VII.

A

PARALLEL

OF THE

CHARACTERS

OF

Mr. POPE and Mr. DRYDEN,

As drawn by certain of their Contemporaries.

Mr. POPE,

His POLITICS, RELIGION, MORALS.

MR. Pope is an open and mortal enemy to his

country and the commonwealth of learning. Some call him a Popish whig, which is directly inconfiftent b. Pope, as a Papift, must be a tory and high flyer c. He is both whig and tory d.

He hath made it his cuftom to cackle to more than one party in their own fentiments.

In his Mifcellanies, the Perfons abused are, The KING, the QUEEN, His late MAJESTY, both Houses of

a Dennis, Rem. on the Rape of the Lock, Pref. p. xii. Dunciad diffected. © Pref. to Gulliverjana.

d Dennis, Character of Mr. P.

Theobald, Letter in Mift's Journals, June 22, 1728.

TIVES notoriously libelled. It is fcandalum magnatum, yea of MAJESTY itself e.

He looks upon God's Gospel as a foolish fable, like the Pope, to whom he is a pitiful purveyor f. His very christianity may be queftioned 8. He ought to expect more severity than other men, as he is moft unmerciful

in his own reflections on others h: With as good a right as his Holiness, he fets up for poetical infallibility i.

Mr. DRYDEN only a Verfifier.

His whole Libel is all bad matter, beautified (which is all that can be faid of it) with good metre k. Mr. Dryden's genius did not appear in any thing more than his Verfification, and whether he is to be ennobled for that only, is a question1.

Mr. DRYDEN'S VIRGIL.

Tonfon calls it Dryden's Virgil, to fhew that this is not that Virgil fo admired in the Auguftan age; but a Virgil of another stamp, a filly, impertinent, nonfenfical writer. None but a Bavius, a Mævius, or a Bathyllus, carped at Virgil m; and none but fuch unthinking Vermin admire his Translator 1. It is true, foft and eafy lines might become Ovid's Epiftles or Art of Love-But Virgil, who is all great and majestic, &c. requires ftrength of lines, weight of words, and clofe

Whip and Key, 4to, printed for R. Janeway, 1682. Pref. f Ibid. g Milbourn, p. 9. h Ibid. p. 175. i Pag. 39. k Whip and Key, Pref. Effay on Criticism, p. 84.

a Pag. 35.

1 Oldmixon,

Milbourn, p. 2.

of PARLIAMENT, the Privy-Council, the Bench of BISHOPS, the established CHURCH, the prefent MINISTRY, &c. To make Sense of fome paffages, they must be conftrued into ROYAL SCANDAL f.

He is a Popish Rhymester, bred up with a contempt of the facred Writings. His Religion allows him to destroy Hereticks, not only with his pen, but with fire and fword; and fuch were all thofe unhappy Wits whom he facrificed to his accurfed Popish Principles h. It deserved vengeance to fuggeft, that Mr. Pope had lefs Infallibility, than his Namefake at Rome i.

Mr. POPE only a Verfifier.

The fmooth numbers of the Dunciad are all that recommend it, nor has it any other merit k. It must be owned that he hath got a notable knack of rhyming and writing smooth verse 1.

Mr. P O P E's HOMER.

The Homer which Lintot prints, does not talk like Homer, but like Pope; and he who translated him, one would fwear, had a hill in Tipperary for his Parnaffus, and a puddle in fome Bog for his Hippocrene m. He has no Admirers among thofe that can distinguish, difcern, and judge n.

He

f Lift, at the end of a Collection of Verfes, Letters, Advertisments, 8vo. printed for A. Moore, 1728, and the Preface to it, p. 6. g Dennis's Remarks on Homer, p. 27. h Preface to Gulliveriana, p. 11. i Dedication to the Collection of Verses, Letters, &c. P. 9. k Mift's Journal of June 8, 1728. 1 Character of Mr. P. and Dennis on Hom. Remarks on Pope's Homer, p. 12.

m Dennis's ■ Ib. p. 14.

clofenefs of expreffion; not ah ambling Mufe running on Carpet ground, and fhod as lightly as a Newmarket racer. He has numberlefs faults in his Author's meaning, and in propriety of expreffion°.

Mr. DRYDEN understood no Greek nor Latin. Mr. Dryden was once, I have heard, at Westminster fchool Dr. Bufby would have whipt him for so childish a Paraphrafe P. The meaneft Pedant in England would whip a Lubber of twelve for conftruing so abfurdly 9. The Tranflator is mad': every line betrays his Stupidity ". The faults are innumerable, and convince me that Mr. Dryden did not, or would not understand his Authors. This fhews how fit Mr. D. may be to tranflate Homer! A mistake in a fingle letter might fall on the Printer well enough, but x for xwe must be the error of the Author: Nor had he art enough to correct it at the Prefs. Mr. Dryden writes for the Court Ladies -He writes for the Ladies, and not for ufe ".

The Tranflator puts in a little Burlesque now and then into Virgil, for a ragout to his cheated Subfcribers w.

Mr. DRYDEN tricked his Subscribers.

I wonder that any man, who could not but be conscious of his own unfitnefs for it, fhould go to amuse the learned world with fuch an undertaking! A man ought to value his Reputation more than Money; and

He hath a knack at smooth_verse, but without either Genius or good Sense, or any tolerable knowledge of English. The qualities which distinguish Homer are the beauties of his Diction, and the Harmony of his Verfification-But this little author, who is fo much in vogue, has neither Senfe in his thoughts, nor English in his expreffions °.

Mr. POPE understood no Greek.

He hath undertaken to tranflate Homer from the Greek, of which he knows not one word, into English, of which he understands as little P. I wonder how this Gentleman would look, should it be discovered, that he has not tranflated ten verfes together in any book of Homer with juftice to the Poet, and yet he dares reproach his fellow-writers with not understanding Greek 9. He has stuck fo little to his Original as to have his knowledge in Greek called in question'. I should be glad to know which it is of all Homer's Excellencies which has fo delighted the Ladies, and the Gentlemen who judge like Ladies s.

But he has a notable talent at Burlesque; his genius flides fo naturally into it, that he hath burlesqued Homer without defigning it.t.

Mr. POPE tricked his Subscribers. It is indeed fomewhat bold, and almoft prodigious,

for

• Character of Mr. P. p. 17. and Remarks on Hom. P Dennis's Remarks on Homer, p. 12.

p. 91.

9 Daily Jour. April 23, 1728.

Profound, Pref.

P. 66.

Suppl. to the

s Oldmixon, Effay on Criticism,

t Dennis's Remarks, p. 28.