Phadra's, Stenobea's, and fuch like wicked Strumpets and that he taught by his Expressions, Scepticism, or an universal Doubt of all things the most evident and certain that are, which made the Way easy to Atheifm: That he farther, by Words, infinuated the Ufe of Equivocation, and justified Perjury.

My Tongue did Swear, my Mind was never Sworn. If these were the Faults of your Euripides, Homer, and the rest, how have the Moderns improv'd them in their Wickedness? Look into our Beaumont, Fletcher And what are their Plays, but a general Butchery and Brothel, where every one is murdered or debauched 2 No Character so sacred, but is there prophaned: And if the Athenians made Kings unfortunate under a Democrafy; they make them wicked under a Monarchy, Wicked do I fay; nay, abandoned, more profligate, and less reasonable, than Nature ever produced in any Climate, or any Age.

What are the King and No King, the Maid's Tragedy, Rollo, and the rest of their celebrated Plays, but unnatural and unnecessary Murders, and excessive and in-cestuous Luft? What are most, if not all of our Comedies, but downright Obscenenessimpudently offer'd to the View of Ladies of Virtue and Honour, and Men of the first Quality?

But not to confine my self to the Stage in my Ac cufations of Poetry; what are their other Parts of this boasted Art, but Excursions into Folly, Luxury, Luft, and Profaneness? Caft but your Eye into your Mifcellanies, nothing but vain Love, Deifying your Mistresses, and Debauching the very Holy Scriptures themselves, to your vile Purposes: And this is most evident in Cowley himself, in that Part of his Poems called his Mistress; thoa Reverend Prelate has endeavour'd to wash that Poet white, to no Purpose, in my poor Opinion, since he has rather contaminated himself in the Defence, than justify'd his Friend. But I would. believe, that this Life of Cowley was writ

written before that worthy Divine was entered into

Orders.

*But quitting the Impiety of Poetry, which, I think, is beyond Controverfy, I would fain know, in what lies its Excellence; a miferable Jingle of Words, and Sounds of no Manner of Use or Advantage to human Kind. All other Arts are of Use in Life; this pretends only to Pleasure, and that a very - weak and faint one, in my Opinion, and produces fo little Regard and Advantage in the general Esteem of the World, that the needy Professors of this divine Art, as you call it, are the most scandalous and despis'd of the Creation: Idle, lazy, indolent Things, whose Heads are so full of foolish Points, quaint Expreffions, and Jingle of Sounds, that there is no Room left in them for Prudence, Reafon, and a necessary Care of themselves.

Custom has indeed fix'd the Poets in the Schools, for the Ufe of Boys; but then one would think, that when they are arrived at Man's Estate, they should cease to play the Child, and quit Poetry and Verse, as they do Tau and Chuck-Farthing. I wish indeed the Schools used our Children to better Books; for these often fix themselves so in their Heads, in their tender Years, that they cannot get off the Folly all their Lives after, to the Ruin of many a hopeful Youth, that might else have thriven in the World, and have been useful in his Generation, to the Support of himfelf and his Family, by fome honest Employment: Whereas, being now bewitch'd with Poetry, he is vilely content to be a Slave to some one or more Bookfellers, which wretched Maintenance is, perhaps, helped out a little now and then by a fordid Alms, got by flattering fome worthless great Man, who, tho he be fond of the Adulation, will yet be more generous to his Mistress, or his Valet de Chambre, than to one of these inspired Sons of Apollo.

For

For shame then (O Lauden) fince the World justly allows you Sense and Understanding, and your Acquaintance know you have Religion, esponse no more a Trifle, a pestiferous Trifle, which is evidently opposite to both; that can afford as little real Pleasure, as Profit, and is so evidently destructive of Religion and Morality.

Here Eufebia made an End; and after a little Pause, Morisina, in the most graceful Manner in the World, thus began, addressing her felf to Eufebia.

