Skip to main content

Full text of "De oratore; or, His three dialogues upon the character and qualifications of an orator"

See other formats 


Google 



This is a digital copy of a book that was preserved for generations on library shelves before it was carefully scanned by Google as part of a project 

to make the world's books discoverable online. 

It has survived long enough for the copyright to expire and the book to enter the public domain. A public domain book is one that was never subject 

to copyright or whose legal copyright term has expired. Whether a book is in the public domain may vary country to country. Public domain books 

are our gateways to the past, representing a wealth of history, culture and knowledge that's often difficult to discover. 

Marks, notations and other maiginalia present in the original volume will appear in this file - a reminder of this book's long journey from the 

publisher to a library and finally to you. 

Usage guidelines 

Google is proud to partner with libraries to digitize public domain materials and make them widely accessible. Public domain books belong to the 
public and we are merely their custodians. Nevertheless, this work is expensive, so in order to keep providing tliis resource, we liave taken steps to 
prevent abuse by commercial parties, including placing technical restrictions on automated querying. 
We also ask that you: 

+ Make non-commercial use of the files We designed Google Book Search for use by individuals, and we request that you use these files for 
personal, non-commercial purposes. 

+ Refrain fivm automated querying Do not send automated queries of any sort to Google's system: If you are conducting research on machine 
translation, optical character recognition or other areas where access to a large amount of text is helpful, please contact us. We encourage the 
use of public domain materials for these purposes and may be able to help. 

+ Maintain attributionTht GoogXt "watermark" you see on each file is essential for in forming people about this project and helping them find 
additional materials through Google Book Search. Please do not remove it. 

+ Keep it legal Whatever your use, remember that you are responsible for ensuring that what you are doing is legal. Do not assume that just 
because we believe a book is in the public domain for users in the United States, that the work is also in the public domain for users in other 
countries. Whether a book is still in copyright varies from country to country, and we can't offer guidance on whether any specific use of 
any specific book is allowed. Please do not assume that a book's appearance in Google Book Search means it can be used in any manner 
anywhere in the world. Copyright infringement liabili^ can be quite severe. 

About Google Book Search 

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and to make it universally accessible and useful. Google Book Search helps readers 
discover the world's books while helping authors and publishers reach new audiences. You can search through the full text of this book on the web 

at |http: //books .google .com/I 



I 



%^ IS 



I 









M."^ T.^ QJ C E R O de Orators; 



0R» HIS 



THREE DIALOGUES 



UPON T H 



Charad:er and Qualificatiofis 



O F A N 



O R AT O R. 

r 

* 

Tranflated into English. 

With N O f E S Hiftorical and Explanatory, 



A N S 



An Introduftory PREFACE, 



BY 



U^ ILL I AM GUTHRIE, Efq; 

The Second Edition, carefully revifed and comded. 



LONDON: 

V 

Printed for T. W a 1 1 e r , oppofite Fitur-Lm^ Fkit^Strut^ 

■J ■ 

MDCCX.Y, 






1 » 



ClFd 
1-765 



- T ! 



r ^ ^ 



■* • 



V ^ 












» • « 



S 



r 



\ 



/- .— 1 



f< 









''■ >. 






-J <• O T 1 - ' ♦ ,' * 






r r • 



r •- 






▼f > 



- • • 



• • * 



' r 



. : ? 






I "V 



• «i^M>w>i^l»'nN^M>i- »■<•'• 



.1 ' y. 



>> i '.. t 



pw^ 



'-> 



' t •■ 










PREFACE. 

« 

THE Charader and Qualifications of 
an Orator are fo well, and fo fully 
handled in the following Work, that 
it wQuld be the Height of Prefump- 
tion to fay any Thing further on thefe Heaas, 
pur Author himfclf has refted his Reputalion 
upoii the Merits and Execution of this Perform- 
ance, and all that is left for a Tranflator is to 
eiidedvour that his Original may not be difgrac'd 
by the Copy, and that the Friends of Cicero may 
not blufh it the mean Appearance he makes in 
a modern Language. But it is impoflible with 
any Propriety to introduce my great Author 
to the Public in the following Tranflation, 
without at the fame Time acquainting the 
World with the Motives y I had almoft faid, 
with the Neceffity^ of the prefent Undertaking. 
Men of Learning are divided with regard to 
the Merit of Tranflations in general; I fhall 
not pretend to decide upon either Side ; but I 
will venture to fey, that if the prefent Tafte in 
Learning fhould gain Ground, this Nation will 
foon have no other Means left of being ac- 
qtiatnted with the good Senfe of the Antients,' 
-but thro' Tranflations. It is upon this Foot- 
ing only that I will juftify the Tranflation of' a 
Profe Author J and I may appeal to every Gen- 
tleman who converfes abroad in the World, to 
every Gentleman who has had any Opportunities 

A of 



iv PREFACE. 

6f being ^ acquainted with the prefent Tirade of 
Education, if, in this Ifland, we are not in Dan- 
ger of lofing not only the Beauties, but even 
, the Meaning of thofe Antients, whofe Worfes 
are yet untranllated. While I fay this, I am 
far from condemning the Method of Education 
that is now gone into. I am fenfible as this 
is a trading Nation, that the Education which 
moft tcndfe to qualify young Gentlemen to fup- 
port the Intere'ft of their Country, which un- 
doubtedly lies in Commerce, is moft to be 
purfued \ but at the fame Time the Nature of 
our Government and Con ftitution demands that 
Gentlemen of Property be tonverfant in other 
Studies; and tho' there is not in this Nation 
perhaps the (zmt public Demand for the Know- 
ledge and Practice of the Art, which is the ira^ 
mediate Subjeft of thefc Sheets, as there was in 
old Romey yet I will venture to affirm, that in 
no Age, and in no Country, fince the Days of 
Cicero^ they have been more ufeful and more 
neceflary than in the prefent. 

Looking upon this Undertaking in that Light, 
we fhall find that it claims all the Attention 
that is due to z public Concern ; and tho* a few of 
the many who may haveOccafion to praftife the 
excellent Rules laid dbwn by our Author, may 
tinderftand, nay be pleafed with them in the 
Original, yet their Importance and Ufefulnefs 
muft in a great Degree have been loft to the 
World, without the Medium of a modern Lan- 
guage. I am forry to obferve farther, that for 
wanting that Medium they have been in a great 
Meafure loft hitherto, and that they who are 
acquainted with the Original, and fhall take 

the 



P R E F ACE. <^ 

the Trouble to read . my Author, even in the 
Difguife, and under the Difadvan,tage, of a 
Tranllation, will enter into all the Sources of 
thofe amazing EfFedts of Eloquence which 
he has often felt^ and perhaps pra^ife J, with- 
out being fenfible of the Caufc to which they 
were owing. 

Learning therefore may be call'd the Aux:-- 
liary of good Senjey and all Learning that has 
not this in View is a Purfuit unworthy the Care^ 
and bejow the Attention of Reafon. . Good Senje 
may fubfift without Learnings but then its Aim 
is more uncertain, and its Eflfedts more irregu- 
lar than when it has the Affiftance of the Ex- 
amples, the Sentiments and the Precepts of 
thegreateft Men of former Ages. If wc^ car- 
ry this Obfervation farther, we find that as the 
Learning which has not the Iniprovcment of 
good S^nfe ultimately in view is cbildijhy fo the 
good Senfe which has not Virtue for its End, 
n dangerous. It was. owing to the Convidlion 
of this great Maxim that the fiomans arole to 
fuch a Height of Power under many Difad- 
vantages of their Conftitution. It was this 
Maxim that direded them to engraft Arts upon 
Government^ and by that means each commu- 
nicated Strength and Vigour to the other, till 
the Lofs of thejr Virtue proved the Ruin of • 
both. Arts did indeed furvive Liberty, but their 
Duration was but faint, and they but too fre- 
quently proved deftrud:ive to their Pofleflbrs. 

Let us now apply this Obfervation to my Au- 
thor. He lived in a State where the radical Power 
was in the People, and the People communica- 
ted Dignity to every other Branch of Govern- 
ment. The Genius of their Conftitution on the 

A 2 ^ other 



VI PR E FA C E. 



otherl^Hand cnclined to Monarchy ^ .and the 
People, with the moft embittered Averfion to the 
Name^ were perpetually leaning to the ^bing. 
It was owing, more than once, to the Senate and 
their Magiftrates, that they did not relapfe into 
Regal Powers their own Demands had ultimate- 
ly this Tendency; for the Extrcams of Demo- 
cracy border more nearly than any other Form 
of Government to the Beginnings of Tyranny. 
The wifer among the Senate faw this, and 
Eloquence was the only Means of ftemm ing 
dr rather diverting the Torrent of popular 
Paffions. This was the Foundation of the 
great Efteem which Eloquence had always under 
the republican Government of Rome ; no other 
Engine could ^have been applied with equal 
Succefs^ The People bad found f>y the EfFedts 
of thdt Seceffions from the Senate^ that tho' 
the Ballanee of Property was in Favour of the 
Senate and Nobility, yet that P^^'re^/fr could com- 
Th^ndProperfy. Good Senfe direfted them to find 
out this Truths a Truth which After-ages and 
Governments have affecSed to keep as a Secret ; 
and every People who are fenfible of it will be 
able to retain their Liberties. In /hoft, if we 
cortfider the Hiftory of Rome thro' all the 
Struggles betwixt the People and the Senate^ 
we firid it no other than a Struggle be- j 
twixt Property which was vefted in the Se-^ ^ 
nate^ and Power which lay. in the People^ 
The Acquifitions obtained by the People were 
' wrefted from tbcSenate, upon the great Princi- 
ple of the ^^fptv f)ff^e^ Pf^^plf^ ^pjn^r thp iirjt T^msy ' 

inJ2qv^r^nmenff and that no po/itive In/iitnttoh 
could take Place or ftand in the Way, of thi^ 
great Principle. Upon this Principle they fuc- 

ceeded 



PR E F A C E. vi 

ceeded 5 but their Succcfs brought them to the 
Brink of Ruin : It is eafy to raife a Sfnrit in 
a People j but to know where to fix the pro- 
per Bounds of that Spirit is difficult. The 
Paffions of a People, tho' right and virtuous, 
may be corrupted by the private Views of 
artful Men ; and it is commonly found that the 
People never reflcft they have gone too far, till 
they find the Lengths they have gone are irrc* 
trievable. 

Things were drawing to this Crifis when our 
Author appeared upon the Sta^e of Life*, and 
nothing can give die Reader fo high an Idea 
of the Power of that Eloquence, which Ts fo 
well described in the following Conferences, as 
by refleifling that for fome time it was capable 
of ballancifig the contending Parties of the Romafi 
States and had fuch a Command over the 
Paffions of the People, as to keep the Fate 
oj the Republic for fome Time in Sufpence. But 
though it was perhaps happy for Rome that 
our Author liv'd at that particular Junc- 
ture,^ yet it was unhappy for himfelf. Had he 
lived an Age fooner tnan he did, and been en- 
dow'd with the fame Temper and Abilities, he 
might have faved his Country from the Mife- 
ries that afterwards befel her : Had he on the 
other Hand begun to live at the Period when 
he fell, he might have paffed his Days in 
a Splendor, Dignity and Eafe more agreea- 
ble to his own Caft of Mind; and though 
he could not have recovered the Liberty of 
Rome, yet he might have found the means of 
fiiaking her Chains fit lighter than they after- 
wards did^ To prove the firft o{ thefe Propo- 
fitions one needs but to reflect upon the Fate 

A3 «f 



viii PREFACE. 

of the Gracchi, and the Confequences with 
which their Ruin was attended. Both of them 
had great Abilities, great Qualities, great Elo- 
quence, and, fo far as we are at Liberty to 
judge from Hiftory, /jo?2e/i Intentions. Th)5 
People of Rome had never feen Men of Elo- 
quence equal to theirs, efpoufe their Interefts. 
Eloquence till that Time was always monopolizd 
it was an Arcatium hnperii, an Injlrument of 
Government \xi the Hands of the Senate. The* 
Senate ufed all Precautions to keep it in this 
Tradt, and, as I obferv*d before, was the only 
Engine that diverted the Tide of popular Paf- 
fion, and weakened it fo as not to beat too 
high upon their Order and Pofleflion of their 
own Authority. The Gracchi broke the En- 
chantment, nay turned the Artillery of the 
Senate againft itfelf. I (hall not enter into the 
Difpute at prefent, which were in the right — 
it is foreign to my Purpofe. I will however 
venture to fay, that tho' the Gracchi fell in the 
Struggle, yet they left feveral valuable Lega- 
cies to the Liberty of their Country. Thefe 
muft have prolonged the Duration of the 7?o- 
Vian State, had not the Faftion by which the 
Gracchi fell, fet a fatal Precedent to teach fuc* 
ceeding Times by melancholy Experience, that 
when the Sword is drawn by a Government 
under the Plea of Neceffity, the fame Sword 
will one Time or other be fuccefsfully em- 
ploy'd for fubverting the Government itfelf. 

The NeceJJities of the People juAify an Alte- 
ration of any pojitive A61 of Government ; but 
the NeceJJities of Government never can juftify 
the weakening the Security which the People have^ 

either 



MVMBMWBBM^^^HW^B^i^nM^pi 



PREFACE. ix 

tftherfrom their Lives or Properties. The Death 
of the Gracchi introduc'd a Set of Maxims till 
that Time unknown in Rome ; the Life of Cr- 
cero was fpent in a continual Struggle, on the 
one hand with the Defigns of artful Men, who 
had cloak'd their own Ambition with thelpe- 
cious Pretext of the People 's Good, and on the 
•other hand with the Exercife of Power vefted 
in Men, who by means of that Pretext i^ov'd 
too powerful for the Conftitution. A Tender- 
Befs for the Safety of Roman Citizens was the 
Jiving Spirit of the Roman Laws ; this Tender- 
nefs was ftiock'd by the Death of the Gracchi ; 
and the Fates of the Confpirators in the Cafe 
of Catiline^ tho' warranted by the ftrongeft 
Circumjlances of NeceJ/ity^ ferv'd as a Handle for 
driving our Author into Exile, and heightening 
his Punifliment with feveral aggravating Marks 
of Severity and Ignominy. 

The Interlocutors of th« following Confe- 
rences were principal Adtors in thofe Scenes of 
deep Diftrefs that preceded our Author's Ap- 
pearance in public Life. "Their Condud: was 
the Model of his ; their Principles were adopt- 
ed, and their Learning improv'd by him. This 
Work is the Memorial of their Virtues and 
Abilities s and Cicero has prcferv'd a fcrupulous 
Propriety in reprefenting their feveral Cha- 
rafters. I fhall not anticipate my Reader's 
Pleafure by prefixing any Account of them in 
this Preface j I will only add, that they are 
Tuch as may be met with in the prefent Age, 
and fuch as refemble thofe which may be found 
in our own Country. 

After what I have obferved upon the Im- 

•^ 4 - portanqe. 



X PR E F A C E. 

portancc of Eloquence in the Roman Republic, 
the Reader will not be furprizd that our Au- 
thor has in their own Perfons brought in Men 
rfthe greatcft Dignity in the State, ascanvaf-. 
ling the Sul^ilties and Niceties of this Art, 
and that in a mannej which has ever fince 
been confin'd to Schools and Academies. But. 
we are to look upon Eloquence in the Days of 
our Author as a political Accomplijhment . The 
hefjont here delivered are Lejfom of Government 
as well as oj Eloquence ; and the PraSiice here 
recommended, is a Practice in the Art of Ci- 
vil Polity: An Art by which the Paffions of 
the greateft People that ever exifted were kept 
within the Bounds of Moderation, and the 
Interefts of the greatcft Empire that ever was 
founded were dired:ed. 

Having thus taken a (hprt View of the 
Importance of the Art which is the Subje<3: of 
the following Sheets, as it was pradlis'd in the 
great Exigencies of the Roman Government in 
the Times of the Republic, and endeavoured to 
give my Reader a flight Idea of the Circum^ 
ftances that concurr'd to render it fo neceffary , 
I come now to confidcr it as praiftis'd ^t the 
Bar, When Cafes of private Property were de- 
pending. 

The Poffeflion of private Property in old 
Rome was perhaps more precarious than it was 
in any State we read of; it depended fo totally 
upon the Judge, and Power came to be fo 
much engrofs'd by Men of Eloquence, that 
the Man who was the Advocate for Property 
was its Guardian, and generally either wholly, 
or in Part came in the End to inherit it. Hence 

it 



PREFACE, xt 

it came that the Term they us'd to fignify Ji 
Comfely or an Advocate^ was a Patron j and 
it is from them, that %q this Day Parties at 
Law 4re caird Clients. Thus Superiority and. 
Depcndancy were the Confcquences of being an 
Advocate and a Party at Law 3 and that Ad vo- 
cate look'd upon himfelf as having a Right, 
not to a Fee, but to the whole, or a Part of 
that Property which he recovered or defend- 
ed. The Reader vmy judge from this what 
prodigious Advantages the Pradice of Elo- 
quence gave to the Citizens of Rome ; and how 
almoft impofiible it was, unlefs a Man rofe by 
Arms, to get cither Power^ Reputation^ or 
Riches^ but by means of this Art. 

As to the EfFeft which Eloquence had io 
the Decifion of Cafes as to Life or Deaths thcfe 
but feldom happened. Capital Cafes did not, as 
now, always affed: the Life of the Party, but 
every Cafe that affeded. his Liberty or Reputa^ 
tion was capital. By the Roman Laws this was 
often the Confequence of Civil Adions 5 and 
therefore I ftiall make no other Remark upon 
the Ufe that Eloquence was of under this Head, 
than that all I have faid upon the former is 
applicable to this, and exifls a fortiori. 

I come now to confider the Relation in 
which the Art here treated of ftands to our own 
Country and Conftitution, and in order to do 
this the more regularly, I fliall purfue the fame 
Review I have made of the Roman State, but 
without taking the fame Liberties in refleding 
upon either the Principles or the Execution 
of our Government. 

In England any Man who knows the Icaft 
pf our Laws and Conftitution, may perceive 

that 



xii PREFACE. 

• 

that every A&: of thp Legiflature, every enac- 
ting Meafure that binds either the whole, or a 
Part of the Public, and every Decifion upon 
the Life or the Liberty of a Subject muft pafs 
thro' an Aflembly of the People, either in their 
reprefentative, incorporate, or collective Capa- 
city. There is no Man who is endow'd with 
a Share of Property, without any legal Difqua- 
lifigation, who mav not fome time be a Mem* 
bcr of either the one or the other, and he is then 
a Member of an Affembly, in which the Art of 
Speaking, the Art of Reafoning, and that of 
Judging, 'becomes abfolutely neceflary. 

1 he higheft Aflembly of the Commons we 
know of in this Country is an Aflembly in 
which every Meafure, and every Decifion is 
fubjefted to free and impartial Debate. In fui-- 
ordinate Aflemblies no Man is precluded from 
delivering his Sentiments with Freedom upon 
every Meafure under their Deliberation; and 
the Man who ipeaks well, if he does not al- 
ways meet with Succefs^ is fure never to mifs 
of Applaufe. But, in Order to fucceed, natu- 
ral Abilities require the Afllfi:ance of Art ; and 
tho' the Knowledge of the Art will never qua- 
lify a Man for a Speaker without a Fund of 
good Senfe, yet good Senfe join'd to Art is 
of infinitely greater Weight and Efficacy than 
when it Hands by itfelf, unaflifted and unatten- 
ded by Art 

It is ridiculous to imagine that Art impofes 
any Fetters upon Genius ; fo far from it, that 
/he ajfijii and Reafony/r^(5?j it. It is owing to the 
Study of Eloquence being reduc'd to cramp'd 
and crabbed Syftems, that from being a ufeful 
Art in Government^ it is becoming a pedandic 

"Jargon 



PREFACE, xffi 

Jargon An Schools. But the Rcafon why it has 
now degenerated from its noble and generous 
Station in the Arts, is conne6ted with the Rea- 
fon why the great eft Part of Mankind, who arc 
not Savages, are Slaves. In free Countries, 
fuch as old Rome once was, and ours is now. 
Eloquence had Objefts worthy all her Powers^ 
and all her Charms. She had then to operate 
upon the Paflions, the Reafon, and the Sen- 
timents of a People; but when Tyranny a- 
bolifli'd Liberty thofe Objefts no longer exifted ; 
they were contraded into the Will, the Ambition, 
the Whim, the Caprice, or the Vanity of a 
fingle Man 5 of one who perhaps by the mean- 
eft, and moft fcandalous Means, rofe to be 
Judge and Mafter of the Lives, the Liberties, 
and Properties of his Fellow Subjedts; Such 
an Objeft was unworthy the Attention, un- 
worthy the Powers of Eloquence ; her Force, 
which us'd to govern the Paffions of Thou- 
fands, which us*d to fpread a contagious Ten- 
dernefs thro' Aflemblies of the braveft People 
upon Earth, muft now be check'd, it muft be 
fupplied, it muft dwindle into Adulation^ it 
muft creep in the Strain which this Perfon 
loves, and for which alone he has any Feeling. 
In a free State the Paffions are ftrong^ under 
.Tyranny they muft appear languid. The pre- 
serving this Appearance of Languor render 
them at lali what they only feem'd to be before. 
Eloquence by this means lofes her nobleft Ob- 
ed ; (he labours to raife the dead, or the infen- 
fible, flie lofes both her Powers and their Ef- 
fefts ; and from being a manly Study degene- 
rates into 2l Jervile Accomplijhment. 

It is therefore only froqji the Precepts and 

" yraftice 



SUV PREFACE. 

Prance of thofe who Uv'4 under free States, 
that we can expert to know the Virtues and 
Beauties of this divide Art. But of all the free 
States we know or read of, that of Rome was 
fupporte'd by the moft general Paflion for the 
public Good ^ The Virtues that made her great, 
were radical ip her Conftitution, infeparable 
from the Idea of her Government, and fubfift- 
ed for fome time after the Spirit of Liberty 
'was extinguifh'd* This may feem a Paradox ; 
it nfuy feem romantic ; but our reflefting upon 
one Circumftange of the Roman Polity will 
clear it up. 

The Paffiops of the Romans for their Coun- 
try led them not to be confin'd to the Study 
oj Arms^ or the immediate Arts of Govern- 
ment, in order to make her great and power- 
ful* They found the means of drawing the 
whole Circle of the Arts within their favourite 
Syftem oi public Good. None flood fingle and 
by itfelf, they all were conneded with, they 
all terminated in. the Public. None were va- 
lued as poffefs'd in Speculation ; and all were 
iiefpis'd that did not tend to enhance the Glo- 
ry gr Power of their Country. Poetry, the 
moil: bewitching of all Arts, was valued only 
as it had an Influence upon the Morals of Man- ^ 
kind ; the Poetry that touched the tender Paf- 
fions was almoft unknown in Rome till the* 
Beams of a Court had melted their Virtue, and 
foften'd their Afleftions to take any Imprefli- 
on which the Art of the Poet was pleas'd to 
beftow. Architcdlure did not- then, as after- 
wards, employ all the Magnificence of Order, r^ 
and the Grace of Harmony upon the Buildings 

of 



''fri; 






PREFACE, ixf 

of private Pcrfons ; their public Buildings, tho 
Temples, their Roads, their Aqus^ufis^ and 
other Works ctf public Utility ; fuch Worke 
I as might be compatible with the Dignity of 
^ their Empire, were erefted and embellifh'd by 
this Art. Sculpture was employ 'd in adorning 
the Places of public Meeting, and exhibhcd to 
the Views of the People the Reprefentationv 
of Perfoftages whofe Virtues rendered them the 
mofl wormy Ob)e<Sl:s of their Imitationi X 
might run on to exemplify this Obferratiim in 
other Arts : I fhall now confine myfelf to that 
which is the Subjedt of my prefent Undertake* 
ing- 

In the following Sheets the Reader will ea-* 
fily perceive how much our Author defpifes 
Eloquence coniider*d as detach'd from the 
Purpofes of Civil Life, and what a contenraei^ 
ble Idea he raifes of its fpeculative ProfeilQ£|« 
No Merit, no Learnirig, no Genins in this 'v^y, 
tho' ever fo great, could refcue the Pofleflbrs 
from Contempt, unlefs they were in a Capa« 
city to apply their Talents to the Service of the 
Public. Even the Condition of Slavery was 
but feldom reliev'd by the moft confmnmate 
Merit in this Art, fince that Condition difqua- 
lify'd the Perfon from applying it to the Ser- 
viCe of Rome. 

It was no* wonder then if a Government, 
whitB acquir'd fo many Acceffions of Strength 
amd Dignity from the Arts, fhould rife to a 
greater Pitch of Power and Majefly than other 
States who were depriv'd of thefe Advantages* 
This is a Charafter in which the Roman PcSity 
differed from all other States 5 even Greece was 
'- ■ defedlivc 



xYi PREFACE. 

defeSive in this Point, Her People had aft ex- 
quifite Senfibility, and were too apt to be be- 
witch'd by the Charms of the' Arts, detach'd 
from Civil Ufes* This Enchantment made 
them indulge a Paffion for Retirement and Lei- 
fure ; and hence it was that they honoured the 
Speculative and the Sedentary. Since the Re- 
vival of Learning in later Ages, this mighty, 
this important Secret, has not been found out, 
at leaft has not been attended to. To this In- 
attention it is owing, that, even in our own 
Country, fome Princes 'who have: been the 
greateft Patrons of Liberty have negleift^ed or 
defpis'd the Patronage of the Arts; while o-. 
thers have but tod fuccefsfully employed them 
in lulling Mankind afleep, and enchanting the 
World, while they were profecuting and exe- 
cuting the inoft pernicious Defigns againft 
^jlic Liberty. 

^R.s Hiftory is the great InftrUdlor of public 
Life, we may hope . to fee a Time, w^en this 
Excellency of the Roman Government (hall be 
added ^ to many others, in which Great Britain . 
cither equals. or i excels the Romans themfelVes, 
With regard to the Art which . we are now 
confidering, this is not only praBicable^ but 
may htnecejfary. For tho' a particular Tafte 
in particular Arts may prevail in moft Coun- 
tries, yet Eloquence being, founded on Reafon,* 
which is every wherR the fame, and operating* 
upon thePafiions of Mankind, which differ on-; 
ly in their Degrees of Strength and Weaknefs, 
its Precepts are univerfaland eternal. Our Au- 
thor in laying down the Rules contain'd in the 
following Work dejiv'd Advantages from Helps 

and 



PREFACE. xvii 

and Objefts, of which we in this Country and 
Age are deprived. His Genius was fo compre- 
henfive, that he exhlufled his Subje(ft| fo that 
all that has.iince appear'd on this Head* are not 
Improvements^ but Comments upon thefe ex- 
cellent Conferences. It is from them that each 
feparate Species of Eloquence has been deriv'd; 
the Rules contained in. them are equally appli- 
cable to the Pradtice of the Senate, the Bar, 
or the Pulpit ; they are equally fit for the many 
or the Jew 5 they teach how to reafon as well 
as how to movCy and to affeS the Head^ as well 
as to touch the Heart. They are fo far from 
being impradicable, that every Man of Senic 
who fpeaks in Public practifes them in a great- 
er or a lefs Degree, and they are not founded 
upon any Hypotbejis^ but reduc'd into a Sy- 
ftem from the repeated and unvarying Experi- 
ence of their EfFedls. In (hort, tho* they are^a- 
dapted to the Ufe of Mankind in general, yet 
they are moft ufcful to the People, who, of 
all Mankind, in their Government and Enjoy- 
ment of their Civil Rights and Liberties, have 
the neareft Refemblance to the People, for 
whofe Ufe they were moft immediately in- 
tended. 

I fhall only add while I am upon this 
Subjedl, that the following Pages are adapted 
not only for the Ufe of a Speaker, but for 
that of a Hearer. , They are fitted to ena- 
ble one to judge as well as to fpeak. It is 
through them that the Mift vanifhes, that the 
Glare difappears which Rhetoric knows how to 
throw upon Truth and Reafon. It is from 
the Precepts contained here, that we can 

3 . *^*^® 



kviU PREFACE. 

tfftce Caufes from thcif Effects; it is bythelll 
alone that wd can fortify our jiffeSlions againft 
thti Enchantment of Words ^ and the artful At-- 
tacks tf Eloquence. Thro' then> we can be 
pteafed without being deceived, and in one 
Senfe they contain the whole Art of impofing 
upon others without being impofed upon our- 
felves. 

We arc therefore to cohfider oiif Orator as a 
WorkmanjWho knowing the Powers bf Matter 
and Mechanifm, finifli'd feveral Mafchines which 
produced furpri2:ing and unaccountable EfFefts ; 
and this Performance as an Analyfis, or Expla-^ 
nation of thofe Properties, and that Difpo- 
fition by which all this amazing Power was 
etertcd. We may confider him in anothef 
Light— -in that of a Statefman, and this aS 
his political Confeffion laying open all the Art 
\f hich kept the Veflel of Government fo long 
from overfetting, after it had been abandoned by 
the wifeft and moft fkilful of its Pilots. 

As to rny own Performance in the following 
Work, I reft its Merit entirely upon the Judg- 
ment of the Public. My Motives for attempt* 
ing it before I went farther in the Tranflation 
of his others Works, were, becaufe it is a Key 
to unfold the Beauties that lie unoblerved in 
the Orations. It was with this View, next to 
that of the public Service, that our Author 
compofed this Work; and the Englip Reader 
will after reading it, enter with double Plea* 
fure upon the Orations. 



M. T. 



4; y^i™*** (SWJBtWS ***„4^« 



M. TuLLius Cicero 

ON THE 

CHARACTER of ap ORATOR. 



7^^ Jf^^ Conference. 
CHAP. I. 

J, F T E R a repeated View, and 

9 RccoUeflion of paft Events, 

S my dear Brother, to me, thofe 

9 Men- fcem to have been pla- 

s ccdin the moft eligible Situ- 

h ation, who under a * found 

^ Government, in the Fullnefs 

of Honour and Enjoyment 

of Glory, could either adt up to their public 

Charaifttr with Safety, or defcend to Retirement 

with Dignity. And indeed there was a Time 

. in which I too thought, that if the Multi- 

* Sound Go-vtrnmentl This Lofin has it optima RipuhlUa, by 
which Ci'ffrs meansa ConltitutioD wichoatany Innovations from 
Csrruption Or Pnetr ; the Sentiment here is worthy k Raman 
Patriot, who had feen the Confthmion of his Country fubvetttd 
by a Concurrence of both ; and we may obferve he infinuaies 
that no Honour could be employ 'd wiih Satisfa^an to the 
FolTefror, if it was not attended with publig t-jberty. 

B plicity 



* 



2 On tB^ Cu AH ACTER BooK I. 

plicity of my. Labours at the Bar, and the Toils 
o£ Ambition into which I was led, * after running 
through the publick Honours, had refted towards 
my Decline of Life; fcarce any one could have 
thought it unreafonablc, that I (hould have then 
begiin to tafte fome Relief, and .to dedicate my 
Abilities to thofc amiable Studies in which we 
are bpth of us engaged. But thofc pleafing Hopes 
and Schemes were defeated by -f public Calamity, 
and our private Misfortunes : For J in the very 
Place which bade faireft to afford Shelter in cafe 
of a Storm, the chief Weight of Misfortune fell,, 
and the ftrongeft Tempeft broke forth. . This 
. blafted my moft earneft Hopes^ and moft paflio- 
nate Defires of improving the Sweets of Retire- 
ment by an amicable Intercourfe in cultivatijng 
thofe Arts to which our early Youth was dedi- 
cated. For on my fetting out in Life I lighted 
upon the very Wrecks of our antient Conftitu- 
tion ; in my Confulate I diropped into the Hurry 
and Peril of all public Coijcerns, and all my in- 
termediate Time fince has ^een fpent in buffet- 
ing § the Billows, which, aftfr 1 had cepeli*d from 

my 

♦ There is here itUhc Original an Allafion to the Chariot 
Races,which being frequent and familiar to xheRomanSiV/ere ex- 
tremely beautiful in that Age» but fuch a Metaphor would appear 
Iifelefs and infipid, if we Ihould pretend to adopt it exadly in a 
Tranflation. 

-f* Any Perfon who is ever fo little acquainted with thi&J^cfjtan 
Hiftory mull be fen(ible,that Gcero enter'd upon Life juft at the 
Period when the Roman Liberty begap to receive thofc Blows 
that afterwards fubverted it, and in which he himfelf was a 
deep Sharer. 

:|: This poflibly alludes to his fine Seats, which upon his 6a- 
ni(hment were fold and demoUfhed by the Intered and Fury of 
Clodius and his Party. 

$ The Biliows] It is plain, that the Enemies o( Cicero would 
have found it difficult tohav^ aS^Acd him kgallyi had it not been 

for. 



Boor I. ' Of an Ok AT OK. 3 

my Country, recoiled upon myfelf. Yet- amidft 
all the Difficulties and Dangers of doubtful Con- 
junftures, ftill my Byafs is to Learning, and all 
the Leifure which .the Malice of my Enemies, 
the Caufes of my Friends, or the Concerns of my 
Country allow me, will I dedicate to writing. Bc- 
fides, my dear Brother, 1 fliall f ever pay the 
greateft Deference to your Entreaties and Requcits ; 
for there is no Man alive for whom I have cither 
greater Regard or greater AfFeftion, 

C H A P. II. 

AND here I muft recal to my Memory^ a 
Conference that pafled many Years ago, 
which I own I don't exactly recoUeft ; but in my 
Opinion direftly anfwering what you want to be 
informed of, as to the Sentiments which the greateft 

for the cincautioasPartwhich he appears to have a6ed in theCi- 
tilinarian Conrpiracy in putting the Friends of Catiline to Death; 
a Condufl, which tho^ he conceived to be warranted by Necef* 
fity, was by no Means agreeable to the Principles of the iZv- 
man Government. 

"|- E*uer fay] One can't help obferving with what Art Cirers 
reconciles good Manners toAfFeftiony and admiring a Friendihip 
fo diiinterefled, yet fo delicate, (o full at once of Refped and 
Love. There are few PaiTages that I would fooner venture to 
reccMnmedd to a Reader than this, fince it is certain, that the 
Decay of the Paffion of Friendihip among the Modems is in a 
great Meafure owing to that fuliome Freedom, and Want of 
Delicacy which prevails among Friends, and which often ren- 
ders the ilridieft Connexions naufeous and cold. The avoiding 
this I am convinced was the true Secret that produced fuch In- 
fiances of exalted Friendihip among the Antients. 

:|: ^ Conference] So much has been faid by our beft Writers in 
Commendation ofthe Manner of treating a Subjedlby Dialogue, 
that it is needlefs to infill upon its Ufes here, any farther than to 
obrerve,that this Snbje£t particularly required to be treated in this 
Manner ; fince Cicero thereby avoided that dogmatical Air 
which his treating this Subjedl muft ctherwife have given him. 

« 

B 2 and 



4 On the Cn AH AC ris.K Book I* 

and moft eminent Orators entertained of Eloquence 
in general. For you have often told me, that 
you wanted I Ihould give you fomewhat more fi- 
nilhed and compleat on that Head,, according to 
the Improvement I have acquired by pleading in fo 
many, and lb important Caufes •, becaufe the hafty 
Notes we marked down, when we were young Men^ 
in our Memorandum- Books, appear unworthy of 
my Experience and Charadler. And fometimes you 
ufed to differ from me in our Converfation upon 
thofe Points, becaufe I maintain, that Eloquence 
comprehends the Arts of the moft fagacious Men 
in the World, while you imagine, that it ought 
to be treated as quite diftinfl: from the Elegance 
of Study, and refted entirely upon natura,l Genius^ 
joined to a certain Perfection of Praftice. I own 
indeed I have been frequently at a Lofs to account^ 
upon a Review of the greateft and ableft Men, * 
why fewer have been diftinguilhed in Eloquence 
than in any other Art. For to whatever Point 
of Science you diredt your View and Refledbion, 
you fhall find many excelling in every Kind^ not 
only of the midlin^ Arts, but of thofe which re- 
quire almoft the greateft Compafs of Genius. 
For is there that Man alive ^ who, were he to form 
his Idea of public Merit by great Adions and 
ufeful Confequences, would not prefer ''the Cha- 
racter of a General to that of an Orator ? Yet 



' * I am forry to obfervc, that this Remark of our Author has 
in it very little Solidity, tho' it is excellently well calculated for 
difplaying his Eloquence. Befides, great Part of what he after- 
wards fays is the common Cant of all Writers upon the Arts they 
excel in, or want to recommend, and our Author has by varying 
the Expreflion a little recommended Philofophy, as attended 
with the fame Excellencies he afcribes to Eloquence here. Vid:^ 
Qu. T«fc. L. 5. i 5. 

will 



Book I. Of an Or at o it. 5 

will any Man deny, that in this fingle City 
innumerable Inftances x>f confummate Generals, 
* and but few, very few of accomplilhed Orators 
may be produced. Nay fiarther, in our own, in our 
Father'ls, in our Forefather's Days, many have ap- 
peared with Wifdom and Abilities equal to all tjnc 
Government and Direftion of a State, while for 
a long Time no good Orators appeared ; and upon 
the whole, we fcarcely find for fo many Ages as 
many tolerable Spealcers. But left it (hould be 
faid, that Eloquence ought rather to be compared 
with thofe other Profeflions that are contained 
within the comprehenfive Circle of refined Arts 
and various Sciences, than with the Glory of a 
General, or the Politics of a Patriot Senator, let 
the Perfon who makes this ObjeAion review thofe 
very Arts ; let him furvey thofe who have made 
a Figure in them ; then may he eafily form a 
Judgment how many have been diftinguiftied by 
thofe, and how few ever have been, or ever can 
^be by Eloquence, ^ 



. * Few g^ Orators] Suet^mus, or whoever wrote the Lives of 
famous C^ators, accounts for this in aWay that it is probable G- 
eero by no Means thought for the Honour of his Country ; for, 
we are told there, the Roman Government was fo jealous of the 
EFeds of Oratory, that neither it, nor Grammar were fuffered 
to be taught in Rome ; and that under the Confulate of Fannius 
&trabo and ValUrim Mtfala, who by the bye were Confnls 98 
Years before our Author, all Philofophers and Orators were ex- 
pelled Rome by a Decree of the Senate. And indeed fuch a 
Conduct was extremely agre^ble to the Maxims of a Govern- 
ment which by that Time had reaibn to be jealous of the Ef- 
£e£l which Eloquence^ might produce upon the Minds of a 
People impatient of living under a fevere Ariftocracy, and 
watchful of every Opportunity to ihake ofF,>or at leaft leffen their 
Dependance on the Senate. The Experience of Arteir-ages 
Itfov'd that this Jealoufy was but too well founded. 



B a . C H A P. 



/ 



I 



6 0«/)&^ Character Book !• 



CHAP. III. , 

FO R you have furely obferved, that what is 
termed by the Greeks Philosophy is thought 
by the moft learned Men to be, as it were, the 
liiotber and Parent of the fine Arts ; and it is hard 
to fay how many, how learned, how univerfally 
learned Men in their feveral Profeflions have ap- 
pear'd in this Science; Men, who have not confined 
themfelves to a fingle Province of Learning, but 
cither by an indefatigable Purfuit of * firft Princi- 
ples, or the Clearnefs of their Reafoning, have 
mattered the whole Compafs of Science. We all 
know how dark, how perplex'd, how complicated, 
and how fubtile the Study is of, what we call, the 
Mathematics; yet fo many great Men have 
appeared in this Art, that it feems as if no Man 
had ever fet about to attain it in good earneft, and 
did not carry his Point. Was there ever f a Mufi- 

cian 

♦ Firft Prtncifigs] The Terms here ufed by our Author arc ex- 
tremely expreiSve in xhtLatin^hxil cannot bear aTraailation into 
EngUfif, Per^efligatioHi Scientzir can only fignify Reafoning from 
^^e^s to iiril Caufes, the nobleft Philofophy, known to the 
Antiencs, and but little attended to among the Moderns, who, 
till lately, for many Ages were bewilder d in the Jargon of 
favourite Syftems. 

-f A Mu/ician] As no Opinion upon our Author can havo 
equal Weight with that of ^intilian whofe Jnftitutes are indeed 
the Superfb-uf^ure of that Foundation which Cicero has fo well 
laid down in this Treatife, I fhall take the Liberty to trankribe 
into Engli/h a Pafiage or two from him, which proves what Opt* 
nion the Antieats Had of Mufick ; *' Every one knows, that in 
'* former Ages this Art was not only iludied, but adored, and its 
•* Profelfors werecfteemed Prophet^ and Sages. Were not Or- 
*' pbeus and Linus (to name no more) believed to he defcended 
•' of the Gods ? And 'tis told <rf" the firft of thefe, that he not 
** only quieted and charmed the Paffions of Men and the Fury of 
f * wild Beafts, but even made the very Stones and Woods dance 
« j^fter him by the Power of his Mufic. Tmagenes fays, that 

3 «« MufiQ 



Book f . Of an Ok at o r, 7 

cian, was there ever a Profeflbr of what we term 
the Study of Grammar, who by intenfe Applica-'^ 
tion did not matter the almoft boundlefs Power 
and Subjed: of their ftveral Arts. I muft at the 
fame Time take notice, that in the Circle of liberal 
Arts and Sciences we find fewer eminent in Poetry 
than any bther Profeffion : * Yet fmall as the 

Number 



•4€ 



•4t 



"' Mafic is the moft antient of all Arts. The moft famous Poets 
are likewife of the fame Opinion; for they introduce Muii- 
cians at the Feafts of Kings finging the Praifes of the Gods 
•* and Heroes. Thus in Virgil, Jopas is linging Errantem Luftam, 
** Solifaue Labores^ by which that admirable Poet afierts, that 
** Munc is even joiried with the Knowledge of divine Things.'' 
But thefe are only aPart of the lavifh Praifes heteltovvs onMu- 
fic. Soon after he "fays, ** Hitherto I have been oflly (jpeaking 
in Praife of Muiic, hut have not fhewn its Conne6lion with 
**' Oratory ; I fhall now proceed and ihew, that among the An-. 
** tients Grammar and Muiic were always joined together. 
** Thus Arcbytas and Ariftoxenus were of Opinion chat Grammar 
*' was fubje^ to Muiic, and tell us, that both were taught by 
«* one Mailer, ^c^ Jnfi, Ub. L Cap 8, 

* Tet fmall] Tho' I very much doubt of this Faft, yet ad- 
mitting it to betrue, it may I think be eafily accounted for. £Io< 
quence is an Art, of which there is not one Species that can be 
■uniyerfally adapted toallPlaces, Ages, and Governments: Forln- 
ftance, theSpecies that prevailed inGreecewns different from what 
prevaird at Rome, (See the Preface to the Oration^) that Kind 
which Cicero ufed was different from that ufed by Piinyi the Elo- 
quence of the French is different from that oiHtkeEngiiJby and that 
of thQitalians different from both. Whereas tbeLanguage of greac 
Adions in a Hero, of Harmony in a Mufician, of a Genius in a 
Poet, or Proportion in aMathematician, is a Language underflood 
at ail Times, by every People, and in all Ages $ it is a Language 
not depending, as Succefs in Oratory does, upon the Form oi a 
Government, the Manners of a People, or theCapriceof ajudge, 
but founded on Principles, and to be examined only by Truth. 
But what accounts iliU better for this Obfervation of our Au- 
thor's is, that the true Source of Perfection in Eloquence is Emu., 
lation. If at a Bar of any fupreme Judicature nobody fhould 
appear but thofe who negled the Ornaments of Dtfcourfe, aMan 
with equal Knowledge of the Laws, and very little Application 
to the Study of Eloquence, may be the beft Pleader at fucha Bar, 
and yet not a good Orator ; therefore in Reality, good Oratory 
have only appeared in Ages when Emulation prompted them to 
ftudy J when fevcral great Men applying to the fame Art, each 

B j^ endeavour' d 



8 0/7 /^^ Ch ARACTE R BoOK L . 

Number of good Poets is, (an^ it muft be allowed 
to be very fmall) if you fliall take the Trouble 
to enumerate thofe who have appeared both in 
Greece and in our own Country, you will find 
upon the Comparifon that there have been more 
good Poets than good Orators. This appears 
ftill more furprifing, becaufe the Knowledge of 
other Arts is commonly acquired from dark and 
abftrufe Fountains, but Eloquence confifts in the 
moft obvious Ptinciples, the Knowledge of com- 
mon Life, and in the Habits and Converfation of 
Mankind. In other Arts, he who excels is the 
Man who ftrikes deepeft into a Road the moft 
diftant from the Knowledge, the moft impervi- 
ous to the Capacity 6f the ignorant: Whereas 

endeavoured to outyye another, till one by his Succefs and 
Popularity eclipted the Glory of the reft, and that happy Man 
in after- times was looked upon as the only Orator, and en- 
grofTed the Palm of Eloquence to himfelf. Nothing can bet- 
ter illuftrate this Obfervation than the Fate of thofe Orators 
who lived in the Time o£Gcero, who are now known only in 
his Writings. 

Jfit is objefled, that Poets arefubje6led to the fame Difadvan- 
tagcs. 1 anfwer ; they arc, when their Cafe is that of Orators, 
'vix. when by the Nature of their Study they are led into an £- 
mulation of each other; for then the Fame of the mofl' excel- 
lent will fwallow up that of the reil; and tho* the Roman Em- 
pire in the Jiigu/lan Age was crowded with Poets of all kinds, yet 
the Works of none have cometoour Hands,but thofe that in their 
own Age were allowed to excel: But it is poflible for two or three 
Poe s to live in the fame Age,and yet not clafh with one another. 
Horace had no Jealoufy of Virgil', both excelled in a different 
Way, and therefore both have been tranfmitted to Pofterity ; 
Whereas the others who attempted Epic and Lyric Poetry in 
that Age, and who were iotigo proxifniintervallo, have been dif- 
tanced by Time, and (hut out of the Career of Fame. A great 
deal more might be faid on this Subje^, perhaps I (hould not 
have faid fo much,were it not that Cicero appears in this PafTage 
to be very partial in Favour of his beloved Art. Upon the whole, 
wc may venture to fay, that this Paradox of our Author's may 
be accounted for by the Circum fiances attending the ProfcfTion 
of antient Eloquence, rather than any extraordinary Cbmpafs 
of Learning) and Difhculty that attends the Study itfelf. 

in 



Book I. 0/ an Orator 'g 

in Eloquence, the moft dreadful Blunder that 
can be committed is to deviate into abftrufe Ex- 
preffions, and ou t of tl 
Senfe. 

C H A P. IV. . 

IT cannot even be pretended, that more People 
apply to the Study of the other Arts,, that 
^hey ate animated in their Purfuit by more exqui- 
fite Senfations of Pleafure, by fairer Profpefts, or 
more inviting Rewards. Not to mention Greece^ 
which has ever claimed the Palm of Oratory, or 
Athens^ that Nurfery of all Learning, where Elo- 
quence had its Rife and Perfeftion, I will venture 
to fay, that in this very City, no Study has ever 
been cultivated with more Intenfenefs than has that 
of Eloquence. For, after we had acquired and 
fettled the Government of the World, and began 
from the Continuance of Tranquillity, to reliih 
Repofe, there was fcarcely a young Man who had 
a Paffion for Glory, who did not think it his Duty 
to apply himfelf to Eloquence with all the Facul- 
ties he gpflefled. At firft indeed, when they were 
ignorant of * all Method, and void of all No- 
tions 

* ^11 Method ] The Reader may now perceive, that in Giiro'% 
Opinion there is a great Difference htlynxl tinMll'fpokin Man- 
and an Orator, I own that I conceive a very high Opinion of 
the Eloquence of thofe brave Romans who mull have fpoke 
good Senfe and manly Sentiments, before Eloquence became 
an Art, and in fome Meafure a Trade, ^mntilian however 
h«s admirably well explained this Point 

<' Do not even the Bees extra^ chat fragrant Tafte which Ho- 

* * ney alone can impart to human Senfe, from very different 

** Flowers and Joices ? Is there any wonder that Eloquence 

•" (which is the greateft Gift Heaven has given to Men) requires 

*' many Arts to perfeft it? and tho' they do not all appear in an 

" Oration, or fccm to be of any ufe, they neverthelcfi afford an 
'~ «« in- 



t 
^ 



• -. 



lo On the Ch a r a c te r Book I. 

tkms of the Energy or Prindples of the Art, 
they owed all their Progrefs, iuch as it was, to 
Genius and Application. But afterwards, when 
our Countrymen heard the Greek Orators, when 
they began to tafte their Learning, and attend 
their Leflbns, they burned with an amazing, an 
inrcfiftible Pafljon for Eloquence. The Importance 
and Variety of the Art, with the Multiplicity of 
the Caufes of every Kind, was a Spur to their 
adding repeated Practice, which avails more than 
all the Precepts in the World, to the Theory 
which they had attained by Study. At that Time 
likcwife, as now, the greateft Rewards were an- 
Bcxed to the Profeflion of this Art, with regard to 
Popularity, Intereft^ and Honour; and the Ca- 
pacities * of Romans y as we may judge from ma- 
ny other Inftances, were far fuperior to thofe of 
the reft of Mankind. All this being confidered, 
have we not Reafon to be furprized, that in fo large 
z, Traft of Time, fo many Opportunities, and fuch 
a Variety of States, the Number oigood Orators, 
fiiould be fo inconfiderable? But the Truth is, 
that in this Art there is ibmewhat more, and it 
muft be attained by an Acquaintance with more 

** mward Supply of Strength, and arc filently felt in the Mind ; 
•* 'without thtje a Man may be eloquent ^ hut J ivant to form anpra- 
«* t9r\ and none can be faid to have all the Requifites, while the 
•* inaUeil Thilkg is wanting." Inft. Qrat. L. i.Cap, 7. 

♦ Capacities ^/" Roman, 1 This is fo very wide of what Cirir(^ 
liiinfelf Knew to be the Truth, that I am apt to think that he 
Bieant it iroftically. Had he indeed lived fome Years later, he 
nigkt have had fome Shadow of a Pretence to have difpated the 
Prize of Excellency inEJoqucncc andPoetry with Greece in favour 
^iltome^t but it is impo^ble he could be ferious in what he fays 
Icre. Arclkite^lm'e, Eloquence, Painting, Mafic, Mathematics, 
wtte Arts in his Time unknown to Kome, otherwife than as they 
were imported £romGreeee, who long before had brought them 
19 the higheil Perfection'. Jn (hort, he fpeaks here with a more 
dvan poetical Lkence, for Firgii has given up the Point. 

Arts . 



Book 1. Of an Orator." "il 

Arts and Sciences than Mankind generally ima* 
ginc. 

C H A P. V. 

FO R what other Caufe can be afligned for 
this Scarcity of good Orators, where the Stu- 
dents are fo numerous, the Teachers {o many, 
their Capacities fb excellent, the Cafes fb variou5» 
and the Priases fo inviting, but to the amATing 
Difficulty and Extenfivencfs of the Thbg ? For 
there muft be a Fund of univerfal Knowledge, 
without which the greateft Volubility of Speaking 
will appear empty and ridiculous. Words muft ^ 
not only be well chofen, but properly difpoied, 
and the Speaker muft have a thorough Know* 
ledge of all the. ^ffedions whidi. Nature haa imr 
planted in the-^Soul-ofJ^n, becaufe it demands 
the whole Encrgj^and Power of Ipcaking to awa- - 
ken and jto footh the I^affions of an Audience* 
Add to this, that the Art requires a certain Plea- , . 
fantry of .Wit ajad.HufnpjH^ as ^^^ 

fuits a Gentleman, a Qdicknefs and Smartnefs \vi^ 
attacking and replying, together with an infinua- 
ting Addrefs and. a delicate Politenefs. The* 
Orator muft likewife poflefs a perfeft Knowfedge ( , 
of Antiquity, ahd the Application of Precedents, ' . 
and be converfant + in the Laws botH of Nations 
and of particular States. Why need I to mention 

X Orig. L§gum aui Juris cimHs.'] fiy the firft he means the 
Lawa of Nations which were the Foiindacions of general Socic- 
ty. But the Jus cMle was appropriated to the Citizens of 
^ Rome. APaffage in our Author ^e Officii s Lib. ^. cap. 17 
explains this Difference, ^md ci<^ile nvtidem continuo Gintium^ 
quod autem Gentium idem d<vi!i ejjfe debet ^ See the Tranflatioa 
of4^ 0^««, andNote p. 18}^ 



N 



:> 



la On the Character ^ Book I. 

jiSian irielf, which muft ^bc regulated by the Mo- 
tion of the Body, the^ Gefture, the Lookw joined 
to the Juftnefs of Accent and Command of voice ? 
Of how much Importance this is in itfelf, even fo 
flight an Art as is that of afting on a Theatre de- 
monftrates : For tho' the whole Excellency of 
Players confifts in adjufting tjieir Looks, their Fea- 
tjurcs and Gefture, does riot every Body know 
that few of them ever were, or can be endured with 
Patience ? Need \ to mention Memory, that 
Treafury of all Knowledge ; which, unlefs it be- 
comes the Repofitory of all Thoughts and Inven- 
tions^ let an Orator poflfefs all other Qualifications 
even in the higheft Perfeftion, they can be of na 
Ufe> . 

, Let us therefore be no longer furprized, that 
there kre fo few Orators, fince Eloquence confifts 
in a Variety of Accomplifhments, any one of 
which it is a very difl5cult Taflc to attain -, and 
let us rather advife our Children, and thofe w'hom 
we wilbto fee make a Figure in the public Sta- 
tionsr of Life, to refleft maturely upon the Im- 
portance of the Thing, and not to imagine that it 
can be attained by thofe Precepts and Mafters> 
cr that Kind of Exercife which they all praftife* 
but by other Means. 



CHAP. VL 

r 

NA Yy in my Opinion, no Man can deferve 
the Praife of an accomphflied Orator, with- 
out a perfedt Knowledge of all the Arts, and 
every Thing that is great: For it is from this Ac- 
quaintance with the_\Ko!44^at Eloquence muft 
receive ifis Flow ai^ its Embeliiftiments, Without 

^•- — •. ' . this 



■^f^^^^^«pr ■r»«*^^^* 



4 

Book L ^ Of an Orator, i^ 13 

this, let a Subjcft be ever fo well confidercd and 
underftood by an Orator, there will be ftill fonic- 
what poor, and almoft childiih in his Expreflion; 
yet I am far from laying fuch a Burthen upon Ora- 
tors, elpecially thofe of this Gity, amidft fuch a Hur- 
ry of Bufinefs and Multiplicity of Affairs, as to re- 
quire that they fliould be ignorant of nothing, 
Tho' indeed the Energy of Eloquence, and the Pro- 
feffion of true Oratory feems to undertake and pro- 
mife, that an Orator ihould be able to treat every 
Subjedt that (hall- fall in his Way elegantly and 
copioufly. But as I don't doubt that, to moft 
People, this will appear too unwieldy and extenfive 5 
and as I perceive that the Greeks^ who poficffed 
not only Genius and Learning, but Eafe and 
Lcifure for Study, made a Kind of Divifion of 
the Arts : That one Man did not grafp at the 
whole Circle, but fet apart from every other Spe- 
cies of fpeaking that which was more immediately ' 
adapted to Pleading and Debates at the Bar ; al- 
lotting that alone as the Province of an Orator: 
Therefore, in thefe Pages, I fhall only treat of thofe 
Properties, which upon mature Deliberation, and 
a long Difcuflion, are almoft univerfally allotted to 
this fingle iSpecies of Eloquence. For this Pur-" 
pole, I Ihall not repeat^ any String of Precepts 
which we learned when we were Children at 
School, and juft come from under the Nurfe*s 
Care; no, I mean to give you the Arguments 
which I heard formerly urged in a Debate among 
fome Friends, Men of the greateft Eloquence 
and Eminence in Rome. Not that I defpife the 
Principles which the Greek Profeffors and Teachers 
of Eloquence have left us ; but fmce they are well 
known, and in every body's Hands, and impoffiWe 

to 



14 ^» the CffARACTElt Book I. 

to receive any Ornament or Explanation from my 
Interpretation, you will pardon me, my dear Bro- 
ther, if, in my Opinion, the Authority of fuch 
of our own Countrymen as all Rime allows to 
be fintihed Orators, is * to be preferred to that 
of the Greeks. 



CHAR. VII. 

I Remember I was told, that when the -f Con- 
ful Philip was carrying on his furious Attack 
upon the Nobility, while the Tribunefhip of Dru- 
fusj who made head in Favour of the Senate's 
Authority appeared quite diftrefled and crufhed, 
Lucius Crajfusy as the Roman Plays were celebra- 
ting, retired to Tufculamm^ in order to recruit his 
Spirits; and that ^intus Mucins^ who had been 
his Father-in-law, with Marcus yfntonius, the 
Companion of Craffus in his public Condud, and 



/ 



* Pnferred to the Greeks.] I am afraid this is not levelled fo 
mach at the Greek Method of teaching Oratory as at the Gnek 
( Eloqiience, which in itfelf was more fimple, uniform, and natu- 
ral than the Roman^ and confequently did not require all the 
Auxiliaries which Cicero demands in an Orator. 

t It is worth whil^ to take a fhort View of the Propriety and 
Beauty with which Cicero introduces his Drama in the three 
great dramatic CHrCumflance^, Time, Place, and Charafters : 
The Time, when the C^ufe of the Nobility was on the Point 
of being ruined by an overbearing Conful, who ought to have 
been their Patron and Defender: The Scene is Tufcuiamm, at a 
fmall Diftance from Rome, and the moft beautiful Retreat in the 
World :Thc Perfons^ Crajfusy Antonius, Sca'vola ; the two firft 
the greateii: Orators, and the laft one of the greateft Lawyers of 
their Age: Cotta and Su/ficms, two young Gentlemen of the mod 
promifing Appearances and great Quality, affifted at the Confe- 
rences. Cicero, as fome learned Men obferve, introduced thofe 
great Perfonages as^ bearing their Parts in this Drama, that he 
might wipe off the Imputation of Eloquence being taught at 
Rome by Men of no Quality or Confideration in the State. We 
£tisM only obferve farther, that Cicero puts his own Sentiments 
with regard to Eloquence in the Mouth of QraJJus, 

bis 



Book I. Of an ORAToit. \ i^ 

his particular Friend in private, were of the Par- 
ty. Two young Gentlemen, intimate G>mpani~ 
ons of Drufus% of the moft promifiog Appear- 
ances, in the Eyes of Men of the greatcft Ex* 
perience at that Time> to fill the higheft P<^ 
in the Government^ went likewife along with Gr^ 
fus ; the one Caius Cotta^ who then ftood for the 
Tribunelhip of the Commons; the other P, 5irf- 
picius^ who, it was thought, would be the next 
Candidate for the fame Office. This Company^ 
the firll Day, had a great Deal of Difcourfe 
concerning the Danger of the Times^ and the State 
of the Government, which had been the OccafioA 
of their Meeting in that Place, and their Con- 
verfation lafted till Day was almofl gone. Cotia 
ufcd to relate, that during this Converfation, a 
Number of things were mentioned with a me- 
lancholy Concern by th'ofe three Confular Perlbns^ 
in fv> prophetic a Spirit, that there was not a fin-, 
gle Calamity that afterwards happened to the State^ . 
which they did not forefee to be hanging over it 
at that Diftance ©f Time. But this Convcrfati- 
on being over, that, fuch was the Politcnefs of 
CraJJusy when they went to fup, none of the me- 
lancholy Air that mixed in their late Difcourfe ap- 
peared ; fo pleafant was his Turn^ and he knew 
haw to dire£t his Humour fo happily, that tho* 
the Day appeared to be Ipent in a Senate, yet at 
Night they found themfelvcs round the focial. 
Board at Tufculanum. Next Day, after the old 
Gentlemen had fufficiently repofed, continued 
CofSaj they went, all of them, out a walking, 
when Sccsvola^ after two or three Turns, Why , 
Crajfus^ faid he, dont we imitate Socrates in Plato\ 
Fhadrus ? I am put in mind of this by this Plane- 

Tree 



16 On the' Character Book L 

Tree of yours, which tx> me appears by its 
fpreading Boughs as proper for (hading this 
Place, as was that which Socrates ufed.to frequent ; 
and which, in my Opinion, flourifhed not fo much 
by the Rivulet which fed it, as by the J^ines 
of Plato which defcribed 'it 5 if therefore he with 
his hard Feet repofed upon the Grafs, where he 
delivered thofe Sentiments which Phiiofophers 
afcribe to a Spirit of Divinity, fure there is more 
Keafon that my tender Feet fhould be indulged 
in the fame Way. Right, faid Crajfus^ ^huf; you 
fhall fit more conveniently, and then he xalled 
for Cufhions, and fo ail of them fat dom upon 
the Benches under the Plane- Tree. |fr 



CHAP. VIII. 

COTTJ ufed farther ijiitell me, that in order 
to wear off the IpiplRIions which their laft 
Day*s Converfation l^p^ made upon their Minds, 
Crajfus turned the Difcourfe upon the Study of Elo- 
quence ; that he introduced what he had to fay by 
obferving, that Sulpicim and Cotta did not appear 
fo much to require Inftrudtion as Praife-, fmce 
they had already attained to fuch a Degree of 
Perfeftion, as not only to excel thofe of equal 
Age, but to rival Speakers of more Experience 
and Years: Nor indeed, continued he, can I con- 
ceive any Thing more excellent than to be able 
by Eloquence to captivate the AfFeftions, charm 
the Underftandings, and direft or reftrain the 
Paffions of whole Aflemblies, as you pjeafe. This 
fingle Art has, amongft every free People, efpeci- 
ally in peaceful fettled Governments, met with 
the greatcft Encouragement, and been attended 

with 



Book I. Of an Or at on^ 17 

with the moft powerful Efficacy: For what can 
be more furprizing, than that, amidft: an infinite 
Multitude^ one Man (hould appear^ who (hall be 
the only, or almoft the only Man who can do what 
Nature has put in every Man's Power ? Or can 
any Thing impart fo exquifite Plealbre to the 
Ears And Underftanding, as a Speech to which 
Sentiments give Dignityi and ExprelSion, EmbeU 
lifhment ? Is there any Thing (b commanding, 
fo grand, as that the Eloquence of one Man (hould 
diredt the Inclinations of the People, the Confci->' 
cnces of Judges, and the Majefty of Senates ?^ 
Nay farther, can ought be efteemed fo royal, fo 
generou$, fo publlc-fpirited, as to relieve the Sup« 
pliant, to rear the proftrate, to communicate Hap- 
pinels, to avert Danger, and to fave a • FcUow 
Citizen from Exile ? Can any Thing be fo ne- 
ctSkry as to have always ready tho(c Arms, 
which at the fame Time can defend yourfelf, at-^ 
tack the Profligate,, or redrefs your own Affronts * 
But come-^ — don't let us ever dwell upon the 
Forum, the Benches, the Roftra, and the Sen* 
ate ; can any Thing in Retirement from Bu(ine(s 
be more entertaining,'morc endearingly focial, than 
a Language agreeable and poli(hed on every 
Subjed? For this is the Charafteriftlc of our 
Nature, to diftingui(h us from Brutes, that we 
have a focial Intercourfe with one another, and 
are able to convey our Ideas^Ja j^ La nguage. 
Muft not. every Man then be ftruck wlmShts, 
and own that to excel Mankind themfelves in that 

• The original is retifnre Homhts in Gvitau, fee Oration for 
Mi/a^ ^3. where he applies the fame Expreflion to his Circam- 
ftances. The Romans were very delicate with regard to men- 
tioning Panilhments, efpecially thofc that were capital, and if 
poffible foftened the Terms. 

C Quality 



t8 On /^^^Character Boqk I. 

Quality ' which gives them the Preference to 
Brutes, ought to be his fa^Kjurite Study? But that 
I may mention the chief Point of all, what other 
Power could have been of fufficient Efficacy, ei- 
ther to colleft the difperfed Individuals of Man- 
kind from all' Quarters into one Place, or to bring 
them from favage barbarous Life, to a focial regu- 
lated Intercourfe ^ or, after States were founded, 
to mark out Laws, Forms and Conftitutions for 
their Government? Let me in one Word, fum 
up this almoft boundlefs Subjeft; I lay it down 
pis a Maxim, that upon the Prudence and Abili- 
/ ties of an accompliflicd Orator, not only his owft 
/ Dignity, but the Welfare of vaft Numbers of In- 
l dividuals, nay of the whole Government, refts. 
^Therefore, my young Gentlemen, go on j ply 
the Study you have in Hand, for your own Ho- 
nour, the Advantage of your Friends, and the 
Service of your Country. 



C H A P- IX. 

SAYS Sc^evoia} in his pleafant Way, In ma- 
ny Things I agree with Crajjus^ far be it from; 
me to impair the Credit and Honour of the Pro- 
feffion of either my Father-in-Law Lalius^ or my 
Son-in-law Crajfusy but, my Friend, it is with 
fome Difficulty that I can admit two Things you 
have advanced. The firfl; is, that States were 
originally conftityted, and have been often pre- 
ferved by Orators -, the other is, that fetting afide 
the Forum, the public Aflemblies, the Courts 
f^f Juftice and the Senate-Houfe, you fuppofed^ 
fzn Orator to be accomplifhed in every *Kind of 
lEloquence, and all the Duties of Society. WiU 

^ ant 



/ 



Book I. Of an Ob. at qa. i^ 

any Man pretend, that when Mankind in early 
Ages were difperfcd over Mountains and Wood$, 
they were not compelled to aflbciate by the Coun-^ 
fcls of the Sage, but that the Harangues of O- 
rators foftcned them into Humanity, and brought 
them to lire within Towns and Walls ? Or, . 
indee(l, that the other Wife Regulations, cither in . 
founding or preferving States, were owing to the 
eloquent and fine- fpoken, and not to the brave 
and the wife ? Do you indeed + imagine Romulus 
ailembled his Shepherds and mixed Multitude^ 
executed the Scheme of the Sainne Marriages^ 
and repelled the Power of the neighbouring States 
by his Eloquence, and not by his Forefight and 
Wiidom ? Nay farther, what do you fay of Nu- 
ma Pompilius^ what ofServius TulliuSy what of our 
other Kings, who made many wife Regulations in 
fettling this State, is there the leaft Trace re- 
maining of their Eloquence? Nay, when Mo- 
narchy was abolilhed, which I will venture to fay 
was accompliihed by the Rdplution, and not the 
Elo quence of j L. Brutus ', don't we perceive 
that all the great Things performed afterwards, 
were full of wife j Condu^ -but void of all -£lo- 
qijence. If I had a Mind to dip into Precedents 
in our own Hiftory, and in that of other States, 
I could undertake to point out more Inftances 
in which Men of the greateft Eloquence have been 

f Romu/us.'] Every Body who is in the IczSt acquainted with 
the Roman Hiftory knows that of this Father of the Roman State; 
we may only by the bye obferve, that the Affairs of the Infancy 
of their City were not looked apon as fabuloas in Cictro'i Days, 
whatever th<y have been fince, 

X L. Brutus,'] Tho' this great Man was no Orator, yet if 
we may believe Li*vy he was a very eloquent Pcrfon. There is 
however great Re'afon to be of Sc^fuoiai Sentiments here, for ic 
is probable that the fine Speeches put in the Mouths of his He* 
roes are all owing to the fruitful Vein of the Hiftorian. 

C 2 pre- 



20 On the Cn A K ACT EK Book I. 

prejudicial, than all that can be brought of their 
having been ferviceable, to their Country. But 
not to mention other Inftances, the two moft e- 
loquent Men I ever heard, except, Crajfusj you 
and my Friend, in 'my Opinion were ♦ Tiberius 
and C. Sempronii^ whofe Father was a wife grave 
Man, but far from eloquent; and upon feveral 
Occafions, efpecially when Cenfor^ did the moft 
important Services to his Country ; yet this Man -f 
transferred the Sons of Freed- men into the City 
Tribes, not by any Flow of Eloquence, but by 
his very Nod and a fingle Word ; which, unlefs 
he had efFefted, we fhould not have enjoyed 
even that Shadow, of the Conftitution which we 
at prcfent poflefs. But his eloquent Sons, formed 
to the Art of Speaking by all the Advantages 
of Nature and Learning, tho' they entered upon 
a Government glorious both by the Condudt of 
their Father, and the Courage of our Anceftors, 
brought their Country to the Verge of Ruin by 
their Eloquence, which according to you, is the 
noble Dircftrefs of all Conftitutions. 

. • - 

CHAP. X. 

FArther, need I to mention the old Statutes 
and Cuftoms of our Anceftors? Or the 
Aufpices over which you and I, Craffiis^ prefide, 

* Tiberius andC. Sempronii] Our Author means the celebrated 
T. and C. Gracchiy whSfe great Abilities, Integrity and Eloquence 
have not had the good Fortune to be tranfmitted to Poiterity in 
that favourable Light, which to any Perfon who can without 
Prejudice refled upon the true Maxims of Roman Liberty, they 
mull appear in. 

f Transferred, &c.] This had been before cfFe£^ed with re- 
gard to four City Tribes, and it was an excellent Expedient to 
baliance the Ambition of she People. 

to 



Book I. Of an Orator. 2\ 

to the. great Service of o^r Country? Need I 
to mention our Rites and Ceremonies ? or that 
Jurifprudence that has been, without the Aid of 
Eloquence, long in our Family •, Was that invented, 
was it known, was it ever fo much as touched 
upon by 'the Tribe of Speakers ? Let me add, 
that I knew Servius Galba who fpoke like a God, 
Marcus jEmilius Porcinay and Cn. Carbo himfelf, 
whom you, when but a very young Man, van- 
quiihed ; each of whom was ignorant of our 
Conftitutk)n, a Blunderer in the Pradtice of our 
Anceftors, and but a Novice in the Civil Law ; 
and even the prefent Age is ignorant of the Laws 
of the twelve Tables; excepting you, Crajfus^ 
who, led by Curiofity rather than any Province 
annexed to Eloquence, ftudied the Civil Law 
under me, tho* I may fometimes be alhamed to 
lay lb. As to the Liberty' you aflumed in the 
latter Part of your Speech, as if an Orator could 
never be at a Lofs to bear a very confiderable 
Share in difcuffing every Argument that may fall 
in his Way, were we not upon your own Ter- 
ritories I fhould not fufFer it, but put myfelf at 
the Head of a numerous Body, who would cer- 
tainly either bring * an Aftion againft you, or 
•f feize you as an Interloper upon a Province you 
have nothing to do with. For in the firft Place, 
the Difciples of Pyibagaras and Bemocrittis woul4 
fall upon you; and the other Philofophers in 
their feveral Ways; and Men of great Weight 
and Dignity would go to law with you, and, in 

* An JSiionJ] The Original is InterdUio tecum contenderet^ 
which is, that they would bring the Pretor's Decree againft him^ 

\ Seixeyau oj an Interloper,] There is another Civil Law term 
hei-e; Manum con/erere was the Form of challenging Property; 
the Perfon frying at the fame Time meum efi, 

C 3 that 



ai On the Character Book I. 

that Cafe, you muft have a very unequal J Chance 
for fucccfs. Befides, whole Troops of PhUofo- 
phers from tlic School of their Mafter Socrates 
would prefs you, by ui^ing that you had never 
ftudiedj nay, that you had not even attempted. 
to enqtrare about what is morally good or bad in • 
JJfcs the Paffions of the Mind, or the End of 
Living-, and after they had thus attacked you in 
a Body^ you muft then battle it with each parti cu-^ 
lar Seft amongft them. The § Academics would 
oppofe you, and deny that you knew one fingle 
Propofition you advanced. My Friends the * 
Stoics would eptan^e you in the Snares of their 
queftionary Debates. The Peripatetics would quite 
confound you, by infifting that thofe very Qua- 
lifications, wlRich you think to be the Charafter 
and Beauty of Eloquence, can only be found a- 
mongft them ; and they would prove that Jriftoiie 
and The^brajius wrote not only better, but more 
upon that Subjeft than all the Profelfors of Elo- 
quence that ever lived. I won't mention your 
Mathematicians, your Grammarians, your Mufi- 
cians, whofe Arts have no Manner- of Conneftion 
^ith the Qualities you require in an Orator. There- 
fore, my Friend, we ought not to ascertain fo 

J idnefual Chance.'] Orlg. J ufloSacrammta contendere n$n iiceret; 
Contendere Sacramento was when both Parties put a Sum of Money 
into the Hands of the Prieft; upon the l)ecifion of the Caofe 
the Lofer to forfeit his Dcpofite to faired Ufes, and the ether 
to have his returned. Juflum Sacramentum was when the Caf^ 
was ^ doubtfal it was haid to fay who would be Gainer. 

^ Academics.'] They were generally Sceptics, ftnd ufed to 
pu2zle their Antagonifts by denying every Thing, but that they 

knew Nothing. 

* The Stoics and PeripateciansJ] To defcribc thefe two Se£ts of 
Philofophers would take up more Room than can be fpared in 
thefe Notes. There is an excellent Account of them in Stanley's 
Jliive^ of the Philofophers. 

many 



Book L Of afi Or at ok. 2^ 

many chimerical Notions of the Extenfivenefs and 
Importance of l;his Art •, what you are able to 
efFed, in reality, is a great deal, that whatever 
Caufe yoii fhall undertake to plead always carrier 
the grcateft Face of Right and Juftice \ that in 
all public Aflehiblies and Debates the Decifion is 
very much influenced by your Eloquence. In 
fliort, that Men of Senfe allow you to be elo- 
quent, and Fools think you are in the right. If 
you can do more than this, in my Opinion it is 
not owing to any Qualifications indifpenfable in 
an Orator, but to the Advantages you enjoy from 
Nature. 

CHAP. XL 

IK N O W, Scavoh^ replied the other, that the 
Greeks ufed to talk and dilpute in this manner : 
For I have heard fome of the greatcft Men of that 
Age, when I came, as Quaeftor, from Macedon 
to Athens^ it being then pretended that their Aca- 
demy was in its Glory, under the Infpedion oft* 
Charmades, Clitomachus and JEfchines. Metrodorus 
likewife was there, who, together with them, had 
been the conftant Hearer of the famous Carneades^ 
who was faki to be the keeneft and moft copious 
Speaker in the World. Mftefarcbus was then in 
Vogue, and the Hearer of your Tutor Panatius^ 
together with the Peripatetics Critolaus and Dio^ 
dorus. Befides thefe, a great many famous and 
able Philofophers at that Time unanimoudy were 
for depofing the -t" Orator from the Government 

C4 ot 

♦ We arc obliged to the learned Dr. Pearce for redlifying this 
Name, which in former Editions ftood Cameades» 

+ Tbt Orator] In a State fuch as was that of Rome, the Qua- 
lify. 



24 0« /i^ C H A R A C T E R BooK !• 

•^of States, and excluding him from all Knowledge 
of th^ higher Scenes of Life, degrading, and pin- 
ning him down to hard Labour in Courts of 
Juftice and petty Cabals. But I neither agreed 
' with theip nor with Plato himfelf the Inventor of 
thofc Opinions, and by far their Superior,' as to 
the Power and Weight of Eloquence. I was 
then reading his Gorgias with Cbarmades at Athens ; 
a Book in which I could not help admiring the 
Author, who in ridiculing Orators appears to be 
^ compleat Orator himfelf. For Difputes about 
Words have long puzzled your little Greek Fel- 
lows, who are much fonder of wrangling than of 
the Truth. But tho' one lays down as a Principle, 
that an Orator ought only to be qualified to fpeak 
fully on any Point in Equity, in Trials, before 

" the People, or in a Senate ; yet admitting this, 

the Qualifications of an Orator muft neceflarily 

y^ be great and various : For even in treating thofe 

Matters with Accuracy and Clearnefs, he muft be 

\poflfcfs'd of great Experience in Civil Afilairs, with 
an Infight into our Statutes, Cuftoms and Laws *, 
he muft likewifc be a competent Judge of human 
Nature and Manners ; and the Man who is Mafter 
of all thcfe, without which even the fmalleft Point 
that ocairs cannot be rightly maintain'd,^ what 
can fuch a Man be faid to want in the Knowledge 

lifications of an Orator only could be attained by a regular 
Courfe of Application to that fingle Study ; but I believe any 
^^n of tolerable Senfe mud fe^ that fuch an Orator muft b^^ 
ibmewhat ridiculous in the prefent Age, and be look'd upon as 
a Pedant. It is true, there is a certain Species of the antient 
Eloquence ftill required, and no doubt has a very great EfFe^ 
but the Art of the Speaker then will confid in his concealing 
his Art. But as to the chief Point in which a good Speaker 
|n Britain ihines» ^hich is that of debating, it is plain from 
piany Ipilances of the greatelt Men, that a Sppak^r may excel 
without either Study or Application xq the Art of Eloquence. 

• " .'of 



Book I. Of an Oka t or^ 25 

of the mbft important AfFairs ? But admitting 
that all the Energy of Eloquence confifts in its 
being neat, embellifli'd and copious, let me aflc 
you how even thefe Charaftcrs can be attained 
without that Kind of Knowledge which you deny 
to it ? For the Efficacy of Eloquence can never 
appear but where the Orator is a compleat Maftcr 
of the Subjeft. Therefore if DemocrituSj the fa- 
mous natural Philofopher, fpoke fo gracefully as 
it is faid, and ^ as I admit he did, his Subjeft in- 
deed was natural Philofophy, but it was * the 
Art of an Orator that gave the Embellifliment to 
his Difcourfe. And if Plato^ as I muft allow, 
diicourfed divinely upon Points the moft diftant 
from political Altercations \ if Arifiotk^ if Tbeo- 
phraftuSy if Carneades fpoke well and beautifully 
in the feveral Subjefts they difputed on-, thofe 
Subje6ls belonged to diftinft Arts ; yet their Me- 
thod of handling them was peculiar and appropri- 
ated to the Study now under our ConGdera- 
tion and Ii)ebate. As a Proof <rf* that, we know 
that others have fpoken jejunely and drily upon 
thofe very Points ; for Inftance CbryfippuSy who 
is faid to be a Man of the greateft Penetration j 
and yet was not the kfs compleat Philofopher for 
not poflefling this Faculty, in an Art foreign to 
Eloquence, ^ 



* The Art pf an Orator] Cicero would never have advanced 
this Proportion had it not been from the exceffive PaiHon he had 
for his own ProfeJIion, fince nothing is more plain from daily 
Experience, that a clear Head and a comprehenfive Know* 
Jedge of a Subjed will make almotl any Man eloquent, though 
he &ould never read a Word upon the Art of an Orator. 



CHAP. 






• . 



26 O/ir /^ Character Boos: L 



CHAR XII. 

WHERE then lies the Difference, or how 
can you difcern the flowing and copious 
Eloquence of thofe I have named from the Poor- 
nefe of fuch as are dcftitute of this Command and 
Propriety of Expreffion ? In fliort, there is one 
Thing which the Mafters of the Art of Speaking 
7^ bring as peculiar to themfelves ; a Style graceful^ 
ornamented, and diftinguifhed by certain mafterly 
TcHJchcs, and an artful Polifti. Yet all this 
Beamy of Language, if the Subje^ itfelf is not 
thoroughly underftood Ind comprehended by the 
Speaker, muft be either empty or ridiculous: 
For what can look liker a Madman than to pour 
out an empty Jingle of Words, let them be ever 
£x beautiful or well chofen, if they are conneded 
by no Method or Meaning. Therefore, in any 
Art and Branch of Science, if an Orator Ihould 
ftudy a Poittt, be it what it will, with as much 
Application as he would a Client's Caufe, he 
would deliver himfclf with more * Propriety and 
Elegance than even the Inventor and Artift him- 
fclf could be able to do. For if one fliould af- 
£rm that cqrtain Maxims and Caules are peculiar 
to Orators, and that their Knowledge of fome 
Points is confined within the Rails of a Forum, 

• Propriety and Elegance] Thb in' one Senfe may be true, but 
if we regard the Ends of Speakine, which are to move an4 prr- 
ibadc, we fhall find that the true Way to fucceed is to feel. A 
Man who is kimfelf deeply interefted in an Event wil1,with eqnal 
Capacity and no Stndy, make greater Impreflions before a judg- 
ing Affismbly than another with all the Application and Art of 
an pratof that Cicero was ever able to lay down. The Reader 
will perceive that I all along take it for granted, that Gcero in 
the Ferfon of Crajfus gives us his own Sentiments. 

* I wiU 



Book I. Of an On^TOit* 27 

I will own indeed that thofe of our Profefiton di^ 
mod converfant ia fuch Matters, but upon dioJEb 
very Heads there are many Things vi^ich your 
Profcffors of Rhetoric neither teach nor under* 
{land. For who does not know that the greatc&_ 
Power of Eloquence conlifts in awakening the Soul \ 
to Anger, to Hatred, to Grief; or to recal her \ 
Jrom thcfc AfFedions to Gendenefs and Pity ? ThrtT""^^ 
arbitrary Command of the Paflions can never be 
efie6led| but by one who has a thorough Infight 
into the Nature of Mankind, the whole Extent 
of his Faculties, and thoie Motives which impel 
or check the Soul. Yet' all this appears to be 
the Province of Philolbphy, and, were an .Orator 
to be counfeird by me, he would never deny this; 
but after he has granted them this Knowledge, 
which is the fole End of their Study, let him 
affume to himfelf the Method of treating it, with- 
out which the Knowledge itfelf cannot exift. 
For, as I have often faid, the Province of an Ora- 
tor is to talk in a Language that is proper, grace- 
ful, and fuited to the AfFedlions and Underftand* 
ings of Mankind, ^ 



CHAP. XIIL 

10 W N that Aifioile and thopbraftus have 
treated of thofe Matters; but take Care, Sea- 
voldj that this does not make for me. For I don't 
borrow from them what is in common to Philofo- 
phy and Eloquence ; but they own that all their 
DifputaticMis upon thefe Points belong to Orators* 
For this Reafon, they title and call their other 
Books under the Denomination of the feveral Arts 

they treat ofj, but they range thefe under the 

Head 



0;i /i^ Character Book I. 

Head of Rhetoric, Therefore when, as it very 
often happens in the Courle of a Work, they 
conte to fpcak of the immortal Gods, of Piety, 
of Concord, of Equity, of Friendfhtp, of the 
I^ws of State, of Nature, of Nations, of Tem- 
perance, of Magnanimity; in fhort, of all other 
Virtues, the Academies and the Schools of.Philo- 
Ibphers bawl out, all to a Man, that all thefe Sub- 
jefts belong to them, and no way to the Orator. 
I IhaU not deny them the Liberty of difputing 
about all thefe Things in every Corner, in order 
%o pafs away a tittle Time ; yet I affirm and aflert, 
\J that the Orator only can, with Perfpicuity and 
Elegance, explain thofe very Points about which 
the others wrangle in a dry fpiritlefs Manner. I 
then talk'd over thofe Things with thofe very Phi- 
fephcrs 2Lt Athens^ being obliged to it by our Friend 
M. MarccUus^ who was then a very young Man 
prodigioufly devoted to thefe Studies, now Curuk 
Mdile^ and were it not for the Plays he is now 
cefcbrating he would have made one of our Com- 
plany* But now, as to forming Laws, as to War, 
Peace, Alliances, Tributaries, as to the Difpo- 
fition and Subordination of Civil Polity ; let the 
Crteks fay, if they will, that Lycurgus or Solon^ tho* 
by the bye I look upon them as Orators, were 
much better (kiird in them than Hyperides or 
DcmoJlheneSy thok accompli [h'd Matters of the Art 
of Speaking •, or let them prefer our Decemvirs 
who compiled the twelve Tables, who certainly 
were Men of Sagacity, to Servius Galba^ or your 
Father-in-Law, Caius Lalius^ whom all the World 
owns to be eminent Speakers. For I will never 
clcny that there are certain Arts peculiar to thofe 
who have made it their whole Study and Purfuit, 

but 



Book I. Of an Or at on. ag 

but I call him a full and compleat Orator, who can \ 
fpeak- with a Copioufncfs of Jbxprclfion on every I 
Subje6t. — • 



CHAP XIV. 

FO R, very often, in thofe Caufes which all 
the World allow to be the Provinct of Ora- 
tors, there is fomewhat to be cleared up or laid 
down, not from the Pradtice of the Bar, which 
is the only Knowledge you allow to Orators, but 
from fome more abftrufe Science. Let me aik you 
if a Man can plead either for or againft a General 
without knowing military Affairs, and often with- 
out being acquainted with the Situation of ma- 
ritime and inland Countries ? Can he fpeak before 
the People either for enafting or forbidding a 
Law ? or can he talk of civil Polity in general 
in a Senate, without the deepeft Infight and Sa- y^ 
gacity with regard to Civil Affaiis? or can he 
apply that predominant EfFedt of Eloquence in 
inflaming or extinguifhing the AfFedions and Emo- 
tions of the Soul, without attentively furveying 
all thofe Caufes which are explained by thofe who 
have treated on' moral and natural Philofophy ? 
J do not know if there is any Occafion for me to 
prove this, I am, however, under no Difficulty 
of fpeaking as I think. The Knowledge of Phy- 
fics. Mathematics, and of the other Arts, which 
you, fome Time ago, laid down as appropriated 
to their fever al Profeffions, belong to thofe who 
profefs them ; but if a Man wants to explain thofe 
very Arts, he is obliged to have recourfe to Elo- 
quence. For admitting that the famous Pbilo 

the 



> 



9 

30 On tbeCnx r a c t e r Book f* 

the Archited) who built the * AiKtn2\^t Athens^ 
gave the People a very eloquent Account of his 
Work; yet we muft not fuppofe that this was 
owing to the Art of Architecture, but of Elo- 
quence. Nor, liAntonius here were to plead upon 
naval Affairs for + Hermodorus ; after he had made 
himfclf Mafter of his Subjed, can we imagine 
that he would not be able to talk of it with 
Perfpicuity and Elegance, tho' a Profeflion foreign 
to his own ? Or that Afclepiades^ who was both 
my Friend and Phyfician, and is more eloquent 
than any other of that Faculty, was indebted for 
his graceful Way of ipeaking to the Study, not 
of Eloquence, but of PhyfiC. Therefore, that 
which Socrates ufed to fay, was rather plaufiblc 
than true ; that every Man is fufficiently eloquent 
"^ in Subjefts of which he is quite Mafter. He had 
been nearer Truth had he faid, that as no Man 
can be eloquent upon a Subject in which he is 
ignorant, fo no Man, let him be ever fo much 
Mafter of his Subjeft, can ever talk eloquently 
upon that Subjeft, if he is ignorant how to form 
and poliffi'ms Difcourfe. 

C H A P XV. 

