LONDON REVIEW,

FOR JANUARY, 1777

Efays, on the Nature and Immutability of Truth, in Opposition to Sophiftry and Scepticism; on Poetry and Mufic, as they affect the Mind; on Laughter, and Ludicrous Compofition; on the Utility of Claffical Learning. By James Beattie, LL.D. Professor of Moral Philofophy and Logic in the Marischal College and Univerfity of Aberdeen. 4to. Dilly.

To thefe Effays is prefixed the following advertisement, which the author modeftly thought neceffary, to apologize, in fome measure, for their publication, in their prefent form.

"This Publication has been attended with some peculiar circumftances, which may be mifunderstood, and which, therefore, I beg leave to explain.

"About three years ago, fome perfons of diftinction in England, who had honoured me with their friendship, were pleafed to exprefs a defire, that the ESSAY ON TRUTH fhould be printed in a more fplendid form than that in which it had hitherto appeared; and fo as to enfure profit, as well as honour, to the author. And the proprietors of the copy-right, being at the fame time applied to, declared their willingness to permit an Edition to be printed for his advantage, on his agreeing to certain terms, which were thought reasonable.

"It was then propofed, that a new Edition of the Effay thould be printed in quarto, by fubfcription. To this the Author had fome. objections. He was apprehenfive, that the fize of that work might be inadequate to fuch a purpofe. Belides, to publish in this manner a book, which had already gone through two or three Editions, feemed hazardous, becaufe unprecedented; and might, to thofe who were uninformed of the affair, give ground to fufpect the Author of an infirmity, which no perfon who knows him will ever lay to his charge, an exceffive love of money.

"It was anfwered, That the volume might be extended to a fufficiency of fize, by printing, along with that on Truth, some other Eays, which, though not originally defigned for the prefs, his Friends, who had feen them, were pleafed to think not unworthy of it; and that the Propofed Subfcription, being of a peculiar kind, fhould be conducted in a peculiar manner, "It fhall never," faid the promoters of this undertaking, "be committed to Bookfellers, VOL. V.

B

"nor made public by advertisements; nobody fhall be folicited to join in it; we, by ourselves and our friends, fhall carry it on, without giving you any further trouble, than juft to fignify your "confent, and prepare your materials:-and if there be, as we have "reason to think there are, many perfons of worth and fortune, who "with for fuch an opportunity, as this will afford them, to teftify "their approbation of you and your writings, it would feem capri"cious in you to deprive them of that fatisfaction, and yourself of "fo great an honour."

"To a Propofal fo uncommonly generous the Author could not refufe his confent, without giving himfelf airs, which would not have become him. He therefore thankfully acquiefced. And the bufinefs went on; and has now terminated in a way that does him much honour, and demands his moft grateful acknowledgments to thofe Noble and Learned Perfons who conducted and encouraged it." It appears, from the lift of fubfcribers, that it is indeed a fubftantial as well as honourable compliment, which our author's noble and learned friends have here paid him; a compliment, however, by no means fuperior to his defert. We only wish that every writer of merit were equally fortunate in meeting with his due reward.-After frankly avowing this, we must not fuffer our partiality for Dr. Beattie's literary or perfonal character, and still lefs his influence with the public, to have any bias over our regard to juftice and truth, as impartial Reviewers. The vox populi is, with us, of ftill lefs importance in literature than it is in politics: it is, alfo, of juft as little confequence to us, whether it be trumpeted forth by the great vulgar or the fmall; the latter, including even fuch as cannot read at all, being almost as good judges of books as the former; among which we may reckon the judges who do not read at all; by no means the least numerous or decifive. It is owing, we conceive, in a great degree, to the authority and influence of the latter, that our author's celebrated Effay on Truth is indeed become fo celebrated; the chief object of admiration, it prefents to a competent judge, being that of fo rational and ingenious a writer's adopting fo irrational and abfurd a principle as Dr. Reid's notion of a fentimental Common-Senfe. But of this defect, and of the real merit of Dr. Beattie's famous treatife on Truth, we fhall treat hereafter; prefenting the reader, at prefent, with fubjects of greater novelty and entertainment; the tracts annexed, and now firft published, in the volume before us.

