43 



Whoever makes the flighted obfervation will perceive it impoffible, in 

 the flux and multitude of difcordant languages, exifting, perifliing, and 

 changing every moment, that rhime fliould have been borrovi^ed by one 

 from the other. The Hebrews and Arabians, in particular, as obferved 

 above, were fliut, out for a long, long time, from the reft of the world, 

 and neither compofed treatifes of profody tliemfelves (the Hebrews never' 

 and the Arabians, as we have feen, not till after the time of Mahomet) 

 nor communicated their poetry to their neighbours. We muft not 

 reafon, from the tote of things as they are, to the ftate of things as 

 they were. Numerous are the circumftances, that have given birth to a 

 new order, and none more than the propagation and eftabliflimcnt of the 

 gofpel, with the lights that typography has thrown upon human know- 

 ledge. Formerly the communications of knowledge were few, and thofe 

 confined to private libraries, chiefly of Monarchs, inacceflible to the mul- 

 titude ; which atone may account for the flow progrefs, that fcience, till 

 of late years, had made in the world. To reafon philofophically, there- 

 fore, we muft not, we cannot fuppofe, that one nation borrowed its rhime of 

 another : but that each language, having its own peculiar tone, conftituted. 

 as it always muft, its own peculiar verfe; that rhime, from the very 

 nature of language itfelf, has been a mode or quality, which entered 

 more or lefs, into the mufic of every tongue, whofe conftruftion would 

 cadureit, forming a conftituent part of its harmony , and that Its asrofr- 

 fality proves there muft be fomething in it lefs diflbnant than agieeaHe, 

 lefs barbarous than natural. For, not confidering the genius of the 

 Greek and Roman tongues, from the moment we leave fchool, we are 

 prejudiced in their favor, and bow t{^ 'thdr authority ; and unconfcious 

 that we retain the impreflions of education, which never wholly forfake 

 us, conceive there can exift no excellence out of thefe languages. This, 

 I am perfuaded, has more influence on our minds than we are aware of, 

 or perhaps are difpofed to allow. But, if pleafure and inftruftion be the' 

 end of poetry, the ofilce of rhime cannot, I apprehend, be more fuccefs- 

 ^%..empi9yed than in the ■Hiords,of the philofophic johnfon, 

 .■tiad; io Dnc. ;, ; ;,^.; i,..,!. .. .,, 



"To point a moral, or' adorn a tale." 



^ 2 tt;orae 



