rieal p^raopages ii^ rhi^ ^ei<;ies, ti^at ,1^^ ;;^,c(^ivad{ 

 th^tn, i^s pbj^pts; of se'ripu^ belief,, ^n^, coiysidered 

 ^ rdyerenee to them ja^-gf .jiigjiriipportaiice, ta 

 thCj public \yelfarc.,rix- ^., -r;.' /;,. ' 



. ., -It, jis, ; ^an essential pjart, of this chimerical 

 thesojy, that th^sp. allegorical personages, the 

 dciti^, are introduced into the poem in ordei? 

 tcv-giv.e a dignity to the. moral, and therefore it 

 is rx?qui)*ed, that their whole ^ character and 

 ajCtion.be conformed to the moraL .Now, if the 

 ^yils,, which. spring out of discord,^ and, the bles- 

 sings, att<?ndant. upon uriio%|De.tl;ie! great mo/al^ 

 9J9i.»r>V;hi9^i th^. .wholes platV; ^f f-h^ Vh<^ is. con- 

 strji^ted, it must be confessed, , that, the cha- 

 r^icterj which Homer has assignedto his allego- 

 rical personages, is very ill adapted to tbis moral, 

 and , very little calculated to give, efficacy and 

 dignity to it. Inasmuch as they arc designed 

 tafbe exhibited as beings of a superior or^er, 

 ^nd objects at least of popular reverence, they 

 aught to :be clothed vyith som<^,,. dignity of 

 character, and appear to be exem^pt from the 

 fipllics ^nd passions^ which originate.;the: quarrels 

 and .di§3ensions oi men. Every thing contrary 

 to this- is^ the ;. character of liomer's celestial 

 inachinery. They appear w^ith ilo dignity of 

 character, with iio abstraction from the lowest 

 follies, from the wildest passions of men; 

 their, superadded agency presents no picture of 



