hinders him from difcovering. And then the fon's fpeech, being fufpended and interrupted from time to time, as it were, by a forced filence, and a warm sense of tenderness, muft explain the violence he does himself, to prevent his letting words drop, which the force of truth would feemingly extort from him. By this, the judge is inclined to inquire after that inexpreffible fomething, which he would not perhaps have believed, had it been discovered to him; but which he now is fully convinced of, from the belief that he has difcovered it by his own inquiry.

There are likewife fome perfons of fo venerable a character, and fo univerfal a reputation, that their very names are enough to bear down their adverfaries. Such was Cato in his conteft with Murena; and we cannot make youth too fenfible of the furprising art with which m Cicero deprived Cato of fome part of his authority and credit, by the picture he drew of the fect of the Stoics, which he turned into ridicule with so much wit and humour, that Cato himself could not forbear laughing at it; and this, without faying any thing derogatory to his perfon, which was to be, in a manner, facred to him, and was certainly inacceffible, and impregnable to any kind of cenfure.

Was there ever a nice or more difficult affair than that which Cicero undertook, in oppofing the levelling or Agrarian law? for fo they called the law which ap pointed lands to be diftributed among the poorest of the people. That law had at all times ferved the tribunes as a bait, to gain the populace, and to fix them in their intereft. It appeared indeed to be very much in their favour, by procuring them repofe and a fafe retreat. However, Cicero undertakes to make the people themselves reject it, juft after they had chofen him conful with unparalleled marks of diftinction. Had he begun with fpeaking openly against that law, the whole people

m Quam molli autem articulo fius vitio, fed Stoicæ fectæ, quitractavit Catonem, cujus natubufdam in rebus factam duriorem ram fumme admiratus, non ip- videri volebat! Quint, 1. 11. c. 2.

would

would have exclaimed and rofe against him. He was too wife, and too well acquainted with men, to act after that manner. It deferves our admiration to fee how long he keeps his auditors in fufpenfe, without letting them difcover what party he had taken, or what opinion he intended to inculcate. He employs at first all the power of his eloquence, to fhew the people the lively fenfe he had of the very fignal favour he had lately received from them. He carefully heightens all the circumftances of it, which reflected fo much honour upon him. He afterwards takes notice of the duties and obligations, which fa unanimous a confent of the people, in chufing him conful, had laid him under. He declares, that, as he is obliged to them for all his honours and dignities, he fhall always have the popular intereft at heart, not only during the continuance of his office, but during his life. But he takes notice, that the word popular requires explanation: and after fhewing its various acceptations; after he had discovered the fecret intrigues of the tribunes, who concealed their ambitious defign under that plaufible name: after he had highly applauded the Gracchi, who were zealous defenders of the Agrarian law, and whofe memory, for that reafon, was fo dear to the Roman people; after he had thus infinuated himfelf by degrees into the minds of the auditors, and gained them intirely; he does not, however, dare yet to attack openly the law in question, but contents himself with protefting, that, in cafe the people, after hearing him, do not acknowledge, that this law, under a deceitful outfide, gives in effect a blow to their quiet and their liberty, he then will join them, and fubmit to their opinion. This is a perfect model of what we call an infinuatory exordium in the schools; and methinks one fuch paffage as this is fufficient for forming the understanding of youth, and teaching them the dextrous and refpectful way of combating the opinions of those who are not to be oppofed directly on the fcore of acknowledgment

2

ledgment and fubmiffion. This difcourfe had all the effect which was expected from it; and the people, being undeceived by the eloquent discourse of their conful, repealed the Agrarian law.

The paffage in Cicero's oration for Ligarius, where an inquiry is made what people ought to think of Pompey's party, required to be handled with great nicety. Tubero had declared thofe to be criminal who bore arms against Cæfar. Cicero heightens and condemns the harfhnefs of that expreffion and after recapitulating the different names given to the conduct of those who had declared for Pompey, as error, fear, luft, paffion, prepoffeffion, intoxication, rafhnefs: "For my part, fays he, if people afk me, what "is the proper and true name which ought to be gi"ven to our misfortunes, methinks it is a fatal in"fluence that has blinded men, and forced them ❝along, in spite of all their endeavours to the con

trary; fo that we must not wonder to see the un"furmountable will of the gods prevail over the "counfels of men." "Ac mihi quidem, fi proprium & verum nomen noftri mali quæratur, fatalis quædam calamitas incidiffe videtur, & improvidas hominum mentes occupaviffe: ut nemo mirari debeat, humana confilia divina neceffitate effe fuperata. There was nothing in this definition injurious to Pompey's party; and, fo far from offending Cæfar, it pleased him very much.