' ^. I^T^ HEREFORE, were a comprehenfivc 

X Definition of an Orator to be given, in my 

Opinion, the Man who defcrvcs that awful Name 

muft be One, who, upon all Occafions, fliall be 

able to deliver what he has^o lay^jic€«catejyjjgj»- 

^The Arfeual] Piiny^ lib. 7. fpeaks of this Arfenal, and tclli 
us that it was fo commodious, and fo large, that 1000 Ship9 
might havebeen drawn up to it, and might have lain dry, with- 
out being expofed to the Injuries of the Weather, or the Seas. 

f Hermodorus^ He was a famous Ship Carpenter* 

ipi- 



Book I. Of an Or AT onl 31 

fpic uQyfly^ g racefully^ and reauiily, ac compapied 
WlmacexttiaJ Digni^ Aft ionuJ But if any one 
fhould think that I fpeak too indefinitely when I 
fay, UPON ALL OccAsroNS, let him curtail and 
retrench what I hare faid as he pleaies ; yet if an 
Orator is ignorant of the Properties of other Arts 
and Studies, and fhall only retain what is appro- 
priated to Debates and the Pradtce of the Bar ; if 
he is to fpeak upon Subjefts belonging to thofe 
Arts ; I maintain that this Orator will fpeak muck 
better, after he is inftrudted in them by the refpec- 
tive Profeffors of each, than even diofe Profef- 
fors themfelves. For Inftance, were my Friend 
Stdpicius here to plead upon an Affair, of the 
Army, he would firft apply for Inftrudtion to my 
Kinfman Caius Marius^ and, then he could talk of 
it fo as to feem even to Caius Marius almoft to 
underfland military Affairs better than himfelf. 
Suppofing a Point in Civil Lawj why, he will 
apply to you, and notwithftanding all your Skill 
and Experience in that Study, he fhall beat you 
upon thofe very Subje&s which he learned > of 
you. Should a Caufe come in his way, in which 
he muft touch upon the Nature and Vices of 
Mankind, , upon Paffions, Temperance, Chaftity, 
Sorrow, or Death, perhaps if he fees Occafion 
(tho* an Orator fhould know thofe Things) he 
may confer with that learned Philofbpher Sexius 
Pompeius. Thus much at leafl; he will att;un to» 
that he fhall be able to fpeak more elegantly upon I 
any Subjedt, le£ him learn it of whom he will, / 
than the Perfon who is his Inflruilor. But if my / ^ 
Opinion may be foUow'd, fince Philofophy is di- 
vided into three Branches, natural^ argumentative^ 

and moraly let us indulge ourfclvcs fo far as to a- 

bandoa 



32- On the Character Book !• 

bandon the two firft; but unlefs we Ihall ftick 
^ clofe by the third, which has ftill been the Cha- 
rafter of Eloquence, we leave nothing to an Ora- 
tor in which he can Ihihc, Therefore that Part 
of Philofophy which regards the Life and Morals 
of Mankind, muft be compleatly underftood by 
an Orator; and though he does not ftudy the 
other Branches, yet if he has Occafion, he will 
be able to embellifli them by his Eloquencc,^pro- 
vided they are .communicated and delivered to him. 



C H A, P. XVL 

» 

FO R if it is certain among the Learned that 
♦ AratuSy a Man quite ignorant of Aftrono- 
my, treated of the Heavens and the Conftellations 
in moft beautiful and charming Numbers 5 if iV/- 
cander of Colophony a Man entirely remote from a 
Country Life, by a Genius of Poetry, and not of 
Hufbaiidry, wrote excellently upon ruftic Affairs ; 
what fhould hinder but that an Orator Ihould treat 
tbofe Points, which he fhall ftudy for a particular 
Caufe and Emergency, with Eloquence? For 
Poetry borders very much upon Eloquence j the 

* Jratus] T^his Poet was a Sicilian patronized by Antigonm 

> King of Mactdon, and Cotemporary with Menctnier and Cailima- 

cbtts. Cifero was fo much in Love with his Writings, that be 

trali^ated his Pbitnomena, fome Part of which Tranflation is now 

extafit. 

As to the Dodlrinc which our Author here lays down, there is 
nothing more certain than that a Poet may defcribe an Art with- 
out iludying it, br particularly applying to it. But I am afraid 
IP will be found there is a Difference betwixt writing in Verfc, 
where a very fuperficial Knowledge is requir'd to make a very 
fine Epifode j and fpeaking of them in Profe, where it is expec- 
ted all the Terms made ufe of are to be clearly laid down, and in 
. cafe of any Difficulty or Reply they muft be explain'd, whith 
can never be doae without the. Speaker being perfe^y Mafler 
of his Subject. 

Poet 






SooK t. Of an Ok AT Oik. %% 

Poet is indeed a little more confined to Numbers, 
but then he can take greater Liberties in the Choice . 
of his Words, and in many Refpefts, as to the 
Method of embellifhing, the Companion, nay al-, 
moft the Equal, of the Orator. * In one Relpedt 
I will venture to fay they are nearly the fame } for 
the Orator prefcribes no Bounds or Limitations to ^ 
his Provincey^ fo as to confine him from ufing 
the fame Liberty, and Freedom 'of ranging, as he ' 
pleafes. Why then, my Friend, (hould you fay, 
that were you not upon my Territories you would 
not have born with me foip .^ffirniing that an Orator 
ought to be a compleat Mafter of Eloquence and 
all liberal Knowledge ? Upon my Word, I fhould 
not have mentioned it, did I imagine myfelf to 
be fuch a Perfon as I dcfcribc. But as C LuciliuSy 
' a Man of Letters and good Breeding, (though you 
don't love him, and therefore he is lefs agreeable 
to me than he wifhes to be,) ufed frequer^tly to fay, 
(and I entirely agree with him) that no Man ought 
to be accounted an Orator, who was not tho- 
roughly accompliffi'd in all thofe Arts that become 
a Gentleman : and tho* we don't make a Shew of 
them upon every Turn of Difcourfe, yet it may 
be plainly and evidently pcrceiv'd whether we pof- 
fefs them or not. For Inftance, a Man who plays 
at Tennis, though while he plays he does not ufe 
the very Airs that he learn'd at the Fencing School, 
yet we can eafily perceive from his Move- 
ments whether he has learned them. A Man who 
is moulding a Piece of Work, though the WorR , 
has nothing to do with Painting, yet it rs no hard 

♦ 7« cne RtJ^B"] This is true with regard to the Principles of 
Eloquence laid down and prafiifed by Ciiero ; but certainly ic 
does not hold as to the Gretk Manner, where Truth alone is the 
Qbjedl, or at leaft appears to be fo. 

D Mat- 



34 On tf>e dn ar a c t e r Book L 

Matter to difcern whether he can paint or not. 
Thus in tKe very Speeches deUvered before Judges. 
in Affembles, and Senates, tho' the Speaker does 
not make any immediate Application of thofe Arts^ 
yet it is eafily difcern'd whether he is a pedantic 
Declaimer, or trained to Eloquence By all the Arta 
that belong to a liberal Education. 

i 

CHAP. XVIL 

I Won't * fence any more with you, my Friend^ 
fays Scavola laughing, for even what you have 
now faid in Anfwer to n>e has a good Deal of Art 
in it. You agree with me as to thofe Things which 
1 deny to belong to an Orator, yet, I don't know 
l^w, you have fallen upon a Way to warp your 
Argument fo as to make them the Projperties of 
Eloquence. After I came to Rhodes^ when I was 
Praetor, and had talk'd oyer what I had learned 
from PanatiuSj with A^oUmius^ the celfebrated 
lilafter of this Profeffion ; he indeed, as ufuaU 
laugh'd at, and ridiculed, Philofophy, and faid 
a great many Things in which there was more Wit 
than Wifdom j but you have formed your Argu- 
ment fo as not to d^ipife any Art or Profeffion, 
but have pronounc'd them all the Attendants or 
Handmaids of Eloquence. Should any one Man 
be Matter of them all, and to thefe Perfeftions. 
join that of an •\ accomplifliM Orator, I muft con- 

fe& 

* Ftnce] The Reader may obferve there is foinewhat very 
ai^ch m the Chara^er oi Scavola. Crajfus has jail done fpeak- 
ing of Fencing- Schools, and the other can't help beginning his 
Reply with a Sneer. 

\ AccompliJF d Orator\ Our Author's inordinate Paflion for 
Piaife made him feize every Opportunity of drawing his own 
Pidure as an Orator; it would appear from this and many other 
FaiTages in a few Pages follfiwijig; that he imagined it muil haver 

a 



feft that fuch a Man would be fbmewhat of a 
Prodigy and a Miracle. But if there is, if ever 
there was , or if there can be fuch a Man, you 
are the Perfon who, in my Opinion, and in that 
of all Mankind, have, I fpeak it under Correfli^n 
of theft; Gendemenj almofl: cngrofled to yourfclf 
the whole Glory of an Orator. But though you 
want nothing that can qualify you either as a 
Speaker or a Senator, yet give me leave to lay 
after all, that you are not Mafter of all that Extent 
of Knowledge which you require in an Orator ; 
let us therefore examine whether you don*t require 
inore than either the Nature of the Thing, or 
Truth itfelf can admit of. 

Let me put you in Mind, fays Crajfus hcre^ 
that I did not talk of my own Accompliihments, 
but of thofe of an Orator. For wliat could I 
learn or know ? I who entered upon A6tion before 
I enter'd upon my Studies! I who was even 
w^orn out by my Application to the Bufmefs of 
the Forum, of Ambition, of my Country, of my 
Friends, before I was capable to fulpeft I fhould 
be employ'd in thofe weighty Points f But if you 
have fo favourable an Opinion of me, to whom 
you are fo kind as to allow fome Degree of Capa^ 
city i yet ftill I ^as deprived of the Opportunities 
of Study, of Quiet, and, if I muft fay it, of that 
keen Inclinatidn for Study that is fo neceffaryj 
what will be your Opinion of a Man who has 
improv'd more Genius than I poflefs, with thofe 
Qualifications thit I have never attained; how great, 
how compleat an Orator muft fuch a Man be ! 

a Likenefs, if all the fine Things that he coald form in Tmagi- 
nation were crowded into it; that it was impoffible to over-do 
hr thiy Refpedt, and that the more beautiful it was it muft bear 
the Wronger R^fcmUance. . 

D 2 CHAP, 



36 0» /i&r C H A R A C T E R BoOIt I. 

CHAP. XVIII. 

SAYS Antonius ; You yourfelf, Crajfas^ are a 
Proof of what you advance; and I make no 
Doubt that a Man would have a greater Fund of 
^*Eloquence, could he mafter the whole Syftem and 
Nature of all Knowledge and Arts. But, in the 
firft Place, that is almoft imprafticable, efpecially 
confidering our Profeflion andBufinefs; and then 
it is to be apprehended that it would throw us 
but of the Praftice and Readinefs of pleading in 
the Forum, or before the People. For, to me, the 
Perfons you mentioned a little while ago feem to 
have pofleffed a different Kind of Eloquence, tho* it 
muft be allowed that they fpoke with great Beau*- 
ty and Energy upon natural or moral Philofophy. 
Their Way of Speaking had fomewhat in it that 
was neat and gay ; but then it was more proper 

for an Exercife at School or a College, than for 
our crowded Aflemblies and Forum. For I my- 

felf who began very late in Life to ftudy Greeks 
and then attained only to a Smattering ol it, after 
I had come to Jihens as Proconful, ijn my Road 
to Cilicia, was flopped there a good many Days, 
bccaufe the * Seas were then dangerous. As I 
had every Day along with me .very learned Men, 
moft of them the fame you named a little while 
ago; and when they got a Notion ^ amongft them, 
1 don't know how, that, like you, I frequently 
was concerned in fome Caufes of Confequence, 
they ufed, each in his own Way, to debate upoA 

* Seas^were dangerousl In the Original there is various Read- 
ings, and the Paffage may be tranilated either as I have, or 
ivaitingforiheOpportunitjofMShif. 

3 ■■ the 



Book I. Of an O RAToit. 37 

the Duty and Qualifications of an Orator. Some 
of them, fuch as that Mnefarcbus you mentioned^ 
affirmed, that thofe whom we term Orators were \ 
only certain Hackney Operators with glib, well f^ 
hung. Tongues : But that no Man, unlefs he is 
a Philofopher can be an Orator, That Eloquence 
itfclf, which is the fame Thing with knowing 
how to fpeak^well, is a Virtue; that the Man 
who poffefles .one Virtue poffefles them all-, and 
that all Virtues are in their own Nature equal 5 
hence, faid they, the Man who is eloquent pof- 
fefles every Virtue, therefore an Orator is the 
fame with a Philofophen But this crabbed dry 
Stuff was very difagreeable to our Notions. Yet 
Charmades treated thofe Subjefts in a ;nuch*more 
diffufe Manner ; not that he would (peak his own 
Senfe of the Matter, for it is inherent to the 
Academy to be eternally difputingj but the Drift 
of all his Djfcourfe was to prove, that they who 
are termed Rhetoricians, and they who teach the 
Art of Speaking, cannot poflefs any one Excel- 
lejicy, or'ever attain to the fmalkft Share of Elo- 
quence, unlefs they have ftudied the Inventions 
of Philofophy. 

CHAP. XIX. 

THEY wo-e oppofed by fome eloquent Atbe^ 
nians^ Men well feen both in Law and Poli- 
tics, amongft whom was Menedemus^ who lately 
was at Rofne and my Gueft. This Perfon, who 
was naturally quick, was attacked by another with 
a great Stock of Learning, and a prodigious Va* 
rieiy and Extent of Experience, who maintained 
that ther^ was a certain Knowledge required in 
being able to judge right with regard to the 

D 3 found- 



3$ On the Chajbl AC r%K Book L 

fpunding and governing civil Societies. He like- 
wife taught that all the Branches of Knowledge 
muft be derived from Philofophy ; that all the 
Conftitutions of Government, Religion, Educa- 
tion, Juftice, Patience, Temperance, Moderation^ 
^d the other Virtues, without which States can- 
not fubfift, or, if they do, they muft be badly 
regulated, were never to be found in their Pam- 
pmets. But if thofe Teachers of Rhetoric did 
comprehend within their own Art the Force of 
thefe important Matters, he afked why their Books 
were full of Prefaces, Epilogues, and fuch other 
Stuff, for he called it no better; maintaining 
that there is not a Titde to be found in their 
Books, about the modelling of States, the com- 
pofing Laws, Equity, Juftice, Truth, governing 
the Paflions, and regulating the Morals of Man- 
kind. Nay, he went fo far in ridiculing their 
Dodrincs, as to ftew that they were not only 
void of all the Learning they arrogated to them- 
felves, but even of the very Method and Force 
of Speaking. He laid it down as a Maxim 
that the principal Aim of a good Orator is to 
appear to his Audience to be the very -MSBTiie 

wifli^d4ihqL&£a}l^--^«^^ That this could 

only be effeflcd by a Dignity of Charafter, of 
which thefe Teachers of Rhetoric are filent in 
their Rules j and by making every Impreflion 
vpon the Minds of the Audience that the Orator 
defircs ; that it is impoflible to fucceed in this, if 
the Speaker is ignorant in how many different 
Manners, by what Subjc&s, and by what Forms 
of Speech, the Paffions of Mankind are moved 
and direftcd. But that all thefe were Points con^ 
cealcd wd wrapped^ up in the yery Rccefles of 

pro- 



Book I. Of m Oit atoilI 39 

profound Philofophy ; Points, of which thofe Rhe- 
toric Mailers had not fo niuch as a Smattering. 
Atmedemus endeavoured to donfute this Doftrine 
hf-^fbcrifies rather than by Atpimenisi for he 
repeated by Heart a great many fine Paflagel 
from the Orations of Demoftbenesy and endeavoured 
to prove from thence, that Demoftbenes knew weU • 
how to touch and dire£^, as he pkafed, 4ie Minds 
both of Judges and People, which arc the Means 
of attaining that End which the other faid could 
be obtained only by Philofophy. 

C H A P XX. 

TO this the other anfwered, that he did not 
deny, but that Demoftbenes was a ikilful 
Mafter g( the whole Power df Speaking •, whe- 
ther he had attained to this by the Force of Ge- 
nius, or by hi& being the Hearer of Plata^ which 
he indifputably was 4 but that the Queftion was 
not with regard to what be could efFeft, but what 
Jbey taught. He likewife went fo far as to diipute 
whether there abfolutely was fuch an Art as that 
of Speaking, and fupported his Opinion by the 
ioilowing Arguments. That we are born with a 
Power of foothing, and infmuating ourfelves into 
the Favour of thofe whom we want to court ; of 
terrifying our Foes by Menaces j of explaining a 
Fa6t ; of enforcing what we wifh Ihould be be- 
Jieved 5 of refuting what we opppfe ; and of wind- 
ing up the whole in moving and pathetic Terftis ; 
<^alities, in which the whole Art of an Orator is 
employed. He farther infifted^ Aat Cuftom and 
Praftice both whetted the Faculties of the Under- 
ijftanding, and quickened thofe of the Expreffion. 
He then had Recourfe to a Variety of Itiftances ^ 

D 4 ^<^^ 






40 0/1 ti&^ Character Book I. 

for he, firft, was very induftrious to ihew, that no 
Write.rupon this Art was himfelf tolerably eloquent. 
This he confirmed by the Example of * Corax and 
Tifias^ who appear to have been the Inventors of, 
land leading Men in this Art : At the fame Time 
he br^ought numberlefs Inftances of very eloquent 
Men, who never made it their Study, or never 
made it their Care to trouble themfelves about it: 
Amongft thofe, whether he was in jeft or in ear- 
neft, or from Hear-fay, I can't fay, he inftanccd 
Me as' one who had never ftudied it, and yet, 
as he was pleafed to fay, underftood a little how 
to fpeak. I readily admitted the firft of thefe Pofi- 
tions ; that I had never ftudied any Thing oa this 
Head ; but as to the other, I thought he was 
playing upon me, or perhaps miftakejn himfelf. 
And then he even denied that there could be 
any Art, but what confifted in Principles that 
Were felf-evident, thoroughly examined all tend* 
ing to one Point, and never miffing their End ; 
but that every Thing delivered by Orators was 
doubtful and uncertain : fince the Teachers them* 
felves were not quite Matters of what they were 
teaching, and their Scholars were . to learn, not 
a Science, but a miftaken, or at leaft a doubtful, 
fhort-lived, Opinion. In ftiort, he appeared to con- 
vince me that there neither was, nor poffibly could 
be, any Art of Eloquence, and that no Man could 
fpeak, cither fkilfuUy or copioufly, without being 
acquainxed with the Precepts of the moft learned 

+. CoraX «W TisiAS, both of them S icili aks, are the ffioft 
eutient Writers upon the Arts. Qui N til i an Inft. Lib. UI. Cap I . 
^intilian no (ioubt means, that they were the firft that treated 
the Arts fyftcmatically,fpr there were many excellent Authors 
in moft Arts beforfc -their Days. Theyivere cotemporary with 
iiiero of Syracpje^ 47^; Years \^oi^ Chrift. 

. ; - Phiio^ 



Book I. Of an Ok at ojt. 41 

Philofophers. Cbarmades ufed to add to all this, 
in the higheft Raptures, Craffus^ at your Eloquence 
that I appeared to be his gentle Hearer, but you 
his tough Opponent. 

CHAP. XXI 

BEING at that Time miOead by thefe 
Maxims^ I maintained in a Pamphlet which 
I then wrote, and which, without my Ktiowledge» 
and againft my Will, got abroad into the Hands 
of the Public, that I had known many good Speak' 
ersj but never one Orator. What I meant by a 
gdod Speaker was a Man who could with a to«> 
lerable Accuracy and Clearneis , according to 
the general Senfe of the World, talk to the 
midling Rate of Mankind. But by * an Orator 

I meant 

^ jfn Orator.^ Cicero in the following Part of this Paragraph, 
as I have obferved before, has fate to his own Picture, and there 
is no manner of Doubt bat it has the moft perfect Refemblance 
of the Original ; Jijic omnia Mxijfet ! Had he known his Foiblea 
as well as he did his fieaaties ; had he traded for Fame to hit 
Character as an Orator, no Man could ever have appeared to 
Poilerity with greater Ludre. fiat alas f he wanted uiat Steadi- 
nefs of Head, that inviolable Adherence to Principle, which ' 
a)one can reconcile the Chara£ler of the bed Citizen and Ma- 
giftrate to that of the bed Speaker that ever lived 

It has frequently been a furprife with the Learned, that £Kh- 
race and Firgil, who have paid Compliments in their Writings 
to mnch more obnoxious Charaders than that of GV/r», have 
taken no manner of Notice of our Author, when they had fo 
many fine Opportunities. I own I cannot account for it any 
other way than by imputine it to the Difgufl which his wave- 
ring timid Condtt^ in public Affairs left behind him* Which 
inclines me ftrongly to believe this is the famous Charader 
drawn by Horace in the following Lines. 

Jufium et tenacem fropofiti Virum^ 

Non Ci*vium Ardor prawajuheniium^ 

Non Vultus inftantis Tyranni 

Mente quatit JoUda ; ncque Auftcr 

JDux inquijSti turbidus Adriae^ 

l^tic fuiminantis magna JomMawat* 

St 



42 0« /i&^ Character Book L 

I meant one who could magnify, who could em- 
bellifli in a more marvellous, in a more magnifi- 
cent. Manner^ whatever he had a Mind ; one, 
whofe Knowledge and Memory contained all the 
Principles, however extenfive, that regard Elo- 
quence. Tho' this feenis imprafticable to us, who, 
tefoie we enttr into the School, are entangled 
in the Purfbit of AmIbition and the Forum, yet 
ftill it muft be allowed in Faft and Nature. For 
my own Part^ fo far as I can form a Judgment 
founded on the Capacities which I difcern amrongff 
my Countrymen, I doubt not but fome Time 
M Other a Perfon will appear, who, by a keener 

Appli- 

iifr^ffus iliahitur Orhh 
Impemidum fir lent Buiute, 
Hmc ,Arte fretus, fcf r. 
l^he Man refol'vdy undftetuty to his ^rufij 
Inflexible to ill, and ohfiinately jufi ^ 
May the rude Rabbled Injolence de^fe^ 
Their fififelgfs Clamours and tumultuous Cries : 

The Tyrant's Fiercetufi he beguiles^ 
And the fiern Brofw, and the harjb Veice d^es^ 

And ijoith fuperior Grentne/s Jmles. 
Net the rouph Whirltwind that deforms 
Adria*i hlaci Gulph^ and <vexes it ibuith Stc^ms^ 
TheJIuhhorn Virtue »f Bis Soul can meve; 
Nor the red Arm of angry Jovc, 

That flings the Thunder from she Sfy, 

And gives it Rage to roar, and Strength to fly. 
Should the 'whole Frame of Nature round him break. 

In Ruin and Confujion hurtd. 
Hi unconcern d ivould bear the mighty Cracky 
And fiand fecure amidft a falling World. 

Such 'were the God- like Arts that led 

Bright Pollux to the blift 'Abodes, Add 1 60N« 

Befides tlic ftriking Import of this Chara^er, there are in it 
two Touches very charaderiAical of our Author, that I am con- 
vinced it was meant as an Apology for the Orator owing^no Im- 
mortality to the Poet ;- and tho* We have no Hint of this from 
Antiquity, yet if one will confider how intelligible Allufions are 
in the Time of the Autbor^ and Jiow nece£ary it is thought to 

iUu- 



Book! OfanO^AToiL: 43 

Application to Study than ours is, or ever was, 
with greater Leifure, with more pregnant Parts, 
and fuperior in Toil and Induftry, fhall devote 
himfelf to Hearing, Reading, Writing, and an- 
fwer all the Ideas we now form of a compleat 
Orator. A Man who Ihall be guilty of no Ar-. 
rogaace if he claims a Title not only to Elegance^ 
but Eloquence. My Friend Craffus is fuch a Cha- 
rafter in my Judgment, or if there is a Perfon 
of equal Genius, but with greater Praftice in 
Hearing, Reading, or Writing, I own that I 
could enlarge a little more ftill on fuch a Man's 
Praife. Here Sulpicius interrupted j It is, f^d he, 
nn exceeding agreeable Difappointment, both to 
Cotta and me, that our Difcourfe has taken this 
Turn ; it gave us great Pleafure while we were 
coming here, to think that if you fhould enter 
with us. even upon other Subjefts, yet ftill we 

illoftrtte them, he will not be forprizcd why the Intention of 
the Author in this, and many other fine PalTages is donbtfaL 
The firfi Hint I would take notice of in the foregoing Lines ia 
Dux infuieii turhidns Adrise. The Reader may compare this 
widi the Circnmftances which we are told by Pktarcb of Gcgm i 
That this Dread of the Seas was the Occafion of his abandoning 
bis wife and generous Refolution to go over to Brutus in Ma^ 
esdfuia. That this Dread farther prevailed npon him to think 
of the mean-fpirited Defign of throwing himfelf upon the Cle- 
mency of O^avius* Farther, that in one Night he was of twen- 
ty Minds, and quite diftra£led with Irrefolution. I fay» if a 
Header wil) compare all thefe Circumilances he will find very 
little Room to doubt that Horace^ in drawing this Portrait, and 
marking it fo ftroogly, h^d our Author in his Eye. 

The next Paflage I would take notice of, is the Expreflion, 
Hac Arte Pollux, &c. which I am afraid glances at our Authors 
trufting fo much to his Qualifications in this Art forlmmortality. 
Nay, I will Tentore to fay, that to a Man who knows the Beau« 
ties of Horatey and widi what Propriety he introduces every 
Expreffion, it will appear that Horace could not but have in- 
tended an AUufion to a particular Chara6ler. J could fay a great 
deal more to fupport what I haye here thrown out, but perhaps 
{ PPghc to maKC a^ Apology for haying faid fo much. 

(hould 



44' On f&e Char ACT ER. Book I^ 

fhould be able to pick fomewhat, from what 

yoii faid, worthy oF oqr Memory ; but we fcarce 

had Prefumption enough to hope that you would 

enter even into the moft material Difquifitions 

of this, call it Study, Art, or Faculty, For I 

who from the Time that I could difcern Right from 

Wrong, was filled with ^ Veneration of you both, 

(as to Crajfus^ I can fay, befideSj I loved him) 

yet, tho* I never left his Company, all I could 

do by myfelf, all my repeated Endeavours by 

Means of Drufns^ could never draw a Word from 

him upon the Power and Bufinefs of Eloquence. 

But I muft be fo juft to you Antonius^ as to own 

that, upon this Head, you xiever failed me, that 

you always anfwered my Defires and Requefts, 

and very often inftrudted me in your own Prac- 
tice of Speaking. But now as both of you have 

^cleared the Entrance to thefe very Points which 

\¥e were in Search of; and as Cra/^ himfelf firft 

ftarted the Difcourfe, indulge us with a minute 

Detail of your own Sentiments upon Eloquence 

in general, which, if you grant us, we fhall be 

infinitely obliged, Crajfus, to your School at Tuf- 

iulanum^ and prefer this your rural Retreat for 

Study to the Academy at Lyceum. 

CHAP. XXII. 

INDEED, Sulpicius^ anfwers ttie other, we 
muft apply for this to Antonius^ who is both 
able, and, as you told me juft now, is ufed to an- 
fwer your Importunity ; for you yourfelf juft now 
Qwn'd, that I have always declined any Talk upon 
this Subject, and have often denied your earneft 
Requefts. This I did, not from any Motive of 

Pride 



BoQK I. Of an Orator. . 45 

Pride or * AfFeftation, nor from any Unwilling- 
nefs to oblige you in your Curiofity, which is 
highly juft and laudable, clpecially as I knew 
that Nature had peculiarly formed and qualified 
you for an Orator; but, ppon ihy Honour, it was 
from my being unaccuftom*d to, and unikill'd in, 
thofe Principles off this pretended Art, Since, 
anfwer*d Cotta^ we arc ' got over our greateft Dif- 
ficulty, which was, that you, Craffus^ Ihould open 
your Mouth at all upon this Subjedt, it will be 
our Fault now if you get off from us without 
explaining every Thii^ we want to know of you. 
Then fays Craffus^ as we ufed to write in our % 
Adminiftrations, I will speak to what I 
KNOW, AND WHAT I CAN., Is there a Man 
here, anfwer'd the other, that has the Impudence 
to pretend to know, and do what you don't know 
and can't do ? Well, replies CraffuSy faving to 
myfelf the Plea of Inability, where I am really 
unable, I am at your Service in anfwering all the 
Queftions you (hall think fit to put. Then, faid 
Sulpiciusy to begin, we require that you give your 
Opinion with Regard to thofe Points that Antjonius 
open'd fome Time ago ; Do you think that Elo- 
quence can properly be called an Art? How, ^ 
replied - Craffus^ do you throw a little Quibble in 

* The Original is Inbumanitati^ perhaps it (houild be tranila- 
ted lU'Manneri. I have tranflated it as I thought daro meant it. 

•f Principies of this pretended Art~\ Earum Reriim qua quafi tra^ 
duntur in Arte^ fay the common Editions ; qua quafi in Arte tra- 
duntur^ fays Dr. Pedrcehy and to be fure he is right ; for the Ge- 
nius of the Language will not fufFer the firil Order of the Words 
to admit of what Cicero certainly meant, as I have tranflated it. 

J Admmftrationi\ In the Original Cretionibus. ^ I have tran- 
flated it by the nearell Words I could light of in our Language? . 
The Cretiones were of two Kinds ; the one vulgar, in which the 
Words qsdbus fcio, poteroque were inferted ; the other abfolute in 
which they were not inferted. Ulpianus, Tit. 22. 

my 



*^«W^ ^ . ,-_ . .^ . .^ _ , 



46 0« /i5e Ctt AR ACtER BoOlt t. 

my Way for me to def<e:ant upon, while the Hu- 
moor is upon me, as if I were fome idle, prat- 
tling, but perhaps learned and ingenious, Greek- 
Ung f Did eVer I give you Reafon to think that I 
Tahied or minded, that I did not always rather 
ridicule the Impudence of thofe Fellows, who 
when they had got into a Chair of a School, de- 
manded in a crowded Aflcmbly, ♦ Whether any Man 
there hoi any ^efticn to fiart ? This is a Praflice 
hid to be introduced by Gorgias of LeMium^ who 
thought that he undertook fomething that was 
great and iurprizingy when he pronounced that 
he was ready to fpeak upon any Subjed that any ' 
one of his Audience, be who he would^ defired 
to hear. This afterwards became ^d ftill is, 
their common Pra^^ice, inibmucfa, that there i^ 
no Subjeft fo important, fo unexpected, or fo new, 
that they don't pretend to diicufs as fully as it 
polEWy caa be. If I thought, Cattay that you 
or Stdpicius wanted to be entertained in this Man- 
ner, I would have brought along with me ibme 
Greek to tickle y^u with fuch DifpuCes, which 
indeed is no hard Matter to bring afcoot even yet : 
Fqrihere is a Peripatetic, one Stafeasy at the Houfe 
pf M, Pifo^ a young Gentleman who- is bewitched 
with this Curiofity, tho' a M^n* of an excellent 

, f Whether any Man then had any ^^uefiion to fiart t] I am 
forry to obferve it, but it appears from this F^age, tiiat Quae- 
kcry in Learning is of a very antient D^te. Thefe PhUofopIicrs 
were a kind of intelleftaafl Prize -Fighters ; of fuch we hare 
had great Plenty fince ; one Crighttm a Scott hman^ m the 1 6th 
Century, was a perfcd Knight Errant in this Way,- for he made 
the Tour of Europe, and publifhed Placarts wherever he came; 
that he was ready todlfpHtewith any Man not only upon any 
Subject, but in any Language his Opponent fhould chufe. If X 
am not miftaken he likewife difer'dto difpute in Profe or Verfe; 
fo very indefatigable way he in rendering himfdf ridicolous. 

^ Genius 



Book I. ^f^n Orator 47 

Genius, and at mighty Friend of mine. I am very 
well acquainted with this' Stafias^ and^ as ap{$ears 
from the Adq)ts in this Art, he is the leading 
Man in this Way of difputing. 

CHAP, xxrii. 

WH Y do you talk to us, wSyrtjfA Mudus 
of your Stafiss and your Peripatedc ? you 
muft, my Friend, indulge th^ young Gentlemen % 
they don't want to hear the daily Prate of an un- 
pradtifed Greeks nor a School Ballad \ they want 
to kaow the Seatiments of the wifeft, die hioft 
eloquent Man in his Time %, of the Man yfhoik 
Head and Tongue commmds, not in the Cr^ 
of Learning, but in the Impc^tance of the Cau^ 
be manages in this auguft Seat of Empire ; it 19 
fuch a Man in whofe Footfteps they defire tp 
tread. For my Part, tho' I always imagined you 
a God in Speaking, yet 1 never thought you more 
diftinguiflied by Eloquence than by Politenefs. 
It is in this Charafter that you are now to apD^ar^ 
nor muft you decline the Difputation to which 
you are invited by two young Gentlemen of the 
moft excellent Capacities. I aflure you, replies 
Crajfus^ I am ready to obey them, and to give 
them my Sentiments in my own brief Manner up- 
on any Subject. And, Scavola^ in the firft Place* 
as I cannot in Decency overlook what you men- \ 
tion'd, I think that Eloquence is no Art, or but a 
very flender one ; but that all the Difference among 
the Learned, on this HcBd, lies in Words. For i^ 
as Antonius faid a little while ago, the Definition 
. of an Art is. That it confifts of Points thoroughly 
examined, clearly underftood, abftrafted from the 

Caprice 



4$ On the Chak Act t r.' Book L 

Caprice of Opinion, and bounded by the Principles 
op Science ; to me there feems to be no fuch Art 
as that of Eloquence^ For all the ^Jjjds tftf our 
Pleadings atjtbeJ34r^aix,f^ one. another^. and 
muft be fuited to the Underftandings of the Vul- 
gar and the Tapplace. But if the Obfervations 
made both in the Theory and Practice of Speak- 
ing by the cunning and knowing of Mankind, 
have been defined in Terms charafteriz'd by their 
Properties, and digefted under Heads, which I 
fee may have been done ; I don*t underfland why 
it Ihould not, tho' not in the Striftnefs of Terms, 
yet in the common way of thinking, be look'd 
upon as an Art, However, whether it be an Art 
or the Semblance of an Art, it ought by no means 
to be neglefted; but we muft ftill take it for 
granted that fome higher Qualifications are re- 
quired to attain it« 

CHAP. XXIV. 

A Ntonius then faid, that he agreed heartily 
with CmJ/uSy that he neither owned it as an 
Art, in the Senfe of thofe who fix all the ' Powers, 
of Eloquence upon, the Principles of an Art, 
nor abfolutely rejcfted it for fuch, as moftPhi- 
lofophers do. But, CV<2^j, continued he, I be- 
lieve it will oblige thefe Gentlemen, if you point 
out the Method by which you think they may 
improve in the Excellency rather than in the ^r/ of 
Speaking. Agreed, anfwered the other : becaufc 
I promifed it •, but I beg of you that my Imper- 
tinence may go no farther •, tho' at the fame Time 
I will be upon my Guard not to appear as a 
Matter or an Artift, but in the Charafter of a 
private Roman j who has a tolerable Reputation, 

and 



Book I. "Of an Orator. 49 

and not entirely void of Merit in the Praftice at 
the Bar ; who does not diftate, but delivers liis 
Sentiments in an accidental Convcrfation. It puts 
me in mind, when I ftood for Preferment, I 
ufed when I was foliciting, to take my Leave 
of Scsvola^ by telling him I wanted to be imperti- 
nent; this was the civil Way of afking him; 
for in thefe Cafes, unlefs a Man is impertinent he can 
do nothing to the Purpofe. Here it happens that 
this very Man, the Man in the World before whom 
I would fooneft avoid to feem trifling, is now 
the Hearer and Witnefs what an. arrant Trifler 
I am ; for what can be more fo than to fpeak upon 
the Art of Speaking, when nothing can excufc 
Speaking itfeJf but Neceffity ? Pray go on, re- 
plies Mucius^ I will anfwcr for any Thing which 
you fear may be amifs. 

CHAP. XXV, 

THEN, faid Crajfusy > it is my Opinion that 
* Nature and Genius contribute moft tp 
the Powers of Eloquence ; as to thofe Authors 
iRrhom Jntonius mentioned a little before, it was 
not Method or Order that was wanting to them* 
but Genius ; for the Mind and the Genius ought 
to be endued with certain quick Faculties for 
rendering the Invention acute, the ExprelSon and 

* Nrnture and Qimus\ ^intrUan in his Preface, $ 4, ha$ a very 
beautiful Expreflion tpon <Jiff ^abjed s Ulud tamen imprimis tef* 
tandum eft^ nihil Pr^ciptaatpti Aries 'VfiUrf nifiM§uvant$ N^turS,^ 
^apropttr ei eta deerit Ingenium non magis bac feriptafunf^ juam 
de JgrvnmCiJtu fteriUbusTirfis. > 

We null {fays he] preoiiie, that Precepts and Art can do qo 
thing without the Concurrenpe of Nature For thofe Pages arp 
ao O(iore wrote for die y(e of a Per fon who has no Genius, than 
a Treatife upon ^jpicultoce can be fuppp^'d calculated fpr (h^ 
Improvenent ot barren Grounds. 

E its 



y 



50 On the Chat^agter Book !• 

its EmbelliQunents difFufive, and the Memory 
folid and lafling. It is very well, if thefe Facul- 
ties be animated or excited by Art-, but it is not 
in the Power of Art to ingraft every Quality 5 for 
thefe are the Gifts of Nature. Therefore,, if one 
fliopld be under the miftake of thinking that 
* thefe Qualifications are attainable by Art, what 
will fuch a one fay of thofe which, are certainly 
born with them ; fuch as the Volubility of Tongue, 
the Mufic of the Voice^ the Strength of Lungs, 
the Symmetry and Beauty of the Look and Fi- 
gure ? Not but that Art can contribute fomc Re- 
iinements ; for I am fenfibk that Learning may 
improve what is already good, and in fome mea- 
ilire polifh and corredt what is none of the beft. 
But there are fome Men fo fluttering in their Ex.- 
prefTion, fo harfh in their Tone of Voice, fo for- 
bidding in their Look, fo unwieldy and fo favage 
in tjieir Make, that, with all the Genius and Art in 
the World, they can never become Orators. There 
are others fo happily turned, fo endued by Na- 
ture for the fame Attainments, that they feem 
not to be born, but moulded by the Finger of 
a God. Great, weighty, and important is the Un- 
dertaking and Profeffion, when amidfl a nurtierous 
AfTembly, profoundly filent, one Man alone is 
heard difcourfing on the moft important Matters : 
For there is fcarcely any one who hears him, who 
has not a quicker, a more piercing Eye to the 
Defefts than to the Beauties of his Exprcflion, 
who, in condemning what he diflikes, with that, 
confounds Excellencies themfelves. Not that I 
infift, young Gentlemen who have not natural Qua* 
lifications fhould' be abfolutely difcouraged from 
the Study of Eloquence : For who docs not pen- 

cciv^ 



fiooK I; Of an Oil AT 6 r; ^ 51 

ccive that it does great Honour to C. Lalius^ my 
Equal in Years, and without the Advantages of 
Birth to recommend him, that he was able to ac- 
quire even that indifferent Talent in Speaking 
which he poffefs'd ? Is there one in this Com- 
pany who does not know that ^ Farius^ an un- 
wieldy, uncouth Figure of a Man, has now a vaft , 
Interefl: in the City, by means of thofe very Ta- 
lents, fuch as they are ? 

CHAP. XXVI. 

BU T as bur Difcourfe has now fallen upon 
the Charadler of an Orator, Ut it defcribe 
one who is blameleft, and all accomplifli'd ; for 
if the Multiph'city of Suits, the Variety of Caufes, 
the Buftle and Impertinence of the Forum, afford 
Employment fufiicient for the moft wretched 
Speakers -, we ought not, for that Reafon, to take 
our Eye off from the main Objedt of our Purfuit. 
Thus, in thofe Arts to which we apply, not be- 
caufe of their indi/penfible Utility in Life, but 
becaufe they are genteel Amufements, how cri- 
-tically, nay how fqueamifhly do we judge? For 
there are no Suits or Controverfies on the Theatre 
to make People endure a bad Aftor there, as they 
do an indifferent Pleader at the Bar. An Orator, "^ 
therefore, ought to be extreamly careful, not only 
to pleafe thofe whom it is his Bufinefs to pleafe, 
but to fix the Admiration of Men who can judge 
upon a more difengaged, difinterefted Footing* 
But if you infift upon it, that I fliould fpeak my 
Senle of the Matter without Rtferve, fince you 
are all of you my intimate Friends, I will now, 
for the firft Time, declare what I have hitherto 

E 2 thought 



5i On tieCnAKActnk Book % 

tht>u^ht ought to be concealed. Even the beft 
Speakers, they who fpeak with the greatell Eafe and 
Grate, appear to me almoft with an Air of Impu- 
dence, Uhlefs they compofe themfelves to fpeak with 
a cftrtain Balhfulndfs, and are under fome Confu- 
fion ^hen they fet out ; yet tbey can never appear 
6therwife ; for thfc mote a Man excels in fpeaking 
he is the more fertfibfe of its Difficulty^ he is un- 
der the greater Concern for the Event of his Speech, 
and to anfwcr the Expeftation of the Public. But 
the Man who can compafs nothing worthy the 
Profeflion, worthy the Name, of an Orator, or 

" worthy the Attention of Mankind; fuch a one 
will appear impudent in my Eyes, let his ConCcrft 
^hile he fpeaks be ever fo great 5 for we ought 

^ to keep clear of the Charge of Impudence, not 
by blufhing at, but by avoiding Indecencies. As 
for a Man who difcovers no Symptoms of his 
being abalhed, as t fee is commonly the Cafe, 
I think fuch a Fellow deferves not Reproof only 
but PUhifliment. For I have often obfefvcd ift 
you and eipertenced. in myfelf, that I grow pale 
at the Beginning ^ a Speech, feel a Flutter 
over all my Spirits, and a Tremblihg thro* feve- 
ry Joint. But when I was a young Man, I was fo 
fpiritlefs at the Opettirtg of a Charge, that, I Ipeak 
it with the higheft Senfe of Gratitude, ^ M<Uci¥m5 
adjourned the Court, when he perceived me thus 
opprefled and difabled with CoiKern. Here they 
ail of them agreed in the feme Thing, -And be* 
gan to whifper, and talk to otre another % for th^re* 
was in CraJJus a furprifmg Bafefulncfs, which at 
t^e fame Time was fb far frofh being a Difadvan* 

tiage to his Eloquence, that it ^V'cn carried a 

» - • - * * • xrre**- 

3 '■- 



PrqpQflelilon in its Favour, by recprajwmding 
ih^ GooiacfB of hU Heart. 

CHAP. XXVlh 

INdeed, my Friend, I have often obfcrved, as 
you fay, replied Antonius^ that you, and the 
reil of our beft Spealoers, chp' in my Opinjon 
none erer equalled you, were under great CoP* 
cern at their fetting out. When I caoie to enquire 
into the Reafon of this, and why an Orator, 
the better he could fpeak, was aiways vnder the 
greater Confufion in Speaking, I accounted for 
it two Ways ; the firft was, that they who are 
formed both by Experience and Nature to (peak, 
have obienred, that Ibmetimes Cau&s will go not 
quite agreeable to the Minds of the very beft 
Speakers ; theretoie k is realbnabk for them, eve* 
ry Time they are fpeaking, to dread, as it fome- 
times happens, it may be their own Cafe at the 
Time j the other Way I account for it, is, what 
I often thought a Hardfhip. When they who 
have an eftablilhed Chairader in other Arts fall 
Ihort of their ufual Excellence, it is generdly 
imputed to their wanting either Inclination, or 
Health, to exert their Abilities; Rofcius^ fay they, 
would not a6t to-day, or he was indifpo(cd« But 
if a Defefl: is obferved in an Orator, it is imme- 
diately imputed to Dulnefs, and £)ulnefs has no l^ 
Excufc •, for yCu will never be able to^erfwadc 
the World that a Man can be a Dunce either 
thro* Indilpofition or Wilfulncfi. Thus, in fpealc- 
ing, we undergo a fcvere Trial, and every Time 
we fpeak it is renewed; while a Player, who has 
been faulty in Ajftion is not immediately pro- 

liioufKied 



54 ^^ *^ C ^*^ R A C T E R BoOKt, 

nounced to know nothing of Aftion ; but if an 
Orator (hall be thought to make one Blunder he 
eternally, or at leaft for a long Time, labours 
Vndcr the . Imputation of Dulnefs. 

CHAP. XXVIIL 

AS to what you fay, that there are a great 
many Things in which, unlefs an Orator 
has them from Nature, the Affiftance of a Mafter , 
can do him but little Service, I am very much of 
-your Opinion i and here I cannot but do Juftice 
to the Merits pfthat excellent yi2i^tx ApolkniuSy 
of Alabanda^ who, tho' he made a Trade of 
teaching, yet would never fufFer thofe he thought 
would never turn out Orators, to lofe their Time 
in attending his Leflbns ; but difmiiled them, and 
ufed to advife, and drive them to follow the Art 
f3r which he .thought each mod fitted. For in 
learning other Crafts, it is enough, if you have the 
Refemblance ot a Man* and if the Learner, be he 
ever fo great a Dunce, has juft as much Appre- 
henfion as to conceive, and as much. Memory^ 
as to retain what is taught, and perhaps ham- 
mered into him. He has no Occafion for the 
Smpothnefs of JL,anguage, or the Command qf 
Expreflxon, nor for thofe Qualifications which we 
muft owe to Nature, fuch as the Face, the Look^ 
f the Accent. But in ^n Orator, there js required 
] the Subtilty of Logicians, the Learning of Phi- 
) lofophers, the Didion almoft of Poets, the Memq- 
y ry of Lawyers, the Voice of Tragedians, and 
/ ,the A6tion of the beft Players, Therefore iii 
^ Mankind there is nothing harder tp find than ^ 
perfeft Orator. Among the Profeflbrs of partj|- 
f ylar Elf inches in other Arts, if each in his own 

arrives 



•Book X Of an Ok at oilI 55 

arrives at Mediocrity, he paflcs with Approbation j 
but if an Orator is not compleatly Maftcr of every 
Branch of his Art he cannot pafs. And yet, faid 
"Craffus^ fee how much more indefatigable People 
are m an Art that is but (light and trivial than in 
this Affair, which is evidently of the greateft Im- 
portance. For I have frequently heard Rofcius 
fay, he never could find that Scholar with whom 
he was perfedtly fatisfy' d -, not but that fomc of 
them might have paffed ; but becaufe, if they had 
any Manner of Defeft, he himfelf could not ei>* 
dure it -, for nothing makes fo remarkable, fo deep 
an ImpreflTipn upon the Memory as a Mifcarriage« 
Therefore, that we may run the Parallel betwixt 
the Accomplilhments of an Orator and thofe of 
a Player, don*t you obferve, that every Thing 
he does, is done in the moil compleat, the moft 
graceful Manner •, that he does nothing but with 
the greateft Propriety, and fo as to move ana de- 
light every Body ? Hence it is, he has long at- 
itained to this Diflinftion, that when a Man ex- 
cels in his own Craft, he is called the Rofcius of 
his Profeffion. While I require this finifhed Ex- 
cellence in an Orator, of which I am fo void my- 
felf, I aft impudently -, becaufe my own Defeds 
I wifh to have pardoned ^ to thofe of others, I am 
inexorable. For the Man who is deftitute of Abi- 
lities, who performs incorreftJy ; in fhort, the Man 
who goes aukwardly to work, fuch a one (fo far I 
• agree with Apollonius) I think ought to be turned 
ijver to do Ibmcwhat he can do. 



E 4 CHAP. 



56 



On a&^Character .Book I. 



CHAP. XXIX. 

Wti A T, tcplies SulfkitiSy would you order 
Ccita Or me to fall to the Study of Civil 
LaW| or military Affairs? )For what Man muft 
not dei|>air to attain to thofe high, thofe univer- 
fill AceompliDifMnts ? So far from that» an- 
fwers the othtr^ that the very Reafon why I 
liave explained myfclf in this Manner, was, be* 
caufe I knew both of you to poffefs a moft extra- 
ordinary Genius for Eloquence \ and I adapted 
my Spcedi not more with a View to difcourage , 
.thofe who had not Abilities, than to encourage 
you who have ; and tho* 1 perceive, that both the 
ime and the other of you are endued with the 
greateft CapiK:ity and Application ^ yet the Ad- 
vantagds of outward Appearances^ which I havx; 
e^lar^d upon perliaps more than tht Gneis ufe 
to do, in you, Sulpicius^ are divine. For I don't 
remember to have ever heard any Man fpeak 
more gtacefuHy, cither as . to the Attitude, d>e 
Pepottlnent^ or the Figure., or with a more full 
and fweet Voide. Even they who pot^eii d^^ 
Advantages in a fmaller Degree may be good 
Speakers, provided tbey hav«e tike Skill to ufe the 
Qualifications they really poAbfi to the beft Ad- 
vHntage, and with 'Gracefulnefs^ for UngriKefidnefs 
is Xht Thing in the World that is to be moft a- 
. voided. At the 6me Time, it is extremely diffi- 
cult to give ^ny Rules upon this Head; tius 
is a Difficulty that not only flicks with me who 
fpeak of thefe Matters as a private Gentleman, 
but even with Rofcius himfclf, whom I have often 

heard 



/ 



Book I. Of m Or at onl ^ 

heard fay, that * the chief Point of Art is Grace^ 
fulnefs^ but that it was the only Thing that did 
not come within the Precepts of Art -, but if you 
pkafe, let us (hift our Dilcourfe, and talk in our 
own Way, not as Rhetoricians. By no means> 
replied Cotta^ for wc are now reduced to a Nc- 
eeflity of entreating you, fince you have arrefttd 
us in this Profeffion, and will allow us to apply 
to no other Art, to inform us, as you can, of the 
wliofe Extent of your own Power in Eloquence. 
Sure you cannot fay we are too greedy, we are 
content to take up with your Eloquence, indiflfe- 
rcnt as it is, and we want to know how we 
can be farther qualified ; fince you fay we are not 
entirely delHtxite of natural Advantages ; not that 
we intend to afpine at more than the tittle Me* 
tit in (peaking you have attained to. 

♦ 7be chief Point of ArtuOrnctJulnefi.'\ The Antients had aa 
exteediRg beautiful Alluiioii opon this Head. In edl Underta" 
kings J faid they, Jet ut fitcrifict tn the Graces m It was by ob- 
ierving this important LefTon, rather than from any S4]per]ority 
of Genius,thac their Writings have lived fo long in EKecm. An 
excellent Eng/^^&^rA has expre^d the Meaning of this AU 
lufioa beautifully. 

He who blots eutf md bhts -not vut the hfl^ 
Fours Lvftre in^ wtd Hgnijies the reS^ 

Bttt the Poet, in thefe two Lines, hints only at'One Caalb «Mdi 
<k(lroys the 'Gpacefttlnefsof a Perfonaance produced by .Genini; 
and that is; the Fondnefs of an Author for his own Work, and 
his being loath to blot what he thmks is well faid, no Matter 
with what Propriety it comes in. There is another Source of 
Ungracefulnefs, which was the Caufe of all the Gothicifms 
which infe6ted the fine Arts for i zoo Years, and that was mif- 
takii\g Ornament for Beauty, and thence aiming at an unna- 
tural Per&fiion. The Gothsy ob&rvmg the sntiem Architeftuse 
with a few Ornaments was v«ry beautiful, 4hcy concluded that 
jf it had more Ornaments it mull be more beautiful, till at 
length all was Ornament, arndirothing Beauty. The fame Fate 
-horn th^ fame Qvxk, attcnSed f octry« Etoquence« Paintiqg» 
4iid Statuary. 

CHAP. 



St On /^^ Ch A R A C T E R BoOK 1 

CHAP. XXX. 

SAYS Crafusj with a Smile, why, CcUa^ you 
want nothing. farther but the Intenfenefs and 
Paflior. of Study, without which nothing great 
was ever performed in Life ; far lefs can any one 
attain ^ this Excellence you require. But indeed 
it is in vain to have a Paffion for arriving at 
any Point, unlefs you are acquainted with the Means 
that can carry and conduft you to what you in- 
tend. But as the Taik • you impofe upon me is 
pretty e.afy, fince you don't infift upon ipy ex- 
plaining the Art of an Orator, but the little I 
niyfclf can do in this Way, I will inform you of 
a Method of my .own, which has nothing in it that 
is abftrufe, difficult, pompous or great, but what 
I praftifed in my Youth, while it was in my 
pjower JO apply to thefe Studies. CoUa^ cried 
Sdpicius^ what a blefled Day is this ior us! fori 
could never, by ail the Entreaties, by all the 
Strajcagems^ by all the Prying I could ufe, not 
only not fee what Crajfus compofed or fpoke, but I 
could not have the leaft Hint, from his Amanu- 
cnfis and Reader Dipbilus. I hope now we have 
dbc»n^ what W;e wifhed for, and (hall be in^ 
formed from his own Mouth of every Thing 
iwic wanted to know* 

C H A P, XXXI, 

BU T indeed, my Friend, faid Crajfus^ I am 
of Opinion, when you have heard all I have 
to fay, that you won't be fo much in Love with 
it \ you'll rather think, that you had no Manner 

ef 



Book I. Of an Or at onl 59 

of Reafon of being fo fond to hear it beforehand ; 
becaufe what I am to fay contains no Secret^ 
nothing to anfwer your £xpe6bation, nothing that 
is new to you or •the World; for I own very 
freely, that I have ftudied all that Common-place 
trite Learning, a Piece of Education which is 
worthy of a Gentleman 5 and therefore I. lay it 
down, that the principal Point an Orator ought 
to aim ati ^i^ to pcrfuade •, next, that the Ten- 
dency of every 5peecn is cither to difculs fomc 
general Queftion, without fpecifying Perfons or 
Times, or fome Point where particular Times 
or Perfons are fpecify'd. In both thefe Cafes* the 
.iQueftion in dilpute ufes to be, whether fuch a 
Thing is, or is not Faft ; or, if the Fa& be 
admitted, of what Nature it is, or under what 
Denomination it comes; and, according to fome, 
: whether the Commiffion of it was, or was not 
juftifiable. I was farther taught, that Controvcr- 
fies may arife from the Meaning, whether it is 
either doubtful or contradictory, or when the 
Letter contradifts the Spirit of the Law ; and 
that there is a certain Species of Argumentation 
appropriated to each of thefe Cafes. I was far- 
ther taught, that thofe Doubts that cannot be 
ranked un4er the general Divifion become either 
Matters of Trial or Debate 5 that there was like- 
wife a third Species, confifling in praifing or 
iafliing particular Perfons ; and that there are 
(Certain Topics which we infifl: upon in Cafes of 
Equity, and in Courts of Juftice-, that there arc 
other Topics on which we debate, and where 
all the Subjedt of Debate is the Intereft of thofe 
f o whom we give our Advice or AfTiflance ; 

that there are .others appropriated to Panegyric, 

-' ^ ' ' where 



^ 0^/i^ Character Book I 

. where every Thing has Relation to perlbnal Me* 
jrit I WIS farther tagght, that as all the Profef- 
6on of Eloquence is divided into five Parts, an 
Orator muft firit find out what he has to fay, 
Md when he has found that out, he is to dillribute 
4nd range tt, noc onlj in Order, but with a cer- 
tain. Readimfs aod Judgment ; he is next to cloath 
and etnbeUifh it by his Expreflion ; he i$ then to 
tmprint it in the Memory ^ and laftly to deliver 
it with Gracefulneis and Dignity. I Ukewiie was 
firthcr inftrufted, that before one enters upon 
the maia Subjed, he ihould endeavour to gain 
die A&dton of his Hearers. In the next Place the 
. Jafit is to be repicfcnted, the C afe is to be ftat ed^ 
-and the jSpeaker then proceeds to proveJxis^^tie- 
ga^iifi; lie next proceeds to confute what has 
been advanced by^rhr nrhcr Paf^y^-^aiajLat the 
Conctufion of his Speech, whatever makes in his 
Favour he is to magnify and improve, and what- 
^ve^ makes againft him he is to weaken wd €%r 
tcnuat«. 

CHAR XXXII. 

IWas likcwife ioftrufted in whatever relates to 
-I 
the Embelliflunent pt a Speech, the chief of 

which IS thePurity of Didion, the next isjjajfe 
and Clcarnefs, the .4iext Qracefiilfteli, and the 
laft an Expreflion fuited to, and, as it were, ftttiftg^ 
off th?^Njiur£, of .thfe^SybjoEU and I uwde my- 
fejf Mafter of all the Precepts relating to each 
.of thcfe Points. Even that which one would 
think to be a. Charader of Nature I have feme- 
times known to be affifted by Art j for I myfclf 
have dippea into certain Precepts upon Aftion and 
Memory, which, tho* fliort^coft me great .La- 
bour 



Book I. Of an On a tor* 6i 

bouri for the whole Learning of certain Ardfts 
turns upon thefe Points i and I fliould be much 
iA the wrong to fay that they are of no Ufe i for 
they ferve> as it were, to prompt the Oriior, by in- 
forming him to what Head fuch and fttch Things 
relate, and at a Glance^ he it much iurer not to be 
wide of his Aim. But I take the true Efk& of 
ail Precepts to lie in this, not that Orators by 
obferving them attain to Eloquence, but that Ol>- 
fervadons have been made, and a Pra£tice formed 
from Charafters which eloquent Men have laid down 
merely by the Strength of natural Genius, Thus\ 
Eloquence is not the Produft of Art, but Art I 
is derived from Eloquence! But even that, as ij 
laid before, I would not fliut out i for tho* it may 
not be quite fo neceflary to the praftical Part of 
Speaking, yet it i& very well fuited to the critical. 
This is the Talk that you are to undertake, tho* 
you have already entered the Lifts ; notwithftand* 
rng that the Students in this Way, like the Gen- 
tlemen of the Sword, may improve by the Prc- 
ludeA and PraAice of a mock Fight upon difputable 
Points^. This, interrupted Su^idus^ was the very 
Thing we wanted to know, yet we ,wifli to hear 
fomewhat from you with regard to the Art itfelf 
you have fo flightly touched upon, tho* we are not 
quite Strangers to it. However, we Ihall talk of 
it by and by; but at J>refcnt we want to know 
your Sentiments upon the Praftice itfelf. 

CHAP. XXXIII. 

WH Y really, rcjdied Cr^ffus^ I approve of 
your commoA Pradice in ftating a Caufe 

of the ifeme Nature with tiiofe that really come 

before 



6i 0« /i6^ CHARACTER bookti 

before the Courts of Juftice, and then fpcaking to 
it as if you ^ere a&ually in earneft. - But moft 
People in fuch Exercifcs make ufe only of their 
Voice, and that too not very judiciouQy, the 
Strength of their Lungs, and the Glibnefs of their 
Tongue^ and are quite charmed with their own 
Performancei if they can but pour forth a Tor- 
rent of Words ; fo far do they nriftake that ge- 
neral Maxim, that Praftice makes Perfeftion in 
Speaking. But there is another Maxim ; that by 
a vicious Praftice of fpeaking. Men very naturally 
fall into a^- vicious Habit of it. Therefore, in thofe 
very Praftifings, tho* it is of great Importance 
that a Man fhould acquire an Eafe and Quicknefs 
of Speaking, yet it is of much greater that he 
Ihould, after fome Confideration, fpeak at once 
readily and correftly. Rut- i-nt-pll j-j^^^ jp||-f^; rK^ 
, chief Point of all is a Thing that we very little 

(praftife; for it is difficult, and therefore com* 
monly avoided, I mean frequent Compofitions 
upon Paper. The Pen is the best, the 
MOST EXCELLENT FORMER AND DIRECTOR OF 
THE Tongue; and no Wonder; for if Reflefti- 
on and Thought eafily excel what is thrown 
out by Chance, and at a Heat, careful and afli- 
duous Pradice in compoCng will excel even 
thofe Advantages.- For every Topic, whether 
it regards Art, Genius, or Learning, if it has any 
Relation to the Subje6t we write upon, immediately 
prefents itfelf and occurs to the all-obferving Eye 
of drift Enquiry and critical Obfervation ; and 
at the fame Time, it is a neceflary Co'nfequence, 
that the Periods and ExprefBqns, all of them the 
J Choice of their Kind, fhould undergo the Polifli 
of the Pen ; heoc$ arifes Perfedtion as to the Pro- 
* priety 



Book I. Of an Or at ojil tj 

priety and DifpofitioQ of Exprefllons, and Scilc 
in Writing, not in the Cadence and Manner that 
fuits the Poet, but the Oraton Hence likewifc 
is ^he. true Spring of the Admiration and Applaufe 
beftawed on excellent Speakers } and let a Man 
declaim ever fo violently in theie flafhy Exercifes^ 
he ihall never be able to attain to thefe Qualifica* 
tions withou ^Prafti cc in Writing : And the Maa^ 
who after fTiandlingKis i'en, ihafl come to the 
Bar, will carry along with him this Advantage, 
that tho' he even fhall fpeak extempore^ yet what 
he ftiall deliver will have the Air of correft Com* 
pofi?ion 5 and farther, if at any Time he Ihall ufc 
the Afl*iift^nce of Notes, as foon as he lays them 
afide, the remaining Part of his Speech will be 
of a Piece with the preceding. As a Boat, when 
failing, tho' the Rowers give over rowing, yet ftill 
the Veffel keeps the fame Motion and Diredion' 
as when impelled by the Strength and Strokes 
of t;he Oars -, fo , in a continued Difcourfe, when 
one's Notes fail him, yet the remaining Part pro- 
ceeds in the fame Strain, by the Refemblance and 
Strength it acquires from Compolition. 

CHAP. XXXIV 

BU T in my daily Exercifes, when I was but 
a very young Man, I own I chiefly followed 
what I knew to be the Praftice of our Foe Caius 
Carbo^ which was, to digeft ih my Memory, as 
well as I could, a Set of fenfible Yerfes, or a 

t Handiivg hlsPen^ This Precept will be found ufcfultoal? 
manner of Speakers, and we have known fome of the greatefl 
Men in our Age and Country owe the Excellency of their Elo- 
quence to this Precaution. The following Simile of our Author 
is extremely juH and beautiful.- 

certain 



% - 



* 



^4 On ibe Cit A R AC T b r Book 1. 

certam Pbrtion of fome Oration which I had read 
over^ and then deliver the very fame Matter in 
other Words, and thofe the beft I could chafe. 
But I found myfelf under this Inconveniency by 
this Praftice, that the moft proper, the moll ele-. 
gant, and the moft beautiful Exprefilons in every 
Subjedt, had been anticipated either by Eumus 
or Gracchus^ if I took my Theme from the 
Verfcs of the one, or the Orations of the other. 
Thus, if I ufed the fam^ Words, my Labour was 
bootlefs ; if I altered them, I was fure it muft be 
^ for the worfe, which would do me Prejudice* 

t ^v Afterwards, when I grew a little older, I chofe 
to tranflate the beft Greek Orations, by which I 
attained to this Advantage, that in rendering the 
Greek I had read over, into Latin^ I not only fell 
upon the moft elegant, and yet the moft ufual 
Expreflions, but was in the Courfe of my Tran* 
flation led in to coin' fome Phrafes, which to my 
Countrymen were new, and I took Care that 
they ihould be proper. Now the Operations of 
the Voice, the Lungs, the whole Body, and even 
the Tongue, don't fo much require • Art as Ex- 
ercife. But in all thefe Exercifes we ought to 
take particular Care to imitate thofe whom we 
wifh to refemble. We are not only to obferve the 
Pradice of Orators, but of Adors, left by a vicir 
ous Habit we contradt fome Ungracefulnefs and 
Aukwardnefs. The Memory ought likewifc to 
be employed in Learning a good many of our own 
and of Foreign Compoficions ; and to this Ex- 
ercife I don't think it would be amifs, if you 

• Art as Exertifil Ow Autkor no Doabt mcflns, that by Excr* 
•rcife one may coioe imo an arcful Manegenent AndDifpofition 

of all the exterior Circumilances of Speaking. 

fhould 



Book L Of an Ok AT o R. 65 

Ihould • tack the Rules which relate to the Me- 
thod pf imprinting in your Memory your Sub- 
je6t, by certain Hints taken from Places and Re- 
femblances. From this private, this retired, Ex- 
ercife, you are to draw out the Powers of. your 
Eloquence into the Front of the Battle, into the 
Duft, the Din, the Camp, and the Array of the 
Forum. You are to handle every Weapon ; you 
are to put the Forces of your Genius to the Trial, 
and all yourretir'd Lucubrations muft now ftand 
the Tell of public Praftice. The Poets too muft 
be read, a Knowledge of Hiftory muft be ac- 
quired ; the Writers, the Authors, of all the beft 
Arts muft be read over and over again; and to 
improve your Praftice you are to praife, to ex- 
plain, to correct, to vilify, and to confute* them. 
You, muft f difpute upon any Side of every Que* 
ftion ; and you muft explore and explain what- 
ever can be advanced on your own Side with the 
greateft Probability upon any Subjeft. The Ci- 
vil Law muft be thoroughly ftudied; the Sta- 
tutes muft be underftood, you muft have a clear 
Notion of all Antiquity,* of the Praftice of the 

. * Tack the JR«/^/, &c.] The Art of Memory was in great 
Vogue, and of a good deal of Advantage among the Cr/ks 
The Moderns, efpecially the Germans y in the laft Age; wrote a 
great many^Books upon it; but if the Antients had not proceed- 
ed upon fome Principles that were more worthy the Exercife of 
the rational Faculties than the Germans did, it is probable we 
fhould not have it recommended by Cicero. 

+ Di/puteupon any Siiie] I don't know if the Rapidity with 
which Craffiu fpeaks here can plead for an Excufe for this JBx- 
preilion. !^intiUan to his immortal Honour, look'd upon the 
rrofcflion of an Orator in another Light than we do upon that 
of a S^/s : He thought that no Man could diftinguifli himielf 
without great Virtues as well as great Qualities, 1 wifli that we 
could fay he had learned this from the Precepts our Author lays 
down in this Treatife. 

• F . Senate 



66 0« /^^ Character BooKif. 

Senate^ the Government of the State*, the Rights 
of our Allies, Leagues, Conventions, and the In- 
terefts of the Conftitution. Yon are likewife, fropi. 
all the.feveral Modes of Good- Breeding, to extrafl: 
a certain agreeable Turn of Wit, which, like Salt, 
muft feafon all you fay. Thus I have poured 
forth all I had to deliver, and yet perhaps any, 
private Gentleman whom you had laid hol^ of ia 
any Company, would have ^ven you juft thie^^ 
fame Satisfadion. 

CHAP. XXXV. 

WHEN Crajfus had done fpeaking, a Papfc 
enfued ; but though the Coqipany feem'd; 
to think that he had fufficieptjy anfwer*d all they, 
has proposed •, yet he had run through it much 
fponer than they wilhM fon Pray, Cotta^ fays 
Scigvola^ what is all this Silence for ? What can't 
you fall upon fome other Queftion to put to 
Crajfus ? Why, replied the other, that is the very. 
Thing I am thinking of j for fuch was the. Rapi- 
dity of his Words, liich the Flow of his Lan- 
guage, that I perceived its Force and Energy, but 
could fcarcely trace its. Rife apd Progrefs ; as if 
one were to enter into fome rich, well furnilh'd. 
Houfe, where the Apparel is neither expofed, nor, 
the Plate kt forth, nor the Pi6tures and- Images 
placed in View, but all the Variety, and Magni- 
ficence of the Furniture huddled and (hut up ; fa 
juft no\v, while Crajfifs was peaking, I could per- 
ceive the Riches and Beauties of his Genius, as. 
it were through certain Veils and Curtains ; but- 
of the Things I wanted to furvey at Leifure, I'^ 
could fcarcely fnatch a Glance. Upon, the whole, 
* I caa 



Book L 0/ an OtiATOR. 6/ 

t can neither fay that I am ablblutely ignorant 
of his Qualifications, nor that I have been able 
clearly, to matk out and difcover them. Then, 
replies Sc^evda^ can't you do as you would in 
cafe you were to ftep into a Houfe or a Seat mag- 
nificently furnifli'd ; if, as you have fuf)pofed, all 
the rich Furniture is lock'd up, and you had an 
exceflive Curiofity to fee it, lure you would dfc- 
fire the Owner to order it to be brought cut, es- 
pecially if he was your Friend. In like Marirter^ 
afk the Favour* of Cr^i now to difplay to our 
View, artd range in proper Order all thrife rich' 
Embelliftimehts of hisj whertof we have but! 
got a flight, paffing Glance, as it were^ through' 
a Lattice/ Nay, but Scavola^ lays CoHa\ X beg 
this Favour from yoii j for Stilpicius and I arc* 
afhamed to importune one of the greateft Min 
upbn Eal'ch, and one who has always d'efpifed 
DlfpUtations of this Rind, for what hei' perhaps 
looks upon ai an Exer<tife only for Childreii. But! 
do you, Scavola^ grant us this Favour j and prevail" 
with Cr^« to extend and explain thofe Principles, 
. whlbh in his DifdoUrfe' he cramm'd into fo narroW 
aCohripafs. Upon mjr Word; replied Muctus^ I 
was fdr this bcfbrifj rather on your account than 
my own, nor can* I fay that niy Dcfire of hearing 
Craffusxx^oxi this* Subjcdt was equal to the Plealuri 
I have had in hearing hint plead. B6t now, Crajfus^ 
I beg upon my own Account too, that you will 
employ this unufual Interval of Leifure, in finiftiing 
the Btiilding you have already fourided : for I 
can fee a mof€ regular Mbdel of the wholc'than 1 
expetStcdi' aM ftich aS^ T gt^catly apprcfvc of. 

Fa CHAP* 



68 On the Chavl ACT ER Book L 



CHAP. XXXVI. 

INDEED, replies CraJJiis^ I am prodigioufly 
furprized that you, Scavola fhould infift on 
hearing what I am neither fo much Mafter of as 

' they who teach it, nor is it of fuch a Nature, as, did 
I underftand it ever fo well, tofiiit your Expe- 
rience, or claim your Attention.!^ Say you fo, an- 
fwers the other, but granting thatyoung Gentlemen 
ought not to hear the .common and vulgar Rules, 
arc we to negleft thofe Precepts which you have 

^/fflfonounced ought to be known by an Orator upon 

\ the Nature and Morals of Mankind, upon the 
Method of awakening and fubduing their PafIions„ 
upon Hiftory, Antiquity, Government; and, in 
(hort, our own Syftem of the civil Law ? For 1 
knew that your Experience had mafter'd all this 
Extent, all this Variety of Knowledge! but never 

I did I fee fb magnificent Furniture in the Equipage 
<Df an Orator, Then, anfwers Crt^us^ not to fpeak 
of other Inftances, which are numberlefs of great 
Importance, and to proceed to your favourite Stu- 
dy of the Civil Law, can you reckon them Ora- 
tors, whom Scievola^ with a Mixture of Mirth and 
Indignation, waited many Hours for, when he 
was in Hafte to go to the Campus Martius ; when 
Hypfeus with a very audible Voice, and in a Power 
of Words, infifted upon it with the Prastor M. 
Crajfus^ that his Client might lofe his Caufe. 
While Cneius 0£lavius^ a Confular, in a Speech of 
equal Length, refufed to fuffer his Antagonift to 
lofe his Caufe, or tKat his own Client fliould take the 
Advantage, by the Blunders oi the other Party, 
of being acquitted of the Charge of betraying 

his 



•Book I. 0/ an Or at or. 69 

his Ward, and all its troublefbme Confequences." 
For my Part, anfwers the other, I remember to 
have heard Mucius talk of thefe Dunces, but I am 
fo far from allowing them the Charafter t)f Ora- 
tors, that I am for depriving them of the Priviledgc 
of pleading at the Bar, And yet, replied Crajfus^ 
thefe Advocates wanted neither for Eloquence 
nor for Method knd Readinefs in Speaking ; what 
they wanted was a Knowledge in the Civil Law. 
For the one infifted upon more, while he was 
pleading upon a Law in the twelve Tables, than 
the Law admitted of; and if this was granted 
him, he of courfe loft his Caufe. The other 
thought it unjuft that he fhould be more hardly 
dealt by than the Charge brought againft him im- 
plied, and could not perceive that if he had been 
dealt by in that Manner, his Antagonift muft be 
* caft. 

CHAP. XXXVIL 

NA Y, not many Days ago, while we were 
fitting as Afliftants to our Friend ^ Pom- 
peiusj the City Praetor, did not one of your elo- 
quent Lawyers infift upon the Defendant being 
indulged in an old and common Exception in Fa- 
vour of a Debtor who was engaged to pay a Sum 
at a certain Day ? He did not underftand that 
fhis Rule was made in Favour of the Creditor 5 
infomuch, that if the Defendant had proved be- 
fore the Judge, that the Money was demanded 
before it became due, when the Plaintiff came to 
demand it a fecond Time he might have been 
precluded by this Exception, ♦ because tijb 

• Becaufetbe] Thefe Words I have pot in Capitals appear » 
tiavc been Fart of the Law. 

F 3 T H JN O 



^ 



70 On the Ch a |jt a c t ,e r Boqk % 

THJNG HAD ALREAPY BEEN BRpUGHT 

iprTO JuDpMENT. Cap any Thing n)ore 
fcanjlalpps than tjiis be expr?fled or aded,.th^n that 
a ^^n who a|rurT}es the Charafter of an Adypcate 
for thf Ipter^fts ^nd Caufe^ of his i^ riends, a Re- 
liever pf the oj)prefs'd, a Phyfician to the fick, 
3nd ^ jRlaifer of the dejefted, that fuch a Ma^ 
jfhoqld trip in the ipoft minute, th? moft trivial 
Affairs, fo as to become ftn Object: of Pity tp 
fome, and pf Ridicule to others ? I own th^t our 
]Kinfman, tjie rich Crajfus^ wbP in many Refpeds 
)«ras a Man of T^ft^ and Elegance, was highly 
Cpramendable in this, that he ufed to tell * h.is lixo- 
^hfir Scavqlq^ that the latter never could have made 
^ny Figure in the Civil Law had he |iot allied 
' hin?felf to Eloquence, (his Son, who was joint 
Copfyl with me, united both thefe Charafters) and 
that he himfelf had ftudied the Civil Law before 
he undertook to plead or manage any Caules for 
his Friends. But what was the Character of the 
excellent M Cato? Was it not that of being ^one 
pf the heft Speakers of his Ag^ and Country, and 

* His Brother Scxvola] To underftand the, Wit of this Saying 
ofCrqfus it may be proper to obferve, that tfee Fa^jily of the 
ScanioUi as he himrelf hints before in this Dialogue, yiras famous 
for their Knowledge oF the Civil Law, as was that of Craffus 
for Eloquence '{ Sc^enjola marrying the Sifter of Qrafus gave 
the latter a HandJ^ for this Sayi.^g. Th? Crajfits he^c men- 
tipn'd was not Marcus tjbe fa;nojiis Ijiuinvir, who was kiU'd by 
the Farthlansy and famous for *his Wealth, but another, who 
according to certain Authors in Gellius^ had five feveral Prcr 
eminences, 'y/a;. ift, in Riphes ; zdly, in Quality; 3dly, in Elo- 
Guehce; 4thly, in Jurirprudence;'and 5^hly, in th? Sacerdotal 
College. ' ' ' 

Is Cre^us a Seffipronio Af^lliope, &f plerifque aliis B^orla R^ma^ 
n<e Scriptorihut traditur ^inque habuijfe Rerum^ hg^rum maximtt 
l^pradpua, quodeffet ditiJJimuSy quod nohUiJpmuSy quod eloquentijjit 

viust quod jurifcojifylti^fpusf quod Nnfifffs maximHs* GeU, Moft. 
Att. iT/i.C. 1*3. 

at 



Book I. Of xm Orator. 71 

at the fame Time a moft fkilful Civilian ? I have 
all along touched upon this Point with the greater 
Delicacy, becaufe there is now in this Company 
a Perfon of the greatcft Eloquence, and one whom 
I admire as the firft of his ProfeHion as an Orator, 
and yet he has always expreffed a Contempt for 
the Study of the Civil Law. But as you infift 
upon being let into my Opinion and Sentiments 
I will hide nothing from you, but explain at 
muck as I can my Thoughts upon evbry Subjcft. 

CHAP. XXXVIIL 

TH E amazing, the unparallel'd, the divine 
Pow'er df Genius in Antomus^ tho* void of 
the Study of the Civil Law, feemfs to qualify him 
for managing and pleading Caufes by the Affift- 
aiice of other intellfcftual Accomplifhments ; he is 
therefore an Exception to our general Rule ; but 
as for the others, I orwn I make no Difficulty of 
■condemning them in my own Mind, firfb of Idle- 
nefs, then of Impudence. For to flutter over the 
Forum; to be always dangling after the Law, and 
the Benches of the Judges ; to manage the moft 
amportgtnt Trials upon private Property, in which 
the Qucftion often does not turn upon Points of 
Faft, but of Law and Equity ; to fwagger in 
pleading before the Centumroiriy where, you have all 
the Syftem of Laws relating tolnterefts. Wards, 
• Families, Relations; the Alterations and Erupti- 
ons of Rivers, Vaffalage and Bondage; Walls, 
and Windows ; Egrefs and Regrefs ; Wills exe- 
cuted or unfulfilled, together with an infinite Num- 
ber of other Things; if a Man who undertakes 
all this is ignorant of what belongs to himfelf, 

F 4 and 



72 On the C KARA CTZli BoOK I, 

and what to another, and how a Man becomes 
bond, and how free, or whaf conftitutes an In- 
mate and what a Citizen, fuch a Fellow muft be 
certainly furniflied with a moft cohfummate Stock 
of Impudence. What a ridiculous Figure would 
a Man make, to own that he did not know how 
to manage a fmall Bark, and yet pretend to fail 
one ot our firft Rate Ships ? If in a Compa-r 
ny I fhould find that you are over-reached by 
a Quibble of your Antagonift ; if I ihall fee you 
put your Seal to a Deed for your Client, the 
Matter of which muft do him a Prejudice, do 
you imagine that I would truft a Caufe of greater 
Importance to your Management ? Take my 
Word for it, the Man who in Harbour over- 
fets a Boat with but a Pair of Oars, Ihall fooner 
be made Captain of a large Ship in the Etfxine 
Sea. But if thofe Caufes that turn upon the * 
Civil Law ^re none of your little ones, but of- 
ten of the utmoft Importance, what a Front 
muft a Man have to pretend to be council in 
thofe Caufes, without the fmalleft Knowledge of 
the Law ? For Inftancc, could any Caufe be more 
important than that of the Soldier, whofe Death 
his Father had an Account of by wrong In- 
formation from the Army ; thereupon believing it 
to be true, he altered his Will, and thought fit to 
make another Perfon his Heir; he then diedhimfelf, 
and the Caufe was brought before the Centutnfviri : 
^The Soldier, returning Home, commenced an Ac- 
tion for his Father's Eftate ; uponthis the Queftion 
that depended upon the Civil Law, was whether 
the Son was difinherited by the Will ? Whether 
the Son whom the Father in his Will neither cx- 
preOy nominates to inherit or difinherit, is not cut 
ofi" from fqceeding to his Father's Eftate ? 

CHAP- 



Book I. O/^^u Orator; 73 



CHAP. XXXIX. 

FArther, what was the Cafe decided by the 
Centumvirij in the Caufe between the Patri- 
cian Families of the Claudii and the MarceUi? 
When tht MarceUi claimed an Eftate in Right 
of Defcent from the Son of a Freedman, and 
the Claudii pretended that the fame Eftate ought 
to revert to them by a Family Right derived 
from a Patrician of their Name ; in fuch a Caufe, 
were not the Pleaders to explain the whole Syftem of 
the Rights pf Succeffion and Family ? What do 
you fay of another Difpute I have heard of be- 
fore the fame Court of tht Centumviri ? A Man 
during his Banifliment had come to Rome^ and 
claimed the Protection of the Roman Laws relating 
to banifh'd Perfons, he had then apply'd himfclf 
to fome-body to be, as it were, his Patron, and 
then died inteftate-, in fuch a Caufe, is not the 
obfcure and unknown Laws * relating to Appli- 
cation 

* La^s relating to Application,'] The Clientfhips among the Ra- 
mans conftitated a Part of the Eftate of a great Mam There is a 
remarkable PaiTage upon this Head in Aulut Gelliusj which gives 
as a clear view of the Subordination of civil Relations among 
the oi'^Romansi the firftRelation next !• that of Son and Father, 
fays he, is that betwixt a Guardian and his Ward ; the fecond, 
that betwixt a Patron and his Client ; the third, that betwixt a 
Landlord and his Gueft ; laftly, thofe of Kindred and Alliance. 
^ Bat the. Words of Gellius contain fomewhat fo exprefs and di£fa- 
five that I can*t omit giving them to the learned Reader, who 
I believe will agree that there are few more curious Pafiages in 
dll Antiquity. 

Confueniebat auttm facile conftabatque^ ex Moribus Populi Roma- 
ni, pritnumjuxta Parentes Locum tenere Pupillos debere fidei iute^ 
Icgque noftra creditos : Secundum eos proximum Locum Clientes habere, 
quifefe itidem in Fidem Patrociniumque noftrum dediderunt^ turn in 
tertio LocQ e£k Bofpites ; pojita ejfe Cognalos Affinefque. Hujus moris 

Oh/er^ 



« I 



5^1 0» /Af'GttARACTER Boo«:T 

cation to be laid open in the Trial, and explained 
by the Advocate in his Pleading ? What do you 
think of a late Inftarice, when I pleaded the Caufe 
of C Ser^iMs AurOia againft our Friend Antonim 
here in a private Trial? Did not the whole Im- 
port of my Defence turn, upon the Civil Law ? 
For When Marius Gralidimus had fold the Houfe tQ 
A^ata, without expreffing inthe Deed of Freehold 
A at any l^art of that Houfe was to be fubjedked 
ifo Servitude ; I pleaded, that wh&tever Lofs might 
swite by omitting this ReifefVation, it ought to 
fiill upon the Selfcr, if he knew of any fuch Ser- 
vitude annexed to the Purchafe, and omitted to 
exprefs it. In thefe Kind of Aftions my Friend 
JM' Bm-culdus^ who is no Fool in my Conceit, 
Md a very wife Man in his own, with no A- 
verfioB to the Law befides, in fome Refpeft com-- 
itiitted a Blunder ktely upon a like Occafion, 
For when he fold a Houfe to L. Fufitis^ referving 
in Servitude the Doers and Windows in die State 
they were then in^ Ibmebody began to build a 
Houft in a different Quarter of. the City, in a 
Place that could be but juft difcerned from the- 
other Houfe-, but he had no fooner begun to 
build than he wijnt to Law with Butciltleius^ and 
infilled on it, that his Lights could not, in the 
Terms of their Agreement, remain in the famd 
State, if one Straw's Breadth of the Horizon Was 
intercepted, be the Diftance ever fo great. But 

Ohftt^ontihnififui midmfunt Tefimcnta t)oiuikeniii^ tit JnitquJi'a^ 
Jibus per/cnpta. Ex fuibus unum hoc interim, de ClientihiH Cognac 
iiffue^ fuod fhit Manibus e^ ff^nemus. M. CstiOin Ofatione, qalim 
dixit apud Cettf^res iit hentxAnm^ itafcripfit? ** ^ad im^ani 
*« fan^mhtdntert dtfendi PupilhSf ^am Client em nemo dicit : Pa^ 
«• tremprimutn^ Mndt patrtntm frimmum ntmn habere. Gclliu* 
Noft. Att. L. 5. C. 13* 

what 



Book I- Of an Oti at ot: 75 

what (hall I fay of that grefeit Caufe betwixt M§mia 
Curius and Afarcus Coponms^ that was lately pleadr 
ed before the CeniumnAri^ and a vaft .Multitude 
in Court, all curious to know the ETCiit ? When 
1^. Sc^evola^ my Equal apd Colleague, die Man 
in the World who is beft acquainted with the 
Pra&ice of the Civil Law, ci the qutckeft Diiceni'- 
tneat and Genius ; his Stile remarkably fmooth and 
polite \ and, ^s I ufed to fay, of all great Lawyecs 
the the moft of an Orator, and of all great Ora- 
tors the moft of a Lawyer; when fuch a Man 
as he, defended the Validity pf Wills from their 
Letter, maintainihg, that pnlefs the pofthumous 
Child exprefled in the Will of the deceafed was 
{}orn9 and then dead before he was of Age, that 
the Perfon named in the Will as fucceeding to the 
pofthumous Child who fhould thus be born and 
die, could not be the Heir. I pleaded for the 
Intention of the Will ; and that the Meaning of 
the deceafed Teftator muft have been, that if he 
had no Son cpme to Age, then Mamus Curio was 
the Heir. Did not we in this Caufe periift in 
quoting Authorities, Precedents, difputing upon 
the Nature of Wills, I mean the eflfemial Pait 
of the Civil Law. 

C H A P. XL. 

I Shall at prefent pals over other numbcrkfi 
Inftances of very important Caufes; nay, it 
may often happen vthat our f capital Caufes may 

turn 

+ Capital Caufes,!^ Tl^B iSirgJi;^ Reader is often unpofed upon 
by this Expreffion in Roman Authors. Therefore it may bene- 
ceiTary to take nodce,tbat iu very few Inftances the Life of a iR»- 
man Citizen could be attacked. The Word Cafut here does not 

mean 



/ 



76 On the Gtt AR A c T e r Book L 

turn upon the Civil . Law. Thus Publius^ the 
Son of M. RutiUus^ the Tribune of the People, 
ordered Caius Mancinus, a Man of the firfl: Quality, 
Worth, and of confular Dignity, to he turned out 
of the Senate ; becaiife, to avoid the Execution 
of a hated Convention he had made with the 
Numantines^ he had been delivered up to them by 
the prefiding Herald ; and upon their refufing to 
receive him, he had made no Scruple of return* 
ing Home, and taking his Se;^t in the Senate, 
The Oppofition of the Tribune was founded on 
^ received Traditioi?, that 9 Perfon fold either by 
Jiis Father or the People, or deliver'd up by the 
prefiding Herald, has no Right to reclaim his 
Privileges. Can we in ajl the Syftem of Civil 
Polity *find a more important Caufe or Difpute 
than that upon the R^nk, the Privilege, the Li- 
berty, and the Reputation of a confular Perfon ? 
Efpecially as it was not pretended that he was 
binder any Difability arifing from his own Deme- 
rit, but from the Conftitution of the Civil Law, 
• Of a like, but a Jefs important Nature is the Caft 
of a Native of a confederate State, who bad been 
^ Slave here, and then obtained his Freedom, and 
returned to his own Country ; it was in that 
Cafe a Doubt with our^ Anceftors, whether fuch 
a Perfon could reclaim his , Rights in his own 
State, and whether he had not forfeited the Pri- 
vileges of this Cky. But as I am now fpeak- 
ing of Liberty, than which no more important 

mean the nataral Life, neither did the Expreflion capitalis eaufa 
import a capital Caufe in our Senfe of the Words. Capitalis 
(fays Modefiinus) Latine loqueniibus omnis Caufa Exijiimationis o;/- 
Aiur. That is, whatever Caufe could in its Event afFeA the 
Honour and Reputation of a Perfon^ fuch Caufe was Capital. 

