WARTON. 



edition of Virgil in Latin and Englilh ; the ^neid being in 

 Pitt's tranflation, and the Eclogues and Georgies in his own ; 

 adding notes and three eflays^on paftoral, didaftic, and epic 

 jjoetry. His tranflations are charafterized as fuperior in 

 accuracy to Dryden's, and in poetry to Trapp's, but not 

 diftinguifhed by fpirit or briUiancy. To the " Adventurer" 

 be became a contributor, by the recommendation of Dr. John- 

 fon, of twenty-four papers, which were of an humorous caft, 

 and moftly eflays on critical topics. In 1754 he was pre- 

 fented to the reftory of Tamworth, and in the following 

 year became fecond mafter of Winchefter-fchool. In 1756 

 he pubhfhed, without his name, an " EfTay on the Writings 

 and Genius of Pope," in which he intermijfes praife with re- 

 fleftions that tend to degrade this poet to the clafs of thofe 

 who have been votaries of reafon rather than of imagination. 

 Failing to convince the public that his eilimate of his talents 

 was juft, he deferred the publication of his fecond volume 

 for twenty-fix years. In 1766 he was advanced to the fta- 

 tion of head-mafter of Winchefter-fchool, which he long 

 occupied with diftinguifhed reputation, and in which he 

 formed many fcholars, who afterwards rofe to literary emi- 

 nence, and retained a grateful fenfe of his tuition. On this 

 promotion he vifited Oxford, and was honoured with the 

 degrees of bachelor and doftor of divinity. His fubfequent 

 preferments were numerous but fmall, and he obtained them 

 late in life : in 1782, the friendfhip of bilhop Lowth pro- 

 cured for him a prebend of St. Paul's, and the living of 

 Thorley in Hertfordftiire ; and in 1788 he was advanced to 

 a prebend of Winchefter and the reftory of Eafton. In 1793 

 he refigned his mafterftiip of Winchefter-fchool, and retired 

 to the reftory of Wickham, which he enjoyed in exchange 

 for another. As he was fond of hterary employment, he 

 was engaged by the bookfellers to fuperintend an edition of 

 Pope's Works, which appeared in 9 vols. 8vo. in 1797, 

 with notes critical and biographical, partly felefted from his 

 former effay, and a life of th& poet. When this work was 

 fimfhed, he undertook an edition of Dryden, and had pre- 

 pared two volumes at the time of his death, which happened 

 in February 1800, in his 78lh year. He was twice mar- 

 ried, and left one fon and three daughters. In his private 

 charafter, fays his biographer, he was amiable, and in focial 

 life no lefs eftimable than in his literary conneftions. The 

 Wickhamites, gentlemen who had been educated at Win- 

 chefter-fchool, teftified their refpeft for his memory by ereft- 

 ing a monument over his tomb in Winchefter cathedral. 

 His " Ode to Fancy," firft printed in Dodfley's CoUeftion, 

 is thought to have been moll; admired, and to afford the fair- 

 eft fpecimen of his talents. Gen. Biog. 



Warton, Thomas, brother of the preceding, was born 

 at Bafingftoke in 1728, and manifefted, by his tranflation 

 of an epigram of Martial in his ninth year, an early tafte for 

 verfification. In 1743 he was admitted a commoner of Tri- 

 nity college, Oxford, where he diftinguiftied himfelf, in his 

 twenty-firft year, by his " Triumph of Ifis," in vindication of 

 the univerfity againft the refleftionsofMafon's elegy of " Ifis." 