These are, ift, An Effay on Poetry and Mufic, as they affect the Mind, in two parts-2dly, An Effay on Laughter and Ludicrous Compofition-3dly, Remarks on the Utility of Claffical Learning,

In

a

In part the firft of the Effay on Poetry and Mufic, the author confiders poetry with refpect to its matter or fubject; treating feparately of the end of poetical compofition-of the ftandard of poetical invention-of the difference between the poetical exhibition and reality of things-of poetical characters, and of poçtical arrangement. The reader will not expect every thing advanced on thefe heads to be quite new; the fubjects, however, are fo judiciously arranged and fo happily difpofed for each other's illuftration, that they affume an air of novelty, and strike with equal force and propriety. Our ingenious author proceeds next to make his remarks on mufic; in which there is fomething more new and original. Mufic has been generally regarded as an imitative art. Dr. Beattie objects to this opinion of it, though with a proper falvo, a due deference to fashionable authority.

"But while I thus infinuate, that Mufic is not an imitative art, I mean no difrefpect to Ariftotle, who feems in the beginning of his Poetics to declare the contrary. It is not the whole, but the greater part of mulic, which that philofopher calls Imitative; and I agree with him fo far as to allow this property to fome mufic, though not to all. But he fpeaks of the ancient mufic, and I of the modern; and to one who confiders how very little we know of the former, it will not appear a contradiction to fay, that the one might have been imitative, though the other is not.

"Nor do I mean any difrefpect to music, when I would strike it off the lift of imitative arts. I allow it to be a fine art, and to have great influence on the human foul: I grant, that by its power of raifing a variety of agreeable emotions in the hearer, it proves its relation to poetry, and that it never appears to the best advantage but with poetry for its interpreter: and I am fatisfied, that, though mufical genius may fubfift without poetical taste, and poetical genius without mufical tafte; yet thefe two talents united might accomplish nobler effects, than either could do fingly. I acknowledge too, that the principles and effential rules of this art are as really founded in nature, as thofe of poetry and painting. But when I am asked, What part of nature is imitated in any good picture or poem, I find I can give a definite anfwer: whereas, when I am afked, What part of nature is imitated in Handel's Water-mufic, for instance, or in Corelli's eighth concerto, or in any particular English fong or Scotch tune, I find I can give no definite answer:- though no doubt I might fay fome plautible things; er perhaps, after much refinement, be able to fhow, that Mufic may, by one thift or other, be made an imitative art, provided you allow me to give any meaning I pleafe to

the word imitative.

*We must here except fome paffages, in which Dr. Beattie has most flagrantly facrificed the opinion of the truly judicious (and we might almost, venture to say his wa) to that of fafinion, the idol of folly.

"Mufic is imitative, when it readily puts one in mind of the thing imitated. If an explication be neceffary, and if, after all, we find it difficult to recognise any exact fimilitude, I would not call fuch mufic an imitation of nature; but confider it as upon a footing, in point of likeness, with those pictures, wherein the action cannot be known but by a label proceeding from the mouth of the agent, nor the fpecies of animal afcertained without a name written under it. But between imitation in mufic and imitation in painting, there is this one effential difference: a bad picture is always a bad imitation of nature, and a good picture is neceffarily a good imitation; but mufic may be exactly imitative, and yet intolerably bad; or not at all imitative, and yet perfectly good. I have heard, that the Paftorale in the eighth of Corelli's Concertos, (which appears by the infeription to have been compofed for the night of the Nativity) was intended for an imitation of the fong of angels hovering above the fields of Bethlehem, and gradually foaring up to heaven. The mufic, however, is not fuch as would of itself convey this idea; and, even with the help of the commentary, it requires a lively fancy to connect the various movements and melodies of the piece with the motions and evolutions of the heavenly hoft; as fometimes flying off, and fometimes returning; finging fometimes in one quarter of the fky, and fometimes in another; now in one or two parts, and now in full chorus. It is not clear, that the author intended any imitation; and whether he did or not, is a matter of no confequence; for the malic will continue to please, when the tradition is no more remembered. The harmonies of this paftorale are indeed fo uncommon, and fo ravishingly fweet, that it is almost impoffible not to think of heaven when one hears them. I would not call them imitative; but I believe they are finer than any imitative music in the world.