Cauie 



Book I. Of an O r a *r o r.* 77 

Caufe can be tried, may it not become a Queftion, 
in the Civil Law, whether a Man who is rated 
by "the Conferit ot his Mailer, ' becomes not there- 
by, X upon making up the Rolls, free ? Was 
there not a Cafe that gftuaily happened in the laft 
Age, when the Father of a Family came from 
Spain to Rsme^ leaving his Wife big with Child ; 
he without any Intimation to his Wife, marries 
another at Romey where, he dits inteftate, leaving 
behind him a Son by each Wife ; was it any eafy 
Point that came in this Cafe to be difputed? 
Here arifes a Queftion upon die Rights of two 
Citizens, I mean the latter Son and his Mother, 
who muft have been deemed a Concubine, had 
it been found upon the Trial that a certain Form 
of Words, and not a new Marriage, were necef- 
fary to conftitute the Validity of a Divorce from 
the former Wife. - Muft not a Fellow therefore 
be a moft eminent Scoundrel, who fhall ftrut a« 
bout, with a Face ot Gaiety and Affurance, throw- 

X Upon making up the Rolls,] This Paflage is propofed by fome 
AnDOtators as a. very carioas Field for Criticifm. The Original 
IS iSi Luftrum conditum. Camerarius informs ns^ that he faw a 
very old Copy, where the whole PafTage runs thus. Cu^ qua^ 
ritur is qui Domini Voluntate cfnfusjity ft non conditum Luftrum fit. 
Jit ne Lther ? Et continuone an tribus Lufiris conditis tdherjit. I 
ihall leave the Difcuffion of the Authority of the two Readings 
to thofe who are inclined to purfue the Matter farther; it is fuf- 
ficient to take^notice here, ift. That if a Perfon was upon the 
Rolls of the CenfuSy it would appear that at the Time of making 
up thofe Rolls* every Perfon whofe Name was contained ia 
them could, and upon any future Occafion might have appealed 
to them _ for Proofs, that he was then a Roman Citizen : For 
this fee Cicero % Oration for Archias the Poet. 2dly, It would 
appear' frdm his Oration for Cacina, that tho' a Man was a 
Slave,, his being enrolled in the Cenfus rendered him ir^e. Thefe 
two Coniiderations feem to determine the Reading of this Paf- 
fage as I have tranilated it. Condere Luftrum was no other than 
finifhmg the Rolls, at which Time, we fee by Li'vy, certain Plays 
were celebrated. 



\ 



y £■*._ 



^8 On the Ch>nA.;R a ef £ r.' jfeook f. 

ing bis Eyes firft to one Side, and then to ano-- 
tKer, fWaggering over all the ForUm with a vaft 
'Train, offering and tendering Prote6lion to hifr 
Clients, Affiftaoceto bis Frieiukvand the Giiidance 
of his illuminated Underftanding and Advice al- 
moft to all Rome^ yet {hall be ignorant of thefe 
and fuch like Laws o^ bis ofwn-Gouii try ? 

C H)A.P. XLI. 

HA V I N G diftufs'd: the Impudence; Imuf!' 
now have a Totfchf at the Lazitiefs and f n- 
dolence^ of Mankind. Fbr, granritig" the'Knbx^- 
Icdge of ^he Civil Law to^ be an' extenlive, thorn/ 
Study, yet its vaft tJtility'oughr to" fpur Mankind 
t6 undertake- the^Fatigiic of ftudyittg^ it. Yet, ill* 
the mean time, immortal Gods ! (I fhould not' 
fay this in^ the Hearing of Scavola^ had not he him- 
felf ufed tO' own-it) thereis' not ail^Ai-t the Wofid^ 
more eafily attained to: X own; that the" geheril^ 
Opinion for certain- ReafonS' is otherwife*-, firff, 
' becaufe your antientPraftitionerSjWho are theHead 
of this Eroftflioflj thar they may retwfi and inereafe 
theip InflUttfce,' dort't care t(>^ have thdr Art madtf* 
comlnoni In the next place, after it had be'en 
pubmh'd,^and the Prbcefs' of it ex?piaiftfd^ by^ Cn.' 
Plavius^ nobody could rediice his artful Digeft into' 
a methodical.Order. For nothing can- be reduced? 
into an Att, unleft the Perfon who attempts it^ 
befides. knowing, the Principles which he wants to 
reducev has^ Skill enoagh taftrike an Art om of 
Principles -that have nev^r been reduced to onef'. I 
was willing that the Brevity- with which I have* 
explainMmyfelf upon this Head fhbiald lead-nne' 
into a Utile Obfcurity,,but I will endeavour if I 
can to explain my Meaning. 

ch'ap. 



B^K I; OfanQviATtoRi ,79 

C H A P; XLII; 

1 ■ • \ 

Ala M.O ST all the. PriaqipfcsL thata are no^ 
reduced, into Arta wejne formei^ diiperfed 
and dii&paced. Thus ia Mufic ^ Tiiiii0S^ Sbiaaad^ 
and Measures : In Geooartrj v lines. Figures^ 
Spaces, Magcd tildes.: Ia Aflroncany, the. Utf^o^r 
lution of the. Heaveasi, ths Ri& .aiid Settings and 
Motiona of Scars : In ^ Grammar ^ the roadin^ of 
^oetSy an Acquaintance with Hiflocys, the Tmatr 
port of Words, a certain. Mannsr.of AirticidaticMi>^ 
And. in.our Profcffion of EloquEnce-, lubTentioa, 
Embellilhnaent, Arrangement,. MemQrjr, A)(9:ion4 
all theie formerly were unknow43v od they^ i^ined 
too widely difiipated to be reduced: intOt a. Syftenn 
Therefore, a certain Art taken out of fome other 
Syftem, and which Philofophere challenge for their 
own, was employed to cementy and) by a , certain 
Method to combine the Matter- that: thus> lay in 
a Disjunftion and Confufion. Let us, therefore, . 
lay it down, that the Sum q£ tl\e Civil Law is 
the Prefervation of juft and impartial Equity in 
decidiagLupon the Interefts. and Properties of Fel- 
low-Citizens. Its Heads are then to be marked, 
and to be reduced into a. certain Number as fmall 
as ^ofliblc. Every Head comprehends two or 
more Earts, with certain Properties in common, 
but differing in their Species; and tach Part is 
rang'd under thofc Heads: from which they are 
derived* And Definitions muft be laid down^ 
cxprelling the Force appropriated to every Term, 

* Grammar^ It appears that the Antients by the Study of 
Grammar meant th« Study of what w« call ths BMs Let ires. 

whether 



86 0/Z lfi&^ C H A R A C T E R. BoOK I. 

whether it relates to the Heads or the Parts. A 
Definition again is a fhor( and limited Explanation 
of the Properties of the Thing which we want to 
define, I fhoiild give Examples of thefe Parti- 
culars,: were I not fenfible before whom I ipeak : 
I (hall now comprehend what I proposed in as 
Ihert a Compafs as I can. For were I at Leifure 
to do wh^t I have long meditated ; ihould any one 
while I am bufied fet about it, and when I am dead 
.accomplifh it ; firft, to digeft the whole Civil 
Law iiito its different Heads, which are but very 
few -, and then to branch out thefe Heads, as it 
were, into So many Members ; and next define 
the Power that is appropriated to each ; then ihall 
you have a compleat Syftem of the Civil Law, 
lefs difficult and obfcure than important and difiPii- 
five. And yet, in the mean Time, while what 
is now diffipated is a connefting, let us be en- 
riching the noble Study of the Civil Law with what 
we can pick up and gather in ranging through all 
Quarters. 

CHAP. XLIIL 

HAVE you never taken Notice that C. Acu- 
koy the Roman Knight, who now lives, and 
ever has lived with me, a Man whofe Genius is 
formed to excel in every Art, but who has very 
little ftudied any other than this, is now fo much 
Mafter of the Civil Law, that when you leave 
this Company you (hall find none of thofe who 
are at the Head of the Profefljon beyond him. 
For every thing in it is plain to your Eyes, to be 
found in daily Praftice, the Ccnvcrfation of Man- 
kind, and the Forum, rather than in a Multitude of 
Volumes, and Extent of Reading. For the fame 
* Principles 



Book I. Of an Or at oii. 81 

Prirtciples were, by a great many, publilh'd in 
Words ; then, by the Alteration of a few Terms, 
they Were tranfcribed agaiil and again by the fame 
Authors, There happens another Encouragement 
and Affiftance, that is taken very little Notice 
of in the Study of the Civil Law^ which is * the 
great Pleafure and Satisfa&ion one has in know- 
ing it. For if a Man is in love with other Studies^ 
he has a ftrong Pidure of Antiquity thro* the 
whole of the , Civil Law, in the Books of the 
Priefts and the Laws of the twelve Tables ; fincc 
he thereby learns the old Signification of Words, 
and certain Kinds of Adions inftrufk him in the 
Practice and Hiftory of our Anceftors* If a 
Man is intent upon the Study of Civil Polity, a 
•Study which Scavola fays belongs not to an Ora- 
tor, but to a different Branch of Knowledge, he 
fees all of it comprehended in the twelve Ta- 
bles, where the whole Syftem of Civil Duties 
and Dependencies is defcrib'd. Or, if a Man is 

* Tie gteai Tkafuri and Sathfaaion] 1 belici^c CrajTus may 
have the Saffrage of all facCeeding Ages for what he has ad- 
vanced here There certainly never was (o excellent a Digeft 
of Laws formMy as was that of the twelve Tables, for fecuring 
Property; and had the public Liberty obtained as ftrong t fiar> 
rier» the Conftitationof the /SMv^ur Government, in fome Senfe» 
might have been faid to be immortal. In the mean Time, tho* 
we juftly wonder at the Uegle6l which, as appears from the 
Words ofGciro, prevailed at ^^jm, with regard to this Study, we 
perhaps in Englamd are as defedive as to the Civil Law* This 
is a moftmiferable Omiffion in the Education of yonng Gentle- 
men.who have a Profped of being one Day Members of the 
Briti/b Legiflatare, where the mod important Points as to 
Peace and War turn npon the Principla of the Civil Law, and 
where even many privateCaufaand Matters of Right that come 
before them, can never be either anderftood or decided but by 
a Knowledge of the Civil Law ; In &ort, what Gter9 here 
puts into £e Mouth of (^affus is bat too applicable to our 
own Time and Country. > 

G iochanted 



/^ 



ti dn the Character Book: I. 

inchantcd with the refiftlefe Power of .fpccious 
Philofophy, I will boldly venture to fay, th^r 
the Source of all his Difputatioqs is contained in 
jc Civil Law. For it is by thia that the greateft 
Dignity is to be acquired ; when we fee . fincere^ 
juft, and honeft Endeavours crown'd * with Ho- 
nours, Rewards, and Diftindttons j while the Vices 
id Frauds of Mankind a?e punifliM with Lofs, 
Difgraico, Fetters, Whips, Banilhmcnt,^ Death. 
And wc are taught, not by Difputations. endlefr 
and full of Quibbling, but by the Autfiority and 
San^ion of the Laws, to fubdue.our Paffion^, to 
check all our Afieftions, to.guird ourovvn. Pror 
percy, and to refrain our Thoughts, our Eyies, our 
Hands from that of another. 

CHAP. XLIV. 

LE T them all take it ill if they pleafe, but I 
will fpeak what I think. By Heaven! ia 
my Eyes, the fingle Volume of the Laws of the 
twelve Tables,, with regard to the Source and 
Principles of Equity, is preferable to the Libra* 
ries of all the Philofophers that ever Uved, both as 
to the Weight of Authority, and Extent of Uti^ 
iity. But, if the Love of our Country is, as it 
bught to be, our ruling P^ion ; a Paflion that 
is fo ftrong and fo natural as to induce * the 
wifeft of Mankind bo prefer his Ithaca^ (which, like 
a little Neft, is perch'd upon a Clufter of CragSy) 
to Immortality itfelf : With what a Paflion ought 
we then to be fir'd for a Country that "has the 

*The*w:ffft of Mankind'^ Our Author here means Uijffef^ 
whofe ruling- Paflion, ac ording to Homer, ua& the Love o) ti\% 
Councry, which according to iome Critics, was not near fo 
contemptible as Cicere makes it ajfear in this Paffage. 

iPre^ 



Book t Of aH Ok At d »• t% 

Pre-eminence pver all other Countries, of being, 
the Seat of Valour, Empire^ and Dignity! It is 
the Senfe, the Manners, the Government of this 
Country that we pught firft to be acquainted with, 
both becaufc flie is our common Parent, and be- 
caufe we ought to prefume that the Plan of Go- 
vernment, upon which her Conftitution w^s found- 
ed, di(covers equal Wifdom, with that Conduft^ 
by which ' her Power has been rear'd. You will 
be able likewife to difcover the Joy and Sutis- 
faftion arifing from the Knowledge of the Law^ 
fince you may eafily petceive how much our An- 
fccftors, in Sagacity, excell'd the reft of the World* 
if you pleafe to compare their Syftem of Laws 
with thofe of LycurguSj Draco^ and Solon. Fot 
It is incredible how uncouth^ and almoft ridicu- 
lous all other Syftems, befides our own, are. I ufe 
to have a great deal of Difcourfe upon this Subjedl: 
every Day, while t prefer the Sagacity of our 
Countrymen to that of all other Nations^ efpc- 
cially the Greeks. For thefe Reafons, Sc^evola^ \ 
I affiroi'd, that the Knowledge of the Civil Law I 
is neceflafy to thole who Want to be accomplifh*^ j 
Orators* 

CHAP. XLV. 

GIVE me leave now to obfervc, thatnobpdy 
can be ignorant how much Honour, Intereft 
And Dignity it communicates to thofe who are 
at the Top of the ProfefTion. Therefore, as in 
Greece^ the meancft of Mankind hire themfelves 
out for a pitiful Fee, as Afllftants to an Orator 
In a Trial, ^d are by them call*d nfuyii^urMoi^ 
Jpyrneymen; on the contrary, in Rome every Mart 

•of the grcatcft Quality and Figure, like ^/'w 

Ga Septus 



^4 On the Ctt AHA tr%jL Book I. 

Sextus^ whom, for his Knowledge of the Civil 
Law, a great Poet call'd, A Adan^ 

mtb thj bejl Hearty and with the wifefi Head^ 

with a great nqany others, who, tho' they raiied 
themfelvcs to Dignity by their Genius, yet, by their 
Praflice in the Law have found that their Au- 
"^ thority was of more Weight than their Abilities, 
Can a more honourable Shelter be found, under 
which we can pafs an old Agp with Dignity and 
Luftrcy than the Study of the Law ? Fpr my own 
i^art, 1 own that this is a Relief which I have 
provided even from my Youth, not only with a 
View to my Pradtice at the Bar, but even to 
grace and embellifh my old Age ; that when, as 
the Time now draws near, my Strength (hall fail 
me, I may (hut out from my Houfe that Solitude, 
which is generally the Concomitant of Years. 
For what can be more honourable than that an 
old Man, who has difcharg'd the Honours, and the 
Duties he ow'd to his Country, (hould boldly fay 
^ith the Pythian ApoUo in Ennius 5 that he is fucFi 
^ one as, if, I will not fay all People and Princes, 
but his Countrymen, do not afk his Advice, they 
muft be 

Uncertain as to their own Affairs \ but hy my AJJift- 
ance I difmifs thofe who came to me in Doubt ^ undoubt- 
ingy andMaJiers of the Meafures they ought to purfue 5 
that they may not rajhly plunge into perplexed Matters. 
Now it is paft Queftion, that the Houfe of a 
Lawyer is the Oracle of the whole City. For the 
Truth of this I appeal to the Gate and the Avte- 
nue of ^intus Mucius^ which, in his valetudinary 
State, and advanced old Age, js now the daily 
Refort of Multitudes of Citizens, and frequent- 
ed by Men of the greateft Quality. 

CHAP. 



{ 



Book I. Cf an Okatoil, 85 



CHAP. XL VI. 

k 

v 

WH A T I am now going to fay docs not 
require any long Harangue ; That an Ora- 
tor ou^ht to be acquainted with the public A&n 
that relate to Matters of State and Government, 
and likewife with the Records of Hiftory, and 
Trania£tions of Antiquity ; for as while he pleads 
in private Caufes and Trials he n>uft often have 
recourfe to the Civil Law, and therefore, as I laid 
before, that Knowledge is neceflary to an Orator ^ 
£0 in public Caufes that come before our Courts, 
AfTembJies, Senates y all this Hiftory and that of 
Antiquity, the Weight of the public Laws, to- 
gether with the Syftem and Science of Govern- 
ment, ought to be as intimately known to thofc 
Orators who are converfant in the Commonwealth, 
as if they were the <jrounds of their Study. For 
what we are now in Search ot is not, an ordinary 
Pleader, nor a Bawler, nor a Pettifogger, but 
fuch a Man as may be the high Prieft of this 
Art, a Man who, notwithftanding the lavifh En- 
dowments Nature has beftow'd upon Mankind, 
Ihall appear tobc a God ;one whofe Qualifications, 
as a Man, (hall not feem to have been form'd upon 
Earth, but the peculiar Gift of Heaven : One, 
who dignify'd by the Name of an Orator, and 
not the Enfigns of an Herald, can walk unhurt 
thro* the Array of his Enemies: One whoi 
Tongue can expofe to the Hatred of his Coun- 
trymen, and to Purtilhmcnt, Fraud and Guilt ; 
and under the Proteftion of his Genius can free 

^nnftf-^i y frrtm t\]f fpni^\t\^^ nf ^he^XA^P ! Who 

ijan roufc a fpfaitlels defponding People to Glory, 

03"^ jcclaim^ 



86 On the Char act ek Book L 

reclaim them from Infatuation, point their Rage 
againft the Wicked j or footh their Refentment, 
if exafperated at the Worthy ? In fho rt, onej gghQ 
by his Eloquence can cith er awaken or cotnpofe 
aU the Emotions of the human SouITTronxiffiSz^ 
ever Motive or , Caufe they mav DTOceed. , It 
would be an egregious Miftake in any Man to ima« 
gine that this Power has been explained by thofe 
who have wrote upon Eloquence, or can be by 
me in this narrow Compafs } fuch a Man hiufi; 
not only be unacquainted with .my Infufficiency, 
but even with th« Greatnefe of the Subjeft. It 
is true, fmce you infiiled on it, I have pointed out 
in the Method I thought tnoft proper, the Foun- 
tains from whence you may draw, and the Roads 
that lead to, this Study; not that I pretend to 
condudt you ip Perfon, for that would be an in- 
finite and a ufclefs Labour y I for my Part have 
ihewn yqu the Way, and, as is ufually done, 
pointed with my Finger to the Fountains, 

CHAP. XLVIL 

SURELY, replies Mucins ^ to me, it appears 
that you have done enough, and more than 
enough, to further them, if they are really ftudi- 
ous > For, as the famous SocraUs us'd to fay, he 
had gained his End, if, by his Inftruftion, any 
Perfon was efieftqally fpurr'd to endeavour ^t the 
Knowledge and Difcermnent of Virtue j becayfe, 
whoever is once in carneft in preferring no Cha- 
radter to that of being a worthy Man, will find 
very eafy Work in all the remaining Part of the 
Study; in like Manner I am perfuadcd, that if 
you have a Mind to enter into thofe Principles 
^tCraJfus hi^ explained in his Difcourfe, that 



Book I. Of nn Orator. 87 

from this open Av^uc ind Door, you will eafily 
reach the Attainments you aim at. 'Tis true, an- 
fwers SulpiciuSy that what we hare heard, lays us 
under great Obligations, and give us great Plca- 
fure. But we are at a Lofs, Craffus^ for a few 
Things more. And in the firft Place, as to thofe 
Points which you very (lightly toucli'd upon^ with 
regard to the Art itfelf ; finceyou owned, that you 
was fo far from difregarding them, that you had 
ikudy'd them. If you will explain thofe a little 
more fully, you will fatisfy every Wilh of our 
longing Paflion : F or now we have heard what 
Things we ought to ftudy-, a Point indeed, of 
great Confequcnce ; but we further wilh to be 
acquainted with the Roads, and . Method leading 
to thefe Objefts. What, replies Grajfus^ if we 
ftiould apply to Antonius^ who, a little while ago, 
complained, that a Pamphlet had dropt from his 
Pen upon , this Subjedt, to explain what he ftiii 
keeps in Referve, and what is yet unpublilhed^ 
and declare to us the Myfteries of Eloquence; 
becaufe, what I have faid, has been to engage 
you more eafily to ft^y with me , and in Cotapli- 
4nce rather with your Pieafure^ than my own 
Cuftom aod Nature? As you pleafe, anfwers 
Sulpicitts% for, from what Antonius fhall deliver, 
we fhall learn your Sentiments- Then, fays Craf^ 
fus^ we defire Antonius of you, fince that Bur- 
then, by the Requefts of thefe young Gentlemen, 
is thrown upon Perfbns of our Years, that you 
explain your Senfe of wtat you perceive is the 
Matter in Qu^ftion, 

CHAP. XLVm 
H Y really, fays Antoniusy I perceive very 
plainly that J am caught j not only by 

G 4 my 



w 



88 On tbeCuAKACTEK Book I. 

my Opinion b^ng afked, as to P(Mnts in which 
I have neither Knowledge nor Experience, but 
becabie they won't fufFer me now to get off froni 
the Thing in the World I have always rooft a- 
voidcd at the Barj which was» fpeaking after you 
Craffiis. But I will enter the more boldly upon 
the Taik you impoie upon me, from this Confiderar 
tion, that J hope the fame Thing will happen to 
me in this Difcourfe, as ufually happens to me 
at the Bar; that no Embellifhments , of Lan-' 
guage are expcfted ; for I am not now to fpeak of 
an Art I never learned, but of my own Prac- 
tice : And the very Obfervations I have cntcr'd 
into my Common-place Book, arc of fuch a N^- 
. ture ; they were not imparted to me by any Study, 
but employed in the Pra&ice of Bufinefs and Cau- 
fes : If they afe not approved by Men of your 
great' Learning, you muft blame your own Un- 
reafonablenefs, in demanding to know from me 
what I did not know myfelf. At the fame Time, 
you ought to do Juftice to my Complaifance, 
fince, not from my own Choice, but to oblige 
you, I fo readily obey your Commands. Says 
Crajfus^ do you, my Friend, only proceed ; I will 
venture to anfwer for it, that you will deliver 
nothing but with fo much good Senfe, as will 
give us no Reafon to repent of our having forc'd 
you to talk upon this Subjeft. For my Part, 
replies the other, I will proceed, and do what in 
my Judgment ought to be previoufly done in all 
Difputes-, which is, that the Subjeft of Difpute 
Ihould be cleared up, left the Debate (hould be 
obliged to wander, and go out of the Way, if 
the Difputants have not the fame Notions of their 
Sqbjeft. For, fuppofing it were alked, wh?it is 

the 



BocfK L Of 4m O RAT OR. J89 

the Art of a General, I fliould > think it right, in 
the firft Place, to fix what is meant by a General •, 
who, as he is appointed, as it were, the Manager 
of a War, we may then add what relates to an. 
. Army, to a Camp, to marching Troops, to En* 
gagements, to Sieges, to Convoys, to forming 
and Ihunning Ambufcades, and other Matters that 
properly belong to the Management of a War. 
And whoever had a Turn for, and a perfe^ 
Knowledge of thefe, I would pronounce fuch a 
Man to be a GeneraL I would bring the Examples 
of the Africani and Maxim \ andinftance Han- 
mbaU Epamnondas^ and fuch other Heroes. But 
were I afkcd who is the Man, that in Affairs of 
Government has employed his Experience, Know* 
ledge, and Study ; I would define fuch a M&n 
thus; The Man who knows, and employs the 
Advantages by which the Welfare of a State is 
acquired and improved; I would infift upon it, 
that fuch a Man ought to be reckoned the Guar- 
dian of a Government, and the Source of public 
Counfel ; and here I would recommend the Ex-^ 
am pies of Pubtius Lentulus^ who once was the 
leading Man in Rotne\ the elder T. Gracchus^ 
§1. MeteUuSy P. yifricanus^ C. Lalius^ with an in- 
finite Number of others, both in Rome and other 
States, fiut if it were a(k-d me, who can pro* 
perly be termed a Lawyer ? I would anfwer; The 
Man who knows how to give his Advice upon, 
and to apply, in the moil cautious Manner, thofe 
Laws, and that Conftitution, that private Men 
gre direded by in a State ; I would name S. JEtias^ 
M. Maniliusj and ?. Mucius^ as Men of this Stamp. 

CHAP, 



ta^. 



h 



(.--- 



^ On the Cu At ACT i^K BodK I 

G H A P. XLIX 

BU T, (that I toay now come to the Studies 
of lefs important Arts) if the Definition of 
a Mufician, of a Grammarian^ or a Poet, were 
alk'd^ I w6uld in like Manner explain myfelf as 
to what each of them profelfes ^ and the precife 
Qualifications, than which nothing more can be 
required. In fhort» the Philofopber himfelfi who 
alone challenges to his own T?dwer and Sagacity 
alnioft the Monopoly of all good Qualities, may 
yet be defined as a Pgcfia o ^ who end^v o ur s a t th t> 
KnowleSEe^'ot the Powers, the JS[amgc» - a n d t hg 
Principles of all Subjeds, divine^and h utntn, w k h 
the Poflbfllon and Practice of the whole Syftem 
of living well ii) the World. But as to tKe Ora* 
tor, fince Re is the immediate Objedt of our En- 
quiry, indeed I don't conceive him to be fuch a 
PerfoH as Ctafus would have him ; for he feems 
to me to engrofs to the fin^e Duty and Profe(^ 
iion of in Orator, the whok Compafe of Know^ 
ledge aad Arts. Af the fartie Time, I think hd 

^ f$ a Peribn who, in ^aufes at the Bar, and fuch as 
mt cpmmon, knows to adapt to his Pleading the 
Words that have the happieft E(k£k upon the 

i Eari and idiofe Expreflions that are moft fuited 
to render his Caufe probable. Such a Man I de- 
fine to be an Orator ; and I would, at the fame 
Time, have him Mafter of Accent, Aftion, and a 
certain Species of Wit : But our Friend Oaffus 
ieems not to confine an Orator to the Bounds of 
that Art, but to thoie of his own Genius, which 
is next to infinite. For his Difcourfe put into the 
Hands of an Orator the Hi^lm of Government i 

and 



Book I. Of i7» O R a T oi. 91 

and I own, Scavohj I w^s a good deal furpri- 
fed that you granted him this Conceflion ; for I havo 
very often feen the Senate brought in by a vciy 
fliort home-fpun Speech of yours to agree with 
you upon the moft important Affairs of State. 
But if M. ScauniSj who I hear is at his Country 
Seat not far from this^ a Man deeply feen in the 
Affairs of Governmem, were to h^ar yo u, Crajfus 
challenge to yourfclf all the Weight of his Dignity 
and political Knowledge, take my Word he would 
foon be with us in Perfon, and by his Look 
and Air frighten us out of ail this prating. For 
tho' he is no contemptible Speaker, yet in Mat« 
ters of Confequente he trufts more to his good 
;Senie than his Eloquenqe. Give me leave to fay 
farther, that fuppollng a Man pofl^fled of both 
Accomplilhments, fuppoiing him a leading Man 
in public Debates, and an excellent Senator, he 
may not for all that be a good Orator; or fup* 
pofing another poiTefs'd of Eloquence, and at the 
fame Time of political Knowledge, no Part of 
his Knowledge is the Confequence of his Skill isx 
Speaking. Thefe Qualities are widely different, 
disjoin'd and feparated from each other, nor di4 
Af, CatOj P. Africanus^ ^ Mitellus^ and C. Lalius^ 
who were all of them eloquent Men, by the fame 
Means attain to their Excellence in Speaking, 
and their Dignity in Government. 

CHAP. L. 

FO R there is no Prohibition, cither from the 
Nature of Things, or from any Law or 
Cuftom, to hinder one Man from being Matter 
pf no n^orc than Qne Art. If Pericles therefore 

w^s 



^2 On the CHARACTtR Booic K 

was a moft eloquent Man, and at the fame Time 
the leading Man in all the public Deliberations of 
the State for many Years ; yet we are not from 
thence to conclude that his Abilities in both arc 
owing to the fame Caufe. Nor if P. Crajfus was a 
good Speaker and Lawyer at the fame Time, that 
the Knowledge of the Civil Law is therefore in- 
herent to Eloquence. For if every Man who is 
eminent in fome one Art or Profeffion, (hall 
likewife aflbciate, with that, another Art, the Con- 
fequence will be, that the Art thus aflbciated 
Ihall feem but, as it were, a Branch of that Art in 
which he is eminent. Otherwife, we may pretend, 
that to play at Tennis, and the twelve Pebbles, 
is a Property of the Civil Law, becaufe P. Atit- 
ciuj is very dextrous at both. And by the fame 
Rule, the Gentlemen whom the Greeks term f iwiitot » 
(Naturalifts) ought to be accounted Poets, be^ 
caufe Empedodes the Naturalift wrote a very fine 
Poem. Even the Philofophers themfelves, who 
pretend to engrofs every Thing as their own and 
peculiar to their Profeffion, dare not maintain 
riiat Geometiy and Mufic are the Qualities of 
Philofophers, becaufe it is allowed that Plato 
was in the higheft Degree Mafter of thofe Arts. 
However, if you will infift upon fubje^ing all 
Arts to Eloquence, you had much better fay, that 
as Eloquence ought not to be hungry and na- 
ked, but befpangled and diverfify'd by, as it 
were, a pleafing Medky of different Subjects, 
he is a jgood Orator who has taken in many Ob- 
jefts with his Ears, many with his Eyes^ 2^ 
run over a vaft Number in thinking, reflect-, 
ing, and reading. That he does not poflefs them 
as ifldifpenf^le, but as Auxiliares to his own 

Pro- 



i-V 



BoDit L Of m Orator.' 93 

Profcflton : For I own that an Orator 6irght to 
be an artful kind of a Fellow, no Novice, no 
Blunderer, no Foreigner, no Stranger in the Ma- 
nagement of Affairs. 

« 

C H A P. LL 

NO R indeed, O^j, am I at all afFe<fted 
with thefe pathetic Touches of yours, with 
which the Philofophers make fo much ado -, / 
mention this^ becaufe you faid that no Man could 
either inflame, or, when inflamed, allay the Paf- 
iions of an Audience, £ffe£bs by which the chief 
Power and Importance of an Orator is difcern'd, 
but a Man who has a clear Infight into the Na- 
ture of Things, the Manners, and Views of Man- 
kind ; in which Cafe, Philofophy becomes the 
neceflary Study of an Orator; a Study in which 
we have known Men even of the moft confum- 
mate Genius, and the greateft Leifure, wafte their 
whole £ives j Men, whofe Variety and Extent 
of Knowledge and Learning I am fo far from 
defpifing, that I admire them ; but, as for us, 
whofe Bufinefs lies with this People,^ and in the 
Forum, it is fufBcient for us to know and talk of 
juft fo much of the Manners of Mankind as 
may Ihew us to be no Novices in the Ways 
of the World, For did ever any great or grave 
Orator, when he wanted to. render the Judge 
angry with his Antagonift, boggle at this, be- 
caufe he did not know whether Anger was a Heat 
of the Mind, or the Defire of punifliing Refent-* 
ment?' Was there ever a Man, who, when he 
wanted to raife a Whirl and Agitation in the b- 
ther Aflfeftipns of. the Soul, either in Judges or 

People 



$4. On theCnAtLAtriiL BooiL t 

^ People, «cprfifsM himfelf in the fame Terms which 
Philofophersf . yfe^ fptpe of whooj fay that the 
Mind ough* «<* to be fufceptibje of any Emptj- 
ons, and that they who in pleading, touch the 
Paflions of the Judges are guilty of deteflable 
Praftices. 'Others of them, whp want to appear 
not fo rigid, and to accommodate themfelvcs to 
real Life, maintain, that the Emotions of tjie 
Mind ought ribt to be very violent, or rather, 
that they ought to be very gentle? But an Ora- 
tor, by his Expfeffion, magnifies and aggravate* 
every Thing, that in the common Praftice of 
Life, is, of itfelf, eiril, troublefome, and to be a- 
voided. At the fame Time, he amplifies and 
embellilhes, by his Eloquence, thofe Objects, which 
to the Generality of Mankind are inviting and 
lovely : Nor docs he want to be thought fo ve- 
ry wife among Fools, as that his Hearers fhould 

take him either for a Coxcomb or a Greekling% 
for while they approve of the Genius, and admire 
the good Senfe of the Orator, they will take it 
Very ill that they are treated like a Pack of 
Fools. But he roves through the Paflions of 
Mankind •, he fo tunes their AfFeftions and Senfes 
as not to want the Definitions of Philofophcrs# 
or to make any Difquifition whether the chief 
Good is feated in the Soul or the Body 5 whether 
k is to be defined by Virtue or Pleafure, or whe* 
ther thefe two can unite or coalefce : He is much 
farther from entering into an Enquiry as to th« 
Opinion which fome hold, that we can have a cer- 
tain Knowldge or thorough Comprehenfion of 
nothing : All thefe are Points, I confefs, of great 
and extenfive Learning, and admitting of many 
copious and various Rcafonifigs, But, Crajfus^ w« 

arc 






Sj... i^' - ■ i -^ • 






Book I. Of an Or at a fi. g$ 

iare in Search of a different, a vdrjr diflferent, Sub- 
jeft; we want a clear-headed Man, artfulby Na- 
ture and Prafticc \ one who has good Senfe enpu^\ 
to trace what are the Wilhes, the Sentiments, the \ 
Opinions and the Hopes ef his Countryrnen, and I 
die Perfons to whofe Underftandings he addrei!es / 
his Difcoinfe. 

CHAP. LII. 

HE ought, as it were, to poffefs^ the S]^tQgp 
of every Kind, Age, [Rank, and to enter 
into the Minds and Affeftion^ with whom he either 
deals, or is to deal with. Bgt as to the Writings 
of Philofophers, let him referve thofe to the Lei* 
fure and Repofe of a TufcuJan Retit^ement fucli 
as this ; left if he (hould at any Time he obliged 
to fpeak upoti Juftice and Honour, he fhould bor- 
row from Plato \ who, in endeavouring tp ex- 
plain thefc Points in his Writings, created a new 
Kind of a State, to be found only in his Books j 
fo widely did his Sentiments of Juftice differ from 
the Cuftoms of Life, and the Manners of States* 
But if thefe Maxims are to be approved of by 
States and People, who, Craffus^ would have par- 
don'd you, a Man of the greateft Eminence, and 
of the greateft Intereft of the State, for expreffing 
yourfelf in this Manner in a very great Aflcmbly 
of your Countrymen. * Deliver us from our Ca- 
lamities ; deliver us out of the Jaws of thofe wbofi 
Cruelty cannot he fatiated with our Blood ; Juffer us 
not to be Slaves to any but you all^ to whom we 

• Deliver us from our Calamities] Thefe arc the Words of 
Qrajfus in an Oration which he pronooaced before the People 
opon a Difference that happenM betwixt the Senators and the 
Knights. This Fragment is fufiicient to fliew the Diftrefs V9 
wluch the Senate was reduced upon that OccaGoii.< 

hth 



96 On the Ch A R a d T e R Book L 

both can pof and d^ awe Subtniffion. -f I don*t touch 
upon tbofe CalandHes into which, as they maintains 
a brave Man cannot fall. I don't take Notice of 
thofe Jaws, from which you wanted to be delivered, 
left your Blood, by an iniquitous Proceeding, 
ihould be fuck'd out \ a Circumftance which, ac- 
cording to them, cannot happen to a wife Man; 
but you ventured to go fo far as to fay that not only 
you, but all the Senate whofe Caufe you was 
then pleading/ were y«^>5^</. Can Virtue, my 
Friend, be fubjefted according to thofe^ Authors 
whole Diftates you comprehend in the Office of 
an Orator ? Virtue, the only Thing that is eter- 
nally free \ Virtue, that while Bodies arc captive 
by the Chance of War, or pinion'd in Fetters, 
ought ftill to aflert her own Authority and un- 
queftion'd Liberty in every Circumftance. But 
what did you fay farther, that the Senate not only 
could, but ought to be the Slaves of the People ? 
What Philofopher is fo effeminate, fo fpiritlefs, (b 
abfolutely dependent upon bodily Pleafure and 
Pain, for Happinefs or Mifery, as to admit of this 
Dodtrine ? That the Senate Ihould be the Slaves 
of the People, they to whom the People have en- 
trufted, as it were, the Reins and Checks of Go- 
vernment over themfelves ? 

CHAP- LIIL 

THEREFORE I fay, I thought that 
while you fpoke this, you fpoke divinely, 

f I ilon*t touch upon thoje Calamities] The Reader in this, and 
many other Paflages, will perceive, that Cicero allades to the 
Opinion of the Stoics, who admitted of no Mediocrity or Trim- 
ming in Principles, and made no Allowances for Pailions and 
Circumftances. 

2 but 



Booit 1. Of an 0& AT 6ii, 97 

but * P Rutilius Rufus^ a learned Man, and one 
who has applied to Philofophy;- maintain*d that 
what you faid was not only unfeaibnablej but fcan- 
dalous and profligate. The fame Perfon ufed to 
blame + Servius Galba^ whom he faid he remem- 
ber'd very well, becaufe, upon an Aftion brought 
againft him by L. Scrihonius^ he had worked the 
People to Compafllon, when M. Cato the levere 
and implacable Enemy of Galba^ declaimed agaiqft 
him with great Bitternefs and Vehemence b.fore 
the People in a Speech which he himlelf has publifti'd 
among his Antiquities. The Circumftance, how- 
ever, for which Rutilius blam'd Galba^ was becaufe 
he bad rear'd almoft upon his Shoulders the young 
Son of Caius Sulpicius Callus^ who was his Relation ^ 
and thereby drew Tears from the People, upon 
their remcmbring how dear his Father had been 
to them •, and recomnoended himfelf and his two 
iatant Sons to the Guardianlhip of the Roman 
People ; and had made a Kind of a Soldier's Will % 
by which, without obferving any of the ufual For*- 
malities, he had left the People of Rome the Guar- 
dian of their Orphan State. Rutilius faid, that 
by thofe touching Circumftances, tho* Galba was 
both hated and detefted by the People at tjiat 
Time, he was acquitted; and I find the fame 
Thing faid in the Writings of Cato^ who obferves, 
that had it not been *for the Children and his 
Tears, he had certainly been condemned. Rutilius 
exprefs'd great Indignation at all this, and faid, 
that Banilhment, nay Death itfelf, was preferable 

♦ P. Rutilius Rufus] Cicero has here introduced the Charac- 
ter of a true Stoic in the Pei'fonof this Rutilius. 

+ Ser*vius Galba\ This Galba was a very artful, cunning, Fel- 
iow ; when he was Governor in Spain he was guilty of great 
Oppreflion andCruelty,and therefore impcach'd upon his Return. 

H to 



98 0« /i&^ C H A R A C T E R. BoOKL \, 

to fuch Mcannefles. Nay, he not only faid it, 
but prov'd by Hfe Pradice, that he thought as 
he fpoke; for, (tho*you know it,) he ^s a Mirror 
of Innocence, and though no Man in Rome had 
cleaner Hands, or a purer Heart, he not only .re- 
fused to be a Suppliant to his Judges, but to make 
ufe of any Ornament or Liberty in his Defence, 
other than the fimple Language of Truth. He 
allotted fome Part of his Defence to Cotta^ a mod 
eloquent Youth, the Son of his Sifter. ^ Mucins 
likewife had fome Share in that Defence, and 
fpoke in his own Way, without Pomp, but with 
Purity and Perfpicuity* But if you, Crajfus^ who 
a little while ago maintained that an Orator, in > 
order to accomplifh himfelf in Eloquence, muft 
have recourfe to the Difputations of Philofophers, 
had then pleaded; and had you been at Liberty 
to have fpoken for RuHliuSy not as a Philofopher, 
but, in your own Way, as an Orator ; tho* thofc 
Ruffians had been, as they really were, the Plagues 
of the State, and deferved fevcre Punifhment; 
vyet the Power of your Eloquence had rooted all 
the hardened Guilt from the very Bottom of their 
SouU; now we have loft the Man, who in making 
his Defence, fpoke as if he had been try*d in 
Plato\ Utopian Commonwealth, Not a Groan 
was heard •, not a Rapture of Approbation broke 
from any of the Advocates; hot a Pang was 
felt ; not. a Complaint put up ; nobody implorM 
. the State ; nobody interceded for the accufcd. 
In Ihort, nobody fo much as ftampM on the 
Ground with his Foot; for Fear, I fuppofe, left 
it might give Offence to the Stoics. 

» 

CHAP. 



Book I. 0/ tf« O r a t o r. 99 



CHAR LlV. 

T H I S' Confuhr Romm imitated the famous 
Socrates^ who a$ he poflefs'd the greateft 
Wifdom and ' Purity of any Man alive, when 
he was try'd for his Life, fpoke in fuch a 
Manner, that he appeared not as a Suppliant or a 
Prilbner, but the Lord and the Mafter of his 
Judges. Inibmuch, that when Lyjtas^ that moft 
eloqii^nt Orator, had brought him an Oration 
ready penn'd, which, if he pleafed, he might have 
got by Heart, and repeated in his Defence-, he 
chearfully read it, and own*d that it was pret- 
tily wrote; but, faid he, if you brought me &- 
cyonian Shoes that were very neat, and juft fitted 
me, I fliould refufe to wear them, becaufe they 
don't become a Man •, fo I think that thi§ Oration 
is eloquent and rhetorical, but not ftrong and 
manly. The Confequence of this was, that he 
too was condemn'd; not only in the firft Votes, 
by which the Judges only determine whether they 
Ihall condemn or acquit, but in the Sentence 
which, by their Laws, they are afterwards obliged 
to pafs. For at Athens^ when the Accused was 
condemn'd, if it, was not for a capital Fault, the 
Punifhment admitted, as it were, of a Valuation. 
When in Confequence of the firft Sentence, the 
Accufed was left to the Power of the Judges, he 
was aflc'd, what he could chiefly plead as a Plea, 
for the Mitigation of his Punifliment ? Socrates be- 
ing aflc'd this Queftion, anfwer'd, that he deferv'd 
to be diftinguifliM with the higheft Honours and 
Rewards ; and th^t Viftuals Ihould be publickly 

H 2 and, 



loo On the C h a R A c t ife li Book L 

and daily ferv'd up to him in the * Prytaneum > 
which in Greece is look'd upon as the higheft 
Mark of Honour. This Anfwer fo much exaf- 
pcrated the Judges, that they condemned to Deatk 
that moft innocent Perfon, who, if he had been 
acquitted, (which I own is nothing to us, however, 
I wifh, on Account of his great Genius, that he 
had) how can we bear with thefe Philofophers, 
who now (though Socrates was condemned.for no 
Other Crime but his Want of Eloquence) pretend, 
that all the Rules of Speaking are to be fought , 
from them ? I won't difpute with them about 
the Superiority or Truth of the two Profeflions, I 
fey only, that Eloquence is different from Philofo- 
phy, and may, without it, be perfeft. 

CHAP. LV. 

FOR' now I perceive, Crafus, why you fo 
violently extoU'd the Civil Law •, while you 
was fpeaking of it, 1 f did perceive it. In the 
firft Place, you put yourfelf under the Tuition of 
Sc^evola^ whom we have all of us the greateft 
Reafon to love, for his exceeding Sweetnefs of 
Temper. His Art, which you found undowered, 
unattended, and undrefs'd, you enrich'd by the 
Wealth and Ornament of Words. In the next 
Place, as you had beftow'd a great deal of Pains 
and Labour upon this Art, while Sdevola was the 
Prompter of your Studies, and your domeftic 
Tutor, you was afraid, if you did not exaggerate 

♦ Prytatiewn] This was a Place in Athens were their pub^ick 
^fFairs were tranfaded. 

f I d:d percci<vi if^ There is a Difference in reading here; 
fome vopies have it turn ^uam diubas non vUiharn* 

its 



feooK I. Of an ()RATOJi. loi 

its Praife by your Eloquence, that you lyui loft 
7our Labour. But I don't even find Fault with 
that Art ; let it have all the Importance you have 
afcribed to it. For without Doubt it is greats 
difFufiye, generally interefting, highly h9nour*d» 

,and our moil eminent Citizens are now at the 
Head of that Profeflion. But take Care, my 
Friend, while you want to drels the Study of the 
Civil Law, left you ftrip and bare it of thofc 
Ornaments that are appropriated to it. Now, if you 

^ had exprefs'd yourfdf fo as that the • Profeffions 
of Law and Eloquence were reciprocal, then you \^ 
fliould have laid the Foundations of two eminent 
Arts, equal in themfelves, and fliaring the fame 
Dignity. But, by the Argunient you juft now 
formed, you confefs'd that a Man may be, as many 
have been, a Lawyer, without that Eloquence 
which js the Subjeft of our prefent Enquiry ; but 
you deny that without the Knowledge of the 
Civil Law it is poffible to form an Orator. Thus, 
you make a Lawyer in himfelf nothing, but a fly 
cunning Limb of the Law, a Crier of A<5kion3, 
a Bawler of Forms, and a Word-Catcher. But, 
becaufe an Orator in his pleading often makes 
ufe of Law, therefore you have join'd the Study 
of the Law to that of Eloquence, as if the for* 
riier were the Waiting- Maid of the latter. 

CHAP. LVL 

BU T, as you have exprefs*d your Surprize at 
the Impudence of thofe Advocates, who 
with very little Knowledge make very great Pro- 
feflions, or in Caulcs prefume to treat of the mofi: • 
important Points in the Civil Lawj thougfa tlicy 

H 3 are 





102 0« /A^ Ch AR ACTER BoOK I. 

are both ignorant of them, and never have learn- 
ed them; both thefe feeming Abfurdities may 
be very eafily and readily defended. For we are 
jiot a Bit furprizM that a Man who is ignorant of 
the very Forms of a Contract:, ftiould be capable 
of defending a Woman who has been contrafted ; 
tho* the Art of navigating a great and a fmall 
.Vcffel is the fame ; yet it does not follow that a 
Man who is ignorant of the Form of drawing up 
an Agreement, fliould for that Reafon, be incapable 
of pleading a Caufe upon the Diftribution of the 
Eftate of a Family. As to your bringing as In^- 
ftances fome of the principal Law Caufes try'd be- 
fore the Court of the Centumviri^ what Caufe among 
them all could not have beep very eloquently fpoken 
to by a Man of Eloquence, tho* unikiU'd in the 
Law ? In all thofe Caufes indeed there was a very 
great DiJ^reement of Opinion among the greateft 
Men of the Law j efpecially in that of Manius Cu^ 
rius^ which was lately pleaded by you ; in the Cafe 
of C. Hojlitius MancimtSj and of the Boy who was 
.born of a fecond Wife, without any Intimation 
of the .Father's Intention to marry being fent to 
the former Wife. I Jfhould, therefore, be glad ro 
know what Affiftance the Knowledge of the Law 
qan be of to an Orator in thofe Caufes, whereip 
tTie Lawyer, who has the Superiority^ fucceeds 
not by Means of his own, but of a foreign Pro- 
feffion; I mean he is fupported, not by his Skill 
in Law, but by Eloquence. Indeed I have very 
often heard this, that when Publius Crajfus ftood 
for the vSldilefhip, and was favour'd by Ser. Gal- 
ba^ who was his Elder, and. of Confuiar Dig- 
jiity, becaufe he had contrafted the Daughter of 
Crajfus to his own Son Caius^ that ^ certain 



Country 



Book I. Of an Or at o it. 103 

Country Fellow apply'd to Crajfus for his Ad- 
vice: After he had "taken Cr^^j afide, and laid 
the Matter before him, he was difmifs'd with a 
very juft Anfwer, but lefs favourable than the Situ- 
ation of his Affairs required: That mhtnGalba 
faw him look melancholy, he called him by 
Name, and alk'd him what the Nature of the 
Cafe was upon which he had confulted Crajfus ? 
After the Man had told him with a vifiblc Con- 
cern what it/wasi I fee, anfwer'd Galha^ that 
CraJfuS hath given you his Opinion while his 
Mind was perplex'd and bufied. He then took 
Crajfus by the Hand ; hark- ye, fays he, how 
did you ^ take it in your Head to give fuch an 
Opinion ? Then that great Man began to infift 
upon it, that his Opinion was right and unquefti- 
onable. But Galba^ with Variety and Plenty of 
AUuiions, brought a great many parallel Caies, 
and talked a good deal in Defence of Equity 
againft Law; that Crajfus being no Match for 
Galba^ tho' he was a well-fpoken Man, but not 
at all comparable to the other, he run to his 
Books, and brought the Writings of his Brother 
Publius MuciuSj and the Commentaries of Sextus 
jEUus^ as Vouchers for what he advanced j yet at the 
fame Time he owned that Galba had form'd a very 
plaufible, and aln)oft a very juft. Argument. 

CHAP. LVII. 

YE T Caufes that are of fuch a Nature, that 
no Doubt in Point of Law can arife in them 
never ufe to be try*d in Courts. For who fues 
for an Eftate upon the Right of a Will, which 
a Father had made before his Son was^ born ? No- 

H 4 ' body. 



104 On the C HA R a c T £ R Boole I. 

body, , becaufe fuch an Event ftts the Will afide ; 
fo that Cafes of this Kind admit of no Difpute 
in Law. An Orator therefore may without any 
Blame be ignorant of this Part of the Law ih 
Adions, ft Pirt that without Doubt is by ftr the 
greateil. feut, in Law Cafes, that are canvafted by 
Men of the greateft Skill in their Profefliori, it is 
no difficult Matter for an Orator to find fome 
Authority to fupport the Part that he defends j 
from which, after he has received the miffile 
,Weapons, he himfelf (hall dired them by the 
Force and Nerves of Eloquence. But, (I fpeak 
this under Correftion of my very good Friend 
Sc^evold) when vou defended the Caufe of -y9nr 
■F athcr-in-Law from Writings and Rules oLL aiV; 
did you not rather feize the Province of defend- 
ing Equity, Wills, and the D<rftination. of the 
deceased? But give itie leave to fay;, as I was 
often prefent and heard you, you won ovtr the 
greateft Part of the Votes by your Wit, your 
Humour^ and your delicate Touches bf Raillery. 
When you played upon the mighty Dil'covery 
ITiade by Sc^vola^ and admired his Penetration 
when he found out, that a Man before he dies 
fnuji be bvrn\ when you made niany Colleftions 
from the Decrees' of the Senate, from common 
Life and common Talk, not only with great Subf- 
tiky, but with great Humour and Wit ; but all 
tending to prove, that if we are to follow the 
Letter more than the Spirit flf a Deed, nothing 
can be etfefted. Therefore the Trial had ih it 
a great deal of Mirth and Pleafantry, nor can I 
pnderftand that the Knowledge of the Civil Law 
xvas of any Service to you ; but the noble Energy 
pf Elocjuence, worked up with fo gracefvil a Spi- 
rit, 



Book! OfanOjiAroal 105 

rir, was df jgreat. Mucins himfelf, the Defender • 
bf paternal Authoritjj, that Champion, as it were, 
for a paternal Inheritance ; when he pleaded a- 
gainft you in that Caufe, '^hkt did he difplay 
that feemed to ht taken from the Stlidy of the 
Civil Law ? What Statute did he quere? ' "Whit 
Obfcurity did he clear up to the unlearned in 
any Part of his Speech? Why, the whole of 
his Difcourfe turned upon this fingle Point,- that 
the Letter of a Deed ought to have griateft 
Weight. But what is this more than every School- 
boy praftifes with his Matter ; when in their 
fexercifes they are taught in Caufes of this Kind, 
fometimes to defend the Letter, anti fbmetimes 
the Equity of a Deed? And is it likely that 
in the * Caufe of the Soldier, had you either 
itppeared for tKe Heir or the Soldier, that you 
would have placed the Strcfe of your Pleading 
upon the Precedent of Hojtilius^ and not in the 
Power and the Addrefs of Eloquence that is fo pe- 
culiar to yourielf? Had you defended the Tcfta- 
xntnt you would have pleaded in fuch Manner, as 
that the whole Syftem of the Law of Wil^s ihould 
have feem'd to be attacked in the Trial ; or had 
you defended the Caufe of the Soldier, you would 
in you I* own Way have rais'd his Father from the 
Grave ; you would have placed him before our 
Eyes ; he would have embracM his Son, and 
with Tears in his Eyes would have recommen- 
•ded him to the Protedion of the CentunmrL 

* Caufe of the Soldier, frc] Pontius^ who had fcnt his Son to 
fhc War againft the Cimhri, pcrfuaded by a falfe Information 
that -he was there llain, laJ)pointed by his Will forquattn for his 
Heir, ard died: But his Son, his lawful Heir, on his Re- 
turn from the Army, got the Will to be let afide by a Becrcc 
of the Senate. 

By 



10^ On tbe Charactek Book I. 

By Hcj^vcns! He would have forc*d the* very' 
Walls and Flints to have wept and cried, fo 
.that the whole f uti Lingua ^noncupajjet fhould not 

have feem'd to be written in the twelve Tables^ 
which you prefer' before all the Libraries in the 
World, but Part of an old Ballad. 

CHAP LVIIL 

NOW, to your Charge of Indolence againft 
young Men who negleft to ftqdy this very 
cafy Art. As for its E'afinefs, let them look to that 
who, upon the very Arrogance of knowing it, 
ftrut about as if they had compaflcd the moft 
difficult Talk in the World. In the next Place, 
do you look if; for you fay that it is a very 
\ t?Sy Art^ at the fame Time you owned that 
it w'as ^ not' abfolutcly an • Art^ but that fome 
Time or other, if fomebody fhould. learn another 
Att for reducing this into an Art^ then it would 
be an Art. In the next Place, as to its being 
full of Delight, thefe Gentlemen will freely make 
over to you all their Part of the Pleafure, and be 
contented to be without it -, nor is there one a- 
mongft them, who having any Thing to ftudy 
would not chufe to commit to Memory the ♦ Ten- 

cer 

•)- Uti Lingua noncupajfet] This was a Part of Law Jargon that 
is tmpoffible to be tranflated fo as to give the Reader any Infor- 
mation of what is meant. 

% Eafy Art.] I have paritofely prcferved the Repetition of the 
Word jirt, becaufe Antonius feems to intend that it ihpuld throw 
the Reafbning ofCraJuj into a ridiculous Light. 

* Teucer o/* Pacuvius] I'his PacwvJus, the Son of the fa- 
mous Poet Ennius, being himfelf an excellent Tragedian, was 
born at Biundifiumy and died in extreme old Age ; for ^inti- 
lian faysy he lived about ninety Yean. We have his Epitaph in 

A. Gel. 



Book I. Of an Ok at or: 107 

cer of PacuviuSj than the Statutes of Mamtius 
upon Bargains and Sales. As to your Opinion, 
that the Love of our Country ought to be the Mo- 
tive of our ftudying the Learning of our Ancef- 
tors, don't you fee that the old Statutes either 
are become obfolete, or repealed by new Laws ? 
But you think that the . Civil Law renders Men 
good, becaufe it enafts Rewards for Virtue, and 
Punifliment for Vice. I always was of Opinion 
that if t Virtue can be communicated by Rea- 
fon, it is to be communicated thro' Precept and 
Perfuafion, and not by Threats, Force, and Ter- 
rors. For even without the Knowledge of any 
pofitive Law we may be fenfible of the Beau- 
ty of this Maxim, to guard againft Evil. But 
with regard to myfelf, whom you make an Ex- 
ception to, as if I were the only Man who can 
acquit myfelf in Caufes without the leaft Know- 
ledge of the Law, my Anfwer, Crajfus^ is, that 
I never either ftudied the Civil Law, nor was I 
ever fenfible of any Lofs for not knowing it, in 
thoie Caufes which J was capable of managing in 

A, Gellius, B I. Ch. 24. thas wrote by kimfelfy which may 
ferve to fhew his great Modelly. 

JdolefcenSy tamen etfi proper as ^ hoc te Saxum rogat, 
Vti adfe afpicias: dtinde quod fcriptu^ft legos. 
Hie funt Pof/^ Marcei Pacuviei//^ 
OJfa, Hoc njolebam ne/cius ne effes^ f^ale. 

•\ Virtue can he commumcated '\ The pagan Philofophers, as well 
as the Chriftian Divines, had tbeir Difputes upon the Subjed of 
Vircae; namely, if one could be virtuous by the Afliilance of 
Nature alone, without the Afllftance of Reaion, or if they both 
contributed. Socrates was of the lad Opinion, butotners declared 
for thefirft, faying, that Virtue depenried upon theConflitution 
of our Temper. The Peripatetics followed the Mean between 
both Extremes, for they taught that there is a Seed of Vir- 
tue implanted in our Souls that flourifhes by fupernatUral Aid. 

our 



On the Ch Ak A CT E.R 6aOK I 

our Courts.' F6r it is one Thing to be an Artift 
in a certain Way and Craft, and another to be 
neither a Dunce of ^ Novice in common Life, 
and* the general Phftice of the' World. Who 
^morigfl: lis niay aot tiiake a Circuit around our 
Eftates, or to look ' into our Affairs in the CJoun- 
itry^ cither for Profit or Delight ? Yet thfere is 
lio Man who is fo void of Sight and Senfe as to 
be abfolutely ignoraiit of all that relates to Seed- 
Time and Harvefr, of prutilng of Trees and 
Vines, at what Time of the Year, and ^ after whtt 
Manner they ar'e done. Thfertfore if ahy G^ntfe- 
Inan was* to furvey his Eftate, or to give. ^ any 
Orders, rd hjis Steward ^or his Manager in tfep 
Country ypon Agriculture, 'muft he niake hifp- 
fclf Maftet- of the'-Works^of $ Magd the Carthagini- 
an ? Or ought we to Be contented with the commoh 
Knowledge we' have' acquired on this Subjedl ? 
Why thlefefore^ i'n like Manner, may we not be 
fufl&ciently fldird'in* theCivil Law, efpecially as 
we are worn out'ih Caufes in the Bufinefs and 
Prafticein the Forum, fo far, at Jeaft, as not to 
fisem Forieigners and Strangers in our own Coun- 
try? But if fome more obfcure Caufe were laid 
before us, do you imagine it would be Very diffi- 
cult for us to confult with our Friend Scavola^ 
tho* the very People who laid their Caufes before 
us, bring every Thing to us ready confultcd and 
prepared? But if the Difpute Ihall happen upon 
a^ Matter of Faft, upon Marchgsw}]jjck. lie at a. 



% Mago f^f Carthagirtaaifi.] The A«thor of cigbt and twenty 
Books upon Country Affairs ; which were judged to be of fo 
great Ufc, that Dionyjius of Utica, by Oder of the Senate, tranf- 
)ated them into Latin. There remains to this Day fome Frag- 
ment oi ^e faid Work in the Vatican Library ct Ronu, 

Dif- 



Bdbic h Cf a$$ Qua t «i jk* 109 ' 

Difta ocg, upon De^ds and PreferOil^tiidasi vre jthi^ 
mufi: ftudy fome crooked, and oft^n ibme diffi- 
cult Points. If wc are to carlvafe tlic Laws or 
the Opinions of Men ikill'd in Lawy are we to 
be afraid, tho* we have not ftudied the Civil 
Law from our Youth, that we /hall not be able 
to make ourfelvcs Mailer of thefe? 

• 

CHAP. LIX. 

BU T you will afk, is the Knowledge of the 
Civil Law of no Benefit to an Orator? 
I cannot affirm this of any Study, elpccially with 
regard to the Perfon whofe Eloquence ought to 
adorn the diiferent Subjefts he treats of; but 
thofe Qualities that are indifpenfable to an Orator 
are fo many, fo great, fo difficult, that I am un- 
• willing his Application fhould be diverted into too y/ 
many Studies. How can any one d^ny that an 
Orator in his Attitude and Deportment while he 
Ipcaks, may. not be improved by the Adtion and. 
Grace of Rofcius^ yet it never came into any 
Man's Head to perfuade any of thofe young Gen- 
tlemen who ftudy Rhetoric to praAtfe the Airs 
of a Player, while they are learning how to be- 
have. To * an Orator what is fo neceflary as a 
good Voice ? Yet nobody who wifties to fpeak y 
well, fhall ever have my Advice to be a Slave to 
his Voice, like the Greeks and the Tragedians, 
who for many Years together declaim in their 
Seats, and every Day before they pronounce a 
Word, in their Beds gradually raife their Voice, 
and when they have done pleading fit down and 
Ihift, and, as it were, make it go through a Scale, 
from the Iharpeft to the fullcft Accent* Were 

we 



no On the ChAp. AC TtR Book I. 

we to follow fuch a Praftice, our Clients would 
lofe their Caufes as often as we attempted it, 
* before we could get half thro' the Scale, But 
if it is improper for us to be at much Pains about 
our Gefture, which is of great Service to an Ora- 
tor, and our Voice, which of itfelf is the greateft 
Recommendation and Support of Eloquence ; and 
if, in improving both, we are to confult our Con- 
veniency, we are to confult the Leifure which 
we have from our daily Praftice ; of how much 
lefs Importance is it for us to demean ourfelves 
to making ourfelves Mafters of the Study of the 
Civil Law? which, in general, can be both un- 
^ derftood without Learning, and is fo far different 
from thefe Matters, in that, the Voice and Aftion 
cannot, upon any Emergency, be brought or bor- 
rowed from elfewhere ; whereas all the Utility 
of the Civil Law in any Caufe, let us have 
ever fofllbrt' Notice, may be known either from 
Books or its Profeffors. Therefore, thofe moft 
eloquent Men have their Under-ftrappers, who 
are Ikiird in Law Affairs, though they themfelves 
know nothing of the Matter, and thofe Fellows, 
as you told us a little while ago, are call'd Solici- 
tors. But, in this Refped, our Coutrymen take a 
much better Method in guarding the Laws and 
the Rights of their Country by the Authority 
of the moft eminent Men. But the Greeks , if 
they thought it neceflary that an Orator himfclf 
Ihould be fkilPd in the Civil Law, and not leave 
every Thing to a Solicitor, would never have ne - 
gleded this Precaution. 

* Before *uje could ^et half thro'' the Scale"] All this PaiTa^ for two 
or three Lines before can fcarcely be tranflated ; the Original is 
Peanem aut Mumonem^ which probably anfwers to our Sol fa la. 

^ CHAP. 



Book L (>f an OiiAr or. hi 

CHAP. LX. 

AS to what you fay about old Age being 
fenced againft Solitude, by the Knowledgp 
of the Civil Law, that may very welj be, for 
they commonly make a great deal of Money by 
it ; but the Subjedt of our Enquiry is not upon 
what is ufeful to us, but what is neceflary to an 
Orator. And, becaufe we derive from one Artiil 
in his Way a great many Properties refembling 
thofe of an Orator -, * the fame Rofcius ufed to 
obferve, that the older he grew he would render 
the Notes of the Mufic, and the Recitative, more 
flack and flow; but if he who was bound down 
to a certain Quantity of Numbers and- Feet ftu- 
died how to indulge his old Age, how much 
more eafily may we net only relax, but even alter 
the whole Chime ? For you, CraJfuSy muft be fen- 
fible of the Multiplicity and Variety of the Kinds 
of Eloquence, and I don't know but you your- 
felf prove this, fince you have long Ipoke a great 
deal more flowly and gently than you ufed, and 
yet the Smoothnefs of this grave Manner is as 
much approved of as all the commanding Power 
of Energy you formerly exerted ; and there have 
been many Speakers, who in the Manner faid to 
be ufed by Scipio and Lalius^ always delivered them- 
felves in a fmooth Manner, and never, like Servius 
Galba^ rending their Throats and their . Sides. 
But, fuppofing you are neither willing nor able 

^fhe fame Rofciu ] It would appear from this, and many 
other Pauagcs of Antiqqi^y, that the Roman Players, while they 
were adding, fpoke to certain Airs of Mufic which accompanied 
their Voice. 

to 

•f. 



iiq On the Ckar ACTS R. Book 1. 

to pradlifc this at fuch a Time of Life, would 
you be afraid that yaur Houfe, the Hoiife of fuch 
a Man, fuch a Citizen, if unfrequented by the 
Lovers of Wr^nglipg, would be defcrted by others ? 
Indeed I am fo far from that Opinion, that I 
not only think that the Comfort of old Age is 
not to be placed in the Multitude of thofe who 
come to confult upon Law Affairs ; but I would 
long for your dreaded Solitude, to be as it were ^ 
Harbour of Repofe-, for I look upon Leifure 
from Company to be the moft chariping Comfort 
of old Age. As to the other Points, even tho* 
they are Auxiliaries, I mean the Knowledge of 
Hiftory and the municipal Law, ♦ the Progrefe 
of Antiquity, and Variety of Precedents; if I at 
any Time have Occafion for thefe, I will borrow 
them from my Friend Longinus^ who is both a 
very worthy Man, and extremely well verfed in 
fuch Matters ; neither fhall I be againft the Ad- 
vice which you juft now gave, their reading and 
hearing every Thing, their applying to every com- 
mendable Study, and every Branch of polite 
Learning. But, upon my Word, Crajfus^ if they 
Ihould take it in their Heads to follow your Di- 
ftates, I don't fee what Time they can have for 
going through them ; you likewife feem to me to 
lay too fevere a Talk upon Gentlemen of that 
Age, tho* I own it is almoft neceflary for their 
attaining to what they purpofe. For both fud- 
den Praftifings upon Caufes that are propofed, 

* The Progrefs of Antiquity.'] Cicero probably means by the Ex- 
preffion of Iter /Iniiquitatisy which is in the Original, the Progrefs 
which the Laws of the twelve Tabl^ made trom one Country 
to another^ before they were digefted and became the Laws of 
Rome. 

' < and 



Book I. Of an Orator. 113 

and correft, digefted Declamations, together with 
the Exercife of the Pen, which, as you have 
well obferv*d, both finifhes and diredts the Ora- 
tor, are Taflcs of great Difficulty •, and the Com- 
parifon which you mentionM one ought to make 
betwixt his own and foreign Compofitions, with 
the extempore Praftice of praifing or taking to 
Pieces; of defending or refuting, upon reading 
the Writings of another Author, is no eafy Matter, 
either for the Memory or the Judgment to com- 
pafs. 

CHAP. LXI. 

BU T there was another Thing that was quite 
frightful ; and, upon my Word, I am afraid 
that it will tend more to difcourage than to promote . 
this Study; for you infilled upon each of us being, 
as it were, a Rofcius in his Profeffion ; you faid 
that what was excellent did not meet with fuch 
Applaufe, as what was faulty gave lading Diftafte ; 
yet I don't think that our Performance is exa- 
mined to critically and nicely as is that of a Playerv 
To prove this, I have often feen an Audience pro- 
foundly attentive to Gentlemen of our Profeffion, 
even though they were hoarfe; becaufe the Sub- 
jcdt itfelf, and the Caufe, fixes then! ; but, if jEfo^ 
pas has got but a little Hoarfenefs, he is hifs'd. For 
when People look for nothing more than to pleafc 
their Ears, they are fliock'd at every. Circumftancc 
that in the leaft takes oflf from that Pleafure. But . 
in Eloquence there are many Properties that are in- V 
terefting enough to pleafe them ; and if all of irfiCfe 
are not of the greateft, as moft of therti ire of 
great j Confequeiice, it neceflarily happens that thofe 
which are fo fhould appear wonderful. That I 

I may 



\ 



114 0« /i&^CHAR ACTER BoOKI. 

may, therefore, return to our firft Propofition ; let 
rTCTOrator be a Perfon, z^CraJfus has defcribed him, 
I who knows the moft proper Method of perfuading -, 
V — but let him be conSn'd to the ufual Praftice of 
this City and Forum -, and quitting all other 
Studies, be they ever fo inviting and noble, let 
him, as I may fay. Night and Day, be preffing 
to this Mark; let him imitate DemqftbeneSj the 
famous Atbeniatiy who is allow'd to be a moft 
excellent Orator, whofe indefatigable Study and 
Application was fuch, as is faid, that in the firft 
Place, by Habit and Perfeverance, he correfted 
the Defefts of Nature . For having fuch an Im- 
pediment in his Speech, that he could not pro- 
nounce the i?, which is the firft Letter of the 
Art he was ftudying, he grew fo perfedl by his prac- 
tifing before-hand, that he wajs thought to pro- 
nounce it as well as any Man of his Time. In the 
next Place, as he was naturally Ihort- winded, yet 
by keeping in his Breath, he came to fo great 
Perfedlion in Speaking, that in one continued Pe- 
riod, as may be feen in his Works, he twice 
raifed and lower'd his Voice. We are farther told, 
that putting Pebbles into his Mouth, he ufed at 
one Breathing to pronounce a Number of Verfes 
with a loud Voice, and that too not ftanding, 
but walking, and mounting a fteep Afcent. I am, 
Crajfus^ entirely of the fame Opinion with you, 
that young Gentlemen ought to be quicken'd 
to Study and Application by fuch Motives as 
thefe. As for the other Accomplilhments, which 
you have coUedled out of different Profeflions and ' 

• 

Arts, though you are Mafter of them all your 
felf, yet I think they are quite diflind from 

what 



Book: I. OfanOviArot. • * ' ^ 

what is properly the Bufinefs and Duty of an 
Orator. 

CHAP. LXII. 

WHEN Antonius had done fpeakingj it is 
very certain, th^it Cotta and Sulpicias feeni'd 
to be pii^zl'd to find out on whole Side the 
Truth lay. Then, faid Crajfus^ you have form'd 
a meclj^wcal Orator, my f^riend, though I dpn't U- 
know but that you think otherwife, and are now 
pradtifing upon us that wonderful and unrivaFd 
Talent you have in Confuting; a Praftice that 
is one Part, indeed, of an Orator's Profeflion^ 
but has» for fome Time, been taken up by PhiJo* 
fophers, elpecially thofe who ule to talk on both 
Sides of any. Queftion that is propofed, with great 
Readinefs and Flow : But it never entered into 
my Head to think, that all I had to do, efpecially 
in this Company, was to lay before you the Qua- 
lifications of a Fellow, who dwells in the lower 
Forms of a Court, and never rifes above' what 
the immediate Emergencies of his Caufes require. 
No, I had my Eye upon ,a higher Object, when 
I gave it as my Judgment, that an Orator, ef- 
pecially a if (?w^» Orator, ought to be void of no 
Accomplifhment. But as you have confined the 
Profeflion of an Orator within certain narrow 
Bounds, it will be the more eafy for you to ex- 
plain to us what you require, as to his Duties and 
Learning. But I think we may refer that to 
another Day •, for this Day we have faid enough : 
At prefent, let Sc^evola^ becaufe he propofed to 
go to Tufculanum^ reft a little till the Heat is abated, 
while we,'fince the Time of the Day requires it, 
take Care of our own Health. When this was 

I 2 agreed 



J l6 0» (if C H A R A C T E R BoOK I. 

agreed to by the whole Conipany, indeed, fays 
Scavola^ I wifti that I had not made an Appoint- 
ment to fee Lalius at Tufculanum to Day ; I fhould 
have heard Antomus with great Pleafure •, and, 
as he was rifing, why, really, fwd he, with a 
Sniile, it did not give near fo much Pain, that 
Antomus puU'd our Profeflion of the Civil Law 
in Pieces, as it gave me Pleafure that he confefs'd 
he knew nothing of it. 



T^e End of the firft Days Cofiference: 









M. TuLnus Cicero 

O N T H E 

CHARACTER of an ORATOR. 

The fecond Conference. 
CHAP. I. 

I Y dear Brother, if you re- 

' member,when we were Boys,. 

f we were ftrongly perfuaded. 

■ that LmHus Crajfus knew but 

' as much as falls to the Share 

of a School-boy ; but that 

' Marcus Antomus was void and 

ignorant of all Learning j and 

there were a great many, who, tho' they were 

convinc'd of this Faft, yet that they might 

with greater Eafe divert our Eagernefs in 

the Purfuit of the Study of Eloquence, induft- 

rioully g^ve out what I havejuft now advanc'dj 

and inferr*d, if unlearned Men were Mailers of 

the beft good Ssnfe, and a wondrous Eloquence, 

I 3 • that 



Il8 0« /A^ Ch AR ACTER BoOK II. 

that all our Labour muft be in vain, and that 
the Defire of that excellent and wife Man, our 
Father, in taking fo much Care of our Educa- 
tion, wa$ filiitlefs. We us*d, as Boys, to con- 
fute thofe Kind of Reafoners, by Inftanccs 
within our own Family, our Father, and our 
Friend Caius Aculeo^ and our Uncle Lucius Ci- 
cero \ becaufe our Father, and Aculeo^ who had 
married our Aunt, and was a great Favourite with 
Crajfus^ and our Uncle, who was fet out in his 
Journey to Cilicia with Jpfonius^ told us a great 
deal, with Regard to his Application and Liearn- 
ing.: And as we, with our Coufins, the Sons of 
Aculeoj were applying to thofe Studies which Craf^ 
fus approved of, and were educated by thofe 
Teachers whom he employed, we underftood thus 
much, (for tho* we were Boys we had Senfe e- 
nough to fee this) that he fpoke the Greek Lan- 
guage fo well, as that one would have thought 
he was Mailer ot no other Tongue, and that he 
threw out fuch Things to our Teachers, in que- 
flioning them, at the fame Time dilcourfing of 
fuch Points upon every Occafion, that nothing 
fcemed new, or foreign, to his Knowledge. As to 
Antoniusy tho' I had very often heard from my 
Uncle, one of the beft-natur'd Men in the World, 
in wha^t Manner he had ^pply'd himfelf to the 
Converfation of tfte. moft learned Men, both at 
Athens and Rhodes \ yer, when I was but a very 
young Man, I often put a great many Queftions 
to him, fo far as the Bafhfulnefs, natural to Youth, 
would fuffer me. I own, that at prefcnt, I write 
nothing that is new to you ; for, even at that 
Time, I informed you, that in many different 

5ubje£ts I touch'd upon, I never fouad him ei- 
* ther 



Book II. Of an Ovl at oVi. 119 

ther a Novice, or ignorant of any Point, provi- 
ded it lay in thofe Arts, of which I could form 
any Judgment. But the Charafters of thcfe two 
great Men lay in this, that Crajfus did not affe& 
to appear fo much ignorant of, as to defpife thofe 
Points, and to prefer, upon every Subjeft, the 
good Senfe of his own Countrymen to that of 
the Greeks : But Jntonius thought the beft Way 
to recommend his Eloquence to the People, was to 
appear as if he had never learn'd any Thing, 
Thus, the one thought he would have greater 
Weight by defpifing, and the other, by feeming 
to know nothing at all of, the Greeks. As to the 
Views which each had in this, they are nothing 
to our prefent Purpofe: But there is another 
direftly anfwering my Defign on this Occafionj 
which is, that no Man ever made a Figure, or \ 
exceird in Eloquence, not only Without ftudying \ 
the Art of Speaking, but without being Matter 1 
of all Manner of Learning. J 



CHAP. II. 

FO R almoft all other Arts exift independent- 
ly of one another, but that of Eloquence, 
which is the Art of Speaking fenfibly, fkilful- 
ly, and beautifully, hath no determined Limits 
within which it can be bounded. An Orator 
muft be eloquent upon every Subjeft that can be 
the Subject of Difquifition , if he cannot make it 
appear that he is capable of this, he muft bid 
adieu to the Profeflion of Eloquence j therefore, 
tho' I own at the fame Time, both in our State 
and in Greece itfelf, where this Profeflion has ever 
been in the higheft Reputation, that a great ma- 
ny of the fineft Genius, and greateft Accom- 

I 4. plilhments 



I20 On tbeCBARAcrEH - Book IL 

plifhments in Speaking, have appeared, without 
being ablblute Matters of the whole Circle of 
Science; but that fuch an Eloquence, fuch a 
Command of Expreflion as Crajfus and Jntonius 
were Matters of, can exitt, without an Acquain- 
tance with every Subjeft that belongs to fo ex- 
tenfive a Knowledge, is what I flatly deny. This 
has made me the more freely commit to Wri- 
ting, the Converfation which they once had a- 
mong themfclves upon thofe Subjects: both to 
deftroy an univerfally prevailing Opinion, that 
CraJJus was not the mott learned Man of his Age, 
and that Antonius was intirely illiterate : And that 
I may, if I can by any Manner of Means, pre- 
ferve upon Record what I thought a divine Dif- 
courfe concerning Eloquence, which pafs'd among 
the greatett of Men, or, to fpeak plainly, that I 
may do all I can to refcue from Oblivion and Si- 
lence their Glory, which is now beginning to 
decay. For, if there were any Means of being 
acquainted with their Merit from their own Wri- 
tings, perhaps I (hould not think myfelf ob- 
liged to be at fo much Trouble; but as the 
one wrote very little, I mean that has come to 
oqr Hands, and what he did write was when he 
was very young, and the other left fcarcely any 
Thing behind him ; I thought it was a Duty I 
owed to the Memory of thofe great Mep, if I 
could, to render it immortal; fince the lively 
Remembrance of them both now dwells upon 
my Mind. This \ attempt with the greater Pro- 
bability of Succefs, fince I don't write any Thing 
concerning the Eloquence of Ser. Galba^ or C 
Carbo^ where I might have a fair Field of Fiftion, 
becaufe it is dead in the Memory of all the 

World. 



Book II. Of tf» O r a t or. lai 

World. But what I publilh is well known to 
thofe who have often heard the very Perfons I 
mention -, thus, I ihall recommend two very great 
Men to fuch as never faw either of them, by the 
Evidence of thofe who are now alive, and upon 
the Spot, and who have both feen^ and remem^ 
ber them. 

CHAP. III. 

NOR, thou deareft and beft of Brothers, do 
, I infift upon it, that I (hould inftruA you in 
that Reading which you think unpolitc : for what 
Stile can be more delicate or beautiful than yours ? 
but becaufe either as you yourfelf own, thro* 
Choice ;(or as Ifocrates that Father of Eloquence, 
ufed to fay of himfelf) you have avoided to fpeak 
in public thro' Bafhfulnefs, and a certain gene* 
rous Modefty, or elfc, to make ufe of your own 
Wit, becaufe you thought that one Talker was 
enough, not only for one Family, but almoft for 
one State-, but I don't think that thofe Wri- 
tings will be rank'd by you in that Kind, which 
may be defervedly ridicul'd for the Poverty of 
thofe Authors in all the fine Arts, who have 
leftured upon the Subjedt and Study of Eloquence. 
For it appeared to me, that nothing was omitted 
in the Converfation oiCraJfus and Antonius^ that 
any Man of the greateft Parts, the keeneft Ap- 
plication, the fineft Learning, and the deepeft 
Experience, could be fuppofed to have known or 
minded : This you may eafily be a Judge of, as 
you have chofen to acquire the Science and The- 
ory of Speaking from your own good Senfe, but 
have left the Trade to me. But that I may the 

foone 



122 On tbe Caracter Book IL 

fboner finilh the impoitant Point I propofe to 
handle in thofe Pages, without any farther Preamble 
I (hall proceed to the Difcuffion of my Subjeft. To 
begin then; the next Day after all this paffed, 
when it was near Eight in the Morning before 
Crafjiis got out of Bed, while Sulpicius was fitting 
by him, and Antonius walking with Cotta in the 
Portico, old ^intus CaluIuSj with his Brother 
• Cuius Julius^ unexpeftedly came to fee them. 
When Crajfus heard this, he rofe in fome Confa- 
fion, and they were all in an Amazement, fuf- 
pefting that the Motives of their Vifit was fome- 
thing more than ordinary. After their ufual friend- 
ly Compliments to one another had paffed ; well, 
fays Crajfus^ I am glad to fee you; any Thing 
new? Nothing at all, anfwer'd Catulus^ for you 
know the Plays arc celebrating, but I fancy you 
will think us very impertinent, or very trouble- 
fome. When Qefar came laft Night from his 
own Country Seat, to me at Tufculanum^ he told 
me he had enco^nte^ed Saevola coming from you, 
who told him fome Things that had furprized 
him, as that you, whom I could never by any 
Mean^ entice into a Difpute, talk'd a great deal 
with Antoftius upon Eloquence, and that you had 
difputed almoft in the Manner of the Greeks^ 
as if in a School: Therefore my Brother pre- 
vailed on me to come hither, tho' I own my- 
felf I was not very averfe from hearing, but was 
afraid left we fhould break in unfeafonably upon 
you. For he told me that Scavola had faid, a 

* Caius yulius] The Reader is not to imagine that this was 
tie famous Di£lator» tho^ of the fame Name and Family ; for 
the Didatorwas not above ten Yerrs of Age at the Time when 
this Converfation is fuppoied to pafs. 

good 



, Book II. Of an Or at otl. 123 

good Part of the Convcrfation was delayed to 
this Day. If you think this was aftiag too for- 
wardly, you mufl: impute it to Cafari if a. little 
too familiarly, to both of us ; for it certainly give^ 
us a great deal of Pieafure to wait upon you, 
if our Vifit be not unfeafonable. 

CHAP. IV. 

INdeed, replies Crajfus^ whatever was the Mo- 
tive that brought you hither, I am eJccecd- 
ingly pleas'd to fee at my Houfe Men for whom 
I have fo great AfFeftion and Efteem; yet at 
the fame Time I fpeak nothing but Truth, when 
I declare that I had rather you had been here 
upon any other Motive than that which brought 
you. I can fay from my Heart, that I never 
was Icfs pleafed with myfelf than I was Yefter- 
day. Yet it happened rather . thro* my Good- 
nature than any other Fault of mine-, for while 
I was humouring the young Gentlemen, I for- 
got that I was an old Fellow myfelf, and I did 
what I had never done, even while I was young, 
that is, I difputed upon Points of Science. But 
one Thing happens luckily enough, that my Roll 
is play'd, and Antonius now appears upon the 
Stage. Says defar then, Indeed, Cra[fuSy I am 
fo very defirous of hearing you engaged in a long, 
continued Debate^ that raither than put up with- 
out fomewhat from you, I am contented with 

hearing you in comnv^n ConVerfation. I am in- 
deed willing to try whether my Friend SulpiciuSy 
or Cotta have more Influence with you than I, 
and to prevail with you to extend fome Part of 
your Good- nature to C^/«/^/j and myfelf. But, if 

that 



1 24 0/2 /Af C H A R A C T E R BoOK II. 

that is any Way difagreeable to you, I will not 
prcfs it, nor, w hile I dread Iqft y o" fliould be im- 
pertinent, will t run the Rilk of your thinking 
me fo. Upon my Word, reply M he, defar^ of all 
the Words in our Language, the Word + imper- 
trnent carries with it the greateft Emphafis ; for 
the Perlbn whom we call impertinent claims that 
Title from his being not pertinent ; and this Word 
is of great Extent in our Language; for the Man 
wha neither knows how to fuit himfelf to the 
'Occafion, who fpeaks too much, or afFefts to 
difplay his Parts, or has no Regard to the Cha- 
rafter or Conveniency of the Company, or to 
any other Refped, or who is either aukward or 
Joquacious, that Man is an Impertinent, This is a 
Vice, which thofe very learn'd People the Greeks 
are fo over-run with, that they have not even a 
Term to exprefs it ; fo that if you (hould make 
tlie (Irifteft Enq.uiry bow \ht. Greeks term an Imper- 
iinenty you fliall be never the wifer. But of all 
the numberlefs Tribe of /»?/>^//;/^»/j, I don't know 
if any are more intolerable than tliey who, like 
the Greeks^ with«/Ut any Regard to Place or Per- 
fons, difpute with great Acutenefs upon Points 
\ that are either very abftrufe or unneceffary. Thefe 
young Gentlemen Yeftcrday drew us in, againfl: 
our V/ills and Inclinations, to this Exercife. 

f tmperfnent] The Original is Ineptus ; I won't promifc that 
all the Latin Word' that are played upon in this Difcourfe will 
anfwer as happily in oar Language as this happens to 
d<>. 



CHAP. 



Book II. Of an Ovi at ob.. 125 



CHAR V. 

SAYS Catulus: Why ^ Crajfus, tvcn the Greeks^ 
who, in their own States, were eminent and 
great, as you are, and we all defirc to be in this 

Country, were far from being like their Country- 
men, who- in our Days J ftun our Ears. But 
yet when they were at Leilure they did not at 
all decline Convcrfations and Difputes of this Kind : 
And tho' they who have * no Regard to Opportu- 
nity, to Place, to the Characters of Mankind, may 
appear in your Eyes in the fame Light of Imperti- 
nence they deferve -, yet at the fame Time doth 
not this Place feem very inviting ? Here we fee 
a Portico itfelf, under which we walk ; here is 
the Place of Exercife; here are Numbers of 
retiring Places : All thefe in fome Meafure revive- 
in our Minds the Academies and Schools of the 
Greeks. Or can this be thought an unfeafonable 
Time, when we have fo much Leifure-, a Cir- 
cumftance that feldom happens, and now falls out 
very conveniently ? Or can we be reckoned Men 

f Stun our Ears, '\ Before the Times of Lalius^ Philofopliy 
was in no Efteem at Rome, When the Romans begun to iludy 
ity agreat many Greeks came to Rome, in order to teach it; but' be* 
ing generally very empty Fellows, and of no Reputation in their 
own Country, when they put themfelves under the Patronage 
of the great Men of Rome, they foon fell into Contempt. Thefe 
are the Fellows our Author {peaks of here. Streh^eus. 

X No regurJ to Oppcrtunity /] The Reader, no doubt, by this 
Time, begins to have fome Idea of the Character of a great Man 
and a fine Gentleman at Rome. Cicero, we may believe, draws 
his Chara6ter after Life ; but more of that in the remaining Part 
of thefe Notes. It is (ufficient for me to take notice with what 
Propriety he has marked the chara^erof an Impertinent, and 
how uieful the Opinion of fo great a Man as Cicero, in this 
PaiTa^e, may be to the CoridviCt of a young Gentleman, full of 
fprightly Parts* at his firft fetting out in Life. 

