Pope, who I believe knew very little of anatomy, phyfiology, or furgery, has compofed his comment from extracts of different authors, who have written (a little extravagantly) on the amazing powers of the heart. LETTER XLIV. REMARKS ON LUCAN. Cedet rudis mufa ferocis Enni, Et docti furor arduus Lucreti. The ruder mufe of Ennius, rough old fage! SIR, HE first line of the motto is strictly true, but THE the fecond contains rather an extravagant compliment. Lucan, as a Poet, is certainly inferior to Lucretius; but his Pharfalia, confidered (as it always ought to be) as an hiftorical poem, poffefles great merit: his page has to me all the charms of novelty, Q 2 novelty, for it never met my eyes till now. The feveral characters of Cæfar, Pompey, and Cato, are most judiciously and beautifully difcriminated; tho' from the author's political principles, he is no great friend to the first and most illustrious of the three. In the first book now before me, Lucan very poeti cally describes the rapidity of Cæfar's marches, by afferting, that he was more rapid than a stone from the Balearian fling, or an arrow from the Parthian bow he likewife in the fame book, accurately diftinguishes the two different employments of the two facred officers, the Bardi and the Druidæ. The office of the former was to celebrate the exploits of warriors flain in battle; but take his address to them in his own words, than which, I think, no Latin verse but that of Virgil can be more beautiful. Read and accept my flying verfion. Vos quoque qui fortes animas, belloque peremptas 'Tis yours, ye bards! to fing in lofty strain And And like yourselves, 'midft war's alarms fecure, The bufinefs of the latter, (viz. the Druids) was to fuperintend the facred offices of religion; and he exprefsly fays, that they taught, even in that rude age, the fublime but myfterious doctrines of the tranfmigration and immortality of the foul. Lucan has, I think, been poetically diffufe in relating the prodigies that preceded the civil wars: but I more particularly defire to call your attention to that part, where Aruns, the Tufcan augur, examines the entrails of a steer, or bull newly flain; and I think you will perceive the fuperftition of the Roman People, and their ignorance of natural caufes; for all the bad ominous appearances were owing to a diffolved ftate of the blood, as it is evident that the beaft facrificed, must have been ill of the murrain (as defcribed" by Virgil) or of fome other malignant and putrid: difeafe. How little has common fenfe, or indeed any fenfe, to do with superstition! P. S. As a plain proof of the diffolved state of the blood in the steer facrificed, advert to the following vérfes : Nec cruor emicuit folitus ; fed vulnere largo And again, Plurimus afperfo variabat fanguine livor. But I cannot say that I thoroughly understand the Augur's phrafe," cor jacet." Does he mean that the heart lay low in fituation; or does he mean that the heart lay ftill and did not palpitate, as was ufual in animals that were opened alive, like thofe in the Roman facrifices? LETTER LETTER XLV. REMARKS ON LUCAN. SIR, URN once more to the third Book of the Phar TUR falia, and in the fea-fight already alluded to, you will be entertained with a double death-wound of a very curious nature: the description is most fingular, and not copied, or even imitated, from either Homer or Virgil. Since my last letter I have met with Rowe's translation, I shall therefore give you the original, together with that, which is in this place very juft to the sense of the author. But, to perceive the full force and propriety of the two-fold wound, you will recollect, that Tagus, the fea-officer, who is wounded, was engaged with two fhips of the enemy. Dum pugnat ab altâ Puppe Tagus, Graiumque audax apluftre retentat, Terga |