Part 2
There is another Matter which deserves to be clear'd, whether this is a Fiction, or whether there was really such a Person as _Tom Thumb_. As to this, my Friends tell me, 'Twas Matter of Fact, and that 'twas an unpardonable Omission in a certain Author never once to mention him in his _Arthur_'s, when nothing is more certain than that he was the greatest Favourite of that Prince, and a Person who had perform'd some very eminent Services for his Country. And indeed I can't excuse his taking no Notice of our Poet who has afforded him such Helps, and to whom he is so much oblig'd for the Model of those Productions: Besides it had been but a Debt of Gratitude, as Sir _R---- B----_ was a Member of the Faculty, to have made honourable mention of him who has spoke so honourably of the Profession, on the Account of the Sickness of his Hero.
I have an old Edition of this Author by me, the Title of which is more Sonorous and Heroical, than those of later Date, which for the better Information of the Reader, it may not be improper to insert in this Place. _*Tom Thumb* his Life and Death, wherein is declar'd his many marvellous Acts of Manhood, full of Wonder and strange Merriment_: Then he adds, _which little Knight liv'd in King *Arthur*'s Time in the Court of *Great Britain*_. Indeed there are so many spurious Editions of this Piece upon one Account or other, that I wou'd advise my Readers to be very cautious in their Choice, and it would be very wisely done, if they wou'd consult the curious _Ælianus_ concerning this Matter, who has the choicest Collection of any Man in _England_, and understands the most correct Editions of Books of this Nature.
I have took a great deal of Pains to set these Matters of Importance in as clear a Light as we Criticks generally do, and shall begin with the first _Canto_, which treats of our Hero's Birth and Parentage, and Education, with some other Circumstances which you'll find are carry'd on in a manner not very inelegant, _and cannot fail to please those who are not Judges of Language, or those who notwithstanding they are Judges of Language, have a genuine and unprejudic'd Tast of Nature_.
In _Arthur's_ Court _Tom Thumb_ did live; A Man of mickle Might, The best of all the Table round, And eke a doubty Knight, In Stature but an Inch in Height, Or quarter of a Span; Then think you not this worthy Knight Was prov'd a valiant Man.
This Beginning is agreeable to the best of the Greek and Latin Poets; _Homer_ and _Virgil_ give an Idea of the whole Poem in a few of the first Lines, and here our Author draws the Character of his Hero, and shews what you may expect from a Person so well qualify'd for the greatest Undertakings.
In the Description of him, which is very fine, he insinuates, that tho' perhaps his Person may appear despicable and little, yet you'll find him an Hero of the most consummate Bravery and Conduct, and is almost the same Account _Statius_ gives of _Tydeus_.
Totos infusa per artus, Major in exiguo regnabat corpore virtus.
If any suppose the Notion of such an Hero improbable, they'll find the Character _Virgil_ gives _Camilla_ to be as far stretch'd:
Illa vel Intactæ segetis per summa volaret Gramina, nec teneras cursu læsisset Aristas: Vel mare per medium, fluctu suspensa tumenti Ferret Iter: celeres nec tingeret æquore plantas.
But to proceed,
His Father was a Plowman plain, His Mother milk'd the Cow, And yet a Way to get a Son This Couple knew not how, Until such time the good old Man To learned _Merlin_ goes, And there to him in deep Distress In secret Manner shows, How in his Heart he wish'd to have, A Child in time to come, To be his Heir, tho' it might be No bigger than his Thumb. Of which old _Merlin_ was foretold, That he his Wish should have, And so a Son of Stature small The Charmer to him gave.
There is nothing more common throughout the Poets of the finest Taste, than to give an Account of the Pedigree of their Hero. So _Virgil_,
----Æneas quem Dardanio Anchisæ Alma Venus Phrygii genuit Simoentis ad undas.
And the Manner of the Countryman's going to consult _Merlin_, is like that of _Æneas_'s approaching the Oracle of _Delphos_.
----Egressi veneramur Apollinis Urbem.
And how naturally and poetically does he describe the Modesty of the Man, who wou'd be content, if _Merlin_ wou'd grant him his Request, with a Son no bigger than his Thumb.
The Two next Stanza's carry on the Idea with a great deal of Probability and Consistence; and to convince the World that he was born to be something more than Man, he produces a Miracle to bring him into it.
Begot, and born in half an Hour, To fit his Father's Will.
The following Stanza continues the Miracle, and brings the _Fairy Queen_ and her Subjects, who gives him his Name, and makes him a Present of his Apparel.