3 ^f 



126 On the Character Book II. 

of fuch Charadters as are averfe to this Method 
of Difputation, fince all of us think that thefe 
Studies are the very Life of Life. Says CrnJJUsy 
I conftrue thefe Things in a quite different Senfe-, 
For, firft, I think this Place of Exercife, thefe 
Seats, thefe Portico's, were introduced by the 
Greeks themfelves, Catulus, for Diverfion and A- 
mufement, rather than Difpute-, becaufe Acade- 
mies were invented many Years before Philofo- 
phers began to prate in them ; and even at this 
Time, when all Academies are poflefled by Phi- 
Idfophers, yet their Scholars like much better to 
hearf the Whizing of the Quoit, than the Tongue 
of their Teacher; for as foon as the Quoit founds x 
they leave the Philofopher to go to anoint them- 
felves for the Exercile, in the Middle of a Dif- 
pute upon the moft important and weighty Sub- 
jefts; thus by their own Confefllon, they pre- 
ferred the flighteft Pleafure to the higheft Utility. 
As to the Leifure you have mentioned I agree 
with you, but the Produft of Leifure ought not to 
he the puzzling, but the unbending of the Mind. 

* Tie Life of Life,"] In the Latin it is Nullam Vitam ejfe duca^ 
ntttt i that is to fay, as we fuppofe that we cannot live comfort* 
ably and pleafantly w/thout the Knowledge of Eloquence ; for 
fo Cmijfusy in the remaining Part of the Chapter, underftands thd 
Words nulla <vo5 eJfe eos^ quM Vitam infiut'uem fine his Studiis puta* 
retis After the fame Manner, Plato^ in his di Repuh, Lihj i« 
where he relates the Complaints of ihe old Men, who had loft 
all the Pleafures of Youth ; thtn indeed^ faid they, ive lvi>d hop* 
piljy but nofw wue dontfo much as li^ue. Which Place of Plato^ 
Cicero hath ^us imitated inSeneSlute ^od Vduptatibui carerent^ 
fine qui bus null am Vitam putabunt. Pearce. 

f The li'hizing of the ^^it.] Lat, Difcus, it was probably a 
large Weight, wuh a Handle made of 1 hong, and the young 
Gentlemen try'd who could throw it fartheil. We may obferve 
here, that the Academies of the Ancients have been aH upon 
one Plan, divided into dilFtrent Apartments, for the feveral £jc- 
ercifes ; They usM to anoint themfelves with Oil, before they 
went to any bodily Exercife. 

C H A P. 



Book JI. OfanOHATovL. izy 



C H A P. VL 

IH A V E often heard my Father-in-law fay, 
that, his Fathcr-in-Law Laltus generally went 
into the Country with Scipio^ where they ufcd in 
a wonderful Manner to renew their Youth, when 
they had flown from Town, as it were from a 
Cage, into the Country. I would be very tender 
of what I faid concerning fo great Men, but Sea- 
vola ufed to tell me, that they frequently gathered 
Shells . and Perewinkles at Gaeta and Laurentiumj 
and ftoop'd to all Manner of Relaxation and Di- 
verfion.of the Mind.. For the Matter is in the 
fame Manner as when we lee Fowls form and 
build their Neds for tHe Ufes of Procreation, and 
their own Conveniency, and after they had ac- 
compliflied fome Part of their Labour, in order tO" 
alleviate the Toil, flutter about, when their Work 
is over,, with Freedom and Gaiety : Thus our 
Spirits, /tired with the Bufinefs of the Forum and 
the City, when freed from Anxiety and Toil, 
exult and want to be at large. Therefore what 
I urged in the Caufe of Curius, againft Sc^evola^ 
was quite according to my Sentiments. Why, 
fays I, Sc^vola, if no Will is valid but what 
you draw up, we mufl: all come to you wirfi our 
Papers •, you ihall be the fole Scribe : What then,- 
continued I, when wiH ydu do the public Bufinefs ? 
When your Friend's ? When your own? In (hort, 
when will you give over doing any Bufinefs ? 
I went then a little farther. The Man who does 
not fometimes do nothing, feems to me not to be 
free. I am fl:il], Catulus^ of this Sentiment, and as 
I am come hit'her I pleafe myfelf with theThoughjs 

of 



128 On the Cu AKACTER Book II. 

of enjoying this fame State of Inaftivity and In- 
dolence. As to your third Pofition, that you 
thought there can be no Conifort in Life without 
thofe Studies, this is fo far from encouraging, that 
it deters me from difputing. For as C. Lucilius^ 
a Man of Learning and great Politenefs, ufed to 
fay, that he did not wifli his Writings were read 
either by the moft learned or the moft illiterate 
Part of Mankind, becaufe the one Part under- 
ftood nothing ; the other perhaps too much. For 
this Reafon he faid, Persius is not a Reader for 
mCy but LiELius Decimus /V, becaufe we know 
that the firft was a Man of the greateft Learning 
almpft in his Age in this Country, and the other 
was a worthy Man, by no Means illiterate, but 
nothing to Perjius. Thus if I am to hold a Dif- 
putation upon our Profeffion, I Ihould not chufe 
to have Clowns, but far lefs you for mv Hearers. 
For I fhould chufe to have my Difcourfe not un- 
derftood, rather than found Fault wkh. 

CHAP. VII. 

SAYS €afar, for my Part, Catulus, I think 
I have fucceeded already in coming hither, 
for this very Refufal to ienter upon any Argument 
has, to my Liking, formed a very pleafant Sort of 
Argument of itfelf. But why Ihould we hinder 
Antonius^ whofe Roll we hear is to le6ture Vipon 
Eloquence in general, and Cotta^ with Sulpicius^ 
have been long wifhing that he would open. But 
I, faid Cr^jfusj will neither fuffcr Antonius to open 
his Mouth, nor will I open my own till you 

have firft granted me What, replies Catulus f 

That you will pafs the Day here, anfwers the 

other. 



Book II. Of an Or a t or. 129 

other. This putting Catulusy who had promifed 
otherwife to his Brothef 4 to fome Stand ; I will 
anfwer for us both, faid Julius^ and upon thefe 
Terms too, that tho' you don't open your Mouth 
you fhail, I aflure you, detain me. My Doubt, 
interrupts Catulus with a Smile, is refolv*d •, be- 
caufe I have ordered nothing at home, and the 
very Perfon at whofe Houfe I was to have been, 
has without confulting me, very readily promifed. 
Upon this they all turned their Eyes towards An- 
tonius ; ♦ Attend, attend, faid he, to a Man from 
the Profeflbr's Chair, who is deeply read in Greek 
Learning. And I fpeak with the more Affurance, . 
becaufe Catulus is my Hearer ; to whom not only 
we in our Language, but the Greeks in theirs, ufe 
to yield in Purity and Elegance of Diftion. But as 
unlefs to this, what do you call it, the Craft or the 
Itch of Speaking, you add Impudence, why *tis good 
for nothing ; I will teach you, my good Scholars, 
what I myfdf never learned •, I mean, I will give 
my Sentiments upon all Kinds of Eloquence. When 
they had done laughing at this Preamble ; the 
Thing, conti itUed he, to me appears to be a noble 
Profeflion, but an indifferent Art. For nothing'^ 
comes within an Art^ but Things that are known. 
But the whole Bufinefs of an Orator confifts not 
in Knowledge, but OpinioQ. For wlien we are in ^ 
2, Court we fpeak what the Judges don't know, 
and we fpeak what we don't know ourfelves. 
Therefore they have different Sentiments, and 
form different Judgments upon the fame Things •, 

• Amndy atitndy faid ^] With what prodigious Humour 
and Vivacity does Antonius here rally the Formality of the Greek 
Profeflbrs* 

K and 



1 30 On the Character Bock IL 

and wc often * fpeak upon oppofite Skies •, not 
only as when I fometimes Ipeak againft Craffus^ 
or Crajfus againft me, when one of us muft be 
in the wrong \ but upon a different Occafion we 
Ihall exprefs ourfelves diametrically contrary to 
what wc faid before upon the fame Subject, where- 
as Truth is uniform and unyarying. I, therefore^ 
proceed to treat of a Thing that is fupported by 
falfifying ; which very feldom can be reduced to 
a determine Point , and catches always at the 
Opinions^ fometimes at the Mijlakes of Mankind ; 
if after fuch a Declaration you think you don't pay 
too dear for your Attention, I proceed. 

CHAP. VIII. 

NA Ya fay Catulus^ we for our Parts are ex- 
ceflively fond of bearing you, and the ra- 
ther becaufe you don*t feem to fet out with any 

* Speak upon ofpofiu %idis\ I am pleafed with having sm Op- 
portunity here of quoting one of the fined and honefteft Senti* 
ments of Antiquity ; I mean the glorious Tcftimony that ^w«- 
tiltan hath left behind him againft this Pfa£iice too often recom- 
mended by our Author. 

" I will fuppofe, fays he, what is repugnant to Nature, that 
*' a Man with the worft Heart may have the fineft Tongue, yet 
will I deny that fuch a Man is an Orator ; for every Fellow 
who has a ftrong Arm cannot be called a Man of Courage, 
becaufe Courage cannot exifi without Virtue, And has 
not the Man who pleads for the Intereft of another Occafion 
'* for an Honefty that no Paffion can corrupt, no Intereft can 
" biafs, and no Fear impair ; but ihall wc beftow the facred 
" Name of an Orator upon a Traitor, a Runagate, and 
" Shuffler? 

Concedamus fane (quodminime Natura patiatur) repeNum effe a- 
liquem malum Virum fumme difertum: l^ihilo tamen minus Oratorem 
cum Negabo^ Nam nee omnibus qui fuerint Manu prompti^ Virifor- 
tis Nomen concejferimy quia fine Virtute intelligi non potefi Fortitudo, 
Ju ei qui ad defendendas Cast/as advocatWy non eft Opus Fide, ^m 
nee Cupiditas con-umpat, nee Gratia a'vertat, nee Metus frangat ; 
fed ProditoremyTransftfgaWy Pra*varicaforem donalfimus Oratori* 
iUc/ncro Nomine ? 

Oftentationr 



I 

i* 
4t 



Bt)oitIL . Of an Orator. t^i 

Oftentation. For in your Preamble you have not 
fct out as you think with a more glorious Truth, 
than with a certain Dignity. Therefore, proceeds 
Ammius^ as I have declared in general, that the 
Art is not very important; at the fame Time, 
I maintain, that certain cunning Precepts may be 
laid down for moving the Paflions, and winning 
the AfFedions of Mankind. If any body pleafes 
to call this Knowledge, an Art, we fhall not 
differ ; for as moft People plead Caufes in the 
Foruin raflily, and at random, and fome with 
greater Addrefs from Practice and Experience^ 
there is no Doubt, that if a Man (hall mind the 
Reafon why fomc fuccecd better than others in 
Speaking, he may find this out. Thierefore, who- 
ever purfues this Method through every Species of 
Eloquence will find it, if not abfolutely an Art, 
fomewhat very like one. And I wifli, that it 
were in my Power co paint the Manner in which 
thefe itjay be diftinguiftied in as lively Colours^ 
as I no^ fancy to perceive them in the Forum, and 
in Pleadings. But that is nothing to me : What 
I am now to propofe I am fully convinced of, 
that nothing i& more eminent than a compleat 
Orator, tho* Eloquence of itfelf be not an Art. 
For not to mention the Advantages of it, which in 
every regulated free State have fuch decifive In- 
fluence, fo great of itfelf is the Pleafiirc derived 
from the Pra<5ticc of this Profeffiori, that nothing 
can be conceiv'd more agreeable to the Ears and 
Underftandings of Mankind, What Mufic is 
more charming than the Delivery of a regular 
Difcowrfe ? What Numbers more hamtoniotis? than» 
the Cadence of a well turned Period.^ What A&.ot 
rn mimicking can give greater Fleafiare than an* 

K a Orator 



132 On the Character . Book II. 

Orator does in defending, Truth ? What is more 
delicaite than fmart, quick Sentiment ? What more 
marvellous than a Subje6k embelliflied by the 
Pomp of Expreflion? What more fatisfadbory 
than a Speech crowded with Variety of every 
Kind ? For there is no Subjeft but comes under 
the Province of an Orator, I mean thofe upon which 
he ought to fpeak gracefully and properly. 

C H A P. IX. 

AS to his Charafter, he is in the higheft Af- 
fairs to give his Opinion with Dignity ; 
and like wife his is the Power of roufing a de- 
. fponding, or checking an outrageous People. By 
the fame Profeffion, the Frauds of Mankind arc 
chaftis'd, and their Innocence fecur'd. Who is 
more warm in exhorting to Virtue ? Who more 
vehement in reclaiming from Vice ? Who more 
fevere in lafliing the profligate ? Who more 
graceful in recommending the .Virtuous ? Who 
is more capable to check the Paflions? Who 
more fuccefsful in foothing the Sorrowful ? But 
as to Hiftory, that Evidence of Time, that Light 
of Ti^uth, that Soul of Memory, that Diredtrefs 
of Life, that Meffenger of Antiquity, by what 
Means can it live to Immortality, but by the 
Voice of the Orator ? For if there is any other 
Art that profefTes the Arrangement of Words ; if 
any one except an Orator can be faid to plan a 
Difcourfc, to vary it, to mark it with certain 
DiftintStions of Words and Sentiments, or if any 
other Method of arguing, of expreffing, defcrib- 
ing, or arranging, is to be communicated but by 
this Art, I fliall confefs that what this Art profef- 
fes is either foreign to it, or it is in common with 
Ibme other Art. But if this Method and Learn- 
ing 



Book H. 0/^;^ Orator. 133 

ing is peculiar to Eloquence, it is not the lefs fo, 
becaufe the Profeflbrs of other Arts have been 
eloquent. Becaufe, as Crajfus obfervM Yefter- 
day, an Orator can Ipeak extremely well upon 
other Arts, provided he is acquainted with them ; 
In the fame Manner, as People of other Profef- 
fions can talk more elegantly upon their own ; if 
they have learned Eloquence •, for if a Farmer 
ihould exprcfs himfclf well upon Country AiFairs; 
if a Phylician, as many have done, fliould write^ 
well upon Difeafes ; if a Painter fliould write or 
exprcfs* himfelf handfomely upon Painting, it is 
not to be thought that Eloquence therefore be- 
longs to any of thefe Arts : But fuch is the Force 
of human Genius, that a great many of all Pro- 
feffions, and all Arts, are naturally more or lefe 
eloquent. And tho' you may judge of every Art 
from its peculiar Charafter, which you may know 
from what it profeffes, yet nothing can be more 
certain than this, that the Exercife of all Arts is 
independent of Eloquence, but the Merit of an 
Orator depends on it. Thus, if others are elo-(/ 
quent, they receive Ibme Afliftance from other 
Arts, but never can.the Orator, who is not arm*d 
with domcftic Powers, borrow Eloquence from any 
Other Prqfeflion. 

CHAP. X. 

SAYS Catulus^ although, Antpnius^ the Flow 
of yov|r Difcou|-fe ought not to be interrupt- 
ed, you muft bear with me, and pardon me ; 
for I can't help crying out, ^s the Fellow does i|i 
* the Trinummus ; fo delicately do you. feern to 

♦ Ti^^ Trinummus] This is a Comedy of Plautusy for an Ex- 
planation of this Pairage, fee Adl III, Sc^ne z, 

K 3 ' exprefs 



134 0« ^Character Book U. 

exprefs the Energy of m Orator, fo laviftily do 
you praife him •, as ther< is nothing more graceful 
than for an eloquent Man to praife Eloquence, 
fincc, in recommending it, he employs die very 
Subjeft he recommends. But go on, for I agree 
that to fpeak elegantly is wholly your Province ; 
and if any Man fpeaks well in another Art he but 
borrows from this : It is not his own, it is not his 
Property. Says Crqffus : Why, a Night has made 
you quite polite and humaniz'd you into Man; for, 
as Cacilius fays, Yefterday you defcribcd a Jour- 
ney-man hir'd for a Job in the Charafter of ian O- 
rator, a Fellow void of good Breeding and Hu- 
manity. Indeed, replies J^oniuSy Yefterday I took 
in my Head, that if I could but confuce you, I 
might be able to wheedle your Scholars from you ; 
but now that Catulus and Caifar are preiei|(:, I 
don't think that my Bufmefs is fo much to fight 
with you, as to fpeak my own Sentiments upoa 
this Subjeft. As the Perfon therefore whom we 
fpe^k of, is to be placed in the Forum, and under 
the Eye of his Fellow Citizens j we are now to 
enquire what Bufinefs we are to al|ot to him, 
'and what are the Duties we require him to fulfil. 
For Crajfus Yefterday, before you, Catulus^ and 
C^far came, laid down in a few Words the fame 
Maxims as to the piftribution of the Art, that 
the Gr^^^j generally do; but indeed he declared 
not his own Sentiments, but their Doftrines ; 
that there arc two Queftions upon which Elo- 
quence turns, the one infinite, the other deter- 
min'd. He feem'd to me to define the infinite as 
. being any general Queftion -, fuch as, Is Eloquence 
dejirable? Are Honours to be fought after? But 
the determined Queftion is where your Subjed: is 

3 upon 



Boos: II. Cyim Or A TOR. 135 

«pOD particular Perfons : A pofitivc, afferted Faft; 
fuch fts thofe that are canvafied in the Forum, in 
the Caufes and Difierences among private Citi- 
zens. To me, thoie appear to confift either in 
pleading at the Bar, or debating in an Aflembly. 
For as to the third Species which was mentioned by 
Crajfus^ and, as I have heard, is added by Ariftotk 
himielf, who threw the greateft Light upon this 
Subjedt, * tho' il; may be convenient, yet it is 
not quite fo neceffary. How ! interrupts Crajfus ; 
do you mean Panegyric ? for I perceive that that 
was the third Species mentioned. 

, C H A P. XL 

YO U arc in the right, faid Antonius^ and I 
am fenfiWe it is a Species that gave great 
Delight both to me and every body prefent, 
when you declaimed in Praife of "f yout* Mother 
Popiliay who, I think, was the firft Lady that re- 
ceived this Honour in our State-, but all that we 
deliver are not reduceable to Rules and Art; for 
you can embellilh Panegyrick by the vtry Prin- 
ciples from which all the Rules of Eloquence ar« 
borrow'd •, nor can you ever be at a Lofs for thofe 

* Tho* it may be cotmentent] The Latin has it, etiamji opus 

Jit, Gcero in other PaiTages takes Opus ejfe in this Senfe. Vid. 

£p. ad Faro. L. i. £p. i. Legem curiatam confuU Opus ess» 

necejfe non eJfe ; and £p. ad. Att L, 4. £p. 6. ^i kquor de 

Repuhlica ^uod oportety infahus \fi quod opus efi^ Henvus exifiimor, 

•f- Your M'jther Popilia] UFopilia was the firft of the Roman 
Ladies who was publickly prais'd, P/utarch, in the Life ofCamil- 
lusy was xniftaken who is faid, long before Popilia^ to have made 
a funeral Oration in Praife of the Roman Macrons, becaufe they 
had brought their Ornaments to perform a Vow to Jpollo ; un- 
Icfs perhaps for fo long a Time none were celebrated aftet 
4hat Decree of the Senate ; which is believed by none. Rbo- 
•diginui is of the lame Opinion with Plutarch. 



136 On the Character' Book II. 

Maxims, which, tho' nobody teaches them, every 
body knows; I mean the laudable Qualifications 
of a Man. For we may lay our Foundation upon 
thofe Qualitiei which Crajfus premifed in that O- 
ration, which when he was Cenfor, he pronounced 
againft his Collegue ; S^haf he could patiently en- 
dure to be out 'done in Circumftances that are ' the 
Gift of Fortunes hut in thofe Attainments that de- 

, fend upon a Man himfelf^ he could not endure a 
Superior : Meaning that the Man who declaims 
in Praife of another is to dilplay all the Circum- 
ftances that are the Gift of Fortune; fuch as 
Birth, Money, Relations, Friends, Intereft, Health, 
Beauty, Strength, Wit, and other Properties, which 

- are either perfonal or accidental. If the Subje<9: 

poffefs'd fuch Properties, you are to fhew that 

he made the right Ufe of them ; if he did not, 

that he bore that Want like a wife Man ; if he 

loft them, that he loft them without lofing him- 

felf. You arc next to fhew every wife, every 

generous, every brave, every juft,, every great, 

every pious, every grateful, and every good na- 

tur'd Thing that the Perfon whom -you praife, 

ever either did, or was concerned in. Any Man 

who wants to praile another will eafily perceive 

thefe, and. fuch like Circumftances. Whoever 

wants to villify, will take notice of the oppofitc 

Charafters. Why, therefore, faid Catulus^ (hould 

you hefitate to conftitute this third Species,^ be- 

caufe it is in the Nature of Things .? If it is more 

plain, fure it ought not for that Reafon to be 

excluded out of the Number. Bccaufe, replies 

the other, I am unwilling to treat every trifling 

Matter that faljs to the Province of an Orator in 

fwch a Manner as that nothing can be fpoke to 

withr 



Book II. OfanORATOR. i^j 

without peculiar Maxims. For we muft ibme* 
times give in Evidence, and that too ought to be 
very cautioufly manag'd ; as I was oblig'd to do 
againft * Sextus TiliuSy a feditious, turbulent Ci* 
tizen. In giving this Evidence, f I laid open 
the whole Conduft of my Confulate, by which, 
for the Intcreft of my Country, I opposed him 
when he was Tribune of the People •, and I laid 
open all that I thought he did to the Prejudice of 
his Country; long was I detain'd, mluch did i 
hear, much did I anfwcr. Are you then of Opi- 
nion, when you are laying down Maxims of Elo- 
quence that Precepts of Art arc to be laid down 
upon the Method of giving Evidence ? No fure, 
fays Caiulusj that can never be neceffary. 

CHAP. XII. 

BU T if, as it often happens, the greateft 
Men's Inftruftions are to be explained in 
the Senate, cither from a General or to a General, 
or to a King or a People from the Senate, becaufe 
we muft ufe a more correft Stile in Speaking on 
thefe^orts of Subjeds, is it therefore to be lookM 
upon as a Species of Pleading, or to be furnilh'd 
with peculiar Precepts ? No, by no Means, replies 

* Sextus Titius, afeMtlous turhuletit CitizinJ] It is an unhap- 
py Circumftance for the Memory of Men, when they happen 
in their Lifetime to be difagrceable to Men of great Parts, who 
are the oitiy Hiftorians to record their Anions. In fuch aCafo 
we cannot expedl that they will be tranfmitted to PolU-rity in 
thofe Lights that are moll favourable to their Characters : this 
8txtus Titius was a very great Friend to the Agrarian Law, and 
nfed ibmetimes to be impertinent to the Senate on that Head. 

•f* / laid op fn the 'whoJeConduSfofm'i Confulate.'\ This is a kind 
of Apology for Gcfro^S own Conduft, who never fails to bring 
into his prations tl^e Mention of his own political Charader. 

Catulus- 1 



I 

^38 0/1 /^ Ch A R A C T E R BqoK II. 

CatulHS ; for a well-fpoken Man can never be at a 
Lofs for Exprcffion upon thefe SubjeiSs drawn 
from other Cicumftances and Caufes. At the 
fame Time, the Subjedbs that are often to be 
Handled eloquently, I mean thofe Things that I 
allotted to the Province of an Orator, when I 
was praifing Eloquence a little while ago, have 
neither any Place in the Divifion of Parts, nor 
any certain Syftem of Precepts ;' yet they are to 
^e handled as eloquently as the |VIerits of the 
Caufc themfelvcs; fuch as reprimjjinding, advi- 
fing, comforting 5 where every Expreffion de- 
mands the principal Embellifliments 6f Eloquence j 
but the Method of fucceeding here is not to be 
\/ acquired in the Precepts of the Arf, I am, fays 
CatuluSy direftly of your Opinion^^ Then give 
me leave, to afk you, fays Jntomu{j what kind 
of an Orator, and what Talents in Speaking 
are required to a Hiftory. To write, replies 
Catulusy in the Manner of the Greeks^ would re- 
quire the higheft -, but to write as a Rcman^ there 
is no need to be eloquent ; all that is required is 
not to be a Liar. Softly,' fays Antonius^ not fo 
bad as that neither ; the Greeks themfelves at firft 
wrote in the fame Manner with our Cato^ Piiicr^ 
and Pifo. For Hiitory then was nothing but a 
CoUeaion of Annals, in order to tranfmit the 
Fafts to the Knowledge of the public. The 
High Prielt wrote down ^1 the Tranfadions of 
each Year, from the Foundation of the fioPM» 
State to the Time of the High Prieft Puhlius 
Mucius •, this he fairfy engrofs'd, and fet up the 
Record at his own Houfe, that the* People might 
confult it for their Information ; and thefe zt 

this Time are called the great Annals. A great 

many 



* 



BookIL 0/*^cOrator. 139 

many foIIowVl this Way of Writing, and without 
any EmbelHfhmeiits, left behind diem the Re* 
cords of Times, of Men, Places and Adtions. 
Thus our Gb^, and PiSar^ and Pifiy were juft 
filch Writers as Phere<ydeSy Hellanicus^ Acufilasy and 
a great many, more, were amongit the Greeks % 
vrho knew not the Methods by which a Stile 
is embelliihed, (and it is but lately fince they 
were imported into this Country,) and, provided 
what they wrote was intelligible, they thought 
Brevity the principal Ornament of Stile. AtUi^ter 
that excellent Peribn, that Friend of Craffusy arofe 
to a fomewfaat higher Pitch, and gave a moro 
majestic EKprefflon to Hiftory J other Writers 
#efe not Embelliftiers, but Relaters of Fa£b. 



CHAP. XIII. 

WHAT yeu fey, anfwer*d Catulus^ is true 5 
yet 4nHpater himfelf did not mark his 
Hiftory by any Play of Colours ; not did he po- 
lifli wh^t he wrote by a happy Difpofition of Pe- 
riods, npr a fmooth, even„ Stile. But as he was 
neither learned, nor had any great Turn for Elo- 
quence, he finifli'd it as well as he could -, yet ftiH, 
as you fay, he was fuperior to thofe who went be- 
fore him. it is no Wonder, replies Antonius^ if 
Hiftory makes no Figure in our Language i for 
none of our Countrymen ftudy Ekxfuence with aay 
other View than to excel in Pleadings, and at the' 
Forum ; but the moft eloquent among the Greeks ^ 
who retired from public Pleadings, amongft their 
other noble Studies, applied themfelves principally 
to the writing Hiftory. For though we don*t find 

that 



140 0«/i&^ Character BookII. 

that * Herodotus, the firft Embclliflicr of their Hif- 
tory, was ever converfant in Pleadings ; yet ' fo 
great is his Eloquence, that, fo far as I underftand 
of Greek Writings, he gives me great Pleafurc. 
After him, in my Opinion, Tbucydides is preferable 
to them all in the Beauty of Stile ; fo quick is he 
in the Relation of his Fa6ts, that he has almoft as 
many fine Sentiments as Exprejflions ; at the fame 
time there is fuch a Propriety, fuch a Concifenefs 
in his Stile, that you are at a Lofs to fay, whe- 
ther the Fafts are embellilhed by his Expreflion, 
or his Expreflion by his . Sentiments. Yet we 
don't find, though he afted in a public Station, 
that he ever pleaded in their Courts ^ and we are 
told, that he compofed his Works when he was 
removed from the Government; and, which was 
the Fate of almoft every worthy Man at AtbenSy 
driven into Banifhment. Pbiluftus of Syracufe 
fucceeded him, who living in the greateft Ip^- 
miliarity with Dionyjtus the Tyrant, Ipent his 
I^eifure in writing Hiftory^ and, in my Opinion, 
propofed Thucydides as the Model of his Stile. Af^ 
terwards ^heopompus and Ephorus^ two Men of great 
Genius, bred in what we may call the nobleft 
Work-houfe of Eloquence, by the Perfuafion of 
tfieir Mafter Ifocrates, apply'd to Hiftory. But they 
never had any thing to do in pleading. 

* Herodotas, (ffr.] I ihall make no other Remark upon the 
Character that is here given of the Greek Hiiloria^s, than to 
obferve that they are drawn with fo much Juftice and Tafle« 
a6 to remain their undifputed Character to this Day. 



CHAP, 



Book II. Of an O r a T o k: 141 

CHAR XIV. 

AT laft the famous Xenofbon^ and CaUftbenes 
the Attendant of jilexander appeared from 
the School of Philofophy -, the firft the Difciplc 
of Socrates^ the other of Arijiotle \ and both were 
Hiftorians ; the laft almoft in the Manner of a Rhe- 
torician. Xenopbon indeed affum'd a gentler Stile, 
and as he has not the Rapidity of an Orator he 
may appear perhaps lefs vehement ; but in my 
Opinion, he is a good deal more delightful. Tinueus 
lived later than thefe, but, fo far as I can judge, 
' he was by far the moft learned, the beft furnilh'd 
with the Richnefs of Materials, and Variety of 
Sentiments ; and by no Means unfkilful in the 
Compofition of Stile. This Hiftorian had great 
Talents as a Speaker, but without any Practice in 
Bufinefs. When Antonim had finifli'd -, What do 
you think, Catulus ? fays Cafar^ who will fay now 
that Antonius does not underftand Greek? How 
many of their Hiftorians has he named, with what 
good Senfe, with what Juftnefs has he charafteris'd 
them ! .Why, replies Catulus^ while I am won- 
dering at that, I can no longer wonder at what 
gave me . much greater Surprize before 5 that a 
Man who is ignorant of this Knowledge, Ihould 
have fuch a commanding Power of Eloquence. 
Believe me, Catulus^ faid Anionius^ that in my lei-' 
fure Hours, when I ufe to rjcad thofe, and fomc 
other Writings, I am not then hunting for any 
Improvement to my Eloquence, ^ but for my A- 
mufement. What is the Matter then ? I will 
make this plain Confeffion,- that when I walk in 
the Sun, tho* I may have a different Motive for 

walking. 



y 



142 On tbi C H A R A c T r;Et Book IL 

walking, yet it is natural for mc to grow ruddy : 
Thus, when I read thrfe Books ^with Attention 
at Mifenum^ for I have no Leifure at Ronte^ I can 
perceive my own Stile receive a Glow from their 
Charms. But left you fhould think I am.d^cfr 
read than I am, know this, I only underftand thofe 
Greek Writings which the Authors wrote whh d 
view to have them generally underftood. But if, 
at any time, drawn in by a fpecious Title-page, 
profeffing to treat of known and famous Subjefts, 
fuch as Virtue, Juftice, Pleafure, Honefty, I hap- 
pen to dip into your philofophical Writings, 1 
don't underftand a Word of them ; they arc fo 
hamper'd with narrow, clofe Difputations. As to 
the Poets, who fpeak, as it were, in another kind 
of Language, thefc/ I never meddle with. I a- 
mufe myfelf, as I have faid, with the Writers who 
have tranfmitted to us their own Aftions in their 
Speeches, and whofe Style is fuch, that it appears 
they want to be underftood by thofe who are lika 
me, none of the moft learned. But to refume, 

CHAP XV. 

DON'T you perceive how far Hiftory is the 
the Bufinefs of an Orator ? I am uncertain 
whether it is not his Chief, from the Force and 
the Diverfity of Didlion ; yet I don't fertd that 
this has ever been diftinftly treated of m the 
Precepts of Rhetoricians ; becauie they are lb 
obvious and plain: For, is there a Man ig- 
!> norant, that the firft Rule of Hiftory is, that 
an Hiftorian Jhall not dare to advance a Fa^tyi 
, the next, that there is no Truth but tshat be Jhall 
\daret0f4U? That in Writing, hcfliall be free of 

all 



Book II. Of an Orator 143 

all Prepofleflion ; of all Pique I thefc, I fay> are 
Fundamentals known to all Mankind ; but the Su"- 
perftru&ure itljblf confifts of Fails and Expref- 
fions. Matters of Fa6h require a Regard to 
Chronology and Geography ; and likewife in great 
and memorabJe Events, we firft expeft to hear of 
the Motive ; fecondly, of the Execution ; and, 
laftly, of the Event. The Hiftorian is required 
to give his own Opinion, as to the Motives ; with 
regard , to the Execution, he is to declare what 
was done and faid, and in what Manner ; and 
when he conies to treat of the E^^nt, all the co- 
operating Circumftances, whether proceeding from 
Chance, from Wifdom, or from Raflinefs, are to 
be laid open ; and not only the Adions, but even 
the Lives, and the perfonal Character of every 
Man, whofe Fame or Reputation is high, ought to 
be recorded : But the Difpofition of the Stile, and 
the Manner of Relation, muft proceed with a. Dif- 
fufenefs and an Evennefs, with a certain gentle 
Flow, devoid of the Barrifters Roughnefs, and 
without the Points, fo frequent in Forenfian Sen- 
timents. Don't you fee, that there are no Maxims 
laid down in the Treatife upon Rhetoric, with 
regard to thefe numerous and important Points ? , 
Many other Beauties of an Orator are buried in the 
fame Oblivion, fuch as Exhortations, Confolations, 
Precepts, Advices; all which require to be handled 
with the gneateft Eloquence, but are denied a Place 
in thofe Arts that are generally taught. But as moft 
People, according to CrajfuSy have allotted two kinds 
of Eloquence to an Orator, this opens to us a vafl:\/ 
and boundlefs Field of Difquifition. He re- 
marked, that the firft kind is where a Caufe 
is ftated and defined, fuch as thofe. which come 
before our Courts of Juftice, or arc Matters of 

Debate 



144 ^^ ^^^ Character. SookIL 

Debate in the Senate. He was not againft any 
Body's adding Panegyrick to this Kind. The other 
Kind is what almoft all Writers mention, but 
none explain, where the Subjeft is unbounded by 
Time or Perfons. When Writers treat of this, 
to me, it appears, that they neither underftand 
its Nature or Importance. For if it is the Bufinefs 
of an Orator to be able to fpeak upon every in- 
definite Subjeft that ftiall be propofed ; then he 
muft fpeak upon the Largenefsof the Sun, the Form 
of the Earth ; nay, when he has undertaken this 
Tafk he muft not even refufe to treat of mathe- 
matical and mufical Matters: In fhort, a Man 
who makes it his Proteflion to fpeak, not only 
in thofe Difputes which are defined by Times 
and Perfons, as all that comes before the Forum 
ure, but upon all Subjefts, which in their own 
Nature are undetermined, will find that there is 
yj no Subjeft exempted from his Difcuffiort. 

CHAP. XV^. 

BUT if wc fhall take it in our Heads to 
allot to the Profeflion of an Orator, the 
loofe, the free, and the unbounded Part of Dif- 
putation, fuch as, that upon Good or Evil, upon 
what is defirablcj and what ought to be avoided, 
upon what is honeft or difgraceful, profitable or 
unprofitable-, upon Valour, Juftice, Continence, 
Prudence,^ Magnanimity, Piety, and Friendfhip, 
Honour^ Duty, and other Virtues, together with 
their oppofite Vices: If, I fay, we think an Ora- 
tor ought to fpeak to all thefe, and at the fame 
Time to Affairs of Government, of Command, 
of the Camps, of tlie Civil Polity, of the Man- 

ners^ 



Book n* Of an Orator. 145 

ners of Mankind, let us embark upon this like- 
wife, but fo as that it may. be confined within 
certain moderate Limits. Indeed, my Opinion 
is, that every Thing falls, within the Profeflaon n 
of an Orator, that belongs to the Advantage of his / 
Countrymen, the Manners of ^Mankind, what- [' 
ever regards the Habits of Life, the Conduftof | 
Governments, Civil Society, Love of the Pub- ' 
lie. Nature, Morals* At leaft, tho' he is not 
obliged to anfwcr diftinftly, like a Philofopher, 
on thefe Subjefts, yet he liirely oaght to know(/^ 
how to interweave them dextroufly in his Plead-ll 
ing; he ought to fp^ak on fuch Heads in thej 
fame Manner as they deliver'd themfelves who* 
founded Laws, Statutes, and States with Simpli- 
city^ with Perfpicuity, without any Trad: of \ 
Dilputation, without any dry Jangling. That ^ 
you may not here be in the leaft furprizM at my 
laying down no Precepts upon fo many, and fuch 
important Subjects, my Maxims are as follow : 
As in other Arts, after the moft difficult Rules in 
each are laid down, the reft, which are either 
obvious or fimilar, are thought unneceflary to be 
exprefs'd. For Inftance, in Painting, a Painter, ' 
who has once compleatly learned to draw the 
Likenefs of a Man, can paint him of any Shape 
or Age, without being taught; and whoever can 
paint a Lion or a Bull, can never be at a Lofs 
to draw a great Number of other Creatures •, and , 
I pofitively fay^ there is no Art in which Rules 
can be' laid down for all its Effefts \ but whoever 
has enter'd into the Nature of certain diredling y 
Principles can never be under any Difficulty of / 
compaffing the reft. By a Parity of Reafooing, 

therefore, I an> of Opinion, that whoever, ei- 

L thcr 



146 On the C H A R A c r E ft Booit II. 

ther in the Theory, or in the Praftice of Elo- 
quence, is Mafteroffo much Energy, as to have 
sen arbitrary, controuling Power over the Paflions 
of thofe who in, 4 judiciarCapacity, hear him fpeak 
upon Matters of Government, upon his own pri- 
vate Concerns ; . for, or againft a Party ; that 
fuch a Perfon, I fay^ is no more to be in pain with 
regard to all the other Kinds offpeaking, than 
the famous Polycetus^ when he was making hii 
Herculesy could be at a Lofs how to exprefs thf> 
Lion*s Hide, or the Hydra, without having had 
ary Leffons on purpofe. 

CHAP. XVII. 

SAYS Catulusj Jntonius^ you feem very per-r 
fpicuoufly to have laid down what a Man 
who defigns to be an Orator (hould learn> and 
what Improvement he can derive, without parti- 
cular Application to every diftinft Branch, cvci> 
from thofe Principles which he is Mafter of. 
For you have reduced him entirely to two Kinds 
of Caufes; and the others, that are without Num- 
ber, you have referred to bo attained by Study and 
Similarity. But take Care that in thefe two 
Kinds you have not a Hydra and a Hide, and 
leave the Hercules and other great Subje<5ts among 
thofe that you omit. For it appears as diificuk 
to fpeak upon the general Propertks of Things^ 
ts upon particular Caufes ^ and much more fo to 
treat of the Nature of Gods, than the Altercations 
of Mortals. . By no Means, my Friend, replies 
Anionius^ and I will tell you why, not fo much 
from Learningy as from a much better Autho* 
rity. Experience. To i^cak upon all other S«b- 



Book IL Of oh Oik a To r. 147 

jefts, take my Word, is but Boy's Play, to qnc who 
is no Dunce, who does not want Ejcperieiice, nor 
an ordinary Knowledge of common. Learning and 
Good -breeding. In Altercations at the Bar there 
is a very difficult Part to aft, I don't >now if it 
is not by far the moft difficult Exercife of the 
rational Faculties. In this Exercife the Power of 
an Orator is commonly, by the ill-judging, efti- 
iftated from the Event, and from ^e Succefsj 
where an arm'd Adverfary prefents, whom you 
are both to attack and repel-, where very otten 
the Perfon who is to decide the Affair, either is 
a Stranger or angry with you ; perhaps a Friend 
to your Antagonift, and a Foe ^ to you ; when at 
the fame Time he is to be informed, or unde- 
ceiv'd; checked or impell'd; and by all the Me* 
thuds that good Senle can fuggeft, reconciled 
to the Occafion, by all the Power of Elo- 
quence inclined to the Caufc, you are to efpoufe* 
When Kindnefs is often to be turn'd ifito Ran- 
cour^ and Rancour into Kindnefs : The Orator, as 
if he were direfting an Engine, is to apply it 
fbmetimes to Severity, fometimes to Gentlenefi^ 
fometimes to damp, and fometimes to delight* 
He is to make the moft of the Weight of all his\ 
Sentiments, and the Force of all his Expreffions.; \ 
his Aftion ought to be fuited to the Subjeft, full I 
of Energy, full of Life, full of Spirit^, full of 
Emotion, fiill of Nature. In fuch Exercifes, if / 
any one fhall attain to chat Perfedtion, as like a / 
Phidias in Sculpture, to be able to finifli the Sta^ 
tue of Minerva \ believe me fuch an Artift can 
never be under any Difficuky of executing the 
mope minute Figures upon her Buckler. 

L 2 CHAP. 



J48 On the Character Book II, 

CHAP. XVIII. 

TH E more marvellous you have work'd up 
thefe Beauties, fays Catulufj the greater is 
my Paflicn to know, by what Precepts all this 
amazing Power can be attain'd ; I have no par- 
tial Views of my own ia this ; yet drawn in by 
mere Curiofity, I beg to know what Precepts 
you will eftablifli ; this proceeds from a moft di-^ 
finterefted Principle in me, bccaufe my Age nei- 
ther requires any fuch Information, and I always 
followed another Method of fpeaking; for I never 
wrefted by the Force of Eloquence a Decifion out 
of the Hand of the Judges, but rather receiv'd it, 
after, their Minds were turn'd to all the Gentle- 
nefs of which there were fufceptible* Nor have I 
Occafion for any Greek Teacher, with his formal 
Tone, to pour forth a String of trite Rules, 
when, at the fame Time, the Fellow never faw the 
Face of a Forum, or a Court of Juftice; like 
what is told of Phormio the Peripatetic ; when 
Hannibal^ after being driven from Carthage^ was 
come in his Exile to Antiochus at Ephefus^ and 
becaufe this Peripatetic was univerfally celebra- 
ted, Hannibal was invited by the Townfmen to 
hear him, if he thought fit ; and having exprcfs*d 
no Unwillingnefs, as the Story goes, the Fel-. 
low fpoke for fome Hours with all the Fluency 
of the World upon the Duties of a General, 
and the whole Syftem of military Affairs. The 
reft of the Audience, who feem*d to be quite ra- 
vilh'd afk*d Hannibal^ what he thought of the 
Philofopher. The Carthaginian upon this, who 
did not perhaps fpeak good Greeks tho' he fpoke 

good 



4 
t 



Book IL O/* i^» O r a t o r. 149 

good Senfe, faid, that many old Dotards he had 
ten, but that a greater Dotard than that fame 
Phormio he had never feen. And indeed he w^ 
in the right; for what could Ihew more of a Pe- 
dant, more of a Prater, than for a Greeks who 
bad never faced an Enemy, had never feen a 
. Camp, who, in fhorr, had never rifen to have 
the fmalleft Concern in any public Office, to 
give Ledurcs upon military Knowledge before 
Hannibal^ who had for fo many Years difputed the 
Empire of the World with the Romans? All 
thofe Fellows who give Ledures upon the Art. of 
Speaking, in my Eyes, fcem to do the fame, for 
they teach others what they have never expe- 
rienc'd themfelves •, they are perhaps the more 
excufable indeed, in that they do not attem^pt to 
inflrudl: you, as he did Hannibal^ but Boys and 
Striplings, 

CHAP. XIX. 

BU T indeed, my Friend, you are in the 
Wrong, reply'd Antonius^ becaufe I myfelf 
have lighted upon a great many Phormios in my 
Time. Shew me one of thofe Greeks^ who 
thinks that any of our Countrymen have common 
Senfe ? Yet I own they do not- much difturb mej 
I can very eafily make fhift to bear with them all. 
For they either advance fomething that I am not 
at all difpleas'd with, -or they are fo Ihocking, 
in their Manner, that I the lefs regret my own 
Ignorance : But I here difmifs them, tho' not 
fo rudely as Hannibal did that Philofopher; for 
that Reafon, perhaps I am plagu*d with them the 
qftner y yet I cannot lielp faying, that, fo far a$ ; 

1-3 I caA 



ijo On /A^CfiARACTER BdoK n. 

I cin judge, their Profeffion is extremely ridicu^ 
lous. For they divide the whole of it into two 
Parts i into the Controveriy that arifes upon tho 
Caufc, and that arifing froni the Queftion. What 
they call a Caufc is a Matter contained in an Al- 
tercation, and Difference upon Fafts % and the 
Qiieftion i$ a Matter of infinite Dubiety. With 
regard to the C^ufe they lay down Precepts ; With 
/regard to the other Part there is an afloniihing 
Silence. They next conflitute, as it were, five 
Members of Eloquence; viz. Inventing what 
you are to fay, the Arrangement of what you 
have invented; the EmbcUifhment of Expreffion \ 
\ next, the getting it by Heart, and laft of all comes; 
1 the Aftion and the Delivery : Sure there is no- 
1 thing very obfcure in this. For does not one na- 
\ turally fee that nobody can fpeak, unlefs he knowt 
\ to what Point, in what Words, and in what Or- 
der, and unlefs his Memory ferve him? Not 
that I find Fault with all this, I am only faying 
that they are fclf-evident : I mean all thefe four, 
five, fix, or even feven, (according to their diffe- 
rent Divifions by different Profelfcrs) Parts into 
which thefe Teachers branch out every Speech* 
For they command us to begin in fuch a Manner, 
as to render the Auditor favourable, tradable, 
and' attentive to what we fay : In the next Place, 
to reprcfent the Fadt fo, that the Detail may be 
plaufible, ccn^icuous and concife: In the next 
• place, to divide, or to ftate the Caufe, to ftrength- 
tn our own Reafoning, by Proofs and Probabi- 
lities-, and then to confute the Reafoning of our 
Adverfary. Then fome here introduce the Con- 
<:lufion of the Speech by Way of Peroration; an4 
fpme enjoin us, before we wind .it up, to make a 
Digreffion, either for TEmbellilhmeqt or Aggrar 

vation^ 



Book IL Of an Orator. 151 

vation ; then to conclude and fum up. Even 
thefe I don't find fault with ; for it is difpofing 
them in a very pretty Manner, tho* perhaps not 
very well accommodated to a fair Information, 
which i s the moft eflcntial pQinr fp P^Ap|f> who 
^ant to be inftrufted in the Truth. As to the 
Maxims which they lay down, with regard to 
Exordiums and Narratives; thefe according to 
them, are to run the fame thro* all Speeches. 
For it is much eafier for me to render a Judge 
favourable, in the Progrefs of a Narrative, than 
before he hears one Tittle of the Subftance of 
what I am to fay. It is more eafy to render him 
traftable, when I, inform him of, and explain 
the Matter than when I only promife bin) Demon- 
ftration. But with regard to his being attentive, 
that is effefted, not by our firft Declaration, but 
by creating frequent Emotions in the Minds of 
the Judges throughout the whole of the Pleading. 
It is now that we come to the Detail, which, as 
they rightly recommend, fhould be plaufible, 
confpicuous, and conciie. If they think that this 
ought to be more peculiar to a Narrative, than 
the Whole of a Speech, phey feem to be under a 
jgreat Miftake. And* their capital Miftake lies in 
their thinking that this is a Kind of a Craft, not 
unlike one of thofe, that Crajfus Yefterday ftid 
might be made out of the Civil Law, where the 
principal Heads of the Subjed are firft to be laid 
down. In this, you muft be faulty if a,ny one Head 
is omitted ; then the Subdivifions of each of thefe 
Heads \ in which, if there is any Thing either defi- 
cient or fupcrfluous, it muft be faulty. Next the 
Pefinitions of Words, and here nothing fhould have 
f lace that exprcfies either too little or too much. 

L 4 CHAP. 






/ 



152 On tbf Character Book U. 



C H A P. XX. 

YE T, tho' by this Means, they can become 
more learned in the Civil Law, or even in 
trifling or indifferent Aftairs >, I am by no means of 
Opinion that they can become fo in an Affair of 
this great, this weighty Importance. But if any 
think otherwife, let them be carry'd tp the Pro- 
feffors of thofe Things; let them there make 
themfelves Matters of all that has been faid upon 
this Subjeft in the moft explicit, finifti'd Manner ; 
for there are a great many Books upon thefe 
Points, neither obfcure nor hard to come at. But 
let them take Care as to what they would be at ; 
whether they are to furnifh themfelves with Arms 
to fight or to flourifh ; for there is a great DifFc" 
rence betwixt a Parade and an Engagement •, there 
is a great Difference betwixt what is required in a 
Fencing School and a Field of Battle, At the 
fame time even the mock Praftice of Arms does 
fome Service both to the Fencer and the Soldier; 

>ut Succefs in fighting is obtain'd by the Intrepi- 
idity, the Prefence, the Qiiicknefs, and the Vi- 
Igilance of the Mind, provided thefe are affifted 

>y fome Degree of Art. Therefore, in forming 
an Orator to you, I firfl: know how far his Abi- 
lities reach \ he muft have fome Tinfture of 
Learning -, he muft have heard a little \ he muft 
have read a little ; be is r^ot the worfe if he has 
even attended to thofe Precepts. I will try what 
becomes him beft, what Lengths he cafx go with 
regard to his Voice, with his Strength, his 
preath, and his Tongue. If I Ihould underftand 
fhat he may equal tjie moft compleat Qrators ; 

no| 



Book II. Of an Orator. i 53 

not only will I advife him to perfevcre indefatiga- 
bly •, but, if I think him a Man of Honour, I 
will entreat it of him : fuch a Luftre do I think 
,4 Man, in whom Eloquence and Virtue unite, 
communicates to a whole State. But if I fhall 
think, that, after he has done his beft, be can never 
rife to* Mediocrity in Eloquence, then I will leave 
him to himfelf, without giving him any great 
Trouble; but if he has any Thing downright 
averfe and (hocking in his Manner, I will then 
advife him to ftop, or turn his Views to another 
Profeffion. For neither the Perfon who can ar- 
rive at Excellence is by any means to be abandoned 
by our Exhortations; nor is he who performs 
fomewhat to be difcouraged ; the firft of which 
Charafter feems to partake fomewhat of Divinity ; * 
the other, in that it .neither rifes to ^ .^(^AXeviHB^ 
nor finks to Wretchednefs, is the Lot of Huma- 



nity. As to the third Charafter, which is that 
of one who, in fpitc of R^afon and Nature, bawls 
out as much as he can ; it is that of a Perfon, 
who, as you, Catulus^ obferved of a certain Baw- • 
ler, has a domeftic Herald, to fummon together 
as many Witnefles as h^ can of his own Folly, 
Let us, therefore, difcourfe of fuch a Man as 
merits our Encouragement and Affiftance, in fuch 
a Manner, (becaufc we can communicate nothing 
to him that is better) as that we may at leaft com- 
municate to him what Praftice has taught' to us ; 
that by our Guidance he may arrive to that Point 
which we have without any Guidance reach'd. 



( 



CHAP, 



154 Off/^^CHARAcr^ER Book H; 



CHAP. XXI. 

AND, that wc may begin with our Friend 
here who is in Company ; The firft Time 
I heard Sulpicius, was when he was a very young 
Man, and in a very piddling Caufe ; his Voifce, his 
Figure, his Deportment, and every Thing elfe 
about him was well fitted iot the Bufinefs now 
under our Examination : But his Expreffion was 
quick and rapid ; this was owing to hif Genius % 
his Words glowing and a little too luxuriant \ this 
to his Age : I did not diflike him. I love a Su- 
perfaetation in Youth j for as in Vines it is much 
eafier to prune the luxuriant Branches than to 
near up new Branches by Culture, from a Stock 
diat is naught of itfelf ! therefore I would ftill 
have fomewhat in Youth that I can lop away. 
For when Maturity comes too foon, the vegetar 
ting Sap muft quickly decay. I inftantly faw a 
Genius j I loft no Time; I advifed him to make 
the Forum his School, and his Matter -^ — whoni 
he pleafed ; if 1 might be heard ; Craffiis. He 
inftantly catched at this; he affurcd me he would 
follow my Advice, and out of Complaifaoce, he 
even added, that I fhpuld likewife be his Mafter. 
A Year was fcarcely over after this Interview, 
when he impeached C NorbanuSy 2iViA I defended 
him. You can't believe what a Difference there 
feem'd to be betwixt him then^ and what he was 
twelve Months before. Nature herfelf had abfo - 
lutely dircfted him into the grand and noble Man-i 
ner of Crajfus^ but he could never have made 
fufikient Advances in it by her Afliftance alone, 
had he not fallen, in the Progrefs of his Study 

an4 



/ 



Book IL Of an Or at ot. 155 

and Prad:ice, to accuftotn himfelf to ipeak fo a< 
that he fecm*d to have fix'd the Idea of Crajfm 
ppon every Faculty of his Soul and Spirit, 



T 



CHAP. XXII, 

Hercfore the chief Maxim of my* Doftrine 



is to point out a right Subjeflr of Imitation ; V 
and in fuch a Manner as to make the diftinguifh* 
ing Properties of that Subjedt our main Study, 
To thi« J add the Praftice pf Imitation, by which 
one becomes the very Perfon whom he chufes as 
a Pattern ; and in the Refemblance hits his true 
CharaAer, not in fuch a Manner" as I have known 
many Imitators, who haye in their Imitations hie 
upon what was moft caly, or thofe Properties 
fhat were ftriking even to a Defed. Nothing i^ 
more eafy than tp ape a Man in his Drefs, hi$ . [^ 
Way of ftanding or w4king. Nay farther, if 
there even is any Thing that is wretched, and 
you entaer into it as wretchedly, it is no great Diffi- 
culty: Like that FufeuSy who, having loft his 
Voioe and now makes fuch a frantic Figure in \ 
the State, could never compafs the nervous 
JEloquence of Cairn FimbriUy but hits him very 

. well off in the Convulfions of his Lips, and the 
Drawling of his Words. But he neither knew 
how to clnife a proper Pattern, and he imitated 
only the Defeats of that which he had chofen. t^ 
But the Man who vmuld fucceed in this muft firft 
be excrcniely cautious in^hufinghisPattern J then, 
when hf is fix^dTjpon that, he ought to apply 
himfelf earncftly to ftudy its moft diftinguilh'd 
Excellencies. What do you think is the Rea- 
foii why eyery Age produces alinoft peculiar Man- 

nerai 



1^6 On the CuARACTT^K Book II, 

ners of Speaking? This is an Obfervation that 
can't be fo eafily made with regard to our O- 
rators, who, to tell the Truth, have left but very 
few Writings by which we can form a Judgment, 
as from the Greeks^ whofe Writings charafterife 
the Manqer and Spirit of Speaking peculiar to 
every Age. The oldeft amongft them, I mean 
/Sf thofe whofe Writings have come to our Hands, 
I are Pericles and Alcibiades^ with their Cotemporary 
\^hucydides\ thefe were delicate, pointed, concife, 
\nd fuller of Sentiments than of Words. It ( 

could not be by Chance that they were all of 
the fame Charafter, unlefs all of them had pro- 
pofed the fame Pattern. Thefe were fucceeded 
by CritiaSj Lyfias^ Therainenes\ the Writings of 
Lyjias are many, ' of Critiau^on^ ; we have heard 
and that is all, of Theramenes. All of them, even 
in that Age, retained the Flavour of Pericles, but 
their Stile was a little more diffufed. Then your 
Ifocrates arofe, from whofe School, as from the 
Trojan Horfe, there iflu'd none but great Men ; 
but of thofe fome chofe to diftinguilh themfelves in 
the Cavalcade, and others in the Battle- Array of 
Eloquence. 

CHAP. XXIII. 

THerefore the Theopompi^ the Epbori, the Phi-* 
lijliy the NaucraU^ and many others, were 
very unlike one another in Genius \ but in their 
Manner they refemble both one another and their 
Matter: And they who apply*d to Pleading, 
as DemqflbeneSj Hyperides, Lycurgus^ jEfcbines, Di- 
7iarcbuSf tho' they were not equal among them- 
fclves, yet they all foUow'd the fame Method of 

Per-. 



Book IL Of an Or at oft* 157 

Pcrfuafion-, as long as the Imitation of their 
Manner continued, fo long did that Kind and 
Stvjdy of Pleading live. They being gone, all Re- 
membrace of them infenfibly wore out and va* 
nifh'd ; and other more foft and loofe Methods 
of Speaking prevailed. * *Twas then Democbarc:^ 
who was faid to be Nephew by the Sifter to Be- 
mojihenes^ appeared ; Next the Phalerean Demetrius^ 
who, in my Opinion, was the moft finifh'd of them 
all, and ofhers like them ftarted up. Had wc a 
Mind to trace this Detail down to the prefent Age, 
we fhould find that at this Day all Jfia imitates 
the famous Menecles of Alabanda^ and his Brother 
Hierocles^ whom I have heard : Thus there has been 
ftill fome Model, by which the reft have generally 
endeavoured to form themfelves. Whoever there- 
fore would make a Progrefs in this Similarity by 
Imitation, muft chiefly apply to laborious and fre- 
quent Pra6lice, efpecially in Writing. Would our 
Friend Sulpicius here follow this Advice, his Dic- 
tion would be much more compaft. Whereas, 
now, as Country People ufe to fay of Grafs, the 
Richnefs of the Soil produces a Luxuriancy, which 
muft ferve a s Food for-ihe Pen , You are in the 
right, faid Sulpicius here, and I am obliged to 
you for your Advice; but indeed, Antomus\ I 
don't believe that jy^« have wrote a great deal. 
Don't I fay, anfwers the other, that I enjoin toothers 
Qualities that I don't poflefs myfelf. But I am 
thought even not to keep any regular Accounts ; 
yet my Method of proceeding in that, you 
may judge of from the CEconomy of my Eftate; 
and from the Progrefs I have made in Speaking, 
however inconfiderablc it may be, you may judge 

of 



lj;8 On Jie CriAJi ACT t^. fiooK It. 

of my Praftice in Eloquence. But after all, wc 
have fcen many propofe no Model at all; and 
yet by the Force of Genius, without Imitation, 
have attained to all they defired : This Obfer- 
vation is made good in you, defar^ and in Cotta i 
The one is Mafter of a Wit and Humour not 
common among our Orators ; and the other of a 
Very pointed, delicate Manner of Speaking. Nor 
does Curio^ who is much of your Age^ tho' his 
Father in my Opinion, was one of the moft 
eloquent Speakers in his Time, feem much to 
imitate any Body ; yet he is an Original as to his 
Manner and Method of Speaking, both by the 
Weight, Elegance and Flow of his Expreffion, 
1 came into this Way ci thinking chiefly on Oc- 
cafion of that Caufe which he pleaded againft me 
before the Centumvirij for the Brothers the Coffi j 
V/here nothing was wanting in him that belongs 
to a copious, and even an experienced Speaker. 

CHAP. XXIV. 

BU T that we may tit laft introduce thi^ 
Perfonage we are forming to the Bar, and 
a Bar too of the greoteft Bulineis, Pradice, and 
Altercation ; let me give it him as -a principal 
Rule, that he make himfelf compleatly and tho- 
roughly Mafter of the Caufes he is to manage. 
Somebody may periiaps lau^ at this Rule ; for 
I own it does not proceed fo much from Penetra- 
tion as NecdTity; and gives you a Notion, not 
lb much of an able Inftru&or, as of a Monitor 
who is not quite an Idiot. This is a Rule that 
is mver enjoined in Schools *, ibr the Pleadings that 
txc fet to Boys are all of them quite eafy. Such 

asi 



Book IL Of an Oh At o%. i^j 

ts ; by the hzv^ a Stranger is forbid to mount the 
Wall J he has mounted it ^ he has repuls'd th* 
Enemy; he is accused. There is nothing at all 
in being Mafter of fuch a Caufe : Therefore they 
are in Khe right when they lay down no Rules as 
to your making yourfelf Mafter of this Caufe t 
for this is generally the Form of all Pleadings 
in the School, But in the Forum, Deeds, Evi* 
dences. Bargains, Agreements, Conventions, Al* 
liances. Relations, Decrees, Anfwcrs \ in a Word|» 
the whole Life of thofe who are concern'd in a 
Caufe muft be thoroughly canvaffed. It is by 
neglefting thofe Points that we fee moft Caufes 
loft, efpeciaily private ones, which arc often of 
the moll intricate Nature. Therefore fomc who 
want that the World ftiould think they have grea£ 
Bufincfs by fluttering all over the Forum, and 
feeming to pafs from Caufe to Caufe, fpeak in Caufes 
that they know nothing of. But by this Con- 
duct they incur great Blame; either of Negli- 
gence, if they but undertake to aft ; or of Trcach- 
ry, if they profefs to fucceed. They incur an- 
other Cenfure, which is greater than they think 
of, which iJ, that eveiy Man, ^ who fpeaks co a 
Subjedt that he does not underftand, muft ^ak 
very wretchedly. Thus while they feem to con- 
temn the Reproach of Lazinefs, which indeed 
is the moft inexcufable, they incur what they want 
much more to avoid, I mean that of Dulnefs. 
For my Part, I ufe to be at great Pains that 
H Client fhould himfelf inftrud me in his Caufe j 
and to give him the greater Freedom in fpeaking 
that nobody Ihould be prefent ; I likewife plead 
on the contrary Side, to make him difclofe his 
Thought! with regard to his own Cafe. Then, 

'after 



i6o On tbe Car Act ^n BdOK 11- 

after he is gone, with the utmoft Impartiality, 
I aflume three Charafters, my own, that of my 
Antagonift, and that of the Judge. Every To- 
pic that I think makes for me, rather than againft 
me I refolve to fpeak to; whatever may be of 
Prejudice rather than of Advantage, that I dif- 
card and avoid. Thus I at one Tirtie think 
what I am to fay, and at another, I fay it, 
Thefe two Exercifes moft People^ relying upon 
their own Abilities, perform at the fame Time. 
But they would, no doubt, mend their Pleading, if 
they fhould think fit to fet apart one Part of their 
Time for inventing, and another for delivering 
what they have to fay. After I am complcatly 
Mafter of the Affair and the Caule, I immedi* 
ately refleft on the doubtful Points that arife in 
it. For there is no difputable Subjeflt amongft 
Mankind, whether the Cafe is of a criminal Na- 
ture, as an Overt- Aft -, of a controverfial, as an 
Heritage ; deliberative, as War ; perfonal, as Pa- 
negyric-, or difputable, gs the Rules of Living 5 
in which the Point of Enquiry does not lie with 
regard to what has been done, what may be done^ 
what is to be done, what is its Quality, or 
what its Denomination. 

CHAP. XXV. 

BU T our Caufes, I mean fuch as are cri- 
minal, are generally defended by denying 
the Faft, As in Cafes of Extortion, which are of 
the moft important Tslature, almoft every Article 
muft be deny'd. In Cafes of Corruption there 
is feldom luch a Conccflion made, as that you are 
able to diftinguifh Generofity and Liberality from 
A Bri- 



_L 



Book II. Of an Orator. i6i 

Bribery and Corruption. In C^tfes of Murderersi 
Poifonings and Embezzlements, you mufl: ablb- 
lutcly ftand upon the N^ative. Therefore the 
chief Bufinefs of all judicial Proceedings, is the 
Controverfy arifing from what is paft. In delibe- 
rative, upon what is to come^ feldom upon what 
is prefent or paft. Sometimes too the Point of 
Enquiry is not whether a Thing is or is not Faft, 
but of what Nature it is. As when, in my Hearr 
ing, C CariOj the Conful, defended the Caufe 
of L. Opimtus before the People, he did not deny 
one Circumftance relating to the Death of C 
Gracchus ; but maintained that it was juft, and 
for the Good of the Public to put him to Death. 
In like Manner as P. Jffricanus^ when the fame 
CarbOi Tribune of the People, and aftihg in a 
very different political Charafter, ' aik*d him about 
the Death of Gracchus^ anfwer'd, ^bat it appeared 
be wasjuftJ^ put to Deatk Now every Thing is 
defended upon the Principle of being juft, when 
It is of fuch a Nature as that, it either ought to 
be done, or that it is lawful, or neceffary ; or 
appears to be done thro* Indifcretion, or by Acci- 
dent. We are tiow to enquire under what Deno- 
mination that Difpute will come, when it turns 
upon the Apellation to be given to the Fad. 
This was the grand Point in Difpute betwixt Sul- 
picius and myfelf in the ASixv oi Norbanus. For 
tho' I adniitted of moft of the Articles urg'd a- 
gainft him, yet' I deny'd that they amounted to a 
Charge of Treafon : And upon that one Exprcf- 
lion in the Jpullian Law all that Pleading turned. 
Some likewife in this Kind of Pleading enjoin, 
that the Word which conftitutes the Caufe fhould 
be clearly and briefly defin'd. • But to me this 

M us'dT" 



ite 0» /itf Char ACTER BtaoK H 

lis'd to Appear childifii. For it is quite « dtflfe^ 
rent Things when the Definitions of Words are 
eonteflsd among learned Men upon thofe very 
Subjefts diat relate to^ the Arts ; t^ when it is 
aflc'd, what is an Art, a Law, a State ? In this 
we are inftruAed both by Reafon and Know* 
ledge, that the Force of die Thing which vm 
want to define (hould be fo exprefibd as that the 
Definition fhould contain nothing either too little 
or too much. In the Cauie I mentioned this was 
neither done fay Sulpidusj nor attempted by me ; 
&r with all the Abilities we were bodi Mafler o^ 
and with all the Eloquence we could mufter vpj we 
enlargM upon the Definidon of the Word Treafoo. 
Becauie by caviUhig at a fingk Word, by ad(£ng 
cfne, and by taking one away, a Definition is often 
wrefted out of our Hands ; and then in its own 
Nature it fmells rank of Pedantry, and an almoft 
childifli Pradice. , In the next Place, it never 
tiioroughly enters into the Underftanding and 
Mind of the Judge ; fcH* all its Efieds tBp away 
before they are perceived. 

C H A P. XXVL 

BU T as to that Kind of Pleading wherein 
the Difierence lies with regard to the Qua- 
lity of the Faft, frequently a Difpute arifes upon 
the Meaning of the Letter, and here the Difpute 
can only be with regard to the Ambiguity of what 
is cxprefs'd ; for when there is a Difference be- 
tween the Letter and the Spirit of an A6t, that 
very Thing begets a certain Ambiguity which can 
never be explained, but by fupplying what arc 
deficient. When thefe are added, it is pleaded 
♦ that 



diat rhe Mfeaniftg of tile A& wa^ pkiBv tod If 
aay AmbigililC)r arifes from contradi6l:ory Expref- 
fiotts, it is Hot tken a new K4nd of Pleading that 
is produced) but dhe dilficukie^ of fuch ii Caufe as 
we have juft now mentioned are doubled. It is 
then never to be refolv'd*, or if it is refolv'd, it 
nmA be in fuch a Manner, as that» by fupplying 
the Words omitted, the Senfe of die Letter of 
the AA may be rendered compleat. Thus it hap- 
pens, that only one Kind of thofe Caufes in 
which the Difficulty lies in the Ambiguity of the 
Letter^ can cxift, if the Letter is any Way really 
ambiguous. But there are many Kinds of Ambi- 
guities : Of thefe the Gentlemen whom we call Lo- 
jg^cians appear to me to be the beft Judges : But as 
to ihpie of our Pr6fe0ion they appear quite igno- 
rant of this, tho* at the fame Time they ought 
to know them as well as the Logicians. Upon 
the whole, I fay, chat the moft common Miftakc 
arifing in all Praftice, either in Speaking or Wri- 
tii^, is, when any Ambiguity arifes upon the O- 
Hiiffion of a Word or Words. Again, they are 
in the wrong who make a Diftindion in Kind 
betwixt thofe Caufes that turn upon the Meaning 
of the Letter, from thofe where the Altercation 
lies upon the Q^lity of the Faft 5 for the Point 
of Enquiry never is fo much upon the Quality 
of tbf FaiSt itfcif as upon ^ the Letter of an A£t, 
. which is entirely diftin£t from the Plea upon the 
JFad 1 therefore thofe Kinds of Pleading that can fall 
within the Compafs of an Orator's Diicuflion and 
Debate^ are no more than three' ^ firft, that which 
may be done, that which has been done, and 
that which is to be done ^ the next is the Qua- 
lity, and the laft, the DeAomination under wliich 

M 2 it 



164 0;i /i&^ Character Book IL 

it comes. For that Kind^ which, according to 
Tome Greeh^ confifts in the Enquiry, whether 
it was done lawfully or not, is entirely compre-^ 
hended under the Quality of the Fa£k. 

CHAP. XXVII. 

BU T that I may return to what I proposed : 
After I have heard and comprehended the 
Nature of the Caufe, I begin to enter into its 
Merits -, there my View is to find out the princi- 
pal Point, on which I am to lay the Strefs df that 
Part of my Pleading, which immediately regards 
the Queftion and the Trial: In the next Place, I ve- 
ry attentively confider two Things, the firft how I 
may recommend myfelf and my Client ; the next, 
how I may bcft win over the Affedkions of the Au- 
dience to the Part I efponfe. Thus the whole Bufi- 
nels of Speaking depepds upon three Points of Per- 
fuafion J to prove the Side we take to be right ; to 
conciliate the Favour of our Audience, and to 
diredt their Paffions to every Emotion that the Na- 
ture of the Caufe requires. With regard to Proof, 
two Things prefent to the Orator : Firft, thofe 
Points which are not invented by him,* but/a-* 
rife from the Reafon and Nature of the Subjedt; 
fuch is Deeds, Evidences, Bargains, Conven- 
tions, Trials, Laws, A6ts of the Senate; Prece- 
dents, Decrees, Opinions, and every fuch like 
Point which is furniftied out by the Orator, but 
fuggefted to him by his Caufe and his Client: 
The other Point is that which entirely confifts in 
Difputation, and the Difpofition of the Orator's 
Pleading. In the firft of thefe Divifions he is to 
employ his Thoughts how to make the bcft of 

I the 



Book II. 0/*tf« Orator. ^165 

•the Arguments that -are ready to his Hand, but 
here he is both to manage his Arguments and 
to invent them. Here likewfe the Teachers, after 
they have fph't their Caufe into a great many 
Heads, fupply with a Power of Arguments, each 
of thcfe Heads, Tho* this is more fitted for 
young Students who may thereby have a Com- 
mon-place that furnifties them with ready formed 
Arguments as foon as|a Caufe is ftated; yet- it 
both (hews a Slownefs of Parts to creep after the 
Streams, without mounting to the Fountain Head-, 
and if Men of my Age and Praftice want to 
derive it from the Fountain Head, and difcern 
the Source from whence every Rivulet flows. And 
in the firft Place, the Nature of thofe Proofs that 
are furniOi'd to an . Orator ought to be thoroughly 
digefted, for our future Praftice upon all like 
Occafions. For we either ufe to plead fpecially 
upon the general Head, when we fpeak for, or 
againft Deedsi for, or againft Evidences, for, or 
againfl: Trials, and other Affairs of the fame Na-. 
ture; or we plead determinately upon particular 
Junftures, Perfons, and Motives: All thefe are 
Points, (I now addrefs myfelf, Sulpicius^ to you 
and Cetta) we ought to have in Readinefs, . and 
prepared with the utmofl: Digeftion, and upon the 
moft mature Reflection. For it would now take 
mc up too much Time to point out what Method 
is mofl: proper for confirming or invalidating the 
Strength of Evidences, Deeds, or Depofitions, 
All thefe require little Capacity, but great ?fac- 
tice : It is true they require fo much of the Art' 
and Rules of Eloquence, • as that they may come 
recommended by certain Ornaments of Speech. 
At the fame Time thofe Properties which are of ^ 

M 3 diffe* 



i66 On the Cii ah A c t b r Book IL 

different Nature^ and are the pure Efitft o£ the 
Orator's Art, are not very dtff&cult to iaveoC, bttii 
require to be perfpicupufly and politely laid oiic. 
Therefore as th^fe two Points arc chiefty tobft 
regarded by us in Pleadi|ig4^ firfti what; it' 
condly, how we are to fpeak \ lei us ^ifervti. th^ft 
the firft, which appears to be» as it wcr^i inaprcg-^ 
nated with the whole Power of Eloquence doea 
indeed require Art, but a very indifferent Share 
of Addrefs to manage it. It is io the other, ihaA 
the divine Power and Energy of an Orator is 
to be perceived ; I mean ki his delivering what 
he has to fay with the.Gracefulnefs, the Flawj^ 
ajid the Command of £xpre0ion* 

CHAP. xxvnL 

THereforb, as. yQUQn^ thougbt mequali* 
fy'd I fhall. OQjt d^lise^ tho' perba^is io a 
Manner not quite fi> pol)t^ or fioifli?d, to. talk oS 
the former of the(e Poiiiii^ ;, I mean fjeom what 
Topics a Speech is, brought to thofe tbuee Q^t* 
Uties that only ci^r recQix:i]e k to CredibUky* 
to wit, conciliating, informing, and moving the 
Minds of /an Audience > add how welL £ fucceedt- 
you yourfelves fhall judge : Tkefif art indai tbr40 
in Number J but in what Manner they are ta be il> 
luftrated, there is one in Company who caa in«> 
flruA us all •, the Man who firft introduced it m^ 
to Pradnce, to whom, alone it owes its bi^eftt 
Improvement, and noblefl; £fieds« For I, Gi-. 
tulus^ what I fpeak can nevei be taken for Flat>* 
tery, think that there has been no Orator of anyj 
Eminence, either Greek or SJmaHy in our Age> 
whom I have not freqi^ndy heard with, greair At^. 
tention. . Therefore if. L can; cfieftL w^% as \ 

have 



Boor n. C^mOratqu. 167 

hav^e fome ReafiMi to believe I can from dus A0» 
tension 'given me by Men of your UnderflMdiiiga, 
!t proceeds from nty- fixing thoroughly in li^ 
JHihd every Circumftance that was advanc'd by 
every one of thofe Orators, And here, withouc 
prefumihg to fay who I am, or hdw far I am a 
Judge, after hearing all thefe Speakers^ I make no 
manner of Difffculty to^ declare it as my fix*d 
Prihciple and Belief, that not olie amongft them 
all- ever pofielVd the Grace3 of Eloquence in fo 
great Variety, or m fo great a De^ee as Graffiu 
does. Therefore^ 'i£ you fhall be of t-he iatD^ 
Mind) I think it will be no un&ir Divifioff, i^ 
aftei^ throwing thi^ Orator into the Mould I proh 
pofit, I Aali create, nurie^ and train him t I fhou^ 
then turn him over to 0*4^ fio be doath'd aj^ 
drefs'd. Do you rather, Ant^tdus^ hy^ Qnffkt^ 
go on as you propofed *, for it looks neither natural 
nor creditable in a Father not to c|oath and dreis 
the Child of his own begetting and breeding up ; 
efpbcially as you cannot deny that you are weakhf'. 
For what Gracefulnefs^ what Strength, what^pifcl; 
what Dignity can be wanting in diat Oratoc, who 
m finiffitng his Plieading durft boldly produce: a 
ConfuHir, who. was upon his Trials untmft his 
Veff, and flfew to the Judges ttar Scars tint 
markM the Body of the aged Genecai ? Aft 0«'- 
tor, who while Sittpieins here was the Impeache'i^ 
when, he deii»ided a le^itious ai)d furious RmaHk 
was at no Lofs how to makeSedirion itfelf lodk 
lovely V and to prove, in the moft plaufible Ex^ 
preffibns, that the People had often been fedi- 
tious upon jiiftifiable Grounds; and that no Mm 
ca.n anfwer for them:? And that, a great nwif 
ny Seditions had happened: for the. Go©d of the 

M 4 Con- 



368 Ontifv Character JBook II 

Cbnftitution; as when the Kii^s were driven 
.out, and the tribunicial Power appointed. That 
this Sedition of Norbanus^ which arofe from the 
Concern of the People, and their Hatred of Ca- 
pioj' who had loft an Army, could neither be fup- 
-prefeM, nor deemM illegal. Could a Topic fo 
: tender, .fo uoprecedented, fo ticklifh, and fo new 
as this, be handled without an incredible Power 
and Addrefs of Eloquence ? What Ihall I fay of 
the Pity you raifed for Cn. Manlius ? What of that 
ralfed for ^ntus Rex? What of a vaft Number 
f)f otjier Inftances ?. Whereio you did not diftin- 
guifli yourfelf by that inimitable Quicknefs that 
is* fo univerfally allow*d to be yours, but by 
ihofe Properties which you now delegate to me ; 
^nd in which you were ever eminent and unr 
rivaird; 

CHAP. XXIX. 

FO R my Part, - fays Catulus^ there is one 
Thing that ufed to give me great Surprize 
with regard to you two, which is, that tho* your 
Manners of Speaking are quite different from one 
another, yet both of you fpcak fo as if nothing 
wtre wanting in you that can be poflefled from 
Nature, or acquired by Learning.; Therefore, 
Craffus^ you (hall neither deprive us of your en- 
chanting Manner, in. explaining every Thing that 
may have been overlooked by Antonius ; nor. An- 
taniuSy if you have overlooked any Thin^, Ihall 
we attribute it to your want of Abilities, butto 
your Defire of hearing it fpoke to by Craffiis. Then, 
fays CfaJJuSj Antmius^ do you admit fuch of thofe 
I^oints you propofed, as nobody here wants to be 

ipftrudlcd 



Book II. OfafiOKATo^". 169 

inilrufted in *,. I mean from what Topics the 
Subjeft of a Pleading are to be drawn. For tho* 
you can (peak to them in a new and ftrikihg Lights 
yet in their own Nature .they are eafy, and the 
Rules laid down with regard to them are com- 
mon ; but produce to us thofe Qualities that you 
fo often exert, and always divinely. With all 
my Heart, replied AntoniuSj and to induce you 
the more eafily to comply with my Requefts, I 
will refufe none of youcs. My whole Eloquence, 
and that Chara6ler which Crajfus juft now cx- 
tojrd to the Skies, confifts of three Rules I ob- 
fenre 5 , the iirft with regard to conciliating, the 
fecond to informing, and the laft to moving 
Mankind. The firft requires Gcntlenefs, the fe- 
cond PointedneGi, and the laft Energy. For it is 
neceffary that the Judge, while we have a Caufe 
a trying, fliould either be inclin'd by the Byafs of 
his own Inclinations, guided by the Strength of our 
Reafomng, or forced by the Emotions of Paffion 
to favour u?. But fince that Part which compre- 
hends the Reprefentation and Defence of the Fafti 
themfelves feems to contain, call it, the Learning 
of this Kind, let us firft fay a few Words upoa 
that Head. For the Obfcrvations I have made 
from Praftice, and imprinted upon my Memory, 
are but a few. 



CHAP. XXX. 

D here, Lu. Crajfus^ I readily agree with 
your wife Advice, that we ihould omit 
all the Pleadings upon thoie Ipecial Cauies which 
Matters ufe to prefcribe to their. Scholars. Let 
ps however difclofe thofe Sources from which all 

Ar- 




ij6 On the Character BookII. 

Argumentation is drawn, and adapted to every 
Speech and every Caufe. For as when we have 
Occafion to write a Word' we are not puzzled' to 
find out how many Letters that Word is com- 
po(ed of; fo when we plead in a Canfe, we hav^ 
no Qccafion to rummatc upon the diltind Argu- 
ments that are to fupport it ; for certatn Common- 
places immediately ibggcft themlelves in the fame 
Manner as Letters do in fpdlJng a Word. But 
Acfc Common-places are ufeful only to an Orator 
who knows Bufincfr either fay* Experioice, which 
fs the Attendant of Age, or from hearing and re- 
fle(3ting, w'hich by means of Study and Applica- 
tion fuppfies Experience. For bring me the moft 
learned Man afive ; to Learning kt him join- a 
ftrongand a penetrating Head; and to that^the 
Readinefs of Expreflion ; yet if he is a Stranger, ta 
the Praftice of the State, the Precedents, the 
Maxims, the Manners and Inclinations of his 
Country men> thofe- Common-places that fiimifh. 
Arguments will very little avail him. Give me 
the Genius that has Culture, like a Piece ot 
Ground, which, after* the ffrft ploughing, hasr 
been fallowed and harrow*d, to make the Crop 
the better and larger; now the Culture of a Ge- 
nius confifts in Pradice, Hearing, Reading, and 
Writing. And in the firft Place, let ian Orator 
difcem the Nature of the Caufe, which is always 
felf evident •, let him enquire if there are any 
Fafts, of what Quality they are, and under what 
Deiiomination they come T When he is qi^te 
Maifaer of this, his owagood Senfe,. Wjith^lt/fhc 
Subdti6Kon» that thefe Fellows teach^ will fug- 
gef¥ inmiediately whener the Strcfs. of the Caufe 
lie? 5 I mean, thft Point which if cleared up'.muft 

end 



ioeK H. Of an Orator: 171 

end the Difpute ; and then what is the Pomt to 
be *try*d, which thofe Teachers inftruft us wc 
are to find out in this Manner ? Opimius has flaia 
Gracchus. Where does th^e Strels of this Gaufe 
lie ? Why, in that he did it to fetve his Country, 
33 h^ caird the People to Arms by an Order of 
the Senate ; without this there is no Plea. But 
Decius will, tell you, that even that was unjufUr 
liable, if it . was a Proceeding, repliant ta , the 
Laws of his Country. Why then the Dilute 
will turn upon thisj whether the^ Overt- A£t 
could be defended, when committed by_ Virtue 
of a Decree from the Senate, in order to faye the 
State ? Thefe Confequences arc all plain and 
obvious to comrnon Senfej but we may ftill be 
at a Lofs for the Arguments that ought to. be 
advanc'd both by the Impcacher. and Impeach'd^ 
upon that Point which is decifive in the Aflfair, 

CHAP. XXXI. 

AND here we may perceive the capital 
Miftake of djofe Teachers to whbrti we fend 
#ttr Children, not- that it has any very great 
Relataon to Speaking; but that you may fee 
what Dunces and Fools^ thofe Fellows are who 
think themfelves learned. For in dividing the 
Methods of Speaking they lay down two Kinds 
of Caufes J ' the one, in wWth, accordfhg to 
them, the Propofition is gehef al, without rela- 
tion tOi paitiieular Perftms and Times^-, the other 
is confin'd to certain Perfons and Times i and tfris, 
without knowing that all Dilputes depend on 
the Strength and Nature of your reafoning upon 
the general Propofition. In the Caufe I have 
juft now mentioned, the Identity of the Perfons 

of 



lyi 0«/ife Character BookII 

of Opindus and Decius are quite out of the Qucf- 
tion with an Orator. For the Propofition is 
indefinite, and of the general Kind 5 whether a 
Man is to be punifh'd for killing a Citizen 
by an Order of the Senate for the Prcfcrvation 
of the State, tho* the Overt- Aft is not warranted 
by the Law^ ? In Ihort, there is no Caufe in which 
the Point that is to be tried has a Dependance 
upon the Perfons of thofe concerned; and not 
upon the Univerfality of the Propofition. But in 
thofe very Caufes in which the Fa£t is litigated • 
fuch as that upon the Queftion, Whether Decius 
^to(fk Money unlawfully? The Arguments both of 
the Impeacber and Impeached muft be reduced to 
reafoning upon a general HeacJ. Whatever is 
urg*d againft the Spendthrift upon Luxury; a- 
gainft the Covetous upon Avarice; againft the 
Seditious upon Difaffeftion and Difloyalty ; and 
againft many upon the Subordination of WitneflTes ; 
with all that can be advanced in Favour of the 
accus'd of thefe feveral Crimes, muft all necefla* 
rily turn upon general Reafonings, upon Faft% 
and the Univerfality of Proportions, and not upon 
the Junfture or the Perfon- In the Eyes of a 
Man who does not fo quickly comprehend tho 
Properties of Subjefts, the Points which come 
under Confideration upon the Trial of a Fa6l, 
may appear too complicated 5 but we are to con- 
fider that there is a much greater Variety of Per- 
fons, than there are of Defences, or general To- 
pics, 



CHAR 



Book II. Of an Or a Ton 173 

CHAP XXXIL 

AS to the Difputes upon the Nature of ^ 
Fad after the Commiffion is admitted; if 
you are to form your Ideas from the Perfons ac- 
cused; the Altercation muft be endlefs and intri- 
cate ; if upon the Cafe^ they will be very fliort 
and pcripicuous. For if we fuppofe in the Cafe 
of Mancinus^ that the main Confideration turns 
upon the Identity of Perfon, you will have a new 
Pleading every Time, that a Man who is deli- 
vered up by the prefiding Herald is not receivM 
by the Enemy. But if t;he Merits of the Caufe 
turn upon this general Propofition, Whether a 
Per/on in the Circumfiances of Mancinus, bas^ or 
has not a Right to the 'Priviledge of the State? 
The Orator then, neither in Speaking nor Reafon- 
ing is to have any Regard to the Identity of Per- ' 
fon. Farther, if any perfonal Circumfiances, ei- 
ther of Merit or Demerit, Ihali enter, into a Caufe 
tho* they are indeed foreign to the Enquiry, yet 
there is a Neceffity that all the Pleading upon 
them ftiould be drawn from Propofitions that arc 
univerfal in their Nature. I do not maintain this 
with any View of reflefting upon Men of Learn- 
ing ; yet furely, whoever, in difcourfing upon a 
general Head, fhall circumfcribe their Pleadings 
to Perfons* and Times, are to' blame. For ad- 
mitting thefe Confiderations of Perfons and Times 
yet a Man ou^ht ftill to be fenfible that Caufes 
are not try*d upon thefe, but upon the Merits 
of a general Propofition. But I have nothing 
to do with this, for we ought to have no Dif- 
ference with fuch Perfons : It is enough if we 
underfland, that, with all the Leifure they have, 

they 



174 Ontbe C»AtiACTtii Boon it. 

they have never yet been able to diftinguifh fiie 

Nature of Caufes> or explain them with tolerable 

Accuracy. ' But, as I faid before I have ntthibg 

to do with this. The other Point regards tnt^ 

and much more^ my Friend Cotki^ you, and Sul^ 

pkm. In the Manner that their Rules are now 

laid down, the Multitude of Caufes are formida** 

ble; for they are infinite, if the Strcfs 9f each is 

to lie upon Perfons j dien fo many Pcrfons, fo 

many Caufes. But if they are reduc'd to general 

Proportions, thefe are fo moderate and few^ that 

all induftrious, attentive, and confidering Oni'^ 

tors, muft needs digeft thjcm in their Minds, and 

have them all by Heart. Unlefs you nwy be 

of Opinion, that Laicius Cniffus ftudy'd the Caufe of 

Manhu Curius entirely with a View to perfonai 

Confiderations, and from thefe Confiderations 

brought a great mauy Arguments, why, tho' no 

Child was born of the Teftator*s Body, yet that 

Curius ought to be the Heir of Copamus. The 

Name of CcpQtdus or Curkis had nothing Co do 

with the FuUnefs of the Proof, or the Force and 

Nature of the Caufe* All the Queftion lay in 

the general Propofition upon the Fa& and the 

' Circumilances, and not upon the Time or Names : 

fince the Words of the Will were. If a Som 

SHALL BE BORN TO ME, AND HX SHALL Di£ 
BEFORE HE IS OF AgE, Csfc. ThEN* LET SUCH 

A Man be m) Heir : If a Son was not born, 
then the Queftion lay, whether the Perfon who 
was appointed Heir u^on the Demife of the Soa 
could inherit ? 



