reveries. Often, however, the bye-roads of affociation, as we may term them, lead to rich and unexpected regions, give occafion to noble fallies of imagination, and proclaim an uncommon force of genius, able to penetrate through unfrequented ways to lofty or beautiful conceptions. This is the character of Pindar's genius, the boldness of which more than compensates for its irregularity. The trueft genius is in hazard of fometimes running into fuperfluities, and will find occafion to prune the luxuriance, and rectify the dif order of its first conceptions. But this faculty can never be reckoned perfect, till it has acquired a capacity of avoiding them in moft cafes. It must fupply a large stock, and at the fame time manage it with economy. While it produces all that is necessary, it must evite all that is fuperfluous (p).

THUS to render genius complete, fertility and regularity of imagination must be united. Their union forms that boundless penetration which characterifes true genius. By their

This is well expreffed by Quintilian: fpeaking of the torical common-places, he obferves, that they will be hurtful, rather than beneficial; "Nifi et animi quædam ingenita natura, et ftudio exercitata velocitas, recta nos ad ea quæ Conveniunt caufæ, ferant." Inftit. Orat. lib. v. cap. 10.

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nius, when we attend to the multitude and variety of the materials, we wonder how the author could have found them all; and when we reflect how proper and apposite every part is, we are apt to think that it must have occurred to almoft any perfon. Such is the effect of copiousness and regularity of imagination, united and harmoniously exerted.

GENIUS implies likewife activity of imagination. Whenever a fine imagination poffeffes healthful vigour, it will be continually ftarting hints, and pouring in conceptions upon the mind. As foon as any of them appears, fancy, with the utmost alertness, places them in every light, and enables us to pursue them through all their confequences, that we may be able to determine, whether they will promote the design which we have in eye. This activity of imagination, by which it darts with the quickness of lightning, through all poffible views of the ideas which are prefented, arifes from the fame perfection of the affociating principles, which produces the other qualities of genius. These principles are fo vigorous, that they will not allow the mind to be unemployed for a moment, and

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at the fame time conftantly fuggeft the defign of the work, as the point to which all this employment tends. A falfe agility of imagination produces mere ufelefs mufing, or endless reveries, and hurries a man over large felds, without any fettled aim: but true genius purfues a fixt direction, and employs its activity in continually starting fuch conceptions as not only arife from the prefent idea, but alfo terminate in the general fubject: and though a thousand arrangements of the conceptions which it ftarts, fhould fail of anfwering the intention, it is indefatigable in trying new arrangements, till it can happily accomplish one that anfwers it. Whenever an image or a fentiment occurs to the poet or the orator, imagination fets it in every poffible light, enables him to conceive its genuine effect, and thus puts it in his power to judge, whether it ought to be rejected or retained. A philofopher no fooner thinks of an experiment or an argument, than imagination, by reprefenting it in every attitude, enables him to determine, what will be its force, and whether it will be to his purpofe. In this manner the refilefs activity of imagination

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union they will be both improved: the one will give us an ample choice; the other will prevent our choice from being perplexed with .* needless multiplicity. An extensive imagination, impreffed with a strong affociation of the design, and regulated by it, will draw out from the whole compafs of nature, the fuitable ideas, without attending to any other. In studying the works of a great genius, we can scarce avoid fuppofing, that all poffible conceptions have been explicitly exposed to his view, and fubjected to his choice. The appofitę materials are collected in as great abundance, and prefented with as great propriety, as if this had been the cafe: and yet perhaps, no other ideas have occurred to him, but those which he has used. They, and they alone, have been prefented with entire propriety, by the regularity of a comprehensive imagination retaining fight of the defign through all the fteps, of its progress. This effect, which results from the union of these two virtues, is confpicuous in the great poet and in the great philofopher whom we have already mentioned, as eminently poffeffing both. It may be observed by contrasting a single defcription of Shakespeare or Thomfon,

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Thomfor, with the laboured delineations of a poetafter, who would fupply the want of genuine fancy by the industry of observation: in the former, all the striking features of the object, and none elfe, are ftrongly marked; in the latter, every circumstance feems to be taken notice of with the minutenefs of a natural hiftorian; but after all, thofe features are omitted, which are fitteft for making an impression on the fancy.-(Compare Euclid with his commentators; the oppofition that may be remarked between them, will fet the character of real genius in a strong light: the train of Euclid's propofitions is fimple, yet complete; his laborious expofitors appear to have intended to amafs all poffible propofitions, however trifling or unnecessary.) One can scarce read a paragraph in Butler's Analogy, or a chapter in Montefquieu's Spirit of Laws, without being ftruck with the notion, that the whole courfe of Providence was direaly in the view of the one, and the whole history of mankind in the view of the other; with fo great appearance of readiness do they obferve even the remoteft and leaft obvious circumftances which can any wife affect their argument. In ftudying a work of true ge

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