In describing the origin of music, Creech seems to have felt some of its charms, and of a sudden attuned his loose stringed lyre. "At liquidas avium voces imitarier ore," &c. "And taught them songs, before their art began ; "And shook the sounding reeds, they taught the swains; " And whilst the tender flocks securely feed, "The harmless shepherds tun'd the pipes to love, The last line, instead of being rendered from Lucretius, is stolen from Virgil. « Formosam resonare doces Amaryllida silvas.” 1 Vir. Ecl. 1. The plague of Athens, which forms an interesting and pathetic conclusion of the poem of Lucretius, Creech has translated more uniformly well, than any other part of his author. But he is charged with imitating the Bishop of Rochester on the same subject; forsaking that close adherence to the original, for which he is generally distinguished.* We have now done with Creech, and cannot think him deserving of those commendations, which Duke and Dryden have liberally bestowed on him.t Duke was a flatterer, and Dryden wanted an apology for any seeming interference, * See notes on the sixth book of Creech's Lucretius in the 13 vol. of the British poets by R. Anderson, M. D. The following gross and unqualified praise of Creech's translation of Lucretius is from the pen of Duke. "What laurels should be thine, what praise thy due; "What garlands, mighty poet, should be grac'd by you? "Thy shining style does all its riches show ; "So clear the stream, that through it we descry "All the bright gems, that at the bottom lie." Dryden calls our author "the ingenious and learned translator of Lucre « tius," whose " reputation is already established in this poet." Miscel. v. ii. pref. as a translator. Creech demands the praise of having labored his version faithfully. His work evinces industry and toil; but his materials were hard, and difficult to mould, and after he had obtained a form, he imagined, that his labor was ended; for he knew not the art of polishing. Evelyn translated the first book of Lucretius, accompanied with an essay upon it; and his version was published in 1656. Evelyn was a man of considerable celebrity for the variety of his literature.* Having never seen his version, we can collect its merit only from the testimony of others.† Dryden, who left few of the ancient poets untouched, and never disgraced what he handled, has rendered some parts of Lucretius in a manner very different from the style of Creech. He does not profess to have given a literal version of these fragments of his author; for it was his avowed design" to make him as pleasant, as he could." Some of Dryden's versions of the ancients might rather be termed imitations ; but the portions, he has drawn from Lucretius, may with greater justice be denominated paraphrase. The following example will show the vivacity of Dryden's manner. "Cerberus et Furiæ jam vero," &c. Lib. iii, 1024. "As for the dog, the furies, and their snakes, «And • John Evelyn was a gentleman of as universal knowledge, as any of his time. He was particularly skilled in gardening, painting, engraving, architecture, and medals, on all which he has published treatises. Grainger Biog. hist. For a list of his work, see Wood's Athen. Oxon. "Lucretius like a fort did stand "Untouched, till your victorious hand "Which now upon your own you wear." See Dryden's Miscel. v. 2. Waller. § There are many examples of this in his miscellanies, particularly the Idyllia of Theocritus, in one of which he makes Chloris say, "I'll die as pure, as Queen Elizabeth ;" which, as a translation, is absurd. "And all the vain, infernal trumpery, Stripes, hangmen, pitch, and suffocating smoak.* We are by no means disposed to apologize for Dryden in selecting for translation the close of Lucretius' fourth book. He offered none himself, which he expected would be received. He must have the credit however of rendering it into good poetry, and imparting to those passages, which are in themselves decent, a high degree of delicacy, and taste, and feeling. There was an edition of Lucretius published in 1743, in two vol. 8vo, with a free, prose, english version.† Such a version may answer to communicate the meaning of the abstruse parts of Lucretius; but to those portions, where his imagination takes wing, or where he exercises his happy powers of description, we should no doubt apply the words of Roscommon; "Degrading prose explains his meaning ill, "And shows the stuff, but not the workman's skill." In the first edition of Drake's literary hours we find several specimens from a translation of Lucretius by Mr. Good of London. The specimens are taken from those parts of the poem, which are most embellished with imagery. The monthly reviewers were of opinion, that his examples should have been drawn from the more abstruse parts of Lucretius. In his second edition Mr. Drake professes to comply with this suggestion. But does he exhibit his translator's skill in rendering the deluded reasoning of the atomist, the presumptuous defence of idleness in the gods, the profane sophistry of a believer in a selfcreated, selfgrowing, animal, and mate* Compare Creech Book 3 line 1015. † See Biog. Clas. v. i, p. 182. In the year 1800 Mr. Good's translation of Lucretius was finished. See Drake's literary hours, 2d edit. We have seen no account of the publication of his version. 113 rial world? Instead of this, he furnishes from the close of the fifth book those lines, where the poet so happily expatiates on the origin and progress of the arts; one of the most beautifully descriptive passages in the work of Lucretius and this he contrasts with the admirable, yet awful and mɔving episode, which describes the plague of Athens. The quotation, which seems best to comport with his design, is that, in which the contradictory absurdities of Pyrrhonism are boldly denounced. Yet this is rather satyrical, than abstruse, and overthrows by ridicule what does not deserve to be controverted with argument. Without questioning the judgment or liberality of Mr. Drake, we shall here furnish a part of his selection from the conclusion of the fifth book. This will exhibit Mr. Good in his best dress. "At specimen sationis," &c. Lib. v, 1360. "Plant the fresh shoots, that first disorder'd sprang. "Drove they the woodlands daily, broadening thus "And from the liquid warblings of the birds P "Which the sweet pipe, when by the fingers prest, "So growing time points ceaseless something new, We have now given an account of the efforts, which some of the admirers of Lucretius have made to render this author interesting to the English scholar.* It is much to be doubted, whether any entire and yet just version can be rendered so interesting from vivacity of manner and beauty of diction, as to secure general perusal. There are parts of Lucretius, which vie with the numbers of the best bards in the best days of Rome. But a didactic poem, founded on the reveries of Democritus and Epicurus, must be generally dull, oftentimes obscure, and sometimes very doubtful in the sense, if not unintelligible. It seems to have been a favorite employment of some men to enter the lists in favor of Lucretius. They represent him no less pure in morals, and captivating in manner, than Homer, and Virgil, and Ovid. But Dryden allows, that the "barrenness of his subject constrains the quickness of his fancy."‡ It is impossible to gloss over the morals of Lucretius, and make them palatable to the virtuous and the wise. And it is equally fallacious and untrue, that his daring scepticism is harmless, and in no danger of extending to any, but the worshipers of the gods of Rome. The death of this philosopher and distinguished poet is worthy the impiety of his doctrines.§ * Lucretius has passed through various editions; the best of which are the first edition by Creech, Havercamp's, and Wakefield's editions. Wakefield's Lucretius abounds in critical notes, and is commended for its accuracy by Heyne, Harle, and Eichstadt. It is a very scarce book; a great part of the sheets having been consumed, before they were published. Eichstadt is publishing an edition, in which he promises to preserve the notes of Wakefield entire. + See Drake's lit. hours, vol. I. It was Dryden's opinion, that he would have been every where pleasing, if he had been as anxious to delight, as to instruct in his philosophy. § Lucretius terminated his existence with his own hand. The same is true of Creech, his translator. |
