[ 6' 3 



bation had been clouded with barbarifm or ignorance, it would 

 have been idle to have touched on this queftion for a moment ; 

 but the days in which this great poet was moft admired, were, 

 above all others in the hiftory of Greece, peculiarly refulgent. 

 Never did the genius of Athens appear with more dazzling luftre 

 than juft at that period. The age of Demoflhenes, of Hyperides 

 and Alexander, was the age of eloquence, and to a certain degree 

 of the fine arts ; but with fuch predominating fplendour did the 

 period which I allude to fliine forth, that no fubfequent aera in 

 the annals of mankind has, in fome inftances, at all equalled it. 

 It was amidfl: this intelledual blaze, " in this moft high and 

 " palmy ftate" of Greece, that the tragedies of iEfchylus laid 

 hold on the Athenian mind 5 and though he was exceeded by 

 Sophocles in regularity and elegance, and by Euripides in ten- 

 dernefs and moral fentiment, yet the uncommon force of poetry 

 with which he had elucidated and adorned the more fhadowy 

 and uncertain parts of Grecian ftory, and the noble patriotifm 

 and magnificence of numbers with which he cloathed the illuf- 

 trious day of Salamis in double luftre, rendered him the objedl 

 of delight and admiration to his countrymen. Perhaps if we 

 confider for a moment the nature of thofe fubjeds which form 

 the tragedies of thofe great poets, we may be induced to pay 

 more attention to the fentiments of vEfchylus, as far as they 

 relate to the prefent queftion. The misfortunes of 



" Thebes, or Pelops line, 



" Or the tale of Troy divine," 



fcem to be the general and indeed inexhauftible fource from 

 whence they all drew their richeft materials : Sophocles, and 



Euripides, 



