308 



MILTON. 



Milton, and Milan to Geneva. From thence he returned 

 <t ^V"^" -/ through France to his native country, after an ab- 

 sence of a year and three months. This was at the 

 time of the King's return from his second expedition 

 against Scotland, when his forces had been obliged to 

 retreat before Leslie. The crisis was a striking one. 

 Private griefs, however, must have been at this time 

 mixed with Milton's sensations of interest in the pub- 

 lie, as the first news which he heard on coming home 

 was the death of his friend Carlo Deodati. He dedicatee! 

 to his name his Epitaphium Damonis. From a passage 

 in this poem, it appears that he still frequently thought 

 of some great epic composition, and that Arthur and 

 the heroes of British fable, were at that time his 

 meditated subjects. 



Coming to London, he hired lodgings in St. Bride's 

 church-yard, and received, as pupils, his two nephews, 

 John and Edward Phillips. It has been asked, whe- 

 ther he took pupils gratuitously, or for reward we 

 may go a step farther back, and ask what is the use of 

 such a question ? The business of teaching is still ho- 

 nourable, though it should reward the teacher with 

 subsistence. It is of more importance to inquire how 

 far his plan of teaching corresponded with the superi- 

 ority of his intellect. It was formed, says one of his 

 most admiring biographers, Dr. Symmons, on an erron- 

 eous principle " It respected things more than words.'' 

 This description certainly opens not unprepossessing- 

 ]y. He placed in the hands of boys from ten to fifteen 

 years of age, such writers as though not remarkable for 

 beauty of language, gave information on some of the 

 departments of science, as, the agricultural works of 

 Cato, Columella, and Varro ; the Medical Treatise of 

 Cornelius Celsus ; Pliny's Natural History; Vitruvi- 

 us's Architecture, and the philosophical Poems of Lu- 

 cretius and Manilius. We perceive in this plan the 

 teacher's laudable ambition to imbue the minds of 

 those entrusted to him with an early love of science as 

 well as the recollection of words and phrases, and can- 

 not agree with Dr. Symmons that it is founded on false 

 principles. Sir William Jones followed the plan of edu- 

 cation traced out by Milton ; and if we may judge of a 

 system by its disciple, he could not have pursued a better. 



From St. Bride's Church-yard he soon removed to a 

 house in Aldersgate Street, which admitted his scholars 

 into his family, and the situation, secluded by a court 

 from the street, and opening behind into a garden, sup- 

 plied the retirement favourable to literary occupation. 

 Here he gave his pupils the example of close applica- 

 tion and abstinent diet. He indulged only in tempe- 

 rate festivity once in the course of a month or three 

 weeks. " His companions," Phillips says, " were the 

 beaux of the times, but they never were so iniempe- 

 rate as those of the s-ueceeding generation." 



The state of politics brought his pen into exertion. 

 The long parliament now represented a nation irritated 

 by the flagrant abuse both of civil and ecclesiastical 

 power. The king's treatment of members of parlia- 

 ment, one of whom, Sir John Elliot, had died from the 

 severity of imprisonment ; his arbitrary exertions, and 

 the severe sentences of his courts and councils, had 

 made the public ripe for resistance and innovation; and 

 the despotism of the church had walked side by side 

 with that of the state. -But Charles's embarrassments 

 after his defeat from the Scottish army compelled him 

 to have recourse in earnest to a parliament ; and this 

 legislature released the press from its horrid silence. 

 Milton, on his return from the Continent, found the 

 clamour loud and general against the bishops. He was, 

 en this occasion, to all appearance, the leader of the at* 



tack on the church, a far as the hostility of the press Milton. 

 was concerned In his two treatises of reformation ^~^s-*- 

 touching church government, he contended that the re- 

 formation of the church had not proceeded sufficrently 

 far ; and inveighed against the practical evils which re- 

 ligion and liberty had suffered under the prelatical go. 

 vcrnment. To this and other attacks from puritan 

 pens, the virtuous and learned Bihop Hall thought it 

 proper to reply, in " A Humble Remonstrance to the 

 High Court of Parliament ;" and about the same time 

 Archbishop Usher published a work to maintain the 

 apostolical institution of Episcopacy. 



In reply to these pamphlets, Milton published two 

 pieces, the first of which bore the title of" Prelitical 

 Episcopacy," and the second, " The Reason of Church 

 Government urged against Prelacy." The po.nt at i-,Mie 

 between these polemics was the divine or the human 

 origin of episcopacy. These opponents of our author, 

 Hall and Usher, were men whose characters reflected 

 honour upon their cause, and who, in their conduct, 

 were not persecutors. This circumstance, however, is 

 not decisive of the truth of trie ecclesiastical doctrines 

 which they supported. Milton's productions were the 

 most learned anil able on the puritan side .of the con- 

 troversy. But the piece which seems to have chiefly 

 attracted the public attention at this time, was one 

 written by five of the presbyterian divines, under the 

 title of " Sincclymnuus," a word made up of the initial 

 names of the authors. To this book Bishop Hall re. 

 plied in a " Defence of the Remonstrance," and Mil- 

 ton's formidable pen produced " Animadversions on the 

 Remonstrant's Defence. These five pieces of Milton's 

 were written in one year, ]6-tl, when their author was 

 thirty -three years of age, and whilst he was daily occu. 

 pied with the fatigues of tuition. 



In the beginning of the next year, his " Animadver- 

 sions," which unquestionably were rude and personal, 

 excited a deeply vindictive reply (as was supposed,) 

 from the son of Bishop Hall. The anonymous publi- 

 cation heaped enormous falsehoods on Milton's head. 

 Our author's " Apology for Smectymnuut," wag drawn 

 forth by this accumulated provocation. The most ob- 

 jectionable part of this work is the critical attack which 

 he makes on Bishop Hall's literary character, and on 

 his satires : its most splendid and eloquent passage 

 is his eulogy on the first proceedings of the Long Par- 

 liament. This publication seems to have closed the 

 controversy ; weapons more effectual than pens were 

 now drawn against the church. 



About Whitsuntide, in l6l-3, Milton took a journey 

 into the country, apparently for the mere object of re- 

 creation ; and without having communicated his de- 

 sign of marriage to any of his friends, returned, rather 

 to their surprise, at the end of a month, with his wife, 

 Mary Powell, the daughter of a country gentleman, at 

 Forest Hill, near Shotover, in Oxfordshire. His matri- 

 monial choice seemed to be hasty, and was not fortu- 

 nate. His spouse, strongly attached, like all her fa- 

 mily, to the royalist party, and accustomed to the af- 

 fluent hospitality of her father's house, was soon tired of 

 a studious, recluse, and republics husband. After a 

 month's experience of her new life, she sighed for the 

 gaieties she hud left behind, and '>y the earnest request 

 of her relations, obtained permission to pay a short 

 visit to Forest Hill. But when the period returned, 

 (Michaelmas,) when she should have arrived, she 

 shewed no disposition to keep her word ; but, on the 

 contrary, treated his letters with silence, and sent *>: ck 

 his messenger with disdain. The king at this period 

 was defeating the parliamentary forces, and the Powells 