Whereas she cloath'd him fine and brave, In Garments richly fair, The which did serve him many Years In seemly sort to wear.
So _Virgil_ of Queen _Dido_'s Present to _Ascanius_:
Hoc Juvenem egregium præstanti munere donat.
And again,
Quem candida Dido Esse sui dederat Monumentum & pignus Amoris.
The Description of his Dress is very agreeable, and is not unlike what I have met with somewhere of a Giant going a Fishing, with an Account of his Implements equal to his Proportion.
His Hat made of an Oaken Leaf, His Shirt a Spider's Web, Both light and soft for these his Limbs That were so smally bred. His Hose and Doublet Thistle Down, Together weav'd full fine; His Stockings of an Apple green, Made of the outward Rind; His Garters were two little Hairs Pluck'd from his Mothers Eye; His Shooes made of a Mouse's Skin, And Tann'd most curiously.
The next Stanza's relate his Diversions, bearing some Analogy to those of _Ascanius_ and other Lads in _Virgil_:
Thus like a valiant Gallant He Adventures forth to go, With other Children in the Street, His pretty Tricks to show.
Una Acies Juvenum ducit quam Parvus Ovantem Nomen Avi referens Priamus.
There is a Piece of Revenge our little Hero took upon a Play-fellow, which proves, to what an height Mechanical and Experimental Philosophy was arriv'd to in that Age, and may be worth while to be considered by the _Royal Society_.
Of whom to be reveng'd, he took In Mirth and pleasant Game, Black Pots and Glasses, which he hung Upon a bright Sun-Beam.
The third Line is a Demonstration of the Antiquity of Drinking out of Black-Pots, which still prevails in most Counties of this Nation, among the Justices of Peace at their Petty and Quarter Sessions.
The last four Lines of this Canto, and the beginning of the next, contain the miraculous Adventure of the Pudding-Bowl: And, by the by, we may observe, That it was the Custom of the _Christians_ at that time, to make Hog-Puddings instead of Minc'd-Pies at _Christmas_; a laudable Custom very probably brought up to distinguish 'em more particularly from the _Jews_.
Whereas about a _Christmas_ time, His Father an Hog had kill'd, And _Tom_ to see the Pudding made, Fear that it should be spill'd; He sat, the Candle for to Light, Upon the Pudding-Bowl: Of which there is unto this Day A pretty Pastime told: For _Tom_ fell in----
Perhaps some may think it below our Hero to stoop to such a mean Employment as the Poet has here enjoyn'd him, of holding the Candle, and that it looks too much like a _Citizen_, or a _Cot_, as the Women call it: But if we reflect on the Obedience due to Parents, as our Author undoubtedly did, and the Necessities those People labour'd under, we cannot but admire at his ready Compliance with what could by no Means be agreeable to the Heroical Bent of his Inclinations, and perceive what a tender Regard he had for the Wellfare of his Family, when he took the strictest Care imaginable for the Preservation of the Hog-Pudding. And what can be more remarkable? What can raise the Sentiments of Pity and Compassion to an higher Pitch, than to see an Hero fall into such an unforeseen Disaster in the honourable Execution of his Office? _This certainly is conformable to the way of Thinking among the Ancient Poets, and what a good-natur'd Reader cannot but be affected with._
The following Part of this Canto is the Relation of our Hero's being put into a Pudding, and convey'd away in a Tinker's Budget; which is design'd by our Author to prove, if it is understood literally, That the greatest Men are subject to Misfortunes. But it is thought by Dr. _B--tly_ to be all Mythology, and to contain the Doctrine of the Transmutation of Metals, and is design'd to shew, that all Matter is the same, tho' very differently Modified. He tells me, he intends to publish a distinct Treatise of this Canto; and I don't question, but he'll manage the Dispute with the same Learning, Conduct, and good Manners, he has done others, and as Dr. _Salmon_ uses in his Corrections of Dr. _Sydenham_ and the _Dispensatory_.
The next Canto is the Story of _Tom Thumb_'s being Swallow'd by a Cow, and his Deliverance out of her, which is treated of at large by _Giordano Bruno_ in his _Spaccio de la Bestia trionfante_; which Book, tho' very scarce, yet a _certain Gentleman_, who has it in his Possession, has been so obliging as to let every Body know where to meet with it. After this, you find him carried off by a Raven, and swallow'd by a Giant; and 'tis almost the same Story as that of _Ganimede_, and the Eagle in _Ovid_.
