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When January, newly in his Reign,

With frofty Fetters bound the rugged Plain. The Hiftory is this: January was the eldest Son of December, and mounted the Throne of his Anceftors on the Demise of his Father. Now these Lines are fine indirect Satire on Kings: for you fee King January is no fooner pop'd upon the Throne, than he makes ufe of Fetters to bind his Dominions to Submiffion. O Reges, Reges!

Rugged Plain.] See, Note the Second.

And o'er the Pool outspread the icy Sheet, Tempting to flipp'ry Sport the School-Boy's Feet; Zoilus, Jun. cavils at this firft Verfe, as not thinking it a proper Employment for King January to turn Chamberlain. But fure, he forgot that even Princeffes of old would darn Stockings, or mend Towels, or do any fuch housewifely Work. Then fure our new Monarch might make a Bed without Scandal, as the Sheets were doubtlefs of the finest Ice,

Two Youths, whofe Birth the highest Reverence claim,

Sweet Buds of Honour, rip'ning into Fame; Left the warm Hearth, to taste the freezing Air, 'Twixt hiffing Woods by rocking Winds stript

bare.

Philofophers have not yet fixed the true Tafte of freezing Air; though we may learn from this Paffage that it was not warm; because then the two Youths would not have left the warm Hearth, to taste it between hifling Woods: fo that we may conclude it to be hiffing cold.

By rocking Winds ftript bare.] Rocking Winds. Nonsense. We muft certainly read, robbing Winds, and then the Senfe is complete. The Winds were a fort of Free-Booty Gentlemen, that stript the poor

Woods

Woods to the Skin, and left them (in worfe Condition than Adam and Eve) without fo much as a Leaf to cover their Nakedness.

W-RB-RT-N.

The starting Deer before their Footsteps fly,
And turning fhiver with astonish'd Eye.

The ordinary Reader will not be able to comprehend this Paffage. It means, that the Deer run away from them, that they fhiver with Cold, that they turn to look, and confequently with an Eye, which Eye is aftonished: And as they fhiver and have an Eye, they must shiver with that Eye; and they must also shiver in turning, and turn in fhivering and fo they turn and fhiver, and fhiver and

turn.

W-RB-RT-N.

Zoilus afks what their Eye is astonished at? Why, at Fifty Things; at the Buds of Honour, the hiffing Woods, the rocking Winds, Icy Sheet, rugged Plain, frofty Fetters.

On Nature's Fingers turn'd, their Locks embrac'd Their vi'let Temples, pittorefquely grac'd. Nature is here elegantly reprefented as a TyreWoman, or rather Woman-Barber; and as Barbers bind the Hair round their Fingers to make it curl, our Poet properly fays, On Nature's Fingers turned,' to exprefs, that their Locks curled naturally. So intimately he knows Arts and Artists.

Vilet Temples.] A lefs judicious Writer would have faid, Snow-white; and that not improperly, as it was the Snowy Seafon. But how much more fignificant is the Epithet, Violet? For as Violets are blue, and 'tis common in cold frofty Weather for the Nofe to look blue, fo the Temples will be blue or violet, in fo fevere a Frost.

The Cotton MS. has two Lines immediately after thefe, which feem to come from our Author,

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And

And Jove, kind Barber, from his Heav'nly Puff,
Thofe Locks to powder, thook down Snow enough.

The furious Blafts, with which the Foreft mews, Dancing the Curls, their falvage Nature lose. Every Naturalift knows how fuch Forefts, agitated by the Wind, in their Sound resemble the Cry of a Cat, efpecially if the growls a little, at the same Time the mews.

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Lonely they wander'd thro' the leaflefs Shade, And now befide the frozen Water play'd -How careful is our Poet to let us know that the Shade here meant is leaflefs, left immediately on mentioning the Shade of Trees we should look for Leaves, and be difappointed. We are not too nicely to enquire how the Shade was made; for this is one of the Myfteries, which fublime Poets are allowed to conceal from vulgar Apprehenfions.

