sip of the latter than did the
mention of quiet Addison himself after the night in April, 1713, which
witnessed the triumph of "Cato." The essayist had always possessed,
like many other literary men, a secret longing to be the author of a
prosperous tragedy, and in his earlier days made bold to submit a play
to the inspection of Dryden. The poet read it with polite interest,
and, on returning the manuscript to the author, expressed therefor his
profound esteem, with many apologetic _et ceteras_, and only regretted
that, in his humble opinion, the piece, if placed upon the stage,
"would not meet with its deserved success." In other words, Dryden
saw that Addison was sadly wanting in dramatic instinct, but was too
forbearing to say this in plain, set terms. As for the young man,
he must have felt much after the fashion of the aspiring writer who
receives an article back from an unappreciative magazine with a
printed slip warning him that "the rejection of manuscript does not
imply lack of merit," &c. &c., the whole thing being intended as a
moral cushion to break the suddenly descending spirits of the sender.

Years later the great man was favoured with another cushion of this
sort by no less a person than his friend Alexander Pope, whose
august criticism he asked in behalf of "Cato." The major part of the
play--all of it, in fact, excepting the last act--had been written
when Addison first began to fall under the passionate influence of
French tragedy, with its tiresome regularity of form and attempted
imitation of the classic drama.[A] And a powerful influence it was
in the days of good Queen Anne, so powerful, verily, that it almost
emasculated the art of play-writing, and for a time well nigh bereft
the stage of originality of thought or freedom of expression. Form,
form, that was the cry still ringing in the ears of the author when he
put the finishing touches to a production which was to be famous for
the nonce, and then go down in the dark waters of oblivion with the
wreck of many like it.

[Footnote A: Just as the school of Racine and Boileau set its face
against the extravagances of the romantic coteries, so Addison and his
English followers, adopting the principles of the French classicists,
applied them to the reformation of the English theatre. Hence arose
a great revival of respect for the political doctrines of Aristotle,
regard for the unities of time and place, attention to the proprieties
of sentiment a