Prefaces Biographical and Critical, to the Works of the English Poets (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated.1781 Excerpt: ... faiy. He was, however, foon difmiffed; and the whole procefs was probably intended rather to intimidate Pope than to punifh Whitehead.. Pope never afterwards attempted to join the patriot with the poet, nor drew.his pen upon ftatefmen. That he defifled from his attempts of reformation is imputed, by his commentator, to his defpair of prevailing over the corruption of the time. He was not likely to.have been ever of opinion that the dread of his farire would countervail the love of power or of money; he pleafed himfelf with being important and formidable, and gratified fometimes his pride, and fometimes his refentment; till at laft he began to think he fhould be morC fafe, if he were lefs bufy. The Memoirs of Scriblerus, publifhed about this time, extend only to the firft book of a work, projected in concert by Pope, Swift, and Arbuthnot, who ufed to meet in the time of Queen Anne, and denominated themfelves the Scribblerus Club. Their purpofe was to centre the abufes of learning by a fictitious Life of an infatuated Scholar. They were difperfed; the defign was never completed; andWarburton laments its mifcarriage, as an event very diibftrous to polite letters. If the whole may be eflimated by this fpecimen, which feems to be the production of Arbuthnot, with a few N touches touches perhaps by Pope, the want of more will not be much lamented; for the follies which the writer ridicules are fo little pra&ifed, that they are not known; nor can thefatire be underftood but by the learned: he raifes phantoms of abfurdity, and then drives them away. He cures difeafcs that were never felt. For this reafon the joint production of three great writers has never obtained any notice from mankind; it has been little read, or when read has been forgotten, as no man could b...