୮

XII.

for a Man to have been even Perfonally concern'd in Affairs, unlefs he has a Genius fit Hift. L. to difpofe and reprefent them. Polybius tells us, Callifthenes was an Eye-witness of the Battel between Alexander and Darius, in the Streights of Cilicia; and yet that he committed great Abfurdities in his Account of this important Action, by Reafon of his Unskilfulnefs in the military Art, and in the Order of Battel, then obferv'd. An Hiftorian, therefore must be well affur'd of his Matter: For he cannot want Matter if he has a Capacity and Genius; but he will want this Affurance, if he has not a peculiar Infight into the Facts that he relates. How many falfe Accounts have deceiv'd the World, only because the Fountains of them, were Poyfon'd by Intereft and Party? As therefore, nothing is more at Hand than the Materials of Hiftory, which may very easily be good and agreeable; fo there is nothing more rare than the Certainty, with which they ought to be accompanied, to render them juft and accurate, which we scarce ever meet with, becaufe 'tis generally over-rul'd by Prejudice. For which Reason, we ought to Value the Advice of Boccalin up. on this Point, which is, never to write but what we have feen, and never to publish in our Life-time: The best Security against Errors and Prejudice at once. But the chief Care of all fhould be, to chufe great Subjects, and fuch as are able to fupport themfelves, by their own proper Weight. A noble Matter gives a Brightness and a Strength to Words: whereas in Subjects of little Confideration, we are obliged to keep up a continual Sport of Wit and Fancy, to fupply their Want of folid Greatnefs, and intrinsick Worth.

VII.

The most effential Part of History is its Form, or Difpofition: 'Tis by this that it appears great or little; and 'tis by this that we measure the Capacity of its Author. So that he who would fucceed in it, muft have a Soul fufceptible of great Idea's; that when he has made himself Mafter of his Subject, he may caft his Matter into what Form he pleases. 'Tis by this Skill in Modelling, Livy has given his Work that elevated Character, not to be parallel'd in any other Hiftorian, by ftriking upon all his Subjects the Colours they were naturally difpofed to bear. "Tis thus, that he paints the last Kings of Rome with all the Pride of an unlimited and independent Command: That he varies the Spirit of the Commonwealth, by the fierce and stubborn Vertue of the firft Confuls, by the popular Commotions of the Tribunes, by the rigid and fevere Government of the Decemviri, by the Luxury and Softnefs of the latter Confuls: that he distinguishes every Age by the Genius that reign'd in it, and even the different Motions of the fame Genius in different Circumftances of Time, no way refembling each other: And that he always fuftains his Dignity, by the great Ideas he fixes upon every Thing that comes before him. Tacitus, on the contrary, gives the fame Form to all Sorts of Matter: with him Stratagem and Policy govern all the Perfons he defcribes have one and the fame Genius, but differently made from all the rest of the World; they don't act by their own proper Character, but by that of the Hiftorian, who with a Spirit too much

con

am intro

confin'd, and wrapt up in it felf, gives the fame Figures to his Expreffions, and the fame Turn to his Thoughts. Policy is the univerfal Motive: The Clue that unravels all Tranfactions. If Auguftus, upon his Death-bed, make Choice of a Succeffor, he only defigns to make his Lofs lamented, by impofing upon the State, Tiberium a worse Mafter than himself. If Tiberius conafcitum stitute Pifo Governor of Syria, 'tis only that quod ejus he may fet a Spy upon Germanicus, who at the arroganti- fame Time govern'd Egypt, and whofe Glory he fo much envied and fear'd. If the Flattefpexerit, & com- ries of Dolabella difplease him, 'tis because paratione they are too grofs and unartificial. If he badeterrima nifh Sulla, 'tis because he Interprets his Tacifibi glori am quafi. turnity, as a profound Diffimulation. The viffe. Modesty of the fame Emperor is but a dif Ann. 1. guis'd Ambition; his Favours are Traps and Dolabella Snares: His Moderation, Pride; his Religion, in abfur Grimace. That Sejanus fhould be admitted to lationem his Bofom, and honour'd with the prime Miprogreffu. niftry, is a Mark of the Anger and DifpleaAnn. 3. fure of Heaven. Arruntius, that he might not Sufpecta fall into the Hands of a worfe Succeffor, polifocors ejus tically Poyfons himfelf.

dam adu

bat Sullam

ingenium, callidumq; adulatorem interpretando. Ann. 13. Temporibus Neronis, fapientia pro inertiâ fuit. Ibid.