"Sounds in themfelves can imitate nothing directly but founds, nor in their motions any thing but motions. But the natural founds and motions that mufic is allowed to imitate, are but few. For, first, they must all be confiftent with the fundamental principles of the ar, and not repugnant cither to melody or to harmony. Now, the foundation of all true mufic, and the most perfect of all mufical inftruments, is the human voice; which is therefore the prototype of the musical scale, and a flandard of musical found. Noifes, therefore, and inharmonious notes of every kind, which a good voice cannot utter without ftraining, ought to be excluded from this pleafing art: for it is impoffible, that thofe vocal founds which require any unnatural efforts, either of the finger or fpeaker, fhould ever give permanent gratification to the hearer. I fay, permanent gratification; for I deny not, that the preternatural screams of an Italian finger may occafion furprife, and momentary amufement: but thofe fcreams are not mufic; they are admired, not for their propriety or pathos, but, like ope-dancing, and the eating of fire, merely becaufe they are uncommon and difficult.-Befides, the end of all genuine mufic is, to introduce into the human mind certain affections, or fufceptibilities of affection. Now, all the affections, over which mufic has any power, are of the agreeable kind. And therefore, in

this

this art, no imitations of natural found or motion, but fuch as tend to infpire agreeable affections, ought ever to find a place. The. fong of certain birds, the murmur of a ftream, the fhouts of multitudes, the tumult of a form, the roar of thunder, or a chime of bells, are founds connected with agreeable or fublime affections, and reconcileable both with melody and harmony; and may therefore be imitated, when the artift has occafion for them: but the crowing of cocks, the barking of dogs, the mewing of cats, the grunting of fwine, the gabbling of geefe, the cackling of a hen, the braying of an afs, the creaking of a faw, or the rumbling of a cart-wheel, would render the best mulic ridiculous. The movement of a dance may be imitated, or the stately pace of an embattled legion: but the hob ble of a trotting horfe would be intolerable.

"There is another fort of imitation by found, which ought never to be heard, or feen, in mufic. To exprefs the local elevation of objects by what we call high notes, and their depreffion by low or deep notes, has no more propriety in it, than any other pun. We call notes high or low, with refpect of their fituation in the written fcale. There would have been no abfurdity in expreffing the highest notes by characters placed at the bottom of the fcale or mufical line, and the lowest notes by characters placed at the top of it, if custom or accident had fo determined. And there is reafon to think, that fomething like this actually obtained in the musical scale of the ancients. At least it is probable, that the deepest or graveft found was called Summa by the Romans, and the thrilleft or acutest Ima; which might be owing to the construction of their inftruments; the ftring that founded the former being perhaps highest in place, and that which founded the latter loweft.-Yet fome people would think a fong faulty, if the word heaven was fet to'what we call a low note, or the word hell to what we call a high one.

"All these forts of illicit imitation have been practised, and by thofe too from whom better things were expected. This abufe of a noble art did not efcape the fatire of Swift; who, though deaf to the charms of mufic, was not blind to the abfurdity of musicians. He recommended it to Dr. Ecclin, an ingenious gentleman of Ireland, to compofe a Cantata in ridicule of this puerile mimicry. Here we have motions imitated, which are the most inharmonious, and the leaft connected with human affections; as the trotting, ambling, and galloping, of Pegafus; and founds the most unmufical, as crackling and fniveling, and rough royftering rustic roaring ftrains: the words high and deep have high and deep notes fet to them; a series of fhort notes of equal lengths are introduced, to imitate hivering and shaking; an irregular rant of quick founds, to exprefs rambling; a fudden rife of the voice, from a low to a high pitch, to denote flying above the fy; a ridiculous run of chromatic divifions on the words Celia dies; with other droll contrivances of a like nature. In a word, Swift's Cantata alone may convince any perfon, that mufic uniformly imitative would be ridiculous.-I juft obferve in paffing, that the fatire of this piece is levelled, not at abfurd imitation only, but alfo at fome other mufical improprieties; fuch as the idle repetition of

the