Now by a Raven of great Strength, Away poor _Tom_ was born.
Nec mora: percusso mendacibus aere pennis Abripit Iliaden.
A certain great _Critick_ and _Schoolmaster_ who has publish'd such Notes upon _Horace_ as were never seen before, is of Opinion, and has very good Authority for what he says, that 'twas rather an Owl than a Raven; for, as he observes with a wonderful deal of Penetration and Sagacity, our Hero's Shoes were made of a Mouse's Skin which might induce the Owl to run away with him. The Giant, he owns, looks very probable, because we find 'em swallowing People very fast in almost all Romances.
This Canto concludes with our Hero's Arrival at Court; after he had spent a considerable Part of his Youth in Labours and Fatigues, had been inur'd to nothing else but Hardships and Adventures, we see him receive the Recompence of his Merit, and become the Favourite of his Prince: And here we may perceive all the Fineness of the Gentleman, mixt with all the Resolution and Courage of the Warriour; We may behold him as ready to oblige the Ladies with a Dance, as he was to draw his Sword in their Defence.
Amongst the Deeds of Courtship done, His Highness did command, That he shou'd dance a Galliard brave Upon the Queen's Left Hand. The which he did----
This shews he had all the Accomplishments of _Achilles_ who was undoubtedly one of the best Dancers in the Age he liv'd, according to the Character _Homer_ gives him so frequently of the Agility of his Feet. I have consulted a Master of the Profession of Dancing, who is excellently vers'd in the Chronology of all Dances, he tells me that this _Galliard_ came into Vogue about the latter End of the Reign of _Uter Pendragon_, and continu'd during that of King _Arthur_, which is Demonstration to me that our Poet liv'd about that Age.
It is asserted very positively in the later Editions of this Poem, that the four following Lines are a Relation of the King and _Tom Thumb_'s going together an Hunting, but I have took indefatigable Pains to consult all the _Manuscripts_ in _Europe_ concerning this Matter, and I find it an _Interpolation_. I have also an _Arabick Copy_ by me, which I got a _Friend_ to translate, being unacquainted with the Language, and it is plain by the Translation that 'tis there also _interpolated_.
Now after that the King wou'd not Abroad for Pleasure go, But still _Tom Thumb_ must go with him Plac'd on his Saddle Bow.
----Ipse Uno graditur comitatus Achate.
There is scarcely any Scene more moving than this that follows, and is _such an one as wou'd have shined in *Homer* or *Virgil*_. When he was favour'd with his Prince's Ear, and might have ask'd the most profitable and important Posts in the Government, and been indemnified if guilty of a _Peculatus_; He only used his Interest to relieve the Necessities of his Parents, when another _Person_ wou'd have scarcely own'd 'em for his _Relations_. This discovers such a Generosity of Soul, such an Humility in the greatest Prosperity, such a tender Affection for his Parents, as is hardly to be met with, but in our Author.
And being near his Highness Heart He crav'd a wealthy Boon, A noble Gift, the which the King Commanded to be done; To relieve his Father's Wants, And Mother being old.
The rest of this Canto relates the Visit to his Father, in which there is something very soft and tender, something _that may move the Mind of the most polite Reader, with the inward Meltings of Humanity and Compassion_.
The Next Canto of the Tilts and Tournaments, is much like the Fifth Book of _Virgil_, and tho' we can't suppose our Poet ever saw that Author, yet we may believe he was directed to almost the same Passages, _by the same kind of Poetical Genius, and the same Copyings after Nature_.
Now he with Tilts and Tournaments, Was entertained so, That all the rest of _Arthur_'s Knights Did him much Pleasure show; And good Sir _Lancelot_ of _Lake_, Sir _Tristram_, and Sir _Guy_; But none like to _Tom Thumb_ For Acts of Chivalry.
Longeque ante omnia Corpora Nisus Emicat----
And agen,
Post Elymus subit, & nunc tertia palma Diores.
In Honour of which noble Day, And for his Lady's Sake, A Challenge in King _Arthur_'s Court, _Tom Thumb_ did bravely make.
Talis prima Dares caput altum in prælia tollit, Ostendit[que] humeros latos, alterna[que] Iactat Brachia portendens, & verberat Ictibus auras, Quæritur huic alius:----
'Gainst whom those noble Knights did run, Sir _Chion_ and the rest, But, still _Tom Thumb_ with all his Might Did bear away the best.
Et primum ante omnes victorem appellat Acesten.
