"Not to difparage myfelf," faid he, "by the "comparison with fuch a rafcal, what art thou "but a vagabond, without houfe or home, with"out ftock or inheritance; born to no poffeffion "of your own, but a pair of wings and a drone"pipe? Your livelihood is an univerfal plunder

upon nature; a freebooter over fields and gar"dens; and, for the fake of stealing, will rob a "nettle as readily as a violet. Whereas I am a “domestic animal, furnished with a native stock "within myself. This large caftle (to fhew my "improvements in the mathematics) is all built "with my own hands, and the materials extract"ed altogether out of my own perfon."

"I am glad," anfwered the bee, to hear you grant at least, that I am come honestly by my "wings and my voice: For then, it seems, I am "obliged to Heaven alone for my flights and my ” mufic; and Providence would never have be"ftowed on me two fuch gifts, without defign"ing them for the noblest ends. I vifit indeed "all the flowers and bloffoms of the field and "garden: But whatever I collect from thence, "enriches myfelf, without the leaft injury to "their beauty, their fmell, or their taste. Now, "for you, and your fkill in architecture and "other mathematics, I have little to fay. In "that building of your's, there might, for aught "I know, have been labour and method enough; "but, by woful experience for us both, it is 66 plain, the materials are naught; and I hope

art.

you will henceforth take warning, and confider "duration and matter, as well as method and You boast indeed of being obliged to no "other creature, but of drawing and spinning "out all from yourself; that is to fay, if we may "judge of the liquor in the veffel by what iffues "out, you poffefs a good plentiful ftore of dirt "and poifon in your breaft. And although I "would by no means leffen or disparage your

genuine stock of either, yet, I doubt, you are "fomewhat obliged for an increase of both to a "little foreign affiftance. Your inherent portion "of dirt does not fail of acquifitions, by fweep66 ings exhaled from below; and one infect fur"nifhes you with a fhare of poison to destroy "another. So that, in fhort, the queftion comes "all to this, Whether is the nobler being of the

two; that which, by a lazy contemplation of "four inches round, by an overweening pride, "feeding and ingendering on itself, turns all into "excrement and venom, producing nothing at "all, but fly-bane and a cob-web; or that which, "by an univerfal range, with long fearch, much ftudy, true judgment, and distinction of things, "brings home honey and wax ?"

66

This difpute was managed with fuch eagerness, clamour, and warmth, that the two parties of books in arms below ftood filent a while, waiting in fufpence what would be the iffue. Which was not long undetermined: For the bee, grown impatient at fo much lofs of time, fled straight a

way to a bed of rofes, without looking for a reply; and left the Spider, like an orator collected in himself, and juft prepared to burst out.

It happened, upon this emergency, that Æsop broke filence firft. He had been of late moft barbarously treated by a strange effect of the regent's humanity, who had tore off his title-page, forely defaced one half of his leaves, and chained him fast among a fhelf of Moderns * ; where foon discovering how high the quarrel was like to proceed, he tried all his arts, and turned himself to a thousand forms. At length, in the borrowed fhape of an afs, the regent mistook him for a Modern; by which means, he had time and opportunity to escape to the Ancients, juft when the fpider and the bee were entering into the conteft; to which he gave his attention with a world of pleafure; and when it was ended, fore in the loudeft key, that in all his life, he had never known two cafes fo parallel and adapt to each other, as that in the window, and this upon the fhelves. "The difputants," said he, "have ad"mirably managed the difpute between them, "have taken in the full ftrength of all that is to "be faid on both fides, and exhaufted the fub"stance of every argument pro and con. It is but "to adjust the reafonings of both to the prefent " quarrel, then to compare and apply the labours "and fruits of each, as the bee has learnedly de

VOL. I.

M m

* Bentley, who denied the antiquity of Afcp.

"duced

See note,

p. 401.

"duced them; and we fhall find the conclufion "fall plain and close upon the Moderns and us. "For, pray, Gentlemen, was ever any thing fo "modern as the spider, in his air, his turns, and his "paradoxes? He argues in the behalf of you his "brethren, and himself, with many boastings of "his native ftock, and great genius; that he "fpins and fpits wholly from himself, and scorns "to own any obligation or affistance from with"out. Then he difplays to you his great skill "in architecture, and improvement in the ma"thematics. To all this, the bee, as an advocate "retained by us the Ancients, thinks fit to anfwer, "That if one may judge of the great genius or "inventions of the Moderns, by what they have

produced, you will hardly have countenance to "bear you out in boasting of either. Erect your "fchemes with as much method and skill as you "pleafe; yet, if the materials be nothing but dirt, "fpun out of your own entrails, (the guts of "modern brains), the edifice will conclude at last "in a cobweb; the duration of which, like that "of other spiders webs, may be imputed to their being forgotten, or neglected, or hid in a cor

ner. For any thing else of genuine that the "Moderns may pretend to, I cannot recollect; "unless it be a large vein of wrangling and fatire, "much of a nature and fubftance with the spider's "poifon; which, however they pretend to fpit

wholly out of themfelves, is improved by the "fame arts, by feeding upon the infects and ver

min of the age. As for us the Ancients, we 66 are content, with the bee, to pretend to no"thing of our own, beyond our wings and our << voice ; that is to fay, our flights and our lan66 guage. For the reft, whatever we have got, "has been by infinite labour and fearch, and "ranging through every corner of Nature. The "difference is, that instead of dirt and poifon, 66 we have rather chofen to fill our hives with

honey and wax; thus furnishing mankind with "the two nobleft of things, which are, fweetness " and light."

Im

It is wonderful to conceive the tumult arifen among the books, upon the clofe of this long defcant of Æfop. Both parties took the hint, and heightened their animofities fo on a fudden, that they refolved it fhould come to a battle. mediately the two main bodies withdrew under their feveral enfigns, to the farther parts of the library, and there entered into cabals and confults upon the prefent emergency. The Moderns were in very warm debates upon the choice of their leaders; and nothing lefs than the fear impending from their enemies, could have kept them from mutinies upon this occafion. The difference was greateft among the horfe, where every private trooper pretended to the chief command, from Taffo and Milton, to Dryden and Withers. The light-horfe were commanded by Cowley and Defpreaux *. There came the bowmen under

M m 2

their

* More commonly known by the name of Boileau. Hawkef..