armarenus? Surgis ab hofpitali menfa, ad quam tertius Campanorum adhibitus ab Annibale es, ut eum ipfam menfam cruentares hofpitis fanguine? Annibalem pater filio meo potui placare: filium Annibali non poffum ?

II. Motive. Sed fit nihil fancti; non fides, non religio, non pietas: audeantur infanda, fi non perniciem nobis cum fcelere afferunt. This is no more than a tranfition; but how finely is it embellished! What juftnefs and elegance in the diftribution which refumes in three words the three parts of the first motive! faith, for the treaty; religion, for the hofpitality; piety, for the refpect which a fon owes to a father. Audeantur infanda, fi non perniciem nobis cum fceler afferunt. This is a very beautiful thought, and leads us naturally from the first motive to the fecond.

"Unus argreffurus es Annibalem? Quid illa urba tot liberorum fervorumque? Quid in unum intenti omnium oculi? Quid tot dext a? Torpefcentne in amentia illa? Vultum ipfius Annibalis, quem armati exercitus fuftiner nequeunt, quem borret populus Romanus, tu fuftinebis? What a multitude of thoughts, figures, and images! and this only to declare, that Petólla could not attack Hannibal without expofing himself to inevitable death. How admirable is the oppofition between whole armies, which cannot bear the fight of Hannibal, the Roman people themfelves, who tremble at his looks, and a weak private man! tu (thou).

III. Motive. W

Et, alia auxilia defint, me ipfum ferire, corpus meum opponentem pro corpore Annibalis,

t But let us have no regard for thofe things which are most facred among men let us violate, at one and the fame time, faith, religion, and piety; let us perpetrate the blackeft action, provided our deftruction be not infallibly annexed to our crime.

u Do you alone pretend to attack Hannibal? But to what end. Do you imagine, that the multitude of freemen and flaves who Surround him; all thofe eyes that

fuftinebis?

fuftinebis? Atqui per meum pectus petendus ille tibi tranffigendufque eft.

I admire the fimplicity and brevity of this last motive, as much as the vivacity of that which precedes it. A youth would be tempted to add fome thoughts in this place; and to expatiate on the paffage: Can you imbrue your hands in the blood of your father? Tear life from him from whom you received your own? &c. But fo great a mafter as Livy is well apprifed, that it fuffices to hint fuch a motive, and that to amplify would only weaken it.

The Peroration.. Deterreri hic fine te potius, quam illic vinci. Valeant preces apud te meæ, ficut pre te hodie valuerunt. Pacuvius had hitherto employed the most lively and moving figures. Every thing is full of spirit and fire; no doubt but his eyes, his countenance and hands, were more eloquent than his tongue. But he is foftened on a fudden: he affumes a more fedate one, and concludes with intreaties, which, from a father, are more powerful than any arguments that can be brought. Accordingly, the fon cannot hold out againft this laft attack. The tears which began to fall down his cheeks, demonftrated his confu fion. The kiffes of a father, who embraced him tenderly a long time, and his repeated and urgent intreaties, brought him at laft to compliance. Lacrymantem inde juvenem cernens, medium complectitur, atque ofculo hærens, non ante precibus abftitit, quam pervicit ut gladium poneret, fidemque daret nihil facturum tale.

of all other affiftance, will you have the boldness to ftrike me too, when I protect him with my body, and place myself between him and your fword? For I declare, that you cannot come at him, without Rabbing me,

x Soften your refentments, my fon, this very inftant; and don't refolve to perish in fo ill-concerted an enterprise. Let my intreaties have fome influence over you, fince they have been fo efficacious this day in your favour.

ARTICLE

[93]

ARTICLE the SECOND.

Of Thoughts.

THOUGHT is a very vague and general word, having many different fignifications like the Latin word fententia. It is evident enough, that the thoughts we are examining in this place are those which are introduced into works of genius, and are one of their chief beauties.

a

This properly forms the foundation and body of a difcourfe; for the elocution is only its drefs and ornament. We must then inculcate this grand principle into young people very early, which is fo often repeated by Cicero and Quintilian; viz. that words are made only for things; that they are intended for no other end than to display, or at most to embellish our thoughts; that the choiceft and brighteft expreffions, uninformed with good sense, must be looked upon as empty and contemptible founds, altogether ridiculous and foolish; that, on the contrary, we must esteem solid thoughts and reafons, though unadorned, because truth alone, in whatsoever manner it appears, is always eftimable; in fine, that an orator may bestow fome care upon words, but must apply his chief attention to things.

