The Hilliad us prefaced by a letter from Smart and a reply possibly written by Murphy. Both seek to draw connections between The Hilliad and the works of Alexander Pope and Fielding that criticize the "corruption" of modern writers. Following these letters is a "Prolegomena to the Hilliad" that claims to be an "extract from a paper called the Impertinent. Published Aug. 13, 1752. Written by Dr. Hill." The "extract" included an attack upon Smart. Following this "extract" is another from the August 1752 Gentleman's Magazine page 387 that responds to Hill's piece.
Included in the work is "An Accurate and Impartial STATE of the ACCOUNT Between Mr. Smart and Dr. Hill." The "account" includes 12 essays, six by Hill that claims Smart as his "debtor" for various "praises" and six that are "per contra creditor" over "his abuse". Although the "account" compiles all of the essays together, the original essay written by Hill was published 9 March 1751 and was not followed until 13 August 1752. At one point, John Newbery actually included a publisher's note to directly attack Hill's claims that he helped establish Smart by introducing the young poet to Newbery. The reason for adding the twelve "accounts" becomes clear when the editor ads the essays together and claim that The Hilliad is "Due on the Balance to the INSPECTOR." Although the "accounts" are satirically laid out, according to Lance Bertelsen, they represent "precisely the exchange of praise and abuse, and the notoriety established by such exchanges, that generated sales that put shillings in capricious hungry authors' pockets."
Read more about this topic: The Hilliad