Of HISTORICAL COMPOSITION. 87 



The characters of an author's ftyle, too, are fixed by thofe of his 

 mind. It is delicate, lively and accurate, according to his fen- 

 fibility, his fancy, and his judgment j and its comparative ex- 

 cellence is determined by the abfolute ftrength of each power, 

 and the general balance that fubfifts among the whole. 



AFTER attempting to eftablifh a ftanclard, by which the me- 

 rit of any hiftorical work is to be tried, I mean now to apply 

 it particularly to the writings of TACITUS. In doing fo, I pro- 

 pof e to give examples that will indicate the ftrength of the three 

 powers dated, taken feparately, and in the order in which they 

 have been defined. After contemplating certain inftances, in 

 which our author's fuperiority, with refpecl to each, will be evi- 

 dent, others may perhaps be fuggefted, in which his greateft 

 admirers cannot free him from cenfure. 



THOUGH it is difficult to determine which of the three 

 powers mentioned predominated in the mind of TACITUS ', yet, 

 from the nature of his fubjeds, his fenfibility was often exer- 

 cifed in an uncommon degree. Inftances of this are fo nu- 

 merous, that we muft felect a few only of the moft ftriking. 

 Let us take that of the death of GERMANICUS, and of the ftate 

 of his widow AGRIPPINA, in the end of the fecond and begin- 

 ning of the third book of the Annals. 



THE fituation of GERMANICUS, juft before his death, (it muft 

 be remembered), was fingular. He had long been the favourite 

 of the Romans, on account of the agreeablenefs of his man- 

 ners, and the high military character that he had acquired at a 

 very early period of life. He was the adopted fon of TIBERIUS, 

 who, having become jealous of his popularity, had called him 

 from the conqueft of Germany, which he had nearly comple- 

 ted. He was difmiffed from Rome, under pretence of fettling 

 certain differences in the eaft. His conduct there was invidi- 

 oufly watched by Piso, the governor of Syria, who was in the 

 emperor's confidence. He was certain, when upon his death- 

 bed, that he had been poifoned by Piso ; and, while he com- 

 plains 





