The modest critick, or, Remarks upon the most eminent historians, antient and modern with useful cautions and instructions as well for writing as reading history : wherein the sense of the greatest men on this subject is faithfully abridged / by one of the Society of the Port-Royal.

XXII. Digressions.

Digressions have also their a∣greeableness, when they are made in fit times, and that they have nothing too wide, nor too loose, because it gives to a Narration a Variety so necessary to make it agreeable; but they ought to be wisely mixed. An Author is apt to err when he goes from his Subject; for one whose head is not strong enough changes easi∣ly; and to quit your matter without precaution, to seek Ad∣ventures, and carry your Rea∣der abroad, does not belong so much to an Historian, as to a Writer of Adventures, who sticks upon every thing he finds to stuff up his Relation. He takes Ci∣ties, he fights Battels, he finds Adventures every where; as Hero∣dotus, who continually goes from

his Text, by his too frequent, and often forc'd Digressions; thô he took Example by Homer, who is indeed a great Master; for thô he soars often, he goes ne∣vertheless strait enough to his Mark, without losing time in things out of season. Thucydides has a better Order than Herodo∣tus; he confines himself strictly to his Subject: The Conspiracy of Harmodius and Aristogyton, in the Sixth Book, is one of those Narrations wherein he has ex∣cell'd most. Xenophon endeavours to imitate him: If he forgets himself sometimes, as he has done, lib. 5. of the History of Cyrus, in the Adventure concern∣ing Panthaea, yet that Adventure has a natural Relation to the Bo∣dy of his History; Panthaea ha∣ving been taken by Cyrus, in the Overthrow of the Assyrians, and Abradatus, her Husband, by that means coming to Cyrus's side, and becoming one of the chiefest of his Army. The plain Truth is, I would not be responsible for

〈1 page duplicate〉〈1 page duplicate〉

〈1 page duplicate〉〈1 page duplicate〉

〈1 page duplicate〉〈1 page duplicate〉

〈1 page duplicate〉〈1 page duplicate〉

〈1 page duplicate〉〈1 page duplicate〉

〈1 page duplicate〉〈1 page duplicate〉

the other Digressions of that Au∣thor, which are not quite so well coupled to his Subject in his o∣ther Works. p Polybius has fre∣quent Digressions upon Policy, knowledge of Arms, and upon the Laws of History, which do not appear very necessary: Sa∣lust sometimes commits the same Fault, wherein a Modern Cri∣tick blames them both. Photius praises much the Digression of Dionysius Halycarnassaeus, lib. 7. to describe the Consequence of A∣ristodemus's Tyranny. The Que∣stion about the Phoenix, lib. 6. Annal. Tacit. upon the news which came to Rome, of a Phoenix which had appear'd in Egypt, under the Reign of Tyberius, is according to the Rules of a just Digression: The Question is examin'd by the several Opinions of the Na∣turalists upon that Bird; his Qua∣lities, his Shape, all is describ'd there in few words. A Digressi∣on of that kind set in a due place, is of great Ornament to a Narration, and that helps to

spur the Curiosity of a Reader, and to rouze his Spirits. No∣thing also in Mariana's History contributes so much to that Air of greatness which it has, as the Art which he has of bringing in∣to it, by way of Digression, all that has happen'd considerable in the World, of admirable inefa∣bulous Ages, of remarkables in Greece, in Sicily, in the Roman Empire; a pretty particular Ac∣count of the Commonwealth of Car∣thage, which is no where else better than it is there; the Sieges of Saguntus and Numancia, the Passage of Hannibal into Italy, the Series of Emperours, the Birth of Christianity, the Preach∣ing of the Gospel, the Conquests of the Arabians, and many other things which look great. He has a Genius which is altogether for great matters, which hangs al∣ways some way or other to the Spanish History. No Historian ever honour'd his Countrey so much by any Work; for he has given his Countrey the Honour of e∣very

great thing that was ever done in the World. But as there are but few Spirits strong enough to follow the Stream of an Hi∣story, without taking breath, and tying themselves up to their Sub∣ject, without going out of it; so there are few Historians but will sometimes forget themselves, by doing the contrary in their Digressions. I will not take the pains to mark them; they every where occur; nothing being scar∣cer than that exact sense, which knows how to apply it self to its Subject: I shall only say, that q Livy has shunn'd nothing with more care than those by-ways which led him from his matter, as himself declares it, nothing being less judicious. But in our Historians, the same ridiculous hu∣mour may still be found, which r Lucian met with in his time, in them that wrote the Parthian War, who mix'd in their Nar∣rations the foolishest things in the World, to render them more di∣verting, running from Countrey

to Countrey, from Age to Age, from one Adventure to another, without any distinction. You must then lay it down as a cer∣tain and indispensable Rule, That Digressions ought to be connect∣ed always, by somewhat or other, to the Principal Subject in hand, as s that Judicious Historian we spoke of just now has always done; And you ought to examine well, whether in the bottom they have no natural antipathy; for if they have, they are not fit to be us'd; for nothing is more essential to the Digression, than the Affinity it ought to have with the Subject: The great Secret is, to know ex∣actly how far it ought to go; for it has its Natural Limits, which are not to be passed. That which renders the Proportion dif∣ficult, is, that the Extent of them ought not always to be the same; for it must be great or small, more or less, according to the Relation it has to the chief part of History; and the making a right Judgment here, is the

Rock upon which all Historians dash; for there are few which in their Digressions exceed not due bounds, it being the greatest dif∣ficulty to keep them exactly, and to rule themselves. In that there is a great deal to be said against Mariana, who in the beginning of his History has taken many ways to arrive at his Point: He has need of an Apology up∣on that, which I do not pre∣tend to justifie him in. The only Model a Writer may pro∣pose to himself in this, is t Li∣vy, who would not have left the Roman History to tell his Mind up∣on the Success of Alexander's Arms, had he come into Italy, without great precautions, and satisfying the Reader's mind with ample Ex∣cuses: The Discourse he makes up∣on it is very curious, and not at all out of season.

Notes

• p

  Polybius & Salustius ita peccarunt, ut nullam un∣quam veniam impetrarint dum digredi∣untur, &c. Ex Sebast. Macr.
• q

  Nihil mi∣nus quaeritum à principio hujus operis, quam ut plus justo abrerum ordine decli∣narem varieta∣tibusque di∣stinguendo o∣pera, legenti∣bus veluti di∣verticula quae∣rerem, l. 9. Annal.
• r

  Luc. de Conser. Hist.
• s

  Statuit non attingere ex∣terna, nisi qua Romanis co∣haerent rebus, Luc. l. 39. An∣nal.
• t

  Ut quae∣rere libeat qui eventus Roma∣nis Rebus, si cum Alexandro foret bellatum, futurus fuerit, Annal. l. 9.