live: One may be afhamed to consume half one's days in bringing sense and rhyme together: and what Critic can be fo unreasonable, as not to leave a man time enough for any more ferious employment, or more agreeable amusement? The only plea I fhall ufe for the favour of the public, is, that I have as 'great a refpect for it, as most authors have for themselves; and that I have facrificed much of my own felf-love for its fake, in preventing not only many mean things from feeing the light, but many which I thought tolerable. I would not be like those Authors, who forgive themselves fome particular lines for the fake of a whole Poem, and vice verfa a whole Poem for the fake of fome particular lines. I believe no one qualification is fo likely to make a good writer, as the power of rejecting his own thoughts; and it must be this (if any thing) that can give me a chance to be one. For what I have published, I can only hope to be pardoned; but for what I have burned, I deserve to be praised. On this account the world is under fome obligation to me, and owes me the justice in return, to look upon no verfes as mine that are not inferted in this collection*. And perhaps nothing could make it worth my while to own what are really fo, but to avoid the imputation of fo many This fair and honeft ftatement fhould furely have prevented the admiffion of many things, which have been inferted, in Pope's Works, contrary to his own intentions. dull dull and immoral things, as partly by malice, and partly by ignorance, have been ascribed to me. I muft further acquit myself of the prefumption of having lent my name to recommend any Miscellanies, or Works of other men; a thing I never thought becoming a Person who has hardly credit enough to anfwer for his own. In this office of collecting my pieces, I am al together uncertain, whether to look upon myself as a man building a monument, or burying the dead. If Time shall make it the former, may these Poems (as long as they laft) remain as a teftimony, that their Author never made his talents fubfervient to the mean and unworthy ends of Party or Self-intereft; the gratification of public prejudices, or private paffions; the flattery of the undeferving, or the infult of the unfortunate. If I have written well, let it be confidered that 'tis what no man can do without good fenfe, a quality that not only renders one capable of being a good writer, but a good man. And if I have made any acquifition in the opinion of any one under the notion of the former, let it be continued to me under no other title than that of the latter. But if this publication be only a more folemn funeral of my remains, I defire it may be known that I die in charity, and in my fenfes; without any murmurs against the justice of this age, or any mad appeals appeals to pofterity. I declare I fhall think the world in the right, and quietly fubmit to every truth which time fhall difcover to the prejudice of these writings; not fo much as wishing fo irrational a thing, as that every body should be deceived merely for my credit. However, I defire it may then be confidered, That there are very few things in this collection which were not written under the age of five-and-twenty fo that my youth may be made (as it never fails to be in Executions) a cafe of compaffion. That I was never fo concerned about my works as to vindicate them in print, believing, if any thing was good, it would defend itself, and what was bad could never be defended. That I ufed no artifice to raise or continue a reputation, depreciated no dead author I was obliged to, bribed no living one with unjust praise, infulted no adverfary* with ill language; or, when I could not attack * Dr. Warton fays "this was written in 1716; did our author recollect it in 1729?" Who can help grieving, indeed, for the weakness of our beft refolutions, when we reflect that the heart and hand which dictated and wrote thefe manly fentiments, should be capable of nourishing refentment, and directing the fhafts of increasing hoftility, against a female, once the object of tenderness and refpect. I allude to the lines on lady M. W. Montagu, which no provocation could juftify. Nothing, however, can be more juft and beautiful, than the fentiments and language of the author conveyed in this paffage. If he departed from them in his more advanced age, let us attribute fomething to the irritation of fickness and bodily infirmity, to the disappointments which increafing years neceffarily bring; to warmth of feelings unreturned, and to ideas of unkind treatment exaggerated, by a mind too refined in its fenfations of wrong. a Rival's a Rival's works, encouraged reports against his Morals. To conclude, if this volume perifh, let it ferve as a warning to the Critics, not to take too much pains for the future to deftroy fuch things as will die of themselves; and a Memento mori to fome of my vain contemporaries the Poets, to teach them that, when real merit is wanting, it avails nothing to have been encouraged by the great, commended by the eminent, and favoured by the public in ge neral *. Nov. 10, 1716. * I cannot forbear adding how excellently well written is Cowley's preface to his works, folio, 1659; and how much fuperior it is to Sprat's Life of that amiable Author. Both Cowley and Spenfer wrote profe excellently. J.WARTON. VARIATIONS IN THE AUTHOR'S MANUSCRIPT PREFACE. AFTER p. 5. I. 13. it followed thus-For my part, I confefs, had I feen things in this view at first, the public had never been troubled either with my writings, or with this apology for them. I am fenfible how difficult it is to speak of one's felf with decency: but when a man must speak of himself, the best way is to speak truth of himself, or, he may depend upon it, others will do it for him. I'll therefore make this Preface a general confefsion of all my thoughts of my own Poetry, refolving with the fame freedom to expofe myself, as it is in the power of any other to expose them. In the first place, I thank God and nature, that I was born with a love to poetry*; for nothing more conduces to fill up all the intervals of our time, or, if rightly used, to make the whole course of life entertaining: Cantantes licet ufque (minus via lædet). 'Tis a vaft happiness to poffefs the plea *But at the conclufion of his translation of the Iliad, he contradicts this fentiment, by applying to himself a passage of M. Antoninus. J. WARTON. fures |