 This poem, however, he afterwards excluded from his volume 

 ofcoUefted pieces. His " Progrefs of Difcontent," faid to 

 have been written as a coUege-exercife in 1746, gained him 

 reputation. Having taken his degree of M. A. in 1750, he 

 became in the following year a fellow of his college ; and 

 feems to have formed his purpofe of univerfity-reTidence, and 

 of devoting himfelf to poetry and elegant literature. Be- 

 fides his " Newmarket," a fpirited fatire againft the ruinous 

 paffion for the turf ; his ode for Mufic ; Verfes on the death 

 of the prince of Wales ; and his editorfhip, in 1 753, of a col- 

 leftion of poems, entitled the " Union," and containing 

 ieveral of his own pieces, feverally contributed to his re- 



9 



putation ; but his obfervations on Spenfer's Fairy Queen, 

 pubhfhed in 1754, firft in one volume and afterwards in two 

 volumes, were of more effential fervice in making him known 

 as a critic, and as converfant with poetical antiquities ; and 

 prepared the way for his eleftion, in 1757, to the office of 

 profeffor of poetry to the univerfity, which he occupied for 

 ten years, with an erudition and tafte that rendered his 

 leftures inftruftive and amufing. Oiy limits will not al- 

 low us to enumerate his various publications, but we ftiall 

 proceed to other details of greater importance. Having 

 taken the degree of B.D. in 1761, he was inftituted to the 

 fmallHving of Kiddington, in Oxfordfhire, in 1771. His 

 edition of Theocritus, in 2 vols. 4to., was pubhfhed in 1770, 

 and very much contributed to his literary celebrity both at 

 home and on the continent. It was probably about this 

 time that he formed a defign of writing a " Hiftory of Po- 

 etry," which had been contemplated by Pope, Gray, and 

 Mafon. However, the firft volume in quarto was pubhfhed 

 in 1774, the fecond appeared in 1778, and a third was pre- 

 fented to the public in 1 781. His plan was much more ex- 

 tenfive, and intended to terminate only with the commence- 

 ment of the eighteenth century ; but he became tired of the 

 tallc, and wifhed for relaxation, fo that he prepared only a 

 few fheets of a fourth volume. This Opus Magnum, as it 

 may be well denominated, exhibits an extent of refearch and 

 reading, and a correftnefs of tafte and critical judgment, 

 which do him great honour ; and we may juftly regret 

 that he did not finifh it, and that no one, equal to the un- 

 dertaking, has had refolution to profecute and complete it. 

 In fuch a comprehenfive and multifarious work, fome inac- 

 curacies are unavoidable ; but the moft faftidious critic 

 muft acknowledge, that it abounds with curious and inte- 

 refting information. In 1781 he projefted a county hiftory 

 of Oxfordfhire, and in 1782 he pubhfhed a fpecimen of his 

 undertaking in a topographical account of his parifh of Kid- 

 dington ; but he was probably difcouraged by the magni- 

 tude and labour of fuch a work. In this year he took part 

 in the controverfy concerning Rowley's poems, which he 

 decidedly pronounced to be the fabrication of their pre- 

 tended editor. His views with regard to promotion were 

 reftrifted ; however, his income was at this time increafed by 

 a donative in Somerfetfhire, and in 1785 by the office of 

 Camden-profefTor of hiftory at Oxford ; and foon after by 

 the king's offer of the poft of poet-laureat, which he accepted 

 with a defign of rendering it refpeftable. As the indolence 

 of age and of a collegiate life was advancing upon him, he no 

 longer indulged extenfive views and projefted great undertak- 

 ings, but he contented himfelf with accomplifhing a tafk which 

 to him muft have been very eafy, and that was an edition of 

 Milton's juvenile poems, with notes for illuftrating their 

 beauties and explaining their obfolete and peculiar phrafeo- 

 logy. The firft edition appeared in 1785, and the fecond in 

 1791, a little while before his death. In his 62d year he 

 was attacked with a paroxyfm of the gout, and this was fuc- 

 ceeded in May 1 790 by a paralytic feizure, which terminated 

 his life at his lodgings in Oxford. His remains were inter- 

 red, with every academical honour, at the chapel of Trinity 

 college. Although his charafter was marked by fome pecu- 

 liarities, he is faid to have been fubftantially good-humoured, 

 friendly, and placid. Several editions of his poems appeared 

 in his life-time ; and fince his death an edition of his works 

 has been given by Mr. Mant, in 2 vols. 8vo. 1802, to which 

 is prefixed a biographical account of the author. Nichols's 

 Liter. Anecd. Gen. Biog. 



Mufical hiftorians have confiderable obhgations to this 

 poetical antiquary : as in his long, extenfive, and diligent 

 refearches, he has furnifhed them with anecdotes and narra- 

 tives 



