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by the best writers. So Mr. Pope, speaking LECT. of Homer, "The praise of judgment Virgil

has justly contested with him, but his in"vention remains yet unrivalled." It is evident, that, in order to give the Sentence its due force, by contrasting properly the two capital words, " judgment and invention," this is a happier arrangement, than if he had followed the natural order, which was, "Vir

gil has justly contested with him the praise of judgment, but his invention remains yet " unrivalled."

SOME writers practise this degree of inver. fion, which our Language bears, much more than others; Lord Shaftsbury, for instance, much more than Mr. Addison; and to this fort of arrangement is owing, in a great meafure, that appearance of strength, dignity, and varied harmony, which Lord Shaftsbury's style possesses. This will appear from the following Sentences of his Enquiry into Virtue; where all the words are placed, not strictly in the natural order, but with that artificial construction, which may give the period most emphasis and grace. He is speaking of the misery of vice: "This, as to the complete " immoral state, is, what of their own ac"cord, men readily remark. Where there " is this absolute degeneracy, this total apostacy from all candor, truft, or equity, " there

LECT.
XII,

"there are few who do not fee and acknowledge the misery which is confequent. "Seldom is the cafe misconstrued, when at "worst. The misfortune is, that we look

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not on this depravity, nor confider how it "stands, in less degrees. As if, to be abso"lutely immoral, were, indeed, the greatest

misery; but, to be so in a little degree, " should be no mifery or harm at all. Which

to allow, is just as reasonable as to own, " that 'tis the greatest ill of a body to be in the " utmost manner maimed or distorted; but " that, to lose the use only of one limb, or

or

to be impaired in some single organ " member, is no ill worthy the least notice." (Vol. ii. p. 82.) Here is no violence done to the Language, though there are many inverfions. All is stately, and arranged with art; which is the great characteristic of this author's Style.

We need only open any page of Mr. Addifon, to fee quite a different order in the conftruction of Sentences. "Our fight is the " most perfect, and most delightful of all our " fenfes. It fills the mind with the largest "variety of ideas, converses with its objects

at the greatest distance, and continues the longest in action, without being tired, or " fatiated with its proper enjoyments. The " fenfe of feeling can, indeed, give us a no

XIF,

"tion of extenfion, shape, and all other ideas LECT. " that enter at the eye, except colours; but,

at the fame time, it is very much straitened " and confined in its operations," &c. (Spectator, No. 411.) In this strain, he always proceeds, following the most natural and obvious order of the Language; and if, by this means, he has less pomp and majesty than Shaftsbury, he has, in return, more nature, more ease and fimplicity; which are beauties of a higher order.

BUT whether we practise inverfion or not, and in whatever part of the fentence we difpose of the capital words, it is always a point of great moment, that these capital words shall stand clear and disentangled from any other words that would clog them. Thus, when there are any circumstances of time, place, or other limitations, which the principal object of our Sentence requires to have connected with it, we must take especial care to dispose of them, fo as not to cloud that principal object, nor to bury it under a load of circumstances. This will be made clearer by an example. Observe the arrangement of the following Sentence, in Lord Shaftsbury's Advice to an Author. He is speaking of modern poets, as compared with the antient: "If, whilst they

profess only to please, they fecretly advise, " and give instruction, they may now, perhaps,

"as

XU

LECT. " as well as formerly, be esteemed, with juf"tice, the best and most honourable among "authors." This is a well conftructed Sentence. It contains a great many circumstances and adverbs, neceffary to qualify the meaning; only, fecretly, as well, perhaps, now, with justice, formerly; yet these are placed with so much art, as neither to embarrass, nor weaken the Sentence; while that which is the capital object in it, viz. "Poets being justly esteemed " the best and most honourable among au

thors," comes out in the conclufion clear and detached, and possesses its proper place. See, now, what would have been the effect of a different arrangement. Suppose him to have placed the members of the Sentence thus;

If, whilft they profess to please only, they "advise and give instruction fecretly, they

may be esteemed the best and most honour"able among authors, with justice, perhaps,

now, as well as formerly." Here we have precisely the fame words, and the same sense; but, by means of the circumstances being fo intermingled as to clog the capital words, the whole becomes perplexed, without grace, and without strength,

A FOURTH rule, for constructing Sentences with proper strength, is, to make the members of them go on rifing and growing in their importance above one another. This fort of arrange

XII.

arrangement is called a Climax, and is always LECT. confidered as a beauty in composition. From what cause it pleases, is abundantly evident. In all things, we naturally love to afcend to what is more and more beautiful, rather than to follow the retrograde order. Having had once fome considerable object fet before us, it is, with pain, we are pulled back to attend to an inferior circumstance. "Cavendum eft," fays Quinctilian, whose authority I always willingly quote, "ne decrefcat oratio, & for"tiori subjungatur aliquid infirmius; ficut, facrilego, fur; aut latroni petulans. Au

66

geri enim debent fententiæ & infurgere *." Of this beauty, in the construction of Sentences, the orations of Cicero furnish many examples. His pompous manner naturally led him to study it; and, generally, in order to render the climax perfect, he makes both the fenfe and the found rise together, with a very magnificent swell. So in his oration for Milo, speaking of a design of Clodius's for affaffinating Pompey: "Atqui si res, fi vir, fi

tempus ullum dignum fuit, certè hæc in " illâ causa summa omnia fuerunt. Infidiator

* " Care must be taken, that our composition shall not " fall off, and that a weaker expression shall not follow one of more strength; as if, after facrilege, we should bring in theft; or, having mentioned a robbery, we "should subjoin petulance. Sentences ought always to " rise and grow,"

"erat