Doubting its Strength, they try the brittle Sides,
Now lighter George towards the Centre glides;
March views his vent'rous Feet, while gen'rous

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Fear
Tortures the Eyebrows of the tender Peer.

By March is not meant, as some will have it, the Month fo called; because it was January that was then King; and as he was but newly in his, Reign juft before, we can hardly fuppofe him to be dethroned fo foon.

The trembling Trees their lengthen'd Arms extend, And leaning, push'd by Winds, towards him bend, It is a Doubt whether the Trees would have bent towards him, had they not been pufhed by the Winds. For my Part, I am inclined to think they would; for had they been unwilling to do it, they need not have stretched out their Arms, as they did,

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And

but could have kept them clofe to their Sides. that they were earneft to help them, is confirmed by what follows immediately:

But vainly stretching out their Fingers grey, They whifp'ring call, and beckon him away. What a fad Fright muft they be in? They not only stretch out their Arms but their Fingers. Fingers grey, is an elegant and just Expreffion; though it requires a little Circumlocution to explain it. Hoary fignifies grey (as Canus in Latin, and hoary Hairs are the fame as grey Hairs) and hoary likewise means frofty, from Hoar-froft. Now as the Fingers of the Trees were covered with the Froft, they were hoary, and if hoary, grey. How judiciously does our Poet employ his Epithets! W-RB-RT-N.

Zoilus, Jun. impertinently cavils at this truly grand Paffage, in the following Words: What Occafion (fays he) had the Poet to fay, that the Trees ftretched out their Fingers, when he had told us before, that they extended their Arms. This is Tautology. And why (fays the Critic) did they only whispering call him? They thould have hollaed out as loud as they could bawl, or elfe they could not be heard.' So far Zoilus; but in the firft Place, Fingers here is not Tautology; for could not the Trees ftretch out their Arms, and yet double their Fifts? Befides it was neceflary, you fee, for the Trees to ftretch out their Fingers, as well as their Arms, to beckon him away. As to the Second Remark, would he have the poor Trees do more than they could ? A whole Foreft, when heartily thumped by furious Blafts, could but mew at moft, as we find fome Lines above; then furely the fimple Trees could but whisper. And as they grew very near the Bank, Whispering was enough, and could very well be heard. Nay, if they could not, fomebody else might; For

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The

The Ice with crackling Voice bids him retreat, And from the Centre underneath his Feet, Darts to the Banks his shining Character, The older MSS. have it, cackling Voice; but, as Scaliger obferves, this Expreffion can only be applied to a Goose wherefore he rightly alters it to crackling, which is the Tone of Voice Ice always speaks in.

The Sun beholds the Silver-beaming Star, And veils in thick'ning Clouds his melting Light, The Winter-monarch fhivers at the Sight. By the Winter-monarch is certainly meant his frigid Majefty,

King January, newly in his Reign.' who, though Cold is as natural to him as his Skin, yet could not help shivering at this lamentable Spectacle.

While from his Icicle-fring'd Seat of Snow,

In frozen Equipage, amid the Blow

Of Ice-lip'd Winds, o'er Hail-white Pavements roll'd,

He breath'd from Marble Lungs increafing Cold.

We have here a particular Defcription of his Majefty's State Coach. The Cushion was made of the fineft blanched Snow; and edged round with a beautiful Fringe of Icicles, a la-mode de Paris. And when his Majefty chofe to tafte (or take) the Freezing Air,' he always went in a frozen Equipage, which, instead of being dragged by Horfes, was pushed along by half a Dozen chubby-faced Winds with Lips of Ice, and rattled over the Ways which were paved with huge Hail-ftones. How fuitable is this to the Grandeur of a Winter-monarch! And how much does it exceed the famous Description of Neptune in Homer's Iliad, Book the 13th.

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