opinion, as the author fays, of the best judges It is dedicated, in a very elegant address, to Sir Charles Sedley; in which he finds an opportunity for his usual complaint of hard treatment, and unreasonable cenfure.

Amboyna is a tiffue of mingled dialogue in verfe and profe, and was perhaps written in lefs time than the Virgin Martyr; though the author thought not fit either oftentatiously or mournfully to tell how little labour it coft him, or at how fhort a warning he produced it. It was a temporary performance, written in the time of the Dutch war, to inflame the nation against their enemies; to whom he hopes, as he declares in his Epilogue, to make his poetry not lefs deftructive than that by which Tyrtæus of old animated the Spartans. This play was written in the fecond Dutch war in 1673.

Troilus and Creida, is a play altered from Shakespeare; but fo altered that even in Langbaine's opinion, the laft fcene in the third act is a masterpiece. It is introduced by a difcourfe on the grounds of criticism in tragedy; to which I suspect that Rymer's book had given occasion.

The Spanish Fryar is a tragi-comedy, eminent for the happy coincidence and coalition of the two plots. As it was written against the Papists, it would naturally at that time have friends and enemies; and partly by the popularity which it obtained at first, and partly by the real power both of the serious and rifible part, it continued long a favourite of the publick.

It was Dryden's opinion, at least for some time, and he maintains it in the dedication of

this play, that the drama required an alternation of comick and tragick scenes, and that it is neceffary to mitigate by alleviations of merriment the preffure of ponderous events, and the fatigue of toil fome paffions. Whoever fays he cannot perform both parts is but half a writer for the stage..

The Duke of Guife, a tragedy written in conjunction with Lee, as Oedipus had been before, feems to deferve notice only for the offence which it gave to the remnant of the Covenanters, and in general to the enemies of the court, who attacked him with great violence, and were anfwered by him; though at laft he seems to withdraw from the conflict, by transferring the greater part of the blame or merit to his partner. It happened that a contract had been made between them, by which they were to join in writing a play; and he happened, fays Dryden, to claim the promife juft upon the finishing of a poem, when I would have been glad of a little refpite.-Two thirds of it belonged to him; and to me only the firft fcene of the play, the whole fourth act, and the first half or fomewhat more of the fifth.

This was a play written profeffedly for the party of the duke of York, whofe fucceffion was then oppofed. A parallel is intended between the Leaguers of France and the Covenanters of England; and this intention produced the controverfy.

Albion and Albania is a mufical drama, or opera, written, like the Duke of Guife, against the Republicans. With what fuccefs it was performed, I have not found.

The

The State of Innocence and Fall of Man is termed by him an opera: it is rather a tragedy in heroick rhyme, but of which the perfonages are fuch as cannot decently be exhibited on the ftage. Some fuch production was foreseen by Marvel, who writes thus to Milton : Or if a work fo infinite be spann'd, Jealous I was left fome lefs fkilful hand, Such as difquiet always what is well, And by ill-imitating would excel,

Might hence prefume the whole creation's day,

To change in scenes, and fhow it in a play. It is another of his hafty productions; for the heat of his imagination raised it in a month.

This compofition is addreffed to the princess of Modena, then duchess of York, in a strain of flattery which difgraces genius, and which it is wonderful that any man that knew the meaning of his own words could ufe without felf-deteftation. It is an attempt to mingle earth and heaven, by praifing human excellence in the language of religion.

The preface contains an apology for heroick verfe, and poetick licence; by which is meant not any liberty taken in contracting or extending words, but the ufe of bold fictions and ambitious figures.

The reason which he gives for printing what was never acted, cannot be overpaffed : "I was induced to it in my own defence, ma

ny hundred copies of it being dispersed "abroad without my knowledge or confent, "and every one gathering new faults, it became at length a libel against me." These

copies

copiecs as they gathered faults were apparently manuscripts; and he lived in an age very unlike ours, if many hundred copies of fourteen hundred lines were likely to be transcribed. An author has a right to print his own works, and needs not seek an apology in falfehood; but he that could bear to write the dedication felt no pain in writing the preface.

Aureng Zebe is a tragedy founded on the actions of a great prince then reigning, but over nations not likely to employ their criticks upon the tranfactions of the English ftage. If he had known and not liked his own character, our trade was not in thofe times fecure from his refentment. His country is at fuch a diftance, that the manners might be fafely falfified, and the incidents feigned; for remoteness of place is remarked, by Racine, to afford the fame conveniencies to a poet as length of time.

This play is written in rhyme; and has the appearance of being the most elaborate of all the dramas. The perfonages are imperial; but the dialogue is often domeftick, and therefore fufceptible of fentiments accommodated to familiar incidents. The complaint of life is celebrated, and there are many other paffages that may be read with pleasure.

This play is addreffed to the earl of Mulgrave, afterwards duke of Buckingham, himfelf, if not a poet, yet a writer of verses, and a critick. In this addrefs Dryden gave the first hints of his intention to write an epick poem. He mentions his defign in terms fo obfcure, that he seems afraid left his plan fhould be purloined, as, he fays, happened to him when he told it more plainly in his preface to Juve

nal,

nal.

"The defign," fays he, " you know is great, the ftory English, and neither too "near the prefent times, nor too distant from "them."

All for Love, or the World well loft, a tragedy founded upon the story of Antony and Cleopatra, he tells us, is the only play which he wrote for himself; the reft were given to the people. It is by univerfal confent accounted the work in which he has admitted the feweft improprieties of style or character; but it has one fault equal to many, though rather moral than critical, that, by admitting the romantick omnipotence of Love, he has recommended as laudable and worthy of imitation that conduct which, through all ages, the good have cenfured as vitious, and the bad despised as foolish.

Of this play the prologue and the epilogue, though written upon the common topicks of malicious and ignorant criticism, and without any particular relation to the characters or incidents of the drama, are deservedly celebrated for their elegance and fpriteliness.

Limberham, or the kind Keeper, is a comedy, which, after the third night, was prohibited as too indecent for the stage. What gave offence was in the printing, as the author fays, altered or omitted. Dryden confeffes that its indecency was objected to; but Langbaine, who yet feldom favours him, imputes its expulfion to refentment, because it so much expofed the keeping part of the town.

Oedipus is a tragedy formed by Dryden and Lee, in conjunction, from the works of Sophocles, Seneca, and Corneille. Dryden

planned