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2. To heighten low and common thoughts.

The eagle had already winged to the mountains to fave herself, whofe bold and rapid flight had at firft terrified our provinces; that is, the German army. Thofe brazen thunderbolts, which hell invented for the deftruction of men, thundered on all fides; that is, the cannon.

3. To foften harsh expressions.

Cicero, finding himself obliged, in his defence of Milo, to acknowledge that his flaves had killed Clodius, does not fay, interfecerunt, jugulârunt Clodium; but, by making ufe of a circumlocution, he conceals the horror of this murder under an idea which could not offend the judges, but feemed rather to engage them: Fecerunt id fervi Milonis (dicam enim non derivandi criminis caufa, fed ut factum eft) neque imperante, neque fciente, neque præfente domino, quod fuos quifque fervos in tali re facere voluiffet.

When Vibius Virius exhorted the fenators of Capua to poison themselves, to prevent their falling alive into the hands of the Romans, he defcribes, by an elegant periphrafis, the misfortunes from which this draught would deliver them; and by this figure conceals from them the horror of death, instead of faying, the poifon would procure them a fudden one. Satiatis vino ciboque poculum idem quod mihi datum fuerit, circumferetur. Ea potio corpus ab cruciatu, animum à contumeliis, oculos, aures, à videndis audiendifque omnibus acerbis indignifque quæ manent viclos, vindicabit.

Though Manlius knew very well how odious the bare name of a King was to the Romans, and how likely to fpirit them up to rebellion, he endeavoured nevertheless to prevail with them to give him that title. He did it very dextroufly, by contenting

c Fléch.

d Pro Mil. n. 29.

e Liv. lib. 26. n. 13.

himself

himfelf with the title of Protector; but infinuating, at the fame time, that that of King, which he was very careful not to name, would inable him to do them greater service: f Ego me patronum profiteor plebis, quod mihi cura mea & fides nomen induit. Vos, fi quo infigni magis imperii honorifve nomine veftrum "appellabitis ducem, eo utemini potentiore ad obtinenda ea quæ vultis.

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Some have juftly taken notice of 8 certain turns, which the antients employed to foften harsh and fhocking propofitions. When Themiftocles faw Xerxes approaching with a formidable army, he advised the Athenians to quit their city; but he did it in the fofteft terms, and exhorted them to commit it to the care of the Gods: Ut urbem apud Deos deponerent quia durum erat dicere, ut relinquerent. Another was of opinion they should melt down the golden ftatues raised to Victory, to answer the exigencies of war. He used a turn of expreffion, and told them it was necessary to make ufe of victories: Et qui victorias aureas in ufum belli conflari volebat, ita declinavit, victoriis utendum effe.

Repetition is a pretty common figure, which has different names, because there are various kinds of it. It is very proper to exprefs lively and violent paffions, fuch as anger and grief for example, which are ftrongly employed on the fame object, and fee no other; and therefore often repeat the terms which represent it. Thus Virgil paints Orpheus's grief after the death of Eurydice:

h TE, dulcis conjux ; TE folo in littore fecum, TE veniente die, TE decedente canebat.

Pliny the younger ufes the fame figures in bewailing the death of Virginius, who had been his tutor, and

f Liv. Lib. 6. n. 18. g Celebrata apud Græcos fchemata, per quæ res afperas mollius

fignificant. Qu. 1. 9. c. 2.
h Lib. 4. Georg. ver, 465.
i Lib. 2. Ep. I.

H

2

whom

whom he confidered as his father: Volui tibi multa alia fcribere; fed totus animus in hac una contemplatione defixus eft. Virginium cogito, Virginium video, Virgi nium jam vanis imaginibus, recentibus tamen, audio, alloquor, teneo.

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*Cicero furnishes us with a prodigious number of examples: Bona, miferum me; (confumptis enim lacrymis tamen infixus animo hæret dolor) bona, inquam, Cn. Pompeii acerbiffimæ voci fubjecta præconis,... Vivis, & vivis non ad deponendam, fed ad confirmandam audaciam. Cadebatur virgis in medio foro MejJane civis Romanus, judices. ... Cum ille imploraret fæpius ufurparetque nomen civitatis, crux, crux, inquam, infelici arumnofo, qui nunquam iftam poteftatem viderat, comparabatur.

