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6. Monofyllable Lines, unlefs very artfully managed, are stiff, or languishing: but may be beautiful to exprefs Melancholy, Slowness, or Labour.

7. To come to the Hiatus, or Gap between two words, which is caus'd by two vowels opening on each other (upon which you defire me to be particular) I think the rule in this cafe is either to use the Cæfura, or admit the Hiatus, just as the ear is least shock'd by either: For the Cæfura fometimes offends the ear more than the Hiatus itself, and our language is naturally overcharg'd with confonants; As for example; If in this verfe,

The old have Int'reft ever in their eye,

we fhould fay, to avoid the Hiatus,

But th' old have int'reft.

The Hiatus which has the worft effect, is when one word ends with the fame vowel that begins the following; and next to this, thofe vowels whofe founds come nearest to each other, are most to be avoided. O, A, or U, will bear a more full and graceful Sound than E, I, or Y. I know, fome people will think thefe Obfervations trivial, and therefore I am glad to corroborate them by fame great authorities, which I have met with in Tully and Quintilian. In the fourth book of Rhetoric to Herennius, are thefe words: Fugiemus crebras vocalium, concurfiones, que vaftam atque hiantem reddunt orationem; ut hoc eft, Bacca anea amanissimæ impen

debaut. And Quintilian 1. ix. cap. 4. Vocalium concurfus cum accidit, biat & interfiflit, & quafi laborat oratio. Peffimi longe quæ eafdem inter fe literas committunt, fonabunt: Præcipuus tamen erit hiatus earum que cavo aut patulo ore efferuntur. E plenior litera eft, I anguftior. But he goes on to reprove the excefs on the other hand of being too folicitous in this matter, and fays admirably, Nefcio an negligentia in boc, aut folicitudo fit pejor. So likewise Tully (Orator. ad Brut.) Theopompum reprehendunt, quod eas literas tanto opere fugerit, etfi idem magifter ejus Socrates: which laft author, as Turnebus on Quintilian obferves, has hardly one Hiatus in all his works. Quintilian tells us, that Tully and Demofthenes did not much obferve this nicety, though Tully himself fays in the Orator, Crebra ifta vocum concurfio, quam magna ex parte vitiofam, fugit Demofthenes. If I am not mistaken, Malherbe of all the moderns has been the moft fcrupulous in this point; and I think Menage in his obfervations upon him fays, he has not one in his poems. To conclude, I believe the Hiatus fhould be avoided with more care in poetry than in Oratory; and I would constantly try to prevent it, unless where the cutting it off is more prejudicial to the found than the Hiatus itself. I am, &c. A. POPE.

the

* Mr. Walsh died at forty-nine years old, in the year 1708, year before the Effay on Criticifm was printed, which comcludes with his Elogy.

2

LETTERS

TO AND FROM

H. CROMWELL, Efq;

From the Year 1708 to 1711.

LETTER I.

March 18, 1708.

I

Believe it was with me when I left the Town, as

it is with a great many men when they leave the world, whose lofs itself they do not so much regret, as that of their friends whom they leave behind in it. For I do not know one thing for which I can envy London, but for your continuing there. Yet I guess you will expect me to recant this expreffion, when I tell you that Sappho (by which heathenish name. you have chriften'd a very orthodox Lady) did not accompany me into the Country. Well, you have your Lady in the Town ftill, and I have my Heart in the Country ftill, which being wholly unemploy'd as yet, has the more room in it for my friends, and

does not want a corner at your fervice. You have extremely obliged me by your frankness and kindnefs; and if I have abus'd it by too much freedom on my part, I hope you will attribute it to the natural openness of my temper, which hardly knows how to show Respect, where it feels Affection. I' would love my Friend, as my Mistress, without ceremony; and hope a little rough usage fometimes may not be more difpleafing to the one, than it is to the other.

If you have any curiofity to know in what manner I live, or rather lofe a life, Martial will inform you in one line:

Prandeo, poto, cano, ludo, lego, cœno, quiefco.

Every day with me is literally another yesterday, for it is exactly the fame: It has the fame business, which is Poetry; and the fame pleasure, which is idleness. A man might indeed pafs his time much better, but I question if any man could pass it much eafier. If you will vifit our fhades this fpring, which I very much defire, you may perhaps inftruct me to manage my game more wifely; but at prefent I am fatisfy'd to trifle away my time any way, rather than let it ftick by me; as shop-keepers are glad to be rid of thofe goods at any rate, which would otherwise always be lying upon their hands.

Sir, if you will favour me fometimes with your letters, it will be a great fatisfaction to me on feveral accounts; and on this in particular, that it

will show me (to my comfort) that even a wife man is fometimes very idle; for fo you must needs be when you can find leifure to write to

LETTER II.

Your, &c.

April 27, 1708.

I

Have nothing to say to you in this letter; but I

was refolv'd to write to tell you fo. Why fhould not I content myself with so many great Examples of deep Divines, profound Cafuifts, grave Philofophers; who have written, not letters only, but whole Tomes and voluminous Treatifes about Nothing? Why fhould a fellow like me, who all his life does nothing, be asham'd to write nothing? and that to one who has nothing to do but to read it? But perhaps you'll fay, the whole world has fomething to do, fomething to talk of, fomething to wish for, fomething to be employ'd about: But pray, Sir, caft up the account, put all these fomethings together, and what is the fum total but juft nothing? I have no more to fay, but to defire you to give my service (that is nothing) to your friends, and to believe that I am nothing more than

Ex nikila nil fit.

Your, &c.

LUCR.

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