THE DUNCIA D. BOOK THE FOURTH. ARGUMENT. THE Poet being, in this Book, to declare the Completion of the Prophecies mentioned at the end of the former, makes a new Invocation; as the greater Poets are wont, when fome high and worthy matter is to be fung. He fhews the Goddess coming in her Majefty, to destroy Order and Science, and to fubftitute the Kingdom of the Dull upon earth. How fhe leads captive the Sciences, and filences the Mufes; and what they be who fucceed in their ftead. All her Children, by a wonderful attraction, are drawn about her; and bear along with them divers others, who promote her Empire by connivance, weak resistance, or discouragement of Arts; fuch as Half wits, tasteless Admirers, vain Pretenders, the Flatterers of Dunces, or the Patrons of them. All these crowd round her; one of them, offering to approach her, is driven back by a Rival, but the commends and encourages both. The first who speak in form are the Geniufes P 2 : Geniuses of the Schools, who affure her of their care to advance her Cause by confining Youth to Words, and keeping them out of the way of real Knowledge. Their Addrefs, and her gracious Answer; with her Charge to them and the Universities. The Universities appear by their proper Deputies, and affure her that the fame method is obferved in the progress of Education. The speech of Ariftarchus on this fubject. They are driven off by a band of young gentlemen returned from Travel with their Tutors; one of whom delivers to the Goddefs, in a polite oration, an account of the whole Conduct and Fruits of their Travels prefenting to her at the same time a young Nobleman perfectly accomplished. She receives him graciously, and endues him with the happy quality of Want of Shame. She fees loitering about her a number of Indolent Perfons abandoning all business and duty, and dying with lazinefs: To these approaches the Antiquary Annius, entreating her to make them Virtuofos, and affign them over to him: But Mummius, another Antiquary, complaining of his fraudulent proceeding, fhe finds a method to reconcile their difference. Then enter a Troop of people fantastically adorned, offering her ftrange and exotic prefents: Amongst them, one stands forth and demands justice on another, who had deprived him of one of the greatest Curiosities in nature: but he justifies himself fo well, that the Goddefs gives them both her approbation. She recommends to them to find proper employment for the Indolents before mention ed, ed, in the study of Butterflies, Shells, Birds-nefts, Mofs, &c. but with particular caution, not to proceed beyond Trifles, to any useful or extenfive views of Nature, or of the Author of Nature. Against the last of these apprehensions, she is secured by a hearty Address from the Minute Philofophers and Free-thinkers, one of whom speaks in the name of the reft. The Youth, thus inftructed and principled, are delivered to her in a body, by the hands of Silenus ; and then admitted to taste the Cup of the Magus her High Prieft, which causes a total oblivion of all Obligations, divine, civil, moral, or rational. To these her Adepts she sends Priests, Attendants, and Comforters, of various kinds; confers on them Orders and Degrees; and then difmiffing them with a fpeech, confirming to each his Privileges, and telling what the expects from each, concludes with a Yawn of extraordinary virtue: The Progrefs and Effects whereof on all Orders of men, and the Confummation of all, in the Restoration of Night and Chaos, conclude the Poem, |