We must likewife make youth obferve, that the thoughts with which good authors embellish their difcourfes, are plain, natural, and intelligible; that they are neither affected nor far-fetched, and, as it were,

y Quorundam elocutio res ipfas effæminat, quæ illo verborum habitu veftiuntur. Quintil. Proœm. 1. 8.

z Sit cura elocutionis quam maxima,dum fciamus tamen nihil verborum caufa effe faciendum, cum verba ipfa rerum gratia fint reperta. Quint. Procem. 1. 8.

Quibus (verbis) folum a natura

fit officium attributum, fervire fenfibus. Quint. 1. 12. c. 10.

a Quid eft tam furiofum quam. verborum vel optimorum atque cr natiffimorum fonitus inanis, nulla fubjecta fententia nec fcientia? I. de Orat. n. 51.

b Curam orgo verborum, rerum volo effe folicitudinem. Quintil. Procm. 1. 8.

forced

forced in, in order to difplay wit; but that they always rife out of the fubject to be treated of, from which they feem fo infeparable, that we cannot fee how the things could have been otherwife expreffed, whilft every one imagines he fhould exprefs them the fame way himfelf. But these observations will be more obvious by examples.

The combat of the Horatii and the Curiatii.

с

The defcription of this combat is, certainly, one of the most beautiful paffages in Livy, and the most proper to teach youth how to adorn a narration with natural and ingenious thoughts. In order to know the art and delicacy of this fine paffage, we need only reduce it to a fimple relation, by divefting it of all its ornaments, without however omitting any effential circumftance. I fhall mark the different parts by different figures, in order the better to distinguish, and compare them afterwards, with the narrative itself, as we find it in Livy.

1. Feedere icto trigemini, ficut convenerat, arma capiunt. 2. Statim in medium inter duas acies procedunt.

3. Confederant utrinque pro caftris duo exercitus, in hoc fpectaculum totis animis intenti.

4. Datur fignum, infeftifque armis terni juvenes con

currunt.

5. Cum aliquandiu inter fe ægris viribus pugnâffent, duo Romani, fuper alium alius, vulneratis tribus Albanis, expirantes corruerunt.

6. Illi fuperftitem Romanum circumfiftunt. Forte is integer fuit. Ergo, ut fegregaret pugnam eorum, capelit fugam, ita ratus fecuturos, ut quemque vulnere affectum corpus fineret.

7. Jam aliquantum fpatii ex eo loco, ubi pugnatum eft, aufugerat, cum refpiciens videt magnis intervallis fequentes: unum haud procul ab fefe abeffe: in eum magno impetu redit, eumque interficit.

e Lib. I.

8. Mox properat ad fecundum, eumque pariter neci dat. 9. Jam æquato marte finguli fupererant, numero pares, fed longe viribus diverfi.

10. Romanus exultans, Duos, inquit, fratrum mani. bus dedi; tertium caufæ belli hujufce, ut Romanus Albano imperet, dabo. Tum gladium fuperne illius jugulo defigit: jacentem fpoliat.

11. Romani ovantes ac gratulantes Horatium accipiunt. 12. Inde ex utraque parte fuos fepeliunt.

The bufinefs is to enlarge upon this narration, and to inrich it with thoughts and images which may engage and strike the reader in a lively manner, and represent this action to him in such a light as he may imagine he does not read, but fee it, in which the greatest power of eloquence confifts. To effect this, we need only confult nature, by carefully studying the emotions, and examining attentively what muft have paffed in the hearts of the Horatii and Curiatii, of the Romans and Albani, upon the occafion, and to paint every fuch circumftance in fuch lively, and at the fame time fuch natural colours, that we imagine we are fpectators of the combat. This Livy performs in a furprising manner.

1. Foedere icto trigemini, ficut convenerat, arma

cafiunt.

e

2. Cum fui utrofque adhortarentur, Deos patrios, patriam, ac parentes, quicquid civium domi, quicquid in exercitu fit, illorum tunc arma, illorum intueri manus ; feroces & fuopte ingenio, & pleni adhortantium vocibus, in medium inter duas acies procedunt.

It was natural for each party to exhort their own champions, and reprefent to them, that all their coun

d1. The treaty being concluded, the three brothers on each fide take arms according to agreement.

2. Whilft each party are exhorting their refpective champions to do their duty, by reprefenting that their gods, their country, their fathers and mothers, the

whole city and army, had thei eyes fixed on their fwords and actions; thofe generous combatants, brave of themfelves, and ftill more invigorated by fuch preffing exhortations, advance between the two armies.

try