent race of philofophers

can only be confidered as his difciples; but they "are difciples, who do honour to their master:

If the principle of gravitation be the grand "defideratum of philofophy, the discovery is "with him, the application, inferences and ad

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vantages of that discovery are with those, «who fucceed him; and can we accufe the

prefent age of being idle or unable to avail "themfelves of the ground he gave them? Let K me remind you that our prefent folar system "is furnished with more planets than Newton "knew; that our late obfervations upon the "tranfit of the planet Venus were decifive for "the proof and confirmation of his fyftem; that << we

"we have circumnavigated the globe again and « again; that we can boast the researches and "difcoveries of a Captain Cook, who, though " he did not invent the compass, employed it as no man ever did, and left a map behind him, compared to which Sir Ifaac Newton's was a "fheet of nakedness and error: It is with

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gra

vitation therefore as with the loadftone; their

powers have been difcovered by our predeces"fors, but we have put them to their nobleft ❝ufes.

"The venerable names of Bacon and Locke "were, if I mistake not, mentioned in the fame "clafs with Newton, and though the learned "gentleman could no doubt have made his fe«lection more numerous, I doubt if he could "have made it ftronger or more to the purpose "of his own affertions.

"I have always regarded Bacon as the father "of philofophy in this country, yet it is no "breach of candor to observe that the darkness "of the age, which he enlightened, affords a fa"vourable contraft to fet off the fplendor of "his talents: But do we, who applaud him, "read him? Yet, if fuch is our veneration for why do we not? writers have dis

"times long fince gone by,

"The fact is, intermediate

"feminated

"feminated his original matter through more

pleafing vehicles, and we concur, whether "commendably or not, to put his volumes upon "the fuperannuated lift, allowing him however "an unalienable compenfation upon our praise,

and referving to ourselves a right of taking "him from the fhelf, whenever we are disposed "to fink the merit of a more recent author by a comparison with him. I will not therefore "difturb his venerable duft, but turn without "further delay to the author of the Effay upon "the Human Understanding.

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"This Effay, which profeffes to define every "thing, as it arifes or paffes in the mind, muft "ultimately be compiled from obfervations of "it's author upon himfelf and within himfelf: "Before I compare the merit of this work "therefore with the merit of any other man's "work of our own immediate times, I must

'

compare what it advances as general to man"kind with what I perceive within my parti"cular felf; and upon this reference, speaking "only for an humble individual, I muft own to "my fhame, that my understanding and the "author's do by no means coincide either in de"finitions or ideas. I may have reason to la"ment the inaccuracy or the fluggishness of my (C own

"own fenfes and perceptions, but I cannot fubmit "to any man's doctrine against their conviction: "I will only fay that Mr. Locke's metaphyfics "are not my metaphyfics, and, as it would be "an ill compliment to any one of our contem"poraries to compare him with a writer, who "to me is unintelligible, fo will I hope it can "never be confidered as a reflection upon fo ડ great a name as Mr. Locke's, not to be under« ftood by fo infignificant a man as myself.

"Well, fir," cried the fullen gentleman with a fneer, "I think you have contrived to dispatch "our philofophers; you have now only a few "obfcure poets to difmifs in like manner, and you will have a clear field for yourself and your friends."

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N° CXLVIII. A

Ingeniis non ille favet plauditque fepultis,
Noftra fed impugnat, nos noftraque lividus odit.

T

(HORAT.)

HE farcaftic fpeech of the old Snarler, with which we concluded the last paper, being undeferved on the part of the perfon, to whom it

VOL. V.

R

was

was applied, was very properly disregarded; and the clergyman proceeded as follows:

"The poets you have named will never be "mentioned by me but with a degree of enthu "fiafm, which I fhould rather expect to be ac "cused of carrying to excess than of erring in "the oppofite extreme, had you not put me on << my guard against partiality by charging me "with it beforehand. I fhall therefore, without "further apology or preface begin with Shake"fpear, first named by you and first in fame as "well as time: It would be madnefs in me to "think of bringing any poet now living into "competition with Shakespear; but I hope it "will not be thought madness, or any thing re"fembling it, to obferve to you, that it is not "in the nature of things poffible for any poet to "appear in an age fo polifhed as this of our's, "who can be brought into any critical compa"rifon with that extraordinary and eccentric ❝genius.

"For let us confider the two great striking "features of his drama, fublimity and character. "Now fublimity involves fentiment and expref"fion; the first of these is in the foul of the "poet; it is that portion of inspiration, which "we perfonify when we call it the Mufe; fo

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