Not cure him quite of such a malady,
Caught by so many surfeits, which have fill'd
His blood and brain thus full of crudities:
'Tis necessary therefore he observe

A strict and wholesome diet. Look you take
Each morning of old Cato's principles

A good draught next your heart; that walk upon,
Till it be well digested: then come home,
And taste a piece of Terence, suck his phrase
Instead of liquorice; and, at any hand,

Shun Plautus and old Ennius; they are meats
Too harsh for a weak stomach. Use to read
(But not without a tutor) the best Greeks,
As Orpheus, Musæus, Pindarus,

Hesiod, Callimachus, and Theocrite,
High Homer; but beware of Lycophron,
He is too dark and dangerous a dish.

You must not hunt for wild outlandish terms,
To stuff out a peculiar dialect;

But let your matter run before your words.
And if at any time you chance to meet

Some Gallo-Belgic phrase, you shall not straight
Rack your poor verse to give it entertainment,
But let it pass; and do not think yourself

gives to Lexiphanes. It will not be an unprofitable amusement to the learned reader to follow our author through this part of Lucian, and observe with what happy dexterity he has contrived to avail himself of his sentiments, and exemplify his precepts.

Some Gallo-Belgic phrase.] This alludes to the Latinity of this celebrated political 'Register,' as Mr. Chalmers aptly terms it, which was now much read. Mention of it is made by almost all the writers of Jonson's age. As it treated of contemporary events, treaties, sieges, &c. in a dead language, it was necessarily driven to the use of awkward and unwarranted terms, which Crispinus is here judiciously advised to "let pass." This is all levelled at Marston, who has too many of these Gallo-Belgic phrases in his Plays and Satires. Affectation of wild outlandish terms cannot be charged on Decker, whose crying sins are roughness and vulgarity.

Much damnified, if you do leave it out,
When nor your understanding, nor the sense
Could well receive it. This fair abstinence,
In time, will render you more sound and clear:
And this have I prescribed to you, in place
Of a strict sentence; which till he perform,
Attire him in that robe. And henceforth learn
To bear yourself more humbly; not to swell,
Or breathe your insolent and idle spite

On him whose laughter can your worst affright.
Tib. Take him away.

Cris. Jupiter guard Cæsar!

Virg. And for a week or two see him lock'd In some dark place, removed from company; He will talk idly else after his physic.

up

Now to you, sir. [to Demetrius.] The extremity

of law

Awards you to be branded in the front,

For this your calumny: but since it pleaseth Horace, the party wrong'd, t' intreat of Cæsar A mitigation of that juster doom,

With Cæsar's tongue thus we pronounce your sen

tence.

Demetrius Faunius, thou shalt here put on
That coat and cap, and henceforth think thyself
No other than they make thee; vow to wear them
In every fair and generous assembly,

Till the best sort of minds shall take to knowledge
As well thy satisfaction, as thy wrongs.

Hor. Only, grave prætor, here, in open court, I crave the oath for good behaviour May be administer'd unto them both.

Virg. Horace, it shall: Tibullus, give it them. Tib. Rufus Laberius Crispinus, and Demetrius Fannius, lay your hands on your hearts. You shall here solemnly attest and swear, that never, after this instant, either at booksellers stalls, in taverns,

two-penny rooms," tyring-houses, noblemen's butteries, puisnés chambers, (the best and farthest places where you are admitted to come,) you shall once offer or dare (thereby to endear yourself the more to any player, enghle, or guilty gull in your company) to malign, traduce, or detract the person or writings of Quintus Horatius Flaccus, or any other eminent man, transcending you in merit, whom your envy shall find cause to work upon, either for that,

9-two-penny rooms, tyring-houses, noblemen's butteries, puisnés chambers, the best and farthest places where you are admitted to come.] Mr. Malone thinks the observation of Pope, namely, that "players, in Shakspeare's time, were led into the buttery by the steward, not placed at the lord's table,” originated from an expression in the Taming of the Shrew:

"Go, sirrah, take them to the buttery," &c.

