--_Shakespear_, _Johnson_, _Shadwell_, _Etherege_, and _Wycherly_ have
shewn the Richness of this Source: They excell'd in the Variety and
_Humour_ of the Characters which they exhibited; and in this they have
receiv'd just Applauses: But yet they did not exhaust the Spring from
whence they drew: The ingenious Mr. _Congreve_ has pursu'd the same
Vein of _Humour_; and he has imitated his Predecessors so well, that
he has by far out-done 'em all. In his Dramatic-Pieces there is the
greatest Variety of _Humour_ and of original Characters, set off by
the greatest Delicacy of Sentiments, and adorn'd with the Beauties of
the justest Diction that can possibly be imagined. Mr. _Dryden_ must
be allow'd to be a competent Judge in an Affair of this Nature, and he
has given us the true Character and Panegyric of Mr. _Congreve_ in the
following Lines.
In him all Beauties of this Age we see; }
_Etherege_ his Courtship, _Southern_'s Purity; }
The Satir, Wit and Strength of manly _Wicherly_. }
'Tis true, there is some Difference between the Characters which
enter into the Composition of Dramatic Pieces, and those which are
represented by _Characteristic-Writers_; but this Difference is so
small, that I doubt not but he, who is an able Master in one of these
Kinds, would as successfully perform in the other.
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