Page images
PDF
EPUB

talks in one place of Milton's brutality. We could wish to have his definition of the term, that we may not injure him in the adoption of it to his own ftyle.

But Milton only, for the prefent, is our client, and only Milton the profewriter, who, in that character, must ever be an eye-fore to men of Dr. Johnson's principles; principles that are at enmity with every patron of public liberty, and every pleader for the legal rights of Englishmen, which, in their origin, are nei-' ther more nor lefs than the natural rights of all mankind.

Milton, in contending for these against the tyrant of the day and his abettors, was serious, energetic, and irrefragable. He bore down all the filly fophifms in favour

C 3

favour of defpotic power like a torrent, and left his adverfaries nothing to reply, but the rhetoric of Billingfgate, from which Lauder, in the end of his pamphlet, intituled, "King Charles I. vindi"cated, &c." has collected a nofegay of the choiceft flowers; and pity it was, that he was too early to add his friend Johnson's character of Milton the profewriter to the favoury bouquet.

When the Doctor found, on fome late occafions, that his crude abuse and malicious criticisms would not bring down Milton to the degree of contempt with the public which he had affigned him in the scale of profe-writers; he fell upon an expedient which has fometimes fucceeded

5

[ocr errors]

ceeded in particular exigences. In one word, he determined to write his Life. There are no men fo excellent who have not fome perfonal or cafual defect in their bodily frame, fome aukward peculiarity in their manners or converfation, fome fcandalous calumny tacked to their private hiftory, or fome of thofe natural failings which diftinguish human from angelic beings.

On the other hand, few men are fo totally abandoned and depraved as to have no remnants of grace and goodness, no intervals of fobriety, no touches of regret for departed innocence, no fenfe of those generous paffions which animate the wife and good to praise-worthy actions, or no natural or acquired abilities to abate

[blocks in formation]

the refentment of the reputable public, and to atone, in fome degree, for their immoralities.

A man of genius, who has words and will to deprefs or raife fuch characters refpectively, will confider little in his operations upon them, but the motives and occafions which call for his prefent interference; and the world who know the artificer will make it no wonder that the encomiaft and apologift of the profligate Richard Savage fhould employ his pen to fatyrize and calumniate the virtuous John Milton.

[ocr errors]

"The Life of Milton," fays Dr. Johnfon, "has been already written in fo many forms, with fuch minute enqui

66

[ocr errors][merged small][merged small]

"perly have contented myself with the addition of a few notes to Mr. Fen"ton's elegant Abridgement; but that a "new narrative was thought neceffary to "the uniformity of this edition *."

The uniformity of editions is commonly the bookseller's care, and the neceffity of fuch uniformity generally arises from the taste of the public; of which, among the number of names exhibited in the title-pages of thefe volumes, there must be many competent judges. It would be a pity however that a conformity to this tafte fhould engage Dr. Johnfon in writing this Life, to go beyond what would more properly have contented himself; the leaft intimation from the

*Life of Milton, p. 1.

Bio

« PreviousContinue »