But there can, I think, be little doubt that Pope had this very passage of Jonson, which has so strangely escaped the commen. tators, in his thoughts; at any rate, it is fully sufficient to justify the assertion. With great deference to Mr. Malone, I conceive, that even the respectable names which he mentions, Heminge, Burbage, and Lowin were seldom to be found at "my lord's table, or my ladie's toilette." Shakspeare and, above all, Jonson, were, it is to be presumed, free of both; not, however, as players, but as distinguished writers: indeed Jonson's familiar friends are well known to have been among the first for rank and talents in the state. This is overlooked or forgotten by the calumniators of the present day, who enjoy a malignant pleasure in talking of this great poet, as if, like master Stephen, he had kept company with none but the archers of Finsbury." His contemporaries, however, were well acquainted with the fact; to which they have many envious allusions. It is for this reason that Crispinus is made to say, (p. 440,) "Troth, Horace, thou art exceeding happy in thy friends, they are all most choice spirits, and of the first rank of Romans ;" and that he and Demetrius are, in the "oath" below, compelled to abjure "maligning him for keeping better acquaintance than themselves." Decker, however, often returned to the charge, in the Satiromastix; which, as Jonson had anticipated it in the present piece, argues no great felicity of invention.

or for keeping himself in better acquaintance, or enjoying better friends; or if, transported by any sudden and desperate resolution, you do, that then you shall not under the batoon, or in the next presence, being an honourable assembly of his favourers, be brought as voluntary gentlemen to undertake the forswearing of it. Neither shall you, at any time, ambitiously affecting the title of the Untrussers or Whippers of the age, suffer the itch of writing to over-run your performance in libel, upon pain of being taken up for lepers in wit, and, losing both your time and your papers, be irrecoverably forfeited to the hospital of fools. So help you our Roman gods, and the Genius of great Cæsar! Virg. So now dissolve the court.

Hor. Tib. Gal. Mec. And thanks to Cæsar, That thus hath exercised his patience.

Cas. We have, indeed, you worthiest friends of Cæsar.

It is the bane and torment of our ears,

To hear the discords of those jangling rhymers,
That with their bad and scandalous practices
Bring all true arts and learning in contempt.
But let not your high thoughts descend so low
As these despised objects; let them fall.
With their flat groveling souls: be you yourselves;
And as with our best favours you stand crown'd,
So let your mutual loves be still renown'd.
Envy will dwell where there is want of merit,
Though the deserving man should crack his spirit.

Blush, folly, blush: here's none that fears
The wagging of an ass's ears,

Although a wolfish case he wears.
Detraction is but baseness', varlet;

And apes are apes, though clothed in scarlet.

[Exeunt,

Rumpatur, quisquis rumpitur invidia.

"Here, reader, in place of the epilogue, was meant to thee 66 an apology from the author, with his reasons for the publishing "of this book: but, since he is no less restrained, than thou "deprived of it by authority, he prays thee to think charitably "of what thou hast read, till thou mayest hear him speak what "he hath written."*

HORACE and TREBATIUS.

A Dialogue.'

Sat. I. Lib. 2.

Hor. There are to whom I seem excessive sour,
And past a satire's law t' extend my power:
Others, that think whatever I have writ
Wants pith and matter to eternize it;

And that they could, in one day's light, disclose
A thousand verses, such as I compose.
What shall I do, Trebatius? say.

Treb Surcease.

*This was subjoined to the first edition of the Poetaster. It does not appear why the restraint of which Jonson complains was imposed; but such was then the servile and dependent state of the stage, that the actors were at the mercy of any man of fashion who thought it worth his while to complain of them.

This Dialogue, which is not in the quarto, (see p. 464,) bears no appearance of having been spoken on the stage; though it stands in the folio as the concluding scene of the third act. I have nothing to add on its merits; nor does it seem to call for any particular notice.