CHAP. 



Book IT. <y <»« OraToi. lys 



» - * 



C H A P. XXXIII. 

AQueftion buik upon unvarying Equity and 
of a general Nature^ requires not to be 
flipported by Nanies of PerfooS) but by Addrefs 
in Speaking, and Clearnefs of Proof. In this our 
Lawyers likewiie hamper us» and frighten us 
from Learning, For I perceive in the Writings 
of Cato ^»d Bruius^ that ^neral ly the Names of 
Men and Women, who confulted them upon 
any Point of Law, are mentioned, with a View, I 
fuppofe, to make us believe that fome Matter of 
Deliberation and Doubt arofe, not from the State 
of the Gaie, but from peribnal Confiderations; 
That, as there are an infinite Number of Indi- 
viduals, upon this Difcouragement we fhould 
lofe, with the Hopes, all Inclination to learn the 
Law. But Crqffiis will fome Time or other make 
this eafy to us, and digell it under its feveral 
Heads. For you muft know, CatuluSy he Ye- 
fterday promised, that he would reduce into cer- 
tain Heads, and eaflly bring into a Syilem, the 
Civil Law, which is now fo unconnedted and 
diflipated. Why really, iays CatuluSj this is no diffi- 
cult Matter for Craffiis to e^ed:, who has learn'd as 
much Law as is pollible to be learn'd, and who has 
fupply'devea the Defe<3:s of his Teachers ; therefore 
he may w«U point out with Accuracy, or embellifh 

with Gracefulnefs, ev^ry Point of the Civil Law. 
Let therefore, Chj^j teach us thefe Pomts, fays 

jinH>muSy when he is retired from Buftle and the 
Benches, and is Mafter of himfelf, and what he 
thinks his Retirement Tho* I have already, 
fays CatuiuSf often heard Cr^us declare, that he 

was 



1^6 On the C KA'R A cT'EH Book II- 

was determine to rojtire from all the Bufinefs of 
the Forum -, but, as I ufe to fay to him, he will 
never be indulged in this -, becaufe he himfelf will 
never fufFer the Worthy of his own Country 
fruitlefly to implore his Affiftance; nor indeed 
v^ill his Country ' admit of it with Patience ; for 
that Time which fhall deprive hi^r of the Elo- 
quence of Crajfusj will rob her of an Ornament. 
Upon my Word, fays Antonius^ if what Catulus 
has faid be the Truths you and I, Crajfus^ muft 
•ven tug at the fame Oar, and abandon that 
droufy, droning Wifdom, to the Leifure of the 
ScavoU^ and other happy Mortals.- Go through, 
Antonius^ faid Crajfus with a gentle Smile, what 
you have begupj yet, as foon as I fhall fhelter 
myfelf under that droning. Wifdom, I Ihall then 
aflert my Freedom. 

c 

CHAP XXXIV. 

ANtonius Continued : Well then, faid he, wcf 
have concluded the Point which I fet out 
with, fince we agree thiat all Matters of Alterca- 
tion confift not in the Perfons of Mankind which 
are innumerable, nor In Times, which arc inde- 
finite, but in the Circumftances and Nature of the 
Cafe ; all which are not only definite, but even 
few i and farther they who want to fpeak fhould 
comprehend the Subjeft upon which they are to 
fpeak, of whatever Kind it may be, • with all its 
different Defcriptions, Inftruftions, and Orna- 
ments ; fo far, I mean, as it relates to Fa6ts and 
Sentiments. The Force of thefe will beget Ex- 
preflion, and Expreflion too, which, in my Opi- 
nion is fufficiently ornamented, if it feems natu- 
rally to arife from the Subjcft, And if Truth is 

your 



Book IL Of an Or at 6 ». 177 

your fdlt Aim, as I think it ought to be, for I 
never can take it upon me to affirm any Thing 
but what I really think and conceive to be true, 
we ought to carry along with us into thg Forum 
this Faftiioner of Caufes, and their feveral Na- 
tures -, nor Ought we to poke into Common- 
places for Arguments upon every Caufe that ist 
laid before us -, for every Man who confiders them 
with but a moderate Share of Study and Praftice^ 
tan make the beft of them. And yet his 
Thoughts ought always to turn upon thofe gene- 
ral Heads and Topics, which I have often men- 
tioned^ and from which he can derive every Thing 
that is to be faid in any Pleading. This, call it 
Art, Obfervation, or Pradice, confifts in the 
Knowledge of the Divifions, within which you 
are to hunt out, and trace your Game. After 
you have fortify*d , all this Field by Refleftion,, 
provided you know how to take Advantage of 
Circumftancesi nothing will efcapc you, and 
every Thing that is material to the Queftion 
will occur, and fall in your Way. 

C H A P XXXV, 

THUS, fince thrte Things are requifite tq . 
Invention in Speaking-, Quicknefs, Method^ 
which, if we pleafe, we may call Art, arid Applica- 
tion ; the chief Part I muft allot to Genius j but as 
to Application, that mends the Slownefs of Genius 
iifelf. Application has great Influence in all Cafe?^ 
but in rlcading the greateft •, it is to be the prin- 
cipal Objeftofour Care and Afliduity* and with 
its Afliftance there is nothing but we may fur- 
liiount. It is by Application, as, I faid at firft^ 
<ve can m^ke ourfelves Matters of a Caufcj it is 

■ N - by 



? 



178 On /i^CHARACTER BoOK l\m 

by this that wc give foch Attention to our Anta- 
gonill, as to lay hold, not only of his Sentiments, 
but even of his Words, In ihort, it is owing to 
Application that we can make Advantage even of 
his very Look, which is generally the Index of 
the Mind. But good Senfc muft diredt us to be 
fo cautious, as that he can take no Advantage of 
this. Next, it is owing to Application, that our 
Mind can make an Excurfion into thofe Fields 
vvhich Khali foon open, fo as to enter thorough- 
ly into the Caufe, and have all its Powers and Re- 
coUeftion in Rcadinefs. But to apply Memory, 
Utterance, . and Strength, as it wiere. to illumi- 
nate all thefe Matters, that is the great Confide- 
ration. There is indeed fome fmall Room, into 
which we may edge in Art between Memory and 
Application. Art only points out the Place where 
you are to fearch, the Place where the End 
you are in queft of lies : AH the reft confifts 
in Care, Attention, Refleftion, Vigilance, Afli- 
duity, and Induftry. I will fpeak all thefe in one 
Word, which I have often mentioned, and that 
is Application. : It is in this fingle Virtue that all 
the other Virtues confift; for we perceive that 
Philofophers are at no Lofs for the Copioufnefs of 
Expreflion y^ yet they, I think, (but you, CatuluS^ 
will fpeak better to that) lay down no Rules for 
Speaking, tho* at the fame Time they abate nothing 
©f their Undertaking to fpeak with Fullnefs and 
Gopioufnefs upon every Subjedt that is propofed. 

C H A P XXXVI. 

SAYS Catulus ; it is true, Antonius^ as you. 
oblerve, Philofophers commonly lay down 
no Rules for Speaking, and yet they are never at 

a Lofs 



Book IL Of <^;f Orator. 179 

a Lofs to fpeak upon every Subjeft that is pro- 
posed : But ArijiotU, who is my Favourite, ' has 
laid down certain Common-Places, in which may 
be found the Method of every Argument, not 
only according to philofophical, but even our 
oratorial, Difputation. Your Difcourfe for (ome 
Time, Antonius^ did notatalldifagree with that Phi- 
lofopher. Whether from a Sympathy of Genius 
you have trod in the Steps of that divine Scho- 
lar, or whether, as is moft probable, your 
Obfervation is the Refult of what you have read 
and learnM in his Writings ; for 1 perceive that 
you have apply'd more to the Greek Learning 
than We imagine. I will tell you the Truth, Ca- 
tuluSy anfwered the other : I have always thought 
that an Orator would be more agreeable, and 
more plaufible to our Countrymen, who in Speak- 
ing, firft fhall fhew very few Symptoms of Arti- 
fice, and then nothing of Greek Learning. At 
the fame Time, I have thought it difcovered more 
of the Brute than of the Man, not to liftento the 
Greeks^ when they undertake, profefs, and han- 
dle fuch weighty Matters, and not only fo, but 
have pretended to give Mankind a Rule for dif- 
cerning the moft obfcure SubjeAs, for living mo- 
rally, and fpeaking copioufly ; and if one does 
not hear them publickly, for fear of derogating 
from his Charafter among his Countrymen, yet 
at Icaft clandeftinely to catch up fome of their 
Words, and without feeming to take Notice, 
mark what they have, to fay. This, Catulus^ 
has been my Method, and by this Means I have 
a general Notion of their Argumentations, and 

their feveral Kinds. 

N 2 CHAP- 



i8o On the CaractteK Hook IL 

CHAP XXXVII. 

SAYS Catulus ; indeed you have fleered tOf 
the Coafts of Philofophy with as great Cau- 
tion as if you had been afraid to fpHt upon thcf 
Rock of fome unwarrantable Defire^ yet this 
State has never defpifed Philofophy. For at the 
Time when the greater Greece lay in thfs Coun- 
try, Italy was full of Pythagoreans •, from whom 
came Numa PompiliuSy our King, who is faid' to 
be a Pythagorean •, yet he lived a great many 
Years before Pythagoras. For this Reafon, we. 
are to look upon him as the greater Man, fince htf 
poflefsM the Knowledge of Civil Polity almoft 
two Ages l)ef ore the Greeks perceived that fuch a 
J^nowledge exifted. And furely this State never 
produced Men moae eminent in Renown,, mory 
weighty in Authority, or more polifh'd in their 
Manners, than were P, Africanus^ C I^liuSj and 
L', Furius^ who always publiekly had about their 
Pcrfons the moft learned Man they could get 
from Greece. Arid I have often heard them fay,, 
that the Athenians did a very agreeable Things 
both to them, and to a great many leading 
Men of this City, when they lent in an Em- 
bafly upon their mioft important Concerns, the 
three moll eminent Philofophers of that Age^^ 
Carneades^ Critolaus^ and Diogenes: That when 
thefe were at RomCy their Leffons were daily fre- 
quented by themfelves and others. After the" 
Authority of thofe great Men, I am furprized, 
Antonius^ that like the- Zethm of Pacuvius^ you 
fliould almoft declare War upon Philofophy. Bjj 
Ut) me^iis^ reply'd Antonins j I have rather re- 



Book II. €f tf« O r a t o r, iSi 

fdly*d to philofophize a little like rfeoptokmus in 
EnniuSy for I do not love to be afinifh'd Philo- 
ibpher. Bgt my Opinion is this, and I thought 
I had explained it : Provided thefe Studies are mo- 
xierate I dan*t condemn them : But I think 
ft is very prqudicial to an Orator that a Jpdge 
ihould imagine he is devoted to thefe Studies, and 
iufpeft that he lyiade ufe of Sophiftry . For this 
takeSHiway both from the Weight of an Orator, 
and the Credit of what he delivers, 

CHAR XXXVIII. 

BUT, to return from whence w« digrcffed* 
don*t you. perceive that of thefe three very 
famous Philofophers, who you fay came to Rome^ 
Diogenes profcfs'd to teach the Art of Diflerta- 
tion •, of fcperating Truth from Falfhood ; which 
the Greeks call Logic? In this Art, if it is an 
Art, we have not one Rule how to find out 
the Truth ( all the Matter is how to judge of it. 
For it^ happens, that in every Proportion we lay 
down, whether it is of the affirmative or negative 
Kind, if it is fimply laid down^ thefe Logicians, 
undertake to judge whether it is true or falfe; 
and whether it \% produced conjunftively ,or ad-, 
jc6lively; they pronounce whether it is rightly 
adjoined, and whether the Sum of every Reafon- 
ing is, true j At laft they fo hamper themfelves. 
with their own Quirlcs and SubtHties, that they 
fall upon Knots which they are not only unable 
tp unravel, but even render knotty thofe Points 
which they had before cleared up, or rather un- 
loos'd. Here, therefore, our Stoic is of no Aflift- 
^ftce, to us, infomuch as he lays dowa no Rules 

N *3. withi 



i82 On the Cn A'R ACT EJi Book IL 

with regard to my inventing what I am to fay : 
Nay, he even puzzles, by throwing in Difficul- 
ties in my Way, which he declares to be indiffo- 
luble : And all this in a Stile by no Means per- 
fpicuous, diffufive, or eafy; but jejune, dry, 
cramp'd, and nigardly ; fo that if he proves any 
Thing, it muft be owned that bis Manner is far 
from being agreeable to that of an Orator. Our 
?rofeflion leads us to court the Attention of the 
many, to deUght their Underftandings, to force 
their AfFedtions, to approve of what is not to be 

' weighed in the Scales of a Jeweller : but, as it 
were, in the Ballancc of popular Opinion. Let 
us therefore bid adieu to this whole Syftem, 
which, in inventing, is too mute ; in adjudging, 

• too loquacious. I am of Opinion that CriioIauSj 
whom you mention to have come along with 
Diogenes^ could have been of much more Service 
to our Profeflion. For he followed Ariftotkj 
from whofe Precepts you perceive I don't much 
differ. I have read his Book where he treats of 
the Methods of Speaking which were us'd by his 
Predeceflbrs, and likewife thofe Works, where 
he lays down fomething of his own upon this 
Head: And, to me, there appears this Diffe- 
rence between Jrijioik and his Brother Matters 
of this Art : He by the fame mental Eye with 
which be took in the Power and Quality of every 
Objeft in Nature, likewife furvey'd the Proper- 
ties of Eloquence, which, at the fame Time, 
had but a fecond Place in his Efteeni; but the 
others, who are wholly engrofled with this Study, 
dwell upon this fingle Province of Diflertation, 
and difpute not with the good Senfe of j^iftotle^ 
tho* they are Matters of Praftice and Study fupe^ 
* riar 



Book II. 0/*j«Orator. 183 

rior to his upon this fingle Point. But as to the 
wonderful Energy, and the Variety of the Elo • 
quence of CarneadeSy it is that we are to wilh for ; 
for in thofe JDifputations he never defended what 
he did not make good ; he never attacked what he 
did not overthrow. This however is fomewhat 
:more than is to be expefted from thofe Profcflbrs 
and Teachers. 

CHAP. XXXIX. 

BU T, were I to train up one quite illiterate 
to Eloquence, I would rather deliver him 
over to thefe Drudges, who Night and Day ham- 
TCitr on the fame Anvil, in the fame dull Tradl; ; 
and who fc^d their Scholars, as Nurfes do Infants, 
with minc'd Meat. But if he has had liberal 
Education, if he has had any Experience, if he 
feems to be tolerably acute, then will I hurry 
him, not where a little Rivulet ftiall confine, but 
where a whole Flood of Eloquence ihall break 
«pon^ him. Where he fhall be fhewn the Seats, 
and, as it were, the Manfions of Arguments, 
where he fhould have them illuftrated in a few 
Words, and defined by proper Expreflions. For 
what Difficulty can there be to a Man who is 
fenfible that every Topic in Difcourfe, that ferves 
either to prove or to refute, is derived from its own 
Power and Nature, or borrow'd from fome exte- 
rior Circumftance } The former confifts in the 
univerfal, or partial Enquiry into the Nature of a 
Thing-, its Term, or any Quality that comes 
Tieareft to the Cafe. As to exterior Circum- 
ftances, they arie gathered from abroad, and are 
not inherent to the Nature of the Cafe. If the 

N 4 Queftion 



J 84 OfJ f&<? C H A R A C T E R . BoOK \t. 

Qiieftion is general, its Force is to be explained 
by a gcnerjil Definition, in this Manner j^" If Ma- 
jefty confifts in the Grandeur and Dignity of 2^ 
State ; then he attains it , who delivers up a i?c- 
man Atrny to the Enemy, and not the Perfon 
who delivers fuch a Traytor to the Power pfthe 
People of Romey If the Queftion is partial, it is 
to be done by Partition in this Manner: " The Se- 
nate is either to be obeyed in Matters that concern 
the Welfare of the State, or fome other Autho- 
rity is ^p be inftituted, or one muft follow what 
his own Reafon fuggefts : An Authority foreigi^ 
to that of the Senate would be prefumptuous ; 
one's own Determination would be arrogant. 
The Authority of the Senate was therefore to be 
followed.'' If the Queftion lies in the Term, as 
in the Cafe of Carbo^ it pafTes in this Manner ;'" If 
he is a Conful who confutts the Good of his Coun- 
try, what elfe.has Opimtus done?'* But as to 
Queftions that turn upon Qualities which come 
neareft to the Cafe, there are more Seats and 
Common -places from whence Proofs may be 
drawn. We then enquire into Arguhipnts drawn 
from accidental Properties, general Heads, and 
their Subdivifions, Similarities, and Diflimila- 
rities, Contrarieties, and Confequentials, Agree- 
rnents, and, as it were, whatever is antecedent 
and repugnant : We trace Caufes and their Ef- 
fefts^* and enquire into Arguments drawn front 
the Properties that are either greater, equal, or 






CHAP. 



Eoo^ M. 0/ an Ok AT on; 185 



C H A P. XL. 

AS to Arguments drawn from accidental Pro* 
pcrties, they are thus form'd. " If the 
grcateft Honour is due to Piety, then you ought 
to be fenfibly touched when you behold the pious 
Sorrow of 4 Meiel/us :'' From the Kind -, ** If 
the Magiftracy ought to be fubordinate to the 
People of Rome^ why do you accufe Norbanus^ 
vhofe Tribunefliip was always fubfervient to the> 
Pleafure of the State ? As to partial Arguments^ 
which are Sub-divifions of general Heads ; If all 
who confult the Good of our Country ought to be 
dear to us, a General ought furely to be the deareft,. 
fince it is by his Counfels^ Courage, and Dangers, 
that we retain the Safety of our Perfons, and the 
Dignity of our Empire." From Similiarity thus ; 
V If even wild Beafts love their young, what an 
Affedtion ought we to bear to the Children of our 
Body?" From Diflimujarity thus 5 " If Barbarians 
l^y no Account for To-morrow, our Wifdom 
ought to make Provifion for Eternity." And in 
both Kinds, both of Similarity and Diflimilarity^ 
Examples are to be brought from the A&ions, the 
Sayings and the Accidents of others ; and very 
often you 4re to lay down fiftitious Narratives. 
Now ai to Contrarieties ; " If Gracchus adted un- 
naturally, Opimius adled nobly." From Confequeh- 
tials i " If a Man was kill'd by the Sword, and 
you his Foe was taken upon thp Sppt with a bloody 
Sword in your Hand ; nobody was feen there be- 
£des yourlelf ; if nobody had any Grudge at him, 
^nd you was always remarkable for Audacity, how 
fan we doifbt of yp^jr poipmitting the Murder?'* 

I^ron^ 



i86 O^r /Af Char ACTBR. Book II. 

From Circumftanccs that are agreeing, antecedent, 
and repugnant, let us borrow the Words of Craf- 
fusy when he was was a Youth. ** Carlo ^ tho' you 
defended OpttmuSy yet thcfe for all that will not cf- 
teem you as a good Citizen : It is plain that you 
have diflcmbled, and that you had fomething 
clfe in View, becaufe in Aflemblics you often de- 
plor'd the Death of Tiberius Gracchus ; becaufc 
you was an Accomplice in the Death of Publius 
Jfricanus ; bccaufe in your Tribunelhip you enac- , 
ted that Law -, becaufe you always diffented from 
Patriots/* As to Arguments drawn from Motives, 
they proceed in this Manner ; ** If you want to 
take away Avarice, you muft take away Luxury, 
its Mother. As to Effefts arifing from Caufes ; 
** If we employ the Wealth of the Treafury for 
Ibpporting us in War, and adorning us in Peace \ 
let us do every Thing then to improve our Re- 
venue." As to greater, to lefler, and parallel Cir- 
cumftances, we manage them thus. The greater % 
^ If a good Name is better than Riches, and 
if Riches are fo defireablc, how much more is 
Glory to be coveted ? An Argument taken from 
the lefler is this j * ^ upon hut _fnudl Acquain- 
tance he hears her Death fo tenderly^ how would 
he have horn it if he had loved her ? how will he 
iewail me who am his Father ? From equal Cafes 
thus ; " The fame Man who pltindefs his Coun- 
try,, corrupts it with its Spoils," As to Arguments« 
taken from exterior Circumftances^ thefe are bor- 
row'd, not from the Strength of a Caufe itfelf, 
l)ut from extraneous Objects : As for Inftancc \ ' * 
•* This Propofition is true, for ^ Lutatius advanced 

• This Example is borrowed from the Jndria of Terence. 

it; 



Book IL Of an Oil a to *. 187 

it ; the other is falfe, for it was extorted by the 
Rack." This is a neceffary Confequenccj for I 
read over the Deeds ; as to every Thing elfe in 
general I have ipoke to it before. As all thefc 
may be exemplified in a very few Words, fo I 
have difcufs'd them accordingly, 

C H A F. XLL 

FQ R, as if I were to point out a Mafs of 
Gold that is buried in feveral Places, it would 
be enough, if I ihould defcribe the Signs and 
Marks of the Places where it lay -, for then the 
Perfon, to whom I thus defcribcd it, might find 
and dig it up with Eafe and Certainty: Thus, 
after I had made myfelf Mafter of thefe dif- 
tinguifliing Charafters of Arguments, they poin- 
ted out what I was in Search of, all the reft 
is to be wrought out by Care and Invention. But 
as to the Nature of thofe Arguments, that arc 
beft adapted to thefe feveral Kinds of Caufes, it 
does not require confummate Art to prefcribe 
them, and but a middling Degree of Genius to 
judge of them. • For our Bufinefs is not now to 
explain any Art of Eloquence, but to lay before 
Men of the greateft Learning, as it were, certain 
Hints that arife from my own Pradice. When 
thefe Topics are imprinted upon the Mind, and 
reafoning Faculties, and difpofed fo as to fcrvc. 
upon all Occafions, nothing then can efcape an 
Orator, not only in his Altercations in the Fo- 
rum, but in every Species of Speaking. But if he 
fhould attain to that Pitch of Perfeftion, as to be 
taken for the very Perfon he afTumes •, and if h^ 
can fo touch the Affe<Stions of the Judges, as ei- 
ther 



iS8 On the Character Booit II 

ther to drag, or impel them to what Sentiments 
he pleafes ; believe me, he then wants nothing 
riiat can contribute towards forming a finilh'd O- 
rator. Let us now proceed to prove, that it is 
not iufficient you can invent what you have to 
fay, unlefs you know how to manage what you 
have invented. Variety is neceffary in this, both 
to conceal your Art from the Hearer, and to pre- 
vent his being cloy'd with frequent Returns of 
the fame Ideas. It is proper, fometimes, to lay 
down what you advance, by Way of Prbpofition, 
and to. (hew the Reafon why it is fo : and fome- 
cimes to draw a Conclufion from the fame To- 
pics : Sometimes to leave it to be form'd by the 
Hearer, and make a Tranfition elfewherc : Some- 
times to make no Propofition at all, but to leave 
the Reafon of the Thing to point out what Ihould 
be propofed. If you reft your Argument upon 
a Parity of Reafoning, you are firft to prove the 
Parity ; you are then to make an Application tQ 
the Point in Queftion : You are generally to con- 
ceal the Pungency of your Proofs, fo as that no- 
body (hall be able to count them up, that they, 
may be diftingui(h'd in Reality, but appear blende, 
ed one with another in your Speech, 

CHAP, XLIL 

IXalk as a Smatterer in this curfory Way ta 
you who are learped, that I may at laft come 
ro Matters of greater Confequence. For there is. 
nothing, Calulus, of greater Importance to an 
Orator, than to prepofTefs his Hearer in his Fa- 
vour, fo that the Emotion he himfelf feels may 
proceed from the Impulfc of the Mind, or a cer*. 
\ taift 



Book 11. Of an O^AroKi rS^ 

tairi Perturbation, rather than from the Refult of 
his cooler Judgment. For Men oftner form a 
Judgment thro* the Influence of Hatred, Lovey 
Defire, Anger, Grief, Joy, Hope, Fe^r, Mif- 
take, or fome Emotion of the Mind, rather than 
Truth or Precept, or any Rule of Law, or any 
Form of Judgment or Statutes, Therefore, uA- 
lefs yoii lliould objeft to it:, let us proceed t6 
thefe Points. Says Catulus^ there is fome little 
Thing feems to be wafiting, Antonius^ with re- 
gard to the Subjedt you haVe already explained, 
and whicfi you ought to clear up before you pro- 
ceed to what you propofed. What is tfiat, re- 
plies, Antonius? Says Catulu5\ it relates to tlic 
Order and Arrangement of Proofs that pleafes. 
you bell; for in this Particular you always feem'd! 
fomething more than mortal. Y'ou fliall judge, 
CatutuSj replies the other, how much more than 
mortal I am upon this Head : Upon my Word, 
had I not been put in Mind, I fhould not havepncc 
thought of it •, by this you may judge that all the 
Succefs I have in Speaking is owing either ta 
Practice or Chance. Yet that very Point, whiclv 
becaufe I was unacquainted with it I pafsM by as 
C)ne would a Man he never knew, is of as much 
EfEcacy iji Eloquence as any other Circumftance 
in the whole. But give me leave to fay, that 
you feem to anticipate the Time when I am to 
lay down the Method of proceeding upon, and! 
difpofing a Subjeft : For had I placed all the 
Power of an Orator in Proofs, and the Evidence 
that, arifes from the Nature of the Caufe, now 
Vrould be the Time to fpeak upon the Difpofitioa 
c( Proofs, and upon the Arrangement ; but as I 
have as yet fpoke on-ly to one of three Points 

which 



192 Ontbe Ckak A CTER B60K It 

which I propofed, after I have fpoke to the other 
two, then indeed it may be proper for us to talk 
upon the general Difpofition of a Speech. 

; 

CHAP. XLIIL 

TH E Approbation of the Morals, the Views, 
the Aftions, and Lives both of the Pleader 
and the Client, have the greateft Influence upon 
the Succefs of a Pleading ; as has the impeaching 
thofe of your Antagonift. And likcwife to con- 
ciliate as much as we can the Minds of the Judges 
to favour both the Orator and the Client. A fa- 
vourable Opinion again is gain'd by the Dignity 
of Perfon, by the Aftions he has perform'd, from 
his Reputation, which are much more eafily em- 
bellifh'd if they are real than if they are ficti- 
tious. But the Helps, of an Orator confift in 
thefe ; the Softnefs of the Voice, the Look, the 
Symptoms of Balhfulnefs, the Gracefulnefs of 
Expfeffion -, and, if you are oblig'd to run into 
Inveftives, the apparent Reluftance you difcover. 
It is of the greateft Utility to difclofe Indications 
of Eafinefs, Generofity, Affability, Piety, Gra- 
titude, Moderation, and Difintereftednefs ; all 
the Properties of the Worthy, and the Meek, of 
the Gentle, the Yielding, of the Peaceable, the 
Relenting, are all entremely engaging, both in 
Favour of the Speaker and the ^Perfon for whofe 
Intereft he pleads; and they prepoflTefs the Mind 
againft the P^rfons of thofe who do not pofTefs 
thefe Qualities, in Proportion as they favour the 
other Party who does. But all this Manner of 
Speaking has the greateft Etieft in thofe Caufcs, 
where it is difficult to inflame the Judge by any 

keen. 



Book IL Of an Or at or. z^o 

keen, fpiritcd Emotion. For Vehemence of Speech 
is not always proper^ but there is often required a 
Stile that is gentle, mild, fubmiffive -, which is 
of the greateft Service * to a Party, by this Ex- 
preflion I mean not only the accused, but all who 
have an Intereft at Stake ; for this was the Lan* 
guage of our Forefathers. It has therefore a 
wonderful EfFe<5t in a Speech to exprefs their 
Manners as jufl, upright, religious, diffident, and 
patient under Injuries j and this cither in the Be- 
ginning, in the Narrative, or in the Peroration, 
has fo great EfFeft, if it is agreeably and feelingly 
handled, • that it is often of more Force than the 
Merits of the Caufe itfelf. But fuch is the EffeSt 
of a feeling Manner of Speaking, that the Speech 
becomes, as it were, the Pifture of the Speaker's 
Character. For there is a Charafter of Senti- 
ments and Expreffion, which when joined to a 
gentle, eafy Action, makes us appear Men of 
Probity, of Worth and Virtue. 

CHAP. XLIV. 

BUT very different from this is that Me- 
thod of Speaking, which affefts the Minds 
of the Judges in another Manner, and impels 
them to Hate, to Love, to Spite, to Favour, to 
Fear, to Hope, to Defire, to Abhorrence, to 
Joy, to Sorrow, to Pity, to Refentment, oi- leads 
them to thofe Emotions, if any fuch exift, which 
are cogenial with, or ally^d to thofe, or the like 
Paflions of the Soul. An Orator too is to wifli 
that the Judges Ihould bring along with them a 

« To a Party.'] The Itf/f » has reus, wkich in the Time of 
Cicero fignify'd any Pcrfon profccuted. 

Dif- 



>9i On the Ch a R A c 'f e R Boo« If/ 
Difpofitiori of Mind, which is moil fuited to fa- 
vour the Caufc he pleads. For it is obfcrv'd, it 
Is much eafier to give Spirits to the Man who runs,' 
than Motion to him \^ho*is drooping. But if this 
is either impoffible, or very difficult, to be cfFefted, 
then I aft like the careful Phyfician, who, before 
he prefcribes a Remedy to his Patient, informs 
himfelf; not only of the Nature of the Difeafe he 
w^nts to cure, but of his Habit and Conftitutioft 
when he was in Health. For when I enter Upon 
a doubtful Caufe, by which it is very difficult 
to manage the Affedtions of thfe Judges, I employ 
all my Care, Attention and Reflt6Hon, to have 
the trueft Senfe that I can of their Thoughts^ 
their Apprehenfions, their Expeftations and De- 
' fires, and on what Side their Inclinations appear 
moft acceflible. If they yield, and, as I faid be- 
fbre^ if their Byafs naturally favours our Impulfe ; 
I make ufe of the Advantage given, and fpread 
my Sails before the Wind. But if the Judge is 
unbyaffed, and compofed, it is a more cfiffitult 
Taflc, for then every Paffion is to be worked up 
by the Dint of Eloquence, without any Affiftancc 
from Nature. But Eloquence, which an excel'- 
lent Pcct rightly terms the Mifirefs of Jffe£itons\ 
and ^een of the Univerfcy has fuch a Power, as 
not only to rear the Stooping, or to bend the" 
Ereft, but, like a fkilful and brave Commander,^ 
it makes Captive even Reluftance and Oppofition; 



t H A p; 



I 

Book ir. Of an Or at on. 193 

CHAP XLV. 

TH E S E are the Properties which Crojfus^ 
a little Time ago, fo earneftly defir'd to 
hear from me, when he faid, in Jell I luppofe, that 
' I us'd to handle them divinely -, and commended 
fome Things that pafled in the Caufe oi Manius 
Aquilius^ and Caius ISlorbanus^ and fome others^ 
as manag'd with great Addrefs. Yet, by Hea- 
vens! Crajfus^ when you employed thefe Qualities 
in your Pleading, I us'd to feel myfelf Ihudder : 
there was fo much Spirit, fo much Force, fo 
much Paflion in your Eyes, your Features, and 
your Air; nay, your very Hands had Meaning in 
their Motions. So powerful was the Torrent of 
weighty^ well-chofcn Expreffions, fo entire ypur 
Sentiments, fo juft, fo new, with fo artlefs, fo 
manly a Glow, that to me you feem'd not only 
to fire the Judge, but to be all* in Flames your- 
felf. Nor is poffible that a Hearer (hould ever 
be imprefTed with Sorrow, with Hatred, with 
Deteftation, with Dread ; it is impoffible to move 
him to Tears, or Pity, unlefs the Speaker ihall 
appear affefted and poffefs'd with all the Paflions 
which he aims to awaken in the Judge. But if 
an Orator is to borrow a Paffion, and if every 
Thing he (hall advance in his Speech is to be falfe 
and perfonated, then indeed a greater Degree of 
Art may be neceflary. Now, CraJJus^ I don't 
know how it is with you and other People j 
but, for my own Part, I know of no Caufe that 
could induce me to be at the Expence of a Lye 
before Men of the greateft good Senfe, and my 
beft Friends, I never, by Heavens! attempted 

O to 



]f^4 On the CfiAK ACT EH Book IL 
to awaken in the Judges, Pallion, Pity, Detefta^ 
tion, or Hatred, that I did not at the Tame Time 
feel within my oWn Breaft every Emotien I 
wanted taraife in theirs. For it is no cafy Mat- 
Icr to point the Ang^rof a Judge againft the Pcr- 
fon you aim at^ if you feem to be cool and diP 
paflionate yourfelf : It is no eafy Matter to .make 
him hate the Man you wiffi he Ihould hate, un^ 
lefs he fkft fees you all on Fire with your own 
Rcfentment: You never Ihalt be able to bring 
him to compaffionate^ without Proofs of your 
own Pity, from your Words, Sentiments, Voice,. 
Look, nay Tears. For as no- Matter is fo conft- 
buftible as to kindle without the Application of 
Fire -, fo no Mind is fo fufceptible of the Power 
of Eloquence, as to catch its Bkze, unkfs the 
Speaker, when he attacks it, is all of a Flame 
himfelf. 

CHAP. xLvr. . 

BUT left, it may be thought fomcwhat 
^ wonderful and incredibk^^ that a Man fhould 
experience fuch frequent Viciflitudes of Anger 
and Grief i that he fliould feel fo many Emo- 
tions of Soul, efpecially in Matters He has no- 
Concern, in himfelt; we are to confidcr that the 
Power of thofc Sentiments and Topics, whicfc 
you exert and apply in Pleadings is f& great, that 
there is no Occafion ta have rccourfe to Difguife 
and Fallhood. For the very Nature of the PJi- 
^}>efic Stile makes a deeper Impreffion upon ihc 
Orator himfelf, than it does- upon any of h^s 
Hearers. And that we may not be furpriied at 
diis happening in Caufesy in Trials, in the Fo- 

Fumi^ 



1 



fippK JJi 0/ ^n OraTok. 195 

rum^ Iq the City; when pur Friends are in Dan- 
ger, vhca a Multitude i§ aflembled ; wc arc to 
tefle£t that not only the Reputation of our own 
Abilities is at Stake, (and tho* that is but trifling, 
yet ftill, it is to be cbnfider'd as fomewhat, as 
you profefs to re^ch what i« attainable by few) 
but you have a much more important Concern 
depending ; I mean your Honour, your Duty, 
and ybur t^'idelity in difcharging it. Thefe are 
fuch Motives^ that even while we defend the 
meereft Stranger to us upon Earth, if we have 
any Regard to our 6wh moral Charafter, we can- 
not confidcr him as' a Stranger. But, as I have 
i^bfervM, to rccbncile this to Credibility in our 
tafe, cdn any Thing have lefs Reality than the 
feubjeft of Verfesi a Play^ or a Tale? Yet I 
liave fecn the very Eyes of a Player fparkle thro* 
ibis Mafk, when he repeated thefe Lines-, Durjf 
you pari with him ? tFitboui him^ durft you enter 
thefe H^ails ^ Did yoU not dread the jifpeSl of a 
Father? He jlever pronounced the Word As- 
i>ECT, but i thought I faw old Telamon frantic 
with Grief at the Lofs of his Son. Again, vt^hen 
he affumed a more companionate Tone, Tou have 
torn in Pieces^ you have robbed^ you have mur- 
dered ymr Father in the Lofs of a Son who w.^s 
the Prop of his ftoopin^ j1ge% without any Regard 
to the Death of your Brother^ or to his belplefs 
infant^ who was given into your Gu^trdianfkip^ 
Thefe Words, I fay, he pronouncM all in Tears 
4nd Sorrow. Jf this Player, potwithftanding his 
daily Practice, could not play this Speech rightly 
without a real Pafl5on ; wlxat ! can you imagine 
that Pocuvius was cool and compojs'd when he 
wrote it ? By no Means ; for I have oftentimes 

O 2 hcurd 



1g6 ' On //&> Char AC TIER Booit If. 

heard, and they fay it is confirmed by the Wri- 
tings of Pl^Jo and Democritusj that no good Poet 
ever liv'd without a Biaze of Spirits, and a ccrtainr 
Breath of Enthufiafm. 

CHAP. XLVIL 

THrrefore, don't imagine that I, whofe Bir- 
finefs is not to imitate or perfonate in my 
Pleadings the romantic Exploits, or the ima- 
ginary Difafters- of antient Heroesy who am not 
the Copy, but the Original of the Charafter I 
appear in, when I was to fave Manius Jquilius 
from Banifhment, while I touch'd upon the pa- 
thetic Part, did not feel all the Paflion I exprefs'dl 
When I faw the Man who I remember'd to have 
been Conful, to have been a General diftin- 
guilh'd by the Senate, to have mounted the Steps 
of the Capitol in an Ovation, deprefled, dejefted, 
forrowful, in imminent Danger ; is it to be ima- 
gined that I attempted to awaken Sentiments of 
Pity in the Breads of others, before I felt thenft 
in my own ? Yes, 1 perceiv'd that it greatly af- 
fefted the Judges,, when I appealed to tKe old 
Man's Sorrow and Dejeftionv and when I did, 
what you, CraJJ'us^ have commended ; when,' not 
from any Art, which I know not how to treat of, 
but from a ftrong Convulfion of Grief and Con- 
cern, I tore open his Veft to fhew his Scar^.' 
When C Marius^ fitting at the fame Timfc lipoh 
the Bench, by his Tears greatly heightened the 
piteous Scene t had difclofed: When, by fre- 
^.quently catling on him, I recommended his Col- 
league to his Protection, and requefted his Inter- 
ceffion for defending the Fortunes of all Generals, 

Thcr 



^QfOK: IL QfanO r j^to ^l 1,97 

The Compaflion I raifed was not without my (heid- 
4ing a Flood of Tears, nor without ray feeling ^ 
Load of AHguifli ; and^Ltbe Appeal that in every 
Expreffion I made to Gods, to Men, to Citizen$ 
and FriendSa would not only have bean ineffec- 
tual ID r^ifing CompaflionVqad I pot b een deeply 
afFefted myf elf, but mu ft have appear'd ridiculous 
in my Pleading, Therefore, mark me, Sulpicius^ 
like a good and learned Mafter as I am^ I teach 
you how, while you are Speaking, you may be 
ajigry, how you may grieVe, how may you weep. 
But why fhould I teach this to you, who, when 
you accufed my Companion and Quaeftor, raifed 
a Flame, not only by your Words, but by your 
Energy, Paflion and Glow of Spirits, which burn- 
ed fo fierce, as I durft fcarcely venture to ap- 
proach to extinguini it. For in that Caufe you 
had every Thing that could contribute to give you 
a Superiority -, you had there a Field to expatiate 
in the Courfe of the Trial, upon the Violence, 
tile Flighty the Stoning, and the Cruelty of the 
Tribunes, and on the piteous, lamentable Difafter 
of C^epio : Then it was felf-evident that Marcus 
jEmiliuSj a leading Man in this City, and the Se- 
nate, had been ftruck with a Stone, and it was 
undeniable that Lucius Cottd and T. Didius^ when 
they wanted to put their Negative, were driven 
violently out of the Temple, 

CHAP. XLVIII, 

BEfides, your being a young Man added the 
greateft Dignity to the Complaints you 
pour'd forth in Behalf of your Country ; while I, 
who had been a Cenfor, was puzzled in what Man - 
Ijer, confiHent with my own Charadter, I could 

O 3 , - •enter' 



198 0« /i&^ CflAftACTER BdOlC II 

enter upon the Defence of a Editions Citizen, 
fo unrelenting at the Misfortune of a cofirultf 
Perfon. Tlie moft worthy of our Citizens fate 
upon the Bench; the Forum wa^ full of excellent 
Men ; fo that I could but jull enter a Sender Plei 
of Excufe; tho* I w«» to fpeak for one who had 
been my Quaeftor. Shall I here fay that I applied 
my Art ? 1 will inforfn you of my Conduft, and 
then you may place it under any Divifion of 
Art that you pleafe. I made a CoJlcftion of the* 
N|^ture, the Mifchiefs, and the Hazards 6f all 
Seditions : I traced them down thro' every Revo- 
lution of our Government, and concluded, by ob- 
ferving, that tho' Seditions had always been incdn- 
vpnient, yet that fometimcs they were warranted 
by Juftice, almoft by Neceffity. Then I advanced 
what Crajfus . juft now mentioned ; That neither 
Kings coulcj havp beci> driven out of the State, 
nor Tribunes of th^ People created, nor the 
Confular Power fo often impaired by A6ts of the 
Commons, nor could the People of Jiome have 
obtained tl^c Right of Appeal, that Protedrels 
of our State, that Guardian of her Liberty, had 
it not been for their Struggles with the Nobi- 
lity. . That if Seditions I^ad done Service to the 
Conftitution, any popular Infurreftion which might 
have happened ought not inftantly to be charged 
on Caius Norianus ^s an heinous Crime, and a 
capital Mifdemeanor. 1 . urged, if it were once 
admitted that the People of Rome might be law- 
fully alarmed, which I proved to have been often 
the Cafe, they never had better Reafon than at 
that Time. Then I gave my whole Pleading 4 
new Turn, I pointed it againft the Flight of 
Cffi(fy i bewaiFd the Lofs of the Army. By 
I this 



» « • .» 



Book: II. Of an Ok at or, igp 

this means I awaken'd all the Grief of thofe wh^ 
liad loft their Relations, and renew'd the Re- 
icntmcnt of the Rotnan Knights, who were Judges 
in that Caufe, againft Capio^ who was before dif- 
figreeable to them, on account of Cercaia judiciP* 
ry Proceedings. 

C m. A P« , XLIX« 

As foon as I perceived I had cftablifhed mjr 
Intereft in the Trial, and the Force of my 
Pefence ; that I had conciliated the Favour of the 
People, whofe Rights were linkM with the Sedi- 
tion I was then defending ) and had direded the 
whole Refentment of the Judges, as arifing either 
from the Mifery of the State, or from their Grief 
for the Lofs of their Relations, or their perfonai 
Hatred of C^epWj to favour my Caufe, I then began 
to mingle with this vehement, fierce Stile, thfe 
pther Manner which I have already mentioned; 
♦ I mean the gentle and endearing. I told them^ 
that I employed alnioft all rpy Reputation and 
Fortune in Defence of my Companion, a Rela- 
tion which yoyr Anceftors looked wpon ^s that of ' 
a Son; That nothing could fo much difgrace, 
nothing could fo much grieve Qie, as that I, who 
had been often thought of Service to the greateft 
Strangers, who were at the f^qoe Time my Coun- 
trymen, ihoqld not now be able to affift a dear 
Companion; I entreated the Judges to yield this * 
to my Age, lo the Honours I had difcharg'd, to 
the Aftions I had performed, if they faw me af - 
fcdled with a juft and a pious Sorrow ; ^fpecially 
if in all my other Caufes they had perceived I had 

^Imtan the gentle] The Reader may fee in the firft Volume of 
ijie Orations tranflated into EngUjh, howwelHnd how cxaddy 
CisifQ hia^ foilow'd theRules here laid down in hisDefcnce oiMilo. 

O 4 afked 



200 On the Character BookII. 

afked no Favours for myfelf, but all for the Exi- 
gencies of nny Friends. Thus, thro' all this Plead- 
ing and Caufe, I very ilightly touchM upon any 
Point that required Art, fuch as Speaking upon 
the Apuleian Law, and explaining the Nature of 
Trealbn. But my whole Management in this 
Caufe confifted in two Parts, the firft, in moving 
the PaTions, the other, in recommending myfelf; 
for the Perfection of both which Parts we are 
very little oblig'd to the Rules of Art. It was by 
thcfe Means, that my Inveftives prevailed in re- 
newing the popular Averfion for C^epio^ and I 
myfelf appeared all Gentlenefs and Tendernefs, 
when I came to touch upon the Nature of my 
private Friendfhips. Thus, rather by moving the 
PaiTions than convincing the Uhderftanding of the 
Judges, Sulpcius^ I baffled your Impeachment. 

C H A P. L. 

YOU are in the right, Mtonius^ fays Sulfi- 
cius^ to mention this ; for I never knew 
* any Thing flip out of my Hands in the Man- 
ner that Caufe did at that Time; for, as you have 
mention'd, when I had left you to anfwer rather 

* jlny thing flip out ofviy Hands] The Latin has quod tarn e Ma- 
fiihus eLberetur. There is a Sneer here ofSuIpicius that has never 
"been attended to. Antonius had jufl been telling in what a Man- 
ner he had a£led his Part when he brought ofF Norhanus^ and it 
is plain, that thq' the Roles and Examples he lays down in th^ 
JR. elation are extremely juft, yet he treats the whole as a folemn 
Farce ; he concludes by faying Sulpicius was baffled, magis a/- 
ftSfii Animis indicum quam vi^is, Sulpicius in this Paflage keeps 
up the Humour, and fays that th|it Caufe hadjlipt out of his Hands, 
This alludes to the Farces, or ilf/W, where a Fellow was brought 
upon the Stage, and by different: Feats of Aftivity, of the fame 
i^fature with thofe of our Harhquixy efcaped oat of the Hand^ 
of the reft of the Aftors; who. purfuing him, left the Stage 
dear, and thus the Farce ended. For a more particular Account 
pf this fee the Note upon the Oration for ded/ius, in my Tran^ 
(lation. Vol. 2. p. 162.. line 23. 






Book IL Of an Oil at o r; fiox 

an Inveftive than a Reafoning, Immortal God^! 
4iow did you begin ? With what Bafhfulnefs, with 
wha4: Diffidence, ^with what JHefitation, and with 

what an artful- Difpofition ! After you had g^in*4 

the firfl Point and the only one that could in- 
duce the Audience to pardon you, that you was 
to pledd for a dear Friend, and one who had been 
your -f Quasftor; what a Road did you then 
pav^ to I'ecure Attention in the Progrefs of your 
Speech ? But all of a fudden, while I imagin'd 
you only gained fo far as that the Audience, 
thought you excufable, by reafon of your Con- 
Xie(3:iori with him, in defending a profligate Citi- 
zen, you, infenfibly to all the Audience, tho' 
much was I alarm'd, began fecretly to infinuate 
that Norbanus had not been feditious, but that all 
had happened thro' the juftifiable, the merited 
Refentment of the Roman People. Then in what 
Place did you mifs of a Thruft at Capio\ how 
you filled all the Affembly with a Mixture of 
Hatred, Refentment, and Compaffion! In this, 
not only in the Body of your Pleading, but with 
regard to J Scaurus^ and the reft of my Wit- 

nefles; 

+ ^'^ftorP^ The Dignity of Praetor exceU'd that of Quaedor 
and is here compared to that of a Father. Cicero^ in his Oration 

{or Caciliusy (fee the firll Volyme of the Tr anllation of the Ora- 
ions, P. 121.) explains this PafTage. *^ Jtis a Dodlrine tranf- 
y mittedtq us frbin oar A^ceftors, that the Prjetor is in Place 
** of a Parent to his Quaeftors; that no Relation can be more 
** binding, more intercfting, than a Conjunction in Office, than 
'* the common Difcharge of a public Duty, at the fame Time, 
•" and in the fame Province. Therefore, tho' confiftcnt with 
** Law you could profecute him, yet you cannot confident with 
** Piety ; beCciufe of your filial Ties. But, while he never did 
'* you Wrong, if you impeach your Praetor, then muft you ac - 
i5 knowledge, that your Enmity is, on your Part, unjuft and de- 
«* teftable.^' 

J ^cauru$^ He was theGrandfon ol Aurelim Scaurus, whobe- 
pg takei; Prifouer by Boks King of the GWr/^ffij' after the 
^ "f Defeat 



toi OntbeCUAtACTtt Book 11. 
nefles, whofe Evidence you did not let afide by 
your Reafoning, but by appealing to the fame 
Paflions of the People. Provided you but men^ 
tion thofe Things, for my Pare, I require nO 
other Inftruftion. For I think I am fufficiently 
inftruftcd in bearing yourfelfexcmpKfy the Man- 
ner of your Pleading. Nay but, rcplite Antff^ 
niusy if you pleafe, I will likewifc inftru£b you in 
the Rules I us'd to follow, and had princijftilly 
in View in my Pleading, For the long Time I 
have lived in the World, and the Praftice I have 
had in Affairs of Confequcnce, may well by this 
Time make me Mafter in what Mannef to toucH 
the Springs of PafTion in Mankind* 

C H A P. LI. 

4 

AN D for my own Part, I us'd to confide? 
whether the Nature of the Caufe required 
this. Manner. Becaufe the j^lames of Eloquence 
arc not to be applyM in trifling Matters; nor 
when the Audience are in fuch a Difpofitjon, as 
that their Paflions are unfufceptible of Emotion. 
For a Man is thought ridiculous when he applies 
the Pathetic to Trifles; and he is odious wlien 
he attempts to pluck pp what it is impofllble to 
move. Now the Paflions which we have gene- 
rally to work upon the Minds of our Judges, or 
an Audience J arc * Love, f Hatred* J Anger, 

pefeat of the Roman Army, a^ he maiqtalned to that Pri&ce» 
that the Romans were inviociule on the other Side of the j^lpi^ 
and that he would experience it if he paJed thi^m: Boius lofing 
Patience, ran apon him with his S\vord, and ki I'd him. Strebteui. 

* Lrvi.^Cicero, as 1 have obferv'd before, has nobly cxempli- 
fy'd all thefe in his Oration for Mih. See V ol. i . of the Trans- 
lation into Englijb^ P. 53, wiih what Art hf courts the Love of 
Pompey for Mt/o, 

+ HiUreii.] S(jc P. 68. /^/Uf. 

i J^ger^l Se^ P. 46 and 47. JBfid. 

Envjp, 



BboK 11/ Of an O R a T*t) r ao^ 

♦ Envy, fCoiripaffion, | Hope, $ Joy^ II F^ar, 
and ^ UneafmeJ's. We perceive that Love i* 
coitciliated by feemiflg to plead fpr what is ad- 
vahtageoUs to the Audience : Or if we exert our- 
fei ve& for Men of Worth, or fuch as at kaft ktn% 
to therfi to b^e Men of Worth and Utility. By 
the firft we conciliate their Love j by defending 
Virtue, theJf Endearment; and the Prolped of 
a future Advantage is always ihore affedting than 
the Mention of a paft Service* You are to labour 
to prove, that either their Dignity or Utility i^ 
iconnefted with the Caufe you defend ; and you 
muft iqtimaie, that the Perfon for whom votr 
labour to procure all this Love, never made ^riy 
private Advant^e of his pwn by it, nor h^d any 
felfilh Views in what he did. For Motives of la- 
tcreft bfiget Hatred 5 but labouring for the Ser- 
vice of others. Favour. But we muft here tal^c 
Care when we are 'upon this Topic, not to ex- 
tol too much the Merit and the Glory of t^ofe 
whom ypu want to recommend by fuch Services • 
for nothing is fo liable tq Envy as thcle. At the 
fame Time from thcle very Topics we may 
learn how tp direft Refentment againft ^others, 
and avert it from purfelves and our Friends 5 and 
the fame Method is to be followed either in a- 
wakening, or allaying Anger. For if you fliall - 

♦ En^y.'} See P. 57. UiJ. 

t domfam^n.l See F. 54, 72, ajid 78. ^ ^t fitidof the O. 
ration. Ihid^ ' 

" ' J Hofg,) Sec P. 60, Ibid. 

' § 7<7.] Sec P. 59 and 60. Ihid. 

I />ar.]SecP. 61. Ihid. 

c \y!^f^'''^''^ ^^^- ^' ' *"^ 2- -^^'^- ^n fliort, the OratJom 
fdr Milo feemft to have been the Original from which our Aul 
rhor drawfa all the excellent Precepts and ObfeiVations he lay* 
f 9^n with i^ard no Efo^oence. 

aggr4vatc 



2ip4 On fbe CuAR AC TBiL Book 11/ 

^gravate a Fadl, which muft be pernicious or 
difadvantageous to your Hearers, then, that be- 
gets Refentment. But if this is to affeft worthy 
Men, or thofe who have not deferved it, or the 
Pubh'c, it then begets, if not fo keen a Refent- 
ment, yet a Difguft that is not at all unlike that 
of Hatred or Envy. Fear too is inculcated either 
from perfonal^ or lommon Danger. The perjonal 
affefts us neareft, but the common muft be laid out 
as having perfinal Confequences,. 

CHAP m. 

TH E fame Method muft be held with regard 
to Hope, Joy, or Uneafinefs: But I 
don*t know whether the Emotions of Envy are 
not by far- more keen than them all. And whe- 
ther it requires moft Power to fupprefs or to- 
awaken it. The chief Objefts of Envy amongft 
Mankind are fuch of our Equals or Inferiors, 
who raifing themfelves above our Rank in the 
World, give us the Mortification of feeing them 
foar above us. We likewife very often ftrongly 
envy our Superiors, efpeciallyif they are arrogant- 
ly boaftful, and upon the Strefs ofthe Figure and 
Fortune they enjoy in the World, ftiali tranfgrefs 
the Bounds of common Decency. In fuch a Cafe, 
when we want to inflame, we ought chiefly to inT 
fift that thefe Advantages are not acquired by Vir- 
tue j and then that they were acquired by Vice 
and Crihies •, but if they arc of too weighty and 
ferious a Nature to be treated pf in |:his Man- 
ner, you are then to infift upon it that no Merit, be 
itf ever fo great, can compenfate for fuch Infolence 
afid fuch Pride. . But when you want to allay . 
Envy, you are to fay that' fuch Honours were acqui- • 

red 



Book If. OfariO^Aroi^l aaj 

red thro' much Toil and many Dangers ; and that 
they have not been applied to the Poffeflbr's pri- 
vate Advantage, but to that of others '5 and that 
if he has feetned to have acquired any Giory, yet 
fa felf-denying he was, that tho* he had juitly 
earned it by his Dangers, it was fo far from giv- 
ing him Pleafure, that he undervalued, and fee it 
all afide. And we muft by all means endeavour 
to beat down all this Refleftion upon his Great- 
nefs, and to work up our Speech fo as that the 
Diftinftion of his Fortune Ihould ftill be mingled 
with the Refledion upon his Toils and Hard- 
Ihips i the Reafon of this is becaufe the World iiS 
apt to envy, it is the reigning, the ftanding Vice, 
and feeds upon exalted arid flourifhing Fortune. 
Compaffion is moved, if the Hearer can be brought 
to apply to his own Cale the afflid:ing Circum- 
ftanccs that are deplored in another*'s v whether 
they are already paft or dreaded ; or by looking 
upon another frequently to turn his Eye into his 
own Breaft. Thus, as every Circumftance of human 
Nature is affedling, when pathetically reprefented ; 
Virtue when dejefled and proftrated, is more fo ; 
aitd, (as I have often mentioned^ the gentle, mild 
Manner of Speaking, by recommending Probity, 
ought as it were to give the Pidure of a virtuous 
Man -, fo this Stile, when an Orator undertakes 
to change the Affeftions, and mould them to all 
his Purpofes, ought to be intenfe and vehement. 

CHAP. LIII. 

BUT in thefe two Kinds there is fo ftrong a 
Refehnblance, that it is hard to diftinguifli 
Ivhen we ought to apply the gentle, and when 
the vehement. For fomething ought to flow from 
I the 



i66 On /j6r Character .Bpgp: Ili 

the Gentleneis, by which we conciliate tjie Fa^ 
vour of ^the Hearers^ fb as to mingle with that 
Torrent of Energy, with which we want to aroufe 
them I and even that Gentlenefs muft fbmetime^ 
be employed in inflaming fome Pafllon of tjie 
Mind : Nor can any Spfeech be more happily tem- 
pered^ than that in which the Eagemeis of Dif- 
pute isfeafoned by the Humanity of the Speaker ^ 
and where^ on the other Side, Gentlenefs is gOarde^ 
by a certain Gravity and Perfeverance in our Pur*- 
pole. In both thefe Kinds, I mean that which 
^requires Force and Difputation, and that M^^ch 
is adapted to the Life and Morals, tho^ in feitang 
out, the Speaker ought to be Qow^ yet in ending 
he ought to be quick and difrufive. For he is not 
to jump into that Manner, it being quite foreign 
to the Merits of the Caufe, and People wanting 
in the firft place to know what they ar,e a6tually 
to judge of i but When he is got into that Traft, 
he ought not to leave it haftily ; for you can- 
not upon the very firft Touch raife Compaffion^ 
Envy,, or Refentment, in the fame Marnier as 
when a Proof is laid down it is immediately 
catchcd up. Fot a Proof is ftrehgthened by the 
Conviftion it carries, which feizes yOii as foon as 
difcharged. But this Kind of Pleading does not 
fo much require the Ciearnefs of a Judge^s Heaii 
as the Senfibility of his Hearty aftd no Man can 
ever fucceed in it,- but by a difFufe, diyerfify'd, 
and copious Language j and after a proportiona- 
ble Vehemence in the Difpute. Therefore, they 
who Ipeak concifely and coolly^ may indeed in- 
ftruft, but they, never can move a Judge, which 
is every Thing. It is now clear, that in all Dif-^ 
putes, the Weapons that fcrvc for oppoHte Mac- 

ncrs 



Booit 11. Of an r a ta r. iiof 

jiers in Speaking are fupplied from the fame Stores* 
But the Force of a Proof muft be broken, either 
by finding Fault with thofe Circumftances that 
are brought to fupport it, or by fhewing that the 
Conclufion infilled upon does not arife from^ 
nor is confcquential to, the Prcmifes. Or if you 
cannot confute it by thefe Means, you muft con- 
tradift it by fomevifhat more, .or equally, weighty^ 
But thofe Parts of a Pleading which confift iit 
Lenity to conciliate, or in Vehemence to move, 
are to be introduced from oppofite Paflions, that 
Kindnefs may fucceed Relentment ^ and £nvy> 
Pity. 

CHAP. LIV. 

BU T Wit and Humour is very often agree-' 
able, and highly ferviceable. And though 
every Thing elfe were communicable by Art, yet 
thefe are attainable only by Nature, without the 
Affiftance of any Art : In this, Cafar^ you, in 
my Opinion, are far fuperior to all Mankind^ 
therefore, you will either vouch for me, that Art 
can never make a Man witty, or if it can, you 
are the bcft Mafter to inftruft us in it. By youf 
Leave, replies C^efar^ I think a Man who is no 
Fool may talk more witttly upon" any Subjedt than 
that of }Vii. For when I faw fome Greek Jefi 
Books I had fome fmall Hopes of Learning a 
little from themr And indeed I found a great: 
deal of Wit and Humour among the Greeks: For 
the Sicilians^ the Rhodians^ the Byzantines ; but above 
ail, the jitbeninnSy are Mailers in this Manner. 
* But they who have attempted to lay down 

Rules 

f Bui tbij 'Ufbo htP9e attmfud^tkz^l The Strength of this Ar- 
gument 



26^ On tie Character Book IT: 

Rules oF Art how to attain it, liave turned out 
fuch arrant Dunces, that they give you nothing 
to laught at but their Dulnefs. . Therefore, I don't 
think that this Talent is communicable by any 
Means. For as there are two Kinds of Wit, 
one that runs equally through the whole of a Dif- 
courfe, the other pointed and fhort, the firft was 
termed by our Forefathers Raillery^ and the other 
kepartee^ Both of them* are /rj^/;/^, for one needs 
but trifle to raife a LaUgh. And yet, Antonius^ as 
yoii obferve, I have very often l^en Hu/nottr and M'^it 
have a prodigious EfFeft in Caufes. But as Art is 
not required in the continued Vein of J/«W(?«r, which 
is the firft Kind I have mentioned, far lefs can 
it enter into Repartees^ which from the fecond, and 
which muft hit without Premeditation. For Mi- 
micks and Men of Humour are made by Nature-^ 
it is fhe that moulds their Features, modulates 
their Voice; and forms their very Expreflion to 
fecond their Looks. Was it owing -to Art that 
my Brother, here, when Philip afk'd him, why 
be barked ? anfwer'd, Becaufe hefaw a Rogue. How . 
did Crajfus exprefs himfelf thro' all his Speech be- 
fore the Centicmviri againft Scavola ; or in Defence 
of Cneius Plafjcus againft Brutus^ who impeached 
him ? For, Antonius^ that which you attribute to 
me is univerfally allowed to Crajfus^ and he is 
perhaps the only Man in the World that is Mafter 
of both thefe Kinds of Wit •,■ I mean that which 
rnns through the whole of a Difcourfe, and that 

gument is; if the Greeks, who are very witty, and the Inventors 
of all Arts, make themfeh'es ridiculous and foolifti in deferibing 
Wit, it appears that it cannot by any Means be taught, unleis 
one better qualified than they undertakes it, Thus lie leuJens 
the Greeks, that he may commend himfelf and his pwn Coun-' 
trymen. Strebaus, 

which 



Book: 11. Of anOKATo^. 209 

which confifts in Quicknefs and Smartnefs. For 
his whole Defence of Curitis againft Scavola was 
a perpetual Fund of Pleafantry and Humour ; but 
without any of that Smartnefs. Becaufe, by pay- 
ing a Regard to the Dignity of his Antagonift, he. 
preferved his own ; and it is exceeding hard for 
Men of' Wit and Quicknefs to pay ^fty Regard 
to Junctures or Charadters ; fo as wh^n they find 
themfelves in a high Vein of Humour, to contain 
from pouring forth what, comes uppermoft. For 
this Reafon fome arch Fellows put an humorous 
enough Conftruftion upon a Paffage of Ennius : 
It is eqfier^ fays that Poet, for a mfe Man to keep 
a burning Coal within his Teeth^ than a good Saying. 
Now, according to them, good Sayings are witty 
vnes ': And, at prefent, they are commonly under- 
flood in that Senfe, 

CHAP. LV. 

BU T as Cra/fu s went ofi ag^ainft Sc<evcla in 
that Vein^ which is quite Void of all pique- 
ing Refleftions, he thereby turned the whole Caufe 
and Difputation into Ridicule, Thus when he fpoke 
againft Brutus^ whom he hatedj and whom he 
thought it a Duty to expofe, he fought with both 
Weapons. How much did he play upon the 
Baths he had then lately fold, and the Patrimony 
he had {quandered ? And when Brutus faid, that 
he fweated without any Reafon^ how quick was his 
Repartee? How can it he otherwife^ faid he, for you 
have jujl got rid of a Bagnio ? He had a vaft 
Number of fuch. Turns; but his ftanding Rail- 
lery was equally agreeable : For when Brutus call'd 
up two Readers, and gave one of them an Oration 

P of 



210 On the Cm AK ACT T.K BooK IL 

of Crajfus upon the * Narbonefs Colony to read % 
and the other, one upon the Servilian Law, and 
when he had compared the pohtical Contradidtions 
their fcvera! Chapters contained, our Friend here 
f very humoroufly gave the three Treatifes 
wrote by his' Fathtr Brutus^ to three different Rea- 
ders. In the firft Book was this Paflage, / bap-* 
pened to he at my Privtrtine EJiate. Brutus^ faid 
he, your Father here is an Evidence that he left you 
an Eftate at Privernum. In the fecond Book, / 
and ivy Son Marcus were at my Alban Eflate. What 
a wonderful Sagacity did this good Man difcover^ faid 
Crajfus^ he knew what a Cormorant his Sm waSy and 
was afraid that if he did not mention the Eftates he 
left him^ it fhould be thought he inherited nothing ? 
In the third Book, which is the haft he wrote, 
for I have heard Scavola fay that thcfe are ail the 
genuine Works of Brutusy we have thefe Words, 
/ and my Son Marcus happened to be fitting together 
at my Tibertine Eftate. Where^ Brutus, faid he, are 
thofe EJiaSes which your Father in the Writings be 
piblifh*dy fays he left you ? % Ah ! bad you not been 
of Age he would have wrote a foulrth Book^ and lueod 
told the World that he bad impfd in his Baths along 
with bis Son. Muft it not then be confefs*d that 
Brutus was as much confounded by this Wk and 

* Narbonefe Co/yfiy] In th« Province of NarboM a Roman Oolo- 
tiy was fettled, the inhabitants being expelled by War; fee the 
Oration pro Eonteio. When a Law was made againft that Colo- 
ny» Crajfus oppofed it, and run out in Inve^ives againft the 
Senate, becaufe they did not join him. 

+ Very bumorouflj^ 1 don't know if the Reader of Taftc will 
be very much in Love with this Piece pfl^iu^ur ofCraffkf, 

X Ah f had you not been of Jge] The LaUii^SLS it, fflfjf Puberem 
te jam haheret The Age of Puberty amo0g the Romans was 
the fourteenth. 

Raillery 



Book It. Of an Or at or. 211 

Raillery, as he was by the pathetic Expreflions he 

poured forth» when by Chance the Funeral of 

the aged Julia paft along ? Immortal Gods ! What 

Force, what Energy was there, how quick, how 

fudden it was ? Brutus, cry'd he, fVJbal Commijfwn 

have ym to deliver Jo your Father, by this aged Afo- 

tron ? f fVbat Mejfage do you Jend to all thofe Per- 

fons, wbofe Figures you now perceive are carrying along? 

What to your Ancefiors ? JVhat to Lucius Brutus, who 

delivered Romt from Regal Tyrantry ? What Jhdlljhe 

report that you are doing? What ObjeSl, what Accom- 

plijbment^what Virtue are you nowpurfuing? Are you 

improving your Efiate? that is not a Bujinejs for a 

Man of Quality. But granting it were, you have none 

to improve \ you have difppated it by Intemperance. 

Are you hified in the Civil Law ? that too was your 

Father's \ but Jhe will tell, that you have fold his 

Houfe, and have not referved even * a Hamlet where 

to ereS your Father^ s Chair. Shall Jhe foy that you 

are applying to military Affairs ? why you never faw 

\ What Mfffagt, &€.] Our Author feems cxtreamly fond of 
this Figure; he has beautifully adapted it in his Pleading for 
Citlius: Seethe Tranflationof the Orations^ Vol. 2. P. 134. 
Our Author perhaps borrowed it originally from Dgvtofibitus, and 
/7mVhas us'd it jn Ibme Baces with great Succefs. SttJEnfidit 
lib. 2. 

Cm Pjrrlmsi Referes trgo b^ee^ et fmndus ibis, 
Pe/uia' Geniiori: ilU naa trifitafoBdy 
Degenertmque NeoftoUmum narrari nutmnts. 

ITbtu then btfirft^ replies tbe Chief, to go 

With thefefad Tidings to his Ghoft below; 

Be gone^'^'^ttcquaint him with m • Crimes^in Troy, 

Jndteilmy Sire of bis degenerate Boy. Pitt's Tranf. 

* J Hamlet.} The Original has it Rutis Qafifyuet whi^ is a 
techiitcal Terin in the Civil Law. 

Jm RjUis t^Jis eajuKt qtue terres non tenentur qmepte OperiJmSi* 
li te&o*ve non continentur^ Dig T. de Verb. Sig. 241* 

P 2 a Camp 



212 On «&^Character Book II. 

a Camp* To Eloquence ? That you are void of: 
And every Talent of Voice or Tongue you poffefs^ 
you have hired out in the vileft of Trades y that of 
Calumny. Bare you behold the Ught? Dare 
you look upon thefe Statutes? Dare you face the 
Forum^ the City^ or the JJfembly of your Country- 
men? Do you not tremble at the Sight of that 
Corpfe^ at the Memory of ycur Ancefiors^ whofi 
Virtues you are fo far from imitating^ that you 
have not refervcd even a Spot for ere£ling their 
Images ? 

m 
% 

CHAP. LVI. 

THESE are pathetic, divine, Expreffionsj 
but as to gentle, good-mannerM ones, 
you may remember a vaft Number of fuch in one 
Harangue which was delivered before the People 
in as great an Aflembly, and as weighty a Plead- 
ing as ever was, yet no Speech was ever better 
Jeafoned with Wit and agreeable Humour. I 
mean our Friend's late Reprimand againft hiy 
Colleague, when Cenfor. Therefore, Antonius^ 
I agree to both your Propofitions -, that gentle 
Wit is often of great-Service in Pleading, ' and that 
it is abfolutely incommunicable by any Art. One 
Thing, it is true, 1 am aftonifli'd at, that you 
have rais'd my Merit fo high in this, and have 
(lot given the Preference here, as well as in other 
Points, to CraJJiiS. Why, that I would have done, 
iays Antonius) were it not that I have fome fmall 
Spice of Envy againft this Crajfus. For tho* Wit 
and Raillery in themfelves are not much to be 
envy'd, yet for a Man, as he does, to engroli 
the Merit of being the moft agreeable, and fineft 

Gen- 



Book 11. Of anOR at on. . 213 

Gentleman of his Age, when at the fame Time he 
has that of being the moil IbJid, and moft re- 
ipefted Perfon alive, feems to me quite intolera- 
ble. Crafus himfelf could not forbear to fmile 
here. But Ju/wSy replies Antonius^ tho* you 
deny that Wit is an Art ; yet, in the Opening 
you made, you lecmed to hint at fome Rules that 
ought to be obferved with regard to it. For you 
faid that fome Regard ought to be had to Per- 
ions^ Circkjmftances, Junclures, left a Joke fhould 
lofe the EfFe<5t you defign edjt fhould.Jbayey. which 
is the particular Care of Qraffus. But we may 
leave this Rule, fince thefe Gentlemen have no 
Occafion for it. Our Bufinefs is now to enquire 
in what Manner to apply Wit, when there is 
Occafion : For Inftance, againft an Antagonift, 
efpecially if he gives us any Advantage to attack 
his Folly; againft an Evidence, whom we may 
reprefent as foolifh, avaritious, (light, provided 
the Audience is likely to hear us with any Degree 
of Satis taction . Anfwers have a much better 
Effed than Attacks, becaufe the Wit of an An- 
fwer difcovers more Quicknefs of Parts ; and, as 
it is by way of Return, it carries along with it 
more good Breeding. For it is ftill to be pre- 
fum'd, if one is not attacked, that he would have 
been quiet 5 as in the Harangue I have men- 
tioned, our Friend here fcarce faid one witty 
Thing, but by way of Anfwer : Yet fuch was 
the Gravity, fuch was the Authority of D«/w- 
tius^ that it appeared more eafy to avoid his Ob- 
jeftions t>y Turns of Humour, than to break their 
Force by Strength of Argument. 



P 3 CHAR 



214 On tBe Cakact%k Book II. 

CHAP. LVU. 

SAYS Sulpifius, how then (hall we fufFer 
Cafar^ who^' (tho* he has yieldecj the Prize 
bf Wit to CraJJiSSj yet has laboured much more in 
that Study) not to explain to us this whole Syftem 
of Joking) what it is and from whence derived} 
cfpecially fince we all agree that the Power and 
Utility of Wit and polite Converfation are to very 
great ? But, anfwers, C^far^ what if I ftiould 
agree with Antonius^ that an Orator can never be 
witty by Rule? Sulpicius making no Reply tq 
this ; no more, fays Crajfus^ can he be inftruded 
by Rule in thofe Points which Antonius fo much 
enlarged upon. They are attained, as he himfelf 
faid, by obferving thofe Properties which have 
the greateft Eflfeft in Speaking-, and, could this 
make a Man eloquent, who would be otherwife ? 
For every Man might with Eafe, or at leaft by 
fome Method or other, make himfelf Matter of 
fuch Obfervations. But I am of Opinion that 
the Force and Utility of thofe Precepts lie in this ^ 
Not that Art can direft us how to invent what we 
are to fay, but that when we have attained to 
fuch Properties, by Nature, Study, or Pradlice, 
we may then be able critically to diftinguifh the 
good from the bad, after we have learned how to 
apply them. Therefore, Cajar^ I muft beg it 
as a Favour, that you will pleafe to difcufs this 
Syftem of Joking, and give us your Opinion 
upon it, left any Part of Eloquence, fince you 
will have it fo, fliould be let flip in fuch a Com- 
pany, and fo accurate a Converfation as this. 
Nay, CraJ/iiSf replies the other, fince you infift 
upon your Gqefts paying their Reckoning, I fliall 
3 never 



Book II. Of an Ojl at ok. 215 

never be the Man^ who fhall give you any Cauie, 
by giving you the flip, of refufing to entertain 
again. Tho* I have very often been furprized at 
the Impudence of thofe Fellows who aft upon the 
Stage while Rofcim is a Speftator. Where is the 
Man who can fo much as move, without his dif- 
cerning a Fault in him ? In like Manner, in 
the hearing of Crajfus^ I have now begun to fpeak 
upon Wit s and tho*,, as the Saying is, I am but 
a Swine in comparifon of him, I am to teach an 
Orator, whom, when Catulus lately heard, he 
faid that all other Speakers fecm*d to have fed 
upon Hay. Says Crajfus^ Catulus was but in 
Jetting, efpecially as the Merit of his Eloquence is 
fuch, that he himfelf deferves to be fed with 
Ambrofla. But, Cafar^ do you go on, that 
jlntonius may proceed to finifli the reft of his Dif- 
courie. There is very little of that to come, 
fays Antcfiius ; but as I am now fatigu'd with the 
Toil and Journey of Difputation^ I will reft and 
compoie myfelf by the Talk of Ca:far^ as if I 
were in feme happily fituated Inn« 

CHAP. LVIII. 

BU T, fays Cafar^ you will have no Reafon 
to boaft of the Goodnefs of my Entertain- 
ment ; for as foon as you have tafted of the leaft 
Morfcl, I will turn you out of Doors, and fend 
you a packing on your Journey ; and not to de- 
tain you top long, I will in a very few Words 
lay before, ^ou my Senfe of all this Kind of Speak- 
ing, As to what regards Laughing^ we are to 
confider of five Things ; firft, what it is ? fe- 
condly, whence it is? thirdly, whether it ought 

P 4 to 



2i6 0/r /i^ Ch AS ACT ER Book III 

to be the Orator's Bufinefs to raife a Laugh ? 
fourthly, to what Degree ? fifthly, what arc the 
Kinds of the RiJiculcuJ ? As to the firft, what a 
Laugh is ? By what means it is rai$'d, wherein it 
confifts, in what Manner it burfts out, and is fo 
fuddcnly difchai^'d, that tho* we were i^illing, it is 
out of our Power to ftifie it, and in what Manner 
it all at once takes Pofleffion of our Sides, of our 
Mouth, our Veins, our Look, our Eyes, let 
* Democritus account for all thefc Particulars ; for 
they, are neither to my prefent Purpofe, and tho* 
they were, yet I Ihould not at all be alhamed to 
fay, that I did not know them; for even they 
who pretend to account for them know nothing 
of the Matter. But the Place, and, as it were, 
the Province of the Ridiculous, for that comes 
next in Queftion, confifts of a certain Meannefs 
and Deformity. For the only, at leaft, the chief,, 
Expreflions that raife Ridicule are fuch as -f cha^ 
rafterife and point out in a genteel Manner, fome- 
what that is of itfelf very ungenteel. But, to 
come to the third Point, it is evidently an Ora- 
tor's Bufinefs to raife a Laugh, both, becaufe 
the good Humour he puts the AiJdience into pro- 
cures him Favour ; and the Smartnefs that \s 
often contained in one Word is univcrfally ad- 
mir'd ; (cfpecially if it comes as Reply, and often 
when it is thrown out in the Attack ;) and becaufe 
it Icflens, confounds, hampers, frightens, and 

* Democritus.] There is a Joke in this Expreffion, for k 
alludes either to Democritus the famous laughing Philofopher, 
or an eminent Phyfician then living. 

+ Char act erife and point out. '\ This is the fame Expreffion 
which he ufes in the firft jOration againil Catilir.e. CatUitia notai 
<jf defign^t oculis ^</ dedem unumquemjue veftrum» See the Orj^- 
tjons irauflated, Vol. 2. P. 4. 

confutes 



BookIL Of an Okkto'Sl. iiy 

confutes the Opponent -, and as it fhews the Ora- 
tor himfelf to be a Man of Pojitcnefs, Learn-, 
ing, and good Breeding; but above all, becaufe 
it foftens or unbends Sorrow and Severity, and 
very often by a Joke or a Laugh it difcufles very* 
ugly Matters, which won't bear to be cleared up 
by Proofs. But to what Degree the Ridiculous h 
to be touch'd by an Orator, which was the fourth 
Thing we proposed to enquire into, is a Matter 
worthy his rhoftferious Attention. For neither 
is an eminent or flagitious Villain, nor a Wretch 
remarkably harralRd with Misfortunes, the pro- 
per Subjeft of Ridicule-, becaufe Villains de- 
ferve to be lalhed with a more cutting Scourge 
than the Ridiculous \ and it is indecent to infult 
the MferaMcy unlefs they are infolent under their 
Misfortunes. But above all Things, you ought 
to be tender of touching upon the private Affeftions 
of Mankind, left you ftiould ralhly attack thofe 
who are perfonally beloved. 

CHAP. LIX. 

Moderation, therefore, is chie0y to be ob- 
ferv'd in Matters of Wit. An4 the Ob- 
jeds that are moft eafily play'd upon, are they 
who are neither worthy of the . greateft Detefta- 
tion, nor the greateft Compaffion. Hence it" 
happens, that the whole Subjeft ' of the Ridicu- 
lous lies in the moral Vices of Men who are nd- 
s ther belov'd nor miferable, nor defeiVing to be 
dragg'd to Pynifhment for their Crimes : When 
thele:Qualities are genteely handled, they are laugVd 
at. Deformity and perfonal Pefeds are likewifc 
happy enough Subjefts fqr Ridicule. But let us 

have 



tt% On fbe Ckak ACT EJf. Book IT. 

have in View, what ought to be the principal 
Cbn(t(kration in other Refpe£bs; I mean, how 
£ur we ought to go. Here we ought not only 
to take it as a Rule to do nothing itflSpidly^ but that 
we do n^^ing buffeonijhly. An Orator is to a- 
TOid bot]) Extreams, not to make his Jcfls too 
j|bufive, nor too buffbonifh ; what thefe mean, 
we fhall more eafily undcrftand, when I come to 
%eak of the Kinds of the ridiculiUs. For there 
are two Kinds of Humour v one arifing from the 
Subjeft, the other from the Exprcffion. The 
firft is when any Thing is told t^ way of Story, as 
what you, CraJfuSy once told againft Memmius^ 
^ that he had eat a limb ^Largius, when he 

quar- 

* That ht had tat m Limh^.] This to an Engitfi Reader 'is a 
very iafipid Joke ; the Latin has it, comedijfe eum iacertum Largii. 
The [oke probably arofe by {omt A£Fair of Jealonfy, on Account 
•f this Memtftttts making a Ikcle too free with the other's Miilre6 
which gave Occafion for Craffits to fay that lie had eat the Arm 
ef Laygius, It muft be owned that Ckero has not at all been ob- 
%*d to his Commentators for illufti ating his witty Sayings, the* 
it is Tery true that fometimes they cannot be deciphered. I don*| 
Icnow n tbb Joke will appear with better Grace by obferring 
what none of the Commentators have done, that when a 
Man very eagerly kifsM any Part, he wa^ faid in ' atmt to bite, 
€r to eat it. And if we arc to judge by {omt Circnmftances, 
ibcy were io very eager, as fometimes to make the Blood 
follow by a hearty Kifs. Sec what Horace fays. Ode 1 5. Lib. j. 

Sfivf Fuer fur ens 

Impreffit memwrem icnti tairis notjim^ 
Nen, fi me Jatis amdias^ 
' Speres ferpetuum^ dttUia bariare 

ladentemo/cula't ft^ Vbncs 
^uinta parte jui neStaris iwbuiU 

I hare endeavomred to preferve fomewhat of the Hnmoa? 
of the Original in my Tranflaqon;! flioold not have been a 
bit afliamed had I been oUig'd to have left it untranflated. I 
\x9t only this to fay for the Tranflation of thi8« and the Witti- 
ci&BS which follow* that if they doa't itad fo well to ns in 



BookIL Of an Ovt at oh. , ^ig 

quarrerd with him at Tarracina about a Wench ; 
the whole Story, the' witty, was cook'd up by^ 
yourfelf ; you added one Circumftance, that al! 
over Tarracina the following Letters were wrote 
upon the Walls, M. M. L. L. L. that when he 
afk*d what thefe meant, an old Townfman an- 
fwer'd you. Mouthing Memmius'&/v LargiusV 
Unth. You may perceive how genteel, how ele- 
gant, how oratorial this Manner is ; whether the 
Foundation of your Story is true, which mufl: yet 
be befpangled with a little Invention -, or if the 
whole is Fidion. But the Property of this Kindt 
is, that the A6tions» the Manners, the Speech^ 
and all the Looks of the Perfon you are talking 
of, are exprefs'd fo lively, as that the Company 
thinks they are feeing him aft every TWng in Per- 
fon. Another Kind of the Ridiculous taken from 
the Subjeft, confifts in what ufes to be taken from 
imitating a certain aukward afFefted Manner in the 
Perfon you play upon. As Crafus, when he caird 
out; BY YOUR Quality: BY YOUR Blood : 
nothing in thefe Words could have raised a Laugh 
in the AiTembly, but the humorous Imitation, 
or the Look and Tone. But when he came 
to, BY YOUR Statues, and enlivened it with 
a little Aftion, by ftrctching out his Arm, we 
laugh'd exceflively. Of this Kind is that, where 
RafduSj in the Charaflier of an old Man, fays, 
•f For youy my Antipho, ■/ plant tbefe\ here 1 fed 

old 

Znglijht as they did in Latin in tlie Days otCicero^ ytt at leaf! 
they read as well as any literal Tranflation could do. How- 
ever, that the Reader may have the Pleafure of finding out 
. the Wit of this Paflage hisnfelf, I muft inform him that the* 
Original is, L^rfrzi/ lacertumhK^GW MorJax Memmius. 
% Fftrjou my Aiitipho.]. Thefe fcem to have been the Words 

of 



xao On tbi Char a c t e r. Book If- 

€ld Age itfelf. But in the mean • Time, all this 
Kind of the Ridiculous muft be handled with 
great Caution. For when one over-does it, he 
falls into a Farcical Character j for . Inftancc, 
when he runs into Obfcenity. But. an Orator 
muft fteal this Manner upon an Audience; fo a& 
to give more Exercife for their Refleftion than 
their Eyes. He likewife keeps up to the Cba- 
ra^er of good Breeding and Modefty, by fhun • 
ning all Indecency of Adion or ExprelEon* 

•f an old Man planting Trees, and telling his Son, that bimfdf 
could not live fo long as to fee thefe Trees come to Maturity ; 
but that he, as being a vigorous young Man, would reap the 
Fruit of them. What CraJJus adds, ftnium eft^ €um audio^. 
means that Rofcius fo peife(^ly imitated a coughing old Maa 
with a broken, trembling Voice^ that one would have thought 
he heard the old Man himfelf, and not a Pl^er afling the^ 
Part of the old Man. Pearce. 

A& this learned Gentleman lays down this only as a Con- 
jefture, T hope 1 may be indulgM' in another ; I am apr 
therefore to think, that the Words ftnium efi cum audto^ are 
Sr Part of the Line here quoted : And that when Rofcius pro- 
nouncM this Line it was not in the Charadler of an old Man«. 
but of a young Fellow ridiculing his Father's Words. Ifwe- 
take it in this Senfe it gives a mach greater Spirit to the Line. 
For we are to obferve, diat Cicero is here giving an Example 
where a little Aflion enlivens the Imitation. Therefore if 
we fuppofe that Rolcius^ in the Charader of that young Fel- 
low imitated the Manner of an old Man planting, and then 
returning all at once to the Charafler of a young Man, gives 
a much ftronger Example of the Species that GcerB is here de- 
icribingi than if we fuppofe, with Dx. Pcarce^ that Rofdut 
then play'd only the Part of an old Man in the Play. 

We have an Example very parallel to this in the Frogs of 
JHftophofiery the firft Scene of the Play, where Bacchus and 
"Xanthias are brought .upon the Stage. The firfl complains 
licavily of a fevere Load he was obliged to bear, while the 
other rallies him, and tells him that he never faw the AAors 
vpoa the Stage carrying the VefTel^ which their Parts re- 
auired them to bring upon* the Theatre, without feeling Yimt* 
lelf more than a Year older than he was. 

3 Thefe 



Book II. Cf (in OttATOR. ^2t 

Thefe two Kinds therefore are of that RiDictrL« 
which arifes from riie Subje£f. And they are pe- 
culiar to the X ftanding Vein of Humour, wherein, 
the Manners of Mankind are defcribed, fp as 
that their Qualities may be reprefented to the Life, 
in any Narration ; or by throwing in a (hort Touch 
of humorous Imitation their Vices may te ex- 
posed, to Ridicule. 

C H A P. 

♦ Stav^tng Fein of Humour.'] As Ci<ero m this, and other 
Pai&ges, ofes feveral Terms, for every one of which we have not 
a proper Word in Englijh ; and as I have tranflated them as 
I thought the Genius of our Language required, I ftiall give 
the Reader the Criticifm of a great Antient upon each of tke 
' ExpreflioDs made ufe of here. It is that q£ ^'ufiJiaulnUh. 
-6, Cap. %>de Inft, Orst, 

Plttribus auttm Nowunihm in 4ad$m n *mffgO:U$imur: ^u^Jamm 
^ iiducoiy fu^un propriam quandam nfim ofitntUnt^ 

Nam Urbanitas ditisur : qua fuidtm Jigfiificari fuideo Sefmomm 
pra fe fireiUem in Verbis^ Iff ^no, & Vfu profrium quemdam 
Cuftnm Urbh^ Ifffumptam ex Qm^erfatione DoBorum tacitam £> 
ruditionem x Denique cm contrariaju Rufticitas; — Venuflum ejk, 
fuedcum Gratia quadam ^ venere dicatur^ apparet. ■ 'iSal* 

itun in Confuiiudine pr^ RiMculo tanUun accipimus ; Natura 4ton m- 
tique hoc efi, qu^mquam ^ Ridicula oporteai effefalfa. Nam i£ 
Cicero, omnequod Sal/umjtt^ ait ejfe Atticorum\ nonquia/unt ma^ 
Jme adrifum comfojiti : ^ Catullus cum die if, 

(«lulla in tarn magno eft Corpore mica Salis : 

^enn bo^dicit^ nihil in Corpore ^us effe ridiculum. Saifum igitur 

eritf quod non erit infulfum, <velvt quoddam fimpltx Orationis Con- 

Jimentum iquod Jentitur lattnU Judicio melut palatOt ejfcit^tque £5f a 

^adio defendit Oratifniem, Sans ut ijle in cibis paulo liber alius of* 

^rfus, a t^nien non fit immodicus, ajfert aJiquid propria Foluptatisji 

^Jta hi quoque in dicendo habent ^iddam quod nobis faciei audiendi 

fitim, Facetum quoque non tcntum circa Ridicula opinor confijienc. 

