ARGUS.

When wife Ulyffes, from his native coaft
Long kept by wars, and long by tempests toft,
Arriv'd at last, poor, old, disguis'd, alone,

To all his friends, and even his Queen unknown:
Chang'd as he was, with age, and toils, and cares,
Furrow'd his reverend face, and white his hairs,
In his own palace forc'd to ask his bread,
Scorn'd by thofe flaves his former bounty fed,
Forgot of all his own domestic crew;

The faithful dog alone his rightful master knew!
Unfed, unhous'd, neglected, on the clay,
Like an old fervant now cashier'd, he lay;
Touch'd with refentment of ungrateful man,
And longing to behold his ancient Lord again.
Him when he saw *—he rose, and crawl'd to meet,
('Twas all he cou'd,) and fawn'd, and kiss'd his feet,
Seiz'd with dumb joy-then falling by his fide,
"Own'd his returning Lord, look'd up, and dy'd!

Plutarch relating how the Athenians were obliged to abandon Athens in the time of Themiftocles, fteps back again out of the way of his hiftory, purely to defcribe the lamentable cries and howlings of the poor dogs they left behind. He makes mention of one that followed his mafter across the fea to Salamis, where he died, and was honoured with a tomb by the Athenian, who gave the name of the Dog's Grave

to

* I know not sweeter lines in our language than these four Prior fays well in Solomon, b. i.

And dying licks his long-lov'd master's feet, Which my friend Dobfon admirably translated,

Et lambit charum linguâ moriente magiftrum.

;

to that part of the island where he was buried. This respect to a dog in the most polite people in the world, is very obfervable. A modern inftance of gratitude to a dog (though we have few fuch) is, that the chief order of Denmark (now injuriously called the order of the Elephant) was inftituted in memory of the fidelity of a dog, named Wild-brat, to one of their Kings who had been deferted by his subjects; he gave his Order this motto, or to this effect, (which ftill remains,) Wild-brat was faithful. Sir William Trumbull has told me a story ", which he heard from one that was present: King Charles I. being with fome of his court during his troubles, a discourse arose what fort of dogs deferved pre-eminence, and it being on all hands agreed to belong either to the spaniel or grey-hound, the king gave his opinion on the part of the grey-hound, because (said he) it has all the good-nature of the other, without fawning, A good piece of fatire upon his courtiers, with which I will conclude my discourse of dogs. Call me a cynic, or what you please, in revenge for all this impertinence, I will be contented; provided you will but believe me, when I fay a bold word for a Christian, that, of all dogs, you will find none more faithful than

Your, etc.

m Sir Philip Warwick tells us this story in his Memoirs. W,

LETTER XI. .

April 10, 1710.

I

HAD written to you fooner, but that I made fome scruple of sending profane things to you in Holy Week. Befides, our family would have been scandalized to fee me write, who take it for granted I write nothing but ungodly verses. I affure you I am looked upon in the neighbourhood for a very well difpofed perfon, no great Hunter indeed, but a great admirer of the noble sport, and only unhappy in my want of constitution for that, and Drinking. They all fay 'tis a pity I am fo fickly, and I think 'tis pity they are fo healthy. But I fay nothing that may destroy their good opinion of me: I have not quoted one Latin Author fince I came down, but have learned without book a fong of Mr. Thomas Durfey's, who is your only Poet of tolerable reputation in this country. He makes all the merriment in our entertainments, and but for him, there would be fo miserable a dearth of catches, that, I fear, they would put either the Parson or me upon making fome for 'em. Any man, of any quality, is heartily welcome to the best toping table of our gentry, who can roar out fome Rhapsodies of his works; fo that in the fame manner as it was faid of Homer to his detractors, What? dares any man fpeak against him who has given fo many men to eat? (meaning the Rhapsodifts

who

who lived by repeating his verses,) thus may it be said of Mr. Durfey to his detractors; Dares any one despise him who has made so many men drink? Alas, Sir! this is a glory which neither you nor I must ever pretend to. Neither you with your Ovid, nor I with my Statius, can amufe a board of justices and extraordinary 'fquires, or gain one hum of approbation, or laugh of admiration. Thefe Things (they would fay) are too ftudious, they may do well enough with fuch as love reading, but give us your ancient Poet Mr. Durfey *! 'Tis mortifying enough, it must be confefsed; but, however, let us proceed in the way that nature has directed us-Multi multa fcient, fed nemo omnia, as is faid in the almanack. Let us communicate our works for our mutual comfort: fend me elegies, and you fhall not want heroics. At prefent I have only these arguments in profe to the Thebaid, which you claim by promife, as I do your Tranflation of Pars me Sulmo tenet,—and the Ring; the reft I hope for as foon as you can conveniently transcribe them, and whatsoever orders you are pleased to give me shall be punctually obeyed by Your, etc.

* He was every fummer invited to a fishing-party at Mr. Jones's of Ramsbury, a man of considerable property in Wiltshire. Harte told me his friend. Fenton alluded to this vifit in his elegant Epiftle to Lambard:

By long experience, Durfey may, no doubt,
Enfnare a gudgeon, or fometimes a trout;
Yet Dryden once exclaim'd, in partial fpite,
He fifb! because the man attempts to write.

I

LETTER XII.

May 10, 1710.

HAD not fo long omitted to express my acknowledgments to you for fo much good-nature and friendship as you lately fhewed me; but that I am but just returned to my own hermitage, from Mr. C's, who has done me fo many favours, that I am almost inclined to think my friends infect one another, and that your converfation with him has made him as obliging to me as yourself. I can affure you, he has a fincere refpect for you, and this, I believe, he has partly contracted from me, who am too full of you not to overflow upon those I converfe with. But I must now be contented to converse only with the dead of this world, that is to fay, the dull and obfcure, every way obscure, in their intellects as well as their perfons: or elfe have recourse to the living dead, the old authors with whom you are fo well acquainted, even from Virgil down to Aulus Gellius, whom I do not think a critic by any means to be compared to Mr. Dennis : and I must declare pofitively to you, that I will perfift in this opinion, till you become a little more civil to Atticus. Who could have imagined, that he, who had escaped all the misfortunes of his time, unhurt even by the profcriptions of Antony and Auguftus, fhould in thefe days find an enemy more fevere and barbarous than thofe tyrants? and that

enemy