vening ingraftment, or seemingly lawless luxuriance, is rich in divine sentiment, and strongly evinces the seraphic devotion of the Apostle's spirit.

1

$ 4. Dr Watts, in his epistolary preface to his version of the 114th Psalm, as preserved in the Spectator *, says, “ As I was describing the

journey of Israel from Egypt, and added the “ divine presence, I perceived a beauty in the « Psalm which was intirely new to me, and 6 which I was going to use; and that is, that “ the Poet utterly conceals the presence of God " in the beginning of it, and rather lets a pos6 sessive Pronoun go without its Substantive, «s than he will so much as mention any thing of sc divinity there : « Judah was his sanctuary, and “ Israel his dominion," or kingdom. The rea« son now appears evident, and this conduct “ necessary, for if God had appeared before, " there could be no wonder why the mountains “ should leap, and the sea retire; therefore, that " this convulsion of nature may be brought in “ with due surprise, his name is not mentioned « till afterwards, and then with a very agree« able turn of thought; God is introduced at “ once with all his majesty.” With this previous remark we shall trace the beauty of the Psalm, and find it springing from such a kind of suspension as that of which we have been speaking, or at least I know not under what Figure

besides so properly to'range it. ss. When Israel si went out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from

people of strange language: Judah was his sanctuary, and Israel his dominion. The sea ss saw it, and fled; Jordan was driven back: * the mountains skipped like rams, and the little ss hills like lambs. What ailed thee, O thou

sea, that thou fleddeft? thou Jordan, that ss thou waft driven back?' Ye mountains, that

ye skipped like rams? and ye little hills, like

labs ? Tremble thou, earth, at the presence ss of the LORD, at the presence of the God of

Jacob. Who turned the rock into a standing ss water; the Aint into a fountain of water.ss

I think it not improper to insert the excellent • version of this Psalm by Dr Watts, though it

is to be found in his Imitation of the Psalms of David, a book so much known in the world.

SS

SS

When Israel, freed from PHARAOH's hand,
Left the proud tyrant, and his land;
The tribes with chearful homage own
Their King, and Judah was his throne.
Across the deep their journey lay;
The deep divides to make them way:
Fordan beheld their march, and fled
With backward current to his head.
The mountains shook like frighted sheep,
Like lambs the little hillocks leap;
Not Sinai on her base could stand,
Conscious of lov’reign pow'r at hand.

$

What

What pow'r could make the deep divide ?
Make Jordan backward roll his tide ?
Why did ye leap, ye little hills ?
And whence the fright that Sinai feels ?
Let ev'ry mountain, ev'ry food
Retire, and own th' approaching God,
The King of Ifrael. See him here;
Tremble, thou earth, adore and fear.
He thunders, and all nature mourns ;
The rock to standing pools he turns :
Flints spring with fountains at his word;
And fires and feas confess the LORD,

§ 5. I shall conclude this Figure with a remark, and a few cautions.

The remark is, that this Figure greatly entertains our hearers, as it strikes out of the common road, both as to fenfe and method of expression, and keeps the mind, while the Figure is properly managed, in a pleasing attention. And methinks nothing can more strongly shew the ardor and riches of a speaker's or writer's ideas, than when his language is sometimes abrupt, and broken, and irregular, and the thoughts crowd so fast and full, as that they cannot stay to get clothed in the common forms of expression. Of this sort of Figures, we may say with Mr Pope,

From vulgar bounds with brave disorder part,

And snatch a grace beyond the reach of art *.
And again,

Great wits may sometimes gloriously offend,
And rise to faults true critics dare not mend f.
POPE's Elay on Criticism, ver.152. + Ver.159,160.

The cautions are, that we should not be too free with this Figure; as indeed its very nature shews, that it should be but sparingly used : That we should take heed, while we indulge to irregularity and disorder, or at leaft vary from the common arrangements of speech, that we do not fall into abfurdity and a kind of inexplicable entanglement. And finally, when we make these kinds of excursion, and deviate a while from the usual track, let us be solicitous not to take these liberties in vain, or for a light and trifling purpose. When we return from our digrefsions, and close our periods, let us return loaden with the best part of the freight of Solomon's ships, when they came from Tarsbijh t; I mean the gold and silver, sentiments of substantial worth; and 'not with apes and peacocks, ideas only fit to draw ridicule upon 'us, or glittering with a gaudy fplendor, but deftitute of intrinsic merit.

f i Kings X. 22.

CHAPTER

[196

CH A P T E R IX.

The EROTESIS considered.

§ 1. The definition of an Erotesis. § 2. Instance's from Milton, THOMSON, TACITUS, and C1CERO. § 3. Examples from Scripture. 4. Observations of QUINTILIAN, LONGINUs, and YOUNG' upon this Figure. $ 5. A method of discovering its excellence and power.

$ 1. E Roteris it is a Figure by which we ex

press the emotion of our minds, and infuse an ardor and energy into our discourses, by proposing questions.

§ 2. Milton has wonderfully heightened the speech of SATAN to Eve, tempting her to eat the forbidden fruit, with a crowd of interrogations, and thereby made the Serpent, if I

may

fo fay, more serpentine :

She scarce had said, tho'brief; when now more bold
The Tempter, but with show of zeal and love
To man, and indignation at his wrong,
New part puts on, and as to passion mov'd,
Fluctuates difturb’d, yet comely, and in act

Rais'd, + From

ερωταω, Iak.