Oh! My Eufebia, (faid she) you began your InveEtive against the most harmonious Art in the World, with so much Harmony, that you ravished my Soul up to, nay, I think, above the third Heaven, where I viewed about me in the vast extended Space, Myriads of luminous Bodies turning round on their own Axes, and as many Turbillions, or Whirlings of their several depending Planets moving round them in a wonderful and constant Order, setting forth the Omnipotence, Goodness, Bounty, and Wisdom, of that eternal Poet, or Creator, who defigned, produced, and formed the harmonious Poem of the Universe. But in this not knowing it your felf, you exerted the Poet in the great and glorious Images of those Miracles, which you set before us. I confefs, that there is no Object more capable of fatisfying the large Appetite, and restless Defire of the human Soul, whose extensive Faculties nothing feems able to fill, but that Supream Being that fills the univerfal Space, that is, God. Certainly, there is no Body that is capable of thinking justly, or that can raise his Thought above the tranfitory Goods of this sublunary World; at least, I am confident, that there is none of this Company who is not of Opinion, that the Confiderations of Religion, its Duties, its Rewards, and the like, are the chief, if not the only Satisfaction, they can receive, without any Wearifomness or Satiety. But then, these fublime Speculations, which

you

you have mentioned, are confined to a very few, in a Life so Active, as Providence has seem'd to ordain that of Mankind to be. The necessary Result of those Duties which our Subsistance and Happiness impose upon us, require so many, and such frequent Avocations, that this is a Pleasure not often to be enjoyed, and not by any confiderable Number of the Species. And how excellent foever these Seraphick Contemplations may be, as certainly they are excellent; yet they appear to me, to be of a more inferior Degree than those Duties of Religion which have an immediate Regard to Action, and our focial Engagements to one another: For those are confind to Particulars, and the Joys they give, as well as the Good they bring, extend no farther than to our selves; but those of Action, to all Mankind.

The whole Current and Drift of both the Old and New Testament, is to make us good Neighbours, that is, useful Members of the Society in which God and Nature have placed us. To this End are all the Doctrines of our Saviour directed, that we love God above all things, and our Neighbour as our selves; and this very Love of God is determined by our Love of our Neighbour. At this fame Aim levels the Subduing, or Reducing our Paffions and Appetites into just Bounds; so that they may not transport us to offer Injuries to others, which is the whole Business of the Gospel; which, if indeed we fully and faithfully follow'd, there would be no Need of any other Help to our Instruction or Conduct. But in an Age when those Divine Doctrines have not all that Influence which they ought to have: Nay, when Men are fo cold too, and so negligent of them, certainly, whatever contributes to the fame End, and to rouze the Minds of Men to those Duties which the Gofpel recommends, must be allowed to have proportionable Value to the Good they produce: How far Poetry does this, we shall fee hereafter.

Here

Hereafter, again, however valuable and excellent these Contemplations really may be, yet I cannot find them enjoin'd by our great Teacher, who came down from Heaven to instruct us; nor could they indeed be enjoin'd by him, because so few are capable, by Understanding, and Leifure, to put them in Practice: But at the same Time, that these contem plative Duries are not injoin'd, I find an unexceptionable Injunction of the Duties of Action.

But my Eufebia, I will not force a Sense upon your *Words, which, doubtless you never design'd them: I will not suppose, that you mean, that these Meditations are at least general Duties of Religion; but that they are more worthy, and more noble Employments of our leisure Hours, than any thing else. Give me Leave to ask you one Question, fair Eufebia, Which would you your self prefer, that noble, and truly generous Prince, who deplored the Loss of a Day, when he had not done some more than common Good, or those Monastick Recluses (who were fo far from troubling themselves with the Care of others, that they were entirely provided for themselves) with their Pretences of the fublime Contemplations of their Solitudes: I am confident, that fo generous and publick a Spirit as Eufebia, will give it to the Emperor, notwithstanding the fanctimonious Look-and Habit, as well as Pretences of the Monk.

God has form'd us for Society, and whatever contributes most to that End, must be most agreeable to the Author of us, and by Consequence, most meritorious in Mankind, destin'd to that fame End.

I am perswaded, That you are too much a Mistress of Reafon, and of too delicate and refin'd a Taste, to set up for an Advocate of Barbarifm and Ignorance, and to exclude a Man from the Study and Learning of all Manner of Arts and Sciences whatsoever, whether Mechanical or Liberal: For that indeed would

be