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What Blackmore could contribute to the Succeffion, or what he imagined himself to have contributed, cannot now be known. That he had been of confiderable ufe, I doubt not but he believed, for I hold him to have been very honeft; honeft; but he might easily make a false estimate of his own importance: those whom their virtue reftrains from deceiving others, are often difpofed by their vanity to deceive themselves. Whether he promoted the Succeffion or not, he at leaft approved it, and adhered invariably to his principles and party through his whole life.

His ardour of poetry ftill continued; and not long after (1700) he published a Paraphrafe on the Book of Job, and other parts of the Scripture. This performance Dryden, who pursued him with great malignity, lived long enough to ridicule in a Prologue.

The wits eafily confederated against him, as Dryden, whofe favour they almost all courted, was his profeffed adverfary. He had befides given them reafon for refentment, as, in his Preface to Prince Arthur, he had faid of the Dramatick Writers almost

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all that was alleged afterwards by Collier; but Blackmore's cenfure was cold and general, Collier's was personal and ardent; Blackmore taught his reader to dislike, what Collier incited him to abhor.

In his Preface to King Arthur he endeavoured to gain at least one friend, and propitiated Congreve by higher praise of his Mourning Bride than it has obtained from any

other critick.

The fame year he published a Satire on Wit; a proclamation of defiance which united the poets almost all against him, and which brought upon him lampoons and ridicule from every fide. This he doubtlefs forefaw, and evidently defpifed; nor fhould his dignity of mind be without its praise, had he not paid the homage to greatness which he denied to genius, and degraded himself by conferring that authority over the national tafte, which he takes from the poets, upon men of high rank and wide influence, but of lefs wit, and not greater virtue.

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Here is again discovered the inhabitant of Cheapfide, whose head cannot keep his poetry unmingled with trade. To hinder that intellectual bankruptcy which he affects to fear, he will erect a Bank for Wit.

In this poem he juftly cenfured Dryden's impurities, but praised his powers; though in a fubfequent edition he retained the fatire and omitted the praise. What was his reason I know not; Dryden was then no longer in his way.

His head ftill teemed with heroick poetry, and (1705) he published Eliza in ten books. I am afraid that the world was now weary of contending about Blackmore's heroes; for I do not remember that by any author, ferious or comical, I have found Eliza either praised or blamed. She dropped, as it seems, dead-born from the prefs. It is never mentioned, and was never feen by me till I borrowed it for the present occasion. Jacob fays, it is corrected, and revifed for another impreffion; but the labour of revision was thrown away.

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From this time he turned fome of his thoughts to the celebration of living characters; and wrote a poem on the Kit-cat Club, and Advice to the Poets how to celebrate the Duke of Marlborough; but on occafion of another year of fuccefs, thinking himself qualified to give more inftruction, he again wrote a poem of Advice to a Weaver of Tapestry. Steele was then publishing the Tatler; and looking round him for fomething at which he might laugh, unluckily lighted on Sir Richard's work, and treated it with fuch contempt, that, as Fenton obferves, he put an end to the fpecies of writers that gave Advice to Painters.

Not long after (1712) he published Creation, a philofophical Poem, which has been, by my recommendation, inferted in the late collection. Whoever judges of this by any other of Blackmore's performances, will do it injury. The praife given it by Addison (Spec. 339) is too well known to be tranfcribed; but fome notice is due to the teftimony of Dennis, who calls it a philofo"phical Poem, which has equalled that of "Lucretius in the beauty of its verfification,

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"and infinitely furpaffed it in the folidity " and strength of its reasoning."

Why an author furpaffes himself, it is natural to enquire. I have heard from Mr. Draper, an eminent bookfeller, an account received by him from Ambrofe Philips, "That "Blackmore, as he proceeded in this poem, "laid his manuscript from time to time be"fore a club of wits with whom he affociated; "and that every man contributed, as he "could, either improvement or correction; "fo that," faid Philips, "there are perhaps

no where in the book, thirty lines together "that now ftand as they were originally "written."

The relation of Philips, I fuppofe, was true; but when all reasonable, all credible allowance is made for this friendly revifion, the author will still retain an ample dividend of praise; for to him muft always be affigned the plan of the work, the diftribution of its parts, the choice of topicks, the train of argument, and what is yet more, the general predominance of philofophical judgement and poetical spirit. Correction feldom effects

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