a dialect not more intelligible, nor less difagreeable, to a native of Buchan, than the dialect of Buchan is to a native of Edinburgh.

The greater part of Ramfay's Gentle Shepherd is written in a broad Scotch dialect. The fentiments of that piece are natural, the circumstances interesting; the characters well drawn, well diftinguished, and well contrafted; and the fable has more probability than any other pastoral drama. I am acquainted with. To an Englishman, who had never converfed with the common people of Scotland, the language would appear only antiquated, obfcure, or unintelligible; but to a Scotchman who thoroughly understands it, and is aware of its vulgarity, it appears ludicrous; from the contrast between meanness of phrafe, and dignity or seriousness of sentiment. This gives a farcical air even to the most affecting parts of the poem; and occafions an impropriety of a peculiar kind, which is very obfervable in the reprefentation. And accordingly, this play, with all its merit, and with a strong national partiality in its favour, has never given general fatisfaction upon the stage.

I have finished a pretty full enumeration of examples; but am very far from fuppofing it fo complete, as to exhibit every fpecies of ludicrous abfurdity. Nor am I certain, that the reader will be pleased with my arrangement, or even admit that all my ex

amples

1

amples have the ludicrous character. But flight inaccuracies, in an inquiry fo little connected with practice, will perhaps be overlooked as not very material; especially when it is confidered, that the subject, though familiar, is both copious and delicate, and tho' frequently spoken of by philofophers in general terms, has never before been attempted, fo far as I know, in the way of induction. At any rate, it will appear from what has been faid, that the theory here adopted is plausible at least; and that the philosophy of Laughter is not wholly unfufceptible of method. And they who may think fit to amuse themselves at any time with this fpeculation, whatever ftrefs they may lay upon my reasoning, will perhaps find their account in my collection of examples. And, provided they substitute a more perfect theory of their own in its stead, I shall not be offended, if by means of thefe very examples they fhould find out and demonftrate the imperfection of mine.

СНАР,

СНАР. III.

Limitations of the preceding doctrine. Incongruity not Ludicrous, I. When customary and common; nor, II. When it excites any powerful emotion in the beholder, as, 1. Moral Disapprobation, 2. Indignation or Disgust, 3. Pity, or, 4. Fear; III. Influence of Goodbreeding upon Laughter; IV. Of Similitudes, as connected with this fubject; V. Recapitulation.

THA

'HAT an oppofition of relation and contrariety is often difcernible in those things which we call Ludicrous, seems now to be fufficiently proved. But does every fuch oppofition or mixture of contrariety and relation, of fuitableness and incongruity, of likeness and diffimilitude, provoke laughter? This requires further difquifition.

I. If an old Greek or Roman were to rife from his grave, and fee the human head and fhoulders overshadowed with a vast periwig; or were he to contemplate the native hairs of

a fine gentleman arranged in the prefent form * , part ftanding erect, as if their owner were befet with hobgoblins, and part by means of grease and meal confolidated into pafte: he could hardly fail to be ftruck with the appearance; and I queftion, whether the features even of Heraclitus himself, or of the younger Cato, would not relax a little upon the occafion. For in this abfurd imitation of nature, we have likeness coupled with diffimilitude, and imaginary grace with real deformity, and inconvenience fought after with eagerness, and at confiderable expence. Yet in these fashions they who are accustomed to them do not perceive any thing ridiculous. Nay, were we to fee a fine lady dreffed according to the mode ftill extant in fome old pictures, with her treffes all hanging about her eyes, in diftinct and equal portions, like a bunch of candles, and twisted into a hundred ftrange curls, we fhould certainly think her a laughable phenomenon; though the fame object two centuries ago would have been gazed at with admiration and delight. There are few incongruities to which custom will not reconcile us f. Nay,

* In the year 1764.

In the age of James the Firft, when fashion had confecrated the Pun and Paronomafia, the hearers of a quibbling preacher, were, I doubt not, both attentive. and ferious; as the univerfal prevalence of witticifm,

3 G

even

Nay, fo wonderfully ductile is the taste of fome people, that, in the various revolutions of fashion, they find the fame thing charming while in vogue, which when obfolete is altogether frightful. Incongruity, there

fore, in order to be ludicrous, must be in fome measure uncommon.

To this it will be objected, that those ludicrous paffages in books, that have been many times laughed at by the fame person, do not entirely lose their effect by the fre

even on folemn occafions, would almoft annihilate its ludicrous effect. But it may be doubted, whether any audience in Great Britain would now maintain their gra vity, if they were to be entertained with fuch a fermon, as Sulton's Caution for the Credulous; from which, for the reader's amufement, I tranfcribe the following paffages: "Here I have undertaken one who hath over"taken many, a Machiavillian, (or rather a matchless "villian), one that profeffeth himfelf to be a friend, "when he is indeed a fiend. His greateft amity is but "diffembled enmity. His Ave threatens a va; and "therefore liften not to his treacherous Ave, but hear"ken unto Solomon's Cave; and though he speaketh "favourably, believe him not.- Though I call him but a plain flatterer, (for I mean to deal very plainly "with him), fome compare him to a devil. If he be one, these words of Solomon are a spell to expel this "devil.-Wring not my words, to wrong my meaning; "I go not about to crucifie the fons, but the fins of - Some flatter a man for their own private be"nefit: :- this man's heart thou haft in thy pocket; for "if thou find in thy purse to give him presently, he will "find in his heart to love thee everlastingly." A Caution for the Credulous. By Edw. Sulton, Preacher. quarto. pp. 44. Aberdeen printed, 1629. Edinburgh reprinted, 1696.

men.

quency