digreffions, that I would not wish them out of his Poem. I have already spoken of the CHARACTERS Of the Paradife Loft, and declared my opinion, as to the allegorical perfons who are introduced in it. If we look into the SENTIMENTS, I think they are fometimes defective under the following heads; firft, as there are feveral of them too much pointed, and fome that degenerate even into puns. Of this laft kind I am afraid is that in the first book, where, fpeaking of the pygmies, he calls them, "the fmall infantry "Warr'd on by cranes." Another blemish that appears in some of his thoughts, is his frequent allufion to heathen fables, which are not certainly of a piece with the divine fubject of which he treats. I do not find fault with thefe allufions, where the poet himself represents them as fabulous, as he docs in fome places, but where he mentions them as truths and matters of fact. The limits of my defign will not give me leave to be particular in inftances of this kind; the reader will eafily remark them in his perufal of the Poem. A third fault in his fentiments, is an unnecessary oftentation of learning, which likewise occurs very frequently. It is certain that both Homer and Virgil were mafters of all the learning of their times; but it shows itself in their works after an indirect and concealed manner. Milton feems ambitious of letting us know, by his excursions on free-will and predestination, and his many glances upon history, astronomy, geography, and the like, as well as by the terms and phrases he fometimes makes use of, that he was acquainted with the whole circle of arts and fciences. If, in the last place, we confider the LANGUAGE of this great poet, we must allow, what I have before hinted, that it is often too much laboured, and sometimes obfcured by old words, transpositions, and foreign idioms. Seneca's objection to the ftyle of a great author, Riget ejus oratio, nihil” in eâ placidum, nihil lene, is what many criticks make to Milton. As I cannot wholly refute it, fo I have already apologized for it to which I may further add, that Milton's fentiments and ideas were fo wonderfully fublime, that it would have been impoffible for him to have reprefented them in their full ftrength and beauty, without having recourfe to these foreign affiftances. Our language funk under him, and was unequal to that greatnefs of foul, which furnished him with such glorious conceptions. k A fecond fault in his language is, that he often affects a kind of jingle in his words, as in the following paffage, and many others: "And brought into the world a world of woe," 66 Begirt the Almighty throne Befeeching or befieging." "This tempted our attempt." "At one flight bound high overleap'd all bound." I know there are figures of this kind of fpeech, that some of the greatest ancients have been guilty of it, and that Aristotle himself has given it a place in his rhetorick among the beauties of that art. But, as it is in itself poor and trifling, it is I think at present univerfally exploded by all the masters of polite writing. k a kind of jingle in his words,] In the firft inftance, here cited by Addison, Milton is endeavoured to be exculpated by Atter. bury. See the Note, B. ix. 11. In the fecond, by doctor Newton. See Note, B. v. 869. In the third, and fourth, by proofs that they were the jingle of the age, See Notes, B. i. 642, B. iv. 181. From remarking a jingle of the fame kind, in a book familiar to him, and abounding with fuch paffages, I fufpect that Milton wrote, B. iii. 79. "O, then, at laft relent: Is there no place "Left for repentance, none for pardon left?" Where doctor Newton thinks the poet might have given it repent inftead of relent. But fee Sylvefter's Du Bartas, edit. 1621, p. 1111. "But will confefs, if hee offend, "Relent, Repent, and foon amend, The laft fault which I fhall take notice of in Milton's ftyle, is the frequent use of what the learned call technical words, or terms of art. It is one of the. greatest beauties of poetry, to make hard things intelligible, and to deliver what is abftrufe of itself in fuch eafy language as may be understood by ordinary readers; besides that the knowledge of a poet should rather seem born with him, or inspired, than drawn from books and fyftems. I have often wondered how Mr. Dryden could tranflate a paffage out of Virgil after the following manner : "Tack to the larboard, and stand off to fea, "Veer itarboard fea and land." Milton makes ufe of larboard in the fame manner. When he is upon building, he mentions Dorick pillars, pilafters, cornice, freeze, architrave. When he talks of heavenly bodies, you meet with ecliptick and eccentrick, the trepidation, ftars dropping from the zenith, rays culminating from the equator: to which might be added many instances of the like kind in several other arts and fciences. I have feen, in the works of a modern philofopher, a map of the spots in the fun, My defcription of the faults and blemishes in Paradife Loft, be confidered as a piece of the fame nature. To pursue the allufion; As it is observed, that, among the bright parts of the luminous body may above-mentioned, there are fome which glow more intensely, and dart a stronger light than others; fo, notwithstanding I have already shown Milton's Poem to be very beautiful in general, I fhall now proceed to take notice of fuch beauties as appear to me more exquifite than the reft. Milton has proposed the subject of his Poem in the following verses: "Of Man's firft difobedience, and the fruit "Of that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste Brought death into the world and all our woe, "With lofs of Eden, till one greater Man "Reftore us, and regain the blissful feat, 66 Sing, heavenly Muse !" These lines are perhaps as plain, fimple, and unadorned, as any of the whole Poem, in which particular the author has conformed himself to the example of Homer, and the precept of Horace. His invocation to a work which turns in a great measure upon the creation of the world, is very properly made to the Muse who inspired Mofes in those Books from whence our author drew his fubject, and to the Holy Spirit who is therein reprefented as operating after a particular manner in the first production of nature. This whole exordium rifes very happily into noble language and fentiment, as I think the tranfition to the fable is exquifitely beautiful and natural. The nine days aftonishment, in which the Angels lay entranced after their dreadful overthrow |