N. Blakey inv. & del. G.Scotin Sculp Boastfull & rough your first Son is a Squire; The next a Tradesman, meek and much a Siar; Tom struts a Soldier, open, bold and Brave; Will sneaks a Scrivener, an exceeding Knave. Char: of Men 3 EPISTLE I. E S, you defpife the man to Books confin'd, Tho' what he learns he speaks, and may advance Some gen'ral maxims, or be right by chance. COMMENTARY. Epistle of the Knowledge and Characters of Men.] Whoever compares this with the former Editions of this poem, will obferve that the order and difpofition of the feveral parts are entirely changed and tranfpofed, tho' with hardly the Alteration of a fingle Word. When the Editor, at the Author's defire, first examined this Epiftle, he was furprized to find it contain a number of fine obfervations, without order, connexion, or dependence: but much more fo, when, on an attentive review, he faw, that, if put into a different form, on an idea he then conceived, it would have all the clearnefs of method, and force of connected reafoning. Indeed the obfervations then appeared to him fo jumbled and confounded in one another, as if the feveral parts of a regular poem had been rolled up in tickets, drawn at random, and then fet down as they arose. The author appeared as much ftruck with the obfervation as the editor, and agreed to put it in the prefent form, which has given the poem all the juftnefs of a true compofition. The introduction of the epiftle on Riches was in the fame condition, and underwent the fame reform. The coxcomb bird, fo talkative and grave, 5 That from his cage cries Cuckold, Whore, andKnave, Tho' many a paffenger he rightly call, You hold him no Philofopher at all. Co OMMENTARY. EPISTLEI.] This Epiftle is divided into three principal parts or members: The first (from 1 to 99) treats of the difficulties in coming at the Knowledge and true Characters of Men. -The fecond (from 98 to 173) of the wrong means which NOTES. of them, illuftrated by Pictures, Characters, and Examples. The Third Book regarded Civil Regimen, or the Science for the only work of his riper Years but was, partly thro' ill health, partly through difcouragements from the depra of Politics, in which the feve-vity of the times, and partly on ral forms of a Republic were to have been examined and explained; together with the - feveral Modes of Religious Worship, as far forth as they affect Society; between which the Author always fuppofed there was the most interesting relation and clofeft connection; fo that this part would prudential and other confiderations, interrupted, poftponed, and, laftly, in a manner laid afide. But as this was the Author's favourite Work, which more exactly reflected the Image of his ftrong capacious Mind, and as we can have but a very imperfect idea of it from the dis have treated of Civil and Re-jecta membra Poeta that now ligious Society in their full ex tent. The Fourth and laft Book concerned private Ethics or practical Morality, confidered in all the Circumftances, Orders, Profeffions, and Stations of human Life. The Scheme of all this had been maturely digefted, and communitated to the L. Bolinbroke, Dr. Swift, and one or two more, and was intended remain, it may not be amifs to be a little more particular concerning each of these projected books. The FIRST, as it treats of Man in the abstract, and confiders him in general under every of his relations, becomes the foundation, and furnishes out the subjects, of the three following; fo that The SECOND BOOK takes up again the First and Second And yet the fate of all extremes is fuch, Men may be read, as well as Books, too much. 10 COMMENTARY. both Philofophers and Men of the World have employed in furmounting thofe difficulties. And the third (from 174 to the end) treats of the right means, with directions for the applica tion of them. VER. I. Yes, you defpife the man &c.] The Epiftle is introduced (from 1 to 15) in obferving, that the Knowledge of Men is neither to be gained by Books nor Experience alone, but by the joint ufe of both; for that the Maxims of the Philofopher and the Conclufions of the Man of the World can, feparately, but supply a vague and superficial knowledge: And often not fo much; as those Maxims are founded in the abstract notions of the writer; and thefe conclufions are drawn from the uncertain NOTES. Epiftles of the First Book, and treats of man in his intellectual Capacity at large, as has been explained above. Of this, only a small part of the conclufion (which, as we faid, was to have contained a Satire against the mifapplication of Wit and Learning) may be found in the Fourth book of the Dunciad, and up and down, occafionally, in the other three. The THIRD Book, in like manner, reaffumes the fubject of the Third Epiftle of the First, which treats of Man in his Social, Political, and Religious Capacity. But this part the Poet afterwards conceived might be best executed in an EPIC POEM; as the Action would make it more animated, and the Fable lefs invidious; in which all the great Principles of true and falfe Governments and Religions fhould be chiefly delivered in feigned Examples. The FOURTH and laft Book purfues the fubject of the Fourth Epiftle of the First, and treats of Ethics, or practical Morality; and would have confifted of many members; of which the four following Epiftles were detached Portions: the two first, on the Characters of Men and Women, being the introductory part of this concluding Book. To written Wisdom, as another's, lefs: Maxims are drawn from Notions, those from Guess. COMMENTARY. conjectures of the observer: But when the writer joins his fpeculation to the experience of the obferver, his notions are rectified into principles and when the observer regulates his experience on the general principles of the writer, his conjectures advance into fcience. Such is the reafoning of this introduction; which, befides its propriety to the general fubject of the Epistle, has a peculiar relation to each of its parts or members: For the caufes of the difficulty in coming at the knowledge and characters of men, explained in the firft, will fhew the importance of what is here delivered, of the joint affiftance of fpeculation and practice to furmount it; and the wrong means, which both philofophers and men of the world have employed in overcoming those difficulties difcourfed of in the fecond, have their fource here deduced, which is feen to be a feparate adherence of each to his own method of ftudying men, and a mutual contempt of the others. Lastly, the right means delivered in the third, will be of little ufe in the application, without the direction here delivered: For tho' obfervation difcovered a ruling paffion, yet, without a philofophic knowledge of the human mind, we may eafily miftake a fecondary and fubfidiary paffion for the principal, and fo be never the nearer in the Knowledge of Men. But the elegant and eafy Form of the introduction equals the Propriety of its matter; for the epiftle being addreffed to a noble perfon, diftinguished for his knowledge of the World, it opens, as it were, in the midst of a familiar converfe, which lets us at once into his character; where the poet, by affecting only to ridicule the ufelefs Knowledge of Men confined to Books, and under the appearance of extolling only that acquired by the World, artfully infinuates how equally defective this may be, when conducted on the fame narrow principle: Which is too often the cafe, as men of the world are more than ordinarily prejudiced in favour of their own obfervations for the fake of the NOTES. VER. 5. The coxcomb bird, c.] A fine turn'd allufion to what Philoftratus faid of Euxehus, the Tutor of Apollonius, that he could only repeat fome fentences of Pythagoras, like thofe coxcomb birds, who were taught their swearls and their |