Such of our writers as have treated of the last civil wars of France seem to have had the above-mentioned paffage of Cicero in view; but then they have very much improved upon the original:

"Alas, unhappy France! though thou gotteft "rid of that enemy, were there not ftill enough re"maining, without turning thine arms against thy“ self? What fatal influence could induce thee to "fhed fo much blood? Why cannot we obliterate "those melancholy years from history, and keep them "from the knowledge of our pofterity? But fince it ♬ Pro Ligar, n. 171. o Mafcar, M. du Turenne's funeral oration.

I 6

"is

"is impoffible to pass over things, which the shed

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ding so much blood has too ftrongly recorded, let "us reveal them at leaft, like that artful painter who "invented the profile, in order to conceal the ble"mishes in a face. Let us remove from our fight "that darkness of mind, that fatal night, which, being "formed in the confufion of public affairs by so many "different interefts, made even thofe go aftray who "fought for the right path.

"Do you, gentlemen, remember that period of "diforder and confufion, when the gloomy fpirit of "difcord confounded juftice and right with paffion, "duty with intereft, the good caufe with the bad; "when most of the brightest stars fuffered fome "eclipfe, and the most faithful subjects faw them"felves involuntarily drawn away by the torrent of parties; like thofe pilots, who, finding themselves furprised by a ftorm in the midst of the ocean, are "obliged to change their courfe, and abandon them"felves for a time to the winds and the tempeft? "Such is God's juftice; fuch is the natural infirmity. "of men but the wife man eafily recovers himself,

and there is both in politics, and in religion, a "kind of repentance more glorious than innocence "itfelf, which makes an advantageous reparation for a little frailty by extraordinary virtues, and a con"tinual fervor.

"What fhall I fay? God fuffered the winds and "waves to roar and tofs, and the ftorm arose. A "peftiferous air of factions and infurrections won the "heart of the ftate, and extended itfelf to the most "diftant parts. The paffions, which our fins had "kindled, broke down the fences of juftice and reafon;

and the wifeft men, being drawn by the unhappi"nefs of engagements and conjunctures, against their "own inclinations, found they had ftrayed beyond "the bounds of their duty, before they perceived it."

p Flécher, in M. Turenne's funeral oration.

4 M. Fléchier, in M. de Terlier's funeral oration.

ARTICLE

ARTICLE the SEVENTH.

Of the Paffions.

Should be extremely tedious, did I undertake to touch even but curforily all that concerns this fubject, it being one of the most important in rhetoric. It is known that the paffions are, as it were, the foul of an oration: that it is from them it derives the impetuofity and vehemence, which bear down all before them; and that the orator by their means attains an abfolute empire over his auditors, and infpires them with whatever fentiments he pleafes; fometimes by artfully taking advantage of the biafs and favourable difpofition of people's minds, but at other times in furmounting all their oppofition by the victorious ftrength of the oration, and obliging them to furrender, as it were, in fpite of themfelves. Cæfar was not able to refift, when he heard Cicero's defence of Ligarius, though he was much upon his guard againft his eloquence; being determined, when he came out of his own house, not to pardon the latter.

I think it fufficient to refer youth to Cicero's * perorations, and to exhort them to make the application themselves of the excellent precepts left us by Cicero. and Quintilian on this subject. The moít important

Tantam vim habet illa, quæ recte à bono poeta dicta eft flexanima atque omnium regina rerum oratio, ut non modo inclinantem erigere, aut ftantem inclinare, fed etiam adverfantem & repugnantem, ut imperator bonus ac fortis, capere poffit. Lib. 2. de Orat, n. 187.

*Conclufions of a speech.

Summa circum movendos affectus in hoc pofita eft, ut moveamur ipfi... Primum eft ut apud

nos valeant ea quæ valere apud judicem volun.us, afficiamurque antequam afficere conemur ... Ubi miferatione opus erit, nobis ea de quibus querimur, accidiffe credamus, atque id animo noftro perfuadeamus. Nos illi fimus, quos gra via, indigna, triftia paffos quera.

mur.

Nec agamus rem quafi alie. nam, fed affumamus parumper illum dolorem. Ita dicemus, quæ in fimili noftro cafu dicturi effemus. Q. 1. 6. c. 3.

of