calm and patient under Contradiction, because he knows he is in the right, while Paffion, Prejudice and Prepoffeffion grow violent and furious by being oppos'd, because then they begin to doubt that they are in the wrong; That Audiences are often pack'd as well as Juries, and that therefore it fometimes. happens, that while the Innocent are condemn'd, the Guilty are acquitted by a Verdict of Ignoramus.

That as for the Authors who have publish'd their Encomiums of Cato, which they nickname Criticifms, thofe Authors appear to have been retain'd; and, fo like confcientious: Lawyers, believe it their Duty to fay all that they can for their Client, and not one Word against him, that they may honeftly earn their Fees; but that the Author of CATO Examin'd has behav'd himself like an errant Wag, and at the fame time that he has prais'd him exprefly, has implicitly damn'd him to the Pit of Hell, and has acted the Part of Sempronius, who while he openly bullies for Cato, is his mortal Enemy in his Heart.

That as for Squire Ironfide, he comes of a Race that has been most unfortunate in their Talents for Criticism; That his Grand-Father, Squire Bicker ftaff, who was fometimes entertaining in other things, was almoft never in the right when he pretended to judge of Poetry; That his Father, Mr. Spectator, had been fo merrily in the wrong, as to take Pains to reconcile us to the old Doggrel of Chevy-Chafe and the Three Children, and to put Impotence and Imbecillity upon us for Simplicity; That he had publish'd a certain Criticifm upon Milton, in which the Reverfe of almost every thing that he has affirm'd is true; That he has had the Affurance to fay in it, That The Paradife Loft of Milton has an Unity of Action, whereas in that Poem there are moft apparently two Actions, the War of the Angels being an Action by it felf, and having a juft Beginning, a Middle and an End; That he has affirm'd with ftill greater Affurance, That the Ilias of Homer has a Duplicity of Action, and has cited the Authority of Aristotle as a Proof of that Affertion; whereas Homer in that Poem has given the World a Pattern, which for Unity and Simplicity of Epick Action never

had

had any Parallel, and that Ariftotle has commended him for it no lefs than three times in his little Treatife of Poetry; That the faid Mr. Spectator had arraign'd and condemn'd the Poetical Justice of the Stage, and had publifh'd a great deal of falfe and abominable Criticism, in order to poifon his gentle Reader, and prepare the way for Cato.

That the Attempt of that undertaking Frenchman, who is at present tranflating Cato, has made the writing of a Criticifm upon it neceffary, which before was highly reasonable, becaufe the tranflating this Play into French being without Precedent or Example, will, together with the violent and general Applaufe it has met with, make it pafs for our Nonparello among foreign Nations; which will expofe our own to the Rallery of all Europe, unless we fhew, at the fame time, that we are not all fo ignorant or mistaken.

That as for the Objection of ill Nature, if I am in the right in my Criticisms, I may laugh at thofe who make it; That right Reason can never pafs for ill Nature, unless with those who are destitute of right Reafon; That 'tis a fenfeless thing to cherish Libellers and Lampooners, who defame the Virtues of others to the publick Detriment, and at the fame time to brand those with the Character of ill Nature, who discover the Errors of an Author's Understanding, only in order to that Author's Improvement, and the Advancement of a noble Art; That thofe fulfome Panegyrifts are rather to be esteem'd envious and ill-natur'd, who by naufeously flattering a very defective Author, and foothing him in his Errors and in his Ignorance, do, as it were, politickly fix him in his Follies, and render him proud and incorrigible.

That Cato's being writ with a Defign to fupport Liberty, is an Objection of no manner of Force; That let the Defign be what it will, the Effect is fure to be contrary; That the fhewing a Man of confummate Virtue unfortunate only for fupporting Liberty, muft of Neceffity in a free Nation be of pernicious Confequence, and muft justly raise the highest Indignation in all true Lovers of Liberty.

That

That my having made a great many Enemies by former Difputes of this Nature, is a certain Proof that I have been in the right in thofe Difputes, and that they who hate me for afferting Truth are refolv'd to remain in the wrong; That I enter'd into thofe Difputes, partly to advance the públick Good by advancing a noble Art, and partly to reront private Injuries; That either Caufe in it felf is good and juft, and that both together are strong and powerful, and that I hall have both together to apologize for my prefent Undertaking.

That if I have made numerous Enemies, I have made a few Friends, of which each fingly will outweigh all thofe numerous Enemies; That all reasonable Men, who by others Artifices, and their own Indolence, have been furpriz'd into an Approbation of this Play, will be glad to be undeceiv'd, as knowing well that tis their own Reafon and their own Difcernment that makes another Man's take Place with them ; That the very Tragick Stage appears to be finking, fince the great Success of one very faulty Play prognofticates its Ruin more than the Mifcarriage of twenty good ones; That a good Tragedy may mifcarry by the ill Performance of the Actors, by Prejudice, by Malice, by Squeamishness, but that a very faulty one can have great Succefs from almoft nothing but the general Intereft of the People; That this general ill Taste is partly the Effect of the Italian Opera; that a People accustom'd for fo many Years to that, are as ill-prepar'd to judge of a good Tragedy, as Children that are eating Sugar-plumbs. are to tafte Champaign and Burgundy; That nothing but a wholfome Criticifm can have Power to retrieve our Tafte; and, That the Errors of Cato must be fet in a true Light by me or fome other Perfon, or the Tragick Muse must be banish'd from this Ifland; That it is fet up for a Pattern, and extoll'd by fome Authors, who are famous for their want of Judg ment, not only before all our own, but above all ancient Tra-gedies; That the Intereft of the Common wealth of Learning lies at Stake, and the Reputation of Great-Britain; and, That he must be a pleasant Lover of his Country, and a worthy Member of the Common-wealth of Learning, who

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is afraid to affert the Intereft of the one, and to defend the Reputation of the other, leaft he should make fome mistaken Men his Enemies.

That as to my Refolution to approve of nothing which is lik'd by others, tis a Falfhood which carries its own Evidence with it; that I have writ whole Volumes which may fhew the contrary, and that the contrary may eafily be made to appear in the Remarks which I may make upon Cato.

Remarks

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Remarks upon CATO

T

HE 'forefaid Remonftrances of my Friends have at length so far prevail'd with me, that I have taken a refolution to make fome Remarks upon this Tragedy in the following Method.

First, I fhall endeveavour to fhew the Faults and Abfurdities which are to be found in this Tragedy.

Secondly, I fhall attempt to expofe the Artifices which made way for its great Succefs.

First, I fhall endeavour to fhew its Faults and Abfurdities, and here I defign to do Three Things.

i I fhall fhew what perfections are wanting to it, thro' the not observing several of the Rules of Ariftotle.

2. I fhall fhew with what Abfurdities it abounds, thro' the observing several of the Rules without any manner of Judgment or Difcretion.

3. I shall shew fome Faults and Ablurdities, which are fuch in Themselves, without any relation to the Rules.

Among the perfections which are wanting to this Tragedy, thro' the not obferving the Rules, is firft and chiefly the Fable, there being no Fable to this Tragedy. The Action of it which is the Death of Cato, is a particular Hiftorical Action, a relation of fomething which Cato did and fuffered, and not an action Allegorical and Univerfal. That it is not Allegorical, appears from hence, that it carries no moral Inftruction with it. For the Moral which is foifte'd in at the latter end of this Play, is wholly Foreign to it, and is not deriv'd from the Action of it, which is the Death of Cato.