At the same time our Poet shews a laudable Partiality for his Hero, he represents Sir _Lancelot_ after a manner not unbecoming so bold and brave a Knight.
At last Sir _Lancelot_ of _Lake_, In manly sort came in, And with this stout and hardy Knight A Battle to begin.
Huic contra Æneas, speculatus in agmine longo Obvius ire parat----
Which made the Courtiers all aghast.
Obstupuere animi----
This Canto concludes with the Presents made by the King to the Champion according to the Custom of the _Greeks_ and _Romans_ in such Cases; only his tumbling thro' the Queen's Ring is observable, and may serve to give some Light into the Original of that ingenious Exercise so much practis'd by the Moderns, of tumbling thro' an Hoop.
The last Canto treats of the Champion's Sickness and Death, and whoever considers the Beauty, Regularity and majestic Simplicity of the Relation, cannot but be surpris'd at the Advances that may be made in Poetry by the Strength of an uncultivated Genius, and may see how far Nature can proceed without the Ornamental Helps and Assistances of Art. The Poet don't attribute his Sickness to a Debauch, to the Irregularity or Intemperance of his Life, but to an Exercise becoming an Hero; and tho' he dies quietly in his Bed, he may be said in some measure to die in the Bed of Honour. And to shew the great Affection the King had for him, he sends for his Physicians, and orders all the Care imaginable to be taken for the Conservation of his Life.
He being slender and tall, This cunning Doctor took A fine perspective Glass, with which, He did in Secret look.
It is a Wonder that the learned World shou'd differ so in their Opinions concerning the Invention and Antiquity of Optic Glasses, and that any one should contend for _Metius_ of _Alcmaer_, or, as Dr. _Plot_ does, for _Fryar Bacon_, when, if this Author had been consulted, Matters might have been so easily adjusted. Some great Men indeed wou'd prove from hence, our Knight was the Inventor of 'em, that his Valet might the more commodiously see to dress him; but if we consider there were no Beau's in that Age, or reflect more maturely on the Epithet here given to the Doctor, we may readily conclude, that the Honour of this Invention belongs more particularly to that ingenious Profession.
How lovely is the Account of the Departure of his Soul from his Body:
And so with Peace and Quietness He left the World below.
Placida[que] demum ibi morte quievit.
And up into the Fairy Land His Soul did fleeting go.
----At Æthereas repetit mens ignea sedes.
Whereas the Fairy Queen receiv'd With happy Mourning Cheer The Body of this valiant Knight, Whom she esteem'd so dear; For with her dancing Nymphs in Green She fetch'd him from his Bed, With Musick and with Melody, As soon as Life was fled.
----Et fotum gremio Dea tollit in Altos Idaliæ lucos----
So one of our Modern Poets;
Thither the Fairys and their Train resort, And leave their Revels, and their midnight Sport.
We find in all the most celebrated Poets some Goddess that takes upon her to be the peculiar Guardian of the Hero, which has been carry'd on very elegantly in this Author.
But agen;
For whom King _Arthur_ and his Knights, Full forty Days did mourn, And in Remembrance of his name, Who was so strangely born, He built a Tomb of Marble grey, And Year by Year did come, To celebrate the Mournful Day, And Burial of _Tom Thumb_, Whose Fame lives here in _England_ still, Among the Country sort, Of whom their Wives and Children small, Tell Tales of pleasant Sport.
So _Ovid_;
----Luctus monumenta manebunt Semper Adoni mei, repetita[que] mortis Imago Annua plangoris peragit simulamina Nostri.
Nor is this Conclusion unlike one of the best Latin Poems this Age has produc'd.
Tu Taffi Æternum vives, tua munera Cambri Nunc etiam Celebrant, quoties[que] revolvitur Annus Te memorant, Patrium Gens tota tuetur Honorem, Et cingunt viridi redolentia tempora Porro.
And now, tho' I am very well satisfied with this Performance, yet, according to the usual Modesty of us Authors, I am oblig'd to tell the World, _it will be a great Satisfaction to me, knowing my own Insufficiency_, if I have given but some Hints of the Beauties of this Poem, which are capable of being improv'd by those of greater Learning and Abilities. And I am glad to find by a Letter I have receiv'd from one of the _Literati_ in _Holland_, That the learned _Huffius_, a great Man of our Nation, is about the Translation of this Piece into _Latin_ Verse, which he assures me will be done with a great deal of Judgment, in case he has enough of that Language to furnish out the Undertaking. I am very well Appris'd, That there has been publish'd Two Poems lately, Intituled, The Second and Third Parts of this Author; which treat of our little Hero's rising from the Dead in the Days of King _Edgar_: But I am inform'd by my Friend the _Schoolmaster_, and others, That they were compos'd by an Enthusiast in the last Century, and have been since Printed for the Establishment of the Doctrine of Monsieur _Marion_ and his Followers, and the Resurrection of Dr. _Ems_.