Nequi enim d^ceret Horatius Facetum Car minis Genus Natura con- 

ce£um eJfe Virgilio. Decoris hanc magis, ^ exulta cujufdamEle- 

gantiit Jpellationem puto, Jdeoque in Epyiolis Cicero hac Bruti re- 

ferty Verbal Nse illi funt funt Pedes faceti, ac Deliciis ingredien- 

, ti molles. ^mdconvenit cum illo Horatiano, 

Molle atque fa6etum Virgil io. 
Jocum fvero accipimus^ quod eft contrarium ftrio. Nam ISfingere 
isf terrere,iff promittere, interim jocus eft , Dicacitas fine dubio .a 
Jiaado, quod eft gmni Gernri commune , duQa iftx froprie tamen fi^^ 

nificat 



22Z On tie Ck A JiAcr^R Book It*. 

I 

CHAP. LX. 

1 

AS to* the Ridicule arifing from the Exprefll- 
on ; that affefts by a certain Smartnels 
of a Word or a Sentiment : And as we recom- 
mended the avoiding a Farcical Charafter in the 

mficat Sermonem cum Rtfu aliquos incej/entem, JJeo Demoftbenetit 
IJihanumfuiJJi dicunt^ dicacem negant^ 

** We commonly make ufe of feveral Words to exprefs the 
*^ fame Thing, but if you examine you will find each of them 
^ to have its own partkular Signification. Thus by Vthmitas 
•* is meant a polite Diicourfe, which in ks Words, Accent, 
** and Ufe difcovers a certain delicate Tafte joined to a decree 
^ Tin6lure of Learning taken from the Converfation tA Men 
^ of Letters, and fo is opposed to Rv/Ucitm. 

^ By Vtnuftum is meant what is fpoken in a graceful, gen* 
«* teel Manner. The Salfum in an ordinary Difcourfe is only 
•* applyM to the RkHcuious : Bat this is not founded in Na- 
«« ture, tho* it is necdfary that whatever k ridiciiloas ihould be 
*• nvittj. For Cacero attributes ail Wit to the Afhimmtis^ not 
*« becauie they were pecuKarly adapted to Laughter. And 
•« Catnilusy when he fays, ^here is not one Grain if Salt info 
•« huge a Body^ does not mean, th^re was nothing riiicukta in 
•^ her Body. Therefore the Salt of a Difeonrfe is that natural 
** Seaibning which prevents its being infipid ; and which upon 
*' deeper Reflection leaves as it were a Relifli upon the Palate; 
^ enlivens the Attention, and preferves the Oration from ere- 
** ating a Laugh. And as Salt, tho* pretty liberally fprxnkled 
** on Meat, if not excefiive, afirbrds a pleafing ReMi ; fo in 
«< Speaking, this Salt has fomewhat ib pleafing, diat it raifes 
' •* a Defire isi hearing more. 

*< I think likewife that the Facetum is not ufed in the HMcu-^ 
*^ kns only ; for Horace would not make the Chara6er cfVir- 
•* giJto be Facetum, if ^at were its Meaning. I think r«th«r 
•* that it fignifies a genteel and elegant Manner. And dios 
'* Brutus ufed it, as Gcero ihews in one of his Epi^es, Nit ii& 
•• Jknt Pedes faceti ac Ueliciis ingredient wnlks 5 which agrees 
«* with AatExpreffion of H^rtffr. 
Molie atque facetum y^irgtiio,—^^ 

" By the Word Jocum is meant what is contrary to Serk^f- 
** nefs, for to feign» to affright, and to promife, is ibmetiuies 
*• Jocus, 

' " The word Dicacitas comes without Doubt from the Vetb 
** dicoy and is common to all thefe Kind:^ ; yet it properly fig- 
** nifies a Difcourfe that caufes Laughter, therefbse Dtmofi' 
** benes is faid to be Vrbanus, aad noc Dicax.'\ 

former 



Book H. 0/ tf« O » a T o»% 225 

former Kind, either as to the Relation or Imi- 
tation ; fo in thiS) the Orator is, fay all Means, 
to avoid whatever borders upon that of a pert 
Bt^oon. For what DifFerence do we find be- 
twixt a Cr(^^ a Catuius^ and the iike, and your 
Acqiuintaoce Granius^ or nny Friend Vargul^t 
1 vow for myfelf I can't account for it, for they 
are lK>th of them profefs'd fVits. No Man has 
«nore foetr Wit than Gramus -, but in my Opi- 
. nion^ the CharaSerifticai DifFerence lies, in not' al^ 
ways thinking ourfelves ohli^^d to (ay good Thtcig$, 
. ^hen we can fay them« A fliort Man, who was 
to give Evidence, appeared in Court; Give him 
txave^ fays Pinl^pus^ td give bis Evidence : Mm$ 
j)nfy, fays the Delegate^ who wantjed to be gone^ 
iei him Ap "very short. fVky^ ym fst he is vety 
SHORT, fuys PhiU^s. * This was humoraus^ 
but L. Aurifex^ who was more of a Dwaif than 
die Witncis himfelf, was upon die Bendi, and 
the whole Laugh went againft the Judge^ which 
render'd the Joke quite fcurrilous. Therefore, 
when your Wit hits a Perfon whom you wilh 
it fliould not, the Smartness of it does not 
hinder it from being scurrilous. There is ^- 
Ipius^ who aflfcdh, and, take my Word for it, has. 
Wit, yet he fometimes falls into Scurrility, f / wHl 
Jup witbyou^ faid he, to my Friend ScxiiuSy who has 
but one Eye, f&r Ifee there is a Vacancy f^ one ; this 
was fcurrilous, both by being wantonly provoking, 
and applicable to every Man who wants an Eye; and 

* 7his *tvas humouftms.'] It is but j aft that we give the Read- 
«t the Wit of the Original, left we fi«d none in the Tranfla- ' 
tuon. Pufitlus teftis prceefit. Licetp rnptit, ro^are, Pifil^pusf 
^um ^luafitor praftrans^ modo breviter. Hie ilk, non accujabis ; 
FerfufHium rogaho. 

f Jnvf///ttp,] Orig. Cantaio ^iftuiUt urn mm Loam ejft cV- 
iio. Lava Manus (ft Cxna* 

loft 



224 0A/i6tf Char A df Eft Book IL 

m 

loft a great deal of its effe6t by appearing pre* 
-meditated; but how pretty was the extetnport 
Heturn of Sextius. But you mujl have clean Hands ^ 
"(aid he, before ytm Jit down. It is therefore ' a 
■Regard'' to Time, a Moderation in Wit^ the 
bemg temperate and fparing in faying ^^^J Things^ 
that diftinguifhes an Orator from a Buffoon ; be^ 
cauic when we fay a good Thing it is not meerly 
■for the fake of the Joke, but to do fome Ser- 
vice to our Caufe; whereas they Ipend whole 
.Days upon this, and have no Caufe to ferve 
at all. For what did Vargula gain when A. 
^empronius while a Candidate, and his Brother Mar^ 
<ux embraced him? * Boy^ faid he, drive anvay 
the FUes. All he fought was a Laugh, which 
in my Mind is the very pooireft Return for 
Wit. The Time therefore of faying good Things 
muft be direfted by good Senfe and good Manners : 
I wifli thefe could be reduced into an Art, but 
Nature will have her 'Way. 

CHAP. LXI. 

LE T us now explain in a few Words thofc 
Kinds that are mod prevailing in raifmg a 
Laugh. The firft Divifipn of them is. That all 
witty Sayings have their Wit fometimes in the 
Sttbjeli^ fometimes in the Words ; but the great- 
eft Pleafure is when the Ridicule arifes from the 
Agreerpent betwixt the Thing and the Words. 
But take good heed here, that when I touch 
upon a Topic proper for. Ridicule, it is generally 
proper for very noble Sentiments. All the Dif- 

* Boy, drinje away the Fl/esJ] Orig. Puer, ahigt Mafcas ; ia 
Latin Mufca is figuratively afed to fignify an impertinent, trou- 
blefome Fellow. 

ference. 



Book II. Of an Ok at oii. 225 

ference is, that a Charafter of Dignity muft be . 
ftri(aiy preferv'd, whtre the Subjeft is lauda- 
ble-, and Ridicule takes Place in little^ worthlefs^ 
aiid'what we may call' uncoucb Subjefts. Thus 
in the fame Words I can praife a Servant if he 
is bonefis and play upon him if he is a Rogue. 
What Nero long , ago faid of a pilfering Slave 
was humorous enough : * That he was the only 
ServaM to whom nothing in his Houfe wds either 
feaVd up or conceaPd. Now the fame Thing in 
fo many Words might have been faid of a good 
Servant. But they all arife from the fame Sub- 
jefts. For how noble, how fine, was what the 
Mother of Carvilius faid to him, when, he was 
alham'd to appear in public by reafon of a great 
Lamenefs, occafioned by a Wound which he re- 
ceived by fighting for his Country : -f fVhy don't 
ym^ my SpuriuSi> appear abroad^ Jince every Step you 
make puts you in mind of your Virtues ? This was 
of the noble, and of the ferious Kind. But what 
did Glaucia fay to Calvinus, who was lame ? "^ Where 

* That he «was the only Sernjant,'] Orig. Solum e£e, cuiDomi nihil 
Jit tiec ohfigniUumy nee occlufum^ The Romans in thcirHoufes had 
a way of fealing Things up, efpecially Bottles and Cafks. ' 

f Why don t you, my Spurius.] Cicero appears fo extreamly 
fond of Joking, that he has in many PaiTages robbM the Greeis 
of their Wit to give it to his own Country. Plutarch, who wrote 
long after Cicerot ^nd who never would have ventured to have 
replaced thefe Sayings to the Greeks.hiA he not been warranted 
by unqueftionable Authorities, has reftor'd feveral of thefe to 
their true Owners. In his Apophthegms of the Spartan Dames 
he tells us a Story fomewhat of this Nature ; an<i another be- 
twixt. Alexander and his Father, almoft to the faroe Purpofe 
with this. However, it mud be own'd that the Manner in 
which Cicero introduces this Saying makes it one of the pretti- 
y cH in all Antiquity. 

X Where is that old Fellovj,"] This in the Original is fully as 
ftupid as it is in the Tranffation ; it is fomewhat below the- 
Dignity even of Panning itfelf. Or. Ubi efi 'vetus illud ? Num, 
CLAVDiCAT ? at hie CLODiCAT. Erofmus takes Glaucia to be 
the Surname of Cahinuu 

Q. « 



ti6 On tbeCHAnACT^K Boor If. 

is that old Fellow? iVbat^ is be of the claudica^ 
ting Race ? but tb6 other is of the clodicating. ThlJ 
is ridiculous : Yet both thefe Jokes . arc drawn 
from an Obfervation of the fame Imperfe^loCK 
* Sure this Fellow has not his Fkllow, was a 
fevere Saying of Scipio. But to dnc who has 
a bad Smell about him, what Philip faid was hu- 
mourous; -f- / perceive J Sir, you meia me every 
Dayv and every Way: Yet both KUids '«xi- 
fift in the Alteration of a fingle Letter of the fame 
Word. Equivocal Sayings are efteem*d as being 
of the wittieft Kindj but ihcy are not always 
employed in Jefls, they are fometimes apply'd 
icrioufly. When Jfricanus the Elder was fit- 
ting a Crown upon his Head at an Entertain- 

• Sure this Feilo'w.'] Orig. i^dhoc N^rid toVAvrvtf ? 

-^ J pitcehfe, Sir, Seel Orig Fidgo te a me circuwvuemri* Qt* 
ar fays, that thefe two Jckes of ScipioSind PbiiipfHs confifti* 
the Alteration ofafingle Letter of the fame Word. Jn $afh% the 
Words Ntenfius atialgndwits foand much alike, and the Lectert 
that compofe them are almofk the fame. But in this joke of Phi^ 
J/ys, what Word is like circumvem'ri, I am quite at a Lofs to fay. 
It therefore can be no J6ke, unlef^ we read with fofne vulgar 
Editions, and Lambinus and Stephanus^ Video me ate non Con ve- 
viKiffed ciRcuMVENiai. Take notice, Reader, that this is 
fpoken againfla Fellow Who^ had a bad Satoni' about him: And 
the Meaning is, as your Breath has fueh a Stench, at ohtn as 
you meet me yon don't feem to meet rtie, bot to be contriving 
fomewhat to my Prejudice, and to over-reaeh me. tearce. 

I own that I cannot find out th& Wit of this Saying by admit < 
ting this learned Gentleman's Reading. In my Opinion it fcatce- 
ly imells of a Pun, far lefs of Wit, or a Joke. He afks what 
Word is like citcum^ekiri in this Joke ? Cafar has accounted 
for that; you need but change one Letter, and you have the 
whole of the Wit; for if inftead oicircum you read bircum^ the 
Smell of which every body knows was pfroverbial atnong the 
Romans^ you have, if not a Joke, yet fomewhat that looks like 
a ^un. It is rurpriflng that fo eafy an Obfervation as this fiionld 
have never been made upon this PafTage ; and th'at it ihonid 
have reduced fo many learned Meft to call in a Reading which 
I don't find they pretend is fupported by any Manufcrlpt. 

ment 



Book III Of an Ok AT OR. 227^ 

ment, and Jt had feveral Times broke as he was 
adjufting it -, J No Wonder that it does not fiU 
fays P. Licinius Varus^ for the Head is great ^^ 
this was grand and noble. Another of the fanaie 
Kind is, * be is bald enough of all Confcience^ for 
be talks very little. In (hort, there is no Kind of 
Wit, jin wWch both fevere and ferious Things 
may not be faid from the fame Subjed ; and like- 
wife we arc to take notice, that every Thing that 
is ridiculous^ is not genteel Wit. For what can be 
more ridiculous than Sannio ? But his Mouth, his 
Face, his Mimickry, his Voice, in fhort, his 
Whole Body is Laughter itfelf. I might call him 
witty^ but then his Wit is not of that Kind 
which I would recommend to an Orator, but to 
a Player. 

CHAP. LXII. 

WH E N a Laugh therefore is raisM in the 
firft Kind, which is the greatcft Source 
of Laughter, and confifts in reprefenting the mo- 
rofe, the fuperftitious, the fufpicious, the vaunting, 
<thc foolilh, that Laugh is not owing to our Wit, for 
thefe Qualities are in their own Nature ridiculous : 
And they are Charafters which we don*c ufe to 
reprcfent, but to lalh. The other Kind, which 
by Imitation becomes extreamly ridiculous, we 
ought never to indulge ourfclves in j but if we 
ever ufe it, it fliould be, as it were, privately and 
curforily ; otherwife it is far from being genteel. 
The third, which confifts in the Difguifc of ilic 

^ Vo Wmder, Orig. N^i mrarifi-non cenwemtf, Cafmi mm 
X HiitbaldiMOugh.l Orig. Qth/ns/atis ffi qu9d Mcit parhm. 

Q^ a Features 



I - 



2lS^ Oh tbe Cn AK ACT EK Book ll 

Features, is unworthy our Profeflion. The fourth^ 
which is Obfcenity^ is not only unworthy of the 
Forum^ but the Converfation of Gentlemen, 
Having therefore cut off fo many Circumftances 
from this Province of Eloquence, there re- 
mains Wit, which confifts, as I have divided 
it already, in what arifes' from the Subjeft or the 
ExpreQion. For the Wit that arifes from the 
Subjeft will ftill be Wit in whatever Expreffion 
you cloath it ; but where the Wit evaporates by 
the Alteration of the Expreffion, then it is all 
contained In the firft Expreffioil. Equivocal Wit 
• is of the moft cutting Kind, and arifes from the , 
Expreffion, and hot from the Subjeft ; but it is 
not very often produdive of great Laughter; be- 
ing rather commended as prettily (poken, and 
turning upon the Letter. As when Titius, who 
was famous for his great Kecnefs in playing^ at Ten- 
nifs, but fufpefted of breaking the facred Figures 
in the Night-time, was miffed by his : Compa- 
nions in the Campus Martins -^ Vefpa Terentius 
made his Excufe by faying, that he bad broke an 
Arm. Like the Saying of Africanus \n Laicilius ; 
* What Decius, f^id he, will you pu(h bard? Like 
Granius^ your Friend, Crajfus, who faid be bad 
not a Farthing. The Man of fheer Wit, as wc 
call it, is moft eminent in this Kind ; but there 
are other Kinds that raife more Laughter. The 
Equivocal, as I have obferv'd before, is chiefly 
recommended by itfelf, for it feems to be fome-- 
what Ibr one to give a Signification to a Word 
di:fcrent from its common Acceptation: But it 
.^iivlicr produces Admiration than Laughter, ex- 

* Or]g. ^iid^ Decm^nucuUman confxum'visfacereifiqult? . 

cept 



Book II. OfanOi^ATOJ^. » 229 

cept when it happens to fall into another Kind 
of the ridiculous. 

1 

C UK p. LXIIL 

I Will* run over thefe Kinds ; but you know 
that the moft eminent Kind of the ridiculous 
is where, cxpeatng to hear one Thing, we meet 
with another: Here our Difappointment makes 
us laugh at ourlelves : But if fomewhat of the 
Equivocal is thrown ' in, the Wit is heightened. 
Thus a Man in N^evius feems to be compaffio- 
jiate, for finding a Man carrying to be fold upon a 
Judgment for Debt, he alk'd, -f- For how much is 
Judgment gone againjt him ? He was anfwer'd for 
^thoufand Pieces. If he had only zA^^d^ you may 
proceed^ it would have been that of- ridiculous th^ 
furprizesj but as he anfwer'd, / wonU fay any 
mbre^ you may proceed^ he threw in an equivocal 
Expreflion, and thus render'd the ridiculous of 
another, and, in my Opinion, of a more witty 
Kind. It is likewife extreamly taking, when in a 
Difpute you lay hold of one of your Antag6nifl:*s 
Expreffions -, and, as Catulus did upon Philips 
play upon him with his own Weapons. But 43 
there are more Kinds of the Equivocal-, which 
require to be more delicately difcufs*d, we mufl 
watch, and, as it were, catch at Words, And 
here, tho* we avoid all frigid Expreffions, (fur 
we mull by all Means avoid any Thing that is 
forc'd) yet we may have a great many witty 
Things to fay. The other Kind confifts in a 
fmall alteration of a Word, generally of one Ler- 
^ter, caird by the Greeks icctpccvoiiuffiei: As CaiOy 

•j- For hew much'] Lat. ^anti addicm} Milk Nummnm'^ 
ffihiio!^ ; ducas lUtt. 

0^3 when 



« 



f ^d On fir Ch Aft AC T E m Book VL 
#hcn he Said tfaoc the t^ AiMSfj vac xbcAtM- 
Utf. Or idicD, as he £ud to a ocnaiii Perfon, 
^ DO, la us go walk% and the other replyed, 
19^/ Occqfum is that fmr do? 0^/ Occaficn is 
tbtre fmr tov , (aid he ? Or when he had as- 
fwer'd thus, f Tom art Uwi h§ib behind and ly 
Kind. VThy is fuch a Man call'd (o and fo^ 
The Explanation of a Name has Smartnels in it, 
when you turn it into die riSadausi As I did 
lately, when I £ud that Nwamm the Beadle, 
like NeapioUmus of Trtj^ had found his Name in 
the Caa^ Martius. 

CHAP LXIV. 

BU T all thefe reft upon die Word A Line 
too is very c^en thrown in very facetioufly, 
cither as it r^y ftands, or with a little Vari- 
ation -, or fome Part of a Verfe, as Statius faid to 
Scaurus^ when he was angry; a Joke, Crajfus^ 
from which Ibme People lay your Law upon 
Enfranchifements took its Rife. Silence there! 
what a RmU you make! It iU becomes you to 
he fo confident y who have neither Father nor Mo- 
ther. For Shame^ no more of that Pride. A Say- 
ing of this Kind, Antomus^ was likewife of good 
Ufc to your Caufe, with Regard to one C^AW, 
who had a very handfome Son, who declared that 
he had been forced to pay a Sum of Money as 
he was going off. * Do you think the old FeU 

X VMtty, l/iohitity,'\ Lot. NobUiorem, Mohiliorem 

^ Do, lit ujf ttcJ] Lfft, E^ums deambmLhm.^^^d 0fms /tat 

D f ? i ^uid opus fuit T E ? 

f You art lenjod,\ Ldt, Si tu &f admtrfus et impuMcus, 

X Do yon think the oid Fellow. 1 Lat. Smin* Sinem fjfi^a£lum 

triginfa minis P 

3 7(W 



I 

PooK II. Of an Orator. %^\ 

hw is tncVi thirty Piifes^ faid you? Proverbs 
^re rank'd under this Head -, as ScipQ,^ when on^ 
whofe Name was Ass, faid in a boafting Manner, 
that be bad fervid as a Soldier all over* our Pro- 
vinces. Tou talk like an Afs^ faid he. There- 
fore, thofe Kinds too, becaufe when tranflated in* 
to other Words, they lofe their Wit, are reck- 
oned not among the Jefts where the Wit turns 
upon the Subjedt, but upon the Expreflion. There 
is a Kind likewife which is not at all infipid, 
as it turns upon Words \^ feeming to underftand 
a Matter by the literal Expreffiotiy and not by the 
0hnous Meaning. One Tutor ^ an old Player, a ve- 
ry comical Fellow, run quite into this Way. 
But I have done with Players j I only want to 
point out this Kind of Joking by ibme remark- 
able, notorbus Jnftance. And, Crajpis^ I can't 
do better than mention what you lately faid to 
one who told you,, be hofd he would not be trou^ 
ile/omey if he come to you a good while before Break 
cf J)ay : By no means : Then^ faid he, ft>all I or- 
der you to be aivaked? Surely ^ faid you, you for-- 
got you told me you was not to be troublefome. Of 
the fame Kind was that which the famous M. Sci- 
fio of Maluga^ when he declared that Acidinus^ 
em of his own Century, was Conful. When the 
Cryer required him * declare as to L. Manlius, 
As to him^ faid Scifio^ I declare that I think 
him a* good Man and a worthy Citizen, It was 
comical enough of i. Porcius Nafica to Cato 
the Cenfor, when the latter aflc'd him, f are you 
redly satisfy*d that you harve aWife-^ I am not 

• Ve^kre as ta h. Manliw.] Lae. Die de L. Menlio. 
t 4rfy9i renlfy .satwfy'p ] E^ctm 4aimi Suttfjuia. 

0^4 SATIS 



i32 On the Character • BookIL 

SATispy'd, reply*d the other. Thefe are either 
quite infipid ; or, when we meet with an unex- 
pefted Rebuff, they are witty; for, as I have 
obferv'd before, we naturally take Pleafure in 
fuch a 5urprize, and this makes us laugh, when 
we are, as it were, baulk'd in our Expedlation. 

CHAP. LXV. 

THAT Species which changes from liter 
ral to allegorical, or anfwers according a^ 
you place one Word, or invert feveral, is, all of 
it, of the verbal Kind. An Example of that which 
fhifts from the literal to the allegmcal is wha^ 
M. Servilius formerly faid to Rufca^^ when he 
pals*d the Qualification Aft, tell me^ M. Pina- 
rius, faid he, if I Jbould oppofe you will you rail 
upon me as you have done upon others ? According 
as thoufowejl^ replies the other, fojbalt thou reap. 
An Example of the Tranfpofition of Words, 
was when the Corinthians offered to ereft a Sta- 
tue to the elder Scifio^ in the fame Pl^ce with 
thpfe of their other Generals ; he faid, thai he 
did not like troopers. As to the Inverfion of 
Words -, wh(^n Crajfus was pleading for Aculeo be- 
fore M. Perperna^ L. Helvius Lamia^ who you 
know has a very deformed Figure, was Courifel 
againft Aculeo for Gratidianus ; and when he had 
made feveral impertinent Interruptions, let us hear^ 
faid Crajfus^ the charming Boy. When this rais'd 
a Laugh; 1 cannot j faid Lamia, mend my Figure^ 
but I can tny Underftanding. Now let us bear^ 
replies Crajfus^ the Man of Eloquence : And here 
was a greater Laugh than before. Such Hits 
arc extreamly agreeable, both in ferious and mer- 



Book II. ty^^ Orator; ^ 9l%% 

ry Sentiments. ' For I have obferv'd Jong ago, 
that tho* the' Subjcfts of Jeft and eameft wert 
different, yet that the Mannier 'of treating «botIi 
was the fame. One of the principal- Ornament! 
of a Difcourfe is the Jhtitb^s^ where Words coa- 
traft onfe another : This Kind is very often hu- 
morous ; as when ^^wi/j Galbd made* his -Bottleh. 
Companions Judges,- ffbAlt Liimus S&ibcnius wai 
Tribune of- the People-, Libo afk'd Wm» JVben 
Galba, will you have your of^m' Dinihg'-Room? 
Whenever^ anfwer*d he, you Have another^ s Bed^ 
ehamber. The Saying o(Glaucia to MeteMs was 
much of the fame Kind; you^ havt a Coanfry- 
Houfe at Tiburtinum, but its Court isat the Pala^ 
tium, ' , ^ ■ ... 

C H A P. I,XVI. ; ;_ 

I Now think I have difcufsM verbal Wit & JbiJt^ 
as I faid before, that which arifesi froni iSub- 
j0s is * valtly motjc copious ; of this Kind is tbo 
Narrative • of a ' Subjcft, a Matter of great DifE* 
culty. For thofe Circdmftances rthat appear niofl 
plaufible muft be exprefs'd, aod that top tQ-tbo 
J-,lfe, this is the pqcuMftr Excellence of a Narra- 
tive, as lik^wife muft all the Circumftances tbat- 
have any Thing mean in them ; this is proper to 
the ridiculous. The Ihorteft Example of this , that 
J can think on, is that which I mentioned be* 
fore of Crajfus tg Memmus. .To this Kind wc 
muft refer the Narrative of Fables. Son^ewhat 
of this Kind tqo m^y be brought from Hiftory; 
as when Sextus Titius caird himfelf a Cajfandra% 

I can name^ faid Antonius^ many an X AJ^^ Oileus 

- . . . 
% Ajax Oilcus.] He according to the Greet Storjr, ravifh'4 
Cajfandra* 

far 



^14 0»/ArC«AJtACT»* ©qqkII, 

fmrjm. If likewile aiifes from a SimJirttde^ en 
tiicr by Way qiCmfarifin #r ibsfim^^^oiMv^ gs the 
Q«li^ who. was fonscrty Evidence i^nft Pifo^ 
«pd iittdt /i«/ ^ iiAi ^nw a vaft dMl4^ Mfmy t% 
Im JJmfmstU Magius ^ and* when that Sfomw ob*. 
jofibed the Foyfcny of M^w: T^u mfiakfi me^ 
Scanrus, faid he^ / did mi tiUyou tbM M^^us bai 

ioMtded itMH Mm^ Mp^ tplk Uif s naked Mm^ ga- 
tkert$g N^h be put it i$U9 bis, Beify. As when 
old Afarwr Gcar^ tbie Father <^the £iflie excels 
kAt Perfon who is our Fricfyd> 'faid> ibat mat 
Cmmtrymm uoere lih $be^ Syriaa Siaveh ^^ ^"^^ 
Gffidc tbif htewj ibe. greater Rogues tkff were^ 
The Figures of Defor^iky, or apy DekA io the 
Perfon, when reprefented by ♦ any Objcfl: ftitt 
more deform'd, are likewife extreamly ridiculous : 
As when I faid to Hehius^ now I mU Jbew yen 
wbat ysu are like. And wbnt am I like^ repiy*d he f 
See thert^ faid I pointing to a Gasd painttd upoA 
one of Afmus his Gmbrum Shiekk, all diftorted» 
with biS Tongue lolfing out^ and hit Chops faU 
len. This got the Laugh, for nodiing €Yct ap** 
pearerf more like Manaa. Of tlie iame Kind was a 
Joke paffed upon Tefiius Phusrius^ who, when he 
J|)oke,(eem*d always to be chewing the Cu4, that he 
wnddmake an End efhis Speech when be bad tradltd 
bis Nut. Hyperbolical Sayings, cither when they 
minify or diminifh, have a wonderful E'ScSt in 
forprirfing. As when^ Crafiis^ you faid, that Mem- 
mius xvas fo kfty in hi^ ovm EyeSy that when he 
earns into the Forum be Jlopfd as be fafs^d thro* tbt 
Fa:biw Arch. Or when Sci$io (aid at Numantiitp 

* d^fQkji^^'/immiiffomU} Wp IkAre gpjii Tpm for 

this from the ItaSatis, viz» Caraeaturm. 

when' 



Book II Of mOka t or J ajj 

when he wa& angry with ^ijff^us Metdlus^ Umt 
tbi mxt Child his Mother ion would Jmdy hn 4m 
4fs.^ The Meaning is likewi^very ihii(wd| when, 
from a very Imail Circumftancey^^CMi by a Wqr^t 
a dark, conceal'd Matter is cleai;'^ up* A$ i^^Hear 
P. Ccrmliu4 a Man whon> the Worjtd lookVl up,o«ib 
as both coTet(M3s end kniv ifli^ but a »tfery * bfate 
Man/ and a gpod Oenet)al> retura'^ fait 3i:badtk8t 
to C. FabriciM for making him C6t^» dto' he 
was his Enemy^ eipecially in a ^eat and ^ni|por<- 
tunc War. lyhffhtnddymibankme^ faklidieaditf 
f&r cht^ng rather to be pOlag^d than Jold? ' Like 
what Africanm faid to j^eUm^ whik .Ite was tmt<^ 
ting him with hit unfortunate Cenibrfliip: NoWm* 
der^ faid he, that k tn^as unfortunate^ far ibe Man 
who took off your AUadndar made up the Balis^ aud 
fatr^^d the Bull\ fo (IrongJy did he pceibme that 
the Pcijury of Mtmmi^ had affeS:ed^ flie State, bf. 
taking oflf the ignominy tof AJdhs. ' ! 

CHAP LXViL 

IT IS' likcwife very gcnteet when your Meaning 
and your Eicprefiiofts diiferi. I don't mean 
that JCind where ypur Meaning is quite »hc flte^ 
M^feofyour Words^ as inthe Cafedf Cri;^ So 
LanUa^ but when a feriotis Tetn of Humour runs 
thro' a whole S^ecfa, by meanii^ >t)ne Thtngt 
ittid ikying another. . As our friend Scuvda faid ito 
^tumukius of Anagnia^ the fame iivho was paid 
the Reward for the Head of C. Graccbuu when 
)ie be^'d he would carry him along ti^tth htm 
hs his Lieutenant into A/ia. M^by^ you mi modi 
faidhe, what do you mean ? I teM -dxe then is fiub m 

Jf umber of j^ojtigate 'Citizens in S^^omc^ tbat^ tahe^ 

Word 



236 On the Character Book IF. 

Word for ity if you remain here you will make an Eftate 
in a very few Tears. Fannius in his Annals informs 
us, that Africanus Emilianus was a Wit of this 
Vein, and ftilcs him by the Creek Name of *E»pwv'- 
But People who know- thefe Things better than I 
do, ; fay, that Socrates^ I think, by far excell'd all 
Mankind in the Wic and good Senfe of this Irony 
and EUffimislation, It is indeed a very genteel Kind, 
and when feafon'd with a ferious Air, may be ap- 
ply'd both in formal Harangues, vand common 
Converfation. And, upon my Word, All that I 
have, faid upon thi* Subjeft of Humour, are not 
more properly the Ingredients of Pleadings in the 
Forum, than they are of every ordinary Difcourfc. 
For I think k is a very ienfible Thing that Gj/^, 
from whom llhave borrow'd a great many of the 
Examples I h aj klaid dowfljicre^jaidj th at P. Mum - 
mius was a MS^fbr every Occajion. In fhort, the 
Cafe is, that ther^ no Jundture of Life in which 
it is unbecoming toWife Wit and good Humour. 
But to refume what I was upon •, very much of 
this Kind is that where an honed Word is apply'd 
to a difhonefl: Subjeffc. As when Africanus the 
Genfor was removing from his Tribe a Centurion 
who had not been prefent at Paulus*s Battle, and 
who excusM himfelf, by faying he had ftay'd 
behind to watch the Camp ; it was a(k'd of Afri- 
canus why this Man was branded ? I dorCt love^ 
faid he, your over vigilant People. It is likewifc 
a cutting Kind, when you lay hold of what the 
other Perfon has juft faid, and turn it contrary to 
the Senfe in which he meant it. As when Soli- 
nator loft ^arentum^ but kept' the Citadel, and 
made a great many brave Sallies from it ; fomc 
Years after Idaximus recover^ t^c Town, 9.nd 

Salinaiqr 



BookII. OfanORAToK. 437 

Salinator bid him remember thiat it was by his 
Adiftance that he had won it ; 1 may well remember 
i/, faid Maxmus, for I could never* have won it if you 
had not loft' it: Thefe are likewife ♦ abfurd', but 
for that Reafon often very ridiculous, and fit not 
only for Players, but in fome meafure for us ; f6r 
Inftance ; He was Fool enough to diejuft as he came 
to an Eftate.--^ — Again, K^hat is that Woman to 

you?-^ — Tour Wife Tou are like one another^ 

hy Heavens 1 Again, whiif i>e trudg*d about be ne- 
nierdfd. 

CHAP. Lxvm. 

THIS Kind is flighty and, as I faid, farcical ; 
but it fometimes takes place with us; fo 
, that one who is no Fool may fay a fmart Th^ing, 
as it were in a/imple Manner: As what JAancia 
fa^d to you, Antomus^ when he had heard, that 
when you was Cenfor, you was impeached of" undue 
PrailiceSf by M. Duronius : So ! I fee that you may 
fome time or other aS for yourfelf. Such Sayings occa- 
lion great Laughter, fo indeed does every Thing 
that is feid abfurdly witty by Men of Senfe, under a 
Colour of not linderftanding what one does under- 
ftand. Of this Kind was what Pontidius faid, 
when one 2i{k*dMmy fVhat do you think of a 'Man 
who is caught in Adultery? Why^ anfwer'd he, 1 
think him a heedlefs Fellow. As when Metellus 
would not excufe me in a Levy he was making, 
dio' I pleaded a ERforder in my Eyes ; fFhatj faid 
he. Do you fee nothing at all ? TeSj Sir, faid I, 
I can fee your Couniry Hdufe from the * Efquiline 

.* Ahfurd,'\ The Species mentioned here is pre'cifely what wc 
in EugUfid call BulU 

* Efquiline GateC^ This was a very fine Stroke, for MeteVus 
had built a noble Country-houie, and was liable to be 
cair<l to Account for the Money he had laid out in huilding it. 

Gate 



238 0» iirCHAKACTEK BooiT II 

Caic LJke wine N^fica laid, wbea he came to 
the Houie of the Poet EMmms^ and^ when he callM 
for him, was sold by die Maid at die Door, that 
]k was fpat abcoad.i Nqficm was fenfible that the 
od»* was at boa^, but that he had g^ven the 
Maid Orders to deny him ; and a few Days after, 
when Enmms came to his Houle, and ofk'd for 
him at the Gate, Nafica himfelf call'd out to 
him that he was not at home : Wbai^ &id Emnius^ 
' imft I hum jowr awn Voice? Art noi tbeu a very 
imfaJaU Fdlow ? faid the other ; When jmtr Maid 
toldwu tbatjon was not ai borne I iekev^J ber *^ ha 
yon tEwnV bdievetbat 1 ammi ai bome^ tbo* I tell 
yon Jo myfelf. It is likewife very taking when a Man 
, is rallied in die very Strain in which he rallies ano- 
dier. As when ^ Opimfus^ a Co9tfnlar^ who, when 
a very yonng Man, was not at aU obfig'd to 
Fame, attackM Egilhts^ a Man of Wit, bm one 
who af^jear^d more cflfeminaoe than he really was : 
How do yon do^ mj pretty Egilia? fFben wilt 
tbon come to me witbyonr Diftaffand Wool ? Fye^ 
fye^ replies die odier, yon hum I dare not, for ffry 
Motber forbids me to go into Comparrf witb Ladies of 
bad CbaraSer. 

CHAP. LXX. 

THOSE Sayings too are witty» which con- 
vey a concealed Sufpicion of Ridicule. Like 
what was faid by a SiciUan^ when his Friend was 
oompUdning that his Wife had hang*d herfeif upon 
a Fig-tree. Pritbte^ my DeoTy laid the other, catfi 
tbouget mefome Slips of that fame Treetbat Iraay graft 
tbemin my Garden? Of the fame Kind was what 
Cattdus faid to a wretched Orator, who thought 

that 



BdoK 11^ CfMfi Ok A Tot. 239^ 

that he had fimfli'd his Speech in a very pathetic 
Manaer, and aiitsriie had fat down aflt'd of CeM'^ 
ius^ JVhitber* be Si not ibink thai be hoAtmdfd the 
Affembbf witb Pity ? l^try. mucb^ iaid the othei^^ 
for I vHll venture to fay that the ' hard^ Heart here 
piTizD^>ym. ¥qt my Part, I am vaftly taken 
with your fpiteful, tefty Kind of Humour, when 
it comes froni a good nacur'd Man ; for otherwise 
we don't laugh at a Wit, but the Nature of the 
Perfon. Therefore I think there is a very humo- 
rous Stroke of this Kind in Navius^ Why do you 
cry^ Father ? It is a fPonder that I don't ftvg ? 
IVby^ I am caji. The patient cool Kind of the 
ridiculous is, as it were« oppos'd to this : As Cafo^ 
after he had got a Blow by one who was carrying 
along a Plank, was bid by the Fellow to take 
Care ; What^ have you got any things elfe be/ides ibi 
Plank there ? faid Cato. A witty way of expofing 
DuUnefs is agreeable too : As the Sicilian^ fo 
whom Scipioy when Praetor, aflign*d his Landlord, 
who was a rich Man, but a great Blockhead, for 
his Couhfel. pray J my Lord^ faid he, give this 
Counfel to my Antagonift^ end then none at all to me^ 
We are likewife taken with thofe Inftances, whcr^ 
a Thing receives an Explanation in a fmart, con* 
cife way, quite contrary to its Meaning. As 
when Scaurus accusM RuiiUus of Bribery, when 
the firft was made Conful, and the other loft his 
Eleftion ; and in his Papers pointed out the Let- 
ters A. F. P. R. which Scaurus explained to be 
* a£led upon the Faitb of P. Rutilius ; but the 
other infilled they fignify'd. Anterior in Fa£l^ Po- 
Jierior in Relation. Caius Cannusy . a . Roman Knight 

* * Lot, ASumFide P. Rutilii. AnU Fa^m^ poft Rela- 

tum^ ^miliottus fecit, phSiitur Rutiiius. 

who 



240 On the CHAkACTfik Book 

who appeared for Rufusy call'd ,out that both df 
them were miflakcn in the Meaning of thefe four 
Letters: ff^t do tbey meun tben^ faid Scaurus ? 
Whf^ faid the other, A: Emilius* Fault punish- 

TES RijTlLIUS* ^ 

CHAP LXX. 

THE joining oppofite Qualitici are likewifcf 
witty J be wants ndthtng but Money ahd Virtue 
A friendly Reprimand thrown out by way of 
Miftake is likewife very pretty. As Vfhcn yilhiui 
play'd upon {jranius J who when he faw his owrt 
Accounts appealed to for Proof againft Scavola^ 
who was acquitted, feem'd exceedingly well pleas'd 
without reflefting that the fame Sentence had vir- 
tually condemned his Accounts. Of the fame Na- 
ture with this, is the familiar Air with which you 
give Advice* As when Granius advisM a wretched 
Pleader, who had grown hoarfe by Speaking, to 
drink foriie cold Honey- wine when he went home. 
ifHrfy fays the other, that will fuin irpf Voice : Bet- 
ter^ replies he, ruin that than your Client," It is 
likewife very pretty when one fays any thing that 
juft hits the Charafter of another ; as when Scaurus 
got fome lU-wilfto himfelf by taking Poffeffion of 
the Eftate of Phrygio Pompeiusy a Man of great 
Fortune, without any Will of the . deceased ; as 
he appeared Counfel for Bejiiay who was impeachM 
by C. MemmiuSj a Funeral happened to pafs by. 
See tbere^ fays Memmiusy a Funeral ; Ah I Scaurus, 
could you hut be the Heir? But none of thefe Kinds 
is more witty than that which hits you unexpect- 
edly. We may bring a great Number of Exam- 
ples of this. I fhall only mention that of the elder 



Book II. . Of dnORATOi^: ^4^ 

Jppius. Upon a Debate in the Senate with regard to 
the public Lands, and the Tborian Law, it was like 
to bear hard upon Lucilius, that fome of the 
Members faidi, his Cattle graz'd upon the public 
Lands; Toumftake^ faid Jppius^ they were not the 
Cattle of Lucilius, feeming to take Lucilm'% Part, 
they are Majlers of tbemfelves^ for they feed where 
they have a Mnd. I am Jikewife pleas'd with 
the Saying of that Scipio^ who ftruck down^T/^. 
Gracchus \ when M. Flaccus appointed P. Mucins 
for one of his Judges, after a great many Re- 
proaches, / except againft bim^ faid he^ for he is 
partial: Upon this being caird to Order; Ah! 
Father* s ConfcripL, faid he, / donU except againft 
him as he is partial to me^ but to you all. Nothing 
could be more witty than what was feid by our 
Friend Craffus here, when a Hear- fay of one Silus^ 
who was an Evidence againft Pifo had like to 
have hurt him ; Perhaps^ faid he, Silus, the Per- 
fon who you heard fay fo was in a Paffion \ Silus feem*d 
to agree : Perhaps likewife. you did not perfeSily well 
underjland him ^ he fignify'd his Aflent likewife to 
this with a low Bow : Perhaps too^ continues Craf-- 
fus^ you did not hear a Jingle Word ^fwhat you pre- 
tend to have heard. This was fo unexpefted, that 
the Evidence was quite confounded with a gene* 
xal Laugh. Navius is full of this Kind of Jokes, 
this Saying is in every Body's Mouth -, as much 
as you are a Philofcpherj if you are cold you w'ill 
tremble. With many fuch Sayings. 

CHAP. LXXI. 

YOU likewife very often make a humo- 
rous Compliment to your Adverfary of 
thofe Qualities which he won't allow to you ; as 

R when 



242 On the Character Book II- 

when a Fellow of an infamous Race faid to C, 
Leeliusj That bis Anions were unworthy of his Blood : 
By Heavens^ replyM the pth? r, your ASlions are 
-very worthy of yours. Witty Things ^re often thrown 
out fcntentioufly \ as M. Cincius^ on the Day when 
he paffed the Law upon regulating Rewards and 
Fees, when Caius Cento appeared and afk'd him 
in an opprobrious Manner, What ^Law he was 
paffing? IVby^ replies the other, // is a Law that 
every Man who ufes his Neighbours Goods muft buy 
them. Very often Impoffibilities are wilh'd for 
i^ith a great deal of Wit, as M Lepidus^ while 
liis Fellows were in their Fxercifes in the Field, 
after he had ftretch*d himfelf upon the Grafs ; / 
\wifh^ faid he, this was working. It has likewife a 
very goo4 Effeft, when you give a difagreeable 
Anfwer with a Calm Air to a Fellow who is 
queftioning you -, and, as it were teazing you . 
As Lepidus the Cenfor^ when he deprived M An- 
tijlius of Pyrgi of his Horfe, and his Friends 
were making a terrible Bauling, and Queftioning 
how he could anfwer to his Father for 'having 
his Horfe taken from him, fince he was a moft 
excellent, induftrious, modeft frugal Member of 
the Colony. TV// him^ faid he, . that I dotCt believe 
a Word of this. Some other Kinds are coUefted 
by the Greeks^ fuch as Curfcs, Admirations, 
Threats. But I am afraid the Kinds I have al- 
ready mentioned are rather but too many; for 
thofe which confili in the Meaning and .the E* 
nergy of Expreflion, are generally fixed and de- 
finite : But thefe, as I have obferv'd before, be- 
get rather Admiration than Laughter. But as 
to thofe which turn upon the Subjedt and the 
Sentiment, their Heads are but few, tho' the par- 
ticulars 



Book II. 0/ an Ok At o ». 24^ 

ticulars are infinite. For the ridiculous touches hj 
deceiving our Expcdations j in rallying the Qua- 
lities of another; or playing humoroufly upon 
our own;, by Comparifons drawn from meaner 
Objefts; by diflembling; by throwing out de- 
fign*d Abfurdities, and reprimanding iFoUy. There- 
fore the Man who dell res to be a fFit muft re- 
ceive from Nature a certain Cafte peculiarly a- 
dapted to the Kinds I have mentioned ; hi^ Man* 
ners, and even his very Look> muft be accom- 
modated to, and expreffive of every Kind of 
the ridiculously and the more grave and ferious 
one's Looks are, the Wit has the greater Effeft j 
as appears^ Craffus^ from your Manner. But> 
Antonius^ as you faid that you would indulge 
yourfelf by repofing in this Inn, where Witj 
fuch as your own, furnifties all the Entertain- 
ment^ as if you were got into Pomtinum^ a dif- 
agreeable, unhealthy Place, I am of Opinion, 
that you think you have refted.long enough, 
and that you fhould now fet out to finifh 
your Journey* Replies the other, truly, befides 
the chearful Reception you have given me, I 
am now both better inftrufted in the Nature, 
and more emboldenM In the Exercife of Joking* 
For I am not afraid of any Imputation of Le- 
vity for my dealing in this Way, fince you 
have juftified me by the Authority of the Fa- 
briciij the Jfricaniy the Maximi^ the Catones^ and 
the Lepidi. But you have already heard what 
you wanted to know of me, at leaft all which 
tequir'd a greater Degree of Accuracy in ex- 
preffing and conceiving ; for the other Points are 
more eafy, and they all arife from what has al- 
ready been laid down. 

R 2 CHAP. 



244 0^ //^Character Book II^ 

CHAP LXXIL 

FO R when I enter upon a Caufe, I furvey 
it upon all Sides, with all the Refleftion I. am 
jmafter of; and after I have feen, and compre- 
hended the Proofs that are to fupport my Allega - 
tions, and the Topics from which I am to concir 
liate tlic Favour of the Judges^ together with 
thofe' from which I am to touch their Paflions, 
then I confider with myfelf the ftrong and the 
weak Side of the Caufe ; for there is fcarce any 
Subjeft that can fall under Debate or Difpute, 
that has not both : But to what Degree ? That 
is the Queftion. My Method in Speaking ufes to 
be this; whatever I find really makes for me, 
that I embrace, I embellifli, J exaggerate; there 
I hang» there I dwell, there I ftick : But from 
tlie WTak and defective Side I retire, the* in fuch 
a Manner as that I may not feem to ftiift it ; but 
to have given it another Caft, that it may be quite 
difguis'd with the Ornaments and Exaggerations 
v;hich I throw upon the ftrong Side. And if the 
Gaufe turns upon Proofs I attach myfelf princi- 
pally to the ftrongeft, whether complicated or 
fingle. But if the Succefs depends upon conci- 
liBting, or touching the Judges, I then put my 
chief Defence upon that Part of it which is moft 
calculated for gaining their AfFeftions. The whole 
of this lies here ; If in a Speech, my ftrength lies 
more in refuting my Antagonift than in advanc- 
ing Proofs of my own, I then play, upon him 
with all my Weapons: But if, it is more eafy 
to prove my own Allegations than to difprove his, 
I then endeavour to call the Attention off from the 

Defence 



Book II.* O/* ^ff Or ator.' 245 

Defence made by my Antagonift, and to fix It 
wpon that which is made by myfel f: *I then bold- 
iy lay down two Things that appear moft eafy, 
becaufe the more difficult ones are above mv 
Reach. Th^ firft is, that where a Proof or a Rea- 
foning galls or perplexes me too much, I fome- 
times dqn't fpeak one Syllable in Anfwer to it ; 
fomebody may laugh at this, for it is what every 
Man can do ; but take this along with you, that 
I am now fpeaking of my own Abilities, and 
tfiot of another's -, and I own, that if a C^rcum- 
ftance bears hard upon me, I ufe to make my 
Retreat fo as that I feem to fly not only with- 
out throwing away, but without Ihifting, my Shield, 
At the fame Time, when I fpeak, I employ a Var- 
nifh and a Pomp of Language, and make a Re- 
treat as if it were a Refiftance -, but, where-ever 
I entrench myfelf, Idq it fo as that my retiring 
appears not with a Defign to avoid my -Foe, 
l)ut to take up a Ground. There ,1 obferve a 
Matter which I think ought, above all others, to 
be guarded againfl and forefeen by an Orator, 
and ic us'd to give me very great Uneafinefs ; which 
is, to endeavour not fo much to do Service to 
my Caufc, as to do it no Diflervicei not but 
that we ought to endeavour at both, but it is 
much more difgraceful to an Orator to be thought 
to have hurt his Caufe by his Blunders, tham 
not to be able to ferve it- 

CHAP. LXXIII. 

BUT what are you whifpering to one an- 
other Catulus ? ' Does what I fay meet with 
the Contejnpc it de/erves ? By no Means, re- 

R3 . Pl/d. 



84^ On fke Caracte* Book II, 

ply'd the /Other ^ but C4efar appears inclU>able to 
fpcak fomething on this Head. With all my 
Heart, replies Antonius^ whether it be with a 
Defign to confute, or to catechife me. Says Ju- 
lius^ ^pon my Word, Jntonius^ I was always 
one of thofe who gave you this Charafter as an 
Orator •, that in your Speeches you appear to me 
the moft guarded of all Mankind \ and it is 
your peculiar Excellency, that you never faid any 
Thing to the Prejudice of the Caufe you defend* 
ed 'y and I remember that in a great Company,, 
when I was talking with Craffks upon this very 
Head, and he had expatiated upon the ^Praife cf 
your Eloquence, that I faid your char^fterifti- 
cal Accomplifhment was, that yoa left nothing 
unfaid that was to be faid, and avoided faying a- 
ny Thing that ought not to be faid. I remem-- 
ber his Anfwer was, that you pofleffed other 
Qualifications in the higheft Degree, but none 
but a Reprobate and a Traitor certild 15C capable 
of fpeaking what was not to the Purriofe, and 
thereby injuring his Client; Thereforjef that the 
avoiding this did not endue a Manr^with Elo- 
quence i but the running into it branded him with 
Audacity. Now, Antoniusy if yoy pleafe, I wilh 
you would point out your Reafons for thinking 
it fo great an Excellency not to do any Preju-.' 
dice to a Caufe, as to put it on the Footing 
with the higheft AccompJifliments of an Orator.. 

CHAP. LXXIV 

FOR my Part, C^far, replies the other, I 
will fpeak my Senfe of the Matter 5 but do 
you and all this Company carry it atong with 
you, that I don't here fpeak of any Divinity of 

Compleat 



Book IL Of m Ojl at or. 247 

compleat Eloquence, but of my own flender 
Pra^ice and Cuftom, As to the Anfwer of 
Crajfus^ it was the Anfwer of a noble and eleva- 
ted Mind, who look'd upon it as a Kind of 
Miracle that any Orator Ihould injure a Caufe, 
and be prejudicial to his Client by Pleading. But 
he fuppoles others what he is himfelf, whofe 
Strength of Genius is fuch, that he imagines no 
Man, unlcfc purpofely, fpeaks what may make 
againft himfelf. But what I faid was not ap- 
plicable to any eminent or extraordinary Genius, 
but to Men of plain common Senfe. Thus, a- 
mong the Greeks^ the famous "Themiftocles the A-* 
tbenian was faid to have been poflefs'd of an 
amazing Sagacity and Underftanditig. When a 
leained Man of the firft Rank, in Letters, as is 
faid, came to him, and profefs'd to teach him 
the Art of Memory, an Art that was then juft 
begun to be broach'd •, the other aflcM him what 
that Art could do? It will teach you, replies 
the Profeffor, to remember every Thing. Upon 
which Themijloclee told him, that he would be 
much more oblig*d^ to him, if he could teach 
him how to forget, rather than to remember 
fome Things. Don't you perceive how great, 
and how powerful the Force of Genius of this 
difcerning Perfon muft have been, and how 
much Underftanding he pofleffed ? Since his 
Anfwer lets us know, that nothing tl>at ever once 
had entered into his Memory could efcapc it: 
Since he chofe rather to forget what he did not 
care to remember, than to remember whatever 
he had only once heard or feen. But this Anfwer 
of Theinijlocks is no Reafon why we ought not 
to cultivate onr Memory, neither is my Caution 

R 4 and 



248 On /^^ C H A R A C T E R BoOK It 

and Timidity in Caufes to be overlooked, becaufe 
Crajfus is Mafter of the moft exquifite good Senfe, 
For neither of them imparted any of their Abi- 
lities to me, they only exprefled their own. For 
in Caufes there are a great Number of Circum- 
(lances, that thro* every Part of a Speech are to be 
carefully examined, left you rufti or ftumble againft 
any Thing. Often a Witnefs may not hurt you 
or hurt you but very (lightly, provided he is not 
exafperated. The Party begs, the Counfel pref* 
fcs us, firft to abufe him, to rail at him, and 
then examine him ; I am not a Bit mov'd; I 
won't obey, I won't humour, I won't gratify 
their Defires ; yet this does no Honour to my 
Charafter. For People without Experience know 
bfetter how to blame any Thing you fay that 
is amifs,- than to commend you when you dif- 
cover good Spnfe by holding your Tongue, In 
cafe that you fhould here pique a paflionate .Wit- 
nefs, one that is no Fool, or one that has Refo- 
lution, what Mifchief may you not do ? For his 
Paflion furni(hes him with Inclination* his Un- 
derftanding with Means, and his Charafter with 
Intereft fufficient to hurt you. If Crajfus does 
not fall into this Blunder, that is not to fay but 
that many do', and that often \ At leaft to me 
nothing founds more fcandaloufly than upon any 
Word, Anfwer or Queftion of an Orator tp 
hear this Queftion follow : He has knocked down^ 
fr-wbom ? His Antagonijl P^-^^No^ noy fays another, 
kim/elf and bis Client. 



PH A r. 



PooK II. 0/ an O Ji A T o »; 249^ 

CHAP. LXXV. 

* .' 

CJ<^ ^5 Sy5 imagines that. this never can be 
the Cafe, except thro' Treachery; but for 
my part, I often fee Men, who don't at all riiean 
any Harm» do fome Harm in- Caufes. ¥otbov>! 
When other People don't, as I faid before, with 
me retreat, or, to fpeak in plains Terms, fly from 
, what bears very hard upon their Caule ; but faun- 
ter in the Enemy's Camp, and difmifs their own 
Guards •» do you imagine the Injury they do to 
then: Caufes is but flight, fince by thefe means 
they ftrengthen their Enemies Auxiliaries, or can- 
ker what they cannot cUre ? How ! when they 
have r\Q regard to the Charafter in which they a£t; 
if they don't by their Extenuations allay all the 
invidious Part of that Charafter, but add to the 
Odium by vaunting and extolling it, what Mif- 
chiefs does not thisConduft at length produce. 
How! if without guarding your Language you 
dart bitter and affronting Invectives againfl: Per- 
fons who are dear and agreeable to the Judges, 
mwrt it not difguft the Bench ? How J if while you ^ 
. are ei^pofing your Antagonifl: you fhall unwitting- 
ly provoke the Court by touching upon thofe 
very Vices or bad Qualities that fit one or more 
of your Judges, is that but a flight Blunder? 
How ! if, while you plead for another, you make 
your own private Refentment a Party, or when you 
arc gall'd, fl:rike out into Extravagancy, and thus 
lofe Sight 'of your Caufe, do you do no Harm ? 
Here I own I am thought too cool . and paflive, 
iiot that I take any Pleafure in hearing myfelf 
atfus'd, but bec^ufc I take pone in eafily quitting 



t$o On tie Ch A a a c T k r , Book JJ. 

the Caufe I appear for. As when I reproach'd 
yourfclf, Stdpicius^ for attacking the Agent, and 
not the Principal. This Conduct of mine is at- 
tended with one Advantage, that if any one abufes 
Hie he is look'd upon as a very fancy Fellow, if 
not a downright Madman. But in opening your 
Evidence, if you fhould ftate any thing grofly 
falfe, or contrary to wh^ you either have faid, or 
are to fay, or in its own Nature diftant from the 
PraAice and Cuftom of the Forum, does that no 
Preju^ce ? In ihort, all my Care confifts (for I 
will i^peat it) in doing all the Service to my Cauib 
that I can by fpeaking ; and, if I cannot fttcceed 
fft that) in doing it no Harm. 

CHAP LXV. 

1 Therefore now return, Catnlusj to that Point 
for which you fome Time ago praised me, I 
mean the Order and Arrangement of Fafts and 
Topics. In this, two Methods are to be obferv'd 
the firft, that which the Nature of the Caufe dic- 
tates ; the other, depending upon the Judgment 
sukI good Senfe of Orators. For the very Nature 
and Genius of Eloquence requires us to premife 
fomewhat before we come to the main Point; 
next, that we prove it, by guarding all our own 
Arguments, and confuting thofe of our Antago- 
nifts ; then to conclude and wind up the whole. 
But as to the Maxims chat iare laid down with re- 
gard to what we are to fay, in- order to prove, 
inftrudt, and perfuade, that is the chief Thing left 
to the good Senfe of the Orator. A great many 
Proofs prefent; with a great many Circumftances 
that bid fair to do great i>ervice to our Pleadings 3 

but 



BookIL Of an On at on. ajf 

but of thefe, fome are fo flight; as to be. quite de- 
spicable i and others, if they are any way fervke- 
able, are fometimes of fuch a^ Nature, that they 
have fome Flaw or other, neither is the Service 
they do fo confiderable as the Mifchief they bring 
along with them. But as to the Proofs that arc 
to the Purpofe, and ftrong, at leaft if, as it often 
happens, they are very numerous, I think it pro- 
per that the flight^ft, or thofe that are to the lame 
?urpbfe with others more weighty, (hould be fe- 
parated, and fet afide out of the Pleading; and 
indeed for my own Part, while I am a colledKng 
Evidence, I ufe rather to weigh than to num- 
ber it. 

CHAP. LXVI. 

AN D becaufe, as I have often obferv^d, wc 
bring every body over to our » Sentiments 
by three Things ; either by Infortmr^^ by Cancilia- 
ting J or by Moving ; there is one of thefe three 
Particulars which we ought IVill to obferve, and 
that is, to feem as if our foU View was to inform. 
As to the other two, they are to a Speech what 
Blood is to a Body, they ought to be diflfus*d 
thro' the whole of all Pleadings. For both the 
Beginning, and the other Parts of a Speech, (a 
Point wiiich we fliall touch upon very foon,) ought 
to have this Power principally ; that they dilate 
themfelves fo as to be able to touch the Minds of 
the Audience. But as to the Parts of a Difcourfc, 
which tho* they don't at all inform in the argument 
tative Way, yet are extrcamly ferviceable in the 
ferfuajhe and the pathetic,^ tho* they properly come 
in at the Beginning, or in the Clofe of a Spcech^f 

3 y^f» 



152 On //^tf C H A R A C T E R. , BoOK Ih 

yet, few all that, it is highly convenient, in order 
to touch the Paffions, that you make Digreffions 
from the main Points which you had proposed to 
fpeak to. Therefore, after the Cafe is reprefented, 
after our own Proofs are made good, or thofe of 
our Antagonifts deftroy'd, or, in either, or in all 
thefe Parts, Room is very often left for a Digrefli- 
on, in order to touch the. Paffions ; and fuch a Di- 
greffion, may be very properly introduced, if the 
Nature of the Caufeis of that Importance and Va- 
riety as to admit it : And thofe Caufcs which giye 
die greateft Latitude for fuch Digreffions, where we 
can introduce thofe Topics by which the Spirit 
of an Audience is impelled or check'd, afford the 
greateft Room, and the fuUeft Opportunities 
for exaggerating and embellifhing. Now that I 
i^eak of this, I muft find Fault with thofe who 
place their weakeft Arguments firft ; and I think^ 
as to this Particular, they too are in Fault, who, 
if upon any Occafion they employ a great Num- 
ber of Advocates, a Cuftom which upon all Oc- 
cafions I am againft, always defire him whom they 
think the weakeft to Ipeak firft. For the very 
Nature of Things requires, that you come up, as 
foon as poffible, to the Expeftation of an Audience 
becaufe if they are difappointed in the Beginning, 
the Orator ^yft labour a great deal harder in the 
fucceeding Part of the Pleading, and a Caufe is 
in a very bad way, when you don't prepoflefs the 
Hearer with a favourable Opinion of it at your 
very fetting out. . Therefore, as in the Cafe of Ora-. 
tor^, the beft fhould always be employed firft ; fo 
in Pleading your ftrongeft Points fhould be firft 
infifted upon J provided always, in both Cafes,^ 
that wherever the diftinguifhing Excellency of 

either 



Book IL , Of an Okato rJ 253 

either lies, it be kept ifp to the Peroration, If 
any Circumftances are but indiflferent, (for we al- 
ways rejedt thofc that are faulty) let them be 
thrown into the Lump and the Mafs of the whole. 
Having weighM all thefe Particulars, in the laft 
place, I proceed to conlider what I am to fay in 
the firft place, and how I Ihall fet out ; for when- 
ever I wanted to conflder of that firft, nothing 
occur'd to me but what was dry, trifling, trite and 
common. 

CHAP. LXXVIII. 

AS to the fetting out of a Speech, it ought al- 
ways to have Accuracy, Acutenefs, Senti- 
ment, and Propriety of Expreflion, but efpecially 
calculated to the Pradtice of the Bar. For the firft 
Judgment, and, as it were^ Prejudice, which is 
form'd in Favour of a Speech, arifes from its fet- 
ting out, which ought inftantly to footh and entice 
the Hearer. Here I us*d to be furpriz'd, not at 
thofe People who never apply*d to this Bufinefs, 
but at Philip, a Man of the firft Rank for Elo- 
quence and Learning, who generally when he rifes 
up to fpeak, feems to be at a^ Lofs how he Ihould 
begin; yet, at the fame time, he fays, that after 
the firft Bout, when his Hand is" in, then he 
ufes to fight in earneft •, without reflefting that the 
very People from whence he borrow'd this Allu- 
fion tofs their firft Javelins with great Coolnefs, 
on purpofe both to make their Addrels appear 
with greater Grace, and to manage their Strength. 
And there is no doubt but a Pleading in its fet: 
ting out requires often to be ftrong and fpirited j 
but if, among Men who fight for their Lives, a 

great 



aj4 0/r /*f CHARACTER BoQK^ II. 

great many Flouriflies pafs before they a6tually 
engage, which aj^ar to be more for Parade than 
in eameft, how much more is this to be expefted 
in Speaking, * where Strength and Sweetnefs are 
required to go hand in hand. In fhort, there is no 
natural Caufe \frhich pours itfcif out all at once, 
and quite vanilhes by a fudden Start ; in like 
manner. Nature hath difguisM with a gentle Infan- 
cy the Progrefs of the moft riolent Commotions. 
But your Preamble is not to be fought from abroad, 
nor elfewhere, but mull be taken from the very 
Eilence of your Caufe. • For this Purpofe, after 
you have . felt and furveyM the whole of yx)ur 
Caufe, after you have found out and prepared all 
its Topics, you are to confider which of them you 
are to employ in the Preamble ; it is thus eafily 
found out; for it mud be taken from the Alle- 
gations that are moft fertile, either in Proofs, or 
belt adapted to thofe Charaflers, into which I 
have faid we ought frequently to deviate. Thus, 
it can never fail of being fomc way important, 
when it is borrow'd in a manner from the main 
Strels of our Pleading •, and it will thereby appear 
that it is not only not common, and not applicable 
to other Caufes, but (hoots, and, as it wete, flou^ 
riflies from the Caufe, which is your immediate 
Bufinefs. 






CHAP. LXXIX. 

Very Preamble of a Speech then ought either 
to give an Intimation of the whole Matter 

* Whire Strength and Sweetne/s.] The vulgar Editions read 
here tn qua mn *vis forms, Jed BeUSatio foftulaturS Dr. Peatce 
now Lord Bifhop of Bag')r, fox Jed read quum, upon the Au-> 
thority of fome Maoufcripts. He fays it is a mmih more uAmI 
j^preifion; 1 add^ it is mach better Senfe. 

that 



Book JL Of an Or at or.* 255 

that is in hand, or to open and pave the Way to 
the Merits of the Caufe, ojr to fcrve for Ornament 
and Dignity, But, as in the Architcc9:ure rf 
Houfes an4 Twnplcs, their Porticos and .Entries 
have dicir Proportions j fo in Pleading, the 
Preamble erf a Speech ought to be iri Proportion 
to the Importance of its Subjeft* Therefbte 
.^here the Caufe is trite and trifling, it is often 
laoft convenient to begin with the Matter itfel£. 
But, as is generaUly the Cafe, when the Pleading 
requires an Exordium, we are at liberty to bor- 
row our Sentiments from fome-what that regards 
cither the Party, or his Antagonift, or the Matter 
in Difpute, or the Judges.' From the Party fl 
call them fo whofe Intereft is at ftake) we borrow 
whatever ia expreffive of a Man of Worth and 
Generofity, but unfortunate, and meriting Com- 
paffion -, and likewife whatever can moft effeftually 
deftroy an unjuft Accufation. From the Perfon 
of the Adv^ifary, we are to borrow almoft the 
very oppofite Qualities, from the fame Common- 
places, From the Matter ; Whether it is cruel, 
unnatural, happening contrary to all Probability, 
unjuft, piteous, ungrateful, unworthy, unpreQ- 
dented, irredeemiable, and irretrievable ? But that 
our Judges may be prepoflefs*d in our Favour, 
that is a Thing to be attained rather by Pleading 
than by Prayer. That indeed muft mingle with 
the whole of a Difcourfe, but chiefly in the End of 
it; yet the fetting out often is of this Kind. For 
the Greeks teach that we are firft to render the 

« 

Judge attentive and traftable-, tho* that is not 
more- peculiar to the fetting out, than to all the 
other Parts of a Difcourfe ; but then they are mofl; 
cafily affeded at the Beginning, when the Atten- 
tion 



256 On the C H a r a c t e ft 600K I J. 

tion is moft awaken'd, v^heh the Expeftatidn is 
higheft, and when the j^ind is 'moft fufccptible of 
Impreffions. Whatever too is faid in fetting out, 
whether by way of Allegation or Defence, appears 
with greater lyftre than in the Middle of a Plead- 
ing.. But the greateft Variety of Exordiums, ei- 
ther for enticing or moving a Judge, are drawn 
from thofe Topics, which, in the Caufe itfelf, are 
moft proper for moving the Paflions ; yet you are 
not to difplay all thefe in the very Beginninjg, but 
you are to give the Judge a gentle Impulfe, io 
that the reft of your Difcourfe may fall in with his 
Biafs. 

CHAP. LXXX- 

TH E Beginning, therefore, ought to be . fo 
connefted with the fubfequent Part of a 
Speech, as not to appear like the Flourifli of a Mu- 
fician, a Thing detach'd ; but like a proportiona* 
ble Member, of a piece with the whole Body. 
For fome People, after they have dilpatch'd this 
premeditated Part, make fuch a Tranfitipn to the 
reft of their Difcourfe, that they feem to demand ^ 
that the Audience fhould fuit themfelves to their 
Fancies. An Orator then ought to treat a Pre- 
lude, not as the Samnites do their Spears, which 
they brandifli before they encounter, tho* they 
don't ufe them in the Fight ; for he Ought to 
fight arm'd with the^ vpry Sentiments he us'd in 
his Prelude. But as to the Narrative, which they 
require to be ftiort; If, by Shortnefs is meant^ 
a Style without any Redundancy of E;^preflion, 
then you have an Example of it in the Style of 
Lucius Oraffus, If Brevity confifts in making ufe 

of 



Book IL Qr<7;^ Or a f or. 257 

ofjufl as many Words as are abfolutely neceflary, 
that may (birietimes indeed be expedient; but it 
is very often vaftly prejudicial to a Narrative^ not . 
.only as it renders it obfcure, but likewife becaufe 
it deftroys the chief Property of a Narrative, 
which confifts in its being agreeable^ and adapted 
to perfuade: For Inftance, where an old Gentle- 
man fays, for as fcon as he ceased to be a Boy j 
where is there any Thing tirefome in thisNarrative ? 
In this PaflTage we fee the Manners of the Youth 
himfelf, the Curiofity of the Slave, the Death 
of Cbryfis^ the Look, the Shape and Sorrow of 
the Sifter ; and every other Circumftance is told 
in a fpirited agreeable Manner. But if the Au- 
thor had afFefted a Brevity like tHS following; 
• She is carried oufj we march^ we come to the Bury^ 
ing'place^ Jhe is laid on the Pile^ |he might have 
almoft comprehended the Whole in ten fhort 
Verfes ; yet the Concifenefs of the JExpreffion, 
the is carried out^ we proceed^ gives it rather a 
Beauty than Brevity. But had there been no- 
thing more than, Jhe is placed upon the Pik^ the 
whole Matter might have been eafily underftood. 
But a Narrative receives a certain Chearfulnefs, 
when it is mark'd with Charaders, and" diver- 
fify'd by Dialogues. The Subjedl of it too like- 
wife receives a greater Air of Probability, when 
you explain in what Manner it was tranfacted ; 
beCdes it is muc'h more intelligible, if it fome- 
times makes ,a Paufe in the Hurry of Brevity. 
A Narrative ought to be as ftriking as any o- 
ther Part of a Difcourfe -, this will coft us more 
Trouble, in that it is more difficult to avoid 

* ^i&f II r«rr)rV 0»/.]For this /eethe AndriaKX'%trtr.€tf t&. i» 
Scene I, 

S Obfcu- 



258 On the Character Book 1L 

Obfcurity in a Narrative, ^than in the Beginning, 
in the Proof, the Exculpation, or the Perorati- 
on. And the Confequcnces of Obfcurity are 
much more dangerous here than elfewhere-, ei- 
ther bccaufe obfcure Expreffior.s in any other Place 
arc attended with no other Inconvenience, than that 
they go for nothing; but Obfcurity in a Nar- 
rative throws a Cloud upon the whole Difcourfe : 
Or becaufe in Cafe you fhould make ufe of an 
obfcure ExprelTion in any of the other Parts, you 
have it in your Power to explain it elfewhere ; 
but a Narrative can only ftand in one Pl^ce. 
The Way however to render a Narrative per- 
fpicuous, is to convey it in plain Expreflions, 
in a regulur Method, as to Time, and without 
any Interruption of the Circumflances. 

CHAP. LXXXL 

BU T when to introduce, or not to introduce 
a Narrative is a prudential Confideration-, 
for we have no Bufinefs to give a Detail of a 
Matter that is notorious and felf-evident ; nor 
after our Antagonift has done it, unlefs it is with 
a View to refute him : And if at any Time we 
are upon a Narrative, we are to take care not 
to infift with too much Vehemence upon any 
fufpicious, criminal Circumftances that may make 
againft us, and we are to extenuate whatever 
may ; otherwife we may fall into the Blunder of 
hurting our own Caufe, which Crajfus fays never 
happens but from Defign, and not Ignorance : 
For the material Part of the whole Caufe depends 
vpon your laying down the Subjed, either cau- 
tioufly or incautioufly, becaufe the Narrative is 

the 



Book 11. Of an Or at ok. 259 

the Fountain of the whole of the remaining Speech. 
You are next to ftate the Cafe, in doing which 
you are to have in View the Point in Difpute. You 
are then to form the ftrongeft Arguments you can 
to fupport your Side of the Queftion both by in- 
validating the Reafoning of your Antagonift, and 
eftablifhing your own. For ,the argumentative 
Part upon Proofs in a Speech is of a fingle and 
peculiar Nature, yet at the fame Time it requires 
both Confirmation arid confuting. But as you 
cannot confute your Antagonift, without eftablifh- 
ing* .your own Allegations, nor can you eftaWifh 
your own without confuting his, thefe therefore 
are joined both in their Nature and Utility. But 
ail Speeches are generally wou nd up by Exagge- 
?:ation, in order either to exafperate or mollify 
thfe Judge; and all the Abilities of an Orator, 
as in the Preamble, fo more efpecially in the 
Conclufion of the Speech, are to be apply*d 
in giving the ftrongeft Emotions to the Palfions 
ofthejfudges in our own Favour. And, to tell 
the Truth, I can fee no Reafon why we (hould 
make diftinft Heads of thofe Rules that relate to 
Perfuafion, and thofe relating to Panegyric. For 
they are generally in common, yet to debate ei- 
ther for or againft any Queftion, to me appears 
a very important Charadler. For it belongs to 
the wife alone to deliver an Opinio^ upon the . 
higheft Matters •, and it requires Honefty and Elo- 
quence to forefee with Underftanding, to inforce 
with Authority, and to prevail after Debate. 

CHAP. LXXXII. 

BU T fuch Particulars muft appear with lefs 
Pomp in the Senate ; for the Senate is an 

Affembly of v/ife Men, where many muft have 

S 2 Liberty 



26o On tbe Character BooKit 

Liberty to fpeak in their feveral Turns, and 
where one muft avoid all Affedation of Wit, and 
all Oftentation of Abilities. But a public Aflem- 
bly requires all the Energy, the Weight, and the 
Colouring of Eloquence. Therefore, in Debate, 
the principal Charafter is Dignity. For he who 
thinks that Utility is, never confiders what 'the 
Perfon who debates, moft wifhes for, but ' fome- 
times what he chufes to praftife. For there is 
not a Man, efpecially in fo noble a State as this, 
who does not think that Dignity is the moft de- 

firable Charafter. But Intereft generally gets the 
better, when a Man is afraid that, if his Intereft 
is neglefted, he ftiall be incapable of retaining his 
Dignity. But all DifFefence of Sentiments a- 
mongft Mankind confifts in this ; which Propofi- 
tion is moft advantageous? Or, if that is agreed 
upon, whether they ought moft to regard Ho- 
nefty, or Intereft.^ As thcfe feem often incom- 
patible with one another, the Mart who ftands 
by his Intereft expatiates upon the Advantages of 
Peace, Riches,. Power, Money, Revenues, Safety, 
and a fine Army, together with other Advantages, 
which are computed by their Utility ; at the fame 
Time, he lays out the Inconveniences of the con- 
trary Meafures. The Man who confults Dignity 
will recount the Examples of our Anceftors, who 
purfu'd Glory, tho' attended with Danger; he 
will difplay tiie immortal Fame that we leave to 
Pofterity ; he will maintain that the Intereft of 
his Country arifes from her Honour, and is in- 
feparable from her Dignity. But in both thefe 
Queftions the Points in Difpute are ; IFhat c2Ji be 
done^ ^r cannot be done ? For all Debate is at aa 
End, if it is on all Hands underftood, that a 

Mea- 



Book If. Of m Orator. 261 

Meafure is either abfoJutcly impQlTible, Qf inevi- 
tably neceffary ; and the Man who has proved 
this before the other Members are fenfiblc of it, 
muft be allowed to fee farther than the reft. But 
to have Weight in Debates of a political Nature, 
the chief Thing is, to be acquainted with the State 
of the Public, and, to know the Manners and 
Cuftoms of your Country : Thefe, as thciy often 
change, occafion as frequent Changes in the man- 
ner of fpeaking, and altho* the Power of Elo- 
quence is generally the fame^ yet becaufe the 
Dignity of the People is the higheft, the Caufe of 
our Country the weightieft, the Irclinatfons, and 
Commotions of the many the ftropgeft, all this 
feems to require. a more grand and elevated Man- 
ner of Speaking: And the greateft Part of the 
Harangue muft be apply *d to the Palfions, ei- 
ther by Way of Encouragement, or Commem- 
moration, or they aretobe wdrkM upon by Hopes, 
by Fears, by Defire, or by Glory ; they are often 
too to be reclaimed from Rafhnefs, Refentment, 
Hope, Injuiy, Hatred, and Cruelty, 

CHAP. LXXXIIL 

IT happens too, that as the Affembly of the 
People is the higheft Scene in which an Orator 
*can difplay his Parts, he is there naturally infpir'd 
with a more graceful Manner of Speaking. For 
the Efficacy of fpeaking to vaft Numbers is fuch, 
that an Orator without being heard by Numbers, 
can no more difplay his Eloquence, than a Mufi- 
cian can play without Inftruments. And becaufe 
the Humours of the Populace are many and va- 
Tiovis, all Shouts of Disapprobation muft be a- 

S 3 voided 



262 0;: f^^ Character Book IL 

voided, whether raised by any Blemifli in the 
Speech, in which fomewhat may fecm too rough, 
too afluming, too mean, too fordid, or fpoken 
from' fome Badnefs of Heart \ or it may proceed 
from the Prejudice or the Envy of Mankind, 
which is either well grounded, or arifing from 
Calumny or Report -, or it may be occafion'd by 
the Difagreeablenefs of the Subjeft, or by fome 
Impulfe of their own Hopes and Fears. To 
thefe four Difeafes as many Remedies may be 
apply 'd. Firft, Reprimands, where there is Au- 
thority : Then Admonition, by Way of a gen- 
tle Reprimand : A Promife that the Speaker 
will make good what he advances, if they will 
hear him : And then Intreaties, which is the 
lowed: Kind, but fometimes ufeful. But there 
is no Place where Wit, Quicknefs, and fome 
fmart Saying, not without Dignity, but with 
Humour, have a better Effeft. For nothing is 
fo eafy as to divert the Apprehenfions, and fome- 
times the keeneft Refentment of a popular Af- 
fembly by a (ingle Word, when it is ipoke op- 
portunely, quickly, fmartly, and in good Hq^ 
mour. 

CHAP. LXXXIV. 

I Have now, as well as I could, almoft got 
through my Explanation of my ufual Praftice 
in both Kinds of Caufes. and of thofe Parti- 
culars, which I both avoided and regarded, with 
a general Method I obferv'd in all Caqfes. The 
third Kind, which is that of Panegyric, which I 
^t firft excepted, as it were, out of my Rules, i^ 
not at jiU difficult ; but a§ there are a great many 

Kind^ 



Book IL Of an Ok at o r. 263 

Kinds of Speeches, and thofe too of the greateft 
Weight, and more general Ufe, upon which, 
fcarce any Body has laid ddwn Rules, becaufc we 
don't make any great Ufe of Panegyric, I have 
therefore fet afide all this Part. For the Greeks 
themfelves wrote Panegyrics rather with a View 
to be fludy'd, to delight, or to celebrate fome 
particular Perfon, than with any Regard to the 
Pradice of thenar, which is our immediate Con- 
cern: Such are the Books in which Themijiocles^ 
Arijlides^ Agefilaus^ Epamindndas^ PJbilippuSy^ A- 
lexander^ and others, are celebrated. As to our 
Panegyrics, which we deliver in the Forum, they 
have a plain, fimple Brevity in the Charader 
we give ; for they are wrote for a Funeral Af- 
fembly, to which the Pomp of Panegyric can by 
no Means be adapted ; tho* we muft fometimes 
make' ufe of fuch a Strain. We muft likewife 
fometimes compofe it. Thus C. L^elius composed 
an Oration for the Uncle of Affricanus^ which was 
pronounc'd by P. Tuiero , and that we ourfelves 
may be capable to celebrate fome Perfon we have 
an AfFeftion to, by loading him with Praifes, 
after the Manner of the Greeks j let us therefore 
take Notice of that Part likewife. It is plain then 
that in a Man there are fome Things to be wifh'd 
for, and fome Things to be praifed. Birth, Beau- 
ty, Eftate, Strength, Intereft, Riches, and other 
Circumftances beftow'd by Fortune, either upon a 
Man's Situation in Life, or his Perfon, can in them- 
felves communicate no true Glory, nor can it be 
prefumed that they are owing to Virtue alont ; but 
at the fame time, as Virtue is chiefly diftinguifh'd 
in the right and moderate Ufe of flich Circum- 
ftances ; thofe Bleffings of Nature and Fortune 

I S4 m 






264 On the Cn At ACT tR Book II« 

fall within the Province of Panegyric, the higheft 
Strain bf which is, that a Man poffefs'd Power 
without Pride, Riches without Infolence, and the 
the FuUnefs oC* Fortune without the Arrpgance of 
Greatnefs: That his Intercft and Wealth did not 
fcem to fupport, or to feed his Pride or Ambition, 
but his Bfcnevolcnce and Moderation ; but Virtue 
which is intrinfically valuable, without which no- 
thing can have Merit, has for all that a great 
many Sub-divifions,vin' 'which each is more pro-, 
per for Ptoegyric than the other. For fome Vir- 
tues appear to be placM in the Manners of Man- 
kind, and in a certain Affability and Beneficence i 
others in the Qualities of the Genius, in the Ex-* 
tent and Vigour of the Underftanding. For 
Clemency, Juftice,. Benevolence, Honour, and 
Fortitude amidfl: general Calamities, found well 
in Panegyrics : Becaufe all thefe Virtues are not 
look'd upon to be fo advantageous to the Poffeffor 
AS they are to Society. As likewife Wifdom and 
Magnanimity, by which all fublunary Affairs are 
accounted inconfiderable and triflings and upon 
Refleftion,* the Force of Genius and Eloquence 
itlelf begets equal Admiration, tho* lefs Pleafurp j 
becaufe they are Qualities that refleft more 
Luftre and Dignity lipon the Sybjeft of the 
Panegyric, than upon the Hearer ; but in Pane- 
gyrics thefe Ihould always be joined with the Vir- 
tues I have mentioned y for Mankind bear to hear 
both the pleafirtg, and the agreeable Parts of Vir- 
tue prais'd, as well as the aftonifhing. 



A 



CHAP. LXXXV. 

N D feeing every Virtue has its certain Duty 
and Province, as likewife a Portion of Hov 

nour 



BookIL OfanOvLAToiki 265 

nour that is allotted to itfclf ; when Jufticc is cele- 
brated, you are to explain, what the Perfon wliotn 
yon arc celebrating has done moft to the Honour 
of his Juftice, or fome fuch Duty ; and likewife 
as to other Virtues, the A6lions, are accommo« 
dated to the Nature, the Power, and the Name 
of each Virtue. But the moft agreeable Subjed of 
Panegyric is the Pr^fe of fuch great Men, as un- 
dertake great Things without any immediate Ad- 
vantage or Profit to themfelves : But if, befides 
this, their Aftions have been atterfded with Toil, 
?ind the Danger of their own Perfons, here is the 
fineft Field for Panegyric, as fuch Aftions admit 
of moft EmbelUfliments in exprefling, and im- 
part the greateft Pleafure in hearing. In (hort, 
the diftinguiftiing Virtue of an extraordinary Per- 
fon is that which is profitable to others, but pain- 
ful, hazardous, or at leaft bootlefs to himfelf. It 
is likewife a great and a noble Commendation, 
when a Man can fay he bore Calamity with Calm- 
ncfs, that he did not fink under Misfortune ; and 
that under all his Difficulties he maintained a 
Dignity. But the Pofleflion of Honours, the Re- 
wards afllgn'd to Courage, Aftion^^ approved of 

. by the general Voice, are far from being inca- 
pable of Ornament : Here the Panegyric turns 
upon afcribing all thefe Anions to the Juftice of 

. the immortal Gods ; ibr Things are to be taken 
up upon the Footing either of extraordinary Im- 
portance, unprecedented in Nature, or a diftin- 
guiihing Excellency in their own Kinds -, becaufe 
whatever is trifling, common, or trite, are never 
thought Subjeds worthy of profefs'd Panegyric j 
for one Circumftance that has the ftrongeft Efie6t 
there, is, the Comparifon you can run betwixt 

your 



2^6 On the C KARA CTER Book II 

your Subjeft and other eminent Men. You will 
give me leave to fpeak a litttlc more than I pro- 
posed upon this Head, not that it can do us any Ser- 
vice at the Bar, which has been all my Aim in 
this Difcourfe, but to prove that if Panegyric 
falls within the Province of an Orator, as it un- 
deniiably does, that there is an abfolute Neceffi- 
ty he fhould be Matter of all Virtues, which are 
the eflential Ingredients of Panegyrick. It is 
now evident that the Rules, with regard to dif- 
paraging, muft J)e derived from Vices oppofite to 
thefe Virtues-, at the fame time it will plainly 
follow, that as a worthy Man cannot be cele- 
brated with any Propriety and Elegance, without 
an Acquaintance with the Virtues, neither can a 
Villain be branded, or lafh'd with fufficient Keen- 
nefs and Severity, without an Acquaintance with 
the Vices. It likewife often falls in our way to 
Aiake ufe of thofe Topics in all Kinds of Caufes. 
Thus you have my Sentiments, as to the Inven* 
lion and Difpofition of the Particulars in Plead- 
ing. Let me add fomewhat now upon Memory, 
that I may eafe Crajfus of fome Fatigue, and leave 
)um nothing more to difcourfe upon, but the 

Means of embellifliing the Particulars I have 
mentioned. 

