ty or impropriety of comparisons; in what circumstances they may be introduced, and in what circumstances they are out of place. It is evident, that a comparison is not proper on every occafion : a man when cool and fedate, is not difpofed to poetical flights, nor to facrifice truth and reality to imaginary beauties: far lefs is he fo difpofed when oppreffed with care, or interested in fome important transaction that engroffes him totally. On the other hand, a man, when elevated or animated by paffion, is difpofed to elevate or animate all his objects he avoids familiar names, exalts objects by circumlocution and metaphor, and gives even life and voluntary action to inanimate beings. In this heat of mind, the highest poetical flights are indulged, and the boldeft fimiles and metaphors relished *. But without foaring so high, the mind is frequently in a tone to relish chaste and moderate ornament; fuch as comparisons that fet the principal object in a ftrong point of view, or that embellish and diverfify the narration. In general, when by any animating paffion, whether pleasant or painful, an impulfe is given to the imagination; we are in that condition difpofed to every fort of figurative expreffion, and in particular to comparisons. This in a great measure is

*It is accordingly obferved by Longinus, in his Treatife of the Sublime, that the proper time for metaphor, is when the paffions are fo fwelled as to hurry on like a tor

rent.

is evident from the comparisons already mentioned; and shall be further illuftrated by other inftances. Love, for example, in its infancy, roufing the imagination, prompts the heart to dif play itself in figurative language, and in fimiles:`

Troilus. Tell me, Apollo, for thy Daphne's love,] What Creffid is, what Pandar, and what we? Her bed is India; there fhe lies, a pearl: Between our Ilium, and where the refides, Let it be call'd the wild and wandering flood; Ourself the merchant; and this failing Pandar Our doubtful hope, our convoy, and our bark. Troilus and Creffid, act 1. fc. 1.

Again:

Come, gentle Night; come, loving black-brow'd Night!
Give me my Romeo; and, when he shall die,

Take him, and cut him out in little stars,
And he will make the face of Heav'n fo fine,
That all the world fhall be in love with Night,
And pay no worship to the garish Sun.

Romeo and Juliet, act 3. fc. 4.

The dread of a misfortune, however eminent, involving always fome doubt and uncertainty, agitates the mind, and excites the imagination:

-Nay, then, farewell;

Wolfey.
I've touch'd the highest point of all my greatness,
And from that full meridian of my glory

O 3

I hafte now to my setting. I fhall fall,
Like a bright exhalation in the evening,
And no man fee me more.

Henry VIII. act 3. fc. 4.

But it will be a better illuftration of the prefent head, to give examples where comparisons are improperly introduced. I have had already occafion to obferve, that fimiles are not the language of a man in his ordinary ftate of mind, difpatching his daily and ufual work. For that reason, the following speech of a gardener to his fervants, is extremely improper:

Go, bind thou up yon dangling apricots,
Which, like unruly children, make their fire
Stoop with oppreffion of their prodigal weight:
Give fome fupportance to the bending twigs.
Go thou; and, like an executioner,
Cut off the heads of too faft-growing sprays,
That look too lofty in our commonwealth;
All must be even in our government.

Richard II. at 3. fc. 7.

The fertility of Shakespear's vein betrays him frequently into this error. There is the fame impropriety in another fimile of his :

Hero. Good Margaret, run thee into the parlour;
There shalt thou find my coufin Beatrice;
Whisper her ear, and tell her, I and Urfula
Walk in the orchard, and our whole discourse
Is all of her; fay, that thou overheard'st us :

And

And bid her steal into the pleached bower,
Where honeyfuckles, ripen'd by the fun,
Forbid the fun to enter; like to favourites,
Made proud by princes, that advance their pride
Against that power that bred it.

Much ado about Nothing, at 3. fc. 1.

Rooted grief, deep anguish, terror, remorse, defpair, and all the fevere difpiriting paffions, are declared enemies, perhaps not to figurative language in general, but undoubtedly to the pomp/ and folemnity of comparison. Upon that account, the fimile pronounced by young Rutland, under terror of death from an inveterate enemy, and praying mercy, is unnatural:

So looks the pent-up lion o'er the wretch
That trembles under his devouring paws;
And fo he walks infulting o'er his prey,
And fo he comes to rend his limbs afunder.
Ah, gentle Clifford, kill me with thy fword,
And not with fuch a cruel threat'ning look.

Third part Henry VI. a&t 1. fc. 5.

Nothing appears more out of place, nor more aukwardly introduced, than the following fimile:

Lucia.

Farewell, my Portius,

Farewell, though death is in the word, for-ever!

Portius. Stay, Lucia, ftay; what doft thou say?

for-ever?

Lucia. Have I not fworn? If, Portius, thy fuccefs Muft throw thy brother on his fate, farewell,

Oh, how fhall I repeat the word, for-ever!

Portius. Thus, o'er the dying lamp th' unsteady

flame

Hangs quivering on a point, leaps off by fits,

And falls again, as loath to quit its hold *.

Thou must not go, my foul ftill hovers o'er thee,

And can't get loofe.

Cato, act 3. fc. 2.

Nor doth the fimile which clofes the first act of the fame tragedy make a better appearance; the fituation there reprefented being too difpiriting for a fimile. A fimile is improper for one who dreads the discovery of a fecret machination :

Zara. The mute not yet return'd! Ha! 'twas the

King,

The King that parted hence! frowning he went ;
His eyes like meteors roll'd, then darted down
Their red and angry beams; as if his fight

Would, like the raging Dog-star, scorch the earth,
And kindle ruin in its course.

Mourning Bride, act 5. fc. 3.

A man spent and difpirited after lofing a battle, is not difpofed to heighten or illuftrate his difcourfe by fimiles :

York. With this we charg'd again; but out, alas! We bodg'd again; as I have feen a swan

With bootlefs labour swim against the tide,

And

This fimile would have a fine effect pronounced by the chorus in a Greek tragedy.