This Hiftorian fails not to discover fomewhat of Design in the Stupidity of Claudius,and fomewhat of Delicacy in the Debauches and Brutality of Nero. The Folly and Foppery pra&tis'd by fome under this latter Emperor, paffes with him for a Refinement of Wifdom. In a Word, all his Characters are alike, and there is nothing of Nature in the Piece; his Reflections feem overstrain'd and violent;

and

and the Genius of the Historian, is without Variation, imprefs'd on his whole Work. Mariana takes a much wider Compass: the Romans, the Carthaginians, the Chriftians, the Ara bians, the Moors and Mahometans, are represented by him under different Figures. The Author's Spirit no farther mixes it felf with those of other Men, than to distinguish them according to their proper Characters, still opening as many new Ways, as are requir'd to the new and various Subjects that fall under his Conduct. And we may venture to say, that there is no modern Hiftory of a greater and nobler Form, than Mariana's.

VIII.

alias in

poemate,

le&tatio

Romance ftudies only to please; and Hifto- Alias in ty only to inftruct. This is their true and biftoria effential Difference: The latter having no leges obother Aim to propose, but the Benefit of the fervandas? Publick. For as it does not labour for the prefent only, its Views are not determin'd by in illâ ad Time, which is fleeting and paffant, but by veritatem Pofterity which never fails. What a Piece of quaque, in Folly were it, to feek the Diverfion of our boc ad deown Ages, when we might advance the Be- nem refernefit of all Ages? Thefe are the Reafons that ri pleraque Lucian has urged, to prove that an Hiftorian Cic. de fhould endeavour only to be useful and pro- Leg. fitable, in regulating the Heart and Spirit of Men, by the Leffons he gives them. 'Tis ao pulcra Miftake, fays that Critick, to pretend that ifta pars Hiftory may be branch'd out into two Parts, the Profitable and the Agreeable: For an Hiftorian fhould have no other View, but the format ac Profit that may be derived to others from a dirigits true and fincere Narration: If he intermix

que actio

nes vitama

que bene

2

centia.

cia men

any Strokes of Agreeableness, he must do it, not to impair and corrupt the Truth, but to adorn and embellish it, to fecure it a better Reception, and a kinder Welcome. And to justify his Opinion, he reports the Extravagances of thofe Authors of his own Time, who made themselves ridiculous, by writing Græcis hi-upon other Principles. Herodotus labour'd to ftoriis ple- please the Age in which he liv'd: But then rumque po- his Credit was fo leffen'd with Posterity, as etica fimilis eft li- to caft a general Sufpicion on the Fidelity of Grecian Story, to Quintilian's Time. Photius, Quint. mentions an Hiftorian, by name Damafcius, Et quic- who thought there was no other Art of Pleaquid Grafing, but that of relating Things incredible. dax Audet And Seneca complains of fome Hiftorians, in biftoriâ. his Contemporaries, that endeavour'd to figJuvenal. nalize themselves only, by, their fabulous ReQuidam incredibi- ports. It has ever been the Genius of the Vullium rela- gar, to be delighted with Fiction: but good, tu com- Senfe and good Breeding, are affected with mendatio- nothing but Truth. In the Ages following, nem pa the Arabians inferted fo many idle Tales in all rant, le- their Works, as to spoil most of the Greek Hiliud alu- ftorians of thofe Days, by the Humour, that rum, fi per then reign'd, of reporting.ftrange and furpriquotidiana fing Adventures. They fancied, there was no duceretur, Way to gain Approbation, but by furpaffing miraculo Belief. The fame Spirit infected a great Part 5 opus fu- of the modern Greeks; for which Reafon, the um fieri Knowledge afforded us by the Byfantine Hipopulare ftory, is none of the fureft in the World; non putant, because the Authors feem of a very loose nifi mendacio afand inaccurate Character. And he that makes perferint. ufe of their: Memoirs in Writing, muft, if Sen. he designs to be credited, guard against this Error and Mifconception, with the most

Яtorem, a

excitant;

.

1

cau