"You fee, in the place before you, the paternal "inheritance of a poet; and to a man content with

little fully fufficient for his fubfiftence: but a "ftrong imagination and a long acquaintance with "the rich are dangerous foes to contentment. Our "Poet, instead of fitting down to enjoy life, re❝ folved to prepare for its future enjoyment; and fet "about converting a place of profit into a fcene of pleafure. This he at firft fuppofed could be ac"complished at a fmall expence; and he was willing for a while to ftint his income, to have an oppor"tunity of difplaying his tafte. The Improvement in this manner went forward; one beauty attained led him to wifh for fome other; but he ftill hoped "that every emendation would be the laft. It was "now therefore found, that the Improvement ex"ceeded the fubfidy, that the place was grown too

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large and too fine for the inhabitant. But that "pride which was once exhibited could not retire; "the Garden was made for the owner, and though " it was become unfit for him, he could not willingly refign it to another. Thus the firft idea of its "beauties contributing to the happiness of his life "was found unfaithful; fo that, inftead of looking within for fatisfaction, he began to think of "having recourfe to the praises of thofe, who came 66 to vifit his Improvement.

"In confequence of this hope, which now took "poffeffion of his mind, the Gardens were opened to the vifits of every ftranger; and the country. flocked round to walk, to criticife, to admire, "and to do mifchief. He foon found, that the admirers of his tafte left by no means fuch ftrong "marks of their applaufe, as the envious did of their malignity. All the windows of his temples, and the walls of his retreats, were impreffed with "the characters of prophanenefs, ignorance, and

"obfcenity;

obfcenity; his hedges were broken, his ftatues " and urns defaced, and his lawns worn bare. It "was now therefore neceffary to shut up the Gar"dens once more, and to deprive the Publick of that happiness, which had before ceased to be his

own.

"In this fituation the Poet continued for a time "in the character of a jealous lover, fond of the Beauty he keeps, but unable to fupply the extra"vagance of every demand. The Garden by this

time was completely grown and finifhed; the "marks of art were covered up by the luxuriance "of nature; the winding walks were grown dark; "the brook affumed a natural fylvage; and the rocks were covered with mofs. Nothing now remained but to enjoy the beauties of the place, "when the poor Poet died, and his Garden was "obliged to be fold for the benefit of thofe, who had contributed to its embellishment.

"The beauties of the place had now for fome time been celebrated as well in profe as in verse; and all men of tafte wifhed for fo envied a fpot, "where every urn was marked with the Poet's pencil, and every walk awakened genius and meditation. The first purchaser was one Mr. Truepenny, a button-maker, who was poffeffed of three thousand pounds, and was willing alfo to "be poffeffed of tafte and genius.

"As the Poet's ideas were for the natural wildness of the landfcape, the button-maker's were for the "more regular production of art. He conceived

perhaps that as it is a beauty in a button to be "of a regular pattern, fo the fame regularity ought "to obtain in a landfcape. Be this as it will, he "employed the fheers to fome purpofe; he clipped the hedges, cut down the gloomy walks, made

up

GG 4

"viftos

"viftos upon the stables and hog-fties, and fhowed his friends that a man of tafte fhould always be ❝ doing.

"The next candidate for tafte and genius was a "Captain of a ship, who bought the Garden because "the former poffeffor could find nothing more to "mend; but unfortunately he had tafte too. His

great paffion lay in building, in making Chinese "temples and cage-work fummer-houfes. As the place before had an appearance of retirement and infpired meditation, he gave it a more peopled air; every turning prefented a cottage, or icehouse, or a temple; the Improvement was con"verted into a little city, and it only wanted in"habitants to give it the air of a village in the "Eaft-Indies.

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"In this manner, in lefs than ten years, the Improvement has gone through the hands of as "many proprietors, who were all willing to have

tafte, and to show their taste too. As the place "had received its best finishing from the hand of "the firft poffeffor, fo every innovator only lent a "hand to do mischief. Those parts, which were ob"fcure, have been enlightened; those walks, which "led naturally, have been twifted into ferpentine "windings. The colour of the flowers of the field "is not more various than the variety of taftes, that "have been employed here, and all in direct con. "tradiction to the original aim of the first improver. "Could the original poffeffor but revive, with what "a forrowful heart would he look upon his favourite spot again! He would scarcely recollect a Dryad "or a Wood-nymph of his former acquaintance, "and might perhaps find himself as much a "ftranger in his own plantation, as in the deserts of "Siberia."

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ESSAY

ESSAY XXII.

THE Theatre, like all other amufements, has its fashions and its prejudices; and when fatiated with its excellen e, mankind begin to mistake change for improvement. For fome years Tragedy was the reigning entertainment; but of late it has entirely given way to Comedy, and our beft efforts are now exerted in thefe lighter kinds of compofition. The pompous train, the fwelling phrafe, and the unnatural rant, are difplaced for that natural portrait of human folly and frailty, of which all are judges, because all have fat for the picture.

But as in defcribing Nature it is presented with a double face, either of mirth or fadnefs, our modern writers find themfelves at a lofs which chiefly to copy from; and it is now debated, whether the exhibition of human diftrefs is likely to afford the mind more entertainment than that of human abfurdity?

Comedy is defined by Ariftotle to be a picture of the frailties of the lower part of mankind, to dif tinguish it from Tragedy, which is an exhibition of the misfortunes of the great. When Comedy there fore afcends to produce the characters of princes or generals upon the ftage, it is out of its walk, fince low life and middle life are entirely its object. The principal question therefore is, whether in defcribing low or middle life, an exhibition of its follies be not preferable to a detail of its calamities? Or, in other words, which deferves the preference? The weeping fentimental Comedy, fo much in fashion at prefent*, or the laughing and even low

Comedy, which feems to have been last exhibited by Vanbrugh and Cibber?

If we apply to authorities, all the great mafters in the dramatic art have but one opinion. Their rule is, that as Tragedy difplays the calamities of the great; fo Comedy thould excite our laughter, by ridiculously exhibiting the follies of the lower part of mankind. Boileau, one of the best modern Critics, afferts, that Comedy will not admit of Tragic Diftrefs:

Le Comique, ennemi des foupirs et des pleurs,

N'admet point dans fes vers de tragiques douleurs. Nor is this rule without the ftrongeft foundation in Nature, as the diftreffes of the mean by no means affect us fo ftrongly as the calamities of the great. When Tragedy exhibits to us fome great man fallen from his height, and ftruggling with want and adverfty, we feel his fituation in the fame manner as we fuppofe he himself muft feel, and our pity is increased in proportion to the height from which he fell. On the contrary, we do not fo ftrongly fympathize with one born in humbler circumftances, and encountering accidental diftrefs: fo that while we melt for Belifarius, we fcarcely give halfpence to the beggar, who accofts us in the ftreet. The one has our pity; the other our contempt. Diftrefs therefore is the proper object of Tragedy, fince the great excite our pity by their fall; but not equally fo of Comedy, fince the actors employed in it are originally fo mean, that they fink but little by

their fall.

Since the first origin of the ftage, Tragedy and Comedy have run in difact channels, and never till of late encroached upon the provinces of each other. Terence, who feems to have made the nearest approaches, always judiciously ftops fhort before he

comes