the ear and the understanding. His imitation of Spenser, which
consists principally in _I_ WEEN and _I_ WEET, without exclusion of
later modes of speech, makes his poem neither ancient nor modern.
His mention of Mars and Bellona, and his comparison of Marlborough
to the eagle that bears the thunder of Jupiter, are all puerile and
unaffecting; and yet more despicable is the long tale told by Louis
in his despair of Brute and Troynovante, and the teeth of Cadmus,
with his similes of the raven and eagle and wolf and lion. By the
help of such easy fictions and vulgar topics, without acquaintance
with life, and without knowledge of art or nature, a poem of any
length, cold and lifeless like this, may be easily written on any
subject.

In his epilogues to Phaedra and to Lucius he is very happily
facetious; but in the prologue before the queen the pedant has found
his way with Minerva, Perseus, and Andromeda.

His epigrams and lighter pieces are, like those of others, sometimes
elegant, sometimes trifling, and sometimes dull; among the best are
the "Chamelion" and the epitaph on John and Joan.

Scarcely any one of our poets has written so much and translated so
little: the version of Callimachus is sufficiently licentious; the
paraphrase on St. Paul's Exhortation to Charity is eminently
beautiful.

"Alma" is written in professed imitation of "Hudibras," and has at
least one accidental resemblance: "Hudibras" wants a plan because
it is left imperfect; "Alma" is imperfect because it seems never to
have had a plan. Prior appears not to have proposed to himself any