CHAP. LXXXVL 

GO on, faid CraffuSy for it is with Pleafure 
I now fee you ftripp'd of all the Frippery 
of your Difguife, and turn out a profefs'd Artift ; 
it is likewife doing me a Favour and a Kindnefs, 
to leave but little for me to go thro'. As to the 
Portion I fhall leave you, replies Antonius^ it 

Ihall 



Book II Of an O^ at or.' » 267 

fliall be difcretionary to yourfeif ; for if you a6t 
upon Honour I leave you the whole ; ibut if you 
ihift it, take heed how you are to fatisfy the Ex* 
pedtations of thefe Gentlemen. But to return • to 
my purpofe, faid he, I own I have not fo great 
a Genius as Tbemijiocles had, as to chufe rather to 
forget than remember. And I heartily thank 5/- 
monides the Ceian^ who is faid to have been .the 
firft Inventor of the Art of Memory ; for they 
fay, that as he was fupping at Crannon in Theffa- 
/>', at the Houfe of one Sccpas, a Man of Eftate 
and Quality, after he had repeated a Copy dF 
Verfes, which he had made upon him, where, -ia 
the ufual Praftice of Poets, there were a great 
many Embelliftiments in Compliment to Cajior 
and Polluxj that this great Man was fo much of 
a Scoundrel, as to fay that he would give him 
but half what he had bargained to give him for 
the Verfes, and that he. might apply for the reft, 
if he pleasM, to the Sons of Tyndarus^ who had 
an equal Share of the Praife. A littls after, as 
the Story goes, Simonides w^s call'd out to two 
young Men, who were at thefvG.ate very earneftly 
jdefiring to fee him ; ll^is faid^|arther, he arofe, 
went forth, and faw nobody ;• mat in the mean 
time the Room where Scopas was*feanquetting fell 
and bury'd him and his Family te the Ruins-, 
when his Relations came to bury th^^, they were 
fo crufli'd that they could not diftingtiilh one Bo- 
dy from another, till Simonides, by recollefting 
the diftinft Places where each had repos'd^ is faid 
to have pointed out the particular Bodies, fo 
that each might be bury'd. This Incident is 
faid to have given him the Hint, that Order 
W4s the beft Enlightner of the Memory 5 there- 
fore 



£68 Ontbe Charactbk Book IT; 

fore that diey who employ this Faculty of the 
Underftanding, ought to fix upon Places, and 
imprint thoTe Circumftances in their Minds^ 
which they wi(h to retain in their Memories: 
Thus the Order of Places will prcferve the Or- 
der of Fafts, and the Idea of Things will mark 
the Things themlelves, and by this means Places 
may ferve for Wax, and Ideas for Charafters. 

CHAP LXXXVIL 

BU T to what Purpofe ihould I mention the 
Advantage, the Utility, and die Force that 
Memory imparts to an Orator, to retain all that . 
you have learned, all that has fuggefted to your 
Mind, in making yourfelf Mafter of a Cauie ? When 
every Sentiment is imprinted on your Under- 
ftanding, when the whole Pomp of Language 
is there depidur'd, when you can hear either th? * 
Perlbn who informs you, or him on whofe Sid$ 
you ipeak> in fuch a manner, as that he does not 
ieem to pour his Diicourfe into yogr Ears, but ra-p 
ther to write it upon your Underftanding ? Men 
of ftrong Memory therefore are alone capable of 
of knowing what, how Tar, and in what manner 
they are to fpeakf what they have anfwerM to 
and what remains : At the fame time to mention 
a vaft number of Circumftances in other Caufe^ 
they formerly appeared in, and a vaft number 
they have heard from others. Therefore I con- 
fefs indeed, that Nature is the Miftrefs of thi9 
Gift, as flie is of every thing I have been fpeak* 
ing of i but this whole Art of Speaking, or cal] 
ijt» if you will, an Image, or Reiemblance of an 
Art, has th^ Efficacy : Not to beget 0r bring 

forth 



Book If. Of mi Orator; 269 

forth the whole of what is in fome Degree not 
before in our Underftanding,' but to nurfe and 
ftrengthen thofe Things of which we are alrea^ 
dy confcioud, and have the Seeds in our Mind. 
But there is fcarce any Man with fo happy a 
Memory, as. to be able to retain the 'Order of 
Words and Sentiments, without arranging and 
affixing local Ideas to Circumftances j nor is 
there any Memory fo treacherous, as not to be 
in fome meafure affifted by fuch a Praftice and 
Ufe. For Simonides^ or whoever was the Inven- 
tor of this, with a great deal of Sagacity per- 
ceived that Impreflions communicated and ftamp'd 
by the Senfes moft eafily adhered in the Mind : 
Now the moft exquifite of all our Senfes is that 
of feeing; therefore he concluded, that thofc 
Things that are either heard or conceivM would 
be moft furely retained in the Mind, jif they were 
communicated by the Medium of the Sight, be- 
caufe a certain Sympathy, an Idea, and Figure, 
diftinguifli abftradt Objefts which could not come 
under the cognizance of the Sight, in fuch a man- 
ner, as that our vifual Faculties, as it were, com- 
prehend Obje<9ts which our intelledual cannot. 
But Locality muft ftill be underftood to be affix'd 
to thefe Ideas and Bodies, and indeed to all Ob- 
jefts of feeing •, for Space is infeparably coonefted 
with the Idea pf a Body. Therefore, not to be 
verbpfe and impertinent upon a well known, felf- 
cvident Matter, we muft in Ihort make ufe of lo- 
cal Circumftances, which require to be various, 
clear, plain, and pretty nearly connefted : But the 
Ideas which ferve as the intermediate Agents, muft 
be exqnifite and* well mark'd, and fuch as may 

prefect and ftrike the Mind with t!ie greateft 

Quicknefs. 



270 On the CnAK ACT ETt Book I/. 

Quicknefs. Praftice. communicates this Faculty -^ 
from Pradtice arifes Habit, together with Diftin- 
guifliment, which is converted and changM tho- 
rough the Cafes of fynonymous Words ; or re- 
mov'd from Particulars to Generals ; add to this, 
that the Meaning convey/d by one Word ferves 
for a whole Sentence, and this Word marks out 
the local Circumftances by^ the -various Ideas af- 
fix'd to it: In the fame manner as any Ikilful 
Painter manages his Light and^Shade. 



H- 



CHAP. LXXXVIJI. 

BU T verbal Memory, which is lefs neceffary 
for our Bufinefs, i^ diftinguifh'd by a greater 
Variety of Figures: For there are many Words 
which, like the Joints of the human Body, con- 
ne£l the Members of a Difcourfe, and are entirely 
abftrafted from all fenfible Ideas ; yet we muft affix 
fome determinate Qualities to thofe Words, which 
we muft always make ufe of. The Memory of 
Things is the Bufinefs of a Pleader ^ and that may 
be informed by well plac'd Ideas affixed to the 
leveral Objefts, that we may retain Sentiments 
by Ideas, and Order by Places. Nor is it all true 
what is given out by the indolent, that Memory 
muft fink under the Weight of Ideas, and that 
this Variety throws a Cloud even upon the natural 
Faculty which we might otherwife exert. For I 
have feen the greateft Men, Men endow'd with an 
almoft divine Memory; at Athens^ Charneades^ 
and Metrodorus of Scepjis in Jfia^ who I hear is 
ftill living-, and both thefe faid, that they us'd 
Ideas upon thofe Places, which they wanted to 
retain on their Memories, in the fanie manner as 
* ' one 



1 

Book II. 0/* ^/2 Orator. 271^ 

one does Charafters upon Wax. Therefore Me- 
mory can never be created by this Praflice, where 
Nature does not co-operate ; but if the natural 
Faculties are • latent, it is certain that they by 
this means may be caird forth. I have now fi- 
nifliM this long, I wifli I could fay this modeft 
Diflertation : I may at leafl venture to fay the Au- 
thor is not over b ifhful, when he; has ventur'd to 
throw out fo much upon the Subjeft of Eloquence 
in the Hearing,« Catulus^ of you and L. Crajfus : 
As for thefe young Gentlemen, I am perhaps un- 
der the lefs Concern, becaufe they are but young -, 
but I hope you will pardon me, from a Confide- 
ration of the Motive that prompted me to this 
unufual Loquacity. 

CHAP LXXXIX. 

AS to us, fays Catulus^ for fo much I will fay 
both for my Brother and myfelf, we not 
only forgive you, but owe you both Love and 
Gratitude for what you have done, and it is 
impoflible to acknowledge your Politenefs and 
Good-nature, without admiring the Extent of 
your Knowledge. One thing I think I have 
compafs'd by this Converfation, which is, that I. 
am now delivered from a great Mi flake, and 
Ihall no .longer wonder, with a great many other 
PeQpIe, how it came that in all Cau fes you ac* 
quitted yourfelf fo divinely : For I did not think 

* that you had fo much as a Smattering in the 
Knowledge of which I perceive you are a com- 

• pleat Matter, which you have gather'd from all 

/ Hands 



- 1 



r 



fSLji On the Character Book It. 

Hands, and as Praftice has been your Inftruftor, 
1 perceive at the fame Time that you have partly 
reforip*d, and partly confirmed that of others. 
This does not at all detraft froni the high Opi- 
nion I have of your Eloquence, and farlefsof 
your Virtue and Application: -At the fame Time I 
am glad that my own Judgment has been confirmed, 
lince I have always laid ijt down as a Maxim, that 
no Man can attain the Character of good Scnfe 
and Eloquence, without great Study, Applica- 
tion, and Learning. But what did you mean by 
faying that you hop'd we would pardon you, if 
we reflefted upon the Motives that drew you into 
this Difcourfe? What could thefe Motives be, 
but your Willingnefs to oblige us, and to fatisfy 
the Curiofity of thefe young Gentlemen, who 
heard you with the greateft Attention ? Says the 
other, I wanted to deprive Crajfus of all Excufe ; 
for I knew that he was a little dither tooihaoie- 
fac'd or too unwilling, for I will not call it 
Pride in fo amiable a Gentleman, to engage la 
this Kind of Difcourfe ; iov what could be iky ? 
That he is a Man of Confular and Cenibrial 
Authority ? So are we. Was he to tell us that 
he has Years on his Side ? He is four Years 
younger than we. Could he pretend that he w?is 
ignorant of Matters which I fnatched, I ac- 
knowledge, but late and curfbrily, and at nay |j 
. leifure Hours ? Whereas he, from his Childhood, 
has given the greateft Application to them, un4er 
the gfeateft Matters. Not to mention his Ge- 
nius, in which he is unrivall'd. For no Man can 
hear me fpeak, let him have never fo mean an 
Opinion of himfelf, without hoping he can either 
fpeak better, or as weli: But when Crajfus is 
3 fpcaking 



Book III. Of anOtLKt or; 273 

fpeaking, no Man has the Arrogance lb much ad 
to imagine he ever can come up to him. There* . 
fore, Crdjfus^ that Gentlemen of their Quality may 
not come here to no Purpofe, let us at laft hear , 
you. 

C H A P XC. 

^ A y S the other* admitting Vfhzt you haVd 
O iaid to be .the Cafe, as. it is far from being 
fo, what have you this Day left for me^ or for 
any Man alive, upon this Subjedt? For, my 
deareft Friends^ I .will fpeak from the Sincerity 
of my Heart. Qften— what do I talk . of Dften ? 
For how could I ofien hear them, 1 could but 
fimetimes^ as I c&me but a Boy into the Forum^ 
from whence I was never abfent longer than 
when I was a Quseilor ? But be that as it wilU 
t told you yefterday I heard, when I was at 
Athens^ the moft learned Men^ and when I was 
in Afia\ the celebrated Metrodorus of Sctpfis^ lec- 
turing upon thefe very Subjects % but not one of 
them» to my thinkings had fo much Command, 
fo much Delicacy in this Manner of Speakings 
as Antmius has this Day difcover*d: Were it 
otherwife, and did I think he had omitted any 
thing, I ihould not be ^guilty of fo much Un- 
politenefs, nay Brutality, as to be backward in 
a Point in which 1 am fenfible you- wifli to be 
informM. iSays Stdpicius^ But, Crajfus^ have 
you forgot diat Antonius divided the Sub- 
ject in fuch a manner with you, that he took 
upon himfelf to explain the mechanic Part of 
an Orator^s Bufinefs, but left all the diflinguiih^ 
ing and embellilhing Part to you. tn the firft 
place, replies Crajfus^ who gave Antonius Leavitf, 

T both 



074 0^ tbeCuAKACTEVL Book II. 

both to make this Divifion> and then to have 
his Choice of t]ic Parts ? In the next place, if 
I vindcrftood hirti rightly> while I was hearing 
him with a great deal of Pleafure, it appear*d 
to me that' he fpoke jointly upon both Sub- 
jcfts. But, fays CoUa^ he did not touch upon 
the Ornaments of ja Speech, or that Excellency 
from which Eloquence has deriv'd its very Name. 
So, replies Crajus^ Antonius has taken the Sub- 
ilance to himfclf, and left the Sound to me. 
If he has left the moft difficult Part to you, fays 
CafoTy, we have the better Reafon for dSTiring to 
hear you ; ff the cafieft, you have the lefs Rea- 
fon to deny us. Did not you, fays Crajfus^ pro- 
mife, that if we would pafs this Day at your 
Houfe you would humour us? Will a Gentle- 
man make fo flight of his Word of Honour ? 
This made Cotta laugh. Indeed Craffus^ faid he, 
we would let you have your own Way, but take 
care that Catulus does not make this a Matter of 
Confcience: This comes under the Cognifance of 
a Cenfor, and let me advife you to take heed 
how you do any thing unbecoming a Perfon of 
Cenforial Authority. Do as you will, replies 
Craffus^ but I am of Opinion that it is now Time 
to rife and repofe : In the Afternoon,, if it be 
agreeable to you, I will talk over fome Things ; 
unlefs perhaps, you chule to defer it till To-mor- 
row. The Conipany immediately .told him, that 
it was in his Option, cither to do it immediately, 
or in the Afternoon ; but they intimated^ that the 
fooner he dkl it, it would be the more agreeable to 
them. 

IhB End of the Second Book^ 



^«^^^e^^^fySi^¥W=ff«¥»^ 



M. TuLLius Cicero 

ON T H E 

CHARACTER of an ORATOR. 



7^e third Conference. 

CHAP. I. 

Jl H I L E I was propofing, 
I Brother ^/ff/i/j, in this third 
1 Book to relate that Difcourfe 
I which Crajfus made, whin 
m Antonius had finilhed his Dif- 
p fertatinn, the Remembrance 

* of a very bitter Affliftion a- 

* waken'd the Anguilh and 
Difquiet of my Mind j for the divine, the accom- 
plilh'd, the virtuous Crajfus, dy'd fuddeoiy thfi 
tenth Day after the Converfation mentioned in this 
and the former Book pafled. For after he had 
return*dto Rome, the laft Day of the public Plays, 
he was ftrongly affefted with a Speech in the Af- 
fembiy of the Pepple, in which he was told that 
Philip hadftid. That fame other Ccfinfel beftJa that 
cf the Senate was now to be taken, jor that with 
/tub a Senate he could not direSl (he Affairs of the 

Government. In the Morning of the Ides of 
T 2 Sep' 



iy6 0;7/& Character Boor III.. 

imh^j Crajfusy in a full Houfc of the Senate af- 
fcmbkd at the Summoni of Drufus^ pour'd forth 
a great many Complaints againil PbHipj and laid 
before the Members the Matter for which the other 
had inveighed againft their Order before the Aflem- 
bly of the People. A Circumftance here happened 
to CraJJus, which I have often known happen a- 
mongft Men of confummate Abilities ; for tho' 
it was generally allowM, that when he ipoke with 
more than ordinary Accuracy, he never Ipoke: 
better -, yet it was on all Hands agrtedi^on that 
Day, that tho* Crajfus had before excclW the 
reft of the World, on that Occafioh he out-did 
himfelf. He bewailed the Calamity, and the de- 
ftitute Condition of the Senate ; an Order of which 
the Conful ought to be the indulgent Parent, and 
the faithful Guardian ; but that now their Inheri- 
tance of Dignity was plundered by a Conful, with 
all the Rapacioufnefs of a lawlefs R uffian : And it 
was not tit all to be admir*d, if after, by his own- 
Conduft, he had turn'd his Country adrift, he 
fliould now make a Separation betwixt that Coun- 
try and the Authority of the Senate. When he had 
thus apply'd, as it were, the Fire-brands of Elo- 
quence to Philips arefolute, well-lpoken Man^ and 
one who had a Spirit remarkably brave in Refift- 
ance, the other could not bear it, but took Flames,, 
and determin'd to force Crajfus into Compliance, by 
* forfeiting his Pledges. It was upon this Head,: 
that Crajfus was faid to have fpoken fo divinely, 
by .maintaining, That Jince the other would not look 
upon hm as a Senator y neither ought he to^be regarded 

* Forfeiting bis Pl'^ges.'\ For an Explanation of this fee the 
Note upon Pr 1S4. Im 25. VoMI. of theTraailatioa of the 
X)j-atlons. 



Book IIL 0/tf« Orator. 277 

ias a Conful. Do you, continues he, who have 
look'd upon the Authority of this Order 
AS no other than as a venal Pledge, which 
YOU have put up to Sale in the Sight of the 
People of Ro^e, imagine^ that I am to be 
tbrrify'd by my Pledges? No •, would, you 

restrain CrASSUS, it must not be by FORFEI-' 
ting these,, you JyfUST FIRST X:UT OUT MY 

Tongue ; and even when that is gone, my 
Soul shall with the Spirit of LiberIy qj^zll 
the Lu:st of thy Ambition^ 

C H A P. IL 

IT appears that this was folio w'd by a great num- 
ber of Eicpreflions, in which were exerted the 
utmoft Efforts of Mind» Genius, and Strength; 
'twas then the famous Sentiment fell from mri!; 
and was followed by the Applaufes of the whole 
fiody, in the moft magnificent and weighty Terms ; 
That the Roman People might have Justice 

PONE THEMj neither THE COUNSELS, OR THE 

Duty of the Senate had been wanting to 
THE Republic j and it appears by the public Re- 
gifters, that he himfelf was prefent when the A6t 
was engrofs*d. The Speech aad the Voice of this 
divine Perfon, were like thofe of the Swan; and fo 
bewitching was the Harajony which hung upon our 
Ears, that after his Death we frequently repaired 
to the Senate- houfe to view that Spot where he had 
laft flood* For I was informed that the Strefs 
of Speaking occafion^d a Stitch in his Side, followed 
by exteflivc Sweatings this brought on a Shiver- 
ing, which obliged him to return home in a. Fe- 
ver, where hedy'dthe feventh Day of his lUnels. 
How deceitful are the Hopes of Man ! How frail 

our 



1 



JK78 On the Character Book III. 

our Fortune ! and how trifling our Purfuits ! often 
are they interrupted, often are they ruin'd in the 
Middle of their Career, and wrecked in the Voyage 
before we can come in Sight of the Harbour. For 
while the Life of Crajfus was confinM to the Toils 
of Ambition^ fo long was he eminent, more for 
the Duties of private Friendfhip, and the Excel- 
lency of his perfonal Accomplifliments, than the 
Diftinftions of public Applaufe, the Privileges 
of Grandeur, or his Figure in the Government; 
But the very firft Year after he had open'd his 
Way, by going thro* the public Pofts with uni- 
verfal Applaufe, to the higheft Diftindion his 
Country could beftow. Death cut fhort all his Pur- 
pofes, and all the Schemes of his Life. This was 
a. Stroke mournful to his Friends, afflifting to his 
Country, and heavy to all worthy Patriots : But 
the Calamities which foon after happened to the 
State, were fuch, that to me it appears, the Gods 
cannot be fo properly faid to have deprivM L. 
Crajfus of Life, as to have rewarded him with Death. 
For he did not live to fee all Italy wrapped in the 
Flames of War, the Senate burning with Ani- 
mofities, the unnatural Guilt of thegreateft Men of 
the State, the AfflitStion of his Daughter, the Ex- 
ile of his Son-in-law, the mournful Flight ofC. 
'Mariusy nor that univerfal Slaughter after his 
Return i nor in Ihort, the general Defolation of a 
City, in which, during its greatefl Glory, he 
made by far the greatell Figure. 

CHAP. III. 

BU T as my Refleftions have led me in to 
touch upon the Power and the Inconftancy 
of Fortune, I will no longer indulge the Digref- 

lion. 



333 



Book III.' Of ariO ttAToni zj^i 

fion, but confine myfcIF to the Peribria who are 
the original Subjedts of the Converfation we are now 
entcrM upon. Who then wHl not be juftify'd m 
calling the Death of Lucitis Craffus^ a Blefling to 
himfelf, tho* it was much bewaH'd'by the Public, 
when he (hall reflcft upon the Fates of thofe who 
conversed with him, almoft m his laft Moments^ 
For we ourfelves remember, that ^intus Catulus^ 
a Man of the moft confumiiiateExcellence, whei> 
he implored not the Safety of his Fortunes, but 
a Retreat in Exile, was reduced to put an End 
to his Life. Then it was that the Head of Mar^ 
cus Antoniusy who had fav*d the Head of many a 
Citizen, was fix*d upon the Roftrum, from which 
when Conful, ,he had with the greareft Firmnefa 
defended his Country; and which, when Cenfor, 
he had adorn'd with imperial Spoils. Not faf 
from that lay the Head of Caius Julius^ who wa$ 
betrayed by his Tufcan Landlord, together with 
that of his Brother L. Julius: Therefore Crajfus^ 
who did not live to behold thofe Calamities, may 
be faid to have liv*d and dy*d witlr the Conftir 
tution of his Country. For^^ did not fee his gene- 
rous Kinfman P. Crajfus flainby his own Hand; 
nor the Statue of Vefta bcfprinkled with the Blood 
of his Collegue the high Prieft; nor could a Pa- 
triot like him have refufed to drop a Tear at the 
tragical Death of C. Carbo^ who was his great- 
ttft Enemy, and dyM the feme Day : He did not 
Y\vt to fee the deplorable, the terrible Ends of 
tl^ole two young Gentlemen who had devoted 
themfelves to him. CiUus Cottd^ whom he ha^ 
l^t in the faireft Hopes of Succefs, a few Dayjs 
after the Death of Crafusj was invidioufly deposed 
frorp the Tribun«(bip, and a few .Months aft.Qr 

T ^ • ■ • driven 



x«a 0« «fe Ca K AC-T E t 5bOK Ilf ^ 

driven fro0i the City » But :5i^V/«j, who had been 
expos'd to the fame Combuftion of Hatred^ when 
he came to be Tribune, refolv*d to ftrip of all their 
Dignity, i;hofe Men with whom^^as a private Gen- 
tleman, he had liv*d in the ftrideft Friendfliip: 
Yet the Thread of his Life which was then bloom- 
ing to all the Glory that Eloquence can beftow, 
was cut off by the Sword, and the Chaftifement 
of his Rafhnefs went hand in hand with the Per* 
dition of his Country. Therefore, Crafiis^ well 
may I conclude that Heaven watch'd over you 
with peculiar Providence, by making your Life 
glorious, and your Death « timely » For the Vir* 
tues of thy Soul, the Conftancy of thy Prin-r 
ciples, muft liave expos'd you to the Cruelty of 
Partyi-Refentment) nor could Fortune have fav'd 
you from the Bitternefs of Death, without your 
living to fee the Funeral of your Country, And 
not only the Power of the Fadious, but even 
the Succefs of the Virtuous, becaufc ftainM with 
the Slaughter of Rmnnsi mu(t have heightened 
your Affliction, 

C H A P- IV. 

THE Misfortunes of the Patriots. I have al- 
ready mentioned, and. the Incidents which 
I myfeJf have experienc'd, for the wonderful, the 
unparaljell'd Affeftion I bear to my Country, all. 
ferv^ to convince rne of the Ti:uth and Solidity 
of your Majcim* when you was contipually calling 
me off from all Dispute and Altercation ; an^ 
pointed out as E^iamples tP deter nie, the nume^ 
reus, the jgreaty and the fudden JFalJa of thol^. 
-greateft and beft of Men. But ^s the Practice cif 

thpfc Maxims i% not now in ouc-Powci> as ow 

grc»:?ft 



Book in. . O^^^-Or^tpit. i^^ 

greateft Toih are alleviated by the Compenfation 
of Glory, kt us pipceed to ^joy: thofe Comforts 
which not only are agreeable, when our Difquiets 
are allayed, but may be wholefome, even whfle 
they are felt.: ^Apd to this Purpofe, letmetraiSf- 
mt^ upon Record . the remaining, and almoD: the 
laft Difcourfe of L. Crajfus-, and thus communis* 
cate to him a Glory, which, tho* not adequate* 
to his Merit, yet is du^ from my* Gratitude. For 
ncmc of us, when we read the excdilent Books of 
Plato^ in \9hich Socrates is generally introduced, tho** 
they are wrote with a divine Spirit, ever concciYCJ 
aiiy higher Opinton of Socrates.. Tias is aU the' 
FavQur I beg, not of you, who arfe apt! t6at«' 
tribute to n^ all Excellencies ; but of my other 
Readers, thdt ♦they will cone^lve a .higher Idea 
of L.. Crajfusy than any that can be c;xprcfs*d 
by my Pen. For I, who was not prefent at 
that Convcrfation, the Topics, and Sentiments on- 
ly of which were communicated to me by C. 
Go/te, know that both thefc Orators were Maf- 
ters in this Way; and I have, endeavoured to 
give a Sketch of it, by keeping up to their fe- 
veral Charafters. But if any Mzn (hould be 
deceived by a vulgar Error, that Antonius was inore 
jejune, or Crajfus more exuberant, than they have 
been drawn by me, he muft have either never 
heard them, or is unable to judge* For both of 
them^ as I faid before, exceird all their Cotem- 
poraries in Application, Genius, and Learning, 
and fo compleat were they in their feveral Mahners 
that no Embelliftiment of Speech was wanting in 
jintonius^ npr Redundancy perceiv'd in Craffus. 



C H A ?, 



iSz On the Csaracter. Book: III 

CHAR V. 

THE Ccmipany therefore beeiddng up be^ 
fore the Heat of the Day, went to take a 
Ihort Repofe, and Cotta faid he took particular 
Notice that Cn^us pais'd all that Time in an in- 
teofe, profound Train of thinking. He faid far* 
dicr, that as he was verj wdl acquainted, (by 
having often obierv*d it in the moft weighty 
Caufes) with the Caft of the Features and the 
Eyes, which was natural to Ctaffiis before he be- 
gan to ^ak ; that upon this Occafion he took 
particular Care, while others were at Reft, to* 
come into the Parlour where Craffu§ lay upon a 
Couch; and, finding him buryM in Thought, 
he immediately retir'd; and that almoft twa 
Hours were fpent in this Stillnefs : As the After- 
noon drew on, all of them came in to Crajjus , 
"When, lays Julius^ Ihall we take our Seats, Craf^ 
jus? We are ncttj qg come to beg a Favour^ but 
to enter a C\^\x[ i ^ Says Craffus^ Do you take me 
for a Fellow of fb much Aflurance, as any longer 
to delay a Debt of this Kind ? Then, replies the 
other, name your Place, What do you think of 
the Middle of the Wood, for there it is moft cool 
and Ihadowy ? With all my Heart, replies 
CraffuSj there is a Seat not at all unfuitable for 
our Converfation. When the reft of the Com- 
pany ^eed to this, they went to the Wood, 
where they took their Seats, in the higheft Ex- 
peAadon of what they fhould hear. Then Craf-^ 
fus began. Both your Authority, fays he, and 
Friendihip, join*d to the Compliance of Antonius 
has deprived me of all Liberty to deny your Re- 

queft.3 



Cook in* Of an On AT oni 283 

queft, a Liberty which I might well juftify. But 
when he made: the Partition of the (hares we are to 
bear in this Dlfputation, he topic to himfelf 
die Subjedts upon which an Orator muft fpeak, 
and left it to me to explain the Manner in which 
they are to be embellifh'd : By this Partition he 
divided Things that are in their own Nattire infe- 
parable ; for as every Speech is made up of Tbingf 
and fFbrdsj Words can have no Place if you tak« 
away Things^ nor can Things be explained without 
the Help of Words. And to me the Antients 
appeared to have more comprehenfive Ideas and 
Views, than our iiitelleftual Faculties can com- 
pafs J for tfiey maintained, that all thefe thin^^s 
which weje rm to be general and particular* py;iv 
edJipgly TanA were . rnnnrfted by the fimple 
er^nd-UjdformitjLPf NatnrCx - For there, is not 
any one Kind, which, when fever'd from the 
others, can exift of itfelf ; and if thofe others, 
are depriv'd of any one Kind, it is impoffibic 
that they fhould preferve their Power or Duration- 

CHAR VL 

BU T if this Syftem is too extenfive to be com- 
prehended by human Senfe and Refledlion, 
at the fame Time, the Maxim of Plato^ with 
which, Catulusy you are not unacquainted, is 
founded on Truth; That all Knowledge of the 
liberal and polite Arts is connefted by a fimple, 
mutual Relation. For when we art capable to 
perceive the Force of that Reafqning, by which 
we become Matter of Caufes and Events, wc 
find a wonderful' Harmony and Sympathy run 
thfq' every Species of Knowledge, But if this is 

too 



t»4 OnibeCHAKACT^THK Bdok IllZ 
too fublime for thje Cotnprehenfion of us groveling 
Ij^ortalS) yet it muft be at leaft al}aw'd, ths^t we 
ought tJo know ancl poflefs ourfclves of that Bufineia 
which, we. hayei-embr^c'cJ, which wc profcfe aodr 
vndertakc. For^ as I faid ycfterday, and as \^^ 
^oni^s intimated in fome P^flfages of hb Diftourib 
this Forenoon, Eloquence, in whatever Channelsi» 
into whatever Quartern of Difputations it may be 
4ij5us*d> is in its own Nature tt»/ww- For, whe^^ 
ther flie treats of the Niature of Heaven or of 
Earth; of divine, or of human Powers-, whether 
flie fpeaks in an inferior, equal, or fuperior Ca^ 
pacity J whether jhe cjirefts her Ppwer;^, to impel, 
to inftru<a, to d^ter, to excite, to bend, tqgre, 
or to mollify Mankind *, whether fhe addrefles to 
the many or the few ^ whether (he fpeaks among 
firangers, or to Friends, or to herfell, yet her 
Speech is ftill derived from one. Source, however 
it may proceed in diftind Streams ; and however 
Ihe direds her Courfe, her Furniture and Embel- 
lifhments are the fame. But becaufe we are quite 
opprefs'd by Opinions, not only of the Vulgar, 
but even of the Smatterers in Learning, who find 
it eafier to handle^ thofe Points, after they arc 
torn, and, as it were, feparated from one another, 
which they are unable to comprehend in a gene- 
ral View i and who fever Words from Sentiments, 
which is, as. it were, feparating the Body from 
the Soul, and produces immediate Death ; I there- 
fore will not undertake *to difcufs, in what I am 
going to fay, more than I am oblig'd to do ; I 
will only intimate, in a few Words, that the Or- 
naments of Expreflion can no more be attained 
to without inventing and arranging Sentiments, 

than a Sentiment can be intelligible without the 

Luftrc 



JBooK IIL Of M Orator.' 285 

Luftre of E«preffion. But bfefofe I touth upoft 
thefe ' Qualities, which I think embelUlh and en- 
lighten a Speech, I will in ^ few Words givt 
you my Opinion of Eloquence in geneFaL 

C H A P. VII. 

IT appears to me, there is no natural Scnfe 
without being endowM with many Properties 
fpecifically differing in th^mfelves, yet all {haring 
an equal Degree of Excellence, For we hear a 
great many Sounds, which, tho* Very agreea* 
ble, yet they are fo often : different from one 
another, that the laft always pleafes moft; axxi 
the Pltsafures of feeing are almoft innumerable $ 
but they affedt us fo, that the fame Senfe receive 
the Pleafure in a different Manner. In like Man- 
ner, a different Pleafure affefts each of our other 
Senfcs, fo that it is hard to judge which Senfa» 
tion is predominant. This Obfervation, drawn 
from Nature, is applicable to Arts. Statuary is 
ONE Artji and the Mafters in that Way were Mf^ 
rOy Polycletus^ Lyfippus\ yet each of thefe were 
unlike to the other, but fo as that you would not 
wifh any one of them to be unlike himfelf. Paint- 
ing is one Art, and propofes one End; but Zeuxis, 
yiglaophonj and ApelleSj had each of them different 
Manners, yet you could not fay that anyone ot 
them fell fhort in any one Point of his Art. And 
if this is an aftonilhing Proof in the mute Arts, 
how much more wonderful muft its Effeds be in 
Speech and Language ? For, tho* E^loquence may 
make ufe of the fame Sentiments and Words, yet 
her Modes are vaftly different 5 not that any of 

them arc defjncable, but thofe who arc evidently 

excellent. 



286 On the Ch a r a cte it Book: IIH 

excellent, derive that Excellence from different 
Chai*a<aers. This is chiefly e)cemplify'd in Poets,, 
who have the neareft Relation to Orators ; How 
different is Enniusy PacuviuSy Accius ? What a 
Difference runs thro* the Writings of j^fchylusy 
SopbocleSy and Eur^des among the Greeks^ yet the 
Merit of each is ^Imoft equal to that of the other, 
tho* the Manner is different ? Let us now take a 
View and a Survey of the Profeflbrs of that Art 
we are now difcuffing, and obferve the Difference 
in the Manners and Charafters of Orators. The 
Charafteriftic of Isoprates was Sweetnefs ; of Ly- 
siAS, Delicacy \ of Hyperides, Pointednefs *y of 
^scHiNES, Pomp'y of Demosthenes, Energy. 
Each was excellent, yet the Excellence of each 
was peculiar to himfelf. Africanus had fFeigbs : 
L^Lius, Smootbnefs \ Galba, Keennefs ; and Car- 
bo fomewhat that ^z'^ flowing and muJicaL Each 
of thefe was a leading Man in his own Age, yet 
each was diftinguifh'd by a Charafter peculiar to 
hinifelf. 

CHAP VIII. 

BU T who do I run to old Examples, when I 
have To many alive, and under my Eyej 
Was ever any Difcourfe more ravifhing than what 
we heard from Catulus? So pure was it, that he 
feems almofl the only Man who talks with the 
Propriety of the Latin Tongue -, yet its Gravity 
had that peculiar Cafl, as to reconcile good Breed- 
ing and Wit to a matchlefs Dignity. In Ihort, 
the Judgment I usM to form of him, when I 
heard himfpeak, is, that if you either add, change, 
or impair aught of what he fays, he mull loie 

and 



Book III. Of m Orator. 287 

and fuefer. What is the Charafter of our Friend 
Ge/ar here ? Has he not introduced a new Me- 
thod of Speaking, and brought in a Species of 
Eloquence that is almoft peculiar to himfelf ? 
Who befides him ever treated tragical Subjedls al- 
moft in a comical Manner, grave ones with Gaiety, 
rerioLis ones merrily, and Matters of Law withaa 
almoft theatrical Gracefulnefs ? And all this in 
fuch a manner, as that Wit is not excluded by 
the Importance of the Subjed, nor is its Weight 
leiTen'd by his Humour. Here are two youno' 
Gentlemen nearly Equals in Age, I mean Stilpicius 
and Cotta^ yet no one thing was ever more unlike 
anothfer, than one of them is unlike the other. 
Was ever any thing more excellent in its own 
Kind? The one, in a polite, delicate Manner, 
lets forth his Subjedlin well-chofen, proper Ex- 
preflions ; he ftill keeps to his Point ; and as he 
fees with the greateft Penetration that 'which he 
is to prove to the Court, he direfts the whbk 
Strength of his Reafoning and Eloquence to fup- 
port that, without regarding other Arguments. 
But Sulpicm^ with an irrefiftible Force of Spirit, 
in a full, ftrong Voice, with the greateft Vehe- 
mence and Dignity of Aftion, at the fame time 
with fo much Weighty and Variety of Exprcflion 
feems of all Mankind the beft fitted by Nature. 
for Eloquence. 

CHAP. IX. 

I Now return to qurfelves, becaufe the general 
Talk of the World has always match'd us 
together in Eloquence ; no two People were ever 
m^rc unlike one another, than I am to Antonius 

I in 



288 On the Character Booit UL 

in Speaking : He is an Orator of fuch a Kind, 
as that nothing can excel him in that Kind -, and 
I, who think meanly of myfelf, ( for that 
principally) am comoar'^ \^ith him. Don't you 
lee what this Charafteriftic of Animus is ? That 
it is ftrong, eager, with a fpirited Adion, guard- 
ed and fortify'd on all Hafids, keen, cutting, 
perfpicuous, retreating with Honour, purfuing 
with Refolution, terrifying, fupplicating, his Elo- 
quence greatly diverfify'd, our Ears never fati- 
ated. As to my Eloquence, fuch as it is, for 
, you feem to allow it fome Degree of Merit, it is 
furely very different from thzt of yhianius : What 
it may be becomes not me fay, becaufe a Man is 
generally the greateft Stranger to himfelf, and the 
leaft acquainted with his own Character; yet ftill 
a Difference is difcernable, both in the Coolnefs^ 
of my Adkion, and from my finifhing my Speeches 
generally in the fame Spot of Ground in which I 
fet out i and becaufe I am put to fome more Trou- 
ble in the Choice of my Words and Sentiments 
' than he is, as he is afraid, that if his Eloquence 
is in the leaft'obfcure, it may not anfwer the great 
Expe6lation, and profound Silence it creates. 
But if there is fuch Difference betwixt us who are 
prefent, and if each has his own Charafteriftic, 
and the excellent are diflinguifh'd from the faulty, 
gather by the Degrees of perfonal Abilities than 
the Kinds, and every thing that is in its own 
kind excellent is commended. What Ihould one 
fay if he were able to take within his View all 
the Orators now alive, or that ever liv'd, in any 
Country ? Would he not pronounce that every 
one of thefe Orators had a Manner of Eloquence 
j^eculiar to himfelf? From what I have faid per- 
?. haps 



fiboK llh Of ^n O R A T 6 Ri 289 

ha|is it may be objedted> that if the Mahners and 
Figures of Eloquence jare alraoft innumerable, yet 
Ipecifically different, and generally excellent, that 
their charafteriftical Differences cannot be accom- 
modated to the fame Precepts j and the fame Re- 
gulations. But it is not fo \ for the Inftruilor^ 
and Teachei^S of others ought to have a fpecial 
Attention to the Gaft of Genius^ with which Na- 
ture has feverally endowed Mankind. For we per- 
ceive, that in the Arts, the .fame Schools, as it 
were, furnifhj and the fam^ Craftfmen and Mailers 
formj Scholars in their leveral Arts^ each unlike 
the one to the other j yet all of them excellent in 
their Kind; therefore the Teacher mufl accommo» 
date his Manner to their feveral Capacities. ThcJ 
moft remarkable Inftanceofthis, that I may con-^ 
fine myfelf to the Art of Eloquence^ is what was 
faid by the incomparable IJhcrateSj That Ephorus 
required a Spur^ and Theopompus a Rein\ for hef 
checked the one, who was quite wanton by the 
Command heJ had of Expreflion • and he pufh'd 
on thd other, who had a Hefitancy and Balh- 
' fulnefe in his Nature. At the fame Time he did 
not render them fimiiar the one to the other • but 
what he added to the one, he fil'd off from the other^ 
fo as to accommodate both to as much Excel- 
lency, as the Nature of each would admit. 

C H A P. X. 

I Thought proper to premife all this, iri cafe all 
of what I propofe fliould not be adapted to 
your feveral Studies, and to that Charafter of 
Eloquence which each poflfefles,- that you may be 
fenlible I only exprefs myfelf upon that Species of 
Eloquence which is moft fuitedto myown Man- 

U fier.- 



29* On tbeX^K A R a c t e r Book .1^1 

ner. Therefore the Patticulafrs that have been 
laid out by jhtvninXj are not only to be obferv^d 
ia the Pra^iee, but in 8 fpecial Maixner to be 
exprefs'd ia the Elcxqueoce^ of an Orator* And 
what .Manner of Speaking (for I fhall afterwards 
touch upon. Aft ion) is preferable to bur Speaking 
in a per fpicuDU3, graceful, j>roper Stile of Lan* 
guage» io a. Stile. fu^ited to the Bufinefs we have 
in hand. . But.. I imagine yoa do not expeft that 
I aro to give you any Account of the two firft 
Partictulars I hanre mrtujioned; I mean tbat<of a 
p)are» perfpicuous Stile, for I can: no more in- 
ftruft' a Man how to fpcak^ when he knows 
not bow to talk, than i can hope that a Man 
C^R i'pealc beautifully when, he kn^ws not ho^ 
to ipeak properly ; for k is impoffihle that wc 
Ihould admire what we don*t uoderftand. There- 
fore let us omit thofc Particulars, the Knov^edge 
of which is eafy, but the Application necpffary: 
For the one is deliverM in a Icholaftic Way, and 
fcarnM by School- boys ; the other is us'd to ren- 
der what one fays more intelligible. This is a 
Point, which, tho* it is abfolutely neceflary, yet 
appears of all others to be of the leafl; Importance^ 
But the whole Gracefulnefs of Speakings tho' it 
is polii(h*d by Knowledge^ is improved by reading 
the Works of Orators and Poets. For die an.- 
tient Authors, tho' they were incapable of em- 
bellifhing what they deliver'd, yet they generally^ 
fpoke very nobly , and the Man who accuftoms 
himfelf to their Stile, even tho* he dfideavours it^ 
cannot Ipeak otherwife than in a pure Didtion^ 
At the fame Time, we are, by no Means^ tQ^jaake 
ufe. of any Expreflions, that are not adapted byr 
the prefent Age; but only fometimcs, ..a«; I ftoll 
fhew afterwards, when they are us'd by way of Em- 

bellifhment r 



BboK III. Of an Or At OR. 291 

beHifliment :' But whoever has, with Attention, pe- 
rus'd the Writings of the Antients, will ftill make 
ufc of well known Expreffions ; and, aniongft thefe, 
well know how to fpeak the choiceft. 

CHAP. XI. 

BU T in order to fpeak purely, we muft take 
care not only to talk in a Strain that is un* 
exceptionable in Point of Grammar, and to keep 
up to Propriety in Cafes, Tenfes, Genders, and 
Numbers, fo that no Expreffion may be con.* 
fufed, incongruous, or prepofterous ; but we muft 
even regulate our Tongue, our Breath, and the 
very Tone of our Voice. I would not • have thd 
Letters drawlingly exprefs'd; I would not have 
them negligently flubber'd over; I would not 
have Words drop from one in a dry, fpiritlefs 
Manner; I would not have therti ^ke with 
Puffing and Swelling. I now fpeak of the Voice, 
not as it is connefted with Aftion, but with Lan- 
guage ; for there are certain Faults which every 
Mtn would wilh to avoid : Such as^ a weak efie- 
minate Voice, ' or one exceffively harfli and un- 
tunable : But there is a BlemiQi which fome affedk : 
for fome People love a clownilh Country Tone, 
becaufe the Language founds antique ; like Ca- 
tulus^ your Companion L, Cona^ who feem'd 
to be proud of the Slownefs of his^ Expreffion, 
and the Clownilhnefs of his Tone, and thought 
whatever* he fpoke appeared Antique, if it was 
downright Ruftic. For my Part J am charm'd 
with your Gentlenefs and Snjoothnefs. Not to 
fpeak of the principal Point, which is Expr^on : 
This, however, is intimated by Reafon, acquir'd 
by Inftruftion, and confirmed by H'abit in Read- 
ing, and Speaking. What I now mention, regards 

U 2 only 



2gt 0;//^^ Char ACT EiR Book lit 

only the Swcctncfs of Sonnd, which amongft 
the Greeks was peculiar to Athens^ and amoagft 
die Latins is peculiar to this City. The Learning 
of the Athenians^ has been long dead in AlhenSy.ytt 
the Seat of Study ftiU remains within her Walls, 
tho* the Profcflion is neglected by her Inhabi- 
tants, and cnjoy'd by Foreigners unaccountably 
fmit with the Name and Authority of that City.. 
Yet any ignorant Athenian fpeaks more agreeably 
than themoft learn'dofthe yffiaticks: I don't mean 
with regard to the Expreffion, but the Sound-, 
not becaufe he fpeaks better but more fmootWy* 
The Latins apply 'more to Learning than our 
Citizens ; yet the mVft illiterate of your Acquain- 
tance amongft themL excels with great Eafe, as 
to Smoothnels of Deli^y, and Sweetnefs of Tone, 
^. Valerius Soranus^ tH|\moft learned of all. the 
Gentlemen of the Rol 

CHAP XII- 

SINCE, therefore, there is a Manner of Pro- 
nunciation peculiar to Romans^ and to thir 
City ; a Mslnner in which nothing (hocks you, 
nothihg can difguft, nothing can difpleafe you ; 
a Manner in which there is nothing that is un- 
couth, nothing that is foreign: Let us follow 
that, ^nd learfi to avoid, not a clownilh Rougb- 
nefs only, biit likewife an AfFedation of Sounds. 
Tor my Part, when I hear my Mother-in-law 
Z/^/m, (for 't is eafier for Women to keep the 
Purity cf Antiquity, becaufe, by keeping lefs Com- 
pany than Men, they always ftick to what they 
firft 4earn'-d) I think that I am converfmg with 
Plautus or Navius: So fimple, fo unaffcded is 
hcf Tone, that (he appears quite void of all Oftcn- 

tation. 



Book III. Of an Orator. 293 

tarioHj or Affeftation ; thence I conclude that her 
Father fpoke in the fame Manner j that he again 
Ipoke in the fame Manner with his Forefathers : 
And I infer from this Deduftion, that our Ancef- 
tors did not talk in a rough Manner like the 
Perfon I have mcTition*d, nor in a Swelling, nor 
in a .Ruftick, nor in a clownifh Manner, but 
quickly, fmoothly and gently. Therefore, ^td- 
ptcius^ when you imitate our Friend Cctta^ fome- 
times by dropping the /, and founding E roundly^ 
you don't, in my Eyes, refemble an antient Ora- 
tor, but a modern Ploughman. When Sulpicius 
himfelf could not help laughing at this : I treat you 
in this Manner, fays Craffus^ that fince you would 
force me to fpeak, you may hear fome of your 
own Faults. We are obliged to you, replies the 
other, it is the very Thing we wifh'd for, and if 
you will extend your Cbmplaifance, I make no 
Doubt of your being able to amend many of 
my Defedts before we part. Ay, but, fays Craf- 
fus^ it is impoflible Sulpicius for me to blame you 
without reflefting on myfelf, fmce Antonius has 
complimented me with being very like you: But, 
replies Sulpicius^ he told us at the fame Time that 
we ought to imitate the Beauties of our Original; 
therefore, I am afraid that I imitate you in nor- 
thing but the' Stamp of your Foot, a few Ex-^ 
preflions, and a little Gefliure. Therefore, an^ 
fwers CraJJiis, I don't find fault with the Properties 
you borrow'd from me, left I (hould by that Means 
fall foul of riiyfclf : But I have many more greater 
Plemilhes than thofe you have mentioned*' But 
jas to thofe which are originally your dwn, or caught 
by affefting the Manner of another, I will give you 
my Advice wherever I can do it properly. 

V 3 CHAP, 



294 ^^ *^ ^^ AR A C T B R BoOK IIL 

CHAP. XIll. 

LE T US therefore pafs over the Rules of fpeak- 
ing purely, which we learn at School, and 
which is cherilh'd by more refin'd Knowledge and 
Tafte of Learning, and confirm'd by daily Praftice 
in Converfation, Acquaintance with modern Books 
and reading antient Orators and Poets. Not that 
I ihali be very tedious upon any Difquifition in- 
to the Means of attaining to Perfpicuity in what 
we deliver ; for that is compaffed by fpeaking in 
a. plain, proper. Stile, expreffive of tjie Matters 
which we want to communicate and explain with- 
out any Ambiguity of Words or Expreffion, 
without too long Periods, without any ftrain'd 
Metaphors or Allufions; without any Incongru- 
ity of Sentiment, without any Confufion of Time^ 
without any blending of Perfons, without any 
Interruption of Order : But why need I run on ? 
The whole Matter is fo eafy, that it is furpri- 
fing to me that the Advocate Ihould fpeak more 
unintelligibly to the Judge, than the Client does 
to the Advocate, For when our Clients come 
to confult us, they generally lay their Byfinefs 
fo plainly before us, that one could not defire 
to have a clearer View of the Cafe \ but as ibon 
as Fu/ms^ or your Pompnius begins to talk over 
the fame Matter, I owr- it requires all my At- 
tention to make me underftand them as well. 
For all they fay is a Mafs, all is a Jumble, where 
there is neither Head nor Tail, and their Ex- 
preflions are fo dark and confus'd, that their Plead- 
ing, 'inftead of enlightening the Subjeft, as it 
ought to do, throws a Gloom and a Darknefs 
over it all, in fuch a Manner, that at every other 

Turn 



Book Iff. Of an O r a t o R. 29^ 

Turn they confouml themfelvcs. But as I hope 
you have, all of you, efpecially Antonius and Ca^ 
JuluSi he a^ enough , of th i^ rank Impertinence^ 
if you pleafe we will paft to fomethiiig clfe, which 
perhaps is ftill fomewhat more difagreeable* 

CHAP. XIV. 

SAYS Jntonius, you perceive, no doubt, that 
our Attention is wandering, that we hear 
you with Reluftance, fince we could be brought 
to throw up all our Bufincfs (For I judge of others 
by myfclf; to follow youj fo well do you know 
to give Splendor to frightful, Copioufnefs to dry^ 
and Noyelfy to comnion Subjeds, by your Manr 
jicr of treating them. , That, Antotiius^ fays tli? 
other, is, becaufe the two Parts I juft now touch'd^ 
or rather almoft flcip'd over, I mean that of fpeak; 
Ing in a pure Diftioxij and a perfpicuous Manner^ 
are vcry.eafy. The Parts that remain are import- 
ant, intricate, various and weighty, requiring the 
full Stretch of Genius, the ipoft confuii.mati? 
Pcrfe(5tion of Eloquence. Propriety of Did ion 
never makes an Orator admir'd, tho* his fpeaking 
improperly makes him ridiculous. And People ar^ 
fo far from thinking him an Orator, they do not 
think him a Man. A Man can never expedt to 
be prais'd for fpeaking. intelligibly to an Audience, 
but he muft expefl: to be delpis'd if he. does other- 
wife. Where is the Man, whofe Eloquence can 
flrike. an Audience, with Terror, Amazement, 
and Extafy ? Whom does Mankind rank, if I 
may ufe the Expreffion, a God among Mortals ? 
Why i he who perl'picuoufly, diiTulely, copioufly, 
' and clearly, knows, how to treat both Things and 
-Words, and v/ho even in the Periods of his Speech 

U 4 retains 



^9*^ On the C h a r a e t e r Book III. 

retains a certain Harmony and Verfification, in 
which, in my Opinion, Gracefulnefs confifts. HC 
who knows how to treat Things and Pcrfons fu it- 
able to their different Charafters, fuch a Man is 
eminent in that Excellence, which I call Proprir 
fty ^nd Congruity. /intpnisfs, yrhp deny'd h^ had 
ever leeq a Man who came up to this Charafter, 
faid, that fuch a Man alone could deferve the 
Praife of Eloquence. Therefore, ppon my Credirt 
treat, with a juft Contempt and Difdain, all thofe 
who imagine they have attained the whole Power 
of Eloquence, from the Rules of thofe whom we 
|iow term Rhetoricians, and who are unable to 
underftand either their own Charaftcr or Profefli- 
on. For, as to an Orator, all the Accidents and 
Occurrences of human Life ought to be by him 
examined, heard, read, difcufsM, handled, and 
managed, bccaufe human Life is the Scene of all 
his AAion, and the Subjeft of all his Eloquence, 
For Eloquence is, as it were, one of the higheft 
Virtues. Tho* all Virtues in their own Nature 
are equally excellent, yet fome of them are Ipe - 
cifically more beautiful and ftriking: for Inftancc, 
this Power, which by comprehending an univerfal 
Knowledge, can fo explain the AfFeftions and 
Sentiments of the Mind, as to fway the Hearer 
at PJeafure. The greater this Power is, the more 
ftrongly docs it require to be fupported by Pro- 
bity, and the greateft good Senfe. For a bad Man 
pofTeffing Eloquence, never can be callM an 
Orator; it being like putting Arms into the 
Hands of a Madman. 

C H A P. XV. 

1 Repeat it ; This Ability in Cohceptron and Ex- 
preffion, this Energy of Eloquence; was^ by 

^ • ' the 



Book III. Of an O r a t or; 297 

the ancient Greeks term'd fVifdom ; hence arofe 
their Lycurgij their Pittaci^ their Sdones\ and 
parallel to them were our Coruncanii, Fabricii^ Ca- 
tones y and Scipiones^ who perhaps had not fo rnany 
acquired Endownients, but were equal in the 
Strength of Genius, and fimilar in their Inclina- 
tions. The good Senfe of others direfted them to 
purfue the fame Studies in Eafe and Retirement, 
tho* with different Views of Life. For Inftance,- 
PytbagoraSy Vemocritus^ Anaiicagoras, who call'd off 
their Attention from the Affairs of civil Polity to 
Subjefts of private Contemplation, (a manner of 
Life which is bewitching to more People than is 
confiftent with the Welfare of public Concerns, 
on account of its Tranquility and delightful Know;- 
iedge) than which nothing can be more enchant- 
ing to Mankind. Therefore, as Men of the great- 
^ft natural Underftanding have dedicated them- 
felvestothis Study, thofe of the greatefV acquired 
Abilities, blefs'd with Excefs of Eafe and Fer- 
tility of Imagination, invited by the Advantages 
of Leifure and Retirement, have thought them- 
felves oblig'd to take Care of, to examine, and to 
invefligate a greater Number of Things than were 
necefTary-, for formerly this Study was adapted to 
be the Rule. both of our Lives and Speaking; 
the fame Teachers taught both. Thus, Phoenix in 
Homer fays, he was ordered to attend Achilles in 
the War by his Father Peleus, that he might 
teach the young Gentleman both how to fpeak, 
and how to aft. But as People who are accuftom'd 
to conflant and daily Labour, wlien bad Weather 
hinders them from their Work, betake themfelvcs 
to the Ball, to the Dice, or to the Draughts ; or 
even invent 'fome new Diverfion for 'themfelves 
in their leifure Hours 5 thus thofe Pcrfons, when 

retir d 



296 On tbeCu ar A c t e r Book IIJ. 

rejtir'd from public Buiinefs, looked upon them - 
fclvcs as fecluded from their Labours, or induJgr 
ing thcmfelves in a ReceJs from Bufinefs, gave 
themfclves entirely up, fome of them, to the Po- 
ets-, fome of them to the Mathematics, and others, 
to muficj and others, fuchas the Logicians, invent^ 
cd a new Study and Amufement for themfelves, and . 
thus confum'd their whole Time and their Life upon 
thofe Arts, which are already difcover'd, in order to 
form the Minds of Boys to good Breeding and Virtue. 

CHAP. XVL 

BU T, as there have been Ibrae, and thofe not 
a few, who have cither made a Figure ia 
the Republic by the united, and indeed infeparable 
Excellencies of Afting and Speaking, fuch as 
Tbemijiocks^ Perides^ Theramenes\ and others, who 
have appeared lefs in public Affairs, yet have pro- 
fefs'dto teach the fame kind of Philofophy -, fuch 
as GorgiaSy ThraJymachuSy Ifoa-ates^ there have 
been others, who, tho' poffeffing Learning and 
Genius, were in their Inclinations fo averfe to ci- 
vil Life, and Public Bufinefs, that they have ex- 
ploded and defpis*dthe Praftice of Speaking. 5^?- 
cratesj who by the concurrent Teftimony of the 
learned World, and the Judgment ot all Greece^ un- 
doubtedly exceird the reft of the World in good 
Senfe, Quicknefs, Gracefulnefs, Delicacy, efpe- 
cially in Eloquence, in the Variety and Copiouf- 
nefs of Expreffion upon every Subjedk that he took 
in hand, was the principal Perfon of that Charac- 
ter. They who treated of, handled, and taught 
thofe Points which we arc nov/ examining, de- 
prived thefe Qualities of their common Name -, for 
till that tia>e all the Knowledge and Praftice of 
Virc^Q was term/d. Philp/ophy ;• but Socraiei fepa- 

rated 



Book III Of«n O.k a t ojt»\ 299 

rated in his Difcourfes the knowledge of thinking 
wifely, and fpeakingwejl, the* they are* in reality 
infeparable. Plato hath tranfipitted to Imnior- 
tajity the Genius, and different Difcourfes of 5^- 
crates^ tho* Socrates himfelf did not leave one Line 
in Writing, Hence arofe 4 Diftindlion, without 
.any Difference, betwi;xt the Tongue and the 
Jies^rt, ^ Diftindtion which is entirely abfurd, 
wfe]ef§, apd blameable •, as if certain Profeflbrs 
had taugljt fome People to be wife, and others to 
be eloquent. For, as they all arofe from Socrates^ 
whofe Difcourfes were fo varioqs, different, and 
univerfally diffused, that each leam'd fomewhat 
that was different from the other ; hence Families, 
as it were, of Philofophers were propagated, wide- 
ly differing among themfelves, and vaftly uncon- 
nefted with, and unlike one another; yet all of 
them affefted to be ciaird, and thought themfelves, 
the Difciples of Socrates. 

CHAP. XVII. 

FO R, in the firft place, Ariftotle and Xenocrates 
were the immediate Scholars of Plato •, the 
ope of which was the Founder of the Peripatetics, 
the other of the Academics. Then from Antiji' 
bemsj who admir'd chiefly the Patience and Abfte- 
mioufnefs of Socrates, in his Difcourfes, arofe firft 
the Cynics, and then the Stoics. Next from j4rif- 
tippusy who was charm'd with the fenfual Part of 
Socrates^s Difcourfes, the Seft of the Cyrenians 
flow'd, whofe Doftrines he and his Succeflbrs 
maintained, without any Difguife of Sentiment. 
But as to thofe who now place their higheft Plea- 
fure in fenfual Enjoyments, by affefting to a6fe 
with their greateft Modefty, they neither confult that 

3 Decency 



300 On the Cu AH AC '^nK Book III. 

Decency of Charafter, which they are far from dc- 
Ipifing, nor prove the Reafonablenefs of thofe 
Pleafures which they wifti to enjoy. There were 
alfo other Sefts of Philofophers, who generally 
profefs'd themfelves to be the Followers of Socrates^ 
fuch as the Eretrici^ the Herilliiy the Megarki^ the 
Pyrrbonifts\ but all thefe have been long crufh'd 
and extinft by the Force and the Difputations of the 
others. But, of thofe Sefts that remain, altho* that 
which has adopted Pleafure to be the fole End of 
living may appear with the greateft Face of Truth 
to fome, yet it is vaftly unfuitable to the Perfon 
we are now in Search of, who ought to prejide in 
public Councils, who ought to be the firft Man 
in a Government, and whofe Sentiments and EIo-^ 
quence ought to be chiefly followed, in the Senate, 
before the People, and in all public Pleadings ; 
yet let us pay the greateft Deference to the Charac- 
ter of that Philofophy, let us not hinder them 
from hitting the Mark they aim at ; let her Pro- 
feflbrs repofe in their own Bowers, or where they 
pleafe ; let them loll amidft Eafe and Delicacy ; 
Jet them . diflfuade us from following the Roftra, 
the Courts, the Senate; perhaps in fuch a Go- 
vernment as we now live under they may be in th^ 
right. But at prefent I don't examine what Phi- 

' lofophy is the trueft, but what is moft fuitable to 
the Charadter of an Orator ; therefore let us take 
our Leave of them without any Indecency ; fbr 
they are well-meaning Men -, and fince they think 
themfelves fo, they are happy. I {hall only take 
the Liberty to put them in Mind, that one of 
their greateft, trueft Maxims, fhould be referv'd, 

^ and, as it were, conceal'd as a Myftery •, I mpan 
their denying that a wife Man ought to have any 

Concern 



Book III. Of an O^ at o^. 301 

. Concern in public Bufincfs •, for if rhey could fuc- 
' cced fo far as to perfuade. us, and other true Patri- 
ots of this, it were impoffihle they could enjoy- 
their beloved 'Quiet. 

c HAP. xvm. 

AS to the Stoics, tho' I am far from'conderfjil- 
in^ them, yet I bid them farewel witlidut 
any Apprehenfion of their refenting it, bec^ufe* 
they are abfolutely void of all Refentment.:- At 
the fame time we are fo far indebted tb them, 'ais 
that they are the only Seft who admit that E16-' 
"quence is Virtue and Wifdom. But their Concep- 
tions of both are widely different from the Pur- 
pofes of the Orator whom we are now forminp- i 
both becaufe they look bpon all who are not phi" 
lofophically wife to be Slaves, Robbers,' . Enemies, 
and Madmen •, and yet they maintain that no Man 
is really wife. What Abfurdity ! that an Affembly, 
a Senate, or any Body of Men, (hould devolve 
their Interefts upon a Man who believes no Per- 
fon prefent to be in his Senfes, to be a Citizen* 
to be free. Add to this, that they poflefs a kind 
of Eloquence which is perhaps delicate, and cer- 
tainly is acute ; but with regard to the Orator, 
. it is dry, uncouth, harfli in the Ears of the Pub- 
lic, obfcure, empty, and jejune ; yet is of fuch a 
Nature as. is impoflible to be adapted to common 
Ufage. For the Stoics have quite different Noti- 
ens both of Good and Evil from the reft- of their 
Countrymen, and indeed from the reft of the 
World: They have quite different Ideas of the 
Force of Honour and Ignominy, of Rewards and 
Punifhments. Whether they are or arc not in 
I the 



301 Onf6»CnARACTtK Boor: Illi 

the right, is not t& my prefent Putpofe •, I will 
dniy fay thus much, that if we follow them, we 
Ihall neyei' be. able to make any Figure in Ek>- 
quence. The other Sefts are die Peripatetics and 
the Academes \ which laft, though they all of 
riiem go under one Namej yet are divided into 
two Opinions. For SpeufippuSy the Son of Platens 
Sifter J Xenocratesy who had been the Clearer of 
Plato V ' and Crantor^ differed but very Incorifide- 
rably from JriftotJe, who was Platens Hearer at 
the fame time, tho' they perhaps differed as to 
Copioufnefs and Command of Expreflion. Arcefi- 
iaSj who had been the Hearer of PolemOy was the 
firft who pluck'd this great Maxim from the 
diflferent Books of P&/^,.and Difcourfes oiSocratesy 
that neither our Minds nor Senfes are fufceptiblc 
of any thing that i* certain : His Charafter is^ that 
he fpoke with a great deal of Wit ^ th^thepro- 
fefs'd to defpife all the JwJgm6Dt of the IVlind and 
Senfes ; and that he was the firft who laid it dowp 
as a Rule, (tho^ indeed that was the maii> Point 
which Socrates laboured) not to difcover his own 
real' Sentiments, but to difpute againft thofe of 
others. From him. the later Academy flow'di in 
wliich flourilh'd CafneadeSi who was blefs'd with a 
divine Qpickneis of Underftanding, and Com- 
mand of ExpreiTion. Tho' I have known many of 
his Hearers at Athensi yet I can prai'fc Kim upon 
the RecomnKntlation of undoubted Authorities-; 
which are my FaCher-in-law Sedevola^^ who when 
he was a. young Man^ heard him at Rome ; and my 
Friend ^intus MetelluSy the Son» of Lucius^ a Per- 
.fon of the greateft Eminence, who faid that in 
his Youth he heird CarneadeSf who hy that Time 

was 



Book III. Of an Or a to ».' j^j 

was far advanced in Years, f6r many Days toge- 
ther at Jfbens. 

CHAP. XIX. 

FR O M this ' common Sotirce of Philofophy, 
z% Rivets from* the Apennine^y Leartiing^ began 
now to rim into different Channels : Philofophy 
difembogued, as it were, into the* Ionian upper Se^j 
which "IS' Grecian, and accommodated with Har- 
bouTS. Etbqpaence glided on to this lower, ^ufian^ 
barbarous, ikelvy, dangerous Coaft, on which 
U^es himfelf once loft his Way. If therefore^ 
we extend the Character of Eloquence, and of an 
Orator, 'no farther than the knowing how to 
pkad not guilty to a Charge, or the maintaining 
tliat what is charged to be done was done rightly, 
or ought 'tb be lard upon another, or injurioufly, 
or lawfully, of unlawfully. Or imprudently, or 
nccfefl&rily, ot that th)^ Charge' does not come 
undier fiich or fuch a ' Denomination ; or. the 
denying t»hat it - was^ fo,' or if it was, that it was^ 
right and juftifiable^-, and if you think it fufEci- 
ent that an Orator Ihalt learn the Rules, which 
have been) tnsated by Ant$nius much more grace - 
fiHly and diffused, than they are by them ; I fay 
if you ate coiicented \(ith thefe Qualifications, 
oay'even with thole that- y^ou want to hear fronv 
me ;. you reduce an Orator itam a very lar^e and 
^acious Field; into a very nai'row Compais. Bor 
if Jitou intend to be guided by old FerideSj or 
even by one, who from the number of his Wri-* 
^ tiags is more femiliar to us, I inean Demojihenes ;' 
and if yaw are inr love with the Appearance of^ 
exquifite Harmony and Beauty in a perfeft Ora- 
tbr, . you mqfl: be Maftewof the Force of a Car^ 

neades^ 



304 On the C H a r a c T e r Book II ji 

nea^e^y ,ox an JrpQtIe. ¥or^ zs I faid before,- 
the Antients, to the Days of IfocraM^ united 
the Comprehenfion and Knowledge of every Thing 
relating to Morals, Life, Virtue, and Govern- 
ment, to Eloquence. After, as I have fhewn^ 
the Eloquent were feparated by Socrates from the 
karn'd, anjl afterwards all his Followers, amongft 
Philofophers defpis'd Eloquence, and Orators, Phi- 
lofophy. Nor had they the ,leaft Communica- 
. tion together, unlefs that each borrowed . from 
the other fomewhat which ferV'd as a common 
Source for both, if they intended to live in the' 
old -Relation with one another. But as the an- 
tiqnt Prielts inftituted three Affiftants, becaufe of 
the Number of Sacrifices, tho* by the Regula- 
tions of Numa they themfelves' were to take care 
of the facred Banquet; thus the Followers of 5^^ 
crates feparated the Pleaders of Caufes from them- 
felves,' and Philofophy in general; becaufe the 
Antients were of Opinion, that a wonderfiii HarmcH 
Dy fubfifted betwixt Eloquence and Undei^ftanding/ 

C H A>. XX. 

AS Things ftand in this Manrar, I will for 
my own Part pray for fome Indulgence 
to myfelf, and beg that you will underftand what 
I am about to fay, »ot as fpokcn of myfelf, but 
of an Orator. For I am one of thofe who, from 
my Childhood, "being inftrufted with the utmoft 
Care by my Father, brought with me to the Bar 
thofe Talents, which I am now confcious I pof- 
fefs, tho* they may fall Ihort of what you may 
imagine them to be ; . I cannot pretend to fay that 
I have learn'd ^what I now underftand, to the 
.lame |^erfe(9;iQn as I own they ought to be. I 

enter'4 



Book IH 0/ ^ O r a t o r.' 30^ 

tnter'd upon the Bufincfs of a Pleader very early 
in Life» an4 was but one aad twenty Years of 
Age, when I itnpeach'd a Man of great Quality, 
and of great Eloquence-, therefore the Forum 
was my School; Praftice, the Laws and Con- 
fthmions of the Rfiman People,, "imh the Prccc- 
dcot^ of our Anceftors, were my Inftruftors. 
When I was Quaeftor in 4fiay I a little indulged 
my Paflion, for thofe Arts I have already men- 
tioned, and got ak>og with me M^trodorus the 
Rhetorician fro«\ the Academy, the fame whon^ ' 
Aatmus haa already prsvifed, and very near my 
equal in Years. In my Return from 4fia I camo 
to Athens^ where I wouid have ftaid longer, had 
it not been that I waa piqu'd at the Athenians^ 
becaufe they did not repeat the Celebration of 
their Myfteries, to which I came only five Day$ 
too late. Therefore all that Energy, all that 
Conapafs of Knowledge, which I require in my 
own Profeffion, is^ fo far from making for me, that 
it makes ^iaft me ; (for I ait) not fpeaking whaf 
I, but what an Orator can do) and renders all 
thofe Dablcrsin the Art of Rhetorick ridicu-* 
lous, for their writing upon the Nature^ the Pre- 
ambles and the Narratives of Caufes ; bi*i: -the. 
Power of Eloquence is fo great as to compre- 
hend the Rife, the Force, the Changes of,al| 
Qbgefts^ Virtue^, Duties, and of all Nature fo 
tar as relate? to the Manners, the Inclinations^ 
and Morals pf Mankind. It is hers to point ouc 
Cuftoms, l-awSi and Rights j to govern States ; 
to difcourfe with Gracefulnefs and Eafe upoa 
every Subjed. In this I am converfant, fo far 
as my Capacity, joined to a moderate Share of 
I^earnmg and Pradice, can reach. JsTor dp I 

X ima- 



5o6 On the C h ar a c t e r Book III. 

imagine that I am much inferior in Difputation 
to thoHf, who have, as it were, pitched their 
1 ents for Life in Philofophy alone. 

CHAP. XXI. 

CA N my Friend C. VelleiuSy when he wants 
to prove that Pleafure is the chief Good, ad- 
vance one Argument which I am not able to de- 
fend with more Copioufnefs, or by means of my 
Praftice in Speaking, (in which Velleius is but a 
Novice, but all of us converfant) refute from 
thofe common Places which Antouius has laid o- 
pen ? Is there a Topic upon moral Virtue, that 
Sexttis Pompeius^ or the two Balbi^ or my Friend: 
M. Vigellius^ who liv*d with Pan^etius^ all Stoics, 
can maintain fo as to oblige me, or any one of 
you, to yield to them in point of Reafoning ? For 
Philofophy is not like the other Arts : For what 
Can a Man, wha has not been taught them, do 
in Geometry or Mufick ? Why, he muft either 
hold his Peace, or be look'd upon as a Madr 
man. But as to the Principles of Philofophy, they 
are implanted in our Nature, and whoever is endow^ 
cd with quick difcerning Faculties, will perceive 
what is moft probable and exaft •, and the' Prac- 
tice of Eloquence will enable him to fpeak up- 
on them with more Gracefulnefs. Here an in- 
different Orator, tho* not quite fo learned, yet if 
he has been ufed to fpeak, will by Means of his 
common Praftice, baifle all our meer Philofophi- 
cal Friends, and keep himfelf above their Con- 
tempt and Difdain. But Ihould one at any Time 
ftart up, who in the Ariftotelian Way is capable 
to fpeak upon either Side of every Subjeft; and 
who by means of his Precepts, can hold forth on 
*■ every 



Book IIL Of anOnATORl 307 

every Caufe in two Strains of, pleading quite 
contradiftory to one another ; or, like Arcefilas and 
Carneades^ can difpute againft every Propofitiorl 
.that can be laid down -, fhould fuch a Man join 
to thefe Properties, a Skill in khetoric, and the 
Manner and. Praftice of Speaking; fuch a Marl 
would .be the true, the compleat^ and the onl^ 
Orator. For without the nervous Eloquence at 
the Bar, an ".Orator has not fufficient Weight and 
Force; and without univerfal Learning he has not 
fufficient »Fini(hing and good Senfe^ Therefor^ 
let us fufFer old Corax to. hatch like a Crow his 
^oung ones in the Neft, from whence they fly 
all abroad, hateful, impertinent Chatterers: Let 
iis indulge our fpeculative Gentleman in his Re- 
tirement, in drefling up this important Matter^ 
as a fanciful Gewgaw, while we are explaining in 
the ftiort Converfation we have had Yeflerday and 
Xo-day, the whole Bufinefs of an Orator : in 
ib far as this important Study is comprehended 
in the Books of all Philofophers, which have 
never yet been dipp'd into by thefe Rhetoricians* 

CHAR XXII. 

SAYS Catulus^ by' Heavens! Craffus^ it it 
not furprifing that you poflefs fuch Force^ 
fuch Sweetnefs, fuch Command of Eloquence i 
This I before attributed to your Genius, and irt 
that Light you appeared not only as the greatefl: 
of Orators, but the wifeft of Men ; but now I 
perceive you have always given the Preference to 
good Senfe, and that all yoUr Copioufnefs of 
Speaking flows from thence ; yet when I call to 
mind the different Stages of your Age^ your 
|-.ife, and your Studies, J cannot comprehend 

X 2 huw 






I 

^69 On fBeCAKAc'ttn Book III^ 

how you have had time to make y ourfelf Maftcr 
of thefe Points ; nor did I imagine that yxm were 
much addifbed to (uth Studies^ as Mtn and Books ^ 
at the fame Time, I cannot dfectfmine whether it 
is moft furprizing that you coutd find LeifufS 
amidft your great Employmenfs fotthoftABt* 
tances '^ich you hare convinced mt 9$e<iStht 
greateft Importance, or if you Ray« nor, that 
you (hmid be able to difeourfe of them fb weB* 
I was wiHmg, replies Craffus^ m the firft FJacc> 
to p^rfuade you, that when ] am difcourfing up* 
on an Orat€>r, I do it muck, in the fame way ai 
I would of a Player. For I will, matntain, tha£ 
it wou}d be impoflible for kam to pkafe die Pub-- 
lie in \\% A£lion^ Without karlung to fence and 
dance. At the fame Time, I am far from &yiog 
that is neceffary for me to be a Player j. no; all I 
require is, that I may hare fome Tafle in Arts 
foreign to my own Profeflion. In tike Maiuiev, 
while, at your Requeft^ I am talking of aa Oratorio 
I mean a compleat otne : For whc* we talk of 
dny Art or Profefllon, it ii always underftooj 
that we talk of them -as they ftand in their higheft 
Perfe6iion. Therefore, if yott fliould think me 
an Orator, a tolerable one, nay a good one, 1 
ihall admit that t am^ (for it would be Affe&a- 
tion in me tio deny thac I am thought fo) yet 
even admitting this^ I am fer from being perfedt^ 
For there is no.Proteflion upon Earth that is^ 
more important, more difficult, or requires more 
auxiliary Powers from other Branches of Learn- 
ing. But as we muft now talk of an Orator, we 
«iufl: underftand him to be finifh'd in every Ex- 
cellence. For the Power, the Nature, the Qua-^ 
Key, and Extent of any Tlrjpacan never be com^ 

* prehelided 



B«oc in. Q/^^ Orator; 309 

prdiended* but by layiog it open in its utmod 
Perfedion, . As to myfclf, Catulus^ I confcfs t]iat 
at this Time of Life I am neither convcrfant 
in fuch Wiitings, nor with fuch Men. The 
lieafoiiy wbikh you have rightly hit upon, is, be^ 
caufe I never bad Leilure for Hudying ; and all 
Jtbc Time I fct afide for Learning was either when 
X was a Boy^ or when there happened a Vacation 
jn my Buiineis at the Bar. 

CHAP- xxin. 

BUT, Catulus^ if you Remand my Sentimcms 
upon that Kind of Learning-, ! am of Opi- 
nion that a Man ^who has Genius, who attends 
the Senate, the Forum, the Courts and public 
Tranfaftions, has iio Occafion for employing fo 
much of his Time upon it, as they do who grow 
grey in the Study of the Profeffion. for in all 
Arts, the ManagemetJt of thofe who apply them 
to practice, is quite different from that of thofe 
who are cliaori'd wtth Speculations; and confide* 
ring them only as Arts, fpend their whole Lives 
in their 4arling Amufepient. There is the Super- 
intendamrof the S^ww/^;— r-he is very old, yet 
he is every Day making new Obfervations, for he 
minds nothing elfe. Whereas * ^ Vehcm apply^d 
to the Study of Fencing only when he w^s a 
3oyi and as he had a Genius, and was com^ 

♦ AfimJhyMafier.'] Ong. ^uamrirhmts if/m 

The CommentatGrs have in their ufual Way^ by ctudfaTOuniDg 
tocleajr up, render*d <his Paflage Nonfenfe. Ihave attempted 
to recoDcOe it to Meamng, by xetoining the ¥(^ord G«/i, in the 
Qgatatten>.axtd begiaiung the next Sentence witb ««ailnilead of 

plea; 



310 On tbeCuAKAcr^R Book IL 

pleat Mafter of it, he got the Charafter in L«- 
alius of being 

ji finijh^d Majler in the Fencing Att^ 
Xet knev) to atl a rigid Patriot^s Part. 
for he allotted the greateft Part of his Time to 
the Bufinefs of the Forum, of his Friends, and 
his private Oeconomy. Valerius fung every Day 
of his Life ; and what had he to do befides, for it 
was his Profeflion ? But bur Friend Numerius 
Furius fings only when, it is proper -, for he is a 
Man of Charafter, and a Roman Knight, and 
learned, in his Youth, as much of MuCcas was 
.proper for his Purpofe. The fame Obfervation will 
hold in Arts of greater Importance; wehavefeeh 
TuierOj a Man of the greateft Virtue and good 
Senfe, when he was ftudying under a PhiIof(\- 
pher, fpend whole Days and Nights in reading, 
•while his Uncle JfricanUs is making hinifelf 
Mafter of the fame Study, without your know- 
' ing what he is about. Thefe Points are eafily learn'd 
4f you go no further in them than you have Occa- 
fion, if you ftudy them under an able Mafter, and 
are yourfelf endow'd with natural Parts. But 
if you make it the fole Bufinefs of your Life \ the 
Tery Handling and Enquiry into it daily begets 
fomewhat that in your indolent Amufemcnt in- 
vites you to go farther in the Purfuit. Thus it 
happens, that a boundleis Field of Speculation 
prefents in the Difcuffion of Points. An eafy 
Pra^5tice will eftablifli Learning; a little Appli- 
cation too muft be added, and the Memory and 
Study muft remain the fame. But we ftill de- 
light to learn ; for Inftance, I may have a mind to 
play well at Dice or Tennis, the' perhaps I may 
oot fucc^ed : but others who are excellent Play- 



r 



l3ooK III. Ofifn Orator. ^ 311 

crs, fuch. as Titius at Tennis, and Brtdla at the 
Dice, are uhrcafonably fond of thefe Diverfjoas. 
Thercr is therefore no Reafon why any body 
Ihould be afraid of the Unwieldinefs of the Arts^ 
becaufe People learn them when they are old-; 
for fuch either were old Men When they firft ap- 
pl/d to them, or they have been detained in 
thofe Studies till they became old, or they are 
great Dunces. Biit in my Opinion the Truth of 
the Matter is, that unlefs a Man fhall learn a 
Thing quickly, he never can learn it* all, 

CHAP. XXIV. 

NO W, Crajfus^ now, fays Catuks^ I under- 
ftand what you fay, and, by Heaven! I 
agree with you. I perceive that you had Time 
enough for a Man of your very quick Appreheri- 
fion, tor making yourfelf Mafter ol all the Points 
you have mentioned. Why, replies Grajfus^ fhould 
you ^ill apply what I fay, perfonally to me, and 
not to the Bufinefs ? But now, if you pleafe, let 
usreturn to our Purpofe. I fhall not be againft 
that, fays Catulus. Then Crajfuj went on ; To 
what View is all this long, far- fetched Difcourfe 
direded ? Two Parts yet remain for me to fpeak 
to,; that of illuftrating a Speech; and that df 
giving the finifliing Touch to Eloquence in gener 
ral. The firft may be call'd Speaking with Grace^ 
fulne/s'f the other, v^kh Propriety: Thefe have th^ 
Power of rendering a Difcourfe delightful, moving, 
and copious. But the Art of a Pleader at the 
Bar, which of itfelf is made up of Wrangle, Con- 
tention, and founded upon vulgar Notions, has 
fomewhat in it that is mean and . bi?ggarly. And 
what is taught by thofe who call themfdves Maf.. 

X 4 tcri 



; 



7 

f 312 O^/i&^CHARACTSR JBOOK IH 



tcrs of Rhetoric is very litdc better. W* muft 
have a Pomp, we muft have a Splendor odf 
Prnamient$,^and thofe the choiceftj oollcdcd, cotn^ 
miflion'd, and brought from aU Cbuptries: ^n 
Orator ought to do, as you;, C^far^ muft da 
next Year ; he muft take the Pains that I too^ 
in my f iEciileihip, when I did not think tbac 
this People were to be fatisficd with cominon 
and familiar Obje£ts« As to chafing and arrang- 
ing Words, or clofing Periods ; one eafily fails 
into the Method from Inftrudkion; or Pra&ice 
itfelf will diredt one into [it without Iriftruftioii. 
The greater Point is ¥0 be furnilh'd with plenty 
of Materials J the Greeks were deftitute of this -5 
for that Reafon our young Gentlemen greiii^ al^ 
inoft Dunces from their Inftrudionsi and tlie 
ZatinSj in the Name of Heaven! conunenc'd 
Matters of Rhetoric about two Years ago. When 
I was Cenfor, I fqpprefsM than by aa Edift, not 
becaqfe, a^ I hear foipe People have given out, 
I was unwilling that the Capacities of our young 
Gentlemen ftould he brighten'd* but becaufe I 
was unwilling they ihould be fmik tn Ignorance, 
and, in Proportion, confirmed in Impudetice, For 
I perceiv'd that among the Cree}sy bad as they 
were, there was, befides Rhetoric, fomewhat to 
be learn'd that was fenfible, ^polite, and might 
pafs for Learning : But as for thefe upftarl Pro- 
feflbrs, I could not find out that they could teacli 
any one Thing, befides Impudence 5 a Quality 
which, when even joined with good Properties, 
ought to be ftridly avoided. As this was the 
pply Thing they taught in their Schools, I tlioiight 

-f jEM/Jip.'} Among iheRomans the MdtU$^ white in Office ' 
adorned (be public Buildings with Statues, fidtures, ^r. 



\ 

I 



BocMC m. Of an.O r a t or^ 3 1 j 

it proper, ^ I was Cenfoc» to put a Stop to tbs 
(prcadiiig Contagibru I don't however peremp^ 
(corily krfift upon It, that the Suby'eifts, we havft 
bad in hand, cannot be elegantly deliver'd in 
J^n ; for both our I^anguage, and the, Nature 
oi the Subjefts, admit of our aoconifnodatlng 
the old^ and the excellent Jjeaming of the 
Creeks^ to our Ufnges and Manners : But this caa 
be eSbSted only by Men of more Learning tlum 
.any of our Countrymen have yet attain'dto oa 
this Subjeft : Yet if ev^er iuch M^n fliould ap- 
|)ear» they will be preferable to the Creeks them* 
ielves. 

CHAP. XXV. 

A Speech then is embellifli'd by the Subjcft^ 
and by, as it were, a Subftance, and GFOund 
Colouring of its own. To give Majefty, 'Sweet- 
intis^ Leatnii^ good Breeding, to make it &nk% 
to give it the finiflaing Touches of Eloquence, ito 
work it up with -as much of the Pathetic as is 
.needful, is not to be done by regarding particular 
Members 4 they are Excellencies xhat regard the 
whole ; but to diverfify it, as it wercj, ;wirh :thc 
Flowers of Sentinientsand Expreffion : Xl>efeiiiuft 
not run thro* the whole of a Difoourfe, but fuch 
particular Places, as that they may ferve like 
Jewels and Diftindlipns in Drrfs. Therefore the 
•eligible kind of Speaking, is that which is moft 
interefting to the Hearer, ^ndjglves him the great- 
eft Delight, but a Delight, without Satiety. I 
don't imagine that you expeft to be caution'd 
^wnft the Drynefs, or Uncouthnefs of Language, 
-or againft its being too common, or too antiquatr 
ed. No i your Capacities and Ages too ^put me 
in mind to talk to you upon fomewhat of tnorc 
Im|)or^:an?c. It i$ hard to be accounted for, why 

th^t 



I 



/ 



314 Ontbe Ckatl AC rin Book III 

that Pleafurc which moft ftrikcs us, and in its 
firft Accefs communicates the moft cxquifitc Sen- 
lation, fliould fooneft create in us a Loathing and 
Satiety. You fee how much more beautiful and 
gay the Colouring is in a new, than in an old Pic- 
ture ? Yet tho* the firft catches our Eyes, they 
cannot dwell upon it with the fame Delight; 
and at the fame time we are enchanted with 
the very antiquated, old'Fafhion, which we con- 
template in an antient Piece. How much fofter 
and more delicate are Quavers, and unmeaning 
Words in finging, than a true manly Manner f 
Yet, not only the Judgef ofMufic,- but the very 
Vulgar cry out againft them, if they are too often 
repeated. The fame Obfervation holds as to bur 
t)ther Senfes -, we are lefs pleased with a ftrong, 
high Perfume, than one that is but moderate*; 
-and one would rather chufe not to be perfum*d 
at all than be too ftrongly fo : Even in the Touch 
there is a degree of Softnefs and Smoothnefs. As 
to the Tafte, which is the moft exquifite of all our 
Senfes, and moft relifhes what is fweet, yet how 
cafy is it cloy'd by any thing that is too fweet? 
Or who would be confin'd to eat and drink nothing 
but what is fweet ? While in both Kinds the 
Pleafures that are leaft exquifite, are moft durable. 
Thus, generally fpeaking, hoathing borders up6n 
the moft pleafing Senfations; we are not therefore 
to be at all furpriz'd, at this Obfervation holds 
equal in Eloquence. For let us pitch upon any 
Poet, upon any Orator, we fhall find that an 
uninterrupted, an unblameable, and an undiverfi- 
fy'd Concifenefs, Heightning, Embelli(hment., 
Gaiety of or Stile, in a Poem, or in a Speech, 
tho' they have all the Advantages of Colouring, 

aiibrd 



Book. IIL Cfan. Orator. J15 

afford no lading Pleafure ; And the finical Or- 
naments of an Orator or a Poet difguft us the 
fooher, becaufe our^ Senfes are fatiated with too 
much Pleafure from our Conflitution, not from 
our Reifon ;' and in intelledgal Entertainments, 
not. the • Ears, only, but* .the Mind much more 
Jakes Difguft at a continued AfFedlation <)f*Ex- 
cellenee. .• . .1 ' • * 

» 

C HA P. XXVI. f 

THierefore, while I am fpeaking', I chufe rii 
tber to have it fa}d, tho* never fo oft. That 
is well faidf than, ^at is fine^ That is charming • 
•for a too frequent Repetition of that is dangerous 
Yet, at the fame time,I wifhtohear it iaid, often. No 
'Man can fpeak better : Yet ftill the Perfeftion'of 
Eloquence has a ^ep Shade, Which throws its 
Figures into the ftronger Relief. Rofcius does 
.not give all the Exprelfion which he could to this 
Verfe, 

The wife Man demands Honour ^ and not* Plunder^ cs 
the Reward for his Virtues. 

He remains cool^ that he may come to the next. 
What do I fee! the Sword is Mafier of the f acred Seats. 
:He here ftarts, flares, is aftonilh'd and confound- 
ed. When he'comes to the other Verfe; 
Where fhall I fly for Refuge ? 

How gently, how flowly, how coolly does he pro- 
nounce it ? For it immediately introduces. 
•0/&, my Father! Ohj my Country! Oh, the Family 
of Priamus ! 

