with this complyance to their notions) but that he is not even exempted from our common appetites and frailties: For he is made to eat, drink, and fleep: but this his admirers would imagine to be only a groffer way of reprefenting a general notion of happiness, because he fays in one place, b that the food of the Gods was not of the fame nature with ours. But upon the whole, while he endeavour'd to speak of a Deity without a right information, he was forc'd to take him from that image he discover'd in man; and (like one who being dazled with the fun in the heavens, would view him as he is reflected in a river) he has taken off the impreffion not only ruffled with the emotion of our paffions, but obfcur'd with the earthy mixture of our natures.

The other Gods have all their provinces affign'd 'em; "Every thing has its peculiar Deity, faysi Max"imus Tyrius, by which Homer would infinuate that "the Godhead was prefent to all things." When they are confider'd farther, we find he has turn'd the virtues and endowments of our minds into perfons, to make the springs of action become vifible; and because they are given by the Gods, he represents them as Gods themselves defcending from heaven. In the fame strong light he fhews our vices, when they occafion misfortunes, like extraordinary powers which inflict them upon us; and even our natural Punishments are represented as punishers themselves. But when we come to fee the manner they are introduc'd in, they are found feafting, fighting, wounded by men, and fhedding a fort of blood; in which his ma chines play a little too grofly: the fable which was admitted to procure the pleasure of furprize, violent ly oppreffes the moral, and it may be loft labour to

Il. s. . 340.

Maxim. Tyrius, Diss. 16.

fearch

earch for it in every minute circumftance, if indeed was intended to be there. The main defign was owever philofophical, the drefs the poet's, which was us'd for neceflity, and allow'd to be ornamental. And fomething ftill may be offer'd in his defence, if he has both preferv'd the grand moral from being obfcur'd, and adorn'd the parts of his works with fuch fentiments of the Gods as belong'd to the age he liv'd in; which that he did, appears from his having then had that fuccefs for which allegory was contriv'd. "It is the madness of men, fays Maximus Tyrius, to dif-esteem what is plain, and admire what is hidden; this the poets difco"vering, invented the fable for a remedy, when "they treated of holy matters; which being more 66 obfcure than converfation, and more clear than "the riddle, is a mean between knowledge and ignorance; believ'd partly for being agreeable, and "partly for being wonderful. Thus as Poets in name, and Philofophers in effect, they drew man"kind gradually to a fearch after truth, when the name of Philofopher would have been harsh and "difpleafing."

66

When Homer proceeds to tell us our duty to these fuperior beings, we find prayer, facrifice, luftration, and all the rites which were efteem'd religious, conftantly recommended under fear of their difpleasure. We find too a notion of the foul's fubfitting after this life, but for want of revelation he knows not what to reckon the happiness of a future ftate, to any one who was not deify'd: Which is plain from the speech of Achilles to Ulyffes in the region of the dead; where he tells him, that " he would rather ferve the poorest "creature upon earth, than rule over all the de

"parted." It was chiefly for this reason that Plate excluded him his common-wealth; he thought Hemer spoke indecently of the Gods, and dreadfully of a future ftate; in which fentence he has made no allowance for the times he writ in. But if he cannot be defended in every thing as a theologift, yet we may fay in respect of his poetry, that he has enrich'd it from theology with true fentiments for profit; adorn'd it with allegories for pleasure; and by ufing fome machines which have no farther fignificancy, or are so refin'd as to make it doubted if they have any, he has however produc'd that character in poetry which we call the Marvellous, and from which the Agreeable (according to Ariftotle) is always infeparable.

Politicks.

If we take the ftate of Greece at his time in a political view, we find it a m difunited country, made up of small states; and whatever was manag'd in war amounted to no more than inteftine skirmishes, or piracies abroad, which were easily reveng'd on account of their dif-union. Thus one people stole Europa, and another Io; the Gracians took Hefione from Troy, and the Trojans took Helena from Greece in revenge. But this laft having greater friends and alliances than any upon whom the rapes had hitherto fallen, the ruin of Troy was the confequence; and the force of the Afiatick coafts was fo broken, that this accident put an end to the age of piracies. Then the intestine broils of Greece (which had been discontinued during the league) were renew'd upon its diffolution. War and fedition mov'd people from place to place, during its want of inhabitants; Exiles from one countrey were receiv'd for Kings in another; and Leaders

223

See Thucydides, lib. 1.

took

took tracts of ground to bestow them upon their followers. Commerce was neglected, living at home unfafe, and nothing of moment tranfacted by any but against their neighbours. Athens only, where the people were undisturbed because it was a barren foil which no body coveted, had begun to fend colonies abroad, being over-stock'd with inhabitants.

Now a Poem coming out at fo feasonable a time, with a Moral capable of healing thefe diforders by promoting Union, we may reasonably think it was defign'd for that end to which it is fo peculiarly adapted. If we imagine therefore that Homer was a politician in this affair, we may suppose him to have look'd back into the ages paft, to fee if at any time the diforder had been lefs; and to have pitch'd upon that ftory, wherein it found a temporary cure; that by celebrating it with all poffible honour he might inftil a defire of the fame fort of union into the hearts of his countreymen. This indeed was a work which could belong to none but a poet, when Governors had power only over small territories, and the numerous Governments were every way independent. It was then that all the charms of poetry were call'd forth, to infinuate the important glory of an alliance; and the Iliad deliver'd from the Mufes, with all the pomp of words and artificial influence. Union among themfelves was recommended, peace at home, and glory abroad: And left this fhould be render'd useless by mismanagements, he lets us into farther leffons concerning it: How when his Kings quarrel, their fubjects fuffer; when they act in conjunction, victory attends them: When they meet in council, plans are drawn, and provifions made for future action; and when in the field, the arts of war are defcrib'd with the greatest exactnefs. These were lectures of general concern to mankind, proper for the Poet to deliver, and Kings to attend to; fuch as

made

made Porphyry write of the profit that Princes might receive from Homer; and Stratocles, Hermias, and Frontinus extract military difcipline out of him. Thus tho' Plato has banish'd him from one imaginary common-wealth, he has still been serviceable to many real kingdoms.

Morality.

The morality of Greece could not be perfect while there was a weaknefs in its government; faults in Politicks are occafion'd by faults in Ethicks, and occasion them in their turn. The divifion into fo many ftates was the rife of frequent quarrels, whereby men were bred up in a rough untractable difpofition. Bodily ftrength met with the greatest honours, because it was daily neceffary to the fubfiftence of little governments; and that headlong courage which throws itself forward to enterprize and plunder, was univerfally carefs'd, because it carry'd all things before it. It is no wonder in an age of fuch education and cuftoms, that, as n Thucydides fays, " Robbing "was honour'd, provided it were done with gallan

try, and that the ancient poets made people que"ftion one another as they fail'd by, if they were "thieves? as a thing for which no one ought either "to be fcorn'd or upbraided." These were the fort of actions which the fingers then recorded, and it was out of fuch an age that Homer was to take his fubjects. For this reafon (not a want of morality in him) we fee a boafting temper and unmanag'd roughnefs in the fpirit of his Heroes, which ran out in pride, anger, or cruelty. It is not in him as in our modern Romances, where men are drawn in perfection, and we but read with a tender weakness what we can neither apply nor emulate. Homer writ for

Thucyd, lib. 1.

men,