"duke's death, all avenues were stopped to his preferment; and, during the reft of that reign, "he paffed his time with the Mufes and his "books, and fometimes the converfation of his "friends.

"When he had just got to be eafy in his for"tune, and was in a fair way to make it better, "death fwept him away, and in him deprived the "world of one of the best men, as well as one of "the beft geniuses, of the age. He died like a "Chriftian and a philofopher, in charity with all "mankind, and with an abfolute refignation to "the will of God. He kept up his good-humour "to the laft; and took leave of his wife and "friends, immediately before his laft agony, with "the fame tranquillity of mind, and the fame indifference for life, as though he had been upon taking but a fhort journey. He was twice mar"ried; firit to a daughter of Mr. Parfons, one of "the auditors of the revenue; and afterwards to a "daughter of Mr. Devenith, of a good family in "Dorfetfhire. By the firft he had a fon; and by "the fecond a daughter, married afterwards to Mr. "Fane. He died the fixth of December, 1718, "in the forty-fifth year of his age: and was bu"ried the nineteenth of the fame month in Weft"minfter-abbey, in the aile where many of our "English poets are interred, over-againft Chaucer, "his body being attended by a felect number of "his friends, and the dean and choir officiating at the funeral."

66

To this character, which is apparently given with the fondnefs of a friend, may be added the teftimony of Pope, who fays, in a letter to Bleunt, "Mr. Rowe accompanied me, and paffed a week

K. 6.

" in

.

"in the Foreft. I need not tell you how much a man of his turn entertained me; but I must ac quaint you, there is a vivacity and gaiety of difpofition, almoft peculiar to him, which make it "impoffible to part from him without that uneafi"nefs which generally fucceeds all our pleafure."

Pope has left behind him another mention of his companion, lefs advantageous, which is thus reported by Dr. Warburton:

"Rowe, in Mr. Pope's opinion, maintained a "decent character, but had no heart. Mr. Ad"difon was juftly offended with fome behaviour "which arofe from that want, and eftranged him"felf from him; which Rowe felt very feverely.

Mr. Pope, their common friend, knowing this, "took an opportunity, at fome juncture of Mr. "Addifon's advancement, to tell him how poor "Rowe was grieved at his difpleafure, and what "fatisfaction he expreffed at Mr. Addifon's good "fortune, which he expreffed fo naturally, that "he (Mr. Pope) could not but think him fincere. "Mr. Addifon replied, I do not fufpect that he "feigned; but the levity of his heart is fuch, that "he is ftruck with any new adventure; and it "would affect him juft in the fame manner, if he "heard I was going to be hanged.' Mr. Pope faid, "he could not deny but Mr. Addison understood "Rowe well."

This cenfure time has not left us the power of confirming or refuting; but obfervation daily fhews, that much ftrefs is not to be laid on hyperbolical accufations, and pointed fentences, which even he that utters them defires to be applauded rather than credited. Addifon can hardly be fupposed to have meant all that he faid. Few cha

racters

racters can bear the microfcopick fcrutiny of wit quickened by anger; and perhaps the best advice to authors would be, that they thould keep out of the way of one another.

Rowe is chiefly to be confidered as a tragick writer and a tranflator. In his attempt at comedy he failed fo ignominiously, that his Biter is not inferted in his works; and his occafional poems and short compofitions are rarely worthy of either praife or cenfure; for they feem the cafual fports of a mind feeking rather to amufe its leifure than to exercife its powers.

In the conftruction of his dramas, there is not much art; he is not a nice obferver of the Unities. He extends time and varies place as his convenience requires. To vary the place is not, in my opinion, any violation of Nature, if the change be made between the acts; for it is no lefs eafy for the fpectator to fuppofe himself at Athens in the fecond act, than at Thebes in the firft; but to change the fcene, as is done by Rowe, in the middle of an act, is to add more acts to the play, fince an act is fo much of the bufinefs as is tranfacted without interruption. Rowe, by this licence, eafily extricates himfelf from difficulties: as in Jane Gray, when we have been terrified with all the dreadful pomp of publick execution, and are wondering how the heroine or the poet will proceed, no fooner has Jane pronounced fome prophetick rhymes, than-pafs and be gone-the fcene clofes, and Pembroke and Gardiner are turned out upon the ftage.

I know not that there can be found in his plays any deep fearch into nature, any accurate difcriminations of kindred qualities, or nice difplay of

paffion

paffion in its progrefs; all is general and undefined. Nor does he much intereft or affect the auditor, except in Jane Shore, who is always feen and heard with pity. Alicia is a character of empty noife, with no refemblance to real forrow or to natural madnefs.

Whence, then, has Rowe his reputation? From the reasonablenefs and propriety of fome of his fcenes, from the elegance of his diction, and the fuavity of his verfe. He feldom moves either pity or terror, but he often elevates the fentiments; he feldom pierces the breaft, but he always delights the ear, and often improves the understanding.

His tranflation of the Golden Verfes, and of the first book of Quillet's Poem, have nothing in them remarkable. The Golden Verfes are tedious.

The verfion of Lucan is one of the greatest productions of English poetry; for there is perhaps none that fo completely exhibits the genius and fpirit of the original. Lucan is diftinguished by a kind of dictatorial or philofophic dignity, rather, as Quintilian obferves, declamatory than poetical; full of ambitious morality and pointed fentences, comprised in vigorous and animated lines. This character Rowe has very diligently and fuccefsfully preferved. His verfification, which is fuch as his contemporaries practifed, without any attempt at innovation or improvement, feldom wants either melody or force. His author's fenfe is fometimes. a little diluted by additional infufions, and fometimes weakened by too much expanfion. But fuch faults are to be expected in all tranflations, from the constraint of measures and diffimilitude of languages. The Pharfalia of Rowe deferves more notice than it obtains, and as it is more read will be more esteemed.

ADDISON.

JOSEPH ADDISON was born on the first of May, 1672, at Milfton, of which his father, Lancelot Addifon, was then rector, near Ambrofebury in Wiltshire, and appearing weak and unlikely to live, he was chriftened the fame day. After the ufual domeftic education, which, from the character of his father, may be reasonably fuppofed to have given him ftrong impreffions of piety, he was committed to the care of Mr. Naish at Ambrofebury, and afterwards of Mr. Taylor at Salisbury.

Not to name the fchool or the mafters of men illuftrious for literature, is a kind of hiftorical fraud, by which honeft fame is injuriously diminifhed I would therefore trace him through the whole procefs of his education. In 1683, in the beginning of his twelfth year, his father, being made dean of Lichfield, naturally carried his family to his new refidence, and, I believe, placed him for fome time, probably not long, under Mr. Shaw, then mafter of the fchool at Lichfield, father of the late Dr. Peter, Shaw. Of this interval his biographers have given no account; and I know it only from a ftory of a barring-out, told

me,