This figure is likewife vaftly proper for infifting ftrongly on any proof, or any truth. n The elder Pliny would make us fenfible of the folly of men, who give themselves fo much trouble to fecure an establifhment in this world; and often take arms against one another, to extend a little the boundaries of their dominions. After representing the whole earth as a fmall point, and almost indivisible in comparison of the univerfe; it is there, fays he, we are endeavouring to establish and inrich ourselves; 'tis there we would govern and be fovereigns; it is that agitates mankind with fuch frequent violence: This is the object of our ambition, the fubject of our difputes, the caufe of fo many bloody wars, even among fellow-citizens and brothers. Hæc eft materia gloria noftræ, hac fedes: hic honores gerimus, hic exercemus imperia, hic opes cupimus, hic tumultuatur humanum genus: hic inflauramus bella etiam civilia, mutuifque cædibus laxiorem facimus terram. All the vivacity of this paffage confifts in the repetition, which feems in every member or part to exhibit this little fpot of earth, for which men torment themselves fo far, as to fight and

k 2 Philip. n. 64. A 1.Ca.il. n. I.

7

Ver, n. 161.
Lib. 2. c. 58.

kill one another, in order to get fome little portion of it; and, at last, what share have they of it after death; Quota terrarum parte gaudeat ? vel, cum ad menfuram fue avaritia propagaverit, quam tandem portionem ejus defunctus obtineat!

•Rompez, rompez tout pacte avec l'impieté...
Daigne, daigne, mon Dieu, fur Mathan & fur elle
Répandre cet efprit d'imprudence & d'erreur,
De la chûte des Rois funefte avant-coureur

Dieu des Juifs, tu l'emportes!..

David, David triomphe. Achab feul eft détruit . . . Englished:

"Your leagues with impious Men diffolve, diffolve..

"Deign, deign, my God, on Mathan and on her "To fhed the fpirit of imprudent error,

Fatal forerunner of the fall of Kings

"God of the Jews, 'tis thou who dost prevail !
"Great David triumphs. Ahab only dies. . . .

P L'argent, l'argent, dit-on: fans lui tout eft ftérile. La vertu fans l'argent n'eft qu'un meuble inutile. L'argent en honnête homme érige un fcelerat, L'argent feul au palais peut faire un magiftrat.

"'Tis money, money: this alone is merit.
"Without it, virtue is an ufelefs toy.
"Money proclaims the knave a man of honour.
"Money, alone, can make a dunce a judge.

9 Quel carnage de toutes parts!

On égorge à la fois les enfans, les vieillards:
Et la foeur, & le frere ;

Et la fille, & la mere;

Le fils dans les bras.de fon pere.

Racine.

p Defpreaux.

H 3

q Racine.

Englished:

Englished:

What flaughter's all around us!

The murd'ring fword kills antient men and children, The fifter and the brother,

The daughter and the mother;

The fon too, clafp'd in his fond father's arms.

To take away the repetition from all these paffages is in reality to diveft them of all their beauty, to weaken all their strength, and deprive the paffions of the language natural to them.

The Antithefis, Distribution, and fuch-like figures.

Antithefes, when artfully employed, fays Father Bouhours, are extremely pleafing in works of genius. They have pretty near the fame effect in thefe, that lights and fhadows have in painting, when the painter has the art of diftributing them judiciously; or thatthe trebles and baffes have in mufic, which an able mafter knows how to blend together: ' Vicit pudorem libido, timorem audacia, rationem amentia... Odit populus Romanus privatam luxuriam, publicam magnificentiam diligit Chriftian Generals must be tender and charitable even when their hands are bloody and inwardly adore the Creator when they find themfelves reduced to the melancholy neceffity of defiroying his

creatures.

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There are other figures which confift chiefly in a certain difpofition and relation between words, which, being difpofed with art, propriety, and fymmetry, as it were, in a particular order, correfpond with one another; and foothe the air and mind agreeably, by this kind of regular and studied harmony.

"Cicero did not neglect that ornament of speech, which fome of the antients, as Ifocrates, were vaftly

Pro Cluent. n. 15.

• Pro Mur. n. 76.

↑ Fléchier.

u Delectatus eft his etiam M. Tullius; verum & modum adhi.

buit non ingratæ, nifi copia re dundet, voluptati; & rem alioqu levem, fententiarum pondere im. plevit. Quintil. 1, 9. c. I.

fond

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