They Hand in Hand, with wand ring Steps and flow,
Through Eden took their folitary Way.

THESE two Verfes, though they have their Beauty, fall very much below the foregoing Paffage, and renew in the Mind of the Reader that Anguish which was pretty well laid by that Confideration :

The World was all before them, where to chuse
Their Place of Reft, and Providence their Guide.

THE Number of Books in Paradife Loft is equal to thofe in the Eneid. Our Author in his First Edition had divided his Poem into Ten Books, but afterwards broke the Seventh and the Eleventh each of them into two different Books, by the Help of fome fmall Additions. This fecond Divifion was made with great Judgment, as any one may fee who will be at the Pains of examining it. It was not done for the fake of fuch a Chimerical Beauty as that of refembling Virgil in this Particular, but for the more juft and regular Difpofition of this great Work.

THOSE who have read Bofu, and many of the Critics who have written fince his Time, will not pardon me if I do not find out the particular Moral which is inculcated in Paradife Loft. Though I can by no means think with the laft-mentioned French Author, that an Epic Writer first of all pitches upon a certain Moral, as the Ground-work and Foundation of his Poem, and afterwards finds out a Story to it; I am, however, of Opinion, that no juft Heroic Poem, ever was, or can be made, from whence one great Moral may not be deduced. That which reigns in Milton is the most univerfal and moft ufeful that can be imagined: It is in fhort this, That Obedience to the Will of God makes Men happy, and that Difobedience makes them miferable. This is vifibly the Moral of the principal Fable, which turns upon Adam and Eve, who continued in Paradife while they kept the Command that was given them, and were driven

8

driven out of it as foon as they had tranfgreffed. This is likewife the Moral of the principal Episode, which fhews us how an innumerable Multitude of Angels fell from their State of Blifs, and were caft into Hell upon their Difobedience. Befides this great Moral, which may be looked upon as the Soul of the Fable, there are an Infinity of Under-morals which are to be drawn from the feveral Parts of the Poem, and which makes this Work more useful and inftructive than any other Poem in any Language.

THOSE who have criticized on the Odysey, the Iliad, and Æneid, have taken a great deal of Pains to fix the Number of Months or Days contained in the Action of each of thofe Poems. If any one thinks it worth his while to examine this Particular in Milton, he will find that from Adam's first Appearance in the Fourth Book, to his Expulfion from Paradife in the 'Twelfth, the Author reckons ten Days. As for that Part of the Action which is described in the three firft Books, as it does not pafs within the Regions of Nature, I have before obferved that it is not fubject to any Calculations of Time.

I have now finished my Obfervations on a Work which does an Honour to the English Nation. I have taken a general View of it under thofe four Heads, the Fable, the Characters, the Sentiments, and the Language, and made, each of them the Subject of a particular Paper. I have in the next Place spoken of the Cenfures which our Author may incur under each of thefe Heads, which I have confined to two Papers, though I might have enlarged the Number, if I had been difpofed to dwell on fo ungrateful a Subject. I believe, however, that the feverest Reader will not find any little Fault in Heroic Poetry, which this Author has fallen into, that does not come under one of those Heads among which I have diftributed his feveral Blemishes. After having thus treated at large of Paradife Loft, I could not think it fufficient to have celebrated this Poem in the whole, without defcending to Particulars. I have therefore

bestowed

bestowed a Paper upon each Book, and endeavoured not only to prove that the Poem is beautiful in general, but to point out its particular Beauties, and to determine wherein they confift. I have endeavoured to fhew how fome Paffages are beautiful by being Sublime, others by being Soft, others by being Natural; which of them are recommended by the Paffion, which by the Moral, which by the Sentiment, and which by the Expreffion. I have likewise endeavoured to fhew how the Genius of the Poet fhines by a happy Invention, a diftant Allusion, or a judicious Imitation; how he has copied or improved Homer or Virgil, and raises his own Imaginations by the Ufe which he has made of feveral Poetical Paffages in Scripture. I might have inferted also several Paffages of Tafo, which our Author has imitated; but as I do not look upon Tafo to be a fufficient Voucher, I would not perplex my Reader with fuch Quotations as might do more Honour to the Italian than the English Poet. In fhort, I have endeavoured to particularize thofe innumerable Kinds of Beauty, which it would be tedious to recapitulate, but which are effential to Poetry, and which may be met with in the Works of this great Author. Had I thought, at my first engaging in this Defign, that it would have led me to fo great a Length, I believe I fhould never have entered upon it; but the kind Reception it has met with among thofe whofe Judgments I have a Value for, as well as the uncommon Demands which my Bookfeller tells me have been made for thefe particular Difcourfes, give me no Reason to repent of the Pains I have been at in compofing them.

AN

EXPLANATORY NOTES

ΟΝ ΤΗΕ

POETICAL WORKS

O F

MILTON,

ALPHABETICALLY DIGESTED.

A

A.

ARON, The fon of Amram, the brother of Mofes, Prince of the family of Levi, Highpriest of the Hebrews.

Abaddon, The name of the Angel of the bottomlefs pit, Revel, ix. 2. applied by Milton, P. R. iv. 624. to the bottomlefs pit itself.

Abarim, A hill in the land of Moab, over againft Jericho, on the farther fide of Jordan. Abaf'd, Made ashamed.

Abafin, Kings, i. e. Kings of Abaffinia, a country in Africa profeffing chriftianity; called by the Dutch the country of Prefter John, from Unchan Jahannan one of the Emperors of it.

Abban, A river of Damafcus, mentioned in 2 Kings, v. 12. fuppofed by modern travellers to be but one of the branches of Baraddy. See Maundrel's Journey, &c. p. 124.

Abdiel, Heb. i. e. A fervant of God; An holy Seraph who zealously oppofed Lucifer in his revolt.

Abide, P. L. 4. 87. To bear or fupport the confequenccs of a thing.

Abortive, That which brings forth nothing. J.

Abraham, Heb. Father of many nations; The fon of Terah, the father of the faithful; the friend of God; with whom God entered into covenant to give him a numerous pofterity, and the poffeffion of the land of Canaan.

Abrupt, Divided, without any thing intervening. J. Abftracted, Separated.

Abyss, A depth without bottom.

Academe, A gymnafium or place of exercise in the fuburbs of the city of Athens, befet with woods, taking its name from Academus.

Acanthus, the herb Bear's-foot.

Accaron, A city on the fouth of Gath, about 36 miles from Jerufalem to the weft. It was once a place of great wealth and power, fo that it held out a long time against the victorious Jews: but it is now a poor defpicable village.

Acceffible, That which may be approached.

Acceffories, Men who are guilty of a felonious offence, not principally, but by participation.

Acclame, A Shout of praife, acclamation.

Acheron, has its name from axos dolor, and gew fluo, flowing with grief; and is reprefented accordingly, the river of forrow, agreeable to Virgil's character of it,

tenebrofa palus Acheronte refufo.

Lib.6 v. 107. -where baleful Acheron spreads far and wide His livid, melancholy, murmuring tide.

Pitt.

Achieve, 1. To perform, finish. 2. To gain or obtain. J. Achilles, The fon of Peleus King of Theffaly, and Thetis the Goddefs of the fea; a famous hero at the fiege of Troy.

fad task, yet argument, &c. Par. Loft. B. 9. 1. 11:

i. e.