I hope no Body will be offended at my asserting Things so positively, since 'tis the Priviledge of us _Commentators_, who understand the meaning of an Author Seventeen Hundred Years after he has wrote, much better than ever he cou'd be suppos'd to do himself. And certainly, a Critick ought not only to know what his Authors Thoughts were when he was Writing such and such Passages, but how those Thoughts came into his Head, where he was when he wrote, or what he was doing of; whether he wrote in a Garden, a Garret, or a Coach; upon a Lady, or a Milkmaid; whether at that Time he was scratching his Elbow, drinking a Bottle, or playing at Questions and Commands. These are material and important Circumstances so well known to the _True Commentator_, that were _Virgil_ and _Horace_ to revisit the World at this time, they'd be wonderfully surpris'd to see the minutest of their Perfections discover'd by the Assistances of _Modern Criticism_. Nor have the Classicks only reap'd Benefit from Inquiries of this Nature, but Divinity it self seems to be render'd more intelligible. I know a Divine, who understands what St. _Paul_ meant by _Higher Powers_, much better than that Apostle cou'd pretend to do; and another, That can unfold all the Mysteries of the _Revelations_ without Spectacles.
I know there are some People that cast an Odium on me, and others, for pointing out the Beauties of such Authors, as have, they say, been hitherto unknown, and argue, That 'tis a sort of Heresie in Wit, and is like the fruitless Endeavours of proving the Apostolical Constitutions _Genuine_, that have been indisputably _Spurious_ for so many Ages: But let these Gentlemen consider, whether they pass not the same Judgment on an Author, as a Woman does on a Man, by the gayety of his Dress, or the gaudy Equipage of his Epithets. And however they may call me _second-sighted_, for discerning what they are Blind to, I must tell them this Poem has not been altogether so obscure, but that the most refin'd _Writers_ of this Age have been delighted with the reading it. Mr. _Tho. D'Urfey_, I am told, is an Admirer, and Mr. _John Dunton_ has been heard to say, more than once, he had rather be the Author of it than all his Works.
How often, _says my Author_, have I seen the Tears trickle down the Face of the Polite _Woodwardius_ upon reading some of the most pathetical Encounters of _Tom Thumb_! How soft, how musically sorrowful was his Voice! How good Natur'd, how gentle, how unaffected was the Ceremoniale of his Gesture, and how unfit for a Profession so Merciless and Inhumane!
I was persuaded by a Friend to write some Copies of Verses and place 'em in the Frontispiece of this Poem, in Commendation of My self and my _Comment_, suppos'd to be compos'd by _AG. FT. LM. RW._ and so forth. _To their very worthy and honour'd Friend_ C. D. upon his admirable and useful _Comment_ on the History of _Tom Thumb_; but my Bookseller told me the Trick was so common, 'twou'd not answer. Then I propos'd a Dedication to my Lord _such an One_, or Sir _Thomas such an One_; but he told me the Stock to be rais'd on Dedications was so small now a Days, and the Discount to my Lord's Gentleman, _&c._ so high, that 'twou'd not be worth while; besides, says he, it is the Opinion of some Patrons, that a Dinner now and then, with, _Sir, I shall expect to see you sometimes_, is a suitable Reward for a publick Compliment in Print. But if, continues my Bookseller, you have a Mind it shou'd turn to Advantage, write Treason or Heresy, get censur'd by the Parliament or Convocation, and condemn'd to be burnt by the Hands of the common Hangman, and you can't fail having a Multitude of Readers, by the same Reason, _A notorious Rogue has such a Number of Followers to the Gallows_.
_FINIS._
* * * * * * * * *
THE MICROCOSM.
by
Gregory Griffin.
No. XI. of the
MICROCOSM.
MONDAY, _February_ 12, 1787.
Res gestæ regumque, ducumque, et tristia bella, _Quo scribi possint numero, monstravit Homerus_.--HOR. By Homer taught, the modern poet sings, _In Epic strains, of heroes, wars, and Kings_.--FRANCIS.