Where the Aftion could not be near fo much 

animated, if the Aftor had been fpent and ex- 

' h^ufted in pronouncing the Line before* The 

Poets 



\ 



316 Ontbe Chakaxit'er Book liL 

Poets 'Wtrt as fo6n lexifiisk cxf "dhis as the Adors : 
In Ihoit^ iSk M^ficiatis weir as fei^Ue 4of k «i 
ekker of them, for aU thefe Joyave their kwr 
Strains* then thcf rife, tbey imil, thqr Gnk a* 
gauift they ^diverl^« iftey dxftinguilh. Tbos ks 
our Orator^ wh6 aims at Giracefalne& and Sweet* 
nefs, pottbb a Sweemdls that is manAf and foKd^ 
and not cloying and fmooth ; it is then .impoiSo 
ble he ftiould mifs of being agreeable. For the 
Rules with regard to Graceliulfiefs may be dif* 
play'd by the ttiQ&, wjetthed Orator: But w&\ 
£ud beforet he «Mift Jtay up si Magaadne «f Mite- 
rials* both with regard to SUtjed and Sciitiments 4 
this is a Part to which JnHmus has %:>beii mlrea^ 
dy. Thefe are to be &nm'<d out «f idie Stuff 
4and Nature of «he S|>eeck, alhiitrat^ by Expndfi- 
otij and diim^ify'd by rSeocimenC. Bvtt (dbe naofi: 
£niih'4 £Kcellenqr of Eloquence ts to know how 
to make' your EaabelliAmmts ftrenigthcn your 
Caufe ; this is of ufe* not only when any thing 
is to be exaggera^ or e]M»U'4(i but in Cafes 
where you are to extenuaiie dnd fink. 

CHAP. xxvn. 

TH I S is requirM in a^ di6fe T^ics whidh 
Jntomus db&rv'id ve to be v^pfiy^d ifor 
gaining Credit to a Speedh ; cvdier wSien v/z are 
explaining any Point ; or when we are fcoxiciliatii^ 
Favour, or raifii>g Reientment; But in the laft 
Cafe Amplification is of the greateft Efficacy ; 
and Indeed is the charafteriftical Excellency of 
Eloquence. That Praftice too of praifing or dif- 
praifing, which Antonius e^larn'd in the End of 
his DitcontTe^ tho' he rgefted rt in the Spinning, 
\ isof grc^t Confequence, For nothing can contri^ 

bute 



Book III. Of^^ Or a tor. 317 

buee more ti^ exaggerate cht amplify a Speech, than 
to he abk to difpofq of both thefe to^ the beft 
Advanugr^ Thofe Topics follow oexc whtcl^ 
ac^ pfioper U^ the Bair, and wluch ought to be ta« 
feparable from the Nerves of PkadiAg, yA hd^ 

caaafe dnty u&'d to treat of general Heads, thejr 
wcceby* the Antients call'd common. Some^ of 
thefe coftfift in (faai'p, exaggerating Inveftives, or 
Complaints againft Vices and Crimes i fuch as 
Embczalcments^ Treajon^ or Parricide, Crimesi 
which cannot be defended. Thcfc Topics are to 
be us^d after the Fads have been ellablifli'd, o-* 
therwife they are dry and trifling. Others of thefe 
Topics coniift in Deprecation and Pity ; others of 
them in doubtful Difputes, where there is a fair 
Field of Speaking on both Sides on general Heads. 
This Pradtice is now appropriated to the two Phi* 
loibphies I have already taken . notice of ^ with the 
Antients it belong'd to thofe who were coofialted 
upon the whole Method and Pra£bice of Pleading 
at the BajT. For as to whait regards Virtue, I^vity^ 
Right, and Equity, Dignity, Utility, Honour, 
Difgrace, Rewards, Punifliments, and the like 
Matters, we ought to have Strength and Art 
fujfiicicnt to Ipcak upon them in every Shape. But 
as we are diunhcrited of our Eftate, we are left in 
a little, wrangling Tenement 5 and tho' we pro- 
fefc to be the Champions of other People's RightSi^ 
we are incapable tg fecure, or vindicate our own i 
and, to compleat our Shame, we muft have re- 
courfe for wh^t we ftand in need of to thefe In- 
vaders of our Property. ^ 

CHAP. XXVIII. 

TH E Gentlemen who, from a very Inconfi- 
derable Quarter of MmSy have got the 

Name 



3 l8 0;i /;&^ C H A R A C T E R. BoGK IlF 

Name of Peripatetic^ or Acadcnuc Philofophers % 
but who were formerly, ftii'd Ciiiil Pbilofopher$\ a- 
general Appellation they obtained, on account of 
their being eminently fkill'd in the moft important 
Subjefts, aad univerfal Politics : They, I fay, 
maintain that alt political Dilcourfes turn upon one 
or other of the following Kinds -, cither when the 
Dilpute is bounded by particular Times and 
Parties ; for Inftance, Is it your Pleafure that an* 
Exchange of Prifoners be made with the Cartha- 
ginians ? Or the Queftion is indefinite and ge- . 
neral; thus. What are your pojitive Sentiments and 
Becijion with regard to a Prifoner of War ? The 
fird of thefe Kinds they term a Plea^ or a Difpute^ 
which they confine to three Points, a Suity z De- 
hate J and a Panegyric : But as to the other Quefti • 
on, which is indefinite, and, as it were, a Point 
of Speculation, that is term'd a C^«/«//^//<?» : Thus 
far do they go. In their Leftures they indeed 
make ufe of this Divifion ; but they don't claim it 
as their Right or Privilege, or if they meant to 
recover the inheritance they have loft, but as if 
their Defign was to intrude upon the Civil Law. 
For they have, as it were, by Stealth, come at the 
other Kind, which is circumfcrib'd by Times, 
Places and Perfons. At prefent Philo^ who I 
underftand to be the chief Man of the Academy, 
profefles to underftand, and praftifes in, fuch 
Caufes. As to the other Kind, they mention it 
as being the only proper Subjeft of the firft Art, 
and belonging to the Orator : But they neither lay 
down its Force, its Nature, its Parts, nor Heads;; 
fo that it had been much better for them to have 
entirely.'omitted it, than to have attempted it, anc^ 
than to have forfaken it. , For now the World 

looka 






BookIIL O/'jw Orator. 319 

looks upon their Silence as the Efiefts of* their 
Ignorance ; whereas otherwifc it might have been 
deem'd as the Refult of their Choice. 

CHAP XXIX. 

EVERY Subjedl therefore that is a Matter 
of Enquiry, is handled in the fame manner, 
whether it is an indefinite PropoGtion, or adapted 
to a Pleading in the Court or the Forum •, nor 
is there any one Subjeft but what muft turn upon 1 
Speculation or Praftice. For a Propofition mufl^ j 
either turn upon the Knowledge of, and Acquain- 
tance with the Nature of a Subjedt j as for In- 
ftance the following. Whether Virtue is defirable 
for its own Beauties^ or for certain Advantages 
attending it ? or upon a prudential Confiderati- 
on, fuch as the following. Whether a wife Man^ 
cught to undertake the Affairs of Government? In 
Subjefts of Speculation there are three Modes 
requifite, ConjeSlurej Definition^ and what we 
may call Confequence. For ftiould a Man afk. 
Whether there is fuch a Thing as Knowledge a- 
mongjl Mankind? that is a conjectural Propofi- 
tion. If we were to enquire. What is Wifdom? 
we muft anfwer by a Definition. Were we to 
cniquire, Wloether it is confiftent with the Cha- 
ra£ier of a good Man to tell a Lye? we muft 
then argue from Confequences. They then wheel 
about to ConjeSlure^ which they divide into four 
Heads. The firft,^ as it confiders the inherent 
Properties of any thing. Thus in the following 
Propofition, Whether the Laws of Society are 
founded npon Nature or upon Opinion ? The next 
Head ot Conjedture, relates rhe Foundation of any 
thing; fuch as Laws .and Government: The. next 
- I regards 



/ 



320 OnfheCii A tt ACT EK Book IET^ 

regards the Caufe and Reafbn of any Thing ; foi^ 
Inftance, Wly- do the mofi learned Men differ tipm 
tbemoft important Suije^tf The laft Head coh- 
lifts in Immutation \ for Inftancc, Whether Virtue 
can die in a Man^ or whether it narf not pofftblx 
he concerted into Vice ? The Modes of VefinitiM 
are as follow ; What are the Ideas that are innate 
in the Minds of Men ?. Whether that can he calfd 
lawful that is moft advantageous to the greateft 
Part of a Society T When a Quality comes to be 
examin'd^ as. Whether the Elegance cf Speech is tie 
CharaSer of an Qratcrf Or, Whether fome other 
Men hejides an Orator may not poffefs it ? Or when 
a Subjedt is fph-divided -, for Inftance^ Horn ma* 
ny Kindt of Things ore defirahk? Or, Whether 
thefe Kinds are not three ? thofe r dating to the Boefyj 
XJnderfianding^ and Fortune. Or the Mode, and^ 
as it were> the natural Charafter is to be def- 
crib*d J fuch as, Of what Species one Man^s jtoa- 
rice iSj another's FaSiioufnefSy and a third Maifs 
vain Glory? As to Confequencesy two Kinds of* 
Queftions firft prefent: The firft is a Simple 
Difcuflion of a Point 5 fuch as. Whether Gbry is 
defirahli? Or it is comparative;' fuch. as^ Whe* 
ther Glory or Riches are moft defirdbU ? The fim- 
ple Kind is fubdivided into three Heads ; Things 
that a;'e in their own Nature to be fought or 
avoided j fuch as, Whether Honours are to he fought 
after ? Whether Poverty is to be avoided ? The 
next confifts in an Enquiry into what is right 
or Wrong i for Inftance, Wi^ther it is right to re- 
venge the Injuries done to our Friends or Relations f 
LafHy, what is becoming, what is bafe; for 
•Inftance,^ ff^bether it is becoming to meet Death in 
order to ^r chaff Glory f The Modes of Compa- 



1 



feooKllI. 0/an ORATom: ^it 

rrfon are two; the one, when the Enquiry turns 
Upon a Difpute, whether the Terns are fynony- 
mous or not ; as, IVhetber to dread and to fear 
he the fame? Whether tf Kino and a Tyrant be 
the fame? Complaisance <?»/ Friendship? The 
other Mode confifts in examining what is moft eli- 
gible; for inftance. Whether wife Men are led by 
the Opinion of the mofi w or thy Men^ or hy popular 
Applaufe ? And all the Modes regarding j^^r«Aj//w 
Knowledge are generally laid down by the moft 
learned Men in the fatne Manner* 



CHAP. XXX. 

AS to what regards PraSticey it turiis eithef 
upon an JEnquiry into the Nature of a Du- 
ty, under what Head it will come, or what i^ 
right to be done. Or whether fuch a, Thing ought 
to be done at all ? This is a Topic, Under which 
the whole Magazine of Virtues and Vices may 
come: It turns upon the Management of the 
Paffions, when and how they are to be mov'd^^ 
awaken'd, composed, or roUs'd . This Kind com- 
prehends Advices, Threats, Confolations, Be- 
moanings, and every Spring that inlpites or allays 
the ' PaffionS of the Mind. Having thus explained 
the Kinds and the Modes of thefe Difcuffions, 
give me leave to obferve, that tho* there may be 
fbme fmall Difference betwixt that Divifion of 
Antonius and mine, yet they are in the main the 
fame; for both our Difputations are made up of 
the fame Members, altho* a little differently plac'd 
and difpofed of by us^ Now I will proceed to 
the reft, and confine myfelf to my own Charge 
and Talk. For all Proofs^ upon all Kinds of 

Y Queftions 



32i Ontbe C'RAti Act tn ^ooK III 
Queflions that can aHfe, are to be taken from 
thofe Topics which ylntonius has laid down; but 
certain Topics are beft adapted to certain Kinds, 
It is necdleft to fpcak any Thing upon this Subjefl:, 
not becaufe it is too tedious, but becaufe it is felf- 
evident. Thofe Speeches therefore are the moft 
beautiful, which launch out into the wideft Field, 
and, inftead of being confihM to private and per- 
fonal Altercation, throw the Reafoning into ge- 
neral Propofitions, which, giving the Hearers a 
compleat View of the Nature, of ttie Kind, of 
the Extent of the Subjeft, direfts them in their 
Decifion upon the particular Parties, Crimes, 
and Pleas. . It was to a Habit in this Prafticc, 
young Gentlemen, that Antonius advisM yoti> 
whth he gave it as his Opinion, that you ought 
to difregard the Minutenefs and Narrownefs of 
Altercation, and apply to the Energy and Com- 
mand of Reafoning. The Writers upon the Me*- 
thod of Eloquence were miftaken, when they 
thought that this was to be attained to by reading 
a few Pamphlets : It extends farther than any thing 
that can be learn'd at Tufculanum^ at a Walk ia 
the Morning, or in a Company in the Evening, 
fuch as ours is now : For not only our Tongue 
muft be poliflfd, and bammer'd into Eloquence, 
but our Minds muft be ftor'd, they muft be fiU'd 
with the Beauties, the Command and the Va- 
riety of all great Subje6ts. 

CHAP. XXXL 

I- F, tlierefore> we are Orators^ if we are to prr- 
fide, if we are to lead the Controveffies of 
Citizens, in doubtful Conjurtftures, and public 
Debates % it is ours to poffcfs all that Wifdom, all 

that 



fiooK lit. Of an Or At o'Rl 323 

that Learning, which Meii who were at leifure, 
while we were bufied, wrongfully feiz'd as a 
Stray, and unclaimed Property : Nay, they went 
fo far, that they either ridicul'd Orators like So- 
crates in G^giaSy or if, in- a few Pamphlets they 
laid down any Rules of Eloquence, they titled 
them Books of Rhetoric. As if the Province of 
Eloquence did not extend to what thcfe Rhetori- 
' cians have faid upon Juftice, the civil Duties, the 
founding and governing of States, the Praftice of 
Morality j nay, the Principles of Nature. As we 
know not againft whom elfe we are to enter our 
Claim, We ought to ft rip thofe Plunderers of our 
Properties, provided we apply them to the Know- 
ledge of Civil Affairs, iii which we are conver- 
fant, to Which they belong, arid which they re- 
' g^^d. Let us not therefore, as t faid before^ 
Wafte our Years in learning fuch Points j no Man 
can ever be Matter of the Sources, if he is too 
long in defcrying them ; but when we have de- 
fcry'd them, let him fre(Juently and occafionally 
draw as much from them as may ferva the Puf- 
pofe he has in hand. For the Eye of Knowledge 
is not fo piercing in any Man^ as to be able to 
difcern thofe mighty Matters, unlefs they are 
pointed out ; and after they are pointed out, fo 
far ai*e they froni being wrapp'd in a Cloud, 
that there is no Man of quick Apprehellfion but 
muft difcern them. As therefore an Orator is at 
liberty to fange this wide, this fpacious Field, in 
which he cannot tread but on his own Property, 
he never can be at a Lofs for the Pomp and Em* 
bellifliments of Eloquence. His being Matter 
of the Subjedt will give him the Command of 
Expreflbn ; and if the Points to which he fpeaks 

Y a are 



324 Ontbe Ckar ACT i&R Book III. 

are of themfelves laudable, their Nature will 
communicate a Luftre to his Words. But it is 
ftill to be underftood, that the Speaker or the 
Writer be a Man of genteel Education from his 
Youth, that he have a Paflion for Study, be affifted 
by Genius, and converfant in the boundlefs Dif- 
putes arifing upon general Propofitions : Add to 
this, that he muft be thoroughly acquainted with, 
and praftisM in the Imitation of the bed Writers 
and Orators •, fuch a one will have no Occafion 
to apply to thofe Teachers for the beft Method 
of arranging and illuftrating his Expreffions. Thus 
without any Direftions, but thofe of ISfature im- 
proved by Pradtice, the Command of Things will 
furnifh him with the Gracefulnefs of Words. 

CHAP XXXII. 

SAYS Catulus here; Immortal Gods! Craf- 
Jus^ what a Variety, what Force, what Com- 
mand of Subjefts have you attain*d to ? and from 
what Confinement have you dar'd to bring an 
Orator, in order to place him upon the Throne 
of his Anceftors ? For we underftand that the 
antient Authors and Teachers thought 'that no 
Kind of D ifputation was exempted from their 
handling •, and that they always profefs'd to Rea- 
fon indifcriminately upon every Subjedl. Hippias 
of Elis^ who was one of them, when he came 
to Olympia^ while the famous ^inquennial Games 
brought a prodigious Refort to that Place, boaft- 
ed in the Hearing of almoft all GreecCy that there 
was no Point in any Art, be it ever fo extenfive, 
of which he was ignorant. In this Boaft he compre- 
hended not only the liberal Arts, fuch as Geome- 
try, Mufic, Grammar, Poetry, together with na- 

tural 



fiooicIII. OfanORATORl 325 

turii and moral Philofophy and Politics, but he 
told them, that with his own Hand he made the 
Ring which he wore on his Finger, the Cloak he 
had on his Back, and the Shoes that were on his 
Feet. This perhaps was going too far, it may 
however ferve to form a Conjefture how paffio- 
nately fond thefe Orators were of the nobleft Arts, 
when they could ftoop to the meaneft. What (hall 
I fay of Prodi cus of Chios ? Of I'hrafymacus of ChaU 
cedon? Of Protaguras oi Ahdera? who in their feve- 
ral Ages enter'd very far, both in their Difourfings 
and Writings, into natural Philofophy. Gorgias 
of Leontium himfelf, whom, as an Orator, Plato 
was pleas*d to make inferior to a Philofopher, 
never was overcome by Socrates^ nor is the Dif- 
courfe left M^hy Plato genuine; but if in Reality 
he was overcome, it was owing to Socrates being 
more eloquent, and, as you have faid, to his 
being a fuller and a better Speaker. But even he, 
in Plato\ Book; profefles to treat with the great- 
eft Copioufnefs upon every thing that could be- 
come jthe Subjeft of Altercation or Enquiry; 
Aod he diftinguilh'd himfelf by being the firfl: to 
call every Man there to give him what Subjeft 
they pleas'd to fpeak on : Thefe Qualities gained 
him fo much Honour in Greece^ that bis Statue 
at Delphos was all of Gold, while the reft were 
but gilded- Thefe, together with many others 
the moft learned Profeflbrs of Eloquence, were 
all cotemporary ; from them we may underftand 
that the Matter was as you reprefented it, and 
the Profeffion of an Orator in antient Greece was 
both of greater Extent, and in greater Efteem, 
than it is here. Therefore, I am in fome Doubt 
lyhether you deferve moft Praife, or the Greeks^ 

y 3 ropft 



326 On fA^ Ch AR A C T E R BooK IIL 

moft Blame % fince you, born in a Country of a 
different Language, and different Manners, a- 
midft the prodigious Hurry of Bufmefs in the 
State, and the Diverfions you have had by almoft 
all the private Bufmefs of the City, by the Share 
you had of the Government of the World, and 
the Diredion of a mighty Empire, have been able 
fo effcftually to make yourfelf Mafter of fo many 
important Subjefts, and make it go hand in hand 
with that Civil Knowledge and Praftice, whkh 
is required in the greateft Politician, and the 
greateft Orator of the State -, while the Greeks^ 
who were born in the Bofom of Learning, im- 
paffion'd with thefe Studies, and melting in Eafe, 
have been fo far from improving their Patrimopy, 
that they have not been able to tranfmit it to 
Pofterity, as full and as free as it \vas left them 
by their Anccftors, 

CHAP. XXXIII. 

IT is not in this fingle Bufinefs, replies Crajfus 
to Catulus^ but in many others, that Arts have 
dwindled by fplitting and fub-dividing them. Dd 
you imagine in the Days of Hippocrates of Cos^ that 
fome were Phyficians, others Surgeons, and others 
Occulifts ; when Euclid or Archimedes taught Geo- 
metry ; Damon or Arift/enus^ Mufic ; Ariftophanes 
or Callimachus^ Grammar; that thefe feveral Arts 
were fo fub-divided, as that no fingle Man com- 
prehended the whole Syftem of any one, and that 
each fet afide a particular Branch as his own Pro- 
feflion ? I have been often told by my Father and 
Father-in-law, that our Countrymen who fought 
to acquire Glory by means of Wifdom, us'd to 

grafp 



J3oQK jn. Of an Oz AT OK. 327 

gr^rp at every Branch of Knovy ledge at that Time 
kflown in this City. They mention'd as an In- 
fiance of this Sex$us j£lm^ anci we ourfejves have 
feen Manius Manilius walking acrofs the Fprum, 
which was an Intimation tp all his Countrymen, 
that they were welcome tp confult; hi;TJ : And 
\hofe who either walk'd about in this manner, QV 
fat conftantly at home in an Elbow Ch^ir, wer? 
reforted to, to have their Advice, not only ii> 
Matters of the Civil Law, but when they wante4 
to marry a daughter, to buy an Eftate, to \\T\n 
prove a Field : In Ihort, upon all Puties and Bu-^ 
finefs that could prefent. The Char-^ilef of th? 
Wifdom which done in the elder Crajfus^ \n fi4tq 
Ceruncanius^ and the excellent Scipio^ G^e^t GfandT 
father to my Son-ip^Iaw ; who had be^n al} of 
them high Priefts, was, th^^t they wf r« apply'4 
to i^pon all Matters, whether divide or hwrp^nv 
^nd th^t they indifcriniinatfly gave l^tix Advif:c 
and Affiftance in the Senate, before the People, 
in the Caufes of their Friends, at home and a- 
broad. What was 'there wanting in M. Cato^ be- 
fides his b^ing poliih'd by this Learning, whic^ 
was foreign, and imported into his own Couptry ? 
Did his Knowledgp of the Civil Law hinder hi& 
pleading with Eloquence ? Or did his Eloquence 
mak? him negleft \hc Sturdy of the Civil Law ?. 
No i he was employed and excellent in both.. 
Did he Ihine lefs in his political Charadter, hjf 
iiieans of the great Popularity be acquired in a: 
private Capacity ? Before the People no M^^f 
was a braver Citizen 5 in the Senate, none an abh i* 
Member : At the fame time, he was by far th^t 
Vft General we had : In jChiort, he did not only 
pry ii:i{o, and l^arn, but v/as able to write upon 

every 



■«» 



328 On the Character Book III, 

every Point of Learning or Inftrudion that was 
yfual in this City, and in thofe Times. On the 
other hand, at prefent People who afpire to Horr 
nours in the State generally conie raw, furnifh'd 
with no Knowledge, and adorn'd with no Learn- 
ing, But if one Man diftinguiflies himfelf from 
many, in any one Branch of thofe Qualities I 
have mentioned, fuch as in military Accomplifti- 
ments, or fome Pradtice in war, he can raife him- 
felf ; Qualifications which, to tell the Truth, arc 
now in Difufe. The Knowledge of the Law is 
another Step to Preferment, but e^fen that Know- 
ledge does not extend to all the Branches of the 
Law, for nobody ftudies the Pontifical Law, 
which is join'd with the Civil. Eloquence is ano- 
ther, buit then they think that it confifts in fpeak- 
ing loudly and volubly. But they are abfolutely 
ignorant of all Connexion and Relation fubfifting 
nmong the liberij Arta ; ip ftiort, of the Virtues 
(hemfelves, » 

. CHAP. XXXIV. 

BU T to return to the Greeks^ who muft be 
introduc'd at leaft in this Difcourfe, being 
^ Nation as much the Standard of Learning, as 
purs is of Virtue ; it is faid that feven Perfbns, 
who were both reputed and termed Philofophers, 
, were all of them cotemporary : And all of them, 
excepting Tbales of MiUtus^ were the Governors 
pf the States they liv'd in. Was any Man in his 
Time more learned, or did any Man poflfcfs an 
Eloquence better fupported by Literature than 
fijijiratus did, to whom the reducing from. Con- 
fufion, and difpofing the Books of Hotner into the 
pr4cr wc upw have them ip is attributed ? Ho 

was 



Book III. Of an Orator: 329 

was not indeed of any great Service to his Fellow 
Citizens, but then he was fo famous for Elo- 
quence, that he pafs'd for one of the firft Men in 
Literature and Erudition. What fhall I fay of 
Pericles ? the Copioufnefs of whofe Eloquence is 
reported to have been fuch, that when he (poke 
for the Interefts of his Country, contrary to the 
Sentiments of the Athenians^ he knew, while he 
was faying very cutting Things againft the Fa- 
vourites of the People, how to render what h^ 
faid delightful and agreeable to the People them- 
felves : And the old Players, even while they 
were abufing him, a Thing which was at that 
Time lawful in Athens^ could not help faying 
that Wit dwelt upon his Tongue. Add to this^ 
that fo great was the Energy pf his Eloquence, as 
to leave upon the Minds of his Hearers, as it 
were, certain ftimulating Powers. But Pericles 
was nof inftruded by a Pedant who prated by the 
Hour-Glafs ; for we are told that Anaxogaras of 
Clazomena^ a Man enjinent for his Knowlc;dge bf 
the moft fublime Subjefts, was his Mailer. This 
Pericles therefore, who was diftinguifh'd by his 
Learning, his Politics, apd Eloquence, prefided 
for forty Years in Athens over all their Affairs^ 
both in Peace and War. Need I to mention 
Critias or Alcibiades? They were indeed none 
of the beft of Patriots, but can it be deny'd that 
they were learned, eloquent, and inftrufted in 
Eloquence from the Mouth of Socrates ? Who 
fini(h*d Dion of Syracufe in ^11 manner of Erudi- 
tion.^ Did not Plato? Was it not he who 
form'd, not only his Tongue, to Eloquence, but 
his Mind to Virtue ? Did he not impel, diredt^ 
and arm him to rid his Countty of her Yoke ? 

Were 



330 Off /AfCHABACTEE BoOK III. 

Were die Arts then to which Plato formM Din 
difieienc from thofe to which Ifoaatos formed the 
famous TimotbeuSj the Son of that excellent Ge* 
oeral Caum^ and himfelf a irery great Captain, 
and a very learned Man. The fame were the 
Arts in which Ljfisy the Difciple of Pjtbagtfras 
inftnided Epamnondas of Tbeits^ who was perhaps 
the greateft Man in Greece. The fame thole to 
which Xeaopbm form'd AgeJSaus ; Arcbjtas of T'a- 
rcBiuM PbiloIoMS ; and Pjtbagoras all that Part of 
liatf which formerly went under the Name of 
Crecia Magna \ nor can I be ever brought to believe 
tfaey were not. 

CHAP. XXXV. 

TH U S I can perceive that there was but one 
general kind of Learning, which was fuited 
to a Man of Letters^ and the Man who wanted to 
make a Figure in the State ; and that whoever 
poflfefsM this' Leamiogy a Genius to deliver it 
gracefully, joined to a Pradice in Speaking with-* 
out any Impediment from Nature, made a Figure 
in Eloquence. Therefore Ariftotk^ feeing the Suc-r 
ce& which Ifocrates met with, by having his 
School full of Men of Quality, whereas he himfelf 
had transferred his Ledhires from Civil Caufes and 
publicDifputes, to an empty Elegance of Expreflion, 
of a iudden entirely altered his Form of Teaching, 
and pronounc'd with a little Variation a Line re- 
lating to Pbilo£letes^ where it is faid, That it was 
JcandalQUS to be/dent^ and hear Bakbarians j^^^^ } 
Artfiotle faid, and hear \^oq^\tz$ fpeah He 'there- 
fore embellifli'd and enlightened this whole Syftem, 
^nd join'd the Knowledge of Things to the Prac- 
tice of Speaking, Philip^ that wife Prince, was 

not 



Book III Ofan Ok at o^. 331 

not infenfible of thisj for he fent for, and ap- 
pointed him Tutor to his Son Alexander^ who by. 
his Inftrudions improv'd in the Exprcifcs both 
of Afting and Speaking. It is therefore pf na 
Confequence whether the Philofopher who t^lks 
eloquently is call'd an Orator 4 or whether the 
Orator who joins Wifdom to Eloquence is term'd 
a Philofopher : provided it is admitted that ^ 
Knowledge of Things^ without an Ability of ex- 
preffing them, no more deferves the Name of 
Eloquence y than a Fluency pf fFords^ join'd to 
an Ignorance of Things: For my part, were I 
to take my Choice, I fliould prcfcr^good Senfe^ tho* 
uneloquent, to Nonfenfe^ let it be ever fo flowing, 
Btit the Palm muft be given to Eloquence join'd 
with Learning \ and if Philofophy is added to 
thefe, it puts the thing beyond Controverfy, 
But fuppofe they are feparated, thefe two laft 
Qualities will be inferior to Eloquence, becaufe 
they unite in the greatefl: Degree in a compleat 
Orator : But the Knowledge of Philofophy does 
not always carry along with it Eloquence \ which 
however it may be flighted by Philofophers, 
yet appears quite heceflfary for giving the finifli- 
ing Touch to all the Arts. When Crajfus had 
done fpeaking a general Paufe enfu*d in the Com- 
pany. 

CHAP, XXXVI. 

INDEED, faid Cctta^ I cannot at all com- 
plain that your Dilcourfe has run into a Sub- 
jedt diiFerent from that which you undertook to 
Ipeak to i for you have taken upon you a larger 
Sh^re than wh^t was allotted and enjoined you by 



33^ Om tbt CHAitACTKK Book HL 

m: But uodoiibcedlj your Province was to ipeak 
opoodie Method of OIofiTatii^ a Difcoiirie ; up- 
on dm you had entered, and divided the whole 
EzceUenqr of Eloquence into four Parts: After 
yoo had, as you (aid yourfidf, quickly and flight* 
ly, bat, as we think, fuffidtndy, ipoke to the 
two firft FvtSj you kft two ftill to be fpoken to ; 
I mean the Method of fpeaking with GracefuL 
nefs^ and next with Profrietj. Scarcely had you 
touchM upon diis, when the Fervour, of your 
Genius liiatch'd you far from the Ground, and 
convey'd you almoft out of our Sight. You 
comprehended the whole Syfiem of Knowled^ ; 
you did not indeed communicate it to us ; for it 
is a Matter of too much Coniequence to be im- 
parted in fo ihort a Time ; byt I Ipeak only for 
myfelf ; I own however that you carry'd me into 
the Heart of the Academy. We wifli what you 
have often advanced were true, I mean that it is 
unneceflary to confume one's Life in tbeie Aca- 
demical Exercifes ; and that, in order to be Matter 
of them, it were fufficient to have a View of 
them* But, tho' they are difficult, and I am duj], 
yet never will I reft, never will I give over, be- 
fore I am acquainted with all the Ways and Arts 
of difputing, both for and againft every Subjeft, 
There is one^ thing, Crajfus^ in your Difcourfe, 
faid Cafar^ which I own touches me ; and that is, 
your denying that a Man who does not learn ;gt 
thing quickly can ever be able to learn it at all ; 
fo that I may find it eafy to try, and Immediately 
learn thofe Points, which you in your Difcourle 
have fo) prodigioufly extoll'd ; or, if I am incapa% 
ble of that, I may lofe no Time, and take up with 
what I can pick up from my own Countrymen, 

For 



BookIIL Of an Okato^I 33j 

For my Part, Crajfus^ faid Sulpiciusj I neither ftand 
in need of your Ariftotle^ nor your Carneades^ nor 
any of your Philofophers, you are welcome either 
to think that I defpair of fuch Attainments, or 
to defpife them : The Knowledge, indiflferent as it 
is, that I have attain'd to in the ordinary Prac- 
tice of the Bar, is fufiicient for all the Degrees 
of Eloquence that I have in View, yet I am ig- 
norant of many of thofe, and am at a lofs for 
them when I am to plead a Caufe. Therefore, 
unlefs you are already tir*d, and unlefs we are 
troublefome to you, I beg that you would touch 
upon thofe Properties that communicate Splendor 
and Dignity to a Speech ; I wifh'd to hear you talk 
upon this Subje£b, not that I might defpair of my 
attaining to Eloquence, but becaufe I ftill want t6 
improve in Learning. 

CHAP XXXVII. 

» 

Ti H E Points you require me to fpeak to, an- 
• fwerM CraffuSj are common, and fuch as 
you are no Stranger to : They are Points upon 
which Numbers of People h ave taught, Icdur'd, 
and even wrote. , But I will obey you, and fo 
far as I know I will communicate in a few Words ; 
but ftill I will advife you to the Authors and In- 
ventors of thofe minute Subjefts. Every Speech 
therefore is made up of Words, which we firft 
confider by themfelves, and then as Handing with 
others. For one Embellifhment of Speech coniifts 
in Words confider*d fingly, and in themfelves ; 
and another as they form a Period or Sentence. 
Let us therefore make ufe of Words that are pro- 
per, adapted to the Quality of what they exprefs, 
and ahnoft coeval with their Subjeftj or fuch 

* as 



334 OntbeCuAkACTtn fiooit ilL \ 

u are metaphorical, as being fubftituted in room of 
ibmewhat elfe : Or fuch as are invented, andcoinM 
by ourfelves. With regard to proper Words, a 
gpod Orator \viil avoid all that are low and 
^fbfoleiey and ufe thofe that are well-chofen, fig- 
nificant) full, and founding. But in this Choice 
die Ear is to be confuked : and to this a good 
Manner of Speaking is very neceflary. The Ex^ 
preflion made ufe of by ignorant Pe<^e, when 
.they are charafberifieg Speakers, ^baifixh a Man 
makes uft of good fVoris ; or, fiicb anofber (f very 
iad ^ms^ is not the Refuk of their Learning, 
but of their natural Senfe. And this does not makef 
it any great Merits if a Speaker avoids ImprO' - 
p ricties, tho* there is a very great Merit in it, but 
lays the whole Foundation and Ground-Work ot 
ihe whole, in the Ufe and Command of good 
Words. But the Subjeft of our prefent Enquiry 
and lUuftration regards the Superftrudture and the 
dmbelliftiments rear'd by the Orator. 

CHAP. XXXVIIL 

AS to fingle Words, then there are three 
Kinds, which the Orator employs in il^ 
lufirating and embellifliing a Speech j the difus^d^ 
the ne^'Coin^d^ and the metaphorical. The difus d 
are generally old, worn out, and have not for a 
long Time been employed in common Conver* 
fation ; fuch Words are more proper for Poets than 
us. Yet fometimes a poetical Exprefllon gives a 
certain Dignity to a Speech: For I would not 
fcruple to fay with CaHus ; * In Days of Tore^ when 

• Im Dofs 9/ Tore .] Orig. ^ua Tempiftaie PjBNUs in JtaHam 
^9fimBbmr. 

I the 



Book nU 0/ tf« Orator." 33^ 

tie Punic came into Italy; nor tme Issub, nor 
THE Offspring of fuch cr fucb a Man ; or to 
KONcui>ATE ; or with CatuluSy ^forsooth, or me • 
THINKS, together with a great Number of o- 
thcr Expreffions, which when they are happily 
difpos'd, often give a Speech a greater Air of 
Grandeur and Antitpiity. Words are new-coin'd two 
Ways, when they are produced and made by the 
Perfon who ufes them, either by Compofition, 
as, IThm Pear expectorated all my Senfe\ or, 
in the following Line, Shall I be praSUs^d im fucb 
f F OX'LIKZ IFiles ? Here you fee Expectorate 
and Fox LIKE are Words Inade by Compofition 
and not invented. Or elfe Words are often ab- 
folutely invent edy as the Expreflion in Ennius^ ^be 
Genital Gods\ or thus. Beneath the fruitful Ber- 
ries it is incur v'd. As to the third Mode, which 
is that of metaphorical Expreflion, it is very ex- 
tenfive, and was -at firft the EfFeft of Necefllty and 
Confinement within too narrow a Compafs ; but 
afterwards it became agreeable, delightful, and 
ufual. For as Drefs was at firft invented to fliel- 
ter us from the Cold, People afterwards improved 
it into an Ornament and Diftinftion of th«ir 
Perfons. Thus Pleafure adopted thofe metapho- 
rical Exprefllons which Poverty invented : For 
there Is not a Clown now, who does not fpeak of 
the ruby Grapes^ the luxuriant Grafs^ and the fmi- 
ling Com: For when a Thing cannot be exprcfs'd 
by a proper Word, but is by a metaphorical ; 
the Similarity of the Sqbjedl from which the Me- 
taphor is borrowed gives aLuftre to our Meaning. 
Therefore thefe Metaphors are as it were. Borrow- 
ings from a foreign Subjed. But other Kinds, fuch 

•f Fox-lih^l Lot. Ver/utiloquas 

as 



536 On the C H a s, A g T e r Book llh 

as thofe employed by an Orator, are more hardy, and 
do not denote a Poverty, but communicate a Luftre 
to his Language; why (hall I either point out to you 
the manner of inventing them, or their Kinds. 

CHAP XXXIX. 

A Metaphor confifts in one Word, which be- 
ing fubftituted for another, if the Similarity 
ftrikes, it is delightful ; if not, it is fhocking* 
But all metaphorical Expreflions ought to illuflrate 
the Subjeft^ as in the following Verfcs j 

The Ocean (bidder s^ lishile Darknefs palpable 

Sits brooding on the Deeps and pointed fiajhes 

Glancing athwart the Clouds^ the vaulted Dome 

Of Heaven all trembles with tbe Thunderer^s Peals. 

Down from tbe Windows of the Sky defcends 

In mighty Catara£is a gelid Storm 

Of Rain commixed with Hail. Then the winged 

Winds 
Burft from their Prifons and in Hurricanes 
Sweep o^er tbe Surfa.ce of the troubled Deep. 

Here almoft all the Metaphors are drawn from fi- 
mdar Objeds, to heighten the Defcription of the 
Storm. They are likewife employed to hint any 
Thing that is done or intended, as when we want 
to paint a Man who puzzles any^Thing, and pur- 
pofely renders it unintelligible, we can do it by a 
Metaphor of two Words. He entangles bimfelf in 
a Web of his pzvn Spinning. A metaphorical Ex- 
preflion fometimes afllfts Brevity, If tbe Dart Jball 
efcape his Hand\ here the throwmg the Dart at ran- 
dom is hinted <?/ in as few Words by a Metaphor, 
as it could have been exprefs^d without one. And 

I have 



Book HL Of an Ok at or. 337 

. I have often been furpriz*d upon this Head, why 
we (hould be better pleas'd with metaphorical and 
foreign ExprelTions, than with proper and unbor- 
rowed onesi 

CHAP. XL. 

Id R if an Objeft has not a Wtord appro- 
7- priatcd to itfelf, as the Foot of a Sbip^ tbi 
Tougue of a BallancCy the Divorce of a lVife\ then 
we are obliged to ufe Metaphors to ejfprefs them. 
But even where there is the greateft Copidufnefs of 
proper, unborrowed Expreflions, People are ge- 
nerally beft pleasV with well-chofen Metaphors* 
I imagine that this happens from its being a Kind 
of a Mark of Genius to (light obvious, eafy £x- 
prtfliohs, "and to borrow them from far-fetch'd 
Subjects \ or becaufe the Hearer is drawn into a 
Train of Refledbion, which carries him farther 
than he fhould otherwife go^ and yet not out of 
1^ Way: This is extremely agreeable: Or it is 
owing to the Expreflion prefenting, at the fame 
Time, the Object and the whole Image ; or be- 
caufe all Metaphors, at leaft fuch of them as are 
i)eft chofen, arc apply*d to the Senfes, efpecially 
the Seeing, which of all Senies is the moft exqui- 
fite. Thus when we fay, the Tiniiure of Polite ^ 
nefsj the Scfinefs of good Bfeedif^y the Muttnur of IVa-* 
ters^ znd Sweetmfs of language', thefe Metaphors 
are ^I taken from the other Senfes, But the Meta- 
phors taken from the Senfe of Seeing are much 

more ftriking, becaufe they place in the Eye of 
the Imagination Objefts which otherwife it is im- 
poflible for us to fee or comprehend. For there 
IS nothing in Nature but what w^ may adapj: 
its Name to fignify fomewhat elfe ; and every 

Z Cbjedt 



338 On tBeCuAHAcriEti Book III 

Objed from which a Likencfs can be rais'd, as 
it may from all Objefts, if metaphorically ap- 
ply'd, one Word taken from it illuftrates a Dif- 
courfe. In the firft Place, all Diflimilarity is to 
be avoided in Metaphors : As when Etimus fays, 
The mighty Arcbes of Heaven •, tho' he brought a 
Globe upon the Stage to denote Heaven, yet the 
Speftators could find no Similiarity betwixt a 
Globe and an Arcb. 

Uve^ Ulyfles, while you may^ 



Then fnatch a Glance^ and hid farev)ell to 'Day. 

Here the Poet does not lay, take or receive ; be- 
caufe fuch Expreffions might have imply'd, as if 
he hop*d to live longer-, but he makes ufe of the 
Word fnatch^ which agrees with what he fays be - . 
fore, while you may . \ 

CHAP. XLI. 

WE muft next take Care that the Simile!? 
not too far fetched ; for Inftance, I had 
rather fay, the Rock upon whi(;h an EJiate was 
wreck* d^ than the Syrtis where it funk: I had ra- 
ther fay the Gulph than the Charybdis of Wealth y 
for the Eye of Imagination is more eafily direfted 
to Objefts, which have been fubjeflted to the 
fenfual Sight than thofe which one knows no- 
thing of, but by Hearfay. And becaufe in Me- 
taphors the great Excellency lies in the Aptnefs 
of the Image, we ought to avoid all Images which 
prefent obfcene Ideas -to the Mind of the Hearer : 
For Inftance, when I fpeak of the Death of A- 
fri€anus^ I Ihould not chufe to fay. That the Re- 
public was thereby gelded ; nor to call Glaucia^ the 

Excre- 



Boole tltk 0/ tf« R A T o k. 335) 

Excrement of the Senate I for tho* the Pifture may 
ftrike, yet- they convey nafty Ideas to the Mind. 
I would not chufe to have a Simile raife an 
Idea that is too unweildy for the Subjeft. As 
for Inftance, an Hurricane (f Debauch fay? too 
much, the Debauch of an Hurricane fays too lit- 
tle, which I would avoid too. I fliould net 
. chufe to have the metaphorical Expreflion more 
circumfcrib'd than the proper and unborrowed 
one would have been -, for Inftance, Prithee what 
is the Matter^ why de you nod the People from you ? 
The Author had much better have faid. Why 
do you hinder^ prevent^ frighten People? Becaufe 
he had faid a little before ; hence ; away^ my Friends \ 
the Shadow of nrf Prefence is contagious to the 
Worthy. If one is afraid that a Metaphor be too 

harfh, it rhay be foYten'd by throwing in an 
Expreflion before it; for Inftance, if when ML 

Cato died ^ one had taken it in his Head to 
have faid, that the Senate was left an Orphan ^ 
that would have been a little too harlh, it might 
have been foften*d by the ExpreflTion, If I may 
venture to fay it^ an Orphan. For a Metaphor, 
as it poflefles a ftrange Place, ought to be intro- 
duc'd with Diffidence ; it ought not to rufli in, but 
be brought in, it ought not to appear ftrain'd 
but natural. But there is no Method of writing 
that communicates greater Gracefulnefs to parti- 
cular Exprefllons, or throws a greater Luftre up- 
on a Speech in general, than the metaphorical 
does. For the Luftre flowing from this Figure 
does not confift in one metaphorical Expreflion, 
but is continued by a Connexion of many, which 
being taken feparate have a dificrent Signification 
' from what they have as they ftand connefted with 

Z 2 one 



340 On the C h a E a c T E R Book III 

one another. Thas, 1 will ncS fiffffr the Grecian 
Fleet to firihe again upon the fame Rfick and Wea- 
pen. And, Ton art mfiakea^ yen are^ for the 
firong Cmb ef Laws will fnpprefs jour InfoUnce^ aud 
Confidence^ and wHl fnbjeB you to the Toke of their 
Domimon. Proper Words that arc borrowed from 
a fimiJar Objed, as I have betore obfenr^d, may be 
metaphorically apply*d to another Thing. 

CHAP. XLIL 

THIS is the great Ornament of Language 
and Obfcurity here, is, by all Means, to be 
avoided : For it is from the metaphorical that the 
^enigmatical Way of Speaking arifcs-, which laft 
does not confift in Words, but in Periods ; that 
\s^ a certain Fabrick of Words. The following 
Metaphor does not confift in a Word, but in the 
whole Period ; Grim Afric trembles with tremendous 
Noije. Here Africa is put for the Africans. Nor 
IS the Word here made as in this, the Sea with 
Rock'lajhing IVaves. Nor is it borrow*d, as here, 
the Seaisfeftned. But it is a proper Word, fub- 
ftituted in Place of another proper Word, by 
Way of Ornament, as in the following Inftance, 
Give o'tTy O Rome, thy l^nemies to And 

thus ■ The fpacious Fields are Witneffes. The 
majeftic Stile is often employ'd with Succefs in the 
Kmbelliihment of a Speech; for Inftance, we 
put Mars inftead of fVar^ Ceres for Com^ Bac- 
chus for fViney Neptune for the Sea^ the Hcufe for 
the Senate^ the Field for the AJfemblies of the Peo- 
ple^ the long Robe for Peace^ Arms and Weapons 
for Fighting. In the fame Manner we perfonify 
Virtues and Vices to fignify their feveral Sub- 
jects. Thus we fay, The Family into which Lux^ : 

ury 



Book III. Of an Oiiat6R. 341 

ury breaks \ the Place wherever Avarice penetrates,*, 
Truth prevaifd i yujiiee triun^Vd. So much for 
this great Figure of Ornament, by which the 
fame Thing is cxprefs*d, by changing or adapting 
a Word. There is another much of the fame Na- 
ture, which is lefs ornamenting, yet ought not to 
be unknown. As when we -put the P^rt for the 
Whole ; or the Whole for the Part ; as for In- 
ftance, Speaking of a Houfe. we may call it The 
Walls. Of a fingle Troop, we may call it, The 
Cavalry 4/ the Roman Reople. Or we may ex- 
prefe a Multitude, by ufing the fxngular Nunber 1 
for Inftance, Tho* the thing was bravely d^ne the 
Roman trembled. Or one Man may be fpoken of 
in the plural Number. Thus, Before we were Rhu- 
dians, now we are Romans. But in all this Fi-^ 
gure it is not the Letter, but the Meaning that is 
regarded. 

CHAP XLIII. 

WE often likewife mifepply Words, a Prac- 
tice that never has any good £Se£t, but 
in Metaphors \ but tho* a great deal of Libe^ is 
us'd here, it fometimes has an happy Effefl-, 
Thus fpeaking of an important Diieourfe we call 
it a grand one. Speaking of a little Soul we call 
it a diminutive one^ But you may perceive that 
all thefc Metaphors do not confift Jn the Word, 
but in the Period, which, as I faid before, is 
connedted by feveral metaphorical Expreflions^ 
But as to thofe which I have mentioned ro ba.ppen 
by Alteration, or are to be underftood other wife 
than they are fpoke, they are all in fome Sort 
metaphorical. Thus the whole Force and Beauty 
ef fingjie Expreflions arifc from three Gircum- 

ftaaces ^ 



t* 



342 On the CuA'R ACT EK Book IU. 

fiances ; either when one ufes an old Word, 
\^hich may however be born witji, in the Language 
of the prefent Age ; or when it is made either by 
Compofition, or Creation, in which Cafe the 
Ears and Praftice of the World are to be confuked j 
or when the Expreffion is metaphorical, which 
ferves as fo many Stars to befpangle and illuminate 
a Speech. The Compofition of Style is our next 
Confideration, which requires two Things ; firft, 
the Arrangement; fecondly, a certain Harmony 
in turning the Period. Arrangement confifts in 
compofing and placing your Words, fo as that 
there may be neither too much Roughnefs, nor 
too much Opennefs in the Pronunciation v but that 
the Strufture of the whole may be connected and 
fmooth ; As Luciliusy that elegant Satyrift, intro- 
duces the Character of my Father* in-Law, faying 
with a great deal of Wit, 

Here finely jointed are the Periods founds 
Smooth as the Art that plans the pdijb^d Tarje- 
menty 

As in thefe Lines he plays upon Albucius^ neither 
has he fpar*d me. / have a Son-in-Law^ Craffus, 
who OUT 'OK ATOVi% you. 

What then! that fame Crajfus^ as you have 
made free with his Name, what has he effedted ? 
Why the very Thing that both he and I wanted 5 
and I hope we have fucceeded a little better 
than Albticius. But Lucilius always us*d to break 
his Jokes upon me. However, this Arrange- 
ment of Words is to be obfcrv'd fo as to render 
your Style coherent, fmooth, and equal. This 
you compafs, if the latter Part of your Period is 
join'd to the preceding in fuch a planner as that 

there 



o 



Book IIL Of an Or at or. 343.. 

there be neither a difagreeable Roughnefe, nor too 
wide an Opening. 

CHAP. XLIV. 

TH E next thing I would recommend to your 
Attention is the Fajfliion and Form of your 
Words, which I am afraid Catulus may think 
a childifh Confideration. . But our Fore -fathers 
thought, that in our Profe we ftiould employ a 
kind of Verfification and certain Numbers. For 
they required proper Paufes in a Style, where we 
may recover inftead of lofing our Breath j and 
that thefe fhould not be left to the pointing of a 
Tranfcriber, . but be direded by the Turn and 
Manner of the Words and Periods. IJocrates is 
faid to have firft taught this, that he might regu- 
late by certain Numbers the loofe, rambling Style 
ws'd by the Antients^ and thereby, as his Scholar 
Naucrates writes, give Relief and Pleafure to the 
Ear. For Muficians, who formerly were Poeti 
too, moulded their Verfes and their Recitative 
into delightful Harmony ; fo that the Numbers of 
the one, and the Melody of the other, prevented 
the Ear from ever being fatiated with Pleafure. 
Thefe two Properties therefore,, I mean the Sweet* 
nefs of Delivery, and the^ cloGng of Periods, were 
by them taken from Poetry, and engrafted upon 
Eloquence, as far as the Gravity of Profe could 
admit of. The chief Difficulty here is to prevent 
your Periods from running* into Poetry, for that 
would be a Fault, and yet to give it all the Eafe, . 
the Harmony, the Roundnefs, and finilhing of 
Numbers. And perhaps the chief of many Dif- 
ftinftions betwixt a good and a bad Speaker is> 

that 



344 O;^ /(^Character BookIIT. 

that the one indifcriminately and unflcilfully pours 
out all he has to fay, without (topping from an7 
other Rule than that of his being breathlefs. But 
an Orator conne<£l;s his Sentiments with his Words 
in fuch a manner, as to confine both within Peri- 
ods which are mufical without being confin'(i. 
For tho* he reftrifts his Style to Periods, and tQ 
Meafures, yet he reljeves and unbends it by va- 
rying the Stops ai>d Cadence ; fo that his Word$ 
are neither cramped by thp Fetters of Verfification, 
nor ramble into any wildnefs of Licentioufnefs 

CHAP. XLV. 

BY what means then are we to arrive at this 
Excellency of Style in Speaking with all 
the Harmony and Beauty of Numbers ? Why 
the Matter is not fo difficult as it is neceflary. 
For there is not any one thing in the World fo 
pliable, fo flexible, fo du&ile, and fo obfequious 
as Language. It produces equal and unequal 
Meafures in Poetry, and is the Material from 
which we form Profe of various Meafures and difr 
ferent Kinds. The Words we ufe in Conver- 
fation are the fame we ufe in Pleading ; and the 
Words that form our Language in common Life 
are the fame with thofe we employ in Plays and 
Harangues. But then after we have rais'd them 
from their groveling, common Import, we then 
mould and fafiiion them at Pleafure* like the 
fofteft Wax. By thefe Means our Style is fome- 
times majeftic, fometimes delicate, and fome- 
times in a Mean. By thefe means our Language 
is adapted to the Sentiment we profefs, and is 
fuited and accommodated to every Purpofe, whe- 
ther depending upon' foothipg the Ear, or touch- 

l ing 



Book III. P/anORATovil . 345 

ing the Paflions. But in Speaking the fame Thing 
happens which may be difcQver*d in moft of the 
other furprizing Operations of Nature, that the 
Subjefts which are of the greateft Utility contain 
the greateft Dignity, and often the greateft Beau^ 
ty. We fee that the Oeconomy of the Univcrfe, 
and of Nature, is accommodated to the general 
Safety and Happinefs. The Concavity of the 
Heavens, the centrical Pofitioq of the (elf-bal* 
knc'd Earth, the Rotation of the Sun thro' all 
the Gradations and Revolutions of the Seafons^ 
the Accefs and Recefs of the Moon, by Which the 
Radiancy ihe derives from the Sun is r^ulated^ 
and the unequal Revolutions of the five other 
Planets, are all fo many convincing Proofs of this 
Truth. So unvarying are the Properties which 
effeA all thefe Caufes, that the leaft Alteration 
would diffolve the whole Syftcm ; and fo beaiAi- 
fully is their Oeconomy, that Fancy can form 
nothing fo fair« J^t us now refleft upon the 
Form and Figure of Man, and even of other 
Animals 5 there you find that every Member has 
its proper Ufe ; and that the finifhing of the whole 
fpeaks not a blind Chance, but a providential 
Wifdom. 

C JI A P. XLVL 

HO W wonderful ijs the vpgitating Creation, 
where there is not 4 Stock, there is nqt a 
Bough, nay nor a Leaf, which does not operate 
. in preferving and propagating its own Nature, 
yet all is Beauty. Let us pafs from, Nature to 
fhe Arts : In a Ship, what is more neceflary than 
the Sides^ the Keel, jhe Prow, the Stern, the 



346* On the Charactir Book III. 

Yards, the Sails, the Mafts? Yet all together 
appear fo comely, that they feem not as defign'd 
fpr Prefervation only, but for Beauty. Pillars, 
fupport Portico's and Temples ; yet they are not 
more graceful than they are ufeful. It was not 
Beauty, but Necefllty, that contriv'd the noble. 
Cupola of the Capitol, and of other facfed 
Stru^res. For in the Contrivance how to 
fet the Rain o8f on each Side ot the Edi- 
fice, the very Form in which this was brought 
about created the lofty Appearance it makes: 
So that tho* the Capitol ftood in the Heavens, 
where no Rain can fall, the Majefty of its 
Strufture would be loft without its Cupola. The 
fame Obfervation holds good with regard to Elo- 
quence, almoft thro' all its Parts : For there Wii: 
and Harmony almoft attends Utility.; and, I may 
fay, Necefllty. For the Stops and Divifions of 
Periods were firft introduced for recovering the 
Breath, and fparing the Lungs ; and yet in their 
own Nature they are fo mufical, that tho' one$ 
Lungs were inexhauftible, yet we Ibould not wifli 
for a Continuity of his Style without any Stops; 
Such a Sympathy fubfifts betwixt what is agreea- 
ble to our Ears, and what is not only 'poffible, but 
cafy, for our Lungs. 

CHAP. XLVIL 

AS far as our Breath will reach without draw- 
ing, it is the Meafure of the longeft PerK 
od : But tho' this is the Standard of Nature, Art 
has a different one : For as there is Diverfity 
of Numbers, your Favourite Arijlotky Catulus^ de- 
bars an Orator from too frequently ufing the lam- 
ius and the Troctee^ yet they naturally run into 

our 



Book Illt Of an O^l at vul ^ 347. 

oqr Language and Dilcouiie : But the Strokes, 
and/ the Quickojefe: of their Feet . have too ftrong 
an EfFed: upon th^ Ear i therefore he recommends 
DaStyles^ Anafeji$^ and Sfondeis^ which are- us'd 
in He^amettrsy as moft ;proper for our Purpofe^ 
for we can make free with two or more feet* 
and thereby avoid falling into Poetry or Verfi- 
fication. , There are diffy liable Meafures, with 
which thefe th^ee Hexameters fall . with a pretty 
good Eflfeft in the Beginning pf Periods*.. But 
Arifiotk chiefly approves of the P^on^ which is 
two- fold s for it confifts either of one long and 
two fhort Syllables *, or of three ihort, and one 
long Syllabic i". Our Philofopher is beft pleased 
#ith the fetting out in the former of thefe Peons 
and finiftiing by the latter, which is not deter- 
mined by the Number of Syllables, but by tlie 
more accurate and exaft Judgment of ^he Ear: 
This Meafure is . equal almoft to the Creticus^ 
which confifls of a long, a ihort, and a long 
Syllable. J Fanmm by fetting out in this Mea- 
fure, thought it more proper, than the Stops with 
which long Syllables are generally terminated* 



\ 



B 



CHAP. XLVIII. 

U T in ufing thefe Quantities we are not 
ty*d down to fo fcrupulous and ftriiS: an 



* The Aathor here gives Examples of this Figure, as def^ 
nite, incipite, compromite; but as thde are given only for their 
Meafure, and not their Meaning, we have not thooglit proper 
to tranflate them. 

•}- Domutrani Smipedes. Orig. 

J Our Author gives an Inftaftce of this Meafure in a Lath 
Line; ^id Polam Frefidi, out extqmr ? ^wwg mmc. 
and tells us that Fannius fct out with this Mealurc in the follow- 
ing Words, Si ^irites Minai illimn Ilk in the Original may 
mean AriMt, ' ^ ^ 

^ Obfer^ 



54^ 0/riAf Chaiact£& Book III 

Obfiaration of the Meafures as Poets are, who 
are confin'd to Exaftnels, bodi in their Numbers 
and Verfification, fo diat there muft not be the leaft 
Breath either longer cfr Jhorfer, dian the Rules of 
Proibdy admit of. Profe is more free, and in plain 
Terms it is, as it is call'd, an unconfinM Style, but 
without Loofenefi and RamUbg, for it regulates 
itfelf without Conftraint. For I think with The- 
cpbrajiusy that a finilhM, polifhM Stile ought not 
to have a r^ular, but a flowbg Harmony of Pe* 
riods. He is likewife of Opinion, that the jtna- 
pefius was composed out of thofe Mealures that 
make up the heroic, as being of a more uncon- 
fin*d Nature ; that this was followed by the Dy- 
ttjrambuSy which is more free and luxuriant ftiU, 
its Qi^antides and Meafures being difius'd thro' 
dll ftorid Styles* And if, in every Modulation of 
Voice, in 41 Cadences of Periods, Harmony con- 
lifts in certain Effcds they have upon the Ear, 
and a well-tim*d Meafure betwixt every Stop, the 
true Excellency qf a Profe Style lies in rightly 
judging diis Meafure, and taking care that it have 
no regular Returns that may tire the Ear. For tf 
an cverlafting flowing Prate, without Stop, with- 
out Stay, is difagreeable in all Refpefts, what is 
the Reafon, but becaufc the Ear modulates the 
Voice, which can have no Harmony if it keeps no 
Time. But there is no Time where there are no 
Stops. The Intermiflion and Striking of Sounds 
either at equal or unequal Intervals, m^ke Time. 
Wc may obfcrve a Time in Water falling Drop by 
prop, but cannot in a rolling River. If Stile there- 
fore, confiderM as a Fluxion of Words, is much 
more proper and agreeable when mark'd by Stops 

and Periods ; }t js plain that its Members ought to 

be 



%ooK IIL OfanO^ATovi. 34f 

be under fome Regulation. If the Clofc of a 
Period is quick and ihort it Ipoils its Round- 
nefs ; for fo the Greeks term the Turn of a Style. 
Therefore the Syllables at the Clofe of a Period 
ihould be equal to the foregoing, and thefe to 
^hat preceded them j or elfe what is much bet- 
ter and more mufical, they ought to be longer 

CHAP. XLIX. 

• 

SUCH, Catulus^ are the Precepts of your 
favourite Philofophers, whom I often quote, 
that I may under their Sanction avoid the Impu- 
tation of trifling. How fo, reply'd Catulus^ do 
you imagine then that you could have brought 
any thing into (your Difcoi^rfe that is more elegant 
or more delicate? But, anfwers CraJfuSy I ani 
afraid, that thefe young Gentlemen will fancy it 
more difficult than it really is; or becaufe I 
have not delivered it in the common Terms, that 
I affeft to make it fecm important and difficult. 
You are miftaken, CraffuSj faid Catidus again, if 
you imagined that either I, or any of this Com- 
pany, cxpcfted from you ought that was trite or 
common. You have fpoken to the very Points we 
wilhM to hear from you; and your Manner is 
ftill more agreeable than your Matter \ this I 
boldly pronounce, not only for myfelf, but in the 
Name of all prefcnt. For my Part, fays Mio-^ 
niusy I recant what I advanced in my Pamphlet, 
that no Man' can be eloquent \ for I have now 
found fuch a Man. But I don't intend to divert 
you in the fhort Time you have for finifhing your 
Difcourfc, nor fliall one Word of mine, even in 
your Praife, mifemploy it. You muft then, con^ 
tinu*d CraJfuSy form yourfclves to this Standard of 

Eloquence 



y 



35© OntbeCn Alt AcrtVi Book Ilf^ 

Eloquence by Pradicc in Speaking and Writing, 
that great EmbcUiflier and Fini Aer of all other 
Attainments, but of thi& efpecially. But this is 
no fuch mighty Taflc as it appears, for you are 
* not bound down to the rigid Laws of Poetry and 
Mufic ; all you have to do is to take Care that 
your Style be neither loofe nor rambling ; that it 
ftop not too fhort, nor run on too long. That 
its Divifions be well mark'd, and the Periods 
round, nor are we to make ufe of a Samenefs in 
their Turn ; you muft often throw into your Style 
detach^, quick Sentences ; yet even tbefe ougKc 
to have their proper Cadence. Don't be ftartled 
at the Pevn^ or the Hexameters I have mentioned ;^ 
you will naturally fall into them, they will pre^ 
fent, they will offer thepfelves to your Service, 
if, while you praftife Speaking and Writing, you 
clofe your Periods with Verbs, and thefe Verbs 
are compounded of free, eafy Meafures, fuch as 
the Heroic J the firft Peon^ or the Creticus \ but 
the Clofe ought ftill to be varied and diverfify'd 
for it is there that tlie Samenefi is chiefly ob- 
fervable ; and if the firft and the laft Feet are re- 
gulated by this Rule, the intervening will flip un- 
obfervM ; but Care muft ftill be taken that the 
Period don't turn too quick upon the Ear, or be 
prctrafted beyond what ^the Breath and the 
Strength of the Lungs will admit of. , 

C H A P. L. 

BU T of all Things I am of Opinion that 
you ought to have a particular Attention with 
refpeft to your Stops, for in thefe we chiefly 
judge of the Finifliing and Perfeftion of Style. • 
In Verfes, an Error in the Beginning, in the 
♦ Middle, 



Book III. O/"^/! Or at or. 3^1 

Middle, and in the End, is equally perceptible ^ 
and it fhocks where-ever the Failing is ; but in 
Profe, very few mind the Beginning, but moft ' 
People the End of a Period -, and thefe, becaufe 
they are moft ftriking and beft underftood, muft 
be varied, left either the Judgment be offended 
or the Ear tir'd. For the two or three laft Feet 
are to be obferv*d and marked, provided the fore- 
going were not ftiort and quick, for they ought 
to be either Chorion^ Heroic^ or Altermte^ or of 
the laft Kind of Teon^ which is approved of by 
Arifiotle ; or the Cretkus^ which is equal to that. 
When thefe are IkilfuUy diverfif/d, the Ear of 
the Hearer is neither cloy'd by a Samenefs^ nor 
does it feem to have coft any Trouble to the 
Speaker. But if Antipater of Sidon^ whom you, 
CatuluSf well knew, was us'd off-hand to pour 
forth Hexameter^ and other Verfes, in a Variety 
of Meafures •, and if Praftice fo much improved 
a Man of his great Genius and Memory, who 
was no fooner in a Vein of verfifying than Words 
tollowM of Courfe, how much more eafy is it for 
us to attain the fame End in Profe by Ufe and . 
Praftice ? But if any one fhould be furpriz*d 
that thefe Things arc difcem*d and Ynark'd by 
the moft vulgar Hearer; he needs but only re- 
fled how great and incredible the Force of Na- 
ture is in every Thing, 'efpecially in this; for 
every Man has within him a certain tacit Senfe, 
which enables him to diftinguilh what is right 
or wrong in Arts and Sciences, and this without 
Inftruftion or Information. If this Obfervation 
holds good with regard to Piftures, Statues, and 
other Works, in criticifing which, they have lefs 
Affiftances from Nature, it is, much more evident 

in 



352 On /ifcp Ch AR AGT EK. BooK lit 

an the Judgment they form upon Words, Har- 
mony, and Delivery, becaufe this is a Judgment 
implanted in the Senles that are common to all 
Mankind : It is a Faculty whi^h Nature never 
mean'd that any rational Creature fliould be abfb- 
lately void of. Therefore People are not only 
, mov'd with an artful DifpofitiOn of Words^ but 
even with their Harmohy and Sounds. For how. 
few know the Arts of Number and Meafures, yet 
we fee on the Stage, upon the lead Slip in making- 
a Word either too long or too fhort^ the whole 
Theatre refbunds with the Diflike of the Audi- 
ence. Will not then the fame thing happen with 
regard to Words, fo that they may not only in a 
Period and a Sentence be difagreeable to the Peo^ 
pie, not only in a Body but fcparately ? 

C H A P. LL 

IT is furprizing thete Ihould be fo great a Dif- 
ference in the Talents of the Learned and 
Unlearned^ and yet fo little in thofe required to 
judge of both 5 for Art, which is but the Daugh- 
ter of Nature, app^arft inefieftual, unlefs Ihe 
touches and delights Nature ; but nothing is fa 
analogous with our intelledbual Faculties as Har- 
mony and Sounds ; thro* them we rife^ we kindle, 
then fink and languifh •, they often put us in a 
cheatful, and often in a melancholy Mood ; their 
wonderful Magic is beft adapted to Verfes and 
Odes; therefore I imagine our learned Prince 
Numa^ and our Anceftors, were fenfible of thisy 
as appears by the mufical Inftruments introduced 
fa the * folemn Banquets, and the Verfes of the 
Snlii: But they were chiefly us'd in antienc 
Cr^ece^ and I wiih you had chofen that my Dif- 

courfe 



BtioK lit. Of an Ok At 6 n: 3^3 

tpurfe had turn'd uf)on thefe, and fuch other Sub- 
jefts, rather than in a childifli PJay upon Words : 
But as the common People can perceive a Fault 
in the Quantity of a -Verfe ; fo they are fenfible 
of any hobbling in a Profe Style ; but they never 
pardon the Poctj tho' they indulge usj yet all 
of them fccretly perceive that there is a Defeft in 
that Propriety and Perfeftion we have mentioned. 
Therefore the Antients, as we fee fome now-a- 
days, when they were unable to compleat die 
Roundnels, and^ ^s it wcre^ the Swccpj of a Pe- 
riod> a Thing that we have lately cither efteft- 
ed or attempted, have. fuppJy'd It with three 
Words, or two, and fome with one *, and in that 
Dawn of Arts, by pleafing the Ear in its De« 
tnand, this anfwcr'd their Purpofe, which was^ 
to have Words in their Periods refpondent to, 
and at equal Paufes from, one another, 

CHAP. LIL 

THtJS I have, a«s well as 1 am capable^ 
explained whatever belongs to the Embel-: 
lilhment of Style -, for I have confiderM the Pro- 
priety of Words by themfelves, as forming a Pe- 
riod, and as forming it grave^ fullj and harmoni- 
ous. But if 1 am to fpeak as to the Drapery> or 
the Colouring of the Speech ; that ought to have 
a certain Fulnef^ without Groflnefs j it ought to 
be genteel, yet lively and ftrong 5 and fuch as 
that its Excellency may lie in its equally partaking 
a moderate Share of both Kinds. Thefe three 
Charaiftcrs to be attended with a Colouring which 
appears beautiful, not from the Daubing of Painty 
but the Flufli of Health. Then^ then our Orator 

A a is 



354 0/1 /A^ C H A R A C T E R BooK IIR 

is finifti'd, both as to his Style and Sentiments^ 
in fuch a manner as a Pencirtg-Mafter thinks 
hi mfelf obliged to inftcuft his Scholars, not only- 
how to give or parry a Thruft, but how to move 
in graceful Attitudes : In like manner Compofiti- 
on and Gracefulncfs of Style confift in Words,- but 
its Majefty and Dignity in Sentiments. The 
Changes that may be run upon Words and Sen- 
timents are almoft indefinite : This I know ypu 
are fufBciently apprized ofj but there, is this Dif- 
ference in the Conftrudlion- of Words and Scnti- 
mehts, that the former is deftro'y'd by not preferv- 
ing the identical Words, but the Beauty of Scn^ 
tences will remain the lame is whatever Language 
they are cloath'd, f ho' you praftife this, yet 1 
think fit to put you in mind of it, left you fliould 
imagine that an Orator has any thing el(e to do) at 
leaft, any thing that can produce a beautiful and 
furprizing EfFeft) than to ^obfervc three Things 
with regard to each particular Word ; to ufe me- 
taphorical . Words frequently, fometimes faftiti- 
ous, but feldom antiquated, Exprelfions. But 
in the Thread of a Difcoufe, after we have con- 
fulted the Smoothnefs of Periods, and the Harmo- 
ny of Numbers I have mentioned, the whole Style 
is to be marked and befpangjed by the Brilliancy of 
Sentiment and Expreffion. 

CHAP LIIL 

FO R the Figure by which we dwell i^on one 
SuhjeSl is of great E£Rcacy, as is a perfpi* 
cuous lUuftration, and a lively Reprefentation of 
Fafts in the fame manner in which they h^pen'd. 
This is very ferviceable, firft in reprefenting a 
Matter, then in illuftrating that Reprefentation ; 

and 



Book III. Of an Or a tor. 355 

and likcwifc in . heightening it, fo that with our 
Hearers we make the njoft of our Subjeft that is 
in the Power of Words to make. Oppofite to this 
Figure is Precijion^ which rather gives a Hint to 
the Underftanding more than you fay 5 as is like- 
wife Brevity^ which confifts in a diftinft Concife- 
nefs^ together with Extenuation and lllufion^ which 
falls pretty well in with C^^far^s Rules. Then 
comes Digreffiony which as it is delightful, your 
refuming yoiir Subjeft ought to be proper and 
agreeable ; then follows the fropojition of what you 
are to fpeak to \ then its DisjunSlion from what 
hath been already faid 1 then you return to what 
you proposed ; then you recapitulate ; then you 
draw from the Premifes your Conclufion 5 then you 
enhance or evade the Truth, according as your 
Intention is to exaggerate qx extenuate \ then you 
examine^ and, what is very near a-kin to Exanii- 
nation, you expoftulate xuid anfwer upon your own 
Principles ; then comes that bewitching Figure of 
trowfy by which a different Thing is underflood 
from what is exprefsM, a Figure that has the moft 
agreeable EiSedbs in a Difcourfe, when introduced 
not by way of Argument^ but Entertainment; 
then comes T>ubitation\ then Bijkibution\ th^n 
the CorreBion of what you have either faid, or are 
to fay ; or when you are to throw any thing off 
from yourfelf. Premunitiony regards the Point 
you attempt to prove ; then there ^ is throwing the 
Blame upon another \ then there is Communicaiionf 
which is a kind o( Deliberation with thofe to whom, 
you fpeak ; then there is the Imitation of Morals 
and Lifej either when you nanie or conceal the 
Charafters they belong to *, this is a great EmbeU 
Uihment to a Speech, and is chiefly calculated 

A a 2 for 



356 On tbeCfi AH ACT tK Book: IlL 

for conciliating the Favour, but often for moving 
the Paflions of the Audience. Then follows sliv 
imaginary InduSlion of real Perfons, which is per- 
haps the moft heightened Figure of Exaggeration % 
then Befcription^ then the /«^«r5w» of a Miftake ; 
the Impuljion to Chearfulnefs ; then Prepojfeffion ^ 
together with thbfe two Figures that have fo ftrong 
an EfFeft, I mean Ccmparifon and Example ; thert 
comes Unravelling^ Interruption^ Straimng^ Suppref- 
fion of what you inftnuate you know^ Commendation ^ 
a more free, and even unbridled Style when you 
want to exaggerate^ and to give an Emphajis to 
your Expreffion; then comes Anger ^ Chiding^ 
Promijingj Deprecating^ Befeeebingf a Ihort Devia- 
tion from your Subjeft, but not of the fame Na- 
ture with Digreffion^ which I have already mentioned ; 
then Apologijing^ Conciliating^ Blaming^ ^ift^^gj and 
Execrating. It is chiefly by thefe Figures that 
Sentiments give Beauty to Eloquence. 

CHAP. LIV. 

AS to the Figures of Style, they ferve as in 
the Cafe of Fencing, either to fhew how 
well the Matter can aim -, and, as it were, fetch 
a Blow, or how gracefully he can handle his 
Weapons. For the Repetition of a Word fome- 
times gives Force to a Style, at other Times ic 
Ihfews Wit, as does a fmall Variation or Altera- 
tion of a Word. A frequent Repetition of the 
fame Word.from the Beginning, or the refuming 
it in the Clofe of a Speech ; the giving Force to 
Words, and then making the fame Words meet,- 
adjoin* and proceed, together. with putting a cer- 
tain Mark of Difl:in6lion' upon a particular Word 
which you often refume> and thofe which hare 
' • the 



SooK III. Of an Oik AT OK. 357 

the like Terminations, and the like Cadences j 
thofe which form the refpondept Parts of a Pe- 
riod, and have a mutual Relation to one another. 
There is likewife a certain Gradation and Convert 
Jion^ with a well-judg'd Tranfpofition of Words j 
there is then their Oppofition^ and 'Detachment 
from one another, by throwing out conjunSive 
Particles \ then Eva/ton^ Reprehenfton^ Exclamation^ 
Diminution \ and what is plac'd in many Cafes 5 
and what is drawn fk)m particular Propofition$ 
•and apply'd to particular Subjefts ; and the Me- 
itbod of laying down a Propq/ttion, together with 
Subdividing it into feveral Parts and Conceffion^ 
and another Kind of Doubting and Surprize.^ and 
Enumerating^ and another Correction, and DiJ/ipatingy 
Continuity^ and Interruption, and Representation, and 
anfwering one's feif, and Immutation and DisjunSlion^ 
and Order and Relation, and Digr£ffion and Prect* 
/ton. Thefe or the like, perhaps there may be 
more, are the Figures that illuftrate the Sentiments 
^nd the Style of a Speech, 

C H A P. LV. 

I Perceive, faid Cotta, that you have pour'd 
forth thofe Points without Definitions, and 
without Examples, becaufe you imagine that we 
are acquainted with them. For my Part, faid 
Crajfus, I did not imagine that any Thing I have 
fpoken of is unknown to you, all I meant was 
to comply with your Orders. But I fee by that 
^declining Sun, that I ought to be fhort upon thofe 
Heads ; for as he is hurrying down, fo has he 

fojc'd me to hurry them over. But the Expla- 

A a 3 nation 



/ • 



358 Ontbe Ck A VL ACT t:R Book III. 

nation and Rules relating to this Kind is common ; 
tho* the Application of them is very important, 
and^ the moft difficult Part in all the Praftice 
of Eloquence. Therefore as to the Embellifhments 
of Style, if they are not all of them laid open, 
yet at leaft the Topics from which they arc bor- 
rowed have been pointed out. Now let us con- 
fider Propriety^ by which I mean Gractfulnejs of 
Style ; ^ There is no general Rule for this ; for one 
Kind of Style cannot agree with every Caufe, every 
Hearer, every Charafter, every Junfture ; nothing 
is more evident than that criminal Aftions muft 
be talk-d to in a Language different from thofe 
we ufe in private and trifling Cafes; Debates, 
Panegyrics, Trials', Difcuurles, Confolations, Re- 
primands, Difputation^ and Hiftory, require each 
a different Style. We ought likewifeto regard 
the Charafter of thofe before whom we fpeak^ 
whether it be in the Senate- Houfe, or before 
the People, in a Court of Juftice-, whether 
to a crowded, or a thin. Audience, or to one 
Perfonj we ought like wife to have Ibme Regard 
to our own Age, our Rank and Character, and 
likewife to the Junfture in which we fpeak, 
v^hether it be in the Time of Peace or War, of 
Hurry or Leifure. Therefore we can lay down 
no general Rule upon this Head, but, as it fuits 
the different Occafions^ to employ the three diffe- 
rent Styles we have mentioned, the full, the flen- 
der, and the middling, and to make a difcretionary 
Ufe ot almofl the fame Ornaments. In ihort, 
the utmoft Efforts of Art and Nature conflft in 
our being able to judge of, and to do what is 
moft becoming our Charader and the Occafion. 

CHAP, 



fiooKlII. Of an On AT oti. 359 

CHAP. LVI. 

BU T the Eflfeft of all thofc Particulare de- 
pends upon the Jilion. Adion is the pre- 
dominant Power in Eloquence. Without it the 
bed Speaker can have no Rank^ and with it a 
middling one may obtain the higheft. Itisfaid 
that when Bemofthenes was allc*d what was the 
firfl Point of Eloquence, the fecond, and the 
third, he anfwer*d, Aftion, Adtion, Aftion. This 
makes the Story told by yEfibines much better : 
After he had loft a Caufe he retir'd for Shame 
from Athens to Rhodes^ where, at the Requeft of 
the Rbodians^ he read that fine Oration, which he 
pronounc'd againft Oefipbon^' who was defended by 
Demofthenes : After he had finifli*d it» he was re- 
queftcd next Day t© read that which was pro- 
nounced by Demqftbenes for CteJipbon\ whidi he 
did with a charming fdl Voice. When every 
body was expreffing their Applaufe, How would 
you have applauded^ fays he, // you bad beard the 
Autbor deliver it ? By this he intimated what a vaft 
Influence ASlion had, fince the Change of the Ac^ 
tor could make the fame Speech appear in a quite 
different Light. What was that Excellency, Ca- 
tulus^ in Graccbus? Whom you, no' doubt, remem* 
ber perfeftly well, which when I was a Boy, I 
heard fo much extoU'd. Wretcb thatlam^wbi- 
tber Jhall I retreat ? Wbitber jhall I turn me ? To 
tbe Capitol ? Tbe Capitol fwims in nty Brother's Blood. 
Tv my Family ? There muft 1 fee a wretched^ a mourn- 
ful and affiled Mother ? It appears that thofe 
Words were accompany'd with fuch an Expref- 
fion in his Eyes, in his Voice, and his Gefture, 
Jihat even .his Enemies could not refrain from Tears 

-^ ^ 4 I have 




;^6o On the Ck AH ACT EK Book IH, 

I have been the longer on this Head, becaufe it 
has been wholly negledted by Orators, who are 
the Aftors of Truth, and taken up by Players^ 
who arc but its Mimics. 

CHAP. LVII. 

YE T doubtlefs in all Cafes, Truth has the 
Advantage of Fidion ; but if in Aftion 
Nature were i'ufficient for our Purpofe, we fhould 
have no Occafion for having Recourfe to the Rules 
of Art. But fince the Paffions of the Sou!, which 
are to be chiefly exprefs'd or reprefented by Ac- 
tion, are often fo confus'd, as to be quite obfcur'cj 
. and almoft obliterated ; the Caufes of this Obfcu- 
rity muft be difpell'd, and Advantags muft be 
taken of thofc that are moft unclouded and accef' 
fible. For Nature has giveij every Paffion its pe- 
cular Expreflion in the Look, the Voice, and thq 
Gefture ; and the whole Frame, the Look, and thq 
Voice of a Man are refponfiveto the Paffions of the 
Mind, as thq Strings ofamufical Inftrument are to 
the Fingers that touch them, For as a mufical In- 
ftrument has its different Keys, fo every Voice is 
fharp, full, quick, flow, loud, or low, and each of 
thefe Keys have different Degrees ; which beget 
other Strains, fuch as the fmooth and the (harp, 
the contrafted apd lengthened, the continued and 
interrupted, the broken and divided, the tender, 
the flirill and the fwelling; all theie require to be 
manag'd with Art and Difcretion. And the Ora- 
tor makes ufe of them, as; the Painter does of 
hii Colours, to give Variety to his Piece. 

CHAP. LVIII. 

ANGER has a peculiar Pronunciation, 
which is quick, Iharp, and broken* 

My 



Book III OfanOsLATotii |$t 

My bloody Brother gives me bis Advice 
To tear wy tender Children with my Teethe 
what a eurjed Wretch mnji I be then ? • , . 
Like that AntoniuSj which you mcntion'd. 
Durjl you part witbjnm ? 
' And the following \ 

Ah ! mark you this, quiek ? bind him : 
And fo of almoft the whole Tragedy of Atreus. 
The Tone of Pity and Grief is difierentj it is 
full, moving, broken, and mournful. 
ff^herejiall Iturnme? Whither Jhdl I fly? 
To ttry paternal Seatj or Pelias* Daughters ? 
And in the Verfe already mentioned 5 

O my Father! my Country! O the Houfe ^/ Priam I 
And the following ; 

p ' f^All is in a Blaze ^ • 
^;»^ Priam lies a lifelefs Corpfe on Land^ Ifaw it^ 
'Fear is low, diffident^ and humble : 

With what Variety of Wretchednefs^ 
Am IJurrounded! SicknefSy Exile^ Want I 
Then Fear drives Refolution from my Breaft^ 
And Death in Tortures hovers oW my Head f 
Where is the BreaftfofteeFd^ the Heart fo brave^ 
But melts and trembles at the dreadful ^rofpe^ f 
Vehemence demands a Stram that is intenfe,ftroiigr 
and majeftically threatening. Thus. 
Again Thyestes to my bed approaches^ 
And wakes me from my Slumber *, 
'Alas! a mightier Weight of woe muji criifb me ; 
/ have a Draught mote bitter ftill to drink ;— — ' 
Could I pluck out his Hearty and rend its Strings-"^ 
Pleafure is diffiifive, foft, tender, chearful, and gay: 

But when to me the Nuptial Crown he brought y 
Andfeenfd to give it to another's Hand \ 
How gay ^ how charming^ was the wanton Boy? 

How 



362 Ontbe Ch ar act£r Book in« 

How did his tcying fteal «wy Hear I away : 
Uneafinels b of another Sort, it is heavy without 
foeldng to be pity'd, and its Tone is grave and 
unifwm : 

fHfen in ufibdltyufd Nuptials Helen gave 
Her Hand to Paris ; then ntf nine Months Ffeighi 
Was near ccimpkated ; then the ^en of Priam 
Cave to the World her daritng Polydore. 

CHAP. LIX. 

BU T all thefe Emotions ought to be followed 
with 1 Gcfture, not theatrical, and expref- 
fing Words only, but explaining the whole Mat- 
tser and Sentiment by an Emphafis, and not 3 
Gefticulation, in a ftrong, manly Tone, not bor- 
jrow'd from Blays and Farces, but from the Camp, 
and even the School of Arts. The Hand oughc 
not .t6 faw the Air, and the Motion of Fingers 
ought to follow, and not exprefs the Words. 
The Arm ought to be in an advanced Pofture, as if 
brandilhing the Bolt of Eloquence *, and the iStamp- 
ing the Foot ou^t to take place, eidier in the Be- 
ginning or the End of a Difpute. But afl depends 
upon the Face, and all the Power of the Face is 
center^ in the Eyes, This our old Men are 
the beft Judges of 5 for they were not lavifh 
<rf' their Applaufe, even to a Rojcius when he was 
in a Ma(k. All A(5tion depends upon the Paflions, 
of which the Face is the Pidure, and the Eyes 
the Interpreters. For this is the only Part of the 
Body that is expreflive of all the Paflions ; nor 
can any one who looks another Way create the 
fame. Emotions. Theopbraftus us*d to call one 
^aurifcus^ who ftood with his Back to the Audience 
iR^h^n he was repeating his Part, a backward Play- 

3 cr. 



Book III. Of an Orator. 363 

cr, therefore a great deal confifts in the right Ma- 
nagement of the Eyes, for the Features of the 
Face ought not to be alter'd too much, for fear 
of falling into Littlenefs or Impropiety. It is by 
the Steadfaftncfs, by the Abafliment of the Eye, 
by a downcaft or a chearful Look, that we ex- 
prefs the Emotions of the Paflions, and accom* 
modate what we fay to what we feel. Aftion is, 
as it were, the Language of the Body, and there- 
fore ought to correfpond to the Thought. For Na- 
ture, as fhe has fupply'd the' Horfe and the Lion 
with a Main, a Tail, and Ears, to exprefs the 
Emotions of their feveral Paflions, has endowed 
the Eyes of Mankind with the fame Properties. 
Therefore in the Adbion of an Orator, the Look 
takes place next to the Vdce, for the Eyes diredt 
the Features. But Nature has given a particular 
Force to all the Properties of Aftion ; therefore 
we fee it has the greatefi EfFeft upon the Ignorant, 
the Vulgar, and even Barbarians themfelves. 
Words aflfeft none but him who underftands 
them ; and Sentiments, tho* they may be pointed 
yet often efcape a Difcernment that is not quick. 
But an Aftion which is expreflive of the Paflions 
of the Mind is a Langu^e underllood by all the 
World ; for the fame Exprcflions have the fame 
£Se£ts thro' all, and all Mailkind knows them 
in others by the fame Chara&ers in which he ex«* 
preflcs them himfelf. 

CHAP LX. 

BUT as to the Advantages and Excellency 
of Adlion, the chief and moft defirable lies 
in a good Voice. If you have not a good Voice, 

whatever 



364 OntbeCu ar A c t e r Book 

whatever Nature has given ought to be cherilh'd. 
I Ihall not pretend here to point out in what man- 
ner the Voice is improved ; but I think it of great 
Importance that it fhould be improv'd. But the 
Train of my Difcourfe feems to lead me into the 
Obfervation I made a little while ago, that what is 
moft ufeful is moft becoming; I know not how this 
jiappens, but it is certain that in Speaking nothing 
tends more to acquire an agreeable Voice than 
frequently to relieve it, by paffing from one Strain 
to another, and nothing tends more to deftroy it 
than a continu'd violent Straining, What gives 
greater Pleafure to our Ears, and more Delight to 
Aftion, than a well -judged Viciffitude, Variety^ 
and Changing? Therefore, C^/«/«j, you might 
have heard from JJcinius^ who is your Client, a 
Man of Learnings and the Secretary of Gracchus^ 
that iQraccbns made ufe of an Ivory Flute, which 9, 
Man wlio flood privately behiad him, while he 
was fpeaking, touch'd fo flcilfuUy, that he imme- 
diately ftruck the proper Note, when he wanted 
either to quicken or to foften the Vehemence of 
his Voice. I have heard him tell it, reply'd Ca/u- 
iusy and have often been in love with the Applica- 
tion, the Learning, and the Knowledge of this 
Man. For my Part, fays Cra£us^ I ^m griev'4 
at the political Mifcarriages of tbofe great Per*- 
fonages, and yet I fee the fame Game renewed, 
the fame diffolute Manners advancing on th^ 
State, to ^convince Pofterity that we define to en- 
courage Citizens in Crimes which were intolerable 
to otrr Fore -fathers. Prithee, Crajfusy fays Julius^ 
leave thefe Refleftions, and return to Graccbui% 
Fhite, the Nature of which I don't yet thorough- 
ly imderftand. 

* In