A то ANTHONY HENLEY, ESQ. MAN of your character can no more prevent a dedication, than he would encourage one; for merit, like a virgin's blufhes, is ftill most discovered, when it labours moft to be concealed. It is hard, that to think well of you, fhould be but juftice, and to tell you fo, fhould be an offence: thus, rather than violate your modefty, I must be wanting to your other virtues; and, to gratify one good quality, do wrong to a thousand. The world generally measures our esteem by the ardour of our pretences; and will fcarce believe that fo much zeal in the heart, can be confiftent with fo much faintnefs in the expreffion; but when they reflect on your readiness to do good, and your industry to hide it; on your passion to oblige, and your pain to hear it owned; they will conclude that acknowledgements would be ungrateful to a perfon, who even feems to receive the obligations he confers. But though I fhould perfuade myself to be filent upon all occafions; thofe more polite arts, which, till of late, have languished and decayed, would appear under their prefent advantages, and own you for one of their generous reftorers; infomuch, that Sculpture now breathes, Painting fpeaks, Mufic ravifhes; and as you help to refine our taste, you distinguish your own. B 2 Your Your approbation of this poem, is the only exception to the opinion the world has of your judgement, that ought to relifh nothing fo much as what you write yourself: but you are refolved to forget to be a critic, by remembering you are a friend. To fay more, would be uneafy to you; and to fay less, would be unjust in Your humble Servant. PRE SINCE PREFACE. INCE this following Poem in a manner ftole into the world, I could not be furprized to find it uncorrect: though I can no more fay I was a ftranger to its coming abroad, than that I approved of the Publifher's precipitation in doing it for a hurry in the execution generally produces a leifure in reflexion; fo when we run the fafteft, we ftumble the oftenest. However, the errors of the printer have not been greater than the candour of the reader: and if I could but fay the fame of the defects of the author, he would need no juftification against the caviks of fome furious critics, who, I am fure, would have been better pleased if they had met with more faults. Their grand objection is, that the Fury Disease is an improper machine to recite characters, and recommend the example of present writers: but though I had the authority of fome Greek and Latin Poets, upon parallel inftances, to justify the defign; yet that I might not introduce any thing that feemed inconfiftent, or hard, I ftarted this objection myself, to a gentleman, very remarkable in this fort of criticifm, who would by no means allow that the contrivance was forced, or the conduct incongruous. Disease is represented a Fury as well as Envy: the is imagined to be forced by an incantation from her recefs; and, to be revenged on the Exorcift, mortifies him with an introduction of several perfons eminent in an accomplishment he has made fome advances in. Nor is the compliment lefs to any great genius mentioned there; fince a very fiend, who naturally repines at any excellency, is forced to confefs how happily they have all fucceeded, Their next objection is, that I have imitated the Lutrin of Monfieur Boileau. I muft own, I am proud of the imputation; unless their quarrel be, that I have not done it enough: but he that will give himfelf the trouble of examining, will find I have copied him in nothing but in two or three lines in the complaint of Moleffe, Canto II. and in one in his firft Canto; the fense of which line is entirely his, and I could wish it were not the only good one in mine. I have fpoke to the most material objections I have heard of, and fhall tell thefe gentlemen, that for every fault they pretend to find in this poem, I will undertake to thew them two. One of thefe curious perfons does me the honour to fay, he approves of the conclufion of it; but I fuppofe it is upon no other reafon, but becaufe it is the conclufion. However, I fhould not be much concerned not to be thought excellent in an amusement I have very little practifed hitherto, nor perhaps ever shall again. Reputation of this fort is very hard to be got, and very easy to be loft; its purfuit is painful, and its posfeflion unfruitful; nor had I ever attempted any thing in this kind, till finding the animofities among the Men ber; Members of the College of Phyficians increasing daily (notwithstanding the frequent exhortations of our worthy Prefident to the contrary) I was perfuaded to attempt fomething of this nature, and to endeavour to railly fome of our difaffected Members into a sense of their duty, who have hitherto most obftinately opposed all manner of union; and have continued fo unreasonably refractory, that it was thought fit by the College, to reinforce the obfervance of the ftatutes by a bond, which fome of them would not comply with, though none of them had refused the ceremony of the cuftomary oath; like fome that will truft their wives with any body, but their money with none. I was forry to find there could be any constitution that was not to be cured without poifon, and that there fhould be a profpect of effecting it by a lefs grateful method than reafon and perfuafion. The original of this difference has been of fome standing, though it did not break out to fury and excefs, until the time of erecting the Difpenfary, being an apartment in the college, fet up for the relief of the fick poor, and managed ever fince with an integrity and difintereft, fuitable to fo charitable a defign. If any person would be more fully informed about the particulars of fo pious a work, I refer him to a Treatife, fet forth by the authority of the Prefident and Cenfors, in the year 97. It is called, "A fhort Account of the "Proceedings of the College of Phyficians, London, in "relation to the fick Poor." The reader may there not only be informed of the rife and progrefs of this fo public an undertaking, but alfo of the concurrence and encouragement B 4 |